Mistaken Canary Chapter 80
Chapter 80
The class bell rang, and the students scrambled back to their seats.
“Quiet down.”
The tall, handsome boy sitting by the window near the back row flipped through his book, eyes fixed on the page as he calmly maintained order. “Anyone who keeps talking, I’ll write your name down.”
The girls quickly straightened up, but a few boys in the back remained dismissive, muttering insults behind his back.
“Bah, what a nerd.”
“Who’s he trying to impress, playing the part all day long? Just good at tattling to the teacher.”
“Girls must be blind and brainless to like him just for that face.”
“Don’t say that; he’s top of the class.”
“And loaded, on top of it.”
The boys kept whispering until they spotted the homeroom teacher’s figure outside the window. They hurriedly cracked open their books and feigned concentration. One of them noticed a student trailing behind the teacher and couldn’t help but grow curious.
“Settle down, everyone. We’ve got a new classmate joining us today; be sure to look out after him,” the teacher said as he walked in with the boy, tapping the desk to quiet the room. He turned to the new student, “Go ahead and introduce yourself.”
Zhuo Shu lifted his head from the pages of his book, his gaze landing on the boy at the front. The new kid wore a t-shirt and long pants; he clearly hadn’t received his school uniform yet. A single strap slung across one shoulder, his bookbag hung loosely over his frail frame. He looked fair-skinned, aloof, hair slightly long and falling near his eyes.
Zhuo Shu gave him a quick once-over, then lowered his head again, uninterested—until he heard the boy say:
“I’m Ying Tongchen.”
The voice was devoid of emotion, flat and mechanical like a soulless recorder.
“Zhuo Shu, clear off the empty desk behind you so the new student can sit,” the teacher added, smiling at Ying Tongchen. “You can take that seat; we’re about to start class.”
Ying Tongchen lifted his gaze and locked eyes with the boy sitting in the second-to-last row. The desk behind him was stacked high with books, and from the look on his face, he wasn’t thrilled about giving up the space.
He knew full well that plenty of unruly boys would dump their ‘trash’ on an empty desk just to claim it as their own, and who knew if this one was even clean.
All eyes followed Ying Tongchen as he walked toward the back. The girls quietly buzzed with excitement.
Then, Ying Tongchen saw the impatient boy impatiently begin emptying item after item from the desk: two thick English-Chinese dictionaries, a complete set of annotated textbooks, and mock exam study guides from every province.
The entire desk was overflowing with nothing but f*cking study materials.
What’s more, the impatient boy packed them away with the air of a grieving mother, as though parting with a child. His sheer madness was almost admirable.
After Ying Tongchen sat down, he caught a faint scent of sea salt in the air.
Puzzled, he bent down to peek inside the cubby and fished out an expensive-looking bottle of scented diffuser.
“Oh, my bad. Forgot that in there,” Zhuo Shu said, retrieving the bottle from his surprised hands.
Just then, Zhuo Shu’s deskmate, who had been napping, finally woke up. Seeing Ying Tongchen frozen in place, he kindly explained, “This desk is Zhuo Shu’s second home. Not bad, right? Normally no one’s even allowed near it.”
Ying Tongchen: “…”
Second home my ass. What kind of home was filled with nothing but reference books—and had scented diffuser ambiance to boot? What next, slippers for a cozy touch?
“You’re new, right?” the deskmate said warmly. “I’m Zhen Mingxin, he’s Zhuo Shu. What’s your name?”
Ying Tongchen was just about to respond when he noticed Zhuo Shu subtly lean back, ears perked up like a nosy cat.
His expression darkened. “I literally just introduced myself at the podium.”
Zhen Mingxin scratched his head. “I was asleep, didn’t hear it.”
“Ying Tongchen.”
After giving his name, he turned to Zhuo Shu, who immediately straightened up like nothing had happened.
Ying Tongchen: “…” Do none of you have working ears around here?
Zhen Mingxin raised a book to hide his face, then sneakily turned back to whisper, asking how old he was, how tall, which school he came from before—like a walking, talking megaphone.
Ying Tongchen didn’t want to answer, but after enduring for a while, he finally snapped and shouted, “Shut up!”
The homeroom teacher, who had been mid-lecture, looked up. “Hm? Our new student’s got quite the personality. It’s been a while since someone dared to challenge me like that. Stand up and speak properly.”
“…”
First class on his first day at a new school, and Ying Tongchen was already being made to stand.
