The Unsuitable Match and a Sudden Agreement

While you might deem it a suitable match, the Yi family may not necessarily concur.

Beneath the table, scornful expressions flickered across the faces of those gathered. In their eyes, a ‘waste’ like Jian Ye was utterly undeserving, not even fit to carry the Yi family young master’s shoes.

Yet, a perplexing question remained: why push Jian Ye into a political marriage with the Yi family? Surely, such a prestigious union would be better reserved for their own offspring?

This underlying reason for this peculiar arrangement was deeply entwined with a persistent rumor circulating among the elite.

It was whispered in Yunjing’s high society that Third Young Master Yi, being the youngest son, had been coddled since childhood, resulting in an exceptionally volatile temperament. Some claimed to have witnessed Third Young Master Yi smashing a young master’s head at a certain banquet.

After that incident, the injured young master was never seen in public again, presumably due to the Yi family’s suppression.

This incident gradually deterred those who once aspired to marry into the powerful Yi family. They concluded that Third Young Master Yi possessed an inherently dark and volatile nature, prone to violence, making him someone not to be trifled with.

Most influential families still doted on their own children. Even for an alliance, they were unwilling to see their offspring subjected to domestic abuse after marriage.

It was also said that Yi Siyu had shown no interest in either men or women before this. Had the Yi family not explicitly requested a male marriage partner, the Jian family would have remained oblivious to the Third Young Master’s sexual orientation.

Jian Shishi breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that if the powerful figure disliked women, she would be spared.

Jian Song, on the other hand, had directly declared himself heterosexual, making a political marriage with the Yi family an impossibility for him.

Only Jian Ye met both the gender and orientation requirements of the Yi family. Naturally, this ‘little waste’ was the one pushed forward.

To them, letting Jian Ye marry into the Yi family was a bargain for him; after all, the Yi family possessed immense wealth, and he would be marrying far above his station. However, contemplating the unpredictable Third Young Master Yi, everyone felt a sliver of comfort, convinced that Jian Ye’s life in the Yi family would be far from easy.

In essence, Jian Ye, this orphaned ‘little waste,’ was simply undeserving of a happy and perfect marriage.

Before today, Jian Ye had vehemently resisted, even resorting to self-harm to oppose the family’s arranged marriage. He had cried, threatened suicide, and made quite a spectacle.

Now, he was suddenly agreeing to the political marriage. Had he truly changed his ways?

Jian Ye’s failure to create another scene, as everyone had anticipated, was rather disappointing.

Nevertheless, this marriage was destined to proceed. Missing out on a dramatic spectacle was insignificant; becoming a family sacrifice and bringing benefits to the family was still a worthwhile outcome.

“Ye’er, isn’t school starting soon? When the opportunity arises, I’ll arrange for you to meet that Yi family child before the wedding.” Elder Master Jian, having resolved a major concern, spoke with a noticeably softer tone.

The Elder Master’s reminder made Jian Ye realize he was only a freshman. After searching through the original host’s memories, he replied, “Yes, school starts the day after tomorrow. I will study diligently and live up to your expectations. As for family matters, I will follow all your arrangements. I am available anytime to meet the other party.”

‘To be the protagonist of this world, the Third Young Master of the Yi family must surely be handsome.’

‘Though I’m just cannon fodder, I’m quite willing to spend time with a handsome man,’ Jian Ye thought.

Before transmigrating, Jian Ye had also been attracted to men, but he had never encountered anyone who truly captivated him. After so many years as a ‘mother’s womb single,’ transmigrating into a book and skipping all the foreplay to get directly married left Jian Ye feeling incredibly reflective about the rocket-like speed of it all.

The two days at the Jian family’s main residence passed quickly. Before leaving, Jian Ye did not forget to harvest another wave of ‘green tea value’.

He deliberately went to the Elder Master’s room to show him the bruises on his chest.

These were from the previous day’s fall, caused by the celadon cup in his arms pressing against him. Jian Ye’s skin was so delicate that even a light touch would leave a mark, let alone a harsh impact.

