Master Ye nodded with satisfaction upon hearing the steward's report. In his eyes, a young woman daring to speak such words must have someone backing her.
Now, if he could dismantle her support one by one, leaving her a lone girl, he was certain he could deal with her. Su Dan Novel Network.
The Liu family had been weakened by the suppression over this period, and with a bit more effort, they would be no different from commoners.
Wu Caiwei was not one to wait for doom. She had been frequently in and out of the city during this time, looking for opportunities to earn money.
The Ye family were wealthy merchants, and confronting them would be like harming one's own army while injuring the enemy – a loss that outweighed any gain. Therefore, she decided to develop her own business to solve the problem from its roots.
Of course, a business couldn't be built overnight. During this period, she also learned that the Ye family's young master was betrothed to a young lady from the Xu family.
The Xu family ran a tofu shop, a common small merchant family who had actively sought out the Ye family due to their wealth.
She also inquired about the Xu family's daughter and learned that she was a diligent and honest girl, albeit with unfortunate luck. Her mother had died during childbirth, causing her to be seen as an ill omen. From a young age, she was not favored by her family.
Later, her father remarried, and as the saying goes, a stepmother brings a stepfather, which also applied here. From then on, she had completely become a maid in the household.
All the dirty and strenuous chores fell to her. She worked the most, ate the least, and often had to endure her stepmother's scolding.
Her stepmother had a relative who worked for the Ye family. This relative quietly revealed the news to her. At that moment, she thought of her stepdaughter. Since she wasn't her own child, what was wrong with exchanging her for money?
Moreover, it was a thousand taels of silver. Even if it cost her life, it would be worth it. With a thousand taels, they could buy a large number of maids with signed contracts of indenture.
With this money, they could afford a larger courtyard, wouldn't have to worry about their son marrying a wife and having nowhere to live, and wouldn't have to work themselves to death from dawn till dusk.
She felt a sense of delight just thinking about it and quickly went to tell her husband. As expected, he agreed without hesitation.
The couple, with some reluctance, prepared many gifts and approached the relative's household. After much pleading and flattery, they finally received a response.
They exchanged horoscopes in the morning, and the relative delivered the money in the afternoon. The couple was flustered; it was the first time they had seen so much silver in their lives.
After the initial excitement, they became troubled. Where should they hide the money? They discussed many places, but all seemed insecure and easily discovered. After much deliberation, they decided to hide it under their pillow. To prevent theft, they took turns guarding the room.
Wu Caiwei's extensive inquiries revealed that the Xu family's daughter was named Xu Hui. She was usually close to the son of the neighboring Lin family, to be precise, they were childhood sweethearts, deeply fond of each other.
The Lin family's parents sympathized with Xu Hui's situation and had watched her grow up. They considered her a virtuous and hardworking girl and were happy to approve of this marriage. However, the Xu family looked down on the Lin family, believing that with three sons, they wouldn't be able to afford a substantial dowry for their daughter.
They also wanted to sell her for a good price, regardless of who she married or whether she would be the main wife, as long as the other party was willing to pay.
Xu Hui felt helpless. Since ancient times, marriages were arranged by parents and matchmakers. Although she was as intelligent as her name suggested, she had no recourse in such circumstances.
She had tried to resist before, but her family not only showed no sympathy but also became more demanding and harsher towards her. From then on, she knew to agree to their demands first and then stall for time, hoping to find a solution.
However, this time the matter was rather urgent, with the marriage arranged hastily, leaving only five days until the wedding.
She had heard about the Jiang family's daughter and, like Wu Caiwei, sought out Master Ye, hoping to break off the engagement.
Master Ye looked at the plainly dressed young woman before him with annoyance. Any Tom, Dick, or Harry dared to look down on his son. Being chosen by the Ye family was their good fortune, and they didn't know how to cherish it.
Seeing her expectant gaze, Master Ye refused without hesitation. If there were more time, he would definitely find a willing girl. He didn't believe there was no one who envied the Ye family's wealth. Unfortunately, his son couldn't wait.
No matter how she pleaded or how much she showed her reluctance towards the marriage, Master Ye remained unyielding.
Finally, weary of her incessant chatter, he simply called for servants to escort her away.
Xu Hui did not understand where things had gone wrong. Why could others break off engagements while she could not? She did not believe the other party had taken a liking to her and was determined to marry her; she knew her own family's standing clearly.
Her goal unachieved, she walked home dejectedly. Passing by the Lin family, she saw Lin Feng busy at his shop and tears uncontrollably streamed down her face. If only she could marry him, they would run their small household together, live a simple life, and that would be enough for a lifetime.
She felt that heaven was being unfair to her, unable to even grant her this small wish.
Lin Feng seemed to sense something and turned around. Seeing her heartbroken state, his heart felt as if it were being carved by a knife, yet he was powerless.
His mother had proposed marriage before, but they had demanded two hundred taels. The Lin family would have had to sell everything they owned to scrape that amount together, not to mention his two brothers, their wives, and several nieces and nephews who also needed to live. They could not agree to such an unreasonable demand.
Habitually, he started to go and comfort her, but after a few steps, he stopped. They were destined not to be together; a long pain was worse than a short one.
At the same time, he felt like a coward, lacking the courage to elope with her. The Xu family was not worth her lingering for. However, he had his beloved parents. He did not want to worry them or leave them a mess to clean up after they were gone, causing them to lose face.
They stood there silently, separated by a street, their eyes filled with complex emotions and longing.
This scene was witnessed by Wu Caiwei. Although she herself did not annul the engagement, they would not be together anyway. But at least this young lady would not face immediate death.
Thinking that this girl's tragedy had her own indirect contribution, she decided to help her.
While the Xu couple was gloating over the thousand taels of silver, they were unaware that the Ye family had originally promised two thousand taels. It was her relative who, seeing a profitable opportunity, had deliberately suggested it to her.
At this very moment, the Xu mother's relative was contemplating how to spend the money. Although they were stewards in the Ye mansion and had some benefits, no one wanted their descendants to remain as servants forever. With money, they wanted the family to quickly buy their freedom, purchase a small courtyard, set up a small business, and send their grandchildren to school. Perhaps in the future, they could change their family's status.