Going back to 18, demanding 30,000 yuan in compensation from the school beauty.

Given Lin Zhao's status as a mentor and friend in the hearts of Sun's parents.

Today, at the teacher appreciation banquet, he was seated at the head table.

Also at the table were the vice principal, grade head, homeroom teacher, and subject teachers who had come specifically for the occasion…

Lin Zhao: "?"

Is this a meal or torture?!

Even though he is no longer as honest and taciturn as the original owner, the tension ingrained in his genes still awakens on the spot when facing many leaders and teachers.

Lin Zhao sat upright, not daring to be presumptuous at all.

The teachers looked at him with a strange kind of admiration!

It wasn't the kind of appreciation a teacher has for a student; it was more like the mutual respect between colleagues.

Lin Zhao: "??"

Is this correct?

Upon closer reflection, I understood.

It seems that Sun's parents have been telling the teachers quite a bit that Sun Jiajun's excellent grades are largely due to his deskmate's dedicated tutoring, which allowed him to achieve such remarkable results.

If we're going to argue it that way...

Lin Zhao is definitely a chosen teacher; she does well on her own exams, and the students she teaches do even better.

This teaching qualification level requires at least thirty years of experience.

At the banquet, the vice principal looked at Lin Zhao with such lustful eyes that he wished he could hire her on the spot.

Lin Zhao was completely speechless, sitting at the table like a little chick.

It seems I won't be able to finish this meal.

Fortunately, the teachers had very busy schedules, and their attendance was merely to give face to this year's biggest dark horse; they had no intention of staying until the party ended.

After accepting the toasts from Wenquxing's parents, they all left to attend the next event.

Lin Zhao finally breathed a sigh of relief and was about to indulge in a feast.

At this moment, Sun Jiajun was dragged over by his father again, grinning helplessly.

Lin Zhao put her chopsticks down again.

By this time, Lao Sun had already toasted everyone in the room and was clearly quite drunk, with even and striking blush on both cheeks.

"Xiao Lin, Uncle... Uncle has to toast you again..."

Sun Qingcheng pushed the wine glass towards his son.

Sun Jiajun said helplessly, "Dad, Lin Zhao still has a head injury; she can't drink alcohol!"

"Snapped!"

He slammed his hand on the table, startling the two boys.

Old Sun grinned, "Yes, yes, yes, Uncle's getting senile, I'll punish myself with a drink!"

Then he asked his son to pour more wine.

Sun Jiajun cast a pleading look at his mother in the distance.

The old woman was being worshipped by a group of women. Her face was flushed with happiness as she gave her son a satisfied look and immediately rejected his advances.

Helpless, Sun Jiajun filled his father's cup.

Old Sun downed his drink in one gulp and grinned at Lin Zhao.

"Kobayashi, Uncle is really happy today..."

"Of course I'm happy! My son got into a prestigious university. If it were my son, I'd be happy too."

Lin Zhao smiled dignifiedly.

Sun Jiajun, standing next to him, frowned: Hmm? Something feels off.

Sun Qingcheng rested his left hand on the table, while his right hand waved wildly: "No, it's not because of that..."

Lin Zhao became curious: "Then which one is it because of?"

Old Sun grinned again, patting his chest: "Me! Sun Qingcheng! Incompetent!"

Lin Zhao: "?"

Is this even a topic?

"Him! My son! He's successful!"

Yes, that's definitely a topic!

"Such a promising son, stuck with... stuck with a useless father... sigh!"

He shook his head and sighed.

Beside him, Sun Jiajun looked disgusted and said, "Dad, what nonsense are you talking about? If you're drunk, just lie down and take a nap..."

Just as he was about to pull his father away, he was shoved aside.

"I'm talking to Kobayashi, why are you interrupting? You're so...so disrespectful!!"

Sun Jiajun: "??"

Lin Zhao patted Old Sun on the shoulder: "He's just a kid, don't take it to heart. Let's talk, ignore him!"

Old Sun grinned from ear to ear, while Little Sun rolled his eyes.

