"Don't think I don't know what you're thinking. You want to take over your brother's boat."

I'd rather die than let you have your way.

The woman's voice was filled with grief and indignation, and tinged with sobs.

The man outside immediately softened his voice and said.

"Sister-in-law, don't you think about this? I'm doing this for your own good."

You're a woman with three daughters, you know the rules here. Even if you have three daughters, can you get on the boat? What's the point of keeping that boat?

It is considered unlucky for a woman to board a boat; it is believed to bring natural disasters.

And even if my older brother has a son now, how old is that child?

"He's not even five years old yet, such a tiny little kid, how can he get on a boat? How can he go fishing? What will you all do for a living in the future?"

"Sister-in-law, I won't take advantage of you. My older brother is gone, but we are still family."

If you give me this boat, I'll give you two hundred dollars later.

I've already done more than enough by giving you and your children an additional 200 jin of grain each year.

"If it weren't for the fact that you're my sister-in-law, and these three children are my brother's flesh and blood, I wouldn't even have asked you about them."

"Two hundred yuan?"

Liu Lao Er, do you want to put your hand on your heart and ask yourself if you're speaking like a human being?

Go ask around among the neighbors and see if anyone can sell their boat for 200 yuan.

Your brother saved up his entire life's money to buy this boat.

We spent 5,000 yuan to buy this boat. You think you can buy it for 200 yuan? You're dreaming!

I'd rather starve than sell it.

Upon hearing this, Liu Lao Er immediately turned red in anger and roared,

"Fine, fine. You think I'm an ingrate? The clansmen will be here soon, and then I'll see if they side with you or with me."

"You're dreaming if you think you can let some outsider's bastard take over my brother's fortune."

The girl standing next to Qi Zai clenched her fists, trembling with anger.

Seven vaguely understood that he must have been sold to this family by human traffickers.

To be precise, this family was desperate and urgently needed a boy to inherit their business.

It must be a coastal city; I don't know how many days I've been unconscious.

I've come all the way from the freezing cold of Northeast China to such a warm place. Just by looking at how I'm sweating while sitting here, I know this must be a coastal city.

Moreover, the temperature is not low.

Moreover, it seems that the family that bought him is also pitiful.

It was indeed a pitiful family, especially in a coastal city where male offspring were valued, not only in the south but also in the north.

These days, people generally prefer sons to daughters, so if a family doesn't have a son, it's practically like the sky has fallen.

It's obvious that human traffickers targeted him because he was in high demand at his age.

Even if a child is four years old and has some memory, they won't remember things very clearly. If they are raised well, they will basically not remember anything from their childhood, nor will they know anything about their background.

Just from listening to this family, you can tell that the man was about to die and they finally managed to buy a boy. Otherwise, they wouldn't be able to explain how they ended up in this family.

The girl's eyes welled up with tears.

He threw down the towel he was holding and rushed out.

"Second Uncle, you're bullying us too much. We have boys in our family now. Even if the clan comes, they can't take our boat."

“You little brat, who gives you the right to speak here?”

Soon, they heard the girl cry out in pain. Qi Zai got out of bed, jumped off, and went to the door.

I leaned against the door frame and saw the scene in the yard.

A man in his thirties impatiently pushed the girl away, and the girl fell to the ground.

Her head must have hit something like a rock, because it started bleeding immediately. The woman next to her rushed to her daughter's side and hugged the child tightly.

He said with an angry expression,

"Second brother, your brother's body is barely cold, what are you trying to do?"

How could you lay a hand on your niece? Is there no law left?

You think you can do something just because you called the clan!

Your older brother has already registered this child's household registration and added his name to the family genealogy; he is our family's child.

He is your eldest brother's son.

Then look at the coffin in the yard.

Qi Zai understood that this family was probably desperate and had no choice but to buy one from human traffickers, otherwise the mother and her three daughters would probably have been kicked out.

In this situation, I could have simply stood by and watched, since the other party had bought me.

It's not that the other party is innocent just because they are not a human trafficker, but they seem genuinely pitiful.

This kind of helplessness of not having a son is very common these days, and many people have been bullied their whole lives because they don't have a son.

Not having a son is a sin. Not only will the children in the family be bullied, but the adults will also be bullied, and they will be unable to hold their heads up in the whole village.

When distributing grain, you will receive less; when distributing land, you will receive less; and when labor is needed, this family will be the first to provide it.

It's because your family has no male heirs, no one to support you, and no one who can act as the pillar of this family.

These days, grain is distributed in the village according to the number of males.

Women and children can only barely get a share thanks to the male offspring.

The man just sneered.

"Sister-in-law, let alone the fact that my elder brother is gone, we don't even know if he ever recognized him as his son."

Whether or not it's recorded in the family genealogy isn't up to you; it's up to the clan elders. They have to approve it.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!