67: Chapter 70 I'll take you back, but not back to that cage.

Han Bingbing froze completely.

Her mouth opened slightly.

Her eyes, hidden beneath the hood of her sweatshirt, looked at Fang Jiming.

Something very complex was churning inside them.

Never before had an adult asked her such a question.

Her mother would say, "You must go back to school."

Her previous homeroom teacher would say, "If you skip class again, you're expelled."

Director He Rencai, the head of academic affairs, would say, "Whether you come or not is up to you."

Everyone was telling her what to do; no one had ever asked her what she wanted.

Fang Jiming just looked at her like that.

With one hand resting on his knee, he waited for her answer.

The shouts of vendors and the sound of stir-frying in the night market created a noisy atmosphere around them.

Fang Jiming did not rush her.

Han Bingbing lowered her head.

She clenched her sweatshirt sleeves and tucked her hands into them.

She twisted them for a long time.

Then, she nodded once.

It was a very slight movement, but Fang Jiming saw it.

"Going back to school is fine."

After saying this half-sentence, Fang Jiming paused for a beat.

"But you won't be living at home for the time being."

Han Bingbing lifted her head.

"I have already talked to your mother. I will handle things from here on out, so you don't need to worry."

"You will stay in a dormitory near the school for a while, and I will arrange for a housekeeper to take care of your three meals a day."

Fang Jiming spoke flatly.

There was no room for negotiation in his tone.

Han Bingbing sat opposite him, opening her mouth for a long time before she managed to squeeze out a sentence.

"Teacher Fang, are you serious?"

"Do I look like I'm joking when I talk?"

"But how much will that cost? Your monthly salary is only a little over three thousand."

Fang Jiming picked up his thermos and took a sip of water.

His expression was calm, no different from when he usually complained that the gluten skewers weren't spicy enough.

"The school has a special public welfare fund for this. The procedures are compliant, and the money is available, so you don't need to worry about it."

He took out his phone.

He flipped to a number and pressed the dial button.

The phone rang once and connected.

"Old Chen, help me secure a placement dormitory near No. 19 Middle School.

A two-bedroom apartment is enough; it needs to be clean, safe, and have access control.

Use The Foundation's placement channel and get it done before tonight."

"Is this for placing that student named Han Bingbing, Mr. Fang?"

"Yes."

"Also, contact the community to arrange for a housekeeper so that someone can look after her three meals a day."

"Understood. All costs will be covered by The Foundation's special fund."

Fang Jiming hung up and put his phone away.

The whole process took less than forty seconds.

Han Bingbing sat opposite him, completely stunned.

Han Bingbing: ( ⊙ ᗜ ⊙ )

She stared at him for several seconds.

"Teacher Fang, I now have every reason to suspect that you are a rich second-generation kid here to experience life."

"No, I'm just a poor teacher, the penniless kind," Fang Jiming said.

Han Bingbing: ( ¬ ､ ¬ ) .

"Why are you helping me?"

Fang Jiming screwed the lid onto his thermos and stood up.

He pushed the plastic stool under the table.

Then he looked down at Han Bingbing.

He put on his most standard expression of disdain.

"For every day you are absent, my dropout rate jumps by one percentage point.

If it jumps a few more times, I'll be blown up by the system."

He paused for a moment.

"No, wait, I'll be expelled by the school."

He corrected himself, his expression unchanged.

"I'm doing this to save my own skin, not for you, so don't get the wrong idea."

Han Bingbing looked at Fang Jiming's face as he told a lie with a straight face.

She didn't believe it.

But she smiled, the curve of her lips very slight.

There was no defensiveness or resistance.

This was the first time Fang Jiming had seen Han Bingbing smile.

It wasn't aggressive, nor was it disguised.

Fang Jiming: ( ˘ ᗜ ˘ " )

He turned his face away and used the thermos to block it.

Pretending to drink water.

"Let's go.

I'll take you to the dormitory before the night market closes.

Classes as usual tomorrow."

Han Bingbing stood up slowly.

She put on her backpack and paused.

"Teacher Fang."

"Hmm."

