Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 185 Broken
Hearing that the Liu family had arrived, Xie Chonghai smiled. The Liu family's visit at this time was naturally to give him face, and his efforts over the past few days had finally paid off.

I have no idea what the Liu family sent.
The worst that could be was some toys or flowers and plants, while the best would naturally be dishes. Xie Chonghai dared not even think about the latter, since only very close relationships could provide such things. But even if he received nothing at all, just a few auspicious words would be enough to make him happy.

Xie Chonghai went to greet the Liu family steward in person, with money prepared to bribe him. However, when he saw the steward's gloomy face, Xie Chonghai's heart sank, and the joy on his face vanished.

Before Xie Chonghai could say anything, the Liu family steward said calmly, "The Xie family's banquet isn't over yet."

"Soon," Xie Chonghai said, sweat beading on his forehead. "I've had tea and snacks prepared in the study. Please come with me to the study..."

But the steward of the Liu family said, "No need, let's go to the flower hall!"

The flower hall was crowded.

If Xie Chonghai had been eager to do so just now, he now wanted to stop him. However, the Liu family steward walked in aggressively, giving Xie Chonghai no chance whatsoever.

The Xie clan members inside the house were still chatting and laughing when they suddenly saw someone barge in. They immediately stopped talking and looked this way.

The steward of the Liu family glanced at the servant, who then stepped forward and put down the things he was carrying.

Xie Chonghai stared at the box on the ground, wondering what it was, when the Liu family steward kicked it.

No one expected the Liu family to do this, and the crowd gasped in surprise.

Xie Chonghai was also startled and took a step back. But he quickly realized that it was a clay stove, and a broken clay stove at that.

A buzzing sound immediately rang in Xie Chonghai's ears.

The steward of the Liu family sneered, "My second mistress has been ruined by your clay stove, and you're still here eating and drinking."

The Xie family members all stood up.

Old Master Xie tried to ease the tension: "No matter what happened, it's all the Xie family's fault. Please, steward, sit down and talk it over. We'll find a way..."

But what the steward of the Liu family said next almost made Old Master Xie collapse to the ground.

"This clay stove suddenly exploded, and my second wife was burned. I'm asking you, what's your plan to make amends?"

The room suddenly fell silent. The Xie family members looked astonished, as if they dared not even breathe.

What do you mean?
Is there something wrong with the Xie family's clay stove?
Xie Chonghai, being the person in charge, knew he couldn't escape the consequences. He quickly walked a few steps to check the cracked clay furnace, confirming that this wasn't a pretext the Liu family was using to punish them.

The steward turned to Xie Chonghai, his voice almost squeezed out through clenched teeth: "You need to think carefully about how to resolve this matter. If you don't handle it well, I think the Xie family's days in Daming Prefecture are numbered."

After speaking, the steward turned and walked out.

Old Master Xie felt a sudden panic in his chest, and his vision went black.

Xie Chonghai hurriedly chased after her and carefully inquired about the situation of the steward, Liu Erniang.

The steward of the Liu family did not want to say more, but said coldly, "My second mistress only lent a helping hand because you were doing things for the people, but who knew you would be so useless."

"You've been tricked without even realizing it."

"I think you should make plans sooner rather than later, so as not to risk the lives of your whole family."

After the Liu family's carriage left, Xie Chonghai remained there in a daze until he was completely frozen before turning around and stiffly walking back into the house.

The banquet could not continue, and the clansmen left one after another, with only a few remaining to wait for news.

Xie Chonghai had thought it through from beginning to end, wondering what Xie Yuyan had been up to recently.

After Xie Yuyan fell ill, the Yang family remained inactive until today when they started selling clay stoves at the foot of Baode Temple. When a servant came to report this, he didn't take it seriously... Xie Chonghai immediately summoned the servant and asked him again. The servant explained in detail how the Yang family was making salt using clay stoves.

"Is this what caused the trouble?" Xie Chongjiang asked anxiously.

Looking at how badly the clay stove is damaged, and then thinking about it more carefully...

Xie Chonghai said, "It's probably true."

He knew that the clay stove was not as good as the Yang family's, but he still called the craftsmen over to ask. The clay stove wouldn't have any problems for a while, but it couldn't withstand being burned with a large fire and having salt grains thrown in to make it explode.

Before he could take down the Yang family and Xie Yuyan, his furnace gave out.

Grandpa Xie's mind went blank: "What should we do? Should we go to the Liu family to apologize now? If they can't forgive us, we'll kneel there and not get up."

Xie Chonghai remained silent for a long time before shaking his head: "Even if we go to the Liu family, they won't open the door. I don't think the Liu family steward meant that. How could the Liu family possibly care about what the Xie family has?"

"What is the Liu family planning to do?" Old Master Xie said. "Tell me quickly, are you trying to drive me crazy with anxiety?"

Xie Chonghai took a deep breath: "The Liu family means that Xie Yuyan used this method, and our family was not prepared beforehand. Now we're doomed."

Old Master Xie was already in a panic and couldn't understand it at all. But Xie Chongjiang came to his senses: "You mean, many of the clay stoves we sold will burn out?"

"At that time, a lot of people will definitely come knocking on our door."

"This...this salt explosion is aimed at us."

Xie Chonghai now understood why Xie Yuyan hadn't caused any more trouble after the Yang family members were imprisoned; he had assumed they were frightened by the Liu family.

In fact, Xie Yuyan had been waiting for this day.

The Yang family preferred to go to jail rather than compromise with the Xie family because the Xie family's clay furnace was faulty.

Just as the steward of the Liu family said, if this matter blows up, the Xie family's clay stove business will be completely ruined.

"What are we going to do?" Old Mrs. Xie was so frightened that her voice trembled with tears. "If I had known, I wouldn't have gone into this business. We have perfectly good porcelain at home, why did we have to go and get those clay stoves?"

“I told you something bad would happen. Your eldest brother is already in jail, and you still want to fight with that woman.”

Old Master Xie sternly reprimanded Old Madam Xie, and then drove all the women in the house out.

They refused to use the clay stove, and the Liu family would never agree. In the end, the Xie family had always been led by the nose.

Xie Chongjiang said, "Perhaps it's not that serious. Not everyone does things like salt explosions. Even if it gets burned, it's only a very small number of cases. If they really come knocking, we'll just refund your money."

But Xie Chonghai felt that "it's not that simple. Since Xie Yuyan made arrangements in advance, there must be other methods he hasn't used yet."

They now know these things, but they have no way to deal with them.

You can't just find everyone who bought the clay stove and tell them never to play with salt explosions. Not only would they not listen, but even if they did, you'd have to compensate them with money.

They sold so many clay furnaces...

That night, the father and his sons didn't sleep. When dawn broke, they looked out the window, feeling that the time had come to reveal the results.

Not long after, the steward came running into the house, panting.

"Master, Second Master, Third Master, someone is carrying a clay stove and is banging on the door of our shop."