The voice reached Meng Shuyan’s ears through the water, already somewhat distorted. He couldn’t clearly distinguish what Shi Changying was saying.
The suffocating feeling left him with no time to care about anything else. Even breathing was difficult. "Let... me go... or I’ll make you..."
Shi Changying admired his pathetic, fruitless struggles. "Just like him, you never consider if you can bear the consequences before doing something."
"Who... who exactly are you—Pfft!" As soon as Meng Shuyan opened his mouth, the hand pressing down on him pushed an inch deeper. Liquid poured down his throat. An unprecedented wave of nausea nearly made him pass out.
Just when he was about to give out, the hand finally, mercifully pulled him up.
Meng Shuyan barely managed a single breath before he was shoved back down the very next second.
The familiar, pungent stench assailed him again, making his head buzz with pain.
Shi Changying’s expression remained indifferent, her gaze not changing in the slightest. She absentmindedly calculated the time, lifting Meng Shuyan up and dunking him back down at precise intervals in an endless loop.
RINGGGG—
The sudden class bell interrupted her. Remembering her goal to rank first in the grade, Shi Changying mercifully let go and turned to leave.
"Cough, cough, cough!" Finally able to breathe, Meng Shuyan coughed violently, almost hacking out his lungs.
For the first time in his life, the class bell sounded as beautiful as heavenly music.
He slumped onto the floor. It took him a few minutes to regain enough strength to frantically claw at his throat, managing to dry-heave a few mouthfuls of sour bile, his face deathly pale.
He was the only one in the restroom. Looking around, Meng Shuyan realized there weren’t even any extra footprints on the floor. It was clear the attacker had meticulously planned this. His identity was known to all. Who at Jianghuai High School would dare step on his head?
Meng Shuyan carefully searched every corner but still found no clues.
"Damn it!" he cursed, punching the wall with a terrifyingly dark look in his eyes. Naturally, he couldn’t appear before his classmates looking like this, or his name would be trending on the school forum within half a day. He quickly headed to the locker room.
***
When Shi Changying entered the classroom, the English teacher was already standing at the podium. After sitting down, she stared blankly at the letters on the screen and wondered, "Why do I, a Jiuzhou person, have to learn English?"
It didn’t take long at all. She lasted a mere thirty seconds before declaring defeat and surrendering to sleep.
An unknown amount of time passed before something cool supported her head. A voice sounded from her upper right. "If you sleep like this, your neck won’t be able to take it."
"This is the proper posture for secretly sleeping," Shi Changying said, glancing at Shaoyuan before closing her eyes again.
How could one sleep during a morning court assembly without the ministers noticing? Naturally, one had to sit perfectly straight. The head bearing the royal crown couldn’t wobble. Occasionally, one had to open their eyes, nod, and pretend to be listening.
Empress Taichu had a lot of experience in this regard.
In all the vast world, eating and sleeping were of the utmost importance.
A soft chuckle fell by her ear. Shi Changying felt as if she had smelled hypnotic incense; her drowsiness deepened, and she actually fell into a sound sleep.
While the students were in class, the vice principal rushed to the reception room and bowed to the man sitting on the sofa. "Mr. Pei, Principal Ning just mentioned you yesterday. I didn’t expect you to visit in person. Please forgive us for not being fully prepared to receive you."
"No need to prepare," Pei Xuan said, waving a hand. "I came secretly anyway. Why bother with so many formalities? It’s too troublesome."
The vice principal breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "You’re absolutely right. Shall I show you around the campus?"
Pei Xuan nodded. "If the school is facing any difficulties, feel free to mention them."
The Pei family had donated several buildings to Jianghuai High School, purchased educational equipment, and even established a financial aid fund for underprivileged students.
"Difficulties?" The vice principal rubbed his head, then clapped his hands. "Recently, there really has been something troubling the principal. The old man wants to invite Master Xie Lin to give a guest lecture at the school."
Pei Xuan interrupted him. "You mean the musician named Xie Lin?"
"Yes. Master Xie Lin rarely comes to Jianghuai to hold a concert, so this is an incredibly rare opportunity. Who knows when he’ll visit Jianghuai again." The vice principal sighed. "But rumor has it that Sway International also wants to invite him. They are a private school, after all. When it comes to funding... Jianghuai High School can’t compete."
Pei Xuan scoffed lightly.
The vice principal asked tentatively, "I wonder if Mr. Pei has any connections..."
Before he could finish, Pei Xuan flatly cut him off. "No."
Ask him to invite Xie Qingshi? He wouldn’t do it even if it killed him.
The vice principal immediately fell silent.
"There are so many musicians. Why must it be that Xie Lin?" Pei Xuan said coldly. "Jiuzhou is so vast. Is there really no one else?"
"Yes, you’re right. I will mention it to the principal." Sweating, the vice principal changed the subject. "This way, Mr. Pei."
He led Pei Xuan to the senior teaching building, where students were currently attending classes.
"Mr. Pei, this month’s financial aid has already been deposited into the students’ meal cards," the vice principal reported. "Rest assured, we will absolutely ensure every bright child has the opportunity to study. We guarantee they will enter university and secure a brand new future."
Pei Xuan gave a faint hum of acknowledgment. "No matter what, they must have the chance to study. If you run into any hurdles, come straight to me."
Suddenly, his thoughts drifted to the past.
Empress Taichu had joined the army at a very young age. Unlike her brothers, she hadn’t learned the Six Arts of Gentlemen. She didn’t understand calligraphy, let alone arithmetic. Just being able to write an imperial edict was no easy feat for her.
In the beginning, there was no shortage of people who mocked her for being illiterate. Yet, she placed great importance on education, significantly increasing state funding for it.
Pei Xuan still remembered her words: "I truly do not understand these things, but I know studying is crucial. We must give them all the chance to read and learn, so they won’t end up like me."
She had been expressionless when she said that, her tone mild, as if it were the most ordinary matter in the world. But he could hear the deep-seated regret buried within her.
Did she not want to go to school?
She did.
But back then, no one had given her the opportunity.
Pei Xuan’s gaze drifted through the back window of Senior Class 17, watching the students listening to the lecture. At eighteen, they were full of youthful vitality, yet still a bit naive.
Yet at that age, she had already ascended the throne as Empress.
If she could have traveled four hundred years into the future like him, would she have been able to fulfill her wish of going to school?
Pei Xuan mused quietly, his gaze calm.
By the window, Shi Changying had fallen fast asleep. Her head finally drooped, making her stand out starkly among the students who were all focused on the blackboard.
Pei Xuan’s gaze landed precisely on her.