As the saying goes:
“Thirty percent fate, seventy percent hard work.”
Different people have different interpretations of this phrase.
But Li An completely disagreed with it.
Because in his eyes...
It was ten parts fate, and success depended entirely on luck.
“Look, it's Section Chief Li An!”
“I heard he was selected as Official of the Year by the Evaluation Department.”
“Haven't you noticed? Just the way he walks has a special presence...”
“Damn it.”
“I want to be friends with him too.”
The chatter from the street kept drifting into his ears.
Li An's ears tingled slightly.
He tried his best to avoid the crowd, quickening his pace as he entered his office.
However, the moment he stepped inside...
He saw a new portrait hanging on the wall.
It was a portrait rendered by a master painter.
The Li An in the painting was deliberately beautified.
Standing tall and upright.
With a confident expression.
Even his ordinary features had been painted with a heroic aura.
Below the portrait was written:
【Li An Adolf — Official of the Year】
Li An fell silent.
He had originally held onto a sliver of hope.
He thought the hot spring that suddenly sprouted on the Desolate Plain was just a fluke.
Perhaps the hype would die down after a while.
However...
Reality gave him a harsh slap in the face.
Not only did it not die down...
It became more popular by the day.
There were even rumors...
That the hot spring contained trace amounts of mana.
Soaking in it just once was enough to improve one's physical condition.
Thus...
The Desolate Plain became one of the hottest tourist destinations in the entire empire.
The standing of the Evaluation Department rose rapidly as a result.
And the person standing right at the center of the storm...
Was none other than Li An.
“Hello.”
“I've been watching you for a long time.”
“Lately, every time I see you, my heart beats faster.”
“After work tonight at six o'clock...”
“Please accept my invitation.”
Li An even began receiving love letters.
And quite a lot of them, at that.
Of course...
He knew very well.
These so-called “feelings of admiration”...
Weren't genuine at all.
They simply wanted to use his status to climb the social ladder.
The stationery looked quite high quality.
When burned...
It worked really well too.
Just right to serve as fuel for the office fireplace.
“Ah, Section Chief Li An.”
“You're here.”
A familiar voice sounded.
Li An looked up.
It was Kane.
Section Chief of Section One in the Evaluation Department.
“This is my office,” Li An said deadpan. “Isn't it completely normal for me to be here?”
“Hahaha.”
Kane laughed heartily.
“I thought you were so busy lately that you'd be out handling matters frequently.”
Although the comment carried a hint of teasing...
Kane didn't mind Li An's cold tone at all.
Lately...
Kane had been coming to Li An's office frequently.
It seemed...
He truly acknowledged Li An.
If it were any other head of a section...
They probably would have taken the initiative to fawn over Kane long ago.
After all...
Kane was the true power core of the Evaluation Department.
But Li An was different.
He wished he could sever these connections immediately.
It would be best if everyone hated him.
“Is there something you need?” Li An asked.
“Haven't you heard?”
“There's a banquet tonight.”
A banquet?
Hearing that word...
Memories of his past life instantly surged into Li An's mind.
That disgusting drinking culture.
A group of people constantly forcing drinks down each other's throats.
Once they drank themselves silly...
They'd pat their chests and guarantee:
“I'll definitely follow you from now on!”
And then a few hours later...
They'd be hugging a lamppost and vomiting.
This world...
Seemed to be much the same.
“Do I have to attend?”
“Of course.”
Kane nodded as if it went without saying.
“You're the man of the hour right now.”
“What did I even do?” Li An couldn't help but ask back.
Kane showed an incredulous expression.
“You still don't know?”
“You unearthed a magic stone improvement technique that was almost buried.”
“Then you personally inspected the Desolate Plain and developed the hot spring tourism area.”
“All of these have brought immense profits to the empire.”
Listening to this...
Li An felt like he was listening to the deeds of some great historical figure.
“...”
Is this a celebration banquet for a legendary hero?
He almost wanted to cover his ears.
“Besides...”
Kane continued:
“You're only late by ten minutes every day.”
Li An fell silent.
“Are there any officials in the empire who are never late?”
“As far as I know, none.”
“...”
I must leave this godforsaken place.
Li An reaffirmed his determination once more.
However...
Why did he feel like he had thought the exact same thing before?
“An illusion.”
“It must be an illusion.”
Imperial Capital — Whale's Breath Restaurant.
“What is our toast?”
“To the Barba Empire?”
“No.”
“A real toast should come from the heart.”
“Then...”
“To us retiring safely!”
“To getting our full pensions!”
“And living out the rest of our lives on that pension!”
“Cheers!”
The place Li An had been dragged to against his will...
Was one of the most luxurious restaurants in the capital.
—Whale's Breath.
According to what he knew...
The prices here were high beyond the imagination of average wage earners.
Even for the wealthy...
Coming here once would mean bleeding serious money.
Yet right now...
A group of civil servants in imperial uniforms...
Had booked an entire floor.
The noise level...
Was practically like a gangster gathering from movies in his past life.
“Li An, eat more.”
“You won't get many chances to come to Whale's Breath in the future.”
“And don't you think?”
“Food paid for with taxpayers' money just tastes different.”
“It's exceptionally delicious.”
“...”
“I am eating.”
The Minister of the Evaluation Department had a face full of smiles, continuously piling food onto Li An's plate.
