GAMMT - Chapter 88
Chapter 88: The Dean
Xie Qingyan's flowers were certainly a surprise for Fu Chuan, but not a threat. At the very least, they told her two things.
1. Xie Siyi was a woman of action. She had clearly already contacted Xie Qingyan and warned him. Otherwise, given his abilities and personality, he would never have let the matter rest.
2. Xie Qingyan had not yet seen through the issue with her and Xie Keli's bodies. But that wasn't surprising, because…
In front of her employees, Fu Chuan remained perfectly calm. She accepted the card, then placed the bouquet in a more conspicuous spot.
"Boss, you like these flowers?"
"I suppose. The arrangement is quite skilled."
Then, the employee watched as the boss attached a price tag to the bouquet and put it up for sale.
"Didn't you say you liked them?"
"I do. But isn't it better to sell them for a few cups of milk tea for you all to enjoy?"
The young boss, her dark hair simply tied back with a jade clip, smiled radiantly. She seemed to be the only delicate flower in the shop that needed no accompaniment or adornment.
Suddenly, the employees unanimously agreed that the former boss running off with his sister-in-law had been a blessing in disguise.
The Economic Department truly lived up to its reputation as one of the four major departments. The sheer scale of their investigation was somewhat terrifying; even West Jin Academy was turned upside down. The connection to the Vice Dean wasn't a primary channel for the TK Group. It was a temporary link established through a middleman, paid for specifically to deal with a physician from a medical hall with no backing.
"They just offered too much. Otherwise, that woman is from Sage Medical Hall, after all. I wouldn't have dared to provoke her. We really aren't part of the TK Group." The two investigators had tried to deny everything at first, but when evidence from secret accounts and private communicator logs was thrown in their faces, they folded completely.
The Economic Department's investigators maintained their usual refined demeanor, like noble and astute men of finance. One simply pushed up his glasses and said, "Don't be afraid. The Economic Department has its own courts. The length of your sentence will depend on how honest you are."
The two were terrified. Getting fired from their public positions was now a certainty; the only question was whether they would face prison time.
They had to earn some merit.
"I… I'll talk! I know this wasn't the first time the Vice Dean arranged for us to do this kind of thing. After all, who are we? The people the TK Group specifically targets are not on a level we can even touch. Most of the time, he arranged things for us through a middleman."
"After a few times, I started to notice a pattern…"
Meanwhile, the Vice Dean insisted he had only been swayed by personal connections and benefits, claiming ignorance of the other party's background. Thus, he couldn't be considered a mole for the TK Group.
"I'm just an enforcement officer at a school. How could I be a mole? This time, I was just influenced by a personal favor and was a bit overzealous during the interrogation. Besides, I wasn't the one in charge of the questioning. I just told my two subordinates to be strict, which isn't wrong in itself. What's more, I didn't accept any bribes."
The man was cunning and slippery, but the Economic Department specialized in dealing with his type.
The man in the white robe brewed a cup of tea, took a sip, and said, "Your two subordinates have confessed. They provided some information. We looked into it and found that you're influenced by 'personal favors' quite frequently. In the cases you helped influence, if the person involved was a student or teacher, they were either expelled or executed. If they were from outside the school, they were imprisoned or executed. Or, they were acquitted and released. When we investigated the people behind these cases, we found they were all connected to the TK Group's interests."
"Take a look at this list. See if you recognize anyone. Don't take too long. If you can't redeem yourself by cooperating, then based on this… your situation doesn't look very good. Your child is also a student at West Jin Academy and is being questioned next door. It's quite pitiful, really. A child with such a promising future, dragged down by their own father. A third-year senior, and who knows if they'll even get to take the college entrance exams."
"Truly pitiful. Your wife is terrified, crying her eyes out. Soaked in tears, but still quite beautiful. I wonder if she'll be bullied by the people you've offended in the future."
Some people said the Economic Department was just a bunch of scumbags in suits. They were right.
The Vice Dean's pupils trembled.
He knew he had to give something up, to keep the charges within a scope that wouldn't affect his wife and child. Otherwise… his family would be ruined.
In less than five minutes, the man in the white robe delivered the information to the Minister of the Economic Department.
"He confessed the identity of the real TK Group mole inside West Jin Academy. The inspection team went over. The person was sharp—the place was already empty. But they've locked onto their international flight and are in pursuit."
The Minister, however, frowned. He stood up and looked out the window, as if seeing a spaceship speeding through a space tunnel high above.
"That person is a decoy. The one who truly orchestrated this has likely already escaped. Go to the provincial space bureau and check for spatial fluctuations. Prioritize official departments, especially the office areas or family compounds of the Economic Department and the Military. Cross-reference the work attendance of these departments. Also, check the special privileges on individual badges. See who wasn't on duty and made temporary use of related privileges. Lock down their identity."
