Chapter 28

After fixing his household registration, Xiang Dagen transformed into Liu Dagen, and the children’s last names were changed as well. The family happily returned to Daliushu Village.

As soon as they returned to the village, they went straight to the Xiang family to ask for money.

Over the years, Dagen had endured the cruel exploitation of the Xiang family, and his wife and children had lived in misery. He was unwilling to back down on this matter.

Now, the old Xiang couple were imprisoned in the county jail, and Liu Youcai hadn’t arrived yet. The Xiang family could only temporarily be led by Xiang Laoer.

Xiang Laoer looked at Liu Dagen, shrugged, and said, “No money. This is all there is. If you want anything valuable, just take it.”

Dagen coldly looked at these two former younger brothers. In the past, the old Xiang woman had allowed them to bully him and his family, but now that the truth was out, they still showed no remorse, acting as if nothing had changed.
This made him very angry, and he was determined to find a chance to teach them a lesson.

“What’s there to take from this shabby house? I want land,” Dagen said. “The county magistrate has ordered you to compensate me with a hundred taels of silver. If you can’t pay, I’ll take land. 

At the end of the village, there’s a plot of eight acres. One acre of rice field is worth twelve taels of silver. That’s ninety-six taels. And the remaining four taels, the livestock in the sheep and pig pens, will all belong to me.”

Xiang Lao Er widened his eyes in disbelief and cursed, “Liu Dagen, are you trying to force us to death? Without land, how can we live!”

Hearing this, Dagen suddenly laughed, his eyes turning red as he grated his teeth and stepped closer. “Force you to death? How can you say such a thing! Didn’t you used to force us, the Dafang, to death? I’ve been in the army for twenty years, twenty years, not just two. 

What have you been doing all these years? Lying at home like a master. This land, it was all my wife working hard to farm. You, and your wife and son, and the third family, have you ever thought about our family’s survival?”

When a usually honest man went mad, he was terrifying to behold. Moreover, his every word was unarguable. Xiang Dalang tried to step forward but was immediately pushed aside by Pear Blossom, who was standing guard. He stumbled and couldn’t get a word in.

“Fine, if you don’t want to give the land, maybe your children can sell for a good price. Your wife, along with your old mother, sold my daughter. Why can’t your children be sold? You can even sell yourself to become a slave or servant, though someone lazy like you probably isn’t worth even a tael of silver! Your old mother sold Pear Blossom for ten taels of silver. Your children, plus the third family, could barely scrape together seventy or eighty taels!”

Xiang Laoer said nothing, glancing at him sideways.

“How, do you think I can’t do it?” Liu Dagen couldn’t stand his look and made as if to go inside and drag someone out.

Zhou quickly stopped him, saying, “Uncle, please, give us a way to live.”

Dagen glared at her and growled, “A way to live? Did you ever give us one? All these years, those few acres of land have been taken care of by my wife and children. 

You’ve all acted like young masters and young ladies, never lifting a finger to plant or harvest. It’s useless to leave it to you. Doesn’t the Xiang family still have four more acres? You’re all so lazy, even four acres is too much. Can you plant it all? Will you leave it to grow weeds?”

Zhou could only look at Xiang Laoer pleadingly.

Pear Blossom, standing by, saw the look on Xiang Laoer’s face and spoke to Dagen, “Father, this is a case personally ruled by the county magistrate. 

We’ve tried talking to them nicely, but they refuse. What if we go to the yamen and invite the officers to distribute the land? What do you think will happen then?”

Xiang Laoer and his wife were terrified when they heard this.

They had witnessed the authority and imposing presence of the officials in court earlier. The way they wielded their boards was ruthless, and if Dagen really invited people from the yamen to the village, the consequences would be unimaginable.

He couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed. Over the years, he hadn’t really managed the household affairs; it had always been the old Xiang couple who handled things. He didn’t even know where the boundaries of the eight acres of rice field at the village end were. He turned to look at Xiang Laosan, who was nearby.

How could there be any opinion from the third brother? He is even less capable than the second brother. Since childhood, he has never worked in the fields. When he was young, his family supported his education, and later he passed the local scholar exam. 

