Chapter 035 【Beautiful Lie】

It was lunchtime, and the cafeteria was packed with students, buzzing like a marketplace.

When Gu Feng and Xia Wei arrived on the second floor, there were virtually no seats left. Clearly, for the students, the lunch break was too short, and going home to eat was too much trouble, so eating at school was a great option.

Gu Feng and Xia Wei found a spot in the corner and ordered a couple of dishes.

Since they were teachers, the cafeteria chef gave them special treatment—the portions were generous, and the food was served quickly.

In the distance, some students seemed to recognize Xia Wei. Seeing her eating with Gu Feng, they started gossiping. Xia Wei was a reserved woman; faintly hearing those whispers made her uncomfortable, and a faint blush appeared on her cheeks. In contrast, Gu Feng didn't react at all.

"Teacher Gu, I heard you replaced Teacher Qi's class and held a class meeting last time. Did something happen?" Xia Wei composed herself and asked. She had two reasons for inviting Gu Feng to lunch: first, to thank him, and second, to find out how he intended to handle the students of Class 8, Grade 4.

Gu Feng picked up the chopsticks on the table and handed them to Xia Wei, saying, "Ling Wei and Yang Bing brought a few students to smoke, and I taught them a lesson."

"Thank you." After taking the disposable chopsticks, Xia Wei didn't even have time to separate them. Hearing Gu Feng's words, she grew nervous and asked, "Are they... okay?"

Seeing the worried look on Xia Wei's face, Gu Feng understood she was concerned he might have laid hands on the students. He shook his head and told her what happened.

After hearing how Gu Feng dealt with Yang Bing and the others, Xia Wei immediately covered her mouth and laughed. Clearly, Gu Feng's methods were a bit unconventional.

Xia Wei was the quiet type, and her smile was sweet, with two adorable dimples appearing on her cheeks when she laughed. After laughing, she hesitated for a moment and said, "Teacher Gu, I know it was you who saved us at the mall that day."

As she spoke, Xia Wei glanced at Gu Feng and, noticing his expression remained unchanged, continued, "Although the students in Class 8, Grade 4 are rebellious, their nature isn't bad. So... I suggest you use less physical discipline. After all, for us teachers, building rapport with students is the best approach."

"Don't worry, Teacher Xia. They're all my students. As long as they don't cross a line, I won't resort to force." Gu Feng didn't try to explain the mall incident. He knew it was pointless—Xia Wei was already convinced it was him.

"That's good." Xia Wei smiled and said, "I hope Teacher Gu doesn't mind me speaking out of turn." With that, she lowered her head and started eating. She understood that how Gu Feng managed Class 8, Grade 4 was his own business, but she couldn't help worrying about the students, which was why she offered her advice. Now that she had spoken up, she was afraid Gu Feng might be upset.

Gu Feng knew Xia Wei was kind-hearted and always had the students' best interests at heart, so he naturally didn't blame her.

After lunch, Gu Feng went to the dormitory arranged by the school for his midday rest. As one of Hong Kong's renowned private schools, Zifeng Middle School had excellent facilities. The dormitory was comfortably decorated, similar to an ordinary apartment.

In the afternoon, Gu Feng had no classes, so he stayed in the office reading books on student management. Throughout the entire afternoon, he noticed Hu Hua occasionally shooting him cold glances. Gu Feng understood the reason behind it but couldn't be bothered to explain.

After school ended in the afternoon, Gu Feng walked out of the school alone and dialed Lin Jiaying's number. When the call connected, he said, "Jiaying, go back to Auntie Xu's place for dinner today. I have something to do in the evening and won't be able to cook for you."

"Oh, got it." Lin Jiaying replied sullenly. Then, seeing no one around, she mustered her courage and asked, "Are you going out to find a woman to get laid?"

Gu Feng had intended to hang up, but upon hearing Lin Jiaying's words, he was taken aback for a second and said, "No."

