Politics had never been Lightning's specialty. She was not in any means good at it, better at knowing who was lying and breaking out of traps. It also wasn't that she didn't understand things; it was more that she didn't care for them.
Annoying, frustrating and useless to boot, that was her opinion on it.
As Tian, or Lu Leiji, she liked it even less. Maybe someone like Light or Bai Qiafei would be good and even enjoy it, but she just…did not like something so fragile.
But, like there was a time for everything, this time she actually needed to be good at it and not fall into any pit-holes because the people she actually cared about weren't strong enough at the present time. All this may or may not be the reason that she sat in front of Light and started talking like a cryptic.
Bai Qiafei, from where he was sat down with Bai Shaoxue who was just playing with the bird Xiao Qiu and the three blue-furred bear cubs, raised his head and told him, "It would be better if you just stay silent and defend, no offense, Tian Leiji, but you are sh*t at this."
"Bai Qiafei! Language!" Light shouted at him, scandalized at the inappropriate use of words in front of children from someone who is also a child.
Tian Leiji conceded to him, she really was horrible at doing anything other than straightforward and bluntly. "So I should just not do anything to get trapped by words?"
"Mn, yeah."
Light inwardly curses, not liking that these two who had the worst ideas were ignoring her. The results of this could only either be horribly disastrous or surprisingly beneficial, but she didn't want to leave it to chance. How did these two even know what they were talking about
"Then, what about the line…,"
Light promptly left to find Lu Yanhei and talk to her about how to do damage control for the repercussions this discussion will make in the future. Lightning was too dangerous for her own good sometimes.
"Hm, that one's good, we should talk about this more. You just need to be able to subtly pick at people's sore spots and they should leave you relatively alone." Qiafei told Leiji, Light deciding that being sorry for whoever would be the victims was too much work and throwing them under the bus.
She was as sorry as one would like their most hated foods.
There is always something in one's life that makes it hard. Huang Rushan was smart enough to know what that one thing in his life was and he hates it—but one cannot simply hate the father they want to acknowledge them. It was, it was so frustrating sometimes.
Is grandfather looked at him with pride and asked, the two of them alone and without any needed masks. "Shan'er, what do you think of that boy?" The elder asks, wanting another point of view on the matter. Those were always good to have, especially when dealing with a monster like that. Tian Leiji's mother…Lu Yanhei was it?
Could that woman actually be? The most wanted person on the head of the Qin Clan's list, most wanted as in, most wanted to join the clan or ally with and not dead that is. It couldn't be right?
"I think," Huang Rushan answers, a calm visage that was a contrast to his hotheaded and arrogant personality when with anyone else not his grandfather or Tian Languang. "That we should either bring him to our side or, have him dealt with. I doubt that the Ling reported to be with him a lot would like that though and the Bai Clan have also taken a liking to them and that mother of his and her family have untraceable origins, it would be a hassle if they had some kind of hidden powerhouse behind them. But why would someone so strong be reduced to a bed warmer for that fool Tian Yulong?"
Elder Huang cleared his throat, "That woman has no cultivation, but her body…it is about as strong as one who was about to advance to the Myth ranks. That could only mean that it had been destroyed and…she really is her. The young miss of the Lu Clan."
"Is there a misunderstanding somewhere?" Rushan frowned, pondering the story he was told about the Lu Clan.
"They, they weren't wiped out by a Deity Rank Beast?" The older of the two frowned and made a gesture to get the younger's attention. "I think I should tell you what really happened then, Shan'er."
And he did, and Huang Rushan wondering how he was able to fall for such a thing.
Perhaps it was because of this that he was still too young.
Back then, the spy that was in the Tian Family had reported that there was a baby boy born with unnatural coloring. The woman had then written down that there was an unholy look in his eyes whenever anyone dared to touch his mother. Xue Fei had always hated anyone who looked down on women and thought them beneath because of what nature had given them.
He was curious and decided to check on this himself. That was when he had met Tian Languang, she had been something for him to be curious of.
The Huang family was one of the strongest families in the kingdom and he was their only heir, his father not even considered. So many others had sent their most beautiful daughters, smartest, most graceful and everything else but he could only see someone who could not even string together a coherent sentence.
It was funny. Languang had not been like the others that he had met and that was ultimately what led him to find her more.
Then, what he had come for was ultimately forgotten and he had made a friend.
