My House of Horrors

The previously-white paper was dropped on the table. On it lingered the blood that Chen Ge had wiped off his hands. It had only taken a few minutes from Chen Ge walking into the classroom to the student collapsing on the ground. No one expected something like this to happen; everything had occurred too quickly. Holding his bags with one hand, Chen Ge did not even glance at the student who had fallen on the back row and walked directly toward Mr. Lui.

“You go and stand outside the classroom!” This was the first time that Mr. Lui had encountered a student like this. He was too brave and too mad. He had completely ignored the presence of the teacher and openly used brute force against others in class.

“Sir, you can punish me however you wish, but you have to understand that it was he who started it. He said that he had no idea where he should put his feet, so I was merely teaching him a lesson.”

Chen Ge had just entered the classroom and had not even found his seat, yet he had already been chased out of the classroom. Holding his bags, Chen Ge opened the classroom door.

When he walked out of the room, he saw the boy on the back row climb up from the ground. Blood leaked out from the top of his head, and it slid down his nose to the corner of his lips. Venom was swirling in the boy’s eyes. His expression was twisted, but as Mr. Lui turned his face toward him, the venom in his eyes disappeared completely, and in its place were a few forced tears and a face of innocence.

Hell, he sure knows how to act. These are a bunch of wise guys. They have two different faces before their victims and the authority figures. On one hand, they are sunny, hardworking, and friendly while on the other side, they vent all their negative emotions and hatred on their victims.

Walking out of the classroom, the gazes of the students in class flashed across his mind.

I’ve memorized the faces of the people who wished for me to make a fool of myself before everyone—these people will most likely fail to get the school’s approval.

The School of the Afterlife’s consciousness was built from the spirit of endless despairing children. The people who had the qualifications to become the door pushers were most likely victims of bullying at the school. Chen Ge wished to complete the mission given to him by Chang Wenyu and strengthen his forces. To do that, he had to find the other remaining door pusher candidates sealed up by the painter.

By helping the victims and using my own method to educate the bullies, perhaps I will gain the school’s approval.

There were many benefits to gaining the school’s approval. Chen Ge knew that he had not experienced these painful things before, so he switched to use another method to try to gain the approval.

The school behind the door is very large, and there are many students here. It is not going to be easy to find the few who are qualified to become the door pusher among all these people.

Standing in the corridor, Chen Ge glanced into the classroom through the window. His gaze scanned the students one by one.

The third row from the back. The student who would sit next to me has dirt on his clothes, and his textbooks look ruffled like they have been messed with by others. This child should be one of the victims.

The seating in class was arranged according to their results. The child was sitting on the third row from the back, so it meant that his results were not that good but also not that bad.

Mr. Lui was continuing his lecture in class. Suddenly, he realized none of his students’ attention was on him, but they were looking outside the window. He turned around with confusion and met Chen Ge’s gaze from outside the window.

“This is ridiculous!” The more Mr. Lui thought about it, the more angered he became. He strode out of the classroom. “What are you looking at? I had you come here to think about what you’ve done! Stand there quietly and stop looking around!”

“Sir, I have been thinking, but there is a question that I simply could not solve.” Chen Ge looked Mr. Lui in the eye. “Just what kind of mistake could a teacher have made to be sent to a world filled with negative emotions and despair? Is it because he ignored the bullying that is happening before his eyes, or did the teacher himself use certain ways to join in with the bullying?”

“That is not the question that you should be thinking about!”

“Earlier inside the classroom, you also saw what happened. It was he who first placed his shoes on my chair. I wished to rationally reason with him, but my hands slipped. The chair fell from my hands, and it accidentally injured that student. I admit that I have done something wrong, but does that mean that he has done nothing wrong?” Chen Ge spoke very fast. “Actually, this whole thing could have been totally avoided, as long as you said something when you notice the problem. The boy appears to be very obedient when he is facing you, so he should listen to your words quite easily.”

Mr. Lui wished to argue, but he was interrupted by Chen Ge.

“But you did not do that. Perhaps you thought it too troublesome, or perhaps you did not think much of it. What the boy did, you perhaps thought, was some kind of joke between students. You already have too many things to think about in your life, so why look for unnecessary trouble for yourself? Perhaps there is even a possibility that there is a grotesque joy that was born in your heart when you saw that I was being bullied.”

“Preposterous! What are you talking about‽”

“Human nature is a flower blooming inside an abyss. Everyone yearns for sunlight, but who knows what is hidden underneath your roots?” Chen Ge’s eyes were whirlpools of darkness, and Mr. Lui found himself unable to look Chen Ge into those dark eyes. The two had more to say, but at that moment, the bell for the end of class came from further down the corridor. It sounded different from a normal bell. It was mixed with many different sounds, and it sounded strange to Chen Ge.

“Young man, you have to check your attitude! Give me a three thousand words essay on why you should not have done what you did before the end of school, or else I will go and get Mr. Lei. Think about your problem.” Mr. Lui returned to the classroom and announced that class was over. He did not pick up the teaching material from the podium and left in a hurry.

