Morning light filtered through leaves onto the Shilan corridors. In the air floated the clear—if slightly sleepy—sound of students reading aloud.
Walking through it, Yu Jin felt like he'd stepped back into his youth.
"Back then, I was one of these countless students…" he sighed inwardly.
Every day with books in hand, eyelids sticking together… seven days a week, thirty days a month—sometimes thirty-one—it was always a blink away from dozing off.
And in his memory, a hand flashed up, perfectly pinching his ear every time.
"That damned homeroom teacher…" he rubbed his earlobe reflexively.
Back then he thought the guy was annoying. Now he realized it had been care.
Thirty times a month, never missing the ambush?
That was basically… fate.
Just as that nostalgia threatened to turn warm—
a silhouette at the end of the hallway yanked him straight into student-era PTSD.
Tucked-in shirt, hands clasped behind his back, eyes scanning every classroom window, a satisfied look at the sound of morning reading…
"That posture, that aura…" Yu Jin's scalp tingled. "Oh crap! That vibe is lethal. At least a dean-of-discipline tier!"
The smell of youth instantly became the smell of standing outside the discipline office.
And of course—
the figure—Director Feng—noticed the "student" strolling around during morning reading.
His content expression collapsed into a frown.
"Oh no." Student survival instinct seized the wheel.
"You. Which class are you from? Why are you in the hall during morning reading?" Director Feng's voice was unquestionable authority. He'd never seen someone this blatant on patrol. He was determined to "save" this lost lamb.
But to his shock—
this Shilan-uniformed "student" didn't stand still and accept the lecture.
He took one startled step back—
and whoosh—vanished around the stairwell corner like a startled rabbit.
Director Feng froze for a full second.
"Students these days… are this bold? Not shrinking and taking it, but just… running?!"
The sense of being disrespected mixed with professional duty flared hot.
He yanked his shirt hem free, loosened his collar, and snarled under his breath.
"Don't underestimate the discipline director of Shilan High!" His eyes burned with competitive fire. "I kept my athletics up, my grades up, and I never missed a city marathon. Today I'm going to teach you what 'run' means!"
Meanwhile, Yu Jin had just barreled down the stairs when he heard heavy, rapid footsteps behind him.
"Damn luck. I'm not getting put on school-wide wanted posters, right?" he muttered, then looked back—
and nearly lost his soul.
"Holy hell, he's really chasing me?! And he's fast?!" Yu Jin broke into a sprint. "Aren't you supposed to be middle-aged and paunchy, power-walking everywhere?! This is unscientific!"
Director Feng bellowed as he pursued: "I used to be the track team champion! I run marathons year-round! This body exists to humble punks!"
"Sir, you're way too dedicated!" Yu Jin yelled while running.
"No running in the halls! Stop immediately!" Feng roared.
"Then stop chasing me!" Yu Jin despaired.
"School rules bind students," Feng wheezed, "not teachers!"
The chase was loud as hell, instantly igniting the entire building's gossip soul.
Heads poked out of every window. Shock, confusion, curiosity, even admiration followed the two blurs sprinting down the corridor.
Amid the chaos, only one student's eyes went dead.
In a certain classroom, Chu Zihang's gaze flatlined.
"Yu Jin?! Why is he here?"
"Why is he wearing our school uniform?"
"Why is Director Feng chasing him?!"
He quietly raised his textbook to cover his face.
Please don't splash blood on me.
Too late. Yu Jin's wandering eyes locked on him through the crowd.
"Found Chu Zihang!" Yu Jin lit up. "In canon his building's next to Lu Mingfei's. That means our loser should be nearby!"
One floor, two floors, three floors…
With more and more students screaming, cheering, gawking—and teachers trying to cut him off from every direction—Yu Jin's gaze swept like radar.
At last, he spotted the familiar slumped figure by the window:
Lu Mingfei.
The instant Yu Jin's eyes landed, Lu Mingfei recognized him too.
