Volume 1, Chapter 9: Defying the Heavens! A Betrothal Gift of One Hundred Thousand

At this moment, Shen Jin was biting onto Ye Jiang’s pant leg, refusing to let go, while a pair of scissors lay on the ground. Looking at the shredded clothes scattered about, Ye Fusang’s phoenix eyes turned cold.

It was only because of Ye Jiang that she truly understood how, from the beginning, human nature could be inherently evil.

"Ningzhen, drag him up."

Ningzhen said nothing, silently grabbing Ye Jiang by the collar and dragging him along.

Ye Jiang wailed and fussed the entire way, his face covered in snot and tears. A large crowd gathered to watch. Finally, Liu Chihua arrived upon hearing the news.

She rushed over, snatched the boy into her arms, and began to coax him, her heart breaking. "My son! Jiang'er, what has happened to you? Mother is here, Mother is here! Ye Fusang, do you have any heart at all? He is your own brother!"

"Oh, so he is my brother." Ye Fusang slapped her thigh. Her hair, tied up high, swung behind her, and she said apologetically, "I saw the clothes shredded all over the room earlier and thought a dog had gotten in to chew them up. Having taken too much medicine lately, I was a bit muddled and brought him along, mistaking him for a dog."

"You... you!" Hearing the insinuation in Ye Fusang’s words, Liu Chihua was rendered speechless. It seemed she knew everything!

"When have I ever treated you poorly? It was I who gave you life! As an older brother, why can’t you show some leniency to your younger brother?" Liu Chihua swallowed her guilty conscience, her eyes turning cold as she glared at Ye Fusang. "Ye Fusang, do you think you can be this arrogant just because you’ve become a male consort in the Princess’s manor? Without me, where would you be?"

Heh, a life... was it a life of being humiliated to death?

A sharp, aching pain rippled through Ye Fusang’s heart, but she curled her lips slightly, stepped forward, and leaned into Liu Chihua’s ear. "Is the concubine trying to perish together with me? Do you think that by showing your loyalty to the eldest sister and poisoning me, they will actually tolerate you?"

With that, Ye Fusang stood up, her slender figure fluttering in the wind. She glanced sideways at Liu Chihua. "How ridiculous. How could someone ever consort with their own lapdog?"

"You... if you dare hurt my Jiang'er, I will fight you to the death." Liu Chihua lunged at her, trying to strike Ye Fusang. "You unfilial child, how vicious you are!"

"What is going on here!" Ye Yutian’s voice roared with authority.

"Master, look at him... Fusang is becoming increasingly unruly; he has beaten Jiang'er into this state!" Liu Chihua immediately sank to her knees, clutching Ye Jiang with tear-filled eyes, sobbing as she complained.

Ye Yutian cast a look of disgust at the wailing Ye Jiang on the floor, then turned to Ye Fusang, ready to unleash a torrent of abuse. Ye Fusang, unhurried, took a gold bar stamped with an official seal from Ye Jiang’s embrace and handed it to Ye Yutian. "Father, take a look. I found this on my younger brother. As a child, how could he have so much money? A doting mother ruins her son; I was merely teaching him how to conduct himself."

Ye Yutian snatched the gold, and upon seeing the official seal, his expression shifted. He kicked away the kneeling Liu Chihua and Ye Jiang. "To be so young and yet so wayward! You cannot even watch over a child. As a concubine of my Ye household, is this how you set an example? Take Ye Jiang and get back to the Luofang Courtyard to be grounded and reflect! You are not to take a single step outside!"

Observing Ye Yutian’s reaction, Ye Fusang narrowed her eyes slightly.

"Master, this is impossible, Jiang'er wouldn't do such a thing!" Liu Chihua, kicked to the ground, still hugged Ye Jiang, shielding him tightly. She dared not resent Ye Yutian, so she could only glare venomously at Ye Fusang.

Ye Jiang, now bruised and swollen, finally quieted down, only daring to bury his head in Liu Chihua’s chest and weep. "Mother, it wasn't me..."

"Shut up!" Ye Yutian looked coldly at Ye Fusang. "If the Grand Princess arrives, you know what to do."

"Father, rest assured. The Ye household is my home; naturally, our honors and disgraces are shared," Ye Fusang smiled.

...

Three days later, at the Flower Picking Banquet, Ye Fusang arrived wearing simple gray robes, accompanied by Ningzhen and Manman.

Upon exiting, they found no carriage.

Ye Wansu sat in a low-key, luxurious carriage, lifted the curtain, and smiled faintly. "I’m sorry, brother. The household carriages were borrowed, and there aren't any spares. You might as well walk."

"Are the two sisters unwilling to offer me a ride?"

"There are strict boundaries between men and women; how could we share a carriage?"

"Fine." Seeing this, Ye Fusang sighed slightly and beckoned to Ningzhen, pointing to the roof of the carriage. Ningzhen nodded, instantly understanding. Bending her waist, Ye Fusang stepped lightly onto Ningzhen’s back and seated herself atop the carriage.

"Young... Young Master, I..." Manman looked at the person perched high up, stunned.

"Ningzhen," Ye Fusang called out.

"Ah—!" Manman was instantly tossed up and pulled onto the seat beside Ye Fusang. She was still trembling with shock when she saw Ningzhen kick off the ground and land beside them. "So... so amazing."

Ningzhen tilted her head, looking at Manman with an innocent smile.

"You... what are you doing? Get down at once!" Seeing this, Ye Wansu felt as if the sky were collapsing.

"A great man acts without being bound by trifles," Ye Fusang smiled and said lightly, "Since you sisters are so concerned for me, would you like to trade places?"

"Enough, let him sit there." Ye Wanqing, also deeply annoyed, said coldly, "Yaozhu, arrive within half a quarter of an hour!"

