"What to do When the Pretty Woman I Kissed is My Best Friend's Professor" - Chapter 45

“Oh well! Let’s forget it, it’s not right to talk about this,” Qiu Yannian  sighed, knowing that what they were doing was wrong: “I won’t ask again in the future. I’m sorry.”

“It really isn’t nice to talk about people behind their backs,” Wen Yuan  also sighed. She straightened up, stretched, and asked: “What should we do with that bouquet? Should I deliver it for the young one?”

As soon as she finished speaking, Yan He pushed the door open. Her face was still flushed from running, and sweat beaded on the tip of her nose, but her eyes were bright. She was carrying a bouquet of flowers, her expression apologetic, yet strained upon closer look.

“I’m so sorry. My friend said there was another bouquet, and I forgot to pick it up just now.”

Qiu Yannian smiled gently, picked up the flowers, and handed them to her, chuckling: “It’s a good thing you came back in time, or we would have had to send them over for you.”

“We knew you had an event today,” Wen Yuan added with a smile.

Yan He nodded, forced a smile, and then turned to leave.

As she walked toward the university’s West Field, she felt her once light steps becoming heavy.

Why is this happening? You’re just a little sad that your sister didn’t tell you about her past. But everyone has a past that is difficult to reach. If her sister promised to tell her, she definitely would.

If she hasn’t said it yet, it’s because she feels now is not the best time—or perhaps because you haven’t matured enough for her to rely on you with confidence.

Yan He thought that this whole thing wasn’t her sister’s fault at all. She just felt a bit useless and was sulking with herself. If she wasn’t there when her sister needed companionship the most, then what right did she have now to be jealous of the person who was there with her?

She sighed and continued to walk forward.

A few younger students she knew passed by on the side of the road. Some greeted her upon seeing her carrying two bouquets of flowers, while others just nodded slightly. Yan He responded to each of them.

The university’s administrative building stood on the inevitable path to the West Field. From a distance, Yan He saw two women in formal attire standing there chatting. But the sun was too blinding. She was walking against the light and couldn’t clearly see who they were, but her heart subconsciously clenched. She felt the figures were familiar, like people she knew.

As she strode closer, a sliver of hope arose in her heart—Could it be Sister?

“I hear you guys are having a class reunion soon?” Tan Ning  was making small talk with Shen Jinrong: “Your class monitor’s messages have all reached me. Are you going?”

Shen Jinrong shook her head: “I won’t join the excitement. We might not run into each other again later, and it’s nice to leave the memories back in college.”

Tan Ning laughed: “Sometimes I truly think you live too clearly.”

Shen Jinrong shrugged. Before she could speak, she saw Tan Ning looking behind her, her smile broadening: “Hey, look at that person! The one walking over with two bouquets of flowers. Isn’t that your—little student?”

Shen Jinrong said “Which little student?” as she turned her head to look. She squinted and saw Yan He walking toward them, carrying the flowers. Her eyebrows arched slightly, and the joy in her eyes was so obvious that Tan Ning caught a hint of it.

“Oh, she’s here to give you flowers,” Tan Ning said with a playful smile: “You didn’t tell her you had an event today, did you? The school should be arranging for students to give flowers anyway.”

Shen Jinrong softly “Hmph-ed,” not minding Tan Ning’s teasing tone. She muttered: “But that’s different.”

It truly was different. Her little one’s sentiment was naturally unlike one arranged by the school.

Seeing Yan He getting closer, the joy in Shen Jinrong’s eyes was almost impossible to conceal. Tan Ning glanced at her subtly and casually asked: “Speaking of which, who is the person you like? You still haven’t told me.”

“I’ll tell you when we’re officially together,” Shen Jinrong used her usual evasive reply.

Tan Ning looked at Yan He, who was holding the flowers, and thought: Is Yan He the person you like, or just a student who has a crush on you?

She shrugged, neither confirming nor denying Shen Jinrong’s words.

“Yan He!” Tan Ning called out to her.

Yan He had already noticed her and Tan Ning. Seeing the two standing together, Yan He’s initial thought was to pretend not to see them and walk straight past if they didn’t say hello, since she would see them again shortly anyway. But since Tan Ning had greeted her and called her name, she couldn’t pretend not to notice.

“Professor Shen, Teacher Tan.” She walked over to Shen Jinrong and Tan Ning with the flowers and greeted them. She secretly stole a glance at her sister, who also blinked back at her.

Yan He felt delighted. She noticed her sister’s formal and cool attire today, complemented by light makeup. Seeing her arrive, her sister’s eyes curved in a smile; even the tear mole at the corner of her eye seemed to jump a bit, greeting her.

The excitement in her heart upon seeing her beloved was genuine; the happiness in her eyes was almost overflowing. She thought: My heart beats faster every time I see my sister, from the very beginning until now. She wanted to keep looking at her sister, but that would be too revealing, so she forcibly pulled her gaze away from her sister.

Yan He thought that maybe in the future, she could openly hold her sister’s hand and look straight into her eyes.

Tan Ning was still smiling, but her tone made Yan He detect a hint of mockery, like she was teasing her for her widely known, open secret: “Are you here for the event too?”

