Chapter 2: The Crisis Is Near (Second Update)

Familiar memories flooded Lin Zheng's mind like a floodgate opening. He suddenly remembered that at the end of the year, Vice Principal Liu died suddenly from a cerebral hemorrhage. The official statement was that Vice Principal Liu had worked himself to death, but countless rumors suggested that he had died from a stomach bleed while entertaining a certain leader.

However, how Vice Principal Liu died was not important; no one cared about that. What mattered was the vice principal position he left behind, a coveted prize that made countless people drool with envy. As a district-affiliated junior high school, No. 3 Middle School was a formal section-level unit, and the vice principal was a solid deputy section-level administrative position. Whoever became the vice principal would be a respected state official.

Perhaps out of a sense of compensation for No. 3 Middle School, the district education bureau leadership had already clearly stated that if there was a suitable candidate from No. 3 Middle School, they could be recommended.

There were only two people in the school qualified to compete for the vice principal position: Feng Bo, the head of the political education office, and Lin Zheng's father, Lin Baoguo, the head of the academic affairs office. Principal Tan Gang had recommended these two to the district education bureau.

When the competition between Lin Baoguo and Feng Bo for the vice principal position reached its peak and the district education bureau had repeatedly urged No. 3 Middle School to make a decision, a major scandal suddenly broke out: Lin Baoguo had allegedly sexually assaulted Feng Bo's wife, Tang Lijun, in his office.

When the disheveled Tang Lijun burst out of the office in tears, she happened to encounter her husband, Feng Bo, who was taking a walk around the campus after dinner. Enraged, Feng Bo chased Lin Baoguo around the campus, making the incident of Lin Baoguo, the head of the academic affairs office, sexually assaulting Feng Bo's wife, Tang Lijun, a hot topic not only in No. 3 Middle School but throughout the entire district education system.

Feeling her honor and chastity violated, Tang Lijun wept daily and attempted suicide several times, but was fortunately rescued each time. As Tang Lijun repeatedly attempted to hang herself and jump into the river, Lin Baoguo's reputation in the education system became utterly tarnished, and the scandal spread throughout society. No matter how Lin Baoguo tried to defend himself, it was to no avail. He was eventually arrested on suspicion of rape and later released for unknown reasons.

Ashamed and unable to work in the education system due to his tarnished reputation, Lin Baoguo's father resigned in anger, thus wasting the better part of his life. As for Lin Zheng, he was labeled as the "son of a rapist" and embarked on a life path he had never imagined. That period was the most tragic time in his family's history.

It wasn't until two months later, when the scandal began to fade, that people gradually understood what had happened: It was very likely that Feng Bo and Tang Lijun had conspired to frame Lin Baoguo, and Lin Baoguo, unaware of the plot, fell into their trap, ruining his life.

Everyone knew that Director Lin had been severely betrayed by the scoundrel Feng Bo, but at that time, Feng Bo was already the vice principal. They were all poor teachers who had to rely on him for their livelihoods. What could they do to a vice principal? Still, Feng Bo was ruthless, willing to use his own wife as a trap.

No! This must not happen again! Thinking of the miserable state his family had been in after being betrayed by Feng Bo in his previous life, Lin Hongfei clenched his fists.

...

"Alright, Old Dai, if you're on the way, please tell Teacher Tang. I'll go over as soon as I finish eating." Lin Baoguo, standing by the window, replied loudly, completely unaware of the danger approaching him step by step.

"Alright." The teacher outside responded, "Director Lin, don't rush. You can go after you finish eating."

"Can't you just stay?" Through the open kitchen door, Lin Zheng saw his mother complaining to his father, "Even though you're the head of the political education office, your son almost died and has just woken up, still very weak. Can't you stay and take care of him?"

"But I'm the head of the math department," Lin Baoguo said with a bitter smile, "and I'm currently in the evaluation period for the vice principal position. I can't afford any mistakes. If someone says I haven't been promoted yet and... Besides, you're here to look after him. What else do I have to worry about?"

Yang Xiuyu fell silent.

Her husband's reasoning made sense. If he were already the vice principal, it would be fine, but now was the critical period for his promotion. He couldn't afford any mistakes and needed to maintain good relations with his colleagues. If someone were to sabotage him now, it would be troublesome.

A wife's status depends on her husband's, and Yang Xiuyu understood this.

"Father, I'll go with you." Lin Zheng stood at the kitchen door, looking at his busy parents, and said, "I feel like I've fallen behind in high school math. You know I'm studying computer science, and programming requires math. I can go with you to see how much I still remember about junior high school math."

Lin Zheng didn't think much. In a hurry, he couldn't come up with a better plan. He had a simple idea: no matter how bad a man is, he wouldn't sexually assault another woman in front of his own son, right?

As long as he was with his father, no matter how the rumors spread, he could insist that he and his father went to the math department office together. This would make people doubt the rumors.

If people doubted the rumors, even if his father couldn't be promoted to vice principal, there would still be a chance to clear his name.

Yang Xiuyu knew that programming required math, but she firmly opposed Lin Zheng going to the office. Her son had just recovered, and she couldn't risk anything happening to him. If something went wrong, she wouldn't be able to live with herself.

"That won't do. Want to do math problems? We have plenty of math tests at home. You can do as many as you want."

"But you're a history teacher," Lin Zheng spread his hands and looked at Yang Xiuyu, "can you help me with the problems I don't understand?"

"Um..." Yang Xiuyu opened her mouth, instinctively turning to look at Lin Baoguo: indeed, it was difficult for a history teacher to explain math problems.

Seeing that Yang Xiuyu was wavering, Lin Zheng quickly pressed his advantage, "Mom, it's just one building away from our home to Dad's math department office. Don't overthink it. Just consider it a walk to get some fresh air... The doctor did say I should get more fresh air, right?"

"Um..." Thinking of the doctor's advice to get more fresh air and not stay cooped up, Yang Xiuyu hesitated.

Lin Baoguo didn't think much about it. He thought his son's reasoning made sense and nodded, "That's true. It's just a short walk. Let the kid get some fresh air."

"Alright... fine," since her husband had spoken and her son seemed fine, Yang Xiuyu finally agreed, "after you eat, you can go together... Old Lin, take good care of your son. If he feels unwell, bring him back immediately."

---

PS: Brothers, I'm sorry. The first chapter was uploaded using Sogou Browser, and for some reason, it didn't have any paragraph breaks. I've fixed it now and will definitely use the system's built-in IE browser for future uploads.

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