Class 92 was on the far left of the second floor. When the bell rang, Ma Xiaoniu walked into the classroom. The previously noisy classroom instantly became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Standing on the podium, Ma Xiaoniu slowly scanned the students in the classroom.
"Before class begins, I have a question for you," Ma Xiaoniu's deep voice rang out. "With your current grades, are you capable of getting into high school?"
The students, who had been standing tall and proud, all lowered their heads upon hearing this.
"So, do you all want to get into high school?" Ma Xiaoniu's voice rang out again. A few scattered voices echoed in the classroom: "Yes..."
A boy with an afro raised his hand high. Ma Xiaoniu's eyes narrowed: "Ma Datiao, what's your problem?"
Ma Datiao stood up, grinning, "Teacher, Liu Ming wet his pants, but he's too scared to tell you."
"You're talking nonsense!" A girl raised her hand high. "Teacher, Ma Datiao is talking nonsense. It was clearly Ma Datiao who urinated in the toilet and splashed it all over Liu Ming. He's the one who's accusing me first!"
"Shut up, Wang Xiaojuan! Don't you dare slander an innocent person! Do you think Liu Ming wouldn't know whether I splashed it or not? Let Liu Ming speak!" Ma Datiao turned around and yelled at Liu Ming, who was sitting against the wall, "Liu Ming, you tell me, did I splash it on you?!"
Liu Ming lowered his head and remained silent, only his shoulders trembling slightly.
Wang Xiaojuan, standing to the side, was seething with anger but felt helpless. Her face turned ashen with rage as she glared fiercely at Ma Datiao.
"Shut the hell up, all of you!" Ma Xiaoniu's face turned black. This damn well-designed beginning had been completely ruined.
"Liu Ming, what happened? Tell me about it."
Liu Ming, who was sitting against the wall, slowly raised his head, his eyes filled with tears. But when he looked at Ma Datiao, who was glaring at him, he lowered his head again.
Ma Xiaoniu rubbed his temples and sighed inwardly. Actually, there was no need to ask; this was definitely Ma Datiao's doing. To be honest, he was used to it. He had been doing this for the past three years. Fortunately, it would all end today.
"You three, sit down first. We'll talk about this later. Today, I'm going to give you a special lesson." Ma Xiaoniu turned around and wrote two large characters on the blackboard—"Change."
"Now, look me in the eyes."
The students were very curious and all looked over.
Demon's Eye, activate!
Ma Xiaoniu's eyes instantly turned black, like two constantly spinning black holes. The surrounding environment immediately darkened, as if all the light was being sucked into Ma Xiaoniu's eyes.
The students sitting below immediately became dazed. Even Ma Datiao, who was usually the most lively, was now like a puppet, staring blankly into Ma Xiaoniu's eyes.
"From this moment on, everything I say will become part of your nature." The low, gentle voice seemed to transform into black smoke, swirling within the classroom.
"You are full of confidence in your studies."
"Your favorite thing is studying."
"You have absolute confidence that you can get into a top-tier high school."
"You are all the most polite students."
"The person you respect most is Teacher Ma Xiaoniu."
"What Teacher Ma says must be obeyed and not disobeyed."
After saying everything he wanted to say in one breath, Ma Xiaoniu immediately deactivated the Demon Eye. Not for any other reason than that the Demon Eye was incredibly energy-consuming; even after just a short while, Ma Xiaoniu felt waves of drowsiness and wanted to lie down and sleep immediately. If it didn't end soon, he'd probably be lying down and sleeping in just a few seconds. His own drowsiness was a minor matter, but if it had any negative impact on the students, that would be a much bigger problem. Although these students infuriated him every day, they were still his students.
The moment the Demon's Eye dissipated, the students couldn't help but shudder. Then, one by one, they straightened their backs, sitting ramrod straight, looking at Ma Xiaotiao as if he were their god, their eyes blazing with fanaticism that even startled Ma Xiaoniu. Just as Ma Xiaoniu was about to instruct the students on their studies, Ma Datiao raised his hand high again. Ma Xiaoniu frowned; could something have gone wrong with the Demon's Eye?
