Chapter 26: Teacher Gu

The second and third periods in the afternoon were P.E. classes. As soon as the bell rang, Yao Panpan became visibly excited.

When had her intel ever been wrong?

The students craned their necks, eyes fixed intently on the classroom door. Their sophomore P.E. teacher was notoriously elusive, always "on leave."

A young man entered, dressed head-to-toe in black athletic gear, DL sneakers on his feet, his hair neatly cropped, skin pale, features even more refined than most girls.

"Oh my god! Is that the teacher?"

"He's so handsome!"

"I'm completely floored."

"He could debut as a celebrity right now."

The classroom erupted the moment Gu Ting stepped in.

He walked up to the podium, immediately noticing a girl sleeping at her desk in the last row, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Hello, everyone. I'm the new intern teacher. My surname is Gu."

Gu Ting's voice was pleasant to the ear. Even though his face betrayed no emotion, pink bubbles seemed to float up from both the boys and girls seated below.

Shen Qing lifted her head from the desk, glancing at the podium. The man was tall, strikingly so.

Catching Shen Qing's movement, Gu Ting's lips curved slightly. "Five minutes. Meet me at the track."

"Okay!" The students swarmed out like a herd of sheep being released.

Gu Ting remained at the podium, a smile lingering in his eyes as he watched Shen Qing.

Nie Huan glanced at the two of them. "Do you know the new teacher?"

Shen Qing leaned back in her chair, crossing her legs, saying nothing, but Nie Huan took her silence as admission.

"You head out first," Shen Qing told Nie Huan.

Nie Huan nodded, glanced once more at Gu Ting, and left through the back door.

Gu Ting came down from the podium, leaning both hands on Shen Qing's desk. "Waiting for me?"

He lowered his head, coming close, his voice deliberately deepened, a touch seductive.

Shen Qing raised her brows. "Mr. Gu, speak properly."

Gu Ting was briefly taken aback, then laughed quietly.

"Walk and talk?" he suggested.

Shen Qing didn't answer, simply stood and slipped her hands into her pockets, radiating an air of "I'm not easy to mess with."

"Busy with your studies lately?" Gu Ting walked beside her.

"Mm."

Gu Ting gave her a meaningful look. Sleeping in class, handwriting changing every week on the practice exams... Busy with studies?

Studies?

They walked briskly and soon reached the track. The girls lined up in the front rows, the boys behind. Shen Qing, being tall, was placed at the head of the first row.

Gu Ting held a roster in his hand—fifty students in total.

"Roll call begins. Chu Yu."

"Here!"

"Shen Qing."

Chu Yu: ?

Yao Panpan: ?

Fatty: ?

"Here."

"Good, roll call finished." Gu Ting closed the roster.

Yao Panpan raised her hand. "Teacher, why did you only call number 1 and number 50?"

In Class Three, student numbers were assigned alphabetically. Shen Qing had joined later, so for convenience, she was number 50.

"Isn't everyone present?" Gu Ting replied.

Everyone: ...

Alright, we get it. You're lazy.

"Who's the P.E. monitor?"

Yao Panpan raised her hand again. "Reporting, our class doesn't have a P.E. monitor. All activities are handled by me. I'm the class president."

Class Three had only subject representatives; all other roles fell to the class president.

"In that case... let's have number 50 as the P.E. monitor. How about it?" Gu Ting glanced at Shen Qing.

Yao Panpan was thrilled—finally, a lighter workload!

"I agree!"

With the president's approval, the rest quickly chimed in.

Shen Qing half-lowered her eyes, about to refuse, but Gu Ting called her out of the lineup.

"Shen Qing, go for it!" Yao Panpan gave her an encouraging look.

Wearing a stern expression, Shen Qing stepped out and stood beside Gu Ting.

"Everyone, turn right!"

"Now, follow me and the P.E. monitor for two laps around the track."

The boys managed fine, but the girls suffered. Only Shen Qing and Nie Huan finished two laps without breaking a sweat; many girls could barely make it through one.

Yao Panpan, despite her bold personality, simply couldn't keep up. As soon as she stopped, she collapsed, exhausted.

"Huan, what do you want to drink?" Chu Yu and Fatty headed to the snack shop for drinks.

"Mineral water," Nie Huan replied, then turned to Shen Qing. "What about you? They'll buy for you."

"Shen Qing, come here," Gu Ting called from ten meters away.

"I'm good, thanks." Shen Qing walked toward Gu Ting.

"What do you want me to do?" Shen Qing kept some distance.

"Come with me to the equipment room. We need to check the sports gear," Gu Ting said, smiling at the girl's fair face.

Shen Qing glanced at him and followed.

"I'll tutor you this weekend," he suddenly said.