Chapter 16 Chapter 16 It’s free anyway, it’s better to have it than not…
Someone came to the house, and it was a lawyer who came to make a will, but Gu Changzong ignored him and peeled a boiled egg for Hongguo to eat.
Grandma ordered: "Hongguo, eat quickly and come over to listen to the will."
Jiang Hongguo ate an egg in three bites and choked on the egg yolk. Gu Changzong hurriedly handed her soy milk and turned to look at his grandmother with dissatisfaction in his eyes.
Jiang Hongguo took the soy milk with one hand and turned Changzong's head back with the other. It seemed that Changzong really didn't want his grandmother's inheritance.
Jiang Hongguo was in between wanting something and being casual about it. She ate her breakfast in a few bites and listened to her grandmother and the lawyer planning their inheritance.
Grandfather said, "Suwen, Kaisheng and his wife haven't arrived yet, let's wait a little longer."
Grandma ignored Grandpa and said, "How can I wait for others to distribute my property? What a joke."
Jiang Hongguo nodded like a chick pecking at rice: "Yes, the legal heirs to grandma's estate are grandpa and Changzong. You are all here, so there is no need for others to wait. Even I am here by chance. Let's listen to my wise grandma and how to arrange the estate reasonably and spend her old age in peace."
The lawyer, who was also my grandmother’s student, said with a smile, “Your mouth is just as powerful as it was when you were young.”
Grandma said, "She's telling the truth."
Grandma asked Jiang Hongguo: "Let the child in your belly take my surname Yan, and I will leave all my inheritance to you and Changzong, how about that?"
Jiang Hongguo looked at her nervous step-grandfather. They were a half-married couple who wanted to deprive Changzong of his inheritance rights and looked like they wanted to wipe out the entire family. If her grandmother was such a gullible person, her will would not have been delayed for half a year after her rehabilitation.
Jiang Hongguo refused: "Grandma, the child between Changzong and I will either have my surname or Changzong's surname, and will never have your surname. If you don't give it to Changzong, give it to grandpa, and grandpa will only give it to his children, then your inheritance will all be given to the heir who is not your bloodline."
Grandma sighed: "Yes, I know, I just wanted to scare you, but I didn't scare you."
Because Jiang Hongguo didn't care much about her grandmother's inheritance, it was okay to give it, and she would feel regretful if she didn't give it, but she wouldn't be too sad. With or without her grandmother's inheritance, she could live well just like Changzong, so she was not controlled.
Grandma talked about the inheritance under her name. After the rehabilitation, the houses would be returned, including the one she lived in and another one. She asked Gu Changzong and step-grandfather how they wanted to divide it, and the two of them could negotiate.
"One is my second husband, and the other is my grandson. I won't favor one over the other. I'll give each of them a set. It's up to you to choose."
The two houses have a price, one is almost over 8,000, but it’s not worth it for the step-grandfather to be so cunning.
What my step-grandfather cares about is valuables, such as the gold melon seeds worth six or seven hundred yuan that he grabbed last night. Where are those valuables? Could they be buried under one of the houses?
Gu Changzong didn't care: "Whatever, it's free, why would I choose? Whichever set is given to me is the one I get."
Jiang Hongguo also meant this. She has been indifferent since yesterday. Grandma can still give Changzong an apartment, which is good enough. What else is there to complain about?
"Then let grandpa choose first." Jiang Hongguo looked at Changzong and said, "We are the younger generation. It was grandpa who accompanied grandma who was sent down to the countryside to suffer for the past ten years. He should choose first."
Gu Changzong agreed with this point. Even if he didn't suffer much because the money paved the way for him, he still accompanied her.
The step-grandfather thought the same thing. He had no objection to each of them having one house, but it was very important which house to hide the gold and silver items in. If he made the wrong choice, he would suffer a great loss.
When he was sent down to the countryside that year, he was only given a simple little box to bring with him. He collected the box, which contained no valuables. However, he received his beloved students. After settling them down, he suddenly had money to spend. Every time a student came, she became rich after they left. It seemed that she had endless money, food, oil, and cloth coupons. The students were really more useful than her sons. But where did the students' money come from? They must have been saved there long ago.
The stepfather hesitated and said, "Let Changzong choose."
Gu Changzong asked Hongguo to choose: "Which one do you like, Hongguo?"
Jiang Hongguo said: "I haven't seen the other house, but the one my grandma lives in now is pretty good. Why don't we choose this one?"
Grandma looked at step-grandfather with a half-smile: "So that's how we divide it?"
My step-grandfather immediately said, "We will probably live in this house when we grow old. I thought about it and decided that I was too lazy to move. Let's just choose the house we live in now."
Grandma was impatient: "Why do you keep changing it? You two can decide for yourselves."
The stepfather was very firm: "That's it, it won't change."
Jiang Hongguo and Gu Changzong didn't care. Even if grandma had a private house, it was impossible for her to hide it in these two houses and put it down for a few years. They were not afraid of others sneaking in and looking for it. Of course, that wouldn't happen.
After it was decided, the distribution of the house was written into the will. The step-grandfather asked one more question: "Su Wen, is the house the only thing written in the will? Do you have anything else to write in the will?"
Grandma waved her hand, "You don't even have a child yet, don't you understand? Before I was sent down to the countryside, I stored my gold and silver jewelry with several students. In the past ten years in the countryside, we have never had a hard life. We have good food and drink. How much I spent on managing farm relationships, and what you personally gave away, is enough to buy two more houses we live in now. I won't regret it. I'm so happy that I can spend all the money before I die. Don't be happy too soon. If I could live a few more years, I would sell both houses and spend them. Now there is no time. One is for you and the other is for Changzong. You are lucky to have lived a comfortable life with me for more than 20 years, so it's not a loss."
