The villainous second male lead at the beginning? No! He's the white moonlight!

Just as Zhao Jinyan led Mitsui Takejiro into the Su family's main residence through the back door, Ye Linyuan was stopped by someone when he was heading to the back hall where Zhao Xinyue was.

The one who stopped him was Yan Ling, the head of the Yan family.

Actually, if Su Shiyu were here, she should have been the one to deal with Yan Ling. However, Su Shiyu went to the back hall first. So, as elders of the eight great families, although the Yan family has always been aloof and disdains having overly close relations with other families, Ye Linyuan and the others still had to show them the respect they deserved.

Ye Linyuan looked Yan Ling up and down; this was the first time he had ever met this legendary Yan family unicorn.

He really is as refined as the legends say.

"I wonder what brings Patriarch Yan to stop me here?"

Upon hearing Ye Linyuan's words, Yan Ling also withdrew her gaze from him, inwardly nodding in admiration.

This was also his first time meeting Ye Linyuan. He could only say that Ye Linyuan truly deserved to be called the number one young person in Haicheng. He was indeed a dragon among men. His demeanor and posture were incomparable to those of Xiao Fan or Xiao Chen.

Even she herself paled in comparison to Ye Linyuan.

I really don't know how much good fortune has been emanating from the Ye family's ancestral graves, as outstanding people have emerged in every generation, especially in this generation.

He had fought against Ye Qingyan in various fields and knew that she was a monster with no blind spots in all aspects. However, the whole circle was saying that Ye Linyuan's abilities were even more terrifying than Ye Qingyan's. Even Ye Qingyan herself admitted that Ye Linyuan was stronger than her.

Ye Qingyan is already terrifyingly strong, and I am far inferior to him. How terrifying must Ye Linyuan, who is even stronger than Ye Qingyan, be?

Thank goodness, I didn't come here today to cause trouble, much less to be an enemy of the Ye family. Instead, I hope to turn hostility into friendship with the Ye family!

Yan Ling glanced at Ye Xi, Ye Xin, and Xiao Ruoxi, the little princess of the Xiao family, who stood beside Ye Linyuan like door gods. After a slight hesitation, she bowed slightly to Ye Linyuan and spoke.

"Xiao Yuan, I have something I'd like to discuss with you. Would it be convenient for us to speak privately?"

Upon hearing this, Ye Linyuan chuckled and spoke to Yan Ling.

"Patriarch Yan, you want me to plead for your son Yan Fan, right? But I heard that Yan Fan has already been expelled from the Yan family genealogy. May I ask in what capacity you are asking me to intercede for him? As the head of the Yan family? Or as a father?"

Without giving Yan Ling a chance to speak, Ye Linyuan continued.

"If you are here to see me as the head of the Yan family, then, as members of the eight great families, we are of one mind and share the same fate. Letting Yan Fan go is not out of the question, it just depends on what price the Yan family is willing to pay."

"If you are approaching me as a father, then I'm sorry, but I must refuse. Everyone has to pay the price for their mistakes, and no one is exempt, not even your son."

"As the saying goes, even princes are subject to the same laws as commoners. We are all carbon-based beings, and none of us is more noble than the other. Yan Fan wants to kill me, and even for my own safety, I will not let him go!"

Xiao Ruoxi immediately chimed in.

"Exactly, exactly! Brother Yuan is right. Yan Fan tried to harm Brother Yuan in full view of everyone. A life sentence would be too lenient for him. If you ask me, he'd be more like dead after ten minutes of shooting!"

If Xiao Ruoxi didn't speak, then Ye Xi and Ye Xin wouldn't be able to speak either, since they needed to maintain A Yuan's authority in public. But now that Xiao Ruoxi had spoken, their support wouldn't be considered an infringement on A Yuan's authority.

"That's right. If you ask me, Yan Fan should be executed by slow slicing, cut into 3,600 pieces, so they know what happens when they dare to harm our A Yuan."

