51: Chapter 54 The Villain's Decisive Strike, Reporting Unexplained Funding Source

When the bell rang for the end of the last class on Friday afternoon.

Thirty heavy construction vehicles were already parked on the asphalt road in front of No. 19 Middle School.

Project Manager Zhao Tiejun stood outside the back wall and called Fang Jiming.

"Mr. Fang, thirty teams with three hundred and twenty people are all in position.

Everyone has a copy of the construction list; we are just waiting for your word."

Fang Jiming stood on the roof of the teaching building.

The wind blew the hood of his hoodie up.

His phone vibrated again.

Chen Jianhua sent a message.

"Mr. Fang, 65 million has arrived in the New Far East Education Development Foundation special account.

All fund flow records and donation notarizations are complete, and we can enter the site at any time."

Fang Jiming replied with two words: "Start work."

Then he dialed the number of the security guard, Old Zhang.

"Uncle Zhang, thank you for your hard work this weekend."

Old Zhang's voice went up an octave.

"Teacher Fang, don't worry. Our team leader, Old Shen, and I have even called our wives to come and help guard the gate.

I've clearly inquired about Principal Sun; he's gone out of town to play golf again this weekend and won't be back until Monday."

Fang Jiming: "The bonus for your hard work will be doubled this time."

Old Zhang chuckled twice.

"Teacher Fang, you are too polite. You can rest assured."

Fang Jiming hung up the phone and walked down from the roof.

At 8:00 PM on Friday, construction officially began.

Project Manager Zhao Tiejun ran back and forth between the floors with a walkie-talkie.

His voice was hoarse from shouting.

"Dismantle the windows on the left side of the third floor first. The thermal break aluminum will arrive at 10:00 PM tonight, so install it immediately!"

"Ignore the lights in the fourth-floor corridor for now; prioritize completing the interior of the classrooms!"

"The desks and chairs must be moved via the scaffolding on the back wall; no loud noises are allowed in the hallways!"

At 2:00 AM, Project Manager Zhao Tiejun sent a voice message.

"Mr. Fang, all the old equipment in the six classrooms on the first and second floors has been cleared out.

The new flooring is 80% complete, and the air conditioning units are in place.

We are still short two blackboards, but the truck is on its way."

Fang Jiming replied.

"The speed is good, but don't compromise on quality.

Formaldehyde testing and electrical safety checks must be done for every room."

Project Manager Zhao Tiejun: "Understood, I will personally supervise every room."

During the day on Saturday, Fang Jiming didn't go to the school to check the progress.

He rode his electric scooter around the city all morning.

In the afternoon, he switched to the maybach and went to the largest Xinhua Bookstore in Nanqiao City.

The clerk watched him move the eighteenth cardboard box onto the checkout counter and finally couldn't help but ask.

"Sir, are you purchasing these for a school?"

Fang Jiming slapped his card on the counter.

"Thirty-eight thousand, swipe the card."

The clerk looked down and scanned the card.

Then looked up at his hoodie and floral shorts.

"The variety you bought is too mixed; putting must-have exam practice books together with programming primers?"

Fang Jiming stacked the last pile of world classics on top.

"High school students should read a bit of everything; they can't have a narrow perspective."

After the clerk swiped the card, she watched him stuff the eighteen boxes one by one into the back seat and passenger seat of the maybach.

The last box really wouldn't fit.

Fang Jiming put it on his lap and drove the whole way with his knees propping up the box.

Fang Jiming: ( ꐦ ≧ ᗝ ≦ )

At 11:00 PM on Saturday, the first post appeared on the local education forum of Nanqiao City.

The title read: "What kind of big project is No. 19 Middle School doing? A row of construction vehicles is parked behind the back wall."

The post included a few photos taken secretly with a mobile phone.

Within an hour, the replies exceeded two hundred.

"Is No. 19 Middle School being demolished? That dump of a school should have been torn down long ago."

"Demolition? It's a renovation. Didn't you see that Class 18 just spent two million to renovate their classroom last week?"

"Two million to renovate one classroom? Are you sure you're talking about No. 19 Middle School and not No. 1 Middle School?"

"I heard it was donated by some overseas foundation, and Teacher Fang was the one who made the connection."

"Who is Teacher Fang?"

