"Just say the word, leave it to me! Cigarettes? Liquor? Or posters and photos of naked beauties? I've got it all covered!" Zhou Nan thumped his chest loudly. As the Trash Class's supplier of goods, what had he not bought before? Spending money to save his life was a bargain.
Shi Tiexin nodded. With the map exhausted, the dagger finally appeared—he stated his goal.
Zhou Nan was instantly dumbfounded.
Ten minutes later, a nimble figure climbed over the wall of Fengming First High School from an extremely concealed spot. Like a thief, he looked left and right, made sure no one was around, then ran off in a puff of smoke.
But to avoid getting three nods, the improved version meant that no matter how much it hurt, he had to get the goods back on time. Boss had said he wanted to see them before the second evening self-study period. Even if Zhou Nan had to risk his life, he had to deliver them on time. Otherwise... quite a bit had piled up again.
But although he was a professional supplier, Zhou Nan truly had no idea where the thing Boss wanted was sold.
He would try that little shady shop he usually went to first.
Zhou Nan ran fast, darting into a small roadside shop in no time. The owner of this shop was a man who spanned north and south with a single bridge—Zhou Nan's long-term business partner.
"Yo, you're here again?" The owner was quite enthusiastic toward Zhou Nan, because the boy before him was his general agent at Fengming First High School. "What do you want this time?"
"I want..." Zhou Nan opened his mouth, feeling ashamed of what he was about to ask for, but he had no choice except to say it. Finally, he thickened his skin and blurted it out. "I want elementary school textbooks, Four Basic Arithmetic Operations cards, and all kinds of Calligraphy Practice Copybooks..."
"Huh?" The owner froze and stared blankly at Zhou Nan. A moment later, he burst into curses. "No, no! If you're not buying anything else, get the hell out! You came here to screw with me? What a lunatic..."
Zhou Nan did not dare talk back after being cursed at. He left the shady shop looking utterly bedraggled. Really, a teenager no longer young enough for elementary school going to buy elementary school textbooks—wasn't that humiliating?
But he could not fail to complete Boss's assignment. Where could he buy those things?
Then... he could only look around near an elementary school to see if there were any suitable shops.
Twenty minutes later, Zhou Nan finally found a bookstore near some elementary school that was still open. With a bruised and swollen face, he walked inside, feeling that he had humiliated himself beyond all measure. He stopped being picky, grabbed one of everything in a gulping-down-date-soup fashion, and dropped the whole large stack before the owner with a clang.
"Check out!"
As the owner added up the price, he looked Zhou Nan up and down. After a moment, he hesitantly asked, "Young man, did you... fall at a construction site? Do you need to go to the hospital?"
"Who has time for the hospital? Hurry up and ring me up. I need these books right away!"
The bookstore owner did not get angry. Shaking his head, he sighed, "Your thirst for knowledge really is... admirable. Fine, young man. It doesn't matter if you're hauling bricks at a construction site—you can't relax your standards for yourself. One day, you'll achieve something. Keep it up, young man. I'll give you a discount!"
After receiving the discount, Zhou Nan only felt that today had humiliated him to the very end. A dignified high school student had run to the gates of an elementary school to buy elementary school books. Was there anything more humiliating in this world?
There was.
Swish! Zhou Nan flipped down from the top of the wall and landed lightly on the ground. Counting the time, there were still five minutes before the first period ended. Perfect. Just then, a powerful flashlight beam instantly enveloped him. A roar startled him into shuddering. "Stop! Don't move! You lot, get over there and surround him!"
Several people sprang from the darkness like wolves and tigers, surrounding Zhou Nan tightly in the blink of an eye.
"Heh, caught another one!"
"Director Zheng was right. This major crackdown really is necessary. Discipline has been ruined beyond measure—it's truly heartbreaking."
"What's this one's deal?"
Zhou Nan panicked. Looking around, he saw teachers from the Academic Affairs Office, along with more than ten students from the Discipline Committee. It could be called the full mobilization of the disciplinary departments. Though Big-Head Zheng was not present, he was not the only baleful star in the Academic Affairs Office; there were several other fierce generals as well. Now that they had caught another one, everyone closed in with savage expressions.
"Talk. What did you climb the wall to do? Went to buy cigarettes, didn't you?" A teacher beside him smiled without smiling. "I advise you to be honest. Hurry up and confess. Director Zheng is furious right now. Don't be so blind to life and death at a time like this, stubborn as a dead duck."
"No, no, Teacher! I really didn't go buy cigarettes!"
"Still being stubborn? Looks like you won't shed a tear until you see the coffin."
Smack! Four powerful flashlights shone on Zhou Nan, pinning him in place like a prison escapee caught in searchlights and revealing his miserable, laugh-or-cry expression. His face was already bruised and swollen. The teachers who had surrounded him immediately barked, "What happened to your face? Speak! What's in that bundle? Why exactly did you climb over the wall and leave school?!"
Zhou Nan immediately raised both hands as though surrendering. "Teachers, if I said I climbed over the wall to buy study guides, would you believe me?"
The teachers all looked at Zhou Nan as though he were an idiot, then jointly reached out and opened his bundle...
One minute later, everyone's expressions had gone blank.
Three minutes later, Zhou Nan escaped the surprise inspection fortunately but miserably. From this day forward, though, the strange tale of someone climbing over the wall to buy elementary school textbooks began circulating throughout Fengming First High School.
During the second evening self-study period, Zhou Nan rushed into Class 28's classroom in a panic. It was the first time he had shown his face in class that day. Then his expression immediately became spectacular. Like a corgi wagging its rear, Zhou Nan scampered up to Shi Tiexin and presented the bundle in his hands.
His movements were so respectful and his expression so fawning that he had completely cast aside any idol baggage. Everyone exchanged glances and knowingly gave one another a signal.
The newly appointed Boss, Shi Tiexin, felt nothing about it. Right now, there was only one thing on his mind. He swiftly opened the bundle. What met his eyes was a book titled "Primary School Mathematics, First Grade, Volume One." He rubbed it between his hands for a moment, stared fixedly at it, and after a brief wait, strange words appeared before his eyes.
Manual: Basic Mathematics First Layer (Incomplete Volume, 1/6)
That was it!
Shi Tiexin hurriedly rummaged through the bundle and laid out all six elementary school Mathematics textbooks, from First Grade, Volume One through Third Grade, Volume Two.
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