Teachers at Jiangzhou No. 1 High School were all assigned faculty apartments, located near the school. The school owned the apartments, but the right to use them belonged to the teachers. As long as teachers were teaching at the school, they retained the right to use the apartments.
Although Cao Ying was a substitute teacher, she clearly received special treatment from the school and was assigned a spacious apartment.
Upon entering Cao Ying's apartment, Lin Feng immediately smelled a delicate, pleasant fragrance. Cao Ying seems to live a life of good taste, he thought.
"Hold on a moment."
Cao Ying walked into the living room, then suddenly turned around, asking Lin Feng to wait at the door and not enter just yet.
Then, Lin Feng saw Cao Ying hurriedly retrieving her hanging laundry from the balcony, her face flushed as she threw it into her bedroom and quickly shut the door.
"Alright, you can come in now." Cao Ying looked around, evidently worried that something private might have been left out for Lin Feng to see.
Lin Feng knew that women often became nervous and shy when a stranger, especially a man, entered their private space. Hence, he remained silent, walked into the living room, and quietly sat down on the sofa.
Cao Ying turned around and poured him a cup of hot water.
"Wait a moment; I'm going to change. This work outfit is too uncomfortable." Then, wearing her slippers, Cao Ying went into her bedroom.
The spacious bedroom was very simply decorated. Besides the sofa in the living room, there was a desk and a 42-inch LCD television. However, the entire living room was decorated tastefully, preventing it from looking monotonous.
Lin Feng's gaze landed on a large bookshelf next to the balcony. The bookshelf, three meters long and two meters high with six or seven shelves, was neatly filled with various books.
Curious, Lin Feng walked over. As his eyes scanned the titles, he realized all the books were about education or English. Casually picking up a book, he opened it and found it densely filled with notes and annotations.
Remembering Cao Ying's signature, Lin Feng was sure that all these notes were made by her. He picked up a few more books and, without exception, each one had detailed notes by Cao Ying.
"What a studious girl!"
Lin Feng couldn't help but admire. No wonder the school dared to let someone who hadn't yet graduated from university serve as a substitute teacher for a third-year high school class. He had previously heard it was because Cao Ying's family had strong connections, but now it seemed that, at the very least, Cao Ying's abilities were up to the standard required to teach third-year high school students.
"Don't mess up the books on the shelf; they're arranged in order."
At this moment, Cao Ying emerged from her bedroom. She had changed into a white T-shirt, her long hair draped over her shoulders, giving her the feel of a girl next door. She had changed into denim hot pants, the hemline just covering half of her snow-white, slender thighs. Combined with her youthful vitality, she was simply a goddess-like figure.
Seeing Lin Feng gazing at her unwaveringly, Cao Ying blushed before asking curiously, "What are you looking at? Is something wrong?"
"No, no... Teacher Cao, you look really pretty in these clothes," Lin Feng chuckled.
"Flattery will get you nowhere."
Cao Ying gave Lin Feng a smiling side-glance, but she looked quite pleased by the compliment.
"Come and sit down. Let me dress your wound." Cao Ying motioned for Lin Feng to sit back on the sofa.
Only then did Lin Feng notice she was holding a roll of gauze and a bottle of disinfectant.
After he had driven Hao Zhuang away in the office, Lin Feng clearly sensed that Cao Ying's attitude towards him had softened considerably. Was her stern expression in class just an act? he wondered. In private, Teacher Cao was simply a perfect elder-sister goddess.
The two of them sat on the sofa, merely a centimeter apart.
"Extend your hand."
Seeing Lin Feng's lack of reaction, Cao Ying shot him an annoyed glance. "This wound needs to be treated immediately, or it could easily cause problems. The monthly exam is next week, and the college entrance exam is in a few months. You need to take care of your body and not let health issues arise at this critical time of preparation."
Without giving him a chance to object, Cao Ying took Lin Feng's right hand. She held his wrist with her left hand while her right hand took out a cotton swab from a plastic bag, dipped it in the disinfectant, and gently cleaned the blood around his wound.
Looking at her, Lin Feng asked in a low voice, "Teacher Cao, have you been a doctor or a nurse before? You seem very professional."
Cao Ying chuckled. "Disinfecting and bandaging wounds, that's just basic knowledge, isn't it? Remember those safety and hygiene classes at school? I bet you skipped them, didn't you?"
"Well... hehe..." Seeing Cao Ying looking at him with a hint of anger, Lin Feng could only manage a sheepish laugh.
"You can't skip classes anymore, understand?" Cao Ying said, her tone that of an elder, her gaze somewhat stern as she looked at Lin Feng.
Lin Feng hesitated. Teacher Cao really knows how to alternate between kindness and severity. Can I really say 'no' right now? He quickly nodded. "Yes, I understand."
Seeing Lin Feng's reluctant expression, Cao Ying continued to disinfect and clean the wound while saying earnestly, "I know your family has good financial conditions, but you should also cherish this hard-won opportunity to study. You haven't seen the impoverished mountainous regions. For the children there, having enough to eat and wear, and having the chance to study, is their biggest dream. But in this world, there are still tens of thousands of children who can't attend school and have to help their families with farm work or earn money from a young age. You people are blessed but don't realize it."
After cleaning the wound, Cao Ying applied a medicated liquid to accelerate healing, then picked up the gauze and began to bandage Lin Feng's hand.
