Let’s split up if we want to. I have a system, so who should I be afraid of?

Shen was tiptoeing towards the door, praying in her heart that she would not be noticed.

However, just as she was about to step over the threshold, her mother-in-law, Zhao, suddenly turned her head and shot her sharp gaze straight at the door.

"Stop! You useless thing, what are you doing there sneaking around?" The mother-in-law shouted angrily, scaring Shen so much that she trembled all over and almost dropped the things in her arms to the ground.

Shen's face turned pale in an instant, and she stammered, "Mother... Mother, I... I just came back."

Although she had secretly made up her mind to divide the family, her body still trembled instinctively when faced with her mother-in-law Zhao's domineering attitude over the years.

After all, for so many years, Zhao has always been the one who calls the shots in this family. Her aggressive and domineering nature has left a shadow in Shen's heart.

Mother-in-law Zhao stood up from the stool and walked quickly to Shen. Without saying anything, she snatched the things from her arms and scribbled them while looking through them: "Huh, you only brought back these little things, and you're sneaking around like that. Did you hide something good outside?"

Shen lowered her head and said, "Mother, I don't have any. This is all my family can give me."

"Look at the wives next door, they all come home with loads of goodies! But you, what can you do with just this little? Who can eat two ounces of meat? You're just feeding a beggar!"

Seeing this, Qin Youwen hurried over and protected Shen behind him, frowning and saying, "Mom, there's usually not even two taels of meat at home. She's already done her best to bring these back. You can't blame her like this!"

Zhao had just wanted to marry Linlin to the old cripple from the next village, but now he was openly bullying his wife.

Qin Youwen, who was originally hesitant about splitting up the family business, made up his mind.

"You useless thing, you dare to help her speak! I have the final say in this family, and if I say she is wrong, she is wrong!" Zhao was so angry that her face turned red. She stretched out her finger and pointed it directly at Qin Youwen's nose and cursed.

Qin Youwen also lost his temper and said loudly: "Mom, you can't be unreasonable! Shen Ru usually takes care of the housework. Even if she has no credit, she has worked hard. Besides, why don't you bring anything to Shen Ru's parents' home?"

The mother-in-law was so angry that she stamped her feet, and the dust was raised high: "Well, you all have become so arrogant that you dare to talk back to me!"

The atmosphere at home suddenly became tense and depressing, and a bigger conflict seemed to be about to break out.

At this time, Shen pulled the corner of Qin Youwen's clothes and said softly, "Stop arguing."

Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Fang wanted to please Zhao but didn't want to offend the second wife, so she said tactfully, "It would be better if you took more, but it's better than nothing, right? Mom, don't be angry!"

"Calm down, calm down." Qin Youqian walked forward with a flattering look on his face and supported Zhao.

The light in the room grew dimmer and dimmer, with only a ray of light coming through the dilapidated window, illuminating the angry and twisted face of my mother-in-law.

Qin Yanyan hid in the corner like a frightened rabbit, not daring to make a sound, fearing that the same thing would happen to her.

Qin Lang watched all this indifferently. He couldn't understand it. His grandmother said that she would find a wife for him in the future.

Linlin's sobbing could be heard intermittently from the room, and Sisi comforted her.

At night, Zhao took all the meat without hesitation and ate it with relish. However, the people in the first and second houses knew that Zhao would never share the meat with them.

Fortunately, they ate some tofu and whole grain buns, and the food was much better than usual.

When the night was quiet and the children were asleep, Shen quietly took out the candied haws from under the quilt and gently handed them to Linlin and Sisi, saying to Linlin softly, "Don't be afraid, Linlin. Mother will never let you marry that cripple."

Then she lowered her voice again and told the two sisters the plan to divide the family property in detail, and repeatedly told the children not to tell anyone.

After hearing this, the two sisters smiled happily, and the candied haws in their hands seemed to become even sweeter.

After the children fell asleep, Shen returned to lie down beside Qin Youwen and said softly, "Youwen, you saw what happened today. Let's separate. We can't live like this anymore."

Qin Youwen sighed deeply and nodded heavily.

Shen continued, "Today I went to a pawnshop to pawn my jewelry. The owner was very cruel and would only offer twelve taels of silver at most. Fortunately, Panpan was kind-hearted. Seeing that the owner's offer was too low, she was willing to pay thirty taels, so I sold the jewelry to her."

"My sister-in-law is really kind. She is helping us." Qin Youwen said gratefully.

"Yes, this way we'll have money when we divide the family property. Let's put the money with Panpan first. Otherwise, if mother finds out, we won't be able to get it back."

"And the lunch we had at Panpan's house this afternoon. It turned out her cooking skills were better than the chefs in town. My sister-in-law and I also went to see Zhou Youliang's house today. They've moved to town and are looking for a buyer. I've seen the outside of the house, and it's pretty good, with plenty of space, but I haven't asked the price yet."

After hearing this, Qin Youwen stretched out his arms and hugged Shen, saying, "Oh, is that true? Didn't my sister-in-law not know how to cook before? You did the right thing about dividing the family this time. You have foresight and know how to plan ahead!"

"This was all Panpan's idea." Hearing Qin Youwen's praise, Shen blushed and replied embarrassedly.

In Shen's mind, Qin Youwen, this idiot, rarely praised her a few times throughout the year.

"Panpan is smart. Tomorrow I'll go to the village head's house and tell him about my mother's plan to marry Linlin to the old cripple from the next village."

Shen leaned in Qin Youwen's arms, and the two of them discussed their future plans in a low voice until late at night.

For several days in a row, Shen frequently went in and out of the homes of those who had a lot of say in the village.

Once this incident spread, the villagers' impression of the Zhao family became even worse.

The villagers whispered to each other behind the scenes, accusing Zhao of being inhumane.

After Aunt Liu learned about this, she took the lead in spreading the news of Zhao's behavior everywhere, and the villagers all supported the Shen family's separation.

Su Panpan was also busy. She brought some cakes to Zhang's house and said to Wang Hexiang, "Auntie Wang, my second uncle's wife wants to inquire about the price of that house."

Wang Hexiang quickly responded, "Okay, I'll ask Da Niu, who's delivering goods to town, to pass a message to Zhou Youliang and ask for the price."

Unexpectedly, the next day after lunch, Zhou Youliang drove his carriage directly back to the village and made an appointment to meet Qin Youwen and Shen at Su Panpan's house.

Qin Youwen and Shen stopped working and ran to Su Panpan's house when Zhao was not paying attention.

Wang Hexiang also brought her grandson Zhang Maitian to help, and Zhang Maitian came to play with Qin Mu and the others.