Chapter 58: Beware Teacher Zhu, you are Xu Sirui's father, so what?
How are you doing?
Zhu Yingning wanted to ask this question not only to Zhu Zhiwei, but also to Xu Sirui, but she never found the opportunity to ask.
During the days she lived in his house, except for the quick glance at the door at the beginning, she didn't see him again, not even once.
She also asked about the whereabouts of Xu Zhengkang and Xu Sirui, but he always said, "Don't worry about him, he's living with his friends." His face showed obvious impatience, so she didn't dare to ask any more questions.
Occasionally, when she passed by Xu Sirui's empty room and glanced inside, she would see his bed without any trace of life and his desk that was so clean that it was obvious that it had never been used by its owner, and she would feel an indescribable worry in her heart.
She'd assumed he'd be happy back in Beijing; after all, during their time in the mountains, he'd been constantly talking about returning. But it seemed otherwise. Xu Zhengkang didn't care about him as much as she'd thought, and Zhou Tianlan had been reassigned to work elsewhere. She didn't know what it meant to be "living well," but at the very least, based on their fleeting glance that day and his indifferent, almost icy gaze, she felt he wasn't happy.
**
Zhu Zhiwei's part-time job was quickly settled, the schedule clearly a product of her care. Even the tasks were surprisingly simple, even an elementary school student could do them: regularly organizing shelves, counting inventory, and maintaining basic hygiene. It wasn't so much that Zhu Zhiwei truly needed another employee, but rather that they were looking for an excuse to give her pocket money. To repay her kindness, Zhu Yingning worked diligently, not only meticulously completing all the tasks she assigned but also occasionally visiting other shops in the department store to secretly observe and steal their marketing strategies, hoping to truly help with marketing and boost Zhu Zhiwei's business.
At the same time, in order to avoid child labor disputes, Zhu Zhiwei told the outside world that Zhu Yingning was her own sister, who came to help her sister during the summer vacation.
However, the truth about her part-time job couldn't be hidden. Although Zhu Yingning tried her best to avoid Xu Zhengkang's absence whenever she went out, the truth was bound to come out eventually. In mid-to-late August, after repeatedly noticing Zhu Yingning's absence, Xu Zhengkang finally couldn't help but call her in for questioning.
Zhu Yingning didn't want to lie to him, so she could only bury her head and truthfully explain her work in a mosquito-like voice.
After hearing this, Xu Zhengkang's thick eyebrows knitted together, and he looked annoyed: "Didn't I tell you to study hard? Why are you still working?"
She hunched her shoulders and said, "Uncle Xu, I know you're doing this for my own good. You're worried about my safety and energy. You think that as a student, I should focus on my studies. I promise, I absolutely will not let working affect my studies. The clothing store I work at now is owned by a friend of mine. It's in a department store near our home, so it's very safe. Plus, the owner is my friend. After school starts, I don't need to go there every day. She allows me to go on weekends."
"Department store?" Xu Zhengkang seemed to be lost in thought, his tone softening a bit. "Is that friend of yours the one who invited you to dinner that evening?"
"right."
"What kind of clothes does she sell?"
Zhu Yingning talked about several brands that he had memorized while organizing the warehouse these days.
Xu Zhengkang didn't respond immediately. After thinking for a moment, he said, "You're only fifteen. If someone finds out you're doing child labor..."
"My friend is a very nice person. She always tells others that I am her sister."
He just said "oh", paused for a few seconds, and said: "...Okay, just be careful." This meant that he agreed to let her work.
"Thank you, uncle!" Zhu Yingning smiled happily.
**
A few days later, Xu Zhengkang took some time off from his busy schedule and asked Zhu Yingning to ask for leave from Zhu Zhiwei: "I'll take you to the high school and complete the admission procedures for you."
“!!”
She was so surprised that she almost flew up. She managed to suppress her excitement with great difficulty. She asked for leave as Xu Zhengkang asked her to do, gathered all the information and documents that she had asked her to bring, stuffed them into her schoolbag, and happily followed him out.
high school!
That's the high school she's going to attend in the future!
Completing the admission procedures means that she will really have the opportunity to go to school in the future and no longer have to worry about losing her degree.
Being able to continue attending school was a blessing to her, and what made her even more excited was that this high school was far better than she had expected. As Xu Zhengkang drove into the school, Zhu Yingning rested her head on the windowsill, her eyes wide and bright.
It is no exaggeration to say that the playground of this high school alone is bigger than the junior high school she attended before.
The buildings in the school are uniformly painted red and white, which looks pleasing to the eye. There are auditoriums, bell towers, cafeterias, gymnasiums, basketball courts, football fields, swimming pools, teaching buildings, libraries... All the necessary and unnecessary facilities are available. She deeply experienced the mood of Liu Laolao visiting the Grand View Garden, and her mouth has never closed since she entered the school gate.
When they arrived at the administrative building, Xu Zhengkang took her to the Academic Affairs Office and asked her to take out her junior high school diploma, poverty certificate and printed high school entrance examination transcript to show the director.
The director took the thing, rolled his eyes casually, and opened his narrow eyes slightly: "Well, the results are not bad." After the evaluation, he casually asked a few questions about junior high school subjects. Zhu Yingning answered them one by one, and looked at him nervously after answering.