The man in the white robe was startled.
The real big fish had already gotten away?
How could they be so perceptive?
But the next second, the Minister teleported to the Economic Department's major crimes division. He arrived at the forensics lab and saw the bodies of Qin Minfeng and the others.
His fingers were long and slender. After putting on gloves, he began to examine the corpses.
The man in the white robe stood by respectfully. "No arcane methods, no physical contact. They specifically used a physical method of death that resembles suicide. So cautious, as if terrified of being linked to Qin Minfeng's death. It doesn't look like the work of the TK Group's enforcers, yet the blood evidence points directly to them. Was someone deliberately guiding us? Why do I feel like this is a perfect, closed loop?"
The Minister said, "Probably."
The man in the white robe continued, "Could this be related to that Fu Chuan and Xie Keli? But they were the first to be implicated. It's too obvious, which makes it seem like they were deliberately framed. It even dragged in some nonsense about a secret treasure on Planet X5. Now all four Orange Blood families are sniffing around over there, leaving the Li Family flustered and overwhelmed. But the gene report shows this Fu Chuan has no connection to that other Fu Chuan. The difference is too vast. Besides their names, even their appearances are quite different."
A young female slave who had been oppressed and tortured for a long time could never be the same as the current composed and leisurely physician. Even if nutrition and growth could be restored in a few months, her temperament and way of thinking couldn't possibly change so quickly.
It was a world of difference.
Besides, the exposure was so blatant that it was unlikely she was the culprit.
While examining the electrocuted muscles and organs of Qin Minfeng, the Minister said, "Let's look at the evidence. The killer clearly had the ability to kill instantly and could have hidden or destroyed the body without a trace. Yet, it was hidden underground where it was bound to be discovered. This person is full of contradictions. It's almost as if they wanted to use Qin Minfeng's body to create an alibi for themselves."
"The Sage District was undergoing electrical maintenance recently, wasn't it? Bring me the electrical materials that were left there that night."
The man in the white robe quickly retrieved the materials. With a single glance, the Minister calculated their total electrical output. Then, factoring in Qin Minfeng's physical constitution…
He concluded that the true time of death was 12:00 AM.
The Minister looked up, and the man in the white robe immediately handed him a report.
He vaguely sensed that his boss seemed highly suspicious of this young physician with her remarkable demeanor and terrifying talent.
The Minister scanned the report. Among the people currently involved, he glanced at Fu Chuan's timeline… She had been home long before then. Moreover, surveillance footage from around the time of the attack clearly showed all her activities at home.
It wasn't her.
The Minister frowned. Had his intuition been wrong?
He then checked Xie Keli's file and found that he had gone to East Guan much earlier, with both witnesses and official surveillance to prove it.
Both of them were completely ruled out.
"Could it be a doppelgänger?" the man in the white robe asked.
"That Xie Keli has the ability to remotely control light and tentacles, and his disguise skills are superb. But we thoroughly checked the underground energy pathways, and there was no information related to them left behind."
As it stood, while others had varying degrees of suspicion cast upon them, these two had left no trace at all. They were simply implicated.
The Minister withdrew his hand, his fingers resting on the mortuary slab. He uttered two words, "Forbidden Arcane."
The man in the white robe was stunned.
But the Minister quickly added in a cold tone, "If it was Forbidden Arcane, then my point still stands. Regardless of which of them possesses such means, they could have easily killed all these people without a trace. Given their intelligence, they could have ensured that even the TK Group found no clues. Yet, the bodies were exposed, and the traces were exposed. Either this person had a compelling reason for not being able to dispose of Qin Minfeng's body, or they deliberately left the body for us, the Economic Department, to find, leading the investigation to this point. So, their identity is not important. What's important is what they wanted to remind me of."
He stated this with conviction, then his fingers closed around Qin Minfeng's head.
"This boy may seem insignificant, but given his past involvement with Linlang… I believe his brain is the biggest secret on Planet X5."
"I remember before the mission began, Linlang seemed worried. She asked me if there were any geniuses in this world who possessed soul-type talents for predicting the future."
"At the time, she had some contact with that kid from the Xie Clan, so I thought she was just remarking on his special nature. Now, it seems she was always wary of this Qin Minfeng."
The man in the white robe was moved, his expression a mix of shock and doubt. "Could it be? She suspected this person had such a talent? That he could predict the Economic Department's actions and sell the information to the TK Group?"
