“Are all high-rank cultivators able to sense my affliction with a glance?” Zu An couldn’t help but ask. If that was really the case, he couldn’t bear to face anyone anymore.

Still chuckling, Jiang Luofu shook her head and replied, “Don’t worry, I learned about it from another source. You don’t have to worry about anyone sensing this about you.”

Zu An felt a great weight lift off him, but he was also consumed by a burning rage. 

It must be that darned Ji Dengtu! He must have revealed my condition while flirting with someone else. What the hell! Aren’t doctors supposed to have a code of ethics that they’re supposed to follow?

“Ahem, ahem, it looks like we have strayed off-topic.” To clear away the awkwardness in the air, Zu An quickly brought the focus back to the main purpose of his visit. “I don’t expect any wages or tangible benefits from my title as honorary teacher. Naturally, I won’t be teaching any classes either. All I need is official recognition.”

Jiang Luofu gave the matter some thought, but she eventually shook her head. “If a powerful cultivator with a good reputation had donated the seven-and-a-half million silver taels, I would have explored the possibility. However, you should be well aware of your reputation. If I really bestowed on you the title of honorary teacher, I’ll probably be covered in spit. Brightmoon Academy would also become the laughingstock of the country. I can’t afford to take that risk.”

She paused for a moment before adding with a helpless smile, “Who asked you to behave so wildly over the years? You’ve only ended up hindering yourself.”

Of course, Jiang Luofu had no way of knowing that the original Zu An had been real trash, so she assumed that he had just been slacking off.

Her decision didn’t surprise Zu An. He’d fully expected Jiang Luofu to turn down his request, and was only using this as padding before revealing his true intentions. “If I can’t become an honorary teacher, I want you to give me a slot to participate in a dungeon then.”

It seemed a huge waste to spend seven-and-a-half million silver taels for a slot to enter a dungeon. But factoring in how he was unlikely to be able to cash out the promissory note, and also that it rendered the Heiress’ Ball of Delights useless, the price was just about acceptable.

If he were to participate in the selections while banking on his own capabilities, he wasn’t fully confident of emerging victorious, even if he used all of the means he had. It would be all over for him if he were to encounter some monstrously talented prodigy from another academy, or something like that.

This matter concerned the welfare of ‘little Zu An’ and his future happiness; he needed guarantees. In a sense, it was like insuring against the worst possible outcome. On top of that, he hoped the sum of money could buy him the goodwill of Brightmoon Academy’s directors, which would make the deal much more worthwhile. It had only been a few days since he had transmigrated over to this world, but it was already apparent to him that academies held an incredibly high standing in this world.

Jiang Luofu’s face darkened. “Don’t you know that the dungeons only open once every few years? There’s high demand and the slots are limited; each academy would only send a few of their most outstanding students to enter the dungeon. Even prodigies have to go through intense competition in order to earn the right to qualify. How could I just give a slot away that easily?”

Zu An shrugged. “I don’t believe that you, as the principal of the academy, would lack such authority. It’s seven-and-a-half million silver taels we’re talking about here. I can’t just be giving it away for free, can I?”

Jiang Luofu stared at Zu An with eyes so sharp that they seemed able to penetrate any lies he dared to spout. “What do you intend to do in the dungeon?”

“Of course it’s to search for treasures and see if I’m lucky enough to stumble on any fortuitous encounters!” replied Zu An. 

He didn’t intend to talk about the Evanescent Lotus so as to avoid any unintended trouble.

Jiang Luofu nodded. “I can see where you’re coming from. Dungeons do hold many enticing opportunities for cultivators. However, the slots to the dungeons are monitored by many eyes, including the Ministry of Rites. I can’t just give the slot away on a whim.”

Zu An immediately lost his patience, but before he could say anything, Jiang Luofu raised her hand to forestall him. “Calm down and allow me to finish. While I can’t give the slot to you directly, I can still pull some strings from the shadows and assign you relatively weaker opponents. This way, you’ll be able to rightfully obtain qualification, and the academy will be free from unwanted scrutiny.”

“Doesn’t that mean that I’ll have to fight for the slot then?” Zu An was a little hesitant about this plan. He wanted to keep his trump cards hidden as much as possible. He preferred to be the one pulling the strings from the dark instead.

Jiang Luofu straightened. “I don’t know why you’ve been slacking off all of these years, but this is a world where the strong are respected. As long as you’re able to prove your worth, you’ll be able to receive high standing and ample cultivation resources. If you continue to lag behind the others, you’ll only be overtaken by everyone else. The gap between you and those ahead of you will continue to increase, and you’ll find it hard to catch up to them.

“I’ll be honest; I don’t really understand your thought process. Despite what might be in your past, you should know that you’re a student of our academy now. You don’t have to fear or cower before any enemies anymore. You can feel free to reveal your talents under our protection, and only then will I be justified to allocate more cultivation resources to you.”

Zu An was moved by Jiang Luofu’s words, He could sense that she really had his welfare in heart. However, his reasons for laying low were a little complicated. First and foremost, there was no way he could tell her that the old Zu An had been real trash, and that he was totally different.

To give himself cover, he replied with a random rebuttal. “If my enemy is the emperor, will you be able to protect me too?”

Jiang Luofu was full of passion after her rousing speech, but Zu An’s question choked her up. Her fair face immediately flushed red. “If that’s the case, I’m afraid I can’t do anything about it. Then again, who do you think the emperor is? How could you possibly have the capability to offend him?”

“I’m just joking! Don’t worry about it. I’ll take your words to heart and do whatever that is needed. All right, I think I should be heading off to class now,” replied Zu An.

