Chapter 98: Division (Part 2)
Split up the family?
It really is a family split! Wang Xifeng, who was standing behind Lady Jia, suppressed her joy.
Although judging from the old lady’s attitude, the eldest branch will definitely suffer a loss, but if the family is not divided, the loss will definitely be greater.
Wang Xifeng didn't care about the three thousand taels of silver that her father-in-law gave to Tanchun, Baoyu and Huan'er as dowry.
Since the family has not been divided, the money must come from their family.
If she sets aside these wedding gifts now, she and Lian Er will have less worries in the future.
Moreover, the father-in-law was a big spendthrift. The family's money was gone, and a lot of the property was divided up. He couldn't buy things so casually in the future, right? After Wang Xifeng took over as the housekeeper, she specially checked the family's previous accounts, which were really shocking.
The income is getting less and less every year, but the expenditure is getting more and more every year.
Fortunately, the eldest sister came back, otherwise, Wang Xifeng would not know how much more money they would have to spend.
Shen Ning seemed to look at each of them casually.
Jia She and Wang Xifeng seemed very grateful to be able to divide the family property, so grateful that they didn't care about the loss at all.
But the vested interests, Jia Zheng and Wang Shi, were obviously still not happy, even though their second branch had been the one to gain the upper hand from the very beginning of the division of the family.
On the other hand, she somewhat admired Jia Zhu and Li Wan, as they calmly accepted the fact of the family division and even felt a little guilty.
Obviously they also understood that they were taking advantage of the big house.
"Mother, I can't bear to leave you."
Jia Zheng waved to Baoyu, and the children also came over.
His father and mother were both crying, and he couldn't help crying, "Grandma, don't you want Baoyu anymore?"
The child cried and fell on Grandmother Jia's lap.
The old lady couldn't bear it any longer, so she leaned over and hugged Baoyu in her arms. "Baoyu, live with me, and the sisters Yingchun and Tanchun can still live as before. From now on, their expenses will come from me, and will no longer be charged to the public account of your two families."
She is biased, but what can be done?
The second son has no title and has many children.
"Mother, Rongguo Mansion is your home. My second brother is in the mansion, so you should remain the same as before."
Jia She said sincerely, "If the flowers in your yard come here by themselves, what kind of person will your son become? Can't he even support his own children?"
He doesn't care about the old lady's private property, because he has his grandparents' private property.
What Jia She always wanted was his mother's attitude.
Now that the old lady gave it to him when he had never thought about dividing the family property, Jia She was very satisfied.
Therefore, Jia She is willing to make more concessions in terms of property.
After all, no matter how much he gave in, the title was his, the Rongguo Mansion was his, and half of the public property was his.
That's enough.
"Okay! Okay, okay!"
The balance in Grandmother Jia's heart tilted towards the eldest son. "The remaining public property will be divided into ten parts. She'er, you take 60%, and the rest..., give 35% to Zheng'er. For the remaining half, choose only the farm and give it to the clan to be used as sacrificial land."
What? Jia Zheng was stunned.
He doesn't even have 40%? Why should the half that belongs to him be transferred to the clan? "Mother~"
His tears fell again.
"Niece-in-law, what do you think of this old lady's idea?"
Grandmother Jia seemed not to have seen her second son, so she turned to ask Shen Ning.
“Very good!”
Shen Ning smiled, "The clan school has a special sacrificial field, but although there are sacrifices at the ancestral tombs in four seasons, there is no fixed money and food."
In Dream of the Red Chamber, Qin Keqing told Wang Xifeng these two things in her dream before her death, but unfortunately Wang Xifeng did not listen.
However, even if she listened, it would probably be of no use.
The clan studies are in such a rotten state that giving money is a waste of money.
"There is no shortage of supplies for sacrifices nowadays, but the moon waxes and wanes, so I also intend to transfer two farms to be used as sacrificial fields."
Shen Ning looked at Grandmother Jia with admiration, "I didn't expect that Auntie thought of it before me. So, let's do it together. Buy more farms, houses, and land near the ancestral tomb. In the future, it will be just our two families..."
She thought about it.
The money for the sacrificial fields was given by the two families. If other branches of the Raja family came in, it would encourage them to get something for nothing.
"How about this, doesn't the clan still have some money? We can buy some land for sacrifices, and from now on, all the branches together will be counted as one share, and they will take turns with the two governments to manage the land, money, food, sacrifices, and supplies for the year. This will be a three-year cycle, and even if the clan falls, the descendants can go home to study and farm, and the sacrifices can continue forever.
Auntie, do you think this is a good solution?"
"...Good! Very good!"
Grandmother Jia was happy that she and her niece-in-law finally had the same idea and said, "Let's do it this way."
Jia Zheng: “…”
Wang: “…”
Both of them knew that this half achievement could never be recovered.
