Fall in love with your enemy

Continuing from the last time, it was obvious that my second uncle was trying to sow discord between me and Chengcheng, but the people in the eldest house were also wrong. Most of them were simple-minded and could not have thought of so many twists and turns. Even if they had thought of them, they would probably just go along with what he meant. Those who only care about the present in life, why would they care about the long-term?

I am a bit more relaxed in my management than Chengcheng. When I first became the head of the family, in order to win people's hearts, I even took out the revenue of an entire street and put it into the public account. But today, the boomerang flew back and hit me.

They are not really satisfied with me, but either option is fine. If I succeed, I can get more inheritance back into my hands, and the housekeeper can also make everyone feel relieved. If I fail, Chengcheng will compete with me and take my property away. He will earn more next year, and more income will be put into the public account. It's really the best of both worlds. Just like what my cousin said, we are people at the same table, and they are just distant relatives. No matter what, the gains and losses are borne by them, so just find a way to make them "get", what happens between us has nothing to do with it.

After thinking for a long time, I finally took a breath and looked at Chengcheng. He lowered his head, without any extra expression. He was just sleepy. He was so sleepy that he could hardly open his eyes. He was too tired after that day.

I wanted to stand up and tell everyone that I had no desire to sit in this position and would never be able to do so, but this would also be equivalent to cutting off all my escape routes. Their term "co-governance" was a phrase I relied on to keep Yangyang and I at home, and I couldn't put everything I had on the line. Perhaps, there was only one way, which was to split up the family. As long as I took that step, I would have no worries in the future.

So I turned my gaze again to Fu Shuyan who was still cursing viciously: "Enough!"

The hall suddenly became quiet. Hundreds of eyes, whether they were sad or happy, were all looking in my direction. Even Fu Shuyan shuddered all over, turned around and pulled his grandfather, who was about to fall asleep, in front of him.

I stood up and said, "Uncle, in this situation, why don't you talk about dividing the family? I have argued with so many people and I have enough reasons. What my cousins ​​and aunts are saying is that I will just drive out those who want to rebel against me and think they are superior to me in every way! Not only the eldest branch, but also the second and third branches, as long as the uncles are willing to agree with me, what is impossible? Uncle, why don't you think about it, if someone dares to rebel against me today, won't it become a stumbling block for my brother in the future? I still have two younger brothers, but my brother has no brothers of his own flesh and blood. You should judge yourself by others..."

I sat down slowly, but my second uncle's expression remained unchanged. My brother looked at me a few more times and sighed. My youngest uncle remained silent. He had nothing else to remind me.

But I couldn't care less. I looked at the audience again, picked up the family tree in my hand, tore off the half of the eldest branch, put the other half back to its original place despite everyone's exclamations, and threw out the family rules. I swallowed the breath in my throat and tried to stay calm: "Okay, if anyone still refuses to accept it, I will tear him out of the eldest branch's book today. Whether he wants to stay in the old house without a name or make a new choice to join the second or third branch, I will never complain."

Fu Shuyan didn't expect me to be so cruel. He probably thought it was a bad idea. He knew it clearly. Even if he wanted to leave, the second and third houses would not accept him. But if he was "nameless", he would be the manager, and anyone could bully him. How could he endure such humiliation after a lifetime of wealth and glory? Today, we can only fight to the death.

He pushed his old man aside with one hand and pointed at me with the other, his eyes red as if blood was dripping: "Fu Xishi! How can you be worthy of being the daughter of the Fu family? You betrayed your ancestors, and you have the nerve to blame me! I have said before that little girls are just outcasts and cannot be kept. Do you believe it now? Xie Yushuhe's yard is not big enough. If you leave the old house, you and her will not even have a place to live! Do you have to squeeze into the servants' yard with your whole family or go to the Gao family with a shameless face? Are you satisfied!"

As he spoke, he repeatedly urged the eldest house. What a pity, who dares to refute? I just offended the second and third houses together. I am the last straw. Even if I don't offend them, the more people from the eldest house pour into the other two houses, the less money they can get from the public account. If the relatives who usually pretend to be good at something really want to steal their jobs, they will be no different from stray dogs in the streets.

