She Became A Downfall Noble Lady-Chapter 50 - Magistrate Sir

Chapter 50: Chapter 50 Magistrate Sir

Chapter 50 -50 Magistrate Sir

Even if someone were smashing up her stand, she couldn’t afford to offend them, right?

Ye Xinyan quickly bowed her head, “You’re right to admonish me, brother; it was our bad thinking.” How could she not bow her head? Was she supposed to stand up against them with brute force? Her frail body simply couldn’t withstand that!

She could only agree for now. As for whether His Highness Prince Yu would visit again, that was still uncertain. For such a small stand, and with his high status, it was very likely he wouldn’t come again. Even if he did, who knew when that would be? She would deal with it when the time came.

Nanny Jin watched anxiously from behind, but a warning glance from Ye Xinyan kept her from acting rashly.

It seemed that what Prince Yu wanted to see was Ye Xinyan’s yielding attitude. Once she lowered her stance and spoke humbly, Hongzhi didn’t approach again.

That annoying Prince Yu enjoyed his rice tofu and corn pancake with relish, all the while criticizing everything from the taste of the main dish to the lack of elegance of the tables and benches, much to the other patrons’ sidelong glances. Ye Xinyan felt like hitting him, but it wasn’t until he had his fill and wiped his mouth with satisfaction that he waved his hand and sauntered off.

Hongzhi hurriedly left a small ingot of silver, stole a glance at Ye Xinyan, and followed the Sixth Master, disappearing in a puff of smoke.

This brief ordeal nearly made Hongzhi question his existence. Was this young woman really the Miss of the Duke’s Mansion? It seemed Miss Ye was indeed capable; not only could she escape from the Duke’s Mansion’s pursuit, but she could also set her status aside and openly run a food stand on the street to earn money. She truly was the Duke’s descendant, truly formidable.

Only after the Sixth Prince left, did Nanny Jin’s heart settle, and her legs went soft, nearly causing her to collapse to the ground.

By now, not only did Qi Younian sense something was off, but even Qi Jia, known for his sluggishness, noticed the anomaly. He stopped eating his rice tofu, and with a hint of confusion in his eyes, he kept staring at Nanny Jin.

Jinrong’s criticisms actually impacted the business, delaying the closing of the stand by nearly half a Shichen.

Once all the customers had left, the three of them hurriedly packed up the stand. Qi Younian took the chance to ask Ye Xinyan with concern, “Ye Zi, who is that gentleman? Does he know you?”

Ye Xinyan’s face was full of bitter smiles, “This matter is quite complicated, it’s not clear-cut here, let us go home and find some time to discuss it properly with grandfather.” It seemed that Prince Yu was not just passing by but living locally; best to tell the truth to grandfather, so he could be prepared.

Life had to go on despite what had happened, and they couldn’t neglect little Qi Jia’s matter either.

Putting aside the matter with Jinrong, Ye Xinyan asked Qi Younian, “Grandfather, can our village’s Carpenter Wang make a toy car?”

Qi Younian was very surprised; she had been talking about that wealthy gentleman, and now she switched to making a toy car.

“I don’t know. Do you want to make another vehicle? Even if you want to switch to a larger one, I’m afraid the donkey might not be able to pull it. Let’s save up some more silver and just get an ox cart instead,” he replied.

Ye Xinyan laughed, “No, I was thinking of making a small ride-on toy car for Qi Jia. Didn’t you say yesterday that if he plays with it for a while, he will forget what happened before?”

“A toy car for kids to play with? No need to ask Carpenter Wang then, I can make it myself,” Qi Younian said.

Ye Xinyan rolled her eyes, “You’re going to make it? Do you have the time? Besides, I’m talking about a car that lets a child sit inside and pedal around by themselves, which is quite complicated. If you have free time, it’s better to talk with Qi Jia, help him start speaking sooner.”

Grandfather really, always trying to do everything himself—what’s the point of having professionals then? Did he really not need any rest for himself?

Ye Xinyan was considering making an innovative novelty for little Qi Jia, a kind of children’s pedal car not yet seen in this era.

Meanwhile, Jinrong had already leisurely led Hongzhi away, browsing and strolling, heading towards the Qingyuan County government office.

