The Max-Level Expert Just Wants to Retire

Jiang Pan transmigrates with the max-level mental powers she had in her previous life, waking up one day as an orphan.

From the start, she has a shabby house, two mu of barren fields, a few awful relatives, and a rather dim-witted System.

It may look like a difficult situation, but Jiang Pan, who spent her entire previous life on the battlefield and is now utterly exhausted, thinks it suits her just fine.

She enjoys the simple life of farming and teasing the System, and takes the opportunity to put a few villains in their place. Things are going quite comfortably.

After the System, overcome with compassion, begs her over and over, Jiang Pan casually picks up a man on the roadside who is barely clinging to life.

Since she has already saved him, she might as well put him to good use. She makes him sign a contract of servitude: he has to work as her cook and, to deal with the villagers, pretend to marry her.

As they keep up the act, they unexpectedly develop some genuine feelings. Tempted by the man's delicious cooking, Jiang Pan follows him out of their little village.

After taking a look around the outside world, Jiang Pan declares, "Farming is still the best. You should come back with me and work the fields."

Word has it that when Young Master Xie Qiyan was ambushed while traveling, he was gravely wounded and nearly died. But when he returned, he was not only perfectly fine, he also had a wife by his side whom no one knew when he had married.

The hearts of all the unmarried noblewomen in the capital shattered. They scrambled to find out who this woman was.

They heard she was just an orphan from a small country village, lucky enough to save Young Master Xie. He married her only to repay her for saving his life.

The noblewomen had only just begun to entertain hopes when they saw Young Master Xie obeying the woman in everything and doting on her beyond measure. The little princess followed close behind her every day, while the Imperial Preceptor bowed his head and respectfully called her Master.

The noblewomen: ???

Wait, how is this different from what they had heard?

Reader's Guide:

1. This is a companion novel to The Retro Craze I Started in the Interstellar Era. It tells the story of the original Jiang Pan. Interested readers can visit the author's page to take a look.

2. The dynasty is fictional. Please don't take the setting too seriously; this is just a story.

3. The story begins in a little village, then moves beyond it later on.

Upcoming novel: Transmigrating as the Big Bad Couple with My Archrival. Please add it to your favorites, thank you:

Xiang Xiaoyuan transmigrates into a book she has just finished reading, as one of its major villains: the original heroine's legitimate elder sister. She bullies the heroine in all sorts of ways, until the heroine turns dark and takes revenge. The Xiang family is wiped out, and even Xiang Xiaoyuan, who has already entered the palace as a consort, cannot escape. She meets a tragic end when she is sentenced to die by a white silk cord.

Xiang Xiaoyuan: Stay calm, don't panic. If I start treating the heroine a little better now and build up her favorability, I can still scrape by... No, I can't scrape by! I'm about to enter the palace as a consort!!!

In desperation, Xiang Xiaoyuan asks someone to pass a message to the current Ninth Prince, Bai Wengui.

The next day, Bai Wengui enters the palace to meet the emperor. Three days later, an imperial decree of marriage arrives at the Xiang residence, betrothing Xiang Xiaoyuan, the eldest legitimate daughter of the Xiang family, to the Ninth Prince Bai Wengui.

The capital's gossip-loving crowd erupts.

Xiang Xiaoyuan, the eldest young lady of the Xiang family, is beautiful, bright, and alluring. Everyone knows she is destined to enter the imperial harem, and with the Xiang family's influence behind her, she could very well become a highly honored consort.

Ninth Prince Bai Wengui was the only prince to survive the succession struggle all those years ago. He is handsome and highly skilled in martial arts, but his temperament is exceptionally gloomy and calculating. Countless women both love and fear him, yet not one has ever caught his eye. Rumors even circulated for a time that he preferred men.

Both of them are prominent figures in the capital, yet they have never had anything to do with each other. When she was suddenly ordered to marry into Prince Bai's residence, the whole capital's gossip-loving crowd was stunned.

How had these two people, who had nothing to do with each other, suddenly gotten married?

There must be some conspiracy behind this. The capital's skies are about to change; this is the first sign. These two must be unwilling sacrifices forced together. What a shame for this ill-matched pair...

The capital's conspiracy theories fell apart the moment people saw Xiang Xiaoyuan step on Bai Wengui's foot and turn to run, only to be caught around the waist and held in a corner, their faces close together as they exchanged tender looks and smiles.

Why did these two look... not only like a perfect match, but also like they were deeply in love?

In the original book, there are two major villains: one is called Xiang Xiaoyuan, and the other Bai Wengui.

What a coincidence. Her archrival, the one she had been at odds with since high school and who had kept getting entangled with her until they ended up at the same company, has the same name.

That night, after she sent the message, someone tapped on Xiang Xiaoyuan's window. She opened it and came face-to-face with the person she knew so well she would recognize him even as ashes. Awkwardly, she waved. "Hi. What a coincidence. Never thought you'd find me here, huh?"

Outside the window, Bai Wengui, dressed in elegant finery and wearing an indifferent expression, looked down at her. "This prince came only because he was curious. When did I ever meet you, miss? Why did you send me a message in private? What are you plotting?"

The hidden guard on the roof rolled his eyes. He wondered what sort of prince this was. Usually, he was perfectly composed, but as soon as he heard that the person sending him a message was Miss Xiang Xiaoyuan, he got so excited he nearly fell off his horse. He couldn't wait a moment, hurrying over to knock on her window like a thief.

And now he knew how to act all reserved?

Hah. Men...

On their wedding night, Xiang Xiaoyuan told Bai Wengui the general plot of the original book, then asked nervously, "Going by the timeline, you should have already picked up the male lead. You didn't mistreat him, did you?"

Bai Wengui, who knew nothing about the original plot, thought for a moment, then jolted. He struggled to reply, sounding very unsure. "I don't think so..."

Xiang Xiaoyuan: "..."

This feels like it's going to go badly.

To keep the original male and female leads from going down the path of corruption, Xiang Xiaoyuan diligently plays the roles of a good elder sister and a good princess consort, frantically building up their favorability.

She accidentally takes it too far. The original book's sweet-on-the-outside, dark-on-the-inside heroine, Xiang Qingzhi, wraps her arms around Xiang Xiaoyuan's waist and smiles brightly. "Elder Sister is the best. Qingzhi wants to stay unmarried forever and live by your side."

The original book's male lead, Ning You, refuses to be outdone. "You'er is willing to protect you forever too, Godmother!"

Bai Wengui, fed up beyond endurance, grabs one in each hand and throws them out. "Get out, both of you!"

Reading Guide:

1. Both leads transmigrate. The female lead has read the book, but the male lead has not.

2. They have a mutual crush, and their marriage comes before their love.

3. Sweet romance, one-on-one.

Theme: Wherever my heart finds peace is my home.