So she only needed to ask Ye Huan to pick her off work.
As for now, of course she would continue tormenting Ye Huan...
...
After taking a shower and coming downstairs in a bathrobe, Ye Huan saw Hongluan looking deep in thought and chuckled:
"Stop letting your imagination run wild, I really didn't come to Pengcheng with any other motives!"
"I don't believe it!" Hongluan stated frankly.
"Do I have any reason to lie to you?" Ye Huan asked.
Hongluan was stunned. That was true—if the Underworld King truly had other motives in Pengcheng, he wouldn't need to hide anything at all. Given the Underworld King's strength and personality, he wouldn't deign to resort to secrecy anyway.
She asked: "Then how long do you plan to stay in Pengcheng?"
Just as Ye Huan was about to answer, his phone suddenly rang.
It was a video call request sent by Lin Xi!
"Hello, what kind of trouble are you trying to stir up now?"
Ye Huan answered the call and asked with annoyance.
Lin Xi stared at Ye Huan in his bathrobe on the phone screen and tutted:
"Oh, finished your bath already?"
With that, she hung up the video call. She noticed that Ye Huan was in the living room rather than the bedroom, which meant Ye Huan and the girl in the baseball cap hadn't started anything yet.
She planned to wait a little longer—she would make another video call to interrupt Ye Huan right at the moment he and the baseball-cap girl got started.
The mere thought of Ye Huan being all impatient to get busy with the baseball-cap girl, only to be interrupted by her and left agonizingly frustrated, made Lin Xi cover her mouth and giggle mischievously...
"What kind of madness is she up to now?"
Ye Huan muttered in complaint at his phone, then sat back down and resumed chatting with Hongluan.
Ten minutes later!
Lin Xi sent another video call request. When he answered and she saw Ye Huan was still in the living room, she hung up again.
Another ten minutes passed, and Lin Xi sent yet another video call request. Upon answering and seeing Ye Huan still in the living room, she hung up once more in disappointment.
Just like that!
Lin Xi sent Ye Huan a video call request every ten minutes. The moment he answered, she would hang right back up, driving him to the brink of a breakdown.
"Why haven't they started yet?"
Seeing that it was only a little over half an hour before off-work time and Ye Huan still hadn't started anything with the baseball-cap girl, Lin Xi couldn't help suspecting that Ye Huan and the girl had already done it in the car, which was why he had no appetite for the entire afternoon.
"Odetestable scumbag, wasting an entire afternoon of my time."
Lin Xi cursed angrily and got ready to work, just as she suddenly received an email.
It was precisely the background check on Ye Huan that she had asked a friend to conduct.
"Abandoned at the gates of a Pengcheng orphanage right after birth..."
"Abducted by human traffickers at age eight, with no news ever since..."
"Returned to the orphanage at age eighteen, donated some money, reissued his ID card and household registration, and vanished without a trace once again..."
Reading this, Lin Xi suddenly felt that Ye Huan's background was rather tragic and his life experiences quite bumpy, prompting a sudden wave of sympathy and pity for him.
"No wonder he ended up in the butchery trade. Such life experiences made it impossible for him to pursue higher education; lacking academic credentials and skills, he could only do a purely manual labor job like butchering;"
"And he's so good at fighting—he must have been bullied constantly after being abducted by traffickers, which is how he forged such formidable combat skills..."
While letting her imagination run wild over the reasons for Ye Huan's butchery career and fighting prowess, Lin Xi continued reading his profile.
She froze halfway through:
"Ye Huan has had a mental illness since childhood? Mentally unstable? Prone to losing his mind during episodes?"
Chapter 16: Slapping a Rival's Face Fiercely
"That guy is a psycho?!"
Lin Xi simply couldn't believe it. She immediately called Ye Huan and demanded:
"Do you have a psychiatric disorder?"
Ye Huan: "Oh, you sure didn't skimp on investigating me, did you? Are you suspecting that I slept with you while having an episode? Now that you mention it, that's genuinely possible—no wonder I can't remember when or where I slept with you."
