Chapter 47

They were weak and needed to take things slow.

First, they had to identify their target for attack.

Within the family, they chose Uncle Xie Sica, the fourth uncle.

The debt that Xie Yan’s family had was caused by Xie Sica. Over five acres of land, Xie Yan had been forced to drop out of school. After taking the land, Xie Sica had driven them to their current situation. The villagers saw it as a big opportunity, and everyone wanted a piece of it.

Even now, Xie Sica was still spreading rumors that Xie Yan owed him silver and hadn’t repaid it. It was pitiful that they, as orphans and widows, hadn’t gone to confront him.

He took advantage of them, playing the victim, and now was the perfect time to strike back.

From the villagers, they picked Sun Erxi’s family.

This was an old acquaintance. When they got married, Lu Yang had pulled a prank on Sun Erxi, taking the hen from his chicken coop, and Sun had tried to chase after him to fight.

The villagers didn’t have any special loyalties, they were just following the crowd, and no one was better than the other.

Sun Erxi had wanted to fight with Lu Yang, and Xie Yan hated him for that.

These two families were the main targets.

Then, they had to decide whom to win over.

Among the relatives, Xie Yan planned to break up the united front of his uncles.

Xie Yan’s father was the second-born, and he had three brothers. He chose his eldest uncle and third uncle, planning to visit them on a set day.

For the villagers, Xie Yan picked Shazhu’s family and the village head’s family.

Shazhu’s family was prosperous and rarely got into trouble. They could be relied on.

The third family was the village head’s family, which had influence in the village. As long as the village head was biased, everything would be easy.

The village head was also the one who had bumped Xie Yan’s head during their wedding, and Lu Yang had scolded him fiercely.

When the village head called them for a conversation, they had refused to go.

Lu Yang listened to every word and nodded in approval of Xie Yan’s work.

Unfortunately, Xie Yan knew his own limitations. He knew that these were just theoretical ideas, impressive when spoken, but they were empty without practical experience. He still didn’t know how to act when faced with a specific person.

He had practiced many times in his mind, but when it came down to it, he had no idea what to say to these vicious people. His mind went blank. Thinking of this, he felt frustrated.

Lu Yang poked his face: “Don’t be discouraged, this kind of thing isn’t something you can figure out just by thinking on paper. You picked good people, so let’s follow your plan. Come with me today, and I’ll teach you in practice.”

Xie Yan was surprised: “Today?”

There’s no time like the present. Since the homework was done, why not put it into practice?

They had their reasons for visiting people, so Lu Yang set off to collect vegetables.

He knew where Shazhu’s family lived, so that would be their first stop.

Lu Yang said to Xie Yan: “Just like when you study, when dealing with people, you first have to observe. Get to know them, understand their likes and weaknesses, and they will be like paper tigers. There’s nothing to fear. If you have ideas, you can observe them concretely. This won’t happen overnight; it needs time to brew. Today, we’ll visit two families, and you’ll see how I handle it. Later, when we have time, we can practice arguing.”

Xie Yan didn’t realize that one could practice arguing, and Lu Yang laughed: “Of course, you think I was born knowing how to argue? I used to be scared too. If someone raised their voice, I’d get flustered. When I saw that person again, I’d avoid them like the plague. But the more I let them walk over me, the more they took advantage. Not only did strangers look down on me, but my own family would beat and scold me, saying I was useless. I was nobody to anyone. At that time, I cried until my tears ran dry.”

Xie Yan hadn’t expected that his fierce little husband had gone through such experiences. Hearing this made him feel heartbroken.

Lu Yang wasn’t telling this story to gain Xie Yan’s sympathy.

“Just like you weren’t born knowing how to read, these things can be learned. No one taught you before, but now I’ll teach you,” Lu Yang said.

Xie Yan looked up at him with sparkling eyes, like a little spoiled husband. He grabbed Lu Yang’s hand and happily followed him out.

As they walked, they greeted some villagers, and Lu Yang, who had always been aloof, smiled and greeted them warmly.

When asked where they were going, he simply replied, “I’m going to collect vegetables. I’ll get some cabbage and radishes from Shazhu’s mother, then take them to the county to sell.”

The people who overheard thought to themselves: “Why is he collecting vegetables from her family? Her son, Shazhu, is causing trouble with his marriage!”

But Lu Yang didn’t care about what they thought. He went straight to Shazhu’s house without hesitation.

