HUINA ZHENG

Mother's Battle

“Mom, something terrible happened today. During our P.E. class, when we were told to play freely, Chen pushed Jing to the ground and stepped on his back. Jing only got a slight graze on his arm, but Chen kept kicking him until he started bleeding,” 9-year-old Yue told her mother, Ning, as they walked in a park near their home after school.

Yue had big black eyes, and her mouth turned up slightly when she smiled. Her mother, who was tall and thin, had her hair in a ponytail, just like her.

“Didn’t the teacher intervene?” Ning asked.

“A girl ran to report it to the teacher, and he told Chen to stop.”

“No punishment?”

“No.”

“Has Chen ever hit you? Are you scared when alone with him?”

“No.”

Ning breathed a sigh of relief. “If he ever dares to hit you, use your Taekwondo skills to kick him.”

“I can’t. Teacher Zhu said if a student hits you and you fight back, both are considered at fault and will be punished.”

Teacher Zhu had been Yue’s homeroom teacher since the first grade.

“But if he hits you first, and you’re defending yourself, it’s not your fault. If you don’t stand up for yourself, he might keep bullying you.”

“But Mom, nobody bullies me.”

Yue explained to her mother that there were frequent fights among the boys in the class, but the teachers didn’t always intervene. While many students were pushed, kicked, or punched, Yue herself was only beaten by a classmate once in the first grade. The girl became angry when Yue picked up her clay handicraft to look at it and punched her in the stomach. That night, Ning demanded that the girl’s parents talk to their daughter and make her apologize.

Chen was known as the naughtiest child, and he would hit students almost every day. He even gave the middle finger to a teacher when she asked him to stop chatting. While students laughed, the teacher simply turned away and continued the class as if she hadn’t seen anything.

Last month, Yue told her mother that the English teacher left her phone on the podium, and it disappeared. The teacher dialed her number and found the phone ringing from inside Chen’s schoolbag. Surprisingly, the teacher didn’t punish Chen then either.

“Mom, why do you look so serious?” Yue asked.

“I’m thinking about how I can help Jing.”

“Isn’t Jing’s mother going to protect him?”

“She will, but many parents won’t take it seriously. I was once surrounded by a group of kids on the playground who made fun of me. A boy pointed his finger at me and said nobody wanted me. I lunged at him and bit his forearm hard. Other children pulled me, yanked my hair, and kicked me in the back. I didn’t let go until the boy bled.”

“Those kids were so mean,” Yue said.

“But when my mother came to school, she didn’t check on my wounds. She apologized to the boy and his parents and dragged me to apologize. I refused, and she slapped me,” Ning said, trying to sound composed, but her hoarse voice betrayed her emotions.

“Granny was wrong. The boy should have apologized first.”

This was the first time Ning had shared her experiences of being bullied with someone. She felt comfortable sharing her past with Yue, who would never judge her but understand her.

“I don’t want Jing to feel the same helplessness,” Ning said.

Yue nodded thoughtfully.

Ning sent a WeChat message to Jing’s mother, Yin, saying she and Yue were in the park and asked if she would like to meet them. They met by the lotus pond.

The children ran to the grass to catch grasshoppers. Ning and Yin watched them.

Yin, who was a bit shorter and a few years younger than Ning, had short, zippy hair and appeared no older than 30.

“I heard that Chen beat Jing again today,” Ning began.

“Yes, and he had a big bruise on his back. I’m angry,” Yin responded.

“If you don’t take action, Chen will keep bullying Jing.”

“I talked to Teacher Zhu many times. She asked Chen to apologize every time, but soon after, he started beating Jing again.”

“Apologies don’t seem to work. We need to talk to the school and demand that they take steps to stop Chen from bullying Jing.”

“But can I do all that?” Yin avoided Ning’s gaze and looked down at the grass.

“I’ll stand by your side. You have to fight for Jing; otherwise, he won’t be able to trust anyone.” Ning placed her hand on Yin’s arm.

“I caught a big, fat grasshopper! I got it!” Yue shouted nearby. A gardener was mowing the grass. The sweet, sharp scent of freshly cut grass filled the air, evoking images of the resilience and vitality of life.

#

Ning and her husband Hong would usually enjoy some alone time after Yue went to bed. They’d engage in light conversation, sharing their day’s events, or simply chat while watching TV. However, that night, Ning powered up her computer to search for information related to school violence and read anti-bullying tips shared by parents of bullied children.

