Third watch, asking for pink.

********

Lian Shouli originally intended to evict them, but he was afraid others would say he was "mean-spirited" (a phrase Zhou Shi often used), and he also wanted to obey Old Master Lian, so he was unwilling to say out loud that he wanted to evict people.

"Third Uncle, people can say whatever they like. If a thief enters the house, isn’t it allowed to chase them out?" Lian Manman said, as she wanted to advocate for Lady Zhao and Lian Yeye. According to her assessment, if Lian Shouli stood firm and insisted on expelling the wife of He Laoliu and the others, Old Master Lian would agree.

"Third Uncle, you surely know what kind of people those few from the Old He Family are after living opposite you for these few days. You’re not afraid of anything, but you should also think about my Third Aunt and Yeye. And one more thing, if they dare to steal once, they’re going to dare to steal a second time." 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"Isn’t that right." Lady Zhang also said, "Isn’t there a saying that there’s no thousand days of guarding against a thief who steals for a thousand days. If they keep living there, something will eventually go wrong. Third Uncle, you’re the head of the family, shouldn’t you be the one making decisions now?"

"Third Brother, if you don’t want them to live there, just go ahead and evict them. In this village, everyone knows what everyone else is like, surely no one will say anything about you behind your back." Lian Shouxin also said.

"Then... I, I should evict them?" Lian Shouli raised his head and said hesitantly.

Lian Shouxin accompanied Lian Shouli to the old house, while the household managers, Lian Manman and Wu Lang, did not go. Those who didn’t manage the household affairs, Lady Zhang and Lian Zhizhi, did not intend to go either; they just stayed home doing needlework and waiting for news.

By evening, Lian Shouxin came back from the old house. As soon as he entered, he climbed onto the kang wearily and sighed.

"What did they say about everything?" Lady Zhang personally brought a bowl of hot tea to Lian Shouxin and asked.

Lian Shouxin took the tea bowl and, without minding the hot tea, gulped it down in two or three swigs until he finished the whole bowl.

"Dad, what’s the matter? Didn’t they prepare tea for you over there?" Lian Manman asked.

"Jizu’s wife boiled a pot of water and gave me a cup of tea. After I had that cup, everyone else drank all of it. Later, everyone got so busy that no one could bother to boil more water." Lian Shouxin said.

Seeing Lian Shouxin like this, Lady Zhang brought another bowl of tea, which he drank before letting out a long, comfortable sigh.

Everyone looked at Lian Shouxin, wanting to hear how the matter at the old house had been resolved.

"Ah, all that effort for half a day, and it ended up just the same as before." Lian Shouxin said with a somewhat complex expression.

"Lady Gu wasn’t dismissed?" Lady Zhang asked.

"No." Lian Shouxin replied, "Elder Brother’s family wasn’t too willing, so the Old Master compromised."

"Compromise" is a colloquialism commonly used by the tenant farmers around Thirty Mile Camp, meaning to make concessions or give in.

"The Old Master also told me, in principle, this person should have been dismissed long ago. Now that we’re not dismissing her, there’s just no other way." Lian Shouxin explained to Lady Zhang, "He said firstly, if she leaves the Old Lian Family, she has nowhere to go. Her brother’s family’s conditions aren’t good enough to take her in. Secondly, Jizu was, after all, raised by her."

"I feel the Old Master is mainly considering his eldest uncle." Lian Shouxin whispered to Lady Zhang, "If she were dismissed, his eldest uncle would become a bachelor. Given the family’s current situation, finding another match would mean settling for someone less desirable. No one even slightly better would want to come."

"So, what’s the Old Master’s plan?" Lady Zhang nodded, showing she understood this reasoning.

"For now, let’s just get by like this. It’s at least a complete family. Her attitude of admitting her mistakes was decent, and the Old Master said that now with the path to the Song Family cut off, she has no dreams left and will live her days quietly. From now on, she won’t be allowed to go out." Lian Shouxin added.

"What about Lian Duoduo? My grandmother even said she wanted to kill her." Lian Manman asked.

"She’s the same as her mother, not allowed to leave the house in the future. From the Old Master’s stance, it seems that once she reaches marriageable age, she’ll be married off and that will be that." Lian Shouxin said, "After all, she’s of Lian blood. Her grandma was just furious; if it came to acting on it, we really wouldn’t have the heart to go through with it."

We wouldn’t have the heart, but Zhou Shi probably would, Lian Manman thought to herself. At the same time, she thought that it was fortunate Lian Duoduo was born into a tenant farming family. If she were born into a wealthy family, as she herself hoped, even the last time she ran away and stayed in town for a few days would be enough to cost her life.

"And the wife of He Laoliu, wasn’t she evicted either?" Lady Zhang asked Lian Shouxin again.