Lin Changgen sat down on the ridge between the fields, his mind filled with only one thought: If they were split off from the family, how would they survive?
Lin Changsong sat down beside him and looked at this honest, hardworking man: his dark skin, the thick calluses covering his hands, and his slightly bent back.
After sitting in silence for quite some time, Lin Changgen finally said, “Second Brother, I don’t want to split the family. I don’t have a son. How would I survive if we moved out? People would look down on me…”
Lin Changsong knew how much the people of ancient times valued male heirs. In an agrarian era, a son meant labor. Without a son, a household had no labor force. More importantly, a son represented the continuation of the family line. Without one, the ancestral line would be cut off.
Although Lin Changgen valued sons, he did not mistreat his daughters, nor had he ever beaten or cursed Shen Shi for giving birth to three daughters in a row. In this dynasty, that was already extremely rare.
That was one reason Lin Changsong was willing to give him a hand. Another was that he wanted to find himself an assistant. After the family split, he intended to take up his old profession again and accomplish something in agriculture. But he could not tie himself to the fields every day. Lin Changgen was an excellent farmer. As long as he could break free from Old Madam Liu’s control, he was worth helping.
Lin Changsong said earnestly, “Third Brother, do you really think not splitting the family is a good thing? Let me ask you—have you been able to sleep at night lately?”
Lin Changgen was startled. “Why wouldn’t I be able to sleep?”
Lin Changsong asked the first question that struck at the soul: “Haven’t you ever dreamed that, in a few years, your three precious daughters might be sold by Mother for a few sacks of grain or a few taels of silver—to some old bachelor in town, or to a drunk who beat his wife to death, to serve as his second wife?”
The words struck directly at Lin Changgen’s deepest fear. His face instantly went deathly pale.
Lin Changsong continued, “Let’s talk about the distant past and take Xier as an example. She was lucky. Although Hu the Carpenter is a widower, he truly treats Xier well. Even his son from his previous marriage obeys her in everything. As for something more recent, let’s talk about the family that wanted to buy Erya a few days ago. Do you know what happened to them?”
Lin Changgen shook his head stupidly.
Lin Changsong sighed. “Old Madam Wu failed to buy Erya, so she turned around and went to Liujia Village, bought a girl, and sent her to the Zhang residence in town to bring good fortune to the gravely ill Second Young Master Zhang. Now guess what happened!”
“What happened?”
Lin Changsong’s face filled with lingering fear. “The Zhang family’s Second Young Master died the day before yesterday!” He lowered his voice beside Lin Changgen’s ear. “I heard that the girl from Liujia Village was buried with him. Since the marriage failed to bring him good fortune, they had her continue serving the Second Young Master underground!”
Lin Changgen slid right off the field ridge. Lin Changsong hurriedly helped him up and settled him back down.
Lin Changgen wiped the sweat from his forehead and thought: If Second Brother’s family had not caused a commotion that day, the one who had been buried would have been Erya. If Second Brother had not brought up Minghai’s future, San Ya, Si Ya, and Wu Ya might all have been sold by Mother.
Lin Changsong struck while the iron was hot, painting an even more horrifying picture. “Don’t blame me for speaking harshly. In Mother’s eyes, daughters are all money-losing goods. If Minghai goes on to become a xiucai or a juren, that will require mountains of gold and seas of silver to support him. Where will the money come from? By then, selling your daughters for money will be the most convenient path! Can you stand up to Mother? Or can you stand up to Eldest Brother once he becomes the father of a xiucai?”
Lin Changgen’s lips trembled. “I… I…”
Lin Changsong asked the second question that struck at the soul. “Let me ask you this as well. Even if Mother were kindhearted and did not randomly find husbands for your daughters, once they grew up, they could simply do more work around the house and endure a few more curses. You could bear that and get through it.
“But have you ever considered this… If Minghai truly passes the examination and becomes a xiucai, will someone of his temperament still be willing to associate with poor relatives like us?
