Daju was quite astonished.

It wasn’t that the strategy was particularly deep or unexpected, but he was surprised by how precisely Qin Ruqing, despite her young age, understood the situation and made her choices.

Navigating under the dangerous scrutiny of the Fang family, she managed to protect herself without being opportunistic.

Realizing she couldn’t topple the Fang family by leveraging the situation, she chose a secondary strategy.

…and turn this situation to her advantage.

Daju thought even more highly of this younger generation, but after some contemplation, he still had some reservations. “I have no objections, but the Fifth family isn’t just up to us two. Besides, if the whole Fifth family gets involved, things might escalate, and it could end badly. It would also go against what the young lady initially intended.”

“That’s easy to handle,” Fifth Lingyu replied calmly. “If the Fifth family doesn’t get involved, the Southern Region’s Celestial Bureau can step in.

The Qin family is now a Southern Region noble family, and the Hundred Clans Conference is also about Southern Region honor.

It’s entirely normal for the Southern Region’s Celestial Bureau to say a few words of support.”

Daju agreed readily.

The Southern Region’s Celestial Bureau was indeed the most suitable entity—it carried some weight from the Fifth family but did not directly represent them.

Thus, the matter was settled.

Perhaps due to the intense external criticism, the Fang family was forced to respond quickly.

However, whether their response would be satisfactory was another matter.

The Fang family first harshly criticized Qin Ruqing, accusing her of seeking attention through despicable and vile means.

They called her statements absurd and laughable.

Although the Fang family initially didn’t want to address what they saw as nonsense, they had no choice but to respond to protect their family’s reputation.

After a lengthy and somewhat irritable explanation, they reluctantly addressed the three main questions.

For the first question, the Fang family stated that while it was true they and the Kun ancestors had once entered a secret realm together, they had separated after entering.

The two families were indeed related by marriage, but this didn’t mean the Fang family was responsible for ensuring the Kun ancestors’ safety.

The death of the Kun ancestor was an unfortunate event, but it had nothing to do with the Fang family.

As for the so-called divine elixir or secret book, the Fang family claimed they had never heard of such things and that Qin Ruqing’s statements were mere fabrications.

For the second question, the Fang family stated that the decision on whether to focus on pill refining or swordsmanship was a family matter and did not require outside scrutiny.

For the third question, the Fang family’s response was even shorter: They had not received any rescue message from the Qin family.

People waiting for the Fang family’s response were left speechless after hearing these answers.

Why did the Fang family’s response come across as so arrogant and dismissive, with a tone of indifference and impatience?

You weren’t just responding to Qin Ruqing’s doubts; you were also addressing those who supported your family.

The city erupted in outrage.

“Oh my goodness, I wasn’t too concerned about Qin Ruqing’s accusations before. I thought a top-tier noble family wouldn’t behave like this. But after seeing their response today, it’s clear that, if nothing else, their arrogance is real.”

“Even though we’re in-laws, we can’t guarantee Ancestor Yingkun’s safety? Did anyone ask you to guarantee it? And what’s this about his death being his misfortune and having nothing to do with the Fang family? What a pure white lotus act!”

“It’s hilarious how they avoid the main issue. The real question is about revealing what happened in the secret realm, right?

If you’re willing to explain, at least tell us what happened there, why you separated, and where you parted ways.

But no, they avoid the crucial details and cleanly sidestep everything else.

I didn’t think much of your family before, but now it seems there might be a real problem.”

“According to the Fang family, being in-laws doesn’t mean ensuring someone’s safety.

Fair enough, but how did you become enemies after leaving the secret realm? Care to explain why you turned against each other?”

While the first question was addressed with a somewhat arrogant but serious response, the following two were blatantly dismissive.

The first response almost directly told people to mind their own business.

The third response claimed they didn’t receive any messages.

Did the Fang family’s communication stones conveniently break on the battlefield?

Or was the Qin family too foolish to seek external help despite all their leaders dying?

After these three responses, even the Fang family’s supporters were left speechless.

Their attempts at explanation only made things look worse.

At this moment, the head of the Southern Region’s Celestial Bureau publicly supported Qin Ruqing.

He said, “The Qin family of the Southern Region fought on behalf of our region, participated in the Hundred Clan Conference as per the rules, and even won the top honor on the gold list.

This should have been a good thing, but instead, it brought jealousy and led to the assassination of Qin family members during the conference.

After the event, not only did they not receive the apology and compensation they deserved, but they also faced massive slander.

