Forgiveness

Ying Huai's expression stiffened, but the barrage in the livestream chat was going wild with excitement.

[Aaaah what did I just hear, Teacher Liang and Teacher Ying are about to!!!]

[Legal and legitimate kiss........ cough cough.]

[Speechless, what kind of garbage game is this, just for clickbait?]

[Why are the fans so anxious? You're on a Variety Show, what else would you do besides play games?]

[Right, it's just a game. For Variety Show effect, of course it's more fun if they actually kiss, it'd be so boring if they didn't.]

[And your idol isn't even anxious yet, why are you?]

Ying Huai looked at the barrage and sighed silently.

He didn't say anything, but turned his gaze toward Liang Shining not far away.

Liang Shining had his eyes lowered, lost in thought.

Ying Huai crossed his arms, stared at Liang Shining for a few seconds, then suddenly asked casually, 'Does Mr. Liang have any thoughts?'

Liang Shining met Ying Huai's gaze, paused for a few seconds, then said slowly, 'I have no objections.'

Old grudges and new resentments, along with a surge of rebelliousness, suddenly welled up in Ying Huai's heart.

He narrowed his eyes, smiled again, and said lazily, 'Then I... have no objections either.'

The moment his words fell, he heard Lu Jing, Xin Wan, and Chu Ming behind him say simultaneously, 'No!'

Ying Huai was stunned for a moment, turning his gaze in bewilderment toward the three people beside him who were reacting so intensely.

Lu Jing's brows were tightly furrowed, while Xin Wan and Chu Ming looked like they were about to explode.

'No, this game I..........' Chu Ming spoke up anxiously first.

Before he could finish, Ying Huai beside him said in bewilderment, 'How come I never knew you were this conservative before?'

The few people who'd only been worried about their precious cabbage being dug up by some pig: .........??

Chu Ming also choked on his words.

He couldn't help turning around and saying anxiously, 'I'm worried about you, Huai ge!'

Ying Huai looked even more bewildered: 'Worry about me for what? I'm not even on your team.'

Chu Ming's expression froze.

He opened his mouth silently, unable to find a rebuttal for the moment.

Ying Huai didn't say anything more. He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the nervousness in his heart, and walked up to Liang Shining first.

'Enough, let's not keep the teacher... Professor Mu from starting his class. Let's begin.'

As he spoke, he looked up and met Liang Shining's calm eyes.

He heard Liang Shining say quietly, 'Shifu... is Shifu nervous?'

Ying Huai's gaze flickered. He looked away first, but still smiled with stubborn bravado: 'Of course not.'

He heard Liang Shining seem to laugh softly, and after a few seconds, say quietly, 'Okay.'

The tips of Ying Huai's ears flushed hot in an instant.

·

Each team had their own thoughts, but in the end they all stood on the stage as the Director had requested.

Ying Huai took a deep breath and tilted his head back slightly to bite the Pocky stick in front of him.

He was half a head shorter than Liang Shining, which wasn't usually obvious, but now that they were close, Ying Huai had to tilt his head back to keep the Pocky stick balanced, which happened to put him right in line with Liang Shining's gaze.

Liang Shining's gaze was as calm as ever, his eyes deep, looking intently at the person before him.

This was the first time Ying Huai had realized that Liang Shining was really... quite good-looking.

The tips of his ears flushed hot for no apparent reason. Biting the Pocky stick, he couldn't help mumbling quietly, 'Can you... stop staring at me.'

The person above him seemed to laugh softly, and said quietly through the Pocky stick, 'Okay.'

After a few seconds, he suddenly said again, 'Does Shifu think we can win?'

Ying Huai didn't really care about whether they could take notes or not; what he cared about was whether Liang Shining could stop looking at him.

Ying Huai mumbled, 'I don't know, I'm fine with anything.'

If they didn't actually kiss in this game, the difference in the remaining Pocky length when broken might only be a few millimeters, making it hard to say which team would actually win.

'I think we can win,' Liang Shining said unhurriedly.

'Let's make a bet, Shifu. If we win, you'll forgive me, okay?'

Ying Huai felt his entire face burning now, with no mind to care about what kind of bet Liang Shining was making with him.

He nodded haphazardly: 'Fine, anything. How about we both close our eyes and open them when the game starts?'

Liang Shining seemed to laugh softly.

Ying Huai waited a few seconds, still feeling Liang Shining's gaze on him.

