“It’s true that my aunt is my cousin’s biological mother, but she has more than one son. She can’t expect the child she abandoned when he was young to support her in her old age, let alone her entire extended family. No one could accept that.” Gao Jie had heard more about the Bai family than her father did from what she had heard during this time.

“That’s right, even if my cousin doesn’t care, she can’t say anything. Besides, Mom is constantly working in the fields, and my aunt is even younger than Mom. Why are you starting to talk about taking care of your parents now?” Gao Liang also disagreed.

"Aren't they just adjusting to life in the countryside? Since Acheng has the ability, he should lend them a hand."

“What’s there to be unaccustomed to? Didn’t Auntie grow up in the countryside? I think they just don’t want to adapt.”

"You brat, I haven't even said anything to you yet. You don't even greet your aunt properly, and now you're making these sarcastic remarks."

"Dad, you only see how hard Auntie works, but why don't you mention how hard my brother works too? This whole family has elderly parents and young children to support, and if you add Auntie's large family to the mix, who can handle it?" Gao Jie quickly changed the subject when she saw her father about to get angry at her brother.

"That's right. You can't just focus on one sheep and take advantage of it. Don't forget about my aunt's stepson. She has three children. It's only barely fair when the cost is split among the three of them. You know, my brother Cheng hasn't received a single bit of care from her all these years."

Upon hearing his children's words, Gauzyan also fell into deep thought.

"Dad, if you were Cheng-ge, what would you do?" Gao Jie directly posed a practical question to her father.

If it were him, what would he do? Gotsian was stumped by the question. He figured he definitely wouldn't interfere. At this moment, he seemed to understand his nephew a little.

"Go back, no need to see me off. I'm too lazy to go that far again."

"It's alright, since we've already brought you here, I'll take you to the village entrance before going back."

"If you need anything here, go to your brother. He's probably annoyed with me this time, but he definitely won't have any complaints about you." Gao Zian thought about how he had impulsively brought his sister to the Yun family's house, and he didn't know what his sister and the others had done to offend them so much that they were kicked out. Now he had offended his nephew and his sister-in-law's family. He didn't know how he would be scolded when he got back.

"Could we not tell your mother about this yet?"

"Back then, I tried to pull your clothes off, but you ignored me and even chased me to the back of the mountain. Now you know how to be scared, right?"

"I didn't think of these things at the time, did I? Besides, I was just showing them around, I didn't do anything." At this moment, Gao Zian dared not reveal his little plans.

"Do you think your mother doesn't know? When they stopped you at the village entrance, everyone in the village saw it. You should go back and tell your mother yourself, otherwise she'll be even angrier if she hears it from others." Gao Liang had had enough of the somber atmosphere at home lately, and if he helped cover this up, he would be implicated as well.

"I don't know what your aunt and the others said that made A-Cheng kick them out."

"I'll ask around later, but you can't get involved again before then." Gao Jie was still very worried, afraid that her father would be used as a pawn by her aunt and the others again.

When Gao Zian returned, he was bound to get a severe beating from his good aunt, but that's another story.

In the days that followed, everyone continued digging the reservoir as usual.

Si Cheng didn't mention a word about what happened that day, and even though Yun Qi heard about it later, he didn't ask. However, everyone in the village knew about what happened that day, and many were shocked. They couldn't believe there was still such a mother; it shattered everyone's worldview.

When Gao Shuzhen and her son returned to Baijia Village, they were refused entry at the door by the Lian family.

“You two are always wandering around aimlessly, neglecting everything at home. Since you’re not really connected anymore, you should just find somewhere else to move out.” After his son and daughter-in-law’s constant persuasion, Lian Qingfeng’s initial reluctance to part with Gao Shuzhen and her son had completely cooled due to their inaction.

Lian Jianpeng had originally planned to extort some money from Si Cheng when he visited Pinghe Village, intending to then get rid of the mother and son. However, Bai Shuzhen's eldest son proved to be unyielding, and given the information he had gathered, he dared not approach them. Seeing the mother and son return empty-handed from Pinghe Village this time, even his last hope of gaining an advantage was dashed, so he simply separated them.

"Do you have any conscience? I've sacrificed so much for your Lian family over the years, and now you're just kicking us out like this?"

“Aunt Zhen, you can’t say that. Although you’ve been with our Lian family for so many years, we haven’t let you go hungry. We even supported Dongxing through university. But look at how disrespectful he’s shown my father lately. Since we all look down on each other now, it’s better to separate.” Lian Jianpeng had long disliked Gao Shuzhen and her son. When he was younger, his stepmother only showed him superficial kindness. Later, when he grew up, he considered getting his father to divorce her, but then the issue of family property came up, so it was left unresolved. Now that those factors are gone, and her brother and eldest son aren’t getting any advantage, it’s better to separate.

“We can separate, but we’ll take half of the things in the house.” Gao Shuzhen knew that her stepson’s family was difficult to get along with, and she and Gao Dongxing had already discussed how to get rid of the Lian family on their way from the city to the countryside.

"You want half of the family's things? If there's anything in this house that belongs to you, just tell me and you can take it with you." Zhang Xiaohan leaned against the door frame, stroking her slightly protruding belly.

It was only then that Gao Shuzhen remembered that when they moved, she and Gao Dongxing only took a few clothes and the food rations they had been given.

"Shuzhen, after so many years together, we all know what kind of people the other is. Take your food rations with you, and let's part ways amicably." Lian Qingfeng didn't want to make things too ugly, so he gave them everything that belonged to the mother and son.

"If you only give us rations, how are we supposed to survive? We're taking all the food we brought from my brother's place too."

The Lian father and son hesitated upon hearing this. They knew that although Gao Shuzhen hadn't taken many things from their Gao family home, they were still quite practical items, including iron pots and pans. If she took all these things, their family's life would become very inconvenient.

“Besides these, we also need two more houses.” Gao Shuzhen knew that they couldn’t move away from Baijia Village right away.