Academy Graduation Ceremony

Alexander Hayes's eyes sparkled as he listened. He hugged Lily Evans and showered her with kisses, exclaiming excitedly, "Darling, you truly are my perfect partner! With a wife like you, what more could a husband ask for? This idea is brilliant—not only do our homeless, wounded soldiers from the Hayes Army have somewhere to go and a future to rely on, but our own fields will be tended by our own men. Even if they're scattered across the empire, they'll be much easier to manage!"

"Exactly! I have full faith in the soldiers you've trained—even if they're injured, every one of them is exceptional," Lily nodded in agreement. "Off-season vegetables are so pricey, and our fields in other regions always attract thieves looking to steal and sell our produce. Regular farmhands won't bother with thieves, but if our soldiers are guarding the fields, it's a different story. They've seen blood and battle; with a squad of fierce, battle-hardened veterans watching over the crops, I’d like to see those petty thieves try anything. We'll break their legs if they dare!"

Alexander Hayes laughed, wrapping his arm around Lily Evans. "Good, I’ll take care of it tomorrow. The most loyal and tight-lipped will go to the plantations; the rest can work our fields. Darling, you’ve solved a huge headache for me!"

Lily grinned, proud of herself for coming up with a solution to Alexander’s long-standing problem. She stretched out her legs and said with a playful air, "My royal legs are sore. Come and massage them for me!"

"Yes, Your Ladyship!" Alexander instantly transformed into a doting husband. The mighty War God and General knelt cheerfully by the bed, massaging his beloved’s legs like she was a precious treasure!

===

Early the next morning—

Recovered from her punishment, Lulu had already finished her disguise and waited outside for Lily Evans.

Lily had stayed up late last night and felt a bit tired upon waking. After breakfast, she and Lulu headed to the Mathematics Institute together.

Today marked the graduation of the first cohort of the Mathematics Institute’s beginner mathematics class.

Lily had already finished teaching all the middle school mathematics content, more than enough for these teachers to return to their schools and replace arithmetic with proper mathematics.

When the advanced mathematics class opens in the future, these students will return for another round—this time to learn high school-level mathematics.

Everyone was in high spirits on graduation day, waiting in the classroom for Professor Jade Evans to announce the final exam results.

Professor Jade Evans carried a thick stack of papers into the classroom, looking warmly at all the students seated before her.

These students were all top arithmetic teachers selected from academies across the empire, each exceptionally talented. Teaching them hadn’t been exhausting for Lily, and their final results made her very proud.

After just a few months of study, the teachers and students had formed deep bonds. Many of the older students even shed tears in front of Lily—one, who’d just celebrated his sixtieth birthday, clung to Professor Jade Evans’s sleeve and cried his heart out, vowing to return for the advanced class and remain her student forever.

Graduation day was bittersweet, and the students all paid their respects to Lily Evans with grand ceremony.

In ancient times, a teacher for a day was a mentor for life. Looking at her students, Lily understood that the bond she’d forged with them would last a lifetime. Wherever she went, whichever student she met, they would always treat her with the utmost respect due a teacher.

Teacher-student relationships in ancient times were far stronger and closer than those today. This network of outstanding mathematics teachers from across the empire would become one of Lily’s most valuable and unique connections in the future.

And such a network was a rare treasure—something only Lily Evans could possess, and no one else could ever hope to obtain.

Even Gregory Gu Jr. from the Royal Academy couldn’t help but envy Lily Evans’s teacher-student network.