"Thirty-three taels and eight mace."…
Miao Guizhi was indeed worried the matter would escalate to the Zhou Family. Her face turned ashen. Though she wanted to argue further, fear of pushing things too far made her swallow her words.
In the end, she could only force a strained smile: "Weren't we going to settle accounts? Then let's settle them clearly!"
Old Shen and Ge Sanniang exchanged glances, both carrying a hint of mockery in their eyes, before turning their attention to Tang Mu.
Tang Mu curled his lips into a cold smile. "Since that's the case, I'll trouble Grandpa Shen, Auntie Ge, and all our neighbors to bear witness for us."
He didn't step into the Chen family's courtyard but stood outside the gate, reciting item by item—loudly and in front of all the neighbors—the accounts he had discussed with A-jie.
"In the first year of Yuanhe, heavy snow blocked the roads, and grain prices soared at the Northern Border. Times were hard for all of us that year. Your Chen family had run out of grain entirely. It was my grandfather who bought two sacks of grain at a high price from the grain store and gave one to you. That sack of millet was worth two hundred coins."
Miao Guizhi couldn't help wanting to argue.
After all, a sack of millet usually cost only fifty coins. Two hundred? Wasn't that daylight robbery?
But under the watchful eyes of the crowd, she didn't dare speak up. Prices had been high that year, and Lao Tangtou had likely indeed paid two hundred coins for it.
Tang Mu noticed her hesitation, and it only reinforced his belief that A-jie's plan was right.
Chen Wenyan deserved to pay with his life for attempted murder. But even if they dragged him to the authorities, it would likely only end with a life for a life—especially since A-jie was now unharmed. If the Chen family were willing to spend money or grain to pull strings, the matter would probably be swept under the rug.
Rather than that, it was better to resolve it their own way.
But before making them pay the price, they would first reclaim everything they had taken over the years—and in the process, let the neighbors see the true nature of this mother and son pair.
His gaze cold, Tang Mu continued, "In the third year of Yuanhe, Auntie Miao, you contracted a seasonal fever. You were burning up and unconscious. Chen Dage was away in the army and couldn't tend to you. It was my grandfather who called the doctor. The medicine you were given was the best available. A-jie didn't sleep for days, brewing your medicine and changing your cooling towels… The medicine cost five hundred coins, and the doctor's fee was one hundred coins."
That year, many households had been struck by the fever, and several neighbors had lost family members. The memory was still vivid for everyone. The amount Tang Mu stated was truly only the cost of medicine and the doctor's fee—not a single coin extra.
Even if Miao Guizhi wanted to argue, she couldn't find any grounds.
And Tang Mu went on: "Furthermore, every spring planting season over the years, your family always claimed to have no money or grain. The seeds, farming tools, and plow oxen for both families' military lands were consistently provided by my family. Both families have thirty mu of land. The expenses for six consecutive years total thirty taels. Your share is half—fifteen taels."
At the mention of fifteen taels, Miao Guizhi felt a tightness in her chest. Her face paled, and she could no longer hold back a shrill cry: "Fifteen taels! Why don't you just rob us?"
Tang Mu remained expressionless. He turned to Old Shen and the others and asked respectfully, "Grandpa Shen, do you find any fault with this accounting?"
Old Shen shot a cold glance at Miao Guizhi and snorted lightly. "If anything, it's an underestimate. Miao, if you disagree, let's lay out the expenses year by year. Many families in Elm Tree Alley lease military lands for farming. Every household keeps account books. It wouldn't be difficult for everyone to compare and calculate together."
Upon hearing this, Miao Guizhi panicked and was about to say something when Tang Mu chuckled and said, "In that case, let's lay it all out and calculate."
Tang Mu had come fully prepared, carrying his family's account book with him. As soon as he finished speaking, he pulled it out, flipped it open, and began reading aloud the annual expenses for spring plowing—how much was spent on seeds, how much grain was used to rent plow oxen, and the total silver cost. Each item was clear and detailed.
He reported unhurriedly, turning the pages one by one. The neighbors watching the spectacle nodded along, all agreeing the figures were correct.
By the end of the calculation, the accounts were crystal clear: over six years, the total amounted to thirty-seven taels and six mace.
