Old Lady Xu glared at Xu Qingming and Gu again and said, "If I were Qin, I wouldn't give you any more money, because you give the money to the boss as soon as you get it, and the boss is happy to receive it, but you don't give a penny to others when they are in trouble."
The old man was so angry that he had no place to vent his anger. Upon hearing this, he picked up the pine stick on the table and hit Xu Qingming, cursing, "It's all because of you, a coward. You always listen to your wife. If you had helped the second wife more back then, they wouldn't be so self-centered and ignore us now that they're rich..."
Old Lady Xu continued, "Honestly, if they didn't care, would they have given us so many good things as a filial gift? Lan Zhou also said that he would increase the amount of money we would give as a filial gift in the future."
Gu was originally thinking about how to get her husband to carry the old man to get some money, but suddenly the anger turned to herself. With a red face, she dragged her two frightened grandchildren back to the room.
Xu Qingming explained his difficulties with a red face.
Xu Lanzhou had been absent-minded since returning from the main house, seemingly wanting to speak to Qin alone. Xu Lanyin figured he must have been looking for Qin about the 10% stake and the money from the Min government, and that the old man must have taught him something again.
After taking a shower in the kitchen, she went straight back to her room to rest.
In the east wing, after hearing Xu Lanzhou's words, Qin's face turned red with anger. She said, "Zhou'er, how could you have such thoughts? Shame on you. You've disappointed me so much."
Xu Lanzhou had always thought that Qin would stand on his side. He was a little stunned and said, "I am the eldest son of this family. Everything starts from our family. I must take good care of the Xu family's assets. I hope..."
Qin interrupted him and asked, "Well, you are the eldest son, you have to take care of the family business. Let me ask you, what have you done for this family?"
Xu Lanzhou proudly stated, "As the eldest son, I single-handedly endured our family's most difficult times. To this end, I dropped out of school, worked as a laborer, and devoted myself to this family. Therefore, I also hope that everyone in my family will be like me, wholeheartedly considering the best of this family without any selfish motives."
Thinking of those difficult times and the hardships her son had endured, Qin's eyes welled up. She said, "Yes, we were able to survive those past few years thanks to your family. We remember everything you've done and have never forgotten it. We're always trying to make up for what we owe you. Your eldest sister was terribly wrong before, and after realizing her mistake, she's been trying every possible way to make amends..."
After hearing these words, Xu Lanzhou's back straightened a little.
Qin changed the subject and continued, "To make life easier for this family, to get you back to school soon, and to nurse Mother and Lanting back to health, your sister went into the mountains to collect herbs and nearly fell to her death twice. Even after all this time, her hands are still as rough as an old woman's. She gave everything for this family. She built the shop all by herself, but it's in your name. She bought those dozens of acres with the money she earned, and that's also in your name. She earned thousands of taels of silver for the family, and the money is in my hands. The property is in your name. If she had selfish motives, would she do this..."
Xu Lanzhou interrupted, "That embroidered screen was embroidered by my mother."
Qin smiled bitterly and said, "Mother has embroidered so many pieces before, but they only sold for a few dozen taels of silver. That piece sold for a high price because your sister's flower bear pattern was the first to be sold, and most of the five hundred taels of silver was earned by her." She sighed and added, "Zhou'er, your sister will be sixteen next month. She's thinking about her future, which is natural and not wrong. Besides, the money from the Min government was used to pay your sister's medical fees, and that ten percent share was Young Master Hu's payment to your sister, not to the Xu family or this so-called eldest son of the Xu family. Why should it be in your name? Why should it be handed over to the family..."
Xu Lanzhou blushed and explained, "Mother, I'm not that greedy, and I haven't neglected my sister. I will prepare a generous dowry for her."
Qin snorted coldly, "You're preparing a dowry for her, and you're so calculating now. How much can you possibly prepare for her later? This money was earned by your sister with great effort, even risking her life. She's given so much to the family, so it's only natural that she should keep some for herself. As a brother, if you truly care about your sister, not only should you not ask her for more, you should also ask her to keep more and think more about her. Your sister is old, and she's been hurt by Gu Wangchen. I can see that if she can't find someone she loves, she'd rather be alone for the rest of her life. If she truly lives a life of solitude, I don't believe your wife and Lan Ting's wife will continue to respect her. If she wants to establish a household as a daughter and live on her own, she must have some property... If you truly care about your sister, you shouldn't do this. Thinking this way will hurt her..."
As she spoke, Qin burst into tears.
Previously, Xu Lanzhou had thought he was completely right, but after being scolded by Qin, he felt that he had been too narrow-minded and had let his sister down. He hurriedly said, "Don't be sad, mother. I know I was wrong. I don't want the 10% share anymore, and I'll leave the money given by the Min government to my sister."
Qin looked at her eldest son. He had grown taller than she was, his features becoming increasingly muscular, and he looked most like her husband. She said, "Mother's health wasn't good in the past few years, so I didn't teach you well enough. You're our eldest son. You need to broaden your horizons. Don't just focus on immediate gains, and certainly not just on money. You need to think long-term and be considerate of others..."
Xu Lanyin was half asleep when she heard Qin Shi return to her bedroom from the east wing. She regained consciousness, realizing that her brother was being too calculating... She became even more determined. If she didn't marry, no matter how Xu Lanzhou changed, no matter how kind her two brothers persuaded her, no matter how much Qin Shi objected, she would marry a woman and live alone when she turned twenty.
Fortunately, this era allows for the establishment of female households, so I can live a comfortable life in the second half of my life...
The next day, Xu Lanyin got up early to cook, sent Zhao Wu away, and asked him to carry a lot of gifts for his superiors, colleagues, and good friends.
Xu Lanzhou then stood up. Xu Lanyin could see that he was embarrassed and wanted to talk to her. But Xu Lanyin ignored him with a blank face, put the food on the table, and went into her room.
You have to give this naughty kid a cold shoulder.
After Qin got up, she pulled Xu Lanyin aside and talked for a long time. She first apologized on Xu Lanzhou's behalf, and then told him about his previous difficulties, asking Xu Lanyin to understand him and not to create a rift with him, let alone with this family.
Xu Lanyin said, "I can disagree with him. However, if he treats me like this now, he will treat him the same way in the future when there is a conflict of interest with Lan Ting, which will cause family discord and estrangement between brothers. Moreover, as a boy, he has lofty ambitions, such as wanting to take the martial arts exam and become an official. Such vision and mindset will restrict his future development and even cause trouble for the family..." He then talked about his long-standing plan, "Our family now has nearly a thousand taels of silver in savings. We might as well buy a house in the county town to make it convenient for my younger brother to go to school and keep Lan Zhou away from my grandfather so that he is no longer influenced by him..."
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