Chapter 168
Ye Yunniang went to the kitchen to fetch some tea, brought it into the main hall, and served it to Old Madam Jiang.
"Please have some tea."
Old Madam Jiang did not take it, but instead sized Ye Yunniang up.
The more she looked, the more dissatisfied she became.
How could a woman like this ever enter the gates of the Jiang family?
Ye Yunniang set the teacup down and took a seat, allowing Old Madam Jiang to scrutinize her.
"No manners at all."
"This is my home." Ye Yunniang smiled. Being a guest in her home and accusing her of having no manners.
The one without manners was probably her.
"Insolent! How dare you speak to me like that? You are entirely devoid of etiquette." Old Madam Jiang grew even more displeased with Ye Yunniang.
Did she really think that just because she had hooked up with her son and arranged a marriage, she could enter the Jiang family?
No way.
As long as she didn't agree, Ye Yunniang could forget about ever stepping through the Jiang family's doors in this lifetime.
"I don't need your agreement."
Originally, Ye Yunniang had been afraid of Old Madam Jiang.
However, a single sentence from Cai Damei had quelled Ye Yunniang's fears. "If Jiang Mingzhe can't handle his mother and lets you suffer grievances, just come home. The daughter of Cai Damei was born to be pampered, not to be tormented by others."
With Cai Damei's words, Ye Yunniang had the confidence to face Old Madam Jiang. At worst, she simply wouldn't marry him.
She had her mother, three sons, a shop, and a house. Even without a man, she could live very well.
Having thought it through, she didn't feel intimidated when facing Old Madam Jiang.
Knowing Old Madam Jiang's attitude, Ye Yunniang didn't speak politely either.
"You, you..." Old Madam Jiang pointed a finger at Ye Yunniang.
Seeing Old Madam Jiang's finger, Ye Yunniang recalled what Jiang Mingzhe had said about her spending money to buy the fingers of living people to skin them.
Ye Yunniang felt as though a putrid stench had hit her nose.
Unable to hold it back, she dry-heaved.
"You're pregnant!" Old Madam Jiang was shocked. "Truly uneducated, hoping to use a child to elevate your status. Impossible. I will never acknowledge the bastard in your belly."
Ye Yunniang couldn't take it anymore. She stood up and moved far away from Old Madam Jiang.
The air became fresher.
She felt much better.
Ye Yunniang patted her chest lightly, taking deep breaths.
Old Madam Jiang wasn't stupid; seeing Ye Yunniang's actions, she understood that she was being shunned for being dirty.
"You, you, you!" Old Madam Jiang was so furious she was speechless.
"Yunniang, quickly apologize to the Old Madam," Chunyao spoke up.
Ye Yunniang looked at Chunyao.
When she had entered the Jiang manor to be a wet nurse, Chunyao had helped her a lot. Ye Yunniang had always been grateful to Chunyao.
Even when she found out that Chunyao had revealed her and Pingping's matters to Jiang Mingyue, Ye Yunniang hadn't been angry.
But now, Ye Yunniang was truly disappointed in Chunyao.
"Does Chef Jin know you brought her here today?"
"Yunniang, don't throw a tantrum," Chunyao said evasively. She couldn't say that Chef Jin had already decided to return to their hometown to live.
When they had just left the Jiang family, they had feared being implicated.
Returning to their hometown to open a restaurant, Chunyao had felt at ease and satisfied, even thinking that living like that for the rest of her life would be nice.
When Jin Dachuan sold everything at home to return to Jiangcheng, Chunyao had been reluctant.
But as Jinyumantang opened and business boomed, Chunyao was respectfully addressed as Madam Jin whenever she went out.
Those who had once looked down on her now bowed and scraped to her.
Even her maiden family, who had treated her averagely, now flattered her.
Chunyao's vanity had been greatly satisfied.
But not long ago, Chef Jin told Chunyao that Jinyumantang was not the Jin family's shop.
The true owner of the shop was Jiang Mingzhe; he was merely a manager.
Chef Jin wanted to return the shop to Jiang Mingzhe and take his whole family back to their hometown to run a small restaurant and live a simple life.
