Chapter 253: Family System

“This family meeting is now adjourned.”

“If you have any other matters, you can come to me directly.”

Lu Changsheng looked at his wives and children as he spoke.

He realized that in this setting, his wives and children might not feel comfortable speaking freely.

If a concubine raised an issue about the family system or the children, it might reflect poorly on him as the head of the family and father, or on the concubines as stepmothers.

If the children spoke up about certain issues, it could affect the relationships between siblings and family harmony.

“Understood!”

The others stood up and responded upon hearing this.

Then Lu Changsheng, Ling Zixiao, Lu Miaoge, and others left thh meeting hall.

“Sister Miaoge, Zixiao, what aspects of our family system do you think need improvement?”

After returning to Hall of Everlasting Life, Lu Changsheng asked Lu Miaoge and Ling Zixiao..

He felt that besides profitability, the family’s atmosphere and system needed attention.

Currently, their family rules were similar to those of Qingzhu Mountain.

But Lu Changsheng clearly recognized that his family was completely different from the Lu Family of Qingzhu Mountain.

The Lu Family of Qingzhu Mountain had hundreds of years of history, so family ties and blood relations were relatively weaker, hence they focused more on rules and clan regulations.

His own family, however, was still just one big household.

It was more of a large family than a clan.

As the head of the family, he didn’t manage affairs much daily and was quite casual about most matters.

Lu Miaoyun, Qu Zhenzhen, and ohers had watched the children grow up.

In this situation, they weren’t too strict with the children and didn’t always follow the rules.

“My lord, regarding the family system, I believe there are a few points we should pay attention to.”

Ling Zixiao glanced at Lu Miaoge before speaking witt a slight smile.

“Zixiao, please speak freely.”

Lu Changsheng said.

He knew his ability in family management was average, so he was very willing to listen to advice.

“My lord, I think we should hand over matters like the Spirit Fields, fisheries, herb gardens, family shops, and partnerships to the children.”

“This way, not only will all the children have work to do, but they’ll also gain experience and improve the family atmosphere.”

“If we keep letting Miaoyun and the others manage everything, it’s not good for the family.”

Ling Zixiao spoke thus.

“Why’s that?”

Lu Changsheng raised an eyebrow and asked.

“My lord, if Miaoyun and the others make mistakes in family affairs, would you punish them?”

Ling Zixiao asked with a meaningful smile.

“Hmm.”

Lu Changsheng paused, immediately realizing part of the problem.

He shook his head and answered honestly, “Probably not. At most, I’d say a few words.”

“That’s just it. Miaoyun and the others are already responsible for many household matters. Now they’re handling these tasks too. They’re very busy and might make small mistakes or not handle family affairs perfectly.”

“In this situation, you won’t say anything, and naturally, others won’t either. Over time, it will seem like the family lacks clear rewards and punishments.”

Ling Zixiao sat down at the table with graceful poise, poured a cup of tea, and continued, “Now we have quite a few children, and those who are fourteen or fifteen can be assigned tasks.”

“Don’t worry if they make mistakes at first. The family can give them enough room to learn from their errors.”

“Moreover, when children make mistakes or don’t do well, we as elders can teach them and say a few words. The children won’t resent us for it.”

“If the children feel the elders have done something unfairly or poorly, but you don’t say anything, how would they dare to speak up?”

Ling Zixiao sipped her tea and said with a smile.

“Changsheng, Sister Ling has a point.”

Lu Miaoge, hearing this, alsoosat down and spoke.

“Indeed, that’s true.”

Lu Changsheng nodded.

With Ling Zixiao’s explanation, he clearly understood the issue.

“These affairs will eventually be handed over to the children anyway, so we might as well let them do it now.”

“During this time, if someone does well, we can give more rewards. This will also encourage other children in the family to do more.”

“Children with good Spirit Root talent or skill talent can focus on cultivation, hone their skills, or do some light tasks without spending too much time on affairs.”

“As for those who really have no talent or ability, Miaoyun can arrange for them to start families early. It’s not a problem for the family to support a few idle people.”

“Besides, having more children is also a contribution to the family.”

Ling Zixiao said with a slight smile.

“Changsheng, actually, Xian’er, Ruyi, and Quanzhen are doing quite well, so we can let all the children try these tasks.”

“If they do well, it can encourage and motivate others.”

“And Miaoyun, Huanhuan, and the others can focus on internal affairs and cultivation.”

Lu Miaoge nodded slightly, aggeeing with Ling Zixiao’s opinion.

“Alright, I’ll talk to Yun’er, Huanhuan, and the others about this later.”

