Capital Star, Yingyue Bay, the main residence of the Qu Family.
Qu Tong looked at the crowd in the hall, composed of familiar yet unfamiliar faces, and stood with a straight back; her expression, however, was quite nonchalant, "You brought me back just to have me deal with this hot potato?"
Qu Jianwen's forehead twitched, and with knitted brows he put on the airs of an elder to scold her gently, "What hot potato? This concerns the Royal Family. What nonsense are you talking about?"
Standing by, Li Yuexiang directly sneered with contempt, "If it weren't for relying on our Qu Family, do you think you, a girl with an F-rank physique and no parents, would be so lucky to marry into the Royal Family? You don't even appreciate what you've been given. Instead, you dare talk back to your elders. It's evident you've spent too much time in the slums; you reek of the ignorance and poverty found there."
These words were indeed very sharp and biting. Everyone thought Qu Tong would probably get angry or even start crying out of grievance, but to their surprise, she laughed softly, as if she had heard some joke.
"Since great-aunt thinks so highly of it, let Qu Wanwan go," Qu Tong said relaxedly, as though she hadn't heard the harsh words just thrown at her, her face wearing a light smile.
"How could my Wanwan possibly..." Li Yuexiang slammed the table as if to scold her, but then cut herself off mid-sentence, "Anyway, if we say you're going, you have to go. The Qu Family has been taking care of you since your parents died. Don't be ungrateful."
Qu Tong chuckled twice and picked up a candy from the table, unwrapping it and popping it into her mouth.
She had some memory of the Qu Family's arranged marriage from the original host's perspective; it was an arranged marriage since childhood. Her grandfather from the Qu Family had saved the current Emperor, sealing the deal. Originally, it was Qu Wanwan who was betrothed to the second prince, also known to everyone as the revered War God Your Highness. Qu Wanwan had certainly not been modest about showing off back then.
Now they were regretting it and pushing her to take the place, and Qu Tong didn't believe for a second that there wasn't a catch.
"Wanwan has someone she likes now. As a member of the Qu Family, you should also consider the clan, and marrying His Highness as a substitute for your sister is a good choice for you," Qu Jianwen said calmly, playing good cop to Li Yuexiang's bad cop.
"Yes, niece, marrying into the Royal Family is something many people dream of, and your life will be much better than it is on Huangxing," Zhang Yaru, from the second branch who had been silent, also spoke up to persuade her.
"Right, isn't Jiaojiao almost of age? The role of princess consort could be left for Jiaojiao as well," Qu Tong said, an idea seemingly popping into her head, as she looked at Zhang Yaru with a smile that wasn't quite a smile.
Zhang Yaru: "..."
She glared at Qu Tong and then kept her mouth shut, deciding not to participate further.
Qu Jianwen frowned slightly, feeling displeased even as he continued to feign a concerned demeanor to comfort her, "War God Your Highness is a noble member of the Royal Family, the Empire's youngest and most distinguished general with an SSS-rank physique and a glorious track record on the battlefield. With the support of the Qu Family behind you, as long as you show some initiative, you can forever enjoy the honor of being a Princess Consort."
"So, what does that have to do with me?" Qu Tong asked leisurely.
Seeing Qu Tong's indifferent demeanor, Li Yuexiang started to lose her temper.
"Qu Tong! What kind of attitude is that towards your elders? Even if War God Your Highness has a fertility value of zero, he's still out of your league, you F-rank waste. What more could you possibly want?"
As soon as she said this, the room fell silent, and the expressions of those present varied.
Even Qu Jianwen gave Li Yuexiang an unhappy look.
Although this information had been publicly announced online, it was clear from Qu Tong's attitude that she hadn't paid attention to it.
Qu Tong raised an eyebrow, so that was it.
In an Interstellar age where fertility rates were low, birth values were highly regarded. How could the Qu Family willingly marry their most outstanding daughter to someone unable to bear children?
