When first signing the marriage contract with the Chu family, Huo Tinglan had taken Ye Ci’s mood into consideration, and also feared that exposure to the media would lead to curious prying eyes and rumors that would affect Ye Ci’s studies. Therefore, they only went through a set of customs and formalities, and the marriage was kept secret from the outside world. Later, Ye Ci confessed the marriage to his classmates, which caused some waves in school, but the reaction from the outside world was not too big. After all, the members of the Huo family were not celebrities with a social media following, so it was unlikely that the entertainment media would care about the minutiae of their lives.

After Ye Ci’s college entrance examination, Huo Tinglan put the wedding on the agenda. After officially announcing the news of the marriage to the media, Ye Ci’s situation was completely different from before. The media reporters who followed the announcement appeared at the speed of light, and even when they went to the convenience store to buy something, they might encounter paparazzi secretly taking pictures. Moreover, in recent years, the writing style of inland entertainment media seemed to have been infected by the gossip tabloids in the Hong Kong area, and most of the news published was in this style – “Huo Tinglan’s wedding is coming soon. His twelve-years-younger fiance was originally the eldest son of the third branch of the Chu family, and is tender and cute.” “The huo husband and wife showed their love on the horseback riding field, and Huo Tinglan cared for and accompanied the other throughout the whole process.” “How rich is this local tyrant? The patriarch of the Huo family married with a dowry of over 100 million”……The wording was extremely exaggerated, and Ye Ci’s face was red with embarrassment, his bare toes frequently curling against the floor.

The public relations team under Huo Tinglan’s special assistant had been monitoring the trend of public opinion, and false or extremely negative news was either unable to be published or taken down within a short time. Huo Tinglan had long been accustomed to interviews and media reports, and didn’t give them much thought at all, but Ye Ci had never encountered this scene, and despite Huo Tinglan’s advice, he often couldn’t help but pull out his phone to search for news about himself.

“……Forget tender and cute.” In the VIP lounge on the third floor of the shooting club, Ye Ci sat on the sofa and flipped through the news, scratching his hair in embarrassment. “And then, ‘sweet and lovely’……”

Who was sweet and lovely?!

If you used such basic misnomers in the college entrance examination, you would lose points!

“And this one, it doesn’ look like, like I’m 1.8 meters, but 1.75 meters.” Ye Ci anxiously licked his dry lips over and over, pointing to a sneak photo accompanying the news piece anld feeling like self-realization was an eternal injustice. “And isn’t this just a normal hug? Why write that I buried myself in his arms and acted spoiled, I’m not a person who acts spoiled at every turn……”

Naturally, due to his soft and well-behaved appearance, he appeared to outsiders as spoiled and cute……Huo Tinglan nodded slightly and avoided the important issues while embracing the trivial: “Don’t focus on that, let’s talk.”

“I’m not focusing on it, but they wrote without basis.” The dignity of his inner Alpha was damaged, and Ye Ci said angrily, “A man who is 1.8 meters tall can’t, can’t be described like that.”

“En, the media are writing without basis,” Huo Tinglan answered the Little Gentleman, unconscionably perfunctory.

“Let, let the public relations team please withdraw it.” Ye Ci shook Huo Tinglan’s wrist. “Can it be done?”

And he said he was not a person who acted spoiled at every turn.

He was perfectly proficient at acting like a baby.

“This…….” Huo Tinglan endured, pretended to be troubled, and sighed. “Baby, these can’t be counted as rumors, after all, so how can they be withdrawn?”

Ye Ci was silent for a moment, his eyes vigilant: “Do you think that what they wrote……sounds accurate?”

Huo Tinglan remained silent and used his fist to cover his mouth, turning his head to the shooting range outside and pretending to look at the scenery.

“I look sweet? Ye Ci stared blankly, pointing to his face and then to his legs. He was wearing a pair of overalls today with the trousers tucked into his boots, which made his long legs look straight and thin, dashing and handsome.

Huo Tinglan deliberately didn’t look at him.

“Huo-shushu!” Ye Ci was anxious, so he got up and moved closer to Huo Tinglan, leaning one arm on the back of the sofa and leaning down on him, relentless in his desire to settle the matter.

“They should, should use ‘handsome’ instead of ‘sweet’……” Seeing Huo Tinglan turning his face to look into the distance, Ye Ci turned his head back with one hand to force Huo Tinglan to look directly at his face. The sweetness in his bones shone through the illusion of strength. “Huo-shuhu, I’m being serious now.”

Huo Tinglan’s true colors were exposed. He scoffed and took advantage of the opportunity to grab him and kiss him hard. There was no one else in the lounge, so he turned over and pressed Ye Ci into the sofa, heartily sucking and biting at soft flesh and the dimples on Ye Ci’s face. In line with the entertainment gossip accounts, he said lightly: “You’re sweet all over, baby, so sweet I’m going to die……”

Ye Ci’s cheeks and lips were red from being ravished. After a long while, he struggled out from between Huo Tinglan’s chest and the couch cushions and pulled his clothes into place. Unconvinced and unable to deal with Huo Tinglan and the unscrupulous media, he could only glare insipidly.

Huo Tinglan was amused by his aggrieved appearance and raised his hands in compromise, saying: “How about I ask them to write a few public relations drafts that describe you well……how should they describe you?” Huo Tinglan pondered for a moment, drew his eyes across the entirety of Ye Ci’s body, and said mischievously, “Masculine and mighty?”

That look was somewhat insidious. Ye Ci choked and didn’t know where his mind had jumped to, but his face became even redder and he muttered: “That not, not necessary……can you be a little more serious?”

“I understand.” Huo Tinglan had his fill of teasing children and showed his reliable side again. “Which report is it? Send me the link, and I will ask someone to deal with it.”

It was time to be serious. He couldn’t let this trivial matter trouble Ye Ci.

Ye Ci forwarded the news link to him, and then heaved a sigh of relief.

It could be seen that the burden on his ‘cool guy’ side was very heavy.

“Want to go downstairs and play a little longer?” Huo Tinglan gave a brief order to his assistant, then picked up his phone. “I made an agreement with the person in charge that the sniper rifle from Cheytak’s new factory can be tested.”

Ye Ci was startled and immediately forgot about the gossip media, his eyes so fiery that they could burn Huo Tinglan through: “Really?!”

The shape of the gun was as cool as a prop in a sci-fi movie. It weighed 14.06kg and took a little effort for him to hold it in one hand. The last time he came to play, he had looked eagerly at the front of the display cabinet for a long time and felt that even if he could touch one, he would be satisfied.

Domestic weapons control was extremely strict, and for security reasons, many high-end firearms in this officially operated shooting experience hall were not open to ordinary members. They were locked in a display cabinet all year round, and only very senior members could enjoy them under the full escort of the shooting coach.

“Really.” Huo Tinglan pointed at his own face.

Ye Ci promptly leaned forward in tacit agreement and kissed him on each cheek.

“Let’s go downstairs.” Huo Tinglan glanced at his watch. “Can we play until two o’clock? Madam Lin asked the designer to come over at 2:30.”

“Yes!” Ye Ci had already sped down like a gust of wind.

Lin Yao was the sort of person who loved ostentation and saving face, so she naturally wanted to make her only son’s wedding the top priority in her life. She insisted on having a special wedding and felt that an Alpha’s taste was unreliable, so she simply took on the heavy responsibility and communicated with the wedding planning team in full swing every day. The wedding venue selected was an ancient castle in a foreign country that had been converted into a history museum. It was also one of the six largest palaces in the world, and rent for an exhibition hall was over 100,000 euros. The real difficulty was that the number of openings was extremely limited, and only a few couples were selected each year. She had to go through a lot of scrutiny, but Lin Yao stubbornly won one of those openings.

Lin Yao was concerned about the event venue up until then, not to mention the outfit design, but it was a pity that the male omega couldn’t wear a wedding dress. The design of a mens outfit should be based on simplicity, which left her with a lot of room to play.

Different from the traditional wedding where wedding pictures were taken beforehand, Lin Yao’s planning meant that the groom could not see the bride in his wedding outfit before the ceremony. This concentrated the surprise in the last moment, and even the toughest groom would often cry on the spot at that first glance. The wedding pictures could be taken later. Perhaps Lin Yao’s arrangement was sort of kitsch, because Huo Tinglan hadn’t cried since he was five years old……

In addition to the main outfits during the ceremony, the two grooms needed to change from dress clothes to casual clothes several times for the afterparties during the three-day wedding process. In the end, there were about ten sets each. Just one would make people dizzy, especially Ye Ci, who was a complete foreigner in this respect. Fortunately, Lin Yao saw this as a fun thing. She didn’t mind the hard work, and had complete control of the design. Ye Ci only needed to empty his mind and act as a model for the designer.

Of course, there were not only these things that needed to be done before the wedding, but there were also many miscellaneous and trivial matters. Nearly a hundred handwritten letters from Ye Ci had been sent out. He usually didn’t feel that he had many friends, but when he held the invitations, he found that there were quite a few people that he could invite.

Apart from Cheng Xiao and his pack of rogues, there was Class 7. Ye Ci had a good relationship with the rest of his classmates, and he was close to several Omegas in other classes.

On the eve of the wedding, Ye Ci boarded Huo Tinglan’s private jet along with a group of friends and classmates who had been invited to the wedding. With deep sorrow, Jiang Yan lamented that Ye Ci’s face, which was already so small that it could make people jealous, seemed to be thinner again, and his chin was sharper than the last time they met. Lin Yao got worked up and declared that Ye Ci had to eat five meals per day to urgently gain weight in the next two days, so as not to shrink his waistline. After all, a change in size meant that all ten sets of outfits would have to be altered.

“Can you have mercy on an Omega like me who only eats a little but still gets fat?!” Jiang Yan grabbed the clothes around Ye Ci’s waist and complained to Lin Yao, “Auntie, he must have lost weight behind our backs, look at his waist, ah. You take charge of him!”

The sweater was loose and bulky. Nothing could be seen at first, but then Jiang Yan gripped the excess fabric tightly and stretched it back to outline a strong, thin waist. Ye Ci smiled and broke Jiang Yan’s grip. The plane hadn’t taken off yet, and the two were laughing and joking on the sofa, with only Lin Yao complaining miserably: “Tinglan really doesn’t know how to take good care of you……”

“How can that be? There is no Alpha who is more considerate than Tinglan. It’s only that Xiao Ci has not been able to gain weight since he was a child……” Ye Hongjun hurriedly defended Huo Tinglan.

Huo Tinglan, who was sitting on the sofa beside her, sighed helplessly and echoed: “I also want to say that Xiao Ci has gained a few pounds with great difficulty, and during this period of time, you……”

The scale of the wedding was so big, and there were so many processes to go through. All the weight that Ye Ci had gained was tossed away. It wasn’t that he didn’t take care of himself, but that he was just exhausted.

Lin Yao treated Ye Hongjun affectionately, but turned her head silently to give her son a murderous look.

“……” This was someone that even Huo Chanyu couldn’t afford to offend. Huo Tinglan had no choice but to surrender unconditionally: “Blame me for not taking care of Xiao Ci.”

“I will try hard. In the next two days, I must……eat more at dinner and drink more milk tea.” In order to quell the dispute, Ye Ci seriously issued a military order, vowing to be fat enough that he would fit the outfits perfectly.

“Listen to what he just said, ah, I’ve quit milk tea for half a month!” Grief-stricken, Jiang Yan turned his head and wailed at Ye Ci’s group of Omega groomsmen. The groomsmen complained loudly, wishing to donate their extra meat to Ye Ci.

Huo Tinglan had never seen Ye Ci talking and laughing so cheerfully with his peers in his last life. There were not many chances to see it in this life, so he didn’t think these children were noisy at all. With a smile on his face the whole time, he looked at Ye Ci tenderly, as if he couldn’t get enough of him.

A couple of little Omegas noticed and whispered in Ye Ci’s ear.

“Mr. Huo has been watching you.” 

“He can’t take his eyes off you, ah!”

“Oh.” Ye Ci pretended to be calm, but his thin skin was burned through. He quickly glanced at Huo Tinglan. Those eyes were so gentle that his heart palpitated for a moment, and he didn’t have the nerve to raise his eyes again for a long while.

The plane took off in the morning. After a 10-hour flight, the first batch of guests arrived at their destination smoothly. After landing, they arranged for pick-up, accommodations, and dinner, but there was a lot of hustle and bustle, and everyone was very cheerful. The group of teenagers who had just escaped the bitterness of their third year of high school not long ago were all excited, chattering and laughing non-stop like a group of cute and noisy chickens.

The venue layout, the rehearsal……those took some more work. The first guests to arrive were well-received. The groomsmen on both sides followed the rehearsal process, and the others were responsible for eating, drinking, and having fun in the local area. The Huo family took care of the bill, and it was almost like being tourists.

On the day of the wedding, Ye Ci was taken to the dressing room at dawn by the good sisters Lin Yao and Ye Hongjun to take care of styling. In order to maintain a sense of mystery, the dressing rooms of the two grooms were separated by more than half the hotel, and neither could see the other before the ceremony officially started.

Ye Ci was young, with red lips and white teeth. He looked good on camera, and makeup would destroy his fresh and youthful look, so they just performed some skin care and left his hairstyle mainly natural. Ye Ci seemed to be cooperating sincerely, but his big amber eyes kept looking away, restless.

“Is the hair styling finished?” Lin Yao stepped into the dressing room in high-heeled shoes, holding a bunch of bridal veils and a small crown in her hands. She said affectionately, “Xiao Ci is well-behaved. Put this on after the hair styling is finished……”

As if afraid of something, Ye Ci’s eyes widened suddenly. The frightened cat jumped up and was about to run away, but Ye Hongjun pressed him back down with a smile, and comforted him softly: “It must be worn by Omegas when they are married. There is no one who doesn’t wear it……”

“It, it won’t look good on me.” Ye Ci’s inner Alpha was crushed by the thin, light layer of a veil. He struggled in vain, and seeing that he couldn’t escape, he begged, “Can I not wear the crown? Can the veil be replaced with a non-embroidered one?”

How could Lin Yao spare him? The crown that Ye Ci was talking about, that is, the bride’s tiara, was designed by Lin Yao at a high price, and the diamonds inlaid on it alone cost nearly two million.

“Aiya, this tiara is specially designed for a male Omega. Look at this style, it doesn’t have a feminine appearance. Without it, the outfit you’re wearing will look too plain, and it won’t look like you’re getting married……” It was too late to change anything now. Lin Yao calmed him down gently and tenderly while instructing the stylist, “Quickly, put it on.”

Ye Ci, a beautiful young man with exquisite features, looked good wearing a veil. There was almost no sense of disobedience, but Ye Ci still felt uncomfortable all over, wishing to tuck the veil into his collar.

There was still more than two hours before the wedding officially started, and he was afraid of being looked at, so he hid in the dressing room with a red face and refused to go out. He’d had a large glass of fruit juice with breakfast and was feeling it now, but he didn’t even want to go to the toilet, so his legs were shaking. After a few shakes, Ye Hongjun noticed the signs, so he had to brace himself and go to the restroom. Fortunately, it was right next to the dressing room. After just a few steps, he bowed his head in shame, as if he had just stolen millions from someone.

The wedding started at twelve o’clock noon. Several exhibition halls in the palace had already been cleared, and now were full of guests attending the wedding banquet. A red carpet was spread all the way from the stage to the door of the exhibition hall. Sunlight poured in through the stained glass windows on one side of the corridor, casting warm light onto the red carpet and extending forward like road signs. After setting off from the hotel, Ye Ci had gradually entered a state of being so nervous that he couldn’t sit still. He didn’t worry about the veil and tiara anymore, and just listened to the wedding music inside the door and the voice of the master of ceremonies.

“….Next, let’s welcome the other groom with warm applause……”

“Go, Xiaci Ci.” Ye Hongjun smiled and handed him a small bouquet of lilies, patting him on the back.

Ye Ci stepped onto the red carpet.

It may have been that the carpet was too soft, because his already unsteady steps suddenly staggered. Ye Ci had an introverted temperament, after all, so it was inevitable that he would be nervous on this occasion. The palms holding the bouquet were covered in slippery sweat.

Two attendants opened the door at just the right time, and sound burst out suddenly. Behind the door, at the end of the red carpet, Huo Tinglan was wearing a pure black outfit with his back facing the entrance. His shoulders were straight, his figure tall and strong. The moment he saw that figure, Ye Ci’s wildly beating heart was soothed out of its stage fright, and the frequency of his heartbeat eased. The red carpet was very long, and Ye Ci’s steps became steadier as he walked, passing through the beaming guests and noise to stand behind Huo Tinglan.

Ye Ci took a deep breath. His cheeks puffed up childishly, and he let the air out again, blowing the hair on his forehead and the veil in front of his eyes straight up: “Phew –”

Some of the closer guests noticed this little detail and laughed in good humor. Huo Tinglan’s shoulders also trembled slightly, as if he had heard Ye Ci’s nervous exhalation.

After a moment of mental preparation, Ye Ci raised his hand, patted Huo Tinglan’s shoulder, and whispered, “Tinglan.”

