Was it good? Of course it was good. No matter how grim and unpleasant the expressions of the clan elders and Xie Baozhu became, there were still clan members shouting their approval.
Everyone was no fool; they all knew that this was a blatant scheme to seize Xie Dechang’s property.
However, the second son of Zuye’s family was the village’s Lizheng, while Xie Baozhu and Xie Tianyou’s families were populous and owned considerable farmland, making them two of the village’s prominent households.
To oppose them for the sake of a family of women and children would be a losing proposition no matter how one looked at it, which was why everyone had turned a blind eye and pretended not to know.
Earlier, Xie Baozhu had spread the word that they had no intention of seizing Xie Dechang’s property, and that the silver earned from managing Yun Ke Lai would be handed over to the clan, to be used only for major clan affairs.
His words sounded noble, but over the past three years, who besides them had ever seen that silver?
In the past, when renting land from Xie Dechang, tenants could delay paying rent during poor harvests. But in the past three years, those families, regardless of their circumstances or hardships, had not been allowed to pay a single coin less in rent.
Yet when Xie Baozhu turned around and went to the Xie family, he used excuses like poor harvests and rising Zashui and corvée labor to deduct payments left and right. All that money ended up in the pockets of a few families, while others never saw a single copper coin.
Now, Xie Jiujiu had publicly declared in front of so many people that she would establish a Sishu for the village and was even willing to vacate her family’s house in the village for the children to study in. This was a tangible benefit that would truly benefit everyone.
Luming Village—just hearing the name, one could tell that in earlier years, it had produced scholars. However, in recent years, no scholars had emerged from the village, and educating children was simply too costly, which was why no one had brought up the matter.
Xie Jiujiu was willing to spend money to bring a teacher back to the village. Whether it was an old Tongsheng or a Xiucaigong, it would be more than enough to provide the village children with a basic education.
No one expected a Zhuangyuan to emerge from their ranks. If the children could simply learn a few more characters, they would be better equipped to seek livelihoods in the county or Fu City when they grew up, whether as apprentices or long-term laborers.
As for Zuye and the others, if this matter had arisen three years ago, there would have been nothing Xie Jiujiu or anyone else in the clan could have done without their approval.
But by the end of this year, the Lizheng position was due to be rotated. According to the rules, the Lizheng was to be replaced every eight years. Zuye’s second son had served as Lizheng for eight years, and while he hadn’t provoked widespread resentment, he hadn’t won much favor either.
Now, with the deadline approaching, Zuye’s family wanted to push their youngest son into the position. His second son, along with his younger brother, had visited every household in the village.
They had spoken endless sweet words, and people had patted their chests, promising to vote for him when the time came. But whether those promises would hold when the time arrived was anyone’s guess.
The other family vying for the Lizheng position was Xie Baozhu and Xie Tianyou’s.
Eight years ago, although their family was populous with many brothers, they were poor—the kind of family that was both destitute and domineering in the village.
In recent years, they had squeezed a considerable amount of silver from Yun Ke Lai, but they lacked the skills to manage it. Seeing Yun Ke Lai’s business decline, they knew this arrangement might not last long.
The best course of action would be for their own family to secure a term as Lizheng. Once in the position, they would hold it for eight years, and there would be nothing they couldn’t obtain.
The Lizheng was responsible for collecting taxes and maintaining order under the command of local officials. Just by looking at how Zuye had settled his family in the town and reportedly purchased property in the county, it was clear that his family had profited handsomely from those eight years.
While these two families were united in their schemes to seize the Xie family’s property, when it came to deciding who would become the village head, it was a different matter entirely. Each wanted their own family to take the position, and they privately reached out to win over other households in the village. Who hadn’t spoken ill of the other behind their backs?
Now, both families put on the appearance of warm-hearted, good-natured people in the village. The clan members weren’t afraid to offend them either—better to stand with Xie Jiujiu than let them pocket Xie Dechang’s family wealth.
The Sishu was beneficial to everyone in the village, and the Xie family’s fields were right there in the village, not going anywhere. At the very least, Xie Dechang’s grave was still on Zufen Mountain. If Xie Jiujiu ever refused to provide funds for the Sishu in the future, there would still be something to rely on, and no fear of the family reneging.
Human nature tends to follow the crowd—neither entirely good nor entirely evil. As long as no one took the lead, most of the clan members didn’t necessarily covet Yun Ke Lai or the remaining Xie family fields.
With someone leading the way and praising Xie Jiujiu’s arrangements, many others chimed in, some even shouting outright for Zuye to return Yun Ke Lai to the Xie family.
At this point, not only were the Xie family’s own clan members waiting for an outcome, but there were also outsiders present in Xiangyun Lou. Zuye and several clan elders regretted it—why had they been so greedy for a free meal that they brought this matter up in Xiangyun Lou?
But no matter how troubled or regretful they were, they couldn’t avoid taking a stance now.
Not only were the clan members eagerly waiting, but the two burly men behind Xie Jiujiu had also quietly shifted their positions, blocking Zuye’s path if he tried to stand up.
The old man’s face turned ashen as he looked up at Xie Baozhu, only to see him speaking with Uncle Yao beside him.
Uncle Yao said that Jiujiu’s arrangement was excellent—establishing the Sishu was for the benefit of future generations, and the entire Xie clan would reap endless rewards.
