Ye Chutang knew that during early pregnancy she needed to take folic acid, so she immediately entered her space.
Back in the post-apocalyptic days, she had stockpiled a vast amount of medicine, filling two entire containers with supplies—everything imaginable.
She found a bottle of folic acid, took a pill, and placed the bottle in the resting room.
Then she went to organize the belongings in the Chen residence.
Ye Chutang discovered two very valuable notebooks.
One was an account book, containing evidence of bribery and corruption involving Chen He.
The other was a secret ledger, detailing various scandals and forbidden affairs within the royal family.
Ye Chutang carefully put away both notebooks and exited the space.
She got out of bed and stepped into the courtyard.
It was almost noon. Dan'er and Le'er were busy preparing the lunch dishes.
Jun'er sat properly at the stone table, writing diligently.
Jinzhi was practicing the basic set of boxing moves that Ye Chutang had taught her earlier.
Though others saw her as a madwoman, everyone knew she was obedient to her lady.
When her lady asked her to practice more, she obediently complied, raising no suspicion.
Ye Chutang glanced at the dishes being prepared for lunch and said, “Stop. I’ll make lunch today.”
Although this body had improved significantly under her care, the foundation was still weak and needed more nourishment.
She went to the large kitchen and gathered plenty of ingredients.
While selecting vegetables, a thought struck her, and she looked toward Dan'er.
“Go tell my father that Ningchu Courtyard has been ‘ghost robbed’ again.”
Dan'er and Jinzhi knew this was part of Ye Chutang’s arrangement with the “ghost thief.”
But this couldn’t be spoken of publicly; if things went missing, it had to be explained as theft.
“Yes, mistress. I’ll go immediately.”
Hearing this, Jun'er turned to Ye Chutang and said, “Elder sister, Jun'er wants to see father.”
Ye Chutang knew Ye Jingchuan had been quite good to Jun'er. With his birthday coming tomorrow, she nodded.
“Dan'er, take Jun'er with you.”
After speaking, she reminded Jun'er,
“If you want to come back for lunch, you can only stay with father for half an hour.”
“Your cooking is the best, elder sister. Jun'er will definitely come back,” he said.
He wasn’t really going to see father!
Dan'er led Jun'er away from Ningchu Courtyard toward Ye Jingchuan’s residence.
In the back garden, they met Ye Jingchuan, who had just returned from the Ministry of Revenue.
Dan'er knelt and bowed, “Your servant greets the master.”
Ye Jingchuan had been overwhelmed lately with disaster relief efforts in Jiangnan, staying overnight at the Ministry last night.
After the morning court session, the disaster relief funds gathered by the officials had been transported, and he finally had some free time to rest at home.
Seeing Jun'er, Ye Jingchuan hurried over and lifted him into his arms.
He gently rubbed his stubbled chin against Jun'er's delicate face, eyes full of affection.
“He’s gained a lot of weight and looks much healthier. Chutang has been taking good care of you.”
This son, upon whom he had pinned great hopes, was no longer the sickly child he once was.
Jun'er dodged Ye Jingchuan’s prickly chin and said, “Father, elder sister’s courtyard was robbed again.”
Ye Jingchuan was speechless.
Wasn’t the “ghost thief” supposed to have targeted Lord Chen’s house last night?
How had Ningchu Courtyard been robbed too?
He asked Dan'er irritably, “Same as last time, was everything stolen?”
“Master, it was better than last time. This time, only the easily portable and valuable items were taken; the beds and cabinets—the big stuff—are still there.”
Ye Jingchuan felt like his heart was about to have a heart attack.
“That thief really knows how to steal!”
He didn’t even consider reporting it to the authorities—there was no way to get it back anyway.
“Luckily, we didn’t give Chuer Kong Ru’s eight boxes of dowry; otherwise, the loss would have been devastating,” he thought, still feeling quite pained over Kong Ru’s stolen dowry.
Dan’er looked at Ye Jingchuan, who wore a face of relief, and said, “Master, Miss loves going out but doesn’t bother to dress up properly. That might make her the subject of ridicule.”
Her words served as a reminder to Ye Jingchuan.
Lately, Ye Chutang had been visiting Prince Chen’s Mansion frequently and needed to dress well to capture Qi Yanzhou’s heart.
He cursed silently, “Money down the drain.”
“Go back first. I’ll have someone send her two new sets of clothes shortly.”
After saying that, he carried Jun’er over to his courtyard.
“Jun’er, your health is much better now. I want to hire a tutor for you, someone to teach you reading and writing.”
But Jun’er was reluctant to let outsiders into Ningchu Courtyard.
“Father, no tutor is better than my eldest sister.”
Though Ye Jingchuan acknowledged Ye Chutang’s literary talents, her main mission right now was to marry Prince Chen.