And it didn’t even end there—he glanced at the pair in front of him. Zhen Mingxin had passed out in feigned sleep, and Zhuo Shu was blatantly taking notes—
Math class. Zhen Mingxin and Ying Tongchen chatted during the lecture. XX, XX, and XXX talking in a group.
Ying Tongchen: “…” What the hell is wrong with you?!
After class, a crowd of curious classmates swarmed around him, each tossing out questions. Ying Tongchen replied briefly, then quickly escaped to the restroom.
Hiding in a stall, he lit a cigarette. By the time the next bell rang, the crowd had mostly dispersed.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
“It’s occupied,” he called out.
“I know. I’m here for you.”
The voice sounded familiar. Ying Tongchen stubbed out the cigarette and opened the door. Sure enough, it was his mentally unwell classmate.
“What do you want?” he asked.
Zhuo Shu suddenly grabbed his hand, pulled him out of the stall, and leaned in close to his face, sniffing carefully.
The close distance made Ying Tongchen slightly startled. He leaned back instinctively. “What are you doing?”
“There was smoke coming out earlier—so it was you.” Zhuo Shu released him, fished a small notebook from his pocket, and began writing in it on the spot.
“Are you f*cking kidding me?” Ying Tongchen’s brows drew together, fists clenched. “Who the hell do you think you are, meddling like this?”
“I’m the class monitor. It’s my duty to look out for every student. Smoking is harmful to your health and should not be condoned,” Zhuo Shu replied righteously.
“It only harms me. It’s not like I’m bothering anyone else,” Ying Tongchen retorted.
Zhuo Shu solemnly reached into his pocket and pulled out a red armband emblazoned with the words “Student Council.” With great ceremony, he strapped it onto his arm.
“Smoking endangers others through secondhand smoke. I, for one, was just forced to inhale it. Out of concern for the health of our school community and the hardworking janitors, I must report you.”
With that, he turned on his heel, pausing only to toss over his shoulder, “If you don’t return to class now, I’m marking you absent.”
Ying Tongchen: “...” What an absolute menace!
By the time they returned to the classroom, the teacher was already lecturing. He paused to ask why they were late.
Ying Tongchen braced himself, fully expecting this ‘moral sanitation worker’ to rat him out on the spot. But to his surprise, Zhuo Shu spared him this disgrace, making the excuse, “I was getting toilet paper for the new student, that’s why we were late.”
The class erupted into laughter.
Ying Tongchen’s fists clenched so hard they could crack stone.
…
This wasn’t his first school transfer. Every time his parents argued, one of them would storm off and dump him somewhere new. Schools came and went like bus stops.
He knew he wouldn’t be staying long, so he couldn’t be bothered to socialize with his classmates; he didn’t even care to remember their names.
But today, finally there was an exception.
Zhuo Shu.
It hadn’t even been a full day, and that name was already etched in his memory.
The worst part was there was nothing he could do about him. If it had been one of those hot-headed classmates from his previous schools, he would’ve just given it back to them blow for blow.
But this guy, he didn’t slip up, not even once. Everything was said or done under the pretense of being “for your own good”, which made it all the more infuriating. Ying Tongchen was grinding his teeth in resentment.
During the final self-study period, Ying Tongchen, bored out of his mind, twirled his pen and let his eyes settle on that upright figure in front of him. His lips curved into a cold smile.
Bam! He kicked him squarely in the back, leaving a dirty footprint on the pristine uniform.
Zhuo Shu merely turned around, unfazed, picked up his disciplinary notebook, and calmly wrote the offense down.
Ying Tongchen snatched it and tore it in half.
Zhuo Shu calmly pulled out another identical notebook from his desk.
Ying Tongchen: “.”
“It’s useless,” Zhen Mingxin had just woken from his nap and turned to explain, “You can’t even imagine how many of those notebooks he’s got. Once, the entire school teamed up to try and steal them all, but no matter how many we took, there were always more.”
Ying Tongchen asked, “Why does he even bother writing all this down?”
Zhuo Shu answered directly, “For the sake of my studies. Rule-breakers severely disrupt my learning. You should join me in my pursuit of academic enlightenment; come experience the true meaning of life.” As he spoke, he even added a new entry to the notebook—on himself.
“To sell yourself out in the name of study… I have no desire to mingle with someone like you.” Ying Tongchen clicked his tongue in disbelief, then turned to Zhen Mingxin. “So, does he have any weaknesses?”
