Tokyo: Starting with a fake boyfriend

Whenever this feeling of sudden enlightenment arises in his mind, Shiratori Osamu feels a sense of joy and well-being.

However, before the lunch break bell rang, a voice suddenly called out:

"Shiratori-kun".

Upon hearing his name, Shiratori Osamu, who was completely absorbed in the ocean of knowledge, suddenly snapped out of his reverie and looked in the direction of the voice. He discovered that it was Mr. Yamamoto, who was teaching Japanese literature on the podium, calling him.

"Come out with me for a moment."

Having successfully attracted his attention, Mr. Yamamoto gestured towards the classroom door and then stepped out.

"Yes."

Without hesitation, Shiratori Osamu agreed to the request and stood up to do as he was told.

Although Japan has begun to advocate for educational democracy in line with the trend of the times, students are not allowed to disrespect teachers in principle. Schools with stricter disciplines may even explicitly require students to use honorifics when addressing teachers in their school rules.

You must not talk back to your teacher, question your teacher, or ignore your teacher... In some schools with a strong sense of respect for teachers, there are even rules that require you to bow to your teacher when you see them, or even kneel down to pay your respects on special occasions.

"What happened?"

"Has that guy gotten into trouble again?"

As he got up and left his seat, the students in the class were all curious, and some even gloated.

It's rare for someone to leave the classroom during roll call, and it's definitely not a good thing no matter how you look at it.

"What's going on here?"

Seeing this, both Minami Yamabuki and Tomohiro Nakamura were taken aback and felt worried.

At the same time, Shiratori Osamu followed Yamamoto-sensei out of the classroom and saw someone who surprised him.

That was Ms. Dongyun. She was still wearing a suit, shirt and trousers as always, but her stunningly beautiful face was as cold as ice, her eyebrows were furrowed, and she exuded a terrifyingly low pressure.

"Mr. Yamamoto, thank you so much for your help and understanding."

After the teacher asked Shiratori Osamu to leave the classroom, Shinonome Mizuki glanced at him and thanked him.

"You're welcome. I'm going back to class now."

Having minimized the impact and successfully led the person out, Mr. Yamamoto waved his hand, didn't ask what happened, and turned to walk away.

As a veteran teacher, his greatest skill was keeping himself in the best of his ability.

Don't meddle in things that aren't your business, and don't ask questions that aren't your concern.

"Continue the lesson."

Back in the classroom in the blink of an eye, Mr. Yamamoto came to the podium and noticed that the students below were restless and curious because Shiratori Osamu had been called out by name. He picked up his book and slammed it on the podium, and sternly ordered the students to maintain discipline.

"Shiratori-kun, come with me."

As the Chinese literature teacher left, Shinonome Mizuki nodded to Shiratori Osamu and turned to lead the way.

"Teacher Dongyun, what happened?"

He strode quickly to catch up, closing the distance to about half a step, and asked in a low voice.

The fact that he was specifically called out during class time means that something out of control must have happened... Otherwise, Mr. Shinonome would never have disturbed him from studying.

Moreover, Ms. Shinonome seemed to be in a bad mood, and it was unclear who had upset her.

"There is someone who wants to see you."

Faced with this question, Shinonome Mizuki turned around and gave him a deep look.

"Who?"

Upon hearing this, Shiratori was taken aback, and a series of guesses suddenly formed in his mind, his thoughts racing.

The head of academic affairs? Probably not.

Although the head of student affairs disliked him and considered him a thorn in his side, always looking for an opportunity to expel him, he hadn't caused any trouble or scandals recently. Even if there were rumors, they were all positive, and it was impossible for him to be falsely accused to the point that his parents came to the school for questioning.

Yamabuki Tomoya? Probably not.

Old Deng had just lost his temper and caused trouble in front of his wife and daughters last night, and he also had to work. His priority was to get his mother-in-law's forgiveness, so he had no time to deal with him.

"Mrs. Yamabuki."

Before he could come up with an answer, Shinonome Mizuki revealed the mystery directly.

"Huh?"

Upon learning this, even though Shiratori Osamu remained fully focused, he was still taken aback.

My mother-in-law came to the school?

