As soon as Zhou Songquan spoke, everyone turned to look at Chen Yang, their expressions quite the sight.

"It's him!" Zhou Yingqiang pointed at Chen Yang. "Not only did he severely injure Songyang, but he also spouted arrogant nonsense, telling me to find anyone I wanted to spar with him. He showed no regard for you as a Sixth Grade Military General at all!"

"Oh? That arrogant?" Zhou Songquan gave Chen Yang a surprised look. "May I ask what you do for a living?"

Chen Yang met his gaze and said flatly, "I work at the same company as Yufei now."

"I remember Yufei's company is in... medicine sales, wasn't it?" Zhou Songquan feigned contemplation, deliberately emphasizing "medicine sales."

PFFT!

Someone couldn't help but laugh out loud.

They were all young men. One had already reached the prestigious position of a Sixth Grade Military General in the Martial Department, while the other sold medicine. The comparison was as vast as heaven and earth, a laughable, ironic contrast.

"Yes, medicine sales," Chen Yang said, his expression unchanging. "We both serve the common people."

"Haha! What a 'service for the common people'!" Zhou Yingqiang sneered. "Our Songquan is stationed at the frontier, guarding a region's peace! What right do you have to compare yourself to him? Have you no shame?"

"If that's the case, why does he keep trying to pull strings for a promotion?" Chen Yang countered with a smile.

Zhou Yingqiang was speechless.

Zhou Songquan's expression darkened, his eyes turning cold and sharp.

"Chen Yang, stop it!" Zhou Yufei whispered, pulling at his arm to stop him. It was one thing to say such things behind his back, but saying it to his face was far too reckless.

"Using connections is a skill in itself! Besides, the higher Songquan's rank, the larger his jurisdiction, and naturally, the greater his responsibility!" The previously silent Zhou Jingyuan finally spoke, glancing at Chen Yang. "What's wrong with that?"

Any good impression Zhou Jingyuan had of Chen Yang vanished instantly with that remark.

The others sneered and jeered. In their eyes, Chen Yang was just jealous or perhaps simply bitter. That's why he constantly brought up the issue of connections, as if that was all Zhou Songquan did in the Martial Department and was good for nothing else. Even if that were true, it was still a thousand times better than some medicine salesman!

Chen Yang shook his head with a light chuckle. They really are a family, all with the same bizarre way of thinking. If everyone thought like them, what would happen to those capable people without connections? Fortunately, such people are in the minority; otherwise, an orphan like me would never have made it this far.

Soon after, the clan banquet officially began.

The conversation revolved almost exclusively around Zhou Songquan. He was like the moon in the night sky, orbited by a sea of stars.

Chen Yang remained silent, taking in the spectacle of human behavior around him.

The banquet dragged on for a full two hours. The moment it concluded, he stood up to leave. For him, the entire event had been an ordeal.

However, Zhou Yingqiang called out to him, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "Trying to run away already? After all that bravado earlier, you don't even have the courage to face the consequences now?"

He was, of course, referring to the spar between Chen Yang and Zhou Songquan.

At this, everyone's interest was piqued. They stared at Chen Yang with mocking, curious smiles. If not for Zhou Yingqiang's timely interjection, the kid might have actually slipped away.

Zhou Yinghao's expression changed. He steeled himself and walked over to Zhou Yingqiang to intervene. "Big Brother, that was all just a joke. Don't take it seriously!"

"Right, right, just a joke!" Peng Ya quickly added.

They knew this family's temperament all too well. If it came to a real fight, given Zhou Songquan's strength, Chen Yang would end up dead or maimed.

"Really? It didn't sound like a joke to me," Zhou Yingqiang said, sweeping his gaze across the crowd. "You were all here. You saw it. Tell me, did that sound like a joke?"

"Of course not! He sounded deadly serious!"

"As I recall, he was the one who made the challenge. It seems no one is worthy of his notice!"

"It's just a spar. Let them fight!"

The surrounding crowd was more than willing to play along, especially since this was an opportunity to curry favor with Zhou Yingqiang. They all scrambled to add fuel to the fire, wildly exaggerating what had happened.

"Second Brother, do you see?" Zhou Yingqiang asked Zhou Yinghao pointedly.

Zhou Yinghao's face turned livid, and he was rendered speechless.

Then, Zhou Yingqiang turned to Chen Yang. "You tell us. Were you joking?"

That single question completely cut off any path of retreat. If Chen Yang claimed it was a joke now, he would be humiliating himself. The crowd wouldn't let it go, and he would never be able to hold his head high in this family again.

If he accepted the spar, he was sure to be gravely injured.

No matter what Chen Yang chose, Zhou Yingqiang would be the big winner.

Seeing Chen Yang halt, Zhou Yufei knew what he was thinking. She grabbed his arm, gritting her teeth. "Chen Yang, this time you have to listen to me! Let's go, now! Pretend you heard nothing!"

"Wouldn't that be a loss of face for you? And for your parents?" Chen Yang smiled.

Zhou Yufei didn't care. "Is this any time to worry about face? My cousin is vicious. If you fight, he'll kill you!"

"Funny, I'm not exactly good-tempered myself," Chen Yang grinned at her. He turned back to Zhou Yingqiang and asked, "Uncle, do I look like I'm joking?"

This...

Zhou Yingqiang was at a loss for words.

The crowd exchanged bewildered glances. So this guy wasn't planning to run away? And he wasn't taking this seriously at all?

So arrogant!

Zhou Yinghao's face turned grim, and he almost fainted. Is this guy really hell-bent on marching to his own death?

Zhou Jingyuan took a sip of his tea and said nonchalantly, "Songquan, go on. Have a match with him."

Chen Yang's audacity had annoyed him, so he felt no need to add any instruction about holding back. This was the Zhou residence; how could they tolerate an outsider constantly making a scene?

Zhou Songquan slowly walked out of the hall to stand opposite Chen Yang. "Technically, you don't qualify to be my opponent. But since Grandfather has spoken, I'll begrudgingly have a match with you."

"So I should be grateful?" Chen Yang laughed.

Zhou Songquan cracked his neck. "For Yufei's sake, I won't take your life," he said ominously. "But as for anything else, I can't make any promises."

Zhou Yufei's heart tightened. She was about to speak when she heard a sharp whoosh of air.

WHOOSH!

Zhou Songquan leaped into action. The gentle, refined aura around him vanished, replaced by a fierce and chilling murderous intent. He was like an unsheathed blade, sharp and brimming with a surging killing intent.

THUD, THUD, THUD.

Hit by the force of this aura, the onlookers couldn't help but stagger backward, their faces pale with shock and horror.

So strong! He's truly a Sixth Grade Military General!

At the same time, Chen Yang took a single step forward and lifted his right leg. He kicked out with the force of wind and thunder, his foot landing squarely on Zhou Songquan's chest.

BANG!

With a muffled impact, Zhou Songquan's body buckled, bending like a bow. He flew seven or eight meters, crashing into a large tree before slamming heavily to the ground.

RUSTLE!

A shower of dried leaves rained down, obscuring the view.

Zhou Songquan violently vomited blood. Tears and cold sweat streamed down his face, mixing with the blood as he writhed and convulsed on the ground.

Zhou Yingqiang: "..."

Zhou Jingyuan: "..."

The crowd: "..."

"..."

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