It wasn't an apple that hit Newton.

The blond man stood in front of the carriage and winked at Li Cheng: "There's a pretty young lady inside waiting anxiously for you. She'll be sad if you're late."

Li Cheng was stunned for a moment. He looked up at the three-story building in front of him and confirmed that this was the Stole family villa and that he had not gone to the wrong place.

He immediately felt uneasy and couldn't help but ask, "Is Annie sad because of me???"

Are you kidding me? Annie would be sad for me? Unless she... wait, no! I don't want to be sexually assaulted by a brainless female gorilla! Even if this female gorilla's face and figure meet my requirements, it's still not okay!

"Uh, no, that's not it."

The blond man choked for a moment, then recalled, "He was a friend of Miss Anne's, I think his name was Newton."

Newton? What's she doing here? Could it be...? Li Cheng was still a little worried, so he sent a team invitation to the blond man: "I'm going in then, aren't you coming with me?"

"Excuse me, I have some urgent business to attend to, so I'll be leaving now."

Roy refused, smiled, and then leaped back into the carriage: "To High Street."

"Alright, sir."

With a shout from the coachman, the brown horse snorted, and the carriage slowly began to move forward, soon disappearing from Li Cheng's sight.

.......

"I think, probably, nothing will happen..." After the blond man left, Li Cheng walked into the gate with a nervous heart. The servants of the Stoller family were very familiar with him, so they did not stop him.

As soon as he entered the living room, he saw Newton slumped in a dark brown walnut chair, his eyes vacant and looking completely distracted.

Having not seen her for a few days, I really missed this little bean sprout... Li Cheng walked to a spot two steps in front of Newton and, seeing that she was still lost in thought, said, "Wake up, I'm back."

Newton was brought back to reality by his call. She was startled at first, but when she realized that the person who called out was Li Cheng, her eyes lit up with surprise. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but then closed it again, only letting out a meow.

"Meow!"

???

What's going on here?

Upon closer inspection, Li Cheng realized that the meowing wasn't coming from Newton, but from a small white kitten in Newton's arms. Judging from the kitten's constant pawing at Newton's lap, it seemed to be looking for food.

"Ha, I can't find anything there, how could you possibly find it..." Li Cheng chuckled inwardly, then turned to Newton and asked, "Why are you raising a cat?"

London recently culled all cats and dogs, so this kitten was definitely not picked up randomly; it must have been bought with money.

Newton glanced at him and snorted, "Cats are much better than people. They're obedient, they don't run around, and they don't cause trouble."

After saying that, she lowered her head, ignoring Li Cheng's presence, and focused on playing with the kitten.

Li Cheng awkwardly touched his nose.

He didn't rush to speak again, but first carefully observed Newton, noticing that her delicate eyebrows were slightly furrowed, and her blue eyes reflected only the white kitten, her expression very focused.

It seems... there's really nothing wrong?

Although it wasn't quite what he expected, Li Cheng felt it was fine this way, as it was more relaxed.

Disappointment?

How could that be? The fact that Newton would be here is the best evidence to worry about him.

He exhaled, relaxed, and smiled while gesturing as he said, "Let me tell you something. I was invited to her house a couple of days ago. Do you know who it was? It was Princess Veronica, the one known as the Iron Princess..."

Of course, Li Cheng couldn't tell the whole truth; he embellished it a little bit.

To summarize what he said, Veronica wanted to kill him, but he suddenly became visibly agile. Although Veronica didn't know his true strength, she immediately sensed that he was someone with great potential. So, after a long and deep conversation, they got to know each other quite well... (Aba aba...)

Although Newton appeared to be ignoring him, he was actually listening intently.

When she heard that Veronica had appointed him as principal, she finally couldn't hold back anymore.

Newton raised his head, his brow furrowed, and asked incredulously, "Really?"

“Really.” Li Cheng said, pointing to himself, “If you don’t believe me, look into my eyes, they’re incredibly real.”

Chapter Thirty-Nine: Sleepwalking... Impossible

"So you're... the principal now?"

Newton completely ignored Li Cheng's joke. She looked him up and down as if she were meeting him for the first time.

Li Cheng had a strange feeling about Newton's eerie gaze... How to put it? It was like picking up a kitten from the street, raising it, and then suddenly realizing it wasn't the right breed, that it was actually a leopard cat...

After internally complaining, Li Cheng continued, "Her Highness was impressed by my profound wisdom and took an instant liking to me. She thought I was a talented person, and since the position of Principal of Cambridge was vacant, she appointed me. It's that simple."

Newton was still somewhat skeptical. She tossed the kitten aside, jumped off the chair, and dashed over to Li Cheng, seemingly intending to observe whether Li Cheng's eyes were truly sincere.

"Did Her Highness really appoint you as the principal?"

As she asked the question, she stared intently into Li Cheng's eyes, not blinking, as if she really wanted to see if he was being sincere.

"Of course it's true."

While maintaining a sincere gaze, Li Cheng took the opportunity to open his arms, trying to change the subject, "Stop asking this, let's have a hug like we've been reunited."

"I do not want it!"

Miss Newton nimbly jumped back and dodged. She wrinkled her little nose unhappily and said, "An assistant who's always running around outside has no right to hug me!"

