Ye Jingchuan looked at Ye Chutang’s faint smile and felt a chill of fear run down his spine.
Earlier, in his anger, he had only considered his dignity as the head of the family and a father.
He had completely overlooked the precarious situation the Ye family was in now.
Though he was reluctant to admit it, the future of the Ye family was now firmly grasped in the hands of this rebellious daughter standing before him!
“Truly worthy of being Wanning’s daughter. You’re quite impressive!”
He had underestimated her, assuming that fifteen years in the countryside had rendered Ye Chutang useless.
Never did he imagine her cunning ran so deep!
Ye Chutang smiled in response to Ye Jingchuan’s backhanded compliment. “Like mother, like daughter.”
She pushed her empty cup forward and glanced at Kong Ru. “Madam Ye, pour me some tea.”
Kong Ru’s eyes widened. “What did you say?”
She, the mistress of the house, serving tea to a junior?
“Unwilling?”
Ye Jingchuan caught the warning in Ye Chutang’s tone and turned to Kong Ru.
“Chu’er has just returned home. As the lady of the house, it’s only right you treat her kindly.”
Kong Ru was seething.
Once, she had manipulated Tang Wanning effortlessly.
Now, she was being outplayed by her daughter!
But she dared not disobey Ye Jingchuan.
Forcing a strained smile that barely concealed her fury, she replied, “Of course.”
With visible reluctance, she poured tea for Ye Chutang.
Outside in the courtyard, the gathered crowd couldn’t hear the conversation in the main hall, but they saw Kong Ru serving tea to Ye Chutang.
Every pair of eyes widened in shock.
Especially Jinzhi, who was being restrained by the guards.
Barely holding back her tears, she screamed inwardly:
“Young Miss, do you see this? Not only is your daughter alive, but she’s also thriving! Every suffering you endured, she will avenge!”
Inside the hall, Ye Chutang looked at the poured tea, lifted the cup, and spilled it onto the ground.
“Mother, have some tea.”
The gesture instantly reminded Kong Ru of her days as a concubine, when she had to serve tea daily to Tang Wanning, the merchant’s daughter.
Rage and humiliation surged within her.
Just as she was about to explode, Ye Jingchuan silenced her with a cold glare.
Ye Jingchuan stared at Ye Chutang’s composed demeanor, deeply regretting ever bringing her back.
On her very first day, she had already turned the Minister's Mansion upside down!
“Chu’er, what exactly do you want?”
Ye Chutang released her grip, letting the cup shatter on the floor.
“I don’t provoke unless provoked. But if someone crosses me, I return it tenfold. Minister Ye, do you understand?”
Ye Jingchuan understood the principle—but not her meaning.
“Speak plainly.”
“Those rumors were just a warning. If you don’t want the Ye family to vanish from the capital, don’t scheme against me again.”
Old Madam Ye scoffed. “Who do you think you are?”
Though the Ye family’s roots in the capital weren’t deep, aside from the Emperor and Eunuch De, who could erase a second-rank official’s household?
Ye Chutang smiled. “Poisoning an entire family isn’t that difficult.”
The three Ye family members: “…”
This wretched girl actually wanted to exterminate them!
Ye Jingchuan sneered. “And what if you’re the first to die from poison?”
“You’re welcome to try. Let’s see who ends up dead.”
Her calmness sent a shiver down Ye Jingchuan’s spine.
Instinct told him not to clash head-on with this madwoman.
He quickly switched tactics, playing the sentimental card.
“Chu’er, I know forcing you to take Ling'er’s place in the marriage was unfair. But I had no choice. Ling'er, she—”
Ye Chutang cut him off, already guessing his words.
“Were you going to say that Ye Anling has the Crown Prince’s favor and could one day become Empress, elevating the Ye family further?”
Her bold declaration nearly gave the three heart attacks.
Ye Jingchuan hastily shut the hall doors.
“Chu’er, must you speak without thinking?”
The Emperor and Empress were still alive—how dare she mention “becoming Empress”!
If overheard by the wrong ears, it could bring ruin upon the Ye family!
Ignoring him, Ye Chutang continued.
“The Crown Prince’s affection for Ye Anling means nothing if the Empress disapproves. That’s why Eunuch De is set to marry her. Unless the Empress dies, Ye Anling’s fate is sealed. Making me the substitute will only result in Eunuch De taking us both.”
Her for her beauty, Ye Anling for the Empress’s will—there was no conflict.
Kong Ru couldn’t resist refuting.
“The Empress only thinks the Ye family lacks influence to support the Crown Prince! If Ling'er agrees to be a concubine, the Empress won’t force her to marry Eunuch De!”
Ye Chutang’s mocking smile struck at the heart of the matter.
“The Empress would only allow Ye Anling as a concubine if she brought my mother’s dowry into the Crown Prince’s household, correct?”
Watching Kong Ru’s face pale, she twisted the knife.
“Without my mother’s dowry, would Ye Anling even qualify as a concubine?”
The imperial family was ruthless, valuing only profit.
The Crown Prince might love Ye Anling, but he loved power more.
Kong Ru argued through gritted teeth, “Your mother said on her deathbed that her dowry was to be shared among all her children!”
“Then, does that mean your dowry is also shared among all the children?”
Kong Ru: “…”
She couldn’t say “of course not”—it would make her seem petty compared to Tang Wanning.
Since her dowry was a fraction of Tang Wanning’s, she agreed readily.
“Naturally!”
Ye Chutang seized the opportunity. “After dinner, deliver my share to Ningchu Courtyard.”
Kong Ru refused instantly. “Dowries are given at marriage!”
“Fine. Tomorrow, I’ll find a man and marry on the spot.”
Ye Jingchuan: “…”
“Chu’er, stop this nonsense!”
Ye Chutang arched a brow. “It’s the fastest way to escape Eunuch De. How is that nonsense?”
“You’re naive. Once entangled with Eunuch De, even marriage won’t free you.”
Unless she married the Emperor himself.
But the Emperor was at Qingyun Taoist Temple.
Even if she tried, she couldn’t arrange it before the homecoming banquet!
“So, Minister Ye, having schemed against me, plans to sacrifice two daughters to save the Minister's Mansion?”
Ye Jingchuan couldn’t deny it.
Had Ye Chutang not seen through his plan, he could have saved Ye Anling.
The Ye family might have even gained an Empress, thanks to Tang Wanning’s dowry.
But Ye Chutang had ruined everything!
Fury surged anew. He demanded coldly, “Who is your informant in the Minister's Mansion?”
He refused to believe she could unravel everything so quickly without inside help.
Ye Chutang ignored the question, steering back to her terms.
“Minister Ye, let’s be clear. If you want the homecoming banquet and the Minister's Mansion to remain unscathed, agree to my conditions.”
Ye Jingchuan, wary of her havoc-wreaking tendencies, massaged his temples. “Name them.”
“First, at dinner, everyone must gift me a welcome present—nothing shabby.”
“Second, after dinner, I want the dowry list from Madam Ye, along with my share.”
“Third, tomorrow, you and Madam Ye will kneel at my mother’s grave and apologize.”
The moment she finished, Ye Jingchuan and Kong Ru rejected in unison:
“Impossible!”
They could stomach the first two to save the family.
But the third? Never.
"I'll give Lord Ye Jingchuan one night to think it over. Once you've made your decision, call out to me loudly."
Ye Jingchuan didn't quite grasp Ye Chutang's meaning, but he couldn't be bothered to ask.
"Fine."
All this talk with Ye Chutang was nothing more than a delaying tactic.
Once she let her guard down and fell into his trap, she would become nothing but a helpless dog, powerless to resist!
