Ever since Su Yao had accompanied Ye Shuya home, his image had stubbornly lingered in her mind, refusing to be banished. Su Yao was akin to a rose, its beauty intertwined with the alluring yet perilous thorns of temptation. When she confided her lingering thoughts about him to Qin Wei, he teased her with a hint of mockery, "Oh, Yaya, do you truly believe someone like Su Yao would be interested in you?"
Determined to unearth more about the enigmatic man, she dedicated countless hours to scouring the internet—Baidu, Google, Wikipedia—in a relentless pursuit of any scrap of information about Su Yao. However, she was met with an uncanny silence, as if he were a phantom leaving no trace. Even with the aid of VPNs and other tools to surmount the digital barriers, the meager details she managed to gather were insignificant, almost as if they had been deliberately concealed. All that remained of her efforts was his name and a solitary, blurry photo of him receiving an award, a moment captured in time that she had treasured and set as her desktop background.
Qin Wei, sensing the gravity of her obsession, spoke to her with a solemnity laced with concern, "Yaya, Su Yao is not someone you can afford to entangle yourself with. You drive a Chery QQ, while he's behind the wheel of a Bentley Mulsanne; he's a prince among paupers, and you... you're just a simple university teacher. His background is so vast and powerful that it lies beyond the reach of even the most potent search engines. Yaya, do you honestly believe you're a match for him?"
After a period of deep introspection, Ye Shuya found herself replacing her desktop background and erasing all traces of her fruitless searches. As night descended, she reached out to Qin Wei over the phone, her voice a soft whisper in the darkness, "Ah Qin, you're right. I won't think about Su Yao anymore."
On a serene Thursday, Ye Shuya had only one engagement in the afternoon—a lecture on public relations. She indulged herself by waking up at noon, leisurely preparing a simple omelette fried rice. Only then, at two in the afternoon, did she step out into the world.
Maritime University was renowned for its open campus. As she drove through, she was greeted by the familiar sight of the central square. On any other day, this space would be a tranquil void, but today, it was abuzz with activity. Student council members were scurrying about, hanging banners, posters, and arranging chairs with an unusual fervor.
She paid little heed to it, attributing the commotion to yet another public lecture by some distinguished guest.
During her lecture, the students' whispers were like the distant hum of bees, a murmur that rose above the silence. As the topic of the guest speaker reached her ears, her gaze, as cold as winter, swept across the room, and the whispers instantly subsided. The nickname "Ice Mountain Teacher" was not just a figure of speech.
Her expectations for her students were unassuming: punctuality, silence during class, and timely submission of assignments. In return, she was known to be generous with her final grades. But today, the students were unusually animated, their excitement palpable. During a brief interlude, a student's voice, brimming with anticipation, cut through the silence, "As soon as class ends, I'm going to dash out to secure a spot. I must be within the first three rows. I really want Su Yao's autograph."
She froze, her heart missing a beat.
Another student chimed in, "That might not be possible. The student council said we can only attend the lecture, no autographs, no photos, and absolutely no pictures."
A male student grumbled in discontent, "He's just a good-looking face. Why all the fuss?"
The two girls gave him a collective glare, their expressions stern and protective. "Don't you dare speak of Su Yao like that."
As the class bell rang, Ye Shuya found her thoughts wandering. Her lecture was punctuated by uncharacteristic mistakes. Fortunately, the students were either inattentive or too intimidated to correct her. The classroom, usually filled with the hum of learning, was now filled with an uneasy silence.
With five minutes left until the end of the class, Ye Shuya's phone vibrated on the lectern, signaling an incoming message. The screen displayed a message preview from an unknown number. In her peripheral vision, she caught a glimpse of the words – "I am Su Yao, currently at C University..."
Her voice trailed off mid-sentence, and the room fell into a hush. Students exchanged puzzled looks, but Ye Shuya quickly composed herself. She moved on to the next slide and resumed her lecture with a facade of composure, as if nothing had happened.
The final five minutes of class dragged by, each second stretching into an eternity. A whirlwind of excitement and anticipation swirled within her. Qin Wei's cautionary words now became a distant echo. As soon as class was over, she eagerly opened the message.
"I am Su Yao, currently at C University. Are you teaching a class?"
After gathering her belongings and stepping out of the teaching building, she dialed back. Su Yao answered promptly. His deep voice resonated through the phone. "Hello."
Her mind went blank, and she fumbled for words. Finally, she managed to utter, "This is Ye Shuya."
His light laughter came through the line. "I know." There was a pause, then he asked, "Would you like to come over? I'm in the basement of the Central Plaza."
Her response was cheerful and immediate. "Sure."
No sooner had she ended the call than Qin Wei's call came in. His voice carried a hint of coldness. "YaYa, what are you planning to do?"
"I..." Before she could finish, Qin Wei cut her off. "I've told you, Su Yao is not someone you should get involved with."
She opened her mouth to respond, but the line went dead. As she stood there, two female students walked by. Their conversation was filled with giddy excitement about the handsome man whose looks were said to be out of this world.
