Spring flowers.

Chapter 15 System Little Six
Ye Mingzhen knew that since he couldn't be the knife, he would find someone who could become the knife.

Just as Ye Mingzhen was standing outside the Wei residence, thinking about how to persuade Wei Yishang to cooperate with him.

A notification sound suddenly rang in his mind: [Host's urgent need to activate the system has been detected]

"Who?"

Ye Mingzhen suddenly looked around warily and found that no one was speaking.

【Hello host, I am your system, Xiao Liu. You can call me Xiao Liuzi.】

Ye Mingzhen looked around again with surprise.

"Who are you?" Ye Mingzhen gripped his folding fan tightly, his eyes turning cold.

[Ding dong, a mission has been issued: marry Wei Yishang and obtain the skill to ward off unwanted romantic advances]

Ye Mingzhen was taken aback.

"What do you mean? How did you know I wanted to marry Wei Yishang?" Ye Mingzhen now understood; only he could hear that voice.

[Hint: Wei Yishang's mission is also to marry you!]

Ye Mingzhen was stunned, and it took him a while to process this fact.

"You mean Miss Wei Si also has this system?"

But the system remained silent.

"What do you mean? Answer me," Ye Mingzhen asked urgently.

[Note: This question involves privacy and cannot be answered! Unable to answer!]

Ye Mingzhen “.”

He changed the subject and asked, "What if I don't marry her?"

[Reward for completing the mission: One clue to the disappearance.]

Failure to complete the task will continue to be plagued by romantic entanglements.

When Ye Mingzhen heard the word "clue," his face darkened.

"Do you know the truth about my father's disappearance?"

[Little Six's Tip: You can only get clues by completing the task.]

Inside the tranquil and elegant Nuanxiang Pavilion of the Wei residence.

Wei Yishang was facing the bronze mirror, idly calculating how much silver she could exchange for the bottle of Rejuvenating Jade Dew Cream that the system had rewarded her with.

"Miss, are you really going to take it?" Cui'er asked, her face contorted with heartache.

"Why keep it? I'm not disfigured." Wei Yishang yawned.

"Wouldn't it be better to use that money to buy some good food or a few interesting storybooks than to leave them here collecting dust?"

Her mind is now completely occupied with that absurd task from the system.

[She officially entered into marriage with Ye Mingzhen.]

How to tie it?
Are you suggesting that she, a young lady from a respectable family, should go to someone's door and say, "Ye Tanhua, will you marry me?"
Doesn't she have any shame?

Even if she were willing to risk everything, someone like Ye Mingzhen would probably treat her like a madwoman on the spot, tie her up, and send her back to the Wei residence.

This task is simply unsolvable.

"Sigh..." she sighed for the forty-ninth time.

Just then, Zhang Zhong strode in from outside, his expression somewhat strange.

"Miss."

"What is it?" Wei Yishang lazily raised her eyes.

Zhang Zhong lowered his voice: "Ye Tanhua has arrived. He specifically requests to see you."

"puff--"

Wei Yishang almost spat out the mouthful of tea she had just taken a sip of.

She sat bolt upright, her eyes wide with shock: "Who? Ye Mingzhen? What's he doing here? Looking for me?"

This is truly something that came without any effort at all!
Wei Yishang composed herself, her heart almost leaping up to kowtow to the system.

She cleared her throat, resumed her usual nonchalant demeanor, and slowly said to Zhang Zhong, "I understand. Please ask him to sit in the flower hall for a while, and serve me my treasured pre-rain Longjing tea."

"Yes." Zhang Zhong accepted the order and left.

Cui'er hurriedly stepped forward to help her change clothes and do her hair: "Miss, hurry! You need to change into something more presentable, and the hairpin in your hair is a bit too plain..." "No need." Wei Yishang raised her hand to stop her.

She stood up, walked to the mirror, and looked at her bare face in the mirror.

"Go like this."

But when I got to the door, I realized that this wasn't a refusal.

Oh my god...

The system now wants her to marry Ye Mingzhen, but with her bare face, that probably won't work.

Driven by the reward promised by the system, she rushed back in a flurry.

"Quick, Cui'er, bring out the nice jewelry and clothes. I want to dress up nicely!"

But when Cui'er took out her best clothes and several relatively ornate silver hairpins, she realized she had been overthinking things.

As an illegitimate daughter who was neither loved by her father nor her mother, she didn't have any of those fancy things.

She thought about it and realized that sometimes dressing up isn't necessary.

What Ye Mingzhen needs is a "partner" who can help him, not a beautiful concubine.

Then, Wei Yishang strolled leisurely to the flower hall.

Inside the flower hall, the air was filled with the gentle fragrance of incense.

Ye Mingzhen sat upright in the guest seat, his posture as straight as a pine tree.

The tea in front of him had been refilled once, but he hadn't touched it.

He is waiting.

Waiting for the woman who would make an exception and come to his door.

Does she really have that kind of system?
He planned to test her later.

But when Wei Yishang appeared at the door, all his expectations were overturned.

She was wearing a slightly worn, light purple casual dress, which had faded a bit from being starched.

She wore only a single silver hairpin slanted into her hair, and her face was lightly made up, yet she remained as pure and simple as a gardenia in bloom after the rain.

Upon seeing him, she merely gave a perfunctory curtsy before walking straight to the head seat and pouring herself a cup of tea.

"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, Scholar Ye," she said, her voice light and calm.

"I was reading an interesting storybook just now, and I got so engrossed that I forgot the time."

Ye Mingzhen: "..."

He had prepared a whole host of opening remarks, but they were instantly swallowed back down.

He had imagined countless ways to start the story, but he never thought that he, a newly appointed third-ranked scholar, would be less important than a storybook in the eyes of the other party.

This time, he was the one at a disadvantage.

He looked at the woman in front of him. There was no trace of the excitement and shyness that young ladies of wealthy families should have when they meet their sweethearts. Her eyes were clear and bright, as if she were really just looking at an ordinary visitor.

Is she playing hard to get, or does she really have no interest in him at all?
For the first time, Ye Mingzhen's judgment began to waver.

After a brief moment of confusion, he quickly adjusted his mindset and realized that the more she acted this way, the more it confirmed his idea that she was a business partner who wouldn't let emotions cloud her judgment.

He put down his teacup with a crisp sound, breaking the somewhat subtle silence.

"Miss Wei the Fourth".

He decided to get straight to the point.

"I have come here today to discuss a deal with you."

"trade?"

Wei Yishang paused slightly in her teacup, raised her eyes, and looked directly at him with her clear black and white eyes.

"You jest, Scholar Ye. There is a world of difference between us. I am but an insignificant concubine's daughter from the Vice Minister's household, while you are the third-ranked scholar chosen by the Emperor, with a bright future ahead of you. What kind of deal could we possibly make?"

Ye Mingzhen sneered inwardly, "What a pretentious act."
Wei Yishang inwardly groaned, "I want to negotiate too, but I can't lose my composure!"
I can only pretend to be aloof.

Looking at her impeccable demeanor, Ye Mingzhen's initial displeasure at being slighted completely vanished, replaced by an appreciation of a worthy opponent.

He stopped beating around the bush, leaned forward slightly, and spoke clearly, word by word:
"I want to marry you."

(End of this chapter)