novelraw Chapter 142 : You Look Weak Just by Appearance
Chapter 142 : You Look Weak Just by Appearance
Chapter 142: You Look Weak Just by Appearance
“Come, come, everyone sit down, have some fruit. You kids—why bring gifts? You could’ve just come empty-handed. I’m your teacher, you’re all still students.”
In the living room, Professor Mu brought out two plates of fruit and warmly greeted the three. She liked being around young people; it made her feel much younger herself.
Ever since her children became successful and moved away, the house only became lively like this during the New Year. Even on shorter holidays, they might not return.
So the old lady was quite happy that Lin Mo had brought his roommates to visit her home.
Though she complained about them bringing gifts, she was inwardly delighted. It wasn’t about the value of the gift—what mattered was the thought behind it. It showed that her students still remembered her efforts.
“That’s only right. Please have a seat too, teacher. Oh, this is some tea I brought for you. A friend gave it to me—it seems to be pretty good quality. You know I don’t really drink tea, but since you enjoy it, I thought I’d bring it along. Try it when you have time,” Lin Mo said with a smile as he presented the small box of tea.
At his words and the sight of the box in his hand, Professor Mu gave it a glance and could tell it wasn’t ordinary.
Though the box was small, its packaging was exquisite. Knowing Lin Mo’s family background, she could tell that whatever he brought wouldn’t be cheap. She couldn’t help but point at him and laugh, “If only you were this clever when it came to calculus!”
Of course, she didn’t believe for a second that Lin Mo didn’t understand tea. A student who had independently learned tea art—how could he possibly not know how to appreciate tea? In comparison, she herself only stayed at the level of simply drinking it.
But since things had come to this, she wouldn’t make him take it back. Instead, she turned to her husband and shouted, “Old man, go boil some water! Bring out your tea set later. We’ll try my student’s tea today. Consider yourself lucky—you get to share my blessing.”
Listening from the side, Lin Mo couldn’t help but give a wry smile. Calculus? Even with two brains, he might still not manage it—unless the shopping page suddenly refreshed and gifted him a new skill, or maybe sold him some kind of intelligence-boosting medicine. Otherwise, how could he ever learn that?
At this point, even quadratic equations were a distant memory. Math, for him, had long boiled down to simple addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Anything over a hundred required a calculator. How was he supposed to study calculus like that?
“It’s what I should do. I should thank you, teacher, for accompanying me yesterday—otherwise, I really would’ve been nervous,” Lin Mo said, a little embarrassed.
He didn’t say outright that Professor Mu had helped him gain certain benefits, only thanking her for going with him—but that alone already said enough.
With the old lady’s presence alone, he had gained quite a bit. At the very least, she’d spared him from unnecessary trouble—such as cooperating with the school’s promotional work, interviews, and other events.
Without her speaking up for him, the past two days would’ve been full of media interviews. Principal Tang, wanting publicity for the school, would surely have agreed. It wouldn’t have been like now, where he only did a single interview with Jiangning City’s official media outlet.
And then there were those so-called all-school assemblies and stage speeches—just formalities that wasted time and energy, offering him no benefit whatsoever.
As a student, if no one above spoke for him, no matter how unwilling he was, he’d still have to obey. After all, how could an arm twist a thigh? He wouldn’t even need the principal to order him—any random school leader could keep him running in circles.
“What you did was an act of bravery for justice. As your teacher, of course I had to be there. As for any future honors, your principal will notify you. You can rest assured,” the old lady said with a delighted smile.
Meanwhile, Sichuan Girl and Wang Chu, sitting beside them, both looked incredulous. In their impression, Professor Mu was strict and fierce during lectures. Who would’ve thought she could be so warm and easygoing in private?
At that moment, Professor Li came over carrying hot water, ready to make tea for everyone.
Lin Mo quickly stood up to take it. “Teacher, let me do it. How could I possibly let you pour water for me?”
“Oh, it’s fine, guests shouldn’t be treated so formally,” Professor Li said with a genial smile.
