The female anchor turned into the dean of an ancient academy

Chapter 162: Liaodan Kingdom's Spies

"Interesting woman..." Mo Lei muttered to himself, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes. He wanted to see what kind of woman could make the cold-blooded Prince Xixiang so infatuated.

As the night deepened, Zhaoyin Academy gradually quieted down, with only a few scattered lights still on. Mo Lei quietly slipped into Cen Jiexiao's study. Everything there remained as it had been when its owner left, with a few sheets of rice paper covered in writing still scattered on the desk.

Mo Lei picked up a piece of rice paper and carefully identified it in the faint moonlight. On it were some plans and ideas written by Cen Jiexiao herself, involving the reform of Zhaoyin Academy, the promotion of new-style education, and even strategies for fighting against the Queen Mother's followers.

"What a courage!" Mo Lei was secretly shocked. This woman actually dared to interfere in the affairs of the court. Isn't she afraid of getting herself into trouble?

He continued to flip through the other papers, trying to find more secrets about Cen Jiexiao. Suddenly, a piece of paper with a strange pattern caught his attention. The pattern looked like some kind of formation, or a blueprint for some kind of mechanism, but Mo Lei had never seen anything like it before.

"What is this?" Mo Lei frowned, his intuition telling him that the paper was unusual. He carefully put it away and decided to ask Cen Jiexiao tomorrow.

The next day, Cen Jiexiao came to the study as usual, but found that her things had been moved. She looked around vigilantly, but found nothing unusual.

"Am I too suspicious?" Cen Jiexiao was puzzled, but years of caution made her dare not take it lightly. She decided to strengthen her precautions just in case.

Mo Lei pretended to be calm and appeared in front of Cen Jiexiao, and asked with concern: "Dean, what's wrong with you? You don't look well."

"Nothing, maybe I didn't sleep well last night." Cen Jiexiao answered lightly, observing Mo Lei's reaction calmly, trying to find any flaws from his face.

"Dean, please take care of your health. You are the backbone of our Zhaoyin Academy." Mo Lei said this against his will, but he sneered in his heart. Backbone? I think it's more like a thorn in the eye.

"Thank you for your concern. I'll keep an eye on it." Cen Jiexiao replied perfunctorily, then changed the subject without leaving any trace. "By the way, do you have any research on mechanical formations?"

Mo Lei was shocked, but remained expressionless: "I know a little bit, why did the dean suddenly ask this?"

"When I was sorting out old things yesterday, I found a piece of paper with a strange pattern drawn on it. I don't know what it is, and I wanted to ask if you recognize it." Cen Jiexiao said as she took out the piece of paper with the strange pattern drawn on it from the drawer.

Mo Lei took the paper and examined it carefully, feeling secretly pleased with himself. The fish had finally taken the bait...

Mo Lei pretended to ponder, his brows furrowed. After a while, he slowly spoke, "This pattern... I seem to have seen it in a book before. I have a vague impression of it, but I can't remember it for a while."

Cen Jiexiao's heart tightened. Could it be that she had guessed it right? This Mo Lei was indeed not simple! She asked calmly, "Oh? I wonder which book it is? Maybe I can help think about it."

Mo Lei's eyes rolled as he came up with a plan. "It's an ancient book that records some Qimen Dunjia techniques. I can't remember the specifics, but I remember there was an illustration that was quite similar to this pattern." He paused and said with feigned regret, "It's a pity that the book has been lost long ago. Otherwise, I could use it to verify the Dean's drawing."

Although Cen Jiexiao had her doubts, seeing how serious Mo Lei was, she couldn't press the issue any further and gave up. She took the blueprints back and said, "This is a matter of great importance. Please keep it confidential, sir."

"Don't worry, Dean. I understand." Mo Lei promised solemnly, but he sneered in his heart. Secrets? I want to see how many secrets you are hiding!

In order to find out the details of Cen Jiexiao, Mo Lei began to deliberately approach other people in the academy. From students to teachers, he talked to them one by one, and asked about everything about Cen Jiexiao in a roundabout way.

At first, he only mentioned it casually. For example, when chatting with students, he would casually ask, "What does your dean like to do on a daily basis? Does he have any special hobbies?"

