What Bad Intentions Could a Spoiled Little Brat Possibly have? - Chapter 26

An Indescribable Ambiguity

Fu Zheng’s posture while holding the pen remained steady. The formulas on the whiteboard extended like flowing water; paired with his coherent handwriting, it caused many female students in the audience to fall into a state of infatuation once again.

However, the sound of rolling candy was incessant, one after another tumbling toward Fu Zheng’s feet. Yet, he didn’t spare them a single glance, focusing entirely on writing his lecture notes.

The entire classroom fell into a dynamic silence. Every gaze transformed into an invisible spotlight, focusing on Cheng Huai, waiting to see him become a joke.

The male student who had led the provocation against Cheng Huai earlier now wore an expression of someone watching a good show. He looked as if he were just short of raising his hand to report to Fu Zheng that Cheng Huai was eating snacks in class and disrupting discipline.

“What are you doing!” Gu Siming lowered his head. The secondhand embarrassment made him feel like digging a hole with his toes.

“I didn’t mean to…” Before Cheng Huai could finish his sentence, he hurriedly tried to crawl out from under the desk, but with a thud, he bumped his head against the tabletop. The water bottle on the desk wobbled, letting out a crisp clinking sound.

Clutching the back of his head, he sat up straight. A crimson flush spread from his cheeks all the way to the tips of his ears. He had no choice but to support his burning face with the back of his hand, his long eyelashes trembling in panic, trying his best not to look at the “evidence” of the crime he had unintentionally committed.

Meng Qi said, “Gu Siming definitely didn’t snap the eggshell tight when he was eating candy just now.”

Gu Siming: “???”

Cheng Huai stared at the eggshell split in two on the floor, wishing he could turn into a wisp of blue smoke and vanish with the wind.

On the podium, Fu Zheng’s expression remained normal, as if he were completely unaware of the small commotion in the classroom. After finishing the last formula, he calmly put down the pen and spoke indifferently: “Many students may have doubts in their hearts as to why computer science students still need to study physics in university.”

These words resonated with everyone present. The entire class nodded in unison with a long, collective “Mm.”

Fu Zheng said expressionlessly: “The mechanics we study is somewhat different from that of the Physics Department. The core idea of this course is to treat mechanics problems as excellent carriers and case studies for computer science specifically for computational science, physical simulation, and Artificial Intelligence applications. It is not just about learning physical laws, but about learning how to use computer methods to model, simulate, and solve complex physical problems.”

“Take this candy, for example,” Fu Zheng suddenly leaned over and picked up the candy by his feet. It was pink, crystal clear, and shimmering with a kaleidoscopic glow under the lights. “Very interesting.”

Cheng Huai gradually sat up straight. Fu Zheng’s words held an indescribable allure in his ears at that moment; in such an embarrassing situation, he actually found himself listening.

“Let’s assume this candy is an ideal particle with mass m.” Fu Zheng shook the candy in his hand and slowly walked toward the back of the classroom. As he passed each row, the students in that row turned their heads in unison, following his figure all the way back.

His pace was unhurried, but his path was becoming increasingly clear.

Cheng Huai subconsciously tightened his grip on his pen.

“Looking at the marks of its roll: starting from rest, it gained an initial acceleration a due to the component of gravity. The friction f here cannot be ignored; otherwise, it would have rolled all the way to the classroom door.” Fu Zheng raised the laser pointer in his other hand, the red dot landing on the formula on the projection screen.

While speaking, he had already reached Cheng Huai’s side, his slender fingers resting seemingly unintentionally on the tabletop.

Cheng Huai didn’t even need to look up to feel the gazes of the entire class wrapping around him like an invisible spider web.

Those looks were a mix of curiosity, mockery, and unabashed expectation. Everyone held their breath, waiting to see how this legendary, cold-hearted Senior Fu Zheng would publicly humiliate this frantic pursuer.

Fu Zheng seemed intent on torturing him, stopping right beside him and turning to lean lazily against the edge of the desk. His long legs, encased in suit trousers, crossed naturally, but his gaze was cast toward the rising tiers of the lecture hall. He asked, “Everyone, think about it: what is the key factor that affects its final stopping position?”

He finally lowered his eyes, his gaze falling on the soft crown of Cheng Huai’s head, where a small, disobedient tuft of hair stood up stubbornly likely a mark pressed in by a pillow during sleep.

Recalling Cheng Huai’s out-of-control state from yesterday, Fu Zheng turned his face away unnaturally and lightly tapped the table.

From the moment Fu Zheng stepped toward him, Cheng Huai’s brain had stopped functioning. His mind was filled entirely with Fu Zheng’s presence. It wasn’t until Gu Siming poked his arm under the table that he looked up abruptly, unexpectedly crashing into those bottomless eyes.

“The Senior is asking you a question.”

Cheng Huai’s thoughts slowly gathered. The tail end of Fu Zheng’s words surfaced in his mind. Using the only remnant of high school physics in his memory, he answered: “Initial position?”

