The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 205: Private Conversation with the Head Teacher

Chapter 205: Chapter 205: Private Conversation with the Head Teacher

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Go to hell with your sensitivity.

Shen Mingzhu glanced at Ou Liya, holding back her anger without making a sound.

If it hadn’t been for the fact that the other party was her son’s homeroom teacher, she would’ve definitely retorted.

Cui Junyou’s mother, seeing the homeroom teacher was on her side, suddenly became smug again, "Exactly, if I had known you had a job in advance, I wouldn’t have sought you out. It’s not like I can’t find another nanny."

"That’s right. You’re the one who hid the truth and did not come clean. You can’t blame Junyou’s mother for the misunderstanding," one of the parents flattered Cui Junyou’s mother.

Si Fuguo’s wife looked askance at the speaker with a disdainful expression, "She doesn’t owe you anything, why should she reveal her family affairs to an outsider like you?"

These words gained the agreement of some of the parents.

Everybody was meeting for the first time. They didn’t know each other, so why should they bare their personal matters for all to know?

"Time is about up. Let’s head to the classroom."

At Ou Liya’s reminder, the parents turned and walked toward the classroom, and the dispute ended unresolved.

...

During the parent-teacher meeting, Ou Liya first talked about the children’s academic performance at school and the curriculum arrangements for the latter half of the semester, then distributed the midterm exam papers.

Seeing the bright red 100s on both of Pei Ziheng’s exam papers, all of Shen Mingzhu’s anger dissipated.

Her son was amazing!

The parent next to her, seeing her beaming with joy, leaned over to glimpse at her son’s papers and, spotting the two perfect scores, pursed their lips sourly and turned to whisper with the other parents.

Shen Mingzhu didn’t care about the other parents’ thoughts, silently planning what delicious meal to prepare as a treat for her son that evening.

The next part of the meeting involved speeches by parent representatives.

First to take the stage was Cui Junyou’s mother, who was also considered a model of a good student in class, having scored 197 out of 200 on the midterms.

After taking the stage, Cui Junyou’s mother introduced herself and then began reading from a prepared speech.

After Wu Mei, which is Cui Junyou’s mother, finished her speech—

"Next, may I invite Pei Ziheng’s mother to the stage to share her experience in educating her child."

Caught off guard by the call, Shen Mingzhu was surprised, but she promptly took the stage.

"I personally think that cultivating good behavior in children from a young age is more important than grades..."

Although she hadn’t prepared a speech, Shen Mingzhu’s impromptu delivery still earned the support and applause of most parents.

The parent-teacher meeting ended at four-thirty.

Shen Mingzhu, carrying a backpack in one hand and holding her son’s hand with the other, was about to head home when she was stopped at the classroom door by Ou Liya.

Ou Liya called Shen Mingzhu aside into the office to talk—

"Although your Pei Ziheng scored very well on this midterm exam, you cannot ignore the teaching of his moral and ethical values."

Shen Mingzhu immediately felt displeased, "Ms. Ou, may I ask if there are any shortcomings in Ziheng’s moral conduct?"

Ou Liya smiled lightly, "Don’t be resistant to what I’m saying. As his homeroom teacher, when I talk to parents, it’s because I want their children to do well. Otherwise, I could just stop caring about him in the future, couldn’t I?"

Shen Mingzhu tried to calm her emotions, "Sorry, Ms. Ou, my tone was a bit sharp just now. Please, go ahead and speak."

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Ou Liya smiled with satisfaction, "Since his enrollment, Pei Ziheng has been somewhat solitary and unsociable, not interacting with classmates or mingling with them."

"Ziheng’s nature is a bit introverted, and he’s not talkative, but that’s not a problem, right? Each child is born with a different personality; some just prefer tranquility, like my Ziheng."

Ou Liya said, "It’s not just a matter of personality with your Pei Ziheng; he doesn’t mingle with classmates but prefers to hang out with older bad influences. If this continues, he will sooner or later become a bad influence himself."

"Mrs. Shen, raising a child in the city is different from in the countryside. Urban parents focus on fostering well-rounded development in morality, intelligence, physique, aesthetics, and labor, aspiring to cultivate their children into pillars of talent. It’s not just about keeping them fed and clothed. Even if you’re just a stepmother, shouldn’t you be a bit more responsible for the child?"

On the way home, noticing that Shen Mingzhu was not in a good mood, Pei Ziheng, who was sensible, showed concern, "Mom, what did Ms. Ou say to you?"

Shen Mingzhu looked down and smiled at him, "She praised your academic performance and discipline in class, and told you to keep up the good work."

Pei Ziheng pursed his lips slightly, not believing a word of what Shen Mingzhu had said, but he didn’t expose her. Instead, he just gripped her hand tightly with his small, tender hand.

...

The next day, Shen Mingzhu left work early on purpose to arrive at the school before the end of the day.

However, she didn’t show herself, instead standing by some greenery a distance from the school gate to wait.

At 4:30, as the school bell rang signaling the end of the day, students poured out of the gates, some picked up by parents, others walking home in groups of three or two.

About four or five minutes after the bell sounded, Pei Ziheng walked out of the gate.

Pei Ziheng wasn’t alone; he was walking alongside a tall boy, who had an arm draped across Pei Ziheng’s shoulders.

The tall boy appeared to be around twelve or thirteen, a full two heads taller than Pei Ziheng, and also more robust. Next to him, Pei Ziheng seemed as small as a chick.

Behind the two of them followed three or four children around eleven or twelve years old, one of whom had Pei Ziheng’s backpack slung over his shoulder.

Shen Mingzhu followed the group of children from a distance, keeping a low profile as she observed them.

After Ou Liya told her yesterday about Pei Ziheng associating with bad elements from higher grades, her first reaction wasn’t anger, but worry.

She was worried about Pei Ziheng being bullied and ostracized.

She hadn’t slept well last night, pondering this issue and even considering transferring Pei Ziheng to another school.

At the small shop’s entrance, Zhao Yun asked Pei Ziheng what he wanted to eat today, and Pei Ziheng pointed to the "Mingzhu" spicy strips on the snack stall.

Zhao Yun was speechless, "You eat this every day; don’t you get tired of it?"

Pei Ziheng, looking at him with his dark eyes, asked, "Are you out of money?"

Zhao Yun, provoked by his words, immediately took out the money from his pocket and bought six packs of spicy strips, handing one out to each person in their group including himself and Pei Ziheng.

The group stood on the roadside munching on the spicy strips.

As they ate, Zhao Yun excitedly boasted to Pei Ziheng about the mid-term exams, "Your bro is too awesome, the questions he predicted basically covered seventy to eighty percent of the mid-term exam. It’s the first time I scored over eighty, my dad was so happy he gave me ten bucks for spending money. From now on, tell me whatever you want to eat."

Pei Ziheng gave him a sideways glance, "I like Mingzhu spicy strips."

Although Zhao Yun was at a loss for words, he agreed to buy him a pack every day from then on.

After finishing the spicy strips, Zhao Yun took out that day’s homework and stuffed it into Pei Ziheng’s backpack, "I’ll wait for you at the usual spot tomorrow morning."

As Pei Ziheng took his backpack and was about to put it on—

"Ziheng."

Seeing Shen Mingzhu just a few steps away, Pei Ziheng froze.

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