Chapter 160: Tears and Snot

"Teacher Zhang, it's me, Xinran."

Zhao Xinran responded quickly, her voice gentle and with a hint of flattery.

The door creaked open, and Zhang Xuemei stood at the door with a cane, staring at Liu Cui'e beside Zhao Xinran in a daze for a moment.

Liu Cui'e hurried forward to support her, "She's Teacher Zhang, I'm Xinran's mother."

Zhang Xuemei suddenly spoke, "Oh, Xinran's mother, come in."

She said lightly, turned and walked into the house.

Liu Cui'e and Zhao Xinran looked at each other and hurriedly followed in.

Because Zhao Xinran took care of her personally for several days, not minding the dirt or the tiredness, Zhang Xuemei's attitude towards Zhao Xinran became much better than before.

She didn't even report Zhao Xinran's matter to the school immediately. The day before yesterday, the deputy director came to ask for her opinion, and she even said a few good words in his favor.

Zhang Xuemei sat on the sofa and pointed to the chair opposite.

"Please sit down."

Liu Cui'e quickly put the egg in her hand on the coffee table and pulled Zhao Xinran to sit down.

She looked at Zhang Xuemei and spoke with hesitation, "Teacher Zhang, I'm sorry to bother you. I've finally come here, so I won't beat around the bush. This time, I came to see you first. I appreciate your concern for our Xinran's well-being."

As Liu Cui'e spoke, a look of gratitude appeared on her face.

"Secondly, I also want to ask you for a favor on behalf of Xinran."

As she spoke, she turned to look at Zhao Xinran.

Zhao Xinran quickly stood up and bowed deeply to Zhang Xuemei.

"Teacher Zhang, I'm sorry. I was wrong. I shouldn't have... Please give me a chance."

She choked and tears flowed uncontrollably, then she knelt down in front of Zhang Xuemei.

Zhang Xuemei looked at her and sighed softly.

"Xinran, you get up first."

Zhao Xinran wiped her tears and sat back in her chair silently.

Liu Cui'e looked at Zhang Xuemei, a shrewd look in her eyes.

"Teacher Zhang, you don't know that our child Xinran has had a hard life since childhood."

She began to complain, her voice choked with sobs.

"Her father died young, leaving us four orphans and a widow. At the time, the youngest twin boys were less than two years old. I raised them all by myself, and Xinran, being older, suffered a lot. This girl rarely had a full meal since she was little, and she didn't even have a decent piece of clothing."

She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and looked at her daughter with heartache.

"As a woman raising four children, you can imagine how difficult life was. Of course, a lot of things fell on her shoulders. But she was also very hardworking. Her academic performance was always top of our town, and later even the county."

As Liu Cui'e spoke, a hint of pride appeared on her face, but then it dimmed.

"For so many years, I tightened my belt and lived a frugal life, with not even enough flour to eat. Yet, I still insisted on supporting Xinran's education because I felt she had the potential to study and was the hope of our entire family."

"But who would have thought that this child would actually...actually be seduced by that beast Shao Ting'an!"

She spoke through gritted teeth, her eyes filled with hatred.

Zhang Xuemei was confused, as this was the first time she heard that Zhao Xinran was seduced.

She looked at Zhao Xinran's pitiful appearance and remembered how well-behaved she had been before, so it was really possible.

"Xinran was short-sighted. She'd never seen delicious food, let alone beautiful clothes. So... later on, as a girl, she was too shy to speak up, and so... a huge mistake happened."

As she spoke, she began to wipe away her tears again.

"Teacher Zhang, you are a cultured person and sensible. Please help Xinran!"

As Liu Cui'e said this, she knelt down in front of Zhang Xuemei.

When Zhao Xinran saw her mother kneeling in front of Zhang Xuemei, she knelt down as well. Her big watery eyes were like a pool of water.

"Our Xinran was really deceived by Shao Ting'an. She is also a victim!"

"Can you help Xinran speak up at school and ask for her to continue attending school?"

"In generations, our family has only produced one college graduate. If she doesn't graduate, her life will be over! What hope do we have left?"

Liu Cui'e cried so hard that tears and snot ran down her face.

Zhao Xinran also knelt down and cried, "Teacher Zhang, please help me. I really know I was wrong. I will study hard in the future and never make the same mistake again."

Zhang Xuemei looked at the two people kneeling on the ground, her brows furrowed, and she felt mixed emotions.

She looked at Zhao Xinran who was crying bitterly, and then looked at Liu Cui'e who was pleading.

Zhang Xuemei said slowly, "You guys should get up first."

But Liu Cui'e refused to get up.

She clutched Zhang Xuemei's hand tightly and begged:

"Teacher Zhang, if you don't agree, I won't get up!"

"I know Xinran made a mistake, brought shame to the school, and caused you trouble."

"But she's still young, she still has a future!"

"Please forgive her this time, considering she is still young and naive!"

Zhang Xuemei looked at Liu Cui'e, a hint of helplessness flashing in her eyes.

After a few days of contact, she felt that Zhao Xinran was not a bad kid, and maybe she was really seduced by Shao Tingan.

She comes from a poor rural background, has narrow-mindedness, and has never seen the world. How can she avoid being fooled by a mature man just by giving him some benefits?

Zhang Xuemei took a deep breath and said, "Xinran, help your mother get back on her feet. I'll consider this matter. As for how the school will ultimately handle this, it depends on the school leadership."

When Liu Cui'e heard this, a glimmer of hope flashed in her eyes.

She quickly wiped her tears and got up from the ground.

"Thank you, Teacher Zhang, thank you!"

She thanked him repeatedly with a grateful expression.

After leaving Zhang Xuemei's house, Liu Cui'e wiped her face and said coldly, "Let's go see Xinpeng. He wasn't allowed to see me the day before yesterday. If he doesn't let me see him this time, I'll go and make trouble for the director."

Zhao Xinran knew her mother's plan, which was to give Zhao Xinpeng a heads-up so that if the truth were to come to light in the future, Zhao Xinpeng would take the blame for her.

…

Su Li went to see Li Mo, had dinner with her in the evening before returning to the hospital.

Seeing Fu Jinzhou talking to his father, ripples began to appear in his originally calm heart.

She knew that Fu Jinzhou had helped her behind the scenes again.

If it weren't for him, Shao Baoguo's crimes wouldn't have been exposed so quickly. A wave of emotion welled up in my heart, but more of it was a mix of complicated emotions that I couldn't sort out.

The gap between herself and Fu Jinzhou is not only in identity and status, but also in the past that cannot be overcome.

She couldn't accept his feelings calmly, nor could she face the pain she had suffered in the past.

"Xiao Li, what are you thinking about?"

Her mother Liu Guilan's voice came from behind, interrupting her thoughts.

Su Li came back to her senses and forced a smile: "Nothing, just a little tired."

"Then you sit down and rest for a while, talk to your father and Dr. Fu for a while, I'll pack my things first, and you can be discharged early tomorrow morning."