And the money in the clan...
They originally wanted to find a way out for Yuanchun!
Unexpectedly, we disappeared together like this.
For a moment, both of them looked a little gray.
"Jane, you don't have any objections, right?"
The old lady suddenly remembered Jia Zhen, the patriarch of the family, and asked him another question.
“I don’t dare!”
Jia Zhen always agreed with his mother's decisions, "I will follow the instructions of the old lady and mother in everything."
The old lady and mother were indeed further away than they thought.
He personally experienced the misfortune of his family, and even his title was two levels lower than that of Uncle She. If it is passed on to others, it will be even more pitiful. If Rong Ge'er and his descendants cannot take the imperial examination, this is the biggest retreat.
"That's settled then."
Grandmother Jia felt refreshed.
Isn't this what she left for her descendants to live on? "The things in the house are divided into ten parts, one of which is divided into two. She'er, you prepare it, sign it, and let your second brother take it. After he takes it, six parts are yours, and half is for the clan."
"yes!"
Jia She agreed very readily.
He did not suffer any loss by dividing the family business in this way.
"Baoyu, you go back with your grandmother today. Tomorrow..." Grandmother Jia looked at Shen Ning, "Can they go home tomorrow?"
"sure."
Shen Ning smiled, "Dividing the family is a big deal!"
Once the internal friction problem in Rongguo Mansion is solved, everything else will be trivial.
Shen Ning stood up, "Zhen'er, be a witness for your two uncles."
"yes!"
Finally I can sleep in a normal bed.
Jia Zhen was also happy, "Go slowly, old lady, go slowly, mother."
It would take a long time to manage all the industries in Xifu.
The old lady is old and his mother just came out of confinement, so they can’t stay up late.
Jia Zhen personally escorted them out of the ancestral hall before returning.
At this time, in the ancestral hall, Jia Zheng was still a little dazed, but Wang had no time to cry anymore and was looking at the list that Jia She had allocated to Yingchun.
Whatever amount the eldest brother gives to Yingchun, he must give to Tanchun, Baoyu and Huaner.
Although Baoyu is the only biological son among her three children, she is also the biological mother of Tanchun and Huaner. If the property is allocated to them, it would be equivalent to allocating it to the second wife.
Wang couldn't help but care.
She had her own private property for Yuanchun, Zhu'er and Baoyu, but Tanchun and Huan'er had their own property, so when the second house split up in the future, they would not be counted.
This division of the family... was not within Wang's budget, but it was barely acceptable.
At least Yuanchun and Zhu'er both made nearly ten thousand taels of silver from the public treasury when they got married.
Although Baoyu is a little younger, he has the old lady.
Wang knew very well that the old lady’s dowry and private property were, if not half of the Rongguo Mansion, at least one third of it.
Those things were enough for her Baoyu.
Wang had been in charge of the household for many years and knew very well what Jia She had taken away.
Wang Xifeng was also listening nearby, and she listened to every word very carefully.
The Jia family's assets, including several large manors, were all given by the royal family in the past. Later, two generations of dukes bought several more. After she became the head of the family, she knew everything about them.
What is now given to my sister-in-law and brother-in-law are all copied from Lai's family and Zhou Rui's family.
It was a free pick-up.
Wang Xifeng estimated in her mind how much 60% of her own family's income would be if she gave them the money.
After a while, she personally served a cup of tea to her busy parents-in-law.
This night was destined to be a sleepless night for the people in the ancestral hall.
Grandmother Jia, who had not slept well for many days, finally put down the heavy stone in her heart and slept very soundly.
The same goes for Shen Ning.
The two biggest problems of the Jia family have been solved, and she only needs to exercise some restraint in the future.
On May 17th, early in the morning, the masters of the two mansions staggered out of the ancestral hall and invited Shen Ning to go to Lady Jia's courtyard.
The reason why the property could be divided so quickly was mainly because after confiscating Lai's and Zhou Rui's homes, Jia She re-did the accounts to prevent Wang from stealing again.
Now it’s just a matter of removing the children’s portion and dividing the rest into ten parts.
"Sister-in-law, please come with mother to be a witness for us brothers."
The lots have been written, now it depends on whether my second brother is lucky enough to draw the best one.
Shen Ning looked at the number one to ten on the green-glazed lotus porcelain plate and flicked it gently, "Aunt, I'll ask the maid to rewrite the number one to ten. Is that okay with you?"
"……good!"
Exchange one, and no one can say that the other one is a ghost.
Grandmother Jia nodded after a slight hesitation.
Shen Ning gave Qingzhu a look, bowed slightly, and quickly went to the inner room. When she came out a few moments later, she took out eleven stacked sticks.
Among them, the tenth and eleventh were placed aside and were also drawn by Jia Zheng.
Jia Zheng had already been hinted by Wang, but now...