Usually, he helped people in the city write letters to earn a little living, or he would go back home to “dig” into the family’s savings. Whenever the old couple had a bit of silver in hand, he could dig it all out without leaving a penny behind.

Such a person—could you expect him to have any advice regarding the family’s fields?

When the second brother saw the third brother’s confused expression and then looked at Dagen, who now looked so fierce, and considering he didn’t want to handle those lands himself, he waved his hand and said, “Alright, go talk to the village head, and tomorrow we’ll come over to demarcate the land.”

That night, Liu Youcai’s family hadn’t moved over yet, and Dagen’s family had nowhere to go temporarily, so they had to spend the night in the old house.

Before going to bed, the family had already decided on the location for their new home. According to Liu Dagen, they would first set up a shed at the foot of the mountain near those few acres of farmland and settle there. In a few days, they would begin building the house.

The Pear Blossom siblings couldn’t sleep, excited that they would leave the old home the next day.

After the excitement, Xinghua, worried, hugged Pear Blossom’s arm and asked, “Big sister, the Xiang family hasn’t paid the silver, and there’s no money at home. How will we build the house?”

The hundred taels of silver that Zuo Qi had given earlier, apart from Pear Blossom and their parents, the other children didn’t know about it. Pear Blossom thought for a moment and said, “The wood for building the house is from the unowned mountains, and the other stones and earth materials will be taken from nearby. 

Even if we hire people, we just need to provide them with meals, and we can build the house without any silver.”

Xinghua said, “But even if we only provide meals, we don’t have any food at home, and no one will be willing to help us, right?”

Actually, Pear Blossom wasn’t worried about food. In the past, families in the village often helped each other, but it was usually a give-and-take arrangement. However, their father had been away serving in the military for many years and had never helped any of the village families. When it came time to ask for help, people might not be willing.

It was like that night when Qin Xiaobao went to Wuyin Mountain—Qin’s family walked from the village entrance to the end of the village, and in the end, they could only find Zhang Laowu and Pear Blossom’s brother and sister to help.

“It’s fine. Even if no one helps, we have dad, and we have me, your big sister. I’m much stronger now. With all six of us, we can build the house.”

Hearing this, Xinghua thought about how in recent family matters, their parents always consulted with their big sister. Indeed, she was much smarter than before and stronger too. So, the worry in her heart finally eased.

Just as the two sisters were about to fall asleep with their shoulders touching, Pear Blossom suddenly heard a “ding” sound in her mind, “Host, the truth about Dagen’s background has been uncovered. 

You played a crucial role, especially in terms of intelligence, showing great progress compared to before. You persuaded your father not to take reckless action and knew to ask for outside help, so you are being specially rewarded with 6 points. Which attribute would you like to add them to?”

Pear Blossom had been thinking about the Beauty Pill, and when she heard there were points to add, she immediately became wide awake, asking, “How many points do I have in each attribute now?”

“Intelligence 19, Physical Strength 11, Reputation 12, the other two are 0.”

“How much is that in total?”

The system helplessly replied, “You need to learn arithmetic. In total, it’s 42.”

“How much would it be if I added the 6 points?”

“48. You only need 2 more points to draw a lottery.”

Pear Blossom’s heart raced upon hearing this. Only 2 more points to draw a lottery—two points were easy to get. Sometimes, after waking up from a nap, one point would be added, and after two naps, it would be two points.

“Host, you still haven’t told me where you want to add the points.”

“Right now, my physical strength is the weakest, so add them to my physical strength.”

“Okay, host. Your current attributes are: Intelligence 19, Physical Strength 17, Reputation 12, Charisma 0. Keep it up.”

Pear Blossom watched the increasing lines, her heart filled with joy. Now that the family was separated, her father no longer had to serve in the military, and she had earned so many points. She felt that everything was slowly improving.

Thinking about how she had been running around for her father recently, she hadn’t seen sister Dong for several days and now missed her terribly.

Once she had some free time in a couple of days, she would go look for sister Dong.

With these thoughts, she drifted off to sleep.

In the next room, Dagen and Xiong were wide awake. The events of the past few days had completely overturned all their previous understanding and beliefs. Xiong still held the 70 taels of silver in her hand, excited and unable to sleep.

