Chapter 147: The Class Atmosphere Is Getting Worse and Worse

In the afternoon, the class atmosphere was unusually restless.

As soon as the third class ended, Old Liu hurried in through the front door, head bowed, and before even reaching the podium, pulled out his phone.

"Sorry to take up your listening time, but isn't the listening test not due yet?"

Someone in the class replied, "Teacher, there's no listening test on Friday."

"Alright, let me say a few things." Old Liu scrolled down his phone, his voice growing louder, "About tomorrow's joint exam, there are a few points."

"First, the exam room setup—today's duty group, along with the class monitor, study committee member, and labor committee member, are responsible."

"Which group is on duty? Stand up so I can see."

With a rustle, the sixth small group, where Jiang Nian sat, slowly rose.

"Li Hua, lead your group to clean the classroom thoroughly," Old Liu began assigning duties, "Follow the study committee's instructions to set up the exam room."

"The study committee is also responsible for... and one more thing: the grade team has decided—no books allowed in the corridors or stairwell entrances; inspectors are coming."

Blah blah, Old Liu talked for over ten minutes.

Aside from cleaning and setting up the exam room, there were really only two other points.

One was about exam self-study: after the exam, you can't just roam freely—you must return to class for self-study before and after the exam, and morning and evening self-study will proceed as usual.

The other was the exam schedule: first- and second-year students get vacation; the entire school building will be used for exams; all teachers will proctor, strictly modeled after the Gaokao.

After Old Liu left, the class erupted in commotion.

"Gaokao standards? That means no classes for two days? Holy shit, this is amazing."

"What, are you insane?" Lin Dong stared at the guy like he was a Bai Chi, "You're losing half a weekend off—what's so great about that?"

"Damn! You're right! Are we still having evening self-study?"

"No clue! Old Liu's such a riddle-man—he didn't say! He left so fast, I never got a chance to ask."

"Class monitor! Class monitor! Do we have evening self-study after the exam?"

Hearing this, Li Qingrong turned toward the voice.

"Probably yes—no other classes have mentioned vacation."

As soon as she spoke, someone immediately contradicted her.

"According to Gaokao standards, we definitely won't have it. I'm not coming back—I'm going straight to the internet cafe after the exam." The speaker was Luo Yong, the loudmouth champion.

"Chi Shi, if you skip class to go to the internet cafe, I'll kneel and lick your feet," Lin Dong laughed loudly, "Whoever doesn't come has to call me Dad a hundred times—dare you?"

The class burst into laughter.

Luo Yong stared at Lin Dong, face flushed, as if deeply insulted. He mumbled a few words but dared not reply loudly.

He thought to himself: if only I weren't renting off-campus and had no backbone, I'd skip class for sure!

After watching the spectacle, Li Hua turned to Jiang Nian.

"Let's move the desks tonight?"

"Alright." Jiang Nian nodded.

Moving desks was a hassle, usually paired with taking out the trash.

It was impossible to expect Ceng You to contribute enthusiastically—he was busy heading back to the dorm. As for Wu Jun Gu, unless absolutely necessary, Li Hua didn't want to team up with him.

It wasn't that he felt guilty—well, actually, it was guilt.

Li Hua felt the class atmosphere had grown strange lately; precisely since Jiang Nian arrived, Class Three had become so odd.

Before, whenever he thought about his past with Wu Jun Gu's ex, he'd feel awkward.

Now, his sense of shame had faded... well, basically vanished. He even thought: I didn't do anything wrong—why should I feel awkward? The awkward one should be them!

There were other things Li Hua dared not say out loud.

He was eager to try: if Yu Zhiyi appeared before him, he'd speak to her calmly and naturally—no need to dramatize or embarrass himself.

As someone once said: so what? Who cares.

Jiang Nian didn't have Li Hua's teenage worries—he was thinking about where to put the books.

Every Gao San student had piles of books; the classroom was nearly full. The grade team demanded all Gao San classes clear their books entirely and forbade placing them in the corridors.

I wonder how many moms the school leaders have on their household registry to come up with such an abstract rule.

Some students were already clearing their desks; Jiang Nian thought for a moment, then turned to Zhang Nenzhi.

"Clean your desk and drawers—I'll help you move them later."

Zhang Nenzhi's eyes widened, stunned for a moment.

"But... the homeroom teacher said we can't move books before second evening self-study, and we can't put them by the stairs or corridors."

"Who cares? Just move them. Place them against the wall near the corridor—it's convenient and won't block anyone. Besides, if we don't move them, someone else will."

Jiang Nian knew what she was worried about—she feared getting scolded by Old Liu if he saw.

