3: I want to be a salted fish

In her previous life, Song Yu knew well.

As an excellent actress, it wasn't just about having acting skills that convinced the audience.

Before starting filming for any movie or TV series, it also required carefully analyzing the character's backstory, understanding their personality traits, to be able to truly embody the role.

Otherwise, the portrayed character would not only seem fake, making it difficult for the audience to relate, but also cause strong discomfort to those around.

Although no one in this world would ever know she was a transmigrator, the original body was developed by a novelist, with her own life in the entertainment industry serving as a reference for character creation.

Nevertheless, there were still some differences between her and the character.

To avoid making Song Lao Ye, Song Father, Song Mother, and others feel abrupt, she decided to switch her inner identity.

The new character setting Song Yu created for herself is now:

She is a proud heiress from a third-tier small city, born into wealth. From a young age, she aspired to become a professional beast tamer, and she dreamt of life in the first-tier main city. However, her dreams shattered, and she was heartbroken due to her lover's betrayal. Still, she was unwilling to completely abandon the path of a beast tamer.

To avoid burdening her family, the proud heiress was willing to sacrifice her personal interests for the sake of the family's benefit!

As for breaking off her engagement with the "average-talented" fiancé, the male lead...

She would instead be engaged to Zhou, the rich heir from a big corporation who had transferred from a first-tier main city to her small city.

Song Yu carefully skimmed through the original's memories. Zhou was handsome, wealthy, and quite capable. How could the original not like him? Even if there was a two to three percent impurity in her feelings, at least sixty to seventy percent was genuine.

It was precisely because she liked him that the original had developed a high fever after awakening her talentless beast tamer ability, suffered from a continuous fever after the breakup with her boyfriend, and eventually passed away.

"Ugh..." Song Yu sighed about it.

However, the crucial keywords for her new identity as the proud, resilient, heartbroken, and considerate heiress are now "pride," "resilience," "heartbreak," and "big picture."

As an actress, Song Yu was well aware that characters with similar personalities could display different nuances when portrayed.

Some people, when acting out pride, come across as annoying villains, while others, when acting out pride, appear as injured little peacocks.

Song Yu wanted to stay far away from the villain character and had to start now.

"After all, if I want to be a slacker, I have to stay close to Grandpa Song. What if he forces me to become a beast tamer in the future?"

"At the very least... he still gives me pocket money every year."

"From now on, Grandpa Song is a respected VIP client for me!"

"Nothing is too noble for a VIP client to see, that I can't act out."

Her thoughts expanded in her mind, and Song Yu said to herself, "This is a customized acting service for VIP clients..." Her facial expression quickly changed.

"Grandpa, you can take back that four-star intermediate wood-type spirit fruit. Expanding the family is more important," the girl's voice was slightly hoarse and carried a hint of a nasal tone. She wiped the tears from her face haphazardly and said, "Only when the Song family is better can other family members be better."

The girl's already rosy eyes became even redder from wiping away her tears.

But what was once like a transparent crystal puppet had suddenly turned into a person with flesh and blood.

Crystal tears clung to Song Yu's long, curly eyelashes. Her fluffy, disheveled hair cascaded down her back. She lifted her head like a proud little peacock. "Besides, even without the crystal spirit fruit, I might still become a great beast tamer in the future!"

Song Yu continued proudly, "I, Song Yu, will become an excellent professional beast tamer even without relying on the family!"

Song Yu said, "So... I don't want that crystal spirit fruit! I'll find my own way to become a beast tamer!"

A proud heiress would never compromise easily!

Whether it was just moments ago when she broke the family's tradition at the dining table, venting her frustration like a little girl, or her current refusal to give up on becoming a beast tamer even while surrendering the spirit fruit, she maintained her stubborn posture.

This was the look a pampered heiress from a wealthy family should have from a young age.

Song Yu, acting as such, was well-versed in her role.

"..."

Song Lao Ye didn't say anything. His surprised look at Song Yu gradually softened.

Deep in his heart, Song Lao Ye sighed quietly. He looked at Song Yu, nodding to himself. "I never expected that Song Yu would be even more considerate than I imagined."

In Song Lao Ye's view, a child who could prioritize the family's interests over personal ones was what he wanted to see in a good grandson or granddaughter.

Moreover, Song Yu not only had a sense of responsibility but also a tenacious spirit, making her Song Youguo's worthy granddaughter.

Some people, when acting out pride, come across as annoying villains, while others, when acting out pride, appear as injured little peacocks.

Song Yu wanted to stay far away from the villain character and had to start now.

"After all, if I want to be a slacker, I have to stay close to Grandpa Song. What if he forces me to become a beast tamer in the future?"

"At the very least... he still gives me pocket money every year."

"From now on, Grandpa Song is a respected VIP client for me!"

