Chapter 753: A Nice Little Scheme

Ye Fu also said, "Don't believe every rumor you hear. People get possessed by ghosts, sure, but who ever heard of being possessed by a dog?"

"That's what the fairy maiden said. They say she's really powerful."

"Then go back in a few days and see if it's cured."

"Definitely. If it really gets cured, that proves she's got real skill. From now on we... ah, ptooey... if it's cured, it's none of our business. Just listening to the fun is enough."

Mother Ye saw several pairs of eyes glaring at her and quickly shut her mouth, not daring to say more.

"Eat your food. You talk too much." Ye Fu said irritably.

The dinner table fell silent without Mother Ye's voice, but the shouting outside the door came through even more clearly.

"Ah Qing, you there?"

Not here!

Lin Lin Xiuqing shouted it in her heart, but then looked at everyone and said, "Aunt's here. Let me go bring her in."

What are they here for? No need to say it out loud, everyone knew. Luckily everyone was almost done eating, just a bite or two left, so they could scrape it in. Saved them from losing their appetite later.

After Lin Lin Xiuqing brought them in, it turned out it wasn't just Aunt Ye alone—Uncle Ye had come along too. Looks like this won't be easy...

Aunt Ye had originally been smiling, asking if she'd eaten, if Dongzi was around, and such, but the moment she stepped inside and saw Mother Ye, the smile on her face froze for a beat.

"You're all here? You're all eating here?"

Everyone saw Uncle Ye and Aunt Ye had come together as a couple and knew this was probably going to mean roasting Dongzi over the fire.

"Sure is! We've all been eating here for the better part of a year, almost a full year. More people eating together is livelier..."

Ye Fu nudged Mother Ye—why bring up the one thing that hurts? How could she say that?

But Mother Ye glared back at Ye Fu instead. Wasn't it better to just lay it out plainly using this opening?

Save them from saying two words and then slipping away, only to show up crying tomorrow. If she were here it would be easy to handle, but if she weren't, how could Ah Qing hold out against the two of them? And the old lady would feel sorry for them too—what then?

Old fox! It's been over a year. How could she be so fragile that even a casual remark like "more people eating together is livelier" doesn't sit right?

Her own two sons had already been swindled out of so much money, yet she still wanted another son to bail them out. Is she the reincarnation of Guanyin Bodhisattva?

"Heh heh, yes, you're really living the good life now. All your sons have done well, and before you're even that old, you've already started eating off your sons." Uncle Ye said expressionlessly.

"I know what you want to say. Dongzi already said it—he doesn't have the nerve to ask a leader to help him. This isn't something anyone can help with. This kind of thing is illegal. If someone reports it, everyone gets dragged in."

"Sigh, this is fate. We were just born unlucky..."

"I don't know if we'll live to see him come out. Sigh..." Uncle Ye's shoulders slumped too, looking completely drained of spirit.

"Nothing to be done. He can only suffer in there, and only after suffering enough will he be let out. Who knows if he'll be beaten, frozen, or starved..."

"Suffering a little is nothing, but please don't let us, the old, bury the young. It's just our bad fate..."

Aunt Ye wiped her tears as she spoke. "Ah Hong is suffering in there, and out here we, as his parents, get the cold shoulder, get scolded, get pointed at. We're already a pair of old bones, that doesn't matter, but the children are still young—how can they take it?"

"It's their bad fate too, being stuck with a family like ours. Sigh. How will they ever hold their heads up again?"

"This is fate. What can we do? I can't even take care of my own son, how could I take care of a grandson? If I could trade twenty years of my life for my son's safe return, God can just take it right now."

"If yours isn't enough, take mine too. We're a pair of old bones anyway, useless, can't do anything, only hold people back..." Uncle Ye's eyes reddened as he spoke.

The two of them stood there playing off each other—one wiping tears, the other looking utterly defeated—and watching them, the old lady and Ye Fu both felt a sting.

Even Mother Ye, seeing the two of them, had originally been determined not to let them take advantage of her family again, but now she couldn't bring herself to say anything cold-hearted.

The whole family stood there in silence, watching them, sighing inside.

The old lady also looked pained.

Ye Yaodong was at a loss too. Things he couldn't help with—no point talking about them. Better to say something practical, just say straight out what they wanted to do, that would be easier to handle.

He was just afraid of this—stuffing everyone up with a heavy heart, yet leaving no room to say anything...

But, even if you don't look at the monk's face, you have to look at the Buddha's.

"You saying all this here to me won't do any good. I don't have the ability to fish Hong-ge out. All I can say is, when Afan-ge comes out next month, he can come work with us brothers then? If there's fish-cutting work, I'll get Ye Datang-sao to do it too?"

Aunt Ye's face had fallen and she'd been about to say something, but Uncle Ye beat her to it. "No way around it, forget it. We were wrong to think of you as our last hope."

After saying that, he put his hands behind his back and shuffled out, hunched over.