"Call a few more people later. Once we've moved them, what can Old Liu say? Even if the school leaders show up, are they going to make us take the books home?"

Zhang Nenzhi, alone, wouldn't dare do this—Gao Zhongsheng were used to being controlled, and even against unreasonable rules, they mostly obeyed.

But luckily, Jiang Nian was here—she didn't need to worry.

"Okay."

"OK." Jiang Nian turned to talk to Li Hua.

Then Li Hua patted Ma Guojun, muttered something, and Ma Guojun turned and convinced several others in their group, plus Yao Bei Bei from the neighboring small group.

As soon as class ended, Jiang Nian and the others started moving books.

In the corridor, besides students leaving for the day, many from other classes were also moving books, directly stacking them in the spacious stairwell.

Ma Guojun felt relieved, "Damn, good thing we didn't listen to Old Liu—if we had, all the good spots would've been taken by other classes."

"Yeah, there was never much space to begin with."

Li Hua was already on his third trip—he'd finished helping Huang Fang and planned to rest, but Yao Bei Bei forced him to keep moving books, and he earned a heavy-duty Good Person Card.

Fuck, like a bare rock.

Gao San put down his book and turned to look down the corridor.

Jiang Nian had already finished moving Zhang Nengzhi's books; he was on his third trip. He moved his own books and some of Zhang Nengzhi's useless ones first, so they wouldn't have to fight for space at night.

"What are you looking at?"

"Nothing. I'm just wondering why the grade team won't let us put books in the corridor," said the fat guy, adjusting his glasses. "Is the corridor meant for funerals?"

"Tsk, you're so cruel, baby," Jiang Nian said, placing the books against the wall base and straightening them before standing. "Maybe they want to take photos for promotion or something."

Lin Dong and Chen Yunyun's group had also helped move books while Jiang Nian was working. They'd finished now and were discussing what to eat for lunch.

Influenced by Lin Dong and the others, a few more brave students in the class joined in moving books.

Yu Tongjie looked on with contempt.

After school, he was still struggling at his desk. He looked down on Jiang Nian's open defiance of the homeroom teacher's orders—what's the rush?

The grade team will make arrangements anyway. Would they really leave students without a place to put their books?

What a joke.

Besides, openly defying orders isn't just making the class monitor's job harder?

At his desk, Li Qingrong stared at the pile of books on the table, wondering whether to move them out.

But if she did, wouldn't it make Cai Xiaoqing's life harder?

"Class monitor, aren't you going to eat?"

The classroom lights were on; a shadow fell over the desk. Li Qingrong looked up and met Jiang Nian's smiling eyes, then quietly looked away.

"Mm, thinking."

"About moving books?" Jiang Nian asked.

Hearing this, Li Qingrong looked up again, astonished, as if to say, How did you know?

"Mm."

Jiang Nian suddenly thought the class monitor was a bit dumb. He'd seen her staring at the books from afar for ages, then glancing at the book basket. Was she worried about moving books—or was she daydreaming about love?

"I'll help you move them. There's still space over there."

"No."

"No thanks needed," Jiang Nian picked up the basket and walked off.

Li Qingrong had been about to say she hadn't decided yet, but her gaze fell on his hands—and was distracted. She hesitated a few seconds, then looked up—he was gone.

In a blink, Jiang Nian had already carried the books out.

Yu Tongjie, sitting in the last few rows, watched it all. He shook his head silently, sneering—Jiang Nian's intentions were too obvious. He was using the class monitor as a shield.

Wait and see. When the homeroom teacher comes for evening self-study and takes one look, there'll be a show.

Dusk, just before evening self-study.

Zhang Nengzhi climbed the stairs holding a bottle of Sprite—bought for Jiang Nian, as a reward for his hard work moving books. He always liked this drink.

On the fourth floor, she saw Jiang Nian leaning against the corridor, chatting with Chen Yunyun. They laughed and joked, making Zhang Nengzhi's cheeks puff up.

Though annoyed, she couldn't do anything about Jiang Nian—he'd always been like this. Frowning, she walked into the classroom.

No more drinks for him!

Better give it to a dog than to this sneak!

"Whoa? Sprite!" Li Hua exclaimed in delight. "For me?"

"Mm-hmm, thanks for helping Empress Fangfang move books," Zhang Nengzhi nodded, then remembered something and added, "This drink is from Empress Fangfang to thank you."

"So?" Li Hua frowned.

Zhang Nengzhi stared at Li Hua with serious eyes.

"Not a single sip for Jiang Nian. If he tastes even one drop, Empress Fangfang will be mad."

Li Hua gave a thumbs-up and patted his chest.

"Don't worry—if he gets even a drop of sweetness, I'm not human!"

