Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 46 Surrounded
Xie Yuyan returned to Yong'an Ward and saw Granny Li and several women talking together as soon as she entered the ward gate.

"Sixth Brother's wife is back."

Grandma Li spotted Xie Yuyan first, and then all the women turned their gazes toward her.

This young lady is now the most talked-about person in Yong'anfang.

Xie Yuyan greeted everyone, and Granny Li, being the oldest, stepped forward first and asked, "Where have you been?"

Xie Yuyan said, "Go to the patrol office and inquire about the case at home."

Upon hearing this, Granny Li looked around the neighborhood and said, "The yamen has arrested quite a few people again. After this investigation, we found that none of them have clean homes."

Besides those who were sent to the government office, there were also those who were punished by their clans. The courtyard was filled with people crying and wailing, which made it quite a spectacle for them to watch.

Normally, the wealthy families in Yong'an Ward live a life of luxury and arrogance. But when the ninth son of the second branch of the Du family fell while flying a kite in the ward in the spring, he insisted on blaming the Gao family's child.

Grandma Li told Xie Yuyan about these things.

Xie Yuyan asked, "What happened next?"

“The Gao family, young and old, came to apologize,” Granny Li said. “The Gao family’s child knelt at the Du family’s house for an hour. His mother couldn’t stand it and went up to say a few words, but the Du family stepped on her hand and broke two of her fingers.”

Sister-in-law Fan, who was standing nearby, said, "In the past, Gao's daughter-in-law had the best needlework skills. People from other places would come to her for work. The finger that broke that time happened to be the one holding the needle, and her skills have not been very good since then."

As Sister-in-law Fan was speaking, she saw a woman walking over with a child of eight or nine years old.

It was Xu Shi and her son Gao Erlang.

Xu carried a bamboo basket. Gao Erlang was thin and small, but had a fair complexion and looked like a well-behaved child. Perhaps because he had been bullied by the Du family too much, his eyes seemed a little dull. He kept his hands tightly clenched as he walked over. When he got to the front, he bowed to everyone and then looked at Xu.

Xu handed the bamboo basket to Gao Erlang, who then accepted it.

"Sixth Brother's wife," Xu Shi said, immediately realizing her mistake, and quickly corrected herself, "Thank you, Madam..."

The title "Madam" came from the Yang family. It is said that this was a rule set by Madam Xie. Madam Xu did not know whether "Madam" was a term used by the Yang family members or by outsiders. She wondered if it was appropriate for her to use it.
The Gao family was small and rarely interacted with others, especially a large and prosperous family like the Xie family. However, Xu was determined to meet this Madam Xie this time.

The Du family is overjoyed at their current predicament and is also deeply grateful to Madam Xie, who sent them to prison.

Although the Du family members' imprisonment has nothing to do with his family's affairs, the outcome is always the same.

Xie Yuyan looked at Xu Shi, whose face had turned red, and then his gaze fell on the bamboo basket: "What's that?"

This can be considered as setting a precedent for the Xu family.

Madam Xu breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly said, "I made the needlework for Madam Xie. Please don't find it offensive, Madam."

Gao Erlang presented the bamboo basket to Xie Yuyan, his eyes filled with urgency and worry. He was afraid that Madam Xie would not accept it, but he did not know how to persuade her.

"Then thank you very much, sister-in-law."

Xie Yuyan reached out and took the basket from Gao Erlang's hands.

Both mother and son wore relaxed smiles.

Xie Yuyan glanced at Xu's right hand. Her thumb was fine, but her index finger was twisted. No wonder she couldn't do fine needlework.

Xie Yuyan asked, "Has the Du family been convicted of assault and paid compensation?"

Xu was taken aback, then shook her head: "No...no."

Xie Yuyan said, "Shall we prepare to write a complaint and take them to the yamen?"

“Yes,” Granny Li added, “The Du family used to be lawless, but now they’re in jail. What are you afraid of? That lawyer Liu who came to the Yang family before is not bad either. Why don’t you go and find him?”

Before Xu could speak, a voice rang out: "Are there many such incidents in Yong'an Ward?"

The women exchanged complicated glances.

Xie Yuyan said, "There are many cases like the Gao family being oppressed, but I don't know if it violates the law?"

The vague idea that was lingering in Sister Fan's mind was suddenly pointed out, and she almost slapped her thigh with joy: "Yes, that's exactly it."

The Great Liang has laws, and the neighborhoods have their own rules, but there will always be some families who, relying on their abilities, rise above these laws. Over time, everyone gets used to it and stops thinking about how many of these rules are actually violations of the law.

Xie Yuyan said, "Tomorrow I will invite lawyer Liu over and clear out an empty room so that he can stay in the neighborhood for a few days. If anyone needs anything, they can go and ask lawyer Liu." No one expected that this would be possible.

