Upon hearing Xu San's words, Xu Laoda quickly nodded to his parents, "Father, Mother, we think the same way as Laosan."
The two elders gave them a dismissive look, thinking, "Why didn't you say so earlier?"
The two elders were once again convinced that their two sons were good-for-nothings, too selfish, and focused all their energy on guarding against others instead of trying to learn something new.
In the future, the Xu family's bamboo weaving craft will have to be carried forward and passed down by the third son.
The two elders exchanged a glance. "Since you've both decided this way, then let your father decide how we divide it, and you can take your share. If anyone says another word, they'll lose 10%."
After the old lady finished speaking, she gave her three sons a stern look.
The three of them nodded in unison, "We'll leave it to our parents to decide."
The other two wives were still shaken by Zhou Xing's outburst. Even though they were somewhat annoyed by their husbands' lack of ambition, they dared not utter a sound.
Zhou Xing, on the other hand, let Xu San make all the decisions and had no objections.
"All we have right now are two bamboo groves, a bamboo workshop (which is basically just our south-facing house), and some tools."
"The two bamboo groves are for the eldest and second eldest sons. You have the skills to set up your own workshops, or if you don't want to open a workshop anymore, you can sell the bamboo or bamboo groves to your third brother."
“The two south-facing rooms of the bamboo weaving workshop are for the third brother, but you don’t have a bamboo grove. If you want to use bamboo, you need to buy it from your eldest and second brothers, or you can plant your own bamboo grove.”
"Okay," said Xu Laoda and Xu Laoer together.
Bai and Yuan's mouths moved as if they wanted to say something, but they ultimately kept their mouths shut.
"Alright, now that this is all divided up, the rest are the rooms you'll be living in. The eldest son's family lives in the backyard, so that's all for you. After the first month of the lunar calendar, you can open a large gate from the east or west side and block the road leading to the front."
"As for the room that's been blocked off, give it to the second son's family. You can use it as a bamboo weaving workshop, just build a house. The main room next to it and the south room to the west of the gate are also yours. You can build a wall connecting them from north to south and open a gate from the northwest corner."
"Or, you could convert the main room and the adjacent room into a large main room for you to live in. You could also clear out a west room for bamboo weaving. Either way is fine."
“The third brother’s family, this is the main room that your mother and I are staying in. We will stay with you for the time being, and after I pass away, this room will be vacated for you.”
"Dad, you're all still alive and well, you can't just give the house to us." Xu San quickly said upon hearing this.
Grandpa Xu waved his hand, "We're both getting old and don't plan on passing away any day. We won't leave this property. Your mother and I will just keep some money for our retirement."
"The third brother's family lives in this area to the east. The three east-facing rooms and two south-facing rooms you live in can be the same as the current gate. When your second brother builds the courtyard wall, you should contribute half the money. The courtyard wall will be considered as if you two are building it together, so it's half for each of you. No one will gain an advantage and no one will suffer a loss."
After the old man finished speaking, he looked at his second and third sons.
The two brothers exchanged a glance, nodded, and said yes.
"The kitchen originally belonged to the second son's family in the south-facing room. Now that the eldest and third sons' families don't have a kitchen, they can arrange which room in your yard to use for their own kitchen. We won't interfere with that."
"Each family will be paid twenty taels of silver for kitchen utensils; you can prepare them yourselves. Before the courtyard walls are put up during the first month of the lunar year, you can eat together for a few days. You can discuss it among yourselves."
"What's left is all the money and things we have right now. We two old folks will keep one of the carriages and give it to our third son after we pass away. This is our compensation to them for living with them. As for the other one, you two can decide which one you want. You can also give the other one thirty taels of silver to buy another one yourself."
"I need a carriage. My father-in-law's house is far away, and it's inconvenient to travel there. I need my own carriage," said Xu Lao Er.
Old Xu's lips moved slightly, but he finally nodded. "Okay, I'll take the money. I'll buy another one in a few days."
"Alright, your mother will take you to divide the remaining items in the storeroom and grain room later. Now, have your mother take out the accounts and money and separate the money." The old man looked at the old woman.
The old lady took out the key, opened the cabinet, and took out two wooden boxes. One contained account books, and the other contained silver and banknotes.
"The account book shows a balance of 8,640 taels of silver, plus 3 taels of loose silver, which I took out this morning. The account book is here. Anyone who wants to look at the account book can do so themselves."
The old lady placed the account book on the table.
Then go back and count the banknotes and silver.
She took out a piece of paper from her bosom, glanced at it, and said, "Your father and I have discussed it. The three of you will each receive 1,500 taels for living expenses. Your father and I will keep 2,000 taels for the rest. We will live with the third son's family, pay for food, and spend money on medical treatment if we get sick. This is our support for the rest of our lives."
Seeing that Xu seemed to have something to say, the old man said coldly, "Young man, go and work hard to earn money to give your wife and children a good life. Don't expect your seventy-year-old parents to support you in your old age. Your son can't support you in your old age, so your mother and I can only rely on money to support us."
The old man's words silenced all three of his sons.
Seeing that no one objected, the old lady continued, "Of the remaining two thousand one hundred and forty taels, five hundred taels are for my Nannan's dowry. The rest..."
"By..."
When it came to money, Bai couldn't sit still. She was somewhat indignant and wanted to argue, "Why should we set aside a dowry for Nan Nan separately? She's only a six-year-old girl; she's still a long way from getting married!"
However, fearing that he would lose 10% of his money, Boss Xu quickly rushed over and covered her mouth to prevent her from saying anything.
Grandma Xu glanced at her indifferently. "What, you have a problem with that? The Xu family has been lacking daughters for generations. If you're so capable, give me a granddaughter. Every family has two children. Xing'er gave me my only granddaughter. It's a pity you don't have that ability."
Bai: ......
If Xu Laoda hadn't covered her mouth, she probably would have been so angry she'd vomit blood!
The old lady snorted inwardly and said, "Take out the thirty taels for the eldest son's family to buy a carriage, twenty taels for the kitchen utensils, and twenty taels for the third son's family to buy kitchen utensils. There will be one thousand five hundred and seventy taels left."
"Three hundred taels should be paid to Lao San for his leg treatment. It will take at least three months. Lao San and his wife will be unable to do anything. They will have to pay for Lao San's medical treatment and leg care. They will not be able to go out and will not be able to earn money."
The old lady would talk while handing out money.
The banknotes and silver coins piled up in front of the three families.
But the three brothers felt increasingly distressed.
The old lady didn't care what they thought; now that things had come to this point, the division of the family property had to be completed.
It's good that they separated things clearly while they were still alive.
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