"Yes, Miss." As she spoke, the carriage bolted forward.

"Hey... slow down!" Ye Fusang called out, resting her head against the rock-steady Ningzhen while pulling Manman into her arms.

"Young Master..." Manman smelled the faint scent of orchids on Ye Fusang, and her earlobes turned slightly red. The young master never had this scent before. Now, not only had his temperament changed, but even the fragrance he carried was different.

"Whoa!" As the carriage stopped, Ningzhen, expressionless, hoisted both of them down.

After stepping out, Ye Wansu saw Manman’s bashful posture and her gaze turned cold. "What kind of behavior is this? Have you no sense of propriety?"

Manman immediately pulled away from Ye Fusang’s arms, standing trembling and upright.

"Brother, there is still time before the banquet begins. Please accompany us to walk in the back garden."

Ye Fusang walked for a while and became exhausted, needing to lean on Ningzhen, looking completely sickly. She sighed, "Alas, this back garden is truly vast. It makes me want to recite a poem: 'Not small, not small, very, very big! It makes me walk, tired, tired, tired!'"

"..." Ye Wansu rolled her eyes.

Since returning from the Princess’s manor, Ye Fusang was not only aggravating but also ridiculous!

"Eldest Miss Ye, I only came out for your sake, but... you want me to marry this sort of person?"

From behind the rockery, a woman in her twenties emerged, adorned with flowers and green ornaments. Her face was square, and her expression was unkind. "So you were the one who wrote me a love letter? Your taste is not bad."

She looked the gray-clad person up and down, frowned, and stepped further away, saying as if bestowing charity, "But you are so ugly, your stamina is worse than a servant girl's, and you are only a concubine-born son. If you offer a dowry of one hundred thousand, I might consider you."

Outrageous!

Ye Fusang raised a hand to rub her temples, clutching Ningzhen tighter, her demeanor rakish. "Eldest sister, if your home has no mirrors, you could at least look into a puddle of water."

"You! You have nothing to show for yourself, just a stick of bamboo. Do you think the Grand Princess could possibly fancy you? A mere concubine’s son, dreaming of flying to the branch to become a phoenix. It is your greatest fortune that I would even consider marrying you; I haven't even asked you to marry into my family yet!" Ye Nitian, upon hearing this, was furious, her face turning red.

In the distance, a young girl of about ten or so approached, giggling. "Why have I heard that Ye Nitian, the concubine-born daughter of the Ye family, is not only a concubine-born daughter but was also cast aside by her husband? And she still has the nerve to return to the Ye house. If I were the lady of the Ye house, I would be ashamed to death. How could you have the face to pester others and delay an innocent young man?"

Ningzhen nodded blankly beside them.

"You... Princess Pingyang... why are you here?" Ye Nitian retreated two steps, her momentum fading. "He was the one who wrote me a love letter first, and now he goes back on it just because of the dowry!"

Princess Pingyang looked Ye Fusang up and down, noticing that although he appeared frivolous and lazy, that bamboo-like spine could not be faked. "He looks like a monkey, but I don't think he’s the type to fancy you."

Ye Nitian was nearly vomiting blood from rage. Ye Wanqing spoke softly, "If it is a misunderstanding, it should be cleared up quickly. The time is almost here; Princess, why not join us at the banquet?"

Princess Pingyang glanced at the two, shook her head, and looked at Ye Fusang. "You accompany me."

"As a man, how can you spend so much time mixing with women?" Walking on the path, Princess Pingyang looked at Ye Fusang, lecturing him.

"I won't dare to do it again," Ye Fusang replied, listening to the advice.

Suddenly, several servants rushed out in a panic. "Help! There’s a ghost—there’s a ghost!"

"Ah—!"

With a splash, Princess Pingyang was knocked into the lotus pond.

In a flash, those people vanished. Ye Fusang frowned slightly. "Ningzhen, save her."

Ningzhen did not move this time. She stared in terror at the churning water, as images flashed through her mind. Cold sweat trickled down her forehead, leaving her rooted to the spot.

"Help... help me!"

Just as Ningzhen bit her lip, hesitating to jump in, Ye Fusang glanced at her and stopped her. "I’ll do it. You go to the back room and find a change of clothes."

After speaking, she said loudly, "Manman, you go behind the east room to find some clothes. Ningzhen, you guard here."

The moment Ye Fusang jumped in, she felt the icy chill piercing her bones. She quickly swam over and dragged the Princess toward the archway of the bridge.

"What’s going on? What ghost? Why aren't you going to look!"

Voices approached from afar, accompanied by the sound of footsteps.

Princess Pingyang struggled in fear. Ye Fusang quickly covered her lips, and only when they reached the ledge under the bridge did she stop. Leaning close to the Princess’s ear, she whispered, "Shh... Princess, rest assured, I will not ruin your reputation."

"I will swim out from the west bank later. You quietly circle from this bridge arch to the back room to change your clothes."

"You..." Princess Pingyang looked at the thin person before her, feeling a trace of worry. Yet, she was filled with more astonishment; he had only just arrived, why was he so familiar with the layout of this estate?

"Princess, go quickly, or you’ll catch a cold." With that, Ye Fusang dove into the water.

Emerging from the water, it was clearly midsummer under a bright sun, yet Ye Fusang shivered with cold. She hugged herself tightly. *Sigh, I’m getting old. Touching water makes me feel the chill in my bones.*

When she climbed into the east room, she found a set of clothes already prepared. Just as she was about to undress, a woman wearing a bright red bodice appeared. The moment they locked eyes, the woman’s bright red lips were already lunging toward her.

"My goodness." Ye Fusang was so startled she felt like she was having a heart attack.

*She really won't give up.*

This woman was an old cow trying to eat tender grass, and she even wanted to take a hundred-thousand-gold dowry.