Lin Qingye's Decision

"You misunderstood. I didn't mean it would be difficult. I was just confirming something with you—are you really planning to deal with them?" Lin Qingye asked Lin Yu in an odd tone over the phone.

Lin Yu frowned. Though he could not guess exactly what his old man intended to do, he figured it would not be anything pleasant. After a moment of silence, he said to Lin Qingye, "I just want them to receive the punishment they deserve. Human trafficking—Dad, do you honestly think that doesn't deserve punishment?"

The sound of a lighter came through the phone, followed by a deep inhale. Lin Qingye said to Lin Yu, "I understand. You don't need to concern yourself with the rest. I'll give them a punishment they'll never forget."

Half an hour after Lin Qingye hung up and gave his assistant instructions, a videotape was placed on his desk.

Lin Qingye did not play the tape. Instead, he tucked it deep into a drawer. He knew those people had become history, and this videotape was the last record of them before they went into the ground.

A few more ginseng plants that would never grow tall had appeared on the back mountain. Lin Qingye muttered to himself as he drank his tea, then looked up and continued handling the other official affairs of Aolai City.

After working for a while, his assistant, having cleaned the dirt off himself, returned to report to Lin Qingye. Once Lin Qingye had heard him out, he casually handed the videotape over and calmly instructed,

"Send this back to my city lord's residence. Let Yu'er watch it too. Consider it an explanation for him."

After watching the videotape just after finishing a meal, Lin Yu wolfed down another three bowls of rice. A doggerel verse practically slipped from his lips: "I live in the Aolai City Lord's Residence, and I'm skilled at turning living people into big trees."

He had never expected that joke from the internet would become reality in this world after he had been sent away by a truck. It left Lin Yu both amused and helpless.

The following days were calm and uneventful. Lin Yu did not, like Tang Wulin, take Na'er as his little sister to grow closer to her. To their family, Na'er was merely a child temporarily staying with them.

Meanwhile, Na'er had been observing Lin Yu's every move. Lin Qingye also had someone conduct a martial soul awakening for Na'er, but as expected, she was unable to awaken a martial soul.

Other than the variable he had created himself—Tang Wulin, rather than him, being the one who saved Na'er—nothing else had changed much. Lin Yu was fairly satisfied with that.

One evening several days later, Lin Qingye called Lin Yu into his room.

The moment Lin Yu stepped through the door, Lin Qingye said, "That little girl you brought back didn't awaken a martial soul. You know about that, right?"

Lin Yu nodded, then asked Lin Qingye, "I was there for it too. Dad, what exactly are you trying to say?"

Lin Qingye said, "I'm planning to send her to Violet Private Noble Academy. They have classes for ordinary people there as well, and they teach a bit more than Red Mountain."

Lin Yu could not help frowning slightly. He then said to Lin Qingye, "Dad, is that really necessary? We don't have the connections those old fogies do. Forcing her in and making her fit in there won't be a good thing."

Lin Qingye took a deep breath and said to Lin Yu, "You're looking at this too narrowly. Once you become a soul master, having someone around you who can build ties with those people will make things much more convenient."

Lin Yu frowned and said, "Her background and identity still haven't been investigated clearly. Dad, aren't you afraid of offending someone formidable?"

Lin Qingye waved a hand and said, "We haven't done anything. We're merely sending her to a school. I believe the people behind her won't be that unreasonable."

The people behind her might not even be human, and you still want to judge them by human logic. But Lin Yu could not say such a thing directly to Lin Qingye, leaving him somewhat troubled.

Seeing Lin Yu like this, Lin Qingye knew he was hesitant, but he still decided to proceed according to his original plan.

Lin Yu discussed it with Lin Qingye for two more rounds. Once he confirmed that Lin Qingye had made up his mind, he said, "All right, Father. But I have one request."

Lin Qingye nodded, then said to Lin Yu, "I'll leave it to you to send Na'er to that school."

Lin Yu's eyes widened slightly. As expected, old ginger is spicier. Talking to Lin Qingye, some matters were exhausting, while others did not seem so difficult after all.

Lin Yu naturally did not bother with empty pleasantries. He nodded at Lin Qingye, then turned and left his study.

Since Na'er had arrived at the Lin Residence, this was the first time Lin Qingye had knocked on her door.

Na'er fell silent in her room for a moment before opening the door.

Lin Yu walked in, skillfully took a seat in a nearby chair, then gestured for Na'er to sit on the edge of the bed.

"Brother Yu, what is it?" Na'er asked as she sat on the bed, her feet dangling in the air and gently swinging.

Lin Yu explained everything about Violet Noble Academy, placing particular emphasis on the temperaments of those former dynasty officials. Then he asked Na'er, "Do you want to attend that school?"

Avoiding Lin Yu's gaze, Na'er's eyes deepened slightly. She then nodded and said to him, "I'll listen to Brother Lin Yu."

Lin Yu looked at Na'er in surprise. Seeing the firmness in her eyes and that she did not seem to be putting on an act, he nodded.

If Na'er still agreed after learning the situation, it would reduce the chance of him becoming entangled in the risks.

If Na'er was truly willing, Lin Yu actually preferred for her to enter Violet Noble Academy rather than attend Red Mountain Junior Academy alongside Tang Wulin and himself.

Reducing Na'er's contact with Tang Wulin would be a good thing for Lin Yu. If he could keep the bond between Gu Yuena and Tang Wulin from growing too deep, then Gu Yuena would most likely simply devour Tang Wulin.

And if Gu Yuena did that, it would inevitably draw out Tang Hao behind him, as well as Tang San's divine consciousness hidden within Tang Wulin.

The more fiercely those two sides exhausted each other, the more chances Lin Yu would have to reap benefits in secret.

These thoughts passed through Lin Yu's mind in an instant. For now, it seemed that he had not attracted Tang Hao's attention. That was fortunate as well.

Na'er did not know what Lin Yu was thinking. She merely felt that joining a school founded by the former imperial family would allow her to understand the underlying rules of the human world more quickly.

Two days later, Lin Yu deliberately took leave and personally brought Na'er to Violet Noble Academy.

Looking at the school gate inlaid with pure gold and the main road paved with gold bricks, Lin Yu gained a new appreciation for just how extravagant this school was...