“Distinguished guest?”
Seeing the principal, who usually slacked off even more than he did, take such a serious stance, the head of the grade was momentarily taken aback and quickly realized that the identity of the visitor might be quite significant.
“The distinguished guest you mentioned is…”
Before the principal could reveal the visitor's identity with a beaming smile, a familiar voice that Lin Wan recognized immediately came from behind him.
“Principal Wang, you flatter me. I’m hardly a distinguished guest; at most, I’m just an ordinary person. There’s no need to be so polite, Principal Wang…”
As the voice drew closer, a familiar figure walked into the office—one that Lin Wan knew very well.
The moment that figure appeared, Zhao Kang, who had been lounging on the sofa with an indifferent expression while looking toward the door, suddenly jumped up.
He quickly walked to the entrance, a very enthusiastic smile spreading across his face.
“Oh, Mr. Wang! I didn’t expect to see you here! Do you remember me? I’m Xiao Zhao; we had the fortune of meeting at a dinner organized by my uncle. I can’t believe we’d run into each other here! What brings you to this place, Mr. Wang?”
Zhao Kang acted as if he was very familiar with the visitor, his words dripping with pride, as if being associated with this person was something truly remarkable.
However, the person he was trying to be friendly with didn’t pay him any attention.
Amid the eager gazes of Principal Wang and others, the man walked briskly toward Lin Wan, beaming as he exclaimed,
"Mr. Lin, what a coincidence to see you here! I was wondering why the magpies were chirping so early this morning—what a good omen! I’m thrilled to have met you so soon!"
Upon entering and spotting Lin Wan, Wang Youqian immediately abandoned his small talk with Principal Wang.
He ignored Zhao Kang, who had approached to ingratiate himself, and quickly took a few steps toward Lin Wan. His small eyes, squeezed by excess flesh, sparkled with genuine joy.
Wang Youqian reached out to shake hands but hesitated, fearing it would seem too abrupt. So, he controlled his hand and instead moved it upward, touching his nearly bald head, while his gaze remained warm and radiant toward Lin Wan.
What’s going on?
Although Wang Youqian had always been polite to him, he had never been this enthusiastic before!
Lin Wan’s eyes swept over Wang Youqian, and he soon understood.
The talisman he had given Wang Youqian, which was said to be closely worn, had lost its aura.
Had it already helped him avert a disaster? So soon?!
Seeing Wang Youqian’s small eyes filled with warmth and gratitude, combined with thoughts of the strange jade plate from before, a hint of doubt arose in Lin Wan's mind.
This person seemed to have good fortune, so why did he encounter so many disasters?
After staring blankly at Lin Wan for a while, Wang Youqian finally sensed the strange atmosphere in the room.
“What’s going on here?”
Noticing Lin Wan’s indifferent expression, Wang Youqian retracted his bright smile and furrowed his brow, looking seriously at the chubby head of the grade director.
Under the imposing gaze of Wang Youqian, the grade director felt his legs weaken from fear.
“Uh... that, um, we had a little misunderstanding with student Lin Wan.”
The grade director racked his brain, struggling to come up with a plausible excuse that he hadn’t used in years, and finally conjured up a pathetic reason at the last moment.
He knew it was a terrible excuse, so he unconsciously glanced at Zhao Kang, his eyes pleading for help.
“Right, Teacher Zhao? What do you think?”
“I think that’s complete nonsense! This has nothing to do with me!”
With such a poor excuse, how could he still expect to have a meal with his uncle? Nonsense! They wouldn’t even get a warm meal!
Seeing the grade director's words shift Wang Youqian’s attention to him, Zhao Kang cursed the grade director silently in his heart.
While inwardly berating the grade director for his lack of social skills, he forced a pale and strained smile and said to Lin Wan,
“That's right, it was all a misunderstanding. Student Lin, the teacher apologizes for the misunderstanding. I’m sorry!”
Seeing Zhao Kang’s attitude flip 180 degrees, Old Li was shocked, almost dropping his glasses.
He looked at the ashen-faced grade director and Zhao Kang, then at the chubby middle-aged man standing next to Lin Wan, and gradually began to understand what was happening.
Hesitantly, he looked at Lin Wan, wanting to give him a signal to explain the injustice he had faced.
But before he could send the signal, Lao Li heard the young man beside him say coolly,
“A misunderstanding? I don’t think that was a misunderstanding at all.”
Under the pleading gazes of Zhao Kang and the grade director, Lin Wan continued,
“I don’t think we had any misunderstanding about the fact that you accused me of cheating on the exam without evidence, and even tried to expel me from the school. Teacher Zhao, I don’t believe we had any misunderstanding.”
“What? You say Mr. Lin cheated? And wanted to expel him??!”
Upon hearing this, Wang Youqian exploded.
He looked at the principal beside him, who was sweating profusely, and seriously asked,
“Principal Wang, that’s not what you told me during our consultation! You said your school had strict discipline and that your teachers cared for their students. Is this how you uphold such strict discipline and care?”
“No, no, no, Mr. Wang, please don’t worry. This is absolutely a misunderstanding! Our school is a prestigious institution with a long history; our teachers are responsible and dedicated. It’s impossible for such a huge oversight to occur!”