Huo Tinglan turned around.

Ye Ci stood tall on the bright red carpet, fresh and high-spirited, gazing up at him through a layer of tulle. His slender frame was wrapped in white dress clothes that set off the red beneath his feet. He was like a pearl buried in a red brocade box, radiant and priceless, a precious treasure.

Huo Tingla raised his eyes in surprise. He had never seen Ye Ci wearing a veil, and Ye Ci didn’t say anything about it in his previous life.

He didn’t expect……

Huo Tinglan looked down at Ye Ci with curved lips, and after a few seconds of gazing at each other, he reached out and pulled Ye Ci into his arms. Arching his broad shoulders slightly, he pressed his burning eyes against Ye Ci’s shoulder and remained silent.

“……Don’t, don’t cry.” Ye Ci stroked Huo Tinglan’s back and then, as if infected, he pursed his lips as his eyes reddened.

“Baby.”

“En?”

“I married you.”

“Me, me too.”

He never admitted defeat.

Huo Tinglan smiled indulgently: “En.”

The two simply embraced for a while at the end of the red carpet.

The hall was filled with music and laughter. It was noisy, but gave people an inexplicable feeling of tranquil warmth.

Huo Tinglan straightened up, his eyes as deep as black jade. Ye Ci raised his hands to hold his face, and wiped away the wet marks at the corners of his eyes with his thumbs.

Then Huo Tinglan lifted the veil and leaned over to kiss Ye Ci’s forehead amidst the cheers and applause of all the guests.

The camera froze this moment for eternity.

Wispy gauze like white mist rose and fell again, enveloping the two together, and a series of continuous shots faithfully recorded this process.

In the frame, Huo Tinglan held Ye Ci in his arms. The young man was tall and slender, his lean shoulders hugged by the tall Alpha. He looked happy and content, like a small boat moored in a calm harbor.

From now on, there would be no more wind and rain. There would only be the warm sun.

【The End】

T/N: And that’s it! I hope you all enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed translating it!

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Extra 8: Ye Ci’s Boyfriend Power << Table of Contents

The streets were bustling with activity, and the mouths of the small merchants and peddlers walking around were sweet. When they saw girls, they spoke a few words of flattery and a lot of jewelry, hairpins, and silk handkerchiefs were sold.

“It’s been so busy these days.” Yan Mingting took him back to the mansion and said anxiously, “With so many people, it would be easy for accidents to happen.”

As soon as he said this, a woman’s cry sounded in the distance: “Help, there is a thief!”

Yan Mingting rushed over immediately and saw a maid supporting her young lady. She immediately pointed to the suspicious person in the crowd.

Without saying a word, he squeezed into the crowd and pulled the man to the ground. He patted down his body and took out a purse embroidered with peonies. Fortunately there were officers and soldiers passing by, so he handed the man off to the government and then went back with the purse.

“Is this purse yours?”

“Just so, just so.” The maid happily took it.

When the lady raised her head and saw Yan Mingting’s face clearly, she was stunned for a moment. A blush appeared on her face and she saluted: “Many thanks to gongzi. Daring to ask gongzi’s name and surname, so that I may come to the door and thank him another day.”

“No need, it would be too troublesome.” Yan Mingting left directly.

“Isn’t that General Yan?” The people around said.

The lady asked: “General Yan? General Yan Mingting?”

Yan Mingting turned to look for Zhao Yelan, but couldn’t see him anywhere. He quickly asked the people nearby, but they all denied seeing him. He found another remote place and vigorously checked it for traces. 

In the end, he did find something. He used those signs to follow the trail, and finally stopped at a small farmyard. It was Zhong Yuehong’s home, and there was still smoke coming from the roof.

He walked in curiously and found Zhao Yelan sitting beneath the locust tree in the front courtyard for shade. There was a wooden basin in front of him, and he was peeling the peas in his hands.

“Why did you come here?” 

Zhao Yelan raised his head to glance at him. Without pausing his work, he said: “Have you caught the thief?”

“En, just a petty thief.” Yan Mingting walked up to him and saw that he was very skilled in his movements. He crouched to the side and picked up a handful of peas as well. “You still haven’t answered me, why did you come here all of a sudden?”

“Aiyo, the General is here too.” Mother Zhong emerged from the house, trotted over, and wiped the water on her apron with her hands, saying with a smile, “Just now, Yuehong brought Zhao-daren back, and now Zhao-daren is helping to pick vegetables, how embarrassing. I’ll do the rest, leave it to me.”

Saying this, she brought all the remaining peas into the kitchen, calling Zhong Yuehong, who was kindling the fire, out to entertain the guests.

Zhong Yuehong wiped away her sweat, and when she saw Yan Mingting coming, she explained with some embarrassment: “A-Niang and I were out just now and ran into Zhao-daren. The situation was a bit chaotic at that time, so I took Zhao-daren away first, and A-Niang insisted on inviting Zhao-daren home for dinner……I’m just afraid that the rice noodles at home won’t get to Zhao-daren’s mouth.”

Zhao Yelan usually ate fine things, as they all knew well, but she didn’t want to say this in front of A-Niang and embarrass her. She guessed that Zhao Yelan was of the same mind, as he put up a show of resistance before capitulating.

“General, you came just in time, take him back quickly.” Zhong Yuehong glanced at her busy mother in the kitchen and whispered, “I’ll tell her you were in a hurry.”

Yan Mingting looked at her, and then at the silent Zhao Yelan, and suddenly said with a smile: “Yuehong, is there anyone who treats guests like you? Zhao-daren has finished peeling the peas for you, and he hasn’t even had a chance to swallow his saliva, much less talk, before you open your mouth to drive people away.”

“I don’t mean it that way!” Zhong Yuehong waved her hands again and again. “I’m just afraid that our humble house won’t be able to entertain my lord.”

“Nonsense, he is here for the second time. If he really disliked this place, you would not be able to invite him even if you carried a big sedan chair, ah. He even peeled the peas for you, and he never does that in the mansion. Can’t you let him taste the fruits of his labor? It’s a hot day and you still haven’t gotten him some water to drink!” Yan Mingting scolded her severely and then covertly winked.

Zhong Yuehong belatedly understood his hint, and nodded hastily: “I, I’m going to serve the water right now, wait for me, my lord!”

“This girl is really inexperienced.” While pondering this, Yan Mingting looked up to observe Zhao Yelan’s expression, only to find that the other party was looking at him with a half-smile. “In hindsight, I must educate her well.”

Zhao Yelan took the opportunity to push his head down and said: “You’re just so clever, huh?”

Yan Mingting laughed, crouching down to grab his robe. Zhao Yelan quickly picked it up.

When Zhong Yuehong came out with a cup of water, she saw the two of them talking, laughing, and arguing under the locust tree and was stunned for a moment at the door, unable to move her feet.

The sunlight fell on the treetops, shining down to illuminate their profiles so fair and warm. Who would have thought that the notorious Zhao Yelan would bend the corners of his mouth in a smile in a humble courtyard, and that their heroic General Yan would be as childish as a young boy.

She put the cup under the eaves without bothering them and went into the kitchen to continue building the fire, but there was an unwitting smile on her face. “A-Niang, tell me, what is love like?”

Mother Zhong looked at her ecstatically. “Girl, do you have a man of your dreams?”

“No, I’m just curious,” Zhong Yuehong said with her hands on her face.

“It doesn’t matter, when you meet that person, you will definitely know.” Mother Zhong was very pleased. It seemed that her daughter was getting older and finally becoming enlightened. She wanted to see the girl’s love grow. “Have you ever thought about who you want to marry in the future?”

Zhong Yuehong thought for a while and then said decisively: “In any case, they cannot be a fickle and disloyal person!”

Mother Zhong knew that she was bearing a grudge against her father again and sighed: “It is common for wealthy families to have three wives and four concubines……”

“Who wants to marry those fellows with numerous concubines? I, Zhong Yuehong, won’t share with others. Whoever wants to do so may do so, but I will not. Moreover, who says that a wealthy family must have three wives and four concubines? The General married a man, and did he take concubines? In the end, those people are just greedy!” Zhong Yuehong said indignantly.

Mother Zhong smiled helplessly and comforted her: “All right, then A-Niang will go to the temple to pay respects tomorrow, and pray for our Yuehong to quickly meet a peerless hero who will love only her.”

Her words caused Zhong Yuehong to smile in amusement.

Lunch was soon ready. There was stewed chicken soup and some home-cooked dishes with fried pork and vegetables, as well as hot pea rice.

“Auntie has worked hard.” Yan Mingting scooped up a large bowl of rice and ate it up happily.

“The craftsmanship of the food the two lords are about to eat is not very good, ba.” Mother Zhong smiled shyly.

“Well, I love to eat these home cooked dishes, they’re delicious.” As Yan Mingting spoke, he subtly nudged Zhao Yelan with his knee.

Zhao Yelan cast him a look and then met Mother Zhong’s honest and earnest gaze, saying: “En……me too.”

Yan Mingting and Zhong Yuehong lowered their heads to suppress their smiles at the same time.

Zhao Yelan: “……”

After the meal, Mother Zhong still had to go out to the stall, so Zhong Yuehong was left to look after the house and sent them off together.

“Auntie, is there something you want to say?” Seeing her constantly rubbing her sleeves, Yan Mingting hesitated to speak, saying, “We are not outsiders, so if there is anything you want to say, just say it.”

“Ai……” Mother Zhong glanced back, and when they were a distance from the house, she said: “General, my lord, there is one thing I would like to ask the two of you for your help with. Your vision is wider than mine, and you should know many young talents, right?”

Yan Mingting immediately guessed what she meant: “You want to choose a son-in-law for Yuehong?”

“How could I dare choose a son-in-law, ah, who am I?” Mother Zhong waved her hands with a smile, sighing, “I’m just afraid that she will be cheated. If you have someone who you think is suitable for her, can you help make a match for her?”

“Certainly, but is that her intention?”

“I look at her and it is as if she has been enlightened.”

“That’s no problem, if I see a suitable one, I will look into it for you. As for success or failure, it still depends on her wishes.”

“Thank you, General, I really don’t know how to thank you. I will kowtow to you here.” Mother Zhong tried to kneel down in tears of gratitude, but was stopped by the two simultaneously.

“Don’t be so polite, Yuehong is also someone who has been at my side for many years. I have regarded her as my own sister, and we have all been concerned about her marriage. You can rest assured, ba.” Yan Mingting coaxed her away by talking nonsense.

When the two returned to the mansion, Yan Mingting actually discussed the young talents in the capital with Zhao Yelan: “Tell me, what kind of talent is suitable for Yuehong? In the end, should it be a literary talent or a martial arts master?”

“How can it be so cut-and-dry?” Zhao Yelan took out a chess book. “This is not the same as playing chess, with regulations and methods. She must find a good match herself.”

“It’s not like we have the full power to make decisions for her, we can just help her pay attention.” Yan Mingting sat across from him and watched him begin to play chess, his gaze involuntarily fixed on his nimble hands.

The sounds of the pieces moving were crisp and unhurried, out of tune with his heartbeat.

“Then do you have someone you are optimistic about?” Zhao Yelan fiddled with the chess pieces while flipping through the chess book, but didn’t look at him.

“In my opinion, Kan Quan is a good candidate. Unfortunately, he already has a family, ai.”

Kan Quan loved his wife like his life, which was well-known in court. Even though he was now favored by the Emperor and had seen quite a few beautiful flowers, he had never considered taking concubines, so Yan Mingting had a good impression of him.

Zhao Yelan snapped his fingers and said with amusement: “Is he a good person who doesn’t take concubines?”

“That is only natural. At least he doesn’t have so many tricks, look how upright he is.”

Zhao Yelan was touching his black mole, rubbing it with his finger for a moment as he propped up his jaw, the corner of his mouth raised in a subtle arc: “Why do I feel that there is a deeper implication in your words?”

“Cough!” Yan Mingting cleared his throat, straightened his robes, and said in an upright manner, “Yes, men like us are really rare in the world, ah! Kan Quan’s wife understands this very well, and she worships him and shows every care towards him. This is why he is perfectly happy to be good to her alone, ah.”

Zhao Yelan smiled and said: “It sounds to me like you want to find a girl like his wife, ah.”

“Huh?” Yan Mingting clicked his tongue in amazement. “What kind of ears do you have, you don’t understand at all.”

“Heh, get out of here and don’t disturb my chess game!” Zhao Yelan drove him out, closed the door, and returned to the table to set up the game, but found that one piece was missing.

He bent down and looked around, and suddenly heard someone knocking on the window. He looked up and saw Yan Mingting leaning against the window, playing with the white chess piece in his hand and smiling at him provocatively.

“Yan Mingting!” Zhao Yelan picked up his crossbow and chased after him angrily, shooting all over the yard. The servants gathered tremblingly in the corridor to watch the scene of their General jumping up and down like a monkey.

The next day, Zhao Yelan finished his breakfast and was about to go to the Imperial Academy. Unexpectedly, as soon as he went out, he saw a woman standing outside the gate with her maid. She was accidentally bumped into by someone, sending the things in her arms scattering to the ground. The maid scolded the fleeing man a few times and then went to pick up the things on the ground.

One of the boxes happened to fall by Zhao Yelan’s feet. He bent down to pick it up, and almost touched another hand.

The young lady abruptly withdrew her hand, and when she looked up, she was taken aback again!

Zhao Yelan handed her the things and prepared to wordlessly get on the sedan chair, but was stopped by the young lady: “Many thanks to gongzi. Daring to ask gongzi’s name and surname, so that I may come to the door and thank him another day.”

Zhao Yelan looked at her doubtfully, then turned to look at the gate of the General’s Mansion. It was so obvious, could it be that she was blind?

He didn’t waste any more time and directly got onto the sedan chair, setting out for the Imperial Academy.

“Miss, what is wrong with you?” The maid patted the frozen person. “Shall we go thank the General?”

“He’s so callous, oh!” The miss came back to her senses, eyes shining. “As expected of the capital. Why are there so many beautiful men, each more handsome than the other, who like to ignore people? At first glance, they are better than those other common people, ah, I love the capital!”

“Miss, he came out of the General’s Mansion, he is not a common person at first glance,” the maid reminded.

“Uncommon is just right, this is worthy of me.” 

“However, the General’s Mansion already has two masters. The one just now might be Zhao Yelan, the one who married the General.”

“Right……”

“Then should we still give thanks? These things are broken.”

“Yes, of course we will thank them! Let’s go back and prepare these gifts again.” The miss’s eyes gleamed, jumping for joy as she made up her mind. “It’s good to feast your eyes, ah, seeing two beautiful men at once, how can there be such a blessing!”

The maid: “……”

When Zhao Yelan returned to the mansion in the evening, he received a report that the group of lieutenant generals had come to the mansion again. He nodded and went back to the room to change out of his official uniform.

“My lord, today’s things are very fresh,” Xiao Gao whispered, coming in with a basket.

Zhao Yelan paused, took the basket, and gave him a meaningful look. Xiao Gao immediately went to close the doors and windows.

Zhao Yelan took out the letter and looked it over carefully. His brow furrowed in an instant and never relaxed.

After burning the note, he strode to the armory. From a long distance away, he could hear that group of people laughing and chatting nonstop, as well as the sound of fighting.

“Zhao-daren, why are you here?” He Cuizhang was practicing his new boxing techniques, and when he saw him at the door, he put away his fists with a smile.

Zhao Yelan looked directly at Yan Mingting: “I have something to tell you.”

“What’s the matter?” Yan Mingting smiled as he walked towards him.

“Maybe he wants to speak privately.” One of them laughed and pushed Yan Mingting forward. “The General is not coming back soon.”

“Don’t mess around,” Yan Mingting pretended to reprimand, but his face was full of joy. Upon approach, he saw that there was something odd about his expression and asked doubtfully, “What is it? Is something wrong?”

Zhao Yelan inadvertently glanced at Zhong Yuehong, and she stepped forward in confusion: “Is it about me?”

Seeing that he did not deny it, Yan Mingting was about to take him back to his room when Zhong Yuehong said: “My lord, you might as well just say it straight. These are not outsiders.”

“Yeah, if something has happened, we can help,” He Cuizhang said, and the others also gathered around, waiting for him to speak.

Zhao Yelan took a deep breath and said: “Zhong Yuehong, she……may be called into the harem.”

Hearing this, everyone was astonished for a moment, and then stared at Zhong Yuehong.

Zhong Yuehong’s face turned pale, and the nine-tailed whip in her hand fell weakly to the ground.

---

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Chapter Thirty-Six <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Thirty-Eight

Xia Xingchi finally realized that something was wrong and stiffly turned his head to look at Li Chengyuan. Then there was a loud “Boom!” in his brain.

The sound of his entire being cracking.

What had he just said?

He said he loved his fiance to the point of death, thinking about him day and night — the person himself was standing right in front of him, but he didn’t recognize him!

Handsome, pale, and weak, with an odd moody temper……he was truly blind. Wasn’t this the terrifying crazy villain right in front of him?!

If Xia Xingchi had a tail, his fur would definitely be puffed up in alarm. Right then, his only thought was to find a hole to hide in at the speed of light.

