Start as a top student after transmigrating.

In the office, the faint light from the phone screen reflected Wu Jie's furrowed brows.

She stood up and went to the floor-to-ceiling window, hugging her left arm and holding her phone in her right, quietly gazing down at the brightly lit night view of the Qingjiang River.

Immediately, she dialed Han Jiancheng's number.

"Xiao Han, haven't you rested yet?" Han Jiancheng's concerned voice came from the other end of the line.

"Still working overtime." Wu Jie's voice sounded a bit tired. Perhaps only with Han Jiancheng could she feel at ease showing this side of herself.

"No matter how busy you are, you need to take a break. It's almost midnight." Han Jiancheng's concern deepened.

"You're different, you're used to it."

Wu Jie smiled indifferently, then changed the subject, "I just received a call from Chen Dong."

"Chen Dong? The Chen Dong from Qingjiang Middle School?" Han Jiancheng was somewhat surprised.

"Um."

Wu Jie replied, "He said he'll be coming over to our house with Ning'er tonight, did you know that?"

"Ning'er didn't tell me," Han Jiancheng said.

Wu Jie fell silent. Since her daughter hadn't told them, it was clear she didn't want them to know, or more accurately, she didn't want to come home and see them.

"Xiao Wu."

Wu Jie remained silent. Han Jiancheng said gently, "Our daughter has grown up and has her own life. Don't interfere with her affairs. The more you watch her closely, the more resentful she will become."

"Dislike?"

Wu Jie's voice held a bitter laugh, her tone slightly raised, "She's not even eighteen yet, renting a place alone, and bringing other guys home, and now she wants to bring them back... How can I not feel at ease?"

Parents with daughters often worry about their daughters being targeted by shady characters, especially during their school years. It's understandable that Wu Jie has this concern, since she knows Chen Dong.

"Don't worry, our daughter is a person with her own opinions. She knows her limits. Besides, how else do you want to control her? Are you going to use financial means to prevent her from renting an apartment?"

Han Jiancheng analyzed, "Even then, she won't compromise. She won't go home, she won't live at school. Can you bear to see her wandering around outside? Doing so will only push her further away."

Hey~

Wu Jie sighed inwardly. Sometimes she really regretted missing out on spending too much time with her daughter during her formative years, to the point that now it's difficult for the mother and daughter to even have a proper conversation.

I can't see her when I go home, and it's even hard to see her on weekends. Sometimes she feels more like a stranger than a stranger, but the concern I feel as a mother is something I can never let go of.

"Ning'er's temper is very similar to yours. The more you discipline her, the more rebellious she becomes. The more you don't want her to do something, the more she insists on doing it. We need to be more tolerant and understanding," Han Jiancheng comforted her. He knew Han Ning'er very well.

"I see."

How could Wu Jie not understand? After all, she was her daughter.

The relationship between the mother and daughter is painful to think about.

"Did Chen Dong say anything else?" Han Jiancheng asked.

"He said he would visit and also thanked me," Wu Jie said, getting back to the main point. It was these two sentences that made her call Han Jiancheng to discuss it.

"A visit? Thank you?"

Han Jiancheng pondered the two words for a moment, then asked, "You guessed it?"

"Yes." Wu Jie did not deny it.

It was clearly not Han Ning'er who was visiting, so Chen Dong deliberately leaked the information to her, hoping that they would be home tomorrow night.

As for that thank you, why thank me?

Chen Dong probably only knows about that incident from his first year of high school.

"It seems this child isn't as bad as you thought. I told you our daughter knew what kind of friends she should make, but you didn't believe me."

Han Jiancheng smiled and said, "And I also have some news."

"What news?" Wu Jie blurted out.

"Do you know your mock exam results?" Han Jiancheng asked instead of answering.

"There's so much going on as the year draws to a close, I just sent a text message to Teacher Zhong," Wu Jie said.

She has been very busy lately, with a constant stream of meetings, but she still manages to find time to check on her daughter's grades and current situation. As for other things, she doesn't know much.

"You should ask a few more questions," Han Jiancheng said with a smile.

"Why?" Wu Jie asked, puzzled.

"Ask her about the tutoring situation."

Han Jiancheng laughed lightly, "I asked Teacher Zhong, and Ning'er has improved this time. Although the improvement is small, the tutoring she did during the evening classes is effective. Most importantly, you would never guess how many points Chen Dong got on the test."

"What score can he get?"

Wu Jie could only spare time to care for her own daughter; she simply didn't have the energy to understand others. Her memories of Chen Dong were basically stuck two years ago.

He's ignorant and incompetent, always at the bottom of his class. Could he have improved this time?

"701, number one in the city," Han Jiancheng said.

"How many?"

Wu Jie suddenly raised her voice.

She guessed that Chen Dong might have improved, perhaps making significant progress, but she never expected him to be number one in the city. Was this still the Chen Dong she remembered?

"Don't tell me you don't believe me, I was shocked when I heard the news, but these results are absolutely true and not faked. They've even formed a study group, and the top student in the grade at No. 1 Middle School has joined," Han Jiancheng said.

"Incredible!"

Wu Jie can only be described with these four words.

"So we should trust our daughter. She has the right to choose her friends, and her judgment is just as good as yours, isn't it?" Han Jiancheng said with a smile.

"You've got good taste, haven't you?" Wu Jie laughed.

Although it was a joke, she genuinely appreciated and was very grateful to Han Jiancheng.

She's a workaholic, especially within the system. In her early years, she was a workaholic who worked tirelessly to achieve results, and even her daughter was born on the front lines.

Moreover, as a woman, she is more susceptible to rumors and gossip, such as power-for-sex deals and using her body to climb the social ladder. These vile rumors are hard for even her to bear.

Han Jiancheng not only didn't mind, but also always tolerated, understood, encouraged and accompanied her, which gave her the courage to get to where she is today.

Han Jiancheng is her haven. Moreover, he is the glue that holds this family together. Without his sacrifice of time to accompany the children as they grow up, she dares not imagine how bad her daughter's upbringing would be.

"Alright, let's go home tomorrow night." Han Jiancheng changed the subject.

"Okay, I'll arrange the time," Wu Jie replied. No matter how important the arrangements were for tomorrow night, she would make time to not waste this opportunity.

"I'll go to the school for the parent-teacher meeting tomorrow, and then I'll come pick you up," Han Jiancheng said.

"Um."

A simple "hmm" is like a young girl's voice, encompassing all her emotions.

……

The next day.

The last class in the afternoon ended early to allow time for the parent-teacher meeting. Chen Dong, Liu Yumo, Ye Wanwan, and Jiang Lina didn't linger and rushed out of the classroom.

They simply greeted their parents and then disappeared in a flash.

"Why are these kids running so fast? I'm not going to hit them." Chen Zhenjiang was speechless. He was the one who came to this parent-teacher conference, or rather, he was the one who came almost all of them.

Given Chen Dong's grades, he was bound to be called out by the teacher at every parent-teacher conference. Zeng Ling didn't want to lose face, so she always sent Chen Zhenjiang instead, since he was thick-skinned anyway.

Every time Chen Zhenjiang finished a parent-teacher meeting, he felt like he could whip Chen Dong with a belt and beat him up.

"Old Chen, it seems you're reluctant to punish your son this time," Liu Hongjun said with a smile.