After Transmigrating for the Third Time, the Real Young Master Decides to Slouch - Chapter 6

The opening ceremony was held in the school auditorium. The enormous hall was packed full according to class, except for the seats belonging to Grade 11 Class 19, where only a scattered few people sat. But everyone was already used to it. That was the “Good-for-Nothing Concentration Camp,” after all. It was best if they did not come. If they did, trouble would definitely follow.

Sitting at the very front seemed to be their new homeroom teacher. Those who were well-informed had already found out his information: the biological son of the Lin family who had been switched at birth, a graduate of this school, first in the grade for three consecutive years during his time here. However, aside from studying, there had not been anything particularly outstanding about him. He had graduated from graduate school this year and was said to have been preparing for the national civil service exam, yet unexpectedly, he had now returned to his alma mater as a teacher.

Of course, no one thought there was anything wrong with his decision. Jiayin High School gathered the descendants of wealthy and prestigious families from all over Jing City, even the entire country. Teaching here, as long as one had the intention, could also allow a person to accumulate deep connections, which would be even more beneficial to future development. However, that was only under ordinary circumstances. He had taken over the most difficult class in the entire school. Although the students there were also either rich or noble, they were not easy to control. Trying to gain benefits from them would be difficult.

Quite a few people who liked to watch the excitement thought to themselves: Who knew how many days this Teacher Jiang, who looked so delicate and weak, would last before crying and resigning?

On stage, the principal was giving an impassioned speech. Jiang Zao yawned and continued swiping on his phone. Suddenly, his phone vibrated. Rong Jingcheng’s message had arrived.

Rong: Xiao Zao isn’t being good. I caught you playing on your phone.

Jiang Zao lifted his head. At the leaders’ seats on stage, School Director Rong was openly playing on his phone with his chin propped up. Even though he did not make any extra movements, his pleasing appearance alone was enough to attract the attention of all the teachers and students in the hall.

Rong Jingcheng’s looks were gorgeous, even somewhat feminine. Usually, he always carried a lazy and casual air, more like an artist than an entrepreneur. But on an occasion like today, he had changed into a formal three-piece suit, his long hair tied into a ponytail that fell behind his head, highlighting a cold, elite temperament that carried a sharpness startling enough to shake the heart.

Jiang Zao smiled. Although the auditorium had air-conditioning, the crowd density was high. Even wearing summer clothes would make one sweat, not to mention such a thick suit. Those spotlights were all shining straight at the stage too.

Jiang Zao asked him: Are you hot?

Rong: I’m about to die from the heat.

The next message followed closely after: After this ends, I want iced cola. Xiao Zao, buy it for me.

Jiang Zao: Didn’t your secretary prepare any for you?

Rong: I want one bought by Xiao Zao.

Jiang Zao: I don’t have time. I still have to go back to class and take attendance.

Rong: Have you met them?

Jiang Zao: Mm. The students are pretty cute.

Rong: I’ll get jealous if you call other people cute.

Jiang Zao had just been about to reply when two very deliberate coughs sounded not far away. He looked over. The grade director was glaring at him with a stern face. Jiang Zao put his phone away.

Two hours later, the opening ceremony ended. Jiang Zao checked the time. There was still enough time for him to return to the office and drink some water.

After parting from Jiang Tong and Lu She, Jiang Zao returned to the office. The office was very large, with not many workstations. There were partitions between them, and they were spaced far apart, so there was basically no interference between teachers.

Two meters beside Jiang Zao’s workstation was the desk of the mathematics teacher from the same class. Jiang Zao had only hurriedly met him in the morning. He was a refined-looking young man named Meng Qiuyu.

Meng Qiuyu smiled and nodded at Jiang Zao, then pointed at his desk. “Someone came just now and put that on your desk.”

Jiang Zao looked over. A bottle of cola sat on his desk, still faintly giving off cold mist. Jiang Zao thanked him. “Thank you for reminding me.”

“You’re welcome.” Meng Qiuyu smiled warmly. “There’s nothing arranged for today after the opening ceremony. Want to leave together?”

