Chapter 154 Mutual Commercial Flattery

In the early morning, the warm sun rose as usual, dispelling the lingering gloom of dawn. With the rising sun, a brand-new day began once more.

This also marked the start of a new week. Within Anze Academy, both teachers and students were about to face another busy week after a two-day break.

When the sun had gradually climbed into mid-air, Ye Junze, still fast asleep, slowly opened his eyes.

He looked out the window at the brightening sky, rolled over, and sprang quickly out of bed.

After putting on his clothes, Ye Junze skillfully ordered his breakfast with a few taps and turned to walk into the bathroom to freshen up.

After all, he remembered that he had classes today, not to mention the other matters Li Xi had notified them about the previous evening.

Maintaining his usual pace, Ye Junze finished tidying himself up and stepped out of the bathroom.

His breakfast had naturally already arrived. Feeling refreshed and wearing a smile, he sat down at the table to enjoy the meal that was still giving off wisps of heat.

After finishing his breakfast, Ye Junze rested in his chair for a brief moment. Glancing at the time and feeling it was just about right, he prepared to head to the classroom for his lessons.

He stood up, left his dormitory, locked the door behind him, and headed straight out of the residence building.

Walking along the path that was slowly growing familiar to him, Ye Junze strolled at a leisurely, unhurried pace, looking completely unbothered.

Suddenly, a familiar voice called out, "Ye Junze! Ye Junze."

Hearing someone calling his name, Ye Junze instinctively paused and turned toward the source of the sound.

A moment later, he recognized who was calling him. A smile bloomed on his face, and he raised a hand to wave a greeting.

"Tianhan, you seem a bit early today," Ye Junze said with a smile.

Indeed, the person calling him was none other than Yun Tianhan.

Hearing Ye Junze's teasing, Yun Tianhan looked slightly embarrassed and replied, "I went to bed early yesterday, so I woke up a bit earlier today. Besides, if I didn't, you guys would always make fun of me—I do have some pride, you know."

At this, Ye Junze let out a few soft clicks of his tongue and looked Yun Tianhan up and down with intense curiosity.

"Oh my," Ye Junze said, "I checked, and the sun didn't rise from the west today. Did someone swap bodies with you, Yun Tianhan? Were you possessed by some ancient almighty expert? Saying something like that is completely unlike you."

Yun Tianhan gave Ye Junze an exasperated look and raised a middle finger at him.

"Go on with you," Yun Tianhan retorted indignantly. "I'm trying to turn over a new leaf for once, and you're beating me down like this. Can we still be good friends?"

Seeing this, Ye Junze hurriedly waved his hands and chuckled. "We can, we can! I was just making a joke."

He then changed the subject. "Alright, let's not stand around here foolishly. Since you woke up so early for a change, let's hurry to the classroom."

Yun Tianhan nodded, indicating he had no objections.

Together, the two set off along the familiar path toward the Department of Daoist Arts.

On the way, Yun Tianhan seemed to recall something. He looked at Ye Junze and asked, "Tell me, Ye Junze, did you see the notice the teacher posted in the group chat last night?"

Nodding, Ye Junze replied, "I saw it. What about it?"

With a mysterious expression, Yun Tianhan asked, "Aren't you curious about what it is?"

Seeing him act like this, Ye Junze asked with interest, "I am curious. What, do you know what it's about?"

Expecting Yun Tianhan to reveal something, Ye Junze was surprised when the latter simply shook his head and waved a hand. "How could I? How would I know?"

Ye Junze rolled his eyes in annoyance and said helplessly, "If you don't know, why are you acting like this? I actually thought you had some insider information."

Unfazed, Yun Tianhan shook his head with the triumphant grin of someone whose plot had succeeded. "I was just trying to joke with you. I didn't expect you to actually take it seriously. You fell for it, didn't you?"

In response, Ye Junze mimicked Yun Tianhan's earlier gesture and raised a middle finger at him.

Yun Tianhan simply didn't mind.

Yun Tianhan continued, "Still, it really makes you wonder what kind of matter it could be—so secretive that it can't even be mentioned during class, and we have to wait until the afternoon when we're free."

With a carefree expression, Ye Junze said, "Why bother overthinking it? We'll find out this afternoon anyway."

Yun Tianhan nodded. "That's true. Let's drop it then."

The two continued walking, chatting idly back and forth along the way.

After walking for a while, they finally arrived at the Department of Daoist Arts.

Without breaking their stride, they headed toward the classroom where they usually had their lectures.

When they reached the room, quite a few students were already gathered inside.

Among them were two familiar faces: Li Ling and Fan Yan.

Seeing the two newcomers, Li Ling and Fan Yan exchanged a glance, smiled, and walked over.

As Ye Junze and Yun Tianhan drew closer, Li Ling and Fan Yan noticed them and waved.

The two returned the smiles and greetings.

Soon, the four of them clustered together, chatting animatedly about their experiences over the weekend and what had happened to them.

