The person that Lina wanted to grow the closest to was Krystal. Krystal was the eldest sibling, but her brother was the eldest son of the family. They were fraternal twins, separated by only mere minutes. Yet, Krystal lost the right to succession because of her gender, despite being the oldest child in the entire family.

  Krystal had the drive that her brother did not. Because she couldn't get the spot, she worked twice as hard to even join the race. Lina knew it was why Krystal attempted to curry favors with Atlantis.

  With Atlantis being the Chairman of Medeor Corporation, he could support any young heir. Medeor Corporation's bloodline was no joke and neither was their standing in the business world.

  Both Krystal and Medeor Corporation had longstanding histories in Ritan. Lina needed that support.

  Yang Enterprise dabbled in every sector of business, making it one of the largest companies this world had ever witnessed. With the rise of Ritan, they were beginning to establish a new headquarters here.

  "Brother!" Krystal exclaimed, cutting into the conversation with ease.

  Immediately, the group turned to look at her, even though her brother was originally the one leading the conversation. Lina found that intriguing and decided to observe further.

  "This is one of our classmates, Lina, you remember her don't you?" Krystal remarked.

  Lina recognized him. Krystal was the Class President and President of the Student Government, but her brother was second-in-command as Vice President of the council.

  "How could I forget a familiar face?" he mused.

  "It's been a while Kane," Lina recalled with a slight smile.

  Kane's eyes flickered over her. He was surprised she had lost this much weight. She was a completely different person! In middle school, her figure was like a ball that could be kicked during soccer. The kids would make fun of her whenever she tried to eat. Then, when puberty hit, she grew taller and her weight became distributed. But in a high school of extremely thin heiresses, Lina's average build stood out like a sore thumb.

  Now, Lina possessed the same willowy figure as the heiresses. Except, her breasts were ample from her youth and so was her backside.

  Kane took an immediate liking to her.

  "It has been far too long, Lina," Kane said in a welcoming voice. "Let me introduce you to my college friends."

  "Our college friends," Krystal corrected him with an amused smile.

  Kane's eyes twitched at her words, but didn't respond. He gestured down the list of people.

  "This is…"

  Lina tuned out from the majority of the introductions. There was a hedge fund heir, an heiress who's family specialized in fashion, a woman whose family produced outstanding bodyguards, another heir whose house specialized in textiles, and the list went on. She was pleased to meet their acquaintance and smiled at the right moment.

  Kane was the first to notice how different she was. Lina had changed so much, he couldn't believe she was the same woman. There was something in her distant gaze that pleased the poet in his heart.

  Lina was physically standing there, engaging in a conversation, but her mind seemed elsewhere. It was like she had wisdom beyond her years.

  "Speaking of which, Lina, I hear you're joining the Race of Heirs for Yang Enterprise. Is it true?" Krystal asked her.

  Kane raised a brow. He glanced at his older sister with a disapproving stare. He knew his sister stood no chances against him, but he didn't like how much she changed.

  Their father was a violent man and his older sister used to protect him from their frequent beatings. Now, Krystal was no longer the defender. Instead, Kane felt like he had to defend his position from her.

  "Yes, I've been raised since birth by my grandfather and First Uncle to take over Yang Enterprise," Lina stated.

  "But isn't your Second Uncle's son first in line to the succession?" Krystal asked, tilting her head in genuine confusion.

  "Not for long," Lina confidently said.

  "You're not afraid of retaliation from your relatives and cousins?" Krystal questioned. She quickly glanced at her younger brother. Her heart stopped when she saw he was watching them. In particular, her.

  "What's the worst they can do?" Lina asked.

  "Many things," Krystal deadpanned like Lina was an idiot.

  "Then you do much worse things back," Lina said like it was no big deal.

  Krystal was stunned speechless, including the other socialites in the group. The heiresses were just a title. They were never going to inherit their parents' company.

  Ritan was prospering and innovative, but the people in charge were conservative. Many still favored a son inheriting the company, for they could extend the bloodline with children of the same surnames. Daughters could not.

  "My grandmother used to tell me," Lina slowly murmured. "If a man slaps you, then you punch him. If he grabs you by the hair, you grab him down there."

  Then, Lina chuckled at the memory. "That was after I fought bloodily with my younger brother, mind you."

  Quickly, light laughter erupted. They also remembered bickering with their siblings. Were you even related if there was no physical altercation and forced reconciliation?

  "Well, I've spoken too much," Lina mused. "Tell me more about yourselves."

  At the given opportunity, people quickly began the conversation. They talked about their parents' business, the latest class assignments, how much work they had, the people they met, and so forth.

  Lina drowned out the mindless conversation, except when they spoke about business and lthe atest trends.

