In Sumeru, pretend to be a scholar

"Alright, the luggage is all put away." Wang Yan clapped his hands and turned to look at Falushan. "Teacher, where should we go first? Should we go to Maple Garden first, or go to the Opéra Garnier Opera House?"

“The Opéra Croisette Opera?” Ellassan recognized the name. “The most famous opera house in Mapleville?”

“Yes, that’s the one.” Wang Yan nodded.

Eros's eyes lit up: "Is your film going to be shown there?"

“Yes, the main venue for the Thousand Spirits Film Festival is at the Opipley Opera House,” Wang Yan explained. “However, it’s not screening time yet, so we can go outside and get a feel for the atmosphere first.”

Erosanne thought for a moment, then waved her hand: "Whatever you want. I came here mainly to see your film. Everything else is fine. You can arrange everything."

There's a feeling that your girlfriend asks a long question and then just replies with "whatever".

Wang Yan was helpless, but he wasn't someone without his own opinions, so he nodded directly: "Alright, let's go to Fengdanting first, look at the street scene, and try some of Fengdanting's snacks. After we've finished exploring Fengdanting, we can go to other places."

"Okay." Estelle nodded. "I'll do as you say."

Wang Yan smiled and took the lead, walking towards Fengdanting.

Falushan walked beside him, looking around as she went, and she no longer had much of the teacher's authority.

...

The streets of Maple Garden are straight and wide, lined with neat marble buildings, shop windows displaying a dazzling array of goods, and larger squares featuring fountains and sculptures.

I wonder if any of these sculptures are works by Nicolas.

Wang Yan led Fa Lushan along the main street.

Throughout the journey, Erosian's eyes never stopped.

She would glance at the clothes in the shop window, touch the sculptures on the roadside, and then gather around the snack stalls, curiously examining the foods she had never seen before.

"Wang Yan, what is this?" Eros asked, pointing to a pastry stall.

“This is called a macaron, a specialty dessert of Maple Island,” Wang Yan explained. “It has a crispy outer shell and a soft filling inside, and it comes in many flavors.”

“Sounds good.” Estelle’s eyes lit up. “Let’s have a few to try.”

"it is good."

Wang Yan paid for a box of macarons and handed it to Falushan.

Erosan picked up a pink one, took a bite, and her eyes lit up instantly: "Mmm! Delicious! Sweet but not cloying, and the texture is very unique."

"Eat more if you like," Wang Yan smiled. "There are many other delicious things to eat in Maple Leaf. Let's enjoy them slowly."

And so, the two walked, ate, and looked around.

Eros seemed completely unaware of Maple Leaf, filled with curiosity about everything, constantly asking, "Wang Yan, what is this?" Wang Yan patiently followed beside her, explaining everything that interested her.

But does Falushan really not understand?

Even if she had never been to Fengdan before, as a scholar, would she really be completely ignorant of Fengdan?

It's important to know that although Estelle Luce is skilled in institutions and heritage, she is an intellectual.

If you place the ancient Chinese proverbs of the maple tree in front of her, she can immediately read them.

How could such a scholar not understand peony?

She was simply enjoying the fun of shopping with Wang Yan.

Didn't Wang Yan notice anything unusual? How could he not notice? He knows Erossan better than he knows himself.

He was simply enjoying the leisurely stroll with Estée Lauder.

Before they knew it, the two had arrived at a fountain square.

In the center of the square is a huge fountain, where water jets draw beautiful arcs in the air before falling into the pool and splashing up sparkling water droplets.

In front of the fountain, a large group of people were gathered together, and bursts of applause and exclamations could be heard from time to time.

"What are they doing over there?" Erosian suddenly became interested and tugged at Wang Yan's sleeve. "Come on, let's go take a look!"

"it is good."

Wang Yan, of course, would not refuse his cute female mentor, and the two quickly walked towards the crowd.

After squeezing to the front of the crowd, I discovered that someone was performing magic.

The performers are a man and a woman.

The man was dressed in a gorgeous black suit and a top hat, with a confident and charming smile on his face. The woman wore a black and white bodysuit and cute cat ear hair accessories. She was expressionless and had indifferent eyes, yet she possessed an indescribable elegance.

Wang Yan recognized him at a glance.

Linnie and Lynette.

The most famous magician siblings in Fengdan.

And, members of the Fool's Slant House.

At that moment, Linni was holding a deck of cards in his hand, flipping them skillfully.

"Look, everyone," Linni said with a smile, as the playing cards in his hand suddenly disappeared. "The cards are gone."

Guan Junyan let out a gasp of surprise.

The next moment, Linni reached out and flicked his wrist, and the playing cards reappeared in his hand.

"They're back again."

With a flick of his wrist, the playing cards disappeared again, then reappeared one by one from his sleeve, his hat, and even behind Lynette's ear.

One, two, three…

The playing cards multiplied, and finally, Linni raised both hands, sending cards raining down like snowflakes, causing the onlookers to erupt in fury.

"it is good!"

That's amazing!

"How did you do that?"

Guan Yu was filled with awe and disbelief.

Wang Yan stood calmly among the crowd.

Such magical techniques are completely exposed to his extraordinary perception.

Every move Linni made, every time he hid, changed, or played a card, was clearly reflected in his perception; there were no secrets to be found.

However, he didn't point it out.

The allure of magic lies in its incredible nature.

If you see through everything, then it loses its appeal.

To be honest, magic is interesting, and breaking magic is interesting too, but it's really boring when someone points out a magician's trick in front of him.

"Your technique is really good." Erosanne suddenly spoke up, her eyes filled with admiration. "The angle of that hand switch is very precise; most people wouldn't be able to tell."