He couldn't help looking up, giving him a warning look, only to see a hint of a smile appear in Liang Shining's eyes.

'I'm looking at the Pocky stick,' Liang Shining said unhurriedly through the stick, his eyelids slightly lowered. 'What is Shifu thinking?'

......Ying Huai, who was a few inches shorter than Liang Shining, was momentarily at a loss for words.

Ying Huai clenched his teeth, turned his gaze away, and seemed to mumble something under his breath.

Liang Shining didn't hear clearly, only catching the words 'even looking at a dog would seem affectionate.'

He instinctively opened his mouth to ask, but before he could speak, he saw the person in front of him had already closed his eyes.

Liang Shining couldn't help but laugh for a moment.

The next second, the Director suddenly called out the start.

Ying Huai, who had reacted a second slower, suddenly opened his eyes and was met with Liang Shining's suddenly enlarged face.

Liang Shining tilted his head slightly, unhesitatingly took a big bite forward, then looked up calmly at the person in front of him.

Ying Huai clenched his teeth and quickly took a bite forward as well.

But he was a bit anxious and didn't control the distance well for a moment. The next second, he felt himself crash directly into Liang Shining's lips.

Ying Huai froze, and Liang Shining's expression also went blank.

Liang Shining's lips were very soft, carrying a strange burning heat—whether from physical or psychological causes—and the moment they touched, that warmth spread through his lips and throughout his entire body.

Ying Huai felt not only his ear tips but his entire body burning up.

The next second, Liang Shining's whole body suddenly leaned forward.

Ying Huai's mind hadn't caught up yet. He stood frozen for a moment, then instinctively opened his mouth and suddenly bit through the Pocky stick.

At the same moment, he felt Liang Shining's lips lightly press against his for an instant, and before he could react, the Pocky stick was bitten through in quick succession while still pressed together.

'It's over, Shifu.' Liang Shining reached out and took down the tiny remaining piece of Pocky stick, speaking quietly.

Ying Huai was stunned for a few seconds, then belatedly shrank backward.

He felt his heart racing and his whole body burning, but it wasn't the usual feeling of an episode, which made him feel even more at a loss.

'What did you do at the end, you......' Ying Huai took a deep breath and said through gritted teeth.

'I didn't do anything, Shifu,' Liang Shining said innocently. 'I just wanted to win.'

Ying Huai was stunned for a moment. His mind was a mess, but he vaguely remembered that Liang Shining's memory was nearly photographic.

He couldn't figure out for the moment why Liang Shining insisted on having the note-taking privilege. Liang Shining didn't say anything more, just turned around and signaled to the Assistant Director that their team was done.

'Alright, now that each team has finished, let's measure them one by one.'

Liang Shining turned and walked toward the Director. Ying Huai stared at him for a few seconds before his chaotic mind finally understood what Liang Shining meant by 'wanting to win.'

'Wait—' Ying Huai suddenly said.

Liang Shining turned his head at the sound.

Ying Huai looked up at him, his eyes flickering, and said quietly, 'Even if we don't win...'

But before he could finish, the Assistant Director, who had already quickly checked, suddenly spoke first: 'Congratulations to Teacher Ying and Teacher Liang's team for winning!'

Ying Huai froze for a moment. He looked up and watched Liang Shining walking back toward him step by step.

'We won, Shifu.' Liang Shining lowered his eyes and said softly.

'Can Shifu... not be angry with me anymore?'

Ying Huai's eyes flickered.

After a few seconds, he suddenly laughed softly.

'I was just about to say—'

'Even if we hadn't won, it wouldn't have mattered.'

·

The livestream barrage couldn't hear what the two were saying, but it was already going crazy.

[Aaaah, I just knew Teacher Liang and Teacher Ying's team would have the shortest! My CP is real!]

[They kissed just now, right? They definitely kissed, right? How can you all still act so calm?!]

[Where does it look calm? Look at Xiao Huai's ear tips, they're practically cooked through. But Teacher Liang really does look calm, the difference is obvious (thinking)]

[Why is our Xiao Huai the one on the bottom—never mind, Teacher Liang really did look like the seme earlier (jk)]

[Teacher Liang is the ultimate seme! I'm at the scene, before the game started Teacher Liang was flirting so much that Teacher Ying's whole face visibly turned red, and Teacher Ying even closed his eyes!]

[I mean, when a boy closes his eyes it means he wants a kiss (jk)]

[Aaaah sisters at the scene, say more, I want to hear, this is so sweet!]

