The Origin of Jing Zhi's Dowry

"Mingyuan, your aunt has something to tell you..."

For some reason, Jing Yue's mother, Madam Cui, suddenly began reminiscing about the family's past.

Back then, Jing's father had come from a family with little property and hadn't studied for long, but he had been eager to make something of himself. So he'd signed an agreement with the military early on: after receiving military training and qualifying, he would have to serve on the Void Battlefield.

The battlefield was dangerous, but it had its benefits. Not only could he earn Earth Luck by killing foreign races, which he could exchange for classified knowledge forbidden from circulating outside, but he also received a free place at an academy while serving in the military.

And the deal was one free year of study for every year of military service.

As for the value of that place...

As far as Lu Mingyuan knew, tuition at a junior academy usually cost around five hundred Earth Luck Points. Converted into silver, depending on market conditions, that came to roughly seven hundred and fifty to a thousand taels.

In other words, by the prices of his previous life, a year of academy tuition would cost around seventy-five to a hundred thousand.

The price was expensive, but it wasn't, depending on how you looked at it.

When you thought about it, the academy was worth every penny.

At the academy, students didn't just learn how to interpret and analyze classic works; they also studied the fundamentals of constructing divine abilities.

Take Lu Mingyuan, for example. He'd created two divine abilities in less than a month, but that didn't mean creating divine abilities was easy.

He'd managed it so smoothly because he'd already studied the relevant knowledge at the academy.

Without that knowledge, he would have had to brute-force it by spending hundreds of millions.

But where could an ordinary person get hundreds of millions? Having a few hundred or a thousand would already be lucky.

Seen that way, the academy taught methods for quickly increasing one's strength, while also giving students the chance to create wealth and a path to rise through the ranks.

That was why any parents with even a little means sent their children to the academy.

Those from poorer families had no choice but to attend private schools.

They couldn't go without an education. At the very least, they had to learn to read; otherwise, they'd be forced to learn. Once they were done, they'd be forced into labor, or even conscripted.

So literacy in this world far surpassed that of his previous life, nearing one hundred percent.

As Lu Mingyuan understood it, if you couldn't read, your Talent Qi would be far below average. The state would collect far less Earth Luck from you. At that point, who else would they go after?

Whether you became talented or not didn't matter. Just don't drag down the average.

Meanwhile, Jing Yue's mother spoke in a subdued tone. "Our family was poor back then and couldn't afford academy tuition, so that free place went to Jing Zhi's older brother, Jing Yao."

"As for Zhi and Yue, they studied at a private school for a few years, then learned from you..."

Faced with the helplessness Jing Yue's mother had revealed, Lu Mingyuan could only fall silent. His own place at the academy had been bought with his father's life.

Otherwise, he might have ended up like the children in Guihua Lane, never knowing when they'd run into an unreliable teacher like him.

The Jing family's situation was already considered good; at least they could get someone into the academy.

In truth, most people had neither Jing's father's courage to enlist nor the ability to make money. They could only send their children to private schools, then have them follow in their parents' footsteps, generation after generation.

Every so often, a genius appeared in the family, or someone had an extraordinary stroke of fortune, and only then could they break the cycle.

That was reality.

Jing Yue's mother continued, "A few years ago, we finally started getting ahead. Your Uncle Jing retired from the military, learned to cook, and we slowly worked our way up from a roadside stall to the Jing Family Restaurant we have today."

Hearing this, Lu Mingyuan remembered the scene from his childhood: Aunt Jing selling tofu on the street while looking after the two little girls, Jing Zhi and Jing Yue.

The two girls had started working to make a living at a very young age.

"But your Uncle Jing and I have always had one regret: we didn't send the sisters to the academy. We held them back for their whole lives."

"Thankfully, Mingyuan, you taught the girls well. Zhi can teach now."

As she said this, Jing Yue's mother looked at Lu Mingyuan with deep gratitude.

She had never imagined that Lu Mingyuan, so young at the time, could teach her two girls so well. Now one had learned to teach, and the other had even finished her studies early.

Lu Mingyuan smiled and waved it off, saying that the two of them had simply been good students.

