Ming Dynasty, New Rome, and Infinite Divine Machine

"Now?" Shang Luo looked around, "There are so many people here. Doesn't she want a 'boyfriend-like' photo?"

"Boyfriend feeling is not about the number of people, right?" She said, calling other classmates - at this time, almost all the students who came to visit today had arrived. There were 12 people including Han Xingzhi who were going to enter the Imperial College with Shangluo.

"Come on, students, stand in a row. Mr. Han Xingsi, can you take a picture for us?"

"Okay, teacher!" Han Xingsi took out his cell phone, "Come on, everyone, stand at the school gate!"

Walking in from the school gate, Han Xingsi was still looking at the photo he had just taken, as well as teacher Phaethon standing together in the photo, and Shangluo who would soon become his junior.

He had met Shangluo before, and they had business cooperation before. She had also heard of the famous name of "Shang Tianjun". But although she had never heard of this Miss Phaethon, she could guess.

"Eh? What are you looking at, sis?"

"Kids nowadays are really smart. They started chatting with senior so quickly. I heard that Shang Tianjun was a racing driver, and he drives very fast. This gesture..." She glanced at her brother, "No, you can't watch this."

Chapter 966 Imperial College

"Who, who are you talking about?"

"You are not allowed to look at it." Han Xingsi put away his phone. "Let's go visit the school. And you are not allowed to look at it. Hey!"

Han Xingzhi jumped up and took the phone.

"Hey, sister, you are only a little taller than me now. I have a keen eye, so how could you possibly hide it from me? I want to see what it is."

"Ah, never mind. You can watch it if you want. But it's really... really interesting. You don't know, this Miss Phaethon comes from Associate Professor Zhu Ye. His subordinates are all crouching tigers, hidden dragons. Did you see her hair? The ends of her hair are golden, which means she might be much older than she looks."

"Wait a minute." Han Xingzhi returned the phone to her. "I know this person. Isn't this Miss Phaethon? She has always lived with Shangluo."

"Huh? Such a big deal? You're living together so soon? May you be blessed with infinite happiness, young people nowadays are really..." Suddenly, she remembered something, "I seem to have some impression. Speaking of living together, Shangluo seemed to have consulted me about how to enroll in the Imperial College. It was said that there was a 'Roman princess', or someone 'equivalent to a princess'. At that time, it was said that studying abroad through diplomacy was too troublesome, and it was necessary to submit a letter of credence, so she was asked to take the exam - it turned out to be this person!"

"Yeah, yeah." Han Xingzhi nodded, "That's the one. What did you see?"

"Oh, that's not surprising, that's not surprising. You, a kid who can only play with toy cars, wouldn't understand it."

She glanced at the photo again from the corner of her eye. In the photo, two people were making a gesture with their hands in the corner of the camera.

"Ah." She looked up at the sky. "Does it seem like I have a lot of free time? That's why I was assigned to take care of these little brats? Why do I seem like I have a lot of free time? Is it because everyone knows that I don't have a boyfriend?"

She pondered for a moment: "Then again, aren't they afraid of being seen? They are like this outside, I don't know what they are like at home. Unconsciously, I seem to have become a part of it. Ah."

"Sister, what are you looking at?" Han Xingzhi also looked in the direction she was looking.

"Shut up." She pushed Han Xingzhi's head back, and the light under her glasses dimmed a little.

"Ahem. Fellow students." Han Xingsi, who had regained his spirits, stood in front of everyone again. "The blue brick building in front of you is the teaching building of the History Department, the largest department in the entire Imperial College. Students who are interested in working for the court can choose to study for a degree in the History Department. If you do not want to engage in academic research, the History Department is also the department with the best employment prospects in our school. The History Department of our school is ranked as the twin heroes along with the Northern Imperial College, and is superior to all other schools."

"The History Department? The imperial court?" Shang Luo, who was standing in front, asked in confusion, "Why would the History Department have such good 'job prospects'? Working in the imperial court? What kind of official position would they hold?"

"In the History Department, of course it's the historian." Han Xingsi replied.

“Are there so many historians?”

