Ascending to Godhood: I Can Foresee All Futures

"So you’re saying it’s not a sure thing that I’ll be able to win the lady’s hand in marriage?"

Chen Sheng’s brow furrowed, sensing the hidden meaning in her words.

"No."

Nie Xiangjun, however, shook her head.

"You’re different from them. Your background is clean, and you aren’t deeply entangled with any of the court’s factions. You have no established power base. This means as you grow stronger in the future, it will be easiest for you to fully integrate with our Nie Family.

"The family is paying very close attention to you. One of either Lingshan or Lingxi will marry you—that is certain. Otherwise, why do you think I would personally make this trip to Ning’an Prefecture?"

To the Nie Family, marriage alliances with the True Inheritors of Major Sects were more about exchanging benefits and consolidating power. They required a delicate balance and weren’t strictly essential.

But a genius from a humble background like Chen Sheng—one with shallow roots, immense potential, and whose future was almost certainly deeply intertwined with the Nie Family—was precisely the kind of ideal son-in-law the family was most eager to invest in and keep a firm grasp on.

If Chen Sheng truly managed to soar to prominence one day, the returns for the Nie Family would far exceed those of any ordinary alliance.

...

「Yunzhou City, within the Jingwu Bureau.」

The hall’s decor was simple and solemn, with only a massive Yunzhou Mountain and River Map in the center, a testament to the immense authority wielded here.

At this moment, two middle-aged men whose auras were as profound as mountains sat facing each other across a zitan Go board, their fingers moving the black and white stones in silent exchange.

One of the men wore the dark-black official robes of a third-rank Commander of the Jingwu Bureau.

A lifelike, pouncing, savage leopard was embroidered on his chest in gold thread. His expression was severe, and his eyes, as they opened and closed, exuded the natural authority of one long accustomed to power.

This was none other than the Commander of the Yunzhou Jingwu Bureau, Chu Zhengnan.

The other man,

wore a light cyan brocade robe adorned with cloud patterns. He had a square-jawed, dignified face and a scholarly, refined air. Although he wasn’t wearing official robes, his profound and imposing presence—an effortless authority—was no less than Chu Zhengnan’s.

He was the current Patriarch of the Nie Family, Nie Tiankun.

Suddenly, Chu Zhengnan, who was about to place a stone, paused slightly, tilting his ear as if listening to something.

Immediately, his brow furrowed. He tossed the black stone in his hand back into its container with a sharp CLACK and looked up. His gaze, fixed on the perfectly composed Nie Tiankun across from him, was filled with undisguised displeasure.

"Nie, you’ve... overreached quite a bit, haven’t you? Must you be the first to snatch up every promising young talent for your Nie Family?"

"Chu, what do you mean by that? I... don’t quite understand."

Nie Tiankun, a white stone in hand, was studying the board intently. At Chu’s words, he looked up, his expression a mask of perfectly crafted confusion.

"You’ve been here playing Go with me for nearly half a month."

Chu Zhengnan let out a cold snort, his voice turning icy.

"And all the while, you secretly sent someone to Ning’an Prefecture. I’ve had my eye on that Chen Sheng for a long time; I’m quite interested in him. Just now, I received a report that Nie Xiangjun has already gone to Ning’an herself.

"What is she doing there?"

"Chu, you’re overstating things."

Nie Tiankun’s expression didn’t flicker. He calmly placed his white stone on the board before speaking slowly.

"Even if Chen Sheng becomes a son-in-law of my Nie Family, will he not still be a pillar of the court and a credit to the Jingwu Bureau? Besides, the boy has long-standing ties to our family. We’ve been secretly supporting and looking after him for some time.

"We can’t be expected to expend so much effort cultivating an ideal son-in-law, only to hand him over to someone else for nothing, can we?"

"Besides, as the Commander of the Jingwu Bureau, surely you wouldn’t stand in the way of a subordinate’s marriage and family life... You wouldn’t want to ruin such a happy union, would you, Chu?"

"He’s just made it onto the Dragon and Tiger List, his ranking barely settled, and your Nie Family is already this desperate to lock down a marriage contract?"

Chu Zhengnan’s gaze was sharp.

"How come I didn’t see the Nie Family being so proactive before this?"

"Before, the family hadn’t finished deliberating on which legitimate daughter would be the most suitable match. It was a matter we took very seriously."

Nie Tiankun’s reply was smooth and flawless.

"Now that we have chosen the candidate, it is, of course, better to act sooner rather than later to demonstrate our sincerity."

"You..."

Chu Zhengnan stared at him for a moment before the anger on his face suddenly vanished. His tone softened, adopting a negotiating air.

"Nie, how about you do me a favor? Let my Chu Family have the boy. In return, I will do everything in my power to support the Nie Family’s interests in Yunzhou."

"That... I’m afraid I cannot oblige."

Nie Tiankun shook his head.

"Besides, from what I understand, Chen Sheng and my niece are already deeply in love. Chu, as a high official of the court and the head of the Jingwu Bureau, you wouldn’t stoop to destroying a happy couple and stealing another’s beloved, would you?"

"Deeply in love?"

Chu Zhengnan almost sputtered with laughter.

"Your Nie Family’s girl has never even met Chen Sheng, so where does this ’deeply in love’ nonsense come from? Nie, that excuse is utterly absurd!"

"And how can you be so certain... they haven’t met?"

Nie Tiankun remained as unshakable as a mountain, not yielding an inch.

"You..."

"Chu, he’s just one young man who has yet to fully develop. Is there really a need to take this so seriously?"