At this moment, Han-dage was still in a bit of a daze. Earlier, when he and his erdi had stood outside the wooden fence of the courtyard, listening to the cheerful laughter wafting out from the house, an indescribable sourness had settled in his heart.
Thinking back to how their days used to be filled with constant shouting and chaos, without a single moment of joy, it truly pierced his heart to see them erupt into such jubilant laughter the moment they split from the main family.
However, laosan's wife was truly different now.
In the past, she would always pull a long face, either uttering depressing remarks or hurling insults at people. When had she ever smiled like this?
But right now, not only was she speaking amiably, but she had also infected the children with such joy that the whole room beamed with happiness. It was as if she had been replaced by an entirely different person.
This was also a good thing.
It seemed husband and wife truly couldn't be separated for too long. Previously, he had thought it was wonderful for laosan to serve in the military—not only could he subsidize the family's expenses, but he was also their pride and glory. But seeing laosan return now, even if he could no longer be a military officer, having his whole family so blissfully happy was better than anything else.
With this thought, he genuinely felt that his sandi transferring to civilian work was a positive outcome, and he supported it!
Lin Lan hurriedly followed Han Qingsong outside to greet them. Seeing Han-dage holding a small shallow basket containing a few flatbreads made of mixed flour, she couldn't help but feel a little baffled. This was definitely not the old lady's style.
However, looking at the thoroughly sour and bitter expression on Han-erge's face, her guard instantly went up.
The resentment in Han-erge's heart bubbled furiously; it was nothing but pure, unadulterated jealousy.
In the past, he had been perfectly content not to divide the family, lured by the promise of laosan's military allowance. Now that laosan had transferred and no longer had that income, he was actually the one most eager to split the household.
Unfortunately, he and his wife had spent so much time playing the good guys and buttering up the old lady. Bringing up family division now would be like slapping his own face.
The old lady didn't dote on him nearly as much as she did on xiaosi; she would undoubtedly point at his nose and curse him to death.
Therefore, the more he thought about it, the more suffocated and resentful he felt.
He had originally intended to come over to laosan's house to see how pitiful this family of seven would look right after the split, with nothing to eat or drink.
Instead, he heard their joyous laughter from far away, leaving a bitter taste in his mouth.
Now, seeing them eating with such radiant, ecstatic expressions, his anger flared even hotter.
How could he not spit out sour words?
"I say, laosan, even if your gege has never been to the military, I still know that filial piety is the most important of all virtues. You..."
Lin Lan wasn't nearly as polite to him as she was to his older brother. Snatching up the half-bald broom leaning against the wall, she said coldly, "If you can't speak human words, then keep your mouth shut. Go back out the way you came in, and don't wait for me to greet you with this big broom."
"Laosan's wife, what kind of way is that to talk?" Han-erge subconsciously took a step back, genuinely terrified that Lin Lan might actually hit him.
Despite this shrew pretending to act like a decent human being, she was definitely still just as ferocious to the bone.
Han-dage turned to his erdi and said, "You go back first. I need to have a chat with our sandi."
Han-erge was reluctant. "Dage, I also have some words to impart to our sandi."
He turned his head to look at Han Qingsong. "Sandi, is your erge not welcome here?"
Han Qingsong replied lightly, "Erge, you are overthinking it."
Han-erge still wanted to peek inside to see what they were eating, but Erwang had already carried two wooden stumps to the doorway. "Daye, erye, please have a seat."
Han-dage hurriedly explained, "Niang was worried you all wouldn't be used to cooking on your own yet, so she told me to bring over a few flatbreads."
Lin Lan didn't believe that for a second. Would the old lady actually bear to part with a few flatbreads? If she didn't have an even bigger appetite for something else, then this was surely dage and dasao acting on their own initiative.
Han Qingsong, meanwhile, invited them to join the meal.
Standing at the doorway, Han-dage glanced inside. The main room only had a single square table. Heaven knew how many years ago it had been discarded before being passed down for his sandi's wedding, and now it was missing a leg, propped up by an adobe brick. Beside it were two wobbly stools that the children didn't like sitting on; instead, they each held their flatbreads and sat on scavenged wooden stumps and adobe bricks to eat.
There wasn't even a proper place to sit.
It was far too arduous.
