Chapter 14: Cheeky Little Devil
Translator: Tuiwen Editor: Tuiwen
Principal Kong led Yao Tang to his office.
Alone at last, he asked her in a cheerful voice, “Yao Girl, how come you decided on enrolling here at No. 1 High School?”
Even now, the memory of their first meeting was still fresh in his mind—
He was on official business, and he just happened to drop by the primary school in Yao Tang’s village for a regular inspection.
When had arrived, a bunch of children was frolicking on the playground. To the side, however, sat a little girl. She looked pensive as she quietly watched her classmates play.
Before he knew it, Principal Kong had already approached her. “Hello, child. May I ask what you are thinking about?”
The girl perched her chin on her hand and gave him a look that said, “You wouldn’t understand, anyway.” But out loud, she said, “I was speculating that those kids must be mentally deficient in some way.”
That took him aback. His eyebrows had almost flown up to his hairline. “What makes you think that?”
What she said next brought him the shock of his life.
Yao Tang’s eyes were clear and steady, though her small voice was laced with confusion. “I mean, when they were five years old, they couldn’t even understand the concept of high-order derivatives. Now that they’ve all turned seven, they still couldn’t figure out the differential mean value theorem.”
Principal Kong felt as though his soul had left his body.
His initial reaction was been to take offense, as he himself had struggled with the differential mean value theorem when he had first encountered it at sixteen.
As he observed Yao Tang, however, he soon realized that she hadn’t made the remark to be arrogant or condescending. She had merely been speaking her mind.
Principal Kong then proceeded to ask her several related questions, and to his delight, her responses were spot-on and consistent.
Since that fateful day, he had made a point of keeping tabs on this cheeky little genius.
Eventually, he had come to learn that the girl had no interest in getting a formal education. He had repeatedly tried to persuade her to no avail, and he had no choice but to give up in the end. Now, though, this brat had actually taken the initiative to come to his doorstep. Principal Kong couldn’t help but feel like a pie had fallen from the sky and landed right on his lap. It was so surreal that he still couldn’t quite wrap his head around this development.
At present, Yao Tang blinked innocently at him and flashed a friendly smile. Or at least, it was meant to be friendly.
The moment Principal Kong saw that familiar grin, he felt a chill run down his spine. He couldn’t remember a single good thing that had ever come after that smile.
Noting his sudden wariness, Yao Tang crinkled her nose and gave him a wry look. “So I was thinking, Uncle Kong… Do you think I can borrow your family’s ‘Five Holes Scripture’?”
Ha! This shameless girl was already calling him Uncle.
Principal Kong’s expression turned stiff. He could feel the color drain from his face. “How did you even know that I have this book in my possession?”
It was considered as a sacred item in their family, which had been passed from generation to generation. The words written on its pages were obscure at best, and made no sense at all. None of his relatives had ever considered specializing in this field of study, so no one had really paid attention to the book. They had kept the tradition going, but for the most part, the heirloom had only been sitting on some unassuming shelf, gathering dust over the years.
Yao Tang cleared her throat and shrugged. “Oh, I just heard about it.”
The truth was that she had very specific reasons for agreeing to come home with Butler Shen. Firstly, she wanted to know her biological parents’ intentions for taking her back from out of the blue. Secondly, she had wanted to find Principal Kong and borrow his family’s treasured artifact.
Principal Kong flushed. The words “I don’t believe you” were at the tip of his tongue, but he managed to stop himself from blurting them out.
He tried to stifle his curiosity, too, and resisted the urge to ask why she wanted the book in the first place. “I’m afraid the book isn’t here with me. I suppose I should go back to the capital in a few days and retrieve it for you. Is there anything else you want, then?”
Yao Tang said nothing for a brief moment. “Well, I think I deserve to have a normal high school life as much as the average teenager. I wouldn’t want anyone to disrupt my days in this school.”
“Of course, of course,” Principal Kong said in earnest as he inwardly sighed in relief. If that was all she required, then he would readily agree. “It’s my duty to ensure that you enjoy your time and experience here. The school always aims to protect the interest of each student.”
As long as he was around, he didn’t think anyone would dare to make any trouble for this little devil.
Now that that was out of the way, Principal Kong’s eyes lit up again. “Look, Little Yao, I promise to lend you all the books in my family’s library, okay? On top of that, you have my support as the head of No. 1 High School, so—”
Yao Tang raised a hand and nodded in understanding. “Don’t worry, Uncle Kong. I won’t change my mind about attending your school. I’ll stay here until I graduate.”
Her smile was sincere this time, but there was a hint of sympathy and apology there as well. As it was, Principal Kong was already immersed in the prospect of beating all the other schools in this year’s national exams, and he failed to notice the slight disparity in her expression.
They had already sealed the deal, and both parties had secured what they wanted. What followed was a lighthearted chat about what to expect in the future.
The dean, Luo Hua, wasted no time doing what Principal King had ordered. Soon enough, he came into the office with the documents confirming Yao Tang’s admission.
After checking the papers, Principal Kong pushed his glasses against the bridge of his nose and said, “All right, Student Yao. Let’s be off to your first class. You will be under Director Luo’s care.”
Luo Hua practically jumped out of his seat. “I’m afraid I must protest, Principal! This simply cannot be.”
Not only was he the Dean of Education, but he was also in charge of this year’s top three classes, which consisted of the school’s elite and best-performing students. In his eyes, Yao Tang was nowhere near worthy to sit inside those same classrooms.
To support his stand, Luo Hua whipped out the girl’s report card and brandished it at the principal. “Look here, Sir. Since her earlier years, Yao Tang’s marks have mostly been zero. Either she’s naturally slow or she has an unfavorable attitude toward learning. In all honesty, I don’t even think the school should entertain such a student!”