Chapter 60 Off to Back Chi Luoxi Up

Chapter 60: Having Chi Luoxi's Back

By the time senior year rolled around, Chi Luoxi started his internship.

The school where he was interning was a decent one in Jiangzhou, and by sheer luck, its location was remarkably close to their villa.

Chi Luoxi took it extremely seriously. He fussed in front of the bathroom mirror forever, slicking his usual messy soft hair into a more grown-up look. Helping himself to a bit of He Angxiao's hair gel on the counter, he slicked back all the stray strands from his forehead, showing off his smooth, broad forehead.

Chi Luoxi's hair had never been through the drama of dyeing or perming.

Deep down, He Angxiao was kind of an old-school control freak; he had always liked Chi Luoxi's black hair—looking docile and obedient. The hair quality was pampered to the point of perfection, glossy black and silky smooth.

With this change in hairstyle, the college-kid naivety that used to cling to him faded a lot.

He looked like someone who stood out brilliantly within the ivory tower, looking really smart, and unexpectedly took on an air of mature competence.

What really got you was that when that handsome face was fully revealed, and he remained silent with his lips slightly pursed, he suddenly gave off this vibe of a cold, aloof beauty.

He Angxiao was leaning against the bathroom doorframe, with his eyes narrowed slightly as he watched the scene.

For a moment, a rush of indescribable pride surged through He Angxiao's chest. It was a kind of relief and secret pride at seeing the one he had raised finally grow up, but then a strange, wistful melancholy crept in out of nowhere.

Chi Luoxi used to have lingering baby fat. Lately, with the rush of thesis work and internship handovers, he'd been running back and forth between school and home, busy every day without a break. He Angxiao couldn't be there 24/7 to make sure he ate on time, and before he knew it, Chi Luoxi had visibly lost a good bit of weight.

With the weight loss, the line of his chin became sharper, and that ethereal, untouchable quality became more pronounced in his brows and eyes.

As long as Chi Luoxi didn't take the initiative to speak, standing there, he looked kind of hard to approach.

And Chi Luoxi's skin was simply too good—naturally that Radish Spirit kind of milk-white, flawless skin, the kind you could pinch and have water spring from. His porcelain-white skin had a nearly transparent, lustrous sheen, so good that every time He Angxiao got close enough, he wanted to bite right into it.

If you stay with someone cheerful and pure, over time, your own dark, twisted personality will ease up too.

He Angxiao had come to realize this over the years; ever since he got tied together with Chi Luoxi, everything seemed to go smoothly, and he no longer had that twisted, suffocated feeling he used to have.

It wasn't that there were no troubles, but often, the moment he saw Chi Luoxi, the restlessness inside him would calm down instantly.

However, lately, President He's emotions had inexplicably taken on a certain indescribable melancholy.

In the blink of an eye, it was the morning he was officially supposed to report to school.

Chi Luoxi dressed neatly, stood in the entryway changing his shoes, straightened up, and turned around: "Honey, from now on, please call me Teacher Chi."

He Angxiao stepped forward, bent down to kiss his earlobe: "Baby, this is the first day. Why don't I drive you there myself?"

Chi Luoxi refused flatly: "No, I can drive myself."

He Angxiao was a bit persistent: "Want me to put in a good word for you on the down low, in case anyone tries to give you trouble?"

Chi Luoxi looked at He Angxiao like he was crazy, a bit exasperated: "Honey, I'm just going for a few months of regular internship, not to take over the school. Stop making such a big deal out of it."

He Angxiao: "Then, Teacher Chi, would you do me the honor of joining me for lunch today?"

Chi Luoxi looked somewhat troubled: "It's my first day today, I honestly don't know yet. I might have to eat in the cafeteria at noon."

Hearing this, He Angxiao made a firm decision: "Then I'll time it perfectly and bring it to you."

Chi Luoxi sighed: "Let's not, okay."

"Baby, don't worry, I'll be totally good, I swear. I won't disturb any of your normal work," He Angxiao insisted. "I'll just drive the car over and park by the side of the road outside the school gate. You come out, eat in the car, and then go back to work. Look how thin you've gotten lately; it really breaks your hubby's heart."

Chi Luoxi was soft-hearted and gave in: "Okay."

At noon, when the bell rang ending class.

The street outside the school gate was crowded with people, all parents rushing to bring their kids lunch at this hour. Private cars lined up bumper to bumper, stretching in a tight line along the service road.

Chi Luoxi jogged out of the school gate, carefully searching through the endless, dense stream of cars, one by one.

