“What are you trying to do?” Yan Chi asked, his expression terrified. “Xingluo, tell me the truth, can you guys also change skins?”
“We’d like to, but we don’t have the ability.” Xingluo looked regretful. He called over several boys and casually tore a piece of paper into evenly sized pieces. “Come on, draw lots. Whoever draws a circle will wear a skirt.”
There were ten students in the class, two girls, and three boys to draw. Every boy who went to draw lots was visibly nervous, while Mingcai excitedly pulled Ahui aside to watch.
Yan Chi watched them draw lots and became nervous as well.
“You guys draw first, I’ll draw last.” Tan Mo quickly went to the back of the line. Seeing him run off, Sethia followed suit. In the end, Feng Wang, who was third in line, drew first.
Feng Wang also tried to run away, but Shen Chang Le grabbed him.
Shen Chang Le opened his eyes and looked at him, his voice calm, "Can you be a little more decisive?"
If Feng Wang ran away, he'd be the first to get a ticket.
Shen Chang Le's nonchalant attitude instantly ignited Feng Wang's anger. He stood back in his place, "Fine, I'll get a ticket then, it's no big deal."
He pretended to be relaxed, but his outstretched hand trembled twice. He picked up a crumpled piece of paper, then hesitated, choosing another, wavering for five or six minutes before finally selecting his destined one.
It's okay, he's always been lucky; this time it definitely won't be him.
Feng Wang's heart raced. While reassuring himself, he slowly unfolded the paper. On the crumpled paper was a not-so-perfect circle.
Feng Wang's vision went black. "Are you kidding me?"
Stepping on a landmine right from the start?!
Feng Wang, heartbroken, returned to his seat with the note, staring blankly into space. Li Huai, having switched seats with Shen Chang Le, had drawn a crumpled piece of paper beforehand. Unfolding it, he found it blank.
Li Huai immediately ran to Feng Wang to comfort him, "It's okay, bro. You can dance with me. I won't mind."
Feng Wang looked at Li Huai's slightly excited face, then slumped onto the table, feeling even more miserable.
Yan Chi never expected the first person to be chosen so quickly. Feng Wang was wearing a skirt and dancing the female steps, and his partner was Li Huai, who was a head shorter than him.
Imagining that scene, Yan Chi shuddered. He quickly checked the next person's draw results.
Shen Chang Le pursed his lips tightly. He had learned from Feng Wang's mistake and firmly believed that hesitation would lead to defeat. When choosing a slip of paper, he just randomly picked one. Unfolding it, he saw it was another circle.
Yan Chi: "...!!"
Shen Chang Le: "..."
So, not hesitating also leads to defeat. He stood there blankly for a while, then, recovering, walked over to Yan Chi and sat down silently, seemingly still processing the blow.
Yan Chi patted his shoulder comfortingly, looking at his face, which resembled Shen Mingsu's by five or six points, and inexplicably felt a sense of anticipation for seeing him in a skirt.
Shen Chang Le, dazed, asked, "Uncle, is there any water?"
Yan Chi paused, pointing to himself, "Were you calling me?"
Shen Chang Le looked at Yan Chi silently, appearing somewhat pitiful. Yan Chi's heart softened, and he poured him a glass of water. Shen Chang Le thanked him and then fell into the same sullen state as Feng Wang.
Yan Chi held back for a while, but finally couldn't resist sharing. He took out his phone, tapped Shen Mingsu's profile picture, and shared the message with him.
Shen Mingsu replied instantly: [The camera is ready. We'll sit on the judges' panel.]
Yan Chi couldn't help but laugh out loud. Shen Chang Le glanced at his phone screen, his shoulders slumped, and he hung his head dejectedly.
"It's okay, Chang Le." Yan Chi concealed the amusement in his voice, patting his shoulder encouragingly, and told him, "Actually, many boys wear their older sisters' dresses when they're little, it's no big deal."
Shen Chang Le: "You said it yourself, when we were little."
Yan Chi choked up, "Yeah... at least you're not alone, Feng Wang and the others are with you."
Thinking of this, Shen Chang Le felt much better. Being embarrassed alone is indeed terrible, but being with a group isn't embarrassing; it's a group activity.
Meanwhile, Xingluo, standing behind Shen Chang Le, beamed with joy after Shen Chang Le won the prize. He grabbed a crumpled piece of paper and saw it was indeed blank.
He smugly walked up to Shen Chang Le with the blank paper, "Miss, may I have this dance?"
Shen Chang Le glanced at him, "Are you asking for a beating?"
Xingluo giggled and happily went to watch the others draw lots.
After him came Lian Deng, who was discussing with his three little ones which slip to draw. After much deliberation, he chose one on the side, unfolded it—and found it blank.
"You're all my good babies," Lian Deng said, picking up and kissing the three little ones before skipping away.
The last slip of paper with a circle landed in Ning Zhu's hand. Ning Zhu took a deep breath, sat down next to Shen Chang Le, and sipped his water.
The remaining two, Sethia and Tan Mo, breathed a sigh of relief and each chose one.
"Huh?" Sethia exclaimed, showing everyone the unfolded paper. "Why is there a circle?"
