“Second Brother! What nonsense are you spouting? Hurry up and apologize to Mother!” Yan Lao Da barked, shattering the heavy silence.
How could anyone casually bring up splitting the family? Did he not care that such words would deeply wound the old woman’s heart?
Yan Lao Er wiped his face with a rough hand. He kept his head lowered, not daring to meet his mother’s eyes, yet his tone remained stubbornly firm, “We must split the family! Just because the households separate doesn’t mean we won’t take care of you. We will still fulfill our filial duties. We’re only dividing the property now, so there won’t be disputes down the line.”
“Disputes?” Yan Liu Shi narrowed her eyes, letting out a cold, biting laugh as she stared at her second son. How could she not see right through the very flesh she had given birth to? “You’re afraid I’ll use up your precious unborn son’s inheritance, aren’t you?”
That lump of flesh hadn’t even entered the world yet, and his parents were already greedily eyeing her possessions.
What a ‘wonderful’ son she had raised.
Yan Liu Shi’s sharp, piercing gaze swept over to Wang Xuefeng. Originally, she had thought this second daughter-in-law of hers was merely a sharp-tongued gossip. She had never expected the woman to possess such manipulative malice, capable of instigating her own son into demanding a family split. Meeting the matriarch’s glare, Wang Xuefeng couldn’t help but shiver.
Seeing Yan Liu Shi fall into an ominous silence, everyone assumed she was preparing to reject the proposal entirely. Unexpectedly, she turned her head toward her daughter. “Ji Niang, do you want to split the family?”
Yan Ji wasn’t surprised by the sudden question.
In the memories of the body’s original owner, after Wang Xuefeng incited Yan Lao Er to propose the split, Yan Liu Shi had asked the exact same thing. Back then, the original owner had cried and refused to separate, leading Yan Liu Shi to fiercely reject the idea. That single decision had triggered a miserable chain of events, eventually driving Yan Liu Shi into a severe, lingering illness as her health deteriorated day by day.
With that thought in mind, Yan Ji smiled faintly. Still supporting Yan Liu Shi, she gently patted the older woman’s back to soothe her before replying softly, “Since Second Brother is so eager to split the family, then let it be split, Mother.”
Yan Ji’s voice was incredibly gentle. Looking at the serene smile on her face and the bright clarity in her eyes, it was obvious she truly didn’t care about the family’s meager assets.
Yan Liu Shi patted Yan Ji’s hand reassuringly. She cast a long, deep look at the rest of her children before lowering her eyes and leading the way into the main hall.
“Fine. We are splitting.” The old woman announced coldly. “Every last one of you can get out and live on your own. This old woman can’t be bothered to manage you anymore anyway. After all, you’re all grown up with wings of your own now.”
A flash of pure joy sparked in Wang Xuefeng’s eyes. She quickly lowered her head to hide her triumph, scurrying behind Yan Lao Er as they filed into the room.
“This house was left behind by your late father, so the property itself cannot be divided.” Yan Liu Shi commanded, sitting at the head table. “There are two hundred jin[1]a traditional Chinese unit of weight equal to 500 grams or roughly 1.1 pounds jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_2390282_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_2390282_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], }); of grain left in the storage room, and each household gets fifty jin. The pots, bowls, and utensils will be split evenly among you as well. As for the personal belongings currently in your respective rooms, I won’t interfere.”
As she spoke, Yan Liu Shi untied her purse and emptied fifty taels of silver onto the table with a heavy clink.
“Each family will take ten taels. In the future, do not come begging this old woman for a single copper. Keep whatever money you earn, and if you run out, find your own ways to survive. The remaining twenty taels belong to me and Ji Niang. I will not be living with any of you. Every month, each household needs only to provide me with ten jin of grain and two hundred copper coins as filial support. I am not asking for much.”
Seeing the silver glittering across the weathered wooden table, everyone’s eyes widened in sheer astonishment.
None of them had expected their mother to have saved so much silver. In their rural village, a single tael, if managed carefully, could support a small family for a month or two. Ten taels was a small fortune.
“Mother, isn’t it a bit inappropriate for you to live with Little Sister?” Yan Lao Er hesitated, shifting uncomfortably. “Little Sister can barely even support herself, let alone……”
Yan Liu Shi scoffed, cutting him off with a venomous glare. Ignoring him entirely, she barked at each household to take their silver and get out of her sight.
“As for the farmland, I’m too lazy to bother dividing it up.” She added carelessly. “Whoever was responsible for which fields before will continue tending to them.”
And just like that, an affair as notoriously messy and volatile as splitting a family household was settled in a matter of sentences by Yan Liu Shi.
Without giving anyone else a chance to object, the matriarch grabbed Yan Ji’s hand and pulled her straight into her private room.
