She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 456 - 454 The outcome can’t be good

Chapter 456: Chapter 454 The outcome can’t be good

Madam Ji Xiaoyuan was also annoyed that Duke An did not regard their Ji Mansion highly, which is why she wholeheartedly encouraged her eldest son and the people from the Xing family to seek justice from Duke An.

Now, upon hearing the words her son brought back, she couldn’t help but frown and ask, "Does this mean that the Duke’s Heir Apparent was not present, and Duke An never gave you special attention throughout?"

Ji Chengxian replied somberly, "I went in with the people from the Xing family, so it wasn’t proper for me to claim a close relationship with Duke An. Duke An just made small talk with me and never mentioned the fourth brother’s wife."

Duke An is one of the few hereditary dukes in the Great Xia Dynasty, and moreover, a First-Rank Duke, honored for ten generations. Even if Duke An truly disregarded their marriage alliance, who could do anything to Duke An?

Madam Zhou frowned and said to Ji Xiaoyuan, "Duke An is treating Xinyi as if she were a concubine-born daughter, doesn’t he? When Ye Hongyang married us, it certainly wasn’t said in this manner."

Ji Xiaoyuan sighed. He considered himself a scholar, having exploited only this one opportunity in life, yet to such an end.

The matchmaking had been done by Ye Hongyang’s paternal aunt, who painted the future prospects of the Ye family’s concubine-born daughter with grand words. In reality, the reputation of the Duke’s Mansion’s Second Miss was indeed very good.

Compared to Miss Ye, the Second Miss, Miss Ye, the elder legitimate sister, was very inadequate, having basically been left to grow up as she pleased. He believed that Duke An had given up on educating Miss Ye, assuming that his daughter-in-law was the only granddaughter within Duke An’s Mansion. Little did he know, their marriage alliance was recognized only by the Ji Mansion and Ye Hongyang, the Princely Heir, and not by Duke An, who did not regard the Ji Mansion differently.

Ji Xiaoyuan sighed again and said, "We can’t blame Duke An for this; if anyone is to blame, it’s the Princely Heir Ye Hongyang who cannot be relied upon. Although he favors his wife from the Chengru family, he cannot make decisions for Duke An’s Mansion. As long as Elder Master Ye is alive, Duke An’s Mansion will continue to make a clear distinction between legitimate and concubine-born offspring."

Upon hearing Ji Xiaoyuan’s words, Madam Zhou grew even angrier. If that were the case, hadn’t their Ji Mansion been deceived into marriage by the Duke’s Heir Apparent?

Madam Zhou angrily said, "The matchmaker was a woman from the Ye Clan, who had stated that we were marrying the future same-blood elder sister of the Duke of An. What is this now? Judging by today’s events, our esteemed legitimate son Chengru has a wife who is even worse off than a farmer’s boy residing in Duke An’s Mansion."

Ji Xiaoyuan was already displeased, and upon hearing Madam Zhou’s words, he immediately frowned and scolded her, "When marrying a wife, it’s her virtue and personality that matter. What ’future Duke of An’? Can you even utter such words?"

Having spoken, Madam Zhou realized she had blurted out words she should not have in her anger. Being rebuked by Ji Xiaoyuan only added to her embarrassment.

Seeing his parents upset, Ji Chengxian interjected to comfort them, "Duke An was quite polite to your son, although we went to their mansion to cause trouble, Duke An still talked with me for a good while."

Madam Zhou knew her son was trying to console her and added, "He himself is unjust in his actions, of course he had to say a few more words."

After a moment of silence, Madam Zhou couldn’t hold back and asked Ji Xiaoyuan, "Sir, what exactly is Duke An thinking? Everyone knows Miss Ye Xinyan has a rather poor character and virtues, and she ultimately is a granddaughter who cannot stay in Duke An’s Mansion forever. Why does he value her so much? Is it just because Ye Xinyan has now become competent, or because she is working with His Highness Prince Yu, that she is highly regarded by the Duke?"

