Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 12 Opportunity
“Mother,” Yang Mingjing said in a low voice, “what I said just now was only a temporary measure.”

Yang Mingjing would never make an enemy of the Xie family for the sake of "Xie Shiniang," and he didn't need to consider which side was more important.

As for what Xie Shiniang said...

He said in a low voice, "I saw when I was close by that Xie really did have calluses on her hands from holding a pen."

He's father passed the imperial examination at the age of nineteen, but unfortunately, he failed every year for the next twenty years. His family became so impoverished that they could no longer afford to support his studies, and his family advised him to give up. However, he was unwilling to give up, so he betrothed He to Yang Mingjing, which finally raised enough money for her to take the imperial examination.

Back then, the second branch of the Yang family was not as prosperous as it is now. They had no land in the clan and relied on the third branch for a living. Because of her status as the daughter of a scholar, she was highly valued by the old lady of the third branch and was arranged to work in the clan at a young age.

Having benefited from this, He became very interested in the affairs of scholars and knew more about them than the average person.

When Xie Shiniang spoke, she deliberately stared at Xie Shiniang's right hand.

There was a rough patch of skin on her middle finger, the result of years of writing, and she also exuded a scholarly air about her. She was certain that Xie had been educated; there was no doubt about that.

Only wealthy and powerful families could afford to support a woman who could write like this.

Based on this, it can be inferred that the Xie family did not come from an ordinary family.

Just as Old Mrs. Yang breathed a sigh of relief because of Yang Mingjing's words, her heart clenched again when she heard He mention these things, and her eyes even turned a little red.

Old Mrs. Yang said indignantly, "How could we have married her?"

They knew all along that the Xie family would use a corpse to take the place, but they didn't expect the Xie family to make a mistake on this. Women die every day in Daming Prefecture, so why would they use someone who is not dead?
Old Mrs. Yang said, "What can we do? Just because of these things... are we going to let her bring such harm to the Yang family?"

Old Mrs. Yang thought of an old saying: It's easy to invite a god, but difficult to send him away.

He said, "Even so, it can only be said that Xie lived a good life in the past."

Old Mrs. Yang didn't understand.

He continued, "Every year in Daliang, officials are beheaded, and those were all scholars. Only when a family falls into poverty can the women of the family end up living in exile."

“Yes, yes,” Old Mrs. Yang had never felt that Mrs. He was so considerate. “It must be a decline! Judging from what she said, she wasn’t taught by a respectable family. The family’s fortune is destined not to last long.”

I rode on her neck the moment I married into the family. For the sake of the bigger picture, I'll let her back down this once. I can't let her suffer this humiliation every time.

Old Mrs. Yang couldn't wait to receive the news. The best outcome would be that Xie's father and mother would die and the entire clan would be wiped out.

Yang Mingjing knew what the two old ladies were thinking: "No matter what, we must find out Xie's identity as soon as possible. After thinking it over, I think this matter should be handed over to the Xie family."

“The Xie family transports rice and grain from south to north, making it easy to gather information,” Yang Mingjing said. “Some things are hard to investigate, but it’s not like there are no clues at all. If we take the portrait of ‘Xie Shiniang’ and the general situation out to ask, we might get results soon.”

Old Mrs. Yang's eyes lit up as she listened: "The Xie family hates that 'Xie Shi Niang' even more than we do. I'm not afraid they won't help us. When everything is cleared up, we'll see how I deal with her."

This will make "Xie Shiniang" regret contradicting her today.

Compared to Old Lady Yang's joy, Yang Mingjing was both happy and worried. The identity of "Xie Shiniang" was handed over to the Xie family to investigate, but what about He Tan? Inspector He was clearly on the side of "Xie Shiniang".

He had a premonition that He Tan wasn't just after the "Xie Shiniang" case, but rather wanted to use it to change the situation in Daming Prefecture.

He heard that the imperial court was going to investigate merchants, but he didn't know exactly how.

In any case, the Yang family cannot be the first to be affected.

Could it be that my fourth brother was right? He should ask the He clan to intercede with He Tan on his behalf.

Yang Mingjing was unsure whether He Tan knew about the He family's business dealings.

Yang Mingjing was in a state of confusion. The Yang family could not afford any more trouble, but Xie Shiniang was no pushover. It was unlikely that he would behave himself.

“Mother, husband,” Madam He said at this moment, “if you are afraid that ‘Xie Shiniang’ will cause trouble again, why don’t you find something for her to do?”

Old Mrs. Yang looked at Madam He: "What good idea do you have?"

