Green Tea Top Student Falls in Love with Me - Chapter 64

Shi Wangui knew that Sun Yi was working in City A, but she had no idea that Sun Yi was working directly under Wen Youren.

No wonder when she had mentioned finding Sun Yi earlier, Wen Youren claimed she was busy. The two of them had clearly been in league this whole time.

Sun Yi, unaware of the impending storm, was peacefully waiting at her desk for the workday to end. She looked up only to see Shi Wangui leaning against her office door.

“…” Sun Yi glanced at her phone, rubbed her eyes, and finally asked in a daze, “What are you doing here?”

There were several other colleagues in the office. Sun Yi’s exclamation caused everyone to look up at Shi Wangui with curiosity.

Shi Wangui, hating the sudden attention, snapped, “Just come out. Your workday is over.”

“Don’t joke around,” Sun Yi replied nervously. “It’s not time yet.”

She was panicking. She hadn’t told Wangui that she worked for Wen Youren; in fact, she had lied about it. She wondered what Wen Youren was thinking—sacrificing her friends’ safety for the sake of her own romance!

Shi Wangui pulled Wen Youren out from behind her and pushed her forward. She didn’t care if Wen Youren was the “General Manager” here; right now, they were just their high school selves. “Your boss says you’re off the clock.”

Wen Youren gave a helpless smile. It was a bit of an act; her feelings for Shi Wangui were so overwhelming that from the moment they reunited, she had already decided she was going to come clean.

Sun Yi realized that Shi Wangui, despite her years abroad, still had that same high school spark. Resigned, she packed her bag, whispered something to her colleague, and walked out.

As if to intentionally needle them, Shi Wangui chose University A as their destination. She had almost been a student here herself; they could have spent their college years together if not for the departures and the breakups that left them apart for five years.

Sun Yi was quick to read the room. She hadn’t actually known what Wen Youren was planning initially. Her own university hadn’t been University A, so she hadn’t seen much of Wen Youren until she graduated and accidentally ran into her while job hunting.

She had been shocked when Wen Youren told her the truth, knowing Shi Wangui wouldn’t forgive easily. She and Wangui had been friends since elementary school; they studied together, got into trouble together, and Wangui had even been her tutor so they could get into University A together.

If not for the tragedy with her mother, Shi Wangui would have been very happy.

Shi Wangui ordered three bowls of Malatang, a local favorite. Before the food even arrived, she asked, “Why did you both keep me in the dark?”

“I swear,” Sun Yi said, “I only found out recently. I was going to tell you the first time I saw you at the airport, but you said you didn’t want to eat and just wanted to go home, so I dropped it.”

Wen Youren opened a Coke for Shi Wangui. “It’s okay if you don’t forgive me. Just give me a chance to chase you again. But stay in City A this year. Don’t go back. The winters here are beautiful. I’ll slowly introduce you to the company business so you can get settled.”

“You said we were over just like that five years ago,” Shi Wangui countered, “and now you’re just telling me I can’t go back?”

Truthfully, even without Wen Youren’s request, Shi Wangui had no intention of returning. She didn’t want to see Shi Qin or Shi Yun’en, her half-brother. In five years, she hadn’t even seen what the boy looked like, but with parents like Shi Qin and Wen Yiyue, she doubted the apple fell far from the tree.

“We should go back together for the New Year though,” Sun Yi chimed in. “To see Teacher Wang. She mentions how much she misses you every year.”

Since starting university, they had made it a point to visit Teacher Wang every holiday to talk about life. Recently, Teacher Wang had even reunited with a best friend from thirty years ago; both were unmarried and childless, and now they lived together, sharing a quiet, beautiful life.

Shi Wangui had seen very few people during her five years away, mostly just her aunt. Though she made two friends in school—both Chinese—they had chosen to stay for graduate school while she, feeling the weight of her heart, chose to return home. Hearing about Teacher Wang made her feel a sudden pang of nostalgia.

“I haven’t forgiven either of you,” Shi Wangui said firmly. “How you earn that forgiveness is up to your performance.”

Sun Yi stayed silent, gritting her teeth and making a strange noise in her throat. “I guess those ‘Pursuit of the Ex-Wife’ novels I brought for you were the right call. I knew you’d be like this. Read up every night and learn something.”

She knew that if Wen Youren wanted to be with Shi Wangui again, she was in for a long, difficult pursuit. She had brought those books to Wen Youren on her first day of work for exactly this reason.

