Chapter 5

Li Zhuo was an honest and simple kid by nature. Back when he worked odd jobs at trade shows, if the agent casually mentioned meeting around six, others would drag it out until six-thirty. Only Li Zhuo would already be at the meeting point by five-thirty.

At his international school, when a teacher finished explaining something, the other students would filter away one after another. Only he would honestly remain in place, figuring the teacher hadn’t told him to leave yet.

After transferring to Experimental High School, he understood things a lot better, but he was still a straightforward student who followed school rules. This was his first time being late for class. His first time!

Even though Teacher Mo said he’d already spoken with the language arts teacher, Li Zhuo was still anxious. By the time he sprinted to the door of Class 10, Grade 2, he was completely out of breath.

Class had indeed already started.

“Reporting!”

The language arts teacher at the podium was surnamed Cai. Quite a few students in the class called her Old Nun behind her back. She never wore high heels, never bothered with makeup or dressing up, and her hair was always pinned back meticulously. She rarely smiled, whether in class or between periods.

At least in Li Zhuo’s memory, classmates who were late for various reasons before would always get scolded for several minutes before being allowed in.

But this time, surprisingly, she didn’t say anything?

Teacher Cai gave Li Zhuo a deep, meaningful look and asked an enigmatic question: “You’re coming back from the Psychological Counseling Room over in Teaching Building No. 6?”

Li Zhuo nodded.

Teacher Cai retracted her gaze, placed the rolled-up textbook in her hand on the podium, and rapped it twice with a thud. “Come in,” she said stiffly.

As if granted amnesty, Li Zhuo hurried to his seat and sat down.

Luckily, he’d run fast. The bell had only rung moments ago, and the lesson had just begun when he entered. Li Zhuo pulled his language arts textbook from the stack, flipped to the page his deskmate indicated, and quickly caught up.

Halfway through the lesson, his deskmate, Deng Yuliang, nudged Li Zhuo with his elbow and slipped him a note.

Li Zhuo glanced at the teacher at the podium, who was writing on the blackboard with chalk and not looking at him at all. Still, he kept the note clenched in his palm, unopened.

He waited until the new content was finished. Teacher Cai suddenly took a phone call. Before leaving, she told everyone to review what she had just covered.

The silent classroom erupted like a boiling pot the second Teacher Cai stepped away.

Only then did Li Zhuo have time to open the note and read it.

【You went to the school’s Psychological Counseling Room?】

Li Zhuo found the question strange. He asked, “Is that not allowed?”

“You know the school had a counseling room before, right? Over in the old teaching building. But it was always just for show. No one ever saw a psychological counselor there.”

“It was just last month. The school suddenly set up a new Psychological Counseling Room. I still haven’t even seen the counselor there yet…”

Deng Yuliang was Li Zhuo’s deskmate and the famously well-informed busybody in their class. In all of Class 10—or even extending across the entire grade—there was no gossip he didn’t know about.

Who had friction with whom, who was secretly dating whom, whose parents got called in, who brought contraband, who snitched behind others’ backs… matters of that sort. He could talk about them for three days and nights without repeating himself.

And knowing so many people’s secrets was proof enough of his formidable social skills.

When Li Zhuo first transferred in, his personality was quite unsociable. The head teacher had arranged this seating specifically so the more outgoing Deng Yuliang could help the transfer student along.

As expected, the chattering, talkative Deng Yuliang was not only the first classmate to initiate a conversation with Li Zhuo but also his first real friend.

Because of that, he was willing to tell his friend the truth.

“That psychological counselor is surnamed Mo. I met him. He’s a pretty nice guy.” Li Zhuo thought for a moment before adding, “After talking with him, I felt a bit better.”

“That effective?” Deng Yuliang looked somewhat unconvinced. “But I heard that teacher is different from the others.”

Li Zhuo pressed, “Different how?”

Deng Yuliang was momentarily at a loss for words, sinking into thought. “I don’t know that part. Anyway, my uncle told me not to go there…”

Nearly everyone in Class 10 knew that Deng Yuliang’s family ran a business. His father was in engineering, his mother worked at the hospital, and his uncle was the school’s Head of General Affairs.

It was precisely because of these connections that he could sometimes get a heads-up on certain things—like when school would be off for vacation, when exams were, or when a surprise contraband inspection would happen.

But regarding that new Psychological Counseling Room, his uncle hadn’t said much. His attitude was one of deep secrecy, only telling him to stay away.

As for why?

