Chapter 229 My biased mother wants me to adopt my younger brother’s son!
When Li saw Ning Chi coming, she said happily, "Chi'er, please sit down. No need to be so polite!" But even so, she did not let go of Ji'er in her arms.
Ning Chi felt a sinking feeling in his heart when he saw that his second brother, who was already ten years old, was still being hugged and kissed by his mother.
In the past, his mother paid more attention to him, the eldest son. Although she also loved his second brother, the second son, she did not value him as much as him. When the two of them were together, his mother's attention was mostly focused on him.
But at this time, when he came, his mother just greeted him with a smile, and continued to hug his second brother and kiss him, and her attention shifted from him to his second brother.
Ning Chi had never realized so clearly at this moment how much influence his second brother being adopted into the eldest house and very likely to inherit the Duke's Mansion in the future would have on him.
Although my second brother was adopted out and could no longer be considered my mother's son in name, my mother's most valued son changed from him to my second brother.
Ning Chi's hands, which were hidden under his wide sleeves, unconsciously clenched into fists, and a strong sense of unwillingness rose in his heart - why did his second brother become the heir to the Chengguo Mansion? Just because he is younger than me? It’s obvious that my uncle prefers me to be the heir!
Ning Chi was old and could still manage his facial expressions well, so he did not show any resentment or dissatisfaction in front of Li. However, his ability to conceal his emotions was not so outstanding that even Li, his biological mother, could not see it.
So Li could see that he was unhappy.
Li cared about her youngest son for a while, then let him go back to school. When she and Ning Chi were alone in the room, she asked directly, "What's wrong with Chi? Are you in a bad mood? What unhappy things have happened? Can you tell your mother?"
Li has always been a loving mother in front of her children, so all three children are very close to her.
Although Ning Chi was a little dissatisfied with his mother paying more attention to his second brother, it was precisely because he cared about his mother that he wanted to compete for favor with his younger brother.
Ning Chi did not hide it from Li, and spoke out his true feelings: "Mother, I heard that my second brother was adopted by my eldest uncle?"
Li couldn't help laughing when she heard this. She had been planning for more than ten years, and now she was finally going to get what she wanted. She was so happy that she couldn't express it in words: "Yes, although Ji Ge'er will be adopted into the eldest house in the future, you are still brothers connected by blood. When Ji Ge'er inherits the Chengguo Mansion in the future, you don't have to worry about us being kicked out of the Chengguo Mansion."
Li has seen very clearly over the years that the reason the second branch has not separated and can continue to live in the Chengguo Mansion is all thanks to the support of her mother-in-law, Zhang. If Zhang dies, the second branch will have to move out of the Chengguo Mansion.
Li has been living in Duke Chengguo's mansion since she got married. How could she be willing to be kicked out one day in the future? Therefore, she has always been jealous of her sister-in-law Cheng, and wanted to become the mistress of Duke Cheng's Mansion, so she had evil thoughts and used this method to seize the title of the first wife.
Now her second son Ji Ge'er has been adopted into the first house and will be the heir to the first house's title in the future. As Ji Ge'er's biological mother, even if she can only be considered an aunt in name, is there anyone who really regards her as the aunt of the future owner of the Duke's Mansion? Blood ties cannot be severed.
However, although Li was happy at this moment, she did not expect that what she said would be like a sharp knife piercing the heart of her eldest son.
Ning Chi thought, his mother was worried that their second branch would be kicked out of the Chengguo Mansion in the future. So after his second brother Ji Ge'er inherited the Chengguo Mansion, would he, the eldest brother, also have to worry like his father and mother, that one day he would be kicked out of the Chengguo Mansion by his brothers?
Ning Chi is not young anymore, and he has a clear understanding of the relationship between the first and second branches of the Chengguo Mansion. The first branch is the heir to the title, and the Chengguo Mansion belongs to the first branch. The second branch relies on his grandmother's favoritism to allow his mother to be in charge of the household affairs of the Chengguo Mansion. However, even so, in name it is his mother who assists his grandmother in managing the household affairs. Otherwise, if the second branch's wife treats the Chengguo Mansion as her home, it will bring bad reputation to others.
But no matter how partial my grandmother was, the one who inherited the title was my eldest uncle, and he was the rightful male owner of the Chengguo Mansion. It was only because my eldest uncle was filial to my grandmother and was willing to sacrifice my eldest aunt's interests and make concessions for power in the backyard that my grandmother and his mother were able to enjoy their current glory.
However, once my uncle is unwilling to give in and makes a decision, even my grandmother can do nothing about it.
The title is the most important!
The eldest uncle is Duke Chengguo, so the second branch of the family lives in constant fear that they will be kicked out of the house one day.
Then, when his second brother becomes the Duke of Chengguo in the future, he, as the eldest brother, will have to bow his head and curry favor with his younger brother in order not to be driven out of the Duke of Chengguo's Mansion by his younger brother. When he gets married and has children in the future, his younger brother will also have children, and his younger brother's children will inherit the Duke of Chengguo's Mansion. As the eldest uncle, can he still shamelessly continue to live in his nephew's house?
