Chapter 19
◎Art Class Controversy◎
After the make-up classes ended, and with Monday's arrival, everyone returned to their regular classes, and everything finally returned to normal.
Shi Ziqian never mentioned that incident again, and Zhou Tian's two sentences of conversation seemed to have never happened.
She became even more cautious around Shi Ziqian, afraid that she might do something wrong and arouse his suspicion. But under her carefulness, Shi Ziqian became even more silent, and an indescribable atmosphere lingered between them.
The two sat at the same table as before, but something seemed different. Although they hadn't spoken much to each other, sitting next to Shi Ziqian now, she could keenly sense an inexplicable strangeness in the silence between them.
Zhan Xinyue felt even more confused. After thinking for a long time, she still couldn't find a solution. In the end, she gave up half in confusion and half in helplessness, forcing herself to focus her attention on the upcoming monthly exam.
That afternoon, during math class, Chen Rui, as usual, handed out worksheets for everyone to do. Zhan Xinyue propped her chin up, secretly using her supplementary materials as a cover to look at the worksheets; her eyelids were starting to droop. Lately, she felt she was becoming more and more like a real high school student, the most obvious sign being that she was always sleepy and felt like she could never wake up properly.
Just as she was dozing off, a loud bang came from the row in front of her, startling her awake.
Everyone in the classroom looked up blankly, glancing left and right.
In the front row, Lu Meng had probably fallen asleep while sitting, and somehow he had slumped to the ground. He was now rubbing his arm and trying to get up.
It seems she's not the only one who's trapped.
"Is my class really that easy to sleep in? Everyone's sleeping on the floor," Chen Rui said coolly from the podium.
Laughter filled the classroom, and the drowsiness that had enveloped the room finally dissipated considerably. Zhan Xinyue also became more awake and regained her focus to organize her review progress.
She had already gone through all the knowledge points for several subjects, along with the example problems in the study guides. After all, she had studied all those subjects before; although she had forgotten many things, reviewing them once still brought back some memories. With only a few days left until the monthly exam, all she could do before the exam was to go through the example problems a few more times to deepen her understanding, hoping to get as many points as possible on questions that covered the same concepts in the exam.
As usual, she didn't do the worksheet for this lesson. This time, she was too lazy to even copy the answers from the blackboard, and just casually stuffed the empty worksheet into her desk.
After math class, Zhan Xinyue glanced up at the timetable copied onto the blackboard. It was written in neat, small handwriting; class monitor Dai Yun would copy the next day's timetable onto the blackboard every evening before evening classes ended. Although there was a printed timetable posted near the classroom door, it wasn't as convenient as this.
Following the word "number," which symbolizes mathematics, the second lesson was simply written with the word "beauty." Zhan Xinyue thought for a long time before realizing that it meant art class.
The school wasn't so strict with the second-year students. These elective courses were still retained: art and music classes once a week, physical education classes twice a week, and the last activity class every afternoon, which constituted their rare free time before the third year of high school.
Art class was in the art building. To be honest, Zhan Xinyue couldn't remember which classroom it was in, but it didn't matter. She followed everyone out, and when they were almost at the door, Xie Wanzhi grabbed her arm from behind: "Come on, Xinyue, let's go to Xiao Chao's place and buy a drink first."
By the time the two arrived at the art classroom, it was already quite late, and class had already begun. A plaster statue stood in the center of the classroom, surrounded by chairs and drawing boards, filling the space to capacity.
Zhan Xinyue hesitated for a moment at the door, then heard a soft female voice say, "Please come in, both of you. Just find a seat."
Following the sound, a pale yellow dress came into view. Art teacher Wang Zhiyi stood beside the plaster statue, watching the two of them. She was only in her early twenties, her hair tied in a loose side braid that fell over her shoulder, and a gentle smile graced her porcelain-white face.
Zhan Xinyue stared at her beautiful face for a moment, a complex emotion flashing in her eyes.
"Alright, everyone's here. In this lesson, we'll continue learning the basics of sketching. After I finish explaining, you can all try drawing on your own..." Seeing that Zhan Xinyue and Xie Wanzhi had found their seats, Wang Zhiyi pointed to the plaster statue and began the lesson.
The easel in front of her blocked most of her view, so Zhan Xinyue moved to the side, silently observing the deep smile on the beautiful art teacher's face. She had very distinct personal characteristics; besides being beautiful, she possessed a lively energy that was completely different from the serious teachers in the high school. She didn't seem like a teacher, but rather like an older sister.
“Last lesson we learned simple perspective and how to use tangents to help with drawing. This lesson we can go a step further and try to draw three-dimensional shapes. To turn two-dimensional geometric shapes into three-dimensional geometric shapes, we need to start by learning about light and shadow, highlights, and projections…” Wang Zhiyi spoke slowly, his eyes constantly watching the reactions of everyone in the classroom.