Recalling that his beloved grandson’s injuries were inflicted by his eldest grandson, Jian Song, the Elder Master reprimanded Jian Song once more. His heart ached for his younger grandson, and he gave him some extra pocket money.

Ultimately, Jian Ye was grandly escorted away by car, while Jian Song, seething with frustration, couldn’t retaliate physically, cursing Jian Ye a hundred times in secret.

Jian Ye, however, simply waved his sleeve, taking his ‘spoils’ back to his luxurious, hundred-million-yuan villa.

[Jian Ye: Quickly, calculate how much green tea value I have now?]

[System 748: You have a total of 210 green tea value. Host, you’re amazing! You’re one step closer to earning your first Green Tea Reputation Title.]

[Jian Ye: What does that mean? Does it mean I still can’t exchange for green tea coins?]

[System 748: Yes, Host. The system store will only open once you acquire your first reputation title. At that point, you will be able to exchange for green tea coins to use in the system store.]

Jian Ye pondered silently for a moment.

He had assumed the first achievement would be easier to reach, yet even after all the commotion at the Jian family’s main residence, it remained elusive. It seemed he needed to work harder in his daily life.

He still didn’t know how much green tea value was required for the first reputation title, but judging by the system’s tone, it wouldn’t be too long.

After understanding the situation with the green tea value, Jian Ye shifted his focus to the matter of school.

The original host was in the second semester of his freshman year.

‘Cannon fodder Jian Ye’ had poor high school grades and had ‘halfway converted’ to studying dance, one of the arts.

In truth, it wasn’t entirely a ‘halfway conversion.’ The original host’s mother, Ji Manrou, had been a prima ballerina at a certain dance theater during her lifetime. The original host had been subtly influenced in his childhood, though he had little interest in it, and his parents never forced him to pursue it.

Despite this, the original host had perfectly inherited his mother’s graceful physique and naturally soft bones. Many movements that seemed incredibly complex to others were effortless for him.

This was precisely why he managed to get into Yunjing Media University, even though he only crammed for dance before the college entrance exam.

Many spent five, six, or even over a decade studying dance to achieve a light, supple, and flexible body. Jian Ye, after just a year of intensive training, somehow stumbled into the classical dance major at Yunjing Media University, a discipline with no small degree of difficulty.

Jian Ye felt a headache coming on, considering the mismatch between his own major and the original host’s.

He himself was a legitimate, professionally trained acting student, having just finished a play before being pulled into this novel’s world.

Now, he also had to quickly assimilate the skills the original host possessed.

Fortunately, some muscle memory still lingered.

Jian Ye casually did a split on his King-size bed.

“Oh my…”

This was smoother than even the finest chocolate. In his previous life, his physical education teacher had always commented on his stiff bones, but now, in a different body, his flexibility had undergone a dramatic transformation.

‘The old Jian Ye would never have imagined being able to do a full split in a second.’

‘Goodness, how easy! Is this what they call innate talent?’

[System 748: Host, don’t worry. As long as you adapt to this body, a mismatch in majors won’t be an issue!]

[Jian Ye: To be honest, I’m a bit startled. The original host had such excellent conditions, yet he ended up being despised by everyone. It leaves me speechless.]

‘A near-maxed-level account, yet it was allowed to go to waste. Perhaps not just any player could achieve that, right?’

‘In a way, the original host was also a genius.’

Jian Ye, delighted, performed various horizontal and vertical splits, backbends, and leg stretches on the bed, enjoying playing with his own body so much that even the system fell silent.

With these skills, acting in related period dramas should pose no problem in the future.

Although Jian Ye had to diligently complete the original host’s dance major, his heart still yearned for acting.

Indeed, being a dancer was also a path. The stories they told on stage through dance also required emotional expression and acting prowess.

Jian Ye pondered how to transition in the future. If all else failed, he could, like the original host’s mother, first work at a dance theater and then seek various opportunities to enter the entertainment industry.

