How can you ascend to heaven when you are a star?

Chapter 505 A big departure

By evening, the lobby of Xingxiang Art Examination Training Center was already bustling with people.

Parents brought their children here, clutching Xingxiang Art Examination brochures tightly in their hands, their eyes filled with anticipation.

As parents of art students, who doesn't know that Xingxiang's art exam results this year are the best in Beijing?

Even in some parent groups for art students, many parents have come to regard Xingxiang as an elevator to top art schools.

As long as you can get in, you can go to whichever floor you want and attend whichever art school you want.

Especially in the performance training classes, hundreds of people were crammed into the audition rooms, and even the corridors were full of people.

This year, 35 students from Xingxiang Performance Training Class passed the final exams for Beijing Film Academy and Huaxi Academy of Drama. Such outstanding results have become legendary in Beijing's art exam circles, making it the dream class for countless art exam candidates.

Six acting teachers, including Chen Xiwen, have arrived at the trial class classroom. Although they are all new teachers at Xingxiang, they have worked at Jiahua for many years and have rich teaching experience, so they are not nervous about the trial class.

As for Su Jianlin, He Shining, and Jiang Shuyue, who had previously agreed to work part-time at Xingxiang, they gave up their plans because Xu Guanchao and others were dismissed.

In other words, the current Xingxiang Performance Training Class only has six teachers that Zhang Wen poached from Jia Hua.

Just as Chen Xiwen was preparing to teach the first class, a middle-aged man in a suit at the back of the classroom suddenly said loudly, "Principal Zhang, I heard something and would like to ask you to verify it."

As soon as he finished speaking, the classroom fell silent. All eyes turned to the principal standing next to the podium, and many people even vaguely guessed what the middle-aged man wanted to verify.

"Please speak, parent," Zhang Wen said with a smile.

The man cleared his throat and said in front of everyone, "Principal Zhang, I heard that all the teachers of Xingxiang Performance Training Class were poached by Jiahua and Huanya last year, and the teachers giving the trial class today are actually newly recruited teachers. I wonder if this is true?"

These words were like a bomb thrown into the crowd, and the classroom immediately erupted in chaos.

"I've heard about it too, but I don't know if it's true or not."

"Huh? Last year's acting teacher was poached? Does that mean I enrolled here for nothing? I wonder if I can get a refund?"

"These new teachers aren't just some random people Principal Zhang found to fool us, are they?"

"Damn, if I had known that Xingxiang's acting teacher had been poached, I wouldn't have brought my child here to register."

"..."

The murmurs grew louder, and Chen Xiwen and the others looked increasingly grim, clutching their lesson plans tightly, unsure whether they should go up to give the lecture.

Just when everyone thought Zhang Wen would make an excuse to avoid the issue, he smiled faintly and nodded to admit it, "This parent is right. Last year's three acting teachers were indeed poached by Jia Hua and Huan Ya."

These words caused even more chaos in the classroom, with several parents already turning to leave.

"Since the teacher has already left, what's the point of having a trial lesson? Don't waste the child's time."

"Exactly, what experience can a new teacher have? What if they can't teach well?"

"Let's go check out Jiahua and Huanya instead."

Faced with the chaotic scene, Zhang Wen walked to the podium, raised his hand and pressed down, his voice not loud but carrying throughout the classroom, "Everyone, please calm down and listen to me."

The noisy classroom fell silent instantly, everyone eager to hear what Principal Zhang had to say next.

Zhang Wen's gaze swept over all the parents in the room, and he asked in a calm tone, "I want to ask you all a question first: Did you come here because of Xingxiang's reputation, or because of those three teachers from last year?"

"..."

After hearing this, everyone was at a loss for words.

If you're coming for Xingxiang's reputation, what's the point of coming to Xingxiang if all the good teachers are gone? But if you're coming for those three teachers, Xingxiang's other training classes seem to have very good art exam results, which means that Xingxiang's overall teaching staff is quite strong.

Just as everyone was starting to seriously consider this issue, Zhang Wen continued, "If you came here because of those three teachers, you can go to the front desk now to get a refund. I will have the finance department process it first, and you will get your money back in full."

The parents present were all stunned. They had enrolled their children in so many training classes, and the training classes had always been the ones to coax them. They had never seen such a "bold" principal who actually took the initiative to persuade them to refund their money. What kind of operation was this?
Parents who were about to leave stopped in their tracks. Some wanted to hear what Principal Zhang would say next, while others were intimidated by his imposing manner and felt they might regret leaving.

Seeing the classroom fall silent again, the man in the suit frowned and asked loudly, "Principal Zhang, what do you mean by that? Are you planning to give up entirely?"

