No Less For Her

"Is there something wrong, Qian Xiu Rong?" asked Mom, a look of concern on her face. "Was Tang Tang not able to complete the exams?"

Dad and I exchanged a look, trying to keep the smile off of our faces. Mom always did like to rub it in other people's faces when she was right.

The headmaster swallowed before nodding her head. "Unfortunately, she was not able to complete any of the exams past grade ten," she said, not addressing the fact that she had a fully completed exam sitting in front of her.

"And the one you are currently looking over?" pressed Mom, not willing to back off an inch. If this was how she treated people she considered to be a friend, I would hate to see how she treated an enemy.

"So far, it looks like she has passed the grade nine English," came the response.

"Ah," nodded Mom before getting comfortable in her chair. "Then we will let you keep going."

-----

It took the headmaster longer than it should have to go through the grade nine and ten exams, and by the end of it, I was practically curled up on the couch, ready to go to sleep.

I wonder if mom could make me breaded chicken for dinner. I could eat that like popcorn.

The headmaster cleared her throat as she put aside the last paper.

"May I ask how this is possible?" she said, oddly formal, as she looked at Mom.

"Let's just say that it is entirely possible to knock some sense into someone," answered Mom with a secretive smirk. Well, she wasn't wrong. The hit to the head allowed a 25-year-old to take over her daughter's body, so in a way, she was right. A hard enough hit worked to knock some sense into the child.

"I see," replied the headmaster, looking between me and Mom. "Well, her grade 9 results are promising, but she is lacking in some subjects."

One subject. I was lacking in one subject. And I promise you that I won't be lacking in History for too much longer.

Mom didn't say anything; she just smiled like the cat that got the canary.

"However, she didn't complete all of the exams. So, it is my decision to have her placed in one of the grade ten classes. However, I would like to say that if she can't keep up, we will be placing her in grade 9."

"Of course," soothed Mom, a kind smile on her face. "We'll bring her in tomorrow. I assume that you have a uniform for her?"

"We don't," replied the headmaster through clenched teeth. "It's not like we have ever had a six-year-old attending the school before."

"True," conceded Mom. "I will have her dressed in her normal clothes until you can get her some uniforms."

Now, it was the headmaster's turn to not say anything. Nodding her head, she dismissed the rest of us from her office.

We walked in silence back to our car, the school long since deserted.

"I am going to assume that you have questions, Tang Tang," said Mom as she got into the passenger's seat. She let out a long sigh, and I could see the tension I didn't realize she was holding disappear. "I always hated that fucking school."

My eyes went wide at her words. I had never heard her swear before, and I couldn't help but be shocked.

"But it is the best school in City D. Plus, I can lean on your grandparents to make sure that you have a good experience."

"Are you sure, Honey?" asked Dad, the look of concern on his face letting me know that something was not right.

"I am," nodded Mom definitely. She took in a deep breath and took her phone out of her purse as Dad pulled out of the school and into traffic.

"Hi, Mom," she said after a minute, and I realized that she had called someone. "No. Everything is fine. No, I am not leaving Yong Zhen," she snapped, and I could see Dad cringe in the driver's seat.

"Well, if you would let me talk, I would be able to tell you why I called," continued Mom, and I watched her take a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. "Tian Mu got into Trinity, and I was wondering if you and Dad were still on the board of directors."

There was a long period of quiet before Mom spoke again. "Fine. I will bring her to the house."

Mom hung up the phone and turned around. "My parents are…" she trailed off, trying to find a good word to describe her parents. I could only assume that, based on the part of the conversation that I heard, they didn't approve of her marrying Dad.

"Understood," I said with a smile.

"Yes, you do," answered Mom, a look of appreciation on her face.

It took another 30 minutes before we arrived at a large mansion. There were mature trees all around, and you could tell that this place had been here for a while.

Taking a deep breath, Mom got out of the car and waited for Dad and me to go stand beside her. She didn't bother to say anything before we walked up to the front door, but I wanted more information as to what I could expect when I walked in there.

The door opened before Mom could even knock, and a distinguished man in a tuxedo stood in the entranceway. "Good evening, Mrs. Wang. They are expecting you in the drawing room."

Mom nodded and stepped inside. She kept her shoes on as she made her way down the marble hallway and stopped just outside of a set of closed doors.

Looking over at me and Dad to make sure that we were beside her, she opened the doors and strolled in like she owned the place.

"I told you that you would come crawling back," said the older man sitting on a white couch. He looked Mom up and down, the sneer on his face letting her know precisely what he thought of her.

"Funny, she doesn't look to be crawling to me," I said, skirting around Mom to stand in front of her. I understood that having their support would make my life easier at the high school, but I wasn't going to let her bow her head to anyone.

She supported me; I could do no less for her.