Regarding the confusion of Old Madam Luo, Luo Yin also harbored the same doubts; how could a terminal illness possibly relate to the family division?

Luo Yin pondered aloud, "It couldn't be that my eldest sister-in-law has a fatal disease, and then the Old Master and Old Madam pity them, right? After all, whether this terminal illness can be cured is still unknown, and if the elders in the family indulge her, they'll indulge her."

Old Madam Luo nodded, "It seems so. I heard from a family in our village that as soon as your eldest sister-in-law had her pulse read, her face changed drastically, as if she were possessed. The doctor must have said something terrible."

Upon hearing this, Luo Yin felt even more certain she was right. "Then it must be correct. When she came back that day, everyone in the village who saw her said she was haunted—crying and laughing uncontrollably, while Big Brother stood beside her looking utterly miserable."

The mother and daughter immediately felt pity for He Shi again. Old Madam Luo lamented further, "Poor child, having to pretend everything was fine in front of outsiders, never imagining she was already nearing her end."

"Yes, I also never expected Sister-in-law, being so young, to have a terminal illness," Luo Yin murmured with a sigh of regret.

After lamenting He Shi's tragic fate, the two remembered why they had been trying to get updates on Wang Qingshan and He Shi. Old Madam Luo sighed again, "Alas, we were hoping to learn from them, then copy their methods to get you two set up on your own, but who knew it was due to a terminal illness? You can't really copy that situation. You two young ones must take care not to catch any sickness. Oh, and by the way, limit your contact with your eldest sister-in-law from now on, understand? You don't want to catch whatever she has, and you have a child to raise now."

"Mm, Mother, I understand. The child is the most important thing," Luo Yin nodded in agreement.

Old Madam Luo was greatly relieved when Luo Yin consented, but soon her expression turned sorrowful again. "However, any hope of separating the family this way is gone. We'll have to find another way."

Luo Yin could only echo her mother's sigh.

Neither mother nor daughter ever considered that Wang Qingshan and his wife separated because of infertility. In this era, the common belief among farming families was that if one couldn't bear children, one should go pray to the Goddess of Fertility or similar deities, not rush to a medical clinic. Going to a clinic was usually reserved for when one suffered from a major physical ailment, something like an incurable disease. Furthermore, the information Old Madam Luo gleaned indicated that He Shi went for treatment; she never suspected that Wang Qingshan would also have his pulse examined, let alone that Wang Qingshan's health issues were the root cause of He Shi's infertility. Thus, the misunderstanding was born.

Not long after Gou Sheng’s one-month celebration, the busy farming season was about to begin again.

The fields Wang Youfu’s family had acquired had already become known throughout the village; only the exact acreage remained unknown. Therefore, Wang Youfu’s household made no attempt to hide things this time; besides their existing long-term laborers, they were preparing to hire several temporary workers for assistance.

As usual, the academy closed for the duration of the busy season. Wang Qingchen returned and went to the fields to help. This time, the family used an ox cart; every time they harvested a cartload of wheat, the family ox would pull it to the threshing ground. Wang Qingchen helped Wang Qinghua drive the cart.

Using the ox cart saved considerable effort, which earned considerable murmurs of discontent from the First Branch. Before, all three branches of the Wang family worked together during the harvest. Now, the Second Branch, having acquired wealth, had cast off the First Branch, harvesting their crops independently. Moreover, the Second Branch was now flush with cash and had hired so many people to help with the wheat harvest, making Wang Youliang deeply envious.

Tian Shi's thoughts mirrored Wang Youliang's, and given their past temperaments, they would surely have sought out the Old Master and Old Madam to intervene. However, the Old Master was no longer as easily swayed as before, which caused them to hesitate. In the end, Tian Shi could not contain herself and went to the Old Madam.

When the Old Madam heard her explanation, she agreed that Tian Shi had a point, and so she consented to help the couple speak to the Old Master. The Old Madam then raised the matter at an opportune moment when the Old Master was present.

"Old man, this year's wheat harvest, the Second Branch acted disgracefully!" the Old Madam declared.

"What's wrong? Has the Eldest Branch been complaining to you again?" the Old Master asked.

"Don't always blame them; I can see this myself. Remember when the Second Branch was poor? They always harvested wheat alongside the First and Third Branches. Now that they have money, they've abandoned their brothers. Not only did they buy an ox and a cart, but they hired several people to help with the harvest, showing no consideration for their brothers' families. Does that seem right?" the Old Madam argued.

"Look at what you're saying. The Second Branch has more land now. If he truly harvested alongside the First and Third Branches, wouldn't the First and Third Branches suffer a disadvantage? By handling their own work separately now, he’s actually being considerate of his brothers," the Old Master reasoned.

