In this nightmare from which he could not wake up, Yan Chi could neither escape nor awaken. Surrounded by monsters, he stared blankly at the two students before him.
If he remembered correctly, the student with the smoky eye makeup and dark circles under his eyes was Ning Zhu, who sat in the last row of the classroom and slept through the entire lesson.
The reserved, shy, and handsome boy beside him was named Lian Deng.
Yan Chi remembered them so clearly because these two, like a pair of sleeping dragons and phoenixes, hadn't looked up once during his entire lesson. One was wide awake, and the other was buried in something, seemingly doing nothing.
He tried knocking on their desks as a warning. Ning Zhu was fast asleep and didn't react. Lian Deng initially calmed down for a moment, but after a few minutes, he went back to his work.
—They seemed busier than him, the teacher.
Yan Chi had originally planned to call these two problem students to his office for a talk after class, but he didn't expect to end up in the infirmary before class was even over. Right now, Yan Chi's mind and body were once again consumed by work.
He carefully checked the homework assignments Ning Zhu and Lian Deng had handed in, pointing out the mistakes, and then told them in a stern tone, "Sleeping and daydreaming are not allowed during class."
Ning Zhu said listlessly, "But teacher, I'm really sleepy."
Lian Deng also looked like he was having a hard time, "But I have to feed my little ones, otherwise they'll starve."
Yan Chi was puzzled, "Your little ones?"
What kind of little ones would a student have?
"Um-um." Lian Deng was easily embarrassed. Pointing to the giant skeleton and the enormous arthropod on its head, "This is Xiao Yi, and this is Xiao Er. I need to take care of them."
Yan Chi wasn't quite clear-headed either, and didn't find it strange that he had two pets. "But you should prioritize your studies. If you really can't bear to leave them, you can bring them to me, and I'll take care of them for you."
Lian Deng's eyes lit up, "Really?"
Yan Chi: "Of course."
Lian Deng hesitated again, "I need to discuss it with them."
Dawn broke, sunlight streamed through the curtains into the room, and the alarm clock rang precisely on time, breaking the morning silence.
Yan Chi groggily got up and turned off the alarm. His brow furrowed, he rubbed his temples. He should have been full of energy after a night's sleep, but Yan Chi felt like he'd spent the entire night grading papers—his head was sluggish, and he had no energy.
He poured himself a glass of warm water, forced himself to perk up, and went to the kitchen to fry two eggs for breakfast.
The first class in Yunzhou was at eight o'clock in the morning. Yan Chi left home promptly at seven-thirty, just in time to meet Shen Chang Le leaving his house, and the two walked together.
All in all, Yan Chi had only known Shen Chang Le for a day and didn't know his likes or dislikes. To avoid upsetting Shen Chang Le, Yan Chi didn't rashly ask him about his studies.
What if Shen Chang Le wasn't a studious person? Asking about his studies would definitely annoy him.
Before class started, Yan Chi didn't need to put on airs as a teacher; after all, work was work, and life was life.
He casually picked a topic, "Were the egg tarts too burnt yesterday? It was my first time using the school oven, and I wasn't quite sure how to control the temperature."
Shen Chang Le wasn't happy, and there was a hint of tattling in his voice, "Uncle took all the egg tarts away; I didn't get a single one."
Yan Chi was shocked by Shen Mingsu's cold-heartedness, "He didn't give you any?"
Shen Chang Le shook his head, "He said you gave them to him, so they're all his."
This adult...why is he so possessive of his food?
Yan Chi could only comfort Shen Chang Le, "It's okay, I'll make you some separately next time."
When the two arrived at the classroom, all the students looked over. Yan Chi glanced around and saw that all ten students were there. Mingcai was the class monitor, so he asked Mingcai to collect the homework and put it on his desk.
Mingcai, full of enthusiasm, exclaimed, "Okay, teacher!"
She got up and started collecting homework one by one, starting with her deskmate, Sethia. Seeing her grab the notebook from the desk and leave, Sethia swallowed his steamed bun and grabbed her hand. "No! This is blank! Don't take it!"
Mingcai handed the notebook back to him. "Then hurry up and finish it. I'll only go around three times at most. If you're not finished by then, I'm not going to take care of you anymore."
