Chapter 27 — The Truth Behind the Debt
The moment the village chief compared the signatures, silence fell across the courtyard. Then, as if a thunderclap had struck, his voice rang out—
"These signatures… they belong to Bai Lan."
A collective gasp spread through the crowd. Bai Lan's face flushed red with shame and panic.
"V–Village Chief, are you sure? My brother must've forged my signature!" he stammered, his lips trembling.
The old chief frowned deeply. "Forged? How could he forge something this complicated? Everyone in the village knows—your handwriting is distinct. Only you can make that curled 'L' at the end."
For a heartbeat, no one spoke. Then the crowd erupted like a pot of boiling water.
"Ah! So it was Bai Lan all along!"
"Shameless! Trying to frame his own younger brother?"
"He brought shame to the Bai family name!"
"To think he always pretended to be a quiet, virtuous man!"
"Now we see his true face!"
"Poor Bai Sung, blamed for someone else's debt!"
"And he stood there acting innocent the whole time!"
"I used to think he was such a good man… hmph!"
"This kind of person isn't fit to show his face in our village again."
"Even beasts have more loyalty to their kin!"
"Just disgraceful!"
"Didn't his wife always brag about how honest he was? Ha!"
"He's even worse than those gamblers from town!"
"He should be made to kneel and apologize to Bai Sung in front of everyone!"
"Heaven's watching, Bai Lan—you'll get what's coming!"
The villagers' voices piled one over another, filling the courtyard with disgust and anger.
Bai Lan's head hung low, his eyes darting nervously toward the gang leader, who looked more irritated by the second. The man's patience was wearing thin.
"I'm tired of this nonsense," the leader said coldly. "Are you giving me the money—or the girl?"
At once, Bai Ai's legs gave out. She fell to her knees in front of her grandmother, tears streaming down her face.
"Grandma, please! Please don't let them take me! I don't want to go!"
Madam Bai looked at her granddaughter with a face full of disgust. "Useless thing!" she snapped, shoving her away so hard that Bai Ai nearly toppled backward.
She then turned her fury toward Bai Lan. "How could you embarrass our Bai family like this?!" she hissed—but her anger didn't burn as fiercely as when Bai Sung had been blamed. It was the kind of anger that cared more about saving face than justice.
Even as her son's disgrace lay bare before the whole village, Madam Bai's mind churned with regret. If only I hadn't been so quick to cut ties with Bai Sung.
If his family left, who would do the field work? Who would fetch water, wash clothes, or chop firewood?
A cold panic crept into her heart, but she tried to console herself. He has nowhere to go. I'll act kind later—he'll come back.
Putting on a trembling smile, she turned to her son. "My son, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—"
"Madam Bai," Bai Xuan's clear, steady voice cut through the air, "you didn't look so sorry when you decided to cast us out. Or are you only worried about who'll do the chores now?"
Madam Bai froze. That one sentence stripped her bare before everyone.
"You… unfilial child!" she snapped, her expression twisting into something ugly and vicious—the complete opposite of the pleading tone she had just used.
The villagers began murmuring again, louder this time, no longer holding back.
"What a cruel old woman!"
"She's more heartless than that loan shark!"
"Bai Sung was right to leave this house."
"So vicious—how can she push away her own son like that?"
"She only regrets it now that she'll have to work!"
"Let's see how she manages without Bai Sung's family doing all her chores."
"Ha! Maybe now she'll understand what real hardship feels like."
"She raised her sons just to use them as slaves."
"I always said she favored Bai Lan too much—it's karma!"
"That poor Chu Sun… no wonder she looks so thin all the time."
"If I were Bai Sung, I'd never step foot here again."
"She talks about filial piety, but she's the one without a conscience!"
"This is the most shameless thing I've seen in years!"
"Serves them right! Now they'll have to face their own mess."
Gu Yan and Ye Fan, who had been quietly standing by, exchanged nervous glances. The villagers' words were hitting too close to home. A chill ran down their spines as they realized what the future might hold—if Chu Sun left, they'd have to start doing all the work themselves.
Even Bai Ai and Bai Gin shared anxious looks, though Bai Gin hid hers better. She wasn't too panicked; her mother had always forced her to work anyway. If anything, she just wanted to see Bai Xia suffer outside.
Meanwhile, Bai Lan clenched his fists. Now that he was exposed, there was no point denying it anymore. He turned to his wife with a glare. "Quickly, go inside and bring the money!"
Gu Yan froze. "I—I don't have any money!"
"Don't lie!" Bai Lan barked. "I know you've been keeping money behind my back all these years!"
Before she could answer, a loud slap! echoed.
Madam Bai had struck her across the face. "So you've been hiding money from me, you wretched woman? I'll beat you to a pulp today!"
She grabbed Gu Yan by the hair and struck her again and again, her voice full of fury.
"Stop it already!" someone from the crowd shouted, but Madam Bai didn't stop.
She would have gone on if the gang leader hadn't cut in, his voice sharp with annoyance.
"Enough of this drama! Bring the money out! I don't have time to waste here."
Panting and trembling, Gu Yan limped toward the main house. After a while, she came back clutching a bundle of old notes. She counted out 1,000 yen and handed it over.
Madam Bai's eyes widened in shock—then fury. "So much money! You were really hiding this from me, you snake-hearted woman!" She raised her hand again, but Bai Dang quickly caught her arm.
"Grandmother, calm down. Don't make yourself sick later."
The gang leader snatched the money out of Gu Yan's hand and smirked.
"Mr. Bai Lan," he said coldly, "next time you borrow from us, use your own name. Saves us the trouble of hunting the wrong man."
With that, he spat on the ground, turned on his heel, and left with his men.
The courtyard finally quieted down. The villagers began to disperse, muttering under their breath as they left, until only the heavy breathing of the Bai family remained.
For a long moment, no one spoke.
Then Bai Sung's calm voice broke the silence.
"Chu Sun, let's go."
He turned to leave.
But before he could step past the gate, Madam Bai hurried forward, her voice sharp with panic.
"If you leave, where will you go? Don't act so smug—stay here!"
Bai Sung didn't even look at her.
"Your brother just made a mistake! Can't you forgive him? So arrogant for nothing!" she shouted after him.
Still, he kept walking.
"Brother, please don't go—we're family! We'll get through this together!" Bai Ling called, stepping forward.
Finally, Bai Sung turned back. He looked at the only brother who had always stood up for him.
"I can't stay here," he said softly. "But don't worry—we'll still see each other at work."
With that, he walked out of the courtyard with Chu Sun and their children following close behind.
They walked in silence, the sound of gravel crunching under their feet the only thing breaking the air.
Bai Xia glanced at her father. His shoulders were stiff; his steps heavy. She could feel the sadness weighing on him and chose not to speak.
They had walked some distance when faint voices echoed behind them.
"Bai Sung! Bai Sung! Chu Sun!"
They turned around to see two figures running toward them, blurry at first, then clearer with each step.
It was Bai Ling and his wife, Mu Yen.