Transmigrated as a Peasant Girl with Prophetic Dreams: Using My Space to Become the Richest Person - Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Successful Separation

Just as Old Man Yang’s voice fell, Yang Xue suddenly began to cough violently: “Cough, cough, cough… Grandfather, I don’t want to split the family anymore. Save me, please, I beg you to save me.”

Only then did someone remember to fetch the local doctor to check on her.

Yang Xue wasn’t worried at all about being exposed—after all, the weakness of this body was very real. Long-term malnutrition and depleted qi and blood weren’t things a single sip of Spirit Spring water could fix instantly. At the very least, the water had brought her fever down, but making her body feel clammy and ill again was easy enough.

Before the doctor arrived, Yang Xue buried her head in the crook of her arm. The weather was sweltering, and in no time, her forehead was beaded with sweat.

When the doctor arrived and took her pulse, his expression darkened. He looked at the wound on her head, felt the temperature of her brow, and noted the fine layer of sweat. His face became extremely grim.

“This child’s body is incredibly fragile. She must be sent to the town’s clinic immediately for treatment, and she’ll need proper care afterward, or her health will only continue to decline.”

Turning to Old Man Yang, the doctor said, “Hurry and get her to the town.”

Yang Xue sobbed directly at Old Man Yang: “Grandfather, save me.”

Old Man Yang had previously been convinced that Yang Xue was simply acting, but seeing her like this, he realized she truly was ill. He recalled how she looked when she was carried back two days ago—gasping for breath and on the verge of death. Her current state looked exactly like it did then.

So, the girl wasn’t acting, he thought. She was just too weak to go on after forcing herself to stand up earlier.

Thinking this way, everything made sense to Old Man Yang. He had wondered how his usually submissive granddaughter had suddenly become so calculating. As it turned out, she wasn’t being clever at all; her collapse was just perfectly timed, and they had misunderstood.

“Your father wants to split the family from us,” Old Man Yang said coldly. “Grandfather cannot save you.”

“Father, we won’t split! Xue-ya is too sick,” Yang Lao-san cried out. “If we go to the town clinic, two taels of silver might not even be enough. Once that money is gone, what will we do?”

Yang Xue had been worried that Yang Lao-san would mess up the acting, but seeing him perform so naturally now, she breathed a secret sigh of relief. She didn’t know that Qian Yue’e’s hand was nearly numb from Yang Lao-san gripping it so hard, but Qian Yue’e didn’t complain; she knew her husband needed courage, and she was willing to support him.

Seeing Yang Lao-san’s panicked and regretful expression, Old Man Yang and Wang Dani suddenly didn’t feel so angry anymore.

“Old Third, you were the one who brought up the split and said you wouldn’t regret it. I’ve already agreed. Splitting a family is no joke; you can’t just change your mind every other minute.”

Yang Lao-san’s eyes turned red with desperation. “I didn’t know… I didn’t know Xue-ya was this bad. Father, we don’t want to split anymore. I just want to save her. Please, save her!”

Yang Yu and Yang Tian started crying out as well: “No more splitting! Save the Second Sister!”

Old Man Yang suddenly felt a sense of vindication. Hmph! I’ll make sure the Old Third understands the consequences of rebellion.

“Village Chief, there’s nothing I can do. Old Third asked for the split, and I agreed. Please, trouble yourself to write the Family Separation Document.”

Old Man Yang thought smugly to himself: I’ll teach him a good lesson today. When he comes back begging at my door later, I’ll have even better control over them. When I’m “kind” enough to give them a bite of food then, the whole family will be eternally grateful and more obedient than ever.

The Village Chief frowned. He had supported the split just a moment ago. Now that Yang Lao-san seemed to be backing out, he couldn’t exactly switch sides again, or his authority as Chief would be seen as a joke.

Noticing the Chief’s expression, and realizing he still had one bit of “acting” left but wanting to spare the Chief any awkwardness, Yang Lao-san said: “Father, then you must give me the silver and the land! I need to treat Xue-ya!”

Seeing this, the Chief turned to Old Man Yang: “What do you say?”

Seeing the regret written all over Yang Lao-san’s face, Old Man Yang’s mood improved. He smiled thinly. “Chief, our grain was stolen; there’s not much left. It’s as I said: five catties of brown rice.”

“As for silver, our large family barely earns a few coins all year. Since the grain was stolen, we have to buy more, so I can only give one hundred copper coins. Regarding land, the family only has three mu of high-quality land and three mu of poor land. We’ll give them one mu of the poor land.”

Yang Xue was speechless. She had told her father to ask for two taels, expecting the old man to compromise at one tael. She hadn’t expected him to offer a measly hundred coins. She had been too optimistic. And that “poor land” was essentially barren soil where nothing could grow.

“Father, you are driving us to our deaths!”

Old Man Yang felt even more triumphant now. “Old Third, you know the family’s situation. This is all we can give. Chief, please write the document.”

The Chief frowned deeply. “Old Man Yang, I won’t even mention the land, but isn’t one hundred coins a bit excessive? The girl needs medical treatment.”

Old Man Yang waved his hand. “Chief, say no more. One hundred coins. Nothing else.”

“You—”

Yang Xue’s weak voice drifted out: “Chief Uncle… just write it. Things have already come to this; talking is useless. Even if we don’t split, my Grandfather and Grandmother wouldn’t care for me. They probably wouldn’t even spend a single copper coin on my medicine. I see things clearly now.”

“So, split us. Chief Uncle, please write it. Even if I die, I don’t want to die in this house.”

The onlookers’ eyes reddened at Yang Xue’s words.

Yang Lao-san added, “Then write it. At least with a hundred coins, I can buy two doses of medicine for her.”

The Village Chief sighed and proceeded to draft the Family Separation Document.

When Old Man Yang and his wife saw the defeated looks on the faces of Yang Lao-san’s family, their anger finally dissipated.

“Old Third, don’t blame us for being heartless. You know how it is at home.”

Despite his words, Old Man Yang was secretly delighted that he had punished his son. After this, he doubted Yang Lao-san would ever dare to defy him again.

Wang Dani looked down at them with an arrogant sneer. “Heh, regretting it now? Regret is useless. I bet you’ll be back on your knees begging us within two days.”

It’d be better if that brat Yang Xue just died, she thought viciously. Pah! How dare she lay a finger on me.

Ignoring the old couple, Yang Lao-san’s family kept their eyes fixed on the Village Chief.

Before long, the document was finished. Three copies were made; everyone pressed their thumbprints, and several witnesses did the same.

Holding that document, Yang Lao-san suddenly felt as if he had been reborn. This feeling wasn’t his alone—Qian Yue’e and the children felt it too.

They were about to welcome a new life.