The Young Lady is a Bit Unruly [Fragrant Harbor] - Chapter 17 The Secret Room

Chapter 17 The Secret Room

With no ceremonies tonight and no interruptions, Ye Baoling finally had ample time to enjoy a proper bath.

Before bathing, she locked the dressing room door, sneaked into the secret room with carefully prepared chocolates and two apples, and devoutly offered them to Guan Yin Bodhisattva.

Simultaneously, she retrieved the previously offered biscuits, stuffed them into her bag to hide them, and only then prepared to bathe.

After a quick shower to cleanse herself, she sank into the bathtub.

In a state of extreme relaxation, her head tilted back, her body naturally floating on the water’s surface.

Her mind and body at ease, she quietly spaced out.

Over the next two days, she needed to free up the money from the closed-end funds. How should she invest the withdrawn funds? How to make the chicken lay eggs, and the eggs hatch more chickens?

The place where one could lose big money but also accumulate capital the fastest was—the stock market.

Yes, she had to find a way to pry information from Ye Huaizhang about buying diamond mines in South Africa.

If the news was true, then she would buy the corresponding stocks.

Did this constitute insider trading?

She needed to first understand the current laws in Port City. She couldn’t engage in illegal activities.

One thought led to another, circling in her mind.

Squeak… squeak…

A strange sound came from behind her.

Ye Baoling turned to check but found nothing unusual.

Scanning the room, the bathroom was spacious but not excessively large, decorated in a black-and-white theme that allowed her to see everything at a glance. She couldn’t locate the source of the sound.

Squeak…

Suddenly, a piercing noise assaulted her eardrums.

Involuntarily, her hair stood on end!

Ye Baoling hurriedly climbed out of the water.

Before she could react, the lights suddenly went out, plunging the surroundings into darkness.

Terrified, she screamed: “Bodhisattva, protect me!”

Thump!

The Bodhisattva didn’t protect her.

In her panic, she stubbed her toe on something, stumbled, and then banged her knee against the bathtub, grimacing in pain.

When luck runs out, even drinking water gets stuck in your teeth.

Just then, a light appeared outside the door, followed by knocking.

“The power’s out. Are you okay?”

It was Ye Huaizhang.

Ye Baoling, using the faint light from outside, grabbed her bathrobe and hastily threw it on, limping to open the door.

“Is this house haunted or what?!”

A flashlight beam swept over her, just catching her damp hair dripping water, droplets trailing down her slender, pale neck and falling between her breasts.

He averted his gaze, trying not to look where he shouldn’t. “Probably a circuit breaker tripped.”

“And there’s a weird sound, squeaking like crazy. It’s terrifying.”

“That’s the water pipes. They make noise occasionally. You’ll get used to it.” Clearly, Ye Huaizhang was already accustomed to it.

A mansion with tripped circuits and aging pipes squealing—she must be lacking in experience!

“Doesn’t anyone handle tripped circuits?”

“The servants will take care of it.”

No sooner had he spoken than the lights in the room came back on.

Still shaken, Ye Baoling didn’t dare continue her bath. She went into the dressing room to change into her pajamas.

Noticing her limping walk, he couldn’t help but ask, “Did you fall?”

“I didn’t fall.” How could she possibly fall?

But she had stubbed her toe, and it hurt.

Her toe was bleeding quite a bit; Ye Baoling used half a box of tissues to soak up the blood.

After changing into her pajamas and coming out, she noticed a first aid kit on the low table by the sofa, containing band-aids, alcohol, and medicated oil.

Ye Huaizhang was sitting nearby, adjusting a small device that resembled a video recorder. He glanced at her and asked, “Do you want me to call your maid to help?”

“No need. I can manage on my own.” Ye Baoling sat down, picked up a cotton ball, dabbed it in some alcohol, and began disinfecting the wound.

“Her name is Chen Yulan, not my servant. She’s the neighbor’s child who helps me with chores occasionally.” As she spoke, she dabbed the wound with a cotton ball.

Hiss!

The acidic sting.

The pain made her head buzz.

Earlier in the bathroom, she’d been so frightened that she used excessive force, causing the nail on her left big toe to split open.

The alcohol on the wound hurt worse than being cut with a knife.

She silently drew a sharp breath.

Hearing the noise, Ye Huaizhang glanced over and noticed her foot injury was more severe than he’d imagined.

He set down the video recorder and approached.

Picking up the alcohol bottle, he skillfully poured some into a small measuring cup, then dropped four or five cotton balls inside.

Ye Baoling watched him sideways as he lifted her foot to clean the bloodstains. Seeing the cotton ball about to touch the wound, she quickly warned, “Be gentle.”

The words barely left her mouth when she cried out in pain.

