Chapter 4

The reason why the Hou family immediately lost their momentum when they mentioned dividing the family was that in this era, there were laws prohibiting the division of property while parents were still alive! Otherwise, the children would go to jail! Every month, the government would announce this at the Ming Court Pavilion, and even a three-year-old child would know it.

So, the Hou family would be so 'generous' as to say they did not want anything from the Wang family; and they deliberately avoided mentioning the division of the family, instead using the term 'living separately,' which was actually a case of self-deception!

However, such matters were typically not investigated unless the people involved reported them. There were many brothers who could not get along and lived separately, and not all of them had no parents. As long as they did not file a lawsuit for the division of the family, the government would not intervene, unless someone wanted to frame you.

For the Hou family to succeed without leaving any trouble behind, they had to obtain the mother-in-law's consent and get her to issue a 'living separately but not dividing the family' certificate before they dared to break away.

Everyone looked at the old lady, who, with her hand that had turned white from gripping, smoothed her hair, neither hurried nor flustered, and calmly looked at Wang Gui.

After looking at her son, she turned to the Hou family and said, "I've had enough of this greedy, lazy, and evil woman..." Just as the Hou family was about to explode, she suddenly changed her tone and said, "Don't you want a certificate for living separately but not dividing the family? As long as Wang Gui agrees, I'll issue it!"

The Hou family was immediately overjoyed, turned to Wang Gui, and urged him in unison, "What are you waiting for? Agree!" Based on their experience, Wang Gui, who had never dared to say no in his life, would certainly not dare to oppose it.

"Don't..." Wang Gui pitifully pleaded with the Hou family, "Little Er is still sick, the sister is still young, and the old lady is not in good health. How can we manage? If we live separately now, we'll be ridiculed."

"You don't need to worry," the old lady sneered, "I've endured such difficult times before. Without the Wang butcher, can we not eat pork with hair on it?!"

"Mother..." After twenty years of being mother and son, how could Wang Gui not recognize that his mother was speaking sarcastically? He became even more hesitant to agree.

"Mother has already said it, why are you still hesitating?" The Hou family could no longer pretend to be dead and jumped out of bed, pointing at Wang Gui with a spindle-shaped head, "You've spent all your money treating Little Er for half a year, and now he's finally awake. As his brother, you've done enough! Who in the neighborhood can say anything about you?" She then appealed to his emotions and interests, "Wang Gui, haven't you always dreamed of being the boss? After living separately, I'll take out my dowry and open a paper mill for you, so you can taste what it's like to be the boss!"

"Right, don't worry about where to live," the brother-in-law, who knew his sister's thoughts, added, "I have a two-story house in the county town that's empty. You can move in today! There's also an old maid there, so you'll have someone to take care of your meals and clothes, which is a million times better than your current life of hard labor!"

"Old man at home loves your wife the most. As long as you agree to move, the debt your family owes us will be written off," the younger brother-in-law said, "If you don't believe me, I can write a contract for you!"

Money wasn't something he had lent, and his contract was useless. These empty words, which even ghosts wouldn't believe, only someone like Wang Gui would believe... The Hou siblings thought.

Sure enough, after hearing the third point, Wang Gui's face showed a heavy struggle, and he tightly bit his lips, not knowing what to say.

"Wang Gui, if you don't agree, I'll report you to the authorities!" The Hou family knew that this man was the worst at making decisions, so she had to use her ultimate weapon to scare him, "You heard what my brother said. I'm injured, and if I report you, you'll be arrested by the government!"

Wang Gui was struck as if by lightning, and the old lady's face turned red with anger. She stood up abruptly and pointed at the Hou family, "Fine, I'll accompany you! I'll expose all the ugly things you've done over the years, and you'll stink for miles!"

The mother-in-law's outburst scared the Hou family, but she couldn't give up now. She turned her head with difficulty, not looking at the old lady but at Wang Gui, "Try me!"

Wang Gui still tightly bit his lips, his face showing a constipated look, and he remained silent.

"Wang Gui, stop dilly-dallying and answer quickly," the Hou brothers urged impatiently. They had to go drinking that night and didn't have time to waste here. The younger brother-in-law, annoyed, looked up and saw Little Silver Bell peeking outside the door, and blurted out, "What are you looking at? Go back inside!"

Silver Bell, being young, was frightened and shuddered.

The younger brother-in-law turned back, just about to scold Wang Gui again, when he heard a roar ten times louder than his own, "Shut up!"

This roar stunned everyone. After a moment, they all looked at Wang Gui!