"So, no matter what, you should feel fortunate to be living in this world, healthy and without worries about food and clothing. But happiness isn't innate. Present happiness needs to be maintained with effort, and future happiness needs to be striven for. This is life's goal. I see you and those few classmates sitting at the back, idle all day. Do you think such a life is meaningful? Instead of that, why not set goals in your studies, challenge yourselves, and live out the joy of life..."
Lin Feng watched blankly as Cao Ying, like an elder sister, began to give him a 'political lesson.' However, her words were quite reasonable, much more beneficial than the class teacher's dry scoldings.
Cao Ying was diligently bandaging Lin Feng. Watching her flawless profile from the side, he noticed that as she spoke, a strand of her long hair fell across her cheek. Since both her hands were busy, she could only try to shake her head gently to flick it back. However, after several attempts, she didn't succeed, and instead, more strands fell.
Seeing this, Lin Feng extended his other hand to gently tuck the fallen strand behind her ear. Perhaps being overly careful, he tensed up, and his fingers unintentionally brushed against Cao Ying's peach-soft cheek and earlobe.
Cao Ying was speaking when her body suddenly trembled slightly. She turned to stare at Lin Feng, her face beet red. "You... what are you doing..."
Lin Feng was also embarrassed. He had only intended to help Cao Ying with her hair. He quickly said, "I'm sorry, Teacher Cao. Your hair fell, and I saw you looked uncomfortable. Since your hands were busy, I wanted to help you tuck it back. I didn't expect..."
Seeing that Lin Feng spoke sincerely and didn't seem to be faking, Cao Ying's anger subsided by half. However, she still gave him a shy and annoyed glance. "I'm talking to you, listen properly...!"
She was speaking seriously, but when she saw Lin Feng staring at her and grinning foolishly, Cao Ying immediately became shy and annoyed again.
"Lin Feng! Behave yourself!" Cao Ying said, her face and ears flushed red.
"Teacher Cao... well, I am listening very attentively. It's impolite not to look at the speaker when they're talking, you know," Lin Feng said, wrinkling his nose with a smile.
Actually, it wasn't just because Lin Feng's hand had touched Cao Ying's face earlier. It was also because when Cao Ying lowered her head to bandage him, the neckline of her T-shirt was too wide.
Lin Feng was a man, not a saint; naturally, he wanted to take a couple more glances.
"Don't let your mind wander..." Cao Ying said, still keeping her head turned away. Recalling the earlier incident made her even more unbearably shy.
"Yes, yes, yes..." Lin Feng quickly agreed.
After speaking, Lin Feng looked at her sideways. It was evident that the recent incident had also made Cao Ying quite emotional; the blush on her face extended all the way to the roots of her ears.
After a good while, Cao Ying finally calmed down and continued to bandage Lin Feng.
"Done."
A moment later, Cao Ying cut the gauze with scissors, took a deep breath, and then packed everything away.
"Thank you, Teacher Cao..." Lin Feng politely stood up and expressed his gratitude.
Regardless, she was the first person he saw after he was reborn. And through this whole afternoon's interaction, Lin Feng could clearly sense that she was a girl full of passion for life and responsibility for her work. Although she could be stern in public, this girl in her twenties was still somewhat simple and innocent in private.
"You got injured for my sake, so don't mention thanks," Cao Ying said as she stood up from the sofa and put the gauze and other items into a box under the television.
"No matter what, you personally bandaged my wound, so I must thank you. Didn't you say we should respect our teachers and honor their teachings?" Lin Feng said with a smile.
Cao Ying sat back down on the sofa, also smiling faintly. "Alright, if you want to thank me, then promise me you won't sleep in my class anymore."
"Okay, I definitely won't sleep anymore."
"Next, prepare well for the exam and don't neglect your studies."
"Okay."
"Also, I've seen that several of you boys sitting at the back have a smoking habit. Smoking among high school students is not only bad for your health but also sets a bad example. You, take out your cigarettes and lighter and give them to me."
"What?"
Lin Feng was completely stunned. I was just thanking you, and you're already making so many demands? You're even more meddlesome than my Mom.
Seeing Lin Feng hesitate, Cao Ying quickly said with a serious expression, "Smoking can easily lead to pneumonia and, moreover, greatly affects others. As a high school student, you cannot smoke. If you want to smoke, wait until you get into university. I'm doing this for your own good."
Saying this, Cao Ying extended her fair, slender, jade-like palm and placed it in front of Lin Feng, signaling him to hand over the cigarettes.
Lin Feng felt around his pockets and indeed found a lighter and a pack of Yuxi cigarettes in his trouser pocket.
As an elite special forces soldier, Lin Feng had a habit of smoking in his past life, but he wasn't addicted. Now, seeing Cao Ying looking at him expectantly, Lin Feng could only sigh softly and hand the cigarettes to her.
"Hehe..."
Cao Ying giggled upon seeing Lin Feng's wry face. Her two faint dimples appeared as she smiled, looking like a child whose prank had succeeded. Her smile was incredibly radiant, and her voice was exceptionally clear. She never thought that the most hedonistic and unmotivated student in the class would willingly listen to her. This was something even the class teacher hadn't managed to achieve. Cao Ying felt as sweet as honey inside, a happy sense of accomplishment welling up.
"Why the long face? I'm doing this for your own good." Seeing Lin Feng's embarrassed expression, Cao Ying giggled, covering her mouth. Her laughter was as pleasant as an oriole's song.
"Seeing as you listened to your teacher, your teacher will also give you something as a reward!" Cao Ying said with a charming smile, sounding happy.