The door opened.
A green light shone from Fang Xuan, and a rich healing power began repairing every injury in his body.
A moment later, a beautiful melody rang out, restoring the mental power that had nearly run dry.
"You..."
Ye Qinru came to stand before Fang Xuan. She closed her eyes for a moment, then sighed and spoke softly.
"You win."
At last, Fang Xuan's actions had moved Ye Qinru.
No matter how much she doubted him, there was no faking what he had done.
Even if he had been putting on an act, she accepted it.
After all, keeping up the act to this extent took real dedication. She would gladly be fooled.
"I didn't win. I only did what I thought I should."
Fang Xuan's voice was a little hoarse. Over the past seven days, he had thought about many things.
He had wanted to give up more than once, but in the end, he had held on.
The funny thing was, what had finally kept him going wasn't some sense of responsibility, nor some long-winded pep talk he'd given himself.
It was just the thought, "Since I'm already here."
That was right—just those four simple words. It was absurd, and yet completely real.
He couldn't bring himself to say something as ridiculous as love at first sight, and he was even less worthy of talking about love.
So in the end, those four words were all that had kept him going.
It was both practical and absurd, just like his first meeting with Ye Lingling.
"You're... a good man. Lingling was right about you. I was wrong."
After Ye Qinru said this, her expression eased completely.
Perhaps in all these years, there had never been a moment when she'd felt more at ease.
"I have one last question for you. I hope you'll answer honestly."
Fang Xuan nodded.
Everyone standing nearby wondered what Ye Qinru was going to ask.
"Do you know that someone who possesses the Nine Heart Begonia Martial Soul can only have one child?"
"And that child will always be a girl."
"If you and Lingling were together, would you accept that?"
The moment Ye Qinru finished speaking, the crowd erupted.
Everyone knew that only two Nine Star Begonias could exist in the world, but no one had ever heard of this.
Now Ye Qinru had announced it in front of everyone. Her purpose was obvious.
Marrying Ye Lingling could mean that he would never have a son.
In this era, having no heir was something almost no one could accept.
It was the same for men and women, no matter their status.
Ye Qinru watched Fang Xuan, quietly waiting for his answer.
In truth, she had made the whole thing up. The Nine Heart Begonia possessor before her had been her father.
It was true that the children of someone with the Nine Star Begonia Martial Soul were very likely to be girls, but it wasn't guaranteed.
Nor could they only have one child. It was simply very easy for the children to die young.
There had even been cases of people having two or more children, such as when the children inherited the other parent's Martial Soul.
She had brought it up only to test Fang Xuan one last time.
"What will he choose?"
Ye Qinru was curious, and so was everyone else.
But Fang Xuan gave an answer none of them had expected.
"What's wrong with having a daughter? I like daughters. Besides, I know what I'm like. If I had a son, I'd be afraid I might beat him to death."
His words were wry and carried a hint of humor, yet they sounded remarkably sincere.
Fang Xuan wasn't bothered by the idea of having no heir. Besides, he was aiming for immortality. Would having a son—or not having one—really make much difference to him?
It wouldn't make any difference at all. So from the start, Ye Qinru's test had never been a problem for him.
"Good lad! No wonder you're my disciple. You've got the makings of a real man."
Dugu Bo's laughter came from the side, and a moment later, he appeared beside Fang Xuan.
He looked at Fang Xuan, growing more pleased with him by the second.
"Not bad. A real man. I like young people like you."
"Madam, my disciple's a fine young man, isn't he? Your daughter wouldn't be getting the short end of the stick."
Dugu Bo's sudden appearance startled everyone present.
"If you don't want him, I'll take him back and make him my granddaughter's husband."
As he spoke, he started to drag Fang Xuan away. That was the last straw for Ye Qinru.
She didn't care that he was a Titled Douluo. She reached right over and tried to snatch Fang Xuan back.
"Who said I didn't want him? You've already had your fill of taking advantage. You think you can just leave?"
Like a mother hen protecting her chick, Ye Qinru wrested Fang Xuan from Dugu Bo and guarded him fiercely behind her.
Between the two of them tugging him back and forth, Fang Xuan, already weak, promptly passed out.
Still, thanks to Ye Qinru's last words, he finally dared to let his tightly wound mind relax.
"Looks like I made it."
With Fang Xuan's collapse, the matter had finally come to an end.
Xue Qinghe watched quietly from a distance, his heart a jumble of emotions.
At that moment, he felt an urge to rush over and snatch Fang Xuan away. Perhaps he believed that only a man like Fang Xuan was worthy of him.
Fang Xuan remained unconscious for several days, and while he was out, people continued talking about him.
In fact, the buzz only grew more intense.
The biggest reason was that Dugu Bo had started stirring up trouble again, saying that anyone who wanted to marry his granddaughter would have to kneel at his door for seven days, just like Fang Xuan.
That nearly drove Yu Tianheng to despair. Dugu Bo was obviously calling him out.
Fang Xuan's way of winning the beauty's heart wasn't something just anyone could imitate.
Seven days on his knees, without using Soul Power, and without a drop of food or water.
With a stunt like that, you could try it at just about anyone's doorstep and be all but guaranteed to succeed.
It was an all-or-nothing move, with not a shred of bluffing in it.
The thing was, anyone could really copy it. The method was simple enough for anyone to try, but almost no one dared.
It was a feat with no precedent—and no one would ever pull it off again.
Yu Tianheng was genuinely impressed, as were all the other men who pursued Ye Lingling.
In a situation like this, anyone who dared to claim he wasn't impressed had better go kneel for seven days first.
From then on, Fang Xuan's name became a legend throughout Heaven Dou City.
It wasn't until the fourth day that Fang Xuan finally stirred awake.
"Well, look who's finally awake—my dear son-in-law."
He had only just woken up, his eyes not even fully open, when he heard Ye Qinru's voice beside him.
Fang Xuan's eyes flew open. Ye Qinru sat beside him, smiling at him.
Wait. Did she just call me her son-in-law?
"Phew. So it wasn't a dream."
He let out a long breath. He'd thought the whole thing had been a dream.
But looking at things now, it seemed he hadn't dreamed it after all.
Just as Fang Xuan relaxed, he caught sight of Ye Qinru fiddling with something in her hand.
It looked like a little purple mushroom.
Wait—why was the mushroom blowing bubbles?!