Yue Fuguang shook her head silently. She was indeed still a mortal at heart. Living as an 'Immortal Lord' for the past half a year hadn't bestowed much 'immortal aura' upon her!
At the end of the day, she was just a special kind of corporate slave working under the Main System!
Before Yue Fuguang could sigh any further, the group arrived at the entrance of the Guest Courtyard.
From afar, Song Xingzhou, the director of the Guest Courtyard, came out to welcome them. He bowed to the Crown Prince, Yue Fuguang, and the rest, saying, "Your Highness, Junior Preceptor, please come in. This humble official has already ordered everyone to wait in the courtyard."
Yue Fuguang nodded. "Thank you for your trouble, Lord Song."
This man also held a position in the Ministry of Works, which was why Yue Fuguang remembered him. More importantly, his favorability towards her was over sixty.
Seeing that the Junior Preceptor recognized him, Song Xingzhou was naturally overjoyed. He smiled and said, "It is all within this humble official's duty."
He guided them inside with great attentiveness, introducing the situation of the Guest Courtyard as they walked.
Seeing his job being snatched away and that surnamed Song ignoring him completely, Wei Shouyi was immediately displeased.
Following behind the group, he clamored, "Old Song, you see your Old Wei here, and you don't even greet me?"
Song Xingzhou said impatiently, "You come here every few days and are more familiar with this place than your own home. Do you still need me to introduce it to you?"
At a glance, it was clear the two were old acquaintances, the kind of bantering friends who spoke without any reservations.
"I already agreed with the Junior Preceptor to help her select people, so don't you try to steal my thunder!"
Song Xingzhou scoffed. "Speaking of which, who knows the backgrounds and martial skills of the people in the Guest Courtyard better than I do?"
With a look of disdain, he added, "Just stand aside and watch. Don't delay the Junior Preceptor's selection."
Wei Shouyi was very dissatisfied with his attitude and words. "I've sparred with all the good fighters here, I..."
Without waiting for him to finish, Song Xingzhou immediately interjected, "I know, just a couple of days ago you were pinned to the ground by Wang Qingxiao and..."
Before he could say the word 'rubbed', he was immediately interrupted by Wei Shouyi. "Old Song, look, we're here. Enough with the idle chatter, hurry up and get down to business."
Seeing Wei Shouyi's stifled expression, the System burst out laughing and couldn't help but tease, 'Master, was the word Lord Song didn't finish rubbed?'
Hearing the Divine Artifact's words, a suspicious blush immediately appeared on Wei Shouyi's bronzed face.
Yue Fuguang communicated, 'General Wei might be slightly inferior to the people here in one-on-one combat, but when it comes to battlefield formations, these people definitely cannot compare to him.'
Wei Shouyi nodded vigorously in his heart. Yes, yes, yes, the Junior Preceptor is right. When it comes to fighting a war, they can't compare to me.
Yue Fuguang and the Crown Prince stood side by side on the high platform, looking at the hundred or so people standing neatly below.
There were both men and women, ranging in age from their teens to their thirties. She nodded secretly in her heart.
Setting everything else aside, the mental outlook of these people was quite good.
The men looked robust and vigorous, and the women were all radiant and stood tall, possessing the free-spiritedness of women from the martial world.
Song Xingzhou must have briefed them before they arrived, so the gazes these people directed at her were very fervent.
If they knew that Emperor Mingxi had given her a quota for official ranks, these 'martial artists', most of whom were still commoners, would likely look at her with even more fervor.
She originally wanted to say that anyone unwilling to follow her could step down now, and she promised not to blame them. But seeing their eager expressions, she realized those words were unnecessary.
Yue Fuguang suddenly felt a bit curious about what Song Xingzhou had told them to elicit such expressions.
Song Xingzhou thought to himself: The Junior Preceptor is completely oblivious to her own status in the officialdom of Great Yan. These people who harbored ambitions of securing an official position had long heard of this newly risen noble.
Some of them had even tried to accidentally encounter her on her way to and from the imperial court, though unfortunately, none had succeeded.
During the Junior Preceptor's two assassination attempts, a few people from their Guest Courtyard happened to be present and had personally stepped in to help the guards fend off the enemies.
A few days ago, he had merely leaked a little news that the Junior Preceptor might come here to select guards, and that very day, quite a few people had sought him out, expressing their desire to participate in the selection.
To fight for these one hundred spots, these people had engaged in quite a few private brawls.
After sweeping her gaze over the crowd, Yue Fuguang spoke in a voice that was youthful yet carried authority. "I presume your Lord Song has already told you the purpose of my visit.
I have many rules here. Those who are born loving freedom and cannot bear to be restricted may withdraw now."
After waiting for half a minute and seeing no one move, Yue Fuguang nodded like a little adult. "Very well. Since no one is withdrawing, those who are selected must strictly abide by my rules."
Saying this, Yue Fuguang first cast her gaze upon the twenty or thirty women standing at the very front. Some were pretty, some were delicate, and there were even a few young girls with ordinary faces that were not easily remembered.
'System, help me sort the favorability of these hundred people from highest to lowest.'
'Is the host going to select people based on favorability?'
'Naturally. Martial arts skills are secondary; the most important thing for the people by my side is loyalty. Although favorability doesn't equate to loyalty right now,
we won't be able to fully understand these people anytime soon. Favorability is the best basis. No matter how strong someone is, what use do I have for them if they have no favorability towards me?'
Yue Fuguang then looked at the sixty or seventy sturdy men in the back. Judging by their facial features alone, they all looked like decent people. Huh, Yue Fuguang even spotted a familiar face in the crowd.
Seeing that Yue Fuguang was merely looking and taking no action, Wei Shouyi couldn't help but lean in and ask, "Junior Preceptor, do you need this humble official to explain the backgrounds of these people in detail?"
Seeing his job being snatched by this guy, Song Xingzhou was secretly annoyed.
Yue Fuguang said, "I'll take a look at the roster first."
She took the roster handed over by the Crown Prince and flipped through it one by one. The backgrounds, special skills, and other details recorded on it were quite comprehensive.
"How does the Junior Preceptor plan to select people? Do you need them to have a sparring match?" Wei Shouyi suggested. He advocated for seeing real skills through combat.
Yue Fuguang shook her head. "There's no need for such trouble. I'll just look at the roster and call out their names directly."
As she spoke, she nodded at Song Xingzhou, who was a step behind them, and said, "I trust Lord Song's eye for people. Now, I am simply picking those who are pleasing to the eye."
Song Xingzhou cupped his hands, showing unhideable excitement amidst his trepidation. "This humble official thanks the Junior Preceptor for your trust!"
The commotion on the platform naturally did not escape the eyes and ears of the people below. They already knew that this Junior Preceptor held a transcendent status in the officialdom of Great Yan.
They didn't expect that seeing was believing. Lord Song, who was a top-tier figure to them, not only had to act cautiously around her, but even the Crown Prince vaguely showed a respectful demeanor towards her.
Realizing that this was an even more powerful patron than they had previously imagined, everyone felt an inexplicable surge of excitement in their hearts. Their mental outlook became even better than when Yue Fuguang had first arrived.
Yue Fuguang looked at the flushed faces of the crowd below and silently nodded in her heart. Looking at the roster, but actually looking at the system panel, she began to call out names.
"Shen Chunying, Shen Dongxue, Zhang Fang, Liu Wei, Xu Chunshan, Xu Xiaoman, Gao Zhifan..." Yue Fuguang called out the names of twenty-six people in one breath, all of whom had a favorability of over forty.
