Back at the Jiang family home, as soon as they entered the gate, the group heard Jiang Lao Er wailing in the courtyard.
"Father, look how heartless Big Brother's family is! They beat me like this, you must uphold justice for me!"
Jiang Yu's voice also came out, "Grandpa, Grandma, the eldest branch stole that wild pheasant and ate it. What should we do? Grandma, I'm so hungry."
Upon hearing that the wild pheasant was eaten, Si Lang and Wu Lang's Jia Xiang immediately collapsed onto the ground, kicking their legs and throwing a tantrum, wailing, "I'm hungry, I want to eat meat, I want to eat wild pheasant!"
Zhou Shi, Jiang Lao Er's wife, also joined the howling in the courtyard, "Heavens above, this life is unbearable..."
Jiang Lao Tai also stamped her feet and slapped her thighs, cursing, "A family of ungrateful wretches! I raised him so big, and now that he has food, he not only ignores our plight but also beat Lao Er like this. Heavens, please open your eyes!"
Jiang Wan exclaimed that she had her eyes opened.
What kind of people were these in the family!
Su Shi, a little nervous, clenched her fists, "Mother, what should we do?"
Chen Yue Zhi sneered, "Let's find a place to sit and let them howl. They'll naturally stop when they're tired."
Going in at this time would surely lead to another big commotion.
They had finally filled their stomachs and were unwilling to quickly deplete their energy for such people.
So, the family happily turned and found a spot under a nearby tree to sit, listening to the cacophony of wails from the Jiang household from afar.
Da Lang thought for a moment, then stood up, "I'll go call Father out. The meat is best eaten while it's still hot."
Chen Yue Zhi nodded, "Go, but don't let them see you."
Not long after Da Lang left, he returned with Jiang Pan.
Jiang Pan patted the mud clinging to the wall, stepped forward, and picked up Jiang Wan. He rubbed his whiskered face against Jiang Wan's, "My Wan Wan is truly amazing."
Her little face felt both itchy and painful from the rubbing. Jiang Wan disdainfully tilted her head back, only to have Jiang Pan's large hand press it back, "Don't move around, be careful you don't fall."
Jiang Wan: ...
Chen Yue Zhi took out the wrapped chicken and yam, "Eat it quickly while no one is around, so we don't have another fuss when we take it back."
Jiang Pan quietly took it and sat in the middle of the group. He opened the leaves and looked, then without thinking, was about to stuff the chicken into Jiang Wan's mouth.
"Father, you eat it yourself, I'm full."
Jiang Pan didn't listen to her, tore off a piece of chicken, and forced it into her mouth.
Jiang Wan truly couldn't eat any more, so she quickly got up and ran to hide in Chen Yue Zhi's arms, making Jiang Pan laugh heartily.
Chen Yue Zhi said, "I'll save a chicken leg for Wan Wan to eat tomorrow morning."
Only then did Jiang Pan eat with peace of mind.
After he finished eating, the family sat under the tree for a while longer. By the time it was completely dark, the commotion in the Jiang family's courtyard finally subsided.
"Let's go, back to the room to sleep."
They thought the second branch's family was exhausted from all the commotion, but as soon as they entered the door, they saw Si Lang and Wu Lang squatting at the main house's entrance, each holding half a flatbread and gnawing on it. Jiang Yu stood beside them, watching intently, her eyes fixed on the flatbreads in their hands.
Upon seeing the eldest branch return, Si Lang and Wu Lang quickly stuffed the flatbreads into their mouths. Wu Lang even made a face at the eldest branch, "We have food, but we won't give it to you ungrateful wretches!"
The faces of the eldest branch instantly turned grim.
So, there was still food in the house! They just didn't know about it!
At this moment, Jiang Lao Tai walked out of the house, her face stern, and said, "Oh, you still know how to come back? Since you're back, I'll make things clear today. The Jiang family is not divided, and everything belongs to the common fund. This is the family rule. Since your eldest branch does not abide by the rules, from today onwards, your eldest branch will not receive a single grain of food from the common fund!"
It was just a wild pheasant, what a big deal could that be! She wanted to see how stubborn these ungrateful wretches could be!
Jiang Er Lang could not hold back, "That grain was grown by our eldest branch! Why shouldn't we get it!"
Jiang Lao Tai raised her sunken triangular eyes, "Hmph, simply because this family, I have the final say! If you are not satisfied, then pack your bags and get out!"
Jiang Pan turned to look at Jiang Lao Tou, who was sitting to the side with an empty pipe in his mouth, and asked, "Father, is that your intention too?"
Jiang Lao Tou lifted his eyelids, "Your mother is right. The Jiang family is not divided, and everything belongs to the common fund. Your eldest branch went too far today, and I agree with your mother's words. If you want to receive grain from the common fund, then find a way to appease your mother."
The second branch's family was smug. Jiang Yu even forgot about coveting the flatbread and looked at the eldest branch with schadenfreude.
From her experience, the wild pheasant definitely wasn't finished, and they must have saved some for Jiang Wan. For the eldest branch to not be driven out, they not only had to apologize sincerely to their grandmother but also hand over the remaining wild pheasant!
She knew she wouldn't get to eat that wild pheasant, but as long as Jiang Wan couldn't eat it, she would be very happy!
Jiang Er Lang was also excited. He had to vent the anger from being beaten today. Later, he would make Jiang Pan kneel and apologize to him!
They were very confident that the eldest branch would bow their heads. In such chaotic times, if the eldest branch was kicked out, could their family still survive?
The eldest branch's family looked very upset. Jiang Wan clenched her fists even tighter. These scoundrels were too good at bullying!
Leaning on Jiang Pan's shoulder, she felt his body trembling with anger and couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy. She reached out and patted his back.
"Daddy, don't be angry, we don't want that grain!"
It was just a little grain, what was there to be proud of! No matter how much grain there was, it would eventually be eaten up. She was sure the Jiang family's grain wasn't much, otherwise Jiang Lao Tai wouldn't look so gaunt from hunger herself.
"Daddy, I'm sleepy, I want to sleep, let's go back to the room."
Jiang Pan looked at his little daughter in his arms, then at his family behind him, and finally suppressed the thoughts in his heart.
If it were just himself, he would turn around and leave immediately, never setting foot in this house again.
But he was no longer a young man. He had a wife and children, and even a daughter-in-law. He didn't want to drag them out to suffer at this time.
So, he forcibly suppressed the anger and grievance in his heart, gave Jiang Lao Tou a deep look, and turned to leave with Jiang Wan in his arms.
Jiang Er Lang, with a face like a pig's head, suddenly spoke, "Eldest brother, you caused such a big trouble today, how do you plan to resolve it?"
Jiang Lao Tai quickly asked, "What big trouble?"
Jiang Er Lang touched his face and said, "The eldest branch's family beat that Wang Pozi and her group, breaking their legs. That Wang Pozi is someone from Master Liu in the county. If you beat Master Liu's people, Master Liu won't let it go."
"What?!"
Jiang Lao Tai and Zhou Shi exclaimed in unison. Jiang Lao Tou's face also turned pale with fright. Only the three children of the second branch were still clueless, staring at the excitement with wide eyes.
"Why didn't you say such a big thing earlier! You damned ungrateful wretches, you family of calamities, why don't you just die!"
The first half of the sentence blamed Jiang Er Lang, while the latter half cursed the eldest branch.
Jiang Pan looked back at Jiang Lao Tai and the people from the second branch, then at Jiang Lao Tou, and grinned, "Since the Jiang family is not divided, we naturally share hardships together. Father, don't you think so? You've told me these words many times over the years."