Chapter 63: I Don't Want to Be a Muddy-Legged Peasant, I Want to Take a Concubine and Have Sons!

"Mother, what on earth is going on with you two? How did you both end up injured?"

Li Qingbao looked at Madam Wang, his implication glaringly obvious!

"This..." Madam Wang was at a loss for words, looking back at Li Qingbao. "Your father said it was the work of a malevolent spirit, which is why one misfortune after another has befallen our family!"

"Didn't the third one accompany his father to the aunt- grandmother's place at the end of the village? That's precisely what happened. And besides, when the third one came back, he took a fall too. Doesn't that prove all the more that there's something wrong with the second one?"

"What your father said isn't actually wrong either. The second one is getting up in years, and Dagou and Eryou are also at the age to take wives. Doesn't all of that cost money?"

"You've all seen our old family house. How could it possibly fit so many people?"

"Splitting the second one off now—wasn't that for your own good?"

Madam Wang spoke with great fluency and self-assurance.

"The third one has already passed the county examination, and Chenglai and Chengyou have passed theirs as well. The prefectural examination is coming up right away. If both of your households embark on official careers, wouldn't the second one become a burden?"

"Making him split off to live on his own right now couldn't be better. What, are you unwilling?"

How could they possibly be willing?!

"Mother!"

Li Qingyun shouted loudly, "You are muddled!"

"Has the second brother ever been unfilial to you and Father?"

"Second Brother's family has given me and Eldest Brother immense help. If not for Second Brother, how could Eldest Brother and I have peace of mind while traveling and studying abroad?"

Madam Wang: "???"

Could it be that she was wrong?

Yet where was she wrong? Now that her sons and grandsons had achieved success, and the lives of the eldest and third sons were noticeably much better, what was wrong with her following the eldest to enjoy a life of ease?

Since the third one couldn't be counted on, didn't she still have two great grandsons?

Once those two grandsons became xiucai scholars, she would be an honorable old matriarch. When she returned to Li Family Village, wouldn't those women look up to her with greater respect?

Why did these words from the third son sound so grating to her ears, though?!

"What, do you regret the family division?" Madam Wang stared fixedly at Li Qingyun. "You didn't object when the family was divided back then, and you seemed quite pleased with it. What's this all about now?"

Li Qingyun was left utterly speechless, cornered by the old lady's retort!

Wasn't that all for the sake of money?!

Now he hadn't gotten a single thing, and the family's land had shrunk by eighty or ninety percent. If they didn't coax the second brother back, who was going to pay for his studies?!

He had no desire to go back to being a mud-legged peasant; he still wanted to take a concubine and father a son!

Li Qingbao looked at that blockhead Li Qingyun and couldn't help pressing a hand to his forehead.

How did the conversation veer off in this direction?

He had originally intended for Li Qingyun to be the one to spell things out, but now it seemed he would have to take the field himself!

"Mother!" Li Qingbao placed a piece of tofu on Madam Wang's plate and said gently, "What has been happening at home lately?"

"Returning to Li Family Village this time, I feel the second younger brother has changed quite a bit. Did something happen at home?"

As soon as these words were spoken, a look of embarrassment crossed Madam Wang's face.

After quite a while, she finally spoke: "Well, you see, wasn't all of that to scrape together silver for the third one? That useless piece of trash, the second one, didn't rest properly when he went up the mountain, and in the end, he went up standing and was carried back lying down!"

"It was Qingyuan who sent him over. When he reached our doorstep, he told us that the second one had been rammed in the waist by a wild boar, that his injuries were severe, and that if we didn't hire a doctor, he probably wouldn't make it past the next day..."

"Mother didn't hire a doctor for Second Brother?" Li Qingbao stared at Madam Wang in absolute shock.

No!

If he remembered correctly, on the very night the family was divided, their house had been burglarized.

Mother had said they lost nearly a hundred taels of silver, though they hadn't counted the exact amount!

If the family truly had that much money, why not spare a little of it to hire a doctor for the second one?

