HCILH Ch. 69

Chapter 69: The Wife-Staring Maniac

Monday.

Sui Houyu sat at his desk taking notes, doing nothing to distract himself, though it felt unbearable. In the end, he could only stretch his neck to ease the discomfort.

Ouyang Ge, sitting beside him, glanced at him again and nudged his leg, signaling him not to stretch it out so far.

Sui Houyu had no choice but to pull his legs back, resting his feet on the bar under the desk, and continue jotting down notes with his head lowered.

What does it feel like to sit next to both the homeroom teacher and the director of moral education?

Pure exhaustion… so done with it.

Sui Houyu stared at his notebook, swirling the tip of the pen in the same spot so much it almost punctured a hole through the page.

He tilted his head slightly, peeking past Ouyang Ge to catch Hou Mo smirking at him from the other side, with a touch of schadenfreude.

Seeing Hou Mo’s smug expression irritated Sui Houyu, so he shot him a glare before continuing to write.

Hou Mo hadn’t even put away his grin when he made eye contact with Ouyang Ge.

Ouyang Ge cast a displeased glance at Hou Mo—a look of regal disdain. Instantly, Hou Mo straightened up and behaved himself.

He turned to focus on the blackboard, sitting up as if attending class diligently.

However, he couldn’t sit still, constantly rocking his chair, balancing it on two legs and swaying it back and forth. His back nearly leaned against the storage cabinets at the back of the classroom, and just as he turned his head to sneak another glance at Sui Houyu—

His gaze met Ouyang Ge’s again…

Hou Mo quickly averted his eyes, groaning internally.

Every time he tried to look at his partner, he’d meet the gaze of the teacher sitting between them. Talk about ruining the vibe.

Sui Houyu kept glaring at him too, but Hou Mo found it adorable.

When Ouyang Ge glared, though, Hou Mo instantly deflated, feeling that having such a teacher was truly a nightmare.

After class, Ouyang Ge dragged Hou Mo out of the classroom for a private lecture: “You don’t need to keep staring at me in class. If you can’t sleep, then you can’t sleep. But seriously, why are you always so sleepy during the day? Have you been staying up playing on your phone at night?”

Hou Mo slumped in the hallway, feeling helpless. There was no way he could admit that he hadn’t been looking at Ouyang Ge—he’d been staring at Sui Houyu.

Besides, he hadn’t even been playing on his phone recently. All his late nights had been dedicated to observing Sui Houyu.

Ouyang Ge, still frustrated, jabbed at an acupressure point on Hou Mo’s body, making him squirm away.

“Im telling you, don’t think you can slack off just because you get good grades. As a student, you need to pay attention in class. No sleeping, even if I’m not sitting in the classroom. And seriously, I’m tired of saying this. The physics teacher has been teaching you for a whole year, but he doesn’t even know what your face looks like because he’s never seen it properly.”

“It’s not like I did anything. I just looked at you. Would you scold a girl like this if she made eye contact with you?”

“Ssshh—” Ouyang Ge jabbed him again: “What’s it to you?”

After some more scolding, Su Anyi returned from the office carrying a small box.

Ouyang Ge glanced at it and said: “Alright, go back to the classroom and eat.”

Hou Mo was stunned. He hadn’t even seen what Su Anyi was holding, but somehow Ouyang Ge knew it was food.

Back in the classroom, Su Anyi began handing out popsicles.

The popsicles were homemade, using milk, water, fruits, and nuts. They weren’t too sweet but still hit the spot. Even the athletes could enjoy them guilt-free.

Of course, it was obvious that these treats were made with Sui Houyu in mind.

Hou Mo walked over, grabbed one and took a bite: “This mold has so many slots—why didn’t you fill them all?”

Su Anyi answered: “Actually, I did. But after I put them in the fridge, Teacher Ouyang secretly ate some.”

“That explains how he knew it was food!” Hou Mo exclaimed, taking another crunchy bite.

Deng Yiheng was touched to the core as he ate: “Having Sister Su around is the best—lemonade, snacks, and everything.”

Su Anyi didn’t care: “I made these for Brother Yu. You guys just got lucky.”

Deng Yiheng immediately asked: “Why are you so good to Brother Yu? Could it be that you…”

Hou Mo, who had been eating absentmindedly, suddenly perked up, straining his ears to catch every word, afraid that Su Anyi’s reply would be too soft and might miss what she said.

But Su Anyi didn’t bother explaining.

Ran Shu, munching on his popsicle, chimed in first: “Cut it out. Su-mei… uh, I mean, who she actually likes is….”

