We ordinary people also need to fall in love.

Am I still the class monitor?

Li Mubai was stunned for a moment. He thought Zhong Jianjun would assign him the identity of an ordinary citizen, after all, Zhong Jianjun had previously criticized him for being an incompetent squad leader.

"Damn it, I want to go back to Class 3. This is no place for a human being." Wang Rui also came out of the classroom and whispered to him.

"I think so too," Zhao Feng echoed, his voice extremely low, as if afraid that Zhong Jianjun, who was sitting in the classroom, would hear him.

"I don't even dare to read books during evening self-study sessions anymore."

"You're a senior in high school and you're still reading extracurricular books?" Zhao Feng asked, puzzled.

"Reading extracurricular books is a hobby, while studying is work," Wang Rui explained.

Li Mubai smiled. Wang Rui was the most cunning type. He would tell others that he didn't study or read books, but secretly he would study at night. When the exam results came out, he would claim that he was a genius.

"From now on, the three of us will be brothers in misfortune in Class 18," Zhao Feng sighed.

"Hello, I'm Zhang Hao from Class 10." A boy walked over with a smile and greeted us, his smile just the right amount of warmth.

"Hello, my name is Zhao Feng, this is Wang Rui, and this is Li Mubai." Zhao Feng patted Li Mubai on the shoulder.

Li Mubai nodded to Zhang Hao, but felt that the other man's gaze lingered on him for a moment longer than intended.

After saying goodbye, Zhang Hao tactfully left.

"Hey, are there people from other classes in our new class?" Zhao Feng asked in a low voice.

"Yes, didn't Old Man Zhong just say that most of them are from Class 3, and a small portion should be top students from regular classes?" Wang Rui replied.

Li Mubai didn't pay attention to what they were saying. He leaned out from the railing and heard the sounds of students playing and laughing downstairs. He wondered what Xie Shu was doing.

The entire fifth floor was filled with liberal arts classes, but they were all parallel classes. Two girls from the neighboring class 17 were leaning against the railing, holding BaWang ChaJi tea in their hands, drinking and chatting quietly.

He looked away and said to Zhao Feng and Wang Rui, "Let's go, it's almost time for evening self-study."

"Damn it, I really don't want to go back to this classroom."

"Since I'm already here, I might as well make the best of it," Li Mubai thought to himself.

As the bell rang, the students of Class 18 returned to the classroom one after another, and the noise in the corridor gradually disappeared, replaced by a dull silence.

Li Mubai lowered his head to preview tomorrow's lesson, his pen tracing lines on the pages.

"It seems you've all ignored what I said." A voice suddenly exploded in the classroom.

Li Mubai paused, his pen poised.

"During the ten-minute break just now, not a single person was studying in the classroom."

Zhong Jianjun had stood up at some point, his cold gaze sweeping over the entire class. His voice wasn't loud, but every word pierced the eardrums like nails.

"As I said before, you are now senior high school students, and you should make the most of every available moment. From now on, during the ten-minute breaks between classes, I hope to see you all sitting quietly in the classroom studying, not chatting and playing around outside."

No one dared to utter a sound.

"Class monitor, come with me for a moment." Zhong Jianjun glanced at Li Mubai. "The rest of you study quietly in the classroom. I'll check the surveillance footage from time to time."

Li Mubai paused for a moment, then slowly stood up and followed Zhong Jianjun out of the classroom.

The corridor was long, and footsteps echoed in the empty stairwell.

Zhong Jianjun had a faint smell of smoke about him, similar to the kind of dry tobacco that the elderly people in the village smoke.

He walked into the office, sat down in the office chair, took out a cigarette from the drawer, and lit it without any regard for Li Mubai's presence.

White smoke curled up, the office window was open, and the night breeze blew in, dissipating most of the smoke; otherwise, Li Mubai would have coughed up on the spot.

Zhong Jianjun held a cigarette between his fingers, brought it to the ashtray, and flicked it lightly; the ash fell silently.

"From now on, every morning at 7:10, you and the class representative will organize the morning self-study session. I need to hear every student reciting their lessons. If anyone is late or doesn't read, make them stand at the door. If you don't do well, you'll stand with them."

"Okay," Li Mubai replied with his head down, though he cursed inwardly.

"You, as the class monitor, need to set an example in maintaining order during breaks. I hope to see you studying in the classroom next break, instead of chatting with classmates outside."

