Volume 1 / Chapter 26 : The Physics Teacher with Spiked Hair
The third period on Monday afternoon was physics class.
When it came to science subjects, Mò XuÄyĂĄo didnât exactly excel. Despite some self-study, she still worried about whether she could keep up.
So before the lesson started, she carefully read through the notebook she had copied from the class monitor. Right before the bell rang, she took out three differently colored pens from her simple pencil case and laid them neatly across a fresh page in her notebook.
Then she straightened her back and sat upright at her desk.
WĂĄng JiÄlè stared at her with a bizarre lookâso much so that XuÄyĂĄo began to feel uncomfortable all over.
âWhat?â XuÄyĂĄo frowned slightly.
â...Hmm⌠you look like an elementary school kid right now,â JiÄlè muttered. âIs it really necessary to sit that straight? Youâre making me nervous just looking at you.â
ââŚItâs fine. Iâm just trying to get in the right mindset,â XuÄyĂĄo relaxed a bit, realizing she had been a little too stiff.
Right on cue, the physics teacher walked into the classroom the moment the bell rangâlike heâd timed it perfectly.
He even waved cheerfully at the students with a satisfied smile, as if to say: âSee? Nailed the timing again.â
His hair stood up in sharp spikes, as if styled with hair gel to look that wayâkind of like someone who just got electrocuted.
But if you looked closely, youâd notice his hair wasnât greasy at all. So⌠maybe it wasnât styled that wayâjust naturally spiky?
What kind of sleeping posture could lead to that kind of hairstyle the next day?
Still, this physics teacher, who looked to be around thirty, actually matched the mental image XuÄyĂĄo had of the phrase âphysics teacher.â
Or more accuratelyââphysics researcher.â
From head to toe, he exuded the aura of an academic. That eccentric hairstyle and the sharp, intelligent look in his eyesâit all screamed âphysics PhD.â
âAt least, the kind youâd see in cartoons or movies.
He stood quietly at the podium until the bell finished ringing. Then he tapped the blackboard and announced:
âAll right, class. Todayâs lesson will be about time machinesâmaybe.â
The classroom immediately fell silent. Especially the boysâthe mere mention of sci-fi had them laser-focused.
The teacher nodded in satisfaction. âYes, todayâs topic is as important as Einsteinâs theory of relativity⌠Newtonâs first law⌠and Newtonâs other physical lawsâspecifically the relationship between speed and time.â
This was clearly⌠a dramatic pause kind of physics teacher.
His name was Yè YÇ âthis time not something JiÄlè had to whisper. He wrote it himself, in bold, flamboyant characters on the lower right corner of the blackboard like an author signing their workââĺśçž˝.â
A strange little habit⌠but kind of charming.
And so the physics lesson officially began.
Back in middle school, XuÄyĂĄo had always found physics a bit dry. But today, under Mr. Yèâs lively teaching, the subject came alive.
That said, his teaching style did have a downsideâhe had a tendency to go off-topic. Although he always circled back in the end, it did waste a bit of time.
Still, it was a classic trade-off between fun and efficiency.
By the end of class, the blackboard was filled with notes from edge to edgeâessentially everything they needed to remember.
Looking at it all, XuÄyĂĄo noticed that the name âĺśçž˝â really did look like a signature in the corner, like a piece of published work.
This physics teacher definitely had a unique styleâthough his tan complexion didnât exactly fit the stereotype of a lab-dwelling academic.
Everything else about him, though, was spot-on.
âPhew, finally just one more period left~â JiÄlè stretched with a huge yawn. âAfter this, weâre free~â
Even though there was still one more class, her thoughts had clearly already drifted far, far away.
XuÄyĂĄo seriously doubted whether sheâd pay attention at all in the last class.
âXuÄyĂĄo, wanna hit the bathroom?â JiÄlè asked casually. She was the type to go once every two class periods, without fail.
At this point, XuÄyĂĄo genuinely wondered if JiÄlè had kidney issues.
Well⌠not that she knew if that was really related.
âUh⌠yeah, okay,â XuÄyĂĄo stood up. Honestly, she just didnât want to wait in line after schoolâpeak bathroom traffic wasnât something she wanted to deal with.
âXiĂ oxiĂ o, you coming?â JiÄlè called out to Mo XiÇoxiĂ o as well.
XuÄyĂĄo suddenly felt like they were inviting each other to a ballroom dance or something.
And honestly? It wasnât just girls who went to the bathroom in pairs. Guys did it tooâjust not as often.
âZhĹu YÇng, letâs go. Bathroom run.â LÇ HĂłngrÇn slapped ZhĹu YÇng on the shoulder.