He bowed slightly to Jia She and said, "Thank you, brother."
"You deserve this brother."
The second brother did not cry and force his mother to change her mind. Now he was so polite, Jia She was willing to give him face, "Go ahead!"
The two manors given by Taizu were too large, with six and eight respectively recorded.
Originally, Jia She was worried that his second brother had memorized the marks on the number, but now... if he really draws it, it will be his luck.
Jia Zheng took a few steps forward and casually drew three large ones and one small one.
His casual look made Wang couldn't help but cover her chest.
"Seven, three, four."
Shen Ning looked at the sticks handed to her by the maid, read them, and showed them to Lady Jia, "This half is eleven."
Wang’s face turned pale.
Jia Zheng completely missed some of the best ones!
"Second sister-in-law, are you not satisfied with this?"
"satisfy!"
When Jia Zheng looked at her with a gloomy face, Wang forced herself to express satisfaction.
"That's good."
Shen Ning smiled slightly, "Next, let's move the things according to the signature!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Jia Zhen waved his hand, and ten maids came in, each holding an account book with numbers one, two, three... eight, nine, ten written on it.
"Three, four, seven, and eleven return to my second brother."
Shen Ning said: "Zhen'er, accompany your uncle and brother Zhu to move to Curry!"
"yes!"
"Excuse me, auntie, excuse me, big brother."
Brothers Jia Zhen and Jia Zhu spoke almost at the same time.
"Second brother, I will accompany you too."
Jia She made a gesture of invitation.
Jia Zheng bowed and quickly followed him out.
"Congratulations, auntie!"
Shen Ning raised her teacup, "My niece-in-law will use tea instead of wine, and I will toast to you from afar."
"Hahaha, you can't bear to part with your good Royal Wine Bar!"
Grandmother Jia slept well yesterday, and she felt that she had accomplished an important event in her life. Her mood recovered, so she asked for wine directly, "I don't want Yue'er's dowry wine, but you have to take out three jars of the good imperial wine that your father-in-law left behind, and give it to She'er and his brothers as a wine to drink for the division of the family."
"Three jars is too many."
Shen Ning looked like she couldn't stand it, "Half a jar."
"Why is it more?"
Grandmother Jia smiled and said, "Just think about it, how many brothers and nephews do they have?"
"Aunt, are you being too harsh?"
"Nonsense, I think you are just itching for trouble."
The old lady laughed, "Feng girl, hurry up and go over with your sister-in-law and get some wine."
Yu pursed her lips and smiled, "I don't have the key to the wine cellar."
"Don't look at me, I don't have any either."
When everyone looked at him with a smile, Shen Ning spread his hands and said, "I sealed the wine cellar and threw away the key. Before throwing it away, I took a jar of old imperial wine and gave two kilograms to Zhen'er, so now I can only share half a jar."
Ah? Grandmother Jia was shocked. "Why did you seal the wine storehouse?"
"I can't help it. There's a drunkard at home."
Shen Ning smiled, "No, I'm always worried that Yue'er's dowry wine will be secretly drunk by Zhen'er."
“…You, you!”
The old lady laughed, "Zhen'er knows, are you trying to guard against him?"
"I know he can't do anything about it."
Shen Ning smiled, "Aunt, didn't you see that before I stopped doing it, he always did it, but after I did it, he didn't dare to do it anymore?"
“Hahaha, hahaha…”
The old lady didn't hold it in her hand, and was amused by her. "Stop talking. If you keep talking, I will learn from you."
No, not only she has to learn from her, but all the daughters-in-law in this family will probably make trouble in the future.
"Feng girl, hurry up and grab that half jar of wine for me."
"No, no, no, no, grab that little bit and it will taste bland."
The reason why Shen Ning was brought out was that she wanted to taste the imperial wine, but she had just come out of confinement and didn't dare to drink it yet. "Zhen'er got a batch of Yuquan wine from outside, and asked him to bring three jars over later."
The old lady asked with a smile, "Then are you planning to give your drunkard a discount on the imperial wine?"
"How can that be possible?"
Shen Ning saw Youshi holding Wang Xifeng, and said with a smile: "My niece is going to drink by herself. From now on, have half a cup of good wine every night, and you will sleep better at night."
“…”
Wang, who hadn't left yet, couldn't help but look at her.
She felt sad, but these people were smiling happily.
Wang was very angry.
She felt that Shen was trying to make the old lady laugh just to make everyone laugh at her.
She split up the family business, and they celebrated with drinking!
Wang cursed in her heart, but the corners of her mouth were still pulled to suit the situation, making it seem like she was laughing.
"That's true."
Jia's mother was persuaded by Shen Ning, "Drinking a glass of wine at night can indeed help you sleep more soundly." She had accompanied the Duke to drink before, "No, you have to give me half of your imperial wine."
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