Chapter 41
As parents of graduating students, they are just as concerned about their children's academic performance as they are about their children's. When Chi Jun arrived at the homeroom teacher's office, the teacher was already surrounded by a large group of parents.
Some came to ask about grades, some to inquire about their children's performance at school, and others simply to chat with the teachers and build a closer relationship.
As a parent of a student who was forced to come here, Chi Jun didn't want to ask about grades or have any interaction with the homeroom teacher, so he naturally didn't bother to squeeze in and join the fun.
He stood lazily against the wall outside the office, waiting for the parents to leave before going over.
Also waiting in the corridor was another parent – Zhang Yiming's mother.
Chi Jun was too lazy to go and squeeze into the crowd, but Zhang Yiming's mother was on the phone with something urgent. No one knew what the other person said, but she was very emotional and her voice was getting louder and louder.
When she caught Chi Jun staring at her, Zhang Yiming's mother pouted, rolled her eyes, and walked away with her phone.
Unlike his long speeches in class, the homeroom teacher was quick and efficient in dealing with parents, saying just a few words each time. Chi Jun leaned against the wall and watched as parents came out one by one. Soon, only three or four parents remained in the office.
A short while later, the four parents also came out one after another.
Chi Jun glanced at Zhang Yiming's mother, who was still on the phone, and walked into the office first.
The homeroom teacher, Lao Zhao, was drinking water from his thermos when he saw Chi Jun come in. He paused for a moment, put down the thermos, and screwed on the lid.
"Xu Qingzhou's parent, right?"
Chi Jun nodded: "Hello, teacher."
"You belong to Xu Qingzhou—"
Chi Jun replied, "Brother."
Having apparently learned about Xu Qingzhou's family situation, the homeroom teacher nodded knowingly, said nothing, but picked up a few sheets of paper from the table and said:
"Well, Xu Qingzhou has always been quite quiet and obedient, which I've observed over the past three years of high school..."
"We called her parents over today because we wanted to give them some feedback..."
I don't know if Chi Jun has been immune to lectures since he was a child, or if the homeroom teacher's tone was just too flat and had no ups and downs, which made him sleepy.
Having only heard the first few sentences about Xu Qingzhou dozing off in class and often failing to hand in his homework, Chi Jun's thoughts began to wander uncontrollably. The homeroom teacher's words went in one ear and out the other, without being filtered by his brain.
Fortunately, the homeroom teacher kept muttering to himself, and all Chi Jun needed to do was nod and say "Yes, teacher is right." Following the principles the male ghost had taught him, he managed to get away with it.
Finally, the homeroom teacher unscrewed the thermos, took a sip of water, and handed a piece of paper to Chi Jun.
Chi Jun only vaguely heard the last sentence—
"Overall results have declined slightly."
He couldn't help but yawn, but didn't forget to add casually, "I'll definitely give him a good talking-to when I get back—"
Before he could finish speaking, the homeroom teacher suddenly slammed his fist on the table and stood up.
"What's there to 'lecture' about? What time is it? High school seniors skipping evening self-study to work part-time! Is that something to 'lecture' them for?!"
"For a student like Xu Qingzhou, what you parents should do is understand what she's thinking, what difficulties she's facing, and help her solve them. Why do you only think about lecturing her all the time?"
"Speaking of which, I don't think your brother is as decent as Xu Qingzhou. Look at your hair, what kind of look is that!"
The homeroom teacher's outburst of anger came completely out of the blue.
Chi Jun was so scared that he was no longer sleepy. Then he heard the homeroom teacher slamming his fist on the table and yelling at him for a full five minutes.
Chi Jun: "..."
As expected, even parents of students with poor academic performance can't escape being scolded.
At this moment, Chi Jun deeply felt that the male ghost's advice was very farsighted.
So he immediately became humility ingrained in his bones, and kept saying to the teacher, "Yes, yes, you are right," and "As a parent, I feel deeply ashamed."
Whether it was his good attitude in admitting his mistake, or the homeroom teacher's exhaustion from scolding him, the teacher stared at him for a long time, then waved his hand and unscrewed his thermos again.
"Alright, go back now and think carefully about what I said."
Chi Jun secretly breathed a sigh of relief, took the report card that his homeroom teacher had handed him, and turned to leave.
While he was being scolded, another teacher entered the office and closed the door behind them.
As soon as Chi Jun opened the door, he saw Zhang Yiming's mother standing outside waiting.
Their eyes met. Zhang Yiming's mother, who had heard the whole story of Chi Jun being insulted, no longer wanted to act anymore. She smoothed her hair and haughtily stomped into the office in her high heels.
As he brushed past her, only one thought popped into Chi Jun's mind: Underachievers have no human rights, and neither do their parents.
*
Zhang Yiming's mother didn't really have anything to do with the homeroom teacher. After all, her son was ranked fifth in his class at such a school, which guaranteed him a place in a top-tier university, and she was content with that.
But ever since she ran into Chi Jun at the school gate and was tricked by him in a nonchalant manner, and then discovered that Chi Jun's sister, Xu Qingzhou, was in the same study group as her son, Yiming, Zhang Yiming's mother became uneasy.
What kind of good sister can a brother like that have?
In addition, Xu Qingzhou's exercise book was completely blank...
So when she came, she first exchanged a few simple pleasantries before getting straight to the point.
"Teacher Zhao, it's like this. Yiming told me that you divided the class into study groups. Let me clarify, I don't have any objection to your decision."
