Chapter 18: With Arms Folded, the World Shifts on Its Own

Madam Liu set out with her formidable entourage, causing a stir in the neighboring villages. She deliberately chose to make her exit through the main gate, flaunting her power, and by the time she arrived at Ye Chang's house, a sizeable crowd had already gathered, eager to watch the spectacle.

The gate of the third branch was tightly shut.

“Break it open!” Madam Liu, surrounded by her followers, seethed with undiminished fury. Yet beyond her anger, a certain swagger had crept into her bearing—as if she had returned to the days when she commanded her household servants and sturdy women to catch her husband in his infidelities. She hadn’t done such a thing in years; it seemed the people of Wuze had forgotten her former might.

Alas, not one servant present understood the nuance of her command—no one stepped up instantly to smash the gate as Liu Gui once would have. That had always been his job, but he had long since been sold off—rumor had it, to the infamous human trafficker, Duan Da-de, also known as Duan the Heartless, of Xiuwu County.

For a moment, Madam Liu was at a loss, and the onlookers who had gathered to gawk burst into mocking laughter.

“Madam Liu, the Eleventh Young Master is said to be guided by immortals, a star descended from heaven, protected by gods and buddhas. If you’re not afraid of offending the whole celestial host, go ahead and break his door!” someone shouted.

“That’s right! Offend the immortals and you’ll be doomed to hell—boiling oil and the mountain of blades!”

“Even if you don’t offend the Eleventh Young Master, I reckon Madam Liu is bound for boiling oil and the mountain of blades herself one day!”

The crowd’s jeers made Madam Liu’s face flush and pale by turns. Her rage surged; her eyes bulged like fish eyes as she glared about, snatched a rolling pin from the hands of a sturdy woman, and swung it fiercely at the door.

A trio of sounds followed—a whoosh as the rolling pin cut through the air, a thud as it struck flesh, and a yelp of pain.

“Why, you old devil, what are you doing here?” she exclaimed.

The one howling in pain wasn’t Ye Chang, but Ye Lin!

Had he not raised his arm just in time, his head might have been split open. As it was, the blow landed on his arm—though a woman’s strength is limited, it seemed he might have suffered a fracture, for his arm hung limp and tears and snot rolled down his face.

Madam Liu felt a twinge of guilt, but her anger toward Ye Chang far outweighed her concern for her husband.

Originally, Ye Lin and Liu Gui had plotted to seize the third branch’s estate through cunning, but with Liu Gui sold off, and their poison plot against Ye Chang foiled, Madam Liu’s patience snapped—she would do it by force.

Ye Lin desperately signaled her with his eyes.

But Madam Liu took no notice. She barked, “Where is that wretched brat? I’ll kill him myself!”

“Bold words!” Suddenly, a stern voice sounded from within the courtyard, startling Madam Liu.

Apart from Ye Lin, even Clan Elder Ye Dan was present in Ye Chang’s little courtyard.

Her recent curses for Ye Chang as a “wretched brat” had reached Ye Dan’s ears, thoroughly displeasing him. Madam Liu’s disregard for decorum and her violent conduct were the very antithesis of proper womanly virtue, further provoking Ye Dan’s ire.

Madam Liu hesitated only a moment before launching into a tirade. “Just as well, Elder, you’re here to judge this! Liu Gui was my dowry servant, but that wretch sold him off—what right does he have to sell someone from the Liu family?”

“First, this is the Ye household; if you want to flaunt the Liu family’s prestige, go do it in Little Liu Village. Second, Liu Gui may have been a Liu, but his contract ended up in my hands—he became my servant. When did I ever need your permission to sell my own slave?” From behind Ye Dan, Ye Chang spoke calmly. He added, “The third branch divided from the family a decade ago. Madam Liu, you’ve come to make a scene here time and again—I must wonder what your true purpose is?”

