Frightening

When Xie Chengjin returned, although he had anticipated the division of the family, facing it in reality brought an inevitable ache to his heart.

Yet, splitting the household was now the best way out for both himself and his eldest brother's branch.

"Since you yourself agreed to divide the family, let us do it properly! We shall invite the clan patriarch to first inventory our family assets, and then divide them among you!"

Xie Wenjing's grandfather had hoped that his paternal clan cousin would privately favor his second son, making a symbolic gesture of giving one thousand taels of silver each to the eldest and second sons—an amount sufficient for them to live on for the rest of their lives. As for the remaining ancestral residence, he was unwilling to part with it, intending to keep it for the second son's future official career.

Xie Chengjin had wanted to say that he and his eldest brother could survive without a single penny from here.

However, he was held back firmly by his wife.

When the Xie clan patriarch and others arrived to oversee the division, nobody expected Xie Wenjing's grandmother to suddenly point out that Xie Chengyu's recent move of his entire household to Hangzhou actually involved taking away a considerable amount of valuable family property.

She even named Wenbao's gold neck ring and black jade inkstone, and went so far as to mention the so-called exorbitant expenditures on medicinal herbs for Xie Chengyu over the years.

The only thing she omitted was the fact that she herself had privately pawned off the Xie family's ancestral heirlooms.

Thinking it over, the grandfather decided his old wife's words served well—at least it would prevent outsiders from feeling he had mistreated his legitimate eldest son and his younger son.

He was treating everyone with an even hand!

Listening to the good stepmother whom he had always trusted and respected as she now tore off her hypocritical mask, Xie Chengjin knew with crystal clarity what her purpose was.

If the Xie family dared to saddle him with such a hypocritical, inflated debt, he would thoroughly expose everything this stepmother had done. Even if it meant carrying the infamous name of unfilial piety, he would fight her to the death!

"Now that the Xie family has encountered difficulties and there are rifts between the brothers, forcing us to stay together is inferior to separating early.

My eldest son is pitiful, constantly ill. Although he took away so many valuables this time, it is only right; who knows when he might need that money to save his life?

Yet my second son has also reached a critical juncture. The Xie family has only produced one successful provincial graduate in him thus far. If he can pass the imperial examination this time and attain the rank of a jinshi, the burden of the Xie family will rest entirely upon his shoulders. Without a little money in hand, he will not carve out a good future in the capital.

The intent of us two elders is that they are, after all, brothers born of the same mother, and their closeness is natural. Otherwise, my youngest son here could not make the decision on behalf of his eldest brother regarding the family split.

They have been in Hangzhou for nearly two months now, and having left the Xie family, they are doing quite well. It is better to divide it just like this: the many valuables they took away shall belong to the two brothers.

As for the few courtyards remaining in the Xie family, let them be left to Chengju! This child bears a heavy burden and must shoulder the responsibility of revitalizing the Xie family! Your mother and I must also rely on him; we cannot make things too hard for him!"

The grandmother's theatrical performance actually won the unanimous nod and approval of the clan members. With this, the grandfather even saved the two thousand taels he had originally intended to give.

Indeed, even he had not expected that his dying son really had taken away quite a number of things upon his departure. Calculated properly, it certainly would not amount to a small sum; Wenbao's two items alone were worth several thousand taels—how could they have been wronged?

With this thought, the grandfather felt his conscience clear.

Xie Chengjin had never expected to take even a single brick away from the Xie family, yet this theatrical stepmother had kicked him and his eldest brother out clean while still earning a pristine reputation for herself.

However, seeing the way they looked longingly toward the second brother, a cold sneer rose in his heart. They were not fools; they were all banking on the second brother's future prosperity to carry them along.

The clan handed the written division agreement to the individuals concerned.

Xie Chengju alone acquired all the ancestral courtyards retained by the Xie family, including all the furnishings within them, while Xie Chengjin was to evenly split the massive wealth his eldest brother had taken with him—or so the document stated.

Xie Chengjin had no desire to say more. Being able to divide the family was the best possible outcome; this old woman would never again have the opportunity to poison his eldest brother. If Wenjing knew, she would surely be happy.

He only wondered whether Wenbao would throw a tantrum upon finding out. That child still did not know the vicious and venomous nature of this grandmother!

When Xie Wenjing once again saw her thoroughly exhausted third uncle and third aunt, she learned that the Xie family had truly divided.