After thinking about it, he felt that he shouldn’t tell Su Anyi’s secret, so he glanced back at her and continued: “Anyway, it’s not Brother Yu. She’s just as nice to me too.”

Deng Yiheng was shocked: “What?! Why would Sister Su need to crush on anyone? She could just make a move and get whoever she wants!”

Ran Shu shook his head: “You wouldn’t understand.”

Outside the classroom, Shen Junjing from Class Sixteen peeked in and called out: “What are you guys eating?!”

Deng Yiheng grinned: “Well, since you did so well in your exams and got sent to Class Sixteen, you don’t get to enjoy these perks.”

Shen Junjing drooled, practically salivating as he begged: “Give me a bite.”

Sang Xian raised his half-eaten popsicle: “I’ve got half left. Want it?”

Shen Junjing pointed to the mold on Sui Houyu’s desk.:“I see there’s still one more.”

Before Sui Houyu could respond, Hou Mo cut in: “That one’s Brother Yu’s.”

Shen Junjing immediately shut his mouth, grabbed Sang Xian’s half-eaten popsicle, and ran off.

Not long after, Ouyang Ge returned to the classroom and announced: “I’m teaching gym during the next two periods. Just because I’m not here doesn’t mean you can slack off. After your break, I’ll be watching from the back door. Got it?”

No one responded.

Ouyang Ge repeated: “Did you hear me?”

The students, busy eating their popsicles, quickly responded.

Sui Houyu was already on his second popsicle. When Ouyang Ge finally left, Sui Houyu relaxed, his tense muscles loosening, and even his shoulders felt lighter.

But just as Ouyang Ge took two steps out, he saw Teacher Li standing at the door, looking at him.

Ouyang Ge pointed at himself: “Am I sick^[1]?”

Teacher Li nodded.

Ouyang Ge slumped back into the classroom, throwing up his hands in defeat.

A moment ago, the students had barely reacted to his warnings, but now that Ouyang Ge was staying, the whole class groaned in unison.

Sui Houyu, mid-bite, was stunned.

He’s back again?!

Ran Shu sprinted after Teacher Li: “Sister Ling! Gege isn’t sick! Sister Ling, please come back!”

But Teacher Li shooed him away.

Feeling both defeated and frustrated, Sui Houyu devoured his popsicle, slapped his face, and got ready to focus again.

Meanwhile, Hou Mo could only sulk in silence. With Gege back, he had no choice but to behave, enduring two whole periods without sneaking glances at Sui Houyu. For the first time, he truly understood the torment of lovesickness.

*

In the afternoon, the student athletes also stayed in the classroom for classes.

After the season ended, the athletes could enjoy a break. In the afternoons, they didn’t have to attend training sessions—just morning practice.

Sui Houyu pulled out his voice recorder, put on his earphones, and planned to review the sped-up version of yesterday’s make-up session.

Just as he got everything ready, Teacher Li walked into the classroom, the sound of her high heels tapping crisply on the floor.

Teacher Li taught the advanced class, not their class, so it was odd to see her here.

Holding a workbook, she said: “I feel bad for taking over Ouyang’s class, but we talked it over privately, and I’m here to add a physics lesson for you. This is a catch-up session, so I won’t teach anything new. Just take out your workbooks, and I’ll go over the exercises with you.”

Sui Houyu froze in disbelief. This is allowed?

Sure enough, the classroom filled with groans.

What were these two teachers up to? It was like they were trying to wear the students out completely. Even the self-study period wasn’t spared—how were they supposed to catch their breath?

The only thing that made them feel relieved was that during the self-study class in the afternoon where Ouyang Ge went to patrol the corridor instead of being inside the classroom.

But it was really tiring to alternate like this.

The only one thrilled was Su Anyi, her eyes lighting up as she eagerly looked at Teacher Li.

Ran Shu pursed his lips, trying not to laugh.

Teacher Li adjusted the audio equipment, connected the projector, and placed the workbook on the display stand.

Sui Houyu glanced at the projected workbook, sighed, and pulled out his own, only to realize he hadn’t done the exercises. As Teacher Li prepared, he quickly filled in the answers.

Hou Mo was not familiar with Teacher Li neither was he very interested in physics. He just kept sneaking glances at Sui Houyu.

When he saw Sui Houyu working on problems, he picked up his pen and followed suit.

And whenever Sui Houyu looked at the board, he also occasionally to listen to the lecture.

