Ye Yunniang said that when Wan Guiyong accurately mentioned the 200 taels of silver and the large gold bracelet, Cai Damei immediately knew who had revealed the information.
The silver ingots and gold bracelet had been brought back by Ye Yunniang herself, without passing through Granny Tian or Granny Zhang’s hands.
When Cai Damei bought the house, she had privately told Cai Xiaomei about it and asked her not to spread the news.
At the time, Cai Xiaomei had promised not to tell outsiders.
But now, it seemed Cai Xiaomei had broken her word—she had revealed everything.
Ye Yunniang had cried, and after letting out her emotions, she felt somewhat better. Knowing that Cai Damei was blaming herself, she changed the subject.
"Mother, Tie Xiong saved me. What should we prepare as thanks?"
"Don’t worry about this. I’ll handle it. You rest at home," Cai Damei reassured Ye Yunniang.
Exhausted, Ye Yunniang lay down to rest.
Once Ye Yunniang was asleep, Cai Damei took some silver and went to Granny Zhang to order ten catties of spicy dried meat.
When Granny Zhang asked, Cai Damei claimed it was for relatives back home. The incident involving Ye Yunniang was best kept from outsiders.
Since Cai Damei had ordered a large quantity, Granny Zhang didn’t have enough at home. They agreed that Cai Damei would return to collect the order in two days.
Thinking of Ye Yunniang’s injuries, Cai Damei changed direction and headed toward the alley entrance.
In the side room, Ye Yunniang fell into a deep sleep, dreaming once more of that alley.
In her dream, she ran desperately, trying to escape, but no matter which way she turned, someone was chasing her.
She ran until she could barely breathe, feeling as though she might suffocate.
With great effort, she opened her eyes—only to see a small, dark head resting on her face.
Pan’er had somehow climbed onto her bed, sprawled across her, his head pressing against her cheek.
She gently moved Pan’er aside, and as she listened to his soft snores, all her fear melted away.
She still had Pan’er to raise—she didn’t have time to grieve over people who didn’t matter.
After dressing, Ye Yunniang went to her embroidery frame and began working on a folding screen.
Once everything was prepared, Cai Damei and Ye Yunniang carried a basket to House No. 8 and knocked on the door.
Tie Yi answered.
"We’d like to buy a kitchen knife. Ours isn’t working well anymore," the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law said in unison, sticking to their prepared excuse.
As expected, upon hearing this, the door of House No. 7 closed again.
"They’re all in the backyard. Follow me," Tie Yi said, leaving the gate open as he led them to the rear courtyard.
Tie Yi had set up a small forge in the backyard.
When he wasn’t at his shop, he spent his time crafting small items at home, along with making kitchen knives, scissors, and axes for neighbors.
In the backyard, Tie Xiong was practicing martial arts.
Assuming Cai Damei and Ye Yunniang had come because they feared Wan Guiyong might cause more trouble, he reassured them.
"Aunt Cai, don’t worry about Wan Guiyong. He’s been arrested for his crimes and will never leave prison." Disgusted by Wan Guiyong’s actions, Tie Xiong had even made sure the jailers gave him a "special welcome."
From the moment Wan Guiyong entered his cell, he was beaten—leaving him no time to think about Ye Yunniang.
Hearing this, Cai Damei sighed in relief. "That’s good, that’s good."
She placed the items from the basket on the stone table. "We came today to thank you for saving our lives."
"Thank you, Brother Tie Xiong, for saving me," Ye Yunniang added, bowing deeply.
Tie Yi, unaware of what had happened, glanced at Tie Xiong with a questioning look.
Tie Xiong eyed the dried meat, wine, and pastries on the table. "It was nothing. You didn’t need to bring gifts, Aunt Cai."
"To you, it might be nothing, but to us, it was a life-saving kindness," Cai Damei said sincerely. If anything had happened to Yunniang, she and Pan’er wouldn’t have been able to go on.
"Aunt Cai, there’s no need for such formalities. Helping you was the right thing to do," Tie Xiong said, feeling he hadn’t done enough.
"If this isn’t enough, I’ll go buy more," Cai Damei said, misunderstanding his hesitation.
