Chapter Seventeen: Pure Water Nurtures the Lotus

The burly man leading the group snarled at the second in command beside him, "Second Brother, you need to make a trip today. Go to Luyang Town and speak with Scarface there. Tell him to come help us reclaim our territory."

"Big Brother, shouldn't we go back and talk to Young Master Wu? Why do we need Scarface?" Second Brother asked, clearly puzzled.

"Idiot, how could we let Young Master Wu know about this? If he finds out we can't even recover a few tens of thousands, he'll never use us again!" The leader gritted his teeth. "Young Master Wu is a person of influence—his family is wealthy and powerful, and he has connections with the officials above. We work for him, so we can't let him see our incompetence."

"This time, I swear I'll make that kid and the girl surnamed Su suffer a bit."

"And Third Brother, after you take Fourth Brother to the hospital, contact Master Zhu from the Zhu family—Zhu’s Pharmacy."

"I have some rapport with Young Master Zhu; I’ve helped him with things that can’t be spoken of. He should agree to help Fourth Brother out," said the burly leader, biting his words.

"Understood," Second and Third Brothers replied in quick succession.

Meanwhile, Ye Cheng had just helped the young woman drive away the group of debt collectors. Turning, he looked at the girl who had been hiding behind him.

"It's done. The matter's settled. Here's the promissory note—tear it up," he said.

Ye Cheng had assumed that helping her would bring the matter to a close. But to his surprise, even after the woman took the note and tore it up, she showed no intention of leaving. Instead, she clung tightly to Ye Cheng, following his every step: when he walked, she walked; when he stopped, she stopped.

Her odd behavior unsettled Ye Cheng, so he asked, "Why are you following me?"

"You're a good person," she said candidly.

"So you follow me because I’m a good person?" Only now did Ye Cheng get a clear look at her face. Despite the dust and dirt smudging her features, her beauty was striking, far beyond the ordinary.

She wasn’t just pretty—she was breathtaking, a peerless beauty. Her large, sparkling eyes flashed brightly, more dazzling than the stars in the sky. The dust on her face could not mask the delicate contours that would shame flowers and eclipse the moon.

And there was a faint sorrow in her brows and gaze, stirring a protective instinct in anyone who looked upon her. Though she lacked the aristocratic air of Qin Zhiqiu, she possessed a purity as fresh as a lotus blooming in clear water, even more alluring than Qin Zhiqiu herself.

"I know I shouldn’t keep following you, but my father is still waiting for me to earn money for his treatment."

"When those men came to collect the debt today, my boss got scared and fired me."

"I don’t know what to do now, so I can only follow you."

"Please, help me. I’m willing to work hard, to do any job," she pleaded, her big eyes gradually growing moist.

"Anything?" Ye Cheng asked.

"I mean honest work—any decent job," she quickly clarified, sensing something odd in his tone.

"What’s your name? What can you do? I’ll say this upfront—I never keep idle people around," Ye Cheng said, intrigued by her sincerity.

"My name is Su Chan. I was a third-year student at Liuzhou University."

"My mother left me early, so my father raised me alone. Later, my father got sick and we had no money. To treat him, I dropped out and started working. I majored in Traditional Chinese Medical Pathology," Su Chan answered earnestly.

"Traditional Chinese Medical Pathology? Then shouldn’t you be able to treat your father yourself?"

"A physician cannot heal themselves. I only studied for three years, so my skills are limited. And I have no money for medicine."

"Medicine is so expensive now—herbs cost hundreds per kilogram. My father can’t afford them."

"If we were to see Western doctors for hospitalization, I couldn’t even pay the fees. Ah!" As she spoke, her tone grew sorrowful, as if lamenting the injustice of fate.

Ye Cheng listened, his heart twisting. He thought, "So that's it—another person as unfortunate as myself."

With this in mind, Ye Cheng stopped pressing her and began to make plans. He said to Su Chan, "You seem pitiful enough; I'll trust you this once. Follow me today."

"After I finish my business, I'll go to your home and see your father."

"If what you say is true, I’ll agree to let you work for me. But let’s be clear—if you’re lying, you’d better drop the idea now."

Ye Cheng had his own intentions in arranging things this way. He wanted to test Su Chan, to see if she really dared bring him to meet the father she spoke of. If she did, her story would be mostly true, and he could help her again.

After all, his own reputation was built on medicine, and he’d always planned to open a pharmacy after leaving the Luo family. Now, he had a ready-made supervisor and wouldn’t need to go through the trouble of hiring.

Of course, if she didn’t dare take him to see her father, it would mean she owed money for other reasons. In that case, he’d have no reason to help her and would just send her away.

"Is what you said true? If you’re willing, I can take you to my home right now. I can start work today," Su Chan replied, her excitement barely contained.

"Alright, follow me then. But you’d better find a public restroom first and wash your face," Ye Cheng said, surprised by how readily she agreed. His caution relaxed considerably, and he set aside other concerns, taking Su Chan with him.

First, he went to a bank, cashed a check, and opened several accounts, linking one to his phone for online payments.

Once those errands were done, Ye Cheng took Su Chan to a reputable real estate agency, where—with an agent’s help—he rented a two-hundred-square-meter, elegantly furnished flat.

Finally, Ye Cheng visited a dealership and bought a Mercedes-Benz E-Class worth about six hundred thousand yuan.

By the time Ye Cheng finished these tasks with Su Chan in tow, it was already three or four in the afternoon.

However, when they drove together to the Luo family villa, the scene that greeted Ye Cheng left him seething with anger.