"The historian is also an interpreter. The censor, the governor, and the ambassador are all historians. The function of the historian is to serve as an agency dispatched by the court to monitor and supervise the affairs of officials, prefectures, and even tributary states. Although there are no our people in the court meeting, the Censorate is full of our people, the governors who are sent to the Western Regions and Beiting are also our people, and those who go to the tributary states to guard are also historians."

“It turns out that studying history is so useful!”

[By the way, this history department is different from the history department you have in mind. It is not just about history, but a comprehensive subject. In addition to history, students also need to learn to observe historical facts and compile historical materials. The history studied by history departments like this is fluid, not just the history of the past, but also the history of the present. Therefore, the historians can play their proper role in the affairs of the historians.]

"I see."

[Okay, I'm going to get back to my work.]

"So you can hear it?"

[Ha.] Apollonia replied, [I think I already know what happened. Ahaha, I didn’t expect you to have hormones too.]

"???"

[I'm going to play with the star map first~~ Detective Apollonia will come and try to recreate the scene later. Hmm, boyfriend feeling, what does boyfriend feeling look like. ]

After saying this, her voice disappeared again.

Han Xingsi, who was in front, saw Shangluo listening to her, and the loneliness that had just emerged faded a lot - this was not an isolated case for her.

"Well, let me introduce you to the Imperial College's school system. The Imperial College's school system is very classical. Your 'classroom' has been assigned, which determines your student group, but does not determine your development direction. The entire school has no mandatory departmental planning. In addition to choosing one of the required courses in the categories of Renxue and Lixue, the other courses and future development directions are all planned by you.

"The direction of planning depends on what field you want to obtain a degree in in the future. Literature, history, physics, chemistry, etc. When certifying your degree, the school will check whether you have completed the courses related to the degree. If you have enough academic ability, it is not impossible to obtain two or three degrees at once."

"Senior! Senior!" Someone suddenly asked, "I want to study for a degree in social engineering! Senior, do you have any suggestions? Do I need to take some bridging courses during the summer vacation? I heard that social engineering courses are very profound!"

As soon as he asked this question, Han Xingsi's eyes dimmed again: "Run."

"what?"

"The Imperial College is already very difficult, do you want to be in prison? My advice is, run away."

"Ah? Ah?" The student who asked the question was scared away by her.

"Very good." Han Xingsi nodded. She looked around to make sure no one saw them, and then she felt relieved. "Anyway, if you can save one, then save one. Look at the history department building next door. It has bright windows. Isn't it great?"

"But I just like people like you, senior!" She seemed scared, but the toughness of today's young people was far beyond her imagination.

"What do you want to do!" Han Xingzhi turned around and stood in front of him, "What do you want to do to my sister?"

"No, Commissioner Han, please move aside. I mean, I just want to be someone like you! Your melancholy temperament is so handsome!"

"Ah, is that so? Hahaha." Han Xingsi covered his forehead and muttered, "Actually, it's not that I can't do it, junior brother. Why are you blocking me?"

She shook her head. "Anyway, if you have decided on a department during today's visit, you can start searching for relevant information after you go back today. See which courses you want to take, and then choose a professor to be your teacher."

After she finished speaking, she looked at Shangluo and said, "Oh, by the way, Shangluo, you don't have to choose. You have already decided that Professor Wen Zhong and Associate Professor Zhu Ye will be in charge of your studies. So you should discuss with them about which courses you want to take. They may not be available all the time, so you can contact their teaching assistants, such as the teaching assistant Phaethon next to you."

Chapter 967 Academic Department

“So, I can’t choose it myself.”

"Then what do you want to choose?" Phaethon asked him.

"If I could choose, I would choose the Department of Mathematics."

"Mathematics Department? Are you related to the mathematics department?" Phaethon looked him up and down.

Having known Shangluo for such a long time, she has a fairly full understanding of Shangluo's achievements.

In short, it was just ordinary good. She didn't know what Shangluo was like before, but when she officially dealt with Shangluo, Shangluo was already a god. It was child's play to use the wisdom of a god to deal with ordinary high school questions.

But Phaethon had not discovered Shangluo's talent for research for so long. He did have a talent for craftsmanship, and he was very good at making all kinds of magical instruments and artifacts. Although the two of them had some overlap in their abilities in "executing plans", based on his intuition, Shangluo was not suitable for academic research.

"I just think math is cool? I guess."

