Chapter 28: There’s Something Off About These Two

"Where are you going?" Gao Zixi asked in surprise.

"Of course, I'm leaving," Li Sicheng turned back, forcing a bitter smile. "Teacher Gao, this is the women's restroom. Do you think it's appropriate for a guy like me to hang around here? If someone comes in and sees me, won't they scream about some pervert? I did a good deed here, but I don't want to be misunderstood."

Gao Zixi had been distracted by Li Sicheng's words, forgetting for a moment that she was in the women's restroom. Now that she realized, she agreed that it wasn't right for Li Sicheng to linger here. "You're right, we should leave quickly. I'll go with you."

She took a step, then stopped.

"What's wrong?" Li Sicheng asked, puzzled.

"Uh... nothing. You go ahead, I still have something to do," Gao Zixi's cheeks flushed a little, embarrassed.

She couldn't possibly tell Li Sicheng that she was still bleeding, her underwear and stockings soaked with blood, and every movement was uncomfortable. Even if she had to leave, she needed to change her pad and take off her stained stockings first. Such matters were her own concern—it would be mortifying to talk about them with a student. Especially a male student...

Fortunately, Li Sicheng was not the gossipy type and didn't press her. He nodded, "Alright, I'll go first. Oh, and Teacher Gao, I hope you can keep today's events a secret. I don't want rumors flying around the school just as I've arrived."

"No problem, I'll keep it confidential. And I'll remember what you've done for me," Gao Zixi replied solemnly, then couldn't help but laugh, "I actually thought you'd go around bragging about it."

Although Gao Zixi hadn't been a teacher for long, she'd taught many students. She knew very well that, at this age of restless youth, quite a few boys had snuck into the girls' restroom to 'explore'. They always treated it as a topic of conversation, wearing an air of pride and accomplishment as if they'd done something remarkable.

She'd expected Li Sicheng to be the same. After all, this time he'd not only barged into the women's restroom, but also saved a teacher—much more impressive than merely sneaking in for curiosity's sake.

Yet, to her surprise, Li Sicheng had no intention of boasting about it, and even urged her to keep it quiet.

This piqued Gao Zixi's curiosity about him even more.

"What's there to brag about? Am I that childish and immature?" Li Sicheng shook his head, turned, and strode away.

"What an odd student," Gao Zixi muttered, frowning as she watched his departing figure, "He doesn't seem like a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old at all, more like an adult... no, even some adults don't have his maturity. What could this child have experienced to be so mature at such a young age?"

Her curiosity aside, Gao Zixi needed to deal with her own situation. She hadn't dared move while Li Sicheng was there. Now, she locked the stall door, took off her blood-stained stockings, and pulled out a sanitary pad she'd already prepared. Unfortunately, she hadn't had a chance to use it earlier before the pain made her faint.

While Gao Zixi was busy, Li Sicheng confirmed that the corridor was empty and quickly slipped out of the women's restroom.

"Hey, hey, hey! He's out! The liar is out!" Lin Siyu and Tan Xiaoxiao, lurking in the corner, became excited, raising their phones to snap photos.

But soon, they realized something was off.

Lin Siyu frowned in confusion, "Xiaoxiao, didn't you say our homeroom teacher was in that restroom too? Why did the liar come out unscathed?"

In her mind, Li Sicheng, who had entered the girls' restroom, was supposed to be sternly reprimanded by Gao Zixi and dragged out by the ear. But now, Li Sicheng emerged alone. Where was Teacher Gao? Why didn't she come out too?

Furthermore, the liar looked anything but punished—his face radiant, his spirit lively, as if he'd gained something instead.

What was going on?

Tan Xiaoxiao was equally baffled. "That's strange, I clearly saw Teacher Gao go into the restroom. Why did she let him out? Did they not run into each other?"

The two friends exchanged glances.

They had planned to capture Li Sicheng being caught red-handed by the teacher in the girls' restroom, but instead, this was what they got.

After their surprise, Tan Xiaoxiao tried to comfort her, "It's fine. Even if we didn't catch Teacher Gao scolding him, we at least got shots of him coming out of the girls' restroom. It's something."

Lin Siyu had to accept reality, "Quick, check the photos and pick the best angle. Let's post it online for the whole school to see. Everyone should know he's no good!"

They eagerly opened their photo albums and started browsing.

With each photo, their mood worsened.

"Damn, none of my photos are clear... Xiaoxiao, how did yours turn out?" Lin Siyu pouted at her phone in frustration.

The pictures she'd just taken were either completely blurry or just a smudge of Li Sicheng—there wasn't a single photo where his face was clear.

Tan Xiaoxiao didn't fare much better, "Mine are all blurry too. He ran out so fast, there was no way to get a clear shot."

"He's escaped again!" Lin Siyu grumbled, unwilling to accept defeat.

Tan Xiaoxiao didn't comfort her this time, sighing, "How does this liar have such good luck? No matter what happens, he gets away, as if he's got some cheat code."

The more she thought about it, the more frustrated Lin Siyu became. She suddenly darted out from the hiding spot—not towards the classroom, but straight to the girls' restroom where Li Sicheng had just come out.

Tan Xiaoxiao hurried after her, "Where are you going?"

Lin Siyu gritted her teeth, "I'm going to check if there's anyone in the restroom, and why we didn't catch the liar."

Just as they reached the restroom door and were about to enter, someone walked out, nearly bumping into them.

Seeing who it was, the two friends exclaimed in unison, "Teacher Gao, you were in the restroom?"

It was Gao Zixi. She was startled by their question, "What do you mean by that?"

"Uh... nothing. Oh, Teacher Gao, did you see anyone else while you were in there? Or hear anything unusual?" Tan Xiaoxiao quickly asked.

"Someone else? No! It was just me in there, who else could there be?" Gao Zixi denied outright, keeping her promise to Li Sicheng.

"Really no one?" Tan Xiaoxiao pressed.

"Really, no one!" Gao Zixi replied, then glared, scolding them, "Why so many questions? Get back to class, it's almost time for the lesson. Stop running around!"

With that, she quickly walked away, not giving them a chance to ask more.

The scene looked a bit like someone fleeing.

"Teacher Gao is acting suspicious..." Tan Xiaoxiao muttered as she watched her leave.

"To be precise, they're both acting suspicious!" Lin Siyu narrowed her eyes. At that moment, she felt like a junior detective, making a bold deduction: "Hmm, no, it's not just suspicious. There's something going on between them!"

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