Ultraman: It turns out this is the easy mode.

Horii had just breathed a sigh of relief that Sayaka had taken the initiative to help him out of the predicament, and he was silently grateful for the goddess's understanding. But when he heard what she said next, he froze completely. His anxiety and anger instantly turned into utter bewilderment. The corners of his mouth still held a grateful smile, but his eyes were completely empty.

He slowly peeked out from behind Sayaka, staring wide-eyed at her back. His mouth opened and closed, but he couldn't utter a single word for a long time—wait, goddess, if you're going to help me out of a predicament, then help me out properly. Why did you have to insult me ​​from head to toe, inside and out? What did I do to offend you? What divine law did I break?!

Cui Ming leaned back in his chair, watching the whole farcical persuasion drama unfold. He watched Horii go from being full of confidence to jumping up and down in a panic, and then to being dumbfounded after Sayaka's finishing blow. His lips twitched involuntarily, and a hint of a smile was hidden in his eyes.

He didn't speak, but silently stood up and slowly took out two items from an inconspicuous little canvas bag he had brought—a brightly colored, almost garish, rainbow-colored afro wig and a round, shiny red clown nose. He walked over and handed the two items to Horii, who was still in a daze, questioning his existence.

"Put it on." Cui Ming's tone was serious, but there was a hint of a smile hidden in his eyes.

"Instructor! You're mocking me too?!" Horii stared at the funny prop Cui Ming handed him, then at the other's serious face, as if he were handing over something important. He was completely dumbfounded, his voice trembling with tears, his eyes welling up with red. So, you two, one openly insulting me, the other subtly mocking me, are you both treating me like a joke? What have I done today?!
As Sanada Ryosuke watched the series of hilarious and unexpected events unfold, his eyes twitched involuntarily. The pent-up resentment and depression he'd been feeling miraculously vanished in the face of the series of farcical mishaps and Horii's "tragic ordeal." Watching Horii being publicly ridiculed by Sayaka and then presented with comedic props by Choi, he suddenly felt that his own resentment at being "unloved for not winning first place" didn't seem so insignificant after all. At least, he'd never been publicly "executed" like this, never been "attacked" by both his friend and the goddess he admired.

Compared to Hori's current dire situation, his own troubles were utterly insignificant. Sanada Ryosuke couldn't help but silently complain to himself: Damn, Hori is really having a terrible time... He was no longer depressed; in fact, he even felt a little sorry for Hori.

Sometimes
You'll realize this when others are worse off than you.
Actually, this world is still quite beautiful.
Looking at Horii, who was completely "attacked" and on the verge of tears, Sanada Ryosuke felt his last bit of depression and resentment completely vanish. He even felt a strange sense of relief that "I'm actually doing pretty well," and everything around him seemed much more pleasing to the eye.

Choi Myung, who had been watching all this, finally spoke up to break the strange and somewhat comical atmosphere, saying in a calm tone, "Alright, that's enough. Horii does have many good qualities."

"Instructor!"

Upon hearing this, Horii turned around abruptly as if grasping at a lifeline, his eyes brimming with tears as he looked at Choi Myung. His eyes were red-rimmed, and the tip of his nose was also red. He looked so aggrieved, like a child who had suffered a great injustice and had finally found someone to stand up for him.

Upon hearing this, Horii turned around abruptly, as if he had grabbed a lifeline while drowning, his eyes brimming with tears as he looked at Choi Myung. His eyes were red like a rabbit's, the tip of his nose was also red, and there were still traces of tears on his cheeks. He looked so aggrieved, like a child who had suffered a great injustice and been abandoned by the whole world, who had finally found the only person willing to stand up for him.

"The instructor is the most reliable one! Only the instructor can see my strengths at times like this!" Horii shouted excitedly in his heart. The grievances and frustration of being publicly ridiculed by Sayaka and being given a funny prop by Choi Ming were instantly dispelled by this sentence. He was filled with gratitude towards Choi Ming, and his eyes shone with light when he looked at Choi Ming.

