Teacher Li paused for a moment, carefully choosing her words: "Lin An, several parents came to the school together, questioning the authenticity of your final exam results and demanding that they be invalidated."
The teachers believe you, and they really can't provide any evidence, but these parent committee members are making a huge fuss, demanding that both the opening exam scores and the final exam scores be included in the competition's eligibility criteria. "They say they'll include them, but what those parents are really thinking is that whichever score their child does best gets them the prize, and they just want to squeeze Lin An out."
"Lin An, I'm sorry, I've already tried my best. You should focus on preparing for your exams when school starts."
"It's alright, Teacher Li, let's leave it at that."
"Your teacher believes in you; you can still achieve such good results."
"Thank you, Teacher Li."
After hanging up the phone, Lin An felt a chill run down his spine. It turned out that Lin Rou had gone to the school to report him for cheating. The Lin family had never wanted to let him go. For Lin Zhe's future, they never cared about his reputation or whether he lived or died. It was the same in this life and the next.
At school, the other parents had gotten the answers they wanted and gone home satisfied. Only Lin Rou was still in the security room, repeatedly watching the surveillance video of the final exam, muttering to herself, "How is that possible? He really didn't cheat?"
In the video, Lin An is sitting quietly and attentively at his desk answering questions, without making any unusual movements. Lin Rou carefully observes his every move, trying to find out what clever cheating method he used.
Lin Zhe called: "Second sister, has the school agreed?"
"I agree, don't worry."
"That's great, thank you, sister. My second sister loves me the most."
"I'm glad you know I care about you. Do your best on the next exam and make sure you get a spot in the competition."
"Yes, yes, I'm sure I can get it."
"To prevent Lin An from cheating, the school has added extra math questions. The principal promised to have Professor Liang from the Mathematics Department of Peking University set the questions. I will arrange a tutor to teach you some advanced mathematics knowledge in advance. With advance preparation, there will definitely be no problem."
Lin Zhe carried the hopes of his entire family. From the time he entered high school, Lin Rou became close with the members of the parent committee. They shared tutor resources, all of whom were graduates of Tsinghua and Peking Universities. Although the price was expensive, with fees exceeding a thousand yuan per hour, the tutoring results were indeed surprisingly good.
"Sis, you're so sweet. I bought you your favorite chestnut cake. When are you getting home?"
"Okay, I'm going back now." Lin Rou hurried back, glancing at the surveillance footage one last time before leaving. In the footage, Lin Zhe seemed to have received something from his classmate.
"Forget it, I must have seen it wrong. I've been watching the surveillance footage for hours, my eyes are blurry. Xiao Zhe is such a good boy, he couldn't possibly cheat."
Lin Rou rubbed her eyes, left the security room, got her car, and went home.
Ever since receiving Teacher Li's call, Lin An has had a somber expression and barely ate any food for lunch when he got back. Leng Lin was a little worried.
"Lin An, it's okay if you don't do well on the exam. I heard that competition is super difficult. Although the school sends people to participate every year, no one has won a prize so far, let alone been admitted to Tsinghua or Peking University."
"Going there might just be a waste of time and effort."
Leng Lin thought he was depressed because he was worried about failing the exam and losing face, so she tried to comfort him. But what really hurt him was that his family, whom he had once longed for, was constantly stabbing him in the heart.
Lin An twitched the corner of his mouth and forced a wry smile: "Don't worry, I'll do well on the exam."
"The agent contacted me; I need to go and handle the property transfer and loan application."
"I'll go with you."
Watching the two leave, Leng Feng turned to scold his wife, Tong Jiaojiao: "Take some time to keep an eye on Linlin. It's one thing for her not to study, but she also drags Lin An along. Look at her, she's always running around outside."
"Am I free? The shop is so busy. If you can spare some time, then go and manage it." Although Tong Jiaojiao is over forty years old, she has a slender figure and fair skin. After years of working in the ramen shop, she still has an outstanding temperament.
After being yelled at by his wife, Leng Feng sighed. Thinking of how his wife, a pampered rich girl, had suffered so much with him over the years, he stopped talking and focused on placing the drinks on the cashier's counter for the customers to take.
Lin An left the housing management bureau and looked at the property certificate in his hand. After eighteen years of wandering and homelessness, he finally owned his own property.
"Property ownership certificate, let me touch it, I've never seen it before." Leng Lin took the red booklet and examined it carefully.
"Lin An, you're amazing! You're the first of my friends to own a house."
