Chapter 67

Chapter 67

No. 15 sat frozen in his seat, his face stiff. He didn’t even dare blink.

Head Teacher Liu hadn’t heard the broadcast, so she led No. 04 up to the podium to see what punishment he would draw for failing his task.

This was the first time the red cardboard box had ever been used. No one knew what the punishment would be, and in their terror, everyone watched the podium with a hint of curiosity.

Seeing that No. 04 still hadn’t moved, Head Teacher Liu suddenly leaned in close to him, her voice icy. “Or should I draw it for you?”

No. 04 was so frightened he took a step back, then immediately shoved his hand into the red cardboard box.

The slip read: Stand as punishment for one minute in the third row of the aisle by the window.

On the surface, there didn’t seem to be anything wrong with that punishment, but Qiao Yu just felt something was off.

No. 04 let out a long sigh of relief when he got the punishment slip. At the same time, he looked at No. 15 with apology in his eyes.

The seconds ticked by one after another. In the silent classroom, something suddenly occurred to Qiao Yu, and he looked toward Head Teacher Liu.

Why?

Why hadn’t she asked No. 04 to choose the next person?

And besides, if he was being punished by standing, shouldn’t he stand where he was, or at the front or back? Why did it have to be the third row of the aisle?

Forty-one, forty-two, forty-three, forty-four…

Suddenly, there was a crack from overhead. The ceiling fan above the front row dropped without warning. Before No. 04 could even react, it smashed straight into his head. Blood mixed with brain matter slowly spread across the floor.

Everyone stared blankly at the scene. In an instant, the classroom became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

“The next person… Let me see who I should pick.” Head Teacher Liu seemed to thoroughly enjoy the fear everyone had of her. Her gaze slowly landed on No. 20.

No. 20… Luo Ziwei.

That unlucky precious son of his. Qiao Yu couldn’t help feeling a headache coming on.

“No. 20, come here.”

Luo Ziwei, that crybaby, really could turn on the waterworks at will. As he cried, he clenched his fists, looking as if he was ready to drag everyone down with him.

Head Teacher Liu simply watched him, her peripheral vision occasionally flicking toward the broadcast speaker on the wall. She looked very much like she was waiting for something.

Qiao Yu followed Head Teacher Liu’s line of sight and also glanced at the broadcast speaker, understanding flashing through his eyes.

He reached up to adjust his mask, then raised his hand.

“Oh? No. 18, what is it?”

Qiao Yu pointed at his finger and said, “Reporting to the head teacher. My finger is cut.”

Shang Yan frowned as he looked at the finger seeping blood. His already poor mood grew even darker and more oppressive…

“And? Are you trying to request medical leave?” Excitement showed on Head Teacher Liu’s face, as if she were ready to pounce at any second.

But under everyone’s tense gazes, Qiao Yu shook his head. “I want to borrow a tissue from No. 20 to wipe my hand.”

-?? Borrow a tissue? What kind of move is that!

-No idea, but that bad feeling is back. My instincts say the streamer is about to stir up trouble.

-+1. But Sister Li should be able to relax now.

Head Teacher Liu froze for a moment, unable to understand what Qiao Yu was trying to do. Only after a long while did she nod. “Make it quick.”

Qiao Yu stood as told and walked over to Luo Ziwei. Then he held out his hand toward the utterly bewildered Luo Ziwei.

Zzzzip. The sound of a zipper being pulled was especially conspicuous in the silent classroom.

Qiao Yu yanked open the zipper of Luo Ziwei’s school uniform jacket, stripped it off him with one hard pull, and tossed the removed uniform out the window.

The next second, the broadcast speaker crackled with the sound of a bad connection. Immediately afterward, the broadcast said, “No. 20 has violated School Rules, Article Two: students must wear their school uniforms while on campus. The Execution Squad is to carry out disciplinary action.”

The broadcast had changed!

It was the Execution Squad, not the head teacher!

Very soon, the Execution Squad stormed in. One of them grabbed Luo Ziwei by the arm and said while dragging him away, “No. 20 will be confined for twenty-four hours.”