And...
He was sitting right next to Li An.
To make matters worse...
Sitting on Li An's other side was Kane.
Section Chief of Section One in the Evaluation Department.
Two powerful figures...
Sandwiched him in the middle.
The pressure was immense.
In the distance...
Many officials cast envious gazes over.
In their eyes...
This was practically the golden seat of the empire's future top leadership.
Golden seat?
What a joke.
This was clearly a direct path to the scaffold.
If a rebellion broke out in the future...
The ones liquidated wouldn't just be the imperial family.
A massive number of high-ranking officials would be purged too.
Low-ranking officials were actually much more likely to survive.
But...
It was already too late.
“By the way, Li An.”
After having some drinks, the Minister of the Evaluation Department asked earnestly:
“How on earth did you discover the hot spring on the Desolate Plain?”
Li An didn't hesitate.
“Good luck.”
“Haha.”
The minister shook his head.
“It's just us here.”
“Can't you be candid for once?”
“It's true,” Li An said seriously. “I just got lucky.”
No matter how others asked...
His answer wouldn't change.
Because...
That was the truth.
“Unwilling to share your secrets even with your superior?”
The minister feigned disappointment.
“Tsk.”
“Li An, I really misjudged you.”
With that...
He whistled and walked away.
Seemingly heading to the bathroom.
Li An had a bewildered look on his face.
When did he ever hold expectations for me in the first place?
He couldn't figure it out.
So...
He continued eating meat.
At least...
The food was indeed delicious.
Without these delicacies...
He wouldn't have been able to endure this drinking party at all.
“Interesting.”
On the other side...
Kane nodded thoughtfully.
He seemed to have realized something.
“What's wrong?” Li An asked in confusion.
However, he had no idea...
That Kane was re-evaluating him.
A young man...
Facing continuous questioning from his superior...
Yet still firmly keeping the secret.
This was not the caution of an ordinary person.
This was the composure of someone with immense potential.
In Kane's mind...
His rating of Li An rose once again.
It was a banquet that caused Li An immense agony.
The next day.
Li An came to the office.
And then...
He froze.
The desk was piled high with gifts.
“These are persimmons sent from my hometown. They're currently in season and very sweet.”
“This is our shop's latest design of clothing. It suits you very well.”
“These are meticulously selected fresh flowers.”
At first...
It was just food.
Clothes.
Flowers.
Later...
It turned into all sorts of expensive gifts.
Even some completely useless ornaments.
The givers...
Included farmers.
Successful merchants.
Flower shop owners.
Li An had a face full of confusion.
Just then, Kane happened to walk into the office.
“What are these?”
“Nothing much,” Kane said nonchalantly. “Just bribes.”
“It seems you've finally reached the stage where you start receiving gifts.”
Li An's eyes widened.
“Aren't officials forbidden from accepting bribes?”
Kane had a look of utter shock.
“What crazy nonsense are you talking about?”
“...”
“Forget it.”
Li An fell silent.
It seemed the common sense of this medieval fantasy world...
Indeed had some differences from modern society.
However...
These gifts were useless to him.
So Li An packed them all up.
And then...
Under the identity of the “tall and big uncle”...
He secretly sent them to the orphanage where Irene was staying.
This would serve as an insurance policy for the future.
“By the way,” Kane said.
“You are now a Sixth-Rank official.”
“According to regulations...”
“You are entitled to an assistant.”
“Do you have any candidate in mind?”
“No.”
“Then I'll help you filter out some outstanding talents.”
“I'll compile a list for you.”
“Sorry for the trouble.”
That evening...
Kane returned again.
In his arms was a large stack of profiles.
“So many people?” Li An was shocked.
“Your reputation is too big right now.”
“There are a vast number of applicants.”
“I've already filtered them.”
“The ones left are all elites.”
Li An began reviewing the profiles.
The first one.
Male.
Knight.
Formerly served in the “Machine Four” order of knights.
Stated his willingness to provide 24/7 personal protection without blind spots.
However...
Written on the profile:
“Extremely dangerous personality.”
“Rejected.”
The second one.
Female.
Mage.
Formerly researched dark magic in the Magic Tower.
Later recruited by the empire due to causing a disturbance.
Reason:
“Hopes to study Li An's brain.”
“...”
Is this person crazy?
“Rejected.”
After that...
There were famous accountants.
Descendants of nobles.
All kinds of talents.
It gave Li An a headache just reading them.
“Just pick anyone.”
“Honestly, it doesn't matter.”
Anyway, he didn't plan on working seriously.
Kane, however, had a serious expression.
“Understood.”
“I will take charge.”
“I'll definitely select the person most suitable for you.”
Li An watched him clench his fists.
He suddenly felt...
Was Kane taking this a bit too seriously?
A few days later.
Kane really brought an “outstanding talent.”
“Allow me to introduce her.”
“This is Miss Isha.”
Li An slowly looked up.
The next second...
His entire body froze.
Before him...
Stood a young girl with flowing, platinum-blonde hair.
Her eyes...
Looked as if they were set with sapphires.
In that instant...
Li An felt as if he had been struck by lightning.
“Pleased to meet you.”
“My name is Lia.”
She concealed her identity.
But Li An knew...
Who she was.
The future Empress of the empire.
The Third Princess.
Elizabeth.
“...”
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