A few days earlier, Principal Lü had already learned that Wang Liu had reached the Fourth Defense level, and had deliberately summoned her to his office, wanting to have a heart-to-heart talk with this silent girl, maybe discuss her plans for the future and so on.
But the girl just sat there, put both hands on her lap, and stared at him with big eyes, not saying a word.
They stared at each other for several minutes and the other party didn’t say a single thing.
In the end, Principal Lü couldn’t hold back anymore and praised her with a few words, saying how outstanding she was, that she’d already set a new historical record and then broke it again, leaving no path for those who would come after—simply incredible.
To be honest, Principal Lü considered himself well-spoken, and he’d praised many students in the past.
Yet, faced with his effusive compliments, Shen Ning just didn’t seem to care at all. She kept quiet for quite a while before finally responding, as if she hadn’t heard a word he’d just said and was lost in her own imagination the entire time.
Of course, for a student of historical talent, Principal Lü definitely wouldn’t get angry. He just felt a bit of a headache and asked her if she wanted to have any sort of celebration, like that impressive special-level assembly last time.
But this time, Shen Ning just shook her head.
“No need, it’s not a big deal.”
This still isn’t a big deal?
Principal Lü drew a cool breath, then kindly said, “In that case, Shen Ning, if you have anything important to deal with, just tell me. The School will give you the greatest possible support.”
Then the girl blushed.
“I… well, I… actually… never mind.”
After saying this, Shen Ning stood up and left with her head lowered, politely closing the door behind her.
Principal Lü sat behind his office desk, the veins at his temples throbbing wildly.
Honestly, these kids…
So when Wen Kunqing came to the Academy afterward and only sought out the Three-Stage Spirit Power User Xu Chuyao for a talk, completely ignoring the newly minted Fourth Defense Shen Ning, Principal Lü could understand.
This kid is practically a machine. Talking to people is less effective than communicating with a computer; at least a computer will respond logically.
Congratulations to the Academy, congratulations to the Academy.
“Principal, do you have a moment? I need to speak with you.”
On this morning, Principal Lü was in his office reviewing the teachers’ summer duty schedules, thinking about arranging some holiday activities for the students, when he heard the sound of the office door and the familiar, lively voice of his most outgoing student, Xu Chuyao.
“Here I am!”
This girl is the friendliest of all.
Not only is Chuyao outstanding in both character and studies, but she also communicates without any barriers. She excels in virtue, wisdom, physical fitness, aesthetics, and labor, the model student of the Spirit Power era.
“There you are! Wow, Principal, the air conditioning here feels so good, way better than the Dormitory!” The tall, energetic girl pushed open the door, plopped right down on the sofa, and added, “By the way, do you have any water? I want something iced.”
Everything about Chuyao is great, except she treats this place like her own home. Maybe it’s Principal Lü’s own fault; at every assembly, he always said that the School was a big family, and students could treat this place as their home.
Other students always took those words as empty talk, but Chuyao took them seriously.
Principal Lü cleared his throat.
“The Dormitory air conditioners are all standardized installations. If yours isn’t working well, you can bring it up with the Dormitory manager, and the Equipment Department will handle the repairs or replacement. As for water… the fridge is behind the sofa.”
Since she was his most outgoing student, what could he do? He couldn’t really scold her.
Xu Chuyao took out a cup of iced tea from the small fridge, gulped down a few mouthfuls, set it aside, and began, “Principal, in half a month, Shen Ning and I are going to have our ceremony. Can you make time to attend?”
Principal Lü thought he’d misheard her, until he saw the girl place a card on his desk.
The card had a white Lily Flower Card background and several pink hearts. Judging by the texture, it looked custom-made at the campus stationery store; students often went there to order all sorts of greeting cards and love notes for special occasions.
“You two… are really going to hold a ceremony?”
“Of course! It’s been almost a year already.”
No, this isn’t about the timing. It’s that these are two girls, and in all his years, Principal Lü had never attended a wedding like this.
“Principal, didn’t you always say at the opening assembly that the School is our home, and teachers and leaders are our guardians?” Xu Chuyao widened her eyes, “The guardian can’t skip out, right?”
Just now, when I came from the homeroom teacher’s office, my teacher agreed right away!
At the girls’ Dormitory, which used to have only one occupant, there were now four people inside.
The host, Shen Ning, sat on one side, while the three guests sat together on the other. On the table in the center was a Lily Flower Card with a white background.
“That’s the situation,” the silver-haired girl said softly, “Xu Chuyao and I have already discussed it.”
Mi Xiaolu, Yu Yuruo, and Flower looked at each other, and then all turned to Wang Song.
