Why Are Your Ears Red?

Silence immediately filled the study upon hearing those words.

Anya, sitting on the sofa, was visibly stunned, her calm golden eyes widening in shock.

She turned her head and stared at her father in disbelief.

Was this how her family recruited geniuses?!

Jiang Lin, meanwhile, wore a strange expression.

Those words carried different weights depending on the situation and the person saying them.

When Salas had mentioned it before, it was just a casual remark between the two of them.

But now, the City Lord had specifically called Jiang Lin here to discuss it; this was a formal negotiation.

Crucially, with Anya right there, the City Lord's words easily suggested that Jiang Lin was being asked to marry into the family for Anya's sake.

However, Jiang Lin had enough self-awareness to know that the person the City Lord intended for him to marry could not be Anya.

Given the strength he had shown so far, there was absolutely no need for the City Lord to sacrifice his beloved daughter.

Moreover, even if his talent was off the charts, given the City Lord’s power and the current stability of the Castrot family, there was no need to proactively trade his daughter's future for an uncertain prospect.

"May I ask what you mean by this, City Lord?"

Jiang Lin remained calm and composed.

The City Lord observed Jiang Lin's expression before speaking.

"You are indeed a very talented paladin, but your background is admittedly poor. This will limit the speed of your future development and might even prevent you from going further.

"However, the Castrot family can offer you an opportunity. If you are willing to marry into the family, you will become one of us. Don't be fooled by the fact that I am a mere Boulder City Lord; our family still has a significant say in the entire kingdom. Our main branch at the capital is one of the strongest families there.

"While the Temple's systems allow many commoner adventurers the chance to rise, in this ancient kingdom, there are still many things that can only be accessed through status and birth."

Although Jiang Lin felt like rolling his eyes at the phrase "mere Boulder City Lord," he listened seriously.

"I understand what you're saying, City Lord. However, could you please elaborate on the specific details regarding marrying into the family?"

When Dane heard this, he knew there was room for negotiation.

Without a visible move, a teacup was pushed in front of Jiang Lin. Simultaneously, the teapot on the desk floated up, pouring a steaming cup of tea for him.

"Try this tea sent over by the Kohlst family. It's said this tea only grows on their family lands. In Qinghe County, their influence is the most vast."

Jiang Lin accepted it.

"Thank you, City Lord."

At the same time, he began to wonder what the City Lord meant by this.

Was he trying to show off the family's extensive connections?

He took a shallow sip.

A refreshing sensation spread through his mouth, followed by a rush to his head that made his mental power feel more focused.

His eyes lit up.

"Good tea."

If this could be sold outside, plenty of students pulling all-nighters would scramble to buy it.

The City Lord smiled.

"This tea has a refreshing effect and helps one maintain concentration for a long time without any side effects. Anya always drinks this when she stays up late. If you like it, you can take a few tins with you when you leave."

Jiang Lin thanked the City Lord again.

He felt the City Lord was quite easy to talk to; despite Jiang Lin being a rank-0 nobody with no background, the man didn't put on any airs.

"Alright, now let's talk about the matter of marrying into the family."

Jiang Lin sat up straight.

"Salas should have told you before that if you marry into the family, it would be into a side branch.

"This is unavoidable. After all, members of our direct line often need to engage in political marriages with other families. For geniuses without a background like yourself, the family regulations state you can only marry into a side branch."

Pausing for a moment, the City Lord continued.

"Of course, if you demonstrate even more astonishing talent and potential in the future, marrying into the direct line is not out of the question."

The City Lord didn't mention Anya, but the implication was clear.

Jiang Lin nodded, indicating his understanding.

"Then what benefits would marrying into the family bring me, and what would be the restrictions?"

The City Lord produced a long roll of parchment and said:

"This contains a detailed explanation. These are our family's requirements and terms for all members who marry in."

Jiang Lin took the parchment and saw a long list of text and regulations.

