I Am Her Secret Beauty - Chapter 59

Mu Xi squeezed among a crowd of university students. Most who attended Home Economics University were omegas, and since she was quite a bit taller than everyone else, she felt too embarrassed to push through them.

The crowd buying candied hawthorn berries was endless, with a constant stream of people sweeping Mu Xi along. She had no choice but to ask the vendor for the price from three or four people away.

But she couldn’t understand the dialect the vendor was speaking.

Too shy to push through, Mu Xi had already let several people sneak in front of her, holding their candied hawthorn berries as they left.

When yet another person tried to slip past Mu Xi, shoving her aside in the process, she finally couldn’t take it anymore. She stretched out her long arm to block the sneaky figure and looked at them, saying, “Sorry, but I was here first in line.”

Even though there didn’t seem to be much of a “line” to speak of.

Students who hadn’t yet entered the workforce were generally more easily intimidated. Seeing Mu Xi’s height and expressionless face, their confidence immediately wavered, and they obediently retreated behind her.

The others crowded around the stall pricked up their ears, each more alert than a rabbit. While they didn’t exactly make way for Mu Xi, they kept their distance as much as possible to avoid provoking someone who seemed to have a short temper.

After much difficulty, Mu Xi finally bought the candied hawthorn berries and handed them to Nan Xi.

Nan Xi looked contentedly at the glistening, beautiful treat in her hand and promptly offered it to Mu Xi’s lips. “You bought it, so you take the first bite.”

Mu Xi wasn’t particularly fond of candied hawthorn berries and was even a bit wary of the possibly very sour hawthorn inside.

Still, she bit off one candied hawthorn and slowly began to chew under Nan Xi’s expectant gaze.

The hawthorn wasn’t too sour. Paired with the sweet syrup melting in her mouth, it was pleasantly tangy and sweet. Mu Xi swallowed it.

“Is it good? Is it sour?” Nan Xi asked excitedly.

“Not sour. It’s delicious.”

“Great.” Nan Xi pulled the remaining candied hawthorn back and took a big, relieved bite. “Then I won’t hold back.”

So, she had been using her as a taste tester.

Maybe Nan Xi didn’t actually like candied hawthorn berries at all and had just found an excuse to get her moving.

They stood at the school gate as Mu Xi watched Nan Xi eat the candied hawthorn, waiting for her to slowly finish it, wipe her mouth, and then naturally link arms with her to walk into the school.

Mu Xi didn’t sense anything amiss and followed her lead, stepping into the campus.

Nan Xi asked, “Feeling less scared now?”

“Mm.”

Living in this world is like a stick of candied hawthorn berries.

At worst, you get crushed and eaten, nothing more than that.

Walking side by side with Nan Xi through Home Economics University, Mu Xi realized that even after over three years since graduation, the teaching facilities hadn’t changed much, though there were some new additions. She had thought she held no attachment to this place, but now her eyes couldn’t help but wander, searching for traces that proved she had once lived here.

“That tree has grown so big, right? I used to sit under it often.”

“Most of my classes were in this building. Some electives were farther away, it took twenty minutes to walk from the dorm to the classroom. Many omegas would be panting by the time they arrived in the morning.”

Nan Xi giggled. “I was often out of breath rushing to class in the mornings.”

She, too, tried to imagine what Mu Xi’s life here must have been like. But every time Mu Xi’s face surfaced in her mind, the background would shift to A University.

The scenes from memory felt more vivid, something imagination could never compare to.

Yet for Mu Xi, those imaginings were what felt real, so Nan Xi stayed by her side, listening as she pointed out familiar spots around the campus.

“This sculpture is quite famous, though you probably don’t know the sculptor.”

“This bakery isn’t as good as the one up ahead. I like their bagels, we can come back later to buy some.”

“This is our cafeteria. The food isn’t great.”

“This one too, also not great.”

“This professor taught me.”

As they passed by an old man with a graying beard, Mu Xi unconsciously introduced him like that.

Nan Xi stopped, glancing at Mu Xi, then at the old man.

Mu Xi hadn’t yet realized they had found their target and kept walking ahead.

It was the white-bearded professor who, hearing Mu Xi’s voice, paused suspiciously and turned around. Spotting Mu Xi’s profile, his eyes widened: “Mu Xi!”

Hearing her name, Mu Xi stopped, wondering who could possibly know her here. Turning, she was met with a stern, familiar face glaring at her:

“Professor Sun!”

“You just walked right past me? No manners!” Professor Sun kept a stern expression but couldn’t help sneaking a glance at the smiling Nan Xi. “So, you brought your girlfriend back to visit the campus?”

Nan Xi extended her hand gracefully. “Hello, Professor. My name is Nan Xi.”

They shook hands, and Professor Sun broke into a smile, clearly taking a liking to Nan Xi.

He changed direction and waved them along. “Come on, let’s head to my office and catch up.”

“Professor Sun, weren’t you just heading out of the campus?” Mu Xi asked cautiously.

Professor Sun chuckled again and strode forward.

“Forget them. I need to have a good chat with my star student.”

Nan Xi nudged Mu Xi’s arm and gave her a mischievous, squinty grin, as if to say, “See? I told you so.”

“There must be many people who care about you quietly, you just don’t know it.”

