It might have been that everyone present had been overly stimulated today, because when the Matriarch heard what the He clan had to say, the shock in the room wasn't quite as intense as it might have been.

"What? You want to separate and live on your own? Don't even think about it!" the Old Matriarch roared.

Upon hearing this, Wang Youliang also adopted a paternal air. "Xiujuan, how can you speak such words to anger your grandmother? What is this about separating? Quickly tell your grandmother you were just joking!"

"Fine, if we aren't separating, then I'll seek a divorce from Qingshan and return to my mother's house," the He clan stated, completely secure in her position.

"You..." The Old Matriarch pointed at the He clan woman, temporarily speechless and unable to conjure a harsh retort.

The Tian clan woman was furious. Not granting her son a secondary wife was already giving the He clan woman a great deal of respect; now she actually intended to break away? Truly the height of foolish arrogance. Furthermore, since the He clan woman had completely dropped all pretense today, if they separated, how would she ever get to discipline the woman in the future?

"Don't push your luck. Not taking a secondary wife for Qingshan was already giving you plenty of face. What more do you want?" the Tian clan woman snapped.

The He clan woman merely sat there with a cold smile, ignoring the Tian clan woman entirely, projecting an aura that she would not stop until her demands were met.

The Tian clan woman was so enraged by the He clan woman's attitude that she nearly lunged forward to brawl again, but she was stopped by the sound of the Old Man tapping his pipe against the tea table.

"All of you, quiet down!" the Old Man bellowed while rapping his pipe.

Yang and Zhang quickly stepped forward to pull apart the two women who were on the verge of fighting.

The Old Man glanced at the He clan woman. At this crucial juncture, for his eldest granddaughter-in-law to propose living separately—he genuinely could not figure out how to refuse. Moreover, her attitude made it clear that if they didn't separate, she would initiate a divorce, and a divorce would surely mean the matter concerning Wang Qingshan would become public knowledge.

"Eldest granddaughter-in-law, isn't it better for this whole family to live together? If something comes up, family members can lend a hand, and living separately isn't easy! Besides, what household doesn't have its bumps and scrapes? Your mother-in-law isn't a spiteful person. I guarantee you today that she will never hold today's incident against you in the future. As for separating the family, let's just pretend this was never mentioned!"

Zhang subtly made a face. With the Tian clan woman's small-minded nature, believing she wouldn't hold a grudge against the He clan woman for defying her today was less likely than believing a pig could climb a tree!

If Zhang thought that, how could the He clan woman, who had been the Tian clan woman's daughter-in-law for several years, not realize it? If they didn't manage to separate today, her future life would truly be one of deep suffering. To ensure a comfortable life ahead, she had to persuade the elders to let her and her husband separate today.

"Grandpa, what you're saying isn't right. Even if my husband and I separate, couldn't we still live near you? It just means we wouldn't turn over our daily earnings, and we wouldn't eat together. If the family needs help later, we can still lend a hand, right?" the He clan woman countered.

"This..." The Old Man was momentarily speechless.

The Old Matriarch couldn't bear it any longer and turned to Wang Qingshan, who had been trying his best to remain invisible. "Qingshan, you don't even manage your wife while she causes such a ruckus? Letting her run wild like this? Or perhaps you are also unfilial, also thinking of separating?"

Ever since seeing the doctor today, Wang Qingshan had felt flawed, inferior, constantly worried that others would point and stare at him with strange looks. His nature was already meek, and now he felt he could never stand up straight again. Even though he saw his family fighting over his issue, he instinctively wanted to flee the room, letting them argue as they wished, as long as they didn't ask him anything.

However, the Old Matriarch’s words had touched upon the matter of filial impiety. Wang Qingshan finally had to respond, but he didn't know what to say. On one side was his wife, who filled him with shame; on the other were the elders who loved him. He felt siding with either was wrong, so he could only mumble, "This... this..."

The Old Matriarch, seeing Wang Qingshan's weakness, was about to lash out at him in anger, but Tian beat her to it. "You unfilial thing! What did I raise you for, just to anger me to death? You must clarify right now, are you also planning to abandon your parents and live separately?"

Wang Qingshan pleaded, "Mother, I didn't... I didn't plan to abandon you to live separately..."

"Didn't you instigate your wife to ask for separation?" Tian clearly did not believe him.

Wang Qingshan looked toward the He clan woman. "This..."

The He clan woman immediately turned her head away, refusing to look at him. She held the upper hand now; how could she not bargain for her own benefit? She had already decided: if Wang Qingshan dared to say he didn't want to separate, she would divorce him. In any case, if they didn't separate, she wouldn't have a good life. Moreover, frankly speaking, even if her wish was granted and they separated, she would never have children and would have no hope in life. There was little about the Wang family life she cared to hold onto. If it weren't for the difficulty of finding another match after a divorce, she would have already left this Wang household.