"At the time, she probably didn't have such a precise premonition. But I looked into what happened between him and her on Planet X5. After Qin Minfeng escaped, I used my authority to access her confidential mission report. In the follow-up to the mission against the Li Corporation, she mentioned that this person had likely anticipated her team's departure for Planet X5 in advance. He appeared before her in an 'accidental' manner, not only providing some evidence against the Li Corporation but also making advances toward her… What's interesting is that her trip was also top secret. You know how cautious Linlang always is, yet a kid from Planet X5 knew about it beforehand. But when she later investigated the Li Corporation, she found no evidence of prior collusion. Instead, it seemed this person had hidden evidence of the Li Corporation's crimes to blackmail them."
"This suggests that Qin Minfeng may possess a once-in-a-millennium, red-tier precognitive talent."
A red-tier gene talent!
The man in the white robe was stunned. "Does such a talent truly exist?"
"It does, but it's extremely rare. Using the talent once causes immense damage, and it also depends on the magnitude of the event being predicted. But there was a person who used precognition to see all of their opponent's abilities and then killed them by striking their weak point. That opponent was a full tier higher and 20 levels above them, yet they were still killed instantly." As the minister of one of the province's four departments, a man of high standing who could be considered a viceroy of the empire, his perspective was naturally extraordinary. Orange-tier was the baseline in his eyes.
Anything below Orange was an ant. And they didn't need to look up; they could see the red glow of the truly powerful whenever they visited the imperial capital.
"Was it a member of the Imperial Clan?"
"No, a Divine Lady from the Divine Temple."
A look of awe appeared on the man's face, as if he had just glimpsed the tip of the iceberg of this world's extraordinary power.
But then he compared that Divine Lady to… this Qin Minfeng.
The man in the white robe wore a complicated expression. It couldn't be, could it? This guy? This professional gigolo who latched onto rich young women was worthy of such a talent?
"His demonstrated aptitude doesn't seem that impressive…"
"It might be incomplete, or his other aptitudes haven't caught up, so he can't fully utilize it. Because of this, Linlang probably didn't pay it much mind at the time. She only recorded it out of her cautious nature. Speaking of which, if I hadn't been so busy back then and had told her that such a precognitive ability existed, she might have been prepared… and wouldn't have…"
The Minister's brow was not furrowed, but he was clearly uncomfortable.
The man in the white robe looked at his boss. Though only in his early thirties, not much older than Zhou Linlang, she had been his subordinate since she entered the field. He had supported her for years, and now with their teacher-student relationship, he was surely grieving.
But the Minister quickly reined in his emotions, suppressing them and coldly removing his gloves.
"But for the TK Group to dispatch their enforcers to help this Qin Minfeng, he must have provided them with sufficiently valuable information. The failure of that mission was just a prelude. From now on, many of the provincial department's confidential matters will have to be re-evaluated. We can't let the enemy use precise information to strike at us."
He said no more, but the man in the white robe knew that for his boss to halt these confidential operations, he would have to report to the highest authority in Beluke.
The Grand Secretary, the number one official in Beluke.
But for now, it was only suspicion without concrete proof. He didn't know if the Grand Secretary would approve the proposal.
However, after leaving, the Minister once again reviewed Fu Chuan's gene report, a thoughtful expression on his face.
"To be able to kill Qi Xuanying at eighteen, and seemingly without using her full strength… her aptitude is already the best Beluke has seen for her age in a century. Could such a genius have come from another province?"
If the so-called secret treasure on Planet X5 was nonsense, and this person wasn't that slave girl Fu Chuan, then where did she come from?
When she decided to cooperate with Qin Liechuan, Fu Chuan knew the Economic Department would inevitably get involved because she had left behind an item belonging to Zhou Linlang. It was something Zhou Linlang had once given her. By leaving a trace of it now, she was deliberately leading the trail to the Economic Department.
But she also knew that with the Economic Department's capabilities, they would quickly discover the issue with the electrical wiring, deduce the delayed method of death, and ultimately determine the true time of death. However, Fu Chuan wasn't afraid of her timeline being exposed. She didn't even need to use other appliances to alter the calculation of the electrical output, because Qin Minfeng himself was an unpredictable variable.
The electrical shocks on his body would have a high number of misses.
Who could calculate that?
It was his own personal bug.
Fu Chuan had exploited this natural bug to create a flawless alibi for herself. As for the traces of light underground, they naturally couldn't be found, because her tentacles had also integrated the properties of Forbidden Arcane. When fused with light, they isolated elements, so there were no traces to be left behind.
Forbidden Arcane could be used externally (like her pupil technique) or for her own protection and disguise (like her tentacles).
As for separating her two bodies, this was an effect that should only be possible with a high-level devouring scroll. But because she had specifically enhanced her reshaped body with mutated tentacles and Little Yellow's abilities, it had guided the mutation in this direction.