The way Li Qingbao looked at Madam Wang completely changed!

He now suspected whether the second one was even Mother's biological son—this was simply too ruthless!

"Father and Mother, I'm done eating, I'm leaving first!"

Baozhu looked at the whole family and found it utterly devoid of interest. After casually shoveling down a couple of bites of rice, she stood up and walked away.

"Such bad manners!" Li Qingyun muttered under his breath!

Yunniang glanced over at him, and Li Qingyun stared ungraciously right back.

Did he say something wrong?

Madam Wang felt a chill creep into her heart under Li Qingbao's gaze. She knew her handling of this matter had lacked fairness, but what did she do wrong?

Wasn't all of this for the sake of the eldest and the third?

And so, Madam Wang raised her voice a notch: "What do you mean by looking at your old mother like that? Do you think I treated the second one unfairly?"

"Your old mother did all this, wasn't it for the sake of you and the third one?"

"Your father and I live in Li Family Village, always keeping to ourselves without going anywhere, and we have no major expenses. Most of the silver the second one earned ended up in the pockets of the two of you. Don't go biting the hand that feeds you after taking the benefits!"

As soon as Madam Wang spoke, the expressions of both men shifted!

Li Qingyun maintained a calm expression and took a sip of water. "Why bring this up out of the blue, Mother? Besides, weren't those silver pieces given to me by Mother? How did they suddenly become something the son demanded?"

Yunniang rolled her eyes!

What a shameless scholar!

If her son ever turned out like this, she would skin him alive!

Madam Wang: "You—"

She genuinely hadn't expected that the third son, whom she had always doted on, would actually utter such... such... utterly shameless words!

"Calm your anger, Mother!" Seeing this, Li Qingbao only felt a headache coming on. They hadn't even gotten to the important matter yet; could they please stop bickering?!

"Third Brother, shut your mouth and don't force me to slap you!" Li Qingbao fixed a steady gaze on Li Qingyun, a glint of ferocity flashing in his eyes!

Li Qingyun was momentarily stunned, looking at Li Qingbao in disbelief, but ultimately he did not dare to say another word!

Once the quiet was restored, Li Qingbao finally spoke: "Mother, tell me, could this have been intentional on the second one's part?"

"His goal might have been precisely to force a family division, which is why he stirred up so many troubles. And as for the injuries on you and Father, I reckon the second one had a hand in them as well!"

Boom!

As soon as these words were uttered, even Madam Wang was shocked: "Surely not?"

The second one was raised right before her eyes and had always been the most filial—how could he possibly be so rebellious and unfilial?

Yet...

Upon second thought, it really was rather strange!

Both she and the old man were in robust health, yet ever since the second one woke up, nothing seemed right anymore!

The old second, who used to take blows without hitting back and endure scoldings without talking back, how could he suddenly become so sharp-tongued overnight?

She hadn't thought much of it before, but now, prompted by Li Qingbao, she recalled her own injury...

She could easily have avoided harm, yet it was precisely because the second one crashed into her that she got hurt!

And later, it was due to the second one's slipshod care that her injuries were compounded!

As for the old man, it seemed the second one had gone out to meet him.

It was no secret in the village that the old man loved his wine, but the old man knew the paths of Li Family Village inside and out—how on earth could he have broken his leg?

Whether it was her or the old man, whenever injuries occurred, the second one seemed to have been present.

Could it be that...

Watching the changing expressions on Madam Wang's face, Li Qingbao spoke up once more: "Is Mother thinking of something?"

"Bang!"

Madam Wang slammed her hand down hard on the table: "That unfilial wretch!"

"He even dared to trick his own old mother—does he have a death wish?"

"Where is the old man? Go find your father, tell him to come back immediately, back to Li Family Village. Your old mother is going to settle accounts properly with the second one!"

Madam Wang cursed away, clearly driven to fury!

How dare the second one be so audacious? This time when she went back, she would definitely strip off a layer of skin from him!