Elder Dong handed tea to Ying Chen while saying, "Take your time. There's no rush. Think it over before you tell me. I don't have many virtues, but I've lived a long life and can tell lies from the truth. So, it's best you don't try to pull the wool over my eyes or deceive me."
If Elder Dong had said something like this at any other time, Ying Chen would have immediately let him know what "respecting your elders" meant.
After all, what right did Elder Dong have to speak of "living a long life" in front of Ying Chen?
Not to mention that Elder Dong was alluding to Ying Chen being a liar.
However, Elder Dong had proven he truly "couldn't stand lies" by helping Professor Li clear his name.
He wasn't just speaking off the cuff.
Ying Chen couldn't be bothered to argue with him.
Ying Chen did not take the tea Elder Dong offered. He merely looked at Elder Dong and said, "I won't discuss what I need you to do for now."
"But you clearly know what I can do for you. You just haven't fully convinced yourself yet!"
"It's alright. I'll give you a day. This time tomorrow night, I'll visit again."
"By then, I believe you'll willingly prostrate yourself before me, begging me to save you!"
"Heh heh," Elder Dong chuckled at this.
Although he didn't say anything, his smile said it all.
Elder Dong thought Ying Chen was boasting!
What was Elder Dong's age and status?
How could he possibly bow down to a mere junior like Ying Chen?
Let alone after just one night!
Not one night, even a year, Elder Dong believed he would never do such a thing!
Ying Chen also chuckled.
However, Ying Chen's smile held a hint of ridicule and pity for Elder Dong.
One cannot discuss ice with a summer insect, nor talk about the sky with a frog in a well.
A summer insect dies before it sees the winter ice; a frog in a well sees only the opening above and believes the sky is only as big as its well.
Elder Dong was like a summer insect and a frog in a well. Things that he thought were impossible were actually commonplace in Ying Chen's eyes!
Ying Chen didn't explain. He simply asked, "Over the years, you must have delved into many classics and scriptures related to cultivation, right?"
Elder Dong didn't know why Ying Chen suddenly asked this, but he nodded, "Of course. But most of them are fraudulent and utterly useless."
"I still have a few photocopies at home, like one called 'Yi Tan Xin Fa'. The prologue is full of exaggerated claims, promising to return one to their origins. But it's completely ineffective, utterly laughable."
Elder Dong shook his head repeatedly, clearly harboring a lot of resentment towards this 'Yi Tan Xin Fa'.
It wasn't for nothing that although Elder Dong was old, after his first wife passed away, he remarried a young wife who was forty years his junior!
It wasn't that Elder Dong was lecherous. It was simply that this young wife looked exactly like his first wife in her youth.
This made Elder Dong unable to control himself. Ignoring his children's objections, he forcefully staged a "pear blossom pressing on a begonia" scenario.
Unfortunately, Elder Dong was ultimately too old. The old pear blossom couldn't handle the begonia forty years his junior.
He had seen how powerful the 'Yi Tan Xin Fa' claimed to be, thinking he could use it to turn his fortunes around.
Who knew that after practicing the method in the book for half a year, not only was it useless, but it almost cost him his life!
How could Elder Dong not resent it?
Hearing Elder Dong's complaint, Ying Chen directly extended his hand, "Bring it here."
Elder Dong was stunned for a moment, thinking Ying Chen wanted it.
He then went inside, took out a book, and threw it on the table, "It's yours! Don't say I didn't warn you, practice this with caution. If anything goes wrong, I'm not responsible."
To his surprise, Ying Chen didn't show any intention of taking it.
Instead, he began to read it on the spot.
After a moment, Ying Chen revealed a hint of a sneer.
Without a word, he casually folded the first, fourth, and seventh pages of 'Yi Tan Xin Fa'.
Then he handed it back to Elder Dong.
"Where I've folded, practice by exhaling and inhaling in reverse, cultivating against the flow. I'll come back for you tomorrow night."
With that, Ying Chen left.
Elder Dong was left standing there, holding 'Yi Tan Xin Fa', not understanding what Ying Chen meant.
After Ying Chen's back disappeared from sight, Elder Dong looked down at the 'Yi Tan Xin Fa' in his hands.
He opened it to the folded pages with a mix of doubt and suspicion, "Cultivating in reverse? It doesn't sound very reliable!"
"Wouldn't practicing this just send me on my way?"
"Forget it, my life is more important. I won't practice it."
Saying this, Elder Dong casually tossed 'Yi Tan Xin Fa' into the trash can.
However, just then, Elder Dong's phone suddenly rang.
A charming female voice came from the other end of the line, "Old Dong, I'll be back tomorrow. We haven't seen each other in a while, do you miss me?"
Upon hearing this voice, a spark of fire instantly ignited in Elder Dong's lower abdomen.
"Miss you? Of course, I do. I'll pick you up at the airport tomorrow! Wait for me!"
While responding to his young wife, Elder Dong picked 'Yi Tan Xin Fa' out of the trash can.
"To die beneath the peony, one can still be romantic as a ghost. I'll trust that young man for once and risk it!"
Elder Dong muttered to himself.
...
In the hotel.
Professor Li and Liang Yu returned with a stack of documents.
Seeing only Ying Chen sitting in the room and not Elder Dong, they immediately realized something and tried to comfort him, "Elder Dong is always hard to invite. It's okay if we can't get him. The others on the list are also capable enough."
However, what they didn't expect was Ying Chen asking, "Who said I couldn't invite him?"
"Wait until tomorrow night. You'll see."
Professor Li and Liang Yu exchanged glances, both finding it hard to believe.
Elder Dong didn't come tonight, but would he change his mind tomorrow night?
How was that possible!
Elder Dong was not someone who changed his mind easily. Even ten oxen couldn't pull him back from a decision he had made.
Ying Chen was clearly blindly confident, and it was a confidence he didn't know where it came from!
The two of them didn't say anything further, but began to sort through the documents.
That night, they didn't sleep at all. They spent the entire night organizing documents in Ying Chen's room.
On the other hand, Ying Chen slept exceptionally soundly, completely oblivious to the commotion caused by them organizing the documents.
Thus, time moved on to the next day.
Professor Li and Liang Yu finally couldn't hold on any longer and fell asleep on the sofa.
When they woke up, they found Ying Chen standing before them.
As soon as they opened their eyes, they heard Ying Chen ask, "It's almost time. Elder Dong has likely made his final decision."
"Do you two want to come along?"
They intended to refuse, as they believed Elder Dong would absolutely not change his mind.
But then they thought, Ying Chen was their boss now.
When the boss asks for your opinion, if you truly think it's just an inquiry, you're gravely mistaken.
Smart employees will act immediately!
So, Professor Li and Liang Yu both nodded, "Okay!"
Soon, the three of them appeared in front of Elder Dong's small courtyard.
Professor Li and Liang Yu looked somewhat nervous, as they had previously been at loggerheads with Elder Dong.
Would they be beaten with sticks and driven out if they visited this time?
Only Ying Chen, looking completely certain, stepped forward and pushed open the courtyard gate.
However, upon opening the gate, the first person they saw was not Elder Dong, but Elder Dong's young wife!
Elder Dong's young wife was stunned when she saw Ying Chen. Then, as if she remembered something, she pointed at Ying Chen and exclaimed excitedly, "It's you! It's you!"
Seeing this, Professor Li and Liang Yu's expressions changed instantly.
It's over, it's all over!
Elder Dong's young wife must have heard about this and deliberately waited at the door to catch him, demanding an explanation!