Ye Jun ran through every option he had, but none of them led anywhere. The intruder was no ordinary martial artist. Ye Jun could sense the pressure clearly.
As his thoughts raced, a soft, melodious voice sounded from behind the martial artist restraining him.
"It's enough, Aunt."
The grip loosened immediately, and Ye Jun retreated without hesitation taking the opportunity. He then stared at the dark figures in solemn silence. His poor hut only had a single lantern, after all.
'Wait! An attribute orb?' His eyes glistened as he spotted a floating bubble between them.
Without hesitation, he stepped on it and then backed away again, feeling a rush of warmth spread through his body.
[Agility +21]
"You're better than I expected," the voice sounded again as a figure stepped into the dimly lit hut.
She wore a dark blue, high-collared dress beneath a light white robe, her black hair neatly tied back, pale features smooth and composed, and her blue eyes calm and sharp as she approached to speak.
For a moment, Ye Jun was taken aback by the figure's beauty. She was easily one of the most beautiful women he had seen in either of his lives, but he soon composed himself and frowned.
His profession had taught him many things, and one of them was that beauty often led to death. Heck, many female assassins used their beautiful appearance to kill their targets.
So even though the woman was incredibly beautiful and he felt attracted to her, his composed mind helped him easily get over that fact.
"Song Liangxue?" he asked, still a bit confused about the whole situation.
"Oh? So you recognize your fiancée." Song Liangxue said in a flat tone as she took out a comfortable chair and elegantly took a seat on it.
'A space ring?' Ye Jun recognised it from his memories. 'It's rare, but I'm pretty sure once I move up in ranks, it'll become common. Average cultivation thingy.'
While the woman whom Song Liangxue called Aunt stayed in the dark to protect her, Ye Jun relaxed slightly and went back to sit on his wooden bed.
'Another cliché, then.'
He swiftly searched through the memories and got the answer. Song Liangxue was his fiancée, set up by his grandfather and her grandfather because of an old life-saving debt.
And as usual, she belonged to a prestigious clan while he was a talentless man with no future, belonging to a small clan in a small city.
'Seriously? Who designed this whole world?Get creative, buddy.'
"I've seen you before. In any case, to what do I owe this pleasure of meeting you?" Ye Jun asked calmly, facing her. "I'm guessing you're here to annul the engagement."
"My initial intentions were those, but now I'm hesitant," Song Liangxue said, rubbing her chin in interest. "You're handsome."
As he was expecting some humiliation because of how Xianxia tropes usually went, Ye Jun was surprised to hear her and asked, "You're hesitant to annul our engagement just because I'm handsome?"
"Yes. Is it that surprising?" Song Liangxue blinked, as if she had said something mundane. "Humans like beauty, and I'm not different. I want my spouse to be handsome, at least matching my level of appearance, and you fit that category."
'W-What?' Ye Jun was once again taken aback by her straightforward nature. 'Wait! Get a grip on yourself.'
Taking a deep breath, he said, smiling, "I'm flattered by your praise, but can we get to the point? What have you decided, and why did you actually sneak in here?"
Song Liangxue stared at his face for a moment, making him speechless, before she answered.
"It doesn't matter what I decide because the choice lies in your hands. You can choose to annul this engagement or not. As for your second question, I sneaked in after taking your situation into consideration."
"Mine?"
She nodded. "You're aware of my status, so you should know that even if I cancel this engagement, it wouldn't affect me in any way. Neither personally nor socially. But it's different for you."
Ye Jun finally understood her reasoning, and he had to say he was quite impressed by it. She was right, too.
If she publicly announced the annulment, she wouldn't be affected. In fact, people would find it reasonable, since who would want to marry a cripple like him? But it would definitely ruin his already ruined reputation and people would mock him even more.
However, if he announced the annulment, people would say he knew his place, and he would likely be less affected. So her decision to ask him was consideration for him.
"I'm happy you thought so much of me, but really, I stopped caring what people said about me a long time ago. They've been irrelevant to my life for a long time," Ye Jun said.
"That's true. Others shouldn't dictate your life," Song Liangxue agreed.
"So, let's say I want this marriage. What will you do?" Ye Jun asked, growing interested.
"I will go along with it, fulfill my duties as your wife until you die, then continue my journey in cultivation," Song Liangxue answered calmly. "Oh, but I will ask you to move into our mansion. Can't have my spouse living in such conditions."
"So, move in with your family."
"You have a problem?" Song Liangxue tilted her head in confusion before a look of realization showed on her face. "Oh, male ego. You don't want to live off your wife's earnings."
"I do have male ego, but this isn't about that," Ye Jun shook his head and smiled.
