The two of them turned back sharply.
Well, here comes Baldy again.
Upon seeing them, Baldy’s thoughts immediately returned to the disruption during that evening self-study. His face turned red then pale, his eyes glaring with an expression that screamed, “No! This is not the evidence I wanted!”
Lu Xingyan found it amusing, his hands in his pockets, tilting his head in mockery. “Teacher, this is the Girls’ Festival gift prepared by our class. Confiscating this, are you planning to use it as shoe insoles?”
Baldy’s face kept changing colors, his eyes filled with a clear message: “No! This is not the evidence I wanted!”
Lu Xingyan was particularly sarcastic, even gesturing with his eyes toward the direction of the other class. “You should go to our class and confiscate them. You could collect dozens of these, and you’d have a year’s worth of shoe insoles.”
At this moment, Class One wasn’t like the other classes, quietly reading during the morning self-study. They were loud and unruly, even the class representative couldn’t control them.
When the girls received roses, they thought the boys in their class were considerate. But when they opened the gift box, they found the boys shameless! The Girls’ Festival gift turned out to be sanitary pads!
Baldy, feeling uneasy, finally found a reason to confront them as they behaved so carefree during the morning self-study. He stood at the doorway, his hands behind his back, and publicly humiliated Class One.
Wang Youfu heard the commotion and came over. Baldy complained to Wang Youfu and also told him about the incident with the Rubik’s Cube during the evening self-study.
Someone below whispered, “Teacher Xu said if he could solve six sides, he wouldn’t say anything. Shen Xingruo solved six sides in one minute.”
This was followed by laughter from some students. Some of the bold boys joined in, “That’s right, Teacher Xu said it himself.”
As colleagues, Wang Youfu knew Baldy’s temperament, but he had to give him face as he was still a teacher. “I’ve said it many times, don’t discuss irrelevant matters during morning self-study. A year’s plan starts with spring, and a day’s plan starts with the morning. On this spring morning, why aren’t you all studying?”
Wang Youfu spoke slowly, like reciting scriptures, for half a minute before saying something that seemed harmless but also seemed pointless.
Wang Youfu was known in the school for protecting his students. If his students misbehaved, he would discipline them himself. He had been the head teacher of the liberal arts class for five years. He usually appeared as calm as the Buddha, but once he got worked up, he even smashed a cup in the grade office.
Baldy didn’t expect him to reprimand Class One in front of him. Instead, he focused on Lu Xingyan and Shen Xingruo to find fault.
Giving Baldy some face, Wang Youfu cleared his throat, pretending to be serious as he turned to Lu Xingyan and Shen Xingruo. “Lu Xingyan, Shen Xingruo, how could you two play with a Rubik’s Cube during evening self-study? Although a Rubik’s Cube is a good thing for intelligence and hand-eye coordination, you should only play with it after class.”
He continued, “And Lu Xingyan, why did you wait until after Teacher Xu opened it to tell him what it was? You should have said it earlier to avoid misunderstanding.”
Lu Xingyan readily agreed, nodding. Then, he turned to Baldy, “Sorry, Teacher Xu. I didn’t know it was sanitary pads inside. I should have checked the gift on the way. Then, I could have warned you before you opened it.”
Lu Xingyan bowed deeply after speaking.
Suddenly, the class burst into laughter.
Baldy was so enraged by Lu Xingyan’s repeated mention of sanitary pads that he looked like he was about to ascend to heaven in fury. With a disdainful snort at Wang Youfu, he turned on his heel and stormed upstairs.
The students in the class were still laughing.
Wang Youfu glanced at Lu Xingyan and Shen Xingruo, didn’t say anything, and walked towards the platform.
Suddenly, there was a loud “bang”! Wang Youfu’s red thermos, which he always carried, slammed heavily onto the platform.
“Take a good look at yourselves! What do you look like!”
Wang Youfu’s expression was no longer gentle. He began to reprimand the class with a voice that reverberated throughout the teaching building!
Shen Xingruo had never seen Wang Youfu like this before.
The students of Class One might not have seen this for the first time, but at that moment, they all stopped laughing and sat up straight, as quietly as steamed chickens.
