At this point, she said with a face full of adoration, "To be honest, I don't know whether Master Yinlong is a man or a woman. If he's a man, even if he's in his seventies or eighties, I'd still be willing to marry him. To be able to marry such a man would make this life entirely worthwhile."
Lin Xue smiled brightly, ignoring Su Qingqing completely, and instead said to Ye Ning, "Did you hear that? You can keep sleeping in your cousin's room tonight anyway, since she's so willing."
Su Qingqing immediately shot Lin Xue a dirty look and said with dissatisfaction, "What nonsense are you talking about? I was talking about Master Yinlong, not Ye Ning. Even if his drawing skills might be quite good, how could he possibly compare to Master Yinlong?"
Clearly, in Su Qingqing's heart, Master Yinlong's status was beyond anyone else.
"What if I told you I know Master Yinlong?" Lin Xue asked with a sly smile.
Rolling her eyes at Lin Xue, Su Qingqing said with annoyance, "Alright, stop joking around with my idol. I've had a tiring day, so I'm going to get some rest early."
Seeing that Su Qingqing didn't believe her, Lin Xue said anxiously, "I really do know Master Yinlong! If I'm lying to you, I hope my period lasts thirty days a month!"
Holy crap.
What a vicious oath—even Ye Ning was shocked.
This girl really would say anything to make Su Qingqing believe her.
Even Su Qingqing was taken aback. Seeing how serious Lin Xue looked, her curiosity was instantly piqued.
"You know Master Yinlong? Where is he? Is he a man or a woman? How tall is he, is he thin or heavy? How old is he?" Su Qingqing fired off a rapid-fire series of questions.
Lin Xue, however, was in no rush. She glanced at Ye Ning and said, "Actually, you know this Master Yinlong too."
"I know him too?" Su Qingqing froze. Seeing that Lin Xue was putting on a mysterious front and refusing to tell her the truth, she knew full well the little girl was just trying to keep her in suspense.
"Well, you little wretch, playing hard to get with me—see how I tickle you!" Su Qingqing reached out with a menacing expression.
The two of them instantly started wrestling into a ball.
Ye Ning watched the two of them from the side, a faint smile curving the corners of his lips as he watched them shake with laughter.
"Alright, I surrender, I'll tell you Master Yinlong's identity," Lin Xue pleaded.
Normally, Su Qingqing definitely wouldn't have let her off the hook so easily, but this time she chose to spare Lin Xue.
With her captivating eyes fixed on Lin Xue, Su Qingqing wore a look of eager anticipation.
"He's right in front of you." Lin Xue glanced at Ye Ning.
Su Qingqing's rosy lips dropped open in disbelief.
Master Yinlong was Ye Ning? How was that possible?
"No way," Su Qingqing shook her head.
In her mind, Master Yinlong was a transcendent, worldly master—he could absolutely never be associated with a man in his early twenties.
Lin Xue wasn't worried that she wouldn't believe it. She smiled and said, "If Ye Ning isn't Master Yinlong, why would Tan Qingshan pay one hundred million to buy his painting?"
As soon as those words came out, Su Qingqing froze.
That's right, one hundred million.
Among contemporary painters, whose work could sell for one hundred million?
Of course, it wasn't unheard of, but such painters were extremely rare.
Most of those people were long-established masters whose names she already knew.
The only one whose appearance remained unknown was Master Yinlong.
Put that way, Ye Ning really was Master Yinlong.
"I still don't believe it." Su Qingqing found it hard to accept.
"This morning, at Master Yinlong's exhibition, Ye Ning painted *A Flock of Cranes*. There should be reports of it online now. Just go look and you'll know whether I'm telling the truth or not," Lin Xue smiled.
Without another word, Su Qingqing immediately pulled out her phone to search.
Before long, she found *A Flock of Cranes*.
Zooming in on the image, her eyes widened in shock.
This was undoubtedly the work of Master Yinlong. Ye Ning actually was Master Yinlong!
Su Qingqing's mind was in a whirl; she needed a moment alone to process it.
"None of you talk to me, just let me be by myself for a bit," Su Qingqing said as she walked away.
Watching Su Qingqing's retreating figure, Lin Xue called out, "Cousin, don't forget, you said you wanted to marry Master Yinlong!"
Thud.
The door slammed shut, and Lin Xue broke into a mischievous grin.
Ye Ning yawned, stared at Lin Xue, and said, "Wife, let's get some rest."
With that, Ye Ning reached out to pull Lin Xue upstairs with him.
Startled, Lin Xue quickly said, "Your room is already cleaned up, it's that one right there! I'm tired and need to sleep, I still have to go to school tomorrow, goodnight!"
With that, Lin Xue scurried into her bedroom, slammed the door shut, and locked it from the inside.