"To summarize: after marrying into the Castrot family, your surname must be changed to Castrot. For a talent like you who is still a minor and in a growth phase, there's no rush to choose a spouse. The family will provide a basic monthly stipend of 30 gold coins.

"Furthermore, the family can provide you with breathing techniques corresponding to each stage of your growth, as well as the right to learn one high-tier skill or lower per month.

"Salas mentioned to you before that our Boulder City branch has a low-level Sword Breathing Technique that you can use at rank-1.

"If you perform exceptionally well later on, we can also use the family's connections to help you get in touch with several of the kingdom's sword saints, allowing you to become their disciple."

Hearing this, Jiang Lin temporarily set down the long list of terms and asked:

"And besides those? There should be more than just that, right?"

Seeing that Jiang Lin wasn't satisfied with just these benefits, the City Lord continued:

"I won't even mention the implicit benefits of being a member of the Castrot family for now. Besides the basics, there are advanced benefits. However, like contacting a sword saint for you, these require you to demonstrate sufficient talent.

"For instance, your stipend investment could increase to 100 or even 10,000 gold coins a month. The limit for skill books you can learn from the family library could go from one per month to unlimited.

"There are also opportunities to enter rare secret realms and eligibility for certain high-tier magic academies. As long as you show the corresponding talent, the family can provide it all.

"If you want to know the specific criteria for judging talent, you can check the detailed terms on the parchment in your hand."

Jiang Lin fell silent.

The City Lord gave him time to think.

After another sip of tea, Jiang Lin asked:

"Then what is the price? It can't possibly just be changing my surname."

The City Lord smiled slightly.

"Of course not. There is no such thing as a free lunch in this world. The family's investment in you naturally expects a return.

"After you graduate from a middle magic academy or reach the age of 25, you will need to work for the family for at least 10 to 50 years. The exact duration will be calculated based on the investment the family has made in you, and your specific post and duties will be assigned by the family at that time.

"Additionally, when your spouse reaches marriageable age, you must father at least two children for the family. If you don't wish to raise them, you can leave them to the family to raise for you.

"Furthermore, if the family faces an emergency or a crisis of survival, you must return to the family regardless of where you are to help us weather the storm."

Jiang Lin stopped speaking.

The benefits were tempting, but the conditions were far too harsh.

The last two were actually fine—marrying someone and having children is normal, and it makes sense to help the family that supported you during a crisis.

However, working for 10 to 50 years was something Jiang Lin couldn't accept.

After all, the Castrot family was a very powerful entity, so it was normal for their contracts to be predatory.

Many people would kill for such an opportunity and still not get it.

Jiang Lin asked:

"I can accept the latter two, but the working duration..."

The City Lord chuckled.

"You're still young. Based on Anya's age, you should be around 15. Ten years seems like a very long time to you. But once you're older and have experienced more, you'll realize ten years go by very fast. It's basically over in the blink of an eye."

Jiang Lin remained silent.

He did have some experience with that feeling; the older he got, the faster time seemed to pass. Often, it felt like the year had just begun before he realized it was already over.

"City Lord, is there no other way to repay the family?"

Hearing this, the City Lord said with some regret:

"Alas, as part of such a massive family, there are rules set hundreds of years ago that even I, as a branch head, have no power to change."

Jiang Lin set down his teacup and rolled the parchment back up, speaking respectfully:

"Thank you for your appreciation, City Lord. However, I am still young and should focus on my studies. I won't be considering marriage or such matters for now."

Knowing the conversation had ended in failure, the City Lord wasn't angry. He simply maintained his faint smile.

"That is quite a pity. If you become interested in this later, Student Jiang Lin, you can always come back to chat with me."

Jiang Lin gave a slight bow.

"Thank you for your concern, City Lord."

"Anya, go grab a box of the tea from the Kohlst family for Student Jiang Lin. Be safe on your way back to school."

Anya stood up from the sofa.

"Yes, Father."

When Jiang Lin heard the City Lord wanted to give him tea, he hurriedly offered a polite refusal.

