"Hurry up, coachman." Lin Qingyan knew that the clan members had arrived today and the auction would go smoothly. He also didnt report anyone coming to make trouble, apparently the clan members were blocked at the Lin Mansion, and it was unknown how Lin Jiang and Lin Yubin were doing.

  Lin Qingwan hurried into the Lin mansion with a worried look, but the house was quiet and peaceful, without the expected commotion. She paused for a moment and asked: "Where are the people from our clan?"

  "Over at the main house."

  The main courtyard was also quiet and peaceful, with Lin Guans men standing guard at each corner of the yard. Lin Qingwens footsteps came to an abrupt halt.

  Lin Guans eyes lit up as she saw her, and she quickly stepped forward saying: "Young Miss, youre back."

  Lin Qingwan nodded slightly and said: "What about Sixth Uncle and the others?"

  "Talking with the old man in the room."

  Lin Qingwan then walked past him into the house.

  This time, three elderly men came to the clan, Sixth Uncle, Eighth Uncle and Eleventh Uncle. Those with higher ranks were mostly from the first branch, most of whom died in the Gengzi disaster, so the oldest and highest-ranking person in the clan is now Sixth Uncle.

  The three of them were no longer young, with Eleventh Uncle being the youngest, but he too had reached an age where one knows their fate.

  Three people sat around Lin Jiangs bed, their faces all looking somewhat unpleasant, but this unpleasantness was not directed at Lin Jiang, but rather at the three Lin Yong father and son kneeling on the ground.

  "Sixth Uncle, Eighth Uncle, Eleventh Uncle," Lin Qingyan bent her knees and paid respects to the three of them, seemingly not seeing the three people on the ground. With a smile, she said: "I didnt even come out to greet you from afar, please forgive me, Uncles."

  The three of them looked a bit more pleasant and smiled: "Its been years since we last met, and Sister Wen has become even more steady."

  "The uncles havent changed a bit, still so spirited." Lin Qingyan smiled and looked at Lin Jiang on the bed, nodding slightly to him: "How are you feeling today, brother?"

  Lin Jiang knew that the competition would go smoothly, and he couldnt help but smile, saying with a faint smile: "Its actually better than yesterday, I feel like my chest doesnt hurt as much."

  Sixth Uncle couldnt help but sigh after hearing this. Earlier, they had also seen Dr. Xus pulse diagnosis, and as people who understood some medical principles, even if they didnt know how to diagnose illnesses, they knew that Lin Jiangs pulse was not good. Now he was just dragging out his days.

  The direct branch is now left with only this vein, if it were to be severed...

  Sixth Uncle looked at the three Lin Yong father and sons kneeling on the ground, and couldnt help but feel moved again. Speaking of which, the blood relationship between the second house and the first house is the closest. If they were to be adopted, they would at least pass down the first house...

  Lin Run, who was standing beside him, saw the change in his fathers expression and smiled slightly as he interjected, "Father, let Third Brother and the two nephews go down first, the servants are all watching, its not good to keep them kneeling for so long."

  Lin Yong glared at Lin Run fiercely and said, "I wont go down. Sixth Uncle, you havent even asked about the auction yet. Thats our familys property, just giving it all away like that? How will we face our ancestors in the future?"

  Lin Qingwans smile didnt change, but she lowered her head and took a glance at Lin Yong, laughing: "So it was Third Brother, Fifth Brother didnt say anything and I almost couldnt recognize you."

  "Its just that I dont know when our familys property became the same as Third Brothers," Lin Qingyans smile gradually faded, and she looked at him solemnly: "Do we need your approval to sell some of our property?"

  Lin Yong jumped up and down, "What are those trifling industries? Youve almost sold out all of the Lin familys industries. Those were our Lin familys things. What right do you have as a married-out daughter to act on your own?"