Ji Xiaoyuan also couldn’t understand what Duke An was thinking.

According to the behavior of Duke An’s ancestors, Duke An’s Mansion only obeyed the Emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty and didn’t usually associate with princes or other royal relatives. Ye Tang should not view Ye Xinyan differently just because she managed businesses for Prince Yu.

Even if he was dissatisfied, he only had two concubine-born grandsons, so logically, he should not look down on Ye Xinyi and her brothers.

"Alright, let’s not talk about this anymore," Ji Xiaoyuan said, "Our Ji family, when taking a daughter-in-law, certainly looks at her family background, but what’s more important is her virtue and upbringing. In these respects, Chengru’s wife is considered top-notch among the women in the capital. As for talk about legitimate or concubine-born, let’s not mention it again in the future."

Madam Zhou thought helplessly that what her husband had said was not wrong. Speaking of Chengru’s wife, aside from being a concubine-born daughter, there really wasn’t anything bad about her.

"This child is also unfortunate. In terms of beauty and scholarship, she’s top tier but has always been suppressed by an arrogant and rude legitimate elder sister. Even now, after the elder sister committed such an indecent and shameless act, she is still able to behave outrageously in Duke An’s Mansion, and Elder Master Ye is truly muddled."

Ji Xiaoyuan waved his hand weakly, "Forget it, we were also at fault today. We only cared about our own child and did not investigate the situation clearly before joining forces with others to confront them. No wonder Elder Master Ye wasn’t accommodating."

Madam Zhou, however, didn’t agree with Ji Xiaoyuan’s words. They had a reason for approaching Duke An’s Mansion; they were not making trouble without cause.

"Poor our Guangwen, such a young child, and those injuries on his face and body... Duke An and the Duchess are so muddled, letting a granddaughter who lacks womanly virtue wreak havoc at home. That Ye Xinyan has always been unruly and arrogant, and not only does the Duke’s Mansion not restrain her, but now with His Highness Prince Yu’s support, Xinyi and her two brothers are truly pitiable."

Ji Xiaoyuan scoffed and said, "With Ye Xinyan causing such trouble and acting against propriety, she won’t end well. Since His Highness Prince Yu is treating her like this, her entering Prince Yu’s Mansion is just a matter of time. With her status, once she enters the Prince’s mansion, she’ll probably meet with a grisly end. She’s just stirring trouble these days; she won’t have the chance later on."

Ji Chengxian looked at his father. Given Prince Yu’s attitude toward those two children, Prince Yu must value Ye Xinyan greatly in private. This was not merely a man’s affection for a woman; perhaps there was also an attempt to win over Ye Xinyan.

Not everyone can get the railway carriage, which most people in the capital were skeptical about, up and running in such a short time. Additionally, the popular food ingredient—cheese—was reportedly also developed by Ye Xinyan. Prince Yu watching someone who makes money for him meet with a tragic end? He thought it unlikely.

Madam Zhou didn’t think like Ji Chengxian; she followed the majority’s thinking. She hadn’t thought about Ye Xinyan’s status upon remarriage, but after her husband mentioned it, the key point immediately came to mind.

But she was also very surprised and questioned, "His Highness Prince Yu probably won’t be so absurd, right? A divorcee like Ye Xinyan entering the mansion, her status would be hard to ascertain."

"That’s not something we need to worry about now," Ji Xiaoyuan said indifferently, and then turned to Ji Chengxian, "The key is what the Second Son of the Xing family said. We can’t control others, but the conversation between the Second Son of the Xing family and His Highness Prince Yu mustn’t leak from our mansion. How did you handle Guangwen?"

Ji Chengxian replied, "Guangwen is still a child at heart, and doesn’t take Xing Zhonghe’s words too seriously. I only told him that the incident with the Qi family’s child had angered His Highness Prince Yu, and he must keep silent about this matter, and under no circumstances is he allowed to mention it again in the future."