Yunchu’s Vengeance - Chapter 176
Chapter 176 - Another Half-Month Granted
Outside the entrance of the Xie Manor, a large crowd of onlookers gathered to watch the commotion.
"See, I guessed right! Xie Jingyu really did embezzle the silver. Dying like that was far too easy on him."
"Pity his aged father, who now has to serve thirty years of hard labor in his twilight years, and his two infant sons, who each owe a staggering debt of over eighty thousand taels of silver. Their lives are completely ruined."
"It must be said that the Eldest Young Master of the Xie family was rather fortunate; otherwise, this debt would have fallen squarely upon his head as the eldest son."
"Don't forget that the eldest legitimate daughter of the Yun family is still Madam Xie. The Yun family is there to back them up."
"If not for the Yun family serving as a safety net, the Xie family would have suffered just like the He family did twenty years ago, with every male member executed..."
"..."
After finishing their pronouncements, the imperial officers finally rolled up the scroll in their hands.
Just as Lady Yuan was about to struggle to her feet...
She heard the officer declare, "All residences, manors, and shops of the Xie family are hereby confiscated to fill the national treasury. Every member of the Xie family must pack up and vacate the premises immediately!"
Blood rushed to Lady Yuan's head, and her whole body swayed unsteadily.
Had she not been cradling an infant in her arms, she likely would have collapsed directly onto the ground just like Tingyu.
She turned her head, looking at Xie Jingyu's coffin resting in the main hall.
This was only the very first day following her son's passing; he had not even been buried to rest in peace. How could they possibly move away while hauling a coffin with them...
"Officers, I beg of you to show mercy and give us a little time..." Lady Yuan knelt on the ground clutching the baby, pleading bitterly. "Though our Xie family is no grand lineage, we still have the elderly and infants. All our grown men are gone; how can the old, the weak, women, and children possibly move out in such short order? Officers, please give us a few more days! I will kowtow to you all..."
Her forehead struck the hard ground with loud, resounding thuds, while the baby in her arms wailed at the top of his lungs.
This sight caused many onlookers at the gate to fall silently quiet.
There were always soft-hearted people in the world; though the Xie family's crimes were too numerous to record, what wrong had an old woman committed, and what fault lay with an innocent child?
Having long grown accustomed to such scenes, the imperial officer remained entirely unmoved.
At this moment, Yun Chu, who had stayed silent throughout, finally lifted her head.
Although the Xie family had wronged and betrayed her, from start to finish, Lady Yuan had never plotted against her. Yet in the end, it was Lady Yuan who had to bear the brunt of all these consequences.
"Officer." Yun Chu spoke up softly.
Hearing her voice, the officer hastily replied, "Madam Xie, please do not address me so formally; this humble official's surname is Zhou."
"Lord Zhou." Yun Chu knew that because of her father, these men would naturally give her some face. She said, "Asking everyone to pack up and leave all at once is indeed difficult. You and your men have worked hard coming all this way. The Xie family has no fine delicacies to host you with; if you and your men take a fancy to anything, feel free to take it with you."
She stepped aside, allowing the dozen or so imperial guards at the entrance to come inside.
Lord Zhou waved his hands hastily: "There is no need for hospitality. If Madam Xie has any requests, please feel free to speak."
Earlier today, Lord Cheng Xu, the trusted confidant of the Prince of Pingxi, had specially sought him out for tea, delivering the Prince's decree: any instruction from Madam Xie was to be granted unconditionally.
He knew well the deep camaraderie between the Prince and General Yun, and Madam Xie was the eldest daughter of the Yun family. As a minor officer, he could afford to offend neither the Prince of Pingxi nor the General's Manor.
"If Lord Zhou does not take a few items, how could I have the face to make a request?" Yun Chu insisted. "Please."
Lord Zhou pondered for a moment.
If the Prince of Pingxi's Manor and the Yun family truly cared about the Xie family, they never would have allowed the Xie family to reach such a desperate end.
In other words, the only person he needed to show consideration to was Madam Xie.
He waved his hand, and his subordinates immediately stepped through the front gates of the Xie Manor.
They took whatever caught their eye—decorative ornaments, folding screens, fine porcelain vases... The Old Lady's private storeroom was ransacked completely clean... Only the Sheng Residence, where Yun Chu lived, was left untouched, as no one dared set foot near it.
