Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

The style of his speech was an aristocratic dialect that carried an air of elegance. Many people attempted to master it to sound classy. Despite the fancy and exquisite tone of this dialect, in certain circumstances, it sounded distant and scornful.

Wu Ma Shang’s words in this context were clearly the latter.

Huang Song glared at Wu Ma Shang. How dare this man insult Cheng Jing in front of him? Did he really think his royal blood meant that he was above others?

Just as he was about to speak up to take back control of the platform, Jiang Pengji’s faint mocking voice rang in Huang Song’s ears.

It turned out that while Wu Ma Shang was greeting Cheng Jing, Jiang Pengji had been using the same aristocratic dialect to speak to her father.

“Father, I heard that Master Yuanjing’s disciples are all high class and popular with the great politicians. They each have a very advantageous status. However, now that I’ve seen some with my own two eyes, I believe this rumor is untrue. If it were true, how come brother Cheng Jing just got slapped in the face like that? He is the eldest disciple of Master Yuanjing, he can’t possibly have fallen from such a rank that much, right? Unless Master Yuanjing is no longer as influential as he was before…”

Wu Ma Shang heard it all.

What?

Who was the eldest disciple?

Cheng Jing glanced towards Jiang Pengji with a calm expression.

“Jing said that Chief Wu Ma wasn’t the best candidate earlier for a reason. I shall ask everyone here again, who is the traitor that shook the country? Our enemy is someone who attempted to scandalize the throne with his status of aristocracy and cause unrest. It would be quite a risk for Chief Wu Ma to become the alliance leader of 400,000 troops. What would happen if the traitor turned the tables and claimed our forces as the traitor by rallying up the citizens and pushing for a new emperor?”

That simple line immediately made Wu Ma Shang’s face darken to ash.

This individual could no longer maintain the aloof mannerisms of a noble as he turned to glare at Cheng Jing in anger. That look contained enough fury that it could almost burn through Cheng Jing’s body.

Jiang Pengji mentally gave Cheng Jing a thumbs up. Such ruthlessly poisonous words from this one!

Cheng Jing and Wei Ci were indeed disciples who’d learned from Master Yuanjing.

The brothers each took in their master’s words. While quiet and collected on normal days, they could strike a deadly attack when necessary.

It was a hereditary heart of darkness.

Guiqiu Yuepiao: Cheng Jing vs Wu Ma Shang, Cheng Jing’s victory!

Qingshan Dujiu: A clean and beautiful win, a home run!

Qiu Tuicunpiao: When An Cui was speaking, I also thought Wu Ma Shang was the most qualified because his status and experiences are right there. He was naturally the best choice. But when Cheng Jing spoke, I couldn’t even rebuttal. Cheng Jing’s power level is so off the charts, he’s just throwing Wu Ma Shang on the ground to wipe the floor now that the qualifications have been stripped off. I don’t know if I’m just overthinking this but Cheng Jing seems like someone who holds grudges as well—don’t you guys have the same feeling? I feel like the sweet magical pet Cheng Jing is going to become the next popular thing here.

Wu Ma Shang used his mocking attitude and words to insult Cheng Jing, then Cheng Jing immediately responded.

An eye for an eye.

You purposely step down on me, I’ll step directly on your weakest bone.

The slap in the face came fast like a typhoon.

Before anyone else could react, Wu Ma Shang had been taken down to the corner of the stage.

Cheng Jing’s words were definitive. Nobody else dared to question him by nominating Wu Ma Shang.

As the first nominator of Wu Ma Shang, An Cui was surprisingly unaffected. It was as if he wasn’t the one who’d said those words earlier.

As the host of the meeting, Xu Pei shot an impressed look towards Cheng Jing, praising the young man in his mind.

If Liu Xi hadn’t spoken up, he wouldn’t have met two of Master Yuanjing’s disciples within such a short time or known that one had already joined the alliance.

One supported Liu Xi, the other supported Huang Song.

