“No, seriously, how did you get in?!” Chen Yu blurted out. She was his own maid, after all.
Fine, Huang Ke Ling walked silently like a ghost, but he had locked the door. How did she get in?
Yet the moment he asked, Huang Ke Ling frowned as if she were looking at an idiot, staring blankly at Chen Yu’s face without blinking.
The stare left Chen Yu stunned, but he pressed on.
“Staring at me won’t help. How exactly did you get in?!”
Huang Ke Ling blinked expressionlessly.
After confirming Chen Yu wasn’t joking, she finally spoke slowly.
“I pushed the door open and walked in with my legs.”
As if to prove it, she even lifted one of her long, white-stocking-clad legs for emphasis.
“Wha—what the hell?”
“Young Master, have you suddenly forgotten how to understand Mandarin?”
Huang Ke Ling looked at him with a trace of pity.
“Or do you need me to demonstrate how to enter your own room?”
“You… what kind of nonsense is that!”
Chen Yu’s face flushed with embarrassment.
“I’m asking how you got in when I locked the door!”
Only then did Huang Ke Ling’s expression return to normal. She nodded lightly.
“You didn’t lock it. I just pushed and it opened.”
“Huh?”
Chen Yu stared at her in shock, but she looked completely innocent, not like she was lying.
Did he really forget to lock it? Was he getting that careless?
Scratching his head in confusion, Chen Yu lowered his gaze and tried to recall everything from today—how he got home, how he entered his room…
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t picture himself locking the door.
Guess he really had forgotten. He couldn’t let that happen again.
Thank goodness it was only Huang Ke Ling this time.
If it had been his parents next time—or worse, Chen Guang…
He’d be finished!
“Young Master, please stop staring at my legs.”
“Hah?”
Chen Yu looked up again, utterly bewildered.
He had only looked down for a second—how did that become staring at her legs?
He reflexively glanced at Huang Ke Ling’s long, white-stocking-covered legs.
Wait—she was the one who just showed them off! And now she was telling him not to look?!
Though, to be fair, Chen Yu wasn’t actually interested.
He had zero desires in that department.
Huang Ke Ling was being ridiculously weird today.
Was she just looking for a fight?!
“Forget it—what the heck did you even come here for?!”
Whether he locked the door or not was beside the point.
Why was Huang Ke Ling acting so strange today? She had suddenly barged in and kept saying weird stuff.
She was always odd, but today was on another level.
Huang Ke Ling looked at him indifferently. Only after a long pause did she finally speak.
“Madam asked me to inquire whether you truly intend to honor the marriage arrangement with the An family’s daughter.”
Rumors were flying everywhere.
Many people were saying the Chen family’s eldest son had really taken a liking to the An family’s daughter.
Some even claimed the reason Chen Yu had no dating scandals all these years was because he was a lolicon who had been waiting for the An family’s little girl to grow up.
There were also rumors that Chen Yu only approached An Yu to get close to An Qing.
After all, plenty of people had seen him speak to both An sisters that day.
Chen Yu instinctively frowned.
As if he would ever honor a marriage with either An daughter…
That would be NTR!
Of all things, he hated NTR the most. Pure love was the only true path!
Those sisters needed to be kept within the family—that was the correct route!
So Chen Yu wanted to bluntly tell Huang Ke Ling that it was all nonsense.
He opened his mouth… then slowly closed it again, unable to say a word.
No, he couldn’t say that. Things would get complicated.
Chen Yu nearly forgot—while he would never break the sisters apart, someone else very much wanted to!
His little brother Chen Guang had almost certainly set his sights on An Qing.
Otherwise he wouldn’t be fawning over her like that.
“Young Master?”
Huang Ke Ling spoke softly, her voice tinged with confusion.
But Chen Yu kept his head down and didn’t respond.
He also missed the cold glint that flickered through Huang Ke Ling’s eyes.
“Tch. Ke Ling, tell them not to worry about my business. I can handle my own affairs. No need to interfere or meddle. Just let things run their natural course.”
Yes—absolutely no interference.
Otherwise, how was he supposed to stop Chen Guang while simultaneously helping the sisters end up together?
Chen Yu answered ambiguously, sounding exactly like a noble playboy toying with love.
If anyone asked later, he could claim he never said he wanted to be with either An daughter.
Things just naturally progressed—too naturally, and neither sister fell for him. Perfectly reasonable, right?
Thinking this, Chen Yu’s lips unconsciously curved into a healthy, villainous grin.
“Understood.”
Huang Ke Ling calmly nodded, having seen everything.
“Then, Young Master, I will take my leave.”
“Yeah, yeah, go ahead.”
Chen Yu waved dismissively. He had already said what needed to be said.
Huang Ke Ling stared at him expressionlessly, then parted her cherry lips.
“As your maid, though I am reluctant, I must remind you that excessive indulgence is bad for your health.”
“Hah?”
“Then, please continue.”
Ignoring Chen Yu’s shock, Huang Ke Ling slowly exited the room.
“Wait—you—”
Chen Yu’s shout echoed inside the room, but the soundproofing was excellent.
Huang Ke Ling, already outside, couldn’t hear clearly.
She walked away expressionlessly until she reached another room, then gently knocked.
Knock knock knock—
“Come in.”
A male voice answered. It resembled Chen Yu’s, but the nuances were quite different.
Huang Ke Ling opened the door and stepped inside without a word.
Seated within was the Chen family’s second young master, Chen Guang.
“Speak. What did Chen Yu say?”
Huang Ke Ling nodded and began reporting the situation concisely and efficiently, showing none of the attitude she had displayed in Chen Yu’s room.
She was now the perfect maid carrying out her duties.
“Chen Yu said…”
She relayed Chen Yu’s response, conveniently omitting the parts where she teased him and made him lose his composure.
Chen Guang listened in silence, his expression growing increasingly grave, brows furrowing tighter and tighter.
“Heh heh… Chen Yu, oh Chen Yu. So you really are my greatest rival.”
Chen Guang had already suspected that Chen Yu was also after An Qing.
After all, that An family girl was truly beautiful and carried an inexplicable charm.
He didn’t believe anyone could resist the allure of such a lovely girl—especially when they held a natural advantage.
But he hadn’t expected that Chen Yu’s intentions aligned perfectly with his own.
Chen Guang also wanted a natural romance with An Qing, avoiding any external force that might taint its purity.
He had absolute confidence in himself, but if Chen Yu got involved, everything changed.
His older brother… was a formidable enemy.