“Ji Niang, take this silver.” Yan Liu Shi immediately pressed the remaining twenty taels into Yan Ji’s palms.
Yan Ji froze for a moment, reflexively trying to push it back. “Mother, you should keep this money for yourself.”
“If I tell you to take it, you take it!” Yan Liu Shi insisted, wrapping her weathered hands over her daughter’s. “Mother still has the silver from selling that wild ginseng root yesterday. I didn’t include a single copper of it in the split. Besides, separating the households is a good thing. Ever since your brothers took wives, their hearts have turned entirely toward their own little families. None of them will care about you anymore. Mother is getting old, too. In a little while, I’ll find you a good, honorable marriage and settle your future properly!”
The broken pieces of silver in Yan Ji’s hands still carried the residual warmth of Yan Liu Shi’s body, making them feel incredibly heavy— almost uncomfortably hot.
Listening to Yan Liu Shi’s endless, fussing murmurs, Yan Ji stared at the old woman in a slight daze.
As a fox spirit, Yan Ji had countless siblings, and their parents had never poured much affection into any of them. Once a pup grew up, they were left entirely to fend for themselves in a brutal world. This was the very first time Yan Ji had ever clearly, undeniably experienced the warmth of maternal love.
Even if she was merely borrowing someone else’s body to feel it.
It was precisely because of Yan Liu Shi’s fierce, unconditional devotion that Yan Ji finally began to take this world, and her mission within it, seriously.
Smiling softly, she leaned over and rested her head against Yan Liu Shi’s shoulder. “Mother, in just a few more days, I will earn plenty of money. When that time comes, we will build a beautiful new house and move out together, just the two of us, so you can finally enjoy a life of ease.”
“Good, good, good.” Yan Liu Shi crooned. She didn’t care whether her daughter’s words were realistic or just a sweet dream. She simply nodded repeatedly, a deeply gratified smile crinkling her eyes.
……
After the afternoon rest, Yan Liu Shi headed back out to the fields.
By then, news of the Yan family’s sudden split had already spread through the village like wildfire. The local gossips whispered that it was all because Yan Ji had been spoiled rotten since childhood— that her lazy, pampered nature had finally driven her brothers and sisters-in-law to break up the household.
Not long after the others left, Yan Ji also slipped out, carrying her heavy pot and basket toward the back mountain.
The scented balm she had brewed the day before had fully solidified. The moment she pried open one of the small boxes, a crisp, incredibly refreshing fragrance drifted into the air.
On her way up the mountain path, Yan Ji crossed paths with several village women carrying baskets of their own, likely heading up to gather firewood. Catching sight of her, the women exchanged knowing glances before offering tight, patronizing smiles.
“Ji Niang, where are you headed with that big basket?” One called out testingly.
“To the back mountain.” Yan Ji replied, looking them dead in the eye with a serene smile.
Framed against her flawless, delicate face, that passing smile was so breathtakingly beautiful that it left the gossiping women entirely speechless.
“Going to gather firewood? Well, aren’t you a diligent one!” Another woman chimed in, her tone dripping with hidden sarcasm.
Yan Ji merely offered a polite smile without bothering to correct them. She quickened her pace, and before long, she had left the group of women far behind in the dust.
Only after her slender figure had completely vanished from sight did the gossips lean in and begin muttering among themselves.
“Ji Niang gathering firewood? Give me a break. With a face like that? It’s far more likely she’s sneaking off to slack around somewhere.”
“Exactly. Just look at that fair, delicate skin of hers. She doesn’t look like she was made for an ounce of hard labor.”
Yan Ji, naturally, had no idea she was the subject of village gossip.
She found her usual secluded spot on the back mountain and set to work, losing herself in the process of crafting fragrances once more. Along the way, she also gathered another armful of vibrantly colored wildflowers from the deeper parts of the forest.
However, as she packed up her things and prepared to leave, she caught sight of a young man sitting on the damp earth. He was clutching his foot, his features contorted in sharp pain.
Originally, Yan Ji had absolutely no intention of meddling in a stranger’s business. Unexpectedly, the usually silent 052 suddenly chimed in in her mind, 〖That is Lin Zhiyan.〗
Lin Zhiyan? Yan Ji raised her brows, her interest piqued. The very husband the original owner was supposed to marry— the future county magistrate?
Her footsteps shifted direction, and she began walking toward the stranded young scholar.
Lin Zhiyan wore simple gray robes, and though his face was currently pale with pain, his features were remarkably refined and scholarly. Hearing approaching footsteps, he lifted his head and saw a young woman in a light blue dress slowly stepping through the trees toward him.
She was breathtakingly beautiful, with skin as flawless as fresh snow. Most striking of all were her eyes— shimmering with a liquid, captivating light that seemed to draw him in.
