Chapter Sixty: The Jokes You Tell Are Truly Amusing

She spoke with utmost seriousness, even her usually languid feline eyes widened as she looked at Zhu Mu.

Yet it was precisely this seriousness that made Zhu Mu feel his authority was being challenged.

He was so angry that the fat on his face trembled, but he dared not lay a hand on the youth who was heir to the Chao family.

A student, yet still daring to defy him!

If this person didn’t possess such noble status, he would have long since taken his ruler to him!

Casting a glance around, his gaze finally settled on the exam papers on the desk.

Chao Si had been distracted throughout this lesson; he probably wouldn’t know how to solve these, would he?

Imagining the boy’s embarrassment, Zhu Mu’s eyes brimmed with smug satisfaction.

He cleared his throat and tapped the blackboard. “Since you’re so attentive in class, Chao, why don’t you come up and solve this problem?”

The others who were taking notes looked up, some feeling anxious for Chao Si.

This was a question beyond the curriculum, not meant for students their age.

Zhu Mu had brought it today merely to quell the class’s enthusiasm.

He hadn’t expected that his challenge would land squarely on Chao Si; he singled him out deliberately.

Under the gaze of all, Chao Xu rose calmly, strode to the blackboard, one hand tucked in his pocket, the other holding a piece of chalk. He looked at Zhu Mu and asked, “Is it enough to solve it?”

Zhu Mu nodded, watching him warily, unsure if he was up to something.

But Chao Xu just turned away indifferently, chalk in hand, and began to write methodically on the board.

He looked a little lazy, as if the difficult problem before him scarcely concerned him.

So Zhu Mu assumed he couldn’t actually solve it, and was merely scribbling.

Time ticked by, and watching a scion of a prominent family embarrass himself in front of him brought Zhu Mu a sense of accomplishment.

When Chao Xu put the chalk aside and said he was done, Zhu Mu, hands clasped behind his back and a hint of mockery in his voice, remarked, “Although this is a basic problem, it might be a bit difficult for you. It’s normal if you can’t solve it, don’t lose heart.”

As he spoke, he glanced at the blackboard—and his pupils contracted sharply, unable to recover for a long moment.

The handwriting was a bit messy, but the steps were perfectly clear, not a single error.

Zhu Mu’s lips quivered, his face contorted even more, making his already unpleasant appearance downright twisted.

He pointed at the blackboard with trembling fingers, glaring at Chao Xu. “Did you look up the answer beforehand?”

Chao Xu’s dark eyes regarded him, puzzled, even incredulous.

Pointing at the board, she questioned, “Didn’t you say yourself this was a simple problem? Would anyone need to check the answer?”

She didn’t understand.

The moment she saw the question, the solution had already formed in her mind.

A problem that was so obvious—why would she need to look at the answer?

So, was this man telling a dry joke?

She pondered seriously for a while, then looked at Zhu Mu and said, “Though your joke is a bit cold, it’s actually pretty funny.”

After finishing, she tried to smile, but failed to produce a laugh.

So her forced smile, which was more a smirk than anything, became another form of mockery in Zhu Mu’s eyes.

He slammed his book on the table, furious enough to want to hit someone, but dared not. After stewing alone for a while, he finally threw out, “Today’s a self-study session,” and strode out of the classroom.