"Yuan Zhuan, Tu Du, what exactly are you trying to do?" Xing Bangguo took a deep breath, trying to calm his anger. He kept reminding himself that they were all children, children he had no blood relation with.

"Teacher, I told you, it's not a good day to go out. We'll go tomorrow." As long as the driver at the front of the line goes home after get off work and resolves his own calamity, they'll all be fine. Otherwise, they'll be buried with him.

"What? Tomorrow?" You just said that all we needed was a different driver and a different car.

This kid just likes to do whatever comes to mind.

“Yuan Zhuan, your teacher has always felt that you are capable of two consecutive jumps. Your intelligence, cognition, and rationality should be on par with your older classmates. However, your words and actions today have completely gone beyond that level; they can only be described as unreasonable! The school arranges for everyone to come out, and naturally, there are plans for the itinerary. This trip to the scenic spots also cost money. Are you going to let all the school's money go to waste because of your unfounded thoughts? What about the school's losses? Are you going to bear them?” A male teacher with a buzz cut and black-rimmed glasses walked up and criticized Yuan Zhuan very sternly.

Yuan Zhuan from Class 1 was known to all the teachers in the junior high school because she was the youngest student in the entire grade. In elementary school, she was exceptionally talented and skipped two classes in a row. When she entered junior high school, her grades were among the best in the city, and she was admitted to Class 1.

Who doesn't like an outstanding child? Therefore, almost all teachers know Yuan Zhuan, and many have read her resume. Tao Jinhua, the math teacher for the second year of junior high school, is one of them.

He taught math to three classes in the second year of junior high, as well as an Olympiad math class. Therefore, he paid special attention to outstanding students in order to discover talent. He knew that Yuan Zhuan had entered the school with a near-perfect score in math.

This child is usually very quiet, but today, for some reason, he suddenly started acting unreasonably, even while we were on vacation.

"Teacher, I'm sorry, but I can't drive today." Yuan Zhuan's unyielding attitude made Tao Jinhua take several deep breaths in frustration.

Xing Bangguo laughed in exasperation, ultimately deciding to adopt a more conciliatory approach to calm the child down first. "Yuan Zhuan, let go of the teacher. Shall we go talk over there? You can explain your thoughts to the teacher in detail. The teacher will come with you, okay?"

"Teacher, I'm not three years old."

Xing Bangguo: ...

Seeing that other teachers were also gathering around, Yuan Zhuan frowned, feeling that continuing to force the issue like this wouldn't work.

"Teacher, who is the teacher in charge of leading the group?"

"What do you mean?" Xing Bangguo didn't react for a moment.

Yuan Zhuan released Xing Bangguo's hand. "Teacher, among the teachers leading the team, who is in charge? I want to say a few words to him right here. If he doesn't agree either, I won't make a fuss, okay?"

Xing Bangguo was surprised, not expecting the little girl to be able to think of someone in charge. Just as he was about to speak, a teacher who looked very inconspicuous emerged from the teacher group. She was short, had an old-fashioned square face, and wore black-rimmed glasses. "Yuan Zhuan, I am the teacher in charge of this team. You can call me Teacher Ren."

"Ms. Ren is the homeroom teacher of Class 1, Grade 9, and she teaches English," Xing Bangguo introduced.

"Teacher, could you come here for a moment? I need to say a few words to you, is that alright?" Yuan Zhuan looked at the teacher's features. There was some dark aura on his face, but not much. Clearly, he was lucky to have only suffered minor injuries.

Upon hearing Yuan Zhuan's request, Teacher Ren stepped forward without saying a word.

"Teacher, the driver of this car has reached the end of his life. If he had started the car, it would have caused dozens of students to die and most to be seriously injured. Teacher Xing was one of the dead." Yuan Zhuan whispered this to Teacher Ren to avoid offending others.

Teacher Ren had considered many possibilities, but he never expected Yuan Zhuan to say such bizarre and superstitious things. He was stunned for a moment, and then his face darkened and his eyes were filled with anger. "Yuan Zhuan, don't talk nonsense when you're out and about! If you don't want to go, come back to the hotel with me. I'll have Teacher Xing accompany you."

Yuan Zhuan: Okay, the expected reaction.

But why hasn't that call to stop them come yet? The teacher in charge couldn't possibly not have a mobile phone.

"Yuan Zhuan, you..."

"Teacher, let me show you something, don't be afraid." There was no other way; the person had been saved. If they continued to make a fuss, the teachers would probably all come over and carry her and Tu Du away.

Don't be afraid? What does that mean?

The reprimand was cut off, and Teacher Ren wasn't too angry. It's not unforgivable for an excellent child to occasionally make a mistake.