Having read Ye Huan's file, Lin Xi had initially felt quite sympathetic toward him; she had called purely to confirm it, intending to help Ye Huan get treatment if he really was mentally ill.
Yet after hearing Ye Huan's remarks, she was driven to the verge of psychiatric instability herself. All her internal sympathy for Ye Huan vanished completely, and she roared:
"Get your ass over here and pick me up from work."
With that roar, she hung up the phone!
On the other end, Ye Huan stared blankly at his phone for a moment before abruptly raising his head to look at Hongluan sitting across from him, asking:
"Does Lin Xi have something wrong with her brain?"
Hongluan was startled: "Impossible. If she had a neurological disorder, Lin Tai wouldn't let her serve as the CEO of Lin's Group."
Thinking about it, that made sense. Ye Huan stood up and said: "Lin Xi wants me to pick her off work, you..."
"I should be heading back too!"
Hongluan stood up as well. Through an afternoon of idle chatting and various probings, she had confirmed that the Underworld King had no other purpose in Pengcheng—he was purely here to be tormented by Lin Xi.
Ye Huan walked Hongluan to the door, returned inside to change his clothes, and then had a driver take him to Lin's Group.
On the way, the driver remarked:
"Master, there's a car trailing behind us the whole way without even trying to hide its tracks. Is it sent by Hongluan?"
"It's the Water and Fire Judges from Hell Gate. Pay them no mind!" Ye Huan said.
The driver had a sudden realization. The Water and Fire Judges were the personal bodyguards of the Hell Gate master; since Ye Huan had succeeded to the position of Hell Gate master, the Water and Fire Judges naturally assumed the responsibility of protecting him.
Arriving at Lin's Group!
Ye Huan told the driver to head back first, walked on foot to the entrance of Lin Building, and was about to go inside when a flamboyant red Ferrari LaFerrari came speeding over, blocking his path.
"Park this car for me properly!"
A well-dressed, upright young man with sleek, gleaming hair stepped out of the car holding a bunch of red roses, carelessly tossed his car keys at Ye Huan, and commanded.
"You've mistaken me for someone else, I'm not the valet!"
Ye Huan tossed the car keys back and explained.
"As a mere butcher, getting to park my car for me is your supreme honor!"
The young man tilted his head back, looking down at Ye Huan through his nostrils with a disdainful sneer, then tossed the car keys at Ye Huan once more and ordered:
"Hurry up and park my car."
So this jerk recognizes me... Ye Huan narrowed his eyes. For a moment, he couldn't tell whether this was an accomplice Lin Xi had found to torment him, or someone Lin Canglan and Li Meiya had dug up to disgust him.
Yet one thing he could be certain of: this jerk must have watched the surveillance footage from Shangyang Restaurant, otherwise it would have been impossible for him to recognize him at a glance.
"Why are you still standing there frozen? Go park it!"
Seeing Ye Huan standing in place without moving, the young man scolded.
Slap!
Ye Huan delivered a hard slap across the young man's face and said coldly:
"Try giving me another bossy command and see what happens."
The young man was stunned silly by the slap. Recovering his senses, he shouted furiously:
"You—a mere butcher, how dare you slap my face! Do you know who I am?"
Slap!
Ye Huan dealt the young man another slap: "I don't give a damn who you are."
"You..."
The young man was bursting with rage and roared:
"I am Su Lei, the young master of the Su Family."
Slap!
Ye Huan gave Su Lei yet another slap: "Even if you were Su Big-Cannon, I'd still slap you all the same."
"Fine, very well, excellent. You just wait for me—I'll make you realize the consequences of hitting me and offending the Su Family."
Su Lei fumed with anger. By now, he realized that this butcher who had just returned from overseas had no idea what the Su Family represented in Pengcheng, nor did he understand Su Lei's clout in the Pengcheng business circles.
Using status suppression to deal with such a reckless brute was completely useless.
Slap!
Ye Huan gave Su Lei yet another slap: "Are you threatening me?"
"You..."
Su Lei didn't dare speak further; every single word cost him a slap, and he couldn't quite take much more. Glaring with rage, he got back into the car, intending to drive away.
