They've all separated, so what does it matter to me if they get poorer and poorer?

Chapter 176 Cut off
Fortunately, Aunt Liang came with her today; otherwise, Zeng Xiaoyan probably wouldn't have even had a chance to speak up and explain.

Now that Zeng Xiaoyan had the opportunity to speak, how could she tolerate Fang Zhengduan's rambling and nonsensical talk? Whether Madam Zeng believed it or not was another matter; she was certain she would speak.

For every angry rebuke and question from Madam Zeng, Zeng Xiaoyan had a righteous and assertive response, bluntly pointing out that Fang Zhengduan was talking nonsense.

“If Mother doesn’t believe it, why not ask Manager Fang to come and confront him face to face? If that doesn’t work, why not ask all the witnesses to come as well? If Mother still doesn’t believe it, I suggest that Mother report it to the authorities and let the officials decide. I believe that justice will prevail in court.”

"You are presumptuous!"

Madam Zeng was furious, glaring at Zeng Xiaoyan as if she wanted to tear her apart.

No one dared to accuse her beloved and protected younger brother in such a way in front of her; never.

In fact, she knew perfectly well what kind of person her younger brother was. It was just that, out of the deep bond of blood between older sister and younger brother, she was willing to believe that one day her brother would change for the better.

This hope made her stubborn, even though her two children dared not say a single bad word about their uncle.

Even if my uncle occasionally makes a mistake, it's not intentional; there must be various reasons that lead to the result. My uncle himself is a good person.

At this moment, Zeng Xiaoyan ruthlessly tore off this veil, forcing her to face the truth she least wanted to face. How could Madam Zeng not be angry?
Without even asking, she knew in her heart that what Zeng Xiaoyan said was true.

so what?
As a junior, how could she be right to show such disrespect to her elders?
"Zeng Xiaoyan, you're siding with outsiders, you don't deserve to be a daughter of the Zeng family!"

Enraged, Madam Zeng disregarded Liang Sanshen's presence and directly rebuked her.

Aunt Liang was shocked and furious: "What do you mean by this, madam?"

Madam Zeng sneered, "Don't you understand what I mean? Our Zeng family doesn't need ingrates. If this brat had even a little bit of loyalty to her own family, things wouldn't have come to this, and my brother wouldn't have suffered this humiliation. What's the point of having such an ingrate!"

Zeng Xiaoyan looked at Aunt Liang and asked, "Mother, if I lose my family, will you and Father still want me as your daughter-in-law? Will you and Father think I'm a disgrace?"

If she dislikes it, then there's nothing she can do. She'll just have to be thick-skinned and stick with Sister-in-law Zhichun.

It's impossible for her to beg her stepmother for mercy.

It wasn't that she was unwilling to back down, but rather that backing down wouldn't have made a difference.

Liang Mingliang quickly said, "What nonsense are you talking about? Our Liang family is not such a heartless family. You are my wife, and no one can drive you away."

Aunt Liang was heartbroken. "Good child, you haven't done anything wrong, how could we abandon you? Don't worry, you'll be the same as before. Who among our own family would dare to dislike you? I'll teach them a lesson myself. Outsiders are gossipy, it's fine if they don't say it to our faces, but who dares to talk behind our backs to our faces, as if we Liang family members are all dead?"

What has this child done wrong this time? Madam Zeng's words are really too much. If they encounter an unreasonable family, wouldn't this be cutting off Xiao Yan's chances of survival?

Zeng Xiaoyan didn't really feel anything from Liang Mingliang's words, but her mother-in-law's words made her feel at ease, and her heart softened. "Thank you, Mother!"

Madam Zeng laughed angrily: "Fine, fine, you chose this yourself, so don't blame me. Listen up, all of you, from now on, there is no Third Miss in the Zeng family. If Third Miss ever comes to our door, don't bother reporting it, just throw her out."

Zeng Xiaoyan sneered: "Words are meaningless. Why don't you write it down in black and white, Mother? We can sign and seal it. At this point, let's all save face. Mother, you should be fair in your wording. Otherwise, I won't sign it. It's the Zeng family that dislikes me, not me who wants to leave home."

Aunt Liang tacitly agreed.

Mrs. Zeng was furious. Her previous words were just empty threats in anger, but now she took them seriously.

A heartless ingrate is a heartless ingrate; he can't be tamed.

If that's the case, then so be it.

"Fine, fine, fine, Zeng Xiaoyan, you asked for this."

"I will listen to my mother in everything."

Madam Zeng's voice trembled as she said, "Go, call the butler to me."

Steward Zeng was soon summoned, and Madam Zeng, with a dark face, ordered him to write a letter severing ties with the family.

As soon as Butler Zeng entered, he sensed that something was wrong. He was still shocked by Madam Zeng's words and almost jumped up. "Wh-what book? What did you say, Madam?" "A letter of severance of kinship," Madam Zeng said coldly. "The Third Miss is not worthy to be a daughter of the Zeng family. From this day forward, she will sever all ties with the Zeng family. From now on, we will have no further contact with each other. We will live in seclusion and never see each other again."

"Madam, this—may I ask if the master is aware of this?"

"Just write it! Stop talking nonsense!"

Butler Zeng dared not utter another word. Given Madam's temper, why should he invite a scolding?
Soon, two copies of the contract were completed, and both Madam Zeng and Zeng Xiaoyan readily affixed their fingerprints to sign it.

Madam Zeng sneered, "Get out of the Zeng family and don't you dare sully the Zeng family's place again."

"Don't worry, I wouldn't come even if you asked me."

"Ha, you certainly know how to flatter yourself."

Aunt Liang: "Let's go."

Madam Zeng glanced at Steward Zeng coolly and said, "I will speak to the master about this matter myself."

"Yes, ma'am."

It meant he should keep quiet.

Aunt Liang sighed inwardly and comforted Zeng Xiaoyan: "Don't be sad. The Liang family is your home. We won't let anyone bully you."

Zeng Xiaoyan laughed instead, "Mom, I'm not sad at all, really."

He was clearly feeling relaxed.

Sister-in-law Zhichun is right. She can rely on herself, so why should she try to rely on her unreliable family?

It was already a good thing that Madam Zeng didn't kick him when he was down.

Xu Zhichun was somewhat surprised when he heard this.

The ancients placed great importance on patriarchal clan system and had a deeply ingrained family concept. Being expelled from the family or clan is not a big deal in modern times, but in ancient times it was a very important matter, and in serious cases it could lead to death.

Unexpectedly, Madam Zeng actually kicked Zeng Xiaoyan out of the house.

She really went all out for her younger brother from her maternal family.

Xu Zhichun herself doesn't know where she came from, nor does she have any sense of belonging. If this were her, she probably wouldn't care. I wonder what Xiao Yan would think.

In fact, this matter is somewhat related to me.

I feel even more guilty now, what should I do?
Zeng Xiaoyan, on the contrary, acted as if nothing had happened. "That's great, now I don't have to listen to their sarcastic remarks or have to put up with their attitude anymore!"

Seeing that she spoke with a bright and cheerful smile, without any forced or contrived smile, Xu Zhichun breathed a sigh of relief and smiled back, "If that's really what you think, then you've been reborn and started anew. Things will get better from now on."

"Yes, thank you for your kind words, Sister-in-law Zhichun!"

With Zeng Xiaoyan's situation, it became even more natural for everyone to have a get-together.

You could call it a celebration or a consolation.

Anyway, good food can soothe everything.

Xu Zhichun suggested, "Let's just do it tomorrow night." No one objected.

So the next day, they had dinner at Xu Zhichun's house again, and the Spring Equinox was also left there.

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(End of this chapter)