Zhao Wenchang thought to himself that this must be Shen You'an's aunt, and immediately introduced himself.
Zhou Qin walked over to the single-seater sofa across from Zhang Jian, sat down, crossed her legs, revealing her black stockings paired with fiery red lipstick, exuding a kind of cheap sensuality.
"Let's cut to the chase. Wende High School offered 300,000, plus the highest-tier scholarships every year. Anything less than that, forget it."
Zhou Qin crossed her arms, her attitude arrogant and overbearing.
Zhang Jian's face changed, suppressing his anger: "What nonsense are you talking? What do you take the kid for? A tool to make money?"
Zhou Qin jumped up and pointed at Zhang Jian's nose, cursing: "Zhang Jian, let me tell you, I call the shots in this house. Say one more word, and I'll make sure none of you have any peace!"
"You…" Zhang Jian was so angry his face turned red, his neck tense, and angrily turned his head away.
Zhao Wenchang observed calmly, smiling: "Shen's excellence is priceless. Let's do this—our school offers 200,000. Additionally, it's no problem for Tianci to directly enter the top class, with all tuition for middle and high school covered. The specific conditions can be discussed further. After all, it's all for the sake of the children's education, isn't it, Mrs. Zhang?"
Li Shan looked at Zhao Wenchang, shocked. Well, this move of pulling the rug out from under them is clever, hitting the Zhang family right where it counts.
Zhang Tianci's grades are abysmal, and he's fond of skipping classes, getting into fights, and bullying female students. Zhou Qin is practically called to the school every day. Such a student wouldn't be able to get into a key high school; forget that, even regular high schools wouldn't admit him. Zhou Qin has been fretting over this.
She especially despised Shen You'an for earning the top score on the high school entrance exam. These past days, admissions officers have been visiting her home non-stop, opening their offers at 300,000. Zhou Qin felt both delighted and jealous. As much as she hated to admit it, she had to acknowledge that Shen You'an was extraordinary in academics. If An'an could share even half—or even just one tenth—of her talents with her darling Tianci, she wouldn't be so troubled.
Ah, why isn't this girl one that came out of her own womb?
Now with this teacher Zhao stepping in to solve the issue proactively, Zhou Qin was secretly pleased while still acting indifferent: "Tianci's yearly tuition doesn't amount to much anyway. Your calculation is quite shrewd. Do you believe if I step outside and announce it, loads of schools would fight over Tianci?"
Zhao Wenchang was speechless. How could she say such shameless nonsense, as though Zhang Tianci were in demand? If it weren't for a talented cousin like Shen, with his ways, even if you paid for him, no school would admit him.
But Zhao Wenchang kept his composure, guessing the woman must still have tricks up her sleeve. "If you have any requests, feel free to state them."
Zhou Qin thought to herself, isn't it still me who has the upper hand? She arrogantly said: "My cousin's son is also going to enter high school this year. He's usually a good student, hardworking and sincere. Unfortunately, he caught a chill the night before the entrance exam, and had a high fever during it, performing poorly and narrowly missing entry into top schools. Let me be honest: your school losing out on such an excellent student is your loss."
By this point, things were quite clear: this was a one-for-two deal.
What does she take their top school for? A junkyard?
The smile on Zhao Wenchang's face was barely hanging on. He suppressed the urge to splash water from his cup onto her face, wanting to tell her to clean up her ridiculous thoughts.
Li Shan casually interjected: "As far as I know, Shen fainted in the exam hall during her entrance exams, reportedly due to a high fever of 39.9°C, yet still earned the top score. Truly a miracle. By the way, how many points did your cousin's son score on the entrance exam?"
This remark was equivalent to a slap across Zhou Qin's face. Shen You'an did faint during the exam, but it wasn't as exaggerated as 39.9°C. The real reason was that two nights before the exam, Shen went downstairs to take out the trash and forgot her keys, leading Zhang Tianci to intentionally lock her out all night. In the chilly night air, Shen's thin clothing naturally caused her to fall ill.
As for her cousin's son catching a chill? It's been the same excuse for years. Zhou Qin wasn't foolish enough to believe it.
But her cousin had dirt on her, threatening her to ensure Pipi's entry into high school, or else it would be exposed for everyone to know. She couldn't afford to compromise her reputation.
Zhou Qin's face turned sour: "It's not like your school is the only high school. There'll be schools willing to accept my terms."
She assumed that by acting tough, the other party would back down. Unexpectedly, the chubby teacher Zhao coldly snorted, "Our school may not be some hundred-year-old institution, but it has its principles. We're no junkyard. A final piece of advice: parents like you will only ruin your child's future."
For the first time, Li Shan looked at him properly, thinking to himself that while this chubby guy was crafty, he had integrity.
Zhou Qin's face turned the color of liver, just about to lose her temper when Zhang Jian quickly stood up to block her and shouted, "Haven't you embarrassed us enough? Get back to your room!"
Then, he immediately apologized to Zhao Wenchang: "Sorry about that. It's embarrassing to have you witness such behavior."
At that moment, there was a "click" sound at the door, followed by the front door opening from the outside. A slender and tall teenage girl stepped in.
Zhao Wenchang narrowed his eyes slightly. This must be the legendary Shen You'an.
The girl was tall and slim, wearing a white T-shirt and light blue jeans, her manga-like legs straight and delicate.
Her hair was very short, neatly tucked behind her ears, with a faint chestnut color, and her heavy bangs framed her rounded forehead.
She had a sharp and petite face, her complexion incredibly pale. Zhao Wenchang noticed that her exposed skin was devoid of any flaws, milk-white like a peeled egg, tender and smooth to an unthinkable degree, with even the tiniest pores clearly visible.
A pair of black-rimmed glasses rested on her nose bridge, the lens reflecting light, making her eyes appear misty and indistinct.
At first glance, her fourteen-year-old build was taller than most girls her age, her slender arms and legs almost absurdly thin.
So this was Shen You'an. Zhao Wenchang found himself curious about her, noting how demure she appeared, resembling the paper-thin girl from his daughter's manga collection covers.
"An'an, you're back. Is it hot outside?" Zhang Jian greeted her warmly, taking the bag of bananas from her hand.
"These two are admissions officers from Wende High School and Experimental High School, here to discuss your high school enrollment."
Shen You'an glanced at the two briefly, nodding politely in acknowledgment.
After changing her shoes, Shen You'an walked over and stood before Zhou Qin. With just a brief look, Zhao Wenchang noticed the once-arrogant Zhou Qin instantly transform like a defeated rooster, trembling as she stood up and gave Shen her seat.
Zhao Wenchang raised an eyebrow, his gaze toward Shen You'an carrying a hint of intrigue.
When Shen You'an sat down, Zhao Wenchang noticed for the first time that she was holding a book, an English-language novel.
Previously, before being transferred to the admissions office, Zhao Wenchang had been an English teacher. The book was titled "Sweetbitter," an English novel requiring at least a CET-4 level proficiency and a vocabulary of 6,000 words to read smoothly.
He recalled Shen You'an had aced her English exam during the high school entrance exams.