Xie Shi’an wandered the streets all day.

He went to teahouses, restaurants, employment agencies, gambling dens… As soon as those people heard his name was Xie Shi’an, they immediately mocked him and then threw him out.

The Xie family’s affairs, one incident after another, had caused such a huge commotion that most of the capital knew about it.

He wanted to find work to make a living, but it was simply impossible.

With great difficulty, he found a letter-writing shop where he could write letters for illiterate people. One letter only paid ten wen. Even if he wrote a hundred letters a day, that would only be one tael of silver.

One tael of silver couldn’t even buy one of the inkstones he used to own.

Such exhausting work couldn’t even earn enough for daily necessities—what was the point?

Xie Shi’an returned to the Xie residence with a dejected expression.

He went back to his own courtyard. Sanxiu still served him his meal as usual. After eating his fill, he got up and headed to Yuan Shi’s courtyard.

Just as he reached the entrance, he heard voices coming from inside.

“Madam, our days are getting harder and harder…” Tingyu held a handkerchief and wept. “Brother Yun and Brother Kang are both growing boys. Brother Yun is one thing, but Brother Kang is at the age when he needs to nurse. We can’t afford a wet nurse… Look at Brother Kang—he’s gotten so much thinner. If this continues, I’m afraid he won’t survive.”

Ever since Concubine Tao left, Brother Kang had been staying in Yuan Shi’s courtyard. Yuan Shi still had a loyal old servant woman attending to her. With the old woman lending a hand, things were somewhat easier for her. Otherwise, she didn’t know how she would get through these days.

She said, “The household has no income now. If we spend money recklessly and extravagantly, we’ll eventually eat through our savings…”

All the men in the family were dead, and all the silver was spent. She had pawned her jewelry accumulated over the years and only got about a hundred taels of silver.

Back when things were good, the Xie family’s monthly expenses were over a thousand taels of silver. Those good days were gone forever…

Before, when Yun Chu was the daughter-in-law managing the household, she didn’t need to worry about anything. Now that she was in charge, she wished she could split every wen into two to spend…

“Madam, do you know that Madam eats meat and fish every day…” Tingyu bit her lower lip. “Madam chose to stay with the Xie family, but she doesn’t consider this large household at all. She could clearly support Brother Kang, clearly let everyone live less miserably, yet she deliberately…”

Before she could finish speaking, Xie Shi’an walked in from outside.

“Is Concubine Yu blaming Mother?” His voice was clear and resonant. “Mother married into the Xie family, so she is a member of the Xie family. The Xie family should be supporting Mother. Yet now Mother relies on the Yun family’s assistance to maintain her previous lifestyle. Could it be that Concubine Yu wants the Yun family to support the entire Xie family? On what grounds? Because you, Concubine Yu, betrayed Mother and climbed into Father’s bed? Because I’m not Mother’s biological son? Is that it?”

His words made Tingyu’s face turn red and white alternately.

She never expected that Xie Shi’an would actually defend Madam…

Madam’s life was no different from before the Xie family’s downfall, while Xie Shi’an had fallen so low. Didn’t such a contrast make Xie Shi’an feel even the slightest bit of resentment?

“Brother An’s words are correct.” Yuan Shi nodded. “When people are down and out, they especially cannot ask others for help. Otherwise, they’ll forever be beneath others.”

Tingyu twisted her fingers.

She had always been a servant and didn’t care about being beneath others. She only wanted to make the present days easier to bear.

She said, “But if we don’t ask for help, we’ll forever be beneath others. Without Madam stepping forward, our Xie family will be like this for the rest of our lives. Young Master, your entire life will also stop here.”

Xie Shi’an looked at Tingyu and said, “Concubine Yu, you’re so eager for Mother to help the Xie family simply because Brother Yun has debts to the court. How about this—I’ll take on Brother Yun’s debts.”

Tingyu’s face erupted with disbelief. “Do you truly mean this?”

Brother Yun carried over eighty thousand taels of silver in debt—this debt had completely crushed her.

She never imagined that Xie Shi’an would voluntarily offer to take on this sum.

She didn’t dare show too much delight and asked warily, “Are there conditions?”

“Concubine Yu is indeed clever.” Xie Shi’an said unhurriedly, “I plan to do business and need capital. If Concubine Yu gives me one hundred taels of silver, it will offset one thousand taels of debt. That is to say, Concubine Yu only needs to give me just over eight thousand taels, and Brother Yun will be debt-free and light as air.”

“E-eight thousand taels…” Tingyu smiled bitterly. “Young Master thinks too highly of me.”

She had served in the Yun household since childhood. The monthly allowances plus the usual rewards over the years had accumulated to less than a thousand taels.

After becoming a concubine in the Xie residence, although she was half a mistress, because she had no dowry, apart from her monthly allowance, she had no other income…

How could she possibly produce eight thousand taels of silver?

“If Concubine Yu can’t produce it, then I’ll think of ways to gather the capital myself.” Xie Shi’an said word by word. “I’ve given Concubine Yu a chance. Don’t blame me later for not shouldering my responsibility as the eldest brother.”

He turned to leave.

Tingyu grabbed him. “Can I give you some first and gradually give you the rest later?”

Xie Shi’an nodded with great magnanimity. “Fine. Then give me the court’s debt note, Concubine Yu. Whenever you’ve paid the full eight thousand taels, that’s when I’ll put my handprint on the note.”

When night fell, Yun Chu returned home.

Tingfeng told her everything that had happened at the Xie residence in detail.

She once again marveled that Xie Shi’an truly was talented—even in such desperate straits, he could carve out a way forward.

Although Tingyu was only a concubine, she was also a mother. For the sake of Brother Yun, she would certainly go all out to scrape together eight thousand taels of silver.

“Tingyu really is no good. Where has Madam ever treated her poorly? Yet she insists on dragging the old madam to scheme against Madam!” Tingfeng said indignantly. “She should think carefully—with the Xie family in this state, shouldn’t she come to Madam to repent and seek a way to survive?”

“Because she knows Madam won’t acknowledge her.” Tingxue changed the subject and handed over several drawings. “These are several site options that Uncle Chen had someone send over. Please review them, Madam.”

These were locations selected for the refuge. Yun Chu examined them carefully.

Before doing this, she had looked through ancient texts from successive dynasties. Since the Southern Dynasty, subsequent rulers had all established some refuges, but because funding was distributed layer by layer downward, there were serious corruption problems. Very little silver actually went to the widows, widowers, orphans, and childless elderly. Moreover, the court only provided one-time funding to refuge institutions. Getting the court to produce more silver later was nearly impossible…

Wars required money. Occasional floods and droughts required money to settle refugees. Occasional repairs to city walls and official roads—everywhere required money… The silver needed for refuge institutions was always put last, always neglected…

This was why, even though there were court-run refuges, beggars could still be seen everywhere on the streets.

She didn’t have the ability to help all homeless people.

Among the widows, widowers, orphans, and childless elderly, she could only choose to help the most powerless orphans—that is, children who had lost their parents or children who had been abandoned.