Xie Qiao knew that she was talking to a young lady whose thoughts were simpler. She purely expressed her emotions and did not think too much into it.
They were not like her, an old Taoist master who was at peace. She was rather cold compared to them.
However, she indeed did not bother to squeeze a gentle smile and said, "It is okay", while smiling at everyone…
It would hurt her teeth.
Fang Muxue and the rest felt rather embarrassed.
They looked awkward.
Xie Qiao did not comfort them. She was too lazy..
Master Lu was happy to see her expression that looked like she was hungry for knowledge. "If that's the case, I'll talk to the teachers later to prioritize your health in class. Just do your best."
"Thank you, sir," said Xie Qiao.
Her head was much clearer now that she passed out for a little bit. She was not as exhausted as before.
"Right, you won the competition. You should thank His Highness for rewarding you with the jade. Don't forget that after resting for a while," added Teacher Zhu.
"Where is he?" Xie Qiao was confused.
"His Highness has a courtyard in the academy. It's the one in the far east. You'll get there after passing a bamboo forest," replied Teacher Zhu.
'Bamboo forest?'
Xie Qiao raised her brows lightly.
The Crown Prince's physique was unique. Most people from the imperial family would have dragon energy on their bodies. Since he was the Crown Prince, he should have pretty powerful dragon energy. However, he had been attracting ghouls his whole life. Nobody knew why.
If one was to think about it, if not for the dragon energy's protection, he would have been affected by spirits and died.
It was bad for such a body type to be living close to bamboo.
Trees lived by absorbing water, and most of them had Yin attributes. Meanwhile, bamboo… were hollowed, and they despised the sun. Therefore, just like the Scholar Tree, they had extreme Yin attributes and should not be suitable for the Crown Prince.
Xie Qiao had never seen the bamboo forest, so she should not comment on anything.
The imperial doctor checked her pulse again. Upon realizing that her pulse was much better than before, he asked if he should get her medicine prescription.
She definitely had been consuming medicine to be able to live until now with such a weak body. That imperial doctor knew that very well, so he did not dare to prescribe her a new one to prevent her from eating something that would clash with her current medicine.
One had to pay for the medicine with silver beans at the academy.
They could pay at a later time.
Xie Qiao shook her head.
She then recalled her reward, "Where are my silver beans?"
Teacher Zhu brought the items feeling helpless.
They were gold-plated jade pieces consisting of three combs, a pair of hairpins, two dangling ornaments, and two forehead accessories. They looked pretty expensive.
However, sophisticated accessories were prohibited in the academy. They even had to wear standard ones.
Xie Qiao could sell those items, so she put them away happily.
She held the bowl of silver beans and counted slowly. There were 60 pieces!
It was a big profit.
Xie Qiao was satisfied and put the silver beans into her small purse. Since that was the case, she would not have to worry about not being able to pay the loan she got from her sister.
Then it was that piece of white jade.
There was warmth when she held it. The quality was good, and it would be beneficial for one's health if they were to wear it all the time.
Xie Qiao's imagination was running wild as she stared at the piece of jade.
'Get myself a master? No way!'
There were many classes at the academy that she already did not have enough time to attend. There was no need to get a master to teach her a certain subject. A master would usually be unhappy if their disciples studied something different. If they found out that she had a wide range of interests, she would definitely be punished.
Exchange it for an expensive treasure?
She could do that or sell it to someone else… Now that she thought about it, there should be many people who were willing to purchase the identity of a master's disciple?
Many thoughts had flashed in Xie Qiao's head within a short period.
She rested in the room for a little while.
The teachers and the imperial doctors had left. The two grannies were the only ones left to serve her tea.
After resting for an hour, Xie Qiao was ready to look for the Crown Prince.