With that, Gu Feng hung up the phone. Originally, given their identities, discussing such topics would have been normal. However, thinking about their current relationship and Lin Jiaying's age gave Gu Feng a headache.

On the other end of the line, Lin Jiaying heard Gu Feng say "no" and then hang up. She grumbled to herself, "Hmph! I bet that's exactly what he's doing!"

...

Miao Street is Hong Kong's largest slum, located in the Kowloon District. The street market of Temple Street is marked with opening hours from 2 p.m. to midnight. By dusk, the market was in full swing. All the vendors had set up their stalls, hollering their wares, creating a lively atmosphere.

Walking through the crowd and watching the vendors shouting their hearts out, Gu Feng couldn't help but sigh. In this world, where there are rich people, there are also poor people—even in an international metropolis like Hong Kong, it's no exception.

Based on his memory, Gu Feng turned into an alley, asked several people, and finally found Xu Qiang's home. Xu Qiang lived in a dilapidated apartment building where the paint had mostly peeled off, making it look quite old.

An elderly man with gray hair sat on a chair, playing the erhu and singing something continuously.

"Uncle, may I ask which room Xu Qiang lives in?" Gu Feng walked up and asked.

The old man stopped what he was doing and glanced at Gu Feng. "Who are you?"

"I'm Xu Qiang's teacher. I need to see him about something," Gu Feng replied.

"Third floor, Room 302." Hearing this, the old man told Gu Feng the specific room number, then closed his eyes and immersed himself back into the world of music.

Gu Feng entered the apartment building. The courtyard was hung with all kinds of underwear, even lace panties and similar items. The trash cans in the courtyard emitted a foul stench, with many flies buzzing around them.

Frowning at the sight, Gu Feng quickened his pace and went up to the third floor, stopping at the door of Room 302. The door was locked from the inside, indicating someone was home.

Gu Feng stepped forward and knocked on the door.

"Come in, the door isn't locked," a weak voice came from inside.

Gu Feng pushed the door open, and a stench hit him—it seemed to be a mix of feces and urine, extremely unpleasant.

The room was a mess, with a few tables scattered around and a bed in the corner. On the bed lay a woman. Her face was pale, almost bloodless, her eyes slightly yellowed, and she looked sickly.

"Who are you?" the woman asked weakly upon seeing Gu Feng.

"I'm Xu Qiang's teacher. My surname is Gu. Are you Xu Qiang's mother?" Gu Feng asked.

"I am Xu Qiang's mother." The woman grew nervous. "Did Qiang Zai do something wrong at school?" she asked, looking at Gu Feng with concern.

After a brief hesitation, Gu Feng smiled and shook his head. "No."

"Oh." Hearing this, the woman relaxed a bit. "That's what I thought. Qiang Zai often tells me he's doing well at school—not only is his tuition free, but he also gets a scholarship every week. Ah, this child has suffered so much. Even when he gets the scholarship, he doesn't spend it on himself, only on my medical treatment."

As she spoke, a happy smile appeared on her originally pale face!

Yes, that's right—a happy smile.

Seeing that smile, Gu Feng felt a pang in his heart. After a moment's thought, he said, "You haven't had dinner yet, have you? Let me go out and buy you some dinner."

"No need, Teacher Gu. How can I let you buy me food? Qiang Zai will be back soon, and I'll have him go buy it." The woman quickly refused. "By the way, Teacher Gu, you haven't said why you came to our home."

Gu Feng pulled a wad of Hong Kong dollars from his pocket and smiled. "It's like this: because Xu Qiang has performed exceptionally well at school and comes from a special family background, the school has awarded him a bonus of five thousand Hong Kong dollars. I was supposed to give it to him at school, but he left right after class, so I took the subway to deliver it personally."

"Thank you so much for the trouble, Teacher Gu." Upon hearing this, the woman's face lit up with a happy smile. The corners of her eyes grew slightly moist, and a tear of happiness rolled down her withered skin, dampening her pale cheek.