Zhang Nengzhi relaxed and returned to her seat to study seriously.

Outside the corridor.

"Of course I'm not human—I'm a god," Li Hua twisted open the Sprite, tilted his head back, and drank several gulps. "Ahh, ice-cold Guojiao! Here, here, here."

"Damn, you're pretty shameless too," Jiang Nian drank a third of the bottle in one go, then passed it to Gao San. "Here, here, here."

"Holy shit, this is good. Where'd you get it?" Gao San took the bottle and drank a few sips.

Sprite by itself tastes fine, but when you're sharing it with friends at school, it becomes Guojiao. Miss even one drop, and you'll regret it for half a class.

"Zhang Nengzhi gave it. Probably meant for Jiang Nian," Li Hua turned to Jiang Nian. "Did you piss her off again? Why's it in my hands?"

"How should I know? Maybe last time I took apart her two pens and made a slingshot." Jiang Nian didn't care much—of course his desk partner was mad.

Senior Three is too boring. You can't live without pranking.

"Or maybe last time I caught the bee that flew into class and kept it in a mineral water bottle, scaring her for two classes." Jiang Nian thought, counting on his fingers.

"Yeah, farther back than that, I can't remember."

Li Hua and Gao San exchanged glances, silent for a long while.

"To be fair, you're a bit too much."

"Yeah, you really go all out."

During evening reading, Old Liu came to patrol the classroom as expected.

Finally, he stepped onto the podium and cleared his throat.

"I'll take ten minutes of your time. We rushed things a bit this afternoon. Some students said they didn't understand, and many details weren't clear."

"About this exam, let me add a few more points."

Old Liu spoke in an orderly manner, this time using electronic commas—he clearly wasn't in a hurry. He listed several points without mentioning moving the books at all.

Finally, someone in class couldn't hold back and asked.

"Teacher, the books can't be placed in the corridor—where should we put them?"

"No notification has been issued yet. Did anyone in our class move books this afternoon?" Old Liu's gaze swept across the classroom, and immediately several students lowered their heads guiltily.

Upon hearing this, Yu Tongjie perked up—finally, it was coming.

He had been waiting for the homeroom teacher to discover Jiang Nian and the others moving books without permission, then fly into a rage. He hoped the teacher would order them to move the books back—just thinking of it made him feel satisfied.

Other homeroom teachers might not be so harsh, but Yu Tongjie believed his own teacher was a total suck-up to authority—he'd definitely enforce the rules strictly.

"Teacher, I moved them." Jiang Nian raised his hand.

Old Liu frowned, displeased.

"Didn't I tell you to wait for notification?"

"Teacher, I moved them too—the notification was taking too long," Li Hua raised his hand. "If we didn't move them this afternoon, all the spots would be taken. We can't just leave them in the office."

"Yeah, yeah, Teacher, the class next door already moved theirs," Ma Guojun raised his hand to complain.

Lin Dong also stood up. "Teacher, Class One said they can place them at the corridor entrance."

In his seat, Zhang Nenzhi's heart clenched—she was about to raise her hand when Jiang Nian pressed it down.

"Hmm," Old Liu hesitated for a moment. "Alright then. I think the corridor entrance is quite spacious—it should be fine to place the books there. Everyone, put them there."

Upon hearing this, the entire class erupted in uproar, stunned.

Wait, bro,

you're an idiot!

Yu Tongjie was left speechless by Old Liu's words—the old bastard talked like he was farting.

This afternoon during self-study, who said books couldn't be moved and couldn't be placed at the corridor entrance?

How could it change to "allowed at the corridor entrance" after just two hours?

"Let me emphasize again—no books in the corridor!" Old Liu tapped the desk on the podium, quelling the classroom's commotion, gave a few more instructions, and left.

Zhang Nenzhi exhaled in relief, momentarily dazed from excessive tension.

When she came to, she glanced at Jiang Nian on her left, reviewing his exam paper.

Though he was a bit of a sneaky cat, she still felt grateful—thank goodness he was there. Thinking of what happened this afternoon, she decided to bring him a drink tomorrow as compensation.

In Lin Dong's group, he sat down and smiled.

"I told you—Old Liu's completely unreliable. Good thing we moved the books out. After first evening self-study, everyone's going to fight for spots."

Chen Yunyun gently patted her chest, also feeling immensely relieved.

"Yeah, good thing we moved them with Jiang Nian."

Wang Yuhe glanced down at her arm and silently thought: she should be able to carry the book basket twenty meters.

Sun Zhicheng's face darkened slightly upon hearing Chen Yunyun mention Jiang Nian.

But then he remembered he was the one who helped Chen Yunyun move her book basket, and his face immediately broke into a smile.