Wang Baobao was a student who cared about grades and credits, so of course, she would think that the professor's wrath could be a disaster. However, Hu Lai had credits but nowhere to spend them. The worst moment was when she fell asleep in class twice, and the last time she drooled and called out for her mom.

How much worse could it get?

Professor Shen wouldn't chop off her beautiful head.

"Professor Shen—" Hu Lai called out to her, her smile sparkling with eagerness.

Professor Shen was puzzled. Ever since she raised the class participation score to account for fifty percent of the total grade and made the final exam based on a term paper, the only students who usually begged her to add them on WeChat were two types: those doing promotions, holding signs everywhere asking people to scan for more commissions, and those involved in selling products, like face masks or weight-loss items.

Clearly, the girl in front of her didn't seem like a promoter. It wouldn't be worth the effort to add her on WeChat. Plus, the girl didn't look like she was in need of money.

Her phone wasn't the latest model, but her watch was expensive, and even the canvas tote bag was a designer item from Issey Miyake, as Sun Shuxue had recently informed her.

Sun Shuxue was a professor at the same school as Shen Zhengying, a year older than her. For some reason, Sun Shuxue, like an elder sister, took care of Shen Zhengying at school, often recommending her some high-end brands to improve her style and appearance for a successful second, third, fourth, or even fifth spring.

She also warned her not to buy from MLM (Multi-Level Marketing) schemes. Afraid that she might not know what MLM was, she explained to her that MLM was all about relentlessly asking you to add them on WeChat, flooding your feed with posts about how great a face mask looked or how effective a meal replacement was for losing weight.

The girl in front of her was currently in the phase of desperately wanting to add her on WeChat.

After some thought, Shen Zhengying said directly, "I don't look at other people's WeChat moments, nor do I buy things."

Hu Lai didn't catch on. If she didn't check moments, that was fine, she could do it. What did buying things have to do with her? She wasn't selling anything!

When she finally realized that the other person mistook her for being involved in MLM, her face suddenly fell, and she shot a dark look at Shen Zhengying, squeezing out each word through clenched teeth: "Professor Shen, do you have some misunderstanding about me?"

Professor Shen had no idea who she was.

"Um, student, I already said last time that I don't add students on WeChat."

Hu Lai wanted to argue further when she suddenly heard someone call "Mom" from a distance, and and her scalp instantly prickled.

Shen Zhengying was very sensitive to her son's voice and looked in the direction of the sound, vaguely seeing two figures. "That's my son Jiang Yuming, do you know him?"

"I don't know. If your son is here, I'll be leaving first. I'm socially anxious and don't like meeting new people. Professor Shen, see you next week." As soon as Hu Lai heard the voice, she wanted to run. If she didn't, facing him would be incredibly awkward—like getting caught in that post. It was too risky now, it could affect her plans.

Shen Zhengying was just about to tell her not to bother coming next week, that sleeping at home was better than sleeping in her class, and what was the point of sleeping so soundly in her class every time? If the supervisors saw her, there would inevitably be trouble. Without saying a word, she saw the young woman quickly disappear into the darkness. She could only call out from behind, "Stay safe."

The girl waved back at her.

Shen Zhengying shook her head and smiled.

Along with Jiang Yuming was a female classmate, elegant and refined, who seemed a bit shy upon seeing her and said, "Good evening, Professor Shen."

Shen Zhengying replied, "Good evening," in the same tone she used in class—serious and formal.

The female classmate glanced at Jiang Yuming, who smiled and said, "It's okay, my Mom acts like this around students. Mom, this is my girlfriend Yu Zixuan, she's in her senior year."

Shen Zhengying nodded. Having her son at the school brought mixed feelings: Happy that he could keep her updated on everything, but worried that there were too many updates she didn't want to hear.

As for his girlfriend, she hadn't even memorized the last name yet, and now there was another one. She really admired her son's ability to remember each and every name. Moreover, many of these students had names with characters like "璇" (xuan) and "萱" (xuan), very romance novel-like.

She wondered what that girl's name was. If her name also had a "璇"(xuan),  "萱"(xuan),  or "詩" (shi),  it would be too mismatched with her personality.

Having a son who was too popular was also a mother's worry. On one hand, she felt proud that her boy had grown up, but on the other hand, she feared he might hurt others.

She had to frequently remind him: don't deceive girls' feelings. If it works, great, if not, let it go. Don't use your strength to bully others. Take care of your female classmates, and always use protection—that's a man's responsibility.

"Mom, who were you talking to just now? She looked a bit familiar." Jiang Yuming, seeing his mom, also noticed the person she was speaking with. His eyesight wasn't great, and it was dark, so he couldn't see clearly, but he knew it was a woman.

"Just a... student." Shen Zhengying hesitated a bit. She supposed it could be considered a student.

"A student?" Jiang Yuming was puzzled. His mom rarely interacted closely with students.

"Just a mischievous one."

Jiang Yuming understood. "She's just messing with you, let her fail her exam. Make her retake the course, make her cry and call you 'Daddy'."

"Stop talking nonsense. It's already late, I'm going home." Shen Zhengying glanced at Yu Zixuan and asked her son, "Ming Ming, do you remember what I usually tell you?"

Jiang Yuming quickly replied, "I remember! Don't bully female classmates, right? Nowadays, female classmates are so powerful, your son is the one getting bullied. You should head back quickly. Mom, goodnight, Mom, sweet dreams, Mom, bye-bye."

"Goodbye, Professor Shen."

"Goodbye."