However.
Before Horii's gratitude could fully take hold, he couldn't contain his excitement and anticipation. He took two steps forward, his face flushed, and eagerly said to Choi Myung, "Instructor! Please tell me a few of my strengths! Let them see! I'm not full of flaws like Sayaka said!"

"."

Upon hearing this, Cui Ming's calm expression froze instantly, plunging him into a brief yet incredibly long silence. He frowned slightly, his gaze unconsciously sweeping over Hori from head to toe, from his short hair and slightly chubby figure to his now red-rimmed eyes, as if meticulously taking stock of his strengths. The air in the laboratory fell silent again, so quiet that Hori's expectant, rapid breathing could be clearly heard, along with the occasional whistling of the wind from outside the window.

A few seconds later, under Horii's expectant gaze, Cui Ming finally spoke slowly, his tone still calm and even, revealing no emotion whatsoever: "His research ability is extremely strong."

"Hmm! And then?" Horii's eyes lit up instantly, as if he had received tremendous affirmation. He quickly leaned forward, asking questions incessantly, his face full of excitement and anticipation, as if he was ready to receive a long string of praises. In his view, he certainly had more than just this one advantage; the instructor just needed a little time to recall and organize his thoughts. There would definitely be a whole host of other advantages to mention.

"."

Another silence, even longer than before, followed. Cui Ming fell silent again, his brows furrowing even more deeply, a barely perceptible hint of struggle and difficulty in his eyes, as if he were racking his brains to find other redeeming qualities in Hori, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't think of anything he could immediately say. The atmosphere in the laboratory became strange once more, and the expectation on Hori's face gradually froze.

"Instructor! Don't stay silent!" Horii saw Cui Ming fall silent again, his expectant expression freezing completely. His heart skipped a beat, and a strong sense of foreboding welled up inside him. He couldn't help but lean forward again, his voice trembling noticeably, filled with urgency and unease: "Please tell me! What other advantages do you have? Think again! There must be some!"

When Hori noticed Choi's silence, he felt completely overwhelmed. The glimmer of hope that had just ignited was instantly extinguished by this long and heavy silence, and a sense of grievance, panic, and unease slowly spread through him, almost overwhelming him. "No! Instructor, please don't do this!!!" Hori cried out in his heart, his eyes reddening again, large tears welling up. His gaze towards Choi was filled with pleading; he was practically begging on his knees to tell him a few good qualities.

However, Cui Ming's silence spoke volumes. His furrowed brows, hesitant eyes, and inability to speak all silently conveyed the cruel and heartbreaking truth that he "couldn't think of anything more."

"Instructor, tell me how handsome I am!" Horii, unwilling to give up, grasped at the last straw. He stiffened his neck, fighting back tears, and looked at Choi Myung with a stubborn and almost humble plea. He knew that "handsome" might be a bit of a stretch to describe him, but he didn't ask for much anymore. Even this polite remark was enough for him to hear Choi Myung's affirmation.

However.
Upon hearing this, Cui Ming paused for a moment, seemingly surprised that Hori would make such a request. He then sighed softly, looking at Hori with a complex expression—helplessness, sympathy, and a hint of unspoken conflict. He spoke slowly, his tone carrying an indescribable sense of helplessness and regret: "Horii...sigh."

This deep, helpless sigh was like a heavy hammer blow to Horii's heart, shattering his last glimmer of hope.

"Instructor! Please don't do this!!!" Horii completely broke down, his voice filled with desperate sobs, tears finally streaming down his face. He never imagined that in the instructor's eyes, his only redeeming quality was "strong research ability," and he couldn't even get a perfunctory compliment like "handsome"! This was even more painful than being publicly criticized by Sayaka!

Seeing Horii completely break down and sob uncontrollably, Sanada Ryosuke instinctively shrank back, trying to minimize his presence and avoid being affected. He was no longer depressed at all, and even felt that Horii was much worse off than himself, and felt a strange sense of sympathy for him—it turned out that there were people who were living a more "difficult" life than he was.

