She Became A Downfall Noble Lady
Chapter 745 - 743 Do You Know About Wong Qiao’s Defection

Chapter 745: Chapter 743 Do You Know About Wong Qiao’s Defection

Ye Xinyan had no sense of being envied or hated; just as Duke An thought: She truly focused on the lost profits of half her investment in the railway project, which caused her great heartache.

That wasn’t money of her own; it was old Master Qi Younian’s money, the future inheritance for Qi Jiaer.

As for the kindness in the imperial decree, she could only scoff at it. She would rather believe it was the Old Emperor’s whim after finding some novelty, probably just because he found her way of doing things different and interesting.

Duke An, with much tact, didn’t mention supplementing half a year’s salary to Ye Xinyan, and his granddaughter was also sensible enough to suppress the pain of losing half her profits, greatly comforting the old master and bringing much relief to Duke An.

After consoling Duke An, Ye Xinyan began to worry about herself. How would she explain this to her grandfather? At his age in his sixties, he was leading others to work in tough conditions, trying to earn some wealth for her and her brother. But because of her moment of righteous indignation, she had made her grandfather lose half a year’s hard-earned profit. What kind of granddaughter was she... Could she be any more of a failure?

She knew that her grandfather, upon hearing she had been so maligned, would not blame her for the way she handled it. He would not want her to be splashed with filthy slander, even if it meant losing more silver.

But she couldn’t bear it in her heart; the money that had been lost also belonged to Qi Jiaer’s inheritance. Thinking of this filled her with distress.

Dammit, it was all that Old Emperor’s fault. Just because he was the emperor, it didn’t mean he could act so thoughtlessly.

After a night of tossing and turning, Ye Xinyan decided that since the Old Emperor was beyond her reach, instead of stewing over whether he acted properly or not, it would be better to focus on developing the market in the capital.

Besides what Steward Zhang had said about building estates, she should take on one or two big projects to make up for her grandfather’s lost earnings—that was what truly mattered.

The next day, Ye Xinyan, full of fighting spirit, was about to go out when she was stopped by the old woman servant at the Second Gate.

Seeing Ye Xinyan heading out, the old woman servant hurriedly came forward to bow, "I have seen the Second Miss. Second Miss, there is a young lady with the surname Zhou outside, she claims to be an old friend of yours and has come to pay a visit."

"Really?" Ye Xinyan responded with joy, "Quick, quick, bring her in. No, never mind, I’ll go out to welcome her myself."

Ye Xinyan, with delight, headed outside. The previous night, she had been thinking about taking on major projects to earn more silver, but worried about the lack of manpower.

Just as she was worrying, Zhou Biyao arrived. It felt like a blessing from heaven; it was a sign of good karma.

Zhou Biyao might not have the overall technical skills of Wong Qiao, but when it came to proper technology and drafting, Zhou Biyao was indeed exceptional and would be a great help.

The gatekeeper old woman, seeing her miss truly had a close girlfriend, and that she was important enough for the miss to personally go out to meet, was also delighted. She quickly trotted along, calling after Ye Xinyan’s departing figure, "Second Miss, don’t hurry. Since Miss Zhou is a good friend of yours, you can just wait at the Second Gate. The servants will instruct the main gate to allow Miss Zhou’s carriage to come directly to the Second Gate."

Ye Xinyan slapped her forehead and laughed, "Look at me, I’m all befuddled with excitement. You’re right, grandma. Quickly have someone bring Miss Zhou’s carriage here as I wait at the Second Gate."

Zhou Biyao, supported by her maid, stepped down from the carriage and her eyes reddened upon seeing Ye Xinyan.

Ye Xinyan greeted her with a smile and teased her, "What’s the matter? Our Second Miss Zhou has always been cheerful, and only a few days apart, how come you have acquired the coyness of a young maiden?"

Zhou Biyao also laughed upon hearing this and retorted, "Sister Qi really doesn’t know how to appreciate favors, I’ve been worrying about you for so long, yet you seem completely ungrateful."

Ye Xinyan said cheerfully, "How can you say I’m ungrateful? You may not realize it, but my social standing is very high now. Looking around this entire capital, the only person who could get me to wait at the Second Gate to greet them is you, Second Miss Zhou—there really isn’t a second one."

Zhou Biyao looked at Ye Xinyan with suspicion, finding it hard to believe her words.

She wanted to surprise Ye Xinyan, so she didn’t send a message to Duke An’s Mansion about when she would be arriving in the capital.

She entered the capital yesterday afternoon, and because she had to deal with family matters, she didn’t visit Duke An’s Mansion right away.

It was only within these half a day and one night, from her father, that she learned of all the events Sister Qi had caused in the capital. Most importantly, Sister Qi, with her high status and impressive abilities, had hardly any good friends in the capital. The female relatives in the family not only failed to recognize her but also judged and speculated about her with contempt.

Thinking of these things, Zhou Biyao truly felt heartache for Ye Xinyan. When she saw Ye Xinyan’s eyes reddened earlier, it was partly due to the joy of reunion and partly out of sympathy for her.

Those malicious women commonly used the dark schemes of the inner court to plot against others, fearing that the world might be too peaceful. Sister Qi was merely doing legitimate things, yet they judged her with such venomous words.

Fortunately, Sister Qi was lucky to have His Majesty the Emperor speak up for her, otherwise, with such a tarnished reputation, how could she continue to live in the future?

But Sister Qi’s words just now—how could she not hear even a hint of sadness or loss in them? And what did she mean by there not being a second one in the capital?

Even with her simple-minded trust in Ye Xinyan, that phrase seemed quite amiss. The capital was filled with the wealthy and noble, and there were so many princess consorts alone, let alone the various relatives of the Imperial Consorts in the harem. Didn’t these people have high status?

"Sister? What do you mean by there being no second one?"

Ye Xinyan met Zhou Biyao’s puzzled gaze and nonchalantly waved her hand, "What I mean, sister, is that no matter how high their actual status might be, in my heart, there is no one higher than you. Biyao, you are the one who’s truly indispensable."

Her words were spot on, with no intention of deceiving. Even if the Empress herself were to come, could she help her out? Could she do her drawings for her? Could she manage her records and various plans for her? None of them could compare to the place Zhou Biyao held in her heart.

Zhou Biyao was naturally intelligent, and upon hearing Ye Xinyan’s words, especially the last sentence, she immediately understood her meaning and couldn’t help but roll her eyes dramatically.

Ye Xinyan wasn’t embarrassed at all and continued to walk indoors with her, asking, "Why didn’t you send me a message? I thought you would arrive in the capital later. Guan He is getting married in a couple of days, and you’ve arrived just in time to add to the splendor. My reputation in the capital isn’t good, and I don’t have many female guests, so I can’t host a very grand event."

Zhou Biyao laughed upon hearing this—Big Brother Guan had finally decided to get married? That really was good news.

"Sister is quite self-aware. No problem, I will certainly come to make up the numbers for my sister."

Ye Xinyan was delighted, "Come on, I’ll take you to meet my grandmother first, then we can have a chat." She still needed to discuss Wang Qiao with Zhou Biyao in detail and see if Biyao knew that her fiancé had turned to the revolution.