Li Mubai fell silent.

This is utterly inhumane. At least prisoners get time to go outside for fresh air.

"Teacher, I might need to go to the restroom during break."

"How long does it take a guy to go to the bathroom?" Zhong Jianjun asked rhetorically, his tone leaving no room for negotiation. "There are a few minutes, I'll tell you and you'll remember them."

Seeing Li Mubai standing still, Zhong Jianjun frowned.

"As a class monitor, carrying a notebook to jot things down is the bare minimum. How did you manage to be a class monitor before?"

...Then he'd rather not take the job. A surge of anger welled up inside Li Mubai. He never wanted to be some lousy class monitor in the first place, and now he had to put up with this kind of treatment.

He took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.

"Teacher, I may not be able to handle the position of class monitor."

Zhong Jianjun seemed not to have heard the words at all. He opened the drawer and tossed over a black hardcover notebook and a pen.

"Remember, the first point..."

Li Mubai stood there for a long time before finally picking up his pen.

When Zhong Jianjun finally finished speaking, he glanced at it and saw a whole page filled with densely packed squad leader duties, which made his scalp tingle.

Zhong Jianjun stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray and glanced up at him.

"What rank will you get next time?"

How could he have predicted that...?

Zhong Jianjun remained silent for a few seconds, without asking any further questions, but simply waved his hand, indicating that he could leave.

The moment Li Mubai stepped out of the office, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. He was terrified that Zhong Jianjun would make him call his parents in the next second.

Li's parents were alright, but Xie Shu's parents were the main problem...

They seemed to treat him very badly; Li Mubai had gathered this from Xie Zhiqiang's tone last time.

Ugh--

He sighed deeply and returned to the classroom to continue his studies.

At 10:30 p.m., the bell finally rang to signal the end of get out of class.

The entire building was like a deflated balloon, with students slumped into their chairs, their faces etched with exhaustion at the end of the day.

Li Mubai glanced at Zhong Jianjun, who was still sitting upright on the podium, cleared his throat, and said loudly, "The first group, remember to stay and clean up. The second group will be next tomorrow."

After saying that, he slung his backpack over his shoulder and walked out of the classroom.

Behind him, Zhang Hao, who was still packing his things, looked up, glanced at Li Mubai's departing figure, and smiled slightly before lowering his head to continue slowly tidying his desk.

Li Mubai walked up to the second floor and suddenly stopped.

Should we... go and wait for Xie Shu?

The moment the thought popped into his head, he immediately broke away from the group heading back to the dormitory and turned to walk towards Class 3.

The back door of Class 3 was open, and the lights were still on in the classroom. As soon as he approached, two boys came out. They were unfamiliar faces, and he had never seen them before. It seemed that students from other classes had also come into Class 3.

"Holy crap, XS is really good-looking. I didn't realize it from a distance before, but now that we're in the same class, it's really amazing!" One of the boys said loudly, with undisguised excitement.

"Shh—" Another boy looked up, saw Li Mubai, and quickly made a shushing gesture.

The boy in front of him followed his gaze, paused for a moment, but quickly regained his composure and muttered something in a low voice:

"It's just a pity he already has a partner. What do I lack compared to him?"

The two people brushed past Li Mubai, their footsteps gradually fading into the distance.

He stood there, his fingers clenching slightly. He had wanted to go up and say something, but after thinking about it, he decided against it.

No one can please everyone. Even Xie Shu will have people gossiping behind his back and being jealous. But as long as you do your own thing, that's fine.

He snapped out of his thoughts and looked toward the classroom of Class 3.

Xie Shuzheng was standing on the podium, tiptoeing to wipe the blackboard. The top row was a bit high, and she couldn't reach it.

Li Mubai quietly pushed open the door and went inside.

"I'll help you."

Xie Shu was taken aback, turned around and saw it was him. He smiled slightly and nodded, "Okay, thank you."

The girls in Class 3 were already used to it, but some students from other classes looked over curiously.

"Why aren't you going back to your dorm?" Xie Shu asked as he watched him erase the blackboard.

"I'll come... to check on Class 3." Li Mubai chose to say one thing but mean another.

Xie Shu chuckled softly twice.

"Okay, you wait for me at the classroom door. I can clean up by myself." She held out her hand.

Li Mubai glanced at the blackboard he had wiped clean, handed the rag back to her, nodded, and turned to leave the classroom.