Chapter 780: Ample and More Than Enough

At that moment, Wang Shuyang and Heibaizi's eyes lit up. Having spotted Zu An, they excitedly jogged over. "Mr. Zu, we finally found you," they exclaimed.

The Crown Princess looked on, bewildered.

What on earth was happening? Was she dreaming?

Just then, Junior Sister Qi Yaoguang couldn't hold back. "What are you all doing? One after another! He's destined for a life of romance with women, not... that other thing!" In her mind, Zu An was much more likely to be entangled with countless women. So why were there no women around, but instead, men whose eyes lit up whenever they saw him?

Zu An was instantly astonished by the young girl. How could such a sweet and adorable lass deliver a crude joke with such a straight face? And was "chrysanthemum" even a euphemism for the same thing in this world?

Heibaizi ignored Zu An, rushing to grasp his hand. "Mr. Zu, my apprentice and I just replayed the game dozens of times, and I finally understand where I went wrong. Come, let's play again! I won't lose so easily this time."

The Crown Princess was in disbelief. If she remembered correctly, Heibaizi was known as the Chess Saint. She had never heard of anyone in the capital who could beat him, and he usually carried himself with extreme arrogance. Yet, from his words, it seemed he had lost to Zu An?

At that moment, Qi Yaoguang let out a sound of surprise, curiously scrutinizing Zu An. She voiced the question in the Crown Princess's mind: "You won against Heibaizi?"

"Pure luck, nothing more," Zu An said modestly.

Heibaizi, standing nearby, sighed, "It was no mere luck. Only after replaying the game did I realize that every one of Mr. Zu's moves concealed dozens of potential killing blows. No matter how I responded, I was systematically forced into his predetermined strategy. His profound skill truly left me in awe."

Hearing this, the Crown Princess's face flushed. She had previously seen Zu An teaching the Crown Prince that simple game of Gomoku in the Eastern Palace, finding it quite crude and unsophisticated. She had even blamed him for leading the Crown Prince astray, thinking he was ignorant and unlearned. She never imagined his true chess skill could be so profound—so much so that even Heibaizi felt inferior?

The Crown Princess, born into a prestigious family, differed from some young ladies who favored rebellious paupers; she preferred men who embodied traditional virtues. Her ideal man was a refined gentleman, gentle as jade, proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Zu An's appearance was certainly appealing, but she had always disliked the hint of street vulgarity he carried. Yet, she never expected his mastery of Go to be so profound. Of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, chess was considered the most challenging. If he excelled so much at the most difficult, how could he be lacking in the others?

She suddenly recalled that when she had previously instructed her subordinates to gather information about Zu An, he was reportedly renowned in Brightmoon City for his musical compositions and poetry. However, at the time, she had dismissed it, believing he used these talents merely to entice courtesans, which she considered quite undignified. But now, she suddenly realized he was a true genius scholar who simply chose not to flaunt his talents. Instead, he presented himself with a rebellious and unconventional image as a disguise.

Why would he do that?

Oh, that's right. He had acquired the immortality technique, the "Phoenix Nirvana Sutra," which led to him being apprehended by the Emperor's men and brought to the capital. He was also resented by Prince Qi's faction. Caught between the capital's two most powerful forces, he risked utter ruin if he wasn't careful. She concluded he must have deliberately presented himself this way as a means of self-preservation.

A wave of pity washed over her as she recalled the intelligence reports that mentioned Zu An was apparently an orphan whose only surviving relative, his uncle, had also died young. He then became a live-in son-in-law to the Chu family, where he endured constant scorn. Just as he had finally managed to gain some standing in the Chu family, the "Phoenix Nirvana Sutra" incident erupted, leading to his ruthless abandonment by them. Now, alone in the capital with no family, he had no one to rely on but himself for everything. It was truly pitiful.

I must do my best to look after him from now on...

The Crown Prince's image suddenly flashed through her mind, filling her with intense irritation. Compared to Zu An, the Crown Prince was his complete opposite—a mere good-for-nothing who simply ate and waited to die.

As she was lost in thought, outside, Qi Yaoguang curiously pulled Zu An aside to ask, "Heibaizi might not be able to beat me, but his chess skill is still quite respectable. You actually managed to win against him? Hmm, how about a game between us?"

Heibaizi's face, standing nearby, turned as black as a chess piece. He, the esteemed Chess Saint, was utterly dominated by this woman—and not because her skill surpassed his. The thought alone filled him with immense frustration.

"Perhaps another day," Zu An said awkwardly.

Qi Yaoguang smiled. "Alright, another day it is. It's settled."

Just then, Wang Shuyang, standing nearby, could no longer hold back. He pushed Heibaizi and Qi Yaoguang aside. "You're all engrossed in trivialities that dull your ambition. Don't interrupt me when I'm discussing serious matters."

Heibaizi snorted, "Who says what we're doing isn't serious business?"

