My Weekend Lover Turned Out To Be My Boss - Chapter 42

Chapter 42: Happy Daily Life. “Save Me”

“Yes, I was the starting point of this journey, and I have to take you back. That way, I’ll also be your endpoint. Round and round in a circle, that’s how it becomes complete.”

Hearing this, she pouted sadly, fighting back tears: “And then you’re going to leave, right?”

I had to lie and could only nod silently. She grabbed my clothes and shook her head: “No way. If you take me back, you have to stay with me for a while. I can introduce you to my friends. I’ll treat you to drinks at my bar. I have a spare room at home; you can stay there…”

I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry looking at her: “You Feifan, we’re not dating. Why are you clinging to me? How are you any different from a baby who can’t let go of her pacifier?”

She let go of my clothes dejectedly, saying sadly, “Maybe… I’m dependent on you.”

I was slightly taken aback. The late night wind was chilly, but why did I suddenly feel as warm as springtime? I smiled, spread my arms, and hugged her tightly. I inhaled the scent on her neck, a light tobacco smell chilled by the wind. It was somehow pleasant: “Okay… I promise you, I’ll take you back and stay with you for a while.”

I had said that everything was going smoothly and according to plan….

…

After finalizing the paperwork for the youth hostel, I was about to give it a good clean and choose an auspicious day to reopen, as I had nothing else to do anyway. He Mu’s call broke the tranquility of the afternoon. This was the first time in years I heard undisguised glee in his voice on the phone: “He He’s tracking of Lan Feiyi and Guan Shuyun over the past few months has finally paid off.”

I grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds, cracking them open one by one while asking lazily, “So? Any new developments?”

“You know You Feifan’s disgust towards Guan Shuyun—no, now it should be described as hatred. I had He He follow them and take many photos of Guan Shuyun and Lan Feiyi meeting in secret. You Feifan has been receiving the latest photos every day. She finally snapped. He He has already called me. You Feifan bought a high-speed train ticket to Chengdu. I’ll beat her to the airport. Xiao Qi, we’re finally going to meet.”

“Long time no see. I’ll wait for you at the hostel.”

After hanging up, I threw the sunflower seeds onto the floor and silently looked around. Revenge, which I had wished for day and night all these years, was finally on track. Why wasn’t I happy?

He Mu was like a fortune teller. The stranger, You Feifan, was following our planned trajectory, slowly approaching us without deviation. Although I didn’t entirely agree with this method, the image of Qin Yun sitting peacefully with her eyes closed in the deep Kanas mountains appeared in my mind. I didn’t need to feel soft or self-reproachful. Who had ever shown me pity? The outside world was full of jackals. I didn’t want to be a lamb slaughtered at will. At the same time, I finally understood deeply that He Mu’s hatred was even deeper and fiercer than mine.

I had fantasized countless times about how I would unexpectedly run into this “door knocker,” but when she actually appeared at the room door, with a backpack slung over her shoulder, a hint of surprise and shyness, and then silently offered me a cigarette—all this meant I was one step closer to Guan Shuyun.

Just like in the photo, she held a child with one hand and a dog with the other, filled with the light of life. I thought You Feifan was gentle and kind, pure, just like the girl who squatted by the road feeding cats below the fifteenth floor years ago…

Yet, why are gentle people never treated kindly and favored by this world?

…

Zhang Qingyue was grading papers and asked, “Are you sure about leaving at the end of the month?”

She checked the date, muttering, “Not many days left.”

I leaned against her office desk casually and sighed: “Yes, time flies so fast!”

Zhang Qingyue tilted her head, her expression unreadable, and slowly summarized: “The children will definitely be sad, especially missing You Feifan. She is too likable.”

“So… she was crying sadly that day, asking if she could teach one math class.”

Zhang Qingyue threw her pen down, looking exasperated: “Why hasn’t this person given up?”

“Just indulge her this once. She was crying so heartbreakingly that day. She considers herself a financial expert and has a whole set of methods for teaching arithmetic. Just give her a chance.”

“Fine, I’ll arrange a class time when I’m free. By the way, I haven’t seen You Feifan all day. Where did she run off to?”

As soon as Zhang Qingyue finished speaking, the children’s lively cheers erupted from the playground. Walking out of the office, You Feifan was driving back. She was moving many cartons of milk and white steamed buns from the trunk. Zhang Qingyue and I watched her from a distance, wondering what trick she was up to this time. We saw a whistle hanging around her neck, which she blew fiercely while holding it in her mouth. She truly played the role of a military instructor, shouting at the top of her lungs: “Everyone assemble!”

The children responded to her command, lining up one by one from shortest to tallest. She nodded with satisfaction and signaled the child at the front to step out. The child shouted in heavily accented Mandarin: “Attention! At ease! Left face! Right face! About face!”

He He also joined in the fun, running to the back row to play. You Feifan pointed at him and commanded: “Big, silly guy in the back row, step out!”

He He winked, then quickly scurried to her front: “Present!”

