She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 327 - 326: Never Asked About Mother

Chapter 327: Chapter 326: Never Asked About Mother

Zhao Gang, seeing Ye Xinyan’s expression did not seem to be feigned, sighed and said, "It’s indeed unforgivable for him to propose a divorce under those circumstances. However, now that you’ve become much wiser, if he truly regrets it, you might not necessarily ..."

"Not necessarily, definitely not," Ye Xinyan emphatically shook her head, "That is absolutely out of the question. Uncle Zhao, please consider another possibility."

Zhao Gang sighed inwardly, understanding Ye Xinyan’s feelings. The incident at Duke An’s birthday banquet, although there were various faults on Miss Cousin’s part, for a woman to be seen struggling with a naked man by so many, the scene was such that no woman could bear the consequences that would follow. Then to be divorced by Jiang Yifan, blocking her last way out, it was completely understandable that Miss Cousin found it hard to let go of her feelings.

This world is harsh on women, and, faced with that situation, there were only two paths a woman could take: to be sent by her family to the ancestral temple and never see daylight again, or to take her own life.

That Miss Cousin was able to escape that fate was a great fortune amidst misfortune.

He did not blame Jiang Yifan any less, but a woman’s reputation was more important than anything. If Jiang Yifan had a change of heart and was willing to take Miss Cousin back, such a result would be quite favorable for a woman, much better than if Miss Cousin were to marry someone else.

He glanced at Ye Xinyan and tried to persuade her again, "As a woman, and still young, you will eventually have to marry. If you choose someone else’s family, Miss Cousin would be marrying again, which no matter how you put it, won’t sound good. At the time, Jiang Yifan was certainly heartless, but if he can repent, Miss Cousin and him were still husband and wife by marriage, which is better than marrying again."

Ye Xinyan continuously waved her hand, "Let’s not talk about this matter. If that’s what Uncle Zhao is here for, then I must excuse myself, as the year is coming to an end and there are still many things I need to attend to."

What nonsense, heartless? With your family’s Miss Cousin’s insolent behavior, and having beaten two servants who had looked after her since childhood to death, is there any affection to speak of? Without affection, how can there be heartlessness?

What a joke? Repentance? What does Jiang Yifan have to repent for? If he were to regret anything, it would be not refusing to marry Duke An’s Mansion’s Legitimate Young Miss from the start—that would be the best repentance.

Really, if that were the case, then Jiang Yifan indeed had no decency. Why marry the Legitimate Young Miss of the Duke’s Mansion at all? He was merely an Imperial Scholar with a better ranking. Through the ages, how many Top Scholars had ended up obscure? With a wife of such high status, could he, a Top Scholar, really hold his ground?

Seeing her about to stand up, Zhao Gang quickly gestured with his hands, saying, "There’s something else, another matter. I was just asking casually, since Miss Cousin doesn’t want to talk about it, let’s not mention it anymore."

Ye Xinyan, looking somewhat suspicious, sat back down and asked, "What else is there?" Besides this, what else could there be?

Zhao Gang, seeing her sit down again, finally felt relieved and asked, "I want to ask about your plans for the future."

"Plans for the future? Naturally, to do well in business, to live a good life, what else could there be?" Ye Xinyan replied in surprise.

She had already done quite a lot, hadn’t she? The dairy farm and the Dairy Products Store needed expansion, and there was a large market to develop. Not only did she plan to increase the scale in Qingyuan County, but if circumstances permitted, these two industries could be expanded to all the prefectures and counties of the Great Xia Dynasty.

To hold monopolies in two major industries was already a good enough plan. What more could there be? Uncle Zhao’s expectations of her were... a bit too high?

Er, Zhao Gang frowned, "No matter how well you do in business, you still need your own place to call home. What I was asking was what plans you have for your own future."

Ye Xinyan, her eyes on Zhao Gang, immediately raised her guard and said, "If you’re still going to talk about Jiang Yifan and remarriage, then our conversation is over. I have no plans in that regard."

"Such decisive words. Even if Zhao Gang had some such intentions, he simply could not admit it now. Fortunately, that wasn’t what he was talking about. "I’ve been here for three or four days, and you haven’t mentioned the capital or asked about your mother. Don’t you miss the capital, don’t you miss your mother?" Towards the end, Zhao Gang’s tone gradually became more solemn.

This was, indeed, inappropriate. Ye Xinyan could only blink incessantly as she tried to conceal her embarrassment.

Indeed, it was a matter of concern. She had grown up in the capital and all her relatives lived there; yet, after just over a year away, it seemed as though the capital and everyone in it had no connection with her whatsoever.

Lian Gui was merely executing tasks at the Qi family and hadn’t had much interaction or emotional connection with her – naturally, he wouldn’t find anything amiss with her behavior. But Zhao Gang was different. He had grown up in Marquis Zhongyong’s Mansion, and with Marquis Zhongyong’s heir – he viewed her and Madam Yin with a kind of concern that differed from Lian Gui’s.

This behavior of hers was indeed not normal.

"Ah... I, Uncle Zhao, you also know that I..." Ye Xinyan spoke with a face full of worry, struggling to find a plausible excuse for herself.

Zhao Gang asked gently, "Are you holding a grudge against your mother, blaming her for not bringing you up properly?"

"No," Ye Xinyan responded without hesitation. Hold a grudge about what? She had hardly even thought of it; where would grudges come from?

"Listening to what you’ve said, you blame yourself, so how can you push the responsibility onto others?" All right, the original owner did turn out the way she did largely because of Madam Yin, but she couldn’t say that. "I just don’t want to think about things related to the capital, it’s not that I’m blaming anyone. I don’t blame anyone else but myself."

The memories of the capital were too unpleasant to revisit. Ha, she had finally found herself a very reasonable excuse.

As expected, Zhao Gang fell for it. "Ah, for a young woman like you, that matter was too much to bear; it’s no wonder you don’t want to think about it."

Ye Xinyan felt a sense of triumph in her heart, yet dared not show the slightest hint of it on her face. Instead, she had to play the part, sitting there languidly, silent and seemingly full of heartache.

Zhao Gang said gently, "However, with your current duties and prudent nature, there is still a chance for things to turn around. Have you ever thought about returning to the capital someday?"

"Ah? Returning to the capital...?" Ye Xinyan promptly swallowed the last few words she was about to say. What she had almost blurted out was: What for?

Indeed, why should she return to the capital when she was doing just fine outside? Yuyuan Prefecture, Clear Water Village – even if these places were remote, she had a complete home here and a place where she could make a difference.

And to return to the capital, to once again be the legitimate young miss of Duke An’s Mansion? Moreover, an abandoned wife who had been kicked out by her husband’s family, only to be disposed of or sent to the ancestral temple by old Duke An himself – wouldn’t that be seeking her own demise?

She had completely forgotten that in the capital, there was a mother who cared for her, as well as grandparents and an uncle who had always been there to clean up after her.

Thank goodness, she hadn’t let those last three words slip out.

Zhao Gang, not burdened by such thoughts, simply nodded and repeated, "Yes, return to the capital. Do you want to go back?"