Chapter 689 - 594: One After Another

They didn’t eat until after three in the afternoon, so it was hard to tell if it was lunch or dinner.

Two tables were packed with people. The savory aroma of cooked meat filled the air, and everyone was starving. They all hurried to find their seats and grab their bowls and chopsticks. With eating as the top priority, all other topics were temporarily set aside. Hosts and guests exchanged pleasantries, making for a congenial and harmonious atmosphere.

Halfway through the meal at the men’s table, Jiabao went to the storage room and brought out two five-jin jugs of wine—one fruit wine and one yellow millet wine. Granny Mo’s sons and grandsons were in high spirits, enjoying the fine food and drink. When they heard Grandpa explain that there wasn’t much work at the moment and he wasn’t hiring, they didn’t seem disappointed. They simply toasted him, showered him with praise, and asked him to let them know when work opened up in the spring, promising they would be there. Grandpa naturally nodded in agreement. He felt he should look after the younger generation of his relatives whenever he could.

At the women’s table, they began to chat after eating half a bowl of rice to sate their initial hunger. It was still Granny Mo and Liang Panqiu trying to make small talk with Fifth Auntie and Yu Wumei. The younger girls felt it wasn’t their place to interrupt, so they ate quietly. Grandma also disliked chattering at the table, and Xiao Man sat silently by her side. Liang Panqiu tried to direct questions at Xiao Man several times, but Fifth Auntie always answered for her, so Xiao Man didn’t have to speak. Still not giving up, Liang Panqiu stretched out her chopsticks to give Xiao Man some food, but Grandma intercepted them with a bowl. "It’s not customary in the city to serve food for others, and we’ve started following that custom too," Grandma said with a faint smile. "The adults and children here aren’t used to having others put food in their bowls anymore. Everyone just takes what they like!"

Fifth Auntie and Yu Wumei chimed in, "Yes, that’s right! Just help yourself to whatever you want. Please, don’t be shy!"

Xiao Man gave Liang Panqiu a cold look. The older woman, after some self-reflection, decided she hadn’t done anything to offend the girl. ’She’s just being a willful, arrogant brat,’ she concluded, not taking it to heart. She even kept flashing smiles at Xiao Man.

After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, the women cleared the tables and started washing the dishes. The men had the advantage of not having to do anything; they either sat around smoking and chatting or wandered about, looking around the property.

As elders, Granny Mo and Ahua naturally didn’t have to help clean up. They pulled Grandpa over to a stove to continue their conversation. Liang Panqiu kept her eyes peeled while she swept the floor half-heartedly for a bit. The moment she saw her mother wink at her, she dropped the broom—not even bothering to sweep up the pile of dirt—and walked right over. Granny Mo had already placed a small stool for her next to Grandpa Mo. Liang Panqiu sat down and began with a smile, asking Grandpa Mo a few polite questions about the herb garden—if it was busy, if he was tired, and so on. Then, her topic and expression shifted in an instant, her face becoming a mask of anxiety and pitifulness. Just as she was about to make her request to Grandpa Mo, Liang Xiaoju suddenly cut in. She squatted down on Grandpa Mo’s other side, grabbed his arm, and whined,

"Grandpa, I want to go back to school! You pay my tuition!"

Grandpa was stunned, but Granny Mo reacted quickly. She smacked Liang Xiaoju on the head. "The adults are discussing important business! What’s a girl like you doing, making a scene? Go play somewhere else!"

Liang Xiaoju dodged her grandma’s slap and raised her voice. "This is important business too! It concerns my entire future! Grandma, you can’t be biased. You can’t just care about my auntie and ignore our whole family. I’m your own granddaughter, and my dad is your own son! If I become successful in the future, you and my dad will get to share in the glory, right?"

Granny Mo swung at her a second time. "What nonsense are you spouting, you wretched girl? If I didn’t look after you all, would you be where you are today? Now hurry up and get out of here!"

Grandpa Mo reached out and blocked Granny Mo’s slap. "That’s enough. We’re just talking, no need to get physical. You’re getting on in years; such a temper isn’t good for your health."

"That’s right! Grandma, you’re always hitting me. You’re going to beat me stupid! See? Grandpa Mo feels bad for me. I’m his grand-niece!" Under Grandpa Mo’s protection, Liang Xiaoju lifted her chin smugly at Granny Mo.

Furious, Granny Mo started screeching curses at the ’wretched girl’ in a voice like a broken gong, and Grandpa had no choice but to try and calm her down again.