And just like that, Luo Ziwei was taken away by the Execution Squad. Throughout the entire process, Head Teacher Liu said nothing, and the floor did not turn into a swamp because of his departure.

He had safely left the classroom, because what Luo Ziwei had violated was not classroom discipline, but the School Rules.
Head Teacher Liu could only punish students who violated classroom discipline. As for the School Rules… those were enforced by the school’s Execution Squad!

Everyone’s eyes lit up at once. So there was a loophole after all!

Head Teacher Liu’s gaze looked as if it had been steeped in poison. In that moment, she must have hated Qiao Yu to death.

The kind of hatred he could draw even without equipping a title.

Looks like he’d guessed right.

If they wanted to leave this classroom, there were plenty of ways. The School Rules and classroom discipline did not conflict with each other.

Qiao Yu let out a soft laugh and looked around. “You… get it now?”

-Damn it, he got to show off again! What do I do? Why is he kind of hot for no reason… slurp~

-+111111111111111

-Holy crap, now I’m really curious how the streamer’s brain is wired.

-Right? You say he’s smart, but he can’t even remember a line of ancient poetry. You say he’s not smart, but then he’s terrifyingly clever.

-Being bad at studying doesn’t mean someone’s stupid. It just means they didn’t put their mind to it.

-Sadako: What can you do? Geniuses are always unevenly developed. Skr~

-What the hell??

-Li Xiaoqin: Translation… skr.

-Sadako: Sister Li, you really get me. As expected of one of our dad-fans!

-Hahahahaha, what the hell is a dad-fan? I’m dying!

-Li Xiaoqin: …I do not get you. You’re overthinking it!!! And I refuse to accept the name “dad-fan.” It sounds way too embarrassing! (My toes have already dug out a three-layer castle.jpg)

-…Sister Li, don’t be sad. At least your group sounds like it has a lot of seniority.

-Li Xiaoqin: Thanks. That actually helped~

The young man stood in the center of the classroom, a white mask covering most of his face. Though he was simply standing there, his entire body seemed shrouded in a gloomy, murky aura.

Like a dead person with no senses, no emotions, no breathing…

Only after a long while did everyone finally realize what he had just done.

It was as if a hammer had knocked a gap into a row of preset blocks; in an instant, the entire situation opened up.

One quick-witted female streamer immediately yanked off her hair tie and mussed her hair into a total mess. The very next second, the broadcast crackled to life.

“No. 42 has violated Article Two of the School Rules: Students must maintain proper appearance and decorum while on campus. Execution Squad, please administer punishment.”

That female streamer followed the Execution Squad out of the classroom with a beaming smile.

“No. 15 has violated Article Nineteen of the School Rules: Do not damage public property without permission. Execution Squad, please administer punishment.”

“No. 53 has violated Article Seven of the Assembly Conduct Rules: No drinking alcohol. Execution Squad, please administer punishment.”

“No. 12 has violated Article Seven of the Assembly Conduct Rules: No smoking. Execution Squad, please administer punishment.”

…

“No. 17 and No. 19 have violated Article Sixteen of the School Rules: Excessively intimate contact between students is forbidden. Execution Squad, please administer punishment.”

-In public-kissing in public?!!!

-The kid is yellow-screen stunned…

-Kind of hurts the eyes. Tsk, tsk.

-Uh… how do I put this? Those two guys really went all out. No wonder they deserve to live.

Just then, a broadcast tone different from the previous ones rang out.

“No. 18 has violated Article Three of classroom discipline: No whispering during class and disrupting the teacher’s lecture.

“No. 18 has violated Article Four of classroom discipline: No loud disturbances during class.

“No. 18 has violated Article Five of classroom discipline: Do not lie to or deceive the teacher.

“Head teacher, please administer punishment.”

The students, who had been swept up in the frenzy of violating the School Rules, all froze for a moment. Then, almost instinctively, they turned to look at Qiao Yu.

He had saved them.

But his own path to survival… had been cut off.