The Duke's Pampered Darling is So Scheming

Chapter 58: Chapter 58: The Ye Mansion is Haunted

In the afternoon, Ye Chutang took Yan, A Feng, and Xiao Wu out to buy new clothes and boots.

The moment she returned to the mansion, Yu Hong hurried over, his expression anxious.

”Second Miss, you’re finally back! The mistress’s condition is still not good. The master requests that you go and help take a look!”

Ye Chutang raised a delicate eyebrow. ”I have no problem with it, of course, but Second Aunt seems...”

Everyone present at the banquet had heard clearly what Mrs. Gao said about her. She had made it obvious she didn’t believe in Ye Chutang’s medical skills and would probably be unwilling to let her perform a diagnosis now.

Yu Hong looked awkward. ”The master said that since you were able to cure even the Young Master Heir, perhaps you might have a way to treat the mistress’s illness too!”

Ye Chutang smiled faintly. ”I am also very worried about Second Aunt’s illness. There’s certainly no harm in me taking a look.”

A quarter of an hour later, Ye Chutang arrived outside Mrs. Gao’s room. Yu Hong quickly announced, ”Master! Mistress! The Second Miss has returned!”

Mrs. Gao, who had been crying, heard the announcement and immediately grabbed a vase from the table, hurling it violently toward the door.

CRASH—!

The vase shattered, its fragments scattering across the floor.

”Who wants her to examine me!”

’For all I know, I’ll end up dead at her hands!’

For some reason, Mrs. Gao was convinced that Ye Chutang was the one behind her current condition!

’How could I possibly agree to let Ye Chutang examine me?’

Ye Chutang’s gaze fell. She looked at the sharp fragments scattered on the floor, her eyes calm and untroubled, as if she had long anticipated such a scene.

Ye Heng rushed over, feeling secretly annoyed when he saw the scene.

He had previously instructed Mrs. Gao to cooperate so they could see if there was something wrong with Ye Chutang, but Mrs. Gao hadn’t listened to a single word!

”Chutang.” Ye Heng suppressed his anger, his expression earnest. ”Your second aunt is just emotional right now. Please don’t take it to heart.”

Ye Chutang’s expression was gentle. ”I understand. But with Second Aunt acting like this... I think it’s best not to force the issue.”

”But—”

”Doctor Zhang has already examined Second Aunt. While I may know a little about medicine, I can’t possibly compare to an Imperial Physician like him. Second Uncle needn’t worry too much. Perhaps in a day or two, Second Aunt will recover.”

Ye Heng was still not ready to give up. ”That’s not the right way to see it. Look, you even managed to heal the Princely Heir’s injuries—”

The corners of Ye Chutang’s lips curved up. ”Actually, that was just a lucky accident. The Princely Heir is blessed with profound fortune; what illness could he not overcome? As for Second Aunt’s condition, I’ve never seen anything like it before. If I were to examine her rashly and something went wrong, it would be a grievous sin.”

Since she had put it that way, Ye Heng knew his plan had failed and had no choice but to let Ye Chutang leave.

It was already late. He would see how Mrs. Gao was doing tomorrow. If she was still unwell, he would have to invite someone else to examine her.

...

In the evening, inky-blue storm clouds rolled in across the horizon.

A wild wind kicked up, making the branches in the courtyard sway frantically. The air was thick with the damp smell of an impending downpour.

Ye Chutang stood by the window and shut it tightly.

PATTER, PATTER.

Raindrops the size of beans fell rapidly, and the ground was quickly soaked.

WHOOSH—!

The wind carried the rain as it drifted down. A curtain of water soon fell between heaven and earth, kicking up a light mist from the ground.

...

The sky turned completely dark. The downpour was incessant, accompanied by flashes of lightning and rumbles of thunder.

Ye Mingze didn’t go to Chunfeng Lou that night. He lay in bed, simmering with frustration, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.

The moment he thought about Ye Chutang and her people occupying his rooms, he felt utterly miserable!

In the past, when his father’s official rank was lower than his Eldest Uncle’s, it was one thing for their family to be subservient. But things were different now!

Ye Chutang’s parents and older brother were all dead, leaving her without a protector. He had thought his family could finally hold their heads high, but who knew they would end up suffering this humiliation!

The thought filled Ye Mingze with extreme gloom.

Suddenly, a strange noise came from outside the window, as if someone were knocking on the door.

Ye Mingze said impatiently, ”What’s all that noise!”

No one answered from outside.

But a moment later, the strange noise came again.

THUMP.

THUMP. THUMP.

Exasperated, Ye Mingze threw off his covers and yelled toward the door, ”I am trying to sleep! Who’s making such a racket!”

’It’s one thing for my father to lecture me, but now even these servants and maids dare to be so negligent!?’

He stomped over angrily and flung the door open. ”What are you—”

There was no one outside.

Rain poured down in sheets. A wave of damp air washed over him, and a few cold raindrops, carried by the wind, struck his face, bringing a hint of chill.

Ye Mingze frowned. ’Did I mishear it just now?’

He shut the door again and was about to go back to sleep when, just two steps later, he looked up and inadvertently caught sight of a dark figure flashing past the window.

’That was...’

An inexplicable shiver ran down Ye Mingze’s spine.

He swallowed hard and blustered, ”Who’s there! Stop skulking around! Get out here if you have any guts!”

A soft chuckle suddenly reached his ears, seeming to drift from a great distance. It dissolved into the sound of the heavy rain, making it hard to tell if it was real or imagined.

”How is it skulking when I’m returning to my own home?”

Ye Mingze’s eyes flew wide in an instant, a look of profound horror flashing in their depths!

”Ye... Ye—Ye Xiting!?”

BOOM—!

The wind and rain intensified, lashing violently against the window. A sudden clap of thunder sounded, and a blinding flash of lightning tore through the darkness, outlining the lean, straight-backed figure of a young man.

His face was invisible through the window; only his ghostly silhouette was branded upon the pane.

He seemed to chuckle.

”Mingze, have you enjoyed living here for the past three years?”

Ye Mingze’s mind went completely blank!

Intense fear flooded his heart, causing his entire body to tremble.

Almost without thinking, he turned and ran for the door! But as he opened it, he stumbled over the threshold and fell right to the ground.

Pain washed over him, and a warm, metallic-smelling liquid seemed to trickle slowly down from his head.

But Ye Mingze could no longer be bothered with any of that; he screamed and started crawling outside.

”Ghost! Ghost!”

Hearing the commotion, a servant on night watch who had been dozing off was startled awake and quickly ran over.

As soon as he arrived, he saw Ye Mingze crawling away in a panic, his face covered in blood.

The servant was terrified. ”Second Young Master!”

He hurried forward, about to help Ye Mingze up, but Ye Mingze shoved him away and shrieked in terror.

”Don’t touch me! Get away! Get away! All of you, get away from me! This is my home! This is my home!”

He repeated these few phrases over and over, clutching his head with both hands and cowering. Rain mixed with blood, leaving him in an utterly wretched state.

The servant noticed him cowering and not daring to look up, so he glanced into the room but saw nothing.

”Second Young Master, what on earth is wrong? What happened?”

Ye Mingze’s eyes were vacant and his lips deathly pale, as if his very soul had been drained from his body.

Then, his eyes rolled back, and he fainted.

The servant immediately panicked. ”Second Young Master! Second Young Master! Someone, help! Something’s happened to the Second Young Master!”

...

The next day, a secret rumor spread through the streets and alleys of the Capital City, sparking widespread discussion.

—The Ye Mansion was haunted!