Daily life of a teacher in the martial arts department

Southern Qin claimed to export its culture to the world, but it only exported the superficial aspects. Take mooncakes, for example; because they weren't very tasty, they were basically limited to festivals, good for moon worship, ancestor worship, and as gifts for relatives and friends. But in the Seven Luminaries region, mooncakes became a… "all-purpose gift."

Yes, a universal gift.

Gifts for elders, younger generations, superiors, subordinates, family, friends, classmates, colleagues, girlfriends, and boyfriends...

No matter who it is, just send them all randomly, you can't go wrong.

This custom was, of course, completely different from that of the Southern Qin. It can only be said that when these things flow into other countries, they always take on the form of those other countries due to cultural customs and other reasons.

It's like watching the tide. I'm in the capital of the Seven Stars. How can I watch the tide? Do I take a train overnight to watch the tide?

For example, there's the osmanthus appreciation activity... There are no osmanthus trees in Qiyao, but there's a red maple forest in the Imperial Courtyard, which is a favorite among couples, so it's passable.

But the most difficult people to deal with are actually family members.

Some people can take an overnight train to watch the tide, and can spend several years planting many osmanthus trees. As long as you are willing to spend time and effort, some things are not a problem at all. But some things, once lost, are lost forever.

".."

Ying Qin Guan walked into Qin Shan Ju. This restaurant had gone through several twists and turns before finally opening, and the interior decoration was supported by the owner's financial resources. It did have a somewhat antique feel... but Ying Qin Guan didn't know if it was exactly in the style of the Southern Qin Pavilion. As for why, he had never been to such a high-class place before.

"Teacher Ying, would you like two boxes of mooncakes?"

The girl with the bun hairstyle looked very energetic and smiled, saying, "It would be a great gift for colleagues and students."

Ying Qin Guan leaned closer to take a look and saw that there was a bar behind the other party, on which were placed mooncakes instead of alcohol or drinks. The grooves inside the bar were even diamond-shaped, giving it a sense of luxury.

"What flavors are available?" Ying Qin Guan asked.

Actually, he had only eaten mooncakes once. In Nanqin, mooncakes are considered quite expensive. Even if they are only eaten once a year during festivals, not everyone can afford them. Moreover, they are basically only filled with fruit, five-nut, and jujube paste.

Ahe perked up and began to introduce her masterpiece to Ying Qin Guan.

"So many! Look, there are pineapple and melon seed mooncakes, cilantro mooncakes, crayfish mooncakes, wasabi mooncakes, fermented bean curd mooncakes, banana and avocado mooncakes, chive mooncakes..."

"Wait..." Ying Qin broke out in a cold sweat. His knowledge of mooncakes was limited to three fillings: fruit, five-nut, and jujube paste. Was the Seven Luminaries filling really that terrifying?

Cilantro? Crayfish? Fermented bean curd? Chives?

Wasabi too?!

It's absolutely outrageous, like an outrageous door opening for an outrageous door. It's outrageous to the extreme.

Ying Qin Guan subconsciously wanted to ask if all the mooncakes from the Seven Luminaries were so freely available, but then stopped himself.

"Wait... we can't assume other countries' customs are the same as our own. Maybe the Seven Luminaries' mooncakes are like this. What if I ask them..."

Ying Qin Guan stared intently at the girl with the bun hairstyle.

If he were to ask, the other person might think, "Isn't this common sense? How come you don't even know this?" That would be incredibly embarrassing for him.

With this thought in mind, Ying Qin Guan's expression returned to calm. He said calmly, "That's right, I like it this way. Give me one of all the different flavors of mooncakes you have here."

"Hey!" Ah He, who hadn't sold a single mooncake all day, perked up. "Really?! That's great! I'll give Teacher Ying a 30% discount... just a moment."

The girl with the bun hairstyle worked quickly and efficiently, packing all the mooncakes in no time. These mooncakes seemed to be all made by her, and they were placed in a small gift box. Although the gift box was very exquisite, it was still a completely unbranded product. Ying Qin Guan counted them; there were twenty in total, and in the end, he spent 98 Eevee... meaning one Eevee Seven got a 30% discount.

A mooncake with seven Eevee pieces is considered a bit pricey in the Seven Luminaries region; a typical mooncake costs around three to five Eevee pieces. However, it's much cheaper in Southern Qin... Although the two countries have different currency systems, their approximate purchasing power is still similar in Ying Qin Guan.

After dealing with a beating at Qin Guan, Ying Qin took the blind box containing the source of all evil in the world and began his path of harming all living beings.

Chapter Fifty-Seven: Invitation to the Two Victims

Saturday, Mid-Autumn Festival.

Now it's time for Nocturne's favorite riddle segment.

Early in the morning, people saw many students from the Arts Department running around with big red lanterns, with riddles written on the bottom of the lanterns.

These red lanterns were hung in various corners... Sometimes one can't help but marvel at the immense appeal of Nocturne in the Imperial Court. People get up early in the morning to hang lanterns, and then have to collect them late at night, all free of charge.

The fake dean: addicted to playing cards, always getting the short end of the stick, with no influence, few friends, a lonely old man, and so intimidated by his own alchemy department head that he dares not utter a word.

The true dean: erudite, well-connected, charismatic, and with immense influence, capable of removing the nominal dean from office at any time.

Now, who's sucking garlic in the Imperial Household Department?

It's my Nocturne!

The red lanterns were hanging everywhere, which was a real danger to Ying Qin Guan, who was still sleeping at the time. He was afraid that someone like Jiu Yi/Shen Xin/Fu Fei Han/Bun-haired Girl/Luo Shui/Zhong Hong Yu would suddenly jump out from the side and ask him how to solve the riddles on them.

