"What to do When the Pretty Woman I Kissed is My Best Friend's Professor" - Chapter 133

Compared to Shen Jinrong’s (Professor Shen’s) composure, Yan He was already panicking. Her phone was in her pocket. Feeling the vibration, she said to Grandma Shen, who was washing vegetables: “Grandma, I need to reply to a message!”

Grandma Shen smiled pleasantly: “Go ahead! You can reply! No need to be so polite with me.”

Yan He smiled back and saw the message from Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen). It’s alright? Where is it alright, my Professor Shen! I was almost cornered by Grandma right outside your door! She just asked me who sent the roses on the coffee table! Isn’t that a life-or-death question!

Yan He sent a message to Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) with a sense of tragic indignation: “Come back quickly! I’m about to run away!”

Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) was driving. She glanced at the screen, saw Yan He’s reply, and smiled, then sent a voice message. Yan He didn’t dare to listen to it, so she clicked on the transcribe option.

“Be a good girl. You’re my girlfriend, what are you worried about?”

Of course I have to worry! It’s exactly because I’m your girlfriend that I’m worried! If I were just your friend, why would I worry!

Yan He gritted her teeth, feeling indignant at Shen Jinrong’s (Professor Shen’s) approach.

Thus, the moment Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) opened her door, she felt four scorching eyes cast upon her.

The first to speak was Grandma Shen. She pointed to the large red roses on the coffee table and asked with a smile, “Oh, such a big bouquet of roses! Who sent them?”

Even Yan He could hear the teasing in Grandma Shen’s tone.

Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen), while changing her shoes, glanced at the roses and said calmly, “My partner sent them.”

Grandma Shen smiled sweetly and said, “You keep talking about your partner, but how come I’ve never met them?”

Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) looked at Yan He and winked. She was about to speak but saw Yan He hiding behind Grandma Shen, frantically waving her hands at her. Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) was slightly puzzled but followed Yan He’s lead: “Isn’t it because the time hasn’t been right? You’ll meet them when the time comes.”

Grandma Shen seemed accustomed to being fobbed off like this, so she nodded and muttered, “I wonder if this ‘partner’ you speak of is real or just made up.”

Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) opened her mouth, about to say something, but was interrupted by Yan He again.

Yan He walked up to the two of them, pointed to the food already set on the dining table, and said with a smile, “Grandma, since Professor Shen is back, shall we start eating? It’s getting cold.”

Grandma Shen slapped her head: “Oh! Look at my memory!” She glared at Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen), meaning, I won’t fuss with you since Little Yan (Yan He) is here today.

Watching Grandma Shen turn and walk toward the dining table, Yan He breathed a sigh of relief and muttered to Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) behind her, “Why did you take so long to come back?”

Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) let out a long breath and whispered, “I just finished my meeting. I also didn’t expect my grandma to come over today.”

Yan He pulled her neck in and said, “I’m running away as soon as we finish eating!”

Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) pulled her hand and quietly asked, “Can’t we tell my grandma?”

Yan He sighed, looking at Grandma Shen counting the chopsticks, and whispered, “Shouldn’t this be slowly prepared? Otherwise, how do you explain to Grandma that you found a girlfriend? It might be difficult for Grandma to accept right away, right?”

Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) pursed her lips and didn’t speak.

Yan He felt uneasy throughout the meal. She responded to Grandma Shen’s questions from time to time, keeping the old lady company with small talk, while Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) sat quietly on the side, eating.

Halfway through the meal, Grandma Shen suddenly asked, “Hey? Little Yan (Yan He), do you have a partner?”

Yan He was startled. She quickly glanced at Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen), then hastily withdrew her gaze, saying, “Yes, I do.”

She felt Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) secretly patting her thigh under the table. It was a tingling, numbing feeling. Yan He lowered her head and glared at her.

“Little Yan (Yan He) already has a partner at such a young age. Look at you! You still make me worry!” Grandma Shen finished speaking, glaring at Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) in frustration, and then asked Yan He kindly, “So, what is your partner like?”

Yan He opened her mouth, but before she could speak, she heard Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) say, “Her partner is very nice.”

Yan He and Grandma Shen both looked at her.

Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and slowly said, “Highly educated, good job, and her family background is also quite decent.”

Grandma Shen was stunned and asked in surprise, “I was asking Little Yan (Yan He), how do you know so much about her?”

Yan He didn’t speak, but Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) took her hand and said with a calm expression, “Of course, I know. I am her girlfriend.”

“Girlfriend?”

Grandma Shen’s eyes widened, looking at the two of them in surprise. Her gaze swept from Shen Jinrong’s (Professor Shen’s) face to Yan He’s, and finally landed on their clasped hands.

She took a moment to digest the bombshell news, pointed at Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen), and then pointed at Yan He, seeming unsure who to ask the next question.

“So… the two of you are dating?”

Compared to Shen Jinrong’s (Professor Shen’s) composure, Yan He was much more nervous. An anxious smile appeared on her face, and her tension was visible: “Ye-yes.”

She stuttered as she spoke.

Grandma Shen blinked, pointed to the large bouquet of red roses on the table behind them, and asked, “So that bouquet of flowers… was sent by Little Yan (Yan He)?”

