Chapter 23: Words, Jealousy, and the End of Affection

Everyone was stunned by Ye Chang’s outburst, including the person he accused. But it lasted only a moment before the accused shrieked, “Nonsense! Nonsense! The Bodhisattva has not punished me. I didn’t steal! I didn’t steal!”

“Exactly, I didn’t see the Bodhisattva inflict any punishment just now…”

“Ah, I see now! This little wretch, sensing things weren’t going his way, started making wild accusations—he’ll slander anyone he catches!” Ye Lin stepped forward, pointing at Ye Chang and cursing, “You little beast! The magistrate sees all with keen eyes, and still you try to frame the innocent!”

Madam Liu wailed like a wounded animal, refusing to believe Ye Chang’s accusation. “Sir Constable, you must do me justice! Chun Tao is my most trusted maid; she could never be a thief! This little beast tries to turn the tables even now—truly venomous and heartless, sir…”

Chun Tao, sobbing, fell to her knees. “Master, Madam, I swear I never stole from the box!”

Among the onlookers, someone remarked, “Chun Tao has always been honest and loyal to Madam Liu; how could she be a thief? The eleventh young master must be desperate to point fingers at random… What a pity, what a pity. They say he’s been touched by immortals, but now, perhaps his luck has run out, and he’s lost his mind?”

“It’s not madness—whoever enlightened him was no immortal, but a demon teaching him witchcraft to rob people!”

“Truly pitiful, the eleventh young master was always a good person…”

These murmurs reached Yuan Gonglu’s ears, making the veins bulge on his forehead. Looking again at Ye Chang, his expression turned unfriendly. Even Brother Qian, who had been watching the drama with amusement, now scratched his head, as if sensing trouble.

Ye Chang, however, remained calm. Suddenly, he shouted, “Enough!”

At his shout, the crowd’s chatter fell silent. Folding his fan with a snap, Ye Chang sneered, “Chun Tao, whether you’re a thief or whether the Bodhisattva has punished you isn’t for me or you to decide—it’s for the Bodhisattva to say!”

“You insolent whelp! Let’s see you make the Bodhisattva speak!” Ye Lin barked. “It’s a clay statue—how could any god help a treacherous, unfilial wretch like you?”

Ye Chang chuckled coldly. “Uncle Changzhi, you should be pleased, shouldn’t you? If the Bodhisattva stays silent, the real thief won’t be found… but who says the Bodhisattva is silent?” Ye Chang knew not to push too far—had his earlier actions not left a good impression on Yuan Gonglu, he feared he’d be arrested by now.

“You…”

“Among the twelve who passed behind the Bodhisattva’s curtain, eleven show the Bodhisattva’s mark, but one does not—the true thief. That person is you, Chun Tao!” Ye Chang turned away from Ye Lin and addressed Chun Tao sternly.

“No… Impossible! It’s not me!”

“You eleven, show your hands!” Ye Chang commanded.

The eleven, confident of their innocence, obediently extended their hands. On each palm was a bright red mark—residue from cinnabar. Ye Chang turned to Chun Tao. “Now you, show your hands!”

Chun Tao was completely unnerved, clenching her fists and trembling, refusing to comply. Ye Chang bowed to Yuan Gonglu. “Sir, just look at her hands. She bears no mark!”

Chun Tao tried to retreat, but was quickly blocked. Two constables stepped forward, forcing her hands open.

Indeed, her palms were spotless, without a trace.

Of the twelve who’d passed behind the Bodhisattva, the other eleven bore cinnabar marks; only she was without.

“This is the proof, Chun Tao. The Bodhisattva left cinnabar marks on everyone else’s hands—why not yours?”

“No, no, it can’t be. There was no thunder or fire from the Bodhisattva! This must be a mistake—they must have done something to their hands beforehand…”

“You think the Bodhisattva’s punishment is only thunder or fire?” Ye Chang scoffed. “The Bodhisattva is merciful and all-powerful—if thunder or fire had come, you’d be dead! Denying you the mark is the Bodhisattva’s mercy, a chance to repent. Confess and you may yet live. Refuse, and you court your own doom—not just death, but endless suffering in the underworld!”