Upon hearing Lin Mo call him “teacher,” Professor Mu immediately glared at her husband, exclaiming, “Move aside! Let my student do it. You’ll ruin good tea if you brew it.”
Professor Li:
After so many decades of marriage, the old couple still bickered. Though their words were sharp, they cared deeply for each other.
Given both their tempers, it was probably a good thing they lived apart most of the time. Otherwise, they’d have been sick of the sight of each other long ago.
Lin Mo took the hot water, opened his tea box, and poured out a small amount. Professor Li hurried to fetch the tea set from his study.
He’d already heard from his wife that her student brewed excellent tea—not only pleasant to watch but also improving the tea’s flavor. She’d even bragged about him in her social circle; even Old Sun had wanted to “poach” him—so it had to be something special.
Lin Mo took a gaiwan, flipped the lid upside down, and poured hot water to warm the vessel. When it was ready, he discarded the water, added the tea, and gently shook it to release the aroma. Taking a sniff, Lin Mo nodded—its fragrance was rich, a sign that Miss Yuan Meng’s “borrowed” tea was indeed top-notch.
He then poured the water slowly, circling the rim of the gaiwan. This particular tea was delicate and shouldn’t be brewed too aggressively.
His movements were unhurried yet smooth—professional, elegant, and pleasing to the eye.
After steeping for a while, Lin Mo poured the tea into the fairness cup, then filled the teacups before each of them.
“All done, teacher. Please, both of you, have a taste,” Lin Mo said with a smile.
Professor Mu was already used to this. She naturally picked up her teacup, took a sniff, then a sip. The tea carried a sweet fragrance that immediately won her over.
Professor Li, grinning from ear to ear, picked up his cup before even drinking. His teacher-wife was finally drinking tea poured by her student.
Back in the day, in a more formal setting, this could practically have been a disciple-acceptance ceremony.
Times had changed, though—these days, traditional teacher-student bonds, especially in medicine, were rare.
Still, he felt hopeful. Even if there was no ceremony, wasn’t he still drinking a student’s tea now?
As for “stealing” his wife’s student—he didn’t feel the slightest guilt. How could that be called stealing? He was simply rescuing a talent from being wasted. Lin Mo staying with his wife would’ve been a waste of potential; coming to him was enlightenment!
He took a sip—and instantly felt the sweet, rich flavor fill his mouth. The difference from his usual tea was night and day. He hadn’t known tea could taste so vivid and full-bodied.
Lin Mo’s fluid brewing earlier wasn’t just for show—he clearly had real skill.
Meanwhile, Wang Chu and Sichuan Girl were both stunned.
They’d lived with Lin Mo for three years in college, and now, in their final year, he suddenly pulled a brand-new skill from nowhere?
The way he’d moved just now—smooth, composed, elegant—had left them speechless. If not for the two professors present, their mouths would’ve already overflowed with “C-language-level” exclamations.
‘Stop pretending, you damn poser!’
“What are you staring at? Should I bring your cups over for you?” Lin Mo glared at the two who were still frozen, clearly guessing what was going through their minds.
Serving tea to the professors was one thing—but these two didn’t deserve that kind of treatment.
Hearing his words, the two dared not talk back in front of the professors. They just laughed awkwardly, each picking up a cup to take a sip.
As for the taste—it was fine, fragrant, slightly sweet… but to them, not as good as a cold cola.
Young people rarely liked tea, especially in midsummer. Drinking hot tea just couldn’t compare to gulping down an ice-cold drink.
Even Lin Mo himself thought the same. He knew how to brew tea but wasn’t particularly fond of drinking it.
The room fell into a short silence. After three rounds of tea, Professor Li finally put down his cup, wiping sweat from his forehead. He hadn’t expected this unofficial student of his to not only be skilled in massage and bone setting but also to excel at tea brewing.
No wonder the elders adored him—even Old Sun had thought about recruiting him.
Good thing his wife had stood firm—otherwise, it wouldn’t have been his turn to enjoy this talent.
