She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 577 - 575: Guilty Conscience

Chapter 577: Chapter 575: Guilty Conscience

"What on earth is going on, out with it!" Lady Zhao urged, somewhat frantic and on the verge of panic, "Don’t tell me just because you don’t wish to marry Zhou Biyao, Miss Ye has been making things difficult for you? That’s outrageous! Choosing a bride is surely our own family affair, naturally we should make the decision ourselves. Can such a matter really be forced upon someone?"

Lady Zhao looked at Wong Qiao in angry shock as he remained silent. Realizing she had guessed correctly, she raged, "You’ve helped her out before, how can she treat you like this? Tomorrow I will go to your Eldest Uncle Qi and have a clear talk, asking him to properly manage his granddaughter. Even if she’s the Duke’s Mansion’s Miss Ye, your Eldest Uncle Qi is the grandfather she has acknowledged, and she ought to give him that much face."

Wong Qiao shook his head in dejection and said to Lady Zhao, "Mother, please don’t make things difficult for Eldest Uncle Qi. You haven’t been here for long and are unfamiliar with Eldest Uncle Qi and Ye Zi’s circumstances. I’ve heard Eldest Uncle Qi mention more than once that back then, he was alone and destitute, with barely about ten taels of silver to his name and so disheartened he thought he wouldn’t live much longer, let alone return to his hometown.

"It was Ye Zi who acknowledged Eldest Uncle Qi as her grandfather and supported him in returning to his home. Along the way, they got over a hundred taels of silver from Lord Jiang, bought a donkey cart, and just about managed to get back to Clear Water Village. It was also with that bit of over a hundred taels of silver that they started doing business, and the family began to make a living. Even the construction industry that Eldest Uncle Qi runs is supported by Ye Zi. If you approach Eldest Uncle Qi, you’ll only hurt the affection between Eldest Uncle Qi and Miss Ye."

Lady Zhao frowned and said, "You are too honest for your own good, child. No matter how capable Ye Zi is, she’s still a woman. I’ve heard from Quan Xi at Fourth Uncle Cheung’s place that those tools used in the construction industry, and the mechanical workshop that’s now so prominent in the capital, were all supported and set up by you. You are the chief manager, you’ve put great effort into the Qi family.

"And then there’s your Eldest Uncle Qi. How prestigious was the construction industry when your father was there? That was all propped up by your Eldest Uncle Qi’s own strength. What does Miss Ye, a woman, have to do with the construction industry? That’s all your Eldest Uncle Qi’s skill."

Wong Qiao shook his head despondently, "Mother, you don’t know the real situation. Without me, Ye Zi could still instruct other craftsmen at work. Without Ye Zi’s guidance, I would only work as a skillful craftsman in those civilian construction firms, earning just enough to get by.

"As for matters related to machinery, let’s not even talk about it. Have you seen the village kids coming over occasionally to borrow Brother Jia’s bicycle? That was made by Ye Zi and Eldest Uncle Qi before I came here. Eldest Uncle Qi is neither a carpenter nor a mechanical craftsman; the key lies with Ye Zi."

Lady Zhao was stunned for a long while, struggling to process what she was hearing before speaking angrily, "But she has no right to meddle in your marriage! Are you saying that she can do such a disrespectful thing, and I can’t even speak to your Eldest Uncle Qi about it?"

Wong Qiao shook his head, "Why don’t you understand? Now, not only does Eldest Uncle Qi’s construction industry depend on Ye Zi, but the Qi family’s two children are also relying on Ye Zi. Brother Jia and Sanshun only started flourishing after following Ye Zi. Do you expect Eldest Uncle Qi to have a fall-out with Ye Zi over me, and risk ruining Brother Jia and Sanshun’s prospects?"

As Wong Qiao spoke, he was silently apologizing to Ye Xinyan in his heart. Although it was something they had agreed upon, to let the matchmaker understand the situation and ultimately compromise, making Ye Zi out to be the villain truly made him uncomfortable.

