(Quick Transmigration) Small Cannon Fodder Has Great Power

According to custom, the newlyweds should pay respects to their parents together the next morning.

Before opening the door, Gu Yunyun puffed out her cheeks and, with a serious expression like a secret agent making a rendezvous, quietly instructed Yao Yulang, "Whatever your aunt and uncle say later, just agree. We can pretend to comply while secretly going against their wishes! We must dispel their concerns from the start. You don't want to be confined to the mansion by your aunt and uncle forever, do you?"

Although the male protagonist in the story fights fiercely for his freedom to marry, he is essentially a very filial son. If given a way to have both, he wouldn't remain unmoved. Even if he doesn't fully trust his nominal wife, he would likely be willing to play along, thus giving Gu Yunyun the opportunity to get closer to him.

Yao Yulang looked at the childish little girl in front of him, her face serious yet trying to appear mature, and even though he was feeling down, he couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing. Seeing her staring at him with her big, watery eyes, waiting for a response, he reluctantly gave a curt reply.

Gu Yunyun happily accepted her mother-in-law's generous red envelope, and the newly formed family of four ate breakfast together.

The Yao family were a merchant family, not bound by strict rules about not speaking while eating or sleeping. In the time it took to eat, Gu Yunyun's sweet talk had Mrs. Yao beaming from ear to ear, and even the usually stern Mr. Yao had a slight smile on his face. The two elders, so charmed by Gu Yunyun, completely forgot about nagging their troublesome son.

While the Yao family elders weren't paying attention, Gu Yunyun winked triumphantly at Yao Yulang: "Look how capable I am!"

Yao Yulang ate his meal silently, unable to taste anything, and really didn't know how to describe his feelings.

Mrs. Yao had always regretted not having a lovely daughter, as her son was precocious and already had the demeanor of a little adult at a young age, no longer able to act cute. Now, meeting her lively and charming daughter-in-law, it was as if her long-cherished wish to have multiple little daughters had been fulfilled.

After the meal, Madam Yao took out an envelope containing money and stuffed it into her son's hand. "Have a good time today. These days, wedding photos are all the rage. Why don't you go to a photo studio and have one taken?"

Yao Yulang was about to refuse when he felt his sleeve being tugged at secretly.

"Mommy, you're so thoughtful! Perfect timing, I just wanted to go out and play!" Gu Yunyun, wearing a light yellow jacket, had bright, sparkling eyes. She couldn't let such a good opportunity to spend time with the male lead slip by!

"Okay, let Yulang take you out to play. We'll wait for you all to come back for dinner tonight," Madam Yao said with a smile. "We'll have the driver take you there."

"No need to trouble you, Mother. We can just hire a rickshaw. I want to go shopping, but it's inconvenient to drive."

"Okay, Yulang, you have to take good care of Yunyun."

Gu Yunyun, carrying an exquisitely embroidered cloth bag with flowers and butterflies, left the Yao residence with Yao Yulang. Yao Yulang asked, "What are your plans for today?"

Gu Yunyun thought for a moment, "How about we take a quick photo first, then split up to do our own things, and meet up at the photo studio before dinner to go home together?"

Yao Yulang didn't object, but whether out of gentlemanly virtue or out of responsibility as a nominal husband, he was a little worried about a young girl going out alone. "Where are you planning to go later? By yourself?"

Gu Yunyun scratched her face blankly, "I definitely can't go back to the Prince's Mansion, so I'll just go shopping by myself. Anyway, there are so many people on the street, nothing will happen."

Yao Yulang sighed, "I'm planning to go to a friend's newspaper office later. Why don't you come along? There are quite a few books and magazines there. You can read some books and have some snacks in the lounge to pass the time."

“That’s fine, I also enjoy reading stories.” Gu Yunyun smiled.

The system breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank goodness the male lead didn't abandon you. It's rare to have a chance to be alone with him."

Gu Yunyun's inner voice raised an eyebrow, "Just what I expected, okay? This is a strategic retreat; who would bear to see such a cute little thing like me homeless?"

System: "Heh, a cute little monster with incredible strength."

Gu Yunyun: Hmph ╭(╯^╰)╮.

···

Upon arriving at the photo studio, the two changed into the formal attire required for the photoshoot.

Yao Yulang, dressed in a suit and tie, exuded gentlemanly charm; Gu Yunyun wore a modern cheongsam, the most popular style among the ladies and wives of Shanghai at the time, which showed off her exquisite figure. She exuded the pure sweetness and vigor of a young girl. She grinned at the camera, showing her white teeth and smiling innocently.

