Chapter 19

Chapter 19

So much for lads getting pregnant easily, huh?

Lu Yunqi was annoyed. Being with this man who'd killed him nine times wasn't exactly his idea of a good time.

Though maybe Murong Jie was even less willing—what self-respecting straight guy would enjoy being with another dude?

If it weren't for the twisted fun of grossing Murong Jie out, and if this lad's brain didn't get some kick out of it, Lu Yunqi, who swore he was straight, would've had a hard time stomaching it.

Yeah, straight. He'd always considered himself purely straight.

Murong Jie, whose lips were pressed in a kiss, didn't struggle as Lu Yunqi pushed him onto the bed, but his eyes held a look of utter, hopeless resignation.

That look just made Lu Yunqi angrier. He pinched Murong Jie's chin and said, "What? Is being with me so painful? Hah, I don't like that look on your face."

With that, he slipped off his own belt, wrapped it around Murong Jie's eyes, and tied it off neatly behind his head.

Then he stripped off his outer robe, inner shirt, and pants...

Lu Yunqi wrapped an arm around Murong Jie's neck, a hungry, leering look in his eyes as he said teasingly, "Damn, not only is your face easy on the eyes, but this body of yours is exactly my type. But weirdly, you used to get banged up all the time, yet you barely have a scar on you."

That was, of course, all thanks to the Nine-Death Survival Skill. The agonizing pain of body forging, like ten thousand ants chewing on his flesh, had remade all those scars and old injuries, giving him a strong body and solid bones.

But the fresh, newly forged skin was a little too pale and soft—one kiss from Lu Yunqi left red marks behind.

Lu Yunqi kissed Murong Jie's lips, tangling his tongue with Murong Jie's, kissing the sensitive shell of his ear, then biting his soft, thin lips.

Now, this body of his was a lad's—real good at pleasing men, and just as good at pleasing himself.

The lad's pheromones seeped out from his skin. This was the first time Lu Yunqi had ever caught a whiff of his own scent.

He'd always thought it was the incense in the tent, but today he hadn't burned any, nor even used soap.

It was a soft, subtle scent—white tea and jasmine mixed together, with a faint hint of sandalwood underneath.

In his past life, perfume masters would've been fighting over this scent. He'd sniffed tons of pricey perfumes, but none had ever smelled better than this.

Lu Yunqi was practically drunk on it. He looked up at Murong Jie and saw a dazed look on his face too.

He thought, so that's the deal—this lad's body really is useful!

Right now you're all blissed out. When you snap out of it, won't you hate yourself to death?

A smirk tugged at Lu Yunqi's lips as he embraced Murong Jie and kissed him again.

Time flew by without them noticing. Lu Yunqi's forehead was slick with sweat, his lips kissed raw and red, as if the mountains had stood for ages and the room was wrapped in perfect, peaceful stillness.

Neither of them kept track of the spring night, only noticing the owls hooting outside—it was already the third watch.

Lu Yunqi kissed Murong Jie until his lips were a deep red before finally letting him go. The second he was free, Murong Jie scrambled off the bed like he'd been shocked, pulled his clothes around himself, and a rare flash of panic showed in his eyes—gone in a second, hidden away deep down.

Watching him, Lu Yunqi leaned back against the headboard, bare-chested, and laughed. "Oh? Blushing? Or grossed out? Doesn't matter how much you hate it—think you can get out of my grip? Did you like how I kissed you just now? Come on, be a good boy and get my bath ready... Eh, forget it, no bath. I heard it helps with getting pregnant."

Murong Jie figured Lu Yunqi was talking crazy. He turned and left the room without a hint of hesitation.

After he rushed back to Cang Wang Manor, his cheeks and ears were burning red.

He frowned and dug his nails into his wrist, which was already swollen and bleeding from earlier. He needed the pain to keep his head straight.

Only when blood started to trickle from the wound did his heart, hammering like war drums, finally slow down.

Just then, Xiao Hei stepped out of the shadows. Seeing all the blood on the floor, he said, worried, "Master, why... why would you do this? Let me wrap that up for you!"

"No need!" Murong Jie ordered coldly. "Go tell Mi Ga'nan to recruit fifty thousand soldiers in the Hexi Corridor, start mining that ore vein we found in Dayan Mountain's western range last month, and get military funds together ASAP."

Xiao Hei acknowledged the order but didn't leave immediately. Instead, with fury in his eyes, he said, "Master, let me go kill him for you!"

A hint of anger crept into Murong Jie's coldly handsome face: "Since when do you get to decide things for me?"

