Shuangling: Braving the Rapids

"That serious? He'll be expelled? After all, Xiao Chuan left school because he was in a hurry to save a life!" After hearing Teacher Zhou's explanation, Cheng Dong was immediately unsettled. He realized that he had oversimplified the problem.

"Don't get agitated. I didn't attend that emergency meeting, but according to the teachers who did attend, the disciplinary action hasn't been finalized yet..." Zhou Wenyao paused, then continued, "As Yue Chuan's homeroom teacher and math teacher, I completely believe that the child acted bravely. Rest assured, if necessary, I will definitely clear Yue Chuan's name!"

Zhou Wenyao wasn't just making excuses for Cheng Dong. He knew his students well; if even students with excellent character and academic performance were to be expelled, then Yanghe No. 1 High School's prestigious title might as well be revoked. In fact, ever since he learned that Dong Mingdao had "intervened" in the matter, he had secretly resolved to protect Yue Chuan's student status, even if it meant resorting to unconventional methods.

"Hearing you say that puts my mind at ease. Thank you, Teacher Zhou." Cheng Dong was experienced and could tell at a glance whether the other party was genuinely protecting Yue Chuan. If he didn't thank him now, he would seem ungrateful.

"You don't need to thank me in such a hurry. Like I said, I have high hopes for Yue Chuan. This kid has a tremendous talent for mathematics and is very dedicated to his studies. Of course, I have to protect him!" Zhou Wenyao's tone became increasingly firm. "To be fair, in that situation, how many people would dare to rush out and save someone? Based on that alone, I must protect his student status!"

At this point, Teacher Zhou no longer concealed his favoritism towards his beloved student. With things having come to this, what else did Cheng Dong have to worry about? He looked towards the ward and nodded in agreement, saying, "Xiao Chuan'er isn't talkative, and I was quite surprised by what happened this time. I believe in my brother; this child's intentions were definitely good!"

At this point in the conversation, Zhou Wenyao and Cheng Dong had reached a basic consensus. Next, the two began to discuss follow-up matters. After all, Yue Chuan's injury and hospitalization had alarmed the police, which was no small matter.

"You can rest assured about the school for now, but I need to tell you something privately. From what I understand, those thugs have connections with the cafeteria owner, and I'm worried..." Zhou Wenyao said, his expression suddenly becoming more serious.

Cheng Dong understood what the other party was trying to say, and he continued, "You're worried that those hooligans will cause trouble for Yue Chuan again, right? Don't worry about that. We Shuangling Mountain people don't cause trouble, but we're not afraid of trouble either. If they dare to retaliate, I'll handle it!"

Cheng Dong was muscular and spoke with a strong voice, clearly no ordinary person. But it was precisely because of this that Zhou Wenyao was even more worried. At this moment, the old teacher frowned and reminded him, "I can't control what happens outside of school, but there's something I have to tell you clearly: We absolutely cannot let Yue Chuan get involved in any trouble. This child needs to focus entirely on his studies and getting into good schools. If he spends his time and energy on fighting and getting into lawsuits, he'll be losing the forest for the trees. You should understand what I mean, right?"

"Understood! I promise I won't let Yue Chuan get involved!" Cheng Dong patted his chest first, then changed the subject and said, "To be honest, I originally wanted to use some ruthless methods to resolve this matter, but after talking with you so much, my thoughts have changed. Since there are so many people involved in this complicated situation, I'm afraid I'll have to discuss the follow-up matters with Yue Chuan before making a decision."

Qin Yuechuan is still a minor, so in the first place his parents should be the ones to handle this kind of situation. But their family situation is really special. Qin Shuangling has to take care of his wife and daughter and simply can't spare the time to deal with such a thorny matter. There's no way around it; Qin Family Village is really too far from the county town, so far that even the old farmer Qin Shuangling can't reach it.

Cheng Dong understood this, of course. Therefore, he consciously took on the responsibility of guardianship. Since he was going to resolve this matter, he had to consider the whole picture and absolutely could not leave any future troubles for Yue Chuan.

