New students orientation ceremony.
Ding Cai was taking the attendance for the class when he realized that Lu Mian was missing. After asking around, he found out that she had already left.
Worried about his student, he went outside searching for her.
When he left the auditorium, he saw an old man on crutches standing at the door. He was looking around for something.
Ding Cai went over and asked, “May I know whose parent are you? Or who are you looking for?”
Elder Su didn’t know Ding Cai. He pointed towards the auditorium. “I’m looking for the parents of Lu Mian. Lu Mian is in tenth grade section 25.”
“Lu Mian?” Ding Cai looked back inside with a strange expression. “Her parents didn’t come today. They said they were busy and couldn’t get away.”
“None of them came?”
Elder Su seemed to understand something. His expression became cold.
He had heard about some things.
“Sir, may I know why you are looking for Lu Mian’s parents? Did she do something? I’m her form teacher, Ding Cai. You can tell me if there’s anything, or I can call Lu Mian’s mother for you.”
“That’s fine.” Elder Su nodded. Seeing that Ding Cai was a bit nervous and worried, he even explained, “Don’t worry, Mr. Ding. Lu Mian did a good deed and saved someone. I’m here to thank her and at the same time, I want to talk to her parents.”
He was Sui Yuan’s sponsor. It was alright for him to say so.
Besides, he thought Lu Mian was lonely and not talkative. She wasn’t the kind of kid to seek merit from her parents. If he was the one to tell them, he might be able to get her parents to care more about her.
Ding Cai immediately contacted Fu Man, Lu Mian’s mother, with a sense of pride and honor on his face.
His student had done something good. Naturally, he was happy as her form teacher.
However, the phone rang several times without anyone answering.
When he finally got through, he could vaguely hear ‘this way for students and parents from twelfth grade’. Confused, he uttered uncertainly, “Hello?”
Fu Man sounded impatient and she didn’t take the initiative to speak after taking the call.
Ding Cai broke the silence. He said helplessly, “Lu Mian’s mother, I am her form teacher, Ding Cai. There’s something I wish to talk to you about…”
“Mr. Ding!” Fu Man interrupted before Ding Cai could finish. “Sorry, I’m busy here. Regarding Lu Mian’s problem, I will discipline her properly when I’m home.”
After saying that, she hung up without even a greeting.
Ding Cai and Elder Su looked at each other.
While they were in a daze, the parents and students from twelfth grade’s mobilization meeting next door came out one after another.
Among the crowd, Ding Cai saw Fu Man wearing a dark red dress at one glance. However, when he was about to call her, he saw her walking with a delicate girl and a middle-aged man. The girl had one hand around Fu Man’s arm and another on the man’s arm. “Mom, Dad, this way,” she instructed them sweetly.
At that moment, realization dawned on Ding Cai. This was what she said about being busy and couldn’t get away.
Elder Su understood too.
“How interesting!” Elder Su grunted. He was so upset that he threw his hands and walked away on his crutches.
Ding Cai held the phone in his hand. He felt the coldness in his feet in this September weather.
All he wanted to do was to tell Fu Man that Lu Mian had done something good…
…
Lu Xinnuan accompanied Fu Man and Lu Zhizhai out of the auditorium.
The pep rally didn’t go perfectly. The outstanding student representative, Su Jue, and the excellent teacher, Sun Jiaying, were supposed to speak on stage. They had to postpone because of an emergency.
Lu Xinnuan did go on stage, but she couldn’t get back the feeling of complacency she used to have.
She did manage to smirk when she saw Fu Man hang up on Lu Mian’s form teacher.
“Mom, was that Sister’s form teacher just now?”
Fu Man’s voice was impassive. “Hey, I guess Lu Mian must have done something wrong again, so I just hung up with an excuse.”
“So, Sister really didn’t apply for any leave…”