She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 498 - 496: Does It Have Anything to Do with You?

Chapter 498: Chapter 496: Does It Have Anything to Do with You?

Zhou Biyao, completely unapologetic, stuck her tongue out at Ye Xinyan and whispered, "Is the wife of the heir apparent as helpless about Sister as she is about me?"

Ye Xinyan arched an eyebrow. "Sister, I am the apple of my mother’s eye, well-behaved and sensible. The moment she sees me, her heart blooms with joy, and all of life’s troubles disappear. Unlike you, who only adds to your mother’s worries."

"Well-behaved and sensible, you?"

Before Zhou Biyao could turn her frown upside down, the wife of the heir apparent said, "A child of one’s own is of course to be doted on. A good child is always a good child, and even if spoiled, they do not turn out poorly. Just like my Ah Yan, who’s always been well-behaved and sensible..."

Zhou Biyao’s eyes almost popped out as Ye Xinyan proudly jerked her chin at her. See, little girl, can you compare with your senior sister? Do you have a mother who, right or wrong, always thinks her child is the best?

No, this won’t do. With her mother at her side, she needed to step up the discipline for Qi Jia. Damn it, if she ended up raising a brat like the original host, then she would really have a headache.

She would go to the front courtyard first thing tomorrow to talk to him and remind him of the mistakes he had made over the past few days. After practice, he would be punished by standing at the wall, then after that, he would go to school. Hmm, Madam Yin couldn’t see this, and she had to scare Qi Jia enough to stop him from tattling.

After seeing Ye Xinyan’s smugness, Zhou Biyao’s eyes darted around, filled with displeasure. She really was well-behaved and sensible. Although she did not enjoy joking around with the young ladies in the boudoir, she never caused trouble for her family, and she was diligent in her studies. Why did her mother always chide her for this fault and that?

And someone like Sister Qi... Zhou Biyao looked at Ye Xinyan with disdain once again. Sister Qi was simply disobedient. Even if Nanny Jin advised her, Sister Qi would agree, but she would only pay lip service, right? How could the wife of the heir apparent be so proud? And to say Sister Qi was smart and cute!

Although Madam Yin was ill-matched in her marriage and never quite pleased in Ye Hongyang’s eyes, as the wife of Duke An’s heir apparent and the daughter dearly loved by the Marquis of Zhongyong, her status among the capital’s noble ladies was not to be overlooked.

So when Madam Liang came this time, one reason was to send her daughter to serve Miss Ye, but another important reason was to deliberately forge a good relationship with the wife of the heir apparent.

For family members of officials with no strong foundations like themselves, it was hard to truly integrate into the circle of the capital’s upper-class ladies. If they could establish a good relationship with the wife of Duke An’s heir apparent, it would be much easier for her to mingle with the noble ladies of the capital when her husband came to the city. Interaction among female relatives could greatly benefit her children’s futures and her husband’s career.

This was a stroke of luck for the Zhou family, to have the connection with Biyao and the wife of the heir apparent traveling all the way to Yuyuan Prefecture. Without these two factors, even if she wanted to socialize with the wife of the heir, the latter might not have looked her way.

Hence, amid Madam Liang’s deliberate efforts and Madam Yin’s kind treatment of her daughter’s best friend’s mother, the two ladies got along harmoniously. As each had a daughter who was not quite ordinary, their relationship grew even closer.

Madam Liang stayed for five days in Qingyuan County, watching her daughter sketch gears and various components, witnessing the magical applications of pulley systems assembled with different numbers of pulleys by her daughter’s hand. It was with great reluctance that she bid farewell to Madam Yin and set off back to Yuyuan City.

Well, she would let her daughter take care of her own affairs.

Zhao Gang held a position in the army, and although he was on official business this time, he could not stay too long. In early March, after arranging his twenty guards and leaving four skilled hands behind, he took the rest and headed back to the capital.

Before leaving, Zhao Gang gave numerous cautions and reminders to Ye Xinyan, insisting that her mother’s life had not been easy. She was now outside the capital and unfamiliar with her surroundings, so he urged her to take good care of her mother.