The couple angrily cursed the Xiang family once more, then began to carefully plan their future.

Dagen said to his wife, “Xiufang, have you noticed? Our family has been getting better lately. It seems like everything is connected to our eldest daughter.”

Hearing her husband say this, Xiong thought about it carefully, “It does seem that way. When did this start? It was when you—Xiang’s wife—tried to coax her to go to town and sell things. She didn’t fall for their trap and ran back. 

Later, with the second daughter’s situation, it was her who overheard Xiang’s wife discussing it with someone and told me. I don’t know how she convinced Fubao’s mother to help and come up with that idea, saving the second daughter’s life. She even asked the Hundred Households to help bring you back. Then, when it came to the swap, it was also her who overheard and told us…”

The more Dagen listened, the more amazed he became. “When this girl was born, everyone said she would be a fool. She didn’t turn out to be a fool, but she wasn’t very smart either. But now, she’s become clever. Could it be that the heavens pity me, Dagen, and make my daughter smart to save our family?”

Xiong’s eyes became misty as she heard this. “This child seems rough, but she’s the most protective of her younger siblings. Over the years, with the help of these children, I don’t know how I would have managed to get through.”

Dagen quickly hugged his wife and said, “It’s all my fault, I’m too weak and incapable. It’s because of me that you and the children have suffered so much. I’m sorry, Xiufang. I will treat you well from now on, and I will treat the children well. From now on, our family will be fine.”

The couple couldn’t help but cry together.

After crying for a while, they thought about not having to live such a life anymore, and they wiped away their tears, planning for the future.

Dagen said, “Since the eldest girl was made smart by God, from now on, when it comes to family matters, we must ask her for advice. If she agrees, then it will happen, if she doesn’t, we won’t touch it.”

Mrs. Xiong nodded, “This child is fifteen now, almost sixteen. Children in other families at this age are already talking about marriage, but our good days are just about to begin. I really don’t want to marry her off so quickly. What if she ends up with a mother-in-law like Wang, I—”

She started to feel upset again.

Dagen also didn’t want to marry Pear Blossom off yet. He quickly said, “She’s only fifteen or sixteen, no rush. We just said we should ask her for advice on everything. 

We should ask her about this too. If she doesn’t want to get married yet, we can wait another two or three years. If she does want to, it’s fine. Now that she’s become smarter, I’m not worried about her not being able to handle any troublesome mother-in-law.”

Mrs. Xiong thought of the several times Pear Blossom had clashed with Wang and felt her worries were unnecessary, but she still couldn’t bear it completely. However, she wasn’t as upset as before.

They then began to talk about the house.

“I don’t know if anyone in the village is willing to help. If not, we can ask your elder brother and second brother to help for a few days. We need to finish building the house before the autumn harvest. By then, everyone will be busy, and we’ll have to harvest the rice ourselves.”

That piece of land had been looked after by Xiong and her children for these years. The land was allotted to their family, and the grain grown on it would never go to the Xiang family. In the afternoon, the two families had argued about it. Zhou’s position was that since the government had fined one hundred taels, it already covered the compensation for the Dafang’s suffering these years. 

The land could be exchanged for money, but it should only count as land money and not include the grain grown on it. In the end, Village Chief Zhang San came to mediate, and it was decided that after Dagen finished harvesting the rice, he would return forty catties of seed, and the matter would be settled.

Dagen quickly nodded when he heard his wife’s words. “Once we divide the land, I will go to your family. Your father has been sick these years, and we haven’t been able to help much. I’ll set aside twenty taels from our savings to help treat him. Our children are growing, and all four of them can help with the work. 

The farmwork is no big deal. Later, when I have time, I’ll go hunting in the mountains and sell the game in the city to help support the family. Things won’t be worse than they are now.”

What woman doesn’t care about her parents’ family? For all these years, Xiong had felt guilty for not helping her family, and it had become a burden on her heart. Now, hearing her husband actively propose using silver to treat her father’s illness, how could she not be moved?

But after thinking for a while, she said, “Now we don’t even have a house yet. Once the house is built, we will need to buy pots, pans, and other things. The children don’t even have a decent set of clothes, and that will cost money. If you truly want to help, give my parents ten taels, and I don’t ask for anything more.”

