Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 27 Terrible

The couple knew the situation was urgent and the opportunity was hard-won.

Before Xie Yuyan could speak, the woman continued, "Madam's arrangement was intended to be fair, but some people, in order to protect themselves, deliberately framed her..."

The man and woman looked at a few of them: "They're just trying to make things chaotic at home."

As soon as he finished speaking, several angry and threatening gazes fell on the man and woman.

But the woman no longer cared; all she could think about now was how to turn her current situation around.

In her anxiety, she spoke up, not knowing how to persuade the lady-in-law. She only knew that she couldn't let the lady-in-law continue looking at the bamboo strips, otherwise she would definitely not be able to get away.

The young woman swallowed hard. "I'd like to speak with the lady alone for a couple of minutes." This might be her only way out; as long as the lady asked for something, she would still have a chance.

But she couldn't say this in public. No matter what excuse she made, it would be difficult to justify herself in front of everyone. When they were alone, she could try to exchange something with the old lady.

The young woman was relieved, as it seemed she was the only one who noticed that only the eldest daughter-in-law was looking at the bamboo strips. The eldest daughter-in-law said that whatever was written on the bamboo strips was true, and the only way to leave this place safely was to persuade the eldest daughter-in-law.

"who is she?"

Xie Yuyan's voice finally rang out.

The young woman immediately looked earnestly at Xie Yuyan, wanting to speak before the steward could.

But Xie Yuyan didn't give her that chance.

"Is she in charge of the clan's miscellaneous items?" Xie Yuyan asked the steward mother who was standing not far away.

The headmistress immediately nodded: "Yes."

Xie Yuyan seemed to have received some kind of hint, and she said without hesitation: "Breaking my rules shows that you have evil intentions."

"Go to her house, find the account books and keys, and start clearing the accounts now."

"All outstanding accounts with the miscellaneous storehouse must be delivered to me within two quarters of an hour. Any accounts that are not settled by then will be treated as bad debts. The servants in the workshop will be summoned to investigate all related accounts with the workshop. The patrols will be notified to prevent any disturbances."

After saying that, he handed out a name card from the box: "Go and invite Fang Fangzheng. Tell him that there is a traitor in my house and ask Fang Fangzheng to be a witness. Then go and call Liu the lawyer to write the complaint."

"The government office will be closed for another hour. I will not allow her to stay overnight at the Yang family's residence."

After Xie Yuyan finished speaking, the woman's face turned ashen. She was about to argue when the voice above her continued, "Gag her and tie her up and put her in the woodshed."

The woman was shocked to find that the men she had just been staring at were approaching her almost simultaneously, and then her mouth was tightly covered. No one could guess what she had been trying to say, but these men all shared one thought: they were determined not to let her speak again.

What had just happened made the women realize that what they needed to check today was the storage room.

This is why the Second Mistress handed over the power of managing the household to the Third Branch, because she wanted to use the Third Branch to get rid of the Fourth Mistress's people.

The second wife and the fourth wife are both from the second branch of the family. If the second wife takes matters into her own hands, she will definitely incur the wrath of the second matriarch. As for the third branch... well, they have already fallen into this situation, so there is really no need to be afraid of the second matriarch anymore.

As the second mistress's confidantes, if they don't come out to help carry the sedan chair now, how will they be able to do anything for the second mistress in the future?
In a short while, the man and woman were forced to the ground.

Those women who were doing the work were even more efficient than when the second wife was in charge of the household.

The person has already been arrested, so how can we not continue as Xie Yuyan instructed? The head housekeeper pursed her lips and hurriedly ordered people to fetch the account books and invite Fang Fangzheng according to Xie Yuyan's arrangements. Otherwise, if the two old ladies realized what was happening and intervened, they would end up losing more than they gained, and the blame would fall on her.

Watching the servants run out, the head housekeeper's heart skipped a beat. Finding out early on which of the young ladies were working for Fourth Sister was a good thing for her own mistress.

But the mother in charge just couldn't help feeling flustered.

It was too fast. From taking over the management to assigning people to their positions, it was all done in the blink of an eye. Everything was arranged from the inside out. She had never seen such methods before.
Even more frightening was that no one told Xie that the woman working in the storeroom had secretly joined Fourth Sister's household. Xie's investigation was so swift that she even got the woman to come forward herself, saving Xie the trouble of searching for evidence. Were there really problems with the accounts? Just looking at the woman's appearance told you the problem was serious.

Arrest them on the spot and punish them without any leniency. Not only have the feud between the Second Mistress and the Fourth Mistress been established, but all those who work for their respective mistresses have also completely broken off relations. Unless the Fourth Mistress and her people are killed on the spot, no one knows who will die in the future.