However, she would probably be disappointed. Although it was clear that she had put a lot of effort into this class, art was a very low-status subject in high school. The students below either brought supplementary materials for their main subjects or simply treated the class as a time to relax and daydream. In short, very few people were actually paying attention.
Xie Wanzhi sat down next to her and started reading her novel again.
Wang Zhiyi wanted to motivate everyone, so he posed a question, but no one in the classroom responded. He then said, "I've prepared a lot of small gifts. Would anyone like to try? Those who answer correctly will receive a gift."
She glanced around the classroom, noticing the students' averted gazes, and felt a little helpless. Just then, she saw a boy in the front row diligently sketching, and said with a smile, "Looks like some of you can't wait to start drawing."
She leaned over his easel and gently reminded him, "But I suggest you listen to me finish before you start drawing, otherwise you might not be able to draw well."
The boy reacted strongly; when he saw her suddenly looking at his painting, he instinctively covered the canvas.
His abrupt movement immediately aroused the curiosity of those around him. "What are you drawing? Why are you so afraid of others seeing it?"
A few boys nearby reached out to pull him away. After seeing who it was, a burst of laughter erupted from the group.
Wang Zhiyi looked bewildered, and the students who were further away were also attracted by this strange commotion, and they all stood up and looked over there.
Zhan Xinyue also glanced over there a few times, and saw someone quickly snatch the drawing paper and hold it high to show it to the whole classroom: "Teacher Wang, he's secretly drawing you!"
Indeed, in the raised portrait, one can see a person with a side braid.
"Give it back to me!" The boy who was drawing blushed and stood up to snatch it.
The man quickly dodged and passed the drawing to the next person: "You little rascal, you were secretly watching the teacher while I was drawing, weren't you?"
Others joined in the teasing, "It looks pretty much like Teacher Wang! Have you been observing him for a long time?"
"They say a person's pen reflects their heart, I never expected you to be secretly thinking about this during class..."
The painting was passed around like a game of musical chairs, with the boy who was drawing chasing after it, creating a noisy and chaotic scene in the classroom.
Wang Zhiyi was young and inexperienced in dealing with this kind of situation. He stood there awkwardly, repeatedly shouting, "Everyone, go back to your seats and stop making noise!"
Unfortunately, her words lacked any real impact. Instead, a boy chimed in with a grin, "Teacher Wang, it's all because you're so beautiful. This guy can't concentrate on the lesson; he's only thinking about you..."
The classroom immediately erupted in a chorus of teasing laughter.
Xie Wanzhi turned a page of the novel in her hand and turned her head: "This class was really lively."
Zhan Xinyue frowned as she stared at the commotion over there, her thoughts drifting away.
After arguing for a while, the boys who were leading the argument finally sat down quietly, but they still couldn't get over the topic.
"Teacher Wang, what do you think of his drawing? Could you give me your feedback?"
Wang Zhiyi was clearly trying to steer the conversation in a positive direction, carefully choosing his words: "The lines are still good, but you also need to pay attention to the light and shadow on the character's face..."
She was interrupted by laughter before she could finish speaking.
"Teacher Wang praised your drawing of her painting!"
"Teacher Wang has given you such high praise, don't you want to say a few words?"
"To be honest, his drawing isn't that great. It's not even a tenth as beautiful as Teacher Wang's, is it?"
...
Seeing Wang Zhiyi looking completely lost, class monitor Dai Yun stood up and tried her best to maintain order: "Stop arguing, let's listen to Teacher Wang first, otherwise we won't have time to draw later."
The class monitor was known for his good temper; he tried to persuade them, but no one took it seriously.
Everyone continued to act as they pleased, and the situation seemed to be escalating.
"Wu Chuan, Qiu Chengwen, can you be quiet?" A cold female voice suddenly rang out from behind, her tone serious and merciless, directly calling out the names of the two most boisterous people.
Sometimes people are unrestrained when they're in a group, but the feeling is completely different when they're singled out. These two were laughing heartily in the middle of the crowd when they were unexpectedly called out, and their expressions froze instantly.
Zhan Xinyue looked over there and continued, "If you don't want to listen to the lecture, you can leave. Don't waste everyone's time here."
These are strong words, and difficult to refute.
The classroom fell silent. Although the other troublemakers weren't called on, they couldn't help but feel embarrassed.
Zhan Xinyue usually seems to have a good temper and is gentle, but today, for some reason, she suddenly became so assertive, catching many people off guard.
Xie Wanzhi, standing beside Zhan Xinyue, also looked at her in surprise, wondering why she would step forward like this.