His words were sensible and well-reasoned. The crowd cheered. Madam Liu had already offended most of the village, while Ye Chang’s reputation was at its height. The chorus of approval put Madam Liu under immense pressure.

“Close the gate! Close the gate!” she cried shrilly.

“Don’t close it! If you have a case, speak it in front of us all!” someone called.

A few sturdy young men came forward to hold the courtyard gate. These were the beneficiaries of Ye Chang’s irrigation canal; seeing Madam Liu attempt to bully him again, they naturally stood up for him.

“This is Ye family business—what’s it to you outsiders?” Madam Liu, ever hot-tempered, cursed again, drawing another wave of laughter. She had just invoked her Liu heritage, and now claimed it was Ye family business—contradicting herself, making a mockery of her own words.

“Liu Gui was sold because he brought it upon himself, as you well know,” Ye Chang did not reply, but Ye Dan did.

Madam Liu was taken aback—Ye Dan so plainly siding with Ye Chang?

She had never thought much of Ye Dan; for all his local renown, he bowed and scraped before her father and brothers. Over the years, Liu’s arrogance had grown unchecked, emboldened by Ye Dan’s lack of intervention. When calm, she might give him some face, but now, seeing him refuse to back her, she was incensed.

“Don’t talk nonsense, Elder! How could you say he brought it upon himself? My servant, and the Ye family thinks they can dispose of him as they please?”

“The contract isn’t with you—Liu Gui is no longer yours.” Ye Dan felt a headache coming on. He’d been invited by Ye Chang, along with Ye Lin, to discuss Liu Gui, and now he realized Ye Chang had maneuvered him into facing Madam Liu.

To think he’d been outwitted by a boy of barely more than ten...

“That’s not how things are! Liu Gui is mine—everyone in the village knows it—”

“We all know you gave Liu Gui to the Eleventh Young Master, so he became his man!”

“That’s right! The Eleventh sold his own servant—perhaps he should have notified you, the former master, but it’s hardly a crime!”

Surrounded by voices opposing her, Madam Liu finally realized she could never win the villagers’ support in Wuze. The benefits of Ye Chang’s canal were now evident.

“Take this to the authorities if you like, Madam Liu—you won’t win,” Ye Dan frowned. “Ye Lin, you’re a reasonable man—advise your wife to stop before she makes us all lose face.”

“Elder, losing face is better than losing money. Liu Gui was only lent for the third branch’s use, and though the contract was left with them for convenience, they sold him off... This is not just disrespect to me, but an affront to my family. If my father and brothers hear of this, they’ll demand answers. When that happens, the whole Ye family may suffer!” Ye Lin’s words deepened Ye Dan’s frown.

If not for Madam Liu’s powerful family, especially their ties to the authorities, he’d have had Ye Lin divorce her long ago.

The Ye family was prominent in Wuze, but had never produced a true man of note—thus the Liu family often overshadowed them. Even the local headman’s post was held by a Liu. Under such pressure, Ye Dan’s loyalty was wavering.

Ye Chang was indeed the Ye family’s future pillar, but the Liu family’s threat was immediate. The priority now was to placate them.

With this in mind, Ye Dan looked at Ye Chang with some regret. “You were not wrong to sell Liu Gui, but you ought to have discussed it first with your elders... What’s done is done. Why not go buy him back from town, even if it costs a little more—”

“I’ve never heard of a slave sold to Duan the Heartless ever being returned,” Ye Chang said with a smile. “Elder, I didn’t invite you here today for a matter as trivial as that wretch—for twenty strings of cash, what’s that worth?”

“Easy for you to say! Even your bones aren’t worth twenty strings!” Madam Liu screamed, yet Ye Chang ignored her completely. Instead, he raised his head and brow and continued, “I invited you here today to discuss the matter of our family’s unfair property division from a decade ago!”

At this, Madam Liu’s jaw dropped.