Ye Baoling wanted to kick him from the agony, but he held her foot firmly, leaving her unable to move. She could only plead softly, “Gently! Don’t you know how to be gentle with women?”

“Tell the alcohol to be gentle with women. Telling me is useless.”

In other words, it’s the alcohol causing your pain, not my heavy-handedness.

Ye Baoling had finally met someone whose sharp tongue matched her own.

She immediately retorted, “If you shoot someone, can you ask the judge to acquit you and sentence the ‘gun’ to hanging instead?!”

Ye Huaizhang paused briefly. “The wound’s cleaned, Your Honor. Next, shall the executioner apply your bandage?”

Knowing when to yield, the judge fell silent.

She nodded slightly. “Go ahead.”

Why not make use of him when she could.

Ye Huaizhang placed her foot on the low table and stood up to walk toward the bedside cabinet. He took a box from the drawer.

“Aren’t you going to bandage my wound?”

“With toenails this long, don’t they need trimming first?He was disgusted by her long toenails…

Ye Baoling had just trimmed them a few days ago. She glanced down – they had indeed grown a bit.

Young people’s fast metabolism was beyond her control.

Seeing him bring nail clippers, Ye Baoling felt embarrassed to have him trim her toenails and reached out. “I’ll do it myself.”

With clippers in hand, she worked carefully to avoid the injured area, appearing rather clumsy.

Though quick with words, she was inept at any hands-on daily tasks.

Ye Huaizhang, waiting to bandage her wound, found her fumbling unbearable and snatched the clippers to do it himself.

He rested her foot on his thigh, frowning slightly and holding his breath. Though he’d never trimmed anyone else’s toenails before, his hands were deft.

The delicate, pale foot curled slightly under pressure, like tender lotus root sprouts that might break with too much force.

He patiently clipped with gentle precision.

Watching his sharply defined profile, Ye Baoling suddenly remembered her father from her original world.

When she was very young, her father had trimmed her nails like this too. She’d experienced brief paternal love, but after her parents divorced, her father became that middle-aged man she saw only once a year, always impatient.

After bandaging the wound, Ye Huaizhang noticed her entire left knee was bruised, likely from hitting the bathtub. He took a bottle of Huangdaoyi medicinal oil from the first aid kit and handed it to her.

Only to find her spacing out.

Her dazed expression made her look rather simple-minded. Had she not just outwitted him verbally, he might have mistaken her for a silly, clumsy but cute girl.

He disliked dealing with foolish people, but his wife clearly represented the opposite extreme – far too cunning.

Just like last night’s rigged drawing of lots—utterly impossible to guard against.

Ye Huaizhang shook the bottle in his hand. “Your knee is bruised. I’ve left the Dit Da Jow on the table. Rub it after 48 hours.”

Then he called downstairs and had a servant bring up an ice pack for her to apply.

After doing this, he went back to tinkering with his video camera.

Ye Baoling gently pressed the ice against her knee and asked, “Is that a camera?”

“It’s the latest model video recorder. I’ll have someone deliver it to the seaside villa tomorrow for them to use.”

“Oh.”

Whenever Ye Baoling planned something, she developed a strong urge to execute it.

She began seizing the opportunity: “Can this take photos?”

“No.”

“We didn’t take wedding photos when we got married, and there was no diamond ring either…”

Ye Huaizhang had never considered this—it was an oversight on his part.

“We can have wedding photos taken later. We’ll find time to buy a diamond ring together. Or if you have a style you like, you can tell me in advance so we can have it custom-made.”

She played dumb. “I don’t know much about diamonds and jewelry. You choose. Didn’t you buy a diamond mine in South Africa? You must know more about diamonds than I do.”

Ye Huaizhang paused what he was doing. “How did you know I bought a diamond mine in South Africa?”

“Your family told me. I can’t remember exactly who mentioned it.” Ye Baoling watched his expression change as she continued probing, “We could use diamonds from your South African mine.”

Ye Huaizhang placed the adjusted video recorder back into its packaging. “It won’t be ready that quickly. You can pick a style first. As long as the purity is high, diamonds from anywhere are the same.”

He said it wouldn’t be ready quickly, not that there weren’t any.

So, Ye Huaizhang really did buy a diamond mine in South Africa.

That was good news.

But when? When would the news be announced?

Ye Baoling: “Why not use diamonds from our own mine? Maybe we could even pick a bigger one. Will we have to wait long?”

“The paperwork will take another month, and mining will take at least half a year. Are you willing to wait?”

Another month wasn’t too long—perfect.

Having achieved her goal, Ye Baoling quickly changed the subject: “Then forget it. We don’t need a diamond ring. I prefer simpler styles anyway. Or we can decide whether to buy a wedding ring a year from now.”