"Eldest Brother, Eldest Sister-in-law, I am sorry. That Xie family is truly no longer our Xie family. When trouble struck, they liquidated a great deal of family property.

The farmstead in Guangling was sold off, and many courtyards in Yangzhou were disposed of as well. When I returned home, I discovered that the courtyard I lived in, along with everything inside it, had been completely sold.

The Bamboo Garden where you lived was also sold, and even Wenjing's courtyard was sold. The only courtyards left untouched were those belonging to the second brother's branch; not even the courtyards of the second brother's two concubines were merged away.

Even the two courtyards belonging to our stepmother and her daughter were not sold. The only things liquidated were the courtyards of our two branches.

The most laughable part is that Father actually attributed the root cause of the Xie family's decline to you, claiming that over these past few years, our good stepmother spent far too many silver notes trying to keep you alive.

Even the large quantities of rice our good stepmother bought in secret were allegedly for your future medicine expenses, but before she could sell them for a profit, the grain shop went bankrupt.

She even claimed that her purchase of the rice was instigated by the Du family. Father actually went so far as to pin the entire decline of the Xie family on you in his heart. My heart turned ice-cold.

Therefore, I deliberately provoked them at the time, stating that we had already acted as guarantors for the Du family, and if the Du family could not repay their debts, the Xie family would have to pay them instead.

At that moment, the stepmother's ugly face was fully exposed. Right in front of everyone, she branded the two of us as unfilial and sought to expel both our branches from the Xie family.

Unexpectedly, I was no longer afraid of that old woman. Daring to saddle us with such an unfilial reputation, I threatened that if they dared to do so, I would make the entire population of Yangzhou know how that label of unfilial piety came to be.

Upon learning that we had already guaranteed the Du family, Father and the second brother arrived at a remarkably unanimous decision: immediate division. They declared that whoever made the guarantee would bear the consequences.

In the end, relying on our good stepmother's theatrical performance, the clan declared that when you left home, you took all sorts of valuable heirlooms—the grandmother even ticked off the black jade inkstone and the gold neck ring at Wenbao's side one by one.

They concluded that whatever you and I had taken away beforehand would be considered our share of the division, and everything else belonged entirely to their second son.

Eldest Brother, Eldest Sister-in-law, I am sorry. Even with the division, I failed to win back a single cash for us!"

Xie Chengjin wept almost uncontrollably as he finished recounting these events, while the third aunt by his side wept in sympathy, deeply distressed.

"Third Uncle, Third Aunt, do not grieve. Ever since we left Hangzhou, we already knew that the Xie grandmother is a wolf clad in human skin.

She wished nothing more than for the members of our two branches to come to a wretched end; how could she ever give us a single penny? Therefore, when we left Yangzhou that day, we indeed brought away all the valuables at our side precisely to prevent her from swallowing them while making high-sounding excuses.

They were capable of selling your long-term residence while you were away, selling the Bamboo Garden where my parents lived, and even shamelessly selling the courtyard of a young lady like myself.

When a great crisis struck, the Xie family had the gall to sell our living quarters and then pin the roots of Xie Jin's decline upon my father. To behave as they do makes them a rare spectacle in Yangzhou indeed.

Fortunately, we were prepared and not afraid of their shamelessness. Let them live their elite lives; our two branches will find peace and settle down right here in the Li Family Ancestral Hall, living our own modest lives. Never again having to worry about being poisoned or harmed by drugs—that is better than anything else!"

Seeing a grown man like the third uncle weeping with such anguish, Xie Wenjing felt a heavy knot in her chest, yet deep down she rejoiced: the family was finally divided. That old woman would never again have the chance to poison her eldest brother. If Wenjing knew, she would certainly be pleased.

She only wondered if Wenbao would throw a scene when he found out. That child still knew nothing of the grandmother's venomous heart!

"Indeed, Third Brother, even Wenjing sees things so clearly; can you still fail to see through it? Without a stepmother who was hell-bent on poisoning us, living such a quiet and serene life—what regrets could we possibly have?

Look at me; I was poisoned by the stepmother for over two years, yet she poisoned me and still won a pristine reputation for herself, even using me as an excuse to buy and sell rice, only to spout self-justifications when she suffered losses, claiming it was all for my sake.

Whatever the case may be, today's outcome is already wonderful. Our two branches have finally escaped the clutches of the stepmother. As for the future, our two branches must study diligently; we certainly cannot end up worse off than the son Father favored.

