The braised fish is already simmering over there. It's seasoned with scallions, ginger, garlic, Sichuan peppercorns, star anise, chili peppers, and brown sugar.

Just simmer it over low heat. Now that the main dishes are done, the rest can be used for stir-frying tomorrow.

Er Ya and San Ya were cooking a meal for the whole family in the kitchen, and the five people who helped them were also invited to stay for a meal.

It consisted of rice, leftover braised pork with potatoes, a small bowl of fried meatballs, and cabbage stewed with tofu.

Dinner was served after midnight. As Cheng Guangxu ate the food Er Ya had prepared, he felt he was in for a treat. His wife's cooking was so good.

After seeing off several people, Li Cuihua finally lay down on the kang (a heated brick bed).

Cheng Guangxu, with great foresight, prepared a bowl of malted milk powder and served it to Li Cuihua.

"Mom, get up and have a drink. You've worked so hard for us."

"What's there to be tired about? They're my own daughter and son-in-law. As long as you're both well, I'm willing to be tired no matter how much I'm exhausted. You should go and get some rest too."

"Mom, you rest. I need to go and explain the problems to Sanya and Shitou."

"Hehe, they're just lucky. They had Hongmei before, then her second sister, and now they have you. Go on, if they misbehave, give them a good slap."

"Hehe, Mom, how could that be? You should rest."

Shi Tou and San Ya were truly impressed by Cheng Guangxu's ability to explain the key points of a chapter to them in just one hour.

"Brother Cheng, why don't you become a teacher?"

Cheng Guangxu shook his head with a smile, "No, I did think about it before I went abroad. The country sponsored my studies abroad, so I should apply what I've learned. Now, my job should be able to serve the country even better than that of a teacher."

The two fell silent. That makes sense.

"Alright, here are two questions. I'll time you, the longest you can go is 15 minutes."

Er Ya was chatting with her eldest and third cousins ​​in the living room.

"Er Ya, I think your brother-in-law has a really good temper. Unlike your third brother-in-law, who glares and gets angry all the time."

"He's better than your brother-in-law; he won't be able to say a word even if you hit him with a stick."

"Hehe, you two have such a deep grudge. To be honest, we really don't know each other very well."

"It won't be bad, as long as you have a good temper. I heard from my aunt that you're getting married in May, are you coming back to hold the ceremony?"

Er Ya shook her head, "I really don't know. We'll see when the time comes. I'll be doing an internship then, so even if he takes leave, it won't be for too long. Why don't you two go to the capital together? Taking the train is a bit tiring though."

"We can't go. We have children and elderly people at home. It wouldn't be right for us to be away for ten days or half a month."

"It's okay, as long as we know my sister married well, that's enough."

"I can't be sure right now. We'll wait until his vacation is finalized."

As the three were talking, Liu Jianguo entered the living room.

Er Ya looked behind him but didn't see Yao Yufen.

"Big brother, why are you back?"

"How could I not come back for my sister's engagement?" Liu Jianguo still harbored some resentment.

Er Ya thought to herself, "Who are you messing with?" and ignored him.

He greeted his two older and younger cousins. Liu Jianguo headed towards his parents' room, but Liu Jianguo quickly stopped him, saying, "Mom just finished working and is tired, so she's sleeping. If you need anything, go find Dad, but I don't know where he is."

Liu Jianguo turned and left.

"Er Ya, what's wrong with you guys?"

“His wife bullied my mother, but he didn’t know, so my sister and I were angry with him.”

"Sigh! It's really hard to say. It might really be due to his carelessness."

"We also look down on that woman."

"Isn't he a pretty straightforward person?"

“She can’t even tolerate Sanya and Shitou eating. And all the money my parents and brother worked so hard to earn was squandered on her mother’s family. If her mother’s family were really poor, or if they were good people, that would be fine. It’s okay if her mother is always at my brother’s house. But she’s just inciting my sister-in-law to bully Shitou and Sanya.”

"Still that kind of person?"

"Alright, stop making such a fuss. You've married far away, and your brother still has to look after you. If things get tense, it won't be good for my aunt."

"She's got that in mind; I'll take care of my parents."

The two sisters fell silent. This is a difficult situation to resolve.

Liu Jianguo walked around the village and found Liu Maocai.

Following behind his father, the two of them went to the foot of the mountain.

"Dad, I've gotten all the money you gave me back. I need to divorce that woman."

Liu Maocai looked at his eldest son with disappointment. He had high expectations for him as the eldest son, but after so many years away, he still hadn't made any progress.

“Jianguo, go back and live your life. Your mother and I can still move around in eight or ten years, so we're fine. I said that day that everything in Liujiatun has nothing to do with you. After Erya gets married, how we, the old couple, take care of Shitou and Sanya is our business.”

Even if we get sick, become immobile, or die, we still have Stone and the others.

"Dad, are you saying you don't want me anymore?"

"Go live your own life. I've raised you, bought you a house, and helped you find a wife. That's all I can do."

You need to take care of yourself. Don't become estranged from your younger siblings, and don't let your wife move the whole family to her mother's house.

"Dad, I'm divorcing her."

"Are you out of your mind? The child is so young, how can you get a divorce? Go back and live a good life, your wife will teach you a lesson slowly."

"Dad, do you still recognize me?"

“I acknowledge that you are still my son, but we are now separating.”

Liu Jianguo stared blankly for a moment, then suddenly pulled a bag of money from his pocket. "Dad, this is the money you used to buy the house. I'm returning it to you."

“Jianguo, take it back and secretly save it. Keep it for when the children grow up. We don’t want it.”

After saying this, Liu Maocai turned and left. He didn't want to see his simple-minded son.

Liu Jianguo followed his father into the house. Li Cuihua was already awake by then. She didn't say anything as she saw Liu Jianguo enter.

“Mom.” Liu Jianguo knelt on the ground.

"Mom, I really didn't notice, and I never knew that Yao Yufen bullied Shi Tou and San Ya."

"Jianguo, get up. How can a mother and son hold a grudge overnight?"

"Mom, Dad said we should separate the family."

"Yes, we do need to separate. Your wife is unhappy that we're supporting your younger siblings' schooling. Others may not know, but you do, right? Hongmei pays for their schooling. We, the old couple, don't spend much money at all."

Your wife thinks this way because you've had similar thoughts. You should know that our family has almost spent all our savings on your job.

We treat you this way, and we'll treat your younger siblings the same way.

After Er Ya and the others leave, once the first month of the lunar calendar is over, we'll go to the city to find you, and we'll finish writing the family division agreement. That will be considered the division of the family property.”