Chapter 14: The He Family Splits Up
After that, Sun Chunlan gave birth to three more sons. The He family elders were so happy that they wanted the whole clan to set off firecrackers to let everyone know.
Giving birth to four sons in one go has made the He family go from being humble to being envied by everyone. Sun Chunlan, a farm girl, has officially secured her place in the He family.
One thing that made the He family secretly sigh was the division of the family.
He Dalang and his wife had been married for many years without having a child. After they were almost in despair, Mrs. He asked He Dasao to pretend to adopt Sun Chunlan's fourth son and spend time with the fourth child day and night in order to attract a child.
Sure enough, a year later, He Dasao became pregnant, and after ten months of pregnancy, she gave birth to He Jiawulang with great difficulty.
He Dalang, his father, his mother, and old lady He were naturally happy. The biggest knot in their hearts could finally be put to rest. Both brothers of the He family had children.
However, not long after, an accidental incident caused a big quarrel in the family.
Now that He Dasao has a son, she has straightened her back and is no longer timid as before. Once they had a quarrel, it turned into a big one, which started as a quarrel between the couple, and then developed into a quarrel with He's father and mother, and finally dragged He Erlang into the quarrel.
Sun Chunlan was confused and didn't know anything until the end. It turned out that her sister-in-law disliked that she had too many sons and her husband was incompetent, and the family relied on her uncle for support. However, He's father and mother were partial to each other and especially loved the eldest grandson, and didn't like the eldest grandson.
They said in a roundabout way that the second wife had more sons and would get more in the future, but everything was earned by the first wife.
What he meant was that he was afraid that the second wife, relying on the fact that she had many sons and had given birth to a grandson, and with the fact that her parents-in-law were partial to her, would definitely get a larger share of the family property.
The first wife worked so hard, but ended up making things difficult for the second wife.
When Mr. and Mrs. He heard this, they were so angry that they almost fainted. Old Mrs. He even cursed her eldest grandson's wife for being sarcastic and uneducated.
Family disgrace should not be made public, but this incident caused a lot of uproar, alarming He Dasao's father, who was a scholar, and also alarmed the entire clan.
Mrs. He knew that she was in the wrong, but she was unwilling to accept that the second branch of the He family's property got a larger share, so she buried her head in the sand and asked her parents and the clan members to argue.
The result will definitely be that the eldest sister-in-law of the He family will be completely defeated. How can the He family's property be pointed at by outsiders?
He's father and mother and his father-in-law and mother-in-law are almost at odds with each other.
When the clan and He's father and mother returned victoriously, He Erlang and Sun Chunlan took the initiative to step forward.
Sun Chunlan pushed He Erlang forward, and He Erlang said sincerely: "My fellow elders, grandmother, father, mother, Mr. Xiucai is right. My eldest brother has been following my father to run the business since he was a child. The family is what it is today, all thanks to my father and my eldest brother.
As for me, I have been muddle-headed since childhood, have no business sense, and am mediocre at work. To be honest, I have made no contribution to the He family's business."
He Erlang bowed his hands and said to He Dalang, "Brother, I'm sorry for wronging you. The family business should be handed over to you, and the profits are yours. Brother, you have always taken care of me and thought of me. I have no money to spend, so you should give me as much as I want. Brother, don't listen to outsiders. I respect you very much. You are my elder brother and will be my elder brother forever."
These words moved the taciturn He Dalang so much that he burst into tears.
The dispute over the division of the family business was so intense that it caused a bomb to explode, but it ended up with the brothers being friendly and respectful to each other.
Whenever the He clan split up, they would compare the splits of He Dalang and He Erlang.
If everyone knew when to advance and when to retreat, and was grateful and repaying favors like He Erlang, the He family would have fewer quarrels.
He's father and mother went from being poor parents to being good parents, and the He family members even secretly asked him for advice on how to teach their brothers to respect relatives, love friends, and live in harmony.
He's father became very famous in the clan.
The He family gave all the family business to He Dalang, while He Erlang got hundreds of acres of land, two courtyards, a shop, and some silver. The He family did not separate the households, and lived and ate together, and when He's father and mother passed away, they would separate.
Later, He's parents found out that He Erlang's words were taught by Sun Chunlan, so they asked her why she did this and why she was willing to get so little.
