Casting Nets to Catch a Husband

Chapter 207: Salute from afar

The sudden addition of an ancestral fortune didn’t bring unrestrained joy to Wei Shi and the three brothers of Liu Yanqing. Instead, they found it hard to believe. Naturally, they had to discuss this matter further and bring back Zhang Xiaofu, the daughter-in-law, and Liu Yu, the niece, to discuss it as well, considering Liu Yu was the only child from the second branch.

When Liu Yu arrived, Lu Chengxiao naturally came with her.

Ever since Liu Yanzheng appeared, Lu Chengxiao had been on high alert, far more so than when he was wary of Liu Dalang. For several days, he hadn’t even visited the warehouses or the dyeing shop, remaining almost inseparable from Liu Yu. Fortunately, the fabric shop, dyeing workshop, and warehouse were all managed by others, and since the businesses were partnerships with the Liu family, any issues were handled by the three brothers of Liu Yanqing, so not traveling for business made things much easier than before.

In the afternoon, the couple and Zhang Xiaofu, who was from the embroidery shop, were brought to Yangshan Village by Liu Yanan, where Wei Shi explained the situation to them.

Liu Yu and Lu Chengxiao were stunned. They hadn’t expected Liu Yanzheng to have such a deep connection with the Liu family, and they were momentarily at a loss for words.

Zhang Xiaofu was speechless, suspecting she had misheard, and instinctively glanced at Liu Yanqing.

Once it was clear everyone was informed, Wei Shi spoke, “I can’t make the decision on this matter, so I called you all back to discuss and hear your opinions.”

Who wouldn’t want money? But the amount was too much, and it came so suddenly that for the Liu family, it didn’t feel like something they could claim as their own. It felt more like something that had fallen from the sky, leaving them at a loss for any real thoughts or intentions about it.

Liu Yanqing, being the oldest, had some memories of his grandmother. After reflecting on her gentle and calm nature, he couldn’t connect it to the woman described by Old Master Liu as the general’s wife. Seeing Wei Shi looking at him, he asked, “Grandmother never mentioned this island to you?”

Wei Shi didn’t need to think hard and shook her head. “Never. I didn’t even know your grandfather was a general.”

Liu Yan’an, resting his chin on his hand and tilting his head, asked, “Doesn’t this mean that grandmother didn’t want us to take over this fortune?”

Although their grandmother had passed away from illness, it wasn’t an urgent death, and the island had been in operation for more than thirty years. In all the years before her passing, she had ample opportunity to mention it, yet she never did. She simply brought them to live in Yangshan Village, where, though they had some savings, they lived much like the villagers, hunting and farming for a living, without ever mentioning that the Liu family had such an inheritance.

Wei Shi silently nodded at this. “I’ve thought the same. If she had wanted to tell us, she had plenty of chances, but she never did.”

Wei Shi clearly remembered her mother-in-law’s last words: one was to find Liu Yu, her granddaughter, and the other was the family rule that the Liu men should never enter the military.

After giving those two instructions, she spoke no more, leaving peacefully. Wei Shi thought that, besides glancing at her grandsons, her mother-in-law had been neither fearful of death nor reluctant to leave.

She had truly seen life and death with equanimity.

As she thought about this, she turned to her second son. “Yanping, what do you think? Do you have any ideas?”

Among the three sons, he was the one with the sharpest mind.

Liu Yanping pondered for a moment before looking at Liu Yu briefly and then turning his gaze to Wei Shi. “I’m wondering—if grandfather was a general, why did he send his trusted subordinates to develop power overseas? From what Old Master Liu said, doesn’t it sound like he was looking for a way out?”

The room fell silent, everyone looking at each other.

Liu Yanping smiled and continued, “Don’t be too worried. If this were some big scandal with the court, grandmother wouldn’t have brought us back to Yangshan Village. You know, in terms of clans and ancestry, this is something that the Liu family might not have known, but it would be easy for the court to investigate.”

Wei Shi immediately relaxed and shot a glare at Liu Yanping. “You really know how to frighten people with your words.”

Liu Yanping smiled and continued, “Think about it. If a family produced a fifth-rank official, wouldn’t it bring honor to the whole clan? They would definitely return to their hometown to build a memorial and offer sacrifices to the ancestors. But in our case, the village head and clan leaderdoesn’t seem to know that our grandfather served as a military officer in the court”

Everyone’s thoughts were led by Liu Yanping’s analysis, and they nodded in agreement, waiting for him to continue.

“From Old Master Liu’s words, it sounds like our grandfather must have started as a lowly soldier and worked his way up. Based on the time Old Master Liu mentioned going to the island, our grandfather must have been promoted to fifth rank at a young age, probably when my father and second uncle were still children. Not long after, he passed away.”

