Chapter 676 - 676: Poor Ghost? Shabby Place?

Upon seeing the middle-aged man, several teachers who had also just arrived walked over to greet him. "Assistant Wu, you're here."

"Mm." The middle-aged man, addressed as Assistant Wu, nodded. After glancing at the teachers, he asked haughtily, "Where are the student's parents who are hosting?"

The teachers shook their heads. "We just got here ourselves. We haven't seen them yet."

Assistant Wu frowned again and muttered in displeasure, "They didn't even come out to greet us. How inconsiderate."

The other teachers heard him and smiled awkwardly, unsure how to respond.

Just then, Zhao Yuan led Zhao Ling over and greeted them politely. "Excuse me, are you the teachers from Qi Middle School?"

A tall female teacher turned, sized him up for a moment, and then replied, "Yes, we are. And you are?"

Zhao Yuan smiled and introduced himself. "I'm Zhao Yuan, and this is my younger sister, Zhao Ling."

"Zhao Ling? The new student transferring into my class?" Once the teacher confirmed their identities, she introduced herself. "My surname is Xu, and my full name is Xu Yang. I'm the Chinese teacher and also the head teacher for Class Six."

"Hello, Teacher Xu," Zhao Ling greeted sweetly.

Xu Yang smiled and said, "Hello, Zhao Ling." Then she began introducing her colleagues. "This is the math teacher, Teacher Wang Mingzhi. This is the English teacher, Teacher Yan Yun…"

With each introduction, Zhao Ling offered a sweet greeting. Her good manners immediately earned her a favorable impression from the teachers.

Finally, Xu Yang introduced the middle-aged man. "This is our principal's assistant, Wu Zhizheng."

In response to Zhao Ling's greeting, Wu Zhizheng merely grunted, his attitude overtly arrogant.

Zhao Yuan just smiled, not letting it bother him.

Wu Zhizheng swept his gaze over the two of them and said, "Principal Zhang is away at a conference and asked me to stop by in his place. Why is it just you two juniors? Where are your parents?"

He was inwardly displeased. 'They invite me to dinner and send two juniors out to greet me? What nerve.'

Zhao Yuan, oblivious to his thoughts, smiled and replied, "Assistant Wu, our parents are still at our old home in the mountains; they didn't come to Rongcheng City. It's mainly me who wanted to treat you all to a meal and get acquainted."

Wu Zhizheng's brow furrowed again, his dissatisfaction growing.

'As the principal's assistant, my position at Qi Middle School is second only to the principal and vice-principals. On top of that, I'm in charge of logistics, so I frequently deal with people from outside the school. Every single one of them respectfully calls me 'Principal Wu'. But this kid, Zhao Yuan, calls me 'Assistant Wu'.'

'While 'Assistant Wu' was technically correct, it was a world away from 'Principal Wu'. The distinction was vast, and it thoroughly displeased him.'

'What's more, the place they chose to host the dinner was an absolute dump!'

'Everyone who's ever invited me out before has taken me to a grand hotel. But this kid? He brings me to some... rustic diner? No, this place is worse than a rustic diner. It's just a cheap, no-frills hole-in-the-wall! I'd better not get sick from eating here!'

Wu Zhizheng instantly lost all interest in the meal.

In any case, he had shown up, which meant he'd fulfilled the task Principal Ma had given him. There was no need to stay and subject himself to this humiliation.

So he said bluntly, "I have other business to attend to. I won't be staying for dinner."

"Assistant Wu, since you're already here, you might as well stay for dinner. The food here is delicious," Zhao Yuan urged sincerely.

"Delicious?" Wu Zhizheng snorted with laughter. "Forget it. I'm afraid I can't appreciate the 'delicacies' here." Inwardly, he sneered, 'Does he think I'm some hick who's never been anywhere? Delicious food in a dump like this? What a joke!'

Seeing that Wu Zhizheng was dead set on leaving, Zhao Yuan didn't press him. 'If he doesn't get to taste Hao Li's cooking, it's his loss. Can't blame anyone else for that. Besides, the real guests of honor today are her classroom teachers.'

Wu Zhizheng turned and snorted contemptuously, "A bunch of paupers trying to imitate their betters by hosting a dinner. And in a shithole like this, no less. Not even ashamed, and they have the nerve to call it 'delicious'? Delicious my ass! Do they really take me for some country-bumpkin moron?"

His voice was low, but Zhao Yuan and the other teachers heard him loud and clear.

Zhao Yuan frowned. Ultimately, for Zhao Ling's sake, he chose not to engage with Wu Zhizheng. He simply smiled and led the teachers toward the dining area, which was housed in a pre-fab structure.

On the way, Xu Yang tried to dispel the awkwardness by changing the subject. "Zhao Yuan, given your age, you must still be a student, right?"

"Yes, Teacher Xu. I'm a college freshman," Zhao Yuan replied. Even though Xu Yang wasn't his teacher, his attitude remained respectful.

"In that case, I'll call you Student Zhao Yuan."

Xu Yang had an outgoing personality, the kind that allowed a head teacher to easily connect with her students. And in fact, she had an excellent relationship with the students in her class; they all readily listened to what she had to say.

Zhao Yuan smiled. "Of course. You can call me whatever you like, Teacher Xu."

Xu Yang's expression turned serious. "Student Zhao Yuan, you really didn't need to spend the money to treat us to dinner. I know what you're worried about, but you can rest easy. We teachers treat all students equally. We won't treat Zhao Ling any differently just because she's a new transfer student."

Zhao Yuan explained, "I have complete faith in the professional integrity of you and the other teachers, Teacher Xu. I invited you all to dinner with no ulterior motives, and certainly not to ask for any special treatment. I just thought it would be nice to meet everyone before school starts so we aren't strangers. I also hoped you could help me see which subjects my sister might be behind in compared to her new classmates. That way, I can find a private tutor to help her catch up."

Xu Yang looked relieved. "Oh, I see. Alright then. During dinner, we can pose a few questions to test Zhao Ling's current level."

The other teachers looked eager, as if they were raring to go. Not having been able to create test questions for students over the break had left them feeling a little restless. Now, someone had just volunteered themselves for a pop quiz.

Zhao Ling, however, was completely bewildered.

'This was supposed to be a dinner for my teachers, so how did it turn into a test?'

She glared at Zhao Yuan, wanting to demand, 'Are you sure you're my real brother?'

Meanwhile, Wu Zhizheng had gotten into his car. Just as he started the engine and was about to leave, he saw a Volkswagen sedan pull up and park by the roadside.

"Huh?" Wu Zhizheng stared, stunned. "Isn't that Director Chen's car from the Education Bureau? What would he be doing coming to a run-down hole-in-the-wall like this to eat?"

As he was wondering about this, the Volkswagen's door opened, and the Director of the Education Bureau, Chen Xuezhi, got out with his family.

Seeing that it was indeed Director Chen, Wu Zhizheng hastily killed the engine, jumped out of his car, and scurried over to Chen Xuezhi. He greeted them with a sycophantic smile, "Director Chen! And Mrs. Chen! What a pleasure! Oh, and this must be your lovely daughter! Absolutely beautiful."