The Young Lady is a Bit Unruly [Fragrant Harbor] - Chapter 44 The Switch

Chapter 44 The Switch

On the second floor of Peter Hospital in Hong Kong’s Western District, outside the obstetrics operating room, Ye Kaimin paced incessantly in the corridor, irritating Liang Meiyun so much that she could only roll her eyes inwardly.

Having nothing better to do, Ye Baoling walked around and noticed there was only one door to the operating room. She grew curious about how Zheng Junni planned to switch the babies.

Was the child already inside?

Returning to the waiting area, she sat beside Liang Meiyun.

Liang Meiyun complained with clear disdain, Look at this hospital’s environment…

Ye Baoling seized the opportunity to ask, Why choose this hospital for a C-section?

I heard an old doctor here prescribed her fertility medicine, Liang Meiyun whispered closely. Medicine specifically for having sons.

Ye Baoling and her aunt exchanged knowing smiles but offered no further comment.

Just then, a nurse wheeled out a new mother and her baby.

Family of Gao Aiqun! Boy, 6.1 pounds.

A woman in her forties rushed over and took the baby.

Ye Baoling noticed the woman seemed slightly nervous, without a trace of smile on her face, and immediately realized this was the switched child.

Zheng Junni was truly bold to switch babies right under everyone’s noses.

Liang Meiyun also observed keenly, How strange—this family isn’t even happy about having a boy.

Watching the mother’s gurney being pushed into the elevator, Ye Baoling excused herself to the restroom and followed. She saw the elevator indicator stop at the third floor.

Taking the stairs to the third floor, she spotted a familiar figure through the glass door at the stairwell, speaking with the woman holding the baby.

When the figure turned around, Ye Baoling recognized her immediately—it was A Feng, who had been dismissed from Zheng Junni’s side!

Shortly after, A Feng left carrying a bag.

It seemed that after leaving the main household, A Feng was now responsible for coordination outside.

Returning to the second-floor operating room, Ye Baoling whispered to her aunt, I just saw A Feng.

Which A Feng? Liang Meiyun asked, then quickly remembered. The one who was dismissed?

Ye Baoling nodded. Yes, she was acting suspiciously. I wonder what she’s up to.

Suspicious?

Liang Meiyun felt slightly doubtful and considered going to look for her, but fearing others might speculate, she restrained herself and stayed put.

The operating room door opened again, and the nurse came out to congratulate Ye Kaimin directly.

Mr. Ye! Congratulations, a boy, 8.2 pounds.

Ye Kaimin’s face broke into a beaming smile, creasing with wrinkles. He asked anxiously, Is he healthy and safe?

Both mother and child are safe.

Although they had known Zheng Junni was carrying a boy, hearing the confirmation of their safety still made Liang Meiyun feel sour and unsettled.

But she didn’t show it on her face, merely offering congratulations with a smile: It’s good that both are safe. Congratulations, Elder Brother.

Ye Kaimin, still upset about her tearing the Amulet of safety, ignored her.

The mother’s gurney was wheeled out. Zheng Junni, just after the C-section, looked sallow but wore a faint smile.

The baby was brought out as well.

Ye Kaimin was too emotional to hold the child, so the Ye family’s nanny took the baby instead.

The Ye family gathered around to see the newborn, and Ye Baoling joined them.

The baby’s face was rosy and chubby, eyes closed, looking utterly adorable.

Liang Meiyun smiled and sighed to Zheng Junni, Sister-in-law really doesn’t show her pregnancy much. Her belly wasn’t very big normally, yet she gave birth to a big, healthy boy weighing 8.2 pounds.

Zheng Junni didn’t respond to her.

Liang Meiyun could only say to Ye Baoling, Baoling, congratulations on becoming a sister again.

Ye Baoling felt a headache coming on.

That word again was used so well—

Liang Meiyun never missed an opportunity to remind them about the intellectually disabled boy they had before.