Fortunately, our Wenjing is clever. When leaving Yangzhou, she brought along everything that could be carried. Our two branches will not lack for provisions; it is more than enough for us to study and live comfortably. Do not grieve anymore!"

Xie Chengyu also earnestly comforted his younger brother.

"No, Eldest Brother, my greatest regret is that when we left the Xie family earlier, we were foolish enough not to bring anything of value, only for them to brazenly sell it all off now.

Had we known earlier, we should have been just like Wenjing, taking every valuable thing in the courtyard so as not to let them profit from it!

Now, I... our branch still depends on Eldest Brother for sustenance. I? I feel wretched! I am not even as capable as Wenjing!"

Only now did Xie Chengyu, his wife, and Xie Wenjing truly understand the underlying reason for the third uncle and third aunt's profound grief!

"Third Brother, Third Sister-in-law, do not regret this anymore, nor should you think yourselves inferior to Wenjing—even I am inferior to Wenjing.

Our family's escape from the stepmother's poison was entirely secured by Wenjing's efforts. When leaving Yangzhou, it was Wenjing who insisted we bring all our valuables, which is why we were not truly destroyed by that vicious stepmother.

Furthermore, Wenjing also purchased a hundred mu of farmland here at the Li Family Ancestral Hall. Even if we have nothing in the future, we have these fields as a safeguard for our two branches.

Our two branches are now truly one family; what we have is what you have. Do not mind these things, and do not grieve. We are a family, and so it ought to be.

Besides, with the few of you studying hard, who is to say you might not pass the examinations in the future?"

As Dujuan comforted them, she wiped the tears from the weeping sister-in-law's face.

Xie Chengyu joined his wife in offering continuous comfort, speaking encouraging words to them both.

At that moment, none of them noticed that Wenbao was currently eavesdropping quietly beneath the sill of his father's window. Having not seen his third uncle and third aunt for days, Xie Chengyu's young son had shrewdly guessed they might have gone back to Yangzhou.

During his studies today, catching a sudden glimpse of their returning figures, he had shouted that he needed to use the latrine, leaving his cousin studying alone while he slipped away.

Xie Wenbao simply wanted to know why his grandmother had not yet come to fetch him back; these past few days, being watched over by his older sister had been excruciatingly uncomfortable.

Yet he feared his sister, so he had no choice but to obey her, pinning all his hopes on returning to Yangzhou sooner.

Why, then, were they calling the grandmother malicious? And why did his father personally say the grandmother had poisoned him for over two years? Could his father's grave illness back then actually have been poisoning by the grandmother?

No! It could not be! It was not like that!

Xie Wenbao could not accept such a conclusion. He turned and fled without looking back, bypassing his cousin's study altogether and running far away, out of his own courtyard, all the way to the outskirts of the Li Family Ancestral Hall and down to the banks of the Grand Canal.

Xie Wenbao stared blankly at the canal. Why was there not a single boat upon it? If there were one, he would board it and hurry back, just to ask his grandmother if these things were true.

He then recalled his third uncle's words: the Xie family had split. His parents, his third uncle and aunt, and his second uncle had divided the household. His own family and his third uncle's family had only taken what they originally brought from the Xie family. What his third uncle had said through his tears must be true.

Yet why would his grandparents claim that the Xie family's ruin was caused by his father? His father had been in Hangzhou all along; how could he have ruined the household in Yangzhou?

Grandmother should already know that Father was praying for blessings and had recovered significantly; how could she still have suffered losses buying and selling rice on Father's account?

Xie Wenbao felt thoroughly bewildered.

The thought that the grandmother who so often doted on him might be the person who poisoned his father was simply unacceptable to him. He longed, more than anything, to immediately ask his grandmother if this was the truth.

Reflecting further, he remembered that ever since his father left Yangzhou, his health had indeed been steadily improving; his father could even test him on his homework.

Back in Yangzhou, all his father could do every day was lie on his bed at death's door, at the mercy of his mother and concubines feeding him medicine. Right—why had that concubine disappeared as well?

Damnable Xie Wenjing! You knew everything, yet you told me nothing at all. How was I supposed to know these things? Since I knew nothing of this, of course I would provoke you!

For a time, Xie Wenbao's mind churned with countless thoughts, leaving him intensely agitated. A wave of frustration washed over him—everyone else knew, yet he was kept completely in the dark. If he hadn't sneaked over and overheard them, his parents and sister would never have told him.

