"In the Empire, the ratio of men to women is twenty to one. With such a huge gap, I'm not worried about finding husbands. What's the point of forcing you all to stay?"
"As for these three months… first, it's to let time dull your hatred and make you drop your hostility toward me. Second, I need to find some new husbands…"
"Imperial law stipulates that an adult woman must have at least four husbands. This time, I don't want to be forcibly assigned someone by the marriage system. I want to choose for myself. Even if you're in a hurry, you should at least give me this much time, right?"
An adult woman with no husband listed in her marital status would be forcibly assigned one again by the Empire's superbrain marriage system.
Thus, Jiang Yunnuan's words were perfectly reasonable.
Si Xie sneered, "Someone like you? If it weren't for the marriage system's forced matching, who would be willing to contract with you? You want to choose? Are you sure you can find anyone?"
'What man would have to be blind and brain-dead to be willing to contract with her?'
'The nerve of this woman, spouting such shameless nonsense. It's ridiculous!'
Little did Si Xie know that in the near future, his own words would come back to slap him in the face. He would one day be on his knees, begging the very woman he now disdained not to terminate their contract.
Recalling this moment later, he'd want to slap himself silly. Even that wouldn't be enough to vent his regret. You really shouldn't tempt fate so casually.
Jiang Yunnuan didn't take his words to heart at all. Her lips curled into a faint smile as she replied nonchalantly.
"That's none of your concern. In three months, whether you've let go of your hatred for me or not, and whether I've found new husbands or not, I will terminate the contracts with all of you. Are we clear?"
"Of course, it doesn't matter if you think it's unacceptable. You have no other choice. Unless you want us to all perish together."
At this point, Jiang Yunnuan had completely turned the tables.
'My words must have rekindled their hopes for the future. When the choice is between waiting patiently for three months and mutual destruction, anyone would know what to do. I don't need to spell it out.'
Sure enough, the thought had barely crossed her mind when Ming Ye, who had been as quiet as a shadow, spoke up coldly.
"Fine. We'll wait three months. But if you go back on your word after three months, then we'll all die together!"
"Deal!"
Jiang Yunnuan's face immediately broke into a wide smile. She took a few quick steps over, grabbed his hand, and gave it a high-five to seal the pact.
A soft, warm, and delicate touch, as if boneless, brushed against his wrist. Ming Ye froze for a moment. A strange feeling surfaced within him, only to be instantly drowned out by a wave of revulsion.
He impassively pulled his hand back, pursing his lips and wiping it on his clothes.
Noticing his disgusted gesture, Jiang Yunnuan couldn't care less. She raised an eyebrow, chuckled to herself, and moved away from him.
"Alright, it's a deal. For the next three months, we'll coexist peacefully. I won't treat you all like I used to, and in return, you can't try anything shady against me. Especially you. No more choking me whenever you feel like it."
Jiang Yunnuan looked at Si Xie, her tone less than pleasant as she laid down the law.
'This guy, he's always choking me. Now, just seeing him makes my neck ache and my breathing tighten. I'm about to develop a conditioned response to him.'
"I'm warning you, Si Xie. I'm a very petty person, and I hold grudges. If you dare choke me again, don't blame me if I terminate my contracts with them, but not with you."
"You wouldn't want to see them all free while you're the only one still forcibly tied to my side, would you?"
At these words, Si Xie flew into another rage. He gritted his teeth, his voice filled with fury, "You dare!!!"
'Why would she terminate the contracts with them, but not with me?'
'She's singling me out, is that it?'
"Just watch and see if I dare!"
Seeing his anger, Jiang Yunnuan fearlessly tilted her chin up in provocation.
"Go on, try choking me again if you have the guts. And another thing—not only can you not choke me anymore, you can't yell at me either. Don't forget, the contracts haven't been terminated yet. As long as they're active, I am your Contract Master. What kind of Contractor dares to yell at their Contract Master? This is sheer insubordination, you know that?"
Si Xie: "…"
'Damn it! It's bad enough I can't choke her, but now I can't even yell at her? Does this damn woman really think she's some kind of queen?'
'The infuriating part was, she had him by the balls. Even though he was furious, he had no choice but to do as she said. It was maddening! He was going to die of rage!'
He clenched his fists, his lips pressed tight, and didn't respond. Jiang Yunnuan took his silence as agreement and turned to Fu Yuan and Ming Ye, her mood excellent as she spoke.
"That goes for you two as well."
Fu Yuan: "…"
Ming Ye: "…"
All three of them were angry yet helpless. They simply pretended not to hear her, and no one responded.
Jiang Yunnuan wasn't bothered. She reached out and rubbed her GROWLING stomach.
'Ever since I was transported into this body, I haven't eaten a thing. I didn't feel it during Cultivation, but now, my stomach is killing me. I'm starving to death.'
'I need to replenish my energy as soon as possible. No one cooks in this world; the only way to get energy is Energy Liquid.'
She turned to get the Energy Liquid from its usual spot. Opening the box, she saw only two vials left. She sighed and turned back to the three men.
"We're out of Energy Liquid. Remember to restock!"
With that, she took the last two vials of Energy Liquid and headed for Jun Yao's room. He hadn't replenished his energy in a long time, either. 'I worked so hard to preserve his inner core,' she thought, 'I can't let him starve now and cause a setback.'
"Can't you restock it yourself? We're about to have a Contract Termination, why should we still have to provide for you?"
Si Xie retorted angrily. Hearing this, Jiang Yunnuan, who was halfway there, stopped and looked back at him. She smiled like a devil, and her next words nearly made him keel over from fury.
"What's that? You don't want to provide for me? Are you planning to starve me to death? Don't forget, if I die, things won't end well for you either. Besides, abusing a Contract Master is met with severe punishment. Are you trying to make me report you to the government for mistreatment?"
Si Xie: "…"
'Damn woman. Why does she resort to threats at the drop of a hat?'
'How can such a hateful, infuriating woman exist in this world?'
He ground his teeth hard, then said viciously, "Got it. We'll restock the Energy Liquid."
He was clearly resentful to the extreme, yet utterly helpless. He looked so incredibly frustrated and pathetic. But that was exactly how Jiang Yunnuan liked to see him. The corners of her lips curved up as she tossed out a word of praise, then left in high spirits.
"Good boy!"
Si Xie's eyes widened, and he saw red.
'Damn it! I'm already being this pathetic and holding back, so why does this damn woman have to humiliate me like this?'
'I can't take it! I can't take it anymore!!!'
"Don't go! Get back here…"
He bristled, about to give chase, when an arm suddenly grabbed him. He whipped his head around, glaring furiously at the man holding his arm, and snarled viciously.
"Let go!"
Fu Yuan's brow twitched. He said coolly, "Domestic violence against women gets you sent to an abandoned planet to work in the mines. Bystanders are considered accomplices. I, for one, have no desire to go mining. What about you? Eager to go??"