Seeing Horii crying with tears and snot streaming down his face, sobbing uncontrollably, Sayaka couldn't hold back her laughter any longer. She quickly composed herself and stepped forward, seizing this perfect opportunity to continue persuading Sanada Ryosuke. Her tone was sincere, yet tinged with just the right amount of urgency, her eyes full of earnestness: "Look at Ryosuke, even after being criticized to his face and brutally 'bombarded' by the instructor's silence, Horii still hasn't given up. He's still trying to prove his worth. You've always had a smooth life, and you're talented in research, much more successful than him. What reason do you have to give up on yourself because of a little obsession?"

"Here."

Sanada Ryosuke was taken aback by the question. He opened his mouth, but his throat felt like it was stuffed with cotton, and he couldn't utter a single rebuttal for a long time. He remained silent for a good ten seconds, lowering his head to carefully consider Sayaka's words. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that what she said seemed to make sense. Horii had been insulted so badly, and even cried like this, but he himself was just stuck in a rut because of the twisted obsession that "no one will love me if I don't get first place," and he would break down and cry at the drop of a hat. Compared to him, it did seem like he was making a mountain out of a molehill, and even seemed a little ridiculous.

And
Sanada Ryosuke subconsciously turned his head to look to the side, only to see Horii squatting on the ground, his hands covering his face, his shoulders heaving, crying his heart out, gasping for breath, and occasionally letting out a few pitiful sobs. A very realistic thought suddenly popped into his mind: given Horii's current state of extreme grievance and near collapse, if he dared to say anything like "nobody loves me," "nobody cares about me," or "life is meaningless," Horii would most likely forget his sadness instantly, his eyes red, baring his teeth and rushing over to fight him, maybe even biting him a few times—after all, compared to Horii, his own grievances were nothing, and saying them now would just be rubbing salt into his wounds, practically courting death.

He decided it was best not to be reckless and cause trouble for himself. Sanada Ryosuke silently made up his mind, the struggle and depression on his face completely disappearing, replaced by deep remorse. He took a deep breath and bowed deeply to Sayaka and Horii, who was still squatting on the ground crying. His waist was almost touching the ground, and his tone was sincere and apologetic: "Yes! I'm very sorry. It was all my fault before. I shouldn't have been trapped by my obsession and gotten stuck in a rut, and I shouldn't have given up on myself over such a small matter, causing you all trouble."

Cui Ming leaned against the lab table, taking in Sanada Ryosuke's changing expression and apologetic manner. Seeing that he had finally come to his senses, a barely perceptible hint of satisfaction appeared on his face, and he nodded slightly. He hadn't planned to stay here any longer anyway; having achieved his goal of mediation, he naturally didn't want to stay and watch their subsequent emotional outbursts or arguments.

"Alright, the matter is resolved. You two can have a good talk later and give each other some advice." Cui Ming straightened up, casually patted off imaginary dust from his clothes, and his tone still carried his usual impatience, as if he wasn't the one who had patiently waited for Sanada Ryosuke to come to his senses. "I still have a bunch of troublesome things to deal with, and my wives at home are waiting for me to come back and cook. They're all so fussy at their age, it's really a headache."

"."

"."

"."

A sudden silence fell over the laboratory as three voices rang out in unison. Sanada Ryosuke, Horii, and Sayaka were all completely stunned, staring at Cui Ming's retreating figure with complicated expressions and their faces filled with astonishment.

One second he was acting as a mediator, helping to ease the instructor's emotions, and the next he seamlessly switched to吐槽 (tu cao, a Chinese internet slang term for complaining/criticizing) mode, even subtly showing off his "happy daily life of cooking for multiple wives." This turn of events was so sudden and unexpected that it caught everyone off guard. Especially Horii, who had just started crying, abruptly stopped. He lowered his hands from his face, his eyes red and tear-streaked, staring blankly in the direction Choi Myung had left, his heart filled with mixed emotions—a mixture of resentment and a strange envy. (End of Chapter)