Rebirth Counterattack with Space-Chapter 72 - Dividing the Family (Part 1)

“Your mom’s already befuddled beyond measure, and you’re outdoing her by far? Who do you think you are? You’re confused yourselves, yet you expect the Yue Family to be just as easy to deceive?”

Xie Lao Si took a harsh drag of the cigarette in his hand and said in a muffled voice, “Nothing about this situation puts us in the right. It’s just indecent. Speak of it, and we’d be ridiculed, only losing face and advantages.”

He remembered that the Daqianmen cigarette, three fen for a packet, was given to him by the little cousin of his younger son’s wife, that boy Lu Aiguo. Every visit, he would bring a packet or two. He had been sparingly smoking them, and from the time his daughter-in-law was in her lying-in period until his grandsons were nearly one year old, he still had a few packets left.

He was well aware why they gave him cigarettes to smoke.

Wasn’t it just so that his daughter-in-law would feel comfortable in their family? In fact, when the household was so poor, they all ate the nourishing items sent by his daughter-in-law’s family, and he felt guilty about it too. But at heart, he still favored his eldest grandson and second grandson, thinking if his daughter-in-law didn’t speak up, he’d turn a deaf ear. However, he had warned the women in the house to make sure they left enough of his daughter-in-law’s share.

But he never expected that such indulgence would only foster his eldest daughter-in-law’s arrogance. She grew ever bolder, thinking that it was natural for the in-laws to favor the eldest brother’s family, and became more domineering by the day. She acted as if the younger daughter-in-law owed her something, even daring to defy Lu Aiguo, that cunning boy.

Even his younger son became confused. As for his wife, hmph, she had never understood anything her whole life, and who knows if she ever will. But by then, even if she did understand, he guessed it wouldn’t matter. He had long been impatient with her; closing this chapter would be for the best, so she wouldn’t further ruin their younger son.

“Dad?”

Xie Changgen was stunned. He had not expected his father’s words to be so sharp and ugly, filled with scorn and disdain. Although he often saw his father speak to his mother with such an attitude when he was a child, he never imagined that one day his father would look down on him like this.

Xie Changgen lowered his head. Had he really been wrong?

“You old bastard, why don’t you side with your own family, but instead speak for others?” Tian Xiaoju began to beat Xie Lao Si. “I’ve never had a good day with you…”

“Shut up. Keep yammering and see if I won’t hang you up and beat you. Damn, have you forgotten what pain feels like because it’s been too long since you’ve had a beating? If you disdain me so much that I can’t provide a good life for you, then roll back to your family’s home and stop stirring up trouble for everyone here, destroying the peace of my entire household.”

Xie Lao Si bellowed furiously, his eyes bulging like a bull’s, “You domestic troublemaker. If it weren’t for your indulgence, how could the eldest son’s wife have grown so arrogant? And who are you calling a stranger? Is it your youngest son or his wife? Or perhaps Dabao or Xiaobao? Aside from the eldest, who else do you acknowledge in this family, if not his two grandchildren?”

“It’s only because your youngest son is a fool, just like you, his head filled with mush, that you’ve confused him to not know right from wrong. Hasn’t he considered why you don’t plague the eldest’s household and keep the eldest and his wife distracted? Why is it you’re always whispering nonsense into his ears?”

Xie Lao Si glared disdainfully at his youngest son, then turned to see his foolish, incredulous face, before staring down his wife, Tian Xiaoju, who shrank back, too scared to speak or even continue crying.

Xie Changgen also instinctively shrank back, lowered his head, and was overcome with fear.

Xie Lao Si’s tyranny was something he had witnessed from a young age. Although in recent years, after his brother got married, he had started to temper his temper, the deep-set authority of his father still held immense weight. The sight of his anger now still invoked fear in him.

“Lu Chaoqun is no pushover either. How shrewd and unwilling to suffer a loss he is. His daughter marrying into our family, and yet every so often he lets his nephew come over to assist us—why is that?”

Xie Lao Si breathed irritably; he had lived a life full of ups and downs, having been both wealthy and poor, and he had seen all sorts of things in the world, which allowed him to see the essence of things at a glance.

Both his sons seemed to be of no use. With four grandchildren, the older two having such a greedy and self-centered mother, it was normal for them to be spoiled. Even if they grew up, he doubted they would amount to much.

The younger two, it was still too early to tell, but he didn’t hold much hope for them either. The reason being their weak and feeble mother. No matter how strong her family’s backing was, a woman who can’t stand up for herself will be at the mercy of others, and what can be expected from children raised by such a person?

However, hearing what his second son had reported tonight, there flickered a glimmer of hope in his heart. Maybe it was true that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, and he had misjudged the situation?

“Everyone has their own agenda at heart. Just wait until faces are truly torn, and see their tactics then. Changgen, you’re not young anymore, you have a wife and kids already, but why are you still lacking in street smarts? If your wife really sets her heart on not living with you anymore, do you think you’ll ever get to see the three of them again?”

“Dad, they’re my wife and kids. Even if we divorce, the kids will still bear the Xie surname. How could the people of the Yue Family just take them away? Even if they dare, does that mean we Xies are pushovers?”

Xie Changgen finally couldn’t resist defending himself against Xie Lao Si’s words, partly doubting whether he had been wrong, and partly feeling indignant.

“Hmm, got cocky, have we? Why don’t you give it a try and see whose side the people of Xie Family Village will take?” Xie Lao Si, instead of becoming angry at his youngest son’s rebuttal, felt somewhat gratified and was therefore even more willing to give him a few pointers.

“How many more years do you think your mother and I have left? Who are you going to live your life with afterward? Your brother at least knows better than you. At least he knows who’s close to him and who’s distant, and when trouble hits, he knows to stand by his own family. Why are you being so foolish? Can’t you see your mother’s heart has already leaned too far to one side?”

“You place some unrelated sister-in-law and nephew above your own wife and children. Doesn’t that weigh on your conscience? You’ve pushed your own family aside. Do you think your wife and children have no complaints? Or are you hoping that when you’re old and sick, your sister-in-law and nephew will take care of you?”

Xie Lao Si sighed; he couldn’t help but feel disappointed. Neither son turned out like him. The eldest was too cunning, overdoing it to the point of being clever in his own eyes but actually just outsmarting himself; the second was too simple, too indecisive, swayed by his partisan wife, not prioritizing his wife and children in crucial moments, which could lead to a regretful outcome in the future.