Gao Wu: Oh no! Young Master Zhen is a cultivator!

Lin Ran put down his water glass and casually said, "She and I were in the same orphanage before, so we got along quite well."

"So they were childhood sweethearts!" Song Yishu's eyes lit up.

She tilted her head slightly in Lin Hongbo's direction and gave him a wink.

Lin Hongbo nodded slightly and said earnestly, "Since you two have a foundation of affection, your parents are not incapable of helping you. Besides, the Sun family has never gotten along with the Lin family, so we're determined to secure this marriage."

"I really am..." Lin Ran raised his hand and pressed it to his forehead, "Did you even understand what I was saying?"

"I understand." Lin Zhiyao nodded. "Isn't it just that your childhood sweetheart doesn't want to marry Sun Jinghuan, so he's using you as a shield?"

"Right. So what does this have to do with kidnapping the bride?"

Lin Zhiwan, who had been silent until now, couldn't help but speak up: "Now that the news has spread, you should take responsibility for that girl."

She stared into Lin Ran's eyes and continued, "Unless you truly don't have feelings for her, or you want to be a jerk?"

Lin Zhixia's expression was indifferent, and she stated succinctly: "Being a scumbag will never end well!"

Although her tone was devoid of any emotion, Lin Ran still felt that she was threatening him.

"Our friendship is purely platonic, with no romantic feelings involved!" Lin Ran said seriously.

"Tch!" The three Lin sisters scoffed in unison.

Song Yishu said earnestly, "Xiao Ran, you can't be too greedy, especially when it comes to relationships."

"That's right!" Lin Hongbo wholeheartedly agreed. "Getting involved with too many women will only leave you exhausted, both physically and mentally!"

Lin Ran turned to look at him: "Tell me in detail how physically and mentally exhausted you are."

"What? You sound like you're quite experienced?" Song Yishu's hand had already reached Lin Hongbo's waist.

"No! Absolutely not!" Lin Hongbo quickly stepped aside. "I was just teaching the child, wasn't I?"

"Hmph!" Song Yishu slowly withdrew her hand. "You'd better not have one!"

Seeing that the topic was getting a bit off track, Lin Haozhe couldn't help but add fuel to the fire: "Ran-ge doesn't want to get engaged to Chu Xining because of Bai Ruolin?"

Upon hearing this, everyone's eyes turned to Lin Haozhe.

"What's going on with Bai Ruolin?" Song Yishu's tone sharpened again.

Lin Haozhe carefully considered his words: "Bai Ruolin is a female classmate of ours, and she's quite close to Ran Ge."

If he could, he actually wanted to say something even more serious.

But with Lin Ran watching from the side, he couldn't just imagine or fabricate things out of thin air.

Song Yishu turned to Lin Ran: "Is that so?"

"Just ordinary classmates." Lin Ran said without changing his expression.

Lin Haozhe added, "Bai Ruolin is usually very aloof and doesn't have many friends in class. Ran became good friends with her as soon as he joined the class."

"How good is it?" Lin Zhiyao pressed.

"Last time, Bai Ruolin treated Ran to dinner."

Song Yishu caught the key information and turned to look at Lin Ran.

"So, when you said you were having dinner with your classmates last time, you meant with this Bai Ruolin?"

Lin Ran shook his head: "No, I had dinner with Chu Xining last time."

"Oh?" Song Yishu nodded. "It seems you still prefer Chu Xining."

Lin Hongbo made the final decision: "Since that's the case, it's settled then! Your mother and I will personally visit the Chu family tomorrow!"

"No? You guys are serious?" Lin Ran looked incredulous.

I already said that girl made it all up, so why is she suddenly talking about visiting the Chu family?

What exactly happened?

"Who's joking with you?" Lin Hongbo asked seriously.

Lin Ran looked speechless: "But I didn't mean that."

"It's okay, as long as the girl is interested."

Lin Hongbo stood up from the sofa, walked over to Lin Ran, and patted him on the shoulder.

"You wouldn't want your childhood sweetheart to marry a man she doesn't like, would you?"

Lin Ran's expression was complicated: "What you're saying sounds a bit strange."