After Xie Wenjing, along with her parents, finished comforting the third uncle and third aunt, the family discussed going to guarantee the Du family the next day, deciding for the time being not to inform the Qin family that the Xie family had split—the Qins naturally would not know such minute details.

As for the future debts, Xie Chengyu and his brother both chose to believe the Du family had the capacity to repay them; if worst came to worst, the two families would face it together and eventually clear the debt owed to the Qin family.

With everything settled, Xie Wenjing rose to check on Wenbao. Recently, Wenbao had been uncharacteristically well-behaved, no longer daring to talk back to his parents or her, and was able to sit steadily to study in the small schoolroom specially set up in their home.

Xie Wenjing stood at the doorway of this schoolroom for a full quarter of an hour without catching a glimpse of her younger brother.

Her first thought upon failing to see him was that he must have gone to the latrine, given how good he had been lately.

"Wenfeng, where has Wenbao gone?" Xie Wenjing finally interrupted her younger cousin, Xie Wenfeng, who was engrossed in his reading.

"Eldest Sister, Wenbao just said he was going to the latrine!" Wenfeng replied honestly. Being utterly absorbed in his books, he had no sense of how long Wenbao had actually been gone.

"I understand. Keep studying! Qin Yu, come out here!" Wenfeng's companion and pageboy was beckoned out by a wave of her hand.

"Tell me, how long ago did the young master leave?"

"Replying to the Eldest Miss, it should... it should be well over an hour ago?"

Qin Yu's face flushed red with fear of the Eldest Miss. He should have accompanied the young master, but the young master had claimed he only needed a moment for the latrine and didn't need company. Qin Yu had been sitting on pins and needles inside, waiting, right before the Eldest Miss arrived! *Young Master, you must be all right, please don't let anything happen!*

"Go and check all the nearby male latrines, quickly!" A sudden, frantic fluttering seized Xie Wenjing's heart, bringing with it a sense of impending unease.

Obeying the Eldest Miss's command, Qin Yu bolted toward the latrines. After a brief while, he trotted back, crestfallen and pale-faced, shaking his head. "Eldest Miss, none of them are there!"

Steadying her nerves, Xie Wenjing thought carefully. "Qin Yu, search our courtyard thoroughly. I'm going out to look!"

If Wenbao were anywhere in their own compound, he would be easy to find; the household had no shortage of matrons and maids. Her greatest fear was that he had wandered outside to play. Fortunately, her relations with the villagers were good; she would go out and check—if anyone had seen her brother leave, they would tell her.

"Eldest Miss Xie!" As soon as Xie Wenjing stepped outside the main gate of her courtyard, her neighbor, Aunt Li, greeted her warmly.

"Aunt Li, have you seen my younger brother come out?" Xie Wenjing asked tentatively.

"I saw him come out, he went that way!" Aunt Li had been sitting by her front door making shoes for her family. With no courtyard wall blocking her view, she naturally spotted the young master emerging from the Xie residence.

Aunt Li had assumed Xie Wenjing's younger brother was simply heading out to check on their family's soybeans, suspecting nothing else. Besides, the Xie children were all independent-minded youths; going out naturally meant they had business, and she hadn't given it a second thought.

This was a consequence of Xie Wenjing's forceful presence: a twelve-year-old maiden capable of purchasing a courtyard worth over a thousand taels of silver, decisively putting a torch to a failed wheat field, and unexpectedly planting soybeans—all of this proved the Xie children were no ordinary youngsters.

Hearing Aunt Li's words, Xie Wenjing's heart skipped a beat. That direction led not only to their fields, but also to the Grand Canal! Could her brother have boarded a boat on the canal to return to Yangzhou all by himself?

Discarding her usual composure, Xie Wenjing broke into a full-out sprint, single-mindedly desperate to catch up with her brother.

Her usual personal maids—Zhihua, Meilan, and Mama Du—were currently occupied with other household chores such as cleaning, cooking, and washing.

Furthermore, Xie Wenjing required no attendance; she not only took care of herself but also managed the household affairs whenever her third aunt was away.

She shielded her parents from domestic worries so her father could recuperate in peace while she ran the household.

Yet if something happened to her brother, no amount of posthumous regret would save the situation.

Meanwhile, Xie Wenbao had stared blankly at the canal for a long time when he actually spotted a boat approaching from afar.

