Even Wei the Great Confucian scholar was startled by Ye Yunmian’s straightforwardness and quickly helped her up.
He was already old, his bones stiff with age, and he immediately asked her to sit down and talk. He studied her for a moment and said, “Fifteen years have passed in the blink of an eye. How have you been living at the frontier all these years?”
“My uncle treated me well. I’ve lived freely and without restraint all these years,” Ye Yunmian replied at once.
Wei the Great Confucian stroked his beard and, instead of displeasure, smiled slightly. “It seems leaving the capital was indeed a good thing. However, you were born into the Ye family—having fifteen years of peace is already quite fortunate. In the future, you will have to take on more responsibility. I heard things were quite lively outside today. I wonder if there will be more trouble later. Do you have any plans in mind?”
Wei the Great Confucian was a perceptive man, but he did not wish to interfere in the Ye family’s internal affairs.
Ye Yunmian’s confrontation with the old matriarch today, and her striking of the old matriarch’s trusted servant, would surely become widely known tomorrow.
No matter how many excuses she gave, people would still view her as unfilial. And as for the matter of debt collection, although it seemed like she had vented her anger, she had offended too many people. In the future, the Ye family would likely face even more trouble in court.
“Grandpa Wei, please don’t worry. I know what I’m doing,” Ye Yunmian said directly. “I’ve enjoyed so many years of ease and freedom; now it’s time for me to take responsibility. Especially my younger brother—I’ve neglected him for years, and you have also worried on our behalf. As juniors, we have truly been inconsiderate. In the future, I will try my best to discipline him. I don’t seek fame or success, only that he grows into an upright and honorable man.”
She had come to Wei the Great Confucian for two reasons: to inform him, and to give him a prior explanation.
Wei the Great Confucian understood immediately.
“You girl have only been back a short time, but your judgment is sharp. You saw your brother’s problems at a glance… I watched your father grow up myself, and I naturally don’t want you children to end up despised by others. Rest assured—if that child is willing to learn, I will teach him with all my effort.”
Only then did he feel somewhat relieved.
At last, someone understood him after all these years.
Ye Weiqing was very intelligent, but his character was flawed.
He had been raised by Madam Ge to be timid, selfish, and self-protective. For someone of his status, his courage and breadth of mind were even worse than those of street thugs.
Over the years, this had infuriated him greatly. He had also tried to change Ye Weiqing, but Madam Ge was clever—she always found ways to prevent the boy from attending lessons, leaving him helpless.
“Thank you for your hard work, Grandpa Wei. Once things at home settle down, we siblings will take you out to relax and look around,” Ye Yunmian said warmly.
Wei the Great Confucian was surprised. “Those are the same words your father once said. You were still very young then—how do you still remember?”
He only recalled that the little girl had been unusually calm and rarely cried, which he had found quite unusual at the time. Now it seemed she truly was extraordinary.
“I remember everything. My memory has always been quite good,” Ye Yunmian replied without modesty. Though straightforward, she did not sound arrogant. Her voice was as clear as winter ice melting, calm and refreshing.
Although many years had passed, Wei the Great Confucian did not feel any sense of strangeness toward her.
They continued to talk about life at the frontier.
The two conversed very well.
Ye Yunmian resembled her father, though her features were even gentler. Her beauty was striking, yet when quiet, she carried an understated elegance. Her calm presence and refined speech were very likable.
Before they knew it, quite some time had passed. Wei the Great Confucian asked her some basic academic questions, and seeing that she answered them all, he became even more pleased.
The former Grand Duke Ye Fu had three sons and one daughter. At last, there was one child who gave him peace of mind.
“Your step-grandmother has been negligent toward Weiqing, but in truth, your eldest brother should have long since taken on the responsibility of an elder brother and properly raised him. Yet all these years, he has ignored everything… not only that, but he is also obsessed with romance and completely neglects self-improvement and the affairs of the Duke’s household. That is why you now have to go to such great lengths to recover debts! I have advised him many times, but every time the topic of that Lin family girl comes up, he becomes unreasonable!”
At the mention of Ye Weiyin (her elder brother), Wei the Confucian became quite angry.
Ye Yunmian did not rush to defend her brother and instead listened carefully.
“Your elder brother… is truly a pity. He was personally taught by your father—who didn’t once praise him as a rare young talent? I truly cannot understand how he became what he is now!”
“I am ashamed before your father. I don’t know how I will face him in the future… Your brother is even involved in court factional struggles. Now that the Sixth Prince is gaining power, he still clings stubbornly to his path. Is this not courting death?”
His eyes turned slightly red as he spoke.
Throughout history, officials involved in succession struggles—how many of them ever ended well?
If it were only the loss of the title, that would be one thing, but he faintly felt that Ye Weiyin might drag the entire household to destruction.
He truly could not understand it.
Ye Yunmian was also surprised. The original story had not described this part in detail.
It only said that Ye Weiyin acted impulsively and repeatedly made mistakes, eventually even resorting to military force to seize someone, showing blatant disregard for imperial law, and was severely punished by the emperor.
Ye Yunmian was somewhat confused.
However, she did not immediately go to confirm things with her brother. She felt that reality differed from what she had read, and her brother’s true thoughts could not be replaced by narrative descriptions.
She needed time to discover the truth herself.
“Grandpa Wei, my brother is indeed proud and headstrong, but I believe he is not foolish. Of course, if he truly intends to destroy the entire household, I will not stand by and watch. Rest assured—with me here, I will not allow our ancestors’ legacy to be ruined.”
The legacy of the ancestors was not the title—it was the people.
She faintly remembered fragments of her past life’s memories, not yet fully integrated into this world, but she still remembered the warmth and care of her parents when they were alive.
As long as her elder brother and younger brother did not commit unforgivable crimes, they were not villains to her—they were family. She could not watch them die.
Wei the Confucian had not spoken so freely in many years and felt relieved after saying so much.
His previously weary and lifeless expression now carried a sense of comfort.
It was already late, and Ye Yunmian quietly took her leave. Before leaving, she also discussed arrangements for Ye Weiqing’s education, which the Confucian scholar agreed to without objection.
After returning, Ye Yunmian finally rested briefly.
But before dawn, she had Steward Liang arrange for moneychangers to tally the assets and convert all the recovered silver into banknotes.
Originally, there were more than a dozen servants in her courtyard sent by the old matriarch, but after standing all day without instructions from Ye Yunmian, they were already exhausted.
By nightfall, after hearing rumors that the young lady intended to beat Steward Tong to death, they were all terrified.
How could they dare stay any longer?
They all rushed back to beg the old matriarch for mercy.