Chapter 2The Valedictorian Spot

"I'll take her!"

As soon as Mr. Davis finished speaking, a booming voice echoed from nearby.

The sneer on his face instantly morphed into shock. This was undeniably a public slap in the face!

The onlookers felt that this scene was far more interesting than Chloe's suicide threat.

Following the voice, they saw a middle-aged man in his forties, hands clasped behind his back, leading a group of people swiftly toward us. The principal, walking beside him, looked as if he wanted to burn a hole through Mr. Davis with his glare—who knows how much of Mr. Davis's rant he had overheard.

"Are you—"

Mr. Davis frowned at the bald man, seeming to recognize him. Just as he was about to ask, the man didn't even spare him a glance. He walked right past him, grabbed my hand without hesitation, and said excitedly:

"Maya! As soon as I got your text, our teachers and I rushed over here without stopping!"

"I'm so thrilled! Absolutely thrilled! You finally figured it out!"

The man held my hand tightly, looking at me as if I were a giant, glittering nugget of gold, his eyes sparkling.

"Don't worry, the offer is exactly the same as I promised before. If you come to our school, Lincoln High, not only will your tuition be fully covered, but the school will also give you a $2,000 monthly living stipend! Room and board are entirely on us; all you have to do is focus on the SATs!"

"Furthermore, if you guarantee you'll score in the top 50 in the state, the school will give you an extra $10,000 scholarship. Top 20 gets $15,000, top 10 gets $20,000! And if you become the state valedictorian, we double it!"

"What do you say?"

"Sounds good."

Under his expectant gaze, I nodded without hesitation. After all, from the moment I texted him, I had no intention of staying at this school!

"Are you... Principal Carter of Lincoln High?"

Mr. Davis swallowed hard, staring in utter shock at the scene unfolding before him, which was practically making his blood pressure spike.

What did he just see? The principal of the top high school in the city not only publicly humiliated him but was also excitedly holding my hand, inviting me to transfer!

And from the looks of it, Principal Carter had tried to poach me more than once privately.

"Yeah, what do you want?"

Hearing Mr. Davis, Principal Carter, who had just been so warm to me, instantly changed his expression, his voice dripping with annoyance.

He didn't even glance at Mr. Davis. Instead, he turned to Principal Miller, whose face was green, and mocked:

"Miller, this is the kind of teacher you have at your school? Publicly belittling and insulting students? Where are his professional ethics? Eaten by a dog? Your school actually dares to employ someone like this!"

After saying that, he immediately turned back to me, his face full of smiles:

"But our school is different!"

"Rest assured, Maya, I guarantee our teachers are absolutely student-centered and respectful. A situation like this—lacking professional ethics and moral boundaries—will absolutely, definitely never happen!"

"Right, Ms. Wright?!"

"Yes, yes, yes!"

The female teacher behind him, having been called upon, stepped forward immediately without hesitation, gripping my hand tightly with a gentle smile:

"Maya, it's so good to finally meet you! Let me introduce myself, I'm the homeroom teacher for the advanced class at Lincoln High."

"I've heard so much about you, and I finally get to meet you today! Don't worry, my senior class is a very united and warm family. You will definitely feel at home there."

What kind of pyramid scheme pitch is this!

Looking at her gentle and sincere expression, I suppressed the twitch at the corner of my mouth and nodded at her.

"I'll be in your care, Ms. Wright."

Hearing this, the group of Lincoln High teachers who had come to poach me looked so happy they were ready to jump.

"Let's go, let's go! We're going to process your transfer paperwork right now! Which class are you in? I'll have a teacher pack your things for you!"

Principal Carter's face crinkled into a massive smile. Ignoring Principal Miller's dark expression, he pulled me toward the administration office.

Now, not only was Mr. Davis dumbfounded, but Chloe was stunned, and all the watching teachers and students were completely floored!

Who could have imagined things would turn out like this!

Chloe stood there, looking like she was about to shatter. She only wanted to force me to give up the valedictorian spot. Who would have thought I would get poached by the top high school in the city!

Mr. Davis was even more bewildered. He probably never imagined I had connections with the principal of Lincoln High, and it seemed they had tried to poach me multiple times!

In the original novel, the host caught the eye of the Lincoln High principal long before moving from the state competition to the nationals. She repeatedly rejected his invitations out of gratitude to her current school, which had made an exception to admit her and waived her tuition.

She remembered the school's kindness and kept backing down. But when faced with Chloe's scheming, emotional blackmail, cyberbullying, and public condemnation, the school abandoned her without hesitation.

Her endurance and suffering gained her nothing, ultimately costing her her life!

But in the face of injustice and emotional blackmail, enduring is an endless sea of suffering, and resisting is like throwing eggs at a rock—neither is the action of a wise person.

Clearly, the original host didn't realize this. Because if she had, she would have understood that her skills and grades were her greatest leverage.

She didn't need to endure, nor did she need to fight. She just needed to be ruthless!

There's always someone who appreciates her achievements and values her hard work. If this place doesn't want me, another place will!

Be ruthless, jump ship, and use your own abilities to deliver a resounding slap to the faces of everyone who ever bullied you!