Half a month after the heavy snow passes, it will be the winter solstice. After the winter solstice, it will be the twelfth lunar month, and after the twelfth lunar month, it will be the New Year.
Isn't that what ordinary people are like, day after day, year after year, and a lifetime passes by in the blink of an eye.
Kang Tai, the owner of Kang's Tofu Shop, is getting older. He has worked hard for most of his life. In the past few years, his body and bones have been getting worse year by year, and his energy is not as good as when he was young.
But as his two sons grew up and now have a family with the next generation, Kangtai felt relieved about his offspring.
Although the eldest son Kang Youfu is not good at making tofu, he has a good business mind.
As for the second eldest brother, Kang Youlu, his tofu skills have surpassed his own. In the past two years, the work of grinding and making tofu in the workshop has been basically handed over to the second eldest brother. The eldest brother is in charge of the business. The two brothers cooperate very well. Kangjia Tofu Shop is also prospering.
Having a good family and full of children and grandchildren, for Kang Tai, where else in the world can he be so happy? Seeing that this year was about to pass, Kangtai began to think about leaving this ancestral tofu workshop in the hands of his two sons.
I have worked hard all my life, and it’s time to take a break. As his son grew older, he had to be the head of the family, but Kang Tai had been hesitant about whether the eldest son or the second son should be responsible for taking charge of the family.
It stands to reason that it is natural for the eldest son to be the head of the family. After all, the eldest son is the eldest son, has a quick mind and knows how to do business. He will definitely be able to hand over the tofu workshop to the eldest son with his ability. But the eldest brother's tofu is really not very good. When it comes to making tofu, it depends on the second child. From this point of view, it seems that the second child should be in charge.
But if the tofu workshop is handed over to the second child, it would be unfair to the boss. Because the boss is taking care of all the business outside, and the second boss is just good at making tofu.
From this point of view, it is not appropriate to give it directly to the boss or the second child. Kangtai has lived for most of his life. He knows very well that although the boss or the second child can support this tofu workshop, they must really pass on the ancestral business. Go on, brothers working together is the most important thing.
It is also because of this reason that Kang Tai is still hesitating about the next arrangements. It is not a big problem if he is alive now. Once he leaves that day, it will be a problem who will leave this family property. Although Kang Tai said that their brothers If the two of them are not separated, there is no problem for him to live. If he is gone in the future, can he ensure that the Kang family brothers will continue to be brothers and brothers respectfully together as they are now?
Everyone has their own troubles, and everyone has their own indecisions.
These days Kangtai has been hesitant about this matter and has not made a final decision, and it is also because of this reason.
After finishing their work today, the two brothers were tidying up in the workshop in front. Kangtai went to his residence in the back to rest, boiling a pot of wine, a pot of pickled cabbage and tofu, and two side dishes. This was his dinner.
When he was young, Kangtai would get up early and go to bed late every day for the family tofu workshop. In addition, making tofu was very hard work. Over the course of most of his life, the problems that he didn't have when he was young started to appear little by little. At this age and with this weather, Kangtai would drink some wine every day to warm his muscles and bones.
Kangtai was sitting cross-legged on the kang, drinking wine, while his wife Sun was doing needlework at the other end. The old couple chatted without a word.
"The second child's family is counting the days. The baby will be born after the Chinese New Year." Mrs. Sun said while doing needlework.
Kang Tai nodded. Sun was talking about his second daughter-in-law. The wife Kang Youlu married last year became pregnant in about half a year, and now her belly is not small.
According to the calculation of days, the child will be born after the New Year. This child will be the third grandson of Lao Kang's family. The eldest son has a son and a daughter, and the second son now also has a daughter. Kangtai feels happy when he thinks of this.
Picking up the wine cup and taking a sip, Kangtai said to the old woman: "How about sharing the money at home? Leave some aside when the time comes. When the eldest daughter-in-law gives birth to a grandson, she has a wine shop, and the second son also needs a bowl of water to drink. , you should remember this matter, don’t let the second daughter-in-law’s heart be chilled, and the whole family will be unhappy.”
"You don't need to say this? If I didn't remember, I wouldn't mention this to you." Mrs. Sun rolled her eyes at her old man. These are all the flesh that fell from her body. Both the eldest and the second child are her sons. Aren’t their wives giving birth to their own grandchildren?
Since what was given to the elder’s family was taken care of, the second elder’s family cannot be left behind. The business of the tofu workshop has been pretty good this year. Her family is somewhat wealthy, and she has already set aside money for work.
