Don't Say You're Heartless (Modern Edition)

8 Participation

After another day of work, the school announced a meeting. The main topic of the meeting was the upcoming autumn sports day.

Director Feng, who was in charge of physical education, outlined the time and general process of the event. He then assigned tasks to each grade level. The senior grades were responsible for selecting and training teams for the flag squad, color guard, and bouquet squad. The lower grades only needed to ensure their students marched in formation. Teacher Xie, the head of the physical education department, briefly discussed the event setup and the judging duties assigned to various subject teachers. This process was the same every year, so the homeroom teachers, already familiar with it, quickly jotted down the key points in their notebooks, with only a few asking questions on specific matters.

Once everyone was clear, the meeting ended.

Shen Qiuhua asked, "What is a sports day?"

Yang Qiong thought for a moment, "It's like a gathering where everyone runs, jumps, and plays for a day."

"Running and jumping?" Shen Qiuhua couldn't imagine such a scene. She was raised as a noble lady, with strict adherence to proper behavior, and running or jumping was strictly forbidden.

"Do you want to try running?" Yang Qiong asked.

Shen Qiuhua shook her head. She was still in the adaptation phase and didn't want to burden herself too much.

In the following days, scenes of entire classes and grade levels practicing their marching could be seen all over the school. Shen Qiuhua, who taught Chinese, fortunately wasn't required to participate. As for subjects like music, art, science, and comprehensive courses, they were often recruited by homeroom teachers for practice.

Naturally, Yang Qiong was also quite busy. Her physical education classes were the perfect time for practice. For someone with a military background, marching was second nature to her. She trained the students with great proficiency. Occasionally, when mischievous students caused trouble, she would call them out and train them individually, adding extra practice while others rested. After a few sessions, the students quickly learned not to act out.

Soon, Yang Qiong's reputation for effective training spread throughout the school. Head teachers from various grades came to ask for her help. Yang Qiong, being amiable, would assist in training students whenever she was free. After a few days, Shen Qiuhua noticed that Yang Qiong seemed extremely busy.

"You seem to be quite busy lately," Shen Qiuhua asked during dinner.

"It's all because colleagues are asking for help. I'd feel bad if I didn't assist them," Yang Qiong shrugged.

Shen Qiuhua put down her chopsticks, seeming to ponder for a moment before saying, "Make sure to get some rest."

Having been together for so long, Yang Qiong could tell that Shen Qiuhua had something on her mind. She looked up and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Back in the palace, having good relationships with others wasn't always a good thing. Doing too much could lead to more mistakes. Sometimes, it's not that others can't do it, but they're either lazy or afraid of making mistakes. If someone takes on the task out of kindness, they bear all the risks," Shen Qiuhua spoke cautiously. She wasn't sure if the interpersonal dynamics at school were similar. While certainly less perilous than the palace, she didn't want Yang Qiong to be exploited like a laborer.

Yang Qiong understood this principle. Smiling, she said, "Don't worry, I'm not that foolish. I'm aware of what I'm doing."

Shen Qiuhua nodded. "I just don't want you to overwork yourself."