While Jiang Xiusu was wringing the truth out of Yang Qing about his offense from ten years ago, Ling Yun had already talked himself down, freed the innocent ants his finger had been tormenting, and walked out of the greenhouse with a perfectly composed expression.
As though the internal war had never happened.
"Young Lord Ling — going to test the car?" Seeing the car key dangling from Ling Yun's finger, Luo Hu appeared immediately.
"Mm. Promised some friends a meet-up, Uncle Luo — going for a drive."
He'd eaten lunch with Jiang Xiuqing. He'd done his kissing. He felt a residual restlessness and had no plans to spend the whole afternoon cooped up here. He was eighteen — the right age for play, for noise, and for showing off. New car in hand — naturally he had to get the friends together and take it up the mountain road for a proper test.
"Young Lord Ling — shall we come along?" Luo Hu's phrasing was tactful.
Ling Yun glanced at him. He understood perfectly what the man actually meant. But Jiang Xiuqing was the one calling the shots — he had no reason to make a bodyguard's life difficult. After a moment's thought: "Fine. Just keep some distance." He didn't want his friends teasing him for not being able to leave the nest.
"Of course, Young Lord Ling. We'll know our limits."
A man skilled enough to protect Jiang Xiuqing could certainly adapt to Ling Yun's instructions.
"Thank you for the trouble, Uncle Luo." Ling Yun was always fairly considerate toward the bodyguards — mostly because in quiet moments, they sometimes sparred with him.
Where did he think his fighting technique came from? He'd stolen it shamelessly from bodyguard practice sessions.
"Young Lord Ling — this is simply our duty." Luo Hu wouldn't hear of taking credit.
"Fine, then I won't be polite. Let's go, Uncle Luo." Ling Yun dropped the pleasantries and headed to the parking area.
"Ling Yun — are you coming back for dinner tonight? We have white truffle flown in from Italy." The butler appeared at precisely the right moment, just as Ling Yun was preparing to get into the car.
He hadn't been planning to come back for dinner. But the butler was devastatingly good at temptation.
The memory of white truffle's heavenly, intoxicating fragrance hit him like a wave. His mouth watered. His throat moved. His resolve collapsed instantly. He beamed at the butler: "I'll be back! Grandfather Steward — I'm definitely coming back for dinner tonight!"
"Ling Yun's coming back for dinner — wonderful. I'll have the kitchen make those dishes you love." The butler smiled warmly, stepping back to give Ling Yun room.
"Thank you, Grandfather Steward — see you tonight!" Ling Yun waved and climbed into his newest gift — the brand-new, limited-edition Lamborghini.
"Ling Yun — drive safely." The butler stood by the car and offered the parting word with gentle concern.
"I know, Grandfather Steward." Another wave. With a deep, thrilling roar, the Lamborghini pulled away from the Jiang estate and merged with the steady flow of traffic outside.
"Protect Ling Yun well."
The moment Ling Yun's car was out of the gate, the butler's smile was gone. His voice was serious as he gave instructions to Luo Hu. He couldn't stop Ling Yun from mountain testing. He could only manage the people protecting him.
"Steward Jiang — rest assured. Young Lord Ling's safety comes before our lives."
With that solemn promise, Luo Hu led his team at a distance behind Ling Yun. At a distance — as it appeared to the eye. In reality, a shadow team had already threaded through the surrounding traffic to form a close, invisible perimeter. Keeping too much obvious distance meant gaps in protection — so one visible detail and one concealed layer ran in tandem.
"Xiuqing — Ling Yun has gone to test the car." The butler fulfilled his duty with a quiet word in Jiang Xiuqing's ear.
"Let him go. I won't stop the things he enjoys." However worried Jiang Xiuqing was, he had never once stopped Ling Yun from driving — and had actually spent considerable effort gifting him several high-performance racing cars precisely so Ling Yun could enjoy himself properly.
Every car Jiang Xiuqing had ever sent Ling Yun, he had personally test-driven first.
If the car had a flaw — better that he was the one it happened to first.
"Ling Yun said he'd be back for dinner tonight." Reading the warmth that briefly crossed Jiang Xiuqing's eyes, the butler chose those particular words.
"Good. Thank you, Steward Jiang." Knowing perfectly well that only the butler's skill had convinced Ling Yun to come back, Jiang Xiuqing extended the thanks.
"I enjoy watching Ling Yun eat." The butler gave Jiang Xiuqing's shoulder a pat and retired from the study.
Jiang Xiuqing watched the door close. A smile remained on his face.
How lucky he was to have grown up with this man.
In the western outskirts of the capital, a stretch of road barely anyone used wound through the hills. Three unmistakably expensive sports cars were already parked there.
Spotting them from a distance, Ling Yun's foot pressed harder on the accelerator instead of lifting. The Lamborghini let out a roar and launched itself straight at the three parked cars.
"Boss — Young Lord Ling is coming in too fast. We can't keep up. What do we do?"
The mountain road was clear. The bodyguards who were the visible tail on Ling Yun were left eating dust. Even the seasoned Jiang family security team were gripping their seats.
This was absolutely heart-pounding.
The adrenaline just kept coming.