Driven by some strange impulse, Xie Wenbao began waving frantically at the people on board: "Take me to Yangzhou! I want to go to Yangzhou!"

The people on the cargo vessel heard the cries of the roughly nine-year-old boy on the bank and gradually steered the boat closer.

"Hey, you want to go to Yangzhou? Taking you costs money!" A burly man on the boat grinned.

This young master clearly belonged to a wealthy family, and bringing him along wouldn't be troublesome since they were heading to Yangzhou anyway. Their current cargo consisted entirely of dead freight with not a single drop of profit to be squeezed out, so this young master presenting himself was quite a stroke of fortune. Extorting a few hundred taels from his family later should be a breeze.

"I have money!" Xie Wenbao shouted, eager only to reach Yangzhou as soon as possible to ask his grandmother if those things were true and if his father had really been poisoned by her.

"Alright, first things first: taking you for this trip will cost at least three hundred taels of silver. If you agree, I'll take you to Yangzhou!"

The ruffian named an exorbitant price off the top of his head.

"Fine, fine! I don't have silver on me right now, but once you take me back to Yangzhou, my grandmother will give you three hundred taels!"

Intent on returning to Yangzhou, Xie Wenbao agreed to everything without a trace of fear.

"Good then, I'll take you along for a stretch. If you dare to trick me and can't produce the silver when we reach Yangzhou, don't blame me for selling you off to pay the debt!"

Laughing boisterously, the burly man maneuvered the cargo boat close to the riverbank and lowered the wooden plank for Xie Wenbao to board. Just in the nick of time, Xie Wenjing arrived.

Terrified out of her wits, Xie Wenjing lunged forward and yanked her brother back just as he was about to step onto the plank.

"Well, well, little beauty, why are you ruining my business? Why don't you come along to Yangzhou as well?"

Displeased, the burly man stepped onto the plank himself, his eyes sweeping greedily over the flushed young maiden. Selling her to a brothel madam in Yangzhou would easily fetch several hundred taels.

"What are you doing? Stay away from me! Uncle Li, come quickly, there are bad men in our village!" Recognizing the greedy gleam in the stranger's eyes, Xie Wenjing's guard went up instantly.

She raised her voice and screamed toward the villagers working in the fields a few hundred paces away.

"Run! Bad men have entered the village!" Hearing Xie Wenjing's screams, several patrolling villagers from the Li Family Ancestral Hall dropped their agricultural tools and raced toward her at top speed.

Realizing the situation had turned sour, the ruffian spat viciously, cursed under his breath, and hurriedly pushed his cargo boat away from the bank.

"Eldest Miss Xie, did that fellow run off?"

Led by Uncle Li, the villagers arrived panting heavily. They were part of a patrol organized by the village specifically to protect the soybean crops from thieves.

"He was scared off!" Xie Wenjing replied with a grim expression, her voice sounding frail and drained of strength.

"Are you two alright?" Uncle Li asked anxiously, looking at the capable Xie Eldest Miss. The entire village owed their survival this year entirely to her blessing; otherwise, they would have been reduced to eating grass for survival like the inhabitants of neighboring villages.

"We're fine, thank you all!" Overcome with lingering fear, Xie Wenjing shuddered. That burly man had greed written all over him; had her brother fallen into his hands, she shuddered to imagine the consequences.

Seeing her response, Uncle Li realized no actual harm had been done, and with the ruffian driving his boat away, the immediate crisis had passed. Still, he noted that this stretch bordering the canal required extra vigilance during future patrols to prevent anyone from disembarking to steal the village's soybeans.

Utterly exhausted in body and mind, Xie Wenjing lacked the energy to discipline her brother right then and there; getting him home came first.

"We're going back!" With a dark expression, Xie Wenjing dragged her brother by the hand, resolving to figure out how to put an absolute stop to his habit of sneaking off to Yangzhou once they were home.

Today had been a matter of sheer luck—her brother had been mere steps away from falling into a villain's trap. If he did this again, would such luck save him a second time?

Xie Wenjing's face was as cold as ice, while Xie Wenbao remained silent, allowing his sister to drag him along.

In truth, the moment he saw the burly man's reaction when the villagers rushed over, Xie Wenbao had already realized the man was a bad sort.

Yet he stubbornly refused to admit fault. *Why wouldn't Sister, Father, and Mother tell me anything? If they had just told me, I wouldn't have had to sneak off to Yangzhou to ask Grandmother!*

Along the way, Xie Wenjing racked her brain for a method to discipline this stubborn brother. Should she make him kneel in punishment for an entire day again?

