Chapter 722: A Child's Emotional Knot

"Yes, Mommy keeps her word, let's pinky swear."

She held out her little finger, and her son immediately threw his toy on the ground, also extending his little finger to hook his mother's: "Pinky swear, cross my heart, hope to die, stick a needle in my eye, whoever breaks it is a little puppy."

A "pinky swear" is not a game.

It is a child's solemn sense of ritual.

"Great! I can change to a new kindergarten!"

Sheng Zichen hopped and skipped as he pulled the door open and ran outside, shouting as he ran: "Grandma, Baobao wants to eat roast duck, sweet and sour pork ribs, braised salmon, pulled silk yam, oil-braised shrimp, garlic scallop baby bok choy..."

A long string of dishes, recited so fluently there wasn't even a pause.

Shi Youxuan:...

The little guy was soon jumping around happily, back to normal.

A false alarm.

Seeing that it hadn't caused too much of an impact on the child, Shi Youxuan thought about letting it go, but the Bilingual Kindergarten did not intend to let it go just like that.

"Ring-a-ling..."

Shi Youxuan's phone rang.

She glanced at the number on the screen and immediately furrowed her brows.

It was that sharp-tongued, mean-spirited principal calling.

Her fingertip tapped the red button—reject!

But the phone rang again, relentless, so she answered: "What do you want?"

"Sheng Zichen's mother, you must compensate the kindergarten for its losses; you must pay the price for your impulsiveness." The same old tune.

Shi Youxuan gave a light sneer: "Are you sure?"

The principal shrieked in a shrill voice: "What do you mean by that?"

"Are you threatening me? Sheng Zichen's mother, let me tell you, I have never been afraid of threats from uncultured people like you. I'll give you one hour to crawl to the kindergarten and apologize immediately, otherwise, you and your husband can spend the rest of your lives in Prison."

"Beep, beep, beep—"

The principal hung up first.

How arrogant.

The corners of Shi Youxuan's mouth lifted, revealing a faint smile.

If you don't court death, you won't die.

Since she is actively seeking death, then I shall grant her wish!

There was one minute and thirty-one seconds left until the hour was up.

Shi Youxuan walked gracefully into the kindergarten gate.

Today is Sunday, and the kindergarten should be closed, but there were many cars parked at the entrance, and the auditorium was full of parents!

The parents had all been notified by the principal.

They came to witness Shi Youxuan's apology; the principal was prepared to use this as a cautionary tale, to let everyone see how uncultured people are forced to be obedient once she has disciplined them.

"Principal, the time is up. That woman wouldn't dare not come, would she?" the Assistant asked in a low voice.

She was very certain, full of confidence: "Does she dare not come?"

As soon as the words fell, Shi Youxuan, led by a Security Guard, walked in.

"Look, what did I tell you? Young people need to keep their cool," the principal said smugly.

Shi Youxuan arrived in front of her, head bowed and eyes lowered: "I'm here."

She was still wearing the cheap clothes she had picked up from a street stall today. The principal looked her up and down a few times, her gaze filled with naked contempt: "Is this the only outfit you have? You don't even know how to change before going out. Vulgar."

"You called me here just to see what I'm wearing? If that's the case, you should have said so earlier; I could have worn designer brands for you to see," Shi Youxuan retorted with a sharp, firm jab.

"Hmph!"

The principal didn't continue to argue with her, snorted through her nose, and then went up on stage.

"Dear parents, hello. Today, I've asked you to sacrifice your rest time and come to the school amidst your busy schedules because a very malicious incident occurred at the school..."

The principal spoke eloquently.

Although she had no evidence, she had already pinned the incident of smashing up the kindergarten on Shi Youxuan.

What was most infuriating wasn't the framing—that incident was indeed done by her own family, so she wasn't being wronged, and Shi Youxuan wasn't even angry about that part.

What made her most angry was that the principal directly negated an entire social class.

And a very large class at that!

"Back when I was at the Education Bureau, I slammed the table and told the director that we cannot let the children of the poor in; their children will lower the overall standard of our children."

"If you're not in the same circle, don't try to force your way in!"

