Chapter 64: Analysis and Deception

  The atmosphere within the Zhao family temporarily became very harmonious, and the original small disagreements and contradictions between the clan members were much calmer than before, and they were willing to discuss whether there was a peaceful solution. Zongfang's Zhao Jiong and Sanfang's Eighth Old Master both sighed with emotion at the sight.

  As soon as he caught the opportunity to quarrel with Rui Dà Lǎoyé, Bā Lǎo Tàiyé would scold him a few sentences. This time, he didn't let it go either and said in front of Zhao Jùn and Shěn Shì's couple: "Look, look! This is what a clan should be like! In the past, your grandfather was ignorant, your father was also ignorant, and they messed up the good clan, making everyone disheartened, only caring about their own interests. Who ever thought of helping their clansmen? What etiquette and integrity were simply thrown away to Java! I think your father is not even as sensible as a seven-year-old girl like Zhuō Jiě!"

  Zhaoyu and Madam Shen only had a share of lowering their heads in silence. How could they not know that Old Master's words were right? As a son and daughter-in-law, it was really hard for them to say that an elder was wrong. All they could do was remain silent.

  When they returned home and heard from their daughter that Zhao Xiu had been there, they learned of the couple's actions from her and finally understood why she would suddenly think of sending gold and silver.

  Shen sighed, "It's hard for her too, at such a young age, she thinks so thoroughly. If she had asked me first, I would not have allowed the money to be taken out of Xia'er's account. Since this is something we did as husband and wife, we can't let Xia'er follow suit. With Auntie not at home, we led Xia'er to spend money, what if the old lady finds out? Now that Xia'er used her own private funds without disturbing the accounts, it's a win-win situation. After this incident, our relatives will also have more respect for Xia'er and won't belittle her just because she is still a child."

  Zhuo Jing also solemnly said: "Xu's younger sister has been determined since childhood, and she is also intelligent. Don't treat her like a child just because of her age. This month, she was alone at home, although you went over from time to time to take care of her, but think carefully, have you ever helped with the household chores? Has Xu's younger sister ever had any problems that she couldn't solve and asked for your help? Have the servants in the house ever caused any trouble? The matters of the land, the ancestral worship, the Qingming and Dragon Boat Festival visits to relatives and friends, have there been any mistakes?"

  Shen thought for a moment, and couldn't help but be shocked: "Not at all, not even a little bit! Xiu's sister had asked me for advice on several occasions when she didn't know what to do, but I hadn't lifted a finger to help with the household chores of the second house. Lu Ma had also never come to ask for my help in private." If Lu Ma had come to her, Shen could have thought that the household chores of the second house were being handled by Lu Ma and her husband, but as servants, they couldn't handle everything on their own, and it was inevitable that they would need to ask for her help as the mistress of the next room and the family. But now that Lu Ma had never come to her even once, it was clear that someone else was in charge of the second house's affairs, and there was no need for outside help. And who could this person be, if not Zhao Xiu?

  Shen's face was shocked as she looked at her husband: "I remember when I went to visit her home and picked up Qing sister, occasionally saw Lu Ma coming to find Xiu sister to talk about something, mentioning how to deal with certain things. Xiu sister nodded and said she knew, without saying anything else. I just thought they were just going through the motions, didn't expect Xiu sister was really in charge! Now that I think about it, for over a month since Xiao Er Fang, everything has been normal, just like when Uncle's mother was around."

  Zhuo Jiong sighed: "Even if Zhu Mei is following the old example of her aunt at home, it's just saving some effort. You and I know each other's hearts, managing a household is not something that can be handled properly just because there are old examples. There will always be unexpected events, and the person in charge needs to be able to adapt and respond accordingly to avoid chaos. Although Lu Changxiu and his wife are capable, Zhu Mei's abilities should not be underestimated. Just look at this time when she borrowed gold and silver, it can be seen that she has a strong personality, is decisive and generous, but also knows her limits. We borrowed 400 taels of silver, but she only borrowed 300 taels, showing her good intentions without going over our heads. The eighth house owed 1,000 taels of debt, plus some other household expenses, lacking 300 taels, which can be made up from somewhere else. If the eighth house can repay their debts smoothly, our house won't lose face either. Zhu Mei even took care of this human sentiment and worldly wisdom, how could she still be like a naive child who doesn't understand things?"

  Shen's eyes widened in surprise: "Impossible? How could she have thought of these things? Maybe it was just a coincidence? She only took her own private belongings, and didn't dare to use the exquisite and valuable jewelry made by her uncle's mother. There probably weren't many, three hundred taels would be a lot already. Most of the other things had marks on them, she couldn't just take them out casually."

  "Her things, two gold necklaces, look at the workmanship, it's not what she usually wears, most likely they were gifts from unrelated people. The remaining gold and silver ingots, can't you see? They are all red envelopes given by her elders in the clan during holidays, some of which were given by her aunt. You have received red envelopes from your aunt and also gave money to your sister as a gift, can't you recognize the patterns on those gold and silver ingots? If you can recognize them, just think back, how many gold and silver ingots could your sister receive in a year? Where is it possible to stop at three hundred taels? In five years, there would be at least one thousand taels. But she only took out three hundred, isn't that clear enough?"

  Shen was silent for a moment before saying, "If it's really like that, where is she still like a child? She's simply a little adult. Our Qing'er is already eleven, if I could get half of what she has, I wouldn't have to worry anymore."

