"Forget everything else, isn’t it a hundred times better than marrying that poor country bumpkin Song Chongjin who looks down on you? Little sister, you’re still young and naive, not understanding the advantages of power and status. Do you really think that you could be content with love and a sip of water living with a country pauper? Let me tell you! Don’t be so naive, power is the best thing in this world, with it, you can have anything! Without it, even what’s yours can’t be kept!"
"Think about it, if you marry the County Magistrate as his Second Wife, you wouldn’t have to worry about external affairs; with your Second Brother handling things outside, our interests are aligned. If you speak well of the County Magistrate, the more prominent I am outside, the more stable your position in the inner court. If we siblings unite as one, what worries could we have for the future?" Wang Yongan believed he had really offered heartfelt advice.
Wang Yongzhu looked into Wang Yongan’s eyes and slowly began, "And what if I refuse? How do you plan to deal with me?"
Wang Yongan laughed, his expression filled with indescribable pity and sighs, "Little sister, the reason you’re so bold is because you rely on that small share of profits from the Auspicious Dye Workshop, and with a little silver in hand, you think everything falls under your control, don’t you? You think I’m like our father and those fools who, because you possess silver, praise you to the skies, listening to whatever you say, making you feel like you can make your own decisions?"
"Stop dreaming! There’s an old saying: ’Commoners should not fight with officials!’ Do you think if our County Magistrate were to write to the magistrate of Jing County, claiming that your dye workshop was a den of fugitive slaves colluding with outsiders to sell secrets, your Auspicious Dye Workshop would still be able to operate? If you’re sensible and know what’s good for you, agree to become the County Magistrate’s Second Wife and then summon the people of the Auspicious Dye Workshop to redistribute these dividends anew."
"At first, when you had little influence, you probably didn’t get much; but now with the County Magistrate to back you up, the Auspicious Dye Workshop should be firmly in your hands. When it comes to dividends, give two-tenths to Shopkeeper Wu, five-tenths to the County Magistrate, and from the remaining three-tenths, I’ll give you one-tenth as your private money, how about that?"
Wang Yongzhu’s gaze narrowed, she hadn’t expected Wang Yongan to know about the Auspicious Dye Workshop and to concoct such a vicious scheme.
Hearing his plan, even future earnings and how the dividends of the Auspicious Dye Workshop were to be divided had already been considered, it was clear that this was not a spur-of-the-moment idea.
She steadied her mind and revealed a sarcastic expression, "Well, it seems you haven’t researched thoroughly enough. The Auspicious Dye Workshop is a business with a royal endorsement, seen favorably by the Empress herself in the palace; every new product has to be offered to Her Majesty first. And I, I have even received the Empress’s favor, with the significant Eunuch Sir under her particularly appreciative of me. What do you think will happen if I say I’ve dedicated all those recipes to Her Majesty in the palace?"
Although she knew that the real owner behind Shopkeeper Wu was no ordinary person, Wang Yongzhu didn’t believe that this owner would confront a County Magistrate or even his backing forces just for her sake.
Therefore, she did not even mention the noble patron behind Shopkeeper Wu, instead bringing up the Empress in the palace.
If Wang Yongan genuinely wanted to climb up the ladder, he would probably have to give it some thought.
Sure enough, as soon as she said these words, Wang Yongan’s expression changed, losing some of its aggressiveness.
After hesitating, he said, "Little sister, I advise you to think it over carefully. You should know that now you are in Qi City, and even if you want to present your property to Her Majesty in the palace, you have to be able to send it out! Our County Magistrate is not someone to be trifled with!"
Wang Yongzhu sneered and slowly rolled up her sleeves, a tone of mockery in her voice, "I’ve thought it through very clearly. Seeing your hypocritical face just makes me sick. You are clearly trading your sister for glory, yet you act as if it’s all for my sake! I’ll tell you, since I saw you yesterday, there’s one thing I’ve been wanting to do—"
With that, she stepped forward and kicked Wang Yongan to the ground, then finished her sentence: "—beat you up!"
Wang Yongping had been listening with a face ashen and was already breathing heavily with anger.
As he saw Wang Yongzhu kick Wang Yongan down, he couldn’t hold back any longer. He went up to beat him fiercely. As he hit him, he cried and cursed, "Wang Yongan, you bastard! You’re not human! You’re an animal! You’re heartless!..."
With every curse, there came a punch.
Wang Yongan, being a weak Scholar, didn’t have the strength to fight back and was beaten until he cried out in pain.
She even managed to threaten between the beatings, "How dare you hit me? I’ll have you know I’m a Scholar Master! I don’t even have to kneel when I meet the County Magistrate! If you hit me—"
"Smack—" Wang Yongzhu squatted down and delivered a slap across Wang Yongan’s face.
"It’s exactly you who deserves it! So what if you’re a scholar? Yes, you can stand before the County Magistrate without kneeling! But nowhere in the law does it say that a scholar’s brothers and sisters can’t give him a beating without breaking any law, does it?"
Then, turning her head, she instructed Yongping, "Hold back a little with your strength. Just don’t beat him to death, or leave him crippled!"
While turning back to face Yongan, she smiled maliciously, "You see, it’s just some small quarrel between brothers, a few punches thrown—that’s all—"
Outside, Old Granny Zhang had swiftly dealt with Lady Qian, who now was so beaten she couldn’t even cry, before running into the house. Hearing her daughter’s last words, she quickly said, "Laosi, step aside, let your mother handle this! There is no law under heaven that says a mother can’t beat her son, right?"
Wang Yongzhu blinked, "Indeed there isn’t. Go ahead, Mother, beat him to your heart’s content! I’ll watch for you. I’m going to see why Third Brother hasn’t brought the doctor back yet."
"Don’t worry, Daughter! Mother is here!" Old Granny Zhang assured with a pat on her chest.
Wang Yongzhu glanced at the struggling Wang Yongan one last time before stepping out of the house.
As soon as she stepped outside, she saw Wang Yonggui leading the doctor into the courtyard, and he was immediately dumbfounded.
It had only been a short while, and upon returning, why had Lady Qian’s parents started fighting ?
And Lady Qian, usually so refined, how had she ended up there with her hair disheveled and her face swollen and bruised, lying there while Jinchai just stood by crying, not even daring to help Lady Qian up?
Especially from the house, the sound of someone’s agony was still coming through—had the entire family been beaten?
Wang Yonggui’s heart skipped a beat. Oh dear, the whole family must have terribly offended my younger sister and mother!
In just such a short time, the entire family had suffered.
Not to mention, did anyone think that their own mother was easy to provoke?
The doctor following him was also stunned. No wonder they had called him so early in the morning. With such a commotion, it was either severe injury or disability!
Being a doctor, he naturally had a heart of compassion. Seeing Lady Qian in such a state, he started to rush over to examine her.
He had taken only a couple of steps when Wang Yongzhu called out to him, "Doctor, the patient is inside."
The doctor, hearing the pained screams coming from inside that seemed even more severe, hurried inside as well.