I Became the Alchemy Master by Picking Up Trash-Chapter 55 - 54: Choosing a School

"Principal, why do people on the Qianyuan Continent have such long lifespans, yet they hurry to marry and have children?"

The average lifespan of ordinary people is 150 years, and Elemental Spirits live even longer, living three to five hundred years is not unusual. But Li Xing found that young girls get married at a very early age and have two or three children before the age of twenty, which is quite common.

Li Xing really couldn’t understand; they were wasting their golden youth on mundane family life and didn’t feel any sense of life wasted.

Yang Zhou laughed awkwardly: "There’s no choice, it’s all because of the Star Beast Tide!"

In the distant past, it was common for people on the Qianyuan Continent to marry and have children in their fifties or sixties, but as the intervals between the Star Beast Tides shortened, more and more people were sent to the front lines of war. Once on the battlefield, it was uncertain whether they would return alive.

To avoid dying without descendants, young people were urged to marry and leave a bloodline as soon as they reached adulthood. This way, even if they died in battle, they could answer to their ancestors.

This practice initially spread in small circles, but over time, more people chose to leave a legacy early, and the Qianyuan Continent gradually developed a culture of early marriage and childbirth.

To ensure a sufficient number of fighters, the Federation Government also tacitly approved of early marriages, even implementing various laws and welfare policies to encourage childbirth. To this day, giving birth to children early is still the most popular blessing.

"So annoying!" 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

"If you find it annoying, better report to the academy early. If Wang Jin can’t find you, he’ll give up completely."

Li Xing was a promising child, and both publicly and privately, Yang Zhou did not want her to be confined by family too soon.

In a way, Yang Zhou was also a victim of being forced into marriage; he didn’t want Li Xing to repeat his mistakes. Thus, as soon as he learned of the situation, he rushed to the Li Family to provide support. Fortunately, Li Yi and Anna understood, and they didn’t fall into the City Lord Mansion’s trap, saving him a lot of effort.

"I still need to consult with you on this matter." Speaking of reporting, Li Xing wanted to ask Yang Zhou’s opinion. "Which military academy do you think I should attend?"

Yang Zhou took a sip of hot tea, pondered for a moment, and said, "Go to Harassas."

Li Xing was surprised. She thought Yang Zhou would suggest she go to Tianyi Academy, after all, that was his alma mater.

Knowing his student well, Yang Zhou saw Li Xing’s confusion and said, "Did you think I’d recommend you to Tianyi Academy?"

Li Xing nodded honestly.

"The comprehensive strength of Tianyi Academy is indeed much stronger than Harassas, there’s no doubt about that. But it has a fatal flaw: disunity. At Tianyi Academy, students have distinct class divisions. Nobles have their circles, and commoners have theirs, with strict boundaries and no interaction between them. No matter how excellent a commoner is, they can’t fit into the nobility circle."

Yang Zhou sighed, feeling deeply powerless against such entrenched prejudice.

Although Li Xing was of common birth, her character and aptitude could rival that of noble elites.

Yang Zhou hoped that Li Xing could interact with excellent people to mutually improve and grow stronger.

But if she went to Tianyi Academy, the solid class barrier would definitely exclude Li Xing from elite circles, depriving her of opportunities to engage with high-level talents, which would be terribly unfair to her.

"When I was a student, I didn’t see anything wrong with the clique culture. I admired the strong and looked up to geniuses. Naturally, I thought only people in the noble elite circle were worth emulating and learning from."

"I never paid attention to those ordinary classmates. Even if they had many shining points, I always turned a blind eye. It wasn’t until I joined the army that I realized how biased and narrow-minded my thoughts were."

"Those I admired and befriended back then were all human killing machines on the battlefield. Their abilities surpassed ordinary Elemental Spirits, but their selfishness and cold-bloodedness were more terrifying than the fangs of Star Beasts."

"And those who sacrificed themselves to protect their comrades, who would rather self-destruct than retreat a step, and those who sacrificed themselves to save others, most were commoners like Li Yi. It was from that time I began to reflect and question the ethos of Tianyi Academy. Forcing students to pick friends based on background is really senseless."

"Similar to Tianyi Academy, Cold Smoke Pavilion and Xi Yuan Academy also have the same issue, though it’s not as apparent. Only Harassas Academy is an exception. Founded by an elder of common origin, its atmosphere is inclusive and broad-minded, with no clique culture. Whether they are nobles or commoners, everyone at Harassas Academy is equal."

"A school’s teaching standards can change, but the ethos accumulated over time is hard to alter. The saying ’A leopard can’t change its spots’ means just that. The new principal of Harassas Academy, Wen Dao, has deep ties with the Yang Family. He has been both a teacher and a friend in my life, and I believe with his character and talent, he can definitely lead Harassas Academy back to its peak. And only Wen Dao can handle you, cheeky monkey, so I feel assured handing you over to him."

Li Xing admitted that Yang Zhou was a person with a very upright mindset, so Principal Wen, as his life mentor, should be very good.

"Then I’ll go to Harassas at your suggestion!"

"Hmm, when do you plan to set out?"

"There’s no rush; there’s still a month before enrollment closes. Leaving two or three days early will be enough."

Hearing this, Yang Zhou immediately tossed over a spatial button, saying, "In that case, help me fry these tea leaves before you go!"

After seeing how much tea was inside the spatial button, Li Xing felt her face turn greener than the tea leaves.

"Are you squeezing blood from a stone? This much, I’ll have to fry until my hands break!"

Li Xing regretted giving Yang Zhou a box of tea leaves on Teachers’ Day back then, exposing her skills, and allowing this guy to exploit her labor every year.

"I’m coming back; why do you need so much!" Li Xing really suspected he had booked tea for the rest of his life. Where did this guy get so many fresh tea leaves?

"Can’t I keep them for gifts? How much fiscal deficit have you caused over the years, have you any idea? If it weren’t for me going to the Education Department every time to argue—uh, apply, for more funds to buy premium ingredients for you to indulge in, could you look so radiant? I’ve taught you so much, given my all for you, and you still refuse to help with a bit of work, what an ungrateful brat!"

Li Xing pouted: "Why are you in such a hurry? I, I didn’t say I wouldn’t do it, just that there’s a lot of work, and I might not finish before enrollment."

"The more work, the better, it keeps you grounded, stops you from always running into the forest. Don’t worry, teacher won’t let you work for nothing. I have a useless nephew living in Harassas City. When you get there, anything you need—food, clothing, housing, or anything else—he can help, and with my reputation, he won’t dare refuse."

Li Xing’s AI communicator made a "ding" sound, receiving a contact card.

"This is his ID, add it and contact him when you get to Harassas."

Looking at the familiar ID on the AI communicator, Li Xing fell silent.

What a doomed connection!