"A broken pot?" Zhang Wen laughed out loud upon hearing this. "Parent, are you kidding me? Even excluding the performance training class, the entrance exam results of our Xingxiang Music and Dance classes are outstanding among our peers. If this is considered a broken pot, then what are other art exam institutions? Garbage?"

"Ha ha!"

Laughter immediately filled the classroom.

Xingxiang's students' art exam results this year are posted on the outside of the wall, making it easy to see how each class fared.

The man in the suit blushed and said stiffly, "We're concerned about the acting class. Why are you talking about the other classes? The teachers of the other classes haven't left."

“Alright, let’s talk about the performance training class.” Zhang Wen put away his smile and looked at the parents and art students present. “In last year’s special training class, there were 15 art students majoring in performance. They all passed the final exams of Beijing Film Academy and Huaxi Academy of Drama. I was the one in charge of the special training class.”

"So what?" the man in the suit said. "You want to say that your special training class is amazing, but those 15 art students in the special training class were all picked out by you from the training classes of those three teachers. Can I understand that you picked all the top students from their classes and deliberately set up this special training class to collect money from us parents who don't know the truth?"

A stone stirred up a thousand waves.

Upon hearing this, the parents all had an expression of sudden realization, and when they looked at Principal Zhang on the podium, a hint of doubt appeared in their eyes.

"Huh? That seems to be the case."

"Well, that makes sense!"

"Why didn't I think of that?"

Hearing that his words had garnered a lot of support, the man in the suit gleamed with pride and continued, "Even with all the top students in the class being selected, those three teachers' classes still had 10 art students who passed the final exam. Doesn't that demonstrate the importance of those three teachers?"

"..."

Discussions arose in the classroom.

The parents nodded in agreement, all agreeing that this made sense.

If we were just questioning Principal Zhang's teaching ability, now we are starting to question his character.

What special training class? Isn't it just a rocket class that brings all the top students together?

Fishing for fame and reputation!

Chen Xiwen and the others looked at Principal Zhang with concern. No one expected that before the trial class even started, a parent would cause trouble. If this was not handled properly, not only would Xingxiang's performance training class be ruined, but even Principal Zhang's special training class would be ruined.

For a moment, everyone waited for the person on the stage to speak, eager to know how they would explain.

Faced with questioning and suspicion, Zhang Wen remained calm and composed, as if what everyone was talking about had nothing to do with him.

"Dear parents, Xingxiang only had nine students two years ago, but last year it had over eight hundred. Do you know why there was such explosive growth?" Zhang Wen didn't answer the man in the suit's question, but instead posed a question in return. The parents present were stunned; they really didn't know the answer. Perhaps only the parents of last year's enrollees would know.

However, they were also curious as to why there were so many more students all at once.

Seeing that no one spoke, Zhang Wen asked and answered himself: "Because all nine students from the year before last were admitted to Huaxi and Beijing Film Academy, and I personally trained them. At that time, Xingxiang did not have these three teachers."

Everyone's eyes widened; so that's what happened.

In this way, it can be seen that Principal Zhang is quite capable, and the special training class is not just a simple rocket class.

"In addition, I wonder if everyone has noticed a problem." Zhang Wen continued, "Although ten students from the regular class outside the special training class also passed the final test, the rankings of these ten students are all outside the number of admissions. In other words, even if the people ranked ahead of them pass the cultural subjects, they still cannot go to Huaxi and Jingying. It is too early to celebrate now."

The audience was taken aback. They hadn't really paid much attention to this issue. It seemed that Principal Zhang was not only competent, but also quite competent, at least more competent than the three acting teachers who had been poached.

"Furthermore, parents, you only know one side of the story about the acting teacher being poached," Zhang Wen said with a faint smile. "Since someone has raised a question, I'll explain the whole story to you."

The parents immediately became interested upon hearing this, but it was a pity that there were no peanuts or melon seeds for sale here, otherwise they would definitely have bought a bag to eat while listening.

Zhang Wen took a sip of water and then slowly explained, "I am the deputy director of the training department of Tianxi Media. Those three teachers are the teachers in charge of training trainees in the training department of Tianxi Media. I am their direct superior. Their teaching content is arranged by me. Even when I brought them to Xingxiang later, it was still the same. So why did they join Jiahua Art Examination? This has to do with the relationship between Jiahua and Tianxi Media."

"The real boss behind Jia Hua Art Examination is Li Lehua, the general manager of Tianxi Media. The appearance of Xingxiang seriously threatened Jia Hua's enrollment and interests. So, this General Manager Li put pressure on the three teachers, saying that if they wanted to stay in the company, they should go to Jia Hua Art Examination to teach, and if they didn't go, they should get out of the company."