Everyone's gaze returned to Xingluo. Xingluo's face stiffened, and after a moment's thought, he smiled sheepishly. "I probably accidentally drew an extra one."
"Then the four of you draw again," Xingluo quickly tore off a few more sheets of paper. "This time there's only one circle. Whoever draws it doesn't have to wear women's clothing."
Sethia and the other two's emotions were like a rollercoaster. After drawing their lots one by one, the only circle slip landed in Shen Chang Le's hand.
Shen Chang Le instantly perked up. He deliberately waved the slip in front of Yan Chi.
Yan Chi couldn't help but chuckle. "Congratulations."
The three who ultimately had to wear women's clothing were Feng Wang, Sethia, and Ning Zhu.
Except for Sethia, who quickly accepted this fact, Feng Wang and Ning Zhu both looked dejected and sighed.
After class at noon that day, Yan Chi waited for Shen Chang Le in the office before going home for lunch together.
Just as they reached the front door, Shen Mingsu pushed it open. "Welcome home for lunch, Teacher Chi and Chang Le!"
He put his arm around Yan Chi's shoulder, speaking to Shen Chang Le like a reliable elder: "Chang Le, I bought you something today. Do you like it?"
Yan Chi turned to look at him in surprise. How strange! Had he finally remembered he was Chang Le's uncle?
Shen Chang Le showed no expectation. "Is it a dress?"
"You guessed right." Shen Mingsu went inside and brought out the pink long dress he had bought for Shen Chang Le. Two bows were tied on the straps, making it look like a strawberry cake. "Isn't it pretty? I fell in love with this dress at first sight. You can wear it for your performance."
Shen Chang Le: "..."
Sure enough, once you get used to it, it's not surprising anymore.
Yan Chi coughed guiltily, "Chang Le doesn't need to do the women's dance, so she doesn't need a skirt."
"That's such a shame," Shen Mingsu said sympathetically, folding the skirt and comforting him, "Don't be discouraged, life is long, you'll definitely have your chance to wear it again."
Shen Chang Le politely declined his words of encouragement, "Thank you, but I don't need it."
After lunch, Yan Chi and Shen Mingsu went to the conference room to discuss the topics for the practical assessment, while Shen Chang Le stayed home for a nap.
The conference room was already filled with teachers. First and second year students were participating in the assessment together, and Yan Chi glanced around; most of them were teachers he didn't recognize.
The teachers were also observing Yan Chi. Yan Chi smiled and nodded at each teacher he made eye contact with, his politeness impeccable.
He sat down next to Xi Chang, who leaned closer after he did. "Xiao Chi, I have something very important to tell you."
His tone was so serious that Yan Chi instinctively sat up straight. "Go ahead."
"I suspect Lin Heng is colluding with the players." Xi Chang's words were startling, and he didn't lower his voice at all, while Lin Heng sat on his other side.
Lin Heng looked utterly helpless. "I'm not colluding with them. I don't know how they found out I was at school and contacted me."
Xi Chang muttered, "I clearly heard them say they were coming to rescue you. We didn't imprison you. Your friends are treating us like bad guys."
Lin Heng: "They misunderstood."
"Then if they come to the school, will you help us or them?"
Xi Chang's question was pointed. He grew up in Yunzhou and would unconditionally stand on Yunzhou's side, but Lin Heng had come halfway through and was just a player. Xi Chang didn't dare to fully trust him.
Lin Heng said weakly, "I promise you, I will absolutely stand on your side."
Yan Chi felt like Lin Heng was about to break. He said to Xi Chang, "Hmm, I believe Teacher Lin isn't two-faced."
If he had bad intentions, he would have plenty of opportunities to act during nighttime patrols with the students, but so far, no student had been injured during patrols.
Xi Chang's expression softened slightly, but he still didn't like Lin Heng much. He clung tightly to Yan Chi, resting his head on his shoulder. Yan Chi was at a loss for what to do. He looked to Shen Mingsu for help.
Shen Mingsu: "It's okay, he'll only be angry for a few minutes, he'll forget about it soon."
Xi Chang retorted, "I'll be angry for a long time this time!"
Shen Mingsu, ever the opportunist, added fuel to the fire, "Go ahead and be angry, I don't know how to comfort you."
Xi Chang shoved his head against Yan Chi's shoulder, grumbling as if complaining about how unreasonable Shen Mingsu was.
Just as Yan Chi was at his wit's end, the director finally appeared. With a few words, he quickly shifted everyone's attention to him.
"The initial plan is to schedule the assessments during the sports meet, assigning players to different classes as students. Teachers, please be patient and don't eliminate all the players."
The teachers readily agreed.
But how to assign grades was a problem for everyone. They couldn't just keep writing reports discussing the players' merits and demerits, could they?
News spread incredibly fast among the students; some had probably already prepared, just waiting for the announcement to submit a perfect answer.
“Since it clashes with the sports meet, let’s have them participate together,” Shen Mingsu said, never one to miss a chance for a good show. “There’ll only be one first place; whichever class gets it will get points, and everyone will submit a competition reflection, that’ll count as individual points, how about that?”
