Chen Shi came from a family of scholars and farmers. Raised in the inner chambers from childhood learning proper conduct, her temperament was gentle and compliant. Wang Shi was different. Not only did she come from a merchant family, she had been opinionated from a young age and grasped accounting matters immediately. Back then, Yu Tang’s grandfather had taken a liking to this quality when he arranged Yu Bo’s marriage to her. Therefore, Wang Shi’s personality was quite straightforward. When speaking with family, she liked to be direct.
Seeing Yu Tang’s bewildered appearance, the sisters-in-law couldn’t help but laugh heartily. Wang Shi even spoke up quickly before Chen Shi: “You already know that Madam Li came to our house to make trouble, don’t you? Too bad you came back late, otherwise you could have seen Madam Li’s wretched state! Hmph! Trying to bully our family—not a chance!”
This fierce eldest aunt was someone she had seen when she was little. Later, Eldest Aunt spoke less and less, becoming increasingly spiritless. When encountering matters or people, she would yield more often than speak her mind directly.
It was because of their circumstances, wasn’t it?
In her previous life, among her family members, those who died had died, those who scattered had scattered. Her son and niece both lived difficult lives without even a relative to support them. Naturally she was afraid of causing trouble for her son and niece, so she sought peace in all matters.
In this life, everything was going smoothly. The family’s days were like sesame flowers blooming—each segment higher than the last—clearly about to flourish. Eldest Aunt’s backbone had straightened. Never mind Madam Li—even if the prefect’s wife came, if there was no reason for it, Eldest Aunt would probably dare to argue back.
Such an elder not only made her feel proud and vindicated, but more than that, she felt gratified and proud.
One day, she could also become a support and source of confidence for her parents and elders. It wouldn’t be in vain that her parents and elders had sheltered her from wind and rain when she was young, giving her an opportunity to repay them.
Yu Tang’s eyes slightly blurry, she stepped forward and took Eldest Aunt’s arm, saying with a low laugh, “What does Eldest Aunt mean by this? I merely went out for a bit. How is it that when I return, I feel like everything has been turned upside down? Please quickly tell me the whole story from beginning to end!”
Chen Shi smiled chidingly and patted her shoulder, scolding her with “How are you speaking to your eldest aunt?” before going to pour her a cup of tea, gesturing for everyone to sit down and talk.
Yu Tang sat down next to Wang Shi.
Only then did Wang Shi smilingly tell her everything that had happened before.
It turned out that on the second day, Li Duan had gone to Hangzhou to pay New Year respects to the Gu family. Unexpectedly, Old Master Gu was ill, and Gu Xi along with her father and stepmother had all gone to the main branch to visit the sick. After he arrived, the Gu family’s eldest master only made an appearance before handing him over to a steward from the Gu family’s second branch. That steward, for some unknown reason, set out a banquet table and left him alone in the guest room. Neither arranging anyone to keep him company and entertain him nor arranging anyone to serve him, Li Duan felt somewhat displeased and found an excuse to rush back to Lin’an that very evening. Then on the eighth day, someone from the Gu family’s second branch suddenly came, saying Second Master Gu had invited Li Duan to the house to talk. Li Duan didn’t dare neglect this. He changed into new clothes and brought generous gifts to Hangzhou.
Who knew that after drinking tea with Li Duan for a long time, Second Master Gu tactfully indicated that Miss Gu was still young, and the originally set wedding date would need to be postponed for a few years and discussed again later.
Li Duan exploded upon hearing this.
Although the Gu family hadn’t explicitly said they wanted to break off the engagement, this clearly meant dragging things out without proceeding.
He pressed for a reason.
The Gu family only said they had consulted a fortune teller for Miss Gu, and Miss Gu should not marry within the next few years, otherwise there would be danger to her life. The Gu family had been frightened hearing this. Better to believe it exists than believe it doesn’t—they decided to wait two years before discussing it again.
This reason sounded righteous and stern. Li Duan cared greatly about this marriage and didn’t want to tear his face with the Gu family, so he could only follow the Gu family’s meaning and play verbal taiji with Second Master Gu for a long time, smoothing the matter over.
But he wasn’t the kind of person without his own opinion when encountering matters.
As soon as he left the Gu Manor, he scattered silver and sent people to investigate the matter.
Soon, news that the Gu family already knew about the grudge between the Li family and the Yu family reached his ears.
What had happened was fact—he couldn’t say it didn’t happen. But how to reverse the Gu family’s impression of him required careful long-term planning.
He first returned to Lin’an.
As soon as he got off the dock, he discovered Sanmu furtively spying on him.
He originally had anger in his heart. Grabbing Sanmu, he interrogated him harshly.
Sanmu said nothing. Li Duan gained nothing but turned his suspicious gaze toward the Yu family.
Returning to the manor, Lin Shi immediately learned of this matter from the mouth of a servant attending her son.
She was certain the Yu family was playing tricks. Thinking that her son would take the examination in two years and was counting on Miss Gu’s brother Gu Chang to help and support him—if there was a change in the marriage between the Gu and Li families, what would happen to Li Duan? What would happen to their Li family?
You must know that their family had split from the Li clan. Who knew how many people were watching, wanting to see their family become a laughingstock. Even more wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to get some benefit from their family.
She was both anxious and angry. Taking several strong servant women, she came knocking on their door.
Chen Shi was home alone at the time and didn’t dare open the door at all. Seeing something was wrong, Chen Pozi quietly ran out the back door to find Wang Shi.
Wang Shi was no pushover. She came running over aggressively and immediately confronted Lin Shi on the spot.