  Lin Jiang slapped the bed in anger, sat up straight and shouted: "She is my own sister, she has no right, do you have the right as a clan brother who is about to wear mourning clothes? Sixth Uncle, Eighth Uncle, Eleventh Uncle, all of you saw it, Im not dead yet!"

  Lin Yongs face stiffened.

  "Father!" Lin Yubin, who was leaning against the bed, couldnt help but kneel down on the ground, holding his fathers hand and bursting into tears.

  Lin Qingwans strong aura vanished, and tears rolled down her face. She stubbornly refused to wipe them away, instead glaring at Lin Yong: "According to you, which family in the clan doesnt have property that belongs to the Lin family? Do they need your approval every time they want to handle their own belongings? Third Brother, your son hasnt even been adopted yet, but once he is, wont you be the master of the entire Lin family?"

  Sixth Uncle and others heard this and were shocked, looking suspiciously at Lin Yong.

  Lin Yongs heart suddenly skipped a beat, and he jumped up, saying: "When did I ever say such a thing? Dont slander me..."

  "Isnt it a slander that you have a number in your heart, my brother has always refused to inherit your son, and as a result, you have been making big moves these two years, and even set your sights on Yubins head, isnt it just for the prestige of the direct branch and those riches? Lin Qingwen didnt let him interrupt, directly wiping away tears and speaking in a torrent: "The prestige of the direct branch concerns the reputation of the Lin family, my brother cant bear to do something, but these riches can still be handled. Rather than letting them become instruments of harm, its better to scatter them among the common people, which would also be a way for me, the Lin family, to accumulate merit for the world and save the lives of my sister and niece."

  Lin Yongqis face turned red with anger, "Youre slandering me, when have I ever done such things?"

  "Arent you doing exactly that now? Bringing two sons to our doorstep, arent you certain that the clan elders will let my brother adopt your son? Arent you counting on the fact that the clan elders cant bear to give up those assets and forcing my brother to take back his previous words, reassigning the management of the assets to you? Otherwise, why do you keep saying Lin familys assets with an air of someone whose property has been infringed upon?"

  "Do you know that since our great-great-grandfathers time, your family has been separated and the property was divided clearly at that time? Now its already the fifth generation, each of these five generations have prospered on their own, and the properties are not related to each other. How can you now interfere with my brothers and my decision regarding the first branchs estate? Or do you think that in the future, every house should also get your approval before handling their own property?" Lin Qingwen asked Sixth Uncle with tears in her eyes, "Sixth Uncle, do you all think so too?"

  "Of course not..." Sixth Uncle hastily denied, but still couldnt help feeling a pang in his heart: "But all those properties, they were accumulated through the hard work of our ancestors, how can we just sell them off like that?"

  "Yes, if you dont trust him, cant we take care of it? Let us help manage it." Eighth Uncle glanced at Lin Jiang and sighed: "Youre also too impatient."

  Lin Qingyan sneered inwardly and lowered her head without speaking. Lin Jiang then sighed, "Uncles dont know, its complicated..."

  He said this and paused, glanced at Lin Yong, and had his servants invite the three of them to go downstairs.

  Lin Yong didnt want to give up, he still wanted to fight for it, Lin Jiang was just following his son, could it be that he really wanted to cut off the family line?

  It was he who promised, and Sixth Uncle and the others couldnt promise either.

  But this was the Lin family, and he had no say in the matter. With a wave of her hand, Lin Qingyu signaled to the butler, who quietly led three strong men into the room. They swiftly covered the mouths of the three individuals and dragged them out.

  Three seniors stared in shock, and Lin Run, who was standing beside them, couldnt help but raise an eyebrow as he looked up at his cousin, who was only slightly younger than his eldest daughter.

  Lin Qingwan stood upright at the foot of Lin Jiangs bed, her eyes not slanting to either side, completely disregarding the gazes of others. She had known that in order to raise Lin Yuhong alone in this era, gentleness would become increasingly distant from her.

