Eastsea Academy, Academic Affairs Office.
Long Hengxu was so angry in his office that he kept slamming his hand on the desk.
He pointed at the troublemakers lined up in front of him and shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Just look at yourselves! What do you think you're doing? It's the first day of school, and you've already turned the place upside down!"
"You're not here to study. You're here to tear the school apart! You're all troublemakers, and not one of you knows how to behave!"
He took a breath, then looked over Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, and Zhou Changxi, who had just returned from getting his injuries treated in the infirmary and looked thoroughly miserable.
"You three! Every one of you who threw a punch is going to Class Five!"
"And you!" He swung a finger toward Yun Xiao, who had been standing silently off to the side. "Yun Xiao! Same for you! You're off to Class Five!"
Yun Xiao was stunned. He hurriedly protested, "Director Long, this... this has nothing to do with me! I was just watching from the side. I didn't say a word, let alone lay a hand on anyone! Why should I go to Class Five too?"
Long Hengxu glared at him and launched into a string of reasons.
"You didn't lay a hand on anyone? You just watched?"
"You're so young, yet when you see your classmates fighting, you just stand there and watch the show? You have no sense of justice at all! Your attitude is all wrong! That's even more dangerous, so you need a good education and reform in Class Five!"
After clearly deciding what would happen to all four of them, Long Hengxu finally turned his gaze to Yao Chuan, who had been standing nearby without saying a word.
When it came to Yao Chuan, Long Hengxu's head started to ache.
By rights, Yao Chuan had been involved too, so the rules called for a severe punishment.
But the problem was... this young master's identity and connections were a little too hot to handle!
Long Hengxu was only the director of academic affairs at Eastsea Academy, a tiny official with no real power.
And the person standing before him?
A genius young writer! Soul Breaking the Firmament was a sensation across the country, with countless fans! Wherever he went, he was the center of attention!
That alone would have been enough, but behind him stood Mu Chen, the Eight-Star Saint Craftsman—someone who could make Eastsea City tremble with just a stomp of his foot!
Long Hengxu couldn't afford to offend any of them!
And Yao Chuan was frighteningly powerful in his own right.
In Long Hengxu's eyes, he was more than capable of going straight to Shrek Academy.
If he punished him too harshly... he might offend someone.
But if he went easy on him or let him off, that wouldn't sit right either.
After all, the other students were watching.
As he thought it over, Long Hengxu found himself at a loss.
His brow furrowed like a bitter gourd, and for a moment he didn't know what to do.
Yao Chuan was sharp. One look at Long Hengxu's constipated expression, and he immediately understood.
He smiled faintly and spoke up, offering Long Hengxu a way out.
"Director Long, how about this? I was partly responsible too. Since they're all going to Class Five to 'further their studies,' I'll go with them. We should share both the good times and the bad."
Anyway, he hadn't come to Eastsea Academy expecting to learn anything from them.
His main reasons were to brainwash Tang Wulin and poach some talent.
Everyone else thought Class Five was full of trash.
But Yao Chuan knew which promising students would turn up there in the end.
So he was actually more than happy to go to Class Five.
He was willing to go to Class Five?
Long Hengxu's eyes lit up, and the weight on his heart hit the floor with a thud.
He'd given Yao Chuan an "answer," shown that he was treating everyone equally, and managed not to offend anyone.
Long Hengxu hurriedly nodded, afraid Yao Chuan might change his mind.
"Mm, all right, all right! Student Yao Chuan, you have a great sense of responsibility. It's settled, then—you're going to Class Five too!"
With the hardest one to deal with taken care of, Long Hengxu put on a stern face and brought up another headache—the compensation.
"Fighting might feel good in the moment, but the bill afterward will send you to the grave! You little brats smashed three bed frames and a window. Add it all up, and it comes to thirty-four thousand Federal Coins!"
"Think about how you're going to pay for it!"
"Thirty-four thousand?!"
Tang Wulin nearly spat blood. His face went deathly pale.