"I see. That's better, then," Song Liangxue nodded. "Though I'll warn you. I'll only follow this through if you behave well and fulfill your husband duties. An equal marriage."
"That's a given."
"Hmm, so what do you choose?" Song Liangxue asked.
"Neither!" Ye Jun answered after thinking for a minute. "I actually don't mind living by leeching off you."
"Correction! Partners helping each other is not leeching off. They have legal rights to that."
"You're amusing!" Ye Jun laughed and said. "Yes, I agree. Anyway, I have my own plans as well. You can call it ego or whatever, but if I'm doing this, then I want to be equal. Currently, we're not."
"Does it really matter?" Song Liangxue asked with innocence-filled eyes.
"It does to me," Ye Jun nodded. "So how about this? Give me one year, and I'll stand at your level. If I don't, then this engagement is annulled."
He smiled and said, standing up, "But if I do, then I'll take you away from your home after marrying you."
"Such competitive nature. I don't know where your confidence is coming from, but I like it," Song Liangxue smiled and said. "Very well, then. I'll wait for you. I hope you succeed."
With that, she took out a jade bottle and gave it to him. Seeing his questioning look, she answered, "It's a Meridian Reforging Pill."
"W-What?"
This time, Ye Jun was truly shocked and couldn't even hide it.
"I brought it as compensation, but now it's a gift, or you can say an investment," Song Liangxue said, smiling beautifully. "Heal yourself and do your best. I'll see you later... probably."
With that, she stood up and turned to leave. But then she paused and turned around. "I forgot to tell you something. I'm practicing a Mysterious Technique in which I'll have to remain chaste for an indefinite time. So if we do marry, I won't fulfill that part of my duties."
Ye Jun looked up at her and then smiled. "It's a shame because I was looking forward to it."
"Is that so? Are you doing this for my appearance?" she asked in amusement.
"Part of it. As you said, humans like beauty," Ye Jun shrugged. "So if I'm marrying, I certainly want a beautiful woman as my wife."
"Fair enough!" Song Liangxue nodded, completely understanding his point. "So are you then calling this deal off? You can take that pill, of course."
"No!" Ye Jun smiled and stood up. "You're beautiful in appearance, but I'm pretty sure I'll find more beautiful ladies too. Perhaps not comparable to you, but still very beautiful."
He closed the distance between them and smiled when he noticed no change in emotion in her eyes or body. "I want you because you're a peculiar soul, but still very thoughtful. You seem like a perfect candidate to walk beside me."
"Mutual thoughts," she smiled and said. "No wonder I liked your face. Now I'm really hoping you create some miracles and reach my heights, even though it sounds foolish."
He took her hand and kissed it softly. "Just wait and watch."
She stared at her hand for a moment in silence. Then she turned toward him and gave a swift peck on his cheek, surprising him. She smiled and said, "You're the one who said equal relationship."
"Haha!"
She patted his chest and said, "Also, as I can't fulfill my duties, you can fulfill them elsewhere."
Ye Jun blinked in surprise, wondering just how many surprises this woman would give him.
"You're saying your partner can have more partners, and you're fine with it?" Ye Jun asked, baffled.
"Yes. I don't have any problems as long as I'm the main wife," Song Liangxue said. "But make sure they're up to standard."
Ye Jun could only laugh at that.
"See you later, then," Song Liangxue smiled and then left the hut along with her aunt.
Ye Jun watched her leaving silhouette and scratched his cheek. "Really interesting character."
He sighed and went back to lie on his bed as he contemplated his future. With the system in hand, he was confident in reaching great heights, especially since Song Liangxue had already solved his biggest problem.
As for his deal with her, it was related to his past life as well. Previously, he did everything alone, which also became the reason why he fell into his boss's trap and could do nothing about it.
In this new life, he wanted to avoid that mistake and form some allies who could have his back. And what would be better than a harem full of beautiful and power women who were also loyal to him?
He loved women, but because of his profession, he never really had a proper relationship, so he looked forward to it too.
Song Liangxue was just too good to pass, so he proposed that deal.
'Now then. Let's see what I'll have to do tomorrow.'
...
"Are you sure about this, Young Miss?" Song Ying asked.
"I am," Song Liangxue replied calmly as they walked out of the Ye Manor. "I am not taking any partners in this life, so I don't mind having one relationship. It'll let me experience mortal life better. Besides, it's only if he somehow manages to create this miracle."
She raised her head toward the moon and said, smiling, "And if he does that, then he might really become a partner who can walk alongside me in my journey. Isn't that a good thing?"
"It certainly is..."
"Worry not, Aunt!" Song Liangxue said, her black hair fluttering in the cool wind. "I know what I'm doing. Also, keep an eye on him. I don't want the pearl I've found to get destroyed by a bunch of vermin."