But before he could escape, a deep, threatening voice as cold as an air-conditioner sounded next to his ear: “Do you think that if you leave now, you will step on your fiance’s ‘minefield?’”

The last two words were slightly accentuated, clearly imitating what he had said.

Xia Xingchi realized that in hindsight, social death was a small matter, but treading on lightning was a fatal one.

In front of the ruthless and merciless villain, he had used his life to perform a personal disco dance on top of his minefield.

Li Chengyuan had probably concealed his fierce aura before, but now that the truth was revealed, even movements like sitting down with a blank face and holding a cup of tea were full of a strong sense of oppression.

His slender fingers tapped lightly on the table a few times, and Xia Xingchi’s heart suddenly jumped.

He racked his brains to remember when he might have offended God. He was so unlucky —

After just being struck by lighting, once he was reborn, he still wasn’t far from death: first, he fell into the villain’s bathtub, then he forced him into the bathroom to stuff him with food, and finally he had a glib tongue and talked nonsense in front of him.

The guests gathered together, whether on purpose or by chance. The reason there had been almost no one on the first floor during the chase just now was because Li Chengyuan entered the venue and went up to the second floor, and everyone followed.

Some came to seek cooperation with Li Chengyuan, some came to pretend to be familiar with him, and others simply came to watch Young Master Xia, who “made a lucky marriage by chance.”

There were different opinions in these circles regarding the matter of this marriage. The most common one was “Mr. Li is here to withdraw the engagement today.”

After all, there was no one who didn’t know that he was indifferent and ruthless, and that he took the initiative to propose marriage was less reliable than the sun rising from the north.

Xia Xingchi took a deep breath and silently told himself that as long as he wasn’t awkward, others wouldn’t be awkward.

The epic social death and the onlooking crowd did not keep him from quickly jumping into the play to perform.

They saw the piety and sincerity on his face: “Mr. Li, do you feel that this is our fate?”

— The evil fate of being struck by lightning.

Li Chengyuan sipped his tea. The corners of his lips seemed to twitch slightly, and he said with indifference: “Since it is ‘to the point of death and having no appetite,’ there will always be some response.”

Xia Xingchi: ……

Sir, can you speak well and cease repeatedly whipping the corpse?

Although it could be clearly seen from this angle, in fact, Li Chengyan hadn’t smiled at all. Instead, his eyes were full of coldness, and it was just a mechanical movement of the corners of his mouth.

Everyone seemed to have discovered some big news. Faced with his obvious and clumsy flattery, Mr. Li actually acknowledged it with a smile?

Xia Pingjian on the side was especially happy. He thought the cheap son who came to him halfway was a waste, and didn’t expect Mr. Li to like him so much.

He immediately began to think about how to use his son to make more money.

After all, Xia Xingchi had a weak character and was easy to control, just a coward who didn’t dare say anything when he was slapped around casually.

At this moment, there was a sudden commotion from behind the crowd.

The atmosphere that had finally eased a little was then brutally broken —

A dark, burly, iron tower of a man could be seen rampaging like a cannonball through the crowd!

This person was wearing an inappropriate vest and shorts, his exaggerated muscles bursting out as his eyes wandered among the crowd, as if he was searching for something.

On his face was a sad little daughter-in-law expression that didn’t match his rough appearance.

Xi Xingchi was taken aback for a moment. How could there be random people breaking into this kind of place?

Then he couldn’t wait to give him a thumbs up. No matter what was going on, he thanked this buddy for saving him from an embarrassing death.

He stretched out his head to take a curious look, but Li Chengyuan calmly raised a finger. The bodyguards understood immediately and stood in front of Xia Xingchi to block him.

At the same time, it also blocked his probing eyes, and he could only hear the wailing accusations of the big muscled dude: “Are you engaged now? How could you do this to me, ah! I can’t live a day without you!”

Xia Xingchi’s melon-eating^[1] antenna instantly sprung up. According to his experience reading countless dog blood stories, this person’s goal was probably — Li Chengyuan!

Unexpectedly, the crazy villain had such strong tastes? His love life was glossed over in the original text, and it only said that he was ruthless and lonely until his death.

As a big boss who surpassed the protagonist in popularity, if this was written, it would really break the hearts of his countless fans.

Xia Xingchi didn’t think it would be a big deal to fan the flames a little as he watched the excitement, and began to think, as the “fiance” who wanted to rob someone of what they cherished, what kind of script should he use?

He was very excited to participate in the relationship battlefield for the first time in his life.

Against expectations, the strong man took out a small handkerchief at this time and wiped the snot and tears with a dainty gesture: 

“How many years have we been together, you scumbag!”

“How can you get engaged to someone else for the sake of money?!”

The picture was so eye-catching, exaggerated, and strange, that the surrounding audience couldn’t bear to look directly at it, and some inadvertently laughed out loud.

Xia Xingchi wanted to laugh too, but after a second of pause, he suddenly realized something was wrong — wait? Who are you saying wants money?

He was dumb as a wooden chicken for a moment and just listened to the other party continue to express deep feelings. Then the person shouted on the spot: “Xiao Chi! I know you must have been forced, I’ll take you away!”

Xia Xingchi: ?

A small head was immediately filled with big question marks. He was happily watching the show, but who would have thought that the clown was actually himself?

The reason why he excluded himself in the first place was because the original owner was not only cannon fodder with no love life, but he was also a straight man. No matter what, he never would have had an ex-boyfriend.

“Hey, buddy? Have you got the wrong person? ‘I’ don’t —”

Don’t like men……?

Before he finished speaking, Xia Xingchi abruptly shut up. This was a trap!

Whoever hired this voluptuous, flamboyant hunk didn’t intend to frame him in a bad light, but to anger the straight male original owner who was being forced to marry.

Let the already unstable “Xia Xingchi” be homophobic and angrily yell in public, “I don’t like men at all,” or “gays are disgusting.”

“I don’t know you!” Xia Xingchi quickly changed his words.

He cleared his throat and said aloud: “It’s useless even if you have a crush on me! Because I only have Mr. Li in my heart, and I love him! Just give up!”

After that voice sounded, the surroundings went silent.

Xia Xingchi glanced in fear from the corner of his eye and saw that amidst the sudden farce, Li Chengyuan was the only one sitting to the side calmly.

He continued to drink his tea sedately and looked over with a cool expression after hearing Xia Xingchi’s speech.

Xia Xingchi felt terrified after seeing it. For a moment, he couldn’t discern the big boss’s thoughts or mood, but a subtle intuition flashed through his mind —

Li Chengyuan was eating this up.

So he bit the bullet and pretended to be calm, continuing in a sonorous voice: “I’m not going, and I don’t agree to call off the engagement. Because for the rest of my life, it must be Mr. Li!”

“It was love at first sight! Whether rich or poor, in sickness or in health, nothing can stop me from being with Mr. Li except death!”

“I’m willing!”

As a master of many trades, Xia Xingchi took the classic lines of a wedding master of ceremonies and slightly modified them. Not only did he recite them with deep feeling, but he also played multiple roles himself.

He automatically substituted the word “Money” for “Mr. Li” when speaking, and the feelings immediately came from the heart, more sincere than actual gold, comparable to an Oscar-winning actor.

Thanks to Xia Yu, rumors had begun to spread long before the engagement. Everyone thought they were about to watch an escape-the-marriage drama, but were instead dumbstruck by Xia Xingchi’s staunch and heartfelt attitude.

The brawny man was even more confused. He even forgot to keep making dainty gestures, stumbling in his act and unable to find the rest of his words.

He had never seen such a thick-skinned person who did not act in accordance with the routine.

It was said that this Xia Xingchi was cowardly, fragile, and had low self-esteem. But if this was low self-esteem, then what was self-confidence?

Xia Xingchi had guessed correctly, the crazy man’s preferences were truly strange, and he was very pleased by this comedy performance.

Li Chengyuan smiled as if he was finally satisfied, and raised his hand to signal the bodyguards to take the man down and end this farce.

The “wall of nuts”^[2] bodyguards in front of him finally moved, and Xia Xingchi breathed a sigh of relief at last.

Although he had thick skin, he had no less of a sense of shame than others. His face was red when he said these words, but fortunately others only thought he was shy after confessing his affection.

The things that originally should have ensured victory today, whether the covert incitement, the blatant chasing, or even having to stage this farce, all of them failed without exception?!

— Unacceptable, he must not let them take away his opportunity to marry Mr. Li. It should be him!

Xia Yu gritted his teeth and made gestures imperceptibly amidst the crowd that meant “price increase” and “must be completed.”

As a result, the previous situation was reversed. The strongman had thought that the mission was over and was ready to be subdued without a fight, but when he received the signal, for money’s sake, he promptly turned around and began to wrestle with the bodyguards!

The scene became chaotic in an instant, and even Xia Xingchi was taken aback, thinking that rich people really knew how to play. Had this engagement banquet changed from a bitter drama to a martial arts action movie?

Xia Yu immediately seized the opportunity and went straight into battle.

He rushed forward to hold Xia Xingchi’s hand, still innocent, sincere, and anxious: “Xingchi-ge, we need to work this out, don’t let them fight over you anymore! Even if our family doesn’t want to lose face, you can’t compromise Mr. Li’s face either, ah!”

He was reasonable and considerate of Mr. Li and the overall situation, unlike himself, who only provoked rotten love battles and didn’t step forward to stop them.

Xia Xingchi thought to himself that although these words were beautiful, they were all deceptive and empty. The person was like a teapot letting out steam.

Tilting his head to estimate the thickness of the teapot spirit’s skin, he hard Xia Yu speak again: “Xingchi-ge, even if you think Mr. Li is not in good health, he has care workers and nurses taking care of him after all, so you definitely don’t need to look after him! Stop making trouble, be sensible and get married.”

The volume of this sentence was so low that others may not hear it, but it just so happened that Li Chengyuan could “accidentally” overhear it from such a distance.

The acting was so realistic that those who didn’t know otherwise would really think that the original owner was disgusted with his fiance’s poor health at home day after day.

This statement was consistent with Xia Yu’s previously released rumors: It was said that not only did Xia Xingchi not want to get engaged, but he also prattled on self-importantly, saying that he would not for a moment be a nanny and would never take care of a troublesome, sickly, short-lived seedling.

As soon as those words were spoken, Xia Xingchi’s expression abruptly changed, and his hair stood on end.

— Where is the teapot in front of me? This is essentially a high explosive suicide-style attack!

Xia Yu had clearly already revealed his intentions in the end, and dared to say anything just to cheat him.

He couldn’t accurately estimate the lethality of these words at all, since he didn’t know enough about Li Chengyuan.

“I dislike that he is unhealthy.” This was the crazy villain’s inverse scale, and whoever touched it would be finished.

Xia Xingchi immediately shuddered, and the bloody and terrifying plot in the later part of the novel surfaced involuntarily in his mind.

Just as he was thinking, a cold gaze fell upon him. Li Chengyuan turned his head slowly and looked over with a blank expression on his face, the whole scene like the terrifying moment in a horror movie when a ghost twists its head around backwards.

Xia Xingchi: ! ?

Boss, ah, we have to be reasonable, I didn’t say this, so why are you staring at me!

As a man of action, Xia Xingchi had always responded very quickly. He didn’t have much time to think, so he had no choice but to quickly choose the best plan to belatedly salvage the situation.

Behold, he performed a beautiful and skillful standard side kick on the spot. Caught off guard, Xia Yu, the criminal ringleader, was kicked hard to the ground!

In the wake of Xia Yu’s screams, the martial arts scene over there ended with the bodyguards pinning the strongman to the ground.

Yet more twists and turns were added to the story, and everyone was shocked to see the new sensation of the real and fake young masters fighting in public, thinking to themselves, what sort of lively day is this where hundreds of melons are blooming?^[3]

The most shocking person was Xia Xingchi himself. No matter what, they never thought that someone of Xia Xingchi’s weak and cowardly character would dare to do something so straightforwardly and without hesitation.

This waste was obviously brighter when light shone upon him and seemed like a good person, moving people to tears with his compassionate and willful courtship……had he lost his mind?

Surprisingly, this was not enough, and Xia Xingchi took two steps forward under everyone’s watchful eyes, then boldly and confidently sat on Li Chengyuan’s lap!

---

[1] Eating melons means to watch the drama from the sidelines. Picture him sitting there casually munching on popcorn and enjoying the show. ⮐

[2] The “wall of nuts” is a defensive plant in the game “Plants vs Zombies,” and can block the zombies so that the plants have more time to attack. ⮐

[3] This likely is a pun on the idiom “a hundred flowers bloom,” which refers to free expression of the arts. In this case, a hundred melons blooming would mean lots of good entertainment to watch from the sidelines. ⮐

---

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Chapter Two << Table of Contents >> Chapter Four

Embarrassing things always got more embarrassing the more you recalled them. Xia Xingchi’s toes curled so much that he almost grabbed the floor with them. Let alone falling into the other party’s arms, it should be said that the entire night was really too ridiculous and crazy.

He had thought that the world was so big that, as cannon fodder, he would never meet the handsome and wealthy passer-by NPC again, but unexpectedly, he met the enemy on a narrow road.

Why the hell did his unlucky self always open the door for bad fortune? Bad luck had come home again.

“Why were you running?” Li Chengyuan just looked at Xia Xingchi expressionlessly.

The atmosphere froze for a moment. Xia Xingchi had no choice but to answer awkwardly: “I was exercising. Life lies in movement!”^[1]

Saying this, he moved back a few steps, trying to maintain his distance from this intimidating beauty. At the same time, he faintly heard the voices of those pampered rich boys growing nearer: 

“Fuck! Did this kid take the wrong medicine today?!”

“Where did he go? I have to beat him up and let him know why the flowers are so red!”^[2]

“It’s not enough, look at this bottle of wine. When I find him, I’ll pour the wine on his head first and then smash his head with the bottle! I’ll kill him!”

— Outrageous, the current rich second generation was really cruel. If they had a disagreement, they would crack open somebody’s head.

Xia Xingchi realized that his choice of hiding place was rather unfortunate, as those people happened to be coming to wash the red wine off their faces.

Of the thirty-six stratagems,^[3] running away was the best policy. But now he would run into them if he went out, so he decided to follow the original plan and find a cubicle, lock the door, and hide.

As a result, just as he was about to do so, the gloomy and frightening beauty staggered a step with a paling face, cold sweat dripping from his forehead.

“Ah? What’s wrong with you!” Xia Xingchi was taken aback. Seeing that he had nearly passed out, he quickly reached out to assist him. Could it be because he had bumped his head?

His voice as he said this was a bit loud, and as a consequence, it was heard by the bastards outside and their steps suddenly accelerated! They were running wildly toward him!

Xia Xingchi couldn’t leave the person he had injured alone, so he had no choice but to grab the man who was on the verge of collapse and forcefully drag him at lightning speed into a bathroom stall to hide together.

As soon as the door closed, he heard the group of second-generation ancestors talking with foul mouths:

“Where is he? Wasn’t that obviously his voice?”

“Yeah, that idiot must be inside! Let’s wash our faces first, and then find him after.”

The bathroom stall was a bit narrow, and the two had to stand quite close to each other.

Xia Xingchi saw that the other party’s face and lips were terribly pale. He could barely stand, but was so concerned with cleanliness that he didn’t want to touch his surroundings, so Xia Xingchi had to hold him with both hands and try to help him stay upright.

But the other was disgusted and pushed him away a little irritably.

It stood to reason that although the collision just now was quite hard, it shouldn’t have caused a concussion. It didn’t seem like a blackmail attempt, and this person looked like the extremely wealthy sort.

“Are you dizzy? Is there any discomfort?” Xia Xingchi asked in a whisper that was covered up by the sound of water outside.

Hitting one’s head was not a trivial matter, and if he killed someone, his life was over.

Seeing that he had been silent for a long time, but his face was getting worse and worse, Xia Xingchi had no choice but to take out his cell phone and dial while asking quietly: “Can I call 120 for you?”^[4]

Li Chengyuan pursed his lips. After the ringing in his ears subsided, he could hear what Xia Xingchi was saying.

Naturally, he disagreed. He took his phone with a frown and hung it up, saying shortly at last: “It’s just low blood sugar.”

“……Ah?”

Of course it was a good thing if it wasn’t due to hitting his head, but how could such a fine person suddenly have hypoglycemia?

Doubtfully, Xia Xingchi swiftly took out a large handful of free chocolates that he had recently collected and peeled a piece, holding it to his mouth.

Li Chengyuan turned his head away, even more disgusted.

Eating things in the toilet. Those hands were still fumbling just now, but he could figure it out.

This was not clear to Xi Xinchi, so he thought, could it be that the beauty was too good-looking and was afraid of being drugged and kidnapped?

In all honesty, who could pack up and take away a grown man who was nearly 1.9 meters tall!

“It’s really not poisoned, look at me.” Xia Xingchi broke off half the chocolate and put it in his mouth, then handed over the other half. “Ah — open up!”

Seeing that this man’s eyes were out of focus, he guessed that it wouldn’t be long before he lost consciousness, but yet he still refused to cooperate and open his mouth.

