Mother Fan immediately burst into tears, blaming herself, "It's all my fault for being useless. I raised you and your elder brother, and we sold a lot of land. Now we only have enough food to eat thin porridge."
If it weren't for you earning money to support the family, we probably wouldn't even have enough to eat! Without your help, how will this family survive?
Fan Jin seemed very troubled and sighed, "Forget it, since we've separated the family, we'll each live our own lives from now on."
I'll ask for less grain, but then I won't be able to support my mother with the money I earn in the future.
Sun Jinhua was overjoyed to hear that her brother-in-law wanted less grain.
When Fan's mother heard that her youngest son would no longer hand over money, she felt dissatisfied, but she didn't know what to say.
After all, he received less grain, and he had to use the money he earned to buy more grain.
Fan's mother and Sun Jinhua's group got a great deal on the grain, and everyone was overjoyed. The subsequent miscellaneous items went much more smoothly.
Iron is a precious metal. At home, there is an iron pot, a kitchen knife, a pair of scissors, and several hoes and shovels.
Hoes and shovels are categorized by quantity.
The iron pot, covered with yellow mud, belonged to Fan's mother and the others, while the kitchen knife and scissors naturally belonged to Fan Jin and Shui Qing.
The bowls were made of coarse earthenware. They were divided according to the number of people: two plates for serving food and one bowl for serving paste.
Since we didn't have a pot, we used a clay pot for stewing soup to make do for now.
Take your own clothes and bedding. As for the bed, Sun Jinhua had already decided which son would live in the room she vacated. A room without a bed is no good.
She couldn't possibly spend money and produce wood just to build a bed, so she only agreed to give them the bamboo bed.
“Sister-in-law, I’m not trying to be mean, but your insistence on separating the family is really brainless. You have no money and no house, so you’ll just be living a hard life anyway. It makes no difference whether you have a bed or not.”
Shui Qing pretended not to hear.
She had seen the bamboo cooling bed, which was exactly the same as the bamboo bed she used to cool off in the summer when she was a child. It was light and cool, and she nodded to Fan Jin.
Fan Jin smiled brightly at Sun Jinhua and said, "Sister-in-law, you're overthinking it. Whether life is good or bad is up to you."
Sun Jinhua's lips drooped, clearly indicating disbelief.
Farming is never easy.
The second son's family was small and weak, without even a house to shelter them from the wind and rain. After they left, the few sacks of grain they were given could only last them two or three months at most!
If you don't live a hard life, how can you expect to live a good life?
It's not even dark yet, I can already dream about it.
"Brother-in-law, let me make this clear in advance: if you ever find yourself struggling to make ends meet and need to sell your land, come and ask us first. This is called keeping the wealth within the family, you know?"
Fan Jin was not annoyed at all, and replied gently, "I only hope that my sister-in-law will remember this principle."
Sun Jinhua snorted angrily. Was this implying that their family had ended up having to sell their land?
What a joke! She has four sons! Having many sons is good; her life will only get better and better!
Mother Fan lifted her eyelids to look at her youngest son and instructed, "There's a sack of wheat bran here, ground up. It's okay if you can't eat it all. Just mix a lot into the porridge and give it to these two girls. Don't waste it."
Fan Jin's usually smiling face darkened.
Seeing that her youngest son remained silent, Fan's mother became even more furious and snorted, "Is your daughter so precious that she can't eat wheat bran?"
"I want to see what good your affection for them is! Once they grow up, get married, can you expect them to take care of you in your old age and see you off in your final days?"
"The bond between parents and children is a matter of fate. I am merely fulfilling my responsibilities as a father and do not seek anything in return," Fan Jin replied with a slight bow and a calm, steady voice.
Mother Fan was so angry that she choked. She took deep breaths and pointed at her youngest son, scolding, "You don't even want anything in return? Are you implying that I want something in return?"
No wonder he's still a mere student at twenty-eight, not even a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the county-level imperial examinations). What an inflexible and foolish fellow!
Shui Qing and the five children were all furious when they heard Fan Jin's mother scolding him.
Shui Qing stepped forward, about to argue, but was blocked by a strong outstretched arm.
She looked up and saw the man with his eyes lowered, his dark, moist eyes obscuring his expression. Only his beautiful, alabaster-white profile swayed slightly.
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