She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 205 - 204 Interrogation

Chapter 205: Chapter 204 Interrogation

Nanny Liu couldn’t help but sneak a glance at Ye Xinyan upon hearing such an unreliable description from Anshun’s Household. She almost laughed out loud when she caught Ye Xinyan’s expression, unprepared as she was.

"Is the nanny from Duke An’s Mansion?" Nanny Liu pulled herself together and asked with a gesture.

The one from Anshun’s Household also held back tears and asked with teary eyes, "Yes, does this nanny know about our mansion?"

Nanny Liu said, "Who doesn’t know about Duke An’s Mansion? Speaking of which, the young lady of the mansion is also pitiful, being so young and..." Nanny Liu threw a fleeting glance at Ye Xinyan, "Ah, truly pitiable."

The young lady of your mansion is standing right here, who dares to finish that sentence? You don’t dare, and neither do I.

Following the logical progression of the plot, the one from Anshun’s Household now couldn’t share their family woes with Nanny Liu and had to turn towards Ye Xinyan instead. She looked at Ye Xinyan with hopeful eyes, "May I ask if this lady is Lady Qi Ye Qi?"

"Hmph, um," Ye Xinyan hummed twice in a tone that even she wasn’t sure what it meant.

"Lady Qi does indeed bear a striking resemblance to our young lady." The one from Anshun’s Household took a step forward, attempting to support Ye Xinyan’s arm.

Seeing that the one from Anshun’s Household actually wanted to touch her, Ye Xinyan quickly stepped back and drew in her sleeve.

Nanny Liu also stepped forward to intervene, pretending to support the one from Anshun’s Household, "Nanny has come from the capital after a long journey, you must be tired from the trip. Please come inside and sit down to rest. We can talk Things out slowly."

The one from Anshun’s Household looked at Ye Xinyan, "Lady Qi..."

Nanny Liu said with a laugh, "Please, nanny, after all, you have traveled a thousand miles to see our Young Lady. She will surely sit and accompany you."

The group was creating quite a commotion outside the straw-roofed room, and with some insistence, Nanny Liu got the silent Ye Xinyan to sit on a chair at the head of the table, while Lian Gui modestly took his place at the lower end, with Anshun’s Household and Nanny Liu standing by.

Seeing that Ye Xinyan was still silent and looked on with a cold and detached air, Nanny Liu had no choice but to address Lian Gui with a smile, "We have spoken so much, and yet don’t know how to address each other, nor the purpose of your visit."

Lian Gui quickly stood up and saluted Ye Xinyan, "I am the Steward of Duke An’s Mansion, named Lian Gui. Lady Qi can just call me by my name. This is Nanny Qiao, who serves close to the Duchess, and our masters call her Anshun’s Household. The others are in the courtyard; they will kneel to greet Lady Qi, self-report their origins, and meet the head of the household later." Even though everyone is well-acquainted, under the current circumstances, formalities must be observed.

Nanny Liu quickly returned the courtesy, "So it’s Steward Lian and Nanny Qiao, my surname is Liu, and I give my respects to you both."

Steward Lian and the others hurriedly reciprocated the gesture.

Nanny Liu glanced again at Ye Xinyan and asked Lian Gui, "May I know what brings you all this way to this remote place? Is it really just to see our Lady Qi?"

Lian Gui bowed slightly and said, "Indeed, it is to see Lady Qi. A few days ago, our Duke received a message stating that in a county of Yuyuan Prefecture, someone saw our young lady and her personal nanny. Nanny, you are aware of Duke An’s Mansion, so you must also know about the circumstances of our young lady. She has already..."

Nanny Liu quickly nodded her head, and Lian Gui stopped himself from repeating his last sentence, continuing with, "My lord the Duke was baffled by this news and was just about to send someone over for inquiries. Before anyone set out, however, accurate information arrived, claiming there was a woman in Qingyuan County called Qi Ye, who bears a striking resemblance to our young lady. She happened to meet Nanny Jin, who was returning home. Seeing Qi Ye’s uncanny similarity to the young lady, out of nostalgia for her former mistress, she acknowledged her as her master and followed her."

