She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 419 - 418: Do You Recognize the Characters?

Chapter 419: Chapter 418: Do You Recognize the Characters?

Two years had not seen her, and although my niece’s complexion appeared rougher, her demeanor had gained a gentle and tranquil temperament that made her seem even more graceful and composed than before. Her eyes, too, had shed their unruliness, becoming bright and clear.

Qi Sanshun, holding Qi Jia’s hand, followed closely behind Ye Xinyan with respectful, downcast eyes. Qi Jia, on the other hand, looked around curiously as they walked, and though curiosity filled his bright eyes, they seemed frank and clear, somewhat resembling Ye Xinyan’s.

After entering through the Second Gate, they didn’t have to go far to reach the courtyard of Madam Cao, the wife of Marquis Zhongyong, Yin Long. Madam Cao’s courtyard was simple without much decoration, a main building of green bricks and blue tiles with three rooms to its north, flanked by two wing rooms, and three rooms each to its east and west. The overhanging eaves of the building were broad, yet there were no corridors built.

Madam Cao, wearing no adornments and dressed in a plain dark-patterned lotus-colored house coat, sat on the heated brick bed of the main room. A child, about the same age as Qi Jia, sat beside her, his eyes turning round and round, watching the four people who entered.

On a chair on the floor sat a young girl in purple attire, none other than the youngest daughter of Yin Long’s second brother, Yin Yuanfang. Upon their entrance, Yin Yuanfang rose from her seat.

Ye Xinyan didn’t need an introduction; although she hadn’t come as the granddaughter, she still paid her respects to Madam Cao with a deep bow.

Following Ye Xinyan’s lead, Qi Sanshun and Qi Jia also knelt on the brocade cushions brought over by the maids, performing the ceremony of kowtowing.

Madam Cao, wearing a gentle smile, observed them finish their salutations before turning to Lady Yin with laughter, "Hurry, help the children up, and come sit on the heated brick bed. Let me see how this child has grown up, to see if she truly has improved. And these two little ones belong to the Qi family, don’t they? Let them come up and sit as well."

Madam Cao gestured for them to approach. As for Ye Xinyan, there was no need for a meeting gift, but it was Qi Sanshun and Qi Jia’s first time seeing her. From the tray Nanny Zhao presented, Madam Cao took two jade pendants and indicated to Ye Xinyan, "Come, help your grandmother put these on the boys."

Ye Xinyan secured the jade pendants around the waists of Qi Sanshun and Qi Jia, and the three of them performed salutations to express their thanks.

"Come, it’s warm on the heated brick bed, come sit on it," invited Madam Cao.

Ye Xinyan crouched again towards Madam Cao and modestly stated, "Grand Madam needn’t trouble herself, I and Sister Yuanfang can sit together."

Having said that, Ye Xinyan stepped back to a position below Yin Yuanfang and waited for Madam Sun, Lady Wei, and others to take their seats before she sat down in the neighboring chair.

Qi Jia trailed close to Ye Xinyan, speaking and acting much more freely. Hearing her words, he hurriedly leaned closer to Ye Xinyan and said in a tender voice, "Madam needn’t be so formal with me, I’m happy sitting next to Sister."

He then pulled on Qi Sanshun’s sleeve, adding, "Brother Sanshun, sit with us too."

Madam Cao noticed the two children sticking close to Ye Xinyan, evidently depending on and trusting her a great deal.

Upon examining Ye Xinyan, who clearly had changed since their last meeting, Madam Cao tutted with a chuckle, "Having truly suffered hardships, now you understand the difficulties of life, you’ve become more sensible, haven’t you?"

At this, Ye Xinyan’s face showed a hint of embarrassment. This old lady, her words were so blunt.

Sitting diagonally on the edge of the heated brick bed, Lady Yin heard Madam Cao and couldn’t help but scold softly, "Mother, the child has just come back..." let’s not bring up those things, shall we?