Boys this age are most afraid of losing face. Wu Chuan saw everyone looking at him and felt embarrassed. He took a few steps toward them, looking very unconvinced. "It's not just the two of us laughing. Why are you pointing at me? Besides, did I paint this picture?"
Zhan Xinyue stared straight into his eyes, unyielding: "If you didn't draw it, why are you making such a fuss?"
"What's it to you?" he retorted, stiffening his neck. "Why are you acting so high and mighty? We were just joking and you're wasting your time? You're so studious, huh?"
Qiu Chengwen muttered quietly to himself, "Art class is supposed to be for everyone to relax. We were just trying to liven things up, and nobody said anything. Why is she complaining..."
“Your so-called jokes are boring,” Zhan Xinyue said. “You’re usually as quiet as quails in the classroom, but you’re really into bullying young female teachers. Everyone’s not saying anything on the surface, but in reality, we all think you’re monkeys.”
"You...who are you calling a monkey?!"
"Whoever is jumping around in the classroom, I'll call them out," Zhan Xinyue said coldly.
"Say it again! What do you mean by bullying a female teacher? We were just joking around, why are you making such a big deal out of it!" Wu Chuan's face turned red, and he pulled aside the window in front of him, rushing angrily toward Zhan Xinyue.
Xie Wanzhi was startled and quickly tugged at Zhan Xinyue's school uniform sleeve, "Xinyue, please stop talking..."
Zhan Xinyue pushed her hand away, stood up abruptly, and stared at him fearlessly: "What are you going to do? Hit me?"
Seeing the atmosphere becoming increasingly tense, Wang Zhiyi quickly stepped forward to block Wu Chuan, preventing him from getting close to Zhan Xinyue: "Classmate, calm down, don't be impulsive! Let's sit down and talk it out..."
Seeing someone trying to mediate, Wu Chuan became even more irritable. He shoved her aside and charged towards Zhan Xinyue, shouting, "Get out of the way! Why don't you try to persuade her not to start trouble!"
The young man was strong, and Wang Zhiyi lost her footing after being pushed like that. She staggered forward a few steps and finally stood up by holding onto a classmate's drawing board.
A pair of cold eyes appeared behind the easel, glanced at her, and then looked straight at Wu Chuan.
What are you going to do?
His calm, emotionless tone was utterly unreadable, yet it was incredibly oppressive.
At that time, Ziqian...
The sound wasn't loud, but it made Wu Chuan stop immediately. He looked over and saw Shi Ziqian staring at him expressionlessly, his brows furrowed, and his dark pupils revealing a fierce, impending storm.
"Uh..." Wu Chuan opened his mouth slightly and said stiffly, "Sorry, it wasn't for you..."
Shi Ziqian reached out and straightened his tilted drawing board, his tone already showing impatience: "Go back to your seat."
His voice wasn't loud, but it was enough to instantly bring Wu Chuan back to his senses. Although Shi Ziqian, this young master, always seemed indifferent to everyone, he was clearly not someone to be trifled with. Even when he was angry, he knew his limits and who he shouldn't offend.
He glared at Zhan Xinyue again, but didn't dare say anything. He suppressed his temper and silently returned to his seat.
Zhan Xinyue looked at him for a while, then glanced at Shi Ziqian.
The two were deskmates in the classroom, but now they were far apart in the art studio. Through the layers of canvases, his figure was barely visible, but the deathly silence of the classroom still clearly demonstrated his presence.
Zhan Xinyue sat down again, and Wang Zhiyi followed suit, saying, "Alright, let's continue with the rest of the content..."
The minor conflict was resolved just like that, and the rest of the class was quiet. On the way back to the classroom after class, Xie Wanzhi was still shaken: "That scared me to death! Why did it suddenly start? Wu Chuan is a lunatic. Why did you even bother with him? Are you in a bad mood today?"
"No," Zhan Xinyue said. "I just can't stand them."
"It's really nothing, isn't it? Men are just like that, they like to act like jerks and egg people on when they see someone pretty. Why bother arguing with them? It's not good to make things too awkward between classmates." Xie Wanzhi said dismissively. "Besides, Wang Zhiyi herself didn't seem that angry. Everyone's been saying she's pretty, so maybe she's actually quite happy..."
Zhan Xinyue pursed her lips and remained silent.
"Okay, let's not talk about this anymore." Xie Wanzhi noticed her expression wasn't good and changed the subject: "But Wang Zhiyi is quite impressive. Even Shi Ziqian stood up for her today. When has he ever bothered with these kinds of trivial matters?" Suddenly, a thought struck her, "Do you think he might be interested in her..."
Zhan Xinyue frowned, interrupting her rambling, "Let's hurry up, the next class is the teacher's class."
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