Chapter 18

"Are you so anxious that you didn't even knock?"

When he entered the president's office, he happened to meet those dark and sharp eyes, like an eagle staring at its prey. Qi Shuo touched his nose awkwardly, feeling lucky that he didn't see anything he shouldn't have.

He was so excited that he forgot himself and asked, "How about I go out and knock on the door again?"

"Come in." Cheng Huaian said dissatisfiedly.

It seems that his management is too lax, and Qi Shuo is working in such a nonchalant manner.

Qi Shuo picked up a few insignificant things to report, but the more he talked, the more guilty he felt, and he kept stealing glances at his boss's face. The boss had been in a bad mood recently, a very bad mood, ever since he ran into the former boss's wife on a night run that night.

He had heard from Uncle Zhang that the two of them were fine at first, but then they had a big fight in front of Rong Susu's house, and it seemed that it involved Miss He.

Alas, from their marriage to their divorce, half of their quarrels were caused by the eldest brother’s half-sister.

Therefore, the boss's mood has been worse than a dark cloud recently. He gets angry over trivial matters. If he knew that the boss's wife, oh no, the former boss's wife, posted a circle of friends with another man, he would be furious.

Cheng Huaian has a habit of only looking at the first two pages when he browses his Moments, and ignoring the rest. He doesn't have the time, so as long as he doesn't look at it at the moment, Rong Susu's status will be pushed down in a while.

Moreover, the Moments are set to be visible for three days. After two days, the boss won’t be able to see it anymore. Qi Shuo thinks he is really smart.

Who is Cheng Huaian? How could Qi Shuo's little trick get away with it under his nose?

Sure enough, he put down the mouse, his brows furrowed tighter and tighter, and he interrupted the other person's endless chatter impatiently.

"Hasn't this been reported long ago? If you're too idle, why not go work at the branch office? They're short on staff there."

The budget application for the next quarter and the testing results of the new game module were the topics of last week.

Qi Shuo!!!

No! Boss, I have no intention of abandoning you!

Just as he was about to run away in shame, he suddenly heard Cheng Huaian's cell phone ringing.

"Brother, come to school quickly, the principal wants to expel me!" He Shurong's crying voice came from the other end of the phone.

Great, this little gangster must have gotten into trouble again. Now the boss has no time to check his Moments!

Qi Shuo was secretly delighted.

***

By the time Cheng Huaian arrived at the teaching building of the School of Art at Licheng University, He Shurong was already crying out of breath.

The girl had a bun on her head and was wearing a tight black ballet skirt. She was squatting on the steps outside the teaching building, attracting a lot of attention.

She was tall and slender, like a proud black swan, and her tear-stained makeup made her look even more pitiful. When she saw Cheng Huaian, she ran towards him as if she had seen a savior and threw herself into his arms.

"Brother, I don't want to stay here anymore. My classmates and teachers are bullying me!"

The relationship between He Shurong and himself was no secret, and no one dared to mess with her normally, but this was the first time he saw her so aggrieved. Cheng Huaian frowned and comforted her to stop crying.

"Just tell me what happened."

The Art College was going to perform "Swan Lake" at the school's welcome party. He Shurong was originally scheduled to perform the solo dance, but she missed several rehearsals. Some girls who disliked her urged the teacher to replace her.

He Shurong has always been the most dazzling pearl in the crowd since she was a child. How could she accept to dance with others? She immediately started arguing with those girls, and finally brought the matter to the attention of the hospital leaders. The dean, because of her background, had to compromise and let her lead the dance.

As a result, those girls were not satisfied and posted the news that she failed too many courses and could not graduate on the school forum. The whole school was in an uproar and they all wanted to go to the principal to deal with the matter openly and fairly.

But He Shurong would not tell Cheng Huaian all this. She avoided the main point and just said that those girls were jealous of her and were doing bad things.

"Don't be afraid, your brother is here." Cheng Huaian comforted.

***

In the office of President Li University, an elegant scholar with silver hair and an approachable manner sat on the sofa. The man sitting opposite him seemed to be very sharp, and his knife-like profile looked fierce.

After a while, Cheng Huaian put down the report cards in his hand, but his tense jawline still revealed that he was in a bad mood.

"I still remember one year when you brought the little girl to our house for dinner. At that time, she had won the "Three Good Students" award. She was clearly a studious child."

Principal Zhuang Tao comes from an academic background and usually admires people who love and are good at learning. He once met He Shurong when she was a child and has a very good impression of her.

Cheng Huaian and Zhuang Tao have a close relationship. He studied undergraduate and graduate studies in Beicheng. When he returned to Licheng, he did not expect that his mentor would be assigned to be the president of Licheng University. It was also fate.

"Teacher, I'm sorry that Shurong's matter has caused you trouble. She has been spoiled into having this kind of personality and is lawless." Speaking of this sister, Cheng Huaian is also very troubled, but he can't just ignore her.

Zhuang Tao knew his student very well. He looked indifferent, but he was actually warm-hearted. He took a sip of tea and spoke slowly.

"He has indeed been spoiled and has become lawless. I'm afraid you are also to blame for this."

He Shurong was also a famous figure in the school. After all, she had Cheng Huaian to protect her. She failed her professional courses that year, but insisted on going to Li University. Cheng Huaian donated a theater to the school, and then she was admitted as an exception.

