Glory

"Whether Yang An is truly Yang Hong's son or not, we must ensure he is recognized as such. First, send someone to investigate. If evidence cannot be found, fabricate it. We must obtain proof that Yang An is Yang Hong's son, then have someone report to the authorities that the Yang family has committed the crime of deceiving the emperor."

Ye Chongming: "…"

Old Mrs. Ye: "…"

Ruthless. Absolutely ruthless!

This was essentially wiping out the entire Yang family in one fell swoop.

When the elderly couple learned that the Yang family had attempted to scheme against Ye Yaming through marriage and, failing that, turned their sights on Ye Yaqing and the Ye family, they were filled with such fury they wished they could tear the Yangs apart. Countless ideas about how to retaliate against the Yang family flashed through their minds.

However, constrained by conventional thinking, they had considered attacking the Yang family in business, defeating them commercially, or at most tarnishing their reputation further.

But neither of them had expected Ye Yaming to devise such a devastating strategy.

Even if the evidence was insufficient and the Yang family managed to escape punishment through the Meng family's mediation, they would still suffer severe losses. It would be impossible for them to remain in Lin'an afterward.

Seeing the couple staring wide-eyed without speaking, Ye Yaming worried that her ruthless approach had shocked them.

She said, "The Yang family's rise to wealth is steeped in bloodshed. The Estate Holders under the Yang family now originally belonged to the Li and Wu families—both longstanding, benevolent tea merchants in Lin'an. But look where the Li and Wu families are now?"

The elderly couple fell silent.

They were familiar with both families. However, when these families met their downfall, the Ye family was also mired in troubles and unable to offer assistance.

"Although we lack concrete evidence to prove the Yang family caused their ruin, we don't need proof—we only need to look at the outcome. One family's destruction could be called a coincidence, but two families meeting the same fate? That can only be the result of human malice, orchestrated by the Yang family."

Ye Yaming lifted her gaze to Ye Chongming. "Back when the Ye family was in trouble, Grandfather, did you ever find out who was behind it?"

Ye Chongming shook his head.

"It was likely the Yang family. Grandfather was just capable enough to withstand it and avoid the fate of the Li and Wu families. Otherwise, the Yang family would have monopolized the tea trade in Lin'an by now."

She paused. "If distant examples aren't convincing, consider the Ma family from the fabric shop on Front Street five years ago. Their daughter caught Yang Hong's eye, and he wanted to take her as a concubine. Do you know where the Ma family is now?"

Old Mrs. Ye shuddered. "Could that also be the Yang family's doing?"

The incident had caused quite a stir at the time, and she had heard about it. The Ma family refused Yang Hong and quickly married their daughter off to another family. The Yangs seemed to let the matter drop, and it appeared resolved.

At the time, women in social circles remarked that while the Yang family's actions were improper, they weren't entirely wicked—after the Ma family refused, Yang Hong didn't pursue the matter.

But over a year later, the Ma family suffered a series of misfortunes: first, their daughter died along with her unborn child, then their newly adult son was trapped in a scheme, and in a fit of rage, he killed someone.

The Ma family had only one son and one daughter. With the daughter dead and the son executed, Mrs. Ma fell gravely ill and soon passed away.

The Ma family had always operated on a small scale and exhausted their savings trying to manage the crises. Old Mr. Ma sold their last property, used the money to bury his wife and son, and then disappeared.

It was said he had become a monk.

Now, hearing Ye Yaming attribute this to the Yang family, Ye Chongming and Old Mrs. Ye trembled with dread."How did you know it was the Yang family's doing?" Ye Chongming asked.

At the time, Old Master Ma had also investigated, wanting to avenge his son. Because the setup was quite obvious.

But the man who was beaten to death was originally a beggar, rootless and without background, who somehow suddenly came into money. After indulging in food, drink, and pleasure for a while, one day he encountered Young Master Ma and the girl he was about to be engaged to while they were strolling down the street. The beggar went forward and harassed her.

Young Master Ma had just turned sixteen at the time, full of youthful vigor and an impulsive temper. In front of his beloved, he immediately rushed forward and started beating and kicking the beggar. According to his own account, he didn't use excessive force, yet the beggar ended up dead.

The prefect of Lin'an at that time wasn't Qi Zhipei, but another official who had since been transferred elsewhere. Old Master Ma tried to bribe officials at all levels, hoping to have his son's sentence reduced from execution to exile,

but he didn't succeed. Because of all this, people at the time privately discussed the matter, wondering if the Ma family had been set up, and speculating whether the prefect had been bribed to ensure Young Master Ma would be sentenced to death.

But Old Master Ma, like his son, had a quick temper and sometimes spoke without thinking. It was possible he had unintentionally offended someone. And since murder demanded a life in return, with the prefect sentencing Young Master Ma to death and refusing the Ma family's bribes, people could only praise him for being impartial and couldn't say he was wrong.

Even if some privately suspected it was the Yang family's scheme, there was no proof. The Yang family was already powerful at that time. If they really were behind it, their methods were too ruthless—who would dare provoke such people? Those who suspected only dared to think it to themselves, never voicing it aloud.

Thus, after serving as gossip for a while, the Ma family's incident gradually faded into the river of time.

Now that Ye Yaming claimed it was the Yang family's doing, Ye Chongming didn't agree.

Such matters required evidence; one couldn't rely solely on conjecture.

Ye Yaming glanced outside.

They had dismissed all the servants before speaking here. Only three people were in the room, so there was no fear of the conversation leaking, but Ye Yaming was cautious by nature—these words couldn't be overheard.

She lowered her voice and said, "Ma Dafu is still alive. He's gone from the open to the shadows and has been investigating this matter for years. He's confirmed it was the Yang family's doing and has evidence."

"What?"

"What?"

Ye Chongming and Old Mrs. Ye exclaimed in unison.

They quickly covered their mouths and looked outside.

Hearing how ruthless the Yang family was, both felt a chill in their hearts.

Ye Chongming lowered his voice and asked, "How did you know this?"

Ye Yaming said, "I found out by accident while investigating Song Yifeng."

The truth was not so.

She came from the modern era, where information was abundant. In modern times, using network information security and hacking techniques to prevent and attack opponents, gather intelligence on rivals, and find their vulnerabilities had become the most convenient and common methods.

Arriving in ancient times, she suddenly found herself as a sheltered young girl in the inner quarters, completely in the dark. As the main combatant in the game with Meng Chengwei and the confrontation with Song Yifeng, whenever she wanted to obtain information, she could only rely on Ye Chongming and his subordinates.

And Ye Chongming, as a merchant who grew up in wealth and comfort without experiencing major storms, in Ye Yaming's view, his methods and abilities were truly inadequate.

It was no accident that the Ye family had attracted Meng Chengwei's attention.Ye Yaming was new to this world and had just begun participating in Ye Jia's affairs. She needed to ensure her personality transition appeared gradual, making it unwise for her to take excessive action.

When playing against Meng Chengwei, she would have been completely uncertain if not for the crucial information retained from the original host's memories.

Therefore, while dealing with Song Yifeng, she decided to seize this opportunity to establish her own intelligence network.