Yunchu’s Vengeance - Chapter 49
Chapter 49 - The Rules of the Gambling Den
Mother He was not someone who resigned herself to fate.
When her entire family had hit rock bottom in the past, hadn't she clawed her way back up and returned to the capital?
Twenty years ago, her mother had supported so many family members up and down by relying solely on her embroidery skills. She, too, could use this embroidery technique to establish her own footing within the Xie manor.
Mother He figured out a way to purchase some silk thread and began embroidering handkerchiefs featuring exceptionally difficult and intricate techniques...
Yun Chu instructed her subordinates, "Buy back a few of Mother He's handkerchiefs. Keep the ones with unique needlework; I have great use for them."
Tingshuang nodded and arranged for people to go purchase the handkerchiefs.
Mother He never expected the handkerchiefs to sell off so easily, so she began pondering on embroidering some more valuable, larger items, such as screens and the like.
On this day, Chen Defu hurried inside to report, "Madam, that He Xu incurred a massive debt of ten thousand taels of silver and fled the capital. This old servant has already arranged for four men to follow him. What should we do next?"
Yun Chu's lips curved into a cold sneer. "Next, naturally, is to ensure he can never act as a man again."
Chen Defu hesitated and said, "However, if we hand him over to that group of people, I'm afraid he will directly lose his life..."
"You arrange for a few men to handle it." Yun Chu's expression was as cold as ice. "Once you take the silver, you must pay the price. Isn't that the rule of the gambling den?"
When lending silver to He Xu, they had signed a mortgage document. Chopping off that particular thing complied fully with the laws of the current dynasty.
Though she was single-mindedly bent on revenge, she would not touch upon the boundaries of the law.
Her grandfather had defended the innocence and reputation of the Yun family until his dying breath; she, too, would never bring disgrace upon the Yun family.
On the afternoon of the next day, Chen Defu arrived once more. "Madam, it has been accomplished. We administered medicine to him, and he managed to pull through. He is currently continuing on his journey with his destination being Jizhou."
Yun Chu nodded. "Has the name He Lingying been investigated?"
Chen Defu shook his head. "There are not many people surnamed He in the capital, and none of them bear that name."
"Then have someone go to Jizhou to make inquiries." Yun Chu stood up, retrieved a rather large box from the table, and handed it over. "Uncle Chen has worked hard handling matters for me during this period. This is a bit of tea; please accept it, Uncle Chen."
In the past, Uncle Chen managed the shops with a single-minded focus; although he was busy, his mind was at ease.
Now, while it seemed like he had no proper daily affairs to attend to, he actually had to bear immense psychological pressure.
How could Chen Defu dare to accept it? He hurriedly waved his hands in refusal.
He was a hereditary bondsman of the Yun family, and the Yun family had shown him great kindness. Handling affairs for the lady was only right and proper; how could there be any reason for him to accept precious tea leaves?
"There are still many matters ahead that require Uncle Chen to handle. If you refuse to accept this, how could I dare to order you about anymore? I would have no choice but to let you return home to retire."
Hearing these words, Uncle Chen had no choice but to take the tea leaves.
Yun Chu then proceeded to discuss the ice-selling arrangements with him. Originally, Chen Defu had purchased ice in massive quantities under the guise of a southern merchant without exposing the Yun family. Moving forward, they would similarly arrange for a southerner to open an ice-trading firm in the capital, officially opening its doors to welcome guests by the end of May.
All of these matters were delegated by Chen Defu to his trusted subordinates to avoid exposing their identities.
"The estates among my dowry sold at quite a favorable price," Yun Chu remarked. "Combining all that silver together, it will be just enough to purchase a large estate."
The yields of those estates under her name grew worse year by year. Selling them now allowed her to still fetch a good price, whereas delaying further would only make them increasingly worthless.
Chen Defu raised his head. "This old servant knows there are quite a few large estates in the suburbs of the capital that the primary owners are currently looking to sell. Would it be wise for this old servant to go negotiate?"
Yun Chu shook her head. "I want the Wu family's estate in the northern part of the city."
Hearing this, Chen Defu could not help but be greatly startled.
Over twenty years ago, the Wu family was a newly rising prominent clan in the capital. The head of the household served as an official in the imperial court, and the family business flourished greatly. Later on, however, the members of the Wu family contracted a strange illness, sparing no one from the elders down to the juniors. To pay for medical treatments, they liquidated countless family assets. A massive clan vanished into thin air overnight, leaving behind only that estate outside the city walls.
The estate was not particularly large, but it primarily encompassed a mountain, a body of water, and a small patch of woodland—possessing everything an estate ought to have. The very last person of the Wu family sold the estate to the Zou family for the price of twenty thousand taels of silver.
