Volume 1, Chapter 42: The Aloof Young Lady

In the distance, the sound of helicopter rotor blades cutting through the air drifted over.

The tranquility of the mountain forest was instantly shattered, startling countless birds into flight.

The roaring noise grew from distant to near, becoming progressively clearer.

The Xu family's helicopter had finally arrived.

Its massive fuselage gleamed with a metallic luster under the sunlight as it slowly descended toward the ground.

The mountain wind was piercingly cold. Ye Tian and Xu Ziyao stood side by side.

Both wore casual attire suitable for outdoor activities—simple yet sharp—and standing together, they looked remarkably well-matched.

However, just as the helicopter was about to land, Xu Ziyao seemed to suddenly remember something.

She hurriedly stepped aside, putting some distance between herself and Ye Tian.

Her cheeks flushed slightly, and her eyes revealed a hint of panic and bashfulness.

It was as if she was terrified her family would see her looking too intimate with Ye Tian.

Yet, this transparent attempt to cover things up only made it all the easier for others to grow suspicious.

Ye Tian smiled inwardly at the sight.

……

The helicopter slowly touched down on a clearing covered in grass.

The fierce wind whipped up by the propellers flattened the surrounding turf, forming ripples of green waves.

The cabin door opened, and several Xu family bodyguards jumped down, promptly standing at attention on either side to await Xu Ziyao's boarding.

The Xu family had military backgrounds.

Even though Xu Weiping had already retired to the second line, many members of the Xu family still held posts within the military.

Therefore, mobilizing a helicopter was no difficult task for them.

This military aircraft was much more spacious than ordinary helicopters, designed to accommodate multiple passengers and carry bodyguards.

Naturally, security was far more guaranteed.

"Let's go."

Xu Ziyao urged Ye Tian in a low voice.

With a blank expression, she put on an aloof persona, as if keeping strangers at a distance.

"That's quite a seamless switch back to being the cold, haughty young miss."

Ye Tian shook his head helplessly.

Then, he strode forward.

Xu Ziyao followed closely behind, deliberately maintaining a certain distance from Ye Tian.

……

The helicopter quickly carried the two of them back to Jiangnan City.

Plunging back into the prosperity and hustle and bustle of the city, Xu Ziyao suddenly felt as if a lifetime had passed.

The quiet serenity of the mountain forest lingered persistently in her mind.

Or rather, Ye Tian's figure lingered persistently in her mind.

The helicopter landed on the helipad atop a skyscraper.

Xu Ziyao escorted Ye Tian off the aircraft and walked him all the way to the stairwell.

"I need to handle some personal business first. Three days from now, I will visit the Xu family precisely on schedule."

Ye Tian cupped his hands in farewell.

Looking slightly uneasy, Xu Ziyao urged, "Is that a promise? You mustn't back out now, lest you delay my grandfather's treatment."

"Put your mind at ease."

Ye Tian smiled. "I, Ye Tian, never break my word. I will visit the Xu family on time. See you then."

"Alright, it's a deal!"

With this promise, Xu Ziyao finally felt reassured enough to return to the Xu family estate.

……

Ye Tian was in no rush to see Xu Weiping.

Although Xu Weiping's condition was critical, there was still plenty of time left for his treatment.

Therefore, his first destination was the Li Corporation.

Downstairs, hailing a cab, on the road...

Upon arriving at the headquarters building of the Li Corporation, Ye Tian headed straight for the vice president's office.

Since he had already shown his face at the press conference, the security and reception staff of the Li Corporation naturally recognized him, so there was none of that melodramatic behavior of blocking him from going upstairs.

When he reached the vice president's office, Li Qingcheng had been waiting for a long time.

Seeing Ye Tian arrive, Li Qingcheng immediately stood up to welcome him. "You're finally back! How did things go?"

Ye Tian calmly seated himself at the desk. "Everything went smoothly. In three days, I will personally visit the Xu family to treat General Xu."

Li Qingcheng instantly looked immensely relieved. "That's wonderful! Now our Li family can finally rest easy."

Ye Tian laughed heartily. "Don't count your chickens before they hatch. Do you really believe now that I can cure General Xu's condition?"

Li Qingcheng replied with a serious expression, "I believe you, and I have no choice but to believe you. If not... the Li family is completely finished."

"Rest assured, the Li family won't be finished," Ye Tian said with a smile. "I've invested so much effort into your Li family and given you two medicinal recipes; I won't let you fall apart so easily."

Li Qingcheng let out a breath. "Then why did you come to headquarters today..."

"I have a medicinal formula, and I need your help to procure the ingredients listed on it."

Cutting straight to the point, Ye Tian stopped beating around the bush.

He pulled a formula from his pocket and placed it on Li Qingcheng's desk.

These were the herbs required for refining Qi-cultivation pills.

He needed to refine these pills now to make adequate preparations for cultivating in the Qi-condensation stage.

"No problem at all. I will arrange for someone to acquire them immediately."

Without even glancing at the contents of the formula, Li Qingcheng agreed readily.

She would never refuse any request from Ye Tian.

……

After Ye Tian left, she finally had the leisure to examine the medicinal formula.

It was filled with names of herbs she had never heard of before.

However, specialization was key; she was an executive, not a technical expert, and her knowledge of medicinal herbs was limited.

Such matters naturally had to be handed over to the professionals in the corporation's procurement department.

The procurement department provided feedback very quickly.

The herbs listed on this formula were all exceptionally rare and extremely expensive.

Just purchasing the raw ingredients to refine a single batch of these pills would cost at least tens of millions.

Especially if they needed to collect all of them within a short period, the costs would likely balloon even further.

This news caused Li Qingcheng to frown.

Such a massive demand for funds posed a considerable pressure even for the Li Corporation.

Yet, she would not turn down Ye Tian's request.

No matter how much money it took, these medicinal herbs had to be acquired!

……

The allocation of such a large sum of funds soon alerted the senior executives of the Li family.

The top brass quickly gathered in the corporation's conference room.

"Qingcheng, why the sudden need to mobilize such a massive amount of capital?"

"Ye Tian needs to procure a batch of medicinal herbs to refine some pills..."

"Ye Tian wants to refine pills? The new beauty-enhancing pills?"

"Not beauty-enhancing pills... I don't actually know what these pills are used for."

"Qingcheng, the corporation currently requires a huge amount of capital for the production of the beauty-enhancing pills. Can't you talk to Ye Tian and see if the procurement of these herbs can be delayed for a while?"

"No, Ye Tian needs them urgently. Within three days..."

"But market competition is fierce right now; we must sell more beauty-enhancing pills as quickly as possible to recoup our funds..."

"Indeed, the Zhou family is still watching us closely. If we divert all the funds to Ye Tian, our production schedule will be affected. If the Zhou family pulls any tricks then, we won't have such a good opportunity to recover our capital..."

"Besides, our initial investment was quite large, and we've only just managed to gain a foothold in the market. Diverting funds right now carries far too much risk."

"Moreover, the purpose of Ye Tian refining these pills is unclear. There's really no need..."

"Enough!"

Li Qingcheng's expression sank completely.

"What are you all thinking?"

"Have you forgotten that the Li Corporation's rise to its current height is practically entirely thanks to Ye Tian?"

"If Ye Tian hadn't given us the formulas for the Youth-Preserving Pill and the Beauty-Enhancing Pill, how could the Li family ever have achieved this success?"

"Now that the moment has come when Ye Tian needs our support, you're all hesitating and raising objections?"

"Pass down the order: execute Ye Tian's procurement list immediately!"

"I don't want to hear another dissenting voice!"