"He Mingxuan!
Can't you speak like a normal person?
You've gone too far!"
Xu Tui glared at He Mingxuan, his face burning with anger.
Too far.
In the past, he, Cheng Mo, and Tang Ting had indeed clashed with He Mingxuan and the others, but those conflicts had stayed within the bounds of ordinary schoolmate disputes.
They hadn't crossed the line.
Xu Tui couldn't control what they said behind Cheng Mo's back.
But mocking him to his face and rubbing salt in his wounds was too much.
Faced with Xu Tui's glare, He Mingxuan wasn't the least bit intimidated. He sprang to his feet to face him, his expression full of disdain.
"I'm stating a fact. What about it? Got a problem?"
"Am I not allowed to speak the truth?" He Mingxuan tilted his head, his expression taunting.
"You!"
Xu Tui took half a step forward, furious.
"What, you want to fight?
Come on!" He Mingxuan clenched his fists, baring his teeth in a mocking grin, as if he couldn't wait for Xu Tui to take him up on it.
"If you want to fight, go outside and do it."
The supervising teacher's voice rang out, cold and indifferent. "Don't say I didn't warn you. If you violate the rules for this trip and ruin your own future, don't blame me."
"Little Leg, don't. Don't stoop to his level. This is my fault for being so useless." Cheng Mo hurried over and pulled Xu Tui back.
"Don't worry. I know what I'm doing."
Xu Tui pushed Cheng Mo away and glared at He Mingxuan. "He Mingxuan, we're classmates. Even if we end up at Huaxia Gene Evolution University, we'll still be classmates—and we're from the same hometown.
I'm not saying we have to help each other, but we shouldn't fight among ourselves, either.
I hope you'll be smart about this. Don't ruin the ties between classmates and fellow townsfolk so soon!"
"He's got a point. He Mingxuan, you're in the wrong."
A girl with long hair draped over her shoulders, who'd been reading quietly, suddenly spoke up.
"Gong Ling, mind your own business."
He Mingxuan looked annoyed, then sneered at Xu Tui. "Don't talk to me about ties between classmates and fellow townsfolk.
One of you eats like a bottomless pit, and the other is in the Wisdom Heart System. What ties? Just don't bring shame on Jincheng Prefecture, and we'll be grateful."
After everything he'd gone through with the tailing incident and the milk-tea shop, Xu Tui had already changed quite a bit. He didn't lose his temper this time.
"Fine. You said it yourself. You're the one who doesn't care about our ties as classmates and fellow townsfolk!"
Xu Tui turned and suddenly walked toward Tong Qi, the other student who'd just been mocking Cheng Mo.
His move immediately drew everyone's attention on the bus.
Xu Tui had heard Tong Qi's name before—not only from Zhou Sheng, the director of the Special Intelligence Agency, but also from many of his classmates.
Tong Qi was one of the top students at Jincheng No. 6 High School.
His family was also very prominent.
It was said that he'd undergone rigorous, systematic training since he was a child.
His Gene Aptitude Test results were equally impressive.
He was the only genius in all of Jincheng Prefecture to have opened sixteen Gene Points on the spot.
He was the top scorer in this year's Gene Aptitude Test for Jincheng Prefecture!
Until now, Xu Tui had been looking forward to meeting the top scorer from Jincheng Prefecture.
He hadn't expected their first meeting to happen like this.
Xu Tui reached Tong Qi's seat, but before he could say anything, a shout came from behind him.
"Xu Tui, what are you doing?"
The supervising teacher immediately barked at Xu Tui. "If you cause trouble again, I'll send you off the bus first."
For the first time, Xu Tui was thoroughly fed up.
He was thoroughly fed up with this supervising teacher.
He hadn't even done anything, and the man had already yelled at him twice.
But after so many years of school, Xu Tui had nearly mastered the art of sparring with teachers.
He turned and flashed the supervising teacher a big, toothy grin. "Teacher, which eye of yours saw me causing trouble?
You need evidence before making accusations!
I just want to say a couple of things to my classmate Tong Qi. Is that not allowed?"
"Or are we enforcing a silence rule on this bus today?"
His words weren't aggressive, but they weren't yielding, either.
They left the angry supervising teacher speechless.
The man glared coldly at Xu Tui and said nothing more.
Xu Tui's gaze was cold, too. Was this supervising teacher out of his mind? He had no idea how to handle things and kept singling Xu Tui out. Wasn't he just asking for trouble?
"Tong Qi," Xu Tui said, turning to him.
Tong Qi remained seated with his arms folded, chin raised slightly as he gave Xu Tui a dismissive hum. "What do you want?"
Even after being called out to his face, Tong Qi wasn't annoyed. He merely lifted his head and smiled. "And what if I don't?"
Xu Tui gave Tong Qi a cold look, said nothing, and returned to his seat.
On the way back, Xu Tui noticed that the supervising teacher had been watching him the whole time, clearly hoping to catch him doing something wrong. Xu Tui responded with a huge eye roll.
