Chapter 51: Panic

“Someone reported that our school was engaging in under-the-table operations, giving the opportunity to give a public lecture to Xiao Lin?”

In the small school meeting room, Group Leader Gao, who had been called to the meeting, was speechless. “Is this person out of their mind? They’re getting jealous over a public lecture.”

Principal Zeng received a phone call this morning and went to the city education bureau. When he returned, he called all the chemistry teachers for a meeting. He thought it was about some new instructions on chemistry teaching, but it turned out that someone had filed a complaint.

Teacher Yang from the junior high school chemistry group didn’t think it was only jealousy, “Opportunities to give public lectures like this should affect the evaluation of outstanding teachers, right?”

In the past ten years, salary evaluations nationwide had stopped, but they have gradually resumed in the past two years, and salaries have started to increase. If one can be evaluated as an outstanding teacher, not only does it look good on the record, but it also benefits future salary increases. It’s no wonder someone would target Lin Qiao.

Moreover, she had worked with Lin Qiao in the junior high school department and knew more about him, so she couldn’t help but glance at Teacher Zheng Huifang beside her.

Lin Qiao also glanced at Zheng Huifang. After all, among everyone present, the only one who had conflicts with her was Zheng Huifang, although others couldn’t be completely ruled out either.

Zheng Huifang’s face didn’t show anything, and when Lin Qiao looked at her, she said discontentedly, “Why is Teacher Lin looking at me? Do you think I wrote it?”

Lin Qiao didn’t speak, but Group Leader Gao couldn’t help but ask Principal Zeng, “Was it anonymous or signed?”

“It was signed,” Principal Zeng said.

This surprised everyone. Reporting something like this clearly offends people. Who would be so bold? Isn’t this openly making an enemy of Lin Qiao?

Principal Zeng continued, “The complaint letter was jointly signed. Except for Lin Qiao, every chemistry teacher’s signature was on it.”

This surprised everyone even more. “My signature is on it?” Group Leader Gao pointed at himself, “But I never signed it.”

Except for Lin Qiao, all the chemistry teachers present said they hadn’t signed it. However, Principal Zeng saw the complaint letter at the education bureau, and indeed, every person’s signature was on it. These signatures were from different people, with only a few of them he was familiar with, and they indeed looked different from the actual ones.

This was quite disgusting. If you’re jealous, report it yourself. Why drag others into it and go to such lengths to forge signatures? It’s impossible for others not to be envious of Lin Qiao being able to give this public lecture. After all, it’s the first public lecture of the first batch of national experimental pilot projects, and the leaders coming should be quite significant. As long as it goes well, the benefits are visible. But they also need to have the capability to compete with Lin Qiao. Who doesn’t know that the country can build laboratories and the school can become the first batch of pilot projects because of Lin Qiao?

“The signatures must be fake.” Amidst the discussions and complaints, Lin Qiao, who hadn’t said much, finally spoke, “Someone must have seen me getting too much attention and got jealous. This kind of person who is nothing themselves and just wants to bring down those better than them can only do such disgusting things. Who would dare to use their real name?”

This doesn’t quite match her character. Those who know her well understand that she is easy to get along with and doesn’t speak so harshly or with such a big tone.

Principal Zeng and Group Leader Gao were both puzzled, and Teacher Yang also glanced at her with slight curiosity. The others who were not familiar with her didn’t think much of it, assuming she was just speaking out of anger. Young people, after all, can be hot-headed.

Lin Qiao, however, deliberately spoke harshly to see if anyone would react and reveal themselves.

After all, she was very familiar with this kind of reporting. Last time, when she was conducting experiments with students, someone reported her to Principal Zeng, who then called her in for a talk. This time, Principal Zeng decided for her to give a public lecture, and the other party bypassed the school and directly reported to the city education bureau.

Moreover, the wording of the complaint was very subtle. It did not mention Lin Qiao’s name at all, only stating that all the chemistry teachers were dissatisfied with the school’s under-the-table operations and jointly reported it.

The laboratory was also a key project of the Ministry of Education this year, and the higher-ups definitely took it seriously. As soon as they received the complaint letter, they immediately called Principal Zeng for a talk.

