Just as he expected, on the way to school the next day, Luo Xiao noticed that all the aunties around the neighborhood were talking in a gossipy voices to each other. Based on the few snippets he heard, he was quite certain that the content of their discussion had some relationship with yesterday’s events.
By the time the Chinese class started, as he fixed his eyes on the new teacher standing at the podium, Luo Xiao knew that this incident would become the most talked-about topic in the town for the year. After all, in this era where even radios were considered rare, what were people’s sources of entertainment? It was all kinds of gossip from daily life. Especially when it was about the exposed affair of the principal and the Chinese teacher, who had always been respected figures in their hearts.
“Hey, Xiao Yuzi, have you heard?” After the Chinese class ended, Fan Lie poked his arm and threw a question at him using a mysterious tone.
“What’s wrong?” Luo Xiao also wanted to know what he was going to say.
“Yesterday, you know about what happened here, right? I told my parents about it when I got home, and guess what my mom said?”
“What did she say?”
“My mom said, sure enough, it’s true. Turns out my mom saw them acting all flirty there a lot of times, but she didn’t think in that direction, so she just brushed it off. Now that this has come out, she finally realized.”
Fan Lie suddenly said in a hushed voice, “And, and, Xiao Yuzi, when I passed by the Chinese teacher’s house this morning, I noticed their door was tightly shut. Before this, the parents of that family were just like our principal’s wife, always eager to show off how capable their daughter was, becoming a teacher in our school. Furthermore, they also shamelessly took things from others.”
Hearing his words, Luo Xiao nodded his head; he could relate to this. Not to mention distant examples. These days, after his mother and godmother opened a food shop, Mrs. Wu (the Chinese teacher’s mother) often came to their shop to take some food for free. Once or twice might be understandable, but coming every day—what was that all about? In addition, what irked Luo Xiao even more was her attitude—acting superior while taking things for free!
Despite feeling extremely uncomfortable with the situation, Luo Qian and Xu Yan couldn’t directly refuse. After all, Mrs. Wu’s daughter was the Chinese teacher to their son (godson), and being the main subject teacher required maintaining a good relationship, lest they end up on the wrong side. For Luo Xiao’s sake, they could only bear with it reluctantly.
Of course, with this incident happening and just by recalling the relieved expression on his mother’s and godmother’s faces yesterday, Luo Xiao knew that they were also quite pleased. At least they wouldn’t have to see the annoying face of Mrs. Wu for a long time in the future.
“Hey, hey, your news is not as well-informed as mine.” A classmate sitting in front of Luo Xiao suddenly turned around and chimed in, “I’ve got the latest inside information.”
“Bai Yi, you’re just bragging. Who would believe you?” Fan Lie rolled his eyes and spoke with contempt. “Previously, you claimed that our math teacher was absent because he was dismissed from his job, but in reality, he was just visiting relatives in his hometown! Has any of your news ever been accurate?”
Bai Yi quickly got anxious upon hearing this. “Fan Lie, that was the previous time. But this time, it’s definitely true! Don’t underestimate me!”
“Tch, spare us!” Fan Lie turned to Luo Xiao and opened his mouth to speak, “Xiao Yuzi, let’s not bother with him. It’s probably fake news again, a waste of time.”
“You!” Bai Yi thumped his chest and made a promise. “I, Bai Yi, can guarantee that the news this time is absolutely not fake. If it’s fake, I’ll treat you to a meal!”
Seeing Fan Lie about to continue mocking Bai Yi, Luo Xiao quickly said, “Bai Yin, then tell us what this inside information is.”
“Sure, no problem.” Bai Yi didn’t beat around the bush and readily agreed. “You all know that my aunt is also a teacher in this school. Yesterday, she happened to come to our house for something, and when she mentioned this incident to my parents, she said that after the principal returned to the office, he and his wife quarreled to the point of getting physical. Although she didn’t hear the specific content of the argument clearly, she did witness how miserable they looked when they left the school. Also, this morning when I went to see my aunt, I overheard them in the office discussing that this matter had already been reported to higher-ups. I estimate that both our principal and the Chinese teacher are going to be dismissed.”
