Reborn as a Landlord-Chapter 1490 - 758: Confidence

Old Master Lian and Lian Shouren, father and son, sat across from each other for a long time, both silent. Lady Zhou sat beside them; she didn’t understand Old Master Lian’s phrase "only petty men and women are difficult to raise," thinking it referred to Lady He and Lady Gu, and not to her, so she didn’t speak.

Old Master Lian was filled with distress, unable to find relief. Seeing the atmosphere in the room grow heavier, as the head of the family and the backbone for everyone, he could only rouse himself first.

"...Not to speak of anything else, but just the things Old Fourth said today. No wonder he’s come this far. Old Fourth has truly shown promise..." After thinking over and over, Old Master Lian had to admit.

"What promise does he have? He can’t even manage a household. In his household, he’s just an empty figurehead; everything is decided by his wife and those kids. No guts, no spirit..." Hearing Old Master Lian speak this way, Lady Zhou immediately retorted disdainfully.

"Old Fourth..." Old Master Lian pondered for a while, and felt that no matter how much Lian Shouxin changed or succeeded, he wouldn’t achieve the level he’s at today. "His wife doesn’t have this vision... Those kids, don’t be fooled by their silence, they all have something on their minds."

"Something on their minds," is a common rural slang used by the tenant farmers in Thirty Mile Camp, roughly meaning they are scheming.

"Mean-hearted. All heartless, unlike us, with sharp tongues but soft hearts; once said, it’s settled, while they hold grudges." Lady Zhou said, "Fed and clothed them to grow this big, used my resources..."

Old Master Lian sighed, no longer listening to what Lady Zhou was saying. He also understood that although Lady Zhou spoke like that, she wasn’t really confident inside. If she truly had confidence, she would speak to their faces rather than behind their backs.

In facing Lian Shouxin’s family, he was just as lacking in confidence as Lady Zhou.

Thinking carefully, the words Lian Shouxin said today, those reasons, was it that he didn’t understand them? Of course he understood, but when Lian Shouren became an official, he couldn’t suppress the faction of Lian Shouyi. Ultimately, it was still a matter of confidence.

Unlike Lian Shouren, Lian Shouxin left his house clean and started from scratch. This official position was achieved through his family’s hard work. As for Lian Shouren’s situation, he suppressed his family’s struggles for nearly twenty years, pooling all their forces, just to make Lian Shouren this one.

And if it were only this, things would be manageable.

Lian Shouren not only drained the family’s resources but also lacked integrity. From embezzling public funds to privately buying a house in town to claim for himself, to later selling Manman, borrowing high-interest loans, and harming Lady Zhang, etc.

These misdeeds were gradually exposed. Lian Shouren’s speech no longer held weight, his back no longer straightened, and he couldn’t protect Lian Shouren with confidence anymore.

At that time, his words still carried weight in this family. But because of a lack of confidence, inner guilt, and being at fault, he couldn’t suppress Lian Shouyi, which led to those events in Taicang.

Of course, responsibility for what happened later was not only on Lian Shouyi but also on Lady Gu.

Old Master Lian regretted his early decisions, but...

"What’s the use of regret? In this world, there’s never been a medicine for regret..." Old Master Lian sighed deeply.

"I still have to suppress the Second Master’s faction. Keep an eye on them usually, and if they do anything wrong and won’t listen to you, come and tell me." Old Master Lian collected his thoughts and sternly said to Lian Shouren, "No matter what, you can’t write ’Lian’ in one stroke, and when the water rises, the boat rises. Old Fourth becoming an official is good for everyone in the Old Lian Family. There’s no need to rush things now..."

While Old Master Lian was having a heartfelt conversation with Lian Shouren, Lian Manman and his group had already returned home. Lian Shouren and Lady Zhang had changed into their casual clothes, and the family sat around, drinking tea and talking.

"We said what needed to be said today. However, I feel it might not have much effect in the end." Lian Shouxin remarked, "Old Master’s heart doesn’t seem too focused on this matter."

"Even if Old Master’s heart was focused on this, I still think it would be quite tricky. The head of the family’s faction is still alright in the village, rather honest. But the Second Master’s faction, it’s hard to say. Old Master and the old lady don’t have the same authority as before." Lady Zhang said.

"We’ve voiced our stance, and that’s what counts," Wu Lang said, "If there’s any matter in the future, we’ll handle it according to what we discussed today."