Chapter 128: Ye Chutang and Song Jingning Meet

When Kong Qingyuan learned that the secret room had been reduced to rubble, he swayed and nearly collapsed.

He quickly shouted, “Hurry to the warehouse!”

After shouting, he changed his command, “Everyone stay here and notify the other guards to go to the warehouse.”

The study contained important letters and rare books that could not be stolen again.

After the incident in the study, the entire Kong mansion became a flurry of activity.

Ye Chutang immediately went to the area near the study to watch the commotion.

Qi Yanzhou’s men followed her.

Upon learning that the study had been robbed, he stopped focusing on Ye Chutang and immediately headed to the warehouse.

Once Ye Chutang confirmed that the person watching her had left, she began to make her move.

Did Kong Qingyuan think that by guarding the study, she wouldn’t be able to empty it?

How naïve!

She retrieved a self-made Molotov cocktail from her space, lit the cloth fuse, and smashed it against the window.

With a loud “bang,” the glass bottle shattered, spilling gasoline across the window and the floor, the burning cloth setting it all ablaze.

“Assassin! Protect the master!”

“The water’s coming in, put out the fire!”

Ye Chutang threw a Molotov cocktail and quickly moved to another spot.

Before long, the study was completely engulfed in flames.

The fire spread from the outside in.

Kong Qingyuan was forced to leave the study, his face dark but with a hint of relief.

It was better for it to burn than to be stolen!

But the next moment, he saw a shadow in black by the bookshelf.

The flames distorted the air, blurring the outline of the figure.

But he could still see that wherever the figure passed, the bookshelf, along with the books on it, disappeared.

“‘Ghost Thief’ is in the study! Quick, catch him!”

The guards, staring at the blazing study, hesitated.

“Master, the fire is too big. The beams might collapse at any moment. We can’t enter to catch him.”

Also, the “Ghost Thief” wasn’t even human. How could they catch him?

Entering the study would be suicide!

Kong Qingyuan’s headache felt as though it would explode. “Have the steward report to the authorities. Everyone else, follow me to the warehouse.”

He didn’t believe that if everyone focused on guarding the warehouse, the goods could still be stolen!

After seeing that the Kong family guards had moved to the warehouse, Ye Chutang began to raid the other courtyards.

She used a similar tactic to the one in the study.

She poured gasoline, set it on fire, and forced the people in the courtyards out, then proceeded to empty them.

She didn’t raid every courtyard, but instead picked them at random to make it hard for the Kong family to figure out a pattern.

Soon, the entire Kong mansion was ablaze, with only the front courtyard and warehouse left untouched.

Kong Qingyuan’s face twisted in anger under the glow of the fire, like an evil spirit.

“Keep a close eye on the warehouse! If we catch the ‘Ghost Thief,’ I’ll reward ten thousand gold!”

Although it was unlikely, what if?

At the very least, scaring him off would be a good outcome.

The Kong family had long been established in the capital, and while there were ups and downs, they had amassed quite a fortune.

Ye Chutang knew that since the Kong family cared so much about the warehouse, it must contain something valuable.

If she didn’t empty it, she wouldn’t be living up to the “Ghost Thief” reputation.

“Another high-budget day!”

She had just finished speaking when the entire warehouse suddenly lifted, shaking violently.

With the falling of dirt, a hidden room, half the size of the warehouse, became visible.

The guards in the warehouse were so disoriented by the shaking that they could barely stand.

The guards around the warehouse stared, dumbstruck, their eyes wide with fear.

Suddenly, the warehouse and the hidden room crashed back down.

“Ah!”

Someone screamed in terror, waking up the stunned crowd.

Then everyone saw a hole in the ground, as large as the warehouse, seemingly bottomless.

“The ‘Ghost Thief’ is definitely not human. How terrifying!”

Kong Qingyuan was also scared, taking an unconscious step back.

The “Ghost Thief” had the power to destroy the world. It seemed that the Kong family’s amassed wealth would be hard to protect!

