125: Something happened at the Heavenly Palace!

Ye Chen: "..."

He was actually speechless!

Bing Lan finished plating the fried eggs, handed them to Ye Chen, and smiled slightly: "Get ready to eat."

Ye Chen felt a momentary trance, took the plate, and brought it to the table.

The atmosphere at the dining table was extremely subtle.

Zhuang Yufen and Ye Huasheng sat up straight, their eyes fixed on Bing Lan with a mixture of gratification and unease.

They were gratified because this young lady was not only as beautiful as a celestial being, but she also had an astonishing background, could cook, and was truly sincere toward their son.

But the unease was...

Everything was too good to be true, like a dream, and they were afraid it would shatter at the slightest touch.

Li Qin was the best at reading the room. Her eyes darted around, and she picked up a spoon and tapped the edge of her bowl, smiling: "Time to eat! Sister Bing Lan cooked this herself; this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Uncle, Auntie, hurry up and try it!"

"Ye Chen, what are you standing there like a fool for? Sit down!"

Ye Chen snapped out of it and sat down next to Bing Lan.

Bing Lan served four bowls of porridge and placed them in front of the four of them, her movements fluid as if she had done it a thousand times before.

She only served herself half a bowl, picked up her chopsticks, picked up a small piece of fried egg, and ate it in small bites.

Ye Chen looked at her profile, which was inches away, and smelled the faint, cold fragrance from her hair. His heart skipped a beat for no reason.

That kiss in the car last night...

It really wasn't a dream.

"Ahem."

Zhuang Yufen coughed lightly, trying to find a topic: "Miss Bing... this porridge you made is really good. The heat is just right, and the rice has bloomed."

Bing Lan looked up, the corners of her lips curving slightly: "I'm glad you like it, Auntie. I added some yam and lily bulbs; it's good for the stomach."

"I like it, I like it!"

Zhuang Yufen nodded repeatedly, and the unease in her heart was dispelled quite a bit by these considerate words.

Ye Huasheng drank his porridge with his head down, and after a long while, he managed to squeeze out: "Well... Miss Bing, don't go to so much trouble in the future. Just let A-Chen do it; he has thick skin."

Ye Chen: "..."

My own father?

A glimmer of amusement flashed in Bing Lan's eyes, and she gave a soft "Mm."

The meal ended.

Bing Lan and Li Qin had to go back to the company, so they roped in Ye Chen to be their driver.

Once in the car.

Li Qin said excitedly: "You two aren't actually dating, are you? It didn't look like you were acting!"

Ye Chen was just about to deny it to avoid putting Bing Lan in a difficult position.

After all...

She hadn't told Li Qin, which meant she didn't want to go public yet.

But to his surprise, Bing Lan spoke first, calmly saying: "That's right."

Ye Chen's breath hitched.

Good heavens!

This woman is playing for real!

She actually has feelings for me!

Their relationship was probably set in stone now...

Li Qin's eyes widened, and she covered her mouth in disbelief: "My god... Younger Male Cousin, you're really something. You actually... took down Sister Bing Lan?!"

She had originally thought they were just acting, but Bing Lan had admitted it so readily; it was simply unimaginable.

Also.

For some reason...

She felt a strange sense of loss, but quickly suppressed it.

Bing Lan didn't say a word, just turned her face slightly, her earlobes turning red.

Ye Chen was also very awkward. He coughed dryly and focused on driving.

Along the way, the three of them were lost in their own thoughts.

Before long, the car model pulled into the basement parking lot of Shuyue Group.

The three of them took the elevator upstairs.

When passing the cafeteria, Ye Chen glanced inside and saw that it was clean and tidy, with brand-new tables and chairs; there was no trace of yesterday's explosion.

Well...

With the power of money, the cafeteria had been repaired overnight, and the group had returned to its initial orderly state.

Ye Chen dropped Bing Lan and Li Qin off at the entrance of the president's office, then went downstairs alone.

He got into the car, turned around, and drove toward the "Heavenly Palace" private club.

He hadn't been there to check on things for a few days, and since he had nothing to do today, he decided to go see how things were over there.

However.

Just as the car turned into the block where the "Heavenly Palace" private club was located, Ye Chen frowned.

Because...

Outside the club's main entrance, three police cars were parked!

Several uniformed police officers were standing at the entrance, looking serious, and talking to the security supervisor of the Heavenly Palace.

Passersby cast side-glances and whispered to each other.

Something happened.

A thought flashed through Ye Chen's mind, and he stopped the car.

He pushed the door open and got out, ignoring the curious gazes directed at him, and walked straight toward the club entrance.

