Chapter 44: Belittling the Child

Sister Li’s daughter was in the Preschool class, which was in a different building from the elementary school.

After parting ways with Sister Li, Jiang Ning asked a student on the way where the second grade was located.

As soon as she entered the school, she attracted a lot of attention, with many eyes scrutinizing her.

Finding Huo Zhiqi’s classroom, she heard a chubby kid at the door saying that her, as his adoptive mother, was no good.

She was about to walk over and grab the child by the ear to ask what was wrong with her.

She saw Huo Zhiqi with a dark expression on his small face, his fists clenched, looking like he was about to throw a punch.

Jiang Ning quickly spoke up.

Under the gaze of the entire class, she walked to Huo Zhiqi’s desk and gave the chubby kid a cold glance. It was the same kid she had given a ‘bamboo shoot stir-fry’ to last time.

Jiang Ning said, “Give the homework book back to my child.”

Seeing that the kid didn’t move, Jiang Ning’s eyes narrowed. “Do you want another round of ‘bamboo shoot stir-fry’?”

Normally, the mention of food would light up Wang Xiaotian’s eyes, but coming from the woman who had beaten him before, it definitely wasn’t a good thing.

Wang Xiaotian’s chubby face tensed up, and he dropped the homework book before running off.

Jiang Ning furrowed her brows; she disliked rude children the most.

In the modern world, many girls were reluctant to have children. If they had a well-behaved child, it would be fine, but if they had a troublemaker, it would be a lifetime of hardship.

Suddenly, her sleeve was tugged, and Jiang Ning looked down to see Huo Zhiqi’s big eyes looking at her, filled with an unidentifiable emotion. “You sit,” he said.

When parents came for Parent-Teacher Meetings, the children would offer their stools for the parents to sit on.

Jiang Ning gracefully sat down.

The little one seemed surprised by her presence, his eyes now filled with unease, his small hands fidgeting together.

Jiang Ning reached out and gently pinched his cheek. “In the future, remember to tell me about any school activities, or you can tell Uncle Shen too.”

“Okay,” Huo Zhiqi nodded.

This well-behaved demeanor truly tugged at the heartstrings.

Where could you find such an obedient and well-mannered child?

Jiang Ning reached out and rubbed his head, giving him two candies. “Alright, the Parent-Teacher Meeting is about to start. Go wait outside.”

Huo Zhiqi was the same age as the two Wang children and was in the same class as them.

Grandma Wang had also come to the Parent-Teacher Meeting for her two grandsons. Seeing Jiang Ning speaking kindly to Huo Zhiqi and even giving him candy, she sneered coldly. “Tsk, pretending to be nice, but who knows what it’s like behind closed doors.”

Sitting next to Grandma Wang was an old friend of hers, also a military family member from the family compound.

Curiously, she said, “Sister Wang, is it true what you said? That the girl treats the orphaned child badly? She doesn’t seem like it.”

Grandma Wang replied to her, “Would you hit your child in front of others?”

The old friend thought for a moment and said, “Well, yes, sometimes. My grandson is naughty and often gets chased around the family compound by his father with a whip.”

“…”

Someone sitting in front of them, overhearing their conversation, chimed in, “My child is the same. Whenever he misbehaves, he deserves a beating. A little discipline doesn’t hurt. After all, ‘spare the rod, spoil the child.'”

“But that child is just adopted. As the saying goes, an adopted child can never compare to a biological one. This relationship is indeed complicated.”

Hearing this, Grandma Wang’s eyes lit up. “In a few days, you all can come with me to her house and see for yourselves. If she really abuses the child, I will report her for mistreating the child of a martyr’s family.”

Grandma Wang still held a grudge from the last time Jiang Ning had beaten her grandson and was determined to make her pay.

Jiang Ning had no idea that someone could be so devoid of moral bottom line.

The parents gradually entered the classroom, and at the appointed time, the teacher walked in with books in hand, head held high.

The children outside the door were either peeking through the windows or clinging to the doorframes.

The teacher began with the standard introduction, introducing herself. Huo Zhiqi’s homeroom teacher was surnamed Feng.

Teacher Feng spoke until her mouth was dry, praising the school, the leadership, and the teachers. Finally, she called out the names of a few children.

These were the top-performing students in the class, and she heaped praise on them.

The parents applauded enthusiastically.

Jiang Ning, feeling bored, observed the expressions on everyone’s faces in the classroom, especially those of the parents whose children were being praised. They all held their heads high like swans.

Indeed, no matter the era, there are always parents who push their children to excel.

After praising the high-achieving students, Teacher Feng’s tone suddenly became grave. “Now, I will call out the names of the students who performed the worst in our class.”

She called out several students’ names, and to Jiang Ning’s surprise, the last name was Huo Zhiqi’s.

Jiang Ning was somewhat astonished. She had taught the boy English and knew that with his intelligence, he couldn’t possibly be a poor student.

Could it be that he was weak in certain subjects?

When Huo Zhiqi heard Teacher Feng call his name, he immediately leaned against the window frame, nervously looking at Jiang Ning.

Teacher Feng always compared the best and worst students during Parent-Teacher Meetings.

Teacher Feng glanced at the window and immediately spoke sternly, “Huo Zhiqi, don’t lean on the window. Come inside.”

Jiang Ning watched as several children stood in a row on the podium, their heads bowed, ready to be scolded. She furrowed her brows.

She felt that the teacher’s educational approach was not quite right.

While there was such a thing as tough love, using poor-performing students to highlight the achievements of high-achieving students could create significant psychological pressure on those who were struggling.

“Is Chen Meihong’s parent here?”

Teacher Feng called out.

“Yes, Teacher Feng,” a middle-aged woman in simple attire stood up from her seat. Because her daughter was a poor performer, she felt embarrassed by the attention.

The gazes from those around her felt like they were melting her.

She felt frustrated with her child, wondering how she would educate her daughter when they got home. It was infuriating.

“Chen Meihong’s parent, right? Your child is very, very poor in math! She often gets the most basic arithmetic problems wrong. As adults, you need to supervise her more in memorizing the multiplication tables.”

Teacher Feng emphasized the words “very, very” with a heavy tone, making the parent too ashamed to lift her head. She repeatedly agreed, “Yes, yes, yes, I will definitely supervise my daughter more at home. She often tells me that there are many things she doesn’t understand, but we haven’t studied them either, so we don’t know how to teach her.”

“Girls, well, they are indeed not good at math subjects. It’s normal. I teach all the children the same way, but if a child’s brain isn’t sharp, there’s nothing we can do.”

Jiang Ning frowned deeply. How could a teacher say such things in front of the child?

Hearing the teacher call her child stupid, the parent’s face turned even redder, and she repeatedly said, “It’s our problem, our problem.”

Jiang Ning: “???”

Her child was being belittled, and the parent didn’t do anything about it.

She looked up at the podium and saw that the little girl who had just been called out had already turned red, her eyes filled with tears that were falling one by one down her cheeks.

Teacher Feng then called out a few more parents, pointing out issues with their children.

Those parents were so embarrassed and frustrated that they couldn’t lift their heads. A few who mustered the courage to argue back were quickly silenced by the teacher.

The teacher also advised them not to spoil their children.

When it came to the last student,

“Is Huo Zhiqi’s parent here?”

Huo Zhiqi, standing on the podium, stiffened slightly when he heard his name.

Jiang Ning didn’t have a good impression of Teacher Feng. She didn’t stand up but lazily raised her arm and said, “I’m here. Go ahead.”