Excited my ass!
Lin Xiuyan wanted to curse out loud!
Only now did she finally understand what he meant by "taking responsibility":
She had seen him naked but there was no follow-up—he wanted her to be his lover!
Ye Junfei was very satisfied with her reaction: "Then it's settled."
Lin Xiuyan: "…"
Who settled anything with him!
Ye Junfei reached out and tapped her nose: "Look at your silly expression—you must be overjoyed."
Lin Xiuyan thought his eyes must be truly blind—which part of her looked overjoyed?
Ye Junfei lay down on the bed: "I'm hungry. Have the kitchen prepare six or seven kinds of pastries. I want honey date cakes and thousand-layer crisps; the rest can be whatever."
Lin Xiuyan instinctively went downstairs and told the maid to inform the kitchen.
Only after giving the order did she realize—this wasn't her past life!
Why should she listen to him? She really had been driven mad by him!
She turned and went back upstairs, only to find him already up. At some point, he had opened her hidden cabinet and was playing with the various weapons she had collected. Her headache instantly worsened.
This bastard really didn't treat himself like an outsider!
Ye Junfei picked up a Liannu and said, "Other young ladies' rooms are filled with jewelry and accessories, but your hobbies are a bit unusual!"
Since childhood, Lin Xiuyan had been different from ordinary girls. While other girls were just learning to hold a needle, she could already shoot down flying birds with a slingshot.
By the time other girls could embroider decent patterns, she could already draw intricate blueprints and craft sophisticated weapons herself.
Lin Yunzhi had always doted on her. Seeing her interest in these things, he collected various Jigua blueprints and books for her.
Linfu had plenty of money, and precious materials were bought without a second thought.
The Liannu in his hand was one she had modified based on the ancient weapons master's "Jigua Jiemi."
With a single reload, it could fire ten arrows consecutively. Its accuracy and range far surpassed ordinary crossbows, and its power was astonishing.
Her talent in this area was exceptional. In her past life, to help Zhou Chenyang deal with the Pingnan Wangfu, she had devoted herself to weapon development and had become a renowned weapons master before her death.
In this life, although she had created some weapons, she hadn't put them to use. To outsiders, it seemed more like mischief.
Seeing Ye Junfei pointing the Liannu at her, her hair stood on end: "Put it down now!"
Ye Junfei had no intention of listening to her. He pulled the Jigua, and she cursed, swiftly dodging.
Ten arrows shot out in succession, each embedding deep into the wall behind her, with only the fletching barely visible.
Such power made even Ye Junfei's expression change.
He had noticed earlier that this Liannu was somewhat special, but he assumed it was just a small toy, typical of a girl's boudoir.
He never expected this "toy" to be so formidable!
This female prodigal seemed even more interesting than he had anticipated.
She rushed over and snatched the Liannu from his hand: "Didn't your father teach you not to touch other people's things?"
Ye Junfei glanced at her sideways, his tone indifferent: "My father died early. No one ever taught me such things."
Lin Xiuyan: "…"
Remembering the lively Prince of Pingnan, she silently lit a candle for him in her heart.
"Where did this come from?" Ye Junfei asked.
Lin Xiuyan certainly wouldn't tell him the truth: "I bought it while traveling—it looked fun, so I picked it up casually."
She desperately wanted to turn the Liannu around and shoot him dead on the spot, but considering his formidable martial arts skills, she likely wouldn't succeed. Instead, she'd only end up suffering more under his torment.
She held back!
Ye Junfei gave her a cool glance and said, "Liar."
Lin Xiuyan didn't argue with him, only saying, "Young master…"
"My name is Ye Junfei," Ye Junfei interrupted her. "You can call me Junfei, or you can call me Yelang."
Lin Xiuyan: "…"
Junfei? Yelang?
Ugh!
Were they that close?
She took a deep breath and said, "Young Master Ye, I'm about to get married. If someone discovers a man hidden in my boudoir, I'll be ruined!"
"I beg you, please let me go!"
Ye Junfei smiled. "Hiding a man in your boudoir clearly suggests an affair. Sounds thrilling—we could give it a try."
Lin Xiuyan: "…"
She felt like cursing again.
Just then, there was a knock on the door, and Jiang Xinrou's voice came through. "Cousin, may I come in?"
Ye Junfei leaned close to Lin Xiuyan's ear and whispered, "How about letting your cousin be the first to discover our affair?"
His warm breath brushed against her ear, sending tingles of numbness and itchiness through her. Her legs began to weaken again.
Struggling to keep her voice steady, she firmly refused, "No!"
Jiang Xinrou reluctantly withdrew her hand from the door and said softly, "Cousin, I have something I want to tell you."
Lin Xiuyan's mind was in turmoil, and she had no desire to speak with her. She replied bluntly, "I don't want to hear it. Keep it to yourself!"
The conflict between her and Jiang Xinrou could be summed up in six words: the fable of the scholar and the wolf.
Jiang Xinrou was her aunt's daughter. Her mother and her aunt were twins.
Her aunt had passed away early, and her aunt's husband's new wife couldn't tolerate Jiang Xinrou, so her mother brought Jiang Xinrou home to live with them from a young age.
Jiang Xinrou had always been clever, talented, and beautiful, earning praise from everyone. Even her own mother once sighed, wishing Jiang Xinrou were her daughter.
Jiang Xinrou sobbed softly outside the door. "I know you're angry with me for not accompanying you out to play yesterday."
"But today, you've already hit me and scolded me. Shouldn't your anger have subsided by now?"
Just as Lin Xiuyan was about to speak, Ye Junfei blew a gentle breath into her ear, causing her whole body to tremble uncontrollably.
Lin Xiuyan couldn't help but curse, "Are you insane?!"
Ye Junfei raised an eyebrow.
Jiang Xinrou, thinking the curse was directed at her, twisted the handkerchief in her hands and said, "Cousin, it doesn't matter how angry you are with me."
"But if you distance yourself from the City Lord because of your anger toward me, then I truly deserve to die a thousand deaths."
Today, Lin Xiuyan's sudden return had ruined her and Zhou Chenyang's plans.
After thinking it over, she concluded that Lin Xiuyan couldn't possibly have discovered anything. Lin Xiuyan's actions were likely just out of anger toward her; otherwise, she wouldn't have hit her as soon as she returned.
After all, Lin Xiuyan had always been thoughtless and couldn't possibly have uncovered the issues with Xinzhitang.
As long as Linfu invested in Xinzhitang, Linfu would eventually belong to her.
Now, all she needed to do was persuade Lin Xiuyan, and there would still be a chance to salvage the situation.
Agitated by Ye Junfei's antics, Lin Xiuyan snapped impatiently, "Then go die!"
Jiang Xinrou: "…"
Lin Xiuyan's temper was unusually fierce today!
Suppressing her frustration, she sobbed, "Cousin, Xinzhitang really is the City Lord's business."
"You've always been asking me how to win the city lord's favor, haven't you? Investing in Xinzhitang is a method I've thought of for you with great effort."
"What you did today will surely anger the city lord. Cousin, you must think this through carefully!"
Lin Xiuyan wanted to grab Ye Junfei's mischievous hands, but he wouldn't let her catch them. Enraged, the two swiftly exchanged a few moves.
Jiang Xinrou waited outside for a long time without hearing her speak. Pressing her ear against the door, she heard strange sounds. Puzzled, she leaned her eye close to the crack in the door to look…