On the other side, Song Fengyi's face was ashen.

He had originally intended to fight for the note-taking qualification, but Chu Ming on his team kept staring at Ying Huai's side and completely ignored him.

Song Fengyi had originally wanted to use this opportunity to stir up some CP drama with Chu Ming, but the moment the Director called start, Chu Ming just bit through more than half the Pocky stick with a 'crack' and urged Song Fengyi to finish quickly and report, leaving Song Fengyi no room to try to stir up CP drama.

Song Fengyi's face looked terrible, but he didn't dare to provoke Chu Ming.

Song Fengyi clenched his teeth, suddenly turned to Ying Huai, and said warmly, 'Congratulations on winning, Teacher Ying.'

Ying Huai leaned against Liang Shining and looked up lazily.

'I remember Professor Mu's class used to have a rule against taking notes by rote memorization, saying you shouldn't just swallow the classroom knowledge whole, but should comprehend and master it yourself.' Song Fengyi said warmly.

'But we're just on a Variety Show, taking some notes is understandable. Still, congratulations Teacher Ying.'

Every word Song Fengyi said was passive-aggressive. The moment he finished speaking, his fans in the livestream chat began to follow suit and stir up drama.

[To be fair, for a class by an old professor like this, you really shouldn't focus on taking notes just to win, you should listen carefully.]

[Right, this old professor was specially invited by the Production Team, we should still respect the professor's rules. Ying Huai doing this feels like emmmm....... I don't want to say.]

[? What rhythm are you trying to set upstairs? Since the Production Team could invite the old professor, they must have discussed it with him. When the game was announced earlier, the old professor didn't object, so what are you jumping up and down about here?]

[Right, and even taking a step back, if there's a problem, it's the Production Team's fault. Don't push all the dirt onto Ying Huai.]

Outside the livestream, Song Fengyi watched the barrage on the screen, a smile unconsciously appearing at the corner of his lips.

He looked at Ying Huai with a hint of smugness, wanting to hear how Ying Huai would respond, but the next second, a slow voice from the podium suddenly came: 'Oh my, whose sour smell has reached this old man?'

Song Fengyi was stunned.

He looked up, watching Mu Heguang wave his hand in front of his nose, looking at him with an unreadable expression: "Young man, it seems you know this old man's class quite well?"

Song Fengyi gritted his teeth.

Mu Heguang's words were clearly mocking him.

Song Fengyi hadn't expected that an old professor like Mu Heguang would still pay attention to these Variety Show games.

But he knew that if he could earn Mu Heguang's favor, it would be a tremendous opportunity for his future development.

Song Fengyi respectfully inclined his head: "Professor Mu is too kind. I was just fortunate enough to have sat in on one of your lectures back when I was a student, and I've always admired you greatly..."

"Oh, you've attended one of my lectures. No wonder you could just now so—" Mu Heguang began leisurely.

Song Fengyi's heart leapt with joy.

But before he could say anything more, he heard Mu Heguang unhurriedly finish the rest of his sentence: "—take things so out of context."

Song Fengyi's expression froze.

He forced a smile: "Professor Mu, what, what are you saying? I'm afraid I don't quite follow..."

Mu Heguang ignored him and turned to face the audience below.

"There should be students down there who have attended my class, right? Is there anyone who can tell me what my specific requirements for class actually were?"

Mu Heguang swept a glance across the audience and said, half in jest: "This old man has taught for so many years. Not to say students scattered across the land, but at least I've been serious about educating people. Surely today there isn't not a single student who understands this old man's actual requirements?"

A female student spoke up quietly: "Professor Mu, your previous class requirement was that no electronic devices were allowed for video or audio recording. Regarding note-taking, you didn't have explicit rules—you only told us to decide based on our own situations."

Song Fengyi breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

Mu Heguang nodded. He looked around, and his gaze suddenly landed on Ying Huai.

"Xiao Huai, stop hiding. Come up and add to that."

Song Fengyi turned his head in disbelief, and a flash of surprise also crossed Su Xin's expression.

Ying Huai, who had been leaning against Liang Shining, happily slacking off and watching the show, paused.

He straightened up slightly and said with a smile: "Professor Mu, you're thinking too highly of me. That female student just now already said it perfectly. I don't have anything to add."

Although he had privately reconnected with Mu Heguang, there was still a great deal of negative public opinion about him online.

Ying Huai was still somewhat worried at heart and didn't want to openly let Mu Heguang have any real connection to him.

