Jiangcheng No. 1 High School.
The Principal's Office.
In the spacious room, only the rustling sound of pages turning could be heard.
"Wen Tingxue? Transferring from Lucheng No. 7 High School?"
The principal scanned the documents, his brow furrowed slightly.
Lucheng was a small place, not comparable to Jiangcheng, and to make matters worse, it was No. 7 High School.
What good students could come from there?
The principal put down the file with dissatisfaction, his gaze swept over Wen Tingxue, and then he politely looked at Wen Zhongen.
"Mr. Wen, I am truly sorry. I did promise Mr. Yu and Mr. Mu that I would arrange for your daughter to be in Class 1, but..."
The principal pushed up his glasses, looking troubled. "We don't accept students from Lucheng No. 7 High School. However, for the sake of the two bosses, I can only arrange for her to be in Class 4. What do you say?"
Wen Zhongen and Yu Xiuxiu exchanged a glance, hesitant.
The principal quickly added, "Don't worry, Class 4 isn't much worse than Class 1. Your daughter's grades are also good; otherwise, she wouldn't be able to get into Class 4."
Anyone who knew Jiangcheng No. 1 High School understood that Class 1 was the honors class, a place where top students gathered.
Classes 3 to 11 were excellent classes, filled with students who had good grades. The remaining ten classes were slightly less distinguished.
Generally, students who got in through connections were assigned to the latter classes.
However, Wen Tingxue was the top student in Lucheng No. 7 High School, and her overall academic performance was not bad, which was why the principal made an exception and arranged for her to be in Class 4.
Wen Zhongen and Yu Xiuxiu didn't expect their daughter to achieve exceptional grades. Being in Class 4 was satisfactory, but—
"Yiyi, are you willing?"
Yu Xiuxiu, concerned about her daughter, asked for her opinion first. If their daughter was unwilling, they would find a way to get her into Class 1.
Wen Zhongen felt the same. The three adults in the room looked at Wen Tingxue.
Wen Tingxue was naturally shy and soft-spoken. She had no strong opinions on the matter and merely felt uncomfortable being stared at.
She lowered her head and nodded gently.
This meant she had no objections.
The principal breathed a sigh of relief. Regardless, he couldn't offend the two bosses.
Lawyer Yu was very capable, and they might have interactions in the future. It was best to maintain a good relationship.
"Then it's settled. I'll call the homeroom teacher of Class 4, Grade 11, right away."
The principal quickly picked up the phone, eager to finalize the matter.
"Wait."
Wen Zhongen reacted, pressed the principal's hand, and frowned, "Why is it Grade 11?"
Shouldn't it be Grade 10, Class 4?
The principal was surprised, "Your daughter is in Grade 11, don't you know?"
...
Realizing something was amiss, the principal vacated the space and went outside to make a call.
Inside the room, Wen Zhongen and Yu Xiuxiu exchanged confused glances for a moment before looking down at their daughter.
"Yiyi, what's going on? Didn't Grandma say you were in Grade 10? How could you..."
A bad premonition crossed Yu Xiuxiu's mind, and her expression darkened.
Wen Tingxue fiddled with the sleeve of her hoodie, her lowered eyes welling up with tears, but they did not fall.
After a long pause, she finally spoke with a slight nasal tone.
"My cousin was bullied in elementary school, and Grandma asked me to protect him, so all along, my cousin and I have been in the same grade..."
She didn't intend to complain, but her words were filled with grievance.
In reality, with her academic performance, she could have attended a better school, from elementary to junior high, and then high school.
She could have gone to better schools, but her grandmother wouldn't allow it.
Her grandmother said her cousin was the only male heir in the family and couldn't be bullied, and since she was a girl, people wouldn't go too far.
Therefore, she was sent to her cousin's school and had to put up with the messes he created.
At first, they didn't make things difficult for her, but as time went on, patience wore thin.
Wen Tingxue closed her eyes, the humiliating memories replaying in her mind.
The tears she had held back for so long finally traced down her cheeks, gathered at her chin, and finally fell onto her clothes, moistening a small patch.
