The System's Velvet Glove

"The potions still haven't been handed out."

Wang Shuo set his tray on the table, keeping his voice down. The cafeteria was noisy, but the work-study students' corner was quiet.

Lu Yuan picked up a piece of hard-boiled potato. "Mm."

"In previous years, they always handed them out on the third. It's already the fifth today." Wang Shuo leaned closer. "I asked Old Liu, who runs the storeroom. He said the higher-ups hadn't approved it. Who approves it? Deacon Zhao, of course. Director Ning transferred him over just last month, and now he's in charge of all the work-study students' miscellaneous affairs."

Lu Yuan chewed his potato without a word.

Over by the serving window, Zhao Shi was talking to a few regular students, his hands behind his back and a smile on his face that said he was ready to be of service at any moment.

"Wait a little longer," Lu Yuan said.

"Wait for what?" Wang Shuo burst out. "No matter how trashy that stuff is, it's still free! We're counting on it to replenish our Soul Power!"

Lu Yuan had already risen and picked up his tray.

"Hey, where are you going?"

"The library."

Wang Shuo stared at him, then let out a heavy sigh.

Lu Yuan didn't go to the library.

He turned toward the old storerooms in the northwest corner and knocked on the half-closed door of the Work-Study Student Affairs Office.

"Come in."

Zhao Shi sat behind an old desk by the window, holding a stack of receipts. He looked up, and a smile immediately appeared on his face when he saw Lu Yuan.

"Oh, Lu Yuan. What can I do for you?"

"Deacon, when can we collect this month's Soul Power recovery potions?"

"The potions..." Zhao Shi opened a drawer and took his time pulling out a register. "No rush. Let me check."

His fingertip slid across the pages.

"Mm, we're taking inventory, so the process is a little slow." He looked up, his smile unchanged. "Wait a little longer, all right? They'll definitely be handed out by next week at the latest."

"In previous years, they were handed out on the third."

"That was in previous years." Zhao Shi's smile deepened, touched with helplessness. "The academy is so big; it's only natural for procedures to get held up now and then. Don't you agree?"

At that point, pressing further would have been tactless.

Lu Yuan nodded. "All right."

He turned to leave.

"Wait." Zhao Shi called him back, pulled a form from the desk and handed it over. "I looked at the request you submitted last month for experimental materials. Some of the materials... need a little more review. Under the regulations, when work-study students request materials, they need their instructor's signature, the office has to keep a record, and the 'necessity' has to be assessed. Teacher Zhou did sign it, but this 'necessity' section..."

He paused, his smile unchanged.

"Needs a little more consideration."

Lu Yuan took the form. In the "review comments" section, the words "further review required" were scrawled in red ink, followed by Zhao Shi's signature.

"How long will that take?"

"Hard to say. It depends on the process." Zhao Shi waved a hand. "Take it back with you for now and wait to be notified."

Lu Yuan said nothing more. He took the form and left.

The door closed behind him with a click.

He stood in the corridor, glanced at the glaring red words on the paper, then folded it and tucked it into his robes.

Trouble was like a fine rain: not heavy, but endless.

First, his work-study assignment was changed. He had been organizing old bookshelves in the library, a quiet job that let him browse the books along the way. Now he was clearing rubble from the abandoned training ground on the back mountain-pure manual labor, hauling stones from morning to night. Blisters soon formed on his hands.

Wang Shuo was hopping mad.

"How is this fair?" He stood beside the pile of rubble, fists clenched. "I went and asked, and Deacon Zhao said, 'Assignments are rotated and distributed fairly'! Fair, my ass!"

He pointed at a few regular students in the shade of a distant tree. They were laughing and chatting, books spread out before them and pens in hand, as if recording something. That was the practical assignment "recording the Soul Power perception environment"-easy work that even counted toward their credits.

Lu Yuan said nothing. He bent down, lifted a stone half his height, and carried it to the handcart. The stone was rough, its sharp edges digging into his arms.

Sweat ran down his temples.

Wang Shuo gritted his teeth and bent down to move stones too. The two worked in silence all morning until the cart was full. They had to cross most of the academy to pull it to the waste yard, and several groups of students they passed along the way looked at them with contempt.

Neither of them spoke.

Back at the training ground, Wang Shuo slumped beside the stone pile, panting. "The potions still haven't been handed out, the materials haven't been approved, and now even our work's been changed to the most exhausting kind... Lu Yuan, they're doing this on purpose!"

Lu Yuan unscrewed his waterskin and took a sip. The water was cold.

"I know," he said.

"You know, and you still..."

