Beaten into Submission, Two Girls at Each Other's Throats

Zhao Linchuan pointed at the cluster of houses behind them, sweeping his finger from east to west to encompass the entire row of low, dilapidated homes with earthen walls and gray-tiled roofs.

"Teachers, this can't possibly be our faculty and student dormitory, can it?"

"All of my students are girls. If they live in an environment like this, wouldn't they have no privacy at all?"

His gaze swept over the row of houses, and he added another particularly cutting remark.

"The walls are made of packed earth, the doors are wooden boards, and the window paper would tear with one poke. You could hear the neighbors sneeze."

"A place like this doesn't even have a proper bathhouse, does it?"

"This..." Zhao Wuji and the others were immediately left speechless.

What could they even say?

That they were poor—so poor they could not even pay the teachers' salaries, so poor that the academy's signboard was nailed together from rotten planks?

That their dean was an even bigger miser, splitting every coin in half and wishing he could make teachers and students sleep together in one giant communal bed?

Zhao Wuji opened his mouth, wanting to say something to salvage his dignity. His lips moved a few times, but in the end, he could not say a word. He merely lowered his head, rubbed his smooth bald scalp, and let out an indescribable sigh.

"Oh, how about this?" Ning Rongrong spoke up brightly, breaking the awkward atmosphere.

"Teacher, I'll pay to have a new building constructed for us."

"We can stay in Suotuo City tonight. By tomorrow afternoon, I think the house will be finished."

Her tone was utterly casual, completely unaware of how outrageous it sounded to say she could have a house built within a single day.

"Then we have no choice but to do that." Zhao Linchuan nodded slightly, as if approving her suggestion.

He turned to Zhao Wuji and the others, speaking with polite detachment.

"Teachers, then we shall temporarily stay in Suotuo City for the night and return tomorrow to trouble your academy again."

"What are you saying, Vice Dean Zhao? It is our honor that you have come to our academy. How could you call it troubling us?"

Zhao Wuji hurriedly waved his hand, and his smile became several degrees more sincere than before.

After thinking for a moment, he added another sentence.

"Would you like me to send someone to escort you?"

"Suotuo City isn't far, but the road isn't easy to travel."

"There is no need." Zhao Linchuan shook his head. "We can go by ourselves."

"We shall take our leave."

With that, the four lined up in a row, turned, and headed out of the village.

In no time at all, the four figures vanished at the end of the dirt road beyond the village entrance.

After they left, Shao Xin looked at Zhao Wuji. The corner of his mouth curled into a half-smile as he said in a mocking tone, "Old Zhao, don't tell me you got beaten into submission?"

"I had no choice but to submit." Zhao Wuji shook his head weakly and rubbed his smooth bald scalp. "That kid is definitely a core disciple of some great clan, and the most central kind at that."

"He might even be the young master of some reclusive sect."

"His Martial Soul, his Soul Ring configuration, and the Soul Power Level he possesses at that age—none of them are things ordinary people can hope to reach."

"As long as he does not die midway, becoming a Title Douluo in the future is practically guaranteed."

"There is no reason for us to provoke someone like that."

"You're right."

Shao Xin nodded silently. After a moment of silence, he asked, "So from now on, you'll be his deputy?"

"I'll do it if I have to." Zhao Wuji gave a bitter laugh and shrugged. "Besides, my position as vice dean was only nominal to begin with. I don't have any real authority anyway."

"Besides, there's nothing shameful about following a future Title Douluo."

Zhao Wuji sighed and continued.

"Alright, go tell those little brats that the danger is over and have them come back quickly."

"They've probably been squatting in the woods over there until their legs went numb."

Evening.

Suotuo City, Rose Hotel, Suite 520.

Ever since they entered the hotel, the atmosphere had been off.

Ning Rongrong kept calling him "Teacher" in a voice sweeter than honey, edging one step closer to Zhao Linchuan every time she said it. She was so clingy it was practically stringy.

Coupled with the fact that she had forcibly kissed Zhao Linchuan outside the academy earlier, Xiao Wu's jealousy was immediately set ablaze.

And so, the two girls launched into a war of words.

First, they argued from the hotel lobby to the stairs, then from the stairs to the corridor, and finally from the corridor into the room.

Whatever one said, the other immediately snapped back. If one glared once, the other glared twice. They chattered nonstop, arguing fiercely.

Several times, they nearly came to blows. Ning Rongrong rolled up her sleeves, while Xiao Wu clenched her fists. Their noses nearly touched, and the air was thick with the scent of gunpowder.

Zhao Linchuan was so annoyed his head felt twice as large. Left with no choice, he punished them both equally.

He made them squat in the corners facing the wall to reflect on their mistakes. They were not allowed to speak, turn around, or whisper to each other, and had to squat there obediently for half a shichen.

Strangely enough, Ning Rongrong, the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect who had been doted on since childhood, did not refuse this punishment, which caused little harm but was deeply humiliating.

She merely snorted, shot Zhao Linchuan a glare, then obediently walked to the left corner and squatted down with her arms wrapped around her knees.

Seeing this, Xiao Wu gave a soft snort and went to squat in the corner on the right as well.

At that moment, Zhu Zhuqing had just returned from outside with a dining cart full of food.

She pushed open the door and wheeled the cart into the living room. Just as she was about to call everyone over to eat, she saw the two people squatting in the corners on either side.

Zhu Zhuqing froze for a moment, tilted her head, and stared for several seconds before asking with amusement, "What happened to you two? Are you playing some kind of game?"

She patted the handle of the dining cart. "I brought the food back. Hurry up and get up to eat."

"I'm not hungry!" Ning Rongrong and Xiao Wu shouted in unison.

Their voices overlapped, astonishingly loud, like two thunderclaps exploding in the living room at once. Even the chandelier swayed twice from the impact.

"Ah!"

Zhu Zhuqing jumped in fright, instinctively shrinking backward as one hand patted her ample chest.

She took a deep breath to calm herself, then said somewhat irritably, "What's wrong with you two? Did our husband sneak around with another woman outside?!"

"None of your business!" the two shouted in unison again.

"Then keep squatting."

Zhu Zhuqing said unhappily, her lips curling slightly. She turned around and pushed the dining cart toward Zhao Linchuan's room.

As she walked, she looked back at the two people squatting in the corners, shook her head, and muttered softly, "Two childish brats."

The room door opened with a creak, then slammed shut with a bang.