Seeing that everyone was full of resentment and still didn't reply, Fu Shuyan was getting anxious. He clapped his hands twice and immediately changed the subject: "Second Master, Third Master, I agree to the separation. Even if the Fu family really uses this as an excuse to expel me, I have nothing to say! But you should at least let me finish what I want to say and get the last bit of power, right? The Fu family rules say you are not allowed to shut people up!"

The younger uncle pressed down the second uncle and glanced at him with disgust: "What else can you say?"

Fu Shuyan nodded, stiffening his neck and standing tall: "I will impeach Miss Xishi as usual. She is not worthy of being the head of the family. Will the Fu family allow such a person to tear the family apart?"

This statement is true. The situation will depend on the eldest branch. But even if the ban on the second and third branches is completely lifted, hundreds of people will instantly be excited, and all kinds of good and bad opinions will come up. It is necessary to keep me, the "big tree".

I thought I had found a vacant space, so I coughed quickly and waited for everyone to quiet down before asking, "Do you mean that you want Shu Yu to return to the position of head of the family?"

But Fu Shuyan was not so ambitious. He thought of another way: "Master Shuyu has just been impeached. It is not appropriate for him to sit back now. I want to support Master Shucong. Although he is young, he is also the son of the first head of the family. He should have the right to fight for it."

Everyone was discussing the pros and cons in a whisper, I couldn't hear clearly, I could only think of two possibilities, one, Yangyang was young, a blank sheet of paper that had not been painted, there were more than a hundred people in the family, there would always be a few capable descendants, whether it was to seize the throne or flatter, it would be convenient, there would be a higher future, the opportunity was right in front of us, it was better than having all the power in the hands of Chengcheng and me. Second, even if his family was not successful, he couldn't bear to see others succeed, if something went wrong, it would be better for him to curl up and do our bidding, he would still have no worries about food and drink.

I waited for a while. This might instantly divide the main house into three parts. One part would be close to Fu Shuyan, and the other two would either belong to Chengcheng or me. In short, the number of people exceeded Fu Shuyan, so it would be easy to deal with.

Cheng Ling squeezed out from behind the crowd, her body shaking with panic, she smiled apologetically at me and glared at Fu Shuyan: "Don't joke, everyone. Yangyang, Yangyang is still young. How can he be the head of the family? He was arranged by my old Fu to be adopted by the seventh brother's family a long time ago. He doesn't even have the right of inheritance! He was raised by his sister, how can he steal his sister's things..."

As soon as he finished speaking, when people saw that Yangyang's mother had switched sides to my side, more than a dozen people immediately changed positions, and Fu Shuyan couldn't catch them.

Brother Shu Heng saw this and thought of another plan. He shouted, "Let's put aside the division of the family. After all, the Second Master and the Third Master all agree. Some people are just making specious arguments. I will talk about changing the head of the family first. Fu Shu Yan, who doesn't know what you are thinking? You are just relying on your grandfather's old age to be arrogant! After all, the reason you impeached Xi Shi's sister is that she is a girl. Apart from this, what's wrong with her? Being a girl is not a sin! You said she wanted to bring the property to the Gao family. Did you hear it, see it, or predict it? How come I didn't see that you had this trick after living under the same roof for so many years?"

"That's right! In my opinion, she just wants to live her own life because she is grateful for the strong love between her and Gao's son-in-law. Shishi's sister has been married before and has two daughters. Lingling is the smartest and most sensible one. Her surname is Fu! She is obviously the heir. What do we have to worry about?" Fu Zeling sought approval from the audience: "The Gao family is such a powerful family. Uncle betrothed Shishi to him to pave the way for the family to have a relationship. Besides, brother-in-law is an only child and no one in the family will compete with him. Shishi will have a stable marriage if she marries him. If she can have another child, the Gao family's property will be inherited. In the future, the head of the Gao family will be born by a girl from our Fu family. They will be our nephews and grandsons. It's simply pie in the sky!"

Fu Shuyan chuckled and stopped the "agreement" who was about to run away again. He looked at me and wanted to laugh: "Her? Ze Ling, stop making a fool of yourself with your stupid brother. Okay, let me take a step back and say that even if Gao Xinci really loves Fu Xishi deeply, how can you guarantee that Fu Xishi can still give birth? It's unknown how many years her body can live, right? You guys are on her side?"

