Without Reason, Why the Head Hangs in the Market

April 28th, Sunday.

"Finally, the end is here!"

Fang Jun suddenly stood up on the desk, raising his arms and shouting with all his might, "After this P.E. class, freedom!"

He planted his hands on his hips, striking a pose as if looking down on the world, then jumped off the desk and slung an arm around An Yuexin's shoulders.

"So, how are you planning to spend these precious three days?"

An Yuexin yawned, his entire demeanor radiating exhaustion. "First, I'll sleep like the dead for a whole day. Then I'll save one day for Mai Chuwen. The last day... well, I guess I'll spare it for you."

"My good son! I'm so touched. Daddy loves you~ (づ￣3￣)づ╭～"

Fang Jun spread his arms wide, ready to pounce.

"Get lost!" An Yuexin pushed him away with a look of disgust.

No sooner had he spoken than Mai Zirong, the class life committee member, appeared like a ghost beside them, wearing a mischievous smirk.

"Oh? Saving a day for me? An Yuexin, what exactly are you planning to do with me?"

"Piss off! I meant Mai Chuwen."

"Don’t talk nonsense. I’m still your cousin-in-law, you know. If I say a word to your uncle, you’ll be on your knees begging me."

Despite the threat, An Yuexin couldn’t be bothered to engage. He shoved Mai Zirong away without a second thought.

It couldn’t be helped—this urban village had plenty of families with ancestral halls and genealogies, so most people sharing a surname were somehow related.

The restless energy before liberation spread like a virus.

Everyone in the classroom started packing up, preparing to grab their bags and leave as soon as P.E. class ended.

Lin Mo, however, merely took his time slipping a few books into his desk drawer.

At that moment, Ma Ruixiang appeared at the doorway, rapping his knuckles against the frame and announcing loudly:

"Hurry up, everyone! If you're heading to the field, move it—I need to lock up!"

Ever since the money theft incident last semester, locking the classroom had become an ironclad rule.

Once the entire class left, the door had to be locked.

Ma Ruixiang personally held the key. If anyone needed to return midway, they had to get the key from him and bring another classmate as a witness to supervise the whole process.

Of course, there was also a spare key kept in the teachers' office, specifically in Chen Xiaoya’s desk.

If Ma Ruixiang wasn’t around, they could always retrieve it from there.

The crowd bustled their way down to the field.

Lin Mo lingered behind, standing alone at the end of the corridor, gazing up at the heavy dark clouds looming in the sky.

He could feel it—rain was coming soon.

"Why are you standing here?"

A soft, curious voice sounded behind him.

Lin Mo didn’t need to turn around to know who it was.

"Nothing much. Just checking the weather."

He pointed at the clouds overhead.

"It’s going to rain. P.E. class will probably have to move to the badminton hall."

Chu Miaomiao tilted her head, studying the dark clouds.

Truthfully, those clouds had been hanging there all afternoon without a single drop falling.

But if Lin Mo said it would rain, she believed it would.

"Then I’d better go back and grab my umbrella." The girl turned around, hurrying back before the door was locked.

"Alright. Grab mine too while you’re at it," Lin Mo said without looking back.

Just then, a derisive snort cut through the air.

"It won’t rain. It’s been overcast all day—what’s another forty minutes?"

Ying Wenshen strolled past them, hands in his pockets, shooting Lin Mo a disdainful glance.

"Stop with the mystical nonsense."

With that, he headed downstairs.

Ying Wenshen was one of the few in class who couldn’t stand Lin Mo.

But then again, Ying Wenshen rarely interacted with him anyway—he had his own way of doing things.

Lin Mo didn’t even bat an eyelid, let alone bother responding.

Among the Seventy-Two Divine Arts, there were techniques for summoning rain and clearing skies.

If Lin Mo wanted, he could conjure a sudden downpour the moment Ying Wenshen reached the first floor.

But he wouldn’t alter the weather over something so trivial. After all, without cause, why invite trouble?

Who knew if some enforcer like Wei Zheng might suddenly appear to execute him?

That would just be boring.

Lin Mo made his way downstairs. Since this was the last class of the day, the P.E. teacher from the previous session hadn’t left yet.

Jiang Daming sat on the edge of the field’s stage, fanning himself with a folder.

Before class officially started, everyone gathered in their usual spots, some joking around with Jiang Daming.

Lin Mo approached from the school building.

"Teacher, it’s going to rain soon. Maybe we should hold class in the badminton hall instead."

Jiang Daming glanced up at the sky. It didn’t look much different from before.

He’d originally planned to have everyone run two 100-meter sprints and do some pull-ups before calling it a day.

Hearing Lin Mo’s suggestion, he hesitated.

Several students also looked up and chimed in:

"No need, right? It’s been like this all afternoon, and it hasn’t rained yet."

"Ha! He’s not worried about rain—he just wants an excuse for the goddess to train in the badminton hall."

A mocking voice rang out from the back of the crowd, sharp and grating.

Everyone turned to see Ying Wenshen sauntering over, a blade of grass dangling from his lips, shoulders swaying with each step, as if the whole school owed him money.

The moment he spoke, several pairs of eyes knowingly flicked toward another figure.

Jiang Yunlu stood chatting with a group of girls. Sensing the sudden attention, she frowned and glanced over, only to find a crowd pointing in her direction while Ying Wenshen smirked challengingly at Lin Mo by the stage.

Lin Mo didn’t even turn around. Leaning casually against the concrete edge of the stage, his cool voice carried over:

"So you’re certain it won’t rain?"

Ying Wenshen spat out the grass and scoffed.

Lin Mo finally tilted his head, locking eyes with him.

"Fine. If it rains, the whole class takes cover—except you. You’ll stand right in the middle of the field. The moment the first drop falls, you stay there until it stops. Dare to take that bet?"

Silence fell instantly. Even Jiang Daming stopped fanning himself, eyes gleaming with anticipation.

A wager?

Ying Wenshen’s pulse jumped under Lin Mo’s gaze. He glanced up reflexively.

The sky remained stubbornly overcast, the air stiflingly still—but there was still no sign of rain.

He couldn’t back down now.

Taking a deep breath, he shot back:

"And if it doesn’t rain..." He paused, struggling to think of a fitting stake.

Making Lin Mo run laps would be pointless. What Ying Wenshen wanted was to shatter Lin Mo’s standing in the class.

So after a moment, he declared:

"Fine. One class period. If it doesn’t rain, you handle the entire class’s cleaning duty alone. Deal?"

Ying Wenshen wasn’t even on duty today—this was purely a play for popularity.

No matter the outcome, he’d rally some classmates against Lin Mo.