Chapter 99

Sudden military service official document, almost every family got in a mess already. Although the official document said those who didn’t want to serve in the money, they could hand in twenty taels of silver, but to farmer families, few families could take out so much silver at once. Even if they could, it depended on whether they would pay, like old Ling family.

After Ling Qiyun received the document, he immediately gathered his three son’s family in his room. Everyone knew what it was for, so they were all worried, only afraid the old man would nominate one of them to go. Of course, the most worried one should be the second son. Before, the old lady didn’t like them and always picked on them, but at least the old man wouldn’t take her side. But these days, they clearly felt the old man’s resentful eyes at them, though till now they still had no idea why.

“Dad, something just happened to Jingwei, and this whole family needs Jinghong to support. You can’t let any of my family to go.”

At this time, Ling Chengcai also did not care about his identity as the biggest son. Anyhow, he would not let his son to die.

“Big brother, you can’t say that. Jingwei accident is his own problem. How can you take that as an excuse? You think your son Jinghong and Jingwei can’t serve in the army, so my Jingren and Jingyu should go?”

Ling Chenghu rejected him without even thinking. In his opinion, the old lady doesn’t like his second brother and his famiy, but nominally, only Jingpeng could still serve in army. If his big brother disassociated from this, wouldn’t he be the unlucky one. Even an idiot knows being a soldier means death. His big brother doesn’t want his sons to die, so his sons deserve to die?

“What do you mean, Chenghu? I can let it go if those outsiders laugh at my Jingwei. As his uncle, are you also trying to be sarcastic?”

Ling Chengcai got furious. The seemingly harmonious brothers finally turned against each other, all in all, people are selfish. Who would watch his own son to die?

“I didn’t say that kind of thing, big brother, you can’t slander me! Now we are talking about the military service matter. Since this family is not divided, how could you make an exception of yourself?”

“What do you mean? I just said what I think. Jinghong is still small, not only he has to help the family chores, but also he got to help father look after the private school, how can he go for the military service? Jingwei has just suffered that kind of thing and is down, how can we push him out at this time?”

“Yes, you have endless reasons, and me and Chenglong deserve it? Your Jinghong is still small, you mean my Jingren is big enough? Jingren’s wife just got pregnant, besides, Jingyu, his marriage has been decided, the next spring he will get married. At this time, you let him go to the army, isn’t it like destroying his marriage?”

The two brothers, regardless of the presence of their father and mother, had their own reasons and excuses, and neither of them was willing to give in. In a word, their sons could not go in the army, while the second son and his family did not say a word from the beginning. They were waiting, waiting for the old man to speak.

“Enough!”

Suddenly the old man yelled. The two brother who were having a heated quarrel had to temporarily cease fire. The old man’s stern eyes slowly swept all his grandsons who met the demands of military service. When he saw Ling Jingpeng, eyes had a quick flash. Others didn’t notice it, but Ling Jinghan did. For this, the little bit family bond remained in his heart was announced to collapse.

“In my opinion, what two brothers said is right. Jinghong has to help you take care of the private school. Jingwei still hasn’t stepped out of his peaceful divorce, Jingren’s wife has just got pregnant, who needs his care, and Jingyu can’t delay his marriage, they certainly can’t go to. As for Chenglong’s family, Jinghan is in poor health, sending him to serve in army means sending him to die. As his grandma, I can’t bear to see it. And Jingpeng…I think he is the most suitable. No kid, no marriage, great health. My lord, how about let Jingpeng go?”

The old lady deliberately analyzed all kinds of situations, but she clearly had already decided the candidate in her heart, or even deliberately meant to send Ling Jingpeng to die, but she pretended as if she also couldn’t bear to see it. What disappointed the second son was, the old man Ling Qiyun really didn’t say no, like he was accessing the possibility of it. Ling Chenghong was honest and well-behaved, but he was not stupid. Without thinking, bang, he knelt down, “Mom, you know Jinghan is in poor health. It’s not that I am cursing my own kid, given his condition, he’d go to another world any time. By then, I only have Jingpeng. How can you let him go?”

They nearly killed his eldest son that year, and now his third son? No, this time he would never be at their mercy again, he would do everything to save his son, even under the charge of unfilial piety.

“Shut up, you unfilial creature! Do you mean that I, as his grandma, deliberately hurt my own legitimate grandson?”

The old lady was furious, pointing at Ling Chenglong. Ling Chenghua who was standing added oil to the fire, “Brother, it’s not that I am blaming, how can you curse Jinghan to die? He’s our dad’s hope. Didn’t you hear him say he got better the other day? Now you have seen the situation at home, except Jingpeng, no other one is appropriate. Our mother isn’t deliberately partial to anyone.

Really??? Everyone there knew they were on purpose. Before when Ling Jingpeng helped Ling Jingxuan, it had already displeased them, plus Ling Jingwei’s instigation, even the old man hated them now.

Maybe it was Ling Jingxuan’s bad luck. About the thing of Ling Jingwei trying to set him up, it could have been able to come to light when the old man brought people to Zhao family to reason. But Shopkeeper Zhao got steamed up, only showed them the doctor’s diagnose and threw them out, and didn’t say that Ling Jingxuan only got furious because that Ling Jingwei kidnapped his two little buns. Although later the old man asked Ling Jingwei why they got the diagnose, Ling Jingwei covered it up by saying that he forgot it since that was too big a blow to him. So these days, the old man was angry to his second son. His thoughts were like other families. Domestic shame should not be made public. Even if Ling Jingwei really couldn’t get pregnant, it was not Ling Jingxuan or his father’s turn to say it out. By doing so, apparently they didn’t take themselves as members of the Ling family. So the old man got filled with pent up anger in his heart, only waiting for an opportunity to vent it out.

“Ahem…Aunt, how do you know my condition won’t get worse? These years, as you can see, maybe some day I’d close my eyes and never wake up. If I really go to another world, who takes care of my parents?”

Trying to cough to draw their attention, Ling Jinghan cast a glance at Ling Chenghua who only wished to see them bite each other, and then looked into the eyes of the old man who hadn’t took a stand, “Grandpa, I know you care about me, and I also respect you. But I don’t have the blessing. A few days ago, I thought I got much better, but…Five years ago, my big brother got thrown out of the family, and I’m like this. In the future, only Jingpeng could serve our parents. Please forgive my rudeness. My dad, like my big uncle and third uncle, is also your son. You can’t be partial. Anyhow, you should a son to bury my parents in the future…”

If it had been before, Ling Jinghan would never say such words. He was making a bet, to see if his grandpa still had a little bit of love to his parents, to see if his grandpa’s care about him was genuine, and to see if he still took Jingpeng as his grandson. Even if one of the three was affirmative, there’d be no need to fall out. On the contrary…there’s nothing to linger about of this family.

“Alas, Jinghan, don’t you play pitiful to win your grandpa’s sympathy. These days, I saw that Jingpeng brought back medicine for you three times a day. If it doesn’t work, why you keep taking it? Your grandma already said only Jingpeng is the most suitable one. What? You want to learn from your shameless big brother to go against your grandma?”