Not only was Xiong feeling guilty, but Dagen himself also felt troubled. He had married her, and since coming to his family, she had suffered so much, getting thinner every day. 

If it had been him marrying Pear Blossom and Xinghua to such a family, he wouldn’t have known how to stay calm. Last time, when he went back to his in-laws, his brother-in-law and second brother-in-law didn’t chase him out with whips, which was already considered courteous.

“This matter, don’t argue with me. Trust me, we are still young, and our good days are ahead of us. But your father and mother have never received any filial piety from me these years, and this is what I should do.”

Xiong’s heart softened, and in the end, she relented, “Ask Pear Blossom. Whatever she says, we will give her. I will listen to our daughter.”

Dagen heard this and thought it was a good idea. He smiled happily.

…
The next morning, Dagen went to find the village chief to divide the land. People in the village gathered to watch the excitement, and a crowd began discussing.

“See, this is karma. The way the Xiang family treated the Dafang all these years, now it’s time for them to pay it back.”

“No matter how they pay it back, it can’t compare to the suffering the Dafang has endured. Look at Dagen’s children, all thin and pale. His wife looks like she’s about to collapse.”

Someone nearby couldn’t help but say, “So what? If they gave me one hundred taels, I could endure this much hardship.”

“Tsk, I see you are really obsessed with money. You’d rather lose your life and still care about the silver.”

“In my opinion, the people of the Xiang family are not even human. The Liu family isn’t any better. They’re obviously their own sons, but they’ve been bullied for so many years. Not only did they not acknowledge them, they wouldn’t even give them half an acre of land. The richer people get, the more stingy they become.”

“Just a few days ago, they held a banquet, and Mr. Liu even chose to scold Dagen’s children, saying they ate too much. He didn’t realize that he was scolding his own grandsons.”

“If I were Dagen, I’d go back. After all, they’re both sons of the Liu family. Why shouldn’t they fight for their inheritance? After all the suffering they’ve been through, now that it’s finally over, even if not for himself, he should think about his wife and children. 

I think Dagen is a fool. If he had been bullied like this by the Xiang family, it would have been understandable if he didn’t know. But now, even after all that, he’s still making the same choices. 

I think all the suffering he’s been through is well-deserved. His wife and children have really had bad luck following him.”

“Looks like he has strength, but in fact, he’s a coward. Even after his wife and children were bullied like that, he still does whatever his wife says.”

Dagen stood by the field, and those people didn’t lower their voices, deliberately letting him hear. His face changed, but he said nothing and lowered his head to follow the village chief, watching the land boundaries.

The Liu family had not come to measure the land, likely because they were afraid of being pointed at by others. However, several half-grown children, unaware of the situation, secretly ran out to watch the commotion. After hearing these words, they ran back to report to the Liu family.

Upon hearing this, Mr. Liu’s face grew somewhat dark.

He had a bit of wealth, but he was especially concerned about his reputation. Yet, he didn’t particularly like Dagen, and with his other three sons egging him on, he had agreed without much thought to have the person leave with nothing. Now that the villagers were talking about it, he was far from pleased.

Mrs. Liu, seeing her husband walking back and forth in the room, wiping her tears, said, “They are our sons; why not give them some silver? Look at Pear Blossom and her brothers— their clothes are all tattered.”

Unexpectedly, the fourth son, Liu Youtie, interrupted her, saying, “Mother, the county magistrate has ordered the Xiang family to compensate them with a hundred taels of silver. A rural family couldn’t spend a hundred taels in their entire lifetime, so why are you so worried?”

Mrs. Liu responded, “Youngest son, the Xiang family doesn’t have the silver to pay them. If they did, they wouldn’t have gone to the Third Master early this morning to measure the land.”

Liu Youtie said, “Now that they have the land, that should be enough. Rural people live off the land. With nearly ten acres, how could they starve?”

Mrs. Liu remained concerned, “How much can one acre yield? With the current heavy taxes, after paying the taxes, there’ll barely be enough to feed a few people.”

“Mother, why do you always side with outsiders?” Liu Youtie said unhappily. “Don’t tell me they’re not outsiders—raised away for so many years and living with people like the Xiang family. 