Ye Xinyan listened to these words with her tongue all but tied in knots. The previous piece of news was naturally about the competition among the princes, in which one prince passed a message to Duke An’s Mansion, wanting Duke An to make a move and test Jinrong.

The latter piece must have been sent by Jinrong. Ye Xinyan couldn’t help but admire the imaginative fabrication. The way it flawlessly wove together the absurd circumstances of her and Nanny Jin’s simultaneous appearances, ensured there were no loose ends; indeed, it was the work of a real talent.

"Is that so? So Duke An’s Mansion sent Steward Lian over to see if the news was true?" Nanny Liu said, indicating for Lian Gui to continue.

Lian Gui gave Nanny Liu a bow to express his thanks and went on, "Ever since our young lady left, the Duke and the Duchess have been in deep mourning, finding no joy in meals and no peace in sleep whenever she is mentioned."

Hearing these two absurdly exaggerated phrases, Ye Xinyan’s critical gaze swept over Lian Gui.

But Lian Gui, with a strong heart, kept his composure and continued to speak gibberish, "Upon hearing that someone could resemble our young lady so closely, the Duke and Duchess were moved by compassion and affection. And so, they sent us here. Firstly, to see if Lady Qi truly resembles our young lady and to bring back a truthful report to the mansion.

Secondly, if Lady Qi truly is like our young lady, to care for her as they would their own daughter, leaving behind a few from Anshun’s Household to serve her like our mansion’s Nanny Jin, and from then on to treat Lady Qi as their mistress."

Nanny Liu was about to engage further with Lian Gui to keep their task going when Ye Xinyan suddenly spoke up, "Steward Lian."

"Please speak, Lady Qi." Eagerly awaiting the main character’s words, Lian Gui promptly replied.

With a smile that was not quite a smile, Ye Xinyan’s eyes roved between Lian Gui and the people of Anshun’s Household several times before she said, "I wonder what rules your mansion follows. Your young lady is gone, yet I hear repeatedly from Steward Lian and Nanny Qiao how the Duke and Duchess are so sorrowful and pining. What about her biological parents? Are they really so indifferent to their daughter’s whereabouts?"

"..." Lian Gui looked at Ye Xinyan, somewhat at a loss for words.

There was no need to mention the Crown Prince. Since he heard the young lady appeared in Yuyuan Prefecture, he had been solely focused on how to eliminate potential threats and had no intention of showing any concern or affection.

The wife of the heir apparent naturally missed the young lady in every way possible. Since the young lady left home, she stopped concerning herself with domestic affairs, indifferent to how Maternal Aunt Liu flourished. Aside from necessary social engagements, she stayed in her courtyard copying scriptures, solely preoccupied with her daughter’s safety. From time to time, she would donate a sizeable sum to Cien Temple, praying for her daughter’s smooth and favorable life.

The problem was, the wife of the heir apparent didn’t have the authority to send people to Qingyuan County. She didn’t even know news of the young lady had already reached them.

The young lady must be well aware that in the eyes and heart of the heir apparent, there was only room for Maternal Aunt Liu and her sons and daughters born of a concubine, certainly not for her, the legitimate daughter. Knowing full well the situation, the young lady’s inquiry put him in a difficult position to respond.

He certainly couldn’t just blurt out the truth that, in fact, in the entire Duke’s Mansion, only the wife of the heir apparent mourned and missed the young lady. Even the Duke and the Duchess were so irate with her that it couldn’t be said they were grieving at all.

Ye Xinyan turned to the people of Anshun’s Household and said, "It seems that Steward Lian finds it hard to answer my question, so let me ask Nanny Qiao. Perhaps Steward Lian has his reasons for not responding, given that noble households commonly have multiple wives and concubines, and numerous children, it’s conceivable that a father may not care much for one more or less. But I wonder, does the young lady’s mother also not miss her daughter?"