No sooner had the Zou family taken over than rumors of hauntings began to spread, and the Zou family's fortune was adversely affected, prompting them to sell the estate at a dirt-cheap price overnight.
A merchant refused to believe in such superstitions and bought the estate. True to form, right after taking possession, that merchant sought out a housing broker to desperately offload the estate at the lowest possible price.
Yet buyers in the market looking to acquire estates had all heard of these bizarre occurrences; who would dare take it off his hands? Thus, the estate remained stuck in the merchant's hands and had yet to be sold to this day.
"Calculated properly, that estate has been abandoned for over twenty years," Chen Defu said with a note of regret. "The soil there is fertile and excellent for growing crops, yielding superb harvests every year. Who knows how those rumors of hauntings started, destroying such a fine estate just like that. Madam, you should reconsider and look at other estates; there are many much better choices."
Thinking back to her past life, Yun Chu recalled that around the time she reached thirty years of age, a sudden fire broke out at the Wu estate, burning away all the overgrown weeds. Only then did people discover that a massive natural hot spring had been concealed within the estate. This hot spring was eventually acquired by a favored imperial consort in the palace, bringing in a mountain of wealth every single year.
As for the original haunting incidents, they had long since been forgotten in the long river of time.
Since she possessed the perspective of hindsight, she would not let that estate sit empty in vain for all those years again.
She stood up. "Let's go. We're going to take a look at the estate."
Chen Defu was utterly alarmed. "Madam, do you truly wish to buy that estate? Please think twice."
"Back then, the Zou family spent twenty thousand taels to buy the estate, and when they sold it off cheaply to the merchant, it was probably around fifteen thousand. Tell me, at what price can I buy it down?" Yun Chu smiled faintly. "The price is not an issue; let us first go see what this haunting is really about."
Although she was someone reborn from the dead, she still did not believe in such things. In her view, it was highly likely to be the handiwork of humans.
Chen Defu's brows knitted tightly together. "Madam, the hour is growing late. Wouldn't it be better if this old servant gathers a few Daoist priests tomorrow before we go?"
"Ghosts only come out at night," Yun Chu said, rising and walking toward the door. "However, we certainly need to bring more people along—take all the burly footmen and matrons from the manor."
Not only Chen Defu, but Tingshuang was also scared out of her wits.
She knew the lady had grown somewhat bolder lately, but she never imagined it had reached this degree.
Across the entire capital, not a single household dared to take over that haunted estate for fear of affecting their family fortunes, yet the lady insisted on going against the current.
However, given that the lady already stood in direct opposition to the Xie family, perhaps doing this was somewhat understandable?
Tingshuang went outside to gather all the strong, sturdy matrons, claiming they were going to the lady's dowry estate to retrieve some leftover belongings, not daring to mention they were heading to a haunted estate for fear that no one would dare to go.
As the setting sun sank westward, Yun Chu led her entourage and headed out of the city.
Hearing of this matter, the old matriarch found it utterly unbelievable. "I am sick to this degree, yet she doesn't even come to check on me, and instead leaves the city at a time like this?"
Nanny Zhou kept her head lowered. "Madam sent someone to deliver ginseng this morning, which can be considered fulfilling her filial duty."
The old matriarch knew Yun Chu had done what was required. She used to rather like this granddaughter-in-law, but now she found fault with her in every possible way.
Sipping her medicine and leaning back against the bed headboard, she asked, "Does this mean all of her estates are being sold off?"
Nanny Zhou replied, "Perhaps Madam is short on silver."
"Hmph, she extracted over twenty thousand taels of silver from me earlier; among the whole family, she is the wealthiest one, yet she still resorts to selling off her estates. An ordinary woman will not touch her dowry unless driven to absolute necessity," the old matriarch narrowed her eyes. "Why does she suddenly need so much silver?"
"This servant guesses..." Nanny Zhou lowered her voice. "The divine physician who treats the Empress has already entered the capital. I suspect the lady is pooling money to seek treatment for herself. Which woman wouldn't want a child of her own?"
The old matriarch had also heard of that divine physician. Because of his exceptional medical skills, simply too many people sought him out for treatment, leading him to raise his consultation fees to astronomical heights. It was said he demanded five thousand taels of silver just to feel one's pulse, and by the time a single illness ran its course, tens of thousands of taels would vanish in the blink of an eye...
Yun Chu's actions seemed somewhat understandable in that light. Once her illness was cured, any child she bore would still be of the Xie family's bloodline, so she could fuss over it however she pleased.