In desperation, Xia Xingchi simply forcibly pushed him against the door, and then ruthlessly stuffed the chocolate into his mouth!

Li Chengyuan was so dizzy that he didn’t react for a moment. When he regained his senses, the sweet thing had already melted on the tip of his tongue.

Li Chengyuan: “……”

He took a deep breath. This was the first time he had been force-fed in a public bathroom.

If the person in front of him was someone else, he would twist his head off.

His expression was obviously a little angry. When the sound of water outside the door stopped, Xia Xingchi quickly covered his mouth to keep him from making a sound.

The handful of people outside began to search:

“Let’s kick open all the doors one by one. We’ll definitely find him.”

“Fuck off, what the hell will you do if you kick open the door on your dad? We’ll all be scolded!”

“I have a way! I remember he was wearing a pair of white leather shoes and a white suit today. Let’s bend down and look at each of them?”

Xia Xingchi looked down. His shoes were black and white, which was a little eye-catching.

These people were like glue that couldn’t be shaken off.

Most likely, this was on Xia Yu’s orders. Whether it was beating him violently or trapping him here to make it look like he was escaping the marriage, the engagement banquet would be disrupted either way.

Only in this way could Xia Yu rise to the top.

Xia Xingchi didn’t know what had gone wrong. There was a slight change in the original plot: 

Originally, the engagement banquet was not held so early, and Li Chengyuan came for the purpose of annulling the engagement, while the original owner had a mental breakdown and fled the marriage on the spot.

In short, neither of them wanted to get married. Whether sooner or later, the result should be the dissolution of the engagement.

But two days ago, that crazy villain Li Chengyuan suddenly brought up this marriage contract with the Xia family, specifying that he wanted to marry immediately.

This was simply fantastic. 

Not to mention the financial gains, countless people were willing to pay money just for a look at his face. In other words, Li Chengyuan’s social status and the solid strength of the Li Group were no longer something that the Xia family or anyone else could compete with.

Therefore, Xia Yu wished that he was the one who got engaged, but it was a pity that Xia Xingchi was the first young master by blood, and according to tradition, it could only be him.

The sound of footsteps outside the door continued, accompanied by cursing as they bent over to look at people’s shoes without shame.

Li Chengyuan’s hypoglycemia symptoms were alleviated, and he was about to expressionlessly open the door, but Xia Xingchi quickly grabbed him and whispered: “Don’t go out! If I’m exposed, they’ll really smash my skull!”

This was the truth.

This group of socialites were full of swagger, but the original owner was treated worse than a dog, unloved by his parents and frequently beaten. In the original text, his head was smashed in.

Xia Xingchi bent down quickly and began to untie his shoelaces and take off his shoes as the sound of footsteps outside the door got closer and closer —

At that very moment, his feet suddenly left the ground and his whole body was suspended in the air!

To his surprise, he was lifted up horizontally without warning.

At the same time, a shadow happened to be cast outside the door as someone looked at the shoes in this stall.

This “head-smashing hide-and-seek” was too stimulating. Xia Xingchi instinctively held his breath, staring nervously at the shadow.

He had lost his parents when he was young, and no one had hugged him in his memory. This was the first time in his life.

Inexperienced, he was subconsciously afraid of being dropped, and hugged Li Chengyuan’s neck tightly with a furiously beating heart, not daring to let go. The crisp, cool fragrance of his body lingered in his nose, like a reassuring and reliable haven in a storm.

After a long, long time, the shadow in front of the door finally left.

Xia Xingchi breathed a sigh of relief.

He hurriedly struggled to stand up on his own, and was about to pat Li Chengyuan’s shoulder to express his gratitude —

The black shadow outside the door reappeared again in a surprise attack!

“Fuck! Sure enough, he’s here! You really thought you could fool us, ah.”

“Why are there two people in there? Could it be that he actually has a lover? 

“What? Did we just happen to catch them in the act? We’re just in time to beat this pair of dogs to death!”

As they spoke, the flimsy door was kicked hard from the outside!

Immediately following the second and third kicks, the fragile door lock made a terrible sound, as if it was about to crack.

Xia Xingchi hurriedly pulled Li Chengyuan back. In his previous life, he had been beaten more than once or twice in the bathroom, and knew that the door would be kicked open within a few blows.

Although his heart beat like a drum, his mind was still very clear and rational. He turned to Li Chengyuan and planned quickly: “Sir, I’m sorry to trouble you, ah. When this group of idiots kicks open the door in a moment, you run away. If I hold them back, they probably won’t chase after you.”

Xia Xingchi thought to himself that the man in front of him was so young and looked so amazing, yet he wasn’t known within the rich second generation. It was likely because his wealth was slightly inferior. If this group of bullying socialites beat them together, it was over for him.

The man was noncommittal and just looked at Xia Xingchi calmly, as if he didn’t care about the commotion outside the door.

While the two were conversing, the door lock was overwhelmed and finally collapsed, flying out with a rupturing sound!

The noise made Xia Xingchi flinch. At this moment, he didn’t pay attention to anything else, quickly pushing him as he said loudly: “Run!”

Unexpectedly, the man stood there motionless.

Xia Xingchi: “……?”

“Aren’t you very arrogant?” One person was holding the wine bottle as he shouted angrily, “Weren’t you very tough when you poured wine on laozi’s head just now?”

“Is it fucking great to be engaged to Mr. Li? Do you think he cares if you live or die? Or are you happy to be a little white-faced mistress?”

Xia Xingchi didn’t speak. Obviously, he didn’t hope that the villainous fiance whom he had never seen before would suddenly appear and save him.

He clenched his fists silently, prepared to fight one against five.

It was an old tradition within this group of socialites to finish the harsh words first before moving on to beating people. It stood to reason that this was a good time for the others to speak up, but at this moment, the scene was strangely frozen.

Not only did no one make a sound, but the person who had spoken was smacked hard on the back.

Who would have thought that this angry, high-spirited person would not take the hint, but thought the smack was a signal to leap into action!

He hefted the wine bottle, aimed straight at Xia Xingchi’s head, and chopped down viciously!

The bottle seemed to split the air. Xia Xingchi was very experienced and did not dodge it, but directly raised his hands, ready to catch the opponent’s wrist and give him the most ruthless over-the-shoulder throw.

Unexpectedly, someone moved faster than him —

The next second, the person and the wine bottle simultaneously flew in a rainbow-like parabola and hit the ground hard!

The entire action was understated but extremely ruthless.

Xia Xingchi was shocked, and turned to stare at Li Chengyuan. 

For god’s sake, the sick and weak beauty who was as untouchable as a fragile object was so skillful?

“Fuck!” The person who was thrown to the ground howled and cursed. “Fuck your mother……what are you doing standing there stupidly! Go, ah! Kill this idiot!”

The handful of people still looked at each other in blank dismay.

They came to a unanimous answer as they looked at each other, and were so immersed in horror that they even forgot how to speak.

Li Chengyuan seldom showed his face, so juniors like them naturally had no opportunity to meet him.

But the elders were afraid that this group of second-generation ancestors would start trouble, so they either described him or took out photos for them to look at carefully. In this way, they wouldn’t offend this untouchable person just because they didn’t know who he was.

After Li Chengyuan came to power, it took only one year for the Li Group to climb to the pinnacle of wealth and power. Its assets were incomparably abundant and strong, and there was no one who didn’t fear it.

Even if their fathers arrived, these several people would have to hurry and apologize.

The most adaptable of them reacted the fastest, and actually slapped himself loudly on the spot!

“My dog mouth can’t spit out ivory!^[5] It was me who failed to recognize an important person. You should take me as garbage! I’m just a fart!”

Xia Xingchi, who had rolled up his sleeves and was prepared to fight: ?

The scene was comical and amusing all of a sudden. The speed of this dramatic change of attitude was comparable to the speed of turning pages in quantum fluctuation speed reading. ^[6]

He turned to look at Li Chengyuan in doubt. From the reactions of these people, could it be that he really was the young master of a prominent wealthy family?

Good god, he had grabbed him and hid in a toilet stall with him, and even forced him to eat chocolate in such an environment!

But for now, all sorts of doubts were put aside for the time being. Now that the situation had reversed, Xia Xingchi was quite adept at things such as the fox pretending to be a tiger.

He promptly grinned and rubbed salt in the wound, asking the rest of them: “Young masters, do you need my help slapping yourselves?”

Those people looked at each other. They had offended one far superior in power, and when they went back, their respective fathers would beat them to death. 

Seeing Li Chengyuan’s cold and indifferent eyes sweep over them like a deep pool in an ancient well, their hearts shivered. Gritting their teeth unwillingly, they slapped themselves.

For a while, the whole bathroom was full of “pa pa” sounds. The scene was extremely ridiculous, and Xia Xingchi held in his laughter with great difficulty as he followed the unknown handsome young master.

Before leaving, he didn’t forget to kick the idiot on the ground who had just tried to hit him with a wine bottle. The person was still ignorant as he cursed and yelled, and one of his companions “helped” by covering his mouth and slapping him a few times.

Xia Xingchi couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

– – –

“Sir, do you have a famous reputation, ah?” Xia Xingchi tilted his head.

Li Chengyuan just walked forward with no expression on his face. He seemed to be in a bad mood, and didn’t talk to him.

Xia Xingchi was not annoyed at being ignored, and saw that there was a self-service barbecue on the second floor, which smelled and looked expensive.

It happened to be meal time, and he was hungry. Xia Xingchi immediately said: “Never mind, anyway, thanks for your help! If we’re lucky enough, we’ll meet again!”

Just as he was about to leave, the man finally said: “Have you gone to see your fiance?”

Xia Xingchi was taken aback. Most of the people who came to the engagement banquet didn’t know him, this country boy who had switched to a position he wasn’t trained for, and only thought he was a passer-by.

Perhaps he overheard when the idiot called him by name and insulted him. Since he had been recognized, Xia Xingchi could only answer in embarrassment: “My fiance……of course I saw him!”

There was no other way. It was said that the original owner did meet Li Chengyuan, so if he said he had never seen him, he would absolutely blow his cover.

When Li Chengyuan heard these words, he just gave him an inexplicable look.

Xia Xingchi immediately and irrationally felt a sense of oppression. The other party clearly hadn’t done anything and showed no expression, but he seemed to be condescendingly examining him.

The two were at a stalemate for a moment, and at last the man said calmly: “So what is he like?”

This eased the atmosphere just right, and Xia Xingchi heaved a sigh of relief. It was clear to him that this was probably another person who was curious about Li Chengyuan.

After all, even though it was rumored that Li Chengyuan had a cruel personality and used methods that made people’s hair stand on end, everyone was still eagerly looking forward to being able to climb up and get close to this big boss.

Xia Xingchi could only tilt his head and think about the contents of the book, pretending to know his fiance very well: “He’s — super good-looking! In the whole book, ahem……he’s the height of handsomeness worldwide! But his temper is terrible. If you want to get close, don’t step on his minefield, ah.”

Hearing this, Li Chengyuan asked with a half-smile: “For example?”

Xia Xingchi kept his mouth shut. He actually didn’t want to talk too much with a stranger he had met by chance.

But thinking that it was thanks to this man that he was saved from the catastrophe of having his head bashed in, it could be regarded as a life debt, and he must repay his kindness.

Like a little hedgehog stealing fruit, he looked around furtively first to make sure there was no one else around, especially the big villain he was talking about. Then he whispered: “For example, he is not in good health and has been ill all year round. Don’t ask about his health when you meet him, otherwise he might get annoyed. Furthermore, you sometimes can’t judge his mood by his expression. He might be very happy one second, and then suddenly become angry the next. He’s really crazy and terrifying!”

— The kind that might kill someone.

The crazy boss in the book was strong, cruel, and perverted. It was a pity that he was so sickly and would die of a sudden illness in half a year, otherwise the book would have to have a bad ending.

“So terrible, ah,” Li Chengyuan’s smile became wider after hearing this, but his voice became even colder.

He lowered his head slightly and asked next to Xia Xingchi’s ear: “Then do you want to escape from the marriage?”

Xia Xingchi completely didn’t notice that he was replying to a question that would offend people no matter how he answered it, and just felt that the other party had suddenly gotten too close. The safe social distance had been exceeded, so he quickly took a step back.

He didn’t know why he was encountering so many people tempting him away from marriage today. Xia Yu jumped into the pit himself in order to pull out the radish, but he didn’t know what this beauty’s aim was. Fighting against injustice?

No matter what the reason was, Xia Xingchi took out all his prepared lines and spoke in a cadence: “Of course not! I love Li Chengyuan to the point of death. I miss him every day and have no appetite, and my dreams are full of him — I only want to marry him! The person I love the most is him!”

This was absolutely true. Thinking of Li Chengyuan’s net worth in the hundreds of billions, Xia Xingchi really missed him in his dreams and loved his money to the point of death, sincerely and deeply.

His expression was sincere and unpretentious, his black eyes shining.

Li Chengyuan sneered mockingly. 

Xia Xingchi thought that his acting skills were being questioned and said in abrupt dissatisfaction: “You don’t believe me? How can you doubt my sincerity —”

Before he could finish speaking, a fat middle-aged man trotted over. He was Xia Xingchi’s cheap father, Xia Pingjian.

He estimated that this guy wanted to spray spittle again and teach him how to behave in front of others.

Then he would abduct him and bring him to see Li Chengyuan, and put on a public performance while selling his son for glory.

Xia Xingchi was about to run away, but Xia Pingjian said with an apologetic smile: “Mr. Li, I wanted to find Xingchi to meet you just now, but I didn’t expect him to be here with you.”

Fine, you didn’t come to abduct me to meet……wait.

Who is this next to me?!

T/N: This story is too much fun, I have to continue it.

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[1] “Life lies in movement” is a motto originating from the French philosopher Voltaire, who espoused the importance of physical fitness. ⮐

[2] “Why are the flowers so red” is a an old song that has been used in several films, usually as background music during sad scenes. So he’s basically saying he’s going to hurt him/ruin his day. ⮐

[3] The Thirty-Six Stratagems is a Chinese essay used to illustrate a series of stratagems used in politics, war, and civil interaction. ⮐

[4] 120 is the emergency number in China. ⮐

[5] “No ivory comes from a dog’s mouth” means “No good words can be expected to come from the mouth of a scoundrel.” ⮐

[6] Quantum fluctuation speed reading is a pseudoscience in mainland China where students flip through a book at a very high speed and learn to retain all of the information at a glance. Something about “using quantum fluctuations to create photographic memory and multi-dimensional perception.” Yes, people actually pay money for this…… ⮐

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Chapter One << Table of Contents >> Chapter Three

The moonlight was like water, and the night wind was blowing. The branches in the courtyard rustled, and a dark fragrance drifted in through the carved window.

The two people sat side by side on the bed, poised for a long conversation.

Zhao Yelan sat motionless, silently staring at a speck of dust on the ground as if he were viewing a flower.

Yan Mingting scratched his head, and then rubbed his hands, unable to calm down at all. Glancing at the other party furtively from the corner of his eye, he couldn’t sit still, so he got up and walked around the room in order to defeat the fire in his heart.

The hug just now was originally just an act of feeling sorry for the other party’s self-sacrificing move, but at some point it had gradually changed.

He began to covet the strange fragrance that he disliked the most, and was careful not to overdo it and hurt the other. Immersed in such a quiet night, he wanted to hug this thin figure all the time, and his breathing became slow and light.

When the other person pushed him away, there was a sense of emptiness and loneliness.

“Stop pacing, it hurts my eyes,” Zhao Yelan said.

Yan Mingting smiled awkwardly and walked to his side. He cautiously made as if to sit down, and when the other party didn’t kick him, he sat with peace of mind.

“How was your chat with Li Jinyu?” Zhao Yelan asked with his face averted.

“Very good, he confessed to me the cause of Li Yanran’s death.”

“She didn’t die of illness?”

“No.” Yan Mingting sighed deeply. “She committed suicide.”

“Why?” Zhao Yelan was a little surprised. Li Yanran was born to an influential family, and would be part of the Yan family by the orders of her parents and the words of the matchmaker. Clearly she was in a good situation, so why would she kill herself?

“Because of the late Emperor.”

Li Yanran had reached marriageable age and was also close to the Yan family, so the Empress Dowager personally wrote an invitation to her during the birthday banquet, inviting her to enjoy a hundred flowers feast^[1] together. But when she entered the palace for the first time, she caught the attention of the late Emperor.

The late Emperor only knew that the Li family had a daughter, but had never seen her before. At the birthday banquet, he found her dignified, gentle and pleasant. Not showing the slightest regard for the relationship between an Emperor and his subjects, he summoned her to the Imperial study and took her by force.

Afterwards, Li Yanran feared that the Yan family would make a lot of trouble if they found out about it, and she was also afraid that the Li family would be implicated if she did not enter the harem. In desperation, she committed suicide by drinking poison.

The room was quiet for a while before Zhao Yelan said: “She was a rather strong woman.”

“Yes, ah.” Yan Mingting promptly punched the wall.

Zhao Yelan immediately looked at him, and then stared at his hand perplexingly.

