She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 266 - 265: Two Petty Officials

Chapter 266: Chapter 265: Two Petty Officials

The guest room was still set up as it had been during Zhou Bingyi’s last visit. When Jinrong, Qi Younian, and the others entered, Wong Qiao and two clerks were engrossed in their work. Upon seeing Jinrong and Jiang Yifan come in, the three of them quickly set aside their writing materials and came forward to pay their respects.

What pleased Jinrong was that Ye Xinyan wasn’t working with the three of them.

Jinrong waved his hand and went over to look at each person’s documents and drawings on their desks. Then he nodded his head, hmm, not bad, quite profound indeed—he could hardly understand them.

He then turned towards the diagrams of the courtyard on the wall. This time, in addition to the exterior diagrams of the courtyard, there was also a progress indicator for the courtyard construction documents. He could understand this much better.

Jinrong asked Wong Qiao, "Lord Zhou was interested in these two diagrams last time?"

Wong Qiao answered, "Yes, Lord Zhou has a particular interest in courtyard architecture and seems to have noticed quite a few garden courtyards. He has very insightful views on the arrangement of various courtyard sceneries."

Behind them, Jiang Yifan asked Qi Younian, "I heard just now that when Lord Zhou came over to pick up Miss Zhou, he spent quite a while looking at these again?"

Qi Younian smiled and said, "Lord Zhou really likes courtyard architecture. Every time he sees these two diagrams, he stops to observe and critique them. I, the old fellow, can’t answer those, so Ah Qiao always entertains him."

Jiang Yifan took another glance at the courtyard diagrams on the wall. Zhou Bingyi must not have seen such a courtyard before, which is why he was so attentive. Just looking at the diagram, the layout of this courtyard was very harmonious, without any abruptly prominent buildings, nor any towers or bell towers from which one could look down on the entire scene. All the buildings were placed naturally, subtly embodying the Doctrine of the Mean. This was probably the realm that scholars aspired to.

Jinrong also looked at Wong Qiao and smiled, "Ah Qiao must have some insights too, right? I heard you and Lord Zhou can really get into a conversation."

Wong Qiao quickly bowed and answered, "Sixth Master jests. I am simply born a craftsman and have just put in more effort in building and construction. I really can’t talk about having insights."

"You don’t need to be too modest. You and the work you’ve done with the Qi Family Construction Business are there for all to see, and you genuinely are a young talent in the construction industry."

Cheung Wusi listened with a smile, feeling proud of his decisive choice to bring Wong Qiao out of his original construction business for an uncertain future. Look, now Ah Qiao was making a name for himself, wasn’t he? The Prefectural Magistrate, that’s an important official, also held Ah Qiao in high regard. Sixth Master Rong, a formidable figure from the capital, likewise called for Ah Qiao with an affectionate familiarity just by the address itself.

After roughly looking at the two diagrams and the progress of the work, Jinrong turned and sat back down next to a small table on the side of the room. When everyone had taken their seats, he asked Wong Qiao, "Didn’t you say you and Lady Qi were going to mentor my two subordinates? I wonder if they have made any progress? If they still drag their feet and do a perfunctory job when we get back, you and Lady Qi will have a hard time explaining to us."

Wong Qiao quickly glanced at the two clerks and laughed, "The two gentlemen sent by Sixth Master came with skills taught by the court, and their construction experience is extremely seasoned. They work fast, and the things they make are very regular. Unlike us, most of us in the private construction industry often fumble while working—although we’re faster, we’re quite casual. Having these two gentlemen here has greatly improved Ye Zi’s and my documents and drawings."

The real situation was that these two recorders from Sixth Master Rong’s Mansion had been rigorously drilled by Ye Zi.

Ye Zi didn’t care where they came from, whether they held official positions, or where they had previously worked in high office. He simply stated that they were sent by Sixth Master Rong to learn how to work, and since they were here to learn, they needed to have the right attitude for learning.

Afterward, she enlisted two clerks, no, initially just one, whom she had been teaching. With just a few words of instruction, she kept the clerk so busy that he was bent over his desk all day long, unable to lift his head.

She even complained that others were too slow in their work, mocking how easy it was to earn the court’s official salary and criticizing people for not being decisive enough, always shivering with indecision for a long time before taking action. After finishing her speech, she would add a question, "Can you accomplish anything just by thinking or trembling with fear?"

The clerk was infuriated, "How could one do a good job without proper forethought?" But he dared not talk back because he had been instructed not to, by the mansion he came from, so he could only swallow his anger in silence.

As for Wong Qiao, just a civilian craftsman, he couldn’t afford to be as blunt as Ye Zi when dealing with someone from Sixth Master Rong’s Mansion whose status he didn’t know. He patiently discussed work with the clerk, and the two of them cooperated on the project.

Then, he too became the object of Ye Zi’s disdain. She disapproved of the speed at which the two men worked together, saying it was even slower than if one person did it, and simply stepped in to help.

He was actually fine with it; one could say he did quite well. Once Ye Zi stepped in, he was able to focus on the Construction Diagrams for the courtyard, and progress indeed sped up a lot. But it was tough for the clerk; Ye Zi would check with him, asking, "Wong Qiao, you can get the diagram to this point in a day, right?" Then the clerk had to get the diagram to that point, which was even worse than working directly under Ye Zi.

After being rigorously drilled by Ye Zi for many days, the two clerks gradually adapted to the method of working there. They were from a legitimate background in the construction industry, with comprehensive knowledge of construction rules and classics, so their work was naturally thorough. Once they sped up, following Ye Zi’s instructions became effortless. Apart from occasionally asking questions regarding specific aspects related to the tracks, they didn’t have to worry about anything else.

Wong Qiao looked at the two gentlemen and wondered whether the two clerks resented Ye Zi for being so harsh on them.

Jinrong turned to the two clerks and said, "You two drag your feet when working in the mansion, but here you manage to work both quickly and well. It really seems like the silver from the Master is easy to fool."

The two clerks couldn’t plead enough, hurriedly trying to stand up and respond, but Jinrong waved his hand and said, "This is a place for work, not for endless salutations that delay the task at hand. Speaking will suffice. Do you two have something to say, or is the Sixth Master wronging you by chance?"

The clerks looked at each other with bitter expressions. What kind of situation was this? Here, Lady Qi was ruthlessly mocking and ridiculing them for being slow and showing no progress. And now that they had sped up, the Sixth Master was also looking for trouble—how were they supposed to live with this?

One clerk said worriedly, "The Sixth Master sent us here to learn from Lady Qi and Brother Wong how to work quickly, and we are earnestly trying to grasp their methods, with some small successes."

"Only some small successes?" Jinrong raised an eyebrow. These two were the stewards’ best picks; after so many days, they’d only achieved ’some small successes’?

The other clerk quickly chimed in with a smile, "Replying to the Sixth Master, it’s indeed a significant benefit, a great benefit. Following Lady Qi and Brother Wong in their work has indeed brought us much gain."

Qi Younian looked on sympathetically. These two were supposed to be learning how to work, yet they were officials from the Prince’s Mansion, and were being exploited daily by their own Ye Zi. And now they were even being nitpicked by the Master, which was truly pitiable.

"Sixth Master, the two gentlemen from your mansion are experts in the construction industry and are diligent and careful in their work, quite unlike Ye Zi’s casual and negligent approach. The entire track documentation has come from their hands, and they also provided many insights into Ah Qiao’s Construction Diagrams for the courtyard, even assisting with a lot of the work."