No one did anything to appease Yi Guoguo.
Yi An was a martial arts fanatic, and being quite old, he didn't care about such petty romances. He didn't even know the real reason, so he just let his juniors be upset and suffer. The only thing that bothered him was that Yi Guoguo's cooking was really terrible.
Lin Yao didn't have the right to comfort her; he was even younger than Yi Guoguo. Even though he was now in a relationship with Xia Yuwen, he didn't think that love could make someone so infatuated. This might be related to his experience and mindset. Either he was so sick that love was an unattainable dream, or he was so powerful that he couldn't make love his top priority in life.
However, despite not having experienced it firsthand, Lin Yao still believed that love could make people lose their minds and even pledge their lives to each other. After all, in the novels of Jin Yong that had a profound influence on him, Mei Chaofeng was obsessed with love for decades. Although she was a character in a literary work, Lin Yao believed that such a situation existed in reality. Just looking at the relationship between his father, Luo Jimin, and his mother, Lin Hongmei, convinced him of this.
However, because I don't understand, I don't interfere and let Yi Guoguo adjust on her own.
If things really can't be changed, I suppose this girl will just disappear on her own. Her future achievements will be limited, and she'll probably live a lonely life forever.
Yi Zuojun was only ordered to take care of Lin Yao's daily life and provide some assistance that Yi An and Yi Guoguo were not good at. As for the real reason, Yi Fei would of course not tell him, but only ordered Yi Zuojun not to inquire or get involved.
So, Yi Zuojun was the only one who spoke during the entire dinner. He was enthusiastic and excited, telling stories about what happened in Chengdu and his own experiences like a gossipy old woman, completely ignoring Yi Guoguo's gloomy, plaster-cast face.
Yi Zuojun was extremely excited. He could be by Lin Yao's side again. This time, his goal was to reach the peak of the Earth-level realm, so he couldn't slack off on improving his strength.
It is said that mood is an important factor in determining health, and this is also true for martial arts practitioners. Lin Yao noticed something amiss.
"Guoguo, you can't let your cultivation fall behind. Your current level of mid-Earth Realm is very unstable and much worse than it was a few days ago. If you're not careful, you might fall back to the early stage, and it will be much more difficult to advance in the future."
Lin Yao couldn't help but speak up. After hearing about Yi Guoguo's experience, he really didn't want this new generation of martial arts genius of the Yi family to fall from grace.
"Thank you, sir! Guoguo understands." Yi Guoguo ate her rice without adding any vegetables to her bowl, just like a wooden statue.
After learning Yi Fei's feelings, she felt utterly devastated. The embarrassment of having her secret exposed wasn't the most important thing; the most important thing was that a dream she had cherished for many years had been shattered. Even her arduous cultivation was all for the sake of earning a single word of praise from Yi Fei, or perhaps the occasional, deep, comforting touch of his hand on her head, just like when she was a child.
Now even meeting is awkward. Yi Fei will never look at her with kind and loving eyes again, nor will he have a hearty smile. Just by looking at how serious he was when he talked to her about this matter last time, she knew what the future would be like. How could Yi Guoguo let it go?
Lin Yao sighed inwardly, thinking that his words had been wasted again. This girl was stuck in a trance of emotions and couldn't get out. With Yi Guoguo's impulsive and boyish personality, if she could get out of this predicament on her own, she would have returned to normal long ago. At least she wouldn't be so conflicted, which was painful to watch.
"Zuo Jun, I heard that if there's no chance for further promotion, the family will assign her to a logistics position?" Lin Yao felt that this was a drastic measure; regardless of the outcome, he just wanted to get this girl back to her senses.
“Sir, it’s like this.” Yi Zuojun put down the jar, sat up straight, and answered Lin Yao’s question seriously. “My parents were like that. They were transferred to Inner Mongolia to reclaim wasteland. It wasn’t until I was born that they realized there was room for me to grow. That’s when they were reassigned to Yanji.”
