Not Giving In

Shao Xi looked at Mu Jingzhe helplessly.

Why was she still acting when they were already back at home? Or… was she serious?

"I'm telling the truth. You're really amazing."

Mu Jingzhe sighed. Shao Xi had turned only seven years old that year, yet he'd already managed to come up with incredible ideas such as going back in time.

"I finally understand why Teacher Zhang called it a mess. It's because he can't think like this and doesn't know how to appreciate it."

Mu Jingzhe wedged the torn piece of paper inside the exercise book. "I'll glue it up later. But Shao Xi, you have to remember that you write very well. Your writing is rare. You are truly one in a million. Don't mind what Teacher Zhang said."

Shao Xi wanted to find traces of lying on her face, but he only saw sincerity.

After being oppressed for so long, suddenly hearing this compliment brought a smile to his lips, but he held himself back. "You… You won't get any benefits by lying to me."

Mu Jingzhe laughed. "I don't need any benefits as long as you write an essay for me to read. Your talent is the best benefit."

The word 'talent' made Shao Xi's face burn uncontrollably. "You know about talent… Then in the future, I will still write whatever I think of. If Teacher Zhang causes me trouble and asks me to rewrite it, I will look for you."

"Don't worry, leave it to me. I'll deal with him."

She didn't care about other people. In any case, she was determined to manage Shao Xi. In the future, she wouldn't allow the teacher to hit him or punish him physically. She wouldn't let him tear up his workbook and degrade him either.

After all, a teacher could have a lifelong impact on a child.

Mu Jingzhe was prepared to send Shao Xi and the others to school in the afternoon. She wanted to talk to Zhang Fei. If it didn't work, she would talk to the principal. Hence, she wanted to find out more about the situation.

"Does he treat other students the same way?"

"Not really. I think he's more hostile with me… Oh, and my brother. He used to make my brother get up to answer questions and read out loud. When my brother stut… paused, he deliberately made my brother repeat it. He didn't stop our classmates from laughing at him either. Later, it was the principal who stopped him, refusing to listen to his quibbles about how he was training my brother."

Shao Dong stuttered when he spoke, and it was the same when he read a text out loud. Because of this, he only spoke when he absolutely had to, yet Zhang Fei treated him in this manner. One could imagine how angry and upset he was.

Mu Jingzhe clenched her fists tightly, feeling very upset.

At only seven years old, Shao Dong had to think of a way to protect his younger brothers and sister, but when he was humiliated, there was no one to stand up for him.

"I should have punched him earlier." Mu Jingzhe gritted her teeth.

Shao Xi nodded in agreement. He wanted to do that too. Upon seeing Mu Jingzhe get mad because of what had happened to his older brother, he felt a little better.

"When did he start doing this?"

"He has always been like that, but it's gotten worse recently." Shao Xi curled his lips. "Teacher Zhang has been in a bad mood recently."

Even if he was in a bad mood, he shouldn't be venting his anger on the students.

Mu Jingzhe went to ask around and found it strange. Although teachers were strict these days, she felt that Zhang Fei was treating others normally and was only targeting the Shao brothers, especially Shao Xi.

For the past month or so, it had become the norm for Shao Xi to stand as a form of punishment. He was also punished by being made to stay behind to get hit or being forced to run. He wasn't allowed to go home to eat either.

The reason was unclear.

In the afternoon, Mu Jingzhe and Shao Xi went to school together. Zhang Fei's attitude was worse than in the morning, and he was waiting for Mu Jingzhe to apologize.

However, Mu Jingzhe wasn't there to apologize.

"Teacher Zhang, if Shao Xi has done anything wrong, you can tell me. I will get him to apologize to you, but I hope that you can treat him like you treat the other students."

She had to stop the teacher from picking on Shao Xi and Shao Dong. Being targeted by a teacher was a complete nightmare for a student.

"What do you mean? Are you saying that I deliberately make things difficult for him and punish him?" Zhang Fei exploded and went straight to the principal to demand justice. "I don't dare teach such a student anymore."

He wanted Shao Xi to be kicked out of his class.

The principal's head hurt. "We don't have many classes. Yours is the only class in the second grade. If he doesn't study in your class, where will he go? The parent just feels heartache for her child. You should be more forgiving…"

"I can't bear it. Just take him home and never bring him to my class again. If he wants to stay in school and allow me to continue teaching him, you have to listen to me."

Zhang Fei pointed outside. "He did his homework in a slipshod manner today and talked back to the teacher. I punished him by making him run in the field, but he didn't run. Now, he's going to run ten laps before coming back!"

It was as if Shao Xi had committed a heinous crime and Mu Jingzhe was being unreasonable.

Mu Jingzhe's fist hardened again when she saw his arrogant demeanor.

"Teacher Zhang, you're making him run ten rounds in this weather and you even hit him in the morning. If anything happens to him, will you take responsibility? Pardon me for being direct, but parents send their children to school to learn, not to let you vent your anger on them. Your students are not your punching bags."

"Did you hear what she said, Principal? Look at her attitude…"

"What's wrong with my attitude? Before you speak of my attitude, you should first examine your own attitude. Don't think that just because you're a teacher, you're superior to others. You should first check whether you're worthy or not. Ask yourself honestly, don't you feel guilty? No one here is a fool. You yourself know best whether or not you're picking on Shao Dong and Shao Xi."

Mu Jingzhe didn't back down. If you gave in to such a person, he would think that you were afraid and would be even more fearless. He would probably treat Shao Xi even more horribly then.

The conflict was brought to the surface and blew up completely.

Mu Jingzhe was also pulled to the side by Mu Xue, who wanted to speak to her.

"Mu Jingzhe, how can you spout nonsense? Teacher Zhang is a good person. He is capable. Besides, he isn't someone who picks on students. Don't act like a shrew and spout nonsense when you don't know anything about teaching."

"Yes, I have never taught before, but I know the limits of a teacher!" Mu Jingzhe had never taught before, but she had taken the exam to become a teacher, so she wasn't completely unfamiliar with teaching as a profession.

"I'm not spouting nonsense. He's really too much."

Mu Xue tried her best to persuade her. "Even if you're unhappy, you shouldn't have said that about a teacher. Jingzhe, now that you're their mother, you should fulfill your duties as one."

Mu Jingzhe didn't want to talk about the responsibilities of a mother. She was only responsible for taking care of them, but even so, she wouldn't allow anyone to hurt them.

At the end of the day, Mu Xue and Mu Jingzhe weren't on the same page, so their opinions differed greatly.

Later on, even Mu Xue got a little angry.

This was the first time she knew Mu Jingzhe to have such a sharp tongue.

During this period, Mu Jingzhe had given her a lot of surprises, including selling buns and making certain choices.

This was also the first time she realized that Mu Jingzhe's aura was really strong and her face was outstanding.

In the past, Mu Jingzhe's imitation of her had annoyed her to no end. However, now that she'd stopped emulating her, it also made her feel unhappy.

Mu Jingzhe was no longer the same as before—she had become very aggressive. Sometimes, she felt as if she was completely hidden when Mu Jingzhe was around. The first person everyone saw was Mu Jingzhe.

However, Mu Jingzhe was always trying to destroy her things and the people she was close to. She didn't know what method Mu Jingzhe had used to make Tang Moling, who hated her, lend her his car and eat her buns.

Zhang Fei was on good terms with her, so she wanted to cause him trouble too.

"Mu Jingzhe, how many times do I have to say this? Teacher Zhang isn't the person you say he is. He's paying attention to Shao Xi for his own good. I'm the one who asked him to take care of Shao Xi."