Chapter 37

The cramped toilet stall was half-occupied by the toilet, leaving very limited space. With two big boys squeezed inside, even turning around was extremely difficult.

As soon as they moved, their hands or feet inevitably brushed against each other.

The scene was utterly absurd. Lu Ping complained, “Shen Yuze, why did you have to follow me to the toilet? Now we’re both trapped in here.”

Shen Yuze remained calm. “Whether the door lock breaks or not has nothing to do with me coming in. Even if I hadn’t, the lock would still break, and you’d still be trapped alone. If that were the case, you’d have to wait here all by yourself for an hour, which would be even worse than now.”

“No way,” Lu Ping replied confidently. “If it were just me trapped, you’d notice something was wrong in less than twenty minutes and definitely come looking for me in the toilet!”

“…” Shen Yuze felt both helpless and amused. He hadn’t expected Lu Ping to trust him so much.

Sitting around waiting wasn’t Shen Yuze’s style. Soon, he spotted a way out—the stall’s partition was a certain height from the ceiling, with a fifty-centimeter gap that was plenty big enough for a person to climb through!

Shen Yuze gestured for Lu Ping to look up. “I’ll boost you, and you climb out over the top.”

Lu Ping crossed his arms over his chest and made a big X with his hands. “You have way too much faith in my tailbone!”

He could barely walk steadily on flat ground right now, let alone climb up and over.

Lu Ping’s eyes darted around. “How about I boost you instead? You can step on my shoulders!”

Unexpectedly, Shen Yuze frowned, his germaphobia kicking in. “No, the top is too dirty. There might be spiders.”

Lu Ping: “…”

Hey, Young Master, at a time like this, can you stop being so picky?!

Lu Ping suddenly realized something. “Wait, you’re afraid of spiders?”

Shen Yuze: “Of course not.” He added, “I just don’t like dealing with creatures that have more than four legs.”

“Oh.” Lu Ping snickered. “So you’re afraid of spiders.”

“I said I’m not afraid of spiders.”

Lu Ping patted his shoulder. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of. Ron’s afraid of spiders too, but that didn’t stop him from marrying Hermione in the end.”

Shen Yuze was exasperated and snapped gruffly, “Shut up, you Muggle.”

As the two bantered about whether “fear of spiders affects male charm”—a utterly pointless topic—the outer area of the boys’ toilet suddenly echoed with a flurry of chaotic footsteps.

—Someone was coming!

Lu Ping’s expression lit up, and he was about to call for help when a hand clamped over his mouth. He glanced sideways along the arm and saw Shen Yuze frowning slightly, shaking his head gently at him.

Shen Yuze whispered, “Don’t make a sound yet.”

As he spoke, his lips nearly brushed Lu Ping’s ear.

Lu Ping’s ear grew hot, and he instinctively obeyed Shen Yuze’s instruction, holding his breath.

The chaotic footsteps burst into the inner toilet area. From the sound, there were at least four or five people.

After entering the inner area, a rough male voice barked orders. “Ding Zi, you guard the outer area. Warn us if a teacher shows up. Big Head, Glasses Boy, you two check the stalls for anyone inside.”

Lu Ping: ???

What were they up to?

Lu Ping thought, Shen Yuze had just called him sneaky for going to the toilet, but these guys were the real sneaky ones.

Wait, “Glasses Boy”? “Big Head”? If he remembered right, two guys from neighboring Classes 9 and 10 had those nicknames!

And these two had a grudge against Lu Ping and Shen Yuze. Back at the Library Tower, they’d been mouthing off Lu Ping’s nickname, so Shen Yuze had beaten them up in front of everyone.

Shen Yuze and Lu Ping exchanged a glance and nodded in unison.

The voice giving orders was completely unfamiliar to Lu Ping; it didn’t belong to anyone from the liberal arts classes. It was probably from the sciences classes… or even another grade.

Under the “big brother’s” directions, two sets of footsteps headed toward the stalls. Ding Zi and Glasses Boy pushed open the stall doors one by one, confirming each was empty.

