Ye Yun’s action surprised Wu Ziqiong slightly. As a woman, especially a beautiful one, she was quite confident in her appearance. Everywhere she went, she was the focus of male attention. Even in a solemn setting like a parent-teacher meeting, many male parents would still steal glances at her. Ye Yun, however, was an exception; he merely nodded and immediately looked away. She didn't pay it much mind, as Ye Yun was just passing through, and she wasn't sure when she'd see him again, besides these parent-teacher meetings.
Just then, the new teacher, Teacher Huang, entered. He was slightly stout with thin lips and a perpetually sharp, unkind expression. "Ahem! Are all the parents here? Hmm? Zhao Kai, your parents..."
"Sorry, sorry, just went to the restroom."
At that moment, Zhao Yuanyang rushed in, apologizing profusely while quickly heading to sit next to Zhao Kai. Zhao Kai was seated in front of Ke Ke, placing Zhao Yuanyang directly in front of Ye Yun. Teacher Huang frowned and glanced at Zhao Yuanyang before clearing his throat again.
"Since everyone is here, the parent-teacher meeting will now begin. Please be quiet!"
Instantly, the classroom, which had been bustling with noise, became utterly silent. Clearly, everyone wanted to avoid offending the new teacher. Teacher Huang nodded with satisfaction and continued, "As mentioned in the group chat yesterday, we are here today for two main reasons: first, for the new teacher to get acquainted with everyone. My name is Huang Shuxin, and you can call me Teacher Huang from now on."
As he spoke, Teacher Huang wrote "Huang Shuxin" on the small blackboard. "The second matter is to read out the list of donations for the elderly care home and to confirm the participants for the Jinling Kindergarten Fun Track and Field Competition in a month."
With that, Teacher Huang took out a document and began to read. "The highest donation comes from student Zhao Mengxi, who donated two thousand yuan. Please applaud!" A young boy sitting in the center of the front row immediately stood up, dressed formally, and proudly surveyed the class like a peacock. Beside him sat a woman dressed in gaudy attire, whose perfume was so strong that even from across the classroom, Ye Yun could smell it.
"The second highest donation is from Gu Yang, who donated 1940 yuan. Please applaud!" Another young boy stood up, also seated in the front row, next to the previous boy. The parent beside him also stood up proudly, pressing their hands down like a dignitary, and said with a smile, "It's nothing, really. Just a small amount. It's all from the children's pocket money."
Ke Ke, Zhao Kai, and Zhong Xintong all clenched their little fists, watching Teacher Huang with nervous anticipation. No child was indifferent when their name was called. They might not have a strong concept of money, but they deeply desired to hear their names from the teacher's mouth, as if it were the greatest honor.
Teacher Huang continued to read out names. Apart from the top few who donated over 1500 yuan, most children donated a few hundred yuan. After calling out over thirty names, Teacher Huang paused and said, "Alright, the remaining students all donated two hundred yuan, so I won't read their names out. Now, I will announce the participants for the Jinling Kindergarten Fun Track and Field Competition, starting with..."
"Wait!" At this point, Zhao Yuanyang stood up and interrupted. Instantly, all eyes in the classroom turned to Zhao Yuanyang, except for Ye Yun. He noticed that Ke Ke seemed dejected because her name hadn't been called. In fact, Li Mengyao was in charge of Ke Ke's finances, and she felt that a kindergarten child didn't need to donate much, so she only gave two hundred yuan. Who would have thought the other children would donate so much! Ye Yun wasn't foolish; while some might have genuinely donated a lot, there was clearly something fishy about the top few donations. Couldn't he see where those children were seated?
Not only Ke Ke, but Zhao Kai and Zhong Xintong also hung their heads, looking like defeated roosters. Zhong Xintong, the little girl, was the most visibly upset, her eyes turning red. Her mother patted her head and whispered words of comfort.
"Zhao Kai's father, is there something you need?" Teacher Huang asked.
"My son also donated money. After all, it's the thought that counts. Why didn't the teacher mention his name? Not mentioning donations below 200 yuan, isn't that a bit inappropriate?" Zhao Yuanyang asked indignantly. Hearing Zhao Yuanyang's words, Zhao Kai's small black head immediately lifted, looking at Teacher Huang with hopeful eyes.
However, Teacher Huang responded with utter disdain. "I don't think it's inappropriate. Please don't interrupt our parent-teacher meeting. Your lateness was already very impolite! The school only holds these donation events a few times a year. If it's less than two hundred yuan, you don't qualify to have your name read out."
Immediately, the parents sitting in the front row, those who had donated over a thousand yuan, showed expressions of approval. Meanwhile, parents sitting in the back, who had donated less, wore embarrassed expressions. Zhao Yuanyang trembled with anger! In truth, Zhao Yuanyang subscribed to the philosophy of raising boys with frugality. He deliberately chose not to send his son to an elite school so that his son would interact more with ordinary people and stay grounded. Yet, he was now being humiliated over a few hundred yuan. Seeing his son's crestfallen face, Zhao Yuanyang felt like smashing the table and throwing a million cash at the teacher's face!
Ye Yun nudged Zhao Yuanyang's back and whispered, "Manager Zhao, forget it, forget it. Please sit down." Zhao Yuanyang trembled with rage, but after a moment's hesitation, he didn't flip the table. This was partly due to his good impression of Ye Yun and partly because he wanted to maintain his low profile, not wanting his son to pick up the bad habits of the rich. Otherwise, as the CEO of Yuanyang Group, would he be short of a little money?
Many of the parents in the front row, seeing Zhao Yuanyang act so subservient, let out sneers. They believed Zhao Yuanyang had brought this humiliation upon himself. If you don't have money to donate, why should you expect people who donate more not to get privileges? The poor are even entitled to their poverty? With his head held high like a turtle, he tries to speak up, how embarrassing! The teacher glanced at Zhao Yuanyang, and the disdain in his eyes was evident not only to Ye Yun but to any parent present.
Teacher Huang continued, "Alright, alright, please don't disturb me. Now, let's continue announcing the participants for the Jinling Kindergarten Fun Track and Field Competition. This competition is based on families. The first pair is student Zhao Mengxi and their parent!" The boy in the center of the front row stood up again, his head held high like a proud peacock, surveying the classroom. "Second place: student Gu Yang and his parents!" "Third place..." Name after name was called out, and the order was precisely the same as the donation ranking!