"What about my mom?"

Fang Jiming had already turned and was walking towards the alley entrance.

He didn't even look back.

"I said I'll handle things on her end, you don't worry about it."

"Your only task now.

Is to eat well, sleep well, and attend classes well."

"As for the rest, I'll take the heat."

Han Bingbing stood there, watching his back.

Her throat felt tight.

She lowered her head and followed quickly.

On the way back, Han Bingbing walked in front.

Fang Jiming followed from a distance of five or six meters.

He didn't urge her to walk faster the whole time.

Nor did he walk up to be side-by-side with her.

He just maintained that distance, not too far and not too close.

It kept her within sight to make her feel at ease.

And wasn't close enough to make her feel watched.

Halfway there, Fang Jiming took out his phone.

He sent a WeChat message to Teacher Wen Ruyan.

"Han Bingbing is coming back tomorrow. Help me keep an eye on her, don't be too obvious."

Teacher Wen Ruyan replied very quickly.

"Are you picking up strays again?"

"Professional habit."

"Have you eaten dinner?"

"I have, gluten skewers."

Teacher Wen Ruyan sent a second message after a few seconds.

"Did you bring your thermos? It's hot, drink more water."

Fang Jiming looked at this message.

His walking pace slowed down.

He held his phone up under the streetlight in front of him and read it again.

Did you bring your thermos, it's hot, drink more water.

He stared at this sentence, stunned for several seconds.

A System Panel popped up in his mind.

[ Teacher Wen Ruyan's favorability +3, current favorability: 59 ]

Fang Jiming closed the System Panel.

He replied with two words.

"I did."

He stuffed his phone into his pocket.

He looked up at Han Bingbing's back as she walked ahead at a steady pace.

Then he took out his phone again and typed an extra line in the chat box.

"Teacher Wen, thanks."

After sending it, he locked the screen.

He quickened his pace and walked forward.

The sent log showed that Teacher Wen Ruyan viewed the message eight seconds later.

Teacher Wen Ruyan did not reply; her gaze stayed on that line of text in the chat interface for a long time.

Teacher Wen Ruyan: ( / ω ＼ )

— — —

Half an hour later, Chen Jianhua sent a message.

Confirming that the dormitory had been arranged.

The keys were being kept by the owner of the supermarket at the entrance.

The housekeeper would report for duty at six o'clock tomorrow morning.

After confirming that Han Bingbing had checked in safely, Fang Jiming returned to the school and then drove from the back alley back to the villa.

He pushed the door open, bent down, and changed his shoes.

He placed the thermos on the cabinet in the entryway.

He slumped onto the sofa.

The System Panel in his mind popped up automatically.

[ Core student Han Bingbing has returned to the class range ]

[ But the core dilemma has not yet been resolved ]

[ Hint: The real problem is not with the student, but with the family behind the student ]

[ Family relationship restoration progress: 0% ]

Fang Jiming stared at that last zero for about ten seconds.

He placed his hand over his eyes.

He let out a soft sigh.

Zero.

The person was found, but the road had just begun.

The words Han Bingbing said about having to be terrified even when changing clothes.

Kept spinning round and round in his ears.

This was the first time since Fang Jiming took over Class 18.

That he felt the bonuses issued by the system were of little use.

A-level transformation difficulty, family relationship restoration progress zero.

Fang Jiming closed his eyes.

He buried his face in the sofa cushion.

He cursed in a muffled voice.

"This is f*cking hard."

The living room lights weren't on.

Only the sensor light in the entryway cast a small patch of light.

The phone screen on the coffee table lit up and then went dark.

It was a delayed message from Teacher Wen Ruyan.

"Sleep early, you have two classes tomorrow."

Followed immediately by a second message, from Auntie Zhao's number.

"Teacher Fang, Bingbing didn't come home tonight either.

Haven't you found her yet?"

Fang Jiming did not see these two messages.

He had already fallen asleep slumped on the leather sofa.

The thermos stood on the cabinet in the entryway.

The smell of the Qiaonan night market's cooking fumes still lingered on the cup's surface.