Fu Yuan opened his eyes, his gaze icy as he looked at him.
He pressed his lips together and continued to send a furious telepathic message.
"Let go. Iâm not holding her, and youâre not allowed to either."
"Are you fucking done yet?"
Fu Yuan, utterly annoyed by him, finally let his suppressed temper explode.
"If you donât want to do this anymore, then initiate the Contract Termination right now! Itâs an equal contract now; you can end it whenever you want. Stop fucking looking for trouble all day long! Nuannuan and I are sick to death of you!"
"Iâm a legitimate Contractor too, so why the hell should I be beneath you? I need your damn permission just to hug my own wife? Who the hell do you think you are? If you canât stand it, then pack your shit and get out!"
Si Xieâs lips trembled. He stared at him, stunned, reeling from the verbal assault.
Among the four of them, Fu Yuan had always been the gentlest and most modest.
Although he was aloof, he was always proper and graceful. He made a point of keeping the peace, never arguing with anyone, and his emotions were remarkably stable.
In all the time he had known him, this was the first time Si Xie had ever seen him curse someone out with such explosive, uncontrolled anger. For a moment, he couldnât process it, his mind a complete blank.
Several minutes later, he finally registered that he had been cussed out, and the corner of his mouth couldnât help but twitch.
"This is my bed. Thereâs only one Nuannuan. If youâre holding her, what am I supposed to do?"
"So you *do* know thereâs only one Nuannuan? In that case, whatâs the point of asking âwhat am I supposed to doâ? I was holding her first, so sheâs mine tonight. Donât even think about me giving her up to you. If you donât want us sleeping in your bed, I can carry her away right now."
âItâs not like Iâm eager to sleep in this guyâs bed anyway. Iâm only staying for Nuannuan.â
âIf this idiot would just let me take her, that would be for the best.â
"Donât! You are not taking her away!"
Si Xie gritted his teeth and quickly clamped a hand on his shoulder, terrified that he would actually carry Jiang Yunnuan off.
âRight under my nose, the most theyâll do is kiss and cuddle. But if he really takes her away, I donât even need to guess what sort of outrageous things that bastard would do.â
"So, are you allowing me to hold her now? Si Xie, Iâm warning you. You can throw your fucking tantrums, but youâd better know when to stop. Otherwise, donât blame me for turning on you for real. Iâve had more than enough of your shit!"
Si Xie was speechless.
âDamn it, did this bastard break some kind of seal tonight?â
âWhy is he cursing so much?â
"Fine. You can hold her for the first half of the night. Give her back to me for the second half."
He gritted his teeth and conceded.
Things had come to this; he had no choice but to compromise. If they kept at it, he was afraid this guy would completely snap. If that happened, Nuannuan would be forced to go give him some special attention, diverting half of the focus that should have been his.
Thanks to Fu Yuanâs usually gentle and polite nature, his sudden loss of control made Si Xieâs heart tighten. Realizing the gravity of the situation, he instinctively started to back down.
Fu Yuan couldnât be bothered to respond to that.
âIâll hold her for the first half of the night. As for what happens in the second half... weâll see when we get there.â
*
ăLand of Calamity.ă
Without a Contract Master to soothe him, his violent emotions had no outlet. His berserk state lasted for a long time, only ending two days later for Jun Yao.
When the Soul-locking Rope was untied, he looked as if he had been fished out of water. He was drenched in sweat from head to toe, and his crisp, handsome military uniform was a wrinkled mess.
When he emerged from the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist, he saw Huo Shenming sitting in the chair behind the desk, smoking. In the corner stood two clean, pretty, and nervous-looking girls.
Hearing the noise, Huo Shenming immediately extinguished the cigarette between his fingers and turned to look at him.
"Youâre out. How are you feeling? Are you uncomfortable anywhere?"
"Iâm fine. Why havenât you left yet?"
Jun Yao frowned, his expression as cold as ever.
Huo Shenming didnât seem to mind at all. He smiled and said, "Iâm your father, of course Iâm concerned about your well-being, so I stayed to see how you were. I did stay up with you for two whole days, after all. Are you really that eager to chase me away?"
"Never mind. Since youâre fine, then take a look at the gift I brought you and see if youâre satisfied. If not, we can always find a replacement. You two, hurry over and let the Young Master have a look."
He glanced at the two girls who were trying to be invisible in the corner and spoke without much emotion.
At his words, the two girls clenched their fists. With their heads bowed, they walked over with small, light steps and stopped in front of Jun Yao.
They didnât dare look up at him, so they couldnât see his face. All they saw were the manâs long, solid legs. The hair on his legs wasnât too thick, but it gave off a sense of power that was inexplicably sexy.
Just from seeing his legs, the two of them somehow felt less afraid than they had initially.
"The one on the left is Bai Yaoyao, sixteen years old. The one on the right is Ning Menglan, seventeen. Neither has a Contractor, and theyâre the prettiest among the girls. See if you want to take both, or just pick one."
"But let me remind you," Huo Shenming added, lowering his voice in warning, "once you take them, just keep them by your side. You are not to form a contract."
The Young Master of the Tiger Clan absolutely could not be controlled by a womanâs contract. It was one thing when Ah Yao was forcibly assigned before, but now that the Contract Termination was finally complete, he absolutely could not be shackled again.
"Too ugly. If you want them, take them yourself. Youâre still young, after all. Whether you want to carry on the family line or whatever else, you can get in on the action personally. No need to count on me."
Jun Yaoâs gaze swept impassively over the two girls.
He hadnât even gotten a clear look at their faces before voicing his assessment.
Hearing his words, the girlsâ faces instantly turned deathly pale. A look of shame quickly appeared on their delicate features, and they were overcome with a humiliation that made them wish the ground would swallow them whole.
Huo Shenming was so angry he could have coughed up blood.
He was just being considerate. He knew this brat was young and hot-blooded, and the Tiger Clanâs genes were particularly potent with yang energy, which naturally meant that *those* kinds of desires were extremely strong. Thatâs why he had kindly sent women over.
But this little bastard... just listen to the things he was saying!
"You call this ugly? Arenât they much better-looking than your previous Contract Master? Iâm telling you, is there something wrong with your eyes, kid?"
âHe couldnât have a fetish for ugliness, could he?â
Huo Shenmingâs heart suddenly skipped a beat. If Ah Yao really did have a fetish for ugliness, wouldnât the cubs he fathered in the future directly impact the Tiger Clanâs gene pool?
Recently, he had looked into Jun Yaoâs former Contract Master. He knew she was the daughter of the Empress and Yun Aochen. And while the Empress and Yun Aochen were both extraordinarily talented and beautiful, their daughter was the most famous ugly woman in Central City.
He had also learned that Ah Yao had been very fond of that girl, even getting into jealous fights over her.
But for some unknown reason, she had ended up kicking him to the curb.
It was precisely because heâd been dumped that Ah Yao, heartbroken and utterly devastated, had taken the initiative to contact him. Otherwise, Ah Yao probably would have never sought him out in his entire life.
"Send them away. I donât need them."
Just as he was lost in thought, Jun Yaoâs cold voice suddenly echoed in his ears, snapping Huo Shenming back to reality.
"Then what kind do you like? Itâs fine if you donât like these two. I can pick out new ones for you. There are plenty of other girls."
âWell, there are ugly ones too. If Ah Yao really likes them ugly, thatâs not impossible to arrange.â