Her heart stirred. Could it be that Song He had softened? Had he changed his mind?
Xiang Xiaotong had just been about to look up at her student's expression when the ruler came whistling down. With a crisp slap, the sound of leather striking flesh echoed through the room.
She cried out in pain, her composure nearly collapsing on the spot. She felt desperate and helpless.
"Did you really have to hit me that hard?" she asked, looking up with reddened eyes.
"That was the first strike. Nine more to go." Song He looked straight into her eyes.
Xiang Xiaotong was on the verge of tears. She had a premonition that if she took another blow like that, she would definitely start crying—and would end up sobbing her heart out.
She waited tensely, her mind blank. She had no idea what was wrong with her. It was clearly just a joking bet, yet she felt unbearably sad.
"When you used to twist my ear, all the way until you twisted me under the lab table, did you ever think about how I felt?" Song He asked.
Xiang Xiaotong said nothing. Her gaze was vacant, but after hearing her student speak, she blinked, clearly taking his words to heart.
"When you first met me, I was still a minor in middle school, so you've always thought of me as a child. You usually treated me like one too, didn't you?" Song He said seriously.
Xiang Xiaotong's eyes finally moved. "Are you angry because of that? Is that why you insisted on hitting me? Song He, you idiot! I twisted your ear because I considered you my own student! Would I lay a hand on an ordinary student? I can't even be bothered to say more than a few words to them!"