Aunt Ye glanced at him, then turned back to look at them. "If there's nothing to be done about Ah Hong, forget it. I won't say anything else. As for Afan, we'll be counting on you brothers to help him out. You're all blood brothers—break a bone and the tendon still connects."

Ye Yaodong suddenly felt they might have misjudged the two of them just now. They really were here to ask for help, not playing games. After all, it was their own son—any straw to clutch at, they'd want to try.

Maybe Aunt Ye had planned to play games at first, but as she spoke, real feelings came out, and the original plan to take advantage was thrown aside.

Ye Fu picked up the thread. "That we will. We're all one family. If we can give a hand, of course we should. Ah Hong is Ah Hong, Afan is Afan. We'll talk more when he gets back..."

"Dongzi has three boats. You can't run them all yourself. Why not give one to Afan? That way he'll have more motivation, and won't get looked down on. Have him write you an IOU and pay you back every month..."

Ye Yaodong had been listening at first, thinking Aunt Ye also wanted him to take one boat and go into partnership with Afan-ge.

Good lord—so she was eyeing his boat directly. Trying to take a bite out of the rich man!

Turns out they hadn't misjudged her. Once the real feelings were out, the real purpose showed. What nerve.

Mother Ye had felt a bit of pity a moment ago, but the moment she heard that, the pity vanished.

They're already planning to take their family's boat—what's there to feel pity about?

Just now they did look pretty pitiful, especially Uncle Ye—his back couldn't straighten, his hair was a patch of grey-white, he looked more like the old lady's little brother than her son.

But hearing this now, she didn't feel a shred of pity.

"Did you say it wrong? You mean Dongzi takes one boat and goes into partnership with Afan, right?" Ye Fu suspected he'd misheard and asked aloud.

If it was a partnership, that was already too late. He'd have to look after his own brothers first.

"No, I was thinking, Dongzi got that boat for free anyway. He's got so many boats, he can't run them all. Why not just sell one to Afan? Have him write you an IOU, promise he'll definitely pay you back."

Even the old lady frowned when she heard that.

Mother Ye's face instantly soured. "Dongzi's boats were all bought with his own money. Who told you they were free? And he's already agreed to help his brothers where he should. But you go straight for trying to get him to just give a boat away..."

"Not give—sell. Sell. It's just that Afan definitely doesn't have that much money all at once, so let him pay it back slowly."

"How is that any different from giving it away? If Dongzi goes fifty-fifty with someone else, he still gets half the earnings every month, and the boat is still his. But with your son, who knows how much he'll bring in each month, and the boat won't even be his anymore? Nice little scheme you've got worked out!" Mother Ye's attitude soured, and her eyes turned unfriendly.

Ye Yaodong fell silent too—did they take him for a fool?

The mood in the family changed instantly.

Ye Ye Dabo's wife also wore a mournful face. "That's not how you do the math. We're buying it too, we'll pay every last cent, and we'll write up an IOU as we should. We won't welch on the debt."

Not welching on the debt = installment payments = paying a little each month = getting a boat for free.

"Why don't you go ask other people's households and see if they'd agree?"

"Other people don't have as many boats as you do. Yours aren't being used anyway, so just consider it looking after your brothers…"

"Give away one boat to look after brothers? Then ten boats wouldn't be enough to look after brothers. Just come work for your brothers and that'll do."

"That's not how to put it…"

"It's all whatever you say…"

Ye Yaodong cut off his mother's words, not wanting to keep arguing.

"Actually, Aunt, don't think I'm being harsh. I just feel you and Ye Dabo are pitiful—at your age, having to go through this. But the ones I pity are you and Ye Dabo. I don't pity Hong-ge and Afan-ge."

"They did wrong in the first place and got locked up. Now that they're out and willing to turn over a new leaf, I'm willing to give them a hand up."

This was still on account of the old lady's face.

"Just like my granny told everyone—brothers are brothers no matter what, so they can come work on our boats together. But you opening your mouth and asking for a whole boat right off the bat is too much."

"Don't go saying my boats are free—don't listen to the rumors out there. Who has it easy making money? Your installment plan is nothing like a partnership. Don't treat everyone like a fool."

By the end, Ye Yaodong's gaze was unfriendly too. If it weren't for her being his own aunt and the old lady still being alive, he'd have told her to get out on the spot.

Ye Mu chimed in, disdainfully, "Exactly. No one would agree to this. You're dreaming."

Not a single person present was willing.

The old lady wasn't willing either. She pitied her son and felt for her grandsons, but she couldn't let Dongzi take a big loss.

"Have you hurt yourself so much you're talking nonsense? If you went to someone else's house and said that, they'd throw you out on the spot."

"I was just discussing it…"

"Nothing to discuss," Ye Father waved his hand. "Dongzi bought the boats to make money. Forget it."

"Wasn't it because we were afraid you couldn't run all your boats, and once sold they'd be gone?"

"Not selling."