Strongest Scammer: Scamming The World, One Death At A Time-Chapter 615: The Qing Clan’s Situation

Qing Luan grew quiet after speaking as if trying to gathering her thoughts.

Han Yu could sense her hesitation and the tangled emotions wrapped around her. A mix of shame, fear, resentment, and something fragile beneath it all. He tapped his finger on the cushioned seat to hurry her along.

"Speak. I will listen only until I lose patience," he said with Ju Fan's coldness.

Qing Luan nodded quickly. "Yes, honored disciple."

She inhaled slowly, then released the breath in an unsteady sigh.

"It began two months ago," she said softly. "An incident happened in the Qing clan. A terrible scandal that threw everything into chaos."

Han Yu's eyes did not change, but he sharpened his focus.

Qing Luan continued.

"My mother disappeared overnight."

Her hands clenched tightly on her knees, knuckles pale.

"She was the second wife of the Patriarch and had a respected position in the clan. When the servants found her bed empty in the morning, everyone in the residence panicked. They searched every corner of the estate and then every corner of the city. There was no trace of her. No letter. No spiritual message. Nothing."

Her voice shook slightly.

"For three days the clan kept the matter quiet, hoping she would return or that the searchers would find something. But then… something worse happened."

She lowered her head.

"Someone came forward. A servant from one of the outer courtyards. He claimed he had seen my mother leaving the clan grounds with a man during the night."

Han Yu raised an eyebrow at that.

"Another servant stepped forward later. Then another. According to them, this man had been seen near the second wife a few times before. A cultivator of modest strength. A local merchant's son. A man with no real background."

Qing Luan swallowed.

"I had seen him once or twice as well. Carrying letters. I thought he was just a messenger. Nothing more."

Sadness radiated softly from her.

"Soon the Patriarch's first wife came forward. She said… she said my mother had dishonored the Patriarch and run away with a lover."

Her voice trembled at the memory.

"She claimed my mother and that man had been secretly meeting. That their disappearance together proved everything. She demanded that my mother be stripped of her position and declared a disgrace to the clan."

Han Yu quietly noted the bitterness in Qing Luan's tone when she spoke of the first wife.

He already suspected this story was tangled in family politics.

"The Patriarch was furious," Qing Luan whispered. "He sent men to find the man. But the man had vanished as well on the same night as my mother. Not even his belongings were left behind."

She took a shaky breath.

"The clan fell into disgrace. The Zhao clan and the Wen clan mocked us in the city. Even commoners whispered behind our backs. I… I could feel the looks everywhere I went."

Her shoulders curled inward.

"I was already under pressure before that. Because I am the most talented child in the clan. I reached Qi refining at twelve. Before that, the eldest daughter of the first wife was considered the genius of the clan. She is eighteen and at the mid stage of Qi refining. My rise… pushed her into the shadows. She never forgave me for that."

Qing Luan hesitated before continuing.

"And then there is the eldest son. He is supposed to be the heir. He is two years older than me, but only in the body tempering realm. He always felt overshadowed. The first wife favored him greatly and always resented that I existed."

Han Yu nodded once. The situation was becoming clear.

A talented second wife.

A jealous first wife.

A powerful heir who was not strong enough.

A girl who surpassed them all.

He had heard this story many times in the Great Continent. It usually ended in blood.

Qing Luan tightened her hands again.

"When the scandal happened, the first wife took advantage of it immediately. She weaved a story and persuaded the Patriarch that my mother betrayed the clan. She told everyone that my mother had run away with a man she was secretly involved with. And the Patriarch… believed her."

Tears filled Qing Luan's eyes, but she forced her voice to stay steady.

"He declared my mother a traitor. A disgrace. Someone unworthy of his name."

Han Yu's expression did not change outwardly, but inside, he felt a cold anger on the child's behalf. He knew unjust clan politics well. Too well.

"That was when my situation became dangerous," Qing Luan whispered. "The first wife hated me. The eldest daughter hated me. The heir hated me. And the clan looked down on me."

Her voice grew thinner.

"I think… they wanted me gone."

Han Yu listened intensively now.

"There were two attempts on my life," Qing Luan continued. "The first was poisoning. I was lucky to sense the irregularity in my meal with my Qi and spat it out before swallowing too much."

Her fingers trembled slightly remembering it.

"The second time… they pushed me from a balcony."

She rubbed her arm unconsciously.

"I survived only because my cultivation helped me reduce the impact. But I was injured. If I had fallen just a little differently, I would have died."

Cold resentment filled her small voice. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

"I realized I could not stay any longer. If I remained, I would eventually die. So I decided to escape."

She took another breath to steady her voice.

"A week ago, I left in the middle of the night with only one person I could trust. Our driver. He has served me since I was a toddler. We left the clan grounds quietly and bought a carriage. Since then we have been traveling."

Han Yu nodded, finally understanding. Though he also understood that their claims about the Qing clan rewarding him were all fake. With her standing there was no way they could do that.

But for now, Han Yu held in.

"And White Peacock Town?" he asked.