Her temples throbbed with a dull ache. She felt a fierce urge to shake some sense into this incorrigible boy—why was he so utterly devoid of sense?

Pulling him straight into her room and bolting the door, Xie Wenjing decided to question him before reporting anything to her parents, terrified of giving them a shock.

"Speak! Why did you sneak off to the canal, and how could you dare board a stranger's pirate ship? Weren't you afraid of being sold?"

Standing directly before him within the closed room, Xie Wenjing demanded answers.

Defiantly raising his chin, Xie Wenbao retorted, "I told you before, I want to go to Yangzhou! You wouldn't agree, and when Third Uncle and Third Aunt went back to Yangzhou, you didn't tell me either. I just wanted to go to Yangzhou to see Grandmother!"

"Do you even understand what the division of a family means?"

Xie Wenjing abruptly changed the subject.

Stunned for a moment, Xie Wenbao thought about it before answering, "It means brothers separating to live apart. Each household lives on its own."

"Good. Since you know what it means, I am going to let you see for yourself that our family has severed ties with the Yangzhou Xie family—we live separate lives now.

When Third Uncle and Third Aunt returned to Yangzhou, they discovered that the Yangzhou Xie family had fallen so low they were selling off ancestral properties and residences.

The courtyard where Third Uncle and Third Aunt lived, the courtyard where Father and Mother lived, and my courtyard—every single one of them was sold off by our grandparents."

Xie Wenjing decided it was time to let her brother know some family truths, though she temporarily refrained from exposing his grandmother's viciousness, waiting until he was older to explain clearly so he wouldn't suffer a breakdown.

"Grandmother still cares about me; she didn't sell my courtyard."

Xie Wenbao glared defiantly at his sister, deliberately provoking her just because she was always watching him.

Furious, Xie Wenjing wondered what on earth was inside her brother's head.

Taking a deep breath, she decided to ignore his punchable face and pressed on.

"However, the second son's courtyard, the grandparents' courtyard, and even the courtyards of Fourth Aunt and Cousin Yuzhu were left completely untouched—not a single one was sold.

This time, taking advantage of the wheat crop failure, your grandmother secretly pawned ancestral heirlooms to buy up massive amounts of rice, hoping to make a killing. In the end, she misjudged the timing and suffered a massive loss.

Grandfather pinned the blame for grandmother's actions squarely on our father, claiming she only wanted to make money because of him, making our father the root cause of the disaster.

Yet, over the past period, we repeatedly sent letters back to Yangzhou stating that Father has recovered significantly—he can stand, walk, teach you your lessons, and has even stopped taking medicine.

Under such circumstances, our grandparents still managed to pin the blame for the Xie family's decline on our father! You are no longer a child; you should use your brain and think: how could our father, who is innocent enough to not even need medicine anymore, carry the crime of ruining the Xie family?

That is why Third Uncle grew furious. The ultimate result was that Grandfather and Grandmother had the clan oversee a family division. In that Yangzhou Xie family, whatever courtyards and heirlooms remain belong entirely to the second uncle's branch.

As for our branch and Third Uncle's branch, what we received was simply what we brought with us when we came to Hangzhou—valuables and non-valuables alike.

Think about it: is there still a place for us two branches in the Yangzhou Xie family? Your courtyard wasn't sold by Grandmother?

It wasn't sold, but your courtyard is no longer yours; it is now the property of the second uncle's branch, and it has nothing to do with you anymore. Do you still want to return to Yangzhou? Where would you live if you went back?"

Xie Wenjing subjected her brother to a cold, relentless cross-examination, trusting that even without detailing their grandmother's malice, the family division alone should show him how crooked their grandparents' hearts had grown.

"That's not true! You must have done something wrong first, which is why Grandfather and Grandmother got angry and divided the family! It was because you insisted on guaranteeing the maternal grandfather's family that Grandfather and Grandmother got mad! You deliberately left that part out!"

Having overheard their maternal grandfather's shouting the other day, Xie Wenbao had naturally pieced some things together. Since his sister was talking about the family split, why hadn't she explained the whole story, leaving him to guess blindly in the dark?

Blood rushed to Xie Wenjing's face, filling her chest and lungs with a suffocating heat.

