CoP 46 END

Sui Cannong wanted to give Ji Ling the most security possible, and he didn’t care what others thought. He just wanted to tell everyone that Ji Ling was his partner.

At first, Ji Ling was a bit bewildered, but soon his gaze became resolute. He softly hummed in agreement and then held Sui Cannong’s hand.

Sui Cannong clearly heard Thomas gasp, but they no longer cared about others’ gazes. After a few seconds of eye contact, Sui Cannong smiled and said, “Just follow my lead.”

The lighting and atmosphere at the dance were perfect. A gentle handhold and a meaningful glance—indeed, it was quite romantic.

But within five minutes, Sui Cannong guessed why Ji Ling never went to dances.

A dance usually lasted only a few minutes, but during that time, Sui Cannong was stepped on by Ji Ling at least twenty times.

Ji Ling’s body was stiff throughout, a classic case of poor coordination. So Sui Cannong stopped forcing him to dance and instead led Ji Ling away from the crowd. They tried all the different types of sweets provided at the venue.

In fact, after publicly acknowledging their relationship, Sui Cannong received more kindness than he had imagined.

Thomas became their relationship’s biggest supporter, and when he encountered other teachers on campus, they would all offer their blessings to Sui Cannong.

And dating Ji Ling was actually a very interesting thing.

Little Teacher Ji’s cultivation method was simple: a little water, a little fertilizer, and a little bit of human light provided by Sui Cannong.

Ji Ling was still obsessed with making long-term plans. His current persistent plan had turned into a “date checklist,” and he would require Sui Cannong to help him complete the tasks.

Ji Ling said, “Can we go to the movies this weekend?”

So, on the weekend, they went to watch a horror movie, at the same cinema and with the same rainbow popcorn combo as before, but their moods were vastly different this time.

Ji Ling chose a Thai horror movie about a high school girl’s suicide. In the past, Sui Cannong might have been on high alert and even started pinching the bridge of his nose.

But now, when he thought back, Sui Cannong only found it amusing and helpless.

During the movie, Ji Ling’s expression was focused, not blinking once, while Sui Cannong kept his eyes tightly shut and his ears covered, wishing he could faint.

Sui Cannong barely saw anything.

The atmosphere during the movie was not much different from the last time. Sui Cannong was genuinely afraid, but he didn’t show it as much as he pretended. He just wanted an excuse to be close to Ji Ling.

Later, during the movie, they even stole a kiss.

Ji Ling ate a lot of popcorn. When they left, Sui Cannong stared at the empty popcorn bucket for a moment and asked, “Not taking a photo this time?”

Ji Ling shook his head.

“Because we can come to the movies every month,” Ji Ling said wistfully. “I did some research; this cinema has a lot of screenings. Next month, there will be a re-release of a niche Korean horror movie…”

Sui Cannong: “…I don’t mind coming every month, but can we watch a different type of movie next time?”

June and July were the seasons of farewells. The students’ major exams were mostly over, and graduation season had arrived.

Shirley and Cindy, although they still had one more year of high school, had to return to Japan to continue their studies due to their parents’ job changes.

Sui Cannong, who usually enjoyed bickering with them, was a bit reluctant to see these two girls go. He gave them the small tomato plant they had grown together and two packets of vegetable seeds.

Shirley and Cindy also gave Sui Cannong a keychain they had handmade, saying, “We gave Teacher Ji a different-colored version of the same keychain.”

Sui Cannong: “Ah?”

Shirley said, “So you and Teacher Ji must stay together, okay?”

Sui Cannong: “…?”

Cindy said, “It’s fine; we already know.”

Sui Cannong was flustered: “No, no… How did you find out?”

Shirley said, “Because you often visit each other’s classrooms.”

Sui Cannong naturally didn’t believe such an explanation, so Cindy hesitated for a moment and said, “Actually, it’s because we accidentally saw Teacher Ji’s phone.”

“His wallpaper… is a photo of you,” she said.

After school, Ji Ling came to Sui Cannong’s classroom to tend to the plants.

Sui Cannong’s classroom was a chaotic but orderly place, but the variety of plants was overwhelming. Ji Ling, who had a mild case of OCD, always felt a bit uncomfortable looking at it.

So today, Ji Ling decided to help Sui Cannong tidy up one corner.

Ji Ling first saw the pot that had once held the mushroom plant, with the label “Mr. Ji” that Sui Cannong had written by hand. On the rose he had given Sui Cannong, the yellowed “Mr. Sui” sticky note was still attached.

Ji Ling couldn’t help but smile.

