Release that Man

Going through the backdoor for relationships was actually something very common in today’s day and age. Certain people did this to pull themselves up, and others used this to yank people down. No matter the case, the convenience of this tactic could not be understated.

Those with power would be arrogant and proud even if they used the backdoor. They manipulated the connections and power of being a higher-up to press others. Without calling the door open, the door would oftentimes open on its own. Those with just enough power replied on others to help make the connection—it was often a get to know each other type of situation. One would lend the other money, and in turn, they could use the other party’s standing—it was a barter system, an exchange of equals. Those without power would generally be passive; they could only supply whatever favors they could, but the favors might not even be accepted. However, in any case, the chance of it being successful was still higher than those who did nothing…

Ye Shuang thought back to the information provided by Yao Zhixing on Zhou Yue. The man’s family was involved in the cold chain business. However, the family was not that powerful. After all, Zhou Yue’s father did not come from a cultured family background and had built himself from the ground up, so naturally, he did not have relationships that were built up over generations like Yao Zhixing’s family did.

If it was just a movement between business people, then it would have been fine, but if they wanted to intervene into a completely different field, the type of backdoor Zhou Yue could do was the second type. He could use money to buy a good relationship and then use that person to do something of convenience for him.

After the meal, after Ye Shuang heard what she needed to hear, she was no long in the mood to wander around. Therefore, she sent the unwilling An Zixuan back home before she returned to her own home to think of a solution. From a certain perspective, the issue was easily resolvable. Ye Shuang could have sought out Yao Zhixing or some other people to inform them of this situation, then they would crush Zhou Yue’s action before it had the opportunity to grow and fester. However, this would lead to Ye Shuang owing people favors, and the problem would not have been removed at the basic level.

If she really did this through a friend, then in other people’s eyes, Father Ye managed to stay at his post due to his relationship, and he himself did not have a background that ensured his post. This could be stopped once or twice, but if the mad dog refused to release his grasp on Father Ye, did this not mean that Ye Shuang would have to keep her eyes on this issue every day of her life?

Therefore, to completely eradicate this problem, the best solution was to do what Ye Shuang did to Zhou Yue on New Year’s Eve, which was to make Zhou Yue fearful of Father Ye’s position within San Lin City’s education circle. How was that possible‽

Just the thought of her father’s soft and gentle Marxist philosophy on life, Ye Shuang felt like coughing blood. Marxist philosophy was a basic course at most universities. Basically, students from any course would need to take this class. However, in terms of being paid attention to, it was worse than other basic courses like English or Mathematics. Marxism ideology was like an attachment—it had to be studied but was useless in general. In any case, one had to pass the exam, and after passing the exam…

Basically, this course was no different from the ideology classes taught in elementary school. If Father Ye had a role in any of the university departments, at least he would have been given a certain degree of respect by the students. Alas, he was just a normal lecturer, and this went to show how little Father Ye’s presence was at the university.

Thinking about this and the fact that Zhou Yue might have started to make his move like sending presents to certain characters, Ye Shuang instantly felt annoyed. She was so annoyed that her food intake had dropped down to only four meals that day. She no longer felt like celebrating the New Year, and this caused An Zixuan, who still wanted to ask her out, to become equally saddened. After thinking about this left and right, on the day of the lantern festival, when the Ye family of three came back from visiting both sides of Ye Shuang’s grandparents, Ye Shuang finally came to a decision. On the second day, she dragged Father Ye out of the door, informing the rest of the family that they were not coming back for dinner.

“That rascal!” Mother Ye groused angrily as she waved the frying pan in the air. “Today is the 15th; we purposely came back earlier, but now she is dragging her father out. If I’d known that sooner, we would have just celebrated Lantern Festival at Grandma’s!”

Little Brother Ye was not feeling that happy either because he was left behind to do the pacifying work. “Mom, Sis already said this is for some official business.”

“What kind of official business is so urgent that it has to be done today‽” Mother Ye roared.

