"Oh, I wouldn’t dare, Professor Su! You must be joking." The student’s words sounded respectful, but their eyes and expression betrayed a distinct lack of reverence or fear for their teacher.
Su Li turned around and stepped out from the crowd. She walked to the doorway and directly called out the names of the students stirring up trouble.
Those students squeezed out of the crowd, grinning cheekily. "Professor Su, we’ve all admitted our mistakes. You can’t just keep pushing us!"
"That’s right, we’ve already admitted we were wrong. We don’t want to end up cleaning toilets!"
The troublemakers banded together, trying to pressure Su Li.
Su Li looked at them, then glanced at the other students who were just watching from the sidelines, most of whom seemed to be enjoying the spectacle.
Su Li took a deep breath. She knew she couldn’t back down. If she let these troublemakers walk all over her now, she’d never be able to establish authority in the academy, and the other students would gradually stop respecting her too.
Seeing Su Li remain silent, the students thought she was giving in. They laughed and said, "It’s fine, it’s fine, Professor Su isn’t making a fuss. Everyone, let’s disperse!"
"Hold it right there." Su Li’s voice was calm but firm as she repeated their names. Then she declared, "You are all expelled. Pack your things and go home. From now on, both Phoenix Academy and the Royal Academy of Mathematics will blacklist you and your descendants. None of you will ever be allowed to enter these two academies again."
Su Li’s words sent a chill through the troublemakers. "P-Professor Su, you’re really expelling us? On what grounds? Why? You can’t just kick us out with a single sentence—we refuse to accept this!"
"On what grounds? Hmph, I am the Dean of both academies, the highest authority and decision-maker. I have every right to decide who stays and who goes. As for why I’m expelling you—everyone here saw what happened. You gathered to gamble, disrespected your teachers, used sly words, refused discipline. What reason do I need not to expel students like you? Pack up and leave. My academies are too small for students who gamble on the looks of their Dean and Vice Dean!" Su Li declared resolutely.
At the mention of expulsion—and seeing that Dean Su was dead serious—the troublemakers started to panic!
There are four top academies in the Jin Dynasty: Phoenix Academy, Valor Academy, Royal Academy of Mathematics, and Southland Academy.
Valor Academy only admits royal children and sons of high-ranking officials. Ordinary citizens and lower-ranked officials’ children are not accepted.
With Su Li banning them from Phoenix Academy and the Royal Academy of Mathematics, that meant two out of the three most prestigious academies in the country were forever closed to them!
And these two academies were the most inclusive, accepting students from all backgrounds, regardless of status. Being expelled and blacklisted from them was a devastating blow!
The troublemakers’ faces went pale. They tried to plead, "Professor Su, please reconsider! We were just fooling around, we didn’t mean any harm. Don’t ruin our futures over this!"
Su Li’s expression didn’t soften. "You should have thought about the consequences before you acted. The academy has its rules, and I will enforce them. If you want to blame someone, blame yourselves for not respecting the institution and your teachers."
The students hung their heads, knowing there was no room for negotiation.
Su Li turned and walked away, leaving the expelled students behind, and the crowd slowly dispersed.