Chapter Thirteen: Conflict

Just then, the door to the guest room was slammed loudly.

“Chen Shuting, open up! Don’t think I don’t know you’re in there!”

Brother Huang’s voice came from outside, pounding on the door relentlessly.

Ye Fan was taken aback and looked toward Chen Shuting. “You’re not setting up a honey trap, are you?”

“Don’t be ridiculous!” Chen Shuting’s delicate face turned cold. “If I wanted to set a trap, would I come in person?”

She pointed to the wardrobe in the room. “There’s a secret door there. You’d better leave quickly!”

“What about you?”

“Huang Dalai won’t dare lay a finger on me!”

With the door about to be smashed down, Ye Fan had no choice but to slip out through the secret passage.

The night wind in Long City was chilly, sending a shiver through Ye Fan and clearing his mind considerably.

He glanced back at the Golden Dragon Tower, uneasy about leaving.

Chen Shuting claimed Huang Dalai wouldn’t dare to harm her, but she was alone—what if something went wrong?

With that thought, he decided to go back and check.

He took two steps and then stopped dead in his tracks.

You need a room card to access the 90th floor!

Damn it! Everything was fine when he arrived, but now he couldn’t get back.

“Damn it! What rotten luck!”

Ye Fan stomped his foot in frustration and looked around. Suddenly, his eyes lit up—over by the parking lot, someone was flying a drone!

He had never played with one before but knew it could be used for filming.

With that in mind, he hurried over and saw a tall, slender boy operating the drone.

“Hey, handsome, flying a drone?”

“Ah!”

The tall boy was startled by Ye Fan’s voice, nearly dropping the controller, his face tense. “Big brother… what’s up?”

“Don’t be nervous!” Ye Fan smiled warmly. Flying a drone near a hotel late at night—it had to be a paparazzo sneaking shots.

“You wouldn’t want your own secret filming to be exposed, right?”

“Big brother, don’t say that! I just bought the drone for fun—I haven’t filmed anything!”

“Whether you filmed something or not, I’ll just check.”

Ye Fan stepped closer. Unable to withstand the pressure, the tall boy gave a bitter smile. “Big brother, I know I was wrong. Please go easy on me!”

“All right, I might go easy on you,” Ye Fan said, pointing at Golden Dragon Tower. “Now, take a picture of the 90th floor room for me!”

“Huh? Big brother, what are you—”

“Catching a cheater!”

Ye Fan said fiercely, “Hurry up and film it!”

“All right, all right!”

The tall boy actually believed Ye Fan was there to catch a cheater. Such a person was not to be trifled with. What if he lost control? The boy reluctantly complied.

Ye Fan watched the drone footage carefully. Since he didn’t know which room Chen Shuting was in, he had to check each one.

Along the way, he found a few couples tangled up in compromising positions, but none were Chen Shuting, so he skipped those.

Finally, after checking about ten rooms, Ye Fan spotted Chen Shuting. She was sitting on the sofa with one leg crossed, chatting, while Brother Huang looked furious, gesticulating wildly as they argued.

They talked for a good half-hour before Brother Huang slammed the door and stormed off in anger.

“Glad nothing serious happened…”

Ye Fan breathed a sigh of relief and patted the tall boy on the shoulder. “You’re pretty good. Now, send me that video!”

“Huh? Big brother…”

“I’m catching a cheater, of course I need evidence!”

After obtaining the video, Ye Fan waited downstairs a little longer until he saw Brother Huang leave by car. Only then did he feel assured.

By the time he returned to the supermarket, it was already late at night. The goods he had bought during the day were still piled by the door.

Ye Fan didn’t rush to move them inside but first checked the wooden crate. Sure enough, the lock’s indicator was blinking.

“A letter has arrived!”

He hurriedly opened the crate and found two letters inside.

The first letter was from Li Yaoyao, who described being attacked by the mad woman Wang Dahua the previous night and being misunderstood by some villagers, who pressured her to hand over all her food. Ye Fan’s heart tightened reading it.

Fortunately, the second letter said most of the villagers still cared about her and hoped Ye Fan would accept some old village items in exchange for food.

Ye Fan scratched his head. He wanted to trade for things with collectible value—not just any old junk.

But considering the sender’s character, he didn’t fuss too much. Worst case, he could always ask again.

He wrote a reply explaining he was out buying supplies and planned to send the goods over the next day.

With the note finished, Ye Fan went to bed.

He was utterly exhausted from the day’s events and didn’t wake until late morning.

Another letter from Li Yaoyao had arrived.

“Ye Fan, thank you for helping the villagers. Sister Haiying has returned; you can send the goods now. I’ll exchange the old items with the people today!”

After reading it, Ye Fan opened the supermarket doors and carried the daily necessities inside, then began loading the crate.

He worked all morning, finishing just before noon.

“Brother Ye Fan, is that all?”

“That’s it.”

“No food?”

“Ah, you see…”

Ye Fan had been so focused on buying things to improve the villagers’ lives that he’d forgotten they needed food most of all!

“Don’t worry, I’ll go buy some food right now and make sure to bring it over today!”

He closed the crate and stood up to leave but suddenly felt dizzy.

“So hungry!”

Rubbing his growling stomach, Ye Fan smiled wryly.

He hadn’t eaten since last night and had drunk quite a bit. First, he needed a good meal.

He headed straight to a nearby mutton soup restaurant.

The warming, fragrant soup was just what he needed to regain strength.

Ye Fan devoured a few mouthfuls, thinking as he ate.

This time, he’d sent only daily necessities to Li Yaoyao, but the village’s greatest need was food. The instant noodles he’d sent before were a luxury; it would be better to order rice, flour, and grains.

Finishing one bowl without feeling full, he waved at the owner.

“Boss, this mutton soup is great—bring me another bowl! Oh, and do you have lamb kidneys?”

“Yes!”

The owner was a burly middle-aged man, looking honest and straightforward. When Ye Fan asked for lamb kidneys, the man immediately showed an understanding grin.

“Went on a date last night, huh?” He brought over the soup. “Young man, you’re handsome and likeable. I’ll throw in some lamb’s penis to help you recover!”

“Thanks, boss!” Ye Fan smiled awkwardly. After drinking last night’s wine, he’d felt restless all over, dreamed of gunfire and explosions, and now woke up weak.

At that moment, a shout came from nearby.

“Found him! And still have time to eat?”

Ye Fan looked toward the voice and saw three burly men swaggering toward the morning stall.

“Hmm? Looks like some entertainment?”

He picked up his bowl and found a good vantage point to watch while eating.

After all, it was in the blood of every Chinese to enjoy a spectacle, and Ye Fan, a true heir of the Dragon Clan, was no exception.

The leader was a towering man about six foot two, bare-chested, with a fierce scowl and a crooked scar stretching from his left shoulder down to his right hip—a fierce and formidable sight.

The two men behind him were also shirtless and muscular, one wielding a baton, the other a large cleaver.

“Hey! This is gonna be good!”

Ye Fan slurped his soup, watching as the three men scared the other diners away.

Then, the trio approached Ye Fan himself.

“Kid, we finally caught you!”