Sethia nodded repeatedly, opened the brand-new notebook, and then paused, wondering what the homework was again.
He panicked instantly, but Mingcai was already far away. He frowned, unsure what to do, looking left and right. He wanted to ask Li Huai but was afraid of his brother. After thinking for a moment, he turned to Tan Mo and asked.
"Um, do you know what the homework is?"
Tan Mo glanced at him, lifting his eyelids. "Copy the words we learned yesterday, along with their pinyin, five times."
"Huh?" Sethia scratched his head. "What did we learn yesterday?"
Helpless, Tan Mo opened his newly issued textbook and pointed it out to him. Sethia gratefully muttered thank you, then went to find a pen, but couldn't find it after a long search, almost crying in frustration.
Tan Mo's deskmate was a girl with very thick, long hair. On her desk sat a cute little succulent. Seeing the succulent swaying precariously because of Sethia's earlier actions, the girl quickly picked it up and comforted the frightened little creature.
Seeing that Mingcai had already circled the room and Sethia still hadn't found her pen, Tan Mo grew a little anxious. "Did you eat your pen?"
"Um... I think so," Cecilia recalled. "Yesterday in class, I remember I was so hungry, and I happened to have a pen, so I ate it."
Tan Mo: "...Give me your homework."
Sethia said shyly, "Will you do it for me?"
Tan Mo expressionlessly took his homework, picked up his own pen, and buried himself in writing furiously.
With the burden of homework shifted to someone else, Sethia had nothing to do. He turned and took out another steamed bun, asking Tan Mo, "Do you want some?"
Tan Mo didn't answer.
Sethia then asked Tan Mo's deskmate, "Ahui, do you want some?"
Ahui: "What flavor?"
"Candy."
"Hmm... I only want half."
Sethia wasn't possessive of his food and broke it in half for her.
Seeing this scene, Yan Chi, standing on the podium, inexplicably thought of Shen Mingsu. This man wasn't even as good as a child; even though Sethia loved to eat, he was willing to share half his bun with a classmate. And Shen Chang Le was his own nephew!
Of course, he had also seen Tan Mo helping Sethia with her homework. He didn't stop him; Sethia would have extra homework today anyway.
"Teacher."
Mingcai, walking to the back of the classroom, called out to Teacher Yan Chi. Yan Chi went to her side. "What's wrong?"
Mingcai stood by the desk of the two students with their heads down and said to Yan Chi, "They said they've already handed in their homework."
Yan Chi frowned. "I haven't received your homework."
Lian Deng's eyes instantly reddened, and he looked at Yan Chi sadly, as if he had done something terribly wrong. Ning Zhu also woke up, listlessly slumped on the desk, his resentful gaze never leaving Yan Chi.
Yan Chi: ?
Suddenly, Yan Chi noticed that the two children's gazes turned to the window. He looked over and saw Shen Mingsu's tall figure standing behind the window. He tapped on the glass with his fingers and waved to Ning Zhu and Lian Deng.
Ning Zhu and Lian Deng got up and walked out of the classroom.
Yan Chi said to Mingcai, "Let's collect the others' papers first."
Outside the classroom.
As soon as Ning Zhu and Lian Deng came out, Shen Mingsu grabbed their shoulders. His sharp features loomed over the two children, his dark green eyes like those of a snake. He scanned them, his voice low and deep, "Did you completely ignore what I told you yesterday?"
Ning Zhu and Lian Deng exchanged a glance, both puzzled.
Lian Deng: "You spoke yesterday?"
Shen Mingsu lightly patted the back of his head, chuckling in exasperation. "Fine, you two didn't listen to a word I said in your class yesterday at noon. You didn't even know I'd been there."
"I'll definitely have a serious talk with your parents about their parenting issues later."
Ning Zhu: "We were wrong, please don't tell."
Lian Deng: "Mmm-hmm! We were wrong, please don't tell our dads."
Shen Mingsu pretended to be thoughtful. "It's fine if you don't tell, but I have a request."
Ning Zhu: "Go ahead."
Lian Deng: "Please, please, we'll do anything."
Shen Mingsu led them to the stairwell, making sure no one was eavesdropping, and then explained Yan Chi's special circumstances again. He strictly forbade them from displaying any superhuman abilities in front of him until Yan Chi accepted his identity.
