The Duke's Pampered Darling is So Scheming

Chapter 43: Chapter 43: Ghosts and Deities

The color drained from Ye Mingze’s face. His knees buckled, and he nearly tumbled straight down the stairs.

Luckily, one of his companions reacted quickly and managed to catch him.

”Brother Mingze, what’s wrong?”

Seeing his reaction, his companions were utterly bewildered, their gazes shifting back and forth between him and the young woman.

”You two... know each other?”

Ye Mingze gripped his companion’s wrist tightly. It took him several attempts to regain his footing, but his gaze, fixed on the young woman, was filled with sheer terror.

His right hand trembling, he pointed at Ye Chutang and stammered, ”A ghost! It’s a ghost!”

His cry instantly drew the attention of many others in the restaurant, who all turned to stare curiously in their direction.

Ye Chutang glanced around, then raised an eyebrow. She asked, feigning confusion, ”What are you talking about? It’s broad daylight. Where would a ghost come from?”

She spoke, lifting her chin slightly. ”Yan, A Feng, you see your cousin. Why haven’t you greeted him?”

Ye Jingyan immediately stood up, and his refined, handsome face was clearly reflected in Ye Mingze’s terrified eyes.

He smiled apologetically and offered a polite salute. ”My apologies, cousin. I didn’t recognize you at first.”

Ye Yunfeng reluctantly put down his chopsticks and offered a lazy greeting as well. ”Cousin.”

Ye Chutang patted Xiao Wu’s head, a smile playing on her lips as she introduced the child. ”This is Ling Zhi.”

At the sound of her name, Xiao Wu obediently looked up and blinked at Ye Mingze. Her large, dark eyes were pure and held no sign of recognition.

’So this is the one Fourth Brother was talking about? The one who always used to steal their things and then run off to tattle on them with lies? But Fourth Brother never mentioned he was such a coward.’

’And most importantly, he’s ugly.’

She looked away, bored, and swung her little feet.

A chill shot straight to Ye Mingze’s scalp. He felt as if his very soul was about to be scared out of his body.

He couldn’t believe his eyes. He rubbed them forcefully, but the scene before him remained unchanged.

Those faces—familiar yet strange, faces he never thought he would see again in his entire life—were right here, in front of him!

Cold sweat beaded on his forehead, and his throat felt parched. He subconsciously glanced down at Ye Chutang’s feet.

’A... a shadow?’

’Does that mean they’re... they’re really not ghosts, but people?’

Seeing his state, Ye Chutang blinked, a look of concern crossing her features.

”Mingze, are you feeling unwell?”

Ye Mingze was far beyond ”unwell.” He felt like he was losing his mind!

Han Yao never imagined that his attempt to chat up a rare beauty, while simultaneously currying favor with Ye Mingze, would backfire so spectacularly.

He was utterly mortified, wishing the ground would swallow him whole. ”Brother Mingze, th-this is your cousin? H-how come I’ve never heard you mention her before...”

Words failed Ye Mingze. His chest felt tight, as if a great weight was pressing down on him, and he couldn’t breathe.

He couldn’t have imagined this either!

Who would voluntarily bring up people who were supposed to have died three years ago? And who could have possibly imagined seeing them again!

His companions quickly exchanged glances and stepped in to smooth things over.

”That’s right, that’s right! We’ve never had the pleasure!”

”No wonder you were staring over there earlier. You must have just recognized them yourself, right?”

”What a coincidence, haha! To run into family here! Brother Mingze, aren’t you going to introduce us?”

Ye Mingze finally managed to claw back a sliver of his reason.

Realizing what a scene he was making, he took a deep breath and forced a smile.

But the look he gave Ye Chutang and her siblings was incredibly complicated.

”C-Cousin, is it really you? But I thought you were—”

He stopped himself mid-sentence.

How could he ask that in front of so many people!

The corners of Ye Chutang’s lips curved. ”We were delayed by some unexpected circumstances, so we’ve only just returned. It’s been a long time, but the Capital City is as prosperous and lively as ever. By the way, from what I overheard, Second Uncle has been promoted to Junior Minister of the Ministry of Justice? My congratulations.”

Had anyone else said that, Ye Mingze would have been immensely proud. But the words were coming from Ye Chutang!

He had to psych himself up several times before he could finally get his still-trembling legs to move.

”You... you’re back. Why didn’t you send word ahead of time?”

His tone held a faint note of accusation.

Ye Chutang smiled, her expression calm and gentle. ”We had too many things to take care of and simply didn’t have time.”

With her putting it that way, Ye Mingze couldn’t voice any of his complaints, no matter how many he had.

He walked down the rest of the stairs but kept his distance from Ye Chutang and the others. Whether out of fear or some other reason, he did not step closer.

Ye Chutang, by contrast, was far more relaxed and at ease.

”Yan, A Feng, sit down and eat. The food will get cold and won’t taste as good.”

Then, she turned to Ye Mingze. ”Mingze, would you like to join us?”

Ye Mingze’s response was a reflex. ”No, thank you!”

Realizing his reaction was a bit too strong, he quickly explained, ”I—I’ve already eaten upstairs!”

Ye Chutang gave a faint smile.

Three years ago, Ye Mingze’s father—her own second uncle, Ye Heng—had been a mere, unremarkable Standard Sixth-Rank Right Minister of the Ministry of Justice. In just three short years, he had climbed several ranks to become the Standard Fourth-Rank Junior Minister of the Ministry of Justice.

As a result, his son, Ye Mingze, had also become much more extravagant, frequenting the private rooms of Lan Yue Building with ease and becoming an object of flattery for countless dandies.

So much had truly happened in three years, and so much had changed.

She placed another piece of mandarin fish onto Xiao Wu’s plate.

”This fish is boneless. Have a taste.”

Xiao Wu took a bite, and her eyes instantly lit up. She nodded vigorously before handing a peeled shrimp to Ye Chutang.

’This is delicious! Big Sis, you have some too!’

Ye Mingze watched this scene, observing Ye Chutang’s perpetually unruffled composure. He couldn’t help but clench his fists, his heart a turmoil of anger and frustration.

He didn’t know why, but just by sitting there, Ye Chutang seemed to possess an invisible aura that made him tense up instinctively.

But he wasn’t the same person he was three years ago! His father was now a fourth-rank official of the court! They were countless times more powerful than Ye Chutang and her siblings!

At this thought, he wanted to rush back to his family’s estate immediately and tell his father that Ye Chutang’s group was still alive. But if he just left, who knew what they might do in his absence!

After much deliberation, Ye Mingze decided it was best to keep them under his watch.

He turned back to Han Yao and the others. ”I won’t be joining you all today. My cousin and her siblings are here, so I’ll take them home later.”

The others naturally didn’t object. They exchanged glances and took their leave in unison.

As they left, however, their gazes couldn’t help but linger on Ye Chutang for a moment longer.

Her beauty and bearing were easily on par with, if not superior to, Ye Mingze’s own sister—the one hailed as the Capital City’s number one beauty.

But in the next instant, they saw the young man sitting to Ye Chutang’s right suddenly turn to look at them, his handsome features sharp with a dangerous warning.

A single glance was enough to send a chill down their spines, and they hastily looked away.

Ye Chutang paid them no mind, simply turning to Ye Mingze with a faint smile. ”Mingze, thank you for your kind offer. However, since this is our first day back in the capital, we plan to return home first. Once we’ve rested and settled in, we will pay a formal visit to Second Uncle’s estate tomorrow.”

Ye Mingze’s expression immediately stiffened.

Ye Chutang then asked, as if it were an afterthought, ”By the way, are you all still living in Fengling Lane?”