The Old Madam remained dissatisfied. "But how is he considering his brothers now? Look at their setup—an ox cart and a whole crew of hired hands. Harvesting wheat takes no effort for them. Even if all three brothers worked together, it wouldn't be that strenuous; perhaps the First and Third Branches could even benefit slightly and have an easier time! I think the Second Branch is just afraid his brothers will take advantage of his good fortune, and he doesn't want them using his ox cart or hired help, which is why he's harvesting separately."

The Old Master had initially thought the Second Branch harvesting separately was a consideration for his brothers, but after hearing the Old Madam’s words, he felt a flicker of doubt. Could it be that the Second Branch, now wealthy, truly intended to cut ties with his brothers?

Once the seed of doubt is sown, it sprouts and grows robustly. Now, whenever the Old Master thought of his second son, he couldn't help but wonder if he was really planning to distance himself from his brothers, just as Tian Shi claimed.

Yang Shi was over seven months pregnant, and the family dared not let her involve herself in heavy chores; Luo Qing and Wu Shi were managing the household affairs. During the busy season, the meals and cooling, thirst-quenching drinks for the long-term and temporary laborers needed preparation. Now that the family was more prosperous, they were much more generous in this regard; for the duration of the harvest, there were meat dishes almost every day. The workers, seeing the master's generosity, worked with greater fervor, which greatly pleased Wang Youfu.

This year, the wheat harvest was substantial. Even after paying taxes, a considerable amount remained. Wang Youfu’s family had no intention of selling it; they planned to keep some for their own consumption and supply the rest to the family mill to be ground into fine white flour for sale.

After his own wheat was harvested, Wang Youfu noticed that the First and Third Branches were still busy, so he prepared to go offer assistance.

However, before he could leave, the Old Master arrived. Ever since suspecting the Second Branch, the Old Master had resolved to observe his conduct. Thus, as soon as the Second Branch finished their harvest, the Old Master came over.

"Second son, your family’s wheat is all gathered, but your elder brother’s and third brother’s harvests are not yet done!" the Old Master said, watching Wang Youfu’s reaction closely.

Wang Youfu nodded. "Yes, I know that. Once I’m done here, I was planning to go help out."

"You'll take your family’s ox cart and the hired hands to help?" the Old Master inquired.

Wang Youfu nodded again.

Only then did the Old Master breathe a sigh of relief. It seemed his second son had not forgotten his brothers; that was good.

Wang Youfu observed the Old Master's look of relief and was initially puzzled. Then, with a sudden turn of thought, he realized why the Old Master had made this personal visit, and a wave of annoyance washed over him.

Wang Youfu’s original thought was that since his land was more extensive, harvesting with the First and Third Branches would inevitably disadvantage them—especially the First Branch, who would surely harbor grievances and perhaps stir up more trouble. Therefore, both to avoid unnecessary conflict and to refrain from unfairly benefiting from his brothers, Wang Youfu had decided to harvest separately this time. He never imagined his goodwill would be so misinterpreted; how could he not feel angry?

With this thought, Wang Youfu’s expression soured slightly. The Old Master perhaps sensed he had wronged Wang Youfu previously, and so he appeared somewhat awkward. After exchanging a few more words, he returned to the old homestead.

Although Wang Youfu was seething inside, he was not one to act rashly. After calming his emotions, he went to assist the First and Third Branches. With Wang Youfu’s help, the First and Third Branches quickly finished their harvesting. Next came the turning of the soil, followed by planting other crops.

With the wheat harvest concluded, the Dragon Boat Festival approached. The family prepared many things this year, including significantly more festival gifts than the previous year. Yang Shi and Wang Youfu discussed the gifts to be distributed, and Yang Shi instructed Luo Qing to manage the arrangements.

When Luo Qing heard the quantity of festival gifts Yang Shi had stipulated, her heart ached—so many items being given away, how much money that represented! Still, despite her private anguish, the necessary tasks had to be seen to. Since marrying into Wang Youfu’s family, Luo Qing’s deepest impressions, aside from the harmony among her in-laws, had been the material abundance. For instance, eating white flour was a rare treat before; now, living with her in-laws, she ate it daily. Before, meat was seldom on the table; now, they enjoyed it every so often. This led the married Luo Qing to marvel repeatedly at how truly substantial her in-laws' foundation was, just as her own mother had said.

It was also Luo Qing's first time overseeing the Dragon Boat Festival preparations, and she feared forgetting something vital, causing her to jump nervously at every thought. Finally, Yang Shi could not bear to watch and stepped in to supervise, ensuring nothing was overlooked. Luo Qing felt a great sense of relief and was deeply grateful for her mother-in-law’s attentiveness.