Chapter 2: Ruan Xi Wants Confidence
A class spent mutually sizing each other up ended before anyone realized it.
In those forty minutes, the students of Class 7 formed a consensus about their new math teacher:
She had a great temper, great taste, great elegance, and…
She was super beautiful!
She totally crushed those “look at other people’s teachers” posts on the school forums!
Meanwhile, Tong Yao had also gained a general understanding of Class 7.
Their grades were in the middle of the pack for their grade level. They couldn’t compare to the top four experimental classes, but they were doing pretty well among the parallel classes. The class monitor, Ji Chen, was a boy with a strong sense of responsibility and charisma. The math representative was a girl with glasses who looked quite diligent.
And… Ruan Xi, who had left a rather deep impression—
An underachiever, and possibly a troubled girl.
The bell rang for the end of class. Tong Yao packed up her teaching materials. She had managed her time well, so there was no need to run overtime. She picked up her books and softly said, “Class dismissed.”
Immediately, she heard the class monitor, Ji Chen, shout:
“Stand up!”
The entire class stood up instantly, then bowed:
“Goodbye, Teacher!”
Faint sounds of playful laughter could be heard amidst the chorus.
Tong Yao felt a drop of sweat. “Students, you don’t need to do this in the future. Even primary schools don’t require this anymore.”
Anyone who didn’t know better would think it was Teachers’ Day.
Ruan Xi bowed numbly. While the whole class had enjoyed the lesson, she was the only one who had been wounded.
She was the only one Tong Yao had called on.
Her idea of leaving a good impression on the new teacher remained just that—an idea.
She propped her chin up and stared blankly into space. The next class was physics, another forty minutes of torture.
Knock, knock.
Her desk was suddenly rapped.
Ruan Xi looked up in surprise and found Tong Yao standing right in front of her, smiling.
“Come to my office for a moment.”
With that, she walked away.
Ruan Xi sat frozen in her seat. Beside her, Jiang Yiming was envious. “Damn, I want to go too.”
He was just paying lip service; he’d rather pass on actually going to the office.
Ruan Xi rolled her eyes at him and looked out the window. Tong Yao’s retreating figure was just visible at the office doorway.
Thinking of something unknown, her face suddenly flushed red.
What was that phrase… getting up close and personal with a beauty?
“…What the hell.”
**
**
Almost all students felt uneasy entering the staff office.
In reality, general lectures and scolding usually ended in the hallway. If you were called to the office, there was an eighty percent chance you’d done something that required calling your parents.
Ruan Xi pondered her actions. They didn’t seem particularly heinous, so she felt slightly reassured. Arriving at the office door, she suppressed her nervousness, knocked, and pushed the door open.
The teacher at the desk near the door didn’t even look up.
She looked around and, sure enough, saw Tong Yao sitting properly by the window.
“You’re here?” Tong Yao looked up and smiled at her.
The girl walked over awkwardly and scratched the back of her head.
“Um, Teacher Tong, what did you need me for?”
“Nothing much,” Tong Yao put down her notebook and pen, her expression peaceful. “Regarding the summer homework, did you just forget to bring the math homework, or did you not bring any of it?”
Ruan Xi bit her lip and whispered, “…I didn’t bring any of it.”
“I see.”
Tong Yao blinked, understanding.
“As long as you weren’t targeting math specifically.” After a moment, she smiled. “Can you bring it over for me to check this weekend?”
No, actually, I hate math the most, Ruan Xi thought but didn’t say aloud. There was no need to confront the teacher head-on here. She nodded, indicating she could.
“Remember to do so, then,” Tong Yao reminded her.
Ruan Xi turned around glumly. “Okay.”
“Eh, wait.”
Tong Yao suddenly spoke up. She opened her drawer, rummaged around for a moment, and soon pulled out a chocolate bar.
“It’s quite tasty. Try it.”
That slender hand extended toward her. Ruan Xi momentarily short-circuited. She took the chocolate in a daze, swallowed, and stood there completely at a loss.
“T-Thank you, Teacher Tong!”
“Mm, go back to class.”
Tong Yao narrowed her eyes as she watched Ruan Xi leave.
She’s actually quite cute. Not the type that’s particularly mischievous or slippery.
Due to the preconceived sexual orientation from her past life, she had a natural fondness for pretty girls, even if their grades were poor or they might bring her trouble.
“Teacher Li,” she stood up and walked to the man at the next desk. “Do you have the student files here? Can I take a look?”
Li Hanqiang, the homeroom teacher of Class 7, was a middle-aged man who had put on weight. Sitting in his chair, he looked like a Maitreya Buddha. He taught Chinese.
“Ah, it’s Little Tong,” the man enthusiastically pulled out a folder. “Here you go.”
“Thank you.” Tong Yao took the folder. As she casually flipped through it, she asked, “Teacher Li, are you familiar with Ruan Xi’s situation?”
“Ruan Xi, huh.” The man pondered, seeming a bit sentimental. “I’ve been teaching her since her first year. Did she cause you trouble?”
“No, not for now.”
“Ruan Xi?” A female teacher nearby suddenly interjected. “I just checked, and she didn’t hand in her chemistry summer homework. How many times has this happened? Teacher Li, you need to find time to talk to her.”
“Uh, that student’s family situation is a bit special…”
Saying it was special was just a euphemism for difficult; everyone knew it.
—Found it.
Tong Yao turned to the page for “Ruan Xi.” In the family members section, she could see that both parents were listed as unemployed. Below the parents, there was a younger brother, Ruan Xiaobei.
Supporting two children through school with no income must be hard, right?
Tong Yao shook her head. This was just her guess. Who knew, maybe the family had several properties and lived off collecting rent?