She showed disdain on her face, “Such a petty person, with a dirty mind, dragging others into it, truly shameless.”

Unexpectedly, someone couldn’t hold back, “Teacher Lin, your words are too arrogant, aren’t they? There are so many experienced teachers here. Who isn’t more experienced and capable than you? How come it’s right for you to give the lecture, but when others can’t stand your internal selection and jointly report it, it’s considered dirty-minded?”

If an experienced and well-teaching old teacher had said this, it would have been fine, but this person…

Lin Qiao smiled mockingly, “Teacher Zheng, do you mean that you think you are more experienced and capable than me?”

Her words were full of sarcasm, and Zheng Huifang’s face immediately turned uglier. “You’re just relying on your little cleverness. Who knows who helped you send that suggestion letter up? Do you think you’re that great? This kind of thing should have been openly selected. You’re about to leave and still want to hog all the good things, not give them to those who need them more.”

Now, Lin Qiao didn’t even need to say anything. Everyone in the meeting room could see it, looking at Zheng Huifang with some reluctance to speak.

This matter was most likely her doing. Even if it wasn’t, she definitely had this thought in her mind, and she didn’t forget to drag others down while speaking.

Principal Zeng didn’t want to say much, either. He was still protecting the school’s old staff, thinking that no matter what, it should be suppressed to avoid making things too ugly, as everyone had it tough. Xiao Qi had proposed the military family entrance exam several times but never agreed. As a result, they caused trouble that reached the education bureau.

He looked at Lin Qiao apologetically, “The education bureau’s opinion is that regardless of whether the letter is true or not, it’s best to reselect. It must be fair and just. Why don’t you all try giving a lecture?”

“I won’t try. Xiao Lin obtained this laboratory.” Lin Qiao hadn’t spoken yet, but Group Leader Gao had spoken first.

Teacher Yang also had no intention of participating, “I’m busy enough with three classes by myself. How do I have time to prepare for a public lecture?”

Both of them had expressed their stance. Even if there were those who had the intention before, it was hard to speak up now, and they didn’t want to be used as pawns.

In the end, the two teachers from the first year of high school and the remaining two teachers from junior high school all expressed their unwillingness to participate, leaving only Zheng Huifang and Lin Qiao, which really surprised Zheng Huifang. She thought that with Lin Qiao speaking so arrogantly and the matter of the outstanding teacher, more people would stand on her side.

However, with only her and Lin Qiao left, it was a 50% chance. She wasn’t willing to give up just like that.

Zheng Huifang gritted her teeth, “I can try, but she teaches high school, and I teach junior high. The difficulty is inherently different. Isn’t this comparison unfair?”

Even saying that the difficulty is different and unfair shows how much she wants this opportunity. Does she want Lin Qiao to teach junior high like her?

Teacher Yang couldn’t stand it anymore, and Group Leader Gao, who didn’t want to argue with a young female colleague, also looked displeased. But before they could speak, Lin Qiao had already said, “If Teacher Zheng thinks it’s unfair, then I’ll use junior high students too.”

Her phoenix eyes were calm and composed as she looked at Zheng Huifang, “We’ll use the same class of students. Teacher Zheng will teach half a lesson, and I’ll teach the other half. How about that?”

Her gaze was almost provocative, and Zheng Huifang immediately agreed, “Fine, let’s do it. You really think you can do everything, don’t you?”

The students were originally hers, and she was familiar with the junior high curriculum. With some preparation and a few practice sessions with the students, how could she not be better than Lin Qiao, a stranger?

“Then it’s settled. Once the equipment arrives, we’ll have the trial lesson.” With things developing this way, Principal Zeng had nothing more to say, “That’s it, meeting adjourned.”

Back in the second-year science office, Group Leader Gao was still talking about it, “What kind of person is this? Even forging our signatures.”

The homeroom teacher of Class Three, who had no class this period, asked about it and was also speechless after hearing the story, “This Xiao Zheng. I remember she teaches quite poorly, right?”

“She’s more than just poor. In my two classes, even the top ten don’t need to be used. Any one of the top twenty can teach better than her.”

