"Ding~"
"Um, Grandma, do you have a big lecture this morning?"
Lu Ze picked up his phone after hearing the notification, then turned to Liu Xiangjun with a surprised expression.
"Yeah. You heading in?"
Liu Xiangjun grinned from behind the wheel, smugly.
Lu Ze held up his phone and waved it at her. "Of course—I got a message from our homeroom teacher. She's telling everyone to come."
"Your homeroom teacher? Zhang Xuexing? Shame. She's five years older than you."
Liu Xiangjun puckered her lips. A nice girl, sure, but the age gap was too much for Lu Ze.
Lu Ze shot her a look but didn't dare say a word. He just opened the small group chat on his phone.
Lu Ze: "You guys at school yet?"
You Yu You: "Yep!"
Lu Ze: "You going to the big lecture later?"
Tang Yunqin: "I'm already here."
Lu Ze: "Can you save me a seat?"
Su Tingxi: "+1!"
Wang Quan: "+1!"
You Yu You: "+2!"
Sui Yan: "Wait, I +2 too!"
You Yu You: "???"
Su Tingxi: "@Sui Yan, other guys bring their girlfriends. You really need a seat for your right hand too?"
Wang Quan: "Hahaha~"
Lu Ze: "Hahaha~"
You Yu You: "Hahaha~"
"What are you laughing about? That funny?"
"Nothing, Grandma. Just telling my friends to save me a seat."
Liu Xiangjun glanced over with a playful smile and teased: "A seat? You want to sit next to me and be my teaching assistant? Dr. Lu?"
Lu Ze forced a smile. "Grandma, please focus on driving. I'd like to keep a low profile."
"Fine." Liu Xiangjun shrugged. "Young man your age and you don't know how to show off your edge. Really."
"The nail that sticks up gets hammered down."
"Fine, I'll shut up."
Lu Ze had barely finished before he caught Liu Xiangjun glaring at him in the rearview mirror.
Lu Ze immediately caved, burying his face against Mini Dragon to hide from her gaze.
"Chirp?"
Half-asleep Mini Dragon registered that it was Lu Ze nuzzling up to her, then calmly closed her eyes again.
Waking up too early was bad for a dragon's complexion.
Soon enough, Liu Xiangjun and Lu Ze arrived at the school.
Professor Liu's car could drive straight through the side gate and into the campus, so Lu Ze happily enjoyed the privilege of stepping out right at the lecture hall.
After getting out, Liu Xiangjun checked her watch. "Lecture starts at eight. Head to Auditorium One—I'll be along after I get ready."
"Sure thing."
Lu Ze nodded and made his way toward Auditorium One.
His grandma's lectures always drew huge crowds, so the school booked her into the largest auditorium on campus.
Lu Ze: "Where are you guys?"
Tang Yunqin: "Third row in Auditorium One. You'll see me when you walk in."
Lu Ze: "Got it."
The campus was large, but the main building and the auditorium weren't far apart, so he arrived in no time.
"Hey~"
"Hey~"
Lu Ze greeted Tang Yunqin, then sat down beside her. He reached over and patted the head of the Ice Tail curled on Tang Yunqin's lap.
"Did they not come yet?"
"Gurrr~"
"Nope. You're the second one here besides me."
"Oh, okay."
Lu Ze settled in and began chatting idly with Tang Yunqin.
"Morning."
"Morning."
Before long, all seven members of Lu Ze's friend group had arrived.
As they trickled in, the auditorium began to fill. Soon every seat was taken, and the people arriving after found standing room only.
Finally, at eight o'clock sharp, Liu Xiangjun came to the podium with Idlady and Diancie.
"Idlady~"
"Ah, Diancie~ I'm deceased~"
"Diancie, please look down on me with that disdainful gaze one more time~"
"Idlady~ My dream girl~"
Listening to the fervent, whispered muttering erupting around him, Lu Ze was utterly baffled. What was wrong with these people?
"What are they talking about?"
"You're still young. Don't listen to any of this."
Tang Yunqin perked her ears up with obvious curiosity, and Lu Ze promptly covered both of them.
"Oh…"
Tang Yunqin let out a soft murmur, then slowly lowered her head, her ears bright red beneath Lu Ze's hands.
"She's pretty. That's a lovely girl."
"Osho?"
At that moment, Liu Xiangjun and Diancie both noticed Lu Ze on their way to the stage.
Unlike Liu Xiangjun's approving glance, Diancie's expression was one of pure shock.
Xiao Ze is here? And looking so close with another girl? No way. I'm jealous.
"Osho~"
Diancie puffed out her cheeks, her eyes scheming—then lit up with excitement and bounced toward Lu Ze with a spring in her step.
"Ah~ Diancie pouting is too cute~ I'm dead~"
"Diancie's charging at me! Is this love at first sight? It's me!"
"Diancie, please trample me!"
"Hee~ ri!"
(No, you may not.)
Diancie had barely launched herself off the stage before Idlady used a Vine Whip to bind her and pull her back.
"Osho~ sniffle..."
Diancie returned to the podium looking like a teary mess, resentful but too intimidated to protest.
"Ah! Idlady! Please鞭打我!"
"Idlady, together with Diancie—I'm ready to take it!"
"Ew!"
Lu Ze shuddered at the deranged voices coming from the rows behind him. Beside him, Sui Yan and Su Tingxi were already laughing themselves silly.
"Jeez, are there really this many weirdos at Shangqing? Scary."
Fugui was also doubled over, but managed to straighten up and play it cool with his critique.
Then everyone dissolved back into laughter.
"Please be quiet. Class is now in session. Today's lesson: 'On Held Items and Their Use.'"
Remarkably, the moment Liu Xiangjun spoke, the auditorium went silent.
The same people who'd been carrying on the loudest just moments ago now sat attentive and serious.
The deranged fans: Hey, we're not weirdos okay? We were just playing along! Playing along!
Everyone else: Ah. Sure, sure.
"'Held items'?"
Lu Ze blinked. Right—held items weren't introduced until university. Everything they'd learned about berries in high school must have been prep for this.
"Snorlax with the Gluttony ability—does anyone here have one?"
Liu Xiangjun's gaze swept the room.
The moment she finished, a student stood up.
"Here, Professor. I have one."
Everyone turned to look. It was Wang Siyuan—the one Lu Ze had knocked out of the Freshman Tournament. He was the trainer with a Snorlax of the Gluttony ability and a Greninja of the Bond Evolution ability.
"Good. Has your Snorlax learned Recycle?"
"Yes, it has."
Liu Xiangjun nodded. "Please, come up to the front."
(The End of Chapter)
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