Han-dage couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow. "Sandi, later on, find a couple of wooden planks and get a carpenter to nail together a few small stools."
He sat down on the wooden stump by the door and called out to the children, "Eat some flatbread, your mama told me to bring them."
Lin Lan told the children to carry over the scrambled eggs to share with their dabo and erbo.
Though reluctant to the extreme, Maisui hugged the earthenware basin and brought it out, but stubbornly refused to set it down.
Emerald-green chives, vibrant yellow eggs, and a glistening golden sheen of oil—no one had ever seen such a beautiful dish of scrambled eggs with chives.
Han-erge was so greedy his eyes practically shot beams of light. He instinctively reached out to grab some, only to realize he didn't have chopsticks. He inwardly cursed the wretched girl for being so stingy; how could offering food without chopsticks be considered inviting someone to eat?
Then, he made a staggering discovery: although there were fewer eggs and more chives... it was absolutely dripping with oil!
Just how much oil had been used in these scrambled eggs?!
Han-dage felt a sudden wave of distress. Oh, niang! They had just separated from the family, yet they had already consumed what should have been half a year's worth of oil for a household. What would they do in the future?
Laosan's wife truly did not know how to run a household.
The second brother, however, was dying of jealousy. Damn it, separating the family was fantastic! They had only just split, and they were already feasting on scrambled eggs. Back at the main house, they wouldn't get to eat this even once in a fortnight. And that was just for the men; the women and children had it far worse, rarely getting a taste even once a month.
Able to see it but unable to eat it, Han-erge was so anxious he was scratching his ears and cheeks.
Han-dage, however, spoke to Han Qingsong with deep concern, advising him that managing a livelihood was not easy and that he needed to be frugal. One truly didn't know the high cost of firewood, rice, oil, and salt until they ran their own household.
Lin Lan agreed amicably and even thanked him, putting on the appearance of someone humbly accepting guidance.
Han-dage was highly satisfied. He then brought up the issue of the two-tiered meals, conveying that their die had already declared such practices would no longer be permitted in the main house. A family was still a family. He urged Han Qingsong and Lin Lan not to be angry, saying that the family should remain harmonious and not grow distant.
Han Qingsong cast a glance at Lin Lan and said, "Dage, don't take it to heart. The children's niang and I truly don't hold any grudges. It's just that now that we're a separate household with a bunch of kids, we have to keep them fed."
Knowing that his brother didn't lie, Han-dage reminisced a bit more about the past to draw them closer before adding, "Laosan, come home tonight to discuss the details of dividing the household, what do you say?"
Han Qingsong nodded. "Alright."
"Laosan, don't forget your duty to provide for our parents' old age just because we've split. Work points, grain, and money—none of it can be short," Han-erge interjected, calculating that laosan must still have some money from his job transfer.
Fearing that Han Qingsong would agree without hesitation, Lin Lan instantly interjected, "We will definitely provide for their old age. However, die and niang are still capable of working, and the family hasn't fully divided yet. With five children waiting to be fed in our home, we temporarily don't have the surplus capability to hand over work points and grain."
If they wanted eldercare provisions, they could wait until everyone had split off and the elders were living on their own. They couldn't exactly expect everyone to be exploited to support the fourth brother!
Han Qingsong glanced at her. "Dage, erge, rest assured. When it comes to providing for our parents' old age, this didi will absolutely align himself with what his older geges provide."
Han-dage found Lin Lan's words slightly grating, but he didn't voice his objections. He also sensed that his sandi was different now. In the past, his brother would have undoubtedly declared, "Dage, rest assured, this didi will absolutely contribute the lion's share for their retirement." But now, he finally knew to prioritize his own small family first.
Han-erge, however, was having none of it. "What kind of talk is that? By not splitting off right now, aren't we providing for the elders? Our work points and money are all pooled in the communal fund, so why can't yours be?"
"Perhaps you're just taking advantage of the communal fund? Dage and dasao work hard and earn a lot of work points, so it's easier for you if the family doesn't divide." Lin Lan sneered. Trying to corner her? No way!
Without Han Qingsong's military allowance in the past, could they have lived so easily?
Once they officially split and lost that flow of cash, she'd love to see if they could remain so comfortable!
Sure enough, Han-erge choked on his words. He couldn't help but pull out a line he had heard from an opera: "Truly, only women and petty men are difficult to deal with!"
