Shen Li was still wearing his military uniform. Recently, the Pollution Creatures outside the shelter had become increasingly rampant, with many Beastmen suffering at their hands, including females.
Shen Li came to remind Shen Tang to behave herself and not to cause trouble.
But as he approached the villa and saw the piles of garbage outside the door, his handsome face showed a strong disgust.
This female is getting more and more sloppy and hopeless!
He wished he could just let her fend for herself!
Shen Li covered his nose, veins popping up in anger, and turned to leave.
Click.
The door behind him opened.
Shen Tang saw the handsome man standing outside the door, her eyes flashing with amazement.
The last time they met, they were too far apart. This time, she was hit by his beauty at such close range that she was mesmerized.
The man had bright red hair, a handsome and enchanting appearance, tall and upright, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist radiating sexual tension. Yet, his narrow fox eyes were extremely attractive, full of deep emotion when he gazed at people.
Very beautiful, but not at all effeminate, it was the unique beauty and charm of a male from the Fox Clan.
His clothes were somewhat damaged, slightly tinged with the smell of blood, yet he exuded a noble and elegant aura like a noble son, completely out of place with the dark and dilapidated surroundings.
Shen Tang had never seen such a handsome man in her life.
Seeing her lovestruck expression, Shen Li frowned even more, his face cold and impatient, just about to say something harsh when he realized something was off.
The female in front of him was still fat, ugly, and dark, with a face full of pimples and marks, but there was no longer the stench about her, she looked much cleaner and fresher, her half-wet, half-dry hair lying over her shoulders, with a faint scent of bathing soap still lingering.
Damn it, had this sloppy ugly female actually taken a bath on her own?
Red eyes flashing with astonishment, Shen Li doubted he was dreaming. He glanced inside the house, not seeing the imagined scene teeming with garbage and insects, but rather a tidied-up space with no offensive smell.
He wondered if he had come to the wrong place.
"Um, do you need anything?" Shen Tang, unsure how to address him, was flustered by the man's unexpected visit.
Shen Li came back to his senses, eyes deeply resting on her face. Even though he was surprised that the fat woman took a bath and learned to tidy up the house, he didn't think much of it.
"There's a tendency for Pollution Creatures to break out outside the city. During this period, don't go out at night, and it's best to stay indoors during the day. Wait until the information tower's siren blares before leaving."
His voice was gentle and pleasant, comparable to a radio drama voice actor, making Shen Tang's ears feel pregnant.
But she also understood the distance hidden in the gentle voice, secretly sighing, knowing he was someone warm externally but cold internally.
Sometimes, the gentler a person is, the more distant they feel, and the harder they are to conquer.
"I understand, thank you."
Unexpectedly, her casual response made the man freeze in place.
Shen Li furrowed his handsome brows, looking deeply at Shen Tang, more suspicious that he was dreaming today.
This fat and lazy vicious female actually said thank you?
He had never imagined in his life that he could hear those two words from her mouth.
"...You're welcome." Shen Li replied awkwardly, with an indescribable clumsiness.
Evidently, their usual relationship was very strained.
He gave Shen Tang a strange look again, his expression softening somewhat, no longer showing the initial resistance and disgust. He only said, "Take care," and left in a hurry.
Shen Tang also closed the door, returned to her room, and continued to sleep.
In her mind, the system's broadcast came through.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host, male lead Shen Li's affinity +10, current state: Dislike 50!]
[Congratulations, Host, for completing the first conquest task, rewarded with Beauty Cream x1, automatically deposited into the system backpack, please check at your convenience.]
Unexpectedly, the first conquest was so easy, Shen Tang felt she hadn't done anything, they had only exchanged a few words. Ultimately, it should be because she deliberately tidied up her appearance and cleaned up the house.
The original owner's previous sloppy appearance would have repelled anyone, let alone the lofty male leads.
No one would like a woman who is ugly, lazy, and sloppy. This was only the first step; she had to slowly reverse her personal image to win over the male leads' hearts!
Shen Tang took the Beauty Cream from the system backpack.
The system prompt followed closely,
[Beauty Cream Usage Instructions: Apply to body surface to repair skin problems, making it smooth and delicate. Effect time: 8 hours. Tip: Recommended to use once every three days, best used at night before sleep.]
Shen Tang touched the acne on her face, realizing it was exactly what she needed right now!
She quickly applied the Beauty Cream to the pimples on her face, neck, and the back of her neck, almost covering her whole body, and the ointment was instantly reduced by 1/3.
Feeling distressed, Shen Tang couldn't bear to use more, and put it back into the system backpack.
Come the next morning, Shen Tang quickly went to the bathroom to look in the mirror. After just one night, the pimples on her face and body were no longer red and swollen, many small ones had disappeared, and the blackheads and pores on her nose had improved somewhat, leaving her skin much cleaner and fairer.
The visible improvement in her skin condition, after using only 1/3 of the Beauty Cream, made Shen Tang so pleased and satisfied!
She believed that with two more applications, though her skin might not become as delicate and flawless as a novel heroine's, it would certainly return to a normal person's state.
Around ten in the morning, Shen Tang heard the mellow blare of whistles from outside, with the information tower releasing a safety signal to the Beastmen in the city.
She touched her rumbling stomach, realizing she needed to go out and find some food.
In the post-apocalyptic world, food had become a precious resource, and most common Beastmen wouldn't spend a hefty price on ingredients that they couldn't even prepare. But the chaotic land was a mix of the lowest of the low and criminal nobles.
Services aimed at the nobles were thereby developed.
There were specialized personnel who hunted Pollution Beasts and collected plants to purify them and sold them at high prices to the nobles.
A delicate female like Shen Tang, without weapons, could go specifically to the central market to purchase food.
Passersby pointed fingers at Shen Tang as they saw her coming.
"Isn't that Shen Tang? The sun must be rising from the west today; she's actually dared to come out?"
"Let's go! Even looking is polluting my eyes! Such an ugly freak coming out to disgust others is simply nauseating."
"Don't you notice? Shen Tang seems a little different today; she's not as filthy and doesn't have that stench which could be smelled three streets away."
"Extraordinary that she learned to groom herself, though she's still fat and ugly, making one lose their appetite."
"I don't think she's as ugly as before; her skin doesn't seem as dark either..."
"Where could she be heading?"
"From the direction she's heading, isn't she going to gamble again? Her Beau husbands are so handsome and powerful, making so much money, yet they're stuck with such a lazy and vile Female Master, wasting all that money."
A young female said indignantly, "It's so disgusting! Why doesn't she just die, then Brother Li and they'd be free, and I could openly pursue him."
"No, no, if she dies, then they'd become widowers! That ugly fat woman can't just die; she must first dissolve the mate contracts with Jia Lan and the others!"
"Exactly, quickly dissolve the mate contracts, that ugly fat woman is indeed disgusting, insisting on clinging to Brother Lu Xiao and them!"
"Hasn't she thought, she's no longer a Princess, lost her spiritual power, and turned into this ghost-like figure? If I were her, I'd have even considered dying! Instead, she's like a blood-sucking leech, shamelessly squandering on Xiu Jin and their hard-earned money! Indeed shameless!"
"Won't she come back bankrupt again and let Brother Lu Xiao spend a fortune to ransom her?"
"Pah! How can there be such a disgusting person in this world!"