"Are you a high school student? Do you want to decide your major just because it's 'cool'?" Phaethon thought for a moment.

"Choosing a major is a science. But if I ask you to choose for me, according to our custom, I should help you choose liberal arts."

"Liberal Arts? What is that?"

"Artes liberales, or 'the art of the free man', or 'citizen education', originated in ancient Athens. Citizens here refer specifically to true Romans. It was a special degree in Rome, and applicants were generally Roman citizens."

"So what can you do with this?"

"I can't do anything." Phaethon shook his head. "'The Arts of Freemen' do not involve any practical affairs, but only knowledge related to citizens. It is roughly the three studies and four arts - literature, history, logic, as well as arithmetic, astronomy, geography and aesthetics. I learn each one, but each one is not learned in depth."

"Ah" Shangluo thought about it, but he couldn't ask anything because he still didn't know what the use of learning this thing was.

"I'll give you an example and you'll understand - if you want to order a painting, how do you order it? How do you use your professional qualities to accurately express your requirements to the painter - Boya Academy teaches this."

"Ah!" Shangluo understood that this was the art of learning how to be the client. "Anything else?"

"For example, if someone gives you a contract to sign, are you able to fully understand it and find the omissions in it? Liberal Arts teaches you this. If someone hands you a financial statement, are you able to make a comprehensive assessment of its authenticity? Liberal Arts teaches you this. And the most important thing is, when you go to dinner with other elders, and your discussion ranges from astronomy and geography to the ancient and modern East, can you talk about everything all the way without stopping? Liberal Arts, you need to learn this."

"It seems that they are indeed training clients. I know why only 'Roman citizens' study this subject. Because they really have a lot of orders to place."

"Don't you have a lot of orders to place now? It's just right for you to learn this - so if you ask me for advice, this is my suggestion. But since Elder Wen wants to guide you personally, he should have a better plan."

"I'm very surprised. Why does he have time to be a professor at the Imperial College when he is a cabinet minister? Does he really teach?"

Shangluo asked Han Xingsi this question.

"Master Wen really does teach," Han Xingsi replied. "Every Friday morning, Master Wen has a large class in the History Department's lecture hall. He teaches 'Ancient History Selections.' Occasionally, on Wednesdays and Tuesdays, he co-teaches courses with other professors. For example, on Tuesday, he teaches the second half of the semester's 'Study of the Collected Statutes,' and three of Wednesday's 'Exegesis' classes."

"He really teaches!" Shangluo had thought Wen was just a figurehead. He hadn't expected him to teach so many classes. Sometimes he taught three times a week. For a cabinet minister like him, that was a huge effort.

"But he never teaches group research for annual papers and graduation theses. Do you understand?" Han Xingsi looked at him. "I saw on the schedule that your course has been decided, and he will be the one teaching it. Mr. Wen will give you a private lesson every Tuesday morning, and you will have a lot of fun."

"I seem to have some impression of this. Is it about studying how to write a paper? And then it is usually a group discussion, and the students choose the professor. Each professor guides them from their own professional direction?"

"You know a lot, it seems you have understood it - but you are not in a group discussion, just you. Mr. Wen, just you. He specially set aside Tuesday morning for this, and he does it every week. You are so lucky."

"Then this blessing is for you, do you want it?"

"I want it, of course I want it! Elder Wen specially teaches you a class. Apart from anything else, he has set aside time to govern this empire for you. Although I know that Shangluo, you are also very capable, but this blessing is a huge blessing for me."

"Forget it, I'll just accept this blessing." Although it's hard to say whose time is more valuable, his or Elder Wen's, it's good to spend time communicating with Elder Wen. There are many things to talk about in the court and the heaven, and using class time can save time for each other's meetings.

"He also arranged your other classes. But there's something strange." Han Xingsi thought about it, "I found that many credits of required courses were actually counted for you. You only have classes on Tuesdays and Fridays every week. Maybe Elder Wen will add a little more credits for you later, but probably not too much. I'm saying, how busy are you?"

"It's good enough that he can come to class." Han Xingzhi shook his head and said, "When he was in high school, he was absent for a week or a month. I don't know how the school let him get his diploma."

As he spoke, he suddenly looked to the side and stared at that direction for a long time.

