Qin Wen moved quickly.
Within two days of the Wen Hao incident, he had positioned himself so thoroughly into Zhao Lingxi's orbit that anyone looking from the outside would have thought they had been allies for years. He attended her training sessions. He reviewed her formation strategies. He sat beside her during the tournament committee meetings with the easy familiarity of someone who belonged there.
He did all of it in plain sight. That was what made him dangerous. He did not scheme in shadows or whisper behind closed doors. He walked in daylight, smiled openly, and made certain that every act of kindness was witnessed by as many people as possible.
