She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 556 - 554: Niece from the Maternal Family

Chapter 556: Chapter 554: Niece from the Maternal Family

Ye Xinyan stared wide-eyed and speechless as the maids and old women servants escorted the two people back. It took her a moment before she remembered to lower her head and ask Qi Jiaer, "Qi Jia, don’t you think Sister Zhou looks more like aunt’s daughter?"

As the crowd that had come to see them off gradually dispersed, only Qi Jia and Qi Sanshun remained standing with her. When she asked the question, Qi Jiaer, plump and wrapped up by Madam Yin, cheerfully said, "Nanny Qiao and Nanny Liu said that I also resemble aunt’s son."

Ye Xinyan immediately glared, her eyes wide; so, she was the only one not related by blood? This kid, definitely not her real brother, wasn’t close to her at all!

She felt like thumping him on the head to see if the little tyke could take it, but she reconsidered. Her mother treated Qi Jiaer like her own son, which was probably for the best, considering he was much more dependable than Ye Hongyang’s son.

"That’s," Qi Sanshun was chilled by Ye Xinyan’s icy glare and hurriedly explained, rescuing himself and Qi Jiaer from the fate of being reprimanded, "Eldest cousin, in fact, Madam prefers you a bit more. It’s just that Madam has a kind heart and just now, seeing Second Miss Zhou so upset, she went above and beyond to comfort her."

"You’re pretty smart, kid," Ye Xinyan turned away, irritably thinking, when had she become so irrational, to be bothered by such a trivial matter?

......

Two days after Wong Qiao left, Qi Younian’s people who were sent to Hezhou brought back Lady Zhao, Wong Qiao’s mother, to Clear Water Village.

After Madame Liang, Zhou Biyao’s mother, inquired indirectly about Wong Qiao’s ancestry and family members to Madam Yin, Qi Younian and Cheung Wusi discussed it and decided that since Wong Qiao was not young anymore, and since Madame Liang seemed interested, they would bring Lady Zhao over. One reason was to finalize the marriage between Wong Qiao and Zhou Biyao, and the other was to reunite mother and son, allowing Wong Qiao to fulfill his filial duties in front of his mother.

Upon hearing from the guards who had arrived ahead of time that Lady Zhao’s carriage was entering the village, Cheung Wusi and Ye Xinyan went out to meet her, while Madam Yin waited in the reception room with Zhou Biyao and Qi Younian.

Ye Xinyan had a pretty good impression of Lady Zhao. Wong Qiao hardly ever praised his own mother, but the reviews from Qi Younian and Cheung Wusi were very high.

Wong Qi was imprisoned at a young age and afterward sent to a border pass. Ten years later, only Qi Younian and Cheung Wusi returned to see Lady Zhao, bringing her some money and goods.

At that time, Lady Zhao, the wife of a condemned official, managed to cultivate two acres of poor land, relying on needlework to make a living. Not only did she give birth to Wong Qiao, but she also raised him to be strong and healthy. Her strength and perseverance commanded respect. Just based on these things, Ye Xinyan held great respect for this wife and mother.

The people sent to Hezhou included Cheung Quanxi, the eldest son of Cheung Wusi, and four bodyguards from the Qi family, as well as Old Madam Ding from Prince Yu’s Mansion, partly because it was inconvenient for Lady Zhao, a woman, to travel with a group of men, and also because Old Madam Ding was skilled in martial arts and could protect Lady Zhao in case of any accidents on the road.

Ye Xinyan, walking beside Cheung Wusi, saw Cheung Quanxi riding a horse at the front, followed by several guards and two horse carriages, approaching at a leisurely pace.

Presently, Clear Water Village was no longer the same as it was three years ago. Back then, the village was remote, and even in a year and a half, you might not see a single stranger. Now, there was an endless stream of people coming and going to the second branch of the Qi family, and the village children were used to it. Not to mention other children, even Qi Jia and Qi Sanshun no longer showed interest in accompanying visitors who came to the village.

Song Ping opened the courtyard gate early. Seeing Cheung Quanxi and his party arriving, he quickly led two young servants to welcome them through the main gate.

Cheung Quanxi dismounted early and went up to pay his respects to Cheung Wusi, saying, "Father, we have returned."

