Chapter 7: Paying A Personal Visit for Guidance
Translator: Lordbluefire Editor: Lordbluefire
In the headmaster’s office.
A beauty wearing moon-white robes was currently working at her desk busily. Her raven-black long hair was tied up behind her head using a simple hairpin. Although she didn’t have any cosmetics on, she was still elegant and incomparably beautiful.
In the room, the low sound of breathing could be heard. The summer wind gusted by and the sound of paper pages flipping filled the room. There was also a faint fragrance in the atmosphere and a knowledgeable aura silently permeated the air.
Zhou Lin pushed open the door and lightened her steps as she walked in.
“The gatekeeper of the Qian Family said that Elder Qian was out visiting friends and didn’t receive your invitation. Evidently, he didn’t wish to meet Eldest Miss!”
Zhou Lin bit her lips, her tone was indignant. She was An Xinhui’s assistant and was responsible for handling the miscellaneous official business.
In private, Zhou Lin would always refer to An Xinhui as ‘Eldest Miss’.
“Don’t speak nonsense. Maybe Elder Qian is really not at home.”
An Xinhui’s tone was calm, there were no fluctuations in her voice at all.
“I think he basically doesn’t wish to come to the student recruitment meet.”
Zhou Lin coldly spoke, “I heard that he has already agreed to the invitation of the headmaster from Myriad Daos Academy and is preparing to be a great teacher under them.”
There were over ten academies in Jinling City. The most famous one was undoubtedly the Central Province Academy, but due to its unceasing decline, it was now already surpassed by the Myriad Daos Academy.
An Xinhui fell silent. She knew that the rallying power of Central Province Academy had almost fallen to the freezing point. She was trying her best to turn the situation around, but things naturally wouldn’t be so easy.
“Eldest Miss, we have to think of a solution fast. Seven great teachers under us have been headhunted away by our rivals.”
Zhou Lin felt anxious in her heart. The foundation of a famous school was naturally the number of great teachers it had. If they didn’t even have a single great teacher, what qualifications did they have to have the title of a ‘famous school’?
“Mn!”
An Xinhui stopped her impulse to sigh. In front of outsiders, she wasn’t willing to display her weaknesses and dejected feelings. “Oh yes, how has he been doing?”
“Very good!”
Zhou Lin knew that Headmaster An was talking about her fiance. The moment this fellow was mentioned, Zhou Lin would feel angry. An Xinhui was a top graduate from the Heavenly Mystery Academy, a great beauty ranked 7th on the Devastating Beauty Rankings. She had good looks and high intelligence, so what qualifications did that Sun Mo have to marry her?
“He should be blaming me, right?”
An Xinhui furrowed her brows.
“Did he dare to?”
Zhou Lin’s vocal timbre was lifted by ten octaves. “Ever since you took over this terrible mess, you have been so busy and hard-pressed from the pressure that you have no time to handle any other matters. Moreover, you cannot make decisions about matters of the school alone.”
“But I should have persisted back then. Sun Mo was tossed into the logistics department and couldn’t even become a teaching assistant. To a teaching graduate, the impact of such a blow is too heavy.”
An Xinhui felt some regret. Back then, she should have endured the pressure those fellows gave her. She understood that those fellows were targeting Sun Mo because they wanted to display a show of strength toward her.
“If he cannot even settle this bit of difficulty, he might as well commit suicide earlier.”
Zhou Lin mocked, “Don’t hope that he would be able to help you at all. That Sun Mo..? It’s impossible for him.”
...
During the afternoon, Qi Shengjia could finally move. However, his right arm and left leg were still numb and had stiffened up. He could feel hard blocks of flesh when he touched them; the tactile sensation felt like rocks.
“You should look for a doctor,” said Wang Hao
He bought lunch back and placed it on the table. “Eat a little less.”
“You definitely won’t be able to join the battle hall. The thing you have to do now is to do your utmost to not become crippled,” interjected Yan Li who was eating his porridge.
Usually, he wouldn’t stay in the dorm at this time. However, today was different. When he saw the look of despair on the loathsome Qi Shengjia’s face, he was so happy that he wanted to hum a little tune.
“If you speak less, no one will think that you are a mute.” Zhou Xu said.
“What has this got to do with you? Can’t I be concerned for Qi Shengjia?” Yan Li shouted back with an aggressive expression.
Qi Shengjia sat on his bed and stared at the floor in a daze. He hadn’t spoken for half-a-day. If he was really crippled, he might as well commit suicide to save some trouble for his family.
“You definitely damaged your body because of excessive training. Do you want to look for a great teacher and seek their guidance?” asked Zhou Xu. He couldn’t be bothered to argue with Yan Li.
“Do you think a great teacher is a stone by the side of the road that you can find any time?”
Yan Li rolled his eyes. Zhou Xi was truly indulging in fantasy.
Qi Shengjia, who was in a daze, suddenly woke up when he heard this. His eyes brightened as though he had managed to grab hold of his last hope. He struggled and got off the bed, suddenly recalling Sun Mo whom he had met last night. Sun Mo had told him that his way of training was incorrect and had even specially reminded him to pay attention to his right arm and left leg.
“Could he have seen the problems in my body?”
When he thought of this, Qi Shengjia felt a little regret. He had ignored the other party yesterday.
“What are you doing?”
Wang Hao went over to help Qi Shengjia up, seeing that he wanted to move.
“I want to...go out to relax a little.”
Qi Shengjia wanted to explain, but seeing that Yan Li was present, he swallowed the words he wanted to say back into his mouth.
...
It was very easy to find the residence of the intern teachers. Qi Shengjia soon managed to inquire about Sun Mo’s address. It was just that when he walked to his unit’s door, he hesitated again.
