Facing an Ancient God for a Year

Chapter 1775: Chapter 1770: Early Frost

"Professor Fu, have you had lunch?"

With the arrival of professionals, a meeting concluded with astounding efficiency.

Professor Chang Mo, with his rapid-fire schedule, simply bid a quick farewell to the burdens his students entrusted to him and hurriedly left, leaving Fu Qian and the others behind.

Watching this scene, Miss Liushuang turned back smiling, looking more relaxed than before.

"No."

As expected, Professor Fu was too busy with work to care about trivial matters like this.

"... Breakfast?"

"I did have that, but I could eat again now."

While answering, Fu Qian gestured with his hand.

"You’ve worked hard lately, let me treat you to a good meal."

Hehe...

The first thing the leader does when returning is team-building; such a treatment was something Ji Liushuang obviously had no objection to.

Although whether the leader had money on him was questionable.

...

"It’s been less than a week, but hasn’t Professor Fu noticed a big change?"

There were many places within the Academy where one could fill their stomach, but Fu Qian clearly didn’t want to be perfunctory and signaled his research assistant to find a place outside to eat.

The assistant happily agreed while taking the boss on a wobbling tram.

This deep red-painted means of transportation was obviously quite old, yet it was still bustling with people.

On seats worn away to the point of fading sat many people of all ages; it wasn’t quiet, but it was certainly lively.

Once Fu Qian had settled down, Miss Liushuang seemed to be influenced by the atmosphere, glancing at the scenery outside as she chatted about the weather.

"The winter here at the Academy lasts quite long, and this year it got cold early, so it looks like it might be especially long. We might even get snow soon."

"Oh?"

Though for him, ordinary changes in temperature hardly mattered, Professor Fu, who rarely got to use public transport, took the opportunity to leisurely observe the sights outside.

Compared to his last visit, there was indeed a hint of early winter’s desolation, so even though it was noon, there weren’t many people on the streets.

"I’ve been at the Academy for less than two years, but the winters here have left a deep impression on me. Besides the heavy snow, the most unique thing is those snow trees..."

Ji Liushuang pointed at the sides of the road.

"They’re called that because they don’t lose their leaves no matter how cold it gets, and interestingly enough, when snow falls on them, their leaves turn white too."

"That’s quite fascinating."

Fu Qian listened with great interest to these intriguing anecdotes.

Even though from his viewpoint, those plants called snow trees didn’t seem particularly unique.

"Sorry for handling it on my own."

During the idle chatter, Ji Liushuang remembered something, lowering her voice.

"Not at all, our lab has always been clear about communication between personal and work matters; it was yours to begin with."

Fu Qian didn’t even turn his head, waving his hand to imply she shouldn’t overthink it.

"And you handled it well. I would have made the same choice."

Beyond that, he even gave a high appraisal of Ji Liushuang’s way of handling things.

Like he said before, beyond symbolic significance and occasional insights, Miss Liushuang carrying around the Sword in the Stone for self-defense was unnecessary.

And as something the Swordsmanship Department had yearned for over the years, during these tumultuous times, if indeed a mentor could benefit from it, it would be absolutely beneficial.

Though even so, not everyone could make the decision to share so decisively.

...

"Since the day you left, Director Li hasn’t seen anyone, seemingly touching upon some opportunity for promotion, and now the entire Swordsmanship Department is eagerly anticipating..."

The high approval from Professor Fu nearly made Miss Liushuang feel bashful, and she quietly observed the street views without much comment.

It wasn’t until they got off the vehicle and joined the pedestrians in the cold wind that she continued the idle chat, updating Fu Qian on the changes since his departure.

"Riet has been recovering well, and her sister Veil has also shown a great talent and joined the Academy, which made Professor Lanaya very happy..."

"Also, at the store she frequents, the new server there works diligently without any peculiar behavior..."

Sunny?

The last statement naturally brought to Fu Qian’s mind the Dragon King’s Sworn.

It seemed she was quite accustomed to her stay here and wasn’t in a hurry to change her situation, so he figured respecting her personal choice would be best.

It’s just uncertain whether she’d become Professor Lanaya’s drinking shadow.

"How about your family?"

Nodding slightly, Fu Qian didn’t comment on these matters but instead showed concern for his assistant’s family life.

"No new updates have come through..."

Amazed, though unsure why Fu Qian mentioned this out of the blue, Ji Liushuang clearly didn’t think he’d ask for no reason.

"Last night, Yasui launched some retaliatory action against the Sirens, with quite a bit of intensity."

Fu Qian clarified without making her guess.

"... So that’s how it is, because the Gospel Group has always been relatively independent, I don’t communicate much with my family."

Although focused on her studies, Ji Liushuang could still fully assess what such conflicts represented, explaining with a silent sign.

After all, the situation was indeed special.

Fu Qian saw no need for meaningless comfort.

These actions might be top secret, but for the Ji Family, who played a significant role amid the conflicts between the two organizations, they would likely maintain a close watch while welcoming such developments, making the chance of not receiving any news quite slim.

Additionally, considering the tacit understanding between the Ji Family and the Sirens wasn’t so secretive, it wasn’t impossible that the unstable Yasui might take some irrational actions against them too.

In such circumstances, theoretically, the "next Family Head" hadn’t received any alerts by now, illustrating the ambiguous stance of the Ji Family rather vividly.

It was inevitable Miss Liushuang would feel somewhat conflicted.

But that’s alright, learning to manage one’s internal expectations is an important lesson in adulthood, and truthfully, she’s done quite well.

"Don’t be so pessimistic."

After Miss Liushuang quietly processed this information for a moment, Fu Qian finally offered some reassurance, even gesturing with his chin toward a certain direction as he spoke.

Lady Jia Keke, the assistant to the research assistant, was hurrying over from that direction.

"Angui?"

Having only noticed this after the reminder, Ji Liushuang paused for a moment before her eyes regained their sparkle, looking at Fu Qian for confirmation.

"Probably."

Fu Qian acknowledged her guess, and the most concerned with Ji Liushuang’s safety in the Ji Family was undoubtedly her mother, Ji Xue, though the latter might not be so well-informed.

By comparison, a warning from the already-involved Angui Demigod seemed far more likely.

"No need to hurry, I am very safe with Professor Fu."

The two of them exchanged no further words, and by the time Lady Jia Keke rushed over, Ji Liushuang had already gathered her thoughts, not showing the slightest bit of odd behavior anymore.