Chapter 271 - 270: Shameless Little Hooligan

Zhao Hongshan sighed. Saying he wasn’t afraid of the Jin Family would be a lie. It was always better to offend a gentleman than a scoundrel. Jin Zhenhai was a deeply calculating man, and there was no telling how he might retaliate against the Zhao Family.

"Mr. Zhao, I’m the one the Jin Family wants to take revenge on. You don’t need to get involved. If they make a move, just tell them I’ve already left Shunping," Yang Xun said soothingly.

"Don’t worry. Our Zhao Family isn’t to be trifled with either," Zhao Hongshan smiled faintly, patting his shoulder. "Let’s go. We’re heading inside to eat."

The group made their way to the dining room. Yang Xun could hold his liquor well, but he couldn’t withstand Zhao Hongshan’s relentless toasts. By the end of the meal, the alcohol had gone to his head, and his face was flushed.

Once the dinner concluded, everyone returned to their respective rooms.

Just as Yang Xun was about to head upstairs, he saw Zhao Linglong walking down. She was wearing a white nightgown, her long, pitch-black hair cascading over her shoulders.

"You’re not asleep yet?" Yang Xun asked, a bit surprised.

Zhao Linglong didn’t answer. She took a few steps forward and, before he could even react, reached out and gently wrapped her arms around his waist.

"I heard everything," she said softly, her voice carrying a slight nasal tone. "You’re leaving tomorrow, aren’t you?"

Yang Xun froze for a moment before letting out a bitter smile. "You’ve got sharp ears."

"I don’t want you to go," Zhao Linglong murmured. Her tone carried a hint of coquettishness, like a small kitten that had finally found a warm nest. "I was just starting to feel less afraid, and now you’re leaving. Who’s going to sleep with me the next time I run into a ghost?"

Over the past few nights, Yang Xun had been sneaking into Zhao Linglong’s room when no one was looking. While they hadn’t gone all the way, they had engaged in the kinds of intimacies couples shared. Through this, Zhao Linglong had transitioned from a naive young girl who knew nothing into someone who gradually understood the pleasures of intimacy, even taking the initiative to please him.

Yang Xun looked down at her head resting against his chest and sighed softly. "I promise you, if you ever feel uncomfortable or unwell, call me anytime. I’ll come back to see you."

"Then it’s a deal." Zhao Linglong looked up at him. Under the moonlight, her amber eyes sparkled with a sincerity that melted the heart. "Pinky promise."

She held out her pinky finger. Looking at her slender, fair finger, Yang Xun smiled helplessly and extended his own, hooking it around hers.

With their bodies so close, the masculine scent mixed with alcohol hovered around them, instantly making her cheeks flush red. One particular matter had been weighing on her mind. That night, Yang Xun had told her that completely curing her Yin-Yang Eye would require... intimacy.

Seeing her face grow redder by the second, Yang Xun asked with amusement, "What are you thinking about? Why are you blushing?"

At his words, the crimson hue spread all the way to Zhao Linglong’s ears. She twisted the hem of her clothes with both hands and spoke in a tiny voice. "Dr. Yang, you mentioned before... that to completely cure my Yin-Yang Eye, we need to do that... that treatment. I wanted to ask, when can we start?"

Yang Xun couldn’t help but laugh. "You’re quite eager, aren’t you?"

Zhao Linglong looked up, her face burning. Her voice carried a mix of shyness and embarrassment. "I’m not eager! I’m just scared... What if I see those things again in the future?

"With you not by my side, how am I supposed to handle it all alone?"

Looking into those bright, earnest amber eyes, something inside Yang Xun softened. He reached out, pulling her into his embrace, and asked in a low voice, "Have you really thought this through? This isn’t a trivial matter."

"I have." Zhao Linglong gazed straight back at him, her tone more resolute than ever before. "I don’t want to be haunted by those things anymore, and I don’t want to have nightmares either. I want to live a normal life." She paused, her voice dropping to a whisper. "Besides... it’s you helping me. I’m not afraid."

Yang Xun gently rubbed her head, his tone laced with helplessness and affection. "Silly girl."

At his touch, Zhao Linglong felt her entire body go soft. She thought back to the scenes of them tangling together in bed over the past few days, sharing countless intimacies typical of lovers. Rising on her tiptoes, she pressed a quick kiss to his cheek.

Yang Xun tightened his grip on her slender waist. Just as he leaned in to kiss her soft lips, an angry roar exploded in their ears.

"What are you two doing?!"

Madam Zhao’s voice spiked abruptly, as sharp as a knife slicing through fabric.

Terrified, Zhao Linglong trembled violently. Turning around, she met the sinister glare of Madam Zhao. "Mom... why are you here?"

"If I hadn’t come out, I wouldn’t have known you two were messing around behind our backs!" Madam Zhao sneered, storming toward them in a fury. She whipped her head toward Yang Xun, her eyes brimming with undisguised disgust. "I knew from the start you were up to no good! Using medical treatment as an excuse to take advantage of my daughter!

"You shameless little hoodlum, get the hell out!"

Yang Xun stood up straight, his expression calm. "Madam Zhao, you misunderstand. I’m leaving tomorrow, and Miss Zhao came to say goodbye."

Although the two of them were indeed far from innocent, he couldn’t let this stepmother know the truth; otherwise, Zhao Linglong’s reputation would be ruined.

Madam Zhao’s voice climbed even higher. "You need to stand that close to chat? You need to hold each other to say goodbye? Do you take me for a three-year-old?" Finishing her tirade against Yang Xun, she swiftly redirected her attack toward Zhao Linglong. "You’re an unmarried girl, hugging and clinging to a man in the middle of the night. Do you have no sense of shame?"

Zhao Linglong’s face instantly turned deathly pale. Tears welled up in her amber eyes, and her lips trembled slightly, but she couldn’t formulate a single word of rebuttal.

Madam Zhao took a threatening step forward, her voice shrill and piercing. "You’ve been like this since you were little—always spouting crazy nonsense! Now look at you, learning how to seduce men. Do you have any idea what people outside are saying about you?"