Chapter 30: Speak, Who Is Your Eldest Brother!

Jiang’an City.

Western Suburbs.

Afternoon Sun Café.

In a quiet corner, within a small booth, Ling Qiu rested his chin on one hand, the other lazily holding a cup of coffee, sipping it absentmindedly.

Seated before him was a beautiful, dignified woman. She wore a pair of dark sunglasses and sported hardly any ostentatious, expensive jewelry; yet every gesture radiated an air of effortless grace and nobility.

Her movements were gentle and refined but carried a hint of decisive authority. Her skin was fair and smooth—her bearing that of an elegant young matron. And yet… her delicate features, the fashionable, translucent red lips, and those strikingly beautiful hands betrayed none of the years one would expect from a wealthy married woman.

“Aunt… after all this time apart, you’re really going to talk to me with those sunglasses on?”

Ling Qiu spoke casually.

The woman he called “Aunt” hurriedly covered his mouth. “Don’t call me that!”

“Oh, then should I call you by your full name… Wanxi Xu?”

“Hey! You little rascal, getting bold, aren’t you? Aren’t you afraid someone might overhear us and tell Ling Wanlou we met up?”

Ling Qiu merely smiled, pulled out his phone, and handed her a news article. “See for yourself.”

Wanxi Xu accepted the phone, muttering, “What are you up to now? So mysterious… Wait, what? Ling Wanlou… is in a psychiatric hospital?!”

Ling Qiu grinned. “Not only that, but Bai Chuan Ling is finished too—he can neither move nor speak.”

“So it’s… true?” Wanxi Xu found it hard to believe. “I just got back to the country two days ago and heard these rumors—I thought they couldn’t possibly be real… But they are!”

“So now…” Ling Qiu pointed to her sunglasses. “Can you take them off?”

She hesitated, then slowly removed them, gently shaking her head to smooth her jet-black hair.

Only after she took off her sunglasses could one truly appreciate—how beautiful this woman was.

Her eyes were not the large, double-lidded kind so often praised, but rather enchanting, almond-shaped eyes outlined with a hint of gentle, seductive allure.

Her gaze was as tender as water, yet beneath the elegant brows was a touch of noble aloofness that could make others falter.

Whenever she blinked or moved her lovely eyes, her long lashes seemed almost to speak.

Her face was fair with a rosy glow; delicate pink cheeks, lustrous lips, and a petite, sculpted nose with just a trace of foreign heritage.

Combined with her subtly Western makeup, she truly was…

With that bearing and that beauty, she would turn every head, no matter where she went—a thousand times over.

“Hey, what are you looking at? Kid, don’t tell me you don’t recognize your aunt anymore?”

Wanxi Xu waved a hand in front of Ling Qiu’s face.

He laughed softly, took a sip of coffee, and sighed, “Beautiful.”

At these words, Wanxi Xu’s cheeks flushed and she shot him a playful glare. “The whole world knows your aunt is beautiful—do you need to say it?”

“Of course.” Ling Qiu replied with perfect seriousness, “Others fail to appreciate true beauty. They only see your outward appearance, but what I see… is the beauty beneath—the soul that intoxicates and delights…”

“Stop, stop, that’s enough!” She couldn’t help but laugh, making a time-out gesture. “You really have changed after all these years—such a smooth talker now. How many girls have you charmed at school?”

Ling Qiu pondered briefly, then declared, “Not a one. I’m still a virgin.”

Wanxi Xu had just taken a sip of coffee and nearly sprayed it out, coughing twice. “Ling Qiu… How did I not notice this side of you as a child? Listen, show some respect—I’m your elder!”

“Oh, come on.” Ling Qiu grinned. “First, we’re not related by blood—you’re just the little foster daughter my grandfather took in, and you’re only a few years older than me. Second, we don’t even share a surname.”

At the mention of surnames, a flicker of unease passed over Wanxi Xu’s face. She hesitated, muttering, “Actually, I always wanted to take the Ling name… but your grandfather wouldn’t allow it. He said my roots are in the Xu family, and I must never forget that.”

“All these years, your search for your family overseas… How has it gone?”

“Not a single lead.” Wanxi Xu sighed and turned a lost, vacant gaze toward the window. “Sometimes I wonder… if the Xu family your grandfather spoke of even exists.”

Ling Qiu gently placed his hand over hers. “Don’t lose heart. You’ll find them, I promise.”

This, Ling Qiu could guarantee. For he had once, in the Underworld, seen with his own eyes—Wanxi Xu finding her roots.

And that family—the old Xu clan—was a true colossus.

Wanxi Xu nodded faintly, then suddenly noticed the warmth on the back of her hand. Looking down, she saw Ling Qiu’s hand atop hers. She hurriedly pulled away, cheeks tinged with red. “What do you think you’re doing? Show some respect!”

Ling Qiu chuckled. “Look at you—never even been in love, getting flustered just because someone held your hand?”

“I’m embarrassed for you! Don’t you know I’m your aunt?” she replied, putting on the stern air of an elder.

After a pause, she changed the subject. “By the way, you said you had a gift for me, and that I’d definitely like it? Well? Let’s see it.”

“This.” Ling Qiu smiled, finally getting to the point.

He took out a jade thumb ring and placed it in her palm.

“This?!” Wanxi Xu was stunned. “Isn’t this… the Ling family’s ancestral ring, passed down to the family head? How did you get it?!”

“Is it so strange?” Ling Qiu replied. “Grandfather’s will named me the next family head. Of course the ring is in my hands.”

“But… wasn’t the rumor that Ling Wanlou had it?”

“Rumors, as you said.” Ling Qiu brushed it off. “Well? Do you like the gift?”

Wanxi Xu grew serious, turning the ring over in her hand for a moment before asking, “You rascal… what is it you really want to say?”

“I want you to become the next head of the Ling family,” Ling Qiu said crisply. “The will named me successor, but I don’t want the position—it’s exhausting and restrictive. But I can’t stand by and watch Grandfather’s legacy fall into the hands of those scoundrels. Ever since my parents died, besides Grandfather, you’ve cared for me most. So… no one else is more suited to lead than you.”

Ling Qiu’s words left Wanxi Xu dumbstruck, unable to react for a moment.

He continued, “In the next few days, I’ll draw up a contract with you and have it notarized. Then I’ll announce to everyone that I’ve transferred the position of family head to you. That way, you can wear the ancestral ring and rightfully take your seat at the helm.”

“Wait, wait… you rascal, isn’t this a bit reckless? The entire Ling family, and you’re handing it to me—”

Before she could finish, Ling Qiu placed both hands over hers once more.

“Wanxi Xu, you’re the only one in the entire Ling family I trust. If you refuse me, then tomorrow I’ll donate all the family’s assets to charity. I mean what I say.”