Chapter 55 The First Mission of "North of Dawn"

The catering industry near schools is always booming, and Maple City No. 1 High School is no exception.

Built along the river, the teahouse cast a warm and gentle glow on the winter evening. Its overall visual effect was soft and elegant, making it the preferred gathering spot for Maple City's respectable folk to discuss matters.

Of course, those whose social circles were slightly more complex and required alcohol had no choice but to go elsewhere, as alcohol was strictly prohibited inside the teahouse.

Ouyang also liked to discuss business at the teahouse, mostly matters concerning the Student Union. His father had even gotten him a VIP parlor card, meaning he could ride on his old man's tab without touching his own allowance.

Another reason was that Ouyang's tolerance for alcohol was far from ideal.

"Ming-ge, the matter hasn't been fully investigated yet, but it seems someone temporarily intervened and squeezed out the final remnants of potential from the exam magical spirits... At least, that's what the magical spirits' autopsy report claims."

"Correct."

"Huh? You got the news too?"

"I did it."

"..."

Ouyang cast a surprised glance at Li Xingming as he sat down, though his expression quickly relaxed.

Li Xingming's style of action was difficult to explain using the mindset familiar to modern people. Instead, it possessed quite a bit of that eccentric, mystical temperament characteristic of the rangers from the Sixth Era's Fresnel Region.

Since both his good brother and childhood friend were taking this practical exam, he simply extended the lifespans of those magical spirits until the exam was over.

Regardless of how Li Xingming pulled it off, he had indeed achieved the desired result.

"What's the situation up top right now?" Li Xingming asked.

"Nothing much. The exams are over and done with, so the Education Bureau is living it up in peace and prosperity. The only place experiencing absolute chaos is Maple City No. 1 High School. Word is that the procurement department and logistics had a massive fallout in the principal's office."

"And then?"

"Logistics lost the arm-wrestling match and got hit with a suspension."

"?"

"Don't get worked up, Ming-ge. Have some tea first, have some tea."

Ouyang filled both of their cups with a pale-colored tea, which looked to be a white tea.

Some people felt that white tea tasted like chewing on tree leaves, but regardless, white tea was indeed well-suited for modern people whose spleens and stomachs were overburdened with grease, and it was superior to ordinary fermented teas when it came to clearing the lungs and reducing internal heat.

And a cool-down was definitely needed. When Ouyang first received the news, he had been furious and had already downed an entire pot before Li Xingming arrived.

Li Xingming took a sip of the tea and said calmly, "I'm not angry. Based on what you said earlier, it sounds like there's something wrong with our school's procurement department."

"Right? I think so too. If Ming-ge hadn't stepped in to cover for them, the students would have taken the fall this time. On what grounds? Sure, the school's procurement department has been shameless and thick-skinned for more than a day or two, but there has to be a bottom line, right?"

Clearly, Ouyang was extremely dissatisfied with how the whole incident had played out and was itching to stir up some trouble.

This wasn't just the impotent rage of an ordinary armchair political pundit; Ouyang had resources, methods, a clear head, and the drive to act.

Even before he became the Student Union president, he had repeatedly spearheaded efforts to fight for the rights and interests of the students on campus.

In theory, student leaders should indeed represent the interests of the students, but in actual practice, the exact opposite usually happened.

Ouyang's style was drastically different from the vast majority of student presidents. What made him truly rare was that while leading the charge, he still managed to win the favor of the school's leadership—a delicate art of balancing interests. Because of this, Li Xingming had always felt that Ouyang was a man destined to accomplish big things.

"What does your dad think?"

"My old man? He said he's already put pressure on the principal."

"And what about the Education Bureau?"

"The director is getting transferred right after the New Year. Cough, cough—that guy is a cadre sent down from the capital for seasoning, so he's not someone we want to offend lightly."

"No way!" Li Xingming raised an objection. "Precisely because he's about to step down, we must seize the opportunity to cause him some trouble! Those scumbags, dropping in from above and treating the locals like dirt? Even the imperial commissioners of the Sixth Era weren't this arrogant!"

"Well said! Sigh, but they're tight as a fortress. I was thinking, if we want a breakthrough, our best bet is to win over the head of procurement and hope he turns on them, but I don't have high hopes for that..."

"Is there a possibility that if we really want to make that bastard of a director pay, we'll need to use methods outside the framework? 'If the iron hammer of absence strikes, violence shall become the sharp edge of justice.'"

"...What on earth?" The latter sentence was spoken in the Cyriana language, which Ouyang didn't understand.

"Famous quote from the leader of the human crusade squad against the Demon King in the Sixth Era," Li Xingming offered a mysterious smile. "If you don't mind, Yang-gou, you can submit a commission to North of Dawn. Perhaps you'll become our agency's first client."

"Hiss, I heard you signed a contract with Ye Sheng. In that case, you guys really are a formal agency now."

"Give me a bit more information, and I'll help you find a breakthrough."

"Deal!"

The two talked until nine-thirty.

The tea had grown tasteless.

The plan for administering righteous execution had roughly taken shape.

"Then it's settled. We'll tentatively plan the operation for tomorrow night and keep in touch until then."

"Got it. As for the compensation..."

"I have no interest in your pocket money. Just feed us more inside information from now on."

"So basically, I'm going to be your informant?"

"You can look at it that way."

"Haha, I suppose by extension I'm now an unofficial member of North of Dawn..."

The reason he called himself an unofficial member was because Ouyang remembered Li Xingming mentioning that his fate-pattern was quite unique; if he served as the team leader, all other members had to be female.

The concept of a "fate-pattern" was still considered pure metaphysics in contemporary transcendental academic circles, and debates regarding its existence were ongoing.

Yet Ouyang believed Li Xingming wasn't just talking nonsense.

Whenever this guy looked like he was playing the mystic, subsequent events almost always proved that Li Xingming was right.

Besides, Ouyang had no ambition to join a combat agency anyway; his ultimate aspirations lay in the political arena. Only by reaching a sufficiently high position could he apply his specialized skills and realize his ideals and ambitions.

Putting aside brotherhood and camaraderie for a moment, purely from the perspective of self-interest, becoming a senior partner of "North of Dawn" was crucial for his future development.

After all, many matters in the gray zones could simply not be accomplished through the conventional operations taught in "Public Administration" programs...

Time to settle the bill.

Ouyang hurriedly hailed a cab to head home.

It was best to get back before ten o'clock, or his stepmother would start nagging again.

Passing the awakening test was a near certainty. He needed to get some good rest over the next few days to get his body into top condition, ready to use the awakening potion once it was distributed.