Ye Chutang immediately dismissed the embroiderer’s speculation.
"Minister Ye never visited me—how could he know my needlework is good? As for why he brought me back..."
Ye Anling, fearing Ye Chutang might say something shocking again, quickly interrupted her.
"Elder Sister, Father has been devoted to serving the Emperor and is often so busy he doesn’t even have time to eat. It’s not that he deliberately ignored you. He had no idea the nanny was mistreating you—otherwise, he would never have allowed it. When he heard the estate had burned down, he was so worried about you that he immediately took leave and went to fetch you before dawn."
The explanation was utterly unconvincing. The onlookers didn’t believe a word of it.
Even the busiest officials in the court had days off. There were also long holidays during the Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, and New Year.
Claiming he had no time was just an excuse.
Fifteen years without a single visit, and now suddenly he had time? No one would believe Minister Ye Jingchuan didn’t have ulterior motives.
Meeting Ye Anling’s warning gaze, Ye Chutang pretended to accept the explanation.
"You’re right, Second Miss Ye. My mother treated Minister Ye so well—helping him establish himself in the capital and rise through the ranks—he surely wouldn’t repay her kindness by scheming against me."
"Elder Sister, don’t overthink it. Father has always missed you. Bringing you back was only for a family reunion."
"So you’re saying Minister Ye won’t make me marry Eunuch De in your place?"
The words exploded like a thunderclap, leaving everyone stunned.
Especially Ye Anling and her two maids, whose eyes nearly popped out of their heads.
Their expressions confirmed Ye Chutang’s claim.
The crowd buzzed with gossip.
"Wasn’t Second Miss Ye involved with the Crown Prince? How did Eunuch De take an interest in her?"
"The Empress already has a favored candidate for Crown Princess. She summoned Second Miss Ye to the palace just two days ago."
"Minister Ye is a favored official. Surely Eunuch De wouldn’t dare force the Minister’s legitimate daughter into marriage?"
"Who’s more favored than Eunuch De? Even the Empress treads carefully around him."
"No wonder Minister Ye brought his eldest daughter back..."
Ye Anling couldn’t take it anymore. Her vision darkened.
Before she fainted, one thought flashed through her mind—Ruined!
If in three days Eunuch De set his sights on Ye Chutang, she would become the target of public outrage!
Qiulu rushed to support Ye Anling but lacked the strength, and both collapsed to the ground.
Ye Anling’s injured head struck the floor, staining the bandage red.
The pain jolted her awake, her fragile appearance as if she might shatter at any moment.
The shopkeeper, worried about an incident in the embroidery house, quickly sent for Doctor Xu from Huichun Hall.
Ye Chutang met Ye Anling’s tear-filled eyes and asked innocently,
"Why are you acting so aggrieved? Did I say something wrong?"
"If I did, it’s not my fault. I overheard the rumor about replacing you in marriage to Eunuch De from one of the Minister’s Mansion maids."
Ye Anling’s lips trembled as she denied it.
"The idea of Eunuch De marrying me is completely unfounded!"
Though it was true, as the Minister’s legitimate daughter, she wasn’t someone Eunuch De could openly seize.
The Empress’s plan was for Eunuch De to request the Emperor’s decree for the marriage.
But the Emperor was away at Qingyun Temple for meditation and wouldn’t return for five days.
So she intended to use that window to redirect Eunuch De’s interest toward Ye Chutang before the Emperor’s return.
As for the Empress—
As long as Ye Anling gave up the position of Crown Princess, the Empress would allow the Crown Prince to take her as a consort.
And she was confident she could rise from consort to principal wife, from favored concubine to Empress!
But plans never survive first contact.
Now Ye Chutang knew the real reason she’d been brought back—and had exposed it!
Having achieved her goal, Ye Chutang didn’t argue further.
Whether people believed her or not, rumors would spread like wildfire.
"Then perhaps the maid had a grudge against you and made it up."
With that, she turned to the shopkeeper. "Does this embroidery house buy finished pieces?"
The shopkeeper blinked in surprise. "Does Miss Ye wish to sell handkerchiefs?"
"Yes. The Minister’s Mansion is so poor, if I don’t earn some money, I might starve."