Another thing is that she didn't study hard and often skipped classes, and Cheng Huaian always stepped in to deal with it for her.

"For your sake, I won't expel you for now. You can keep your student status first. You can pass all the make-up exams next year." All the students in the school are watching, and Zhuang Tao can't show favoritism. But for Cheng Huaian, it was already a lenient decision from his own tutor.

Cheng Huaian had no objection. He knew He Shurong's grades were indeed not very good, but he really didn't understand why she could fail 80% of her subjects.

He was really shocked when he saw the report card just now. Some subjects only scored in the twenties, which showed that He Shurong never focused on studying.

Not only does he not study the academic subjects well, but he also often gives up on his professional courses.

The teacher took out the attendance sheet and found that she had missed all the rehearsal classes. It was not at all like she said that she had missed only two or three classes.

It turned out that the little sister who was not even as tall as his chest, tugged at his clothes and sweetly called him brother. Many years passed by, and she had already learned to lie and drink, becoming a true rebellious girl.

He only asked for whatever He Shurong wanted, but he showed too little concern for her and had no idea of ​​her current situation.

"Teacher, don't worry. I will take her back and discipline her personally."

***

We are going back to Cheng's father's house for dinner tonight. Cheng's father is old and likes quietness. He now lives in a villa in the suburbs, while Cheng Huaian lives in the city center.

The villa is also a newly built community in the past two years, with beautiful environment and complete facilities.

I heard that my stepson would come back with my daughter tonight to have dinner, so the kitchen was already busy.

She was wearing a dark yellow knee-length dress, a lilac silk shawl draped over her shoulders, her black hair fixed into a loose bun with a silver hairpin, she had fair skin and graceful eyes and eyebrows, it was He Shurong's mother, He Shengyun.

She was one of the most beautiful women of her generation in Xiaotai Lane back then.

Cheng Xiangze is helping his wife. Although they are a couple who got married later in life, they have a harmonious relationship.

He Shurong came back with Cheng Huaian. Her face was full of anger and she looked like no one should mess with her. She went straight into her room.

"You kid, why don't you call anyone? Go say hello to your dad!"

He Shengyun chased after her and shouted that the elders were all there, but she ignored them and ran upstairs, only to hear the sound of a door closing from the second floor.

He Shengyun was turned away and shook her head with a wry smile. All the children from Xiaotai Lane were obedient and promising, but why did she give birth to a troublemaker who refused to listen to anything soft or hard?

Just now, when He Shurong found out that not only could she not attend the graduation party, but she also had to take a make-up exam to postpone her graduation, she threw a tantrum and was scolded by Cheng Huaian. Now she is so angry that she doesn't want to talk to anyone.

"Aunt Yun, let her stay alone and reflect on herself! If she can't figure it out, don't eat!" Cheng Huaian said coldly, took off his suit jacket and handed it to his aunt, then sat down on the sofa with some fatigue.

It was rare to see Cheng Huaian lose his temper so much that everyone was shocked.

"She just has a childish temper. Why are you so angry? Let's talk it over nicely." Cheng Xiangze came out of the kitchen and said to Cheng Huaian.

Cheng Huaian was still angry, so he took a stack of report cards and put them on the coffee table for them to read.

Cheng Xiangze and He Shengyun flipped through the transcripts one by one, and became more and more surprised. They didn't know that He Shurong had failed so many courses and could not graduate successfully. The two looked at each other and asked what to do.

"We spoiled her too much and didn't expect to harm her."

"Starting tomorrow, we will also discipline her strictly!"

Cheng Huaian knew that the two of them were just talking about it, and in reality they couldn't do anything about it.

According to his idea, He Shurong's pocket money was stopped first, and she would be given one thousand yuan once she passed the make-up exam. Her credit card limit would be restored after she successfully graduated next year.

"If I don't take care of her, I'm afraid she will become a street thug."

Cheng Huaian's words were a bit harsh. He Shurong had just come out of the room quietly and heard this sentence at the corner of the stairs.

"Brother, in your mind, if you don't study hard, you're a slacker?!"

Seeing He Shurong coming down the stairs angrily, Cheng Huaian snorted coldly, his face as gloomy as a dark cloud covering the city.

"Not only do you not study hard, you also skip classes and fail exams, smoke, drink, and lie all the time. You yourself say that if you continue like this, you're just becoming a gangster."

His voice was not high, but every word he said made sense and was impossible to refute.

"Let's eat first. The food is getting cold. You have a bad stomach. Let's talk about it later after dinner." He Shengyun advised. She didn't want Cheng Huaian to have a conflict with her daughter and affect the relationship between the siblings.

He quickly went to pull his daughter back, telling her to stop while she was ahead and not to be like a firecracker that gets ignited at the slightest provocation. "I don't expect you to be very successful, but could you please stop causing trouble and upsetting your brother every day? I'd be thankful if you were even half as good as Su Su!"

It would have been better if he hadn't said this, but once he said it, it touched He Shurong's sore spot. Suddenly, He Shengyun's arm was thrown away, and he heard two cold laughs beside him.

Her angry expression was replaced by ridicule, and she slammed her bag to the ground.

"Besides being pretty, what else is there to Rong Susu? What can I learn from her? Becoming a mistress, cheating, and getting pregnant before marriage!"