Ye Kaimin couldn’t be bothered with Liang Meiyun’s sarcastic remarks and turned to ask Xing Shu, Have we informed the old master with the good news?

Xing Shu smiled, I’ve already called to report the good news. The old master is very happy and wants them transferred immediately to Aihe Hospital for a comprehensive check-up.

It was clear the old master wasn’t fully assured about the child’s health and wanted a full examination at Aihe Hospital to set his mind at ease.

Ye Kaimin was also anxious, but seeing the baby’s facial features were completely different from Ye Baolong’s at birth, he didn’t believe one could hit the jackpot twice in a row.

He immediately stated he would accompany them to Aihe Hospital.

Ye Baoling had brought a camera and camcorder to gather evidence, but ended up not using either. Still, it wasn’t a complete waste.

At least she had planted a seed of doubt in Liang Meiyun’s mind.

As for when that seed would bear fruit, it depended on when she would water and fertilize it.

By the time they returned home, it was past nine o’clock. Ye Baoling had dinner downstairs with Liang Meiyun before each went to their rooms to rest.

When Liang Meiyun returned to her room, her husband Ye Kais followed her in.

Ye Kais scolded her, What’s wrong with you? Why did you tear the Amulet of safety for no reason? Don’t you know the Fetal spirit is everywhere when someone in the family is pregnant?

Liang Meiyun knew perfectly well—she had done it intentionally.

Who tore it? I was replacing the old one with a new one! She was about to give birth anyway and deliberately picked a fight, trying to pin the blame on me! Aren’t both mother and child safe and sound?

Ye Kais pointed at her, The old master is very angry. Just you wait.

Me wait? What can he possibly do to me? Is having one more grandson such a big deal? Liang Meiyun took down her bun, How old is the old master anyway? To put it bluntly, can he even live long enough to see this little grandson grow up? Baoshun should work harder and give him a great-grandson—that would be more like it!

Ye Kais disagreed, He doesn’t need to wait for this little grandson to grow up. As long as Big Brother has an heir, and if Big Brother shows some ambition, 90% of our eldest branch’s family assets will be his.

This was the downside of the Ye family’s rules.

Sons who didn’t inherit the family business could only receive at most 10% of the assets.

If the brothers divided the family wealth equally, there wouldn’t be so many conflicts.

The current situation was a fight to the death!

Liang Meiyun couldn’t help but complain at length before finally saying, Such an inhuman, terrible rule!

After listening to his wife’s rant, Ye Kais said, If it weren’t for this inheritance method, would Ye Qingtang and Su Man Jewelry still be in our eldest branch’s hands? It would have been divided up long ago.

Liang Meiyun combed her hair while saying, I felt something was off at the hospital today.

What was off?

Can’t quite put my finger on it. Just felt strange. Not normal.

Ye Kais couldn’t be bothered with her and left the room.

*

Ye Baoling waited in her room until half past twelve, but her second uncle still hadn’t left the study.

If her second uncle didn’t leave, she wouldn’t be able to enter the Secret chamber.

She had no choice but to call Ye Huaizhang to inform him of the situation. My second uncle might have argued with my second aunt. He’s been holed up in his study and refuses to leave.

Ye Huaizhang advised her, It’s getting late. You should rest early, and we’ll discuss it tomorrow.

Ye Baoling had no alternative but to agree to postpone.

Early the next morning, Sister Ping brought in oatmeal milk and whispered, The baby was sent to Aihe Hospital under the second branch for a checkup right after birth. They say everything’s normal and the child is perfectly healthy. The old master was so pleased that even your father benefited from it.

What benefit? Ye Baoling was applying her eyebrow makeup.

I heard the listing of Ye Qingtang Herbal Tea will be handed over to your father! Sister Ping fanned herself while stirring the milk for her.

Ye Qingtang Herbal Tea was set to go public next month, with all preliminary preparations completed. Ye Kaimin only needed to lend his name to the process—a gesture to let him bask in the glory without any real effort, reaping unwarranted prestige.

