Each Person's Task

"But even on weekdays, the administrator doesn't get up until the sun is high in the sky."

"Uh... don't take everything too seriously, otherwise life will be very difficult."

"Once you develop healthy lifestyle habits, you won't feel tired at all; on the contrary, you'll feel more energetic."

Murong Qing dragged Yao Bilian into the bathroom, supervised her as she brushed her teeth and washed her face, and then went to the basement to use the same method to pull Hongdou out of bed and onto the dining table.

Just then, Si Ming returned from his morning exercise, still sweating. Seeing Yao Bilian sitting obediently at the dining table, he couldn't help but tease her, "It's rare to see you at this hour. Are you perhaps a stand-in?"

Yao Bilian rolled her eyes and said, "It's all because of you! I was wondering how you changed your ways, bringing young girls home, but it turns out you brought a female instructor instead."

"I just think it's not good that our orphanage hasn't had a caretaker for so long. We still need someone to maintain order and discipline. Without rules, there can be no order."

"Am I not the administrator? Do you know how many pounds I've gained managing you problem children? Even if I haven't done anything particularly meritorious, I've certainly put in a lot of hard work; even if I haven't put in a lot of hard work, I've certainly been exhausted!"

Si Ming squinted and said, "Fit your hand to your conscience, don't you feel guilty saying such things?"

Yao Bilian retorted confidently, "If your breasts are too big, you can't touch your conscience."

At this moment, Murong Qing placed bowls of sweet potato porridge in front of everyone, reminding them, "I don't expect you to 'respectfully eat even coarse food and vegetable soup, and offer melons as sacrifices,' but at least you must 'not speak while eating, and not talk while sleeping.'"

The first part means "Even if you are eating coarse rice and vegetable soup, you must first offer a sacrifice, and be as respectful and solemn as when you are fasting." The second part is the literal meaning: do not talk while eating, and keep quiet while sleeping.

Yao Bilian felt it necessary to regain her dignity as an adult, so she tapped her chopsticks on the table and questioned, "That's a Confucian School rule, but we Mohist School follow..."

"Hmm?" Murong Qing an eyebrow, Sha Qi flashing in his eyes.

"As members of the Mohist School, we should naturally embrace all schools of thought and be magnanimous. Regardless of which school of thought it belongs to, as long as it is correct and reasonable, we should humbly learn from it, rather than being bound by differences in schools of thought," Yao Bilian admonished everyone at the table in a serious tone. "Have you all remembered that?"

The easily fooled Hongdou and Lu Mao nodded repeatedly, looking as if they had learned a lesson.

Si Ming and Ying Zhou cast disdainful glances at them. "Where's your dignity, sir? You chickened out way too quickly!"

Yao Bilian slumped on the table like a deflated balloon, exchanging glances lazily. "There's nothing I can do. This girl just happens to be the type I'm not good at dealing with. She reminds me of the nanny who managed the girls' dormitory when I was in girls' school. She was always picking on me, and I got scolded at least twice a week."

Si Ming returned the questioning look. "It was just a glance, how could I not glean so much information from it? What exactly are you trying to say?"

Useless.

This time, Yao Bilian's gaze was easily understood.

Just as Si Ming was about to teach the other party a lesson through underhanded means, the restaurant's television broadcast the morning news.

"... A high-ranking member of the Crimson Eye Society, who declined to reveal his real name, claimed responsibility for the recent surge in demonic tides and warned governments that if they did not want to face attacks from even more powerful Demon Beast, they must recognize the legitimacy of the Crimson Eye Society, or they would bear the consequences."

In response, the Supreme Ruler of the Su State has contacted the leaders of Germany, the Su Kingdom, the Nation of Valor, the Nation of Beauty, and other countries, delivering a speech emphasizing "absolutely no compromise with terrorist organizations." During the speech, the various countries reached a consensus to establish an anti-terrorism alliance in the second half of this year, recruiting outstanding martial artists from each country as members. The alliance will operate under the highest principle of combating terrorism, and each member will possess the power to pursue suspects across borders. Their first mission will be to eliminate the Crimson Eye Society.