The third and second branches shared a grandfather but not a father. While their grandfather lived, the family remained undivided, but once Ye Lin married Madam Liu, and the other branches also wed, the grandfather passed and the question of dividing the estate arose.

That was ten years ago, before even Lady Fang joined the family.

At Ye Chang’s words, Elder Ye Dan’s face changed—he felt exposed. He had presided over the division, accepting rewards and favors, and had nearly followed the wishes of the eldest branch, giving all the best fields to them, while the second and third branches received only scraps. The second branch even had to take up military service.

“You impudent brat! Your branch was given plenty of land back then, but your scheming father wanted to leave and do business, so he sold your fields—who can you blame—”

“I’m not speaking of the third branch, but the second,” Ye Chang cut her off. “I’ve spoken with the elders—back then, the eldest branch agreed to take on military service in exchange for more land. But now, the second branch’s Shuge has gone off to fulfill that duty, and your branch has done nothing. Since you’ve broken the original agreement, the division is no longer fair. You must now compensate the second and third branches with land and property—am I right, Elder?”

Madam Liu slapped her forehead, while Ye Dan’s somber face relaxed—Ye Chang wasn’t accusing him of injustice.

Back then, the eldest branch claimed they would handle the military duty, so they received the best land. Now, with the second branch fulfilling that obligation, it was only right to reconsider the division. But the matter was old, and few remembered the original agreement—save for Ye Chang, who had learned of it from grateful villagers after building the irrigation canal. Seizing the opportunity, he invited Ye Dan, knowing Madam Liu would blunder into his trap.

“There was indeed such an arrangement,” Ye Dan nodded. “The best fields near the lake went to the eldest branch because they undertook the duty... And I was the one who oversaw it all.”

Madam Liu hemmed and hawed, then wailed again, “All these years, our branch has been the one paying for everything—”

“Nonsense,” Ye Chang replied sharply. “I don’t care about the second branch, but since your branch has broken its word, don’t blame me for refusing to honor old promises. Either you redivide the estate today, or tomorrow I’ll bring people to take the land myself. Fathers and elders, who among you will help me?”

“We will!”

“Of course we will!”

Not only were there busybodies in the village eager for drama, but the two or three dozen households who benefited from Ye Chang’s canal all shouted their support. The commotion swelled, and the tide turned.

Madam Liu’s spirits collapsed. She had come seeking trouble, only to bring disaster on herself.

If the family estate truly had to be redivided, she stood to lose two or three hundred strings of cash—compared to that, Liu Gui was insignificant. However close a servant, he was but a slave.

“The land deeds are with me! You’ll never get them—they’re mine!” she screeched.

“They’re just in that box by your bed—I’ll fetch them myself,” Ye Chang sneered.

“Don’t you dare!”

“Try me and see.”

Their eyes met, and Madam Liu realized that the once-timid Ye Chang now stared back with a gaze that seemed to burn—she could not match it. In his eyes, she was no more than an insect, and his was the look of someone far above her, leaving her utterly unsettled.

She remembered the little wooden box by her bed, and her heart skipped a beat—how did he know the deeds were there?

She’d forgotten that when she handed Liu Gui’s contract to Ye Chang, she had told him to fetch the box from her bedside. He might not have seen what else it contained, but knowing her nature, he could easily guess she kept all important papers there.

“Perhaps your deeds are no longer there,” Ye Chang added lightly.

Madam Liu shuddered all over, and the tales of Ye Chang’s encounters with immortals sprang to mind. If he had learned not only the art of irrigation but also the dark magic of the Five Ghosts...

At that thought, she shrieked and fled toward her home.

Her entourage scattered with her, their bravado gone, leaving only embarrassment behind—and Ye Lin nursing a bruised arm.

Ye Chang smirked. This was exactly as he had planned—he had yet more tricks up his sleeve. If he dared to sell Liu Gui, how could he not have prepared for the aftermath?

Just as he was about to speak to Elder Ye Dan, something caught his eye, and he frowned slightly.