Finally, their footsteps stopped outside the very last stall—the one where Shen Yuze and Lu Ping were hiding!

Separated by a thin wooden door, any tiny sound from inside would be heard outside.

Overly tense, Lu Ping instinctively grabbed the hand Shen Yuze had over his mouth. Shen Yuze stayed silent but reassuringly squeezed his shoulder with his other hand.

Under their watchful eyes, the stall door rattled slightly.

The person outside paused their push.

Soon, the door rattled again, this time much harder. The person outside shook it vigorously, sending dirty dust and flakes of paint tumbling down.

“Zhao Ge,” Glasses Boy reported, “this stall won’t open!”

“Is that thing on your nose just for show? Four eyes between you two and you’re still blind!” The rough voice cursed. “Can’t you see the big ‘Door Lock Broken’ sign on it?!”

Inside the stall, Lu Ping: “…”

Inside the stall, Shen Yuze: “…”

They had four eyes between them too, and they hadn’t noticed the “Door Lock Broken” sign either, so they were blind as well…

Glasses Boy chuckled awkwardly and scurried back to Zhao Ge.

All the boys huddled in a tight circle, led by the senior. Then, a faint “click” sounded from the group, followed by a second “click,” a third… It sounded like a lighter being flicked.

Half a minute later, a thick smell of smoke spread through the toilet, even wafting into the stall.

Only then did Lu Ping finally understand what they were sneaking around for! One to stand watch, checking stalls for people—they were gathering to smoke!

After entering high school, many boys started secretly learning to smoke to “look cool,” “fit in,” or “act like adults.” Jiaojiang No. 1 Middle School was strict, with the disciplinary office cracking down hard on school conduct. Getting caught smoking meant a school-wide announcement of criticism, and severe cases could lead to demerits. Even so, it hadn’t eradicated the rule-breakers.

The words “become an adult” held some magical power. For these kids one step away from adulthood, smoking was the fastest way to seem “mature.” Lu Ping couldn’t fathom it—how did smoking equate to maturity? Anyone who thought “smoking = mature” had to be the most childish people around.

He’d heard rumors before: some kid in XX class had smokes in his pocket, another in XX class brought a lighter to school. But he’d never witnessed it firsthand. He never expected to stumble upon a smoking circle today!

In the toilet, the group immersed themselves in puffing away. Minors couldn’t buy cigarettes, but Zhao Ge was a senior in his final year with an adult ID, so he could easily buy them from a convenience store and resell to his underclassmen.

Smoking on school grounds was like thumbing their noses at the rules—thrilling and exhilarating.

Zhao Ge took a deep drag, biting the bead in the filter for a burst of cool mint in his mouth. He smugly thought: That balding disciplinary director would never guess—not only do I smoke, I smoke right in the toilet! After, I’ll flush the butts as evidence disposal. No way you’ll find…

“—Class 9’s Yan Jun from Grade 2, Class 10’s Yuan Kai from Grade 2, aren’t you afraid of getting caught smoking in the boys’ toilet?”

An unexpected voice rang out from the innermost stall, the young tone pitched low, as if deliberately hiding the speaker’s identity.

And the two he named were precisely “Glasses Boy” and Yuan Kai!

Big Head and Glasses Boy flinched, their cigarettes slipping from their hands to the floor. The threat of a demerit was enough to make them tremble!

They never imagined the toilet, which should have been empty during lunch break, would have anyone else!

Zhao Ge jolted too. “Who are you?”

As he spoke, he subtly signaled his underlings—there was just one guy; they had four! Four against one, drag him out and beat him into submission!

“You don’t need to know who I am,” the voice from the stall replied. “Just know I’ve recorded everything you said earlier on my phone. I can send it to the teachers anytime.”

“…”

“No. 1 High School’s rules are strict. With solid evidence, that’s enough for demerits at least.”

“…”

The “demerit” bomb was enough to terrify the underlings. Boys this age were so contradictory: wanting to stand out and be unique, yet terrified of teachers finding out; sneaking smokes in secret while playing the good kid for parents… If they had the guts to go all in, fine, but this wishy-washy nonsense was laughable.

