Chapter Nineteen: The Quarrel

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Yang Xingwu was stunned when he heard the commotion inside the house; he had initially thought it was just some village dispute that had escalated. Unexpectedly, the trouble had come knocking on his own door. Hearing the shouting outside, he quickly stepped out of the main room and saw that quite a few people had already gathered in his courtyard.

A small gate woven from willow branches was no match for them; they simply stepped over it and entered the yard. Yang Xingwu looked at the angry crowd before him—many were from families that had long-standing grudges against his own.

These grievances weren’t deeply rooted in hatred but were mostly petty disputes—like chickens wandering into private vegetable patches or eggs left behind in fields—small conflicts that over time had tangled into a complete breakdown of relations between the families.

As for the younger generation, they weren’t bound by these grudges, but influenced by their elders, they rarely spoke to one another—perhaps this was what they called an unspoken understanding.

Seeing the crowd so furious, Yang Xingwu was momentarily at a loss, but since they had come to his doorstep, he couldn’t simply back down.

“What do you want?” he asked.

“What do you think? When the upper beam isn’t straight, the lower beams all tilt. How can someone your age be so unscrupulous?” one of them retorted.

“Aunt Niu, we’ve never even met you. Why have you and your people come to my home ready to fight? What’s this all about?”

“What’s it about? Didn’t you say selling wheat ears was a sure profit? Now you can’t sell them, so you owe us!”

“Exactly, you have to compensate us! Poor me, I barely sold a little, and there’s still half a cart that won’t move. The price is so low, selling means a loss!”

“Xingwu, let me be honest with you—this time you acted recklessly, the villagers suffered big losses, and you have to make some amends!”

Hearing their words, Yang Xingwu finally understood that the wheat ears were not selling. Judging by their attitude, a large amount remained unsold, which explained their aggressive approach.

This group, a mix of angry and calm faces, was taking advantage of his family’s absence to intimidate him—nothing but a band of disrespectful elders.

“Aunt Niu, you can’t say it like that! I want to ask you—did I ever tell you to harvest those wheat ears? Every grievance has a cause and a culprit. If you’re too afraid to go to the village chief, why come to my house to make trouble? Do you think my family is easy to bully?

“And Uncle Gao, since you’re speaking fairly, why did you come over while my parents weren’t home? What are you really after? Do I need to spell it out?”

The crowd’s faces flushed red and pale in turn, but only for a moment. If they had any conscience, they wouldn’t have come to his house to cause trouble.

“Well, I don’t care—you still have to pay!”

“Yes, we don’t care! You have to pay, or we won’t leave!”

“What are you doing?”

Yang Kaishan, returning from the fields after work, heard the shouting at his eldest son’s house and hurried over.

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As soon as he stepped into the yard, he heard these people bullying his grandson. His fury erupted instantly, and a loud shout from him startled everyone in the courtyard.

Seeing Yang Kaishan’s family return, the crowd’s momentum weakened noticeably.

Yang Chunsheng, spotting his son, quickly crossed the yard’s entrance and rushed inside.

Yang Kaishan instructed his eldest grandson to open the door and immediately led people inside.

Suddenly, the yard was packed with people.

Liu Cuihua, seeing her grandson being bullied, immediately started shouting back along with her two daughters-in-law. Spitting and yelling flew back and forth, creating quite a scene that drew curious onlookers from nearby.

Yang Xingwu, overwhelmed by the chaos, quickly sent his younger sister to fetch the village chief.

Yang Xiaohong hurried out to find help upon her brother’s instruction.

Watching the grandmother, mother, and second aunt form a formidable trio in the verbal battle, their finger gestures rivaled the intricate hand seals of ninja clans.

He never expected to witness such a shouting match again after so many years. The men present, embarrassed, avoided getting involved.

Yang Jianguo, hearing about the fight at Yang Chunsheng’s house, was initially stunned but quickly gathered members of the village committee and some militia to restore order.

As the group entered the courtyard, they were greeted by a barrage of curses. Yang Jianguo’s headache worsened at the spectacle.

“Stop! Stop! Enough shouting! Anyone caught making noise again will be locked up!” the village chief commanded.

His words carried weight, and the crowd immediately fell silent.

Yang Xingwu and a few cousins helped the grandmother and others sit down. Yang Xiaolan brought several bowls of water from the kitchen. The earlier shouting had left their mouths dry; it was time to hydrate.

Seeing this, those who had been hurling insults glared fiercely. Liu Cuihua and the others sipped water while pursing their lips, clearly still angry at the quarrel.

Yang Jianguo noticed the brewing tension again and quickly spoke up:

“What’s going on? The people from the Niu family, why are you all here shouting at Yang Chunsheng’s place? Why can’t this be settled calmly?”

“Brother Jianguo, you have to help us! The wheat ears are harvested but unsellable, now they’re just sitting at home. We’ve suffered huge losses!”

“What does Yang Chunsheng have to do with your unsold wheat ears? Is this really the reason?”

Yang Jianguo was puzzled by their claims. After asking others, he found their stories all matched.

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At once, Yang Jianguo was furious. He had just assured Yang Xingwu a few days ago that everything was fine, and now this trouble erupted. Clearly, they had no respect for him as village chief.

“Who’s leading this? If you don’t confess, I’ll have the commune send the police. If they find out, you’ll be locked up!”

Hearing this, many panicked.

“It was Aunt Niu! She said Yang Xingwu caused us to be unable to sell, and once she stirred us up, we all came!”

“Yes, and Zhigao too! They encouraged us to come!”

“Not me, not me—it was everyone together!”

Seeing these troublemakers reveal their true colors, Yang Jianguo ordered the militia to detain two of them and take them back to the village committee.

Yang Xingwu quickly called out:

“Uncle Jianguo, wait!”

“Yes, Xingwu, what is it?”

Without answering, Yang Xingwu turned and went inside to fetch a slip of paper. Holding it up for all to see, he said:

“This is a note the village chief wrote me three days ago, stating that the wheat ear sales have nothing to do with my family. From now on, every grievance has its rightful party.

“If you want to cause trouble, go to the village chief’s house. If you come to mine again, don’t blame me for being harsh. You trespassed on private property just now and were caught—breaking your legs and sending you to the commune would be well-deserved!

“If you don’t believe me, those who can read, come take a look!”

“The note is indeed mine,” Yang Jianguo confirmed. “If you have issues, come to me. If you come to Yang Chunsheng’s house again, be prepared—he has made his position clear!”

Seeing this, the troublemakers realized they had targeted the wrong family and hurriedly apologized to the Yang family.

The Yang family paid no mind to their apologies. Embarrassed, the group quietly left.

Yang Jianguo reassured Yang Chunsheng before sending the militia to escort the two troublemakers to the village committee.

Yang Xingwu felt deeply unsettled by the whole ordeal.

He had anticipated the cruelty of human nature but was still caught in its crossfire. He resolved to stop being so kind-hearted in the future—some people’s poverty isn’t without reason.