"Isn't this the logic?" Lin Hongbo asked seriously.

To be honest, it seems like there's really nothing wrong with it.

But the problem now is that this was not part of Lin Ran's plan at all.

So he shook his head: "The logic is correct, but there's no need to handle it this way."

Lin Zhiwan asked with slight curiosity, "How do you plan to handle this?"

Then, Lin Ran revealed a very meticulous plan: "I can challenge Sun Jinghuan every day until he takes the initiative to break off the engagement."

On the surface, he wanted Sun Jinghuan to break off the engagement, but in reality, he just wanted to beat Sun Jinghuan up to vent his anger.

The original owner was bullied by Sun Jinghuan for two and a half years, and this debt was never settled. This is a good opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.

There was a two-second silence in the living room.

"Nonsense!" Lin Hongbo frowned.

Song Yishu asked with a worried expression, "What if you get hurt?"

Lin Zhiyao, not one to shy away from trouble, excitedly said, "If you really beat up Sun Jinghuan every day, I'll acknowledge you as my younger brother!"

Lin Ran's lips twitched slightly: "I really thank you, but there's no need for that."

"What?" Lin Zhiyao raised an eyebrow. "Do you think I'm not worthy to be your older sister?"

Lin Ran shrugged: "What do you think?"

"How dare you underestimate me!" Lin Zhiyao stood up angrily.

"Actually, I'm already overestimating you."

Lin Zhiyao's face flushed bright red: "Ugh... I'm so angry!"

"What? You want to duel with me?" Lin Ran raised an eyebrow.

Lin Zhiyao paused slightly, then forced a smile and said, "Pah! I won't fall for that!"

Lin Hongbo and Song Yishu exchanged a glance, both revealing a knowing expression.

The Sun family study.

The floor lamp cast a warm yellow halo around the wall.

Sun Boyuan sat behind his mahogany desk, twirling a pair of walnuts in his hands.

Sun Jinghuan stood in front of the table, his chest heaving violently, his anger still burning.

"It seems that this girl from the Chu family is quite restless." Sun Boyuan's voice was unhurried, and the walnuts made a soft rubbing sound in his palm.

"She's gone too far!" Sun Jinghuan clenched his fists. "And that Lin Ran, I will never let them get away with this!"

Sun Boyuan placed the walnuts on the table, picked up the purple clay teapot, and took a sip.

"In that case, after you finish your martial arts exams, I will go to the Chu family and tell them to get the marriage done as soon as possible."

Upon hearing this, Sun Jinghuan was stunned: "Dad? She's treated me like this, and you still want me to marry her?"

Sun Boyuan put down the teapot and looked up from above the rim of the cup.

"She wants to marry Lin Ran, but you're deliberately preventing her from doing so. Isn't that a form of punishment for her?"

Sun Jinghuan was stunned for a moment, then his pupils dilated slightly, and the resentment on his face was gradually replaced by excitement.

"Yes! Dad! You're right!"

"Keep a calm mindset, and avoid arrogance and impatience." Sun Boyuan picked up the walnuts again and leaned back in his chair. "Otherwise, how can I entrust the Sun family to you with peace of mind?"

Sun Jinghuan lowered his head: "Yes, I understand."

"Okay, go ahead." Sun Boyuan waved his hand.

Sun Jinghuan turned and walked out of the study, gently closing the door behind him.

The corridor lights cast a dim, half-lit shadow on his face, revealing the slow curve of his lips.

Meanwhile, in the Chu family's living room.

Chu Mingyuan sat on the sofa, his face solemn.

"Nonsense! How could a girl like you say such shameless things?"

"I just don't want to marry Sun Jinghuan." Chu Xining stood not far away, her neck held high.

Chu Mingyuan's anger surged: "Marriage is a major life event; how can you just say you won't marry me?"

"Did you bring me back just to arrange a marriage for me?" Chu Xining asked sharply.

Now that she's already laid her cards on the table, she doesn't mind making things even clearer.

Chu Mingyuan slapped his hand heavily next to the sofa.

Bang!

"What nonsense are you talking about?" His voice rose several decibels. "I'm doing this all for your own good!"