Shen Zhengying displayed maternal virtue and filial piety, while Hu Lai barely managed to escape, her second encounter with Professor Shen ending in failure.

Today was another day she failed to get her WeChat.

The only thing she gained was seeing Jiang Yuming's new girlfriend, who was about the same as in the video – a petite girl with a well-behaved look and nothing particularly special about her.

To make matters worse, when she got home and collapsed onto her bed, the strong black coffee she had before class began to take effect.

Hu Lai tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep well.

She couldn't understand how someone who had once liked her could now be interested in a girl so completely different from herself.

She couldn't figure out why Shen Zhengying refused to give her WeChat.

She also couldn't understand how she could fall asleep in Shen Zhengying's class without any guard up.

A thousand and ten thousand thoughts she couldn't figure out.

At three in the morning, she suddenly sat up, swearing:

"If I ever attend that hypnotic devil's class again, I swear I'm a damn pig!"

On a weekday, Hu Lai vented to Zhou Huaiyi about her second awkward class experience, and Zhou Huaiyi laughed so hard she almost fell off her chair.

When she heard that vow, Zhou Huaiyi said, "If you can fall asleep like that, aren't you already a pig? Later, let's log into a game and have the GM turn you into a pig, so you can get a taste of the pig's life early."

After saying that, she was fiercely kicked by Hu Lai.

When humans make a vow, God just laughs.

Fortunately, God never keeps a tally of impromptu vows and oaths, otherwise, the ground would probably be covered in pigs and dogs, and the sky would be filled with constant thunder.

Hu Lai managed to hold on for a week.

The following weekend, due to project demands, a group of people had to work overtime, missing even Friday's training session.

On Saturday evening, when Shen Zhengying entered the classroom, she subconsciously scanned the room, finding the same setup as three weeks ago, with all the registered students present, except for the oddly beautiful girl who didn't show up this time.

Had she finally realized that the bed at home was more comfortable than the desk at school?

Shen Zhengying sat down, opened the PowerPoint presentation, and continued the monotonous routine of her classes.

Like other universities in Shanghai, the main campus in the city could no longer accommodate the expanding student population. Freshmen at H University studied at a newly built campus for their first three years, while seniors and graduate students attended classes at the main campus. This meant professors had to move between the two locations.

The last two periods on Wednesday afternoons were dedicated to psychological health education for undergraduates, a required course for the education major, with three classes held together in a large lecture hall.

As she entered the bustling classroom, Shen Zhengying felt something was off. Being a seasoned teacher, she was well aware that the atmosphere and dynamics varied between different classes, but stepping into the classroom facing the same group of students, each session usually felt the same.

Today, however, the atmosphere was subtly different.

Some people in the corner were whispering and talking in hushed tones, and some students were also casting glances towards the back door corner when she wasn't paying attention.

From her position at the podium, Shen Zhengying could see all the little movements below. There was nothing a teacher wouldn't notice, it just depended on whether the teacher wanted to notice.

Shen Zhengying initially thought a guest lecturer or a visiting inspection team had arrived, but when she clearly saw what was happening in that corner, she was momentarily taken aback.

That fellow, she's here again.

Wasn't it working hours? Had she lost her job?

This time, Hu Lai didn't fall asleep.

The hypnotic devil finally had some variation in tone. Moreover, the hypnotic devil broke the norm by frequently moving around the classroom.

Whenever Hu Lai was about to doze off, Shen Zhengying would always walk over to her.

As soon as those old-fashioned black canvas shoes appeared, Hu Lai jolted awake. If she didn't wake up now, she might start thinking she had time-traveled to ancient times.

Who even wears canvas shoes these days?

During the break between classes, Shen Zhengying actually sat down.

With a cold demeanor, she brushed off a few people trying to strike up a conversation. Hu Lai overheard other students saying that when Professor Shen taught, she always sat there reading the PPT, completely unmoving like a statue, even if it thundered or hailed. Today, was she just trying to get her steps in for WeChat? Not only was she moving around, she was walking all over the place, making even the students sneaking glances at their phones do so cautiously.

Hu Lai couldn't help but think positively that Shen Zhengying's actions were likely for her own benefit.

Otherwise, there was no other reason for it.

It was only because the lecture hall was large and the podium was far from where Hu Lai was sitting that she didn't see Shen Zhengying glaring at her several times.

With a large number of students, there was a mix of good and bad. Although H University had high admission scores, high scores only represented good college entrance exam results. College entrance exam results weren't necessarily linked to a person's character.

There were two boys in the classroom from different classes: one was in the library engaged in inappropriate behavior, while the other was secretly filming under girls' skirts. A student reported this, but due to well-known reasons, the issue didn't escalate, and the school didn't take action, though the teachers were well aware of the situation.

Those two boys were sitting too close to that girl, one was already there, and the other had deliberately moved closer. Shen Zhengying knew that the girl had a habit of falling asleep whenever she listened to her lectures. Afraid that she would really fall asleep and be taken advantage of, she had no choice but to walk around more.

Walking around during class was even more tiring than shopping. She was wearing flat shoes with very thin soles, making walking even more strenuous.

But she had to keep walking.

After finally getting through two class periods, Shen Zhengying told the students, "If you have questions, just email me." and then immediately left.

As she left, Hu Lai hurriedly followed behind, calling out, "Professor Shen—"

Having inexplicably taken a thousand extra steps, Professor Shen was very tired and didn't want to talk, giving the little girl a roll of her eyes.

A roll of her eyes that even her oversized glasses couldn't hide.

---

⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆Charvinovel ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