Ye Lingling's Request, Xue Beng Comes Looking for Trouble Again
After hearing Ye Lingling out, Lin Chen did not answer immediately.
He stood outside the pavilion, tapping his fingers twice inside his sleeve, his mind full of questions.
Qian Renxue had only mentioned Ye Lingling to him yesterday, and then Dugu Yan had turned around and told him that Ye Lingling wanted to see him.
The thing was, it would have been one thing for her to seek him out, but he had barely sat down before she said she wanted to join the Crown Prince's Residence. It was a little too much of a coincidence.
At that thought, Lin Chen could not help growing suspicious. He looked Ye Lingling in the eyes, his tone more serious than before. "Why do you want to join the Crown Prince's Residence?"
Ye Lingling fell silent for a moment and lowered her eyes. After gathering her words, she spoke, a trace of sadness appearing in her eyes. "My mother fell seriously ill three months ago. Even the Nine Heart Begonia Martial Soul can't cure her illness."
Lin Chen nodded, signaling for Ye Lingling to continue.
"Because my mother's condition was getting worse and worse, I thought of asking the Heaven Dou Imperial Family for help, hoping they could find a way to save her. But then His Highness the Fourth Prince found out about it."
At this point, Ye Lingling dug her fingers into her palm. "After he found out, His Highness the Fourth Prince started coming to see me every day. He said that as long as I agreed to become his follower, he'd help treat my mother."
Lin Chen frowned strangely. "You certainly didn't want to become his follower, did you?"
"Not at all." Ye Lingling shook her head and answered bluntly, "I hate him. I hate him very much."
Lin Chen nodded. That was the truth. With Xue Beng's damned behavior, no normal girl would want to follow him.
At that thought, Lin Chen asked evenly, "Because you hate Xue Beng, you decided to join the Crown Prince's Residence?"
Ye Lingling shook her head. "I want to join the Crown Prince's Residence not because of His Highness the Fourth Prince, nor because of His Highness the Crown Prince, but because of you."
"Me?" Lin Chen pointed at himself, somewhat surprised.
Ye Lingling nodded and began to explain. "A month ago, I heard that Yanyan's Martial Soul had evolved and the poison in her body had all been cured."
At this point, Ye Lingling raised her eyes to Lin Chen. "Afterward, I asked Yanyan, and she said you were the one who cured her poison."
Hearing this, Lin Chen nodded in sudden understanding. "So you want me to treat your mother?"
"Yes." Ye Lingling nodded and said earnestly, "I originally wanted to go straight to the Crown Prince's Residence to find you, but you weren't in Heaven Dou City."
"After that, I asked Yanyan about you. She told me to wait for you to return and that you'd come see me when you had time."
"Because my mother's condition kept getting worse, I was almost at the point where I couldn't hold out any longer and was going to agree to His Highness the Fourth Prince's terms. Then you came back."
At this point, Ye Lingling paused, then added, "Joining the Crown Prince's Residence is my decision. It has nothing to do with my family. Besides, apart from my mother and me, there actually aren't many people left in the Nine Heart Begonia family."
Hearing this, Lin Chen felt slightly relieved. At least it was not the Nine Heart Begonia family fanning the flames behind the scenes.
If it really had been the Nine Heart Begonia family's arrangement, he would have had to wonder whether Ye Lingling's visit was a scheme Qian Renxue had laid in advance.
At that thought, Lin Chen smiled and nodded. "I can help take a look at your mother."
But Lin Chen did not make any definite promises. "I can't guarantee I'll be able to cure her, though. It's not as if I specialize in difficult illnesses. I was able to cure Yanyan's poison last time because the circumstances were special."
When Ye Lingling heard that Lin Chen was willing to help, her expression finally shifted from its usual calm, and a faint glimmer appeared in her eyes. "Thank you."
She stood up and was just about to offer to take Lin Chen to see her mother when a rapid series of footsteps suddenly came from outside the courtyard gate.
"Miss Ye, I've come to see you. Have you given my earlier proposal any thought?"
Xue Beng's voice drifted in from outside, carrying that infuriatingly punchable tone. Lin Chen immediately frowned and turned toward the courtyard gate.
Xue Beng swaggered into the courtyard in a golden brocade robe, his hair slicked until it gleamed. Two burly servants followed behind him.
A grass stem hung from his mouth, and his face wore that standard profligate's smile.
But the moment Xue Beng entered the courtyard, he saw Lin Chen sitting in the room, and the smile froze on his face.
"...Why are you here?" The grass stem fell from Xue Beng's mouth. He took half a step back and instinctively felt his waist.
Lin Chen slowly stood up, his gaze turning cold as he looked at Xue Beng. "I came to visit Ye Lingling. But what about you, Fourth Prince? Why aren't you attending your lessons instead of running over here?"
Xue Beng squirmed under Lin Chen's stare, but with his two servants watching from behind him, he certainly could not back down.
Xue Beng puffed out his chest, raised his chin a little higher, and said arrogantly, "I'll see whoever I want. What the hell is it to you? You're just a servant of the Crown Prince's Residence. Do you really think you're somebody?"
Lin Chen sneered without a word and simply took a step forward.
Xue Beng's expression changed, and the two servants immediately stepped in front of him, protecting him from either side.
The servant on the left even made a show of rolling up his sleeve, revealing a thick arm.
Lin Chen stopped and looked at the two burly men blocking his path, the corners of his mouth curving upward.
He glanced back at Ye Lingling, then turned to Xue Beng again. "Fourth Prince, I suggest you pretend you never came here today. Otherwise, you'll have to be carried back again. Imagine how much face the Heaven Dou Imperial Family would lose."
"You!" Xue Beng's face flushed red with anger. He was about to fly into a rage, but when he thought of the back injury he had suffered in the last beating, he swallowed the words on the tip of his tongue and merely glared viciously at Lin Chen.
The two servants beside him exchanged a glance. Sensing the faint pressure emanating from Lin Chen, a chill ran through their hearts, and they backed away.
"You two, stop right there! What are you so afraid of?" Xue Beng angrily kicked the servant beside him and looked fiercely at Lin Chen. "I suggest you stay out of this. Miss Ye and I have already reached an agreement!"
Lin Chen turned to Ye Lingling and asked with a smile, "Is that true?"
Ye Lingling shook her head and stepped forward. "Please conduct yourself with dignity, Fourth Prince. I haven't agreed to anything with you."
Xue Beng took two steps forward and lowered his voice. "You'd better think this through. I'm the only one who can help with your mother's illness. Not just anyone can make connections with Prince Xue Xing."
He glanced at Lin Chen, his tone disdainful. "You don't think finding him will be enough, do you? You're being rather naive, Miss Ye."
When Lin Chen heard that, he laughed out loud.
"Whether I can do it or not, what the hell is it to you?" Lin Chen glanced at Xue Beng, his voice full of coldness. "Starting today, the Crown Prince's Residence will handle Ye Lingling's affairs."
"The Crown Prince's Residence?" Xue Beng frowned, a flicker of unease crossing his face. "What do you mean by that?"
"Exactly what I said," Lin Chen replied calmly. "Brother Xue already knows about this. If you don't believe me, go back and ask your uncle. See if Prince Xue Xing dares to oppose the Crown Prince over this."
Xue Beng's face stiffened.
Of course he knew how much influence Xue Qinghe wielded. The Crown Prince had overseen the state for years, and more than half the people at court had been promoted by him.
Although Prince Xue Xing held a certain position within the imperial family, if he really went head-to-head with the Crown Prince's Residence, he would gain no advantage at all.