Chapter 115: Your Standards for Yourself Are Really Low
Even after Su He left, Teacher Yuan still couldn’t bring herself to bring up the idea of accepting her as a god-granddaughter.
Su He went to visit Cao Hongmei’s home. Su Jinbao hadn’t seen her in days, and he clung to her like glue the moment she stepped in.
“Sis! I even dreamed about you last night! If I didn’t have school, I would’ve gone to the bungalow to see you!”
“Sis, you must be tired. Let me give you a shoulder massage!”
“Sis, I saved this chocolate just for you. I take it out every day just to smell it—I couldn’t bear to eat it.”
…
Su He thought to herself: This little rascal definitely inherited all of Grandma Su’s clingy habits!
Still, she liked Su Jinbao. He was a bit mischievous, sure, but he was clever and knew how to please people.
She pulled a handful of chocolate from her satchel and handed it to him to share with Tiezhu.
Tiezhu had been standing quietly to the side, watching Su Jinbao with envy in his eyes.
He also wanted to get closer to Su He, but he knew he wasn’t like Jinbao. So, he just silently observed and clutched the chocolate in his hand. Finally, he gathered his courage and said, “Jie, I got a perfect score on my test this time—100 points.”
Su He lit up in surprise. “Really? That’s amazing!”
Tiezhu quickly pulled the test paper out of his schoolbag and handed it to her.
It was a math test with a bright red 100 marked on it.
Su He praised him enthusiastically. Tiezhu’s cheeks flushed red with pride, and in that moment, he made a silent vow: he would study hard and score 100 every time.
Jinbao, feeling jealous, clung to Su He’s arm and shook it. “Jie, Jie! I did really well too! I passed—65 points!”
Su He: “…”
Your standards for yourself are really low, huh.
With a stern face, Su He said, “Su Jinbao, if you don’t score over 80 next time, you’ll see how I’ll deal with you!”
Jinbao immediately wilted.
He was full of regret—he should’ve kept his mouth shut!
Su He then turned to Tiezhu. “Tiezhu, after school, help tutor Jinbao. If he doesn’t behave, tell me.”
Tiezhu quickly agreed—whatever Jie said, he would do.
—
After dinner, Su He and Cao Hongmei headed to night school.
At that time, in the teachers’ office, Fu Peng was smiling as he spoke with Teacher Zhou.
“Teacher Zhou, I have an idea—it might be a bit bold, but I’d like your opinion.”
Teacher Zhou smiled. “Teacher Fu, go ahead and say it.”
“You told me yesterday that Su He would be hosting the performance event, right? Usually, events like this have two hosts—a male and a female.
So, I’d like to recommend myself to co-host with Su He.
She’d represent the students, and I’d represent the teachers. That seems more balanced.”
Teacher Zhou nodded repeatedly. “That does make sense. But I’ll need to ask the principal first. I’ll get back to you.”
Fu Peng quickly thanked him. “Thank you, Teacher Zhou! I’m new here and just want to contribute to the school.”
If he could become co-host, he’d have plenty of chances to get close to Su He. And with his charm, he was sure she’d fall for him soon enough…
Teacher Zhou was efficient and immediately went to speak with Principal Chen.
Principal Chen was still fussing over his few strands of hair, reciting poetry while styling them, “Wildfires burn endlessly, yet spring winds make them grow again… and again…”
He quickly straightened up when he heard a knock and took on a serious expression as he sat behind his desk.
After Teacher Zhou explained Fu Peng’s suggestion, Principal Chen thought it wasn’t a bad idea—but just as he was about to agree, he paused.
This performance had been carried entirely by that little Su He girl, so it was only right to ask for her opinion. Otherwise, if she got upset, it could become a headache.
If Su He were just a night school student, he wouldn’t worry. But she wasn’t—and she could walk away anytime.
So he said, “Go back for now. I’ll think it over. Also, I need to speak with Su He—have her come see me when she’s free.”
—
During break, Su He bounced into the office.
“Principal, you wanted to see me?”
Principal Chen told her about Fu Peng wanting to be the co-host.
Su He sneered inwardly. He wants to be the host? In his dreams.
She answered seriously, “Principal, I don’t think that’s appropriate.”
Principal Chen raised his eyebrows. “Why not?”
“This performance is meant to showcase the spirit of night school students. That’s how we got our sponsorship too. If a teacher joins in, it changes the message.
Besides, Fu Peng is new. He hasn’t contributed at all, and now he suddenly gets a chance to be in the spotlight? What would the other teachers think? They might even suspect you’re related to him!”
Principal Chen’s eyes widened. “Nonsense! I’ve got no ties to him whatsoever!”
Su He chuckled. “No offense, Principal. I’m just stating facts.
This event is important, and Fu Peng knows nothing about it. If he messes up while speaking, all our efforts will go to waste.”
The principal thought that made sense. The guests attending were important. Even if Fu Peng seemed competent, he was still new and could easily make a mistake.
He nodded. “Since you object, we’ll drop the matter.”
Su He hesitated, then added, “Principal, I think Fu Peng is too eager to show off.
He says he wants to contribute, but what he really wants is the spotlight.
There are plenty of ways he could help—assist with rehearsals, handle logistics—but instead, he chose the flashiest role: host.
And to be honest, we’ve worked hard to get this event running. Why should he come in and steal the credit?
And to top it off, he acts like he’s being selfless and thinking about the big picture—it’s fake and makes me uncomfortable.”
Principal Chen felt a bit awkward at her use of “we,” like they were some kind of duo, but he focused on her words. The more he thought about it, the more he agreed.
Fu Peng was indeed too calculating.
Su He continued, “Also, I have concerns about his teaching ability. Yesterday, he was praising my script to the heavens—he practically said I was a reincarnated literary deity!
Even though I was the one being praised, I still found it inappropriate.
You once told me that a teacher must never bring personal bias into the classroom. He clearly fails that standard.”
Principal Chen blinked. Did I really say that?
Regardless, Fu Peng was unreliable.
Then another thought struck him—Fu Peng’s excessive praise, his eagerness to co-host—was he interested in Su He?
Sure, both were single, nothing illegal about that. But Fu Peng’s behavior was petty, overly calculated, and not befitting of someone to trust with important responsibilities.
In the end, he concluded: Fu Peng wasn’t someone worth promoting.