"Stay calm. This isn't the first time we've watched Young Lord Ling with a car. Focus — keep up." Luo Hu kept his eyes fixed on Ling Yun's car while answering. No blinking. On a mountain road at this speed, one moment of inattention could be catastrophic. He couldn't afford to relax.
"Yes, Boss."
Hearing Luo Hu, the driver Chen Jun's nerves steadied noticeably. He pushed the modified vehicle to a pace it wasn't originally built for.
Screech —
On the winding mountain road, just as the brilliant yellow Lamborghini seemed seconds from collision, a sharp, clean brake. The car stopped with barely a hand's-width to spare in front of the three parked cars — and sent a cloud of dust billowing. Three pairs of middle fingers promptly rose from the parked vehicles.
"You absolute psycho — scared us half to death!"
The moment Ling Yun stepped out of the car, so did three others — all around his age, every face radiating arrogance. Rich kids' energy, unmistakably.
One of them immediately launched himself at Ling Yun with his fists swinging.
Ling Yun answered in kind without hesitation. In seconds, the two of them were a blur of arms and scuffling, while the other two watched the fight like connoisseurs — delightedly applauding.
All they needed was tiny folding chairs, sunflower seeds, and cold drinks.
"Boss?" Chen Jun, having barely kept up, saw someone hitting Ling Yun and panicked.
"It's fine. Young Lord Ling's friends." Luo Hu had sharp eyes and recognized who had jumped Ling Yun. A quick scan of the roadside revealed several unobtrusive parked vehicles he recognized. "Stop the car."
Done. Luo Hu said it, and Chen Jun pulled over immediately.
"Boss — looks like we've got company." Chen Jun spotted the same cars.
"Mm."
Luo Hu pulled out a cigarette and lit it. The brief ember glowed in the car, and quiet settled. He looked at the familiar parked vehicles, then moved his focus back to Ling Yun. The kind of friends Young Lord Ling kept were all from decent families, decent characters — Jiang Xiuqing had investigated every one of them. Those families would have their own security details too. Chen Jun was new — he didn't know yet. But anyone who had spent time around Young Lord Ling knew the other families' bodyguards well, even if the groups maintained a professional fiction of not acknowledging each other.
"Alright, you two — stop playing. I've been watching and I'm bored. Ling Yun — we need to test cars before it gets dark. Tonight's venue is probably going to run late." Xie Lesheng had already admired the new car from every angle and was now checking the sky with impatience.
Ling Yun kicked Gu Junbao away cleanly and said plainly: "I'm not going with you guys tonight."
"Why?"
Not just Xie Lesheng and Gu Junbao — even the usually-quiet Shen Chengze turned to look at Ling Yun with confusion.
"Ling Yun — we always go to the bar after a race. You skipping out tonight? That feels off." Gu Junbao thought it through, then guessed: "Wait — is it that your little uncle told you not to go out with us?"
"It has nothing to do with Little Uncle."
The words weren't even finished before Jiang Xiuqing's cool, precise lips flashed across Ling Yun's mind. The faint scent of cold water was everywhere, and his heart gave one sharp, involuntary lurch — and a moment of blankness.
"Then what is it — we do everything together. Why this time?" The three of them asked in one voice.
Ling Yun: How to explain this? He could hardly say he was abandoning them for truffle.
"Ling Yun — is it because of your…" Gu Junbao dropped his voice, and something careful came into his expression. Shen Chengze's and Xie Lesheng's eyes carried the same cautious concern.
These three came from good families — and through their respective channels, all knew that Ling Yun wasn't actually a Jiang.
Ling Yun saw the worry in their faces clearly.
"I'm not a Jiang — but my relationship with Little Uncle hasn't changed. I'm living at the main house. I'm not playing petty palace games with Yang Qing — I'm above that small-time nonsense." Knowing his friends were just worried, Ling Yun smiled and explained.
"Exactly — Ling Yun is Ling Yun. Nothing about you is easily knocked down." Gu Junbao threw a hard, cheerful punch at Ling Yun's shoulder.
Shen Chengze slung an arm around Ling Yun's neck, genuinely pleased for his friend. "Your little uncle has always had a soft spot for you — most of your gifts were from him. Leaving the Jiang house? Not a big thing. You've still got us — and honestly, if Yang Qing annoys you, we'll put a bag over his head."
"Blood ties aren't everything — love makes a family, blood or not. No connection without love." Growing up in elite circles, all of them had seen enough drama to strip any remaining illusions. Xie Lesheng delivered comfort with brutal directness.
"Alright — I'm fine. Stop worrying."
After those earnest few sentences, the four sets of fists came together in the middle — and the four young men looked at each other, every pair of eyes alive with competitive fire.
"Test drive!"
Ling Yun's fist pulled back first. The others each returned to their own cars.
Seconds later, the mountain road erupted with a rolling thunder of engines. As the roar rose and the cars launched forward, every bodyguard vehicle snapped to attention and fell in behind.
Chen Jun got to position one.
The race was on.
Up front — Ling Yun and his friends, competing freely. Behind them — a parallel competition among the four families' bodyguard teams, testing their collective edge.