A young police officer at the door reached out to stop him: "Sir, this place is temporarily sealed off for investigation. Unauthorized personnel, please do not approach."

Ye Chen didn't stop, looking at him with a calm gaze.

"I am the owner of this place, Ye Chen."

"What happened?"

The young officer was taken aback and subconsciously looked at the older officer next to him.

That older officer was about forty years old, with a square face and sharp eyes. Hearing this, he looked Ye Chen over and said in a deep voice: "You're the owner? Good. Come inside with us and cooperate with the investigation."

Ye Chen nodded and followed the police into the lobby of the Heavenly Palace.

The atmosphere in the lobby was very stifling.

Several waiters and staff members were standing against the wall, their faces full of nervousness and unease.

In the center of the lobby, Jin Meiting was surrounded by two policewomen. Her face was a bit pale, and her tightly pursed red lips betrayed her inner anxiety.

As soon as she looked up and saw Ye Chen walk in, her eyes lit up instantly, as if she had grabbed a life-saving straw, and she hurried to greet him: "Ye Chen! You're here!"

"What's going on?" Ye Chen scanned the surroundings and asked.

Jin Meiting leaned close to him and whispered an explanation.

"Not long after we opened this morning, the police came. They said they received a report that the Heavenly Palace was suspected of organizing prostitution and selling prohibited drugs. They brought a search warrant and rushed in..."

"Then, in... in the hidden compartments of the spare cigar cabinets in the top-floor VIP area, they found several packets of Xiaoyaosan and Bliss Pills!"

Xiaoyaosan?

Bliss Pills?

Ye Chen's eyes turned cold instantly.

These were new types of hallucinogens that had been circulating in certain gray areas recently. They were highly addictive, extremely harmful, and were prohibited items that the police strictly cracked down on!

"Didn't I say that the Heavenly Palace would only do legitimate business from now on, and that yellow, gambling, and drugs were strictly prohibited?" Ye Chen's voice was filled with coldness.

Jin Meiting's face turned even uglier, and she said urgently.

"I know, I personally supervised the rectification!"

"Everything related to the past was cleaned up, and security and patrols were strengthened. These spare cigar cabinets are basically never used, and only I and the auntie in charge of cleaning have the keys... I've checked the records, and no one has touched them in the last month!"

Ye Chen's gaze lingered on her face for two seconds.

Jin Meiting might have some small ulterior motives, but in this matter, she had no reason to lie to him, and even less courage to disobey him.

The Heavenly Palace was now his property, and it was also Jin Meiting's reliance for washing her hands of the past and escaping the shadows. She wanted this place to be clean more than anyone.

If it wasn't internal negligence, then it was...

Framing!

A cold anger quietly grew in the bottom of Ye Chen's heart.

Just then, the leading older police officer walked over.

"I just checked, you are Ye Chen?"

"It's me." Ye Chen nodded.

"We received a real-name report that prohibited drugs explicitly banned by the state were found in this club under your name, and the quantity is not small."

The older officer's tone was serious and official: "Now, please come back to the station with us and cooperate with the investigation."

Ye Chen took a deep breath and calmed down.

"I am a law-abiding citizen, and the Heavenly Palace is a legitimate business establishment."

"Since you received a report and found something, I should naturally cooperate with the investigation."

He paused, looked at Jin Meiting: "Sister Meiting, you watch over things here for now. Cooperate with the police in gathering evidence. The innocent will clear themselves."

Jin Meiting nodded heavily: "Don't worry!"

Seeing his cooperative attitude, the older officer's expression softened slightly, and he made a "please" gesture: "Very well, Mr. Ye, please."

Ye Chen didn't say anything more and walked out.

Several police officers followed closely behind.

Watching Ye Chen being taken away in the police car, Jin Meiting clenched her fists, her nails digging deep into her palms.

She wasn't afraid of the Heavenly Palace being sealed; she was afraid of being schemed against!

This was clearly someone setting a trap to splash dirty water on them!

She forced herself to calm down, took out her mobile phone from her handbag, and dialed Bing Lan's number.

The phone rang a few times before it was answered.

Bing Lan's cold voice came through: "Sister Meiting, what's the matter?"

Their relationship couldn't go back to how it was before, but it hadn't been completely severed either.

After all.

Everyone had their own difficult circumstances.

Jin Meiting didn't talk nonsense and hurriedly explained.

"Ye Chen is in trouble!"

She then recounted everything that had happened at the Heavenly Palace in detail.

"I understand."

After listening, Bing Lan's voice turned cold: "You hold down the fort at the club. I will handle Ye Chen's trouble."