Chapter 476

Chapter 476: Chapter 471: Troublesome Matters When Returning Home 06 ——————

Xie Jingwei fell silent for a good while before he asked with hurt:

"Xiao Fen, do you also not want to be the head of this household anymore?"

Xie Jingwei’s affection for his wife was sincere since they were childhood sweethearts; he was truly good to her, often soft-hearted and easily giving in to her.

However, since Dad and Mom left for Big Brother’s place in Rong District, Xu Xiaofen had become more and more unreasonable without the restraint of her in-laws.

She was all about helping her natal family, losing face completely, regardless of her own family’s toil and troubles.

"What do you mean, Brother Wei?" Xu Xiaofen staggered back, hearing the man actually use the word ’also’, her heart ’crashed’ as if something snapped inside.

"Xiao Fen, by acting like this, aren’t you afraid that the kids will lose their respect and morality towards you? Don’t forget, Xiao Yi is growing up... they understand everything now."

Xie Jingwei brought this up because he had heard the scolding Xiao Yi gave him earlier.

It was as if the departure of his in-laws had given the wife the impression that she could let herself go, resulting in her brother’s family thriving while their own small family was on the brink of falling apart.

"I, he wouldn’t dare!" Xu Xiaofen hissed in a low voice.

"Hmph, Xiao Fen, there are plenty of examples of unfilial children in our brigade, right? Do you think they dare or not dare? Moreover, Xiao Yi could just respond to you with, ’I’m just following by example’, how would you retort?"

Having been husband and wife for over a decade, Xie Jingwei had never laid a hand on his wife; even now, though his face was as dark as ink and bore a few traces of Old Xie’s sternness, his tone was still reasonably calm and rational.

The tone reassured Xu Xiaofen somewhat, yet upon hearing her husband’s question, she became unsettled: "Xiao Yi, he... he wouldn’t do that to me, to us!"

Her words were uttered with very little conviction.

This phrase ’following by example’ struck like thunder, awakening Xu Xiaofen’s consciousness that had been brainwashed by her younger brother for days.

"Xiao Fen, people’s hearts... are made of flesh. How you treat your little brother, compared to how you treat your own children?! They all have eyes to see!"

"I!" Xu Xiaofen wanted to say something, but the images conjured up in her mind by the man’s words left her speechless with shock.

This was the second time her heart raced.

The first time was when Xiao Yi sternly lectured his father.

Upon hearing her husband mention ’grown up’, it struck like thunder, awakening her memories all at once.

"Xiao Fen, was it right for you to slap Xiao Wu today just because she didn’t come back to cook dinner? Xiao Wu..." Xie Jingwei’s eyes, full of concern, were fixed on his wife’s increasingly pale face:

"Xiao Wu is... only seven years old! Do you remember what you were doing at the age of seven?"

Before Mr. Xu’s death, Xu Xiaofen never did any household chores; it was only after her father’s death that the Xu Family began to decline. And at that time, Xu Xiaofen herself was thirteen, never having suffered like Xiao Wu!

Xiao Wu’s current situation resembled Zhang Shanni’s childhood!

"Xiao Fen, if you really don’t care about the kids anymore, and your natal family’s younger brother is willing to support you till the end, then go back to your natal home. I, the Xie Family, cannot afford to keep you any longer."

Xie Jingwei turned his head away, finally voicing the thoughts that had weighed on his heart for many months.

"No, it’s not like that, I, Brother Wei, what are you saying?" At first, Xu Xiaofen did not grasp the man’s meaning, but after her husband finished speaking and coldly turned his head, she finally realized!

"I’m saying... if you don’t want to stay with the Xie Family anymore, you should just go back to your parents’ home."

Dad and Mom have been back for two days now, and she, the wife of the eldest son of the third branch of the Xie Family, hasn’t even once gone back to the ancestral house to pay her respects!

To Xie Jingwei, who grew up with the family teachings of the Xie Family, this was the most fatal reflection!

The disappointment and frustration in Mr. Xie’s eyes, that she was not tough enough, had utterly destroyed the ’facts’ he had been trying to ignore for the past half-year!

Other things could be discussed, but being unfilial to one’s in-laws and not loving towards one’s children has always been a serious taboo in the Xie family teaching!

When Xie Jingwei was a child and first started learning to read, as the eldest son and grandson of the third branch of the Xie Family, the very first things he memorized were various family instructions and rules of the Xie family.

"No, I haven’t! Brother Tie Dan, don’t you know what kind of person I am! I really don’t have such thoughts, don’t be angry!" Xu Xiaofen rushed to her husband’s side nervously, shaking her head as she vehemently denied it.

"Xiao Fen, have you been living so comfortably that you’ve forgotten the ancestral teachings of our Xie Family?!"

Xie Jingwei looked at her with disappointment as her face turned pale, then once she understood what he meant, tears streamed down, softening his just hardened heart again.

He sighed and lowered his head, looking at his elbow tightly gripped by his wife, staying silent for a while before saying deeply:

"Xiao Fen, if you still want to be Mrs. Xie, go back to the room and read the first sentence on the red book."

With that, he brushed off Xu Xiaofen’s grasping hand and walked away despondently.

If the wife is reluctant to see her in-laws, he cannot afford to not see his parents.

Because of the slap mark on Xiao Wu’s face, both Xie Tiesheng and Zhou Xiuhua had ill feelings towards this eldest son.

Furthermore, Xiao Ba was sick.

When Xie Jinggang returned home with a box of apples and pastries, it happened to be after Xie Tiesheng had finished reprimanding Xie Jingwei, at least maintaining his eldest brother’s dignity in front of his siblings.

After Xiao Ba’s fever subsided, Lin Caixia was sent back to their side of the house by Zhou Xiuhua.

Since the division of the family property, Xie Jingwei, who had the largest family, had already built two extra rooms next to his house. Xiao Yi and Xiao’er shared one room, while Xiao Wu, still young, slept in a partition within his parents’ room.

Transmigration: I Have Storage Space in the Apocalypse Chapter 475 - 470: Troublesome Matters When Returning Home 05 The other room had become a storage space, with a small kitchen added next to it.

Xie Jinggang and Xie Jingyang, who rarely stayed at home, were content with just one room and did not expand further.

Now, the east wing had also been divided into a left-center-right layout, making sure everyone had their share. The left and right sides could expand onto their adjacent vacant land, and the center could also expand.

When constructing the east wing, it was also considered how to subdivide it further after the division of the family property. To expand the center layout would mean taking over the back courtyards of the left and right side houses, conveniently allowing everyone to build their own space, with only the central façade being slightly smaller.

Of course, the largest was the west wing.

However, none of the three brothers of Xie Jingwei’s dared to covet it, as the funds for their courtyard came from the family assets, while the west wing was fully funded by Xie Jingchen himself.

On this point, nobody could claim that the west wing was equally divided by the family.

Even the most selfish Wang Xiaocui did not dare to harbor such thoughts. Without Wang Xiaocui, and with Lin Caixia being much too cunning, the remaining Xu Xiaofen, no matter how many thoughts she suppressed, had to swallow them in silence.

Now that the three brothers were each given a part while Xie Jingchen alone obtained one, could Xu Xiaofen be without thoughts? It was because she had too many ideas that she felt resentful inside.

Little did she expect that before she could express her thoughts, acting on impulse and slapping her daughter, she would face the prospect of being divorced.

As Xie Jingwei left, the distraught Xu Xiaofen finally remembered the last words her husband said before leaving, she hurried back to the room, picked up her husband’s notebook, and flipped open the first page—