"Finally going home!"
Xu Hao's expression softened as he said, "My mom definitely prepared a huge spread waiting for me."
"You're lucky. My dad said he's going to inspect the results of my training over the last five months."
Liu Ziming pursed his lips, then quickly changed tone: "But after training with Su Zhan—the ultimate grinder—for so long, I'm still confident I can make my dad satisfied."
"My dad too."
Xie Xi's eyes were confident; she seemed eager to go home and show her parents what she could do.
Feng Jue leaned against the window and added, "My little sister should have grown quite a bit."
"Oh—"
Liu Ziming looked surprised. "You have a little sister?"
"Ha—"
Liu Ziming waved a hand. "I'm just wondering, your sister's personality won't be anything like yours, right? Two people meet and neither says a word, just stare blankly?"
"That's none of your business."
Feng Jue replied coolly.
"Hey, I'm being serious here."
Liu Ziming threw an arm over Feng Jue's shoulder. "Listen, I'm great with women. Although how I get along with women is probably nothing like how you'd with your sister, women do have certain things in common..."
Feng Jue remained expressionless, his gaze flicking between Liu Ziming and Xie Xi.
"What do you mean?"
Liu Ziming felt oddly scrutinized.
Xu Hao chuckled and helped explain: "Feng Jue means that before, we might have believed what you said, but now... with Xie Xi here, the credibility of that claim is..."
He didn't finish the sentence, but the implication was painfully obvious.
Given the dynamic between Liu Ziming and Xie Xi, it was hard to believe he truly understood women.
"Hey! Is that even comparable?!"
Liu Ziming immediately lost his composure. "Can Xie Xi even be counted as a woman? She's basically a—"
"Hm?"
Xie Xi glanced up coldly.
Liu Ziming's neck snapped back; he swallowed the rest of the sentence and awkwardly let go of Feng Jue. "Forget it, forget it, I didn't say anything..."
A barely noticeable corner of Feng Jue's mouth twitched upward.
They chatted back and forth about their plans to go home, until a sudden realization dimmed their voices.
Everyone's gaze unconsciously turned to Su Zhan.
They were talking about family—what about Su Zhan?
No wonder he'd been silent in the conversation; there was simply no opening for him to join in.
The room fell into an awkward silence.
"I'm fine."
Su Zhan said without looking up. "I stopped caring about that a long time ago."
He was telling the truth.
He was a transmigrator; he had no emotional attachment to the original body's family.
But when those words reached the others' ears, they took on a different meaning.
Their reaction made everyone even more uneasy.
No one believed a person could overcome the grief of losing close kin in just half a year; they assumed Su Zhan was forcing himself.
Xie Xi opened her mouth to say something but eventually averted her eyes.
Xu Hao fidgeted, rubbing his hands.
Liu Ziming's joking expression disappeared.
Even Feng Jue frowned.
Watching his teammates' reactions, Su Zhan found it mildly amusing.
He had spoken the truth.
But obviously he couldn't say the real reason.
"Su ge, where are you planning to go for winter break?"
Xu Hao broke the silence.
Su Zhan paused his packing.
He was different from the others.
He had no family.
The others were going home to reunite with relatives.
As for him...
Su Zhan had intended to stay at Vermilion Bird Academy.
But the teachers also had winter break.
That meant the school would be empty; staying alone felt pointless.
Moreover, the school didn't allow students to stay on campus during holidays.
He had to leave.
As for where to go—
For several days he'd been receiving messages from his high school principal inviting him back to give talks to underclassmen, to share his story.
He had initially declined.
Although the principal at Jiangcheng No.3 High School had offered him a 500,000 yuan scholarship.
But that was reciprocal.
Su Zhan had helped the principal promote Jiangcheng No.3 High School in the media.
Still... the principal said that if he came back he would sponsor another 500,000 scholarship.
On the other hand, he had nowhere else to go.
Might as well return to Jiang City—at least he'd get money.
Free 500,000; why refuse?
"I'm going back to Jiang City."
Su Zhan told the others.
"Oh, alright."
Xu Hao nodded and didn't ask more.
The others discreetly stopped talking about going home, careful not to upset Su Zhan.
Su Zhan noticed the atmosphere, zipped up his suitcase, and stood up. "You guys keep talking. I'm leaving first."
"Alright, take care."
They nodded.
Su Zhan picked up his luggage and left the dormitory.
He exhaled almost imperceptibly as he walked.
Of course he understood why they had suddenly gone quiet.
They thought he was holding back grief, pretending to be strong, when in reality his mind was as calm as still water.
"This is annoying..."
Su Zhan shook his head.
That kind of deliberate, cautious concern made him uncomfortable.
He would have preferred they joke with him like with anyone else—even mock the situation—than tiptoe around it.
Staying longer would only make things more awkward; better to leave earlier.
He scanned his surroundings.
Sure enough, he spotted a familiar figure sitting on a nearby bench.
Wang Mingyuan was bent over a book.
He wore a dark gray turtleneck sweater under a navy wool coat.
The whole man gave off a refined, scholarly air.
Hearing footsteps, he looked up and the eyes behind his lenses curved with a smile. "Packed up?"
"Teacher?"
Su Zhan stopped in his tracks.
But it didn't feel odd.
The school had required every student to report their return itinerary a day ago.
This was standard for university holidays.
"I'm heading back to Jiang City too."
Wang Mingyuan closed his book and stood. "The school arranged for me to be your temporary bodyguard."
A small smile lifted Su Zhan's lips.
It was a genuine smile.
Since arriving in this world, this urbane teacher had guided and helped him without reservation.
He was the person Su Zhan felt most grateful to.
At first he had wondered who the school would assign to protect him.
Only when he saw Wang Mingyuan did he breathe easier.
Anyone else would not have felt as familiar.
"Let's go, teacher."
Su Zhan said first.
Wang Mingyuan adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses. "Let's go."
They walked out the school gate side by side.
On the way to the airport, Su Zhan hesitated before asking, "Teacher, are we taking a passenger plane or..."
After the last crash, he no longer trusted commercial flights.
Wang Mingyuan's eyes held amusement. "Don't worry. This time it's a military transport plane, same model as the one you came back on last time. The crew are active-duty special air personnel—no problem."
Su Zhan visibly relaxed. "The school finally arranged things properly this time."
"Don't flatter yourself."
Wang Mingyuan half-laughed and pushed up his glasses. "The front lines are tense now. Where would so many military transports for students come from? I had to call an old friend at the Ministry of Defense overnight—almost begged him."
Su Zhan glanced at Wang Mingyuan and noticed faint dark circles under his eyes.
He gave a sincere thumbs-up. "Thank you, teacher."
"Cut that out."
Wang Mingyuan shook his head. "Just treat me to hotpot when we get to Jiang City."
However—
What Su Zhan didn't know was that his teacher's special request for a transport plane wasn't just to accommodate him.
There was another important reason—his teacher was a little scared too.