“Yesterday, my attitude wasn’t good. What if he doesn’t want to guide me?”
Ludi just returned and had a pottery pot with him. When he saw Qi Shengjia standing at the door, he lowered his voice and asked, “Who are you looking for?”
After asking, Ludi silently felt a little annoyed. His voice was too loud, exhibiting the prestige of a teacher, yet he had ignored the personal warmth and friendliness. He had to continue tempering his voice more.
Qi Shengjia’s neck shrank back. He avoided Ludi’s gaze and took a few steps back
Ludi shrugged. He didn’t express an opinion and entered the door.
During dusk, the birds returned to their best.
Yuan Feng carried a pile of books and returned. The moment he entered, he asked, “What’s wrong with that student outside?”
“No idea, he already came a few times this afternoon.”
There was a plate of pig trotters placed in front of Ludi. He was carefully pulling out the fur. This was something he wanted to give to a teacher, so he naturally needed to make it perfect.
“Did the student come because he wanted some guidance?”
Yuan Feng was curious. As he was speaking, Zhang Sheng also returned.
Night descended. Qi Shengjia still didn’t have the intention to leave.
“Do you guys think that he is here for guidance but doesn’t dare to ask?”
Ludi subconsciously tidied up his clothes.
“If he wants to look for someone, it most probably is Zhang Sheng I guess!”
Yuan Feng bootlicked. From his perspective, there was an 80% to 90% chance that Zhang Sheng would join the faculty after the internship. There was no mistake to forge a good relationship with him now.
Zhang Sheng didn’t say anything, but his arrogant expression clearly said that he was also paying attention to that student.
“Should we go and ask him?”
Ludi suggested. He had some hopes that maybe the student was looking for him?
“If we have to go and ask, Zhang Sheng should be the one!”
Yuan Feng urged. “A student staying here until night just to seek guidance. If this matter circulates out, it would be good for our reputation!”
Zhang Sheng had long since decided. Since that student didn’t want to knock on the door, he wouldn’t take the initiative to ask. After all, even an intern teacher had to have some prestige, he mustn’t lower himself. But when he heard Ludi’s words, he found it logical too.
“Quickly go and see what that fellow wants guidance on?”
Ludi urged.
“Mn!”
Zhang Sheng stood up. He smoothed the creases in his clothes before walking out.
“You have been standing outside the door for so long, do you have something you need?”
Zhang Sheng asked.
“I...”
Qi Shengjia swallowed a mouthful of saliva. “I’m looking for Sun Mo...Teacher Sun.”
When he heard the two words ‘Sun Mo’, Zhang Sheng’s face instantly turned black, and he almost wanted to turn and leave. However, he bore the impulse. A student came to seek guidance from Sun Mo, why did he have to come out? If this matter was to spread, he would truly lose face. Hence, he had to ask clearly.
“Why are you looking for him?”
After Zhang Sheng asked, a self-mocking smile appeared on his face. He felt that he was thinking too much. For trash like Sun Mo, even if the student was retarded, he would never be looking for Sun Mo for guidance!
“To...to ask for guidance!”
Qi Shengjia’s voice became even lower.
“What?”
Zhang Sheng’s voice broke. Even Ludi and Yuan Feng, who were eavesdropping from the house, also had dumbfounded looks on their faces.
Qi Shengjia lowered his head. His foot shifted as he wanted to leave.
“Stop right there!”
Zhang Sheng’s voice was filled with anger. “Sun Mo isn’t around. What do you want guidance on? I can answer for him!”
Zhang Sheng truly didn’t want to bother with this ignorant student, but there was no way he could let this student walk away like that. If not, wouldn’t that be saying that he was inferior to Sun Mo? Hence, what he needed to do now was settle the problem of this student and prove that his teaching ability was excellent.
“My...my hand and leg are disabled. I want to seek guidance on the reason behind this.”
Qi Shengjia decided to muster up his courage and asked.
Zhang Sheng was astonished. After that, his complexion turned ashen as he roared, “Damn! You are not only crippled in your hands and legs. Your brain is crippled too. Are you crazy? If you are injured, why don’t you look for a doctor?”
After cursing, Zhang Sheng turned and left. From his point of view, this must be a sinister plot between competitors. They wanted to destroy his reputation and lower his chance of joining the faculty after the internship.
“Sun Mo must be the one behind this!”
Yuan Feng pointed the finger of blame at Sun Mo. “He must be jealous of your talent and wants to drag you under the water.”
Ludi pretended to be a cowardly turtle and remained silent as he continued plucking the fur from the pig trotters.
Bang!
Zhang Sheng smashed his teacup angrily, annoyed because he had never thought of using this method. (I will find a few students to look for me in batches to increase my reputation.)
Wasn’t it just gaining reputation? Who didn’t know how to do this?
“That fellow Sun Mo doesn’t have any abilities, but has quite a lot of crafty ideas.”
Yuan Feng patted his pocket and calculated how much money he had. He could hire a few students for this purpose too, but he was also worried the school might find out and directly fire him!
When the three woke up in the morning and went out, they saw Qi Shengjia waiting at a location not far away from their door.
“This time around, Sun Mo must have paid dearly. I wonder how much he spent!”
Yuan Feng mocked.
“Hmph!”
Zhang Sheng didn’t look at Qi Shengjia. Such an inferior student wouldn’t be able to excel in his entire life. He would feel disdain if he was to speak half-a-word more to this student.
...
In the canteen. As Sun Mo ate a vegetarian bun, he was looking at the floating golden-colored book before him in a daze.
Yesterday, the lucky treasure chest had been refreshed. Sun Mo had thought that he would get another clump of soil, but then this book appeared.
According to logic, he should feel happy after getting a prize. But when he saw the name of this skill book, Sun Mo felt perplexed and even a little unhappy.