The worse you are, the stronger you become: My summoned beast is a photographer.

[This wild boar has never eaten fine chaff!]

Ming Luochen had just started daydreaming in his mind when his wife glared at him. That glare was both fierce and sweet, as if to say:

You're the wild boar.

Ming Luochen admitted defeat, shrank his neck, and didn't say anything more. He turned around and went to refine the salt.

Refining salt is troublesome, mainly due to filtering impurities. Gauze alone isn't enough; it can only filter out insoluble substances, leaving out the water-soluble bitter impurities. Unfortunately, he had limited materials on hand. He racked his brains and finally remembered a traditional method he'd seen before—using soy milk for simple adsorption and filtration. The protein in soy milk can adsorb impurities and react chemically with toxic substances. After filtering several times, a relatively pure salt could be obtained.

After working for most of the day, a faint smell of bean curd lingered in the kitchen. As darkness fell, the candlelight flickered on the stove, and Ming Luochen finally extracted ten pounds of refined salt. The salt was much whiter than before, and the grains were finer. Upon closer inspection, the bitterness had almost completely disappeared, replaced by a subtle bean aroma.

He tasted a little—it was purely salty on the tip of his tongue; the bitterness had been completely gone.

Ming Luochen let out a long breath, as if a burden had been lifted from his shoulders.

Valerius, who had been squatting nearby watching, couldn't wait any longer. He eagerly reached out, pinched off a handful, and put it in his mouth. His eyes lit up, and he looked at Marina with delight, his voice rising several decibels: "The bitterness is really gone! This salt tastes so good! You should try some!"

Marina tasted a little, the salt dissolving on her tongue, and her eyes widened slightly. Her gaze towards Ming Luochen changed completely, now filled with the delighted surprise of someone examining a treasure: "If we sold these, I wonder how much money we could make." She paused, then exclaimed sincerely, "Aura, you've really struck gold!"

As the person in charge of the Raven Crest family's finances, she knew all too well what salt without bitterness meant—those nobles would definitely scramble to buy it, sparing no expense. It was practically a moving gold mine.

"It's just some ordinary stuff, nothing to brag about." Ming Luochen was a little embarrassed by the praise and scratched the back of his head. If this continued, he would become an omnipotent god, and then how would he show off other things and improve his life? He quickly changed the subject, "I'll make another bowl of noodles, this time with fresh salt."

He made another bowl of egg drop soup noodles. This time, the moment the noodles entered his mouth, his brow relaxed—it was savory and delicious, without a trace of bitterness, the aroma of egg and noodles blending perfectly on his tongue. He was very satisfied, and after a long day, he felt he could finally eat a little more.

"There's a reason you're so fat," Valerius said, slurping down mouthfuls of savory noodles, the sound echoing in the large dining room, oblivious to the broth splashing onto his beard. He mumbled his praise, still chewing on noodles, "The cooking is excellent! What shall we eat tomorrow?"

"Father, I have to go to school tomorrow," Aura complained, slamming her fork heavily on the rim of her bowl. "Besides, Ming Luochen is my fiancé, not your cook."

"Alright, I know. It's just that his noodles are delicious." Valerius continued eating his noodles with disappointment, without slowing down at all. Fortunately, the head chef was learning nearby, so he should be able to make delicious noodles too. He glanced at Isabella and saw her diligently taking notes in her notebook, which reassured him a little.

"If Father likes it, I'll cook it for you when I have time." Ming Luochen didn't really want to go to school—the content taught in school was too childish, and only some unfamiliar knowledge was interesting. Rather than listening to old professors counting on their fingers in class, he preferred to research new dishes in the kitchen.

"Okay, it's settled then!" Valerius exclaimed excitedly, already looking forward to the days when his son-in-law would cook delicious meals at home after his daughter's vacation started, not even bothering to wipe the grease from the corners of his mouth.

Perhaps because they were nobles who rose from military ranks, they weren't so bound by formalities. Ming Luochen watched the lively and warm atmosphere—his wife and parents eating noodles with such ease and genuineness, without a trace of aristocratic airs—and he felt happy too. He unconsciously looked at Aura; the candlelight reflected on her face, making her look as gentle as a painting. He felt that staying here was truly wonderful.

At dawn, the rooster's loud crow broke the tranquility of Earl Raven Crest's manor.