The photographer laughed, "Oh, Madam is so beautiful, sir, you're such a lucky man. Sir, why don't you move closer to your wife? Why are you standing so far away..."

With a "click," Gu Yunyun's slightly childlike smile and Yao Yulang's reserved and indifferent slight curve of the lips were clearly distinguished on the film, revealing a tacit distance.

After leaving the photo studio, Yao Yulang and Gu Yunyun bought some pastries to take to the newspaper office to pass the time.

Chongli Newspaper was funded by Yao Yulang and run by his close friend Bai Qian. Chongli Newspaper kept up with current events, was sharp in its writing, advocated vernacular Chinese, boldly discovered emerging writers, and had a broad vision, making it very popular among young people.

There was a bookstore on the first floor of the newspaper office, while the back and second floors were the newspaper's office area. Yao Yulang, as the newspaper's major investor, led Gu Yunyun to the lounge on the second floor without any hindrance, gave her a few instructions, and then left.

"Yulang! It's been a long time! What made you decide to come over today?" Editor-in-Chief Bai Qian entered the office carrying a stack of manuscripts and said with delight, "You didn't even tell me you were coming."

"I've had a lot of worries lately, so I just managed to find some time to catch my breath."

As Yao Yulang's old classmate and close friend, Bai Qian naturally understood what Yao was referring to as his worries.

He pulled Yao Yulang aside and whispered, "I heard you... really gave in?" Seeing the other's dejected look, Bai Qian knew the answer without needing a reply. "You're really low-key... Anyway, what are your plans?"

"Let's take it one step at a time." Yao Yulang pictured the carefree, baby-faced girl. "At least it's much better than the worst-case scenario we initially envisioned." He rubbed his temples. "Let's not talk about that. How's the newspaper lately?"

"It's alright. Recently, several new newspapers have emerged, and some older newspapers have also begun to try to transform. The competition is getting fiercer and fiercer. The most urgent task is to find more potential authors and also to win over more talented authors."

Bai Qian suddenly remembered something and rummaged through the pile of manuscripts and sample copies on the table. "Oh right, there are a few promising talents recently, one of whom is a junior from our alma mater. Take a look."

He pulled out one of the newspapers and handed it to Yao Yulang. "Here, this is Fang Hui. She submitted some short stories, which are quite original. Her modern poetry is also quite good. There aren't many people who can write good vernacular novels these days."

Yao Yulang glanced at it briefly. The writing style of the stories was only slightly above average, but its strength lay in the novel and fashionable themes. In comparison, her modern poems were more outstanding, with a fresh and elegant style that was very popular among young people. Overall, she was already quite good among her peers. He nodded in agreement, saying, "She certainly has potential."

At the same time, the system was also sharing information with Gu Yunyun.

In the original world, the person Yao Yulang later fell in love with was a female student named Fang Hui. The two of them were initially impressed by Fang Hui's submitted works. Later, after having the opportunity to get to know each other, they gradually found that they had a lot in common and shared similar aesthetic tastes, which gradually led to the development of their love.

"Fang Hui is about to have contact with the male lead, host, please think of a way quickly!" the system said anxiously.

“Fang Hui’s work will eventually stand out. Even if it’s not published in Chongli Newspaper, it will be published in other newspapers. Young Master Yao will see it sooner or later.” Gu Yunyun analyzed calmly. “But judging from the information you gave me, Fang Hui’s writing skills are not top-notch. Her work is at most the opportunity for her to get to know Yao Yulang. It’s not enough to make Yao Yulang develop any admiration for her work. There’s no need to be too nervous about it.”

Recalling the plot given by the system, she pondered and said, "However, starting with literature, which Yao Yulang is interested in, is indeed a good entry point to open his tightly closed heart to me." Suddenly, a thought flashed through her mind, "Could you help me turn the world I experienced before into words, and rewrite my name into a novel?"

The system immediately understood and proudly patted its chest, saying, "Don't worry, leave it to me. I'm an excellent system produced by ljj! Writing stories is a piece of cake!"

Several hours later, Yao Yulang and Bai Qian finished discussing the publishing house matters.

Bai Qian, still engrossed in conversation, suddenly said, "Hey, it's already afternoon without me realizing it. We were so engrossed in our conversation that we forgot to eat lunch. How about we go have dinner together? There's a new tavern that just opened up on that street ahead that I've been wanting to try."

