Xiao Wenjing felt upset whenever he thought of his youngest daughter. Although she had a stable job, she was strong-willed and it would be difficult for her to find a husband.

Seeing that her eldest son remained silent, Granny Yang continued, "Li Tianci from our village is quite good. He's hardworking and has also received an education."

Xiao Wenjing didn't think so. Although Li Tianci had some schooling, he was weak and sickly and might die at any time. How could he be worthy of his daughter?

However, he couldn't directly contradict his mother, so he said tactfully, "We still need to ask Wanqing what she thinks. If she's unwilling, we can't force her."

Grandma Yang nodded. "Yes, you're right. But a girl's marriage should be decided by her parents. Our Xiao family is considered a prominent family in the village, so we can't just marry her off to anyone."

Xiao Wenjing sighed inwardly after hearing his mother's words.

He knew his mother meant well, but he also hoped his daughter would find a good family and not end up like his eldest daughter, marrying a man who only had children.

Grandma Yang smiled confidently and said, "Don't worry, Wenjing, leave this to me. I'll definitely find Wanqing a good husband."

At that moment, Luo's voice came from outside the door.

"Mother, don't trouble yourself with Wanqing's marriage. That brat has been rebellious since she was little, and most people can't handle her." Madam Luo walked into the room indifferently. She saw that her brother-in-law was still there, so she greeted him.

When the eldest daughter-in-law suddenly barged in, Granny Yang immediately turned hostile: "Wenjing's wife, do you think that just because we've separated the family, I have no right to interfere in Wanqing's marriage?"

When Luo saw her mother-in-law get angry, she was too frightened to look at her.

"Mother! You...you've misunderstood your daughter-in-law. Your daughter-in-law is mainly worried that Wanqing won't agree."

Seeing her second son give her a meaningful look, Granny Yang immediately softened her tone and said earnestly, "Wenjing's wife, I know you care about Wanqing, but she's not young anymore and should start thinking about marriage. I think the young man from the Li family at the east end of the village is quite good. What do you think?"

Upon hearing this, Luo was greatly surprised. Although the Li family boy at the east end of the village was an only child, he had been frail and sickly since childhood and relied on medicine every day. If her daughter married into the family, she would be widowed at any time!

"Mother, my daughter-in-law doesn't want to make the decision for Wanqing's marriage anymore. Her sister is a perfect example of that," Luo sighed softly.

When Granny Yang saw that her eldest daughter-in-law disagreed, she immediately became unhappy. "A girl will get married sooner or later, how can we let her have her way?"

Xiao Wenjing quickly tried to smooth things over: "Mother, my wife has a point. Ultimately, it depends on Wanqing's own willingness."

Granny Yang glared at Xiao Wenjing in exasperation, "What do you know? Marriage is a serious matter, not something to be taken lightly!"

“Mother, young people these days all have their own ideas, so please don’t interfere,” Xiao Wenkai tried to persuade his mother. “Besides, Wanqing is strong-willed, and she wouldn’t even look at the Li family’s boy. We should respect her choice.”

Granny Yang snorted, "You all just spoil her! I've eaten more salt than you've eaten rice, would I harm her?"

"Mother, calm down. Getting angry is bad for your health," Xiao Wenjing quickly comforted her. "How about this, I'll have a good talk with Wanqing another day and see what she's really thinking."

Madam Luo chimed in, "Yes, Mother, let's hear Wanqing's opinion first. After all, this concerns her lifelong happiness."

Seeing this, Granny Yang had no choice but to give up. "Alright, then we'll wait until Wanqing comes back to talk about it. But let me tell you, I've already arranged this marriage, so don't even think about causing trouble."

After saying that, Granny Yang turned and went back into the house. Xiao Wenjing and Madam Luo exchanged a wry smile; it seemed that resolving Wanqing's marriage was indeed a headache.

"Brother, sister-in-law, don't worry, I'll talk to Mother properly."

Xiao Wenkai was extremely depressed. They had just separated their households, and his mother was already in a hurry to arrange a marriage for her little niece. She didn't care about being ridiculed by the villagers.

Xiao Wenjing frowned slightly. "Second brother, that Li family boy is really no good. Although his family is well-off, he's just a sickly person."

"Don't worry, brother, leave this to me."

Xiao Wenkai didn't want to be branded as ungrateful. If it were a good family, he would definitely support them, but Li Tianci was really not suitable.

He suspected that his mother had chosen the Li family because they would offer a generous dowry.

"Brother, let me go and talk to Mother first. Don't worry too much."

"Second brother, I'm begging you!"

Xiao Wenjing saw his younger brother out before turning around and going inside.

"Honey, what... what should we do?" Luo was so anxious that tears streamed down her face. She was terrified that her husband would agree to the marriage.

"Don't cry, I have my own plans for this."

Xiao Wenjing was also very worried about his daughter's marriage. Once his mother made a decision, no one could change it. He had to find a good family for his daughter before the Li family came to propose marriage.

"I'll go see Chuan'er and ask for his opinion."

Xiao Wenjing sighed and got up to leave.

"Honey, Chuan'er has gone up the mountain to chop firewood." Luo called out to her husband as soon as he left.

"What? He just woke up and went up the mountain to chop firewood. Why didn't you stop him?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Wenjing glared at his wife with resentment.

“I tried to stop him, but he wouldn’t listen.” Mrs. Luo was also very worried about the father and son.

Xiao Wenjing suspected that his daughter-in-law had arranged for his son to go chop firewood.

"Honey, which mountain are they chopping wood on? I'd like to go and take a look."

“They’re at Baihua Mountain. I’ll go with you,” Luo replied, then quickly ran to her son’s bedroom and gave her husband the egg pancakes she had hidden in the oil paper bag.

...

When Xiao Wenjing and his wife arrived at the mountain, they found Xiao Jingchuan halfway up the mountain, chopping down a large tree with an axe.

"Chuan'er, stop right now!" Xiao Wenjing shouted.

Upon hearing his father's voice, Xiao Jingchuan immediately stopped what he was doing and turned around.

"Father, what brings you here?" Xiao Jingchuan asked in confusion.

"You child, you went up the mountain to chop firewood before you've even recovered. What if you get injured?" Xiao Wenjing scolded angrily, glancing around as he spoke.

"Father, I'm alright now, don't worry." Xiao Jingchuan was both happy and worried about his father's concern.

Xiao Wenjing's heart softened, and he stepped forward and patted his son on the shoulder.

"Chuan'er, with your father here, you don't need to do housework. Your task now is to take good care of your health."

Xiao Jingchuan nodded. "Understood, Father."

Looking at his son, Xiao Wenjing felt extremely gratified; the lineage of their main branch had finally been preserved.

"By the way, Chuan'er, where are your wife and Wanqing? Didn't they go up the mountain to chop firewood with you? Why are they nowhere to be seen?" Xiao Wenjing suddenly asked.

"They went to pick bamboo shoots." Xiao Jingchuan pointed to the southwest.

"That's ridiculous. You can't eat bamboo shoots as a meal. They must have nothing better to do."

Xiao Wenjing snorted coldly and said, "It must be your wife's idea. She's been getting more and more outrageous lately."