Chun Tao’s mind was in utter chaos. She was just a maid, with little experience or cunning, unable to see through Ye Chang’s words. Almost instinctively, she was guided by him and blurted, “If I tell the truth, I can live?”

At these words, Yuan Gonglu clenched his fist lightly, while Brother Qian clapped once. Madam Liu’s howling stopped abruptly, and Ye Lin snapped, “What do you have to say?”

“Yes, if you tell the truth, you can live. The magistrate is here—who would dare harm you? And the Bodhisattva’s statue stands before you; since the Bodhisattva offers you a path to redemption, who would dare cut it off?”

Chun Tao gazed at Ye Chang, as if drawing strength from him.

She had witnessed his miracles from the start and was now experiencing one herself. She knelt before Ye Chang, sobbing, “It was the master who made me do it. He ruined me, promised to take me away, said that when Madam died or remarried, he’d take me as his wife…”

She had only gotten this far when Ye Lin rushed over and kicked her down. “Wretched girl! How dare you slander me!” He lunged to strike her again, but Ye Chang caught his arm and, with a deft move, threw him to the ground.

Chun Tao, scrambling up, cared nothing for decorum now. Still crying, she poured out the whole story. Ye Lin, approaching fifty, had not lost his lust, while Madam Liu, her health in decline, could not satisfy him. Though he had two concubines, he believed stolen pleasures sweetest, and seduced Chun Tao, Madam Liu’s maid. Chun Tao, unwilling to remain a servant, often demanded he make her a proper wife. Driven by her insistence, Ye Lin devised the plan for her to steal Madam Liu’s box. During the chaos when Madam Liu went to confront Ye Chang, Chun Tao took her chance. The deeds inside meant little to her, so she hid the land deeds and money, then joined the commotion. When Ye Chang’s warning brought Madam Liu rushing back to check her box, Chun Tao and Ye Lin tried to pin everything on Ye Chang.

With the story told, Chun Tao wept bitterly and cursed Ye Lin. “You heartless old dog! You almost killed me! If you hadn’t seduced me, I never would’ve done this wicked deed, nor been exposed by the Bodhisattva! The eleventh young master is a star descended, blessed by immortals, yet you made me slander him, even tried to silence me just now!”

“You wretched girl, all lies!” Ye Lin, pale and trembling, still tried to bluster. “You did the stealing, failed to frame Chang, and now you frame me? Eleventh nephew, I am your uncle, the eldest of our branch! You can’t just stand by—”

“Bah!”

Before Ye Lin could finish, Madam Liu lunged at him, shoving him down and clawing at his beard, howling and cursing. At first, Ye Lin dared not strike back, cowed by her lifelong authority, only shielding his face. Chun Tao, remembering her own grievance, tried to join in and kick him too, but Madam Liu would not tolerate anyone else laying hands on her husband, least of all Chun Tao—she abandoned Ye Lin and turned to scratch Chun Tao’s face. At that instant, Ye Lin, recalling a lifetime’s humiliation, could restrain himself no longer and slapped Madam Liu hard.

The three fought in a tangled heap, all dignity forgotten, giving the crowd an excellent show.

Yuan Gonglu was at a loss, never having seen such a spectacle in all his time as an official—Bodhisattva judging the guilty, the victims’ family in chaos, the scene more like a grand opera than a criminal case. Brother Qian merely stroked his beard in deep thought, offering no advice.

It was Liu Fengyin, long accustomed to village affairs, who recovered first. After all, his daughter was the victim, and he could hardly watch her be beaten before his eyes. With a shout, his Liu clan sons leapt forward, slapping Chun Tao away and dragging Ye Lin up for a round of solid punches.

As the chaos threatened to spiral further, Yuan Gonglu realized he must intervene. He coughed repeatedly, and only then did his constables, entranced by the spectacle, snap to attention, stepping in to slap the Liu clan sons away. When the parties were finally separated, Ye Lin collapsed on the ground, half laughing, half crying, gasping for breath.

