She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 174 - 173: What Does It Have to Do with Me

Chapter 174: Chapter 173: What Does It Have to Do with Me

And there was that large quantity of skimmed dried cheese, which, though a good chew and arguably very tasty, how could such a thing earn silver? And how large an audience would need so many things to chew on?

Ye Xinyan thought it over and decided to grind the tough and hard dried cheese residue into powder and try using it in pastries to see how it turned out.

Back in the day, she knew of the existence of cheese powder, but she had never bought or used it before and was unsure of the taste.

However, what was certain was that others’ cheese powder was definitely made through proper lactic acid bacteria fermentation, followed by neutralization, salting, washing, and then spray-drying into powder. It surely wouldn’t be like hers, obtaining cheese powder by using the most traditional stone mill to grind dried cheese residue.

Despite numerous uncertainties, Ye Xinyan still planned to give it a try. After all, solutions are created by people, and without trying, how could one know whether it would succeed or not? So, on a whim, Ye Xinyan bought a fairly large stone mill to test making her cheese powder.

The next day, compared to the past two, was a lot more relaxed.

Early in the morning, having finished the daily inspection of the cattle farm and checking on the already fermented cow’s milk and the milk undergoing fermentation, Ye Xinyan couldn’t help worrying.

Handling these things requires manpower and a lot of time. It seems she really needed to hire workers; otherwise, even if she exhausted herself, she couldn’t handle so much work alone. She couldn’t really expect the high-ranking house servants from Prince Yu’s Mansion to do such coarse tasks as chopping wood and making fires for her.

Before Ye Xinyan had decided who to hire for the work, Fan Zhengyuan brought Liu Qing to her.

Fortunately, she had written the business plan, or the by-laws as Liu Qing and the others had called it, ahead of time; otherwise, she would have been embarrassed if Liu Qing had cornered her at her door.

Ye Xinyan greeted Liu Qing with a smile and a curtsey, saying, "Steward Liu has arrived, so this humble woman offers her respects."

Liu Qing hastily returned the gesture, "Lady Qi must not, Lady Qi is now the Chief Steward under Sixth Master, I dare not receive Lady Qi’s respects."

"The Chief Steward managing the six hundred taels of silver enterprise?" Ye Xinyan asked with a smile.

Liu Qing was not embarrassed and still smiled in response, "An enterprise’s value doesn’t depend on its size but on its future prospects. Moreover, Lady Qi is about to manage a new venture for our Sixth Master soon. The Qi family’s small eatery uses cream to make all sorts of delicious pastries. If the cow’s milk industry is scaled up, one can imagine the profits that will come. Lady Qi, your position as Chief Steward is absolutely secure."

Ye Xinyan laughed, "Steward Liu has come here not with urgent matters, but to cheer this small woman up with your words."

Liu Qing coughed and quickly bowed again, saying, "Lady Qi’s reminder is correct; I am here to sign a contract with Lady Qi for the Dairy Products Store. By the way, may I ask when will the operating procedures for the Dairy Products Store be ready? If they are ready, Sixth Master can also arrange matters according to Lady Qi’s by-laws."

"I see, please, Steward Liu," Ye Xinyan made a gesture for Liu Qing to go ahead, saying, "I’ve drafted a set of operating procedures, which are at home; let’s go back and talk about it."

To rush the project along, although Qi Younian did not work with his own hands, he and Cheung Wusi, along with Wong Qiao, each led five or six people, sharing a portion of the workload.

Liu Qing was already an acquaintance, and when Qi Younian saw Ye Xinyan accompanying Liu Qing from afar, he gave the craftsmen a quick instruction and took Cheung Wusi and Wong Qiao back to his own courtyard to greet Liu Qing.

After a brief introduction and exchange of greetings, Liu Qing took a longer look at Wong Qiao and politely made small talk with him for a while.

Liu Qing didn’t enter the house but sat down by the table in the courtyard after a round of polite refusals.

