Chapter 469: Chapter 469: A Picked Up Pen
Xu Xiangbei became curious about Mo Xiaowei’s background: "Zhou Ping, do you know where her family is from?"
"When we admitted her, I learned a bit about her family situation. She’s from a rural area in Sichuan Province. Her mother is bedridden with a serious illness, and her father is the sole breadwinner, working to support her education. She still owes some tuition fees to the school, so she wants to work part-time to pay it off."
After understanding Mo Xiaowei’s family situation, Xu Xiangbei sighed softly: "I have Mo Xiaowei’s work permit with me. When she goes to work at the Emperor’s Pavilion tonight, make sure she eats before she starts working. She looks weak; if she keeps working without eating, she’ll end up getting sick."
A fiery red Ferrari stopped beside Xu Xiangbei, and the car window slowly rolled down, revealing Shen Congru’s face: "President Xu, were you waiting impatiently? What are you looking at so intently, did you spot another pretty girl?"
Xu Xiangbei was enjoying the scenery on the campus, smiling gently: "Young Master Shen, you sure like to joke. I’ve never attended university, so I’m just taking a walk here today to experience the campus atmosphere. I really like it. Everyone here is my age; I envy them for being able to study at university without worries, go to the library, read books, and eat together in the cafeteria, unlike me, always busy like a circus monkey."
"Wait here for a moment, I’ll go park the car."
Shen Congru led Xu Xiangbei to the principal’s office. Principal Li, the vice-principal in charge of logistics and finance, greeted them warmly.
Principal Li was a bald old man with black-rimmed glasses, presenting a scholarly appearance.
He warmly shook hands with Xu Xiangbei and Shen Congru: "We are very grateful that Young Master Shen and President Xu are willing to support us. As you know, there are many poor students at the school every year, and we rely on the school’s limited support capacity. With your help, we feel more confident."
Shen Congru smiled: "Our capacity is limited too; we can only offer a small amount of help. As Principal Li mentioned, although society has progressed and living standards have improved, many students’ families still struggle and need financial aid. How many poor students are there at Earth Sea University? I can also inform the Earth Sea Business Association and encourage more people to donate to them."
Principal Li had his assistant bring over this year’s list of poor students for Shen Congru to look at. The lengthy list had over a hundred names, all students who had applied for assistance from the school.
The list was arranged in alphabetical order by name. Xu Xiangbei quickly browsed through the list but didn’t see Mo Xiaowei’s name.
This raised some questions for Xu Xiangbei. With Mo Xiaowei’s family situation, she should qualify for assistance. Why hadn’t she applied?
Xu Xiangbei asked Professor Li with some confusion: "Professor Li, there’s a girl named Mo Xiaowei in the electronics department with a very poor family background. Why hasn’t she applied for aid?"
Hearing Xu Xiangbei mention Mo Xiaowei, Professor Li adjusted his glasses and seemed a bit surprised. He seemed to know something about Mo Xiaowei’s situation and replied directly: "I know the girl you’re referring to. Her family is in difficulty, but her case is somewhat special. Her father is a released convict, so she doesn’t meet the school’s criteria for poor students."
Xu Xiangbei frowned slightly: "Her father’s crime is his business; how can it affect her? Your policy seems a bit unreasonable."
Professor Li maintained a calm, even somewhat indifferent demeanor: "This is the school’s rule, and there’s nothing I can do. We can’t give her special treatment."
Xu Xiangbei was angered by Professor Li’s attitude and shook his head: "The decision is unfair to her. You’re just going by the book, cautious and protective of yourselves, but not caring about the students’ well-being. Policies like this don’t interest me."
Disregarding Shen Congru’s signaling, Xu Xiangbei stood up and left the office: "Young Master Shen, I have other matters to attend to, so I’ll take my leave."
Watching Xu Xiangbei’s departing figure, Shen Congru smiled bitterly as he explained: "President Xu is too busy, so I’ll handle the student aid substantiality on his behalf."
Xu Xiangbei left the office building and passed by Mo Xiaowei’s teaching building, where he heard a familiar argument on the path ahead. Approaching closer, he discovered it was Mo Xiaowei.
The ones arguing with her were two fashionably dressed girls in red and blue outfits.
The girl in red held up a silver metallic fountain pen with a fierce expression: "This pen is what you stole; I caught you, didn’t I?"
Mo Xiaowei had tears in her eyes and a face full of grievance: "Song Pill, stop saying that. I found this pen on the ground."
The girl in blue, Yu Qian, took on an even more accusatory tone, sneering: "Shameless, it’s obvious you stole it. This isn’t any ordinary pen; it’s a limited-edition pen from US Kelly. Judging from the serial number, it’s Song Pill’s pen. I’ve seen it before. If such a nice pen could be found easily, why didn’t I find it?"
"You’re quite the connoisseur, huh? Out of all the pens, you chose to steal mine..."
Mo Xiaowei felt her head buzzing, watching Song Pill and Yu Qian glaring angrily at her, chattering about something she couldn’t even hear, while she only sobbed, biting her lip, repeating over and over: "I really just found it, I didn’t steal it."
Xu Xiangbei’s expression darkened, and he squeezed into the crowd: "Stop talking nonsense. Which of you saw her steal it?"
Song Pill and Yu Qian looked at Xu Xiangbei in surprise, not expecting someone to stand up for Mo Xiaowei. Song Pill sneered: "Pretty boy, who are you, and from which department? Why do you care?"
"In the face of injustice, of course, someone will step in. It’s just a pen; what’s the big deal? She found it and returned it to you. What more do you want?"
Song Pill and Yu Qian exchanged glances: "You, she broke the pen, so she must compensate me."
"How much? I’ll pay for her."
Mo Xiaowei looked at Xu Xiangbei in shock and fear: "No, you don’t have to pay. This is my business; you don’t need to interfere. Thank you, though."
Song Pill and Yu Qian looked disdainful: "This pen is an imported one from the US, limited edition, worth at least two hundred US Dollars."
Xu Xiangbei sneered: "Two hundred US Dollars, according to the current exchange rate, I’ll give you two thousand yuan."
Xu Xiangbei pulled out a stack of money from his pocket and extracted two thousand yuan from it.
Seeing Xu Xiangbei take out two thousand yuan, jealousy surged across Song Pill and Yu Qian’s faces. Song Pill’s eyes were filled with hatred as she said: "Pretty boy, which department are you from? How come I haven’t seen you before? If you’re willing to pay for her, do you fancy her?"
"She’s just a poor girl; is she worth spending so much on?"
Xu Xiangbei sneered, tossing the money forcefully in their faces: "Stop talking nonsense, take the money and get lost."
Angered, Song Pill and Yu Qian blushed deeply, picking up the money from the ground: "Kid, do you think being rich is a big deal? Just you wait."