For now, it indeed seemed like a favorable arrangement.

Sister Ping grumbled, Heaven truly has no eyes.

Ye Baoling comforted her, Don’t be upset. It has nothing to do with us.

That’s true. The old master also stripped the second wife of her household management authority.

Ye Baoling was surprised. So quickly?

This morning, Xing Shu came out and told Yin Jie that from now on, any matters should be directed to Xing Shen instead of the second wife. Probably once that woman finishes her postpartum confinement, the management rights will be directly transferred to her. Sister Ping touched the side of the glass with the back of her hand. The temperature is just right. Drink it now.

After finishing the oatmeal milk, Ye Baoling went downstairs, had some trotter ginger and noodles, and hurried off to work.

Today, she walked to work, deliberately taking a longer route and making a detour.

Passing by a large bookstore, she went in and bought almost every financial newspaper and magazine available in the store.

Of the three Witch stocks, she only found information on one.

The other two—whether they hadn’t gone public yet or hadn’t undergone name changes—remained unclear for now.

She arrived unusually early at the office; it was only 8:30 a.m., and she was the first one there.

After flipping through several newspapers, she came across a piece of news related to Dapeng Port in an obscure publication called Tumbleweed Financial Weekly.

The reporter had followed the story to Shenzhen and, after an in-depth investigation, discovered that aside from Haihua Construction, a large state-owned infrastructure enterprise from the mainland was also stationed at Dapeng Port.

Moreover, the Haihua Construction team at Dapeng Port was minimal and had not been seen working outside.

The reporter suspected that despite support from its major shareholder, Gangtong Industrial, Haihua Construction had been outbid by the state-owned enterprise and ultimately failed to secure the construction contract for Dapeng Port.

Such a significant matter?

Ye Baoling immediately picked up the phone and called Ye Huaizhang. As soon as he answered, she asked, Was Haihua Construction eliminated?

You’re very well-informed, Ye Huaizhang replied, still in his car.

Ye Baoling’s anger flared up instantly. Why didn’t you tell me?

Didn’t you buy Gangtong Industrial and not Haihua Construction?

Yes, I didn’t buy it! With that, Ye Baoling hung up.

Furious!

But she knew she had no right to be angry, which only made her angrier.

Assuming Liu Haonan hadn’t arrived at the company yet, she sent him a pager message, instructing him to come to the office immediately.

Then she grabbed her handbag, headed out, went downstairs, and took a taxi to Qiyuan.

At the company entrance, she ran into Lu Baohua who had just arrived for work. He asked, Ah Ling, so early… where are you headed?

Ye Baoling smiled and made up an excuse: There are some matters to handle in the logistics department.

This was the advantage of working across two departments – she could appear busy and slip away whenever needed.

About ten minutes later, she arrived at Qiyuan Investment. Chen Yulan was already there, but Liu Haonan hadn’t arrived yet.

Just as she was about to page him again, Liu Haonan pushed the door open and entered.

You paged so urgently – is something wrong?

Ye Baoling said: We need to liquidate all our Haihua Construction shares before Gangtong Industrial releases their press release this afternoon.

From his boss’s tone, Liu Haonan roughly guessed that Haihua Construction hadn’t won the Dapeng Port project.

He didn’t ask for details, simply saying: Haihua Construction has small market capitalization. If we dump all our shares directly, we’ll definitely crash the stock price and might not even preserve our initial profits.

Ye Baoling knew time was indeed tight – only half an hour until market opening. They needed to think of a solution quickly.

She asked: If we don’t dump but sell gradually, how much can we offload in one morning?

Uncertain. I’m worried that everyone who gets the news will dump at the same time – then we definitely won’t be able to sell much.

Have you heard of Tumbleweed Financial Weekly?

Haven’t heard of it. Why?

Ye Baoling showed Liu Haonan the copy of Tumbleweed Financial Weekly – the magazine was only in its second issue.