Yu Xiuxiu felt her head explode, and then anger surged through her body, almost spitting fire!
Wen Zhongen clenched his back teeth, suppressing his emotions with difficulty. After gently saying a few words to his daughter, the two of them stood up and walked outside.
Finding a secluded spot with few people, Yu Xiuxiu erupted.
"Wen Zhongen! I should never have listened to you! Entrusting our daughter to your mother was the most foolish and wrong decision I, Yu Xiuxiu, have ever made!
"How could I believe your mother's nonsense? She's so biased towards men; how could she possibly treat Yiyi well!"
Yu Xiuxiu's eyes were red with anger, and she gritted her teeth.
"Wen Linfeng is eighteen this year! If he hadn't repeated a grade in elementary school, he would be in Grade 12 now! Should our daughter also be in Grade 12 with him?! She's only sixteen! What was your mother's intention!"
Wen Zhongen bit his cigarette, his brows tightly furrowed.
He knew his mother was biased, but he didn't realize she was so biased!
To ensure his daughter wouldn't suffer, he sent a lot of money every year. His mother happily accepted it all and promised that the child would not be mistreated.
Whenever they visited their daughter, apart from being timid and not very close to them, everything else seemed fine.
They hadn't thought much of it; after all, grandparents doted on their grandchildren, and they wouldn't mistreat her.
Especially since they had given quite a bit of money.
Wen Zhongen’s knuckles creaked as he clenched his fists, his eyes red.
"This matter... I will demand an explanation."
Wen Zhongen was always good-natured, but this somber tone was unprecedented.
Yu Xiuxiu kicked him in a fit of rage, "Your good younger brother and sister-in-law must have been fanning the flames behind the scenes! Otherwise, how could the old lady have such malicious intentions!"
Sending Yiyi off in the car without consultation, and only calling late at night to inquire, what did that mean?
Wasn't it that if the child was lost, the family fortune they had built would go to her grandson?!
How wicked!
Yu Xiuxiu's chest ached with anger. "If I had known this would happen, I would rather my mother have raised the child."
Wen Zhongen pursed his lips, remaining silent.
At the time, they had considered asking his mother-in-law, but his father-in-law had just passed away, and they had been deeply in love for a lifetime.
His mother-in-law refused to leave, insisting on guarding her husband's grave.
If Yiyi were raised by her, she probably wouldn't even be able to attend school now.
After all, it was in the mountains, where transportation was inconvenient, and the school was far away.
Given his mother-in-law's situation, she couldn't possibly pick up and drop off the child.
If these factors hadn't been considered, Yiyi wouldn't have been entrusted to his mother.
-
Principal's Office.
Wen Tingxue's face was flushed with embarrassment as she tugged at her clothes, not daring to look at Wen Di's disdainful and scornful gaze.
The principal tutted in disbelief, "The child is quite good. You take her, why so many complaints?"
Wen Di's expression worsened, "Principal, a student from Lucheng No. 7 High School! Even the worst student in my class would be a top student there!"
He had heard that a country student was transferring, but he never expected her to end up in his class.
He disliked underachievers the most, and even more so, underachievers who got in through connections!
In his eyes, Wen Tingxue was a hot potato that he wished he could refuse, but he couldn't defy the principal's wishes.
Suffocating with frustration, he couldn't even be bothered to look at Wen Tingxue's personal file, directly labeling her as a poorly performing student with connections.
His words and actions were naturally tinged with anger.
"You!"
Wen Di frowned, his tone stern and commanding.
"I don't care who you have behind you. Once you're in my class, you'll have to follow my rules! You'd better put away those unsophisticated ways from your small town, or I won't let you off. Do you understand?"
Wen Tingxue understood her homeroom teacher's dissatisfaction but didn't know how to explain. She could only cautiously raise her eyes and nod slightly, trembling.
The principal felt Wen Di was being a bit too harsh on the young girl and was about to say something when the door suddenly opened from the outside.
Wen Zhongen and Yu Xiuxiu stood at the door with grim expressions, their eyes fixed on Wen Di.
The principal inwardly sighed, knowing this was not good.