“Yes,” Yan He nodded, feeling a little embarrassed: “My friend asked me to help out.”

She certainly wasn’t going to say that she only came to this event for her sister!

“Oh… is that so?” Shen Jinrong adjusted her cuff, as if doubting her answer—Isn’t she here to see me?

The proud-yet-coy young one decided not to let her sister figure out her little scheme.

But the proud-yet-coy young one stole a glance at her sister after every sentence she spoke.

Then the proud-yet-coy young one started acting cool: “Well, Teachers, if there’s nothing else, I’ll see you later?”

As soon as she finished speaking, she saw her sister’s eyes filled with amusement. Yan He felt her right eyelid twitch—the next moment, Shen Jinrong took her hands out of her pockets and let them hang casually by her sides, as if ready to accept the flowers, and asked her: “The flowers are so beautiful. Are they for me?”

Yan He: …

Yan He subconsciously took half a step backward, hugging the flowers closer.

Tan Ning raised an eyebrow: Oh, wow.

Shen Jinrong: … No, they’re not?

Yan He blinked. She hadn’t expected that simply bringing two bouquets for Li Xiuxi would lead to such a ‘bloody mess’ (Shura field). She looked up at her sister’s hands. Although they were hanging by her sides, they subtly showed a tendency to reach out for the flowers. But after she took that half step back, her sister’s hands were awkwardly and subtly shoved back into her pockets.

Tan Ning, standing to the side, watched the scene, barely suppressing her laughter. She was holding it back so hard that her body was visibly trembling.

“That… that…” Yan He stammered softly, embarrassed: “Teachers, this is… this is for the event… I… I’m just delivering them for them…”

Shen Jinrong wished she hadn’t said that sentence or taken her hands out of her pockets. Her two hands clenched into fists inside her pockets. She was extremely annoyed, regretting her habitual reaction.

In any case, Professor Shen felt a little wronged. She used to give me flowers all the time; it’s not my fault I instinctively reached out, right? Seeing that the bouquet wasn’t just baby’s breath, and included white roses, she naturally assumed the young one had finally got the hint—Okay, she admitted, she really didn’t consider why Yan He was carrying two bouquets.

Professor Shen secretly pouted.

Seeing that Shen Jinrong wasn’t speaking, Tan Ning interjected: “Well, you should hurry now. Aren’t you running a bit late?” She had also organized student events before. She glanced at the time. The event was due to start in forty minutes, and they should be starting the final rehearsal soon.

Yan He’s eyes widened: “Right, right, right! Then, Teachers, I’ll be going now!”

Watching Yan He’s receding figure, Shen Jinrong pursed her lips and remained silent. Tan Ning, however, deliberately said: “I didn’t see anything just now, you know.”

Shen Jinrong turned and glared at her, but her naturally upturned eyes and soft gaze meant that even when glaring and trying to look fierce, she carried a certain tenderness: “Don’t talk about it!”

Tan Ning spread her hands: “I didn’t say anything.”

Shen Jinrong gnashed her teeth, staring at Yan He’s back.

Bad child!

I’m not talking to you!

Li Xiuxi was holding a walkie-talkie, instructing the students to make the final adjustments to all the equipment and event segments. She stood on the high platform and, seeing Yan He walking toward her from a distance carrying two bouquets, hurried down quickly: “You’re here?”

Then, Li Xiuxi took the two bouquets from her and handed them to other students, patting her shoulder gratefully: “Thank you, thank you so much! You saved the day!”

Yan He, however, seemed to be in low spirits, only giving a quiet “Mm.”

Li Xiuxi was puzzled: “What’s wrong? Did your boss not approve your leave?”

“No.” Yan He ran her hand through her hair, saying: “I ran into Professor Shen and Teacher Tan on the way here.”

Li Xiuxi raised an eyebrow, just about to ask if something happened between them, when she heard Yan He’s slightly exasperated, gritted words: “Professor Shen asked me if the flowers were for her, and I said no, they were for the school event.”

Li Xiuxi was startled, then burst into roaring laughter, slapping Yan He’s shoulder. She lost control of her strength when she laughed, and Yan He staggered, almost losing her footing after a few slaps.

“What are you laughing at!” Yan He glared at her.

“Oh my! I really didn’t think of that,” Li Xiuxi managed to stifle her laughter and rubbed her nose: “It’s okay, it’s okay. These flowers are going to be for her anyway. I’ll arrange for you to go up and present them!”

“Here’s what we’ll do: just in case, we prepared an extra bouquet. You can have that one! You go and give it to Professor Shen.” Li Xiuxi winked at her: “Gotta go, I need to arrange things before we start. Hey—” She called someone over and introduced Yan He to her: “This is Yan He, our school’s Honorary Head of the Journalism Department. We haven’t arranged who will present the final bouquet to Professor Shen Jinrong, have we? It’s her. Tell her the procedure.”

Listening to the junior student’s explanation, Yan He looked up and saw Shen Jinrong standing with Tan Ning at the edge of the field.

Shen Jinrong seemed to have seen her, too, arching her eyebrows high, and then, as if sulking, turned her back.

Yan He: …

She smiled helplessly.

Sister, are you still holding a grudge?