ROT CH 22

Chapter 22: Han Laoshi Have a Partner

“Ah?” Wang Ziheng looked at Bai Chengyu in disbelief, wondering if he had heard wrong. “Bai Shao, what did you say just now?”

Bai Chengyu stood up, threw his backpack over his shoulder, and impatiently repeated, “I said, let’s go to the student cafeteria.” With that, he walked out.

Wang Ziheng, Liao Sheng, and Li Wenting exchanged glances, watching Bai Chengyu walk down the stairs, and quickly followed him. It wasn’t surprising that they were taken aback; Bai Chengyu rarely ate with his classmates. They guessed that as a rich young master, he probably thought the small shops around the school were unhygienic. Typically, during lunch, Bai Chengyu would retreat to his car, where the Bai family would prepare his meals for him to eat in the car.

But today, Bai Chengyu not only wanted to eat with them, but he specifically chose to go to the student cafeteria, which was infamous for its bad food but affordable and conveniently located on campus. This left them bewildered and unsure of what was going on.

The four of them entered the student cafeteria. Although it was known for the quality of its food, it was cheap and located within the school district, so it was still packed during meal times. They finally managed to grab a four-person table.

“I’ll have beef brisket rice.” As soon as they sat down, Wang Ziheng called out to Liao Sheng to order. “Bai Shao, what would you like?”

“Anything, just get the same as you.” Bai Chengyu absentmindedly glanced around, his eyes landing on the pig.

“I heard the only thing worth eating here is the beef, so let’s all just order beef brisket rice to keep it simple,” Li Wenting said as he and Liao Sheng stood up to go to the counter. “We’ll order.”

Bai Chengyu took out his wallet and placed a large bill on the table. “Today, it’s on me.”

The others were surprised. “…”

Li Wenting pushed the money back.

“You can’t treat us to this cheap meal…” Wang Ziheng stuffed the bill back into Bai Chengyu’s wallet.

Although they didn’t come from wealthy families like the Bai family, their families were still well-off. They wouldn’t make a big deal out of a cheap lunch at the student cafeteria.

Wang Ziheng asked, “Why suddenly eat here? Didn’t your family’s car come today?”

Bai Chengyu only then remembered to call Black Shadow and tell him that he wouldn’t be getting in the car for lunch and that they should go back to rest first, picking him up after school.

“…” Wang Ziheng was even more confused. Why skip the delicious and nutritious lunch from home and come to the student cafeteria just for the sake of joining the crowd?

“It’s been a while since I’ve been here, so I suddenly felt like coming,” Bai Chengyu casually shrugged it off. “It’s not that bad, you know? Just look at all these people.”

Wang Ziheng glanced around. “There really are a lot of people.” He turned to see if Liao Sheng and Li Wenting were done ordering, and that’s when he spotted Han Junzhou.

“Hey, it’s Han Laoshi^[1]! He’s eating at the student cafeteria too?” Wang Ziheng squinted and looked closely. “The person next to him looks really familiar. Wait, is he the one who played basketball with us last time? What was his name? I’ve forgotten.”

“Yue Qi,” Bai Chengyu said indifferently. “He’s Han Junzhou’s classmate. He’s also here as a substitute teacher, probably helping Professor Chen Tingyu with the freshman biology class.”

“Right, right, Yue Qi Laoshi!” Wang Ziheng slapped his leg. “He said last time that we should play basketball together, but I forgot to get his number. I’ll go ask him later.” Just then, Liao Sheng and Li Wenting returned with two plates of beef brisket rice, and the four of them began to eat.

Halfway through the meal, Wang Ziheng asked again, “Bai Shao, since you’re a club officer, you must know more campus gossip, right? Any gossip about Han Laoshi?”

“Yeah, tell us, what’s the latest with him?” Liao Sheng asked eagerly.

“Gossip about Han Laoshi?” Bai Chengyu looked up at Han Junzhou, who was chatting happily with Yue Qi. His tone was slightly cold as he asked, “Why would you want to dig into his personal life?”

“You don’t know? Han Laoshi is the hot topic in class right now, especially among the Omegas. They’re always talking about how elegant, composed, handsome, and gentle he is. Every time he comes to class, he’s always wearing an isolation patch, and they praise him for being a gentleman, saying he pays attention to etiquette and avoids any improper behavior. Anyway, they’re praising him to the skies. Every single one of them wants to smell him and become his Omega. Hey, do you think it’s because his scent is so hard to tolerate…?”

“No, he smells nice…” Bai Chengyu mumbled absentmindedly, defending Han Junzhou.

“What?” Wang Ziheng didn’t catch that, looking suspiciously at Bai Chengyu. Bai Chengyu realized his slip-up, awkwardly shook his head, and didn’t continue.

“Anyway, that mature Alpha of his makes all of us look like immature kids,” Wang Ziheng gestured toward Li Wenting. “Even Wen Yuyi is drooling over Han Laoshi. Just now, Li Wenting invited her to the movie this Friday, and she turned him down. But when she heard Han Laoshi was going, she immediately said yes. Tsk.” Wen Yuyi was the female Omega that Li Wenting had been chasing for a year. Bai Chengyu glanced at Li Wenting and saw the helpless, bitter smile on his face as he shook his head.

