Chapter 153: Collaboration
Lin Bai could tell that He Xueyao and He Linsheng son and father duo were not on the same page. She had shown goodwill towards him from the start. Now, it seemed that she was trying to rope him in or give everyone a false impression. After all, how could a soft-hearted woman achieve anything.
It was said that He Fan valued sons over daughters. However, he had no choice as He Xueyao was the only child he had. Hence, he had the idea of grooming his younger brother’s son, He Linsheng, as the heir. This was a well-known fact in the He family.
Therefore, so what if He Linsheng was arrogant and despotic? He still many supporters in the He family. Moreover, his father, who was also He Xueyao’s second uncle, He Qichen, was secretly operating things.
Almost everyone in the He family regarded He Linsheng as the future head of the family. He Xueyao could be said to have no advantage at all and could only do things in secret. She never lacked means, and her intelligence and schemes were not something He Linsheng could compare to.
“Since I was young, I knew that my father valued men and women, and he intended to train my younger cousin to become the head of the family. If his I acted too outstanding, I would definitely become a thorn in the side of He Linsheng and his father. For the position of the head of the family, he would definitely do anything to get rid of me as a roadblock.”
Hearing He Xueyao’s story, a strange expression flashed across Lin Bai’s eyes. To be able to read people’s expressions at such a young age, one could see He Xueyao’s temperament.
“So you’ve been hiding your strength, making He Linsheng and his father think that you’re not a threat to them?”
He Xueyao nodded. “Yes, the father and son think that the position of the family head is already in their hands, so they naturally lower their guard against me.” After saying that, she revealed a mocking smile, “To be more precise, they don’t put me in their eyes at all.”
“How would they know that the seemingly useless young miss who only knows how to play the zither, go, calligraphy, and painting has actually been operating in the dark for a long time, planning her every step.”
He Xueyao had always shown that she was not interested in cultivation. Instead, she was extremely interested in tending to flowers, playing the zither, go, calligraphy, and painting. She epitomised how to be beautiful and useless perfectly. How could such a person pose a threat to He Linsheng.
Therefore, they gradually let down their guard towards her and allowed He Xueyao to develop her strength. On the surface, He Linsheng and his father had the upper hand in the He family. After all, even He Fan supported them. However, He Xueyao was still able to develop her strength under such circ.u.mstances. One could see her tactics were amazing.
Lin Bai knew that there were many difficulties in this. However, there was one thing that he could not understand. His gaze fell on He Xueyao’s hands. Her fingers were slender, and a sentence could not help but appear in his mind.
His fingers were like scallions.
“Your hands really don’t look like the hands of a cultivator.”
He was really curious. Since He Xueyao hid her strength and made He Linsheng and his father think that she did not like cultivation, where did she learn her skills from so much so that he did not notice her existence at the beginning.
If it was not for He Xueyao being too surprised seeing how he was able to deal with those people so easily, which caused her aura to leak, he might not have noticed her in the end.
He Xueyao naturally wouldn’t tell Lin Bai everything. She just smiled mysteriously. “It’s not convenient to tell you this. After all, everyone has their own trump card, right?”
Lin Bai could see that He Xueyao’s cultivation wasn’t low. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have come alone and hid it so well.
“It seems that you wanted to be the beauty to save the hero so that you could rope me in.”
He was implying that He Xueyao could have made a move at the beginning, but in order to gain his grat.i.tude, she had delayed it to the end. She just didn’t expect Lin Bai to be so powerful.
He Xueyao wasn’t embarra.s.sed that she was suddenly exposed by him. Instead, she walked up to him with a smile. “It’s a pity that you, the hero, didn’t give me the chance to show off.”
She gently exhaled beside Lin Bai’s ear. Her orchid-like aura carried a hint of seduction, and He Xueyao’s smile was extremely flirtatious.
“How about it? Do you have any interest in working together? I can help you avoid He Linsheng’s pursuit, and I can also give you what you want.”
Lin Bai’s gaze was calm and unmoved. Instead, he asked, “Then what do you want?”
He Xueyao stared at him and said word by word, “You should have guessed it, right? Of course, it’s the entire Lin family.”
Looking at the unconcealed ambition and desire in He Xueyao’s eyes, Lin Bai rarely saw such things in a woman. His gaze revealed some approval.
“I’m just a cultivator from a small place. Wouldn’t it be more reliable if you find someone else to cooperate with?”
From the moment He Xueyao saw Lin Bai, she knew that this person was not simple. Lin Bai’s subsequent actions confirmed her suspicions.
“The forces in the capital are deeply intertwined. Moreover, in their eyes, He Linsheng is already the future head of the family. Why would they risk their lives for a woman like me? You have a grudge against He Linsheng. Even if the cooperation doesn’t succeed, you won’t tell him anything.”
He Xueyao naturally had her considerations. Choosing Lin Bai was not an impulsive decision, but after careful consideration. Moreover, she always felt that Lin Bai was not ordinary.
He had clearly been kicked out of the Alchemist a.s.sociation after being seriously injured. How long had it been since then and he was alive and kicking? Yet, he could still easily deal with the people He Linsheng had sent to kill him. This proved her conjecture.
Seeing that Lin Bai did not reply, He Xueyao smiled indifferently. “Or are you actually a coward who doesn’t dare to cooperate with me? Or are you afraid of He Linsheng and the others?”.
“Goading me is of no use to me. However, I’m very interested in the cooperation you mentioned. I just want to see what conditions you can offer.”
“Conditions?” He Xueyao’s eyes moved. She seemed to have thought of something and whispered in Lin Bai’s ear.
Their eyes met in the air, and they looked at each other and smiled. They said in unison, “Happy cooperation.”