Chapter 278: Teacher Yan Teaches Well

"Brother Zhao, sit down."

"Come on, have some tea."

"Eat some snacks."

"Want to watch TV?"

"Which channel should I switch to for you?"

"Walked over all the way? Tired? Let me give you a massage."

Watching Li Luo knead his thigh, Zhao Rongjun quickly shifted his butt away, flushed with embarrassment: "Can you act normal? I'm not going to do anything to you—did you slip poison in this tea?"

"How could I?" Li Luo grabbed Zhao Rongjun's arm warmly. "Who are we to each other? We grew up sharing the same pants! Isn't it natural for me to treat my brother well?"

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone," Zhao Rongjun said, utterly speechless. "I don't even read novels normally—I just got curious and looked it up."

"With that assurance, I'm relieved," Li Luo chuckled. "So what do you want for lunch? Should I go buy more groceries at the market?"

"Just cook normally… I'm not picky."

"Alright, I'll go cook first. You rest here."

"By the way, where are Ying Chanxi and the others?" Zhao Rongjun asked curiously.

"Uh… they're still sleeping," Li Luo coughed twice. "They went to bed late last night, so they're all sleeping in. I'll wake them up after I finish cooking."

Zhao Rongjun nodded, not thinking much of it, and pulled out his phone to check the class group chat for Class Three.

In the kitchen, Li Luo had already prepared the ingredients; after a quick stir-fry, about ten minutes later, five or six dishes were ready and he carried them to the dining table.

He then walked to his bedroom, opened the door, and saw the three girls still fast asleep on his bed—this left him helplessly exasperated.

"Wake up, come eat," Li Luo said, walking to the bed, tapping Ying Chanxi's cheek, prodding Xu Youyu, and tapping Yan Zhusheng's head. "All of you, wake up—don't sleep anymore. Zhao Rongjun's here; don't make him wait in the living room."

"Mmm…" Ying Chanxi rolled over, hugging the blanket tightly, muttering reluctantly, "Bring me my school uniform."

Hearing this, Xu Youyu, who had been lying in the middle and was about to get up herself, sighed and gave up, hugging Ying Chanxi from behind and poking her head out: "Then bring mine too."

"Me too," Yan Zhusheng raised her hand.

Li Luo sighed, turned, walked out of the bedroom, brought in all three of their school uniforms, and tossed them onto the bed. "I feel like I'm raising three daughters and have to wake each one up myself."

"Eee~" Xu Youyu caught the uniform, winked at him, and grinned. "So you like playing this game? Should we call you Dad~? Did you wake up with this urge after spanking Chanxi last night?"

"Pervert," Ying Chanxi blushed and spat. "Get out already! Are you planning to watch us change clothes?"

"Actually, it's not out of the question," Xu Youyu chuckled.

Yan Zhusheng had already sat up, holding her uniform, looking rather eager.

Seeing this, Li Luo quickly slipped out of the bedroom: "Hurry up, change and come out to eat."

By now, Zhao Rongjun had already sat at the table, but since the others weren't seated yet, he didn't dare pick up his chopsticks.

When Li Luo came out, he fetched bowls and chopsticks from the kitchen, served two bowls of rice, and handed one to Zhao Rongjun: "Ignore them—let's start eating."

Seeing Li Luo begin eating, Zhao Rongjun no longer held back and buried his head in his meal.

Midway through, however, he felt a sudden urge to urinate and stood up. "I'm going to the bathroom."

As he walked down the hallway, Zhao Rongjun saw Li Luo's bedroom door open.

Still half-asleep, Yan Zhusheng stepped out, saw Zhao Rongjun, and nodded at him: "Good morning."

Zhao Rongjun: "... Good morning."

After Yan Zhusheng passed by, Zhao Rongjun took two more steps forward—only to see someone else emerge from Li Luo's bedroom.

"Hi~" Xu Youyu greeted him enthusiastically. "Good morning!"

"Uh…" Zhao Rongjun fell silent. "Senior, good morning."

By the time he finally reached the bathroom door,

Li Luo's bedroom door opened again.

Ying Chanxi stepped out, saw Zhao Rongjun, and instantly blushed, shyly brushing past him while whispering: "G-good morning."

Zhao Rongjun's mind had completely shut down.

He stood frozen at the bathroom door, unable to snap out of it, nearly forgetting why he'd come there.

When he returned to the table and sat down, thoughts of Li Luo's novel had vanished from his mind.

All he could think about was one question.

What exactly happened in this house after I left last night?