Old Shen counted on his fingers, then turned to Miao Guizhi. "Split evenly between the two families, your Chen family owes eighteen taels and eight mace."
Miao Guizhi was filled with regret. How could a mere two incense sticks' worth of accounting time add three taels and eight mace? She hastily insisted, "Stick to the original agreement—fifteen taels will do!"
Tang Mu raised an eyebrow coldly. "Auntie, let's follow the details to avoid future disputes."
He continued flipping through the account book, picking out additional expenses: the costs for currying favor with superiors when Chen Wenyan joined the army, and the silver borrowed from his family for winter vegetable storage and charcoal. After adjustments, the total came to thirty-three taels and eight mace.
By now, even the neighbors understood—Tang Mu had clearly left room for compromise, originally intending to round it to thirty taels. It was Miao Guizhi's own meddling that added the odd amount.
Hearing this number, Miao Guizhi's legs went weak, and she could barely stand.
Over the years, she had always squeezed money from the Tang family instead of spending her own, hoarding every bit of her son's military pay and miscellaneous income. She had indeed managed to save thirty taels, but that was all the family had.
Being forced to surrender it all now felt like a death sentence.
She couldn't help but suspect that Tang Mu had calculated her savings before coming.
She had initially planned to quibble over specific entries and find excuses to wriggle out, but Tang Mu listed every item with witnesses—neighbors had seen it all. He didn't even mention the daily trivial assistance, focusing only on critical, substantial expenses, leaving her no room for denial.
Miao Guizhi usually paid no mind to others' opinions, but today was different. The disdainful gazes from the surrounding neighbors felt like knives digging into her back, chilling her to the bone.
Chen Wenyan also felt exposed under such scrutiny, as if stripped bare.
He knew well that their family had relied on the Tangs for food, clothing, and shelter all these years, with minimal personal expenses, and his mother was adept at scrimping and saving. Logically, they should be able to afford the amount.
Fearing for his future, Chen Wenyan quickly spoke before his mother could: "We'll pay what's due… we acknowledge the debt!"
Miao Guizhi nearly fainted from her son's foolish generosity.
Caught between Tang Mu's silent threat of taking the matter to the Zhou Family and her son's guilty, pleading eyes, Miao Guizhi had no choice but to swallow her anger, no matter how reluctantly.
Dizzy and vision blurring, she turned and went back into the house, retrieving the pottery jar where she hid her savings.
Inside were scattered bits of broken silver and copper coins—all she had painstakingly saved over years of frugality.
"My money…" Miao Guizhi's fingers trembled. Making her give all this money to the Tang family was worse than killing her.
Her heart bled as she guarded this jar of silver, refusing to go out for the longest time.
Outside, Chen Wenyan, unable to bear the pressure any longer, had to enter the room himself. Seeing his mother weeping over the earthen jar with reluctance, he felt equally unsettled and said in a low voice, "Mother, let's give it to them for now. Once I marry the Zhou family's daughter, won't I earn it all back? Right now, the Zhou family is what matters most!"
The Zhou family!
Yes, the Zhou family!
Miao Guizhi's spirits lifted.
The Tang family was beyond saving now—Old Man Tang was dead, leaving behind two useless children. Not only had they failed to get money for this year's spring plowing, they had almost ended up subsidizing them. But the Zhou family was different. The Zhou family not only had money but also considerable influence in the military. Even before formal marriage discussions had begun, they had already secured a promotion to Xiaoqi for her son.
Thinking of this, Miao Guizhi stopped grieving. She wiped her tears and said, "Yes, the Zhou family is what matters."
"Go, give them all this money, but on one condition: tell them not to talk nonsense and not let the Zhou family catch wind of it." Though her heart ached with a thousand reluctances, Miao Guizhi gritted her teeth, closed her eyes, and thrust the silver-filled jar into her son's hands.
"Those ungrateful debt-collecting ghosts, rotten to the core—why didn't they drown along with him!"
Chen Wenyan was startled by her words and quickly hushed her. Miao Guizhi realized she had spoken out of turn and pressed her lips together. Chen Wenyan took the jar without another glance and strode out into the courtyard.
Outside, Tang Mu took the jar and, in front of all the neighbors, carefully weighed the silver on a scale.
