She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 663 - 661: The Nephew from Her Maternal Family is a Craftsman in the Ministry of Works

Chapter 663: Chapter 661: The Nephew from Her Maternal Family is a Craftsman in the Ministry of Works

It was time to go home.

Whenever Lady Zhao thought of this, her heart would fill with warmth. Honestly, whether it be Clear Water Village, Qingyuan County, or the capital, in Lady Zhao’s eyes, none compared to her hometown. The capital might be prosperous, but that was a place for the powerful and influential to enjoy, hardly relating to ordinary folks like them.

Even the Pastry House owned by Madam Yin, Ye Zi’s mother, which Madam Yin had invited her to visit twice, wasn’t really a place to eat—it was a place to burn money, definitely not somewhere meant for commoners like them.

She felt more at home in Hezhou. She was familiar with that place, which was filled with her fellow townspeople and family. Everyone knew each other well.

Her son had made something of himself, and their family had grown wealthy, which was also a glory for the Wong Residence. Only in their hometown would everyone know that she hadn’t suffered all those years in vain. Unlike in the capital, where the streets were filled with strangers, rich folks, and high-ranking officials, no matter to what extent Ah Qiao succeeded, no one would envy him.

So, when she got her hands on the more than seven thousand silver notes and three hundred taels of cash silver that Wong Qiao had brought back, her happiness grew manifold.

She had never seen so much silver before; that stack of silver notes was indeed an abundance of silver.

"Ah Qiao, are you sure about this? Did your uncle and Ye Zi really calculate one-tenth of the Qi family’s fortune for you?"

How did she end up asking that? She hadn’t intended to say such a thing at all. Even if the Qi family hadn’t given much, it was still better than nothing. Lady Zhao was momentarily stunned, so overjoyed she didn’t even know what she was saying.

Wong Qiao, upon hearing his mother’s question, felt rather displeased. She really dared to ask. The Qi family had wealth beyond counting, but that had little to do with him.

"The Construction Industry is just a fraction of my uncle’s income. Right now, the most profitable business for the Qi family is the cheese business, an enterprise my uncle started with a lord before my arrival. There’s also the Mechanical Workshop. When it was being established, a large capital investment was needed, and uncle joined forces with the lord and Lord Jiang to manage it."

Wong Qiao elaborated a bit more, lest his mother bring up the fact that he once worked at the Mechanical Workshop—as that had been a normal job.

"Oh," Lady Zhao replied, truthfully not a greedy person. The dealings that had nothing to do with Ah Qiao, even if he had contributed daily, were still just Ah Qiao helping his uncle, so naturally, she wouldn’t insist on counting money for that.

With the silver in hand, Lady Zhao began to plan. If they were to go home on the tenth day of the first month of the lunar year, she needed to prepare all the gifts before the end of the year; otherwise, by the fifteenth day of the first month, the shops would close, leaving no place to buy gifts.

If she didn’t bring back some rare and valuable treasures from her visit to the bustling capital, people might think that her family couldn’t make it in the capital and had to return, or that they were still as destitute as before.

Lady Zhao listed the relatives and friends back home and roughly planned the various items she needed. Starting from the twentieth day of the twelfth lunar month, she spent every day wandering the marketplace, selecting the gifts for her friends and relatives.

During her two months’ stay in the capital, Lady Zhao, having no one to chat with daily, often took Xiuqin out with her. It wasn’t that she hadn’t seen the world, but the capital was a place towards which all subjects of the Great Xia Dynasty aspired, so naturally, she had to see and experience it.

In the past, she had only wandered around without much shopping, but now, she put her accumulated memories to use.

On the twenty-seventh day of the final month of the lunar year, Lady Zhao and Xiuqin were looking at fabrics in a cloth store, with Xiao Cui following behind, carrying a bundle containing several fine embroidered items bought from a neighboring embroidery store—a beauty Hezhou did not possess.

The Cloth Shopkeeper of the store Lady Zhao frequented had satisfied her, as the shop afforded space and class. Moreover, the owner was always enthusiastic and never looked down on her as an outsider.

The cloth shop only dealt in various types of fine cloth and silks, with an abundance of varieties and colors. Now, as the New Year approached, most people had made their purchases, so there were only a few sporadic customers in the shop, and several attendants were enthusiastically welcoming them.

The Cloth Shopkeeper was a middle-aged man wearing a gray robe. He recommended a piece of indigo-dyed silk to Lady Zhao, "Madam, take a look, this is genuine satin-damask. Feel the texture, look at the color. If it weren’t for the fact that the market is about to close for the holiday, you wouldn’t be able to get this price."

Lady Zhao then looked at the piece of blue silk next to it and discussed with Xiuqin, "What do you think, Xiuqin? Which color would suit your father and second uncle? "

Xiuqin glanced at them and suggested, "Why don’t we get one of each, so my dad and second uncle can choose what they like?"

Lady Zhao herself thought that both were good, and the price was indeed cheaper than when she had looked previously.

"Shopkeeper, these two colors, I’ll take enough material for two long robes each."

"Alright, Madam, please wait a moment." With a wooden ruler, the shopkeeper began to measure out enough silk to make two long robes.

Before he could cut the silk, a woman next to them said, "Madam, I hear you’re planning to buy cloth for two long robes for two people. Why not choose two additional colors? It will give your family more choices and bring them extra joy."

Lady Zhao turned to look and saw a middle-aged woman with a slightly plump figure; from her clothing and jewelry, she appeared to be the wife of a wealthy family. Behind her followed two maids, about sixteen or seventeen years old, their dress and adornment also quite exquisite.

Lady Zhao smiled and replied, "Thank you. I find these two colors more suitable for men in their forties; it’s really quite difficult to make another choice."

The woman laughed and said, "When it’s for family to bring back home, it’s always good to put in some thought to ensure their satisfaction. Look at these deep lake blue, treasure blue, gray, and deep brown colors—they all suit middle-aged men."

From inside the counter, the shopkeeper chimed in with a smile, "That’s Madam Qian, the proprietor of Clear Wind Inn across the alley. She’s always so helpful, eager to give advice whenever she notices something amiss."

Lady Zhao hastily expressed her thanks, "I see, I didn’t mean to conceal that I’ve been somewhat overwhelmed shopping for the rare goods of the capital to take home these past few days and hadn’t noticed the other fabrics. I will take Madam Qian’s advice and pick two more colors."

Seeing that Madam Qian’s maids also carried fabric wrapped by the shop, Lady Zhao casually asked, "Madam Qian, why are you purchasing fabrics so late as well? There wouldn’t be enough time to make clothes for the New Year."

Madam Qian clearly wasn’t in a hurry to leave and replied with a smile, "My sister-in-law came to visit relatives, and she needs to return home after the New Year. It would be inconvenient to shop after the holiday, so we chose this time to come. Besides, with the New Year goods being sold off, it’s easier to bargain. It looks like you are also buying gifts for relatives, aren’t you?"

Lady Zhao, who had already chosen treasure blue and gray, instructed the shopkeeper to measure out the material for one finished garment of each color, responding, "My son and I will also be returning to our hometown after the New Year, bringing some gifts for family and friends."

"Oh, are you visiting relatives in the capital too?" she asked.

"Not quite; my son knows a bit about construction. We came to the capital to help his uncle with some work, which should be completed in a couple of days. We have businesses to attend to at home, so we’ll head back after the first month of the lunar year." Their home was not like the Qi family, who would live off others without contributing; Ah Qiao had been busy all this time in the capital.

"Construction, you say? My nephew from my maternal side works as a craftsman in the Mechanical Workshop, although he specializes in machinery."

"Is that so..."