“Distribute the buns and milk to everyone!”

“Yes, ma’am!”

He He then enthusiastically distributed the food. The children held the food obediently without eating. You Feifan blew her whistle: “Go into the classroom, put the food on your desks, and then line up to wash your hands. No whispering, no loud noises, do you hear me!”

The children answered in unison: “Yes, we do!”

“Your voices are too quiet, I can’t hear you!”

“YES, WE DO!!!”

Zhang Qingyue smiled and shook her head: “She really knows what she’s doing.”

I snapped my fingers: “I remember now. She went to the town market today, saying she was buying necessities. I knew it wouldn’t be that simple.”

Leaving the children in He He’s care, You Feifan carried another bag from the trunk and jogged toward us. I pointed at the bag and asked curiously, “What’s in there?”

She happily opened the bag and said, “I bought Teacher Zhang some stationery, and it’s too cold here, so I bought hand cream. Both of you have one. Be careful of getting frostbite. And… and food…”

Saying this, she pulled out a jar of warmed Lao Gan Ma (chili oil) from inside her down jacket like it was a rare treasure! I thought, who else in this world would be so thoughtful? Plus, with her adorable, comical look, I couldn’t resist. I had to give You Feifan a kiss of love. Thinking this, I hugged her head and kissed her: “You are a treasure!”

She pushed me away, hastily wiping her face: “Aiya, aiya, get off me! If you’re hungry, eat the buns. Eating me won’t fill you up!”

Even the normally serious Zhang Qingyue was amused by her. You Feifan mumbled with a bun in her mouth, “Lao Gan Ma with buns, oh my goodness! It’s so addictive. You two must try it!”

It was obvious to everyone why You Feifan was trying so hard to please Zhang Qingyue. The extreme yearning in her eyes made even me smile. Zhang Qingyue accepted the bun she offered, conceding: “I will arrange a math class before you leave.”

You Feifan didn’t register it at first, then excitedly bowed: “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

Watching her run toward the classroom, wiggling her playful butt, I figured she could probably devour three more large buns today without needing any Lao Gan Ma.

…

“I see you’ve fallen in love with craft class these past few days. What are you making?”

I saw You Feifan preparing a stack of paper and glue stick on the desk. She was diligently writing, folding, and gluing. Her movements were quite skilled, and she looked rather pretty when she focused on her work. She didn’t look up, replying briefly: “Number rulers for the children.”

Saying this, she grabbed a handful and showed me: “Look. Two rows of 0 to 10. The top is fixed, and the bottom can move. By sliding it back and forth, you can see which numbers can be broken down into which other numbers. It will be fun for the children to learn.”

I played with the number ruler she made. It was quite well done: “Your craftsmanship is impressive.”

“Me? I used to be in prison…”

She stopped mid-sentence, realizing her slip. She didn’t want me to know about her time in jail. I turned to look at her. I, of course, knew what she had been through. I rubbed her hair and smiled: “Who says everyone sent to jail is a bad person?”

She grinned, saying softly: “That’s what I think too… When I was in prison, inmates had labor tasks to earn life points and sentence reduction. I was assigned to cut envelopes. At my peak, I could cut tens of thousands a day with an error rate close to zero. Pretty amazing.”

“No wonder you’re so handy with paper crafts. You’re an old hand! Make one for me too.”

“These are teaching tools. Go away… Don’t make trouble!”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk, stingy!”

…

“Stand up!”

“Hello, students!”

“Hello, Teacher!”

Zhang Qingyue, He He, and I acted as observers for the open class. You Feifan cleared her throat and said shamelessly: “Can you add a surname? Let’s repeat ‘Hello, Teacher You.'”

I quietly took out my phone to record the video. It would be hilarious when I edited it for her later. The children giggled and shouted again: “Hello, Teacher You!!!”

“Please sit.”

She wrote her carefully prepared lesson content on the blackboard with a notebook, then distributed the number rulers she had made to the children. Returning to the lectern, she seriously explained how to use the number ruler. She was very patient, and using the ruler as a starting point, she began a unique, alternative lesson.

Zhang Qingyue took diligent notes, believing You Feifan’s teaching method was quite effective, nodding frequently. He He, needless to say, was eager to participate. When You Feifan asked questions at the lectern, he enthusiastically raised his hand to answer, earning a chalk missile from You Feifan.

She placed two packs of Alps candy, three cartons of milk, and five bags of spicy strips on the platform. For the children, the temptation of food was always effective. You Feifan wrote forty arithmetic problems (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division) on the blackboard and organized the class into four teams for a quick Q&A game. The classroom instantly became lively until Zhang Qingyue’s end-of-class alarm sounded.

Zhang Qingyue closed her notebook, walked up to the lectern, and summarized: “Thank you, Teacher You, for giving us such a wonderful math class. What should we say to Teacher You?”

“Thank you, Teacher You!”

You Feifan bent over in a deep bow. She had truly put her heart into it, even though none of us could fully understand why she insisted on teaching a math class.