"The main problem is that during this crucial period, students who are good at studying can help each other in the same group. For example, Zheng Yangshu is a good student. But if students who are good at studying are put together with students who are not good at studying... I'm worried that my son Yiming's grades will be affected."
After hesitating for a moment, Zhang Yiming's mother still pointed out the name.
"For example... Xu Qingzhou, with her grades, I..."
The homeroom teacher was already annoyed by Chi Jun's unreliable parent, and now another parent came along and started criticizing the study group he had just been assigned to.
Old Zhao opened his thermos and took a sip of water.
I took another sip of water.
With a furrowed brow, he ultimately couldn't suppress the anger in his heart.
Therefore, he looked at Zhang Yiming's mother and asked expressionlessly:
"What's wrong with Xu Qingzhou? He's the top student in the class and he's in the same group as Zhang Yiming. How could he possibly corrupt him?"
Zhang Yiming's mother sensed the anger in the homeroom teacher's words and quickly waved her hand:
"It wasn't Teacher Zhao, it was me—"
Before she could finish speaking, she suddenly realized something and her expression froze:
"W-what? First in the class?"
At the same time, Chi Jun, who was standing in the corridor, was equally bewildered.
He stared at the report card, first looking at it upright, then turning it upside down, repeating this twice, until he noticed the words were also flipped each time, finally confirming it:
Xu Qingzhou's name was indeed on the first line of the report card, the very first line.
She is... the top student in her class.
What does it mean for her homeroom teacher to say that her grades have dropped?
Chi Jun's gaze swept over the row of subject rankings, finally settling on the last item, "Grade Ranking"—
Grade ranking: Seventh.
Even if his grades drop, he'll still be seventh in the grade.
So, what was Xu Qingzhou's ranking in the grade before the decline?
After thinking about it, the young girl was busy with part-time jobs, laundry, cooking, and grocery shopping, and was so busy that she was like an octopus. Chi Jun was silent for a moment, and suddenly felt that the young girl... should not be underestimated.
"elder brother."
A familiar voice suddenly came from behind.
Chi Jun turned around and saw that it was Zheng Yangshu. He raised his eyebrows slightly, and his expression returned to normal.
Zheng Yangshu walked over, holding a bag or something in her hand.
"Brother, this is rabbit pet food. Could you give it to Qingzhou for me?"
Chi Jun glanced down at the pet food, said "Oh," and reached out to take it.
He stared at the pet food packaging over and over, then suddenly looked up and asked Zheng Yangshu, "Your mom doesn't allow us to have pets?"
Zheng Yangshu's smile froze, and she nodded.
"right."
“But I heard from your mother today that your family has two dogs.”
Zheng Yangshu: "..."
"My mom likes dogs, but she doesn't really like rabbits."
Actually, Zheng Yangshu regretted saying those words as soon as they came out.
After all, Chi Jun only mentioned pets and didn't mention rabbits. His initiative to bring up "disliking rabbits" now feels deliberate and a bit like protesting too much.
As expected, Chi Jun said "Oh," with a rather intriguing expression.
Zheng Yangshu felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze, and unconsciously rubbed the back of her neck. Suddenly remembering something, she changed the subject and said, "By the way, what did the homeroom teacher call you over for? Did Qingzhou need something?"
Chi Jun recalled the barrage of scolding he had received in the office earlier.
After a moment of silence, he nodded.
"Yes, we talked about something, and I emphasized one of them."
Zheng Yangshu: "What?"
Chi Jun's lips curled upwards as he stared at Zheng Yangshu, saying each word slowly and deliberately:
"Your homeroom teacher told me to keep an eye on my sister and not let her date too early."
Zheng Yangshu: "..."
*
At four o'clock in the afternoon, the sun had moved to the west side of the rental courtyard, leaving only a patch of shade on the first floor.
After finishing a math test, Xu Qingzhou went downstairs to collect the clothes and bed sheets that were drying in the sun.
An electric scooter rode in from the northwest corner. Xu Qingzhou recognized the scooter rider; she was the mother of the senior high school boy on the third floor across the street. The mother must have just returned from a parent-teacher meeting, as she was scolding the boy with his backpack sitting behind her.
Xu Qingzhou thought that Chi Jun would probably be back soon.
Looking back, just a few months ago she was a little fox throwing a tantrum, but now she can help her attend parent-teacher conferences and sit openly among a group of middle-aged men and women.
Xu Qingzhou thought about it and found it both amazing and somewhat amusing.
After putting away the new windbreaker he had just bought for Chi Jun yesterday, Xu Qingzhou moved a few steps to the left and was about to pull the bed sheet when he suddenly heard a chattering voice coming from the right front.
"Hey, do you still remember Zhang Pengfei?"
"He's the father of those twins, the one who had a conflict with the mute Xiao Xu."
Xu Qingzhou's smile faltered, and the hand gripping the bed sheet stopped moving as well.
Through the sheets fluttering in the wind, she stood motionless behind, clearly hearing the words that followed—
I saw him at the hospital a few days ago.
"I overheard the cleaning staff chatting privately that he has cancer and is about to die."
He's dying.
Xu Qingzhou's nails dug into her palms instantly, but what flashed into her mind wasn't Zhang Pengfei's terrifying face, but rather Chi Jun's swift and dashing smile—the one from that night when he left and returned, standing at the door and saying to her—
"Xu Qingzhou, I will still leave once the crisis from Zhang Pengfei is over."
I will still leave.
The courtyard, though still warm after the sun had set, felt as if it had fallen into an ice cellar. Xu Qingzhou, clutching a bed sheet in his hand, stood under the clear sky and felt as if he had been plunged into an ice cellar.
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