Imperial Palace Brew, one hundred and eighty per glass?

The three exchanged glances. Lin Xue curiously asked, "Is the Imperial Palace Brew the Imperial Court's Imperial Wine? One hundred and eighty, that's quite expensive..."

Ming Shuiyun waved her hand: "Don't ask me, I don't know either."

"Alright, you guys should rest now." Qin Leyin said, "You've worked hard."

Qian Yuya asked, "Hongle, aren't you coming with us?"

"I need to go to the Platinum Tower to discuss with the principal about funding the academy to build public toilets." Qin Leyin said casually, "Our hitting the target in the Imperial Examination Hall has already crossed the line. If it weren't for the fact that the Eye of Omniscience exams are usually chaotic, and that everyone is quite tolerant of anything that happens during the Eye of Omniscience, the principal would've stepped in long ago… But even so, I have to take the initiative to admit my mistake. If I pretend nothing happened, and force the principal to come to me, then it won't just be about paying money."

"How, how much?" Ming Shuiyun seemed a bit nervous.

Lin Xue suddenly said, "Probably more than three hundred gold coins."

"That much!?" Ming Shuiyun looked as if she'd been struck by lightning: "Isn't it for building toilets?"

"They say it's for building toilets, but actually it's for building one at the Imperial Academy and a hundred around Yanjing, even including sewer construction." Lin Xue explained, "I was also wondering why someone would sponsor the construction of toilets, so I checked the records and found that a few decades ago, the outer city of Yanjing was filthy with sewage everywhere, people would relieve themselves anywhere, and the place was unbearably dirty. The principal grew up in that environment. Before becoming principal, Mr. Cha was the director of the Ministry of Water and Civil Affairs of the Imperial Court and once vigorously promoted a policy that continues to this day..."

At this point, Lin Xue paused, and Qian Yuya asked, "What policy?"

"...'Everyone Has Their Load to Bear.'" Lin Xue hesitated for a moment but reported truthfully, "The records from back then were written like that. In short, it was a policy actively promoting the development of toilets and sewers."

Although the slogan was peculiar, everyone accepted it — that indeed was Mr. Cha's style.

"It includes a saying from Mr. Cha, 'The most important thing for a person's body is what goes in and out, and excretion should be given the same importance as eating.' And truly, because of this good policy, we can see a clean Yanjing, and regions around Yanjing became increasingly fertile due to the effective use of manure."

"Even now, Principal Cha still adheres to the ideas of his youth, striving to ensure that people in surrounding rural areas can… um, have a pleasant excretion experience."

"But that's still a lot, three hundred gold coins..." Ming Shuiyun's expression crumbled, struck by the wealth gap: "A house in Yanjing isn't even a hundred gold coins..."

Qian Yuya raised an eyebrow slightly: "Shuiyun Palace, aren't you a member of the Imperial Family? Could it be your family... isn't wealthy?"

Although somewhat embarrassed, Ming Shuiyun nodded: "Yes, you also know that after each new emperor ascends the throne, all other siblings change their surnames, are directly removed from the royal genealogy, and become collateral civilians."

"Unless an emperor particularly favors them, collateral civilians are just like commoners and won't be given important positions in Yanjing. Those with ambitions usually seek a new path in one of the eight districts; those who want a peaceful life can still find a comfortable job in Yanjing."

It sounds unbelievable, casting away all the relatives, wouldn't that make the emperor a lonely figure with no one to use? But under the oppression of the Holy Sword's shine, it seems all the more logical — with the backing of absolute force, it's just a matter of time before the emperor gains authority. Rather than seeking that negligible 'help' from relatives, it's better to drive them all away, eliminating worries, and saving a substantial settlement fee.

"My grandmother was the Palace Master of the Imperial Family, but by my mother's generation, she had no contact with the Imperial Court. I grew up with no worries about food and clothing, but it's not what you'd call a wealthy family." Ming Shuiyun quickly glanced at Qin Leyin and said, head down: "My entire family fortune is... just one gold coin."

Qin Leyin remained indifferent, glanced at Ming Shuiyun, and extended his hand: "Give it to me."

Ming Shuiyun blinked and shook her head repeatedly: "I don't have it with me, the money's in the dormitory. If you want it—"

"Then just remember you owe me one gold coin, that'll be good enough. Someday, I'll demand it a hundredfold." Qin Leyin said casually, "I'll put up the other 299 gold coins as an initial investment... Go eat, you must be hungry."

"Um..." Ming Shuiyun couldn't help but say, "The Eye of Omniscience exam..."

But when she saw Qin Leyin's indifferent expression, she swallowed back her words: "Nothing."

After Qin Leyin left, Ming Shuiyun went to dinner with the others; Qin Yueshi and Li Ying were already waiting for them in the Pig Food Canteen. After today's cheating operation, their relationship deepened, reaching a 'go to the bathroom together' level, second only to the 'period synchronization' level of Qian Yuya's dorm of four.

Doing bad things together always brings feelings closer quickly.

Later in the evening, Ming Shuiyun happily said goodbye to her friends and returned to her dorm, where her sisters were already present. Ming Shuangli, who was reading, asked proactively, "Shuiyun, how did the test go?"

"It went alright."

"Shuiyun, I wrote a first draft of my new book, want to take a look?" Ming Yueyan asked proactively, blinking: "It's really good!"

Before Ming Shuiyun could respond, Ming Dailan chimed in: "Shuiyun, here's the 'Mystery of the Sea Blue' eye cream from Chenfeng District. I noticed you've been having dark circles lately; it's time to take care of that."

"Shuiyun, come play cards!"

"Shuiyun, want to take a bath together!"

"Shuiyun..."

Ming Shuiyun originally thought, after the 'Eye of Omniscience Exam,' the atmosphere among her sisters would be tense and plummet, but to her surprise, her sisters remained so enthusiastic, as if they had intentions to get something from her if she didn't know she was poor.

She spent a pleasant evening and lay comfortably in bed. When she heard the clock strike midnight, an inexpressible sadness suddenly welled up.

She turned her head toward the wall, trying to recall the good times she just had, but the oppression in her heart only grew thicker. Her newfound friends were all really good people, and her dorm sisters were lively and cheerful, but the thought of that cold face extinguished all her joy.

She had thought that after the exam, Qin Leyin would praise her, hug her, maybe even... suck her blood... She didn't have any peculiar inclinations, but the Eye of Omniscience exam was the first trial in seeking the Sword Master's position, and she had fulfilled her duties perfectly, doing the best she could to avoid disappointing the sword sheath.

Yet Qin Leyin didn't even give her a smile, didn't even glance at her, always lost in thought.

Why is it like this?

Was it because that Many Faces Sword Sheath took Yueyan away? Was Yueyan so important to him? If she was so important, why didn't he choose Yueyan as the Sword Master from the beginning?

Is it because he has to pay the principal? But he proposed this plan, and I actually have no money! If he wants a wealthy Sword Master, why not choose Shuangli, he even wants my last gold coin...

Can't understand what the man is thinking... Does he want to replace the Sword Master? Does he think there's no future with me? Lin Xue wants to join us, why did he ask for my opinion? Does he not care about me anymore?

That night, Ming Shuiyun tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

On the other side.

Le Yu lay on the bed.

He folded his arms, frowning at the ceiling.

"Is the Many Faces Sword Sheath male or female? If male, how does he hide the little ○○ when he turns female? If female, how does she make a little ○○ when she turns male? Wait, if the difference between male and female is the little ○○, without the little ○○ is a woman, and having a little ○○ is a man, then is the little ○○ on the man, or is the man on the little ○○?"

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