Liu Yanqing seemed to have recalled something and turned to Wei Shi. “Mother, did father ever tell you anything about his childhood?”

Wei Shi shook her head.

Liu Yanping continued, “The village doesn’t know about grandfather’s past, but they’ve heard that he left home with great-grandfather when he was young, which isn’t surprising. But if we look at grandmother’s last words and the family rule she left, which forbade the Liu men from joining the military—what do you think, Mother? Why would a general look for a retreat overseas? Why would the wife of a general leave behind such a rule for her descendants?”

At that moment, almost everyone had the same thought in their minds, though none of them dared to speak it aloud.

It seemed that grandfather’s death wasn’t as simple as it appeared. To say it out loud would be too cruel.

The room fell into a heavy silence.

Liu Yanping said, “A fortune of a million taels is indeed tempting, but in the end, it’s not really ours. If we say it’s ours, it belongs to our grandfather and grandmother. But since grandmother never left any instructions for us to take over this property, could it be that she had her own considerations?”

Liu Yan’an asked curiously, “What kind of considerations?”

Liu Yanping shot him a glance, his expression clearly saying, “I’m not grandmother.”

Liu Yanan pursed his lips. “You’re the one with the most thoughts, so analyze it. For example, what kind of considerations?”

Liu Yanping scoffed. “Is that a compliment?”

Wei Shi ignored the brothers’ banter and spoke with two words: “Speak up.”

Liu Yanping took a deep breath and said, “Based on the previous analysis and considering grandmother’s perspective, there are several possibilities. First, the overseas island was a backup plan for grandfather and grandmother, but since grandfather has passed away, this backup plan is likely no longer needed.”

Liu Yanqing nodded and added, “The backup plan might no longer be necessary, but according to Old Master Liu, 45,000 taels of silver were sent to the island. Does that mean that no one needs it anymore?”

A million taels is far too much, but 45,000 taels is also a large sum. For the three brothers of the Liu family today, with some effort, it’s not an impossible sum to reach.

Liu Yanping said, “That’s the second possibility. Is it possible that if grandmother went to the island, she might have caused trouble for them? After all, the people on the island were all trusted subordinates of grandfather.”

This theory left everyone stunned. Wei Shi didn’t quite believe it and asked, “I’ve been with my mother-in-law for a long time, and life was always very peaceful. If she had worried about causing trouble on the island, wouldn’t she have also been concerned about causing trouble for our family?”

Before Liu Yanping could respond, Lu Chengxiao spoke first. “It’s different. Yangshan Village is a proper rural village, but the people on the island? They’re all former soldiers who moved there. If someone were still paying attention to grandmother, it could draw attention to the island. At best, sea merchants could be seen as pirates. At worst, someone could label them as traitors, and that would lead to trouble not just for the Liu family, but for everyone on the island.”

Lu Chengxiao’s voice was low, but the words “traitor” still made Wei Shi gasp in surprise. She instinctively looked around at the doors and windows.

Everything was tightly shut, with only family inside.

Still, her heart raced, and she quickly ended the topic, turning to Liu Yanping. “Is there a third possibility?”

Liu Yanping nodded. “Yes, there’s a third possibility. The people who were willing to go to the island with Old Master Liu and grandfather’s trusted subordinates—perhaps they left the military voluntarily because grandfather and grandmother wanted to find a retreat, and it became the awkward situation of being sea pirates. Do you think it’s possible that the island’s property was compensation for them?”

Liu Yanqing raised his gaze, and in that moment, he understood Liu Yanping’s reasoning.

“The subordinates were willing to take such risks to fight the frontlines. Even Old Master Liu, thirty years later, still hasn’t given up on finding our family, which shows how loyal they were to grandfather. If the subordinates were so devoted, it’s clear that grandfather and grandmother treated them very well. This is very possible.”

Liu Yanqing paused before continuing, “Moreover, if grandmother truly had the skills in business that Old Master Liu described, 45,000 taels might not have seemed that significant to her.”

The 45,000 taels—given the current assets of the Liu family—could easily be earned in three to five years if managed properly.

Liu Yanping nodded. “Exactly. If she had those kinds of skills, she would have taken little notice of money, because it would come easily. And, our family’s past lifestyle seemed like grandmother had grown tired of struggle and was content with a simple life.”

There was even a possibility that after the deep sorrow of grandfather’s passing, grandmother took him back to their hometown to live a peaceful life.

If it weren’t for the incident with the Bao family, they might have lived a good life.

But this thought was too heavy, so Liu Yanping stopped himself from speaking further.

Wei Shi, however, was increasingly startled by what she was hearing. Each possibility sounded unbelievable, yet after years of living with them, she couldn’t help but feel that her second son’s analysis might be correct. She turned to Liu Yanping and asked, “Is there more?”

