Volume 1 / Chapter 9: The Strict Math Teacher
âHuh? Donât you have a special sheet for the class schedule?â
âA special sheet?â Mo Xueyao blinked blankly and shook her head. âCanât I just tear a piece from my homework paper, write it down, and stick it up?â
âEh⊠That wouldnât look nice! Here, Iâll give you one.â Wang Jiale said, pulling a small stack of sticky notes specifically designed for class schedules from her pencil case. She deftly peeled one off and handed it to Mo Xueyao.
âThanksâŠâ Mo Xueyao thanked her stiffly, carefully taking the sticky note while avoiding any contact with the other girlâs hand.
The note seemed to carry a lingering scent of Wang Jialeâs fragrance.
It smelled like lavender.
Mo Xueyaoâs mind drifted off again, almost copying the schedule wrong.
Just as she finished neatly transcribing the schedule, the class bell rang.
Today was a bit unusual. As the first day back after the National Day holiday, it included a morning assembly similar to a Monday schedule, but since it was actually Friday, theyâd follow Fridayâs timetable.
This meant theyâd have two fewer classes than usual and get out early.
The first class of the morning was Math.
A subject Mo Xueyao wasnât particularly strong in.
She was relatively better at humanitiesâŠ
Soon, a young teacher strode into the classroom just as the bell finished ringing.
She placed her teaching plan on the podium, then scanned the students below.
Though she didnât look very tall, almost like a high school student herself, she radiated an oppressive authority and⊠something like killing intent.
Perhaps it stemmed from her piercing gaze.
âThis is our math teacher, Jing Die. Super strict. Xueyao, donât provoke her!â Wang Jiale helpfully whispered from beside her, though it was probably more out of her love for sharing gossip than genuine concern.
After ensuring all students were seated properly, the math teacher spoke with a strong, clear alto voice: âAlright, open your math textbooks to pageâŠâ
Mo Xueyao felt a little dazed.
This petite teacher had a voice that completely mismatched her appearance.
Honestly, if her expression werenât so stern, sheâd probably look quite cute.
âTodayâs topic is solving linear inequalities in one variableâŠâ
(Author's note: To authentically reflect that era, the textbook used here is the old edition of the Renjiao (People's Education Press) textbook, which differs significantly from modern high school textbooks.)
Thanks to some pre-reading, and the fact that new high school material wasnât overly difficult yet, Mo Xueyao kept up with the lesson easily. She even found the problems a bit too simple.
She rubbed her temple, wondering: Could it be that after the surgery, my body starting to develop has made my brain smarter?
That actually sounded plausibleâŠÂ After all, when the body develops, the brain develops too, even if not as dramatically. But it should still have some impact.
âGao Yuan!â Mid-lecture, as she turned around, Teacher Jing Die suddenly flicked a piece of chalk. It struck the forehead of Gao Yuan, who was slumped asleep on his desk. âGet up!â
Her stern voice brooked no disobedience. Still half-asleep, Gao Yuan instinctively stood upâeven though he was bleary-eyed.
âSleeping in the very first class? is my class that comfortable? Didnât sleep last night?â Jing Die narrowed her eyes, walking over to Gao Yuan. She was slightly shorter than the not-very-tall Gao Yuan, but her powerful aura seemed to make her loom larger.
âUh⊠not muchâŠâ Gao Yuan answered earnestly, as if still not grasping the situation.
âWhy not? You always sleep in Math class? Is my that boring?â
Itâs not boring, just nerve-wracking, Mo Xueyao thought to herself.
In other words, this kind of math class makes it impossible to relax.
âTeacher Jing⊠youâre too scaryâŠâ Gao Yuan mumbled pitifully.
âAnd you still dared to sleep?â
âItâs the bodyâs self-defense mechanism!â
âYou think youâre an ostrich?!â A hint of amusement crept into Jing Dieâs severe tone.
What? So the strictness is mostly an act?
Is it because sheâs short and uses this aura to command respect?
Itâs probably unnecessary.
Mo Xueyao reflected.
After all, Jing Die looks quite cute when she smiles.
âI guess soâŠâ
âStand for the rest of the lesson.â Jing Die took a deep breath, reined in her smile, and resumed her stern expression.
Overall, the math class felt rather oppressive.
When the forty-minute period ended, almost everyone breathed a silent sigh of relief.
Gao Yuan, whoâd looked like he might fall asleep standing just moments before, suddenly seemed wide awake the moment class ended. He immediately bounded off, full of energy, to play with other classmates.
It made one wonder if his earlier exhaustion had been an act.