“This dog Emperor is really……” Although Yan Mingting knew the etiquette of respect and inferiority, he never had much contact with the late Emperor and only knew that he was fatuous and cruel, and didn’t have any good impressions of him.

“Hush.” Zhao Yelan quickly raised a hand to cover his mouth. “You know that you are talking about the late Emperor, but those who don’t know will think that you are cursing His Majesty. Be careful, the walls have ears.”

Yan Mingting nodded, lowered his eyes, and stared at his hand. All the air he exhaled hit the palm of that hand. 

Zhao Yelan retracted it as if nothing had happened and said: “No wonder Li Jinyu stood on the sidelines without lifting a finger when the throne was won. Only when Zhao Xuan forced the Emperor to abdicate with the Imperial army in the end, he opened the old Emperor’s closed door with his own hands and led the way to him.”

Yan Mingting nodded. “Yes, no matter who came to force the old Emperor to abdicate, he would have helped them.”

After solving the mystery of Li Yanran’s death, Zhao Yelan asked: “Did you tell him about your father?”

“How is that possible? That is too big of a deal, and my relationship with him is not close enough to divulge the whole story.” Yan Mingting said, “I just told him that I thought Li Yanran’s death was strange, and I wanted to find out where all the ‘evil star’ rumors came from.”

“……Then why did you tell me everything?” Zhao Yelan asked.

“You are my wife, ah.” Yan Mingting smiled and tapped Zhao Yelan’s head. “And you’re clever here.”

Zhao Yelan batted his hand away. Hearing him grunt, he intuitively looked at his hand. “Did you hurt yourself just now?”

Yan Mingting remained silent.

Zhao Yelan leaned over to look at his hand, and Yan Mingting stretched it out for him to examine, the corners of his mouth curling up: “Are you concerned for me?”

Seeing that there was no injury, Zhao Yelan immediately threw it back: “I’m just afraid that if your hand is broken, you won’t be able to protect me. Useless thing.”

“Don’t worry, I can protect you even with a broken hand,” Yan Mingting said confidently, puffing out his chest.

“You’re rather proud,” Zhao Yelan scoffed, and went back to the topic. “Then have you asked him about the Gu poison in Nanjiang?

“Yes, I asked what kind of poison Li Yanran used, and happened to bring up the matter of Nanjiang. He said that what Li Yanran used was arsenic, which has nothing to do with Nanjiang. Because the poisons brought into Beijing from Nanjiang are strictly controlled, after passing through the guards at the Imperial Hospital, they are used for research purposes and these courtiers could only view them when they were displayed,” Yan Mingting said.

“Tai Hospital……no wonder Yao Muze had heard about this poison from his master. It seems we must go and find his master at the Imperial hospital.”

“En, tomorrow I will go to Yao Muze to inquire about his master’s whereabouts, and see if I can invite him over.” Yan Mingting remembered another matter and asked, “By the way, does the Emperor really know that you are the owner of the gambling hall?”

“I just said that to scare him.” Zhao Yelan lifted the blanket. “The Emperor is busy with government affairs, how can he take care of everyone’s private business? I warn you, if you tell anyone about this, I will make things difficult for you.”

“I know, I know, go to sleep, ba.”

Yan Mingting patted his blanket and then skilfully made his bed on the floor, looking back at the person who had just laid down. Taking advantage of his inattention, he moved the blanket a little closer to the side of the bed, looked at the nearby bed, and closed his eyes contentedly.

A day later, Yao Muze was invited to treat Zhao Yelan again, and prescribed a few more medications.

Zhao Yelan said softly: “You’ve worked hard.”

“It’s nothing, it is my job to cure patients.” Yao Muze smiled.

Yan Mingting interjected at the ideal time: “Yao-gongzi, can his physical condition be cured if we invite a master?”

“Hmm……” Yao Muze pondered, “Perhaps. My shifu has treated many difficult and miscellaneous diseases. Zhao-daren’s illness should be a certain success, it is only that I am not a good student.”

Yan Mingting said joyfully: “Then can the master be invited to come to the mansion?”

“I’m afraid this is a bit troublesome,” Yao Muze said. “Since Shifu resigned, he has been traveling abroad, only going to poor villages and remote places to treat people for free, but he refused to go to Beijing. This time I came to the capital to take the exam at the Imperial Hospital, and he drew a clear line with me, and refused to answer my letters. Even I don’t know where he is now.”

After sending Yao Muze away, the disappointment on Yan Mingting’s face was obvious.

Zhao Yelan took a sip of tea and said: “Don’t you have a lot of subordinates? Just send people to the backcountry to check one place at a time.”

“That’s the only way to go, but it will take some time.” Yan Mingting put his sword on the table dejectedly and wiped it absent-mindedly.

“So many years have been spent on this old case, why are you so anxious at this time? Now that the situation is gradually becoming clear, isn’t it better than before?” Zhao Yelan said.

“I’m in no hurry, it doesn’t matter if I take my time.” Yan Mingting turned his head to gaze at him and said seriously, “But he can cure your illness.”

Zhao Yelan paused and put down the teacup, his long eyelashes trembling and then lowering slightly to cover up the sentiment in his eyes. “Not necessarily. Many people have examined my illness. It is only a matter of taking some medicine to control it.”

“But you have to try. Since the other party was the court envoy, he should have some real skills.” After Yan Mingting spoke, he hurried out and arranged for his subordinates to start the search.

Looking at the empty door, Zhao Yelan was silent for a time, then took another sip of tea. He didn’t know if the water temperature was too high or there were too many tea leaves, but his chest felt terribly blocked up.

The weather was getting warmer and the rain was less. Gao Tan looked at the sun every day and couldn’t help but be joyful – his lord coughed a lot less these days and was also in a good mood. He went to the Imperial Academy to read books and play chess every day, and after returning home, he would trot about with General Yan, his complexion visibly improving.

And since his lord married into the General’s Mansion, he himself had relaxed a lot. It was no longer necessary to be by his lord’s side all the time as in the past. Anyway, with the General looking after him, he was often sent away, so he had his own time to buy delicious snacks and play with the servants in the mansion.

But then came another sort of trouble. That is, when the General returned to the mansion every day, if he did not see his lord at first sight, he would look for him everywhere: “Where is your family’s lord?”

One day he got confused and replied to the General: “I don’t know……perhaps in the study?”

Unexpectedly, the General gave him a rare reprimand and then hurried to the study. When he saw that Zhao Yelan was indeed playing chess in the study, he immediately put on a smiling face. 

Up to now, Xiao Gao had become accustomed to guarding the front courtyard every day, and as soon as the General came back, he would immediately report the exact location of his lord and then go to play.

This day, Xiao Gao crouched in front of the main hall to feed the rabbit, and when he heard footsteps, he called out: “General, my lord is in the main hall.”

“What? He’s in the mansion?” The figure who had just arrived at the door suddenly paused, and then hid outside the door again.

“What are you doing sneaking around and not coming in?” Zhao Yelan saw Yan Mingting’s elusive figure at a glance, and the other party poked his head through the door to give him a simple and honest smile.

“Why aren’t you in the study today?” Yan Mingting said awkwardly.

“Why?” Zhao Yelan walked to the door suspiciously and saw that he had his hands behind his back. “Take out your hands.”

Yan Mingting stiffly revealed his hands, which were filled with a variety of fruits and flowers, and foisted them onto the guard next to him: “Come, come, you’ve worked hard, take these to quench your thirst.”

Zhao Yelan scoffed coldly and turned around to walk into the main hall: “General Yan is truly romantic and capable, he has won the hearts of so many young girls just by going about.”

It would soon be the day of the harem draft. These days, the capital had gathered beautiful women from around the world, so naturally there were women with open folk customs. Seeing a man she liked on the street, she would throw fruits and flowers.

Yan Mingting was originally well-born, with an extraordinary bearing, so he could attract countless eyes just by standing in place.

“I’m wronged, ah.” Yan Mingting immediately chased after him and tried to explain, “I just met them outside the door. They forced it into my hands, and when I wanted to return it to them, they had already run away.”

“They?” Zhao Yelan sneered. “How many concubines do you plan on taking?”

“I don’t want to take concubines!” Yan Mingting said.

“Take a concubine?” Housekeeper Qin heard this and asked, “General, are you going to take a concubine?”

Zhao Yelan raised his eyebrows: “Yes, ah, hurry up and tidy a few rooms, the new owners will come into the house in a few days.”

“There’s no such thing! Uncle Qin, go and do your work first, and leave us alone.” Yan Mingting quickly persuaded Housekeeper Qin to leave, then gritted his teeth and dragged Zhao Yelan out of the house.

“What are you going to do!?” Zhao Yelan exclaimed.

A quarter of an hour later, the two of them stood on the street. Zhao Yelan was puzzled and turned around to leave. Unexpectedly, an apple was stuffed into his chest by a beautiful woman.

He couldn’t react in time, and when he picked it up to have a look, many women crowded in around him. Some put flowers on his head, some put flowers and fruits in his arms, and some asked him about his age, family background, and whether he was married.

He managed to escape from the throng and looked at Yan Mingting in embarrassment, but Yan Mingting was leaning against the door of a nearby restaurant and laughing.

He picked up a fruit and hurled it at him, and the other party caught it in his hand, then led him into the alley next to him.

Zhao Yelan was still pelting his back with the remaining fruit, but the other party stopped without a care, looked back at him, and stomped his foot: “Hmph, Zhao-daren was flirting in front of me! Let me tell you, if you want to find another woman behind my back, there is no way!”

This performer!

Zhao Yelan took a deep breath. Ever since he met this scoundrel, he had become angry much more often, almost every day!

He turned around to leave, but the other party dragged him back again. He stepped back in disarray until he came to a stop leaning against a wall. Raising his head to look at the person in front of him, he saw him suddenly raise a hand. Thinking that he was going to do something, he subconsciously closed his eyes.

“These flowers and plants, why keep them?” Yan Mingting took the thin flower stems out of his hair and inserted a jade hairpin instead, as if performing a magic trick. After examining it carefully for a moment, he was very satisfied. “En, it looks good this way.”

Zhao Yelan was stunned. Opening his eyes doubtfully, he took off the jade hairpin. The jade body was transparent, the color fresh and tender. Shaped like a floating cloud, shimmered in the sunlight. He liked it very much and forgot to be angry, but he still did not forget to confirm: “Expensive?”

“Expensive. It is a relic of the former royal family. There is no second one in the world.”

Only then was Zhao Yelan satisfied: “Put it on for me properly.”

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[1] The hundred flowers feast is a famous delicacy in which edible flowers are cooked and arranged beautifully. ⮐

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Chapter Thirty-Five <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Thirty-Seven

Zhao Yelan had been very quiet after he returned to the mansion. Even if he saw a servant make a mistake, he didn’t bother to reprimand them.

“Is there something on your mind?” The more Yan Mingting looked at him, the more he felt that something was wrong, so he followed him back to the room worriedly after finishing his dinner.

Zhao Yelan glanced at him once, then twice, and shook his head.

“Something is the matter, you’ve sighed three times.” Yan Mingting sat down beside him. “What happened? Are you worried that Li Jinyu won’t come? Still tired from today?”

Zhao Yelan put one hand on the table and propped his head up. He raised his eyes to look at him, and kept looking. His scrutinizing gaze made Yan Mingting even more flustered.

“What happened” Yan Mingting asked, a little nearer. 

The emotions in Zhao Yelan’s eyes were obscure, and he asked slowly: “Yan Mingting, are you……”

“Am I what?”

“……It’s nothing.” Zhao Yelan turned his head away and rubbed his temples. “I’m just a little tired.”

“Then go to bed earlier, I’ll ask someone to heat some water.”

“But Li Jinyu, later……”

“What are you afraid of? Will he be able to run away if we don’t see him today?” Yan Mingting said softly, “You are really tired and confused, so take a good rest tonight.”

Zhao Yelan was urged by him to wash up and go to sleep, but he didn’t feel sleepy while lying on the bed.

In the darkness, he quietly turned over to look at the figure on the ground, and his eyebrows lowered.

At nighttime, Zhao Yelan heard Gao Tan’s knock on the door. He opened his eyes and was about to get up, but heard Yan Mingting open the door fist and whisper to Gao Tan: “What is the matter?”

“The Prime Minister is here and wants to see my lord.”

“Just say he’s asleep. And keep your voice down.”

“Yes.”

After closing the door, Yan Mingting tiptoed back to his spot on the floor.

After a long while, Zhao Yelan slowly closed his eyes. He suddenly thought of Yan Mingting wiping his face with the handkerchief……and he burst out laughing.

“What happened?” Yan Mingting woke up, startled by the sound.

“It’s nothing, go back to sleep,” Zhao Yelan said with a smile.

Early the next morning, Li Jinyu came to the General’s Mansion again. He had just gone out a few days ago to take care of some errands, and when he returned, he found Li Yucheng clamoring to hang himself. After careful cross-examination, he found out that he had been gambling and owed Zhao Yelan a large debt.

He was so angry that he almost fainted, pointing at Li Yucheng and unable to speak a word for a long time.

Li Yucheng knew that he was ashamed of him and burst into tears, wanting to die.

Li Jinyu had taken him to the ancestral hall to reflect, and seeing that he was still making a racket, he finally couldn’t help it and slapped him backhand: “You rebellious son!”

Li Yucheng was stunned by the blow. He hadn’t been beaten since he was a child. Every time his father wanted to teach him a lesson, he would just bring him to the ancestral hall to kneel for a few days, and never did anything else. Knowing that his father was truly angry this time, he didn’t sob and make a fuss, only daring to cry silently.

“You are the only child of the Li family now. If you don’t live well, how can you be worthy of the mother who gave birth to you, how can you do right by your sister, who died for our Li family!”

Li Yucheng’s body froze and he forgot to cry. With tears still on his face, he asked in surprise: “Dad, what do you mean? Wasn’t my sister killed because of Yan Mingting?!”

Li Jinyu slumped down to sit, his face full of vicissitudes, and covered half of his face with trembling hands.

“Dad, speak clearly, ah! How did my sister die?!” Li Yucheng shouted.

In the end, even though Li Yucheng yelled until his throat hurt, he didn’t get an answer, and just knelt in the ancestral hall all night. On the second day, he was tied up and taken to the General’s Mansion, and saw with his own eyes his father bow from the waist and show Zhao Yelan a smiling face.

“Zhao-daren, this dog is stupid and wicked, please do not lower yourself to his level. If this matter continues to stir up trouble, I am afraid that it will reach the Emperor’s ears, which would not be good for you, ah.”

“Why would it not be good for me?” Zhao Yelan played with a jade pendant in a nonchalant manner. “It was Li Yucheng who came to the mansion to disturb me frequently, so I had no choice but to agree to the appointment. It was he who bribed the dealer, but still lost to me. Now you want to renege on your debts and personally report it to the Emperor.”

Li Jinyu said: “Since he had already bribed the dealer, why did he betray him in the end? Zhao-daren, you should know more about this than me, right? If the Emperor becomes aware of the master behind this gambling hall……”

Yan Mingting, who was sitting on the other side, glanced at Zhao Yelan in surprise when he heard these words and had a sudden epiphany. No wonder Zhao Yelan didn’t lose face when he went back to the gambling hall. The gambling hall was his!

Furthermore, this old man seemed to usually pretend to be deaf and dumb, but actually knew quite a lot of information.

He looked sideways at Zhao Yelan to see how he would respond.

Zhao Yelan got up and walked to Li Jinyu’s side, slanted a glance at him, and said slowly: “What you can find out, can the Emperor not find out? Why do you think the Emperor only dismissed me, but didn’t touch my gambling hall?”

Li Jinyu was slightly taken aback, and shook his head with a sigh: “That being the case, can you give us a little time to raise the money? After all, this is not a small sum.”

“As I said, you have only a day. If you can’t do it, then leave his hands and feet, ba.” Zhao Yelan took out a short knife and slowly slid the sharp blade across Li Yucheng’s cheek. “Li Yucheng, if I had lost, what would you have done?”

Li Yucheng stared at the knife, sweating profusely. He clenched his mouth shut tightly and did not dare to open it.

The blade drew a little blood on Li Yucheng’s neck. Seeing Zhao Yelan’s increasingly indifferent appearance, Li Jinyu hurriedly said: “Zhao-daren, what will it take for you to let us go?”

Zhao Yelan gave a light scoff, touched the blade with his fingertips, and said leisurely: “I only love money. How can I be willing to give up ten thousand taels of gold?”

“I can’t afford so much gold, but if my lord wants my official position, he can take it at any time. I will retire and return to my hometown, and recommend you to the Emperor,” Li Jinyu said.

Zhao Yelan walked back in front of him and smiled slightly: “If I wanted your official position, I wouldn’t have waited until now. How about this, I can let your son go if you just kneel down to me right now.”

“Dad, don’t!” Li Yucheng called loudly. “Just give it to him, I don’t need these hands and feet!”

However, the more he said such words, the more shaken Li Jinyu became. After a long while, he opened his robes, knees already bent, but was dragged up by someone.

“Enough,” Yan Mingting said.

Zhao Yelan asked: “What, you want to oppose me?”