"Why do you look so strange?" Li Luo glanced at Zhao Rongjun, concerned. "Did you get diarrhea?"

Zhao Rongjun shook his head.

It was Xu Youyu who noticed the problem and teased: "Anyone who sees three beautiful girls walking out of someone's bedroom would be stunned."

Li Luo, reminded by her, scowled: "It's your fault! You three insisted on playing Flying Chess in my room last night—you didn't even sleep until god-knows-when."

Hearing this, Zhao Rongjun was even more bewildered.

You three girls and one guy were in the same room all night… and you just played Flying Chess?

"Eat, eat," Li Luo hurriedly urged. "Brother Zhao, stop thinking about it—here, this is your favorite, eat more."

Zhao Rongjun looked at his bowl and decided to stop thinking about it for now, burying his head back into his meal.

Just before finishing, he remembered Li Luo's novel again and couldn't help asking: "So when did you start writing novels? I never knew."

At this, Li Luo showed no reaction.

The other three girls were suddenly startled.

"How do you know he writes novels?" Ying Chanxi asked, puzzled.

"I just found out," Zhao Rongjun said innocently. "Didn't you two shoot a music video together? It's already spread all over school—everyone's talking about the scenes from it."

"What music video?" Yan Zhusheng's face tightened with curiosity.

"Ah…" Li Luo explained beside them. "It's the latest plot from my novel—the main character sings 'Wait for You After Class,' so I uploaded the audio and music video too."

"I know the audio source—it was recorded at Zhusheng's place before." Xu Youyu nodded. "But when was the MV shot? I have no memory of it at all."

"We shot it during last semester's free time. You two not knowing is normal," Li Luo said. "It was all Chanxi directing and acting on her own, just messing around, filming casually."

"What do you mean 'casually'?" Ying Chanxi pouted, wrinkling her nose. "I filmed it seriously, okay? Everyone who watched the MV praised how good it was!"

"I had too much fun yesterday—I didn't pay attention," Xu Youyu said, already pulling out her phone.

On the other side, Yan Zhusheng quietly took out his own phone and began checking the status of Li Luo's novel and the song "Wait for You After Class."

"But how did you know Li Luo was the author?" Ying Chanxi asked, puzzled. "I remember he said it was his cousin and cousin's sister who shot the MV."

"Mainly because of the New Year…" Zhao Rongjun sighed. "My mom heard his aunt bragging that Li Luo had won an award for a novel he wrote privately. That's exactly why everything fits."

Hearing this, Ying Chanxi immediately covered her mouth, unable to hold back her laughter. Then she looked at Li Luo, who sat across from them with a stunned expression, and laughed: "I don't think you can hide this much longer. You might as well turn yourself in now."

"You make it sound easy," Li Luo pulled at the corner of his mouth. "If I can avoid exposure, I'd rather not be exposed. If classmates ask, just say it was my cousin who wrote it. If they press for details, say my cousin demanded secrecy and won't reveal his identity."

"What a feeble struggle," Xu Youyu sighed wistfully.

Hearing this, Li Luo immediately glared at her, his eyes carrying an implicit threat.

Xu Youyu met his gaze, then weakly smiled at him, blinking her eyes pleadingly, begging him to let it go.

Li Luo gave a light, noncommittal hum, finally deciding not to hold it against her.

After all, Li Luo's current alias was already a patchwork of holes, leaking everywhere.

Xu Youyu was the one who had kept her alias perfectly hidden—no one except Li Luo knew.

If Li Luo dragged her down with him, Xu Youyu would truly be finished.

Fortunately, Li Luo wasn't that cruel.

After dinner, Yan Zhusheng obediently stood up to clear the table and went to the kitchen to wash the dishes.

Ying Chanxi had to attend a competition training session in the afternoon, so after eating, she packed her bag, said goodbye to them, and headed to school first.

Xu Youyu returned to her room for another nap after lunch, then went back to school around two in the afternoon to handle some student council matters.

Zhao Rongjun had signed up for the school's remedial class at 3 p. m. on Sunday afternoon and left right on time.

Soon, the house was left with only Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng.

"Should we head to school early too?" Li Luo asked Yan Zhusheng.

Yan Zhusheng shook his head, pointed to the piano room, then walked inside.

Seeing this, Li Luo followed him in, watching as Yan Zhusheng sat at the piano, his long fingers resting on the keys, and the music began to flow.

"Lying on your school's playground, gazing at the stars~"

"The lights in the classroom~ are still on—you haven't left~"

Yan Zhusheng softly hummed the tune, then looked at Li Luo and waved him over.