Jiang Luofu waggled her finger. “Aren’t you forgetting something?”

Zu An subconsciously leaned his head forward, wondering if she was asking him for a goodbye kiss. Are my charms really that powerful? Well, I guess it doesn’t hurt for me to give a small peck on such a beautiful face.

Perhaps out of instinct, Jiang Luofu suddenly recoiled backward, creating some distance between the two of them. “Where’s the seven-and-a-half million silver taels you promised?”

Zu An finally realized what she was referring to. With a sheepish smile, he took off his shoes, pulled out a piece of paper, and placed it on the table.

Jiang Luofu froze for a moment, totally speechless.

Then, with a face dripping with disdain, she picked up a brush and used its tip to unfold the note. She frowned as she read the contents. “It’s a promissory note?”

Zu An laughed sheepishly. “With the academy’s influence and your wits, I believe that it won’t be hard for you to squeeze the money out of the Plum Blossom Sect.” 

“I was wondering why you would be so magnanimous as to donate so much money to the academy… Forget it. I thought that I was taking advantage of you earlier, but this more than soothes my conscience. I’ll deal with the matter concerning the dungeon slots. You should hurry to class now,” replied Jiang Luofu.

“Alright! See you, my gorgeous principal!” Zu An waved goodbye and dashed off, faster than a hare.

Jiang Luofu’s cherry lips curved into a slight smile. “What an interesting lad he is,” she murmured under her breath.

She turned back to the promissory note that was freshly dug out from the fellow’s shoes, and her smile turned sickly. There seemed to be an awful stench wafting from it, although it could be just her imagination. She stowed the note away with a disgusted look before tossing the brush into the rubbish bin.

Meanwhile, Zu An leisurely strutted his way to the classroom, his heart much lighter now that it was finally relieved of the boulder that had weighed it down. Although, deep down, he still felt that it was a waste to give away seven-and-a-half million silver taels just like that.

Forget it, I’ll just leave it in the gorgeous principal’s hands for a few days as dowry. I’ll bring her back home, together with my money, in the future!

If anyone in the academy could hear his thoughts right now, they would have been absolutely floored. Plenty of men were fond of Principal Jiang, but he was the only one who dared to harbor such thoughts.

By the time Zu An returned to the classroom, he noticed that the class had already started. The teacher was a scrawny middle-aged man with oily hair arranged in a distinctive center parting.

Zu An discreetly snuck to his seat, but his attempt at secrecy was disrupted by a sudden loud slam on the podium. “Who allowed you to enter the classroom?”

This loud slam jolted many of the snoring students awake. All of them quickly turned their eyes on Zu An.

The way this fellow lashed out at him so abruptly seemed ludicrous to Zu An. “You were focused on the lesson earlier, and I didn’t want to interrupt you. I chose to come in quietly instead.”

“The least you can do is to report your arrival after being late! And yet, you dare to strut in openly like it’s perfectly normal. This is a blatant show of disrespect for your elders!” the teacher berated him hotly.

Zu An felt more than a little exasperated. This teacher was blowing up a small matter for no good reason. I don’t even know him, so why is he so hostile towards me?

Most of the students in the class were pleased to see Zu An getting scolded. They had fallen into despair as they lamented how a man like him could have won the fancy of so many beautiful women while they remained single. Naturally, they were more than happy to see him suffer.

Despite the heat directed at him, Zu An replied unhurriedly, “I was late because Principal Jiang summoned me over to have a word. Teacher, if you don’t believe me, you’re free to ask Principal Jiang about it.”

The middle-aged man choked at Zu An’s words. Is this fellow trying to one-up me by bringing the principal into this?

You have successfully trolled Yang Wei for 44 Rage points!

Zu An gasped upon seeing the name in the system. The man’s physical appearance finally started to make sense.

Yang Wei felt the need to be cautious. 

Is this fellow really related to Principal Jiang? I’ve never seen her so personally involved in a student’s affairs before. I thought that he was just a normal student who would be easy enough to deal with, so I agreed to help that fellow without hesitation. However, it seems like the matter is more complicated than I thought.

Well, it’s too late to change my mind now.

“Why did Principal Jiang summon you?” Yang Wei asked, trying to investigate their relationship.

Zu An shrugged. “She just asked me how’s school been, and if I’m adapting well to school life.”

The furrows on Yang Wei’s forehead deepened. “You should return for your seat first.”

As he continued with the lesson, his mind was distracted by this unknown relationship between Zu An and Principal Jiang. The Principal Jiang he knew of was not someone who would be so concerned with a student.

It suddenly hit him that Principal Jiang had been alone all of these years. Other than the child in the nother class, she didn’t seem to have any relatives or friends. How could she possibly be related to Zu An?

Most likely, the Brightmoon Duke has asked her to take care of Zu An, and she is just doing this on his account. Hmph! I nearly got duped by him!

You have successfully trolled Yang Wei for 58 Rage points!

Zu An was taken aback. What is wrong with this fellow? Is he really intent on going against me?

He wondered if he had offended this fellow somewhere, but nothing came to mind. Could it be that my good looks have seduced far too many women, including a woman whom he’s interested in?

“Boss, you’re formidable!” exclaimed Wei Suo.

“There are plenty of things I’m formidable at. To which are you referring to?” asked Zu An.

Wei Suo gave him a thumbs-up. Such extraordinary shamelessness… As expected of my boss! “Needless to say, I’m referring to how you won seven-and-a-half million silver taels from the Silverhook Casino yesterday. News has already spread all around the city, and everyone is curious to know how you managed to do it!”

Zu An laughed humbly. “Naturally, it’s due to my one-of-a-kind character!”