"Thirty-three taels and eight mace."
All the scattered silver pieces added up to exactly thirty-three taels and five mace. He then counted out three hundred copper coins from the jar. After tallying everything, a fair number of copper coins still remained in the jar.
The neighbors were stunned to see the Chen family produce such a large jar of silver.
"The Chen mother and son are always crying poverty, yet they have this much savings?"
"Didn't you hear? All these years, the Tang family paid for their food and expenses—of course they managed to save some."
"Who would have thought? Chen Wenyan looks tall and strong, yet he has no shame living off others."
"The Tang family has been very generous…"
The murmurs among the crowd grew louder and louder. Chen Wenyan's face burned with shame, but he dared not say much. He whispered to Tang Mu, "Mu Ge'er, since things have come to this, let's consider our families settled, alright?"
Tang Mu seemed to remember something and counted out seventy-six copper coins, returning them to Chen Wenyan. "This is what I took from you yesterday."
Chen Wenyan took the money, his face alternating between green and pale.
Tang Mu gave him a faint glance, then reached into his robe and pulled out a piece of paper, unfolding it for everyone to see. "This is the marriage certificate between my A-jie and Chen Dage. Now that the debts between our families are settled, we owe each other nothing, and this engagement is void."
With that, he tore the marriage certificate into shreds. A gust of wind blew, scattering the fragments.
He lifted his eyes to Chen Wenyan. "Chen Dage, please bring out your family's copy and tear it up in front of everyone as well."
Chen Wenyan watched the scattered paper fragments and, for some reason, felt a surge of unease.
He pressed his lips together, glanced at the onlookers, and forced a strained smile. "…Just a moment."
He then turned and went inside to retrieve the marriage certificate hidden at the bottom of a chest.
According to military household marriage customs, they should have reported to their superior officer. However, both he and Tang Wan were underage, so they had only drafted a marriage certificate initially, planning to officially register with the authorities when they formally married. Now that the marriage certificate was torn up, the two families would have no further connections.
Chen Wenyan looked down at the marriage certificate in his hand, recalling how over the years he had grown accustomed to turning to the Tang family for matters both significant and trivial. Grandpa Tang could provide financial assistance, Wan Niang always managed to ease his worries, and even young Tang Mu displayed remarkable composure, able to discuss any matter thoughtfully.
The presence of this family often made Chen Wenyan feel that no matter what difficulties arose, there would always be a fallback option.
But now, this safety net had been severed by his own hand.
Still, with Grandpa Tang now deceased, what possible help could these siblings offer him? Should he really sacrifice his own prospects for the sake of sentimental attachment?
At this thought, Chen Wenyan took a deep breath, picked up the marriage certificate, strode outside, and placed it in Tang Mu's hand.
Tang Mu took it, unfolded it to confirm it was indeed the marriage certificate, then casually tore it to pieces. The scraps of paper scattered like snowflakes, swirling into the sky with the wind.
Miao Guizhi followed him out and let out a sharp, mocking laugh at the sight: "From today onward, our Chen family has no further dealings with your Tang family. We'll have nothing to do with each other till death."
Tang Mu gave her a cold glance without responding, then turned and bowed deeply to the neighbors who had gathered to watch the commotion: "Thank you all, uncles, aunts, and elders, for bearing witness today. When my A-jie wakes up, we will surely visit each of you to express our gratitude."
He then looked at Old Shen and Ge Sanniang, speaking sincerely: "Thank you, Grandpa Shen. Thank you, Ge Shenzi."
Old Shen sighed and patted his shoulder, his tone carrying complex emotions: "Go back and take care of your A-jie."
Though young, Tang Mu had handled the situation thoroughly. He had recovered some losses without pushing matters to extremes, conducting himself with considerable grace. In contrast, the mother and son from the Chen family had been utterly dishonorable, truly disheartening.
Old Shen had some acquaintance with Zhou Baihu from their younger days, but as they weren't particularly close, he couldn't interfere in another family's affairs. Still, he felt vaguely embarrassed for the other party.
Among all the fine young men in Su Bei Camp, how could she have chosen this particular family?
Author's Note:
Rolling on the ground begging for collections [shy]
Dear readers passing by, please give this a collection [begging you]