Super God Grandmaster

Chapter 21: Chapter 19: Showing One’s Cards Chapter 21: Chapter 19: Showing One’s Cards After leaving the courtyard of Shi Zi.

Zhan Ze’s heart could no longer remain calm.

Jing Xing and Hao Tian noticed Zhan Ze’s concern. They knew that Young Master Ze was fretting over Yu Qing’s plan to go see Haoyu tomorrow night.

Hao Tian suggested, “I think we should just confront Haoyu directly.”

“Confront him? How exactly?” Zhan Ze asked.

“Just tell him straightforwardly, ask him what it would take for him to leave Yu Qing alone! Anything is better than this constant turmoil,” Hao Tian proposed.

“That guy will surely make huge demands,” Jing Xing interjected: “Big Sweet Potato is enamored with Qing’er by her status as the daughter of the Demon Palace Master and her beauty. He is under the impression that being with Yu Qing would bolster his chances of becoming the new Sect Leader.”

Hao Tian asserted, “Anyway, he could never genuinely care for Yu Qing.”

Zhan Ze retorted, “I’m aware of that, but his skin is extraordinarily thick.”

“I still think we should confront him directly and gauge his response. Continuing like this is not viable,” Hao Tian insisted.

Jing Xing expressed his worry, “Doesn’t that seem like we’d be showing weakness?”

Zhan Ze chuckled, “Show weakness? No chance, I’m not finished with him yet.”

Ye Chen, standing by their side, listened quietly.

Suddenly, the group came to a halt by the river.

Zhan Ze, with his anxiety reaching boiling point, was becoming increasingly irate.

“He totally ruined our mood tonight,” Jing Xing commented.

“We can’t let him have a good mood tomorrow night either,” Hao Tian proposed.

“What do you mean?” Young Master Ze asked.

“We should go and cause a ruckus there tomorrow as well.”

“I don’t have skin as thick as his,” Zhan Ze responded.

“But we can’t just let that guy succeed so easily either.”

After listening, Jing Xing agreed with Hao Tian, stating, “Right, we can’t just let him win so easily.”

“And how should we stir up trouble?” Young Master Ze asked.

“We should confront him directly tomorrow, see if he agrees, then make our next move,” Hao Tian suggested.

All this while, Ye Chen had remained silent.

Zhan Ze asked, “Ye Chen, share your thoughts as well.”

“I, really have no informed opinion.”

“Go on, say something. What do you think I should do?”

“I think the most important thing here is Yu Qing. If she doesn’t like Haoyu, she will reject him either way, even if you all don’t interfere. If Haoyu is the kind of person you claim he is, then why bother worrying?”

Jing Xing responded, “You don’t know how despicable that guy can be, how clingy and annoying he is, it’s absolutely unbearable. Look at what happened tonight, we were in high spirits, but the moment he arrived, all our good mood vanished.”

Hao Tian suggested, “We should make him stink in front of everybody.”

Ye Chen stated, “Yu Qing is intelligent. She’s perfectly capable of judging who means well and who doesn’t. If your intentions toward her are sincere, she will understand.”

Hao Tian chuckled, “Chen, you’re oversimplifying things. This guy doesn’t play by the rules. Just look at the way he ruined our moods tonight. If we don’t do something about it, he will keep making us miserable until we don’t feel anything at all.”

Upon hearing this, Ye Chen fell silent again, seemingly at a loss for words.

“No matter what, we can’t let that guy do as he pleases. We can deal with him fairly, but he won’t return the favour. He will stop at nothing to get what he wants, that’s just how nasty he is,” Jing Xing continued: “Yu Qing is innately kind-hearted. She is vulnerable to individuals like him.”

After listening, Zhan Ze found Jing Xing’s argument considerably plausible, and said, “Fine, we’ll negotiate with them tomorrow. If that fails, we’ll have to think of another way to deal with them.”

“Right, showing any leniency towards that guy and allowing him to act recklessly is unacceptable,” Hao Tian agreed.