But Mu Heguang seemed to see through his plan and refused to play along: "Enough, stop playing dumb with this old man. You were the most active one in my class back then."

Ying Huai was stunned. He didn't notice Su Xin's eyes suddenly widening beside him.

Ying Huai opened his mouth, and heard Mu Heguang continue in a teasing tone: "Enough, stop hiding behind Xiao Liang. I know you and Xiao Liang are close—you don't need this moment to prove it. Go on, speak up."

.......Ying Huai had no idea what strange things his teacher had been reading online again.

He was caught somewhere between laughter and tears for a moment, but knowing he couldn't dodge it any longer, he took a deep breath and said with a smile: "Professor Mu doesn't oppose recording through notes, whether it's lectures or classes."

Ying Huai's gaze fell on Song Fengyi beside him, and the corner of his mouth curved up slightly: "Classes are full of professional, hard knowledge. Some students prefer to listen first and then organize their own notes afterward; some students prefer using in-class notes to support their learning. Professor Mu supports all of these."

"And lectures are generally an expansion and extension of knowledge—a kind of inspiration built on a professional foundation. If inspiration strikes, Professor Mu has always strongly recommended recording it immediately."

"But because Professor Mu likes a lively classroom atmosphere, he often asks questions during class. If a student doesn't listen to his lecture because they're busy taking notes, he'll tease that such note-taking is useless work. Over time, that got twisted outside into 'Professor Mu doesn't allow students to take notes.'"

Ying Huai said leisurely: "Teacher Song must have been fooled by those forum rumors from the school."

Song Fengyi's face darkened.

He had indeed, upon seeing Mu Heguang just now, hastily searched for information about Mu Heguang on the P University forum, hoping to leave a good impression if the chance arose later.

—He hadn't expected it to backfire instead.

He couldn't help but grit his teeth and ask: "How did you ever get to attend Mu Heguang's class? Isn't he long since retired? How did you manage that?"

Ying Huai yawned lazily: "Guess?"

Song Fengyi's brow twitched.

The camera beside them had already swung over. Song Fengyi took a deep breath and forced a smile at Ying Huai: "Teacher Ying has attended Professor Mu's class before, so of course he must know Professor Mu well. Then the privilege of taking notes must be unnecessary for him, right?"

He had originally meant to provoke Ying Huai, but he hadn't expected the person in front of him to actually nod: "Indeed."

As he spoke, he placed the paper and pen given by the Production Team back on the podium, but the next second, he suddenly thought of something, turned his head, and said with a smile: "I noticed Teacher Song seemed very interested in taking notes just now. I'll give my note-taking privilege to Teacher Song—does Teacher Song want it?"

Song Fengyi was stunned.

He instinctively wanted to nod, but the next second, he saw Ying Huai suddenly remember something and say with sudden realization: "Wait, that's not right. Teacher Song advocates integrating knowledge through practice—he definitely doesn't need it."

Song Fengyi, who had just shot himself in the foot: .........

Liang Shining beside him said nothing and, following Ying Huai's lead, also handed in the paper and pen.

Mu Heguang smiled and nodded. Song Fengyi's eyes turned red, but he couldn't say anything.

He followed the Production Team's signal to go down to the audience and take his seat, but couldn't help stepping forward two paces and leaning close to Ying Huai: "Teacher Ying shouldn't get too carried away."

"Be careful not to shoot yourself in the foot too."

Ying Huai, half-sprawled across the table, lazily lifted his eyelids to glance at Song Fengyi: "Thank you for your concern, Teacher Song."

He added with some curiosity: "But I don't recall—when did Teacher Song shoot himself in the foot?"

Song Fengyi, who had let it slip, choked. He abruptly turned his head away.

·

Mu Heguang's classes did indeed favor an active classroom atmosphere—specifically, he liked to randomly call on people to answer questions after every segment.

Whether you were a Variety Show guest or a student from another major, he treated everyone exactly the same when asking questions.

The other Variety Show guests were all on edge. They were public figures, after all, and it would look truly bad to embarrass themselves during a livestream.

Only Ying Huai, who was already accustomed to Mu Heguang's class rhythm, paid it no mind—and was even somewhat drowsy.

The Production Team had dragged them up early that morning for styling, and on top of that, he and Liang Shining had been at odds for the past two weeks. Even though he didn't show it on the surface, he would often jolt awake from dreams about it at night.

Now that he had finally let his guard down, drowsiness crept over him.

