Tengxiao fell silent for a moment before asking, "So... did you stamp it?"
Xiaolin answered with complete confidence, "Of course I stamped it."
If anyone else overheard this conversation, they'd probably burst out laughing.
Tengxiao couldn't laugh at all.
He roughly understood Xiaolin's intentions now.
At first, the Divination Commission had discovered fragments of abomination remains while inspecting a package.
Most people probably would've just sent a subordinate to ask a few questions.
But Xiaolin was different.
Despite being buried in official work and overseeing countless members of the Divination Commission, he still made time to pay attention to his subordinates.
Of course, no matter how much he cared, all he could really do was ask a few questions before turning back to his duties.
Which eventually led to a series of misunderstandings when Xiaolin met Jingliu.
Tengxiao thought that was perfectly reasonable.
If not for that person's special status... why would Xiaolin care about a subordinate's love life? Why would he pay attention to some diviner from the Divination Commission?
Xiaolin had been trying to protect that person.
A diviner and a Master Diviner were not the same thing.
If a diviner was threatened, all they needed to do was report it to the Cloud Knight leadership at camp, and the matter would be handled according to regulations.
At worst, the offender would receive a pay cut, a disciplinary mark, and repeated "heart-to-heart talks" from the Cloud Knight leadership.
Or the Cloud Knights would simply drag the offender directly to the Ten-Lords Commission.
Unfortunately, Jingliu herself happened to be one of the Cloud Knight higher-ups.
And that was one of the reasons Xiaolin had sought out General Tengxiao today.
He sincerely admired every single Cloud Knight.
Without the Cloud Knight Army, where would their current lives even come from?
The Cloud Knights absolutely had the right to exercise certain privileges.
But that didn't mean they could rewrite the rules however they pleased.
First, Jingliu had requested leave on Zero's behalf.
Ever since Zero had been transferred to the archives, Xiaolin hadn't seen this subordinate of his for a long time.
He simply assumed the two had resolved their misunderstandings and entered a closer relationship.
From Xiaolin's perspective, Jingliu's actions... were a little unethical.
Zero had only just reached legal marriage age! Jingliu was clearly taking advantage of her experience to fool some young kid.
But since the two were mutually in love, Xiaolin didn't feel it was appropriate to say much more.
Jingliu requesting leave for her partner... no problem there.
But when Jingliu handed over the marriage paperwork, Xiaolin became suspicious.
Before he'd even finished stamping the forms, she requested access to her subordinate's employment records.
How could Xiaolin possibly agree to that?
And then what happened?
The Cauldron Master of the Alchemy Commission also spoke on Jingliu's behalf, requesting the files under the excuse of internal review procedures.
He suspected Jingliu was coercing his subordinate.
That was why Xiaolin had no choice but to bring the matter up while reporting to General Tengxiao.
Xianzhou people were famously protective of their own.
Both Xiaolin and Tengxiao valued their subordinates deeply.
He believed the General would not necessarily reprimand Jingliu over a mere diviner.
And if Zero followed normal procedure and reported the matter to the Cloud Knights...
Wouldn't that just be the equivalent of Zero calling the police, only for Jingliu's jade abacus to start ringing beforehand?
No matter how serious the matter was, it would eventually be swept aside.
But if the person being threatened was the Master Diviner of the Divination Commission?
The nature of the issue changed instantly.
Xiaolin continued, "General, I'm merely a frail diviner with no strength to truss up a chicken. How could I possibly compare to Cloud Knights who fight on the battlefield?"
Tengxiao opened his mouth and spoke with difficulty.
"Lord Xiao... you misunderstand."
"They're a match made in heaven."
Xiaolin's tone remained calm and even.
"Yes, after all, that person is an Emanator of the Reignbow Arbiter."
Tengxiao, "..."
"Lord Xiao, they truly are in love with each other!"
Jingliu absolutely wasn't forcing that person.
The moment Xiaolin heard this, his heart sank.
The General had repeatedly emphasized that the two were mutually in love.
Which meant they could only be mutually in love.
So Xiaolin could only sneak in a little sarcasm while agreeing.
"Yes, yes. As the old Xianzhou saying goes, 'If the woman's three years older, you gain bricks of gold.' Exactly how many years older is she again?"
"My subordinate's age probably isn't even a fraction of hers. Whether in status or position, it's my subordinate who's reaching above his station."
Tengxiao, "..."
He couldn't help wondering whether Jingliu's age even counted as a fraction of that person's.
'It probably did... right?'
Seeing that he'd made his point, Xiaolin shifted topics and brought up the results of his divinations.
The disturbance in Scalegorge Waterscape yesterday had been far too massive.
Two gigantic spirit entities had bowed toward a certain direction.
The deity whom the Xianzhou people had pursued for ages, the god who had never spoken to mortals, had once again descended upon the Luofu.
By convention, the Divination Commission should have gathered to perform calculations and deductions to determine the Luofu's future course, after which the news would be announced across the cosmos.
The IPC could not receive responses from Aeons.