Maybe it was self-centered, but Lu Mingfei remembered that guy from a brief encounter—Yu Jin. And he could swear Yu Jin was looking for him.
That scared him half to death.
"I just walked by once! He's not seriously here to get revenge, right? He even came to school!"
He was a kid. He'd never seen stuff like this.
And he'd heard the guy Director Feng chased never got caught, just disappeared somewhere.
That made it worse.
The next class Lu Mingfei didn't hear a word. His mind was full of terrible news reports.
He drifted through to break, only wanting to splash cold water in the bathroom.
On the way out, distracted, his shoulder bumped a sturdy boy next to him.
"Watch where you're going!" The boy shoved him hard. Lu Mingfei staggered back.
"Sorry… I'm sorry!" Lu Mingfei bowed his head out of habit.
"Tch. Bad luck." The boy spat, loud enough for others to hear.
Lu Mingfei lowered his head and didn't argue. He just wanted to leave.
He was used to it.
But as he took two steps, the boy raised his voice deliberately, dripping with mockery:
"Eyes broken? No wonder your parents divorced and didn't want you. Dumped you on your uncle and aunt like spare baggage!"
Buzz—
Lu Mingfei froze.
The string called "reason" snapped.
A magma-hot rage exploded out of his chest!
"You—!" He whirled around, eyes red, voice a low animal snarl. "Say that again!"
He lunged.
The boy never expected the school's designated punching bag to erupt. He was caught off guard as Lu Mingfei grabbed his collar.
"Let go! You wanna die?!" the boy snarled, swinging a fist into Lu Mingfei's face.
Pain flashed black across Lu Mingfei's vision, but his grip tightened like iron.
Call him a loser, call him a coward—he could swallow it.
But insulting his parents?
No.
Classmates screamed and surged in, trying to pull them apart. In the chaos, some pretended to break it up while their fists landed on Lu Mingfei's ribs.
Someone ran to get a teacher.
Just as Lu Mingfei clung to the boy's collar like a drowning man, refusing to let go—
a palm slammed against the classroom window.
Then a figure vaulted in, one hand on the sill, landing on the window ledge with insane ease.
"Magic trick!" someone choked out.
It was Yu Jin.
The class gaped. The legend chased all morning—why was he dropping from the sky?!
Yu Jin didn't care about the dropped jaws.
His eyes swept once, locked the target, jumped down, shoved through the crowd, and yanked Lu Mingfei back by the collar.
Lu Mingfei stumbled—
"Smack!"
A crisp slap rang through the room.
"Got a filthy mouth, huh?" The boy's cheek ballooned instantly with a red handprint. He was stunned.
But that was only the start.
Yu Jin grabbed his collar, swept his legs in a clean trip, and slammed him to the floor—
then straddled him.
The next second, fists fell like rain.
"Ugh!"
"Run your mouth again!"
"So you're the little punk?!" Yu Jin punched and snarled. "You turned my dragon-slayer power fantasy into teen angst!"
No one understood that line, but it was the loudest thing in the room.
Students screamed and tried to drag Yu Jin off.
Three, four, five people together—couldn't move him an inch.
Off to the side, Lu Mingfei held his bruised face, staring in shock at the man beating up his tormentor for him.
His rage evaporated into pure disbelief.
Only when the boy passed out did Yu Jin stop. He rose, casually dusting off his uniform.
"Ahh… that hit the spot." He looked pleased, like he'd completed some noble mission.
He walked to the window ledge.
"Alright, everyone, thanks for watching. No need to see me off!"
At that moment a furious shout came from the door: "What are you doing?!"
A teacher had just arrived, face livid.
Yu Jin turned, waved cheerfully.
"Teacher, your school's character education still needs work!"
Before anyone could react, he flipped out the window, grabbed the drainpipe, and slid down to the first floor like a monkey on caffeine.
"Stop!" the guards yelled below, chasing after him.
Yu Jin bolted for the gate, leaving a classroom of stunned teachers and students behind—and Lu Mingfei, who didn't know what to think anymore.
-------
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