The Ye family was quite surprised to see Xie Bohuai.
After obtaining the marriage certificate and betrothal gifts and comforting her grandmother, Ye Wanning waited in the front courtyard with her younger sisters for Second Brother to return.
“Lord Xie has been a great help to us, so I invited him to our home as a guest.” Ye Mingyue grinned as he approached his eldest sister. “Did Elder Brother give you the house deed?”
“Yes.”
Ye Mingde believed the Zhou family’s house deed should be given to Ye Wanning as compensation.
But Ye Wanning declined. The money Zhou Yu had spent belonged to the Ye Family, not her personal savings. She asked Elder Brother to sell it and use the proceeds to buy grain.
After answering Second Brother, she noticed Xie Bohuai looking at her. Remembering how her younger sisters feared Xie Bohuai, she asked Second Brother to entertain him properly while she took her sisters back first.
“My sisters are quite shy. After such a major event today, they must be feeling upset. Come, Brother Xie, I’ve long admired your way of handling affairs. I have some fine wine I’ve been saving—today we drink until we drop!” Ye Mingyue was sociable and made friends easily, whether with people from all walks of life or scions of noble families, as long as he took a liking to them.
He summoned Ye Mingde to join them, and the three drank in the main residence while Lin Shi went to find Ye Wanning and the others.
During the meal, the sisters-in-law tacitly avoided mentioning Zhou Yu. Seeing everyone was restrained, Ye Wanning went to the garden alone after dinner.
Unexpectedly, she encountered Xie Bohuai.
In the faint moonlight, Xie Bohuai’s tall figure was unmistakable, and Ye Wanning recognized him at once.
Keeping a distance of two zhang, Ye Wanning took another step back.
“Does Miss Ye fear me?” Xie Bohuai’s voice was cool, much like his demeanor, suggesting he wasn’t easy to get along with.
“No.” Ye Wanning cited the propriety between men and women. “Why is Lord Xie in the garden? Where are my brothers?”
“They’re drunk.” Xie Bohuai observed Ye Wanning keeping her head lowered—she truly seemed afraid of him.
Not that he blamed her; any young lady would be frightened after witnessing a killing.
Ye Wanning was somewhat surprised. While Elder Brother had little tolerance for alcohol, Second Brother was known for his capacity—how could he have lost to Xie Bohuai?
She looked up and met Xie Bohuai’s dark eyes. An overwhelming sense of pressure warned her it would be better to take her leave soon.
As if sensing her intention to leave, Xie Bohuai asked another question, “Is Miss Ye sad?”
What kind of question was that?
Ye Wanning thought for a moment before realizing he was referring to Zhou Yu. Saying she wasn’t sad would sound insincere, but she didn’t feel particularly sad either—today had brought more relief than anything.
“Life must go on. Whether I’m sad or not isn’t important.” Ye Wanning offered an ambiguous reply, but to Xie Bohuai, it sounded like she was indeed sad.
“You’re quite resilient, Miss.”
Was it her imagination, or did Xie Bohuai’s tone carry a hint of laughter? What did that mean? Was he mocking her for being naive?
“Since my brothers are drunk, I’ll have someone else escort Lord Xie out.” Ye Wanning didn’t wish to linger with Xie Bohuai. They were from different worlds—they’d had no intersection in the past, and there would be none in the future.
In the darkness, a flicker of disappointment crossed Xie Bohuai’s eyes. “What are your plans from now on?”
“My grandmother, brothers, and sisters-in-law will make decisions for me.” Ye Wanning hadn’t noticed Xie Bohuai asking so many questions before. Her heart fluttered uneasily—what was going on with him, persistently inquiring like this?
Silence fell around them.
Ye Wanning stared at Xie Bohuai’s shoe tips, not daring to look up at his expression. After what felt like an eternity, she finally saw him turn away and quietly let out a sigh of relief.
“Young mistress, Commander Xie is truly terrifying,” Yunzhi took a deep breath. “If I were to encounter him alone, my legs would surely go weak.”
Ye Wanning agreed, “He holds a high position, and too many people want to curry favor with him. If he doesn’t maintain a stern demeanor, it would be difficult for him to carry out his duties. He is indeed intimidating, but he bears no hostility toward the Ye Family. As Grandmother said, we should neither offend nor flatter him.”