“Fine, fine! Since all is exposed today, let’s end it here and part ways!” he declared hoarsely. “Sir Magistrate, bear witness: Madam Liu is vicious, guilty of the twin faults of slander and jealousy, which I have endured half my life. I can bear it no longer. According to the Tang Code, I beg you to grant me a divorce!”

“You base wretch! I let my daughter marry you because I thought you’d make something of yourself!” Liu Fengyin exploded. “Who knew you’d be so useless—unable to manage the household, unable to make a living, good for nothing but taking concubines and seducing maids, begetting bastards! And now you dare ask for a divorce? Fine—give back my daughter’s dowry first!”

At the mention of the dowry, Ye Lin was instantly deflated. Madam Liu, fierce as ever, had long controlled the family’s wealth, and Ye Lin’s own money had been squandered on his vices—he had nothing to return. Seeing his spirits flag, Liu Fengyin slapped him several more times, the blows ringing out.

Yuan Gonglu was truly at his wit’s end. He looked to Brother Qian for guidance, but the latter remained deep in thought, so Yuan Gonglu turned to Ye Chang.

Ye Chang understood the magistrate’s meaning and stepped forward. “Sir, such domestic disputes need not trouble your ears further. As the saying goes, even a wise judge cannot settle household quarrels. Now that the stolen goods are recovered, let them settle matters among themselves as they will.”

“But they accused you of witchcraft. Will you not hold them to account?” Yuan Gonglu found reason in this—Ye Chang hadn’t mentioned what to do with the stolen property, but the magistrate felt compelled to respond in kind.

“All I ever wanted was to clear my name, nothing more. Thank you, sir.” Ye Chang smiled. With this, he addressed Yuan Gonglu not as “magistrate” but as “Master Yuan,” signaling familiarity, which Yuan Gonglu accepted, treating him as a favored youth.

“Good, good, Ye Chang, you are noble indeed… By the way, you’re sixteen this year—do you have a courtesy name?”

“I do not.”

Yuan Gonglu was about to bestow one when Brother Qian suddenly exclaimed, “I have it! I know!”

With that, he darted behind the curtain and soon reemerged, both palms outstretched and smiling. “Ye Chang, here is the mark left by the Bodhisattva you ‘summoned’!”

Everyone looked at his palms, seeing the same cinnabar red. The clever among them guessed the truth; even the duller ones sensed there was more to Ye Chang’s miracle.

Yuan Gonglu, being quick-witted, forgot all about the courtesy name. He, too, entered the curtained area, touched the Bodhisattva’s statue, and, returning, examined his own palms—there was the red mark.

“So that’s how it is…” he murmured, his regard for Ye Chang only rising. If Ye Chang had truly summoned a miracle, he would be no more than a shaman or monk. But this was clearly strategy—step by step, he had read human nature with uncanny precision, hardly the work of a mere youth.

Conflicted, Yuan Gonglu gazed at Ye Chang with a new, peculiar expression. He had thought that with such a youth in the county, he should see him educated and successful, perhaps even give him a courtesy name to cement a lifelong bond—a story for the ages. But now, understanding the trick behind the “Bodhisattva’s judgment,” he changed his mind. Such a wily and resourceful figure might not be a blessing if drawn too close.

“Ye Chang, since you seek only a clear name and not wealth, I hereby restore your reputation.” Recovering his official composure, he declared, “The theft at Ye Lin’s house in Wuze Slope, Xiuwu County, is now solved. The master, Ye Lin, directed his maid to steal; Ye Chang is innocent. But be warned, Ye Chang—your clever tongue may bring you trouble!”

Ye Chang’s accusation of witchcraft had stemmed from a careless comment, telling Madam Liu to watch her box, which later proved prophetic. Yuan Gonglu felt this a fitting warning, then clapped Brother Qian on the shoulder, “Brother Qian, let’s be on our way!”

Both Brother Qian and Ye Chang were momentarily taken aback.