Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Ye Fengyun nodded.

Lin Qinghuan said, “What if I refuse to apologize?”

“Then there’s nothing more to discuss.”

“You don’t even want five million?”

“I don’t want it.”

“You—” Lin Qinghuan was fuming. This man was infuriating beyond measure. “Fine, keep your money. I refuse to believe you’re the only person in the world who can cure this!”

She got up to leave.

Ye Fengyun, completely unbothered, remarked, “By the time you find someone else, the person in your family will already be gone.”

“What?” Lin Qinghuan looked at Ye Fengyun in astonishment.

Ye Fengyun rested his chin in his hand, a faint smile playing at his lips. “There’s someone else in your family who suffers from the same illness, isn’t there? And their condition is even more severe than yours.”

“How do you know that?!” Lin Qinghuan’s face drained of color, her hand frozen on the door handle.

Ye Fengyun smiled slightly. “Observation, inquiry, diagnosis, and pulse-taking—these are the basics.”

Lin Qinghuan looked toward Old Yun.

Old Yun shook his head. “Miss Lin, even I don’t possess such skill. In this field, Xiao Ye is far superior to me.”

“You’re a master physician yourself! Even you admit he’s better than you?!”

Lin Qinghuan was utterly stunned. Truly, one cannot judge a book by its cover. Who would have thought this plain, even ugly man was actually a hidden master?

Ye Fengyun said calmly, “If Miss Lin does not believe me, you’re welcome to seek out someone else. But I’m not certain your family member can afford to wait that long.”

Lin Qinghuan stood rooted to the spot, clenching her fists and biting her lip, locked in a fierce inner struggle.

To apologize would be admitting she was wrong, wouldn’t it?

How could she possibly do that?

She had never admitted fault since childhood—why should she start now?

But she couldn’t abandon her grandmother, the one who loved her most in the world.

Tears of frustration slid down Lin Qinghuan’s cheeks, her pride and dignity as a young lady suffering a crushing blow in that moment.

“I—I’m…”

She bit her lip, tears streaming down her face, and choked out, “Sorry…”

Her voice was barely above a whisper, but uttering those three words seemed to drain her of all strength.

Ye Fengyun was not the sort to press an advantage. In truth, even if Lin Qinghuan refused to apologize, he would not have stood idly by.

He had only done this to teach her a lesson: that regardless of status, humility and reverence were always necessary.

“What did you say?” Ye Fengyun teased her deliberately.

Lin Qinghuan looked up, her eyes rimmed red, and glared at him. “You—you’re just being a bully!”

Ye Fengyun, gathering his things, feigned innocence. “How am I bullying you? You’re speaking so softly—are you mocking my hearing? Seems to me you’re the one picking on me.”

“I—I…” Lin Qinghuan was at a loss, flustered and helpless.

Seeing her discomposure, Ye Fengyun burst out laughing. Enough teasing—he decided to relent.

“I—I’m…”

Lin Qinghuan tried again. Since she’d already apologized once, a second time hardly mattered. With so many apologies, what was one more?

“Lead the way,” Ye Fengyun said, rising to his feet.

“Huh?” Lin Qinghuan stared at him, bewildered.

“What are you waiting for?” Ye Fengyun said. “If you like apologizing so much, you can repeat it a hundred times here.”

“You—!”

“Come on, let’s go to your home. I’ll deal with the root of the problem first. Besides, I wouldn’t want a certain young lady accusing me of being a bully.”

His words left Lin Qinghuan both exasperated and amused.

He was absolutely insufferable!

“Hmph, follow me!” Lin Qinghuan snapped, but as she turned away, she couldn’t help the small smile tugging at her lips.