Zhou Yi Punished

The office was quiet and solemn, yet the air was thick with a stifling tension.

Su Ming stood straight, maintaining a proper and respectful posture, his expression calm yet restrained.

He knew clearly that regardless of who was right or wrong at the origin, he was the one who had initiated the physical and soul power conflict with his instructor.

Strictly speaking, he had indeed violated academy regulations and could not claim to be entirely in the right, which was why he did not display any arrogance or defiance.

Du Weilun rubbed his throbbing temples, looking at the teacher and student locked in a standoff before him. Feeling utterly vexed, he said in a deep voice:

"Speak. What exactly happened? Engaging in a private fight on campus and ignoring academy rules—do you realize your mistakes?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Yi stepped forward, her face flushed with indignation and grievance. She was the first to speak in her defense, her tone resolute:

"Director Du, the fault does not lie with me; it is entirely Su Ming's reckless behavior! He openly defied his superior, interfered with my classroom instruction without authorization, and maliciously questioned and disrupted my teaching methods."

"He even used insulting language, disparaging my teaching qualifications and ability! He pushed me step by step, and I was left with no choice but to take action to discipline a student who violated the rules!"

This distortion of the truth caused Su Ming's gaze to turn cold. He retorted without hesitation, his tone resonant, firm, and neither servile nor overbearing:

"Zhou Yi, your words are far too biased! If I hadn't been unable to stand your absurd teaching methods, why would I have questioned you in public? Does the fact that your teaching methods have massive flaws mean students aren't allowed to point them out?"

Su Ming raised his eyes to look directly at Du Weilun, his words clear and logical as he voiced all his dissatisfaction and doubts:

"Director Du, I ask you to judge this fairly! In what top-tier academy, and with what legitimate instructor, would one screen students on the very first day of the new semester by forcing them to run endless, high-intensity laps?"

"New students who don't meet the physical standards of the Assault System are immediately judged as failing and expelled without a second thought! This isn't talent screening; it is a blatant waste of talent!"

Su Ming gestured toward the group of new students who had followed him to the door, his voice growing louder:

"These students you've deemed failures only have weaker physical constitutions and couldn't keep up with the training intensity of the Assault System!"

"Yet among them are many gifted Support System and Control System soul masters! Physical strength has never been equivalent to martial soul talent or future potential! By what right do you use a single physical run to completely negate them and cut off their opportunity to learn?"

His words were powerful and resonant, instantly striking a chord with every expelled student.

The previously silent and restrained students were now filled with surging emotions and righteous indignation. They stepped forward, pleading their case to Du Weilun, their hearts heavy with grievance and resentment.

A student with a youthful face and a Healing Staff martial soul spoke up with reddened eyes:

"Director Du! I am a pure Support System soul master; my soul power is specialized for healing, and a weak constitution is my nature! Teacher Zhou forced us to run laps according to the standards of Assault System battle soul masters; it was impossible for us to meet those standards!"

"To expel us simply for not meeting those standards—if you didn't want to accept Support System students, you could have just said so. Why humiliate us like this?"

Several other students chimed in, each word dripping with grievance, laying bare Zhou Yi's harsh, extreme, and misguided teaching methods.

Du Weilun listened quietly to their accounts, his brows knitting tighter and tighter as he understood the situation.

He had long heard rumors of Zhou Yi's extremely harsh, almost paranoid, teaching style.

For years, out of consideration for her husband, Fan Yu, and his diligent and meritorious service to the Shrek Soul Tool Department, and because Zhou Yi had never caused a major scene, he had turned a blind eye and deliberately accommodated her.

However, he never expected that at the start of this semester, Zhou Yi would escalate her behavior, bringing such an absurd screening method out into the open.

She had arbitrarily eliminated new students based on her own whims, causing a massive scandal involving a teacher-student confrontation and fight, which had completely ruined the academy's academic atmosphere.

