Chapter 45: Separation

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the three women from Shi Dafu's family got into a fight and each woman's hair was pulled by the other.

All the neighbors came out to watch the fun, and they must have been very embarrassed.

Shi Hai watched all this with a wooden face. What was he living for?

Isn't it just to save face and not be looked down upon when you go out?

He and his father worked hard for decades, but when it came to his son, it was like going back to the early days of liberation.

A spendthrift and a troublemaker.

Shi Hai didn't say a word, he sat down on the bench with his hands on his chest. He didn't teach his son well, and there was no way to teach him back.

He also has grandchildren.

In an instant, Shi Hai suddenly made a decision.

He truly treasures his sons. He only gave birth to two sons and raised one. He was not afraid of bumping into him or getting hurt, and he even considered everything for his son when it came to finding a wife.

But all his considerations were in vain.

He didn't want a good wife, got divorced, and married such a thing.

Shi Hai did not step forward to persuade them, but just watched his two daughters and daughter-in-law pulling each other's hair.

By the time the people around them finally pulled the people apart, they could still hear the three women cursing at each other.

Then look at his son, who is standing aside, as if nothing has happened.

On one side is his own sister, and on the other side is his own wife. He should have given some advice, but he treated them as outsiders.

What else can he expect from a son like this?

"Okay, stop arguing."

Shi Hai stood up suddenly, his mind cleared up. "Everyone is here today, so let's divide the family. From now on, we old couple will live with our grandchildren, and Dafu will live with his wife. There are seven and a half acres of land at home. We old couple will take two acres, the one near the highway, and the rest will belong to Dafu and his wife. The building at home will also belong to Dafu, and we will move out and live in the old house at the east end of the village. In addition, this year's harvest, the pigs and chickens we raise, and the remaining 800 yuan will all be given to Dafu and his wife."

That old house was the one they had before they built the building. No one had lived there for a long time and usually just kept some worthless junk in it.

Everyone was stunned.

After Shi Hai finished speaking, he reached out and pushed Mo Amei: "Go pack your things. Your daughter and son-in-law are here, so they can help you move."

In the Shi family, Shi Hai is the head of the family. As long as he speaks, his wife and children have to listen to him.

Mo Amei didn't dare to say a word and went upstairs to pack her things.

The two daughters and sons-in-law looked at each other and didn't dare to curse anymore. Shi Hai ordered them to go to the old house in the east of the village to clean up, and they went.

Shi Dafu was really panicking right now. How would he live without his father?

"Dad, today is the first day of the Chinese New Year. Why should we divide the family? If we tell others about it, they will laugh at us. We are not going to divide the family."

Shi Hai glanced at him coldly: "You also know that today is the first day of the Chinese New Year. There is such a quarrel in the family. Aren't we laughed at? You dare to divorce and marry such a woman. Aren't we laughed at enough? You are the biggest joke in the whole town!"

When Shi Hai got angry, the neighbors didn't dare to persuade him. This was a major matter of family division, who dared to interfere?

Someone wanted to say that if they wanted to split up the family, they shouldn't choose New Year's Day, but seeing Shi Hai's expression, no one dared to speak.

Shi Hai made a decision, and his action was beyond the reach of ordinary people. He packed up his things and took some of the pots, pans, stools, tables and chairs.

His own father wanted to take it away when dividing the family property, so how could Shi Dafu, as his son, say anything?

Lin Meihua was also panicked. She knew who was the head of the Shi family. She had planned on marrying Shi Dafu, not just for the Shi family's wealth, which was worth tens of thousands of yuan.

Now that the family has split up, she only got a little over 800 yuan. How could she be willing to accept that?

"Dad, Dad, we are all family, why are you dividing the family? I just got married and you're dividing it up like this. I won't be able to be a human being in the future. If you don't think about yourself, me and Dafu, you should also think about our children!"

Lin Meihua reached out to stop him.

Shi Hai was not polite at all: "Let's wait until the baby in your belly is born. We don't even know if it is from my Shi family or not."

Whose daughter-in-law could be so frustrating to marry?

Shi Hai took his daughter and son-in-law to the old house, carrying bags full of things along the way. Several families that lived far away also got a taste of the melon.

At the Shi family's home, Shi Hai left with his daughter and son-in-law, taking away all the food they had bought. Only Shi Dafu, Lin Meihua, and Lin Dajun were left. The three of them looked at each other.

Lin Dajun's expression changed back and forth, but in the end he still thought, they are father and son. Shi Hai has only one son, and the family business will belong to the son. He finally made himself laugh again.

"Brother-in-law, this is a big deal. Let's eat first. Meihua, kill a chicken and stir-fry some vegetables. We have to eat this meal on New Year's Day."

Lin Dajun's words were like a step that was delivered to Shi Dafu's feet, and he just walked down.

"Yes, let's eat. Meihua, go kill the chicken. Brother-in-law, sit down and have some tea with me."

The two men sat under the eaves, basking in the sun, talking and drinking tea, as if nothing had happened. However, the house suddenly became deserted and the neighbors looked at them with strange eyes. Shi Dafu deceived himself and pretended nothing had happened.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the Shi family's production team witnessed such a grand event.