Yuan Zhuan sighed softly and gently stroked Teacher Ren's brow.

"Yuan Zhuan, what kind of trick are you up to now!" Although Xing Bangguo stepped aside, his eyes never left Yuan Zhuan, so when Yuan Zhuan moved her hand, he thought she was up to something again.

However……

“Teacher Ren, look at the children in the car, and the driver.” Yuan Zhuan pointed to the little faces inside the car, all of whom were looking at them curiously.

Ren Qianjin, bewildered, looked over as instructed and discovered that the once vibrant little faces inside the glass window had, at some point, turned a deathly bluish-purple, their lips pale, some faces even distorted, half their features shattered, and others had lost their noses, their entire faces collapsed, reduced to pieces of flesh…

That's exactly what happens to children after a car accident.

Ren Qianjin gasped, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets, and a scream almost escaped his throat.

Seeing that Teacher Ren's expression changed drastically and his breathing became rapid, Yuan Zhuan dared not let him watch any longer. He raised his hand and dispelled the illusion.

"Heh, heh, heh..." After repeatedly opening and closing their eyes, the scene before them disappeared, and the children returned to their innocent and adorable selves, lively and full of energy.

"You...you..." Ren Qianjin pointed at Yuan Zhuan, his eyes rolled upwards, and finally his legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground.

"Hey, Teacher Ren!" Xing Bangguo and Tao Jinhua, who were standing closest, exclaimed in unison and gathered around.

Yuan Zhuan was recently seen, so he quickly reached out to help. It was at this moment that the phone rang.

Yuan Zhuan looked down; it was in Teacher Ren's trouser pocket.

Ren Qianjin, caught up in fear, didn't even hear the phone ring.

"Teacher Xing, Teacher Ren's phone is ringing. Could you please answer it for me?" Clearly, Teacher Ren was too weak to answer it.

“This…” Xing Bangguo hesitated, after all, it was Teacher Ren’s private phone call.

Having regained his senses, Ren Qianjin now had some strength left. "No, no need, huff... I can do it myself..."

When I shakily pulled out my mobile phone, the ringing stopped.

Ren Qianjin took a deep breath, too lazy to even look at who had called, and looked up at Yuan Zhuan, "What I saw, what's going on?"

“If we’re going to travel, it will definitely happen this afternoon,” Yuan Zhuan replied seriously.

Upon hearing this, Ren Qianjin closed his eyes, tilted his head back, and took another deep breath. When he opened his eyes again, just as he was about to say something, his mobile phone rang again. This time, Ren Qianjin saw the caller ID.

The name 'Principal Ran' is extremely jarring!

Ren Qianjin shuddered, and for some reason, he subconsciously looked at Yuan Zhuan, who pursed his lips, nodded, and gestured for him to answer the phone.

Ren Qianjin answered the call, but his gaze fell on Yuan Zhuan. "Principal, it's me."

Xing Bangguo and Tao Jinhua found the interaction between the teacher and student rather strange, but since the principal was calling, they remained silent.

"Old Ren, you haven't left yet, have you? If you're on the road, pull over immediately and go back to the hotel. All outings this afternoon are canceled. Everyone needs to go back to the hotel to rest. The car and driver have some minor issues and need adjustments; we might need to replace them. Wait for my message tomorrow morning, and we'll make further arrangements." The principal's voice was clearly agitated and hurried.

God knows, the first time he called, Ren Qianjin didn't answer, which almost gave him a heart attack.

What Lao Xu said was terrifying. Although he didn't quite believe it, his trust in Lao Xu made him dare not be careless. After all, Lao Xu was such a calm and collected person; he would never have called him if he didn't really believe what that person said.

The fact that Lao Xu trusted that gentleman's words so much must mean that Lao Xu had gone through some things with him.

The principal's words startled Ren Qianjin. He looked at Yuan Zhuan again, and their eyes met. Ren Qianjin felt a little confused.

"Old Ren? Old Ren?" The principal, not hearing a reply, began calling out the name repeatedly.

"Um, cough cough... Yes, okay, I understand..." Ren Qianjin glanced deeply at Yuan Zhuan, then stood up, supporting himself with one hand.

Xing Bangguo and Tao Jinhua also stood up, waiting for Ren Qianjin to say something.

The other teachers and students were all looking over here, and some of them didn't understand why Ren Qianjin had suddenly sat down on the ground. Was he sick?

"Teacher Xing, Teacher Tao, this afternoon's trip is canceled. Everyone should go back to the hotel to rest. There are other plans for tomorrow."

Upon hearing this, both teachers and students alike sighed with disappointment.

Xing Bangguo and Tao Jinhua exchanged a glance, silently looked at Yuan Zhuan, then at Ren Qianjin, before returning to their cars without a word to arrange for the children.