“Er… I hear it is the lantern parade that is organized jointly by the city government, the education ministry, and health ministry.” Little Brother Ye scratched his head. In any case, he could not clearly remember the long string of ministry names. “In any case, it is related to the qualification competition that Sis will be participating in at the end of the year. I hear the competition has been fixed, and the people from the Go association asked her to show up for this event.”

“Is that so?” Mother Ye was first proud before grumbling, “In that case, she should have brought the whole family with her after dinner. Why did she only bring your father and so early in the day at that?”

The complaints went on and on. Originally, she was only mad that her daughter would drag her husband out on a day like this, but now there was an additional sin of not taking her along. Little Brother Ye listened to her mother’s endless grumbling with a saddened face. He really did not know what to do to resist the powerful complaints of a middle-aged lady.

On the other hand, it was of course not without reason that Ye Shuang had dragged her father out alone. The official activity would start after dinner, correct, but the gathering for the internal committee was not open to everyone.

The lantern festival was held for the public to enjoy the celebration together; the government had quartered off a part of the city to decorate and set up stalls and various mini games for the public to enjoy. Even though this was a joint collaboration between the local government and the Go association, it was open to all normal citizens as long as they knew about the event. However, the internal committee’s gathering was only open to people of a certain stature, like the leaders of a ministry, those with special working posting or people like Ye Shuang who were rising stars.

“Girl, you have a very bright future.” The city mayor was complimenting Ye Shuang, who was introduced by the Go association’s leader to the people at the gathering. Ye Shuang had fair skin, brilliant eyes, and a gentle presence like one of those young ladies that was described in Wuxia stories. “I hear you’re also the private student of a retired national player, Ol’ Jian from Jing Hu City, and you don’t have a loss on your record‽”

The more the mayor interacted with Ye Shuang, the more approving he was. The fact that such a brilliant young woman had come out of San Lin City, even without any political result to show, it was something that was good to his face, especially when the girl’s Go skills were not bad, and she was someone that could be shown to the media as well.

With Father Ye watching, Ye Shuang tried her best to act up the role of a cultured young lady. She smiled a smile that did not show her teeth, and she lowered her head slightly in a nod. The way she carried herself elicited the gentleness of a cultured background. “Everyone is very good at the game. I was merely lucky to have won a few rounds.”

The elder at the Go association nodded along to Ye Shuang’s show of humility. He shook his head and sighed with adoration. “Xiao Shuang’s Go skills are definitely not a product of luck. Even Ol’ Jian and I have not won a game against her.”

The mayor widened his eyes immediately. He initially thought the win streak was with people of the same bracket or people of a similar skill level, but he did not realize it included national players! Then this was more than an issue of face. If San Lin City could produce such a big talent… even if she did not love the competitions, as long as she could maintain the perfect record among the national players, this was such a boon.

Thinking about this, the adoration the mayor had for Ye Shuang tripled. Initially, Ye Shuang was assigned a side table, alongside her father, but now with the face given by the mayor, instantly, even Father Ye’s seat was moved to the main table. With this move, the people in the crowd started to talk.

With the rumors of an incredible family background that were purposely cultivated by Ye Shuang like she came from a line of scholars, like it was her father who she owed everything to… Father Ye’s name thus spread through the crowd. When these rumors reached the secretary who sat beside the leader of the education ministry, the secretary could only work hard to wipe the sweat that appeared on his forehead.

F*ck! What do you mean a small character, a small teacher, without background and support? Even the mayor is paying attention to him. His daughter is so famous, and you told me that is without background. In that case, who do you consider someone with a background‽

The secretary sneaked out from his seat to make a call. After all, since the food had not been served yet, no one would notice his disappearance. He found a relatively quiet corridor and made a call to Zhou Yue. The secretary did not say much—certain things would only become awkward after they were laid out in the open. Furthermore, if he was overheard, it would lead to so much more trouble. Therefore, he maintained a tone like he was talking to his friend, relaying what had just happened on the main table, and then very naturally eased in several words of compliment about the girl. Zhou Yue naturally understood what the man was trying to say—the Ye family was untouchable.

