Chapter 86: White Susu

The oppressive power in his gaze instantly made Wei Suo and the others unwilling to stay near Zu'an, causing them to scatter to the side.

Zu'an cursed his disloyalty under his breath, then calmly met his gaze. "Yang Wei has been deliberately targeting me, and he's the one who proposed this bet. How does that make me the troublemaker?"

"Have you forgotten our school rules? The most important one is to respect teachers. No matter how capable a person may be, if they don't respect their instructors, such individuals often cause immense harm once they leave the academy," Lu De stated with a stern expression.

"Director, I disagree with that. The premise of respecting teachers is that teachers must act as role models. Do those who deliberately target and suppress students out of personal desire even deserve to be called teachers?" Zu'an retorted with a frown.

"He is still your teacher, after all! Even if he has issues, it's for the school to investigate and resolve, not for a student like you to take matters into your own hands." Seeing Zu'an dare to talk back, Lu De let out a heavy snort.

"I wasn't taking matters into my own hands. Our wager just now strictly followed the principles of fairness, justice, and transparency. Everyone present can testify for me," Zu'an said, gesturing to the surrounding crowd. "Furthermore, Teacher Shang was our agreed-upon witness, both for me and Yang Wei."

Shang Liuyu nodded. "Indeed, Teacher Yang also agreed to this, and I was invited to serve as a witness."

"Teacher Shang, don't let yourself be misled by this fellow," Lu De said, smiling at Shang Liuyu before turning a stern face back to Zu'an. "You truly haven't given up your gambling habits. One of our academy's top ten rules strictly prohibits gambling. Just days ago, you openly went to the Silver Hook Gambling House to gamble, causing a massive scandal and bringing severe discredit to our institution. I haven't even dealt with that yet, and now today you're openly gambling with a teacher right here in the academy? Hmph, our academy cannot keep someone like you. Return to the Chu mansion at once."

Hearing his words, the surrounding crowd erupted in an uproar. No one had anticipated that Lu De's punishment would be so severe—a direct expulsion from the academy.

Given Lu De's power and his standing within the academy, no one doubted his ability to enforce such a decision.

Hidden within the crowd, Hong Xingying sneered inwardly, thinking, 'Just as the saying goes, a petty person grows arrogant upon gaining power. Now, you're finally getting your just deserts, aren't you? What an immense disgrace to be expelled from the academy. The Chu family values its reputation above all else; by then, the Master and Madam certainly won't spare you.'

Two days prior, his father had specifically sought him out to advise him. To avoid creating difficulties for his father, he had become more astute, no longer directly confronting Zu'an, but instead focusing his main energy on cultivation and personal improvement.

He was cultivating earlier today when he suddenly heard the commotion. Everyone rushed over to see, and curious, he followed suit. Witnessing Zu'an's grand display, he felt utterly disgusted. Just as he was about to depart, he saw this dramatic shift in events, which filled him with profound satisfaction. He resolved to order two extra dishes at the cafeteria for lunch today to celebrate.

Yuan Wendong, standing on the other side, harbored similar sentiments. For years, he had been so vibrant and brilliant within the academy, having just broken through to the fifth rank. He had been on the verge of making a spectacular impression, only to be defeated by Zu'an.

In truth, if he had lost to a formidable expert, his reaction wouldn't have been so extreme. But to be defeated by someone he had always considered a useless nobody—the feeling of humiliation was genuinely more unbearable than being killed.

When he had just arrived, he happened to see Zu'an grandstanding again. While seething with frustration and contemplating going to teach him a lesson, he noticed Pei Mianman was also mingling in the crowd. Recalling that humiliating defeat, he could easily imagine that if he were to approach Zu'an, that shameless person would undoubtedly flaunt their relationship publicly again. Thus, he had to forcibly halt his steps.

He had originally been simmering with resentment, but Lu De's appearance caused the situation to take a dramatic turn, and the gloom in his heart instantly dissipated.

Zu'an noticed the scattered anger values from Hong Xingying and Yuan Wendong appearing in the background interface, musing, 'These guys truly are persistent pests.' However, he had no time to deal with them now. Just as he was about to respond to Lu De, Chu Hanzhao already jumped forward, interrupting him:

"Director, you're being utterly unreasonable! Are you truly expelling my brother-in-law for this? He wasn't gambling *in* the academy, and what's more, can that even be called gambling with that arithmetic teacher? That agreement was proposed by Mr. Li himself, so why aren't you punishing *him*?"

Seeing her face flushed crimson with anger, Zu'an couldn't help but secretly give her a thumbs-up. 'My sister-in-law truly cares about her brother-in-law; those seven Wail of the Whip blows weren't in vain.'

Lu De calmly stated, "Yang Wei, despite being a teacher, engaged in private gambling with a student. He is hereby expelled from Brightmoon Academy. Do you have anything further to say?"