"Haha." Kang Tai laughed. He and his wife had been together for decades, and neither of them knew the other. Taking another sip of wine, he glanced outside and saw no one outside. The eldest and second child were still in front, and the wives of the two families were in their respective rooms.
"Old lady, these days I have been thinking about whether the eldest or the second should be in charge in the future."
"What's wrong? You haven't thought this through yet? How many times have you thought about it?" Ms. Sun looked up at her husband and asked.
Kangtai sighed, shook his head and said: "I have been struggling with this matter. The boss is too lively and the second child is too naive. When it comes to doing business, you have to be the boss, but when it comes to making tofu, you have to be the second child. Every family has It was difficult to recite sutras, but now that I am still there, the boss and the second can suppress me, but one day this family will still have to be handed over to them."
"If I give it to the boss, I feel wronged to the second child. If I give it to the second child, I feel wronged to the boss. The palms and backs of my hands are full of flesh. My head is getting big because of this..."
Listening to what her husband said, Mrs. Sun also sighed. The old couple had discussed this matter several times, but they had never come up with a feasible solution. Just keep putting it off like this, but it’s not a problem to put it off all the time. The old man was right. It wouldn't be a big problem if the two of them were alive, but when people get old, they will die one day. When they left that day, who would leave this family fortune to?
"How about giving it to the second child? Our tofu workshop has been in business for three generations. The second child's craftsmanship is not to mention. This skill is enough to establish the family business."
"What about the boss?"
"The old man is smart. If it doesn't work out, just share the family's extravagant wealth with him and let him go out and make a living..."
"No!" Kang Tai frowned and shook his head: "This is unfair to the boss. After all these years, the boss has been helping the family, and in the end, he got a share of the family business. What does it mean? Besides, it's not like the family has no business, let him Go out and break out? What if you don’t break out?"
"This workshop is left by our ancestors. The eldest and second child are our own children. I think in my heart that they will pass on the family business together as brothers. But the problem is that this is okay now. Who can predict what will happen in the future after we are gone? Arrived? If the brothers turn against each other for the sake of the family business, the gain will outweigh the loss."
"I've been thinking about it these days. Even if we don't separate the families, we have to establish a head of the family. This way, we can at least avoid a lot of trouble. I've thought about it over and over again, and I still think..."
Just as Kangtai said this, before he could say who he wanted to hand over the family property to in the end, there were faint sounds of noise in front of him.
"What happened in front?" Kang Tai asked with a frown.
"Why is there such a fuss? I'll go take a look." Mrs. Sun put down her needlework and got off the kang and went to the front. Kang Tai didn't take it seriously and continued to drink his own wine.
But before he could finish his drink, Mrs. Sun hurried back and said as soon as she entered the room: "Old man, hurry up! Go ahead and see, something happened!"
"Something happened? What happened?" Kang Tai asked hurriedly, stunned.
"I, a woman, can't figure it out. Anyway, it looks like something happened. The eldest and second eldest brother are arguing with someone in front."
"Who are you arguing with?" Kang Tai quickly got off the kang and put on his shoes, and heard Mrs. Sun say in his ears: "Liu Qi, the head of the house, is here, and the boss and the second child are arguing with him."
"Liu Qi? What is he here for?" Kang Tai suddenly frowned. This Liu Qi is the chief of their neighborhood. The so-called chief comes from the Baojia system. This system has a long history and has been around since the Spring and Autumn Period. . This system was continued in all dynasties, and it was the same in the Ming Dynasty, but it was slightly changed from the system of the previous dynasty.
The head of the village is not an official, but some officials have some rights to govern the residents of the village. In other words, the chief is almost the same as the director of the neighborhood committee, and this Liu Qi is the chief of this area. Liu Qi is not a very good person. He is just a gangster who is idle. If his surname is not Liu, he can get along with Mr. Liu Shancheng by beating around the bush. He has some relatives and several brothers under him, otherwise he wouldn't be the chief of this village.
There has always been no conflict between the Kang family and Liu Qi. Although Liu Qi is the head of the village, the Kang family supplies Liu family tofu all year round, and the money they should give to members is in accordance with the rules. For the sake of face, Liu Qi never embarrasses him. Kang family. But what happened today? Hearing from the old woman that the boss and the second child were quarreling with Liu Qi up front, thinking of Kang Tai, he hurried forward for fear of something happening.
