After a long while, she murmured, “How could there be such an unrestrained way of living in this world? Especially for women, who must endure countless hardships and humiliations throughout their lives.”

These were words her mother had spoken to her. Because she hadn’t borne a son, she suffered the contempt of her sisters-in-law, and her mother often repeated this phrase to her, intending to teach her endurance.

“Do you think I can’t do it?” Ye Yaming asked.

Madam Yin fell silent.

Indeed, could it be done? Her daughter truly could manage it.

Ye Yaming not only had a substantial dowry, but because of her tea-making skills, even the imperial court relied on her. She was also the Ye family head, with the entire Ye family supporting her. She could live extremely well without depending on a husband.

“Not only can I do it, but you can too,” Ye Yaming said. “You have me, and you have fields and shops in your possession. Even if you divorced Father, you could still live well.”

Madam Yin became even more silent.

After a long while, she finally spoke: “Actually, what you say is both right and wrong.”

“Oh?”

“I could indeed manage it. But that’s because I have you. You’re capable, more capable than most men, and you’re filial to me. If I didn’t have you, even with fields and shops, I couldn’t survive on my own.”

This time it was Ye Yaming’s turn to fall silent.

Indeed, in this era, the legal system was inadequate, and women’s status was low. A wealthy woman living alone was like a piece of glistening fat meat—others could easily scheme against her with minimal effort. This society had long ago labeled women as “weak and easily bullied.”

“Regardless, one must become strong. Once you’re strong, you can befriend equally strong people and borrow their strength. For instance, with your pastry recipes, you can partner with Princess Imperial Yüan in business. Would ordinary men dare to bully or scheme against you?”

Madam Yin froze momentarily, then nodded: “That’s true.”

Mother and daughter exchanged glances and suddenly burst into laughter.

Both were currently enjoying happy family lives, yet here they were discussing whether they could live well after divorce—they were truly worrying unnecessarily.

Besides, Ye Hongsheng and Madam Yin were already an old married couple, and divorce was impossible; Ye Yaming’s marriage was bestowed by the Emperor, so divorce was out of the question. Their conversation was essentially meaningless.

However, Madam Yin understood Ye Yaming’s point: “I understand. Yayin’s marriage can’t be perfect in every aspect. We’ll consider as much as we can for her, but she must also like the match herself. If she’s truly unhappy after marriage, she can divorce and come home. As long as your father and I, and you, are here, she needn’t worry about being bullied.”

Ye Yaming nodded: “Yes, exactly. Yayin is still young, so take your time selecting her match. Please also keep an eye out for Yayu’s marriage prospects; if there’s someone suitable, mention it to Grandmother.”

When Madam Yin asked for Ye Yaming’s opinion, she was trying to indirectly find out if Ye Yaming intended to marry Ye Yayin into a noble family.

Now that she was the wife of a Marquis’s heir, and on good terms with Princesses Imperial Yüan and Yuning, she might be able to find a good match for her sister, marrying her into a noble family as well. This way, the sisters could support each other, and Ye Yaming would have additional support.

But from Ye Yaming’s words, she didn’t seem to have such intentions. Madam Yin felt relieved.

In her opinion, she still didn’t want her younger daughter to marry into a prestigious family. Recently, she had interacted with many noble ladies, and these people could twist their words in eighteen different ways, with far too many schemes—it was exhausting. In such a family, even Ye Yaming might not live well, let alone Ye Yayin.

As for Ye Yayu, she was only suited for someone very simple, preferably from a family far less prosperous than the Ye family, so she wouldn’t have to suffer any grievances.

Ye Yaming changed the subject: “Did Father say when we’re returning to Lin’an?”

“Yes, we depart on the eighteenth day of the twelfth lunar month.” After speaking, Madam Yin sighed softly.

Madam Yin didn’t have many worries, and Ye Yaming could guess accurately: “Do you not want to return to Lin’an?”

“It’s not that I don’t want to go back, but I’m concerned about the business here in the Capital. The pastry shop is about to open branches, and I worry Princess Imperial Yüan can’t manage it all. Such a good opportunity—it would be a shame to mess it up.”

Ye Yaming could understand her mother’s feelings and was pleased with her entrepreneurial spirit. A woman should have her career and live brilliantly on her terms, rather than always putting men first.

In the past, Madam Yin would never have said such things.

She frowned thoughtfully, then said: “I’ll write a letter to Grandfather to discuss whether Elder Uncle could return instead, while you and Father stay in the Capital. With me managing tea production now, Father doesn’t need to remain in Lin’an constantly.”

Quality control for the Ye family’s tea couldn’t rely on just one person. What if that person caught a cold or fell ill, affecting their sense of taste? Besides, the Ye family now had tea factories in places beyond Lin’an, and one person couldn’t manage them all.

Ye Yaming had already recruited more than ten servants with sensitive taste buds for quality control, and she had implemented modern tea evaluation methods, establishing standards for tea grading.

Every batch of tea produced by each Ye family tea master had to undergo strict evaluation through sampling. Each batch required separate evaluations by several tea assessors, who would then issue evaluation reports and classify the tea grades.

This was how they ensured the quality of Ye family teas.

This year, she had gone to Minzhou and hadn’t had time to implement this system, but when next year’s spring tea was produced, these rules would be enforced.

“However, Father will still need to return in the spring to produce the pre-Qingming tea, which only takes about half a month. After producing this batch, he can come back.”

Madam Yin was very tempted.

But she soon shook her head: “That wouldn’t be right. Your Elder Uncle has been in the Capital all these years. Now that you’ve become the next family head and married into a Marquis’s family, sending him back to Lin’an would sound bad if people talked about it.”

Ye Yaming naturally wouldn’t suggest sending Ye Hongchang back herself, but would find a way to make him propose it himself.

However, after hearing Madam Yin’s concern, she abandoned the idea of interfering: “You’re right. Let’s forget it. If Elder Uncle is willing to arrange it this way, he’ll suggest it himself; if he doesn’t, it wouldn’t be right for us to send him back.”

Madam Yin nodded: “Exactly. You’re going to be the family head now, so you must be fair in your actions and not give people reason to criticize.”

She hadn’t felt it before, but after opening her shop and doing business, she experienced her daughter’s capabilities firsthand. After coming to the Capital and seeing those noblewomen treating her respectfully because of her daughter, this feeling became even stronger.

She finally understood what her husband had told her when he discouraged her from trying to bear a son—even if she risked her life to birth a son and raise him meticulously, he would never be as accomplished as her eldest daughter. All the respect she now enjoyed was brought to her by her daughter.

In the past, she had been fixated on bearing a son, and although she loved her daughters, she hadn’t devoted much attention to them. Now she truly put her daughters first, considering Ye Yaming in everything she did.