"No, the classroom was empty today. Not a single student came for class."
"These parents, how could they forget to ask for leave?" Amidst the eager gazes of everyone, the class monitor's father continued, "I'll help these kids request a half-day leave."
"Well..." Teacher Zheng hesitated, as it was the first time she'd seen a parent asking for leave on behalf of an entire class.
The class monitor's father added, "If you don't believe me, we can video call. All the children are here with me, quiet and behaving themselves. They won't do anything dangerous."
This was probably the first truthful statement the class monitor's father had made today, as the class monitor and the others were indeed right beside him.
Everyone could hear the conversation between the class monitor's father and Teacher Zheng clearly.
Switching from a voice call to a video call would be too disrespectful.
Considering that he was a person of some standing, it seemed unlikely he would lie.
"Of course I believe you," Teacher Zheng said.
It was fortunate that Teacher Zheng believed the class monitor's father. If a video call had been made, the enormous "In Memoriam" character and the various wreaths in the background would have given everything away.
Shi Li expressed her respect: [As expected of a businessman, his way with words is quite impressive]
Apart from Shi Li, the other classmates also expressed their admiration.
"Uncle, you're amazing!"
...
"Uncle, from today on, you're my real dad."
The biological father of this "adopting a new dad" guy was standing right behind him. Hearing this, he gave his son a kick, "You little brat, are you getting too bold?" Skipping class was one thing, but daring to go out and claim someone else as his father was another.
The class monitor's father gradually lost himself in the praise from his son's classmates.
He put his arm around the newcomer's shoulder and led him away from the group of children. "Oh, come on, Brother Xu, the kids are just joking. How can you take it seriously as an adult?"
The class monitor's father turned back and waved at the crowd, "Kids, you can come to me for anything in the future." Except for asking for sick leave on your behalf, that is.
The funeral home was spacious, able to accommodate many guests.
The students of Class 1, Grade 10 were standing in one corner, but it didn't stop them from watching the drama unfold.
Shi Li, being quite savvy, had ordered plenty of snacks for delivery, especially a lot of sunflower seeds.
Sunflower seeds go best with watching drama, Shi Li thought honestly.
Cracking sunflower seeds in front of someone's memorial hall was quite impolite in itself.
They had all received nine years of compulsory education, how could they do something so disrespectful? So, when cracking sunflower seeds, everyone switched to silent mode, trying their best not to disturb others around them.
[It's so lively]
[Even a rural fair isn't this bustling]
Classmates: Who would disagree?
Just look at how the various dignitaries who came to pay their respects were reluctant to leave.
Today's commotion would be enough for the entire Blue City to gossip about for half a year.
Two groups of women had already arrived, wanting their children to be recognized as legitimate heirs.
But these two groups of women were not skilled enough, they didn't even need the Xun family to deal with them.
Miss Wei Yi was enough.
"You're saying this is my father's child? Impossible. Don't you know my father was faithful to his marriage? How could he possibly be with other women?"
"You want to do a DNA test? That's not possible." Wei Yi pointed at her father's luxurious urn, "I don't think you can do a DNA test with ashes, can you?"
The mistresses were dumbfounded. It hadn't even been twenty-four hours since Wei Yongsheng's passing.
According to old traditions, the body should be kept for at least two days before cremation.
The mistresses pointed at Wei Yi's nose and started cursing, "What kind of daughter are you? Your father just passed away yesterday, and you've already had him cremated."
Shi Li couldn't help but chime in mentally: [She's just actively implementing the state's cremation policy]
Wei Yi, who was in the middle of an argument, naturally quoted this without realizing it was Shi Li's inner thought, "I'm just actively complying with the state's cremation policy."
The other classmates who heard this immediately became alarmed.
Has Wei Yi gone mad? How could she directly quote Shi Li's words?
What if Shi Li guesses that we can hear her thoughts?
Shi Li hadn't even considered this possibility: [We're quite in sync, thinking of the same thing]
The others who were panicking: Okay, false alarm.
Her best friends Shi Qiuyu and Gao Yun gave her a helpless look, wondering how to compliment their naive friend.
Then she continued in a friendly tone, "If you really want to do it, you can confront my father face to face. I believe my father can certainly prove his innocence."
How could they confront Wei Yongsheng face to face when he had already been reduced to ashes?
"Then do a DNA test with my child. If we can prove that you're siblings, then my daughter is Wei Yongsheng's biological child."
Wei Yi shook her head kindly, "That's not possible. Doing a DNA test with your daughter would be doubting my father's character. As my father's biological daughter, I absolutely won't allow anyone to tarnish my father's name after his death."
No matter what the mistresses said, Wei Yi absolutely refused to do a DNA test, insisting that she trusted her father.
After this back-and-forth, even the uninformed onlookers understood that the children these women brought must be Wei Yongsheng's illegitimate children. Otherwise, these women wouldn't dare to suggest a DNA test.
People started commenting that this Wei Yongsheng was really something, managing to father so many children despite his busy work schedule.
He was truly a role model for their generation.
However, making such a scene at a funeral was really unsightly.
[Tsk, the five-spice flavored sunflower seeds taste the best]
The classmates nodded: That's right, just a bit salty though
Shi Qiuyu timely passed over an orange, "Don't just eat sunflower seeds, have an orange to quench your thirst."
Eating too many sunflower seeds can make you thirsty.
Seeing a woman dragging two kids, Shi Li suddenly lost interest in her sunflower seeds. An earworm of a background music popped into her head:
[Here she comes, here she comes, floating in on auspicious clouds]
The classmates who were chatting in small groups: Alright, we know the main event has arrived.
Everyone was used to Shi Li's lowbrow nature by now, and were almost immune to the fact that behind her noble and cold appearance, she listened to such songs.
In her previous life, Shi Li had encountered Wei Yuetong once or twice at social events.
She had heard from her parents that this was the woman Wei Yongsheng kept outside, so Shi Li paid a bit more attention to her, after all, this person was related to her classmate.
Shi Li's aunt was familiar with the circle's gossip, and she had heard that this capable woman would bring her fellow mistresses to make demands in front of the deceased.
However, the other illegitimate children didn't receive much of the family fortune. Everyone else was merely her pawns. While others charged into battle and raised banners, in the end, only she managed to secure nearly a quarter of the Wei family's assets.
Not only did she obtain a share of the family fortune, but she also leveraged her stockholdings to demand a position in Ziyuan Real Estate's decision-making circle.
Some people, no matter how much money they have in their hands or how many luxury goods they've seen, remain nothing more than a village girl at heart.
She thought that by using such petty tactics to climb the ladder, she would become invincible. She believed she could manipulate Wei Yongsheng like a puppet, that she was no less capable than him, and that she too could make a grand splash in the business world.
Dreams are full, but reality is stark.
Although Wei Yongsheng couldn't control his carnal desires, when it came to managing the company, Wei Yuetong was no match for him.
Moreover, this woman was a troublemaker, taking great pleasure in opposing Wei Yi and her mother.
Whatever Wei Yi and her mother supported, she would invariably oppose.
When the management of a company begins to fight internally, that company is bound to go downhill.
After several negative incidents in the public eye, Ziyuan Real Estate's market value repeatedly shrank, jeopardizing its position as the leader in the real estate industry.
However, even a broken ship has three thousand nails. Seeing the situation turn sour, Wei Yi and her mother quickly extricated themselves and started anew. Although their new venture couldn't compare to Ziyuan's former glory, it was still better than sinking with Ziyuan's great ship.
[Charge forward and take down this troublemaker!]
