Grace Miller nodded. “That woman... didn’t she move out of our house last week? When my sister came back, she and my mom hid in the bedroom to talk behind my back. I heard my mom crying. Later, before my sister left, she told me that the woman was pregnant. She demanded that my dad buy her an apartment before she would have the baby, otherwise she’d get rid of it. My dad agreed. But his business hasn’t been doing well these past two years, so he doesn’t have that much money. That’s why he asked my sister to lend him some…”

Henry Thompson was a bit stunned. “You mean... your stepmom is pregnant?”

Grace Miller nodded and said, “My dad wants a son, so when he wanted to take a concubine, my mom even signed her consent. She was afraid that woman would stir up trouble, so in front of my dad, she always spoke well of her. Not only did she treat her especially well at home, but she also insisted that my sister and I call her ‘stepmom’ and not give her any attitude. But in the end…”

“In the end, she still complained about everything to your dad?”

Grace Miller nodded and gave a soft “mm.”

Henry Thompson helplessly reached up to rub his brow.

As the saying goes, even an honest official finds it hard to settle family disputes. In matters like this, Henry Thompson—an outsider—could hardly even offer advice.

But then again, the system in this world really was a bit bizarre.

The constitution stipulated equality for all, gender equality, and freedom of love and marriage, but at the same time, it also granted men the right to take concubines.

As far as Henry Thompson knew, if a man wanted to take a concubine, he just needed to get the consent of his own parents, his wife, the woman he intended to take as a concubine, and her parents, and have them all sign the concubine application form in their own handwriting. Then he could submit the application to the county-level government. After a year, if no one objected or regretted it, the man only needed to pay the government a “concubine fee” equal to ten times the personal income tax he paid in the previous fiscal year, and he could officially bring the concubine into the family. Moreover, the two of them would receive a pair of “concubine certificates” issued and recognized by the state. This relationship was protected by law, and the concubine also had financial independence and priority in divorce!

There were even provisions in the marriage law that both spouses were forbidden from mistreating the concubine...

It had to be said, as far as Henry Thompson knew, even in this world, there were no more than thirty countries with such bizarre laws! Hmm, Vietnam, North Korea, South Korea, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Morocco... Well, it was basically just the greater East Asian and Arab cultural spheres, but if you counted carefully, it was actually quite a few!

Of course, even though it was legal, very few people could actually afford it. Never mind getting the consent of all stakeholders—just the huge concubine fee based on personal income tax was more than most people could bear! For ordinary wage earners, taking a concubine basically meant emptying out five to eight years of savings in one go. For the wealthy with profitable assets like company shares, even last year’s company profits, share appreciation, and real estate gains had to be factored in—who would be willing?

So, there were very few men in this society who actually took concubines. If they had any other choice, even the rich and ambitious would rather keep a mistress or a lover outside than officially take a concubine...

...

Maybe because Henry Thompson had been silent for a while, Grace Miller turned to look at him and suddenly asked, “Hey, do you plan to take a concubine in the future?”

In a flash, Henry Thompson’s eyes lit up.

“Of course! Think about it, the dream of every hero is to have three wives and four concubines! If it’s legal to take concubines, why not? Like my dad—my mom always says to him, ‘I know you have the desire, and probably the guts, but do you have the money?’ You see what that means? Whether you can take a concubine, whether you’re willing to spend that money, is basically the standard for whether you’re a successful man!”

Hearing this, Grace Miller suddenly burst out laughing, couldn’t help but smack him on the shoulder, and scolded with a smile, “You’re never serious, always talking nonsense!”

Henry Thompson looked at her, grinning, and gently put her glasses back on for her, trying to please her. “How about you sign your name for me in advance?”

Grace Miller gave him a sideways glance, half amused and half shy, then turned to go downstairs. “You’d better get your future wife to sign for you!”

But before she could even step into the stairwell, Henry Thompson had already followed up, “Just my future wife’s signature isn’t enough—you have to sign too!”

Hearing this, Grace Miller almost tripped: so Henry Thompson was planning to make her his concubine!

She stopped at the entrance to the stairwell, glared fiercely at Henry Thompson, saw his especially innocent expression, stomped her foot hard, and dashed into the stairwell. “Henry Thompson, I never want to talk to you again in this lifetime!”

Chapter 5 Rooftop Song

With a guitar and plenty of good songs, Henry Thompson started worrying about where to practice singing.

The logic behind everything in this world is basically the same: no matter how much of a genius you are, hard work and practice are the foundation of success. No matter how good your skills are, if you don’t practice for three days, you’ll get rusty. Just like in “The Oil Seller” story: I have no special skill, only familiarity from practice!

It’s the same with making music.