Deng Yuliang was just an ordinary student, after all. His uncle wouldn’t tell him, and he couldn’t figure it out himself. He replied that he didn’t know, then mixed in some information he’d previously gleaned from other classes.

—He heard the new Psychological Counseling Room is exactly like the old one, just a prop to satisfy inspections. Otherwise, why is the door closed most of the time since it was set up?

—He also heard that a classmate went there once, but the teacher inside was utterly terrifying. Not only did he refuse to see the student, but he fiercely demanded that the student who pushed the door open wipe it clean on the way out!

“Huh?”

The more Li Zhuo listened, the more something felt off. He felt the psychological counselor in Deng Yuliang’s account was completely different from the one he’d met at noon.

Teacher Mo seemed so gentle-tempered. He had listened to him patiently, poured him water, comforted him. How could he ignore and be fierce toward a student?

The earlier parts he could dismiss, but what followed got increasingly ridiculous—even rumors of hauntings and such. Who on earth was making this stuff up?

He wanted to say a few words in defense, but Teacher Cai outside in the hallway had already finished her call. The student sitting in the front row acting as “scout” noticed first and hurriedly warned them.

“Teacher Cai’s coming.”

The noisy classroom instantly fell silent.

When Teacher Cai stepped in wearing her high heels, all she faced was the dark mass of lowered heads buried in their books.

As a veteran teacher with years of experience, she wasn’t naive enough to miss these kids’ little tricks. She just grumbled at them half-heartedly before letting it slide.

“Where was I again?”

Pulling a fresh piece of chalk from the box and snapping off the tip, Cai Qing turned to write. Yet her peripheral vision involuntarily darted to a certain seat in the middle rows.

The transfer student’s seat.

Was his name… Li Zhuo?

The first time she’d heard that name was from Zhang Zhiwen, the head teacher of Class 10. He’d mentioned the student had transferred from some well-known international school?

In the first few days after his transfer, she’d indeed paid a bit more attention. But after observation, she found that although the child’s grades were average, he was indeed quite honest. He wasn’t the spoiled troublemaker who refused to be disciplined that she had imagined, so she stopped paying close attention.

She never expected the next time she heard the transfer student’s name, it would be from the principal himself.

Normally, even if something happened at school, notifications went down level by level. No matter how urgent, it should be the head teacher, a grade leader, or the director who told her.

Cai Qing had taught at Experimental High School for many years. This was the first time she’d ever received a personal call from the principal.

Her conversation with the principal wasn’t long. What had really kept her lingering out in the hallway that long was a second call—with Class 10’s head teacher.

The head teacher of Class 10 was surnamed Zhang, a middle-aged man in his forties. Among the many teachers at Experimental, he wasn’t particularly slick or particularly dull. Like the grades of the class he led, he was middle-of-the-road—neither outstanding nor lagging.

At his age, with a family, a partner, and children, any small movement that might affect his career made this man extraordinarily vigilant.

On the phone, Class 10’s head teacher also sounded uncertain. He knew no more than Cai Qing, the subject teacher, did. At most, he might have had some contact with Li Zhuo’s family and perhaps accepted a small favor from them.

But that was nothing, right?

Though he took the money, he genuinely got things done. For example, before Li Zhuo transferred, he’d specifically held a class meeting, telling everyone to get along well. He’d also graded Li Zhuo’s exams very carefully and even specially arranged for a lively, outgoing student to guide him and help him adjust faster…

As for that Mo Liang…

Class 10’s head teacher knew far less. At most, he only knew that some time ago, a major, mysterious figure had arrived at the school.

Who knew what had gotten into him, coming to this unremarkable Changyang City and proposing to be a nominal teacher at Experimental High School? That new Psychological Counseling Room was precisely his office.

Although nominally Mr. Mo was the school’s psychological counselor, he didn’t have attendance requirements like ordinary teachers. He reportedly didn’t even need a salary? Of course, it went without saying that the school must have reaped unimaginable benefits from this arrangement.

This time, the principal hadn’t said much on the phone. He’d just mentioned that Mr. Mo had said earlier he was looking for someone, and now that person had been found—Li Zhuo from Class 10, Grade 2.

He told them to keep an eye on this student’s movements usually, but also said not to draw too much attention. The meaning behind those words twisted and turned in circles.

Was it “care” or “care”… if you caught the nuance?

The head teacher and subject teacher mulled it over for ages without figuring out the exact meaning. After conferring, they decided just to keep things as usual.

A minute before class was about to end, quite a few students wearing watches began a silent countdown. At the podium, Zhang Zhiwen saw that his students’ hearts had long flown off to the cafeteria.

