As soon as the Zhang woman finished speaking, everyone in the room fell silent. The Old Master looked at everyone; seeing no one step forward to offer help, he had no choice but to speak himself, "We are all family here. Regarding Qingyun's marriage proposal, if you all lend a hand, when the child Qingyun is settled and established, he will surely remember your kindness and take good care of you in the future, won't he?"

When the people in the room heard it was about pitching in to help, not borrowing, they were even more reluctant. "Father, what you're saying is unfair. That betrothal gift is over ten taels of silver. Never mind whether we can even help; look at our Qinghua, he's already fourteen this year and it’s time to arrange his marriage. We haven't managed to save any money; I even thought about selling my daughter last time!" Wang Youfu retorted.

Tianshi, standing beside him, instantly regretted her past actions until her intestines turned green upon hearing Wang Youfu’s words. If she had known earlier, she shouldn't have stopped the second son from selling his daughter; then, they could have benefited now, right? At that time, she was only thinking that the second branch shouldn't gain over ten taels of silver for nothing. But it didn't matter if the second branch had nothing; they never expected anything from them anyway. The third branch was the main source. Zhang’s maternal uncle truly had surplus money, and Zhang’s relationship with her brother had always been good, so he would certainly offer some assistance to the third branch.

"Ahem, Youfu, I know Qinghua should also be thinking of marriage, but Qingyun is a year older than Qinghua. We have to follow a sequence, don't we? Let's settle Qingyun's marriage this year, and we'll talk about Qinghua's next year. By then, won't your eldest brother's family assist you?" Saying this, the Old Master turned his gaze to the third branch: "Third son, when your Qingyi grows up, your eldest brother's family will also support you. Aren't we one big family supposed to support each other!"

"That's right, Second and Third Brother, in the future, when the younger ones are arranging marriages, if you need any help from Big Brother, just say the word," the Eldest Uncle, Wang Youliang, declared, thumping his chest.

Tianshi quickly chimed in, "Exactly! It’s just that your children are still young, so we didn't have a chance to help! In the future, when they are arranging their marriages, I, as the eldest sister-in-law, will certainly offer support too." Tianshi deliberately glanced at Zhang.

Zhang snorted and meticulously recounted, "When my husband and I were arranging our marriage, it was agreed that I would move out and the family would divide as soon as I married in. But after I married, Father and Mother refused, saying we should wait until the little aunt got married. Later, didn't the family prepare over ten taels of dowry for the little aunt? I won't bring that up for now; after all, Father and Mother only have one daughter, so they must dote on her. But after the little aunt married off, Father and Mother then said that Qing Shan was of marriageable age, and if the family divided, what the eldest branch received wouldn't be enough for the betrothal gift, so they couldn't delay the child's prospects, insisting we wait until after Qing Shan was engaged. I disagreed, and Father and Mother coaxed me, saying we'd divide the family right after Qing Shan's engagement was settled, and at that time, the second and third branches would receive the bulk of the assets. And what was the result? All the benefits went to the eldest branch! Now that the family is divided, everyone manages their own affairs, yet the eldest branch asks us for money for their marriage proposal? I want to find someone to judge this! Is there any fairness in the world? Alas, when we were young girls, weren't we all cherished by our families? To come into the in-laws' house and suffer this kind of indignity..."

"Third daughter-in-law, what kind of talk is that? Didn't your two branches receive the lion's share when the family was divided? Now we are only asking you to pitch in a little, and you’re unwilling?" the Old Mistress said angrily.

"Hmph, the bulk of the assets went to us two branches? Mother, what you say is truly chilling! When the family divided, the eldest branch took four mu of the ten mu of paddy fields, while the second and third branches only took three mu each. For those twenty-five mu of dry fields, the eldest branch took eleven mu, and the second and third branches only took seven mu each. Are you saying we two branches took the bulk of the assets?" Zhang retorted angrily.

Tianshi quickly interjected, "Third sister-in-law, don't forget, when the family was divided, there were only thirty taels of silver in total. You two branches both took twelve taels, while our eldest branch only took six taels."

Zhang could not contain her rising anger upon hearing this, "Oh, eldest sister-in-law, you can't put it like that. Don't you know why our two branches got twelve taels back then? Your eldest branch lived with Father and Mother in the old house, while our second and third branches all moved out to live separately. Is the extra six taels we received enough to build a house? If it weren't for the support from my family, our whole family would be starving. Furthermore, after years of saving, there was only thirty taels left when the family divided? Who would believe that? Whoever got the rest knows clearly in their heart! It was just to fool us two branches."

After the division, the second and third branches moved out of the old house and built their own residences. At that time, the second branch, Wang Qingchen's family, wanted to build a slightly nicer house, but they lacked the funds. Yang, the mother, only had two elder brothers and one elder sister remaining in her maternal family; her two brothers were controlled by their wives, and her only sister's family was poor, so her maternal family could not offer any help. Consequently, Wang Youfu’s family did not get a tiled roof, and Wang Youfu had always held a grudge about it. The third branch, however, built a few tiled rooms with assistance from Zhang’s maternal family, which explained Zhang’s confidence.

"Third daughter-in-law, are you implying I embezzled the money?" The Old Mistress was displeased. Although she hadn't handed over all the money during the division, and she often secretly subsidized the eldest branch—after all, Tianshi was her niece—it was one thing for her to give secretly, but another for someone to bring it up publicly.

"Mother, I didn't say that." Even though she said this, Zhang's expression suggested otherwise.