Wang Yan turned and glanced at her.

Sure enough, with Eros's keen observation skills, she was able to see through Linni's methods.

However, she didn't point it out. Instead, she watched the performance with the other audience members, clapping and cheering from time to time, completely immersed in the atmosphere.

The two stood there in the crowd until the performance ended.

As the crowd gradually dispersed and Wang Yan and Fa Lushan were about to leave, a shout came from behind them.

"Scholar Wang Yan, please wait a moment."

Chapter 367 Wang Yan: Pantalone slandered me!

Wang Yan paused in his departing steps and turned to look at the source of the sound.

It was Linni who shouted.

At this moment, he wore a standard polite smile, and for some reason, Wang Yan thought of Philin.

Well, they're probably all 'hypocritical' gentlemen.

"Do you know me?" Wang Yan asked, and before the other could answer, he continued, "I don't remember having any contact with the House of Fireplaces... Hmm... Was it Pantalone who leaked my information?"

Linni was somewhat surprised, because among the information they had gathered, the only intelligence channel this scholar of royal words had ever contacted was the head of the secret society in Nordcalle.

But as Wang Yan said, they had never been in contact before, so it was impossible for Wang Yan to spend money to buy information about the fireplace house.

So, how did this scholar Wang Yan know that he came from a family that made fireplaces?

However, the doubt only flashed through Lin Ni's mind. He did not dwell on it and simply nodded slightly, acknowledging Wang Yan's guess.

"The wealthy are sending you messages during the Foolish Fools' Day campaign and have listed you as a high-risk target."

"High-risk target? Tch, I didn't even lay a hand on him, yet he still slanders me like this." Wang Yan said with some dissatisfaction.

You still want to lay a hand on the CEO?

Linni's eyes flashed with a strange light as she suddenly understood why the "Rich Man" had listed this scholar as a high-risk target.

“It’s probably not a smear. Without a proper reason, the ‘Rich Man’ wouldn’t be able to pay such a large sum of money to Sumeru,” Linni said.

Unlike the other children, Arecino was grooming Linni as her successor.

Therefore, Linnie could know some real high-level intelligence.

For example, after the Sumeru World Tree incident, the Winter faction provided a huge amount of compensation to Sumeru for its post-disaster reconstruction.

But money doesn't come for free.

Although the Northern Bank is the property of the rich, the rich, as fools, are the basis for the Northern Bank's existence.

In other words, Pantalone must prioritize securing the winter, or rather, the Fool's Curse, before he can freely allocate the remaining funds.

If too much money needs to be allocated, putting pressure on the use of other funds, even Pantalone will have to accept questioning from the Imperial Council.

For example, the double compensation given to Sumeru this time greatly squeezed the normal fund allocation, so when Pantalone was questioned, he directly threw out the king's words.

In his description, Wang Yan is a very strong Sumerian war advocate. If satisfactory compensation is not given, Sumeru is likely to take tough measures under Wang Yan's leadership, which may affect the Empress's plans.

Compared to this, the current compensation, though huge, is a one-time event, and we just need to bear with it; it won't have a longer-lasting impact.

In addition, the research funds of [Doctor] and [Puppet] are temporarily available, which can be used to pay for the expenses. As a result, the number of other Fool Machines that are being squeezed out will decrease.

And so… Pantalone passed the Imperial Council's inquiry, and the funds from the Winter Solstice were sent to Sumeru.

Wang Yan also registered with the high-ranking officials at Zhidong.

A scholar who is so ardently pro-war and has been so aggressively promoted by the "Foolish Man" should be closely watched, just in case something goes wrong.

Linni did not attend the review meeting, but he learned about Wang Yan from Arecino and was deeply impressed by this scholar, which is why he was able to recognize Wang Yan at a glance in the crowd.

"Alright, what do you want to talk to me about? What do I have to talk to you about?" Wang Yan said in a flat tone.

He and the fool provoked the steel tower, fearfully offering a model, 6 gagging and disarming.

However, my mentor is here with me now.

Erossen has no fondness for the foolish school that has harmed Sumeru several times.

Now, there's no direct way to tell Wang Yan to stop talking to the fool.

“Please believe me, even among those who chant the name of the Foolish One, there are differences,” Linni said politely. “I received a message from my father, asking me to confirm the situation of Lord [Puppet]…”

"Then why don't you go find Sandone? Don't tell me that with your intelligence capabilities, you don't know where she is?" Wang Yan interrupted rudely.

The foolish machine that yu ji Γ, the vast green warehouse short and steep, the dwarf and the disdainful tower.

In addition, this is Maple Forest, so the Fireplace House has more influence here than anywhere else.

The key point is that although the Fools' prophecy was flawed, and they did occupy hydrological stations and the like, because they mobilized for disaster relief and provided assistance with post-disaster reconstruction when the prophecy was made, the Fools' prophecy was ultimately more effective, and things are even better now.

Additionally, it should be noted that the Foolish Man who occupies the hydrological station is a person who can be stationed abroad.

After being beaten up by Ying, he said he just wanted to slack off and didn't want to be dragged away by the adjutant, so he could leave the hydrological station. However, he was instead kept by the people from Fengdan Academy of Sciences.

They became free security guards at the hydrological station, that's what they said.

Besides Maple Leaf, Nata's Fool's Lucky Colors are also...

Before the full-scale outbreak of the Abyss War, the Nata side had already...

However, with the outbreak of the Abyss War, the Fools were all eventually forced to sit on the ley lines, and the reputation of the Fools Tower reversed accordingly.