Liu Haonan analyzed: This new newspaper probably has very small circulation. The number of people who both see this news and happen to hold Haihua Construction shares must be minimal. Yesterday’s newspaper reports were still discussing what would happen if Haihua Construction won the Dapeng Port project.

Since few people knew, there was still time.

Ye Baoling asked: How much are we currently up?

Floating profit of 52% on paper.

They had already made considerable gains.

Ye Baoling thought for a moment: Don’t we have several trading accounts? Try to sell at higher prices if possible, but if not, just make sure the price doesn’t drop too much today. Get more securities traders to help with the operation and pay higher commissions.

With his boss’s permission to pay higher commissions, the operation became much easier. Liu Haonan said: I’ll go find people to help right now.

Ye Baoling actually had other options to reduce losses.

She could have people buy up all copies of Tumbleweed, or call radio stations to spread false information and create confusion.

But these methods were truly despicable. She was making money now, not losing her pants – no need to be so ruthless.

So they would compete on technical execution – they’d take whatever profit they could get from this trade.

After the discussion, she returned to the company first.

As soon as she arrived, colleagues pulled her away for a factory workshop inspection. She didn’t return to the office until nearly 2 PM.

Chen Yulan had been paging her every hour with progress updates.

By 2 PM, they had sold 90% of their shares.

With only half an hour left until the 2:30 news release, they were accelerating the sale of the remaining 10% position.

With just 10% left, Ye Baoling finally felt relieved regardless of the outcome.

There was a departmental meeting scheduled for the afternoon.

Two deputy managers first delivered their weekly work summaries.

When discussing the new product consumer market research, Qu Zhengming said: This time it’s a bit different – we received two research reports. Have you both read them?

We have.

What’s your assessment?

Lu Baohua smiled and said, Each has its own pros and cons, but overall, the thicker one is more comprehensive.

Xu Chengping was more direct: The thicker report has better summaries.

Rong Jie whispered to He Jiayi, Which one is thick and which is thin?

He Jiayi, still clinging to hope, shook her head: I don’t know. Ours isn’t thin, is it? It’s three pages.

Qu Zhengming opened the folder, holding one market research report in each hand. The difference in thickness between the two reports was so obvious that Rong Jie couldn’t help but widen her eyes.

How many pages do they have?

Qu Zhengming: The consumer market research report completed jointly by Gu Baolin and Gao Lizhen used a total of 500 consumer questionnaires as statistical basis. The report is 16 pages long, with detailed and thorough analysis, combining text and graphics, and clear conclusions. From this report, I can see consumers’ true attitude toward our new product – that our Jasmine Herbal Tea neither appeals to the traditional herbal tea market, nor does its overly strong flavor attract interest from other beverage enthusiasts.

This result surprised everyone.

Rong Jie immediately objected: People who like this herbal tea do so precisely because they love its strong flavor. Since when has a strong flavor become a weakness?

Qu Zhengming countered: How many consumers did you survey to arrive at that conclusion?

Rong Jie fell silent, after all, their 80 questionnaires were all completed with the help of convenience store owners.

The reason we conducted this survey is because Jasmine Herbal Tea has had extremely low sales since its launch. If we only survey consumers who already like this tea, what’s the point of the survey? We should be asking consumers of other tea brands why they don’t like our Jasmine Herbal Tea.

He Jiayi questioned: After all, it’s a new product. Could it be that those who say they don’t like it haven’t even tried our Jasmine Herbal Tea?

Ye Baoling: We gave every on-site respondent a bottle of Jasmine Herbal Tea. The respondents completed the questionnaire only after personally tasting it.

Rong Jie and He Jiayi fell silent.

Qu Zhengming placed both reports on the table: In less than a week, as newcomers, Gu Baolin led fellow newcomer Gao Lizhen to complete a market research report comparable to those produced by professional research firms. I can imagine how many challenges they had to overcome. How did they complete 500 high-quality questionnaires in such a short time? Our company computers don’t have professional statistical software – how did they solve that problem? If this task were given to you, how would you have handled it?