“Are you really going to support Jing’s mother in fighting against the school?” Hong said.

“We aren’t opposing the school. We haven’t contacted the police or higher authorities. We want the school to be on the same page as us.”

“But if you do this again, will Jing’s mother appreciate your efforts? Do you remember what Lan said last year when it was all over?”

“Lan is my cousin, and we should help our relatives.”

“You and Lan communicated with the teachers for two weeks and pressured the school to take it seriously. You even took leave several times to meet with the headmaster. Several boys pulled down her daughter’s pants, but after it was resolved, Lan said the kids were just 1st graders and her daughter wasn’t bullied.”

“At least her daughter knew someone would help her.”

“Have you ever considered Yue? If Teacher Zhu finds out you’re behind all this, what will she think?”

“I’m doing this for Yue too. Many students have been beaten by Chen but can only swallow their anger. I don’t want Yue to grow up in such an environment.”

“Why did Chen target him? Didn’t Jing do anything to provoke him?”

“It’s not Jing’s fault. Since the school didn’t handle it properly, parents must take action. We just want the school to prevent bullying,” Ning said, her voice trembling.

“You keep saying ‘we.’ Jing is just Yue’s classmate, and we live in the same neighborhood. Besides, Jing’s mother will protect him, not you.”

“Show some empathy. Jing’s mother was sent to live with her grandparents in a remote village shortly after she was born, simply because she was a daughter. Even though her brother was born two years later, her parents didn’t take her back until she was seven. It’s not her fault that she became insecure and timid due to her upbringing. She’s a single mother. Consider the hardships she must face.” Ning trembled and took a deep breath to calm herself.

He suddenly understood. “You grew up with a single mother and went through a lot. Of course, you want to help.” He patted her on the shoulder.

“You know nothing. Stop being self-righteous.” She pushed his hand away.

Everyone said the man abandoned them because she was a daughter. She resented the way people looked at her when they knew she was an illegitimate child, the look of either pity or disgust, as if she must have had a miserable childhood and character flaws.

She felt herself transported back in time, surrounded by thorns like a hedgehog, and the ridicule of her peers rushed past her ears, the sound she always heard when she was overwhelmed by pain. Your mother is a mistress, and you don’t have a father.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought up your mother.” He wanted to hold her hand, but his hand paused in mid-air, unsure of how she felt.

“I should apologize. I shouldn’t have lost my temper.” She forced a smile at her husband.

#

After Yin informed Teacher Zhu about the incident, she received a call from Chen’s mother. That evening, Chen’s mother disciplined him with a clothes hanger and made him apologize to Jing, which she recorded and sent to Yin. Yin forwarded the video to Ning and remarked, “When I talked to her about Chen before, she did the same thing.”

“This time, we should take a different approach. I’ve drafted a joint letter addressing school bullying. We need to reach out to the parents and ask them to sign it,” Ning said.

Yin nodded in agreement.

When Ning contacted the parents, one father responded, “Chen is just being playful. He’s still a child, and there’s no need to make a big deal out of it.”

Ning bit her lower lip, her chest heaving. “We can’t easily forgive him precisely because he’s a child. If adults believe that a child is too young to be held responsible for their actions, the child may think they’re free to do anything.”

When she called another student’s mother, the mother said, “Chen has beaten my son multiple times. Once, he even pushed him down the stairs. If my son hadn’t held onto the stair rail in time, he could have fallen.”

“Why didn’t you report it to the teacher?” Ning asked.

“We don’t want the teachers to perceive us as difficult parents and mistreat our son.”

After Ning hung up the phone, she was left in a daze, feeling frustrated and angry.

“What’s bothering you?” Ning’s husband, Hong, asked, seeing the distress on her face.

“The situation is more complex than I anticipated. Many students have been victims of Chen’s violence, but their parents either don’t consider it a serious issue or are too afraid to take action.”

“It’s not easy to switch to another school. And even if you do, the problem might persist at another school.”

“But that’s not a reason for us to remain silent.”

In the evening, when Ning and Yin met, they discovered that out of a class of 42 students, only three other families agreed to sign the letter. Ning had initially hoped for the support of more than half the parents, but she had been mistaken. They would have to rely on their negotiation skills to communicate with the school.

“Last night, while studying the Compulsory Education Law, I found that the school doesn’t have the authority to expel or suspend students or force them to transfer. We can request the school to move Chen to another class,” Ning said.