As he stood up, Ji Ling saw two timid students behind him. They were new faces, likely recent arrivals, holding two brand-new chemistry textbooks.

The student asked, “Teacher Sui, Thomas isn’t in his classroom. He said we can come to you if we have any questions.”

Before Ji Ling could respond, the students opened their textbooks and said, “Can you explain what ‘saturated’ means here?”

Ji Ling often visited Sui Cannong’s classroom, and these new students, who didn’t know he taught physics, probably mistook him for Sui Cannong.

Ji Ling hesitated but didn’t correct them.

“Saturated” means “saturated.” Ji Ling glanced at their textbook and saw it was about basic solution and solvent knowledge.

So Ji Ling gave a clear explanation: “A solution is made up of a solvent and a solute. When the temperature is constant and the solute can no longer dissolve in a certain amount of solvent, we say the solution is saturated, which is what ‘saturated’ means here.”

The students’ expressions changed from ordinary confusion to deep confusion.

Ji Ling pursed his lips, trying to think of a way to explain it more clearly, when Sui Cannong walked in with some printed materials.

Sui Cannong met Ji Ling’s gaze and asked, puzzled, “What’s going on?”

Ji Ling hesitated, then repeated the students’ question, and Sui Cannong laughed.

“Let’s start with a simple example,” Sui Cannong said to the students. “Imagine you really like a pair of sneakers. You’re completely focused on them, and you can’t stand any other color or style. That means your heart is filled to saturation with that pair of sneakers.”

“If the saltwater is saturated… you can think of it as the water really liking the current salt, and its heart is already full, so no more salt can dissolve in it,” Sui Cannong said with a smile. “And if I remember correctly, the saturation concentration of saltwater is about 5.4 moles per liter. You can check the summary in your book…”

Five minutes later, the students looked enlightened. They thanked Sui Cannong and left the classroom together.

Sui Cannong tidied up his desk and noticed that Ji Ling had already watered the plants. They started walking toward the parking lot.

But when Sui Cannong opened the car door, he saw that Ji Ling looked a bit unhappy.

As Sui Cannong started the car, he heard Ji Ling mumble, “I actually explained the meaning of ‘saturated’ to them, but they didn’t understand my explanation.”

Sui Cannong, though not present, could imagine the scene and, considering Ji Ling’s usual way of speaking, guessed what had happened.

Sui Cannong chuckled, “It’s no big deal, just a small piece of knowledge.”

Ji Ling was silent for a moment, then said, “Even though our explanations were different, mine was also clear. Why didn’t they understand me?”

Sui Cannong coughed and quickly changed the subject, “What do you want to eat tonight?”

Ji Ling paused, then was easily distracted by Sui Cannong, saying, “…I want noodles or soup noodles.”

Sui Cannong thought about the ingredients left at home and felt they could make tomato soup noodles. He nodded and asked, “What do you want to watch while we eat?”

Ji Ling thought for a moment and said, “It’s Thursday, so the yogurt roll blogger should have updated.”

“Sure,” Sui Cannong said. “Let’s place a bet. I bet he’ll make five rolls of yogurt this time. What about you?”

Ji Ling said, “But I remember that in the past month, he’s made five rolls fourteen times. So this time, I bet four rolls.”

Sui Cannong said, “Okay, deal. No changing your mind.”

They were quiet for a while as Sui Cannong drove into the neighborhood.

“Why didn’t they understand my explanation?” Ji Ling was still a bit bothered. “And for the saturation concentration of saltwater, temperature is a very important variable, so the value you mentioned isn’t very accurate—”

Sui Cannong parked the car steadily and unbuckled his seatbelt.

Ji Ling’s latter words were cut off because Sui Cannong suddenly leaned over and kissed him.

Ji Ling was pressed against the seat, initially stunned, but after a moment, he tilted his head and gently responded to the kiss.

Their warm breaths mingled.

“…Let me off, little Teacher Ji,” Sui Cannong said hoarsely after a while. “Science is complex, and there are too many variables. No one can give an absolutely correct answer.”

Ji Ling shook his head and smiled, “I know, I just—”

Before Ji Ling could finish, Sui Cannong interrupted him. “But there’s one thing I’m sure of.”

The clouds outside were orange, the sunset was warm, and Sui Cannong’s eyes were bright. He looked at Ji Ling with a determined and radiant smile.

“Regardless of the temperature or conditions,” Sui Cannong said with a smile, “to reach the saturation concentration of Sui Cannong, only one mole of Ji Ling is needed.”

[End of Confession Plan]