Chapter 20: Eyes Inflamed

Morning, Trace Workshop.

Sanjian Ying walked up to You Xue and carefully studied her.

Her eyes held a mix of confusion and concern.

“You Xue, what’s wrong with your eyes?”

“Just a little inflammation.”

You Xue slightly turned her head.

Her left eye was tightly wrapped in gauze.

She had wanted to buy an eyepatch, but she was short on time, so she just used some gauze from home to cover it.

“Inflammation?”

Sanjian Ying looked skeptical.

She felt something was off.

So she asked.

“You’ve been taking so many days off recently. Did something happen? Do you need me to approve a few more days for you to rest properly?”

You Xue shook her head.

Faced with Sanjian Ying’s pure concern, she felt a bit helpless instead.

“Sister Ying, aren’t you the boss? Why are you so eager for your employees to take leave?”

Sanjian Ying smiled slightly.

“Although I do like money, I think it’s more important for Little You to be healthy than money.”

“L-Little You?”

You Xue was momentarily stunned.

“What do you think? I think it sounds nice.”

The smile in Sanjian Ying’s eyes didn’t fade.

“No, don’t call me that.”

You Xue turned her head away.

Sanjian Ying noticed the resistance in You Xue’s tone and softened her voice.

“Did that remind you of something sad? I’m sorry.”

“It’s not a big deal…”

You Xue looked down at the dark gray floor beneath her feet.

“It’s just that it feels a bit uncomfortable.”

This nickname triggered memories from You Xue’s previous life.

Her mother and brother used to call her that.

Of course, in her previous life she wasn’t You Xue, but by coincidence her former name happened to have the character “You” in it.

Excellent, graceful, fine, elegant—truly good characters, yet they seemed to have been given to someone who couldn’t live up to them at all.

Those were the expectations her mother and father had placed on her, so she wouldn’t discard them.

Memories of the past swirled in her mind.

If you called them tragic, you could still feel a lot of warmth.

If you called them happy, they were constantly soaked in pain.

To really describe it, it was like putting a sugar cube in a bitter medicinal soup.

The sweetness was thin, entangled with bitterness.

So she could feel both flavors at all times, but the bitterness always outweighed the sweetness.

That kind of life was already in the past, You Xue told herself.

Now there was only one thing to do: change the outcome of the story so that her mother and brother could be healthy, happy, and safe.

You Xue raised her head.

“It’s fine, Sister Ying. If there’s nothing else, I’ll go to work.”

“Wait.”

Sanjian Ying stopped You Xue.

“Actually, there’s something.”

You Xue tilted her head to look at her.

“This weekend, we need to deliver the Engraved Talisman to the Academy. Come with me.”

You Xue instinctively wanted to refuse.

Her left eye suddenly stung for a moment, and an indescribable emotion flooded her like a wave.

In her heart, a thought suddenly surfaced in her mind.

‘I want to see Su Li.’

The words of refusal caught in her throat.

‘No, I don’t want to see him.’

‘It’s this dragon eye’s problem. There’s no way I could have such a thought.’

But…

‘She needs to gather information, especially about the Academy. After all, with such a big commotion yesterday, the Academy couldn’t have been completely unaware.’

‘Maybe the Academy has already detected something and rounded up the Dark Crow in one fell swoop.’

‘Even if not, she can still probe the Academy’s attitude toward this matter.’

‘All of this affects You Xue’s plans going forward, so she has to go.’

“Okay.”

You Xue agreed.

***

Qiming Academy.

Anbian Du pushed open the door to the Defense Department.

Inside was a tall woman dressed in a black uniform.

Her back was straight, her gray-green hair tied in a high ponytail, revealing a smooth forehead and a sharply defined jaw.

Her emerald eyes looked impatiently at the documents on the desk.

Only when she heard the sound of the door did she lift her gaze.

When she took in the visitor, her impatient expression intensified.

“Senior Anbian, it seems that from graduation to retirement from the Border Guard Legion, your quality is still as low as before.”

Faced with such barbed words, Anbian Du didn’t even blink.

Instead, he leaned against the doorframe.

“Lin Qingye, it’s been a few years, and your tongue is still as sharp.”

Anbian Du spread his hands.

“I admit I wronged you, but all I did was give you laxatives before the duel. It wasn’t a big deal, right? Haha.”

Lin Qingye’s hands on the desk suddenly clenched, and her eyes nearly shot fire.

“You dare bring that up? That match decided the special recruitment spot for the legion. I had to withdraw in front of all the examiners and was laughed at for a full three months! And now you’re telling me it wasn’t a big deal?”

Anbian Du scratched his head and chuckled sheepishly.

“I was young and ignorant… And if it weren’t for me, you definitely wouldn’t be the Head of Security Department now. It’s a good position.”

“So you’re saying I should thank you?”

Lin Qingye sneered.

“And do you think this position is easy? Up above, I have to deal with the Chairman’s orders. Down below, I have to manage thousands of students in the whole school. Monsters lurk outside the city, the Dark Crow stirs up trouble inside the city, and even the City Government stabs us in the back.”

Lin Qingye stared at Anbian Du.

“If you have any conscience, don’t cause trouble like before. I won’t take your side like the Teacher did.”

Anbian Du sighed and raised his hands in surrender.

“I know I was wrong. I really know I was wrong.”

“What use is knowing?”

Lin Qingye snorted, putting the documents aside.

“I don’t think you came today to reminisce and visit an old classmate. So tell me, what are you really here for?”

Anbian Du didn’t waste time.

He told Lin Qingye about what happened in the north of the city and about the Dragon Eye.

Lin Qingye’s pupils contracted sharply.

She gritted her teeth.

“Why didn’t you say so earlier!”

“You didn’t ask earlier.”

Lin Qingye suddenly stood up, glaring fiercely at Anbian Du.

“You’re nothing but trouble for me!”

Anbian Du’s expression was helpless.

“I’m just a messenger.”

Lin Qingye first called to put the entire Defense Department on alert.

Then she walked out from behind the desk, came up to Anbian Du, and shot him a glare.

“What are you standing around for? Come with me on duty!”

Anbian Du blinked, spreading his hands innocently.

“My current position is just a Temporary Teacher, isn’t it?”

Lin Qingye’s eyes were terrifyingly cold.

“Special circumstances call for special treatment. No matter what your position, as long as you’re part of the Academy, you will follow my orders.”

Then she sighed wearily.

“You had such great talent. You should have gone much further, not come back to the Academy to be a Temporary Teacher.”

Anbian Du didn’t answer immediately.

His hand instinctively reached toward his pocket, wanting to take out a cigarette, but he stopped the motion.

“Ah, everyone has to make peace with themselves. Not everything can go as smoothly as imagined.”

Then he nodded.

“Enough talk. Let’s go. Maybe we can catch a few people for questioning.”

Lin Qingye strode out of the Defense Department first.

“I hope you still remember how we used to work together.”

She didn’t look back when she said that.

A wry smile tugged at Anbian Du’s lips.

“Even if I forget my own name, I’ll never forget the days I partnered with you.”

Lin Qingye snorted lightly.

“I’ll take that as it is.”