Cheung Wusi saw that although his eldest son was covered in dust from the road, he looked spirited and knew there had been no issues on the way. He said, "Was the journey alright? Alright, ask your Seventh Aunt to disembark and come inside to rest for a while."

Cheung Quanxi responded and waited for the carriage to come to a steady halt in the courtyard before saying to the carriage, "Seventh Aunt, we have arrived." The coachman placed the footstool down.

The cotton curtain of the carriage was lifted, and Old Madam Ding was the first to get off, followed closely by a young girl. The girl appeared to be about fifteen or sixteen, with delicate features, dressed in a newly made pink cotton padded jacket. After stepping down from the carriage, she quickly glanced over the people in the courtyard; upon meeting Ye Xinyan’s surprised gaze, she quickly lowered her head and turned to help Lady Zhao alight from the carriage.

When Ye Xinyan saw the girl, she couldn’t help but feel startled and looked at Cheung Wusi and Cheung Quanxi in surprise. Cheung Wusi was also puzzled, and when Cheung Quanxi met Ye Xinyan’s puzzled look, he smiled awkwardly with a helpless expression on his face, but it was not a good time to say anything.

Lady Zhao, holding the girl’s hand, stepped off the footstool and onto the ground. She was busy paying respects to Cheung Wusi, "Younger sister-in-law pays respect to Fourth Brother. In this deep winter, I fear I’ve troubled Big Brother and Fourth Brother."

Cheung Wusi quickly motioned as if to help her, "Younger Sister-in-Law, there’s no need to be polite. Having traveled such a long distance, you must be very tired. Better go inside and rest. We can talk after we sit down inside." Saying this, Cheung Wusi glanced at the girl who was helping Lady Zhao.

However, Lady Zhao did not immediately introduce the girl. Straightening up, she then looked at Ye Xinyan with a respectful yet reserved demeanor and bowed slightly, saying, "This must be the eldest young miss of Big Brother’s household. I have seen the Miss."

According to Qi Younian, Lady Zhao was supposed to be younger than Madam Yin. However, looking at her now, Lady Zhao’s face seemed marred by the hardships of life, appearing more than a decade older than Madam Yin. Perhaps the widowhood was the cause, her hair was styled like an elderly person’s, meticulously neat, and she wore an indigo blue long coat with matching trousers.

The whole person seemed overly respectful, giving Ye Xinyan the impression that Lady Zhao didn’t seem to be a very approachable person.

Ye Xinyan quickly returned the gesture, smiling, "Seventh Grandma is an elder, we must not disrupt the rules of seniority and respect. With such formalities, your great-niece cannot shoulder them."

Ye Xinyan said this, annoyed, she glanced at Cheung Quanxi. It was all Cheung Quanxi’s making; at his age of thirty, he was still addressing Lady Zhao as Seventh Aunt, and so she had no choice but to follow the rules. At least, given Lady Zhao’s elderly appearance, acting as her great-niece balanced things out a bit.

After paying respects to Ye Xinyan, Lady Zhao then introduced the girl beside her to Cheung Wusi and Ye Xinyan, "This is my niece from my maternal family, Xiuqin. Ah Qiao has been out working, and it was Xiuqin who kept me company." Saying so, she said to Xiuqin, "Quickly pay your respects to the young miss, and this is Uncle Four."

"Rise, there’s no need to be so courteous," Ye Xinyan aided Xiuqin to stand and looked at Cheung Wusi. The old master and her own grandfather had welcomed Lady Zhao partly for a family reunion with Wong Qiao and also to hasten Wong Qiao’s marriage to Zhou Biyao, as Wong Qiao was already of marrying age. But now, Lady Zhao had brought along her niece – cough, cough, cough – surely it wouldn’t be such a cliché and melodramatic turn of events?

Ye Xinyan hoped that Lady Zhao had only brought the girl out for a warm meal and shelter, and it wasn’t as she feared.

Nanny Liu was shrewd enough to guess what was going on by observing the situation. Seeing that the atmosphere was a bit awkward, she quickly stepped forward to smooth things over and ushered Cheung Wusi and Lady Zhao inside, "Old Master Cheung, it’s cold outside, let’s have Mrs. Wong come inside first. It would be better to sit down inside and talk. Mrs. Wong, please come in."