Before long, Lu Renjia also arrived, prompting another round of teasing from the group.

They asked how he had managed to become the last one to show up today. Even Yun Tianhan regained his confidence and mocked him: "You're really late today, Lu Renjia. Confess, what were you up to last night?"

Lu Renjia waved his hands frantically and protested, "You're wronging me! I just got too used to the weekend schedule, thought today was still the weekend, and accidentally lingered in bed a bit too long. I overslept."

Hearing such an unexpected excuse, everyone burst into laughter.

Even the thick-skinned Lu Renjia couldn't help flushing red at their amusement.

Li Ling waved his hand with a smile and said, "Alright, alright, stop teasing Lu Renjia. Though I must say, his reason is certainly unexpected."

The others chuckled and let the matter rest.

After that, they resumed their casual chatting while waiting for class to begin.

......

Before long, the familiar class bell rang once more, and Yin Jia, whom they hadn't seen for a week, walked into the classroom.

The students immediately quieted down out of respect for her.

Yin Jia walked to the front, looked at the students already seated on their rush mats, clapped her hands gently, and smiled. "Good morning, everyone. It's been a week, and it looks like all of you have grown quite a bit. Let me offer you my congratulations."

The students smiled brightly. After all, everyone loves hearing praise, especially from a teacher like Yin Jia.

As if suddenly enlightened, the students chimed in unison, "It's all thanks to your wonderful teaching, Teacher."

Hearing their slightly sycophantic remark, Yin Jia smiled, though she didn't read too much into it.

"Seeing how sincere you all look," Yin Jia said with a smile, "I'll just assume you mean it. I'm going to take your words seriously, you know."

The students laughed along with her.

Yin Jia clapped her hands again to signal for quiet, and once the room settled down, she continued.

"Alright, seeing that everyone has made progress certainly makes me very happy. Since we're all familiar with each other by now, I won't say too much more. Let's begin our lesson. Starting from today, the classes won't be as simple as the first one anymore, oh."

The students nodded, their expressions turning serious.

No matter how difficult the teacher made it sound, after the past week, they had grown immensely and no longer harbored the fear they felt on day one. Whatever lessons or difficult problems came their way, they were ready to face them calmly and diligently.

Satisfied, Yin Jia nodded and said nothing more. With a wave of her hand, she officially started the day's lecture.

Under Yin Jia's guidance, the students embarked on a new round of Dao comprehension, constantly deepening their understanding of the Dao.

Perhaps due to the adaptation and integration of the past week, everyone had already formed their own comprehension of cultivation. As a result, during today's lecture, every student listened with utmost concentration. Whenever Yin Jia explained a key point, they would chew on it repeatedly, turning the knowledge into their own to ensure smoother progress in their practice.

Yin Jia naturally noticed this change in the students and smiled with satisfaction, though she chose not to point it out. She figured that these students would discover such personal growth on their own in time.

As their teacher, there was no need for her to spell it out.

......

When both teacher and students are fully engaged, a class actually passes by very quickly.

When Yin Jia finished explaining the final key point of the day's lesson, she let out a gentle sigh of relief.

She clapped her hands lightly and said, "Alright, everything I've covered just now is the complete content of today's Dao comprehension class. I hope you won't forget it the moment you walk out of this door. Keep it in your minds and ponder over it repeatedly."

The students nodded in agreement.

Some called out in unison, "Teacher, we've remembered it!"

Others declared loudly, "Don't worry, we won't forget! We still remember what we learned last week."

Yin Jia smiled and said with satisfaction, "Good. As long as you have that awareness, I won't nag you any further, otherwise you might start getting sick of me."

By the end, her tone carried a hint of teasing.

"How could that be?"

"Never, never!"

The students hurriedly waved their hands in denial, cooperating enthusiastically.

Yin Jia smiled, waved her hand, and said, "Alright, I'm just joking with you. That's all for today, class is dismissed. See you all next week."

"Goodbye, Teacher," the students chorused.

With that, Yin Jia turned and walked gracefully out of the classroom.

The students began to pack up and leave as well.

After all, there were other matters to attend to later, so it was best to head back early, tidy up, and prepare in advance.

Ye Junze and his friends were no exception. Remembering Li Xi's notice from yesterday, they exchanged farewells as soon as they stepped out of the teaching building.

"See you this afternoon."

"Yep, see you this afternoon."

"See you later!"

With those words, the group parted ways, heading toward their respective dormitories.

Only Ye Junze and Yun Tianhan walked together, returning along the familiar path to the Qian Building.

Bidding each other farewell at the entrance, they returned to their respective rooms.

Once back in his room, Ye Junze wasted no time in ordering his lunch.

Because the schedule given in yesterday's notice was quite tight, he would have to head back to the classroom area shortly after eating, leaving very little time to rest.

Ye Junze shook his head, pushed those thoughts aside, and turned to get himself ready.