"Actually, this Mr. Li also put pressure on our music and dance teachers, but these teachers chose to leave Tianxi Media and stay with Xingxiang."

"Why didn't Mr. Li arrange for these three teachers to teach at Jia Hua before I did? It's simple, because at that time they didn't know how to teach art students, and I hadn't yet passed on my experience in teaching art students to them."

The parents listened intently, never expecting that the poaching was actually linked to a large company like Tianxi Media. However, Li Lehua was truly despicable.

"Didn't another teacher join Huanya Art Exam?" a parent asked.

“That’s right. This teacher left Tianxi Media and Xingxiang and chose to join Huanya simply because Huanya offered higher compensation,” Zhang Wen said.

"That's not right, Principal Zhang. Since you're also an employee of Tianxi Media, why didn't that General Manager Li put pressure on you directly?" another parent asked curiously.

“It’s simple, because he can’t control me,” Zhang Wen said with a smile.

"why?"

Do you think I'd be afraid of her firing me?

The parent who raised the question paused for a moment, then seemed to suddenly realize something.

Yes, Principal Zhang is no ordinary employee; he's a renowned songwriter and composer. Even if he leaves Tianxi Media, he won't have trouble finding another job.

Moreover, there are employees in the world who, even if their own company doesn't need them, cannot be fired to join another company, such as Jia Xu, who served under Cao Cao.

I imagine Principal Zhang felt the same way.

"The reason I'm telling you all this is to tell you..."

Zhang Wen's smile faded, and his voice became firm and powerful: "If I can train three teachers like this, I can train thirty more. If anyone doesn't believe me, I can bet you that next year Xingxiang's performance class will still outperform Jiahua by two streets in the art exam. I'm willing to bet 100 million yuan and donate the winnings to charity. Does Jiahua dare to do that?"

"!!!"

All the parents present were shocked by Principal Zhang's bold statement. He actually dared to bet 100 million yuan. Just how confident did he have?

At this moment, everyone had the same question in their minds: Does Jiahua dare to do this?
Does Jiahua really dare to do it?
I'll definitely go to Jiahua to ask them about it later.

"Parents, let me tell you something else." Zhang Wen pointed to the six people standing next to the podium. "These six teachers used to work at Jia Hua. You heard me right, Xingxiang and Jia Hua's performance class teachers have had a major exchange. Unexpected, isn't it? Surprising, isn't it? Aren't you already eager to see the performance class entrance exam results from Xingxiang and Jia Hua next year?"

The parents stared in disbelief at Principal Zhang on the stage, thinking to themselves, "Holy crap!"
Were those six new teachers previously Jia Hua's teachers?

Can this still be done?

It was more than just an accident; it was utterly absurd, ridiculously absurd.

If, as Principal Zhang said, Xingxiang and Jiahua have indeed exchanged teachers, then based on this year's art exam results, Jiahua should be a shoo-in for next year's competition.

The only uncertain factor is Principal Zhang.

If Principal Zhang were to pass on his teaching experience to the six new teachers, it would be hard to say who would win or lose.

"We're all family here, so I'll tell you the truth today." Zhang Wen put on a sincere face, his honest and straightforward demeanor returning.

"After I learned that Jiahua had poached my teachers, I immediately went to Jiahua to poach my teachers as well."

"As the old saying goes, a train's speed depends entirely on its locomotive. I want to prove to everyone that it's not the students or the teachers who are incompetent, but the principal."

“I saw some of you recording with your phones. I’m not afraid of Jia Hua’s people finding out. Jia Hua is just a nobody. You can show it to them as you please, or you can ask him if he dares to make that 100 million bet with me.”

"..."

The classroom was completely silent.

After a while, someone clapped first, and the others, after coming to their senses, began to applaud as well.

"Whoosh!"

The applause was interspersed with a few cheers.

"Principal Zhang, you're awesome!"

"..."

Many parents' hands were red from clapping.

Principal Zhang is too passionate and has too much spirit. Now we'll see if Jia Hua dares to accept the challenge.

The man in the suit secretly squeezed out of the crowd from the classroom, his face extremely grim.

He was ordered to come and cause trouble tonight, and to encourage parents who had already registered with Xingxiang to get a refund and then register with Jiahua instead.

But after asking a few questions, instead of achieving the desired effect, it led to Principal Zhang's spectacular performance, which was incredibly frustrating.

Actually, none of that matters. The key issue is the 100 million bet mentioned by the other party.

If Principal Zhou doesn't agree, everyone will think Jia Hua chickened out; but if Principal Zhou agrees, that's a hundred million! What if they lose?
The man unconsciously quickened his pace; he needed to get to Jia Hua as soon as possible to report the situation to Principal Zhou.

……

(End of this chapter)