Truthfully, he hadn't expected his sporadic teaching—three days fishing, two days drying nets—to be enough to teach them both.

Was he actually a "master teacher"?

"I remember that two years ago, when the family was a little better off, your Uncle Jing wanted to send Zhi to the academy for a couple of years. It was already late, and she probably couldn't learn very much, but even learning a little would have been worthwhile.

"But Zhi refused outright.

"She said she wanted to save the money as her dowry and leave it for you to use in creating divine abilities."

Hearing this, Lu Mingyuan looked at Jing Zhi beside him in disbelief. How could this girl be so foolish?

If he were in her shoes, he certainly wouldn't have chosen that. He would have gone to the academy, even if he couldn't keep up with everyone else. Every little bit of extra learning would help. He'd have to take a chance.

What if it worked out?

He wouldn't place his future in someone else's hands, even if that person was his future partner.

Not even then.

"Zhi, why have you never told me any of this?"

At Lu Mingyuan's pressing question, Jing Zhi first smiled as if it didn't matter. Then she gazed steadily at him with tender affection. "I didn't think it would make a difference whether I told you. I trust you, anyway."

This girl... Who had she learned that from? It was almost too much to bear.

And he'd wondered why she'd given him a dowry as soon as they got engaged. Wasn't she worried he'd take the money and run?

So it had all been Jing Zhi's idea. Her love really was deep and true!

At that thought, Lu Mingyuan shook his head inwardly. It seemed he'd be wrapped around her little finger for the rest of his life. Good thing he had no intention of cheating on her. Otherwise, the guilt would have been overwhelming by now.

"Don't worry. I won't let you down."

Then he turned to Jing Yue's mother and spoke with firm conviction. "Please rest assured, Auntie. I'll treat Zhi well from now on. I'll never let her down. You don't need to worry."

Lu Mingyuan understood why Jing Yue's aunt had brought this up today. She was afraid he might abandon Jing Zhi after getting what he wanted—or stop cherishing her once he'd obtained Qi Luck Points.

Of course, Lu Mingyuan had no such intention. He wasn't that kind of person.

But to put her mind at ease, he could only promise her.

Sure enough, with that barrier gone, the atmosphere grew much warmer. Or, rather, it finally felt like they were a family.

"What are you all talking about? You seem so happy."

The group was chatting merrily in the living room when Jing Yue suddenly bounced in.

The little girl skipped as she walked, her two braids swinging back and forth. She was absolutely adorable.

When she saw who was in the living room, she beamed. "Mingyuan-gege, you're here! And you brought me snacks."

She didn't stand on ceremony, grabbing a sand pear and crunching into it.

Seeing this, Jing Yue's mother put on a stern face. "You little girl, all you do is eat, eat, eat. Have you finished your homework?"

"Finished!"

Jing Yue managed a muffled reply between bites, then continued with her eating.

Perhaps, in her eyes, nothing mattered more than filling her stomach. Everything else could wait.

Jing Yue's mother was at a loss with the girl. Thankfully, they were among family; otherwise, she wouldn't have let her get away with such a fuss.

Lu Mingyuan didn't think much of Jing Yue's behavior. She acted the same way around him.

But that was what made her seem so genuine and endearing, wasn't it?

Remembering Jing Yue's mother asking about her homework, Lu Mingyuan asked, "Yue, were you solving problems in the illusion just now?"

"Mm-hmm!"

Glad that someone had finally stopped scolding her, Jing Yue bobbed her head vigorously. Then she complained, "Mingyuan-ge, you have no idea. When I came out just now, my head was spinning."

"Your head was spinning?"

Hearing that, Lu Mingyuan wondered: Had she run out of oxygen?

"Yeah, and for the past few nights, I've been dreaming that I'm solving problems. It's terrifying.

"Honestly, whenever I hear the words 'Suppose there's an animal...' I feel like throwing up."

"Is it really that bad?"

The others in the living room stared in amazement. That couldn't be right, could it?

Lu Mingyuan didn't think Jing Yue was lying. In his previous life, he'd heard of people getting sick of doing practice problems. If you kept doing the same kind of problem over and over, of course you'd feel sick.