She took out her phone, snapped a photo, and posted it on her WeChat Moments with the caption: "My classmate has a house now, congratulations to him." Sharing her joy at that moment.
Soon, a wave of comments appeared from classmates: "Which classmate is this? Where do you live?"
"Which rich young master is it?"
"Tell me quickly, what kind of mansion is it?"
"No wonder you didn't ask me to hang out during the holidays. Looks like you're busy hanging out with your rich classmate. Waaah."
The students have already started speculating among themselves which rich young master it is. Anyone who can afford a house at this age must come from a wealthy family, and the house he bought must be quite nice.
When Leng Lin thought of Lin An's old, dilapidated house, she felt a little embarrassed to talk about it, as it could easily cause trouble for Lin An, who was already in the center of public attention recently. So she replied on her WeChat Moments: "It's a secret, everyone."
On the way back, Lin An took Leng Lin to buy some household items, such as curtains, bedding, pots and pans, and then took a car to transport the things to the old house.
"Lin An, are you moving in now?"
"Okay." Lin An nodded. He didn't want to bother Uncle Leng anymore, and the ramen shop was a bit noisy, not suitable for studying. Studying was his top priority now.
"Okay, then don't tell me I know about buying a house, or my dad will definitely blame me for not stopping you."
"Don't worry, I'll talk to Uncle Leng. It's all my own decision."
The two of them quickly cleaned the master bedroom on the second floor. Fortunately, the bathroom was still usable, so they could move in as soon as they brought their luggage. The conditions were a bit basic, but it was quiet.
When they returned to the ramen shop, it was already evening. The shop was bustling with activity, but Leng Feng was standing at the door. Seeing her father's cold face, Leng Lin greeted him with an awkward smile.
"Hey, Dad, we're back."
Leng Feng opened her WeChat Moments: "What's going on? What have you two been busy with all day?"
"Uncle, it has nothing to do with Linlin. I bought the house on my own."
"What? You bought it?" Leng Feng's eyes widened, his mouth agape. The apartment they were living in now was one that he and his wife had spent half a year visiting sales offices and comparing more than a dozen properties before finally deciding to buy. The night before they bought it, they were so excited that they couldn't sleep, after all, spending several million yuan had emptied all their savings.
"Dad, are you alright?" Leng Lin gently lifted his chin, gesturing for him to shut up.
"You bought a house in just one day? Kid, you weren't scammed, were you?"
The two explained the situation of the house, and Leng Feng became even more convinced that Lin An had been scammed by the real estate agent. The house was nearby and had been on the market for two years without selling. He dragged Lin An to cancel the purchase.
"That's a down payment of 1.5 million, and a monthly loan of 20,000 to 30,000. How many months can you last with the little money you have?"
"Uncle, don't worry, just hold on for six months."
Leng Feng was so anxious that he couldn't speak coherently: "Oh dear, you child, you don't understand the seriousness of the matter. Come on, come on, I'll take you to the agency to cancel the contract."
"It can't be refunded; the ownership has already been transferred."
As night fell, the customers gradually dispersed, and the shop quieted down. Leng Feng accepted reality, feeling a pang of self-reproach. He blamed himself for being too busy and failing to take good care of his two children, which led to Lin An being scammed by the real estate agent.
"Uncle Leng, I want to move in tonight. School starts in a week, and I want to prepare well for the entrance exams."
"Okay, the restaurant is too noisy, and it's close by, so we'll eat here."
"Uncle, don't worry, there are plenty of places to eat near the school, and I have money now."
Leng Feng helped Lin An settle into the old house, and looking at the condition of the house, he couldn't help but shake his head.
He rushed over again early the next morning, fixed the light bulb for Lin An, replaced the broken window, and put a new lock on the front door. Before leaving, he handed the new key to Lin An and reminded him, "You must be careful when you live alone."
"Thank you, Uncle Leng. I will definitely tutor Linlin well." This was the only way Lin An could think of to repay Leng Feng.
Leng Feng chuckled and said, "You should study hard yourself. As for her, she can learn as much as she can."
In the week before school started, Leng Lin came to the old house for tutoring every afternoon, marveling at how Lin An could somehow instill knowledge into her usually stubborn mind.
Leng Feng had also spent a lot of money to hire famous tutors for her, but she felt that they were not as good as Lin An's teaching methods: "Lin An, if you become a tutor, you will definitely make a lot of money."
Seeing her serious expression, Lin An smiled and said, "Then please put your heart into it. Only when your grades improve will others believe in my tutoring abilities."
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