Although Lu Siyuan didn’t understand why there was a spot for Shen Mianmian, the situation was already clear—the spot was Shen Mianmian’s.
Shen Mianmian snapped back to reality. She no longer cared to ponder the reason and quickly made her way through the crowd, jogging towards the line.
"How could this happen?"
Wang Jingjing was so angry she was almost jumping up and down.
"Has the principal lost his mind? Where is Shen Mianmian poor?"
Zhao Xinlan was also visibly furious.
At this moment, Zhou Siyu was so jealous she didn’t even know what to say.
The people in front had already consciously formed five lines, and Shen Mianmian, being ’extra’ and having arrived later, seemed out of place wherever she stood, feeling somewhat at a loss.
Having lived two lifetimes, this was the first time she encountered such a scene.
"Stand at the front," He Nan said indifferently.
"Stand, stand at the front?"
Shen Mianmian paused slightly and even stammered. Standing in front of so many teachers and students, she really felt a lot of pressure.
Seeing her standing still, the principal pulled her arm, pulling her to stand at the most prominent spot in the front.
She was so tiny, like a little radish seedling—if she stood in the back, not even her shadow would be seen. Besides, she was the one He Nan had personally named as the beneficiary of his sponsorship. Thɪs chapter is updated by 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵•𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮•𝓷𝓮𝓽
In He Nan’s presence, the principal kept up appearances very well, showing Shen Mianmian a smiling face the whole time, not at all upset that it took several calls to get her to come up.
He thought Shen Mianmian was shy and too embarrassed to come forward, which was why she hadn’t appeared promptly.
Now that she had been pulled over to stand, she could only face it with a stiff upper lip.
The principal and teachers placed a brand new red scarf around the neck of each student. Initially, the principal intended to personally put the scarf on Shen Mianmian, to show his special attention to her.
But when he was about to place the red scarf on Shen Mianmian, He Nan suddenly stepped forward and said, "I’ll do this one."
The principal was taken aback but quickly understood that He Nan probably wanted to set an example; he immediately handed over the red scarf to He Nan.
His towering figure, like a small mountain, enveloped her entirely, creating an imposing aura. Shen Mianmian, barely over 1.4 meters, could only look up to his chest even with her head raised.
A faint scent of laundry powder lingered at the tip of her nose, quite pleasant.
Shen Mianmian’s toes curled up tensely, her hands hung by her sides, and she stood stiff as a board, not daring to move or even breathe too forcefully, until he finished tying the red scarf and stepped back. Only then did she feel like she could breathe easily again.
"In the future, you must study even harder, follow the examples of Mr. Li and Mr. He, utilize your knowledge to serve your country, and help more students like yourselves," the principal spoke.
Fifty students, as if they had practiced beforehand, spoke out in unison.
By the time Shen Mianmian reacted, everyone else’s voices had already faded, and perhaps her brain had zapped, she added a line, albeit at a lower volume than the others, which stood out rather awkwardly.
Luckily, the teachers and the principal weren’t focusing on her and didn’t notice.
She breathed a sigh of relief but then caught He Nan’s gaze. His expression was calm, betraying neither happiness nor anger. His glance collided with hers briefly before naturally shifting to the books she held in her arms.
"What are you holding?" he unexpectedly asked.
The principal, too, had his attention drawn by He Nan’s question, "Shen Mianmian, what are you doing with those books?"
Once again, all eyes were on her.