Until he spotted that classy but sharp-looking black car, Chi Luoxi's eyes lit up. He pulled open the door, quickly ducked down, and slipped into the passenger seat.

As the door closed, the noise outside was instantly cut off.

Chi Luoxi seemed to be in a fairly good mood today.

He Angxiao had specifically asked Su Yi to prepare an exquisite insulated lunchbox, with small portions and every dish light and fresh.

Chi Luoxi ate slowly with his chopsticks, and naturally picked up a piece, pretending to pop it into He Angxiao's mouth.

He Angxiao said he had already eaten at the company, but those bright, sparkling eyes staring at him were impossible to resist.

He Angxiao took a bite of the perfectly braised mushroom stuffed with meat right from Chi Luoxi's hand. Chewing slowly, he asked, "How was your first day? What was it like?"

Chi Luoxi grabbed a bottle of juice, slurped a big gulp through a straw, and said, "Pretty good. Honey, you're not worried about me, are you? Is that why you came to deliver this meal?"

He Angxiao said gloomily: "I just feel like I have a father's mentality now, raising a kid. You don't come act all spoiled and whine with me anymore."

The current Chi Luoxi was a completely different person from the pitiful creature who had left Chunhui and cried his eyes out in He Angxiao's arms, snot and tears all over.

Chi Luoxi held the straw, straightened up seriously, and corrected him: "Honey, people have to grow up. And wasn't it you who taught me that yourself? You said people need to learn to be independent and can't always rely on others."

Especially since everything was safe and sound at school, and no one had the nerve to come bully him.

If Chi Luoxi ever ran into a huge problem he couldn't solve on his own, he would definitely come to He Angxiao for backup first.

He felt that He Angxiao, this control freak, was seriously underestimating his ability to survive.

He Angxiao wished he could go back in time and slap himself. He didn't want Chi Luoxi to grow up at all.

Back then, he was the one who made things difficult, always finding Chi Luoxi too clingy. But now, watching Chi Luoxi become capable of handling things on his own, that dark, possessive male instinct in He Angxiao's heart surged back like a tidal wave, making him deeply uncomfortable.

Lunch was over quickly. Chi Luoxi packed up the insulated box, said goodbye to He Angxiao, unbuckled his seatbelt, and got out of the car.

Through the car window, He Angxiao saw some kids by the school gate spot Chi Luoxi from a distance and immediately wave at him enthusiastically, hopping and jumping.

He Angxiao knew better than anyone that wherever Chi Luoxi went for internship or work, he would do well.

With that nature, he would definitely charm the kids and easily win over the leaders, because Chi Luoxi was born with that lovable personality. He was never short of people who liked him.

Why did he have to grow up so fast?

The little radish from before, who couldn't figure anything out at home and could only rely on him, was also extremely cute.

He Angxiao let out a heavy sigh inside. He sincerely felt that the balance of being a husband was really hard to strike.

He didn't want Chi Luoxi to be a delicate, ignorant canary locked in a cage for life, but when it was time to let him go out and face the world, he himself couldn't control the jealousy and unease.

Chi Luoxi was really busy as a middle school assistant teacher.

Every day, there were trivial matters waiting for him to handle. It was He Angxiao, the usually busy President He, who fell into a state of melancholy because his partner no longer needed him.

Actually, Chi Luoxi’s workload was still manageable.

After all, he was only a trainee teaching assistant. The veteran teacher he was assigned to was a kind old man near retirement, who took good care of him.

Chi Luoxi’s daily tasks mostly involved grading stacks of homework, monitoring class discipline, and occasionally standing at the podium to teach a few simple chapters on behalf of the older teacher.

But his tall stature and gentle nature meant that the kids in the class—all in their rebellious adolescence and normally as rowdy as monkeys—adored him.

Although Chi Luoxi felt he could never be as socially adept and smooth as Hua Ai was in the workplace, he considered himself pretty good at keeping things stable.

Since he had to teach a major class for the veteran teacher the next day, Chi Luoxi prepared in advance at home to avoid any slip-ups.

In the side hall on the second floor of the villa, he set up a temporary small blackboard.

Sitting in a row in front of the blackboard were a makeshift group of students.

The students included He Angxiao, the two dogs of vastly different sizes, and the cat, Tiger.

He Angxiao, acting as the temporary class monitor and discipline officer, shamelessly raised his hand first to make a report.

“Teacher Xiao Chi, I’d like to report that Tiger has been licking his paws from the start of class without paying attention.”

Chi Luoxi planted his hands on his hips in mock anger: “What? We will not tolerate behavior that disrupts class. Tiger, go stand in the hallway for time-out, and your cat food for today is all confiscated.”