Du Weilun shook his head inwardly, feeling speechless. Zhou Yi had been teaching for many years; she had sufficient seniority and decent ability.

Yet, she had never been promoted to a special-grade teacher. Others might not know why, but she herself lacked even the slightest self-awareness! Such an extreme, arbitrary, and inflexible teaching mindset meant she was never worthy of the honor of being a special-grade teacher!

He turned helplessly to look at Zhou Yi beside him, meeting her gaze with a look of reproach and complete understanding.

The previously aggressive Zhou Yi instantly lost her confidence. She subconsciously lowered her head, her expression flustered, not daring to meet his eyes.

Du Weilun then slowly swept his gaze over the new students, who were full of hope for justice. His expression was stern, and he had already decided on the disciplinary measures in his heart.

Du Weilun's expression was icy, his tone carrying an indisputable majesty as he spoke to Zhou Yi, word by word:

"Zhou Yi, as a senior teacher of the Shrek Outer Court, you failed to distinguish right from wrong and abused your authority to maliciously expel innocent students."

"When faced with reasonable advice, not only did you fail to reflect, but you also physically assaulted a student. Your conduct is egregious. I am now officially ordering your immediate suspension for reflection. Until you have a profound realization of your mistakes and submit a written apology, you are forbidden from returning to the classroom to teach."

He paused, his gaze growing even more serious: "The classes you were responsible for will be temporarily taken over by another senior teacher arranged by the academy."

"Go back now and reflect behind closed doors. Think carefully about how you, as a teacher, should conduct yourself."

Zhou Yi was full of defiance, her heart burning with anger. She was unwilling to accept this and wanted to argue and defend herself further.

But when she met the impatient and icy look in Du Weilun's eyes, her aggressive momentum instantly dissipated.

All her retorts were stuck in her throat; in the end, she could only close her mouth sullenly, clenching her fists tightly, feeling stifled but not daring to say another word.

After reprimanding Zhou Yi, Du Weilun slowly withdrew his gaze and turned it toward Su Ming.

All the students present held their breath, their faces filled with tension and worry, looking at the director with trepidation, fearing he would punish Su Ming severely.

Just as the atmosphere was stifling and tense, Huo Yuhao stepped forward, speaking with sincerity and firmness:

"Director Du, Senior Su Ming was not at fault from start to finish. He stopped Teacher Zhou from unfairly expelling our classmates only to uphold fairness for us students; everything he did was for our sake."

As soon as Huo Yuhao spoke, the other students followed suit, pleading for him one after another. They all stood up to defend Su Ming, speaking well of him and earnestly hoping the director would be lenient.

Seeing all the students united in protecting the same person, Du Weilun's expression sank.

He felt helpless inwardly. Good grief, this kid not only dares to defy a teacher and get into a physical conflict, but he also has so many students willing to pledge their loyalty and plead for him afterward.

If he were to punish Su Ming severely, it would only chill the hearts of all the students, causing him to lose all prestige in the Outer Court and leading to endless trouble in the future.

Du Weilun fell silent for a moment, weighing the pros and cons before slowly announcing the verdict:

"Su Ming, as an outer courtyard student, you openly clashed and laid hands on a teacher of this academy; you should have been dealt with severely."

"However, there were underlying reasons for this entire affair. You had no malicious intent, nor were you looking to stir up trouble without cause. Therefore, I shall deal with this leniently. You are sentenced to clean all the dormitory buildings for one week as punishment."

This penalty was extremely light, almost equivalent to a mere slap on the wrist.

Everyone present instantly breathed a sigh of relief, their faces filled with joy as they began to praise Du Weilun for being fair and reasonable.

Only Zhou Yi's face turned livid, filled with fury and resentment. Unable to contain her anger upon hearing the verdict, she whipped her sleeves, slammed the door shut, and stormed out of the office in a rage.

Having settled the dispute, Du Weilun waved his hand, signaling for everyone to leave.