What if they were divorced by then?

Her thoughts changed so quickly—Ye Huaizhang truly couldn’t understand a woman’s mind.

But to show he valued her, he still said, “We’ll find time to look at jewelry together. Whatever you like, we’ll buy.”

Ye Baoling only smiled without responding. What she loved most was gold.

Nothing else.

When it was time to sleep, after turning off the lights, Ye Baoling hugged her small blanket and curled up on the sofa, legs tucked.

The sofa was about the same length as her height, so it fit her just right when she lay down.

But she couldn’t sleep.

When she opened her eyes, the eerie red kaleidoscope on the ceiling was right in front of her. When she closed them, the kaleidoscope slowly expanded in her vision, getting closer and larger.

This room was haunted.

Unclean.

Last night, Ye Huaizhang had nightmares on the sofa; tonight, it was her turn.

In her dream, Tong Po performing rituals transformed into a snake deity specter, chasing her through the entire building. To escape, she ran until her legs nearly gave out, and in her panic, she crashed into a glass pane.

“Ah!”

It hurt terribly.

Ye Huaizhang heard the noise and turned on the bedside lamp.

It turned out Ye Baoling’s injured foot had kicked the cabinet beside the sofa.

He said, “The bed is wide His rule was simple: silence was required during sleep.

Ye Baoling, who had just woken up and bumped her excruciatingly painful wound, was fuming. She retorted irritably, “What rules of yours? Why should I follow your rules? You’re the one who begged me to move in! Don’t think I don’t know—if I hadn’t agreed to your request, your family would have suffered. Ye Huaizhang, remember this: I am your savior! Learn to be grateful, will you? And you still expect me to follow your rules. How absurd.”

Ye Huaizhang, utterly bewildered by her scolding, was speechless. “…”

She huffily stood up, clutching the blanket, and scrambled onto the bed.

The large bed was much more comfortable.

Still displeased, she added, “From now on, I am the rule.”

Ear-shattering and profoundly true!

The half-asleep Ye Huaizhang blinked at her, unable to refute her.

Her declaration, “From now on, I am the rule,” echoed in his ears. He had truly married a demanding master—one he couldn’t oppose and had to cater to meticulously.

“Ouch!”

Ye Baoling accidentally bumped her toe again and inwardly cursed this haunted old house.

Early in the morning, Ye Baoling returned to the Gu residence in slippers. Once back, Sister Ping reapplied anti-inflammatory medication to her wound.

Lately, Ye Baoling had been spending every night at the Third Residence, claiming she was keeping Guan Old Lady company.

Sister Ping couldn’t help but complain, “Wasn’t that old house renovated a few years ago? How could the pipes deteriorate so quickly?”

Ye Baoling asked curiously, “Was Inheritance Harmony Residence fully renovated?”

“It was renovated three years ago, but I’m not sure if it was a full renovation. Logically, when old houses are renovated, the main focus is on plumbing and electrical systems, right?”

If it had been renovated, someone at the Third Residence must know about the existence of the square secret room.

Could Ye Huaizhang possibly know about it too? After all, it was in his bedroom.

It seemed she could no longer offer food to Guan Yin Bodhisattva, lest someone discover she had sneaked into the secret room.

Gu Zhen’er walked in carrying the family’s calico cat, but as soon as she sat down, the cat slipped away.

Ye Baoling took out the biscuits that had been offered to Guan Yin from her bag and handed them to her. “Here.”

“Where did these come from?”

“I brought them back especially for you.”

“You always spoil me, Cousin.” Gu Zhen’er opened the biscuits and began munching on them. “Cousin, I’ve hit a snag with my household management plan.”

“What kind of snag?”

Gu Zhen’er explained in detail.

“Every month, my dad hands over 5,500 from his salary, and your living expenses are 2,000. Listen to this: aside from Sister Ping, whose wages are covered by the Ye family, we have to pay all the other servants. Two Filipino helpers cost 2,200, the driver costs 3,000—that’s already 5,200. So, my dad’s salary barely covers the servants’ wages. Then there are utilities, groceries, gasoline, and all sorts of miscellaneous expenses—it adds up to a lot. Every month, Grandma has to chip in to cover the shortfall, but no matter how much she adds, there’s still a gap. And when school starts, we’ll have tuition and miscellaneous fees… My head is spinning.”

Ye Baoling helped her sort out the logic: “To find a solution, you either need to increase income or reduce expenses. Man’er and I will work—we’ll handle increasing income, that’s one part. Think about where else the household can generate more income. As for reducing expenses, cutting small things won’t help; you need to eliminate major non-essential costs.”enough for both of us. But you’ll have to follow my rules.”

His rule was simple: silence was required during sleep.