The old man, stroking his fine beard, couldn’t help but chuckle when he saw how calm and composed they were.

"Are you boys really not afraid of getting dragged into this?"

De’an took a leisurely sip of his tea and said with satisfaction, "If you’ve done nothing wrong, you needn’t fear a knock at the door. Mr. Sheng is a good official. I’m sure he would never falsely accuse an innocent man."

"You foolish boy! You have to understand, a man has his pride! What that scholar said just now was no different than a slap to the face. No matter how benevolent Mr. Sheng might be, he’s not likely to tolerate being insulted so directly."

"Then what are we supposed to do? The one who made the mistake is long gone. If Mr. Sheng is so capable, he should go and arrest that man. Why give us common folk a hard time? We’re just here to take the exams. We haven’t committed any murders or done anything unconscionable. If Mr. Sheng holds a prejudice against us just because we overheard someone insulting him, wouldn’t that be the greatest injustice in history? So what now? Are we supposed to go kneel at the Lord Prefect’s gate and beg for his mercy?"

De’an spoke as if he were terrified, even giving a few shivers to sell the act. But one look at his face told a completely different story.

He was perfectly at ease. He comfortably scooted his chair back and even crossed his legs.

The old man stared, momentarily stunned, before breaking into hearty laughter.

"You’re an interesting one, boy."

After taking a few sips of tea and seeing that the other two tables had emptied, the old man remarked casually, "Poor Mr. Sheng. He’s so frail and old... who knows when he might pass. When he does, he’ll leave behind a manor full of women and a young son. It’ll be like throwing them into a den of wolves. I wonder if they’ll even make it out alive."

This brings us to a vile and rampant custom that has persisted since ancient times: "devouring the heirless."

The practice of "devouring the heirless" occurs after the male head of a household dies without an adult son to inherit the estate and uphold the family’s name. Relatives from the clan, or even local hooligans, seize the opportunity to descend upon the home to plunder the family’s assets and abuse the widow and orphans.

This vile custom is particularly prevalent in the Jiangnan region, where clan influence is so powerful that it’s difficult for even the government to exert its authority. It’s not uncommon for the great aristocratic families of Jiangnan to recognize only their own clan and family rules, ignoring the laws of the court.

In such situations, even the families of officials can become targets for having their estates "devoured" if their male heirs are young or non-existent.

What’s more terrifying are the vicious methods employed. Some relatives will storm the home, carrying off furniture, grain, and seizing land—looting everything they can get their hands on. Others will move in under the pretext of "caring for the widow and orphans," only to brazenly seize the family’s assets for themselves.

But that isn’t even the cruelest tactic. The most ruthless move of all is to forcibly adopt an adult male relative into the deceased’s family line. The official reason is to continue the family line and support the household, but in reality, it’s just another method of seizing the family’s fortune.

If the adoption succeeds, the widow and her own children are often kicked out onto the street, left destitute and helpless. In some cases, to prevent the young son from growing up and trying to reclaim his inheritance, the adopted heir will take the extreme step of murdering him.

Consider when Mr. Zhao passed away. His son, Zhao Jing, was only thirteen, not yet of legal age. If it weren’t for the Zhao Family’s power and his strong and just uncle, Mr. Zhao, Zhao Jing’s fate would have been far worse.

But Zhao Jing was born and raised in the Zhao Village. Its people were honest and kind, the clan leader was benevolent and fair, and the clan itself was harmonious. Naturally, no one dared to bully him.

Now, consider Mr. Sheng’s situation.

He’s sixty-two, and his youngest son is only five. Given the life expectancy of the era, he almost certainly won’t live to see his son come of age. He’d be lucky to even see his son formally begin his tutelage.

Then there’s the Sheng Family’s fortune.

Putting all else aside, just look at their estate.

The Sheng Family is a prestigious clan in Jiangnan. The family owns thousands upon thousands of acres of fertile land alone.

Sheng Mingchuan is not only a capable official, but he also has a knack for business.

Having served as an official in various posts, he has invested in numerous businesses and reaped handsome rewards. He once held the post of a second-rank Governor-General, and the "tributes" and imperial rewards he received from His Majesty were substantial.

As such, the sheer size of the Sheng Family’s fortune is enough to make anyone’s mouth water. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

And that’s not even counting the dowries from several generations of Sheng family grandmothers. If you were to add those in, it would be a fortune to make anyone burn with envy.

For now, with Sheng Mingchuan still around to keep things in check, neither his clansmen nor any outside scoundrels dare to make a move. But just wait until he’s dead.

When that time comes, all manner of predators will flock to the scene like vultures scenting blood, and they will devour the Sheng Family until not even the bones are left.