"What's wrong?" Shangluo asked him.

"I seemed to see a figure. It seemed to be Wen Yuan? I remember that he didn't take the Imperial College entrance exam."

"Are you sure?" Shangluo picked up the phone and asked -

"Did you see me?" Wen Yuan replied, "Oh, you guys are here to visit the school today, right? That's great. Shangluo, come over here, I need your help. Something was stolen from your school."

"What is this? Do we need Jinyiwei to deal with it?"

"A bottle of red spirit fluid is missing from the vending machine! I only discovered it when I was restocking it this morning, and I don't know when it was stolen. The vending beans in the vending machine said that no one came to buy it, but there is a sales record in the change bean area, and the change was actually found out!"

"what?"

"I've sent you the coordinates. I'll be standing next to this vending machine waiting for you."

Chapter 968 Encryption

When Shangluo walked to the vending machine, it was as if nothing had happened around him.

Several Jinyiwei wearing peaked caps tilted the vending machine against the wall halfway outward, revealing a small door with a door handle at the back of the vending machine.

The small door was open, and a microphone like a stethoscope was extending inside.

There was an earphone connected to the other end of the microphone. The Jinyiwei wearing the earphone replied with "hmm" while taking notes. He also asked a few questions from time to time.

"Here it comes." Shangluo patted Wen Yuan's shoulder from behind, "It's quiet."

"General Fu said that making too much noise would easily alert the enemy, so he asked us to just have four or five people. When we came here to ask, it turned out to be true. Now it is almost certain that it was not an accident, nor was it lost. It was stolen deliberately."

"How did you find out?" Shangluo asked.

"There are two beans working in this machine. One is responsible for shipping, and the other is responsible for making change. As mentioned before, the bean in charge of shipping had no idea about this, and the drinks rolled down by themselves. But there is indeed such a purchase record in the account book of the bean in charge of making change. This means that someone deliberately bypassed the bean encryption and put money in to avoid being discovered - this is what the beans said just now."

"How does this get around the encryption system?"

Shangluo remembered that this vending machine had the strictest encryption system: there was no membership card at all, nor any other physical authentication methods such as keys. The encryption method was that there was a Doudou inside with a roster to call out names, and only those who were on the list would be allowed to buy the red can of spiritual fluid.

Of course, for cost considerations and to pay Doudou a salary, Doudou actually manages all the drinks in this vending machine. This is a very popular job among Doudou, because you can control the throats of many people just by sitting here. As for being able to take a salary from the turnover of the vending machine, this is simply better than the other, great.

Theoretically, this method cannot be cracked because no one can hack into the roster in Doudou's hand. The roster is not even written in ordinary language, but in a "heavenly book" that only Doudou can understand.

Although these heavenly books can actually be understood by many Xuan cultivators besides ordinary people, they were originally written by those Xuan cultivators. However, this is a secret among secrets, and there is almost no possibility of leakage. Because even the Xuan cultivators who wrote these heavenly books cannot delete or modify the content that has been written on the spiritual network after the book is completed, and they cannot change the list that Doudou has downloaded.

"So the only thing that could go wrong is with Doudou?"

"In principle, this is the only way." Wen Yuan nodded, "Because only Doudou can operate this system to ship goods out. If there is a problem, it can only be Doudou. So we keep asking."

"So it's an interrogation." Shangluo lowered his voice.

"It's actually an interrogation. But we can't use coercive means on Doudou - after all, if it's a human, there's a possibility that he has accepted bribes or something. But Doudou can't do such a thing, because no one except the cultivators can communicate with Doudou directly. Even most cultivators can only communicate normally. Except for the Xuan cultivators, no one can actually have any valuable exchanges with Doudou. They can only give each other feedback on business matters."

"Like buying things?"

"Yes, it's mainly about behavioral interaction. Although the Heavenly Book is difficult for them to understand each other, they can communicate by buying and selling things. The only Doudou who has truly learned human language is the former young general in your hand."

[So don't underestimate the former young general. As a memetic life, he can learn and understand natural language, which is very impressive - this is enlightenment. Compared with other Doudou who can only read the "Book of Heaven", the former young general has evolved a whole level. To some extent, this is a manifestation of self-awareness. ]