She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 317 - 316: Someone from the Capital Has Arrived

Chapter 317: Chapter 316: Someone from the Capital Has Arrived

Before his journey to the capital, Wan Yan had come to the Dairy Products Store to pick up a batch of fermented cheese. This batch had not long been taken out of storage, merely less than ten days had passed. Approaching the late Shen hour, a group of riders, dusty from travel, came to Clear Water Village. They inquired with the villagers about the location of the second branch of the Qi family.

At this time, Qi Sanshun was no longer the naive child who had never seen the world. Hearing that the men on tall horses were looking for the Second Uncle’s Family, he did not run back home to report the news crazily. Instead, he took Qi Jiaer’s hand, surrounded by a crowd of children, and went together with the visitors to the home of the Second Uncle’s Family.

The robust middle-aged man who led the group was named Zhao Gang. Hearing that Qi Jiaer was Lady Qi’s younger brother and seeing how adorable the little fellow was, he wanted to take him along on horseback. However, both Qi Jiaer and Qi Sanshun refused.

Qi Sanshun’s reasoning was, "My older cousin has said that we are not grown up yet and cannot go along with strangers at will. Xiao Jiajia is even more so. He’s too small and cannot ride on your horse."

Zhao Gang smiled but did not say much, choosing instead to dismount and walk with the group of children. Although he had heard from his Great Aunt that Miss Cousin was now sensible and had even acquired some skills, upon hearing the admiration and respect in the two youngsters’ voices when they mentioned his sister, he still could not imagine how Miss Cousin could be as they described. After all, Miss Cousin used to be recklessly rude; even if she had become sensible, how sensible could she have become?

However, surviving in such a remote and impoverished village ought to teach Miss Cousin a lesson, letting her know how difficult life can be in this world.

From the moment Zhao Gang entered Clear Water Village, he had been observing this remote village. It was now the dead of winter when nature withered and life seemed scarce, and even within the village, one rarely saw villagers walking around outside. The narrow, winding paths of the village were frozen hard by the cold winter days.

Their group of riders, along with a dozen or so children, was such that only those in the middle could set foot on the path, with the rest walking on the soil beside the trail. Although there were traces of melting snow by the roadside and in the fields, if one walked too briskly, dust would still swirl up.

Looking to both sides of the path, one could see the irregularly constructed homes of the villagers. Most were mud brick and thatch houses, though a few mud brick homes had their corners built of brick and stone, better resisting the erosion of rain and wind.

In the entire village, only a house at the entrance had three large sections made of brick and tile. The house and its green brick and tile courtyard walls stood out conspicuously in this poverty-stricken village, likely belonging to a wealthy family of the village.

It was in such a poor place that Miss Cousin had settled down. Although there was much reluctance involved, the growth she displayed was probably real.

Walking deeper into the village, they occasionally met a few villagers. Although these people were dressed in worn clothes, they did not find it unusual to see the group, and from time to time someone would ask Qi Sanshun and Qi Jiaer, "Are these guests of your Second Uncle’s Family (your family)?"

The two youngsters, along with ten or so other children of various sizes, seemed quite accustomed to such inquiries and answered calmly.

Zhao Gang and his companions had almost passed through the entire village, now reaching the end of the village. Turning past a few old dilapidated houses, the view suddenly opened up.

The ground and buildings in this open space were markedly different from the homes within the village. Nearby, enclosed by a wall of green bricks, stood a courtyard that, judging by the length of the walls, was at least a compound with two sections. This was probably the new residence that Lian Gui had mentioned, built by the Qi family.

Looking further from the residence, one could see large clusters of buildings of varying specifications, sprawling so vast they seemed endless.

Zhao Gang squinted; was this the industry managed by Miss Cousin, on such a grand scale? Zhao Gang had indeed heard about Miss Cousin’s current situation from his Great Aunt, but he was still taken aback by the buildings before his eyes.

If Miss Cousin truly managed such a large industry, did it mean she really had changed from the past, no longer the ignorant and rash person who acted impulsively without thought?

They were now very near the Qi Family Courtyard, and in just a few short steps, without allowing Zhao Gang to think further, they entered the courtyard of the Qi family.

