Old Harden, can you handle having your vision-shifting abilities on all the time?

"Holy crap! It really is two million..."

"A single phone call summoned an armored truck to deliver money? That's incredible!"

"Xu Xing has really struck it rich!"

A murmur of discussion arose, and the villagers looked at Xu Xing with shock, envy, and awe.

Xu Xing ignored the stares around him, bent down to pick up the metal box, and turned to walk into his second uncle's courtyard.

Second Uncle and Third Uncle were still standing at the gate of the courtyard. The two old men looked at the heavy box in Xu Xing's hand, their expressions somewhat dazed.

"Second Uncle, Third Uncle, the money has arrived."

Xu Xing placed the box on the stone table in the courtyard, and then opened the lid in front of the two old people.

Two million yuan in cash was neatly stacked in the box, gleaming warmly in the afternoon sun.

My second great-uncle, leaning on his cane, walked shakily to the stone table, reached out and picked up a bundle of banknotes, rubbing the brand-new paper with his fingers. His lips moved slightly, but he couldn't speak for a long time.

Third Uncle also stepped forward, his eyes reddening as he looked at the full box of cash.

"OK!"

Second Uncle put down the bundle of banknotes, looked up at Xu Xing, and sighed deeply.

A warm feeling welled up in Xu Xing's heart, but he didn't let his emotions show; he just smiled.

Third Uncle, leaning on his cane, also came forward and patted Xu Xing on the shoulder: "Good lad, you haven't disgraced the Xu family!"

The news quickly spread throughout Xujia Village.

In less than half an hour, almost everyone in the village knew that Xu Xing had made a phone call and summoned an armored truck to deliver a full two million yuan in cash to his second uncle's house!

Those Xu family members who were initially observing the situation could no longer sit still.

People gradually arrived at my second uncle's house, some to watch the excitement, and others to inquire about the situation.

Some of them were relatives who had a fairly good relationship with Xu Xing and took the initiative to come and help with the arrangements.

Seeing that most of the people had arrived, the second and third uncles walked into the courtyard with their canes, cleared their throats, and said loudly, "Esteemed members of the Xu family, young and old, since you are all here today, I have a few words to say."

The courtyard fell silent instantly, and everyone's eyes were focused on the two elderly people.

The second uncle looked around and slowly said, "As everyone knows, our Xu family ancestral hall is quite old. It has been in disrepair for many years, with leaky roofs and cracked walls. If it is not renovated soon, it may not last more than a few years."

"I've been thinking about this for a while, but I've been putting it off because I don't have the money."

Today, Xiao Xing offered to contribute two million to renovate our Xu family ancestral hall!

The second uncle raised his voice a few decibels as he said this: "Two million is no small sum! It's a blessing for the Xu family that Xiaoxing has this kind of intention!"

A burst of enthusiastic applause and cheers erupted in the courtyard.

Second Uncle waved his hand, signaling everyone to be quiet, and then continued, "However, repairing the ancestral hall is a matter for all of us in the Xu family, and we can't let Xiao Xing do all the work alone."

I discussed it with my third brother, and we decided that every household in the Xu family should contribute something, however small!

"Three hundred or five hundred is not too little, and ten thousand or eighty thousand is not too much!"

Third Uncle took over, his voice booming, "Everyone should contribute whatever they can according to their own circumstances, and then hand it all over to me."

As soon as these words were spoken, the courtyard became lively.

"I'll offer five thousand!"

"I'll offer ten thousand!"

"My family isn't well-off, would it be okay if I contributed two thousand?"

"Sure! Of course! It's the thought that counts!"

In an instant, the courtyard was bustling with noise and a lively atmosphere.

Xu Xing stood aside watching this scene, a strange feeling welling up in his heart.

Clan power is very weak in this era, but it still has some hidden benefits at certain times.

Seeing that the atmosphere was just right, the second and third uncles called on several respected elders to begin registering the donations from each household.

Taking advantage of this break, Xu Xing followed his second and third uncles into the inner room.

"Xiao Xing, are you really sure?"

The second uncle, acting as a mediator, came to Xu Xing's door and looked at him solemnly. "Do you want to remove Xu Yanle's name from the family tree?"

Xu Xing nodded without any hesitation: "I've thought it through."

The second uncle was silent for a moment, then sighed: "He is, after all, your own son..."

"From the moment he chose to have the child take the surname of that woman surnamed Gao, he was no longer my son."

Xu Xing's tone was calm, but his eyes held an unwavering determination.

Third Uncle, leaning on his cane, also spoke up: "Xiao Xing, you'd better think this through. Crossing your name off the family tree will be recorded in the Xu family history. Even if he wants to rejoin his ancestors in the future, it won't be so easy."

"I've thought it through very clearly."

Xu Xing looked directly into his third uncle's eyes. "Third Uncle, Second Uncle, I know you two are doing this for my own good, but I've made up my mind and I won't change it."

The two elderly people looked at each other and saw helplessness and regret in each other's eyes.

But in the end, the second uncle nodded: "Alright, since you've made up your mind, we won't stop you."

He turned and walked to the incense table in the center of the main room, and took out a yellowed thread-bound book from the cabinet under the incense table.

That's the Xu family's genealogy.

The paper has yellowed and the edges are somewhat worn, but it is still in relatively good condition.

The second uncle placed the family genealogy on the incense table and turned to one of the pages.

Xu Xing stood to the side, his gaze fixed on the page of the family genealogy.

Several lines of text were neatly written on it with a brush:

"Xu Xing married a woman surnamed Wang, and they had one son: Yan Le."

The second uncle took a calligraphy brush from the drawer, dipped it in ink, and then looked up at Xu Xing one last time: "Xiao Xing, are you really not going to regret this?"

No regrets.

Xu Xing's tone was firm.

Second Uncle took a deep breath, picked up his brush, and drew a heavy horizontal line over the three characters "Xu Yanle".

The ink seeped out and completely covered the name.

After finishing all this, the second uncle put down his brush and let out a long sigh.

The third uncle stood aside, looking at the two fresh ink marks on the family tree. He remained silent for a moment, then patted Xu Xing on the shoulder: "Xiao Xing, from now on, your branch of the family will depend on you."

Xu Xing smiled and nodded: "Second Uncle, Third Uncle, looking at my current state, even if I can't have ten or eight children, at least three or five is no problem."

The second uncle closed the family genealogy book, put it back in the cabinet under the incense table, then turned around with a smile on his face: "When your child is born, you can add a name anytime."

Xu Xing smiled and nodded.

When I came out of the inner room, the donation registration in the courtyard was almost finished.

My second uncle roughly estimated that, including the donations from various families who were away from home, the total amount donated was over 1.3 million yuan.

"Adding the two million from Xiao Xing, the total is over three million three hundred thousand, which is more than enough to repair the ancestral hall."

The second uncle said with a smile, "The remaining money can be used to buy some new furniture for the ancestral hall and to renovate the courtyard properly."

A banquet was held in Xujia Village that evening.

Several of the village's best chefs joined forces to set up a dozen tables for a banquet in the courtyard of my second uncle's house.

Chicken, duck, fish, meat—everything is available, and drinks are plentiful.