Liao Sheng added from the side, “We don’t think Han Laoshi is bad or has any problems. We’re just wondering—if Han Laoshi is already married, it would help these people give up.”

It turned out that the friendship between the group was on the verge of blossoming into something more, and Wang Ziheng and the others were trying to help.

“Han Laoshi isn’t married. But…” Bai Chengyu looked at Han Junzhou, who was chatting with his former lover, and after a moment’s hesitation, he decided to cruelly put a stop to his romantic prospects. “But he does have a partner.” Bai Chengyu deliberately left his words vague. As soon as he said this, Wang Ziheng and Liao Sheng excitedly shouted, “He has a partner!” Even the more reserved Li Wenting’s eyes lit up, and he smiled in surprise. Bai Chengyu felt a bit of sweetness, but more than that, he felt guilty.

This news wasn’t exactly a fabricated rumor, right? It was agreed that Han Junzhou had a partner-treatment plan, so he technically have a partner, right?

“Don’t say I told you this,” Bai Chengyu quickly warned his friends, “I… I’m not really sure.”

“Of course, of course. We won’t blow your cover. We’ll need you to give us more gossip later,” Wang Ziheng patted his chest to promise. “Don’t worry, our lips are sealed. We’ll only say Han Laoshi has a partner.”

“…” That’s what they call keeping secrets? More like a huge leak, Bai Chengyu thought. Anyway, exposing Han Junzhou’s relationship would help sever his romantic prospects, which was what Bai Chengyu intended. Let them spread the news far and wide.

Feeling somewhat pleased for doing something devious, Bai Chengyu was just about to enjoy the moment when he glanced at Han Junzhou again. His sharp eyes noticed that Han Junzhou had handed a rectangular, colorful ticket to Yue Qi.

It looked very familiar—exactly like the movie ticket he had received that morning.

“…How does he already have tickets?” Bai Chengyu was fuming. “Is he going to the movies with Yue Qi? Damn it. I’m so mad. So mad!”

It wasn’t just frustration—it was pure, unfiltered rage!

After finishing his beef brisket rice without tasting it, Bai Chengyu placed his spoon down, and just as he did, Wang Ziheng quickly took his plate. “Hurry, hurry, Yue Laoshi is leaving.”

Wang Ziheng rushed ahead, cutting off Yue Qi, who had already stood up. “Yue Laoshi, wait a second,” he ran up to him, startling both Han Junzhou and Yue Qi.

“Hello, Han Laoshi,” Wang Ziheng greeted the still-sitting Han Junzhou, who was sipping tea. Then he turned to Yue Qi. “Hello, Yue Laoshi, I’m Wang Ziheng. I don’t know if you remember me, but we played basketball together last time.”

Yue Qi, surprised by the sudden interruption, looked confused at first. But as soon as he heard Wang Ziheng’s words, he immediately remembered. “Ah, I remember! We had a great time last time, and you mentioned wanting to play again.”

“Yes, yes, but I forgot to exchange contact information with you. You play really well. Let’s add each other as friends and arrange another game sometime.”

“Alright, no problem.” Yue Qi said easily. He took out his phone, and he and Wang Ziheng added each other as friends. Liao Sheng and Li Wenting, standing nearby, quickly joined in, asking Yue Qi when he was usually free to meet up.

Han Junzhou watched Yue Qi, surrounded by his students, with a smile. He couldn’t help but admire how well-liked Yue Qi was. Suddenly, he saw Bai Chengyu slowly walking toward him and standing behind his classmates, glaring at him with an ominous expression.

“…” Han Junzhou was puzzled, not understanding why he had once again angered this hot-tempered little leopard.

Yue Qi, already in a hurry to leave, finished adding his contacts and said his goodbyes. Wang Ziheng and the others also waved goodbye to Han Junzhou, and they all headed toward the restaurant door.

“Ahem,” Han Junzhou spoke up. “Class representative, please stay a moment. I have something I’d like you to help with.” He pulled out the chair next to him for Bai Chengyu to sit.

Wang Ziheng and the others, including Yue Qi, turned around to look at them. Yue Qi raised an eyebrow and gave Han Junzhou a confused look.

Han Junzhou, however, only gently looked at Bai Chengyu. In such a public setting with Yue Qi and his classmates standing by, Bai Chengyu couldn’t ignore Han Junzhou. Reluctantly, he moved to the other side of the table, pulling out a chair to sit across from Han Junzhou.

“You guys go ahead,” Bai Chengyu said to Wang Ziheng.

“Alright, we’re off!” The young boys, oblivious to the strange atmosphere between the two older men, were still happily discussing how they had just exchanged contact details with Yue Qi.

However, Yue Qi noticed. The older man had pulled out the chair for the younger one, but the boy had coldly walked to the side and pulled out another chair, clearly displaying a haughty and provocative attitude.

Yue Qi caught the knowing look in the older man’s gentle expression and realized what was going on. He recalled the strange situation on the basketball court when the boy had been staring at him so intently, and now it all made sense.

Yue Qi couldn’t help but laugh. He remembered what Han Junzhou had said that day.

He had said: “Yue Qi, do you think Director Li would strip your skin if he knew you had your eyes on a student?”

Now, Yue Qi lightly tapped his fingers and pointed them at Han Junzhou’s head: Looks like you’re the one in trouble now.

(To be continued…)

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