Murong Qing listened to the news with a straight face, not angry or upset, but slightly puzzled. "Was this really the work of the Crimson Eye Society? What benefit would they gain from doing this? Forcing governments to recognize the legitimacy of the Crimson Eye Society is completely meaningless, and anyone with a modicum of rationality knows it's absolutely impossible. Surely the higher-ups of the Crimson Eye Society aren't all that stupid... I have a feeling the whole thing isn't as simple as the official statements suggest."

Murong Zhe's death is inevitably linked to the sudden change in the demon tide, so the real culprit behind it is Murong Qing's father's killer. In recent days, she has been investigating related intelligence, but the more she investigates, the more she feels that the water is very deep. As an ordinary student, there is some information that she can never find out, just like an invisible wall blocking her way. Now her investigation has reached a bottleneck, and she can no longer get more of the truth.

Si Ming nodded in agreement.

He had heard Yan Jinghong say that this matter was definitely not the work of the Crimson Eye Society, but rather an internal strife caused by a traitor within the country's high-ranking officials. Unfortunately, a gag order had been issued, and he could not reveal anything to Murong Qing.

We haven't heard from Yan Jinghong lately because he plans to disappear for a while, hiding behind the scenes. Besides avoiding public attention, he also wants to investigate the truth of this matter and find the traitor.

As for the Crimson Eye Society, it was merely bait used to conceal the true culprit's identity.

"Good morning, sister. Everyone's up early too!"

Murong Wu, who had moved into the Minggui Orphanage with Murong Qing, sat at the dining table, still feeling sleepy, staring blankly at the small bowl filled with sweet potato porridge.

Hongdou immediately protested, "Ugh—why can he sleep in but I can't? Is it because he's your brother that you're deliberately protecting him? That's not fair!"

Murong Qing her eyes. "He's still a child, just started elementary school. It's normal for him to sleep in a little longer. You're a high school student, yet you're comparing yourself to an elementary school student. Don't you feel ashamed?"

"I'm a child too! Should elementary school students receive special treatment? Then I'll apply to repeat elementary school right now!"

Yao Bilian, always eager for chaos, chimed in, "Me too! Me too! Let's go back to elementary school together!"

Murong Qing showed a helpless expression. These two were the most disobedient people. Dealing with one of them was already quite mentally taxing, and even she felt somewhat powerless when facing both at the same time.

However, when she noticed her brother's clothes, she forgot about it. "What's with your clothes and your outfit? I've never seen you dressed like this before."

Murong Wu said timidly, "The caretaker told me to dress like this; she said everyone would be happy to see it."

Yao Bilian protested, "I'm not an auntie, and I don't even have a boyfriend yet. Call me 'Administrator Sister,' understand?"

Murong Qing immediately shifted her focus, questioning, "Why did you give my brother girls' clothes? He already lacks masculinity, and dressed like this, he looks completely like a girl. Do you know how much effort I've put into raising him to be a real man?"

Yao Bilian's eyes became unfocused. "Only a man who understands feminine charm can be considered a true man. If he can wear women's clothing with masculine flair, then he has truly succeeded. This is also a training method."

"You have to eat one bite at a time, and walk one step at a time. He's still young and easily tempted by external factors. What if he goes down the wrong path and develops a liking for women's clothing?"

Murong Qing told her younger brother to quickly change his clothes, then warned Yao Bilian, "You're not allowed to corrupt my brother anymore!"

Chapter 159 Their Respective Tasks

At the entrance of the Cultural Affairs Bureau.

Qingyan at his newly acquired broker's license, brimming with confidence. "Now I can finally get close to my target. First, I'll get registered with an auction company, and then I can use that as an excuse to contact him. As long as I pretend to be a persistent broker trying to poach someone, I won't be suspected. After a while, once we've gotten to know each other, I'll find an opportunity to make my move."

Although he had met the target at the Mohist Knight Guard base before, the art of making a thousand faces look a thousand times was just an auxiliary skill for an assassin's stealth. Even without the human skin mask, Qingyan was fully confident that he could transform himself into another person.

As a professional assassin, as long as he has a breath left, he can continue to carry out missions. A few failed missions are not enough to extinguish his dream of becoming a legendary assassin.

Three months after the demon tide attack, the target stayed at the Mohist Knight Guard base for a short time before moving back to the orphanage, presumably because he thought he had given up the assassination mission due to his inaction.