13: Chapter 13 I have nothing to repay you with but this body.

The silence of the market was broken by an irrepressible sobbing sound.

The two servants who had been holding the girl had already slipped away when Wang Tianba fled. The girl, having regained her freedom, did not stand up immediately. Instead, she remained kneeling where she was, looking at her savior. Tears fell like beads from a broken string, unable to be stopped.

The relief of surviving a disaster, the bewilderment about the future, and the gratitude toward the person before her, who seemed like a Heavenly God descending to earth—all these complex emotions intertwined, leaving her not knowing what else to do but cry.

Gu Yan walked up to her, bent down, reached out, and gently helped her up.

His movements were gentle, without a hint of frivolity, and his voice carried a soothing power: "It is alright now, miss. What is your name?"

Supported by him, the girl dared to stand up timidly. She was a head shorter than Gu Yan, her frail body still trembling slightly. She looked at Gu Yan with eyes that had been washed by tears, clear as a mountain spring, and said with a heavy nasal tone: "Rep... replying to my benefactor, this young woman... is surnamed Bai, named Linger."

"Bai Linger..." Gu Yan repeated the name to himself and nodded, "A good name."

He looked at Bai Linger and asked: "What are your plans for the future?"

Being asked this question, her face turned pale in an instant, and the tears that had just stopped welled up in her eyes again. Plans? What plans could she possibly have?

"I... I don't know..." Bai Linger's voice was filled with despair, "Benefactor, you do not know. My father... my father passed away from illness the day before yesterday. In order to pay for his treatment, our family... our family is left with nothing. My mother... my mother said that the family could no longer afford to feed me, so... so she made me come out and sell myself to exchange for three taels of silver to buy my father a thin coffin..."

As she spoke, she broke down in sobs, recounting her tragic life story.

She was originally an ordinary farm girl from a village near the mountain outside the town. Her father was a hunter and her mother was a farm woman. Although their life was poor, it was stable. But half a year ago, her father broke his leg while hunting in the mountains and fell ill, bedridden. This exhausted all the family's savings, and in the end, he passed away.

With no other options, her mother came up with this method of selling her daughter.

"Today... today I offended the young master of the Wang family..." Bai Linger's body trembled even more violently, "If I go back, the Wang family will definitely go to the village to cause trouble for my family, and my mother... my mother will definitely beat me to death..."

"The world is so big... yet there is no place for Linger to stay..."

As she spoke, her body, which had just straightened, went limp again. She bowed gracefully to Gu Yan, her forehead striking the bluestone slab heavily.

"Benefactor, for saving my life, Linger has nothing to repay you with!"

"Linger does not ask for status. I only ask to be by your side, to be a slave or a maid, to serve tea and pour water, to work like an ox or a horse, in order to repay your kindness in saving my life today!"

Her voice was not loud, but every word was filled with blood and tears, full of determination. This was the last straw that a desperate girl could grasp. She was betting her entire future on the kindness of the man before her.

The onlookers around let out sighs of sympathy. They could all tell that this girl was from a good family, just driven to a dead end. Now that she had offended the Wang family, it was likely that no one in all of Luoyun Town would dare to take her in.

Gu Yan looked quietly at Bai Linger kneeling before him. The girl's spine was straight, but her frail shoulders were trembling uncontrollably, like a blade of grass stubbornly growing in a storm—fragile, yet resilient.

Her request was reasonable. If you save someone, you should see it through to the end. Since he had intervened today, he could not just watch her fall into the fire pit again.

Moreover... in Gu Yan's mind, the System's lazy voice sounded.

[Ding—Detected a high-quality target character meeting the criteria for "Taking a Concubine".]

[Name: Bai Linger.]

[Aptitude Rating: Mortal Grade Medium Grade.]

[Luck Rating: Mortal Grade High Grade (Although from a poor background, her destiny is pure and she has the appearance of a wife who brings prosperity to her husband).]

[Comprehensive Evaluation: C+. It is recommended that the host take her into the harem as a high-quality candidate for expanding the family line in the Early Stage.]

Gu Yan understood in his heart. He looked at Bai Linger, who was still kneeling on the ground, bowing her head. He spoke slowly. His voice was not loud, but it clearly drowned out all the noise in the market.

"There is no need to be a slave or a maid."

Upon hearing this, Bai Linger's body trembled violently, and a huge sense of loss and despair welled up in her heart. Benefactor... is he going to reject her?

The onlookers around also thought he was going to act like an ordinary wealthy master, saying a few polite phrases like "Please rise, miss, you must not do this," and then giving some silver to send her away.

However, Gu Yan's next sentence made everyone present widen their eyes in an instant. They heard him continue in a calm and unquestionable tone: "My Gu Family does not lack servants. But, we do lack a Second Wife. Are you willing?"

The entire market instantly fell into an eerie silence. Everyone seemed to have been hit by a freezing spell, staring blankly at the two people in the center. What did they just hear? A... a Second Wife?

This old immortal who looked so ethereal, was he actually taking a concubine on the street? And, he was taking a farm girl he didn't even know, one who was selling herself? This... this was too outrageous!

Bai Linger was even more dizzy from this happiness that had fallen from the sky. Her mind was a blank slate. What... what did she just hear? A Second Wife? Not a maid, not a slave, but... a wife?

She thought she was hallucinating, and she suddenly lifted her head, looking at Gu Yan with eyes that still had teardrops hanging from them, full of disbelief.

There was not a hint of joking on Gu Yan's face. His gaze was calm and sincere. He was not giving charity, nor was he teasing her. He was very seriously extending an invitation to her... one that would change her life forever.

A huge ecstasy, like a mountain flood and tsunami, instantly submerged all her sorrow and despair. She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but her throat felt like it was blocked by something, and she couldn't say a single word.

In the end, all her emotions turned into the most primal action. She bowed deeply to Gu Yan again. Thump! Thump! Thump!

This kowtow was more forceful and more devout than any before it. Her forehead quickly became red and swollen, seeping blood, but she seemed unaware.

"Linger... Linger is willing!" "Linger is willing!!" "Thank... thank you, Master! Thank you, Master!"

Her voice carried a tremble of joy mixed with tears, incoherent, yet it displayed her current mood vividly. From Hell to Heaven, it was only a matter of an instant.

"Get up." Gu Yan helped her up again, took out a clean handkerchief from his bosom, and handed it to her, "Wipe your face."

Afterwards, he ignored the onlookers whose jaws had dropped to the ground, and pulling the still dazed Bai Linger, walked out of the market.

As he walked, he said to the girl beside him: "I will have people handle your father's funeral and bury him properly. As for your mother, I will also send enough silver to ensure she has no worries about food and clothing for the rest of her life. From now on, you are a member of the Gu Family, and no one will ever dare to bully you again."

His voice was gentle and firm. Bai Linger followed behind him, step by step. She kept her head down, clutching the handkerchief that still held the man's body heat, feeling the warmth coming from his broad palm. Her heart was filled with an unprecedented sense of security.

Looking at the tall back before her, in her eyes, besides gratitude, there was even more... a maiden's adoration and dependence.