The Villain Snatched the Protagonist’s Master at the Start - Chapter 4:

Chapter 4: The Ye Family Backs Down

Qin Jiang looked at Ye Ling’er and smiled, “If I’m not wrong, you should already know all of this.”

Ye Ling’er stared at Qin Jiang in shock.

Everyone in the Xiao family was equally stunned. None of them had expected Ye Ling’er to have such a background.

“Ye family… is it that ancient Ye family?” Xiao An muttered.

“You…” Ye Ling’er fixed her gaze on Qin Jiang, her expression tense. “How did you know all this?”

“Heh, did you think my Qin family just eats and does nothing?” Qin Jiang sneered. Then, he looked into the void in a particular direction and said, “People of the Ye family, stop hiding.”

As soon as his voice fell, the air trembled slightly, and moments later, a figure slowly emerged.

“Ye Kuan of the Ye family greets Young Master Qin Jiang.”

It was an elderly man. Upon appearing, he cupped his fists toward Qin Jiang in respect.

At the same time, Hei Long took a step forward, his eyes full of vigilance as he stared at the old man. This elder’s strength was clearly higher than his.

“Ye Kuan, the Ye family’s patriarch’s most loyal follower, peak of the Yin-Yang Realm, your name is renowned,” Qin Jiang said with a smile.

Ye Kuan also smiled faintly. As someone powerful in his own right, showing this kind of respect to Qin Jiang was already giving the Qin family plenty of face.

After saying this, Qin Jiang glanced at Hei Long and asked, “Think you can kill him?”

Ye Kuan: “…”

His face froze slightly, then his eyes narrowed, “Young Master Qin, my Ye family has no grievance with the Qin family.”

“Now you do,” Qin Jiang replied, his gaze still on Hei Long.

Hei Long’s face turned serious as he carefully examined Ye Kuan. After taking a deep breath, he nodded heavily, “Young Master, if it comes down to a life-and-death battle, I’m confident I can kill him!”

He was at the peak of the Yin-Yang Realm, slightly below Ye Kuan, but he had absolute confidence in his combat strength.

“In that case—”

“Please wait, Young Master Qin!” Before Qin Jiang could finish, Ye Kuan interrupted.

He had sensed danger from Hei Long. More importantly, he truly didn’t want to make enemies with the Qin family.

Thirteen years ago, the Ye family’s civil war had already cost them greatly.

And the Qin family was one of the strongest ancient clans, far superior to the Ye family.

Provoking them would be a terrible mistake.

“Young Master Qin wishes to take our young lady with him, correct?” Ye Kuan asked.

He had been hiding in the void the whole time and was well aware of everything that had just happened.

Qin Jiang nodded.

A thought stirred in Ye Kuan’s mind, “I can accompany the young lady and follow you back. I only hope this won’t turn into enmity between the Ye and Qin families.”

When he found Ye Ling’er, he’d wanted to bring her back immediately. But she had refused out of concern for Xiao Fan.

Over time, he noticed Ye Ling’er seemed to harbor special feelings for Xiao Fan, who was, in his eyes, a good-for-nothing.

How could someone like that be worthy of the young lady?

It had been giving him a headache. He hadn’t expected Qin Jiang to show up and propose breaking off the engagement.

More importantly, Qin Jiang appeared to have taken an interest in the young lady.

Perhaps…

Ye Kuan looked at Qin Jiang. Compared to Xiao Fan, Qin Jiang was handsome, noble, and a top genius even among the ancient clans.

No matter how you looked at it, he was leagues beyond Xiao Fan.

Ye Kuan’s heart stirred with a plan.

Whether in terms of talent or background, Qin Jiang was worthy of the young lady.

“What do you think, Young Master Qin?” Ye Kuan asked expectantly.

Qin Jiang raised an eyebrow. Why did this old man seem so eager to hand Ye Ling’er over?

This guy… could he be a traitor to the Ye family?

Ye Ling’er was completely dumbfounded. She stared at Ye Kuan in disbelief.

He’d been preaching to her nonstop lately about how men were unreliable, how she was too young for romance, and that she should focus on herself.

But now…

“Uncle Kuan, what are you doing!” she shouted angrily.

Qin Jiang looked down at her and chuckled, “He wants to hitch his wagon to the Qin family to solve the Ye family’s problems.”

“Hitch to the Qin family?” Ye Ling’er snorted coldly, “My Ye family is also an ancient clan. Our strength is no less than the Qin family’s. Why would we need to rely on your Qin family?”

“Heh, looks like you don’t know much about your own family,” Qin Jiang sneered.

“Even back then—thirteen years ago, before the internal war—the Ye family couldn’t compete with the Qin family. And now, after that civil war, the Ye family suffered major losses.

Not to mention, although your father successfully became patriarch, the former patriarch—Ye family’s eldest son—didn’t die.

He still has loyal supporters in the Ye family.

If someone were to back him just a little… heh…”

Qin Jiang looked at Ye Kuan, “If I’m not mistaken, there’s already some ancient clan backing him in secret, isn’t there?”

Ye Kuan paused, then sighed bitterly, “Young Master Qin sees through everything.”

“You want Ye Ling’er to come with me for two reasons: one, to gain the Qin family’s support; two, because you’re afraid for her safety. Am I right?”

Ye Kuan nodded again.

The Ye family wasn’t stable right now. Otherwise, he would’ve already taken Ye Ling’er back by force.

“Too bad your young lady doesn’t seem too willing.” Qin Jiang chuckled, “Who knows, maybe my Qin family will reach out to her uncle instead.”

Ye Kuan: “…”

That was a blatant threat!

He looked at Ye Ling’er, hesitated, then asked, “Young lady, what do you think…?”

He didn’t finish, but everyone understood what he meant.

Ye Ling’er was momentarily lost and helpless.

She’d thought she could use the Ye family’s name to help Xiao Fan, but now, not only could she not help him—she herself had been dragged in.

Even the Ye family was being threatened.

She felt so wronged. When Ye Kuan found her, he’d told her the Ye family was powerful—one of the top forces on the entire Profound Sky Continent.

But now, just one ancient clan had appeared and could already threaten them.

Her illusion of the Ye family was completely shattered.

“Miss, if you insist on being willful now, you’ll implicate not only the Ye family… but also the Xiao family…” Ye Kuan said softly.

Having lived outside for so many years, Ye Ling’er may not have felt much connection to the Ye family, but she still deeply cared about the Xiao family.

At the mention of the Xiao family, her delicate body trembled slightly.

She instinctively looked at Xiao Fan, but she also knew—Xiao Fan couldn’t save her. He couldn’t even save himself.

Ye Ling’er closed her eyes and nodded.

“Fine. I’ll go with you.”

“Ling’er!” Xiao Fan cried in disbelief. She really agreed?

Ye Ling’er gave a sorrowful smile and said nothing more.

Ye Kuan waved his hand, wrapping Ye Ling’er in a stream of energy, and together they stepped into Qin Jiang’s floating palace.

He gave Qin Jiang a slight nod before retreating to one side.

Meanwhile, Qin Jiang turned to Xiao Fan—after all, he still hadn’t gotten the ring.