Actually, Qin Siyang wasn't interested in the internal power struggles of the Bureau.
To be precise, with his strength and status, he wasn't even qualified to meddle in that level.
Listening to Tang Wanjing talk was just like listening to a storytelling show, broadening his knowledge, that was all.
What he was more interested in was how much benefit Tang Wanjing's gaining discourse power after the struggle ended would bring to himself.
Tang Wanjing was a straightforward man, so he told Qin Siyang directly where the benefits lay.
A hundred-fold profit, plus additional rewards.
Exclusive and unique.
This supreme membership privilege was the very thing that truly moved Qin Siyang.
And that was only on the premise that Tang Wanjing had seized just half of the discourse power within the Management Department.
If Tang Wanjing kept working at it, making the Management Department and the Research Hall stronger, then Qin Siyang's dividends as an original shareholder would surely be even more impressive.
So, he immediately decided to double the amount of Crimson Crystals he gave to Tang Wanjing.
To Qin Siyang, this was a drop in the bucket.
But to Tang Wanjing, it was a windfall dropping straight from the heavens.
Qin Siyang could feel that Tang Wanjing wanted to swear brotherhood with him.
But the age gap between them was too large.
Besides, Qin Siyang already had an ambiguous bond of sworn brotherhood with Li Tianming. If Tang Wanjing and Qin Siyang swore brotherhood too, what about Li Tianming?
You had to know, Li Tianming was even a year younger than Tang Wanjing.
Helpless, Tang Wanjing had to drop the matter.
["Little Qin, you really are the stabilizing pillar of our Management Department!"]
"Minister Tang, you jest. I'm insignificant, my words carry no weight, I can't possibly stabilize the Department. It's mainly because I connect well with you."
["Hahaha! Little Qin, I'll remember those words! By the way, I just remembered something else."]
["A couple of days ago you sent out that message about looking for Zhang Yingrui, didn't that stir up quite a commotion?"]
"Mm, I saw the posts on the forum, saying the Yellow Robe Protector's residence had disappeared."
["Then you really are sharp-eyed and quick-handed. Those posts on the forum must have all been deleted within five minutes."]
"Exactly. I had just finished reading, hadn't even clicked on the pictures yet, when the posts were all gone."
["What I want to tell you is exactly this. It was because the Information Security Department made a move."]
"The Information Security Department?"
["Information Security Department. The department responsible for communication security and network safety inside the Safe Zone."]
["The Information Security Department is quite interesting. Everyone who joins must not have awakened sequence abilities. And their identities are all confidential. At the very least, aside from their Minister, I don't know any of the others."]
["The Minister of Information Security, Fan Baoluo, has the authority to bypass Secretary-General Gu and report directly upward. He's ranked among the top three in importance across all departments. They handle a lot of matters, so normally they wouldn't bother with something like forum posts."]
"Then why did they get involved this time?"
["Of course, because someone pushed for it. The most important thing is, this person leveraged the power of the Information Security Department, and from Secretary-General Gu upwards, not a single person in the United Government stood out to criticize it."]
Qin Siyang fell silent.
The power of Han Shuo, time and again, shattered Qin Siyang's understanding.
The Information Security Department, just from Tang Wanjing's introduction it was obvious, it was a confidential department, one of the sharp swords of the United Government.
But Han Shuo had wielded this sword of the United Government for his own ends, and yet the United Government hadn't refused or reprimanded him.
So then, in the eyes of the high-ranking officials of the United Government, what kind of position did Han Shuo hold?
["I want to tell you this, since Principal Han sought out Zhang Yingrui and helped you obtain Crimson Crystals, that means there's the possibility of further cooperation."]
"Minister Tang, I understand what you mean. Thank you for the reminder."
["Mm, that's all then. Little Qin, in a few days I'll come find you in South Glory again!"]
"Good! You're welcome anytime!"
Qin Siyang hung up the phone and sighed.
"What kind of status does he have, what kind of position do I have?"
"Even if I want to be friends with Principal Han, Principal Han might not even look at me."
———
That afternoon, Han Shuo arrived at South Glory University.
When they discussed the special admission conditions last time, Han Shuo had been all smiles and amiable.
But this time, he didn't show a single smile, and his words were pitifully few.
If before he had seemed like a kindly elder, now he was a cold-faced old man.
As if he didn't want to have any deep contact with Qin Siyang.
The one-eighty degree shift in attitude came without warning. Qin Siyang couldn't understand why.
'Is the old man simply in a bad mood lately?'
For the sake of twenty grams of Crimson Crystals, Han Shuo had been forced to reveal part of his strength.
Qin Siyang didn't know what he needed those Crystals for, but Han Shuo clearly needed them badly, and urgently.
It wasn't hard to see, the value of Crimson Crystals was truly priceless.
Han Shuo tossed Zhang Yingrui's corpse to Qin Siyang and took out ten grams of Crimson Crystals.
Then Qin Siyang retrieved twenty grams of Crimson Crystals from his storage box.
Ten grams of that was the price for killing Zhang Yingrui, and the other ten was the reward for helping spread the word that Zhang had been killed for breaking the rules.
After that, the thirty grams of Crimson Crystals were bound into a sharing contract with Han Shuo.
After finishing this, Han Shuo said, "Qin Siyang, if there's nothing else, then I'll be going."
"There's one more thing."
Qin Siyang said, "Since Principal Han read his memories and got the Crimson Crystals he held, then you must have also gotten his other treasures, right?"
Han Shuo didn't confirm or deny, only looked quietly at Qin Siyang, waiting for what he'd say next.
"I know that Zhang Yingrui had Wind-Corroded Venom Meteorite. I wonder if Principal Han would be willing to part with it?"
The fact that Zhang Yingrui had the Wind-Corroded Venom Meteorite was something Professor Chris had let slip to him.
It was a material Professor Chang Tianxiang needed, so Qin Siyang had remembered it firmly.
Han Shuo thought for a moment, then took out a dark green boulder the size of a barrel from his storage box.
"This piece of Wind-Corroded Venom Meteorite weighs about ninety kilograms. Give me seven grams of Crimson Crystals, and it's yours."
Qin Siyang smiled, "Principal Han, even going by market price, I should give you nine grams. You only want seven, doesn't that seem a bit too little? Besides, I hope to cooperate with you more in the future. So, to show my sincerity, I'm willing to pay ten grams…"
"I only want seven grams of Crimson Crystals," Han Shuo cut off Qin Siyang's offer.
"Give me seven grams, and it's yours."
It had to be said, as a principal, Han Shuo truly carried himself with dignity, completely unlike the bandit-like Qin Yingguang.
If it were Qin Yingguang, he would definitely have demanded ten grams.
Who cared about future cooperation? Not grabbing a bargain when you could was for fools.
And not just Qin Yingguang, if it were Chu Xiaoang, Zhao Longfei, or even Li Tianming, they would likely have done the same.
But Han Shuo didn't.
Clear was clear, strict was strict.
He'd rather ask for three grams less, just to show he didn't want to have any ties with Qin Siyang in the future.
He refused to owe Qin Siyang any favor.
Han Shuo was a rare gentleman.
But in today's meeting, he maintained distance at every turn.
The aura of authority he carried made it impossible for Qin Siyang to find any way to draw closer.
In an instant, Qin Siyang suddenly figured out the reason.
The source, perhaps, was from that one evasive phrase he had used with Han Shuo on the phone earlier: ("I'm only acting on someone's behalf.")