Strange illusions, some upside down

An Huaixu closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and stopped childishly bickering with him, instead using practical actions to make his point –

He raised a hand and waved, his tone suddenly softening: “Shi Yun, come here.”

Shi Yun, focused on examining the plaster, suddenly heard his name, looked up in confusion with an “Ah?”, and met An Huaixu’s gaze, then happily ran over: “Teacher An, you’re here! Did you sleep well last night?”

An Huaixu openly patted Shi Yun’s shoulder, shot Pin Chi a warning glance, and led Shi Yun outside.

He deliberately shifted sideways, completely obscuring Shi Yun’s figure: “Mm, why didn’t you wait for me this morning?”

Pin Chi narrowed his eyes, watching them walk shoulder to shoulder, growing increasingly displeased.

The doctor sipped some hot water, his small eyes darting between them, as if he had seen through something.

Shi Yun kept looking straight ahead, completely oblivious to the silent skirmish behind him.

His voice held a hint of excitement: “I was afraid of disturbing your filming, so I left early.”

An Huaixu’s lips curved in a subtle smile: “It’s fine.”

He then looked at Shi Yun’s arm: “Come to me for your dressing changes, don’t come here anymore.”

Shi Yun turned around, stepping backward as he said in surprise: “You can do bandages too?”

He kept his gaze on An Huaixu’s face as he spoke, because it made him feel very secure.

This was a new habit he’d developed since the cellar incident yesterday.

An Huaixu met his gaze for a moment, then gently took his head and turned him back around: “Walk properly, it’s not safe.”

Shi Yun continued to ask curiously: “Teacher An, is there anything you can’t do?”

An Huaixu: “Mm.” He added as a matter of course: “Nothing is impossible.”

Shi Yun was amused by his tone.

Pin Chi stood silently by the window, watching An Huaixu and Shi Yun gradually disappear into the distance, quietly clenching his fists.

‘Well, An Huaixu, you usually keep a low profile, but you really have that intention!’

“This is so annoying!”

He shouted, then hurriedly ran after them: “Xiao Yun, wait for me!”

Jiang Song was playing with the children when he saw the three of them emerging from the house, one after the other.

Just as he was about to greet them, he noticed something, and a playful glint flashed in his eyes: “Hiss… interesting.”

[When did Pin Chi and Teacher Shi get so close?]

[Hiss… Pin Chi kind of reminds me of a husky eager to impress its owner.]

[Pin Chi, move aside, you’re blocking my CP ship!]

This morning, the first two classes for the junior, intermediate, and senior classes were taught by Teachers An, Qi, and Wei respectively.

Jiang Song and Qiao Yu were still concerned about the small animals that had spent the night in the cardboard box yesterday, so they quickly grabbed their tools and went to build nests.

Director Zhang suddenly felt unwell, so Shi Yun temporarily filled in for him, observing the classes from outside the window.

The live broadcast cameras were divided into other guests, fixed classroom view, and outdoor roaming view.

Shi Yun had no idea about the camera arrangements and was completely unaware that he had entered the roaming view.

It wasn’t until he finished writing and turned around, almost getting a black box shoved in his face, that he jumped in surprise and realized what was happening.

He waved slightly unnaturally: “Hi, what a coincidence.”

[Again and again and again, I’m dying of laughter!]

[I always thought Teacher Shi accidentally appearing on camera was planned by the production team, but it turns out he really had no idea!]

[Confirmed: Ditzy, adorable, little antique Teacher Shi!]

The intermediate and senior classes were normal, so he quickly moved past them. Only when he reached the junior class and saw An Huaixu at the podium did he linger for a few extra minutes.

Among yesterday’s mission rewards were various wooden percussion instruments like maracas, woodblocks, and clappers, painted in vibrant, child-friendly colors, making them look exceptionally pretty on the children’s desks.

Shi Yun had expected that, given An Huaixu’s personality, he would treat this lesson like a task, quickly running through the basic, dull knowledge and then letting the children play freely.

To his surprise, An Huaixu didn’t just go through the motions. Instead, he was incredibly patient, calling on the children one by one, guiding them to personally complete the instrument lessons according to his instructions.

“…Mm, very good, next, Fang Yuan.”

Fang Yuan eagerly picked up the woodblock, holding it high for everyone to see.

The ‘woodblock’ was an idiophone, with a hole carved in its fish-shaped head, a body tapering from wide to narrow, and smooth curves, adorned with cute wavy patterns acting as scales.

“First, tell us what you’ve discovered.”

Fang Yuan, drawing on the experience learned from previous classmates, first observed carefully, then took the wooden mallet and tapped it, listening to the ‘dong-dong-deng’ sounds.

His eyes lit up, and he came to a conclusion: “The sound is different in different places!”

An Huaixu hummed in affirmation, then drew a simple fish shape on the blackboard, marking a few points.

He explained how the width and narrowness of idiophones affected sound transmission, and then the different timbres of various instruments.

“Ning Jia Zheng’s clappers are crisp and rhythmic, while the woodblock is more traditional with a unique timbre.”

An Huaixu crouched beside Fang Yuan, patiently taught him to complete a simple performance, then returned to the podium and called out to Ning Jia Zheng: “Jia Zheng, when I do this–”

He clapped his hands once: “It means you strike the clappers. Fang Yuan, tap the table to hit the woodblock’s belly.”

