Chapter 14 — Hoa Mi Revenge of Vengeance

During the night and day, an incident occurred at Tu Hien Lau. Manager Sun personally came to me. He pulled out a book from his chest. When he gave it to me, his trembling hands almost fell to the ground.
“Eldest lady, this is the hidden debt book of the aunt's house.”
"For the past three years, I have helped prepare the books on the surface for all the income and expenditure that have passed through his hands, but I have recorded a separate copy of each account myself."
I took the notebook and turned a page. The writing is neat, neat and straight, just like it was printed on a board.
“When did you start taking notes?”
“Two years ago.”
Ton Su took off his hat and held it tightly in his hand, the sweat on his head ran down his temples.
“Eldest Miss, I know that what I have done in the past three years has wronged the To family.”
“When the Co family first arrived, I saw that he had tricks that could revive the To family.”
"Later I gradually saw the abnormality, but I didn't dare say a word."
“Because he holds my weakness in his hands.”
"Years ago, when I went to collect debts for the Su family, I accepted another hundred taels of bribe money, and when he found out, he used that as an excuse to threaten me."
“I no longer have the face to see the Old Master, nor do I have the face to look at the Eldest Miss.”
After saying those words, he bowed his head and bowed strongly to me. I stared at the top of his gray-spotted head, without saying a word. A moment later, I closed the notebook and placed it on the table.
"Administrator Sun, the matter of a hundred taels has turned over a new page."
“From today onwards, the Su family's external affairs will still be managed by you.”
“But the books that pass through your hands, each item must go through my eyes.”
Ton continued to bow his head in thanksgiving. When walking, my back bent down very low, but my steps were much steadier than when I arrived. As soon as that list was spread out, Jiangnan's business world immediately exploded like a pan of boiling water. Embezzled 17,000 taels of white silver, pretended to run for office, raised an outsider and illegitimate children, and colluded with the Vice President of the Chamber of Commerce to suppress his opponents. One by one, combined with the scene of Tham Thanh Van having his leg broken by a horizontal concubine at Tu Hien Lau. It all became the hottest topic of discussion at teahouses across Jiangnan. Treasurer Ma was the first to sit still. He was sending people to find me at night, insisting that the transactions with Tham Thanh Van were all "normal business". That bribe was just a "loan" and not a "bribe", I begged the Su family to raise it high and hit lightly. I told Xuan Vu to answer a sentence for me: "The To family's debt, the To family pays it themselves. Debts from outsiders, we can calculate among ourselves." Treasurer Ma left in less than two days and voluntarily withdrew from the election for President of the Chamber of Commerce. Old Lady Tham also came to see me once. She did not carry a walking stick. It was because of Bach To To's help that the arrogant look on his face had already disappeared by half. The wrinkles on the forehead are also a few lines deeper than half a month ago.
“Van Ngam.”
Her voice was no longer as high-pitched as before, but like a steel wire that had been trampled on, soft and limp.
“Thanh Van, his legs are really gone.”
"The doctor said he can't stand up again for the rest of his life."
"Look, respect your love for your husband and wife for a while, can you stop pursuing that debt?"
I sat in front of the desk flipping through books, not bothering to raise my head.
“Mother, that 17,000 taels of silver is the rice bowl of more than two hundred lives of the To family.”
"The dye factory's errand boy, the tea garden picker, the shopkeeper, each person's monthly salary is deducted from this money."
"Your son used that money to support his wife, raise his own children, and bribe his way into favor."