"Really, it’s unnecessary. Compared to what Li Jun did for me, my actions are insignificant."
At the mention of Li Jun, both women froze.
"You… knew Jun’er?" Cai Damei’s face darkened with grief at the mention of her son.
His death was a wound that would never heal.
"Li Jun was assigned to my unit when he joined the army. He was a good soldier—hardworking in training and fearless in battle. He always said he wanted to earn rewards so he could give you a better life," Tie Xiong recalled.
"My Jun’er… I didn’t want a better life. I just wanted you to come home alive…" Cai Damei couldn’t hold back her tears.
Ye Yunniang supported her, tears welling in her own eyes.
If Li Jun had lived, their family might have been poor, but they would have been happy together in the countryside.
Tie Xiong stepped forward and knelt before Cai Damei.
"Li Jun died saving me. It’s my fault your family was torn apart."
Cai Damei’s sobs paused. After a long moment, she wiped her tears and reached out to help Tie Xiong up.
"Jun’er would never regret saving you. As his mother, how could I blame you? If anyone’s to blame, it’s the enemy—they’re the ones who took my son."
Tie Xiong stood as Cai Damei lifted him.
"Aunt Cai, Li Jun and I were like brothers. His mother is my mother. His son is my son. His wife… is my sister-in-law. I, Tie Xiong, swear to take care of you for the rest of my life."
When they left the Tie household, their basket now held not just a kitchen knife but also a sickle and two pairs of scissors—after much insistence from Cai Damei to refuse more.
Back home, Cai Damei set the basket aside.
"Yunniang, I’m tired. I think I’ll rest for a while."
"Of course, Mother. Go and rest," Ye Yunniang said, understanding her sorrow.
Cai Damei went to her room, while Ye Yunniang returned to the side chamber to continue embroidering the folding screen.
Ye Yunniang, who had never been fond of going out, now ventured outside even less. But she still had to deliver her finished handkerchiefs and folding screen.
After informing Cai Damei, she carried her embroidery to Baise Embroidery Shop.
Passing by the Zhou family’s store, she quickened her steps to avoid lingering.
The shop was empty when she arrived. Baise inspected each piece carefully.
"I knew I wasn’t wrong about you," Baise said approvingly, handing Ye Yunniang 3 taels and 2 mace of silver.
Ye Yunniang accepted the payment and tucked it away.
"Shopkeeper Baise, I’d like to take on more custom orders in the future." Ye Yunniang had calculated that embroidering handkerchiefs and folding screens took similar time, but the latter paid far better.
"Good. I’ll keep an eye out for you," Baise agreed, knowing custom work brought her higher profits too.
This time, there were no custom orders, so Ye Yunniang took materials for 100 handkerchiefs to complete by year’s end.
As she stepped out with her bundle, she nearly collided with Zhang Cai’er, who was just leaving another shop.
Zhang Cai’er turned her head and hurried away the moment she saw Ye Yunniang.
Ye Yunniang ignored her and returned home, handing the earnings to Cai Damei.
"Keep the money you earn for yourself," Cai Damei said, refusing. Li Jun’s memory had left her in low spirits these past days.
"I kept 2 mace for myself," Ye Yunniang insisted, pressing the remaining 3 taels into Cai Damei’s hands.
Seeing her sincerity, Cai Damei accepted it. She opened a drawer and took out a small box, half-filled with broken silver and copper coins.
She added the 3 taels to the box.
"All our family’s money is here. Take what you need."
Ye Yunniang nodded and mentioned running into Zhang Cai’er earlier.
Cai Damei thought back to the day she had confronted Cai Xiaomei about the matter—and what she had said.
"My family isn't made up of outsiders. I never hide anything from them."
"My family won’t go blabbing to others. I’ve wanted to say this for a while—Eldest Sister, you’ve been flaunting money earned from your daughter-in-law breastfeeding, and now that trouble’s come, how dare you blame me?"
"You came to Jiangcheng, and I ran around helping you. And this is the thanks I get? Truly, kindness wasted on the ungrateful."
...
Cai Damei made her decision. "From now on, keep your distance from the Zhou family."