"Nothing is too noble for a VIP client to see, that I can't act out."

Her thoughts expanded in her mind, and Song Yu said to herself, "This is a customized acting service for VIP clients..." Her facial expression quickly changed.

"Grandpa, you can take back that four-star intermediate wood-type spirit fruit. Expanding the family is more important," the girl's voice was slightly hoarse and carried a hint of a nasal tone. She wiped the tears from her face haphazardly and said, "Only when the Song family is better can other family members be better."

The girl's already rosy eyes became even redder from wiping away her tears.

But what was once like a transparent crystal puppet had suddenly turned into a person with flesh and blood.

Tears clung to Song Yu's long, curly eyelashes. Her fluffy, disheveled hair cascaded down her back. She lifted her head like a proud little peacock. "Besides, even without the crystal spirit fruit, I might still become a great beast tamer in the future!"

Song Yu continued proudly, "I, Song Yu, will become an excellent professional beast tamer even without relying on the family!"

Song Yu said, "So... I don't want that crystal spirit fruit! I'll find my own way to become a beast tamer!"

A proud heiress would never compromise easily!

Whether it was just moments ago when she broke the family's tradition at the dining table, venting her frustration like a little girl, or her current refusal to give up on becoming a beast tamer even while surrendering the spirit fruit, she maintained her stubborn posture.

This was the look a pampered heiress from a wealthy family should have from a young age.

Song Yu, acting as such, was well-versed in her role.

"..."

Song Lao Ye didn't say anything. His surprised look at Song Yu gradually softened.

Deep in his heart, Song Lao Ye sighed quietly. He looked at Song Yu, nodding to himself. "I never expected that Song Yu would be even more considerate than I imagined."

In Song Lao Ye's view, a child who could prioritize the family's interests over personal ones was what he wanted to see in a good grandson or granddaughter.

Moreover, Song Yu not only had a sense of responsibility but also a tenacious spirit, making her Song Youguo's worthy granddaughter.

Song Yaqian lowered her eyelids slightly, and her cheeks blushed faintly. However, she decided to be open and honest about her feelings.

"Yu, I'm not afraid of you making fun of me, but I used to think that I had great talent and should get this crystal spirit fruit. However, after hearing your words and Grandpa's just now, I have a different perspective," she said, taking Song Yu's hand and looking towards Grandpa Song at the head of the table, speaking earnestly, "Grandpa, you've always said that our Song family is a whole, but if we're a whole, how can we abandon other family members?"

Grandpa Song was taken aback and looked at Song Yaqian.

"If our family didn't have any professional beast tamers, I think we could work together as a family to support one and raise them as a professional beast tamer," she continued.

"But the reality is, apart from Grandpa in our Song family, my eldest aunt, uncle, my father, and my third uncle are all professional beast tamers. Even though their levels are not as high as Grandpa's, and even if I were to receive this four-star wood-type crystal fruit, it doesn't guarantee that I can become a high-level professional beast tamer, let alone an elite-level professional beast tamer."

Song Yaqian's expression was serious, and her tone was resolute. "So, in that case, it might be better to give the four-star spirit fruit to Yu. Who knows, Yu might have the opportunity to become an entry-level professional beast tamer in the future. I believe that only a real family is one where we can support and complement each other."

Professional beast tamer levels are divided into ten ranks: Entry-level, Junior, Intermediate, Advanced, Elite, Master, Grandmaster, King, Saint, and God.

Even with a B-level talent, it is quite difficult for most people to reach Intermediate level, and advancing further is even harder.

Although she felt a bit disappointed about not getting the four-star intermediate wood-type crystal fruit, Song Yaqian had no regrets. After speaking to Grandpa Song, she turned to Song Yu with a smile, patting her hand on Song Yu's back to comfort her.

"..."

Song Yu looked down at Song Yaqian, who held her hands firmly, and felt a strong emotional impact on her inner world.

Is this a sign of the novel characters deviating from their established roles, or did she never really understand Song Yaqian?

In her previous life in the entertainment industry, she made her debut at the age of three and became famous at a young age. On the other hand, Song Yaqian only entered the entertainment industry after graduating from a film and television academy.

Additionally, their facial features bore a striking resemblance, they shared the same surname, and they were of the same age. Consequently, the media and fans often compared the two of them.

This constant comparison eventually fueled tensions between their respective teams. Song Yaqian's team believed that Song Yu was blocking her path, while Song Yu's team believed that Song Yaqian was riding on her popularity. 

Furthermore, in the last few years, both sides tried to outdo each other, making it seem like they could only succeed by defeating the other.

So...

Were Song Yu and Song Yaqian still the competitive plastic sisters portrayed in the novel?

Tears welled up in Song Yu's eyes, and she felt that Song Yaqian's hand was as heavy as a thousand pounds, almost crushing her delicate frame.

