As they walked down the road, Fan Jun chattered on, sharing his thoughts with Shen Lang. Yet, after a while, he realized his friend was as unresponsive as a stone wall and finally gave up. This reprieve lasted until the end of the second period, when Fan Jun, in a rush to relieve himself, dashed out of the room. However, he returned just moments later, looking as if he had run for his life and even collided with two classmates along the way.
Breathless, Fan Jun looked at Shen Lang, who leaned back calmly and remarked, "So, you've heard?"
Fan Jun nodded, still gasping for air. Once he regained his breath, he blurted out, "It's chaos out there! How can you just sit here so calmly? I overheard it all in the restroom; everyone's talking about it!"
Casting a glance in Ouyang Lan's direction, Shen Lang met Fan Jun's gaze and said, "Thanks for the heads up, but this isn't something we should be worrying about. Come on, it's almost time for our exercises."
During the exercises, Zhao Jieying sat in her office, seeing the Shen siblings approach with their usual politeness to check the day's schedule, just as they often did. She decided this would be a good moment to address something with them.
Yesterday, she had been too busy fuming over that troublemaker who dared to reprimand both her class monitor and her academic committee member without even informing her. Not only had this impacted the Shen siblings, but it had also placed her in an awkward position, undermining her authority. When she had tried to escalate the matter to the principal, the outcome had taken her by surprise; it wasn't what she had expected at all.
But now, realizing the limits of her influence, Zhao could do little more than acquiesce to the decision. After all, she was merely a homeroom teacher; she had no authority to stand toe-to-toe with the principal.
"Good morning, Teacher," greeted the Shen siblings politely.
Zhao Jieying smiled and handed them the day's schedule. "Here's today's plan. Also, I'd like you both to come by my office after school. There's something I'd like to discuss with you."
Instead of leaving right away, as they usually did, Shen Zheng and Shen Nan remained standing. Zhao noticed their hesitation, her curiosity piqued. "Do you two have something else on your minds?"
Glancing at each other, the siblings pulled out two envelopes and handed them to their teacher.
"After yesterday's events, we realized we can't balance our class responsibilities and our duties as school committee members. With the intensifying workload of fourth grade and our extracurricular commitments, we've decided to resign from our committee roles. We hope you understand. We'll inform the committee about this as well."
"What? You're both resigning from the student council?" Zhao's exclamation drew the attention of every teacher in the office. Her face darkened as she stared at the siblings, disbelief in her voice. "What are you two thinking? This is a serious commitment! You can't just walk away because of a single reprimand. This is irresponsible!"
Shen Nan looked at her teacher with a pure, innocent gaze, though inside she was calmly reflecting on her brother's advice from the day before. He had clearly outlined the likely responses from the teacher, the committee advisor, and even the principal. First, they might try to persuade or cajole her and her brother. If that didn't work, they might resort to intimidation. And if that, too, failed, their parents would surely be called. Those were the predictable tactics.
What would her teacher's reaction be if she knew their parents were fully aware of and had agreed to this decision?
Seeing that the Shen siblings remained unmoved, Zhao felt an ominous premonition. She knew this situation had become a real problem. She also knew that if the matter escalated to the student committee leader, Zhang Xue, it would be seen as a direct affront to her own authority.
What Zhao Jieying failed to notice was that other students in the office had already left, and word of the siblings' resignation had spread. Among the students, this news stirred excitement; such happenings were rare and thrilling, capturing the attention of the entire school in an instant.
Meanwhile, Zhang Xue arrived at work that morning in high spirits. It wasn't the scolding of the Shen siblings that delighted her; she bore no particular grudge against them. She had acted for her own benefit, anticipating that undermining Zhao Jieying would diminish the woman's haughtiness. Just yesterday, she had savored Zhao's pleading demeanor, feeling a surge of satisfaction. Perhaps this would keep Zhao from badmouthing her behind her back in the future.
As she replayed the previous day's events, relishing each moment, she was startled by a frantic knocking on her door. Without waiting for her response, a breathless student burst in.
"T-Teacher... Shen Zheng and Shen Nan... they're resigning from the student committee!"
"What?"
Zhang Xue froze, shock spreading across her face. She rose abruptly, unaware that she had knocked over her tea in the process. She was entirely unprepared for this development. Though she had anticipated various forms of passive resistance, even parental complaints, she had never once considered the siblings would simply resign.
Not only did this undermine her authority, but it presented a real test of her leadership. All her previous maneuvers had been calculated to avoid affecting Ouyang Lan, yet now it was clear her strategy had failed.
After dismissing the student, Zhang Xue had scarcely regained her composure when the door opened again. The sight of the principal made her stiffen, and she immediately stood up. "Principal..."
"Hmph... Still sitting around, are we?" The principal turned and walked away, Zhang Xue hastening to follow, trailing him as they headed to Zhao Jieying's office.
A loud bang followed as the principal entered the office, startling Zhao Jieying out of her thoughts. The other teachers had mostly left by now, and as Zhao registered Zhang Xue's stern expression and the principal's severe presence, she quickly stood to attention.