“Really?” Fan Lie remained suspicious.
“Of course it’s true!” Bai Yi shot him a fierce look. “I personally heard it, okay?”
“I can vouch for that.” Bai Yi’s deskmate, Qiu Ran, also turned around. “I happened to pass by the office door at that time, and I heard it too.”
Luo Xiao nodded. “Seems like it’s true then.” Actually, whether the principal and the Chinese teacher were dismissed or not didn’t matter much to him. After all, he will be graduating from elementary school next year.
Moreover, he had already made up his mind during this period. He intended to go to City S for middle school. One reason was that City S was known to become a renowned international metropolis in the future in Country Z, even though it hadn’t developed fully yet. Because it hadn’t developed yet, he wanted to seize the opportunity. Another reason was that his master told him to go to City S, mainly because there was a powerful base there, which his master said would be helpful for his future development. And the third reason was his consideration for his mother and godmother. Even though their food shop had just opened, business was good. Now, there were people spreading rumors around, so going to City S would not only allow him to avoid these ill-intentioned people who often approached him but also create a better future there with more development opportunities.
“Ah? In that case, I’m really looking forward to seeing Aunt Wu’s expression when she hears this tragic news.” Fan Lie gloated, winking mischievously.
“True!” Bai Yi agreed, nodding. Because their family ran a small shop at home, although Aunt Wu might not have taken things for free, she always managed to get an advantage whenever she bought something. Sometimes, even if she managed to get an extra piece of candy, she’d be quite pleased.
The group talked about other things for a while before the bell for the class rang. Soon, the morning classes were all finished. Ye Lan swiftly took two lunchboxes and went over to Luo Xiao’s side.
Because last Saturday, under Ye Lan’s enthusiastic persuasion, Luo Xiao had no choice but to agree to his request. Let him prepare lunch for the two of them. Luo Xiao thought about it and realized that it would actually reduce the burden on his mother and godmother, so he agreed without much resistance.
However, turning his eyes on the heavily filled lunch box placed in front of him, he slightly regretted his decision to agree.
“Xiaoxiao, look, these are all dishes you like. Quickly give them a try.” Ye Lan stared at Luo Xiao with expectation in his eyes.
Luo Xiao reluctantly picked up the chopsticks under Ye Lan’s intense gaze and started eating. However, he became full after only eating half of it. An awkward expression appeared on his face as he looked at the remaining half of the food left in the lunchbox. Just as he was about to open his mouth to speak, he saw the lunchbox being taken away directly.
Luo Xiao followed the direction and saw Ye Lan eating from his lunchbox without a word. “Xiaoxiao, we shouldn’t waste food. Since you can’t finish it, I’ll help you.”
“But that’s my leftovers.” Luo Xiao felt a bit conflicted.
“It’s alright, I don’t mind.” Ye Lan smiled and then finished the remaining food on Luo Xiao’s lunchbox with two or three strokes.
Actually, he wouldn’t tell Luo Xiao that he intentionally did this. That’s right, although he did arrange for two lunchboxes, he put very little food in his own lunchbox, about half of what he usually ate. On the other hand, Luo Xiao’s lunchbox was filled to the brim, as Ye Lan knew his appetite well. He also knew that the leftovers would amount to the other half of his usual food intake.
According to his old man’s advice, everything required cunning and scheming. Especially when pursuing someone you’re interested in, only those who are “cunning” can eventually win the affections of a beautiful lady!
Luo Xiao looked at Ye Lan’s smiling face and quietly swallowed the word, “I mind.” For some reason, seeing him finish the food he didn’t eat, an odd feeling appeared in his heart.
Suddenly, he recalled that in his previous life, whenever he was with that jerk, he was always the one eating the leftovers. Who would ever eat his leftovers? In addition, he remembered one lunchtime when he was busy working and had no time, he planned to eat the leftovers from the last meal with that person and then cook a new hearty meal to enjoy at night.
But to his surprise, as soon as the jerk saw the leftover food on the dining table, combined with his explanation, he directly swept the food onto the floor with a dark expression, slammed the door forcefully, and left. Looking at the good all over the floor, he had the urge to cry at that time.