But what about them?
Their Reignbow Arbiter had once again come to the Luofu.
Unfortunately, this incident involved that person.
That person did not wish for their identity to be exposed, so Tengxiao sealed all information. Even high-ranking Xianzhou officials like Xiaolin had only been told eight words, "The Reignbow Arbiter personally descended upon the Luofu."
Left with no choice, Xiaolin conducted his own divinations.
And that was when something went wrong.
That was also the main reason he had come to see Tengxiao.
Holding his jade abacus, Tengxiao recalled the location Xiaolin had divined and softly asked after some thought, "That place was Scalegorge Waterscape. You mean... the Vidyadhara?"
Before the other side could answer, Tengxiao continued, "You said earlier... doctors cannot heal themselves."
"So it's not the Vidyadhara. It's the Imbibitor Lunae."
"Looks like you don't trust him."
Xiaolin did not answer directly. Instead, he asked, "General, do you remember when the Vidyadhara first arrived on the Xianzhou?"
The Vidyadhara never experienced true death. Though each reincarnation was treated as a separate individual...
Dragon High Elders were different.
Over thousands of years, they accumulated immeasurable wealth and assets.
As the saying went, money could make even ghosts turn millstones.
By now, the Alchemy Commission had likely long become the territory of the Imbibitor Lunae.
Xiaolin steadied his thoughts.
"General, you were originally meant to die on the battlefield."
To outsiders, that would sound like a curse.
Tengxiao didn't think there was anything wrong with it.
There was only one thought in his mind.
As General, he possessed the blessing of the Reignbow Arbiter and the Spiritus.
If even he could not defeat the enemy... Then what about the other Cloud Knights?
The answer was obvious.
Tengxiao asked, "What about the Luofu?"
Did he and the others manage to protect the people?
Xiaolin let out a deep sigh.
"Many people will die."
Tengxiao remained silent for a while before asking again, "Because of the Imbibitor Lunae?"
Xiaolin paused before replying, "Yes... and no."
Both men fell silent.
The divinations of the Luofu's Master Diviner had never once been wrong.
Xiaolin said with difficulty, "General, forgive my lack of talent. I failed to calculate this tim..."
Tengxiao interrupted him, "Lord Xiao..."
Tengxiao chuckled softly, "Compared to divinations, palm lines, and all that..."
"I trust my own fists more."
He gently reassured his subordinate.
"Besides, even if you don't trust me, surely you trust the Reignbow Arbiter?"
Tengxiao lowered his voice.
"Lord Xiao, there's no need to worry. Yesterday, the Reignbow Arbiter was already at Scalegorge Waterscape."
Hearing this, Xiaolin finally relaxed a little.
After chatting with the General a bit longer, and just before ending the call, he once again turned the topic toward the Alchemy Commission.
"General, doctors cannot heal themselves."
"Those not of our kind must have different hearts."
"You absolutely cannot trust someone who uses authority for personal gain!"
Tengxiao held the jade abacus in one hand and the falsified marriage health report forged by Cauldron Master Dan Feng in the other as he replied,
"...Understood."
Unfortunately, he had failed Lord Xiao's expectations.
Not only Tengxiao himself, but even the Xianzhou Marshal belonged to the sort who abused authority for personal gain!
After Tengxiao explained his proposed plan to Guanliang and the Marshal, he calmly poured himself another cup of tea.
Hua and Guanliang exchanged glances and instantly reached an understanding.
That person would definitely be willing to marry Jingliu.
And after marriage, Jingliu would become the first-in-line heir.
Hua immediately chose the second proposal without hesitation.
"I'll give you half a system's worth of time."
Tengxiao nodded rapidly, "Yes."
He took a sip of tea and, after thinking it over several times, revealed the location Xiaolin had divined along with the results.
Hua considered it briefly before smiling.
"There's no need to worry."
"Of course, what should be investigated still needs to be investigated."
Tengxiao accepted the order and quickly disappeared from their sight.
Hua pulled documents from the file bag and carefully scanned through them without blinking, her eyes eventually landing on the section labeled "Opinion of Direct Supervisor."
It was blank.
She squeezed the file bag and, as expected, found a signing pen inside.
As expected of Tengxiao.
As expected of her subordinate.
Hua sorted through the remaining materials and handed them to Guanliang.
He casually flipped through them and immediately recognized Zero's signature, instantly determining whether it was genuine.
So that guy really hadn't been slept with...
Should he say it was expected?
Staring at the five large words "Marriage Application Form" on the page, he couldn't help smiling.
That genius favored by luck, the one who had survived several attempts on his life by Guanliang himself...
He probably still couldn't guess the truth, could he?
Guanliang took out his jade abacus and, pretending to act casually while actually being extremely cautious, photographed only half of the form before sending it to Zandar.
———
On the other side, after receiving the message, the expression on Zandar's face gradually disappeared.
He stared at Jingliu's name in silence for a very long time.
'No...'
'I told you to sleep with him, and you actually did it?!'