Principal 09

“Bullies, those who disrespect their parents for no reason, petty thieves, and those who just have something wrong with their heads.” Fang Chenghan addressed the newcomers. By now, these people had already been tormented so much that they had lost their previous arrogance. “You are the absolute bottom feeders here. These aren't the school's rules; they're my rules.”

A few guys from the combat class stood behind him with their arms crossed, looking exactly like a bunch of thugs.

“Once you realize your mistakes, you'll be assigned to classes. Everyone who comes here after you will go through this exact same process. Alright, dismissed!”

At the gate of an ordinary high school, a short boy carrying a backpack was walking toward his home.

The guy who used to bully him had been expelled. Finally, there was no one to pick on him, throw his backpack into the toilet, or force him to steal money. Thinking of this, the short boy's steps grew light.

But soon, he froze. Standing in front of him was the figure from his nightmares.

Except... that head of yellow hair had been shaved off, looking a bit uneven.

“You, you... I wasn't the one who reported you, I wasn't...” the short boy's voice trembled.

To his surprise, Yellow-Haired Man took a big step forward and gave a standard ninety-degree bow. “I'm sorry, I was wrong. Please forgive me!”

The short boy froze in place. What kind of trick was this?

Yellow-Haired Man looked up. The dim light of the streetlamp illuminated his face, which was still swollen in some places.

“Really, I was wrong. I used to be an idiot and did stupid things. I am truly sorry to you,” he said with utmost sincerity.

However, the short boy became even more terrified. Screaming, he turned and ran away without looking back.

Yellow-Haired Man watched the panicked figure, his mouth slightly open, but the words he wanted to say got stuck in his throat.

Lin Guoqiang emerged from the side, followed by a few students from the combat class.

“You see that? No matter how much you apologize afterward, the damage is already done. He will remember it for the rest of his life. You, and all of you, shouldn't think that the people you've bullied will forgive you just for a light, empty apology.”

Yellow-Haired Man stared blankly as the figure disappeared, then suddenly raised his hand and slapped himself across the face.

Lin Guoqiang didn't stop him.

“If you want to make amends, work hard to improve your abilities. You still have a long life ahead of you,” Lin Guoqiang said. Then, he turned and walked away with the others. Yellow-Haired Man stood stunned for a moment before turning and running to catch up with the group.

“Dad, what if there's someone who just refuses to repent? We can't just beat them up every day, can we?” Fang Chenghan was currently asking Fang Zhiyi.

“Those kinds of people... I'll just sell them to another school. I've already looked into another private school.”

Thinking of the atmosphere at the previous school, Fang Chenghan shivered. Looking at Fang Zhiyi's serious expression, he could only mourn for Yellow-Haired Man in silence for a few minutes.

Fang Zhiyi reached across the desk and picked up a few documents. These were the student files left behind by Hong Yanwen.

“Including them, the first prerequisite for graduation is to apologize to the people they've hurt. Otherwise, they'll just have to stay here forever.”

The holidays soon arrived, and Fang Zhiyi couldn't wait to announce the news of the break.

This left the students completely bewildered. You have to know, there was no such thing as holidays at this school before; it was a fully enclosed boarding school.

Soon, someone guessed the issue.

“Principal, are you out of money again?”

Fang Zhiyi looked a bit embarrassed. “What are you talking about? As the principal, I have plenty of money!”

The students' eyes were full of suspicion.

“No, don't you guys miss home?” Fang Zhiyi quickly changed the subject. “Go home and let your parents see you! Consider it my way of giving them an update, right?”

Who knew that at the mention of going home, many students' moods would plummet.

They had been here for so long, whether it was the abuse they suffered before or the hope they had now, their parents hadn't come to visit them even once.

Fang Zhiyi was at a loss. “How about this: those who want to go home, go home, but don't embarrass me. Those who don't want to go home, come work part-time with me?”

To his surprise, at the mention of working part-time, these students were even more enthusiastic than him.

“That's why I always say, the existence of a school like this isn't just the school's problem. Some parents are the problem themselves,” Fang Zhiyi sighed. Fang Chenghan glanced at him, and Fang Zhiyi immediately pointed at him. “I don't have a problem! I feed you and clothe you, so of course I don't have time to accompany you! Do you think adults can clone themselves?”

Fang Chenghan muttered, “I didn't say it was your problem.”

With the help of the social connections of teachers who weren't exactly professionals in their subjects, many students from the school took to the streets under the guise of internships. Having stayed in the school for so long, they found it a bit novel, but soon felt the pressure from society.

Fang Chenghan was doing alright. He often saw his dad working part-time in the middle of the night, and not wanting to lose to him, he gritted his teeth and endured it. But soon, some classmates started crying for no apparent reason.

“Hey, what's wrong? Not feeling well? Do you want to rest for a bit?” Even while dizzy with busyness, Fang Chenghan hadn't forgotten his duties.

But the classmate said, “I thought of my mom. She works at a fruit shop and often works overtime, and I even argued with her...”

Fang Chenghan gave him a complicated look as a thought flashed through his mind: Did his dad even anticipate this?

Before the vigorous part-time working life was even halfway through, many students returned home.

Some cried as soon as they walked through the door, some apologized profusely, and others remained silent. But regarding their return, their parents were overjoyed, and some even called Fang Zhiyi to thank him.

However, Fang Zhiyi looked at the students who were still working part-time and shook his head. These were clearly the ones whose family situations weren't right.

They even treated the school as their home, going out to work in the morning and returning to the school chatting and laughing in the evening.

But what Fang Zhiyi didn't expect was that on the first day of the new semester, a considerable pile of cash was stacked on his desk.

Fang Chenghan sat lazily on the sofa nearby. “I couldn't stop them. They said they know our family is poor, so they gave all their part-time earnings for you to use.” He snorted, “I put mine in there too.” Meeting Fang Zhiyi's gaze, he felt a bit awkward and simply stood up and walked out.

Little Hei widened his eyes. “I never expected this. I really never expected that these kids had this on their minds all along.”

Fang Zhiyi smiled. “That's why I told you long ago, humans are very complex. Although malicious thoughts sometimes gain the upper hand, there are also those who always hold onto kindness and hope.”

“I suddenly kind of understand why you bought this school back then.”

“No, you still don't understand.” Fang Zhiyi's smile held a hint of craftiness.

Little Hei looked at him in confusion, then shook his head. “Sometimes I feel like you're not even a human at all. You're much more complicated than ordinary humans, I mean it.”