Seeing his underlings falter, Zhao Ge stood alone. He gritted his teeth. “What exactly do you want?”

He was prepared to be blackmailed.

Zhao Ge still had some chuunibyou in him—blackmail the blackmailer, just like in the movies. He got it!

But after a brief silence, the person in the stall made an inexplicable demand.

“…Do you have a small knife?”

“Huh?”

“A folding fruit knife.” The voice sounded impatient. “Do you have one?”

They asked the right guy. Zhao Ge had a three-in-one folding knife on his keychain. The tone carried an odd authority, and Zhao Ge dazedly followed instructions, unclipping it. As he prepared to toss it through the gap above, he snapped back to reality.

Zhao Ge: “Wait, I can give you the knife, but how do you guarantee you won’t send the recording to the teachers?”

“How do you want me to guarantee? Write you an IOU?” The voice scoffed. “Get this straight—I’m the one threatening you, not the other way around.”

“…” Zhao Ge fell silent.

His three underlings panicked instead, especially Glasses Boy and Big Head, who were sweating bullets: The guy inside knew their names, so he must know them in real life! They were the most terrified of getting reported!

“Zhao Ge, just give it to him. Our homeroom teacher’s too strict.”

“Zhao Ge, please! This is my first time smoking! My mom can’t find out!”

Unable to resist his underlings’ pleas, Zhao Ge wavered.

Zhao Ge called out, “Bro, just say something. Swear an oath, give us your word, anything?”

“…A promise?”

“Yeah.” Zhao Ge said, “Swear… uh, swear on a man’s honor! If you really tell the teachers, you don’t count as a man anymore—never will!”

The promise sounded ridiculous, but for seventeen- or eighteen-year-old boys at this sensitive age, “man enough?” struck right at their pride. Athletic guys were “men,” guys with beards were “men,” smokers were “men.” Bookish weaklings and snitches weren’t.

They were clearly just a bunch of hormone-driven kids, but at that moment, they started talking about “a man’s dignity.”

The person in the stall was surprisingly straightforward and actually swore an oath.

He swore on “a man’s dignity” that once he left the bathroom, he would delete the recording and absolutely not snitch.

Only then did Zhao Ge relax. He tossed the folding knife through the door.

Afterward, Zhao Ge and his little brothers hurriedly threw their half-smoked cigarettes into the toilet to let it destroy the evidence for them. They opened the bathroom window, sprayed some floral water on themselves, and rushed off.

Once those chaotic footsteps faded away, the two boys—who had been pressed almost together in the stall—both let out a sigh of relief at the same time.

“Hoo…”

Lu Ping’s palms were drenched in sweat. He had planned to stay quiet and wait for that group of delinquents to leave, but Shen Yuze had suddenly spoken up, scaring him half to death!

Not only had Shen Yuze boldly made a sound, but he had turned the tables on them, fooling those idiots completely!

During their negotiation, Lu Ping hadn’t even dared to breathe. And truthfully, he couldn’t have made a sound anyway—Shen Yuze’s hand had been clamped over his mouth the entire time.

Shen Yuze had covered his mouth, so Lu Ping retaliated by grabbing Shen Yuze’s wrist. By the end of that little “wrestling match,” Shen Yuze’s wrist was red from his grip.

“Why did you grab me so hard?” Shen Yuze rotated his wrist. His skin was already fair, so Lu Ping’s fingerprints stood out clearly.

“It’s all your fault. You just started talking without warning. I was scared, so of course I grabbed you.” Lu Ping was utterly unapologetic. “And you were covering my mouth too.”

“If I hadn’t covered your mouth, you dumb rat really would’ve blundered right into that pack of hyenas.” As Shen Yuze spoke, he opened the folding knife.

When Lu Ping had first heard people coming, his instinct had been to call for help. But if he’d really shouted then, given those guys’ personalities, they would’ve spread the story of the two of them being trapped in a single stall far and wide, spinning who-knows-what tales about it.