Upon hearing this news, the classroom once again erupted into chaos. Although Yang Wei had stated in the wager that the loser would automatically leave the academy, that was merely a verbal agreement; if he had been brazen enough, he could have easily remained. However, with the academy now officially expelling him, the situation's nature was entirely different. Not only would Yang Wei be unable to return even if he wished, but it was also highly unlikely he would ever be hired as a teacher by academies in other counties in the future.

Chu Hanzhao was about to speak further, but Lu De cast a glance at her. "Speaking of which, Miss Chu Er, I haven't yet settled the matter of you colluding with others to deceive me at the academy gates."

Caught by his eagle-like gaze, Chu Hanzhao instantly felt a surge of guilt. Being still quite young, she dared not utter another word.

Zu'an suddenly had an epiphany. 'No wonder I kept feeling like this guy was deliberately targeting me. So it was because of that incident! But isn't that a bit too petty?'

At this moment, Shang Liuyu, standing nearby, spoke up, her expression somewhat chilly: "According to the Director's logic, does that mean I, who served as the witness for their wager, should also be penalized?"

"Teacher Shang, you exaggerate. You were merely acting out of good intentions to uphold fairness, so naturally, you are not included in this." Lu De tried his best to force a smile as he looked at her, but combined with the few stubborn hairs defiantly clinging to the top of his head, his appearance was anything but commendable.

"Tsk." A collective sigh of disapproval rippled through the onlookers. Of course, they only dared to murmur; their true thoughts remained unspoken.

However, their timidity didn't mean others were equally reserved. Just then, a voice drifted over:

"Oh dear, Director, your words truly illustrate what a double standard looks like."

Zu'an blinked. The voice was delicate and syrupy sweet; his initial thought was that it must belong to a stunning beauty, yet something about it felt strangely amiss.

He acutely observed that Lu De, who had previously maintained a grim, unyielding expression, twitched visibly upon hearing the voice. It wasn't just him; many male students in the vicinity instinctively swallowed, some even trembling slightly, whereas the female students appeared far more composed.

A moment later, a potent fragrance permeated the air. It was exceptionally sweet, so much so that Zu'an even wondered if this world also had a "Fragrant Princess."

Immediately afterward, a slender figure came into view: clad in snow-white robes, with long hair cascading over their shoulders, delicate eyebrows, eyes like peach blossoms, and a face of exquisite, unparalleled beauty—if he weren't a man, he would undoubtedly drive countless people to distraction.

In terms of appearance, perhaps only Xie Xiu, whom he had previously encountered, could rival him. While Xie Xiu possessed a delicate, feminine beauty, prolonged interaction revealed him to be unequivocally masculine.

However, the person before him exuded an effeminate aura, making it incredibly difficult to discern their gender.

Particularly, when he walked, his arms were unconsciously bent and held near his chest, and his hips swayed, making him appear even more feminine.

"Who is this person?" Having experienced an era of information explosion in his previous life, Zu'an had encountered all sorts of bizarre characters online, such as that magician's effeminate son, EJ-chan, who was far more unsettling than this individual. At least this person was beautiful. So, rather than being surprised like the others, he was more curious about their identity.

However, Wei Suo had already retreated to the side and couldn't answer his question. Instead, Shang Liuyu, who was closest to him, quietly informed him: "This person's name is Bai Susu. He is an instructor at the academy responsible for teaching cultivation. The Yellow Class has fewer cultivation lessons, and since you've only been here a few days, it's quite normal that you haven't encountered him."

"Bai Susu..." Zu'an's expression involuntarily turned peculiar. 'What a waste of such a name.'

"Oh dear, oh dear," Lu De mimicked Bai Susu's previous tone, then spat twice with a look of utter disgust. "Can a grown man please stop being so nauseatingly effeminate?"

"Just now you were so gentle and amiable with little sister Shang, yet you're so crude with me?" Bai Susu said with a playful 'chide.' "What, am I any less beautiful than little sister Shang?"

"Ugh!"

Finally, someone in the gathered crowd couldn't bear it any longer and quickly made their retreat.

Shang Liuyu's usually serene smile also stiffened slightly; clearly, she wasn't accustomed to being used as a comparison by the other person.

Lu De's face darkened, and he snorted. "Bai, this doesn't concern you. Don't go looking for trouble."

"Oh my, oh my, what are you implying?" Bai Susu extended a hand as if to strike Lu De; if he had held a handkerchief, he would have looked precisely like a courtesan beckoning clients in a brothel. "They are also my students, so how is this not my concern?"

Zu'an blinked. He could tell that this Bai Susu clearly had a long-standing antagonism with Lu De. 'In that case, I'll have to cling tightly to this powerful ally in the future.'

However, recalling his "flamboyant and seductive" demeanor, Zu'an couldn't help but swallow. 'This guy doesn't like men, does he? Wouldn't he then lust after my good looks?'

Incidentally, he was quite fond of Bai Su from the *Young King Wesley* series. Back then, she was genuinely every boy's goddess. In high school, all the students in the dorms would gather around the television in the hallway to watch, and every time Bai Su appeared, there was a spontaneous "wow" from everyone present. It's a pity that actress never seemed to become very popular afterward.