Warden of the Beast World: Everyone is a Hakimi

"A male beast as part of the dowry?" Ye Tang turned around completely this time. She recognized each word of the two words, but the combined meaning made her wonder if she had misheard.

Looking at the undisguised bewilderment on her face, Lu Yu finally understood that this little female truly knew nothing. He remembered her saying that she had been imprisoned by the Ye family for eighteen years and had never attended school. Common knowledge that everyone in the empire knew was completely foreign to her.

Lu Yu sighed softly to himself. As the actual administrator of Prison Zero, and as a witness who had personally seen her pull five of the Empire's top combatants back from the brink of collapse, he felt it necessary to teach her this lesson.

He pushed the personal computer aside, turned to the side, and patiently explained in the calm tone of a teacher.

The empire had a stark gender imbalance, with females being far too few. Therefore, the entire social order, from laws to customs, was built around protecting and favoring females. The marriage system stipulated that when a male married into a female's family, he not only had to move there but also bring a substantial dowry—property, houses, land, and resources—all of which belonged to the female.

Females hold absolute power; they can marry as many beastmen as they want and allocate resources however they please. For males, whether they can marry well depends not only on their strength to be chosen by the female, but also on the richness of their dowry, which directly determines their influence and status within their wife's family.

After listening, Ye Tang remained silent for a moment, then slowly nodded. So that's how it is. No wonder Jing Yao gave a million for food expenses right away, Chi Heng's grandfather gave ten million as a thank-you gift without saying a word, Cang Ming transferred two million without explaining a word, and even Ling Shou, that arrogant brat, kept saying "This young master has plenty of money."

She turned her head back to look at the scenery outside the car window, a little voice inside her already ecstatic. The man marries with a house, a car, and savings, all the assets going to the woman after the marriage—all this fuss just to please his wife—that's the kind of happy life a strong woman should have!

But after scattering the flowers, she calmed down. No matter how much dowry she received, it belonged to the male, and while it would be shared property after marriage, she wasn't planning on getting married yet. She wanted a house of her own, one registered solely in her name.

"If I want to buy a set, is there any way?" Ye Tang turned her head back, her eyes serious.

Lu Yu pondered for a moment: "You can go back and ask Ling Shou. The Tianling Falcon Clan has a close relationship with the royal family. Several core areas of the capital are hereditary fiefdoms of the Tianling Falcon Clan. Most private properties that can be traded on the market require their permission. As the young clan leader, Ling Shou should have a way to obtain high-quality properties."

"...What?" Ye Tang's expression changed from serious to utterly bewildered. Who should she ask? That free-range chicken? That arrogant, flat-feathered one who argued with her every day, got so angry at her that his feathers would bristle, and refused to even eat vegetable salad? Did he have that kind of background? Then she remembered.

Ling Shou's catchphrase every time he argues with her, "This young master has plenty of money," his arrogant face when he bargains for food expenses, and his trump card that he will never truly back down no matter how she argues with him.

So it wasn't bragging. He's a genuine heir to a prominent Beijing social circle, a hereditary noble family owning prime real estate in the capital. She, a single woman with double F degrees who was kicked out of her family, actually chases after the young patriarch of the Sky Feather Falcon Clan every day, calling him a nobody. If she had that kind of background, she'd probably be ten times more arrogant than Ling Shou.

"Fine," Ye Tang leaned back in her chair, took a deep breath, and looked resolute. "Go ahead and ask. We can always have a fight." Arguing was already their daily way of communicating; if they didn't argue, she felt something was missing. She could just bake him a couple more chocolate cakes before buying the house—consider it a bribe for the young master of Beijing's elite circles.

Ye Tang returned to Zero Prison and spent the entire afternoon working in the kitchen.

She roasted a whole lamb on a rotating grill for almost four hours, using the best fruitwood charcoal from the Space Supermarket. The roasted lamb had a golden-brown, crispy skin and tender meat that could be torn into strands, with the fat sizzling as it dripped onto the charcoal.

She made two chocolate lava cakes, using the best dark chocolate from the Space Supermarket. After baking, she carefully scooped them out with a spoon, and the thick chocolate syrup flowed out slowly like lava.

The fruit tea was freshly brewed, with a full pot of apples, oranges, strawberries, and blueberries, along with two tea bags and a large spoonful of honey, chilled in ice.

Ye Tang pushed the food cart down the observation area corridor, her expression shifting between a "professional fake smile" and "gritting her teeth." She mentally encouraged herself, "You have to have the right attitude when you're asking for help."

