"The very first day I started here, I fell for Sister Xiaying at first sight. She helped me with my onboarding paperwork, and I still remember what she was wearing that day..."

He was a young man in his early twenties, tall and well-built. Thanks to years of working out, his muscles were well-defined, and his features were quite handsome. He was the very picture of a wholesome, athletic young man.

He held a small bouquet of roses in his hand, pouring out his heart.

"Teacher Ma, please, have some self-respect. This is a school!"

Xue Xiaying slammed the folder on the desk, her face flushed red.

’This guy followed me all the way here, and so many students saw. This is absolutely mortifying,’ she thought.

"It’s after work hours now. How about I treat you to dinner, Sister Xiaying?"

The young Teacher Ma scratched his head, a slightly bashful look on his face.

The other teachers in the office were already used to this sight and didn’t say a word.

They all watched the drama with fond smiles, occasionally whispering to the people next to them.

"He’s a teacher, too. Think of how convenient it would be if you two got married. You look like a great match," a middle-aged female teacher said with a smile.

"Sister Li! I’m several years older than him. How are we a good match?" Xue Xiaying said plaintively.

"Sister Xiaying, age isn’t a problem. I like mature women like you," Teacher Ma said with a sincere expression.

No one noticed that Xue Rui’s expression had grown as dark as a thundercloud.

This young PE teacher was named Ma Hao, and Xue Rui knew him all too well.

Ma Hao was his uncle-in-law from his previous life—a complete and utter scumbag.

After Xue Xiaying gave birth to their child, he thought he had her wrapped around his finger and began to gradually reveal his true nature, fooling around everywhere and racking up a mountain of debt.

And that was indeed what happened. Xue Xiaying didn’t want her child to grow up without a father, so she endured it for the child’s sake;

’She thought that men would eventually mature with age and return to their families.’

But... a leopard can’t change its spots.

Xue Xiaying never saw the day that scumbag changed his ways.

So, Ma Hao’s current bashful expression was, of course, just an act.

"You like mature women? How about I introduce you to someone? A thirty-eight-year-old divorcée with two boys, how about that?"

"Now *that’s* what you call truly mature. Plus, you’ll have someone calling you ’Dad’ the moment you get married," Xue Rui said sarcastically.

The moment he said this, everyone in the office stared wide-eyed, their gazes all turning to Xue Rui.

Ma Hao’s anger flared. That comment was incredibly aggressive. He turned his head and saw it was just a student in a school uniform.

"You’re a cheeky one, aren’t you? Hurry back to class. What are you doing meddling in your teachers’ affairs?"

Ma Hao suppressed his anger. If this were any other time, he would have already chewed the student out and made him run dozens of laps.

But with Xue Xiaying right here, he couldn’t lose his temper.

"Teacher Xue is my aunt. Why can’t I listen in?" Xue Rui said irritably.

"Xue Rui, get out of here," Xue Xiaying snapped.

She had only just noticed Xue Rui was there. It was as if he had some sort of grudge against Ma Hao; he hadn’t said a single nice thing.

"No can do. I have to screen him for the family."

Xue Rui grinned, plopped down into a chair, took a sip of hot tea, and looked like he was planning to stay put.

Xue Xiaying frowned. She was helpless against Xue Rui, so she decided to just ignore him.

"Xue Rui?" Ma Hao thought the name sounded a bit familiar.

He hadn’t been working there long and wasn’t very familiar with the school’s situation. He never expected that Xue Xiaying’s own nephew also attended No. 2 Middle School.

If he had known earlier, he would have tried to get on his good side beforehand.

He forced a smile and grinned at Xue Rui.

"What do you like about my aunt? And what do you even know about what my aunt likes?" Xue Rui demanded.

"I like that Sister Xiaying is intellectual and composed..." Ma Hao began.

Xue Rui wasn’t listening to a single word.

’Does he like Xue Xiaying as a person? More like he likes the Audi A6,’ he thought.

To be precise, this matter also had something to do with his old man.

Xue Jianfeng doted on his younger sister, cared for her in every way, and even transferred ownership of the family’s Audi A6 to Xue Xiaying for her daily commute.

