Chapter 3: Don't Want to Work Overtime (1)
Liu Sheng's expression was calm, showing no signs of sadness or resentment.
Zhang Yuanzheng explained from the side, "Sir, you may not know, but among the three dimensions of cultivation, her Resilience and Comprehension Ability are extremely high, reaching over ninety points, but her Spirituality is extremely low, only a single digit."
The Imperial Censor suddenly understood.
Given Liu Sheng's conditions, if she hadn't applied to a small Weaving Institute like Li County's, she probably wouldn't even be able to be a Siku.
Even with Resilience and Comprehension Ability as high as ninety points, the Imperial Censor had only heard of three people with such talent to date, and those three were now legendary figures standing at the pinnacle of the Cultivation world.
But a single item, Spirituality, could veto everything.
Since God Manifestation First Year, Spiritual Qi had emerged into the world.
Some people could naturally sense Spiritual Qi but didn't know how to absorb it into their bodies. However, perhaps because the thoughts of plants and animals were purer, Spirit Beasts and Spirit Plants had already begun to appear in the wilderness.
But how to control or utilize this power was a long exploration for the people of the world.
After countless trials and errors, some people discovered that by devoutly worshipping the Supreme God, they could comprehend the methods of cultivation. These cultivation methods were not to be spoken of or passed on, and they varied from person to person, only obtainable through deep communication with the divine, which was "Communion with the Divine."
People called the innate ability to commune with the divine "Spirituality."
As long as Spirituality reached above twenty points, one could basically commune with the divine and cultivate. The higher the points, the greater the potential for cultivation. One in ten thousand people with Spirituality over twenty could cultivate, but those like Liu Sheng, with only single digits, were even rarer in the world.
And the prerequisite for participating in the imperial examination was to have reached the sixth stage of the Initial Realm in cultivation.
Cultivation Realms are divided into ten stages of the Initial Realm. Above the Initial Realm, from lowest to highest, are the Mingzhen Realm, Dongxuan Realm, and Shenzang Realm, with each Realm divided into Early, Middle, and Late Stages.
Someone like Zhang Yuanzheng, already a Cultivator in the Late Stage of the Mingzhen Realm, was definitely a top expert in Li County.
It is said that Taibai Sword Immortal, the top expert of Tang Country, had already reached the Shenzang Realm before entering seclusion. Now, a hundred years have passed, and it is unknown if he has made any Breakthrough.
No one knows what lies beyond Shenzang. In the past three hundred years, the number of Cultivators who could reach the Shenzang Realm was few and far between. They had basically gone into seclusion. Some said they had Ascended, while others said they had perished. In short, there were many different theories.
"So, she studied in the Tiangong Department at Hanshan Academy, and she indeed has considerable insight into weird objects analysis and Artifact Refining," Zhang Yuanzheng continued to explain to the Imperial Censor.
Most students who studied in the Tiangong Department were like Liu Sheng, people for whom Communion with the Divine and cultivation were hopeless. Although they had no Spiritual Qi in their bodies, they could still rely on special Magical Artifacts activated by Spirit Orbs for Artifact Refining, talisman drawing, and Formation. With these skills, they wouldn't have to worry about finding work after leaving the Academy.
"Like my Ghost Qi Detector, she improved it. It can also detect the concentration of Guai Qi, and its accuracy is much higher," Zhang Yuanzheng pulled out a palm-sized white jade tablet and showed it to the Imperial Censor.
"It was also that this subordinate saw that the old version could only detect general Guai Qi classifications, and thought that sometimes the intensity of the same level of weird objects varied greatly, causing many inconveniences for actual work, so I arranged for her to do it. I never thought she would actually succeed."
Zhang Yuanzheng had already come to terms with it. Although Liu Sheng had submitted to "cultivation theory" without telling him, if he hadn't reacted cleverly, he would have lost face in front of the Imperial Censor.
But this submission indeed did not require superior approval, and no matter how much she was valued by the higher-ups, she was still a person from his Li County Weaving Institute, which precisely showed his Wisdom Eye for talent and his proper guidance. She could never bypass him.
He also heavily emphasized his own contribution at the end.
Liu Sheng maintained a polite smile, showing exactly eight teeth, and nodded obediently, "It was still Yuan Zheng's excellent guidance. This subordinate only did some superficial work."