Ying Huai propped his chin on one hand, watching the spirited Mu Heguang on the podium, trying to catch the words clearly, but his eyelids still sank little by little of their own accord.

By the time Liang Shining noticed, the person beside him had already buried his head on the desk.

Song Fengyi, sitting ramrod straight beside him, shot Ying Huai a disdainful glance. Liang Shining hesitated for a few seconds, but ultimately didn't wake him—only leaning forward slightly to block the camera beside him.

And this small gesture once again sent the livestream barrage into a shipping frenzy.

[Ahhh, did Teacher Liang just block the camera for sleeping Teacher Ying?]

[Oh my god, that was an instinctive move. Is this something I'm allowed to ship? Am I worthy of shipping this?]

[It's giving high-school cold-rigorous academic genius x nonchalant lazy academic god. The two have completely different personalities, and everyone thought they'd fight as desk mates—but no one expected the academic genius to take care of the academic god in every possible way ahhh!]

[What are you all shipping up there? Isn't this just normal desk-mate behavior?]

[?? My desk mate is different. My desk mate would only kick the table hard when I was sleeping, and then when I woke up startled, tell me the teacher had called me up to answer a question.]

[.......My desk mate is different. Mine would only draw doodles on my face while I was sleeping.]

[What if Professor Mu calls on him to answer later?]

Song Fengyi beside him clearly thought of this too. He stared at Ying Huai, his gaze darkening.

"Alright, I've just introduced this musician's stylistic traits. Now let's listen to a few pieces of music—everyone can try to guess which period of this musician's life each was created in." Mu Heguang said cheerfully.

As he spoke, he clicked to play the audio. After the four pieces finished, Song Fengyi pretended to be casual, slightly curling his fingers, about to knock on the desk.

But before his finger could fall, a hand suddenly reached over and directly seized his wrist.

Song Fengyi was slightly startled. He turned his head and met Liang Shining's faintly heavy gaze.

"What are you doing?" Liang Shining said in a low voice.

Song Fengyi was stunned for a moment, then replied unhurriedly in a warm tone: "Waking Teacher Ying up."

"There's a question coming up. What if Professor Mu picks Teacher Ying?" Song Fengyi said slowly, "I'm doing this for Teacher Ying's own good..."

"No need." Liang Shining cut him off directly.

Ying Huai was prone to palpitations and chest tightness when he first woke up. If Song Fengyi knocked like that, his heart definitely couldn't take it.

Song Fengyi stared at Liang Shining for a few seconds, then suddenly smiled: "What, Teacher Liang feeling sorry for him?"

He exerted force downward with his hand, but Liang Shining pressed his wrist without budging.

While the two were at an impasse, the person slumped over the desk was finally startled awake.

His body trembled slightly. He raised his eyes, somewhat dazed, covered his lips and coughed softly twice.

"Is class over?" Ying Huai pressed his brow, drew a light breath, and asked in a hoarse voice.

Liang Shining frowned. He quickly released Song Fengyi's hand, reached out to press Ying Huai's pulse, and after confirming there was no major abnormality, eased slightly.

"No. Professor Mu just said he's going to ask a question," Liang Shining said in a low voice, "you..."

Before he could finish, he suddenly heard Mu Heguang on the podium say with a smile: "Are the three students in the back row discussing something? Then please have one of you three send a representative to answer."

Ying Huai and the other two froze.

Song Fengyi, who had achieved his goal, rolled his eyes and was the first to say modestly: "Then let Teacher Ying go first. We'll help supplement."

Someone in the livestream barrage asked in confusion.

[Isn't Song Fengyi always at odds with Ying Huai? Why is he handing Ying Huai this chance to show off today?]

[Our Teacher Song has always been modest and gentle, never one to compete or grab. If Ying Huai hadn't insisted on suppressing him from the start, Teacher Song wouldn't have gotten angry with Ying Huai.]

[How much per brainwashing post upstairs? If there's money to be made, let's all earn it together.]

[Clicked. Don't tell me Song Fengyi himself can't answer.]

Mu Heguang clearly couldn't care less about Song Fengyi's little tricks.

He said directly, leisurely: "Enough, stop going back and forth. You've already stood up—so you answer."

Song Fengyi was stunned.

He had originally planned to wait for Ying Huai to be unable to answer, then step in and answer everything himself—deflating Ying Huai in front of Mu Heguang and drawing Mu Heguang's attention to himself.

