Chapter 41

Jin Qishan tightened his grip on Su Xiaoxiao’s hand and took off running toward the opposite exit.
Behind them, the discipline director, Xu Zeyian, shouted, “Stop! I’ve already seen you!”
When he saw the pair dart toward the basketball court, he quickly changed direction, cutting through the side path to intercept them.
His flashlight beam swung wildly, catching their retreating figures, both in the school’s uniform, making it impossible to tell who they were.
“Stop right there!” he barked. “I know who you are! If you keep running, you’ll be written up and put on probation!”
Stop?
Not a chance.
Jin Qishan kept Su Xiaoxiao’s hand firmly in his grasp as they sprinted full speed.
Panting, Su Xiaoxiao managed to gasp, “Do you think, Mr. Xu recognized us?”
Jin Qishan saw her start to look back and stopped her immediately. “No, don’t look!”
Ahead, the path split: the shaded lane led toward the art building, the open road to the gym, and the direction behind them was where Mr. Xu was giving chase.
Su Xiaoxiao, thinking fast, said, “The art building, go there!”
There were probably still a few art students studying late inside. If they could blend in, they might get away unnoticed.
“Got it.” Jin Qishan turned toward the art building, pulling her along.
Mr. Xu saw them head that way and smirked. If he cut through the small grove nearby, he could intercept them easily.
Feeling surprisingly athletic for his age, he sprinted through the trees, heart pounding. Still got it, he thought smugly. Forty-something and I can still outrun teenagers.
When they were only a dozen meters apart, he called out, “I’m giving you one last chance, STOP!”
Su Xiaoxiao heard his voice coming from the side and realized he’d taken a shortcut, he was almost on top of them!
“We’re at the entrance, hurry!” she said between breaths.
Mr. Xu lunged forward, close enough to touch them, but between them stood a waist-high hedge.
Normally, he’d step carefully over it.
But not tonight. Tonight, he felt unstoppable.
So he jumped.
THUD!
He hit the ground with a groan, flashlight clattering away.
By then, Jin Qishan and Su Xiaoxiao had already slipped inside the art building.
“I think, Mr. Xu fell,” Su Xiaoxiao panted, concern flickering in her voice. “Do you think he’s hurt?”
Jin Qishan pressed his lips together. “Probably not.”
The first floor of the building held teachers’ offices, the second was for art classes, the third for music, and the fourth for dance practice.
They stopped at the stairwell.
Su Xiaoxiao tugged his sleeve and whispered, “Wait, let’s make sure he can’t get up first,”
Before she finished, they heard him shouting outside, voice echoing through the hall: “If I catch those two brats, I’m calling their parents!”
Su Xiaoxiao couldn’t help but smile and pointed quietly upstairs.
They crouched low and crept up the steps.
“Hey, Teacher Chen, are you in the piano room? Oh, you are? Come down for a second, two students just ran in here. Help me find them.”
Su Xiaoxiao and Jin Qishan froze. The piano room was on the third floor, and Mr. Xu was still guarding the first.
Her brief relief vanished. What now?
Jin Qishan grabbed her hand, quickening his pace, they had to slip into an art classroom before Teacher Chen came down.
But just as they reached the second-floor landing, high heels clicked rapidly above them, Teacher Chen was already on her way down. And from below came the sound of Mr. Xu climbing up.
They were trapped.
Su Xiaoxiao looked around desperately and spotted the girls’ restroom by the stairs.
The art building was usually quiet, there might not be anyone inside.
“Shh.” She pressed a finger to her lips. “I’ll check. Wait here.”
She peeked in, then waved him over.
Jin Qishan hesitated, horrified at the idea, but the footsteps were too close, Su Xiaoxiao grabbed his sleeve and yanked him in.
She hurried to the second-to-last stall, shoved him inside with her, and locked the door.
Pfft,
Su Xiaoxiao immediately clapped a hand over her nose. She hadn’t realized someone was in the last stall, clearly, using it.
She glanced at Jin Qishan; his brows were drawn in tight discomfort.
Not because of the smell, but because he’d rather take a punishment, even a parental call, than hide in the girls’ bathroom.
Especially one that wasn’t empty.
He reached for the lock, ready to get out, but Su Xiaoxiao shook her head firmly, mouthing no.
He frowned, torn, he didn’t want to drag her down with him.
Outside, Mr. Xu’s voice echoed again. “Teacher Chen, did you see anyone coming down?”
“No.”
“Then they must be on the second floor. I’ll check the art room, you wait here.”
“Okay, Director Xu.”
Su Xiaoxiao pressed Jin Qishan deeper into the stall and put a finger over his lips to keep him quiet.
Just then, buzz buzz buzz, her phone vibrated in her pocket.
She glanced at it, it was a message from Shen Hua.
Shen Hua: Xiaoxiao, help me! I’m in the girls’ restroom on the second floor of the art building, last stall near the stairs. I think there’s a pervert outside! I can see four feet, one pair really big!
Su Xiaoxiao blinked. The message took a second to sink in.
Her phone buzzed again.
Shen Hua: I’m scared! I can’t leave! Come get me!
Su Xiaoxiao stared at her screen, dumbfounded.
Su Xiaoxiao: Don’t be scared. I think I’m right next to you.
Sure enough, from the stall beside them came a faint phone vibration.
Shen Hua: Really? Then why do I see four feet?
Su Xiaoxiao looked down, two pairs of feet, hers and Jin Qishan’s, and for a long second, she didn’t know how to explain that.
Outside, Mr. Xu’s voice carried again.
“Teacher Chen, did anyone pass this way?”
“No, I’ve been here the whole time.”
“That’s odd. The art room’s locked, no students today, Maybe check the girls’ restroom, I’ll check the boys’.”
“Alright.”
Su Xiaoxiao’s stomach dropped. Oh no, Shen said she could see the feet!
If Teacher Chen crouched down, she’d see two pairs right away.
Without thinking, Su Xiaoxiao jumped up, straight into Jin Qishan’s arms.
Startled, he caught her instinctively, his hands naturally settling under her hips.
The warmth and softness beneath his palms sent heat rushing through him; he couldn’t even look her in the eye.
He quickly shifted his hands lower, trying to be decent.
Su Xiaoxiao clung to his neck, burying her face against his shoulder.
A new message buzzed from the next stall.
Shen Hua: Wait, how did those four legs turn into two? Am I imagining things?