Ling Shou is a softie who won't listen to force. If you give him a little something sweet first, then ask about the house, he won't be able to refuse, right? She doesn't believe this free-range chicken can resist the double temptation of roasted ibex and lava cake.

The security door to Observation Area No. 3 slid open. Ling Shou was standing on his perch preening the flight feathers on his wings when he heard the door open, and instinctively thought that dinner had arrived.

Then he saw Ye Tang. It wasn't the usual casual scene of someone just walking in with a tray—she was pushing a whole food cart with a whole roasted, golden-brown, juicy ibex, two chocolate lava cakes, a large pot of fruit tea with jingling ice cubes, and a bright, almost blinding smile on her face.

"Young Master Ling Shou..." Ye Tang lowered her voice to a sweet and soft tone, her smile so bright it could illuminate the entire observation area.

The bird-like creature trembled, its wings freezing in mid-air, a freshly preened feather silently drifting down from its wingtip. What did Little Sprout call him? Young Master? She always called him a ground-dwelling chicken, a flat-feathered bird, an illiterate bird, a poor little thing with no food. When had she ever called him Young Master? And in that voice?

His eagle eyes instantly narrowed into two wary dots, his mind racing—something's wrong with this female. She went out with Lu Yu to the Imperial Research Institute, and came back like this.

What is the Research Institute? It is the Empire's most advanced research institution, and also a hub for various dangerous experimental subjects and specimens of fallen beasts. Early symptoms of fallen beast mental pollution include abnormal behavior, personality mutations, and unnatural displays of affection towards familiar objects.

Ye Tang's current state perfectly matches the early symptoms of pollution—smiling at him, calling him young master, and giving him so much food.

Ling Shou leaped from its perch, transforming into human form and landing in front of the observation wall. Its silver-gray eagle eyes were filled with alertness, and its mental energy field instantly tensed, entering battle mode. "I don't care who you are, get off Little Sprout right now!"

Ye Tang's smile froze. Her hand holding the cake stopped in mid-air, and the corner of her mouth twitched twice.

She rarely treated him politely, roasting a Himalayan ibex for four hours, making her best lava cake, and even brewing fruit tea, all in an attempt to get him to do her a favor.

So this dead bird actually suspected she'd been possessed by a fallen beast? Before her reason could stop her, her instincts had already reacted—"You damned groundhog! I'm giving you a nice look and you suspect I'm possessed?!"

Ling Shou was jolted back half a step by her shout, his tense fighting stance relaxing. Yes, that's it. The one who called him a "ground chicken" is the little bean sprout.

He straightened his collar, cleared his throat, and switched his tone from "I want to destroy the fallen beasts" to his usual arrogant young master's voice: "They're not fallen beasts. Tell me, do you need something from me?"

Ye Tang rolled her eyes inwardly. This bird's thought process was definitely different from normal people—if you speak to it politely, it thinks you're possessed, but if you insult it, it seems normal.

She decided to skip this frustrating part and get straight to the point: "I want to buy a house. Lu Yu said that real estate in the capital is mostly private property of large families, and he asked me to ask you."

"Little sprout, why are you buying a house?" Ling Shou tilted his head, a genuine look of confusion on his face. The concept of buying a house was superfluous in his mind—females didn't need to buy houses themselves; their families would provide them, and their beast husbands would provide dowries.

In the Sky Falcon Clan, there are several female sisters from collateral branches who have been registered as owning several properties since birth. These properties were allocated in advance by the clan and their future husbands' families, so none of them need to worry about these matters themselves.

"If I quit my job or get fired, at least I'll have a place to live. You know what I mean?" Ye Tang pushed the fruit tea from the food cart towards him, deciding to use food to soften him up.

Ling Shou was silent for a moment, and the words she had said last time suddenly flashed through her mind—being thrown out of the gate by the Ye family, penniless, and almost dying in the forest.

He didn't press further, but simply smoothed out non-existent wrinkles on his clothes before raising his head and answering in an arrogant tone of absolute certainty: "That's easy. If you marry me, all my assets will be yours. I own three manors in the heart of the capital, and two hills outside the city—all yours. You don't need to worry about the houses."

Ye Tang stared at him expressionlessly for three seconds, then reached for the untouched chocolate lava cake, placed it back on the cart, and turned to push it out. "You're dreaming!"

"Hey! Little bean sprout! Put the cake down for me!" Ling Shou's wings popped out with a bang, flapping several times, and he was so angry that he jumped up and down.

This little bean sprout is so materialistic! Just a moment ago she was smiling and calling him "Young Master," but as soon as she heard he wouldn't help her and wanted her to marry him, he wouldn't even give her the cake? That was a lava cake! He'd been looking forward to it for days!