Chapter 8: A Calculated Misfortune

Wendy had initially assumed Yalin’s clumsiness was merely due to his lack of diligence, causing him to drop the reagent bottle.

Now, however, it seemed the truth was far more complex.

Could it be that her own oversight, her failure to properly handle the reagents, had led to Yalin’s injury, causing him to lose his grip on the bottle?

As this thought settled, a long-forgotten tremor of unease stirred within her.

“Extend your hand.”

Wendy commanded, her voice dropping to a low register.

“Ah, haha, truly, it’s nothing…”

Yalin feigned an innocent air, attempting to brush off her concern, but Wendy was not so easily swayed.

She swiftly closed the distance, taking his hand firmly in hers.

There, between his distinctly jointed fingers, a stark burn scar was undeniably visible.

The truth was laid bare.

To her astonishment, the truly negligent party had been herself all along!

Her own oversight had directly led to Yalin’s injury!

Wendy pressed her lips together, a powerful wave of guilt washing over her.

The fresh scar appeared so raw and menacing that Wendy, abruptly recalling the inferno from that fateful day, instinctively recoiled a step.

A sharp pang of agony then pierced her heart.

“I was too careless; I apologize for making the professor worry. I will be more attentive from now on.”

Yalin, without a trace of emotion, subtly adjusted his sleeve.

Wendy’s pupils suddenly constricted.

‘Why?’

‘Why would he utter such words?’

‘Even with the evidence so irrefutably clear, why did he still insist on shouldering all the blame himself?’

While Wendy always maintained an air of cool arrogance, she was by no means the sort to be so self-important as to deny her mistakes.

She understood perfectly well that the responsibility for this incident lay entirely with her.

Thus, even if Yalin had berated her then and there, demanding she lower her head in apology, she would have complied without hesitation.

Yet, Yalin showed no inclination whatsoever to do so.

Instead, he simply took hold of Wendy’s slender wrist, gently but firmly guiding her hand away from his own.

“Please don’t worry; it’s just a minor scrape. It will heal quickly.”

Swiftly organizing the remaining reagent bottles, Yalin picked up his bag, a gentle smile gracing his lips.

“Well then, I have another class shortly, so I’ll be taking my leave.”

“Oh, and the coffee won’t taste as good once it cools, so please enjoy it soon.”

The door clicked shut, leaving Wendy standing alone, rooted to the spot.

Time seemed to freeze around her.

Only after a long moment did she finally lower her gaze.

“I couldn’t say it…”

She had intended to apologize to Yalin.

Yet, as she opened her mouth, she discovered a surprising inability to honestly voice her true feelings.

After all, apologizing at someone else’s behest felt entirely different from offering a genuine apology of her own accord.

For years, she had grown accustomed to shielding herself with a veneer of coldness, maintaining an unblemished facade at all times.

Only by doing so could she prevent anyone from witnessing her vulnerability, thus protecting herself from harm.

It was precisely for this reason that the words ‘I’m sorry’ remained stubbornly lodged in her throat, utterly impossible to articulate.

Ironically, her very inability to show weakness easily was a testament to her profound fragility.

Wendy offered a bitter, self-mocking smile.

Suddenly, she froze.

‘—Wait!’

A realization dawned upon Wendy; she suddenly understood the reason behind Yalin’s demeanor.

‘Could he have already discerned her awkward, stubborn nature?’

‘He must have deliberately taken on imaginary blame simply to spare her from feeling guilt.’

To think, Yalin had disregarded his own injury, all for the sake of preserving her trivial sense of dignity.

Not only did he voice no complaints, but his final words were even a gentle reminder for her not to forget her breakfast.

Wendy’s eyes welled up slightly, her chest tightened, and for a moment, she found herself unable to breathe.

Everyone else shied away from the icy spikes that perpetually encircled her.

But only Yalin.

Only he sought to melt them away.

Wendy clutched the collar of her shirt tightly, “That idiot…”

“Mission accomplished—!”

As he strode along the path to the lecture hall, Yalin’s lips curved upward, a wicked smile flickering across his face before vanishing.

Who would have ever suspected that a seemingly minor accident was, in fact, the meticulously planned outcome of his own design?

That infuriating old geezer (TL Note: ‘Lao Deng’ is a Chinese slang term for an old, often annoying, person), so negligent during their own experiments, had mixed dangerous reagent bottles with ordinary ones.

This oversight had caused Yalin to get a severe burn while washing beakers, nearly provoking him into an outright tirade.

However, his mind quickly spun, and a brilliant idea struck him.

For the ‘old geezer’ to make a mistake that resulted in his injury was an exceedingly rare opportunity, one he absolutely had to leverage to make Wendy feel a profound wave of guilt!