A friend. It had been such a novel experience that he barely realized with a heart that leapt into his throat and stomach that twisted into knots over and over again that he had fallen.
Promptly, he left and completely destroyed their friendship by announcing to his grandfather that he would take her as his wife and no one else. The Tian Family were overjoyed, being able to get rid of this useless daughter and getting a strong connection, hitting two birds with one stone and readily agreed to it.
Of course, of course that was why the next time he was there, she was long gone.
Languang was like her namesake. Light will light up their surroundings, but the moment it leaves, everything turns dark again.
She was smart, he knew that enough, so why did he do such a stupid thing? Finally, he had a peer. Finally, he had a friend. Finally, he had someone that he loved and he destroyed everything that could have just been left to build up naturally.
Then, Tian Languang came back to the Tian Family after it was destroyed and he had taken too long to find out. Then, he finally met her brother.
Tian Leiji, despite all that he is doing to prevent any contact between them—Huang Rushan wasn't an idiot, he knew that all the times the Ling boy had encountered him was not by coincidence, nor were the times that he was screeched at by a bird or was stared down by one of the Bai Clan's more promising youths—was truly worthy of being Languang's brother. He was ultimately like her no matter the personality and looks.
This would be fun, he would have thought had this been just some random other person's smart young master, unfortunately, this was Languang's brother. One who was beloved enough that she came back.
Not to mention, his cultivation and aura were not correspondent. That, that only had several explanations but all of them were terrifying enough that he wanted to believe anything else. Which meant that any attack waged on them had to be above the Emperor rank to do any damage.
That was terrifying. The only Emperor Rank in the kingdom was the Emperor himself and he did not want to do anything to the Tian Family in fear of retaliation.
How useless.
Huang Rushan still needed to know though. "His cultivation, grandfather, what did you mention it was?"
Elder Huang paused and told him slowly, "I could not sense it."
Rushan sucked in a cold breath at that. Impossible, he wanted to say, because it was simply impossible that his grandfather did not probe him and find out what rank Tian Leiji was. Except, this was Tian Leiji who had destroyed the Tian and made Languang come out and back.
Another possibility popped into his head, one that made him feel a cold sweat break out.
Was it possible that, Tian—no, Lu Leiji was a part of the Qin? No, no, the more accurate question was, was Lu Yanhei that mother of his close enough with the Qin that she knew of their technique of concealing their ranks? But, she was just a bed companion for that young master Tian-something!
The Qin would have never let someone they valued be shamed so much.
Still, he asked. "That mother of his. Could it be…?"
Elder Huang, gave his grandson a thoughtful look and seemed to ponder deeply about the matter. That person that the head of the Qin was looking for, has been looking for years on end, someone rumored to be their lover, it couldn't possibly be that woman, right?
But then Huang Rushan remembered the pressure he felt when she had given him a single glance before smiling.
The possibility that she had been under the Huang and Bai Clan's noses the entire time did not feel right to him. The head of the Qin Clan, Qin Heiyu, would absolutely destroy them if she ever found out that they had let he be defiled so and even give birth to a son who was a complete monster.
"The stories," Rushan suddenly blurts out. "With the pair of husband and wife with golden hair and silver hair, were they true?"
If they were, then he was so completely screwed it wasn't even funny.
Elder Huang manages a small smile, looking like he had come into a realization. "They are. They were the founders of the Qin Clan, of course they were. Qin Heiyu is rumored to have hidden one of the daughters of the Qin to be taught and experience life isolated because she had golden hair. If Lu Leiji really did have the bloodline of the original Qin, then…"
Screwed. They were so screwed.
But Huang Rushan had a reputation and mask to uphold out of this room. He asks his grandfather, because it might as well be a knee-jerk reaction by now, "Should I comply with his requests?"
"No." Elder Huang says immediately. "It is fine. That one was a child still, despite it all. Your Tian Languang is also probably not the type to hold grudges if what you have told me was correct."
Huang Rushan swallowed the words lodged in his throat. He had held this façade for years on end now, why would he break it after so much effort? His grandfather was right, though. Tian…Lu Leiji was still a child and was only acting out in fear of losing someone that he loved. It was fine, he was a child. Child. Huang Rushan repeated it to himself, not wanting his mind to go to darker places.
It would be bad, unfortunate.