Still very angry, I need to think of something... Li Cheng pondered for a moment, then suddenly said, "Let me hug you, and I'll make you a professor."

"Huh?"

Newton was taken aback, seemingly not expecting this: "Professor? Me?"

"Yes, it's you! The opportunity to become the youngest professor in Cambridge's history is right in front of you!"

Li Cheng stood still, straightened his back, and used the tone typical of a pyramid scheme member to tempt people: "This is an opportunity you can't miss. Don't just think about it, take action. This is a one-time offer, a one-time offer."

Newton was conflicted.

She had always had a small wish, which was to break the minimum graduation age at Cambridge, but she was thwarted and failed to succeed after almost two years of trying.

And now? The possibility of achieving everything in one step is right in front of her, and the cost seems ridiculously low.

Just a hug, it doesn't seem like such a bad deal... A hint of longing appeared in Newton's deep blue eyes, his tense body relaxed slightly, and his feet moved forward little by little, alternating...

The two were only a few steps apart to begin with. Even if such movement was slight, it wouldn't be long before they would willingly fall into Li Cheng's clutches.

Just as she was about to fall into Li Cheng's clutches...

Just then.

Having probably heard the noise earlier, Annie came running downstairs.

"Hey Li Cheng, you're back?"

She looked curiously at the two people arguing in the living room: "What were you just talking about? What principal? What professor?"

"what!"

Newton suddenly realized that Li Cheng was simply toying with her, and she immediately gritted her teeth—what was this! She had heard that her half-finished paper on universal gravitation was even being circulated by the Royal Society of London, and some people were even considering recommending her for a fellowship. Becoming a professor was only a matter of course, wasn't it? Why did he say it like he was trying to please her, with an additional requirement?

"Liar! I'll never talk to you again!"

After saying this, Newton, having figured it out, stormed out, not knowing where he was going.

Based on his experience, Li Cheng judged that, given the current situation, it was unlikely that he would say another word to him before dinner.

"Hey, I just got off here, why are you leaving?"

Anne scratched her head, puzzled.

Seeing his prize slip away, Li Cheng showed regret while giving a sinister look to the culprit, Annie.

"Have you finished your homework?" he asked, using this killer move specifically designed to deal with unruly children.

"Damn, I almost forgot if you hadn't mentioned it."

For some reason, these words seemed to touch a nerve in Annie. She flipped over the escalator and jumped down from halfway down the stairs, then charged aggressively towards Li Cheng.

What's wrong? I'm just asking if you've finished your homework. Is it really that big of a deal...? Li Cheng was confused.

Annie rushed up to Li Cheng, her face showing a rare expression of anger, and pointed at him, saying, "Li Cheng, let me tell you, there's something you have to take responsibility for."

Li Cheng: ? ? ?

Wait a minute, how come you're taking responsibility? We're completely innocent, okay?

At this moment, some of the servants who were passing by stopped for a moment after hearing Anne's shout. But they quickly resumed their work, pretending not to have heard, but in fact they were all secretly eavesdropping.

For example, what's the point of that guy carrying the washbasin back and forth? Is it interesting? Is it interesting? Is it interesting?

Seeing that things were going badly, Li Cheng quickly made a stop gesture and shouted, "Wait a minute, some things are not to be joked about! I didn't do anything!"

"what?"

Annie wore a betrayed expression. She moved closer, grabbed Li Cheng's collar and shook him, saying, "You bastard, you're pretending not to know anything. Do you know how much you've hurt me?"

It's surprising how big of a game this young lady plays... All the servants were amazed and silently gave her a thumbs up.

Li Cheng was also intimidated by Annie's imposing manner and fell into a strange state of confusion—could it be that I actually have sleepwalking disorder, and one night I secretly sneaked into Annie's room and did *that* to her...?

No way! That just doesn't make sense! Even erotic novels wouldn't write such mindless plots!!!

Li Cheng realized what was happening. He first grabbed Annie's wrists tightly to regain his balance, and then said, "I will definitely say I know what I know, but why should I say I know what I don't know?"

Just then, he caught a glimpse of a maid who was almost rubbing a towel into the vase, clearly imagining something. So he quickly raised his voice and spoke faster, urging, "Hurry up and explain yourself clearly, don't let this misunderstanding escalate."

Anne tried to struggle, but couldn't break free.

She then said with a serious expression, "Do you remember the assignment my tutor gave me, asking me to investigate the reasons for the end of the pandemic in London, and to submit it to him before the start of the course?"

"What does this have to do with anything...?" Li Cheng asked, puzzled. "I remember."

“Do you remember when I complained that my thesis was hard to write, you gave me an idea to borrow a government report to copy?” Anne continued.

"Yes, is there a problem?" A sense of foreboding rose in Li Cheng's heart.

"That's where the problem lies!"

Anne clenched her fists, which were being held by her wrists, and said with a look of grief and indignation, "I begged and pleaded with people to get the government report, and then spent two days painstakingly copying and revising it. But less than half an hour after I submitted it, my supervisor sent it back with a comment on it."

Li Cheng pressed on curiously, "What comments?"

Anne continued indignantly, "Do your own homework."

Chapter Forty: Famous Double Standards

Li Cheng was at a loss for words when asked about Annie's mistake of copying homework despite having revised it once... He couldn't exactly praise his tutor for being conscientious and responsible, could he?