Yao Yulang was taken aback, then remembered that he had brought Gu Yunyun with him today, and she hadn't eaten yet, so he refused, saying, "Next time, we agreed to go home for dinner today, so I should go back now."

"Then I'll take it to you."

“There’s no need for formalities between us,” Yao Yulang said, not intending to introduce Gu Yunyun to his friends. “You have a lot to do, I can go down by myself, no need to see me off.”

“Okay,” Bai Qian understood him and knew he was indeed busy, so he didn’t stand on ceremony. “Let’s have dinner together another day.”

"Okay." After saying that, he strode quickly toward the lounge.

Yao Yulang knocked on the door before pushing it open and walking in. He saw Gu Yunyun with a bound book of past newspapers draped over her chest. She had probably gotten sleepy while reading, as she was leaning back on the sofa, her legs dangling off the armrest, her small feet encased in a pair of flat, plain embroidered shoes.

The warm afternoon sun peeked through the gaps in the blinds, shining on the girl. The interplay of light and shadow resembled a Western-style oil painting of a girl under the play of light and shadow, serene and beautiful enough to captivate artists.

Yao Yulang stared for a while, then composed himself. "Miss Minyun...Miss Minyun?"

"Hmm...?" Gu Yunyun rubbed her eyes. "Are we going back?" Her voice, just after waking up, was involuntarily coquettish, lazy and soft.

Yao Yulang unconsciously lowered his voice, "Well, it's time to go back. I'm so sorry I forgot to take you out for lunch, are you hungry?"

Gu Yunyun sat up. "No, I ate a lot of pastries and I'm not hungry at all. Haven't you eaten either? Do you want something to eat?" She squinted, seemingly still a little dazed. "What time is it now?"

"It's almost four o'clock, let's go straight back to the mansion and wait for dinner."

"I can't believe I slept for so long... I was planning to finish this unit before you got back, but I just fell asleep without realizing it." Gu Yunyun picked up the book that was lying face down in front of her chest and sat up.

Yao Yulang glanced at the open pages and raised an eyebrow. "You're reading the modern poetry section?"

"Yes."

Do you think it looks good?

“It’s quite good, especially this one.” Gu Yunyun pointed to one of the songs.

Yao Yulang followed her finger and saw that it was the work of the new talent that Bai Qian had just recommended. It was indeed a good modern poem.

"However..." Gu Yunyun said shyly, "Although I feel that this song seems pretty good, I can't quite put my finger on why it's so good."

"Simple and unpretentious, sincere and heartfelt, it resonates with people," Yao Yulang commented objectively after careful consideration.

Gu Yunyun thought for a moment and then suddenly realized, "Oh, so this is the charm of modern poetry! It doesn't require perfect parallelism or rhyme; it uses the simplest language to express one's feelings, and that's what makes a good modern poem, right?"

Yao Yulang smiled and nodded in affirmation, "Yes."

Gu Yunyun suddenly felt inspired to write a poem. "Then I'll write a modern poem for you to listen to?"

"Oh?" Yao Yulang was both surprised and curious. "Sure, I'm all ears."

Gu Yunyun cleared her throat and recited with deep emotion, "Today/I ate/Hibiscus Pastry/Jujube Paste Cake/But/After eating sweets/I want to eat something savory/Braised Pork in Soy Sauce/Stir-fried Crab Roe/Grandpa Li's Shrimp Wontons on the street corner/Are also excellent."

Yao Yulang burst out laughing.

"What's wrong?" Gu Yunyun pouted. "Isn't it simple and unadorned enough? Isn't it sincere enough? Isn't it relatable enough?"

Yao Yulang: ...I couldn't refute it.

Gu Yunyun thought to herself smugly to the system, "Do you think when he sees Fang Hui's poems again, he'll immediately think of my silly poem?"

The system imagined the scene: no matter how delicate and refined Fang Hui's poems were, if she thought of the host's poem, they would probably smell like restaurant food...

System: "Host, you're so mean."

Gu Yunyun: "You flatter me."

The awkward atmosphere was broken, and Yao Yulang bowed to her with a relaxed expression, saying, "Young lady, you are very talented. I admire you."

"So-so," Gu Yunyun playfully cupped her hands in greeting. "Actually, I prefer writing stories. I'll try submitting my work to the newspaper someday. Maybe you'll see my novels in the newspaper someday."