"A new substitute teacher at No. 19 Middle School, the homeroom teacher of Class 18, Grade 12."

"A substitute teacher can bring in a donation of this magnitude? What's his background?"

The popularity of the post exploded on Sunday afternoon.

Someone took a picture of the LED eye-protection light shining out from the third-floor windows of No. 19 Middle School.

The window frames were also replaced from old iron to thermal break aluminum.

The photos were uploaded to the local Nanqiao City headlines account.

In three hours, the view count exceeded one hundred thousand.

The comment section exploded.

"I am a graduate of No. 19 Middle School. I froze in that dump of a classroom for three winters back then, and now it's renovated? I don't believe it."

"There are pictures, so it's true. I looked up that blackboard; it's a Huawei OLED interactive screen, costing over one hundred thousand each."

"What kind of foundation is so rich and generous?"

"Could it be money laundering?"

"Don't talk nonsense, they have complete donation agreements and notarized filings."

Teacher Wen Ruyan sat on her bed in the dormitory on Sunday night and saw this trending topic.

She held her phone and scrolled through the comments for a long time, then put the phone down and stared at the ceiling.

Fang Jiming said the whole school renovation would start within three days.

Today is the third day.

He really did it.

Teacher Wen Ruyan turned over and placed her phone screen-down on the pillow.

"Fang Jiming, what exactly are you hiding?"

She said this to the dark ceiling and covered her head with the quilt.

Teacher Wen Ruyan: ( Ꙩ ⌓ Ꙩ )

On the other side.

Vice Principal Sun Yaozu at 11:00 PM received a call from Director He Rencai.

"Principal Sun, he really did it."

Director He Rencai's voice was trembling.

"All thirty-two classrooms in the school have been completely renovated.

Over three hundred construction workers have been working around the clock for two days and two nights.

The configuration is exactly the same as Class 18: 85-inch blackboards, Daikin air conditioners, and solid wood desks."

Vice Principal Sun Yaozu sat up straight on the sofa with his phone.

"Sixty-five million, just like that?"

Director He Rencai's voice dropped even lower.

"Principal Sun, with this magnitude of money entering No. 19 Middle School, it's impossible for the Education Bureau not to notice.

When the audit comes, our maintenance lists from those years..."

"Shut up."

Vice Principal Sun Yaozu interrupted him.

They had embezzled less than five million in total from five years of falsified maintenance funds.

The people behind Fang Jiming could casually pull out sixty-five million.

"We can't let him keep doing this."

He hung up on Director He Rencai and scrolled through his contacts to find a name.

Section Chief Xiao Kaihe.

Section Chief of the Personnel Department of the Municipal Education Bureau, his daughter-in-law's uncle.

Vice Principal Sun Yaozu: ( ꐦ ° ᷄ д ° ᷅ )

He pressed the dial button.

The phone rang three times and was answered.

Section Chief Xiao Kaihe's voice carried the impatience of being woken up.

"Yaozu, what is it in the middle of the night?"

Vice Principal Sun Yaozu lowered his voice.

"Old Xiao, a large sum of overseas funds has recently entered No. 19 Middle School.

I think it's necessary to report it to the higher-ups."

Section Chief Xiao Kaihe yawned.

"As long as the donation procedures are compliant, there's nothing to investigate.

Don't go looking for trouble for yourself."

Vice Principal Sun Yaozu was waiting for this exact response, so he changed his tone.

"Old Xiao, I don't care about the donation funds; I want to remind you of something."

"This money was sent by an overseas-registered foundation.

The amount is 65 million, and it is registered in the BVI."

The other end of the line went quiet.

Vice Principal Sun Yaozu added fuel to the fire.

"If there is really a problem with this money, and it turns out to be a school under your jurisdiction when it's investigated...

If the Bureau holds someone accountable, do you think Director Feng will protect you or himself?"

Section Chief Xiao Kaihe's breathing became heavier.

"Are you sure it's registered in the BVI?"

"Absolutely."

"Then this matter really needs to be reported to the higher-ups."

Section Chief Xiao Kaihe hesitated for a moment.

"But I can't come forward directly; Director Feng will think I'm stirring up trouble."

Vice Principal Sun Yaozu had already thought it through.

