I find it very sacred to pick someone up and make them a saint.

After Neuer left, Lucia and Pope began a long period of training.

At first, Pope needed to suppress his strength to level 4, but as Lucia accumulated practical experience and with his unique talent, he was able to fight Lucia to a standstill with level 5 power.

At the same time, the situation in the capital city changed drastically.

The rain is coming and the wind is all over the building.

Various forces continued to loiter around the Academy of Scholars, including not only the Papacy and the Imperial Army, but also members of various families and lords, all of whom turned their attention to it.

Mien's spies in the capital sent back a message:

Phil and Rachel seem to have reached an agreement—to hold a Supreme Council.

This means convening all high-ranking officials within the empire, including lords from various regions, to discuss and publicly vote on issues concerning the fate of the empire in the capital.

To ensure the fairness of the voting, each person receives a different number of votes.

For example, an ordinary count like Neuer only has one vote.

As the chief of the Academy of Scholars, one of the three laws, Mien has ten votes.

Of course, they cannot be separated; they must be thrown together.

The rules on paper granted Mien unprecedented power, and naturally attracted unprecedented attention.

Soon after the announcement of the Supreme Conference, the entrance to the Academy of Scholars was packed with people.

Some came hoping to gather information, while others hoped to detect some developments.

Because they will all face an extremely important choice at an upcoming meeting: Rachel or Phil.

Mien's significance lies not only in the ten votes he holds, but also in his reputation as a "political stalwart".

When you're unsure which side to bet on, just follow the "big brother's" bet; you can't go wrong.

Many of them lack the ability to weather the storms; one wrong step and they could be uprooted.

Although I've heard that in the situation between North Korea and China, Rachel is almost giving Phil the upper hand.

However, polls and insider information are often unreliable.

What if we're just ten votes short of Mien's vote?

Mien's response was simple: he locked the doors of the Academy and refused to see anyone.

Whether the person on the other end is an unknown soldier or a retainer sent by a powerful lord, they are all turned away.

Inevitably, it offended many people.

But as the old saying goes, offending one person is a great enmity, but offending a group of people can actually reduce the hatred.

Seeing others suffer setbacks made me feel much better. We all cursed Mien for being an old fogey and for deserving of the academic academy's decline. As we cursed, we gradually felt relieved.

Mien went a step further, completely banning all personnel from entering or leaving.

All internal activities, including eating, drinking, and relieving oneself, as well as external reports upon return, have been temporarily suspended.

Let everyone see that the Academy has no dealings with anyone, at least not on the surface.

This led to an unusually prosperous neighborhood outside the Academy, where royalty and nobility hid.

The once ordinary and secluded academy of scholars has now become a veritable "walled city".

But some people are different, like Rachel and Phil from Gormien's side...

Rachel arrived seven days after the meeting was announced.

She traveled lightly, accompanied only by five personal guards, riding a tall horse slowly from the capital.

Everyone around glanced at him sideways, pretending to be busy with their own tasks while casting glances out of the corner of their eye.

Rachel was naturally aware of the attention she was receiving, but she seemed to enjoy it, even slowing down her pace.

In the quiet city, someone swallowed a mouthful of water, making a loud sound.

If Mien meets with Rachel, then they can all pack up and go home.

If Mien is indeed on Rachel's side as rumored, then Phil has no chance of winning.

They can confidently board Rachel's big ship.

Rachel arrived at the tightly closed gates of the Academy.

Before Rachel could respond, the door moved.

One of the small doors opened, and a person walked out.

People stared wide-eyed, only to discover that the man was August.

He knelt respectfully before Rachel.

Rachel was not surprised, but dismounted and accepted August's respect in a friendly manner.

Rachel did not communicate with Mien beforehand; Mien truly refused to communicate with anyone.

She came here specifically to get Mien's opinion.

Even though she had managed to win over many people in the empire during this time, people's hearts were restless, and they would immediately flee at the slightest sign of trouble.

Therefore, Mien's statement was not just about those ten votes, but symbolized a trend that could inspire many people.

Mien's previous refusal to talk naturally displeased her, but her strong self-control kept her rational.

For Rachel, Mien and the Academy were like an arranged marriage by the emperor, destined to be hers sooner or later. She couldn't push too hard and let the cooked duck fly away.

But the capable woman had already made all sorts of preparations in her mind.

If Mien comes out to greet them, everyone will be happy.

And if things continue like this, the excellent Rachel has ways to deal with it.

In front of everyone, she showed no sign of being humiliated or angry.

Instead, he deliberately wore a nonchalant smile, as if he had known this all along.

At the very least, they should act as if the Academy and Rachel treat each other with the utmost respect.

This shows that the reason Mien didn't come to meet him in person was simply to avoid what others thought and maintain the integrity of the Academy; in reality, they had already been having an affair.

Rachel, a woman from Puxin, walked confidently up to August and even patted him on the shoulder.

August's poker face remained completely still.

He lowered his voice and respectfully explained to Rachel: "The Academy has some matters to attend to right now, and Mien must take charge personally. I cannot greet you in person..."

All that official jargon and nonsense.

Drama queen Rachel only paused for a moment, then listened and nodded meaningfully.

He even revealed a mysterious smile, occasionally letting out a soft "hoohoo" laugh.

August was almost completely bewildered; Rachel wasn't embarrassed, but he was embarrassed for her.

Soon, the people around started talking about it.

The initial assumption that "Mien ignored Rachel" immediately turned into the conclusion that "the two had already reached a secret agreement."

As Rachel's role in the film became more and more prominent, even rumors of an affair between Mien and Rachel surfaced.

The top scholar of the Academy and the fourth princess who commands the army... wow, that's kind of a good match.

Rachel let out a hearty laugh, a smile still lingering on her pretty face, before mounting her horse and leading her men away.

He carried the air of a victor all the way, his shoulders naturally swaying with the swaying of his horse.

Many people around immediately sent messages to their leader, reporting the important intelligence of the day.

The time for the Supreme Conference is drawing ever closer, with only five days left.

Everyone was waiting for one figure—Bishop Phil.

Some people had already concluded that Mien had refused to associate with Phil, but Phil was late in arriving.