After the flag-raising ceremony that day, Teacher Zhou waved to Xu Mengyao at the edge of the playground, asking her to come over.
"Student Wenjuan, I saw that you set up your stall again during the holidays. Are you still working part-time to earn money for your studies?" Teacher Zhou asked her with a smile.
Xu Mengyao also smiled and replied: "Yes, Teacher Zhou, several of my friends need to make money to support themselves. I also like this kind of life. Don't worry, I won't delay my studies."
Teacher Zhou's eyes flashed with approval, and then he changed the subject:
"I can see your progress, and I have good news for you today. The school is planning to rebuild the outer wall connecting the two campuses, converting it into retail space for rent. I thought a storefront might be a better option for you. Are you interested?"
Xu Mengyao's eyes lit up when she heard this. "Really? Teacher Zhou, I'm so interested! When will the school be rebuilt? Will the shophouse only be rented? Can it be sold? If so, how much would it be?"
Her series of questions left Teacher Zhou stunned. He obviously didn't expect Xu Mengyao to have such an idea. He was stunned for a moment and then smiled:
"Well, I haven't heard the principal mention this. But I can ask for you. Wenjuan, I didn't expect you to be so thoughtful at such a young age."
After checking with the principal, Teacher Zhou informed her with the good news: "Wenjuan, good news! The principal hadn't originally planned to sell the shop, but after hearing your idea, he thought it was feasible and agreed to sell the shop. However, he's set the price at 1,500 yuan per room."
Xu Mengyao thought to herself that this price was a great bargain for a shop located in front of two schools. She would have no shortage of customers no matter what she sold, so she had to get it.
She took a deep breath and asked, "Teacher Zhou, how many shops are there?"
"You should book six rooms, all of which are about the same size and price. You can pick a good location first." Teacher Zhou suggested.
Xu Mengyao was delighted when she heard this and immediately said, "Teacher Zhou, if I want all of them, will the principal agree? What are the purchase procedures?"
Teacher Zhou was very surprised: "This... Wenjuan, are you sure? Six rooms cost 9,000 yuan. Should you discuss this with your parents?"
"Don't worry, Mr. Zhou. My parents will definitely agree. I have the money myself. You just need to make sure I can buy it all."
"I can't answer that for you. Let me take you to the principal's office so you can talk to him in person."
So Teacher Zhou took her to knock on the principal's office door, and after being allowed in, she walked in with a smile on her face. The principal was sitting behind his desk, looking through some documents, and when he saw Teacher Zhou come in, he looked up and smiled.
"Hello, Principal. Excuse me for a moment." Teacher Zhou greeted politely.
"Teacher Zhou, is there anything wrong?" the principal asked the student who appeared in the office.
"It's about that shophouse." Teacher Zhou got straight to the point. "My student, Huang Wenjuan, wanted to buy a shophouse. I mentioned it to you before."
Upon hearing this, the principal's eyes flashed with surprise, and then he smiled approvingly:
"Oh, it's you, Huang. Originally, the school had no plans to sell the property, but when we heard you were working part-time with your friends, we decided to use the proceeds to support students from needy families. What brings you here today?"
Hearing the principal say this, Xu Mengyao immediately jumped on the bandwagon: "Hello, principal, your plan to support poor students is really great. I also want to contribute. I'm afraid the money for one shop is not enough. Can you see if I can buy all of them? I heard from Teacher Zhou that there are six in total, right?"
After hearing this, the principal opened his eyes wide, coughed twice, and then said slowly:
"Well, I can consider this proposal. However, are you clear about the price? Do your family agree? It's a lot of money. You have good intentions in helping your classmates, but please don't put too much financial pressure on your family."
"Don't worry, Principal. My family is very supportive of this kind of thing. My parents usually help other children. As long as you can confirm it, I can bring the money the day after tomorrow."
"Okay, Huang," the principal nodded in agreement. "If your parents agree, it would be best if you could have them come over so I can discuss the purchase details and follow-up arrangements."
"Okay, Principal!" Xu Mengyao happily praised him immediately:
"I believe that the school will continue to improve under your leadership. I would also like to thank you on behalf of those students from disadvantaged families."
After finalizing the details of the retail space, Xu Mengyao, filled with joy, boarded the bus back to the mining area as soon as school was over. The setting sun's rays bathed the bus, further gilding her good mood. Humming the tune of "Asian Heroes," she thought to herself that tomorrow was a day off, perfect for going to the bank to prepare the money for the retail space.
However, as soon as he stepped over the threshold, he heard the stern voice of Huang's father clearly.
"We have to give them an explanation. Tomorrow, you and your daughter will go apologize to Teacher Du!"
Xu Mengyao felt a tightness in her heart. Father Huang hadn't lost his temper for a long time since his eldest brother left home. What happened?
She quickened her pace and quietly approached the living room, where she saw Huang's father sitting on the sofa. Across from him, Grandma Huang and Wenxia were sitting on a bench with their heads drooped. Wenxia's little face was covered with traces of undried tears, and her little hands were tightly clutching the corner of Grandma Huang's clothes.
Hearing the order from Huang's father, Huang Nai raised his head and said in dissatisfaction:
"If you want to go, go by yourself. I'm not going anyway. I didn't do anything bad to her. Look at how my hero got beaten by her. No, second brother, why are you like this? My granddaughter's ears are bleeding from being beaten, and I can't go to her to reason with her?"
"Mom! Are you going there to talk to someone? You're going there to beat someone up!"
Father Huang took a deep breath, calmed himself down, and advised earnestly:
"You brought the firewood stick we use for our clay pot, didn't you? The whole office was in chaos. The principal even showed me how he broke the firewood stick and said he didn't do anything wrong! How can I go to school in the future if you do this? What will people think of me?"
When Huang Nai heard this, she became even angrier.
"Why can't I go to school? She's willing to teach me but won't let Xia go with her. This teacher is so lawless. Besides, our firewood stick was brittle to begin with. It broke before I even used any strength. Wasn't it she who hit Xia with it first? She even hit him so hard that his ears were bleeding! I only hit her on her butt. She has a lot of flesh, so what can happen? I didn't often hit you three brothers like this when you were little, and you're all fine now, aren't you?"
"Ahem, Mom, please don't go off topic. I need to apologize for this anyway."
Seeing that neither of them could convince the other, Xu Mengyao could no longer hold back and walked into the living room.
"Dad, grandma, I'm back." Her voice instantly attracted everyone's attention.
"Wenjuan, you've arrived just in time. Come and judge for yourself."
Huang's father was like he had found a savior and hurriedly called her.
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