Although he had calculated that his mother-in-law would come to him for help sooner or later through careful consideration and ingenious planning, it was still too fast; at most, it was only a little over three hours.

Chapter 76 Launches an Attack on Teacher Qualification

"Shiratori-kun, do you have any clue about why Mrs. Yamabuki came to the school specifically to find you?"

On her way to the student guidance room, Shinonome Mizuki slowed her pace as much as possible and asked in a low voice.

She was completely panicked and disoriented because she thought Mrs. Yamabuki was just calling to inquire about the progress of her daughter's relationship with the school bully.

But to her utter surprise, Mrs. Yamabuki had already driven to the school gate before she called her.

Although Mrs. Yamabuki's voice was still as gentle and melodious as ever, like heavenly music that brought joy to people's hearts and minds, her decisive action startled her.

The difference between parents contacting the school by phone and parents making a surprise visit to the school represents a completely different level of seriousness for the teacher.

Even more terrifying was that after she met Mrs. Yamabuki, Mrs. Yamabuki exchanged pleasantries with her and then asked to meet and talk with Osamu Shiratori.

This is terrible! This is terrible! This is terrible!

Although she knew that the fact that her top-performing daughter was dating the worst-performing student was something no parent could tolerate.

But she has already dealt with this matter. Shiratori promised her that he would break up with Yamabuki Minami. Although it is only temporary, the fact that they broke up should satisfy Mrs. Yamabuki.

Does this mean that Shiratori is still dating Yamabuki Minami?

These two only broke up temporarily for the sake of the bigger picture, but their lingering connection was discovered by their parents.

"Shiratori-kun, say something!"

Shinonome Mizuki was getting increasingly anxious when she realized he wasn't replying and was actually thinking.

Why is this guy always like this? He just stays silent whenever he encounters a difficult question.

"Teacher Shinonome, I know you're anxious, but don't worry. Mrs. Yamabuki came to see me. I have some information about this matter, and nothing bad will happen."

Because of his mother-in-law's sudden visit, Shiratori Osamu, who was calculating the situation, noticed that she was flustered and quickly comforted her.

"Nothing bad will happen?"

Shinonome Mizuki simply couldn't believe this claim.

The girl's parents came to the school during class time, so what could it possibly be a good thing?

"I'm not at liberty to say what the basis is, but please trust me."

Seeing the doubt on her face, Shiratori Xiu, in order to calm her down, immediately turned off the [Concentration] state, patted her on the shoulder, and said sincerely.

[Because you treated Shinonome Mizuki with sincerity, your character designation - sincerity - has been successfully verified.]

After so many successes, he has figured out how to use the "sincere" persona.

Expressing one's true feelings and genuine emotions is enough to trigger a judgment; the standards are very lenient.

"Okay, I believe you." Because his attitude was very sincere, although she didn't know where he got his confidence from, she still chose to believe him. Then she raised her hand to push his arm away, glared at him, and started to scold him, "And I am your teacher. You can't pat my shoulder at school."

Patting someone on the shoulder is a common gesture between peers or when elders encourage younger people. What would it look like if someone saw that?

In terms of age, she was considerably older than Shiratori-kun, and was an adult who had undergone a coming-of-age ceremony.

In terms of status, she is a teacher and Shiratori-kun is a student; it's unreasonable and inappropriate for them to act this way.

"Mr. Dongyun, do you mean I can do this outside of school?"

Because her refusal wasn't too forceful, and her eye-rolling expression seemed like she was being coquettish, Shiratori Xiu couldn't resist continuing to tease her and make her angry.

Perhaps because Ms. Shinonome is usually very serious, seeing her with small expressions always feels very contrasting, cute, and gives her a more girlish feel.

"Shiratori-kun, I am your teacher. Please watch your words and actions."

Originally, Shinonome Mizuki only wanted to give him a simple warning, but she found his smile somewhat flippant and his words even more misleading. She took a small step back to create some distance and then raised her hand to adjust her glasses.

How could you joke about something like this? The combination of a delinquent student and a young female teacher is too sensitive. Even if she and Shiratori Osamu were to get a little closer, it could lead to misunderstandings, let alone direct physical contact.