I was also a useless person. I coughed twice out of anger at this moment, covered my mouth and nose, turned my back, and it took me a while to recover.

To be honest, I have looked much better in the past few years, and I am no longer often sick and unable to get out of bed. This is all due to the Hou family's careful care and Aunt Wen Su's concern for my health. However, after they did their best to perform the operation on me, they also said that I must not have any serious illness within five years, otherwise it would affect my whole body, and I would be weaker than before the operation. I did not have any serious illness, but I had all the minor illnesses and mental illnesses that hurt my body.

In the past five years, I lost my father and my mother. I was still thinking about the unjust death of my brother Xie, and I tried my best to overthrow William. William did fall, but my brother Xie's ashes were accidentally scattered in the mountains and washed away by the heavy rain. I was not lucky enough to survive. Then, Cheng Cheng broke up, Jiang Yinan passed away, and I was pregnant with two children. It would be a miracle if I could survive.

I don't know how serious my condition is, but the surgery will definitely fail. The examination reports also show that all my organs are tending to failure. I am 20 years old, but have the body of a 40-year-old.

My uncle couldn't stand it anymore, so he left his seat to help me up. I used his strength to turn back and held back a breath. "Want to curse me to death? That's not that easy! Fu Shuyan, you are too conceited. Even if I am incompetent and die a few years after marrying into the Gao family, it won't be your turn to take over the eldest house. The direct line hasn't died out yet! You keep talking about family rules to prove your qualifications, but you don't know who is in charge now? Who is the housekeeper? You recited the rest so well that you forgot the first one."

"Okay! Then let's make it clear in advance! After you die, who will take over the eldest branch? Will it be your own daughter, or Master Shu Yu? He is also getting married soon. You can't let Miss Han enter our house and suffer such humiliation? Watching her husband raising her sister's child, and having to listen to her nephew in the future?" Fu Shuyan looked around and said, "Dear relatives and elders, the Gao family is too high for our family to marry into. We may not be able to benefit from their family. Miss Xishi's second marriage is a slap in the face of the Gao family. If she dies childless again, Gao Xinci will not mind. Will the elders of the Gao family miss us? But the Han family is well-matched, and the heir of the Han family will definitely be a child of our Fu family. This is an ironclad advantage. In addition, Master Shu Cong already had the ability to make decisions by then. He and Master Shu Yu are brothers, so it looks better in terms of face. Won't it make our Fu family move to a higher level?"

"Yes!" With such benefits, someone finally couldn't help but jump out. It was a cousin from the second house, with excitement on his face: "Yes, our family has never had a female head of the family, right? Grandfather said that even if the boys in the family are really useless and the daughter wants to inherit the family property, the daughter should not marry out! Moreover, Master Shu Cong was raised by Miss Xi Shi. As an elder sister, can she really ignore her brother? She can just help! She has always played a supporting role. I think today I am just standing up for Uncle Shu Yu. If Aunt is angry and scolds us or beats us, we will apologize! But, but we really can't divide the family..."

This was what most people agreed with, and they also started to discuss what happened to the few people who were kidnapped by Ji Bing as soon as I entered the room. They all agreed that I should calm down after what I did. Whether it was begging, sarcasm, or threats, they all exerted their strength together. It was like a dark mass attacking me in front of me. Even Fu Shuheng and Fu Zeling beside me were a little shaken. They stuck their necks, not knowing whether they should persuade them or not, and took three steps forward and two steps back.

"There's no such thing as dividing the family!" My uncle finally woke up, raised his hand, and yelled at me at the top of his voice: "If you don't agree to abdicate, promote Shu Cong or my grandson, then we can forget about it! We've been arguing here all day, without sleep!"

I couldn't bear it any longer, so I helped my uncle stand up and raised my voice: "If so, I will fight to the death! It's your turn to be the boss! Even if I can't be the head of the family, I will take 80% of my family property and leave. If you have the guts, you can strangle me to death in this door. I want to see how you deal with the Gao family when they come to ask for people in the future! How dare the Han family marry their daughter to such a person who eats up the family head's wealth! Greed will sooner or later lead to the destruction of the family! The collapse of a building is often caused by the decay of the inside, and it collapses in an instant. I have lived a hard life, I can bear it! I wonder if you have tried it?"

