Beautiful Dean

Inside a restaurant in Shuiyun City.

A woman was enjoying a meal with two exceptionally adorable, older girls.

The woman appeared to be no more than twenty-seven or twenty-eight, with a tall, lithe figure and a dignified, graceful demeanor. Her blue hair drifted behind her, her starry eyes were a deep azure, and her skin was like jade; every expression and gesture revealed an indescribable charm. She was like a peony in full bloom—beautiful without being seductive, gorgeous without being vulgar.

This woman was none other than the most outstanding Dean since the founding of Skywater Academy, Shui Xinhan, and the two adorable girls beside her were naturally her disciples, Shui Bing'er and Shui Yue'er.

"Bing'er, Yue'er, eat a bit more. It's a rare holiday today, so Teacher will take you out for a proper tour later."

"Teacher," Shui Yue'er muttered, "can't we have one more day of rest every month?"

"Yue'er!" Shui Bing'er was clearly more mature than her younger sister. "The grueling daily training is for our future. Only by possessing greater strength can we live up to Teacher's efforts and protect Skywater Academy."

"Sigh!" Shui Xinhan sighed. "Yue'er, everyone is playful when they are young, and Teacher is no exception. But what Teacher wants to tell you today is that if you are playful now, you will regret it sooner or later."

"Teacher can indeed shelter you as you grow now, and even provide you with the most comfortable life, but if one day Teacher is no longer here, what will happen to you? What will happen to Skywater Academy?"

Eleven-year-old Shui Yue'er looked thoughtful, a contemplative expression appearing on her face.

Just then, a woman in blue rushed upstairs and handed a note to Shui Xinhan.

"Dean, Director Shui has an urgent matter to report."

The woman was not a Spirit Master. In fact, while the Douluo Continent had hundreds of millions of people, there were fewer than one hundred thousand Spirit Masters. Skywater Academy had only a few hundred, and relying solely on Spirit Masters to keep the massive Skywater system running was undoubtedly a pipe dream.

In reality, Skywater Academy had a total of only eight hundred-odd Spirit Masters, and that was counting all of the academy's industries; the actual number of students enrolled was only four or five hundred.

While Skywater had only eight hundred-odd Spirit Masters, there were over twenty thousand commoners attached to them.

These twenty thousand-plus commoners were primarily distributed across three areas, the first being the Skywater Chamber of Commerce.

The Skywater Chamber of Commerce was massive in scale with frequent trade, so the demand for manpower was naturally enormous.

The second area was within Skywater Academy itself. Although there were only four or five hundred Spirit Masters enrolled, a large number of commoners were required to serve them.

Guarding the gates, sweeping floors, cooking, gardening, cleaning latrines, maintaining academy security, and tending to the simulated cultivation grounds—each of these tasks required a certain amount of manpower.

Beyond these two areas, there was the intelligence agency under Skywater's jurisdiction, the Blue Clothes Society. To build this intelligence system, Shui Xinhan had spent vast sums of money and invested over a decade of time before it finally reached fruition.

In addition to these three, Shui Xinhan also held a quasi-military organization in her hands—the Skywater Guard Regiment.

Although the Skywater Guard Regiment was nominally a quasi-military organization, this three-thousand-strong force was armed to the teeth, possessing every variety of fine armor, crossbows, and warhorses.

Shui Xinhan held the economic lifeline of the Shuiyun City region in one hand and absolute military superiority in the other. Coupled with the support of the people, by whom she was deeply loved, Shuiyun City had almost become a state within a state.

When Shui Xinhan carried out a series of reforms in the past, she had encountered great dissatisfaction from the Heaven Dou Empire, but in the end, the Heaven Dou Empire could do nothing to her. On one hand, Shui Xinhan was powerful in her own right, with many experts under her command.

On the other hand, Shui Xinhan's mastery of political maneuvering was superb. Whenever the nobles of the Heaven Dou Empire attempted to impose various sanctions, Shui Xinhan would directly flirt with Martial Soul Hall and the Star Luo Empire. Emperor Xue Ye of Heaven Dou would be furious for days, but in the end, he dared not take action.

Of course, Shui Xinhan also gave the Heaven Dou Empire a way to save face. Although Shuiyun City functioned as a state within a state, Shui Xinhan still allowed the Heaven Dou Empire to collect the annual taxes that were due. However, whenever the Heaven Dou Empire wanted to increase taxes, the commoners of Shuiyun City, with Shui Xinhan as their backer, would never submit.

Shui Xinhan looked at the note in her hand, a trace of gravity appearing in her beautiful eyes.

"Bing'er, Yue'er, Teacher has an urgent matter today, so I cannot accompany you on your tour. Bing'er, you are already twelve and a little adult; you must take care of your sister. Remember, do not leave the city."

"Yue'er, when Teacher is away, you must listen to your sister. Do not be playful, and certainly do not leave the city. The city is our own territory and is very safe. In fact, given the strength of you and your sister, you should have gone out to train on your own long ago, but you are still too young and are girls after all. Without Teacher by your side to handle unknown threats, I simply cannot rest easy."

"Don't worry, Teacher, I will take good care of my sister."

Shui Xinhan stroked Shui Bing'er's small head and said with gratification, "Bing'er, although your body lacked nutrition from a young age and your spirit awakening was late, your talent is greater than Teacher's. Skywater Academy will not reach its peak under my hands; Teacher looks forward to the moment you grow up."

Shui Bing'er said firmly, "Teacher, rest assured, Bing'er will certainly not let you down."