One of the guards asked, “Master, what should we do now?”

Kong Qingyuan didn’t know what to do.

He stared at the dark pit, unsure of how to fill it.

At this moment, Ye Chutang had already entered the warehouse through her ability to move underground.

The warehouse had dropped very deep, and it was pitch black.

The guards, frightened out of their wits, scrambled onto the roof to call for help.

The panicked voices echoed through the narrow space, sounding like the wails of ghosts.

Ye Chutang, wearing night-vision gear, moved effortlessly between the frightened guards and casually looted the place.

Suddenly, someone noticed that a box in front of them had disappeared.

“Ghost… Ghost… Thief’s here!”

As soon as these words were spoken, the guards panicked.

But they didn’t dare face the “Ghost Thief” head-on, all of them shrinking into corners.

Soon, the entire warehouse was empty.

Ye Chutang found it rather amusing, almost laughing aloud.

She quickly looted both the warehouse and the hidden room and then used her powers to return the warehouse to its original position.

When the officials arrived and saw the normal-looking warehouse, they couldn’t believe that such a large building could have been lifted into the sky.

---

After leaving the Kong family, Ye Chutang found a hidden corner and entered her space.

She quickly organized the items she had looted from the Kong mansion, then found a wooden box from Prince An’s residence.

Inside the box were all the land deeds, house deeds, and shop contracts for Prince An’s entire estate.

Although she couldn’t exchange these papers for money, she could empty these shops!

It was still before curfew, so Ye Chutang went to a teahouse to watch a play.

It was the usual drama about wronged wives and unfaithful men.

She found it boring and focused on eating the tea snacks instead.

As the curfew time neared, Ye Chutang stood up to leave the teahouse.

As soon as she stepped outside, she encountered a group of young men leaving the neighboring restaurant.

“Jingning, don’t forget the hunting trip at Meishan tomorrow.”

“It’s been a while since we saw each other. Your archery skills must have improved a lot.”

“If we catch anything, do we all get a share?”

Song Jingning’s cheerful voice rang out, “Don’t worry, everyone gets a share.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he noticed Ye Chutang at the entrance of the teahouse.

His eyes widened in surprise.

Ye Chutang was wearing a dark-colored gauze dress and a black silk scarf on her face, revealing a pair of dazzling eyes filled with the glow of lanterns.

The light from the teahouse shone on her, casting a golden glow over the outer layer of her gauzy dress.

She looked at Song Jingning, surrounded by young men, and remembered something Song Zhiyan had once said.

He had said, “It’s uncanny how similar they look.”

At the time, she had wondered how much her and Song Jingning’s features could resemble each other, thinking that Song Zhiyan had exaggerated.

But now, seeing him in person, she realized just how true it was.

Ye Chutang was the first to recover and nodded slightly at Song Jingning.

“I didn’t expect to go out for tea and be lucky enough to meet the talented Master Haoyue. I am Ye Chutang. It’s a pleasure.”

Although she and Song Jingning were essentially strangers and didn’t need to greet each other, she had a strong feeling that she needed to get to know him.

It felt as though if they didn’t recognize each other, something might be lost.

Song Jingning quickly recovered and bowed to Ye Chutang.

“I have met Miss Ye. I apologize for my earlier rudeness. Please forgive me.”

He stared at her intently, which was indeed improper.

But he couldn’t help it—seeing someone with eyes and brows so much like his own had left him stunned.

Ye Chutang looked at Song Jingning, who was like a brilliant moon in clear skies, and a rather clichéd thought crossed her mind.

A gentleman without equal.

She joked, “Master Haoyue, having lost your manners, do you owe me an apology?”

Her unexpected words made Song Jingning smile.

“This is my fault. I wonder how Miss Ye would like me to make amends?”

“Tomorrow, during the Meishan hunting trip, take me with you.”

“If Miss Ye can ride, we can meet at the city gates at the fifth hour tomorrow.”