The first two, and Luo Shui, can be easily knocked away with a single punch. But what about the others...? Sigh.

If a platypus becomes a riddle teller, no one who enjoys the riddle is innocent.

However, to be honest... although it's the Mid-Autumn Festival, not many people can actually reunite with their families.

This is the Seven Luminaries Imperial Academy. Countless students have fought their way through countless battles to become victors, leaving their parents and hometowns behind to come here, where they stay for four years. Even during summer and winter breaks, countless students choose to stay on campus... let alone a mere three-day holiday.

Oh, you wanderers far from home...

"Good morning, Ms. Ying. What are you holding..."

When Ying Qin Guan got up, it was already noon. He was planning to go to the cafeteria for lunch when he bumped into Luo Shui on the way. This guy lived very close to the school, so he wasn't in a hurry to go back.

When Ying Qin Guan went out, he took all the mooncakes he bought from the girl with the bun hairstyle with him. He had eaten one in his dormitory yesterday after buying them. It was filled with garlic and durian... The taste made Ying Qin Guan think that the girl with the bun hairstyle must miss her home planet very much.

But then Ying Qin Guan thought that maybe the Seven Luminaries people liked this kind of food. After all, different places have different eating habits, so he took all the mooncakes with him when he went out, intending to distribute them casually.

The first acquaintance I ran into was Luo Shui...

The other person stared at the mooncakes in Ying Qin Guan's gift box with a grin, implying that there was no need to say more; the mooncakes looked quite presentable from the outside, and the gift box was also exquisite. Who would have guessed what was inside?

Ying Qin Guan took out a mooncake from inside and handed it to Luo Shui.

"Here you go, Happy Mid-Autumn Festival. Don't forget to practice your lower body next time."

Luo Shui happily accepted the mooncakes, saying, "I'll definitely make them next time."

"You..." Ying Qin Guan smiled helplessly and walked away.

Luo Shui didn't stand on ceremony. She had gotten up late and hadn't eaten breakfast. She was on her way to lunch, and since the cafeteria was still some distance away, she immediately opened the small and delicate mooncake made by the girl with the bun hairstyle and took a bite.

This will become a nightmare that haunts her for a month.

One bite and a multitude of complex flavors—sour, bitter, salty, spicy, numbing—rush in all at once, like being grabbed by a giant devil's hand and rubbed wildly against a rough plastic track.

"..?"

She lowered her head stiffly, trying to see what was inside the mooncake.

..

..

..

After a long, long time, Luo Shui suddenly realized.

"Oh, it's a mooncake with pickled lettuce and Sichuan peppercorn beef, haha..."

".."

"Fuck you, you son of a bitch, ugh..."

-

At this moment, Ying Qin Guan arrived at the board game hall with mooncakes, but Jiu Yi was nowhere to be seen.

"Are you looking for the dean?" The owner sat in his seat. Instead of spending the Mid-Autumn Festival with his family, he was in the board game cafe petting cats. "It's Mid-Autumn Festival today. The dean is going to be with his family and won't be here."

"Ah... I know!" The platypus stubbornly persisted, using a patchwork tactic that wasn't very effective. "I already knew. I came here specifically to see you, boss... Here, Happy Mid-Autumn Festival. Don't forget certain things, like forgetting to give me my card or something."

"Then I won't stand on ceremony." The shopkeeper laughed and accepted the mooncakes from Ying Qin Guan. He then pulled out a square gift box with gold and silver trim from under his body and said, "Here, a return gift."

Ying Qin Guan accepted the gift box. The word "exquisite" couldn't even begin to describe it. He had heard a story before called "buying the box and returning the pearl," which he didn't quite understand. But after seeing this box, he understood. It was so beautiful that it was practically a work of art.

Ying Qin Guan asked curiously, "Are there mooncakes inside too?"

The boss nodded. "Of course."

Ying Qin Guan clicked his tongue in amazement. He had thought the girl with the bun hairstyle was already flashy enough, but the boss's was even more impressive. However, he figured the boss's stuff was something to look forward to...

Since Jiu Yi wasn't there, Ying Qin Guan didn't really want to stay in the board game arcade alone, making himself look like a lonely old man left behind. After delivering the mooncakes to the owner, Ying Qin Guan pretended to have something else to do and left the arcade.

but..

When he left the board game arcade and stood in the school again, he still felt lost.

A wanderer, a stranger in a foreign land without a hometown, has some spare money and some skills. The world is so big, there is nowhere he cannot go, but in fact... he has nowhere to go.

Nowhere is home, there is no home, and apart from that one home that haunts our dreams, everywhere is actually the same.

"Ugh.."

Feeling somewhat depressed, Ying Qin took a step forward, intending to go outside the school for a drink.

Meanwhile, inside the board game arcade, the owner opened the mooncake that Ying Qin Guan had given him.

He wasn't on guard and took a bite.

".."

The shop owner lowered his head expressionlessly, looking at the mooncakes in his hand.

He suddenly remembered a sentence.

Some people are alive, yet they are already dead.

Some people die, and they're really fucking dead.

He reached out with trembling hands and dialed a number on the side, calling his private butler.

"Hey...quick, send an ambulance to pick me up and give me a stomach lavage..."

A calm female voice came from the other end of the phone.

"First, I don't call you 'Hey'."

Chapter Fifty-Eight 'Courage'

The soldiers guarding the prison stepped aside, and the lunchbox, which had been thoroughly checked and confirmed to be safe, was returned to Mu Nandong.

Mu Nandong walked in with a cold expression.