Chapter 19 Shameless

The processing workshop was running smoothly, and the side dishes were selling quickly at the restaurant. Jiang Lihua had specifically prepared small jars of pickles so that customers who wished to take some home after their meal could do so.

Jiang Lihua also provided Gu Qingran with several recipes, such as boiled meat slices and mapo tofu. Thanks to these unique, never-before-seen dishes, Gu Qingran's restaurant experienced unprecedented popularity. In return, Gu Qingran gave Jiang Lihua a ten-percent share of the restaurant's total profits, which amounted to at least ten thousand taels of silver a year. Jiang Lihua could now be considered a small-scale landlady.

At this moment, the Yang family residence was anything but peaceful. Yang Xiuhua was crying and pleading, "Mother, brother, please save me."

It turned out that the Laifu Restaurant, a rival to the Wanfu Restaurant, wanted the recipes for the side dishes and specialties and had bribed Yang Xiuhua’s husband, Zhao Fusheng. They promised that if he obtained the formulas, they would make him the head manager of Laifu Restaurant. Zhao Fusheng had ordered her to get the recipes at any cost, which was why Yang Xiuhua had returned to Lihua Village.

Seeing that Sun and Yang Wenbin remained unmoved, Yang Xiuhua continued to sob, "Mother, brother, if I don't get these recipes, your brother-in-law will divorce me. Please, help me."

In reality, Zhao Fusheng had promised that if she brought back the recipes, he would kick out his concubines and dote only on her. Before she married him, Zhao Fusheng had been nothing but a waiter. He was skilled at currying favor with the previous manager, who had recommended him as his successor before leaving. Once he became the manager, Zhao Fusheng changed, bringing woman after woman home. Yang Xiuhua had suffered in silence, daring to speak out.

When Sun heard that her daughter might be divorced, she immediately began to clamor. "He wants to divorce you? I tell you, you go back and talk to him properly; you must not let him divorce you."

Yang Xiuhua had hoped that Sun was finally showing concern for her, but Sun’s next words shattered her. "If you become a discarded wife, it will ruin your brother's reputation. Once he passes the imperial examinations and becomes a top scholar, people will mock him for having a sister who was cast aside."

"If you are divorced, do not return here. Hang yourself; that would at least preserve your virtue."

Yang Xiuhua stared at Sun in a daze, unable to speak. After a long silence, Sun asked, "Did you hear me?"

Yang Xiuhua did not answer, turning instead to Yang Wenbin. "Brother, what do you think?"

Yang Wenbin replied indifferently, "Mother is right."

Yang Xiuhua’s face turned deathly pale, and she gave a desolate laugh. "Heh... I see."

Sun, annoyed by her demeanor, snapped, "What are you cackling about? The recipes are ours. We won't give them to you. Go now."

Yang Xiuhua stopped laughing and said emotionlessly, "We won't take the recipes for free. If I get them, I will give you five thousand taels of silver."

Sun and Yang Wenbin’s eyes lit up at the mention of five thousand taels. Sun asked, "Really? Are those recipes worth that much?"

"It is true."

"Give us the money first."

"Payment upon delivery of the recipes." Yang Xiuhua no longer trusted Sun; if she gave them the money, she would never see it again.

"Xiuhua, I am your mother. You have money but won't be filial, and instead, you come to make a deal with me?"

"That isn't our money; it is what the buyer is offering."

Sun wanted to argue further, but Yang Wenbin interrupted. "Mother, stop. Sister, we will consider it."

Sun fell silent, though she glared at Yang Xiuhua with displeasure. Yang Xiuhua stood up and said, "Then I will return now. I will come back in three days." Knowing they wouldn't ask her to stay, she chose to leave on her own.

After Yang Xiuhua left, Sun asked anxiously, "Bin’er, what do you think?"

"Mother, I don't want to sell the recipes."

"Why?"

"If the recipes are that valuable, why should we sell them? Haven't you seen how well that girl’s workshop is doing? If we keep them, we will have a constant stream of income. It’s worth far more than five thousand taels."

"Hmph, Bin’er is so thoughtful. That girl actually tried to trick us!" Sun fumed, cursing the girl who had turned her back on her own family. "Bin’er, have you managed to handle that girl yet?"

"Mother, don't rush. Take it slow. I don't believe I can't trick her. Eventually, everything she has will be ours. Mother, just wait to live a life surrounded by servants." The mother and son fantasized about their future, filled with excitement.

That night, under the cover of darkness, Uncle Jiang sneaked into the village head's home and the Yang residence. He drugged Huang Yingrong and Yang Wenbin, carrying them to a haystack in the field. He also administered a mild aphrodisiac; for people with such weak willpower, it didn't take much. The dose was small enough that it would wear off by dawn, and even a doctor wouldn't be able to detect it.

The next day, Yang Wenbin and Huang Yingrong, exhausted from a night of "activity," slept soundly.

"Ah!"

They were awakened by a scream. As they slowly opened their eyes and realized their surroundings, Huang Yingrong shrieked, grabbed the nearby clothes, and covered herself. "Yang Wenbin, I will kill you! I will kill you!"

Many villagers rushed over upon hearing the commotion.

"Isn't that Huang Yingrong, the village head's granddaughter?"

"What is going on?"

"I don't know. I was out digging vegetables this morning and saw her and Scholar Yang lying in the haystack, completely naked."

"How the world has degenerated."

Yang Wenbin was still in a daze, unable to understand how he had ended up there with Huang Yingrong. Soon, a villager went to fetch the village head. When the village head saw the scene, he nearly fainted. "What kind of sin have we committed?"

Seeing her grandfather, Huang Yingrong ran to him, sobbing, "Grandfather, you must kill him! He ruined me!"

Yang Wenbin scrambled to defend himself, "I didn't! I don't know how this happened!"

The village head took two deep breaths and shouted, "Shut up! Both of you, come with me and explain everything." He felt as though his entire reputation had been dragged through the mud. He cupped his hands toward the gathered villagers and said, "Until the truth is investigated, do not spread rumors. I know which families you all belong to."

With that, he took Yang Wenbin and Huang Yingrong away. The villagers whispered behind his back.

"His own granddaughter does something like this, and he forbids us from talking about it."

"Exactly. She has no shame, so why should she fear being talked about?"

"Forget it, let’s disperse. Who told them to be the village head's family?"

Although they didn't speak openly, the story spread like wildfire behind closed doors. Back at home, the village head slammed the table. "Kneel!"

Huang Yingrong had never seen her grandfather so fierce; she knelt obediently. Yang Wenbin stood tall. "Village head, I am a scholar with status and a title."

The village head glared at him. "Kneel."

After a moment of tension, Yang Wenbin finally knelt.