Chapter 28: The Teachers: Li Tiegun Is Truly in Desperate Need of He Chen’s Rebukes!

Li Tiegun knew she could do nothing to He Chen. Gritting her teeth, she pretended not to see him, walked into the classroom, introduced the new transfer student, Lin Lei'er, and then announced some "good news."

"Today is the first day of school. No classes; we are having an exam!"

Amidst the groans of the students, Li Tiegun launched into her typical rhetoric: "A minor quiz is a local skirmish; the College Entrance Exam is a total war. When you head to the battlefield, will the enemy wait for you to be ready? Let me tell you, don't think this is just a simulation. The standards for this exam are exactly the same as the College Entrance Exam! Four subjects—Chinese, Math, English, and the Comprehensive Science section—to be completed over two days. The results of this exam will be the basis for your class placement. The top thirty students in the grade will enter the Sprint Class, with their sights set on Tsinghua and Peking Universities. The bottom thirty will enter the Foundation Class, with their goal being mere survival."

At this point, she couldn't help but glance at Fang Yifan and Ji Yangyang, who seemed completely out of place in this class, and then thought of He Chen, feeling a wave of irritation and disgust. If nothing major changed, based on their final exam scores from the second year, these two were guaranteed to be in the bottom thirty and headed for the Foundation Class. And the homeroom teacher for the Foundation Class was none other than Pan Shuai.

This played right into the conspiracy theory He Chen had mentioned. She had considered adjusting the assignments—as the grade level supervisor, she had a say in such matters—but she found it impossible to bring up. It was simply the best choice: having Pan Shuai, a young teacher with good teaching skills, a gentle personality, and the ability to connect with students, lead the Foundation Class was the best way to appease parents who might be unhappy with the placement, as well as the troublemakers who, in her eyes, should have been held back a grade anyway.

Moreover, the principal was no fool. If she brought it up, it would look suspicious and likely cause the principal to harbor resentment, thinking she wasn't acting in the public interest but, as He Chen had suggested, was calculating purely for her own benefit. Yet, if she didn't reassign Pan Shuai, then once he became the homeroom teacher for Fang Yifan and Ji Yangyang, there was no telling how He Chen might treat him with his piercing gazes and biting remarks. The mere thought of it made her feel utterly exhausted.

"I hope you all pull yourselves together and do your best. Now, turn off your phones, put everything on your desks outside the classroom, and be quick about it."

Not only in Grade 3, Class 2, but the entire senior year was in motion.

In Grade 3, Class 7, Du Tiantian asked He Chen while moving books from his desk to the corridor lockers, "How do you feel about the fact that they're reassigning classes based on grades?"

Usually, he wouldn't have bothered to ask. Having been seatmates for two years, they knew each other well, and since their grades were roughly the same, class reassignments based on performance wouldn't have affected them. But after a summer, He Chen seemed like a completely different person, and Du Tiantian wasn't so sure anymore.

"Don't worry," He Chen joked while putting away his books. "I'm not the Jiajing Emperor; I don't subscribe to the idea that two dragons shouldn't meet!"

"Taking advantage of me again, aren't you?" Du Tiantian said, hitting He Chen with a book. "Seriously, did you study in secret over the summer?"

"Whether I studied or not doesn't change much. This placement exam really only affects the top thirty and the bottom thirty in the grade," He Chen reminded him. "For everyone else, regardless of how they perform, it's unlikely there will be any changes. It would be too chaotic, and since all these are parallel classes, stability is better than upheaval. Besides, if all the top students were skimmed off, no homeroom teacher of a parallel class would be happy. The Sprint Class dares to skim the cream of the crop because of school tradition and the authority of the grade supervisor pressing down on everyone else. Just look at who gets the ends cut off—who is the Sprint Class teacher, the one with the best chance of getting the highest bonus based on college entrance scores? And who is the Foundation Class teacher, the one with the least chance? Without someone like Pan Shuai, who is blinded by love, volunteering, who would ever want that job?"

"That makes sense," Du Tiantian nodded, deeply convinced.

"Stop chatting, hurry up and get ready for the exam!" The homeroom teacher, who had overheard their conversation, quickly reminded them. As he watched He Chen walk into the classroom, he felt a wave of profound emotion. It was no wonder Li Tiegun was so infuriated by a student; He Chen was simply too sharp, too perceptive, and too fond of speaking the brutal truth. A casual remark had laid the reality bare. If he hadn't been certain that He Chen wasn't in their office earlier, he would have suspected he had eavesdropped on their private discussions.

He was right. He Chen had voiced the inner thoughts of all the parallel class teachers.

Earlier in the office, Li Tiegun had spoken eloquently, and a teacher had voiced objections to the placement model: "They are one year away from the college entrance exam. Reassigning classes now will surely upset parents. They'll complain to the school about unequal distribution of teaching resources, and we won't be able to explain it."

Li Tiegun had replied blandly, "Don't worry. If the parents come, we'll explain it clearly. Even if their child goes to the Foundation Class, the Foundation Class isn't bad; the teachers are also very excellent."

The objecting teacher, seeing her pretend to be oblivious, simply said, "Ah, yes, of course," then took off his glasses, turned around, and rolled his eyes. You're the leader, so you have the final say. But if you weren't, that answer would be absolute nonsense. It meant nothing. If a child ranks in the bottom thirty, do you really take the parents for fools? People who pay 150,000 to send their children here are not uneducated. Can you really fool them like this? The Foundation Class isn't bad, the teachers are excellent? Then why not swap positions? Why have you, Li Tiegun, only taught the top-thirty Sprint Class for all these years? Didn't you say everyone's level is quite good? How about eating meat porridge instead of grain, then?

Everyone claimed to be worried about the parents questioning the fairness of resource allocation, but what they were really implying was their resentment toward Li Tiegun’s blatant "skimming" of top students, which robbed them of the chance to earn higher bonuses. It was a shame she had the nerve to spout such sanctimonious nonsense. If it weren't for the fact that no one wanted to burn bridges, they would have quoted He Chen’s retort to her face, and Li Tiegun would have surely cracked.

Unfortunately, such satisfying acts were not for them—working people who had to support their families—so they could only enjoy the thought in their hearts. In this respect, although their positions differed, some teachers didn't actually think that poorly of He Chen. Someone like Li Tiegun, who occupied the greatest advantages and benefits while preaching about fairness, justice, and sacrifice, really needed a sharp, outspoken boy like He Chen to put her in her place.

It was truly despicable! And it truly needed a good retort!