“When the time comes, for the sake of his reputation, do you think First Sister-in-law might urge Mother to send your daughters who are ‘unfit to appear in public’ away to some mountain ravine as soon as possible, so they won’t be an eyesore?”
Those words were truly cruel, laying bare the potential danger of the future. But Lin Changsong was not exaggerating. Something like that really could happen.
Seeing that he had frightened his Third Brother enough, Lin Changsong comforted him. “Third Brother, moving out will be hard and painful, but once you close the door, you’ll be the head of your own household! You’ll be able to decide your daughters’ marriages yourself! You can find San Ya an honest, dependable son-in-law who marries into the family. In the future, he can support you and your wife in your old age and even perform the funeral rites for you! Isn’t that kind of life—establishing a household of your own—wonderful?”
Lin Changgen’s eyes wavered, but he still had reservations. “But… without a son, people will still point fingers at us and say our family line has ended…”
Lin Changsong said exasperatedly, “You foolish little brother! Which is harder to bear: having people point fingers at you, or watching helplessly as your daughter is pushed into a pit of fire? Once you split off, work yourself to the bone, save a dowry for your daughter, and find yourself a good son-in-law, who would dare say that the Third Branch of the Lin family has no descendants? Your son-in-law will be your son!”
Seeing that Lin Changgen was still somewhat hesitant, Lin Changsong asked him, “Do you know why your wife hasn’t conceived again?”
“The years before that were difficult…”
Lin Changsong nodded. “The years before were indeed hard, and no one in the village was having children either. But now life has improved, and one young wife after another in the village has begun to conceive. Once you split off, nourish your wife’s health properly. The two of you aren’t incapable of having more children.
“First, save dowries for San Ya and Si Ya and marry them off properly. Wu Ya is only six. If your wife still hasn’t given birth to a son within ten years, keep Wu Ya and have a son-in-law marry into the family. If she does give birth to a son, won’t every problem be solved?”
This time, Lin Changsong had truly touched Lin Changgen’s heart.
His spirits rose at once. His Second Brother had given him an entirely new choice. After considering it for a long while, he seemed to make a decision. “Second Brother, I’ll listen to you!”
Seeing that he had finally talked him around, Lin Changsong patted him on the shoulder and opened a new subject. “If the family splits, and Mother tells you to continue living here, what will you say?”
Lin Changgen was bewildered. Continue living here? Of course it would be best if he could stay. He had no money to build a house, and his mother would not give him money to build one either.
Lin Changsong could see the answer in his clear eyes. “If you don’t move out, then there’s no difference between that and not splitting the family. You’ll still have to cultivate the First Branch’s fields, and your wife and nieces will still have to wash the First Branch’s dirty clothes. None of the household chores will be reduced. You may even have to hand over every copper you earn from doing odd jobs in the county town to Mother. If that’s the case, how can you talk about nourishing your wife’s health?”
Lin Changgen knew that he was not as clever as his Second Brother. He grabbed Lin Changsong’s hand and asked, “Second Brother, since you’ve already decided to help me, help me all the way and tell me what I should do.”
Lin Changsong whispered into his ear for a while. After listening, Lin Changgen sat there dazed for some time before nodding. “All right. I’ll do as you say, Second Brother.”
The two brothers had said nearly everything they needed to say. When they saw Old Man Lin approaching with a shoulder pole carrying farmyard manure, they ended their conversation and rose to help him.
When the father and his two sons returned home, they happened to meet Lin Minghai at the entrance. He was returning from the Clan Head’s house.
“Grandfather, Second Uncle, Third Uncle.” Lin Minghai stopped and greeted the three of them respectfully.
He appeared respectful, but Lin Changsong clearly saw the obvious disgust in Lin Minghai’s eyes when he smelled the odor clinging to the three of them.
With one quick stride, Lin Changsong went forward and pulled his eldest nephew inside.
“Minghai, you’re back! Your grandmother has been looking forward to your return. The county examination is coming up soon, so you must work even harder. Your uncles are all counting on you…”