216: I refuse!

Curious after hearing what he said, Ye Chen followed him downstairs.

The two arrived at the first-floor living room, where Ye Chen immediately spotted two women sitting on the sofa.

One was wearing a light green dress and had her hair in a bun. She looked young and had a somewhat timid expression on her face.

As for the other... Ye Chen's brow twitched slightly when his gaze fell upon the second woman.

This woman was about twenty-three or twenty-four years old, wearing a white shirt and light blue jeans. She wore light makeup, and her eyes, in particular, were large and bright, appearing as if they could speak when she looked at someone.

But he felt as if... he had seen her somewhere before?

She looked a bit familiar.

Before he could think back carefully—

"Mr. Ye! Hello!"

The woman who looked familiar immediately stood up from the sofa the moment she saw Ye Chen coming downstairs and greeted him enthusiastically.

"My name is Wen Yating. This should be our second time meeting!"

Wen Yating?

Upon hearing the name, Ye Chen suddenly remembered!

Wasn't this the female influencer from back in Xiamen City who had secretly filmed a video of him taking action, which then went viral online? She had later tracked him down to his residential area, wanting to collaborate with him on short videos.

What was she doing here?

And how did she find her way to Chu Niubi's house?

Ye Chen's brow immediately furrowed, and his expression turned cold.

"Is something the matter?"

"If it's the same as last time, wanting to collaborate on some video..."

"Then I'm sorry, I'm not interested. Please leave."

Ye Chen spoke bluntly and without mercy.

After all...

He didn't want to have much to do with such things.

Beside him, Chu Niubi blinked, looking back and forth between Ye Chen and Wen Yating, his face full of gossip.

Oh ho?

Is there a story between Master and this beautiful influencer?

Being rejected so directly by Ye Chen, Wen Yating showed an apologetic look.

"Mr. Ye, I was too abrupt last time, filming without your prior consent and then taking the liberty of showing up at your door..."

She bowed slightly, her attitude sincere.

"I solemnly apologize to you."

"However..."

"I truly, sincerely want to collaborate with you!"

"It's not just for traffic or money; I truly feel that there are things about you that deserve to be seen by more people."

"Such as your kung fu, your principles, and your attitude toward protecting those around you..."

She became more excited as she spoke, her voice involuntarily rising a few notches.

"The internet is currently flooded with all kinds of eye-catching, vulgar, and even distorted content. Things with true substance, positive energy, and that can showcase our Dragon Nation's traditional culture and spirit are too rare!"

"I want to work with you to do something different!"

"I want to promote the true civilization of Dragon Nation's martial arts, so more people can see..."

"Stop." Ye Chen raised his hand in a 'stop' gesture, directly interrupting her impassioned speech.

"Miss Wen, your ideals are noble and your ambitions are grand."

"But I'll say it one more time—"

"I am not interested."

"I'm not interested in being famous, I'm not interested in being an influencer, and I'm likewise... not interested in promoting some martial arts civilization."

"I came to Yanjing to handle business, not to accompany you in filming videos for publicity."

"If you have nothing else, please leave."

After saying that, he turned to head back upstairs.

"Wait! Mr. Ye!"

Wen Yating grew anxious and hurriedly took two steps forward, her voice tinged with a bit of pleading.

"Please don't be so quick to refuse!"

"I know you don't care about fame and fortune, but have you ever considered..."

She bit her lip as if she had made up her mind.

"Have you ever considered that the people around you might need the protection of 'fame' and 'attention'?"

Ye Chen's footsteps paused, and he slowly turned around. "What do you mean?"

Seeing Ye Chen stop, Wen Yating felt slightly more settled and quickly explained.

"Mr. Ye, you are strong and don't fear arrows in the dark, but what about the people around you?"

"We've all heard about what happened last night."

"But Dragon Nation is vast beyond imagination. Perhaps putting on a layer of protective clothing could make those people hesitate to act?"

Given her situation, she certainly wouldn't have known about the Wang Family being taken down.

But she had Huang Xian by her side.

So...

Naturally, she found out.

Hearing this, Ye Chen couldn't help but laugh.

"Is that so? Seeking attention is protection?"

"How come I remember... there was an influencer before called 'Spring Breeze'?"

"The young man was strong and fit, a martial artist with several million followers. People filmed him wherever he went. That's high enough attention, right?"

"What happened later?"

Ye Chen paused, his gaze landing on Wen Yating's face.

"A car accident. Resuscitation failed, and he died."

"But the circumstances of his death seemed a bit strange, didn't they?"

"The autopsy report was never made public, and rumors online said his heart had been transplanted into someone else?"

"But in the end, the matter was just dropped."

"Tell me, is this your so-called 'protection'?"

Wen Yating opened her mouth, her face looking a bit embarrassed.

The 'Spring Breeze' incident was no secret in the influencer circle.

That sunny and handsome boy had gone from viral to a tragic death overnight, with less than three months in between.

