Chapter 152 - 151: Pfft, a Seasoned Show-off

"Female Master, how about adding me to the second team?"

He Yushu’s voice was the same as ever—clear and elegant, with a gentlemanly quality—and yet, it seemed somehow different from before.

Under the soft yellow light, his face was cast in a gentle glow, making his thoughts difficult to decipher.

But his eyes alone shone like stars, fixed directly on Chu Liangyu’s position at the head of the hall.

He walked into the hall step by step, and only then did everyone get a clear look at him and remember who he was.

He Yushu, the third-ranked of her Beast Husbands, a Red-crowned Crane Beastman.

They weren’t particularly familiar with him, but he was one of the first Beast Husbands to follow Chu Liangyu. Everyone had heard of his bizarre diet, and they all knew he was an expert at posturing, extremely concerned with his image.

And here he was, making such a conspicuous entrance, all dressed up and flashy as if he were afraid their Female Master wouldn’t notice him.

The group of them curled their lips in disdain, rolling their eyes so hard they could see the heavens. But they had to admit, He Yushu’s looks were truly outstanding. Even Chu Liangyu herself couldn’t help but take a second look.

His narrow phoenix eyes were long but not overly sharp. He had the classic oval face of a beauty, a full forehead, and a jawline so defined it was clearly visible. When his thin lips parted to speak, people had no idea what he was saying, their gazes completely captivated by his lips.

His long, light hair hung carelessly by his ears, and paired with his black-and-white robes, he exuded a certain Daoist charm.

What do you call a critical hit of handsome?

This was it!

Perhaps because Chu Liangyu had been staring for so long, no one in the hall spoke for a moment, and an eerie silence fell.

At that moment, the resident smart mouth, Feng Qiwu, couldn’t help but speak up. "He Yushu, it’s not that we don’t want you to join. With that picky diet of yours, I’m genuinely afraid you’ll starve to death before the mission is even over."

"Or maybe you’ll make someone else go to the trouble of finding food for you."

Chu Liangyu didn’t say anything, but she shared the same concern.

She knew that for He Yushu to have found his way to the tribe, he must have changed in some way, but this was only a guess. She had no concrete proof.

"You don’t have to worry about that. My brother here is different now; he’s not the man he used to be."

"Especially the food issue. That’s completely changed. You don’t need to worry about it."

Perhaps He Yushu had been too eager, for he had left his good friend Qu Jing behind, who was only just now catching up.

Hearing someone speak ill of He Yushu, Qu Jing naturally couldn’t stop himself from stepping forward to defend him.

Although they had only known each other for a short time in the Thundercloud Area, their bond was no less deep than that of family members who had spent decades together. This was why he had been willing to leave his comfortable environment to follow He Yushu and seek refuge with his Female Master.

Feng Qiwu was annoyed to see this guy jump out to defend He Yushu. ’This is our business,’ he thought. ’What does it have to do with him?’

His tone turned sour. "And who are you?"

"I am called Qu Jing." He smiled and bowed, showing no anger. "On the road, I heard of the Xihe Tribe’s strength and came specifically to join. As a newcomer, please forgive me if I am impolite in any way."

"And how should I address you?"

Qu Jing narrowed his eyes. He didn’t like Feng Qiwu either, but he planned to remember the name so he could get even for his brother someday.

"Feng Qiwu."

In just a few sentences, the air between the two sides crackled with tension, as if they might come to blows if they said another word.

He Yushu took a step forward, drawing everyone’s attention back to himself. He looked again to Chu Liangyu at the head of the hall and asked, "Female Master, I have wings. How about letting me join the second team?"

Seeing someone so eager to help, Chu Liangyu naturally had no reason to refuse. Quite satisfied with his attitude, she nodded immediately.

"Alright. For the second team, Cang Yu will stay behind. He Yushu will take his place."

Chu Liangyu’s gaze shifted to Cang Yu. Fearing he might take it the wrong way, she explained, "Your beast form is too conspicuous. Using it during the day would be detrimental to the plan, but only using it at night would waste too much time."

Cang Yu never thought he’d be sidelined for his beast form being too formidable. He subconsciously furrowed his brow, a little unhappy, but he didn’t say anything.

He knew Chu Liangyu’s reasoning was sound, so he took the map he’d barely had time to warm and handed it to He Yushu. His voice was a bit muffled as he replied, "Alright. I understand, Female Master."

It had to be said, He Yushu’s arrival was perfectly timed, conveniently solving the efficiency problem that had worried Chu Liangyu.

Chu Liangyu nodded and began to ask for the opinions of the three. "The second team will consist of He Yushu, Jinling, and Yu He. Do the three of you have any objections?"

"None," said Jinling.

Yu He shook his head. "None," he said as well.

As for He Yushu himself, he was even less likely to have any objections, since he was the one who had volunteered to join in the first place.

"That concludes the team assignments. I’ve already found two of the fifty people on the map and circled them, so there are only 48 left."

"They’re scattered in different locations. How to properly divide the areas to visit and other details—your two teams can discuss and decide on those yourselves."

Chu Liangyu lifted her chin, gesturing for them to look. "There’s a small meeting room next door. You can go discuss things in there."

The six of them did as she said and entered the adjacent room. With that, only four of the ten Beast Husbands in the tribe remained: Hu Qiumu, Xiong Xianhui, and Cang Yu.

Of course, Chi Yizhong’s status was somewhat special, and she would have other arrangements for him later.

He didn’t have a cub to inform him, so he didn’t know about this matter yet, which was also something she had arranged on purpose.

As for the reason, it was because she was afraid that old schemer Jiang Li would share Chi Yizhong’s memories, causing the news to leak.

As for the friend He Yushu had brought back, Chu Liangyu thought for a moment before saying, "Our second order of business is to form a Guard Team, and we will select the best from all the Beastmen in the tribe."

"I wonder, would Qu Jing be willing to help?"

Qu Jing had been standing off to the side for a while. Seeing that they were discussing business, he hadn’t felt it was his place to interrupt.

Now, hearing Chu Liangyu actually remember him, he couldn’t help but feel a little overwhelmed by the favor, though he recovered in an instant.

"I’d be delighted."

Chu Liangyu was very pleased with his attitude, so her tone became more polite. "There are seats over there, please sit wherever you like. We still have other details to discuss regarding this matter, so it may take some time."

"Alright, thank you, Chief."

After thanking her, Qu Jing found a random seat and sat down, happening to end up on Hu Qiumu’s right. Their eyes met, and for a moment neither knew what to say, so they simply gave each other a friendly nod.

For their part, they were mainly gathering opinions. After all, the matter of forming the Guard Team was something Chu Liangyu had only just come up with today; even she hadn’t figured out the specific steps yet.

Fortunately, Hu Qiumu was full of ideas. He filled in the gaps on some of the points Chu Liangyu hadn’t fully thought through. As the few of them talked, the matter gradually took shape and a plan began to emerge.