Shazhu’s mother was in the yard washing clothes, and when she saw him, she felt a knot in her stomach.

Hearing that Lu Yang had come to collect vegetables, she mentally prepared herself to give them for free, though she felt reluctant. She forced a smile, trying to hide her feelings.

Her son Shazhu had offended someone, and she was still unaware of the situation with the authorities. Clenching her teeth, she offered, “Our family has a lot of land and people. How much do you need? I can gather up to a hundred pounds of vegetables.”

Lu Yang squeezed Xie Yan’s hand. The performance was about to begin.

Without wasting any time, he got straight to the point: “We still owe you money. How can we take them for free?”

When the debt was mentioned, Shazhu’s mother became cautious, laughing awkwardly and not saying much more.

Lu Yang could see through it and couldn’t help but smile. He continued, “Don’t worry, I’m a reasonable person. I understand the principle of paying back debts. I’m not trying to shirk it, and Xie Yan here wouldn’t allow me to. He still has to study and cares about his reputation.”

Then, he shifted the topic: “I’ll be upfront with you about the prices: cabbage is four wen, radish is one and a half wen. But with small quantities, it won’t even cover the cost of a meal. I’ll take more, so I can make a small profit. We can split the money from the sale. What do you think?”

Shazhu’s mother, who had initially expected nothing, was pleasantly surprised at the offer to share the proceeds. She saw people gathering outside to eavesdrop and quickly invited Lu Yang and Xie Yan into the house to sit.

Her family was large, and by the time three of them entered the house, the walls outside were crowded with people listening in.

Shazhu’s mother even called for Shazhu to bring tea and apologize.

Lu Yang surveyed their home. The main room was spacious, and the other two rooms seemed quite roomy as well.

“You’ve built a nice house, very grand and neat. I like it,” Lu Yang commented.

Shazhu remembered Lu Yang had once said that he would visit their house when he had time. He was startled by this remark.

Shazhu’s mother, who also knew about this, responded, “Our house might look big, but when there are so many people, it gets crowded. You don’t know, my husband has several brothers, and each family has many children. With so many people in one house, there’s barely any space to move. It’s nothing like your quiet place.”

Xie Yan looked up in surprise: “Quiet?”

Shazhu’s mother awkwardly laughed: “Not many people, so it’s quiet.”

Lu Yang smoothly continued: “If it’s really quiet, that’s great. You know about my family situation—we have some assets, and we want to live a good life. But these past few years, we’ve been drained by those evil people, and now we’re reduced to earning a little bit by collecting vegetables. If we don’t fight back, we won’t even have a peaceful grave.”

Shazhu’s mother, who had once participated in bullying people over debts, froze.

She had been called out.

Lu Yang quickly added, “I’m not talking about you; you haven’t received any money yet.”

Shazhu’s family, with their many ears, quickly picked up on the conversation.

Shazhu’s mother knew someone had received the land and money—Xie Sica, with his black-hearted ways, and who else?

Shazhu’s mother wanted to ask but held back.

Lu Yang smiled bitterly and said, “I don’t mind telling you—it was from Sun Erxi’s family. Two liang of silver was paid twice.”

That’s four liang.

Lu Yang noticed her changing expression and poured fuel on the fire: “If their family hadn’t paid once, your debts would be cleared.”

Shazhu’s mother got angry.

Her family had a longstanding grievance with Sun Erxi’s family. Their fields were adjacent, and Sun Erxi’s family had been unscrupulous, digging soil from their land and filling their own fields with it.

To plant more crops, Sun Erxi’s family even planted seedlings along the edges of the fields. It was impossible to walk without trampling the seedlings, and their family had to endure the damage.

This troublesome neighbor was Shazhu. The two families had argued many times before, and the year before, Sun Erxi’s family built a house and married off his daughter before Shazhu did. Every time they argued, Sun Erxi flaunted his new house and wife, all funded by ill-gotten gains.

Lu Yang could see the shift in her expression and knew it was the right moment to leave. “I still need to go collect more vegetables, so I won’t stay. Auntie, keep an eye out for me—apart from Sun Erxi and Xie Sica’s families, I’ll take vegetables from other families.”

Shazhu’s mother immediately agreed. Taking advantage of Lu Yang’s calm attitude, she hurriedly asked Shazhu to apologize and make amends.