Chapter 161: Exchange Students

Jiang Mohe looked into his mismatched eyes—one blue, one green—and frowned slightly. "Is this your signature look?"

"Ha!" The young man chuckled. "Is the client not satisfied? Then I can change it."

Disguise was just a piece of cake!

Jiang Mohe didn't waste words with him. "This job will be dangerous."

The youth shrugged. "As long as the pay is enough!"

In their line of work, when was there ever no danger? The greater the danger, the higher the price!

"I don't like people who double-cross halfway through."

With a flick of Jiang Mohe's finger, a thin thread grazed the youth's earlobe, shattering the diamond stud on it.

A chill ran down the youth's spine, and the smile on his lips stiffened somewhat. "How could that be? I, Hu Yingying, am a man of my word!"

Jiang Mohe asked, "What is your relation to the Hu family?"

The youth pulled off the ruined stud, dropped it into the coffee cup in front of him, and said with self-mockery, "Strictly speaking, there's some blood relation. But... I'm a defective product!"

Outcasts didn't care about the depth of blood ties; they only looked at strength. Those with too-weak special abilities were deemed "defective products" by the family and were generally omitted from the family genealogy.

"However, my professional skills are top-notch, guaranteed to satisfy you, client!" The youth resumed his flippant demeanor.

Jiang Mohe hadn't failed to run a background check on him, so he offered a reminder: "Don't expose your identity."

"Rest assured!" the youth swore solemnly.

Only when he looked at the files sent by Jiang Mohe did he finally understand why Jiang Mohe had sought him out.

"Xian Yu'er?" The youth's eyes widened.

Then, glancing at the gloves on Jiang Mohe's hands, a wave of realization washed over him. "You're Xian Yu'er's oppa brother?!"

Jiang Mohe: "..."

At noon, after Xian Yuqing, Bai Liyao, and Zhai Yan'er finished lunch together, they sat chatting in the small woods.

Bai Liyao wasn't usually one for many words, but whenever the topic turned to his research projects, he could talk endlessly.

In the past, Zhai Yan'er would have chimed in with a few remarks, but today she remained unusually quiet.

Noticing something amiss, Xian Yuqing asked, "Yan'er, is something on your mind?"

Zhai Yan'er answered gloomily, "My stepmom is back!"

Previously, Xian Yuqing and the others had heard her mention how particularly dramatic her stepmom was and that she didn't get along well with the siblings.

Bai Liyao advised, "Just pay her less mind."

Zhai Yan'er sighed. "You haven't met her, so you don't know how annoying she is! My brother hasn't even wanted to go home these past few days."

Xian Yuqing couldn't fathom what kind of woman could intimidate someone as formidable in the business world as Zhai Muli.

"Ugh, let's not talk about her anymore," Zhai Yan'er waved a hand. "Qingqing, I heard your history department is visiting the academy's museum tomorrow for a study tour. Is that true?"

Liyang Academy's History Museum boasted the most complete collection of historical materials in Country C, equipped with state-of-the-art technology.

Even students outside the history department longed to visit. However, the academy's rule was strict: non-history students were barred from entering.

Xian Yuqing was also looking forward to it. "Mm. But we aren't allowed to bring cell phones inside; we can only recount what we see to you guys later."

Since it housed precious historical documents, all electronic devices were strictly prohibited.

Bai Liyao looked somewhat regretful. "What a pity! Had I known, I would have signed up to audit history classes."

As the three chatted happily, a commotion arose nearby.

Zhai Yan'er curled her lip. "Here they come again!"

Recently, a few exchange students from other countries had arrived at the academy. Among them was a tall, blond-haired handsome man from Country Z, who had instantly become the darling of female students, attracting a level of enthusiastic pursuit rivaling Nangong Lü's popularity back in the day.

Now, wherever he went, several fan girls followed in his wake. Zhai Yan'er detested such flamboyant people the most!

Hearing the noise drawing closer, Xian Yuqing said, "Let's break up for today and meet the day after tomorrow."

With that, Bai Liyao and Zhai Yan'er headed toward the astronomy department, while Xian Yuqing took a detour back to the history department.

Just as she stepped out of the woods, she spotted a blond youth holding a map, standing bewildered at a fork in the road, gesturing back and forth while muttering to himself.

He looked decidedly lost.

Xian Yuqing stood in place, hesitating whether to go over and help. Her foreign language skills were abysmal; she lacked the courage to make a fool of herself!

At that moment, the youth turned, spotted her, and quickly walked toward her.

"Xian... Fairy classmate, could you tell me the way to the History Department?" Hu Yingying almost slipped up.

Noticing his foreign appearance yet fluent native tongue, Xian Yuqing asked with curiosity, "Aren't you an exchange student from Country Z?"

Hu Yingying grinned broadly. "I am. But my mother is from Country C, so I speak the language."

Understanding dawned on Xian Yuqing, who then asked, "Since you know the language, how come you can't read the road signs and map?"

Hu Yingying wiped a sweat. "I have a poor sense of direction..."

He was directionally challenged!

Well, although Jiang Mohe had warned her that morning to be wary of strangers, this classmate didn't seem particularly lethal. It should be fine, right?

Pondering for a moment, Xian Yuqing told him, "You want the History Department? I'm a student there; I'll take you."

"Ah, thank you so much!" After expressing his gratitude, Hu Yingying enthusiastically introduced himself. "My name is Hu Ying, a freshman. Fairy classmate, what's your name?"

"Xian Yuqing."

"Eh... Is 'Xian' a surname in Country C?"

"Xianyu, a double-barreled surname."

"Oh, I see!"

In the afternoon, Ajiu returned.

After being severely lectured by her older brother back home, she had tucked in quite a few of her thorns this time.

Aqi also put in a good word for her with Jiang Mohe. "Cangyu, Ajiu can be a bit immature at times, but she never messes up when it matters most. Will you give her another chance?"

Jiang Mohe simply looked at Ajiu. "If you don't respect your employer, you can't do your job well."

Ajiu protested, unconvinced, "I can do it well!"

"I hope you remember your words."

Giving her one final warning, Jiang Mohe went to pick up Xian Yuqing.

Aqi quietly reminded Ajiu, "Remember, no matter what you think of the young lady, she is the boss's most valued person right now, so we must protect her."

Ajiu muttered in response, "Got it."

When she had returned to Dihong Plaza earlier, Bai Luomei had put it even more bluntly: "An insubordinate subordinate is of no use!"

Previously, because she was a female and had her brother looking after her, she had been allowed to indulge herself to the point of forgetting her position.

Through this incident, she finally understood that personal biases had no place in their line of work.

When Xian Yuqing returned, Ajiu, under Aqi's supervision, apologized to her. "Sorry, Miss, I shouldn't have spoken those harsh words to you earlier. Please be magnanimous and give me a chance to turn over a new leaf..."

Su Cha curled her lip in secret. Those words sounded distinctly memorized!

Xian Yuqing knew that given Ajiu's stubborn personality, apologizing on her own accord was practically impossible.

Yet, unwilling to dwell on the matter, she replied, "It's fine. Were I in your place, I wouldn't have been convinced either. How about we have a sparring match?"

"What?!" Ajiu thought she had misheard.