She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 409 - 408: How Did You Catch My Father’s Eye?

Chapter 409: Chapter 408: How Did You Catch My Father’s Eye?

Lian Gui stepped through the door and immediately saw Ye Xinyan and Nanny Jin kneeling on the ground, an expected sight. Despite his cordial relations with Ye Xinyan and Nanny Jin recently, Lian Gui knew he couldn’t greet them at this moment.

So he dared not linger his gaze and simply bowed to Duke An, saying, "Righteous Guan, who escorted the Young Lady to the capital, has been settled in his accommodations. Righteous Guan is highly skilled in martial arts, does the Duke wish to meet him?"

Duke An had learned about Guan He in the messages and, as a military general, he held great regard for such individuals. Upon hearing Lian Gui’s request, he nodded slightly and said, "Let’s meet him. With such skill as Righteous Guan possesses, having escorted our family’s Female Relatives to the capital, I must offer him my heartfelt thanks in person. I’ll go see him now and thank Righteous Guan face to face."

Duke An instructed Lian Gui to arrange a meeting with Guan He in the outer courtyard’s study before turning to Yin Xiaocheng and saying, "Xiaocheng should meet him too. Guan He is Jiang Yifan’s senior brother, and the guards who went to gather intelligence have vouched for his exceptional prowess."

Yin Xiaocheng was familiar with Guan He, and meeting such a distinguished figure from Jianghu would be more engaging than staying here, watching his troublesome niece be punished by kneeling.

Ye Hongyang had no interest in Eccentric Experts from the Jianghu but knew the old master disliked such an attitude, so he dared not show his disinterest and also rose to follow.

This meant the Duchess no longer needed to stay in the main hall. Duke An instructed his wife, "The two Qi boys are young and must be tired from the journey; take them to their quarters to rest. Call them for dinner later."

Qi Jiaer, seeing a nanny approaching to lead them away, exclaimed anxiously, "Grandfather Duke, my sister and nanny are also exhausted from the travel; they need rest as well."

Duke An laughed upon hearing this. He had already stood up but now took two steps towards Qi Jiaer. Looking into his bright eyes, he saw no trace of fear, which filled him with affection.

The old man first stroked his small cheek. Seeing that the young boy did not flinch, he laughed heartily, lifted Qi Jiaer with both hands, tossed him gently in the air twice, and then set him down, saying warmly, "You still don’t understand your sister well. Your sister is not tired from causing trouble; it’s better for her to stay here a while. Go rest by yourself; your sister will be fine. She likes this and needs to be reminded often to be satisfied."

"Ah?" Qi Jiaer and Qi Sanshun both looked at Duke An in unison. No, that wasn’t right; their sister had never been like this.

"Pah—" Ye Xinyan felt enraged by Duke An’s verbal attack. He was tarnishing her reputation, destroying the lofty image she held in the eyes of Qi Sanshun, Qi Jiaer, and the other children.

Qi Jiaer had started his normal life with Ye Xinyan and Nanny Jin, so naturally, he wouldn’t change his opinion because of a single remark from Duke An. Not knowing how to refute the Duke, he shuffled over to where Ye Xinyan and Nanny Jin were, with the intention of staying by their side.

Although Duke An was fond of Qi Jiaer, he had guests waiting outside and naturally did not want to spend too much time on women and children. After making sure the Duchess would take good care of the boys, he called Yin Xiaocheng and Ye Hongyang to leave.

Ye Xinyan, seeing this, thought, How can this be acceptable? It didn’t matter if she was kneeling there, but Nanny Jin was with her. Whether it was her escape or the original owner’s reckless behavior, Nanny Jin was innocent throughout and had been dragged into this mess.

In the matter of the escape, whether for her, Madam Yin, or even for Duke An—if he truly cared about whether his granddaughter would turn out to be remarkable—Nanny Jin was blameless and even meritorious.

One must lower oneself when asking favors from others. Without daring to rise, Ye Xinyan shuffled forward on her knees and addressed Duke An, "Sir... this is the first time Qi Jia and my cousin have come to such a distant place, everything is unfamiliar, and they aren’t acquainted with others here. May Nanny Jin be allowed to look after the two of them?"

Duke An, upon hearing the term "old master" come from his granddaughter’s mouth, found it quite novel. He paused, looking down at Ye Xinyan from above, neither approving nor rejecting her request but also not leaving immediately.

Ye Xinyan gritted her teeth and silently cursed this accursed feudal society, then put on a smile reserved for seeking favors on her face: "You know, old master, actually Nanny Jin hasn’t done anything wrong; the fault lies with one’s own family. Why should someone like you trouble an unrelated person, right? This isn’t your usual style of doing things, is it?"

Duke An looked at the exaggerated smile plastered on Ye Xinyan’s face and suddenly very much wanted her to get up right now, and not just her—Nanny Jin should get up as well. If the unsightly scene that people were still gossiping about in secret at his birthday feast could indeed lead to the progress of his descendants, he would be very willing for that scene to come sooner rather than later.

After exchanging looks with Ye Xinyan for a moment, Duke An said in an even tone, "It seems that you have not suffered in vain outside. Not only have you learned how to survive but also how to lower your stature and bend your back to achieve your goals."

Then he turned to Nanny Jin: "Get up, take the two boys to rest. As for you..." Duke An looked at Ye Xinyan again, "you will skip dinner tonight and kneel until the Hai Hour before going directly to rest."

Considering the sufficient goodwill you have previously expressed, shouldn’t the default punishment time be until dinner?

"Father," Madam Yin exclaimed in a loss of composure, "this child has been traveling for more than half a month and has just arrived, she is indeed exhausted. How about you postpone this two-hour punishment for two days?"

Nanny Jin, not only did she not stand up, but she also kept kowtowing, groveling on the ground, repeatedly saying, "This servant knows her crime, let this servant kneel instead, and let the Young Lady and the boys rest."

Ye Xinyan was also stunned by this turn of events. What was this? Was she supposed to take over Nanny Jin’s share of the punishment? That was also doable, but there were still some doubts about the timing.

Then, Ye Xinyan asked a very naive question: "Old master, you mean early Hai Hour, right?"

...

Yin Xiaocheng turned his gaze away, wondering when this child had become so straightforward. She didn’t seem silly, so why would she ask such a question?

Duke An was nearly choked by Ye Xinyan’s question and after glaring at her for a long time, he walked away without a word, leading Yin Xiaocheng and Ye Hongyang with him.

Ye Hongyang did not take his resentful gaze off Qi Jiaer until they had left the room.

How could a wild child from a remote village catch his father’s eye? His own Hengheng and Yiyi were so adorably chubby when they were young, and now they are handsome young men, but he never saw his father show much affection, let alone such closeness. If it weren’t for Eccentric Guan and that roaming figure from Jianghu waiting in the study, would his father actually hold that brat close in his arms?

He glared at Qi Sanshun and Qi Jiaer once more with venomous eyes before following Duke An out the door.