Dora had prepared clothes, hot water, and towels for Aura and Mingluochen early in the morning. A damp cloth was still hanging on the antlers. She ran in and out like a busy little deer. Isabella also got up to prepare the Earl's breakfast, and the sounds of pots and pans clattering came from the kitchen.

Valerius brandished his spear in the courtyard, the tip drawing silver arcs in the morning light as he led his family guards in morning exercises, his shouts ringing out powerfully.

Ming Luochen gradually adapted to the rhythm of life in this other world. Although he didn't like getting up early, he used to get up even earlier to shoot sunrise shots for work—he had to set off with his equipment before dawn and squat on the mountaintop for two or three hours, his nose running from the cold. Compared to those days, at least now he has a warm bed and a warm wife by his side.

After washing up, he put on the typical attire of the world's nobility: a shirt, trousers, and a pair of genuine leather Martin boots. The boots were custom-made for him by Marina's butler; the leather was soft and they fit his feet comfortably.

Male riders typically wear leather underwear or shorts over their trousers.

That's right, it's wearing underwear on the outside—to reduce friction while riding a horse and to protect against enemy attacks on vital areas.

These underwear are incredibly flashy, practically a must-have fashion item for men worldwide. Some even add belts, swords, or jewels to them, making each pair weigh several kilograms and jingle as they walk.

Ming Luochen would never wear it.

The cultural differences were too great; he felt ashamed and completely unable to accept it. Especially since these kinds of underwear often have designs similar to women's breast pads to flatter a man's physique, creating a bulging shape—in primitive societies, people revered nature and fertility, and physique was the most direct expression: men focused on muscle strength and reproductive ability, and so did women. Therefore, some clothing and accessories still retain their most primitive beliefs.

Ming Luochen looked at herself in the mirror, dressed in normal trousers, and nodded in satisfaction. Forget about fashion, comfort is all that matters.

Riding on Aura's back, we arrived at Pudi Yale Academy. The morning breeze made Aura's long hair flutter and brushed against Ming Luochen's face, tickling him. As soon as we entered the classroom, people came to greet us with exquisite lunchboxes, like a swarm of bees attracted by the fragrance of flowers.

"Ora, my family made some fresh cheese, would you like to try some? It's delicious." A fox-eared girl held up an exquisite ceramic jar, the lid was lifted, and the aroma of milk filled the air.

"Ora, I made some cookies. What do you think of them?" Another dog-eared girl held up a plate of golden cookies sprinkled with icing sugar.

"No need," Aura refused outright. She had eaten a bowl of egg noodles made by Isabella this morning and was already quite full. Now, the sight of food made her feel nauseous.

"Perhaps your summoned beast will like it." Sarah held up the lunchbox reluctantly, her eyes darting over Ming Luochen. If she had known that Aura would be recruited by the royal family and blessed by the goddess, she should have been more determined to treat her well before, instead of following the crowd and isolating her.

How realistic. Ming Luochen raised an eyebrow, ignoring them. He glanced at the fresh cheese—which was actually just a type of yogurt, sold right outside the school gate, nothing special. At Aura's house, the head chef often used yogurt in salads; he was already tired of it. It was just that the ingredients were limited; an apple was an apple, a pear was a pear mixed with yogurt, unlike the fruit salads of later generations, where various fruits could be freely combined and the sweetness was so high.

"Um... Aura, I was wrong before. Can we still be friends?"

A hesitant voice came from behind.

Ming Luochen turned around and saw Rurik standing a few steps away, his hands behind his back and his toes drawing circles on the ground, looking like a primary school student who had done something wrong.

Restoring the engagement is definitely out of the question—Earl Raven Crest has already sent out wedding invitations everywhere, and the nobles around Herma City have all received the news. Even his abandonment of Aura has spread, making him the laughingstock of the noble circles these past few days, plunging his family into trouble. Especially among his fellow Grasse (centaur race), his situation is particularly awkward; he's constantly being pointed at and gossiped about. Even the Marquis's daughter, Mia, has begun to distance herself from him—even with an S-rank summoned beast, it's useless if it doesn't develop properly.

"Are you out of your mind?" Ming Luochen stood up angrily, his chair crashing backward with a loud bang, the sound particularly jarring in the quiet classroom. He glared at Rurik, his eyes practically spitting fire. "Don't you think what you're saying is absurd? My wife is already being merciful by not targeting you, and you want to be friends? Are we waiting for you to scheme against us? Are we raising a tiger to cause trouble?"