His daughter had already become a beloved of the mayor. After the news had time to spread within the community, it was only a matter of time before Father Ye was given his due attention.

You dare come after the parents‽ Just for the sake of this new rising star, the people above will definitely start a close investigation, when things are brought to the surface, we will definitely get into trouble. While you might get to stay out of it, we are not dumb enough to take this fall for you.

After all, this was in relation to classical talents like the four arts. To preserve the cultural air of the organization, this kind of talent would be closely protected. Even though they could not contribute to any economic value, when the situation called for it, they would be incredibly helpful to increase one’s fame, face, and reputation. San Lin City was just a small town so she was nothing to be afraid of‽ Fine, but her reputation had grown beyond San Lin City. That retired national player at Jing Hu City? She was his private student. Actually, it sounded like they were players of equal skill.

In any case, the secretary was suffering from a headache.

As the proverb goes, like a genteel scholar trying to start a rebellion, without hope.

This kind of Go player was no different. They did not have any powerful connections to rock the world, but they had an identity that was beyond normal. Basically, these types of individuals were no different from the peaceful NPCs in games. It was impossible for them to attack the main character because they did not have the power, but if they were actively attacked, it was impossible as well because that was their character design.

When Zhou Yue heard that, he wanted to curse so badly. That is impossible! With that kind of strength and attitude, you’re telling me she is a Go player, a talented belle‽ When have you heard a young lady shove a man’s head under water and punch him until he coughed up water‽

After explaining the situation in a rather roundabout way to the assistant, the secretary shook his head repeatedly. From the beginning, he did not think that the Ye Shuang at the main seat would do something described by the man on the phone. Look at the girl’s thin arms, fair skin, and that gentle presence…Even if you want to make up a lie, couldn’t you have come up with a more believable one? I know you look down on other people’s IQ, but you cannot look down on our power of sight.

On the other hand, Zhou Yue felt like the secretary was lying to him. He had a firm belief that the talented belle he was describing could never be the tigress that punched him. He demanded that the secretary send him a picture message. After they both confirmed they were talking about the same Ye Shuang, the conversation came to a halt.

The secretary thought Zhou Yue was being disingenuous, barbaric, and pushy, while Zhou Yue thought the secretary was being shameless, unfeeling, and unreasonable.

After hanging up the unhappy call, the secretary told himself not to interact with these kinds of mindless folk in the future. He had thought that he would be doing nothing more than a favor, but this man had given him a mine to step on. On top of that, the man’s mind seemed to be broken as well. He had already stated his difficulty, yet the man kept saying he was lying and refused to let him go.

He put the phone back in his pocket. He sighed and was about to turn back to the seat when Ye Shuang walked out from the corner with a smile. The secretary almost froze where he was. The cold sweat that he just wiped off earlier had started to flow again.

“Hmm, Secretary Chen‽” Ye Shuang stopped with a gentle smile as if she had just noticed someone standing there in the corridor. “The event is going to start soon. Why are you still standing here?”

Ye Shuang was channeling the power of an Oscar-winning actress, so the secretary did not realize anything. He really thought that Ye Shuang did not hear anything, and the heart that reached his throat relaxed instantly. After a sigh of relief, he smiled back at Ye Shuang. “Just came out for a breath of fresh air and call the son at home. Miss Ye, are you on the way back to the event as well?”

“Yes, just now, a friend sent me a message. It was rude to answer it inside the hall, so I came out to see what it was.” Ye Shuang smiled. The curve of the smile on her face was calculated to a perfect angle; it made people feel like the spring breeze was brushing over them. It was kind but not too invasive. “Someone asked me to invite a newbie player out for a bout of Go. It was because the person has stepped on his toes. If it is just a friendly game, then it would have been fine, but this kind of game that is meant to suppress and humiliate. Why should I get myself involved‽ Furthermore, this should be between the two of them. If I really offend this new player, and should the day come when he gains enough influence, he will also come for me. Why would I purposely find trouble for myself? Wouldn’t you agree, Secretary Chen?”