“Mhm, very good.” Fu Zheng affirmed Cheng Huai’s answer, then shifted his gaze, continuing his lecture in his characteristically cold voice: “Initial position and the posture upon landing. In calculations, a tiny initial deviation can lead to a world of difference in the results.”

He raised the laser pointer, the red dot accurately landing on the second formula: “If we analyze it from the perspective of energy, the candy possesses a certain initial potential energy when it leaves the hand. During the rolling process, potential energy is converted into kinetic energy. Simultaneously, due to friction with the ground and air resistance, energy is constantly dissipated. When all available energy is exhausted, it chooses to remain stationary.”

“This is the Law of Conservation of Energy. The total energy of a system will not be created or destroyed out of thin air; it only transforms or transfers. Just like…” Fu Zheng paused subtly here, “…certain seemingly accidental events also follow their own unique causal laws.”

Having said this, Fu Zheng placed the candy he had been holding onto the desk in front of Cheng Huai. As he leaned down, a faint, familiar fragrance brushed past Cheng Huai’s ear. Fu Zheng asked in a low voice: “Is it tasty?”

Gu Siming, busy trying to help Cheng Huai out of the predicament, raised his hand reflexively and answered loudly: “It’s tasty, Senior!”

The classroom immediately erupted in a roar of laughter.

Cheng Huai buried his head in his textbook. Only the tip of his ear was visible it was bright red and looked so tempting that one might want to pinch it.

Fu Zheng looked at Gu Siming expressionlessly, his thin lips parting slightly: “I wasn’t asking you.”

The implication of who he was asking was crystal clear to everyone present.

With nowhere to hide, Cheng Huai slowly revealed two eyes from behind the upright book. Seeing Fu Zheng staring directly at him, he lowered the book, revealing flushed cheeks. He wrinkled his nose and said, “It’s… it’s alright. Do you want to try some?”

The moment the words left his mouth, he regretted it. He let out an “ah” and hurriedly corrected himself: “But this one fell on the floor and is dirty. I’ll give you a new one.”

“Mhm.” Fu Zheng’s response was brief but meaningful. “Come find me after class.”

After saying this, he did not leave immediately. Instead, he lingered for a moment. Under the gaze of everyone, he reached out and gently rubbed the soft crown of Cheng Huai’s head, his fingertips tenderly tucking that disobedient tuft of hair behind the boy’s ear. The movement was so natural it seemed as if it had been done a thousand times before.

Cheng Huai: “—!”

Gu Siming: “!!!”

The students witnessing this: “OvO!!”

Fu Zheng’s fingertip accidentally brushed against the tip of Cheng Huai’s ear. That brief touch was like lighting a fuse, causing every nerve ending in Cheng Huai’s body to wake up instantly. A numb electric current surged from the top of his head down to his waist, and his ear turned a blood-red color at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Meanwhile, Fu Zheng acted like an unconcerned bystander, maintaining his cold and self-possessed demeanor as he turned back toward the podium.

“Holy crap, did I see that right?!” Several students excitedly covered their mouths, unable to believe what had just happened.

“If there were a melon field right now, I would be the badger jumping up and down in it!!”

“No one told me the ship had actually sailed…”

The two protagonists of the rumors interacted in front of everyone like this. It wasn’t as distant as they had imagined, yet it was permeated with an indescribable ambiguity. This subtle atmosphere left everyone feeling both confused and curious.

Those who had originally expected to see Fu Zheng make things difficult for Cheng Huai now realized the Senior’s true intentions. Since the expected drama didn’t play out, they sullenly withdrew their gazes and began to seriously ponder what kind of bond existed between these two.

In short, it was strange very strange.

Back at the podium, Fu Zheng quickly tapped a few lines of code on the keyboard: “What we just discussed was only theory. But as students of the School of Computer Science, we cannot be satisfied with theory alone.”

A simplified 3D animation instantly appeared on the screen: a sphere rolling down a slope and coming to a stop.

“We can use numerical methods—such as the Runge-Kutta method you may learn later to simulate this process. By inputting initial conditions and iterating calculations, we can predict its future.”

He operated the keyboard, adjusting a few parameters. The rolling path of the small ball on the screen adjusted accordingly. “See, different initial angles and different friction coefficients will result in a unique trajectory. Just as there are no two identical leaves in the world, there are no two identical candy-rolling events.”

Using simple language and intuitive, clear examples, Fu Zheng opened the door to the world of mechanics for this group of freshmen.

This substitute lecture seemed to have been put on fast-forward. When the class ended, a chorus of regretful sighs echoed in the classroom, with many students pleading for another hour of lecture.

After the class concluded, Fu Zheng did not leave immediately. Instead, he silently brought up a picture it was the recruitment poster for the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory.

