Chapter 511: Chapter 521 The Old Master’s Request
Li Yifei knew that the Old Master would ask such a question, and he didn’t conceal anything as he spoke, "Grandfather, to be frank, when Yingying and I got married, I never intended to divorce her, and I even have a child outside, whom we have now brought back."
The Old Master’s face darkened as he asked, "So you mean to say, you cannot marry our Ye Family’s Yunzhu?"
Li Yifei sighed, not because the Old Master was getting angry, but because he felt guilty towards Ye Yunzhu, saying, "Yunzhu was my first love, and I remained unmarried all these years precisely because of her. But after meeting again, some accidents happened, preventing us from being together. Since I am already married to Yingying, I cannot neglect my responsibilities towards her."
"Yunzhu is even carrying your child, and you don’t want to take responsibility for her?" The Old Master set down his teacup and stared at Li Yifei with a sharp glint in his eyes, as if ready to explode if he didn’t get a satisfactory answer.
Li Yifei shook his head and responded, "It’s not that I don’t want to take responsibility for Yunzhu, but I am now caught between a rock and a hard place. To leave Yingying would hurt her, yet not to marry Yunzhu would hurt her as well."
"A real man makes decisive decisions, not dilly-dallying like this."
A smile appeared on Li Yifei’s face as he said, "Grandfather, if matters of the heart could also be handled so clearly, the world would be much quieter."
"What exactly do you mean, then?"
"Grandfather, can you give me some time on this matter? I’ll handle it slowly. Besides, this is a matter for us young people. Why should you trouble yourself with it?"
"You brat, are you saying I’m too old now?"
"That’s not it. But really, there’s no point in your getting involved in such things. We might as well make our own decisions."
Li Yifei remained neither servile nor arrogant, maintaining the same attitude regardless of whether the Old Master bristled with anger or banged the table.
"Fine, fine, you’re as hard and as stinky as a stone in a ditch," the Old Master conceded, no longer pressuring him. "However, if you think our Ye Family’s Yunzhu will continue to be with you without any clarity or honor, then you will have to solve a problem for our Ye Family."
Li Yifei chuckled inwardly, knowing the Old Master had been making a fuss to lead up to this very thing, but he didn’t let the amusement show as he replied, "Tell me what it is, Grandfather. As long as it’s not too difficult for me, I will do my best to help."
"You’re even setting conditions with me now," the Old Master grumbled as he gave Li Yifei a displeased look before slowly saying, "You know about the large families in our provincial city, right?"
Li Yifei nodded and replied, "I do know a bit, but I’m not that familiar with their actual strength. The only conflict I’ve had was with the Song Family, Song Ziqiao had me break his leg."
A smile appeared on the Old Master’s face as he said, "The thing I want you to do is to deal with the Song Family. You have a grudge with them already, so you shouldn’t object, right?"
Li Yifei took a sip of tea and replied, "If the Song Family plans to target the Ye Family, I can lend a hand, but if they have not done anything to the Ye Family, I will not take the initiative to target them. Grandfather, this is my principle: I do not provoke others unless provoked. I just want to live a normal life."
The Old Master also sipped his tea and spoke methodically, "Among the major families in our provincial city, our Ye Family is currently the weakest, while the Song Family is the strongest. We wanted Yunzhu to marry into the Lin family to form an alliance to confront the Song Family. Now, without the Lin family’s support, the Song Family will definitely move against us. Our Ye Family doesn’t have the strength to contend with the Song Family. By getting Yunzhu pregnant, you have deprived us of a support, and naturally, it’s up to you to make up for it."
Li Yifei had no good impression of the Song Family; Song Ziqiao’s arrogance alone showed what kind of family the Songs were. Now, for Ye Yunzhu’s sake, he ought to lend the Ye Family a hand, although he did not wish to become their enforcer. He said with a smile, "Alright then, if the Song Family come knocking, I’ll help out."
"Good, then let’s agree on that," the Old Master of the Ye Family said, laughing proudly like a crafty old fox.
Li Yifei stood up and said, "Well then, Grandfather, I shall take my leave. And it might be best not to disclose my identity; I’d like to keep living quietly."
Both men had not mentioned Li Yifei’s identity from the beginning, yet Li Yifei was well aware that the Old Master must have remembered who he was; otherwise, he wouldn’t have entrusted such an important task to him.
The Old Master laughed heartily and also stood up, patting Li Yifei’s shoulder and saying, "Now, you are Yunzhu’s man, which makes you part of the Ye Family. When the Ye Family has troubles, it’s not about helping—it’s your responsibility. Don’t worry, your identity, I won’t even tell my son, but whether you tell Yunzhu or not, that’s up to you."
Li Yifei rolled his eyes, really wanting to curse the crafty old man, but after all, this was Ye Yunzhu’s grandfather. Moreover, he understood that for the sake of a major family clan, he had to be ruthless; otherwise, it would be impossible for such a family to hold its ground in a city full of formidable opponents.
