If "Han Bujing" hadn't sounded too bizarre and overly blunt, Han Qingyu would have introduced himself as Han Bujing right then and there.
Just before this moment, everyone present had been condemning him for being disrespectful to the Qu clan and disrespectful to the alliance.
That was where Han Qingyu had drawn his inspiration.
*Not bad. At least it's far better than Han Qinglou or Han Qinggua,* he thought earnestly as he stood on the platform.
The air remained dead silent for a few more seconds.
Down in a corner of the crowd, Pang Jinghe was watching Han Qingyu's bag for him. The forty-year-old man wore the dazed, stunned expression of a terrified child, staring blankly at the scene.
Then he lowered his gaze to Third Young Master Qu, who was lying motionless on the stage.
Old Pang thought to himself, *It's over! It's all over!*
*And here I thought you guys actually had a plan! What the hell is the difference between this and just charging in with blades swinging?!*
*No, there is a difference! Damn it all, you picked the moment when there were the most people! You got surrounded right from the start!*
*So what do we do now? You guys know how to fight, but I don't! I'm a dead man!*
*Wait, there's another guy right here who's just as useless in a fight as me. Let me see what he does first.*
Pang Jinghe turned around, looking anxiously at Wen Jifei.
Wen Jifei used a gun. Although it was kept in a holster bag, over the past two days together, Pang Jinghe had already figured out that this meant he couldn't fight hand-to-hand and was quite useless—a very simple piece of logic.
"Don't panic, Old Pang," Wen Jifei said gently. "It's fine."
*Fine my ass! Blades are about to fly! We should be putting our heads together on how to slip away!* Pang Jinghe cursed inwardly.
"Think about it, Old Pang. Given our current standing and status here, if Qingzi didn't stir up some trouble on his own, would he ever have a chance to be taken seriously?" Wen Jifei spoke in a hushed tone, placing heavy emphasis on the words *taken seriously*.
Without needing to think, Pang Jinghe replied immediately, "No."
"Exactly, no. Then how is he supposed to take part in the discussions among the important figures and seize the truly critical opportunities? Are those people going to pull out the bones and lay them out right here, just waiting for him to snatch them?"
Pang Jinghe vaguely understood: so the mustachioed manager and Cao the Second had essentially delivered themselves to their doorstep. In truth, even without them, Han Qingyu would have actively stirred up some trouble to make the Qu clan notice his strength and reckless temper.
*Still, by making a scene like this, won't everyone just draw their blades right away?!* Pang Jinghe looked back toward the stage. Wen Jifei was watching serenely, looking completely unbothered.
The logic behind the development had been calculated from the very beginning. While the execution involved some coincidences, the core logic had not deviated, and the results were even better than planned.
Wen Jifei had based his plan on two things:
First, Zhu Jiaming's earlier description of Qu Zongxing's character and style of handling matters;
Second, today's grand occasion, where the Qu clan was gathering the "heroes under heaven" and aiming to take up the mantle of leadership.
Under such circumstances, Han Qingyu appeared as a young expert—hot-blooded, backed by little power, yet defiant and fearless... It couldn't have been more straight out of *Romance of the Three Kingdoms* and *Water Margin*.
And one form of trust came when a great figure believed in his own heart: *This man has been won over by me.*
"A very interesting name, and quite impressive combat power as well." Finally, Qu Zongxing spoke. His tone surprised nearly everyone present; he sounded exceedingly calm.
*Sigh, if only he could have jumped up and beaten Qingzi to the ground before saying that, the effect would be even better,* Wen Jifei thought with a twinge of regret.
"B-but Third Young Master..." Beside Qu Zongxing, a man who looked like a steward pointed up toward the stage.
"He's fine. He won't die."
In just six words, Qu Zongxing fully displayed his stature.
Having said that, he looked back up at Han Qingyu. "A youth blessed with valor—if he weren't hot-blooded, how could he be called young? Come, finish what you were saying earlier."
"Alright." Han Qingyu turned, first glancing at Cao the Second on the perimeter, and said, "I hit him because he tried to steal a weapon belonging to a friend traveling with me."