But he couldn't directly refuse Mu Heguang, so he took a deep breath and slowly stood up.

"Alright, Professor Mu. The first piece just now should be from this musician's early years—the style is lively and light, fitting the mindset of a young person just entering society. The second should be from his later years..."

Song Fengyi had listened very carefully to these pieces just now, not only ordering them one by one but also adding his own appreciation and analysis.

When he finished speaking, he predictably received applause from the whole room.

A hint of a smile also appeared on Song Fengyi's face. He glanced down at Ying Huai with some smugness, but when he looked up again, his expression suddenly froze.

Because he saw that Mu Heguang had not shown the satisfied expression he had expected, but was instead looking at him thoughtfully.

Song Fengyi's heart panicked for a moment.

The next second, he predictably heard Mu Heguang say slowly: "Xiao Huai, come up and supplement for this student."

Song Fengyi's heart was somewhat panicked.

He had been thinking about how to embarrass Ying Huai earlier and hadn't listened particularly carefully to Mu Heguang's earlier explanation of this musician's stylistic traits across different periods. When he was sorting the pieces just now, there were indeed two he wasn't entirely sure about.

But he had specifically waited until all four pieces had finished playing before waking Ying Huai. Song Fengyi's heart steadied a little, and he raised his head, waiting for Ying Huai to embarrass himself.

He hadn't expected that as soon as Ying Huai stood up, he directly said with a smile: "My ordering is a bit different from Teacher Song's just now."

Song Fengyi was stunned.

"That's fine, you go first. This way everyone can discuss it together." Mu Heguang said cheerfully.

Ying Huai looked up at the four piece titles on the screen and began slowly: "I believe the first piece was created by this musician in his middle years. The perfect use of consonant intervals, combined with the support of other instruments, gives it a wind-like, flowing quality. It should be from when he was around forty—when he had formed his initial understanding of life—and the music reflects the unique broadness and tranquility of that period."

'The second piece, I think it was from his younger years........'

Song Fengyi clenched his teeth silently.

Ying Huai's musical analysis and stage division were almost completely different from his own, but from Mu Heguang's expression and those of the surrounding students, it seemed Ying Huai's analysis was indeed correct.

After Ying Huai finished speaking, Mu Heguang was the first to lead the applause.

'Very good, the stage division is completely correct, and the analysis is basically correct. I'll supplement a few points I missed in a moment.' Mu Heguang said cheerfully.

His gaze fell on Song Fengyi beside him, his tone teasing: 'That young man over there still needs to strengthen his understanding of musical style. I just covered these points. Even though you don't have notes, you can flip through the notes in your head.'

A few good-natured laughs came from the classroom, but Song Fengyi's expression gradually twisted.

—He couldn't understand how Ying Huai had done it.

'Wait a moment!' Song Fengyi suddenly stood up.

Everyone around curiously turned their heads. Song Fengyi took a deep breath and turned to Ying Huai with a mild expression: 'I'd like to ask—how did Teacher Ying manage it?'

'As far as I know, while Professor Mu was playing the pieces, Teacher Ying was sleeping the whole time. I'm curious—how did Teacher Ying successfully divide these musical stages?'

The surroundings instantly went quiet. Song Fengyi steadied himself and continued in a gentle voice: 'If this were a normal classroom with random questions, I probably wouldn't have pointed this out. But we're recording a Variety Show now, and we need to set a proper example.'

'Did Teacher Ying answer because he'd attended a similar lecture by Professor Mu before? Or because someone helped him cheat?'

'Either way, isn't it a bit unfair?'

The moment Song Fengyi finished speaking, an unhappy student interjected: 'What are you talking about? Professor Mu never repeats content in his public lectures.'

'Right, Professor Mu said some students come specifically for the lecture, and if he repeated old content, he'd feel he was letting everyone down. That's why he doesn't allow screen recording or audio recording, and never repeats himself—so that students who come in person get the best experience.'

'If you don't know, can you stop talking nonsense?'

Song Fengyi hadn't expected this at all.

He panicked for a moment and hurriedly apologized: 'Sorry, sorry, I didn't know. I just wanted to know how Teacher Ying answered......'

—But this also happened to reinforce his suspicion of Ying Huai cheating.

After Song Fengyi finished his hasty apology, he looked up at Mu Heguang.

But to his surprise, Mu Heguang didn't look angry; instead, he glanced at Ying Huai with a teasing look.

'Asleep again?' Mu Heguang said cheerfully. 'How far did you get before you fell asleep?'

