20: Chapter 20: A casual gossip session turned into a conversation with the main character!

After seeing Zhuge Yue out of the cave dwelling and watching her figure disappear at the end of the path, I returned to the empty cave and immediately felt bored.

I couldn't push myself too hard with cultivation for the time being, and since my wife had gone back to her maiden home, time suddenly became hard to pass.

Suddenly, a thought popped into my head without any warning—go fishing!

Once this idea arrived, it was like lighting a fire in my heart; it instantly spread, and there was no stopping it!

I immediately became excited, rummaging through the corners of the cave dwelling, and finally found that simple fishing rod I had shoved away who knows when, covered in dust. Without even bothering to clean it up, I rushed out excitedly.

Arriving at the back mountain of Qingling Pass, after winding around, I actually discovered a lake hidden in a mountain col that looked quite pristine.

"Hmm, this is a good place for fishing!" I thought to myself with secret delight, preparing to find a good spot to cast my line.

But the closer I got to the lakeshore, the more something felt off. Voices faintly drifted into my ears—a man and a woman!

My soul of gossip... ah no, my sense of caution made me alert immediately.

I subconsciously crouched down, stepping as lightly as I could, almost on tiptoes, like a thief, using the cover of shrubs and rocks to sneak over.

Pushing aside the last cluster of dense grass, I poked my head out to look—whoa!

Truly, life is full of unexpected encounters! Those two people by the lake—weren't they Ye Fan and that precious granddaughter of the Second Elder, Zhuge Qingya, who had been constantly seeking him out for the past year?

Good heavens! I sighed inwardly. Over this past year, relying on this connection with Zhuge Qingya, Ye Fan must have reaped plenty of cultivation resources!

Look at that cultivation base; it had actually shot up to the Great Perfection of the Ninth Level of Qi Refining, the same realm as me right now!

I couldn't help but mutter to myself: "Not bad, kid. The way you're living off a woman, you're almost catching up to me! You've got a bright future!"

I held my breath and pricked up my ears, wanting to hear what this "golden boy and jade girl" pair was whispering about.

I heard Zhuge Qingya's voice, carrying a hint of grievance and urgency: "Brother Ye Fan, my grandfather said that as long as you agree to marry me, he can immediately give you a foundation establishment pill to help you establish your foundation!"

"And after you succeed in foundation establishment, he can even use his connections to help you secure a position as an outside-surname elder!"

She paused here, a flush rising to her cheeks, her voice suddenly dropping until it was almost inaudible, filled with a young girl's shyness!

"And also... in the future... the children we have in the future can... can also take your surname, Ye Fan!"

After saying this, she raised those big, watery eyes, looking at Ye Fan with full expectation and trepidation, as if waiting for the verdict of fate.

Seeing this scene, I exclaimed internally, "Good heavens!"

These terms—a foundation establishment pill, an elder position, and even conceding on the condition that a matrilocal son-in-law cares about most, the surname of the children!

The Second Elder really went all out for his granddaughter!

Surely this Ye Fan would nod and agree immediately, right?

However, Ye Fan, with his head lowered, seemed to stiffen, the muscles on his face twitching slightly, his eyes filled with struggle, guilt, and reluctance.

He remained silent for a long time, so long that the expectation on Zhuge Qingya's face was about to solidify. Only then, as if using up all his strength, did he struggle to lift his head. Avoiding her gaze and unable to meet her eyes, he squeezed three words from his throat: "I'm sorry, Qingya."

Before his voice had even faded, he seemed to be drained of all strength, deeply hanging his head.

The color instantly drained from Zhuge Qingya's face, the light in her eyes shattered, and tears rolled down like beads from a broken string.

"Ye Fan! You... you liar! A big liar!" she shouted with a crying voice. In her emotional agitation, she clenched her small fists and pounded repeatedly on Ye Fan's chest.

Ye Fan was like a wooden stake without feeling, neither dodging nor defending himself, just silently enduring it.

After crying and pounding for a while, seeing that Ye Fan remained completely unresponsive, Zhuge Qingya felt even more desperate. She suddenly pushed him away, turned around, and ran off crying, leaving behind only one resolute sentence in the wind, laced with sobs: "Ye Fan! I will remember today forever!"

Ye Fan still stood in place, his back looking exceptionally desolate in the lakeside wind, his face filled with complex bitterness.

I was dumbfounded watching from behind the bushes!

What kind of situation is this! Gossiping and ending up with the protagonist!

I quickly pulled my head back, only one thought in my mind: Time to slip away! Just pretend I was never here! I must not get involved in this mess!

After a long, suffocating silence, Ye Fan suddenly spoke, his voice low: "Come out."

My scalp tingled. Great, I'd been discovered after all!

I had no choice but to bite the bullet and sheepishly walk out from behind the bushes, forcing an incredibly awkward smile onto my face.

My hand subconsciously scratched the back of my head: "Ah haha... Ye, Junior Brother Ye, what a coincidence! I... I, uh, didn't hear anything, didn't see anything! Really, I swear to heaven! I just came here purely to fish today! Look, I even brought my fishing rod!"

After saying that, I quickly trotted to the lakeshore, at least three zhang away from him, and pretended to cast my hook into the water, my movements as stiff as if it were my first time holding a fishing rod.

My heart screamed frantically: 'Big Brother! I beg you! Please leave! I just want to fish in peace; this melon is too hard to chew, and I don't want to eat it!'

However, not only did Ye Fan not leave, but he also sat down by the lakeshore, gazing at the shimmering lake surface.

Time passed bit by bit, and my fishing float remained motionless on the water, just like my mood at this moment! — Dead silence...

My heart was already a stampede of ten thousand horses, crazily ranting: 'Ancestor! Could you please move! Either leave or jump into the lake to cool off! You're playing games with me here, am I supposed to fish or not? The fish in this lake have all been scared away by your low pressure, okay!'

Just as I was about to snap the fishing rod in half and considering whether to pretend to have heatstroke and faint to escape the scene, Ye Fan finally spoke again, his voice filled with confusion and a trace of imperceptible pain: "I... did I do the wrong thing..."

My heart exploded instantly: 'Ahhh! Why are you telling me this?! I don't want to be a caring big brother! I don't want to get involved in you protagonists' love-hate entanglements! I can barely coax my own wife, how would I have the leisure to give you an emotional analysis! Let me go! I just want to be an ordinary fisherman!'

Although my mind was filled with a barrage of thoughts, Ye Fan seemed completely immersed in his own world.