Lin Yao glanced at Yi Guoguo discreetly and quickly. Yi Zuojun noticed this detail. Although he didn't know the specific reason and didn't dare to ask, he understood Lin Yao's sudden question. It must be related to Yi Guoguo, so he carefully added the details.
"Oh, I see." Lin Yao pretended to have just confirmed the Yi family rule. "This rule is quite reasonable, trying to let every member shine. However, if they are assigned too far away, they might not have a chance to meet for more than ten years, which is a drawback."
"Sir, it's like this. I heard that when I was six years old, my mother returned to Yanji and cried her heart out with my uncles." Yi Zuojun knew his place and started to get emotional. "The tears she shed were like the Hukou Waterfall. That's how family rules are. There's nothing we can do about it. Actually, our family did quite well when we were in Inner Mongolia. We had no worries about food or clothing. It's just that my mother always missed home. Although my father didn't say it, he often smoked in silence."
"Exaggeration! Hukou Waterfall? I bet you've never even seen it in person." Lin Yao laughed and scolded, then picked up his chopsticks and started eating.
A loud drum doesn't need a heavy hammer! If Yi Guoguo is still stubborn after hearing this family rule and can't seem to recover, it's better to just send her back to Yanji. Anyway, even if she's ruined, staying in Beijing would just mean having to face her bitter face all the time. She'd be miserable herself, and she'd make others miserable too.
Once a person loses their faith, no amount of medicine will help. Lin Yao felt he had done everything he could and stopped thinking about it. He figured Yi Fei was more anxious than he was, but he hadn't seen Yi Fei do anything special.
"Sir, I'm full. I'll go back to my room to cultivate. I absolutely cannot let my cultivation level drop back." Yi Guoguo suddenly stood up from her seat, with more than half a bowl of white rice still in her bowl, but her tone was very firm.
The clever girl knew that if her cultivation level dropped, she might never see Yi Fei again in her lifetime. No matter how things developed in the future, she couldn't miss this opportunity to stay, otherwise she would regret it for the rest of her life, both in terms of love and cultivation.
Yi Guoguo left. Lin Yao picked up a piece of vegetable and put it in his mouth, praising Yi Zuojun, "This broccoli is stir-fried very well, fragrant, crisp, and excellent!"
Yi Zuojun grinned, "Thank you for the compliment, sir!" He quickly glanced at the door where Yi Guoguo had left, his eyes filled with suspicion.
Meanwhile, Pei Yuan and Sun Miao, who had just finished get off work at Hongyuan Company, were talking in a private room at a Chinese restaurant. Although there were only two people in the room, the resentment they had accumulated was comparable to that of eighteen resentful women. The gloomy atmosphere made even the waiters serving the dishes fall silent and forget to announce the names of the dishes.
“Sun Miao, what do you think this guy surnamed Lin is trying to do? He left us hanging and ignored us, not even giving us a friendly look.” Pei Yuan frowned, his handsome face contorted. “If we hadn’t been in a public place, I would have attacked him right then and there.”
“Now that we’re prepared, we no longer need to worry about his intimidating aura. It’s all thanks to a certain piece of equipment. Your family’s ‘Langya Jade Pendant’ is no slouch either; it can completely expose him to his true form.” Pei Yuan’s tone was filled with resentment, venting his anger.
“That’s not necessarily true.” Sun Miao’s face was not smiling, but he was much calmer than Pei Yuan. “Although the elders told me a few new ways to control the ‘Langya Jade Pendant,’ it’s not certain whether they will be effective. Moreover, my family’s eldest elder specifically instructed me that I must not have any conflict with Lin Yao, no conflict whatsoever. So you should give up that idea. If you have a conflict, I will not help you.”
"My elder also warned me not to provoke Lin Yao."
