Chapter 163: Openly Poaching

Chapter 163: Chapter 163: Openly Poaching

The young man turned to look at Yao Qing and said with a smile,

"Ma’am, and who might this be?"

Yao Qing replied with disdain, "Just a toad lusting after a swan."

She then turned and glared at Ye Feng, snapping, "Did you see how a proper gentleman meets his elders? He brought gifts, unlike you, who showed up empty-handed!"

Ye Feng smiled and said, "The thing is, I didn’t know you two would be here today..."

"Even if you knew, could you afford such an expensive gift? I have no interest in whatever cheap junk you’d buy from a street stall. Anyway, I’m done wasting my breath. Let’s get to the point."

As she spoke, Yao Qing patted the young man’s shoulder beside her. She then looked at Ye Feng and said coldly, "Weren’t you just asking me who was worthy of my Ningning? Well, I’m telling you now—someone like him."

Then she looked at the young man. "Young Master Ximen, go on and introduce yourself. Make him feel so ashamed of himself that he can’t show his face and has to get lost!"

The young man nodded. Brimming with self-importance, he walked up to Ye Feng, tilted his head back, and looked down his nose at him before speaking arrogantly.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Ximen Long, the young heir of the Great Xia Empire’s Hundred Herbs Hall. Our Hundred Herbs Hall has total assets exceeding ten billion, and we are ranked among the top three in the traditional medicine business..."

Ximen Long was busy flaunting his beautiful feathers, but a single sentence from Ye Feng made his expression instantly darken.

Ye Feng casually flicked the ash from his cigarette, looked at him, and asked with a straight face, "Is that Ximen as in Ximen Qing?"

"Pfft..." Su Youning, who was standing nearby, couldn’t help but let out a snort of laughter before quickly clapping a hand over her mouth.

’What the hell...’ Ximen Long’s face fell. Growing up, people had constantly used Ximen Qing to mock his surname, and it had become a sore spot for him. He never imagined Ye Feng would strike at his deepest insecurity right off the bat. He was so furious his face turned pale.

But with a glance at Su Youning, Ximen Long forced down his anger and sneered at Ye Feng.

"I refuse to speak with someone as uneducated as you."

"Oh? And you’re educated?" Ye Feng asked, looking at Ximen Long with a playful smirk.

Ximen Long announced haughtily, "Of course. I graduated from Tianjiao High, the best high school in the Great Xia Empire, then from Qinghua University for my undergraduate degree, and went on to a combined Master’s and PhD program at the University of Cambridge in the United States..."

Ximen Long was still spitting out his credentials when Ye Feng cut him off. "Listen, Ximen Qing..."

"My name is Ximen Long! Ximen Long!" Ximen Long roared, barely restraining the urge to charge over and slap Ye Feng across the face.

"Ah, Ximen Long. You know, you can buy diplomas for all those places. How about I ask you a few questions? We can test the real value of those credentials and let everyone see if you’re a true scholar or just a blustering idiot."

Ximen Long heard this and saw it as a golden opportunity to show off. Overjoyed, he declared haughtily to Ye Feng, "Go on, ask away! From the highest heavens to the deepest hells, ask me anything you can possibly think of. If I can’t answer, I lose!"

Ye Feng smiled faintly. "Alright. I’ll ask you a simple question. A bus gets into an accident. Everyone on board is injured, but Xiaoming is completely unharmed. Tell me, how is that possible?"

Ximen Long froze for a moment. ’What kind of stupid question is that?’ he thought. But he still answered smugly.

"You think a question like that can stump me? I’ll tell you what happened. Xiaoming has practiced martial arts, so his body is in excellent condition. That’s why he was unharmed!"

Ye Feng chuckled. "Listen carefully. Everyone *on the bus* was injured."

Ximen Long looked at Ye Feng and chuckled as well. "Your question is a complete contradiction. You say everyone was injured, but then you say Xiaoming wasn’t. If you’re so smart, you tell me the answer."

Ye Feng flicked his ash and said with a grin, "The answer is simple. Xiaoming wasn’t on the bus."

Ximen Long staggered back. ’What the actual fuck?’

Ye Feng took a drag from his cigarette and looked at Ximen Long. "I’ll give you another chance to show off. Who in the world ages the fastest?"

"Of course, it’s... it’s..." Ximen Long stammered, unable to come up with a proper answer.

Ye Feng looked at him with a grin. "A bride, of course. After the wedding, she becomes someone’s ’old lady.’ She gets old overnight, wouldn’t you say?"

Ximen Long was dumbfounded.

Beside them, Su Youning lowered her head, her shoulders trembling as she desperately tried to stifle her laughter.

Ximen Long was livid. He glared at Ye Feng and roared, "Can you ask a real question? What’s the point of all this garbage? Do you think this is funny?"

Ye Feng smiled. "Fine. Then I’ll ask you the simplest question of all. What is one plus one?"

Before Ye Feng had even finished, Ximen Long burst into wild laughter. "You’re asking that? I’m starting to think you’re genuinely stupid. Now, I’ll give you the answer. Listen closely: it equals TWO!"

But Ye Feng’s next words instantly turned him to stone.

"Please provide your proof," Ye Feng asked with a grin.

Snapping out of it, Ximen Long glared at Ye Feng and roared, "One plus one equals two because it just does! What kind of proof do you need for that?"

Ye Feng flicked his ash and smiled. "Of course there’s a proof. The great mathematician Bertrand Russell took 362 pages to prove it in his *Principia Mathematica*. Understand now?

So, Ximen Qing, listen. If you’re going to buy fake diplomas, just keep them at home. Don’t parade them around. You must always remember: there’s a very fine line between impressing people and making a complete fool of yourself."

"My diplomas aren’t fake! They’re not!" Ximen Long nearly exploded, but he quickly caught himself. ’I have to maintain my gentlemanly composure!’ he thought. He suppressed his rage, shot Ye Feng a cold look, and said, "I’m done playing these childish games with you."

With that, he walked directly over to Su Youning and looked at her with an earnest expression. "Ningning, ever since you left the Imperial Capital, I have tried everything I could to find you. When I finally heard you were in Nanjun, I rushed here at once. Ningning, you know how I feel about you, so today, I am here to formally ask for your hand in marriage."

He then took out a diamond ring, dropped to one knee, and held it up to Su Youning.

Seeing this from behind, Yao Qing cried out in excitement, "Oh my goodness! That diamond must be at least three carats!"

Ximen Long said proudly, "You’re very close, Auntie. This is a blood-red diamond, 3.5 carats. I had it custom-made for three million!"

"Wow, it’s so valuable! Ningning, hurry up and take it!" Yao Qing yelled, with stars in her eyes.

Ximen Long held the ring out to Su Youning with absolute confidence, certain that no woman could resist the allure of such a magnificent jewel.

But just at that moment, Ye Feng looked at Su Youning and said, "Ningning, whatever you do, don’t take it. He has syphilis. Be careful, you don’t want to get infected."

Hearing this, Ximen Long shot up like a cat whose tail had just been stepped on and shrieked, "You have syphilis! Your whole family has syphilis! Stop slandering me! I swear, if you spout one more word of nonsense, I’ll make you regret it!"

But Ye Feng’s next words made the color drain from his face, leaving it a deathly shade of gray.