Lady Zhao thought of Qi Younian and then of Qi Sanshun, Qi Jia, and the vast Qi family business. She looked around at the suddenly desolate and pitiful figure of her son and nephew in the room, her mood turning somber and silent.

Seeing his mother cornered to this extent, Wong Qiao also felt miserable and simply bowed his head, following in Lady Zhao’s silent demeanor.

Xiuqin’s eyes were rolling around as she looked at Lady Zhao and then at Wong Qiao, filled with immense anxiety.

But seeing her aunt’s extremely upset expression, she dared not speak up. Moreover, considering her place in her aunt’s heart, even if she were to speak, it would carry no weight.

What should I do? Do I really have to give in to my aunt’s stubbornness and give up the great future ahead of me to return to that small village in Hezhou? To continue living a life where I have to eat husks and have insufficient meals?

Ever since my cousin came to work for the Qi family in Yuyuan Prefecture, my aunt’s family’s livelihood had gradually improved. But for my family, even with my aunt’s help, we could only afford to eat husks without starving. As for anything else, there was no need to even think about it.

There was no way my family could compare with my aunt’s, and even less so with the Qi family. Our lives were worlds apart. If I married my cousin, I would have to return to the countryside, but I would rather not marry at all. As long as I could stay with the Qi family and continue living this rich and comfortable life, I would be content.

This uncomfortable silence lasted for who knows how long before Lady Zhao finally asked, with a rough voice, "What did Miss Ye do to you? Did she show you a long face or directly chase you away?"

Wong Qiao stayed silent for a while longer before answering, "Neither, Ye Zi just handed over all the work I was in charge of to others and hasn’t given me anything to live on. At this rate, it won’t be long before I’m no longer the chief manager, nor ’Third Master Wong’ anymore."

Lady Zhao was somewhat surprised; she had thought Miss Ye must have treated her son harshly in words and deeds, and that her son, unable to swallow this grievance, wanted to return to Hezhou. She hadn’t expected Miss Ye to have taken the work right out of her son’s hands.

"You, all those workshops for making tools, weren’t they managed by you, overseeing and instructing the work? With you set aside, how could others handle it?"

Wong Qiao replied helplessly, "Mother, didn’t I say before that without me, Ye Zi still guides others, and they can make the machinery according to Ye Zi’s ideas just the same. They were only giving me a chance because of my eldest uncle, and out of respect for my father."

Lady Zhao, so angry that she was close to tears which she hadn’t shed in a long time, objected, "If they know to respect your father, then why, just because of a woman he hasn’t been around for long, don’t they care about your father’s untimely death, nor that your father and Eldest Uncle Qi were life-and-death friends. Does she even know what’s close and what’s distant anymore?"

Wong Qiao felt guilty upon thinking of what would come next. He glanced at Lady Zhao and said in a low voice, "Brother Cheung advised Ye Zi, but Ye Zi wouldn’t listen. She said, since you don’t care about the future of the Wong family or father’s spirit in the afterlife, why should she, an outsider with no connection to us, bother herself with these matters."

"When have I ever not cared..." Lady Zhao’s words trailed off halfway, as she remembered Zhou Biyao and the power of the Prefecture Governor Zhou’s family, the words she was about to say were hard to continue and she stopped abruptly.

Wong Qiao bowed his head, unwilling to witness the pitiful sight of his mother being manipulated by all those people.

"Miss Ye is trying to vent for Miss Zhou, isn’t she? Does Miss Zhou truly have intentions for you? Is she even coaxing Miss Ye to provoke disaffection between your Eldest Uncle, Fourth Uncle, and their deceased seven brothers’ son because she cannot marry you?" Lady Zhao asked with a mix of grief and indignation.

Wong Qiao, embarrassed, tugged at the corner of his mouth and answered, "No, Second Miss Zhou hasn’t said anything. It was Ye Zi who said, Mother, you’re not a good mother, nor will you be a good mother-in-law, and going further from that, not necessarily... a good person." Wong Qiao clenched his molars, forcing himself to finish the sentence. By the time he got to the last two words, it felt like he was almost suffocating.