Wei Ci’s artistic skill had made him speechless. Cheng Jing’s words were powerful like a piercing knife.

Xu Pei was both overjoyed and regretful that such talented men were not his own.

An Cui’s nomination for Wu Ma Shang was reasonable, but Xu Pei was still worried a little bit.

Wu Ma Shang was still part of the royal family. If he wanted to continue competing for the position, he was still a force to be reckoned with.

Xu Pei hadn’t expected Cheng Jing to come out onto the battlefield and single-handedly destroy any chance of Wu Ma Shang becoming a candidate for alliance leader. That made him quite fond of Cheng Jing.

“Mister Cheng’s thoughts are quite careful and considerate, perhaps you have a nomination in mind?”

Cheng Jing lowered his gaze and turned towards Jiang Pengji’s faction.

“I believe that in terms of skill, reputation, and experience, the Liu Province is a very well-qualified candidate.”

Cheng Jing didn’t give a definitive answer by saying that Liu She was the most qualified candidate. If Liu She had no intention of becoming the leader, the others could still have other choices.

Jiang Pengji lifted an eyebrow. Was Cheng Jing trying to rally things up?

She discreetly glanced towards Cheng Jing, only to see that his eyes were on her.

Cheng Jing nodded slightly with a friendly smile.

Liu She naturally wouldn’t take the pitch.

He humbly rejected the offer and stated that he was not qualified to be the leader as he cordially praised Xu Pei and Xu Fei.

He avoided any obvious biases, making it difficult to see where he stood.

Xu Pei secretly tightened his grip in fear of any drastic changes to the status quo—if Liu She suddenly switched sides, all his efforts from before would be in vain.

When he glanced over towards Jiang PengJi, the latter gave him a look of reassurance.

Xu Pei finally calmed his anxious heart.

Liu She kicked the ball back into the playing field while circling new candidates—Xu Pei and Xu Fei.

The audience was made up of brilliant characters who’d seen the Xu brothers’ every action before the alliance meeting and knew that the final battle for the leadership title would be between those two.

The alliance couldn’t be a headless snake. No matter how much wrangling it would take, they must select a leader.

Xu Pei had his own group of supporters. Xu Fei had his own group of fans.

Jiang Pengji and Liu She continued to behave as snacking spectators on the side, finishing four plates of dried fruits between the two of them.

There was only one plate per table. They’d finished their own plate and then taken the plate from Li Yun and Dian Yan’s table.

“My mouth is dry now… They’ve wrangled for over two hours; I can’t believe it takes them this long to fight over such trivial matter…”

Liu She smiled faintly and responded in a low voice, “It’s a matter concerning personal gains. Of course it’s much more complicated than it looks.”

That was why he had no interest in the title of this alliance leader. It was just a name with no real authority, why would he waste his energy to fight for it?

Liu She and Liu Xi aside, Xu Fei’s supporters outnumbered Xu Pei’s slightly. Yet Xu Pei had gained the “friendship” of Jiang Pengji the day earlier. Now, with the additional support from the Liu family, Xu Pei had finally won the election for the alliance leader with an overwhelming victory.

Despite having some expectations, Xu Pei still couldn’t suppress the excitement in his heart the moment the matter was settled.

On the other hand, Xu Fei’s expression darkened slightly…

If Xu Pei hadn’t manipulated him underhandedly and forcefully pulled away the Liu family’s support, the leadership position of the alliance would’ve been his.

The leader has been successfully elected. Everyone joyfully ate, drank, and enjoyed the dances without further worries.

On the outside, everything seemed to be settled in peace.

Everyone was now filled with confidence about the crusade against Prince Changshou. The future was bright and the roads were wide open.

The sound of singing inside the camp did not stop as the beautiful dancers moved to the music. All eyes were locked onto the dancers, mesmerized and stunned by their beauty.

At such a feast, regardless of how well they could hold their wine, everyone had at least a sip of alcohol.

As for those who drank boldly, they reddened from their necks up to their cheeks.