"Ms. Huang, what do you mean by this?" Joy Zheng's heart grew anxious as she heard Flora Huang's words, and she frowned at the two people in front of her.
"Didn't I already explain it to you?" Flora Huang looked at Joy Zheng with a sweet smile. "Besides, I trust Mr. Paul Zhang's teaching skills. He already agreed to all the conditions I proposed."
"Sigh, Joy, let me be honest with you. Mr. Zhang actually approached me a while ago, but I thought, we've been working together for so long, and I know you really need the money. After all, your son Lynn Chen even won first prize in the Provincial Math Olympiad—the future is bright for him, and he'll need plenty of money for his studies down the road."
At this point, Flora Huang looked genuinely admiring, but there was still a clear trace of disdain in her eyes.
Winning first prize in the Provincial Math Olympiad is no small feat, but it's not like that guarantees a smooth, easy life. In fact, back when Director Chen from the Education Department came to dinner with us from River City, Lynn Chen made Flora Huang lose face in front of everyone, and even Deng Yangyan ended up feeling awkward.
Later, at the entrance of the complex, Flora Huang saw Liu Tankuo pull Lynn Chen aside. Flora figured it was probably because Lynn had set his sights on Liu Tankuo's daughter, so Liu Tankuo dragged him off for a lecture. Still, for someone like Lynn to climb up to the level of Liu Tankuo's family, Flora couldn't help feeling a bit uncomfortable deep down.
"But Ms. Huang, these are my students. I have a responsibility to teach them well, and our agreed-upon teaching period isn't even over yet." Joy Zheng took a deep breath to steady herself after hearing Flora's words.
Most of these students' parents only sent their kids here because of Joy Zheng's reputation. She keeps close contact with the parents and always knows how each student is doing.
Unlike other tutoring teachers, Joy Zheng genuinely wants her students to succeed, and she puts far more effort into them than anyone else.
"Ms. Zheng, what are you trying to say? Are you implying I can't teach them properly?" Mr. Paul Zhang, standing nearby, looked at Joy Zheng with some annoyance. "Besides, Ms. Zheng, I heard you only got your latest professional title thanks to Director Chen's connections. Congratulations on that, by the way."
Last time Director Chen brought up the issue of professional titles at dinner, and as soon as he mentioned it, it was settled right away. You could say the efficiency was off the charts.
Honestly, Joy Zheng had been grinding for ages to get that title and never managed it, so this time she got lucky. After all, her monthly salary just jumped by several hundred yuan.
“Mr. Zhang, what’s that supposed to mean? Whose connections did I use?” Joy Zheng’s face turned serious when she heard Mr. Zhang’s snide remark, her voice full of outrage.
“Do I really have to spell it out? Plenty of teachers heard it back then.” Mr. Zhang sneered, totally dismissive.
The tension was thick enough to cut with a knife.
Flora Huang jumped in with a cheerful, fake smile, trying to smooth things over: “Alright, alright, you two should just cool it. We’re all colleagues here—no need to make things awkward.”
Then Flora pulled a wad of cash from her pocket and handed it to Joy Zheng. She said meaningfully, “Joy, the month’s barely started, so I’ll give you a little extra for tutoring. Here’s 600 yuan—take it and buy something nice for Evan Lin to help him focus in class.”
“He’s in senior year now, and his workload’s pretty intense. You don’t need to tutor anymore, so after work you can just call Evan Lin, chat about life and unwind.”
“My cram school probably isn’t the best fit for you. I’ve already spoken with some of the parents, and they’ll be dropping by soon to check out the place, then bringing their kids over. You should just head home now.”
Flora Huang held out the six hundred yuan to Joy Zheng, who just stood there, stunned, not moving a muscle for a long moment.
“What, you think that's not enough?” Mr. Zhang raised his chin, looking all smug. “I heard from Ms. Huang that you barely put in any effort during tutoring, Ms. Zheng. Anyway, this is how things are now—starting tomorrow, I’ll be taking over your classes.”
“You can just go home and relax.”
Mr. Zhang’s face was twisted with a mocking smile.
Flora Huang looked at Joy Zheng’s furious face and felt a wave of satisfaction inside.
Right then, the closed door was kicked open with a bang.
The sound of the door slamming open made Flora Huang and Mr. Zhang both turn their heads.
“Evan, Lynn, Yolanda—what are you guys doing here?” Joy Zheng was stunned to see the three teens standing at the door.
“Oh, Evan Lin, it’s you! What brings you here? Perfect timing—your mom’s just finished class, you can head home together.” Flora Huang spotted Evan at the door, then noticed the two girls with him, surprise flashing in her eyes.
Flora sized up Yolanda Fang and Lynn Chen, mentally comparing them to her own daughter, Denise Deng. Whether it was looks, height, or vibe, even if Flora didn’t want to admit it, these two girls were way ahead.
That made Flora glare at Evan Lin with even more dissatisfaction.
“Do I even need to explain myself to you, Ms. Huang? Seriously, you’ve got no shame. You’re something else.” Evan Lin looked at Flora Huang and nodded slightly.
“How can you talk like that, Evan?” Flora Huang’s smile froze, her expression shifting to disbelief as she stared at Evan.
She’d never been talked to like that by Evan Lin before!
“How do you want me to talk to you?” Evan Lin snorted. “My mom poured her heart into this cram school, and now you’re acting like she’s a burden?”
“If I remember right, when you first started recruiting, not a single student wanted to sign up. You begged my mom to join, and only then did things pick up. Now you’re just cutting her loose?”
As soon as Evan finished, Flora Huang and Mr. Zhang’s faces turned dark.
Flora Huang turned to Joy Zheng, looking aggrieved. “Ms. Zheng, look at your son! Is that how you taught him to talk to his elders? Doesn’t he know what respect is?”
Before Joy could respond, Yolanda Fang stepped forward, her face full of contempt as she stared at Flora Huang. “Ma’am, do you even know what ‘respecting elders’ means?”
“Respecting elders means respecting people with actual morals. You’re just old enough to count as an elder, but you act greasy and fake—my building’s cleaning lady has more class than you. And you want respect? Want me to slap a crack in your face all the way to East Africa?”
Yolanda Fang pursed her lips and looked at Flora Huang, her face full of disdain.