Qi Sanshun was now much steadier and insisted on practicing fundamental skills with Guan He every day. He had improved vastly compared to the past, but he was ultimately still a child. He led the guests to the courtyard without any mishap. As soon as he entered and saw Uncle Song approaching, he hurriedly stepped forward, tugging at him, "Uncle Song, hurry, hurry, where’s the eldest cousin? Send her a message, some guests from the capital have come." Although there are always people from the capital coming and going in the Second Uncle’s Family these days, these few guests were evidently dust-covered, having just arrived from the capital, and were somewhat different from acquaintances.

Although Ye Xinyan now resided in a courtyard with two entries, that only meant she had her own place to rest and did not imply that she abided by all those numerous rules. Even with Jiang Yifan’s solemn admonition, she merely had a few more maids and old woman servants by her side, but she still insisted on working in the outer courtyard.

For instance, at this moment, she was busy in the outer courtyard’s workshop, the space originally intended to serve as the guest room. Currently, Qi Younian and Wong Qiao were away in Yuyuan City, preparing to start construction on Prince Yu’s Other Mansion next year. However, there was still work to be done here; come next spring, the large area to the north would require road planning, and additional cow sheds and cheese fermentation cellars needed to be built.

So, even though the year’s end was approaching and the villagers had begun to wind down for the New Year, Ye Xinyan remained busy.

When she heard Qi Sanshun shouting outside about visitors from the capital, she didn’t rush out to greet them. No matter who came from the capital, as Qi Ye, she shouldn’t acknowledge anyone, so there was no need for her to go out to welcome them.

Today, nanny Liu was accompanying Ye Xinyan. Upon hearing that visitors from the capital had arrived, she was surprised but did not hesitate. She quickly went out to greet them.

As she stepped out of the room, Uncle Song had already come forward to report, "Nanny Liu, they say they are servants from the Marquis Zhongyong’s Mansion in the capital, specially here to visit the Head of the Qi Family and Lady Qi."

Nanny Liu glanced at Zhao Gang, who hastily bowed and said, "I am Zhao Gang, the Attendant of General Zhenyuan, princedom heir of Marquis Zhongyong. Entrusted by our Great Aunt, I’ve come to visit Lady Qi of the Qi family, and to express gratitude on behalf of the Head of the Qi Family."

Ye Xinyan, inside the house, nearly bolted out when she heard the name Zhao Gang. It was very familiar to her, or rather, to the original owner of the body.

The original owner had been high-handed and reckless in the capital, relying on the reputation of Duke An’s Mansion, yet every time she caused trouble, it was often Zhao Gang, the Attendant of her uncle General Zhenyuan, who stepped up to resolve the issues.

Although Zhao Gang never showed her a kind face, he was, nonetheless, one of the few who sincerely helped her.

Ye Xinyan thought for a moment. Since everyone knew that Qi Ye was Ye Xinyan, although she couldn’t acknowledge Zhao Gang as Ye Xinyan, ignoring someone who genuinely wanted to help her would be too indifferent and ungrateful.

Ye Xinyan stepped out of the house and looked toward Zhao Gang.

Zhao Gang was chatting with Nanny Liu and handing over a handwritten letter from General Zhenyuan when he heard the door and saw someone walking out. He looked up and saw a simply dressed young woman who turned out to be Miss Cousin.

Zhao Gang’s attitude toward Ye Xinyan was the same as Yin Xiaocheng’s, a mix of anger and helplessness.

The Great Aunt had been married for less than a year when her undisciplined husband brought home a woman from the streets. Soon after, amidst life-threatening dramas, he elevated that woman to the position of a concubine. From then on, the Great Aunt’s life became difficult, constantly caught in petty disputes and strife with the concubine. Eventually, she fell victim to a scheme that left her childless, with the culprit remaining undiscovered.

Each time the General was infuriated by Miss Cousin’s behavior, he couldn’t help but pity his own sister, and had to swallow his anger and clean up after Miss Cousin. The General had punished Miss Cousin on occasion, the severest being when he locked the door and spanked her with a square ruler ten times, causing the Great Aunt to cry in pain and refuse to speak with the General for half a year.

Despite the ordeals, Miss Cousin was bold enough to cause trouble but also resilient enough to take it; she wailed and cursed when beaten, but afterwards continued as she always did, seemingly unconcerned.

Later, both Marquis Zhongyong and the General came to accept it, and as an Attendant, he too had no choice but to accept it. Apart from dealing with the aftermath of Miss Cousin’s troubles, there was no other solution.