Chapter 228: Chapter 227: Xia He: I Can’t Stand to See You Peerless Geniuses Lying Flat

He had just sent the message.

A few minutes later, Xia He showed up directly at his office.

"This tea is amazing, Old Qin! After I went back, my energy just skyrocketed. Do you have any more? I’m planning to get some for my old man, too."

Xia He, dressed in his police uniform, sat brazenly on the sofa and expertly brewed himself a pot of tea.

He glanced around at the office decor,

the envy and jealousy in his eyes practically spilling out.

Qin Yang shook his head. "I only brewed a little, there isn’t much. It’s something I tinkered with in my spare time. I felt it was similar to Alchemy... I thought it made sense, so I tried it. I didn’t expect the effect to be this good."

"Ah, alright then!"

Hearing this, Xia He sipped his wellness tea and sighed heavily.

’His expression...’

’His tone...’

’It was as if he’d just missed out on a hundred million!’

’How was this effect merely ’good’?’

These past few days, he had made time to come over for tea and had benefited greatly!

He could pull all-nighters without feeling tired, and his energy levels throughout the day were excellent. More miraculously, his vitality was unusually vigorous, giving him a surprising amount of stamina!

He had even taken the used tea leaves back to work.

He’d nearly made his colleagues at the Jianghai Police Bureau cry with envy, all of them trying every trick in the book to ask him for a hookup.

It was a good thing he was tight-lipped, or he really would have exposed Qin Yang.

"Damn it, Old Qin! I’m so jealous of you, man."

Xia He blew on the steam from his tea, looking at Qin Yang with a hint of resentment. "Forget everything else. If you went out and just sold tea with this skill of yours, it would absolutely sell like hotcakes.

I’m tempted to just grant you the rank of Grandmaster Tea Art Realm myself!"

As he spoke, he moved closer to Qin Yang, draping an arm over his shoulder and dreaming aloud.

"So, what do you think? I’d definitely invest. First, we’ll hit a small goal, then expand into a huge chain. The money will just pour into our pockets... And then, hehe, we’ll get like, ten Platinum Hans..."

"Wipe your drool."

Qin Yang glanced at the drool about to drip from the corner of Xia He’s mouth. "Don’t get it on my employee ID."

"Tsk, fine, fine."

Xia He wiped his mouth and said with a laugh, "I’ve never seen you be such a neat freak. So? What do you think about what I just said?"

"Open a shop?"

Qin Yang pursed his lips. "Maybe next time."

"Then what are you doing this time?"

"Slacking off."

"..."

Xia He fell silent.

’That’s it!?’

’He has this kind of skill and he’s still just slacking off?’

’I just can’t stand to see you peerless geniuses just coasting through life!’

But on second thought...

Xia He’s gaze fell on Qin Yang’s employee ID. The embroidered golden word ’Steward’ was dazzling. He could only give up on the idea.

’Knowing Old Qin’s personality, he learned all these skills purely as a hobby. With just a little casual research, he’d reach the peak of the field. He didn’t care about worldly wealth; he just stayed at the library for the peace and quiet.’

The more you compared yourself to him, the more infuriating it was.

He had gotten used to it long ago.

"Ah, alright. You’ve been promoted to Steward now, anyway."

Realizing this, Xia He didn’t press the issue. He just lowered his head and sipped his tea. "Just keep up the good work. Your future will be limitless. Become the director, marry his daughter, and reach the pinnacle of life..."

"You flatter me."

Qin Yang just smiled, noncommittal. "You were promoted to Police Chief. Your rank is advancing faster than mine. You’ll definitely go further than I will."

After all...

Now that Xia He had been promoted, he was managing a small team of over a dozen people.

He had a whole entourage.

He’d occasionally see Xia He leading the way on the street, riding his police motorcycle and cruising down the main road, followed by a squad of heavily armored guards geared up from head to toe.

He really cut a figure, second to none!

"Promotion? You have no idea, Old Qin. This job is unbelievably tiring."

Hearing this, Xia He couldn’t help but shake his head and sigh.

"Ever since the city defense against the Beast Tide, the Jianghai Police Bureau’s reputation has really taken off. So many people are applying to join that the system has crashed several times..."

"More people?"

"Isn’t that a good thing?"

Qin Yang sounded surprised. "Doesn’t more people mean the police bureau’s forces will be stronger? With a full staff, it’ll be even easier for you to slack off."

"Tsk, that’s where you’re wrong..."

Xia He sighed heavily and waved his hand in resignation. "More people means more trouble, Old Qin... I’ve got a revolving door of recruits, all of them damn greenhorns who just joined the force.

Because I distinguished myself fighting the Cult Demons, the Commander has given me a special assignment: training new recruits every day. My head is spinning from how busy I am. It’s all thanks to your wellness tea that I’m even alive."

With that, he looked at Qin Yang with longing.

"I’m so jealous of your quiet life..."

"What’s there to be jealous of?"

Qin Yang shrugged. "That authority of yours, the more of it you have, the better. If something comes up in the future, I’ll have to rely on you for help."

As soon as the words left his mouth...

"Hah, you rely on me?!"

Xia He rolled his eyes, his tone exasperated. "Who are you trying to fool? You know ’a little bit’ of everything. The moment you step out of the library, anywhere you go, people will be fighting to hire you.

One day, when I’ve fallen on hard times, I’ll be the one relying on you."

"Is that so."

Qin Yang smiled, not wanting to dwell on the topic of his skills any longer.