Lady Yuan remained kneeling by the entrance, her head lowered in silent tears.
Concubine Jiang hugged Xie Xian tightly, refusing to look at the looting, forcing herself not to weep while hushing her daughter so she would not cry either.
The Xie Manor was nearly picked clean.
Only then did Yun Chu speak: "I must trouble Lord Zhou to show a little leeway. I hope you will permit the Xie family to finish the funeral rites before moving out."
Lord Zhou nodded: "Then we will grant you another half-month. Fall out!"
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the column of soldiers dispersed.
The sky had already turned pitch-black. Seeing that the commotion had come to an end, the onlookers naturally dispersed as well, and the Xie Manor gradually sank into quiet stillness.
A gust of chilly wind swept through, fluttering the white funeral banners and lanterns. The tree shadows swayed, sending shivers of dread through the heart.
"What should we do? What can we do..." Utterly helpless and devoid of direction, Lady Yuan looked toward Yun Chu. "Chu'er, what should we do now? Please make a decision for us."
Yun Chu spoke calmly: "Night has fallen; it is time to keep vigil over the coffin."
"Chu'er, I am not talking about that." Lady Yuan's voice was hoarse from crying. "Your father-in-law has been dragged away to serve hard labor. Can we find a way to rescue him?"
Yun Chu's tone remained cool: "We should rejoice that Brother Yun and Brother Kang are still young; otherwise, the two of them would have been forced to serve hard labor in their father's stead."
Lady Yuan pleaded desperately: "They are both so young, yet they are saddled with such a massive debt! What are they supposed to do?"
"Then they will repay it slowly," Yun Chu replied without any expression. "Since ancient times, a father's debt must be repaid by his sons. If they cannot finish repaying it, then their sons and grandsons will continue to repay it."
Having just regained consciousness, Tingyu caught those words and nearly fainted once more.
Concubine Jiang hurried forward to support her.
"Madam, please save Brother Yun!"
Tingyu wept and begged.
Concubine Tao had the heart to abandon her own child, but Tingyu could never bring herself to do so.
Brother Yun was her very life; she would rather die herself than watch Brother Yun grow up weighed down by an eighty-thousand-tael debt.
She reached out to clutch Yun Chu's sleeve, but Yun Chu stepped aside, avoiding her touch.
"Now that Brother Yun is the eldest son of the Xie family, let Brother Yun keep vigil over the spirit. Whatever else needs discussing can wait until the funeral rites are concluded."
Yun Chu turned around and walked out of the mourning hall.
After she left, only the two concubines and Lady Yuan remained. The three women looked at one another, completely at a loss for words.
"Madam, Brother Xian will keep vigil tomorrow night; I will take her back to rest first." Concubine Jiang said with a lowered head, holding her daughter's hand tightly as she walked out.
Only after her silhouette disappeared beyond the doorway did Tingyu slowly speak: "Madam, the Master is dead, all of the Xie family's properties have been confiscated, and even this residence shielding us from wind and rain will soon be seized by the imperial court... Brother An's life or death in prison remains unknown, Brother Wei is wandering out in the world with his fate equally uncertain, and Brother Kang was already sickly before being abandoned by Concubine Tao—he may not even survive to adulthood... Brother Yun is our Xie family's sole remaining heir to carry on the family incense. Madam, you must plan for Brother Yun's sake."
Lady Yuan was completely bewildered: "Plan? How can I plan? What way could I possibly have..."
Had her husband still been here, he might have devised a course of action. But as a sheltered woman who had been reeling in dizziness ever since the disaster struck, she had no idea what to do.
"Madam, you are the Madam's mother-in-law. If you demand that she hand over her dowry, would she dare refuse?" Tingyu enunciated each word carefully. "Back then, the Madam brought a dowry worth a full thirty thousand taels of silver. Whatever was spent over the years was also reimbursed by the Old Lady previously. As long as we secure the Madam's dowry, the Xie family can finally catch its breath."
Lady Yuan shook her head vigorously: "What sort of mother-in-law takes her daughter-in-law's dowry? People will point at my spine and curse me for the rest of my days!"
Tingyu smiled coldly: "Is your spine more important, Madam, or is preserving the Xie family's incense more important?”