Chapter 99: SHE’S TRYING TO LEARN WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM?

Madam Nalan finished dividing the class into twenty teams, with five students assigned to each table. Li Yan ended up with Baozi, two boys named Wei Chen and Luo Sheng, and another girl named Qin Yue.

The three students seemed pleased with the arrangement once they realized Li Yan belonged to their group, since his results had already made his reputation spread through the beginner class.

None of them complained about having the student who ranked first in the written examination on their team, and from the way they kept glancing at him, Li Yan suspected they expected him to make the practical easier for them.

Wei Chen leaned closer to Luo Sheng while Madam Nalan continued explaining the lesson. "We really did get lucky. Li Yan ranked first in the written examination, so he should know most of this already. If we listen to him, we probably will not have to worry about making a mess of the remedy."

Luo Sheng looked over the ingredients on their table before lowering his voice. "I agree. I have never made a remedy before, and I would rather watch someone who already knows the process than ruin the ingredients on my first attempt. We can learn from him while we work."

Qin Yue arranged the materials in front of her and glanced toward Li Yan. "Learning from him is fine, but we still have to do the work ourselves. If we just watch him make everything, we will be in trouble when Madam Nalan gives us the next remedy."

Li Yan heard their conversation but paid little attention to it. His attention remained on Baozi, who could not hear Madam Nalan’s explanation.

While the teacher spoke, he had written down the important information for her, including the names of the three remedies and the quantities of the ingredients they would need. Once he finished, he folded the paper and passed it across the table.

"Here, you can use this. In case you didn’t catch whatever she said, I wrote down the important parts."

Baozi accepted the notes and read through them carefully. Her eyes moved across each line before she checked the ingredients arranged in front of her. She looked at Li Yan afterward and gave him a grateful smile, then pointed toward the first group of herbs as though asking whether he would show her how to begin.

Li Yan understood what she meant and nodded. "Watch me carefully. I will show you the process first, then you can try it yourself. If you get confused, just look at the notes."

Madam Nalan continued explaining the three beginner remedies while walking between the tables. Li Yan listened while checking the herbs and other materials in front of him, recognizing everything without difficulty. Anyu had already taught him how to make the Cold Relief Remedy, and he had practiced the process enough times that he no longer needed to think about each step.

When Madam Nalan finished the explanation and told the students to begin, Li Yan picked up the first herb and showed Baozi how to prepare it. He explained each step while working, demonstrating how to handle the ingredient before letting her repeat the process. Baozi watched his hands closely and checked the notes whenever she needed to confirm a quantity or sequence.

The other three students initially waited for Li Yan to explain the process to them as well. When he continued teaching Baozi instead, Wei Chen looked at the untouched ingredients in front of them and leaned toward Luo Sheng.

"He really is going to teach her first."

Luo Sheng watched Baozi follow Li Yan’s instructions and lowered his voice. "She could not hear Madam Nalan. It makes sense that he would explain it to her."

Qin Yue frowned as she looked between them. "I understand that, but what are we supposed to do while they are going through every step? We came here to learn too."

Wei Chen glanced at Li Yan. "Maybe we should ask him."

"You can," Qin Yue replied. "He’s too proud for me to ask him..."

Li Yan heard them but continued working with Baozi. She had just reached for the wrong ingredient, so he stopped her before she could add it and pointed toward another herb. Baozi checked the notes, realized her mistake, and carefully corrected it before continuing.

Wei Chen watched for another moment before finally addressing Li Yan. "Li Yan, are you going to explain the process to the rest of us too? We are all on the same team, and we have not even started our part yet."

Li Yan glanced at the ingredients sitting in front of the three students. "Did you not hear Madam Nalan’s explanation?"

"We did," Wei Chen admitted, "but she explained several steps at once. You already know how to make this remedy, so we thought you would help us understand the parts we missed."

Luo Sheng picked up one of the herbs and examined it while adding, "I do not expect you to make our portion for us. I only need to know what comes first. I do not want to put the wrong ingredient into the mixture and ruin the whole thing."

Li Yan answered his question and explained which part they needed to prepare first. Luo Sheng followed the instruction, and Wei Chen began working on another ingredient. Qin Yue also started sorting the materials, although she kept glancing toward Li Yan whenever he returned his attention to Baozi.

The group made some progress, but the three students kept asking questions whenever they forgot a step. Li Yan answered them whenever they asked, then returned to teaching Baozi. He did not see any reason to stop helping her simply because the others had finally started participating.

Qin Yue eventually looked up from her work and spoke again. "You are giving her much more attention than the rest of us. We understand that she could not hear the teacher, but she needs you to explain almost everything. If we have to keep stopping to wait for her, the whole team will take longer to finish."

Baozi lowered her eyes when she understood enough of the conversation to realize they were talking about her. Her fingers tightened around the notes Li Yan had given her, but she remained quiet and continued watching the remedy.

Li Yan noticed her reaction and looked at Qin Yue. "She is trying to learn. What exactly is your problem?"