Mu Xi wasn’t entirely sure, so she decided to follow Professor Sun for now. The fact that he still recognized her already made her happy.

If her memory served, Professor Sun’s office had probably been upgraded since her time. During her studies, she hadn’t visited often, but she was certain it hadn’t been this luxurious back then. It seemed the university treated its professors well.

“Why haven’t you come back to visit in the past few years?” Professor Sun asked sternly as soon as he sat down. His serious expression made Mu Xi instantly feel guilty, reminiscent of being caught dozing off in class and called on to answer an impossible question.

Mu Xi replied sheepishly, “Professor, I’ve been swamped with work these past three years. It’s only recently that I’ve had time to wander around.”

“Busy! Being busy is good.”

Professor Sun turned to Nan Xi. “You might not know this, but Mu Xi was the apple of our teachers’ eyes back in her student days. Exceptionally bright, top of every class, clever and hardworking. We all said she was bound to work for some prestigious family.”

Nan Xi nodded with a smile. No one knew better than her just how outstanding Mu Xi was. And indeed, Mu Xi had ended up working for one of the most distinguished families in the country.

Though she’d been let go now.

“I haven’t asked you yet,” Professor Sun leaned mysteriously toward Mu Xi. “What was your salary later? Let me check if it was too low.”

Mu Xi mimicked his secretive manner, lowering her head and whispering a number to him.

“Wow!”

Professor Sun’s small eyes immediately widened. “Impressive, Mu Xi! An employer who can afford such a high salary must be someone everyone knows! But if it’s for Mu Xi… well, it’s not impossible.” He turned to Nan Xi again, speaking in a tone that seemed afraid she didn’t know this was his student.” “I taught her most of her butler skills, I know exactly how capable she is. This employer has good judgment too; ordinary people wouldn’t hire an alpha as a butler. Only a bold and meticulous employer could hire such a fine butler!”

“Mu Xi is indeed the most excellent butler I’ve ever met. You taught her well,” Nan Xi praised sincerely.

Professor Sun, floating on the compliments, basked in the glory for a while before remembering something else and asking Mu Xi, “So how do you have time to visit me in Z City now? With such a high salary, even one day’s deduction would be a loss.”

Mu Xi really wanted to say, first of all, she hadn’t come to see him this time.

But she couldn’t possibly undermine the professor’s dignity, so she kept that to herself.

She mentioned the second point instead. “Professor Sun, actually… I’m no longer working as a butler, and I might not do it again in the future.”

As for the reason, she really couldn’t bring herself to say it. If she did, the professor would likely turn it into a joke to tell juniors for the next ten years, just like the many anecdotes about seniors she’d heard in class.

Hearing this, Professor Sun first looked at her with surprise and confusion, but gradually came to accept it.

He knew every student had different choices, and many graduates from the Home Economics University didn’t end up in home economics careers. Still, he privately felt a bit regretful about Mu Xi’s decision.

Because the salary Mu Xi had mentioned was just too high.

“Ah, well, all good things must come to an end. It’s a pity, but you have strong overall abilities. If you take another path, you’ll surely achieve great things too,” Professor Sun sighed. “Actually, we were all surprised at first when such a high-ranking alpha transferred to our university to study home economics. Fortunately, Mu Xi studied hard and excelled, proving that it’s not just omegas who can work in home economics, alphas can be just as professional as butlers.”

Mu Xi was moved to the brink of tears.

As Professor Sun said, Mu Xi had initially stood out like a sore thumb at the Home Economics University because she was an alpha, while most people assumed this field was for omegas and betas.

It took her a long time and immense effort to prove herself and become one of the top students. Especially in courses requiring extreme focus and attention to detail, Mu Xi had even made a few embarrassing mistakes, but thankfully, those days were behind her.

Deeply touched, Mu Xi said, “Thank you, Professor. I’m very grateful for your guidance…”Meanwhile, Nan Xi had already furrowed her brows, keenly capturing the key detail in Professor Sun’s words.”

She glanced at Mu Xi, who was still lost in emotion, unaware, and asked Professor Sun, “Professor, did you just say that Mu Xi transferred here?”

“Yes indeed! She transferred to our university in her sophomore year. It left a deep impression on me because it was truly rare, in my entire teaching career, I’ve only encountered Mu Xi as the sole example.”

“Do you remember which institution she transferred from to our Home Economics University?”

Nan Xi’s expression was so serious that Professor Sun grew somewhat puzzled, yet he still tried to recall for her: “Hmm… Mu Xi never mentioned it. Such information is confidential and only exists in the university’s archives. However, in our country, transferring during higher education is only permitted from a higher-ranking institution to a lower-ranking one. Mu Xi’s previous university must have been quite prestigious.”

“Exactly, where did you transfer from back then? How come even your girlfriend doesn’t know?”

Professor Sun asked in a joking tone, but neither of them laughed.

The atmosphere was clearly off. Professor Sun couldn’t bring himself to smile either, realizing that their demeanor was far from that of students coming to visit him, visiting students were never this somber.

Though feeling helpless, since Mu Xi had come to him with a matter, he hoped he could be of some help to his student: “What’s going on?”

“Professor, if possible, could I take a look at the university’s archives? The truth is, I don’t remember anything from before I came to the university. I’m here this time to search for clues about my past.”