âWhew, math class is the worst,â Wang Jiale exhaled dramatically. âThe other teachers are much better! Next is Chinese class, our homeroom teacher! Itâll be much more relaxed, youâll see.â
âHomeroom teacher.â Mo Xueyao recalled the young teacher in white knee-high socks from the morning, sparking a question. âHuh? Our school has quite a few young teachers, doesnât it?â
âYeah, some came with the new principal. Before, this high school didnât have enough teachers. Now, these new teachers are all assigned to teach Grade 10. Our class is pretty lucky; most of our teachers are the new, young ones.â Wang Jiale suddenly grinned mischievously. âWith so many young, pretty teachers, maybe one of them is secretly involved with the principal?â
âSecretly involvedââŠ
Mo Xueyaoâs expression froze. Wang Jiale, however, smoothly switched topics.
âSpeaking of which, our homeroom teacher has the most amazing legs!â
Wait, youâre a girl, right?
Mo Xueyao scrutinized Wang Jiale, doubting whether those words had truly come from a girlâs mouth.
âWhat? Is there something on my face?â
âNo⊠nothingâŠâ Mo Xueyao shook her head, feeling dazed, almost like it was her first time interacting with a girl.
Well, maybe it really is the first time Iâve genuinely conversed with a girl?
After all, girls probably behave differently around the same gender versus the opposite gender.
âWanna go to the restroom?â Wang Jiale asked again.
âDidnât you⊠just go after the assembly?â
âJust in case! What if I need to go during Chinese class?â
Mo Xueyao scratched her head awkwardly. She hadnât set foot in a public womenâs restroom yetâŠ
The thought made her resistant.
âI⊠Iâm okay now⊠maybe later?â She fumbled, unable to find a good excuse.
Wang Jiale, however, acted perfectly naturally, just saying âOh,â and went to find someone else.
âXiao Xiao, wanna go to the restroom?â
âSure!â a girl sitting behind Mo Xueyao replied cheerfully.
Her jet-black hair cascaded like a waterfall â the only girl in class who didnât tie her hair up.
She wasnât stunningly beautiful, but she was pleasant-looking, neat, and approachable like the girl next door.
She stood up and followed Wang Jiale out, calling out to another girl who looked strikingly similar, except this one wore braids and had a dark mole between her eyebrows.
They look like twins.
This was Mo Xueyaoâs first time encountering twins in real life.
Their distinct features made them easy to tell apart, avoiding any confusion.
The back of the classroom was the unofficial territory of the boys. During break, theyâd cluster together, chatting loudly or pulling out various trinkets to play with.
Some were even playing with magnets.
This made Mo Xueyaoâs fingers itch.
Those flat, circular magnets could be played anywhere there was space. The game involved flicking them with your finger, trying to âcaptureâ your opponentâs magnet.
If your magnet landed on top, you âateâ theirs. If yours ended up underneath, you got âeatenâ.
Once you got the hang of it, you could use magnetic properties strategically. It was a simple but fun, highly unpredictable competitive game.
Yes, boys loved these kinds of head-to-head games.
A group of boys at the back were squatting on an open patch of floor, playing and inviting others to join.
âXiao Xue, you not playing?â one boy shouted to another.
For a split second, Mo Xueyao thought he was calling her.
Old friends sometimes teased her with that nickname.
After all, her name, Xueyao, also contained the character âXueâ (éȘ â snow).
But clearly, he wasnât calling Mo Xueyao. He was calling the boy sitting at the very end of Mo Xueyaoâs row, the one without a deskmate.
He looked gentle and refined, like Mo Xueyaoâs image of a writer.
Though just a high school student, he had that writerly aura.
And his name was interesting â it also contained âXueâ, just like hers.
This piqued Mo Xueyaoâs curiosity about him.
âNo, not playing,â the boy replied with a smile, not looking up from the extra curricular book in his hands.
The book had an entirely English cover. Judging by the title, it seemed to be a science fiction novel about time paradoxes.
âReading that stuff again? All in English? Isnât it tiring?â
âI can read it just fine.â
âTsk, tsk. Looks like our Xiao Xue is going to be a scientist,â someone teased with a hint of envy.
The boy nicknamed Xiao Xue just smiled, clearly unoffended, treating their words as banter.
Or perhaps he already understood these boys well.
But it was only the first month of school; surely they werenât that familiar yet?
For someone like Mo Xueyao, if she didnât make a conscious effort to remember names, there might still be classmates whose names she couldnât recall even three months into the term.
As the class bell rang once more, students drifted back to their seats in twos and threes.
Wang Jiale whirled back in like a gust of wind.
Right behind her, walking gracefully into the classroom, came the Chinese teacher, dressed in a gray midi skirt and a long-sleeved shirt.
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