Chapter 173 That's enough
...
"Madam? Madam?!"
"Huh? What's wrong?"
Ye Wan snapped back to reality and saw Aunt Hui. She was momentarily embarrassed. "Aunt, what did you just say? I didn't hear you."
Since she woke up this morning, all she can think about is Lin Anyuan.
That bastard Lin Anyuan actually took off his clothes last night...
Ye Wan's cheeks flushed at the thought of it.
Hui Gu looked at Ye Wan with the eyes of someone who had been through it all, not at all surprised. "Madam, as I just mentioned, the former magistrate's wife, Madam Wu, has arrived with Miss Wu. Do you wish to see her?"
"Of course I'll see her, this place used to be inhabited." Ye Wan shuddered, remembering how Magistrate Wu had tried to arrest her before.
At the back gate, Madam Wu was instructing her daughter, "Don't say anything carelessly when you meet people later. Our family is different now than before, so don't act like a spoiled princess."
Miss Wu, holding a handkerchief, whispered, "Mother, I heard that the rebel Lord Lin is very handsome, just like the Moon God. Is that true?"
Madam Wu said, "Don't even think about it. He already has a wife and three daughters. If you go there, you can only be a concubine. Even if you are the legal wife, it won't work. You'd better not be someone's stepmother."
Miss Wu, "I still prefer that Mr. Pei."
"It's no use if you like him. Even if he's willing to take you, you're destined to be a concubine."
"Madam Lin, I've long heard of your great name, and it's great to finally meet you today!"
When Madam Wu saw Ye Wan, she was incredibly enthusiastic. "This is my daughter Qingqing. Come over and greet Madam Lin."
While praising Ye Wan, Madam Wu thought to herself, "Why is this Ye Wan so dark-skinned?"
Is this tan from sun exposure or is it just naturally dark-skinned?
No matter what she looks like, she should just fawn over her.
Miss Wu initially looked down on those from the countryside, but after meeting Ye Wan and the three maids, she discovered that apart from Ye Wan being a bit dark-skinned, the three maids were all fair-skinned and had a refined air, looking more like daughters of officials than she, the daughter of a county magistrate.
So she immediately joined her mother in saying nice things.
"Madam Wu, you've come all this way, why bring anything?" Ye Wan said to Madam Wu in a nonsensical manner.
Madam Wu brought all the good fabric she had prepared for making clothes for the New Year. She was incredibly enthusiastic, praising Ye Wan and the three girls.
One shouldn't hit a smiling face. Ye Wan and Madam Wu had no grudges, so she didn't let Ye Wan return empty-handed and returned the gift when she left.
He only brought one sentence, telling the former magistrate of Wu County to focus more on the people in the future.
This statement implies that Magistrate Wu could still obtain a minor official position and wouldn't have been killed outright.
Mrs. Wu was overjoyed and left in high spirits.
See? Her intervention is more effective than the master's.
Once word got out, all the prominent women in Min County wanted to see Ye Wan, and all the men wanted to see Lin Anyuan.
They suddenly found themselves in a different position, so they had to try and curry favor with the higher-ups.
With the Lunar New Year fast approaching and so many people to meet, Ye Wan grew impatient and simply let Lin Anyuan handle it.
Lin Anyuan also found it troublesome to meet people one by one, so he picked a day and gathered everyone together on one day.
Of course, he didn't just meet them; he directly made these people leave behind two-thirds of their family fortune.
This is absolutely inhumane! No wonder they're traitors, they're asking for the moon.
Many people cursed and swore, and took out their family property.
What? You're not willing to give it?
The last one was not willing, and the soil on the grave has already been covered. Which is more important, family property or life? If you have to choose one, you will definitely save your life.
Thinking about it this way, two-thirds seems acceptable; at least it wasn't all looted.
“Master Liu, you have done good deeds before and helped so many people. Just donate two-thirds of the grain and keep your family property.”
Master Liu returned home with a dark face and began to curse Lin Anyuan.
Liu Mo also joined in the cursing, "What kind of beast dares to point fingers at the Liu family?"
"He just flaunted his power as a rebel, and now he actually thinks he's someone important?"
"Enough!"
Old Madam Liu interrupted them with a stern face.
"Go and send a letter to Wen Shu to reassure him."
Then, looking at Liu Yuanwai and Liu Mo, he said, "They only want grain, nothing else, which is already an extraordinary favor. Otherwise, what do you think we are? We could have killed the whole family without a second thought!"
"He dares!"
"He wouldn't dare, but King Jing would. Who do you think you are!"
Madam Liu knew that if it weren't for Ye Wan, the Liu family would have donated much more than just this amount of grain.
He thought to himself how lucky he was that he hadn't made things difficult for Ye Wan back then.
Back in his own courtyard, he instructed Granny Liu to prepare a generous gift to send to Ye Wan.
...
...
Liu Wenshu received the letter from home half a month later, just ten days before the New Year.
"Lin Anyuan is back?"
Now that Liu Wenshu is working at the Hanlin Academy, he has lost some of his youthful naiveté.
Looking at the letter his grandmother sent, Liu Wenshu thought of Lady Ye.
"Madam Ye..."
Yantai brought in hot tea. "Young master, what wife? The price of charcoal has gone up this winter. Luckily, I was smart enough to buy a lot in advance."
The capital is different from other places; every inch of a hair is worth its weight in gold, and everything is expensive.
"Young master, what would you like to have for dinner?"
"No need to prepare anything, we'll go to the Liu residence for dinner tonight."
Liu Wenshu put the letter away, a slight smile playing on his lips.
Lady Ye also wrote to him, assuring him that even though Min County had been occupied by the rebels, his grandmother was certainly safe and sound.
That's enough.
"Madam, the master has taken Liu Wenshu to the study. The steward has told you to prepare a family banquet."
In the backyard of the Liu residence, Madam Cui slammed her hand on the table.
"You little bastard, you don't take me seriously at all. You actually dared to trip me up in front of me. It's all my fault for being too soft-hearted back then and not eliminating the threat completely!"
The last time was because of a family banquet, Liu Wenshu was poisoned on the spot, Liu Zhongyuan turned the house upside down, and in the end he blamed her for it. He hasn't been back to the backyard since.
Liu Wenshu actually dared to come to the Liu residence! Isn't he afraid she'll really kill him?
Cui gritted her teeth in hatred. "This bastard's offspring is actually playing these tricks of women in the inner quarters!"
The old nanny beside her hurriedly spoke up, "Madam, please be careful with your words. No matter how well he performs or how promising he is, in other people's eyes he is still a collateral branch of the Liu family. Everything in the Liu family belongs to the young master of the family, and has nothing to do with him, a collateral branch."
After calming herself down, Cui said, "Go, tie up that wretched maid, Lü'er!"
Soon, Greenie was forced to kneel in Cui's room.
Greenie suppressed her panic and bowed humbly, "This servant greets Madam."
The old nanny beside Madam Cui spoke up, "Lü'er, you entered the Liu household last spring, didn't you? What was your name before you entered the household?"
“My name is Greenie. The steward liked the name and didn’t change it.”
Greenie lowered her head very low, feeling very scared.
Suddenly, Cui said, "This girl is quite pretty."
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