Group Leader Gao’s words were a bit exaggerated, but Zheng Huifang had been at the school for six or seven years, teaching only junior high chemistry and teaching it so poorly. No wonder people criticized her.

Lin Qiao didn’t say much. She always believed in showing her true abilities in the classroom rather than wasting words. Knowing her personality, the homeroom teacher of Class Three couldn’t help but laugh when he heard about the half-lesson plan, “I wonder if I have class that day. If not, I’ll go and watch.”

The comparison would be brutal. After the students listened, the parents would definitely report to the school. Xiao Zheng must have never heard Lin Qiao teach, or she wouldn’t have dared to agree.

Group Leader Gao also laughed, propping his long legs on the desk, “You better go early. I bet a lot of people will show up that day.”

Forging signatures was disgusting. After the meeting, many people would curse behind her back, and they might all show up. Xiao Lin’s idea was good. Let her make a fool of herself. Without a comparison, she might think Xiao Lin relied on her family’s influence.

When Lin Qiao returned home at noon, the matter no longer affected her, but she didn’t expect there to be guests at home again today.

“Do you think she really needs to do this? It’s something from ages ago, is it worth it?” It was Old Zhou’s nagging voice.

Lin Qiao opened the door and walked in, greeting the other person, “Brother Zhou is here.” Then the other person turned around and was genuinely stunned.

Old Zhou looked like a political commissar. He was not only refined and fair-skinned but also very approachable. He was always smiling, with a pen always clipped to his chest pocket. However, that smiling face was now full of grievance and anger, with two long scars from his left jaw to his neck.

Did he get scratched by his wife during a quarrel?

Lin Qiao paused for a moment, showing no unusual reaction, and walked over to put the keys on the coffee table.

She didn’t make a fuss or laugh, and Old Zhou’s discomfort visibly lessened. He greeted her, “Xiao Lin is off work,” and continued to grumble to Ji Duo, “How am I supposed to go to work like this? Even if she wants to scratch, can’t she choose a place that’s not visible?”

So scratching isn’t the problem, but scratching in visible places is…

Has Brother Zhou’s standard really dropped this low?

Lin Qiao couldn’t help but glance at Ji Duo, finding the man as calm as ever. He showed no unusual reaction, only pointing to the medicine bottle in front of him: “Apply it yourself.”

“No.” Old Zhou maintained his last bit of stubbornness, “If I apply it now, everyone will know my wife scratched me.”

He continued complaining, “You know, back then, I wasn’t married, didn’t have a girlfriend; what’s wrong with writing a poem for someone? Wei Chun’s boyfriend didn’t say anything, but she went to the hospital, heard it from someone, and came back to hit me as if I wronged her.”

“Wei Nurse’s boyfriend probably doesn’t know yet.” Seeing that he wouldn’t use the medicine, Ji Duo put the bottle away.

This made Old Zhou choke, “What? If her boyfriend knew, would he punch me like my wife did?”

Ji Duo looked at him without speaking.

Old Zhou immediately backed down, lowering his voice. “Really? Would he really hit me? You trained together. How’s his fighting skill?”

This cowardly look almost made Lin Qiao laugh. She turned her head to stifle her laughter, just in time to meet Ji Duo’s gaze.

The man’s eyes were steady, and his words were calm, but they were inexplicably stifling, “Beating three of you shouldn’t be a problem.”

Old Zhou fell silent, feeling depressed, then suddenly asked a serious question, “What about my wife fighting him? How many points?”

Lin Qiao couldn’t hold back, subconsciously grabbing something beside her to control her expression. When the laughter passed, she realized she had grabbed Ji Duo’s hand on the sofa. The man obviously noticed too, frowning at her, but said nothing and didn’t pull his hand back, probably not wanting to make a scene with Old Zhou present.

Lin Qiao immediately let go, mouthing “sorry” to the man.

Ji Duo withdrew his gaze, saying nothing, his brows still furrowed.

In this era, couples wouldn’t even walk shoulder to shoulder on the street, let alone hold hands. Old cadres like him probably couldn’t accept it. But Lin Qiao didn’t do it on purpose, and she couldn’t really write a 5,000-word self-criticism, deeply reflecting on her mistakes, could she?

