Girl, There's Something Wrong With You - Chapter 42

After the conversation with Chu Jiye, Cheng Jinyang originally thought he would be summoned repeatedly by other potential fathers-in-law. To his surprise, no one reached out to him afterward.

Li Qingwan, Zheng Qiupei, and Lu Qingyun were still probably on friendly terms with him, and any talk about “fathers-in-law” was just a joke. If they actually came calling, Cheng Jinyang would be astonished.

Yang Wangshu, being still young, was naturally not considered in this context. The Hejian Xing clan had already been managed solely by Xing Yuanzhi, so Xing Shuhe had no need to intervene. These two understood that.

So, what are Miss Wang’s and Miss Cui’s families waiting for?

Are they expecting me to take the initiative to visit them? Even if Miss Wang kept things well-hidden, surely Miss Cui didn’t keep it from her family? After all, she was just recently insisting I should marry into her family. Did Master Cui and the others have no reaction?

Confused, Cheng Jinyang temporarily turned his attention to his work in Jingkou.

Most of the prominent families had already left. Only the families of the eight remaining young ladies were still around. This meant that despite his “blood explosion” secret being somewhat public, and with him having reached the fifth grade, making it difficult to be easily manipulated, these families had chosen to keep things quiet and instead expressed their willingness to cooperate through marriage alliances.

If he weren’t the head of the Cheng family or hadn’t reached the fifth grade, their reactions might have been different. So, having sufficient power is indeed the premise for maneuvering in political affairs.

Aside from the remaining prominent families and the two princesses, the main influx of people came from northern refugees. Moreover, the fall of Jiankang led to a large number of people and businesses fleeing to Lin’an, which directly drove up asset prices there.

Thanks to someone’s “Fire Seed Plan,” the Shendu Cheng family had already acquired a large amount of property in Lin’an, making a significant profit in the market. The increased asset prices also caused capital overflow, with some of the investment even reaching Jingkou. Cheng Jinyang didn’t know what economic theory could explain this phenomenon.

Anyway, as long as the investment is here, it’s not going anywhere!

With the influx of investment and the extremely prosperous human resources, Jingkou’s economy was developing rapidly. The city was almost expanding like a pancake, and it was said that the staff at the government office had been working overtime for 997 consecutive days.

Cheng Jinyang generously handed out substantial monthly bonuses to everyone—though vacations were impossible, at least there was money.

Another piece of good news was that the reinforcements from the king’s army, advancing from both the east and west, were nearing Jiankang.

The western route was led by Tao Shixing and Wen Taizhen’s Longxiang and Feixiong armies, while the eastern route was led by Xu Daohui and Yu Si’ao’s Xiaoqi and Shenwu armies. Su Zigao, who occupied Jiankang, was startled and planned to split the Liyang army into two to face the incoming forces from the east and west.

This was a foolhardy move because, with the demons having withdrawn, the Liyang army, given its combat strength, had a chance to defeat one side alone (such as when they previously fought the Shenwu and Yulin armies separately to capture Jiankang). Dividing forces to confront two directions immediately put them at a severe disadvantage.

Did Su Zigao not realize this? Cheng Jinyang tended to think he did; he was simply unable to resist the temptation of holding Jiankang. After all, the capital of a nation, accumulating the essence of the world, its capital, industries, and manpower… was the foundation of the state, and could not be moved away in a short time.

But not fleeing meant certain death. The court officials likely anticipated this, which is why they had intentionally deployed the two princesses to slow down the Liyang army’s advance on Jiankang—this is called “sunk cost,” similar to how one keeps spending in a mobile game the more they’ve invested.

Alright, now just waiting for the capital to be reclaimed while I guard my Jingkou and the Northern Army.

Another day passed, and Miss Cui’s and Miss Wang’s families still hadn’t reacted, leaving Cheng Jinyang feeling deeply insulted.

Cheng Jinyang thought that after winning over their daughters, his fathers-in-laws would soon come storming in to confront him. To his surprise, neither of the families reacted at all, clearly dismissing him as insignificant!

Decided then—tonight, I’m going to sleep with your daughters!

After dinner, Cheng Jinyang returned to his bedroom. As he approached the door, he heard the young ladies inside apparently arguing again.

Hmm, why do I say “again”?

“Did I hear right? Uncle Chu Jiye spent the entire afternoon talking with Jinyang today?” Cui Xiaoniang asked coldly, crossing her arms.

“Ahem.” Miss Qingqing chuckled, “How would I know what they talked about? If Father wanted to discuss something with Jinyang, would he have informed me beforehand?”

“But he informed the Hejian Xing family,” Xing Yuanzhi snapped, her teeth clenched, “He said that since the marriage proposal hasn’t been completed, the Chu family intends to intervene and compete fairly with the Xing family.”

“Oh…” The other young ladies elongated their voices, all eyes fixed on Chu Qingqing, who was sitting by the bed.

“Marriage matters are decided by the parents and the matchmakers,” Miss Qingqing argued slickly, “If my father likes Cheng Jinyang, am I supposed to go to him and say ‘No, I won’t marry him’? That would be disrespectful to Jinyang, wouldn’t it?”

“Are you saying you didn’t discuss this matter privately with your father?” Cui Xiaoniang demanded angrily, “And now you’re pretending to know nothing?”

“Ha, Jinqi, you need to understand.” Miss Qingqing raised one leg and nonchalantly wiggled her finger, “It doesn’t matter whether I talked to my family or not. Even if I did, what’s it to you? Marriage is a lifelong matter, and it ultimately comes down to results, not the process or methods.”

“You’re in a position of low influence in your clan and can’t push things forward; one of you has a marriage proposal but is constrained in every way. Now I come in to compete, and you’re unhappy. Who do you think you are? Just because you have your eyes on a man doesn’t mean others can’t pursue him. There’s no such rule under the heavens.”

“Qingqing does have a point,” Sister Xiaopei said, trying to mediate. “Let’s not argue. We should sit down and communicate well. In the end, it’s just fair competition…”

Although her words were a bit idealistic, Sister Xiaopei, being genuine and consistent, made it hard for Xing Yuanzhi and Cui Jinqi to blame her. They could only continue their attack on Chu Qingqing.

“Fair competition?” Xing Yuanzhi was displeased, “So-called fair competition is just us putting on a show for him to choose one of us as his wife. What does that make us, merchandise in a display case?”

“If you’re not satisfied, you can withdraw,” Miss Qingqing said immediately.

“That’s not really an option,” Lu Qingyun added, “In the world of romance, the one with more suitors can choose their partner at leisure and even keep backups. Instead of fixating on this guy, why don’t you expand your horizons and meet more talented young men?”

The young ladies were exasperated: If you want to meet other young talents, you’re out of the running! Don’t expect to keep dreaming and leveling up together. Go with your boyfriend.

Of course, Yun Yun had only recently joined, and due to her less ingrained reliance on her “golden finger” and lack of personal feelings towards Cheng Jinyang, her comments were understandable… The others tactfully ignored her remarks.

Just as Cui Xiaoniang was about to speak, the door opened, and Cheng Jinyang walked in with a smile:

“What? Someone wants to meet young talents? Allow me to self-recommend, and I ask all the young ladies to cast your favor upon me… Ah!”

Before he could finish, his words turned into a scream as Cui Xiaoniang and Ah Zhi pounced on him, pushing him down onto the bed.