Chapter 70 Retribution for Good and Evil

A new month had begun, and Xiao Mo was asking for recommendation votes.

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“Yang Bao, what do you mean by this? The old man didn’t raise only you; the house and the land should belong to both you and Yang Ming!” Su Fang rose to her feet, hands on her hips, her stance reminiscent of a shrew ready for battle.

“The house can be split with you, and I can buy you more land—however many acres you want. But as for the greenhouse vegetables, don’t even think about it. Even if I give them to you, you wouldn’t know how to grow them!” Yang Bao repeated stubbornly. Driven to anger by Yang Ming and his wife, Yang Bao ignored Liu Xiuying’s attempts to mediate, head held high, his stubbornness on full display.

“Oh, Yang Ming, look at him—he’s belittling us again, isn’t he? Let me remind you, this is your own flesh-and-blood brother! Yang Bao, don’t get too arrogant. You must give us half the greenhouse vegetables. Half the land is ours; you’ve farmed it for years, but now you have to return it. Otherwise, we’ll take you to court!” Su Fang, notorious in the area for her loud arguments, spoke with a voice so forceful it seemed to shake the air.

“Su Fang, Da Mingzi, you’re going too far! Xiao Baozi has been farming this land well, and now you’re causing trouble? Divide the family? When you bought that house, half the money came from Xiao Baozi, and you never mention that!” Yang Qingtang could no longer stand by. The old man, livid, gripped his cane and spoke with a fierce determination.

“Old man, this is between me and Xiao Baozi—don’t interfere!” Yang Ming interrupted hastily, frowning.

“Ah, people these days! You lived and ate in my house for over ten years, and now, with no gratitude whatsoever, you’re criticizing me and Da Mingzi as soon as you move out! Yang Ming, see? This is your family’s old man!” Su Fang snapped, now in a mood to lash out at everyone since Yang Bao refused to share the greenhouse vegetables.

“Su Fang, don’t go too far!” Hearing Su Fang insult Yang Qingtang, Yang Bao was enraged and shouted fiercely.

“Too far? And you? You’re hoarding my family’s land and refusing to give it back, and you still say I’m the one going too far? Besides, no matter what, I’m your sister-in-law—that’s not something you can change, nor is my name, Su Fang, something you should use so casually!” Su Fang’s scolding grew more vicious, and the commotion drew the neighbors, who gathered to watch the spectacle.

Yang Bao, Liu Xiuying, and Yang Qingtang were all furious, but this was a family scandal, and none of them wanted to have a public shouting match with Su Fang in front of so many neighbors.

“What? I’m telling you, if you don’t give us the land today, we’ll see you in court!” Su Fang’s eyes were red; all pretense was gone, and she had nothing left to lose.

“Alright, alright, we’re all family here. If there’s an issue, let’s talk it out. Since Uncle and Aunt have brought this up, why don’t we resolve it today, right here in front of the neighbors?” Yang Tian, though brimming with anger, stepped forward with a calm voice. He had already thought of a plan that would kill two birds with one stone.

“Young man, you’re getting ahead of yourself! Resolve it? How do you propose we do that?” Yang Ming lit another cigarette, his tone impatient as he addressed Yang Tian.

“We’re all family, as Aunt said, and that’s not going to change. So there’s nothing we can’t resolve. Since you want the greenhouse vegetables, it’s simple—we’ll give them to you. Not just half; if you want all of them, you can have them!” Yang Tian’s words stunned everyone.

“You say it so nicely, but tell me, Xiao Tian, can you really make that decision?” Su Fang retorted sarcastically and shot a glance at Yang Bao and his wife.

“I can! Give me a moment to persuade my parents,” Yang Tian replied confidently, then led Yang Bao and his wife to the backyard.

“Xiao Tian, how can we do that? We finally got the greenhouse vegetables up and running; how could we just give them away?” Yang Bao, still angry, asked anxiously.

“That’s right, Xiao Tian, your uncle and aunt don’t know the first thing about greenhouse farming. Giving them the greenhouse would be a waste!” Liu Xiuying protested as well.

“Yes, brother, Uncle and Aunt are awful, why should we give in to them!” Yang Xueling came running out, pouting.

“Don’t be hasty—hear me out first!” Yang Tian smiled sincerely and continued, “Dad, Mom, Xueling, have you forgotten our real goal? We agreed during summer break—once Xueling gets into a city high school, our family will move to the city! We’ll have to sell the greenhouse vegetables anyway, and then Mom and Dad will go to work as factory managers at Xinyu Textile’s branch in Binhai, as you promised Zhang Qiang at the start of the year. You haven’t changed your minds, have you?”

Yang Bao, Liu Xiuying, and Yang Xueling were all stunned—they had almost forgotten this plan. Although they were reluctant to part with the greenhouse vegetables, the opportunity to be factory managers in the city was a sound one. The income would be good, the work stable, and they could look after both children during their time in high school.

“But we can’t just give them the greenhouse vegetables—that’s a waste!” Liu Xiuying protested, her heart aching.

“We’re not giving them away; we’re selling them. The land is theirs, yes, but the greenhouse belongs to us. If they won’t buy it, we’ll dismantle the greenhouse and return the land to them. I doubt they’ll agree to that, since their real target is the greenhouse vegetables!” Yang Tian smiled. “Mom, Dad, trust me: if we don’t sell the greenhouse vegetables this year, we’ll suffer a major loss next year—a devastating one! Since Uncle and Aunt want the greenhouse, let’s sell it to them and let them bear the loss. We’re going to sell it anyway, sooner or later.”

“Yes, yes, let them suffer the loss—the bigger, the better! I can’t stand them!” Yang Xueling clapped her hands joyfully.

“Xiao Tian, is this really okay?” Though they didn’t understand what loss Yang Tian was referring to, Yang Bao and Liu Xiuying trusted him. Still, Liu Xiuying’s heart was soft, and Yang Bao was kind, not wanting to be too harsh.

“Good and evil will always be repaid—it’s just a lesson for them. I can tolerate them being unkind to me, but I can’t tolerate their disrespect to you or Grandpa. This is the fate they deserve!” Yang Tian bit his lip, recalling clearly that in August 1998, there would be an unprecedented flood along the Yangtze, and Binhai City would not escape. When the time came, not only would the greenhouse vegetables be destroyed, even ordinary homes would be hard to preserve.

Yang Tian had foreseen this years ago, which was why he’d planned to sell the greenhouse vegetables after Xueling got into high school next summer. But now, since Yang Ming and his wife wanted them, he might as well sell them early, using nature itself to teach these two heartless, disrespectful people a lesson—a plan that would accomplish two goals at once.

At first, Yang Bao and his wife objected, not wanting to harm Yang Ming and his wife. But seeing Yang Tian’s reasoning, and with Su Fang insulting even Yang Qingtang, they agreed it was time to teach her a lesson, and let Yang Tian handle the matter.