Jiang Zao held the bottle of cola. The cold droplets of water dampened his hand. He said, “No, I still have to go to the classroom.”

Meng Qiuyu looked puzzled.

Jiang Zao’s tone was helpless. “I’m the homeroom teacher. There are always all sorts of things to handle afterward.”

Meng Qiuyu nodded in understanding. “Then I’ll leave first. Goodbye, Teacher Jiang.”

“Goodbye.”

After Meng Qiuyu left, only Jiang Zao remained in the office. He twisted open the bottle cap and took a gulp. The well-carbonated drink was icy and refreshing as it entered his mouth, instantly carrying away the heat of summer. Jiang Zao immediately felt full of energy.

As he drank cola, he pulled out his phone: I got the cola.

A reply soon came: I’m drinking cola too.

Imagining Rong Jingcheng in a full formal suit while holding a cola and drinking it, Jiang Zao smiled: Going to class now.

Rong: Mm. Let’s have lunch together.

Jiang Zao: Okay.

Putting down his phone, Jiang Zao took another sip of cola, screwed the cap back on, wrote the character “Jiang” on a sticky note, tore it off, and stuck it on the bottle. After putting the cola into the office refrigerator, he took the roster and walked toward the classroom.

There were no classes next. Most of the classrooms along the way had emptied. Ahead was the classroom of Grade 11 Class 19. Before he even got close, the clamor inside was already deafening.

Jiang Zao glanced inside through the window. There were more people than before, but the classroom was too large and the number of students too few, so it still looked empty.

He thought to himself, barely twenty-something people, yet they had somehow managed to create the momentum of two thousand. They were quite good at making noise.

He walked into the classroom, went to the podium, and held the mouse. He paused the ear-splitting music. The noise in the classroom immediately dropped by half, and the other half also quieted considerably after noticing that someone had come in.

It had reached an acceptable volume.

With a faint, almost imperceptible smile, Jiang Zao looked at the boy standing on a desk in the middle of the classroom, dancing energetically along with the music, and praised him, “Not bad dancing. But stop for a moment first. You can continue after I finish taking attendance.”

The boy shrugged and jumped down from the desk. The people gathered around cheering also returned to their seats one after another.

“Is everyone here?” Jiang Zao asked.

“I don’t know,” “Everyone’s here,” “No”—there were all kinds of answers. Jiang Zao nodded and said, “Time is precious. If not everyone is here, we won’t wait.”

“Although I already introduced myself this morning, considering that many students were not here earlier, I’ll introduce myself again.” Jiang Zao pointed at the name that had not been erased from the whiteboard. “Jiang Zao. This is my name. I am your new homeroom teacher and Chinese teacher.”

“All right, you already know me now. Next, I’ll get to know all of you.” Jiang Zao opened the roster. “When I call your name, raise your hand to indicate you’re here—Dai Chu.”

Dai Chu was still lowering her head and reading. When she heard her name called, she raised her hand.

“Fang Han.”

“Mm.” A cool voice answered. It was the boy who had just been dancing on the desk.

“Guan Junjie.”

“Here.”

Jiang Zao went down the list one by one. Each name received either a weak and lifeless response or a drawn-out, sarcastic answer.

“Qiu Shao.”

No one answered.

“Qiu Shao.” Jiang Zao read it once more and scanned the students below the podium. Still, no one raised a hand.

“Qiu Shao?”

“Teacher Jiang, Qiu Shao isn’t here,” Song Jintong said loudly.

Zhou Yuan asked with a smile, “If Qiu Shao didn’t come, does that mean you can expel him?”

The others became excited and joined in, making a commotion.

“Whoa, are you really going to expel him?”

“Expel him, expel him! Teacher, you said it yourself. You can’t go back on your word.”

“Teacher, you’re a teacher. If your words don’t count, how are you supposed to teach us students?”

Jiang Tong watched with fear and trembling. This moment had finally come. Ahhh, what should they do, what should they do? Why didn’t he come? Was he really not afraid of being expelled?

Jiang Zao saw Jiang Tong’s worried expression. Aside from a select few, everyone else was making noise and demanding that he fulfill his promise. Their smiles were lively and full of malice.

