The group arrived at the Li family's gate and began pounding on it—bang, bang, bang… a series of forceful knocks.
There was no response from inside.
"Maybe no one's home?" the young woman doubted.
"Impossible. I asked Niu Dajiao at the mouth of the alley. She said Ye Yunniang was home," the old woman was certain someone was inside.
"Ye Yunniang, come out! What are you hiding for?" The young girl stepped forward, slapping the door and shouting. Seeing no reaction from within the courtyard, she even gave it a few hard kicks.
"Who are you?" Ye Yunniang looked at the group. She didn't recognize them.
"Are you Ye Yunniang?" the old woman inquired.
"I am."
"You shameless woman! Let my brother go right now!" The girl, hearing this, rushed at Ye Yunniang, reaching out to grab her.
The young woman hurriedly pulled her back. "Cuicui, we agreed before coming not to be impulsive."
Held back, Cuicui glared fiercely at Ye Yunniang a few times, unwilling to relent.
The old woman, looking weary and haggard, walked over. "Young lady, I apologize to you on behalf of my son. He was just momentarily bewitched, confused, and made a mistake. I beg you, for the sake of this old woman, spare him this once. I guarantee he won't dare do it again."
"Your son is the thief from that night." Ye Yunniang's expression changed. Thinking of the wound on her son's neck, she wished she could kill the thief.
"No, my son is not a thief. He, he…" The old woman couldn't get the words out.
"So you're the thief's family. How dare you come here and cause trouble." Liang Maimiao, who had walked out upon hearing the noise, looked at them with disgust.
"I told you, my brother is not! He was here to see his sweetheart!" Cuicui's voice was loud, drawing many people over.
"Isn't that Wang Daxing's family from the next alley over?"
"Wang Daxing is the thief?"
"That's no surprise. Wang Daxing has been stealing chickens and dogs since he was a kid."
"The salted fish I sun-dried was stolen by him."
"My cured meat too."
"You're talking nonsense! My brother would never! It's this widow who wants to marry my brother. She deliberately clung to him. My brother was tricked by her."
"Nonsense! With your brother's sleazy looks, who would fancy him?" Liang Maimiao had seen Wang Daxing and knew all too well what he looked like.
"Sister, I didn't want to say this." The young woman, Wang Daxing's wife, Huandi, took a handkerchief from her bosom. "If nothing happened between you, why would you give him a handkerchief you embroidered yourself?"
Everyone's gaze turned to Ye Yunniang.
"The handkerchief is one I embroidered," Ye Yunniang admitted.
"Yunniang!" Liang Maimiao was anxious.
"She admits it!" Cuicui shouted triumphantly. "My brother is not a thief!"
"At the Hundred Colors Embroidery Shop, a handkerchief like that sells for twelve copper coins," Ye Yunniang said unhurriedly.
"What are you saying that for?" Cuicui didn't understand.
"Sister…" Huandi grew anxious, wanting to interrupt before Ye Yunniang could say everything.
"I get it!" Liang Maimiao caught on and spoke loudly. "Yunniang has been taking embroidery work from the Hundred Colors Embroidery Shop." Liang Maimiao knew this because she had gone along hoping to get work too.
The manager of Hundred Colors didn't think much of Liang Maimiao's needlework but, for Ye Yunniang's sake, agreed to let Liang Maimiao consign her own embroidered handkerchiefs at the shop.
"I take on handkerchief embroidery work from Hundred Colors. Over four years, I've embroidered at least eight hundred, if not a thousand, handkerchiefs. To show the handkerchiefs are from Hundred Colors, the manager requires all embroiderers to stitch a small cypress leaf into the corner seam of every handkerchief." As she spoke, Ye Yunniang snatched the handkerchief Huandi was trying to hide, spread it open, and showed it to the crowd.
"There really is a cypress leaf."
"The one I bought at Hundred Colors the day before yesterday has it too."
"Mine from there has it as well."
Many women who weren't skilled at embroidery checked the handkerchiefs they had bought from Hundred Colors, and all had the leaf.
Their looks towards Huandi changed. This woman, to save her man, was slandering another's virtue.
"This lotus blossom handkerchief of yours, I only embroidered one. It was for the Hundred Colors manager's own use. How did you get it?" Ye Yunniang stared at Huandi, asking word by word.
"You stole the only one?"
At Cuicui's shout, Huandi's face turned pale. She shook her head vigorously. "I didn't steal it. Daxing brought it back. He said it was from sister—"
"You dare call me 'sister' one more time?" The murderous intent in Ye Yunniang's eyes was unconcealed.
Huandi shrank back, looking wronged. "I'm telling the truth."
"Bad people, don't bully my mother!" Wang Damei stood in front of Huandi, glaring fiercely at Ye Yunniang.
"You're the bad ones, bullying my mother! You're slandering my mother! I'll go to the magistrate and sue you! I'll have your whole family thrown in jail!" Li An rushed out, shielding Ye Yunniang.
Ye Yunniang held Li An, afraid he might charge forward and get hurt.
"Old Mrs. Wang, I'll only say this once. I will not forgive your son, Wang Daxing. If you cause another disturbance at my door, don't blame me for being harsh."
"You? What can you do?" Wang Cuicui didn't believe it.
Old Mrs. Wang took a money pouch from her bosom, opened it with trembling hands, revealing three silver ingots inside.
"I know this isn't enough, but I hope you'll accept it. I will do everything I can to compensate you." Old Mrs. Wang bent over, offering the silver to Ye Yunniang.
Ye Yunniang didn't even glance at the silver, her gaze fixed on Old Mrs. Wang. "You really have it all figured out. Making a big show of taking out the silver in public—isn't it just so I'll take it, attracting other thieves and ruffians to my door? Best if this widow and her orphans die. Then there'll be no victim to pursue your son's case."
Ye Yunniang directly exposed Old Mrs. Wang's scheme.
"I didn't! This old woman sincerely wants to apologize."
"I will not accept a single coin from the Wang family. I want Wang Daxing to pay the price he deserves." Ye Yunniang stated her position again.
"Right! Don't take their dirty money!"
"Who knows where your son got it from?"
"This old woman is wicked too."
...Some in the crowd who hadn't caught on before now understood upon hearing the explanation.
"You're lying! We would never!" Wang Cuicui's frantic denial only confirmed Old Mrs. Wang's intentions.
"Instead of shouting here, you'd better think about how to protect your family's silver." Ye Yunniang had noticed certain onlookers in the crowd whose eyes lit up at the sight of the silver.
"You want to rob our family's silver? Pah! As if you're worthy. This house of yours will be ours sooner or later anyway."
"Wang Cuicui!" Old Mrs. Wang now regretted bringing such a foolish ally.
"So, you didn't come to apologize. You came to seize the house!" Liang Maimiao was shocked by the Wang family's shamelessness.
"Ye Yunniang took her clothes off right in front of my brother! She's my brother's woman. This house will belong to our family one day, sooner or later." Wang Cuicui's words brought back the humiliation of that night for Ye Yunniang.
"Don't insult my mother! Mother only did that to save me!" Li Pan, eyes red, rushed out and butted Wang Cuicui hard with his head.
Wang Cuicui was knocked back several steps.
"You little bastard! How dare you hit me!"
Enraged by Li Pan, Wang Cuicui raised her hand to strike.
Ye Yunniang grabbed her wrist and raised her own hand.
Slap, slap, slap...