Ying Huai's peach blossom eyes flickered, and he curved them helplessly: 'I heard....... Teacher, right after you finished introducing the main content of this lecture.'

Mu Heguang burst into hearty laughter.

He was naturally an old urchin at heart, and he had always believed that once students reached university, their development was their own affair. Apart from a few bottom-line classroom principles, he never restricted learning methods, and instead tailored his teaching to each student.

'Not bad—slept through most of the class and still got everything right. Looks like the methods I taught you before haven't been forgotten.'

Mu Heguang said cheerfully: 'Quick, explain it, Xiao Huai.'

'I really didn't hear those pieces just now.' Ying Huai coughed lightly and said quietly.

'But when I was composing, I once studied the stylistic shifts of many famous musicians across different stages of their lives, trying to connect those shifts with the openings, developments, turns, and conclusions of my own compositions.'

'This musician was one of them. I don't remember all these pieces completely, but through the stylistic stages I'd understood at the time, I can roughly judge the development of the piece's stages.' Ying Huai said unhurriedly.

'This is the method Professor Mu taught me before, and it's also what Professor Mu has been saying today—to integrate and master knowledge thoroughly.'

Song Fengyi's expression grew uglier by degrees.

Ying Huai looked up at Song Fengyi and smiled with curved eyes: 'Unfortunately, it's neither of the two answers Teacher Song guessed. But I'm curious about something too.'

'I remember Teacher Song comes from a formal music background. When you were in school, didn't you study the works and styles of various musicians?'

Song Fengyi's face went white instantly.

Musical style and genre studies was a very basic course in the music department, but Song Fengyi had only memorized the points by rote for the exam back then, and had long since forgotten them all.

He prided himself on his formal training and had always been proud of it—he never expected to be so thoroughly slapped in the face today.

'Oh right, one more thing.' Ying Huai said slowly.

'If others learned extra things beyond you and scored higher on the exam, would Teacher Song also consider that unfair?'

·

For the second half of the class, Song Fengyi sat in place, quiet as a mouse, no longer daring to cause trouble.

Ying Huai was quite happy to have the peace.

The classroom was crowded and poorly ventilated. After sitting for a while, Ying Huai felt some chest tightness and shortness of breath. For the second half of the class, he leaned against Liang Shining beside him, listening to Mu Heguang's vigorous lecture with half-lowered eyes.

Liang Shining had originally noticed Ying Huai's poor condition and wanted him to sleep a bit more, but Ying Huai shook his head and refused.

He raised his head with a half-smile: 'Well now, my disciple, this lifelong good student, is actually encouraging people to sleep in class?'

Liang Shining counted Ying Huai's irregular pulse, frowned slightly, but gave a small nod: 'If you're uncomfortable, sleep. I'll keep watch for you.'

Ying Huai choked, this time genuinely surprised.

But sitting was already making Ying Huai's chest tight; he was afraid that if he lay down he wouldn't be able to catch his breath, and might pass out again after sleeping a while.

Ying Huai laughed: 'Never mind, no need. I won't lead astray this good student of yours—your fans will have something to say about me in a bit.'

Liang Shining felt something was off, but Ying Huai had already turned away, raising his hand to answer Mu Heguang's new round of questions.

Song Fengyi beside him snorted coldly, turned his head, and continued silently memorizing various points in his mind.

—Anyway, these in-class questions don't count toward the final game score.

Song Fengyi thought viciously.

—Let Ying Huai show off a little longer.

Not far away, Su Xin watched the interaction between Ying Huai and Mu Heguang, and once again thought of the strange memory that had surfaced in the recording studio that day.

The fingers resting on his leg tightened little by little, his expression grave yet tinged with confusion.

·

The class ended quickly. The Assistant Director first sincerely thanked Professor Mu Heguang, then began earnestly cueing the next segment.

'Alright, our class has now ended. I'm sure everyone has learned a great deal.'

The Assistant Director turned to Mu Heguang: 'Next, we'll trouble Teacher Mu to set questions. The guests will compete to answer and earn the chance to invite fans to the Concert.'

Song Fengyi clenched his teeth and sat up straight again.

Unexpectedly, Mu Heguang looked around the room and suddenly laughed: 'The in-class questions just now actually count as my quiz round.'

Song Fengyi looked up in disbelief and couldn't help blurting out: 'Why?'