He was already short on money, and this sum was astronomical to him!
Were those broken bed frames and window made of gold?
His vision started to go dark.
Yao Chuan, on the other hand, looked completely calm, as though he'd heard the bill was three coins and four cents.
He turned directly to Zhou Changxi, who was cowering in a corner with his eyes darting about.
"Director Long, the sequence of events is clear. Zhou Changxi started it. He smashed Tang Wulin's things, which set off everything that followed. So, as a matter of both fairness and common sense, Zhou Changxi should cover the compensation himself. Don't you agree?"
After speaking, he looked calmly at Zhou Changxi, his voice neither loud nor soft.
"Zhou Changxi, you tell me. Does what I said make sense?"
When Yao Chuan's gaze swept over him, Zhou Changxi jolted as if he'd been branded with a red-hot iron.
His fear of Yao Chuan had sunk into his bones. He didn't dare meet his eyes.
At the question, he didn't even dare lift his head. He nodded furiously like a pecking chick.
"Right, right! Makes sense, makes sense! It was all me... I was in the wrong! I'll pay! I'll cover everything!"
Watching Zhou Changxi act so meek, Long Hengxu's eyelids twitched again.
He couldn't figure out why Zhou Changxi acted like a mouse seeing a cat whenever Yao Chuan was around.
But since the person involved had admitted fault himself, Long Hengxu had nothing more to say.
The punishment for Zhou Changxi had served its purpose too.
Long Hengxu nodded.
"Fine. Since Zhou Changxi has admitted it, he'll be responsible for the compensation on his own. You all heard that, right?"
He waved his hand, putting the matter of compensation to rest.
"Enough. Everything's been dealt with. Get out of here! Remember this lesson. If there's a next time, you'll be punished without mercy!"
The students felt as though they'd just been pardoned from death. They hurriedly beat a hasty retreat from the academic affairs building.
As soon as they stepped outside, Tang Wulin eagerly went over to Yao Chuan, his face full of gratitude.
"Student Yao Chuan, just now... thank you so much!"
His tone was completely sincere. "Thank you for standing up for me, and even more for speaking up just now and getting me out of paying that compensation..."
Thirty-four thousand!
If he'd been stuck with that bill, he would have had to pinch every penny for the next few years.
Yao Chuan had done him a huge favor!
Yao Chuan waved a hand dismissively.
"It was nothing. Don't mention it."
Beside them, Xie Xie burst into laughter and slung an arm around Tang Wulin's shoulders, acting like they were old friends.
"Hey, that's nothing! Stick with big bro from now on, and you'll see just how loyal he is! This little favor is a mere drizzle!"
He thumped his chest.
"Brother, I'm Xie Xie! Remember that! From now on, we're roommates!"
Tang Wulin was a little bewildered by the arm around his shoulders, and instinctively replied,
"Ah? Oh, no need to thank me, no need to thank me..."
Xie Xie's face instantly darkened.
"Who said anything about thanking you?!" He let go of Tang Wulin and pointed at his own nose. "I'm telling you to remember my name! I'm Xie Xie! Xie—Xie!"
Only then did Tang Wulin realize he'd misunderstood. His face turned bright red, and he awkwardly apologized over and over.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Student Xie Xie, I got it wrong! I meant to say..."
Before he could finish, a loud gurgling sound suddenly came from his stomach.
It rang out with startling clarity, especially in the quiet hallway.
Whoosh!
Tang Wulin's face turned completely red, like a boiled shrimp.
Xie Xie and Yao Chuan both instinctively looked down at his stomach.
Tang Wulin wished the ground would open up and swallow him.
To break the awkward silence, he hurriedly spoke, his voice stumbling a little.
"Um... um... Student Yao Chuan, Student Xie Xie, you've both gone to so much trouble for me today. To thank you, I... I'll treat you to lunch! Lunch at the cafeteria is on me!"
As soon as he said that, the expressions on Xie Xie's and Yao Chuan's faces turned extremely strange.
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