Jiang Baozhen had thought it through; she was definitely getting a divorce.
If the Jiang family was unwilling to support her, she could understand.
At worst, she would separate from the Jiang Family, establish her own household as a female head, and live alone with her daughter.
That way, she wouldn’t implicate the marriage prospects of the other women in the Jiang Family.
“I support my little sister’s divorce.”
Zhang Guixiang was the first to break the silence.
Jiang Baozhen looked up in surprise.
She never expected her eldest sister-in-law, who had always been at odds with her, to be the first one to jump out in support.
Jiang Shouren hesitated.
“Then what about the children?”
In his opinion, a divorce wasn’t entirely necessary.
They only needed to keep Chen Huaiyuan under their thumb, ensuring he couldn’t take a single step out of Jiangya Village.
They could reveal Chen Tianhao’s true parentage and ruin his future.
Taking revenge on their enemies like this would be far more satisfying than a simple divorce.
Zhang Guixiang slapped her thigh and looked at Jiang Shouren.
“Dear, just imagine if our daughter encountered such a situation.
How suffocating would it be to endure that life without a divorce?
Gensheng and his brothers aren’t unweaned brats anymore; they all have wives of their own.
Can’t they survive without their mother?
“If they think a divorce is too embarrassing, then what’s the point of having such unfilial sons?”
Zhang Guixiang usually looked down on Jiang Baozhen, but she had a clear sense of right and wrong when it came to major issues.
If it were her, she wouldn’t be able to spend another day with Chen Huaiyuan.
Jiang Baozhen looked at her sister-in-law with gratitude and said firmly, “Apart from my daughter, I don’t want a single one of my sons.” She couldn’t explain how much her sons had broken her heart in her previous life, but she had to demonstrate her determination to cut ties with them.
“Since you have made up your mind, then go ahead with the divorce.” Mrs.
Yao let out a long sigh.
As someone with one foot in the grave, what couldn’t she let go of?
During the years of war and chaos, she had seen far too many broken families and tragic deaths.
Now that peace had finally come, she was willing to support whatever kind of life her daughter wanted to live.
Ever since she married Chen Huaiyuan, her daughter hadn’t known a single day of peace.
Even her only daughter was abandoned by Chen Huaiyuan.
If she had known he was such a person, she never would have saved him back then.
“The only reason Chen Ergou dared to treat my little sister like this all these years is that he’s certain she can’t leave him.” Since his mother had made her stance clear, Jiang Shouren quickly voiced his support as well.
“This time, let’s show Chen Ergou exactly who can’t live without who.
Let’s also let everyone else know that the women of the Jiang Family are not to be bullied!”
The Jiang Family fully supported Jiang Baozhen’s divorce.
Though they agreed on a divorce, it wasn’t something that could be finalized overnight.
The family carefully discussed the matter further.
The most pressing priority was to seize control of their assets.
Next, they needed to expose Chen Huaiyuan’s true colors to their neighbors, securing the moral high ground for the divorce.
With her maiden family backing her, Jiang Baozhen felt her confidence surge.
Mrs.
Yao knew she couldn’t let Lin Yingxue know her true identity just yet.
She instructed her son and daughter-in-law to keep the secret strictly between themselves.
They had to hide it from Jiang Qinghe and the other grandchildren to prevent the news from leaking out prematurely.
Lin Yingxue stepped out of Jiang Qinghe’s room.
Hearing the word “divorce” coming from the main hall, she lifted the curtain and walked in.
Mrs.
Yao and the others were startled to see Lin Yingxue enter, suspecting she had already learned of her true identity.
Knowing that Lin Yingxue was the granddaughter she had longed for, Mrs.
Yao’s attitude toward her was completely different.
She pulled Lin Yingxue into a tight embrace and carefully examined her.
Fumbling around, she brought out a wooden box.
She opened it, took out a carved silver hairpin, and slipped it into Lin Yingxue’s hair.
“Wear this hairpin.
Sister Qingmiao, Sister Qingling, and Sister Qinghe all have one.
This one was specially made for you.”
Lin Yingxue instinctively glanced over at Zhang Guixiang, the eldest aunt of the Jiang Family who had always been at odds with Jiang Baozhen.
To her surprise, not only did Zhang Guixiang show no sign of displeasure, but she actually stepped forward to feel her clothes.
She shook her head at Jiang Baozhen.
“Yingxue’s clothes are in terrible shape.
I still have two feet of fabric at my place.
Later, I’ll have Qinghe tailor a new outfit for Yingxue.”
Jiang Baozhen agreed.
