Early morning.
When Tang San pushed open his door, his eyes still held a faint, sore redness.
He had risen early, combed his hair neatly, and restitched the hidden weapon pouch at his cuff.
He was ready to greet the new day at his very best.
Xiao Wu was already hopping down the corridor with a tap-tap-tap, half a sesame flatbread from who knew where stuffed into her mouth.
"Little San, hurry, hurry! We're signing up at the academy today!"
Tang San answered with narrowed eyes, "I know, Xiao Wu. Slow down. Don't disturb Teacher."
"He gets up earlier than anyone. If anyone's disturbing anyone, it's him disturbing us."
Listening to the girls stirring upstairs, Li Hanqiu's lips curved slightly. He stood at the inn's entrance, feeding dried meat to Holy Light Ao.
As the Golden-Scaled Dragon Beast chewed, a muffled rumble like thunder rolled through its throat.
Holy Light Ao had a frightening appetite. Even its basic daily meat requirements cost a considerable sum.
So most of the time, Li Hanqiu took a "free-range" approach to Holy Light Ao.
That meant tossing Holy Light Ao into the Star Dou Great Forest to enjoy a buffet alone.
Otherwise, the money needed to fill this glutton's belly would probably devour half Li Hanqiu's fortune.
After feeding it, Li Hanqiu led Tang San and Xiao Wu out of Suotuo City's south gate and followed the dirt road for several miles.
In the distance, they saw a ring of fencing and a few brick houses forming a crudely built little village.
It was still early, and the lingering mist draped the village in a gray haze.
Xiao Wu lifted her little face and cupped both hands into tubes around her eyes, pretending they were a telescope.
At the same time, the girl rose lightly onto her toes to look at the distant village, her voice carrying innocent amazement:
"Wow, Teacher, that village is so shabby and ugly! Compared to Little San's Holy Soul Village, one's up in heaven and the other's down in the dirt."
Holding Xiao Wu's hand, Tang San smiled with crinkled eyes. "Xiao Wu, you shouldn't be so rude. Good or bad, every village was built through its people's hard work."
"Oh." Xiao Wu pouted and stuck out her tongue helplessly. "Fine, fine, Little San, everything you say is right. I'll stop, okay?"
"Anyway, Teacher, aren't we at that 'Shit-something-rek Academy' yet? My feet are sore from walking. Will you rub them for me later?"
Seeing that Tang San wouldn't play with her, Xiao Wu turned to "pester" Li Hanqiu instead.
Without looking back, Li Hanqiu reached over and flicked her forehead irritably. "Rub them yourself. If you really can't, ask Little San to help."
"Aww-" Xiao Wu's face fell, looking thoroughly unhappy.
Tang San covered his mouth and chuckled beside them. Li Hanqiu's reflection filled his eyes, his expression gradually growing entranced.
Walking at the front, Li Hanqiu pointed toward the approaching village. "We're almost at Shrek Academy."
Xiao Wu's "delicate body trembled." She followed Li Hanqiu's pointing finger, then looked back at the shabby little village before them.
Surprise filled her face. Her lips parted as she murmured in disbelief, "No way. Is this really our school? Why is it so run-down?"
Tang San also frowned in confusion, wondering whether they had come to the wrong place.
There was no other reason. The academy's entrance was simply even shabbier than they had imagined.
A sign nailed together from wooden posts hung crookedly over the doorframe, and the lettering above the entrance had peeling paint.
The three characters for "Shrek" were missing strokes and chunks. Beneath the threshold grew a clump of weeds half a person tall.
Looking closely, they could make out someone standing at the entrance.
The man appeared to be around forty, tall and thin, with glossy black hair and round-framed glasses.
By rights, someone dressed like that ought to have the air of a professor or teacher, or at least a refined scholar.
Yet somehow, everything about this man radiated the aura of a crooked merchant "full of schemes, itching to calculate every Gold Soul Coin in your pocket, right down to the last copper."
The crooked merchant-no, the man's lenses reflected the morning light, hiding his eyes.
The smile lines on his face were dark and deep as gullies. Spotting Li Hanqiu's group, he spread his arms from afar and strode toward them.
"Teacher Li! I've long admired your reputation! I'm Flender, dean of Shrek Academy. I've been waiting and hoping for your arrival for ages!"
Flender smiled until his eyes narrowed into slits.
"Xiao Gang told me about you long ago. For someone of your talent to come to Shrek truly... brings splendor to our humble walls!"
Although Flender spoke cordially, even with a hint of flattery,
Li Hanqiu could sense something wrong with his gaze as he spoke.
His eyes kept darting slyly about,
sliding from Li Hanqiu's face to Tang San, then to Xiao Wu, brimming with appreciation. But whenever they returned to Li Hanqiu, they grew persistently sinister.
"You're too kind, Dean." Li Hanqiu nodded, pretending he had noticed nothing.
Yu Xiaogang emerged from the gatehouse, still wearing his grease-shiny gray robe. He stood behind Flender with a dry, accompanying smile.
"Teacher Li, we meet again."
Li Hanqiu gave a slight nod in greeting. Then his gaze returned to Flender's face, and he smiled.
