No, She’s Still a Good-for-Nothing
The current mistress of Ye Manor was originally a noble concubine elevated to the position of principal wife, not Ye Qingzhi’s birth mother. Sweet-faced but bitter-hearted, she had always sought to squeeze every last bit of usefulness out of her.
“Don’t worry about that wicked woman. Father is still the head of Ye Manor now, and his word is law. Just tell him this…”
If she wanted her scumbag father to willingly part with his silver, she couldn’t forget to dangle grand promises before him.
For instance, once she became a favored concubine, making the Ye family imperial merchants would be as simple as a word from her.
Or, once she became a favored concubine and bore a child, the Ye family would never have to fear oppression from officials again. Any problems could be solved by invoking the name of the Marquis’s Estate.
But to make her a favored concubine, silver was indispensable. Without silver, nothing could be accomplished in the Marquis’s Estate, and so on and so forth.
If things still didn’t work out, there was no need to worry. She could simply say that success wasn’t so easily achieved. If they thought she wasn’t up to the task, then they could find someone who was.
Having heard such grand promises and manipulative talk so often, Ye Qingzhi could now spout them effortlessly.
After all, she had been fed empty promises by her superiors every day in her past life.
Ye Qingzhi taught Ru Yi these lines of grand promises and told her to say exactly this when she met the scumbag father at Ye Manor.
Ru Yi was deeply impressed and shed tears of relief. “Madam, you’ve finally grown a brain and become clever! How wonderful!”
Ye Qingzhi, “…”
No, she was still a good-for-nothing.
Ye Manor in the capital.
Although the Ye family was the wealthiest in Jiangnan, with their ancestral home and most of their clan members residing there, they also owned several estates in the capital.
Recently, Ye Qingzhi’s father, Ye Yongyuan, along with the current mistress and her two children, were staying at one of the capital estates.
Ever since Ye Qingzhi entered the Marquis’s Estate, Ye Yongyuan had sent people to keep an eye on it, often spending silver to gather information.
When he learned that his daughter had fallen into the water on her second day in the estate and remained unconscious for three days, he cursed Ye Qingzhi furiously as a good-for-nothing.
Twenty thousand taels of silver!
If Ye Qingzhi died just like that, the twenty thousand taels would be wasted.
Fortunately, she was eventually saved.
One morning, as Ye Yongyuan and the others were having breakfast, a servant rushed in excitedly, shouting joyfully,
“Master, good news, good news! Our young lady has won the favor of the Houye! I heard the Houye is extremely pleased with her!”
“Qing Zhi has won favor?” Ye Yongyuan’s eyes lit up with delight. He repeatedly praised the news and sighed in relief. “Finally, the first step has been taken.”
“Master, Qing Zhi is delicate and lovely. The Houye is bound to like her. She’ll soon become a favored concubine, and then she’ll be able to speak on our behalf to the Houye,” said Madam Gu Man with a forced smile, uttering words of auspiciousness.
Beside her, Ye Yingxue sneered mockingly, “Favored concubine? Who knows, she might die any day now.”
“Yingxue! Watch your words!” Gu Man immediately pretended to glare at her daughter, signaling her to shut up.
“Back then, you were desperate to enter the Marquis’s Estate, but later you changed your mind and refused to go. Now you’re here gloating,” Ye Yongyuan said coldly.
“How dare you!”
Ye Yingxue’s face turned pale. She lowered her head and dared not utter another sarcastic word.
No one knew that she had recently had a nightmare in which she entered the Marquis’s Estate, endured endless torment, and died within two years.
Yet the man Ye Qingzhi married would top the spring imperial examination next year as the top scholar, and she would become the wife of the top scholar, basking in glory and splendor!
Having received this revelation from her nightmare, she was no longer foolish enough to enter the Marquis’s Estate. So, she had schemed to switch the marriage.
In this lifetime, she would become the illustrious wife of the top scholar!
Not long after, rumors began circulating outside that Ye Yiniang of the Jiangyang Marquisate was a fox enchantress by origin, who had entangled the Houye all night, attempting to drain his vital essence and bring about his demise.
Upon hearing these rumors, Ye Yongyuan’s face turned deathly pale.
Someone was clearly jealous of his daughter’s favor and sought to harm her.
In a prominent household like the Marquis's Estate, how could they tolerate a fox enchantress who harmed men?
"Concubine Yao in the Marquis's Estate is the daughter of a fourth-rank official, and she is even more fanatical in her love for the Houye, refusing to tolerate anyone else. With Elder Sister gaining favor, she is bound to incur her jealousy."
Upon hearing of this matter, Ye Yingxue pretended to be deeply concerned and said,
"Those rumors about the fox enchantress must have been spread by her. Father, you must also be careful that she doesn’t target our shops!"
In her dreams, that Yao Yinyin was the most malicious of all.
Whenever the Houye stayed in her room, she would inevitably suffer torment from Yao Yinyin, who even forcibly seized several of the Ye family’s shops!
Through her dreams, she could feel the despair of her dream self. By the end, she no longer wanted to receive favor at all, having been thoroughly terrified by the torment.
"A fourth-rank official?! How could we possibly contend with that?" Ye Yongyuan trembled, a surge of fear rising from the depths of his heart.
He even began to regret sending his daughter into the Marquis's Estate.
The protection of the Marquis's Estate was not so easily gained!
After two days of anxious waiting, Ru Yi unexpectedly returned.
"Ru Yi, why have you returned? Has your mistress been expelled from the Marquis's Estate? Why isn’t your mistress with you? Could she have been beaten to death?"
Seeing Ru Yi, Ye Yongyuan’s face turned ashen. His first thought was that his daughter had been labeled a fox enchantress and executed by the Marquis's Estate.
Upon hearing her master’s words, Ru Yi’s little face instantly darkened. How could the master curse her mistress like that!
"Master, my mistress is doing just fine. Don’t believe the rumors outside. Those rumors about the fox enchantress have had no effect on our mistress at all!"
It was only after leaving the estate that Ru Yi heard the rumors about the fox enchantress, and she too felt anxious.
However, she remembered her mistress’s instructions: when returning to Ye Manor, she must carry herself with confidence, put on airs, and even act a bit arrogantly if necessary.
"Hah, trying to put on a brave face while suffering in silence," Ye Yingxue sneered mockingly,
"Ru Yi, there’s no need to hide it. We all know there’s a formidable Concubine Yao in the Marquis's Estate. Elder Sister’s life must have been very difficult after receiving favor."
"Hah, Second Miss, are you talking about Concubine Yao?" Ru Yi also sneered in return,
"Indeed, Concubine Yao, relying on her family’s influence, acts arrogantly in the estate. Just two days after my mistress entered the estate, she pushed her into the pond.
But after my mistress gained favor, Concubine Yao stirred up trouble again. The Houye personally dealt with her on the spot, not only ordering her to be thrown into the pond but also having the imperial censor impeach Concubine Yao’s father for indulging his daughter’s wickedness, forcing him to reflect.
Now, Concubine Yao has become a sickly cat, hiding in her courtyard and not daring to come out…"
"Ru Yi, is everything you said true?"
Ye Yongyuan instantly revived, asking with overflowing joy.
"No, impossible!" Ye Yingxue shook her head, refusing to believe it.
Houye Xie Jin was the most heartless and indifferent of all. He treated women as mere tools for pleasure, without a shred of warmth. How could he ever stand up for Ye Qingzhi and grant her such great face!
Ru Yi glanced at the Second Miss with amusement and said crisply,
"Such a significant matter can be easily uncovered with a bit of effort and some silver. How would I dare to lie about it?"