Chapter 9 Storm in the Private Room
1501 Words
“Brother, you seriously invited that female teacher to eat braised chicken rice at some backstreet diner? Hahaha! That’s hilarious!”
Chen Jiapai lay sprawled on the sofa, laughing so hard she was rolling around. She couldn’t stop herself, gasping for air between bouts of giggles. She tried to say something else but “Brother, you seriously invited that female teacher to eat braised chicken rice at some backstreet diner? Hahaha! That’s hilarious!”
Chen Jiapai lay sprawled on the sofa, laughing so hard she was rolling around. She couldn’t stop herself, gasping for air between bouts of giggles. She tried to say something else but burst into laughter again.
Chen Jiahua’s face darkened, a figurative black cloud hanging over his head. “Can we drop this already? By the way, did you know our cousin Si Yi is getting engaged next week?”
“No, I didn’t know about that,” Chen Jiapai replied, wiping tears of laughter from her eyes. She glanced at
Chen Jiahua’s outfit and teased, “But if you hadn’t worn that to school today, maybe things would’ve gone smoother.”
“You little brat, still going at it, huh?” Chen Jiahua grabbed a cushion from the sofa and threw it at her, but she caught it effortlessly with one hand.
She glanced at her phone after seeing a text message pop up. Waving him off, she said, “Alright, alright, I’m heading out now.”
“
Where are you going? And with whom?”
“Just some high school friends. Don’t worry about it!” With that, she swung the door open and walked briskly out of the house.
Elsewhere, while driving.
“Hi, Dad,” Li Ting said as she fiddled with the car’s Bluetooth, her mind swirling with thoughts.
“What’s the matter, Tingting? Something wrong?” The deep, authoritative voice of her father, Li Shuping, came through clearly over the speaker.
“Can’t I call you even if there’s nothing wrong? Though, to be honest, I do have something I need your advice on this time.”
“Go ahead. What’s bothering you? Don’t tell me your boss at the Academic Affairs Office, Director Zhou, is giving you trouble?”
Li Ting chuckled at the absurdity. “Dad, Zhou Shanxuan giving me trouble? He’d love for me to sit idle in the office all day and collect an easy paycheck. Ever since you gave him an earful during your last inspection, he’s been walking on eggshells around me.”
“Ah, yes. That Zhou Shanxuan. A man of petty schemes, with his sights forever stuck on trivial matters. He’s no good at his actual job but spends all his energy brown-nosing and currying favor. Just ignore him, Tingting.”
“Alright, Dad, let’s not turn this into one of your lectures. You’re distracting me! I still haven’t asked my question.”
She quickly shifted the conversation back on track, explaining that a student named Chen Jiahua was trying to return to school after a three-year leave of absence. She wanted to know what the process would involve.
“Chen Jiahua? That name sounds vaguely familiar,” her father mused.
“Oh? Do you know him too?”
“Not personally, no. But a few years back, he caused quite a stir. The fallout created a lot of negative publicity for the school. After some internal discussions, we decided to let him apply for a leave of absence on his own.
Officially, we announced that he had withdrawn from the university. I was part of the meeting that handled the matter.”
Li Shuping explained the events that had unfolded back then. As a veteran educator, Chen Jiahua’s case had left a lasting impression on him. He sighed softly, almost imperceptibly, as if masking his own conflicted emotions.
Jiajing University had made great strides in recent years, but compared to institutions like Shuimu and Jingshi, it still lacked the same depth of tradition and internal discipline. Issues like weak self-regulation and oversight in academic and administrative conduct had allowed bad actors like Zhou Kangwei to slip into faculty positions.
Over the years, there had been complaints, but without concrete evidence, most cases were dismissed without resolution. Ironically, Chen Jiahua’s impulsive actions had inadvertently brought one of these issues to light.
Unfortunately, his confrontation with Zhou Kangwei also resulted in collateral damage: Chen himself had to leave the university.