“Right, Xiaoxiao, what do you want to eat tomorrow? I’ll ask Aunt Li to prepare it for you once I get him.” Ye Lan tidied up the lunchbox and asked Luo Xiao with a smile.
Luo Xiao shook his head. “No need, just make whatever you want. No need to do anything special.”
“Alright, I’ll figure it out then.” Ye Lan nodded.
After a short break, they continued with the afternoon classes. Soon, it was time to leave school. Luo Xiao and the others picked up their bags and started walking towards their home.
In this way, time passed quickly for Luo Xiao with his daily routine of going to school, returning home, and visiting his master’s house on Saturdays to study. Just as the semester was about to end, the matter concerning the principal and the Chinese teacher finally reached its conclusion. The Chinese teacher was directly dismissed, while the principal, due to his many years of service, received a reassignment to a small mountain village below. That mountain village was known by everyone in the town to be impoverished, so being transferred there essentially meant he would spend the rest of his career there. Unless, of course, he chooses to leave his field of work.
Upon hearing that her husband was going to be transferred there, the principal’s wife, who had been adamant against the divorce, took the initiative to bring him to the civil affairs bureau the next day to file for a divorce.
Knowing about this, the Chinese teacher immediately approached the principal and expressed her willingness to marry him. She then decided to follow the principal in that small mountain village to teach as well.
Seeing his lover being so devoted to him, the principal decisively registered their marriage. Since they had concealed their marriage registration from everyone when they went to handle the paperwork, when Mrs. Wu found out, they had already obtained the marriage certificate and had legally become husband and wife. This left Mrs. Wu so enraged that she fainted.
When she regained consciousness, she immediately gave her daughter an ultimatum: either get a divorce immediately or sever their relationship forever and never communicate again until death.
After failing to win the understanding of her family, the Chinese teacher followed the principal to the small mountain village helplessly. As Mrs. Wu watched her daughter leave, she wanted to persuade her not to leave but held back because of her extreme anger. Little did she know, that was the final farewell between mother and daughter.
Just as he expected, on the way to school the next day, Luo Xiao noticed that all the aunties around the neighborhood were talking in a gossipy voices to each other. Based on the few snippets he heard, he was quite certain that the content of their discussion had some relationship with yesterday’s events.
By the time the Chinese class started, as he fixed his eyes on the new teacher standing at the podium, Luo Xiao knew that this incident would become the most talked-about topic in the town for the year. After all, in this era where even radios were considered rare, what were people’s sources of entertainment? It was all kinds of gossip from daily life. Especially when it was about the exposed affair of the principal and the Chinese teacher, who had always been respected figures in their hearts.
“Hey, Xiao Yuzi, have you heard?” After the Chinese class ended, Fan Lie poked his arm and threw a question at him using a mysterious tone.
“What’s wrong?” Luo Xiao also wanted to know what he was going to say.
“Yesterday, you know about what happened here, right? I told my parents about it when I got home, and guess what my mom said?”
“What did she say?”
“My mom said, sure enough, it’s true. Turns out my mom saw them acting all flirty there a lot of times, but she didn’t think in that direction, so she just brushed it off. Now that this has come out, she finally realized.”
Fan Lie suddenly said in a hushed voice, “And, and, Xiao Yuzi, when I passed by the Chinese teacher’s house this morning, I noticed their door was tightly shut. Before this, the parents of that family were just like our principal’s wife, always eager to show off how capable their daughter was, becoming a teacher in our school. Furthermore, they also shamelessly took things from others.”
Hearing his words, Luo Xiao nodded his head; he could relate to this. Not to mention distant examples. These days, after his mother and godmother opened a food shop, Mrs. Wu (the Chinese teacher’s mother) often came to their shop to take some food for free. Once or twice might be understandable, but coming every day—what was that all about? In addition, what irked Luo Xiao even more was her attitude—acting superior while taking things for free!
Despite feeling extremely uncomfortable with the situation, Luo Qian and Xu Yan couldn’t directly refuse. After all, Mrs. Wu’s daughter was the Chinese teacher to their son (godson), and being the main subject teacher required maintaining a good relationship, lest they end up on the wrong side. For Luo Xiao’s sake, they could only bear with it reluctantly.
