"I bought all of this, legally and legitimately. I didn’t steal or rob anyone. As for where the Star Coins came from, that’s none of your business."

Jiang Yunnuan replied nonchalantly and walked over to the mountain of packages. She was instantly vexed.

’I wasn’t paying attention when I bought all this. I can’t believe I ordered so much. If I have to unbox all of it, won’t my hands start cramping?’

Her gaze shifted and suddenly met a pair of deep blue eyes. Jiang Yunnuan froze for a moment. The memory of forcefully kissing him belatedly surfaced in her mind, and she couldn’t help but feel a pang of guilt and unease.

She cleared her throat, forced herself to look away calmly, and issued an order with an air of self-righteousness.

"The three of you, come help me unbox these packages. You handle the big ones; I’ll take the small ones. Oh, and remember to carry them to my room after you’re done."

"Tch, who do you think you’re ordering around?!"

Si Xie sneered and turned to walk toward the villa.

’This damn woman! She can forget about ordering me around like a slave. If I ever listen to her again, I’m no better than a dog!’

Seeing this, Jiang Yunnuan gritted her teeth in anger.

’That detestable bastard, always defying me, his Contract Master. Don’t I have my pride and dignity as a Contract Master to uphold?’

Her face hardened as she threatened, "If you don’t know how to be a proper Contractor and don’t want a peaceful Contract Termination, then I’m afraid that after three months, I can also choose a forced Contract Termination."

There are two types of Contract Termination: peaceful and forced. A peaceful termination requires mutual consent and has no adverse effects on either party afterward.

A forced one, however, is different. Regardless of whether the Contract Master or the Contractor initiates a forced termination, only the Contractor will be harmed.

After a forced Contract Termination, the Contractor will suffer a backlash from the Power of Contract. Their Cultivation will plummet instantly, with no possibility of ever improving again. Furthermore, they will be deemed "unqualified" by the Imperial System.

Once a Beastman is labeled as unqualified, they will never be assigned another Contract Master, will be barred from accepting missions, and will have their status downgraded from elite citizen to slave. It’s a fate worse than death.

"Damn woman, is threatening all you know? Believe it or not, I could crush you right now!"

Si Xie’s eyes narrowed, so furious he was practically breathing fire.

Hearing this, Jiang Yunnuan became equally incensed and let out a cold laugh.

"Then let’s have a contest. Let’s see if you can crush me faster than I can force a Contract Termination. And let me remind you, the moment the contract is forcibly terminated, your Cultivation will plummet. As for me? The Imperial System will simply provide me with a fourth Contractor."

’This bastard has a rebellious streak a mile wide, opposing me at every turn. He has absolutely none of the self-discipline a Contractor should have. For a split second, I really wanted to just throw caution to the wind and force the Contract Termination.’

’I’d love to see how he plans on crushing me after his Cultivation plummets.’

But then she thought of the blood feud from her past life and gritted her teeth, forcing herself to endure. To get her revenge, she couldn’t do without this bastard. ’Impatience spoils great plans,’ she told herself. ’I can’t be impulsive.’

After repeatedly drilling this into her head, her anger gradually subsided. Jiang Yunnuan turned her head and shot a cold look at Ming Ye and Fu Yuan, who were standing on the steps.

"And you two? Do you plan to form a united front with him, or are you on my side?"

Ming Ye: "..."

Fu Yuan: "..."

’We didn’t do anything, and we didn’t say anything! How did we get dragged into this?’

Ming Ye raised an eyebrow at Si Xie, giving him a look that said, "You’re on your own." Then, he silently walked down the steps to unbox the packages.

This blatant betrayal nearly made Si Xie die from anger. His fists clenched so tightly his knuckles nearly shattered, and his gaze turned dark and terrifying.

Jiang Yunnuan, on the other hand, was delighted. Her gloomy mood vanished, and the corners of her lips curved into a slight smile.

’Hah, so the three of them aren’t a completely united front after all. At least some of them know how to read the situation. That’s good, very good.’

’As long as they aren’t sworn to stand together, I have plenty of ways to handle them.’

She looked at Fu Yuan next. Receiving her gaze, Fu Yuan cleared his throat and also walked down the steps to unbox packages.

Si Xie: "..."

"You two spineless cowards! Can’t you have a little backbone? Why are you so determined to be her slave?"

His brothers in misfortune, who should have been his allies against a common enemy, had turned on him one after another. Si Xie’s eyes were red with fury, and he was on the verge of coughing up blood as he couldn’t help but curse them.

However, Ming Ye and Fu Yuan pretended not to hear anything, keeping their heads down and unboxing the packages with speed and focus.

’Hah, obeying one’s Contract Master is what every Contractor is supposed to do. How is that spineless?’ 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

’Across the entire Empire, which Beastman doesn’t obey their Contract Master’s every command?’

’There’s no shame in submitting to a Contract Master, okay?’

’It’s the ones who don’t obey their Contract Masters who end up with their ashes scattered to the winds or become slaves and cannon fodder after their Cultivation plummets.’

’Since this woman said she’d agree to a peaceful Contract Termination in three months, what’s the harm in giving her that time?’

’If she dares to go back on her word then, it won’t be too late to fight to the bitter end. Why insist on courting death right now?’

Jiang Yunnuan was extremely pleased with their reaction. She lifted her chin and looked smugly at the bristling man.

"See that? Still think you can crush me after your Cultivation plummets?"

Si Xie: "..."

Her smug look, like a petty villain who had gotten their way, made him burn with rage. He ground his molars so hard they nearly cracked. However, something even more infuriating was yet to come.

"How about this? I’ll give you a chance. As long as you apologize, admit you were wrong, and obediently go unbox the packages, I’ll let bygones be bygones. How about it?"

"And if I don’t?"

he retorted defiantly. Hearing this, Jiang Yunnuan’s eyes narrowed and she sneered.

"Hah, then I’ll just have to replace you with an obedient Contractor. After all, I don’t particularly like having someone defy me every single day."

She expected him to hesitate for a moment, but to her surprise, the words had barely left her mouth when his apology rang out. It was prompt, but tinged with the distinct sound of gritted teeth.

"I’m sorry. I was wrong. I’ll go unbox them now. Is that good enough for you?"

Jiang Yunnuan: "..."

’He caved just like that?’

’What happened to all that backbone?’

And so, under her astonished gaze, the silver-haired, fox-eared man turned and joined the unboxing crew.

’Well, at least the bastard knows how to take an out when it’s offered. He’s not a complete idiot.’ Jiang Yunnuan couldn’t be bothered to antagonize him further. She bent down, picked up a few small packages, and headed into the villa.

The moment she left, Si Xie immediately whipped his head around to glare sinisterly at the two men beside him, his eyes practically screaming murder.

"Traitors!"

Ming Ye: "..."

Fu Yuan: "..."

"When did we ever say we were forming a united front with you?"

’Since there was no united front, how could they be considered traitors?’

As soon as Fu Yuan said this, Ming Ye immediately nodded in agreement.

’That’s right, I never said that either!’

"You’re the one who made a big deal out of nothing and insisted on causing trouble. Why blame us?"

Fu Yuan chuckled and continued, "Look at you. After all that fuss, didn’t you end up obediently apologizing, admitting you were wrong, and coming over to unbox packages anyway?"

’So really, what was the point?’

Si Xie: "..."

’Fine. So *I* was the one making a big deal out of nothing. *I* was the one causing trouble. We’ll see how long these two can put up with that damn woman!’