The secretary was slightly confused. This was considered shameful news, right? Should she really be telling this type of inside information to someone like him‽ Furthermore, they were not really close friends. Was it really okay for her to share this kind of private problem with him‽

Of course, this whole thing was just a made-up lie. Ye Shuang was actually trying to remind the man of the possible danger that he would be in if he did the wrong thing. It did not matter if the man did not understand it—after all, she did not say that she knew anything—she would just allow the man to think about it.

As she expected, when the secretary almost reached the hall, his expression changed. However, since they were at a public function, it was inconvenient for him to ask anything. Perhaps Ye Shuang was just saying those things for fun, and she might not have meant anything by it.

After forcing himself through the dinner, they all broke up into smaller groups to enjoy the lantern festival. Then, the secretary finally got the chance to sidle up to Ye Shuang. With a natural smile, he said, “I still don’t think it is wise to partake in that Go match.”

Ye Shuang studied the man for two seconds before smiling with a slow nod. “You know what, Secretary Chen, I agree with you.”

The elder at the Go association was confused. “You two want to play each other‽”

The secretary excused himself in a hurry. Ye Shuang giggled and shook her head to explain, “No, he has a relative who wants to learn the art of Go but unfortunately doesn’t have the talent. Secretary Chen wanted to ask for my help to teach him, but he thought about it and realized it might not have been such a bright idea, so he came to tell me.”

“Oh.” The elder did not think much of it. He led Ye Shuang, Father Ye, and the other people from the Go association out. By then, night had fallen. The decorated lanterns lit up the night and the staff found their own stalls and the activity was about to start soon. Lantern quizzes, mini games, talent show… With the cooperation between the many organizers, the lantern festival was large, and it had many different activities.

Each activity had prizes to be won. The smallest included a towel and toothbrush while the more lucrative prizes included an MP3, an oven and the like.

After warning Ye Shuang to not interrupt the activity set up by the Go association, the elder led the other people away to enjoy the festival. Finally, Father Ye had the time to approach his daughter to ask for the truth. “What is really happening today?”

Before the dinner party began, he realized something was off. Based on her daughter’s attitude that was oftentimes money forward, she did not seem to plan to gain fame for herself, so why did she suddenly make herself known at such a big event‽

“How shall I put this…” Ye Shuang tried to conclude this, and she uttered in a melancholic tone, “A man dreads fame as a swine dreads being fat… Your daughter is being a bit too obvious outside. I was afraid you were being targeted by others, so today, I have to brought you to make your name known as well.”

Father Ye looked at her suspiciously. “Just because of that‽”

He knew Ye Shuang must have hidden other information from him, but since it seemed like the trouble had been settled, Father Ye did not press any further. He shrugged and started to get a headache over a different matter. “At least you have to inform your mother beforehand. The fact that we came out on our own like this… do you know how angry your mother will be‽”

“That is where you come in.” Ye Shuang’s face turned into a smile, and she laughed. “I have already messaged Xiao Feng. In a bit, he will bring Mom over. Then, you will take care of Mom while Xiao Feng and I go do something else. When we’re ready to go home, we’ll meet up again.”

Obviously, only Father Ye had the ability to complete the mission of calming down Mother Ye. After all, since Ye Shuang’s mission had been completed, she had time to herself. Since she had been warned against visiting the Go association’s stall, she was going to visit other stalls. After winning some ovens and stuff, combined with the groveling from Father Ye, Mother Ye would definitely be smiling before the night ended.

Father Ye almost choked. Even though he did plan to call his partner out to enjoy the festivities, he did not expect his daughter to have already planned to use him to beg for forgiveness.