Wang Youtian, standing nearby, wanted to offer some mediating words, but Zhang stopped him. Zhang didn't want to get entangled in this mess only to incur blame later.

Wang Guifang also considered offering some persuasion, but recalling that she herself had been divorced, she decided it was best not to speak much and invite dislike, so she abandoned the idea of intervening.

Wang Qingshan dared not say that he didn't want to separate. He feared that saying so would cause the He clan woman to seek a divorce, leaving him helpless. Yet, he couldn't answer his mother's question either, and the anxiety caused sweat to bead on his forehead.

Finally, the Old Man could stand it no longer. "Sigh, stop putting pressure on the child." Then, the Old Man turned back to the He clan woman. "You are absolutely determined to separate and live on your own?"

The He clan woman nodded.

The Old Matriarch saw the Old Man's posture—it seemed he was about to agree to let the young couple separate—and hurriedly protested, "Old man, what are you doing..."

The Old Man waved a hand. "You don't need to say anything more. Since they want to separate, let them have their wish. Otherwise, keeping them together will surely cause more trouble down the line."

"But if outsiders ask later, what are we supposed to say?" the Old Matriarch was unhappy.

The Old Man considered that what the Old Matriarch said held some sense. If they separated now, the villagers would inevitably connect the division of the household with this afternoon's events, leading to endless gossip. However, if they didn't separate now, the eldest granddaughter-in-law would certainly not be pleased.

The Old Man thought for a moment and then proposed, "How about this: Eldest granddaughter-in-law, it's acceptable for you to separate and live on your own, but you must reside in the old house for two years, and you cannot tell anyone outside that your branch has separated. Otherwise, it will certainly invite gossip. Of course, after two years, you can live wherever you choose. If you agree, I can make the decision to separate you right now."

The He clan woman considered it. The Old Man's concerns were valid. If news of the old house splitting up got out at this sensitive time, who knew what people would say about the young couple? Besides, she wasn't someone who would press her advantage relentlessly. "Fine, we'll stay in the old house for now."

Wang Youtian and Tian looked on, aghast that the Old Man was ready to separate their eldest son and daughter-in-law just like that. They protested urgently, "Father, how old are they, that you'd send them off to live separately..."

The Old Man, too, did not wish to separate the young couple, but circumstances forced his hand. If he refused, who knew what the He clan woman would do next.

The Old Man settled the matter, agreeing to the separation. Only then did the He clan woman breathe a sigh of relief, but the matter wasn't quite finished. "Grandpa, then what assets do we get to divide?"

Wang Youtian and Tian suddenly remembered that the family property needed to be divided, making them even more reluctant. Wang Youtian urgently argued, "What division is this? When other families divide, they find several outsiders and the village head to notarize it! Our family hasn't found a single outsider; what kind of division is this? It doesn't count!"

Wang Youtian was indeed desperate. In reality, if all family members felt the division was fair and agreed, they could forgo involving outsiders. The situation Wang Youtian described was for when certain family members feared the elders might favor one side, or when the elders wished to prove their impartiality to outsiders. Thus, excluding outsiders was perfectly permissible in a private family division.

Hearing Wang Youtian's reasoning, everyone in the room was at a loss for words. Earlier, it was explicitly stated that this matter must be kept quiet and handled internally, yet now Wang Youtian was using the lack of external notarization as an excuse. Had his intelligence regressed simply because money was involved?

Indeed, when the He clan woman heard Wang Youtian's words, she felt that when a person panics, all the cleverness in their head vanishes. "Fine, if you want to bring in more people or the village head, I don't mind. But I won't be responsible for what outsiders say about our Wang family then."

Only then did Wang Youtian realize what a terrible excuse he had just offered. Wang Youtian cautiously glanced at the Old Man, finding him glaring at him, and could only say awkwardly, "This... I was just thinking that the children will have to live on their own soon, and I became anxious and forgot..."

The Old Man had no energy left to scold Wang Youtian. He just wanted to conclude the division as quickly as possible. Thus, under the pained gazes of Wang Youtian and Tian, the Old Man swiftly divided the household. Although the young couple didn't receive much in terms of cash, they were allotted two mu of paddy field out of the eldest branch's four mu, and three mu of dry land out of eleven mu. They were also given some farming implements. Furthermore, the house they currently lived in was assigned to them, and a room previously used for storage was designated as their kitchen, complete with a set of kitchen utensils. Their grain rations were also divided according to the number of people.

The He clan woman was very satisfied with this outcome and raised no further demands; the matter of the division was thus concluded. Of course, the Old Man did not forget to instruct everyone present not to speak of today's events.