Normally, if she knew her mother-in-law was giving good things to Chen Tianhao and the others, Zhang Guixiang would definitely throw a fit and pull a long face.
But Lin Yingxue was different.
She had just been found after suffering so much; giving her a welcoming gift was only proper.
“Good, good,” Uncle Shouren said, staring at Lin Yingxue and looking quite emotional, while her second uncle’s eyes were red around the edges.
Lin Yingxue looked at Jiang Baozhen, her eyes filled with confusion.
What was wrong with the Jiang family?
Why were they so excited and warm toward her?
Jiang Baozhen simultaneously hoped Lin Yingxue already knew her identity and feared she might.
Seeing Lin Yingxue’s bewildered expression, she realized the girl was still completely in the dark.
She couldn’t tell if she felt disappointed or relieved.
She said, “Xue’er, since your grandmother and aunt are giving you things, just accept them.”
With Jiang Baozhen’s permission, Lin Yingxue smiled sweetly and thanked Mrs.
Yao and Zhang Guixiang, coaxing both women into very cheerful moods.
Mrs.
Yao pulled Lin Yingxue into another tight hug.
She sighed over all the suffering the girl had endured over the years while gently stroking her hands and hair.
Mrs.
Yao’s tender affection reminded Lin Yingxue of her own grandmother.
In another parallel world, Lin Yingxue had been a left-behind child since she was little, relying entirely on her grandmother for survival.
Her grandmother had passed away the year before she transmigrated into this book.
Lin Yingxue couldn’t help but lean into Mrs.
Yao’s embrace.
Her nose tingled, and tears nearly spilled from her eyes.
The mother and daughter stayed at the Jiang Family’s home for lunch.
Since the war had just ended, the Jiang Family was not wealthy, but they still slaughtered a chicken for the meal.
Xu Cuiyun, the second aunt of the Jiang Family, had gone to her maiden home and didn’t return until noon.
After learning from Zhang Guixiang that Lin Yingxue was actually Chen Ruixue, she felt genuinely happy for Jiang Baozhen from the bottom of her heart.
She immediately offered to give Lin Yingxue a pair of shoes as a welcoming gift.
Although the two sisters-in-law were usually dissatisfied with Mrs.
Yao’s blatant favoritism toward Jiang Baozhen, they knew what was truly important.
They had worried quite a bit for Jiang Baozhen when her child went missing.
When Xu Cuiyun found out that Jiang Baozhen was getting a divorce, she initially wanted to object for the sake of her two married daughters.
But on second thought, her mother-in-law and the others had already agreed; her objection would be useless.
Thus, she refrained from saying much about her sister-in-law’s divorce, only scolding her for being blind enough to raise someone else’s bastard child for so many years.
“Uncle Shouren, I heard from Grandmother that Village Chief Song is going to promote you to village chief.
Can we get my mother’s three acres of fertile land back from the eldest branch?” Lin Yingxue asked Jiang Shouren during the meal.
Jiang Shouren looked at Jiang Baozhen and said, “Yingxue just reminded me.
Although the village land has been redivided, only ownerless land was distributed.
As for owned land, as long as you can produce the deed, it still belongs to the original owner.
Back then, Father was afraid Chen Ergou would ruin those three acres of yours, so he kept the deed at home and never gave it to you.
When I went to town today, I took the deed to the government office and registered it for you.
The land is still yours.”
It turned out that Jiang Shouren had been dissatisfied with Chen Huaiyuan giving away his sister’s dowry.
He had already spoken to Village Chief Song about it and managed to get the land back.
While he was at it, he also registered the seven acres of land distributed by the government office under Jiang Baozhen’s name.
He just hadn’t found the time to tell Jiang Baozhen yet.
Hearing Lin Yingxue mention the land, Jiang Shouren retrieved the deed for all ten acres and casually handed it to her.
Jiang Baozhen clutched her chest and said, “That’s wonderful!” She had thought she would need to fight a vicious battle with the eldest branch to get the land back, yet her eldest brother had already reclaimed it without making a sound.
At this moment, she wasn’t just grateful to her brother; she was even more thankful for her father’s foresight.
Those three acres were the best fertile land in the entire village.
While the rest of the fields were still waiting to thaw, these three acres were practically defrosted.
From the day Chen Huaiyuan handed the land over to the eldest branch, their entire family had been out there plowing the fields.
A smile touched the corners of Jiang Baozhen’s lips.
Perfect.
The eldest branch was essentially doing the free labor for her!
The moment she imagined the Chen Family’s eldest sister-in-law exhausting herself for nothing and subsequently venting all her fury on Chen Huaiyuan, the pent-up frustration she felt during the land division instantly vanished.