Just like Shi Hai himself said, he had lost all his face long ago.

Now that the old couple and their grandson have separated from the family, everyone thinks that Shi Hai is the one with a clear mind, and the one who is not doing well in the Shi family is Shi Dafu.

Shi Hai has finally come to terms with it. His son is disobedient and there is nothing he can do about it. Even if he can force him to get a divorce now, he can still cause trouble again later.

Can he keep people tied to his belt for the rest of his life?

Just divide the family up. When Shi Dafu is gone, he will naturally have to bow to his father.

If this family doesn't make the distinction, this effect will never be achieved.

Shi Hai had made up his mind. He already had a grandson, so if things really didn't work out, he would just teach his grandson well.

…

The fifth day of the Lunar New Year.

Pu Xiang took the firecrackers she had bought and went to the store door to set them off. Zhao Qing, who had originally said he would come back to work after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, also came that day.

Pu Xiang was a little curious: "Why are you out so early? Are you not visiting relatives at home? Or is there a conflict?"

Zhao Qing sighed helplessly: "It's not really a conflict. My marriage didn't go through, but matchmakers kept coming to my house during the Chinese New Year. The ones they introduced were either much older than me, or their wives had died and they wanted me to be their stepmother."

She really didn't want to find that kind of person.

She was already helpless enough when her parents wanted to marry her to Shi Dafu. Her family was poor and she had no money, so there was nothing they could do. But now she has a good job and can earn dozens of dollars a month. Why should she marry someone she doesn't like?

Pu Xiang sympathized with her. Many people would still be experiencing the pressure of being forced to get married decades later, let alone now.

"You are in the county now. We have so many customers in our store. When the time comes, let someone introduce you to a reliable one."

Zhao Qing tried hard not to sigh again and said, "Actually I don't want to get married at all now. What's the point of getting married? I'll just follow a man, deal with the daily necessities, and have a child. I can't even live a good life myself, and I'll let the child suffer as well. Like my parents, they married off their daughter and got the dowry to marry their son? What if I give birth to a daughter and the in-laws want a son, then I'll be a sinner."

Pu Xiang couldn't answer this question either. Many things are noisy, but many things are not just noisy.

If parents care a little more about their daughters, they will not ask for a high price for their sons to marry off.

Pu Xiang said: "Earn more money. With money, you will have more confidence in the future."

Zhao Qing thought for a moment and felt a little regretful: "I really miss the time when I was in school. It's just that my family has no money, otherwise I would have tried to go to college and see the outside world."

Zhao Qing would only be 20 years old this year, and Pu Xiang had an idea: "If you want to go to college, then take the exam. If you pass, I will pay for your college tuition."

Zhao Jing's eyes suddenly widened.

Pu Xiang thought her idea was quite good. Looking at the future generations, there were always elderly candidates every year. She had read the news that the oldest one was an 86-year-old man. There were also people who had taken the college entrance examination dozens of times. They were called "college entrance examination deadlocks". If Zhao Qing wanted to go to college, she should just take the exam. It's not like she had no chance at all.

"Zhao Qing, if you really want to go to college, then think about it seriously. The college entrance examination is still a few months away, and you still have time to review. Of course, if you fail this year, you can take it again next year. As long as you want, you are only 20 years old now, not married and have no children, you can do what you really want to do."

College students at this time are still in high demand, and many majors offer job assignments.

Zhao Qing was just saying it casually at first, but after Pu Xiang said this, she was suddenly really moved.

She didn't want to get married, not even those good candidates mentioned by the matchmaker, but if she did want to get married, the best option would be to find someone in the county town.

But what's the point?

"Thank you, Sister Xiangxiang! You are right. I can give it a try. What if I pass the exam?"

It seemed like in an instant, the black cloth covering Zhao Qing's eyes was lifted.

Pu Xiang liked this kind of straightforward personality and said, "Okay, the landlords of our store are both high school teachers. I can ask them for your review materials."

Zhao Qing was overjoyed. She had originally wanted to look for her high school teacher, but she was not talkative or active when she was in school. She was not familiar with her teacher and they had basically never talked to each other alone. If she went to the teacher's house like this, she was worried that the teacher might not recognize her.

After deciding to take the college entrance examination, Zhao Qing suddenly became full of energy. She told Pu Xiang that day and went home to find all her high school books and papers.

Some of them have been sold as scrap by the family, some have been used as table legs, and were all moldy and lumpy when taken out, and some are even worse, they were thrown in the kitchen and burned as kindling, and have long since turned into ashes.

Zhao Qing didn't care. He just wanted to find as many as he could and moved them all to the county town.

She now has a monthly salary, and her parents don't care what she wants to do.

After the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, Shi Wenya returned to work with a lot of gossip in her mind. What she saw was Zhao Qing, who was studying hard in all her free time, and Pu Xiang, who was also reading an unknown book with great interest.

"What's going on? A women's clothing store has been converted into a school?"

This atmosphere is not good. She gets a headache when she sees books. Will she be asked to read books too?

Help.