After a Flash Marriage with a Professor - Chapter 58

Chapter 58: Wolf Blushing

Shen Junlan was stunned. She was slow to react, but her little rabbit wife had actually kissed her on the street in America.

She slowly raised her hand to touch the spot on her cheek where Ming Shu had kissed her. It was slightly damp and seemed to still carry the warmth of Ming Shu’s lips.

For a moment, Shen Junlan was at a loss. She had thought Ming Shu would change little by little, becoming braver and more composed, but she never expected such a significant change to happen so soon.

After the kiss, Ming Shu nimbly dodged to the side. Unexpectedly, Professor Shen didn’t grab her and continue as she had in the past, saying it wasn’t enough, and then taking control herself.

This time, Professor Shen seemed to be completely frozen. Ming Shu approached her in confusion, and was surprised to discover a very rare phenomenon.

“Professor Shen, you’re blushing.” Ming Shu raised her hand and poked her cheek with her finger. This time, Professor Shen caught her hand, held it firmly, and rubbed the mischievous finger.

“Wife, let’s go look at rings.”

Ming Shu was led into the store by Professor Shen. This was the second time Ming Shu had walked into a jewelry store. The first time was in China, not long ago, to buy a birthday gift for Lingyu. This time, she was with Professor Shen to look at rings.

Ming Shu felt very nervous and followed uncomfortably beside Professor Shen. This store was clearly more high-end than the one she had been to before. When she entered, she noticed that the advertised products were all very expensive. The staff smiled sweetly and introduced the products to them. Ming Shu didn’t listen; her eyes were fixed on the price tags.

Shen Junlan saw a subtle yet sparkling diamond ring, as if countless stars were twinkling in the dark night. She thought it would suit Ming Shu, and gestured for the staff to take the ring out of the display case for Ming Shu to try on.

“Wife, try this on.” Shen Junlan took the diamond ring from the staff, ready to put it on Ming Shu’s finger. Ming Shu’s mind was consumed by the fact that this ring cost five figures in US dollars, which would be several times that in RMB. It was too expensive.

Ming Shu withdrew her hand.

Shen Junlan looked up. “Wife, don’t you like this one?”

Ming Shu nodded. Shen Junlan smiled and handed the ring back to the staff, saying they would look for another one.

“Wife, you look too, and see if there’s anything you like.”

They were all too expensive. The jewelry in this store was too high-end, far beyond her past consumption habits. Ming Shu felt a strong sense of unease.

Ming Shu slowly walked around the glass display cases, trying her best to control her fear and anxiety. She didn’t want to look unworldly and embarrass Professor Shen in the process.

At first, Shen Junlan didn’t notice that Ming Shu was acting strange. After a while, she saw that Ming Shu’s palms were clearly sweaty, and she realized what Ming Shu might be feeling at the moment.

Ming Shu had been so brave just now that it exceeded her imagination, making her fall into an overly optimistic mood and ignore that when the gap between her and Ming Shu’s realities became apparent again, Ming Shu would still be sensitive.

Many people’s love stories end at this step. Shen Junlan thought of the phrase “hanging by a thread.” She couldn’t let her and Ming Shu’s love hang by a thread. Never.

“Hello, excuse me, do you have any more affordable styles in the store?” Shen Junlan asked the staff with a smile, her tone as natural as ever. Ming Shu couldn’t help but glance at her. She envied Shen Junlan’s composure and calmness because she, being self-conscious and not financially well-off, anticipated that she might be looked down upon.

She still clearly remembered the experience of being looked at with contempt by a saleswoman at a duty-free store when she was with Lingyu once.

She was afraid of showing her timidness in front of Professor Shen, afraid that one moment of timidity would destroy all her previous efforts and make the courage she had finally mustered up seem vulnerable.

“Wife, don’t be nervous. We’re just looking. You don’t have to buy anything just because you look at it.”

Ming Shu froze, staring blankly at Professor Shen. Professor Shen had seen through her!

“It’s okay. I understand.”

“It’s okay, Professor Shen said she understands.” Ming Shu felt as if she had been given a shot of adrenaline, and her heart immediately calmed down a lot.

“Hello, do you have any more affordable styles?” Shen Junlan asked.

The staff member heard they wanted more affordable prices and left to get a vintage wooden box from the back. When she opened the box, there were many rings, including diamonds, jade, and carnelian. “These are secondhand. The prices are much more affordable. You two can take a look.”

