Top Scholar

Chapter 36 A Man Must Persevere to the End

That evening at dinner, Su Youcai said to his uncle, "Brother, give me He Ji's IOU. I'll collect this debt."

"I'll go ask for it. You're just a weak scholar, they won't be afraid of you." The uncle said guiltily, "They'll be back soon, just wait a few more days."

“My sister-in-law has already explained everything, so you don’t need to feel embarrassed,” Su Youcai said calmly.

"Hiss..." Uncle grimaced, his teeth aching, and glared at Auntie, saying, "You unlucky woman, I've told you so many times not to say it, not to say it!"

"I'm dying to tell you," the eldest aunt said in a muffled voice.

"Sigh," the eldest uncle sighed helplessly, "Second brother, your eldest brother is incompetent..."

The old man rolled his triangular eyes, unable to bear it any longer. But the eldest son and his wife were the ones running the household, and he couldn't let his temper embarrass them.

"I'm not eating anymore!" The old man then turned and went downstairs again to take a walk and calm down.

The uncle naturally gave Su Youcai the IOU, and then sighed and said, "That widow is not easy to deal with, you have to be careful."

"She's a widow and hard to deal with, but do you think I'm an easy one?!" Su Youcai said aggressively, "If we don't get our money back, the three of us will spend the New Year at her house!"

"That's not necessary, we'll still come back for the New Year..." the uncle quickly said.

~~
The next day, the three men got up early and went to He's Wine Shop at the north end of town to collect their debt.

Like the Cheng family, the He family was exiled here. The difference is that the He family was implicated in the 'Cao Shi Rebellion' and was only exiled here forty years ago, before they had a chance to establish themselves.

By this generation, there was only one family with the surname He in the entire Erlangtan area. Therefore, the neighbors called the three men of the He family "Old He," "Big He," and "Little He."

Although the He family was small in number, they were very business-minded and joined the winemaking industry after arriving in Erlangtan. However, they brewed fruit wine specifically for women. This differentiated competition allowed them to survive between the two major families.

Of course, fruit wine doesn't sell for a good price, and only women drink it, so He Ji's business isn't doing very well, barely enough to make ends meet.

Several years ago, Old He passed away, and Big He and Little He took over the distillery. The two brothers were young and ambitious, and unwilling to accept the situation of not starving but not making a living either, so they also wanted to try brewing baijiu.

Believe it or not, the two brothers really have a talent for brewing. In just a few years, they've actually figured out a unique secret recipe—"crushed sand." Brewing with this technique results in a short production cycle, a high yield, and a smooth, distinctive flavor.

Although this liquor is of lower quality than the "Fengqu Method Liquor" brewed using traditional techniques by the two major distilleries, its cost is lower. Won't it dominate the low-price market?

The He brothers were full of confidence. So last month, the two brothers personally escorted the ship, carrying a full hold of newly brewed "Sui Sha Jiu" (a type of Chinese liquor), intending to head to the county to open up the market. However, they ran aground at Dabingtan, the ship sank, and everyone on board perished...

Both brothers perished in this incident, and Erlangtan was left without a man surnamed He. However, He's Winery still existed, and both He's brothers had accumulated a mountain of debt from brewing wine, which now fell entirely on the shoulders of He's widow.

As for Xiao He, his obsession with brewing delayed his marriage. After discovering his daughter's affair with Su Youma, the eldest son of the Cheng family once considered marrying Cuicui to Xiao He to take over their marriage. Xiao He was initially quite happy, but then nothing came of it. He died without ever knowing why the Cheng family had changed their minds…

~~
After telling his son what he had found out, Su Youcai sighed and said, "Alas, this family is really pitiful. You two won't be able to travel on the boat together in the future."

"Yes, Dad."

"Yes, old man, I've got it."

As they spoke, the three men arrived at He's Winery, nestled in a mountain valley. The He family was small, and the whole family lived in the winery. When the eldest son, He, got married, the eldest son, He, spent a lot of money to renovate the place, and it remains unique in Erlangtan to this day.

Its white walls and black tiles, brick and stone lintel, with door studs and door piers, made it far more imposing than the cramped stilted houses. However, white paper was pasted on the door, a mourning banner hung above the lintel, and yellow paper money was scattered on the ground, giving it an air of decay…

"Alas, without people, even the best house is useless." Su Youcai sighed and led his son over the high threshold.

Business owners typically have higher thresholds than ordinary households, supposedly to prevent their wealth from flowing out.

The He family's residence was in front, and their workshop was in the back, so once you entered, it was no different from the homes of ordinary wealthy families, with the main house, side rooms, and back rooms arranged in a row, enclosing a large courtyard.

The two He brothers have already been buried, but the mourning hall has not been completely dismantled yet. Four thick bamboo poles remain standing in the courtyard, with traces of talismans still on them.

The father and his two sons went straight to the main hall, lifted the blue cotton curtain, and saw a group of people sitting inside, drinking water and chatting idly.

People are already busy preparing for the New Year, and those who are still arguing and not going home are naturally creditors like Su Youcai.

"Another one!" one of the creditors called out in a drawn-out voice as he saw the father and son enter. The other creditors laughed, finding a strange kind of amusement in their misery.

"You all arrived so early." Su Youcai smiled wryly and cupped his hands to the crowd. Inside the room were his own clansmen, members of the Cheng family, and people from several other surnames, totaling nearly twenty people.

"If you arrive late, there are no chairs to sit on, and your back will be killing you by the end of the day." His cousin Su Youbing said with a wry smile, "Your eldest brother always arrives before dawn."

"Good heavens..." Su Youcai didn't expect that everyone was even more determined than he was.