Pei Yuan clearly didn't take the warning to heart. He had always been the darling of the family since childhood, and occasionally disobeying the elders' orders was nothing serious. Besides, he didn't intend to seriously injure Lin Yao. He only wanted to avenge the last time in Baoding and make Lin Yao suffer a minor injury and spit out a few mouthfuls of blood.
Two mouthfuls, all Lin Yao needs to do is spit out two mouthfuls of blood.
Pei Yuan's wish was to make Lin Yao suffer double the consequences, but Sun Miao's cold water extinguished all his enthusiasm.
Without Sun Miao's help, Pei Yuan wouldn't have been able to withstand the oppressive aura alone. This is why he insisted on bringing Sun Miao into Hongyuan Company with him. He wanted to find Lin Yao for a formal competition and also test the guy's background to see if he could get an important treasure for the Pei family.
"Don't drag me into this." Sun Miao cursed the idiot in his heart. "Our two elders have both spoken out, saying that Lin Yao's identity is extraordinary. The Yi family is rising rapidly now, and there is no need for the Pei family and the Sun family to have unpleasantness over such a small matter. Let's just test what Lin Yao is capable of. I don't believe that rumor that the revival of the Yi family depends on this young man."
“He’s even younger than us. I heard he’s not even twenty-three yet. I tested him today, and he’s only at the mid-stage of the Earth level.” Sun Miao continued to analyze, “In an ordinary aristocratic family, this would be considered a prodigy, but compared to you and me, who are being heavily cultivated by our respective families, he’s still not good enough. So I just don’t believe that rumor.”
Pei Yuan glared at Sun Miao without saying a word, his eyes stern.
"Sorry, I forgot, I forgot." Sun Miao slapped his forehead and apologized as if he had just realized something, but in his heart he was thinking, "You're not completely stupid, your reaction is not bad." "I didn't notice the name of the Pei family's eldest elder for a moment. I usually don't even dare to think about the name of such an important person, so I offended him by accident."
"It's alright, it's just an idiom." Pei Yuan withdrew his stern gaze. Since the other party had apologized, he naturally couldn't pursue the matter further, otherwise the successor of his first family would not be as magnanimous as the Sun family.
Pei Yuan and Sun Miao have been friends since childhood, but because they each represent their respective families, they are also obvious rivals while being friends. One is outgoing and hot-tempered, while the other is reserved, so their rivalry rarely has any obvious confrontation.
"Sun Miao, what do you think we should do if Lin Yao doesn't show us that treasure?" Pei Yuan suddenly changed the subject, discussing the matter he was most concerned about.
They were all there for the "treasure" on Lin Yao. Even if they couldn't get it, they wanted to at least learn about the treasure's name and function so their families could register it. They might even be able to find other treasures or develop items with the same effect based on that information.
The previous experience was still fresh in their minds, but later they received a notice from their respective family elders that Lin Yao's imposing aura came from a prop, and they were told to give up the idea of revenge and to never take any rash actions to strike Lin Yao.
Pei Tianzong and Sun Woxing believed that since Lin Yao was already a master of the same level as them, it was best to keep this shocking information a secret, otherwise it would affect their plans.
The Pei and Sun families' support and assistance in the rise of the Yi family is a great favor. Once the information that Lin Yao is comparable to a Heavenly-level expert is spread, and the Yi family has two Heavenly-level experts, or even one of them is a master of medicine, then many aristocratic families will flock to curry favor with the Yi family. At that time, the gratitude received by the Pei and Sun families will be much less effective.
Therefore, Pei Tianzong and Sun Woxing both chose to restrain their own disciples from provoking Lin Yao. As for Lin Yao's disciples, it would be better if they had conflicts with Lin Yao. In this way, given Lin Yao's own strength and the Yi family's high regard for him, the greatest benefit would only be left to their own families.
What made them even more envious was Lin Yao's unassuming abilities. So far, apart from a few pills, they knew nothing about Lin Yao's abilities, which was what made the two Heavenly-level experts so eager.