If there are indeed questions about the old war in Yingzhou, the Eastern Region’s Celestial Bureau should reconsider the case and clear the names of the innocent.”

Clear the names of the innocent.

The head of the Southern Region’s Celestial Bureau’s statement pushed the matter to its peak.

The Eastern Region was in an uproar!

On one hand, the Fang family’s responses were unsatisfactory and unconvincing.

On the other hand, the Southern Region’s Celestial Bureau came out in strong support of Qin Ruqing.

Behind the Southern Region’s Celestial Bureau stood the Fifth Family.

Was this the Fifth Family publicly siding with the Qin family and Qin Ruqing?

“Oh my, this is the first time an Celestial Bureau has so clearly supported a single family! What’s the relationship between the Qin family and the Fifth family?”

“It’s not exactly the Celestial Bureau supporting the Qin family. The head of the Southern Region Celestial Bureau made the statement, representing the Southern Region’s Celestial Bureau, so there’s a bit of distance.

The Qin family is now part of the Southern Region, and it’s reasonable for the Southern Region’s head to speak on their behalf.”

“But I still find it unbelievable. Even if it’s the Celestial Bureau… weren’t they always aloof? When have they ever spoken up for a single family like this?”

“Previously, the discussion at Hui Cui Building did you see the special report on the top spot of the golden list?

It seems that the Qin family has had a close relationship with the Celestial Bureau for a long time.

It looks like Fairy Ruqing is particularly favored by them.

When the Golden list was announced, wasn’t Director Feng personally trying to recruit her?

This isn’t just the Celestial Bureau supporting the Qin family, it’s them backing Fairy Ruqing.”

“What do you call this? This is what it means to have one person lift the whole family. When one person succeeds, the entire family prospers.”

“With the Southern Region Director’s statement, even if the issue isn’t completely resolved, no one will dare to question the Qin family now.

It’s clear that something was wrong with the war in Yingzhou back then.

The Fang family’s response was pathetic, saying they didn’t receive any rescue message. They couldn’t even bother to be convincing.”

“Am I the only one who thinks this is a showdown between two Celestial Bureaus? From the Southern Region Director’s words, it sounds like he believes the Eastern Region’s Celestial Bureau made a mistake and wants them to re-investigate.

If an Celestial Bureau can make a mistake, that’s incredibly embarrassing.

The Fifth family is using this to mock the Feng family too, aren’t they?”

“Uh, this topic is sensitive. We shouldn’t speculate. Let’s wait and see how the Eastern Region Celestial Bureau responds.”

The Eastern Region’s Celestial Bureau was the last to respond.

Their stance was straightforward: they would re-investigate the war in Yingzhou and provide an explanation to the people of the Eastern Region and Yingzhou.

Hmm…

This response was expected.

They were in a difficult position.

After all, the Yingzhou Qin family was demoted by the Eastern Region Celestial Bureau.

If they hadn’t been demoted, the Qin family wouldn’t have faced such oppression and eventually relocated.

The conflict between the Qin and Fang families spread throughout the four regions, gradually reaching a conclusion amidst the uproar.

The consensus was that there might have been hidden truths in the Yingzhou war involving the Qin family.

The nail that had pinned the Qin family to disgrace had loosened.

However, since neither side had solid evidence, the final verdict depended on the Eastern Region’s Celestial Bureau’s investigation.

The only constant in the city was the support for Fairy Ruqing’s dynamic jade slips—one showed her with tears in her eyes, another with a mocking smile, still selling…

It seemed there were people who didn’t care about the Qin-Fang conflict at all.

They were just there to admire her looks.

---

After hiding in Qunying Courtyard for a few days, Qin Ruqing finally opened her dorm door—she could finally go out and buy some pastries.

She hadn’t dared to go out before, fearing she might get ambushed.

Now that the storm had passed, it was time to take a nice stroll.

Besides, Third Sister, Tang Zifeng and the others’ competition was finally nearing its end!

Thankfully, she had no talent for alchemy or weapon crafting… It was too time-consuming, requiring her to sit still for days.

She’d rather conjure fireballs.

“So, we’re just going to pick up Third Sister. Do you really need to dress up like this?” Qirong asked, crossing his arms with a bemused expression.

Yes, Qin Ruqing was once again in her flamboyant goddess outfit, fully made up and flashy.

Qin Ruqing, with a serious face, said, “You don’t understand. Especially after just experiencing a major crisis, the first appearance has to be stunning!”

“This is the best time to solidify my fans. I need to look amazing and piss off my rivals!”