Chapter 38: Climbing the Wall to Buy Primary School Books (Part Two)

“Whatever you need, just say the word! Cigarettes? Booze? Maybe some posters of beautiful women? Leave it all to me!” Zhou Nan thumped his chest with gusto. As the supplier for the Trash Class, there was nothing he hadn’t bought before. Spending money for someone’s life? That was a bargain.

Shi Tiexin nodded, and with intentions laid bare, revealed his true objective.

Zhou Nan was instantly dumbfounded.

Ten minutes later, a lithe, nimble figure slipped over the wall at a hidden corner of Phoenix Song No.1 High School, glancing around furtively like a thief to make sure no one was watching, then darted off at full speed.

His body ached from a recent beating, and Zhou Nan gritted his teeth in pain. But determined not to be on the receiving end of another “three-pointed head, improved edition,” he forced himself to fetch the goods on time, no matter what. The big boss had said he wanted to see the stuff before the second evening study session. Zhou Nan would risk his life to deliver, because otherwise… well, the bucket in the black latrine was already piling up again.

But, though he was a professional dealer, Zhou Nan really didn’t know where to buy the stuff the big boss wanted.

He decided to try his usual shady shop first.

Zhou Nan ran quickly, darting into a small roadside store. There were plenty of places selling cigarettes and alcohol, but few would sell them to high school students without causing further trouble. The owner here, a man who “built a bridge connecting north and south,” was Zhou Nan’s longtime partner.

“Hey, you’re back?” The owner greeted him warmly. After all, Zhou Nan was his main distributor at Phoenix Song No.1. “What do you need this time?”

“I want…” Zhou Nan hesitated, feeling embarrassed by his request, but he had no choice. Bracing himself, he finally blurted it out: “I want elementary school textbooks, arithmetic flashcards, and various handwriting practice books…”

“What?” The owner was stunned, staring at Zhou Nan for a moment before cursing him out. “No, we don’t have those! If you’re not buying anything else, get lost! Coming here to mess with me? You must be crazy…”

Zhou Nan didn’t dare talk back, shuffling out of the shop in disgrace. Really, a delinquent buying elementary school books? Wasn’t that humiliating?

But the boss’s mission couldn’t be left unfinished. Where on earth could he get those things? Maybe he could find some elementary students near the school, shake them down, and grab a few sets? But it was already dark, and the elementary school had long since let out; no one was around.

That left only one option—hunt for a suitable shop near the elementary school.

Twenty minutes later, Zhou Nan finally found a bookstore near an elementary school that was still open. With his bruised and swollen face, he walked in, feeling like he’d utterly lost all dignity. Without hesitating, he grabbed one of everything, stacking up a tall pile and dropping it with a thud on the counter.

“Check out, please!”

The owner tallied the bill while eyeing Zhou Nan up and down, then hesitated and asked, “Young man, did you get hurt working at a construction site? Shouldn’t you see a doctor?”

“There’s no time for that. Just ring me up—I need these books right away!”

The bookstore owner wasn’t offended, shaking his head with a sigh. “Your thirst for knowledge is remarkable… Well, kid, working construction is fine, but don’t neglect your self-improvement. One day, you’ll make something of yourself. Keep it up! I’ll even give you a discount.”

Though he got a discount, Zhou Nan felt more humiliated than ever. A bona fide delinquent, buying elementary school textbooks at the school gate—was there anything more embarrassing in the world?

There was.

Swish—Zhou Nan vaulted nimbly over the wall, landing lightly on the ground. He checked the time: five minutes before the first period ended. Perfect. Just then, a powerful beam from a flashlight swept over him, freezing him in place like an escaped convict caught in a searchlight. A shout rang out: “Freeze! Don’t move! You three, get over here and surround him!”

Out of the darkness leapt several fierce-looking figures. In no time, Zhou Nan was completely encircled.

“Hey, got another one!”

“Director Zheng was right—this crackdown is really necessary. Look at these students, smoking, fighting—discipline has completely collapsed. It’s just heartbreaking.”

“What’s this one’s story? Probably went out to buy cigarettes.”

Zhou Nan panicked, glancing around. All the teachers from the discipline office were there, along with over ten student members of the Discipline Committee—a full mobilization. Director Zheng himself wasn’t present, but the discipline office had no shortage of hard-nosed enforcers, who were currently interrogating a few punks caught smoking and dyeing their hair. Now, seeing another caught, they converged menacingly.

“So, what were you doing climbing the wall? Buying cigarettes, right?” One teacher half-smiled. “Listen, you’d better confess. Director Zheng’s in a foul mood—don’t be stubborn now.”

“No, no, teacher! I really wasn’t buying cigarettes!”

“Still denying it? Looks like you won’t cry until you see the coffin.”

Four strong flashlights pinned Zhou Nan in their beams. He looked like a prisoner caught in a great escape, his battered face contorted in awkward misery. One teacher barked, “What happened to your face? And what’s in that bundle? Why did you sneak out of school?”

Zhou Nan immediately raised his hands in surrender. “Teacher, would you believe me if I said I snuck out to buy study guides?”

All the teachers stared at him as if he’d lost his mind, and together they opened his bundle…

A minute later, every face was frozen in disbelief.

Three minutes later, Zhou Nan managed to escape the surprise inspection—lucky but disheveled. But from that day on, the tale of a delinquent sneaking over the wall to buy elementary school textbooks began to spread throughout Phoenix Song No.1 High.

During the second evening study session, Zhou Nan rushed anxiously into Class 28’s room, showing his face in the class for the first time all day. The Class 28 delinquents turned to look at their “boss,” and their expressions changed instantly. Zhou Nan, like a corgi, scampered up to Shi Tiexin, offering him the bundle with obsequious reverence.

His manner was so deferential, his smile so fawning, that the title of “boss” seemed to have lost all weight. The other delinquents exchanged glances, silently agreeing: the leadership of Class 28 had officially changed hands.

The new boss, Shi Tiexin, didn’t notice at all. His mind was on one thing. He quickly opened the bundle. At the top was “Primary School Mathematics, Grade One, First Semester.” He caressed it, eyes fixed, and after a moment, strange characters floated before his eyes.

[Secret Manual: Basic Mathematics, First Layer (Fragment, 1/6)]

This was it!

Shi Tiexin quickly rummaged through the bundle, laying out all six math textbooks from Grade One to Grade Three before him.