"You went up the mountain with Jacqueline Spann to cut firewood the other day?" Adrian Hawthorne asked.

"Yes."

"Did you see me hoeing the field? Or was it Jacqueline Spann who pointed it out?"

"It was... it was me..."

Wade Golding was about to say he’d been the one to see it first, but Adrian Hawthorne’s toe twitched, scaring him into changing his story. He spilled everything in a rush. "It was Jacqueline who told me. I didn’t see anything. She said you were planting soybeans and asked if my family was going to clear land to plant them, too. I told her yes, my older cousin is getting married next year, so we have to plant an extra plot of soybeans to make tofu for the banquet."

"What else did she say?"

"Well..."

Wade Golding hesitated again, but not for long. Adrian Hawthorne’s foot inched closer, now only an inch or two away from his family jewels. With Jim Thorne blocking his escape from behind, he was caught between a rock and a hard place. He had no other choice but to confess.

"Jacqueline said that plot of land was close to my older cousin’s cornfield. She said it was a shame his family hadn’t cleared it sooner, or they could have combined the plots. Then, as we were almost home, Jacqueline told me I absolutely couldn’t let my cousin get any funny ideas about stealing your family’s land. She said we shouldn’t bully you, a widow and her orphan son, all alone in the village with no one to rely on. You were pitiful enough as it was. I wasn’t thinking anything of it at first, but then the idea took root. I told my older cousin, and they..."

Wade Golding’s voice grew quieter as he spoke. He truly hadn’t thought of it before. But after what Jacqueline Spann said, a crooked idea began to form. Clearing new land was a pain; wasn’t it better to just take what was already prepared? After all, Adrian Hawthorne and his mother had no family in the village. So what if they stole it? It’s not like anyone would stop them.

"I’ve told you everything! Jim, please let me go! I didn’t hit the little girl, my older cousin did! Please don’t hit me again..."

Wade Golding begged for mercy relentlessly. ’I’m the most wronged man alive!’ he thought. ’All I did was suggest an idea, and I got beaten up twice for it! How is that fair?!’

"Get lost!"

Jim Thorne glanced at Adrian Hawthorne, who gave a slight nod. Jim sent him packing with a kick. Wade Golding, as if he’d been granted a royal pardon, scrambled away. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

"So it was that bastard Wade Golding who got the bright idea. Don’t worry, I’m sure he won’t dare try anything again. And Bowman Golding’s family won’t mess with you either!"

Seeing Adrian Hawthorne’s cold, silent expression, Jim Thorne assumed he was worried about Bowman Golding’s family causing more trouble. He tried to reassure him. He and Adrian were practically brothers now; of course he had to have his back. That’s what being a man was all about—loyalty!

Adrian Hawthorne let out a cold laugh. "That idiot Wade Golding isn’t malicious enough to think of this on his own. He was used."

’So it really was Jacqueline Spann. I guessed right.’ But he couldn’t figure it out. ’We have no bad blood between us. Why would she want to hurt me?’

’She’s even hurting Grandpa Tate by doing this. If I can’t farm my land, Grandpa Tate will go hungry. I barely know Jacqueline Spann, but Grandpa Tate was her mentor. How could she bite the hand that fed her?’

"Who used Wade Golding? Jacqueline Spann? But didn’t she tell him not to get any funny ideas?" Jim Thorne couldn’t wrap his head around it. Even though he couldn’t stand her, he thought, ’she seems innocent in this, right?’

"Think about it. Wade Golding is an idiot. There’s no way he would’ve come up with the idea to steal the land on his own. Even though Jacqueline Spann’s words seemed innocent, they planted the crooked idea in his head. That makes her the true instigator."

Adrian Hawthorne’s expression turned even colder. ’I underestimated Jacqueline Spann,’ he thought. ’The girl is only ten, but her mind is incredibly cunning. And she’s a master of deception. She had both me and Grandpa Tate completely fooled.’

It finally dawned on Jim Thorne. He cursed in anger, "So it was that little bitch’s handiwork all along! I knew she was no good, just like her bitch of a mother."

Adrian Hawthorne was suddenly very curious. "Is Phoenix Golding really having an affair with your dad?"