This roar came from Wang Gui, who had always been submissive!

After a while, the Hou brothers finally came to their senses, and the younger brother-in-law laughed dryly, "What do you mean?"

"Don't shout at my sister!" Wang Gui, with red eyes, swept his gaze over the brother-in-law and the younger brother-in-law, and finally landed on the Hou family, his courage gradually fading, and he said in a low voice, "I won't divide the family..."

"Say that again?" The Hou family was stunned.

"I won't divide the family," Wang Gui's voice was even lower, "If you want to leave, go ahead..."

"Fine, fine," the Hou family, who thought she had cornered Wang Gui, was furious and began to pack her clothes, "Wait for the government to come and arrest you!"

"Wang Gui, it's not too late to change your mind," the brother-in-law, seeing the situation was about to collapse, hurriedly tried to salvage it, "Once my sister steps out of this door, she won't be your wife anymore. Also, the debt your family owes us is long overdue. We didn't ask for it before because we were relatives. Now, for a useless brother, you're giving up your wife, so we don't need to be polite. Tomorrow, we'll file a lawsuit in the county, accusing you of not repaying the debt and injuring your wife. Your life will be over, do you understand?"

"I won't divide the family..." Wang Gui, indeed, was scared pale but still kept his head down, repeating those four words, almost wearing out the floor tiles with his feet.

"Wang Gui, think carefully," the old lady even advised, "Even the mute widow on East Street would require five strings of cash as a dowry, and I don't have the ability to find you another wife!"

"I won't divide the family..." Wang Gui had already made up his mind and finally looked up, "Cui Lian has her family to take care of, I'm at ease."

"Spit!" The Hou family almost spat on Wang Gui's face, picked up her bundle, and angrily stormed out, "Wang Nose, you'll regret it and beg me on your knees!"

In the courtyard, she was still furious and walked to the west wing, where she saw her brother-in-law, Wang Xian, calmly looking at her. His clear, sharp eyes were even more terrifying than the old lady's.

Cursing herself for being hit on the head today, what was there to fear from this useless sickly person? The Hou family glared at him and shouted, "Waste, you're a curse to this family! I'll watch you ruin the Wang family until it falls apart!"

Wang Xian remained calm but finally spoke, "Big Sister, I've done many wrong things in the past, and I've made you angry. I was wrong. But I've changed. If you want to divide the family because of me, you can wait a bit. In a few months, the Wang family will improve! Otherwise, I'll leave and won't be a burden to you anymore."

"Ha ha ha..." The Hou family laughed as if she had heard something funny, "You can change? A dog can't change its nature. As long as you're here, the Wang family will never improve!"

"You can watch..." Wang Xian sighed and fell silent.

"Fine, I'll watch!" The Hou family laughed and walked away, "I'll see how you continue to ruin this family!"

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The Hou siblings left, taking their dowry with them. Wang Gui, the simpleton, even helped them call a carriage and move the boxes, busily working.

This left the neighbors puzzled. They had heard the Wang family arguing loudly, but how did Wang Gui suddenly help the Hou family move their dowry boxes? Were they going to divide the family?

A neighbor couldn't help but ask, "Wang Gui, are you moving out?"

Wang Gui shook his head and said sadly, "Cui Lian is going back to her family, I'll stay."

The neighbors were surprised and looked at Wang Gui with new respect, realizing that the Hou family had a bad reputation in the neighborhood.

When Wang Gui returned, he saw the old lady standing in the courtyard. He lowered his head and said softly, "Mother..."

"Wang Gui, you did the right thing," the old lady said approvingly, "Your brother is indeed a waste, but he's still your brother. If you abandoned him now, I would definitely report you to the authorities."

Wang Gui was uneasy, "But the Hou family will also report to the authorities."

"Report what?" the old lady spat, "You fool, your father was once a criminal judge, and you don't even understand the law? A husband beating his wife is not considered a crime unless it causes serious injury! She just has a few scratches, so it doesn't count!"

"Oh..." Wang Gui nodded gloomily but felt relieved.

"Go rest," the old lady knew that making this decision was hard for him, so she sent Wang Gui back to rest. She then turned to the door of the west wing and glared at her younger son, "I heard everything you said!"

"I said it for you to hear," Wang Xian met the old lady's gaze, their eyes equally clear and sharp.

"Talking is useless," the old lady sneered, "Show me some results before you talk big, or I'll consider it as farting."

"Just watch," Wang Xian, knowing she was using reverse psychology, still raised his eyebrows and said firmly, "I, Wang Xian, am different now!"

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