Ye Zhinan suddenly remembered her identity and was about to turn around and leave when she bumped straight into the person behind her.
"How did you end up here?"
Qin Yihuai's face darkened. He lowered his eyes and stared at the person in front of him.
Out of the corner of her eye, Ye Zhinan caught sight of the plum blossom embroidered on the corner of his robe. She instantly sprang half a foot away.
"I... I was just taking a walk! I'll go back right away!"
With that, she turned around and ran.
She never thought she'd get caught red - handed even with so many people around. What bad luck!
But why were the Wei family members all right?
Thinking of this, she stopped in her tracks and looked back. Wei Shishi was looking at her with a mischievous glint in his eyes, clearly enjoying the show.
"Sister, you're finally here!"
Ye Yingfeng suddenly appeared in front of her. His head was covered in glistening sweat.
Ye Zhinan glanced at his outfit, then at Qin Yihuai who was walking towards her not far away. It was as if something dawned on her.
"On the day of the canal - opening, we need to go and help. You can come and watch, come and watch..."
The words Ye Yingfeng had said a few days ago suddenly popped into Ye Zhinan's mind. But at that time, her mind had been full of Liu Ruonan and the fire at the Yan family, so she hadn't really paid attention.
"She came with the Wei family," Qin Yihuai caught up. His eyes were fixed on the distance, as if waiting for a storm to come.
Ye Yingfeng frowned upon hearing this. "When did you get so close to the Wei family?"
"Who said I'm close to the Wei family? I clearly came with the Six..."
"There you are. Why did you run off just now? You made my family worried."
Damn it! Wei Shishi walked over at the most inopportune moment.
She was smiling brightly, swaying her slender waist. Her red dress was so glaring in the sunlight!
"We don't need the Wei family to worry about our Ye family's girl," Ye Yingfeng said, then grabbed Ye Zhinan's arm and was about to leave.
Wei Shishi grabbed Ye Zhinan. "You've come all the way here. It's not right if you don't stay and watch!"
With that, she dragged Ye Zhinan back without any room for refusal.
Just then, there was a loud boom. Water rushed down from the mountain and poured into the farmland.
After the initial shock, everyone clapped and cheered.
Ye Zhinan was stunned at this sight for the first time. When she looked to the side, Wei Shishi had already disappeared.
What on earth was this person up to?
As Ye Zhinan was thinking, she heard the villagers talking.
"Look, the Wei family is here. Why did they come?"
"Don't you know? Their family sponsored this canal. Of course they were invited to watch."
"I see. Then why did the Ye family come?"
"Aren't they here to work?"
Ye Zhinan found these words harsh.
What did they mean by the Wei family providing the money and the Ye family doing the work? She had provided money too!
No wonder Wei Shishi had dragged her here. Was this a silent show of superiority?
As Ye Zhinan was thinking, a pair of deep, probing eyes landed on the man in blue beside her.
Qin Yihuai, as usual, remained expressionless, standing there upright.
Chen Zhenhai stepped forward considerately to console her. "Miss Ye, don't take it to heart. Your good deeds are firmly engraved in our hearts. He just shouldn't have said that."
Ye Zhinan shot a sideways glance at the cold - faced man beside her, only to meet his gaze.
Their eyes met, filled with a depth like the sea. There were so many things to say, but no words came out.
Ye Zhinan suddenly felt her heart pounding. She once again felt the wild fluttering of a panicked deer in her chest.
Qin Yihuai, however, remained calm. He silently averted his gaze.
"Nannan, you didn't leave. That's great!"
Sixth Auntie somehow came over. Ye Zhinan noticed the tear - streaks in the corners of her eyes.
Had she been crying again?
Her heart softened. She took out her handkerchief and wiped the corners of Sixth Auntie's eyes.
"Sixth Auntie, don't worry too much about Sister. If there's anything, just tell me."
"Well, speaking of which, there is actually something," Sixth Auntie said.
I knew it!
Ye Zhinan's heart sank. A bad feeling crept over her.
She said softly without showing any emotion. "Go ahead."
Sixth Auntie looked around, then carefully pulled Ye Zhinan to a less crowded place. "I'm all alone. Now that I've followed Master here, I can't take care of my daughter, and I can't even take care of myself. So I want to do something to earn some extra money."
She sounded so sincere that Ye Zhinan couldn't detect any falsehood, but she didn't dare to make any hasty promises.
"Sixth Auntie, I don't have much ability. And I'm a person with a stigma. It's impossible for me to make money. Besides, since the Wei family can donate money, surely they won't leave you out, right?"
As Ye Zhinan was speaking, she closely watched Sixth Auntie's reaction. Sixth Auntie's eyes slightly twitched, and tears welled up.
"I know the Wei family has wronged you all, but I really have no other choice but to come and beg you. If you don't help me, I'm afraid I'll die here."
"All right!"
"Since that's the case, I should get a share too!"
Thirteenth Auntie suddenly walked out from somewhere. Ye Zhinan immediately looked at Sixth Auntie, who looked innocent, as if she knew nothing about this.
"What share do you think you should get?"
"Great - niece, don't play dumb with me. I, Thirteenth Auntie, always say what's on my mind. You're going to do business and make money. Take me along."
Thirteenth Auntie swayed over to them, fanning away the small insects around her with a handkerchief.
"Why do you want to make money?"
Ye Zhinan's eyes were full of contempt.
This woman had been the most favored concubine of Master Wei since she married into the Wei family. She had amassed a lot of wealth. It was hard to believe that she needed to make money.
Thirteenth Auntie let out a cold snort. Her dark eyes were full of grievances.
"Great - niece, you don't know. I was exiled right after I got married at a young age. My old mother at home thought she could rely on my money to live a peaceful life in her old age, but now..."
As she was speaking, two crocodile tears rolled down her face.
Before she had finished crying, three more people walked out. "If we're going to do this, we might as well do it together. There's strength in numbers. This way, we can avoid any future troubles and prevent others from getting involved."
Tenth Auntie walked out with Seventh Auntie and Eleventh Auntie.
"What on earth do you want me to do?"
Ye Zhinan realized that this matter was not as simple as it seemed. When she looked at Sixth Auntie again, she had already joined the group.
"Great - niece, I really have no other choice."
"Humph!"
Ye Zhinan let out a cold snort in her heart.
She was still too young, too soft - hearted, and too naive. But...
"It seems that life in the Wei family isn't easy either," Ye Zhinan said, and a hint of sympathy flashed across her eyes.
"Indeed. We're not as glamorous as others think," Thirteenth Auntie quickly squeezed out a few more tears.
"I saw you teaching Sister Zhang how to raise ducks, teaching the Liu family how to weave cloth, and helping the people in Fushou Village sell marinated food. Can you take us along too?"
"What advantages do you have?"
Tenth Auntie's pupils shrank slightly. She looked haughty. "We have brains and some capital."
How arrogant!
Ye Zhinan thought to herself, but on the surface, she showed envy.
"That's great. I see your family also has ducks. How about starting with duck - raising?"
"Duck - raising?"
The women exclaimed in unison.
Sixth Auntie asked carefully. "How can we make money from raising ducks?"