To avoid having their parents called in, Ning Zhu and Lian Deng naturally agreed to everything.
"Finally, and most importantly," Shen Mingsu looked at Ning Zhu, "especially you, you are not allowed to enter Teacher Yan's dreams, and you are absolutely forbidden from prying into his privacy."
Dreams are something every living being experiences, containing their deepest desires and being the place with the most secrets.
Yan Chi is conservative by nature; even seeing him jumping around would make him run away shyly. He definitely wouldn't like his students knowing his privacy.
Ning Zhu readily agreed, "Okay."
After explaining things to Shen Mingsu and letting the two children return to the classroom, Yan Chi also handed over the class to Teacher Bai Ruo, and as soon as he stepped out of the classroom, he bumped into Shen Mingsu face-to-face.
At this moment, he couldn't pretend he hadn't seen him, so Yan Chi awkwardly greeted Shen Mingsu with a "Good morning."
Shen Mingsu chuckled, "Good morning, Teacher Yan. Your egg tarts are delicious."
"Th-thank you."
Yan Chi felt a little awkward in front of the leader, but given his lower status, remaining silent would be impolite. "Um, Principal, did you call Ning Zhu and the others for something?"
"Nothing major, just some instructions." Shen Mingsu looked at Yan Chi. "And you, are you settling in well at school?"
Perhaps because Shen Mingsu's tone was so casual, Yan Chi gradually relaxed. "Yes, I'm settling in. The school is great."
"That's good. Tell me if there's anything you're not used to." Shen Mingsu smiled. "Providing a comfortable environment for teachers and students is our responsibility."
At this point, Yan Chi was a little tempted. "Um... it's just..."
"Just say it."
"Are there any places in the school where I can pick up packages?" Yan Chi was a little embarrassed. "The director said we can't leave the school without permission, so can packages come in? Actually, I don't necessarily need to buy packages, it's just that there are very few places to shop in the school..."
"You can." Shen Mingsu interrupted him, a warm smile on his face, "The school hasn't done a good job with shopping. Wait a couple of days, and we'll let you know when the courier service is ready."
Yan Chi was overjoyed, "Only two days... then I can order my package today!"
Courier delivery usually takes two or three days. His milk tea sticks were almost finished, so he could buy some more, along with some daily necessities and flower seeds.
Of course, Yan Chi would much rather go to a physical store, but unfortunately, he couldn't leave the school grounds.
Shen Mingsu seemed to see through Yan Chi's thoughts. "Outside the school... there's a commercial street under construction. The school is worried about students getting hurt, so they closed the school gates. In another month or two, once the construction is finished, everyone will be able to go out."
Yan Chi immediately beamed. "Oh, I see. That's great."
Looking at the smile on his delicate face, and the pretty little mole at the corner of his eye, a smile also appeared in Shen Mingsu's eyes. "Do you like it?"
Yan Chi nodded repeatedly. "Yes, yes! I love it!"
Not long after, the director, who was dealing with a mountain of official business in the administration building, received a call from his superior. His superior chatted with him for a while, rambling on about various things, before finally revealing his intentions after Yan Chi impatiently urged him on.
Shen Mingsu: "Hey Xiao Er, don't you think our school is lacking something?"
The Principal: "I don't think so."
"But I do," Shen Mingsu said shamelessly, "Hey Xiao Er, let's build a commercial street outside the school. There's so much land outside anyway, it's just sitting empty."
The director was silent for a few seconds, then flew into a rage, "Are you crazy? Our school doesn't even have five hundred teachers and students combined! Who are you going to build a commercial street for? Who would come to this desolate place to sell things?!"
Shen Mingsu: "Alright, it's settled then. As for the merchants, there will definitely be some, don't rush."
The director knew Shen Mingsu's temper; once he made up his mind, he wouldn't change it. Of course, this school was his; he could build him anything, even a skyscraper.
Because he was the principal.
The director sighed, "Alright then."
Shen Mingsu continued his rambling, "First, build a flower shop; Yan Chi seems to really like flowers. Then build a department store, selling vegetables and fruits and stuff like that. Oh, and Yan Chi said the signal at our school isn't very good; how about building him a base station?"
The director: "...Are you trying to indirectly force me to my death?"
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