Jiang Yinzhu's footsteps halted, a layer of cold sweat seeping through her back.
She could feel all eyes around her fixed on her—the Jiang family's terror, the Second Branch's cold indifference, and the pained groans of the men on the ground—all weaving an invisible net that trapped her firmly in the center.
"Da Ni, what… what more do you want?"
Her voice finally carried a pleading tone, the former arrogance and willfulness completely gone. "I'm your aunt, your elder…"
"Elder?" Jiang Liuli raised an eyebrow, her gaze falling on the silk robes that looked utterly out of place in this muddy courtyard.
"Breaking into a private residence with your thugs, ordering your vicious servants to harm people, and even threatening to sell your own niece to a brothel—and you still have the face to call yourself an elder?"
She bent down, picked up the broken wooden stick from the ground, and lightly snapped it, the fractured wood breaking into two pieces again. "Dear aunt, how do you think we should settle this debt?"
Jiang Yinzhu stared at the broken wood, her lips trembling even more violently.
She knew Jiang Liuli was reminding her that the fate of those men earlier was a warning of what could happen to her.
"I… I'll compensate! I'll pay!" Jiang Yinzhu finally gritted her teeth and relented. "Name your price, as long as I can afford it…"
"Straightforward." Jiang Liuli straightened up. "One hundred taels of silver, not a single copper coin less!"
"What? One hundred taels?"
Jiang Yinzhu was stunned by Jiang Liuli's demand. Though she was Zhang Yuanwai's favored concubine, Zhang Yuanwai was notoriously stingy, and her monthly allowance was only two taels.
Even if she exhausted all her skills to please Zhang Yuanwai, she rarely received any extra rewards.
On top of that, she often had to support her maternal family, leaving her with very little silver on hand. One hundred taels was an astronomical sum to her.
She staggered back two steps, bumping into the doorframe. The pain made her gasp, but she didn't bother rubbing the sore spot, merely staring at Jiang Liuli in disbelief. "Are you insane? One hundred taels? Why don't you just rob someone?"
"Rob?" Jiang Liuli laughed, but her laughter was as cold as ice.
"Compared to your intention to sell me to a brothel, demanding one hundred taels from you is practically a bargain, isn't it?"
She took a slow step closer, her voice dropping even lower. "Or do you think my chastity and the lives of my Second Branch family aren't even worth one hundred taels?"
Jiang Yinzhu's face instantly drained of color. She opened her mouth, wanting to say that the lives of these lowly people weren't worth much anyway, but the ferocity in Jiang Liuli's eyes choked the words in her throat.
She knew Jiang Liuli wasn't joking. This girl hadn't even flinched while breaking the bones of over a dozen strong men. If pushed too far, she might truly do something even more ruthless.
"I… I don't have that much money… Even if you beat me to death, I couldn't come up with it!" Jiang Yinzhu's voice carried a sob, her former dignity completely vanished.
"Da Ni, for the sake of our family ties, couldn't you ask for less? Fifty taels—I'll scrape together every last coin, even if I have to sell the pots and pans…"
"Family ties?" Jiang Liuli sounded as if she'd heard a joke. "When you were planning to sell me to a brothel earlier, why didn't you remember we were family?"
She raised her hand, her fingertip almost touching Jiang Yinzhu's face. "One hundred taels. You have three days to gather the sum. If you can't…"
She paused, her gaze sweeping over the groaning men on the ground. "Then I'll personally pay a visit to the Zhang residence and have a good talk with Zhang Yuanwai about how his beloved concubine brought people to the village to throw her weight around, and how she openly declared she would sell her own niece to a brothel."
"I've heard Zhang Yuanwai values his reputation above all else. If he learns his concubine has been running wild outside, tarnishing his good name, I wonder if he'll still treat you as favorably as before!"
These words struck Jiang Yinzhu's heart like a sharp blade.
What she cared about most was her position in the Zhang household. If Zhang Yuanwai were to learn of these matters, not only would she lose her status as favored concubine, she'd likely be driven out of the Zhang residence entirely.
She had no desire to return to this wretched family!
"Alright… I'll give it… I'll give it…" Jiang Yinzhu finally broke down completely. Tears streamed down her cheeks, mixing with the dust on her face as she wept in utter misery. "Within three days… I'll deliver the silver…"
Only then did Jiang Liuli nod in satisfaction, stepping aside to clear the path.
Jiang Yinzhu stumbled out as if her soul had departed, not even bothering with the men still moaning on the ground.
Her mind was completely occupied with how to gather the hundred taels of silver, leaving no room for any other thoughts.
Seeing her supporting daughter flee, Jiang Qianshi hurriedly rose and chased after her to the doorway: "Yinzhu! Don't go! What will your parents do if you leave?"
"Mother! From now on, handle your family matters yourselves! Don't come looking for me anymore! I won't meddle in your affairs ever again!"
Jiang Yinzhu's voice carried from beyond the courtyard, filled with tears and a note of finality, before quickly fading away.
Jiang Qianshi stood frozen in the doorway, her outstretched hand suspended mid-air. She slowly turned her head to find Jiang Liuli watching her with an ambiguous half-smile.
Meeting her gaze, Jiang Liuli spoke coldly: "Jiang Yinzhu's matter is settled. Now it's time to settle accounts between us!"
"Accounts between us? What accounts could we possibly have? You've already taken most of our family's silver! What little remains is barely enough for medical treatment and basic sustenance after your taking! You can't possibly want more silver? Are you trying to starve our whole family to death?"
"Who said anything about wanting silver?" Jiang Liuli said calmly. "Let's discuss dividing the household."
"Dividing the household?"
Jiang Qianshi reacted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, her shrill voice rising sharply.
"What nonsense are you spouting! While parents live, the family doesn't divide – that's the iron rule set by our ancestors! You ungrateful little wretch! First you turn the household upside down, and now you want to divide the family?"
Jiang Qianshi clutched her chest, gasping for breath as she sprayed saliva everywhere. "I'm telling you, as long as your grandfather and I still draw breath, you can forget about dividing this family!"
The second branch ate little but worked hard – they were the most compliant beasts of burden. Jiang Qianshi couldn't bear to let them split off.
Besides, Jiang Dani had just extorted a hundred taels from Jiang Yinzhu. If they divided the household, they wouldn't get to spend any of it…
"Oh! Don't be angry, grandmother! If you don't want to divide the household, then we won't! But… I hope you won't regret this decision!"
Jiang Liuli dusted off her clothes and returned directly to the second branch's thatched hut.
Heh! Don't want to divide the family?
She'd make them beg and weep for the second branch to leave…