This prompted Ye Xinyan to roll her eyes repeatedly, "Uncle Zhao, please rest assured, that’s my mother and I will definitely take good care of her. If you’re so worried, you should have asked my uncle for a long-term assignment before leaving to stay here. That would have been much better. Not only could you have cared for my mother and me, but you could also have kept Guan He company for drinking. I would have had much less to worry about."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Gang furrowed his brow. "How can Miss Cousin be so rude to Guan He? Weren’t you calling him Big Brother Guan just fine before? Guan He is one of the few skilled individuals in the world, deserving of respect from you and everyone else. You can’t be like this."

"Alright, alright, you’re right, it is Big Brother Guan. With Uncle Zhao keeping Big Brother Guan company while drinking, Big Brother Guan’s mood will surely get much better. That should settle it, right? I’m thinking of Big Brother Guan here, trapping such a righteous man in such a small place with no close friends to socialize with; Big Brother Guan must be feeling miserable."

The actual situation was that if someone accompanied Guan He for drinks, Guan He wouldn’t have much time to badmouth Zi Ning or turn her against others. Although Zi Ning was a sincere and kind-hearted child, she couldn’t withstand Guan He’s constant plotting to lure her away.

It was that rascal who was shameless, not her being rude.

However, she couldn’t openly say this—if she angered Guan He enough to make a scene, directly insult Jiang Yifan’s dignity, and then abduct Zi Ning on the pretext, she would have put herself at a great disadvantage.

Zhao Gang replied, "Miss Cousin is right, cooping Guan He up in such a small place does seem a bit unfair to him."

A true man should indeed live openly and freely, socializing with close friends, fully embracing life’s pleasures. Zhao Gang very much agreed with Ye Xinyan’s statement, "I really can’t stay away from my duties. Just bringing you here and staying for over a month has already been an exception. It’s even more impossible for me to stay here indefinitely."

Ye Xinyan rolled her eyes at him. Tsk, she was merely voicing her complaints. Did Uncle Zhao really think she wanted him to stay here? What was he thinking, how could that be possible?

Uncle Zhao had grown up with her uncle and watched her mother grow up. To maintain her mother’s reputation, it was essential for Zhao Gang and her mother to keep their distance; that would make things easier in the future.

If Zhao Gang stayed here, and later her mother remarried, wouldn’t there be unclear rumors about the time her mother spent with Zhao Gang? What had been a clean slate would seem like there had been something untoward all along.

When one does things, one must ensure there are no leaks; you can’t give people the chance to gossip. Even if Madam Yin and Ye Hongyang divorced because of Ye Hongyang’s scoundrel behavior, it certainly wouldn’t be because Madam Yin had turned her affections elsewhere or been immoral beforehand.

"I understand, Uncle Zhao has military duties, how could you always delay outside, I get it. I’ll take good care of my mother, you don’t have to worry. When you return, please give a message of safety to my grandparents and uncle. Here we are all well, with the protection of Duke An’s Mansion and the many guards you left behind, and Big Brother Guan too. It’s impossible for us not to be safe."

Ye Xinyan continued, "Also, this time I have prepared two whole blocks of cheese specifically for Uncle Zhao. They are both aged for a long time, preserved perfectly, and are of excellent quality. You can enjoy them with your brothers when grilling meat—enough for a large group to enjoy many times over."

Zhao Gang hesitated, "Cheese is expensive, two whole blocks must cost a lot of silver, and this isn’t your own business. Is it really okay to explain this to Prince Yu?"

"It has nothing to do with Prince Yu, I’ve included these in my own share," Ye Xinyan explained.

"But as an unmarried woman, having more silver by your side always adds some security. You should take the cheese back. I’ll only bring the one from Marquis Zhongyong’s Mansion back with me. That way, my brothers and I will certainly have a taste."

This time Ye Xinyan truly gave Zhao Gang an eye roll, "How much would that split into, enough to fill the gaps between teeth?"

Jiang Yifan, who was waiting on the side to see them off, couldn’t help but speak up after listening for so long, "Uncle Zhao, rest assured, whether or not Ah Yan has silver by her side, she is always secure. And she doesn’t care about these few blocks of cheese, so just take them with you."

What does her being secure have to do with you? Both Zhao Gang and Ye Xinyan turned to look at Jiang Yifan simultaneously.

Although Madam Yin could now treat Jiang Yifan with kindness, Zhao Gang still harbored resentment towards him for his behavior surrounding the divorce. The Zhou family’s affairs always seemed to have this young man meddling in them; he was certainly no gentleman.