C45 All Challenges to Happy New Year

This courtyard was specially built by the Lau family for hosting events, and it was now brightly decorated and filled with guests. Qinghan's entrance went largely unnoticed, with only a few people exchanging pleasantries with him. In contrast, Woo Zhengyang's appearance sparked a lot of chatter, especially from Ruyue and his group, who pointed and laughed openly.

"Trying to join the sect and failing, yet still having the nerve to show up at the party—this guy really has no shame, haha..." Ruyue's loud mockery was heard throughout the quiet banquet hall.

Qinghan, known for his temper, was about to stand up after hearing Ruyue's repeated jabs at Woo Zhengyang, but Zhengyang stopped him. With Zhengyang's calm demeanor, he didn't pay attention to these clowns. He was about to leave soon, but Qinghan still had to stay with the Lau family, and it wasn't worth making enemies over him.

"The Iron Cloud Sect's Huang Ruoshan has arrived..."

The herald's announcement quieted the noisy banquet. In a small place like Bright Sun City, official disciples of the four major sects held significant status, which was why this banquet was happening.

Before the herald finished speaking, several figures approached. Leading them was Ruyue, dressed in bright red like a groom. As he passed by Woo Zhengyang, Ruyue shot him a smug, disdainful look.

"Brother Huang, your visit is an honor! Forgive me for not greeting you sooner," Lau Ruyue exclaimed with a hearty laugh, grabbing the newcomer.

Woo Zhengyang glanced over and recognized the robust young man as Huang Ruoshan, whom he had met at the mayor's residence the previous day.

"No worries, I was just passing by and thought I'd drop in," Huang Ruoshan replied, still appearing somewhat distracted, just like the day before.

"Nonsense! For a prodigy like you, who has reached the eighth level of martial training before turning eighteen, our Lau family couldn't be more thrilled!" The speaker was Lau Qingfeng, the head of the Lau family.

As the family head, Lau Qingfeng didn't usually greet guests personally, which puzzled many. However, his words made everything clear. Being an eight-star martial disciple before eighteen meant Huang Ruoshan had the potential to become an inner disciple of the prestigious Iron Cloud Sect. Such a person had limitless prospects.

Lau Qingfeng's words were carefully chosen; they explained his unusual welcome, preserving his dignity, while also praising Huang Ruoshan.

Unfortunately, Huang Ruoshan didn't seem particularly excited, offering only a casual, polite smile.

Though Lau Qingfeng felt a bit displeased, he showed no sign of it and invited Huang Ruoshan to take a seat at the main table.

As Huang Ruoshan passed by Woo Zhengyang, their eyes met briefly. A flicker of surprise crossed Huang Ruoshan's face, but he said nothing, and Woo Zhengyang remained silent as well.

As the guests were nearly all present, the banquet was about to begin. Just then, a disheveled figure, face smeared with blood, stumbled in.

"Head of the family, uncles, you must help us rid the Lau mansion of this menace!"

"And you are..." Lau Qingfeng paused, unable to recognize the person whose swollen mouth made their speech unclear.

"Uncle, it's me, Wuji..." The newcomer was none other than Sun Wuji, who had been knocked out cold by Woo Zhengyang.

"Wuji, cousin? What happened to you?" Lau Ruyue asked in disbelief.

"Woo Zhengyang... It was him. He learned some martial arts outside and caught me off guard..."

Woo Zhengyang shook his head with a wry smile. Why did people always want to save face by accusing him of ambush, just like Yue Liqing and the others before?

"Woo Zhengyang! Is this true?" In front of so many people, Lau Qingfeng was careful about his image as the head of the family and didn't immediately take Sun Wuji's word for it.

"If I said he hit me first, would you believe it?" Woo Zhengyang replied with a light laugh.

"Of course not. If Wuji had struck first, how would you be sitting here unharmed?" The speaker was a young woman in a vibrant green dress, another member of the Lau family, though Woo Zhengyang didn't know her name.

"If you don't believe it, that's your choice, but it's the truth!"

"Woo Zhengyang, what's with your attitude? You've been eating and living off the Lau family, and now you go around hitting people for no reason. What about the family's rules?" Lau Ruyue was furious. Today was supposed to be his big day, and now Woo Zhengyang, who had always been so submissive, was causing a scene.

"Lau Ruyue, what nonsense are you spouting? Woo Zhengyang is practically part of the Lau family. What do you mean by saying he's eating and living off us?" Lau Qinghan stood up, shielding Woo Zhengyang.

"I'm just stating the facts. Most people here know his mother shamelessly betrayed the family. We took him in out of kindness, so how does that make him one of us?"

"You..." Lau Qinghan was trembling with anger, fists clenched, unable to speak.

"Uncle, let me handle this," Woo Zhengyang said, gently pulling Lau Qinghan back. He stepped forward with a slight smile. "You're right, I'm not part of the Lau family. In fact, I'm here today to take Uncle Fu and leave."

"Leave? You think you can just walk out on the Lau family?"

"You say I've been living off the Lau family, but you forget that Uncle Fu and I have been living in a shack, eating the bare minimum. That wasn't provided by the Lau family; it was earned by Uncle Fu working tirelessly from dawn till dusk. So, to me, the Lau family means nothing."

Woo Zhengyang's words were clear and powerful, each one landing like a punch. Especially the last sentence, which was a blatant slap in the face for Lau Qingfeng and his group. Even the always-smiling Lau Qingfeng couldn't hide the frostiness in his expression.

"Ungrateful, aren't you? Well, if that's the case, you can leave. The Lau family doesn't care," Lau Qingfeng said, suppressing his anger and trying to appear magnanimous.

"Ungrateful? I don't care about that, but I also don't want to give your family any leverage. Whatever I've eaten or where I've stayed, I'll pay it back!" With that, Woo Zhengyang pulled out a note worth five hundred gold coins from his pocket and tossed it on the table. "Five hundred gold coins, is that enough?"

"Hmph..."

Lau Qingfeng snorted but said nothing more. Otherwise, the image he worked so hard to maintain as the head of the family would be ruined.

Five hundred gold coins, while not a huge amount for the Lau family, was certainly not insignificant. Woo Zhengyang's straightforward gesture to settle past debts left Lau Qingfeng with nothing more to say.

"I see you've grown bold. Seems like you've had some success outside. No matter how you got this money, clean or not, the Lau family won't question it. Just leave and don't disrupt our gathering!" Lau Ruyue, seeing the five hundred gold coins, decided not to make a fuss. He just wanted to smooth things over for now and planned to address it after the event. He was confident that with his status, dealing with Woo Zhengyang later would be easy.

"Leaving? Since you want to settle old scores, I'm here to return everything from the past. I've repaid the food and shelter, but the humiliation is still outstanding. And just now, you insulted my mother!"

"So what do you want?"

"Every one of you from the Lau family’s younger generation—Sun Wuji, Lau Ruyue, and you, Lau Ruyue, along with those whose names I don't even know—I'm challenging all of you today!"

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