Shi Yun watched An Huaixu’s effortless demeanor, feeling a sense of absolute control.

He chuckled involuntarily, and for the first time in his notebook, wrote down the word ‘Perfect’.

[An Huaixu might not be very reliable, but he’s quite serious about his work, specifically regarding…]

[Thanks to this variety show, I’ve gone from a hater to a fan, and fallen in love with An Huaixu.]

[Is it just my imagination, or do An Huaixu and Teacher Shi seem to be mutually attracted?]

Shi Yun, just before leaving, glanced at him twice more.

Perhaps it was an illusion combined with the sunlight reflecting off the glass, but a blinding flash made his vision swim, and the scene in the room transformed into a certain simple yet elegant living room.

Two children squatted on the carpet, curiously fiddling with clappers and woodblocks in their hands.

“…Gege,”

“Mm.”

“Then…”

“Here, don’t talk anymore.”

The lively child took the clappers handed by the reserved child. Just as he was about to speak, the door opened, and many people entered.

Everyone was talking, and their demeanor with the two children was intimate, clearly like family.

But strangely, everyone’s face was covered by a cloud of mist, making it impossible to hear or see them clearly.

Shi Yun felt as if he was under a spell, desperately wanting to sweep away that obstructive mist, eager to know –

“Ugh!”

Shi Yun’s head was suddenly hit with a sharp pain, his vision immediately went black, and he stumbled, nearly falling to the ground.

Fortunately, the cameraman quickly pulled him back, preventing a major mishap.

An Huaixu heard the sound, instructed the children to study freely, then pushed the door open and walked out, supporting Shi Yun with a frown:

“What happened?”

Shi Yun’s vision gradually cleared.

He opened his mouth, but found his mind blank, having completely forgotten what he had seen or what he wanted to say.

He embarrassedly pinched his nose, stood up, and gently pushed An Huaixu away:

“It might be low blood sugar. You should go back to class. I’m sorry, I…”

An Huaixu interrupted him, his tone slightly cold: “You didn’t eat breakfast?”

Shi Yun paused for two seconds, then slowly nodded.

An Huaixu took a deep breath: “Wait for me, I’ll go get you some candy.”

Shi Yun didn’t want to trouble him, but before he could refuse, An Huaixu hurried into a nearby lounge.

Shi Yun could only lower his hand, waiting obediently by the door, and said to the cameraman: “Thank you.”

The cameraman mouthed, ‘No problem.’

Shi Yun felt energized and continued to ask him: “Did you feel it too? Teacher An is actually quite gentle, isn’t he?”

The cameraman gave a wry smile.

[Teacher Shi, let’s just say, is there a possibility that Teacher An is only gentle with you?]

[I’m reporting Teacher Shi for public displays of affection!]

[The main couple practically feeding us on the face, I ask, is there any other CP in this circle this sweet?!]

“What are you saying about me?”

Shi Yun hadn’t expected to be caught by the person himself before the cameraman could respond.

He chuckled twice, completely unashamed, and straightforwardly praised: “Saying you’re gentle.”

An Huaixu’s furrowed brow relaxed slightly: “Not giving out ‘good person’ cards anymore?”

He handed the item in his hand to Shi Yun: “Eat this.”

Shi Yun, without a hint of hesitation or doubt, unwrapped the candy and put it in his mouth. A rich milky fragrance filled his taste buds.

He immediately exclaimed in surprise: “Teacher An, you like ‘Eternal’ too?”

An Huaixu gave Shi Yun a deep look, didn’t answer, but instead patted his shoulder and returned to the room to continue class.

Shi Yun looked down at the candy wrapper in his hand, feeling as if he had forgotten something important.

[Why is Teacher Shi suddenly so sad?]

[An Huaixu’s attitude towards Teacher Shi has changed so much, either something happened, or he’s genuinely smitten.]

[Oh, Teacher Pin Chi is here!]

Pin Chi, after helping them set up the shed, strolled to the front yard and immediately spotted Shi Yun standing dazed by the junior class doorway.

“Xiao Yun!”

Shi Yun reined in his thoughts, lifted his foot, and walked over.

The cameraman continued to follow the situation in the three classrooms.

Netizens flocked to Pin Chi’s individual live stream.

Pin Chi hooked an arm around Shi Yun’s shoulder, saying like old pals: “Xiao Yun, are you done with your work?”

Shi Yun nodded: “Once I hand this to Director Zhang, we can go to the vegetable garden.”

Director Zhang was waiting for Shi Yun ahead.

He took the notebook and quickly glanced through it: “The junior class is doing well today, aren’t they?”

Shi Yun: “The children are very adaptable to Teacher An’s teaching style.”

Director Zhang laughed heartily: “Good, good, that’s all that matters!”

He gave Shi Yun a few instructions regarding the vegetable garden, then turned and went back inside.

It was only then that Pin Chi noticed Director Zhang had a slight limp in his left leg.

He didn’t pry, just called out to the others who were slowly approaching, and then trotted along beside Shi Yun.

After two classes, An Huaixu didn’t see Shi Yun’s figure and guessed he must be working in the vegetable garden.

He didn’t even have time for a sip of water, grabbing the towels and other items prepared by the production team, he rushed over.

He didn’t expect that just as he stood still, before he could even speak, and after clearly seeing the scene before him, his anger flared up instantly!

‘Well, well, now there are two cabbage thieves!’