"Ma Datiao, what do you want?" Ma Xiaoniu frowned, staring fiercely at Ma Datiao. If you keep causing trouble, I'll show you why your butt is so red!
Ma Datiao stood ramrod straight, his eyes red and brimming with tears, his voice choked with emotion: "Teacher, I was wrong. I just urinated all over Liu Ming. I'm willing to accept any punishment."
Holy crap, the Demon's Eye effect is that powerful? He's already admitting his mistake?
"Very good. It's great that you can admit your mistakes and correct them. As for how to punish you, that's up to Liu Ming. You can discuss it with him privately. In short, you must study hard and make progress every day from now on, do you understand?" Ma Xiaoniu nodded with satisfaction.
"Yes! I will definitely study hard from now on! It's all my fault for not knowing how to study before and wasting my precious youth. I must show the spirit of studying diligently and never give up until I get into a top high school!" Ma Datiao's eyes were resolute, and at this moment he looked like a hero preparing to die a martyr.
"Very good, please sit down." Ma Xiaoniu looked around and said in a deep voice, "Classmates, let's start reviewing." As soon as he finished speaking, the students all took out their textbooks and started writing, drawing, and discussing the questions, creating a lively and enthusiastic learning scene.
"Great!" Ma Xiaoniu looked around, his eyes slightly red. He hadn't seen such a vibrant and enthusiastic scene of learning in years. Looking at this, Ma Xiaoniu had every reason to believe these students would get into good schools.
After class, Ma Xiaoniu returned to his office, sat down, rubbed his temples, and prepared to close his eyes and rest for a while. Old Wang, who was drinking tea next to him, came over and asked, "What's wrong, Xiao Ma? Is something bothering you?" Ma Xiaoniu was both amused and exasperated; Old Wang's ability to read people was truly remarkable.
"Yeah! Ma Datiao is causing me trouble again." Ma Xiaoniu pretended to be annoyed.
"Ma Datiao? I knew it was him! What? Can you handle him? If not, leave it to me. I'll make sure he's completely submissive!" Old Wang's eyes widened immediately. Clearly, the two were surprisingly in agreement on how to deal with Ma Datiao.
"No need, I can manage on my own. Okay, I'm going to rest for a bit, I'm a little sleepy." With that, she slumped onto the table and fell asleep. The side effects of the Demon's Eye are really severe.
After two classes in the morning, Ma Xiaoniu made up an excuse and left the school. It was a rural school, after all, and everyone was easygoing; the management wasn't very strict.
Ten minutes later, Ma Xiaoniu arrived at Songzhuang. The sacrificial platform had been erected on an open space outside the village. The platform was ten meters long and wide, and two meters high, with an offering table on top, lit with candles and laden with offerings. A bald man dressed as a monk sat on a cushion in front of the offering table, muttering scriptures. A crowd surrounded them, all craning their necks to watch. Wang Youcai stood below the inner circle of the platform, also looking up. Beside Wang Youcai stood four other men who resembled him; they were his four brothers.
Ma Xiaoniu didn't go over; there were too many people, and it wouldn't be easy to make a move. He planned to wait until evening to talk to Wang Youcai.
"Hey? Brother, you're here too. Do you know what's going on?" A rural man nudged the man in the baseball cap next to him with his shoulder and asked in a low voice.
"Hey! What else could it be but a sacrificial ceremony?" The man in the baseball cap tried to keep his voice down.
"Oh? What kind of sacrifice?" the rural man asked, puzzled.
"How would I know? There's no name written on that platform. But I reckon this Wang the Skinflint has done too many wicked things, maybe he's offended something." The man in the baseball cap's voice was almost inaudible.
"Hey? That's quite possible. This Wang the Skinflint has done so many wicked things, he's probably getting his comeuppance this time," the farmer nodded.
There are many capable people in the countryside, and their speed of spreading news is unparalleled. In just a short while, without Wang Youcai's knowledge, everyone around him knew the news. It's believed that within a day, the entire Cao Township will have heard it.