  Afterward, Lina tuned out their small complaints and brags. The entire time, she noticed Kane was leading the conversation. But eevery timesomeone spoke, they always looked at Krystal.

  Interesting.

  Lina saw who was the undersigned group leader. There was always one. They were the person that everyone looked at during a group discussion. The leader was the one who spoke the least, but made the biggest impact. The one everybody wanted approval from, whether they knew it or not.

  Krystal was in charge.

  These friends of Kane's were actually on her side.

  Lina could use that to her advantage.

  "What do you think?" Krystal asked Lina.

  "I agree," Lina chimed in. "Our technology has been so developed, it'd be a great idea to install the scenery-changing window panels for Presidential Suite clients."

  Lina left out the part where every room should be incorporated with it, but limit the scenery based on the floor level. This was too good of an idea to give out to anyone else. Especially when she didn't know who her competitor was.

  Yang Enterprise owned multiple renowned hotels and resorts. Recently, they purchased an enormous piece of land to construct real estate and were looking for investors with large pockets. The funding would be insane, given the incorporation of the first scenery-changing window housing. Why limit it to hotels?

  "Indeed!" Krystal excitedly said. "Our technology has progressed so much, instead of just using the scenery-changing windows for the VIPs, we should extend it further."

  Lina took a mental note to speak with Krystal after this. Krystal's family was the leading company for material manufacturing, whether it was glass, home goods, industrial equipment, and so forth.

  If Lina could secure Krystal's family as a major investor, it'd boost her image during the stockholder meetings. So, Lina widened her smile and decided to further join the conversation.

  "Good idea, sister," Kane noted. "But I was thinking something along the lines of…"

  Lina pretended not to hear him.

  Lina suddenly thought of a great idea. One that could turn Krystal into a candidate as next-in-line. In return, Lina would gain Krystal's trust. Killing two birds with one stone, and at no cost for Lina.

  Ideas came by effortlessly. People were reluctant to purchase scenery-changing windows because of how expensive it was. But with so many modern homes with open settings, the demand for protection and privacy was on the high rise. Lina had the perfect plan to combat that.

  "By the way, I think our arrangements have arrived," Lina whispered to Krystal. "Why don't we have a talk alone?"

  Krystal's eyes lit up. She glanced at everyone and noticed they were listening to something her brother was saying. The two quickly snuck away before anyone could notice. Once they were near one of the secluded french doors leading to the balcony, Krystal turned to Lina.

  "What did you want to tell me?" Krystal asked.

  Lina's eyes shimmered. "Do you want to live in your brother's shadow forever?"

  "I'm not—"

  "You are," Lina insisted. "You let him lead the conversations even though he says stupid things. His arrogance drives him before his intellect does. Do you really want a man like him to be inheriting the company your family worked hard to maintain?"

  Krystal swallowed at Lina's words. She leaned against the wall and observed the group from afar.

  "So this is why you've helped me," Krystal said. "I knew it wasn't out of the goodness of your heart."

  "If the goodness of our hearts can get us where we want to, we wouldn't have to resort to private conversations like this," Lina scoffed.

  Krystal laughed. The sound was music to Lina's ears. In return, Lina's smile widened.

  "What is your idea then?" Krystal asked.

  "I'll only tell you if you can get your father to be an investor in Yang Enterprise's project. It's a collaborative idea, you see," Lina remarked.

  "Oh?"

  Lina glanced at Krystal. "I still don't trust anyone from our school."

  "Who would?" Krystal snorted. "Serendipity School of Success. Tch, more like School of Snakes."

  Lina laughed under her breath. Indeed.

  "Before I tell you the idea, you'll have to sign a contract promising to be an investor first, then, I'll tell you what it is, next you convince your father, and we'll collaborate large enough to secure your position," Lina stated.

  "You have to tell me first. I can't walk into this blindly, especially when we both know we can't trust each other," Krystal remarked.

  "Trust in my capabilities as the only student in that school to graduate two years in advance, get my PhD at age twenty-two, and be at the top of our classes," Lina told Krystal.

  Krystal was skeptical at first. She took a good long look at Lina Yang. This girl was the Pearl of the Yang Family. Krystal knew the rumors surrounding her. Lawrence's favorite. Yang's Chairman doted on her.

  Lina had every right to be the successor, for she learned by her grandfather's side. She had every right, but was stopped by people who chided her arrogance, by people who believed she should be collateral for marriage contracts.

  The very people that wished for her to never sit on the throne were the same kind of people who forbade Krystal from being in meetings.

  "Fine, I'll trust you," Krystal said. "But if the idea falls through, I want a large compensation."

  Lina's lips curled upwards…… "Deal."