Reborn as a Landlord-Chapter 911 - 466: Loosen Up
The first update, requesting pink tickets.
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When Lian Jizu mentioned he wanted to return to Taicang, the entire family exchanged glances.
"Jizu," Lian Shouxin said, "you can’t go back now. You have to stay here and take care of your grandmother. Your grandfather and your parents sent you here, certainly not to leave your grandmother behind and just leave. If they just wanted someone to leave Grandma behind, they could have sent anyone else, not you. With you, the eldest grandson, taking responsibility here, no one can accuse your parents of being unfilial, of throwing your grandmother back in the countryside to suffer... So, you can’t leave."
The meaning behind Lian Shouxin’s words was clear: if Lian Jizu left, it would directly signify that Lian Shouren’s branch of the family was unfilial.
People of this era, no matter what they felt inside, did not dare to bear the label of being unfilial. For families like Lian Shouxin and Lian Shouli, who were typically passive and accommodating, it goes without saying. Even Lian Shouren and Lady Gu, despite their usual scheming, wouldn’t dare suggest separating from Old Master Lian and Lady Zhou. Even to assume a position in Taicang, they’d have to bring along Old Master Lian, Lady Zhou, and the extended family of the second branch.
"Fourth Uncle, Wu Lang and Xiao Qi are still studying now, and you know how important studying is—it’s what weighs on Grandpa’s mind the most. I’ll just head back for a couple of days. During those days, Grandma still has my eldest aunt taking care of her. Besides, Fourth Uncle, Fourth Aunt, and Third Uncle, Third Aunt are also here." Lian Jizu replied with a forced smile.
Lian Manman couldn’t help but snort coldly. Lian Jizu had finally revealed his true intentions.
Lian Jizu—his plan for this trip, bringing back Lady Zhou, was just to push her responsibility onto the families of Lian Shouli and Lian Shouxin!
Despicable! Shameless!
"Brother Jizu, my dad, my mom, and third uncle and third aunt together can’t compare to you, Brother Jizu. You’re the heir apparent, the eldest grandson of the main branch, perfectly legitimate. We’ve long since separated our households and moved on. For us to take care of Grandma is not the same as you taking care of Grandma—it’s a completely different implication... Brother Jizu, if you say this within the house, we’ll let it slide. But if you say this outside, it’d be a minor matter to become the laughingstock. Do you believe if word gets out, someone would immediately submit a petition accusing you of being unfilial and disregarding family duty?" Wu Lang retorted.
"Don’t worry, Brother Jizu," Lian Manman added. "My brother has already written a letter to Taicang, and I’d guess we’ll get a reply in just a few days. Eventually, it’ll depend on Grandpa’s decision. For now, your sole focus should just be taking good care of Grandma."
After talking for what seemed like an eternity without achieving any results, Lian Jizu had no choice but to leave reluctantly.
"This kid Jizu is just unreliable," Lian Shouxin sighed. "All he cares about is eating, drinking, and having fun, and shirks every single responsibility. If he were to excel in his studies, it’d be one thing, but all these years, his studying seems more like going through the motions—he’s not invested in it."
"A pampered young master," Lian Yeye suddenly commented.
"What?"
"...That’s what I’ve heard others say about him," Lian Yeye explained.
After finishing their meal, the family all started talking about how Lian Jizu developed such a personality.
"His grandfather has always been strong-willed, someone who built everything from the ground up. How did things come to this with Jizu’s generation?" Lian Shouxin said.
Clearly, Lian Shouxin didn’t believe Lian Jizu’s personality was something innate, yet he only brought up Old Master Lian, leaving Lian Jizu’s father, Lian Shouren, unmentioned.
Lian Manman opened her mouth as if wanting to say something but decided to hold her tongue in the end.
The father and son, Lian Shouren and Lian Jizu, shared many similarities in their character—for example, their menacing flaw of irresponsibility and their penchant for idleness. And the formation of these traits in father and son was inseparable from Old Master Lian. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮
Old Master Lian had pinned all his hopes of elevating the family’s stature through studying and passing the imperial examination on these two. To allow them to dedicate themselves entirely to their studies, Old Master Lian took on all responsibilities outside of studying himself.
It was precisely Old Master Lian’s indulgence and absolute willingness to shoulder everything that step-by-step nurtured these two into pushing responsibilities away while pulling benefits toward themselves.
In truth, there’s a similar phenomenon in many families: strong mothers lead to weak sons, or weak mothers lead to strong sons. It’s the environment that shapes people, shaping both their strengths and weaknesses. For example, Lady Zhao’s gentleness led Lian Yeye to become bold and assertive because she had no choice but to be tough to survive. In contrast, Lady Zhou’s dominance resulted in Lian Shouxin and Lian Shouli being weak and passive.
As for Lian Manman’s family, because both Lian Shouxin and Lady Zhang were soft and timid, their children all matured earlier than normal. Although Lady Zhang was nominally the head of the family, in reality, Lian Manman was the one making decisions. Meanwhile, outside the household, Wu Lang was gradually replacing Lian Shouxin as the family’s representative.
Many families have similar examples.