Tiger, caught in an unexpected disaster, was utterly shocked. His round body stiffened, and he meowed angrily in the direction of He Angxiao, yowling in protest at the tattling.

However, He Angxiao showed no guilt at all and even raised his hand again to press the issue: “Teacher Chi, the class monitor performed so well—what’s the reward?”

Chi Luoxi replied, “The reward is that I’ll give you extra tutoring after class.”

He Angxiao: “…Can the tutoring be on a different subject?”

Chi Luoxi immediately refused: “No!”

Chi Luoxi felt that life was quite pleasant now, full of a down-to-earth feeling.

Moreover, he was highly valued at school. There was a little boy in the class who really liked him, even slipping a note with crooked handwriting into his homework the day before yesterday, praising Teacher Chi for being good-looking.

That little boy was Wu Jia. He was a very well-behaved kid, quite introverted, and usually didn’t talk much in class, but his grades were very good, especially in math.

Because he was the math class monitor, he had to lug heavy stacks of homework between the office and the classroom every day, so he had the most contact with Chi Luoxi, the teaching assistant.

There were a few troublemaking boys in the class who always deliberately delayed turning in their homework, leaving Wu Jia feeling especially guilty in front of Chi Luoxi when he couldn’t collect it all.

Chi Luoxi had heard from other senior teachers in the office that the kid’s family situation was sad—he came from a single-parent family.

Chi Luoxi really liked this child who was so mature it tugged at the heartstrings. One Friday evening, Jiangzhou was hit by a torrential downpour.

After getting off work, Chi Luoxi drove home. Just after exiting the school gate, he saw Wu Jia holding a black umbrella, with his head down, walking alone along the flooded curb toward the subway station.

The rain was too heavy, lashing down relentlessly.

His small, thin figure in the vast curtain of rain seemed as if he could be swept away by the storm at any moment.

School should have been long over at this hour unless he stayed for cleaning duty. But lately, Chi Luoxi often saw Wu Jia leaving school quite late.

But cleaning duty rotations changed weekly—why was Wu Jia always the last one doing the cleaning?

Chi Luoxi stepped on the brakes and rolled down the window: “Wu Jia! I’ll give you a ride home!”

Wu Jia suddenly looked up, his face immediately showing an awkward, flustered expression.

Chi Luoxi: "Hurry up!"

After he got in the car, the heavy rain had thoroughly soaked his shoes and pants, leaving him shivering slightly in the back seat. Chi Luoxi grabbed one of his spare clean jackets and handed it to him: "Use this to dry yourself off. Don't catch a cold. I'll turn up the heat now, just sit and warm up."

Wu Jia clutched the jacket, that had a faint, pleasant smell, and said softly and gently, with a clear stuffy nose, shyly: "Thank you, teacher."

The warm air from the heater blew gently, quickly dispelling most of the chill brought by the torrential rain.

Wu Jia sat with his small hands neatly placed on his knees. He told Chi Luoxi that his mother was a nurse at the city hospital, often working night shifts and back-to-back shifts, so busy she barely had time to rest, which was why he always tried to finish all his homework and assignments at school before going home.

Chi Luoxi felt a pang of sadness hearing these overly mature words: "You're so sensible."

Wu Jia got embarrassed by the compliment, a faint blush spreading across his young face as he gave a shy, tight-lipped smile.

The car splashed through the flooded streets and finally came to a gentle stop in front of a typical, somewhat aged residential building in Jiangzhou.

Wu Jia unbuckled his seatbelt and started to take off the jacket, which had already been warmed by his body heat, saying he would wash it for Teacher Chi and return it. Chi Luoxi quickly held up a hand to stop him, urging him to hurry home and take a hot shower so he wouldn't catch a cold.

Before he got out, Chi Luoxi looked at the childish face, put on a stern teacher's expression, and earnestly reminded him: "Remember, unless it's me, you should never get into a stranger's car."

Wu Jia stood outside the car door, his umbrella slightly askew in the heavy rain. His bright eyes were fixed on Chi Luoxi, and he nodded shyly but seriously: "I know. You're a good person, Teacher Chi. Because your eyes are beautiful, like stars."

Chi Luoxi chuckled at this, waved at the thin little figure in the rain, and said goodbye.

Only after he saw the child bounce into the building entrance did he slowly start the car, thinking with a soft sound of affection: this kid is so lovable, absolutely adorable.

The peaceful and stable days hadn't lasted more than a few days before trouble exploded without warning on Monday morning.

Chi Luoxi had just reached the corner of the teaching building corridor when he heard a noisy commotion of shouts and onlookers from the classroom, faintly mixed with cries of 'Fight!'