The moment the dismissal bell rang, he raised his voice and smacked the podium loudly with his teaching ruler.

“Too many of you are getting this type of question wrong. I still need to emphasize the key points. So, I’ll hold you for five minutes. Ten at most.”

“Awww—”

The students erupted in groans.

Some cried, “No way!”

Others muttered that they’d known Old Zhang would drag class out.

Deng Yuliang sat by the window and was the first to notice the man standing and waiting in the hallway outside.

“Hey, who’s that?”

Li Zhuo followed his gaze. It was the psychological counselor Mo Liang, who had comforted him at noon.

Mo Liang was still wearing the same clothes from midday—a white inner layer paired with a knit cardigan that emphasized his warm, gentle aura. The only difference was a black thermos in his hand.

Li Zhuo lowered his voice. “That’s the psychological counselor I mentioned.”

“No way, that guy’s actually real.”

In just those few seconds of distraction, when Deng Yuliang looked back at the head teacher at the podium, he found him also looking toward the hallway outside.

The next moment, a miracle happened.

“Alright, alright. Look at you all, distracted as can be. You probably wouldn’t absorb it even if I went over it a few more times.” Old Zhang, notorious for extending every single class, very unusually relented this time. “Class dismissed!”

Right after Old Zhang left, someone shouted, “Holy crap, my wish came true!”

The classroom once again boiled over like a pot of water.

“You skipped the cafeteria for lunch. You’re not bailing on dinner again, are you?” Deng Yuliang urged Li Zhuo, meal card in hand. “Hurry up, or there won’t be any seats.”

Sometime ago, because of his low spirits, his appetite had suffered. Every time Li Zhuo got food, he’d feel unable to eat after a few bites, showing subtle signs of an aversion to food. He felt that wasting food was shameful, but at the same time, he truly couldn’t stomach it. So he’d make excuses to avoid going to the cafeteria with his deskmate, just grabbing a bit of bread at the school store to get by.

But today, perhaps because he’d unburdened himself so much to Teacher Mo in the counseling room, the oppressive silence that had been weighing on his chest loosened slightly. For once, he genuinely felt hungry.

“Let’s go then.”

They were stopped right outside the classroom door.

“Little Zhuo, over here.”

Mo Liang smiled and greeted the two students, his manner as familiar as if he and Li Zhuo were old acquaintances.

“Is this your good friend?” he asked.

“His name is Deng Yuliang, my deskmate,” Li Zhuo politely introduced him to Mo Liang, then turned to his deskmate to explain, “This is the school’s psychological counselor, Teacher Mo…”

Deng Yuliang’s eyes darted around. He didn’t bring up the rumors he’d heard around school, instead greeting Mo Liang very respectfully.

“Hello, Teacher Mo!”

After the greeting, he tugged at Li Zhuo’s sleeve.

Mo Liang noticed this small detail and continued in that practiced, familiar tone, “Little Zhuo is having dinner at my place today. I’ve already prepared everything.”

Li Zhuo looked momentarily blank at first, but then vaguely recalled it might have been mentioned. Although, it seemed like it had been Mo Liang deciding things on his own the whole time—he’d never agreed to it!

It was the peak dismissal rush. Not just Class 10 but students from other classes streamed past the three of them standing in the hallway like a tide.

Mo Liang’s sigh seemed half-genuine. “Had I known he was with his deskmate, I’d have prepared an extra portion.”

What more was there to understand?

“Hahaha, then I’ll head to the cafeteria!” Deng Yuliang wasn’t one to dawdle. He clapped Li Zhuo on the shoulder. “I’m off. Goodbye, Teacher Mo!”

He was a social ace. In his own class or others, he counted many as friends.

After saying goodbye to Li Zhuo, Deng Yuliang only took a few steps before running into people greeting him. He responded in turn, immediately merging into one of the branching streams of students, like a single drop of water blending perfectly in.

How enviable.

Li Zhuo slowly withdrew his gaze.

Mo Liang held out the thermos he’d been carrying. “Taste this.”

Li Zhuo hadn’t expected the thermos Mo Liang had been holding was meant for him. He took it blankly and unscrewed the cap. A sweet, fragrant aroma wafted out.

It was a strawberry milkshake.

He wasn’t actually someone with a sweet tooth, but he didn’t dislike sweetness either. Sugar could genuinely lift one’s mood.

Seeing that he seemed to like it, Teacher Mo’s smile deepened a fraction. “Let’s go then.”