Of course, with this incident happening and just by recalling the relieved expression on his mother’s and godmother’s faces yesterday, Luo Xiao knew that they were also quite pleased. At least they wouldn’t have to see the annoying face of Mrs. Wu for a long time in the future.
“Hey, hey, your news is not as well-informed as mine.” A classmate sitting in front of Luo Xiao suddenly turned around and chimed in, “I’ve got the latest inside information.”
“Bai Yi, you’re just bragging. Who would believe you?” Fan Lie rolled his eyes and spoke with contempt. “Previously, you claimed that our math teacher was absent because he was dismissed from his job, but in reality, he was just visiting relatives in his hometown! Has any of your news ever been accurate?”
Bai Yi quickly got anxious upon hearing this. “Fan Lie, that was the previous time. But this time, it’s definitely true! Don’t underestimate me!”
“Tch, spare us!” Fan Lie turned to Luo Xiao and opened his mouth to speak, “Xiao Yuzi, let’s not bother with him. It’s probably fake news again, a waste of time.”
“You!” Bai Yi thumped his chest and made a promise. “I, Bai Yi, can guarantee that the news this time is absolutely not fake. If it’s fake, I’ll treat you to a meal!”
Seeing Fan Lie about to continue mocking Bai Yi, Luo Xiao quickly said, “Bai Yin, then tell us what this inside information is.”
“Sure, no problem.” Bai Yi didn’t beat around the bush and readily agreed. “You all know that my aunt is also a teacher in this school. Yesterday, she happened to come to our house for something, and when she mentioned this incident to my parents, she said that after the principal returned to the office, he and his wife quarreled to the point of getting physical. Although she didn’t hear the specific content of the argument clearly, she did witness how miserable they looked when they left the school. Also, this morning when I went to see my aunt, I overheard them in the office discussing that this matter had already been reported to higher-ups. I estimate that both our principal and the Chinese teacher are going to be dismissed.”
“Really?” Fan Lie remained suspicious.
“Of course it’s true!” Bai Yi shot him a fierce look. “I personally heard it, okay?”
“I can vouch for that.” Bai Yi’s deskmate, Qiu Ran, also turned around. “I happened to pass by the office door at that time, and I heard it too.”
Luo Xiao nodded. “Seems like it’s true then.” Actually, whether the principal and the Chinese teacher were dismissed or not didn’t matter much to him. After all, he will be graduating from elementary school next year.
Moreover, he had already made up his mind during this period. He intended to go to City S for middle school. One reason was that City S was known to become a renowned international metropolis in the future in Country Z, even though it hadn’t developed fully yet. Because it hadn’t developed yet, he wanted to seize the opportunity. Another reason was that his master told him to go to City S, mainly because there was a powerful base there, which his master said would be helpful for his future development. And the third reason was his consideration for his mother and godmother. Even though their food shop had just opened, business was good. Now, there were people spreading rumors around, so going to City S would not only allow him to avoid these ill-intentioned people who often approached him but also create a better future there with more development opportunities.
“Ah? In that case, I’m really looking forward to seeing Aunt Wu’s expression when she hears this tragic news.” Fan Lie gloated, winking mischievously.
“True!” Bai Yi agreed, nodding. Because their family ran a small shop at home, although Aunt Wu might not have taken things for free, she always managed to get an advantage whenever she bought something. Sometimes, even if she managed to get an extra piece of candy, she’d be quite pleased.
The group talked about other things for a while before the bell for the class rang. Soon, the morning classes were all finished. Ye Lan swiftly took two lunchboxes and went over to Luo Xiao’s side.
Because last Saturday, under Ye Lan’s enthusiastic persuasion, Luo Xiao had no choice but to agree to his request. Let him prepare lunch for the two of them. Luo Xiao thought about it and realized that it would actually reduce the burden on his mother and godmother, so he agreed without much resistance.
However, turning his eyes on the heavily filled lunch box placed in front of him, he slightly regretted his decision to agree.
