Chapter 91: with translation of chapter title

On this side, Lin Meng's thoughts had already drifted away, still thinking about her grand cultivation plan.

Upon hearing her answer, Ye Chenjing's pupils trembled, and his heart felt considerable turmoil.

Even the medicinal materials that the Chinese Medicine Association could not obtain, here she only needed to wait a while to obtain them.

He certainly remembered that those medicinal materials were at least over a hundred years old; she knows how much effort, how many generations' painstaking work, it takes to cultivate such a medicinal herb?

Ye Chenjing couldn't help but raise his hand and pinch his brow.

"I'll tell Old Zhu and the others, if you have the goods, come find me, I can still act as your middleman."

Ye Chenjing never helps others for free, unless it's his own grandfather or younger brother; otherwise, he has never been so selfless toward outsiders.

But whenever Lin Meng comes to ask him for help, he feels something indescribable, as if not helping her would make him unhappy.

This time is the same; clearly the group's affairs keep him stretched thin, acting as this medicine middleman brings him no benefit, yet he willingly steps in.

Lin Meng was about to thank him for his help when she heard Sun Yao's excited voice from outside.

"General Manager, it's up, it's up—the raw stone Lin Meng mentioned has indeed risen!"

Before his words finished, Sun Yao rushed in clutching five cut stones.

After Ye Chenjing carefully examined it, he indeed confirmed that the raw stone Lin Meng had pointed out at a glance was good material.

Now his heart was even more shocked; his gaze toward Lin Meng gained a few extra touches of a different spirit.

Yet Ye Chenjing was still considering, remaining silent for a while.

Lin Meng felt a bit anxious; her younger cousin was still waiting for her.

"General Manager? Do I have the qualifications to become a member of your team?"

Ye Chenjing was about to speak when suddenly a noisy commotion came from outside the door, and then someone rushed in—none other than Qin Feng, the Fifth Lord Qin, whom Lin Meng knew.

At the moment she saw Qin Feng, Lin Meng's eyes widened and she blurted out.

"Uncle? How can you just barge into a private room like that? It's impolite."

Qin Feng: "……"

"You little loach, are you? I chased you from Yun Cheng to Jing Shi and didn't see you, then went to your hometown and came up empty, yet somehow you just popped over to Li Shi in a flash."

Lin Meng's eyes went dark; after not seeing him for days, this uncle's words were becoming increasingly unpleasant.

"Uncle, if you have something to tell me, wouldn't a phone call suffice? Why chase after me? And what do you want from me?"

Qin Feng glared at her angrily, didn't spell it out, but glanced at Ye Chenjing, his eyes full of wariness.

"It's not convenient to talk here; come outside with me."

Saying that, Qin Feng reached to pull Lin Meng away.

He knew to some extent that the old Lin family and the Ye family had some acquaintance, but it was not deep.

The Ye family's future heir, Ye Chenjing, he could tell at a glance was a fox—appearing refined and upright on the surface, but actually a business genius with formidable tactics, both covert and overt, at his command.

Qin Feng well understood his ways; anyone capable of pushing a family enterprise to a higher level, even if young, is a ruthless player.

Lin Meng may have some cleverness and a few little secrets, but compared to Ye Chenjing, who has been mixing in the business world since childhood as a scheming boy, she is still too green.

Moreover, Qin Feng hadn't expected that the Ye family heir would be so handsome, comparable to his own peak years; he truly feared that this little girl Lin Meng wouldn't be able to resist that face's temptation, boarding a thief's ship and being sold out.

Unconsciously, Qin Feng had already come to regard Lin Meng as one of his own; with his elder-brother nature, he would not allow the young lady he had taken a liking to be ruined in the hands of a brat.

Lin Meng refused to leave; Qin Feng's arrival was ill-timed, as Ye Chenjing had not yet answered her.

"Fifth Lord Qin, please step outside and wait for me; I still have a few matters."

Lin Meng sat unmoving; Qin Feng gnawed at his row of teeth, worn white from washing.

"Why don't you call me uncle anymore? Whether you have something to ask me or not, we're not on the same side as him."

Lin Meng rolled her eyes, stopped paying attention to Qin Feng, and instead stared straight at Ye Chenjing.

Ye Chenjing sat steady as an old dog on the leather sofa, his long legs casually bent, appearing relaxed, yet his gaze locked onto Qin Feng like an eagle's.

This person is the creditor to whom Lin Meng's grandfather owes debt, the local tyrant Qin Feng of Yun Cheng?

That a creditor and debtor get along so well—this Lin Meng is something else.

Ye Chenjing, for some reason, suddenly felt a sour taste in his heart, and his tone turned acidic.

"Miss Lin seems to still have a way out? Then let's waive it this time."

Lin Meng furrowed her brows tightly, "Do you still not trust my abilities?"

Suddenly, she thought of something, and her eyes lit up.

"In Yun Cheng, not long ago there appeared a mysterious expert who always won full color in stone gambling, the odds of a big rise nearly reaching a hundred percent; if you've heard of it, I can tell you that mysterious expert is me."

Lin Meng had made up her mind to participate in the Stone Gambling Convention; this time she was going all out.

Upon hearing that, Ye Chenjing's eyes flashed with shock; beside him, Sun Yao widened his eyes, pointed at Lin Meng, and stammered in exclamation.

"Is it you? That stone‑gambling master who always finds treasure with a hundred percent success—it's you!"

Lin Meng nodded, suddenly thought of something, and nudged Qin Feng beside her.

Fortunately, there was also a witness; at the time, that news had been suppressed with Qin Feng's help, which she only learned later.

To keep a low profile, Qin Feng helped her clean up the aftermath, and she was grateful to him.

But now, wanting this uncle to help verify things seems a bit difficult.

Qin Feng kept rubbing his forehead and sighing, "Done, done—this little girl, in order to show off in front of Ye Chenjing, can't hide anything; it's all exposed."

This makes the former self, who thoughtfully cleaned up after her and sealed the news, seem like a clown.

Lin Meng waited a long time for Qin Feng to prove it for her, unable to help but turn her head to look at him.

"Uncle, say something!"

Qin Feng gave a cold snort, glanced at her, and said, "Bluffing."

Lin Meng: "……"

By now, Ye Chenjing had come to his senses; he naturally believed Lin Meng's words.

Although they hadn't known each other long, Lin Meng was not someone who would boast.

Furthermore, with the Ye Family's capabilities, finding out any news about Yun Cheng's Stone Gambling City is no trouble; the truth is revealed with just a question.

"Miss Lin, I've approved your proposal; I can let you join my stone gambling team, but I have a condition."

Upon hearing his agreement, Lin Meng's mood instantly brightened.

"What condition? You say."

Ye Chenjing gave Qin Feng an ambiguous look, then said:

"Although I can let you join the stone gambling team, you can only follow my arrangements behind the scenes; you cannot be listed on the competition roster."

Lin Meng blinked; this was nothing at all—in fact, she felt the arrangement was perfect.

She didn't care about fame; staying hidden was how she could go farther.

However…

"I don't want the name, but I won't give up the profit."

"One must have both fame and profit, or else it's all for nothing."

Qin Feng beside him finally understood: Lin Meng wanted to enter the Stone Gambling Convention, but she hadn't signed up, so she could only ask the Ye Family for help.

Moreover, Ye Chenjing's condition is also somewhat thought‑provoking; not leaving a name amounts to hiding and protecting Lin Meng.

In the mixed‑bag stone gambling world of Li Shi, fame can be both good and bad.

For a young woman like Lin Meng, becoming famous here is not necessarily a good thing.

Ye Chenjing was doing this to protect her…