“But the teachers in the other classes probably won’t want Chen either,” Yin said.

“That’s a problem for the school to solve, not for us to worry about.”

“Maybe you’re right.”

“How’s Jing today? Did Chen bully him again?”

“He said no. During recess, he avoided Chen and even skipped going to the restroom if Chen was there.”

“I consulted a friend who’s a psychologist, and they suggested encouraging children to express their fears and help them relax. Try talking to Jing about how he feels. You can engage him in outdoor activities, or we can take Jing and Yue out together.”

“The night when Chen stepped on his back, Jing cried out in his sleep. I feel like I failed to protect him,” Yin said with a choked voice.

Yin’s sobbing reminded Ning of the time she was pushed and kicked by some boys after school. She wished, even just once, that her mother had stood up and fought for her. Her husband had been mistaken; it wasn’t Yin she was trying to help but Jing.

“But you’re helping him now.” Ning squeezed Yin’s hand. “Enroll Jing in Taekwondo lessons. Yue started learning it when she was four years old. The coach is strict but friendly. I can introduce you to him. Jing is a bit skinny. Taekwondo will make him stronger.”

“Last time you suggested it, I told Jing, but he refused.”

“You have to persuade him. We’re not advocating for children to respond to violence with violence, but to empower them to defend themselves.”

“I’ll give it a try.”

#

“Mom, if you talk to the teachers about Chen, will Chen get angry and hurt Jing?” Yue said.

Ning updated Yue on her progress every day, explaining things in a way that a child could grasp. She hoped to teach Yue that when confronted with injustice, there were more options than just enduring it or responding with violence. They could seek peaceful solutions.

“I can’t rule out that possibility, but avoiding it won’t solve anything. We must confront our fears. Do you know what to do if you see Chen bullying Jing?”

“Yes. I will immediately go and inform the teacher.”

“Exactly. Don’t try to intervene on your own, or you might get hurt. Your safety comes first while helping your classmate.”

“Mom, will Teacher Zhu be punished?”

Ning gently patted Yue’s head. “No. We will make sure the principal understands the situation and protect Teacher Zhu.” Although Ning wasn’t pleased with Teacher Zhu’s delayed response to the bullying, she didn’t want to see administrative consequences that would impact her year-end evaluation.

Three days later, Yin informed Ning that the principal had requested a meeting with her the following afternoon at the school, and she felt nervous. Ning agreed to accompany her. Since Yue hadn’t been bullied, Ning could use the excuse of being Yin’s best friend to attend the meeting.

Ning had made thorough preparations. She had printed and studied the “Implementation on Strengthening the Comprehensive Treatment of Bullying in Primary and Secondary Schools,” as provided by the Guangdong Provincial Department of Education. She also checked the school’s official WeChat account and discovered that there were no anti-campus bullying activities. She highlighted the crucial points and shared them with Yin. To ensure a successful negotiation with the school, she had enlisted a friend with years of debating experience to meet with them that evening.

Over coffee at Starbucks, Ning explained the situation to her friend, who remarked, “In cases of bullying incidents, the school is often concerned about its reputation. We can find a point of compromise from there.”

Ning nodded. She suddenly realized why they had failed to persuade other parents to sign the joint letter. School bullying wasn’t their primary concern – it was the students’ grades. She should have encouraged the parents to sign the joint letter requesting the school to transfer Chen to another class, citing his constant disruptions that were affecting the classroom atmosphere and interfering with students’ learning. Strategy was crucial, and she wouldn’t repeat the same mistake.

Turning to Yin, she said, “You will take on the role of the understanding parent, and I’ll be the more demanding one. You can inform the principal that you won’t report it to the education bureau or share it on social media. Assure them that you believe the school will address the issue.”

Yin nodded. Ning continued, “If the school tries to downplay the incident, I’ll inform them that I’ve reached out to some newspapers to apply pressure.”

#

Yin and Ning often skipped makeup but applied lipstick before heading to school to appear professional. In the principal’s office, they were received by the principal, vice-principal, and Teacher Zhu.

Yin got straight to the point. “We want Chen to be transferred to another class.”

“I understand your concerns, but parents from the other class may object. Besides, as educators, our duty is to nurture every child, and we cannot give up on anyone. We will have another conversation with Chen’s parents and make sure he promises to stop bullying Jing,” the principal said.

“What if he continues to bully Jing?” Yin said.