Everyone: "..."
A Minister was a second-rank capital official. Even if he were incorruptible, surely his household wouldn’t go hungry?
Ye Anling couldn’t take it anymore. Ignoring her throbbing head, she glared at Ye Chutang.
"Elder Sister, I know you suffered greatly in the countryside and want revenge on the Ye family."
"But you can’t lie to win sympathy and make fools of everyone!"
Hearing this, the crowd’s expressions toward Ye Chutang shifted.
Their eyes filled with anger and hostility.
No one liked having their compassion exploited.
Ye Chutang studied Ye Anling’s flushed face and feigned confusion.
"Is the Minister’s Mansion wealthy? Then why did Minister Ye tell me that in twenty years of service, he’s only saved five thousand taels? That to compensate me with ten thousand, he’d have to scrape together another five?"
Ye Anling had no idea about the ten thousand taels.
She faltered, unsure how to respond.
Ye Chutang added, "If Second Miss Ye doesn’t believe me, you can ask Minister Ye yourself."
Her certainty made Ye Anling’s weak denial sound hollow.
"I don’t manage the household finances. I wouldn’t know."
The crowd understood now.
Minister Ye didn’t want to give Ye Chutang too much compensation, so he pretended to be poor.
Poor Miss Ye took him at his word and was made a fool of.
Still, one had to admit—Minister Ye was willing to pay dearly to save his second daughter from Eunuch De.
Ten thousand taels was no small sum!
Ye Chutang noted the crowd’s pitying looks and smiled faintly.
Her final objective for this outing was achieved.
Ye Jingchuan cared about his reputation? Then she’d strip him of it!
Just then, Doctor Xu arrived in a hurry with his medical kit.
He was the one who had treated Ye Anling’s injury earlier.
"Miss Ye, your head wound is quite serious. If it reopens, it will scar, and hair won’t grow there."
The warning drained the color from Ye Anling’s face.
"Doctor Xu, spare no expense. I can’t have scars."
"Avoiding scars depends on you resting properly. That’s all I can say."
While the doctor tended to Ye Anling, Ye Chutang asked the shopkeeper again,
"How much would you pay for an embroidered handkerchief like this?"
"Miss Ye’s needlework is excellent. Depending on the fabric, I could offer at least five hundred coppers per piece."
The softer and finer the material, the higher the skill required—and the higher the pay.
Ye Chutang raised a brow. "Two handkerchiefs for one tael? That’s generous."
"Garments pay even more—at least five taels per piece. Would Miss Ye be interested?"
Ye Anling, eyeing Ye Chutang’s disheveled appearance, hastily declined for her.
"No interest!"
"Elder Sister, no matter how poor the Minister’s Mansion is, we won’t let you starve. There’s no need for you to toil for money."
The shopkeeper knew noblewomen like Ye Anling looked down on "money-grubbing" commoners.
She ignored Ye Anling and waited for Ye Chutang’s answer.
Ye Chutang had never planned to earn a living through embroidery.
She’d only asked to reveal the hardships the original owner endured in the countryside.
"Shopkeeper, I’m a bit busy lately. I’ll come back when I have time."
"Of course. I’ll be waiting."
"Though I didn’t see any clothes I liked here, the fabrics are good. Pick out a few fine ones for me."
The shopkeeper said, "Miss Ye Chutang, fine fabrics don’t come cheap."
Ye Chutang glanced at Ye Anling, her smile radiant.
"Miss Ye Anling has saved up quite a bit of her own money. She can afford a few bolts of fabric—no need for the shopkeeper to worry."
"Very well. The embroidery house recently received a bolt of cloud-patterned gauze and two bolts of shimmering brocade. I’ll part with them for you, Miss Ye."
"My thanks, Shopkeeper. Anything else?"
"Of course. There’s also heavenly silk, gold-woven brocade, celestial fragrance silk..."
A string of prices flashed through Ye Anling’s mind.
Cloud-patterned gauze—eight hundred taels per bolt. Shimmering brocade—five hundred taels per bolt. Heavenly silk—three hundred sixty taels per bolt...
The thought of having to pay for all this nearly made her breath catch.
