Chapter 6: Chasing After a Soft Meal Served Hard

"Xingyun, you start by offering condolences—is it because you think your fiancé is dead and you want to call off the engagement?" Fang Ning raised an eyebrow, her expression insolent and cavalier.

Although this was their first meeting, Si Yuheng felt that something was off.

This was the "fiancé" he had personally selected to hide his identity—a man he had "married" while disguised as a woman, using his courtesy name, Xingyun, as his primary name. In his previous life, Fang Ning had died yesterday. Why was he still alive now?

Did this mean there would be no opportunity to cultivate a reputation for being a "husband-killer"?

"Calling off the engagement is also an option..."

"No."

Si Yuheng denied it instantly. His voice was somewhat ambiguous, neither clearly masculine nor feminine.

"Young Master Fang, it was my error in relaying the message that caused the young mistress to misunderstand," the coachman hurriedly interjected. "Please, sir, do not blame the young mistress."

Fang Ning raised an eyebrow.

"Relaying the message wrong?"

Everything about this suggested they had known the original owner was supposed to die! There was something wrong with this "fiancée."

"Fang... Fang Ning, are you alright?" Si Yuheng changed the subject. "Did you fall into the water yesterday? Have you caught a cold?"

Faced with this show of concern from his "fiancée," Fang Ning felt a shiver of goosebumps.

"The wicked live a thousand years; how could I die so easily? Xingyun, isn't it a bit disrespectful to wear a veil and hat while meeting me? I am your fiancé, after all."

She wanted to see what this "fiancée" was up to.

"I was so anxious last night that I developed a rash on my face; it is unsightly."

"No matter, no matter. No matter what you look like, you are still my fiancée, aren't you? I don't mind."

"Since you are unharmed, I am relieved. I shall take my leave now."

Si Yuheng had no desire to have any further entanglement with Fang Ning. After all, he was a normal man, and he had no interest in being fussed over by another man.

"Why the rush? Hey, Xingyun, you seem quite wealthy. Our family has nothing to eat; could you spare us some silver? You’re going to marry me eventually, anyway—what's yours is mine."

Si Yuheng: "..."

Living off a woman’s wealth with such brazenness?

He left the small farmhouse courtyard without looking back.

Fang Ning suppressed a smile and chased after him. "Xingyun, are you really going to watch your fiancé starve to death?"

Si Yuheng glared fiercely at You An, who was acting as the coachman. *What kind of mess have you gotten us into?*

You An felt wronged; it was his master who had insisted on coming to Futian Village first thing in the morning!

Fang Ning was in hot pursuit. You An knew exactly what kind of reputation the elder branch of the Fang family had. To shake off this nuisance, he stopped and, with a pained expression, handed a small purse to Fang Ning. "Young Master, we are short on cash ourselves. Take this—there is no more!"

Fang Ning took it and weighed it in her hand. "You can afford a carriage, yet you give me this little bit? Are you trying to brush off a beggar? I am your future master, after all. Treat me with such neglect now, and you'll regret it once I marry your mistress!"

Fang Ning was committed to the original owner's persona as a scoundrel to the very end. It would be best if she could force Si Xingyun to break off the engagement!

A man acting as a fiancée—he was either insane or involved in a conspiracy. If Si Xingyun was a reincarnated soul and there was some deep, dramatic blood feud between him and the original owner, she would be the one to suffer in the future. Better to dump this trouble early.

"We are not yet wed, Young Master Fang! Mind your tongue!" Si Yuheng could take no more and turned around. He shouldn't have made this trip himself. The elder branch of the Fang family was truly composed of rogues and scoundrels!

"My uncle has a short temper. Do not push your luck, or you will be the one to suffer in the end!" Si Yuheng warned.

Fang Ning looked indifferent. "My uncle isn't your real father; is he going to control everything, including your husband?"

Si Yuheng suppressed the urge to kill Fang Ning, turned on his heel, and swept away.

"I haven't finished speaking! Why are you running so fast? If you want to marry into our Fang family, you must learn the rules: surrender your silver, and serving me is your duty. You..."

Si Yuheng had already boarded the carriage. You An flicked the whip, and they departed Futian Village at top speed.

"Hey! I wasn't finished! Stop right there!"

Fang Ning shouted after the carriage, only to be met with a mouthful of dust. Being an eccentric was truly hard work!

"Did you see that? I told you, a dog can't stop eating filth!"

"Was that Fang Ning’s fiancée? She hasn't even married in yet, and he's already thinking about seizing her family's assets."

"That family is hopeless. Stay away from them."

The sounds of disdain reached Fang Ning’s ears. She realized that she had been too deep in character and hadn't noticed the villagers watching her entire performance.

Meeting those indescribable gazes, Fang Ning thought, *Well, now the road to redemption will be a long one!*

That menace Si Xingyun! Why would a perfectly good man look for a fiancé? She had been completely sabotaged.

Knowing that any explanation would be futile, Fang Ning walked past them without batting an eye. She accepted her reputation as a parasite with total composure. She was just that thick-skinned.

Futian Village was surrounded by vast mountains and dense forests, rich in resources. As an intelligence agent, Fang Ning naturally recognized many common medicinal herbs, especially those for treating external injuries. After all, before becoming an agent, she had been a special forces soldier who frequently carried out missions in the wild, where injuries were a common occurrence.

As she wandered around, Fang Ning discovered that the back mountain was full of bayberry trees. The calendar of the Great Liang dynasty was the same as the lunar calendar of her previous world, and it was currently the peak season for bayberries.

The trees were lush, laden with dark-red, juicy-looking fruit that hung heavy on the branches, hidden behind the green leaves. Fang Ning had always loved bayberries; just looking at them made her mouth water.

In the original owner's memories, no one ate the bayberries because they found them too sour.

Fang Ning climbed up the tree and tossed a few into her mouth. The taste was sweet with a hint of tartness, which delighted her.

"Not eating these bayberries is a complete waste of nature!" Fang Ning muttered, setting down her small basket.

She sampled the trees nearby, picked the sweetest one, and began to harvest. By the time she was full, her basket was brimming with fruit.

Besides eating them fresh, bayberries could be dried, made into jams, preserved, or even fermented into wine. This was a path to making money!

Humming a little tune, she climbed down the tree and headed home in high spirits, carrying her basket of fruit.

She did not know that after she left, Si Yuheng appeared.

He looked suspiciously in the direction Fang Ning had gone, and after a moment, leaped onto the tree she had just harvested from. He picked a bayberry and tossed it into his mouth.

He took a bite, and the sourness instantly spread through his mouth, causing his peerless, handsome face to twist in disgust as he hurriedly spat it out.

Si Yuheng: "..."

Was this stuff even edible? Was that little scoundrel starving to death?

No, he was the one who was insane for following that little scoundrel up the mountain!

Fang Ning did not realize Si Yuheng had followed her. By the time she reached home, Fang Cinian and Liang Anrong had not yet returned.

Fang Ning packed a basket of bayberries and headed toward the old family residence. Her grandmother might complain, but she was soft-hearted underneath. She was a dear old woman.

"Grandma, I went up the mountain and picked some fruit today. I brought some for you to try!" Fang Ning had a sweet tongue; her voice arrived before she even entered the courtyard.

As soon as Grandma Fang heard Fang Ning’s voice, she felt a dull ache in her head.

*To think she would actually stoop to chasing her fiancée and acting like a parasite...*