Chapter Three: The Hero Among the Underachievers

When Jiangxiwen looked up at the podium, Ms. Miejue Wen was contorting her already severe, menopausal face, pushing its limits of distortion to the utmost.

Her expression announced to the students that she was furious.

Everyone in class knew how formidable Ms. Miejue Wen could be; her authority was absolute. If she caught anyone not paying attention, the lightest punishment was to complete five sets of practice papers, while the most severe meant a call to the parents and a disciplinary record.

Her real name was Zhu Wen, and her power stemmed from the fact that her husband, Fang Sixiang, was the director of studies at Second High School.

"Serves you right! That's what you get for treating me that way. Now you’re really in for it!" Zhang Ya thought bitterly, casting another cold glance at Jiangxiwen. "But... Liu Fan is really petty, reporting Jiangxiwen in Ms. Miejue Wen’s class. That..."

Zhang Ya frowned, then her expression gradually relaxed. Hmph, why should I worry about that jerk? Who cares? Neither he nor Liu Fan are good people...

As Jiangxiwen stood up, he noticed Liu Fan at the next desk, wearing a smug, self-satisfied sneer. Damn, it was him who tattled again—he just can’t stop causing trouble.

Still, Jiangxiwen wasn't bothered. He looked at Ms. Miejue Wen with a leisurely calm and said, "Teacher, did you hit me?"

"Oh? I did. And what of it? Are you unhappy about it? What did you just say?" Ms. Miejue Wen’s face darkened. "Repeat yourself..."

Classmate A thought, "That guy’s unlucky, caught by Ms. Miejue Wen. Liu Fan is really ruthless."

Classmate B thought, "Now this will be entertaining."

Classmate C thought, "Poor soul."

No one spoke aloud, but everyone had their own thoughts, waiting to see how Jiangxiwen would respond.

The most anxious person in the room was probably Gong Xiang. He cursed Liu Fan bitterly in his heart. If Jiangxiwen got punished this time, he’d make sure Liu Fan paid for it. In fact, no matter what happened to Jiangxiwen, Liu Fan still deserved a lesson.

"I just asked, who the hell threw something at me?" Jiangxiwen replied, unhurried. "I was paying attention in class when suddenly a piece of chalk came flying out of nowhere. Teacher, isn’t it right to scold someone who carelessly throws chalk in class? But now I know it was you, so if I hadn’t done anything wrong, you wouldn’t punish a student that way. Someone must have falsely accused me."

The class erupted. If Jiangxiwen’s being made to stand last period hadn’t drawn much attention, this time he had everyone looking at him in a new light. No one dared speak to Ms. Miejue Wen like that.

"Jiangxiwen!" Ms. Miejue Wen slammed her textbook down on the lectern. "Where did you learn to be so glib? In all my years, I’ve never wrongly punished anyone! You weren’t listening, you were twirling your pen! And now you want to argue?"

"Who says you can’t listen and twirl a pen at the same time?" Jiangxiwen replied coolly. In contrast to Ms. Miejue Wen’s rage, he appeared perfectly composed.

He had always respected teachers—his mother was one herself. Though some teaching methods were questionable, and some teachers’ attitudes a little warped, it was the result of the exam-oriented education system; ultimately, teachers always meant well. These were the failings of the era, and not theirs to bear individually.

Except for teachers like Ms. Miejue Wen. This menopausal woman was more discriminatory toward underperforming students than anyone.

Jiangxiwen remembered it clearly: once, after his grades improved in an exam, Ms. Miejue Wen voided his results, insisting he must have cheated. Back then, he’d been shy and honest, and of course didn’t dare argue.

Ms. Miejue Wen gave a cold, angry laugh. "Fine, then come up here and show us. Let’s see you twirl your pen and pay attention at the same time. Teach everyone how to multitask. Try solving these problems on the blackboard—while twirling your pen and writing at the same time. If you succeed, you can do whatever you like in my class from now on, as long as you don’t disturb others."

She knew Jiangxiwen’s academic performance and didn’t believe for a moment he could solve the problems, let alone while twirling his pen.

Any student daring to challenge her authority would always meet the same fate: quietly accepting their punishment.

Jiangxiwen disliked this math teacher but hadn’t meant to pick a fight with her. Since she was the one looking for trouble, though, he wouldn’t be as meek as in his previous life. How could junior high math problems possibly stump him now?

With swagger, he strode up to the podium, twirling a ballpoint pen with one hand, chalk in the other, writing quickly across the blackboard. In less than ten minutes, he finished every problem.

He tossed the chalk aside, held up his right hand—still spinning the pen—and addressed the class: "The trick to twirling your pen while learning is practice. When you’re thinking about a problem, your hand can move. Even if you drop the pen, you can pick it up and keep thinking; your ears are working too..."

Finally, a classmate couldn’t hold back a laugh. This guy was actually giving a lecture.

"Enough! Silence!" Ms. Miejue Wen’s roar made everyone’s ears ring.

"Teacher, didn’t you ask me to explain? I’ve just proven I was paying attention; otherwise, I wouldn’t have solved the problems, let alone while twirling my pen..."

Her face turned from red to blue. She cut him off again. "Shut up!"

"So from now on, I can do whatever I want in your class?"

At this, the whole room was stunned.

Everyone waited for Ms. Miejue Wen’s explosion. Instead, she replied with a cold voice: "Jiangxiwen, return to your seat. I stand by my word. So long as you don’t disturb others, do as you please."

Incurable! Pretending to be a model student—just a little delinquent! I won’t bother with you anymore. Do whatever you like. That was what she was thinking, though no one could hear it.

The room went from dead silent to a buzz of excitement—no one could believe it. Ms. Miejue Wen knocked on her desk. "Quiet! Let’s continue. If any of you can do what Jiangxiwen just did, you’ll get the same privilege!"

As Jiangxiwen walked back to his seat, he saw Gong Xiang winking at him and giving a discreet thumbs-up. Several of the class’s underachievers were making similar faces at him. Though they’d rarely spoken to him before, now they regarded him as a hero.

Back at his desk, he found a note slipped under his math textbook. It read: "Jiangxiwen, Liu Fan is extremely petty. He’ll probably report you to Mr. Tan. You’ll need to go to his office today; be polite then."

The handwriting was neat; the signature was Zhang Ya.

Jiangxiwen turned his head to see Zhang Ya sitting upright, pretending to listen intently, though her eyes flicked covertly in his direction. Clearly, she was waiting to see his reaction to the note.

He never knew Zhang Ya could be so considerate. Since his train of thought had already been interrupted, he figured passing notes and reliving the innocent days of youth was no bad thing—he’d never had the chance to exchange notes with the class beauty before.

"Dear Class President, your concern moves me. I must also apologize for my earlier rudeness in urgently asking you for the date. I’m just surprised that you’re suddenly worried about me—could it be...?" His note quickly made its way back to her.

After reading it, Zhang Ya was momentarily stunned, then her face flushed, both anxious and embarrassed. Her note flew back almost instantly; Jiangxiwen could guess its contents without reading.

"How dare you! What nonsense are you imagining! I thought you were decent, but you’re just like those hooligans."

"Beautiful class president, all I did was add a few ellipses, and you’re already angry. What I meant was, have you changed your opinion of me and decided to help a struggling student?"

"You?!" Zhang Ya’s expression shifted as she read, as if suppressing her anger. She took two quick breaths before regaining her composure. Brow furrowed, she didn’t look at Jiangxiwen but said coolly, "Whatever. I don’t care about you anymore."