“Xiaoxiao, look, these are all dishes you like. Quickly give them a try.” Ye Lan stared at Luo Xiao with expectation in his eyes.
Luo Xiao reluctantly picked up the chopsticks under Ye Lan’s intense gaze and started eating. However, he became full after only eating half of it. An awkward expression appeared on his face as he looked at the remaining half of the food left in the lunchbox. Just as he was about to open his mouth to speak, he saw the lunchbox being taken away directly.
Luo Xiao followed the direction and saw Ye Lan eating from his lunchbox without a word. “Xiaoxiao, we shouldn’t waste food. Since you can’t finish it, I’ll help you.”
“But that’s my leftovers.” Luo Xiao felt a bit conflicted.
“It’s alright, I don’t mind.” Ye Lan smiled and then finished the remaining food on Luo Xiao’s lunchbox with two or three strokes.
Actually, he wouldn’t tell Luo Xiao that he intentionally did this. That’s right, although he did arrange for two lunchboxes, he put very little food in his own lunchbox, about half of what he usually ate. On the other hand, Luo Xiao’s lunchbox was filled to the brim, as Ye Lan knew his appetite well. He also knew that the leftovers would amount to the other half of his usual food intake.
According to his old man’s advice, everything required cunning and scheming. Especially when pursuing someone you’re interested in, only those who are “cunning” can eventually win the affections of a beautiful lady!
Luo Xiao looked at Ye Lan’s smiling face and quietly swallowed the word, “I mind.” For some reason, seeing him finish the food he didn’t eat, an odd feeling appeared in his heart.
Suddenly, he recalled that in his previous life, whenever he was with that jerk, he was always the one eating the leftovers. Who would ever eat his leftovers? In addition, he remembered one lunchtime when he was busy working and had no time, he planned to eat the leftovers from the last meal with that person and then cook a new hearty meal to enjoy at night.
But to his surprise, as soon as the jerk saw the leftover food on the dining table, combined with his explanation, he directly swept the food onto the floor with a dark expression, slammed the door forcefully, and left. Looking at the good all over the floor, he had the urge to cry at that time.
“Right, Xiaoxiao, what do you want to eat tomorrow? I’ll ask Aunt Li to prepare it for you once I get him.” Ye Lan tidied up the lunchbox and asked Luo Xiao with a smile.
Luo Xiao shook his head. “No need, just make whatever you want. No need to do anything special.”
“Alright, I’ll figure it out then.” Ye Lan nodded.
After a short break, they continued with the afternoon classes. Soon, it was time to leave school. Luo Xiao and the others picked up their bags and started walking towards their home.
In this way, time passed quickly for Luo Xiao with his daily routine of going to school, returning home, and visiting his master’s house on Saturdays to study. Just as the semester was about to end, the matter concerning the principal and the Chinese teacher finally reached its conclusion. The Chinese teacher was directly dismissed, while the principal, due to his many years of service, received a reassignment to a small mountain village below. That mountain village was known by everyone in the town to be impoverished, so being transferred there essentially meant he would spend the rest of his career there. Unless, of course, he chooses to leave his field of work.
Upon hearing that her husband was going to be transferred there, the principal’s wife, who had been adamant against the divorce, took the initiative to bring him to the civil affairs bureau the next day to file for a divorce.
Knowing about this, the Chinese teacher immediately approached the principal and expressed her willingness to marry him. She then decided to follow the principal in that small mountain village to teach as well.
Seeing his lover being so devoted to him, the principal decisively registered their marriage. Since they had concealed their marriage registration from everyone when they went to handle the paperwork, when Mrs. Wu found out, they had already obtained the marriage certificate and had legally become husband and wife. This left Mrs. Wu so enraged that she fainted.
When she regained consciousness, she immediately gave her daughter an ultimatum: either get a divorce immediately or sever their relationship forever and never communicate again until death.
After failing to win the understanding of her family, the Chinese teacher followed the principal to the small mountain village helplessly. As Mrs. Wu watched her daughter leave, she wanted to persuade her not to leave but held back because of her extreme anger. Little did she know, that was the final farewell between mother and daughter.
