CHAPTER 857: CHAPTER 26: A WICKED WORLD AND PERILOUS PATH

However, today might be a good day; the food conditions are decent. Some even hold half-eaten fried chicken legs, savoring the remaining meat while playing with it, reluctant to throw it away.

Xu Shu found it amusing, feeling cheerful as he passed a certain spot by the fence, unconsciously pausing and glancing in the direction of the swings inside.

The swing was empty, the silly little girl who used to bring him all sorts of leftover food was nowhere to be seen.

"Tsk~ Why isn’t she here again? Gone home early today?"

Xu Shu muttered to himself and then laughed.

He used to complain about that little girl always bringing leftover food, finding it annoying. But now that she didn’t come, he felt a bit empty instead.

Indeed, no one in the world can escape the truth of enjoyment.

With a wry smile, he continued walking. After a while, he passed by the school gate and saw the elderly principal, with gray hair and almost no teeth, sweeping the ground. Though aged, he seemed to still have some strength left.

After a moment’s hesitation, Xu Shu walked over.

The old principal stopped what he was doing, looked Xu Shu up and down, and when he didn’t recognize him, politely asked, "Who are you looking for?"

Xu Shu casually asked, "Principal, has Xiao Ya left already?"

"Uh, looking for Zhong Xiaoya?"

The old principal was slightly surprised, then looked Xu Shu over again and coughed as he said, "Zhong Xiaoya hasn’t come to school today."

"Didn’t come today?"

Xu Shu nodded in understanding, not thinking much of it, and casually voiced, "Children these days, not going to school isn’t a good habit, whether she’s sick or something..."

"Uh, you didn’t know?" The old principal shook his head and explained, "She withdrew from school last night."

"Withdrew?" Xu Shu stopped in his tracks upon hearing that.

The old principal said, "Probably some family issues; the economic situations of these kids’ families are not good. It’s common when they suddenly have to move; they stop coming to school. Especially with Zhong Xiaoya, her mother is a widow, raising a daughter alone, and she got laid off a few days ago. Life’s tough, they’ve already moved out of here."

"So that’s how it is; makes sense. The air in this shabby place isn’t great, and living here isn’t cheap either."

Xu Shu nodded slightly, sighed inwardly, and realized how difficult Xiao Ya’s family situation was, reaching a point of having trouble even with accommodation, forcing her to drop out.

Alas, looking at my own family and those neighbors; aren’t they all living in abundance?

And those living in better areas, closer to the Upper City, can even spend thousands of dollars just to sunbathe on the rooftop; who would believe that?

The saying "gates of the rich reek of food, while bones freeze by the roadside" has never been an empty talk.

Looking at the old principal’s wrinkled hands, Xu Shu felt a softness in his heart: "Taking care of these kids must be hard, right?"

The old principal smiled warmly and sighed, saying, "What’s hard about it? I’m getting on in years, with one foot in the grave already. If I can contribute a bit to the kids, it’s like making use of my remaining energy; even after I hit the ground, it will be a glorious retirement."

"Alright, you busy yourself. I won’t disturb you anymore."

Xu Shu didn’t linger any longer and turned to leave.

After a few steps, he saw a plump woman in an apron rush over with great momentum from the direction of the canteen.

In her greasy hands, she clutched a clipboard with a form filled with dense rows of names and check marks (✓) and crosses (×), seemingly some sort of attendance sheet.

The plump woman glanced at Xu Shu, didn’t recognize him, and didn’t greet him. She walked straight to the principal and flung the form, loudly saying:

"Principal, you have to be reasonable! Zhong Xiaoya and those two others didn’t come today; nobody informed me! I prepared dinner according to plan; I did nothing wrong! And now, there are more than ten extra dishes, and Director Yang wants to dock my bonus; what’s the reason for that?!"

She looked aggrieved, her several rolls of fat squeezed together, looking quite comical, and her loud voice, combined with her stature, immediately drew the attention of not a few children nearby.

Xu Shu stopped in his tracks immediately.

The old principal across didn’t look at Xu Shu, but seemed frozen stiff in the air, motionless.

Until the plump woman called, "Principal? Principal?" a couple of times, the old principal finally smiled and said, "Oh dear, look at my memory, getting old and useless. Zhong Xiaoya withdrew from school last night. I forgot to inform you. Let this one be on me."

"Ah? She withdrew? When...?"

The woman patted her head in a hurry and said, "Principal, how can this be on you? Oh, I didn’t mean that; I just thought they shouldn’t dock my..."

"Alright, alright, let’s handle it this way; I still have a lot to do." The old principal stopped her rambling, picked up the form, wrote a few notes next to [Zhong Xiaoya] in the form, signed it as a remark, then prepared to return to his office.

But the plump woman held him back, pointing to the next two lines, "Hey principal, furthermore, these two kids didn’t come today either, and nobody informed me."

"Two more didn’t come?"

The principal slightly frowned, a hint of surprise flashing across his face.

Apparently, he was unaware of the other two not coming.

But he indeed seemed very busy, as the surprise quickly faded from his face. He didn’t ask more, immediately taking the responsibility for the extra meals for the other two kids as well, and handed the form back to the woman.

After dealing with all of this, he didn’t continue sweeping, and with slightly unsteady steps, headed toward the teaching building, toward his office, like a flickering candle in the wind.