"Cough, cough, enough, enough. We are all family, why be so calculative? The eldest branch has three sons who need to get married, and they also have to support your elderly parents. Your two families have fewer sons, and they are still young, so your burdens are lighter. You two should bear a bit more now, and your eldest brother will surely reward you handsomely later," the Old Master said.

"Father, after the division, we haven't skipped a single duty of filial piety during festivals or holidays. We aren't the only ones who know we owe you support, not just the eldest branch," Wang Youfu argued.

Zhang, upon hearing the Old Master mention having fewer sons, felt a sudden tightness in her chest.

"Father didn't say you don't provide for us. Father means that in daily matters or emergencies, the eldest branch is closer and can lend a hand, whereas you two families have moved out," the Old Master said, taking another puff of his pipe.

In truth, the Old Master had no ill intentions; it was simply a difference in mindset. The Old Master felt that even though the three sons had separated, they were still one family and should support each other. If the eldest branch's children were arranging marriages, how could the two uncles not help? When it was time for the second and third branches' children to marry, the eldest branch would surely reciprocate. The Old Master had been a hardworking and honest farmer his whole life, and since the Old Mistress managed the family finances, he was not entirely clear about certain family matters. However, he knew he had favored the eldest son's family during the division. The Old Master thought that since the eldest branch had more sons and no daughters, while the second and third branches had fewer sons and daughters, the betrothal money received for the daughters could help the family. The Old Master was fixated on the idea that things should balance out eventually, and everyone's life should be roughly equal; he never considered fairness, as he inherently believed all three sons were his children and there was no need to be so meticulous—mutual support was expected.

"Father, it’s more convenient for you and the eldest branch to live together so they can lend a hand. But haven't you and Mother ever helped the eldest branch? Which time did Father not follow the eldest branch to the fields during farm work? Didn't Mother help with the housework? Does that mean the eldest branch are all dutiful children, and we are the black-hearted ones?" Zhang expressed her deep dissatisfaction.

"Say less, your father didn't mean it that way," Wang Youtian quickly tugged at Zhang.

Zhang threw off Wang Youtian's hand, "Let go! I must make this clear today. Since marrying into your Wang family, have I ever slacked off? Have I ever been unfilial? Have I ever done anything improperly? What kind of life have I led in your Wang family? I can't bear sons like Big Sister-in-law; my first two were both daughters. During confinement, the family grudged giving me even a single egg. More than half of what my family sent went into the mouths of the little aunt and Big Sister-in-law. Back then, because I hadn't borne a son, my back wasn't straight, so I didn't argue. Mother disliked me and assigned me every task; I never dared to disobey and did everything diligently, yet Mother was still dissatisfied, constantly lamenting about a hen that won't lay eggs—I knew she was cursing me indirectly. Finally, we got the family division, but you favored the eldest branch completely! Does that mean our two branches were picked up somewhere? If it weren't for my family's help, we wouldn't even have a house to live in. Now that we've separated, we are still expected to help the eldest branch? I should go to the Lizheng's (village head's) office and ask if there was any such clause during the initial family division?"

The Old Mistress became furious upon hearing this, "Third son, look at your wife, what kind of talk is this? What do you mean you grudged giving you eggs during confinement? Did those thirty eggs feed the dog? And what's this about assigning everything to you? Did everyone else not work, and only you toiled?"

"Those eggs were sent by my family—they sent a hundred eggs, plus quite a bit of meat and cloth lengths. But what reached me were only thirty eggs. All that meat fed your entire family, and that nice cloth, you took it to add to the little aunt's dowry. Did you ever tell me about that? If I hadn't gone back to my maternal home and my sister-in-law there hadn't asked, I wouldn't have known about any of this. Besides, before the division, whose chores were the dirtiest and hardest in the house? Mother, have you forgotten?"

"What nonsense are you spouting?" The Old Mistress grew agitated. "Third son, your wife is here slandering your mother—aren't you going to control her?" Seeing her third son keep his head down without reacting, she cursed, "Are you that afraid of her? Are you even a man?"

"Alright, enough arguing. What is all this fuss about? We are family; can't we discuss things without resorting to shouting like this?" The Old Master spoke, casting a disapproving look at Zhang.

Wang Qingchen, meanwhile, was stunned. They were discussing marriage proposals, so how did it spiral into talking about the family division? However, Wang Qingchen had learned some of the inside story of the division back then. He could only say that the Old Master’s actions were flawed. Since the family had already divided, he was still asking the three branches to pool money for the eldest branch’s wedding, especially given that the division had favored the eldest branch. Doing this would only exacerbate the conflict.

Wang Youfu thought for a moment, "Father, we can't help with this matter. Setting aside the fact that Qinghua also needs a marriage arrangement, we haven't even paid for the piglet we were allowed to keep. You know our family's situation; after the division, we built a house and bought some farm tools, so we've never had any surplus money."

Yang had been listening quietly, not daring to interject. Hearing Wang Youfu’s words, she quickly nodded in agreement.

The Old Master took another puff of his pipe after hearing this, his demeanor showing a slight softening.

Tianshi saw this and grew anxious. If the second branch refused to help, the third branch would surely follow suit, which was unacceptable, as she was still relying on the third branch. Thinking this, Tianshi quickly stepped forward to mediate, "Second Uncle, we aren't asking for much. Whatever you can contribute is fine; it’s the thought that counts, after all! When the children grow up, they won't dare to be unfilial to their Second Uncle!"

Zhang pursed her lips, "Hmph, I've only ever heard of sons being filial to their parents, never of nephews being filial to their uncles!"

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