Chapter 11
Wang Fengnian saw how smoothly he calculated accounts and how decisive he was in conversation. He couldn’t help but look toward Lu Erbao.
Lu Erbao recounted the encounter with the Xie family’s mother and son at the market today.
Like Lu Erbao, Wang Fengnian was left speechless.
But since they were at home, with the doors closed, he couldn’t hold back his words.
“That Xie boy is too much! He’s about to get married, yet when he ran into us outside, he didn’t even show our Liu-ge’er any respect. After marriage, won’t everyone inside and outside their household just bully him?”
Lu Erbao didn’t respond.
He was afraid that if he did, Lu Liu would start making a fuss about not wanting to marry again.
Their family really couldn’t find a better match.
The two pieces of sugar cake were still warm, but Lu Erbao didn’t eat. He let Lu Yang have another piece.
Wang Fengnian also didn’t eat, saying they should save it, reheat it tomorrow, and give it to Lu Yang.
Lu Yang found it strange, feeling oddly emotional.
So this was the difference between a birth father and adoptive parents?
Back at the Chen family, he never had this kind of treatment.
He pointed to the red date and longan soup simmering on the stove and said, “If you’re not eating the sugar cake, then I won’t eat this either. It’s all sweet—too much.”
Wang Fengnian chuckled, “You used to beg for sweet water, you loved sweets. And now you say it’s too much?”
Lu Yang hadn’t known that his little brother used to beg for sweet water. He found it amusing and also felt a warm sensation in his chest.
He liked hearing about these things. As he threaded copper coins onto a hemp rope, he asked Wang Fengnian to tell him more stories.
Wang Fengnian looked older than his peers. His hair had turned white, and he was thin, almost gaunt. The pregnancy mole between his brows had dulled, almost disappearing.
People said that the better a husband was cared for, the redder and more vibrant his pregnancy mole would be. Given how weak his body had become over the years, there was no need to check the mole to know that he had lived a hard life.
But the thinner he got, the bigger his eyes seemed. He, too, had a pair of almond-shaped eyes. Both brothers resembled him.
As Lu Yang strung the coins together, his eyes kept drifting to Wang Fengnian.
So this was what his father looked like—speaking softly and gently. His little brother really took after their father. Both of them were kind and easygoing.
Lu Yang had his own method for stringing copper coins: ten coins formed a knot, and he threaded both ends together before adding another set of ten. Once he had ten knots, it made a full string of one hundred coins. This way, counting the money when spending was much easier.
Lu Erbao found it convenient and told him to slow down so he could learn.
Lu Yang then focused and taught his father how to tie the knots.
There weren’t many coins, so once he was done, Lu Yang sat in the kitchen chatting with them, asking about their future plans.
Once he got married, only his two fathers would be left at home.
In his opinion, there was no need to farm so much land anymore.
First, Wang Fengnian couldn’t leave the housework behind to deliver meals, and if Lu Erbao had to run back and forth alone, it would be too exhausting. Their farmland was already scattered, and most of the effort would be wasted just traveling between plots.
Second, Wang Fengnian wanted to raise chickens. The quality of their chickens depended on how diligently they caught bugs to feed them. If they simply let the chickens roam like other families, they wouldn’t grow as fat. Besides, other families often stole chickens, so someone had to stay home.
It would be better to sell all six acres of their poor farmland and exchange it for one acre of fertile land.
That way, farming would be easier, Lu Erbao could handle it alone, and they would still have time to catch bugs.
Next year, they would start raising chicks, though raising them took time—just like farming, requiring investment upfront.
But that was fine. Lu Yang reassured them, “You have to sacrifice to gain. I have connections—I can get piglets for us to raise. Don’t worry about the money. Didn’t the Xie family already give us a betrothal gift? Use that money to buy two piglets.”
One acre of land would be easy to manage, and most of the time, there would still be two people at home.
Lu Yang would do his best to get a male and female piglet. If raised well, they could breed more piglets.
If anyone in the village wanted to raise pigs, they would have to rely on their family. Otherwise, if the piglets were slaughtered for food, there wouldn’t be any left for breeding.
Of course, this required preparation, but that was something to handle after the new year.
Lu Yang wouldn’t leave his two fathers alone and struggling. He would make sure everything was taken care of.
When the new year came and he visited for New Year’s greetings, he would also get familiar with his relatives’ connections and find someone influential to rely on.
With chickens and pigs, farming wouldn’t be the priority. One acre would be enough to give his fathers a foundation and a sense of security.
If they still felt insecure, they could buy more land later when they earned more money—three to five acres, even.
But for now, those six acres of barren land had to go.
Holding onto poor land wouldn’t yield enough grain, just an endless struggle. How many years would it take before they could actually live a good life?
Raising only chickens wouldn’t reassure his fathers, but if they had piglets, they would start considering it.
His words left Lu Erbao and Wang Fengnian stunned. They wanted to interrupt several times, but each time, his next words shocked them even more, filling their minds with one question after another.
When had Lu Liu become so decisive? When had he found connections to acquire piglets? And selling land? That was far too bold! What farmer didn’t grow crops!?
Lu Yang slammed the table to settle it. “Since I’m engaged, that means I’m an adult now. From now on, you’ll listen to me when it comes to family matters.”
He knew where people’s weaknesses lay and struck right at their hearts: “Dad, you both need to stand tall. Otherwise, how am I supposed to survive in the Xie family?”
Standing tall meant having a backbone.
Only when they had money in their pockets could they hold their heads high.
But Lu Erbao and Wang Fengnian still hesitated.
With land, they could always scrape by. If the chickens died… And what if they failed to raise pigs, too…?
Lu Yang chuckled. “What’s there to be afraid of? Aren’t the Xie family’s relatives all eager to leech off Scholar Xie? If there’s a piece of meat to be eaten, does it matter who eats it? If things really go south, I’ll just take money from him.”
Lu Erbao and Wang Fengnian were horrified.
How had this child gone to the market and come back with such audacity?
Who taught him this? He wasn’t even married yet, and he was already planning to support his family? If anyone heard this, who would dare marry him!?
Wang Fengnian muttered under his breath, “Don’t say that. You can’t say that. If someone hears, it’ll be bad.”
Many families did this, but they couldn’t teach their child to do the same.
A filial child would naturally come back to visit, bringing small gifts as a token of appreciation. But if he deliberately planned to take money from his in-laws, he’d never be able to hold his head up in his new household. How would he live?
Lu Yang saw how nervous they were and shook his head, saying nothing more.
He didn’t take it seriously. At the Chen family, Old Man Chen had been drilling money-making schemes into him non-stop. Compared to that, his two fathers were overly cautious.
Yet, for some reason, he felt a deep sadness inside. More than when Old Man Chen used him to make money.
He didn’t understand why.
But it didn’t matter.
He had never learned before.
So, he would just figure it out.