Cao the Second didn't utter a peep.
"As for that mustachioed manager, he was guarding the cave entrance outside. Seeing that there were few of us and that our clan had fallen on hard times, he tried to extort source energy blocks from us." Han Qingyu stated plainly, "I imagine our group of four wasn't the only one extorted by him. Others chose to endure it, but I could not."
A low murmur rippled through the crowd below the platform.
Although no one stepped forward outright, the situation had become glaringly obvious: there were indeed other small, weak groups who had been extorted by that mustachioed manager. Qu Zongxing pondered for a moment, swiftly putting all the pieces together... Casting a glance at his own son lying prone on the stage, he announced in a resonant voice:
"In that case, consider that strike of yours earlier as setting the rules for this assembly, and as setting the rules for the descendants of the Qu clan on my behalf."
As Qu Zongxing spoke, he stood up, cupped his hands, and bowed slightly in all directions. "My wayward son acted with shameless greed. This old man is truly ashamed. I imagine there are other friends present who have been extorted by servants acting under his orders... No matter. You need not speak up now. The Qu clan will investigate the matter thoroughly, return every single source energy block, and add one more as a humble token of apology."
How magnanimous! What incredible stature!
Amidst the chorus of flattery rising from the crowd, Wen Jifei turned and smiled at Pang Jinghe.
"Heheh, I knew all along you guys had a plan," Pang Jinghe whispered.
On the other side, Qu Zongxing turned back to the platform. "Young brother, are you a top combat power?"
Han Qingyu nodded. "Yeah."
So this Han Wujing was already a top combat power at such a young age? The crowd gasped in awe, followed by excitement, having completely forgotten how they had just been condemning him moments before.
Qu Zongxing asked no further details on the spot, as a Qu clan steward had already walked over to Pang Jinghe's side and begun inquiring into their background.
At the same time, Qu Zongxing tilted his head slightly in the center of the venue and signaled to a servant, "What are you waiting for? Go fetch a chair!"
And so, Han Qingyu had earned a seat.
A servant of the Qu clan quickly brought over a chair. Han Wujing stepped off the platform, offered his thanks, and sat down side by side with the eight most important figures present.
*He actually managed to blend in just like that?!* Sitting among the Shang clan members, Shang Nianhua smiled wryly, letting out a quiet sigh of relief. Her trust in and understanding of Han Qingyu's group ran far deeper than Pang Jinghe's, yet even she hadn't been able to help worrying a moment ago.
The farce drew to a close, and Qu Zongxing's conduct had already won over many.
"This old fox really looks like he's planning something big," Wen Jifei remarked in a low murmur.
***
"How did it go?" Late at night, Han Qingyu finally returned, and Wen Jifei hurriedly rose to ask.
After the proceedings in the square ended earlier, Han Qingyu had followed along to participate in the subsequent discussions, exactly as they had hoped. Essentially, whenever those figures stood up, he stood up too and trailed behind them. Qu Zongxing had made no move to stop him.
"Yeah." Han Qingyu nodded. "He brought it up. He said that for the duration of the alliance, he hopes every clan can temporarily lend him their Bones of Eternal Life for his use."
There really was a secret behind those things, and the Qu clan had caught on to it. Wen Jifei's eyes lit up, and he asked, "How many pieces are there?!"
Beside him, Pang Jinghe wore the same eager look.
"The Qu clan has one piece themselves! Then, during the discussion, two clans admitted to having one and promised to bring them out tomorrow." Han Qingyu was maintaining his impassive demeanor, showing no visible excitement.
"Whoa! Three pieces in one go!"
"Yeah. There should be more among the remaining clans, but they're probably hesitating or unwilling. It'll depend on how Qu Zongxing presses them tomorrow. He also asked me if the Pang clan had one. I told him I didn't know, but even if we did, it had probably already been taken when our home was raided."
"Yeah. It was robbed," Pang Jinghe nodded in agreement, then asked, "So are you going to snatch them directly tomorrow?"
Han Qingyu finally couldn't hold it in anymore. His eyes gleamed with excitement, and he grinned. "Either way works."
Chapter 386