Neither the eldest nor the second son of the Meng Household Meng Household could sleep all night.
After the family divided their property, the two families lost contact. Meng Hongde sat on the doorstep, holding a pipe in his hand, taking puffs one after another.
Leaning against the doorframe, Diao Siniang was filled with regret. "Who knew that kid would be so talented, actually becoming the top scholar in the imperial examination? If we hadn't separated the family... you, as the eldest uncle, would still be living the high life."
Meng Hongde smacked his lips, "Alright... we've come this far, what's the point of saying all this?"
"What do you mean 'useless'? You're still his uncle, no matter what. Even if the family has separated, blood ties still exist. I heard... that kid wants to move his parents' graves."
Diao Siniang glanced at Meng Hongde and, seeing his lack of reaction, continued, "Why don't you take this opportunity to get closer to him? Let's not even talk about him becoming the top scholar; just look at that brat—she owns six mountains, three shops, and two estates... Just think about it, a young girl like her holding so much money..."
Meng Hongde looked up at her, "What do you mean?"
"What could I possibly want... I just want our lives to be a little easier. If you become the manager of the First Manor, our family won't be short of money."
Diao Siniang's eyes were practically overflowing with greed as she stared intently at Meng Hongde... She saw him tap his pipe against the wall.
He knocked the ash out of his pipe, then stood up and said unhappily, "You only saw the money? You didn't see a thing when I was being slapped by the Jin Shanyao."
Meng Hongde got up, rolled his pipe on the pipe, and tucked it into his waistband. "Before, when my third brother and I hadn't separated our households, Jin Shanyao was too worried about the two children to kill them."
"Now that the family has separated... do you think she'll show any mercy?" he said, putting his hands behind his back as he left the yard.
Diao Siniang called out from behind, "Where are you going..."
Meng Hongde ignored her, glanced at his second son's house, and then walked towards the foot of the mountain. He wanted to see his third son one last time; this parting might be the last time he saw him.
Second wife.
Meng Hongyi surrounded Wang Guihua, saying, "In our Meng Household, only you and Jin Shanyao people we can talk to. Why don't you take the two children over and visit them?"
Wang Guihua turned away and continued weaving straw mats. "I'm not going... I'm not starving to death yet, I'm not going to do that annoying thing."
"What do you mean by being annoying...? Anci has now become the top scholar in the imperial examination. A little money he has is enough to help his son get married. Even if you don't think about yourself, you should think about your two children."
Wang Guihua lowered her head and continued her work. "I have a reputation to maintain. That child knelt before you, begging for money to buy medicine... What did you say? You said you'd collect the body after the mother died."
"That happened eight hundred years ago, why are you bringing it up again... Besides, his mother is dying, how are his siblings going to pay him back if I lend him money...? Will our family be able to survive?"
Wang Guihua pulled back the curtain, saying as she wove, "You don't need to tell me, let whoever wants to go, go ahead, I'm not going..."
"Fine... I'll send my daughter and son," he said, getting up to leave. Wang Guihua threw down the straw mat, stood up, and said, " Meng Hongyi, if you dare make my children do something so shameful and disgraceful, I'll never forgive you!"
"You..." Meng Hongyi pointed at Wang Guihua for a long time before finally saying, "If you have any backbone, why don't you just starve to death..." He was about to leave when Wang Guihua grabbed him and pulled him back.
"Where are you going? Weave me a straw mat."
Meng Hongyi muttered a curse under his breath, then sat down and started weaving straw mats with her.
Jin Shanyao was unaware of what had happened between the two families; she was currently accompanying the siblings to choose a burial plot at Lush Mountain.
Meng Anzhi pointed to a gentle slope halfway up the mountain, "Auntie, what do you think of this location? My parents can be buried here... and a house can be built next to it?"
Jin Shanyao and said, "That's fine... Lush Mountain has good feng shui; any location is suitable."
"Then let's choose this one..." Meng Anzhi made the final decision.
The group then went to a coffin shop and ordered two fine coffins and a large tombstone.
While the coffins were being made, the siblings began recruiting workers to clear the ground and lay the foundation on Lush Mountain.
Three days passed in a flash. The siblings, dressed in mourning clothes, pulled two well-fitting coffins and led a large group of people back to Little River Village.
They went straight to the old cemetery and were about to start digging when the village headman arrived in a hurry with a group of people.
" Anci... why didn't you tell me about such a big thing as moving a grave? I could have brought people over to help."
Meng Anci looked at the village head, "Moving the grave is a family matter, it's not good to trouble the villagers..." After speaking, he looked at the people he brought, "Dig... try to move the grave before noon."
The village head, watching the construction workers begin, pulled Meng Anci aside and whispered, " Anci... now that your ancestral graves have been moved, what will be done with this land?"
"The village head wants to buy land?"
The village head, his thoughts exposed, blushed and said, " Old Woman Li told me yesterday... that since you sold your farmland and house to her, you won't rent them to me next year."
I was thinking... since your grave has been moved, you probably can't go back to Little River Village anymore, so I was wondering... could you sell me the location of this burial plot?"
Meng Anci glanced at his sister, "Wait a moment..." After saying that, he walked to Meng Anzhi's side and said something. The girl looked in their direction.
The village head felt somewhat uncomfortable. Meng Anci, as a male member of the Meng Household, had to consult his sister about a burial plot. It was a waste that he had become the top scholar; he wouldn't amount to much in the future.
Just as he was thinking this, Meng Anci returned. "Village head... I'm sorry, the cemetery and farmland are adjacent, and it has already been sold to the Li Household."
"What?! This was sold too? Did you sign a contract with the Li Household? I'll pay double the price, sell it to me..." The village head was red with anxiety; his grandson had failed the imperial examination three times.
They were just missing this burial plot. If they could move their ancestral graves here, their grandson would surely become the top scholar in the imperial examination. As the two were talking, Diao Siniang and Meng Hongyi rushed over.
"What did you sell?? Ah... Anci, what did you sell? This is the root of our Meng Household! How could you just sell it like that?"
Meng Hongyi chimed in, "That's right, even if you were going to sell, you should have sold it to us... The Li Household only looked after your house for a few years, and you sold them your farmland and house. What were you thinking?"
Meng Anci coldly swept his gaze over Diao Siniang and Meng Hongyi. The two felt a chill run down their spines under his gaze... This child's eyes are even more unsettling than when he was a child?
Meng Anci said coldly, "This land belongs to the Meng Household. I can sell it to whomever I want... We have no right to interfere."
"I'm your second uncle... am I an outsider?"
" Meng Hongyi, you must have lost your memory... The family division documents can be filed at the government office. If you dare to claim kinship again... don't blame me for sending you to jail."
His voice, though not angry, carried an imposing authority, and the men he brought immediately stopped what they were doing, staring intently at Meng Hongyi.
Meng Hongyi was startled, suddenly realizing that Meng Anci was no longer the four-year-old child he could manipulate at will.
Diao Siniang wanted to say something more, but seeing this scene, she didn't dare to speak. She forced a smile, trying to please Meng Anci, but saw that he had already turned away.
She hurriedly looked at Meng Anzhi, but the other woman didn't even spare her a glance.
Meng Hongyi and Diao Siniang stood frozen in place, utterly humiliated. The villagers dared not utter a word; the Meng Household's third branch was no longer a place where they could gossip.