All Heavens Pension started from the fiery era

Chapter 697 Chapter 698. In the fifth year of the Republic of China, the wealthy family fell

July, 1916.

Wuzhou City, Jiangsu Province.

Yue Wenxuan opened his eyes again and found himself in a new world. He first had to sort out his memories from several lifetimes. Although the memories from other lifetimes were still vivid, the memories from this lifetime were particularly clear.

In this life, the system took good care of him, allowing him to luckily travel through time and space and become a young master from a prominent family.

The original body's ancestors were a local gentry family in Wuzhou. After several generations of development, the original body's grandfather finally passed the imperial examination and was promoted to a second-rank official of the dynasty.

In the late Qing Dynasty, the power of a second-rank official was extremely enormous. Under the painstaking management of the original grandfather, the Yue family, a local gentry family in Wuzhou, quickly transformed into a wealthy and powerful family in just twenty years.

If my grandfather had been alive, the Wuzhou Yue family would have been extremely prosperous. Unfortunately, my grandfather died of a serious illness before he was fifty.

The pillar of the Yue family collapsed, and no one in the next generation passed the imperial examination. No one could inherit the official connections of the original grandfather, and the gradual decline of the family was inevitable.

However, as if things never get worse, the original body's uncle felt that he had a heavy responsibility on his shoulders and wanted to achieve some results as soon as possible. However, he was framed and most of his family property was lost in one day. The already shaky Yue family was even worse off.

At that time, the Yue family's focus was on Kyoto. Even if the head of the family died, there were still two generations of in-laws to help. Yue Wenxuan's grandmother's family, as well as his aunt's and second aunt's families, were all prominent families in Kyoto. With these three relatives, it might be difficult for the Yue family to revive, but it should still be possible to live a peaceful and stable life.

However, the enemy who framed Yue Wenxuan's uncle had greater power in Kyoto City. If the Yue family still stayed in Kyoto, they might encounter misfortune.

The original person's grandmother was quite shrewd and decisive. After analyzing the situation, she made a prompt decision to move the whole family back to her ancestral home.

The Yue family had worked hard for generations in their ancestral home of Wuzhou. Even if the mainstay of the family fell, the basic foundation was still there. Moreover, Yue Wenxuan's father was married to a noble family in Wuzhou. After returning to his ancestral home, he still had in-laws to rely on.

Up to now, it has been more than ten years since the Yue family moved to their ancestral hometown Wuzhou. They can barely be considered to have taken root in their ancestral land again, and now they have some influence in the local area.

Today, the Yue family's influence all relies on the support of Yue Wenxuan's father, Yue Hanzhang. However, Yue Hanzhang is just a mediocre person and has not made much achievements either in his official career or in business.

After the establishment of the new government, Yue Hanzhang spent a sum of money and with the help of his father-in-law, he was able to obtain a job. However, he had no support from the leaders above and could only rely on the influence of his father-in-law to barely gain a foothold.

In business, Yue Hanzhang opened several grain stores and two restaurants. The revenue was relatively stable, but because of the small scale, the annual revenue was no more than two thousand oceans.

For an ordinary family, such income is already very considerable, but for the huge Yue family, it is just a drop in the bucket.

Even though the Yue family had gradually declined, they still maintained their former dignity. There were many masters in the family and they lived a luxurious life. Everyone had slaves and servants, and the annual expenses alone were an astronomical figure.

The reason they have been able to hold on until now is mainly due to the subsidies from the old lady, but after so many years of subsidies, the old lady’s private money is almost gone, and it has become difficult to hold on any longer. The situation has come to the point where they have to split up the family business.

The old lady's private savings were originally quite substantial. If the family lived a stable life, they could at least last another ten years.

But Yue Wenxuan's eldest uncle and second uncle were in their prime, and they were certainly not willing to be idle rich men. They all wanted to do something. Even if they could not make a difference in their official careers, they at least wanted to become wealthy businessmen.

Unfortunately, both of them were a little overambitious. No matter in which era, making money is not an easy thing, but losing money can often happen in the blink of an eye.

After the two brothers each failed in business two or three times, they finally became discouraged and gave up the idea of ​​striving. However, due to their efforts, their family fortune, which was originally quite substantial, was squandered.

