“Cough, cough cough, cough cough cough…”
The elderly math teacher clasped his hands in front of his mouth, emitting a dry cough like the wind blowing through a broken box, while holding up his wooden stick, uncertain if it was a cane or a pointer to underline a formula on the blackboard.
“This section on Wu Gang here, is there anyone who still doesn’t understand it? Oh, wait, since this is Class Three, Year Two, maybe I should ask who does understand it. Everyone who gets it, raise your hand.”
As soon as he finished speaking, he instinctively scanned the classroom, but only a few students in the front row raised their hands.
“Sigh, day after day, besides these few in front, does no one else in this class study? Then why waste your time here? You’d be better off running around on the sports field—at least that’s healthier than sitting here bored…”
Wait, wait, the number of raised hands in Class Three today seems to have increased by one?
The math teacher silently pushed his glasses up his nose and squinted, looking toward the second-to-last row.
It appeared to be a girl with brown hair whom he didn’t quite recognize.
That’s strange. Even though it’s Class Three, he should be able to call out every student’s name…
The teacher pondered for a moment before finally opening his mouth.
“Um, the girl in the second-to-last row, you are…”
Meng Huange thought for a moment but still stood up and nodded toward the teacher.
“Hello, Teacher Zhang. I’m Meng Huange, just transferred to Class Three today.”
“Huh? A transfer student? Transferring into Class Three…”
The math teacher sighed, scratching his head while waving at Meng Huange.
“Well, since you say you understand, then come up and solve this example problem on the side, and explain it to your classmates while you’re at it.”
Meng Huange helplessly rubbed the bridge of her nose.
She hadn’t originally wanted to raise her hand at a time like this, but considering she had just done that self-introduction, perhaps the contrast would be striking.
More importantly, Su Wanli might get angry at her for this kind of cover-up behavior, so she decided to raise her hand truthfully.
She hadn’t expected to be singled out by the math teacher so quickly.
But it was just answering a simple example problem—how hard could it be?
Meng Huange glanced at Su Xiaoli sitting beside her, giving her a probing look.
Su Xiaoli just furrowed her brows, lifted her head toward the podium, and rested her chin on her arm.
… Does that mean she agrees?
Fine, then she’d just treat it as a chance to explain the problem to Su Xiaoli.
Seeing that Meng Huange had been standing there a while, the teacher on the podium spoke again.
“What’s wrong, Meng Huange? Still don’t quite understand after thinking it over? If not, then sit down. Liu Shanshan, you come up.”
“Teacher, I can do it.”
Meng Huange smiled lightly, nodded at the teacher, pushed back her chair, and walked toward the podium.
“If we don’t know this new formula here and use the old solution methods, it’ll be very tedious, so…”
Foolish.
Du Xinxin looked on with schadenfreude at Meng Huange being called up, stuffing a handful of snacks into her mouth.
You like showing off, huh? Now the teacher has called you up, and Su Xiaoli definitely won’t like someone who steals her spotlight.
Speaking of which, just now she really thought Su Xiaoli had some special feelings for Meng Huange.
But after class, Su Wanli called the three of them down for a meeting, apparently just to figure out a way to teach Meng Huange a lesson…
Looks like their relationship is nothing special after all. What a waste of worry.
But since returning to their seats, the two gossipy ones beside her hadn’t spoken a single word, instead scribbling something on paper. They were probably scheming how to bully Meng Huange.
That’s easy. Just put some glue on Meng Huange’s chair, doodle on her desk, write some nonsense in her notebook, and toss a few disgusting bugs on her belongings…
“Sigh, what on earth do we have to do to make Miss Wanli satisfied?”
Xiao Fen quietly leaned back, mumbling at the ceiling. The lollipop stick moved up and down on her lips like a joystick button.
“Tch, this is really a tough task…”
Unusually, Wen Manman frowned, drawing circles on paper with her pen.
Heh, what a useless bunch.
Du Xinxin chuckled and said,
“This isn’t hard. Before the next class…”
Suddenly Xiao Fen’s eyes lit up. She sat upright and raised an index finger toward the other two.
“Ah, I have a plan! We just call Meng Huange back up to that spot and tell her directly what’s what!”
Wen Manman quietly rubbed her temples.
“Wouldn’t that be a bit too direct? After all, it’ll take some time. One break won’t be enough.”
“True, true… Well, the art teacher during the third period this afternoon is pretty lenient. Maybe we can talk to her, but…”
“But Miss Wanli said she wants to see results before noon.”
“Sigh, and we also have to get Meng Huange’s agreement, and consider Miss Wanli’s pace…”
As they spoke, Zhang Shiyu and Wen Manman both lay down on the desk, sighing in unison.
“Sigh, so difficult…”
Du Xinxin blinked in confusion.
“What are you guys talking about?”
Xiao Fen raised her eyebrows and looked at Du Xinxin.
“What else? Of course, we’re discussing Miss Wanli’s plan just now.”
Wen Manman shook her head and sighed.
“… Potato Thunder, you didn’t forget what Miss Wanli said, did you?”
“Huh? I—I remember! I just…”
Recalling what happened earlier, Du Xinxin closed her eyes silently.
She wasn’t even qualified to talk since she couldn’t understand Miss Wanli’s secret signals.
