As Chu Mingzhu's wet nurse, Granny Zhu was specially trained. She was reasonable, flexible, and could laugh or sullen at the same time. She was always Chu Mingzhu's backbone. Although she lacked vision and status, she was more than capable of protecting her mistress.
It's a pity that she ended up with a master like Chu Mingzhu, who was willful, stubborn, stupid, and wicked, and later on, he stopped listening to her.
That's how we gradually ended up like this.
However, with all her skills, Granny Zhu was perfectly suited to use in the small mountain village of Phoenix Mouth, and she was able to handle things with ease.
Sure enough, after just a few words, Xiao Dayong and Xiao Yi, who had been hiding for most of their lives, wanted to go and divide the family property in the old house.
The two brothers had been suppressed by Old Man Xiao and Old Woman Xiao for most of their lives, and their fear of them was ingrained in their bones.
Although he harbored resentment all these years, he dared not go against Old Madam Xiao's wishes. Until Xiao Yuanhang was crippled, Old Madam Xiao was bedridden, and the Xiao family's old house was run by a lowly Liu, Xiao Dayong, as the eldest son of the Xiao family, never thought of going back to take over the Xiao family's power.
Logically speaking, even if Liu had given birth to a child, she should still behave herself in front of Xiao Dayong.
According to custom, the eldest son and his wife are the highest-ranking people in the family besides the parents.
Even if Old Mrs. Xiao is paralyzed, Xiao Dayong and his wife should be in charge of the Xiao family. It's not Liu's place to cause trouble.
However, over the years, due to the favoritism of Old Man Xiao and Old Lady Xiao, the rules of seniority and respect, and the proper order between father and son, have never been established in the Xiao family. The youngest son is spoiled like an ancestor, while the most filial son is treated like a slave. The son who knows nothing is bossing people around at home, and the whole family is in a mess. Liu Shi is not a very virtuous person, so she came here to follow suit.
Her current behavior in the Xiao family is even worse than that of Old Madam Xiao.
She took everything she could get her hands on and even subsidized her three children from time to time.
Now, not only are the mother and daughter well-fed and healthy, but even her three older children are plump and healthy thanks to her financial support.
Every time Xiao Dayong and Li Shi saw it, they felt incredibly heartbroken. They were the Xiao family's own sons, and they had served the entire family like slaves for so many years, only to find that their family was always hungry and cold, and their children were treated like servants. They wished they could eat their flesh and drink their blood.
But Liu, having only given birth to one child, was able to act arrogantly and domineeringly in the Xiao family, even using the Xiao family's possessions to subsidize her child.
Every time Xiao Dayong saw it, he felt it was particularly glaring and chilling.
The more Granny Zhu brought it up, the angrier he became, so he simply agreed. After agreeing, he found that he was not afraid at all, but rather somewhat excited!
After finalizing the matter with Xiao Yi, he couldn't wait to go home and discuss it with Li Shi.
Granny Zhu knew her daughter well. She could tolerate her throwing a little tantrum, but she was far from being serious. Moreover, she didn't want her daughter to get involved in such potentially offensive matters, lest she make things difficult for herself later. So she specifically instructed her daughter to just take care of the house and Bao'er, and not to get involved in anything related to the old house.
Then he told Xiao Yi, "No matter what others say tomorrow, remember this: you are not just someone who speaks for yourself. You have a wife and children to support, and with your leg, you'll probably be using crutches for the rest of your life. It will be difficult for you to make a living to support your family. So don't pretend to be a good person in the middle."
An unwavering stance.
Xiao Yi nodded silently.
He had previously given away eight acres of land without hesitation, unaware of the impending drought. Moreover, he still had several dozen taels of silver on hand, so he didn't care.
This time, he only had five or six taels of silver and less than two acres of land. Just like before, they would really starve. So, no matter how much he cared about saving face, he had to bow to reality.
Xiao Yi unconsciously began to compare himself to Xie Yushu when she was around. If it were her, she definitely wouldn't be fixated on the old house; instead, she would find ways to go out and make money, earning a good living through her own abilities, making them both envious and jealous.
He still remembers the envy, jealousy, and hatred the villagers felt towards Xie Yushu when she built a house and bought a donkey cart. Although he was instigated by others to say that Xie Yushu was a spendthrift and didn't know how to manage money, he felt a sense of pride and satisfaction.
Now, even though Granny Zhu is a worldly person, when she is in trouble, the only thing she can think of is to go to the old house and rob the limited resources there.
Even so, he had no right to say anything.
That stifling and lost feeling made Xiao Yi feel like his heart was being fried in oil and roasted over a fire, extremely uncomfortable!
After enduring an unknown amount of time, Xiao Yi finally drifted off to sleep.
The next day, right after breakfast, Xiao Dayong and his wife came to their door.
After exchanging a few words, the two brothers went to Xiao Zhengde's house with Granny Zhu.
The news of Xiao Yi and his group's return had already spread throughout the village yesterday. They had originally imagined that when they saw Xiao Yi again, he would be a majestic general, riding a tall horse or returning in a luxurious carriage.
As a result, he ended up riding in a small donkey cart, which he had hired, and his leg was even more severely lame than before.
Considering that Tianshui City almost fell some time ago, and a prince died, and that Chu Mingzhu was forced to kneel before the Heroes' Tomb to beg for forgiveness.
Such a rare event caused quite a stir at the time.
All of this suggests that Xiao Yi was most likely implicated.
They just didn't expect it to be this serious.
In their minds, officials are demoted one level at a time, and if you have connections, there's still some room for maneuver; officials protect each other!
Unexpectedly, Xiao Yi, a dignified third-rank general, was demoted to a mere rank.
Fortunately, they didn't know much about the law. If they knew they almost got their entire family executed, they would be terrified!
They harbored some resentment towards Xiao Yi for becoming successful but not returning to the village.
When others achieve success, even their chickens and dogs benefit. At the very least, they'll provide the clan with a sacrificial field or build a clan school. But he's different. Now that he's successful, he doesn't even recognize his ancestors and hasn't come back to offer sacrifices.
So when he returned in such a sorry state, no one came to his door to show concern; some even gloated and said he deserved it.
Xiao Zhengde had, of course, heard about it. Upon hearing it, he could only sigh deeply and lament...
"It's just that the Xiao family is unlucky! They had opportunities but couldn't seize them. One wrong step leads to another!"
In the past, if a younger member of the clan suffered such a great calamity, the clan would at least gather the members to go and see what was wrong, lend a hand, and send them whatever they needed.
But this time, he simply ignored it. He was quite shaken by Xie Yushu's incident. He had always considered himself fair and just in his dealings with others, and the village had been peaceful and prosperous under his leadership for many years, which he had been proud of.
But reality slapped him in the face. If it were truly fair, how could it have turned out like this!
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