Xiao Hei knelt before him: "Xiao Hei wouldn't dare. Please, Master, don't be angry."

Murong Jie waved a hand: "Go. I'll call for you if needed."

Xiao Hei jumped out the window and vanished into the night. The empty room was left with just Murong Jie and the steady drip of blood from his wrist hitting the floor.

He squeezed his eyes shut. When he opened them, the gloom in his eyes was swallowed up by pure, raging hatred.

In this life, his only goal was to stomp the people who killed him, one by one, down into the soft, stinking mud of hell!

The next day was clear and sunny. Lu Yunqi, who hadn't set foot in the Wanping Wasteland in days, finally came back. The second he opened his system, a flood of notification pings made his head buzz.

It took him a minute to recover, and when he checked his points—over ten thousand!

Lu Yunqi was shocked. That included over seven thousand points from recycling mung bean sprouts, plus points from daily quests, achievements, and filling out the codex.

All together, it was just over ten thousand—a pretty solid chunk of change for him.

He checked the cabin progress: ten built, plus an acre each of peach and apple trees.

The radish sprouts were almost ready to pick, and the butter lettuce and chives were growing thick and green. The whole Wanping Wasteland was booming.

All the NPCs came up to say hi. He had six of them now, each with their own job, keeping everything running smoothly.

Just then, the system pinged again: "Congrats, host! You've unlocked the premium talent market. You can now hire management-type talent: professional managers. A professional manager can run the system when you're offline. That includes taking on available quests, assigning NPC jobs, and planning out the system's future. For big stuff, the manager will check in with you. Bottom line: a professional manager saves you a ton of hassle!"

Lu Yunqi went, "Whoa, there are actually professional managers? That NPC's awesome! If I hire one, does that mean I can slack off even harder?"

System Xiao Jiu popped out and said, "Yep, host, but you still gotta handle the big calls yourself—like expanding territory, recruiting troops, upgrading the system, stuff like that. But we're a good system, totally matching your chill lad vibe! You'll be free to go anywhere, do anything—how great is that?"

Lu Yunqi gave a satisfied "mm" and opened the premium talent market to pick out a manager.

The best manager he could hire right now was a Level 3 NPC, costing ninety points to unlock, with a monthly salary of ten thousand system coins.

The managers' names all sounded fancy, but after browsing for a while, he still couldn't pick what kind of talent he wanted.

Some were great at marketing, some at project planning, some at innovation stuff. Their tags all had stuff like professionalism, leadership, adaptability, and execution—the usual basics for a manager.

Lu Yunqi needed someone with solid leadership and execution, so he picked an NPC with over ninety percent in both.

The NPC's name was Du Ze. He looked about thirty, in a suit and black-rimmed glasses, with a sharp, smart look in his eyes—seemed pretty dependable.

The second the contract was signed, the NPC showed up, nodded, and said, "Master, I'm your professional manager, Du Ze. I'm taking over your system from here. I've detected your system is called the 'Idle Lad Planting System,' but really, it's a planting and infrastructure development system. Don't worry—as your professional steward, I'll manage your system like a pro. If you have any directions or suggestions, just let me know anytime."

After hearing that, Lu Yunqi thought—yeah, professional stuff really should be left to the pros!

Lu Yunqi asked, "So what do you suggest next? I have ten thousand points here—what should I buy? Or should I wait a bit longer and save up more points first?"

Du Ze replied, "Hold on, master—let me scan the worldview here."

Ten minutes later, Du Ze opened his eyes and said, "Master, I suggest you head out and recruit folks to settle in Wanping Wasteland right away. Each resident boosts prosperity by ten points and earns you ten points. You currently have ten wooden cabins, and each cabin can house at least three people, meaning you can recruit thirty people. Hit three hundred prosperity points, and your system upgrades to level two—at that level, the system can go on autopilot, fully run by a professional manager. After that, please keep building wooden cabins until you can accommodate three hundred people. With three hundred people, prosperity jumps by three thousand points, and the system hits level three. At level three, you can hire level-five NPCs, who can divert the Yu River and build a hydroelectric hub power station. Once that's done, master, you'll have access to electrical facilities, and your civilization level can directly rise to 0.5."

Lu Yunqi was puzzled but deeply impressed. Truly, professional matters should be left to professionals—he'd been grinding forever with the civilization level stuck at zero, and the moment the professional manager arrived, progress was made!

==========Author's Note:==========

Update! Please send flowers, my dear readers!

Our little Jie'er is quite a contradictory existence~