The Duke's Pampered Darling is So Scheming-Chapter 69: Biting Back

A glint of triumph flashed in Ye Shixian’s eyes.

But in the next second, she felt her hand grasp nothing but air. Ye Chutang had somehow twisted her wrist and slipped free!

’Not good!’

Panic surged through Ye Shixian. She opened her mouth to scream, but it was too late. Her body lost its balance, and she tumbled uncontrollably toward the lake!

Ye Chutang suddenly cried out in alarm, "Shixian, be careful!"

Ye Shixian felt a tug at her sleeve and heard a dull thud from behind. But before she could react, she had already fallen into the lake.

The lake water instantly submerged her.

SPLASH—!

Hearing the commotion, everyone in the lakeside pavilion turned to look, and a series of shocked cries erupted.

"Heavens! Miss Ye fell into the water!"

"Someone save her, quickly!"

The scene instantly descended into chaos.

Ye Shixian flailed wildly in the water as it flooded her mouth and nose, threatening to suffocate her. ’I can’t swim!’

Shaoyao finally snapped out of her shock and shrieked in panic.

"Miss!"

...

After a chaotic flurry of activity, Ye Shixian was finally pulled from the water by Zhuxin.

This personal maid, who served at the Eldest Princess’s side, had been trained by the princess herself. Not only was she literate, but she also knew some martial arts and was even an expert swimmer.

Ye Shixian was drenched from head to toe. The hairpins and ornaments she wore were gone, her hair was a mess, and she cut a pathetic figure.

It was a hot summer day, and her clothes were already thin. The gauze skirt now clung tightly to her body, leaving none of her curves to the imagination.

Seeing this, many of the young noblewomen in the crowd secretly exchanged glances, their eyes filled with a mixture of mockery and disdain.

Regardless of the reason, making such a spectacle of herself in the Long Princess Mansion was an utter humiliation.

Fortunately, only female guests were attending today’s Chao Hua Banquet, and the male servants were all stationed at a distance. Otherwise, if any man had seen this scene, Ye Shixian could forget about ever finding a husband.

The Eldest Princess’s other personal maid, Lan Yi, quickly brought over a cloak and draped it over Ye Shixian, asking with concern, "Miss Ye, are you all right?"

Still badly shaken, Ye Shixian was trembling all over.

The Eldest Princess had also come over by now. Seeing Ye Shixian’s state, her brow furrowed slightly. "How did you suddenly fall in the water?"

At her words, Ye Shixian seemed to finally regain her senses. She scanned the crowd before her gaze locked onto Ye Chutang. Her eyes reddened as she asked in a choked voice:

"Cousin, we have no grievances between us. Why did you deliberately push me into the water?"

As her voice, choked with sobs, faded, the surroundings fell deathly silent.

Tears streamed down Ye Shixian’s face.

’Originally, I planned to take the opportunity to push Ye Chutang into the water,’ she thought. ’I didn’t expect her to somehow dodge me. But in a flash, a new plan formed. I’ll just take advantage of the situation and blame it all on her!’

’After all, when I made my move, my back was to everyone in the lakeside pavilion. No one could have seen anything.’

’Even if Ye Chutang denies it, no one will believe her. After all, I’m the one who actually fell into the lake!’

Ye Chutang seemed taken aback. A flash of astonishment crossed her dark, gentle eyes, as if she couldn’t understand why Ye Shixian would say such a thing.

Her lips parted as if she wanted to speak, but she remained silent. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

Of course, Ye Shixian wasn’t about to give her a chance to argue. Her tears flowed even more freely as she clutched the cloak around her.

"Cousin, if I offended you in some way, you could have just told me. But how could you... how could you—"

Still, no one in the crowd responded.

Ye Shixian finally sensed that something was wrong. ’I’ve said all this, so why isn’t anyone reacting? Shouldn’t they be turning on Ye Chutang—’

Just then, the sound of clear, rhythmic clapping broke the silence.

CLAP. CLAP. CLAP.

Princess Qingyang spoke, her face a mask of mock admiration. "I’ve heard of calling black white, but today I’ve truly seen it with my own eyes."

Ye Shixian’s mind went blank, completely baffled as to why Princess Qingyang would suddenly say such a thing.

For some reason, a sense of panic began to creep into her heart.

Princess Qingyang folded one arm across her chest and tapped her chin. "Ye Shixian," she began, "everyone here saw it clearly. When you accidentally fell into the lake, your cousin’s first reaction was to try and save you. She fell trying to pull you back and scraped her elbow on the rocks by the edge. It’s bleeding. And yet, the moment you’re pulled out, you claim she pushed you?"

"Tsk. You’ve really got some nerve."

Ye Shixian felt as if she’d been struck over the head. Her mind went completely blank.

"Wha-what...?"

She stiffly turned her neck to look at Ye Chutang again. Only then did she see that her cousin’s sleeve was torn. On her exposed left wrist, a layer of skin had clearly been scraped away, and it was beading with blood.

It was also smeared with dirt, the injury clearly caused by a fall on sharp rocks.

Princess Qingyang continued, "I told her to go get that bandaged, but she refused. She insisted on waiting by the lake, saying she needed to see you get out safely. And this is how you repay her?"

The corners of her lips curled, her vibrant, bold face filled with undisguised mockery and disdain.

"Ye Shixian, anyone with a cousin like you, who bites the hand that helps her, must be truly ’blessed.’"

Ye Shixian was utterly dumbfounded.

’How could this be... How could this be!?’

The onlooking women began to whisper among themselves.

"I’ve seen it all now! Ye Chutang tried to save her out of kindness, and she turns around and falsely accuses her! What kind of person does that?"

"Exactly! If we hadn’t all seen it clearly from the lakeside pavilion, there’s no telling how this would have been twisted!"

"If I were Ye Chutang, I would never be able to swallow this insult..."

"Well, what can you do? She has her father to back her up. They already took over their cousins’ house, and now she dares to bully them in public. It’s all because she thinks Ye Chutang and her siblings are orphans with no one to rely on, isn’t it?"

Shaking uncontrollably, Ye Shixian finally remembered hearing a sound just before she fell into the lake. She hadn’t had time to process it then, but thinking back, it must have been the thud of Ye Chutang falling to the ground.

’But—I distinctly felt only a light tug on my sleeve! There’s no way that could have been enough to pull Ye Chutang down! And those injuries are even more impossible!’

"N-no! It’s not like that!"

Ye Shixian’s chest felt tight. A thousand arguments were stuck in her throat, but she couldn’t force a single one out.

’Why did things turn out this way?’

At this moment, Ye Chutang suddenly took a step forward.

The voices in the crowd died down. Ye Shixian instinctively looked up at that gentle, beautiful face, which now seemed utterly foreign to her.

Ye Chutang held out her hand. A red jade bead string lay quietly in her palm.

As she moved, her sleeve slid back slightly, revealing the large scrape running up from her wrist.

The beads of blood dotting the wound were a startling crimson, even more vivid than the red jade bead string in her palm.

Anyone could see how severe the injury was from the fall she had taken.

The air seemed to freeze. Ye Shixian had never felt so tormented.

Ye Chutang said softly, "Shixian, your red jade bead string."

A sudden shiver ran through Ye Shixian.