At that moment, his face was already swollen from Ye Huan's slaps, making him unfit to see Lin Xi.
Yet upon getting in, he discovered the car keys were still in Ye Huan's hands, and he snapped furiously:
"Give me the keys!"
"Go pick them up yourself!"
With a flick of his wrist, Ye Huan flung the car keys hundreds of meters away.
Su Lei: "..."
Right at that moment, Lin Xi walked out of Lin Building. Catching sight of the Ferrari LaFerrari and Su Lei inside the car, she paused in surprise and said:
"Young Master Su? Why are you here?"
Because Su Lei was sitting in the car, and the side Ye Huan had slapped was Su Lei's left cheek, Su Lei was currently facing Lin Xi with his right cheek, preventing Lin Xi from noticing that his face was already swollen.
Watching Lin Xi's surprised expression, Ye Huan finally confirmed in his heart that Su Lei wasn't someone Lin Xi had found to torment him, but rather someone Lin Canglan and Li Meiya had recruited to disgust him.
"Ahem, well, you see, Shen Huamei invited me to attend her birthday party, and she mentioned she invited you too, so I figured I'd come find you and go together. But just now I suddenly remembered something I needed to take care of—um, you go on ahead first, and I'll rush right over once I'm done with my business."
Su Lei forced an awkward smile, too embarrassed to face Lin Xi with his front profile.
"Alright, then hurry up and take care of your business!"
Lin Xi smiled warmly, then stood in place ready to see Su Lei off. This was the entrance of Lin Building; as the CEO of Lin's Group, it would be impolite of her to leave first.
"Young Master Su, why aren't you leaving yet?" Ye Huan asked, holding back his laughter and playing dumb.
Leave your mother's spicy side, you bastard threw my car keys away, how am I supposed to leave, pedal away on my feet... Su Lei cursed internally, but out loud he said:
"I'm just figuring out how to handle the errand I have to run next. You guys go on ahead, I'll smoke a cigarette before leaving."
With that, he pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and puffed away with a great air of authenticity.
"Alright, see you later then!"
Lin Xi smiled slightly, then headed straight toward the parking lot with Ye Huan.
Su Lei waited until Lin Xi's figure vanished from sight before getting out of the car to hunt for his keys.
After Ye Huan and Lin Xi got into the car, Lin Xi said:
"Accompany me home to change my clothes first, and then accompany me to my friend's birthday party."
Ye Huan instantly grasped Lin Xi's intentions. By bringing him to a friend's birthday party, Lin Xi clearly wanted to use her friends' hands to humiliate and torment him.
...
This wasn't Ye Huan's first time at Lin Xi's home; he had accompanied her home earlier that morning to fetch her household registration book.
Although the Lin Family was wealthy, they maintained a frugal household style, so Lin Xi's home wasn't a sprawling luxury villa, but rather a spacious 180-square-meter flat.
Of course, as a tier-one metropolis in Huaxia with average housing prices hitting sixty to seventy thousand per square meter, Lin Xi's apartment was quite valuable as well.
"What are you doing in our house, you butcher?"
As soon as Ye Huan and Lin Xi stepped through the front door, Lin Canglan and Li Meiya sprang up from the dining table like coiled springs, and Li Meiya demanded angrily.
"Get lost outside, our family doesn't welcome you." Lin Canglan issued an outright eviction order.
Without even sparing them a glance, Ye Huan cast his gaze toward an eighteen or nineteen-year-old young beauty currently eating at the table. Who was this?
"So this must be the brother-in-law? Looks pretty handsome!"
The girl looked Ye Huan up and down, speaking in a sarcastic tone laden with disdain and contempt.
So Lin Xi had a younger sister after all... Ye Huan had a sudden realization and smiled:
"Little sister-in-law, you sure have a good eye!"
Chapter 17: A Bride Price of 100 Million
"Sick!"
Lin Xi's younger sister, 'Lin Xue', rolled her eyes, went back to eating her meal, and ignored Ye Huan completely.
