Chapter 14: The Key

Chapter 14: The Key

In the kitchen, Yang Qin squatted to the side, feeding the fire; the glow made his eyes shine.

Zhang-shi also felt much more at ease. She still wasn't entirely sure how they would manage tomorrow, but with Xie Yuyan by her side, she inexplicably felt a sense of security.

"Mother," Yang Qin said after a long while, "I will definitely learn well from Sister-in-law so that I can be of more help in the future."

Zhang-shi nodded. As she turned away, she wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. Sixth Brother was gone, but Xie Yuyan had been sent to her and Qin-ge'er. Their lives would surely get better from here on out.

After a day of turmoil, Xie Yuyan felt unusually exhausted. After bathing, she fell asleep as soon as she lay on the bed. This sleep was exceptionally peaceful, and when she woke up, she instinctively reached out to ring a bell, thinking she was still in the Ci'an Palace.

It wasn't until she turned her head and saw the sunlight streaming through the window that Xie Yuyan fully regained her senses.

The Yang family’s third branch house was dilapidated, but the sunlight here was brighter than in the Ci'an Palace.

Having experienced life and death, she never expected to return to this world.

The corners of Xie Yuyan’s mouth lifted into a smile.

A set of clean clothes was laid out by the bed, clearly placed there by Zhang-shi.

The Yang family had two rooms, and Zhang-shi lived with her. Before she fell asleep last night, she seemed to have heard Zhang-shi rustling as she got up. She had thought Zhang-shi was worried about Yang Qin and went to check on him, but she hadn't expected that she had spent the night altering clothes for her.

Hearing movement in the room, Zhang-shi knocked on the door before entering.

Xie Yuyan had taken off the bright red wedding dress, washed away her makeup, and let down her tied-up hair. Without any adornments, her skin appeared as delicate as jade, her eyes were clear and moving, and her lips were naturally flushed, bright and beautiful in just the right way.

Xie Yuyan was lost in thought, slightly distracted, and being just awake, she still felt a bit drowsy, so she let out a slow yawn.

Seeing Xie Yuyan like this, Zhang-shi couldn't help but smile. The methods Xie Yuyan had displayed yesterday were so formidable that only now did Zhang-shi realize that, according to the midwife’s examination, Xie Yuyan was only sixteen or seventeen years old.

"The clothes fit very well," Xie Yuyan said to Zhang-shi, "Thank you for your hard work, Mother."

Zhang-shi didn't feel it was hard work at all; as long as Xie Yuyan looked good, she was happy in her heart.

"After the mourning period is over, I will take you to buy some good fabric to make more clothes."

Xie Yuyan nodded: "Has the clan been notified? When will Sixth Brother be buried?"

At the mention of Sixth Brother, Zhang-shi’s eyes turned red again. She lowered her gaze to hide it: "We must ask a master to calculate an auspicious date." In truth, Zhang-shi had already realized that the coffin being buried was empty; for the clan, it was just for show.

After washing up, the two sat at the table to eat.

Zhang-shi said: "Qin-ge'er went out early this morning to wait for the Registrar at the government office."

"The list you wrote was also kept safe by Qin-ge'er. He said he would definitely procure everything you need."

Yesterday, they had already discussed dividing the tasks: Yang Qin would go to the government office to see Wang Hechun, while they would deal with He-shi at home.

Zhang-shi led Xie Yuyan toward the south courtyard, deliberately taking a long detour on the way to let Xie Yuyan familiarize herself with the layout of the Yang ancestral home.

"There are also fields outside the city," Zhang-shi said. "A few rooms were built there to rest during farming seasons. There used to be two porcelain kilns, but they aren't used anymore."

The Yang clan’s assets were not vast, but when combining the houses and fields, they were still considered a top-tier household in the city.

Xie Yuyan asked: "Why are the porcelain kilns no longer in use?"

Zhang-shi shook her head: "I only know that they couldn't fire good porcelain anymore. The first branch used to manage them. After the Great Old Master of the first branch passed away, the items fired became worse and worse. No merchants were willing to buy them, and selling them at the grass market didn't fetch much money. Opening the kiln required a lot of firewood, so it wasn't cost-effective, and the Second Old Master decided to close them."

"Later, the first branch secretly reopened the kiln, but the things they fired were even worse. In a fit of anger, the Second Old Master had the clansmen tear the kiln down."

Xie Yuyan frowned slightly: "Tore it down?"

"The people of the first branch tried desperately to stop it, so they couldn't finish, but it was mostly destroyed," Zhang-shi paused for a moment. "That porcelain kiln was originally very good. Back when our third branch was in charge, we even sold the porcelain fired by the first branch overseas. The Master valued that kiln very much."

When Zhang-shi mentioned this, her eyes were filled with complex emotions. After all, it was her husband who had sold the porcelain, but even the people in the Yang clan didn't believe it. Whenever she mentioned it, she was met with contemptuous mockery.

