Unparalleled medical and martial arts skills, saving the CEO's fiancée at the start.

Grandpa Qiao, who was sitting in the front row, suddenly started clapping. The applause sounded particularly crisp in the quiet martial arts arena.

"Well done, a brilliant use of leverage. You truly live up to your reputation as a master of both medicine and martial arts."

There was a hint of genuine appreciation in Old Master Qiao's voice; he truly admired Ye Chen from the bottom of his heart.

After a while, Old Master Qiao turned to Han Song and asked, "Can you fight again?"

Han Song remained silent for a moment, then shook his head helplessly and admitted the reality in a hoarse voice: "I lost the first round."

Han Song knew very well that if Ye Chen had used his full strength in that palm strike, he wouldn't be able to stand up now.

Ye Chen withdrew 30% of his power at the last moment, leaving him room to maneuver and also saving face for Old Master Qiao.

This sense of propriety is harder to achieve than defeating him.

Han Song accepted his defeat wholeheartedly.

The entire audience erupted in uproar, everyone staring in stunned silence.

Han Song, the top expert of the Qiao family, with his Transformation Realm cultivation, was invincible throughout the provincial capital, yet he actually lost to a young man in his early twenties in a head-on confrontation.

In the second round of the weapons competition, Han Song voluntarily withdrew.

Han Song's reasoning was simple: he said his swordsmanship was inferior to his fist and foot techniques, and since he had already lost in fist and foot techniques, there was no need to compare his swordsmanship skills; his chances of winning were very small.

Rather than losing another round in weaponry, it's better to simply admit that you're not as skilled.

As agreed, the contest was to be best of three rounds. Ye Chen won the first round, Han Song forfeited the second round, and there was no need to continue the third round.

Han Song suddenly walked up to Ye Chen, looked him directly in the eye, and said something that surprised everyone: "Although we don't need to play the third round, I still have a question to ask. Is that alright?"

Ye Chen nodded: "Master Han, please ask."

"I'm curious, your internal strength and reaction speed are clearly enough to withstand my spring kick, but you've been dodging the whole time, why?"

Ye Chen thought for a moment and gave an answer that stunned everyone: "Oh, because I was waiting for your seventh spring kick. Old Ghost told me that your spring kick is very powerful. I wanted to see with my own eyes just how strong the legendary twelfth spring kick really is, so I let you kick it a few more times. It is indeed very powerful. I almost couldn't dodge it."

Han Song remained silent for a long time, then made a move that shocked the entire audience: he clasped his hands together and bowed deeply to Ye Chen.

"I've learned my lesson. I lost this time. Next time we fight, I'll use even stronger techniques, and you'll have to become stronger too."

This time, Han Song clearly accepted his defeat wholeheartedly, knowing Ye Chen's strength.

Ye Chen's face remained expressionless as he returned the greeting with clasped hands: "Master Han, I'll be waiting for you anytime."

The guests present looked at each other in astonishment, feeling both shocked and deeply moved.

The Qiao family and the Jiang Group have been fighting for so long, and everyone thought that tonight's contest of civil and military affairs would be a life-or-death battle.

Unexpectedly, Ye Chen's clean and decisive victory, along with a frank and honest remark, transformed the tense atmosphere of the entire duel into one of mutual respect.

But Ye Chen knew in his heart that Han Song was just a knife for the Qiao family. The real enemy was the person who wielded the knife, and everyone else was just a pawn.

Ye Chen turned his head to look at the main table and met Qiao San's gaze.

Qiao San wore a polite smile, but the smile was so stiff it looked like a mask stuck to his face, and deep in his eyes was an almost uncontrollable gloom.

Ye Chen's victory over Han Song was tantamount to a serious blow to the Qiao family's most prized asset: their martial prowess.

The more effort Qiao San put into cultivating Han Song, the more he hated Ye Chen at this moment.

"Third Master Qiao, I'm sorry, I won by accident." Ye Chen cupped his hands in greeting to Third Master Qiao from afar, his smile as bright as a sunflower.

"Minister Ye, congratulations! You've defeated the top expert in the provincial capital. Your future is bright!" Qiao San replied to Ye Chen with a hint of annoyance.

"We agreed on a contest of both words and actions. Although I won by luck, our two families should still maintain harmony and make money together. We should sit down and talk things over. Fighting and killing is so pointless."

Qiao San's lips twitched twice, but he didn't reply to Ye Chen.

Grandpa Qiao laughed heartily, patted the armrest and said, "As expected, young people have great courage. They are truly formidable. If Young Master Ye doesn't mind, please stay at my residence for a few days. This old man would like to have more conversations with you."

"Old man, there will be plenty of opportunities. If you want to chat and have a drink, it's just a matter of making a phone call."

Ye Chen politely declined.

Old Master Qiao didn't say anything more, but simply gestured to the servant to pour Ye Chen a cup of the Qiao family's treasured Daughter's Red wine, which had been stored for thirty years.

Grandpa Qiao raised his glass to drink with Ye Chen, who did not refuse and drank it all in one gulp.

Only the old man himself knows how much of his laughter was genuine and how much was calculated.

As the event ended, an elderly man dressed in the attire of a steward from the Qiao family quietly approached Ye Chen, handed him a neatly folded piece of paper, and then turned and left without saying a word.

Ye Chen opened the note, which contained only two lines of handwritten words. The handwriting was strong and powerful, clearly written by someone who had practiced calligraphy: "The Qiao family has remembered today's defeat. The old master said that Minister Ye is a talented person, and if there is an opportunity, he hopes to meet with him alone. Qiao An, the head butler of the old mansion."

After reading the note, Ye Chen put it in his pocket, turned to Jiang Ruoxi who was walking over, and smiled: "It's nothing, someone invited me to have coffee."

"Who?"

"I'll tell you later." Ye Chen naturally took Jiang Ruoxi's hand and walked towards the door.

He Jianping and the ghost servant followed behind, and the group passed through the passageway and left the Qiao family's old residence.

As they reached the main gate, the ghost servant suddenly stopped and looked back at the brightly lit old house.

The ghost servant had lived there for twenty years, and tonight was the first and last time he would leave as a guest.

"Let's go, Lao Gui, the car is waiting." Ye Chen didn't urge him, he just said softly.

The ghost servant withdrew his gaze and strode after him.

On the way back to Jiangcheng, Ye Chen leaned back in his seat, closed his eyes to rest, and didn't say a word.

Jiang Ruoxi assumed Ye Chen was tired from the fight and didn't disturb him.

But what she didn't know was that Ye Chen was repeatedly recalling Han Song's reaction at the last moment.

The timing of Old Master Qiao's applause and the angry expression on Qiao San's face.

The unfathomable eyes of the old butler of the Qiao family when he handed him the note—every detail replayed in his mind.

Ye Chen felt that there was something strange about this birthday banquet from beginning to end.

Han Song lost too decisively, Old Master Qiao laughed too heartily, and Qiao San's silence was too unusual.

Ye Chen suddenly opened his eyes and said to Jiang Ruoxi, "Wife, why would a family that was publicly humiliated invite the person who humiliated them to coffee?"

Jiang Ruoxi was taken aback, unsure of what Ye Chen meant by his question, and then frowned thoughtfully.

"Is this an attempt to bribe you? Or is it a deliberate show of weakness after the storm?"

After thinking it over, Jiang Ruoxi replied to Ye Chen's guess.