Xue Xiaying felt it was too ostentatious. Not even the school leaders’ cars were this expensive, so she rarely drove it to work;

But there were always days with bad weather when she had no choice but to drive to school in the rain.

Xue Xiaying didn’t have much of a choice. The ’worst’ car her family owned was that A6. The alternative was being dropped off at school in a BMW 730.

This was 2012, after all. Such treatment was an undeniable display of the family’s wealth.

But it also attracted disgusting flies like Ma Hao.

The gossip among teachers was far more intense than among students. At most, students would chat about embarrassing moments, but what the teachers talked about was far more grounded in reality.

Ma Hao must have figured it out long ago—that Xue Xiaying had a rich older brother. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

’Spending Xue Xiaying’s money, driving her car to pick up other women, while having a wife at home to bear his children... what a winner in life.’

"What car do you drive? A BMW? Or an Audi? Do you own property in downtown Hedong City?"

"What’s your income?"

"What do your parents do for a living? How much is their pension?"

"My aunt lives in a villa, drives an A6, and gets chauffeured in a BMW 7-series. What do you bring to the table?"

"We’re all adults here. You should understand the importance of being well-matched, right?"

Xue Rui asked a few questions calmly.

"I..." Ma Hao’s face instantly turned beet red.

His family’s financial situation was actually just average. His parents were ordinary workers living in the suburbs of Hedong, and he had to take a half-hour bus ride to work every day.

That’s why he always targeted relatively naive women. No one had ever asked him such materialistic questions.

He knew that, given Xue Xiaying’s personality, she wouldn’t care about these things.

But now, Xue Xiaying’s nephew was interrogating him with these kinds of questions, and he didn’t know how to answer.

The boy in front of him was too mature, his expression nonchalant, as if he were looking down on a child.

Xue Rui wasn’t someone who could be fooled with a few sweet words.

The teachers in the office were also stunned into a stupor by Xue Rui’s words.

"Xue Rui! That’s your dad’s stuff, not mine."

Xue Xiaying suddenly felt a pang of shame. She knew some teachers often gossiped about her behind her back.

What Xue Rui said was true, but those things weren’t hers, and she wanted to try and explain.

"Auntie, go ask my dad. How is it not yours?" Xue Rui retorted.

"I..." Xue Xiaying fell silent.

She knew Xue Jianfeng’s character all too well. As long as she asked, he would give her anything.

"Are kids these days all so pragmatic?" Teacher Guo muttered, stunned.

One sharp, brutally frank question after another, all laid out so bluntly.

He believed that very few people would have the courage to answer such questions.

"If you ask questions like that, will your aunt ever get married?" a female teacher said with a laugh, trying to ease the tension.

"Exactly, that was going too far," many people chimed in.

"I’m judging the person, not their possessions. Lacking the courage to even answer is like turning in a blank exam."

"Don’t you teachers always say that even if you don’t know the answer, you should at least try? A student who turns in a blank paper has a bad attitude from the get-go."

Xue Rui sighed, looking very disappointed.

"Teachers, am I right or am I wrong?" Xue Rui asked with a serious expression.

"This..."

The group of teachers was speechless. Xue Rui had actually used their own words to refute them.

"Sister Xiaying, actually, my family..."

Ma Hao started to speak, thinking he should be sincere and at least leave a good impression.

But Xue Rui didn’t give him the chance. He cut him off, saying, "Too late. Time’s up, papers in."

"Oh, right. Didn’t Director Wang say he was coming over in a bit?" Xue Rui suddenly said as if to himself.

He said this for Ma Hao’s benefit.

Director Wang was a formidable figure. Even an old-timer like Old Liu was intimidated by him, to say nothing of a new hire like this young man.

The teachers in the office looked bewildered. When had Director Wang said he was coming?

Ma Hao panicked for a moment, but then he remembered that Director Wang had already gone home.

He had watched Director Wang drive off campus, which was the only reason he had dared to follow Xue Xiaying to her office.

So, he relaxed again, thinking he should quickly find an excuse to get rid of Xue Rui.

"Director Wang said he was just going home to grab something. He’ll be here soon."

Old Liu, who had been silent the whole time, suddenly spoke up.