Chapter 585: Not Returning to the East Sea
"Miss Ye, hello!"
Shen Yubai turned his wheelchair and glided to Yan Mingyu's front, flicked his elegant fringe, and smiled slightly, "Don't look down on my current state; it seems quite pathetic. Before I had to use this wheelchair, I was the number one handsome man in Capital City. The line of women who wanted to be my devotees could stretch from Capital City to Wu City!"
"Okay, I'll marry you!"
Yan Mingyu once again demonstrated her CEO side, decisive and resolute.
In just a few seconds, she made up her mind. First, this young master Shen came from Capital City, and even under these circumstances, the Ye Family still agreed to arrange a marriage with him, indicating his influence was certainly strong. If she refused, she would only make another enemy.
Moreover, he was sitting in a wheelchair, clearly unable to use anything below his shoulders properly. Put bluntly, he was like a living plant, and marrying him meant she wouldn't have to fulfill the duties of a wife, preserving her purity.
Secondly, the fact that Young Master Shen could joke about his wheelchair the first time he met her indicated he probably had a broad mind, not someone conniving or sly, and would be pleasant to get along with.
In other words, even if she refused Shen Yubai, the Ye family would surely find her a second Mr. Shen, Mr. Zhang, Mr. Wang or someone similar.
Who knows what kind of characters would come after?
Put plainly, by marrying Shen Yubai, she'd preserve her chastity and still have the face to meet Qin Yu. If she were defiled by another man, how could she have the face to appear before Qin Yu again?
Between two evils, choose the lesser.
Such a simple rationale was certainly understood by Yan Mingyu.
"Haha... Miss Ye is indeed the President of Four Seas Corporation, direct, decisive, and utterly charming. Rest assured, now that you are willing to marry, I, Shen Yubai, will certainly marry you with honor and take you back to Capital City!"
Shen Yubai laughed heartily.
"Congratulations, Mr. Shen!"
Ye Haolong cupped his hands together, revealing a relieved expression. He had assumed Yan Mingyu would be very resistant to Shen Yubai in a wheelchair, maybe even lash out in anger, and thought he might need to employ some tactics to make Yan Mingyu submit.
Things had gone smoother than he expected.
"Uncle Ye, pick a good day for us. After I return to Capital City and discuss it with my parents, I will come over to marry Miss Ye!"
Shen Yubai said, looking at Ye Haolong.
To demonstrate Yan Mingyu's esteemed status, Ye Haolong had already instructed everyone to call her "Ye Mingyu" before today's homecoming ceremony, so naturally, Shen Yubai called her "Miss Ye".
"No problem. Many VIP guests have come today; let's go out and mingle a bit!"
After saying this, Ye Haolong led Yan Mingyu and Shen Yubai into the courtyard.
"This is Ye Haowen, your great-uncle!"
Ye Haolong first introduced a middle-aged man dressed in a Sun Yat-sen suit, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, and exuding an educated and refined demeanor.
"Great-uncle, good day!"
Yan Mingyu called out, vaguely recalling that the man before her seemed to have appeared on television, definitely someone of high status and power.
No wonder the Ye Family had dominated the south for so many years; not only did they have a powerhouse like Ye Qianzhong of the Pill Holding Realm, but they also had such a powerful great-uncle.
"Mingyu, welcome back to the Ye Family. You and your second aunt looked so much alike when you were younger!"
Ye Haowen said somewhat nostalgically.
"Haha, Mingyu is the biological daughter of my second sister; of course, they look alike!"
After saying this, Ye Haolong introduced another man dressed in a black Tang suit with a sharp gaze, "This is your third uncle, Ye Haozhan, the head of our southern martial arts federation, also known as the Martial Arts Alliance Hierarch!"
"Hello, third uncle!"
Yan Mingyu nodded again as a greeting.
With each passing moment, her shock grew stronger. Ye Haowen, Ye Haozhan, one a high-ranking official, the other the Martial Arts Alliance Hierarch, and adding to them the old and cunning Ye Haolong—any one of them could easily crush her and Qin Yu without hesitation.
Fortunately, she had chosen to compromise. Had she decided to confront the Ye Family head-on, it would have undoubtedly brought trouble upon Qin Yu and might even cost them their lives.
With this thought, Yan Mingyu had made up her mind.
Afterward, Ye Haolong also introduced a man with a striking name, Helian Wudi—the president of the Fengyun Chamber of Commerce. Judging by his demeanor, it seemed he was highly respected, even slightly feared.
Indeed, as the central hub of the southern eight provinces, Wu City was a place where dragons hid and tigers crouched.
The series of introductions took a full hour. Yan Mingyu couldn't possibly remember the names of dozens of individuals, and her only impression was that the Ye Family was powerful, immensely so, with connections and influence far beyond her imagination.
Finally, Ye Haolong brought Yan Mingyu and Shen Yubai back to the main hall where a table had been set. He introduced his son Ye Tianci and daughter Ye Ziling to Yan Mingyu.
In contrast to Ye Haolong's enthusiasm, the siblings Ye Tianci and Ziling were distinctly colder.
To them, Yan Mingyu was merely a pawn, a passerby who would stay in the villa for a few days and, once married off to the Shen Family, would be of no concern to them.
After lunch, Ye Haolong and several other heavyweights of the Ye Family started to discuss the date for Yan Mingyu's wedding. In his view, the sooner the better, to avoid any unforeseen complications.
However, with the new year just around the corner, it was obviously too late to make arrangements, so they ultimately decided the wedding would take place after the Lantern Festival, on the eighteenth day of the first lunar month.
Shen Yubai invited Yan Mingyu to stroll around the Ye Family's villa with him. Having spent several hours together, Yan Mingyu found the young master from the Capital City to be witty, humorous, and even somewhat goofy, not a difficult person to get along with at all.
She felt a bit more at ease in her heart and silently accepted the fate laid out for her—to marry Shen Yubai and become his wife.
On Qin Yu's side.
He had set out from Jinling early in the morning, but due to heavy traffic, he only arrived at the East Sea in the afternoon.
Accompanied by old Master Yan, he went straight to the manor in the suburbs. Since Yan Mingyu hadn't confirmed her return for the New Year, as her son-in-law, Qin Yu naturally stayed with the old master.
The manor had plenty of rooms, enough to accommodate Qin Jianjun and Qin Wei'er as well.
Once settled, it was already evening.
Qin Yu, in his room, dialed Yan Mingyu's number on his phone.
It was getting late, and she still hadn't returned his calls, which only made Qin Yu feel more and more uneasy.
Ring ring...
The phone rang for a while before Yan Mingyu's somewhat tired voice answered, "Hello?"
"Wife...."
Qin Yu had just uttered this intimate term when Yan Mingyu cut him off, "Qin Yu, I think it's better if you don't call me 'wife' anymore!"
"Why?"
Qin Yu was instantly bewildered, a bad premonition welling up inside him.
"People aspire to climb higher, and water flows to lower ground. I think it's quite good staying with the Ye Family, and I don't want to go back to the East Sea. I don't know when we'll see each other again. Maybe during this time, you'll meet the right person, and I will too. So, let's just interact as ordinary friends for now!"
Yan Mingyu said calmly.
"Mingyu, what are you talking about? Are the people of the Ye Family threatening you? This isn't like you!"
Qin Yu was panicking.
Was Yan Mingyu trying to abandon him?