Chapter 52: Qiao Chen and the others are all here

The Dean of Students was nearly getting a headache from the noise of the crowd. Seeing her arrive, he immediately beckoned to her, "You're here? Come in, quickly."

Qiao Nian closed the door behind her and walked over, only to see Shen Qiongzhi and Qiao Chen. Qiao Chen was clinging to the arm of a well-dressed, elegant lady, looking up at her while chatting. She seemed more intimate with the stranger than with her own mother, leaving her biological mother, Shen Qiongzhi, sidelined.

As she entered, all three of them turned their gazes toward her simultaneously, their three stares piercing through her like small awls!

*Hmm~* Qiao Nian raised an eyebrow. Her exquisite face remained calm and composed, though a hint of wildness flickered at the corners of her eyes. Acting as if she hadn't noticed, she walked up to the desk and asked, "Dean, you were looking for me?"

Having taught for many years, the Dean had finally encountered a genius. Privately, he held Qiao Nian in high regard and was unwilling to see a student with such potential ruined by trivial matters.

However, with so many teachers and parents present, he couldn't be too openly protective.

Clearing his throat to ease the awkwardness, his shrewd eyes turned toward Qiao Nian as he said sternly, "Did you skip class yesterday?"

When Qiao Nian had first arrived at the school, Shen Qingqing had already tipped her off that her early departure yesterday had been caught by a teacher. With the evidence being irrefutable, she had no intention of denying it, nor did she think about it.

"Yes. Something urgent came up, so I left early."

This attitude... was so nonchalant it felt almost like a provocation!

In an instant, she had offended everyone in the office.

Her homeroom teacher, Shen Hui, was the first to let out a cold laugh, her expression looking quite unpleasant. "What do you take this school for? Coming and going whenever you please?"

The Dean hurried to act as a mediator to ease the tension between the two. "Teacher Shen, don't be angry just yet. Let's hear Qiao Nian's explanation first. Perhaps there really was an emergency?"

He then turned to criticize her seriously, "Student Qiao Nian, no matter how urgent your business is, you shouldn't leave without informing your teacher. If you leave the school grounds without permission during school hours and something happens to you, who will take responsibility? Your teacher and the school cannot bear that responsibility! Neither can I. Do you understand?"

Qiao Nian lowered her eyelids, concealing those dark, rebellious eyes, and responded with a relatively decent attitude, "I understand."

The Dean knew she was smart enough to grasp his meaning. His expression relaxed, and he immediately said to Shen Hui, "Teacher Shen, see? She knows she was wrong. Considering she just transferred here and doesn't yet understand the school rules, let's let it slide this time."

Shen Hui frowned, opening her mouth to speak.

He raised his hand, preemptively stopping her. "If she leaves early without permission again without notifying her teacher, I will handle her strictly myself, without needing Teacher Shen to step in!"

Shen Hui felt a mouthful of words stuck in her throat. Seeing the Dean's protection of Qiao Nian, although she disliked it and felt indignant, she couldn't say anything more.

After all, the school leadership had stated that Qiao Nian would face severe disciplinary action if she were late or left early again; she couldn't exactly refuse to give them face.

Her silence did not mean the others intended to let it go!

At that moment, Chen Xi, the homeroom teacher of Class B, glanced unhurriedly toward Qiao Nian and brought up, "Dean, you haven't even asked what kind of emergency was so pressing that she didn't even have time to attend the opening ceremony."

The Dean's brow furrowed again. He had intended to handle this lightly, but for some reason, Chen Xi was hell-bent on picking a fight with the new transfer student!

(End of Chapter)