"But the Education Bureau said no, that we had to consider the feelings of the impoverished. What feelings could people who struggle for three meals a day possibly have? Everyone has seen it now, this is the consequence..."

Blah, blah, blah.

The principal was righteous and spoke with great fervor.

The parents' gazes turned one after another toward Shi Youxuan.

She kept her head down the whole time, looking as if she were embarrassed and admitting her mistake.

In reality, she was afraid of being recognized.

Because she discovered that there were several familiar faces sitting in the auditorium; fortunately, the lighting at the entrance was dim, and standing there, she wasn't easily spotted.

But what about when she had to go on stage in a moment?

Then her cover would definitely be blown.

Forget it, if the cover is blown, so be it; let that woman on stage be arrogant for a while longer.

The more arrogant she is now, the more I will make her collapse later!

Half an hour passed.

The Principal was going on and on.

She listed numerous sins of the poor, saying a lot, but the central idea was just one sentence: poverty is the original sin.

One hour passed.

The Principal still hadn't finished, with the basic content revolving endlessly around "poor people will commit all kinds of mistakes."

The parents off-stage actually didn't find it boring, and it even resonated with them.

Because they were all rich people, it was very easy for them to empathize!

Another half hour passed.

It was finally coming to an end, and the Principal concluded her long-winded speech with one sentence: "Now, we invite Sheng Zichen's mother to come on stage to reflect and offer a profound apology."

She knew it; asking her to come today was definitely not just to be an audience member.

Shi Youxuan stretched her sore, numb legs, and the Assistant stepped forward, her attitude even more arrogant: "Go up on stage and apologize. You must make our Principal happy, otherwise... you should know the consequences."

Shi Youxuan: "I know."

The Assistant was satisfied and urged her to go on stage.

"Hurry up and go, don't waste my time here, don't delay everyone's time; do you know how much money is lost for every minute the parents are delayed..."

Shi Youxuan felt that she was the one who talked too much.

She walked gracefully onto the stage, very calm, very peaceful.

"Hello everyone, parents. I am very sorry to delay your time to come here to witness the truth of the matter. I know that everyone's time is very precious, and you are making money every second, so I will only delay you for five minutes. The timer starts now."

"One, this kindergarten spreads rumors about other kindergartens everywhere, slandering others to elevate itself."

"Two, if the upper beam is crooked, the lower ones will be askew; the values of everyone from the Principal to the teachers are problematic. How can you dare to entrust your children to people like this?"

"I believe that every parent here wants the best for their children, which is why you sent them here. If what is being cultivated is only a money-first concept, with no distinction between good and evil in their eyes, no ability to distinguish right from wrong in their hearts, and only the habit of looking at people through colored glasses, fawning over the high and trampling on the low... I don't think this is what you want."

There was already a low commotion and whispering off-stage.

"That makes sense."

"She doesn't seem as unbearable as the Principal said..."

"Why does she look so familiar to me?"

"No way, really?"

Shi Youxuan's identity was recognized.

If the Principal could have heard, perhaps what followed would not have happened.

However, she did not.

She shouted in a panic: "Security Guard, Security Guard?"

"Hurry up and go up there to drag that woman down; don't let her continue talking nonsense..."

This was different from what she had expected; she didn't expect that the usually timid Sheng Zichen's mother could actually speak so well?

And it was reasonable and well-founded.

In just a few sentences, she overturned the viewpoint the Principal had spent over an hour expounding.

She had characterized Sheng Zichen's mother as a representative of ignorance, barbarism, and lack of quality.

But Sheng Zichen's mother was able to be reasonable, well-founded, with clear viewpoints and a clear stance... No, this was not what she wanted.

The Security Guard rushed onto the stage, but Shi Youxuan remained calm in the face of danger.

She still said to the Principal with composure: "Heh, you spoke on stage for one hour, thirty-eight minutes, and fifty-six seconds just now, and I didn't say a single word. I've only spoken for two minutes now, and you've already lost your composure?"

"Are you trying to hide something, or are you afraid to face it? How many sordid dealings are actually going on inside this kindergarten that looks bright and beautiful on the outside? Are you afraid that I will expose them all to the sunlight and to the parents?"