Yunxiangyi

"Why is there nothing that fits! This is discrimination! Discrimination, blatant! Naked! Discrimination!"

The commotion interrupted Zheng Qing's thoughts.

He turned around and saw the fat man who had just squeezed into the shop waving his thick, stubby arms and shouting himself hoarse. "I want to file a complaint! I want to complain to the Four Seasons Market Management Committee! I want to report this to the Public Security Bureau!"

"But even the largest Yun Mu in the shop can't take your full measurements." The old woman helplessly puffed out a string of enormous regular-script characters. "I'm truly sorry, customer."

Looking at the fat man before him, with three chins, a bald head as smooth as an ostrich egg, and a body like a small mountain, Zheng Qing could not help snickering.

Two sword-like gazes stabbed viciously toward him. "What are you laughing at!"

Zheng Qing flushed red, at a loss.

"Did they say you were a publicly funded student just now?" The fat man jutted out his belly and lumbered over to Zheng Qing, looking down at him from above.

At least two meters tall, Zheng Qing estimated inwardly. Clouds from the shop drifted over in twos and threes.

"A publicly funded student from First University?" the fat man pressed.

Zheng Qing nodded and took a small sip of Green Bee.

The drink suited its name well. It was jade-green in color and icy upon entering the mouth, with a sting like a bee's barb. Yet when it slid into his stomach, it became pleasantly warm and comfortable.

It tasted like a very mild liquor.

"So publicly funded students can look down on people! They can laugh at others?!" The fat man's cries of grievance shook the heavens.

Zheng Qing carefully took a step back. He felt as though his ears were about to be deafened.

"So publicly funded students have the privilege of eating in shops?" The fat man strained to open his small eyes wide and glared at Zheng Qing.

Zheng Qing had a mouthful of Green Bee in his mouth. Hearing that, he suddenly did not know whether to swallow it or spit it out.

The bee-sting burn fermented in his mouth, making his eyes redden slightly.

"Draw your spellbook and let your incantations wash away my humiliation!" The fat man struck a pose and declaimed as if singing. From his greasy satchel, he pulled out an earth-yellow, thick, bulging softcover book and shook it with a rustle. Strange murmurs and flickering light seeped faintly from its pages, carrying a hint of danger.

"What's a spellbook!" Zheng Qing hurriedly swallowed that mouthful of Green Bee and cried, "What is a spellbook for!"

The fat man's three chins trembled for a long while. His pair of small eyes on his fat face nearly squeezed into slits, and his throat made wheezing sounds, but he could not utter a word for a long time.

Zheng Qing held his Green Bee, looking utterly bewildered.

In the end, the softcover book was stuffed back into the satchel.

Zheng Qing let out a long breath inwardly and drained the remaining half cup of Green Bee in one go.

The intense stimulation made him blink hard.

"I'll come again later. I hope there will be cloud garments that fit by then. Otherwise, I will definitely complain to the school and to Four Seasons Market!" The fat man turned around and indignantly voiced his dissatisfaction to the Yun Mu beside him.

Several dark clouds politely escorted him out.

"Kids these days are getting more and more rude." A snow-white cloud drifted before Zheng Qing, forming Yun Mu's sorrowful face. It blew out a ring of air, then puffed out a string of words. "Outrageous! More and more outrageous! Their manners are outrageous, and their figures are even more outrageous... Young man, here are your school robes."

A large shopping bag was handed to Zheng Qing. He opened it and counted the contents: his two academy robes, one cloak, and seven pairs of Deerskin Gloves.

"Thank you for the drink. Sorry for the trouble." He returned the cup, took the bag of clothes, and gave Yun Mu a bright smile.

"Please come again." Yun Mu cheerfully saw him out of the shop.

On the street, Thomas was holding two cups of jade-green drinks and greeting him.

"I just had this in the shop." Zheng Qing took the cup and again sipped the pale-green liquid. Savoring the stimulating taste of Green Bee, he could not help asking, "Why do I feel like Yunxiangyi gives publicly funded students special treatment?"

"It's not a feeling. It's a fact." Thomas flipped through the bag Zheng Qing had brought out, took a sip of Green Bee himself, smacked his lips, and said, "Being a publicly funded student means you have immense potential—enough that the school is willing to train you for free. The merchants of Four Seasons Market also like to add flowers to the brocade, giving you some low-cost perks... This is your toolbox."

As he spoke, he handed Zheng Qing a yellow wooden box two feet long and one foot high.

"Thank you." Zheng Qing nodded, took the box, and continued, "I've been wanting to ask: why do those school robes use such unusual materials?"

"School robes woven from Cold Silkworm Silk help you keep a clear mind in daily life. A clear mind is the most important thing when doing experiments. As for the gloves, they mainly protect against toxic and harmful substances encountered in experiments. Your Deerskin Gloves will be enough for university use. Of course, Dragon Hide is better. It also insulates against heat and can be used in some high-level experiments, but it's rather expensive. If you encounter that kind of experiment, you can apply for the school's communal gloves."

"What is an evil dragon?" Zheng Qing opened the box, lowered his head to flip through its contents, and asked casually.

"Western dragons, the Zhuogen clan—the winged lizard-like kind... They're different from Eastern flood dragons. You should know this."

"Why are there things like electronic scales in here? I mean, are we also going to learn how to repair machinery?" Zheng Qing, still crouching, raised his head and held up something that looked like a screwdriver, looking at Thomas in confusion.

"Technology is also a kind of ability. Many wizards are great scientists." Thomas's answer was concise.

"Then I won't have to worry about not finding work after graduation." Zheng Qing finally felt a little more at ease. He put away the box and said excitedly, "I always thought it would be hard for wizards to find suitable jobs."

"What is a wizard?" Thomas asked in return.

That was quite a big question.

"You said before that cultivators, priests, psychics, even Vampires and Werewolves, all counted as wizards." Zheng Qing frowned, thought carefully, and slowly answered, "Just as astronomers, geographers, chemists, and mathematicians all count as scientists."

"If scientists are people who discover problems and then use logic and knowledge to solve them, then wizards should be people who discover problems and then use supernatural abilities to solve them."

"A bit narrow-minded, but the analogy is fairly apt." Thomas nodded approvingly. "Like you said, if wizards can solve problems, would you still worry about not finding suitable work?"

Zheng Qing was speechless.

The shops in Four Seasons Market were all built around enormous stone pillars. The shops beneath each pillar dealt in similar kinds of business.

There were two other clothing shops beside Yunxiangyi.

One was called Luxi Fang, and the other was called Fudi Chui.

Beneath another stone pillar not far from this one was a stationery shop. The sign above its entrance bore four large characters: Bimo Shenghan.

There was a bookstore on each side of the stationery shop.

The one on the left was called Sanwei Bookstore.

The one on the right was Sanyou Bookstore.