Ming Shu didn’t mind secondhand. She had never thought she would buy an expensive diamond in her life. However, even though the price of the secondhand rings was much more affordable than the previous one, she still felt they were expensive.

Shen Junlan didn’t want to buy a secondhand ring for Ming Shu and politely declined, saying they would look elsewhere. Ming Shu was fascinated, watching Professor Shen’s every firm and composed expression.

After leaving the jewelry store, Ming Shu was still staring at Professor Shen.

Shen Junlan turned to look back at her. “Wife, if you keep looking at me with those starry eyes, I won’t be able to control myself and will pull you into a tight corner for a passionate kiss.”

Ming Shu felt Professor Shen wouldn’t do it, since Professor Shen had just blushed from a small kiss from her on the street not long ago.

Ming Shu didn’t look away and continued to look at Professor Shen with adoration.

“Professor Shen is so amazing. When can I become like Professor Shen?”

“You don’t need to be like me, Wife.” Shen Junlan said, walking forward while holding Ming Shu’s hand. “Everyone’s life path is different. You don’t need to envy anyone, chase after anyone, or want to become anyone, because there’s someone who is so in love with you just the way you are that they’re going crazy.”

Ming Shu heard Professor Shen’s attempt to comfort her, but also her hidden meaning. She pursed her lips, holding back her smile as she asked, “Then is Professor Shen going crazy?”

“I don’t know, Wife. You can judge for yourself.”

Before Ming Shu could react, her hand was grabbed by Professor Shen and placed on a spot where she could feel a wildly beating heart.

“It seems… you’re a little crazy.”

Ming Shu pulled her hand back. The frequency of the heartbeat was also transmitted to her heart through her hand, and her own heart started to pound wildly.

“Wife, what should I do? Now I really want to…”

“We’re on a public street, Professor Shen. Calm down!” Ming Shu said with a flushed face, then walked ahead first. Shen Junlan’s gentle eyes were filled with a smile as she followed closely, sticking to her.

“Wife, where are you running off to?” Shen Junlan asked with a laugh.

Ming Shu was suddenly stumped. She stopped and checked the time on her phone. “I still have work in the afternoon, Professor Shen. I should probably head back. We can look at rings when we’re back home, okay?” When she was buying a gift for Lingyu last time, she had also briefly looked at rings but didn’t look closely. She only remembered that the rings in that store in China were mostly moderately priced, which was still acceptable to her and wouldn’t cause her a lot of psychological stress.

“Okay.” Shen Junlan smiled. “Having you is enough for me. I’ll listen to you on everything else.”

Money was an external thing. Shen Junlan had never worried about money in her life. Love was the precious thing she wanted to protect with all her might. She was willing to give everything she had to Ming Shu, but if these external things made Ming Shu uneasy, then she would respect Ming Shu’s preferences. The most expensive diamond was not the only thing that could prove their love.

“There’s a cold drink shop over there. It’s too hot, and we still have time. I’ll go buy two cold drinks.” Shen Junlan pointed across the street and said she would go buy them herself. Ming Shu still wanted to go with Professor Shen, but just then, a call came in. Ming Shu let Professor Shen go by herself and stayed in the shade to take the call first.

It was a call from the negotiator, who said, “Ming Shu, just to let you know, the American side has agreed to the collaboration. This afternoon’s pre-negotiation has been canceled, so there’s no need to go to the publishing house. After signing the contract tomorrow morning, we’ll all be heading back home in the afternoon.”

“Okay,” Ming Shu replied flatly. She didn’t know what else to say.

The negotiator chuckled. “Ming Shu, I wanted to ask, are you going back with Professor Shen or with us?”

Ming Shu said without a second thought, “I’ll just go back with everyone.”

Going with the company meant the company would book the tickets, but if she went with Professor Shen, the company probably wouldn’t reimburse her. International plane tickets were not cheap. The ticket from China to the US was more than her one month’s salary. It was also the peak season during summer break, so the price was higher than usual.

Although her life was much better now that she was with Professor Shen, Ming Shu still felt bad about spending money.

The negotiator was a bit surprised but understood. “Okay, you’ve worked hard these past few days. This afternoon is your day off, so you can relax. Be safe.”

The call ended. Ming Shu lowered her head, relieved, and looked up to find Professor Shen. A blonde Caucasian woman of a similar height to Professor Shen blocked her view. Ming Shu moved to the side, and the woman also moved, smiling and handing her a beautifully blooming red rose.

“Hello, are you alone?” the blonde woman asked her in English.