Madam Cao pointed at her with a finger and spoke, "She was always a bright and clever child, only to be spoiled by you to such an extent. If proper guidance had been given earlier, who knows how accomplished she would be by now."

"Mother—" Lady Yin’s face showed even more embarrassment than Ye Xinyan’s.

Madam Cao’s Nanny Zhao called for a maidservant to move two chairs over, seating Qi Sanshun and Qi Jiaer beside Ye Xinyan.

Yin Lanxu, sitting on the heated brick bed, couldn’t help but feel anxious upon seeing Qi Jiaer sit down. The little fellow craned his neck to ask Qi Jiaer, "You must be Brother Jia from the Qi family, right? I haven’t asked you yet, does your family have lots and lots of cheese?"

The room fell silent for a moment at the sound of this childlike voice asking such a question.

Then came Qi Jiaer’s response, "Yes, we have a lot of cheese, but it’s not ours, my sister makes it for Sixth Master Rong. The cheese business belongs to Sixth Master Rong."

After Qi Jiaer finished speaking, Madam Cao and the others couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

Lady Yuan, Madam Sun’s eldest daughter-in-law, retorted, "He’s already old enough to attend school, yet the first thing he asks a guest is about food. That’s really embarrassing."

Yin Lanxu probably also realized his faux pas after asking the question and was already feeling somewhat awkward. His face flushed red instantly when his mother made such a comment.

The smile still lingering on Madam Cao’s lips, she smoothed things over, saying, "They’re just children; they’re not expected to speak with such formality. It’s normal for them to talk about food and play when they’re together."

Speaking of food and playthings, Madam Yin picked up the conversation, "Brother Jia brought some snacks and toys with him." Turning around, she called to Zi Ning, "Bring the little trinkets that the boy brought; let him hand them out for everyone to play with."

Then she addressed her mother and her eldest and second sisters-in-law, "There are also some local specialties from Yuyuan Prefecture on the carriage outside. Later, I’ll have Nanny fetch them so the eldest sister-in-law can take a look and distribute them. They’re not precious items, just rarities that we don’t often see around here."

Upon hearing about the trinkets, Yin Lanxu hurriedly beckoned to a maidservant standing by the brick bed to fetch his shoes, eager to get down to the ground.

Qi Jiaer had already slipped off the chair and had Zi Ning place a large box on a small table in the corner. He turned to Yin Lanxu, waving, "These are toys that Brother Sanshun and I brought for you. Many of them were made by my Third Uncle Wong; they can’t be found outside, and they’re really fun."

As he spoke, Qi Jiaer began to take things out of the box, one at a time: here was a monkey that could climb ropes; there was a frog that could beat a drum; and this was a puzzle, a puzzle of one hundred and twenty pieces....

While explaining, Qi Jiaer also demonstrated how to play with the items to Yin Lanxu, who was dazzled by the array of toys. One moment he picked up one thing, the next, another, and he even asked Qi Jiaer, "Are all of these for me?"

Finally, Qi Jiaer took a bag out of the box and asked Yin Lanxu, "Do you recognize characters? This is the Land Battle Game that Brother Sanshun and I play, and the chess pieces have characters on them. If you like it, I’ll give it to you, and my brother and I can make another set."

"I recognize characters, but not many," Yin Lanxu nodded, then asked, "The Land Battle Game, is it about fighting wars?"

"Yes, it’s about fighting wars. Brother Sanshun plays it really well. Do you want to play it now?"

"Sure."

The three children, not minding the adults in the room, followed Yin Lanxu and Qi Sanshun to the outer hall. They spread out the chess board, recognized each piece, familiarized themselves with the rules once more, and then began to engage in a battle on the chess board, two against one.

When Yin Xiaocheng returned with Yin Long, the three little ones were divided into two groups, gathered around the chess board playing. Yin Lanxu and Qi Jiaer’s little heads were huddled together, whispering to each other from time to time, pointing and directing at the chess board.

Their maidservants and nannies stood behind them.