The Duke's Pampered Darling is So Scheming

Chapter 27: Chapter 27: Mr. Shen? He Won’t Do

Aunt Yang was flustered. ”D-Doctor Ye, I’m so sorry, I—I didn’t mean—”

Ye Chutang shook her head gently to show it was all right, then beckoned to Xiao Wu.

Xiao Wu scampered over on her short little legs, holding a dragonfly woven from grass, which she presented to Ye Chutang as if it were a treasure.

’She’d woven it all by herself!’

Ye Chutang gave her a thumbs-up. ”Xiao Wu, you’re so clever!”

Xiao Wu pressed her lips together and smiled.

Ye Chutang took a silver ingot from her purse and handed it to her.

The Little Milk Group’s smile grew even wider. She leaned in to give Ye Chutang a kiss on the cheek, then scampered away again.

Aunt Yang watched the scene, momentarily at a loss for words. After a long pause, she said, ”That child, Xiao Wu, she doesn’t remember anything from before, does she? That’s good, that’s good...”

A child Xiao Wu’s age could already understand the things she’d just brought up. A more sensitive child would have been upset for a long time, but Xiao Wu seemed completely unfazed.

Ye Chutang nodded with a faint smile. ”She’s still young.”

Aunt Yang’s gaze fell on her face, and she couldn’t help but marvel internally.

’With looks and a disposition like Doctor Ye’s, it’s as if she’s stepped right out of a painting. You couldn’t find another like her in all of Jiangling.’

’And it’s truly remarkable that she’s managed to keep Xiao Wu so innocent and lively.’

’But for a woman to raise several younger siblings all by herself is incredibly difficult. If something were to happen, there isn’t a single man in the house to help her.’

Aunt Yang couldn’t help but say, ”Doctor Ye, why don’t you reconsider finding a man to marry into your family!”

PLOP.

Ye Chutang’s wrist faltered, and a drop of thick ink fell onto the paper, spreading into a blot.

She sighed, replaced the sheet of paper, and then said, ”Didn’t I tell you before that I have no such plans? Why are you bringing it up again?”

’These children at home are already exhausting enough. If another man were to join the mix, she might as well just drop dead.’

But Aunt Yang grew anxious on her behalf. ”I’m just looking out for you, aren’t I? Look at you, handling everything inside and outside the house all by yourself. It’s so much work! You don’t have three heads and six arms; how can you possibly take care of everything? A man could at least help share the burden!”

’She grew up in this era, and in her bones, she believed a woman needed a man to survive. She also thinks my life is hard, so she’s persuading me so earnestly out of the goodness of her heart.’

’But she really had no interest in the matter.’

In the end, Ye Chutang could only say evasively, ”Aunt Yang, you know my situation. There’s just no one suitable.”

’What family would be willing to marry a woman with three children?’

’Back then, when Cao Chengwen sent someone to make an offer, the message between the lines was that she should be thanking her lucky stars for the chance to be his concubine.’

’Ye Chutang had politely shown the person out on the spot.’

”Besides, with all the trouble that’s been stirred up recently, it would be even more of a hassle.”

Ye Chutang had meant to dissuade Aunt Yang, but unexpectedly, after hearing her out, the older woman slapped her thigh.

”What do you mean no one’s suitable! The one living in your house—I think he’s a perfect fit!”

Ye Chutang: ”...???”

A rare look of confusion appeared in her eyes, because she truly couldn’t see a single thing that made her and Shen Yanchuan a suitable match.

But Aunt Yang was full of enthusiasm. ”He may not go out much, but I happened to catch a glimpse of him when I came over just now! Oh my, that face is truly something else! He might be a sickly fellow, but with you here, Doctor Ye, that’s surely not a problem!”

Seeing that she didn’t respond, Aunt Yang’s eyes widened. ”Don’t tell me he’s already married?”

Ye Chutang was taken aback.

”I don’t know.”

’She didn’t want to get involved with this man in the slightest, so why would she care if he was married?’

Aunt Yang was still very enthusiastic. ”Then go and ask him! If he’s not married yet, it would be perfect for him to marry into the Ye Family!”

For years, Aunt Yang had been very concerned about Ye Chutang’s marital prospects, but she had never seen a suitable candidate. Plenty of men were interested in Ye Chutang, but in Aunt Yang’s eyes, they were all a bunch of duds. Only Cao Chengwen had somewhat acceptable qualifications, but he was only willing to take her as a concubine. How could that ever be acceptable!

Now that she had finally stumbled upon someone who, at first glance, seemed like a perfect match for Ye Chutang, Aunt Yang certainly wasn’t going to let the opportunity slip by.

”Doctor Ye, if you’re too embarrassed, I’ll go ask around for you!”

With that, she made to get up and head out, but Ye Chutang quickly stopped her.

”Aunt Yang, please don’t trouble yourself on my account. I’m already overwhelmed just worrying about Yan and A Feng. How could I possibly have time for anything else?”

Seeing that Aunt Yang still hadn’t given up, Ye Chutang continued, ”Besides, that Mr. Shen...”

She paused, then said without batting an eye, ”His constitution is rather... lacking.”

”Ah?” Aunt Yang’s face filled with regret. Other flaws could be remedied, more or less, but poor physical health was a deal-breaker. If even Doctor Ye said so, it meant he was truly a lost cause.

She finally gave up the idea, waving her hands dismissively. ”Then let’s just forget it! You can’t have a man whose body isn’t up to the task!”

’If they really got together, wouldn’t that just be holding Doctor Ye back?’

...

Shen Yanchuan’s body had almost fully recovered. The two wounds on his chest and abdomen had faded to faint scars, and the residual poison in his system had been almost completely purged.

On this particular day, he took the rare step of going out with Lian Zhou, only returning to the clinic at dusk.

Aunt Yang happened to be coming out from inside and, upon seeing the master and servant, couldn’t help but give them a second look.

As she watched, she sighed to herself. ’What a pity! This man’s features and build are truly flawless, but how could he be...?’

Sigh!

Aunt Yang walked away, shaking her head.

Shen Yanchuan was stepping over the threshold when he suddenly paused.

He tilted his head slightly and asked, ”That woman just now...”

Lian Zhou immediately replied, ”That’s Aunt Yang from next door to the clinic. You met her on your first day here.”

She was the one who had run over to tell Ye Chutang that Ye Yunfeng had gotten into a fight at the academy and that she should hurry over.

Shen Yanchuan remembered, of course, but that wasn’t what he wanted to ask. Rather—

”Is there something wrong with my face?”

Lian Zhou shook his head, a little puzzled as to why his master would ask such a question. ”No, there isn’t.”

Shen Yanchuan’s brow twitched.

’Then why did he get the feeling that Aunt Yang’s gaze had been so peculiar?’

After a moment of fruitless contemplation, he decided to put it out of his mind.

He was about to step inside when he suddenly felt something bump into his leg.

THUD.

Xiao Wu plopped down on the ground, rubbing her forehead as she looked up in a daze.

She had been running too fast and hadn’t noticed someone was in front of her, so she ran right into him.

At the same time, a book fell from her arms.

Shen Yanchuan bent down and picked her up, just as he heard Ye Yunfeng’s voice call from up ahead, ”Xiao Wu! You took the wrong book!”

’A book?’

Shen Yanchuan glanced down casually, but his gaze sharpened when he saw the book’s title.

——Admonition to the Emperor.