Where was the kind daughter that he had known for so many years‽

Ye Shuang accompanied Father Ye for a while before Little Brother Ye and Mother Ye showed up. They met up at the entrance to the festival. Before Mother Ye could start her machine gun of complaints, Ye Shuang very expertly dragged Little Brother Ye and escaped the scene. The lantern festival was crowded with people, and with the distraction provided by Father Ye, by the time Mother Ye finished berating her husband and turned around to talk to her children, the two had already disappeared.

Ye Shuang ignored how the old couple was going to solve the familial conflict; after all, Ye Shuang’s business was with Zhou Yue. In any case, based on the information that she had overheard earlier, the man would not have dared to try anything direct, and now, even indirect tactics would not be possible. She only needed to wait and observe for a period of time. If nothing else came up, Zhou Yue probably would have redirected his aggression to someone else.

Ye Shuang did not care who that might be as long as it was not her or her family.

The night of Lantern Festival ended just like that. When they returned home, it was almost midnight. Mother Ye’s anger had already disappeared before midnight. Plus, the night of walking was quite tiring. Thus, Ye Shuang managed to survive the event.

The following morning, Ye Shuang happily enjoyed her breakfast. Everything was fine and dandy with the world.

Or so she thought.

When everyone placed their eating utensils down, Mother Ye suddenly said something that almost made the others choke on their food.

“The date‽”

The men of the Ye family looked at each other while Ye Shuang gasped in surprise. Only Mother Ye was calm like this was just something of insignificance. She looked around the table and asked very naturally, “That’s right, haven’t we discussed this already‽”

Father Ye and Little Brother Ye racked their mind, and indeed, there appeared to be such a thing. Initially, they planned to have this on the second or third day of New Year since the younger generation who worked outside the city would be home for New Year. However, everyone’s schedule just could not match. Either Ye Shuang had something to do, or there was a guest coming over. When they were free, Father Ye and Mother Ye had to go pay Ye Shuang’s grandparents a visit. Therefore, this issue had left everyone’s mind… well, everyone but one.

Father Ye frowned and asked, “But now the New Year is already almost over, who do you plan to match Xiao Shuang with?”

“The children from outside have returned, but there are still people her age who remained in the city.” Mother Ye brushed over the news and coughed. “In any case, I have already discussed with the boy’s family. Tomorrow afternoon, I will bring Xiao Shuang to go meet the man’s son.”

Ye Shuang’s eyes moved around, and she understood instantly—this must be the pursuer from her mother’s youth. That was why she did not give a specific name.

However, Father Ye was not as calculative and as clever as that. Now, he was purely concerned about the boy’s family background. “Whose son is it? What is his line of work? His personality, looks, attitude… Don’t go selling your daughter due to a few words of compliment from your friend.”

“That’s why we’re going to meet him in person, right‽” Mother Ye was getting impatient from feeling guilty. Afraid of being found out, she waved her hands and raised her voice in impatience. “After all, it’s only a meeting! It’s no skin off our back. If it doesn’t work out, it’s just a meal.”

“In that case, tomorrow, I will join you…”

“Tomorrow, you will take Xiao Feng to visit his teachers for New Year!” Mother Ye very quickly interrupted the words that attempted to come out of Father Ye’s lips. To hide the target of the date, she was willing to use Little Brother Ye as cannon fodder. “Xiao Feng failed so many subjects this year; you should be more worried about it! He still has so many replacement tests waiting for him once the year starts. You should help him interact more often with the teachers so that they help him in class more often!”

Father Ye turned to look at Little Brother Ye with a gaze that seemed to say,Hmm, she has a point.

Little Brother Ye obviously did not think he would be dragged into this mess by just sitting there. He lifted his head to look at his mother in disbelief. He could not understand when his mother turned into such a heartless person.

Ye Shuang lit a candle silently—for her mother’s memory of youth, for the harmony of the family, for…

Cough! In any case, go on your way. I guarantee that I will not let that cheater’s son into this family!