Shi Wangui frowned. “I only lived abroad for a few years; I didn’t change my nationality. Do you think I can’t understand what you’re implying?”

Trying to change the subject, Sun Yi asked, “Wangui, did anything interesting happen during your time at university?”

Shi Wangui swirled her Coke slowly. “Nothing much. I met two friends, a man and a woman, who are now grad students. They’re a couple, also from City A.”

“How did you meet?” Sun Yi asked.

Shi Wangui paused. Their meeting was a matter of fate. During her second year, she had started drinking. One night, after having too much at home, she was told her laundry had fallen. When she went downstairs to retrieve it, she was harassed, and they had intervened to help her. They bonded over being from the same city. When she left, they had been reluctant to see her go.

“Don’t try to dodge the subject,” Shi Wangui said. “I don’t fully understand everything yet, and I won’t be forgiving you anytime soon—especially you, Wen Youren.”

Ever since their reunion, Wen Youren had been physically anxious; she didn’t even dare look at Shi Wangui directly.

Wen Youren sat across from her and pushed a ring toward her. “This is the ring you left in my room. It’s been waiting for you to come back. And so have I.”

It was the silver band bought for her birthday years ago. It was still bright, though it had faint scratches on it, looking much as it did the day it was bought.

Shi Wangui pushed it back. “I don’t know why you didn’t trust me. Did you think I couldn’t handle hardship? Or that my feelings weren’t pure enough to stay? I don’t want to talk about this right now. I need time to think.”

Shi Wangui wasn’t just angry about the past. On her way to the cafeteria, she had seen a young couple—students with backpacks, the girl holding a stick of Tanghulu. They were walking forward together, happy. She could have had that. Instead, five years were wasted because of a lack of trust. If she had chosen not to come back, or if she had found someone else, there would be no “us” anymore.

Sun Yi felt the awkwardness between them. “I think you two have things to talk about. I’ll head out first—I’ll take my Malatang to go. See you tomorrow.”

Now truly alone, Wen Youren didn’t want to hide anymore. “Your aunt told me Shi Qin wanted to set you up on blind dates. He told me that if I served him wholeheartedly and hit my targets, he would let you go.”

“And why didn’t you tell me?” Shi Wangui asked. “You just believed him? I have my own legs; if I didn’t want to go, was he going to cut them off? I don’t need a lavish life. If we had run away together, what could he have done?”

Wen Youren suddenly spoke, her voice low. “I’m sorry. But I really can’t leave right now. Jiang An’an told me something… she said my father’s death wasn’t an accident.”

Shi Wangui went silent. The Malatang was served, but Wen Youren’s face had turned pale. She hadn’t told anyone this. She didn’t know if Jiang An’an was lying, but she had to believe it was possible.

After the college entrance exams, Jiang An’an had approached her again. This time, it wasn’t to cause trouble, but to share a secret.

Standing in the sunlight, Jiang An’an had said calmly, “On the day your father died, I followed you. After everyone left, I found a bracelet under a lotus leaf. It was your mother’s. I don’t know if she was there that day or if she lost it earlier.”

Wen Youren didn’t remember how she got home that day, only that she was clutching a gold bracelet. It was indeed Wen Yiyue’s. She knew Wen Yiyue had been wearing it just days before her father died, and she also knew Wen Yiyue claimed she hadn’t gone near the pond that day.

If it were true, she would personally see Wen Yiyue sent to prison.

So, for five years, she hadn’t just obeyed Shi Qin; she had also kept a close eye on Wen Yiyue. Since the birth of her son, Wen Yiyue had become less sharp. Sometimes when Wen Youren bought her gifts, she would actually smile.

That gold bracelet was the “gift” Wen Youren planned to give her for the New Year. If it was hers, after all, it should be returned to its owner.

Seeing Wen Youren trembling, Shi Wangui’s mind flashed back to a rainy night long ago. She slowly reached out and took Wen Youren’s hand. “I’ll stay with you.”

“Thank you,” Wen Youren whispered.

But Shi Wangui wasn’t going to let her off that easily. “But starting today, you have to pursue me all over again. Only when I’m satisfied will I agree to be with you and wear that ring.”

Wen Youren took back the ring and smiled. “I’ll chase you. And I’ll do it right this time.”

Shi Wangui pulled her hand away, but not before tracing a small circle in Wen Youren’s palm with her finger. “We’ll see how you perform.”

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