She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 665 - 663: To Have Actually Forgotten

Chapter 665: Chapter 663: To Have Actually Forgotten

The two, each with their servants, sat down in a corner of the teahouse, under the gaze of a few scattered patrons.

Madam Qian had resigned herself to their fate and didn’t ask the tea master of the teahouse to attend to them, instead instructing her maid, "Go, get a pot of Cloud Mist tea."

Lady Zhao quickly said, "No, that won’t do, we can’t have Madam Qian treat us. Let Xiuqin go. We’re not familiar with the rules of the capital, just showing her the way will suffice."

Madam Qian didn’t decline, "You lead Miss Xiuqin there."

Lady Zhao didn’t care if the tea had arrived or not, and sitting across from Madam Qian, she leaned forward, eagerly asking in a low voice, "Madam Qian, with your vast knowledge, could you tell me, how could my Ah Qiao properly run a Construction Industry?"

Madam Qian’s face showed difficulty, "Didn’t I just say, there really is no way. That, didn’t the construction company that Steward Wong was with before have quite a large scale? I think it’s better to stay there, being the chief manager of a large construction firm is also quite respectable."

Lady Zhao’s expression darkened, and she spoke hesitantly, "Ah Qiao is skilled with his hands, and I was thinking, if he worked for himself, it should be somewhat better."

"Oh." Seeing that Lady Zhao skirted the issue of the previous construction company, Madam Qian didn’t continue that line of questioning. Pondering, she said, "To my knowledge, artisans with good skills are mostly employed by employers, earning a high wage. Going into business for themselves... very few do that, and those people with substantial wealth won’t allow a skilled artisan to compete with their own business, right?"

Lady Zhao grabbed Madam Qian’s hand, "Madam Qian, with your extensive experience, please think again, are there really none who rely solely on their own fine skills to run a Construction Industry and make money with a workshop?" She stared into Madam Qian’s eyes, full of hope and urgency.

Madam Qian shook her head, "To my knowledge, there are none. Even for those in commerce and trade, there are landlords and the gentry, whose family wealth is accumulated bit by bit, sometimes over several generations. With wealth and reputation built up, fewer people will have designs on their property."

"Even with a skill that is unmatched in all the land like my Ah Qiao has, he can’t run his own Construction Industry?" Lady Zhao’s voice was even more urgent, hoping to hear an affirmative answer.

Madam Qian continued shaking her head, "I’m afraid you won’t like to hear this, but the better the skill, the more it attracts attention. It’s unstable."

"Accumulation bit by bit," Lady Zhao let go of Madam Qian’s hand, muttering to herself.

Other families accumulated wealth to pass on to the next generation, but her family relied on Ah Qiao’s craftsmanship. Wealth and business could be accumulated, but how could you accumulate craftsmanship? What if the next generation didn’t possess such skills?

Madam Qian tentatively suggested, "Let your family’s Steward Wong also find an employer. With his skills, he should be able to earn a good wage. Gradually accumulate some property, he is still young, and after several decades, it is likely he will have saved a substantial amount of land."

Lady Zhao looked disheartened, nodding her head, "Yes, yes, buying property. That’s right, buying property." Indeed, with the more than seven thousand silver she had in hand, she could buy two to three hundred acres of good farmland.

But that wasn’t what she had in mind. Moreover, based on what Madam Qian said, this property had to be bought gradually, not in large quantities all at once, or it could lead to plots to seize the family assets. Just like what happened to Ah Qiao’s father, who ended up ruining his family and losing his life.

Madam Qian personally poured more tea for Lady Zhao, saying, "In fact, if the main family isn’t too harsh, staying in the original business isn’t too bad. Being a chief manager for many years, one can build up social connections. After ten or twenty years, when people recognize Steward Wong for his exceptional talents, maybe he can start his own business."

Lady Zhao’s mouth opened several times, but she could not utter a word.

Miss Xiuqin beside her kept her head bowed deeply. The main family not too harsh? Old Master Qi and Miss Ye weren’t simply not too harsh; they were too tolerant, treating her cousin and aunt like family.

There was nothing else to say after that. Having run out of small talk and finding that Lady Zhao remained distracted, Madam Qian became impatient and took the opportunity to leave hastily.

Lady Zhao returned to the Qi Family Courtyard, heartbroken, not even noticing Qi Younian who was standing in the courtyard, as she walked dazedly toward the back.

Following Lady Zhao, Xiuqin hastily bowed in respect to Qi Younian before entering the room.

Qi Younian watched the departing figures of Lady Zhao and her party of three, filled with surprise. What was happening? Could it be the start of the malicious plan that Ye Zi had muttered about in secret?

Was this plan designed to terrify Lady Zhao into losing her composure, to be utterly helpless? Surely not?

When he returned to Wong Qiao in the evening, he naturally noticed something was off with Lady Zhao. She had been fine at breakfast, looking exceptionally vibrant and full of energy, ready to go out and stock up on goods.

Without even stopping to wash his hands and face, Steward Wong hurriedly sat beside Lady Zhao on the kang and took her hand, which felt ice cold, "Mother, what’s wrong with you? Do you feel unwell? Should we invite a doctor to have a look?"

Leaning against the piled cushions, Lady Zhao weakly said, "It’s nothing, just a bit tired. I’ll be fine after some rest."

Steward Wong didn’t believe that Lady Zhao was just tired and asked Xiuqin, "Did my mother dress improperly and catch a cold?"

"No, no," Xiuqin stammered in response, the big sister truly wasn’t ill, it was just an unhappy heart, her full hopes shattered, "But it might be good to invite a doctor to have a look." At least they could prescribe a couple of doses of chest opening and qi regulating medicine.

"No need, no need," Lady Zhao quickly sat up, took hold of Steward Wong’s arm, and turning her head, scolded Xiuqin, "What nonsense are you spouting? Do I look like I need medicine?"

"But your complexion really doesn’t look good," Steward Wong said, puzzled.

"Ah, today I went to buy fabric and ran into a landlady of an inn..." Lady Zhao repeated to herself that this was her own son, and there was nothing she couldn’t tell him. She then recounted in detail the encounter with Madam Qian that day.

After Lady Zhao finished speaking, she looked eagerly at Steward Wong, hoping he would say something.

However, Steward Wong just stared back at her in shock, unable to say anything for a long time.

It took quite a while for Lady Zhao to find another topic and then she asked, "Ah Qiao, don’t you understand either? According to what she said, does that mean we commoners can’t have a good life?"

Steward Wong was silent for a while before speaking with difficulty, "My father lost his life because of this, I thought you remembered."

Lady Zhao’s face, which had just begun to relax, became even paler, "I thought..."

Steward Wong sighed inwardly. How could he expect his mother to have forgotten such a thing? It was a true case of family ruin and personal tragedy.

"You might have forgotten, but when my fourth uncle received a letter from my eldest uncle, it said that we should take advantage of Sixth Master Rong and Lord Jiang being in Clear Water County to quickly expand the Construction Industry, accumulate wealth as soon as possible, and win over connections. My eldest uncle dared to restart the old business because he had the support of Prince Wang."

Lady Zhao leaned back powerlessly against the cushions, and after a long time, she asked, "So what should we do?"

"Return to Hezhou," Steward Wong said in astonishment. "Our plan has always been to return to Hezhou."

"But..." Lady Zhao raised her head to look at Steward Wong standing by the kang. But what for, to return?