Ye Ning sighed. Another day of sleeping alone in an empty room.
Early the next morning, Tan Qingshan arrived.
Lin Muhua accompanied him personally, treating Tan Qingshan with great respect.
"What? My son-in-law is Master Yinlong? Elder Tan, you aren't joking with me, are you?" Lin Muhua asked in shock.
Tan Qingshan's expression darkened as he replied, "How could I joke about something like this? I watched him paint with my own eyes yesterday—he is definitely Master Yinlong."
Tan Qingshan held absolute authority in the art world.
Since he said so, there was no doubt that Ye Ning was Master Yinlong.
Lin Muhua felt a surge of secret joy. His daughter really had picked up a priceless treasure.
Not only was he skilled in medicine and martial arts, but he was also Master Yinlong.
He honestly couldn't imagine what other pleasant surprises Ye Ning might bring him in the future.
As these thoughts raced through Lin Muhua's mind, his expression darkened slightly on the surface, and he said, "That's not very authentic of you, Elder Tan. Since you knew my son-in-law was Master Yinlong, you only offered one hundred million? You got a massive bargain out of that."
Tan Qingshan gave an awkward laugh and said, "You know how it is, I didn't have that much cash to begin with. That one hundred million was already my absolute limit."
At this, Tan Qingshan glared at him and said with displeasure, "You've gotten quite bold, haven't you, daring to lecture me? Believe it or not, I've still got half a mind to paddle your backside right now."
Lin Muhua offered a bitter smile. Tan Qingshan was an old comrade-in-arms of his father's, and had given him plenty of beatings when he was a boy.
It was only in recent years that Tan Qingshan had lived elsewhere, returning just over the last two years, which was why their interactions had become less frequent.
In reality, the two families remained on very good terms.
Even though Lin Muhua's father had already passed away, their bond remained close, much like that of an uncle and a nephew.
"Uncle Tan, I was wrong. Let me take you to see Ye Ning," Lin Muhua said with a wry smile.
Tan Qingshan shook his head. "No need. We'll wait right here. Whenever Master Yinlong wakes up, we can ask him to paint. I don't want to disturb Master Yinlong's mood."
Lin Muhua: "..."
Only then did he realize just how much reverence this uncle of his held for Master Yinlong.
Even consumed by burning anxiety and desperate for a painting, he was willing to wait until Ye Ning woke up rather than disturb him.
Even a junior treating a respected elder with utmost deference wouldn't surpass this.
Tan Qingshan's reasoning was simple as well: what if Master Yinlong hadn't slept well and casually knocked out a mediocre painting for him? Wouldn't he be the one losing out big time?
The two men chatted idly until Su Qingqing arrived shortly after, holding a painting in her hands.
She looked somewhat dazed, still failing to process everything even now.
She had just witnessed Ye Ning paint a piece with her own eyes, and it had left her shaken to her core.
The other party was definitely Master Yinlong; there was simply no one else in the world with Ye Ning's level of painting skill.
Even the person currently hailed as the number one figure in the art world relied heavily on team hype and marketing, whereas Ye Ning's talent was unquestionably superior.
"Qingqing, is Ye Ning awake yet?" Lin Muhua asked.
Su Qingqing replied, "Ye Ning has already left. He went to school with my cousin. He asked me to hand this painting over to Elder Tan."
With that, Su Qingqing handed the painting in her hands across to him.
Tan Qingshan took it, his hands trembling slightly.
He swallowed hard, feeling extremely nervous.
What exactly had Ye Ning painted for him? A work completed so quickly—how was the quality? Everything was completely unknown.
It gave Tan Qingshan the thrilling suspense of opening a blind box.
Seeing how nervous he was, Lin Muhua smiled and said, "Uncle Tan, don't be so tense. If you don't like it, I can just have Ye Ning paint another one for you. We're all family anyway."
Before Tan Qingshan could speak, Su Qingqing chimed in with displeasure, "Uncle, what kind of talk is that? How can Ye Ning just paint casually? Every single one of his pieces is worth hundreds of millions."
Here, Su Qingqing unconsciously referred to Ye Ning as *our* family.
Ever since learning Ye Ning's true identity, Su Qingqing's attitude toward him had undergone a complete one-eighty-degree transformation.
Tan Qingshan smiled wryly and apologized, "Pardon me, Miss Su, but I truly don't have that much cash. One hundred million was my entire working capital. If worst comes to worst, the villa I live in is worth around forty million—I can sign it over to Mr. Ye."
Hearing this, Lin Muhua panicked and hastily intervened, "Uncle Tan, don't listen to the child's nonsense! You're my father's brother, how could I ever let you sell your home? One hundred million is one hundred million. If Ye Ning feels it's not enough, I'll make up the difference myself.""You're not a bad kid, after all. It almost makes up for back then when you peeked at that girl taking a bath and I took the rap for you. Otherwise, knowing your father's temper at the time, your grave would probably be leveled flat by now," Tan Qingshan said.
