That day during the school exam, Xia Miao strictly monitored the classroom, cutting off any possibility of cheating.
It was just six test papers, and she finished grading them quickly. When handing them back in the afternoon class, her expression was far from pleased.
"Song Xiaohua, 9 points."
"Wang Linlin, 7 points."
"Zhang Dayu and Yuan Xiaolang, 6 points!"
"Li Mumu, 4 points."
The children who received their papers hung their heads in disappointment, not daring to look up.
Xia Miao's face was stern. "I expected you to perform poorly, but I never imagined your fundamentals would be this weak. What exactly were you learning in your previous classes?"
Song Xiaohua: "How many fatal weak points exist on the human body."
Wang Linlin: "How to ensure prey remains conscious while watching their blood drain."
Zhang Dayu: "Techniques for cooking prey."
Yuan Xiaolang: "Key points for perfectly cleaning up a crime scene."
Li Mumu: "How to sow discord and make them turn on each other."
Fang Xiaogui: "And 108 ways to entertain guests!"
"So, in other words..." Xia Miao's eyebrow twitched. "You’ve never attended a single proper class!"
The children exchanged uneasy glances, not daring to utter a word.
Xia Miao took a deep breath to steady herself before picking up the last test paper. "Fine, let’s not dwell on the past. Even though everyone performed poorly this time, I still want to commend one student—the only one who scored double digits. That student is... Fang Xiaogui!"
The other children turned to Fang Xiaogui, gasping in admiration. "Wow—!"
Fang Xiaogui looked surprised, then leaped up in delight. "I really scored the highest?"
Xia Miao smiled and nodded. "Congratulations. You got 15 points."
Fang Xiaogui suddenly felt lightheaded, a strange and exhilarating sensation he had never experienced, not even during hunts with his uncle. His body trembled with uncontrollable excitement and joy. He rushed to the podium to collect his paper, basking in his classmates' admiring gazes as he floated back to his seat.
Xia Miao announced, "As per our previous agreement, the highest scorer in the class will be the class monitor. So, Fang Xiaogui is now our monitor. Everyone should learn from him. If you show improvement in the next exam, I’ll reward you too."
Being the monitor was like being the alpha wolf of the pack.
The others burned with envy, vowing to study harder than ever to surpass Fang Xiaogui and claim the monitor position for themselves.
When Fang Min returned to the inn after finishing his errands, he found Fang Xiaogui already seated on a stool, diligently doing his homework on the floor. His nephew had become much more obedient—perhaps he deserved a reward.
So Fang Min crouched down and patted Fang Xiaogui’s head. "Tonight, I’ll take you hunting."
This was Fang Xiaogui’s favorite activity—wielding his dulled knife, stabbing holes into prey, and reveling in the sense of accomplishment.
But this time, Fang Xiaogui didn’t even look up, shoving Fang Min’s hand away. "Don’t bother me. I need to study."
Fang Min: "...What?"
Fang Xiaogui raised his head solemnly. "Teacher Xia said studying isn’t the only path in life, but for us, it’s the best one. When I grow up, I want to sit in an office with air conditioning instead of hauling bricks at a construction site. Uncle, even though you’re old, learning knows no bounds. You should study more too. After all, you don’t even have a middle school diploma—people would laugh at you!"
Fang Min’s face darkened. He turned to glare at the long-haired man lounging behind the counter, silently wondering what kind of magic his girlfriend possessed to brainwash a child like this.
E Gui was technically Fang Min’s apprentice, but Fang Min did all the work while E Gui comfortably curled up in a chair, clutching his phone with one hand and clumsily poking at the screen with the other, texting his girlfriend.
Whatever message he received made his eyes crinkle with delight. He lowered his head and let out a creepy, gleeful chuckle. "Hehehe."
A while later, E Gui stared at his phone in confusion. Scratching his head, he slowly slid off the chair and approached Fang Min.
His black-nailed finger tapped a single character on the screen. "What... this?"
Fang Min could only recognize a few scattered words. "I feel... not... possibly... preg..."
As for the character E Gui pointed at, he had no idea.
E Gui shot Fang Min a sidelong glance. Sweat dripped down Fang Min’s forehead. Fang Xiaogui was right—not even having a middle school diploma was downright embarrassing.
So, E Gui sought out the most educated person present.
"Help... read."
Fang Xiaogui, busy with his homework, spared a glance. "Isn’t that just the character for ‘pregnant’?"
E Gui froze.
Annoyed by the adults interrupting his studies, Fang Xiaogui bluntly read the entire message aloud. "‘I’ve been feeling unwell lately—I might be pregnant.’"
Fang Min choked on his own saliva.
E Gui’s mind went blank, his expression utterly vacant.
In the next instant, his figure slithered into the cracks of the wall and vanished without a trace.
Coincidentally, Wen Yaoyao and Jiang Du happened to descend the stairs just in time to hear the word "pregnant." Their expressions twisted in shock.
Xia Miao’s period had been delayed for a month, and lately, she’d been feeling queasy. So today, she bought a pregnancy test. Sitting on the closed toilet lid, she stared at the result, struggling to process it.
After a long silence, she lowered her gaze to the pair of peeping eyes in the floor’s crevice and said flatly, "This is the women’s restroom."
Those eyes instantly welled up, shimmering with unshed tears—less like a pervert’s and more like a pitiful, aggrieved creature.
Rumors said that even with protection, contraception wasn’t 100% effective. And on his unrestrained days, he could get particularly... intense. Those unusual structures with reverse barbs might’ve torn or leaked. It was possible.
Xia Miao asked him, "What do you think?"
"I... go... mountain... catch rabbit... Miao Miao... nourish... body."
His speech was fragmented, his tone unreadable. Xia Miao couldn’t tell if he was happy or distressed. Upon learning his partner might be pregnant, his first instinct was to hunt and nourish her—very much in line with a beast’s behavioral patterns.
Xia Miao tested the waters. "So, we’re keeping it?"
He nodded, his pale eyes brimming like springwater. "Miao Miao... I... work hard... earn money... no let... baby... live in... box... okay?"
Xia Miao’s breath hitched. She yanked him out from the floor crack. "What are you saying? Do I look like some kind of terrible mother who’d make her child live in a box?!"
He was most afraid of her angry expression and couldn’t help shrinking back, trembling. "Human... Mom... wouldn’t... make... children... live in... cardboard boxes?"
Xia Miao paused, her eyes inexplicably burning. She poked his cheek lightly. "Silly!"
Yet in the next moment, she pulled him into a tight embrace.
E Gui tilted his head, his eyes filled with nothing but confusion.