"What is it?"

"Sit here," Yan Zhusheng shifted aside, patted the empty spot beside him, and gestured for Li Luo to sit. "I'll teach you."

"Like this?" Li Luo sat in the spot Yan Zhusheng had just vacated, briefly activating the Soul-Embodiment effect of his Memory Palace, replicating Yan Zhusheng's finger movements exactly, then humming the melody along.

Yan Zhusheng, who had intended to teach him how to play, stared at him in shock: "How did you remember it so fast?"

"It's all thanks to Teacher Yan's excellent teaching."

Yan Zhusheng pressed his lips together: "I haven't even started teaching you yet. Can you please not learn so quickly?"

"Alright then, Teacher Yan, teach me another song?"

"Then sit properly," Yan Zhusheng stood up, stepped behind Li Luo, leaned his upper body against Li Luo's back, wrapped his arms around him, and gently placed his hands over Li Luo's. "What should we play this time?"

"'The Sky Has No Limits,'" Li Luo smiled lightly. "I love hearing you sing this one the most."

"Alright then, here we go."

A melodious tune filled the piano room.

It wasn't until nearly six in the evening that the two emerged.

In high spirits, Yan Zhusheng stepped cheerfully back to his room, grabbed his bag, and left for school with Li Luo.

…

In Classroom 8, Grade 1, Fuyi High School.

More than half an hour remained before evening self-study began, yet the classroom was already buzzing with noise.

Students who had returned early for afternoon remedial classes and those arriving gradually clustered into groups, all discussing the same thing.

"Looking at it this way, Li Luo and Ying Chanxi really suit each other."

"Too bad they're cousins, haha~"

"Why didn't Li Luo ask Yan Zhusheng to film it? I'd really like to see them together."

"That'd be too brazen—wouldn't that be an outright announcement of their relationship?"

"By the way, have you read that novel? I heard it was written by Li Luo's cousin."

"I usually only read romance novels—I'm not really into stories aimed at guys."

"If I'm reading on my phone, I still prefer physical books—they're more comfortable."

"Li Luo's song is so nice—I've already downloaded it to my MP3."

"If you want to hear it, just ask the class monitor to sing it—our classmate is right here. Why bother with an MP3?"

"Then you ask him to sing one later."

"I'm too scared. Let the vice monitor do it."

"I'm not going," Hua Xiuxiu said flatly, uninterested in this topic.

At that moment, two figures entered through the back door of the classroom.

When the students saw Li Luo walk in, the entire room fell silent for an instant.

All eyes turned toward Li Luo.

Li Luo stopped in his tracks, staring at the strange atmosphere before him, and said with a helpless expression, "What are you guys doing?"

"Class monitor, you're awesome~" Zhang Guohuang was the first to step forward, grinning as he congratulated, "You're already in a music video—when are you debuting as an idol?"

"I was just helping my cousin out," Li Luo said casually, keeping his face calm, "It's not as dramatic as you think."

Most of the classmates in the class wouldn't bother digging into the details.

Hearing Li Luo say that, they mostly chose to believe him.

They were simply intrigued and amused by their class monitor appearing in a music video, which is why they kept talking about it.

Even someone like Zhang Guohuang, a devoted reader, seemed to notice nothing odd, as he slung an arm around Li Luo's shoulder and asked, "Hey, class monitor, could you ask your cousin for me? Who's the real heroine in the end?"

At this question, Yan Zhusheng beside him immediately perked up his ears, turning his head toward Li Luo with eager anticipation, curious about the answer.

"It depends—I'll ask him for you later," Li Luo coughed twice and evaded, "But whether my cousin will answer is another matter."

"No problem, no problem, I'm just curious."

After easily brushing it off, Li Luo walked over to his seat.

But he didn't notice that Zhu Yufei, sitting beside Zhang Guohuang, remained silent the whole time, quietly scrolling through his phone under the desk.

Every now and then, he would lift his head to glance toward Li Luo's direction, wearing a thoughtful expression.

Meanwhile, Jin Yuting, seated in the front row, thought about what she'd heard during the New Year in the countryside, listened to the classmates' lively chatter, and her expression grew complex as she glanced at Li Luo in the back.

She opened her mouth, but ultimately said nothing, swallowing the words back inside.

On his seat, Yan Zhusheng looked at Li Luo, then asked softly:

"So who's the real heroine in the end?"

"There's a saying you might not have heard," Li Luo said. "The author themselves only finds out the next plot point one hour before the readers do."

"So you're asking who the heroine is."

"To be honest, I don't know either."