Yan Chi thought it was a great idea and raised his hand in agreement.
The director's gaze subtly shifted between the two of them. Yan Chi slowly met Shen Mingsu’s smiling eyes, and instantly withdrew his raised hand.
Shen Mingsu: "I'm so grateful that my teacher, Xiaochi, is so supportive."
Yan Chi, embarrassed and angry, retorted, "It's not about personal feelings; I genuinely think your suggestion is excellent."
"I know, my teacher, Xiaochi, always has excellent taste." Shen Mingsu turned to the others, his tenderness vanishing instantly. "Anyone with objections, please speak up."
The other teachers: "..."
"That's settled then."
"No objections."
"Alright, alright."
"..."
The assessment content was thus finalized. The director raised another point, "Should we block the players' live streams this time?"
Shen Mingsu chuckled, "Right now, almost no players actively choose Yunzhou. It's always just a few people forced in by the system; it's pointless."
"This time, we won't block the live streams. Let everyone see the hospitality of Yunzhou."
One month later.
Xie Tao finally emerged from the dungeon. Standing in the center of the player lobby, watching the players rushing by, he suddenly missed Yan Chi.
I wonder how Yan Chi is doing now, and whether his new boyfriend is treating him well.
Yan Chi is soft-hearted; he clings to anyone who's handsome. Xie Tao is afraid that if he's not there to protect him, Yan Chi will be deceived and heartbroken by this man.
"Hey, where are you going for your next dungeon? Want to team up?" A hand casually draped over Xie Tao's shoulder.
Xie Tao's eyes turned cold as he looked at the player he'd met in the previous dungeon. He shrugged and let his hand fall. "What's it to you?"
The man, repeatedly given the cold shoulder by Xie Tao, looked grim. "You're so arrogant, huh?"
"Yeah, I'm arrogant. If you don't like it, go die." Xie Tao retorted, still not satisfied, and glared at him coldly. "Why don't you try being arrogant yourself? Feeling inferior? Judging by your appearance, you really should feel inferior. If you're arrogant, you'll become a laughingstock."
The man: "You motherfucker..."
"You son of a bitch!" Xie Tao wasn't going to back down. "Do you really want me to kick you out?"
The man: "...You just wait!"
"I've dug your grave. Come anytime." Xie Tao watched the man run away in a flash, feeling extremely satisfied.
Indeed, when people are bored, they should curse a couple of people for fun.
[The Yunzhou dungeon is about to open. Players who wish to enter the dungeon, please prepare.]
[Number of Players: 5]
Each player's system page displayed two options—Accept or Reject.
Almost every player immediately clicked Reject.
Yunzhou… Xie Tao was momentarily dazed. He seemed to have heard this name somewhere before. He remembered—he'd dreamt of it. That strange boy kept knocking on his door, saying Yan Chi was waiting for him in Yunzhou.
But shouldn't Yan Chi be teaching at a school?
Xie Tao's hand hesitated, hovering over the [Accept] button.
“You’re going to Yunzhou?” A cold voice sounded beside him. Xie Tao turned to see a player he'd encountered in the previous dungeon.
“Ding Yang?” Xie Tao called out uncertainly. This girl was an A-rank player, but she was aloof and had never spoken to him.
However, Xie Tao, as a newbie, had managed to leave this A-rank dungeon unscathed largely thanks to Ding Yang carrying him, so he treated her better.
Ding Yang hummed in agreement. "You haven't answered my question yet."
"I...I'm not sure yet," Xie Tao said hesitantly. "I actually want to go find someone...but I don't know if my friend is there."
Ding Yang: "Is your friend Teacher Yan Chi?"
Xie Tao was surprised. "How did you know?"
"My friend is Teacher Yan Chi's student. She told me that Teacher Yan Chi is looking for his friend." Ding Yang looked at Xie Tao. "I'm going back this time too. Want to come along?"
Xie Tao didn't hesitate any longer and clicked [Accept], waiting for the instance to start.
Since Yan Chi was really in this instance, he had to find him.
On the other side of the hall, the three men all looked at the boy in the baseball cap. "Are you sure our boss is in Yunzhou?"
The boy in the baseball cap swiped his finger across the microcomputer on his wrist, and a virtual screen appeared before him, displaying densely packed numbers. "Our boss last disappeared in the [Azure Sea]. The [Azure Sea] instance has been permanently closed, and the spatial fluctuation frequency of [Yunzhou] highly overlaps with that of the [Azure Sea]."
"If our previous guesses were correct, and each instance is actually a different world, then Yunzhou is not far from the Azure Sea, and our boss is most likely there."
After hearing the boy's explanation, the three men still looked bewildered, and they didn't want to delve into such a complicated matter.
"Have you accepted?"
"No rush. Yunzhou isn't like those low-level instances where a bunch of players rush to compete for it."
The men slowly accepted, and then calmly began waiting to enter the instance.
System announcement: [Too many players, currently filtering, please wait.]
[The four of them widened their eyes simultaneously. Someone actually came to steal it?! Has the world gone mad?!]
Comments
Post a Comment