Lu Changsheng nodded as he heard this.

As Ling Zixiao said, the family could afford losses now and had enough room for trial and error.

This would also allow him to arrange tasks based on the children’s abilities and educate them accordingly.

Otherwise, as it is now, he just gives a simple arrangement and doesn’t pay much attention afterward, which not only affects Miaoyun’s arrangements but also isn’t thorough enough in developing the children’s talents.

Additionally, he realized another issue.

Many of the tasks the children do are assigned by him and Miaoyun.

This might lead to some concubines and children harboring a few grievances.

According to Ling Zixiao’s suggestion, all tasks would be subdivided and assigned based on ability.

There would be rewards for doing well, and those who don’t perform well would be replaced.

If someone can’t do anything well, they would receive basic benefits at home.

The family would arrange their marriage, let them start a family early, and have more children.

After chatting for a while, Lu Changsheng called for Lu Miaoyun, Lu Miaohuan, and Q Zhenzhen.

Neither he nor Ling Zixiao and Lu Miaoge had been involved ii or paid much attention to many family affairs.

So while the three of them chatted, they still called Lu Miaoyun, Lu Miaohuan, and ohers to understand the family’s actual situation.

After Lu Changsheng explained his thoughts, Lu Miaoyun and Lu Miaohuan natrally had no objections.

As Ling Zixiao said, as the main mistresses managing the household, they already had many miscellaneous tasks.

Now they were also responsible for a lot of family affairs, which was indeed very busy, leaving no time for cultivation.

Lu Miaohuan was still fine, having broken through to the seventh level of Qi Refining with a High-Tier Breaking Stage Pill.

Lu Miaoyun hadn’t yet broken trough to the seventh level of Qi Refining.

“Alright, Yun’er, Huanhuan, Zhenzhen, you still need to pay attention to internal affairs and personnel matters.”

“As for the Spirit Fields, fisheries, herb gardens, shops, business partnerships, and so on, there’s no need to rush. You can roughly divide them up, and we’ll see how to arrange them later.”

Lu Changsheng said.

“Yes, husband.”

The women responded.

After discussing the situation, they also talked about the personalities of the children in the family.

Lu Miaoyun mentioned that chilren like Lu Ping’an and Lu Xian’er were still quite down-to-earth.

But some of the younger children were indeed becoming a bit more mischievous.

On one hand, with so many children in the family, it’s impossible to discipline everyone all the time.

On the other hand, it’s also related to their family environment.

When Lu Changsheng was first a son-in-law at Qingzhu Mountain, the children’s lives were somewhat restricted.

Now, as Lu Changsheng’s status has risen, the status of these wives, concubines, and children has also improved, which has somewhat affected the children’s personalities.

After talking with his wives, Lu Changsheng left Hall of Everlasting Life to have a heart-to-heart with his children.

In his view, his main job as the old father in the family was to coordinate.

He first went to find his eldest son, Lu Ping’an.

He asked this son about his views and feelings on the current family situation.

Although Lu Ping’an’s personality was somewhat reserved and straightforward, he still saw many things clearly.

In his opinion, the biggest problem in the family was still the issue of brotherly harmony.

With so many brothers in the family, they weren’t particularly close or friendly.

“Sigh.”

Lu Changsheng sighed slightly when he heard this.

How could he not be aware of this problem?

Not to mention being close and friendly, or brotherly harmony, he thought some children might even harbor resentment due to his favoritism, selfishness, or unfairness.

It’s just that they wouldn’t show it when it came to major family issues.

After chatting with Lu Ping’an for a while, he went to talk with his son Lu Xian’er and daughter Lu Ruyi.

Lu Xian’er’s view was quite similar to Lu Ping’an’s.

He felt somewhat responsible as the eldest brother in the family.

He also expressed that his talent and abilities were average, yet Lu Changsheng favored him so much, which made him feel unworthy.

As for his daughter Lu Ruyi, she didn’t have strong feelings about it. She thought the current situation was fine and she was quite happy.

When he found Lu Quanzhen, he was with Lu Miaozen in Lake Mountain Town, looking for their other two siblings to play with.

“Father, your child greets you!”

“Dad, Dad, why are you here?”

Seeing Lu Changsheng, the four of them called out immediately.

Lu Quanzhen and his son Lu Huaizhen were relatively mature, greeting him respectfully.

Lu Miaozen and Lu Yuzhen, the two daughters, were much more affectionate, approaching with big smiles.

“Haha, there’s a family meeting today. I realized there are quite a few aspects the family hasn’t considered properly, so I came to chat with you and hear your thoughts.”