“You’re still young. Having Chuer teach you would be a bit like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.”
Jun’er had no argument and could only nod obediently.
“Father is right; I’ll listen to you.”
Ye Jingchuan checked Jun’er’s studies, making sure he was keeping up with his reading and writing.
“Jun’er, I’ll find a proper tutor for you. Once your health improves, I’ll send you to school.”
“Alright, thank you, Father.”
Ye Jingchuan was utterly exhausted. After yawning, he called Steward Chen over.
“Take the young master back to Ningchu Courtyard.”
Jun’er climbed down from Ye Jingchuan’s arms and said, “Father, tomorrow is my birthday.”
In previous years, Kong Ru would remind Ye Jingchuan to buy gifts for Ye Anjun and have a meal with him.
This year, without anyone to remind him, Ye Jingchuan had completely forgotten.
Fortunately, Jun’er mentioned it; otherwise, he would have disappointed his son.
He patted Jun’er’s head and smiled, “Don’t worry, I remember. Tomorrow, I’ll have the kitchen prepare your favorite dishes.”
“No need, Father. Eldest sister will take me out to play tomorrow, but her courtyard was robbed.”
Jun’er didn’t say it outright, but Ye Jingchuan understood perfectly.
He returned to his room and brought out some silver notes and two jewelry boxes.
He handed the silver notes to Jun’er.
“Take this to your eldest sister. If you see anything you want or want to eat, have her buy it for you.”
Jun’er accepted the silver notes, his big, dark eyes curving into crescent moons.
“Thank you, Father.”
He gave the jewelry boxes to Steward Chen.
“Take these to Chuer. Tell her to dress nicely when she goes out. When she’s not using them, she must keep them safe—no more thefts.”
The jewelry was valuable, carefully collected by Ye Jingchuan as part of Ye Anling’s dowry.
After giving them to Ye Chutang, Ye Jingchuan would have to find two more sets to replenish the dowry, which pained him deeply.
“Yes, Master,” Steward Chen said, taking the jewelry boxes and leading Jun’er back to Ningchu Courtyard.
After leaving Ye Jingchuan’s courtyard, Jun’er told Steward Chen, “Wait for me outside. I’m going to Liuli Courtyard to get something.”
“All right, young master.”
At the gate of Liuli Courtyard, Jun’er stopped Steward Chen.
“You wait outside. I’ll come out as soon as I get what I need.”
With that, he entered the courtyard and headed straight to his room.
The room was large but stuffy and hot, filled with a strong medicinal scent.
He pulled a cloth from the wardrobe and carefully packed the silver coins and valuables he had saved over the years inside.
The bundle was heavy—Jun’er almost couldn’t lift it.
As he huffed and puffed, carrying the load out of the side room, he was spotted by Kong Ru, whose gaunt appearance made her look like a withered shadow.
By day, Kong Ru seemed no different from anyone else, but at night, the pain tormented her so severely she felt as if she were hovering at the gates of death. She feared she might never wake up again.
Now, she was nothing but skin and bones. Her face was haggard, lined with wrinkles, resembling an old person on the brink of the grave.
Seeing the heavy bundle Jun’er was carrying, she demanded, “What’s in the bundle?”
Jun’er had endured Kong Ru’s torment for five years and had developed an instinctive fear of her.
“N-nothing,” he stammered.
He took a few steps back and turned to run.
But the bundle was too heavy. He barely took two steps before Kong Ru grabbed his shoulder and snatched the bundle away.
For the first time, Jun’er snapped at Kong Ru, “Give it back!”
Kong Ru pushed him to the ground and opened the bundle.
When she saw the silver coins and valuables inside, she slapped Jun’er hard across the face in fury.
“You ungrateful wretch! I’ve wasted all these years caring for you!”
After her outburst, she tied the bundle back up, preparing to take it away.
Jun’er scrambled to his feet and clutched the bundle tightly. “It’s mine. Give it back.”
He was not a child of the Ye family and had never cared for these material things. The only reason he took them was to give them to his eldest sister.
She was a member of the Ye family and deserved to have them.
Kong Ru’s pent-up anger exploded completely, her aged features twisting into a grotesque mask.
“You ungrateful bastard, go to hell!”
If she couldn’t raise him properly, then there was no need to raise him at all.
She gathered all her strength and kicked Jun’er hard in the stomach.
Jun’er dodged swiftly and retaliated with a strike to the back of Kong Ru’s left knee.
This move had been taught to him by Ye Chutang.
Kong Ru’s left leg buckled, and she collapsed heavily onto her left knee.
As she screamed in pain, a chilling voice whispered in her ear:
“Mother, if you bully me again, I’ll tell Father that I’m not a child of the Ye family.”