The uncle was weak for a moment, but then he became arrogant again: "You... it's easy for you to say it, but I'm afraid you will regret it and cry when the time comes! Do you think that the Gao family will not eat you up just because you are alone and have no support? You will regret it sooner or later!"

"I don't regret anything inexplicable. You should ask your ancestors whether they regret giving birth to such a thing as me and whether they can put it back! Anyway, that's what I say. Either you separate from me obediently, or...you can do whatever you want!" I tried my best to spit out this sentence and then I kept coughing. I suddenly felt dizzy and I felt like I was going to fall down the next second.

My uncle saw this and was worried. He could not persuade me, so he could only lower his voice and say to Cheng Cheng in the audience: "Say something!"

Of course Cheng Cheng was also anxious, but I didn’t understand, I really didn’t understand. There was only a hint of sadness between his brows. He gave up without even standing up, and lowered his head, as if he was waiting for something.

Fortunately, Uncle Shao was prepared and hurriedly brought Yangyang here. Although the little girl was small, she was quite strong. She squeezed out of the crowd and pushed her uncle down. She rushed forward and blocked me. "You are not allowed to bully my sister! I don't want to be the head of the family. Even if I am, I will only listen to my sister. I am willing to separate the family! I just want to live with my sister!"

"Little bastard, who do you think we are helping?" The uncle glared at Yangyang fiercely and was about to attack her the next second, but Uncle Shao blocked him and pushed him back.

"Listen to what he is cursing. He just vowed to take Yangyang as the head and lead the Fu family, but the next second he did something that betrayed his teacher and ancestors. Uncle, can we still trust you? Do we dare to trust you?" The second uncle chuckled and shouted.

Zhizhi took advantage of the chaos and quickly grabbed my hand, covering his mouth and whispering, "Shishi, stop making trouble. Something is wrong, it's really wrong. It's not like Second Uncle's style. But he took advantage of the situation and just said this sentence, which seemed to be for you but was not for you. It was enough to completely eliminate his suspicion. If something really happens in the future, it will be your problem alone. Fu Shuyu didn't say a word now. Is this how he argued all day? He is using you as a gun!"

"No, he, he is disappointed. He is disappointed in the Fu family and in me... just for a moment." I pressed down Zhizhi's hand, but after being tormented like this repeatedly, how could he not have any doubts?

Zhizhi was so disappointed: "Do you want to be dragged to death by him before you believe it? What good will it do him to split up the family? You want to live in peace, but how could Fu Shuyu's ambition be limited to the eldest branch? Gao Xinci's taking over the fifth branch is not a joke to him, it is a benchmark for him! Why don't you believe it!"

"What can I do? I am in a dilemma now..."

"Miss Xishi, things have gone too far now."

I heard an old voice behind me. As soon as he spoke, the whole room fell silent. I turned around in disbelief and saw a man with white hair and thick eyebrows, leaning on a cane, trying to stand up with difficulty. He was not a strong opponent, but the result was unexpected. Just one look at him and I knew that I had worked in vain today.

No, that's not right. It's not just one day, it's seven years.

He is the oldest person in the eldest branch of the family. I should call him my great-uncle. He was the one who followed Old Fu and left a position in the Fu family. Before Old Fu passed away, he entrusted his son to the care of others, and the first person he visited was him. He has also tried his best to help me and Chengcheng over the years. Now... he should not have any reason to scold me. If he must stand up, it would be telling me that it was not my second uncle who pushed me to this point, but another person. In addition to me, Old Fu also entrusted another person to the elders, and I have been deceived.

I covered my chest and bowed, tears already falling out at that moment. I knew there was nothing to argue about, so I didn't even want to raise my head, and kept my face toward the floor, bowed humbly.

"Miss Xishi, please stop. This is my reminder to you. After the matter is done, I will leave the old house and no longer ask questions. I will apologize to you. In this way, I will be fair to your father..."

My great-uncle raised his walking stick and knocked it on the ground with a dull thud, and his voice trembled with sorrow.

"There is an old saying, I wonder if you have heard it, there are trees in the garden, they are of the same spirit and share the same branches, they work together in harmony and support each other. This is the case in many aristocratic family courtyards."