“This is too much.” Yan Mingting looked at him disapprovingly, then ordered someone to untie Li Yucheng and helped Li Jinyu to the study. He said respectfully, “Li-daren, I apologize.”

Li Jinyu sat down on the chair tremblingly: “Many thanks, General.”

“I am your junior, so don’t call me General. According to seniority, I should be calling you Uncle.”

“General Yan, you are courteous, just as loyal and courageous as your father. It is a pity that Yanran didn’t have a better fate,” Li Jinyu sighed.

“Dad……” Li Yucheng also ran inside. He stood behind him and looked at Yan Mingting.

“I’m really sorry about your precious daughter, but there is one thing I want to ask: why did she die?”

Li Jinyu froze for a moment and kept silent, but Li Yucheng cast a hesitant look at him and then stared at Li Jinyu, as if he also wanted to know the truth.

Seeing this, Yan Mingting said again: “To be honest, Zhao Yelan read the Emperor’s annals before and it is recorded that your daughter attended the Empress Dowager’s birthday banquet before she died of illness, so I have some doubts……you are also aware that due to these matters, there are a lot of rumors about me, so I wanted to check it out.”

“Dad, is this really the case?” Li Yucheng said straightaway. “Hadn’t my sister been ill for a long time? Why would she go to the Empress Dowager’s birthday banquet? How did my sister die, you tell me, ah!”

“You hold your tongue,” Li Jinyu scolded.

After quite a while, Yan Mingting’s voice suddenly chilled: “Li-daren, I thought you were a person who would consider your children, but I didn’t expect you to be so partial. Your son is stubborn by nature and causes trouble everywhere. You are willing to kneel down and beg for mercy for him, but you still refuse to give him the truth about your daughter?”

“Stop talking, you stop talking……” Li Jinyu’s tears rolled down unexpectedly, and he covered his face as he spoke in pain.

Outside the door, Zhao Yelan heard sobbing and turned to go back to his room.

The Li family’s father and son stayed in the General’s Mansion for a long time, and left around sunset. Yan Mingting personally escorted them back to their residence.

Li Jinyu wanted to keep him for dinner, but he politely declined: “No need, I have something to do when I get back, so I will take my leave.”

Li Jinyu called out again: “Wait, for the matter of Yucheng, Zhao-daren……”

“I’ll go and talk to him, don’t worry.”

After he returned to the General’s Mansion, the servants told him that Zhao Yelan had finished his meal and gone to the study.

He finished his meal in a hurry and strode back to the room to find Zhao Yelan teaching Xiao Gao how to read. Hearing footsteps, Zhao Yelan looked up at him, scoffed coldly, and pointed to the words on the paper as he said: “You idiot.”

Gao Tan lifted his head blankly: “ ? ”

“Impossibly stupid.” 

“Don’t scold, don’t scold, if you scold again, I’ll be even more stupid.” Gao Tan ran out with his head in his arms. “I don’t want to practice calligraphy anymore……”

Yan Mingting looked at the back of the person fleeing in shame and said with a smile: “He doesn’t understand your indirect scolding.”

“At least someone understands.” Zhao Yelan cleaned up the table and walked to the bedroom without looking back.

“You can’t blame me, ah. As we agreed before, we would just use Li Yucheng’s gambling debt to ask Li Jinyu to help us investigate.” Yan Mingting chased after him and walked at his side. “There was nothing about making him kneel.”

“Why, do you feel sorry for your ex-father-in-law?” Zhao Yelan sneered.

“How can he be my ex-father-in-law when I never married? It doesn’t count, I just respect him as an elder. Besides, my father had a good relationship with him before, otherwise it would be impossible for him to agree to the marriage.”

“Yes, yes, yes.” Zhao Yelan stepped into the room, quickly took off his outer clothes, and threw them aside. Yan Mingting caught them and put them away properly.

“I just dislike the look of you people who want to achieve your goals but can’t make up your mind to be ruthless. To put it nicely, it is kindness, and to put it bluntly, it is stupidity.” Zhao Yelan sat on the bed and took off his boots. A sudden shadow fell over him and he raised his head subconsciously, almost bumping into Yan Mingting’s nose. He leaned back, eyes flickering. “What are you doing?”

Yan Mingting bent down, supporting himself with both hands on the edge of the bed so that Zhao Yelan was between his arms. Aided by the faint candlelight, his eyes wandered inch by inch over his face, and he said: “I also dislike the look of you like this.”

Zhao Yelan frowned, narrowing his eyes as the emotions in them surged: “What’s wrong with me?”

“Why do you deliberately play dirty tricks?”

“What do you mean?”

“If you wanted him to kneel down, it was only because I couldn’t bear to see it and would help him. You played the villain, I played the hero, so that Li Jinyu would be grateful to me and lower his guard. Coupled with the identities of me and my father, this caused him to readily associate with me. But why did you have to do this? Obviously there were many other ways……”

“This was the most effective,” Zhao Yelan said.

“It’s a pity……” Yan Mingting smiled suddenly. “I’ve already explained to him that you didn’t mean to embarrass him, but only meant to help me, and he understood.”

“You! What an idiot!” Zhao Yelan’s face turned serious. “If you let people know you are on my side, who will still work with you wholeheartedly?”

“Why not? Look at He Cuizhang and Zhong Yuehong, which one of them isn’t invisibly at your disposal? What’s more, you would rather bear the infamy yourself in order to help me. You being with me is my honor.”

“It’s not.” Zhao Yelan turned his head angrily.

“Mengting.”

Zhao Yelan was startled, and slowly looked at him.

“Have you always acted like this?” Yan Mingting asked softly. “How much infamy have you taken on for Zhao Xuan?”

Zhao Yelan’s throat tightened, and after a long while, his Adam’s apple bobbed and he said vaguely: “It’s none of your business……”

“Can I give you a hug?” Yan Mingting asked abruptly.

“What did you say?” Zhao Yelan was stunned, but before he could react, the other party took him into his arms.

He was not used to the unexpected warmth, and his heart was in a mess. He was about to automatically push him away, but Yan Mingting’s voice sounded in his ears.

“I don’t like you like this. Don’t gamble with your reputation in the future, it isn’t good. You are not alone. You and me, let’s discuss things together, okay?”

Zhao Yelan’s body was very stiff, and it seemed that he didn’t know where to put his hands or feet.

“Okay?” Yan Mingting asked again.

Zhao Yelan moved his fingers slightly. It took a while to close his eyes and adjust his breathing, and then he heard his own dry voice: “Okay.”

---

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Chapter Thirty-Four <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Thirty-Six

Deep winter.

The snow was mixed with fine grains of hailstones, which knocked against the windows and added to the tranquility.

The heater in the bedroom was very hot, but Ye Ci’s hands had been frostbitten, and he was more afraid of the cold than ordinary people. According to Huo Tinglan’s instructions, he put his hands in a hand warmer to keep them from getting cold. Spread out on the desk in front of him was a voluminous book, and each page had a large area of test points densely marked out in pen.

Ye Ci’s lips moved silently, reciting the difficult chemical reaction equation as if it was the bible.

A few months ago, he received an admission letter from the top pharmaceutical university in China. His hard work while burning the midnight oil for a year and a half had not been in vain.

It was said that a pharmaceutical major was a trap. It had bad employment prospects, was tiring to learn, and was extremely unfriendly to the retention of students’ hair. As the saying went, “If you choose a major poorly, it will be like taking the college entrance examinations every year.” Their majors had not been easy even since freshman year, but Ye Ci had ambition and didn’t think it was overly difficult. He found it very challenging, and was motivated to learn.

There were a lot of things to memorize in chemistry. Ye Ci’s memory was not bad, and he memorized things quickly and solidly, but he also couldn’t afford to lose too many test points, and at the end of the term, it wasn’t enough to just cram.

The other three students in the dormitory also had the appearance of monks chanting scriptures. They were usually delicate little Omegas, but now they were all disheveled by the scourge of the exam, their upper bodies numbly swaying back and forth with the rhythm of their desperate recitations. 

Every time Ye Ci reviewed ten pages, he took a five-minute break to slack off. It was time for another round of resting, so he picked up his phone and looked through it.

During the exam season, major colleges and universities were entering the final stage one after another, and the WeChat students of Tiancheng’s Class 7 were mourning.

……

[Jian Yan]: I want to die. What about liberal arts?! Why do I still need to learn advanced math, ah ah ah……

[Jian Yan]: I don’t want to work hard anymore.

[Jian Yan]: Cast a magic spell.jpg

[Jian Yan]: Cast a spell to summon a tall and mighty Alpha to raise me.

[Lu Minghan]: Damn

[Lu Minghan]: Is it because I haven’t been here to clean you up that you have such illusions? @jianyan

[Jian Yan]: Eat shit.jpg

[Jiang Yan]: If you are capable of it, don’t come here for the next half month.

[Lu Minghan]: You wait until I finish the exams, and I’ll take you down.

[Ye Ci]: Yan, don’t talk. The leader of the Sports Committee has been summoned by the magic spell.

[Jiang Yan]: ? ? ?

[Jiang Yan]: You also know how to sneak into the chat?

[Ye Ci]: Indeed.

The very irritating “indeed” was in exactly the same tone as Huo Tinglan’s.

[Ye Ci]: Crying cat head.jpg

[Jiang Yan]: Oh my god, where is that Ye Ci that blushed when teased casually back then! Why is the gap between the rich and poor widening!

[Jiang Yan]: Dragon eighteen palm.jpg

[Ye Ci]: Kitten covering head, don’t hurt me.jpg

……

Evidently, under the influence of his idiot classmates, the former lonely boy had learned how to use emoticons. 

And according to Jian Nan, only the soft and cute little Omegas would use offensive emoticons such as “eat shit,” and the more aggressive the Alpha expansion pack, the more it would use cats and dogs.

So Ye Ci, who was spiritually an Alpha, kept a bunch of cute kitties.

Jiang Yan and Lu Minghan had always been quarrelsome but loving friends. Both of them were good at talking, and it was possible that they had been in love with each other all year round as their interactions had become more and more ambiguous after graduation. The two were in different locations, but were only an hour away by high-speed rail. Lu Minghan had been seeking out Jiang Yan every now and then for half a year, and the two often spent time privately together. Anyone with eyes could tell that they were not far from an official announcement.

In the classmate group, Jiang Yan and Lu Minghan flirted, and the crowd provided a string of “yoooo.” Ye Ci returned to the message list with a smile and scrolled down.

Huo Tinglan’s newest message was twenty-four hours ago.

Ye Ci was so dizzy from reciting the book all day that he didn’t pay much attention, but it wasn’t unusual for him to be silent for so long, so he took a picture of the desktop and sent it.

[Ye Ci]: [Image]

[Ye Ci]: I memorized all night and got through 30 pages.

[Ye Ci]: Kitten fainting.jpg

[Ye Ci]: What are you doing?

The other side replied in seconds, as always.

[Huo Tinglan]: You can do it, baby.

[Huo Tinglan]: Not doing anything. I’m very free at work today, so I’m resting.

The answer was quite satisfactory, but Ye Ci just felt that something was off. Perhaps it was an Omega’s keen intuition.

[Ye Ci]: Can you talk?

[Huo Tinglan]: If it’s convenient for you. The roommates aren’t there?

Ye Ci never tried to hide anything. He wore a wedding ring on his finger at all times, so the other students knew he was married not long after enrolling. The three roommates who were the most familiar with Ye Ci had even had dinner with Huo Tinglan, so there was nothing to hide. But Huo Tinglan paid attention to the privacy between the two of them, and would try to get Ye Ci alone before making an audio or video call.

[Ye Ci]: It’s convenient.

After sending, he got up and snuck into the corridor quietly, then sent Huo Tinglan a voice call request.

It was picked up right away.

“Hey, baby.”

He didn’t know if it was his imagination, but Huo Tinglan’s voice seemed deeper than usual and slightly hoarse, rubbing the soft flesh of his ears like sandpaper.

Ye Ci’s ears tingled when he heard this, and he was in a daze, scratching his wrist as he muttered softly: “What were you doing just a moment ago?”

“Huh?” Huo Tinglan’s tone was innocent. He laughed and cleared his throat. “I wasn’t doing anything, just lying down……I closed my eyes to rest. What is it?”

Lying down and closing your eyes to rest.

This sounded like some lonely empty nester.

Ye Ci didn’t know what crossed his mind, but he blushed: “Then why is your voice like that?”

There was a moment of silence over there, and then a deep smile: “You heard?”

It wasn’t that Ye Ci’s hearing was so keen, but mainly because he’d had such an experience before……

Freshman military training lasted for half a month, during which they weren’t allowed to leave school without good reason. During that half month, Huo Tinglan became  increasingly unreasonable. When he called Ye Ci late at night, he coaxed Ye Ci to go to the unoccupied fire escape in the corridor, and tempted him to say some unspeakable words. Ye Ci himself would not say such indecent words, but Huo Tinglan taught him. Huo Tinglan would say something over the phone, and Ye Ci would whisper it back with steam coming out of his head, ridiculously obedient.

Ye Ci originally thought that Huo Tinglan missed him too much and wanted to hear more of his voice, but the words became more and more indecent as they went on, and it was very difficult to classify them as “words of affection.” Huo Tinglan’s voice became deeper and hoarser, mixed with some wet and subtle sounds……only then did Ye Ci come to a realization, and he was so embarrassed that he almost hung up the phone.

Therefore, he was more alert to such vocal timbres, and felt that things were not simple upon hearing them.

“En.” Ye Ci lowered his head and rubbed his shoes against the cracks in the marble hallway floor. He thought for a moment, and then tried to flirt sophisticatedly, “You……miss me?”

“How can I not?” Huo Tinglan cleared his throat again and complained half-jokingly, “You didn’t come home last week.”

The school would randomly check the dorms from Monday through Thursday, and punish students who stayed out at night accordingly. However, if the student’s family had special circumstances, they could report to the counselor and apply for long-term off-campus accommodation.

Ye Ci was married and eligible to apply for off-campus living, but Huo Tinglan offered to let him live in the dormitory for the first school year.

If a freshman moved to live off-campus as soon as they entered school, it would reduce their opportunities to get along with their classmates. The relationships would inevitably become alienated, and Ye Ci himself was not the type who was enthusiastic and talkative, able to get along with strangers in a few words. Huo Tinglan had seen Ye Ci when he was alone and without any friends, and had also seen his appearance when he laughed and chatted with his classmates after integrating into the group. He didn’t want to be dominated by an Alpha’s irrational possessive desire to deprive Ye Ci of the happiness he should enjoy in college life. Therefore, this semester, Ye Ci would return to the Huo residence every weekend and live off-campus. But the mid-month final review was too hectic, and Ye Ci didn’t want to be distracted. He would be unable to read books and look up information from school, so he didn’t go home last weekend.

“……I’ll come home to accompany you when I finish my subject exam on the 12th. It will be soon.” Ye Ci held the phone close, softly coaxing him, “Is that okay?”

“Of course.” Huo Tinglan was fair and reasonable, and said with a gentle, comforting voice, “Concentrate on reviewing at the end of the term. The school has a good learning atmosphere……These two days, I was afraid of disturbing you, so I didn’t dare to take the initiative to send you a message.”

Ye Ci talked to him for a while longer before hanging up, and then immediately turned around and called Uncle He.

After the call ended, Ye Ci quickly walked into the dormitory, packed the books and notes needed for the exam on the 12th into his schoolbag, and hurriedly changed his clothes.

“……Xiao Ci, are you going out?” The roommates looked up, his eyes focusing.

“En.” Ye Ci was well-behaved and put on his gloves. “My husband has a cold and a persistent high fever. I’ll go back and have a look. If the student council comes to check the bedroom……” Ye Ci hesitated for a moment. It was almost eleven o’clock, making it inconvenient to ask the counselor for leave. “Forget it, just let them check.”

During the phone call just now, the more Ye Ci listened to Huo Tinglan, the more he felt that something was wrong, especially when he cleared his throat now and then. It was as if he was trying to cover up a cough.

When he hung up the phone and asked Uncle He, sure enough, he’d had a high fever for two days, and after seeing the doctor, he had an IV drip. But maybe this wave of cold virus was particularly fierce, and since he was on the verge of susceptibility and couldn’t see his own Omega, he got upset and the fever wouldn’t go away. He hadn’t even eaten much in the past two days.

The roommate looked at his phone and said worriedly: “The school gates will close soon, and it’s still snowing. Can youcall a car……”

“I’ll climb over the wall, and call a car while walking. If that doesn’t work, I’ll use a rental bicycle.” Ye Ci overcame all difficulties, threw his schoolbag cooly over his shoulder, and waved to the three roommates. “See you.”

Nighttime in the Huo residence was not tranquil.

After the IV was finished, the doctor withdrew the needle from Huo Tinglan, took his temperature again, and listened with the stethoscope.

His body temperature had only dropped slightly, but luckily his lungs were not impacted. After all, he had a top-level Alpha’s physique, and could handle more hardships than ordinary people.

“How was his diet today?……”

Outside the door, the family doctor was talking to Uncle He in a low voice. Huo Tinglan rubbed the center of his forehead and lay back on the pillow

All at once, there was a rush of footsteps coming from the direction of the stairs. Mixed with someone’s panting breaths, it sounded like someone was taking two or three steps at a time, jumping from the first to second floor in an instant.

