Ye Yaming felt delighted. “That’s good then.”

“Once this list is organized, should we deliver it directly to Song Yifeng, or wait until he comes tomorrow? If we wait until tomorrow, I fear he’ll find ways to haggle again,” Ye Chongming said.

Given the greed of the Song mother and son, if they didn’t put the list directly in their hands, they would certainly return less than owed and withhold a significant amount.

Ye Yaming thought for a moment, then looked toward the Elder Lady Ye: “Grandmother, perhaps tomorrow morning you could send someone to Madam Wu’s residence to ask if she might be free to come to our estate for tea and pastries tomorrow afternoon around 3-5 pm.”

Everyone was startled.

“Are you suggesting we invite her to serve as a witness?” Elder Lady Ye asked.

Ye Yaming nodded. “Today, both Secretary Wu and Madam Wu were showing goodwill. Perhaps Madam Wu would be willing to help with this matter. It doesn’t hurt to ask. If she says she’s not available, then so be it.”

Elder Lady Ye nodded. “Very well, I’ll send A’Yu over tomorrow.”

Ye Yaming gave a respectful bow and stood at the fork in the path, watching as they departed.

The First Household was closest to the main courtyard, just behind it. The group walked forward for a while, then Ye Chongming turned to father and son Ye Hongchang and said, “You two may return now. Send people to thoroughly investigate the Wang family.”

After Ye Hongchang and his son left with their servants, he turned to the maid who had been following behind Elder Lady Ye and said, “Send someone to the Second Household and ask the Second Madam to come over. Tell her the Elder Lady has something to discuss.”

The maid acknowledged and left for the Second Household.

This had been planned beforehand by the elderly couple—after Song Yifeng had caused a scene at tonight’s banquet, they would discuss the matter of breaking off the engagement with Madam Yin.

Elder Lady Ye glanced at Ye Chongming and asked, “Do you plan to be present for this conversation?”

Typically, Ye Chongming didn’t involve himself in such matters, allowing her to communicate with their daughters-in-law. As the father-in-law, he generally didn’t find it appropriate to manage his daughters-in-law’s affairs.

But seeing that Ye Chongming had personally instructed the maid to summon Madam Yin, Elder Lady Ye knew that the old man intended to personally explain the matter of the broken engagement to Madam Yin.

Ye Chongming replied, “Yes.”

Elder Lady Ye nodded. “As it should be.”

Given how much Ye Yaming had contributed to the Ye family, she certainly shouldn’t suffer any further grievances regarding the broken engagement. The old man was concerned that Madam Yin might be confused, not understanding the situation fully, and might still treat Ye Yaming as an ordinary, ignorant girl, lecturing or blaming her about this matter. So he planned to personally intervene to protect her.

The elderly couple returned to the hall in the inner courtyard and took their seats.

Before long, Madam Yin arrived. Seeing that Ye Chongming was present, she immediately became uneasy. After giving a respectful bow, she sat down in the lower seat with considerable apprehension.

Ye Chongming didn’t let Elder Lady Ye speak but personally recounted everything that Song Yifeng had said and done at the Ye residence today.

Madam Yin grew increasingly alarmed, her face alternating between red and white, as if she had done something shameful.

Ye Chongming and Elder Lady Ye found her reaction quite perplexing.

This daughter-in-law was indeed good, but sometimes they couldn’t understand what she was thinking.

For Ye Yaming’s sake, Ye Chongming consoled her: “Sometimes a person’s true character isn’t revealed until they face major difficulties. Song Yifeng is smart and well-read; his brilliance in this regard was too dazzling. We all admired his talent, and given his unremarkable position and intentional concealment of his true character, it’s understandable that we couldn’t see his true face. You needn’t take his faults upon yourself. Even your father and I, at our advanced age, couldn’t see through him—how could you?”

With these words, Madam Yin’s expression indeed improved.

She stood up and gave Ye Chongming a respectful bow. “Thank you for your guidance, Father-in-law.”

Ye Chongming lowered his palm, gesturing for Madam Yin to sit down.

After Madam Yin was seated, he continued: “Yaming is intelligent and the grandchild I think most highly of. I’ve long intended to train her as I would a son. It’s just as well that this engagement with Song Yifeng is broken. In the future, let’s keep Yaming in the family and have her husband marry into our household. This way, she can carry on the family line for your Second Household.”

Then, turning to Elder Lady Ye, he added: “Yaming has just had her engagement broken off and is certainly feeling distressed. It’s understandable if she’s unwilling to discuss marriage for a while. You mustn’t force her—let her recover first. When she’s ready to consider marriage again, you can help her find a suitable husband.”

Elder Lady Ye knew that Ye Chongming was saying this for Madam Yin’s benefit and immediately replied: “I understand.”

She also had something to say to Madam Yin, so she continued: “The family is now cooperating with Young Master Lu and Young Master Qi, and there are many matters that require Yaming’s involvement. It’s not suitable for Yaming to become engaged at this time.”

Once a girl was engaged, her future husband’s family generally hoped she would stay at home preparing for marriage, not running about outside, especially not interacting too closely with other men.

Although Ye Yaming would be taking a husband into the family, to attract a good husband, the man would still have requirements for his future wife.

The cooperation between the Ye family and the Lu and Qi families might require Ye Yaming’s involvement in large part. Both Lu and Qi were outstanding young gentlemen from prominent families. If Ye Yaming became close to them, it would be difficult for her fiancé not to become suspicious.

This was something that Ye Chongming, as a traditional man, might not have considered. Elder Lady Ye had thought of it and needed to point it out to make Madam Yin fully aware, lest she spend all day thinking about irrelevant matters and only add to Ye Yaming’s troubles.

When Ye Chongming heard this, his face showed sudden understanding. “Yes, yes, that’s exactly right.”

To ensure Madam Yin was informed, he briefly explained the cooperation with Young Masters Lu and Qi.

Elder Lady Ye listened from the side, feeling quite moved.

Although Ye Chongming was good to the women in the family, he also had his traditional male perspective. Normally, he never discussed business matters with the women. His interactions with his daughters-in-law were limited to them bowing to him and him nodding in acknowledgment.

Now, patiently explaining business matters to Madam Yin showed how much Ye Yaming meant to him.

Madam Yin seemed to realize this as well. Though she was somewhat nervous about Ye Chongming’s explanation, her eyes were full of pride and joy. The previous shame, regret, and embarrassment she had felt about her daughter’s broken engagement had completely disappeared.

When Ye Chongming finished speaking, she stood up and gave a respectful bow: “Thank you, Father-in-law, for trusting Yaming and allowing her to participate in business matters.”

It was good that they were in the Ye family, with its righteous family values and open-minded patriarch. If it were a different family, even if Ye Yaming were intelligent, the head of the household might not value her talents, and others might try to bring her down or frame her.

So Madam Yin’s gratitude was sincere.

She continued: “Yaming mentioned some of these matters to me a few days ago. She also said that you and Mother-in-law saw that our finances were tight, and especially allowed us to participate in the cooperation with Young Master Lu and Young Master Qi. I am deeply grateful for your kindness and consideration.”

With that, she bowed again to Ye Chongming and Elder Lady Ye.

Hearing this, Elder Lady Ye immediately asked: “Did Yaming tell you about the Second Household contributing ten thousand taels of silver to participate in the business?”