Chapter 35: It's Not a Crime for a Man to Cry (1)

At this moment, Ye Lanyu had no time to catch Ye Lang in his mischief, nor did she wish to debate whether his past actions were mere play. She simply found it strange—why would her younger brother speak in such a tone?

Worry—such an expression had never appeared on her brother’s face before. Since childhood, though he had his flaws, he was always cheerful, never troubled by the slightest worry.

Now that he was like any other, he still passed his days in leisure—studying alchemy by day, sleeping with Huniu in his arms by night.

What could possibly trouble him?

Ye Lanyu wanted to ask, but she had no opportunity—at least, not for now.

At that moment, Huniu emerged from inside, freshly bathed and carrying a faint fragrance. She walked toward Ye Lang, curiosity in her eyes as she looked at the siblings in the courtyard.

What had happened? Why did Miss Lanyu’s expression seem so odd, and the young master’s so unusual?

Huniu was highly perceptive, able to pick up even the subtlest changes—whether by nature or simply because the young master was involved, it was hard to say.

Ye Lang stood, silently approaching Huniu, then drew her into his embrace. He simply held her, quietly, without uttering a single word.

Both Huniu and Ye Lanyu were puzzled by this—what had come over him?

Though Ye Lang slept with Huniu at night, he had never embraced her in the daytime, much less openly in front of others.

“Young Master, what’s wrong? Has something happened?” At first, Huniu said nothing, just letting him hold her. But as the minutes passed—ten, and still he clung to her in silence—her confusion only grew.

Ye Lang slowly released her, took her shoulders in his hands, his eyes meeting hers, and spoke softly, “Huniu, don’t blame me, and don’t be angry. I’m doing this for your own good.”

“Young Master, what are you talking about?” Huniu was even more bewildered. What did he mean by that?

“Today…” Ye Lang looked at her, wanting to explain, to reveal the reason behind it all. But just then, someone else burst in.

“You little rascal, what are you up to now? What’s with the mercenary company outside? What precious thing are you sending off, bringing the entire Anna Mercenary Company here, with a commission of a million? I thought you’d finally settled down these past three months, but it turns out you were just biding your time for a grand blowout.” Long Anqi stormed into the courtyard, berating Ye Lang loudly.

A million gold coins—what did that even mean? Most common tasks offered a few coins for a reward, the more difficult ones perhaps a few dozen, dangerous assignments double that, and the highest-level, most arduous missions offered hundreds or thousands, with danger doubling that again.

But even slaying a dragon—a top-tier, extremely perilous quest—rarely offered a million coins, sometimes not even close.

Of course, this was based on the Anna Mercenary Company’s standards. Occasionally, a mission required cooperation between multiple companies—like dragon-slaying, which no single group could handle alone. With the division of labor, each company would, at most, earn a few hundred thousand.

So, to use a modern analogy, the cost-effectiveness of this task far exceeded any other. Every mercenary company would leap at the chance, as it could accelerate their growth tremendously.

Indeed, after accepting this mission, the Anna Mercenary Company rapidly rose in the following years, vaulting into the top ten almost overnight.

It was as if they had received a massive investment—no wonder the company recalled all its members within two months when, under normal circumstances, it would have taken at least half a year.

For this reason, Ye Lang was given the title of Honorary Commander, treated as the most distinguished of guests, granted every request, and even offered free services—though Ye Lang, the prodigal, cared little for such things.

What did Ye Lang gain from all this? At the most basic level, information sharing with the mercenary company. Ye Lang, who understood the value of intelligence, later felt that even a million was too little for what he got.

There was another benefit—the company consisted entirely of women, many of them stunningly beautiful, especially Anna, their leader. Thus, as Honorary Commander, Ye Lang found himself with some surprising, unintended advantages.

In short, the unseen benefits of this transaction were worth far more than a million.

But for now, all anyone saw was Ye Lang’s extravagant, reckless spending—once again.

“A million… Young Master, that’s too much. What treasure are you giving away?” Huniu was stunned upon hearing the figure—this was Ye Lang’s record for wastefulness. He had never exceeded six figures before, and now he’d reached seven.

“I am giving away the most precious thing I have in this life. I won’t let any harm befall my treasure,” Ye Lang replied, smiling at Huniu.

“What? Do you even have such a treasure? You used Ban’s notes as a desk mat—you’ve never cared about anything,” Huniu said skeptically. All these years, she had never seen Ye Lang treat anything as a true treasure.

If any alchemists heard this, they would be outraged, weeping and clamoring against him—Ban’s notes, the original manuscripts, not mere copies, used as desk pads!

“Those are inanimate objects, and I’ve memorized them all—why get attached? My treasure is you. You are, and always will be, my most precious treasure,” Ye Lang said with a gentle smile. Though his words seemed casual, even playful, it was clear to anyone that he meant them with utmost seriousness—unquestionably so.

“Hmph, teasing me again. As if you’d always treat me as your treasure… Wait, what did you just say?” At first, Huniu hadn’t caught his meaning, but soon she realized.

If she was the treasure, then she must be the one he was sending off.

Now it all made sense—why he had asked her not to blame him, not to be angry. It was because he intended to send her away.

This realization made her heart clench. She looked at Ye Lang, fearfully asking, “Young Master, are you sending me away? Do you not want me anymore?”

“Silly girl, how could I ever not want you?” Seeing how afraid she was, Ye Lang held her close again and spoke with deep tenderness.

“Then why must you send me away?” Huniu trembled softly in his arms, still afraid.