"Now that the money has been spent, the matter has broken down, are you telling me not to pursue it anymore?"
Old Lady Tham's lips trembled and moved. Bach To To stood next to him and softly spoke:
"Mrs. To, Thua An is only three years old, he doesn't understand anything yet."
"He's so sick now that he can't even eat rice anymore."
“Please, ma'am, respect the child—”
“Miss White.” I finally raised my head to look at her.
“Do you know what that nightingale is used for?”
Bach To To's face immediately froze. Her ten fingers twisted together.
"Of course you know. The first day you came to the Su family, when you saw that bird, your eyes deliberately glanced down to the bottom of the cage."
"You are not simply a woman that Tham Thanh Van raised outside."
“You were the one who helped him keep an eye on that bird, to make sure the talisman wasn't swapped.”
"Now the talisman has been switched, the bird is dead, and your destiny is also gone."
“Are you here to talk about love with me?”
Bach To To's face was completely pale. She let go of the hand that was guiding Mrs. Tham and took a step back. Old Lady Tham turned her head to look at Bach To To, the expression on her face turned from pleading to confused and surprised.
"What charm? What bird?"
“You guys, what are you talking about?”
No one answered her. She stood there, like an uprooted old tree, leaning left and right, not knowing which direction to fall. Xuan Vu stepped forward from behind and offered a cup of tea. I took a sip, then placed the cup on the table.
“Mother, I give you three days.”
“Within three days, take your son, Miss Bach, and that child and immediately move out of the To family courtyard.”
"The things you brought from the Su family don't need to be returned anymore. They are considered wages for the past three years."
"But if after three days you still refuse to leave, I will report the debt of 17,000 taels of white silver to the government."
Old Lady Tham's legs suddenly became weak, Bach To To quickly reached out to support one side. The two of them guided each other and trudged out the door. As soon as the door closed, Xuan Vu let out a long, heavy breath. She used both hands to rub the apron hard and loudly twice.
“Finally spit these words out.”
Her voice carried a long-suppressed fire that was finally released.
“Madam, your appearance just now is exactly like the Old Lady from before.”
“Don't talk too much.” I bowed my head and continued flipping through the books, "Let's go see if the Patriarch over there has finished cooking."
Three days later, Tham Thanh Van's whole family moved out. When Mrs. Tham left, she only carried a single bag. Her woven silk robe, gold-encrusted jade bracelet, and Kim Phuong Chau brooch all had to stay in the Su family's treasury. It was because Xuan Vu personally took out each item from her chest one by one.
"This is the To family's belongings. If you want to take it away, you can take it away, first put it in the place of the 17,000 taels of silver."
Mrs. Tham was so angry that she vomited blood and fainted on the spot. Bach To To was calmer. She carried Tham Thua An, who was half paralyzed, in a small bag, bowed her head and walked slowly. When passing by the gate of the West Court, she stopped slightly. She raised her head and looked up at the branch of the camphor tree that once hung the birdcage. There is nothing left on the branch now, leaving only a ring of smooth scratches. Her lips moved. I guess she wanted to say something, but in the end she didn't open her mouth, instead she bowed her head and slowly walked away. Tham Thanh Van was the last person to be carried out the door. He lay on a stretcher, his legs braced with wooden boards. His face was as gray as ashes, his whole body had become very thin. As he passed by someone, he suddenly turned his head.

“To Van Ngam.”
I stop walking.
“She won.” His voice was as hoarse as sandpaper rubbed on wooden boards.
"But she shouldn't have been so ruthless in chasing and killing her like that."
"The chair of Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce has countless eyes staring at it. Do you think a woman like you can stand firmly among that group of old foxes?"
"Whether I can stand or not, I don't need to worry about you."
I looked closely at his gray face.
“Before you get out of here, I just want to ask you something.”
“Where did you buy that bird from?”
Tham Thanh Van stared at me for a long time.
“Did you think I would tell you?”
He was carried away. When the stretcher turned through the full moon gate, his hand emerged from under the blanket, the jade ring was no longer on his thumb. Empty fingers waved in the air, but couldn't hold on to anything. I stood tall in the middle of the yard, watching the stretcher fade away. Until it completely disappeared at the end of the To family's long hallway. Xuan Vu walked up from behind, carrying a bowl of wood ear and lotus seed soup that had just been boiled.
“Madam, the old lady told you to go there and serve the flag.”
"Okay."
I reached out to pick up the bowl of soup and took a sip. Sweet, warm, just right for the taste. At the edge of the drainage ditch in the corner of the yard, a cluster of unknown wildflowers grows. The flower color is light purple, grows tiny and inconspicuous but is full of intense vitality. That is where I once dumped the ashes of the nightingale talisman. The layer of ash soaked into the mud and nourished this flower cluster. The bird is dead. The spell is gone. But the seeds sown in the mud are still strong and sprouting.