So much money had been lost in the porcelain kilns that only the first and third branches still obsessed over them.

"We're here."

As they spoke, the two arrived at the south courtyard. He-shi, accompanied by two stewards, was already waiting at the entrance of the small storeroom.

Seeing this formation, Zhang-shi immediately knew that everything had been guessed correctly by Xie Yuyan, because one of the stewards waiting there was the one who helped the clan manage their accounts.

Zhang-shi bowed to He-shi, while Xie Yuyan stood still and called out to He-shi: "Second Lady." That was enough to let it pass.

The steward-mother beside He-shi was so angry her face turned pale. If she weren't afraid of ruining her mistress's plans, she would have scolded the Xie woman.

Who does she think she is? A woman of unknown origin, acting as if she came from a high-ranking family, refusing to even bow her head easily. What? Is she afraid of being struck by lightning if she bows?

He-shi didn't mind. She affectionately took Zhang-shi’s hand and wanted to reach out to Xie Yuyan as well, but for some reason, she felt an instinctive resistance in her heart.

He-shi looked toward the small storeroom: "I met with you, Third Sister-in-law, here today because I want to entrust the key to the small storeroom to you for safekeeping."

Zhang-shi looked surprised, staring blankly at He-shi: "This... how can this be?"

Zhang-shi’s reaction was exactly as He-shi had expected. No one in the house knew the women of the third branch better than she did. After all, when the third branch was in charge, the Old Madam of the third branch had kept her by her side, intending for the sisters-in-law to work together to manage the household.

He-shi coughed and continued: "My illness still requires some time to recover. The doctor says it won't improve until spring. Previously, the fourth sister-in-law helped... I was also muddled; with you here, Third Sister-in-law, why would I need to hand it to anyone else? You don't need to decline. Your character is clear to everyone in the clan. If the key to the small storeroom is handed to you, everyone will be at ease."

"Besides, Sixth Brother’s wife’s dowry is in there too."

Zhang-shi was about to refuse, but Xie Yuyan tugged on her sleeve.

He-shi smiled inwardly; as expected, the Xie woman couldn't hold back.

Since entering the Yang family, the Xie woman had mentioned the dowry repeatedly, claiming she wanted to hand it over to the government office as evidence, but in reality, she was just coveting the money.

Although He-shi hadn't fully figured out the Xie woman, she knew the gist of it. The third branch was so poor, how could the Xie woman endure such hardship?

Just as the Xie woman was worrying about money, she threw out such a big benefit; the Xie woman would definitely take it.

He-shi continued: "If I did anything wrong in the past, Third Sister-in-law, please don't take it to heart. I will try to make amends in the future... The fourth brother and his wife... when they return from the government office, they will also apologize to you. This is the wish of the Old Master and Old Madam."

These were He-shi’s flattering words.

If Xie Yuyan hadn't tipped off Zhang-shi last night, even if Zhang-shi knew the second branch wasn't truly repentant, she would have thought they intended to downplay the matter.

Seeing that Zhang-shi was no longer in a hurry to decline, He-shi looked at the steward beside her: "The two stewards will act as witnesses. Let us first inventory all the items in the storeroom. Once you feel there are no problems, Third Sister-in-law, then you can take the key."

"If you are still worried, Third Sister-in-law, you can add another lock to the door."

Last night, Zhang-shi had thought of a way to deal with this—first ask people to witness, then add a lock—but she hadn't expected He-shi to say it first.

Zhang-shi couldn't help but look at Xie Yuyan. Xie Yuyan nodded, and only then did she say: "Please also invite Master Xu from the accounting office. There are some calculations I am not very good at, and having one more steward would be more appropriate." Since He-shi had arranged for two people, she had to add one she trusted.

He-shi agreed readily and immediately sent someone to invite him.

Before long, a servant led an old man in his forties or fifties over.

With everyone present, He-shi took out the key and opened the door to the small storeroom.

Looking at the items piled up in the small storeroom, Zhang-shi felt a mix of emotions. Although the Yang clan had more than one storeroom, it was when the Old Master of the third branch was alive that she had last held the keys.

"Mother, let's go in!"

Compared to Zhang-shi, the Xie woman seemed even more eager.

He-shi watched the scene with satisfaction. The third branch thought that with stewards as witnesses and everything inventoried, they would be foolproof? Little did they know that from the moment they stepped into the small storeroom, they were destined to lose.

The subsequent inventory surprised Zhang-shi even more. Except for a few small items that were damaged due to improper storage, all other items matched the records in the ledger perfectly.

Zhang-shi was even more confused—where exactly had He-shi tampered with things? Thinking this, sweat began to bead on her forehead. With Xie Yuyan’s prior warning, she still couldn't find the problem. If she really accepted the key like this and something went wrong later...

As she thought this, Zhang-shi felt her sleeve being tugged.

"Since the inventory is finished," Xie Yuyan said, "let's accept the key!"