It was a pleasant surprise; she had acquired this ability ahead of schedule.
"Once separated, the contractual traces of the devouring scroll's dual bodies are lost. Even the most powerful expert wouldn't be able to see through the trick. In fact, there's more of a flaw when they are combined. So if they were to check my alibi, with the two bodies existing separately, they wouldn't find anything amiss. That director certainly didn't see the truth, but I don't know if this method can deceive someone on the level of the Sage Medical Hall's Dean or the Minister of the Economic Department… After all, some of the powers of my two bodies still overlap too much."
Killing Qin Minfeng was a plan she was extremely confident in, one she had started formulating the moment she joined Sage Medical Hall.
The man was dead. When it came to the cleanup, Fu Chuan was not so certain of victory. So, when she went to Sage Medical Hall the next day and was told by Big Bear that the Dean wanted to see her, her heart skipped a beat.
Here it was. The biggest hurdle of this entire incident had arrived.
The Dean's office was in a small bamboo courtyard in the deepest part of the medical hall.
The style of a reclusive master?
Not at all. Fu Chuan immediately spotted all sorts of modern, comfortable sofas and tech gadgets. The most expensive coffee machine in the world and top-of-the-line housekeeping robots were all there.
Evidently, although Sage Medical Hall had an excellent reputation, its founder did not cultivate the image of a pure and aloof saint… The door was open. As soon as Fu Chuan entered, she saw a person.
His back was to her. He was about 185 centimeters tall, with his hair styled in a classic slicked-back look from her previous world. His hair was white as silver but thick and full. His body was strong and handsome, with a narrow waist and broad shoulders forming an inverted triangle. He wore a silver suit vest over a white shirt, with cufflinks on his sleeves.
The main hall opened up to a living room and dining room on either side. In the center was an open-plan bar, fully equipped. With his back to her, he was making coffee, one hand in his pocket, the other grinding coffee beans. His posture was slightly casual. As he pressed a button on the machine, the pure aroma of coffee beans filled the room.
"Sit," he said, his back still turned.
His voice was deep and husky, extremely magnetic.
Fu Chuan couldn't see his face, but she recalled some information she had found online.
The current Dean of Sage Medical Hall, Liu Wuxiang, age 62.
Fu Chuan remembered that the arcane world was not a fantasy world. With the exception of special races, the human race here didn't follow the path where higher cultivation levels meant agelessness and ancient lifespans. It was true that the strong lived much longer than ordinary people and maintained a youthful state for a long time, but not excessively so. Humans were still limited by age. Compared to special races like dragons and the Charm race, they were at a great disadvantage. Even a level 90 powerhouse would not live past 200 years, and their appearance didn't have such an exaggerated effect as eternal youth.
That was why talent was so highly valued in this world, with a strong emphasis on age. The younger one awakened, the better. It was also why so many people looked down on Xie Keli for returning from a garbage planet at the age of 18.
For the man before her to maintain such a physical condition at 62… he was likely over level 80, or he had noble blood, and had reached Orange Blood at that.
Fu Chuan was still speculating, but she pulled out a high stool at the bar and sat down, her long legs resting on the floor, quietly waiting for him to finish making the coffee.
A moment later, he turned around and placed a cup of coffee in front of her.
She first saw his hand, her gaze moving from the long, smooth, and firm skin of his fingers to his face.
Sharp brows, bright eyes, a man of peerless looks.
He was like one of those classically handsome actors from her old world. The type that was truly stunning.
It genuinely made Fu Chuan pause for a moment.
She subconsciously reconfirmed his age online, feeling quite shocked, but she didn't let it show on her face.
"Thank you, Dean."
"What did you call me?"
"Teacher."
"Is it good?"
"It's very good."
Fu Chuan took a sip of coffee, her fingers cradling the unusual coffee cup. Looking at the markings on it, she felt it might have been handmade by him.
"Since you've already called me Teacher, I have three requirements for you."
Fu Chuan: "Please, go on."
"First, complete 90% of your work at the hall. You can arrange your own time. And I don't care where you came from or who you were before. From now on, you are only Fu Chuan of Sage Medical Hall. You will fulfill your contract and adhere to your professional ethics."
"Second, I am usually not here. Your two senior sisters are very busy, one managing the hall's affairs and the other the nursing team. Your job is to take care of this place for me."
Fu Chuan didn't quite understand. "What do you mean by 'take care of this place'?"
"The garden outside, the cleaning inside, and occasionally when I come back and there's no food…" He listed a whole host of tasks, detailed and tedious. Fu Chuan suddenly thought: he's not looking for a disciple, he's looking for a maid, a chef, and a gardener.