Privately, her first impression of this brother-in-law was abysmal. She had clearly been dripping with sarcasm, yet Ye Huan actually praised her for having a good eye.
He couldn't even tell the difference between a compliment and an insult—truly living up to being a butcher!
"I told you to get lost outside, are your ears deaf?"
Seeing that Ye Huan not only hadn't scrambled out of his house but had even started chatting with Lin Xue, Lin Canglan flew into a towering rage.
"I'll wait for you outside!" Ye Huan said to Lin Xi.
"Okay!" Lin Xi nodded and headed straight for her bedroom.
"Hold on!"
At that moment, Li Meiya suddenly called out to stop Ye Huan, saying:
"Since you're already in, don't rush off just yet. I happen to have something to discuss with you."
Lin Canglan was stunned: "What on earth do you have to discuss with a butcher? Ask him about international pork prices?"
Li Meiya shot Lin Canglan a look whose meaning Lin Canglan failed to grasp, then walked over to the living room, sat down on the sofa, crossed her legs, and said:
"Come over here!"
Ye Huan walked right over and made to sit down.
Li Meiya scolded sharply: "Who gave you permission to sit?"
Heaven as my witness, Ye Huan felt the urge to slap the life out of Li Meiya, but out of respect for his life-saving benefactor Lin Tai, he held back.
Standing straight, he asked: "What do you want to talk to me about?"
Lin Canglan hurried over and sat down beside Li Meiya; he was equally curious about what Li Meiya suddenly wanted to discuss with Ye Huan.
Lin Xue, still eating, also cast a curious glance over.
"Ye Huan, marriage calls for the three letters and six etiquettes. Our Lin Family doesn't adhere to that many rigid rules, but we still need to talk about the bride price, the house, and the car. I can't just hand my daughter over to you for free," Li Meiya said.
Beside her, Lin Canglan instantly understood Li Meiya's angle—she was trying to drive up the price of the bride price to force Ye Huan into retreating in the face of difficulties.
He chimed in cooperatively: "Ye Huan, what amount do you think is a reasonable bride price? What size house and what caliber of car would be worthy of Xixi's status?"
Ye Huan thought it over: "The bride price shouldn't be less than 100 million; the house needs to be at least 1,000 square meters or more, specifically a detached villa with a garden and a swimming pool; as for the car, something worth twenty or thirty million will do."
Lin Canglan, Li Meiya, and Lin Xue were utterly stunned!
Especially Lin Canglan and Li Meiya—amidst their shock, their breathing turned ragged, their faces flushed bright red with excitement, and their bodies trembled.
"Y-you have that kind of money?!"
Li Meiya suddenly felt that this butcher son-in-law wasn't quite so detestable after all.
"Is butchering pigs abroad really that profitable?" Lin Canglan asked excitedly.
Ye Huan looked puzzled: "I'm marrying into the Lin Family as a matrilocal son-in-law—isn't your Lin Family supposed to give me a bride price, and prepare a house and car for me? No need for too much, just give me what I asked for."
Lin Canglan: "..."
Li Meiya: "..."
Lin Xue: "..."
They had assumed Ye Huan was going to offer Lin Xi a bride price of 100 million, a house over 1,000 square meters, and a car worth tens of millions.
After all that buildup, Ye Huan actually expected Lin Xi's family to provide those things to *him*!
"Get your ass out of here!"
Li Meiya unleashed her furious Lion's Roar technique, causing the entire building to tremble a few times.
"Get lost, get out! If you ever dare set foot in my house again, I'll break your dog legs," Lin Canglan roared as well.
Ye Huan curled his lips and quickly scampered out, though he was secretly overjoyed inside. Being able to piss off people who disliked him to this degree gave him a strong sense of accomplishment.
Yet a sudden thought occurred to him: aside from Lin Tai, everyone else in the entire Lin Family loathed him. That simply wouldn't do; it was unfavorable for his future peace and stability.
After mulling it over from every angle!
Ye Huan decided to set himself a small goal: whip his father-in-law, mother-in-law, and little sister-in-law into absolute submission and become a master in-law who ran the household.
