Chapter 21: Principal Lu Shan

The person who arrived was none other than Principal Lu Shan of the factory's primary school, an experienced educator who had been in the education field for nearly thirty years. He originally served as the vice-principal at the Pingchuan County Primary School. When the Qinxi Pressing Equipment Factory moved to Hai Zhuang Town, the factory leadership, to ensure the quality of the factory's primary school, specially invited him to serve as the principal. They also promised that all matters within the school would be decided by Lu Shan, and the factory leadership would not interfere with the teaching work of the primary school.

Since Lu Shan took over as principal, the academic performance of the students at the Qinxi Pressing Equipment Factory Primary School has indeed improved, a fact that the teachers at the factory's middle school can attest to. Moreover, the learning environment of the primary school has greatly improved. The new teaching building was secured through Lu Shan's persistent efforts from the factory leadership. Since then, the students of the primary school have moved from low, flat houses into spacious and bright buildings. As a result, Principal Lu Shan enjoys a high reputation among the students and teachers of the primary school. However, in the previous life, Fang Mingyuan had no interaction with the old principal except at the beginning and end of each school year during the school-wide assemblies. And it seems that Principal Lu Shan passed away due to illness when Fang Mingyuan was in the fourth grade. But now, the old man looks healthy and robust, showing no signs of illness.

Apart from Wang Yan and Yan Dongyu, the other teachers returned to their respective classrooms, and the classroom, which had become noisy, returned to its normal order.

Lu Shan looked at Wang Yan and Yan Dongyu, then at Fang Mingyuan standing behind Wang Yan, and said in a solemn voice, "Go back to your classes first. This student, come with me!" He then turned and walked towards the second floor.

Wang Yan patted Fang Mingyuan's shoulder, signaling him to follow Lu Shan, and gave Yan Dongyu a disdainful look before returning to his classroom.

Yan Dongyu, however, was visibly shaken. The situation had completely spiraled out of his control. If this incident became public, it would undoubtedly be a severe blow to his authority among his colleagues and students. Thinking about this, Yan Dongyu couldn't help but feel regret. He had thought that a second-grade child, after being severely criticized by a teacher and having their parents called, would be too frightened to know what to do. He never imagined that Fang Mingyuan would dare to question him and make the matter public.

"Sit down!" Lu Shan pointed to the chair in front of his desk and said kindly, "Don't be nervous. Tell me, why did you say that Mr. Yan was going to hit you?"

Fang Mingyuan was not intimidated. He sat down and handed over the test paper he had been holding. "Principal, please look at this test paper first."

Principal Lu Shan took the test paper and first looked at the name. "Fang Mingyuan!" He nodded slightly, not showing any particular reaction. He then continued reading, and when he reached the end, his eyebrows furrowed. He had already understood about eighty to ninety percent of what Yan Dongyu had done.

"Fang Mingyuan, you are not convinced that Mr. Yan deducted twenty-five points from you, right?" Lu Shan casually placed the test paper on his desk and said, "However, you did not write the solution process for these questions. Although the answers are correct, without the complete solution process, deducting points is justified."

"Principal, a person, from childhood to adulthood, first learns to crawl, then to stand, and then, with the help of adults, gradually learns to walk, and finally to run. This is a complete process. But when a person learns to run, do they need to perform the entire process of crawling, standing, and walking every time before they can run? If they don't demonstrate this process, will people not recognize that they can run and jump?" Fang Mingyuan's response surprised Principal Lu Shan. Although he had heard that Fang Mingyuan was very smart and had applied his knowledge to create a simple water heater, making him a little celebrity among the factory workers this summer, seeing him in person made him realize that this child was truly extraordinary.

Most second-grade children, if they were to meet the principal alone, would be timid and might not even be able to speak clearly. But this child stood fearlessly before him, speaking confidently, not at all like a seven or eight-year-old. If Lu Shan closed his eyes and ignored the child's young voice, he would feel as if he were talking to an adult. Moreover, what the child said was not entirely without reason—though Lu Shan felt that Fang Mingyuan's argument was more of a sophistry. But for a seven or eight-year-old child to be able to argue with an adult... Principal Lu Shan was at a loss for words.

"Moreover, Mr. Yan did not say before the exam that the solution process must be written out, or else the score would be zero. After the exam, he used this reason to deduct my points and demand that my parents be called. I am not convinced!" Fang Mingyuan said, raising his head. "This is deliberately setting a trap. Even the law emphasizes that there is no crime without a clear legal provision. As a respected teacher, this is not a commendable behavior. Besides, what does Mr. Yan want to talk about with my parents? About my plagiarism? Zhao Ya only scored 97 points, and I want to know, whose work did he think I copied?"

"Who is Zhao Ya?" Principal Lu Shan asked.

"My desk partner, the highest score in the class for this math exam!" Fang Mingyuan replied.

Lu Shan nodded, hiding his surprise. He was not one of those teachers who had spent their entire lives in the small town of Qinxi Province. In his youth, he had studied in various parts of the country and was not ignorant of foreign matters. At least he understood that the child in front of him, at seven or eight years old, had mentioned the principle of "no crime without a clear legal provision," a principle widely followed in Western countries.

"Did Mr. Yan really hit you?" Principal Lu Shan asked seriously. This was not a matter to be taken lightly. Although corporal punishment by teachers is not uncommon in today's education system, unreasonable corporal punishment is a scandal. Lu Shan would not allow such a thing to happen in the factory's primary school.

"You can ask the classmates in my class; they can vouch for me. If I hadn't run fast, I would have been hit!" Fang Mingyuan said, still showing signs of fear. "I wanted to take a couple of hits as evidence, but my small arms and legs couldn't withstand Mr. Yan's slap. In self-defense, I had to be able to defend myself. If I hadn't called out for Mr. Wang in time..."

Lu Shan waved his hand, stopping Fang Mingyuan's long complaint. He understood that it was best not to treat the child in front of him as a child but as an adult. Otherwise, the stark contrast between his youthful appearance and mature speech would make him feel like he was about to vomit blood.

Principal Lu Shan carefully examined Fang Mingyuan from head to toe, wondering how such a child could have been educated. He was truly a prodigy.

Fang Mingyuan realized that he had gotten carried away and might have gone too far. He quickly put on a well-behaved look and sat down with his head lowered.

Principal Lu Shan rummaged through a cabinet in his office and took out a test paper, placing it in front of Fang Mingyuan. "Do this test right here."

Fang Mingyuan took a look; it seemed to be content for third grade. After so many years, he couldn't remember the exact content of each grade in primary school, but at this point, there wouldn't be equations with two or three variables.

"If you do well, I will change your math score for the mid-term exam to a perfect score. How about that?" Lu Shan said with a smile.

Fang Mingyuan extended his hand and said solemnly, "A promise is a promise!" He didn't want to go home and have to explain to his father why he couldn't get a perfect score, even though his grandfather would support him and he wouldn't suffer much, seeing his father's stern face wouldn't be a pleasant experience.

Lu Shan laughed and slapped his hand, saying, "A promise is a promise!"

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