There were many rumors—some said he offended capital, some said he was involved in a scandal of a wealthy family, and even more extremely, some said it wasn't a car accident at all but that his organs had been harvested while he was alive... But just as Ye Chen said, there was no evidence, and it was eventually dropped.

"That... that was just an isolated case..."

Wen Yating spoke with difficulty. "Besides, no one can say for sure what the truth really was..."

"Can't say for sure?" Ye Chen lightly arched an eyebrow. "So, the protection you just spoke of is built on examples that can't be explained?"

"I..."

Wen Yating was at a loss for words.

Not giving her another chance to speak, Ye Chen shook his head.

"He was an influencer; I am not."

"But once I collaborate with you, film videos, and become famous..."

"Then the troubles that come clinging to me will only be more than his."

"The media will be watching, fans will be chasing, rivals will be looking, and eyes in the dark will be aiming..."

"The people around me will be stripped bare and exposed right under everyone's noses."

"By then..."

He paused, his eyes turning slightly cold. "Tell me, is it protection, or a target?"

Wen Yating was completely speechless.

She looked into Ye Chen's calm eyes that seemed to see through everything, feeling for the first time how childish and naive her so-called ideals and plans were in his eyes.

She thought fame was armor.

But in Ye Chen's eyes, it was a banner that invited disaster.

Ye Chen didn't pay any more attention to the changing expressions on her face. He stretched, his tone returning to its usual laziness.

"Alright."

"Please leave."

"I'm going back up to take a nap."

After saying that...

He turned around and headed toward the stairs without looking back.

"Mr. Ye, wait a moment!"

Wen Yating grew anxious and reflexively tried to chase after him.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!"

Chu Niubi stepped in front of her in a single stride.

"Sorry about that, beautiful."

"When my master says NO, it means NO."

"The old man wants to sleep; even if the sky falls, it has to wait until he wakes up."

"Would you two please?"

He spoke politely, but his intention of blocking the way was more than obvious.

Looking at this notorious troublemaker of Yanjing City before her, Wen Yating felt both anxious and helpless.

She bit her lower lip and softened her voice.

"Young Master Chu, I know you and Mr. Ye have a good relationship..."

"Could you put in a word for me?"

"Just one sentence!"

"I really have no ill intent. I just..."

Chu Niubi rolled his eyes and interrupted her without ceremony.

"Stop!"

"The relationship between my Chu Family and the Huang Family has never been great."

"I only made an exception and agreed to let you in today because this might involve my master."

"Don't push your luck."

Huang Xian, who had been sitting quietly on the sofa, finally stood up at this moment.

She walked over to Wen Yating's side and gently took her hand. Her small face was tense, and her gaze toward Chu Niubi held obvious displeasure.

"Chu Niubi, watch how you talk."

"If it weren't for Sister Yating insisting on coming, I wouldn't have come to beg you."

Hearing this, Chu Niubi let out a sneer.

"Oh? Eldest Miss Huang has quite a temper?"

"What, is the gate of my Chu Family something your Huang Family can enter whenever you want, and I have to help just because you want me to?"

"Fine then, talking further is a waste of breath."

"Ladies, please."

"Take care, I won't see you out."

He directly issued an order for them to leave.

Huang Xian's cheeks flushed with anger. She glared at Chu Niubi and pulled Wen Yating along as she turned to walk out.

"We're leaving!"

"Sister Yating, let's go! We won't beg him!"

Wen Yating was pulled along by her, looking back every few steps toward the stairs with eyes full of unwillingness, but she was ultimately dragged out of the living room by Huang Xian.

Chu Niubi watched their retreating backs as they disappeared through the door, curled his lip, and turned to head upstairs.

He walked to Ye Chen's room and knocked on the door.

"Master, I've sent them away."

Ye Chen's lazy voice came from inside.

"Mm."

Chu Niubi chuckled and didn't ask more, turning back to his own room... Outside the villa.

Huang Xian angrily pulled Wen Yating to the car, yanked open the door, her voice full of grievance.

"Sister Yating, I told you, right? Nothing good would come from coming here!"

"And don't count on that Ye Chen either!"

"It's not like you don't know—the Wang Family had such great power, yet he toppled them all by himself last night!"

"Would a ruthless person like that collaborate with you on some short videos or promote martial arts?"

Huang Xian grew angrier as she spoke, her chest heaving slightly.

"That bastard Chu Niubi too—nothing good ever comes out of his mouth!"

"Does our Huang Family owe their Chu Family something? Who is he showing that stinky face to!"

Wen Yating stood by the car, not in a hurry to get in.

"Xian'er."

"Do me another favor."

Huang Xian blinked, a bad premonition rising in her heart.

"What... what favor now?"

"Let's get this straight first: I am not going back in there to beg that bastard Chu Niubi again!"

"I almost lost all my face just now!"

"It's not to beg him." Wen Yating shook her head. "I just need you to spread some word for me!"