Fu Chuan was internally resistant, but then she thought of how Qin Minfeng was willing to sell all sorts of his emotional and physical value just to latch onto a rich woman. What was this in comparison?
At least there was no comparison between that woman and Liu Wuxiang.
"Yes, Teacher."
Liu Wuxiang glanced at her, took a sip of his coffee, and continued, "Third, dress nicely."
Fu Chuan had been prepared for the third point to be something like cleaning his toilet. This sudden turn… she was taken aback.
High aesthetic standards, picky, fussy.
"May I ask the reason for the third point?"
"Can't figure out why I would take you as a disciple? Suspect I might harm you?"
Fu Chuan didn't deny it, but put it more tactfully, "I haven't done anything to deserve such a reward."
"You underestimate yourself."
Liu Wuxiang said, "Your aptitude is excellent. At least at your age, there's no one in this generation in Beluke who can compete with you."
He didn't ask about her background, nor did he ask about the recent incident. He just spoke of matters concerning the hall. "Of course, the most important thing is that you are beautiful enough."
Fu Chuan: "…"
Her expression must have been too obvious, because Liu Wuxiang said quite seriously, "The hall is under a lot of pressure right now."
"?"
"Fame brings trouble. Since its establishment, Sage Medical Hall has gained great prestige in Beluke Province, ranking first among private hospitals. The public hospitals are also somewhat hostile."
"So, what does this have to do with me?" Fu Chuan asked.
What did her clothes have to do with this?
Liu Wuxiang drank half his coffee, put down the cup, and leaned on the elegant black stone countertop with both hands, looking quietly at Fu Chuan. "You are an excellent spokesperson. You can enhance the reputation of Sage Medical Hall, give its brand a tangible form, and give people a concrete impression when they talk about it."
That was quite the compliment.
Although she had almost been scouted for that line of work back in school, that was all just for fun. Now, to have such high hopes placed on her by a major provincial medical hall, it was a bit much for her to handle.
"Teacher, are you planning to take Sage Medical Hall public?"
"…"
Liu Wuxiang knew he had probably been sassed, but he had no proof. He glanced at the gentle and charming young woman before him and said faintly, "The most important thing is that the Divine Temple has taken notice."
Fu Chuan's coffee-drinking motion paused. She looked at Liu Wuxiang, a thoughtful expression on her face. "Is there a conflict of business between the Divine Temple's Light Institute and Sage Medical Hall?"
"No conflict, but they want to expand their operations, which likely means acquiring private hospitals. The Divine Temple is incredibly powerful. To avoid being acquired, we must build our reputation among the common people, making an acquisition more difficult."
"The Divine Temple cares a great deal about its reputation. If they feel that acquiring the hall would prevent them from achieving the same level of operational success, potentially damaging the Temple's name, they will give up on Sage Medical Hall. Because for them, face is more important than anything."
That was true. Given Sage Medical Hall's current operating model, if it were swallowed by a massive entity like the Divine Temple, it would be difficult to maintain its current standards.
So Liu Wuxiang's strategy wasn't wrong.
In any case, the three requirements weren't particularly demanding.
Fu Chuan agreed.
But…
"To reward you for your efforts, I plan to give you a benefit."
Liu Wuxiang had finished his coffee. "There is an arcane bookshelf in the study. It contains my cultivation insights from over the years. The three of you, as my disciples, have permission to access it. However, I have higher expectations for you. There are seven bookshelves in total. You must comprehend the first bookshelf within three months. I will test you when I return. At that time, you will also give me a career choice report, so I can see your thoughts and preparations. I don't want someone who has entered my tutelage to not even have a career plan."
Fu Chuan's fingers curled slightly, a hint of worry on her face. "And if I fail the test?"
Liu Wuxiang leaned forward, staring at Fu Chuan as if he could see right through her eyes.
"I happened to come back that night and ran into you, little girl."
Fu Chuan's heart pounded, but the man before her retreated, disappearing without a sound, leaving only a faint sentence behind. "Remember to clean up."
Her scalp tingled, inch by inch.
She remained frozen in place for a long time before finally letting out a breath.
What had she been afraid of? Her worst fear had come true!
A true master had indeed been passing by and had seen everything, including her killing him.
This Qin Minfeng… was truly a heaven-defying luck bug!
If she hadn't joined Sage Medical Hall beforehand, and if the Dean hadn't taken a liking to her and wanted to recruit her as a spokesperson, then… not only would Qin Minfeng have been saved, but she would have died.
With such a huge piece of leverage held over her, Fu Chuan knew she had no choice but to be this "beauty spokesperson." After calming herself, she took the coffee cup to wash it, cleaned the bar, and then went to the study.
