Qin Zhiyuan shook his head, unwilling to discuss the topic.
He hadn't contacted these comrades for years, all to protect Yang Chen.
Now that things had turned out , he was even less willing to talk about it.
Old Zhuo noticed Qin Zhiyuan's displeasure and quickly said, "Old Ye! Let's go, let's go! Let's go inside and talk, inside! We have important matters to discuss with you!"
"Important matters?" Elder Ye could only muster a bitter smile. Of course, he knew the reason for their visit. Earlier, Ye Liangcai had mentioned in passing that Old Zhuo had come for Yang Chen's sake.
Other than that, Elder Ye didn't ask much and just waited.
As old friends, Elder Ye hadn't seen the two for a long time and was quite pleased, so he led them inside.
In the living room, Old Zhuo got straight to the point, "Old Ye, today I'm here to propose marriage for my godson."
"Godson?" Elder Ye was slightly taken aback.
Seeing Elder Ye's surprised expression, Old Zhuo asked, "Your boy didn't tell you?"
Old Zhuo was referring to Ye Liangcai.
Elder Ye shook his head, "He only said you were coming, but I didn't ask further."
He was quite surprised internally, not expecting Old Zhuo was Yang Chen's godfather.
"When did the two of you..." Elder Ye inquired.
Old Zhuo laughed, "It's been about a month!"
"A month..." Elder Ye furrowed his brows even more, it hadn't even been a few days.
Elder Ye frowned, glaring at Old Zhuo and Qin Zhiyuan, unclear about what he was contemplating.
Old Zhuo, however, went straight to the topic, "Old Ye, why don't you tell us what your demands are over there, so we can be mentally prepared, right?"
Elder Ye frowned at this, saying to the two, "About this matter... I disagree, so you two don't need to say more."
"Why?" Qin Zhiyuan stared at Elder Ye and asked.
Elder Ye glanced at Qin Zhiyuan and said calmly, "I just disagree, you two don't meddle in this matter."
"What do you mean we don't meddle?" Qin Zhiyuan glared and said, "Yang Chen was raised by me, just like my own child, why shouldn't I care? Old Zhuo is Yang Chen's godfather, we must handle this matter!"
Old Zhuo agreed, "Yes!"
He stared at Elder Ye and said, "Old Ye, I've thought it over. Our bride price isn't much, 6.66 million. Together with Old Qin, we can only come up with this much. Also, the two courtyards set aside for me by Jin Chen, I've still got them. Given today's market price, a house is easily worth one or two hundred million, right? I'll give them one, and keep one for myself to live in. After I pass away, the house will still belong to them. How about this? If you need anything else, just let us know, I'll try to satisfy you!"
Elder Ye couldn't help but smile bitterly upon hearing this.
He could tell that Old Zhuo was putting everything on the line this time.
Those two courtyards were indeed given to him back then, but he didn't take them and they were just being held in his name all along.
Unexpectedly, Old Zhuo managed to get those two courtyards back.
Furthermore, the 6.66 million probably included Zhuo Jingyu's compensation money, all of which Old Zhuo had taken out.
One could say that Old Zhuo had spent all the coffin money.
"Old Zhuo, why do you go to such lengths!" Elder Ye sighed.
"Because I like it!" Old Zhuo said, "The first time I saw Xiaochen, I felt a special closeness, just like my own son. I want to arrange a marriage for my son, I'm willing to!"
Elder Ye couldn't help but shake his head with a bitter smile.
Thinking for a moment, Elder Ye glanced outside and confirmed no one was around, then lowered his voice, "Do you know Yang Chen's true identity?"
Qin Zhiyuan immediately tensed up, "What identity are you talking about?"
Qin Zhiyuan nearly stood up, but Old Zhuo grabbed his arm, signaling him not to get agitated.
Seeing Qin Zhiyuan's reaction, Elder Ye understood.
"It seems, you two are well aware," Elder Ye said solemnly.
"And you still dare to come? Aren't you afraid of bringing trouble upon yourselves?" Elder Ye asked.
"Afraid of what!" Qin Zhiyuan stood up, staring at Elder Ye, "When I, Qin Zhiyuan, fought in wars, I was never afraid of death. When I risked my life to save Yang Chen, I was prepared. Now, over twenty years later, I still fear nothing!"
Elder Ye glared at Qin Zhiyuan, frowning.
Back when they were in Ningchuan, Elder Ye knew what Qin Zhiyuan had done.
But he hadn't expected that Qin Zhiyuan would dare to risk so much to save Yang Chen and raise him for so long.
Looking at two old comrades, one who had even shielded him from bullets, he really didn't know what to say.
In truth, Elder Ye always felt guilty towards the Yang family, and after so many years, he still couldn't come to terms with it.
If it really came down to it, Elder Ye couldn't bring himself to forcefully harm Yang Chen. But Yang Chen's identity affected and involved too many people, so for Ye Xin's safety, he would have to go back to prevent the two from being together.
However, Elder Ye now didn't even know what to do.
"You two, come with me!" Elder Ye stood up and headed towards the inner room.
It's safer to discuss inside. The living room was open, making it easy for others to overhear. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ novęlfire.net
Old Zhuo and Qin Zhiyuan stood up and followed Elder Ye inside.
Once the three were seated, Elder Ye said, "Old Zhuo, Old Qin, it's not that I'm being unreasonable, but some matters really involve too much. If I could, I would absolutely want Ye Xin to marry Yang Chen, because I've liked Yang Chen since he was a child. Otherwise, I wouldn't have arranged a childhood engagement for them. You all know my relationship with Old Yang! I really had no idea about what happened back then. If I had known, I would have risked my life to save Old Yang, but... sigh!"
Upon hearing this, Old Zhuo and Qin Zhiyuan exchanged a glance, a hint of delight flashing in their eyes.
This meant that the incident back then wasn't something Elder Ye had condoned, but rather he was unaware of it!
They also knew that Elder Ye had left Ningchuan early for Jin Chen due to seemingly serious health issues, so not knowing about this was quite reasonable.
"Then you..." Old Zhuo probed gently.
"I'm also helpless!" Elder Ye sighed, "Whether it's for Old Yang, for you both, for that marriage contract, or for Ye Xin and Yang Chen, I don't want to be the bad guy, but some things must be stopped. You all know, the Yang family committed a taboo back then! A true dragon's existence is not tolerated in any dynasty, in any era!"
Old Zhuo and Qin Zhiyuan's expressions changed slightly.
"What if we have the ability to protect Yang Chen?" Old Zhuo asked earnestly.
"Protect?" Elder Ye shook his head, saying to Old Zhuo, "I understand what you mean. With the Zhuo family and our Ye family combined, protecting Yang Chen is something we can easily do. But have you thought about it? How much effort did we spend back then, how many comrades shed their blood to gain today's peace? What are you trying to do?!"
The last sentence, Elder Ye nearly shouted it.
He would not allow anything, or anyone, to disrupt the current peace!