"Those were just some harmless little jokes... Wait, you're not still listening, are you?" Li Shutong's expression looked a little ugly.
"Not really. I was just wondering...how did you develop this personality that likes to play with people's hearts?" Shen Qingmang looked at her seriously.
Li Shutong said warily, "What are you doing, Teacher Shen? Don't treat me like one of your naive students. I don't intend to accept your transformation. You should just spread your virgin glory to others."
"You seem to have some unusual prejudice against teachers." Shen Qingmang picked up the coffee cup, blew on it, and took a sip. "So sweet."
"You don't really like iced Americano, do you?"
"Did you meet a teacher you didn't like before?"
Two voices rang out at the same time.
Li Shutong was stunned for a moment, then turned away to look out the window. "A lot. Our elementary school teacher was the kind of person who, if asked what the moon looked like, had to answer, 'It looks like a boat,' and couldn't answer, 'It looks like a banana.' I once wrote about blue clouds and emerald stars in my composition, and she scolded me in front of the class, saying I was either color blind or an idiot."
"Then she is not a qualified teacher at all."
"I was especially afraid of her when I was little. Later, after my book was published and I became a bit of a household name back home, the school invited me back to give a lecture. When I ran into her, she shamelessly praised me, saying she'd seen from the beginning that I had a talent for writing. It was then that I realized she acted like a tyrant at school because she had to act like a grandson when she got home. Her husband's business was going strong, and he made some money, so he was always unhappy with her. She tried to please him, but they eventually divorced. I heard the mistress came to them pregnant, and she tried to scold her, but she ended up scolding her away. Haha, it really is fate."
"She is just an exception." Shen Qingmang sighed.
"An isolated case?" Li Shutong laughed. "My junior high homeroom teacher was a snob who judged people by their appearance. In her eyes, only students with good grades and wealthy families were human beings; the rest were slaves to be beaten and scolded at will. Whenever we had a conflict with a good student, she would scold us without asking any questions. Her words were as harsh as they could be, and she would even call us trash."
Shen Qingmang murmured, "Can this be considered a role model for a teacher?"
"My high school homeroom teacher was pretty much the same. She only cared about academics, and she considered all extracurricular activities unnecessary. I didn't complain about it often taking up physical education classes. I once got caught reading Crime and Punishment during recess, and she threw my book out the window. Luckily, no one was hit, or she'd have been in serious trouble. I said it wasn't some random novel, it was a world-famous classic, and she asked if it was on the Gaokao. Ha, if Dostoyevsky knew his work was being called useless just because it wasn't on the Gaokao, he'd be furious."
"All the teachers I met were very good. Although they were not perfect, they were all very helpful to me," said Shen Qingmang.
"Because you are a top student and a good student. What teacher doesn't like a student like you? Unlike a troublemaker like me, I mostly feel malice." Li Shutong said and drank the rest of the coffee.
"The teachers you mentioned are indeed unworthy of being teachers, but most teachers are quite serious and responsible. My colleagues receive very low salaries every month, but they still care about the children."
"Your colleagues? The school you mentioned where you were teaching? I remember seeing them physically punishing students."
Shen Qingmang smiled bitterly and said, "Well, the educational concepts in the mountainous areas are quite backward. Not only do the teachers do this, but the parents also think corporal punishment is right. I've advised them many times, but at first they thought I was inexperienced and didn't listen. But they are sincere in wanting their children to graduate from the mountains. After my class achieved good results, they took the initiative to ask me for teaching experience. I think their views have changed by now."
"So you have to admit that the teaching profession isn't necessarily that noble. Anyone can take the teacher's certificate exam. Schools only look at your teaching ability, not your ability to educate. With student grades tied to bonuses, how many teachers only care about grades? It sounds nice to say that teachers are gardeners, nurturing the flowers of the nation, but what kind of nurturing do they do? They leave the beautiful branches and prune away all the wild ones. They hate being unconventional and only like those who are obedient and sensible."
"You can't say that. You came to this conclusion because the teacher you met was unworthy of his position, but that doesn't mean all teachers are like that." Shen Qingmang defended.
"What about you, Teacher Shen? You're certainly better than them, but does that make you a good teacher? Didn't you also like the obedient Gu Suihan, and think that as long as students were well-behaved and sensible, there would be no problem. It wasn't until later that you discovered what kind of person he really was."
"I admit that I didn't pay enough attention to Sui Han. My educational philosophy is not mature enough. But I will change my prejudice in the future and pay enough attention to every child. In time, I will become an impeccable teacher."
Shen Qingmang's eyes were gentle and firm. Li Shutong looked at her, stirring the empty cup with a stirring spoon. He was silent for a long time and said, "If it were you, maybe you could look forward to it."
"I have one last question." She frowned slightly. "Do I really have to forget all emotions before ascending?"
"Huh? How is that possible?" Li Shutong put down the spoon. "Then what kind of ascension is that? Is the Immortal Realm a lumber mill? Specializing in recycling emotionless lumps of wood?"
Shen Qingmang's brows relaxed and he smiled, "Then I'm relieved. It seems my master just got distracted. I was originally going to scold you for this awful setup."
Li Shutong rolled his eyes. "Don't blame me for everything. Successful ascension depends solely on the firmness of one's Dao heart. As long as one can survive the tribulation of seeking the Dao, one can successfully ascend. Everyone has their own Dao heart. Your master was influenced by others' words, and his Dao heart has wavered."
"So Master Baopu is actually misleading my master... Aren't their relationships very good?"
"There's no need for conspiracy theories, right? Cheng Wuyi cultivates the Merciless Sword. Of course, he must sever all worldly ties in order to ascend. From his perspective, emotions are indeed useless. He probably meant well when he warned your master. It's a pity he didn't understand that your master is a sentimental man. He wanted to ascend by the opposite path. Yun Xuzhou was misled by him, so naturally, he failed to ascend and suffered backlash."
"That's great, I'll tell Master later!" Shen Qingmang smiled.
"Then our deal..."
She smiled and said, "I'm sorry, I can't agree to this. Li Shutong, I can trust you on some things, but this is a serious matter. I won't be deceived by you until I can verify it clearly."
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