C9 Provocation

Ye Fann was well aware that the head of the Huang family would never let Wang Ying call the shots, especially not when it came to allowing him and Huang Xinying to divorce. That's why he strutted in alongside Wang Ying, brimming with confidence. Yet, the instant he laid eyes on a certain individual, he bolted without uttering a single word.

He never feared the Eight-Armed Hell King, despite having been bested by him three years prior. When it came to sheer power, he wouldn't even consider the Hell King's masters worthy of his attention. But the world operates on a balance of forces, and there were those who could strike terror into his heart.

Huang Xiaoshan, that little demon, had returned. And she was part of the Huang family... Wait a minute, the Huang family? Huang Xiaoshan, the Huang family, Huang Xinying? Had he really been ensnared by that little devil when he joined the Huang family two years ago?

Lost in thought at the grand entrance of the Huang Mansion, Ye Fann was jolted back to reality by the bodyguard captain's voice at his side. "Move it, claiming to be Yang Min's relative? Who do you think you are? Open your eyes—this gentleman is Lady Yang Min's actual family!"

Feeling eyes on him, Ye Fann turned to see the bodyguard captain and Bi Wenfeng staring intently at him. Bi Wenfeng's eyes widened in disbelief before he snapped back to the captain. "What did you just say? He's Yang Min's relative? Then what on earth does that make me?"

"I don't know what you are, but Ms. Yang Min was just here, arm in arm with him. Stop muddying the waters and get out of here!" the captain retorted.

Bi Wenfeng was dumbfounded. Yang Min had walked in with Ye Fann's arm in hers? How could that be?

Sensing trouble, Ye Fann spun on his heels, ready to make a quick getaway, only to be stopped by Wang Ying's bellow from inside, "Ye Fann, where do you think you're going? Get back here now!"

From a distance, Ye Fann could see Huang Xiaoshan trailing behind Wang Ying and Huang Shihao, her eyes gleaming with mischief as she winked devilishly at him. His mind screamed one thing: run!

Without a second thought, Ye Fann took off. But his escape was cut short when he collided with a woman who had just stepped out of a car.

He was knocked to the ground and found himself on top of a woman, all under the watchful eyes of the crowd.

Huang Shasha, the esteemed granddaughter of the Huang family's direct line, was a woman of lofty status and icy purity. She had never before been subjected to such an indignity.

To be pinned down by a man in public, with his hand pressing on a most compromising spot, was unthinkable.

Frozen for a brief moment, Huang Shasha's shock turned to rage, and she raised her hand to deliver a fierce slap across Ye Fann's face, her scream piercing the air, "Get off me!"

Her bodyguards, ever vigilant, rushed to her aid, pinning Ye Fann down and unleashing a flurry of punches and kicks.

Yet, when the dust settled, all the bodyguards were sprawled on the ground, with only Ye Fann still standing.

The onlookers were dumbfounded, utterly astonished.

But Ye Fann was unfazed. His sole focus was escape; he needed to put as much distance between himself and that little demon as possible.

"Master, if you even think of running, I'll plaster your nude photos all over the internet," a voice echoed in Ye Fann's head.

Paralyzed by the threat, Ye Fann clenched his fists, teeth gritted, and glared at Huang Xiaoshan.

Huang Xiaoshan gestured to the bodyguards at the entrance, "What are you waiting for? Grab the lecher who dared to accost my sister!"

In an instant, the bodyguards swarmed and apprehended Ye Fann. Under Huang Shasha's gaze, filled with anger and humiliation, they dragged him into the mansion and threw him into the basement to await his fate.

Ye Fann wasn't surprised by this turn of events; he was all too familiar with the little devil's tactics from past encounters.

However, he remained confined until evening.

After the banquet had dispersed and the guests had departed, someone finally came to escort Ye Fann to the Huang family patriarch.

The patriarch presided over the gathering, with the direct line and all nineteen branches of the Huang family represented. The leaders of each branch were present.

