Just like that, for the next month or so, Liang Guoming and Yu Hongbin ran to Shen Yuan's courtyard in turns, as if they were wound up like clockwork.

Today, Principal Liang would be "drafted" to proofread Shen Yuan's upcoming manuscript, and tomorrow, Director Yu would be "requested" to help translate a few obscure passages of oracle bone script.

If they weren't organizing the collection in the storeroom one day, they were helping receive visiting scholars the next.

Liang Guoming and Yu Hongbin were ordered around by Shen Yuan until they were dizzy, doing a lot of the tedious and tiring chores that should have been done by assistants or students.

The funny thing was, these two leaders—both top scholars in their respective fields—completely failed to notice anything amiss. Instead, they gladly endured the hardship, working harder and harder.

Every time Shen Yuan said, "Let me think about it," or "I'll consider it," they automatically interpreted it as "victory is in sight." They just assumed the old man had thin skin and needed a graceful way to back down.

They would privately cheer each other on.

Lao Liang/Lao Yu, hang in there!

Elder Shen is testing our sincerity!

The better we perform, the more likely he is to accept Shen Nanchu!

The two were completely immersed in the sense of accomplishment of "about to secure a titan mentor for the university." They didn't realize in the slightest that they had long become the "free premium labor" for the old man Shen Yuan to relieve his boredom while recovering from illness, thoroughly played for fools.

...

It wasn't until this day, when Shen Nanchu's graduate admission procedures were basically completed, that she came to the principal's office to ask Liang Guoming and Yu Hongbin about the specific details of her mentor assignment.

When she knocked and entered, both Liang Guoming and Yu Hongbin happened to be there.

As soon as they saw her, their faces immediately filled with smiles, wearing a smug expression that said, "We've done something huge for you."

"Student Nanchu is here! Come, sit down!" Yu Hongbin personally poured her a cup of water.

"We were just looking for you!" Liang Guoming's face was glowing, his voice carrying a bit of triumphant excitement.

Shen Nanchu raised her eyebrows in suspicion.

What was it that had them beaming with such joy?

"Nanchu, let me tell you some fantastic news! Regarding your mentor, Principal Liang and I have moved heaven and earth to get you the absolute best! Definitely the best!"

As soon as Yu Hongbin finished speaking, Liang Guoming took over. Straightening his back, he began to claim credit.

"That's right! The leading authority of the archaeological world, Professor Shen Yuan! He hasn't taken on a student in years. This time, I talked my lips off and ran my legs to the ground, and finally got him to relent!"

"Exactly, exactly."

Yu Hongbin nodded, rushing to add on, vividly describing his arduous journey.

"You have no idea how much we put into this!"

"Elder Shen is in poor health, needs to rest, and wasn't willing to agree easily."

"So we went to visit him every day, helping him organize materials, clean artifacts, proofread manuscripts..."

"Using our sincerity to move him!"

Yu Hongbin lowered his voice, as if sharing a secret.

"Elder Shen is cold on the outside but warm on the inside. We helped him do so much work; he might not say it, but he remembers it all in his heart! See, he's on the verge of agreeing!"

Liang Guoming also stroked his short beard, looking like he had everything under control.

"Exactly! This is what we call 'absolute sincerity will move even a heart of stone'! Although Elder Shen hasn't officially nodded yet, the way I see it, it'll happen in the next couple of days! He's just too embarrassed to agree too quickly, he has to play hard to get!"

The two chimed in one after another, boasting extravagantly in front of Shen Nanchu.

They painted their month of hard work as incredibly touching, just waiting to see Shen Nanchu show a surprised and grateful expression.

Shen Nanchu listened quietly, her face showing no emotion. Her clear, bright eyes swept over the faces of Liang Guoming and Yu Hongbin, which were brimming with a sense of accomplishment.

Coupled with what she had just heard, without even needing to analyze it carefully, Shen Nanchu understood everything as clear as a mirror.

Looking at the two triumphant old men in front of her, Shen Nanchu's eyes were full of sympathy.

When the two leaders finally talked until their mouths were dry and stopped to await her reaction, Shen Nanchu finally spoke unhurriedly. Her voice was crisp, carrying a hint of imperceptible amusement.

"Principal Liang, Director Yu, do you mean... for the past month, you've frequently gone to Professor Shen's house, helped him organize bamboo slips, clean pottery shards, proofread manuscripts, and even translate oracle bones, doing all this... work that was originally supposed to be done by his assistants or students?"

"That's right!"

Liang Guoming and Yu Hongbin said in unison, wearing an expression that seemed to ask, aren't we amazing?

Shen Nanchu gave a soft "Oh," then blinked, her tone flat but hitting the nail on the head.

"Then can I understand it as Professor Shen has enjoyed over a month of free, premium assistant services at the level of a principal and a department director?"

"And regarding the matter of taking me on as a student... from beginning to end, he actually never once gave you a clear, affirmative 'yes'?"

"..."

The office instantly fell into a dead silence.

The smug smiles on Liang Guoming and Yu Hongbin's faces instantly froze, like frozen plaster statues.

They looked at each other, both seeing in the other's eyes astonishment, recollection, and a gradually rising... disbelief and the humiliation of being made fools of.

That's right!

That old guy Shen Yuan, it seemed, appeared, indeed... never explicitly said, "I agree to accept Shen Nanchu"!

Every time it was "let me think about it," "I'll consider it," "we'll talk about it later"... and then he'd use all sorts of chores to send them away!

The two of them, the dignified Principal of Jing University and the Director of the Archaeology Department, were actually played for monkeys for over a month by an old man recovering at home!

And they even thought their plan was working!

"Oh, wow! This Old man Shen!" Liang Guoming was the first to react. He slammed the table in anger, his beard bristling. "So he was just messing with us!"

Yu Hongbin's face also flushed red, ashamed and furious. "Outrageous! Treating us as free labor for so long! This is too much!"

The two instantly felt they had lost face, especially since they had made such huge fools of themselves in front of Shen Nanchu, the person involved.

Overcome with shame and anger, Liang Guoming grabbed his hat from the desk, and Yu Hongbin also stood up in a huff.

"Let's ​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‍go! Lao Yu! We're going to settle the score with Old man Shen! Today we must make him give us an explanation!"

Liang Guoming roared furiously.

"Yes! We must go! This is too much!"

Yu Hongbin also rubbed his fists together.

The two didn't care about their image anymore. They rushed out of the office like a gust of wind, heading straight for Shen Yuan's courtyard, determined to seek justice.

Shen Nanchu looked at the childish backs of the two old men, shaking her head helplessly, but the corners of her mouth couldn't help curving into a lovely smile.

This Professor Shen Yuan seemed to be a very interesting person!

If such an interesting person were to be her mentor, it wouldn't be bad at all.

The result of this "settling of scores" was truly unknown.

She might as well take a trip there herself!

After all, inviting one's own mentor personally shows true sincerity, doesn't it?