He couldn’t just suffer a scalding for no clear purpose, could he?

Yet, the art of making Wendy realize that *her* actions had caused his injury was a subtle science in itself.

Firstly, confronting her directly would undoubtedly be an improper approach.

The maximum effect could only be achieved if she discovered it on her own.

Thus, Yalin deliberately shattered the reagent bottle, not only to capture Wendy’s attention but also to ensure she would immediately spot the conspicuous pool of liquid in the waste bin.

Concurrently, he feigned an attempt to conceal his injured hand; what appeared to be an effort to hide it was, in reality, an incredibly obvious movement.

Every one of these subtle maneuvers was designed to make her realize her own mistake.

And she had fallen for it with remarkable ease!

How else to describe it? He was a true master of ‘tea art’ (TL Note: ‘Tea art’ or ‘green tea b*tch’ refers to someone who feigns innocence and purity to manipulate others, often for personal gain).

Reading webnovels certainly had its uses; hadn’t he learned this trick perfectly?

While his actions were undeniably a bit pathetic, Yalin had no choice; he had to make a living, after all.

Earning money was nothing to be ashamed of.

As the saying went, even among simps, there were distinctions.

A mere simp could only earn meager handouts.

To truly ‘hit the jackpot’ (TL Note: ‘Bao Da Mi,’ literally ‘bursting big rice,’ is a slang term for making a lot of money), one had to master the art of eliciting sympathy.

A gambling father, a sick mother, a younger brother in school, and a broken home.

The classic ploys of his predecessors would never go out of style, no matter the era.

Yalin shook his scalded hand.

He had to admit, that reagent truly stung.

A normal person would likely have had a layer of skin burned off.

Come to think of it, this qualified as a serious safety incident, didn’t it? It could even be used as blackmail material.

“Professor, you wouldn’t want to be demoted because of improper management leading to student injury, would you?”

‘Cough, cough…’

‘That might be a touch too villainous.’

A wisp of faint black smoke rose from the back of his hand, and in mere moments, the scar vanished without a trace, leaving his skin perfectly unblemished.

“Achoo!”

Yalin suddenly sneezed.

‘What’s going on? Is someone cursing me?’

‘Could it be that old geezer?’

‘No way. I’ve gone to such lengths; if she’s still cursing me, that’s truly heartless!’

‘Wait a minute, could it be that she’s figured out I was deliberately acting like a ‘green tea’?’

A jolt ran through Yalin.

‘That shouldn’t be possible; my performance was flawless.’

‘Deliberately taking all the blame at the outset was precisely to cast off any suspicion entirely.’

‘See? I even said the injury was my own fault; how could it possibly have been intentional?’

‘While there was a slight risk in saying that, what if she actually believed him?’

‘But in truth, it didn’t matter.’

‘He mustn’t forget his accursed ‘Forced Lover’ constitution (TL Note: A common web novel trope where the protagonist involuntarily attracts romantic interest, often leading to complicated or unwanted relationships).‘

Such obvious simp-like behavior, like getting injured because of a woman, was undoubtedly highly effective in suppressing the urges within him.

Regardless, Yalin stood to either break even or make a substantial profit.

“Ah, forget it. I’m definitely overthinking things.”

Yalin shook his head.

Someone as naive as Wendy, in any other story, would be ‘ho-ho-ho-ing’ (TL Note: An onomatopoeia often used in web novels to represent someone falling hopelessly in love or being utterly charmed) within three pages; there was no way she could discern his exquisite acting.

“Never mind. Class is more important.”

Yalin arrived at the classroom door at a leisurely pace, just as someone called out to him from behind.

“Are you the new student?”

Recognizing the familiar voice, Yalin turned to find it was indeed Fulin.

She was a professor from the Alchemy Department and the instructor for this very class.

When he had transferred departments, he’d spent half a day signing countless documents with her, exhausted from all the running around.

“Professor Fulin, hello,” Yalin greeted respectfully with a bow.

“Mm, hello,” Fulin replied with a casual nod.

“So, you’re the legendary little follower of Celeste?”

Yalin’s mouth twitched.

‘Seriously? To be so blunt—she really doesn’t consider me an outsider, does she?’

‘It’s one thing for students to gossip, but why are *you* joining in the fun?’

However, Professor Fulin possessed exceptionally high credentials; she was a true ‘old geezer’ (TL Note: A Chinese slang term for an old, often annoying, person, but here used to denote someone highly experienced and respected), one whom even Wendy would defer to.

Yalin dared not offend her.

He could only brace himself and speak.

“Um… yes…”

“I see.”

Fulin lowered the brim of her hat, a subtle smile playing on her lips. “Very interesting. I find you quite intriguing, you know?”