She turned to Old Zhou, “Your wife must care about you a lot, right? Otherwise, who would mind something from before marriage?”

“But she shouldn’t scratch people, right? How am I supposed to go out like this?” Old Zhou was clearly more concerned about his face.

When an ordinary couple has a quarrel and the man’s face gets scratched, he would be laughed at for half a day. If he goes to the military camp with those scratches, everyone would be entertained for the day.

Lin Qiao thought for a moment, “Why don’t you say you got scratched while picking jujubes at my house? The jujubes at my place are ripe. You can take some for your wife and kids.”

Unexpectedly, Ji Duo also spoke up at this moment, “Just say you got scratched while picking jujubes at my house.”

The two of them had the same idea, and they couldn’t help but turn their heads and look at each other at the same time.

To Old Zhou, this was a tacit understanding, making him feel a bit envious, “You two are really something. I’m still in a miserable state here.”

He thought that Ji Duo’s recent questions about his married life meant the couple quarreled, but it turned out they were doing better than him.

After Old Zhou finished speaking, he seriously considered the feasibility of picking jujubes and didn’t notice Lin Qiao quickly retracting her gaze while Ji Duo glanced at her again.

“Then I’ll pick some and go back after I’m done.” Old Zhou rolled up his sleeves, “So I don’t get into trouble for not going home for lunch.”

However, as a political commissar, he clearly wasn’t as skilled as Ji Duo, who was in a command position. He wasn’t tall enough. In the end, Ji Duo picked up most of the jujubes.

Actually, if they had a large plastic sheet, they could just spread it under the tree and use a stick to knock the jujubes down, but unfortunately, they didn’t have one. Lin Qiao could only hold an enamel basin and follow behind Ji Duo. The man picked a bit and threw it into her basin, his movements swift and accurate, so it didn’t take much time.

Seeing the basin almost full, Lin Qiao’s hands were a bit sore from holding it, so Ji Duo took it with one hand and carried it to the kitchen.

“No need to wash them. I’ll wash them myself when I get home,” Old Zhou said awkwardly from behind.

He came to find Ji Duo mainly because Ji Duo spoke little, kept secrets, and wouldn’t laugh at him, making him the perfect confidant. He didn’t expect the couple to not only give him advice and jujubes but also help him pick them and even wash them.

Old Zhou was very touched, but then he saw Ji Duo wash only half of them, put them on a plate, and handed them to Lin Qiao, leaving the unwashed ones for him. It turned out they washed the ones for themselves, and he was just being overly sentimental…

Old Zhou’s sense of being touched was instantly halved, but he was still grateful. Before leaving, he thanked the couple again.

Lin Qiao held the plate and watched him leave. To make it more convincing, he even came back and scratched his face with a branch again. Taking a jujube, she bit into it and smiled, “Is Brother Zhou’s wife really that fierce?” Thinking that the man picked all the jujubes, she handed one to Ji Duo.

Ji Duo usually doesn’t like eating these, but he still accepts it: “His wife teaches physical education in elementary school, and she used to be a Sanda athlete.”

“So she only scratched Brother Zhou twice, still showing mercy? No wonder Brother Zhou asked who was better at fighting, her or Nurse Wei’s boyfriend.”

The jujube tree in the yard was of a good variety, and the jujubes were quite sweet. Lin Qiao planned to take some to the office in the afternoon. Old Zhou was too interesting, and as she walked inside, she couldn’t help but ask, “Brother Zhou loves romance so much. How did he end up with a wife like that?”

She seemed more concerned about other people’s affairs than he did. Ji Duo initially wanted to throw the big jujube onto the coffee table but decided to keep it in his hand.

Lin Qiao didn’t hear him speak, turned her eyes, and looked at him with a smile still lingering in her big, bright phoenix eyes. His simple answer paused for a moment, “Commander Ding’s wife introduced Brother Zhou and his wife. She likes to introduce matches for the soldiers under her husband’s command.”

“Didn’t she introduce anyone to you?” Lin Qiao discarded the jujube pit and took another one from the plate.

She was just making conversation, asking casually, and only after asking did she remember that this man didn’t seem to like small talk, especially about his own affairs.