Su Qingqing's eyes widened in shock as she stared at her uncle. He had such a glorious past?
Lin Muhua's face turned completely red, and he quickly interjected, "Uncle Tan, if you mention what happened back then one more time, you'll be selling your house."
Tan Qingshan laughed heartily and didn't say any more, instead opening up the scroll.
The moment he saw what was inside, Tan Qingshan was so moved he almost burst into tears.
Su Qingqing curled her lip; if not for the subject of the painting, she definitely would have kept it for herself.
The painting was a portrait of Tan Qingshan himself, standing amidst rolling mountains, looking as transcendent and otherworldly as an immortal about to ride the wind away.
Tan Qingshan had never imagined that Ye Ning would actually give him a portrait of himself.
This was personally painted by Master Yinlong; he was overcome with emotion.
To him, this meant far more than if Master Yinlong had given him a painting of something like a crane.
He had originally intended to keep it in his collection, not to wait for it to appreciate in value.
He was a collector, not an art dealer.
Lin Muhua leaned in closer, and upon seeing the contents, he finally understood why Tan Qingshan was so excited.
Buying a portrait personally painted by Master Yinlong for one hundred million was an absolute bargain.
"Uncle Tan, you've made a killing this time," Lin Muhua marveled.
Tan Qingshan's weathered face flushed red with excitement. He nodded heavily and said, "This painting truly holds a different kind of meaning for me. Please thank Mr. Ye for me. If there's a chance, I'd like to invite Mr. Ye to my home as a guest to properly thank him."
"I'll thank Uncle Tan on Ye Ning's behalf first. When I have time, I'll definitely have him come pay Uncle Tan a visit," Lin Muhua said with a smile.
Clutching the painting to his chest, Tan Qingshan left in high spirits.
Su Qingqing wore a disgruntled expression. She was also a hardcore fan of Master Yinlong; if she could get a painting by Master Yinlong, she guaranteed she would be even happier than Tan Qingshan.
*No way, I've got to make Ye Ning paint one for me tonight, even if I have to pay a little price...* Su Qingqing thought, her face turning red.
"Qingqing, why is your face so red? Are you sick?" Lin Muhua asked.
Su Qingqing snapped out of it with a start and stammered awkwardly, "I'm feeling a little under the weather, but it's nothing. If Uncle doesn't need anything else, I'm going to head to work."
"Hmm."
Lin Muhua nodded. His niece was acting a bit strange today.
***
Meanwhile, Ye Ning had arrived at Lin Xue's university.
"They always say college girls are great in bed? Is that true?"
At the gates of Gucheng University, Ye Ning suddenly asked.
Lin Xue shot Ye Ning a sideways glance and asked, "Are you trying to experience campus life?"
"Can I?" Ye Ning asked excitedly.
"Follow me," Lin Xue said with a smile.
She then led Ye Ning into a large lecture hall, where quite a few people were already seated.
"Experience it here? Isn't there too many people?" Ye Ning frowned. Although he didn't care much, he didn't want his woman being looked at by others.
Lin Xue choked for a moment. This guy must be playing dumb on purpose.
"You've probably misunderstood. I'm bringing you to experience college life, not college girls," Lin Xue whispered in explanation.
Ye Ning curled his lip and murmured in Lin Xue's ear, "You're the one who misunderstood me. What I want to experience is college girls, not college life."
"Pervert."
Lin Xue's face flushed. The warm breath from Ye Ning's mouth brushed against her ear, making her heart flutter and turning her face red down to the root of her neck.
Seeing the two of them whispering to each other, the students in the lecture hall widened their eyes in astonishment.
Lin Xue was the proper campus belle of Gucheng University—who didn't know her?
Plenty of people pursued her, but they had never heard of Lin Xue showing interest in anyone.
What was going on today?
Who was that man?
Quite a few male students felt their eyes burning with rage; they desperately wanted to walk over and beat Ye Ning up.
Sensing the gazes of the crowd, Lin Xue quickly said, "Alright, cut it out. The classmates are all watching."
Ye Ning couldn't care less; he never minded how others looked at him anyway.
But since Lin Xue was embarrassed, he naturally respected her wishes.
Noticing that many of the guys were still glaring at him as if he were their sworn enemy, Ye Ning suddenly pulled Lin Xue into his arms, swept his gaze over the male students, and flashed a provocative look.
"What are you looking at? Never seen a handsome guy before? A bunch of ugly nerds."
The male students in the classroom froze for a split second before a score of them stood up simultaneously, glaring furiously at Ye Ning.They were already deeply dissatisfied with him, and now that the other party was actively provoking them, the anger in their hearts instantly flared up.
