I don't think a "release letter" will be a problem. All that says is I finished my contract and therefore have no obligations to my current employer, right? This confuses me to no end. The "release" and the "reference" are two totally different animals? It's therefore possible to get a "release" letter without the "reference" letter? Are these official forms or simply informal letters? Do you know how to say them in Chinese?

I really don't mind going to another province. I was thinking about doing that anyway. I would rather not travel TOO far because I have a cat who is going with me.

Is there any recourse at all if a foreigner truly believes he is unjustly being given a bad reference? If a teacher is really so awful that he isn't given a reference why would you keep him around for a full year? That makes no sense to me. There ARE ways to get rid of him if he is that bad. Doesn't it somehow defy logic to say, "We kept him here for a full year although he sucks so bad we can't recommend YOU hire him?" If I'm looking to hire someone and he has a valid release and has fulfilled his contract but doesn't have a reference I'm going to think that is a bit strange.