Just as she was about to change the topic, Ji Duo already replied calmly, “She did.” After a pause, he added, “She introduced two, but I didn’t meet them.”

This surprised Lin Qiao, “You didn’t meet any of them? I guess you didn’t know about the arranged marriage either.”

This was the first time they talked about their families’ marriage arrangements since they got married. No, actually, they hadn’t talked about it even before they got married. Even during their blind date, it was only a formal exchange of conditions. Thinking about it now, one was forced to seek help, and the other was pushed into it. Their emotional foundation was even weaker than those who married through blind dates.

Ji Duo subconsciously took a bite of the big jujube in his hand, “What about you? If this arranged marriage didn’t exist, what would you have done?”

“If this arranged marriage didn’t exist..” Lin Qiao had thought about it, “Then I would have done like my cousin and become an undocumented resident.” After all, in this era, household registrations weren’t interconnected. As long as there were ways, one could find a way to register in another place, but it would be tough, especially in the early stages.

Lin Qiao could think of it, and naturally, Ji Duo could too. Their marriage was indeed a twist of fate. This made his feelings a bit complicated, and he chewed the jujube without noticing its taste, “Weren’t you ever panicked?”

“I did.” Lin Qiao gave him an unexpected answer.

In fact, after knowing her for so long, he had never seen Lin Qiao show panic. No matter what happened, she always appeared calm and composed. But Lin Qiao had indeed panicked when she found herself in a completely unfamiliar book and was lying on the kang due to a heart condition. Facing the fate of being sold and her current state of helplessness, there was a moment when she wondered if ending it all would send her back.

“But panicking is useless. If I don’t find a way out myself, I’ll have to marry Ma Rongliang.”

Lin Qiao was very calm about this, and this calmness made her seemingly light statement about panicking being useless sound particularly heavy. Perhaps this is why she relies on no one, because in her growth, there was never anyone she could rely on…

This reminded Ji Duo of their previous conversation. For her, his sudden talk about trust might have seemed like a joke.

Just as he was about to say something, Lin Qiao’s gaze suddenly fell on his hand, her expression strange, “Commander Ji, are the jujubes tasty?”

This girl only called him Ji Duo when introducing him to others. Usually, she either didn’t address him or called him Commander Ji. She even used to call him Little Uncle.

Ji Duo was still caught up in his thoughts and casually replied, “It’s okay.”

Then Lin Qiao fell silent, her expression growing increasingly strange as she looked at him.

Ji Duo sensed something was wrong and followed her gaze down to his hand, finally noticing a clear wormhole on the jujube’s bitten surface.

When Lin Qiao brought the jujubes to the office in the afternoon to share with everyone, she specifically reminded them, “There might be worms inside.”

She was deeply impressed by Ji Duo’s expression at that moment. Although he still looked serious and stern, it was clear that he wasn’t feeling well.

This man wasn’t particularly interested in food, and after today, jujubes might join seafood on his blacklist.

In those days, fruit trees weren’t sprayed with pesticides; everyone knew that. Each person grabbed a couple of jujubes, and soon they were almost all gone. Fortunately, when Group Leader Gao came in, some remained for him. He came over to take some and said, “I just saw downstairs that the batch of equipment the school ordered had arrived.”

“Arrived?” Lin Qiao’s desk was by the window, and she looked outside when she heard this.

Sure enough, an old Dongfeng truck was parked under the experimental building, and the logistics staff carefully unloaded the glassware.

Soon, someone came with a list to find Lin Qiao and Group Leader Gao, “The chemistry equipment you need is here. Come and see where to put everything and how to arrange it.”

People who don’t understand shouldn’t mess around, so Lin Qiao and Group Leader Gao put down their work and went to help organize the chemistry lab.

After a while, Teacher Yang and another male junior high teacher came. The four of them worked all afternoon, placing items under the lab benches and storing others in cabinets. Valuable or dangerous items were locked outside the cabinets.

Teacher Yang washed her hands in the sink, “Now that everything is here, you can start your trial lesson tomorrow.”

“I don’t know which day it will be yet.” Lin Qiao also washed her hands. Just as she returned to the teaching building, Junzi stopped her in the corridor. “Teacher Lin, I have something very important to tell you.”