Chapter 212: Chapter 212: Thank You for Changing Me_1
Ye Ming looked at Xia Ningning, puzzled and incredibly curious.
Xia Ningning spoke earnestly, "What you’ve stirred up isn’t just the Zhang Family, but the entire upper echelon of Ningjiang City. They will investigate you and target you relentlessly."
"The power of the Zhang Family doesn’t stop here. They won’t let you off easily. You’d better leave now and head back to Hai City."
"The Zhang Family has already joined forces with Master Long to deal with you. We don’t bully the locals, and no matter how strong you are, this is not your territory—you can’t do as you please here."
"Leaving Ningjiang City is the best solution. I’ve already checked the flights for you. There’s one headed straight for Hai City in an hour."
Ye Ming flatly refused Xia Ningning’s advice.
He said, "What’s done is done. Since I dared to do it, I’m not afraid of their retaliation. I’m not leaving."
"Besides, I gave the Zhang Family time to gather the money for me. I must see the money in five days. Every penny that belongs to me, I will make sure to get it."
Seeing Ye Ming’s resolute attitude, Xia Ningning felt a wave of frustration, thinking Ye Ming was simply too naive.
She said seriously, "You can be arrogant, but you must know your place. Now is not the time for you to show off your strength."
"Master Long, as the strongest in Ningjiang City, once repelled numerous foreign experts on his own. His reputation is widespread and his strength is far greater than yours. Moreover, the Zhang Family has been entrenched in Ningjiang City for many years. Having suffered such an indignity, surely someone will stand up for them. It is very likely that Zhang Lijun is already on his way to see the Ningjiang Mayor."
"When both forces unite against you, not even the Xia Family can do anything, let alone you. The only method is to escape their sphere of influence. Hai City is several hundred kilometers away from Ningjiang City—beyond their reach."
After hearing Xia Ningning’s words, Ye Ming remained unshaken.
He firmly said, "Miss Xia, thank you for your concern, but please don’t underestimate me."
"This incident wasn’t something I sought out deliberately. It happened because they went too far, and I simply made the most basic resistance, that’s all."
"All I want is justice. I just want to live my life openly and honorably."
"If I back down because of such a small matter, I would look down on myself. How would that make me any different from who I used to be?"
Ye Ming’s eyes began to burn with intensity, which even affected Xia Ningning.
Xia Ningning found herself at a loss for words, unsure of what to say next.
Ye Ming took a deep breath and said to Xia Ningning, "Actually Miss Xia, I’ve always wanted to thank you."
"If you hadn’t come to me back then, I wouldn’t have experienced such a radical change. I would still be someone weak and bullied, an utter waste. You changed me."
Having said that, Ye Ming revealed a slight smile, then walked directly toward his own sofa and closed his eyes.
Little did he know that his words had caused a tremendous turmoil inside Xia Ningning.
Xia Ningning didn’t understand the specifics of what he meant, nor did she know that what truly changed Ye Ming was the Jade Pendant she gave him.
She just thought that it was her actions that had changed Ye Ming.
"Could it mean that I am the most important person in his heart?"
"No, no, no! That can’t be what he means, I must have misunderstood!"
"But... it seems like that’s what he means."
She murmured quietly, nestled under her blankets, her mind running wild with thoughts, unsure of what she was muttering.
Thus, in a daze, she drifted off to sleep.
...
When she opened her eyes in the morning and saw Ye Ming staring at her, Xia Ningning’s face instantly turned red.
All night, Xia Ningning’s mind was in disarray, with countless jumbled thoughts whirling around her head, making her dreams shift uncontrollably.
She dreamed that she had not called off the marriage arrangement; instead, she accepted it gladly, then lived unabashedly with Ye Ming—spending their days eating, sleeping, and engaging in the activities adults enjoy most. And they even had a son.
She had thought it was real, but when she opened her eyes and realized it was just a dream, she was somewhat afraid to look directly into Ye Ming’s eyes.
"Why are you looking at me like that..."
Xia Ningning asked haltingly.
Ye Ming explained, "I just think that you could be a bit quieter when you sleep, not so startled all the time, and, what’s more, you made some very strange noises."
"Miss Xia, I don’t know what I did to provoke you, to make you hate me so much that you even curse me in your dreams?"
"Ah?" Xia Ningning’s face turned even redder, and she looked at Ye Ming nervously, asking in a voice as soft as a mosquito’s, "What did I curse you with?"
Ye Ming said in an annoyed tone, "You kept calling me wretch-who-deserves-a-thousand-cuts, you called me a dead ghost, a filthy rogue, and also a mortal enemy. Basically, not a single nice word."
"Miss Xia, if you really hate me that much, we can keep some distance to avoid upsetting you."
Having finished speaking, Ye Ming had already gone to the bathroom to start washing up, paying no further attention.
After he left, Xia Ningning stood there in a daze for a long time before quickly covering her head, her embarrassment reaching an extreme.
She had not expected that the names in her dream would slip out and be called out loud, let alone heard by Ye Ming.
She wished she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
Fortunately, Ye Ming seemed to have no understanding of the meaning behind those words.
After calming herself down, Xia Ningning cursed in frustration, "You really do have a blockhead, do those words sound like I’m cursing someone?"
Ten minutes later, everything was ready, and Ye Ming had tidied up his appearance and was about to leave.
Today was the start of the Biological Research Association’s meeting, so Ye Ming planned to take Lin Bingqing and Sun Miaomiao to the conference.
Xia Ningning, bored out of her mind, also wanted to go and wait to leave together.
After eating breakfast, Lin Bingqing said to Ye Ming, "By the way, Master, I’ve contacted many news outlets, but as soon as they heard about the news you were going to release, they all explicitly refused."
"Not a single news outlet is willing to cooperate with us."
Ye Ming had already anticipated this.
After all, with the Zhang Family’s standing in Ningjiang City, nobody would dare to release such news; it would be like opposing the Zhang Family, unless they had a death wish.
But the matter still had to be addressed. The news of the annulment not being published made him feel uneasy.
He said, "You go to the conference first; I’ll handle this myself."
With that, Ye Ming turned and left, planning to step in personally and figure out a solution for the problem.
Xia Ningning shook her head and said, "Ye Ming, this time you should be able to realize just how formidable the Zhang Family is, right? In Ningjiang City, it’s very easy for them to suppress news."
"Moreover, my guess wasn’t wrong; the Zhang Family has indeed gone to see the Ningjiang Mayor already. I... I can’t let them come after Ye Ming. He can’t deal with power struggles yet; it’s still up to me to solve this difficult issue for you."
After speaking, Xia Ningning covertly sent out a few messages, intending to help Ye Ming from behind the scenes.
She did this naturally, to the point where it surprised her.
It seemed she wanted to protect Ye Ming inadvertently, to keep him from being overwhelmed by the forces of power.
But what she did not realize was why she was making these moves.
"After all, he’s currently helping me out; I can’t let my fake boyfriend be put in danger! Otherwise, who will act as my shield? Who else will ward off those flies?"
With that thought, Xia Ningning nodded to herself. She had posed a question to herself and instantly explained it away.
This maneuver was known only to her and had not been discovered by anyone else.
