QTIMP -Chapter 9 Character Persona – Greedy (Part 9)

Maybe it was because it was too bright outside, or perhaps because the house was too cramped—when they stepped in, everything went black before their eyes. It took a long moment for them to adjust and see the interior clearly.

The place that should have been the living room had been turned into a makeshift bedroom with stools and wooden planks. On top lay an old quilt and a tattered pillow.

“Second brother, third brother, help tidy things up.”

Qin Second, Qin Xi, and Qin Third, Qin Nan, quickly rolled up their luggage and put it in one room. They dismantled the planks and pushed the stools to the side.

Qin Second’s wife handed the child she was holding to the child’s mother, Qin Elder sister-in-law, pulled the table out, wiped it down with a cloth, and then went into the kitchen to boil water. Qin Fourth didn’t enter the house—no one knew what he was up to.

“Ah, Director Li, Xiao Juan went to get water. Please wait a moment.”

“Don’t worry about it, brother. You all have work soon too. Just speak freely if there’s anything!”

At that moment, Qin Fourth returned, carrying a few stools—he had gone to borrow them from the neighbors.

Once the stools were set down, everyone quickly sat. Qin Dong was helped to sit by his wife at the table, and Xiao Juan, Qin Nan’s wife, who had finished pouring the water, also sat down.

Qin Old Man rolled a cigarette with some paper. Si Qiu looked at it and thought it wasn’t tobacco—it was probably dried leaves of some sort.

The old man took a puff, coughed twice, and then sighed deeply. “I had thought that since you’re all grown now, I could wait until you married and then split the household. But given the current situation, whether I like it or not, the division must happen.”

The eldest daughter-in-law didn’t mind—her husband was the eldest son. According to tradition, he should live with the parents. Splitting the household meant driving the others out. Perfect.

She almost laughed at the thought—if Director Li weren’t here, she would have.

But no one expected Qin Old Man’s next words would feel like a plunge into hell.

“From now on, whoever marries first will move out and rent a place of their own. Since the eldest and second sons are already married, you two will start first.”

“What? We’re the eldest! We’re supposed to care for the old folks! Why should we be driven out?” The eldest daughter-in-law jumped up, slapping the table, shouting.

“Why? Because you dared put laxatives in your little brother-in-law’s bowl. Because you dared ruin Qin Third’s matchmaking. Your mother and I wouldn’t trust you to care for us—what if you gave us rat poison once we’re incapacitated?”

Qin Elder sister-in-law felt a moment of shortness of breath at her father-in-law’s words. Then she straightened up, thinking of her son. “Fine! If you plan to drive the three of us out, I’ll divorce Xiao Dong and take the child. From now on, you won’t see Yaozu again.”

She thought: I gave the Qin family their eldest grandson. If I leave with him, will these two old folks panic?

Qin Old Lady indeed panicked and kept tugging at Qin Old Man’s sleeve.

Qin Old Man shrugged. “That’s your business. Divorce if you want. I’ve got four sons—I won’t be short of grandchildren. Eldest and second sons, ten days to rent a place and move out. The same will apply when the third and fourth marry. However, in the future, if you have children and leave them with me and your mother, you’ll pay five yuan per month.”

Qin Dong, who had been silent until now, finally spoke. “Father, if we’re splitting the household, it can’t be done like this! Not to mention all the pots and pans we’d have to buy, isn’t money supposed to be divided too?”

Qin Old Man paused mid-puff, then looked up at his eldest son.

After a moment, he spoke slowly, “The household money follows the standard used for your and Second Brother’s marriage. There won’t be enough left for Third and Fourth to marry, but luckily, I can still earn more…”

“So there’s nothing really to split. But for the other three families, after each got married, I added an extra ten yuan to help with household setup and renting a place. But your family didn’t get that.”

“First, the two of you have been living at home for three years without contributing a single cent. All food, drink, and taking care of the child were handled by your mother and me—you’ve already taken advantage enough.”

“Second, you delayed the Fourth Brother’s college entrance exams. Regardless of whether he repeats a year, this money will come out of your share.”

Hearing this, Qin Dong’s face turned very unpleasant, but Second Brother Qin Nan, prompted by his wife, spoke up. “Dad, you know that if we move out, finding a place will be difficult. Ten days’ time might not be enough…”

“This matter still needs Director Li’s help—see if you can find single rooms for the two families.”

Qin Old Man paused here, then glanced at his eldest son. “Of course, if someone doesn’t need it, that’s fine.”

“Dad!”

The eldest son shouted, his face darkening, teeth gritted as he spoke.

“Am I still your son? You just can’t stand to see me do well?”

At this, Mother Qin began to sob, while Qin Old Man remained calm. “Eldest, you think I can’t stand to see you do well? When you were hungry, your mother and I even fainted from hunger, saving food just to give you a chance.”

“You think I can’t stand to see you do well? You’ve been married three years, working for three and a half years, and haven’t contributed a single cent to the family.”

“You think I can’t stand to see you do well? Second and Third Brother got married, and your wife caused no end of trouble, don’t tell me you didn’t notice. Before, as a father, I always held things down for them.”

“Eldest, what do you want me to do as your father? Smash the bones so you can drink the marrow?”

Qin Old Man’s eyes were bloodshot as he stared at his son.

Eldest Qin didn’t know what he was thinking; just looking at his jaw, it was clear he was clenching his teeth tight.

Sister Sun nudged Si Qiu with her finger, signaling him to look at Eldest Brother’s wife, who was rolling her eyes at the old couple.

The Qin family was completely splitting. The neighborhood committee now had a new task: finding houses for the two sons’ families.

To be honest, at times like this, the government really serves the people. Once the neighborhood committee agreed, they immediately sent someone to handle it.

The Women’s Federation would truly stand up for women, advocating for their wishes and solving their concerns from all sides.

The labor union would truly fight for the workers’ rights, even clashing with factory management and higher authorities if necessary.

From Si Qiu’s perspective, this was what a truly ideal society looked like.

After four days of searching, Si Qiu and the others finally found a reasonably decent single room. Director Li coordinated further and found another room.

Eldest and Second Brothers of the Qin family completely moved out. Of course, during this period, Eldest Brother’s wife’s family caused a commotion—but this is where having many sons showed its advantage.

The three Qin brothers beat up everyone from the Huang family. It was said that that same night, the two sons of the Huang family were even tied up in sacks. This was also why Eldest Brother’s wife didn’t hesitate to move out.

Sister Zhao came in and went straight to her table, gulping down half a jar of water. She set the jar down, and Si Qiu quickly refilled it a bit.

“Sis, you must be exhausted!”