Now Yue Wenxuan's great uncle is seriously ill and has been bedridden for half a year. I'm afraid he can't hold on for much longer.

Yue Wenxuan's second uncle suffered a series of business failures. He was disheartened and became addicted to opium. Now he has become emaciated and has no energy at all.

Yue Wenxuan's grandmother has been trying hard to maintain the Yue family's last dignity, but now she can no longer hold on. Even if she is reluctant, she has to consider dividing the family.

The respectability of aristocratic families is not the same as the poor people pretending to be rich. With this bit of respect, they can still integrate into the current circle. Once they lose even this bit of respect, they will lose the opportunity to continue to rise.

Although Yue Wenxuan woke up early, he continued to lie in bed according to his usual habits until there was a knock on the door, then he got up and got dressed.

"Young Master, it's time to get up." Yue Wenxuan's long-time attendant Huang Youjin knocked on the door gently and shouted in a neither loud nor soft voice.

"I heard it." Yue Wenxuan agreed as usual.

Although Yue Wenxuan's father is the fifth child in the family, Yue Wenxuan is the eldest grandson of the third generation.

Yue Wenxuan's grandmother gave birth to five children in total. The eldest daughter married in Kyoto, and the mother and daughter had not seen each other for many years. The youngest daughter married after moving back to her ancestral home. Because it was a marriage after the family fell into decline, she could not have too high requirements. The marriage partner was only a son of an official with a slight future in the officialdom. Fortunately, he was a local, which was a little helpful to the Yue family.

Yue Wenxuan's father as well as his eldest uncle and second uncle were all the old lady's biological sons. In terms of fertility, the old lady's life could be considered perfect.

As a noble family, in addition to legitimate sons and daughters, there must be several illegitimate sons and daughters.

Yue Wenxuan also has three aunts born out of wedlock, all of whom were married when he was in Kyoto, and he has not seen them for many years.

Yue Wenxuan's grandfather had only two illegitimate sons, namely Yue Wenxuan's third uncle and fourth uncle.

These two men had a strict and strong stepmother, so they could only choose to be invisible and idle. The two uncles lived together in Jifuju, and except for the morning and evening visits, they were rarely seen at home.

This was the first time that Yue Wenxuan traveled to the early Republic of China, and it was also the first time that he became the young master of a large family. All the experiences he had felt somewhat novel.

The fifth year of the Republic of China was a special period of conflict between old and new ideas. New ideas have gradually become the mainstream of society, but some old ideas still stubbornly remain. The big family where Yue Wenxuan belongs is a typical example. The family rules still used today are still the old customs of the late Qing Dynasty. The whole family is quite resistant to new ideas and new policies.

For example, the rules for employing slaves and various behavioral norms are still the same as before, making it impossible to see any new changes after entering the new era.

Regarding the rules of employing slaves and maids, Yue Wenxuan, the highly regarded eldest grandson, was an exception.

Yue Wenxuan's mother was worried that her eldest son would be distracted by women, so she did not allow maids to take care of him in his room since he was eight years old.

The two maids assigned to him were only responsible for taking care of Yue Wenxuan's daily life. Unless necessary, Yue Wenxuan's mother did not allow them to stay in Yue Wenxuan's room.

Instead, Yue Wenxuan's long-time attendant Huang Youjin had the honor of living with him. He usually slept in Yue Wenxuan's compartment, making it convenient for him to take care of Yue Wenxuan whenever the young master needed him.

Although Yue Wenxuan's father was the fifth child, his wife was very hardworking and gave birth to Yue Wenxuan, a legitimate son, as her second pregnancy. Although it was not too early, it was enough to make Yue Wenxuan the eldest in the third generation.

Yue Wenxuan still got up slowly and dressed according to his usual pace and habit, then slowly opened the door.

The two maids who had been waiting outside the door had prepared toiletries in advance. They quickly helped Yue Wenxuan wash up.

"Master, isn't the water a little cold for washing your face?" Yan Liu said angrily, "Old lady Chen in the kitchen is getting more and more unreasonable. She is simply taking advantage of her seniority and wants to sleep in from time to time. This is the third time this month. Let Master use the hot water first. I don't know how long the others will have to wait."

