"You little brat, you dare call me muddle-headed? I think you're the one who's utterly heartless. You've caused trouble several times before, and it was always your second uncle's family supporting you. Now, your second uncle's family has even invited us to look after their fish pond, and what do you do? Seeing the pond start making money, you immediately set your sights on it! How am I supposed to face your second uncle's family now?" Da Jiang said, his voice filled with bitter disappointment.

Song Yuemei listened to her father-in-law's words and didn't get angry. Instead, she calmly stated, "Father, that's not entirely fair. I know Second Uncle's family has helped us a great deal, but we also have to make a living. Is this fish pond something only Second Uncle's family is allowed to manage? Besides, in a little while, I suspect many people in the village will start doing it. Are you going to forbid everyone?"

"Others are others; that's not our family's business, and I can't control it. But no one in our family is allowed," Da Jiang insisted.

"Father, anyone can raise fish. Instead of letting others make the money, wouldn't it be better for our own family to earn it? In the end, the money stays within the family. Why be so restrictive? Never mind you; even Second Uncle can't control this. There's no regulation from the authorities that forbids other families from raising fish," Song Yuemei countered.

Song Yuemei's words left Da Jiang momentarily speechless, but he held his ground. "I don't care about the authorities or not. In short, no one in our family is allowed to raise fish. Go and fill it in right now, or I won't let you two off easily."

"Then there's nothing to be done, Father. I've already spent money to buy that riverbank land, and the fry are already released. I certainly won't be filling it in. Moreover, regarding the family division, you didn't give us anything, and we need a way to live. I'm counting on selling these fish to support ourselves. Besides, Father, we've already split the family. We are two separate households now. You shouldn't interfere with our affairs. If you dare to fill in our fish pond, I will ask the clan elder to settle the matter," Song Yuemei added firmly.

"Qingshan, what do you say? Is your wife's intention also yours?" Da Jiang turned to Qingshan and asked.

Qingshan looked at his wife, then at Da Jiang. He truly didn't know whose side to take. Qingshan knew well that his previous mishaps had been covered by Er Niu's family. Doing this made Qingshan feel undeniably guilty. But if he didn't do it, he would be stuck farming his small plot for his entire life. Before, when they were all together, regardless of how much he earned, he could always ask his mother for money. But now, he had to rely on himself. Considering this, Qingshan ultimately sided with his wife and said, "Father, Yuemei is right. Anyone can raise fish."

Hearing Qingshan agree, Da Jiang had no other recourse and simply left. His threat to fill in the pond was just to scare them; he wouldn't actually do it. Yet, he truly felt he had wronged Er Niu terribly. Er Niu had intended to lift his family up by letting him work there, even paying such a high monthly wage. Now, his own son was dragging him down. Da Jiang genuinely felt he lacked the face to see Er Niu.

As Da Jiang walked, he found himself at Er Niu's doorstep. Er Niu's whole family was in the courtyard. Seeing Da Jiang standing there, Er Niu walked out and welcomed him in. Da Jiang felt utterly disgraced; he walked into the courtyard with his head bowed, saying nothing. After a long pause, he finally looked up and said, "Er Niu, I've been thinking, I won't manage your fish pond anymore. Having Da Sheng look after it alone should be sufficient."

Er Niu looked surprised and asked, "Elder Brother, what are you talking about? That's a massive pond; how can Da Sheng possibly manage it all by himself? Besides, Da Sheng's family has its own affairs, and you've always been the one overseeing things. Why are you suddenly quitting?"

"Er Niu, you know about Qingshan's family starting a fish pond, right? I suspect that perhaps when I brought some things over to your fish pond, Qingshan and his wife saw it, and maybe they decided to raise fish too. I truly..." Da Jiang trailed off, feeling embarrassed.

Er Niu's family was aware of this matter. They hadn't expected their elder brother to react so strongly. Er Niu smiled and comforted Da Jiang, "Elder Brother, don't let this weigh on your heart. Qingshan is, after all, your son and my nephew. If he can raise fish successfully, that's a good thing. I never said people shouldn't raise fish; anyone can do it. Don't take this to heart; I won't blame you. Forget Qingshan; even if others did it, I wouldn't say a word."

"If it were anyone else, it would be one thing, but Qingshan—I feel he's gone too far. This..." Da Jiang kept circling back, feeling indebted to Er Niu.

"Elder Brother, it's alright, don't overthink it. Our family isn't relying on the fish pond for our livelihood right now, is it? Rest assured, just focus on taking good care of the pond for me. Besides, Qingshan is Qingshan, and you are you. You can't control Qingshan's actions; just let them be," Er Niu advised.

Hearing Er Niu's words, Da Jiang didn't say much more. He didn't stay long either, rising to say he needed to go check on the fish pond. Er Niu nodded and let him go.

After Da Jiang left, Er Niu's family watched his receding figure, all feeling a pang of sadness. Huang Shi spoke up, "Elder Uncle is truly a good man, good to his brother, and values relationships. But the people in his own household are a bit too much. Qingshan and his wife too—we've helped them quite a bit, and now he takes the lead in undermining us."

"Mother, why dwell on that? Didn't Father just say anyone can raise fish? If he wants to raise them, let him. However, you all must remember this lesson. This time it’s fish farming, which isn't a major issue. But what if, in some other area, they found out something sensitive? What would we do then?" Lin He said.

"Yes, He'er is right. We need to be more careful about these things in the future; things that shouldn't be spread should not be shared. As for fish farming, it's not a huge deal anyway; it's fine if the village knows. If anyone asks, just tell them directly how to raise fish. Consider it providing a benefit to the villagers," Er Niu stated.

"Yes, Father is correct. If we can help the whole village get rich, that's a good thing. It doesn't hurt us at all. If villagers come asking, tell them in detail about the precautions for fish farming, the techniques, and what can be used as supplementary feed," Lin He added.

Lin He felt that the saying, "Wealth requires virtue for its establishment," was precisely true. Now that their family had money, many in the village were envious. If they could help lift the village up economically, it would truly be a positive thing, and their family's standing in the village would increase. It was a good opportunity to seize anyway.