"Yeye, is there enough food?" Lian Manman quietly asked Lian Yeye.

At the mention of food, Lian Yeye felt conflicted again.

"There is enough. We planted so much, it’s as if we planted it all for them... They didn’t even say a word to us, just went to the vegetable garden and picked whatever they wanted, as if it was rightfully theirs. Shameless. They forgot how, when they left, they made a mess worrying we would eat the backyard vegetables." Lian Yeye said angrily, kicking a small stone beside her foot.

"Eat, just eat. Owe us so much, let them turn into donkeys in the next life and work for me. Or pigs, that’s fine too." Lian Yeye muttered bitterly.

Lian Manman couldn’t help but smile.

Just as Lian Manman’s group reached the Upper Room door, someone lifted the door curtain.

Lady Gu lifted the curtain, standing by the door frame, looking haggard, with a slight ingratiating smile on her face.

Soon, Lian Shouren, Lian Shouyi, Lian Jizu, Lady He, and Lady Chiang all came out, a group of them rushing into the room, where they saw Old Master Lian lying on the kang, and Lady Zhou sitting beside him, wiping her tears with a handkerchief.

Lian Shouxin called out to his mother and went to see Old Master Lian.

"Dad."

"Yes." Lian Shouxin called twice, and only then did Old Master Lian slowly open his eyes.

"Dad, how are you feeling?" Lian Shouxin asked.

"Did you call a doctor?" Wu Lang asked.

"We don’t even have One Wen Money to hire a doctor, and of course, they wouldn’t come." Lian Shouyi said with a hint of sarcasm.

That meant, no one had gone to get a doctor at all.

Thinking about how the claim that Old Master Lian was beaten by the Woo Family brothers came from Lian Shouyi, Lian Shouxin felt a surge of anger.

"I’m fine, why have you all come? It’s a busy time." Old Master Lian said, "Help me up."

Lian Manman slightly frowned, noticing that Old Master Lian’s voice was weak.

"Dad, you can speak while lying down, no need to get up. Moving might cause more harm." Lian Shouyi said quickly, "Dad, Old Fourth is here now, Wu Lang is here too. Whatever you have to say, just say it."

"Help me up, it’s not that serious yet." Old Master Lian insisted, asking Lady Zhou to assist him into a half-sitting position against a pile of bedding.

At this moment, Lady Chiang brought in a pot of freshly boiled hot water, arranging for Lian Duo and Lian Yaya to bring cups.

"Fourth Uncle, Fourth Aunt, please sit and talk. Wu Lang, Manman, have a seat... There’s nothing at home, just this water that your big brother fetched from the well this morning... I scrubbed the pot several times." Lady Chiang said with a forced smile as she poured water for the few of them.

"Jizu’s wife, take a rest." Lady Zhang looked at Lady Chiang as she spoke, calling Xiao Xi over to take over the task from Lady Chiang.

Lady Chiang was trying to keep up appearances, but her pale face and lips betrayed her frail health.

After holding the curtain for everyone outside, Lady Gu did not enter the room again.

After a moment of chaos, everyone sat down.

"Dad, what happened? Why did Second Uncle say that the Woo Family brothers laid hands on you?" Lian Shouxin asked.

Old Master Lian did not speak immediately but first glanced at Lian Shouyi.

"Is that what you told Old Fourth?" Old Master Lian asked Lian Shouyi.

"No, absolutely not." Lian Shouyi quickly replied.

"It was my Second Uncle who told me to get my Fourth Uncle and Fourth Aunt and told me this." Lian Yeye said.

Old Master Lian gave Lian Shouyi a stern look.

"It’s not true; how dare the old Woo Family make a move against me?" Old Master Lian said.

"Why would my Second Uncle say such lies?" Lian Manman said, "When my dad heard this, he immediately wanted to bring people to settle the score with the old Woo Family."

"Go, go ahead." Lian Shouyi immediately replied, "Even if they didn’t lay hands on the Old Master, making him this angry is reason enough for Old Fourth to lead people to teach them a lesson."

Lian Manman nodded slightly at Lian Shouxin and Wu Lang, meaning to say, look, this is Lian Shouyi’s plan.

"Second Uncle, do you think this is Taicang? Are we the goons, thugs following you around?" Wu Lang said sternly.

"This..." Lian Shouyi straightened his neck to retort.

Old Master Lian coughed twice, interrupting Lian Shouyi.

"Old Second, what did I tell you, be honest. After suffering such losses, why haven’t you learned your lesson?" Old Master Lian admonished Lian Shouyi.

Lian Shouyi said no more.

"Old Fourth, Wu Lang, don’t listen to him. You know his temper... we’re a family, we all know." Old Master Lian said to Lian Shouxin and Wu Lang.

"Dad, what really happened? Hearing these words scared us so." Lian Shouxin, now unwilling to pay further attention to Lian Shouyi, asked Old Master Lian again.

Old Master Lian sighed.

"The two brothers from the old Woo Family... They’re scoundrels, repaying kindness with enmity." The usually quiet Lian Shouren finally spoke, "What else could it be about? They want to skip paying rent, and don’t want to return the land to us, claiming we originally agreed to a three-year lease."

As expected, history repeated itself.

Lian Manman involuntarily looked at Old Master Lian, who was now half-squinting, with almost no expression on his face.

Knowing the character of the Woo Family brothers, and having suffered losses before, yet still leasing good land to them. If it were Lian Shouyi, he would have been cursing loudly, without a bit of awareness of his own mistakes. But Old Master Lian was different; he was cultured, comprehended everything, and had high standards for himself.

At this moment, Old Master Lian must be feeling unpleasant.

"Those two brothers from the old Woo Family, ah, all of this is my fault. They want to skip the rent, give us less. I was prepared for that, but with the amount they gave, our family couldn’t survive. It’s heartbreaking..."

***********

Here’s the first update, another one coming later tonight. Please support with votes if you enjoy this work. Your support is my greatest motivation. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it on Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation.)