At six-thirty, Yan Chi finally returned Quan Jiu's call, filled with guilt.
"Teacher Nine, I'm truly sorry. The makeup artists were taken by them to the performance studio and are currently doing makeup for Class A there."
Although Quan Jiu had her suspicions, she couldn't help but feel angry upon hearing this.
"Aren't there five makeup artists? Are they all in the performance studio?" she asked.
"They are all in the performance studio. I'm on my way to the school now. You can take the students over first. Don't worry, this is a public performance, they wouldn't dare to mess around," Yan Chi advised.
Quan Jiu suppressed her anger for the moment and had the students take their costumes to the performance studio.
When the group arrived at the performance studio, they found the door locked from the inside.
"This is too much, this is clearly targeted," Zhuang Yu said angrily, stepping forward to bang on the door. "Open up! What right do you have to monopolize our makeup artists?"
Soon, Pan Fengming's voice came from inside the door, "It's Class A's makeup time now. Once they're done, it will naturally be your turn."
Xiang Fei also rushed to the door. "Teacher Pan, we were allocated three makeup artists, but Class A is hogging our makeup artists now. What's the reason?"
Pan Fengming sneered, "These are makeup artists hired by the school. There's no 'yours' or 'ours,' we all use them together. If you need makeup, wait in the next room."
Ren Kui said anxiously, "They're definitely doing this on purpose. Who knows how long Class A's makeup and styling will take? They're definitely trying to delay us."
"This is outrageous. Teacher Nine, I'm going to find the dean," Han Zhao said, frowning in anger.
"No need," Quan Jiu said calmly. "There's no point reasoning with unreasonable people."
As soon as she finished speaking, Quan Jiu gathered her strength and delivered a front kick to the door.
With a loud "bang," the door burst open and slammed hard against the wall.
The people inside the performance studio screamed in shock. Everyone looked towards the doorway.
Cold, sharp, and with a chilling glint in her eyes, Quan Jiu's gaze instantly froze Pan Fengming and Jin Xue, leaving them speechless and only showing expressions of shock.
As for the students of Class A, they dared not look directly at her.
The students of Class B behind her were also stunned. No one had expected that Teacher Nine, who usually appeared gentle and approachable, would have such a commanding side.
Jin Xue, accustomed to her arrogance, quickly regained her composure and shouted, "Are you crazy? You dare to kick the school's door!"
Her words also jolted Pan Fengming out of her shock.
Pan Fengming immediately seized the opportunity, saying triumphantly, "Damaging school property..."
"What are you going to do about it?" Quan Jiu stepped forward coldly. "Write a self-criticism? Or get a demerit? Or perhaps, a school-wide announcement?"
She advanced step by step, the coldness in her eyes intensifying. "You took money from Jin Xue privately and sold your lecture notes to her, what does that count as? You bribed the makeup artists to obstruct students from getting their makeup done, what does that count as?"
Pan Fengming's face turned pale, and she stammered, "You... you're talking nonsense. I didn't take bribes."
Quan Jiu sneered, "The entire Class A training camp knows those are your lecture notes. Do you still have the nerve to quibble?"
Her gaze shifted slightly, and she looked at Tian Cheng and the others calmly. "Or are you going to cover for her? Covering up and condoning bribery, what kind of major offense is that for you? Expulsion? Or criminal liability?"
Tian Cheng, Yu Zhuang, and the others lowered their heads, afraid to make a sound.
Pan Fengming said angrily, "You're slandering me. Do you have any evidence?"
"Evidence," Quan Jiu's lips curved slightly. "Zhuang Yu, tell me, how can we get evidence?"
Zhuang Yu thought for a moment. "As long as there's proof of financial transactions, it should count as evidence, right?" After all, WeChat transfers can serve as proof of borrowing money.
Quan Jiu took out her phone, opened the dialer, slowly dialed a series of numbers, and then pressed the call button. At the same time, she turned to the Class B students with a smile and said, "The corruption and bribery reporting hotline is 12309. Remember it. Hello, I want to report Professor Pan Fengming of the Stage Department of Class A for corruption and bribery."
Pan Fengming was both angry and anxious. "You lunatic!" She reached out to snatch Quan Jiu's phone.
Quan Jiu dodged slightly, avoiding her grasp, and concisely explained the situation to the operator.
After the operator confirmed they would handle it, Quan Jiu hung up the phone and smiled at Pan Fengming. "Teacher Pan, you've probably accepted more than just this one payment over the years. I wonder how long your professorship can protect you."
"You... you..." Pan Fengming trembled, unable to utter a word after "you" for a long time. She finally hurried out of the performance studio.
Quan Jiu chuckled, "Teacher Pan, don't rush. Bank statements can't be erased anyway, so rushing won't help."
Jin Xue laughed coldly, "So you're a ruthless one too. That recording, you made it, didn't you?"
Quan Jiu smiled slightly and looked at the makeup artists, asking calmly, "Which three are Teacher He, Teacher Zhang, and Teacher Yang?"
The three makeup artists who were called out looked somewhat sheepish at Quan Jiu.
Quan Jiu smiled. "We're running out of time, let's go to the next room."
The three dared not refuse. They packed their makeup cases and followed Quan Jiu to the Class B performance studio.
Jin Xue's face turned ashen as she watched Quan Jiu take away the three makeup artists.
"It must have been her. I always wondered how Wei Tao, with all his capabilities, managed to record my voice. At that time, it was only you, me, Yan Chi, and her. It had to be her."
The assistant thought to herself: Even if it was her, so what? You're going to be closed for half a year anyway, and you're still concerned about this.
However, she said, "Perhaps, but there's no evidence."
"Anyone with a bit of brains can figure it out, what other evidence do you need?" Jin Xue was annoyed by the assistant's lack of trust.
The assistant pretended not to hear and turned to watch the makeup artists.
Jin Xue clenched her fists in hatred. "Nine, you just wait. If you dare to play dirty with me, I will never let you off."
...
Upon arriving at the performance studio, the Class B students finally snapped back to reality.
Zhuang Yu looked at Quan Jiu, who had returned to her usual amiable demeanor, and was stunned. "Teacher Nine, you truly are... you can't judge a book by its cover."
Ren Kui's eyes were full of admiration. "Teacher, you were so cool just now. I've actually disliked Pan Jinlian for a long time. She always drags us to do free labor for her, and her mouth is so venomous."
Quan Jiu chuckled and urged, "Everyone, hurry and change into your costumes, then come over for makeup."
The students went to the changing room to change. When they returned to the performance studio, they saw Quan Jiu holding a set of makeup tools.
Ren Kui sat down. "Teacher, you know how to do makeup too?"
"I know how to draw. Drawing and makeup share the same principles," Quan Jiu explained and began working on Ren Kui's face.
Ren Kui was so surprised her mouth hung open. "Teacher, you can draw too? Aren't you a screenwriter?"
"And I'm still a lecturer now," Quan Jiu said with a smile. "I learned embroidery from my grandmother when I was young. Embroidery requires sketching, so my drawing skills accumulated over time."
Ren Kui's mouth formed a perfect "o" shape. "Teacher, you can even do embroidery? You're too amazing!"