Ye Chu pressed a hand to his forehead in resignation and could only change the subject. "You'll black out for a while after entering the registration classroom. The person inside will ask you to write your names. It's best not to use your real names."
Ye Chu fell silent for a few seconds, then added, "Preferably, pick a name that's a bit... hard to say out loud."
Wu You and Lu Rui exchanged a glance, then looked at Ye Chu's name badge and fell silent: ...
"Ye Chu, how... do you pronounce that name?"
Ye Chu curled his lips into a wicked smile. "'Ye Chu is my dad.' Even if he recognizes the characters, he won't be able to bring himself to say it."
Lu Rui and Wu You: ...
Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.
The two nodded earnestly at Ye Chu. After a brief exchange of information, they split up without needing to discuss it-Ye Chu went to investigate the other classrooms, while Lu Rui and Wu You went to register as new students.
Wu You had worried that the registration office would only admit one person at a time, leaving her and Lu Rui unable to look out for each other. But as soon as they opened the door, the woman inside called them both in.
With Ye Chu's advance warning, the process went relatively smoothly. Only when they started writing their names did their vision blur. When they came to again, their surnames had already been written in the name fields, with the rest still blank.
"Write your own names. Don't write nonsense," the woman with the pale, bluish face said coldly.
Wu You and Lu Rui exchanged a knowing look, then lowered their heads and continued filling in their names.
Soon, the registration teacher was staring pensively at two nameplates as long as her palm: ... One read "Wu-hoo, Granny Liu asks Granny Willow for milk and durian," while the other read "Lu-la-lay, the cowherd loves Lady Liu year after year."
Lu Rui looked at Wu You's nameplate and clicked her tongue. Sure enough, she had played it too safe.
The registration teacher stood and handed them their nameplates. "Wu-hoo, Granny Liu asks Granny Wallow..."
Forced to start over after misreading the name, the registration teacher took a deep breath. "Wu-hoo, Granny Liu asks Granny Willow for Lilk..."
Fuck... Forget it. I'll read the other one.
She turned to Lu Rui and said coldly, "Lu-la-lay, the cowherd gloves..."
Fuck this job! Anyone who wants it can have it!
As Wu You and Lu Rui left the classroom, they glanced back at the registration teacher. She had turned to face the wall with her head bowed. "Lu Rui, I think we made her shut down."
"She's way too fragile. And she's supposed to be a teacher?"
The registration teacher: ...
You haven't even closed the door yet! Keep your voices down! I can hear you!!
Meanwhile, over in Zhiyuan Building...
Pei Yanchuan and Su Fengzi had been standing outside the registration classroom for ages, but Ye Chu still hadn't shown up.
"Could Ye Chu have gone in ahead of us?" Su Fengzi asked, fiddling with his name badge.
Pei Yanchuan was still standing on tiptoe to peer outside the building. "Don't be ridiculous, Auntie Su. Ye Chu's cautious. He doesn't usually act alone."
Su Fengzi said, "...Okay, but..." He pointed at the nameplate on his chest. "My name is Su Dalang, not Auntie Su. Lang."
Pei Yanchuan waved a dismissive hand. "Yeah, yeah, Dalang, Dalang. Why isn't Ye Chu here yet?"
Su Fengzi: "..."
You really don't have to drop my surname. That sounds horribly unlucky.
He had thought his own name was ridiculous enough, but looking at the word "Daddy" on Pei Yanchuan's name badge, he admitted he had played it safe. Far too safe.
[Not a single normal person in 12789. Confirmed.]
[Who would've thought Su Fengzi was the most normal one?]
[Classic Pei Xiaohu. Even his fake names are this cocky, hahaha.]
Pei Yanchuan had also come to after writing a single vertical stroke. When the registration teacher told him he wasn't allowed to cross anything out, the rebellious high schooler had pointed straight at the stroke and said, "That's a slash."
Then he had scrawled the two crooked characters for "Daddy" right onto the form.
The registration teacher: ...
When Ye Chu still failed to show, Pei Yanchuan opened the registration classroom door again with a bang, giving the old man quite a fright.
"Sir," Pei Yanchuan said, sitting back down at the desk with an innocent smile, "are there any students who haven't registered yet today?"
The registration teacher leafed through the list. "No. All five registered today."
"Five?" Pei Yanchuan glanced at Su Fengzi behind him. Ye Chu... didn't actually go to the girls' classroom building next door, did he?
Pei Yanchuan remained seated, showing no intention of leaving, so the old man in charge of registration had to take out the list. "Look. Just the five of you."
Pei Yanchuan followed his finger and froze. When he stayed silent, Su Fengzi walked in curiously as well. Once he saw the names on the list, he couldn't help thinking:
I played it safe. I played it far too safe!
Pei Yanchuan couldn't help smiling when he saw Ye Chu's name. As someone on track for Tsinghua and Peking, he recognized the characters at a glance. Nicely done, brother Ye Chu.
"All right," Pei Yanchuan said, standing up. "Looks like Ye Chu went to the building next door. Let's head over too..." He hadn't expected Ye Chu to have that sort of kink.
Ye Chu was wandering aimlessly around the building when he suddenly sneezed twice. Huh? Who's bad-mouthing me?
He tugged at the classroom doors, but they were all locked from the inside and wouldn't open. Ye Chu peered through the glass and saw nothing. It was pitch-black inside.
That's not right. It's still morning. There should at least be some light. As that thought crossed his mind, a pair of glowing green eyes suddenly pressed against the glass.
Startled, Ye Chu took two steps back.
Glowing green eyes? A fly?
The door opened, and a middle-aged woman wearing glasses stepped out and looked up at Ye Chu. Apparently, she hadn't expected the person outside to be so tall. She froze for a moment, then looked down again, confirming that the person before her was wearing a plaid skirt and was a girl.
...What kind of girl is six feet tall?
"What class are you in?" the teacher demanded aggressively, glaring at him.
Ye Chu fell silent for a few seconds. Would you believe me if I said I didn't know either?
A few seconds later, the middle-aged teacher remembered. "Oh, right. There's only one class in this building."
Ye Chu: ... Then why the hell did you ask?
"New here?" The middle-aged teacher's face was pale, and the little glasses perched on her nose reflected a cold gleam.
They're a match for Lu Rui's glasses, Ye Chu thought silently.
Before Ye Chu could answer, Wu You and Lu Rui approached the classroom together. Lu Rui was sneezing as she walked.
"You're all new?" Upon seeing the other two, the teacher seemed to regain her imposing air. Although these two students were also taller than her, at least the difference wasn't quite so absurd.
Ye Chu and Wu You stood together and nodded obediently. "Yes, ma'am."
The middle-aged woman looked them up and down, then turned and walked back into the classroom. "Come in."
Ye Chu and the others followed her inside. Many of the students in Class One had pale, bluish faces and didn't look like normal people, though there were a few ordinary humans among them. Some wore numb expressions, while others looked terrified... but at least those were normal human expressions.
Ye Chu walked to the back of the classroom and pulled out a chair. Just as he was about to sit, he heard the teacher at the front say, "Hey..."
She had probably intended to call Ye Chu's name, but after glancing at the nameplate on his chest, she fell silent. She might have been a language teacher, but how was she supposed to read those five characters?
Seeing Ye Chu turn around, she quickly nodded. "Yes, you. Sit here." She pointed to the seat beside the lectern.
The legendary left-and-right guardian seats.
Ye Chu: ...
After all his years of schooling, this was his first time sitting in a guardian seat.
Before you continue