Ming Shu was terrified. Although she had been approached by many people before, this was the first time she had been approached by a foreigner so closely. Previously, on the H University campus, foreign students from the International Exchange College had also talked to her, both white and black. They would call her “baby” as they rode past her on their electric scooters, and then they would be gone.

Ming Shu didn’t know how to respond and just shook her head mechanically.

The woman then said, “You are beautiful. This rose is for you.”

The woman was speaking in very common English, and Ming Shu could understand it perfectly, but she couldn’t open her mouth. It was as if her language system was in chaos, just like the experience of not being able to speak during the oral exam.

Shen Junlan bought two drinks and came out, saw Ming Shu being approached, and hurried over.

“Wife.” Shen Junlan crossed the street. Ming Shu saw her like she was seeing a savior, her eyes lighting up as she excitedly called out, “Professor Shen.”

The blonde woman heard the voice and realized that the beautiful girl in front of her could speak. She wasn’t flustered and smiled, thinking that the person walking toward them was the girl’s family member or guardian, as the other person was clearly older and had a more mature presence.

“Hello.” The blonde woman took the initiative to greet Shen Junlan. Shen Junlan smiled and nodded, replying with a “hello.” She didn’t stop her movements for a moment, handing the two drinks to Ming Shu and letting Ming Shu choose. “American-style coconut water or fruit tea? Which one do you want?”

Ming Shu chose the coconut water.

The two looked at each other and smiled as if no one else was there. The blonde woman was starting to back off but didn’t want to let go of the crush in front of her. She asked Shen Junlan, “Are you this lady’s sister?”

Shen Junlan slightly raised her eyebrow and didn’t answer. The blonde woman thought she had guessed correctly and, holding a red rose, continued, “Can I get to know your sister?”

Shen Junlan glanced at Ming Shu. Ming Shu was drinking her coconut water with her head down, truly looking like a well-behaved child whose family forbade her from making friends casually outside. And Ming Shu was indeed a well-behaved child.

“Is that okay?” the woman repeated hopefully.

Shen Junlan held her drink cup. The sweet and sour fruit tea was squeezed through the straw. She took a sip and tasted a strong sourness. The staff seemed to have forgotten to add sugar.

She frowned slightly, then put on a smile again. “I’m sorry, this is my wife. It’s not convenient.”

The blonde woman’s eyes widened in surprise. She was a bit incredulous but had to give up. Regardless of whether the other person was telling the truth or not, she had made it clear that she didn’t want her to approach the beautiful girl next to her.

The blonde woman quickly adjusted her emotions and wasn’t discouraged. She just felt a little regretful.

Finally, she persistently offered the red rose to Ming Shu one last time and blessed her. “The weather is nice today. I hope you have a pleasant day and a happy and fulfilling marriage.”

Ming Shu took her lips off the straw and replied with a “thank you.” Shen Junlan also said “thank you.”

As for the rose, Ming Shu didn’t take it. A rose symbolized love, and it was inappropriate for her, a married woman, to accept a red rose from a stranger. Secondly, seeing a red rose reminded her of the rose scar on Professor Shen’s back, and she couldn’t take it.

Shen Junlan understood the first reason for Ming Shu’s refusal and smiled, encouraging Ming Shu to accept it. “Wife, don’t feel too burdened. It’s just a blessing.”

After Ming Shu took the red rose, the blonde woman left to continue her quest for her next crush. Ming Shu felt very uncomfortable holding the red rose and took the initiative to report to Professor Shen, “I just said ‘thank you’ to that blonde lady.”

Shen Junlan smiled, swallowed the sourness in her mouth, lowered her head, and leaned in to steal a sip of Ming Shu’s coconut water. “My wife’s drink is sweet after all.”

“Then let’s switch?” Ming Shu asked.

“No need.”

“Oh, by the way, Professor Shen, the negotiator just told me we have the afternoon off and don’t need to go to the publishing house. We can spend the rest of the day together.”

“That’s perfect.”

“Perfect for what?” Ming Shu asked curiously.

Shen Junlan smiled, and a hidden lupine glint in her eyes sparkled. “Wife, let’s get back to the car first and cool down with the AC before we talk.”

Ming Shu didn’t think too much of it. When they got back to the car, before she could even ask, Professor Shen answered her with actions.

She was led closer by Professor Shen, who then wrapped an arm around her waist, causing her to fall onto the driver’s seat. Shen Junlan pressed her against the back of the seat and kissed her deeply, sucking on her lips and tongue until they were numb, as if she wanted to completely devour her.

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