“This high school has 25 classes, 9 liberal arts classes, and 3 liberal arts experimental classes! When you were placed in the experimental class, your level should have been among the top! But now! You’re consistently ranking at the bottom! You still have the nerve to joke around during morning self-study! If you don’t feel ashamed, I do!”
“I know high school is tough, and I’ve never set overly high expectations for your academic performance. If you don’t do well, it’s a matter of ability! But not studying properly is an attitude problem!”
“Look at yourselves now, where’s even a bit of the atmosphere of an experimental class? What are you calling an experimental class for? Your average score at the end of last semester was only one point higher than Class Four! Class Four is just an ordinary class! With results like these, do you have the face to joke around with teachers? With results like these, what kind of grades can you achieve in the college entrance exam and what kind of university can you get into!”
Every question from Wang Youfu seemed to strike at the souls of the students in Class One, and the classroom was silent.
After lecturing the whole class, Wang Youfu shifted his attention to Lu Xingyan and Shen Xingruo at the door:
“And you two!”
“Lu Xingyan, you have some reasoning for playing with the Rubik’s Cube during evening self-study! You’re always so nonchalant! You need to rein in your arrogance! I’m your class teacher, not your parent. I won’t tolerate your bad temper!”
“Shen Xingruo! You’re a top student from Huize No. 1 Middle School, and you usually perform well. I know this has nothing to do with you!”
“?”
“But why did I arrange for you to sit with Lu Xingyan? It’s because I hoped you would set an example for him! If you don’t set an example for him and instead join him in defying the teacher, is that what a good student should do!”
“Teacher, that’s not what you said in the office…”
Shen Xingruo remembered Wang Youfu’s self-satisfaction in the office when discussing seating arrangements, feeling a bit detached from the situation. On the other hand, Lu Xingyan stood unusually upright, quietly listening to Wang Youfu’s scolding, with none of his usual unruly demeanor. Perhaps Wang Youfu’s scolding towards Shen Xingruo felt a bit insincere, as he passed it off in his mind. He lost the momentum to continue scolding, so he ended with, “Both of you, stand outside and attend morning self-study!” Then he stormed off in frustration.
This was the first time Shen Xingruo had been punished with standing from kindergarten to high school. She didn’t feel the typical humiliation and indignation of a good student suddenly being scolded and feeling utterly embarrassed. Instead, she just regretted not having eaten breakfast to fill her stomach this early in the morning. She couldn’t stand for long, especially on an empty stomach in the morning. During military training in her first year of high school, she once fainted from standing at attention without having breakfast to sleep in a few more minutes.
Seeing her pale complexion, Lu Xingyan quickly speculated on many emotions for her. Glancing at her, he asked, “Hey, are you okay?”
“Not really.”
What kind of trick was this? Normally, wouldn’t she stubbornly nod along and pretend to be strong?
Before Lu Xingyan could react, Shen Xingruo squatted down on her own.
Seeing her squatting, hugging her knees, and burying her head, Lu Xingyan thought she was crying.
…This had nothing to do with her, having been a top student for over ten years, suddenly being punished by a teacher. Naturally, she felt both wronged and embarrassed.
Come to think of it, it was all because of him that Shen Xingruo suffered.
Thinking of this, Lu Xingyan felt a bit uneasy.
Looking around and seeing no one, he covered his mouth, cleared his throat, and then casually picked up the book in his hand, patting Shen Xingruo’s shoulder. “Hey, don’t cry.”
Seeing no response from Shen Xingruo, he stood there for three seconds, then squatted down as well, pretending to be casual. “This time you were unfairly targeted. Everyone in the class knows that, so you don’t have to feel embarrassed.”
Still no response.
“If anyone talks about it, I’ll tell them to shut up. Will that be enough?”
Finally, Shen Xingruo spoke up, “…you should shut up first.”
Lu Xingyan: “…”
Shen Xingruo took a moment to squat and relax, feeling much better. She stood up and continued reading her book. Lu Xingyan didn’t say anything more, but he had already figured out that she was just saving face while feeling miserable.
Not only Lu Xingyan, but most of the students in the class also thought so. After the punishment ended, girls who usually talked to Shen Xingruo came forward to comfort her. Even some boys came over to comfort her, and there were playful ones like Li Chengfan who tried to cheer her up. In short, no one believed that she looked bad just because she was uncomfortable standing there.
