Zi Linling's step, which was about to be taken, was forced to halt. If others treated her with courtesy, she couldn't possibly be unreasonable.
She slowly turned around, facing the man, her eyes calm as she asked, "Does Young Master have any other business?"
The man bowed again and said, "I am Ye Liuxing. May I trouble Miss to leave her name and residence? That way, after I return to my mansion and prepare generous gifts, I can call upon you to thank you for saving my life."
"There's no need! I saved you because you caught my eye. I never expected any repayment."
Zi Linling coldly refused him.
Ye Liuxing still wanted to say something, but Zi Linling gave him no opportunity. "I have other matters. If Young Master Ye has nothing else, then please excuse my rudeness!"
With that, she gestured for Xueying to follow and turned to leave.
Ye Liuxing stepped forward two paces, blocking Zi Linling's path, and said, "Since that is the case, if Miss ever has any needs in the future, you may use this token to find me at the Ye mansion!"
As he spoke, he handed over a crimson-gold token.
Zi Linling took the token. On its front was carved a Ruyi cloud pattern, with the characters "Feng Yun" (Wind and Cloud) enclosed in the center, exuding power. On the back was an embossed ancient seal script character for "Ye."
"Since Young Master Ye's kindness is hard to refuse, I shall accept this token without impoliteness!"
She put away the token, concealing it in her sleeve, but in reality, she placed it into the Jiuling Ring.
"Miss speaks too highly. You are welcome to visit the Ye mansion as a guest!"
"Where fate brings us, we shall meet! Young Master Ye, farewell!"
With that, Zi Linling lingered no longer, and left with Xueying.
In a private room on the third floor of the Drunken Immortal Tower, Situ Yunfeng, clad in a grand crimson brocade robe, lounged by the window. His pair of alluring peach blossom eyes had taken in everything that had just transpired.
He watched Zi Linling's retreating figure with amusement, a smile playing on his lips as he remarked, "Quite an interesting woman!"
Then, he drained the remaining wine in his cup, circulated his spiritual energy, left the Drunken Immortal Tower, and pursued the direction Zi Linling had gone.
At the same time, on the sixth floor of the Drunken Immortal Tower, which was not open to the public, Ye Lingyuan sat upright. His deep eyes fixed on Qing Dian, who was obeying his command, and he raised an eyebrow. "Useless? Is this what you call useless?"
His voice carried no discernible emotion, yet it held a chilling undertone.
"Your Highness, this..."
Qing Dian was speechless.
This was the second time intelligence had been inaccurate.
Yet, she couldn't fathom how Zi Linling, who had been called "useless" for twelve years, had suddenly transformed to possess such astonishing medical skills.
Even if Zi Linling had been feigning all along, it was impossible to maintain such a charade for twelve years without a single slip-up.
However, regardless of the reason, the intelligence gathered was not accurate, and that was her fault, undeniable.
Her head bowed, she dared not look up. Taking a deep breath, she said, "Your subordinate has failed. I beg Your Highness to mete out punishment!"
Even so, she could still feel Ye Lingyuan's sharp, knife-like gaze upon her.
Ye Lingyuan's brows furrowed slightly. He never doubted the capabilities of the Night Demon organization or Qing Dian, but where exactly was the problem?
He tapped his fingers rhythmically on the tabletop, adding a suffocating, eerie silence to the room.
"Drip!"
A drop of sweat from Qing Dian's fingertip fell to the ground, interrupting Ye Lingyuan's thoughts.
"Forget it! You may leave now."
He stood up abruptly, leaving these words behind, and exited the Drunken Immortal Tower. Of course, he used a private passage.
Hidden in plain sight!
Who would have thought that the bustling Drunken Immortal Tower, frequented by countless patrons, was the base of operations for Night Demon, the foremost intelligence organization in Tianqi?
After Ye Lingyuan left, Qing Dian could barely stand. The thirty Spirit Snake lashes she had received earlier had nearly taken half her life, and before she could even catch her breath, Ye Lingyuan had summoned her here.
It was all because of the intelligence report on Zi Linling that she had a subordinate deliver before she was punished.
That's right! What Ye Lingyuan wanted her to investigate within the hour was Zi Linling.
Freed from Ye Lingyuan's oppressive aura, she finally wiped the fine sweat from her forehead and slumped into the chair Ye Lingyuan had just vacated.
She mused inwardly: His Highness's radiating pressure has grown stronger. It seems his cultivation has advanced considerably.
Feeling the lingering warmth that made her heart flutter, a hint of determination appeared in her eyes.
It seemed she also needed to put in more effort, otherwise, how could she be worthy of staying by His Highness's side?
...
Ye Liuxing watched Zi Linling's retreating back, a strange emotion stirring in his eyes. He murmured to himself, "The world holds such a remarkable woman!"
He stood rooted to the spot until Zi Linling's figure completely vanished from his sight.
"Young Master?"
Wangcai gently nudged him.
Ye Liuxing snapped back to reality. "Ahem! What is it?"
"Young Master, it's almost time. We should leave too, or those elders will target you again."
Wangcai felt deeply grateful to Zi Linling and hoped for an opportunity to repay her for saving his young master's life. However, compared to his young master's future, the matter of repayment would have to be postponed.
At present, Ye Liuxing had important matters to attend to and could not afford any delays.
"En!"
Ye Liuxing responded softly, but he couldn't bear to tear his gaze away, as if Zi Linling might reappear at any moment.
Under Wangcai's repeated urgings, he could only cast a reluctant glance in the direction Zi Linling had left before taking a step.
The onlookers, seeing that the excitement was over, began to disperse in twos and threes.
Just then, the person who had earlier commented that Zi Linling seemed familiar suddenly exclaimed.
"I remember now! She's the third young lady of the Zi family, that useless Zi Linling!"
This remark was like a stone thrown into a calm lake, creating a massive ripple.
The people who had intended to leave all stopped, gazing with interest.
"Are you sure you saw clearly? Is she really that useless one?"
The person accompanying him looked incredulous.
"Absolutely! Yesterday, when she deliberately threw herself at His Highness the Crown Prince, that same maid was following her."
He was referring to the incident where Zi Linling accidentally brushed against the Crown Prince's clothes.
"I heard that useless one is deeply in love with the Crown Prince. If what you say is true, it might really be her."
"How is that possible? That useless one knows how to save people? When did she learn medicine?"
"Exactly! If it were really that useless one who saved this Young Master Ye, then it would be a wonder of the world!"
...
Zi Linling? The third young lady of the Zi family? Useless?
Ye Liuxing frowned slightly and said, "Wangcai, go and inquire!"
"Young Master, this..."
Wangcai seemed troubled. In his opinion, accompanying his young master to the trading firm immediately was the proper course of action.
"What? You won't even listen to my words?"
Ye Liuxing, although he knew Wangcai meant well, his expression turned cold.
Even though he was often subjected to arbitrary刁难 by those elders due to his inability to cultivate, it did not mean he had no temper.
"But..."