"Do you think that because our maternal grandfather's family ran into trouble, we shouldn't have lent a helping hand? Do you know that without our maternal grandfather, there would be no mother, and without our mother, there would be no us?!"

Xie Wenjing yelled the words in a voice nearly raw.

"Even so, you shouldn't mislead me by only telling part of it! You should have told me the whole story—Grandfather and Grandmother divided the family because of this matter.

We were wrong to help our maternal grandfather, but Grandfather and Grandmother weren't wrong to refuse, were they? Who told them not to know how to do business?"

The final sentence dealt a crushing blow, leaving Xie Wenjing to collapse limply onto a stool, tears streaming uncontrollably down her face.

Her maternal grandfather's family had suffered a disaster, yet even her younger brother thought they deserved it! How was she supposed to teach him? How?

"Go back to your room! If you sneak off again and get yourself sold, it will save me the trouble—I won't care about you ever again.

If Father and Mother lose a son like you, at worst they can have another. Father's health has improved greatly; having another younger brother or two is entirely possible.

If you want to run away again, even if I assign someone to watch you day and night, you'll still find a way to sneak off. But as your older sister, I must warn you about the outside world so that next time you run away, you won't foolishly assume everyone out there is a good person!

Take that burly man today: without the consent of your parents or elders, taking a nine-year-old child away by force is a crime—it constitutes human trafficking.

Had you boarded his boat today, any number of things could have happened.

At best, he would have taken you to Yangzhou and delivered you to the Xie residence—after extorting a hefty ransom in silver.

Worse still, the ruffian might have sold you straight to human traffickers, pocketing ten or twenty taels for himself.

The worst outcome of all: you would have died.

You would have died because you didn't know what kind of person he was. He might have enjoyed abusing young boys, indulging in drunken violence, or worse.

You could never have matched a strong, burly ruffian; your fate would have been either death or severe injury.

Alternatively, if you witnessed something he wanted to hide, he could simply toss you into the Grand Canal, and even decades later, no one would ever discover who killed you.

As for me, your sister, and our parents, upon discovering you missing, we might grieve for a while, but we wouldn't grieve forever—life goes on.

Every person's life is extremely precious. If you do not cherish yourself, all the love and care in the world from others will amount to nothing.

Go on then. Go back and think over what I've said. I won't tell Father and Mother about today's incident for now; you know how hard it was for Father to recover this much—he cannot handle such a shock. When you've thought it through, go and apologize to them yourself, and stop giving them cause to worry!"

Choking back sobs, Xie Wenjing mixed deterrence with guidance, utterly at a loss for how to educate this brother of hers!

Her desolate and exhausted appearance genuinely frightened Xie Wenbao.

It was the first time he had ever seen his older sister look so utterly defeated.

As for the things she had said, naturally, he could understand them to an extent. Yet he still couldn't fathom why the grandmother who doted on him so much could be the cruel monster his parents and sister described, or how his father's grave illness could have been her doing.

While he only half-understood these adult matters, he did recognize that sneaking off had been wrong, and he had even realized by the end that the burly man was no good.

Still, the root cause of his running away to Yangzhou was simply that his parents and uncle refused to take him back with them!

If they had just agreed to take him to Yangzhou, would he ever have had to sneak away?

*I just wanted to see Grandmother and ask her if all these things were true!*

Being only nine years old, Xie Wenbao could not bring himself to doubt the grandmother he was deeply attached to. Even if his parents, sister, third uncle, and third aunt all called her bad, he felt he had to ask her in person!

On his way back to the schoolroom, Xie Wenbao felt a heavy weight in his chest. Not only were the affairs of the adults beyond his comprehension, but his sister's remark about his parents having another son filled him with a deep, nagging anxiety.

He wasn't as obedient as his cousin Wenfeng; would they stop loving him because of that and replace him with a new younger brother?

Once Wenbao left, Xie Wenjing pulled herself together and sought out Mama Du, Zhihua, and Meilan.

"Just now, Wenbao sneaked off toward the canal all by himself and nearly boarded a villain's boat. I know he wanted to return to Yangzhou to see his grandmother.

Unfortunately, he doesn't understand her vicious nature, and we cannot easily explain it to him yet—we will have to wait until he is older.

Over the next few days, please help me keep a close eye on him. I'll be watching him too. For now, do not tell my parents; Father's health has only just improved, and such news might deal him a fatal blow.