Yunzhi nodded and walked back with her mistress. “Now that we’ve called off the marriage with the Zhou family, a weight has been lifted from our minds. With your talent and beauty, young mistress, you are sure to find a better match.”
Ye Wanning smiled without responding. Marriage was no longer important to her. All she wanted was a husband who would treat her with mutual respect. As for matters of love, she no longer held any expectations.
Although the engagement had been broken off, Zhou Yu was a hypocritical and vindictive man. As long as he lived, Ye Wanning could not live in peace.
Today was just the beginning. She wanted Zhou Yu to taste the bitterness of losing his family and everything he held dear.
Returning to her room, Ye Wanning took out twenty taels in silver notes. “Zhou Yu is currently in dire need of money, and Madam Zhou is short-sighted. Send Fusheng to find a moneylender who offers usurious loans and have him approach Madam Zhou while Zhou Yu is away.”
With Zhou Yu around, many plans would fail. But Madam Zhou was foolish—she was the easiest target.
Yunzhi, who wished nothing but worse misfortune upon the Zhou family, waited until her mistress had retired before taking the silver notes and leaving.
Meanwhile, Zhou Yu sat by the bedside, sighing repeatedly as he looked at his mother’s pale face.
Mother Zhou drifted in and out of sleep, her mind haunted by images of Xie Bohuai threatening to kill her. The fear was so overwhelming that she had wet herself.
Xu Zhuling entered with a bowl of water. “Cousin, you should go and rest. You’re still injured—I can take care of Aunt here.”
“My son, you must avenge me!” Mother Zhou suddenly grabbed Zhou Yu’s sleeve. “The Ye Family has gone too far! We cannot let Ye Wanning get away with this!”
“Mother, please calm down. If you hadn’t insisted on causing a scene at the Ye Family’s home, would they have called off the engagement?” Zhou Yu was filled with resentment. “Look at us now—we have no home left, and our reputation is in ruins. Do you only care about your own satisfaction, even if it means driving me to my death?”
“You… you blame me?” Mother Zhou stared at him in disbelief.
Zhou Yu remained silent, tacitly admitting it.
How could he not blame her?
He had everything planned.
Once Ye Wanning married into the family, he would coax her into handing over her dowry and then adopt Feng Ge’er as his foster son.
After years of ingratiating himself with the Ye Family, he had finally been on the verge of success—only to be undermined by his own foolish mother.
“Hah.” Zhou Yu took a deep breath. He refused to accept this fate. Without so much as a glance at Xu Zhuling, he turned and left the room.
Watching Zhou Yu’s retreating figure, Xu Zhuling twisted her handkerchief and knelt down, murmuring self-reproachfully, “Cousin must blame me too. Aunt, do you think he might cast me aside?”
“How dare he?” Mother Zhou grasped Xu Zhuling’s hand reassuringly. “As long as I am alive, you will be part of the Zhou Family. It’s just as well that Ye Wanning is gone. Once we are settled, I will arrange for you to marry Yu’er. I am his mother—he cannot disobey me.”
Hearing that she could marry Zhou Yu, Xu Zhuling felt a surge of joy. As for their current predicament, she believed Zhou Yu would find a way to resolve it.
Xu Zhuling thoughtfully wiped Mother Zhou’s face. Mother Zhou, enjoying Xu Zhuling’s attentive care, found her increasingly pleasing. Thinking of Ye Wanning, she gritted her teeth in hatred. “That venomous woman Ye Wanning! Just you wait—one day I’ll make sure she loses everything!”
After a long day of commotion, Mother Zhou grew tired and fell asleep, still quarreling with the Ye Family in her dreams.
However, before she could witness Ye Wanning’s downfall, Ye Wanning had already earned another sum of money.
After the broken engagement, Ye Wanning kept a low profile and stayed indoors, but secretly had people purchase a large amount of grain. Half a month later, the grain’s value doubled.
By mid-May, the grain’s value had tripled. After setting aside what was needed for her own consumption, she sold the rest. Ye Wanning earned one thousand taels of silver for her private savings, while the Ye Family’s accounts saw an additional three thousand taels.