To Li Shuping, university students were society’s trailblazers, full of passion and a righteous sense of justice.
But while passion was valuable, it needed to be tempered with reason and the right methods. Chen Jiahua’s rashness had been a wasted opportunity. A promising student had become an unfortunate scapegoat for the school’s reputation.
“So, he’s on a leave of absence? Even so, it’s been three years. Is re-enrollment even possible?”
“We’ll talk about this later, Tingting. Focus on driving for now.”
“Alright, I’m almost there.”
Li Ting felt relieved by her father’s calm tone. It suggested that the issue wasn’t insurmountable. She didn’t even realize the subtle sense of comfort this gave her.
Meanwhile, in a private room at a KTV bar in Changming District, things were heating up.
“Gu Ming, hurry up and get that… what’s her name again? Chen something Pei? Call her up!”
The dimly lit room was filled with flashing colored lights and the clinking of beer bottles on the coffee table.
Some were empty, others half-finished. A group of young men sprawled on the worn leather sofas, their faces flushed with alcohol. One of them sang off-key into a microphone while the others laughed and jeered.
“What for? She won’t come,” replied Gu Ming, a bespectacled young man who looked pale and timid.
“Just tell her it’s your birthday. Say you’re celebrating and want her to join.”
A rowdy, drunken youth barked the order with an air of entitlement. His tone left no room for argument, and Gu Ming shrank back in fear.
“What are you planning to do?” Gu Ming asked hesitantly, his eyes flickering with unease. Something about their demeanor felt off.
Smack!
A loud slap echoed through the room, cutting off Gu Ming’s protest. Even the half-drunk guy holding the microphone paused and walked over, grinning maliciously as he bent slightly forward.
“Didn’t you hear what our Qinglong Gang boss said? Are you deaf, kid?” The man grabbed Gu Ming’s chin and gave it a mocking pat, his eyes cold and ruthless.
The Qinglong Gang was a notorious group of dropouts and jobless youth in the area around Changming District No. 2 High School. Known for starting fights and pulling petty scams, they were a name no ordinary student dared cross.
“She knows my birthday isn’t today,” Gu Ming stammered, trying to reason with them.
“You i***t!” The gang member roared, slapping him again. “That’s just an excuse! Can’t you come up with something better?”
Gu Ming’s face burned from the slap. His head spun, but he managed to croak, “You can kill me if you want. I’m not calling her. We’re not even friends anymore.”
The gang members sneered at his defiance. Their leader leaned in close, speaking in a low, menacing voice.
“Listen, kid. I don’t care how you do it, but you’re getting one of your classmates here—whether it’s Chen Pei or Liu Jia, I don’t care. If you fail, don’t blame us if something happens to your little sister in middle school. She’s what… twelve? So young, so tender… hahaha!”
At that moment, Chen Jiapai, unaware of the danger, was heading toward the KTV bar after receiving a string of missed calls and messages from Gu Ming.
To her, Gu Ming seemed like a decent, albeit quiet, boy from her class. However, she couldn’t help but feel a faint sense of unease about the invitation.
Right as she was about to reach the bar, Chen Jiahua pulled up on his motorcycle, blocking her path.
“
Where are you running off to? I thought you said you were just going out with classmates to sing karaoke?”
“Ugh, why are you following me? I already told you, I’m just meeting friends!”
Chen Jiapai pouted indignantly, feeling frustrated. Her brother’s constant oversight made her feel like a child.
“And last time you snuck off to that ancient town for a job as a tour guide, Mom and Dad nearly had a meltdown. Who convinced them to let you stay? Me. Now I’m asking—where are you going?”
“It’s just a gathering at a karaoke place. Can you stop treating me like a kid?”
Chen Jiahua watched as she donned her helmet and sped off into traffic. He sighed, a wry smile tugging at his lips.
Something about this doesn’t feel right, he thought. Better follow her just in case.
- Writer
