Volume One, Chapter One: Becoming a Son-in-law
The nuptial night.
In a room steeped in ancient elegance, the red bedding was lifted. The woman lay with her eyes gently closed, her long, dark hair curling loosely across her chest—no matter how she tried, it could not cover everything. Her skin was delicate as snow, so fair!
Ye Bufan swallowed hard.
“My dear, you are so beautiful!”
He lifted her.
The bride’s voice was as soft as a whisper, her cheeks blushing, yet a hint of alluring charm shone through as she spoke quietly, “Ah, husband, your heart is beating so fast—I can hear it.”
Her hands were tightly entwined around Ye Bufan’s neck, her whole body clinging to him.
Ye Bufan held her slender waist.
Their pounding hearts were palpable.
“My dear, I’m coming.”
They were nearly as close as two bodies could be.
The bride exclaimed, “Ah, husband, you’re mistaken.”
“Husband, that’s not where…”
“…”
“Husband, please be gentle—I’m only on my second time!”
Ye Bufan: “…”
Had he been deceived by this family? Wasn’t he promised untouched goods?
He was about to be angry, but his own optimistic spirit consoled him. He thought, the second time isn’t bad—modern people have lost count of such things, hasn’t anyone kept track? At least the color is right.
“My dear, if you think I’m too imposing, just say so—I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Husband, have you already started?”
Ye Bufan: “You…”
He could only turn his sorrow into strength and press on.
A few breaths later.
Ye Bufan, satisfaction written across his face, was about to turn over and rest.
An unexpected intruder shattered his peace.
[Ding, Progeny Enhancement System activated.]
[Ding, system successfully bound to host.]
Ye Bufan was bewildered.
[Option one: Consume twenty years of lifespan to enhance offspring.]
[Ding, as there is only one option, the system has automatically selected option one.]
“Ah, wait—”
Ye Bufan had barely processed this, but the deduction of twenty years of life jolted him awake, though it was already too late.
“Heavens, this isn’t fair! One roll in the hay costs twenty years—how am I supposed to live like this?”
Even if he could live to eighty, twenty years gone, and he’s only twenty now—so?
“Does this mean I only have two more tries in this life?”
---
“This is no fun at all—I want to go home!”
Beside him, the bride was a bit frightened. Was her husband ill? She asked with concern, “Husband, what’s wrong? Are you finished?”
“Ah!...”
Ye Bufan’s voice grew even more mournful.
He cried for a while.
The bride grew a bit impatient; he spent more time weeping than he had on her.
“What’s done is done.”
There was nothing for it; Ye Bufan could only comfort himself.
This was already much better than when he first crossed over.
It had been a month since he arrived in this world.
As an ordinary man in his previous life, he had neither the memory of thousands of poems nor extraordinary wisdom or learning; physics and chemistry were beyond him, so he couldn’t get ahead.
Luckily, his appearance was decent. While begging, he caught the eye of Master Sun, who brought him home to be a live-in son-in-law. In plain terms, he was taken for labor and… other purposes.
Ye Bufan thought he might as well muddle through—no worries about food or drink, wife and child, warm bed.
When the old man died, he could inherit the Nie family’s modest assets—a dream come true in modern times.
He began to explore the functions of the system in his mind.
{Open system interface}
With a thought, the system interface unfolded before him.
[System Information]
Host: Ye Bufan.
Lifespan: 66 years.
Cultivation: Mortal.
System Function: Progeny Enhancement Level One (details).
Enhancement Success Rate: 90%
System Shop: Not open.
System Upgrade: 0/100 million energy.
----
When he saw his lifespan was only 66, not the expected 80, he lamented his fate.
“What a miserable life.”
“But what does ‘mortal’ mean? Is this a world of immortals?”
Ye Bufan felt a flicker of hope.
He hadn’t noticed, having arrived not long before, and had never seen anyone flying around.
“How are spiritual roots classified?”
[System prompt: Spiritual roots are divided into five roots, four roots, three roots, dual roots, and single root. Five roots are the worst, unwanted trash. Four roots are slightly better. Single root is best, and according to aptitude, there are Heaven, Earth, Mysterious, and Yellow grades, with Heaven-grade single root being the highest, also called the Heavenly Spiritual Root.]
Ye Bufan: “If single root is already the highest, why bother with Heaven, Earth, Mysterious, and Yellow? Such a hassle.”
[System prompt: Though single root has purity above 99%, the difference between 99.91% and 99.99989% may seem small, but in reality, it’s vast.]
“Fine. What kind of spiritual root do I have?”
Ye Bufan asked anxiously.
[System prompt: Host has no spiritual root.]
---
“Ah?”
Ye Bufan jumped up—what should he do? Without a spiritual root, he couldn’t cultivate!
[System prompt: You can receive feedback from your offspring’s cultivation. You need not cultivate yourself.]
“Oh, so that's how it works.”
“Does my wife have a spiritual root?”
[System prompt: Your wife has no spiritual root.]
“What about my father-in-law? What spiritual root does he have, and does anyone else in the family have one?”
[System prompt: Without blood relation or having intercourse with someone, the system cannot detect spiritual root.]
Ye Bufan: "..."
“So the main question is—does each time cost me twenty years of life? Can I opt out?”
[System: There must be an option. As only one exists, the system defaults to automatic selection.]
Ye Bufan’s heart grew heavy…
---
The eleventh month.
“It’s born! It’s born!”
The round-faced midwife ran out joyfully, calling out as she went.
Ye Bufan feared the jeweled hairpin on her head would fall off with her excitement.
“Congratulations, sir! You have a beautiful princess—both mother and child are safe!”
“Thank you, you’ve worked hard. Here are two silver coins for your trouble.”
Ye Bufan was generous for once, handing over his hidden savings.
His father-in-law, Master Sun, had hoped for a boy, but a girl was nothing to fret over. He wasn’t surprised.
Their Nie family had passed down only daughters for nine generations.
Indeed, Master Sun was also a live-in son-in-law. Now Ye Bufan understood why the family was called Nie, even though Master Sun’s surname was Sun!
{A secret unknown to all Nie family sons-in-law:
Each generation passes down only one person—in truth, she has lived forever.
No one knows.}
“小凡子, why are you standing there? Go take care of your wife!”
Every time he heard himself called “Little Fanfan,” Ye Bufan wanted to punch his father-in-law—it sounded like a eunuch’s name.
His fists clenched, eyes narrowed, heart beat faster, blood flushed his face.
“Yes, yes, I’m going, Father-in-law.”
He lowered his head and dutifully trotted into the room.
There was no choice; under someone else’s roof, one had to bend. His monthly allowance depended on his father-in-law.
---
A month later.
Nie Yushan wore a black camisole, her alluring curves on full display.
Her smooth, snowy legs trembled slightly.
“Husband, please stop for a moment…”
Ye Bufan shook his tired hand.
Nie Yushan’s beautiful eyes were glazed with a hint of intoxication.
“Husband, let me help you.”
Ye Bufan, slightly timid, “Wait a moment…”