Bi Ning and Zi Ning served tea and snacks and chatted idly for a moment before Qi Younian stood up, bowed, and apologetically said, "Ideally, I should spend more time with Steward Liu when you visit, but the business at hand is pressing. I will not keep Steward Liu company; please talk business with Ye Zi, and at lunchtime, we will sit down for a proper chat."

Liu Qing hurriedly stood up to return the courtesy, "This servant knows Old Master Qi is busy; we are not strangers anymore, so there’s no need for such politeness. Please, go ahead with your tasks."

It was only then that Qi Younian, along with Cheung Wusi and Wong Qiao, took their leave to attend to their own business.

The contract brought by Liu Qing was in order, and Ye Xinyan handed the draft articles over to him.

After discussing business matters, Liu Qing picked up his cup of tea and, while sipping from it, said to Ye Xinyan, "In the coming days, Sixth Master and Lord Jiang will make a trip to Clear Water Village. Lord Jiang wishes to inspect the autumn harvest situation in the villages under his jurisdiction, and Sixth Master is taking this opportunity to accompany Lord Jiang on his rounds, and incidentally take a look at how the cattle farm is operating. I am tasked to inform Lady Qi, so she can be prepared."

Ye Xinyan nodded, "Of course."

The cattle farm’s owners, Jinrong and Jiang Yifan, had entrusted her with six hundred taels of silver and had yet to inspect their own property. That they were now coming for a visit spoke of their immense trust in Ye Xinyan.

When Liu Qing was about to leave, he also took a glance at the construction site where Qi Younian was working and bowed to Ye Xinyan, "Please pass my regards to Lady Qi and your father. As your family is busy with constructing the house, I won’t come over to bother you."

......

It’s hard for people to ignore repeated mentions; just as Liu Qing had mentioned the day before that Jinrong would be arriving soon, it didn’t take many days before Hongzhi arrived the very next morning, ahead of time.

Early in the morning, just as Ye Xinyan stepped out of her courtyard, intending to visit the cattle farm first, she was surprised to see Hongzhi, "Young man, good morning. You’re here so early; is there an emergency?"

It couldn’t be that Jinrong had a sudden whim to visit his cattle farm, could it? Liu Qing had only notified her yesterday, and she had yet to figure out how to host the owners.

Hongzhi looked equally surprised, "Didn’t Steward Liu mention to Lady Qi that my Sixth Master and Lord Jiang would come to Clear Water Village?"

"But he said they would come in the next few days, not today," Ye Xinyan said with conviction, feeling utterly unprepared with nothing ready at her end.

Hongzhi glanced at Miss Ye and thought to himself, alright, this woman, still as infamous as ever in the capital for her unreasonableness, no one could compete with her in that regard.

"Then it seems Steward Liu failed to make it clear to Lady Qi. I apologize on Liu Qing’s behalf," said Hongzhi helplessly. "Lord Jiang and Sixth Master will first visit the crops in the fields and then come here to look at the cattle farm."

"Fine, they can come over whenever they like," Ye Xinyan agreed easily, as if she didn’t have to personally attend to them, "And it’s not Steward Liu’s fault; he was clear. It’s the misunderstanding of this little woman. Young man, you don’t need to apologize on his behalf."

She was still principled, unwilling to let Liu Qing take the blame because of her own stubbornness.

Hongzhi was speechless as he looked at Ye Xinyan, who didn’t seem to grasp his implication.

He reminded her again, "Lady Qi, Lord Jiang will stay in Clear Water Village the whole day, and naturally, so will my Sixth Master."

The emphasized "Lady Qi" from Hongzhi led Ye Xinyan to guess at the meaning behind his words.

She said somewhat unwillingly, "Lord Jiang’s inspection of the autumn harvest in the villages under his authority could last three or five days if necessary, and that’s something for the Lizheng and others to attend to. What does that have to do with me?"

In her hurry, Ye Xinyan even forgot to refer to herself properly.