Luckily, it was during class time, and there weren't many people walking in the school corridors. If someone had seen me patting someone on the shoulder, things would have been in trouble.

Seeing her pull away, Shiratori realized he had been influenced by emotions and the atmosphere and said the wrong thing. He immediately became fully focused, and without needing even a second to think, he took half a step back and bowed in apology.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Dongyun. I promise it won't happen again. Please forgive my offense."

He had previously jokingly scolded Zhihui for always acting crazy and attacking Dongyun's teaching qualifications... Now that he thinks about it, he realized that at eighteen, he was just like Zhihui, and could also be driven crazy by hormones.

And what he just said was so damn cheesy, so cheesy that he wanted to slap himself. How could he be so cheesy?

"..."

Seeing the smile on his face fade at a visible speed, and then taking a half step back and bowing his head to admit his mistake, Shinonome Mizuki opened her mouth as if to say something, but her throat seemed to be blocked.

She knew that what she had done was right, and Shiratori-kun's willingness to admit his mistake was a good thing, but for some reason, she felt a sense of regret.

Has she gone too far with her words again this time, being so serious?

"Teacher Shinonome, please continue leading the way. Mrs. Yamabuki is still waiting for me."

After bowing and admitting his mistake, Shiratori straightened up and said.

"Shiratori-kun, I wasn't saying anything like I hate you, it's just that we can't do things like that, we have to be careful."

When Shinonome Mizuki looked up at his serious and earnest face, which even seemed a bit distant, her heart skipped a beat, and she quickly tried to explain.

"I understand, I'm sorry, I will be more careful in the future."

Shiratori Osamu's attitude was very positive. After focusing his attention and abandoning useless emotions, he knew that his teacher's actions were correct.

Although Japanese adult films often feature overthrowing teacher-student pairs and are widely praised, fictional works do not represent real life.

Japan has a long-standing culture of respecting teachers. Teachers enjoy a very high status and privileges in society, and people of all ages will respectfully address them as "teacher."

Teachers enjoy such high privileges and status in society, and are even more so in schools.

Because the power and status of teachers and students are completely unequal, teacher-student relationships are a taboo that is strongly rejected by society.

Teachers involved in such incidents may face consequences ranging from losing their jobs to imprisonment. For example, if a teacher has a relationship with a minor student, it is a crime regardless of whether they are in love with each other.

Although he is eighteen years old this year, and it is not illegal for adult teachers and students to date, it is still considered shameful.

In conclusion, what he just did was a very serious overstepping of boundaries, no less than an attack on Ms. Dongyun's teaching certificate. Hopefully, she will not hold a grudge because of the offense he just committed.

"..."

Seeing his expressionless nod of apology, Shinonome Mizuki felt that he had not fully understood her meaning at all. She pursed her lips and sighed inwardly, but said nothing and walked ahead to lead the way.

Actually, she was also wrong just now. Although Shiratori-kun was indeed pushing his luck, it was because her attitude of refusing him the first time was not firm enough, which led to his misunderstanding.

Well, that's fine too. Shiratori-kun has a girlfriend, but they broke up temporarily due to unforeseen circumstances. They should keep their distance anyway.

They walked one after the other, remaining silent because of the minor conflict earlier.

Before long, they arrived at the student life guidance room.

The room was small, with only a few tables and one person sitting there.

"Mrs. Yamabuki, I've brought Mr. Shiratori."

Shinonome Mizuki gently knocked on the door to signal, then explained before entering the room.

"Teacher Dongyun, thank you so much for your help. I apologize for coming uninvited and for causing you trouble."

Yamabuki, who had been led to this room to wait, immediately stood up and bowed slightly to express her gratitude upon her arrival.

As Shiratori Osamu followed his teacher into the room, his gaze unconsciously fell on his mother-in-law.

My mother-in-law was still wearing the same black fitted dress she wore that morning, but she had changed her hair accessory. Instead of the casual shark clip, she had changed her open-toed sandals to glossy, warm off-white sheepskin flats. Her dignified and appropriate attire made her look both elegant and ladylike.

This was the first time he had seen his mother-in-law outside of the Yamabuki family home, and he found it all quite novel.

"You're too kind. I'm the one who's troubling you by making a special trip to the school."