Fortunately, Xiao Fen and Wen Manman didn’t drag it out and spread their notes on the desk one by one.
“Ah, this is what Miss Wanli said.”
Zhang Shiyu pointed to the top section, analyzing.
“Look, here it says Meng Huange’s attitude and behavior just now basically showed she doesn’t take Miss Wanli seriously. This probably refers to Meng Huange’s drawing for Miss Wanli.”
“Drawing?”
“Hmph, you probably didn’t see it from your angle, but last class, Meng Huange drew a Backview Drawing for Miss Wanli in the notebook. It was pretty good.”
Wen Manman added right away.
“… Sure, just a few simple strokes, but it really captured some of Miss Wanli’s essence.”
“Exactly, but Meng Huange drew it secretly, so knowing Miss Wanli’s personality, she must want to retaliate…”
Though still a bit confused, Du Xinxin immediately wanted to join the conversation upon hearing the words “retaliate.”
“Yes, exactly! Since Miss Wanli wants to get back at her, we should do something…”
Wen Manman looked sternly at Meng Huange solving problems on the podium.
“We have to find a way to keep Meng Huange obediently in place, so Miss Wanli can have her fun with the drawing.”
Huh?
Is that really it? But Miss Wanli’s tone and attitude just now were so clear…
“Right. Knowing Miss Wanli’s personality, if anyone else dared do that, she would have slapped them long ago. But it’s Meng Huange. Then again, if you can sit in the same car as Miss Wanli, what’s wrong with drawing a picture?”
Zhang Shiyu spoke while sliding her finger down the paper from top to bottom.
“But Meng Huange isn’t worthy of my direct involvement. In other words, on one hand, Miss Wanli wants to retaliate against Meng Huange with a drawing, but on the other hand, she feels awkward bringing up this kind of childish stuff. After all, she’s the infamous Baiying bully.”
“Use every method you can think of to make Meng Huange realize how powerful I am—that means, no matter what, Meng Huange must witness Miss Wanli’s drawing skills.”
Wen Manman frowned while pointing to the last sentence on the paper.
“But what does Miss Wanli’s last sentence mean by ‘won’t let her off easily’?”
“That…”
Zhang Shiyu frowned and looked at Du Xinxin’s face.
“Potato Thunder, what do you think?”
“Um, I…”
Du Xinxin, defeated and frustrated by their analysis, pointed to her own face dumbly.
“Yes, aren’t you one of Miss Wanli’s closest followers? I really can’t figure out what that sentence means.”
“Or is it just an ordinary harsh threat from Miss Wanli?”
Zhang Shiyu and Wen Manman both turned their gazes to Du Xinxin, who spoke the least.
Come on, speak up, Du Xinxin! Don’t be the only outsider!
Du Xinxin gritted her teeth and struggled to analyze.
“That… that sentence definitely means that Miss Wanli wants to take this chance to show Meng Huange she won’t give up no matter what. She’ll keep pestering her from now on… or something like that.”
That’s so foolish! It’s not like there’s some deep hatred or love between her and Meng Huange. Su Xiaoli can’t possibly mean that!
Forget it, I’ll just quit Su Xiaoli’s support team and be a nobody who can be bullied at will…
However, after hearing that, Xiao Fen and Wen Manman both suddenly showed expressions of realization.
“Oh, so that’s how it is!”
“Right! We hadn’t thought of it from this angle. Judging by Miss Wanli’s reaction during Meng Huange’s self-introduction, their relationship is definitely more complicated than it seems!”
“As expected of Potato Thunder. She immediately grasped the crux of the matter. This isn’t about drawing—it’s about emotions! Miss Wanli is…”
Zhang Shiyu and Wen Manman exchanged a glance, then both grabbed Du Xinxin’s hands.
“… Trying to capture Meng Huange’s heart!”
Just then, Meng Huange finished explaining the problem and came down from the podium. Wen Manman quickly added some details.
“From the fact that Meng Huange drew a Backview Drawing for Miss Wanli, it’s clear she has some feelings for her. It’s just that she hasn’t fully broken through that barrier, so currently… Meng Huange is deliberately pretending to be reserved. That’s why she’s unwilling to go to school together with Miss Wanli.”
“…And Miss Wanli is the one pursuing. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have given Meng Huange her seat in the car!”
Zhang Shiyu pointed out the words “won’t let her off easily” on the paper excitedly.
“So now Miss Wanli wants to use this opportunity, with the drawing, to capture Meng Huange completely, and never worry about any weird rivals again.”
After their rapid-fire analysis, they sighed in satisfaction and patted Du Xinxin on the shoulder.
“As expected, Potato Thunder, you’ve been with Miss Wanli the longest. Our understanding of her still can’t compare to yours.”
“… Yeah, yeah, haha…”
Du Xinxin scratched her forehead quietly, then glanced left and forward at Su Wanli squinting toward the podium.
So that’s how it is. Even if it was an unintentional remark, I at least guessed part of it!
Now, I can finally say I’m on the same page as Su Wanli. Though there’s some bitterness in my heart, at least I’ve reintegrated into this group.
Du Xinxin silently clasped her hands in her heart.
Alright, Miss Wanli, since this is your choice, then…
Wishing you happiness!