Chapter 119: Dividing the Family (3)

Chapter 119: Chapter 119: Dividing the Family (3)

"Do you have anything else to say?" Zhang Dazhuang frowned, looking at Zhang Weihong.

"Dad, since Eldest Brother already said we could sell the house and land if need be, I think we should go with his idea. Just think about it—if you and Mom get seriously ill someday, how could the house and land possibly be more important than your lives? People are more important than property, right? If we don’t sell them, just relying on the three of us brothers... none of us are big earners. How could we possibly afford the medical bills?"

Zhang Weihong had learned his lesson this time. He enunciated every syllable of ’people are more important than property,’ putting on a magnanimous air, as if he were thinking only of his parents’ welfare.

Zhang Weimin’s eyes lit up, and he quickly nodded in agreement. "Second Brother’s right."

Zhang Wei Qiang nodded as well.

The expressions on everyone else’s faces grew strangely complex. Zhang Damei, particularly intrigued, stroked his chin as his eyes darted from one person to another. Finally, his gaze settled on his younger brother’s face, wondering how he would handle this.

Zhang Dazhuang slowly looked over his three sons, one by one, and suddenly chuckled. "Since you all feel that way, then..." He gave everyone another long, meaningful glance. "Then I’ll just change my original plan for dividing the family property. Your concerns aren’t wrong. You never know what might happen to a person, and things like sickness and death are even harder to predict when you get old. So, here’s the deal. Your mother has saved up over sixteen hundred yuan over the years. I was originally going to keep a little over one hundred for us two old folks, and give the remaining fifteen hundred to you, five hundred for each family, to build new houses. Five hundred might not be enough to build in town, but it’s more than enough for a few brick-and-tile rooms here in the village. Add that to whatever money you’ve saved up yourselves, and you might even be able to build a concrete house."

"The family hasn’t even been divided yet, and we don’t control the income from the fields. How could we have saved any money all these years? But building a house is a huge undertaking. Even if the money isn’t enough, we’ll just have to go back to our parents’ homes to borrow some." The moment Fang Juxian heard each family would get five hundred yuan, she was both delighted and surprised. A quick mental calculation told her that her father-in-law was right; with that five hundred plus her own secret stash, they could probably even build a two-story concrete house. But she didn’t want anyone to know how much money she had squirreled away, so she spoke without thinking.

SLAM.

Zhang Dazhuang slammed the tea-filled rice bowl down on the table, splashing tea everywhere. ’Can’t a single one of them let me finish speaking?’ he fumed. ’Do they take me for a fool?’ His face flushed red as he roared at Zhang Weihong, "Second!"

"I’ve said it before, matters like dividing a family should be discussed among the men of the house. Why invite outsiders to join the ruckus? It just throws all the rules out the window. An elder can’t even finish a sentence without someone jumping in to spout nonsense," Zhang Damei sneered. A clan elder present also shot Zhang Weihong and Fang Juxian a look of disapproval. Their faces turned beet red with shame and anger. But despite their indignation, they felt the palpable disapproval from everyone around them and didn’t dare to talk back.

Wen Xiu’s eldest nephew, Wen Kun, couldn’t stop shaking his head. He had intended to stay silent and just observe, but he couldn’t help speaking up to the two brothers, Zhang Weihong and Zhang Weimin. "Wei Hong, Wei Min, don’t be in such a rush to have your say. It’s not that Uncle won’t let you speak. We’re all sitting here to discuss the best way to divide the family’s assets. But before anything else, you have to let Uncle finish explaining his idea. He’s not even done talking and you’re already jumping to conclusions about what he means. Isn’t that just a complete waste of time?"

After he finished, he turned back to Zhang Dazhuang. "Uncle, you don’t need to get upset either. Please, continue."

"Fine. Since every one of you has your wife’s family to borrow money from, we can forget what I said about five hundred yuan each. That sixteen hundred-odd yuan will be divided into four shares, as it should be. Each family gets what they get."

The moment Zhang Dazhuang spoke, Fang Juxian was stunned. She opened her mouth to protest again, but Zhang Weihong, sensing it, quickly gave her a sharp pinch under the table. She looked at him, aghast, then opened her mouth and promptly choked on her own spit, breaking into a violent coughing fit. Through her coughs, she saw Guo Xiuying and Zhang Weimin glaring at her with pure resentment, and her expression slowly began to twist.

"That’s right! That’s how it should be." Zhang Damei heard Zhang Dazhuang and saw the reactions of Fang Juxian and the others. He laughed heartily and clapped his younger brother on the shoulder. "But you and your wife are still pushing yourselves too hard. You’re getting old. How can you expect to earn money as easily as you did when you were young and strong? From here on out, you’ll be dipping into your savings. This division wasn’t supposed to force you to take out your coffin money and split it all up. Even if you did, a small token amount would have been enough. I’m not sure being as honest as you two will earn you any gratitude."

"Forget it. We’re just following our conscience. We’re telling them to build their own houses, so if we give them too little money, won’t their burden be too heavy?" Zhang Dazhuang was also pleased by the reactions from the families of his second and third sons. He finally felt a bit better. As he spoke magnanimously, he also began to wonder if his elder brother was right—was he being "too honest," to the point where he was losing out and not even being appreciated for it?

He said thoughtfully, "Since you don’t like the first plan, how about this one instead: From now on, your mother and I will live by ourselves. The families of the eldest, second, and third sons will each give us a certain amount of money and grain every month. We can negotiate the exact amount. Also, during the busy farming season each year, each of your families must send at least one able-bodied worker to help us in the fields.

"Later, when we can no longer work, we will move in with the eldest. At that point, since the eldest’s family will be taking care of us, they will no longer need to give us monthly money and grain. Instead, only the second and third sons will provide for us, and the amount will have to be increased to cover the eldest’s share, split between the two of you.

"On top of that, there are social obligations and our regular medical expenses. Basically, for any expense, whether for a major illness or a minor one, you three brothers must split the cost equally. Then, in the future, after both of us have passed on, everything we leave behind will belong to you three. At that time, all the money, the house, and the land will be divided into three equal shares. What do you think of that?"

"Alright, your father has finished speaking," Zhang Damei chimed in enthusiastically, addressing the three brothers. "Now you can say whatever you’re thinking. Don’t just stand there dazed. Let’s start with the eldest. One family at a time, speak your minds. Or would you rather discuss it among yourselves first? Hurry up and decide. Pick a plan so we can write up the division agreement."