I served as Li Bai's page.

"It's fine if we don't argue, let's just quickly divide the family property," the second concubine said.

Li Bai and Xu Ziyan entered the hall and sat down in the head of the household's seat. Li Bai instructed Steward Wu, "Uncle Wu, call Third Aunt and Zixia here. Today, we'll settle this matter of dividing the family property, so Second Aunt won't keep worrying about it."

Butler Wu summoned the third concubine and Zixia to sit in the hall. The second concubine glared at the mother and daughter as if they were enemies, and said, "Zixia will be married off in the future; the land cannot be allocated to her, and the Xu family's land cannot be given to outsiders."

Upon hearing this, Xu Ziyan stood up abruptly and said, "As the head of this household, I have the final say on the division of the family property today, and no one may have any objections. Yuehua, bring out the land deeds and house deeds."

I took out the land deed and house deed from my bag and handed them to Xu Ziyan. To prevent the second concubine from forcibly taking them, I stood in front of Xu Ziyan.

Xu Ziyan opened the house deeds and land deeds and explained to everyone how much land and how many houses there were.

"That's the situation with the house and land. In accordance with my mother's last wishes, Zijun will live in this large courtyard of the Xu family mansion, Third Aunt will live in your original courtyard plus the Xu family mansion's garden and back dining room, and Second Aunt will continue to live in your original courtyard."

"The back dining room and garden cannot be given to the third concubine," the second concubine said, standing up.

Xu Ziyan glanced at her and said, "If I don't give it to her, then I won't give this entire compound to Zijun either. Think about it."

The second concubine immediately shut her mouth and sat down.

"The houses are divided like this, and then there's the land. To ensure that every household has a basic source of livelihood, both good and less desirable land are allocated. The farmland on Baizhao Mountain will be allocated to me, and I don't want the rest. Zijun will also get a larger share of the land, after all, he's the only man in the Xu family," Xu Ziyan said.

The second and third concubines expressed no objection, and Xu Ziyan took out the house deeds and land deeds and distributed them to everyone.

"Next, I'll divide the banknotes, calligraphy, paintings, and antiques in the house into three equal parts, one for each household. Uncle Wu and Aunt Wu will supervise the distribution in a bit," Xu Ziyan said.

"Also, regarding the servants in the house, Second Mistress and Third Mistress, you can choose whichever servants you need. Of course, it's a two-way selection process, and the servants can also choose their own masters. Steward Wu, go and call all the servants in."

In fact, all the servants were standing outside the hall, observing the situation unfolding inside. Upon hearing that they were to be called in, they swarmed in.

A servant asked, "Miss, does Bai Zhaoshan need any more people?"

Xu Ziyan replied, "That's not necessary now, so you can only choose between the second and third concubines."

Xu Zijun glanced at the servants, all of whom had worked in the Xu household for quite some time, and said, "Those who wish to stay, may remain. Your treatment will be the same as when the master was alive."

The third concubine kept some of the servants, and Xu Zijun kept some, so the servants didn't lose their jobs.

Xu Ziyan said to Wu Ma and Steward Wu, "You two elders, please come with me to Baizhao Mountain."

Xu Zijun, however, wouldn't let Butler Wu leave, saying, "When my father was alive, he was the butler of the Xu family. Now that my father has passed away, he will still be the butler of the Xu family. Uncle Wu, please stay and help me."

Seeing Xu Zijun's sincere expression, Steward Wu agreed to stay at the Xu residence, and Wu Ma followed us to Baizhao Mountain.

After the division of the family property was completed, each family moved their belongings back to their own homes. Steward Wu had someone set up a wall to separate the territories of the second and third families, and from then on, each family lived their own lives.

The third concubine, grateful for Xu Ziyan's ceremonial presence, often brought Xu Zixia to Baizhao Mountain for a visit. Xu Zijun was also very grateful to his sister for preserving the Xu family estate and frequently came to visit her at Baizhao Mountain.

After Master Xu and Madam Xu left, Li Bai's life became less carefree. He wanted to travel, but he was worried about home. Yet, staying home made him feel restless and bored. Just as Li Bai was caught in this dilemma, he finally found an excuse.

One day, Wu Chao returned from buying things in Anlu and brought back a letter for Li Bai. Li Bai opened it and, delighted, said to Xu Ziyan, "Madam, Daoist Yuanyan has summoned me to Luoyang. I must go no matter what; I'll be back quickly, at most half a month."

Seeing Li Bai's pleading eyes, Xu Ziyan's heart softened, and she said, "Go ahead, just remember to come home when you've had your fun."

Li Bai argued, "I'm not going out to play; I have something to do. This time I won't take Yuehua with me; let him stay at home."

"You should bring them along. Without attendants, how can you show off your grandeur as Young Master Li?"

"Madam was just saying that out of anger. With Yuehua here, I feel a little more at ease."

"Of course, only the moonlight knows where I'll be when I wake up tonight."

"Madam is intelligent."

With Xu Ziyan's consent, Li Bai instructed me to prepare for departure. Before leaving, Li Bai found Wu Chao and said, "Xiao Chao, I'm going out for a while. You need to take good care of the family for me. I won't be farming the fields myself; I'll contract them out to the nearby farmers."

"Don't worry, son-in-law, I'll handle it," Wu Chao said.

On the first day of our journey, Li Bai took Xu Ziyan, Pingyang, and Boqin to the top of Baizhao Peak to water the ginkgo trees. I carried a full bucket of water and walked behind, while Xiaoqian walked happily in front with the two children. Xu Ziyan walked with difficulty in the middle, holding Li Bai's hand.

"Young Master, why don't you carry Young Madam on your back? By the time those three-inch golden lotuses reach the top of Bai Zhao Peak, it will be too late," I said.

Li Bai unfastened his sword and handed it to me, then said to Xu Ziyan, "From now on, you must not bind Pingyang's feet. I'd rather she walk gracefully than suffer through a painful jog. Come on, I'll carry you."

Li Bai carried Xu Ziyan on his back as they climbed the mountain. Just as they reached the summit, the two children saw Li Bai carrying their mother and came to his side, each clinging to one of his hands. Li Bai yelled, "You're going to kill me with exhaustion!" This made Xiaoqian and me laugh so hard we almost fell over.

Li Bai glared at me, then gestured towards Pingyang and Boqin. The two children immediately understood and ran over to climb onto me.

"Young master, you made a sacrifice for bound feet; you shouldn't implicate me."

"Are there anyone else here who could be implicated? No, only you. Carry him on your back."

I carried Boqin on my back, but Pingyang refused. In the end, I carried Pingyang on my back for a while, and then carried Boqin on my back for a while. When we arrived at the ginkgo tree, I was so tired that I sat down on the grass and didn't want to move at all.

"Young Master, you've really put me in a difficult position," I said, lying down on the grass. Pingyang and Boqin found it quite amusing and lay down next to me. The three of us lay there, watching the white clouds drift by. Xu Ziyan and Xiaoqian sat beside us, occasionally tidying Pingyang and Boqin's hair. Li Bai, having finished watering the ginkgo trees, saw this scene and sighed, "Yuehua, I'm starting to not want to go to Dongdu."

I sat up and asked, "Why?"

"Isn't this good? The whole family can be together peacefully." Li Bai said, putting down the bucket, walking over to Xu Ziyan and lying down next to her, resting his head on her lap.