Unlike in the dream.
In reality, the older students at Edge Academy showed great respect for Zheng Qing, who was much younger than them, and classroom discipline, as in the previous lesson, did not require Zheng Qing to worry at all.
This strange feeling suddenly reminded him of a somewhat cruel saying—rich people only need to show a little kindness to the poor to receive extraordinary gratitude in return.
Here, the 'rich' refers to a broader sense of 'wealth.'
Just like a company president's praise for a frontline employee, which is likely to make that employee so excited they can't sleep all night; a cheap garment complimented by a billionaire is frantically pursued by ordinary people and sells out; a scholarly elder willing to spend five minutes glancing at an article written by a nameless junior in three months will leave the junior overwhelmed with gratitude.