Just when everyone thought that Qu Tong, upon learning the truth, would resist even more vehemently and that they might have to force her, she responded unexpectedly,
"Alright."
Qu Tong's answer once again plunged the atmosphere into an eerie silence, leaving everyone puzzled as to why she suddenly changed her mind.
Just as Qu Jianwen hadn't fully exhaled, Qu Tong took a sudden turn,
"However, I have two conditions."
Qu Jianwen's expression visibly darkened, and just as Li Yuexiang was about to explode with anger again, she was held back by Qu Jianwen, who said in a deep voice, "Speak."
"First, before getting married, I want to meet with His Majesty the Emperor, and second, I want the qualifications to enter the First Military Academy of the Empire."
Hearing this, Li Yuexiang showed a disdainful expression directly, and Qu Jianwen also frowned:
"Second niece, it's not difficult to meet with His Majesty, but as you know, the First Military Academy of the Empire has strict entrance exams. I'm not trying to be harsh, but with your F-rated physique, you don't even qualify to take the academy's entrance exam."
Although others didn't speak, their expressions showed agreement, thinking that Qu Tong was somewhat delusional.
Qu Tong continued with the nonchalance of Mount Tai crashing before her without flinching: "That's your problem, not mine. If it doesn't work out, let Qu Wanwan and Qu Jiaojiao go."
After saying that, she proceeded to walk towards the main entrance on her own.
"Ungrateful wretch!" Li Yuexiang cursed resentfully.
"Auntie, I advise you to accumulate some virtue with your words. People with a foul mouth may bring disaster to their entire family one day," Qu Tong said without looking back, her voice faint.
"You!" Li Yuexiang pointed at Qu Tong's back, trembling with anger, having never been defied by a younger member of the family in such a manner before.
But in a blink, Qu Tong had disappeared from the hall.
"Settle down! Now is not the time to turn against each other," Qu Jianwen warned Li Yuexiang somewhat angrily.
He actually didn't like Li Yuexiang's nature; she was far from stable, not at all like a lady from a noble family should be, always stirring up trouble. If it weren't for the Li family's connection to the Lan Family through marriage and the fact that her two children were of decent quality, he would have lost his patience with her long ago.
"Big brother, what do we do now?" Qu Jianwen's second brother, Qu Jiancong, voiced his concern.
The second house had no resources or connections of its own and had always relied on Qu Jianwen. They had not yet branched out into their own household, and now he feared that his elder brother might push out his precious daughter, Jiaojiao.
Jiaojiao also had an A-rank physique, and next year, they planned to have her try for the Military Academy to meet some young talents.
Although the War God Your Highness was desirable, his fertility value was zero, and they had only Jiaojiao as a descendant in their family.
"Let's all disperse. I will discuss this matter with the Empress Dowager," Qu Jianwen said, pressing his nose bridge and gesturing for everyone to leave.
He had seen that his niece was just like her father, impervious to persuasion, unwilling to be at a disadvantage.
It had been a decent marriage proposal initially, until just a few days ago, when the genetic database reported that the fertility value of War God Your Highness had plummeted to zero.
Even if the fertility value was low, Wanwan's was 45, which was already higher than 95% of people. They could have tried artificial incubation with intelligence-assisted technology as there was a chance for success. But a fertility value of zero meant there was no chance of reproduction at all.
Qu Tong planned to go out for a stroll but only remembered at the doorway that she had forgotten to ask for money...
The whole person was emmmm, with no money, what's the point of going out? Might as well go back and lie down.
Turning on her heels, Qu Tong wobbled back.
Avoiding the servants in the courtyard, Qu Tong made her way to the secluded West Garden.
Looking up at the tightly closed gate and the towering walls, she knew all too well that her dear great-uncle wouldn't give her the key.
She mustered her Special Ability, which was better than nothing.
Alright, if heaven is not an option, then hell it is.
Crawling through a dog hole is not shameful; being seen doing it is.
...
But just, damn it.