Getting bogged down in it would only hurt his friend’s confidence, which wasn’t a good thing to do.

So, he changed the subject directly. "Look on the bright side. Jianghai is peaceful now. It’s not bad to steal a moment of leisure from a busy schedule."

"That’s true." Hearing this, Xia He scratched his head. "It’s better to have some peace. Everything is finally over. I’d rather teach these greenhorns than go back to the night of the Beast Tide."

The battle for the city’s defense was still vivid in his mind.

’Is it really over...?’

Hearing this, Qin Yang’s brows furrowed. He felt a sense of unease, recalling the Cult Demon who had self-detonated.

Although Jianghai was peaceful now...

...how long could this calm last?

The Beast God Sect had lost two high-ranking members. They definitely wouldn’t let it go.

This silence was only temporary.

The calm before the storm. If Jianghai City wanted days of peace and stability, it still had a long road ahead.

「...」

「Time passed leisurely.」

After Xia He had rested enough in the office, he managed to squeeze some more tea leaves out of Qin Yang. He didn’t even spare the already-brewed goji berries, packing everything up to take with him.

He called it "recycling," for goodness’ sake.

It was a bit of a pathetic sight.

’Oh well, I’ll just give him a few full tins next time.’

Qin Yang felt helpless.

After all, making this tea had been a whim.

He hadn’t expected the effect to be so good. Judging by Xia He’s reaction, he clearly couldn’t get enough of it.

After Xia He left, Xiaobai reverted to her little loli form and continued to sit on the sofa, her eyes glued to the screen.

’Is this silly fox really that addicted?’

Qin Yang glanced at Xiaobai, not bothering with her as she crushed noobs on the side. He sank back into the Enlightenment Space to contemplate the Sun-Shooting Bow.

Ever since he comprehended the Sun-Shooting Arrow Spell...

...his connection with the Sun-Shooting Bow, an Emperor Level Divine Weapon, had been steadily strengthening.

’It probably won’t be long before I can reach a higher Realm.’

However, not long after he had sunk into his contemplation...

DING—

...his phone buzzed. A message had arrived in the Stewards’ group chat.

"Hm?"

Qin Yang took out his phone and glanced at it. It was a message from the Stewards’ group chat, and it had tagged @everyone.

[As the end of the month approaches, based on performance reviews, this month’s outstanding employees have been announced. The specific list is as follows: Xia Qingwan... Li Qing, Qin Yang...]

He gave the list a cursory glance.

Qin Yang didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

As expected.

His name was on the list again.

In the past few days, since he’d just taken office as a Steward, he had barely even warmed his office chair, yet the bonuses and performance awards kept rolling in, and his paycheck kept getting bigger.

Qin Yang didn’t have to think hard to guess who was pulling the strings behind the scenes. It was Li Qinghe, trying all sorts of ways to suck up to him.

’She must be plotting something.’

Just as he was thinking this...

KNOCK KNOCK—

A knock came from the door.

"Master! It’s me! May your disciple come in?"

Li Qinghe’s voice sounded from outside the door.

Hearing her voice, Qin Yang raised an eyebrow.

’Speak of the devil.’

"Come in."

The moment he spoke, the office door opened and Li Qinghe walked in eagerly. She was carrying gifts in her hands, which she piled directly onto his desk.

It was a dazzling, bewildering array of various gifts.

"What is the meaning of this?"

Qin Yang sat at his desk, calm and composed. He took a document from a drawer and began signing it, not even glancing up at her.

"It’s nothing, Master. Just a small token of my appreciation..."

Li Qinghe smiled sweetly, came up behind Qin Yang, and started massaging his shoulders. "Did you see the message in the Steward group chat? You’ve been working hard these past few days, Master, so your disciple arranged a few small rewards for you."

As she spoke...

...Li Qinghe secretly observed Qin Yang’s reaction.

Over the past few days, she had racked her brain for a way to advance her "grand plan to move up a generation."

Xuanxuan was in seclusion right now, so this was the perfect opportunity for her to shine.

As long as she seized this chance to meet the Grandmaster, she’d be set.

This was an opportunity not to be missed.

Everything depended on this!

"Master, Jianghai City has been peaceful these past few days. Do you think I might have a chance?"

Thinking this, Li Qinghe stood before the desk, tucked her short hair, and said softly, "Grandmaster shouldn’t be too busy right now. I... your disciple would like to meet him."

"You want to meet the Grandmaster that badly?"

Qin Yang kept his head down, signing the document, feeling a little exasperated by her pestering. "The old man has been a bit busy lately. Whether he can see you or not depends on the situation."

"Master, even if I haven’t made any great contributions, I’ve still put in the hard work."

Li Qinghe fidgeted and said softly, "I’ve been working my butt off for you, Master, and I’ve even taken care of a lot of your workplace troubles... As long as you take me to see him, I promise I’ll never bother you about it again!"

As soon as she finished speaking...

...the room fell silent for a moment. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

Qin Yang looked up at her, thinking for a moment.

’What she said does make sense.’

’If it weren’t for Li Qinghe pulling strings behind the scenes, my job as a Steward probably wouldn’t be this easy.’

’Besides...’

’If just one meeting with the ’Grandmaster’ can solve this problem once and for all, it would be good to get this silly girl’s idea out of her head.’

’It would save me a lot of trouble.’

Thinking of this, Qin Yang nodded. "Fine. In that case, come find me in three days. I’ll personally take you to meet the Grandmaster."