“I presume you all know that the AI Lab is the crown jewel of our college. This year, at Professor Gu’s request, the recruitment model has been adjusted. We especially encourage freshmen with ambition to participate in the selection. We don’t look at results or resumes; we only recognize technical strength. Interested students can send their resumes to my email. The list of students entering the preliminary selection will be officially announced in two days.”

He wrote the email address on the poster and added: “The deadline is 12:00 midnight tonight. No late submissions will be accepted. I look forward to your participation.”

After announcing this news, Fu Zheng deliberately paused for a minute, as if giving everyone time to think. He then lowered his head to turn off the projector. Even though class had long since ended, no one was willing to leave. Everyone remained immersed in the lecture, gazes filled with admiration fixed on the dazzling figure on the podium.

“Cheng Huai.”

Before leaving, Fu Zheng paused at the classroom door and turned to look toward the back.

Hearing his name, Cheng Huai looked up, meeting those deep eyes. With just one glance, Fu Zheng withdrew his gaze and turned to disappear out the door.

That brief look was enough.

Cheng Huai had been slowly packing his bag, but now a bright smile blossomed on his face. He briskly stuffed his stationery and textbooks into his bag all at once, not even having time to pull the zipper shut, and chased after him with light steps.

In the hallway, he followed closely behind Fu Zheng, the corners of his mouth curving into a sly arc.

In the end, Brother still couldn’t bear to watch him get bullied.

Cheng Huai was only focused on his happiness and didn’t notice where Fu Zheng was taking him. It wasn’t until he followed Fu Zheng into a laboratory building that he realized their destination.

When the gold-leafed characters for “Artificial Intelligence Laboratory” came into view, he stopped abruptly and grabbed Fu Zheng’s sleeve.

“Brother, this is…?” He pointed at the lab door sign, his voice carrying an unbelievable chirpy quality.

Could it be that he was going to give him a “backdoor” entry?

Fu Zheng didn’t answer. He simply used his fingerprint to unlock the door and gestured for him to follow.

“At this time, the seniors in the lab are all in class,” Fu Zheng’s voice echoed in the empty lab. “No need to worry about being disturbed.”

Cheng Huai’s attention was immediately drawn to the sights inside the lab.

Exquisite aircraft models were suspended in display cases, massive curved monitors were filled with dense code, and server clusters emitted a low hum.

Fu Zheng took him directly to the innermost independent laboratory. This area was equipped with the most advanced servers and computing clusters the core area of the entire lab.

He pulled out a chair and gestured with his eyes for Cheng Huai to sit down: “Give me your resume.”

Cheng Huai gave an “oh” and obediently pulled out the resume that had been thrown on the ground that morning, handing it over carefully.

Fu Zheng scanned the resume thoroughly and remained silent for a long time.

Cheng Huai looked around curiously and finally couldn’t help but ask: “Brother, are you really going to give me a backdoor entry?”

“What backdoor?” Fu Zheng looked up from the resume and said, “Cheng Huai, even if you can pass the registration stage with me, when it comes to the formal selection, I won’t be the only judge. Do you have confidence in yourself?”

Cheng Huai immediately straightened his back, his tone proud: “Of course I do! I’m your younger brother after all. While I don’t expect to outshine you, I certainly can’t embarrass you.”

“So you remember you’re my brother now.”

Fu Zheng gave a light “heh,” closed the resume, and fixed his gaze on Cheng Huai’s upturned face. His gaze gradually turned cold.

A moment later, Fu Zheng reached out toward him again, his tone stern: “Hand it over.”

Cheng Huai thought he wanted candy and quickly grabbed the open palm. “Brother, the candy is in my dorm. I’ll get it for you when I go back, okay?”

Fu Zheng lightly brushed his hand away, his gaze still icy as he uttered three words: “The lighter.”

He repeated: “Hand it over.”

Only then did Cheng Huai remember the incident where he had lit a flame right in front of Fu Zheng. It was too reckless. He subconsciously felt his pocket, then remembered the lighter he had tossed into the desk cubby. He let out an “ah”: “Brother, I forgot it in the classroom.”

Fearing Fu Zheng wouldn’t believe him, Cheng Huai stood up from the chair and turned out all his pockets. “If you don’t believe me, look. I really didn’t withhold it on purpose. I was too nervous when I saw you walk in, so I just threw it into the desk cubby. I promise I don’t smoke; I just wanted to play with it…”

As he spoke, he raised three fingers, swearing a solemn oath.

Fu Zheng’s expression softened slightly. He withdrew his hand, his gaze scrutinizing Cheng Huai’s sly eyes. “Are you satisfied now, after putting on such a show?”

“Huh?” Cheng Huai looked up in confusion, blinking. His finger subconsciously touched the tip of his nose as he asked, “What are you talking about? What show did I put on?”

“No show?” Fu Zheng raised an eyebrow.

Cheng Huai shook his head vigorously, denying it with all his might: “Of course not!”

“Fine.” Fu Zheng’s eyes were deep as he said word by word: “You’d better not have.”

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