Chapter 68: A Chance Encounter at Sea

Another yacht was far more luxurious than the one Xiao Ran and his group were renting, clearly belonging to the wealthy. But what really angered Xiao Ran wasn’t that—it was Fang Ruoxin, wearing a swimsuit that revealed her stunning figure, playing around with another man.
Lin Qingxia also stared at the man on the yacht in confusion, suddenly exclaiming, “That man is Wang Yang!”
Wang Yang? Xiao Ran felt he had heard this name before. After searching his memory, he quickly recalled that it was the Taiwanese rich kid who had harassed Lin Qingxia last year. Instantly, his expression darkened significantly.
Zhou Runfa immediately understood why Xiao Ran was angry and couldn’t help but sigh. Glancing at Lin Qingxia again, he thought, “Ah Ran is in trouble now. It’s likely to hurt Lin Qingxia, who hasn’t known anything about this!”
“Brother Fa, please steer the boat over there!” Usually, Xiao Ran was very amiable and harmless, but now he looked like he wanted to kill someone. This scared Chen Huilian so much that she rushed after Brother Fa. Xiang Qiang and Zhang Min also came over after hearing the commotion at the bow.
Seeing Xiao Ran’s murderous look, Xiang Qiang was startled first. “Ah Ran, are you okay?”
“I’m fine!” It was rare for Xiao Ran to reply so coldly, but he couldn’t care less now. With a thought, he turned to look at Lin Qingxia, who also seemed frightened and at a loss.
For some reason, seeing her like this made Xiao Ran feel as if he had done something terrible. He quickly stepped back a few steps and comforted her, “It’s okay. I just acted on impulse. Don’t worry, I didn’t scare you, did I?” Lin Qingxia didn’t say anything, just nodded at Xiao Ran, her unease growing stronger.
As the boat gradually drew closer, Wang Yang and Fang Ruoxin stopped what they were doing and looked over in surprise. Seeing Xiao Ran and Lin Qingxia among them, their expressions changed. Wang Yang’s eyes flashed with malice, seemingly recalling past failures in pursuing her. Fang Ruoxin, on the other hand, showed anger and surprise, her expression quite dramatic.
When the boat was at closest distance, Xiao Ran glanced at Wang Yang, then sneered before turning his gaze to Fang Ruoxin. In an unusually deep voice, he asked, “What are you doing here? Why are you with him? Who else is on the boat?”
Hearing Xiao Ran’s deep voice, Brother Fa and Lin Qingxia were slightly shocked. They had never heard Xiao Ran speak to anyone in such a stern tone. For Xiang Qiang, it felt even more extraordinary—he saw Xiao Ran as a majestic lion, utterly intimidated by his presence.
Unexpectedly, Fang Ruoxin retorted in a sharp voice, “What does it matter where I am? What’s your business with me? If you can go out to sea, why can’t I? If you can be with friends, why can’t I?”
Xiao Ran was stunned, as were everyone on the boat. He hadn’t expected this little princess to be so sharp-tongued, showing no respect for him in front of everyone. Lin Qingxia and the others were stunned because they hadn’t expected Fang Ruoxin’s usual ladylike manners to be completely absent—she acted like a shrew instead.

For Lin Qingxia, these words carried additional meanings, meanings that caused her heart pain. Zhou Runfa glanced sideways at Lin Qingxia, whose skin was already as fair and delicate as jade, and suddenly saw as if a layer of ash had covered her face. He wanted to help but didn’t know how.
“A Xin, can you get away from that boat? That guy isn’t good,” Xiao Ran’s earlier arrogance was completely wasted. If possible, he would definitely jump over and bring Fang Ruoxin back now.
“What nonsense are you talking about!” Wang Yang, who had been staring at Lin Qingxia arrogantly and maliciously, glared at Xiao Ran when he brought the conversation onto himself and said angrily, “Be careful, or I’ll kill you!”
“A Xin…” Xiao Ran suddenly felt very tired. He didn’t want to say anything more; it was truly pointless. Seeing Xiao Ran’s sad expression, Fang Ruoxin’s heart softened. After some time together and thanks to Xiao Ran’s efforts to please her, she admitted she had feelings for him. Otherwise, Fang Ruohai wouldn’t have intended to let them get together.
Actually, Fang Ruoxin just wanted to meet more people so she would have more choices before getting married—preferably someone she liked. That’s why she went out to sea with Wang Yang, but she didn’t expect to encounter Xiao Ran out at sea.
Although her heart had softened, she stubbornly said on the surface, “Go away. I can go back by myself!”
“Brother Fa, let’s go!” Disappointed, Xiao Ran turned to Zhou Runfa and said that, then turned back to stare at Wang Yang, his tone so cold it seemed to freeze: “Wang Yang, if you dare touch A Xin even a little, I’ll make sure you can’t die!”
At such a cold tone, aside from Lin Qingxia, who was thinking deeply while watching Xiao Ran, the other two people on the boat felt chilled to the bone. Wang Yang, in particular, felt the pressure from Xiao Ran’s words. He thought that if he could use force, he would have already taken her; otherwise, there would be no need for all these tricks.
Naturally, he refused to show weakness on the surface. With a cold snort, he glared at Xiao Ran resentfully before ordering them to set sail and leave. Xiao Ran exhaled, as if in a sigh. That was Fang Ruoxin’s personality—he had known it not long after he started pursuing her. But he didn’t know why he continued to pursue her. Was it because of her appearance, which surpassed Lin Qingxia’s? He didn’t know.
They didn’t turn back immediately but moved the boat away from there. Brother Fa went to the cabin to get some wine and was shocked to find Lin Qingxia inside, her expression filled with heart-wrenching sadness, devoid of her usual lively demeanor.
He also sighed involuntarily, suddenly feeling that Lin Qingxia was pitiful. Every time she met someone she liked, it always ended like this… But for Brother Fa, he knew even better that Xiao Ran suffered ten times more than Lin Qingxia.
Putting down the wine, Zhou Runfa sat beside Lin Qingxia and gently persuaded her, “Qingxia, actually, when did it start? I mean, when did it start between you and A Ran?”
Lin Qingxia slightly raised her head to look at Brother Fa, showing a smile that was even sadder than crying: “What are you talking about? I treat A Ran like a brother.”