Later, I'll instruct Wenfeng to keep an eye on him, and Qin Yu must watch him closely as well. We cannot let him slip away again!"

With swollen, red eyes and total exhaustion written across her face, Xie Wenjing evoked deep sympathy from Mama Du and the others, alongside a surge of exasperation and anger toward the young master.

*How utterly devoid of sense! The Eldest Miss is working herself to the bone for his sake. With the master in poor health and the mistress tending to him, the entire burden of disciplining the young master falls squarely on the Eldest Miss's shoulders.*

Yet this matter was simply too heavy for a young girl to shoulder alone.

"Miss, you really ought to speak with the elders. Matters that are difficult for the master and mistress to address can be handled by the Third Master and Third Mistress. Having them help watch over the young master would be for the best!" Mama Du offered sympathetically.

Nodding with a helpless sigh, Xie Wenjing replied, "Yes, I plan to let Third Uncle and Third Aunt know."

When the third uncle and third aunt learned that Xie Wenbao had actually dared to board a strange cargo boat in an attempt to run away to Yangzhou, they were utterly shocked.

"Third Uncle, Third Aunt, let us not make a loud fuss or punish Wenbao harshly for now. We will simply keep a quiet eye on him to prevent him from running off again. I didn't tell Father and Mother—I'm afraid of alarming Father.

Today, I deliberately frightened Wenbao by telling him that if he ran off and got himself killed, Father and Mother could simply have another son, and seeing how he reacted, he seemed quite terrified."

"Wenbao is still a child, after all, and he was spoiled rotten by that scheming grandmother of his with a stubborn temper to boot. We can only hope he grows sensible soon.

Wenjing, do not worry too much. We will all watch him together; we won't give him another chance to run off secretly."

Following his initial shock, the third uncle could only offer such words of comfort to his niece.

Over the next few days, Xie Wenbao acted uncharacteristically docile, studying quietly and attentively, and sticking closely to his parents' side the moment his lessons ended. The words Xie Wenjing had spoken still weighed heavily on his mind.

"Father, if I get a younger brother, will you only love him?"

Being a child after all, Xie Wenbao finally couldn't suppress his anxieties and blurted out the question that had been plaguing him for days.

Xie Chengyu froze in astonishment. Ever since he had been bedridden, he had never once imagined he might father another child.

Involuntarily, his gaze shifted toward his wife, whose face flushed a delicate, embarrassed pink.

"Don't talk nonsense. Where would a younger brother come from?" Dujuan chided her son with a blushing glare. Ever since her husband fell gravely ill, she had lived in constant dread of losing him.

Now that his health had finally taken a turn for the better, the two of them hadn't even shared an intimate moment yet.

Where on earth had this child pulled such an idea from today?

"Sister said it! She said you and Mother will have another younger brother!" Wenbao revealed the source of his insecurity.

"Heh. Wenbao, your mother and I are already content having your sister and you.

However, if we truly were to have another younger brother or sister, your mother and I would not only love them, but we would continue to love you just the same.

And you? If we do have a new brother or sister, will you be like your sister and help look after and guide them?"

Smiling warmly, Xie Chengyu took his son's hand, speaking in a gentle, teasing tone.

Xie Wenbao's expression shifted instantly. If his parents really had a new sibling, what if his father found the new baby more obedient and stopped loving him?

*No... wait. Father wants me to help guide the younger sibling? When the time comes, I could make him kneel just like Sister does—punish him hard!*

With this thought, Xie Wenbao grinned maliciously and asked, "Father, if the younger brother doesn't listen to me, can I tie him up with rope and make him kneel for a whole day just like Sister did to me?"

Xie Chengyu's mouth twitched violently. *Was the boy's punishment by his sister planting ideas like this in his head?!*

Dujuan, on the other hand, looked as though her jaw might drop off in sheer shock. *Is the boy harboring resentment toward his sister? Is he trying to vent his grievances?*

"Certainly not! Younger siblings are small and need the protection of their older brothers and sisters. How could you treat them that way?" Dujuan scolded him gently.

"Mother, why doesn't Sister protect me as a younger brother, but instead has Mama Du tie me up with rope and make me kneel? If that's how it is, you shouldn't have any more younger brothers or sisters—that way, I won't have to tie them up with rope and make them kneel either!"

Xie Wenbao was attempting to use reverse psychology to dissuade his parents from having another child!

A sudden realization hitting him, Xie Chengyu burst into a hearty laugh.