Engagement

Jean thought meticulously on what he wanted to receive as a payment. Money would be nice, but he'd have to ask for a lot of it to be able to afford rare plants and treasures. Asking for alchemy ingredients or cultivation treasures seemed like the best idea. The He family was the largest family in this city - blue pond city - so the second elder was bound to have many treasures.

If I can get my hands on enough alchemy ingredients to succeed a few times, I'll sell them for enough money to get more ingredients, for more pills, for more money, and the cycle will never end! I'll have unlimited wealth from pills alone, and countless treasures from being a divine doctor! It's a shame though. He Sheng's daughter is such a beauty! If I had a wife like that, I wouldn't need anyone else! Too bad I need ingredients more than marriage.

"!!!"

In that moment, he realised the best thing to ask for in order to gain the most - He Xue's hand in marriage! If he could enter the He family through marriage, he could have all of the second elder's money, connections and treasures, and a beautiful wife to top it off!

"Have you made up your mind?"

"I'll take you up on your offer! I want to marry your daughter!"

"Excellent! We've been searching for a suitable partner for her, and a fine young man, such as yourself, would make for the perfect candidate!"

Just like Jean, He Sheng had ulterior motives when betrothing his only child to a random man off the streets calling himself a "divine doctor". He wanted more power and wealth - anyone would want such things. He wasn't content with having to bow before others. He didn't want to be forever known as the second elder of the He family. He wanted to be in charge. And Jean was the most optimal person he could have as a son-in-law: wandering nobody who could treat a patient no other doctor could - a true divine doctor. With no background or apparent wealth, He Sheng would offer his daughter and let him join his family. Realising the wealth it would bring, if Jean was as smart as He Sheng expected, he'd agree. Using his connections to garner more popularity for the divine doctor, He Sheng would indirectly gain a lot of power as the father-in-law of such a figure - enough to become the head of the He family and make ties with the new Feng Imperial family.

"Let's make it official then and pick an auspicious date for the ceremony, future father-in-law!"

"Hahaha! My thoughts exactly, future son-in law!"

Both of them laughed wickedly, almost villainously. They knew they were using and being used by each other in a mutually beneficial relationship and wanted to make it official as soon as possible. Aside from the scheming, Jean did indeed want a beautiful woman as his companion, and He Sheng did indeed want a good man for his daughter.

"Wait! I think you're forgetting someone!"

A young man, dressed in lavish clothing and holding a fan that covered his mouth, barged into the room and interrupted the marriage discussions. They both turned to face the door, and He Sheng's brows dropped. With clenched fists, and grinding teeth, fury filled his eyes.

"You bastard! You dare set foot in this place again, how presumptuous!"

"Why would I not dare to! If it weren't for your daughter, I wouldn't have given you, a mere He family elder, any face!"

He Sheng extended a fist to punch him, but was swiftly blocked by the young man's fan. The qi of the both of them clashed and dissipated. The young man was strong - far stronger than Jean, Xiang, or He Sheng.

"How'd you like that! I'm already at the peak of Qi Condensing and I'll soon break through to Foundation Building!"

"!!!"

"No one is a better match for Xue Er than I am!"

"Father-in-law! Why is there a barking dog interrupting our conversation?"

"He's the young master of the Shen family - Shen Peizhi! His Shen family became the second largest in the city! They worked with thugs and criminals to get their power and wealth. A truly desspicable bunch of people."

"And what's this talk about cultivation?"

"He's the top cultivator of the younger generation in the city! And because of that, he dares covet my daughter. He's pestered us for a year now."

"So you do know who I am! Be obedient and give me Xue Er, old man!"

"With strong martial arts, and a powerful backing, no wonder he's so arrogant. But with only that measly amount of strength, he dare bark in front of me? Hahahahaha, hilarious!"

Falling for Jean's obvious provocation, Shen Peizhi's face scrunched up in anger and Jean laughed even harder, gasping for air.

"Only a second stage and you think you're better than me? A nobody, like you? Trash!"

"I could beat an insect like you with one hand!"

"What a bluff! Very well! In three months time, the Mysterious Ocean sect will hold a competition in every city in the country. The winners can become an outer disciple. At that time, I'll teach you a lesson and humiliate you in front of everyone!"

Storming out the mansion, the whole building was quiet again. He Sheng paced up and down his room worriedly.

"This is bad!"

"What's wrong?"

"The Mysterious Ocean Sect is the largest sect in Azure Lake Kingdom! If he became a disciple, our He family wouldn't be his match!"

"Don't worry, even though I haven't learnt to attack with qi right now, the same won't be said for three months later!"

If he's that confident, I'll believe him. But only because he's a genius divine doctor, and my future son-in-law. Normally, it would take years to reach Shen Peizhi's current level, but he looks to have something up his sleeves.

"Boy, how many meridians have you opened?"

"You ready to hear? 69! And I only started cultivating recently!

"NICE!"

He's a genius! There's a high chance that he can win! If I pour all my resources to grow his power to the fullest, he'll be a force to be reckoned with!

Wow. So that's what a "young master" is like in real life! How exciting! They are as annoying and arrogant as they are in the novels! With my cultivation speed and techniques from earth, I could beat him with one finger, let alone one hand! But what martial arts should I use?

It was nearly night time, and Jean had to head back to Xiang's mansion. He Sheng offered to let him live with them, and he excepted but starting the next day.

*** At Xiang's mansion ***

"Jean, you're back! What did you do and how much did you earn?"

"Brother Xiang! I've got a fiancée now! I'll be living with her family from now on so it turns out I can't stay with you.

"How lucky. That's fine. We can still be brothers though, right?"

"Of course! You're my benefactor! If you ever need my help, I'll gladly help!"

They went to sleep, and Jean left in the morning. By the time he was at the He mansion, he had decided what skills to learn and what pill recipes to try. Using He Sheng's rare plants and money, he had a good pill furnace, a beginner's guide to alchemy book and enough ingredients to fail once or twice. Alchemy was hard, so even if everyone knew how to do it, not many people would actually be able to do it. Plus, like cultivation techniques and skills, pill recipes were an alchemist's life so they wouldn't share it out willingly. If he made enough to buy ingredients with some pills left over, he could sell some and use the rest to aid in his cultivation.

He found the He mansion's courtyard which would be his place of training for both pill refining, and cultivation. It was almost three times as big as Xiang's and contained a small pond with a few goldfish. With techniques, skills, ingredients and a place to train, he could now start.