Chapter 849 - 852: If...

Chapter 849: Chapter 852: If...

Gu Wenheng didn’t make a sound, simply watching him quietly.

Gu Lejia leaned on the table, refusing Gu Benluo’s help to stand up. He wanted to use this opportunity to get all the resentment in his heart off his chest.

"Seventh Uncle, over the years, because of your refusal, I’ve been a laughingstock in the village more times than I can count.

"Even considering the distance between branches, aren’t I closer to you than the rest of the clan?

"You’d rather take them out and give them a good future. Why won’t you look at the nephew right beside you?

"You all don’t like the Song Family, yet you established such clan rules that I can’t get a divorce.

"I am still childless to this day, and because of the clan rules, I cannot cast my wife aside. You’ve blocked all my ways out! I watch my other brothers live with hope every day, but what about me?

"Aside from guarding this broken home and those few acres of land, what else can I do?"

Especially when he saw his other brothers living increasingly prosperous lives, while he had to return home to face insults and cold stares, Gu Lejia felt it was incredibly unfair to him.

Gu Wenheng said, "It seems like you think it’s always someone else’s fault. From the looks of it, you truly haven’t realized where you went wrong.

"Back in Hai City, you were dead set on marrying into the Song Family. Even after all the trouble that happened later, you still refused to turn back. Wasn’t that all your own choice?

"Even if the Song Family have their faults, they have been by your side for so many years. From childhood to adulthood, haven’t you learned a man’s responsibility yet?"

As far as Gu Wenheng was concerned, the couple was cut from the same cloth. It was better to keep two people like them together than to let them ruin anyone else’s life.

"When you reached the appropriate age, whether you wanted to take a concubine or adopt a child from the outside, the clan wouldn’t have said a word against it. Yet you insisted on stirring up trouble among your brothers. Isn’t that just you venting your dissatisfaction? But your brothers are innocent. Why should they have to bear the brunt of your issues?"

Gu Wenheng saw through Gu Lejia’s true nature at a glance; it was simply the malicious mindset of wanting to drag everyone else down with him because he wasn’t doing well himself.

"Even if you want to adopt a child, you don’t necessarily have to choose from your own brothers. There are plenty of clever orphans out there.

"But think about it. With your kind of selfishness, wouldn’t adopting someone’s child under your name just end up ruining them?

"If you can’t change your mindset and your schemes, you will be the only one who regrets it when the time comes.

"As for why I didn’t take you out with me, it’s not like you don’t know the reason deep down. You just refuse to face it."

Gu Wenheng had long seen the resentment in Gu Lejia’s eyes. If he couldn’t make him realize his own extremism this time, he would have people keep a close watch on him in the future.

"At the end of the day, you still look down on me," Gu Lejia laughed mockingly at himself. "Then again, even my own parents have a lot of complaints about me. How could I expect anything from others?"

Standing on the side, Gu Benluo’s face grew colder the more he listened. He thought, "He hasn’t lived his own life well, yet he pins all his resentment onto others. It’s a shame I kindly tried to plead for him earlier. If I had known, I would have let Eldest Uncle hit him a few more times. I really don’t understand why Dad even kept this person here to talk. It’s a complete waste of breath."

Gu Wenheng said, "If you want everyone to respect you, you have to bring something to the table. We happen to have some time right now, so you can think it over slowly. As long as you can come up with a thing or two, I might just give you a chance."

Gu Lejia actually thought about it seriously. "Since childhood, we’ve lived in poverty, and I haven’t learned a single skill to rely on, apart from farming and running errands.

"Even if I don’t know other things, I’m not stupid. I can learn."

Gu Wenheng shook his head. "Looking for work like this, hardly anyone would be willing to hire you.

"Aside from odd jobs, you aren’t qualified for anything!

"Don’t tell me you can learn. It’s not like the clan school hasn’t offered various classes, and we’ve even brought in craftsmen to teach you all. Have you ever tried going?"

Gu Lejia was speechless.

"You keep complaining that everyone didn’t give you a chance and that they are unfair to you, but have you given others a chance to choose you?"

Gu Lejia remained silent.

"Don’t say you’re too old and that it’s embarrassing to sit with others," Gu Wenheng continued to strike hard. "Over these years, your father has not only learned to write but also to calculate, and he’s even picked up a few trades. Are your abilities better than your father’s?

"Stop making excuses for your own laziness. If you continue like this, you will eventually be eliminated by the clan. When you have children, they will just be struggling at the very bottom with you. Are you willing to see that?"

Gu Lejia was speechless. He cursed inwardly, "Who the hell would be willing to see that?"

He felt a bit panicked at the moment. Never mind the future, he was already showing signs of it now. He couldn’t compare to his brothers at home, nor could he compare to the rest of the clan.

He thought, "Even if my father gives me a share of the family property in the future, what good would guarding that little bit of wealth do?"

Seeing him fall into a panic, Gu Wenheng stopped speaking. Some things only needed to be pointed out briefly; the rest had to be comprehended on one’s own.

He thought, "From the looks of it now, he isn’t entirely a lost cause. Hopefully, he can figure it out."

Clasping his hands behind his back, he walked away. Gu Benluo quickly followed him.

"Dad, I’m just worried he won’t appreciate your good intentions," Gu Benluo immediately said the moment they stepped out the door.

"Do you think I’m being a bit too meddlesome?" Gu Wenheng asked.

"Eldest Uncle was just here," Gu Benluo replied. "Actually, you should have let Eldest Uncle handle it..."

"If your Eldest Uncle could keep him in line, he wouldn’t have let him cause such a scene," Gu Wenheng said, turning around to pat his son’s shoulder. "You are older now. Sometimes, you need to observe with your heart.

"Although clan matters are complicated and troublesome, you can’t just ignore them.

"The prosperity of an entire family is always interconnected. If you want to operate out there without worries, you must secure your home base.

"Your cousin might seem to keep a low profile right now, but he harbors resentment toward the clan.

"If we can’t resolve it, we can only remain on guard.

"But even the most vigilant tiger dozes off sometimes. If we let our guard down and fail to keep an eye on him, it’ll be too late for regrets when the damage is done.

"Although it took some talking today, if it can knock some sense into him, it will save us a lot of trouble in the long run.

"He was right about one thing, though—everyone has their selfish motives. To me, they are just nephews from a separated branch.

"Similarly, we hold the same weight in their hearts.

"Tell me, if someone were to offer them benefits one day, would we still be this secure?"

"A towering dam can collapse from an ant hole; a grand mansion can burn down from a spark in the chimney crack," Gu Wenheng finished. He turned and returned to his study, leaving the rest for his son to slowly comprehend on his own.

Gu Benluo stood in place for a long time.

Meanwhile, Gu Lejia, who had been left in the hall by the father and son, couldn’t snap out of his daze for a long time.

His heart was in a panic. He didn’t know if his persistence for so long had been right or wrong.

He wondered, "Have I really wasted all these years? If I were in Seventh Uncle’s position, would I be willing to employ someone like myself?"

He held his head. The stinging pain from his buttocks brought him back to his senses.

He thought, "If I wasn’t wrong, why would I have gotten this beating? If I had learned and observed more, just like my other brothers, would I be in a different situation? If..."

Unfortunately, no matter how many ’ifs’ he asked, no one was there to answer him.