Huo Tinglan raised his eyes in disbelief, but before he could sit up, Ye Ci had already rushed in like a gust of wind. There was unmelted snow on his down jacket, a scarf was wrapped tightly around the bridge of his nose, and those soft cheeks were frozen like frosted red fruits. His eyes were bright and his hair blown out of shape by the wind, exposing his forehead and straight eyebrows with a chilly and youthful aura.

“Baby……” Huo Tinglan panicked for a rare moment. “Why are you back?”

“Why didn’t you tell me you were sick? Still treating me like a child,” Ye Ci muttered angrily. He took off his schoolbag and down jacket, tossing them aside before walking to the bed. “Uncle He said that you were approaching the susceptibility period, so I think you’re agitated.”

“Listen to this nonsense.” Huo Tinglan scoffed, and first set aside Ye Ci’s responsibility. “I think you’re right, but I’m not agitated.”

“I’ll talk to the instructor tomorrow, and I’ll be reviewing at home these days.” Ye Ci forcefully made arrangements. 

Huo Tinglan closed his eyes: “Baby, don’t spoil me like this.”

Was Ye Ci angry?

He was indeed angry.

Huo Tinglan didn’t intend to unleash his bad Alpha nature. However, Ye Ci was too considerate and sensible, and had been fanning the flames, fueling the arrogance and possessiveness.

“Just, just get used to it.” Ye Ci’s stuttering had nearly been eliminated, and he only stuttered when his emotions were high. “It’s all mutual, why can you let me get used to it, yet you can’t?”

As he spoke, he hooked the back of Huo Tinglan’s neck and pressed his forehead against the other’s: “It’s so hot.”

“It’s okay, I’ve had an IV drip.” Huo Tinglan’s heart went soft, and he gently brushed Ye Ci’s blushing face with his fingers. “It’s because your forehead is too cold……why is it so cold and red? How did you come back?”

“I got a rental bicycle and rode back. It’s so late, and the city is too far away, so I couldn’t get a car.” Ye Ci was afraid that Huo Tinglan would lecture him, so he acted preemptively, glancing at Huo Tinglan from the corner of his eye as he muttered, “If you had, had told me to come back during the day when it wasn’t snowing, I wouldn’t have had to do this……”

“En, you’re right, I shouldn’t have hidden it.” Huo Tinglan admitted his mistake with good grace.

“Exactly.” Ye Ci looked away and took off his jeans to reveal close-fitting thermal pants, then lifted the blanket and got in.

At a young and vigorous age, he had pedaled his bicycle all the way and his body was like a burning stove, just right for warming the bed of a cold patient.

Unexpectedly, Huo Tinglan grasped the back of his neck and puzzlingly lifted him away. “Let’s sleep in separate rooms tonight.

Ye Ci opened his eyes wide.

Was this still the sex-crazy Huo-shushu he was familiar with?!

“If you get infected, I will blame myself.” Huo Tinglan got out of bed and walked out with the dazed Ye Ci, coaxing, “Baby, I’m very happy you came home.”

For the first time in his life, he was rejected by Huo Tinglan.

Ye Ci stuck to the closed door, digging his nails in like Lin Yao’s cat.

“Huo-shushu……Tinglan……”

He called him over and over.

How could Huo Tinglan be willing to let him stand outside and scratch at the door? The door opened after he called out a few times, and Huo Tinglan grasped Ye Ci’s face, shaking it gently before saying helplessly: “It’s really contagious, what will you do if you don’t do well in the final review? Didn’t you say that you want to make money to support me? Won’t you regret it?”

He was right. Ye Ci pondered for a moment: “Then promise me one condition.”

“Tell me,” Huo Tinglan said.

“Eat something,” Ye Ci said with glistening eyes. “A bowl of porridge is also fine.”

“Feed me?”

He started haggling.

“All right.”

Huo Tinglan stopped being obstinate for once, and was willing to eat something. Uncle He hurriedly ordered the back kitchen to prepare a bowl of vegetable porridge with shredded pork to supplement his nutrition as much as possible.

The grains of rice were steaming hot, and Ye Ci scooped them up with a spoon, blowing on them before feeding them to Huo Tinglan.

They gazed at each other for a long time after the first sip, and Uncle He on the side had to retreat quickly from the sweetness and give them space.

“Tinglan.”

“En?”

“Am I……” Ye Ci coughed and asked in a low voice, “……a good boyfriend?”

As soon as he heard that Huo-shushu was sick, he had jumped over the wall and left school immediately, riding a bicycle back since he couldn’t find a car. He coaxed and fed him, just shy of finding the IV drip and putting it in by himself.

If this didn’t mean he was a good boyfriend, then what would?

Huo Tinglan was silent for a moment, likely holding himself back.

“……En, especially good.”

Ye Ci’s lips curved up shyly and proudly, and he continued to feed him porridge.

The Alpha in his heart was very satisfied.

“It feels like the temperature has dropped a little.”

Ye Ci touched Huo Tinlan’s forehead.

“En, my head doesn’t hurt that much anymore.”

“I think it’s just natural internal heat.”

“En, internal heat.”

That tone was indulgent.

“If this happens again in the future, will you tell me?”

“I will.”

“You’ll tell me if you need me?”

“I’ll tell you.”

Ye Ci nodded in satisfaction.

“……”

It was a quiet snowy night.

The fine snow rustled against the windows, making the people in the house feel more cozy.

Warm inside and out.

When accompanied by loved ones, any season would feel like spring.

【End of Ye Ci’s Boyfriend Power】

---

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Extra Seven: Happy Chinese New Year << Table of Contents >> Extra Nine: The Wedding

“What is this attitude of yours? Since you’ve changed your surname to Xia, this is your responsibility!”

The woman who spoke was gorgeously dressed, and the diamond-studded necklace on her chest was particularly dazzling under the bright lights of the dinner party.

Xia Xingchi yawned lazily while eating cake in the corner, letting her stand-up comedy act go in one ear and out the other.

It was an honor for anyone to attend Mr. Li’s engagement banquet.

Only Xia Xingchi was unhappy. Not only was he pressed into engagement and forced to do things beyond his ability, but he was watched like a performing monkey by everyone around. There were countless eyes watching him openly and covertly.

Just three nights ago, he had created a method of demise that would make the local weird news — 

After finishing his third job on a rainy night and passing under a tree, he was unfortunately struck and killed by a bolt of lightning.

Getting struck was excruciatingly painful. Fortunately, the whole process was fairly quick, and he lost consciousness in an instant.

If he could leave some last words, it would probably be a news headline: Shocking! It’s true that you can’t walk under a tree in a thunderstorm?

“You know the Xia family’s situation. This marriage must happen in order to weather the storm,” The woman continued. “Without this opportunity, you can continue to live in squalor. You’re lucky to have such a good turn, yet you’re still pretending to be the victim?”

This situation was this: Xia Xingchi unpreparedly transmigrated into a novel with distorted values and took the place of the young master, who was a cannon fodder extra.

The person in front of him was the original owner’s stepmother, Liu Yi. By the time he returned to the wealthy family, his biological mother had already passed away.

For Liu Yi, he was not her actual son anyway, so among the real and fake young masters, she obviously favored the fake young master she had raised for many years —

That is, the villain protagonist shou in the book, the popular idol singer Xia Yu, who was talking and laughing gracefully not far away.

It had been a year since the original owner had been taken home. After finally turning from a poor wretch to a vaguely-known flop of an actor, there was less than a month before he became cannon fodder. 

The fuse that lit the fate of the cannon fodder was the original owner’s riot and escape from his marriage during the engagement ceremony.

Suddenly, a handful of fish food was sprinkled in the water and everyone moved in succession toward a point in the distance. Clearly, someone had arrived.

Liu Yi once again dropped another cold sentence, “Behave well in a moment, and don’t try to run away!” Then she turned around and followed the crowd.

Xia Xingchi thought that the only person who should have such influence was his fiance, Li Chengyuan.

As the richest, most powerful and handsome person in the book, it was a pity that Li Chengyuan was not the protagonist, but the most ruthless and insane villain in the story, who eventually died young.

Xia Xingchi turned around and picked up some red wine from a waiter’s tray, internally estimating the price of the wine and how much the engagement banquet cost.

Just as he was pondering this, he spied an uninvited guest walking towards him.

Xia Yu, as the white lotus protagonist, had a very innocent face that was at the moment very sincere: “Ge, I have accidentally robbed you of so much over the years……this time I am willing to bear the burden for you! You go, ba, and I will get engaged to Li Chengyuan in your stead! I owe you, and will compensate you with my lifelong happiness, even if just to make up for a little loss.”

The tone was sonorous and forceful, full of self-sacrificing dedication, and it seemed that he was about to be moved to tears.

“Ah —” So touching, what a touching brotherhood.

The corners of Xia Xingchi’s mouth twitched. I can only make way for you if I run away from the marriage, right?

Before this, Xia Yu had already used the same “tea art”^[1] to conquer the Xia family parents, and Xia Pingjian even burst into tears, telling his precious son not to leave, and patting his chest as he promised that Xia Yu would still be a son of the Xia family no matter what.

In comparison, the original owner, the legitimate young master, was just mocked even more — when he was found, he was still selling vegetables at the market, and the fish stall next door gave him an unpleasant fishy smell. The first time he stood in the middle of the luxurious and expensive living room of the Xia family, he felt embarrassed and out of place.

Looking at this unfamiliar “son,” the balance in Xia Pingjian’s heart immediately tilted.

The indifferent attitude of the biological father, the cold stares and contempt of the servants……and what most contributed to the original owner’s collapse was being forced to marry.

Xia Yu had been secretly prodding and inciting for a long time, driving the original owner almost insane. This caused him to wrongly target his fiance, Li Chengyuan, and to hate him as if he was his father’s killer.

In the following plot, “Xia Xingchi” changed his cowardly nature and directly lost control, pointing at the big villain Li Chengyuan’s nose and cursing. Then he poured red wine all over his face and ran away from the marriage – as expected, he was thrilled to receive a cannon fodder gift bag.

Xia Yu was well-prepared. Not only did he play the hero, but he also arranged for someone to play the villain.

A few socialites came over:

“Yo, isn’t this the Xia family’s first, young, master?”

“What are you talking about, this is the “young lady” of the Xia family, and she’s going to get married soon.”

“Arranged marriages are still done in this day and age, a man should resist! Tsk, the lowly look of this dog meat being served at the banquet^[2] really disgusts laozi to death!”

Xia Xingchi started to frown. He had always been bad-tempered and difficult, and it was impossible for him to indulge their shortcomings like the original owner had.

Seeing that he had really reacted, Xia Yu became increasingly excited.

Yes, just like this.

After these few days of careful brainwashing, as long as there was a quarrel, Xia Xingchi would inevitably speak freely and step on Mr. Li’s minefield.

Then everything would be in order, and he himself would replace him……

However, out of the blue, things suddenly occurred outside his expectations.

He was caught off guard when red wine splashed all over him, and practically saw the moment when the wine volleyed into the air!

A whole glass of wine was devoted to his well-groomed hair and face, leaving him in a state of shock.

Xia Xingchi saw the small amount of liquid remaining in the glass, and flicked the cup calmly and quickly, trying not to waste a single drop.

Taking advantage of the delayed reactions of these few people, he steadily took the waiter’s tray and his other hand was like a sprinkler, throwing cups into everyone’s faces one by one!

The people who were originally well-dressed immediately had faces full of embarrassment. The scene was frozen for a moment as everyone tried to come to terms with what had just happened.

After all, Xia Xingchi had always been a yes-man. Kicking and hitting him was usually like a game, and he had always swallowed his anger without daring to resist.

Today’s behavior was like a dream.

“What a waste,” Xia Xingchi said sincerely with an expression of regret. “After tasting it, this wine is very expensive.”

As a senior waiter, even if someone poured wine all over the guests, one must maintain one’s demeanor and industry etiquette.

Xia Yu was the first to come back to his senses, and immediately revealed his true colors: “Xia Xingchi! Are you fucking crazy! Expensive wine? My clothes are more expensive, you bastard!”

Those bad-tempered socialite brothers had never been insulted like this before. After coming to their senses, they rolled up their sleeves and wanted to beat him up on the spot!

As the saying went, “If you are strong, you can do what you want and live a long life.” Xia Xingchi had expected that he would not be able to beat so many people, so he immediately put the tray aside, turned around, and ran away!

The location of the engagement was the most luxurious upper-class private club in Beijing. Not only was the auditorium overly spacious, but there were two floors, upper and lower, along with many decorations that hindered the way forward.

Xia Xingchi ran wildly all the way, thinking that with this many people, there would naturally be parents to take control of this group of socialites.

Unexpectedly, there were not many people left on the first floor for some reason, so he simply took the steps in twos and threes, dashing directly to the second floor.

Even as one of the main characters of the engagement banquet, no one paid attention to him being chased and violently beaten. It seemed that the original owner was truly a miserable existence.

The terrain on the second floor was not as open as the first floor, and at a glance, it was impossible to tell where everyone had gone. Xia Yu’s pack of rogues were quite thick-skinned, and insisted on chasing after him with their faces full of red wine, as if they felt no shame at all — it didn’t seem to be purely for the sake of venting their anger, but as if there was some other purpose.

Xia Xingchi turned his head toward a bathroom sign. Seeing that the other party was sticking to him like glue, he decided to find a cubicle to hide in, lock the door, and see what they did next.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he rushed through the door, a figure appeared out of nowhere!

He was running so fast that he couldn’t hit the brakes fast enough, and ran directly into the other person.

If not for the wall behind him, Xia Xingchi would have knocked this “pin” to the ground as if he was bowling.

Even so, he heard the other party’s head hit the wall hard.

There was a very clear “Bang!” in the quiet bathroom, which left people shaken.

Maybe the collision had been serious, because Xia Xingchi saw the man stagger and quickly reached out to help him, apologizing at the same time: “I’m sorry, I’m sorry! Are you alright, Sir?”

Li Chengyuan didn’t speak, only narrowing his eyes slightly as he sized up the young man in front of him.

Xia Xingchi apologized repeatedly, but found that the other party seemed a little gloomy. He wondered if a verbal apology was not enough. Did this one also want to use force to hit him back?

So he just raised his head to take a closer look, and only then did he clearly see the man’s pale and handsome face.

— It turned out to be an “acquaintance.”

As they looked at each other, Xia Xingchi froze at once.

He discovered the reason why the other party was staring at him without saying a word, and thought again of that unlucky night three days ago.

– – –

Having transmigrated, he never imagined that he would be so unlucky even in the way he landed.

It was not enough to be struck to death by lightning for no reason, but when he opened his eyes again, he was actually sitting in water.

He was still wearing the waiter uniform from before he died, and the small, crescent-like scar on his wrist was still there. It was his own body.

And there was no trace of being struck by lightning.

Xia Xingchi looked around and found that it was a rather large built-in circular bathtub.

The surroundings were quiet and tranquil, and only the beating of his own heart could be heard.

……The problem was, there was a person in the bathtub!

A bolt of lightning closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, he was just sitting in someone’s bathtub. Fortunately, his mental fortitude was strong enough to avoid freaking out on the spot.

Even so, his heart beat violently in an instant. However, he saw that the man was probably asleep, motionless with his eyes closed. Although he was soaking in steaming hot water, his face was pale and bloodless.

The man was as good looking as an immortal, his facial features as handsome as if they had been painstakingly painted. With wide shoulders and a narrow waist, he had a perfect figure, beautifully muscular with long, straight legs.

Therefore, Xia Xingchi stared at him for a long time before confirming that this was really a living person and not some super realistic robot.

Then what was going on with the current situation?

It was all too unbelievable. If you were struck by lightning, even if you didn’t die, you wouldn’t walk away unscathed.

He was convinced that he was dead. The horrible feeling of dying was too deep-set and unforgettable.

But the most urgent thing was to leave first. He would have to ignore everything else.

Xia Xingchi tried his best to move slowly, and stood up with caution.

It was impossible to be completely silent. The water droplets on his body converged into lines with his movements and fell back to the water’s surface, which was very distinct in the quiet bathroom, almost loud.

At this moment, the handsome man before him suddenly frowned as if he had noticed something, and was about to wake up.

Xia Xingchi was frightened, and quickly settled in place, maintaining a twisted posture that was half-sitting and half-standing. He didn’t even dare to take a breath.

The one who found that there was an extra person in the bathtub would not let him go easily.

What’s more, since even Xia Xingchi himself couldn’t figure out the situation, how could he explain to the police why he broke into a private residence?

He remained still until his legs went numb, and when he saw that the man showed no indication of waking up, Xia Xingchi continued to move slowly and cautiously.

The cheap plastic slippers he wore on that rainy day had been lost long before he died, and his bare feet slipped along the bottom of the bathtub.

He was secretly glad. Thankfully, he hadn’t smashed into the bathtub with an earth-shattering “boom,” but had appeared there silently instead. But in the next second, he realized that he had rejoiced too early —

It seemed that he had stepped on a bump on the edge of the bathtub, its form as smooth as a bar of soap, and his feet went out from under him immediately!

