CHAPTER 270: CHAPTER 157-158: CONFLICTED / GRADUATION

"Brother Ye, thank you, and... I’m sorry!" Ye’er finally lifted her head after a long silence, her eyes brimming with gratitude and guilt.

"Little girl, you stayed quiet for so long, I thought you were mad at me. I’m not good at cheering up girls, was getting worried there." Ye Xuan, feeling a weight lifted off his shoulders, tousled Ye’er’s hair: "Why be so formal with me? After all, we’ve fought side by side, right?"

Ye’er looked earnestly at Ye Xuan, "Brother Ye, actually... I understand. Choosing you for the responsibility, beyond your capabilities, the main reason was for your identity as the eldest legitimate grandson of the Ye Family, counting on the Ye Family’s power to suppress this incident. If we succeed, everyone’s happy; if we fail, it would damage the Ye Family. I believe, you are aware of all this, or perhaps even clearer about it than I am.

But still, you took it on, knowing full well there is suspicion of being used, yet you still accepted it. I think, apart from what you mentioned, there’s another reason, right? It’s to protect me, to keep me from being exposed, isn’t it?"

"Ye’er..." Ye Xuan was somewhat sheepish and at a loss for words. Indeed, this was the critical reason for him taking on the case.

He had discussed with Jiang Zheng and Luo Zhenggang, and they firmly agreed not to reveal Ye’er’s involvement in the investigation. The other person aware of the matter was Qian Mei, now renamed Sang Qingqing.

Initially, their greatest worry was Qian Mei. They never imagined Ye’er’s inherent goodwill towards Qian Mei would lead her to regard Ye’er as the most important person in her life. After a simple hint from Jiang Zheng, Qian Mei caught on immediately. She was a woman who could handle all sides with ease; covering up for such matters was a piece of cake for her.

Even so, he worried that if things got out of control and led to unpredictable outcomes, he wouldn’t want people to take note of Ye’er too soon. Such an exceptionally intelligent girl, if exposed, would she still have the chance to live peacefully and finish her university education?

Her strengths need to shine in her own domain, this kind of excessive cleverness would just make some people guard against her too early. He wanted to give her enough room to grow stronger, hence, he preferred being used to taking on the case.

Regarding his decision, most of the family disagreed. Had they not ultimately convinced Grandpa, it’s uncertain how things would have turned out.

"Brother Ye, thank you, really!" Ye’er got up, moved behind Ye Xuan, and hugged the still sheepish Ye Xuan, burying her face in his shoulder, letting her tears wet his clothes.

His expression had said it all. At this moment, she was truly grateful and didn’t know how to express it - it seemed only a hug could convey her heartfelt thanks!

When she first undertook all this, she was only thinking about defeating the opposition, to save her entire family. As for how to stay safe after the fact, she had prepared for the worst, just join the workforce earlier if it came to that.

But she had never expected that behind Liu Zhengxing lay a power of such magnitude, which likely also explained the key to his smooth sailing in his previous life. With a massive chain of interests backing him, how could any normal storm tip his boat?

Feeling both frightened and relieved afterward, if Qian Mei hadn’t made a snap decision, the longer the Liu case dragged on, the harder it would have become to handle. If the opposition sensed something was wrong and got prepared, the outcome would have been unimaginable.

This was a lesson for her, never to be blindly confident in the future. If it wasn’t for Ye Xuan’s perseverance this time... she dared not think deeper about it.

Her slender body softly and warmly pressed against his back, her light girlish scent wafting over, Ye Xuan felt somewhat flustered, his ears discreetly reddening. After hesitating for a moment, "Silly girl, it’s all in the past, don’t cry. You and Uncle Luo will be fine, don’t worry."

Lifting her head, Ye’er let out a "Pfft" and laughed.

She was about 166 cm tall now, and seated on a sofa stool, Ye Xuan was naturally a bit shorter than her, which gave her a very balanced feeling.

With tears still in her eyes and yet a moving smile on her face, Ye Xuan was momentarily confused. What’s with this mixture of tears and laughter?

After mulling it over, associating it with the height disparity, Ye Xuan embarrassingly touched his head, "Ye’er, it’s been a half month since I had my hair cut."

Ye’er glanced at Ye Xuan’s hair, slightly longer than a crew cut, and laughed even harder. After a while, she stopped laughing and said, "Brother Ye, what has that got to do with your hair?"

With her fair little face blushing, her bright eyes shining like stars, she stood gracefully like a budding magnolia. As Ye Xuan’s eyes met such a pure and bewitching young girl, his heart inexplicably skipped a beat, and then he scolded himself – she’s still a kid! He coughed slightly to cover up: "Then what are you laughing at?"