Smartie, although your sucking up to the FAO got you a very good reference letter, did it also provide an opportunity for you to renew your contract with the school? If it didn't, then this would demonstrate the limits of your approach.

A better way, would be to do your best to let your teaching speak for you. Put more heart into improving, so that if you find a school that you like, you will increase your opportunity of staying there by being offered contract renewals.

In my experience, I have found that Chinese school leaders, at least in public schools, generally do not expect or particularly require foreign teachers to suck up to them. They expect it from their fellow Chinese, but when it comes to FTs, all they generally expect is somebody who doesn't rock the boat, who sticks to the contract, and carries out his job as best he can.

A good reference letter is ok, but you could save yourself a bit of pride, and money, and attain a more successful outcome if you focused your energies, primarily, on doing the best job that you could. Your strategy is limited, because it generally only brings about the "Ok here's a good reference letter, now get lost!" result.