There was no need to fear intruders in a master's residence. In Beluke Province, those with the guts and ability to try wouldn't need to resort to such lowly tactics.
Inside the study, there were indeed seven bookshelves. Fu Chuan discovered that all seven were sealed with arcane restrictions. So, the order was that she had to comprehend the arcane contents of the first bookshelf to break the seal on the second, and so on…
The first bookshelf had no restrictions and could be accessed directly. She pulled out a book and found it was Blue-tier. She pulled out a few more and was suddenly stunned. Looking up, she scanned the shelf and silently counted.
A total of 120 books.
"Space, Light, Wind… It seems he accepted me for this reason as well. My elemental affinity matches his own profession."
"He might actually be looking for a true disciple."
But it was hard to tell what was true and what was false. This devastatingly handsome, incredibly picky, and elegant old man was truly impossible to figure out.
Still, to have stumbled upon such a great benefit, a complete inheritance of high-level arcane knowledge, it was a huge gain for her no matter how she looked at it.
"With these arcane principles, it probably won't be difficult for me to achieve Arcane Enlightenment."
She could already manifest weapons from her arcane knowledge, but her mastery of the Orange-tier Gravity Space Arcana was not yet proficient, only at a beginner's level. She had been thinking about using points from the academy to exchange for space arcana stones to study. Now, it seemed she could save a large number of points.
Having a powerful backer was truly great.
She suddenly understood Qin Minfeng a little.
It seemed this matter was settled. Otherwise, he wouldn't have told her to focus on her studies. The Economic Department was keeping an eye on Zhou Linlang's case, and there was nothing more she could do.
All that was left… was that scumbag Xie's academy life.
Over at East Guan Academy, in the men's dormitory, Fu Chuan, as the top scorer of the entrance exam, had been the center of attention since she registered yesterday and moved her things in today.
The four great academies had no grade levels, only divisions of strength. She was in Class A, but her dorm mates were not necessarily from Class A. It was a random lottery, meaning students from any class could be mixed together. It was possible for an S-class student to be rooming with an E-class one.
And the roommates were changed every semester.
She heard this was to prevent bullying among students from different classes. If the hierarchy became too rigid, it would lead to oppression from the upper levels, and the disadvantages would far outweigh any supposed "motivational" benefits.
Most importantly, each dormitory was rated on a point system. If a roommate's rapport, morals, or other assessed aspects dragged the score down, this score would be factored into the semester's comprehensive coefficient, directly affecting their grades.
This was a deadly serious rule, directly eliminating any malicious intent among roommates. If a bullied person reported it and the claim was verified, everyone else in the dorm would be affected.
As an academy specializing in strategy and control, East Guan Academy was truly better than places like West Jin in certain details.
And although East Guan Academy seemed a bit stingy compared to the other three great academies, it wasn't actually short on money. The dormitories were quite grand, with five rooms per suite and high-end furnishings.
Each of the five rooms was equipped with a private training room and a walk-in closet, along with a shared living room and kitchen.
The only downside was that, in order to strengthen the bonds between students and improve their survival rates in future wilderness dungeons, the academy did not provide private showers in the dorms. There were only public bathhouses.
When Fu Chuan learned of this, her mind was buzzing.
The bathing experience with Xie Qingyan and his companion still made her uncomfortable. After all, in her world, it would be considered a creepy invasion of privacy.
Once was an accident.
But if this was going to be a long-term thing…
However, she also thought it might not be so bad. Students these days were busy and valued their privacy. They wouldn't be so keen on dragging others to bathe with them, right?
The moment she pushed the door open, three burly men, all 190 centimeters tall, turned to look at her from the living room. Two were taking off their clothes, and one was holding a bar of soap.
A cheerful and optimistic nineteen-year-old boy smiled and said, "New guy? You're one of us now. Come on, let's go shower together."
"What scent of soap do you like? I've got several kinds here."
Fu Chuan: "…"
She stood frozen in the doorway, contemplating whether she should apply for off-campus housing.
"Come on, bro, what are you spacing out for?"
The boy with the well-defined bare chest came to the door, about to pull her in. He looked like a man-eating male spider demon from a cave—the massive, imposing kind from Lord of the Rings.
To be honest, Fu Chuan felt his chest was bigger than hers.
She was caught in an unspeakable predicament but said righteously, "No, thank you. I'm just here to drop off my clothes and things. I'm actually planning to apply for off-campus housing."
Just then, Que Baimo passed by, appearing behind him like a ghost. "Brother Keli, I'm afraid you don't know that East Guan prohibits off-campus housing. Once the dorms are assigned, they're basically fixed. It's not like West Jin where you can just throw money at the problem."