"How many gears do you think we can set?" Xu Zhengkang asked from the side.
The director flipped through the pile of documents on the table and hissed, "According to the poverty alleviation policy above and our school's regulations, we can be assigned a second-tier position."
"Second gear? Much better than I thought." Xu Zhengkang seemed very happy with the result and patted Zhu Yingning on the shoulder, "Do your best."
She felt a little embarrassed by the praise and smiled sheepishly.
After completing all the formalities, Xu Zhengkang led Zhu Yingning out and asked her if she wanted to walk around and take a look. Although she was very excited, she shook her head sensibly and said, "No, Uncle Xu, let's go back. You are so busy with work."
Xu Zhengkang just asked casually. Seeing that she refused, he did not insist and led her back to the car.
It wasn't until the car door closed that Zhu Yingning asked the question she had been curious about in the Academic Affairs Office: "Uncle Xu, what is second gear?"
Xu Zhengkang answered while driving, "It's about the tuition level. The higher your grades, the lower the tuition. The best is Tier 1, which is free. You only have to pay some miscellaneous fees, about 800 to 900 per semester. The worst is Tier 5. Your Tier 2 only costs 3,000 per semester, which is not bad either."
She nodded in understanding, feeling a little regretful that she didn't make the first-tier exam. At the same time, she blurted out, "Xu Sirui is definitely in the first tier. I still have a lot to learn from him."
There was no malice in this remark, it was simply out of her trust in his academic level. However, after hearing this, Xu Zhengkang sneered disdainfully: "Him? He scored a shitty first-grade."
Zhu Yingning was stunned, not only by Xu Zhengkang's vulgar language, but also by the message he conveyed and his attitude towards Xu Sirui. Not in the first tier? Was he in the second tier, like her?
As if he could see the doubt in her heart, Xu Zhengkang sneered: "Don't even think about it, that guy is destined to be a fifth gear."
...Fifth gear? How is that possible?!
Zhu Yingning's face was clearly filled with disbelief. Xu Zhengkang was also very frustrated. He couldn't find anyone to complain about Xu Sirui, so he opened up and exposed Xu Sirui's true colors to Zhu Yingning without reservation: "He only scored over 350 points in the high school entrance exam."
"Impossible!" Zhu Yingning accidentally blurted out what was in her mind. She couldn't believe that Xu Sirui could get such a score given his ability. "Did he miss some subjects?"
This was the only reasonable explanation she could come up with.
Xu Zhengkang glanced at her in surprise. "Almost. He handed in a few blank papers."
"Blank paper... why?"
"Who knows him? He's probably in his rebellious period." Talking about this, Xu Zhengkang became impatient again, and Zhu Yingning could only shut up for the time being.
But she was the kind of person who couldn't help but show her worries on her face. From the moment she heard Xu Sirui's results, she looked like a bereaved family member, confused and with an expression of having suffered a great blow, which made it difficult for Xu Zhengkang to deliberately ignore it.
In the elevator, he felt a little sorry because in the elevator mirror, Zhu Yingning looked like she was about to cry. Although he couldn't understand why she was crying, due to his status as an elder, he could only say nonsense to comfort her: "Don't worry about him, he is just like this, a hopeless case. After graduation, he can just find a factory job. He is a loser."
She stared at him in shock. Far from feeling comforted, the despair in her eyes gave way to deep disappointment at his words. This disappointment wasn't directed at Xu Sirui, but at him. Frowning, she spoke in an overly serious and righteous tone, "Uncle Xu, Xu Sirui isn't as bad as you think. As a parent, you shouldn't say that about him." Even the "you," which she always used, had degenerated into "you."
This was the first time Xu Zhengkang had been taught a lesson by a younger generation—or had he been taught a lesson? He was a little unsure.
"Everyone has the opportunity to reform. I think there must have been some mistake or misunderstanding. As long as he is given a chance, he will definitely change for the better. People are inherently good, and Xu Sirui is a very smart and talented person. He just needs a little guidance."
“……?”
Xu Zhengkang let out an "ah" in confusion, and for the first time in his life he felt that he was not good at speaking.
It's no wonder he was confused. Zhu Yingning's speech sounded too much like a teacher. From the tone to the expression, to the content of the words, he was just like a head teacher who was worried about his students. He couldn't help but want to bend over and hunch his back to echo, "Teacher, you are right."
Zhu Yingning walked out of the elevator carrying her schoolbag and walked into the house. As if after careful consideration, she turned around and said to him, "Uncle Xu, do you know which friend's house Xu Sirui is at?"
Xu Zhengkang had originally been annoyed by the mention of Xu Sirui, but Zhu Yingning's repeated unconventional moves had completely dispelled his annoyance. He grumbled, and just like he was facing a teacher, he lowered his voice, avoided his gaze, and spoke vaguely: "He has those few friends. If they're not in this family, they must be in that family."
She immediately pulled out a small notebook and pen from her schoolbag and lowered her head as if to write something down. "Then please tell me the contact information and home addresses of his friends."
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The author has something to say: Xu Sirui: I want to degenerate, I want to indulge myself, I want to turn into a puddle of mud, I want to take revenge on society!
Zhu Yingning: No, you don’t want to.
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