The Imperial Censor took the Ghost Qi Detector and studied it for a while, nodding in praise, "Not bad, Yongzhi, you put your heart into it. This is worth promoting."
...
Liu Sheng did not attend the luncheon with the Imperial Censor and Zhang Yuanzheng.
Although the Imperial Censor strongly invited her, Liu Sheng saw the extremely grim expression on Zhang Yuanzheng's face behind the Sir, and quickly declined, saying she still had paperwork to attend to.
Moreover, there was no seat for her anyway.
Those who could dine with the Imperial Censor were all officials of rank, such as the Yuan Zheng of the Weaving Institute, the Siku of various departments, and officials like the County Magistrate and County Deputy of the county yamen, as well as their nephews and nieces whom they intended to promote.
So, she was very discerning and quietly went to the cafeteria to quickly eat lunch, then returned to the Imperial Storage to handle paperwork.
What she told the Imperial Censor was not entirely an excuse, because she was indeed good at writing, so many of the Institute's paperwork tasks unknowingly fell to her. She was so busy that she was dizzy, but she still had to bite the bullet and do it.
She came from Little Green Garden, a remote mountain village in the north, a much smaller place than Li County. It was not easy for her to get into the Weaving Institute. Although it was only a Weaving Institute in a small place, it was still a place many people desperately wanted to enter. Many people in her town envied Liu Sheng's parents for raising a daughter who could enter the Weaving Institute, and people came every day with their children to learn from them.
She just wanted to hold onto this iron rice bowl steadily, as everyone said. She wasn't afraid of doing more work; it just showed that she was valued by her superiors and had more opportunities to stand out!
If she persevered, she might get a promotion and a raise someday. A higher position would mean better treatment when she retired at seventy. By then, she could return to her hometown in Little Green Garden, find a place with mountains and water, build a small courtyard, grow vegetables, fish, brew pine flower wine, and boil tea with spring water. Wouldn't that be wonderful?
While Liu Sheng blissfully fantasized about her happy life of retirement in the countryside, she walked into the Imperial Storage, where she toiled daily.
Although called a room, the Imperial Storage was actually a sizable courtyard, located in a quiet corner of the Weaving Institute.
As soon as one entered the courtyard, one could feel a powerful and solidified pressure enveloping the surroundings. That was the Formation that protected and simultaneously suppressed weird objects, centrally managed by the Weaving Bureau in the capital. Local Weaving Institutes could use basic storage and retrieval functions, but each retrieval would be recorded in the Weaving Bureau's register a thousand li away.
Liu Sheng's office was in the west corner of the courtyard. An old banyan tree stood at the entrance, its canopy hanging over the eaves, preventing any sunlight from penetrating, making it dark and damp.
Entering the room, Liu Sheng casually twisted the lamp on. In the soft light, she pulled out a scroll from her sleeve, which was the February issue of "cultivation theory."
Before leaving, the Imperial Censor took another copy and put it in her hand, shaking his head and sighing softly, "What a pity..."
Liu Sheng knew what he regretted.
The Imperial Censor's visit to Li County, and his specific mention of "cultivation theory," might have been with the intention of promoting her.
But as soon as he heard she couldn't commune with the divine, he naturally gave up on the idea.
Liu Sheng was not without resentment and hatred, but now, recalling it, not a ripple stirred in her heart.
She only wanted to do what she could now.
Liu Sheng suppressed her emotions, opened the first page, and admired her name, "Liu Sheng," under the main title. A smile she couldn't suppress spread across her usually calm and composed face.
She took out a small key and opened a small cabinet next to the desk. It was empty.
It seemed something was missing?
Liu Sheng was puzzled for a moment but quickly dismissed it, placing this copy of "cultivation theory" inside and locking it.
Then she rubbed her hands, somewhat reluctantly took out a Spirit Orb and placed it in her hand warmer. The hand warmer slowly warmed up, and only then did she hug the hand warmer and pick up her brush to tackle the mountain of paperwork piled before her.
There was no other way; the weather was indeed a bit cold. If her hands froze, she wouldn't be able to write, and the work had to be completed.
If the work wasn't finished, she would have to stay up all night.
Liu Sheng didn't want to stay up all night.
Or rather, she didn't want to work overtime.
She didn't know how that phrase appeared in her mind, but she felt it was very apt.
After an unknown amount of time, the small mountain of paperwork in front of Liu Sheng finally dwindled considerably. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
I don't want to work overtime!