Seeking Truth with a Sword-Chapter 461 - 412 Thorough

Chapter 461: Chapter 412 Thorough
Li Ang pressed the Communication Copper Plate with his fingertips, feeling a bit surprised. After greeting He Fanshuang, he walked toward the hall.
As he opened the door to the study, a figure clothed in an Academic Palace uniform and wearing a black-veiled cone hat stood in the dimly lit room, holding a large iron box.
"Is it a senior from the Supervision Department?"
Li Ang walked around the desk, his voice clearly revealing his displeasure. "I remember we had an agreement not to bring outside matters into my home."
"Well, well, young man, living it up amidst wine and luxury, quite carefree, aren’t you~"
From beneath the cone hat came a familiar, teasing female voice.
The displeasure on Li Ang’s face instantly vanished. He exclaimed in pleasant surprise, "Senior Sister Sui?"
The visitor was indeed Sui Yi. She casually took off her veiled cone hat, gestured with her chin towards the window, and said righteously, "As a Royal Physician, you were tasked by His Majesty and the Empress to help Princess Guanghua with her recuperation. Is this how you’re ’helping’? Hmm?"
"Summer baths can dispel heat toxins. How is that not a form of recuperation?"
Li Ang knew Sui Yi’s personality all too well. He waved his hand dismissively. "Senior Sister, what brings you back? Is your training at Zhanquan finished?"
"My own training ended, so I came back early. Prince Yue and the others aren’t done yet. They’ll probably be there for another month."
Sui Yi pursed her lips and placed the iron box and its key on the desk. "The Mountain Master asked me to give this to you. He said it’s some kind of information and told you to keep it safe and ensure it’s not leaked."
"Alright."
Li Ang understood the box most likely contained clues related to the Supreme Mysterious Sect. He took the key, slipped it into his robe, and casually asked, "How was Zhanquan? Effective?"
Instead of answering directly, Sui Yi raised a finger. With a soft HUM, Yinghuo Sword Energy flickered at her fingertip.
"Whoa."
Li Ang marveled. To manifest Sword Qi so effortlessly and casually... it seemed that even if Sui Yi hadn’t reached the Perfect Cloud Patrol Realm, she wasn’t far from it.
"It’s truly a pity you couldn’t go. Zhanquan... it’s genuinely magical. Just sitting beside the spring, you can feel yourself subtly communing with Haotian’s will, stirring infinite insights within your heart."
Sui Yi shook her head, a nostalgic look in her eyes. Suddenly, she clapped her hands. "Oh, right! I heard you’re on good terms with Prince Guang, who’s currently in charge of the railway department?"
"Yes, our relationship is alright."
Li Ang nodded. He had offered many suggestions during the construction of the railroads and the design of the Spiritual Energy Locomotives, which had earned him the title of consulting Doctor. "What’s up?"
"Could you... help me get a few people placed in that department?"
Sui Yi coughed lightly, a rare look of embarrassment appearing on her usually carefree face. "It doesn’t have to be a high-ranking position. Just something stable where they can earn a living and have some prospects. They don’t need any special treatment."
Li Ang nodded. "Uh, no problem. Who are they?"
Sui Yi said, "They’re the orphaned children of some friends from the Zhou Kingdom I met during my travels in the Jianghu. Their parents were low-level cultivators who sacrificed their lives to eliminate demons for the local commoners. However, the locals turned on the orphans, branding them as harbingers of disaster. If I hadn’t chanced upon them on the streets in the Zhou Kingdom, those children would still be destitute."
Li Ang asked doubtfully, "Don’t the Zhou Kingdom’s authorities intervene in such matters?"
"After the demonic outbreak," Sui Yi explained, "the local official from the State Mansion was the first to flee. He’d planned to sacrifice the townspeople, exaggerate the outbreak’s severity to absolve himself of blame. Unexpectedly, a few low-level cultivators stepped up and eliminated the demons. That official was then reprimanded by his superiors, his prospects for promotion ruined. Naturally, he grew to hate the cultivators’ orphans even more, inciting ignorant townsfolk to pelt them with rotten vegetables and foul eggs."
Sui Yi pursed her lips. "I tied that official to a stone and sank him in the lake. But those kids—the youngest is four or five, the oldest in their teens—can’t stay in the Zhou Kingdom any longer. They’re all literate and good-natured. They just need to be able to get by."
"I see."
Li Ang thought for a moment. "Alright, how about this: I’ll find someone to help them get Yu Country citizenship and arrange for them to attend a school run by the railway department. Railway operations and maintenance require personnel who are literate and knowledgeable in mathematics, engineering, mechanical repair, and so on. That’s why the department has set up vocational schools, similar to the State Schools. Let them study there first. Once they’re adults, we can make further arrangements based on their academic performance and preferences. How does that sound?"
It’s true that having connections in high places makes things easier. Back in Yizhou, Li Ang had a terrible headache just trying to clear Chai Chai’s servant registration. Now, arranging positions in one of the most lucrative departments was, for him, just a matter of a few words.
Well, perhaps not *just* a few words. Professional skills were still essential. Li Shan regarded the railway department he founded as his own child and despised incompetent individuals who secured positions through nepotism more than anything. He personally interviewed candidates for every key role, so there would be no situations where ’an applicant lacking professional skills resorted to singing a song for the interviewers.’
"That’s very thoughtful of you. I’ll go with your plan."
Sui Yi let out a long breath, patted Li Ang’s shoulder gratefully, and said with her characteristic boldness, "Thanks a lot! Next time you need someone dealt with, just tell your Senior Sister. I’ll handle the chopping for you."
"I’m not some ruffian or scoundrel. It’s not like I have a long list of enemies to chop down," Li Ang said, unsure whether to laugh or cry.
"Not necessarily."
Sui Yi shook her head. "The Judicial Cardinal of Taihao Mountain has retired. His successor is Bian Yubo—Bian Chenpei’s father."
"Oh, really?"
Li Ang replied nonchalantly, not particularly concerned.
He had already clashed with Zhao Ming’s group of Candle Cloud Realm experts; Bian Chenpei had long ceased to be a concern for him.
"Don’t be careless," Sui Yi warned. "Bian Chenpei has already advanced to the Cloud Patrol Realm. Besides, Haotian has many fanatical followers. There might be opportunists looking to curry favor with the new Judicial Cardinal’s son by trying to settle scores with you."
Sui Yi reminded him, "According to Academic Palace rules, during the summer break before the fourth academic year, students are led by Doctors on experiential training. This involves helping various State Mansions with construction projects or assisting the garrison in hunting demons, things like that. Places outside the capital aren’t as safe as Chang’an."
Somehow, I don’t feel Chang’an is safe at all...
Li Ang swallowed his retort and nodded solemnly at Sui Yi. "Understood. I’ll be careful."
"Good."
Sui Yi breathed a sigh of relief, then smiled and patted Li Ang’s shoulder again. "But speaking of which, young man, are you slacking off or what? You were at High-level Rain Listening when I left, and now I’m back, you’re *still* stuck there?"
"This is called laying a deep foundation for future brilliance."
Li Ang rolled his eyes.
With Mo Si’s backlash acting up, what could he do?
"Well, it seems you’ve ’accumulated’ quite a lot then," Sui Yi remarked, completely unaware of how suggestive her words sounded. "Anyway, I just came to deliver the message. If there’s nothing else, I’ll head off. See you at the Academic Palace."
"Alright. See you at the Academic Palace."
Li Ang watched as Sui Yi climbed out the window and disappeared from sight. He then looked down at the iron box on the desk and unlocked it with the key.