Professor Shi's frustration was palpable.
His eyes scanned the lecture hall for what felt like the hundredth time. The class had been dragging on for nearly two hours, and the suffocating silence was getting to him.
The dull hum of the air conditioning was the only sound in the room.
His sharp gaze landed on the students, most of whom were doing their best to avoid eye contact. The students were like a sea of blank, glazed-over expressions, their bodies hunched over their notebooks or laptops, as if they could disappear if they concentrated hard enough.
Professor Shi's fingers tapped against the wooden desk in front of him, the noise loud and staccato, signaling his growing impatience. His deep-set eyes narrowed under furrowed brows, his face twisted in irritation.
He was not a man known for his patience, nor for his warmth.
"Any questions?" he asked, his voice stern and carrying a note of finality.
It wasn't really a question; it was more of a challenge. He tapped his fingers again on the table, this time more forcefully, as though daring anyone to speak up.
The students, predictably, remained silent. Some shifted uncomfortably in their seats, while others pretended to be engrossed in their notes. A few of them scribbled nonsense just to look busy.
No one wanted to be the one to engage Professor Shi and risk his wrath. The man was infamous for his ruthless responses, quick to humiliate students who didn't meet his standards.
Getting a question wrong in front of him wasn't just embarrassing; it was a public execution of your intellectual credibility.
He might even laugh at you-
In the front row, Jing Hao, who usually sat straight and confident, was hunched over, avoiding the professor's gaze.
He subtly dipped his head, pretending to make a note, though his pencil barely moved across the paper. Behind him, a soft giggle broke the tense silence.
Yaya, sitting with her arms crossed, her lips twitching with barely contained amusement, had her eyes locked on Jing Hao's shrunken figure.
Professor Shi's attention zeroed in on her instantly.
His face, already tense, hardened further as he raised a brow, glaring down at the offending student. His voice cut through the air like a blade.
"Is there something funny going on there, young lady?" he asked sharply, his tone filled with disdain.
Yaya froze, her wide eyes betraying a hint of panic as she realized she had been caught. Her lips, which had been curled into a smirk just moments before, tightened into a straight line.
For a moment, she seemed at a loss, her fingers fiddling with the edge of her notebook as she looked for a way out of the situation.
She cast a quick glance at Lia, who was sitting directly in front of her. Lia, with her sleek dark hair falling perfectly into place, was sitting quietly, head resting on her hand as if she was entirely unaffected by the tense atmosphere.
Yaya's eyes lit up with an idea—a terrible one, but an idea nonetheless. With a sly smile creeping back onto her face, she leaned forward and pointed at Lia.
"This girl in front of me had a question," Yaya said, her voice dripping with false sweetness, as though she were doing Lia a favor.
Lia blinked, her eyebrows knitting together in confusion. She turned slightly to glance at Yaya, completely bewildered by how she had been dragged into this. Her eyes widened for a moment, and then her expression hardened as the realization of Yaya's betrayal sank in.
A quiet but sharp exhale escaped her lips as she straightened in her seat.
Yaya's smirk deepened as she leaned back in her chair, clearly satisfied with herself. The attention was now off her, and she looked smug, as if she'd skillfully maneuvered herself out of the firing line.
Lia, still processing the absurdity of the situation, leaned back slightly and whispered harshly to Yaya, "What are you doing?" Her voice was low but filled with frustration.
Yaya, not one to back down from a scene, ignored the question and instead raised her voice dramatically.
"You should ask Professor Shi, not me!" she said loudly, ensuring everyone in the room was now focused squarely on Lia.
A ripple of murmurs passed through the class. Some of the students exchanged amused glances, secretly relieved they weren't the ones in the spotlight. Others shifted awkwardly in their seats, grateful to not be the target but empathetic to Lia's sudden misfortune.
Lia sighed, realizing there was no graceful way out of this. She had been backed into a corner. Taking a deep breath, she turned her head toward the front of the room, locking eyes with Professor Shi, who was now staring at her with intense confusion.
Professor Shi's eyes narrowed further as his gaze bore into her. He crossed his arms, his stance rigid and authoritative, but his eyes wide open. His frown deepened as he racked his mind to process what he was seeing.
Mouth agape, he was almost cute...
'What the heck is the new professor Qin (junior) doing in the front row of my class?!'