Lin Shi, after all, had been raised as a proper young lady. All these years things had gone smoothly for her. If not for the monk’s sake, then for the Buddha’s—when there were any conflicts, others would yield to her. How had she ever encountered Wang Shi’s kind of marketplace manner? After several rounds, she was so angry she fainted and was carried home by her family’s servant women.
After Wang Shi finished speaking, she still wasn’t satisfied and said, “If it weren’t for considering that you need to discuss marriage this year, how could I have just let her go back like that? No matter what, I should have chased her to the main street and had all the neighbors help judge the matter. Just because their family produced a scholar doesn’t make them so great. Could it be that every time their family has something bad happen in the future, it’s all related to our family?”
Perhaps it was bringing up what had just happened—when she said this, she was somewhat angry.
Chen Shi hurriedly refilled Wang Shi’s tea, soothing her: “Don’t get angry. Isn’t their family just trying to make our family angry too? If we get angry, we lose.”
Wang Shi took several deep breaths, still muttering “not angry, not angry.”
Yu Tang was embarrassed, secretly blaming her eldest cousin in her heart for not listening to her and not having A’Liu, who sold water pears, watch Li Duan. But thinking it over, if the Li family didn’t know about such matters, what difference would it be from wearing brocade at night?
The Li family needed to know.
They needed to jump in anger.
Yu Tang snorted coldly in her heart and said to Eldest Aunt, “Lin Shi didn’t find the wrong place. The grudge between their family and ours—I was the one who told the Gu family.”
Wang Shi and Chen Shi listened in stunned silence.
Since she had already returned safely from Hangzhou, the family elders wouldn’t worry about her safety anymore, so she had nothing to hide. She told Wang Shi and Chen Shi the entire course of events in detail, then said, “This was my idea! Why is it that when the Li family makes a mess of our family, they only need to apologize and we have to forgive them, but our family can’t also find them some trouble?”
In her previous life, hadn’t their Yu family been destroyed by the Li family?
If she hadn’t been reborn, if she didn’t have memories of her previous life, wouldn’t the Yu family still be framed by the Li family just like in the previous life!
Yu Tang said coldly, “I was going to let it go at that, but those evildoers won’t let us go. The more we evade and yield, the more they’ll push their advantage and commit even more evil.”
Hearing this, Chen Shi stamped her feet anxiously and said, “Child, you’re too thoughtless! When will revenge ever end? Better to avoid trouble than seek it. We’re all fine now—you shouldn’t go stirring up this trouble.”
Wang Shi, however, was the opposite of Chen Shi. She felt Yu Tang’s words were exactly to her taste.
She said to Chen Shi, “A’Tang is right. Why is it that just because we’re softhearted we have to suffer losses? After they scheme against others and apologize, we have to forgive them? If I’d known earlier this was A’Tang’s doing, when I was quarreling with the Li family people just now, I should have admitted it. I should have dragged her to the main street and had the passing neighbors help judge—with matters having come to this, even though our Yu family has lost face, the Li family has lost even more face. The Gu family actually wants to postpone the marriage contract!”
The reason Li Duan could command respect now was precisely because he had latched onto the big tree of the Gu family, wasn’t it?
If the Li family didn’t have the Gu family as in-laws, they were merely a family that produced a fourth-rank official. What was there to fear!
“This…” Chen Shi vaguely felt this wasn’t quite right, but was also swayed by Wang Shi’s words. For a moment she didn’t know what to say.
Yu Tang simply said, “Mother, when narrow paths meet, the brave prevail. Before, I had too many misgivings. For this matter I had to think three times before acting, for that matter I had to consider everything thoroughly. And the result?”
The result was that her uncle and eldest cousin both met with misfortune.
If in her previous life she could have left the Li family earlier, would everything have been different?
Yu Tang’s eyes held tears.
“Madam, A’Tang is right!” Yu Wen’s voice suddenly appeared in the room.
Everyone turned their heads to look.
Yu Wen had returned at some unknown time and was standing at the room’s entrance with a serious expression, listening to their conversation.
“Husband!”
“Second Uncle!”
“Father!”
The three simultaneously greeted Yu Wen.
Yu Wen’s face showed a trace of a smile. He placed his hand on Yu Tang’s shoulder and said to Wang Shi, “Elder Sister-in-law is the one with insight. Wolves are ferocious, so we must be more ferocious than wolves to become good hunters.” After speaking, he bowed deeply to Wang Shi and said, “Today, thanks to Elder Sister-in-law’s help. I won’t speak polite words. In a while, I’ll have A’Tang’s mother personally cook a few dishes. You and Elder Brother come to the house to drink.”
Having her younger brother-in-law thank her so solemnly, Wang Shi’s face turned red. She waved her hands helplessly, saying “Second Uncle is too polite.”
Yu Wen had already turned to address Chen Shi: “If you encounter such matters in the future, just discuss with Elder Sister-in-law and listen to Elder Sister-in-law.”
Just now when Wang Shi confronted Lin Shi, Chen Shi had already admired Wang Shi to the point of prostrating herself. Now hearing Yu Wen say this, she admired Wang Shi even more and hurried to thank Wang Shi.
The sisters-in-law were being polite to each other when Yu Wen had already turned a stern face to interrogate Yu Tang: “How do you have such audacity to actually dare to run to Hangzhou like that? Are your father and brother just for show? Why didn’t you tell me about this matter beforehand?”
Didn’t she bring Eldest Cousin along?
Yu Tang, seeing her father lose his temper, only dared to argue back secretly in her heart. On the surface, however, she hung her head, looking like someone who had done wrong.
Then Yu Wen’s next sentence made Yu Tang unable to help bursting into laughter.
“If I’d known earlier you had this clever scheme, I should have gone with you!”