“This teacher sure is a bit irresponsible.” Chen Ge carried his bags and returned to the classroom. When the students who took the first row saw him walk in, they very naturally put their textbooks and water bottles away and ran out. They seemed to understand what was supposed to happen next. The classroom appeared to be emptier than before. Chen Ge did not mind it and walked to the side of his seat. He looked at his deskmate and showed a friendly smile. “Hi, my name is Chen Ge. I’m your new deskmate.”

Chen Ge’s deskmate heard Chen Ge’s voice, but he did not dare answer. He kept his eyes on the textbook, and his legs started to shake.

“Da Bing, someone is talking to you. Can’t you hear?” From the last row, a student who had his uniform tied around his waist stood up to shout. Four students were gathered around him, and the five surrounded Chen Ge and his deskmate in the middle. Hearing this boy’s voice, Chen Ge’s deskmate lowered his head even more. His eyes were staring so deep at the textbook, and his hand grabbed the strap of his schoolbag.

“Are you deaf? I’m talking to you!” The student grabbed the textbook from Chen Ge’s deskmate’s hands. The book was torn, and the sound was sharp. Chen Ge’s deskmate still did not say a word. He stood up with his head lowered and prepared to head out of the classroom, but his shirt was dragged back by one of the students.

“Why are you running? Can’t you see that the newcomer wants to be your friend?” The boy called Da Bing stood where he was. He did not dare resist; he did not even dare speak.

“Such a wooden brain. No wonder your parents are divorced and none of them want you.” The leading boy grabbed the deskmate by his neck. “But that’s fine. You will stick with us from now on, and I assure you that we will have a lot of fun together.”

When he finished, the students around him all started to laugh. It was a laugh filled with evil and deep sarcasm.

Da Bing wilted under the collected laughter. His head fell even lower, and he allowed the boy to grab him by the neck. “No, wait, I seem to have forgotten something. Da Bing, just now, your deskmate was asking you something. Now, tell him whether you wish to play with him or with the rest of us.”

These students were waiting for Da Bang to make a fool of himself. Their gazes were like sharp blades falling on Da Bing’s body. His neck being captured, his shirt pulled, his textbook taken away and torn, Da Bing stood by the table, and there was no glow of life in his eyes. His lips slowly opened, and just as he was about to say something, Chen Ge suddenly spoke. “Deskmate, there’s no need for you to make a choice. Actually, after you agree to be my friend, I will be everyone else’s friend, and then we will be friends with the whole class.”

Chen Ge actively stretched out his hand toward Da Bing. There was no one who had spoken like that with Da Bing before, and his subconscious caused him to raise his arm in return.

“You f*cker!” The leader pushed Da Bing back by his neck. Before he could say anything else, there came a loud boom from beside him. Turning to look, they saw Chen Ge kick down the table and pick up the chair that was unharmed. Without any other words or a warning, the heavy chair fell on the head of the leader.

BANG!

One of the wooden legs fell off. Chen Ge was about to summon Xu Yin to clear the scene when a scream came from the entrance.

“Chen Ge!”

Mr. Lui had finally realized that he had forgotten his teaching material, so he had come back to retrieve it. When he walked into the classroom, he was shocked by what he saw. Just half a minute ago, he had warned this man. He had walked out to take a spin, and yet another student had fallen victim to his attack.

“What, what, what are you doing‽”

Seeing the teacher’s return, the students who were originally gathered together quickly shifted their expressions and rushed to get the student up from the ground. Chen Ge did not hold back earlier because he knew that if the boy could still stand up, then he would have one more problem to face.

“Sir, he knocked Long Yuan out!”

“I know, I don’t need you to describe what I can see! Get him to the nurse’s office immediately!” Mr. Lui rushed into the classroom and kept his death glare at Chen Ge. “Why did you get into another fight with a classmate? This time, I saw it very clearly; it was you who started the fight! You’d better give me an explanation that I can accept!”

“How shall I put this?” Chen Ge put down the chair that was crumbling in his hands. He titled his head to point at the fainted student. “I was merely defending myself. I saw from his gaze that he intended to bully me. If you do not believe me, you can ask him about it when he wakes up later.”

“You are a walking tragedy! My perfect class is about to get ruined by you! No, this can’t wait anymore. I have to go and get Mr. Lei now!” Mr. Lui was truly angered this time. “The few of you get him to the nurse’s office now! Chen Ge, you go and stand outside in the corridor!’

“Okay.” Chen Ge’s reply was a simple word. It was calm and easy.

After Mr. Lui left, the student from the last row stood up. He glared at Chen Ge with gritted teeth. “You’re lucky Mr. Lui came to your aid this time. We will finish this business after school.”

Hearing the threat from the boy, Chen Ge stood where he was in shock. “That’s what I wanted to say. If not for Mr. Lui, you would have ended your life as a ghost.”

Waving his hand, Chen Ge picked up his bags with a warm smile. “I will see you after school, and that’s a promise.”