The doorman at the county yamen had no idea who this gentleman was, only that he was known as Sixth Master Rong. But it was the first time he came to the county yamen, and he was accompanied by the Prefectural Magistrate. Just by observing the Prefectural Magistrate’s continuous bowing, kowtowing, and smiling, one could tell that the gentleman’s identity was by no means simple.

The Prefectural Magistrate and the County Magistrate strictly forbade people from inquiring about Sixth Master Rong’s identity. Naturally, these lower-level staff had to obey and could only respectfully allow the gentleman to arrogantly stroll around the yamen.

According to the gatekeeping yamen runners, not only could Sixth Master Rong come and go as he pleased in their small yamen, but considering the Prefectural Magistrate’s reverent attitude that day, they feared Sixth Master Rong could act just as freely and comfortably at the prefectural yamen as well.

Jinrong, however, didn’t care about these things. As usual, if someone stopped him, he would politely explain and hand over his visiting card to be announced. If no one stopped him, he was of course happy to save the trouble.

In recent days, he had grown familiar with the County Magistrate’s yamen and didn’t need to be led. He went straight to the County Magistrate’s rear hall.

After passing through two courtyards, Jinrong pushed the door and entered the prefectural hall. He didn’t wait for an invitation to sit, plopping down onto a chair next to the desk and saying, “Bring the tea, bring the tea.” He mentioned that Ye Xinyan’s rice tofu indeed tasted pretty good, but it was indeed a bit too salty.

Sitting in front of the desk Jinrong leaned against was a young man clad in a seventh rank official’s robe, with a handsome appearance and a hearty temperament—Jiang Yifan.

Jiang Yifan looked up at the distinguished Sixth Prince, and ordered Shi Yu, “Serve tea to the Sixth Master.”

He then stood up, moved away from the desk, and paid his respects to Jinrong properly, “This humble official pays respects to the Sixth Master.”

“That’s enough, I’ve told you not to do this,” Jinrong waved his hand dismissively.

He had said many times there was no need for such formalities, but since Jiang Yifan insisted on following proper etiquette, Jinrong could only let it go and let the lad go through the motions every time.

However, every time he saw this young man’s affected behavior, Jinrong couldn’t help but feel disgusted. Clearly hiding snobbish arrogance inside, yet he insisted on showing an outward appearance of adherence to the social hierarchy and propriety—who exactly was he performing for?

After Jiang Yifan paid his respects according to protocol, he returned to his desk to review documents, leaving the noble His Highness Prince Yu to sit by himself.

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Jinrong took the tea served by Shi Yu and, without waiting for an invitation, took a couple of sips before placing the tea cup back on the tea table and began speaking, “You’re so young, yet you manage to sit here so patiently. Cooped up in this courtyard all the time, don’t you get moldy?”

“I haven’t been here long and need to familiarize myself with the situation before I can work effectively,” replied Jiang Yifan without lifting his head, “Unlike you, Sixth Master, who leads an easy-going life, with advisors to handle trivial matters, so you don’t need to worry about too much.”

Jinrong laughed, “I told you I would lend you a few advisors, but you didn’t want them, did you?”

This time, Jiang Yifan couldn’t even be bothered to reply with his voice, instead focused on reviewing the documents and occasionally picking up his brush to write.

Jinrong took another sip of tea and leisurely continued, “There’s a new kind of breakfast food at the street stalls of Qingyuan County, a dish called ‘rice tofu,’ similar to tofu pudding.”

Jinrong chatted away to himself, while Jiang Yifan continued to read documents and didn’t respond.

Jinrong went on, “Today, Sixth Master I went there because of its fame…”

Jiang Yifan couldn’t help but glance up at him.

Well, okay, Sixth Master I didn’t go there because of its fame, but rather stumbled upon it while wandering around and saw a familiar face.

Jinrong thought back to the scene with satisfaction, “I didn’t expect that the one running the stall would be someone I know. So, Sixth Master I graciously stooped to give this ‘rice tofu’ a try. They also sold a kind of cornmeal pancake called ‘corn spread cake,’ another novel food item. Although the stall sold street food, the taste was not bad at all.”