Wang Xinyan shot Chu Mengyao a look as she watched Ye Bufan’s stunned expression.
Ye Bufan also realized his lapse in composure and quickly stood up from the floor, asking Wang Xinyan, “What are you two here for?”
“Oh, it’s not that someone insisted on sleeping on the third floor. Chu Chu and I figured it would be too unsafe to be alone on the second floor, so we came to another room on the third floor to sleep,” Wang Xinyan said casually, though inwardly she was scolding Ye Bufan. She and Chu Chu were not unattractive, and many people would jump at the chance to stay in the same villa as them, yet Ye Bufan still wanted to maintain some distance.
As Wang Xinyan was the owner of the villa, Ye Bufan couldn’t say much and could only obediently return to his room.
The next morning, by the artificial lake of Xiangshan Villa.
Under a tall banyan tree, Ye Bufan sat cross-legged, circulating the “Nine Revolutions Heaven-Reaching Technique” within his body.
After entering a state of cultivation in Wang Xinyan’s villa last night, Ye Bufan discovered that the spiritual energy in the Wang family villa was slightly more concentrated than in the Chu family villa.
Through analysis and exploration, Ye Bufan found that the reason for the dense spiritual energy in Xiangshan Villa seemed to be this artificial lake in the villa area. The Wang family villa was closer to the artificial lake, hence the more concentrated spiritual energy compared to the Chu family villa.
Ye Bufan leaped into the water to investigate but found nothing unusual. He then returned to shore.
As dawn broke, Ye Bufan went directly to the lakeside, found a comfortable spot, and began his cultivation.
As the sun rose in the east, accompanied by a purple aura, several invisible vortices formed around Ye Bufan, madly absorbing the purple energy from all directions.
The purple energy, essence of the sun and moon, could refine the internal true qi into a purer state. For Ye Bufan, this was the period of the day with the highest cultivation efficiency.
By the time Ye Bufan opened his eyes again, it was well past midday.
The sun had fully risen, and the purple energy had vanished. Ye Bufan got up, preparing to leave.
“Ye Bufan!” Wang Xinyan’s voice echoed from afar. Ye Bufan turned to see Wang Xinyan, clad in sportswear, jogging towards him along the artificial lake.
“How could you leave my villa?” Wang Xinyan demanded, hands on her hips, her eyes wide with anger. She continued, “What if Chu Chu encounters any danger again?”
“But she didn’t encounter any danger, did she?” Ye Bufan replied.
“You…” Wang Xinyan was momentarily speechless. “I said ‘what if.’ What if?”
“What if, don’t you and Chu Mengyao also have the portable jade pendants I made?” Ye Bufan responded.
Wang Xinyan rolled her eyes in frustration. “You’re such a blockhead. Let’s talk business. Chu Chu asked me to tell you that she’s already had someone clean up your villa.”
“Where is she?” Ye Bufan asked.
“She left. The Chu family was just hit by the Yang family, and Chu Chu is rushing back to clean up the mess,” Wang Xinyan said. “Also, Chu Chu just called me saying someone came to find you and is waiting at your villa door.”
“Who?” Ye Bufan was curious to hear that someone was looking for him.
Wang Xinyan chuckled. “I’m not telling you. You’ll know when you go there yourself.”
Upon hearing this, Ye Bufan turned and headed in the direction of his villa.
“Hey! What kind of person are you? Not even a thank you?” Wang Xinyan called out from behind.
“Thank you,” Ye Bufan replied immediately.
Ye Bufan hurried back to the villa and saw a car parked outside. A driver was in the front, and a middle-aged man in his late forties or early fifties, wearing metal-rimmed glasses, sat in the back.
Their eyes met. Ye Bufan opened the door and walked into the villa. The man unhurriedly got out of the car and followed him, about to enter.
Unexpectedly, Ye Bufan ignored him and simply closed the door.
“Ye Bufan,” the man said, slightly frowning, a hint of displeasure on his face.
“May I ask who you are…” Ye Bufan turned to look at the man, who seemed surprised that Ye Bufan didn’t recognize him.
“I am Liu Sheng,” Liu Sheng said.
Ye Bufan glanced at him and replied, “I don’t know you.”
“I am Liu Ruoyan’s father!” Liu Sheng told Ye Bufan. “I’m here today to discuss the marriage engagement.”
Ye Bufan looked at Liu Sheng, and Liu Sheng looked back. Finally, Ye Bufan let Liu Sheng into the villa.
The two sat facing each other in the living room of the villa.
“I’ve been in Jinhe for quite some time. Uncle Liu is finally willing to see me?” Ye Bufan poured Liu Sheng a cup of tea.
Liu Sheng’s mouth twitched slightly. He knew Ye Bufan was referring to him, operating behind the scenes.
When Ye Bufan visited that day, Liu Sheng was at his company and only found out after receiving a call from his wife, Liao Yuan. Upon hearing that Yang Fei was very displeased with Ye Bufan, he planned to suppress Ye Bufan through the Yang family, forcing Ye Bufan to retreat. However, he never expected things to escalate to this point, resulting in heavy losses for the Liu family.
“Because of your matter with the Yang family, could I not come?” Liu Sheng said sarcastically.
While the Yang family had only lost face over this matter, the Liu family had suffered a dual blow to their reputation and finances. The Liu family had now become a laughingstock in the entire Jinhe City, burdened with the stigma of betrayal, which had also directly led to the termination of several of the Liu family’s partnerships.
Ye Bufan remained silent, taking a sip of tea.
Liu Sheng continued, “Nephew Bufan, could you do Uncle a favor and speak out, saying that your engagement with our Liu family has already been called off? You can leave the rest to me. I will buy off the media, and we’ll end this matter. I’m begging you, please fulfill Ruoyan’s wish to be with Young Master Yang Er.”
As he spoke, Liu Sheng took out a bank card from his pocket and handed it to Ye Bufan.
“There’s fifty million in here. Take it. It can basically guarantee you a comfortable life for the rest of your days, and even your descendants will have enough to live on for a lifetime,” Liu Sheng added.
Ye Bufan looked at the bank card on the table and frowned.
“Actually, I went to your house that day because I wanted to break off the engagement,” Ye Bufan stated.
Liu Sheng’s eyes flickered upon hearing Ye Bufan’s words. He said, “Then that’s perfect. We’ll fulfill you, and you’ll fulfill us.”
“But why don’t you believe me?” Ye Bufan asked. “You don’t believe me now, do you? You just want to quickly resolve the current predicament of the Huang family.”
“Isn’t that the case?” Liu Sheng took a deep breath. “Look, you’ve now hitched yourself to the Chu family, who are even wealthier than our Liu family, and you’ve even obtained a villa like this in Xiangshan. Your goal has been achieved.”
Ye Bufan smiled at Liu Sheng, not understanding why everyone assumed he was after status, position, or wealth.
“That’s not true,” Chu He’s voice boomed powerfully from the doorway at that moment.
Ye Bufan looked towards Chu He. He clasped his hands in a salute to Ye Bufan and said, “Mr. Ye. I didn’t expect to hear such remarks about you the moment I arrived, so I let myself in. Please forgive my intrusion.”
Ye Bufan nodded and said it was fine. At the same time, Ye Bufan was deeply moved. Chu He’s use of “Mr.” and “You” was intended to show Liu Sheng Ye Bufan’s extraordinary nature, and to prove Ye Bufan’s worth.
Liu Sheng frowned upon witnessing this scene.
“Patriarch Liu, it seems your years in business have clouded your judgment. You see everyone as someone trying to flatter you,” Chu He said as he walked in.