As soon as he came out, Ye Yunzhu anxiously took hold of Li Yifei’s hand and asked, "How did it go? What did Grandfather say to you?"
Li Yifei gave a faint smile and said, "Grandfather told you to treat me better, right, Grandfather?" he asked, turning to the Old Master who had followed him out.
The Old Master laughed heartily, replying, "Exactly! Yunzhu, you’ve been spoiled by our family, but now that you have a man, you need to adjust your temper."
Ye Yunzhu was suddenly very embarrassed and said, "Grandpa, I haven’t." Then she twisted Li Yifei’s arm and scolded, "You dare to tattle on me."
Li Yifei pretended to cry out in pain, which set the old master off into another round of hearty laughter.
It was clear from the old master’s attitude toward Li Yifei that he extremely approved of his granddaughter’s husband. This reassured Ye Yunzhu considerably, but it also amazed the rest of the Ye family. What exactly was special about Li Yifei that made the old master hold him in such high regard?
But no matter what, with the old master’s approval, no one else dared to make cold remarks to Li Yifei anymore. Ye Zhenlong had been quite unfriendly to Li Yifei at first and now felt somewhat embarrassed, so as an elder, he simply avoided meeting Li Yifei.
Li Yifei did not leave that day but was surrounded by some young people from the Ye family. The younger generation of the Ye family was a mixed bag, with not many outstanding ones—most were mediocre or prodigal sons—which explained why the Ye family placed so much importance on Ye Yunzhu.
Zhou Xiaoyue finally found an opportunity to pull Li Yifei aside, stood with her hands behind her back, and puffed out her chest. She said, "Hey, cousin-in-law, don’t you have something to say to me?"
Looking at Zhou Xiaoyue’s haughty demeanor, Li Yifei couldn’t help but laugh and said, "What should I have to say to you?"
Zhou Xiaoyue’s eyes widened instantly and she exclaimed, "You heartless playboy, you got my cousin’s belly big. Then you’re with Xiaoyao. Aren’t you afraid I’ll expose you? When that happens, you’ll lose everything, catching neither."
Li Yifei chuckled and said, "Don’t you know what Xiaoyao has always claimed to be to me?"
"A mistress... I’m dizzy. She actually knows about your relationship with my sister?" Zhou Xiaoyue blinked in astonishment, her mouth wide enough to fit an egg.
"Knows." Li Yifei nodded.
"Crazy, this is insane!" Zhou Xiaoyue shook her head forcefully and stared at Li Yifei, unable to believe this was true. Chu Xiaoyao, even if claiming to be Li Yifei’s mistress, made Zhou Xiaoyue think she was just saying it deliberately, never having imagined Chu Xiaoyao was serious.
Li Yifei just smiled and didn’t speak. This matter was indeed ridiculous, and he didn’t know how to explain it.
"Wait, does my sister know about Xiaoyao?" Zhou Xiaoyue suddenly thought of another key point.
Li Yifei nodded again, thinking that not only did your sister know about Chu Xiaoyao, she also knew about Xu Yingying and Ning Xiner. But naturally, he was not going to discuss such matters with Zhou Xiaoyue.
The skin on Zhou Xiaoyue’s face twitched twice as she said, "The world has gone mad, Xiaoyao has gone mad, my cousin too!"
"Heh, as long as you’re not crazy, that’s good," Li Yifei said with a chuckle.
Zhou Xiaoyue shook her head vigorously and said, "I’m going crazy too because of you all."
Li Yifei was amused by Zhou Xiaoyue’s antics and said, "Alright, do you have anything else to ask?"
Zhou Xiaoyue shook her head subconsciously, then quickly said, "I’m coming back with you guys tomorrow. I want to see Xiaoyao. It’s been days since I last saw her."
Li Yifei’s eyelid twitched. "There’s no need. Xiaoyao is quite fine now."
Zhou Xiaoyue’s eyes lit up instantly. "You don’t want me to see Xiaoyao. Could it be you’re afraid I’ll find something out? No, no, I must go."
Li Yifei laughed dryly and said, "Okay, if you want to go, then go."
"Hehe, are you really letting me go?" Zhou Xiaoyue looked as excited as if she had discovered a new world.
"Why not let you go?"
Seeing Li Yifei’s candid face, Zhou Xiaoyue felt confused again. However, she resolved that when she saw Chu Xiaoyao tomorrow, she had to clear up everything. The world was just too crazy.
That night, Li Yifei stayed in Ye Yunzhu’s room. This was the first time since Li Yifei had returned that he had openly shared a room with Ye Yunzhu. Naturally, the two were indescribably intimate and affectionate, but Ye Yunzhu was both content and melancholic. She wanted to be tender with Li Yifei, but because of the child in her belly, she felt restrained and uncomfortable.
However, talking about the past and reminiscing funny stories, it was as if they had returned to their high school days. The feeling was inexplicably wonderful, and any strangeness or distance from being apart for so many years no longer existed.