âNope,â ZhĹu YÇng muttered, buried in a novel tucked inside his desk.
âWhat? No? Too badâyouâre going anyway!â HĂłngrÇn smirked wickedly and began dragging him by the shoulder.
ZhĹu YÇng, looking utterly dead inside, finally gave in. âFine, fineâlet go. I can walk. What are you, a kid? Who needs company to go pee?â
âExactly,â JiÄlè chimed inâcompletely oblivious to her own hypocrisy.
Of all people, youâre the last one who should be saying that, XuÄyĂĄo thought, shooting her a side-eye. She exchanged a silent chuckle with XiÇoxiĂ o as they stepped into the hallway.
âGood afternoon, Miss YĂ o~â JiÄlè suddenly chirped sweetly.
âGood afternoon, Miss YĂ o,â XiÇoxiĂ o added with a polite smile.
ââŚGood afternoonâŚâ XuÄyĂĄo echoed automatically, though she had no idea who this âMiss YĂ oâ was.
âHello~â Miss YĂ o replied with a light, airy tone. Her skin looked unusually pale, and her hairâshockinglyâwas a dark shade of red!
It hung loosely around her shoulders, not too longâbarely covering her earsâgiving off a fresh, sharp, almost androgynous vibe.
As XuÄyĂĄo zoned out, Miss YĂ o leaned in slightly and took a deep sniff.
âMmm~ You smell like milk! Looks like youâve still got growth potential~â
âW-what?â XuÄyĂĄoâs cheeks flushed crimson. She stole a glance at the teacher, stunned that someone so mature would say something so⌠odd?
On second thought⌠maybe it wasnât that odd.
Maybe she was just overly sensitive.
Once Miss YĂ o had walked away, XuÄyĂĄo leaned over and whispered, âJiÄlè, who was thatâŚ?â
âSheâs our chemistry teacher for next period,â JiÄlè replied, tilting her head. âSheâs⌠quite the character.â
âNo kidding,â XuÄyĂĄo agreed instantly.
âShe really likes teasing girls,â XiÇoxiĂ o added.
âAnd her name is super weirdâitâs âYĂ o GĹŤgĹŤâ (čŻĺĺ), like the âmedicineâ character, and then âgĹŤâ as in the one with the mouth radical and âancientâ in it.â
ââŚThatâs the weirdest name Iâve ever heard.â
âShe says all kinds of weird things in class too. Might be âcause sheâs mixed,â JiÄlè said, suddenly holding her forehead like sheâd remembered something traumatic.
âSo her hairâs natural?â
âYup. Thatâs what she said on her first day.â XiÇoxiĂ o confirmed.
When they got back from the bathroom, Miss YĂ o GĹŤgĹŤ was already seated at the podiumâbefore class had even started.
The first teacher to actually arrive early.
In a way, quite professional.
Even though fourth period hadnât begun yet, JiÄlè was already packing her bag.
Finished homework stayed at school; unfinished stuff went home.
Once she copied the chemistry homework into her âhomework notebook,â sheâd be ready to grab her bag and leave.
Though in high school, there was no official homework log, nor did parents need to sign it like in elementary or junior highâŚ
So most students cut corners, folding a page corner or drawing a line to mark which assignments were due.
Even a diligent student like XuÄyĂĄo only jotted quick notes.
For example, âComplete page 26, first side, in math workbookâ would become: âMath P26-1.â
Lots of students were doing the sameâtrying to leave school as quickly as possible.
Five minutes might not seem like much, but it could mean dodging traffic or avoiding being pulled into some chore by the homeroom teacher.
It had become an unofficial strategy.
XuÄyĂĄo didnât bother. She rode her bike, and she didnât mind helping out if the teacher needed somethingâthought of it as a little extra exercise.
Meanwhile, YĂ o GĹŤgĹŤ was fiddling with something on the podiumâlooking oddly professional about it.
Then she suddenly slammed her hand downâ
Bang!
A burst of fire erupted from the front of the classroom, looking as if it might consume the entire room.
Screams broke out. Even the boys were startledâsome practically bolted.
But the flames vanished just as quickly, like a movie special effect.
âPfftâhahaha! Scared you, huh?â YĂ o GĹŤgĹŤ stood hands on hips, grinning like a mischievous kidânot a teacher.
âAmazing, right? Like magic? Sorry to disappointâitâs not magic, itâs science~!â
And right as she finished saying that, the bell rangâperfectly timed.
Thus began a most theatrical chemistry class.
What could she say? The teachers at YÇkĹng High were⌠one of a kind.
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