Grandma Li asked, "Is it convenient?"

Xie Yuyan nodded: "Master Yang is the deputy magistrate of the ward, so it is only natural for the Yang family to manage these matters."

Sister-in-law Fan said, "That's great! Whether or not we can sue in court, we can find out by asking a lawyer."

Xie Yuyan looked at Madam Xu, whose eyes were also full of joy. She continued, "If there are many complaints to be written, perhaps Lawyer Liu can charge less money. If there are many people filing complaints for the same case, the commission can be shared."

Everyone was delighted to hear Xie Yuyan's words.

Grandma Li said, "We should spread the word about this good news now." We need to find out who has a grievance and who can file a lawsuit together, so that we can speak up in front of the lawyer.
The two servants standing at the entrance of the Yang family's house peeked out and saw that the eldest daughter-in-law of the third branch of the family had returned, but she was quickly surrounded by several women.

I don't know what they were saying, but more and more people gathered around, and their voices grew louder and louder.

The servants exchanged glances, finding surprise on each other's faces. Could this lady be trying to take advantage of the neighborhood?

"doing what?"

A young woman spotted the suspicious-looking servant and immediately began to scold him, throwing the house into chaos. Yet the servants had the leisure to watch the commotion outside.

The woman was right. Not only were many members of the Yang family arrested, but Yang Mingjing also accompanied the government officials to check the accounts everywhere, and the head of the household was replaced by the Xie family.

Xie was not someone to be easily fooled. The men and women were busy finishing up their affairs, afraid that Xie would discover something amiss. And that was bad enough, but Xie also wanted to take the clansmen to do business, giving everyone only ten days to think it over...

This isn't about whether they want to do the business or not; it's clearly about letting them choose whether to follow the second or third wife.

Yesterday, several men and women who were with Xie were recruiting people all over the clan. They were busy going to the third branch of the family early in the morning to show their loyalty and send money.

However, there were only about ten people; most of the clansmen were watching from the shadows.

The second branch has been in power for many years. The second patriarch has been arrested, but Yang Mingjing is still alive. On the other hand, the third branch only has a young Qin Ge'er. Even if Qin Ge'er is very smart, it will be ten years before he succeeds. Xie Shi is a woman who can barely manage the household affairs. How could she possibly support the entire Yang family?
The Xie family wanted to take over the Yang family's business, but the Yang family elders would not agree.

With the family case still unresolved, no one dares to provoke the Xie family. But what if everything settles down? Will the Xie family be kicked aside?

As the couple were thinking this, their eyes suddenly narrowed. The crowd not far away dispersed, and a person walked out from among them—none other than Xie Yuyan.

Xie Yuyan walked forward, and the women followed behind. They chatted and laughed, escorting Xie Yuyan all the way back to the Yang family.

When the young woman came to her senses, Xie Yuyan was standing in front of her. She was only glanced at by his gaze, and immediately lowered her head and said respectfully, "Madam."

However, the man and woman's voices were quickly drowned out.

“Madam, let’s tell everyone that we will come to the Yang family tomorrow at 9:00 AM.”

Xie Yuyan nodded.

Grandma Li, Sister-in-law Fan, and the others then left.

The men and women of the Yang family stared blankly. What were Xie Shi and the women of Yong'an Ward going to do tomorrow?
As the young man and woman were pondering this, their vision suddenly blurred, as if something had "whooshed" past them.

"What's come in?" the young woman murmured.

The two servants, preoccupied with another matter, shuddered at the woman's words. Just moments before, they had been discussing how Madam Xie might have become a ghost, sent to… seek revenge on the Yang family, able to see through anyone's misdeeds at a glance. This was merely idle gossip, but they hadn't expected the women in charge of the clan to share such thoughts.

The young woman ignored the two servants, eager to enter and gather information. With so few willing to do business with Madam Xie, she was certain Madam Xie wouldn't give up easily and would use other means to force them. Knowing the news first would allow her to make preparations.

The couple heard Xie Yuyan instruct the steward, "Clear out the small study in the west courtyard; I need it. Inform the people in the courtyard that the lawyer will be here tomorrow, and the women in the back courtyard who do not wish to show their faces should avoid it."

Upon hearing the word "lawyer," the young man and woman couldn't help but swallow hard. Was this woman's magic not yet finished?

……

When Xie Yuyan returned to the inner courtyard of the third house, Zhang and several other women immediately came out to greet him.

Looking at the expressions on everyone's faces, Xie Yuyan said, "What? Not many people came to deliver silver?"

The man and woman immediately replied, "It's all our fault for not doing our job well."

Zhang wanted to say something too. She knew why things were like this. The third branch of the family was not prosperous, which was why they were not favored by the clan. In the end, it was because they were dragging Xie Yuyan down.

(End of this chapter)