"Dean Flender, I've brought my two unworthy disciples to register. We hope to join Shrek Academy," he said.
"Of course, of course." Flender rubbed his hands together, his smile deepening. "But Teacher Li, let me put the unpleasant part first. Shrek has always maintained strict admission standards. We don't accept mediocrities, only monsters!
"Students must pass an assessment to join. Of course, for your accomplished disciples, passing will be no trouble. We're merely going through the motions."
"As we should."
"There's also the registration fee." Flender raised two fingers. "Just two hundred Gold Soul Coins per person."
Xiao Wu stiffened her neck at that. "Two hundred? Old man, has poverty driven you crazy?"
Flender kept smiling. "Young lady, don't get impatient.
"Our academy's teachers have all rolled through mountains of blades and seas of fire. Honestly, we're charging too little."
Yu Xiaogang hurried to chime in, stepping forward. "Exactly, exactly. Besides, Teacher Li is a man of considerable means. Surely a mere two hundred Gold Soul Coins is beneath his notice?"
A veiled look flickered constantly in Yu Xiaogang's eyes. His words both flattered and jabbed.
Tang San raised his head and swept Yu Xiaogang with a cold glance. Xiao Wu had already rolled up her sleeves, scraping her shoe against the ground as though she might charge forward and bite someone the next instant.
Flender remained all smiles, though his expression seemed to have cooled slightly.
Just then, Li Hanqiu raised a hand and pressed down on Xiao Wu's shoulder.
He looked at Flender, his tone level. "Don't worry, Dean. I understand the rules."
"Then would you please pay the fee first, Teacher Li?" Flender extended his hand with a beaming smile.
Li Hanqiu didn't move. He neither paid nor struck out, instead changing the subject:
"No rush, Dean. Do you remember what my appointment letter said?"
Flender froze. "The appointment letter... what did it..."
"A monthly salary of five thousand Gold Soul Coins," Li Hanqiu recited leisurely. "Twenty jin each of mystic iron and adamantine every month, five jin of star sand, and three sets of superior mother-and-child iron."
He paused, his gaze settling on Flender's still-outstretched hand.
"If you think I'm worth that price, Dean, then a mere two hundred Gold Soul Coins is naturally no problem."
The smile on Flender's face stiffened for an instant, and his eyes narrowed swiftly behind his lenses.
"What do you mean by that, Teacher Li?"
"Nothing in particular." Li Hanqiu smiled.
"There's one principle I believe in above all: first come, first served; settle first, pay afterward. Settle this month's salary first, Dean, and I'll pay the registration fee in full on the spot. Fair dealing for young and old alike."
"Exactly!" Xiao Wu perked up. "Pay first! Give Teacher his money, and then I'll give you yours!"
Flender choked. What the fuck kind of logic is that? I give you money first, and then you take a tiny portion of it to give back to me?
How could he, Flender, possibly agree to such a losing deal? From the beginning, he had never intended to pay Li Hanqiu the salary listed in his appointment letter.
And hadn't that letter said five hundred Gold Soul Coins? When had it become five thousand, with a heap of mystic iron and other metals thrown in?!
Flender cast an almost imperceptible glance at Yu Xiaogang and saw his awkward smile.
He instantly knew Yu Xiaogang was behind it, leaving him torn between laughter and fury.
Beside him, Yu Xiaogang was also losing face.
How could he bring himself to let Flender know he had promised Li Hanqiu five thousand Gold Soul Coins? Five thousand nearly matched Shrek's entire annual expenses.
"Well... well..."
Flender coughed dryly twice and withdrew his hand. "Naturally, we won't shortchange you on your salary, Teacher Li, but it will be paid at the end of the month.
"The academy has its own difficulties. Since you've only just arrived, surely we should give each other a transition period."
"A transition period?" Li Hanqiu raised an eyebrow. "You wouldn't be planning to collect my registration fee first, then use the academy's difficulties to delay my salary until it falls through, would you?"
"Of course not!"
"Good, then." Li Hanqiu extended a hand in an inviting gesture. "We'll do as you say, Dean, and take the assessment first. Once they pass, just deduct the registration fees directly from my salary. How does that sound?"
At last, Flender could no longer maintain his smile.
The corners of his mouth twitched twice, but in the end he didn't erupt. Instead, he stepped aside to clear the way.
Giving Flender an owl martial soul was truly a waste. With endurance like his, he deserved a damned turtle. He really could swallow anything.
"Teacher Li, please."
No sooner had he spoken than he suddenly put that smiling face back on, his voice light:
"The assessment grounds are out back. Teacher Zhao, the examiner, is already waiting. Since you're new here, Teacher Li, this is just a formality. No need to take it too seriously."
"We're all colleagues. After the assessment, you and Teacher Zhao can have a nice little 'exchange' to strengthen your relationship."
Flender adjusted his round-framed glasses, which gleamed with a cold white light, placing particular emphasis on "exchange."
Li Hanqiu's expression remained composed, without the slightest trace of fear. He slowly turned to look at Flender, his voice utterly calm:
"Sure."
Before you continue