Lin Lan matched him blow for blow. "It's true that I am a woman, so does that make you the petty man?"
Han-erge was so infuriated he literally jumped up. "Watch how you speak!"
Han Qingsong clapped a large hand down on him. "Erge, don't get worked up."
With just that single pat, Han-erge felt as if he had been clamped by massive iron tongs, completely unable to budge an inch. His face drained of color in sheer anger.
"Fine! I know you two have no regard for your brothers now that you've split off. I'm leaving." Without even listening to Han-dage's attempts to make him stay, he angrily stormed off.
Han-dage offered a slightly awkward smile. "Sandi, even if our households are separate, we brothers shouldn't grow distant."
Han Qingsong: "Dage, rest assured, we won't."
Hearing Lin Lan's unpleasant words, not only did his sandi fail to criticize her, but he also put on a posture of protecting his wife. Han-dage increasingly felt that laosan's wife had him wrapped around her little finger.
It seemed their family would face plenty more turmoil in the future.
Han-dage nodded. "Sandi, with your words, die and I can be at ease. Sigh, niang has made herself sick with worry. She was afraid you'd hold a grudge and never return to the main house again."
"How could I? Rest assured, dage, I truly haven't taken it to heart. It was just an unfortunate convergence of events."
In reality, Han Qingsong hadn't been angry to begin with. If he were angry, it would only be at himself for falling short and failing to take proper care of his family. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he never could have imagined things would end up like this.
Ultimately, though, hearing the old lady speak that way had still chilled his heart somewhat.
Having been drilled since childhood with the ideology that "parents are never in the wrong," he wouldn't resent his mother and father, but he certainly felt he was at fault.
For a man to be filial to his parents was natural and right, but protecting his wife and children was also his solemn responsibility. If she suffered grievances, it was ultimately due to his own inadequacies. Therefore, all he could do was figure out ways to treat her better.
From the look of things now, he first needed to resolve the daily necessities of food, drink, and living for his wife and children. He could absolutely never let them suffer such grievances again.
However, he wasn't a man of many words. In both life and work, he acted more and spoke less. Otherwise, given his merits, he wouldn't merely be a company commander with no real authority right now. After all, for a farm boy with limited worldly experience and education, making it this far was already quite remarkable.
When Han-dage reiterated that their parents wanted them to go back for a meal, Han Qingsong didn't agree directly; instead, he looked toward Lin Lan.
Lin Lan said, "Dage, you see, now that we've split from the family, we must cook for ourselves. We can't impose our entire family on dasao. She has cooked for so many years; anyone would know how tiring that is. By not having to cook for the seven of us, dasao will be much more relaxed."
Left with no counterargument, Han-dage had no choice but to head home.
He recounted the situation to his parents. Lao Han-tou let out a heavy sigh. "As long as laosan doesn't harbor any resentments, it's fine. We are all flesh and blood; we cannot allow ourselves to grow estranged. Brothers still need to support one another."
Han-dage voiced his agreement repeatedly.
Han-laotaitai, on the other hand, was simultaneously feeling wronged and utterly furious.
She had complained to the old man that their third daughter-in-law had cursed at him, but he completely refused to believe her.
He had said, "If you told me she threatened you with suicide, I'd believe it. But you're saying she cursed at you? If she was capable of cursing you out, why did she try to hang herself and jump into the river before?" Not only did he disbelieve her, but even Han-erge didn't buy it.
Even though Han-ersao bore witness to it, dasao remained completely silent, so naturally, no one believed them.
The more Han-laotaitai thought about it, the colder her heart grew. Remembering how her third son had actually interrogated her, no longer displaying the same unquestioning trust and respect he once had, she felt a hollow ache of panic in her chest. She had a looming sensation of losing something, and the stronger that feeling grew, the more desperately she wanted to seize control.
Therefore, when Lao Han-tou told their eldest son to go have a chat with laosan and try to persuade him, she had been fully in favor.
She had been absolutely certain that laosan would follow his oldest brother back to offer his apologies and beg for forgiveness. When that time came, she was going to force him to teach that wretched shrew a harsh lesson; otherwise, he could forget about ever calling her niang again!