Despite his indignation, he knew that Wang Shuyang was genuinely concerned for the nation and its people. His voice trailed off, finding it difficult to argue further.

Wang Shuyang pulled Zu An closer and said, "Mr. Zu, regarding the concept of hybrid rice you just mentioned, I've considered it carefully, and I've identified a major obstacle. You see, rice flowers are hermaphroditic and self-pollinate. To hybridize them, one would have to remove the stamens from the rice flowers. But given how tiny rice blossoms are, it's practically impossible to do this on a large scale."

Zu An breathed a sigh of relief. This was a topic he happened to be familiar with. Back in his time, there had been numerous online discussions, and even smear campaigns, against Elder Yuan's contributions, leading to heated debates between opposing factions. As a "keyboard warrior" who had participated and reviewed various materials, he knew exactly the problem Wang Shuyang was describing.

"That's simple," Zu An replied. "You can find naturally male-sterile rice plants in the wild. Their stamens are defective, but their pistils are fine. Wouldn't those be perfect for cross-pollination with other rice varieties?"

Wang Shuyang's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but clap in admiration. "Brilliant! A single word from you is worth ten years of study! Mr. Zu, please accept another bow from me." With that, he respectfully bowed to Zu An once more.

The other disciples standing nearby were equally astonished. Though they knew little about agriculture, they understood the immense impact such a discovery would have on the world if successfully implemented. What was truly remarkable was that he showed no desire to hoard such a valuable concept; anyone else would surely have exploited it for personal gain. With this realization, they all spontaneously bowed to Zu An, Jiang Luofu included.

"What are you all doing? Please, stand up, quickly!" Zu An felt a headache brewing, realizing he might have overplayed his hand.

Inside the wooden house, the Crown Princess watched the scene unfold with a look of profound shock. She then glanced at the Libationer beside her, deciding to test him. "Lord Libationer," she ventured, "aren't you upset that they are bowing to a young man as if he were their master?"

The Libationer calmly replied, "I have always taught them the principle, 'Among three people walking together, one is surely my teacher.' It seems they haven't forgotten it. Witnessing this brings me such joy; why would I be angry?"

The Crown Princess secretly chuckled. If that were truly the case, why had he just thrown Yin Shi down the mountain?

Meanwhile, outside, Wang Shuyang seized the opportunity to ask, "By the way, Mr. Zu, I have a few other questions..."

Zu An felt his head spin. He only understood the general concepts; he certainly didn't know any technical details. He quickly interjected: "These are all things you must gradually figure out for yourself. As the saying goes, 'Each person has their own destiny,' and this world also operates by its own inherent rules. If you rush to change things too quickly, you risk a backlash from the world's natural order, which would be far from ideal."

"Hmm?" The Libationer in the wooden house murmured softly, a sharp glint in his eyes, his gaze out the window becoming even more profound.

The Crown Princess beside him was secretly startled. She had initially found those words rather cryptic, but seeing even the Libationer react so profoundly, she realized her own understanding must be insufficient to grasp their true meaning. So, Zu An's insight was truly on such a high level! She had severely underestimated him before. From now on, she couldn't treat him as she used to.

At that moment, everyone outside also looked stunned. As the Libationer's direct disciples, their own understanding was already quite advanced, and with that slight guidance, they all seemed to grasp something profound.

*No way,* Zu An thought to himself. *I just casually threw out some old lines I'd picked up online, and you actually bought it?*

Seeing Qi Yaoguang beside her nodding incessantly, Jiang Luofu couldn't help but chuckle. "Junior Sister," she asked, "do you actually understand what he means?"

Qi Yaoguang lowered her voice. "Not at all," she admitted.

"If you don't understand, why are you nodding?" Jiang Luofu asked, puzzled.

Qi Yaoguang replied, "Everyone else is nodding. If I said I didn't understand, wouldn't that just prove I'm stupid? It would be so embarrassing."

Jiang Luofu was speechless. *That's surprisingly logical; I can't even argue with that.*

She cleared her throat. "Senior brothers, let's not keep Ah Zu any longer. I want to recommend him to join the academy as a teacher. Master said it requires the consent of more than half of the disciples, so I still need to visit our Eldest Senior Brother and Fourth Senior Brother, among others."

At this, the others immediately exclaimed: "Why bother visiting them? Our agreement alone already constitutes more than half!"

"Are you kidding? It would be our academy's honor if a talent like Mr. Zu were willing to join us."

"Forget just teaching students; he's more than qualified to teach us teachers."

The Crown Princess inside the wooden house was already numb with shock. Seeing those she had expected to be incredibly difficult to persuade agree so readily, she instead wore an expression that suggested it was only natural. She gazed at the man outside with a complicated look. Was this truly the same person she had known?

Xinjiang was truly vast. Driving from noon until night—no, wait, the sun was still in the sky at 10 PM here; could that even be considered night?