But unexpectedly, Teacher Li singled out Hou Mo: “You, the one with yellow hair—come solve this problem.”

Hou Mo could only stand up, muttering in his heart that this Teacher Li was color blind like Ouyang Ge.

Their classrooms used electronic whiteboards. He picked up the pen and wrote a string of characters, then put the pen down.

“That’s it?” Teacher Li asked, surprised.

“Yeah, that’s the answer.”

“Write the full solution.”

With no choice, Hou Mo picked up the pen again and carefully wrote out the steps.

After watching him for a moment, Teacher Li commented: “Your handwriting’s not bad. Go back to your seat, and make sure to watch the board.”

“Okay.” Hou Mo nodded and returned to his desk.

Back at his seat, he turned again to Sui Houyu, who was taking advantage of the lecture to work on more problems instead of paying attention to the board.

Hou Mo whispered: “Hey, Brother Yu!”

Sui Houyu looked up.

Hou Mo asked softly: “Brother Yu, does my solution look right?”

Sui Houyu gave the board a quick glance, then continued writing: “Yeah, it’s correct.”

Hou Mo grinned and looked at Sui Houyu for a moment, then kept working.

Though Teacher Li was known to be blunt, her lectures were solid, which was why she was a homeroom teacher for the advanced class.

After two straight periods, Teacher Li gathered her things and left the classroom.

The faint sound of static lingered from the speakers, along with the soft tapping of her high heels.

Ran Shu listened for a moment, then exclaimed: “Oh no, Teacher Li forgot to turn off the microphone—it’s still connected to our classroom!”

He got up, ready to chase after her.

Just then, Teacher Li’s irritated voice echoed through the speakers: “Ouyang Ge, what’s with that Hou Mo from your class?”

Her voice was loud, startling everyone in the room.

Hou Mo instantly perked up.

Ran Shu stopped in his tracks and stood in the classroom, continuing to listen without hurrying to catch up. He was a bit curious about why Teacher Li was specifically complaining about Hou Mo.

Ouyang Ge’s lazy voice came through the speakers: “What’s he done now?”

Teacher Li continued: “I thought the athletes might be falling behind after their competitions, so I gave them a catch-up session. But that Hou Mo? He barely glanced at me the whole time and spent the entire two periods staring at Sui Houyu. Sure, Sui Houyu looks good, but come on—does he really need to stare that much?”

The whole class were filled with exclamations of “Huh’s”.

Even someone as thick-skinned as Hou Mo was a bit embarrassed and gave a nervous cough, avoiding eye contact with Sui Houyu.

Sui Houyu noticed his classmates sneaking glances at him, feeling utterly at a loss.

Then Ouyang’s voice returned: “He was looking at Sui Houyu? I thought he was staring at me, so I dragged him out for a lecture.”

“Why would he stare at you? What’s so fascinating about you?”

“He wanted to sleep, but with me around, he didn’t dare to. It was like a guilty student trying to cheat.”

“Pfft, wishful thinking—he was looking at Sui Houyu the whole time. I had him answer a question just to get him to focus, but he went right back to staring. Three-quarters of the time, he was glued to Sui Houyu, and the rest of the time, he spared a glance at the workbook. I was practically invisible to him. What’s up with those two?”

“They’ve been playing doubles lately… Anyway, don’t worry—I’ll deal with the two of them.”

At that point, Ran Shu ran out to catch Teacher Li.

Moments later, his stammering voice came through the speakers: “S-Sister Ling, the mic.”

“I forgot to turn it off again?!” Teacher Li exclaimed.

“Yeah, I-I’m heading back now.”

The speakers finally went silent.

Sui Houyu: “…”

He hadn’t done anything! He’d been trying hard to behave all day and hadn’t even moved much.

Why was he suddenly in trouble?

Meanwhile, the class erupted in teasing laughter directed at him.

Furious, Sui Houyu grabbed a chair and hurled it at Hou Mo.

Hou Mo, anticipating the move, raised his desk as a shield.

But Sui Houyu wasn’t done—he kept attacking.

Hou Mo apologized throughout the onslaught: “Brother Yu, I was wrong! I was wrong! Please stop! My leg’s cramping! Ouch! Stop, I’m begging you!”

Before the school merger, everyone had worried that Sui Houyu and Hou Mo wouldn’t get along.

Now, it was clear that the two got along a little too well. In just two and a half months, Sui Houyu had tamed Hou Mo completely.

Otherwise, why else would Hou Mo constantly follow him with such devotion, unable to take his eyes off him?