"That's right, that's right. We should make an example of them to deter others. They must be severely punished, otherwise, anyone will dare to harm our A-Yuan in the future."

Listening to Xiao Ruoxi, Ye Xi, and Ye Xin singing in unison, Yan Ling's expression turned somewhat unpleasant, but she did not give up. Instead, she followed Ye Linyuan's words and spoke up.

"Xiao Yuan, can't you at least spare Xiao Fan for the sake of our eight great families being of one family? Don't worry, I'll confine him to his quarters when I get back, so he'll never be able to leave the house again!"

Fearing Ye Linyuan wouldn't believe her, Yan Ling continued.

"Xiao Yuan, don't worry, I'm just acting out of a father's responsibility. I don't want Xiao Fan to spend his whole life in prison, that's all."

"If you're still not at ease, as soon as he comes back, I'll break his legs immediately and never let him embarrass himself again."

Looking at Yan Ling, whose face was full of hope, Ye Linyuan might have softened and agreed if it were anyone else. But Yan Fan was, after all, the male lead in the story, and who knew what trouble his momentary leniency would cause. So Ye Linyuan decisively shook his head.

"I'm sorry, but I'll say it again: if you're going to be punished, you have to stand up straight; if you make a mistake, you have to accept the consequences. If you have any complaints about Yan Fan's verdict, feel free to raise them with the judge."

All I want is absolute fairness and justice.

After a pause, Ye Linyuan looked at Shen Wanqing and Shen Shuying, who were walking towards him with a group of people. He immediately understood that the two of them had definitely dealt with Pei Sijing, and said in a voice that only the few people present could hear.

"I believe the law will give me justice."

Will the law give you justice?

Yan Ling's brows furrowed, and after a moment of silence, she sighed.

"Since you've made up your mind, Xiaoyuan, there's nothing I can say."

Hearing Yan Ling's words, Ye Linyuan originally thought that the matter was over, but he did not expect that Yan Ling's next words would make all the women present glare at him angrily.

"I have a second matter to discuss, which is to propose marriage for my daughter Yan Ruyu to you."

Everyone present knew Yan Ruyu, who was known as one of the beauties of the capital, and knew what kind of person she was.

So, in just a moment, Ye Xi, Ye Xin, and Xiao Ruoxi all got angry. The three of them had only one thought in their minds: they absolutely could not let this vixen join in.

After all, this guy's model is really good. In their eyes, there are only Ye Qingyan, Luo Qingyue, and Luo Qingxuan, who is regarded by everyone as the strongest enemy when they are enemies and the best ally when they are allies.

The rest, including Leng Qinghan and An Wangshu, were all a level below Yan Ruyu in terms of looks alone.

Their track was already tough enough, and now another guy has come along who's good enough to rank fourth or fifth. How are they supposed to compete like this?

Of course, they also knew that as long as Luo Qingge was there, everyone else was just an accessory and didn't matter at all.

"Patriarch Yan, I'll reply to you on A-Yuan's behalf: No!"

"That's right, no way! Don't think we don't know what you're up to. You just want to trade one for another. What kind of person do you take our A-Yuan for?"

Ye Xin and Ye Xi spoke first.

Xiao Ruoxi nodded vigorously beside her. At this moment, she was no longer an opponent of Ye Xi and Ye Xin, but an ally standing on the same side. After all, in her view, if Yan Ruyu joined in, wouldn't her chances decrease even further?

How can this be allowed!

If Ye Linyuan had said the refusal, Yan Ling would most likely have felt regret. But these were just the words of Ye's two daughters; how could Yan Ling possibly take those two girls seriously?

"I remember your names are Ye Xi and Ye Xin, right? You're both very beautiful. But, I'll ask you the same question Xiao Yuan just asked me: on what grounds did you reject me?"

Under the unpleasant gazes of Ye Xi and Ye Xin, Yan Ling slowly spoke.

"Is it in his capacity as the head of the Ye family? Or as the person in charge of the Ye family? Or as the person directly involved?"

We're refusing you as the woman involved, is that alright?