"What to do When the Pretty Woman I Kissed is My Best Friend's Professor" - Chapter 22

The line of text and the three smiling faces, arranged side-by-side, seemed to reveal the young woman’s nervous state. Through the white-on-white text and the yellow emojis, Shen Jinrong could almost see the young woman typing, deleting, retyping, and being careful not to select the wrong expression.

Shen Jinrong understood unrequited love too well. She knew better than anyone the subtle thoughts of a secret admirer—the careful concealment of concern, the treating of affection with precious care. Precisely because she understood, she couldn’t bear to hurt anyone’s feelings—she knew the feeling of heartache too well.

“Hello, Little Yan He.”

After eating the meat, the Grandma realized her little trick hadn’t been noticed by Shen Jinrong. She tried to repeat the action, but Shen Jinrong caught her. The latter looked up sideways, her tone stern: “Grandma… no more meat, okay…”

The Grandma choked, glaring at her: “Go talk! Don’t mind me!” She raised an eyebrow, seeing the smile in Shen Jinrong’s eyes: “Are you dating someone?”

Shen Jinrong paused, but the smile on her lips didn’t fade. She feigned a fierce tone: “Are you that eager to marry me off?”

Seeing that she hadn’t denied it, the Grandma secretly tried to peek at her phone screen. Shen Jinrong quickly flipped the phone face-down on the table: “Eat!”

Yan He stared at the line of text Shen Jinrong had sent for a long time. An immense feeling of happiness descended upon her. She was momentarily overwhelmed, feeling like she was plummeting into the deep sea, where every movement was met with enormous pressure. In the deep sea, there was silence, and every action was amplified. Fish swam by. She was like a drowning person, waiting for her Siren Princess to rescue her.

The princess came, singing, slowly swimming around her. Then, Yan He clearly heard her sigh and pull her upward.

Yan He originally planned to simply forward the file she had sent to Li Xiuxia, but on second thought, she felt it wouldn’t be formal enough. So, she opened her computer, confirmed everything was correct, and then sent the file to Shen Jinrong. She knew in her heart that it wouldn’t make much difference; it was merely an extra step to alleviate her inner panic.

Elder Sister took a while to reply: “Received! [Rose emoji] I was just eating~” Yan He’s hands were shaking from nervousness. She tremulously replied: “No worries, no worries! You go ahead and eat!”

Then, she received a voice message from Shen Jinrong: “I’ve already finished eating! Thank you for your hard work! I’m at my Grandma’s place right now. I’ll read it when I get home.”

Elder Sister told me she’s at her Grandma’s! Sharing family matters with me must be a good sign!

Yan He listened to the voice message several times, secretly saving it. The sound of Elder Sister’s voice in the message was completely different from the first time Yan He met her. When they were still strangers, Elder Sister’s voice was gentle but always contained a cool self-restraint—and it was also slightly different from Professor Shen’s voice in class, which was clear and crisp.

But now, Elder Sister’s voice was pure tenderness, nothing else. Yan He wasn’t sure if it was her own delusion—or wishful thinking—but she felt a hint of indulgence in Elder Sister’s voice.

—Elder Sister’s voice had an upward inflection at the end! Elder Sister even said ‘thank you for your hard work’!

Yan He jubilantly jumped onto her bed and rolled around a few times.

“Oh, look at you, sending a voice message? And you have to hide on the balcony to send it?” The Grandma was sitting on the sofa, scrolling on her phone. Seeing Shen Jinrong slide open the balcony door and step outside with her phone, she gave her a look.

Shen Jinrong’s expression didn’t change: “Work call.”

“Oh~” The Grandma drew out the sound, clearly not believing her: “If you like her, bring her back so I can meet her.”

Shen Jinrong made no comment. She walked to the dining table to clear the dishes: “I’ll clean this up for you and then head off. I still have things to deal with at the office.” As she stood up, she said: “You need to watch your diet lately, and if that person comes again, call me immediately.”

The Grandma mumbled something and waved her hand: “Alright, that’s enough! Finish tidying up and go!”

Driving home, Shen Jinrong entered the code and opened the door. The stemmed glass from the night before was still sitting on the living room coffee table, with a shallow layer of red liquid inside. She casually tossed her coat and bag onto the sofa but sank down onto the carpet herself.

Shen Jinrong sat with her legs crossed, her hands resting casually on her knees. Her gaze fixed on the watch on her left wrist, her eyes briefly glazing over, but she quickly looked away, as if deliberately avoiding something.

She removed her earrings and necklace, tossing them onto the coffee table. The crystal collided with the glass, making a subtle, crisp sound. The room was empty. Even with the heating on, she felt cold all over. This coldness wasn’t just the literal chill, but a desolate feeling wrapped in a cold exterior.

Shen Jinrong turned on the TV. The apartment was filled with random human voices, which at least gave it some life. She thought for a moment, picked up the remaining small amount of red wine on the coffee table, and tried to stand up. However, her knee accidentally hit the coffee table. She lost her balance and stumbled, collapsing onto the floor. The wine glass fell, spilling red wine all over the carpet.

Red wine stained the gray-white wool rug, leaving a large crimson mark. Shen Jinrong stared blankly at the scarlet on the carpet beside her. That flash of red was deeply imprinted in her eyes. The sounds in her ears were no longer the news reports on the TV, but instead were filled with the whooshing of wind and a roaring sound that seemed to come from far away and then close in.

[“You shouldn’t even exist in this world.”]

[“You only bring me shame.”]

She bowed her head, strands of hair falling around her ears, her eyes slightly red. She didn’t like the color red. Red always made her feel uneasy. Red was too brilliant, too ostentatious, and too dangerous.

The red as far as her eyes could see, the knife stained with red, the fierce wind howling through the window…

Shen Jinrong started to tremble.

Then her phone rang.

Shen Jinrong snapped out of it, her pupils refocusing from their vacant state. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and her trembling body gradually calmed down. The sound in her ears and the image on the TV screen were once again aligned.

It was Yan He.

Yan He.

Little Yan He, what should I do?

“[By the way! If the professor has any suggestions, we can also discuss them in person~ Heart-eyes emoji]]” Shen Jinrong sniffed and chuckled: “Are you free tonight? Want to grab dinner together?”