About twenty minutes later, everyone had boarded. The supervising teacher checked the roll and confirmed that no one was missing.
"Everyone, let me introduce myself. My surname is Cha, and my name is Cha Yifeng. I work for the Inspection Division of the Jincheng Prefecture Education Bureau, and I'm the supervising teacher for this trip.
The thirty students on this bus have all been admitted to Huaxia Gene Evolution University. You're all exceptionally talented.
You've probably heard that the annual university enrollment period is never peaceful.
This trip will take two days. I expect everyone to follow instructions and observe the rules along the way. You'll arrive safely in the capital and begin your university life, and I'll have completed my escort duty successfully."
At this point, Cha Yifeng's tone suddenly turned cold. "But let me make one thing clear: if anyone causes trouble or breaks the rules along the way, don't expect me to go easy on you!"
He fixed his eyes on Xu Tui as he said the last few words, making Xu Tui roll his eyes.
Did he really look that much like a troublemaker?
"Did you hear me?"
The students' scattered, halfhearted replies made Cha Yifeng lose face, so he raised his voice again. "Did you hear me? Speak up!"
"We heard you."
Cha Yifeng's expression turned unfriendly. The troublemaker he'd deliberately been watching—Xu Tui—had kept his head down the whole time.
"Xu Tui!"
Xu Tui didn't look up or respond.
"Xu Tui!"
Cha Yifeng strode over to Xu Tui's seat and shouted at him.
Cheng Mo gave Xu Tui a gentle nudge with his elbow.
"Teacher, what is it?"
"Did you hear what I just said?"
Xu Tui looked at Cha Yifeng for a while before replying slowly, "Teacher, my hearing is fine. I'm not deaf!"
Cha Yifeng was furious.
That wasn't the answer he'd wanted.
He'd planned to use the opportunity to lecture Xu Tui and establish his authority. That would make it much easier to manage this bunch of young hotshots on the way.
Instead, Xu Tui had put him on the spot.
But if he pushed things any further, he'd be going too far.
The cameras inside the bus weren't there for show.
"Good. Then wait for departure!"
All he could do was return to his seat with a cold expression.
"You think you can hold out for two days?" Xu Tui asked quietly when he heard Cheng Mo's stomach rumble.
"No problem. I brought plenty to eat, and they'll serve food on the way," Cheng Mo said.
"Mm. I brought food, too. I've got E-grade and F-grade Energy Supplement Potions here. If you get really hungry, they can tide you over."
"Don't worry. I brought some, too."
"If you run out, just tell me."
About half an hour later, two uniformed security officers carrying inspection devices checked the bus.
One then went to the front and sat behind the driver.
The other took out a fist-sized round device and installed it in the center of the ceiling. He pressed a button, switching it on.
Xu Tui frowned slightly.
The moment the electronic device started up, he felt uncomfortable.
At the same time, Gong Ling, seated in front of Xu Tui, frowned as well.
Almost as soon as the device was activated, many students who'd been using their Personal Communication Devices cried out in surprise.
"What's going on? My Personal Communication Device suddenly ran out of power, even though it was fully charged!"
"Mine too. I can't even restart it."
"This is an ultra-micro radiation particle generator. Once it's switched on, all electronic devices within its range will lose power because of signal interference. It also blocks signals and enforces radio silence.
"Once we reach our destination and switch it off, all your electronic devices will return to normal." The security officer explained this seriously, then took a seat in the last row.
The whole bus erupted in groans.
With all the electronic devices unusable, the trip was going to be unbearably boring.
"That's why I brought a book." Gong Ling, seated in front of Xu Tui, smiled and waved the book in her hand.
But even after the security officer had boarded, the bus still didn't set off.
After a little while, a tall figure suddenly stepped onto the bus.
White sneakers, tight-fitting light-blue jeans that accentuated her long legs and waist, a somewhat loose light-colored sweatshirt, long black hair tied in a high ponytail, and a black backpack in her hand.
The fresh, youthful air she brought with her even drew a sidelong glance from Gong Ling, a young woman in her prime seated near the front.
She looked a little envious.
Even though the newcomer wore a blue disposable medical mask, the boys on the bus all straightened up and looked her way.
Xu Tui was stunned.
Wasn't this the female researcher—the professor from the Wisdom Heart System at Huaxia Gene Evolution University's Mysterious Academy, An Xiaoxue? What was she doing here, too?
"I'm Professor An Xiaoxue from the Mysterious System at Huaxia Gene Evolution University. I'll be accompanying you as a supervising teacher on this trip.
"I hope everyone will follow the rules along the way. If you have a problem or need help, you can come straight to me.
"Is that clear?" An Xiaoxue said as she stepped onto the bus.
"Yes, Professor An!"
The response was loud and perfectly in unison. Hearing it made Cha Yifeng, the other supervising teacher, feel awful.
It stung.
They were both teachers, so why was there such a huge difference between them?
*******
Mm. Zhu San hadn't gotten a Valentine's Day gift, and now all he wanted was votes and follows.
Those were Zhu San's favorites.
Before you continue