Ye Ning gave a faint smile and slammed his palm down onto the table in front of him.
Instantly, the table shattered from the impact.
Those boys swallowed hard. One of them, wearing glasses, stretched lazily and muttered to himself, "I've been sitting for too long. A good stretch feels amazing."
With that, he sat right back down.
Once someone took the lead, others quickly followed suit.
"Nature is calling, I'm heading out for a second."
"Cough, cough, wait for me, let's go together."
"I need a stretch too."
...
The group of boys all suddenly became very prudent, finding all sorts of reasons to sit down.
Their hearts pounded wildly, thanking their lucky stars for their cleverness. Otherwise, had that slap landed on one of them, they definitely wouldn't have been able to take it.
Only one chubby student remained standing.
Glaring furiously in Ye Ning's direction, amidst the admiring gazes of the crowd, he shouted, "Hurry up and let go of her hand!"
Everyone looked at him with utmost respect. This fat guy was far too brave; they reckoned they'd better dial 120 extra fast in a moment.
"Let go of that handsome guy, you're not worthy of him!" the fat guy continued.
Holy crap.
Everyone's jaws nearly hit the floor.
This fellow wasn't brave at all—he was utterly shameless and thick-skinned to the extreme.
Lin Xue's expression darkened as she glared at the fat guy.
"Handsome, come, sit over here! The feng shui is great on this side, perfect for you and your missus to whisper sweet nothings," the fat guy chattered on.
Ye Ning walked over, patted the fat guy on the shoulder, and dropped four words: "You are a man of great potential."
The fat guy grinned from ear to ear and happily sat down, completely ignoring the disdainful looks shot at him by the other students.
"Hello, handsome. My name is Li Hu. You don't look like a student here, do you?" Li Hu vigorously wiped his hand on his clothes, then reached it out for an introduction.
Ye Ning didn't shake his hand; he wasn't particularly fond of physical contact with other men.
"Ye Ning, Lin Xue's husband."
Li Hu wasn't awkward at all. He smiled and said, "Ah, Brother Ye! With your looks, you and the missus are an absolute match made in heaven—a celestial couple born for each other."
"Didn't you just say I wasn't worthy of her?" Lin Xue sneered.
"How could that be? My eyes must have been playing tricks on me earlier; I didn't realize it was our campus belle and misspoke. Please forgive me, campus belle," Li Hu said with a smile.
Lin Xue was left speechless. Everyone always said Li Hu had a thick skin, and today she finally witnessed it firsthand.
Seeing Li Hu, Ye Ning, and the others chatting so happily, the people around them looked on with undisguised envy.
Putting everything else aside, Li Hu's social skills were simply incredible—something you couldn't learn even if you tried.
Just then, a woman walked in. She wore a long black dress belted tightly at the waist, framing a waist so slender it seemed a single grip could span it. Her shoulder-length hair was styled in large waves, and she stepped gracefully in a pair of high heels, gliding into the room.
Her figure was willowy and alluring as she walked like a delicate willow swaying in the breeze. Her lips were rosy and lustrous, her makeup exquisite, and her peach-blossom eyes seemed to radiate electricity at every moment. A single glance from her made the bones of those young boys go half-melted.
Even Ye Ning was slightly stunned. This woman was gorgeous, easily a match for any of his three masters. Moreover, she possessed a seductive, sensual charm entirely her own.
Was she a teacher? Here to give a class?
With her teaching, how many of the boys sitting below would have any heart left for listening to a lecture?
Didn't they see Li Hu right beside him, staring straight ahead with drool practically pooling in his mouth?
Mature, beautiful, and sexy—she possessed a lethal charm for young boys.
Chapter 15: A Massive Social Death Scene
After a moment, Li Hu let out a sigh and lowered his head.
"What's wrong?" Ye Ning asked.
"A beauty like Teacher Yang is never going to look at a guy like me in this lifetime," Li Hu said with a bitter expression.
Ye Ning glanced at him, patted Li Hu on the shoulder, and comforted him, "Brother, don't think like that."
Li Hu's eyes instantly lit up, and he asked in pleasant surprise, "Does Big Brother think I still have a chance?"
Shaking his head, Ye Ning replied, "I'm trying to tell you that she won't look at you in your next life either."
Crap.
Li Hu rolled his eyes, having suffered a critical hit of a hundred million points.
Lin Xue, standing nearby, chuckled secretly. This guy Ye Ning was far too ruthless.
"You students over there, what are you talking about? It looks so amusing—why don't you share it so the teacher can have a laugh too?Reply with only the corrected sentence." Yang Lin suddenly said, looking directly at Ye Ning and the others.
"Crap, I'm toast," Li Hu's face drained of color.