“Alright then, it’s getting late. Let’s go home and mull over it. Any plans can be discussed tomorrow.”

Ye Chen nodded, and they scattered.

Yu Qing took a shower, her hair still wet.

Because she went to bed late, Shi Zi didn’t feel sleepy and stared at the moon.

“Are you in love?” Yu Qing asked curiously.

“I’m hardly that idle,” Shi Zi replied with a cold laugh.

“What are you daydreaming about then?”

“Do you not fancy Zhan Ze at all?”

Yu Qing, while drying her hair, remained silent for a moment before admitting, “Perhaps a little.”

“But I feel, you’re pretty cold towards him, and you always change the subject.”

“Cold? How enthusiastic do you expect me to be? The same old conversation over and over, it’s quite annoying,” she retorted.

“Still, I sense a sort of barrier from you, keeping others a thousand miles away.”

“Really? You’re just overthinking it,” Yu Qing argued.

“That’s the impression I get, nonetheless.”

“So, what do you want me to do? Should I just throw myself at him, say, ‘I’ve been deeply touched by you, I love you, let’s spend the rest of our lives together’?”

“I can’t quite put it into words, but I just feel you’re a bit indifferent towards Zhan Ze.” Today she had changed the subject a few times, which Shi Zi noticed.

“You want me to throw myself into his arms, and get intimate right away? Hey, we’re kids, isn’t it too early to discuss such matters!”

“Right, how could I possibly suggest you throw yourself at him? But wouldn’t it be good to show Zhan Ze a little more warmth?”

“You think I haven’t been warm enough towards Zhan Ze?” Yu Qing put down her towel.

“That’s the impression I get. For instance, you are much warmer to Haoyu.”

“Nonsense, when have I ever been warm to Haoyu!?” Yu Qing argued unbelievingly.

“Anyway, I have this feeling, that you could be a bit warmer towards Zhan Ze.”

“I’m already quite warm-hearted.”

“But I’ve noticed that you’re warm-hearted to everyone, treating them all the same.” Shi Zi said.

“So you want me to treat them differently?”

“At least be more enthusiastic towards Zhan Ze.”

Hearing this, Yu Qing let out a light chuckle.

“You admit it.”

“We are still so young. What will happen in the future, nobody knows. Right now, we should spend more time learning and practicing martial arts. That is the priority.” Yu Qing said.

“This wouldn’t hinder our studies.” Shi Zi replied.

“I see you seem to care a lot about Zhan Ze. Are you interested in him? If that’s the case, I can matchmake you two. How about that?” Yu Qing playfully suggested.

“Are you trying to kill yourself?” Shi Zi retorted.

“Hey, feel free to voice any thoughts with me.”

“You crazy girl.” Shi Zi was so frustrated she almost jumped up.

“How full the moon is tonight.” Yu Qing sighed, then asked, “If I stay with you, will I disturb you?”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’d better not be a bother to you.” Yu Qing replied.

“Is your relationship with your mother still tense?”

Yu Qing nodded her head, apparently unwilling to talk about this matter.

“Are there many people who talk about your relationship with your birth mother?”

“Let them talk. I can’t change it.” Yu Qing admitted.

“Ah, don’t think too much. Just relax here.”

“I just wish I could grow up faster. Once I grow up, I can gain a bit more autonomy, and I should have more freedom.”

“Hey, it’s a process. Take it slow. I believe that, eventually, people will not think the same way.”

“Enough talk, I’m a little tired today. You should get some rest too. We can talk about other matters tomorrow.” Yu Qing stood up.

Shi Zi knew that Yu Qing was reluctant to discuss that topic.

Then, the yard became utterly silent.

The sparse humming of the crickets.

Yu Qing returned to her room. The white jade rabbit, resting on the table, flickered under the glow of the wind-blown flame.

Suddenly all was quiet. Honestly, sometimes she didn’t even know what she wanted. She was just tired and came to Immortal City hoping to catch her breath and find a better mood. Nothing else mattered.

