“What the hell? He’s too shameless!”

“This is ridiculous!”

“I curse all those who spread the stench of love in public to die premature deaths!”

… 

The classroom dissolved into an uproar. Were it not for the fact that Zu An was a teacher, he would have surely been drowned in their saliva by now.

Oddly enough, although the male students wore looks of envy and fury, the female students’ eyes twinkled with excitement.

“Waa, how cool! If only I had such a domineering boyfriend too!”

“This is the kind of situation that I’ve only seen in the romance novels I have read!”

“If someone were to protect me like that too, I think that I just might faint from bliss.”

… 

Chu Chuyan, with her sharp ears, could hear the whisperings loud and clear. A faint tinge of red began spreading across her fair cheeks. She couldn’t make heads or tails of what was going on. 

I’ve only been absent from the academy for a few days. How in the world did Zu An manage to become a teacher in the academy?

Her first thought was that everyone in the classroom was colluding to fool her, but she immediately dismissed that line of thought. Zu An didn’t have the connections to make the prodigies of the Sky class do his bidding, especially not Shi Kun.

Then, she remembered the bizarre look in her younger sister’s eyes yesterday. She had looked as if she were desperately trying to hold in her laughter. She had probably known about this matter, but had chosen to conceal it from her.

That damned lass! She actually colluded with an outsider to prank her older sister. Then again… can Zu An really be considered an outsider?

Zu An took note of all the Rage points flowing in, and was amused by how cute these students all were. 

I’ll give them a higher grade for their arithmetic scores later on… Well, with a few exceptions, that is. Heh, I’m that petty of a person!

Seeing that Chu Chuyan wasn’t responding, Zu An smiled and asked, “Why? Are you having difficulties with the question?”

“The answer is 2.” Chu Chuyan’s face went as red as an apple. 

She had never expected things to turn out like that, but then again, the earlier question was indeed beyond her ability to answer. She might have come up with the answer if she was given more time to ruminate, but answering it on the spot was clearly impossible. Rather than to be sent out of the classroom and punished for getting the wrong answer, she grabbed onto the lifeline that Zu An had thrown her.

“That’s right. As expected of the number one prodigy of the Sky class,” complimented Zu An. “All right, you may sit back down.” 

Chu Chuyan usually kept her head up high regardless of the situation. With her background and her capability, she had the confidence to hold firmly onto her pride in front of anyone else. But at this very moment, her face was lowered all the way down. The circumstances were simply too awkward!

This fellow must be doing it on purpose! Even when other people try to play favorites, they would do it secretly so as to not get caught. Yet, this fellow goes around flaunting it as if he’s afraid that others would somehow miss it!

In contrast to Chu Chuyan’s overflowing embarrassment, Shi Kun felt like he was on the verge of a mental breakdown. “The question you have posed is unfair!”

You have successfully trolled Shi Kun for 711 Rage points!

Zu An glanced at him and asked, “Are you the teacher or am I the teacher?”

Shi Kun glared coldly at Zu An and exclaimed, “If you are the teacher, you shouldn’t show such blatant favoritism!”

Zu An shrugged calmly. “Since you know that I’m the teacher, you should also know that it’s my right to choose the questions that I want to ask. The questions I come up with on the spot are random. You only have your own luck to blame if you were given a more difficult question.”

The other students were rendered speechless. 

How does this fellow spout such blatant lies without any embarrassment? We can all see that you’re siding with your wife, all right?

Shi Kun opened his mouth to protest further, but Zu An cut him off. “As your teacher, I feel obliged to teach you a life lesson as well. The concept of fairness doesn’t exist in this world. Let’s take young master Shi for example. You were born with a golden spoon in your mouth. You had the best teachers to build up your foundation from a young age, and you never had any lack of cultivation resources. In comparison, commoners struggle just to make a living. Do you know how much hard work they have to put in just to obtain a single ki stone? As such, even if their aptitude were on par with yours, they would still end up lagging behind you. Are you going to stand up for them and say that their circumstances are unfair?”

“You…” Shi Kun was unable to refute Zu An’s words.

The students in the classroom nodded in agreement. Most of them thought that Zu An had only become an arithmetic teacher thanks to his shamelessness and a massive helping of luck, and so they looked down on him. No one had expected him to utter such profound words.

Indeed, true fairness had never existed in this world. Whatever semblance of fairness that could be seen on the surface were just measures implemented by the ruling class to placate the less privileged and keep society stable.

Most of the students in the Sky class came from prominent backgrounds, but some were ordinary civilians, and Zu An’s words resonated deeply with them. It was by luck that they were born with a superior aptitude for cultivation. Nevertheless, they still had to work harder than anyone else just to keep up with those who were privileged to have a strong backing. All of their experiences had made them cognizant of just how unfair the world was.

Chu Chuyan also raised her head to look at the towering figure standing at the podium. For a moment, she found herself dazed. 

Is this the same man that I thought I knew? Have I been too busy with the clan’s affairs that I have ended up neglecting him, not even trying to understand who he is as a person?

However, Shi Kun’s indignant rage was not so easily quelled. “You’re just trying to force through your twisted logic. If we asked any other teacher, I’m certain that they’ll agree that the questions you have asked are biased!”

Zu An shrugged. “Yes indeed, I’m intentionally siding with Chu Chuyan. What do you intend to do about that? If I don’t side with my own wife, who else would I side with? You? It’s not as if you’re my sugar baby. Even if I’m looking for a sugar baby, Xie Xiu over there looks much better than you!”