  Zhao Yun sighed: "Their family isn't easy either, think about it, when Zhuo Ershu and Zhuo Erniang passed away, how old was Xiu sister? The siblings are all miserable, the great-grandmother is also advanced in age, the whole family is old and young, and they still have to be mindful of the schemes of the second wife and the small house. They've been forced to become human calculators. Our Qing'er has had us as her guardians since childhood, where did she ever experience such hardships? It's better not to compare with her younger aunt."

  The couple looked at each other in silence, sighing endlessly, but from then on they both involuntarily added a few points of respect to Zhao Xuan.

  Zhaoyao was naturally unaware of this, but when she saw the reaction of her clan members after lending the three hundred taels to the Eighth House, she knew that this decision was correct. Money was just a small matter, what was important was that the clan members' views on her had changed, and from now on, whenever they mentioned her, it would no longer be "the kind-hearted and generous county lord's legitimate granddaughter", but "Xiao Er Fang's sister Zhao". For the first time, she appeared in front of everyone in the clan with an independent image, and everyone praised her without exception.

  Not to mention Zhao Xuan's secret joy at home, after the eighth house redeemed the eldest son, the debt was indeed solved, but the disposal of unfilial sons should also be put on the agenda. The old master of the eighth house hated this eldest son for not being able to become steel, and seeing his unrepentant appearance made him even more ill.

  But his eldest son didn't think much of it, and instead was overjoyed that his relatives had paid off his debts. He never thought about the fact that he would have to repay the money, and just kept shouting that he wanted to go to his in-laws' house to bring his wife back. For things like hiring a car, giving gifts to his father-in-law and younger brother-in-law, he asked his mother for silver. His mother refused, so he insinuated that his younger brother was trying to embezzle all the family property, and that their parents were biased. And so on. His mother was furious and lay in bed calling out to him, but he just ignored her and went out the door.

  His younger brother got angry and called the servants to chase him. They chased all the way to his father-in-law's house, only to find that he had entered the door with the creditor, laughing and talking together. The creditor didn't have the fierce look on his face as when he was chasing for debt repayment. The servant thought it was suspicious and hurried back home to tell him. His younger brother didn't dare disturb their sick parents, so they sought help from Zhao Jiong.

  Zhao Jiong stepped forward and found two clansmen who were officials in the county government. He also recruited four or five strong and capable attendants, and together with the people from the Eighth House, they went to the old man's home, where they caught a group of people drinking and gambling, and after some questioning, they uncovered the truth.

  The eldest son of the Eighth House actually owed someone a gambling debt, but it was not as much as 1,000 taels, only 500 taels. He had the money himself, but he didn't want to take out his wallet and thought that his old father would never let him inherit the family business again. Rather than letting his brother benefit, he might as well make some extra profit for himself. So he colluded with the creditor, returned home, and extorted 1,000 taels of silver from his family, splitting it evenly between them. That's why the creditor dared to be so arrogant and disregard the Zhao family's reputation. His father-in-law and younger brother-in-law had some influence in the county government but didn't want to mediate. This was actually a scam. Now that he has gotten the money, he abandoned his parents and ran over here, actually to split the silver.

  The news spread throughout the tribe, and everyone was in an uproar. What was originally a kind-hearted attempt to help the tribespeople get through a difficult time had now turned into a case of being cheated, and many people couldn't accept it in their hearts, starting to regret having handed over their silver. Not a few people began going door-to-door asking about Zhao Yun and Ba Fang's situation, wondering if they would be able to recover the borrowed silver that had fallen into the swindler's hands.

  The government actually returned the 1,000 taels that had been extorted on the same day. The creditor was imprisoned for fraud (the Zhao family members played a significant role in this), and even if half of the 1,000 taels were actual debts, he had no way to claim his rights, so all the money was returned to the Eighth House.

  The good name of the Eighth Master's generation has been ruined by his eldest son. He knows that if this matter cannot be resolved properly, not only will the entire Eighth House lose face in the clan, but even their legitimate branch will lose face in the entire Eighth House, and the reputation of the second son will also be affected. So as soon as he got the money, he followed the list he made when borrowing silver and sent his second son to return the money one by one according to the number, not only returning it but also solemnly thanking him and making amends.

  After this matter was over, he asked his second son to invite Zhao Jing over and solemnly made a request: "Remove my unfilial son from the clan register. Having such a disobedient son in our family is also a shame to our ancestors."

  Zhao Yun looked at the other's expression, and in the end did not say the words of refusal, but only said softly: "This matter is of great importance, and it is necessary to convene a clan meeting for public discussion."

  The Eighth Master did not object, this was originally the proper procedure, so he let Zhao Jue handle it and also asked his second son to help out. If anyone asks about the purpose of holding this family meeting, the second son can tell them the truth.

  The news spread quickly, and the unfilial son also knew about it. He shouted in discontent: "It's just that I embezzled a few pieces of silver, why should I be expelled? The money has all been returned, hasn't it? Nobody suffered any losses! In the past, Zhao Kuang murdered his mother and brother, and Zong Fangyuan was an accomplice. They didn't get expelled, so how can you punish me now?"

  This conversation was soon transmitted to Zhao Xiu's ears by Zhao Huai, who had overheard it while passing by. She sneered and suddenly came up with an idea, instructing Bi Lian to send a message to Shen Shi: "Since we're going to hold a family meeting, how can we leave out our second branch? With Grandma and Brother not around, I'm the representative, and I want to attend too!"

  May Day happiness ~~ Thank you for everyone's pink votes, thickening my face and whispering again...