The Duke's Pampered Darling is So Scheming-Chapter 122: Concern

Dusk was falling when Ye Heng finally returned to the Ye Mansion.

His recent days at the Ministry of Justice had not been easy. Su Wei found fault with his every move and had been constantly sidelining him.

His subordinates didn’t dare offend Su Wei, so they naturally kept their distance from Ye Heng as well.

Only in the past two days, with Su Wei and the others busy investigating the polo match, had they not had much time to bother with Ye Heng. He could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

However, just as he stepped through the door, Ye Shixian hurried over to greet him, a nervous look on her face.

"Father, you’re finally back."

Seeing her expression wasn’t quite right, Ye Heng frowned. "What’s wrong? Is your mother making a scene again, or is your brother—"

"It’s neither." Ye Shixian shook her head, though she seemed to find it hard to say. "It’s... it’s about Han Yao and our cousin. Something’s happened."

Ye Heng walked to the side and sat down. He picked up a teacup to take a drink, only to find it empty.

He grew even more agitated and asked impatiently, "Didn’t they go boating on the lake together today? What, did your cousin give him a hard time?"

Ye Shixian pursed her lips before saying, "No, Han Yao is the one who messed up. He... he got a woman from a brothel pregnant, and she showed up to confront him today!"

Ye Heng looked up in astonishment. "What did you say!?"

Ye Shixian had no choice but to lay out everything that had happened that evening. With every word she spoke, Ye Heng’s expression grew darker.

"In the end, Han Yao had no choice but to take that brothel woman back to his residence—"

CRASH!

Ye Heng raised his hand and slammed the teacup to the ground, sending shards flying.

"That useless fool!" Ye Heng was livid. "I paved the entire path for him, and he still goes and makes this kind of mess!"

Startled, Ye Shixian took a step back.

"Father, please calm down. We have to think of a way to cover this up, and quickly!"

"Cover it up? How?" Veins throbbed on Ye Heng’s forehead. "It was at Feiyue Lake! So many people saw! In less than a day, this news will be all over the Capital City!"

He gritted his teeth, his chest feeling as if a ball of fire was rampaging inside.

"I already warned him to stay away from those pleasure dens for a while! I told him once the marriage was set, everything would be fine! But he couldn’t even control himself?! And now this mess! What are we supposed to do now?!"

Ye Shixian had guessed he would be angry, but she hadn’t expected him to be this furious. She cautiously tried to placate him, "Father, Han Yao was in the wrong, but who could have thought that Su Pei’er person would actually be pregnant and confront him directly? If we had known, we shouldn’t have gone to Feiyue Lake today."

Recalling the life-or-death scene Su Pei’er had made, Ye Shixian curled her lip, her eyes filled with disdain.

"That woman is making such a scene for no other reason than to use her child to gain status and latch onto the Han Family."

"What she’s thinking is not important. What’s important is that this is now public knowledge!" Ye Heng took a deep breath and pressed his temples. "Where is Ye Chutang now?"

’This matter must be resolved as soon as possible!’

Ye Shixian glanced outside. "She didn’t come back with me. After leaving Feiyue Lake, she went straight to the Long Princess Mansion, saying she was going to pick up that little girl."

Ye Heng felt something was off. "How long has she been gone?"

"About an hour, I’d guess," Ye Shixian speculated. "She probably stayed there for dinner."

Ye Heng paced back and forth a couple of times, as if having made a decision. "I’m going to the Long Princess Mansion."

Ye Shixian was taken aback. "Now?"

’But it’s already dark out.’

"You don’t need to worry. If she comes back late, the people from the Long Princess Mansion will escort her back." Ye Shixian’s tone was sour. "After all, she’s a regular at the Long Princess Mansion now."

Ye Heng said nothing and strode out the door.

’Only yesterday, the Eldest Princess had publicly stated her intention to arrange a marriage for Ye Chutang. He had been forced to politely refuse, claiming she and Han Yao were in love and their wedding date was about to be set. And then this whole mess had to happen today!’

’What would the Eldest Princess think of him? What would everyone else be saying!?’

Growing increasingly uneasy, Ye Heng quickened his pace.

He suddenly thought of something and turned back to shout at Ye Shixian, "You’re coming too!"

He hadn’t been there, so Ye Shixian was the only one who could give an account of what happened.

Ye Shixian didn’t want to go, thinking Ye Heng was being overly anxious. But seeing the look on his face, she didn’t dare object and could only follow him.

...

「Long Princess Mansion.」

"This Five-Treasure Sweet Soup... Xiao Wu seems to be particularly fond of it?" the Eldest Princess said with a gentle smile. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

Ye Chutang glanced at Xiao Wu, the corner of her lips curving slightly. "She’s had a sweet tooth since she was little."

In the Eldest Princess’s eyes, Xiao Wu was so obedient and adorable that everything she did was perfect.

"If she likes it, she can come by whenever she has a craving. I’ll have the kitchens make it for her."

Ye Chutang paused. "I’m afraid that would be too much trouble..."

"What trouble could it be?" The Eldest Princess pinched Xiao Wu’s soft, tender cheek, her heart melting. "It’s perfectly normal for a little girl to like sweets! Not at all like Yanchuan. He’s such a picky eater. Especially when he was little, he wouldn’t even touch sweet soups or pastries."

’So picky and troublesome. Utterly infuriating!’

Ye Chutang: "..."

She was suddenly reminded of their time in Jiangling. Whenever Shen Yanchuan had to drink his medicine, he would down the horrifically bitter decoctions without even a change in his expression.

’...I see. The man enjoys bitterness.’

Ye Chutang glanced out the window. "It’s getting late. We should be heading back."

"You’ve been busy all day; you must be exhausted. Why don’t you just rest here for the night?" The Eldest Princess seemed to remember something, and her expression cooled. She added bluntly, "Besides, what’s so great about the Ye Family that’s worth returning to?"

Ye Chutang paused for a moment, but a faint smile touched her lips.

"But home is, of course, a place one returns to."

The Eldest Princess was taken aback. She saw the young woman’s serene expression, as if she were lost in past memories, a warm light flickering in her eyes.

The words caught in her throat.

’How could I have forgotten? That was her home to begin with.’

Ye Chutang collected herself, her eyes curving into a smile as she said, "Besides, tomorrow is Yan’s fourteenth birthday. The gift I prepared for him is still in my room, waiting for me to take it to him at the Imperial College."

The Eldest Princess was a little surprised. "Really? Then he—"

Just as she was speaking, Zhuxin came in from outside. "Eldest Princess, Lord Ye has arrived."

Lord Ye, naturally, referred to Ye Heng.

The Eldest Princess paused, the smile fading from her face.

"Let him in."

Ye Heng was soon led in by a maidservant, with Ye Shixian following behind him.

The moment he entered, Ye Heng’s gaze swept across the room. When he saw that Ye Chutang and Xiao Wu were indeed there, his anxious heart finally settled—at least by half.

He came to a stop and bowed respectfully. "This humble servant greets the Eldest Princess."

The Eldest Princess said coolly, "It is quite late. For what reason has Lord Ye come here?"

Ye Heng’s throat was dry. He forced a smile. "It grew late, and seeing that Chutang had not yet returned, I grew worried and thought I would come and escort her home myself—"

The Eldest Princess suddenly let out a laugh, but there was no mirth in her eyes.

"So Lord Ye does still care about Chutang, after all?"