As the saying goes, “Even a rotten boat has three jin of iron.” The Bai family may have declined, but their connections remained. With money, and by properly greasing palms up and down, rebuilding those connections wouldn’t be difficult. With proper cultivation of their descendants, they could certainly regain their former glory. The one who wanted to marry Ye Xuwei was the eldest master of the household. A marriage alliance between the Bai and Ye families would benefit both.

But when Ye Xuwei heard she would have to marry a man in his thirties who already had a ten-year-old son, she adamantly refused. Ye Chongming and Old Madam Ye also felt it would be unfair to their daughter, so they rejected the proposal.

Later, Ye Xuwei married into a merchant family with similar circumstances to the Ye family. Not long after, that family moved to the capital.

Recalling this, Madam Tao instructed Elder Nanny Li: “I’ll write a letter to my brother. Have someone deliver it to him.”

Teahouses were where such matters were most discussed. If people were guessing in unfavorable directions, having someone bring up the Ye Xuwei incident as a counter-argument and then guide public opinion would minimize the negative impact.

But the Ye family couldn’t intervene directly. If they were recognized, the backlash would be severe, and the Ye family’s reputation would be ruined. Having the Tao family handle this would be problem-free.

Elder Nanny Li’s son took the letter to the Tao family, and soon after, Zan’er reported this matter to Ye Yaming.

He sincerely praised: “Miss, everything is as you predicted.”

Bai Rui and Lu’E also looked at Ye Yaming with admiration.

“We can’t rely solely on the Tao family; we need to exert our influence as well. Select a few idle people in the city and have them cooperate with the Tao family at the teahouses,” Ye Yaming instructed.

Her engagement to Lu Guanyi couldn’t be settled quietly, as that would defeat the purpose; yet they couldn’t publicly announce her betrothal to Lu Guanyi, to avoid attracting unwanted attention from Duke Weiguo’s household.

But with such matters, the more one tries to conceal, the more it invites speculation. Eventually, unfavorable rumors would spread, destroying the reputation that generations of the Ye family had carefully maintained.

She had immediately instructed Zan’er to keep an eye on Madam Tao.

She knew that with Ye Yaqing’s engagement pending, Madam Tao cared about the Ye family’s reputation even more than she did. Having the Tao family clarify this matter would be far more effective than hiring idle people to guide public opinion in teahouses.

Sure enough, the next day, Zan’er gathered news that people were indeed discussing the Ye family’s engagement extensively, everyone curious about who had proposed. They were all waiting for news from the Ye family. But since the Ye family was being vague, some began malicious speculation, portraying the Ye family in a very unfavorable light.

Fortunately, the Tao family was supportive, dispatching some elderly members from their extended family to maintain a presence in teahouses. Combined with the idle people Ye Yaming had hired and the Ye family’s consistently excellent reputation, public opinion quickly turned.

The conclusion the gossip-hungry crowd eventually reached was: The Ye family is modest, morally upright, and unwilling to elevate themselves through this marriage, which is truly admirable.

In Jixiang Pavilion, Xie Linjiang still sat in his usual place, drinking tea and eating refreshments face-to-face with his old friend Wan Youde.

He asked Wan Youde: “What do you think of the Ye family’s situation?”

Wan Youde looked at his old friend in surprise: “Didn’t I just say? I don’t believe Old Master Ye would use his granddaughter to climb the social ladder.”

He had already voiced his opinion during the earlier dispute.

“That’s what one says in public,” Xie Linjiang said.

This was Jixiang Pavilion, after all. As regular customers, though they weren’t close friends with Ye Chongming, they were familiar acquaintances who often ran into each other. They should at least show this much respect to the Ye family.

“I’m asking about your true thoughts.”

Wan Youde was increasingly surprised.

His old friend was a gentleman of modesty and propriety who never harbored ill intentions toward others.

As for the Ye family’s matter, it honestly had nothing to do with them; it was merely a topic for idle chatter. They didn’t care about the truth of the situation.

Now, with his friend so intent on getting to the bottom of it, could he have some specific interest?

Thinking this, he asked exactly that.

Xie Linjiang didn’t hide anything: “You know my youngest grandson doesn’t like studying; he only enjoys doing business.”

He sighed as he spoke.

His youngest grandson, Xie Guizhou, was seventeen. He had always performed poorly in school. Forget about becoming a xiucai scholar—the teacher said there was no point in him even taking the童生 examination. The boy was quite clever, but for some reason, his interests simply didn’t lie in studying.

Later, they discovered he had been using his accumulated New Year’s money to start a business, which was quite successful. The boy’s entire focus was on that, so how could he concentrate on his studies?

The Xie family had been scholars for generations; how could they become merchants? He and his son had both beaten and scolded the boy, but Xie Guizhou simply laid his cards on the table, saying he didn’t want to study anymore and only wanted to do business. Why couldn’t he manage business affairs when every family had someone who did? There had been quite a commotion at home.

Wan Youde was familiar with the Xie family’s situation.

He raised his eyes and quietly waited for Xie Linjiang to continue.

“We definitely won’t let him register as a merchant, but we could marry him to a woman from a merchant family, letting her bear the title of merchant.”

Wan Youde’s heart stirred: “Could it be you’ve taken a liking to the Ye family’s young lady?”

Xie Linjiang nodded: “People say ‘the rich are not benevolent.’ When it comes to merchants, only the Ye family meets my approval. They don’t pursue profit at the expense of everything else; they act with righteousness and are a family of accumulated virtue and kindness. But I’m hesitant, worried people might say my Xie family is after the Ye daughter’s dowry, and also afraid my grandson might be ridiculed for marrying a girl from a lowly merchant family.”

With this explanation, Wan Youde understood.

He nodded: “Now that the Ye family has allied with a fifth-rank noble official, their status has been significantly elevated. Being a brother-in-law to a fifth-rank noble official is completely different in terms of reputation than being connected to merchants.”

Xie Linjiang nodded: “That’s exactly the point. My only concern now is that they’re being so secretive about this marriage; I fear there might be something unseemly about it.”

Wan Youde didn’t know how to respond to this.

If he said there was nothing wrong with the Ye family, but there turned out to be a problem, wouldn’t his old friend blame him? If he said there was a problem, but there wasn’t, causing his friend to miss out on a good marriage opportunity, he’d still be blamed.

This matter had nothing to do with him, so why should he speak unnecessarily and create trouble for himself?

He said: “Why don’t you send someone to inquire? If you’re acquainted with any of their relatives, ask them to find out. If there’s no problem, then have them act as a matchmaker directly. Wouldn’t that be good?”

Xie Linjiang was suddenly enlightened and repeatedly said: “Yes, yes, you’re right. I’ve been overthinking and confused.”

Wan Youde laughed heartily and raised his teacup, gesturing as if toasting Xie Linjiang: “Then I’ll congratulate you in advance on finding a good match for your grandson.”

Two days later, Madam Tao’s sister-in-law, Madam Feng, visited the Ye family and told Madam Tao about the Xie family’s inquiries regarding Ye Yaming’s engagement.