Chapter 918: One Thing Subdues Another

Jiangzhou.

The Sheng Family.

Before Lao Qi even arrived home, he had already sent word back about Shi Yucheng being held captive by the Ji Family.

Shi Youxuan was pacing back and forth in a panic.

There was no limit to the devious methods her aunt used to torment people; if you couldn't imagine it, she could still do it.

Her father was in her hands and in danger, so she wanted to go save him immediately, but her husband posed a soul-searching question: "Are you sure you can get in?"

Shi Youxuan:...

She was not sure.

No, that's wrong; she was certain she definitely could not get in, and finding him would be difficult as well.

There was no other way, she could only fret in anxiety.

In her desperation, she had a flash of inspiration and came up with a plan.

Shi Youxuan sent messages to her aunt and Nianyin at the same time, with the exact same content: Release my father and swap the two children back, otherwise I will make the fact that you swapped the children known to the whole world!

Soon, Ji Yingjie sent a message back: You dare? If you do that, just wait to collect Shi Yucheng's corpse!

Shi Youxuan: My father has high blood pressure and cerebral infarction; he gets sick if he gets even a little tired, so you decide what to do.

Ji Yingjie: Don't forget you are a woman of the Ji Family, your surname is Ji. That man only raised you for a few years, and he almost got you killed; you don't need to be grateful to him, you silly girl.

Shi Youxuan retorted: If it weren't for him, I would have died long ago. Didn't you also say that one should be grateful and repay kindness, and that you hate ungrateful people the most? Why, when it comes to yourself, are you using double standards?

Ji Yingjie muttered to herself: "Dead girl, it's only you; apart from you, no one dares to talk back to me."

Although she was cursing, she wasn't truly angry in her heart, because her niece had spoken to her heart.

As long as she could convince her, she would also be satisfied.

Ji Yingjie: Don't worry, the old thing isn't suffering here. I'm just scaring him; once he softens his stance, I'll let him go.

Shi Youxuan:...

Soften his stance?

That was absolutely impossible.

But having received her aunt's promise that she wouldn't let her father suffer, she set her mind at ease.

She would think of a way slowly.

The Ji Family.

The mill.

A small stone mill sat in the center, and Shi Yucheng was pushing the mill in circles while adding water and soybeans into it.

A basin of soaked soybeans was almost finished, but this was only half the workload; he still had to grind another basin in the afternoon before he could rest.

In the corner, over a dozen burlap sacks were stacked neatly, all bulging with soybeans, all prepared for Shi Yucheng.

Ji Yingjie thought with a malicious heart: Aren't you stubborn and obstinate?

Then I'll just let you walk in circles every day; you'll be begging for mercy in three days!

However, the reality exceeded her expectations.

He was pushing the mill in the mill house, one scoop of water to two scoops of soybeans, grinding finely and sifting slowly. It was unclear if it was a psychological effect or if Shi Yucheng truly had great craftsmanship.

Ji Yingjie felt that the soy milk he ground was exceptionally delicious, better than anyone else's.

Moreover, he was very earnest; he loved whatever trade he was in, and no matter what environment he was in, he did his work with all his heart.

Besides grinding soy milk, he could also make tofu, small tofu, dried tofu, and bean curd sheets.

Three days passed.

Shi Yucheng hadn't cried from exhaustion, hadn't begged for mercy, and seemed to have adapted quite well...

Ji Yingjie had traveled all over the world; what kind of delicacies hadn't she eaten?

Yet, she was uniquely fond of Shi Yucheng's craftsmanship.

Small soybeans in his hands were like they could transform; they could turn into all sorts of delicacies, and no matter how he made them, they were delicious.

Ji Yingjie instructed Nianci: "Change the place where that old thing is staying. Don't let him live with those lowly people. Give him a separate room and let him eat special meals."

Shi Yucheng had been living in a large communal dormitory, but because he received special care from Nianci, he had the best spot the moment he moved in, which had already made others green with envy.

As a result, after only three days, he received the "privilege" of a separate room and special meals, so some people became jealous.

Three or five men gathered together, chattering away, and secretly plotted for an hour to trip him up!

Lunchtime arrived, and Shi Yucheng went to eat.

A man with a shifty-eyed appearance appeared sneakily at the door. Seeing no one around, he darted in, sprinkled a handful of sand into the ground soy milk, and then quickly ran away.

He thought everything he did was unnoticed, but he didn't know his little actions were all seen by the Clan Leader and Elder Nianci.

The Monitoring Room.

Nianci gritted her teeth in hatred: "Audacious lowly person, he is tired of living, actually daring to cause trouble right under your nose. I will go kill him right now."

With Ji Yingjie's fiery temper, she was actually not angry.

She stopped Nianci: "You don't need to bother. He is just a lowly person of the lowest class; for someone of your noble status to do it yourself, he is not worthy."

"Let's see how that old thing handles it."

"Yes."

Nianci agreed and remained in the Monitoring Room.

In truth, not letting Nianci take action wasn't for any other reason; she just wanted to see what kind of reaction Shi Yucheng would have.

Shi Yucheng returned to the mill after eating and continued grinding soy milk.

He quickly discovered something was wrong.

There is sand in the soy milk?

How is that possible?

The mill is spotless; let alone sand, there isn't even a speck of dust, so someone must have done this on purpose.

Shi Yucheng was furious; he put his hands on his hips and cursed loudly, "Ji Yingjie, you old woman, are you a pervert? Don't you know how to torment people anymore? You put sand in your own soy milk; are you a chicken? Do you need to swallow sand to aid digestion because you have no teeth..."

The more he cursed, the smoother he got, and the more spirited he became.

This time, Ji Yingjie, who was behind the screen, was enraged and incredibly furious: "Bastard, this old bastard who can't tell right from wrong, blind in both eyes and heart—he can't even see people clearly, yet he dares to curse me? If I don't teach you a lesson, you won't know what this old lady is capable of."

She threw a huge tantrum, then caught sight of Nianci still standing there.

Her anger immediately shifted toward her: "What are you standing there for? Are you a wooden statue? I've been cursed at by that old thing until I'm drenched in dog's blood, and you're still indifferent? Go and bring that old thing to me immediately."

"Yes."

Nianci was scolded and hurriedly ran out.

On the way to fetch Shi Yucheng, she felt incredibly depressed.

The Clan Leader's temper was becoming more and more eccentric; in the past, she could guess the Clan Leader's thoughts eight or nine times out of ten, but now she couldn't fathom them at all—she had no idea what was on her mind!

Shi Yucheng was tied up with ropes and brought before Ji Yingjie.

"Kneel."

His legs were kicked at the bend, and unable to hold his weight, he fell to his knees with a "thump—".

But in an instant, he stood back up, turned around to glare fiercely at Nianci, then turned back to continue cursing at Ji Yingjie: "Ji Yingjie, are you sick? I don't mind if you want to torment me, but do it openly and honestly. Is it fun for you to send someone to put sand in the soy milk to frame me?"

"Do you have no other skills left, only these underhanded tricks?"

Ji Yingjie didn't say a word.

She stepped down from her high seat, walked up to Shi Yucheng, and "slap!"—she gave him a loud smack across the face.

"Shi Yucheng, open your dog eyes and look carefully—do you think I, Ji Yingjie, am the type of person to trip others up from behind?"

Shi Yucheng glared at her in anger, and she didn't back down at all, glaring right back with eyes wide open!

Her gaze was open and honest.

"It doesn't seem to be you; then who could it be?" Shi Yucheng withdrew his gaze and pondered deeply.