Chapter 38: The Arrogant Young Man

The assistant deliberately ignored Ye Xin Ran and directly called Li Zheng to the inner hall.

However, while Li Zheng was speaking with the magistrate, the assistant secretly instructed one of the servants: “Go quickly and inform the eldest son. Tell him that the eldest daughter of the Ye family is here at the county office. We don’t know what she’s here for, but he should stay alert.”

The servant immediately went off to deliver the message.

Sitting idly in the room, Ye Xin Ran began to reflect on the source of Xiao Huai’an’s money.

Logically speaking, if Xiao Huai’an were capable of this kind of wealth, he wouldn’t have been living so poorly in the village for a year. At the very least, he should be dressed better.

It couldn’t be that he hadn’t hunted any valuable animals before, and this time he just happened to get lucky with a rare catch, could it?

That would be far too coincidental!

Just as she was deep in thought, the sound of footsteps suddenly came from outside.

Ye Xin Ran thought Li Zheng must have finished his business quickly, and eagerly stood up to greet him. But when she looked up, she saw the face of Qiao Zi Yu, a face that immediately soured her mood.

In the past, Ye Xin Ran would have found Qiao Zi Yu’s pale and slim appearance quite attractive. However, after witnessing Xiao Huai’an’s perfectly sculpted muscles and the veins bulging on his hands, Qiao Zi Yu’s weak, delicate frame no longer appealed to her.

Further more, Qiao Zi Yu had an obnoxious habit of looking at people through his nostrils, and Ye Xin Ran really didn’t want to look up and immediately face two nostrils.

Seeing Qiao Zi Yu, Ye Xin Ran’s smile instantly faded.

Qiao Zi Yu, noticing Ye Xin Ran’s sudden change in expression, paused in his tracks.

This woman was now daring to show him such a cold face.

“What are you here for?” Qiao Zi Yu’s voice also grew cold.

Ye Xin Ran looked around in disbelief and replied, “Isn’t this the county office? Why can’t I be here?”

“Ye Xin Ran!” Qiao Zi Yu shouted sharply. “Stop your endless entanglement, alright?

You’re already married, and I’m engaged to your sister. Why do you keep trying to get close to me? What exactly do you want?”

“Qiao Zi Yu!”

Ye Xin Ran, having already prepared herself for his shamelessness, quickly reacted.

“Stop being so full of yourself. I came to the office to handle official business, who has time to get close to you?”

“Just you?” Qiao Zi Yu sneered coldly. “The good for nothing eldest daughter of the Ye family actually has official business!”

“Well, what else?” Ye Xin Ran retorted with a mocking smile. “The eldest son of the county magistrate’s family doesn’t even have a mirror at home. Don’t you have any self-awareness?”

Qiao Zi Yu: “What do you mean?”

Ye Xin Ran: “I mean, you should take a good look at yourself. Do you really think you’re some sort of handsome genius? To me, you don’t even compare to the little toe of my husband! Please, from now on, don’t come and make a scene anymore!”

Dealing with someone like Qiao Zi Yu didn’t require any concern for face. If the words weren’t clear enough, he would never understand.

“You!” Qiao Zi Yu was furious.

Ye Xin Ran had compared him to an exiled criminal, it was truly a vicious insult.

“You two are nothing but worthless insects, not even worthy of carrying my shoes. What gives you the right to compare yourselves to me?”

Before Qiao Zi Yu could lash out further, the door was suddenly pushed open, and Li Zheng excitedly walked in. “Ye Madam, it’s done! It’s done!”

He had a happy expression on his face, but when he saw Qiao Zi Yu in the room, Li Zheng was startled. “Who are you?”

The assistant, following behind him, quickly explained, “This is the eldest son of the county magistrate!”

Hearing this, Li Zheng immediately understood.

Wasn’t this Ye Xin Ran’s former fiancé?

But why were they in the same room together? And judging by their expressions, it seemed like there had been a quarrel. But what could they possibly argue about? Could it be that the old flame wasn’t truly extinguished?

“You two are…”

Li Zheng felt as though he had discovered a huge secret.

Seeing Li Zheng’s meaningful expression, Qiao Zi Yu stomped his foot in anger.

“Good for you, Ye Xin Ran! This is your goal, isn’t it? To deliberately make people see me here with you!”

Ye Xin Ran thought: Why is he always so annoying?

Where does this arrogant guy get his confidence from?

It’s all because the original owner was too attentive to him back then!

Men really can be spoiled. They don’t appreciate you for being kind to them, instead, they think they deserve everything you give them.

Damn it! I really want to knock some sense into his head.

Watching Qiao Zi Yu angrily leave the room, Ye Xin Ran turned to ask Li Zheng: “Uncle Li Zheng, what happened? You said it’s all settled?”

“Yes!” Li Zheng was distracted by her question.

“The transfer deed for East Mountain has been sealed with the official stamp. Here, this is for you. From now on, East Mountain in our village belongs to you!”

Li Zheng said as he handed Ye Xin Ran the deed.

The document was made of parchment, with the details of the transfer written on the left side, and both Li Zheng’s and Ye Xin Ran’s signatures on the right. Now, with the county office’s official seal, the mountain was officially hers.

Watching Ye Xin Ran carefully put the deed away, Li Zheng couldn’t help but say, “If the land doesn’t produce crops, don’t blame me. I did warn you before!”

Ye Xin Ran looked up and smiled reassuringly, “Don’t worry, Uncle Li Zheng, I won’t blame you!

What about the Mi Lu Mountain?”

“It’s also bought!” Li Zheng happily showed Ye Xin Ran another document.

It stated that starting today, Mi Lu Mountain would belong to Yun Bian Village, and the resources on the mountain would be controlled by the village.

“How many taels of silver?” Ye Xin Ran asked, focusing on the most important detail.

Li Zheng raised five fingers.

“Five hundred taels?” Ye Xin Ran was shocked. “Uncle Li Zheng, you’re really rich!”

Li Zheng quickly waved his hand.

“Where did I get so much money? The village’s funds were all spent long ago. This 200 taels is from you, and the other 300 taels, I borrowed from the county magistrate.”

“The magistrate is that generous?”

Ye Xin Ran didn’t have much of an impression of the magistrate.

“He doesn’t have any money either. I just owe him for now!

He owes the government, and anyway, he won’t be promoted anytime soon!

I told him that I’ll pay him back before he gets promoted!”

“Uncle Li Zheng, are you so sure you can make the money back?”

She reminded Li Zheng.

Any investment has risks. Going into it with the mindset that you will definitely profit is bound to lead to disappointment.

Moreover, what they had discovered so far was just a water source.

“You don’t know!”

Li Zheng chuckled. “Among all the villages around here, Yun Bian Village is the poorest.

Why?

One reason is because our land is scarce. It’s not as fertile as Dong Gou or Xi Gou villages.

The other reason is that they are upstream from us. They have all the fertile land, and once they’ve claimed it all, we’re left with nothing!

I’ve been angry with them about this for years.

But now, with the water source on Mi Lu Mountain, I, Zhang Ya Suo, can finally hold my head high!”