The next afternoon, Zhan Ze, along with Ye Chen, was waiting for him on a bridge that Qiao Haoyu often passed by.

Qiao Haoyu and Dongfang Tang were chatting, with two people following behind them. They were discussing the arrangements for the night.

But Dongfang Tang, seeing the four people standing by the bridge, promptly alerted Qiao Haoyu.

Dongfang Tang, puzzled, asked, “Are they trying to fight us because of what happened last night?”

“Hehe, I am not afraid. If they want to fight, I’ll accompany them to the end.” Qiao Haoyu glanced at them. There were only four of them, and he had four people on his side, so he was not intimidated.

Then it fell silent, and they strolled along casually.

As they reached the middle of the bridge, they were stopped by Zhan Ze who was standing by a willow tree.

Turning his head, Qiao Haoyu asked, “Yo, isn’t this our Young Master Ze? What’s the matter?”

“Stop pretending! I can forget about last night’s incident, but don’t harass Yu Qing in the future.” Zhan Ze shouted.

“Hehe, I didn’t quite catch that. What do you mean, don’t harass Yu Qing? Is Yu Qing yours? Don’t be shameless.”

“Don’t think we don’t know who you really are!” Dongfang Tang immediately retorted. “You’re supposed to be the one settling things with us! Last night, the firework you threw exploded on my trousers.”

“Serves you right. It should have blown up what’s in your pants, too. How dare you act so recklessly.” Haotian shot back.

“What? You little brat, don’t be cocky.” Dongfang Tang’s eyes bulged out, and he clenched his fist, ready to fight.

“What’s there to be cocky about? I was launching fireworks in my own yard, so I can do whatever I like.” Haotian retorted. “And I often blow up those ill-behaved dogs who don’t watch where they go.”

Hearing this, Dongfang Tang was tempted to charge at him.

Zhan Ze shouted, “You want to fight?”

Only after getting a look from Qiao Haoyu did Dongfang Tang desist. After all, given Zhan Ze’s status, he wouldn’t dare to act without Qiao Haoyu’s permission.

Zhan Ze continued, “You have so many women around you, everyone knows. You can’t possibly genuinely like Yu Qing. You just want to play around with her.”

Qiao Haoyu responded, “Hmm, that’s correct. I do have many women around me, but is it any of your business? I enjoy playing around; is there a problem?”

“You’re deliberately opposing me, aren’t you?”

“What do you mean ‘deliberately opposing you’? First, Yu Qing isn’t yours yet, which means anyone can pursue her, including me, so you have no right to ask me not to. Second, even if you really really like her, I still have the right to pursue her.”

“You’re doing it on purpose, aren’t you?”

“What’s there to be purposeful about? Seeing a pretty girl, is it wrong for me to be interested? Why should I give all the beautiful girls to you? Why should I do that? Just because your father is the Sect Leader of Immortal City doesn’t mean we always have to accommodate you. Immortal City is a place of reason, not some feudal empire.”

That moment really irritated Zhan Ze. He wanted to charge over, but was held back by Ye Chen.

“Even if your father was here, I would still say this, and I will still do it.” Qiao Haoyu swaggered past, continuing to say, “I have a wide range of interests. I like having women revolving around me. Who will end up with Qing’er in the future is still uncertain.”

“You scumbag, don’t pretend we don’t know your true nature.”

“Yo, innocent young boy, you’re getting anxious. I’ll be upfront with you today. I’ve set my sights on Qing’er.” Qiao Haoyu said, “We’re civilized people, we don’t resort to violence. If you dare, don’t use force or rely on your father. Don’t assume that just because your father is the Sect Leader of Immortal City, we will always yield to you. That’s not happening.”

Then they marched on.

Leaving behind only Zhan Ze and the others. Zhan Ze punched the willow tree, seething with anger, thinking he must teach that presumptuous guy a lesson.