In the brief half day after Qin Siyang broke through to origin sequence level four Outside the Safe Zone and returned, the Qi Legion underwent earth-shaking changes.
He received a message from the Qi Legion asking him to sell its shares in Joint Mining and the United Merchants' Association, followed by another withdrawing those sales.
Between those two messages, the Qi Legion had already completed two transfers of power within hours of Qi Tian's death.
This was also Qin Siyang's first encounter with a military coup.
Only one thought crossed his mind: That was fast.
Still, Tian Luzhang's decision not to change the Qi Legion's name surprised Qin Siyang somewhat.
As Qin Siyang saw it, Tian Luzhang had little reason to seek a good name for himself. Once he seized power, there was no way to rehabilitate his reputation in the eyes of neutral observers.
Perhaps he had done it for his own peace of mind.
And just as Zoff had said of Tian Luzhang, Qin Siyang felt that, regardless of whether the gesture was sincere, it at least showed that he cared about saving face.
People said that those without shame were unbeatable. But in a society of give and take, being friends with someone who cared about his reputation offered far more peace of mind than being friends with someone utterly shameless.
Qin Siyang made no response to Tian Luzhang's seizure of power, acting as though nothing had happened.
Nor did any of the other allied factions speak up.
Tian Luzhang had already brought the situation completely under control.
Their tacit acceptance meant they recognized Tian Luzhang as commander.
Amid complete silence, the Qi Legion's coup sank into a corner no one cared about.
After Qi Tian's death, Qin Siyang spent some time feeling melancholy and reflecting on