“He won’t, or you can involve the police,” the principal replied.

“I’ve consulted a friend who’s a police officer, and he informed me they wouldn’t deal with such cases. If we insist, auxiliary police might visit, but their authority is limited to giving Chen a verbal reprimand,” Yin said.

“I agree. Chen is likely to continue bullying Jing, so the best solution is for Chen to transfer to a different class to physically separate them,” Ning said.

Teacher Zhu chimed in, “As both a parent and a teacher, I understand your love and concern for Jing. We must teach our children how to get along with others and resolve issues. If Chen moves to another class, what should we do if Jing encounters problems with another student in the future? Should we ask that student to transfer as well? We need to approach this calmly and consider whether we should teach our students to confront problems directly instead of avoiding them. Our common goal is to ensure the children’s well-being and academic success.”

Yin crossed her arms. “I also recognize the importance of interpersonal skills, but this is bullying. Even adults often struggle to resolve such issues through communication, let alone children.”

“How about Jing transferring to another class?” Teacher Zhu said.

“I asked him before, and he didn’t want to. All his friends are in his current class,” Yin said.

Ning stood up. “I don’t understand. Why should the school protect the bully while neglecting the student being bullied? It should be Chen who transfers, not Jing.”

“What if we ask Chen to transfer if he bullies Jing again?” the principal said.

Yin glanced at Ning, who squeezed her hand. Yin nodded. “I agree.”

After some contemplation, Ning said, “I believe punishing Chen is not unreasonable.”

“Perhaps we could ask Chen’s parents to provide compensation?” the principal said.

“No, compensation and an apology won’t resolve the issue.” She took a printed document from her bag and read aloud, “According to the rules in the Anti-Bullying Implementation, for recurrent bullying, the school should reprimand and educate the students involved; if the situation worsens, the school has the authority to impose penalties,” Ning said.

“Yes, this is our bottom line,” Yin said.

“If Chen faces too severe a punishment, Jing might have difficulty getting along with other children, as they may become afraid of him,” Teacher Zhu said.

“If the student who bullied him is disciplined appropriately, other students will perceive it as fair and reasonable. They will support Jing for his courage rather than distance themselves,” Ning said.

In the end, the school agreed to penalize Chen for his serious misbehavior, issue a statement regarding the bullying incident, and implement anti-bullying initiatives.  

#

That week, Teacher Zhu organized a class meeting with a focus on preventing school bullying. During the meeting, Chen stood up and publicly apologized to Jing, while Teacher Zhu read out the decision regarding Chen’s punishment.

That evening, Yue said, “Chen seems different now. He hasn’t harmed anyone for a few days.”

“How did you feel when he apologized to Jing?” Ning said.

“I was really happy. Mom, you protected Jing just like you protected Grandma. Can you tell me again how you did that?” Yue’s eyes sparkled with curiosity.

Ning smiled. “Your Grandma used to run a fruit store near the school. She was a beautiful lady, and some men would ask for her phone number under the pretense of buying fruit. But Grandma always declined. One day after school, I saw a group of women confronting her, accusing her of trying to seduce their husbands. The leader of the group was my classmate Liang’s mother. She pushed Grandma, and I immediately stepped between them, saying, ‘If you bully my mother again, I will confront your son, give him a stomach kick, and scratch his face.’”

“Would you have really fought with your classmate?”

Ning felt a surge of anger, pain, and powerlessness welling up within her, like a wild beast confined within her chest, yearning to break free from its cage.

“Yes. I believed that was the only way to protect my mother. But as an adult, I know it was wrong, and there are better ways to resolve such conflicts.”

Yue nodded. “Yes, we can resolve things through negotiation.”

Ning embraced Yue, planted a loving kiss on her forehead. “Alright, Yue, it’s time to get started on your homework.”

“Oh no,” Yue made a playful face and retreated to her room.

Ning gazed out of the window, up at the sky. The moon was veiled behind wispy clouds, resembling a jade platter, and its gentle glow cast a tranquil light on the misty world below. She beamed with contentment.

Huina Zheng, a Distinction M.A. in English Studies holder, works as a college essay coach. She's also an Associate Editor at Bewildering Stories. Her stories have been published in Baltimore Review, Variant Literature, Midway Journal, Tint Journal, and others. Her work has received nominations for the Pushcart Prize twice and Best of the Net. She resides in Guangzhou, China with her husband and daughter.