“Where are you hurt?” Yan Ji asked, stopping beside him.
Aside from his mother, Lin Zhiyan had spent his entire life surrounded by nothing but books and scholarly texts. This was his very first time interacting with an unfamiliar woman his own age. For a fleeting second, the sheer presence of her made him completely forget the throbbing pain in his foot.
The tips of his ears turned a bright crimson as he softly stammered, “I…… I was accidentally bitten by a snake just now.”
“Did you see what it looked like?” Yan Ji asked, crouching down beside him without a trace of hesitation.
Lin Zhiyan shook his head gloomily, looking quite helpless. “It moved much too quickly. I couldn’t get a clear look.”
“Let me see the wound.”
Yan Ji frowned, reaching out her delicate hand to inspect his injury, but Lin Zhiyan reflexively shrank back to stop her.
Two bright patches of blush erupted on his refined face. His gaze darted around nervously, utterly unable to hold Yan Ji’s captivating eyes. Stiffening his neck in a display of rigid propriety, he stammered, “M-men and women…… should not touch each other so familiarly……”
Yan Ji paused, inwardly rolling her eyes at the absolute bookworm before her.
Amused yet helpless, she countered, “You’re on the verge of losing your life, and you’re still worrying about rigid etiquette? Let me see the wound so I can check if the snake was venomous.”
Without waiting for another protest, she brushed his hands aside and decisively rolled up his pant leg. Two small puncture wounds marred his ankle. Yan Ji pinched the skin and squeezed hard. Bright red blood immediately welled to the surface. Seeing that the color was normal and untainted by venom, she finally relaxed. “You’re lucky. It wasn’t poisonous.”
The moment she looked up, she found that Lin Zhiyan’s face had turned a shade of crimson so deep it looked ready to drip blood.
Yan Ji froze for a second before finding it thoroughly entertaining. No wonder some of her peers in the fox spirit clan loved seducing stiff, uptight scholars in the mortal realm. They truly were unexpectedly delightful to fluster.
Remembering her mission, however, Yan Ji suppressed the urge to tease him any further. Rising to her feet, she offered a soft, reassuring smile. “Wait here a moment. I’ll find some herbs to patch you up. Please forgive my forwardness just now.”
“I-it is no matter……” Lin Zhiyan mumbled, hurriedly pulling his pant leg back down to cover his ankle.
It didn’t take long for Yan Ji to return with a cluster of wild medicinal herbs. Using a clean stone, she crushed the leaves into a pulp and carefully applied the poultice to his wound.
“May I ask your name, Miss?” Lin Zhiyan asked as he tentatively stood up. The burning blush on his face had finally begun to fade, and the throbbing pain in his foot had eased considerably. “In the future, I will certainly visit your home to properly express my gratitude.”
Yan Ji smiled beautifully. “Just call me Ji Niang. There is no need for such formality. Since you can walk now, I still have chores to finish and won’t escort you down the mountain. Safe travels.”
With that, she turned and glided away.
Watching her retreating figure disappear into the trees, Lin Zhiyan pursed his lips slightly, a strange, unreadable emotion flickering in his eyes. He caught a breath of the air around him and realized a lingering, ethereal fragrance had clung to his robes. It took him a long while to finally pull himself together and limp his way down the mountain.
……
Back at her secluded spot, Yan Ji threw herself back into her work, and the brief encounter with the young scholar was quickly pushed to the back of her mind. To her, the most urgent matter at hand was earning enough silver to build a home and move out with Yan Liu Shi.
Driven by her eagerness to make a profit, Yan Ji’s hands moved with practiced grace, allowing her to brew another six boxes of scented balm in a single afternoon. Combined with yesterday’s batch, she now had ten boxes in total— each boasting a unique color and its own distinct fragrance.
Satisfied with her haul, Yan Ji decided she would head to the town market the very next morning to sell them. Having made up her mind, she packed her tools into the basket and made her way home.
As fate would have it, she ran into her eldest sister-in-law just as the woman was stepping out of the kitchen. Seeing Yan Ji return, Yan Lin Shi offered a warm smile and waved her over.
“Ji Niang, come carry the food inside. I know you don’t know your way around a stove, and Mother must be absolutely exhausted after a full day in the fields, so I went ahead and prepared your meals along with ours.”
Yan Ji was caught off guard by the unexpected kindness, but she quickly recovered and thanked the woman with a genuine smile.
When Yan Liu Shi finally returned and found a hot, freshly cooked meal waiting in her room, she was equally surprised. Once she learned that her eldest daughter-in-law had gone out of her way to prepare it for them, the old woman couldn’t help but sigh softly. “Lao Da’s wife…… she truly is a thoughtful one.”
References[+]