Sun Chunlan said confidently: "Father, mother, you know Erlang better than I do. He is not cut out for business. Even if we give him some of the family business, it will go bankrupt sooner or later. Besides, the family business was originally built by my eldest brother and father. Father, it is most appropriate for you to hand it over to my eldest brother."
He's father and mother didn't know whether to be happy or sad when they saw how calm she spoke.
After taking a look at He Erlang, I realized that he was indeed not cut out for business. He usually just looked at the accounts in the store and did nothing. If he was not the young master of the family, he would have been fired long ago.
However, He's father and mother look up to their second daughter-in-law. Such a broad mind and such magnanimity are rare among men.
The biggest family property is gone just like that. Alas, a daughter raised by a peasant woman is more cultured than a daughter raised by a scholar.
Afterwards, Sun Chunlan forced He Erlang to learn cooking and opened a dessert shop.
The store expanded bigger and bigger, and they opened another one in Dongcheng where the noble man lived.
Life was prosperous and she became more and more famous in the He family. Sun Chunlan became more and more important to He's father and mother, and was more favored than He's eldest sister-in-law.
The villagers envied Sun Dagu's marriage to the provincial capital, but she did one thing that made the villagers worship her even more.
Sun Chunlan established herself firmly in the He family, and her good reputation for being virtuous, intelligent, and sensible spread among the clan. As time went by, more and more women began to interact with her, and the clan members did not look down on her for her country girl background. After all, such magnanimity and concessions were something that city girls could not achieve.
Gradually, some people in the clan wanted to find a daughter-in-law like Aunt Sun.
He Wenshu's family, who had a close relationship with Old Madam He and was within the fifth degree of mourning, specially found Sun Chunlan and asked directly if there was a suitable girl in Sunjia Village who had a personality similar to hers and was of decent appearance. Of course, the most important thing was that she had a big butt and many brothers and sisters.
Sun Chunlan was stunned. He Wenshu's family, what should I say?
He had even fewer children than before He Erlang got married. His family seemed to be cursed, and every woman who married into the family only gave birth to a son. There were daughters, but they had to go to other families.
There is another special thing about He Wenshu's family. The grandfather, father and grandson are very thin and weak, the kind that would fall down if the wind blew. The girl doesn't like them.
However, He Wenshu's family was closer to the He family in the capital, and they received more protection. His grandfather worked as a clerk in the government office, as did his father, and now the unmarried He Liyang also worked as a clerk assistant in the government office.
In terms of status, it is much higher than the He family.
He Wenshu owns three large courtyards and hundreds of acres of land, and I heard he also has a small farm.
He had servants to call upon, and had no worries about food and clothing. Although He Liyang was not good-looking, his family was wealthy and the girl was willing to marry into his family. She was determined to find a suitable wife.
Sun Chunlan asked doubtfully: "Aunt, are you kidding me?"
How do you find a village girl? I am a village girl myself. I don’t mean to look down on village girls, but the difference in family background does exist. It is a great luck to marry into the He family.
He Wenshu's wife was also straightforward, saying: First, I am impressed by Sun Chunlan's character, and I believe that the girl from the Sun family will not be too bad. Second, I am impressed by Sun Chunlan's good fertility, and I believe that the girl from the Sun family will not be too bad either.
For He Wenshu's family, even if they could find a daughter-in-law who was well-matched, Yang Ge'er couldn't afford it. The main reason was that he was in poor health and couldn't do much work. At most, he could be a clerk for the rest of his life.
Therefore, for a family, the most important task is to have more children.
Sun Chunlan asked again whether it was her aunt's idea or her family's idea.
He Wenshu's family replied that the family had discussed it and everyone agreed to find a girl who was easy to give birth to. A village girl is fine, and the baby will belong to the He family, not the village girl's.
Later, Sun Chunlan introduced the village head's daughter, Yuniang, to He Liyang. The two of them were attracted to each other and hit it off immediately. The next year, they had a big fat grandson.
The girl from Sunjia Village became famous in the He clan.
The Sunjia Village saw that Sun Chunlan supported the girls in the clan and helped them marry into the provincial capital.
Every time Sun Chunlan came back, it would cause a sensation. If Chunlan took a fancy to her daughter and took her to the provincial capital to be a lady, then the family would have a chance to turn serfs into landlords.
Look at Sun Boming’s family and the village chief’s family. With the power of the He family, their lives are getting better and better.