Rebirth 1983: Building My Business Empire-Chapter 568 - 551 Glorifying the Ancestors (2)

After Lu Jiaxin went to sleep, Big Uncle Lu visited Seventh Uncle’s home. When he arrived, Seventh Uncle was still discussing matters with the village chief and several elder members from their clan.

Seeing Big Uncle Lu, Seventh Uncle felt reassured. Since Big Uncle Lu was overseeing the matter of Jiaxin subsidizing the education of the clan’s children, he now had considerable say in village affairs.

After sitting down, Big Uncle Lu asked, "How are the discussions going?"

Seventh Uncle and the village chief felt they could agree, but they were worried that the villagers might not be willing to accept it since there was no precedent. The villagers, being rather short-sighted, might think that allowing a girl to claim a share of forest land was breaking the rules and harming the interests of the males, and then there might not be enough land to go around if too many applied.

After listening, Big Uncle Lu brought up his own family’s situation, "I have three sons. The eldest and the second each have three sons, and the youngest has two. Do you see my family building new houses (cave dwellings)? So far, the only house we have is the one we live in now, which was built more than a decade ago. As for the future..."

He strategically paused, then looked at the people present and said, "I won’t even mention the four children of Jiaguang, who grew up in the city and won’t come back. Jiazong has three; Lu Shan has now established himself in the Forty-nine City with a house and a shop; Lu Yun and his wife are helping the second brother run the noodle restaurant and will definitely stay in the Forty-nine City; and with a job, Lu Tao is even less likely to return. Jiayao’s two sons, the elder one got a job with the railway bureau, and the younger one, after finishing high school and not getting into college, will also move to the city to find work."

"None of my eight grandsons will need land to build houses in the village in the future. Similarly, children who study and pass exams to leave won’t come back to the village to live in a cave dwelling. Now with the family planning policy, a family can only have two children, and those who are capable will go out to make a living. Girls applying for land won’t make a difference."

The example of none of the eight grandsons from the main branch of the Lu Family returning to build houses was very persuasive. Of course, the main point was the family planning policy he mentioned. If it was like before, when people had as many children as they wanted, there would never be enough land, but now the situation had changed, making it easier to persuade them.

Seventh Uncle said nothing.

The village chief agreed with Big Uncle Lu’s words, adding, "Seventh Uncle, now a family can only have at most two children, and if the firstborn is a son, they can only have one more. The village population will decrease in the future, so the land won’t be as scarce. We can allocate land plots to the village girls who apply for them."

Big Uncle Lu further supplemented, "The policy only allows for two children. If a family has two daughters, they can’t have more. It’s also good for them if girls can apply for land."

After some thought, Seventh Uncle said, "A family can only apply for land once. As for the mountain top, should we distribute it like farmland, based on the number of people at that time?"

Everyone thought this approach was workable.

The next day, as dawn was breaking, Lu Jiaxin awoke. After washing up, Big Aunt brought her breakfast, still her favorite lamb dumplings, but this time accompanied by smashed cucumber and pickled vegetables.

Lu Jiaxin couldn’t stop praising after tasting the pickled vegetables, "Big Aunt, these pickled vegetables are really delicious. Where did you learn to make them?"

Big Aunt’s smile spread ear to ear upon seeing her enjoy the food. Although she was nearly seventy, her teeth were still intact, either due to good care or genetics. In contrast, Big Uncle Lu had lost most of his teeth and couldn’t eat anything hard anymore.

Laughing heartily, Big Aunt replied, "I learned from Old Lady Wang next door. Her pickled vegetables are unparalleled, and I put in a lot of effort to learn. I’ll teach your second sister-in-law when she comes back for the New Year. Since you like them so much, they’re sure to be popular if sold at the shop."

Jiaxin playfully assured her, "I guarantee the customers will want more after tasting them, and the business will do even better."

After breakfast, the group went to visit the ancestral graves. The path up the mountain was rugged, but the tree branches and weeds along the road had been cleared, it looked like it had been some time since the last clearing.

Big Uncle Lu said with a smile, "When we visited the graves during the Qingming Festival, we got the villagers to tidy up both sides of the path. I’m also planning to call on the villagers during the slack farming season to help lay stones and flatten this road, so that even when it rains, we won’t have to worry about slipping."

Lu Jiaxin thought it was a good idea, but wasn’t sure if the villagers would be willing. However, she didn’t want to discourage Big Uncle Lu. The elderly wish for things to do that can earn them the respect of their descendants, providing them with a sense of achievement.

It took about half an hour to get there. In the past, attending to Mrs. Lu’s grave had always been arranged by Lu Jiaxin alone. Now that they were offering incense to the ancestors of the Lu family, with Big Uncle Lu present, she simply followed his arrangements.

Standing in front of a grave, Big Uncle Lu said, "Father, this is Jiaxin, Old Third Hongjun’s daughter. This child has great prospects, she has donated money and goods to the country, helping many orphaned children, and even sponsors our clan’s children’s education. Father, now everyone in Feng County knows about our Lu family." freeweɓnovel-cøm

The generation name ’Jia’ for the younger male members was chosen in accordance with the family tree sequence, while the names following it were based on the phrase "bring honor to the ancestors." But he never dreamed that it would be Jiaxin, and not his sons or nephews, who would bring glory to the family.

It was also because Hongjun only had one daughter that she was named following the family sequence. At the time, Big Uncle Lu had planned for her to bring in a husband through marriage, but Hongjun had not agreed.

Lu Jiaxin listened to him ramble without getting annoyed. The older generation thinks this way, hoping that their descendants will bring honor to their ancestors and make the family prosper. The eldest brother’s four children are all striving for success and will surely do well in the future; the three Lu Shan brothers are looking to live comfortably in the coming days; Lu Cheng has joined the railway bureau, and Lu Hui is in high school—so long as they don’t stray, they won’t do badly in the future. As for the second branch of the family, she didn’t involve herself.

Since Lu Jiaxin also wanted to visit the school, they didn’t linger long after offering incense and left soon after. On the way down the mountain, Big Uncle Lu said with a tinge of regret, "You’re leaving tomorrow; it’s all so rushed, I’ve prepared nothing. If you could leave two days later, you could have participated in the ancestral rites."

It was mainly because Lu Jiaxin hadn’t informed him in advance, or else he would have definitely made preparations. This girl now liked to do things unexpectedly.

In the countryside, there was a severe preference for sons over daughters. In her previous life, she couldn’t participate in ancestral rites, even as an only daughter, which led to her distaste for such activities.

To avoid dampening the mood, Lu Jiaxin made up an excuse, "Big Uncle, I came back for work and since I wasn’t far, I decided to come and see you and Big Aunt. Next time, I will tell you in advance when I come to visit."

The school wasn’t far from Lu Family Village, about a ten-minute walk away. The so-called school was essentially several cave classrooms, one for each grade.

Lu Jiaxin walked in and found that the lighting wasn’t very good, though everything else was acceptable. However, poor lighting is bad for the eyes if endured over a long period.

"Do the children study in this kind of environment?"

Big Uncle Lu nodded, "Yes! The year before last, they said the authorities would allocate money to build a school, so I didn’t mention it to you. But after waiting two years without any news, I made some inquiries, and they said the county doesn’t have the funds, so they’re not building it anymore."

It was also because he had received news that the county would allocate funds to build an educational building that he hadn’t told Lu Jiaxin. Otherwise, knowing her, she definitely would have donated money for the construction of the school building, and the children would already be studying in spacious and well-lit classrooms. So when he got the news that the funding was no longer coming, he was furious.

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