Suddenly...

"Hey, Yaqian, Yu..."

Seated at the head of the table, Grandpa Song looked at his two granddaughters, who were holding hands tightly. 

He felt a sense of shame deep down and said, "Grandpa underestimated you earlier. I didn't expect that I, someone who has lived for more than half a century, would be less clear-headed than both of you."

"Yaqian is right!"

"If we are a family, then, except when necessary, we should generally be considerate and supportive of each other."

Grandpa Song's stern gaze swept over everyone present, and seeing everyone holding their breath and looking at him, he turned to Song Yu and Song Yaqian once more, nodding and saying with a smile, "Yaqian, Yu... you don't need to keep deferring to each other. Apart from the four-star intermediate wood-type crystal fruit, Grandpa also has a three-star advanced attributeless energy fruit. While the value of an energy fruit may not compare to a crystal fruit, a three-star advanced energy fruit is still quite rare in our Level-3 city of Jianghuai."

"Compared to a wood-type crystal fruit, the energy fruit might be more suitable for Yu."

With that, Grandpa Song made up his mind, saying, "So, this time... the four-star intermediate wood-type crystal fruit goes to Yaqian, and the three-star advanced energy fruit goes to Yu! That's how it's settled!"

Song Yu's throat was dry, and she looked shocked.

She didn't understand why Grandpa Song had decided to give her an energy fruit, a type of fruit that had never appeared in the novel and was different from ordinary spirit fruits or plants. 

Energy fruits were unique as they were attributeless, making them suitable for all contract beasts. 

These special fruits had no extra effects; they couldn't be used for crafting spirit pills, healing contract beasts' injuries, or enhancing a contract beast's skills. 

They had only one function: the fruits were abundant in energy, similar to the source energy of a tamer's space, and they could accelerate the growth of contract beast cubs.

For people with a low-level tamer space and poor taming talent, this was like the best elixir they could ever get. 

For professional tamers, it was like an 'experience pack' for rapidly developing their newly contracted beasts.

As far as she could remember, Grandpa Song had put a lot of effort into contracting a high-level beast cub, which both its parents ranked at the 5th level.

Did Grandpa Song not care about his own contracted beast?

The idea that an beast would devour this energy fruit in three days, rapidly surpassing its infancy and entering the growth stage, sent shivers down Song Yu's spine. In addition to her shock, her brain began racing involuntarily.

Working as a tamer was an impossible choice. She would never become a tamer in this lifetime, no matter how much sleep she got. 

The taming profession was grueling, exhausting, and demanding, with constant life-threatening situations. 

She would rather stay in bed all day and do nothing. 

What was the point of being a powerful tamer who could command beasts and level a city with a flick of their wrist? 

Top tamers could sit at the same table as national leaders.

What did it have to do with her anyway? She had no desire to be part of the wretched global taming industry. 

Song Yu's eyes darted around as she contemplated how to resolve this situation. 

Then, it hit her like a lightning bolt.

Oh my!

She realized she had been overthinking the situation. Why was she tormenting herself like this?

Since Grandpa Song insisted on giving her that 3rd-grade advanced energy fruit, she would just take it. When she went to school for the Initial Beast Contracting Day in three days, she could choose to leave the energy fruit at home or bring it with her. 

She could pretend to do her best to select a contract beast and then claim that no beast was willing to contract with her.

After all, even in prestigious high schools, there were usually around ten percent of students who couldn't contract an beast every year. As a high school student with an F-grade taming space, it was entirely normal for her not to be able to contract an beast, right?

Song Yu blinked, thinking to herself, "If I could find an excuse to give away this 3rd-grade advanced energy fruit, that would be even better."

After all, having the energy fruit in her possession was like holding a ticking time bomb.

Acting all the time was quite exhausting.

As for selling the energy fruit privately, Song Yu hadn't considered that at all. Not to mention that Jianghuai City was just a 3rd-grade city, with only a limited number of places to sell 3rd-grade advanced energy fruit, and they all knew the Song family.

Even in the vast peripheral areas of the Wilderness Forest, the original host had encountered the male lead and the archenemy while carrying a contracted beast. 

This 3rd-grade advanced energy fruit was far more valuable than the precious spirit plants that had brought the original host's life to an end in the plot. Selling it and taking the risk of unforeseen accidents was not a viable option.

Thinking about the "right destination" for the energy fruit, Song Yu's lips curled up, and her stomach rumbled.

She stared at the table full of delicious food and picked up her chopsticks once again.

Eating. She had to eat first. She couldn't let such a good meal go cold, after all. In her previous life, she hadn't had a satisfying meal in over twenty years, and she was determined to make up for it in this lifetime.

Sighing, Song Yu mused, "If it weren't for being eighteen years old, retiring would be unacceptable. I might as well just revoke my retirement today."

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