Half an hour later!
Lin Xi finally emerged!
"You're going to a birthday party dressed like this?"
Ye Huan looked Lin Xi up and down, taking in her attire.
Her long hair was tied into a ponytail, revealing her smooth, full forehead and an exquisite, delicate face without an ounce of excess fat;
On her upper body, she wore a white tight-fitting T-shirt that accentuated her slender waist and full, voluptuous curves to the absolute limit;
On her lower body, she wore washed-out, loose-fitting ripped jeans;
And on her feet, a pair of simple white sneakers.
Youthful, lively, sunny, energetic, blending pure beauty with a touch of sexiness, along with a faint hint of rebellious edge.
This outfit was a treat for the eyes, but hardly appropriate for attending a high-society birthday party.
"I was born with natural beauty; even if I wore a burlap sack, I'd still be the most stunning person in the room!"
Lin Xi dropped a cocky remark and stepped into the elevator.
"You'd look even more stunning wearing nothing at all!"
Ye Huan followed her into the elevator and remarked.
"I'll beat you to death!"
The memory of having been taken advantage of for free by Ye Huan flashed instantly through Lin Xi's mind, driving her to leap up and launch a direct assault on Ye Huan inside the elevator.
"Hey hey hey, what are you doing..."
"I'll rip your mouth apart..."
"Stop, if you don't stop right now, I'll have my way with you right here in this elevator!"
"I'll beat you, beat you, beat you, beat you to death..."
By the time the elevator descended to the second basement level and Ye Huan stepped out, his hair had transformed into a bird's nest, though his clothes remained intact.
Once they got into the car!
Lin Xi glanced at Ye Huan's bird's nest hairstyle, a victorious smile blooming across her face as she said:
"There will be plenty of people attending tonight's party, and among them are people I detest. So they must never find out about our relationship, otherwise the people I can't stand will definitely seize the opportunity to mock me."
Ye Huan understood now. So this girl had dragged him along to the party not to use her friends' hands to torment and disgust him at all. He said:
"Then why don't you simply not bring me along."
"If you don't go, who's going to protect me?" Lin Xi pouted.
Now it all made sense to Ye Huan—the girl was worried the Jin Family might retaliate against her over the incident involving Jin Feiyu, so she was drafting him in as a bodyguard.
...
Su Lei expended a tremendous amount of effort tracking down his car keys, after which he called his bodyguard and visited a pharmacy to apply ice compresses to the left cheek that Ye Huan had swollen.
Only then did he bring his bodyguard to Superface Bar.
"Why are you all standing outside?"
Seeing that everyone attending the birthday party was gathered at the bar entrance, Su Lei asked in confusion.
"We're waiting for Lin Xi!"
A beauty wearing a pink halter bodycon dress replied with a smile.
Su Lei instantly grasped the implication and frowned:
"Xiang Yingxin, I know you and Lin Xi don't see eye to eye, but tonight is Shen Huamei's birthday party. Isn't it going a bit too far for you to stir up drama with Lin Xi here?"
"Oh, looks like you're all caught up on the news!"
The beauty in the pink halter bodycon dress, 'Xiang Yingxin', said playfully:
"Young Master Su, all of us know you're sweet on Lin Xi and have been pursuing her for years. Can you really just resign yourself to watching her marry a butcher?"
As soon as those words dropped, everyone present cast teasing glances at Su Lei. They were all hoping Su Lei would leverage Shen Huamei's birthday party to thoroughly put that butcher in his place and add some festive flair to Shen Huamei's celebration!
At the mention of that butcher, Su Lei's left cheek twitched slightly as he said:
"Of course I'm not resigned, and I will definitely not let that butcher off the hook. But I won't ruin Shen Huamei's birthday party for the sake of my own personal matters."
At that moment, Shen Huamei walked over and declared:
"As Lin Xi's good friend, I will never allow her to marry down to a butcher. Feel free to use this opportunity to thoroughly humiliate and put that butcher in his place—ideally, enough to make him fly into a rage and divorce Lin Xi."