At this moment, Ning Chi deeply empathized with Li, and his panic was even greater than Li's.
Because he was the son of the second wife, he was worried that his family would be driven out of the Chengguo Mansion by his uncle; in the future, he would still have to depend on his younger brother who inherited the title to live, and he would still have to worry about being driven out of the Chengguo Mansion. Couldn't he live openly in the Duke Chengguo Mansion and make it his home for the rest of his life?
In other words, couldn't he, Ning Chi, become the master of the Chengguo Mansion?
At this time, Li said: "In the future, the Chengguo Mansion will be ours. I wonder who can drive us out!"
Ning Chi thought in a daze: Yes, now that the Duke's Mansion belongs to me, no one can drive me out.
Ning Chi felt as if something was breaking out of his heart. It was scary and exciting.
Ning Chi lowered his head in a daze to hide his emotions, and said goodbye to Li on the grounds that he still had homework to do.
He walked hurriedly towards his yard, but because he was restless, he somehow shook off the servant beside him, took the wrong road, and ended up alone in the garden of the mansion.
At this time, a majestic voice came from the side: "Are you here to appreciate the flowers, Brother Chi?"
Ning Chi woke up from his trance and quickly turned sideways. Before he could see the face of the person who was speaking, he bowed: "Nephew greets uncle, uncle, how are you!"
He knew the voice was familiar just by hearing it, and knew that the person coming was his uncle, Duke Chengguo.
Si Yuan was also alone at this time. He walked to Ning Chi with a serious face, raised his hand to support Ning Chi, and softened his tone: "No need to be polite."
Ning Chi stood up straight and said, "My nephew just came to pay his respects to mother and wanted to come to the garden to enjoy the flowers."
Si Yuan nodded: "You study hard every day, come to the garden often to appreciate the flowers and trees, it's good for your eyes."
Ning Chi bowed his head respectfully and responded.
Si Yuan looked at Ning Chi. He actually looked down on Ning Chi. He was sixteen years old and had studied for so many years. He was said to be hardworking and intelligent, but he still couldn't even pass the exam to become a scholar. He could only stare at the title of Duke Chengguo. In the original plot, after inheriting the title of Duke Chengguo, he didn't make any achievements in the court and only wanted to take shortcuts to gain the credit of following the dragon.
But this did not affect Si Yuan's praise for Ning Chi at this time: "Chi Ge'er is very talented and hardworking. It's a pity that your uncle is not so lucky to have such a good son. Your brother is far behind you, but he is still young, I don't know if he can be taught better..."
It seems that Si Yuan is lamenting the different talents of the two children, but in fact he is trying to sow discord between the brothers Ning Chi and Ning Ji.
Ning Chi couldn't help but think: Yes, I am much smarter than my second brother. How can my second brother compare to me? Why can my second brother inherit my uncle's title, but I can't? Just because my second brother is six years younger than me?
At this time, Si Yuan said again: "Originally, Yun Ge'er died, and I wanted to adopt Zhen Ge'er, but I didn't expect that they didn't have this blessing. Maybe I am really unlucky with children. I lost my biological son and the adopted son..."
Ning Chi's heart moved, and the words 'the adopted son is also gone' seemed to play back and forth in his mind like some magic.
Isn’t it because Yun’er is gone that Ji’er was adopted into the eldest house and inherited the title?
If Ji Ge'er were to pass away, would I be the only choice left for the eldest wife?
As for whether the second branch would be willing to adopt him as the only son to inherit the title of the first branch, thus causing the second branch to become extinct, he did not care and did not think about it too much. He was only thinking that only if Ji Ge'er was gone would he have the chance to inherit the title of Duke Chengguo.
Ning Chi was in a state of confusion and he didn't even know when Si Yuan left.
It was his personal servant who found him and brought him back to his senses.
It seemed as if there were two villains pulling at Ning Chi's heart, and one of them was telling him: Only if Ji Ge'er is gone can you inherit the throne of Duke Chengguo, otherwise, do you want to live under your brother's control in the future? Look at how your father and mother now depend on your uncle. Have you ever thought about living in fear that you might be kicked out of Duke Cheng’s Mansion one day? Are you sure you can pass the imperial examination and become an official? If you don't plan to inherit the title, do you want to be a commoner in the future?
Another villain told him: Ji Ge'er is your biological brother, are you going to kill your own brother for the title? Is brotherhood more important than a title?
Ning Chi was hesitant, and the scales on both sides always maintained a delicate balance.
But it wasn't long before he made up his mind.
Because Ji Ge'er was brought up in the main house, and with the changes around Ji Ge'er, his uncle and aunt valued him more and more, the entire Chengguo Mansion, from the masters to the servants, all regarded Ji Ge'er as the future prince of Chengguo.
His younger brother, who was originally treated worse than him, was now treated better than him and was more valued than him, the eldest son. Ning Chi could not accept this gap, and the balance in his heart quickly tilted.
Soon he encountered a good opportunity, and Ning Chi felt that this was God's help.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com