"I was a jerk when I was young. I had a perfectly good job, but I insisted on being my own boss. As a result, everything I did failed... and I almost ruined my family..."

Sun Qingcheng suddenly recalled his bitter experiences.

Lin Zhao nodded repeatedly: "I've heard about it, I've heard about it!"

Sun Jiajun: "..."

Old Sun chuckled, his eyes unfocused, lost in a daze once more.

"During those years, I fought with his mother every day, but this little guy never cried or made a fuss. He would just stay in the kitchen... He's so clever. There was water and food in the kitchen, so even if we tore the house apart, we couldn't hurt him, and he wouldn't get thirsty or hungry. He's so clever, my son is so clever..."

"Dad, why are you saying all this..." Xiao Sun was quite embarrassed.

Lin Zhao, unusually, didn't take advantage of his brother, and shook his head at him, telling him to mind his own business.

Old Sun chuckled again.

But suddenly she slumped onto the table and burst into tears.

"Such a well-behaved child, suffering so much because of a useless father like me... When he was in fifth grade, his mother had a fight with me and went back to her parents' house, leaving just him and me at home. I made an appointment to have dinner with a friend, hoping to borrow some money to start a business... But after the meal, I still hadn't borrowed any money, and I didn't even have enough for that meal..."

Old Sun cried his heart out.

The hall was noisy, but no one paid any attention.

Some guests noticed, but simply assumed it was a father crying tears of joy at raising a successful child, and smiled with emotion.

Lin Zhao patted the man on the back.

"Originally... I was planning to leave my ID card at the store, but when I got to the counter, the owner said... said... said my son paid... emptied his piggy bank to pay... that Ultraman piggy bank... which I bought for him when he was little..."

By the end, her tongue was tied in knots, and her sobs were unintelligible.

Lin Zhao, however, inexplicably understood.

Turning his head, Sun Jiajun next to him reached for the watermelon on the table, and casually rubbed his eyes with his arm.

"And then you went out to work?" Lin Zhao pieced together the old story.

"Yes, yes, hehe~"

Sun Qingcheng, his eyes still blurry with drunkenness, leaned on the edge of the table and chuckled sheepishly.

Lin Zhao smiled kindly, "Construction sites are so tiring, Uncle. You don't look like someone who does physical labor. Can you handle it?"

Old Sun waved his hand grandly: "What's there to not be able to handle... At first, it was tiring, I couldn't do it, carrying cement pipes under the blazing sun, weighing hundreds of pounds, it felt like I was going to shit myself... When I got back to the dorm at night, my shoulders were completely skinned, I'm not kidding, they really were skinned..."

Lin Zhao nodded; he believed him.

"I never even considered going home! I have to keep working. We've already squandered all our money and are still in debt! My son is still in school and needs to eat. I have to work, I have to earn money..."

"Uncle, you're amazing!" Lin Zhao said softly.

Old Sun squinted and waved his hand, looking terrified: "I'm just a bastard, what's so great about me! After working for so many years, I've only earned enough to pay off my debts. My wife and son have suffered so much because of me! I'm useless..."

The sound grew softer and softer until finally, with a loud "duang," his head slammed heavily against the edge of the table.

Lin Zhao looked at him, then at Sun Jiajun.

Sun Jiajun anticipated his brother's gaze and quickly turned his face away, pretending to listen to the idle chatter at the next table.

The lenses and the corners of the eyes reflect light in two ways.

Lin Zhao realized that if she didn't leave soon, this guy would burst from holding back his tears and they would gush out from his crotch.

"Go ahead and cry if you want to, it's no big deal!" Lin Zhao laughed.

"Tch, stop crying, your brain doesn't cry..."

His tone was cold and arrogant, but he was already snorting through his nose.

Lin Zhao chuckled wryly: "A man doesn't easily shed tears?"

"Hmph~"

"Don't worry, I never treated you like a man. Cry, daughter, cry, it's not a sin!"

"...Get out of here!!"