Seated at the center was the old master, flanked by his two most cherished granddaughters, Huang Shasha and Huang Xiaoshan.

"Kneel!" commanded a voice, as a foot lashed out, striking Ye Fann's knee.

To everyone's surprise, Ye Fann remained unmoved when someone kicked at his knee, causing the attacker to stumble backward several steps.

The crowd was taken aback, exchanging startled glances.

The elder nodded with a smile, clearly intrigued. It appeared that the young man's internal injuries had largely healed.

"How dare you!" Another person stepped forward, aiming a forceful kick at Ye Fann's knee. "You have the nerve to be insolent in front of the patriarch? You really don't know your place!"

"Enough!" The elder commanded with a raised hand, signaling for the aggressor to back off, then beckoned Ye Fann, "Come here."

With a calm pace, Ye Fann approached the elder.

"And you, come here too," the elder called to Huang Shihao.

Huang Shihao, looking anxious, quickly stepped forward.

"Shihao, have you been dissatisfied with the son-in-law I chose for you?"

"No... not at all, elder, I..."

"What do you mean, no?" Wang Ying burst out, spitting with fury as she spoke, "Elder, we need to settle this today. By what right does Ye Fann join our Huang family?"

The elder remained silent.

Off to the side, Huang Shasha spoke up coolly, "Grandfather is speaking with the Huang family. Unrelated people should leave."

Wang Ying's face turned ashen, but under the watchful eyes of all, he had no choice but to try and defend himself, "I..."

Suddenly, a long whip cracked through the air from Huang Xiaoshan's hand.

Wang Ying let out a cry of agony as the whip sent him flying into a pillar, knocking him unconscious with a bloody head wound.

"Grandfather, in just a few years, you've become so authoritative. When did outsiders start meddling in the affairs of our Huang family?" Huang Xiaoshan's remark sent a shiver through the spines of those present.

To the current Huang family, anyone not of Huang Shasha and Huang Xiaoshan's lineage was an outsider.

The elder coughed lightly, not sparing a glance for Wang Ying, nor for Huang Shihao and Ye Fann, and said, "If there's nothing else, you may leave."

"Yes..." Huang Shihao replied, his voice trembling.

"In the future, unless I summon you, do not come," the elder added.

Huang Shihao's heart lurched, and a shadow of despair crossed his eyes as he let out a silent sigh. "Yes, I will certainly heed the elder's advice," he murmured to himself.

Onlookers on either side cast derisive glances at Huang Shihao, their eyes brimming with mockery.

In the Huang family, the direct line had one main branch and nineteen side branches. Huang Shihao, known as Old Nineteen, was likely to be disowned by the Huang family within a few years.

A worthless man is like mud that can't stick to a wall, and a failure remains a failure, just like his good-for-nothing son-in-law.

Beneath the scornful stares of the crowd, Ye Fann and Huang Shihao assisted Wang Ying to her feet and began to make their way out, shouldering an immense burden.

They looked like dogs slinking away with their tails tucked, chased from their own home.

Approaching them were Yang Min and Bi Wenfeng, guided by members of the Huang family.

Bi Wenfeng stepped in front of Ye Fann, blocking his path with a challenging glare. This was the Huang family's territory, a true noble house of Lin City. He doubted Ye Fann would dare to act out here.

In fact, he was goading Ye Fann to do just that.

Because if Ye Fann did retaliate, his end would be a hundred, no, a thousand times more miserable than his own.

"Huang Xinying, you're mine," Bi Wenfeng whispered into Ye Fann's ear, his voice low enough for only the two of them to hear, taunting him further. "I'll have Xinying as my mistress. I'll provide the cash, she'll provide her body. It's a willing exchange. How about that?"

"Do you have the nerve? The money she earns with her body from me, you wouldn't dare use, would you?"

With those words, Bi Wenfeng's eyes gleamed with a cold, triumphant sneer.