The lawyer sounded sad and confirmed, "My teacher also kept a few antiques with me. I sold them over the past few years and gave the money to the teacher. The only thing left was something the teacher said she would leave for me as a souvenir. She really didn't have any more. Think about it, during that era, when we were confiscated and sent down, these two houses couldn't hold anything. We could only put them in the hands of a few of our trusted students. We got together and took away the things we were supposed to keep in person. We did spend all of it."
Grandma told stepfather and Gu Changzong to calm down and not to ask the students: "They helped me keep and sell the items, and they all took risks. It's only right that I leave a little compensation for each of them."
To have such a few trustworthy students, grandma must be a very charismatic person. Jiang Hongguo admires her in her heart.
…
After completing the formalities of the will, the lawyer took out a valuable gift and opened the box. Against the bright yellow background was an old wild ginseng as thick as a thumb. At first glance, the ginseng stem actually looked like human facial features, which showed how good the quality of this wild ginseng was.
"Teacher Yan, this is an old mountain ginseng that I came across by chance. I bought it to nourish your body."
Before liberation, ginseng of this quality was hard to buy even if you had money, but Yan Suwen's illness could not be cured by ginseng.
"I left you a worthless antique. If you buy a ginseng, you will lose money, right?"
The stepfather knew what was good. He picked up the box and examined the ginseng carefully. He said with admiration, "It will cost at least 500 yuan. I will ask Yan'er to stew it for you tonight. Thanks to your kindness as a student."
The lawyer lamented that he only found this one: "It tastes good, but there is no place to buy such good ginseng. I heard from the ginseng dealer that he had received a ginseng of slightly inferior quality from a family surnamed Kong in Dayang Village before. He bought it and before recommending it to me, he accidentally received a better one. He asked for 700 yuan, and I bargained for 650 yuan and bought it."
Gu Changdong clenched his fists again. They were all unscrupulous merchants. The ginseng that was bought for 280 yuan was sold for more than 600 yuan after being circulated several times.
Jiang Hongguo said: "Everyone in our village knows about the ginseng of the Kong family. It was found by his daughter-in-law by accident. She is a very lucky girl. The Kong family gets whatever they want. They were the first family in our village to buy a TV. I still remember that when they watched Huo Yuanjia, half of the village went to watch it."
The lawyer was curious: "There is such a lucky girl. If I can dig up another one, I will reserve it and save the middleman from raising the price."
Jiang Hongguo shook her head regretfully: "She is dead. After her death, all the members of the Kong family except the eldest brother's family died. Even the new daughter-in-law who remarried was not spared."
Grandma actually laughed, and after coughing a few times, she said, "How can you call it good luck when you are dead? I think it is bad luck. Fortunately, you bought a different kind of ginseng, otherwise I would not eat it. Don't buy it again in the future, and I won't eat it even if you give it to me."
After chatting for a while, the lawyer left. In the evening, the nanny cut the ginseng into several pieces and stewed it for grandma.
My uncle and aunt came back the next day, looking very depressed and said that they had an argument with the passenger sitting next to them on the road. The passenger started to fight back and they were all taken to the police station and detained for one night. It was a waste of time.
Be it a cunning conspiracy or a lie, the will has been made and each person has a house, which cannot be changed. This is the only way it can be.
We had dinner together during the Chinese New Year, and my grandmother insisted that ginseng replenished our energy. After the New Year, we went to see another house, which was also a two-story building, but it was rather shabby and had to be renovated if we wanted to move in. There was also no furniture in the house. My step-grandfather, uncle, aunt and their family were secretly happy that they had made the right choice.
Grandma went through the transfer procedures, and this house belonged to Changzong, while the other one was transferred to my step-grandfather's name.
Jiang Hongguo and Gu Changzong were originally preparing to go back, but their grandmother suddenly became unwell and was admitted to the hospital. She passed away in less than a day. With her family members all around her, her grandmother said that she wanted to be cremated immediately and not to wait a day. Then she let out a long sigh and passed away.
The lawyer who had made the will a few years ago also came and helped with the funeral, and after that, we had no reason to get together again.
In front of the dilapidated house, step-grandfather was glad for making the right choice, and uncle and aunt felt relieved. They all had smiles on their faces and were even more friendly to Jiang Hongguo.
"Changzong, Hongguo, don't be too sad. It's free anyway. It's better to have it than nothing."
Jiang Hongguo replied, "That's right. Changzong and I don't need to divide anymore. Uncle, grandpa has more than one son, he also has a daughter. There is also the issue of grandpa's retirement. You two can fight for it."
Since he is not Changzong's biological grandfather, naturally Changzong will not have to take care of him in his old age. Hongguo has no psychological burden when talking about this.
Jiang Hongguo and Gu Changzong looked at this house that was so dilapidated that it had to be renovated before people could live in it. They didn't know what to do and could only leave it alone.
She imagined that there might be gold, silver and treasures in this house, but that was impossible. Her grandmother was so rich. The people who confiscated the house at that time demolished the broken house and replaced the floor tiles. There was no way there was gold, silver and treasures buried underground. Alas, she could only wait until she made money and then repair it later.
The lawyer did not leave. After my step-grandfather's family left, the lawyer said something else.
"My teacher gave me another verbal will. She said that whoever this broken house belongs to should buy it. The money for buying the house was deposited with me a long time ago. It's 8,000 yuan. Do you want to sell it?"
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