“Xiao Lin, how’s your body feeling after taking that medicine these past few days?” Professor Li asked.
Lin Mo thought for a moment before smiling. “I feel more energetic, and my sleep has improved—but the medicine’s too bitter.”
Professor Li laughed heartily. “That’s Chinese medicine for you—of course it’s bitter! But since you’re already feeling a difference, it’s working. You’re still young; if you were older, you’d need at least a month before noticing any improvement. Traditional medicine works from the inside out—gradually nourishing and restoring.”
“It’s fine. I’ll check you again later. Oh, and have you been reading the books I gave you?”
“I have. I started with The Shennong Herbal Classic like you said, though I haven’t read much lately. Been a bit busy,” Lin Mo said apologetically.
After all, he’d spent most of the last few days in the city and hadn’t sat down to study much—he felt a little guilty.
Professor Li nodded. He knew his student had been busy. “That’s fine. You’ve got a good memory. You can take your time with these things. Build your foundation first—then we’ll move on.”
He then asked Lin Mo how far he’d gotten and quizzed him on several passages from The Shennong Herbal Classic. Lin Mo answered them all.
Luckily, he’d read more of it last night back at the dorm and again earlier upstairs while waiting for Wang Chu. Otherwise, he really would’ve been embarrassed.
Though his progress wasn’t fast, what he’d read he remembered clearly—his memory was excellent.
Professor Li nodded in satisfaction. At least Lin Mo hadn’t lied—he was genuinely reading.
Though Professor Mu had mixed feelings about her husband “stealing” her student, she didn’t object to him teaching Lin Mo. Learning more could never be a bad thing, after all.
Sichuan Girl and Wang Chu, meanwhile, were almost dumbfounded. It felt like they were meeting their roommate for the first time.
Weren’t they computer science majors? Why was he suddenly studying traditional Chinese medicine with an old professor? What was he thinking?
If not for the fact that Lin Mo only looked paler and hadn’t changed in personality, they might’ve thought he’d been possessed by some time traveler.
The group chatted over tea in the living room, though most of the conversation was between Lin Mo and the elderly couple. Wang Chu and Sichuan Girl occasionally chimed in just to show they were still there.
After half an hour, Professor Li stood up and said, “Alright, come to the study. I’ll give you all a check-up.”
“Thank you, teacher!”
“Thank you, Professor Li!”
“Thank you, Professor Li!”
The three stood and thanked him, especially Wang Chu and Sichuan Girl—after all, they were only here thanks to Lin Mo, so they made sure to be polite.
Lin Mo let the two go first, staying behind to help Professor Mu tidy the table.
“I can handle this myself, go on now. Your health is what matters,” Professor Mu waved her hand.
Lin Mo smiled. “It’s fine, teacher. Let my roommates go first, I’m in no rush. Your home’s pretty big—it feels like it’s at least a hundred forty or fifty square meters, right?”
“Not that big—just 110. But this place has been around for years, and there’s no shared area. My kids don’t come back much these days, so it feels spacious. It’s actually a staff housing unit from back when I was working. We’ve lived here for decades now,” she said with a chuckle.
Lin Mo:
In this day and age, “staff housing” really was a thing of the past.
Meanwhile, in the study, Professor Li was checking Wang Chu’s pulse while Sichuan Girl stood nearby.
Barely two seconds after his fingers touched Wang Chu’s wrist, Professor Li delivered a verbal strike: “You should watch fewer of those unhealthy videos, you hear me?”
Wang Chu: ???
“N-no, I don’t! I just stay up late sometimes!”
Professor Li: →_→
“Staying up late, huh? Well, whatever the case, stop watching those videos. And quit… doing it yourself. You’ve already weakened yourself this much, and you still want to argue?”
Wang Chu:
In that instant, he experienced what true social death felt like.
Sichuan Girl, unable to hold it in, burst out laughing with a “pfft.”
Professor Li turned to her. “Don’t laugh. You look weak just by appearance!”
Sichuan Girl: ???