“Whether you admit it or not, we can all see it. Maybe the only one who can’t see it is Aran!” Fa Ge stared at Xiao Ran, who was sitting on the railing at the bow of the boat, and continued, “You think you’re unlucky, but I think Aran suffers even more than you do.”
Lin Qingxia suddenly looked up at Fa Ge, her expression full of confusion. Fa Ge shook his head slightly and looked at Xiao Ran with pity: “One person likes another without realizing it, thinking they like someone else. But they don’t realize they’re just loving themselves as they used to love that other person—that’s the most painful part.”
“What do you mean?” Lin Qingxia certainly understood Fa Ge’s words, but it was hard for her to grasp the meaning behind them. Her expression changed as she asked, “Do you mean Aran…”
“Sigh. Although it’s said that onlookers see clearly, I still don’t understand why Aran subconsciously avoids this relationship!” Fa Ge sighed deeply; he truly didn’t understand what Xiao Ran was thinking.
Lin Qingxia showed a thoughtful expression. Gradually, it seemed she began to understand Fa Ge’s meaning, and joy appeared in her eyes as her complexion brightened again. But soon, she was deeply shaken by Fa Ge’s words, which sounded almost like self-talk: “It’s probably unacceptable in society for a woman in a romantic relationship to be five or six years older than the man. Moreover, since they’re both public figures, it’s even harder!”
Lin Qingxia froze instantly, her face turning pale. She had never thought about this before because she hadn’t imagined things would reach this point. But if everything Zhou Runfa said was true, she would have to face it. And such a sibling-like relationship between a man and a woman was absolutely a major taboo in Chinese society.
With another deep sigh, Fa Ge stood up, left his drink behind, and went straight to Xiao Ran: “Aran, what are you thinking?”
“Have I done something wrong without even realizing it?” Xiao Ran turned his head to look at his respected Fa Ge. He suddenly felt as if he regarded Fa Ge as an elder brother—perhaps only only children in the 21st century had such feelings. His face showed deep contemplation: “I keep feeling like I’ve done something wrong, but I can’t figure out what.”
“It doesn’t matter if you’ve done something wrong, as long as it’s not completely wrong. Sooner or later, you’ll realize where you went wrong!” Fa Ge stared into Xiao Ran’s eyes and gave him a meaningful piece of advice: “Do you really think Fang Ruoxin is right for you? Do you really like Fang Ruoxin? You really need to ask yourself. Otherwise, you’ll probably regret it for life!”
“Regret it for life?” Xiao Ran was utterly confused. After what had just happened, he wasn’t sure if he had changed or if he had overlooked something. If this were a dream, he wouldn’t be angry over a woman who had nothing to do with him, let alone so angry.

Actually, there are reasons for both. Xiao Ran came to this era, and as the era changed, he too changed. He isn’t rich now, but he has enough fame, which is enough to make a person change. Xiao Ran hasn’t turned to the bad side; his once indifferent personality is still influencing him.
Before, he could remain calm and untroubled, travel the world lightly, and care little about women or money. Because at that time, the perfect life in his eyes was to pack a backpack, travel around, take odd jobs if he had no money, and walk if he had no car.
He could be indifferent before, but now he’s a boss, with his own ideals and goals to achieve. The desire to dominate eventually emerges inevitably. Sometimes, the saying “Without ambition, there’s no achievement” is true.
Especially when the object of domination is a woman—no man can tolerate having his power and woman taken away by someone else. Power and women are always off-limits to men, especially to successful men.
Having desires and ambition is good; without them, there’s truly no progress. It is precisely because of the need for ambition and desire that Xiao Ran is qualified and capable of becoming a future tycoon. A tycoon, not just an entrepreneur—a person who can say what others dare not say, someone powerful and influential. Thus, a highly legendary story finally begins here…
Chapter 69: Confused Passion
This chapter is omitted as it has little relevance to the plot. Hehe, hehe.