"You don't need to come forward; just add No. 19 Middle School to the next audit list."

Section Chief Xiao Kaihe didn't respond.

Vice Principal Sun Yaozu continued.

"It's a routine audit; no one can say anything is wrong with that.

But once the audit team arrives at No. 19 Middle School and sees 65 million in overseas funds, they will have to investigate even if they don't want to."

"As they investigate, Fang Jiming's background will inevitably be exposed."

Section Chief Xiao Kaihe was silent for a few seconds.

"Fine, I'll submit the list this week."

Vice Principal Sun Yaozu hung up the phone and took a gulp of the cold Tieguanyin tea on the coffee table.

The tea was bitter.

Section Chief Xiao Kaihe: ( ꐦ ； ¬ _ ¬ )

Wednesday morning, the Principal's office at No. 19 Middle School.

Principal Zhou Dehai received a call from the Education Bureau office.

"Principal Zhou, the Bureau has arranged a teaching evaluation Supervisory Group.

They will arrive at No. 19 Middle School next Monday for a 7-week stay."

"The evaluation content includes teaching quality and a compliance review of the donated funds."

"The head of the Supervisory Group is Deputy Director Su Nianwei from the Bureau's Teaching and Research Office."

Principal Zhou Dehai hung up the phone, and his enamel mug almost slipped from his hand.

The first thing he thought of was himself.

Although he didn't directly dip his hands into the school's accounts over the years,

he was well aware of what Vice Principal Sun Yaozu had done; knowing but not reporting it was just as much of a trap.

"What a disaster."

He sighed and picked up the phone to dial Fang Jiming.

"Mr. Fang, come to my office this afternoon."

When Fang Jiming walked into the Principal's office at 3:00 PM.

Principal Zhou Dehai was sitting in his chair, his face pale and his eyes dark.

"Sit down, Mr. Fang."

Fang Jiming sat down opposite him, placing his thermos on his knees.

Principal Zhou Dehai rubbed his hands.

"The Education Bureau's Supervisory Group will arrive next Monday, focusing on two things: teaching quality and the source of the donated funds."

Fang Jiming unscrewed his thermos and blew on it.

"Let them investigate."

Principal Zhou Dehai leaned forward.

"Mr. Fang, don't take this lightly.

The person sent by the Education Bureau is named Director Su Nianwei, Director Feng's niece, and a notoriously iron-fisted supervisor."

Fang Jiming raised his eyelids.

"How iron-fisted is she?"

"Last time she investigated the school-run enterprise of Qiannan No. 3 Middle School, she sent the principal, vice principal, and the dean of academic affairs to the Discipline Inspection Department within a month."

Fang Jiming took a sip of goji berry tea and tightened the lid of the cup.

"Principal, you have seen my donation paperwork.

Construction qualifications, completion acceptance, fire safety filings, donation agreements, and notarizations; everything is there."

"She can investigate if she wants; the accounts are clean."

Principal Zhou Dehai's mouth moved.

Fang Jiming glanced at him.

"Principal, is there anything else you want to tell me?"

Principal Zhou Dehai's lips trembled twice, and finally, he shook his head.

"No, you go back and prepare."

Fang Jiming stood up and walked to the door, then paused.

"Principal, if there is a problem with No. 19 Middle School's accounts, it won't be uncovered by me spending money to renovate the classrooms.

Those accounts have always been there.

Regardless of whether a Supervisory Group comes to investigate or not, one must eventually face what needs to be faced."

He pushed the door open and walked out.

Principal Zhou Dehai sat in his office chair and slowly covered his face with both hands.

Fang Jiming walked down the hallway, and his phone vibrated in his pocket.

The System Panel popped up a line of red text.

[Warning: External forces are about to intervene in the host's teaching environment. The system has activated the fund link protection protocol]

[All financial data of the New Far East Education Development Foundation has completed triple encryption, camouflage, and multi-layer jump architecture upgrades, and can withstand national-level audit standards]

[The host does not need to take any additional measures; just respond normally]

After reading this prompt, Fang Jiming put his phone back into his pocket.

"System, I feel wronged. It's so hard to do a good deed, but fortunately, you are reliable."

Fang Jiming: ( ˘ ̩ ̩ ̩ ε ˘ ̩ ƪ )

[System: ...]