No one in the conference room spoke, and certainly no one could answer.

After a moment, Xu Chengping finally said: Gu Baolin had her cousin hire university students for part-time work to complete the questionnaires. As for the software issue, Gu Baolin used her connections to access the computers and software of a partner research company, spending a day and a half to efficiently complete the professional statistical analysis.

Qu Zhengming: So, Gu Baolin doesn’t have any special powers – she overcame each challenge through her own efforts and resourcefulness. Seeing our new colleague’s determination to complete the task and her refusal to admit defeat has been very enlightening for me. I realize I haven’t been doing enough myself, and I must reflect on this. All of us, including myself, should learn from Gu Baolin.

Ye Baoling believed Qu Zhengming’s praise was sincere. Anyone would be happy to receive compliments, but what she wanted wasn’t praise—it was trust.

As for whether this praise would cause trouble, if she had just started working, she would definitely have been concerned.

But now that she had a good understanding of her colleagues in the product department, she wasn’t afraid of offending anyone.

Of course, making enemies and stirring up resentment was pointless, so she smiled modestly and said, The questionnaire was designed by Rong Jie and Jiayi. We only made minor adjustments before using it directly. Splitting into two groups was Manager Xu’s decision—comparing data from both groups helps colleagues see things more clearly. The two reports have different focuses and perspectives; neither is superior to the other.

Ye Baoling spoke graciously and tactfully, giving face to everyone involved.

Rong Jie and He Jiayi, who had initially held strong reservations about Ye Baoling, instantly felt their anger dissipate.

Qu Zhengming handed Ye Baoling’s survey report to a colleague to make copies for upcoming group analysis.

After the meeting, Qu Zhengming called Ye Baoling into the director’s office.

How are you finding things in our product department?

Ye Baoling smiled. Quite good.

Recently, there have been some issues in the marketing department…

Ye Baoling knew about the marketing department’s troubles—because she had caused them.

According to Qi Yuxiu, Director Liu of the marketing department had been suspended pending investigation. The final outcome remained unknown.

Perhaps the two factions would need to struggle against each other for some time before a resolution emerged.

Qu Zhengming said, I may temporarily take on dual roles, overseeing both product and marketing. I’m currently short on capable people who can get things done, and you happen to be someone who delivers. I’d like you to work closely with me from now on, shuttling between the product and marketing departments.

Ye Baoling had no problem with this. As long as she didn’t run into any members of the Ye family, she was willing to take on more responsibilities and expand her reach.

Yes, she appeared humble on the surface, but inwardly she was anything but—she knew her own capabilities.

What do you think? Are you willing to work alongside me?

Ye Baoling nodded with a smile. Since you value me, Director Qu, I’m certainly up for it.

Qu Zhengming appreciated such a sharp-witted young woman. If you’re on board, I’ll promote you two grades next month, with a corresponding salary increase. The capable should do more work, but more work should also mean greater rewards.

Otherwise, the company wouldn’t be able to retain talent.

Qu Zhengming understood this principle well.

Ye Baoling said happily, Thank you, Director Qu.

Your survey report has truly been very enlightening. Are you really only a middle school graduate?

I did only complete middle school. After graduation, I never formally sought employment but took on many part-time jobs instead. I’ve done all sorts of work, including market research. So, I do have some experience. Ye Baoling could fabricate lies effortlessly and justify them convincingly.

Qu Zhengming suggested, If you have time, consider enrolling in a part-time adult education program. You need both ability and qualifications—otherwise, the early part of your career may be smooth, but the later stages will become difficult.

This was thoughtful advice, showing that Qu Zhengming was more practical and considerate of his subordinates than Qi Yuxiu.

Ye Baoling indicated she would seriously consider it.

Returning to her desk, she immediately checked her pager and found two messages from Chen Yulan.

The one sent at 2:45 read: Positions liquidated.