After this incident, Lu Xingyan felt like he owed Shen Xingruo something. It wasn’t right to act as if they should never interact again. Actually, other than throwing a basketball at him and joking about burning incense for him, Shen Xingruo hadn’t done anything to provoke him.
At first, Lu Xingyan found Shen Xingruo annoying because he felt she was fake, showing different faces in front of different people. Moreover, he wasn’t in a good mood due to the situation with Chen Zhu, and the sudden intrusion of strangers at home, like a mirror reflecting his lack of diligence, intensified his displeasure. However, now it seemed that the first reason was a bit forced. Shen Xingruo was friendly to most people, but she was equally arrogant towards those who provoked her, just like a Bai Peacock brand retort machine, ready to challenge anyone who dared to cross her. As a somewhat unsuccessful provocateur, Lu Xingyan’s opinion of Shen Xingruo had changed slightly, but a 180-degree attitude shift toward her was still difficult.
Shen Xingruo noticed that lately, Lu Xingyan seemed much friendlier. After some thought, she realized it was probably because they had shared the experience of being punished together, creating a sort of camaraderie through punishment. She and Lu Xingyan didn’t have any deep-seated grudges, and since she lived in the Lu family’s house, it was best if they could get along peacefully. So, she reluctantly accepted the goodwill that Lu Xingyan had been forcing on her recently. Their relationship at the desk wasn’t exactly back to tropical paradise from Antarctica, but at least it had returned to temperate conditions.
It was Thursday. When leaving in the morning, Zhai Jiajing remembered something and discussed it with Shen Xingruo, “Xingruo, I’m on cleaning duty today, but I have to attend the school’s class cadres meeting. Can I switch with you for a day?”
Without hesitation, Shen Xingruo agreed. Doing cleaning duty on Thursday was better for her and Lu Xingyan, so Uncle Liu wouldn’t have to wait outside for too long.
When they entered the classroom, she asked the boy who was originally scheduled for cleaning duty on Thursday if he would be willing to switch. The boy eagerly nodded, almost taking on today’s cleaning as well.
When Lu Xingyan arrived in the classroom, she informed him as well. Lu Xingyan, who had probably engaged in some nocturnal activities and couldn’t even open his eyes, exuded an aura of exhaustion.
Listening to her, he lazily replied with two “mm” sounds.
Shen Xingruo repeated, “Did you hear me?”
He lay his head on the desk, his voice lethargic, “Cleaning duty, got it.”
On Thursday, the final class was Political Science, and Wang Youfu went through a set of simulated test questions from the exercise book.
At the end of class, Ruan Wen collected the exercise books, probably to check if everyone had taken thorough notes during the lesson. Shen Xingruo helped Ruan Wen collect the exercise books. When she returned, except for a few girls who were skipping dinner to lose weight, the classroom was empty. Lu Xingyan and the basketball under his desk were also nowhere to be seen. Shen Xingruo stood by her seat for a moment with little expression, then grabbed a broom and began sweeping the floor.
In the evening, the lingering sunlight painted streaks of golden hues across the sky. At the midfield of the basketball court, Lu Xingyan emerged sweaty, wiping his forehead with the hem of his shirt as he walked toward the sidelines. A junior schoolgirl had been waiting for a while and, blushing, she offered him some water as he approached. His chest rose and fell with exertion, but his face showed little emotion as he coldly refused, “No need.” Xu Chengzhou, accustomed to this scenario, shrugged and tossed Lu Xingyan a bottle of mineral water he had brought himself, then opened one for himself. “What’s wrong, Master Lu? Not feeling it today?”
Lu Xingyan casually replied, “I don’t know, just have this feeling like I forgot something, but I can’t remember what.”
“You and your goldfish memory—”
The bottle of mineral water was thrown directly at him, “You’re the one with the goldfish memory.”
Mid-conversation, Lu Xingyan glanced casually and suddenly noticed a girl not far away, carrying a black garbage bag, her back straight as she walked directly towards the basketball court. Shen Xingru?
Lu Xingyan paused for a moment, straightening up against the steps. Shen Xingruo approached, stopping in front of him. Without a word, her expression indifferent, she overturned the garbage bag in front of Lu Xingyan, spreading its contents evenly across the court, nearly half of it.
“Garbage from Blocks Three and Four and the podium. Sweep it up.”