Biyun also chimed in, "She just saw that the old lady was kind and couldn't bear to let these old guys go. I think this old lady Chen doesn't deserve sympathy. Not only is she not grateful, but she also picked on Qiao."

"Is she feeling unwell? After all, she is in her forties, so it's inevitable that she may have some minor problems occasionally."

In the past, the original body was impatient to care about these trivial matters and never took them to heart. After Yue Wenxuan integrated the memories of his predecessor, there will definitely be differences.

It is not good to change your character immediately, but you can still be more casual when talking to people around you. He continued to advise:
"If you intend to flatter her in front of my mother, you'd better understand the matter clearly to avoid wrongly accusing her."

Yan Liu shook her head repeatedly, "Master, please don't wrongly accuse me, I have never thought of this.

I'm just mad at old lady Chen for doing things in a perfunctory manner, so I kept nagging you. I also dared to say these words because I know you must be impatient to deal with these trivial matters.

I would never dare to brag in front of Mrs. Fifth!

What if Mrs. Fifth is in a bad mood and really gets angry, and lets Old Lady Chen go in a rage? Then I would become the criminal who framed Old Lady Chen. I definitely cannot do such a thing.

Old Mrs. Chen has no children, no home, and no business. Without the protection of the Fifth Madam and the Old Madam, who knows how long she can live?"

Biyun also said: "This old lady Chen has always been a sneaky and cunning woman, but if we really drive her away because of this, we will feel a little bit reluctant."

After hearing what Biyun said, Yue Wenxuan knew that there must be something wrong with the character of this old lady Chen.

The Yue family is headed by the old lady and the fifth wife. The old lady is old and has always been kind to others. The fifth wife usually respects the old lady's opinions and is mostly kind to the servants.

Slaves and servants were the lowest class of people in that era, and most of them were loyal and hardworking, but there were always some cunning and deceitful ones.

After Yue Wenxuan finished washing up, he wiped his face with a towel and said, "This old lady Chen is not only lazy, but also has no sense of propriety. Even if you two don't put pressure on her, I guess she won't be able to stay for long."

"Young Master, what does this mean?" Yan Liu asked curiously.

Huang Youjin, who had been silent all this time, suddenly interrupted and said, "Don't ask questions that you shouldn't ask. Being too curious is not a good thing."

Yanliu and Biyun are Yue Wenxuan's maids. All they think about and see are trivial matters like food and clothing. They lack a comprehensive and overall understanding of this big family.

But Huang Youjin is different.

Huang Youjin's father is the steward of the Yue family. He was once saved by Yue Wenxuan's grandfather. Not only does he have strong personal abilities, but he is also deeply trusted by three generations of the Yue family.

Huang Youjin's mother was once a maid trained by the old lady, and now she is the old lady's most trusted confidant.

It was precisely because of such parents that Huang Youjin was able to become the long-time attendant of Yue Wenxuan, the eldest grandson. He had accompanied Yue Wenxuan since he was a child, studied with him, played with him, and would become Yue Wenxuan's right-hand man in the future.

Huang Youjin is four years older than Yue Wenxuan, and is just 20 years old this year. He has inherited his father's shrewdness and ability, and even has the tendency to surpass his father. Such a shrewd person, with his parents constantly reminding him, naturally knows the upcoming changes in the Yue family.

The old lady had been planning the division of the family for a long time, and had considered the division plan very carefully and meticulously, just waiting for her to make the final decision.

Once the old lady made up her mind, everyone except the fifth wife and her family had to move out and live their own lives.

All the masters of this family will be driven away, and a large number of servants will definitely be let go as well.

Those servants who were smart and had some common sense tried their best to show themselves during this period, for fear of annoying the old lady and the fifth wife. They tried their best to leave a good impression on the two heads of the family so that they could stay after the family was divided.

Only a fool like Old Lady Chen could fail to see the current situation. Based on her performance during this period, she will definitely be let go after the family is divided and it will be impossible for her to stay.

Huang Youjin also had no good impression of this old lady Chen. After listening to Yanliu and Biyun's nagging, Yue Wenxuan, the young master, would not care about such a small matter, but he could not pretend that he did not hear it.

He would definitely tell his parents about this matter. For a black sheep like Old Lady Chen, it would be best to let her go when the family is divided.