That Liu Youcai—no, Xiang Youcai—is exactly the kind of person who would commit such a ruthless crime because he’s from the Xiang family. 

The whole Xiang family has lived with them for so long and doesn’t even know what kind of bad habits they’ve nurtured. If you get too close to them, you might cause some trouble.”

Liu Youjin, the second son, chimed in, “It was Xiang Dagen who chose to leave without his inheritance, not father or any of us forcing him. Now people outside are talking about us. I think he’s doing it on purpose.”

Mr. Liu, hearing this, said irritably, “Stop always talking about Xiang Dagen. He doesn’t carry the Xiang surname anymore. Don’t mention that family’s name again—it’s annoying.”

Liu Youjin and Liu Youtie fell silent when they saw their father get angry.

“Leaving without inheritance was his own choice. If he really has the ability, then let him never come begging to me again. If he can’t make it, he’ll come to us for help. We’ll see what happens then,” Mr. Liu said unhappily.

In truth, when Xiang Dagen had proposed leaving without his inheritance, Mr. Liu had been pleased at first. But then he felt a bit embarrassed, thinking that it was a slap in the face. He also believed that the son raised outside wanted to put him in a difficult position. 

He neither wanted to support this eldest son nor see him fall, but he’d enjoy seeing him come crawling back, begging for help. At that point, he might offer him a hundred or so taels of silver.

The sons, hearing their father’s words, grinned.

“Father, you’re right. Our Liu family has thrived all these years thanks to your wise decisions.”

Mr. Liu gave them an annoyed look, waving his sleeve and ordering them to leave.

The Xiang family’s eight acres of rice fields were measured quickly.
Zhang Sanye said, “Alright, eight acres and one tenth, one acre of good land worth twelve taels. The total comes to ninety-seven taels and two coins, but it’s still short by two taels and eight coins. You figure out how to make up the difference.”

Dagen hurriedly thanked Zhang Sanye, while Xiang Laoer and Xiang Laosan stood aside, their faces pale.

Zhang Sanye looked at Dagen and Xiang Laoer, saying, “Tomorrow, both of you will go to the government office with me to transfer the land.”

Xiang Laoer was unwilling, but Xiang Laosan suddenly spoke up, “Second Brother, if you don’t want to go, I’ll go with the village chief.”

Hearing this, Xiang Laoer became alert. His younger brother never did anything without some personal gain. There was no benefit for him in going to the government office to register the land, so why would he want to make the trip?

At this point, Zhou whispered something in his ear, and he remembered yesterday’s court session, when Liu Youcai had cried out that his mother had extorted twenty taels from him.

Xiang Laosan’s sudden offer to go to the government office was clearly a way to investigate where those twenty taels had gone.

Realizing this, Xiang Laoer stopped feigning reluctance and waved his hand, saying, “Since father and mother aren’t home, and eldest brother hasn’t come yet, I’ll take charge of the family for now and go.”

Xiang Laosan’s hidden agenda had been exposed, but he still shamelessly said, “Since Second Brother is handling the land transfer, I’ll go check on father and mother. After what happened yesterday, mother must be shaken up. I’ll go see if there’s anything I can do.”

Those around them heard this and spat, saying, “Tch, it’s just because he’s eyeing the twenty taels that Xiang’s wife extorted from Liu Youcai. He talks so nicely, but it’s really disgusting.”

The two Xiang brothers looked awkward.

Xiang Dagen said, “The land’s been measured. It’s still short by two taels and seven coins. Do you need to provide silver or offer something as collateral?”

The two brothers exchanged looks and shook their heads. “We don’t have any silver. Just take what you can.”

Erniu tugged at his father’s sleeve, saying, “Father, take those three little lambs and the young bull.”

Erniu had always tended to the cattle and sheep, and he had grown close to a few. He wasn’t willing to part with them when they moved to a new house.

Xinghua added, “Father, also take those two hens.”

The hens by the west room were ones Xinghua had been feeding.

Xiang Dagen said, “Alright, go back and bring out the cattle and sheep. We’ll weigh them and convert them into silver at market value.”

So, a group of people went back to the Xiang family, leaving with an eight-month-old calf, three little sheep, two old hens, and a rooster.