Ms. He raised the corners of her mouth slightly, revealing a smile.

...The house of the mother and son of the three families is located in the northwest corner of the Yang family ancestral home.

The small room contained only some worn-out furniture. The only decent thing was a table in the corner, and even that had been patched up many times, showing how poor their lives were.

Yang Qin went to fiddle with the charcoal brazier as soon as he entered the room.

Zhang said, "It's a bit cold in the house when I'm not home for a day, but it will feel much better once the charcoal brazier is brought over."

In his previous life, Yang Qin mentioned to Xie Yuyan that his mother, Zhang, died on a very cold winter day.

Zhang found two of the thickest quilts, spread them on the bed, and let Xie Yuyan lie down to rest: "Your injury hasn't healed yet, and you're still weak. Tomorrow, I'll have Qin'er go and invite a doctor to get some medicine to help you recover."

Normally, Zhang would not have had this kind of money, but since Yang Liuge died in battle, the imperial court sent a pension, which included rice, cloth, and more than sixty strings of cash.

Xie Yuyan asked, "Is it possible to buy coal?"

Coal is not charcoal fired in a kiln, but is mined from underground. It started being sold two years ago. Coal burns longer than charcoal, but it is also extremely expensive.

“The clan will sell some to us,” Zhang said, “but they’re not very good.”

Xie Yuyan said, "Where is it? Take me to see it."

Every year, the Yang clan would buy some coal. The good coal would be kept for the second branch of the family to use, and the inferior coal would be sold to other members of the clan. When it came to the Zhang clan, they could only buy scraps with money.

They couldn't refuse to buy it; it was considered "support" for the mother and son by the clan. Such instances were countless. The money Zhang earned each year from working for the clan was barely enough for the mother and son to make ends meet.

Zhang said, "It is indeed cheaper in the clan than outside."

“It still has to be usable,” Yang Qin sneered. “Such broken coal, if thrown into a fire, the smoke will sting your eyes and make you dizzy if you smell it for too long. Scholar Zhang said that coal is poisonous and cannot be used, or people will die.”

Zhang Xiucai was the "unofficial teacher" that Yang Qin found for himself. He didn't need to pay tuition; as long as he was pleased, Zhang Xiucai could teach him a few words and explain the obscure and difficult words in the books to him. Although most of the time Yang Qin still couldn't understand after the Xiucai finished explaining, Yang Qin was already satisfied, since it didn't cost him any money.

Xie Yuyan looked at the piled-up coal fragments, then followed Zhang Shi around the small courtyard before returning to the house.

Yang Qin had already lit the charcoal brazier and moved it to Xie Yuyan's feet. His eyes showed a hint of worry, fearing that Xie Yuyan would turn around and leave if he saw how dilapidated his house was.

"What are your plans?" Xie Yuyan asked. "I know the imperial court has provided some compensation money. What do you intend to do with it?"

Zhang shook her head: "I...haven't thought about it." This amount of money sounds like a lot, but treating a doctor and taking medicine is also extremely expensive. It will probably be used up quickly.

Xie Yuyan said, "The gates of the ward are about to open."

Zhang had also heard this news. In earlier years, the walls of many places had been demolished. Daming Prefecture was the northern gateway to Daliang. Because of the war, it had not been able to implement new policies. Now that there was less fighting in the north, Daming Prefecture might end up like the prefectures in the south...

Xie Yuyan continued, "After the walls of the neighborhood are demolished, the next step is to lift the curfew."

Zhang was confused: "You mean... go out and do some small business?" She had heard that in some prefectures, you could find vendors selling things at night.

“It’s not just about selling things,” Xie Yuyan said. “When the new policies of the imperial court are promulgated, we must be the first to respond to them. In the future, when people mention the new policies of Daming Prefecture, they will think of us.”

Zhang understood, but she stood there stunned.

When we talk about new policies, we immediately think of them? That's... impossible! Where do they get their abilities?
After a long pause, Zhang finally said, "We...we have nothing, what are we going to do?"

"Who said there was nothing wrong?" Xie Yuyan looked out the window. "Don't we still have the Yang family?"

Just as Xie Yuyan finished speaking, a shout came from outside: "Is Third Mistress inside? My Second Mistress requests that you come to the small storeroom in the south courtyard at Chenshi (7-9 AM) tomorrow."

Zhang looked at Xie Yuyan, who nodded: "It seems we'll have to find what we want there."

Thank you to Yilu Xiaoxi for the 5000 points reward, and thank you to readers Achu and Yanzhihu for their rewards.

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(End of this chapter)