Professor Shen’s Needy Little Lover - Chapter 21

Chapter 21

The color drained from Long Xin’s face so quickly that it gave Li Baixin a major fright. She hurriedly asked: “Did you get tired from squatting too long? Do you want to sit down and rest for a bit?”

Long Xin shook her head, remaining in her original position. Her mind was still repeatedly mulling over Li Baixin’s words; the more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed, and the worse her complexion became.

Seeing her face constantly sweating and her lips dry, Li Baixin remembered there was a vending machine in the teaching building, on the first floor and very close. She said: “Long Xin, wait for me here a moment. I’ll go buy you a bottle of water.”

Long Xin wanted to be alone for a while, so she nodded.

Having received a response, Li Baixin ran toward the vending machine. Halfway there, the bell rang to signal the end of class, so she quickened her pace further.

After class, there would surely be many students lining up at the vending machine; she had to buy the water before they swarmed out.

Li Baixin was a step ahead, securing her spot in front of the machine before the students flooded out of the classrooms.

The water was purchased quickly. As Li Baixin turned around, she happened to see Shen Zaiqing behind her and hurriedly reported: “Teacher, your little dragon seems unwell. Her face has gone completely white.”

Shen Zaiqing’s expression darkened. When she was pulling the curtains earlier, she had noticed something was off with Long Xin, but because the distance was too great, she couldn’t hear their conversation and didn’t know what was happening.

“What happened just now?” Shen Zaiqing told Li Baixin not to panic and to explain clearly.

Everything had been fine until they started chatting after digging up the Spiranthes. Li Baixin honestly recounted the events before and after the digging.

Shen Zaiqing caught the key information immediately and murmured softly: “What a silly little dragon.”

She then said to Li Baixin: “Let’s go. I’ll head over with you to take a look.”

The two of them walked together to the large lawn on the east side of Building No. 5. Long Xin was still squatting on the grass, her fingers covered in mud, staring blankly at the two Spiranthes plants she had dug up.

“Long Xin.” Shen Zaiqing approached and called out softly.

“Mhm.” Long Xin recognized Shen Zaiqing’s voice but didn’t look up immediately.

Her heart was currently in a mess and her eyes were frantic; she didn’t know how to face Shen Zaiqing.

Shen Zaiqing walked to her side as if nothing were wrong, stood still in front of her, and then leaned down to look at the plants in her hand, saying in surprise: “Did you dig these up?”

Long Xin looked as if she had lost her soul, yet she still reacted to Shen Zaiqing’s words, nodding twice.

“To dig them so well on your first try, Baixin must be thrilled. Many of the specimens she makes are substandard and I have to send them back for her to redo.”

“Long Xin really does everything well. You’re very talented.”

Shen Zaiqing’s gentle voice caused Long Xin’s tightly furrowed brows to smooth out bit by bit.

The Professor praised her for digging specimens well on her first try?

The first time?

She slowly looked up and met Shen Zaiqing’s smiling face. She couldn’t see a single trace of dislike in her eyes.

Seven years ago, she had committed a transgressive act against the Professor; she should have hated that little azure dragon.

If she had recognized her, no matter how she masked it, if there were any dislike, Long Xin should have noticed it immediately.

Now, not only was there none, but Shen Zaiqing had no guard up against her at all, even letting her sleep in the same bed at night…

Following this train of thought, Long Xin felt things becoming clearer.

A gap suddenly opened in her stifled chest, and the cotton-like heaviness that had felt like lead squeezed out, turning into thin smoke and drifting away.

Li Baixin stood on the curb, having heard their conversation, and chirped: “What a talent that makes people green with envy.”

“If I had that kind of talent, I wouldn’t have had to take the postgraduate exam three times to get in.”

“In my next life, please let me be reincarnated as a dragon!”

Long Xin was amused by Li Baixin’s comical tone, and her complexion gradually returned to normal.

Shen Zaiqing used her hand to wipe the sweat from her forehead: “Why are you sweating so much? Is it that you’re still not quite used to being in human form?”

Long Xin followed her lead and nodded, using it as an excuse to cover things up.

“Do you want some water?” Li Baixin handed over the water she bought from the machine.

Long Xin’s hands were dirty, so Shen Zaiqing took it for her, twisted open the cap, and asked if she wanted a drink.

Long Xin shook her head; she didn’t feel like drinking water right now.

She really wanted to tell Shen Zaiqing she was fine and not to worry, but remembering the excuse she just used, she felt she had to act the part a little so the Professor wouldn’t discover the truth.

The fact that she had stolen a kiss from her—let it rot in her own stomach and never let the Professor remember it.

The number of students out of class increased, and the environment became noisy. Shen Zaiqing wanted to take Long Xin to a quiet place, so she gave Li Baixin a brief explanation: “In the early stages of a dragon transforming into human form, there will be many points of maladjustment, and the body may suddenly feel unwell. This is a normal physiological phenomenon. My car has a protective layer; I’ll take her there to relax for a bit.”

There was a long break of twenty minutes after the second period. The parking lot wasn’t far, and Shen Zaiqing could take Long Xin to stay in her car for a while.

Although she knew Long Xin’s abnormality wasn’t for physical reasons, returning to the dragon cub state would be more comfortable regardless, and it would allow her to catch her breath and clear her complex thoughts.

Her little dragon was too sensitive.

However, Shen Zaiqing also knew she was the culprit. That one punch had knocked away all of Long Xin’s courage; now she was like a startled fawn, where any rustle in the wind could trigger wild imaginings.

Shen Zaiqing’s original intention in having Long Xin follow Li Baixin to collect specimens was simply to have someone lead her around campus so she wouldn’t be bored.

“Then go ahead quickly. I’ll collect the rest of the specimens myself.” Li Baixin also breathed a sigh of relief seeing that Long Xin was okay.

“You have to collect them according to Long Xin’s standard. Anything substandard will still have to be redone.” Before leaving, Shen Zaiqing didn’t forget to set the standard for Li Baixin.

“Understood!” Li Baixin immediately felt like she had been singled out for criticism. Her body instinctively stiffened, and she felt an urge to stand at attention and salute Shen Zaiqing.

Could Teacher please take back that last half-sentence!

“Come, let’s wash your hands first.” Shen Zaiqing led Long Xin to the restroom in the teaching area, letting her clean her dirty claws.

Long Xin followed behind her like a big dog clinging to its owner, incredibly obedient. She did whatever Shen Zaiqing told her to do.

At the car, Long Xin opened the door and sat in the back seat. Shen Zaiqing didn’t go to the driver’s side but sat down beside Long Xin instead.

As soon as the car door closed and the protective layer took effect, Long Xin turned back into a little dragon cub.

Shen Zaiqing gave her some water and let her hold it to drink.

“Come to the classroom with me in a bit; I’ll let you listen to my lecture.”

Long Xin tightened the cap of the unfinished mineral water and held it in her arms so it wouldn’t spill later.

After relaxing for a while, she had fully recovered.

Now her little tail was wagging back and forth, clearly very happy. She really wanted to see what Shen Zaiqing looked like while lecturing her students, but she had to ask one more thing: “But won’t that affect the Professor’s class?”

Shen Zaiqing smiled: “It won’t. The students are very well-behaved, and the school allows auditing, as long as the classroom order isn’t disrupted.”

When the time came, Shen Zaiqing would find an inconspicuous seat for Long Xin to sit in.

“Mhm, I’ll listen to the Professor.”

Long Xin’s bright eyes regained their original luster. When she smiled, her eyes reflected Shen Zaiqing’s image soft and focused.

In the classroom, she was about to witness a different side of Shen Zaiqing.

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