Liu Yanping nodded. “Perhaps there’s another consideration. When father and second uncle passed away in that accident, it left only us behind, and we were young. Thirty years later, after the island had been running for over thirty years, the subordinates who had gone there early, as Old Master Liu said, many have died, and the older ones are now elderly. Two or three generations have passed. Do you think the people on the island still recognize us?”

This was truly a straightforward truth. Old Master Liu acknowledged it, and so did Liu Yanzheng. In retrospect, it was actually quite unexpected.

“Another thing is that the sea trade is inherently dangerous, whether due to the dangers overseas or the imperial court’s maritime ban. Retreating overseas back then was a last resort, and to live a peaceful life—wouldn’t grandmother also want to prevent us from taking such risks?”

If the earlier points were considerations for the people on the island, then this one was for the children and grandchildren.

This was a very complete theory, connecting all the causes and consequences, and it was compelling enough to convince everyone present.

Wei Shi remained silent for a while before speaking, “Then, perhaps we should just forget about the money?”

In her entire life, the person Wei Shi respected most was her mother-in-law. If Liu Yanping’s guess was true, and grandmother truly didn’t want them involved in this property, Wei Shi would be the first to comply.

Whether it was 45,000 taels or a million taels, she didn’t care.

Liu Yanqing nodded. “I agree. Although this is just our speculation, since grandmother never mentioned this property, it indicates she had other plans. This property is unrelated to us. Besides, it’s the result of over thirty years of effort from the Liu family and the people on the island. It wouldn’t be right for us to just take the ready-made fruits of their labor.”

Once these words were spoken, everything seemed clear. Zhang Xiaofu was nearby, and Liu Yanqing instinctively glanced at her.

Zhang Xiaofu’s lips trembled slightly. Two hundred thousand taels… She hadn’t fully processed it yet, but the family had already decided to let go of it.

However, she was a person who was content with what she had. Not to mention, after hearing Liu Yanping’s reasoning, she felt that this arrangement might actually make sense. As for their current life, it was already quite good.

When Liu Yanqing looked over at her, she paused briefly and then quickly nodded. “I have no objections. I trust what mother-in-law and my husband decide.”

Wei Shi couldn’t help but smile. She truly liked this daughter-in-law from the bottom of her heart. She then turned to look at Liu Yanping. “What about Yanping?”

Liu Yanping smiled. “Of course, I have no objections. Sea trade is a dangerous game. The efforts of several generations have gone into this, and it wouldn’t feel right for us to take the money. Besides, if we put in our own effort, we could build something great in the future.”

For Liu Yanping, it wasn’t the wealth itself that mattered most; perhaps he enjoyed the process of earning it even more.

Liu Yanan, without needing to be asked by Wei Shi, happily spoke up, “I have no objections either. We can earn the money ourselves. If you ask me, second brother and Yuer probably inherited grandmother’s skills. Sooner or later, our family will have a fortune of a million taels and become one of the wealthiest families!”

His carefree attitude towards becoming a wealthy family made Wei Shi laugh.

“What about Yu’er and Chengxiao? What do you think? After all, Yu’er is the only one from the second branch. Your opinion is important too.”

One person is worth five people.

Liu Yu looked at Lu Chengxiao and smiled as she spoke to Wei Shi. “I have no objections. Our life is already good, and we can earn our own fortune.”

Lu Chengxiao nodded as well.

Liu Yu and Lu Chengxiao were the happiest about the family’s decision, as neither of them wanted to have further entanglements with Liu Yanzheng.

A major decision for the family, and it was made in less than an hour while everyone was gathered together.

Wei Shi had been away from home for a while, so she stayed behind to help tidy up, and the others didn’t rush to leave. They stayed behind to help as well.

Of course, when the door was opened, it wasn’t long before the neighbors came to visit. After the house was tidied up, they all went back to the county. By the time they arrived in Anyi County, it was already dark, so they didn’t go home but headed straight to the embroidery shop.

At the embroidery shop, the local embroiderers had already gone home, but Aunt Lin, who handled the cooking, was still waiting for them. Liu Yu and Lu Chengxiao stayed at the shop and had a meal together before heading back home.

On the way, they passed two teahouses, and Lu Chengxiao couldn’t help but glance toward the window seats. The seats by the window were empty, with no one sitting there.

Lu Chengxiao furrowed his brow. The persistent guy wasn’t waiting for them on the street today?

The person who always waited for them wasn’t there today, and Lu Chengxiao felt a sense of unease.

With this thought in mind, they continued on their way to the east of the city. Almost on instinct, Lu Chengxiao looked up at the second floor of a tavern by the street.

At the window seat, Liu Yanzheng was holding a delicate wine glass, raising an eyebrow and curling his lips into a slight smile. He gave a distant salute to Lu Chengxiao.

Sansukini: Liu Yanzheng vs Liu Chengxiao

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