The students were full of curiosity and admiration for this eccentric dean. They talked one after another about Cen Jiexiao's deeds, from how she reformed the academy to how she dealt with the Queen Mother's party. Mo Lei was shocked to hear what she said.

He never imagined that this seemingly weak woman actually had such means and courage. Not only did she run Zhaoyin Academy successfully, she even dared to interfere in the affairs of the court!

Mo Lei felt that Cen Jiexiao was more and more unfathomable, so he began to deliberately approach those who had a close relationship with Cen Jiexiao, including several senior teachers in the academy.

Most of these teachers were old pedants who usually only focused on studying and did not care about the affairs of the court. However, they admired Cen Jiexiao very much and thought she was a rare and extraordinary woman.

Under Mo Lei's deliberate questioning, these old scholars told Mo Lei everything they knew about Cen Jiexiao.

Mo Lei then realized that Cen Jiexiao was not Cen Ke's biological daughter, but an orphan he had rescued from war many years ago. Cen Ke saw that she was intelligent and lovely, so he adopted her as his adopted daughter and taught her with great care.

Cen Jiexiao lived up to Cen Ke's expectations. She showed extraordinary talent from a young age, mastering everything from music, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry, and songs. But she wasn't content to remain a secluded woman. She longed for a broader world and the power to change it.

After Cen Ke's death, Cen Jiexiao resolutely took over the Zhaoyin Academy and began to carry out drastic reforms. She broke with tradition and recruited students from all walks of life, regardless of gender or social status. As long as they were sincere in their pursuit of learning, she would accept them all.

She also introduced many new subjects, such as mathematics, the study of physics, and farming, and personally compiled textbooks and provided lectures. Under her leadership, Zhaoyin Academy flourished, attracting students from all corners of the country.

While Mo Lei was listening, he was secretly thinking in his heart, this Cen Jiexiao is really a difficult character!

He organized the information he had obtained and then secretly passed it on to the Liaodan Kingdom.

When Xiao Tuo, the Liao Dan monarch, received the news, he was overjoyed. He had long heard of Cen Jiexiao's name and was particularly interested in her novel educational philosophy.

"This Sister Cen Xiao is a rare talent. It would be great if she could be used by my Liao Dan!" Xiao Tuo stroked his beard, a gleam in his eyes.

He immediately wrote a letter, ordering Mo Lei to find ways to win over Cen Jiexiao, at any cost!

After receiving the secret letter, Mo Lei groaned bitterly. How could he not know Xiao Tuo's intentions? But who was this Cen Jiexiao? Could she be so easily persuaded?

But it was difficult to disobey the king's order, so Mo Lei had to bite the bullet and go to Cen Jiexiao's study again.

"Dean, I have been browsing ancient books recently and finally found records related to your drawing!" Mo Lei said excitedly.

Upon hearing this, Cen Jiexiao's eyes flashed with suspicion, but she still asked calmly, "Oh? I wonder what you have discovered?"

Mo Lei cleared his throat and began to speak nonsense: "According to ancient records, this pattern is an ancient formation called the 'Nine Stars in a Row'. It is said to be extremely powerful and can turn the world upside down and reverse yin and yang..."

The more Cen Jiexiao listened, the more outrageous it seemed to her. Could it be that Mo Lei was talking nonsense?

"Sir, do you have any evidence?" Cen Jiexiao asked calmly, with a hint of doubt in her tone.

Mo Lei was prepared. He pulled out a thin booklet from his sleeve and handed it to Cen Jiexiao: "I copied this overnight. Dean, please take a look."

Cen Jiexiao took the booklet and opened it. She saw that it was covered with tiny handwriting. The content was mysterious and difficult to understand. She couldn't understand it at all.

"This..." Cen Jiexiao hesitated. She didn't know whether she should believe Mo Lei.

Mo Lei observed Cen Jiexiao's expression and saw hesitation on her face. He was secretly happy because he knew that his plan was half successful.

"If the dean doesn't believe it, you can ask someone to verify it." Mo Lei said confidently, "This 'Nine Stars Linking Formation' is extraordinary. If used properly, it can have miraculous effects."