The next day, as the morning light filtered through the office window, Ye Shuya stepped into this space filled with an academic atmosphere. As soon as her gaze settled, she saw a figure standing in front of her desk. It was a girl wearing a fluffy white earmuff. The moment she saw Ye Shuya, her eyes became red rimmed, and tears swirled in her eyes as if they would fall at any moment.
"Teacher Ye, this is my paper." The girl's voice was choked with sobs.
Ye Shuya narrowed her eyes. The phone call from last night echoed in her mind. Her gaze scanned the girl up and down. There was an unshakable coldness in her voice. "Zheng Ran, I said on the first day of class that in my class, one must never hand in homework late."
Zheng Ran's sobs echoed in the office. "Teacher Ye, my brother was sick the day before yesterday. I had to take care of him in the hospital..."
Ye Shuya didn't waver at all. She stuffed the paper back into Zheng Ran's hand, expressionless. "You'll have to retake the course next semester. I can't break my principle just for you."
Seeing this, Song Xiao in the office couldn't help but feel a trace of sympathy. She spoke up to persuade. "Teacher Ye, she has a reason. Just accept her paper."
Zheng Ran's tears were like broken pearls, falling rapidly. "Teacher Ye, I will definitely not do this again."
Ye Shuya gave Song Xiao a faint glance. There was a hint of coolness in that gaze, making Song Xiao involuntarily shiver. But when she saw Zheng Ran crying so sadly and then thinking of Ye Shuya's indifferent attitude recently, she subconsciously felt that Ye Shuya was too heartless. Song Xiao always gets along well with students in class and is extremely tolerant of students. At the end of each semester's teacher evaluation, she always receives countless praises.
Ye Shuya slowly spoke, her voice calm and firm. "Zheng Ran, on January 3rd, you said you were taking care of your brother in the hospital all day?"
Zheng Ran was stunned. Her body trembled slightly. She lowered her eyes and nodded while sobbing.
"Then your roommate Zhang Qin has chosen another elective course of mine this semester. One of the items in the final summary I assigned is to record the thing that one thinks is most worth noting every day." Ye Shuya pulled out a plain notebook and gently flipped it open with her index finger. "In the afternoon of January 3rd, my roommate Zheng Ran and I went shopping at Times Square. Zheng Ran had her wallet stolen on the bus..."
Ye Shuya closed the notebook and looked at her coldly. "Do I need to continue reading?"
Song Xiao was stunned. She looked at Zheng Ran and then at Ye Shuya, and couldn't say a word.
Zheng Ran tightly pressed her lips together.
"My principle can change because of people, but for those who lie, I will never change for them." Ye Shuya sat down on the swivel chair, took out a morning newspaper, and didn't look at Zheng Ran again.
In the end, Zheng Ran ran out of the office with a red face. Once Zheng Ran left, only Song Xiao and Ye Shuya were left in the office. Tang Dan and Lin Yu had classes only in the afternoon, so they didn't come. Song Xiao felt extremely awkward again. She scratched her head and chuckled. "Teacher Ye, you have a really good memory."
Ye Shuya just said lightly, "I just happened to remember."
Song Xiao chuckled again. At this time, there was a knock on the office door. She said, "Come in." A strong fragrance of roses came. She looked up and saw a beautifully packaged bouquet of roses. The color was as red as a ball of fire.
"Miss Ye, your boyfriend has sent you flowers again."
Ye Shuya took the flowers with a beaming smile, thanked the flower deliverer, and after signing for them, she lowered her head and took a gentle sniff. The smile on her face was even more brilliant than the red roses. Perhaps because she received flowers from Qin Wei, Ye Shuya was in a great mood at this time. Her willow eyebrows were curved. Her black and white eyes were shining brightly. Her snow-white skin was extremely beautiful against the backdrop of a large bouquet of red roses.
Song Xiao was stunned for a moment. She stammered, "Teacher Ye, you are really beautiful when you smile."
"Thank you." Ye Shuya added some water to the vase before putting the red roses in. The room was filled with a fragrant smell.
Staring at the red roses, Song Xiao said with admiration, "Teacher Ye, your boyfriend is so romantic."
Ye Shuya was intently looking at the roses in front of her. They were so vividly red as if they were dripping blood. Drop by drop, they fell into her heart, just like Qin Wei invading her heart little by little, melting with her blood and could never be separated again.
Song Xiao suddenly felt that Ye Shuya was not as aloof and arrogant as rumored. When she received flowers from her boyfriend, she would also smile brightly like a little girl. The reason why everyone said this about her was entirely because they didn't understand her. Song Xiao herself didn't understand why in such a short moment, she would have this strange feeling about this beautiful woman in front of her. She felt that she was a thorny rose. Only those who dared to take risks would obtain the fragrance of the rose.
"Teacher Ye, you still have a class later, right?"
Ye Shuya responded with a "hmm".
Song Xiao smiled brightly. "There is a new restaurant opened near the school. I heard the Thai food there is very good. After you finish your class, shall we go and try it?"
Facing her colleague's friendly invitation, Ye Shuya directly refused. "I don't like Thai food."
"Ah, then... Shall we go eat Japanese food? French food? Or go eat Cantonese cuisine?"
Ye Shuya frowned. "Thank you for your kindness. I have an appointment today."
"Then tomorrow?"
Ye Shuya looked up at her. "Teacher Song, I have an appointment for the next week."
"Oh." Song Xiao was a bit disappointed. But as soon as she thought of the arduous task of picking the rose that she had taken on herself, she immediately perked up again. "It doesn't matter. Whenever Shuya you are free, let's go eat together."
Ye Shuya felt uncomfortable when she heard the change in Song Xiao's address. She had always been independent and kept to herself. Being too close to colleagues would cause her great panic. But when she saw the inexplicable look in Song Xiao's eyes, she was embarrassed to say anything. She could only pretend not to hear and continue reading the morning newspaper.
Song Xiao's biggest pastime on weekdays is listening to gossip, reading novels, chasing stars... Now she feels like she has transformed into a heroic figure in a novel or comic to save a rose growing on the edge of a cliff.