Now the tables had turned. Shen Yuze had effortlessly taken control, keeping them from realizing Lu Ping was in there too, and even scoring a knife in the process.

With the door handle removed, only a bare lock hole and simple rotating core remained. Shen Yuze bent down to study it, then inserted the knife.

Lu Ping didn’t even see exactly how he did it—just some left prods and right jabs with the knife, and then with a “click,” the door opened!

Lu Ping’s eyes widened. “It really opened?”

“This kind is too easy. I can pick even harder ones.”

Shen Yuze pocketed the knife, casually tossed it into the nearby trash can, and stepped out of the cramped stall that had trapped them for nearly twenty minutes.

The bathroom still lingered with the weird smell of floral water mixed with cigarette smoke. Shen Yuze wrinkled his brow and headed to the outer area, twisting on the faucet to wash his hands.

Lu Ping followed, asking curiously, “Why can you pick locks?”

Shen Yuze washed his hands meticulously while replying offhandedly, “You know my family has money, right? To prevent accidents like kidnappings, I’ve had specialized teachers training me in stuff like this since I was little.”

His tone was casual, as if he were talking about the weather rather than life-or-death matters.

After he finished speaking, Lu Ping stayed silent for a long time.

Shen Yuze turned off the faucet and glanced sideways, only to see an unexpected expression of “sorrow” on the boy’s face.

Lu Ping genuinely looked sad. His little face scrunched up, his mouth curved in a somewhat comical smile, his hands lifting in panic only to drop helplessly. He seemed like he wanted to hug Shen Yuze but wasn’t sure if it was appropriate.

Shen Yuze paused, then chuckled lightly. “What’s with that look? You’re not pitying me, are you?”

As he spoke, he lifted his still-dripping hand and deliberately shook it toward Lu Ping’s face.

The cold water droplets splashed onto Lu Ping’s face, instantly sweeping away his sorrow.

“Damn, that’s gross!” Lu Ping tried to dodge, but his butt was still injured—like he’d been hit with a slow debuff—so he could only shuffle away sluggishly. “Don’t bully a patient!”

……

Afterward, Shen Yuze accompanied Lu Ping to a bathroom on another floor. Lu Ping quickly applied his ointment while Shen Yuze stood guard. Once he finished, they returned to the classroom.

By the time they got back to class, lunchtime was almost over.

Lu Ping wanted to rest his head on the desk for a bit, but Shen Yuze wouldn’t let him sleep. Instead, he pulled out a sheet of paper and pushed it in front of Lu Ping.

Lu Ping: “?”

Shen Yuze said solemnly, “As members of Jiaojiang No. 1 Middle School, we know for a fact that people in the school are breaking rules by gathering to smoke. Are we really going to cover for them? And that Zhao Ge doesn’t just smoke himself—he sells cigarettes to other students. That kind of thing poisons the school atmosphere!”

Lu Ping secretly agreed that they shouldn’t just turn a blind eye. But…

Lu Ping: “You swore on ‘a man’s dignity’ though. Wouldn’t it be kinda bad if you told the teachers?”

“You’re right.” Shen Yuze pushed the paper closer to Lu Ping. “So you write the report.”

Lu Ping: “???”

He exclaimed in shock, “Doesn’t my man’s dignity matter?”

“I was the one who swore, not you.” Shen Yuze said, “You’re just an eyewitness to the incident!”

“But…”

“Lu Ping, haven’t you seen the school bulletin board?” Shen Yuze lowered his voice. “Smoking is the most serious violation of school rules. Once verified, the whistleblower gets a reward of three hundred yuan.”

“!!!” A row of exclamation points popped up over Lu Ping’s head. “One person counts as one reward, right??”

Four people—that was twelve hundred yuan! That was his entire year’s worth of pocket money!!!

With that thought, Lu Ping snatched the paper and pen, rolled up his sleeves, and got to writing.

—Come on, he couldn’t sacrifice money for a man’s dignity!