The one sent at 3:00 sharp read: Profit margin 51.2%.

Ye Baoling finally breathed a sigh of relief. Although she hadn’t achieved her goal of doubling the investment, earning a 51% profit under these circumstances was still impressive.

She quickly calculated and found she had earned a staggering 40.8 million.

After toiling away day after day with a monthly salary of just 3,000, she had struck it rich with some simple maneuvers in the stock market!

Of course, her current funds were still far from enough to compete with her grandfather. She needed to keep pushing forward.

After work, she rushed to Qiyuan. Liu Haonan, who had been intensely focused and busy all day, was completely exhausted by now. He was sitting in a chair with his eyes closed, trying to regain some energy.

When Ye Baoling saw him, he smiled and said, Actually, we made nearly 55% this morning. It’s a pity that in the last half hour, Haihua Construction’s stock plummeted, especially after Gangtong Industrial announced the news. Institutions rushed to sell, and some ended up selling at a loss.

Ye Baoling was quite satisfied with the day’s results. The funds wouldn’t arrive until next Monday, so they agreed to distribute the commissions then.

At half past midnight, Ye Baoling finally entered the secret chamber in the study on time.

Descending to the wine cellar on the third basement level, she followed the method Ye Huaizhang had written for her, dividing the twelve wine racks into two trigrams.

Then, she pressed the floor tiles one by one according to the diagram.

When she pressed the last tile corresponding to the Dui above position, the brick noticeably sank downward.

She quickly glanced around the four corners and, sure enough, spotted a familiar curve in the northeast corner.

Ye Baoling walked over but didn’t push the door open recklessly, afraid of startling Ye Huaizhang in the tunnel. Instead, she knocked on the wall tile first.

Hey! Are you there?

Soon, knocking sounds came from behind the wall as Ye Huaizhang responded from the tunnel.

I’m pushing the door open.

She pushed outward with force, but it only moved slightly, as if the threshold was stuck.

With another push, there was a loud thud from outside, followed by Ye Huaizhang’s muffled cry of pain.

What happened?

After pushing the door open, she shone her flashlight and saw Ye Huaizhang crouching beside a fallen beam that had hit his foot.

Ye Baoling crouched down too. Let me see.

His ankle was bruised and scraped, bleeding from the impact.

The beam fell—couldn’t you dodge it?

… It was so dark; if he could have dodged it, wouldn’t he have?

She asked again, Can you get up?

He was slightly annoyed. No.

Ye Baoling had no choice but to reach out and help him up.

Sweeping the flashlight around, she worriedly said, Another beam fell. Could this place collapse?

No. It’s reinforced with steel and concrete. He had studied it.

She supported Ye Huaizhang into the wine cellar, and the two walked halfway around it.

Ye Huaizhang pulled out a wine bottle and examined it closely. 1946. Something must have happened in the Ye family that year.

Yeah, these are all French wines from 1946. Do you think the Second Branch might have some too?

That would be hard to verify.

After all, they couldn’t enter the Second Branch to check for a secret chamber.

Ye Huaizhang said, But I took some time these past two days to check the Ye Qingtang Family Chronicle. Nothing special happened in 1946.

Where can I see the chronicle?

Every branch has one. The Eldest Branch’s should be with your grandfather.

Ye Baoling didn’t want to ask her grandfather, lest he suspect she had ulterior motives. Lend me your Third Branch’s copy.

It’s in my study. Take it yourself if you want to see it.

They circled the wine cellar once more, feeling as if some secret remained undiscovered.

But for now, they had no solid leads.

It was getting late. Ye Huaizhang glanced at the stairs leading to the Hall of Flourishing Harmony’s second-floor study. With his injured foot, he decided not to go up today.

As they prepared to part ways, he looked back at her. Aren’t you going to see me back?

Ye Baoling wanted to slack off, but seeing him unable to walk properly, she reluctantly said, Fine, I’ll take you back first.

Author’s Note: Ye Baoling: Going back with him surely means trouble.