Inside the Jin family's house, Sun Yuanhu used his persuasive skills to finally convince Jin to consider selling the land.
That's fifty taels of silver, something they might never see in several lifetimes.
"Go find that old woman and get the land deed. What's the use of just talking about it!" Jin's head throbbed at the thought of getting entangled with Old Lady Sun. It used to be manageable, but now there's the troublesome Sun Miao'er, making things much more difficult.
Sun Yuanhu looked troubled. "Well, wife, darling, you should go. How can I possibly ask you to?"
"Useless thing! You can't even do this simple thing. What use are you? Let me make this clear: once I get this fifty taels of silver, I'll give you ten taels to pay off your debts, and the rest will be mine!" Madam Jin hated Sun Yuanhu's good-for-nothing attitude the most. She thought that once she got the money, it wouldn't be too late to kick this good-for-nothing to the curb.
Sun Yuanhu was driven to the brink of despair. He had had enough of living on the run and just wanted to pay off his debts and live a peaceful life. He readily agreed, "I'll do whatever you say. Go quickly, or it will be delayed until tomorrow morning."
Just as Old Mrs. Sun blew out the lamp, lay down, and closed her eyes, she heard Mrs. Jin knocking on the door outside.
"Mother, are you asleep?" Madam Jin knocked on the door very respectfully and waited outside.
Grandma Sun got up, sensing something was amiss. Her second son's family always barged in without a word, so why were they acting this way today? There must be something fishy going on!
"Come in."
Madam Jin entered the kitchen, lit a candle, and greeted her with a fawning smile, "Mother, it's so late and you're still not asleep?"
Grandma Sun replied coldly, "Just say what you want to say."
"You know Yuanhu is back, right?" Jin asked tentatively.
Grandma Sun's face was gloomy. "I don't have a son like him."
Thinking that the old man seemed to be unmoved by either soft or hard approaches, Madam Jin said, "I won't keep you in suspense any longer. You know where the land deed for the family's herb garden is, right? Give it to me!"
Alright, so you're just pretending to be kind. So you're after the land deed all along. "Don't think I don't know what you're up to. You're trying to take over the ancestral property. Let me tell you, no way!"
“Mother, since you won’t listen to me, I’ll have Yuanhu come and talk to you in person tomorrow!” Madam Jin was too lazy to argue with her. She knew this old woman’s temper very well. If it wasn’t her own choice, she would rather take the land deed to her coffin than hand it over.
Back in her room, Madam Jin gave Sun Yuanhu a cold shoulder. "I can't reason with your mother. You can go talk to her yourself tomorrow morning. It's really embarrassing!"
Sun Yuanhu had to come up with a plan overnight, but he knew that his wife was more responsive to gentle persuasion than force.
Sun Miao'er was half asleep when she was suddenly woken up by Grandma Sun. She rubbed her eyes; it was still dark outside.
Grandma Sun crept into the woodshed where Sun Miao'er slept in the dark and quietly woke her up. "Miao'er, your second uncle wants to sell the family's land. Grandma trusts you, so I'll give you the land deed. Make sure it doesn't fall into your second uncle's hands."
Thinking of what she had heard during the day, Sun Miao'er figured that Sun Yuanhu had probably been tricked again. She took the land deed and said, "Grandma, don't worry, I will keep it safe."
The next day, just as dawn was breaking, Sun Yuanhu rushed to his mother's room, pleading, "Mother, you must help me!"
This trick has always worked since he was a child. When Old Man Sun was alive, he was most susceptible to this. "Mother, your son doesn't want to die! If we can't pay back the money, they really will take my life!"
Seeing that he was stubborn and unyielding, Old Lady Sun became furious. "Why didn't you do this earlier?!"
"Mother, I promise you, this is the last time, please give me the land deed!" Sun Yuanhu pleaded repeatedly, almost kneeling down.
Grandma Sun shook her head repeatedly, tapping the headboard, "You're so foolish! How could I have given birth to such a good-for-nothing like you? The land deed was left by our ancestors. If it's lost in my hands, how will I face your father in the afterlife!"
Seeing that Old Madam Sun wouldn't budge, Sun Yuanhu immediately changed his attitude, acting as if he didn't care. "Don't talk about ancestors. The Sun family might die out. If I really die, your two precious grandsons might have to be made into servants!"
"You! You!" Old Mrs. Sun was so angry she couldn't speak. After a long pause, she exclaimed, "Listen to what you're saying! What kind of inhuman things are you spouting? Xiaoman is your own son, and you actually want him to be a servant?!"
Sun Yuanhu was already dead and wouldn't ask any more questions; he was going to die anyway if he couldn't pay off the debt. "Mother, just give it to me!"
As he spoke, he was already rummaging through drawers and cabinets by Grandma Sun's bedside, trying to find the land deed. "Damn it, it's not here either!"
Grandma Sun sat there motionless, very calm. "Don't bother looking, you won't find it. I'm too old, I don't remember where I put the land deed."
"Your words are only good for fooling a three-year-old. You value this land deed more than your life, how could you not remember it?" Sun Yuanhu searched several places but couldn't find the land deed. He got annoyed and lost his previous good attitude, revealing his true nature.
He had arranged for Manager Wang to come and inspect the land that afternoon, and they would exchange the land deed for the money. Wasn't he just shooting himself in the foot by doing this?
After noon, a small sedan chair swayed into Fushui Village and stopped outside the Sun family's house.
"Sun Yuanhu!" the steward accompanying the sedan chair shouted.
Sun Yuanhu couldn't hide it any longer; he had revealed everything he knew. He had no choice but to bite the bullet and go out to greet him, "Manager Wang, you've arrived!"
A strong, muscular man stepped out of the sedan chair. He was tall and burly, and walked with a brisk pace. He didn't seem like a businessman at all. "Old Sun, what do you say? Take me to the fields to have a look?"
Sun Yuanhu dared not act rashly, and bowed and scraped as he led Manager Wang towards the edge of the field, saying, "Manager Wang, you are truly punctual!"
Shopkeeper Wang nodded, "I, Wang, have always been the most honest person in business. Old Sun, stop arguing and let's look at the land first."
"Yes, yes, yes, let's see the land." Sun Yuanhu was sweating profusely, but those sedan bearers didn't look like people he could mess with, so he decided to wait and see.
Upon arriving at the Sun family's land, Manager Wang narrowed his triangular eyes and nodded with great satisfaction. "Did your family grow all these crops?"
The corn is growing well, and the herbs are also sprouting, growing in clumps. The soil is quite fertile.
"Don't worry, Manager Wang, our family has been farming this land for generations. If you don't believe me, just go ask around in the village; everyone knows about it." Sun Yuanhu didn't want the cooked duck to fly away, so he quickly reassured him.
Shopkeeper Wang paced back and forth a couple of steps, then nodded to the sedan chair bearers. "Hmm, not bad. Bring me paper and pen, let's write a contract."
"No rush, no rush." Sun Yuanhu wiped the sweat from his brow. "Manager Wang, the land is here, it can't be taken away. It's just that I don't know where I put the land deed for the time being. Could you please wait a bit?"
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