Mu Heguang said unhurriedly: 'I never have the habit of in-class quizzes. The knowledge points are reinforced repeatedly during class. As long as you follow along once and then review on your own, the content of a class easily forms a knowledge system.'

'In-class quizzes easily create unnecessary pressure, and—they'd add to my assistant's grading burden.' Mu Heguang said cheerfully.

Song Fengyi's face went white instantly.

During the second half of the class, he had been frantically memorizing various points in his head, and hadn't raised his hand once for any of the later questions—all to wait for a final chance to redeem himself.

'Ah, well in that case, let's thank Professor Mu once again.' The Assistant Director beside him finally caught on and blankly began leading the applause.

'Then according to the Production Team's tally, the one who answered the most questions in class should be Teacher Ying, followed by Teacher Xin Wan........'

After carefully tallying, the Assistant Director looked up at the guests on stage: 'We will now distribute Concert invitation tickets to each of you in proportion to your rankings.'

'Today's class had 140 students participating. You may choose to invite your audience here at the first venue, or use them at a later venue. The Concert invitation tickets have no time or venue restrictions.'

'But note—you can only invite as many audience members as the tickets in your hand. Fewer is fine, more is not.'

Song Fengyi quickly stepped forward to collect his Concert invitation tickets, and immediately a large crowd of anxious fans stood up, hoping to be invited.

Song Fengyi gently soothed his fans while glancing at Ying Huai not far away.

Ying Huai leaned against a corner, with only a sparse few around him—apparently no one was looking to ask him for tickets.

A trace of coldness flickered in Song Fengyi's eyes, quickly hidden away.

He turned back around, continuing to face his fans with a mild expression.

The comments in the livestream chat were also starting to get anxious.

[Hey hey, why is no one at our Xiao Huai's spot?]

[They're always bullying our Xiao Huai baby, let me go!]

[Same, I'm Teacher Ying's fan, I wanted to grab a spot for this public recording but couldn't ahhhh!]

[Me too, my hand speed really wasn't enough sob.]

[Same! Me too! Who even grabbed all the spots!]

[Honestly speaking, does Song Fengyi really have this many fans? Even more than Liang Shining?]

[Right, there are also very few people on Liang Shining's side. Seems like most here are Song Fengyi's fans?]

[Why do I feel something's off........]

Ying Huai had long anticipated this kind of scene.

Liang Shining had wanted to come stand with him, but Ying Huai directly pushed him away.

Ying Huai leaned against the wall, waited unhurriedly for the others to finish distributing, then ambled toward the door.

But just as he reached the door, he suddenly heard a commotion in the corridor.

'Is this the classroom?'

'Ying Huai should be inside, right? I saw someone post a spoiler on Weibo!'

'It must be here! I saw the Production Team's follow-shot cameraman, hurry hurry!'

The familiar words reached his ears. Ying Huai froze for a moment and instinctively stepped back.

Memories from his past life—of being surrounded by reporters and antis, chased and cursed, finally stabbed to death by an anti—flooded his mind. Ying Huai's face went pale; he pressed a hand to his chest, his breathing quickening unconsciously.

Liang Shining beside him instantly noticed something was wrong with Ying Huai and quickly stepped forward to shield him.

'Shifu, what's wrong?' Liang Shining said quietly. 'Where does it hurt?'

But Ying Huai seemed trapped in a nightmare, staring fixedly at the crowd surging closer, his whole body trembling involuntarily.

Liang Shining's expression darkened.

He gritted his teeth, wanting to take Ying Huai straight out of there, but the next second, an eager girl's voice came from behind!

'Teacher Xiao Huai! I'm your fan! I really like you so much!' the girl said anxiously.

Liang Shining's steps halted.

'Me too! For this public recording by the Production Team, I tried hard to grab a spot, but my hands were too slow and I never got one, so I've been refreshing your spoiler news on Weibo, and finally I found it.' another girl hurriedly added.

They looked at Ying Huai, excited and anxious, but both obediently kept a certain distance from him, seemingly worried about his condition and not daring to crowd forward.

Ying Huai came back to himself in a daze, listening to the girls chattering in front of him.

'Teacher Xiao Huai, do you still have tickets? Can you give me one?'

'Teacher Xiao Huai, you were amazing just now. I really want to go to your Concert. If you don't have tickets now, can you save one for me later?'

Ying Huai opened his mouth soundlessly.

His vision was still swimming. In a daze, he felt Liang Shining stop beside him and gently squeeze his fingers.

'It's okay.'

'Look, they all like you.'