Why was this insidious guy at East Guan too?!
"What's it to you?" Fu Chuan, channeling Xie Keli's nasty temper, shot him a glare.
"It is my business. I'm in this dorm too. Speaking of which, we'll be brothers who can shower together from now on. Come on."
Que Baimo was sharp and cunning. Fu Chuan couldn't be sure if he would see through her in the future. Just as she was thinking of how to deal with him, her communicator suddenly rang.
The number was unfamiliar.
Fu Chuan answered it casually and heard a cool female voice on the other end.
"This is Fu Ye. Can we talk?"
Fu Chuan's eyes narrowed slightly. After a moment of thought, she said, "Where."
An hour later, Fu Chuan met the Fu siblings at the small, private building where they were staying.
To be honest, she had come to have a showdown with them, with no intention of getting involved in their secrets. But as soon as she entered, Fu Ye presented her with a card.
"Hear me out first, then you can decide whether to back out."
Fu Chuan raised an eyebrow and sat down. Fu Qiang was exceptionally attentive, even bringing her coffee and sitting obediently to the side… clearly ceding the negotiation to his sister.
She was also curious about what this woman would say.
The very first sentence was:
"I'm pregnant. Three months."
Pfft!
Fu Chuan choked. Fu Qiang immediately offered a napkin, even wanting to wipe her mouth for her.
My god, the Fu siblings were truly bold, laying their cards on the table just like that. But were they so confident in their assessment of her that they were sure she wouldn't tell anyone?
Was Xie Keli's persona not convincing enough?
Fu Chuan leaned away slightly, suppressing the tickle in her throat, and looked at Fu Ye silently. "It's not mine, is it?"
That rhetorical question was quite inspired.
Fu Ye remained cold, the topic likely being a painful one for her. She could only maintain her composure through indifference. "No. But I can't tell you who the father is. I can only let you know that I need a husband."
Fu Chuan: "I don't think I'm a good choice."
Fu Ye: "You are the only choice."
Fu Chuan still wanted to refuse.
Fu Ye tapped her finger on the card.
"There's one million blue coins in here."
It was a lot, but not enough to make her willingly face the risk from the Li Family.
"And this." Fu Ye reached out and produced a box.
The box itself was strange, made of a silvery-white wood. Fu Chuan recognized it at a glance as Sky-Wither Wood, an Orange-tier material used for nurturing rare space-type pet eggs.
Her brow twitched slightly as she looked at Fu Ye.
The latter crossed her hands and said, "I know you're smart and have probably guessed the risks involved, and have no intention of getting mixed up in this. Only a sincere offer of benefits can move you, which is understandable. So I prepared this. Inside is a space-type variant pet egg. It's guaranteed to be at least Blue-tier, and whether it can break through to Orange-tier is up to you. But its species is the extremely rare Solar Black Crane, a dual space and light type. If I'm not mistaken, you obtained resources related to Wei Ran's gravity space from the selection tournament, and you should be currently working on space."
"Space and light are indeed a perfect combination. This pet is the most suitable for you. Of course, perhaps your aunt will also prepare a similar pet for you."
You can forget about that. She won't.
Fu Chuan was genuinely moved. As a resource merchant, she knew exactly what this pet egg signified.
"Forgive my bluntness, but if this pet egg is raised well, it could display effects comparable to an Orange-tier pet. For someone like me, its efficacy would be extremely high. The same should be true for the people of the Li Family. Using benefits to mitigate risk, there is room for negotiation. I have a suggestion: you could go talk to Li Jie. His status is high enough, and he needs support. You happen to meet his needs."
If the talks went well, Shen Qixi's faction could gain the Fu Clan's support, and Fu Ye and her child could receive the protection of Li Jie's faction within the Li Family. It would be a win-win situation.
This person really did guess it.
Fu Qiang sighed, while Fu Ye remained calm and composed. "I considered that option, but ultimately rejected it because of a secret."
Since it was a secret, she probably wouldn't elaborate.
Fu Chuan was still considering and was about to leave, but Fu Ye suddenly said, "Li Wukun and I knew each other since we were children. We grew up together. I never expected that before he left for his mission, he would anxiously remind me to be careful of the Li Family in the future. Before I could understand, he had his accident. Later, I found a message he left for me in a gift he had once given me. He had recently learned a secret within the Li Family. They had dealings with a powerful Orange Blood Star Master from another province. The latter had calculated the Li Family's fate and said that a newborn would appear in this generation of the Li Family, and this child would bring about the downfall of the Li Family's glory."
Fu Chuan was shocked.