"No, I just know I did something wrong and wanted to apologize." Rurik lowered his head apologetically, looking at Aura with a pitiful expression, his voice soft as if he were pleading, "Aura, we grew up together, you know my dream was just to develop my family, that's why I couldn't resist temptation and lost myself..."

Ming Luochen's heart tightened.

These are the words of a scheming woman, this childhood sweetheart relationship... and they're both centaurs...

Could this be the beginning of a cuckoldry story?

After much pleading and cajoling, Aura finally relented and cheated on him, even telling him that she and Rurik were just friends and that he shouldn't be so narrow-minded.

The key takeaway from Aura's memories is that summoned beasts in this world are mostly servants. Even though beast tamers may have sexual relations with their summoned beasts, it's primarily about establishing a contract and enhancing their rapport; ultimately, they will marry within their own kind. Nobles, in particular, place great importance on continuing their lineage because they have titles to inherit. The higher the title, the stronger the view of summoned beasts as possessions.

Regretful stories from his past life on Earth kept popping up, such as "My Wife and Her Childhood Sweetheart", "After Three Years of Marriage, I Discovered the Child Wasn't Mine", and "The White Moonlight Returns, and I Became the Superfluous Person"... Ming Luochen's eyelids twitched, feeling somewhat flustered, as if a million alpacas were galloping through his mind.

It's true what they say, you shouldn't marry someone with an ex-boyfriend...

Wait, is Rurik considered an ex-boyfriend? They were engaged, held hands, and Aura even fantasized about it at night… Especially in this kind of storyline, the "white moonlight" always holds a special place in the heroine's heart…

Aura's face was grim—she knew Ming Luochen's deep-seated inferiority complex and the real reason why he was still unable to find a wife at thirty-four. Those lonely and fearful nights, those moments of rejection, those polite words like "you're a good person"—all were hidden in the corners of his memory, and she saw them clearly.

Hearing his true feelings, she was so angry that her eyelids twitched. Was she really that untrustworthy?

She reached out and pinched the soft flesh of his waist hard, her nails digging into the flesh with precise and deadly force.

"What are you doing!" Ming Luochen jumped away quickly, grimacing and rubbing his waist; that patch of flesh must be bruised again.

Sure enough, she was biased—she didn't reject her ex-boyfriend, but was trying to force herself to submit. That's how the plots in regret novels always start, and the most terrifying part is when the current wife wants to have the child of the "white moonlight" (her ex-boyfriend's first love)... Ming Luochen became increasingly horrified. He looked at Aura; they were completely different beings—she was a centaur, and he was human. Could they possibly have a child? There was a reproductive barrier between them.

Looking at Aura, who was over two meters tall and had a centaur-like body, she often looked down on herself and made fun of herself at night.

Would she have a child with another centaur for the sake of her family? The seven-year itch, the lack of satisfaction, it's not impossible... The key is that her family still has a title to inherit, can a weak human like her carry on the earl's lineage?

Aura panicked.

She clearly considered Ming Luochen family, while Rurik was an outsider—noble etiquette dictated politeness, hence her response. She never expected Ming Luochen to misunderstand, and the more she thought about it, the more absurd it seemed—what kind of rubbish had he been reading all this time! Regret stories, cuckoldry stories, white moonlight romance novels—what was all that about?!

Her chest heaved with rage, she stomped her horse's hooves twice on the ground, and then roared at Rurik, her voice so loud that the entire classroom fell silent:

"Rurik, I will never forgive you! Your despicable face, I don't want to be friends with you! Get out of here, don't let my husband misunderstand!"

The classroom was completely silent; everyone stared wide-eyed at the scene.

Rurik's face turned pale and then red, his lips trembled, he tried to say something but couldn't utter a single word.

Just then, a soft voice came from the classroom doorway—

"Aura, Ming Luochen, congratulations on receiving the blessing of the goddess."

Everyone looked over at the sound, and Diggriell, the daughter of the Duke of Einbo, walked into the classroom with her servants. Her light purple dress shone softly in the morning light, and two maids followed behind her, carrying exquisite gift boxes.

With a polite smile on her face, she walked gracefully to Aura's side.