"Would getting worked up help?"

Wang Shuo was at a loss for words.

Lu Yuan stood and dusted off his hands. "We'll continue this afternoon."

Wang Shuo looked at his calm profile and suddenly felt a little chill. That wasn't resignation; it was something else, something heavier.

That night, snores rose all around the dormitory.

Lu Yuan lit the old Soul Guidance Lamp by his bed. Its light was dim and yellow. He pulled a slim booklet from his robes, its dark blue cover stamped with gold lettering: "Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy Work-Study Student Management Regulations (revised edition)."

Everyone had been given a copy upon enrolling, and the vast majority of work-study students had tossed theirs aside after a couple of pages. It was too thick, and the print was too dense.

Lu Yuan turned through it page by page.

His finger slid across the paper, occasionally stopping to scratch a faint mark between the lines with his nail.

The regulations comprised eight chapters and forty-two articles, with six supplementary provisions. He read exceedingly slowly, chewing on each word. Some provisions were vaguely worded, leaving room for interpretation; others were crystal clear, nailing down the responsible party and the time limit.

He paused for a long time when he reached chapter three, article seven.

It concerned the allocation of basic cultivation resources to work-study students. One clause read: "Monthly basic Soul Power recovery potions shall be distributed to individuals within the first three working days of the month. In the event of force majeure or an academy-wide procedural adjustment, the distributing unit must notify affected students in writing within two working days and specify a deadline for the delayed distribution."

He tapped that line with his fingertip.

Then he turned farther ahead.

Chapter five dealt with task assignments. Article fourteen read: "Daily assignments for work-study students shall be rotated according to the principle of 'making the best use of each person's abilities and putting studies first,' with due consideration given to students' strengths, academic workload, and the nature of the tasks. Assigning the same student tasks involving pure manual labor and little technical skill twice in succession requires a joint assessment by the affairs deacon and the student's instructor to confirm its necessity."

Lu Yuan closed the booklet.

The lampwick crackled.

He tucked the booklet back under his pillow and blew out the lamp.

Three days later, the potions still hadn't been handed out.

Wang Shuo went to ask again, and Zhao Shi gave him the same answer: "The process is slow. Wait a little longer." His smile was immaculate.

Lu Yuan didn't go back to ask.

He rose early as usual and went to the back mountain to move stones. The blisters on his hands had burst and hardened into calluses. Wang Shuo cursed and grumbled, but worked alongside him. The two pulled the cart back and forth without speaking.

On the afternoon of the fourth day, they finally finished clearing the rubble. Zhao Shi came to inspect their work, hands behind his back. He walked around the training ground once and nodded.

"Good work," he said. "Starting tomorrow, you're to clear the drainage ditch behind those old dormitories in the eastern district. It's been blocked for nearly half a year, and the smell's a bit strong. Wear masks."

Wang Shuo's face turned green.

The drainage ditch! That was the filthiest, stinkiest job in the whole academy! In the past, only students who had done something wrong were sent to do it as punishment!

He opened his mouth to speak, but Lu Yuan tugged him back.

"Deacon," Lu Yuan said, his voice steady.

Zhao Shi looked at him with a smile. "Yes?"

"I wanted to ask," Lu Yuan said, "under the regulations, the work-study students' monthly basic Soul Power recovery potions should be distributed within the first three working days of the month. They're already seven days overdue."

Zhao Shi's smile didn't change. "Oh, that. Didn't I tell you? The process..."

"Chapter three, article seven of the regulations," Lu Yuan interrupted, speaking at an even pace. "It states that in the event of a procedural adjustment, the distributing unit must notify students in writing within two working days and specify a deadline for the delayed distribution."

He paused.

"I haven't received any written notice. Deacon, did I miss it, or did the office forget to send it?"

The smile on Zhao Shi's face stiffened almost imperceptibly.

But only for an instant. He quickly returned to normal, his tone even gentler than before. "Oh dear, look at my memory. I've been so busy I lost my head. I should have sent a notice. My oversight, my oversight."

He rubbed his hands together.

"How about this? I'll make up a notice as soon as I get back and give it to you first thing tomorrow morning. As for the potions... this Friday at the latest. They'll definitely be handed out on Friday!"

The words sounded good.

Lu Yuan nodded, but didn't leave. He asked again, "And what about the experimental materials request? Chapter four, article nine of the regulations states that when a work-study student requests basic experimental materials, the office must complete an initial assessment of their necessity and provide feedback within three working days of the instructor signing. It's been twelve days since I submitted mine."

This time, the curve of Zhao Shi's lips grew a little tight.