Instinctively defending the school, beads of sweat rolled down Principal Wang’s shiny forehead as he fixed his determined gaze on Lin Wan.
“Rest assured, student. Give me a few days, and we will thoroughly investigate this matter. We will definitely give you justice!”
“No need.”
Amid the tense gazes in the room, Lin Wan smiled slightly, showing an innocent grin.
“I can prove my innocence right now. Teacher Zhao, you were wondering why my grades suddenly improved so much, right? Because I hired a tutor. As for the tutor, it was Mr. Wang who arranged it for me.”
“Oh, no need to be so polite.”
Having moved from “Mr. Wang” to “Mr. Wang,” Wang Youqian rubbed his round belly, his earlier anger replaced by a warm smile.
“If you don’t mind, you can call me Uncle Wang.” Wang Youqian cautiously suggested.
Lin Wan thought for a moment and smiled at Wang Youqian’s expectant eyes, saying, “Then I won’t be too polite.”
“Please don’t call me Mr. Lin; just call me Lin Wan.”
“No, no, no, that won’t do.” It’s disrespectful to call someone by their first name!
Wang Youqian shook his head vigorously.
Seeing this, Lin Wan hesitated for a moment but finally said, “Then just call me Xiao Wan, if you don’t mind.”
“Not at all, not at all!”
Upon hearing this, Wang Youqian instantly burst into laughter.
"Listen, Xiao Wan, such an intimate address represents a closer relationship between him and the master!"
As they watched the interaction between the two, Zhao Kang and the others felt as if their world was collapsing; the overwhelming shock caused their pupils to constrict sharply.
"What’s going on? Isn't Lin Wan an orphan who lost his parents and was raised by others? How could he have such a good relationship with Wang Youqian?"
Seeing the warm scene before him, the grade director looked at Zhao Kang with eyes full of resentment.
If it weren’t for the need to curry favor with Zhao Kang, he wouldn’t have dared to offend Lin Wan! Now, it seemed that Lin Wan was so close to President Wang. This time, he might really be in big trouble!
Zhao Kang didn’t give the grade director a glance.
Understanding clearly how powerful money and influence could be, Zhao Kang felt a deep fear. He looked at Lin Wan, his eyes filled with pleading.
"Lin Wan, I apologize to you. I..."
His words jolted Wang Youqian from his delight.
At that moment, Wang Youqian wished the whole world could know how close his relationship with Lin Wan was.
He looked at the target that had come to him, his small eyes gleaming with eagerness.
"You are the teacher who falsely accused Xiao Wan, right? I’ll tell you, I helped find all those tutors, and even those teachers said that Mr. Lin is the most talented student they’ve ever taught! If you have any doubts, I can always invite those teachers to confront you in person!"
Furrowing his brow, Wang Youqian's expression turned serious.
"So tell me, who gave you the right to slander a good student for cheating without any evidence, and even attempt to expel him?"
Looking at the three school leaders sweating profusely, Wang Youqian was deeply enraged.
"On what basis are you doing this?"
"Just because he has an uncle who is the director of the education bureau," Lin Wan added leisurely while standing next to Wang Youqian.
"Hah? You all really are something!"
Seeing Zhao Kang's face turn pale, Wang Youqian realized that Lin Wan was telling the truth and sneered, "What a coincidence! Just a few days ago, the provincial education bureau director invited me to dinner. Perfect timing! I can have a good chat with him about the issue of the city education bureau director's nephew abusing his power!"
"No..."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Kang felt like the sky was falling.
He looked at the indifferent Lin Wan, his eyes full of pleading.
"Please, I know I was wrong. I'm begging you, don’t!"
"Don't try to play that card!"
Wang Youqian shifted his position, blocking Lin Wan with his stout body, and narrowed his eyes, saying, "You’re the one making things difficult for Xiao Wan. The decisions are all mine, Zhao Teacher. Are you unhappy with me?"
Although he paused slightly when addressing Lin Wan, facing the unexpected associate of Lin Wan, Wang Youqian skillfully took out his driver’s license.
Seeing Wang Youqian’s grim face, Zhao Kang's legs went weak, and he fell back onto the sofa.
He knew he had kicked a hornet's nest this time; he not only harmed himself but also implicated his uncle, who had always supported him.
"Ugh..."
Watching the backs of Wang Youqian and the others leave, Zhao Kang sat alone in the empty office, shedding tears of regret.
---
Meanwhile, the battle in Lin Wan’s space had also come to a conclusion.
The silk was severely injured, so after a while, it was trampled underfoot by the fierce fluffball.
After being bullied for a while, the silk was finally released. It sulked in place and angrily tied itself up with several knots before suddenly coming up with a brilliant idea.
The position next to the master was destined to be his, Lin Jiao Jiao’s!
Regaining its composure, the silk stealthily made its way toward Luo Zixuan’s location.
If it could tie up that annoying guy and present him to the master, the master would definitely praise it highly!
The more it thought about it, the more clever it felt. It happily lingered for a while before carefully swimming toward Luo Zixuan.
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