The head maid had originally decided that since she had been sent to Xie's side by the second mistress, she would do as little work as possible, but now she was doing more and more, and it was all out of her control.

Thinking of this, the stewardess looked at Xie Yuyan. Despite the commotion, she felt that this was just the beginning.

"what's your name?"

The head maid suddenly felt that cold gaze sweep over her, and she broke out in a cold sweat, obediently reporting, "This servant's surname is Yu." "Yu Shi."

"exist."

Xie Yuyan said, "Follow me and do your job well."

Mother Yu replied, "Yes, Madam."

Standing in the room, Zhang was completely stunned. She still couldn't understand how temporarily taking over the management of the household had turned into this situation.

Zhang knew better than anyone how difficult it was to manage the men and women in the house, but now they were busy with their own affairs. Those who couldn't write were asking others to write notes for them, eager to clean up their dealings with the storeroom as soon as possible.

After thinking it over carefully, Zhang realized that as long as they could get through this hurdle, they could escape, and it would be best if they could help the eldest daughter-in-law find out the problem with the storage room, and even gain some credit.

In a short while, Xie Yuyan had five or six slips of paper in his hand, and several young men and women were gathered around, waiting to be questioned.

“Madam, in October this year, the storeroom mobilized mules and horses, saying they were to haul away timber from the repairs of the ancestral hall. However, after two months, the mules and horses returned, noticeably thinner and with worn-out hooves. Clearly, the mules and horses were used for other purposes. I mentioned this to the steward of Fourth Madam's house, but I haven't heard back yet. You must investigate this matter.”

“I also saw that man and woman secretly open the warehouse and put in several carts of goods, and then open it again two days later to take them out, which was also around October.”

“She misappropriated our clan’s storeroom for her own use.”

"It's easy to check. We just need to see if any of our clans have traveled long distances to buy or sell goods in October."

"No, I remember everything about the merchants in our clan very clearly."

“That woman is incredibly audacious; she might have used the clan’s merchant caravan to smuggle goods.”

Mother Yu clutched her handkerchief. This was hardly a couple with audacity; the ones smuggling goods were clearly the Fourth Master and Fourth Mistress.

Xie Yuyan looked at the young men and women: "Weren't the mules and horses used to transport timber for the ancestral hall? If they're used for something else, what happens to the timber that's replaced by the ancestral hall?"

The couple looked at each other, their eyes flashing with a hint of apprehension.

"Is it difficult to tell me?" Xie Yuyan asked.

The men and women all lowered their heads: "We dare not."

Xie Yuyan slightly curled the corners of her lips.

That smile sent a chill down the spines of the men and women, leaving them at a loss for what to do.

Xie Yuyan said coldly, "Take them to see Second Madam." She really didn't want to bother with this kind of thing, and it was time for Madam He to do the work.

Just as the couple was being led away, a deep voice was heard outside: "What's going on here?"

Before the words had even finished, two head housekeepers walked in.

"Who gave you permission to check the accounts?" one of the mothers asked with a grim face. "The Second Madam instructed that whoever it is, put down what they are doing and go to the Second Madam's room to report."

Another person stared at Xie Yuyan in the main seat and said coldly, "Sixth Brother's wife, the Second Madam has summoned you. Don't waste any time, come with us now!"

Before Xie Yuyan could speak, she continued to give orders: "What about the married women who were arrested? I want to take them with me. The Second Madam has taken over this matter. Anyone who dares to act on their own will be expelled from the Yang family."

The stewardess's few words frightened the young men and women in the room, who all bowed their heads and kowtowed. Some of them, as if granted a pardon, were about to lead the two old ladies' people to find the imprisoned young man and woman.

Madam Yu couldn't help but look at Xie Yuyan, who was holding the family's management token in his hand and tapping it gently on the table. His face was calm and showed no sign of panic.

After a moment, she stopped and said, "These two are falsely claiming to be acting on the orders of the two old ladies. Take them down and give them twenty strokes of the cane, and they will be put to rest."

The steward in the old lady's room looked surprised, but none of the servants dared to make a move.

Xie Yuyan held the waist token in her hand: "The waist token of the head of the household is useless? No one other than the head of the household is allowed to interfere in the affairs of the household. This is a rule set by the elders of the Yang family. How could the two old ladies knowingly violate it? Not only are you breaking the rules, but you are also going to give the two old ladies a reputation for favoritism and bending the law."

At this point, Xie Yuyan saw the curtain being lifted, and outside the door stood the gatekeeper and the military patrolmen following behind.

"What?" Xie Yuyan stood up, glancing at the people in the room. "If the family rules can't restrain you, then I have no choice but to resort to the law today."

(End of this chapter)