I tried to move, and indeed, my head could stir. Yet, the rest of my body remained immobile. What concerned me most was my right hand, which was currently pressed against a certain spot, perfectly aligned.
From a distance, it looked like Tiangong-1 and Shenzhou-8 had achieved a seamless docking.
Anyone witnessing such a feat would surely cheer and applaud, for it represented the pinnacle of technological civilization in human history.
But why, oh why, did it have to be *me* they chose for this docking? I was still just a child; I didn’t want to be sacrificed so soon.
Under the witch’s control, however, I was merely a puppet, led by the nose, step by step, into the underworld to face the judgment of the Ten Kings of Hell.
When I turned my head, I saw that everyone in groups one, two, three, and four—the entire last row—was fast asleep. Sleeping in class was common, but eight people in one row, all asleep simultaneously? They must have coordinated it.
We were in Teacher Cang’s class, no less. Was Teacher Cang’s charm insufficient, or had they transcended base pleasures to reach a realm of higher ideals?
It seemed as though they were deliberately turning a blind eye to something. Could it be that they had all seen it and chosen collective self-oblivion?
Chenxi’s lips curled into a triumphant smile. Her objective was almost within reach; she wondered how he would recover this time. Chenxi held such animosity towards Jiu that she was willing to sacrifice her allure, all because on their first day of school, he had brazenly snatched her bottled water after she’d only taken a single sip.
His thuggish behavior, coupled with his refusal to explain, had led to an indirect kiss, leaving her feeling utterly humiliated, as if she’d been forcibly kissed. That was why she had followed Jiu to this class and chosen to sit beside him.
She was determined to target him at every turn. Did he truly believe that a bout of amnesia would make her forget the monstrous crimes he had committed?
“Cough, cough!” Chenxi deliberately let out a cough. Aside from the teacher’s lecture, the classroom had been silent. This sound was akin to a thunderclap from a clear sky.
Teacher Cang slowly raised his head, his gaze sweeping towards the front of the classroom.
My mind had already been racing in panic when my deskmate coughed. When Teacher Cang lifted his head and looked my way, my ears buzzed.
Teacher Cang’s face darkened with rage as he noticed my hand inappropriately placed on Chenxi. His eyes, like heavy barbells, widened as he roared, “Che… nxi! Are you interrupting me again?”
Teacher Cang dragged out Chenxi’s name, his roar laced with an undeniable authority. I flinched, startled, and simultaneously pulled my hand back. At the same moment, I heard the sounds of students behind me scrambling to sit up.
Those in the front rows turned to stare at me and my deskmate. If Teacher Cang wasn’t blind, he surely saw it. He was yelling at Chenxi, but I had no doubt that his next words would be directed at me.
I decided to feign deafness, lowering my head and staring at the portrait of Su Shi. I was in a state of utter panic, my thoughts far from calm. My mind raced with how the teacher would punish me—at the very least, a reprimand, or perhaps even expulsion.
I couldn’t fathom why my hand had suddenly become capable of movement. Perhaps, at the last moment, Chenxi had simply grown shy, I mused.
Chenxi frowned, utterly perplexed. She had clearly sealed Jiu’s acupoints, and by all accounts, without her specific technique, they should have remained locked. Could it be…
Chenxi suddenly remembered: when she coughed, Teacher Cang had clearly seen Jiu’s hand on her body. Yet, unexpectedly, Teacher Cang hadn’t reprimanded Jiu; instead, he had rebuked her. This made no sense, logically or emotionally.
Moreover, with Teacher Cang’s single shout, Jiu’s sealed acupoints were released. The students in the back row, whom she had hypnotized, also awoke. It was clearly Teacher Cang’s doing; he seemed to have seen through her scheme all along.
As this thought arose, Chenxi felt a deep unease. If this were true, then Teacher Cang was far more formidable than she had imagined.
Chenxi didn’t cower at Teacher Cang’s shouting. Instead, she sat calmly in her seat and said in a delicate voice, “Teacher, my throat… it’s uncomfortable.”
Teacher Cang snorted coldly and descended from the podium.
I knew it. Teacher Cang had seen my hand on Chenxi’s “car lights.” He was definitely coming for me. Nervously, I clutched my pants and stared at my crotch. His footsteps grew closer and closer, stopping beside me about five seconds later. I barely dared to breathe.
