If You Have Connections, Use Them; Not Using Them is Foolish

Zhuang Minghui casually toyed with the Spirit-Eating Carving Knife he had just obtained, tilting his head slightly as his gaze landed on Wang Dong'er, who was being supported by Gu Yue.

The corner of his mouth curved in teasing. "Wang Dong'er, come on, tell this protective Vice Dean Qian of ours exactly what that high-and-mighty Great Teacher Zhou did on the field today, as a fine example of a teacher."

Wang Dong'er took a deep breath and barely steadied herself with Gu Yue's support.

Her face was still a little pale, but her eyes were unusually cold as she immediately recounted, in full detail, how Zhou Yi had used public authority to settle a private grudge on the field, and had even erupted with her Soul Emperor cultivation in front of everyone.

Her crisp yet weakened voice echoed through the deathly silent classroom, and the air seemed to freeze solid in an instant.

Bang!

The veins on Qian Duoduo's forehead bulged as he slammed his palm down on the refined-gold forging table beside him, instantly denting the hard metal surface.

His plump face, usually all smiles and jokes, was now as black as the bottom of a pot, his eyes blazing with fury.

Others might not know Wang Dong'er's background, but how could he, a vice dean, not know?

This girl was the precious darling held in the Clear Sky Sect's palms!

That was the sect the ancestor Tang San, the Sea God from ten thousand years ago, had come from, and now it was an enormous hidden power.

If the two unfathomably powerful sect masters of the Clear Sky Sect learned that their little princess had suffered such grievance at Shrek, they might very well storm straight over and overturn Shrek!

And that was not even mentioning how the already fragile alliance between the two sides would completely shatter.

That was absolutely a price Shrek could not afford!

"Idiot! You useless, ruinous idiot!" The more Qian Duoduo thought about it, the more terrified he became, breaking out in cold sweat. He lifted his foot and kicked Zhou Yi, who was sprawled on the ground pretending to be dead, sending her rolling several times.

Then, as if changing faces, he squeezed out a fawning smile and cupped his hands in apology to Zhuang Minghui and Wang Dong'er. "Young Master Zhuang, Miss Wang, this madwoman is utterly lawless! I, Qian Duoduo, state on behalf of the Soul Guidance Department that we will absolutely not tolerate this!"

"Effective immediately, Zhou Yi is stripped of all positions as a teacher of the outer courtyard, all her benefits at Shrek are revoked, and she is permanently expelled from Shrek Academy, forbidden for life from setting even half a step into Shrek City. As for her crippled cultivation, consider that an apology to Miss Wang!"

After saying that, Qian Duoduo even carefully glanced at Zhuang Minghui, clearly trying to curry favor with this little ancestor.

"Teacher! How can you do this?!"

Fan Yu, who had remained silent all this time, finally could not hold back.

His eyes bloodshot, he lunged over and grabbed the blood-soaked Zhou Yi, then roared hysterically at Qian Duoduo. "Even if Zhou Yi was in the wrong, she did it to cultivate talent for the academy! Strict teachers produce outstanding students—what wrong did she commit?! On the contrary, these freshmen showed no respect for their elders and actually dared to cripple an academy teacher's cultivation in public! Teacher, how can you favor outsiders and chill the hearts of your own people?!"

"Outsiders? Fan Yu, I think you're the outsider here!" Qian Duoduo was so furious he laughed instead. He truly had not expected Fan Yu to be so blinded by emotion.

Looking at the stubbornly deluded Fan Yu, Zhuang Minghui let out a cold laugh. "Vice Dean Qian, why don't you introduce my identity to him, so he doesn't die a confused ghost?"

Birds of a feather really did flock together. No wonder Fan Yu would take a fancy to trash like Zhou Yi.

Qian Duoduo's expression turned solemn. He stepped forward to stand protectively at Zhuang Minghui's side and said in a deep voice, "Fan Yu, listen carefully. The person standing before you is not only the grandson of Elder Zhuang of the Martial Soul Department, but also Zhuang Minghui, who holds the highest authority in our Soul Guidance Department aside from Dean Xian Lin'er!"

The moment those words came out, Fan Yu was struck as if by lightning, his whole body freezing in place.

Meanwhile, Wang Dong'er's complexion had already regained its rosiness. She swept a cold glance over the ashen-faced Fan Yu, then turned to Qian Duoduo and said decisively, "Dean Qian, since the people of the Soul Guidance Department think I'm making trouble for no reason, then I don't need to show any mercy either."

"I don't mind reporting everything that happened today, exactly as it was, to my Eldest Dad and Second Dad, and having them come to Shrek to demand justice!"

"Ah, don't, my little grandaunt!" The moment Qian Duoduo heard that, his whole body trembled in fright, and cold sweat poured down his forehead as he repeatedly cupped his hands and apologized. "As long as you're happy, you can deal with Zhou Yi however you like, but please don't alarm those two elders!"

Wang Dong'er looked at Qian Duoduo's reaction with satisfaction and said, "Fine. Then do as Zhuang Minghui suggested. Send Zhou Yi to the home of every student she expelled without cause."

Qian Duoduo immediately gave the order. "Good, no problem!"

"I'll personally supervise this matter and absolutely won't disappoint the young miss!" Qian Duoduo hurriedly agreed, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead in relief.

After dealing with all of that, Qian Duoduo immediately turned around and looked coldly at Fan Yu, who was still standing there in a daze, then said in a low voice, "Fan Yu, haven't you embarrassed yourself enough? Take this madwoman and get out of the Soul Guidance Department this instant! As for your position... you're suspended for reflection for now. If you dare stir up any more trouble in private, don't blame me for disregarding our master-disciple relationship!"

Fan Yu's face was deathly pale. He gritted his teeth hard, looked at the indifferent Zhuang Minghui, then at the resolute Wang Dong'er, and finally understood that the situation was beyond saving.

Without saying a word, he picked up the unconscious Zhou Yi and walked out of the office with his back hunched, his figure looking utterly wretched.

Only after the two of them had completely disappeared did the oppressive atmosphere in the classroom finally ease.

Wang Dong'er broke free from Gu Yue's support and stood still in front of Zhuang Minghui.

She bowed slightly, her expression extremely earnest as she said, "Zhuang Minghui, thank you for today. If you hadn't stepped forward in time, even going so far as to fight Zhou Yi for my sake, I'm afraid I really would have..."

Zhuang Minghui stopped playing with the carving knife in his hand, raised his head to look at her, and said lazily, "No need to thank me. I simply couldn't stand that old woman throwing her weight around in Shrek."

"I did it to eliminate future trouble."

"Still, Miss Wang, if you run into something like this again, you can be a bit tougher, like me. If you've got backing in your hand, just bring it out openly. The Clear Sky Sect behind you isn't there for decoration."

Listening to his words, which sounded like a scolding but were actually filled with concern, warmth stirred faintly in Wang Dong'er's heart, and she murmured softly, "I know..."

She lowered her head slightly, and a blush quietly climbed onto her face without even her noticing.

"Then I'll head back to class first..."

After saying goodbye to Zhuang Minghui, Wang Dong'er left the experimental area first.

Watching Wang Dong'er's almost fleeing back, Gu Yue, who had been observing coldly the entire time, finally moved. She folded her arms before her chest and walked to Zhuang Minghui's side with slow, graceful steps, her gaze lingering faintly on the doorway where Wang Dong'er had vanished.

"She's already long gone. Did Young Master Zhuang's soul fly off with her too?"