Without the fact that solving problems increased Talent Qi, it would be hard for anyone to keep it up.

"Yue, how long do you spend in the illusion each day?"

"An hour, about ten minutes at a time, split into six sessions."

"An hour? So that's ten hours of illusion time? That seems normal enough."

Lu Mingyuan closed his eyes and thought for a moment before speaking. "How about I talk to Uncle Jing and ask him to let you rest for a few days? I hear this divine ability only takes effect for a month or two, so you really don't need to rush."

"Really?"

Hearing she might get a few days off, Jing Yue widened her eyes and gazed at Lu Mingyuan hopefully. Was her brother-in-law really going to rescue her from this sea of suffering?

She'd complained to her father several times, but it hadn't helped. But if her brother-in-law asked, her father would definitely listen.

So she had to make sure. Was her brother-in-law serious?

"Of course. You're only sixteen, still a minor, and still growing. You can't overwork your brain, or it could cause problems.

"How about we cut your study time in half from now on?"

In Lu Mingyuan's view, studying at full tilt for two or three hours a day was already plenty.

He remembered that in middle and high school in his previous life, he'd studied around ten hours a day. But after taking out breaks and time spent daydreaming, he'd only really spent two or three hours studying.

So he thought two or three hours was reasonable.

But Jing's father clearly wouldn't agree to that little, so Lu Mingyuan stretched the time a bit—at most five hours, no more.

Meanwhile, Jing Yue's mother hurriedly asked, "Mingyuan, can overusing the brain really damage it?"

For Jing Yue's mother, neither studying nor increasing one's strength was as important as her child's health.

Lu Mingyuan nodded seriously.

"It's true! And you shouldn't study at full intensity for too long at a time. Half an hour to an hour is enough."

He'd tried it himself. Once, he'd spent nearly two hours thinking as hard as he could in the illusion. When he came out, his vision went black and he nearly passed out.

So although he wasn't sure whether brain science still applied in this world, the brain really couldn't be overworked for too long. It needed time to rest.

Jing Yue's mother thought for a moment. "I see. I'll tell your Uncle Jing in a bit. I'll have him cut down this girl's study time so our little Yue doesn't get worn out."

"Really?"

As soon as Jing Yue's mother finished speaking, the girl happily bounded over to her. Then she leaned in and kissed her mother on the cheek. "Thank you, Mother. You're the best."

"And thank you, Mingyuan-gege."

Around a quarter past noon, Jing's father returned. Lu Mingyuan took the five thousand Earth Luck Points and headed home with Jing Zhi.

He had plenty to keep him busy now.

After finishing this divine ability, he still had to figure out how to promote it and join the Agricultural School. Then there was the matter of Anonymous, which also needed to be dealt with.

As for Jing Zhi, she still had to teach her students.

When the two of them had gone out that day, they'd asked a sister-in-law next door to watch the students for them. But they were still worried, so they hurried back, not even staying to eat the meal their mother-in-law had offered.

After they returned, Jing Zhi went straight to teach, while Lu Mingyuan sat in the rattan chair in the courtyard and rested with his eyes closed.

Inside the Soul Space, the bright yellow orb appeared again, much larger than it had been at first.

This was the five thousand Earth Luck Points.

But when it came time to form the divine ability, Lu Mingyuan didn't intend to use them. He wouldn't use his pitifully small amount of Human Luck, either.

He couldn't bear to spend his Human Luck.

As for the Earth Luck, he'd save it for now. He might need it someday. But when he did use it, he'd have to be careful not to reveal it.

A moment later, Lu Mingyuan transferred seven thousand Qi Luck Points from his Heavenly Dao Virtual Network balance into the Divine Ability Stone. Before long, the divine ability had fully formed.

At that moment, another divine ability appeared beside his translucent phantom, similar in form to the first.

The difference was that the surface of the new divine ability's phantom kept flashing with all kinds of tools.

There were plows, hoes, a ? hoe, shovels, sickles...

Anyone who saw this would know it was a genuine Agricultural School divine ability.

And it couldn't possibly be any more authentic.