"Oh, City Lord, there's no need to go to such expense. Such fine tea should remain in your hands to be put to its best use..."

Seeing Jiang Lin refuse, the City Lord was surprised, but he quickly realized there was a subtext to Jiang Lin's words.

"Haha, good tea needs to be drunk by someone who understands it for its value to be realized..."

Having spent years visiting relatives during New Year in his previous life—transitioning from receiving red envelopes to giving them—Jiang Lin was well-versed in this back-and-forth social dance.

Eventually, under the City Lord's "insistence," he "reluctantly" accepted the kind gesture.

After Jiang Lin and Anya left, the City Lord leaned back in his chair.

This Jiang Lin... was not simple...

As an orphan with no background, he knew so much about social etiquette. His fake refusal of the tea gift was something many adults wouldn't even think to do.

This world didn't have the same set of social customs as Jiang Lin's previous life.

Thus, the City Lord had never seen such a maneuver.

He stroked his chin in thought.

In his eyes, Jiang Lin's final refusal was the highlight of the meeting.

First, the fake refusal demonstrated humility and a lack of greed. Similar to his earlier excuse of focusing on studies to decline the marriage proposal, it prevented him from appearing overly ambitious or opportunistic.

Second, by accepting after a bit of back-and-forth, he didn't make the City Lord lose face and showed he appreciated the friendly gesture. Each refusal provided a point for the City Lord to respond, making the City Lord feel more hospitable and deepening their bond.

Finally, through this exchange, the two had established an emotional tie, transforming a pure exchange of interests into a senior's appreciation for a junior. It showed that while Jiang Lin refused to marry into the family, he was still willing to maintain a good relationship with the Castrot family.

It could even serve as a foundation for a long-term relationship.

At least in the City Lord's eyes, Jiang Lin's performance was a masterclass in social grace, far exceeding the understanding of most ordinary people.

On the other side, Jiang Lin was completely unaware that his habitual politeness had left such an impression on the City Lord.

He wouldn't act like this with peers, but facing a powerful elder like the City Lord, he subconsciously defaulted to his previous life's perspective.

You couldn't just accept a gift from an elder immediately.

As for why he hadn't refused Temple Master Cecilia's two skill books earlier—he was purely worried that if she actually believed his polite refusal, she might actually take them back!

In short, the City Lord's gift was trivial and it wouldn't matter if it were taken back, but the Temple Master's gift was just too much to lose.

On the way back to school, Anya and Jiang Lin walked side by side.

Anya seemed to think of something and suddenly turned to Jiang Lin.

"Did my cousin ask you about marrying into the family before too?"

Finally free of the City Lord's powerful aura, Jiang Lin replied easily:

"Yeah, why?"

Anya looked at Jiang Lin and said seriously:

"I didn't know the family's method for recruiting outside geniuses was to make them marry in, so I mentioned you to my family several times..."

Jiang Lin smiled.

"For a great family like yours, only those who truly become internal members can be fully trusted."

Anya nodded.

"I'm glad you understand."

Jiang Lin looked at the girl recognized as the school beauty. Her expression was complicated, seemingly embarrassed by the marriage talk her father had brought up.

It was understandable. Recalling how Anya had told him she "mentioned him to her father" and "her father wanted to meet him," only for the first thing her father brought up to be "marrying into the family."

It would be easy to imagine a scenario where a wealthy young lady had a crush on someone, felt too shy to say it, and after telling her father, the overbearing father directly tried to force the guy to marry into the family.

Just the thought that Jiang Lin might be thinking that made Anya want to curl her toes so hard she could dig a hole through the floor to hide in.

Jiang Lin joked:

"Haha, when your father first mentioned it, it really sounded like he wanted me to marry into your household."

Anya's expression tightened instantly. Her heart felt strange, her toes curled fiercely inside her shoes, and she turned her face away slightly.

Then, Jiang Lin's sharp eyes noticed a flush of crimson appearing on the fair tips of Anya's ears.

Huh?

Was she... blushing?