Perhaps going through legal channels is a way to solve the problem, but this matter is very likely to involve Cheng Dong's older brother. Putting aside whether Cheng Dong will offend Lao Chengxi for Yue Chuan's sake, even if Cheng Dong is righteous and helps those in need, if this matter really comes to the forefront, Yue Chuan will benefit.

Given Lao Chengxi's behavior, he's definitely using Zheng Xiong and the others as shields. Who is Zheng Xiong? Cheng Dong knows him all too well; that scoundrel is a mad dog, and if pushed too far, Yue Chuan and Aunt Zhao might be in danger.

After much deliberation, Cheng Dong still felt that the most important thing was for Yue Chuan to recover from his injuries. As for what happened next, he would wait until he found out the identity of the cafeteria owner before dealing with it, which would be more prudent.

"Anyone who can contract the school cafeteria is no pushover. Even if we win the lawsuit, time will have run out." Zhou Wenyao suddenly pressed Cheng Dong's shoulder and sighed, "Besides, schools aren't as clean as they used to be. We're all adults; we need to think more about Yue Chuan..."

Teacher Zhou didn't spell things out completely, but Cheng Dong couldn't possibly miss the unspoken message—the cafeteria owner and certain school leaders must be in cahoots. Otherwise, the school wouldn't have used Yue Chuan as a "typical example" this time. Getting expelled just for leaving the school gate—isn't that making an example of someone?

There's a mastermind hiding both inside and outside the school. It would be great if we could take them all down at once, but if not, we have to be calm. Otherwise, Yue Chuan might never be able to concentrate on his studies again.

Cheng Dong and Zhou Wenyao explained the whole matter in detail, and after they had discussed their strategy, Teacher Zhou returned to the school.

As the older brother, Cheng Dong naturally wanted to spend more time with his younger brother, but considering that A Ying was still at the wholesale store, he had no choice but to leave Zhao Sumei and Yue Chuan at the hospital and drive back to the city gate himself.

Night had fallen, and only the Erdong Wholesale Store on Chengguankou Commercial Street still had its lights on. At that moment, a short-haired girl was tiptoeing to organize the shelves. She was a substitute worker, handling everything from shipping and inventory management to cashier duties, and she had actually achieved the highest monthly sales record, which was truly remarkable.

As Cheng Dong approached the store and peeked inside, he nearly dropped his jaw in astonishment. The floor was spotless, the goods on the shelves were neatly arranged and categorized, the shop windows were sparkling clean, and even the scattered accounts on the cash register had been organized into cardboard boxes…

"Ah Ying! This... did you do all of this by yourself? I almost thought I'd come to the wrong house!"

Cheng Dong's words made the girl's ears turn red. The next second, A Ying asked nervously, "Brother Cheng Dong, are my mom and Qin Yuechuan alright? Where...where are they now?"

"With me personally handling this, how could anything go wrong?" Cheng Dong chuckled, then continued, "By the way, your mom wants me to take you back to school now, and she said you have to catch up on any missed lessons today..."

"Really? You're not kidding me, are you?" Ah Ying looked suspicious, clearly not quite believing what the other person was saying.

"When have I ever lied to you? Come on, I'll drive you there."

After saying that, Cheng Dong was about to walk out the door, but A Ying remained standing there. "Brother Dong, can I go find my mom? She sprained her ankle, and Yue Chuan is also..."

"Don't worry, I'll arrange things for them. But you, the school lights are all off now, how long do you plan to keep Teacher Zhou waiting?"

"Ah!" A-Ying almost cried out, "My...our homeroom teacher?"

"Yes, Teacher Zhou helped me with Yue Chuan's matter today, and he even praised you for being capable! If you hadn't tipped me off, the problem wouldn't have been solved so smoothly!"

Cheng Dong said that simply to reassure the girl, but A Ying's thoughts had already gone astray.

"So what if they know? I'm not going to hide it from anyone anymore. I—Zhao Aying—am the biological daughter of street vendor Zhao Sumei, now and forever!"

A thought popped into Aying's mind, and then she said to Cheng Dong decisively, "Brother Dong, you don't need to see me off. I have a bicycle; I can ride back by myself!"

"Haha, I forgot, Ah Ying is quite the heroine! But it's alright, your brother Dong has a special trick, he can get her and her car back to school together..."