The moment those words were spoken, everyone's gaze focused on Chen Xiaojun, including Xiao Yi, who had been sitting quietly beside him; a faint ripple flickered through her eyes.
Zhu Wuneng grew even more anxious. "How was that not taking the lead? You exposed her hidden circumstances, laid out that girl Tong's martial soul prospects, and even looked into Dou Jing. She agreed to everything according to your intentions! Wasn't that tempo under your control?"
"Controlling the tempo?" Chen Xiaojun shook his head slightly, the corner of his mouth curving into a meaningful smile. "In your eyes, what kind of image did this Madam Lin, Ye Sirong, present today?"
Everyone fell into thought.
A moment later, Du Gu Fu was the first to speak. "Powerful, calm in the face of crisis, with great courage and control."
Ma Wencai added, "Of extraordinary birth, rigorously taught, someone who has seen the wider world, loyal and resilient."
Chen Shurui followed, "Composed, candid, with an elder's gentleness, emotionally stable and measured."
Su Ningxia said softly, "I could feel that heavy pressure on her, that immense sense of crisis, her deep worry for her husband, and her profound anxiety about the future. But she pressed all of it beneath calm."
After a while, Chen Mu summed it up. "Taken together, what she displayed was the image of a woman shocked and pained by a tremendous upheaval. But with the willpower of a Soul Sage, the perspective cultivated by the Chen Clan, a mother's instincts, and the resilience tempered through past hardships, she swiftly suppressed her emotions. She calmly analyzed the situation and, for the sake of her daughter's safety and future, rationally chose a posture of 'cooperation.'"
"Outwardly weary and restrained, inwardly clear-headed and alert, never lacking strategy or human warmth at critical moments, always