Today wasn't Third Xu's rest day, and it definitely wasn't a holiday, so why was he back home?
No matter what the people in the courtyard were thinking, it was indeed Third Xu standing outside the door.
Second Xu, who had been planning to run outside and hide from his angry father, forgot about his escape when he got interrupted by his younger brother.
By then, Mr. Xu had somehow found a long, thin stick and hit Second Xu twice on the back.
"Ouch! Father… OUCH!"
Second Xu got hit twice, leaping up while crying out loud in pain.
Which was why when Third Xu walked in, he saw his father beating up his elder brother.
"Father, don't be impulsive and be careful of your back!
"Second Brother, why don't you stop running? Stay put and simply take a few beatings from father. You have thick skin anyway!"
Third Xu stood by the door. As he watched the scene in front of him, he began to dispense advice.
When Mr. Xu heard his youngest son, he lost interest in beating up Second Xu. Throwing the stick on the ground, he glared at his youngest son and demanded, "Why are you here?"
"Ah!"
Hearing his father's question, Third Xu finally remembered that he hadn't told any of them why he had returned.
"Father! I earned fifty tael! Since it wasn't safe to keep it on me, I thought I'd bring the money home!"
"What?!"
"How much?!"
"What did you do, third brother?"
As Third Xu explained himself, Mr. Xu, along with both his elder sons, became shocked. They couldn't believe what they had just heard. Were they hallucinating?
Third Xu didn't answer them at first. Instead, he quickly closed the door and whispered, "Father, Big brother, Second brother! Keep it down! Our wealth shouldn't be revealed!"
"Right! Right!"
Then, all four of them quickly gathered together.
Third Xu immediately took out the silver ingots from his pocket that he had been carrying on his way home and arranged them in a line on the stone table in the courtyard.
Mr. Xu, along with his three sons, sat around the table and stared at the silver ingots without blinking. Second Xu was the worst of them all. He drooled while seeing the silver ingots. He even took one of the silver ingots and placed it in his mouth.
"I'll keep it!" Mr. Xu said to his sons.
Mr. Xu did not ask his youngest son how he had gotten fifty tael. His actions were quick as he took all five silver ingots and placed them in his own pocket.
"I'll pass this to your mother!"
Mr. Xu, who had taken all the silver ingots, quickly ran to the central room.
When Mr. Xu left, the two elder Xu brothers stared at their youngest brother.
"Third brother, you didn't keep some of the money for yourself?"
"Third brother, how did you earn so much money?"
The two brothers asked very different questions.
Third Xu smiled, answering, "I met a nobleman in the county who came from Capital City and was on his way back to pray for his ancestors. He wanted to present a portrait of the old madam in his family and was willing to pay a large amount for it.
"Well, I, your youngest brother, managed to rise above the others with my talented drawings and the nobleman paid my fifty yuan for it!
"Big brother, second brother, let me tell you something. Before this, I always thought that our family was pretty well-off, but now I've realized that I was wrong. When I went to the nobleman's mansion yesterday, I found out that we're still so much behind them in terms of lifestyle!"
This time, both the elder Xu brothers were left speechless. It was the first time that they realized that their youngest brother, whom they'd always thought was the smartest amongst them, was actually a bit silly.
Their family wasn't even the richest in Spirit Water Village, but their youngest brother thought that they were well-off.
This guy was a fool!