Teacher Zhang was originally leading He Ying toward the infirmary.
But after hearing He Ying’s desire to drop out, she instead took He Ying to her own office.
The teacher’s offices at Hongru Academy were divided into public areas and private areas.
The public areas were for teachers to handle routine work and socialize, while the private areas were used for lesson preparation, addressing students’ personal issues, and having conversations like the one she was about to have with He Ying.
Once inside the private area, Teacher Zhang asked He Ying, “Should we turn off the surveillance?”
He Ying nodded.
Teacher Zhang then activated the smart panel on the wall and said to He Ying, “Use this to scan your retina. Once it’s verified, you can turn it off with voice control.”
He Ying was puzzled. “Can’t the teacher turn it off directly?”
Teacher Zhang smiled. “This is to protect you students. In such highly private spaces, if a teacher wanted to do something inappropriate to a student, it would be all too easy. So the school set up the surveillance here so that only students have the authority to turn it off. While it doesn’t guarantee absolute safety, it at least serves as a deterrent.”
Teacher Zhang had been closely observing He Ying’s expressions. Aside from a slight emotional fluctuation when the topic of whether effort truly mattered was brought up earlier, He Ying had remained calm the entire time.
Even now, upon hearing the explanation about the surveillance, she merely nodded and used her retina authorization to turn off the monitoring.
He Ying was adept at controlling her emotions and clearly knew what she was doing.
As an educator, Teacher Zhang understood all too well how much time, effort, and care it took to raise a child of He Ying’s age to be like this.
Based on what she knew about He Ying’s academic performance and their brief interaction just now, Teacher Zhang found it hard to believe that He Ying would target Xia Shuyue over Shangguan Mingyu, as the rumors suggested.
From what she had heard, the principal had even secretly tasked the student council with gathering evidence of He Ying’s wrongdoing. Instead of finding any incriminating evidence, they ended up capturing footage of He Ying bravely stepping in to help someone.
Uncertain whether the video of He Ying rescuing Xia Shuyue was staged or not, the principal was still observing quietly. However, Teacher Zhang felt that He Ying was a good kid.
What kind of bad kid could run alongside horses on the riding grounds like that? The principal was overly suspicious every single day. In her opinion, the one who most needed to see a psychologist was the principal himself. If he had been an emperor in ancient times, his subjects would have died from his constant paranoia.
After mentally venting about the principal, Teacher Zhang began analyzing why He Ying had suddenly realized she had little chance of inheriting the family business.
First, it couldn’t have been her parents who told her. If they were going to tell He Ying, they wouldn’t have waited until after she had successfully applied to Hongru Academy.
The most likely possibility was that it came from He Ying’s classmates.
The classmates who knew about the He family’s situation were few—you could count them on two hands—but those students wouldn’t have voluntarily told He Ying, or else how would they benefit?
The most plausible explanation was that He Ying had figured it out on her own.
After some thought, Teacher Zhang connected the dots with campus gossip and reached her own conclusion.
He Ying likely discovered the truth by testing Shangguan Mingyu and Chi Jingsheng.
Chi Jingsheng’s usual behavior was relatively decent, but Shangguan Mingyu had caused such a stir on several occasions that even the principal couldn’t stand it. He had even written a letter to higher-ups criticizing the Shangguan family, which finally made Shangguan Mingyu tone it down a little.
Teacher Zhang had He Ying sit on the sofa, brewed her a cup of Calming Tea, and then sat down beside her, speaking softly, “He Ying, you just said that hard work is meaningless, but that’s not true. Your efforts are seen by your teachers, and there’s no doubt that you are an outstanding child.”
He Ying remained as composed as ever, merely repeating her earlier words, “Thank you, Teacher Zhang, but it really is meaningless. I’ve studied at the school for three years, and I still don’t know what might happen. Rather than leaving with a tarnished reputation later, it’s better to leave cleanly now.”
Teacher Zhang was somewhat shocked by He Ying’s bluntness. He Ying’s excellence was genuine, and her clarity of mind was equally real. It was precisely because of this that she felt a deep sense of sorrow upon hearing He Ying’s intention to drop out.
“You don’t have to be so pessimistic. Hongru Academy is absolutely fair. The things you’re worried about aren’t entirely non-negotiable if you’re outstanding enough. You’ve been working hard all this time—are you really willing to give up now?” Teacher Zhang’s words were remarkably candid at this point.
Yes, He Ying’s inheritance condition was to rank in the top ten at Hongru Academy for three consecutive years.
This seemed like an ordinary condition, but Hongru Academy was different from ordinary schools. It wasn’t a place where rankings were determined solely by final exam scores. Simply cramming for exams to make the top ten, as in other schools, was impossible here.
The final score included daily performance points, also known as conduct points—this was “propriety.” The final exam tested knowledge—this was “wisdom.” Achieving notable results in elective sports or demonstrating performance that impressed teachers—this was “physicality.” Participating in social activities organized by the school on weekends and gaining recognition from society—this was “virtue.”
In other words, how many points He Ying could earn depended entirely on the teachers’ evaluations. If higher-ups interfered, He Ying would never achieve her goal.
But Teacher Zhang said the school was absolutely fair, offering He Ying reassurance.
Perhaps this was also why the He family was willing to accept this inheritance condition.
Having probed this far, He Ying already had a clear understanding.
It wasn’t a dead end.
Her eyes subtly glanced at the screen not far away. The screen was adorned with a painting of flowers and birds—beautiful, but it didn’t quite harmonize with its surroundings. According to Hongru Academy’s aesthetic standards, such a mismatch shouldn’t have occurred.
He Ying lowered her gaze, not immediately relenting, and deliberately said, “If ten people accuse someone, it’s slander. If a hundred people accuse someone, it might still be slander. But if ten thousand people accuse someone, it becomes justice.”
“Teacher, is the school also justice?”
Teacher Zhang was deeply struck by He Ying’s pointed words. She was older now and couldn’t bear to see hardworking and talented children like He Ying fail to achieve their potential. He Ying deserved to stand far higher.
“Teachers never listen to others’ justice. I believe my colleagues, including the principal, have their own sense of justice.”
“He Ying, do you trust me? Give me a chance to prove it, and give yourself a chance to keep striving.”
He Ying looked up, a tear perfectly timed to fall from the corner of her eye. Suppressing the tremor in her voice, she asked word by word, “Then, can your justice stand against the justice of ten thousand people?”
Teacher Zhang reached out and gently wiped away the tears at the corner of He Ying’s eyes. “A teacher can’t do it alone, but as long as we work together, we can definitely succeed. He Ying, try a little harder, okay?”
Tears continued to well up in He Ying’s eyes, yet a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. “Okay.”
“I believe in you, Teacher.”