Zhen Mingxin urged him to give up. “He’s practically invulnerable. You think he’s just some overly-dedicated student? No! He’s got the whole teaching staff behind him. The director’s on his side. The principal is his second maternal aunt’s third paternal uncle’s daughter's son’s maternal uncle.”
As they spoke, Zhuo Shu jotted down another violation for both of them, even pausing to correct the record: “The principal is just my second maternal aunt’s third paternal uncle’s daughter's son’s maternal uncle’s younger brother.”
Ying Tongchen asked, “Is there even a point to all this recording?”
“There is,” Zhen Mingxin replied, face buried in his hands. “You’ll see. Monday morning, our school-wide ‘friendly family reunion’. Happens once a week.”
Ying Tongchen didn’t understand—until the following Monday.
As he looked out at the grand assembly of over two hundred students standing beneath the podium, he was truly awestruck.
Then came the sound of the broadcast, reciting his many misdeeds for all to hear.
One by one, students, familiar and total strangers alike, came up to shake his hand:
“Good brother, we’re family now.”
“Come, come, I see great potential in you; clearly a magnet for the ladies. Stand next to me!”
“I’m sure we’ll be seeing each other here again soon.”
“Welcome to the ‘Eliminate the Villains Club,’ also known as the Avengers.”
“Quiet down! The self-criticism readings begin now,” the principal declared.
Ying Tongchen leaned over to whisper to the person beside him, “With this many people, how long is this gonna take?”
“First time, huh? It’s all decided by drawing lots,” the boy replied. “If you’re lucky, you’ll never have to go up. But if your luck’s rotten… well, sometimes it’s a one-hit KO.”
Before he could ask more, Ying Tongchen’s name was called over the broadcast.
“See? Here’s the first scapegoat. By the way, who’s this? Never heard the name before,” the boy beside him chuckled, glanced around, and asked others nearby. Moments later, the so-called scapegoat walked past them and onto the stage.
Eliminate the Villains Club: Shrill winds rise, waters cold; the hero shall go, not to be seen again till the breakfast bell tolls!
(TLN: Parody of ‘Song of Yishui River (易水歌)’, an ancient ballad. According to ‘Strategies of the Warring States’, when Jing Ke set out to assassinate the King of Qin for Crown Prince Dan, the prince saw him off at the Yishui River. As the musician played the zhu, Jing Ke sang: "Shrill winds rise, Yishui River waters cold; the hero shall go and never come home." Source)
Ying Tongchen took the microphone, casting a quick glance at the Student Council President, Zhuo Shu, standing nearby.
Zhuo Shu met his gaze, thinking that having this wayward youth confess under the national flag was truly a good deed, his red armband seemed to glow even brighter.
Caught off guard and facing countless eyes below, Ying Tongchen suddenly pointed at Zhuo Shu and declared, “If I must atone for something, I’d rather face legal consequences than be forced to study alongside this person.”
Eliminate the Villains Club: How formidable!!!
The fiery crowd erupted in cheers and jeers. But as Zhuo Shu pulled out his discipline notebook, everyone quickly quieted down like a flock of quails.
Ying Tongchen smiled faintly. So what if he had to come back next time? Next time, he’d come prepared with a little essay full of insults just for Zhuo Shu.
During the break, Ying Tongchen was busy writing his insulting essay when suddenly someone flipped up his bangs. He instinctively looked up, blinking in confusion at the person.
“Your hair’s too long, blocking your eyes and messing with your vision,” Zhuo Shu said. “It’s against the rules, too. Go get it cut this weekend.”
Ying Tongchen swatted his hand away. “I’m not cutting it. I’d rather jump out of this window than cut my hair.”
Zhuo Shu glanced out. “This is the first floor.”
Ying Tongchen: “......”
Zhuo Shu instinctively pushed aside his bangs with a finger, meaning to reason with him, but paused mid-thought and murmured, “I didn’t expect your eyes to be this pretty.”
Ying Tongchen felt a bit embarrassed. “Can you stop already?”
“They really are,” Zhuo Shu said calmly, with zero pretense, as if he was just stating the weather.
“Cut it a little shorter. Such pretty eyes deserve to be seen by everyone.”
TL Note: Happy New Year, everyone! 🎉✨ To celebrate, I’ve uploaded two chapters for you all, so be sure to click Next below to enjoy an extra chapter