Yan He nodded awkwardly: “I’m sorry. I… I didn’t dare to tell you just now.”

“If you two are dating, you’re dating. Why be so secretive?” Contrary to Yan He’s expectation of anger and rejection, Grandma Shen was only stunned for a while and then calmly accepted the fact.

She gestured for the two of them to continue eating: “Eat, eat. Little Yan (Yan He) and I spent a long time cooking this. Oh dear! It’s just a small thing, what was all the fuss about!” She turned to Yan He, smiled, patted her hand, and said gently, “This granddaughter of mine, I always thought she would end up alone… Thank you for keeping her company.”

There was bitterness in Grandma’s words. Yan He was stunned, then also held Grandma’s hand. The old lady’s hands were rough. Yan He thought of her own grandmother and suddenly felt like crying.

After Shen Jinrong’s (Professor Shen’s) parents divorced, Grandma Shen always felt that her son had set a bad example for her granddaughter. She even felt that it didn’t matter if Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) didn’t find a partner, as long as she was safe and happy living alone.

She had always felt guilty toward Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen), but there weren’t many ways to compensate for that guilt.

Grandma Shen was an intellectual before, with an open mind. Unlike others’ anxious push for marriage, although she outwardly said she was anxious about Shen Jinrong’s (Professor Shen’s) marriage, she only wanted someone to accompany her. Grandma Shen sincerely felt that as long as her child was healthy and safe, she wouldn’t make any other demands.

—She thought she probably didn’t have the right to make demands either.

“Little Yan (Yan He) is a good child,” Grandma Shen said to comfort Yan He, then glared at Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen): “You mustn’t bully her.”

Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) nodded seriously. She secretly rubbed Yan He’s leg and winked at her.

“Alright, stop showing affection in front of this old lady,” Grandma Shen gave them a look: “Hurry up and eat, hurry up and eat. I’m meeting Little Mei for square dancing after the meal.”

Grandma Shen left after eating, leaving Yan He and Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) sitting in the house, looking at each other awkwardly.

After a long moment, Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) raised her hand, tucked a stray lock of Yan He’s hair behind her ear, and asked softly, “I told my grandma directly… You—” Yan He leaned in and bit her lip, saying angrily, “I was so nervous when I ran into Grandma Shen in the elevator! And you comforted me by saying it was alright!”

Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) smiled sweetly, like a fox. When she smiled, the earring on her earlobe reflected a colorful light as she moved, dazzling Yan He’s eyes.

“My grandma is a very nice person,” she said with a smile, and then deliberately asked, “Or—is Reporter Yan He not satisfied with me?”

Yan He raised an eyebrow, a little annoyed by her gentle smile. She simply stood up, pulled Shen Jinrong’s (Professor Shen’s) chair back a little, placed one hand on the back of her chair, and asked softly, “Jie-jie, what do you think—of me?”

She deliberately called her “Jie-jie,” her tone rising and soft, like floating in the air, or stepping on a marshmallow.

The smile in Shen Jinrong’s (Professor Shen’s) eyes deepened: “I think Reporter Yan He is excellent.”

She smiled charmingly, raising her gaze to meet Yan He’s eyes. She saw her own reflection in those beautiful pupils. Her expression was sincere and passionate, and in those eyes, there was only herself.

Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) knew that in her eyes, there was only Yan He, too.

Then, she saw the little one’s eyes turn red, a thin layer of tears coating the bottom of her eyes, reflecting a beautiful watery sheen. Yan He opened her mouth, her voice soft and guilty, as if afraid that if her tone was a little heavier, she would blow Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) away.

Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) was amused by her own imagination. She pursed her lips, not speaking, just watching Yan He smile quietly.

“I’ve always wanted to apologize to you…” Yan He said slowly, “Back at the school, I shouldn’t have said that to you.”

Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) paused for a moment, then immediately understood that Yan He was apologizing for the words she had spoken back then. She lowered her eyes, avoiding Yan He’s gaze. In the instant Yan He felt disappointed, Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) raised a look of successful mischief and pulled her closer. Losing her balance, Yan He sat directly on her lap.

Yan He was a little flustered, busy apologizing and trying to stand up: “Did I hurt you? I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to—I—” Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) hugged her.

“I’m sorry.”

Yan He felt that this embrace from Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen) was tighter than any other before.

“It was my fault,” she said softly, her voice choked: “I shouldn’t have…” She paused, then recalled the time Tan Ning had linked arms with her and Yan He had seen it. She explained to Yan He, “The moment Tan Ning linked arms, I pulled away.”

Yan He also smiled. She rested her chin on Shen Jinrong’s (Professor Shen’s) slender shoulder and whispered, “I know. I was afraid you’d think I was being unreasonably jealous.” Yan He sniffled: “Li Xiuxi told me, but I still wanted to hear you say it to me in person.”

Shen Jinrong’s (Professor Shen’s) embrace was too tight, the strength felt like it wanted to completely fuse the two of them together, making their skin touch, merging their flesh and blood entirely, ultimately making them one complete entity, never to be separated again.

The distance between their two hearts had never been so close.

Yan He heard two different heartbeats. She knew that one of the heartbeats belonged to Shen Jinrong (Professor Shen). Then, the time interval between the two heartbeats became shorter and shorter, finally blending into one.