Whether sincere or not, Xie Baozhu nodded repeatedly, as if he had the clan’s best interests at heart and not a shred of selfishness.
“Yun Ke Lai originally belonged to your family. Now that you and Wenji are grown, it’s only natural for the business to be handed over to you to manage.”
Cornered, Zuye had no choice but to reluctantly spit out the fat piece of meat he had already tasted, forcing a kindly expression. “However, the clan has managed it for three years, so returning it to you will take some time.
Wenji needs to focus on his studies, and as a woman, it’s not appropriate for you to be out and about all the time. Why not wait until your husband enters the household? That way, we can properly hand over Dechang’s estate to you.”
As he spoke, Zuye glanced meaningfully at Xie Wenji. By deliberately mentioning waiting for Xie Jiujiu’s husband-to-be to join the family, he aimed to stir up resentment in Xie Wenji’s heart.
After all, Xie Wenji was the son of the Xie family. Zuye didn’t believe Xie Jiujiu could stay home and take in a husband without Xie Wenji feeling displeased.
Little did he know that Xie Wenji had already suppressed his shock and took over the conversation with a smile. “Then it’s settled. Once my sister’s marriage is arranged, my sister and I will go to reclaim Yun Ke Lai. At that time, we can discuss in detail how to proceed with the Sishu.”
One thing in exchange for another—if Yun Ke Lai wasn’t returned, the Sishu would remain nothing but empty talk.
Hearing this, several clan elders turned to look at Xie Wenji, who had always been quiet and stood behind Xie Jiujiu. It dawned on everyone that the two young ones Xie Dechang had raised weren’t meek rabbits to be manipulated but wolf cubs with sharp teeth ready to bite.
The news that the eldest daughter of Yun Ke Lai’s proprietor was seeking a son-in-law to marry into her family quickly spread throughout the county town.
Two days ago, in front of so many people, Huang Juan was both furious and anxious, yet she couldn’t undermine her daughter in front of the Xie family. After returning home, she lay down in anger, wrapped in a headband and groaning on the bed.
Seeing that Xie Jiujiu remained unmoved and showed no intention of changing her mind, Huang Juan finally yanked the headband off her head, stood up by the window, and shouted toward the east wing, “Xie Jiujiu, come here at once!”
Although she called for Xie Jiujiu, Xie Wenji also followed from the study. The two stood at the entrance of the main room, pushing and pulling each other, until Xie Jiujiu, being more domineering, shoved Xie Wenji in front of her and entered the room.
“Such a major matter—how could you decide it without discussing it with us?”
“Even if we discussed it, you wouldn’t agree.”
Similar exchanges had repeated countless times since their return two days ago. As long as Huang Juan didn’t tire of it, Xie Jiujiu responded patiently, sentence by sentence.
“Go out and ask around—which family’s son is willing to be sent off as a live-in son-in-law? Those who truly agree are either from families too poor to make ends meet or have other irreparable flaws.”
“Do you think finding a son-in-law is that simple?” Huang Juan knew better than anyone how high Xie Jiujiu’s standards were. “For those willing to marry into our family, Jiujiu, can you honestly say you’d find them acceptable?”
When the Huang and Xie families became in-laws years ago, outsiders saw them as well-matched in status and background. In truth, however, the Huang family was slightly better off. Back then, Huang Juan had been drawn to Xie Dechang’s good looks and eloquence, which made her set her heart on him.
Knowing what it felt like to love someone, Huang Juan couldn’t bear the thought of Xie Jiujiu sacrificing her marriage for the family’s sake. She feared her daughter would never find someone she truly loved.
Forget talk of merely settling down together. Sometimes, the difference between loving and not loving someone may seem negligible to outsiders, but only those living the life know how vast the gap truly is.
The past three years of being bullied by the Xie clan had been difficult, but no matter how hard it got, Huang Juan only had to think of her earlier days with Xie Dechang to feel it wasn’t so unbearable. She wanted her daughter to find a husband who could make even the hardest times feel easier just by thinking of him.
“Mother, don’t worry. I will definitely find a man I can respect. It’s not as if he’s selling himself into servitude by marrying into our family. As long as he’s reasonable, how different is it from me marrying into another household?”
Xie Jiujiu understood her mother’s heart, but in this world, how many couples experience love at first sight, deeper affection upon meeting again, and a lifetime of harmony?
After all, having met so many people and heard so many stories while working with her father at Yun Ke Lai, she knew that truly exceptional marriages were rare—perhaps one or two in ten—while utterly wretched ones were just a few cases. The rest were ordinary, whether good or bad, and life simply went on.
“Mother, if I don’t stay at home, our family’s property will be seized by the clan. They won’t patiently wait for Wenji to grow up. If we lose Yun Ke Lai and the farmland, what kind of good marriage do you think I could find?”
“You can’t have it both ways—haven’t you understood this yet?”
Understood, it’s all understood! It’s just that this hurdle in my heart can’t be overcome. Huang Juan, covering her swollen gums from anxiety and irritation, dawdled at home, refusing to speak to anyone who came asking about Xie Jiujiu. Meanwhile, Granny Tian had already gotten wind of the news and came knocking.
As soon as she entered, she beamed at Xie Jiujiu and said, “The rumor outside about our eldest daughter planning to take in a son-in-law has spread like wildfire. I came today to ask if it’s true. If it is, don’t entrust this task to anyone else—leave it to me to handle.”