'So, that was an active reward?'
'Does that mean there are passive rewards, too?'
'How do I trigger a passive reward?'
'Hmm... Since it's passive, I probably can't trigger it myself.'
'Maybe it's something that will happen gradually over time?'
Lu Yuan pondered.
After Lu Yuan finished speaking, the entire village fell silent.
No one had expected Lu Yuan to choose Su Liyan.
After all, Su Liyan was the worst choice among them.
In an instant, everyone started chattering at once.
First, there was Su Liyan's identity as a Snake Woman.
She wasn't a proper human.
Her status was lowly.
And what's more, she was bad luck.
With those scrawny arms and legs, could she even do any work?
She didn't look like she'd bring any good fortune. Just look at how bewitching she was.
She'd probably just be a freeloader after getting married, eating without lifting a finger.
Everyone was trying to persuade Lu Yuan not to make a foolish choice.
"You just had a run-in with an evil spirit a while back, and now you dare to marry a *thing* like that?" an auntie, completely against the match, told Lu Yuan.
In response, the matchmaker beside them immediately chimed in to defend her.
"Aiyo, Ma'am, don't talk such nonsense! What's wrong with our Su Liyan?
She's from the proper Snake-man Race, not some evil spirit. What do you mean, 'a thing like that'?
If you said that in the city and someone reported you, a Lord Official would have you arrested for sowing discord."
Lu Yuan just stood there in the center of the crowd, holding Su Liyan's small hand and watching with cold eyes.
Before, Lu Yuan would have thought the villagers had his best interests at heart.
But now, after his memories had fully merged, Lu Yuan knew there were hardly any good people in this village.
As the crowd continued to argue,
Lu Yuan suddenly slammed his hand on the table.
"What's all the racket about? I'm getting married. I don't need you all sticking your noses in my business.
I came here to inform you, that's it. You know now, so we're done. I wasn't asking for your permission!"
This side of Lu Yuan made Su Liyan look up at him in surprise.
Su Liyan had just been thinking that her man was a Scholar, soft-spoken and frail.
But she never would have imagined he would dare to slam a table.
'He seems so manly.'
Then she thought about how her man was doing this for her, recalling the words he had just spoken.
A sweet feeling blossomed in Su Liyan's heart.
And if Su Liyan was surprised, the villagers were even more so.
After all, everyone in the village knew exactly what kind of person Lu Yuan was.
Normally the quietest, most docile person around, and now he dared to slam a table?
The crowd looked at Lu Yuan in astonishment, then glanced at Su Liyan beside him.
They could only conclude that Lu Yuan had been bewitched by this little vixen.
'Good heavens.'
'She hasn't even married into the family yet, and she's already turned Lu Yuan, that useless, spineless wimp, into this.'
'If she marries in, our own husbands' souls will probably be seduced away by this little vixen too!'
Immediately, some of the aunties raised their voices even louder to refute Lu Yuan.
They went on about how Shige Village had upright morals and how no "vixen" had ever married into the village.
That everyone here was human, and so on and so forth.
In response to their words, however, Lu Yuan simply cocked his head and sneered.
"Cut the crap.
The only reason Shige Village is what it is today is because of my great-grandfather, isn't it?
You think it got this way because you spend all day scheming and trying to take advantage of others?
Didn't you all marry into this village back in the day because of my great-grandfather, too?
Enough nonsense. I'm marrying her, and that's final. If you won't let me, fine. I'll leave.
And I'll take my great-grandfather with me when I go!"
As soon as Lu Yuan finished, the village chief, who had been silent all this time, slammed his own hand on the table and glared at Lu Yuan furiously.
"Nonsense!
The Old Duke passed away so many years ago, and you want to disturb his eternal rest now?
You're his great-grandson! Is this how you show respect to your great-grandfather?"
Lu Yuan, however, was brazenly defiant, raising an eyebrow.
"Cut the crap. Just tell me: can I marry this woman or not?!
And can we live here after we're married?!"
Lu Yuan's blatant disregard for the village chief's authority infuriated him.
But it seemed he was genuinely afraid that Lu Yuan, in a fit of anger, would actually move the Old Duke's grave.
After all, the kid hadn't been the same since his run-in with that evil spirit.
Finally, he gritted his teeth and said,
"You can!
Why couldn't you?!
You're the only one left in the Lu Family. Of course, you get the final say.
Everyone was just looking out for you. If you don't want to listen, then so be it."
Seeing this, Lu Yuan was satisfied and said no more.
The old women to the side, however, were still unwilling and wanted to say more.
They just didn't want Su Liyan to marry into the village.
But the village chief could only try to placate them; he didn't dare say anything more to Lu Yuan.
After all, Lu Yuan was right. Shige Village owed its current prosperity entirely to his great-grandfather.
If he moved his great-grandfather away, Shige Village would likely shrink from a large village to a small one within a few years.
Just as the old village chief was about to finish calming down the village aunties,
the matchmaker popped up again.
The matchmaker didn't look particularly happy that the matter was settled and that she had managed to marry off the hot potato that was Su Liyan.
Instead, a cautious expression appeared on her face as she looked at Lu Yuan and said,
"Um... Master, there's something else I haven't told you..."
Huh?
Lu Yuan turned to look at the matchmaker quizzically.
"What is it?"
At that moment, Lu Yuan felt Su Liyan, whose hand he was holding, begin to tremble slightly.
He turned his head and saw Su Liyan looking down, seemingly afraid.
The matchmaker quickly said,
"Don't be scared, Master. This child, Liyan, is definitely hardworking and has no illnesses whatsoever.
It's just...
She shows signs of atavism..."
Atavism?
'What's that?'
Lu Yuan searched his memories but found no information related to the word "atavism."
When the onlookers heard this, the aunties practically sighed in relief.
Their tension from the village chief's approval of the marriage instantly turned into amusement.
'Whether she's sick or hardworking doesn't matter compared to this.'
'Atavism!'
'How unlucky is that!!'
Seeing Lu Yuan's clueless expression, one of the aunties immediately sneered.
"Tsk, and you call yourself a scholar who's read so many books? You don't even know what that is?
Atavism means she'll suddenly transform into the form of her ancestors.
Didn't someone in Nan Zhao Village marry a Snake Woman with atavism over a decade ago?
The very next morning, his mother went into their room and found her son half-swallowed by a giant python!"
At this, Su Liyan quickly looked up and explained in a panic,
"No, that won't happen... Even when I undergo atavism, I'm still rational, just like a normal person...
Besides, only the lower half of my body reverts! My whole body doesn't change..."
It wasn't that no one had wanted to marry Su Liyan before. With her looks, a few men had been willing to take the risk.
But as soon as they heard about the atavism, they immediately gave up.
After all... who would want to marry a wife, go to sleep, and wake up the next morning to find a giant snake lying next to them?
How terrifying would that be!
Besides, it was just too unlucky.
Now, Su Liyan looked at Lu Yuan pitifully, terrified that he would abandon her.
Lu Yuan, however, just stood there, thinking blankly.
'Her lower body reverts and turns into a snake...'
'Then...'
'Isn't that just like Nuwa?'
'Medusa?'
'Zhao Ling'Er??'
Lu Yuan:
"Whoa~
That's so cool?"
Su Liyan: "???? "
The crowd: "???? "
'Wait a minute...'
'Why does this kid look even more excited now??'