C17 Was He Pretending?

"You!" The words made the teacher's face turn red with anger. "Don't you have any manners?"

"Whether I've got manners isn't for you to judge, but you, as a teacher, are not up to snuff!" Lee Yifann retorted, clearly not holding back, his past encounters having left him with a bad taste in his mouth.

"What did you say?" the teacher snapped, his face redder.

Lee Yifann glanced at the other teachers, "This is a school, a place to teach and educate. Xiaozhi wants to study here; why on earth would you stop him?"

"It's the school's policy; he doesn't meet the requirements, so we can't let him attend!" the teacher snorted, full of self-assurance.

"That's right; it's the school's rules. You might not like it, but it's set by the principal," another teacher said.

"What a load of bull!" Lee Yifann sneered. "What kind of rule says a student can't come to school? How does that make any sense?"

Chen Hua finally spoke up, "Lee Yifann, you know the family, right? Don't get upset. The school has rules about students who've been absent too long; they're automatically expelled. Xiaozhi has no student status now, so he can't enroll."

'Expelled?'

The word made Lee Yifann's heart skip a beat. He took a deep breath, "Even if he was expelled; he could still re-enroll, right?"

"You're right, but Xiaozhi's age isn't right for the grade level. He should be in fifth grade, but he's missed three years. Putting him in second or fifth grade wouldn't work," Chen explained calmly.

Xiaozhi's mother became desperate, "Please, he needs to go back to school, or he'll be illiterate, with no future!"

One of the teachers frowned, "I've told you your son doesn't fit here. Should we have to force you out?"

"Shut it!" Lee Yifann's cold eyes silenced him.

"Lee Yifann, who do you think you are?" the teacher snapped, furious at being treated this way.

You call yourself a teacher? You're a disgrace!" Lee Yifann scoffed, genuinely finding the man shameless.

The teacher was livid, "What did you say? That's too much! Get him out of here!"

"Enough, all of you!" Chen Hua pleaded, his face showing nothing but frustration.

The teacher glared at Lee Yifann, clearly taking the matter to heart.

Had it not been for his position, he probably would have struck Lee Yifann right then and there.

Chen Hua looked at Lee Yifann, "Lee Yifann, I know you're trying to help, but sometimes you've got to know when to fold 'em."

He thought that Lee Yifann was in over his head.

Lee Yifann suddenly smiled, "Chen, you guys are stuck in your ways. Xiaozhi isn't fit for fifth grade, but what about third or fourth grade? That should work, right?"

Hearing this, Chen Hua's eyes widened, and the other teachers were all stunned.

They had been so hung up on the idea that Xiaozhi couldn't be in second or fifth grade that they hadn't even considered a compromise like third or fourth grade.

Xiaozhi's mother's eyes lit up, "Yes! Chen, my boy, could start in third grade or fourth if you think he's too old. That way, he'd only be behind two years, and catching up would be much easier. Let him come to school!"

"This is..." Chen Hua hesitated, clearly torn, the school's rigid rules making the decision difficult.

"I want to go to school," Xiaozhi said, blinking and speaking timidly.

"Did you hear that? Xiaozhi wants to learn," Lee Yifann pressed, "Rules can be bent when circumstances call for it. Besides, Xiaozhi hasn't done anything wrong. Are you going to turn down an extra tuition payment?"

Chen Hua wavered, "But..."

"But nothing! Chen, you've been teaching all your life. Are you willing to let Xiaozhi end up illiterate, wasting his life away?" Lee Yifann coaxed.

Chen Hua seemed moved by Lee Yifann's sincerity. After a long pause, he finally nodded, "Alright, let's have Xiaozhi come back to school."

"Really? That's wonderful!" Xiaozhi's mother was overjoyed.

"Thank you, teacher!" Xiaozhi beamed.

Lee Yifann breathed a sigh of relief. His hard work hadn't been in vain.

But before he could celebrate, Chen Hua added, "Don't get too excited just yet. The Principal has to decide on this. If he disagrees, there's nothing I can do."

"This needs the principal's approval?" Xiaozhi's mother's smile vanished, a lousy feeling settling in her stomach.

They had finally convinced Chen Hua to agree, but they hadn't anticipated that he wasn't the final decision-maker.

Chen Hua stood up, smiling, "Don't worry. I'll talk to the principal. He should agree."

"Oh," Xiaozhi's mother replied, still clearly uneasy.

Lee Yifann had a gut feeling that things might not go so smoothly.

The group made their way to the principal's office. Principal Gao Jun's reaction was immediate and fierce upon hearing that a student who'd been expelled wanted to return to school.

"What? He's been kicked out, and now he wants to come back? Does he think this school is some revolving door? He can just come and go as he pleases?" Gao Jun's first impression of Wang Xiaozhi was downright awful; he had no intention of letting the kid return to school.

Chen Hua was taken aback by Gao Jun's strong reaction and hurriedly explained, face flushed with embarrassment, "Principal, the kid's name is Wang Xiaozhi. He had to leave school because he got sick in second grade, not because he wanted to. Now that he's better, he wants to come back."

"Wang Xiaozhi?" Gao Jun stopped when he heard the name, then frowned. "Didn't I hear that the kid was practically on his deathbed? How did he get better all of a sudden?"

He whipped his head around to look at the scrawny little Wang Xiaozhi, who was bouncing behind Chen Hua. He had visited the boy when he was sick a few years back, so he remembered him.

Seeing Wang Xiaozhi so lively in front of him, Gao Jun was beside himself. "Is Wang Xiaozhi all better?"

But then he quickly scowled again, "He's not just faking it, is he?"

"Principal, my boy is better. He's not faking it!" Wang Cuifen protested urgently. "He's right in front of you, healthy as a horse! How can you say he's faking it?"

"Who knows if he's better? What if he comes back to school and gets sick again?" the principal said, his brow furrowed. "We don't usually take sick kids. If something happens to him, the school can't shoulder that responsibility!"