  Since its come to this, theres no need to pretend anymore. When necessary, be tough.

  The Lin family was known for their love of learning, and the girls in the household were not ones to be trifled with. Even if they had a bit of a wild streak, they wouldnt dare let someone drag their own cousin out like that. Sixth Uncle wanted to speak up and scold them, but before he could even open his mouth, Lin Jiang spoke up in a low voice, saying: "Sixth Uncle, I dont want to inherit the family business, there are plenty of ways to do it. Leaving the familys assets to my sisters Wan and Da is also possible, as for other things, isnt it enough that we can entrust them to you?"

  The three old mens hearts sank, and they listened seriously.

  "If nothing else, handing it over to the Shang family will do," Lin Jiang said in a low voice: "I wont hide from the three uncles either. The Shang family has long had the intention of getting closer to the Lin family through marriage. When the time comes, theyll take over the property and hand it over to the Shang family for safekeeping. By the time my sister gets married, all those properties will be her dowry. Thats also her maternal grandfathers family, so it can only be better for her. Later, we can entrust the clan to keep an eye on things, and Im sure the Shang family wont dare embezzle the Lin familys money either."

  But in fact, whether it was the first or second method, both ended in failure. Lin Jiangs eyes gazed solemnly at the three clan elders, with a hint of mockery in his heart. Human hearts are the most difficult to fathom, and interests can change peoples minds.

  Neither the Shang family nor the Lin family would treat Yu Bin well, otherwise why would he run to a different world to find Lin Qingwan?

  But at this time Lin Jiang was happy to say good things and praise them highly.

  "Then neither did you entrust us nor ask the Shang family, why?" Eighth Uncle couldnt help but ask.

  Lin Jiang let out another sigh, his eyes becoming even more profound. "This is also something that cant be helped, Eighth Uncle. You dont know this back in our old home in Suzhou, but being in this position... Ive come to understand some things, and my feelings have become even deeper."

  Lin Jiang coughed a few times, his voice growing even weaker as he said: "Now that the country is in crisis and the national treasury is empty, if... Jiangnan may suffer another disaster. Im dead, but Wan sister and Da sister are still alive, I must consider them."

  "Ill leave the money behind, if Jiangnan is safe, its fine, I can still provide for them. But if Jiangnan is in danger, that money will not be a reliance, but a poisonous drug that hastens their death. So Ill only leave them two farms, at least they wont starve."

  Several people were startled and hastily asked, "Is the country going to war again? But Chu is far from us, if it wants to fight, it will go to Kyoto... or Nanhan, Yin and Min are not being honest?"

  The Lin family has only one official, Lin Jiang, and his position is quite high, perhaps he received some news...

  The three old men didnt care about those industries anymore and hastily asked Lin Jiang if he had any internal news.

  Lin Jiang just sighed and refused to speak, "These are just my guesses, but uncles should still be more careful when they go back. This years autumn harvest grain shouldnt be sold out, some valuable items should also be put away, if not, exchange them for gold and silver and hide them..."

  Its a warning to take shelter immediately.

  Three old men are even more uneasy, and Lin Run, who is a partner of Lin Jiang, cant help but doubt whether this is Lin Jiangs bluff or true.

  Seeing the three old men being frightened, Lin Jiang comforted them in a soft voice: "However, uncles dont have to worry, I was worried before because the national treasury is empty. Once the war breaks out, the court may not be able to take care of Jiangnan. But these silver coins I donated, at least 4 or 5 million taels, can support three years of soldiers, so maybe nothing will happen."

  The old masters became even more worried and their hearts ached with every beat, four or five hundred million taels... if they were to be divided among them...

  No, no, they are not that kind of people. The things will still belong to the direct branch, and the direct branch is also surnamed Lin. Its for the descendants and grandchildren to keep, but one day its all given away...

  Sixth Uncle is fine, but Eighth Uncle feels a sharp pain in his heart and cant bear to part with it...