In the end, he actually hadn't shown up! The old lady grew increasingly stifled and enraged, gathering her strength so she could really give Han Qingsong a piece of her mind the moment he arrived.
Right after finishing dinner, completely ignoring the sweltering heat, the old lady slumped on the heated brick bed, her heart so pent up with frustration it felt ready to explode.
Just then, she heard the children outside calling out for their san-dada. She immediately shot up as if injected with chicken blood. Vigorously waving her palm-leaf fan until it slapped loudly against the air, she started plotting exactly how to put laosan in his place!
She firmly believed her son had come to lower his head and curry favor with her. He had been like this since childhood. Whenever he was scolded, even if he felt wronged, he would merely hide away to sulk for a while before eventually returning to appease her.
He would rush to do the chores and scramble to bring back delicious food for her.
With this thought, the old lady felt a wave of relief and smugness. She felt that her son was still her son, and in the end, he still had to obey her.
Consequently, she couldn't resist the urge to throw a few barbed words his way. After all, the flaws of the elderly were lifelong habits that would never change until the day they died.
"Well now, laosan, so you still remember to come back and see your die and niang. I thought that now you'd divided the family, you only had eyes for your wife and had completely forgotten your niang. That shrew cursed out your old mother a while ago. Why didn't you make her come here to kowtow and apologize?"
Han Qingsong furrowed his brows slightly. "Niang, Lin Lan isn't that kind of person. She has always only ever tormented herself, how could she dare curse at you?"
"Spouting absolute bullshit! I'm not deaf; if she cursed at me, wouldn't I hear it?!" Furious, the old lady scrambled around the bed looking for her short broom, intending to strike laosan a couple of times to vent her anger. Ultimately, the broom came swinging down, but Han Qingsong remained entirely unscathed while the broom itself snapped.
Seeing this, Han-laotaitai furiously hurled the broken broom away. "Even a broken broom is bullying me!!"
Lao Han-tou chided, "Stop making a fool of yourself. Aren't you afraid of losing face? The boy is already in his thirties, and you're still hitting him like this?"
Han-dage stepped in to persuade her as well.
Han Qingsong, however, maintained a perfectly composed expression. "It's fine, let niang hit me a couple of times to vent her frustration. It's just that your son has thick skin and coarse flesh, so I won't feel a thing. Let's just make sure niang doesn't exhaust her hands."
Hearing her son's tone, the old lady assumed he was trying to flatter her. Her confidence immediately surged back, and she couldn't help but adopt an arrogant, high-and-mighty stance. "I say, laosan, don't pick up those foul habits! Following the orders of your parents is absolute. When it comes to dividing the family, naturally it's your die and niang who have the final say."
Shooting Han Qingsong what she believed to be an incredibly authoritative glare, she continued, "I think you should just move out to live separately, but the household registration won't be split. That way, the work points will still be tallied together. Furthermore, all the ration coupons issued and money earned must be handed over to me. When the time comes, I'll uniformly distribute them among you three brothers. Don't worry, your die and niang know how hard you've worked, so we'll take better care of you when making the distributions."
"As for dividing the grain, our whole extended family will collect it together first, and then we'll apportion it out ourselves. No one will be shortchanged a single catty of their rations. However, you know full well that your xiaodi and xiaomei are still in school. A mere two catties of fine grain per person isn't nearly enough for them to chew on. We can't let them gnaw on sweet potatoes every day; they need to bring enough fine grain. I was thinking, since we're just eating at home, food is food, so coarse grain is perfectly fine for us. Let's pool the entire family's fine grain to support the two of them so they won't look shabby and lose face at school."
Having comfortably laid out her plans, she felt the matter was officially settled. "Laosan, you have no objections, right?"
Han Qingsong nodded. "Niang, I have no objections."
The old lady let out a snort, instantly brimming with immense triumph. She desperately wished Lin Lan were present right now so she could spit ruthlessly in her face, forcing her to witness that her son still belonged to his mother and still prioritized his younger didi and meimei above all else.
Who could have predicted that in the very next moment, Han Qingsong would say, "It's just that around noon, the old Party Secretary already established our new household registration. The household register and the grain and oil ration booklets have all been successfully separated. Party Secretary daye said he will come over tomorrow evening after work to preside over the formal division of the family's assets... Ah, niang, please don't be angry..."
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