With Liang Xiaoju’s interruption, Liang Panqiu’s agenda was completely ignored. The well-rehearsed speech she had prepared was now stuck in her throat, and she could only stand by, fuming and helpless, nearly suffocating from frustration.

Xiao Man and Qiuyan sat by another brazier, leaning against Grandma and Fifth Auntie. They cracked melon seeds as they watched the drama unfold. Xiao Man sneered inwardly. ’This bunch clearly teamed up to fleece a patsy. They all think Grandpa is a big sucker!’

Fifth Auntie clucked her tongue and said to Grandma, "Second Brother is too concerned with face to refuse them. You need to hold the reins tighter! Otherwise, what will this turn into? They come to you for every little thing. If you help one, another one sees it and comes running. Let’s not even mention that our own family isn’t sitting on a pile of gold. Even if we were, no amount would be enough to hand out like this! Da Zhi, Dapeng, and Qiuyan seem young now, but they’ll be grown in the blink of an eye. They’ll need schooling, clothes, and food. And their future marriages and families will be huge expenses. You have to plan for them!"

Grandma nodded. "Don’t worry, I understand. Amu and I have talked about this. His older sister is his own flesh and blood, his only living sibling. She’s getting old, and her days are numbered. And we owe Ahua a debt of gratitude. We have to take care of those two. As for the others... over the years, it’s mainly been Panqiu, using her mother’s influence to borrow money and never pay it back. I just told Amu and our son the other day: all lending to people who don’t repay stops now. If Amu dares to give them any more money, I won’t be so polite! It’s not that I can’t manage the finances. If I were truly in charge, they’d have to file a written application to spend even a single cent!"

Xiao Man chuckled at Grandma’s words, and Qiuyan nudged Grandma with her head. "Grandma! You should take charge! Do it! Otherwise, my grandpa will spend us into ruin!"

Fifth Auntie laughed too. "Exactly! You should have taken over a long time ago!"

Meanwhile, the farce started by Liang Xiaoju was still ongoing. It was just as Fifth Auntie had predicted: once the first person made a request, a second was sure to follow. Now, there was a girl squatting on each side of Grandpa Mo, both talking to him about school.

The second one was Liang Yanliu. She spoke to Grandpa Mo with great earnestness, "Great-Uncle, my family is struggling. My dad made me drop out after I finished elementary school, but I’ve always dreamed of going back. My grades were excellent, and all my teachers praised me for being smart... I hope you can help me too, Great-Uncle. If I make something of myself one day, I will be sure to repay you. I’ll remember your kindness for the rest of my life!"

Grandpa Mo suddenly turned to look toward Grandma, his expression grave. His mouth moved, as if he was about to speak, but just then, two more girls rushed out from the kitchen. Their hands were still dripping wet, likely from washing the dishes. One of them, her face flushed red, pleaded urgently,

"Great-Uncle, what about us sisters! We had to help our parents at home, so we never got a proper education. We heard that now you can legally change your age to be a few years younger and start over from the first year of junior high. I’m not even eighteen yet, and my sister is nineteen. We can both change our ages! If we get into school, we’ll study as hard as we can. Please help us, Great-Uncle!"

The living room fell silent for a moment. Even Granny Mo stopped her clamoring. She had three sons and three daughters, and she usually favored her second son and doted on her youngest daughter, Liang Panqiu. Liang Xiaoju was the daughter of her third son, so she felt free to hit and scold her at will; she hadn’t even felt reluctant years ago when there was talk of giving Liang Xiaoju to her brother. But Liang Yanliu was the daughter of her favorite second son, so she couldn’t bring herself to berate her. The two who had just run out from the kitchen were the daughters of her eldest son, whom she currently lived with. Since her eldest and second sons and both their wives were present, it was even more difficult for her to say anything. Besides, she was thinking, ’If my brother agrees to pay for these girls to go to school, that would be wonderful. They’re all my granddaughters, after all. My sons won’t have to spend a dime to educate them, and once they’re successful, they’ll have to be filial to me!’

Brother Ah Liu, who had been helping to skin the rabbit and braise the meat earlier, rubbed his chin. He chuckled, "You can do that now? Change your age to go back to school? It’s a shame I’m twenty-three, otherwise I’d try it too."

"You can’t, Brother Ah Liu, you’ve already got a beard!" a young man sitting next to him said with a grin. "But I can! I just turned eighteen at the new year!"