Having enjoyed a life of flattery, returning to a small town to run a small restaurant with barely any daily customers was something Chunyao was unwilling to do. She wanted to continue her current life, or perhaps an even better one.
At this time, Old Madam Jiang came knocking.
Without a second thought, Chunyao told her everything about Ye Yunniang and personally escorted Old Madam Jiang to find her.
"Sister Chunyao, this is the last time I will call you that. Our friendship ends here." Losing a good sister made Ye Yunniang feel awful.
Chunyao's heart skipped a beat; things were not going as she had expected. Ye Yunniang was not grateful to her.
"Yunniang, I'm thinking of you. The Old Madam is your future mother-in-law. As a daughter-in-law, you must be filial to her. Only then can you establish yourself in the Jiang family."
Chunyao wore an expression that suggested she was doing all this for Ye Yunniang's sake.
"I don't need any of this. And I won't be living with this old madam."
"What do you mean?" Old Madam Jiang thought of something. "Is it Jiang Mingzhe? What did he tell you? That unfilial son, it wasn't enough for him to bully my Rui'er, now he wants to bully my De'er too."
Old Madam Jiang's words made Chunyao's heart race.
It seemed she had completely messed things up.
"Exactly what it sounds like."
Since Ye Yunniang knew the details, Old Madam Jiang stopped pretending.
"If you want to enter the Jiang family, you must make Jiang Mingzhe hand over half of his properties in Jiangcheng."
"If you want Jiang Mingzhe's properties, go ask him for them yourselves." As long as Jiang Mingzhe was willing to give them, Ye Yunniang wouldn't ask any questions.
If Old Madam Jiang could get them, she wouldn't have come looking for Ye Yunniang.
"If you don't agree, don't even think about entering the Jiang family." Without the two elders present, she wanted to see how Jiang Mingzhe could marry anyone.
"She doesn't have to enter the Jiang family." Jiang Mingzhe's voice drifted in, causing the expressions of Old Madam Jiang and Chunyao in the room to change.
Especially when Chunyao saw Chef Jin standing behind Jiang Mingzhe, her face instantly turned pale.
Chef Jin didn't spare Chunyao a single glance; he was completely disappointed in her.
"What do you mean?"
"I can marry into the Li family as a live-in son-in-law."
Jiang Mingzhe's words not only shocked Old Madam Jiang, but also severely astounded Ye Yunniang.
Ye Yunniang shot Jiang Mingzhe a look.
What nonsense was he spouting?!
"Jiang Mingzhe, for the sake of such a widow, you want to become a live-in son-in-law?" Old Madam Jiang pointed her finger again.
Ye Yunniang couldn't help but dry-heave twice.
Jiang Mingzhe held Ye Yunniang's hand. "Where do you feel unwell?"
"I don't feel unwell." Ye Yunniang glanced at Old Madam Jiang's finger and quickly turned her head away.
Jiang Mingzhe understood the situation.
Old Madam Jiang's wrinkled finger did look disgusting.
He turned sideways to shield Ye Yunniang. "Don't look."
"Mhm." Ye Yunniang leaned against Jiang Mingzhe, avoiding the sight of the finger.
The intimate demeanor of the two greatly displeased Old Madam Jiang.
"Jiang Mingzhe, you won't be satisfied until you anger me to death. You're even abandoning your ancestors. You don't deserve to be a member of the Jiang family."
"Perfect, I'll leave the Jiang family. I won't be a thorn in your side." Jiang Mingzhe acted as if he were being considerate of Old Madam Jiang.
"You can leave if you want. Hand over the Jiang family's properties." This second son had always brought her bad luck since he was born; she might as well not have him.
"The Jiang family's properties have all been confiscated." Jiang Mingzhe spread his hands.
"Impossible." Old Madam Jiang didn't believe it; Jiang Mingzhe definitely had a backup plan.
"You can go check." If she could find a single shop under Jiang Mingzhe's name, he would admit defeat.
"What trick are you playing?" Old Madam Jiang stared at Jiang Mingzhe, trying to see through his scheme.
Unfortunately, she couldn't see anything.
"If the Old Madam doesn't believe me, there's nothing I can do. The truth is that I, Jiang Mingzhe, have no money, which is why I'm marrying into the Li family to make a living."