Teacher Cang remained silent. Suddenly, I felt a broad, thick palm land on my head, ruffling my hair.
Teacher Cang was silent for a moment before speaking in a deep voice, “Chenxi, what subject is this class?”
“Chi… Chinese,” Chenxi stammered, glancing at Teacher Cang with a hint of fear. This teacher was powerful; he had broken her acupoint sealing with just his voice. The only comparable technique was the Shaolin Temple’s Lion’s Roar, but the teacher wasn’t a monk, so how could he possess such a skill?
“Then why are you holding a history book?” Teacher Cang waved a large hand and confiscated Chenxi’s history book.
“If you want your book back, come to my office and apologize. Otherwise, go back to where you came from.”
Feeling a lightness on my head, I sensed Teacher Cang’s footsteps receding. Finally, he returned to the podium.
Chenxi glared at Teacher Cang and stamped her foot. “I will never apologize to a bald man. Not in this life, nor the next!”
Teacher Cang hadn’t mentioned me, which gave me a feeling of having escaped a great disaster. I couldn’t imagine how I would continue to stay at school if I had actually been called out. I suddenly wanted to change seats.
I thought about discussing it with the male students after class to see who would be willing to switch. I believed that many men would be eager to sit next to this mixed-blood “big pineapple” beside me.
Ding-a-ling!
The bell rang, and students instantly sprang to their feet, rushing towards the door. Teacher Cang shook his head helplessly, picked up his lesson plan, and walked out.
“Hey, little brother, do you still remember me? I’m Ma Chao! We used to be the best of friends.” I turned my head to see a squinty-eyed boy speaking to me. From his enthusiastic demeanor, it didn’t seem like he was lying.
“I’ll show you something; maybe then you’ll remember,” Ma Chao said, opening his drawer and pulling out an English book.
‘This… did Ma Chao and I meet because of English studies?’ Yet, looking at the unfamiliar words on the cover, I had no idea what they meant. I flipped open the first page, immediately disproving any notion that we were good students studying English.
It also drastically changed my impression of Ma Chao. This… this was an 18+ Japanese manga disguised with an English cover. I quickly glanced at it, then immediately closed it and tossed it back to Ma Chao, exclaiming in shame and indignation, “Pervert!”
Ma Chao watched Jiu turn away, his face flushed. “Haha… that’s exactly it! Your expression, your actions, even your exact words—it’s just like the first day we met!” Ma Chao reminisced about their playful moments with classmates, letting out his first sigh of profound realization.
I waited until Chenxi had left her seat before speaking to Ma Chao. “You just said we were the best of friends?”
“That’s right, we’re brothers! You usually call me Chao, and I call you little brother. Whenever you say something like that, you’re definitely looking for some H-games. How could I, Ma Chao, be such a petty person? Here, this is the latest erotica novel, *Bullying Ghost Girl*, released in Akihabara last month.”
Ma Chao pulled another thick book from his drawer, a tome as thick as all the Chinese, math, English, and history textbooks combined.
I truly wanted to declare that I wasn’t interested in such things, but my hands had already caught it. Just by looking at the cover, one could tell the extensive content within. The plastic wrap on the book hadn’t even been removed. It seemed Chao truly cherished this book; he’d gotten it last month and still couldn’t bring himself to open it.
“Chao, why don’t you read it after buying it? Aren’t novels meant to be read?”
“You amateur H-game readers wouldn’t understand. I’m a seasoned bookworm; I’ve been reading for eight whole years. Every time I discover a book that suits my taste, I get excited for ages. Back then, I’d hate to eat or sleep, just to finish the novel.
“But once I finished, I’d be in a book slump. Finding another one I liked was like searching for a needle in a haystack. This particular book is a treasure I painstakingly searched for online for over half a month.
“I only read the first three chapters on my phone, and I specially had someone mail it back from overseas. I want to keep it sealed like this, until… until I die. I’ll take it into my coffin with me. After I die, I hope to enter this dimensional world. That is my greatest wish right now.”
“Chao, Chao, that’s not a wish; that’s a dying wish.” Chao truly was Chao; I might never reach his level of philosophical depth in this lifetime.