“You two are really getting married?”
It’s so soon!
After a moment of silence, Flower spoke up.
Of course, the number of Lily Flower Cards they were preparing to send wasn’t limited to just the four of them. Xiao Si Nuo, Cheng Qian, Li Ren Zou, and all the original Special Team members were included. Shen Ning had especially called these girls over to ask for their help.
Mi Xiaolu was Xu Chuyao’s roommate, Yu Yuruo was the first friend she’d made in the original Special Team, and Flower was a member of the Special Group.
“I also think it’s a bit sudden. It’s been almost a year and only now… But it’s not too late,” Shen Ning told them. “There are some procedures to handle before the ceremony meal, so I’d like your help.”
For things like taking wedding photos and exchanging tokens, she didn’t plan to go out for them. She’d just do it on campus; after all, anything the School didn’t have could be fabricated with campus tech.
After thinking for a moment, the girl added, “I won’t ask for your help for nothing. I can give you—”
“No, no, no need!” Yu Yuruo quickly waved her hands, “We’re all friends, it’s just a little help, and I’m free during the holidays anyway. Actually sounds fun.”
Mi Xiaolu and Flower both agreed.
Shen Ning thought for a second, then stood up and said, “I’ll go buy something to eat, and we’ll discuss more in a bit.”
After she left, the three girls exchanged glances again.
“Wow, I really didn’t expect it,” Mi Xiaolu scratched her head. Although she usually wanted her roommate to be part of her own world, this was still sudden.
It didn’t feel right to gossip behind someone’s back, but facing something like this was just too surprising.
Who would have thought that just a few weeks ago, they were still going to classes together, and now they were about to attend their friends’ wedding banquet.
“That’s life.”
Yu Yuruo smiled a little awkwardly. She hadn’t seen everyone for a while—some in the Special Team were doing internships, and now the older members were getting married. Only she herself was left in the middle, neither here nor there.
Flower, meanwhile, took out her phone and sent messages to the group.
In Center City, on the Main City District Commercial Street, a man and a boy were heading toward the shops.
As a friend, Xiao Si Nuo just needed to attend the ceremony. But as a subordinate, he still needed to share some responsibilities and help buy whatever was necessary.
After all, he got paid. He could just treat this like a day out.
Cheng Qian had volunteered to come along, since it showed his enthusiasm and willingness to help students—especially students of Teacher Yu.
“It’s not just appearances. Honestly, I’ve always been… cough, everyone in the higher grades knows. You can ask anyone,” he said.
Xiao Si Nuo rolled his eyes at him, thinking, Now that the older grades have all graduated, who am I supposed to ask?
“Let’s just buy the things on the list. First, we need to get a projector, then some handmade decorations, and finally check out some of the famous hotels in the city…”
“Let’s go to the hotels first, then. I’ve already booked them,” Cheng Qian suggested. “If we’re checking out the hotels, we have to try the food there.”
Xiao Si Nuo felt this made sense, so the two of them headed for the nearest grand hotel. On the way, he said, “Teacher Cheng, maybe you haven’t gotten the message yet, so let me remind you: these days, we need to keep a low profile. Like, whatever information we hear, we shouldn’t blurt it out.”
“What information?”
“For example, any big names we discover, especially those whose names are secret. Absolutely don’t say them out loud,” the boy thought for a moment, “If you really have to say it, just add a character to make it sound like something else, like ‘storage room’ or ‘archive’ or something…”
Cheng Qian hesitated for a moment, then realized Xiao Si Nuo was talking about the name ‘Chu Yuan’.
“The ‘storage room’ really isn’t over there, though.”
Just then, they saw a few City Security Department officers ahead, all wearing work armbands, searching storefronts and questioning shop owners and passersby.
When the two of them passed by, they were stopped and asked if they had seen any suspicious strangers in the last couple of days.
“We’ve been at School all this time. Today is the first time we’ve come out,” Cheng Qian identified himself as a teacher from Ascension Academy and asked in return, “Did something happen?”
“So you’re Teacher Cheng. Nice to meet you. Here’s the situation: two nights ago, someone snuck into the city, and there was a violent clash at the checkpoint,” said the Security Department officer. “We’re now conducting a citywide search for any unidentified dangerous persons.”
“I see,” Xiao Si Nuo quickly committed this news to memory. He’d have to tell Xu Chuyao and the others when he got back.
Anyone who could sneak in and make it into Center City during the day had to fall into one of three categories—those marked as ex-criminals, anyone above Three-Stage Spirit Power User without a permit, or a marked ex-criminal above Three-Stage Spirit Power User.