Hearing Zu An calling her his wife, Chu Chuyan, for the first time in her life, felt cherished and cared for. Over the years, she had always been the one to hold down the fort for the Chu clan, sheltering it from the storms. It felt strange to be on the receiving end, but it warmed her heart.

But what did that fellow mean by ‘sugar baby’?

Xie Xiu, meanwhile, had fully intended to quietly enjoy the show from the sidelines. As someone from King Qi’s faction, he was ecstatic to see Shi Kun—who was from the empress’ faction—suffer such public humiliation. With the two factions vying over the Chu clan, he was more than delighted to see an escalation in conflict between the two.

He’d never expected Zu An to suddenly call his name, and furthermore, use the term ‘sugar baby’?

His face immediately turned as red as the ripest of apples. His feminine appearance had always been a thorn in his side, and no one had dared to speak about it in his presence before. Yet, when Zu An mentioned it openly in front of the class, he hadn’t found himself as angry as he thought he would be. It had just been the merest moment of awkward embarrassment.

I guess this fellow has always been so crass that anything he says just feels normal at this point, and that’s why I don’t feel too mad at his remark.

But still, he really is a weirdo!

 Xie Xiu might not be particularly angry about it, but there was surely a need to return the favor in the future.

On the other side of the classroom, Wu Qing’s eyes widened in astonishment. 

It couldn’t be that big brother Xie Xiu rejected me because he’s in a relationship with this fellow, could it? 

Several images of two bodies pressed tightly against one another swam into her mind, causing her to shudder uncontrollably. Unable to bear the notion any further, she shot a piercing glare at Zu An. 

This hateful fellow actually wants to steal my man, huh?!

The star of the show, Shi Kun, looked as if someone had forced feces down his throat. His beautiful appearance had led many to secretly call him a ‘boy toy’ behind his back in jest, and he had always made sure to dig those people out and send them to meet their maker.

Yet now he was being told that, even as a boy toy, he was somehow ranked beneath Xie Xiu? For some reason, that remark made him even more infuriated. 

Are you saying that I’m less charming than him?!

As someone who had always taken pride in his appearance, there was no way he could accept this!

“Zu An, you had better not go too far! I might not be able to touch you in the academy, but outside, I have plenty of ways to make you die a horrible death!” 

Shi Kun had never known that he could hate a person so much. It had always been his creed to exact swift vengeance against anyone who dared to stand against him, and so, he had hardly any enemies around. Zu An was the only one who was still prancing around him after so long.

To make things worse, Zu An’s identity made it a lot trickier to deal with him, even with all the connections the Shi clan had.

Yet again, Shi Kun cursed Snow for her incompetence. 

Why didn’t you get rid of this disgusting man earlier? If you had succeeded, I wouldn’t have to go through this public humiliation!

Shi Kun’s threat made Chu Chuyan’s expression turn cold. However, before she could say anything, Zu An had begun yelling in agitation, “Everyone, you must bear witness to this! That fellow said with his own mouth that he would kill me. If anything happens to me in the future, the murderer must be none other than him!”

All of the students in the classroom were pretty much numb to Zu An’s shamelessness by now. They could only direct looks of sympathy toward Shi Kun.

Shi Kun instantly regretted his outburst. The anger must have really gone to his head for him to actually make such a careless remark in public.

Zu An’s expression morphed back to that of a stern teacher once more, and he said in an authoritative voice, “Shi Kun, you have talked back to your teacher multiple times over the course of this lesson. Going by the academy rules, I shall punish you by making you stand in the center of the field until noon.”

“You’re punishing me?” Shi Kun chortled at the ridiculous notion. “What can you do to me if I refuse to go?”

With his background, he could easily study at the best academies in the capital. He couldn’t care less about his candidature in the insignificant Brightmoon Academy.

“If you refuse to go, I’ll report the matter to the academy. Of course, with your background, I expect that the academy wouldn’t expel you. However, you need not think about entering the Ursae Dungeon this time.”

Zu An had been curious about Shi Kun’s sudden appearance. As the scion of one of the prominent ducal clans in the capital, there was no reason for him to travel all the way here just to attend Brightmoon Academy.

His initial deduction was that Shi Kun was here for Chu Chuyan. However, it was unlikely that the elders of the Shi clan would sanction his actions and allow him to go so far just for a woman, even if he were a truly devoted man.

It was then he recalled the news about the Ursae Dungeon opening in advance, which made the timing of Shi Kun’s arrival seem far too exact to just be a coincidence.

Just as Zu An expected, Shi Kun’s smile cracked upon hearing the remark. He had indeed come to Brightmoon City for the Ursae Dungeon, especially since he’d received reliable intelligence that an Evanescent Lotus would be blooming very soon in the dungeon. Just a single petal could raise one’s cultivation by a step, and such temptation was too great to resist.

It would be the height of foolishness if he lost this opportunity over a petty squabble with someone from the lowest levels of society.

Taking a deep breath, he said in a huff, “I just have to stand in the field, right? Fine! I’ll report today’s affairs to the academy as well. I believe that the academy won’t condone your willfully biased actions either!”

“Here, wear this notice around your neck.” Zu An suddenly pulled a wooden notice out of nowhere and handed it to Shi Kun.

Shi Kun was taken aback. He took a look at the words on the wooden notice and nearly fainted from anger.

“I, Shi Kun, am standing here as punishment for talking back to my teacher. You may look, but please do not laugh.”