"Actually, it’s not all that bad. Look, we have computer class, which means we can play with computers. Before, I could only play with them at my uncle’s house," Lin Xiang pulled out the "Computer Class" textbook and the four of them piled their books on the dormitory table. All but Xiao Xian, who was used to hiking mountain paths and had good stamina, were gasping for breath.
"Computer?" Xiao Xian realized that she was indeed far behind these kids from Tianjin and Beijing. Anyone else might have felt inferior by now, but Xiao Xian, having traveled through time, lacked the complex mentality of rural versus urban people.
In the dormitory of Building No. 2, everyone was discussing the words spoken by the homeroom teacher during tonight’s class meeting. Students with average grades like Lin Ya and Lin Xiang had already planned to make an effort to sprint for good grades in the mid-term and final exams. Special admission students like Xiao Xian and Zhang Yiyi also had to consider reality and study seriously, working hard in their training. In any case, the new students spent their first night amidst various discussions.
But compared to the students’ babble, like the noise of a small stream, an urgent administrative meeting was being convened in the junior department’s academic affairs office.
The meeting was focused on the "black heart cotton" prominently displayed in the academic affairs office. The newly summoned general manager of the school’s logistics company, Wang Guohua, entered the room offering cigarettes and bowing. Upon seeing the quilt on the table, a subtle change crossed his face.
After listening to the explanation, Wang Guohua sneered sarcastically: "Mr. Sun, don’t use your radio broadcast tactics on school administration. You say it’s ’black heart cotton’, I’d say it’s long-staple cotton from Xinjiang. Slander could land you in jail." Relying on his connections, Wang Guohua had secured many of Sacred Heart’s businesses, from textbook procurement to cafeteria contracting. He was riddled with bad habits, "plucking a feather from every passing goose, leaving a mark with every passing ship," not much different from the crooked secretary of Ge Village.
He relied on his deep tenure at the school and wide connections, not giving a young teacher like Sun Haiping a second thought.
The head of the academic affairs office was also in a bind; after all, it was the vice principal’s area of responsibility, but just recently, both the vice principal and the principal had gone abroad to inspect educational affairs. And now that the new students were arriving, this problem had arisen.
Wang Guoping spoke while smoking, filling the entire office with a miasma and completely ignoring the "No Smoking" signs posted on the school walls.
Seeing this, Sun Haiping’s frown deepened, and the smile vanished from his lips. He snatched Wang Guoping’s cigarette and stubbed it out on the quilt, releasing a stench of burnt plastic as a plume of smoke rose from the cotton.
"You still won’t admit it? Well, I wouldn’t suggest announcing this matter to the entire faculty and student body in the first day of school’s broadcast news," Sun Haiping said, not mentioning Xiao Xian’s name, as he needed to ensure that students were undisturbed during their time at school.
"No, Mr. Sun, let’s not make a big deal out of this. Old Wang, come up with a solution," the head of academic affairs said, unable to sit still. Sacred Heart Middle School’s broadcast, due to Sun Hai’s doing, had quite a reputation in the city. Turning the suspicion that Sacred Heart Middle School used "black heart cotton" into a big issue would ruin the school’s reputation.
"What can be done? There might have been a problem at some point. I’ll have someone change the new students’ quilts tomorrow," grumbled Wang Guoping inwardly. What bad luck, it was his first year using black heart cotton. Last year, when his precious only daughter Wang Ke was a new student, he didn’t dare to use it. It was only this year that he tried, and he got caught.
"One rotten apple spoils the whole barrel," Sun Haiping said indignantly as he walked out of the office. (To be continued. If you work, please come to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation ticket and monthly ticket. Your support is my biggest motivation.)