But Teacher Li’s words extinguished that speculation.
“She has always applied for financial aid, and she doesn’t seem to hang out with others much in class.”
“Is she being bullied?” Tong Yao asked. “Usually, children from difficult backgrounds study harder, right?”
Teacher Li chuckled. The word “children” coming from Tong Yao’s mouth felt inexplicably cute, because she herself looked like a big kid. If she put on the No. 1 High School uniform, she might look even more childish than the students.
“No one should be bullying her,” he said. “And not all children from poor families like to study. This Ruan Xi was caught by Director Zhang surfing the internet at an off-campus cafe on the weekend. You couldn’t tell, right?”
“Indeed… I couldn’t tell.”
Tong Yao put down the file and pursed her lips.
True enough, real education was complex.
It wasn’t just about teaching students knowledge, but also guiding them onto the right path.
This was meaningful work.
**
**
Second-year high school students had four evening self-study sessions, from 7:00 PM to 11:00 PM. Each session had a teacher on duty to answer student questions.
Tong Yao looked at the schedule and frowned. She had to sit in for at least two sessions every day. Thinking of those nine-to-five office workers, her workload was really not light.
And all for a pitiful monthly salary of four thousand yuan. Even with allowances and performance bonuses, it wasn’t enough to look at in this provincial capital with a population of ten million. Buying an apartment would probably have to wait for her next life. Although her family would probably be happy to solve this problem for her, she had resolved not to be a leech after graduating. At least… she wanted to be more ambitious than in her previous life.
The good news was that the school would soon assign her a faculty dormitory. The extravagant No. 1 High School had the most generous funding, so even a new teacher like her could get a 70-square-meter single apartment. The symbolic rent was so low that even a girl raised in luxury like her found it appealing.
Glancing at her phone, Tong Yao noticed it was time for the evening self-study session she was supervising. The summer twilight lingered on the horizon. As she walked to the classroom door, she heard someone shouting inside.
“I walked here from the office, and out of the whole grade—the whole grade!—our class is the noisiest!”
“You did so poorly on the opening test; only three people made it into the top one hundred of the grade! How is Class 8 studying? Our average score was higher than theirs during the summer quiz, and now they’ve surpassed us!”
Sure enough, it was Li Hanqiang, as the homeroom teacher, raining down thunder and lightning from the podium. Clearly, he was very dissatisfied with the opening test results. Partly due to disappointment in the students, and partly because at No. 1 High School, every fluctuation in exam scores meant a fluctuation in the homeroom teacher’s bonus.
After standing at the door for a few minutes, seeing that Li Hanqiang had no intention of stopping, Tong Yao felt helpless. She pushed the door open, forced a smile, and reminded him:
“Teacher Li, I’m here for the evening self-study.”
The students in the classroom looked delighted when they saw her.
Li Hanqiang nodded with a dark face and walked out. Before leaving, he didn’t forget to turn back and glare at the students, as if to intimidate them.
Tong Yao smiled at the students. “Everyone, start your self-study. If you have any questions you don’t understand, you can come ask me. If you want me to analyze your test results, that’s fine too.”
She sat at the podium, wiped away the chalk dust, and looked down. Any student who met her gaze immediately lowered their head to write. She found it amusing. She noticed the report card from the opening test was still on the desk.
First place: Ji Chen, 630, Grade Rank 32.
Second place: Yin Jiali, 618, Grade Rank 52.
…
52nd place: Ruan Xi, 489, Grade Rank 435.
With 60 students in the class, Ruan Xi was in the bottom tier.
Tong Yao looked closely. This child only scored 70 in math. On a 150-point exam, that was far from passing. It looked tragic no matter how you sliced it. The opening test questions were difficult, intended to dampen the students’ playfulness, but the result was that Tong Yao felt a bit dampened herself.
“Teacher.”
“Teacher?”
A soft call from beside her pulled Tong Yao’s thoughts back. She turned her head and realized it was Ji Chen holding a book, looking like he had a question.
Ji Chen… Tong Yao thought. This boy was probably the core of the class. He had authority, good grades, wasn’t afraid of teachers, and would even put his arm around male teachers’ shoulders or boldly compliment female teachers on their outfits. He organized various activities, and basically, no teacher disliked this kind of student.
“Mm, go ahead,” she said softly. “Is this extra work you found yourself?”
Ji Chen affirmed and handed over the book. Tong Yao paused, realizing the book was titled Math Olympiad Competition. The question the boy had circled had an answer but no detailed explanation.
“This one?”
“Yes.”
Ji Chen nodded. Seeing Teacher Tong rest her cheek on the back of her hand and gently tuck a strand of black hair behind her ear, he suddenly felt his heart flutter.
Thump, thump.
…Damn.
He really did want to ask a question!
But deep down… he indeed wanted to show his goddess teacher that his math skills were excellent.
“Sorry, I need to think about this one for a bit too. Go sit down first, I’ll call you in a while,” Tong Yao said, taking out some scratch paper.
Ji Chen’s face heated up, and he quickly said okay.
In the corner.
“Tsk,” Jiang Yiming whispered with a sigh. “A straight-A student is a straight-A student. He’s already self-studying for the Olympiad.”
Naturally, everyone was paying attention to the activity on the podium.
Beside him, Ruan Xi remained silent, but her heart was a mix of emotions.
—What’s so great about that? So what if he’s a bit better at math? Deliberately showing off an Olympiad book, afraid the people below won’t see it.
Hmph, pretentious show-off.
His eyes are practically glued to Teacher Tong’s face.
Ruan Xi felt indignant, resting her chin on the desk as if trying to bore a hole through it.
She… was actually a little envious.
If her math grades were good, would she have a bit more confidence when talking to Teacher Tong?