Su Lu was also taken aback. Erlangtan only had fewer than a hundred households in total. A fifth of them were creditors of the He family—the competition was fierce…

Just then, the curtain inside was lifted, and an old woman with gray hair came out carrying a tray. She said with a sour face, "You're late. There's only one bench left. You'll have to make do with this one."

The three of them, Su Youcai and his father, sat down on a bench in the corner, and the old woman brought them a bowl of water.

"The bowl is gone, and the tea is gone too. Just make do with the water." "At least give me some hot water." Su Youcai took the porcelain bowl; it was ice cold to the touch.

"We're out of firewood too," the old woman said irritably.

"Look at this attitude towards creditors?!" Before Su Youcai could say anything, the other creditors shouted, "Call your boss's wife out here!"

"Could it be that the landlady is gone too?" one creditor mocked.

"It's hard to say. We haven't seen her all day. Could she have run away?"

"Let's not wait here like idiots, let's go find her in the back!" someone said angrily, standing up.

"The inner quarters are behind here; men are not allowed to enter!" The old woman quickly blocked their way.

"Get out of my way, old woman! The more you try to stop me, the more suspicious it is!" The creditors pushed the old woman around, making her stagger.

"Don't worry, I'm here." At this moment, a slightly hoarse female voice rang out, and a widow lifted the curtain and came out from inside.

She clutched a white handkerchief in her hand, her hair was tied in a white hemp bun, and she wore a white silk jacket. Though she wore no makeup and dressed in the simplest of clothes, she was more captivating than women with painted eyebrows and adorned with gold and silver. She was like a white plum blossom quietly blooming in the frost, her cool elegance exuding an indescribable charm.

The moment the young widow, He Chengshi, appeared, the previously aggressive creditors immediately calmed down. They stopped pushing the old woman, and their voices softened: "It's good that you didn't run away, otherwise, who would we be collecting our debts from?"

“I won’t run away, and I certainly won’t default on my debts.” Madam He sighed softly, “But now I’m truly penniless and heartbroken. Even if you kill me, you still won’t be able to pay back the money.”

"We don't want your life, we just want your money!" the creditors shouted in unison. "We've worked hard all year and only got this little harvest. Boss lady, you can't not pay us!"

"That's right, we've worked for your family for a year, and in the end we don't get paid. How are we supposed to live on air during the New Year?"

"We agreed to pay it back by the end of the year when we borrowed the money. If we default, someone in my family will die!"

The creditors grew angrier and angrier; if the landlady hadn't been so pretty, they would have been cursing her to death long ago.

Madam He waited quietly until they finished shouting before saying sadly, "I'm really sorry things have come to this, but we really don't have anything of value left in the house... How about I give you the distillery and this house as collateral? I just want to settle things evenly, okay?"

The room full of creditors looked at each other, hoping someone would agree, but no one dared to take the plunge.

The He family invested heavily in their house and distillery, but in Erlangtan, no one could turn that money back into cash. However, the debts were real and had to be repaid with real money… the hole was too big for anyone to bear.

Moreover, people say that this house is unlucky and has brought death to all the men in the family... Who would dare to take on this house if they are not afraid of death?

"Why don't you ask your family for help?" someone suggested. "If your family could step in and take over the distillery, wouldn't everyone be happy?"

“I’m like water spilled from a cup, once married I’m gone. Besides, my family prides itself on being a scholarly family; how could people gossip about me living off an heir?” The proprietress shook her head sadly.

"Have you seen a single one of my brothers show up these past few days, from morning till night?"

"No..." The creditors shook their heads. If there hadn't been several members of the Cheng family present, they probably would have cursed Scholar Cheng for being a mythical creature...

However, the landlady's words did have some effect; at least the creditors' anger subsided, and they sat back down to continue arguing.

Su Youcai had a lot to say to the landlady, but in this situation, it was pointless to say anything...

"Old man, what should we do?" Su Tai whispered, "I think she's quite pitiful."

"Aren't we pitiful?" Su Lu was afraid that his father would mess things up, so he quickly whispered, "Don't be soft-hearted when it comes to collecting debts, and don't be soft-hearted when it comes to collecting debts."

“Qiu-ge’er is right,” Su Youcai said in deep agreement. “I think this He Chengshi is no ordinary woman; she truly lives up to her reputation as the daughter of a scholar. In such a short time, she has already employed the honey trap, the self-inflicted injury trap, the empty city trap, and most importantly, the delaying tactic…”

"Really?" Su Tai was dumbfounded. "How come I didn't see any of them?"

“Qiu-ge’er, tell your brother about it,” Su Youcai said.

"Ah..." Su Lu didn't actually notice either, but if his father said so, then so be it.

Since he had nothing better to do, he explained the four plans to his second brother one by one.

"...'Delaying tactics' refers to using time to allow the situation to change in one's favor."

"Ah, I understand!" Su Tai said suddenly, "She wants to wait until after the New Year, when everyone is less anxious, and give her a few months' grace."

"That seems to be the case." Su Lu nodded. Indeed, collecting debts at the end of the year is the most urgent thing, and after the New Year, it's not so urgent anymore.

“We’ll proceed according to the original plan.” Su Youcai murmured, “Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse. She’s definitely holding onto some money; a sliver of it between her fingers is enough to pay us back. But right now, there are too many wolves and not enough meat, so it’s useless to take it out. We need to get rid of the others first. Once we’re the only creditors left, we’ll see your father show his true strength!”

"Yes, yes!" The two sons nodded vigorously, looking at their father with admiration. This man was so reliable.

Su Youcai kept his word. He immediately sent the two brothers home to get their bedding. While others clocked in and out morning and evening, he took his son and moved into the He family's house.

(End of this chapter)