Girl, There's Something Wrong With You - Chapter 7

The Hejian Xing family was abuzz with discussions when their patriarch, Xing Shuhe, suddenly announced that Xing Yuanzhi would be the next head of the family.

Xing Yuanzhi had previously claimed she had the talent to at least reach the sixth grade and was striving for the fifth grade. The implication was that before she turned 20, there was a chance she might not advance to the eighth grade. Otherwise, it would have been guaranteed that she could achieve the fifth grade.

However, given Xing Shuhe’s announcement, it was almost certain within the Xing family that Xing Yuanzhi had advanced to the eighth grade ahead of schedule.

Considering her current age, this upgrade meant her talent was now guaranteed to reach the fifth grade.

Although lineage identification isn’t always foolproof, with her advancement to the fifth grade being a certainty, the position of family head was naturally hers for the taking.

The only issue was that despite her exceptional talent, she was still only at the eighth grade. Xing Shuhe’s hasty decision to name her as the successor and initiate the subsequent power transition process might have something to do with…

The engagement to Cheng Jinyang of the Shendu Cheng family? Did the Xing family obtain some reliable intelligence about the Iron Giant and decided to solidify this relationship?

Even outsiders with limited information speculated along these lines. The girls around Cheng Jinyang certainly couldn’t remain indifferent.

“This is outrageous! We agreed on fair competition, and now someone is trying to rush to the finish line!”

“Where is Cheng Jinyang?” Chu Qingqing asked with a stern expression by a secluded pond in the back mountain of their estate.

“I heard Xing Yuanzhi called him out,” replied Cui Jinqi, who had hurried over and also looked displeased. “Qingwan said that after the combat class in the afternoon, Xing Yuanzhi called him to have dinner.”

Miss Qingqing was silent for a moment before saying, “The dagger is revealed.”

“What do you plan to do?” Cui Xiaoniang asked seriously. “If we continue to sit idle, there will be no hope for us.”

“If the Xing and Cheng families are to marry, Jinyang can’t refuse. What can we do to stop it?” Miss Qingqing replied coldly. “Marriage is a matter for the individuals and their families. The Cheng family and Jinyang are already united, and Xing Yuanzhi is very willing. The only barrier was the Xing family, and now that she’s advanced to the sixth grade, they have no reason to oppose it.”

“The Hejian Xing family is really weak and incompetent. It’s ridiculous that a mere sixth-grade supernatural can become the successor,” Cui Xiaoniang said, greatly disappointed.

At this point, both of them had also advanced to the sixth grade, but gaining power in their own families was still a distant goal, unlike Xing Yuanzhi’s treatment.

“I have an idea!” Cui Jinqi suddenly said after a moment of deep thought. “Since the Xing family has no intention of opposing, why don’t we create that intention?”

Miss Qingqing frowned, “Create an intention? You mean…”

“Find a more outstanding noble son to propose to Xing Yuanzhi and shake the Xing family’s resolve!” Cui Jinqi said through gritted teeth.

Miss Qingqing: …

Wouldn’t that mean putting a green hat on Jinyang? It seems inappropriate… Wait, why not? Why should we be the only ones worrying about being outdone? Why can’t he be the one?

“But it still won’t work,” Cui Jinqi said after thinking for a while, feeling disappointed again. “In the past, Wang Wanrou’s brother, Wang Jinghe, also admired Xing Yuanzhi, but had to give up because of the disparity in family status.”

“Although she has advanced to the sixth grade, the outside world doesn’t know that! To the aristocracy, Xing Yuanzhi’s talent is at most guaranteed to reach the fifth grade. Any family with some ambition wouldn’t consider marrying into the Xing family.”

“However, unless that person is of the fourth grade, it wouldn’t make the Xing family head waver. The Cheng and Xing families are closely allied, Cheng Jinyang’s talent is also said to be striving for the fifth grade, and he is already the head of the Cheng family, holding great power and with the secret weapon of the Iron Giant. How could Xing Shuhe easily offend such an ally?”

The more she spoke, the more her brows furrowed, and she looked increasingly distressed. Miss Qingqing pondered and suddenly asked:

“If we can’t approach from the girl’s side, what about from the boy’s side?”

“You mean we catch him off guard, sleep with him, get pregnant, and force him to marry?” Cui Jinqi was shocked.

“Your imagination is really something,” Chu Qingqing said with a laugh and a cry, even swearing, “If there really were a pregnancy, what about the girl’s reputation? Our family would end up at odds with the Shendu Cheng family. How would people view us?”

“That’s true.” Cui Jinqi frowned and thought, I really didn’t consider that, almost acted impulsively. “So, what brilliant plan do you have, Sister Qingqing?”

“Why not use a strategy of driving the tiger to swallow the wolf?” Chu Qingqing made a slicing motion with her hand.

“Driving the tiger to swallow the wolf, brilliant!” Cui Xiaoniang clapped her hands in praise. “The wolf is the next matriarch of the Xing family, but who is the tiger?”

You don’t even know who the tiger is, and yet you’re saying “brilliant”? Miss Qingqing silently cursed in her heart, but calmly replied, “The tiger is the Yellow-Skinned Tiger.”

Yellow-Skinned Tiger? Cui Xiaoniang immediately understood; Chu Qingqing was testing her intelligence!

Not giving the real name and using a nickname is a common trick among aristocratic families. If you can’t figure it out, it proves you don’t have the intelligence, and dull people naturally aren’t worth scheming with!

Her thoughts raced, and inspiration struck like lightning. Cui Jinqi suddenly realized:
Yellow-Skinned Tiger? More like the Royal Tiger!

Princess Sima Xingnan of Nankang!!!

“This strategy of driving the tiger to swallow the wolf, though it solves the wolf problem, brings the danger of the Royal Tiger.” Cui Xiaoniang cautiously asked, “Using the court’s power, its influence is greater than the Xing family. Sister Qingqing, are you planning to seek skin from the tiger?”

“Since we draw the Royal Tiger, we naturally have a plan to subdue it.” Miss Qingqing sneered.

“The tiger’s power is fierce. How do you plan to subdue it?” Cui Jinqi thought, You must be joking. Who could possibly deal with Princess Nankang?

“The tiger’s head has a mark that can tame it,” Chu Qingqing’s gaze sharpened.

A mark on the tiger’s head? Cui Jinqi was momentarily puzzled but quickly understood:

The stripes on a tiger’s forehead form the character for “king”!

So, Wang Wanrou can stop Princess Nankang?

Exactly! That makes sense!

According to the rules of the Jin Dynasty, consorts must be chosen from low-ranking noble families. Otherwise, if high-ranking families became in-laws, no one could control them. This is a tacit agreement among the Five Great Families and all the nobility.

Though the Shendu Cheng family is a low-ranking family, Jinyang is not considered fifth grade by outsiders. If he really were chosen as a consort, the Taiyuan Wang family would see it as the Iron Giant used by the Yu family!

Miss Wang wouldn’t even need to act. She would just need to secretly inform her father, Wang Maohong, who would undoubtedly oppose it with all his might. He wouldn’t let the Yu family have both Princess Nankang and the Iron Giant!

This means that if Princess Nankang gets involved, she will definitely try to stop the marriage between the Cheng and Xing families, but without a foolproof plan, she wouldn’t rashly choose Jinyang as a consort either.

Thinking this far, Cui Xiaoniang looked at Miss Qingqing with new respect.

I used to think Qingqing was just a bloodthirsty warrior woman, but now I see she has a meticulous side as well?

Alright, I, Cui Jinqi, am willing to call you my second rival!