"Yuan Zhuan, you and Tu Du go back to the classroom first. I have some things to arrange and I'll come find you later."

"Teacher, you still don't believe me?" Having achieved his goal, Yuan Zhuan smiled and glanced at the face of Zhong Yan, the driver of the lead car.

Look, time is almost up.

This time, however, because she stopped him, he didn't die a horrible death, nor did he harm anyone else.

"Teacher, let's wait together, there are still ten minutes left." Yuan Zhuan said meaningfully.

Ren Qianjin was stunned. "What do you mean? Something else could happen?" His fingers trembled, and his heart began to pound rapidly.

"No, it's the craftsman who's dragging the burial goods. He has ten minutes left. You don't believe me, right? We can wait together. There are nine minutes and fifty-two seconds left, fifty-one seconds..."

Ren Qianjin looked at him incredulously, "If what you're saying is true, aren't you going to save them?"

"Teacher Ren, have you ever heard the folk saying: If the King of Hell wants someone to die at midnight, he won't let them live until dawn. When someone's life comes to an end and they're on the Book of Life and Death, there's no escaping it. If I interfere, I'll only bring disaster upon myself."

Ren Qianjin's face turned pale, and fear filled his eyes as he looked at Yuan Zhuan. He turned his head to look at Xing Bangguo, who was negotiating with the driver of the lead car. They seemed to have said a few words, and soon the driver returned to the car and began to help the children get off.

The children got on and off the bus quickly, even amidst their complaints, they moved swiftly.

Tu Du remained quietly standing not far from Yuan Zhuan.

Soon, a teacher came up to report some information to Ren Qianjin, while the bus driver had already returned to the bus, and the lead bus was driving away.

Perhaps Yuan Zhuan and Tu Du's gazes were too direct, because when the driver turned the steering wheel to adjust the direction, he turned his head to look in their direction. When he noticed that they were looking at him, he nodded politely and quickly drove away.

Watching the bus depart, Ren Qianjin arranged some things while keeping an eye on the bus on the highway until it turned and disappeared from sight. Only then did he turn his gaze away, this time to Yuan Zhuan.

"Teacher, let's count down together: 10, 9, 8..."

Ren Qianjin: !!!

Holy crap! His heart was pounding!

"2, 1! Bang!"

BOOM!!!

A loud tire explosion, screeching brakes, and violent collisions with other vehicles came from not far away, just as Yuan Zhuan had predicted! A few seconds later, with a loud bang, another vehicle exploded. Accompanied by screams from the crowd, the street suddenly became chaotic, and thick black smoke billowed into the sky.

Ren Qianjin looked in horror at the black smoke rising from the bend.

Even if he had a glimmer of hope, once he saw the direction from which the black smoke was coming from, all that hope vanished.

There, clearly, was the spot where the bus had just turned. Judging from the bus's speed, it was exactly where... Ren Qianjin's vision went black, and he fell backward.

"Teacher!" Tu Du stepped forward and caught the person steadily.

At this moment, the other teachers and students also heard the commotion and looked towards the source of the thick smoke.

The children were fine; they were just watching the spectacle without thinking about anything else. But some of the teachers were quite perceptive.

Xing Bangguo and Tao Jinhua both came over.

"Is Teacher Ren alright? Here, Tu Du, put him on my back." Tao Jinhua stepped forward and took the unconscious Ren Qianjin.

Xing Bangguo wasn't unwilling to recite it, but he was so shocked that he forgot what he was supposed to do. He just walked over and stared blankly at the smoking spot.

Those buses, just now...

If they hadn't delayed, would things have turned out differently...?

“Teacher Xing, if we hadn’t wasted time, the car would have crashed when it entered the highway. At that time, none of us would have survived, and besides the children, many other families would have been affected.” Yuan Zhuan’s words were cruel, yet so soul-crushing.

Xing Bangguo turned to look at Yuan Zhuan, whose expression was very serious, and it was clear that she was not joking.

“Of course, teacher, you can check now. This time, only the driver in the front row died. The two behind him are fine.” The dark aura on Xing Bangguo’s face had dissipated, and his normal complexion had returned. “By the way, teacher, do you know why I told you first?”

Why? Xing Bangguo subconsciously communicated with his eyes.

“Because of Teacher Xing, you should have died on the spot today.” After saying that, Yuan Zhuan pulled Tu Du away and went back to the hotel.

Stunned, Xing Bangguo didn't come to his senses until Yuan Zhuan had walked away. His legs were weak, and he sat down on the steps at the hotel entrance, supporting his knees. His eyes were blank as he stared at the accident site, where patrolling traffic police had already appeared.

Will he die today? Really?