—

Meanwhile, in Yunjing’s Yi family estate.

At the Waterside Pavilion.

Yi Siyu returned from the corporation after a day’s work, only to be met by the ‘baptism’ of four pairs of eyes the moment he stepped through the door.

His tall figure paused slightly before regaining its composure, slowly changing his shoes in the entryway.

It was already dinner time, and the household staff had long prepared the meal. The man walked directly towards the dining table, those four pairs of eyes following him.

“I know what you’re thinking. Eat first; anything you want to ask, we can discuss at the table.” Yi Siyu’s back was to his family members, his tone devoid of discernible emotion.

Standing behind him were his parents and his two elder brothers.

They had only learned about the political marriage with the Jian family today.

This decision had been made solely by Elder Master Yi, who had been living abroad in retirement for years. He had expressed that he didn’t need frequent visits, and that seeing him once a year was sufficient for the family.

Just before the New Year, the Yi Group had signed a major transatlantic deal, requiring several core members of the Yi family to be present.

Thus, Yi Siyu, the youngest son of the Yi family, whose family pressure was relatively lighter, went to Country F as a representative. He visited his grandfather, acting as a dutiful and filial grandson.

Upon his return, the Yi family had only assumed that the grandfather and grandson had simply chatted about everyday matters.

However, they never anticipated that the elder and the younger man would have reached such a significant agreement.

Yi Siyu sat at the middle-right side of the dining table, appearing hungry as he picked up his bowl and began to drink soup.

His eldest and second brothers sat on either side of him. After a moment of hesitation, they quickly spoke up.

His eldest brother, Yi Sizhe, said, “How could such an important matter as marriage be decided so haphazardly without consulting the family?”

His second brother, Yi Siyuan, added, “Little brother, do you… have someone you like?”

Their parents, Father Yi and Mother Yi, sat opposite, gazing expectantly at their youngest son. Sizhe and Siyuan’s questions were precisely what they wished to ask.

However, their youngest son continued to slowly and methodically drink his soup.

It wasn’t until he finished his soup and took his first bite of food that the young man looked at his eldest brother and said, “It wasn’t a haphazard decision. The Jian family’s economic strength has subtly surpassed other prominent families in recent years, making them the most suitable partner for a political marriage.”

He then turned to his second brother, “Do I look like someone who would have a person they like?”

The eldest and second brothers fell silent.

“A’Yu, tell Mama, was this… was Grandpa forcing you?” As a mother, Yu Xinran doted on this son the most. Although sacrifices for profit were inevitable in influential families, she still didn’t want to see her son act against his will, nor did she want to see him unhappy.

“No,” Yi Siyu answered his mother definitively. “Grandpa merely made a suggestion, and I simply put it into practice. After all…”

The young man’s hand, holding his chopsticks, paused. “Grandpa is getting on in years. He has gained a lot of perspective living abroad all these years. He doesn’t seek for the Yi family’s lineage to endlessly multiply; he only hopes that all his grandsons can settle down peacefully.”

The eldest and second sons, still bachelors, coughed several times, lowering their heads in embarrassment and beginning to eat.

Father Yi Xiangcheng, who had remained silent, sighed heavily. He had no idea who these three sons of his took after, as all of them were completely uninterested in matters of the heart.

Yi Sizhe, the eldest, was already thirty, entirely devoted to managing the Yi Group, and still a lifelong bachelor.

Yi Siyuan, the second son, was twenty-eight. He preferred studying code to dating, and even the group’s most advanced programmers weren’t as skilled as he was. Over the years, the Yi Group had faced several cyberattacks from rivals, all of which he had led the charge in resolving.

The first two sons had taken on the heavy responsibilities of the family. As for the third son, they had adopted a hands-off approach, meaning they would not interfere with whatever path Yi Siyu chose for his future.

However, after graduation, Yi Siyu still opted to return to the group, assisting his elder brothers. He was now the president of a subsidiary company within the group, managing it with impeccable order.