373. In Class
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Li Na was lounging on the sofa, yawning, while watching Pan Maoxin’s dad pacing back and forth anxiously in the living room, his face plastered with an unshakeable grin.
At first, Li Na was worried that Lin Nan might be too soft-hearted to handle that little troublemaker, but now it seemed Lin Nan had developed a bit of a violent streak.
After all, with all of Lilith’s memories, that once defenseless little boy had transformed into a raging female tiger.
“Don’t worry, the teaching skills are definitely up to par,” Li Na reassured, “The first class is almost over, and when she comes out, we can ask how it went.”
“I know, but I’m worried he’ll send someone to beat up Teacher Lin…”
“Now, that’s even less to worry about,” Li Na chuckled, “He’s learned his lesson, he won’t dare.”
Just then, Lin Nan pushed the door open and walked out of the bedroom, looking a bit worn out. She plopped down next to Li Na and mumbled, “You didn’t tell me it would be this exhausting!”
Letting out a dramatic sigh, she shook her head to clear the dizziness, then turned to the parents and said, “Pan Maoxin did alright, at least he listened and remembered a few words.”
He had memorized all the essential vocabulary for first-semester freshmen, and now Lin Nan’s task was to make sure he remembers all his high school vocabulary before plunging into past and present tenses and all that jazz.
Anyway, she figured she could wing it, and with a sprinkle of magic, Pan Maoxin would always remember—though poor Lin Nan’s head was aching from the long-term magical energy output.
“He did alright?” The parent blinked, clearly satisfied with Lin Nan’s performance, at least she could handle Pan Maoxin, “Then let’s talk about pay.”
“Teacher Li used to get two hundred an hour; how does one hundred fifty sound for you? If Pan Maoxin improves by the monthly exam, I’ll throw in a bonus.”
Lin Nan was a bit surprised. “Didn’t we say one hundred?”
“If you can handle him, it’s worth the extra cash.”
Ah, the parent’s heart is a tough cookie, Pan Maoxin was fearless, ignoring everyone else’s advice, lucky for him he had two tutors, each more formidable than the last.
He sighed, “We don’t need to sign a contract; how about you come over Saturdays and Sundays from 2 to 4? I’ll pay you weekly.”
“A contract?” Lin Nan glanced at Li Na, saw her nodding, and agreed.
Weekly pay was good; even if it’s delayed, she could cut her losses in time, but Lin Nan still preferred a contract.
After a ten-minute break to discuss pay, Lin Nan still had a nagging headache, but there was no other choice—she stubbornly headed back to the bedroom to continue the lesson.
Pan Maoxin seemed a bit timid; during Lin Nan’s absence, he had dutifully been reading instead of playing games.
To give herself a break, Lin Nan quickly decided to skip the lesson.
She sat down in her chair and instructed, “Organize the words you’ve learned and write an essay.”
“????” Pan Maoxin was baffled.
“I just want to see how solid your foundation is,” Lin Nan asserted confidently, “Use the words you know. It doesn’t matter if you make mistakes; think of it like an exam. You have the whole class period.”
With that, she yawned, propped her chin on her hand, and gazed out the window at the lovely community garden, ignoring her student.
This neighborhood is gorgeous! When can I convince Chen Yao to buy a place here?
Pan Maoxin thought for a moment, but he had no clue where to start.
Not just a little clueless, but completely stumped.
So he took out his English textbook, flipping through it as he copied sentences, just barely managing to begin writing.
This is so lazy! If it weren’t for the fact that I can’t beat her!
Pan Maoxin grumbled inwardly, this new teacher was worlds apart from Li Na, utterly irresponsible.
“Teacher Lin, what year are you in?” he couldn’t contain his curiosity, “You’re not in high school, are you?”
He sneaked a glance at Lin Nan; compared to the baby-faced Li Na, Li Na had a mature aura that commanded respect. Lin Nan, however, looked so young; her demeanor barely above the high school level.
“Second year, eighteen,” Lin Nan casually replied.
“You look even younger than me… how are you in your second year at eighteen?”
“I started school early. Kindergarten is pretty expensive in the countryside, and my family was busy, so they just sent me to elementary school as if it were kindergarten.”
Lin Nan wasn’t in the mood for a chat; her head was pounding, and her energy was fading fast, propping her cheek in her hand, her eyelids were already having a duel.
She glanced at Pan Maoxin’s essay and saw that he had written only a handful of words. Her eyebrows furrowed instantly. “What are you thinking? You’re only scribbling a few words here!”
Pan Maoxin wasted no time backing down, any excuse he could think of vanished, and he hurried to scribble more.
“I just had a chat with your dad, so from now on, I’ll be here on weekends at 2:00 PM for two hours. Don’t be out of the house then,” Lin Nan instructed. “If you make me miss out on my earnings, I’ll break your hands next time!”
“You’re only in it for the money?”
“What else? I’m definitely not commuting two hours on the bus just for kicks!” Lin Nan was starting to feel more at home in this environment, her previously ever-present smile fading into deep exhaustion.
Using magic for long periods was still stretching her limits a bit.
Pan Maoxin wrote two lines but then spaced out again; he secretly peeked at Lin Nan beside him, only to be shocked to find the teacher, who had been talking just moments ago, had closed her eyes and appeared to have dozed off.
“Hey, are you sleeping?”
“That’s a bit irresponsible, isn’t it?”
Not getting a reply sparked a wild thought in Pan Maoxin’s mind.
Game time! Game time!
Gotta grab a few rounds before it’s too late!
Just as he pulled out his phone, he recalled that one-two punch that launched him into the air earlier, making his hands tremble; he swallowed, patting his sore cheek and obediently shoved his phone back into his pocket.
How can a teacher be so violent?
Sigh, Pan Maoxin lamented, she’s a cute and lovely girl, yet somehow a hurricane of chaos.
And here he was, the high school champion, getting wrecked by two women.
His little heart had started to bud a fear of the female species somewhere along the way.
After what felt like ages, Lin Nan finally woke up, opening her eyes with the previous headache finally subsided.
She glanced down at Pan Maoxin, who was sprawled asleep, yanked the assignment paper from under his arm, skimmed it, and promptly tossed it onto the table.
What is this? Even elementary school kids write better!
Though Lin Nan’s actual English skills weren’t stellar, this guy’s writing was just chaotic.
She kicked Pan Maoxin, startling him upright. “I wasn’t sleeping, I was deep in thought!”
Lin Nan checked the time; it was exactly 4 PM—second period was officially over.
This class had been a bit of a breeze, but facing Pan Maoxin’s dad now made her feel slightly guilty.
Essentially, she had dozed off and made a cool one hundred fifty bucks…
Time to head home!