He strode quickly over, pushed open the classroom door.

Inside, the most notoriously unruly boy in the class was now brutally pinning Wu Jia down on the hard floor tiles.

This boy, Ren Ling, was tall and stout, from a well-connected and wealthy family in Jiangzhou. He was used to throwing his weight around, and most of the well-behaved students in the class would avoid him for fear of trouble.

The incident today, as rumor had it, started because Ren Ling had once again failed to hand in his homework. Wu Jia, as the math class representative, had simply gone over to urge him a few times, which thoroughly angered this young master.

Amid the terrified and hesitant stares of the other students, who watched but dared not approach, Chi Luoxi stepped forward without hesitation, his face grim.

No one could see exactly how he used his strength. That seemingly slender arm suddenly shot out, lifting the hefty Ren Ling clean off the ground and pinning him against the wall.

Chi Luoxi's handsome face was set in a rare fierce expression, staring into the other's eyes and demanding: "Why are you bullying a classmate?"

Ren Ling was completely stunned.

He looked at this usually gentle, bookish-looking teaching assistant, now pressing his shoulder with an iron-like grip that made his whole body ache, unable to move an inch.

A flicker of panic appeared in his eyes, and he gritted his teeth, trying to struggle. But Chi Luoxi wouldn't give him the chance. He twisted and pinned Ren Ling's resisting arm, pressing half of his body heavily and oppressively onto the nearby desk.

Wu Jia finally got up from the ground.

His originally clean school uniform was covered in dust, a large red mark around his neck from being choked, and his eyes were red and swollen, tears silently streaming as he bit his lip.

When several office teachers rushed over upon hearing the news, the long-standing dirty secrets were finally exposed.

It turned out that Ren Ling had been bullying people in the class even more than this. Whenever it was his group's turn for daily cleaning duty, he would often toss the mop and rag to others in his group who didn't dare to resist, leaving them to do the work. And the one who silently bore all the dirty and tiring work, most of the time, was Wu Jia.

Chi Luoxi crouched down, gently brushed the dust off Wu Jia's uniform, and said, "Don't be afraid. I'll make sure you see justice done today."

Handling conflicts between minors at school is never easy.

Once the incident reached the disciplinary office, the homeroom teacher tried to smooth things over by blaming both sides equally, eventually forcing Ren Ling to write a half-hearted thousand-word self-criticism and apologize to Wu Jia in person.

Standing in the center of the office, Ren Ling rolled his eyes and delivered the apology with extreme insincerity and provocation.

Wu Jia's thin frame trembled as he shrank back behind Chi Luoxi, trying to hide.

Seeing that the matter was about to be brushed aside, Ren Ling insisted that Chi Luoxi had laid hands on him. He threw a tantrum right there in the office, calling his family and shouting threats.

Chi Luoxi: "...What are you talking about? When did I ever hit you?"

Ren Ling: "A teacher hit a student! I'm calling the police! My dad will hire a lawyer and sue you!"

Within half an hour, Ren Ling's father, who runs a business in Jiangzhou, stormed into the school.

The moment he walked in and heard his precious son's exaggerated sob story, he exploded. His eyes bulged wide, and he nearly jabbed his stubby finger right in Chi Luoxi's face, cursing loudly.

People around him held him back.

It was truly shameless—bullying to an unbearable degree.

Inside a top-tier office building in Jiangzhou, floor-to-ceiling windows offered a sweeping view of the city's splendor.

On the CEO's desk, a private phone buzzed wildly. He Angxiao, his long legs crossed, leaned back in his leather chair. He picked it up and answered softly, "What's up, baby?"

On the other end of the line, Chi Luoxi's voice sounded a bit muffled: "Can you drop whatever you're doing and come to the school? Please?"

He Angxiao hadn't heard Chi Luoxi sound so slightly aggrieved in a long time. The heavy sense of loss that had been weighing on him for days instantly vanished, replaced by a spark of excitement.

He shot up from his executive chair and grabbed his suit jacket from the backrest.

Riley, who was standing across the desk presenting her work, watched her boss's series of decisive moves. She paused, the file in her hand frozen mid-air, a bit confused: "Mr. He? What's going on...?"

He Angxiao buttoned his suit jacket and strode toward the office door, saying triumphantly, "Going to have Chi Luoxi's back."

He Angxiao suddenly felt grateful that other troublemakers exist in this world.

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Author's note: Little Radish: Good thing the biggest bully in this world is my husband.

He Angxiao: Time to shine.

A person's greatest charm lies in their ability to solve problems. President He knows that well.