Transmigrated Family C25

Chapter 25: Changes

Yan Huaiwen was filled with lingering fear.

Despite being reborn, if he couldn’t save his daughter’s life and make up for past regrets, what was the point of living again?

At this moment, he deeply realized that circumstances were never set in stone.

Everything that had happened since he awakened with memories of his past life was now uncertain.

However, no matter how the world changed, the corruption of human nature was difficult to reverse.

He no longer confined himself to passive defense; he took the initiative—selling land to repay debts.

This ruined the Lǐzhèng family’s chance to curry favor, which led Guo Xiaoxiang to arrive in the village earlier than before.

This time, it wasn’t that no one was home, but that Da’ya happened to be out, and the villagers were all busy harvesting wheat, giving Guo Xiaoxiang an opportunity to act.

Had his second brother’s family not returned in time, the consequences of Guo Xiaoxiang dragging Da’ya to a deserted place would have been unimaginable.

The reason his second brother was able to return so quickly from town was because he borrowed an ox cart.

That ox cart was meant for Yan Huaiwen’s journey to Guanzhou.

And the money to buy the cart came from selling land…

Thinking this through, everything was interconnected—if even a single link had changed, the outcome would have been completely different.

Yan Huaiwen fell into deep thought.

“Father, we can’t let that bastard off! Let’s go to the yamen and submit a petition, begging the magistrate to deal with him severely.”

Yan Huaiwen looked at him, frowned slightly, then quickly relaxed.

Luckily, Heng’er had said to submit a petition, not to file a formal lawsuit.

Don’t underestimate the difference in wording—it meant something entirely different.

The latter would involve formally accusing Guo Xiaoxiang in court, making a big scandal. Even if the magistrate handled it according to the law, just the damage to Da’ya’s reputation alone would already be a huge loss for the Yan family.

As for submitting a petition privately, what could they expect?

At most, a few symbolic beatings and some compensation money.

Since Da’ya was only frightened and not physically harmed, even those beatings might be skipped, with just a fine as punishment.

Would he really have to relive the nightmare from back then?

Da’ya’s suicide had ended it all. The dead couldn’t speak for themselves.

The Guo family denied everything, and in the end, all he could do was swallow his grievances. What else could he have done—exhume the body for an autopsy?

“Heng’er! Don’t be foolish! If this matter blows up, how is Da’ya supposed to live?” Yan Lao’er (Second Yan) really wanted to knock some sense into his nephew. Did he think they were living in a modern society with sound legal protections?

Even in modern times, women who suffered such harm still faced enormous psychological and social trauma.

Da’ya was not a strong girl—raised in comfort, she was fragile. His wife hadn’t dared to leave her side for even a moment, fearing that she might get caught up in despair and do something foolish.

“Eldest Brother, Heng’er, as your uncle, let me say something—if you truly care for Da’ya, don’t ever bring this up again.

She is delicate and sensitive.

She was so scared earlier that she froze completely, taking a long time to recover. If she can’t move past this, she will overthink it. And if that leads her to do something foolish, we will regret it for the rest of our lives.”

Yan Huaiwen said coldly, “Your uncle is right. If the magistrate is strict, Guo Xiaoxiang might get a few strikes of the cane. If he’s lenient, a few taels of silver will settle it.

But if Guo Xiaoxiang claims he simply admires Da’ya and acted inappropriately out of love, putting on an act as an ‘affectionate fool who couldn’t have her,’ the magistrate might even try to turn it into a ‘romantic match.’”

Yan Lao’er: Damn, Old Yan, you really know how these things work!

Yan Xiangheng wasn’t naive, just straightforward.

Thinking it through, he realized his father and uncle had considered everything carefully.

Even so, he was still unwilling to let it go. “But we can’t just let him off like this!”

Yan Huaiwen stared fixedly at his younger brother.

Yan Lao’er felt uneasy under the gaze.

“Tianyou, what exactly did you do just now?”

Yan Lao’er’s mind raced—should he tell the truth?

“What’s Guo Xiaoxiang’s condition now?”

Yan Lao’er: …

How did he figure that out?

“Eldest Brother, how did you know?”

Yan Huaiwen: I didn’t know anything—I was just testing you.

Yan Lao’er hesitated. But Guo Xiaoxiang wasn’t dead—he was still alive, which meant he could talk eventually. There was no point in hiding it.

“Well… our family just bought that ox, and it’s a bit temperamental. Guo Xiaoxiang got too close and got kicked.” Yan Lao’er gave the story a slight embellishment.

And in doing so, he subtly warned everyone not to get too close to Sanbao, the ox.

Perfect.

Yan Huaiwen wasn’t surprised. His younger brother had never been known for his kindness—everyone knew that.

The only reason he wasn’t infamous for taking revenge was because he was a “scholar.”

He’d been petty since childhood, always jealous that their father favored his older brother, constantly comparing himself to him.

It wasn’t until their parents passed away, leaving only the two of them, that he gradually changed.

As for how the ox had managed to kick someone—who cared?

“Was it serious?” Yan Huaiwen asked, a trace of expectation in his tone.

“Eh… how should I put it…” Yan Lao’er recalled the scene.

Do you know how hard it is for an ox to kick someone squarely in the chest?

First, it had to knock him down, ensure he wasn’t resisting, then land the kick.

And if the guy happened to land face-down, the ox would have to flip him over first.

Sanbao, our precious ox, really worked hard.

“He’s definitely not dead,” Yan Lao’er said confidently.

Yan Huaiwen was satisfied. He decided he would personally feed the ox later as a reward.

Yan Xiangheng felt his father and uncle had completely overturned his perception of them today.

His father was calm and worldly-wise.

His uncle actually cared for the family and had secretly dealt a heavy blow to their enemy…

—

“Is the scholar at home?” A voice called from the courtyard gate.

Yan Yu, who had been squatting by the eastern room’s door eavesdropping, quickly stood up, stomped her feet a few times, and shouted, “Uncle! Uncle Qi is here to deliver our wheat!”

Yan Lao’er was the first to come out. Seeing his daughter standing at the doorway grinning, he couldn’t help but ruffle her hair. “Be careful, or you won’t grow tall.”

Yan Yu didn’t care at all.

That saying about worrying stunting your growth—no scientific basis whatsoever.

Yan Xiangheng followed closely, pausing beside her to whisper, “Er’ya, don’t mention what happened today to anyone. And don’t bring it up in front of Da’ya, understand?”

Yan Yu looked up at him with innocent eyes and responded crisply, “Got it, Big Brother!”

Yan Xiangheng nodded in satisfaction and hurried off to help.

Yan Yu glanced inside, where Yan Huaiwen beckoned her over.

She trotted up with her little legs and called out sweetly, “Uncle!”

“Er’ya, what’s your big sister doing?”

“She’s doing needlework with Mom.” Yan Yu hesitated, then worriedly asked, “Uncle, will that bad man come back? Big Sister is scared, and I’m scared too.”

“Don’t be afraid. Once we finish milling the wheat, we’ll leave—he won’t be able to find us.” Yan Huaiwen reassured her.

“Are we taking Sanbao with us? Sanbao is really obedient.”

“Sanbao is…”

“Our ox! I named him. I’m Dàbǎo, the baby in Mom’s belly is Èrbǎo, and he’s Sānbǎo.”

Yan Huaiwen: …

So now he was the ox’s eldest uncle.

“Can Sanbao understand people?”

“Yes, yes! Sanbao is so smart—he lets me pet him and even lets me ride him!”

Yan Huaiwen wasn’t particularly impressed—oxen were naturally gentle. It was likely their previous owner had trained him well.