Jiang Zao nodded and lifted his pen toward the roster. “Qiu Shao isn’t here, right…”

“Here.” A lazy voice, dragging the tail end of a yawn, came from the classroom doorway.

A delicate-looking boy stood at the door, his hair messy and his clothes equally messy. He was even wearing slippers on his feet. He walked in. “I’m Qiu Shao. I’m here.”

He walked to the nearest seat, sat down, and lay on the desk to sleep.

The tip of Jiang Zao’s pen dotted the roster. He withdrew the pen and said, “This time doesn’t count as you being late. Next time, it will.”

“Tsk.” The classroom was filled with disappointed boos.

Jiang Zao continued taking attendance. This time, he smoothly reached the end. “Lu She.”

“Here.”

Jiang Zao closed the roster and clapped his hands. “Very good. The whole class is present. Next, I’ll tell everyone my rules.”

The whispers below the podium had never stopped, and now they grew even more restless.

“It’s very simple. There are only two.” Jiang Zao raised two fingers. “First, no absences. Second, no making noise.”

As soon as the rules came out, the classroom exploded into noise.

Jiang Zao could not hear clearly and had no desire to listen. The hand he had on the mouse clicked, and the music from earlier started playing again. Its volume doubled, easily drowning out the students’ voices.

That enormous sound seemed to strike straight into the soul. Everyone shuddered and could no longer make a sound.

Jiang Zao clicked the mouse again, and the music stopped once more.

Looking at the somewhat dazed expressions across the entire class, he said, “No absences is my requirement as homeroom teacher. As long as you guarantee that you are in the classroom during class time, that’s enough. If something comes up, ask for leave. I won’t interfere with what you do at other times. No making noise is my personal requirement. I don’t like noise. As long as you can do this, whether you sleep, play on your phone, dance, or practice tai chi, I have no objections.”

Someone was indignant. What kind of requirement was this? He had never heard of such a thing! What kind of teacher was this? Was he here to be funny?

“Hey, if you do this—”

Jiang Zao raised his index finger and placed it beside his lips. “Shh.”

The student being looked at actually shivered in this early September weather of over thirty degrees. He had the feeling that those eyes had seen through the lenses and reached the depths of his soul, coldly scraping over it.

He did not dare speak anymore.

The classroom became completely silent. Jiang Zao was very satisfied. “Very good. Keep it like this.”

“Since the class didn’t have any class officers before, we’ll choose some now.” Jiang Zao’s gaze swept around the classroom. “Any volunteers?”

Utter silence.

Jiang Zao was not surprised. “Since no one is nominating themselves, I’ll appoint them. Class monitor, Jiang Tong. Study committee member, Lu She. Any objections?”

Still no one made a sound, but Jiang Tong shook his head like a rattle drum.

Jiang Zao paid no attention to whether he was unwilling or simply had no objections. He continued, “As for the other positions, such as subject representatives and committee members, I don’t have candidates for now. We’ll choose them after some time.”

The room remained quiet.

Although it was quiet, there were truly many small movements below. Sleeping, playing on phones, gesturing with hands, and there was even someone actually shadowboxing at the air.

As Jiang Zao had said, he did not interfere. He only frowned as he looked at the scattered seat distribution. His obsessive-compulsive side could not bear such disorder. In the end, he still could not hold back and said, “One last thing. Seat arrangement.”

All the small movements stopped. One by one, they looked at him with tightly furrowed brows.

Jiang Zao pointed toward the classroom door. “According to student number, two people to a desk, starting from the desk by the door and moving backward. Four rows and three columns. Move the extra desks to the back. Now, start moving.”

Only Jiang Tong and Lu She cooperatively stood up. Everyone else remained seated without moving.

“Once the seats have been changed, everyone can be dismissed,” Jiang Zao said.

Even with the rule against making noise, many stubborn boos still rang out. The meaning behind his words was basically that if they did not change seats, they were not allowed to leave.

Fine. Then they would drag this out and see who could outlast whom.

Author’s Note:

Our Teacher Jiang is also very impressive.