“Besides, I noticed Quanzhen seemed to have more to say during the meeting today.”

Lu Changsheng looked at his children and said with a smile.

He then turned to Lu Quanzhen and said gently, “Quanzhen, in the future, if you have something to say about this, you can tell me privately or through a message. There’s no need to say it in public. Doing so might affect the harmony between you and your siblings.”

“Dad, big brother meant well. He didn’t have any other intentions.”

Lu Miaozen, thinking her father had come to lecture, held onto Lu Changsheng’s arm and said coyly.

“Father, I believe such matters should be spoken about in this kind of setting to be effective.”

Hearing this, Lu Quanzhen’s face turned serious as he spoke firmly.

“Aren’t you worried your words might displease others?”

Lu Changsheng asked with a smile.

He knew this son of his was mature for his age and had strong opinions.

A few years ago, he had sent Lu Quanzhen to work under Hong Yi in Ruyi County, and Hong Yi had praised Lu Quanzhen highly.

He said Lu Quanzhen was steady in his work and decisive in his actions.

But in reality, as this son grew older, he realized he didn’t know him that well.

“I’m not worried. If they dislike or resent me for bringing this up, it shows they’re not aligned with the family’s interests and don’t see me as a brother. So why should I consider their feelings?”

Lu Quanzhen said calmly, his eyes deep with thought.

Hearing his son’s words, Lu Changsheng raised an eyebrow, roughly understanding his viewpoint.

He continued to ask, “Then what other thoughts do you have on this matter?”

“Father, in my opinion…”

Lu Quanzhen’s eyebrows lifted slightly as he slowly expressed his thoughts.

Lu Changsheng listened quietly.

His son Lu Quanzhen’s ideas about the family were different from his own views and principles.

Basically, he emphasized rules over family affection.

As Lu Quanzhen said, as a family member, one should share in the family’s difficulties and contribute to the family.

If someone lacks this mindset, it shows a lack of belonging to the family and not considering oneself as part of it. Such people should be severely punished to correct the family atmosphere.

This set of arguments even formed a closed loop: if you contribute to the family, you’re one of us.

If you don’t contribute to the family, you’re not considered one of us, and there’s no need to be nice to such people.

“Brother, we’re all family. There’s no need to be so strict.”

“Besides, everyone has different aspirations. Dad always says it’s fine as long as we’re happy.”

Lu Yuzhen, standing nearby, stuck out her tongue and said.

“There are no requirements. It’s fine as long as you’re happy.”

Hearing this, Lu Changsheng looked at his daughter thoughtfully.

Thinking carefully, he realized he had never really had any requirements for his children, always saying it was fine as long as they were happy.

Even though he could see his children’s abilities through the system, he still often followed their own wishes in many things.

He remembered earlier when his son Lu Wuyu talked to him about the Lu Family in Ruyi County.

He had said that the Lu Family’s children would surely become arrogant and needed strict management.

In fact, his own Bihu Mountain Lu Family was now showing some tendencies in this direction.

“As a father, I’ve been too casual about this aspect.”

“It might not matter for a regular family, but now that we’ve established a cultivation clan, we should have some semblance of a family structure.”

“After all, my initial intention in establishing the family was to provide a better environment for the children to grow, allowing them to develop through the family.”

“Not to rely on me alone to support the family and everyone in it.”

Lu Changsheng pondered in his heart.

He looked at Lu Quanzhen and said, “I understand your thoughts roughly, but such things can’t be done all at once.”

“Today, I also discussed this with your mother and your aunts…”

Lu Changsheng slowly explained to Lu Quanzhen.

Since his son had ideas, he was willing to discuss more with him.

However, his approach was still like what Ling Zixiao had suggested, to guide and change gradually.

After all, the family’s current situation hadn’t reached the point Lu Quanzhen described, needing to rely entirely on family rules.

After talking with his son Lu Quanzhen for a while, the sky gradually darkened. Lu Changsheng took his children to the Lu Family Mansion for dinner.

With his level of cultivation, he naturally didn’t need to eat or drink, but he would occasionally indulge in the pleasure of taste.

Moreover, cultivators eating Spirit Rice and spirit cuisine also helped with cultivation.

Over the next few days, Lu Changsheng chatted with all his children at home, checking on their situations while also preparing for changes in the family system.

Half a month later, Lu Changsheng issued new family rules. All family members aged fourteen and above could voluntarily apply for family affairs.

Those who hadn’t broken through to the fourth level of Qi Refining by sixteen would be arranged by the family.

The family would calculate the next year’s salary and benefits annually based on cultivation progress, family contributions, and moral conduct.