The Duke's Pampered Darling is So Scheming

Chapter 46: Chapter 46: Homeless

Ye Heng hurried over, a fine-quality Cloud Goose Jade Pendant with a dangling red tassel hanging from his waist, swaying as he walked.

Compared to his eager yet cautious demeanor from three years ago, he seemed like a completely different man—confident, vigorous, and walking with an imposing stride.

Ye Chutang waited for him to draw near before slowly rising to her feet and offering a polite greeting. ”Second Uncle.”

That single title sent a tremor through Ye Heng’s heart.

’The young woman before him... it really is Ye Chutang!’

He faltered in his stride. In a flash, a thousand thoughts raced through his mind as his expression shifted from shock to disbelief, then finally to excitement.

”It really is you!”

His gaze swept around the room, the rims of his eyes growing red.

”This... This is Jing Yan, isn’t it? And Yun Feng! It’s been three years, you’ve all grown so much! And this little one, this is—”

Ye Chutang, holding Xiao Wu’s hand, lifted her chin slightly. ”Xiao Wu, this is your second uncle.”

Xiao Wu blinked her large, dark eyes, pressing closer to Ye Chutang and tightening her grip on her fingers, looking a little shy.

Ye Chutang stroked the child’s small face and smiled at Ye Heng. ”Don’t mind her, Second Uncle. Xiao Wu is an introvert and a bit shy with strangers.”

The phrase ”shy with strangers” sounded particularly jarring, but Ye Heng was in no state to dwell on it.

He seemed too excited to speak coherently.

”You... you... you’re all still alive! This is wonderful! Wonderful!”

He turned his head and shouted, ”Shixian! Hurry over here!”

Ye Shixian, who was just outside, had already seen the scene inside the room.

From the moment she arrived, she couldn’t tear her eyes away from the woman in the seat of honor, scarcely believing what she was seeing.

’Was that really Ye Chutang?’

’She has her younger siblings with her. Shouldn’t she look travel-worn and haggard?’

Yet the woman sitting there held her shoulders straight, her beauty cool and exquisite. Aside from a single Red Agate Hairpin nestled in her cloud of dark hair, she wore no other ornaments, but that did little to conceal a captivating splendor that stole one’s breath.

She looked the same as before, yet she also seemed completely transformed, radiating an undeniable, gentle beauty.

’How could this possibly be the Ye Chutang who was supposed to be destitute and wretched after three years of exile?’

Just then, Ye Chutang lifted her gaze and looked over at her quietly.

Meeting those dark, tranquil eyes, Ye Shixian finally snapped to her senses. She quickly rearranged her expression into one of shock and joy, covering her lips with a handkerchief. ”Cousin!”

She rushed forward with mincing steps, and within moments, her eyes were brimming with crystalline tears, as if she was weeping with joy.

”Cousin, where on earth have you all been for the past three years? Why didn’t you send back any news? We thought you had also... in that accident...”

At the mention of the past, she seemed overcome with grief and burst into tears.

Ye Heng was also desperate for answers and immediately chimed in, ”That’s right! When my eldest brother was demoted to Wuzhou, I thought for sure that once the Holy Emperor’s anger cooled, he would be recalled to the Capital City. Who could have known you’d run into bandits on your journey...”

His brow furrowed deeply as he sighed. ”By the time we got the news, it was too late. I personally led a group of men there later, and all we found were the bodies of my brother, his wife, and Xiting...”

He looked at Ye Chutang, his tone a mix of probing and questioning. ”At the time, we couldn’t find a trace of you children. We only found a few pieces of your bloodstained clothes, so we assumed you had met with disaster. I never imagined you would return safely! How on earth did—”

Ye Chutang gave a slight nod. ”We did indeed encounter trouble back then. Father, Mother, and our older brother gave their all to protect us, and they managed to help us escape in the chaos. It was pure luck, really. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be able to see you today, Second Uncle.”

Her tone was calm and detached, glossing over the events as if she were unwilling to dwell on the past.

Ye Heng’s understanding of her explanation was vague. He still couldn’t fathom how, in such a perilous situation, Ye Chutang and her younger siblings had managed to get away.

After all, Ye Chutang had only been a fourteen-year-old girl, while Ye Jingyan and Ye Yunfeng were barely waist-high. And there was also a babe in swaddling clothes. ’Logically speaking,’ he thought, ’they faced certain death!’

The hand hidden in his sleeve tightened into a fist. ”Then what about these past three years—”

”It was freezing cold back then, and I had nowhere to take Yan, A Feng, and Xiao Wu. We happened to run into a group of refugees fleeing a famine down south. With no other options, we followed them. We drifted for three years, and once we finally found some stability, we scraped together the travel fare to return north to the Capital City.”

Ye Chutang paused, a faint smile gracing her lips.

”After all, home is here, isn’t it?”

A momentary silence fell over the front hall.

Home.

The home they had returned to was now occupied by others!

A shadow crossed Ye Heng’s eyes, but he reacted almost instantly.

”But of course!”

He sighed with deep emotion, clasping his wrist in a gesture of lament.

”After the tragedy, I was left to deal with a mountain of affairs in the capital. Several people had their eyes on this mansion and approached me privately, hoping to buy it. But how could I possibly part with it? This was my brother’s home in the capital, the last thing he left behind. How could I just give it away to others?”

He lowered his eyes, appearing deeply grieved.

”That’s why I moved in with Shixian and Mingze. Every table, every chair, every plant in the garden... it was as if my brother had never left. And now that you’re back, it’s even better! Chutang, rest assured. From this day forward, as long as your second uncle is here, I won’t let you suffer the slightest bit!”

As he spoke, he snapped at Yu Hong, ”Why are you still standing there? Go at once and have the rooms in the west wing of the rear courtyard cleaned up! And instruct the kitchens to prepare a welcome banquet for Chutang and the others tonight!”

”Yes, sir!” Yu Hong replied hastily.

However, just as he was turning to leave, Ye Chutang’s voice rang out with a light laugh. ”There’s no need for such ceremony, Second Uncle. We’re returning to our own home, so what need is there for a welcome banquet? And as for the rooms, there’s no trouble at all. Xiao Wu will stay with me. As for Yan and A Feng, they used to live in the east wing with our older brother. Now that they’ve returned, they can simply live there again.”

At these words, Ye Heng’s expression froze.

Standing nearby, Ye Mingze could no longer contain himself and blurted out, ”No, you can’t!”

Ye Chutang tilted her head. ”And why can’t we?”

”Because there are no rooms for you in the east wing!” Ye Mingze said, as if it were perfectly obvious. ”The only empty rooms left are in the west wing, so you’ll just have to stay there!”

Ye Yunfeng’s brow furrowed. ”What do you mean by that?”

Ye Mingze shrugged. ”I’m living there now. The other rooms have been converted into my study and training hall. There’s no space to clear out for you!”

Ye Yunfeng stared in disbelief. ”You—”

Before he could erupt, a cool, faint female voice cut in.

”In other words, you’ve taken over my older brother’s rooms?”

Ye Mingze instinctively looked at Ye Chutang. Her voice was light and gentle, yet for some reason, as soon as she spoke, a strange chill shot up his spine, and his words came out in a stutter.

”...Y-Yes!”

The smile vanished from Ye Chutang’s face. Her dark eyes grew sharp and clear, laced with a coldness that felt like the edge of a frigid blade, piercing to the very bone.

”It seems there is no longer a place for my siblings and me in the Ye Mansion. Since we have no home to return to—”

Her tone was terrifyingly calm as she spoke, enunciating every word.

”Yan, go book us rooms at an inn.”