She knew how powerful Star Masters were; it was one of the strongest professions after the level 70 job change. And this was an Orange Blood Star Master. The results of their calculations were likely extremely accurate. This also meant that Li Wukun's "accident" was the result of internal suspicion within the Li Family, and Fu Ye was a primary target of their suspicion.
If this child was confirmed to be of Li Family blood, it would very likely be killed.
Fu Chuan suddenly calmed down. Adopting a demeanor befitting Xie Keli, she said coldly to the mother-to-be, "Forgive my bluntness, but your best option right now is to get rid of it."
Fu Qiang's expression changed slightly, but Fu Ye took a deep breath and said calmly, "The day I learned of this secret, I was prepared to do just that. But it's not possible."
"You don't know the bloodline characteristics of my family. Once a mother becomes pregnant, the higher the child's aptitude, the stronger the connection to the maternal bloodline. If I were to forcibly abort it, every member of my family's bloodline would suffer a severe backlash. Our family does not allow the abandonment of infants. It is both a backlash and a curse."
"Of course, on the other hand, because of the bloodline support from family members, the children born into our family generally have very high talent."
Only now did Fu Chuan learn of this family's secret. It was a double-edged sword.
Imperfect, but powerful and dangerous.
However… Fu Chuan pointed at Fu Qiang. "Isn't there an exception here?"
Fu Qiang: "?"
Fu Ye: "He's not important."
Hey, talk all you want, but why are you dissing me?!
Fu Qiang gave a bitter smile from the side and added, "And my sister would die, one hundred percent."
"And if the family suffers a collective backlash… the higher you climb, the harder you fall. The family has grown to this extent, and with our unique trait, if we were to weaken significantly, we would become lambs for many powerful figures to slaughter. Especially the unmarried and childless sisters in the family. They would end up as breeding machines for certain people. Even the Green Blood families who depend on us might climb up and take a bite out of us."
"My sister and Li Wukun were truly in love. If not for this, they might have announced their relationship and gotten married after the college entrance exams. Now it's become like this…"
Fu Qiang was getting emotional, but Fu Ye looked out the window and said faintly, "There's really nothing to feel wronged about. This is how struggles between nobles are. Glory and humiliation run on parallel tracks. No one knows which track will break and which will grow wildly… But we must do what we can. We can only try to save ourselves. What we need you to do is to take on this identity and claim this child. Because you are both geniuses with an affinity for the light element, you fit the genetic inheritance profile. And don't worry, you are only being used to cover up the truth. If the truth is ever exposed, you will not need to participate in the Li Family's attempt to exterminate us. The pet and the card will be given to you immediately upon your agreement, no strings attached. As for the timing of the pregnancy, I can use my race's reproductive traits to extend the gestation period and create sufficient evidence."
"If you agree, take the things. If you don't…"
Fu Chuan turned and walked away.
Fu Qiang's expression turned bitter, and he dropped to his knees with a thud. Fu Ye was moved and tried to pull him up, but in the next second, Fu Chuan, who had her hand on the doorknob, turned back and looked at Fu Ye.
"I'd like to ask, you're a third-year senior, right? Can you transfer to East Guan?"
Fu Ye: "?"
Fu Chuan: "I'm a person who values my personal hygiene. I don't want to be picking up soap with four burly men who like to shower together every day. And one of East Guan's housing rules is that if you have a legitimate, legal relationship, you can opt out of this kind of group housing and apply for other accommodation. An engagement is an excellent choice."
According to East Guan's dorm rotation system, it was only a matter of time before she was assigned to a dorm with some S-class prodigy. Those people were sharper than the last, some certainly on the same level as that young master from the Xie Clan. Living in close quarters with them, she really wasn't confident she wouldn't be exposed.
After all, East Guan was widely recognized as a hub for high-IQ individuals.
So, she had been thinking about how to move out even before this.
"Of course, don't worry, I won't hurt you."
Fu Ye hadn't expected this turn of events. As for Fu Chuan's guarantee, she didn't pay it much mind, as it wasn't a concern. "I can."
Fu Qiang quickly scrambled to his feet and slapped his thigh. "Oh, perfect! You two can live together now, and in ten months when the melon is ripe, it'll be your kid, right on time!"
"Aiya, brother-in-law, this is a match made in heaven! Look at you, low-key and profound, with a bad reputation. My sister is also envied and slandered, with a bad reputation. You're destined to be a family! You're also destined to get a beautiful wife and a super cute baby! What great fortune you have!"
Fu Chuan: "?"
Fu Ye held back her reaction, her red lips pursed. She finally turned her face away, sighing and pressing a hand to her forehead to hide her embarrassment.
Comments
Post a Comment