He fell straight back into the water!

Or in other words, he fell directly into the arms of the handsome naked man.

Unlucky people were unlucky until death, and some people were unlucky enough to drink cold water and get it stuck between their teeth.

– – –

And now, the handsome man from that time was standing in front of him, and he had knocked him into a wall. He was indeed an “acquaintance.”

---

[1] Tea art, in this instance, is referring to this character’s designation as the novel’s “green tea bitch.” ⮐

[2] The full saying is, “dog meat doesn’t deserve to appear at a feast as a dish,” and means that a person/thing is not qualified enough for something. ⮐

---

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Table of Contents >> Chapter Two

Author: Xuanlu Youyuan (玄鹿游原)

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Table of Contents:

Chapter 1	Chapter 17	Chapter 33
Chapter 2	Chapter 18	Chapter 34
Chapter 3	Chapter 19	Chapter 35
Chapter 4	Chapter 20	Chapter 36
Chapter 5	Chapter 21	Chapter 37
Chapter 6	Chapter 22	Chapter 38
Chapter 7	Chapter 23	Chapter 39
Chapter 8	Chapter 24	Chapter 40
Chapter 9	Chapter 25	Chapter 41
Chapter 10	Chapter 26	Chapter 42
Chapter 11	Chapter 27	Chapter 43
Chapter 12	Chapter 28	Chapter 44
Chapter 13	Chapter 29	Chapter 45
Chapter 14	Chapter 30	Chapter 46
Chapter 15	Chapter 31	Extra 1
Chapter 16	Chapter 32	Extra 2

The candlelight in the bedroom had been extinguished, and it was so silent that only the breathing of two people could be heard.

Zhao Yelan didn’t wait for the other party to speak, and simply asked: “What are you thinking about? The matter of Nanjiang?”

“En. I was wondering if someone in the court obtained the poison from Nanjiang and used it on my father,” Yan Mingting said.

People from Nanjiang were not allowed to enter Beijing unless they were summoned. Even if the summons came, they would be strictly guarded by the Imperial army. It was impossible for them to come in contact with ordinary people. However, Nanjiang had just asked the Xuan Dynasty for peace not long ago, and it was impossible for them to take the risk of poisoning the old general unless someone cooperated with Nanjiang or secretly obtained the poison from the Nanjiang envoy.

“En, we’ll continue to look into who was close to the Nanjiang envoy at that time. It would be even better to know the details of the pilgrimage,” Zhao Yelan said. “Li Jinyu was there, maybe he can make some inquiries.”

“But how do we get him to open his mouth?”

“Wait, and he will take the initiative to bring it to our door.”

Hearing these words, Yan Mingting’s tense strings finally loosened. He felt inexplicably relieved, and smiled: “Okay, I’ll listen to you.”

A day later, Li Yucheng came to the door again. This time he had timed it correctly in order to obstruct someone.

“Are your legs and feet feeling better?” Zhao Yelan looked at him with a half smile, then turned his head to look around. “How about hanging in that tree today?”

Li Yucheng’s face turned colors. He gritted his teeth and put on a show of strength to disguise his fear, saying: “Stop talking nonsense. Zhao Yelan, do you dare to gamble with me?”

“Gamble?” Zhao Yelan raised his eyebrows. “I do not agree.”

“Why don’t you agree?!”

“It is my prerogative to agree or to disagree.” 

Zhao Yelan turned his head to Gao Tan, who rushed over to greet him, saying: “Xiao Gao, see our guest off.”

“Yes.” After receiving the order, Xiao Gao lifted Li Yucheng up and carried him all the way to the Prime Minister’s mansion before dropping him.

“Ouch! Hey!” Li Yucheng fell, rubbing his buttocks as he stood up. He pointed at Gao Tan’s back and cursed, “All right, you brat, when I avenge myself, I will definitely treat you with extreme prejudice!”

“Aiya, Young Master, why did you go to provoke Zhao Yelan again?” A servant hurried out to support him, persuading earnestly, “The master has implored you again and again not to cause trouble, especially for Zhao Yelan. Why didn’t you listen?”

“What do you know? If neither of us say anything, who will find out?” Li Yucheng was helped all the way back to his room. Lying on the bed, the more he thought about it, the angrier he became. He beat the bed board. “I just can’t take it! Zhao Yelan used to flaunt his might and bully my father in court. Now that he’s been demoted, how dare he still disrespect me in public……hmph, I’ve already thought of a way to get revenge!”

He was not knowledgeable in literature, so he couldn’t compare to Zhao Yelan in that aspect. In terms of martial arts, he couldn’t win against that boy next to Zhao Yelan or against the vicious Yan Mingting. 

Therefore, he decided on another way – Gambling!

He had witnessed Zhao Yelan’s gambling skills with his own eyes and could easily win against him. Zhao Yelan only needed to make a big bet, and he could take revenge without hesitation.

Moreover, even Yan Mingting couldn’t help with this matter. Who let them take the bet, hehe.

“Go and take out all my personal money,” Li Yucheng ordered in a whisper. “Then take it to my gambling hall buddy……”

For the next few days, Li Yucheng went to the General’s Mansion, but Gao Tan carried him back and threw him to the ground every time. His ass almost broke apart.

“Are you really going to refuse him?” Yan Mingting asked as he held a carrot in his hand, feeding the rabbit.

“What do you think?” Zhao Yelan sat in the study, writing.

“It’s just a delay tactic. The less urgent you are, the more anxious he will be to draw you out. At that time, everyone outside will know that it was Li Yucheng who insisted on betting with you, rather than your deliberate plan,” Yan Mingting said.

Zhao Yelan nodded silently.

Yan Mingting put the carrots in the courtyard, and the rabbit jumped away from the door of the study to continue eating.

Zhao Yelan heard his footsteps approaching and said without raising his head: “Go and wash your hands.”

“I’ll go right away.” Yan Mingting put his hands behind his back and looked at the paper. “What are you writing?”

“I’m copying a book. Why, is there a problem?”

“You’re too busy copying books, why don’t you draw a big portrait of me?” Yan Mingting asked earnestly. He raised his head to look at the mountain landscape painting hanging in the room, and pointed to the figure on it. “This painting is very good, but it would be even better if the person in it was bigger.”

“Tacky.”

“So what if it’s tacky just once?”

“Won’t means won’t.” Zhao Yelan put down his brush, pushed him out the door, and locked it. Then he turned back and continued to copy the book quietly.

“Just draw a portrait.” A head poked in through the window, speaking pitifully.

“Don’t even think about it.” Zhao Yelan walked over and closed the window. Finally, there was no noise.

“I’ll pay, just name the price.” A tile on the roof was lifted, letting in some sunlight.

Zhao Yelan raised his head to stare at that extremely noisy face, gritting his teeth in fury as he said: “Yan Mingting, you just try to disturb me one more time.”

“In what way?”

Zhao Yelan raised his sleeve and reached into it with his hand.

Yan Mingting’s pupils trembled and he quickly turned his face away. The arrow brushed past his cheek.

He laughed out loud: “Not bad, the accuracy is well-controlled and your progress is very fast. As expected of my good disciple.”

As soon as he finished speaking, another arrow was launched at him. Truly exceedingly ruthless.

In the blink of an eye, it was a rest day. Zhao Yelan had left Li Yucheng alone for several days and finally agreed to gamble with him.

Li Yucheng was overjoyed, and hurriedly hired a sedan chair to take him to the gambling hall, gearing up to vent his anger.

After Yan Mingting received this news at the training grounds, he rushed to the gambling hall without stopping, He Cuizhang and Zhong Yuehong following in unison.

When the three of them arrived, the gambling hall was already packed, everyone gathered around the biggest table in the middle to watch Li Yucheng and Zhao Yelan’s game with interest.

It took Yan Mingting a long time to squeeze in through the crowd of excited gamblers and see Zhao Yelan sitting gracefully in his seat. However, his expression was not good. On the contrary, Li Yucheng waved his fan triumphantly with a pile of silver on the table before him.

“How is the situation looking?” He asked the people next to him.

“Zhao Yelan lost badly!”

“I think this Li Yucheng came prepared, he always refuses to yield. The bets are getting bigger and bigger, so exciting!”

“I want to see Zhao Yelan lose everything!”

“It will also be fun if Li Yucheng loses. It will be interesting no matter who loses, hahaha!”

“Why don’t we make a bet on who wins or loses today!”

Yan Mingting squeezed a few more steps forward and finally reached Zhao Yelan’s side. The two looked at each other, and he said righteously: “Zhao Yelan, come back with me. I won’t let you have a sword to bet on today.”

Hearing this, the others burst out laughing. Zhao Yelan losing Yan Mingging’s sword last time had become a big joke in the gambling hall, and now the joke was coming around again.

Li Yucheng was even more pleased. His eyes roamed around and fell on the sword Yan Mingting was carrying, and he said: “Zhao Yelan, how about betting that sword?”

Zhao Yelan raised his eyes: “Then what are you betting?”

Li Yucheng pushed forward all of the money in front of him: “Everything.”

There were exclamations all around, and everyone couldn’t wait to watch the show.

“No way,” Yan Mingting refused, but Zhao Yelan moved faster, snatching his sword and placing it on the table: “Deal.”

Li Yucheng was instantly overjoyed. He sent a covert, meaningful look at the dealer, and then looked at the two of them proudly.

“My lord, don’t bet on the sword, ah!” He Cuizhang and Zhong Yuehong shouted from the back row. “Those are the General’s treasures!”

“You guys shut up,” Li Yucheng shouted. “Since it’s already on the gambling table, you have no way to take it back, isn’t that right?”

“That’s right, ah! If you bet, you pay!” The gamblers echoed.

After opening the cup, Zhao Yelan’s face was ashen-colored. Li Yucheng moved forward gleefully to grab the silver and then pick up Yan Mingting’s sword. Glancing at it in disdain, he threw it to the servant boy: “Take it back and give it to the cook.”

He Cuizhang and Zhong Yuehong were furious, and didn’t know whether to be angrier at Li Yucheng or Zhao Yelan.

“Look what you did!” Yan Mingting scolded, and Zhao Yelan hung his head, saying nothing.

Seeing this, Li Yucheng’s desire for revenge became more and more exuberant. He would definitely ruin the two of them!

“Let’s stop playing bit by bit, how about just placing the big bets? Don’t you want to win it all back?”

Zhao Yelan asked: “How big?”

“A life or death situation where all wealth is on the table,” Li Yucheng said.

The servant quickly grabbed him and whispered: “Young master, that isn’t what you said before. Didn’t you just plan to win a little off him and stop after you made him lose face?”

“Go, go, go, stay to the side.” It was already to this point, so why should he hold back? Li Yucheng threw him off and looked directly at Zhao Yelan. “Zhao Yelan, let me ask – do you not dare?”

This method of aggression was the most useful for gamblers. Zhao Yelan’s eyes flashed: “Not dare? I will accompany you to the end.”

“Zhao Yelan!” Yan Mingting’s eyes darkened. He took his arm and was about to walk out.

“Yan Mingting, do you not know the rules of the gambling hall?” Li Yucheng yelled, and the others responded loudly, “That’s right, not allowed to go, not allowed to go!”

“Let go, it’s none of your business,” Zhao Yelan said coldly, breaking free of his grasp. He turned around and continued to sit at the table, looking at the exhilarated Li Yucheng. “If you lose, you are not allowed to renege on your debts.”

“This is natural. I bet ten thousand gold taels first!”

Everyone: “Ooh!”

Zhao Yelan also bet the same amount, and the two signed the papers in front of everyone.

Zhao Yelan bet big at the beginning, and a skilled gambler among the crowd saw this and shook his head with a sigh: “The dealer hasn’t even started to shake, and he bet blindly. This sort of gambling can’t be done purely by luck.”

“Li Yucheng will listen to the sound, anyway. Do you see that he is distinguishing it by the sound? Most likely, Li Yucheng is going to win, it’s looking good for him.”

“That’s right, this Li Yucheng’s luck is too good today for some reason. I think it’s probably a trick.”

“We won’t be lucky enough to see Zhao Yelan go bankrupt today, will we?”

“I’m going to call my buddies over to watch!”

When the dice cup stopped, Li Yucheng opened his eyes, laughed, and bet small with pride. He fanned his face and shook his head: “Zhao Yelan, Zhao Yelan, today you are done for. In terms of gambling skills, you are still a tender young master, while I –”

“Ah – !” Everyone looked down at the dice and exclaimed loudly.

Li Yuchung listened to their shouts and applause with satisfaction. He raised his hand to signal for silence and then turned his head to look at the dice: “Six……six, six, six?”

“Ah! Impossible!” Li Yucheng moved to the side of the dice cup in disbelief. He had obviously heard the sound of three ones!

Dumbfounded, he picked up the dice to check, and his face drained of blood. He flew into a rage, grabbing the dealer’s collar. “Didn’t you say there would be no problems? How could it be three sixes?!”

“I, I don’t know what is going on, ah.” The dealer said pleadingly.

“Why, did you bribe the dealer?” Zhao Yelan asked leisurely.

The others immediately looked at Li Yucheng in contempt. It was fine to give bribes, but he still lost after bribing him. How embarrassing!

“I didn’t!”

Li Yucheng immediately released the dealer. At this moment, the paper in front of him was taken away by a slender hand, and Zhao Yelan’s ghostly voice sounded in his ears: “I will give you one day to prepare the ten thousand gold taels. Any later, and I will chop off your hands and feet.”

Li Yucheng’s face went pale, and he fell to the ground limply. Looking at Zhao Yelan in a panic, he pulled at his clothes and said: “Let’s, let’s play again.”

“No need, ten thousand taels is enough for me.” Zhao Yelan took two steps back, smiled slightly, and bent down to pat his face. “The rule is that if you bet, you pay, as you have repeatedly emphasized. Could it be that after losing, you want to renege on your debts?”

“That’s right, you can’t renege on your debts!” He Cuizhang shouted loudly.

“That’s right, that’s right!” The others jeered. “Go back and prepare the gold, hahaha!”

Li Yucheng felt that the sky was falling. Where could he get so much gold, ah! Just when he was in despair, he suddenly saw Yan Mingting passing by him to pick up the sword on the table, his other hand stretched out.

“Childish.” Zhao Yelan said, and then smoothly gave him a high-five.

“So it turns out that you were acting as partners to deceive me!” Li Yucheng immediately got up and ran after them. “You planned to harm me!”

Zhao Yelan turned around and said with a smile: “You must show evidence. Who asked me to gamble over and over again? Who bought off the dealer? How did you lose, yet still want to make unfounded accusations? Can the son of the dignified Prime Minister only know how to play a scoundrel and frame others?”

Everyone pointed and looked at Li Yucheng. Li Yucheng looked around, and his eyes suddenly turned red as he covered his ears and fled.

“Xiao Gao, follow him, don’t let him commit suicide. Ensure that he returns to the mansion safely,” Zhao Yelan ordered, looking up at the sky. “No matter how hard Li Jinyu pretends to be deaf and dumb, he will have to step out the door for his stupid son.”

“En, wipe your hands first.” After the two got into a sedan chair, Yan Mingting took out a handkerchief and grabbed his hand to clean it.

Zhao Yelan looked down and wondered: “Why do you love cleanliness so much today?”

“You touched his face just now.” Yan Mingting wiped his hand vigorously.

“……”

Zhao Yelan withdrew his hand abruptly, looking at him with a complicated expression. He saw that the handkerchief in his hand was still the same one used to wipe his sweat at the training grounds last time.

“Stop the sedan chair,” Zhao Yelan called.

“What’s wrong?” Yan Mingting chased after him, puzzled. “Why aren’t you taking the sedan chair?”

Zhao Yelan walked forward on his own, Yan Mingting following. He was about to ask more questions when He Cuizhang and Zhong Yuehong also caught up. He Cuizhang said: “We were really scared to death just now, we almost thought Zhao-daren was really going to lose and go bankrupt!”

Zhong Yuehong: “That kid was really looking for a fight, he was going to throw away the General’s sword! I really want to beat him up!”

“No need, it’s understandable that he hates me,” Yan Mingting said.

“Hey, General, what are you holding in your hand?” With sharp eyes, Zhong Yuehong noticed that his sword had been hung on his waist at some point, and what he held in his hand was an embroidered brocade handkerchief.

“A handkerchief, can’t you see it?” Yan Mingting waved the handkerchief in front of them.

“I mean, General, why would you carry such a thing with you?!” Zhong Yuehong wasn’t aware that the General had such an interest.

Yan Mingting subconsciously glanced at Zhao Yelan’s figure. Coincidentally, Zhao Yelan looked back to see him smile and wipe his forehead with the handkerchief: “It’s a hot day, this is good for wiping sweat. What’s the problem?”

Zhao Yelan: “……”

He Cuizhang and Zhong Yuehong looked at their heroic general as he wiped his sweat pretentiously with a handkerchief, thinking: The problem is serious!

What’s more, it was already sunset. Where was the heat?!

---

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Chapter Thirty-Three <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Thirty-Five