He stared at Lu Yuan.

Lu Yuan met his gaze, his eyes as calm as a deep pool.

"And the task assignments," Lu Yuan continued, his voice low but every word clear. "We've been assigned pure manual labor for two weeks in a row. Under chapter five, article fourteen, that requires a joint assessment by the deacon and our instructor to confirm its necessity. May I ask whether Assistant Teacher Shen, Wang Shuo's and my instructor, took part in that assessment?"

Beside him, Wang Shuo's mouth hung slightly open.

He had no idea the regulations contained those provisions.

Zhao Shi said nothing. The smile had vanished completely from his face, replaced by an appraising look, tinged with gloom. He studied Lu Yuan for a long while before slowly speaking:

"Lu Yuan, you're... very familiar with the regulations."

Lu Yuan didn't answer that. He merely asked, "Deacon, have I misunderstood, or have those provisions... already been repealed?"

The question came floating back lightly, yet struck with crushing weight.

Wind swept dust across the abandoned training ground, sending it whirling.

Behind his back, Zhao Shi unconsciously rubbed his cuff between his fingers. A crack finally appeared in the formulaic shell on his face, revealing his true expression beneath, tinged with annoyance.

But he quickly plastered it over again.

"Of course the regulations haven't been repealed." He forced out a dry smile. "You were right to remind me. Some procedures... slipped my attention. The potions, the materials request, and the task assessment-I'll deal with all of them as soon as possible."

He put a little extra emphasis on "as soon as possible."

Lu Yuan nodded. "Thank you, Deacon."

He tugged at the still-dazed Wang Shuo and turned to leave.

They had walked a dozen paces before Wang Shuo came to his senses. Lowering his voice, he said, "Lu Yuan, you... just now, you..."

"We'll talk when we get back," Lu Yuan interrupted.

The two walked away.

Zhao Shi remained where he was, hands behind his back, watching them disappear at the end of the path. The smile was completely gone from his face, and his gaze was as cold as ice.

The next day, the potions were indeed handed out: two small, rough earthenware bottles filled with pale green liquid.

Wang Shuo turned a bottle over in his hands. "They really handed them out..."

Lu Yuan pulled out the wooden stopper and sniffed. It was the most basic kind, low in Soul Power and full of impurities. But it was better than nothing.

The materials request was approved too. Zhao Shi delivered it to the dormitory himself, that same smile back on his face, though his eyes were colder than before.

"Approved." He handed the form to Lu Yuan. "If you need anything in the future, come straight to me. As for the paperwork, I'll speed it along whenever I can."

His words were courteous.

Lu Yuan took the form and thanked him.

Zhao Shi nodded, said nothing more, and turned to leave.

Wang Shuo leaned over to look at the form and clicked his tongue twice. "That old fox... we'll have to be even more careful from now on."

Lu Yuan said nothing. He folded the form and put it away.

For the next few days, life seemed to return to normal. Their assignment wasn't changed again; they were still organizing the library's old bookshelves. The potions were distributed on time each month, and the materials requests went through smoothly.

But some things were different.

In the cafeteria and in the corridors, Lu Yuan would occasionally catch Zhao Shi looking at him. His gaze no longer held an appraising smile. It was cold and heavy, as though he were weighing something.

Lu Yuan acted as though he hadn't seen it.

One evening a week later, he had just left the library when a student in duty uniform stopped him.

"Lu Yuan?"

"That's me."

"A notice." The student handed him a sheet of paper. "The academy and the Hundred Refinements Pavilion have jointly issued a long-term assignment to gather materials in the wilderness, and some work-study students are being called up to participate. You've been selected. Report to the academy's main gate tomorrow morning at the hour of the dragon."

Lu Yuan took the notice. The emblems of the academy and the Hundred Refinements Pavilion were printed on it, followed by a brief description of the assignment: travel to the outskirts of the Black Rock Mountain Range northwest of Nuoding City and collect three specified Soul Beast materials. The estimated duration was fifteen to twenty days. The assignment was marked "class C, lower grade-some danger involved; recommended for students with Soul Power at level ten or above."

His gaze fell on the very last line.

A name was written in the signature field for the person in charge of the assignment.

Sun Ming.

Teacher Sun.

Lu Yuan looked up. The student on duty had already turned and left, his figure disappearing into the twilight.

He stood there for a while, holding the notice. The edge of the paper was a little rough against his fingertips.

In the distance, the clock tower rang out the hour. The heavy tolls spread through the darkening evening.

He folded the notice, tucked it into his robes, and continued toward the dormitory.

His steps were unhurried, just as usual.