Gritting her teeth, Ye Shuya strode determinedly towards the Central Plaza. The square was packed with people, a sea of heads that made even graduation ceremonies seem sparse by comparison. As she approached, she spotted Song Xiao and Lin Yu. Song Xiao noticed her first and greeted her with enthusiasm. "Hey, ShuYa, are you here for the lecture too?"
Lin Yu's face, on the other hand, wore a scowl.
Ignoring the tension, Ye Shuya nodded at Song Xiao and continued past the bustling crowd. At the basement entrance stood two men in sunglasses. Their imposing figures blocked the way.
The basement lighting was dim, casting long shadows over the two towering men who looked every bit the formidable guards. She cleared her throat and stated her purpose. "I'm here to see Su Yao. My surname is Ye."
The man on the right opened the door for her, apparently having been informed of her visit by Su Yao.
Inside, Su Yao sat on a sofa, perusing a brochure of C University. Dressed in an Armani suit, the pure black fabric accentuated his refined physique. He looked up and greeted her with a smile. "You've arrived." Closing the brochure, he continued, "YaYa, you don't mind if I call you that, do you?"
A blush crept onto her cheeks. "It's fine."
"A while ago, I received an invitation to speak at Maritime University, and you came to mind," he said, his gaze intense and focused on her. Her heart skipped a beat, and he smiled. The corners of his lips curled into a charming arc. "I thought, giving a lecture here might be a good decision."
His words floated in the air, meaningful, and made her mind float up thousands of possibilities. His eyes were sharp and deep, as if he could see through her, making her wonder how to accept this sudden invitation.
A knock on the door broke the tense atmosphere, gently reminding her that it was time to go. Su Yao tilted her head casually and charmingly and asked, "Will you go together?"
"No, I... I'll leave in a while." She stammered, her voice almost whispering.
He seemed surprised, his eyes deep, with a hint of curiosity, "Going to dinner with your boyfriend?"
"No," she answered more thoughtfully, "I have a part-time job at eight o'clock."
"What a pity," he whispered, with a hint of real disappointment in his tone. "I wanted to treat you to dinner as a thank you for that night." He stopped at the door, turned around and said to her, "It seems I have to see you another day."
Her smile was forced, and the fragile mask could hardly hide the uneasiness in her heart. She felt that he saw through her little desires, those secret hopes. Qin Wei's words echoed in her mind like a warning bell - Su Yao is not someone you want to get involved with.
A feeling of resistance surged in her heart, a feeling she could not fully understand or explain.
When she came to her senses, Su Yao had left the basement, and she found herself sitting there alone, full of regret. Why didn't she accept his invitation? This was a great opportunity to spend time with him.
However, when he asked, her conditioned reflex was to refuse, as if the neural pathways in her brain had been pre-programmed to respond in a way consistent with Qin Wei's warning.
Qin Wei's call came at the right time, and his tone was full of pride: "Yaya, I know what you did, fortunately you didn't accept Su Yao's invitation, I'm really happy."
Her voice trembled, shocked and scared: "How did you know?"
He smiled: "Because I am Qin Wei, Yaya is Ah Qin."
The BBS of Maritime University is well-known throughout the country and is a treasure trove of gossip and rumors that can make the Internet hot for days. The forum does not require registration to post and reply, which makes the forum more popular and has a large number of visits every day. As a teacher at the Maritime University, it is almost an obligation to go to the forum every night. Ye Shuya rarely communicates with students, and the forum is an important channel to understand the students' world.
Unfortunately, her luck was not good tonight, and she became the protagonist of forum gossip without knowing it.
As soon as she opened the forum, her eyes were attracted by a post marked in red bold font - well, does anyone know who is the beautiful woman who is having a tryst with handsome guy Su Yao in the basement tonight?
With a hesitant tap, she opened the forum post, only to be met with a blurry photo, one that captured a silhouette so familiar that she recognized it instantly as her own.
The thread was ablaze with activity, garnering an astonishing number of views and replies within a mere three hours. It was as if a spark had ignited a prairie fire, spreading curiosity and speculation across the digital landscape.
1L: This thread is going viral! I'm betting ten bananas on it!
2L: Wow, just by looking at the silhouette, you can tell it's a stunning beauty! A real stunner! Can't you all see it? Can't you?
3L: Dear, the shouting style is so last season. Come to my place to learn the Taobao style, with a 10% discount and free shipping included.
...
7L: This beauty's silhouette looks oddly familiar. Haven't I seen her somewhere before? Is she the belle of the Performing Arts Department?
8L: Belle, my foot. This is clearly our Chinese Department's ice queen beauty teacher!
...
18L: What are you talking about on floor seven? When our Teacher Ye steps out, her aura outshines all! She's not to be compared with your so-called 'flowers.'
19L: Pfft, an old woman dares to compare herself with our Hui Hui!
...
595L: I'm the OP, wiping sweat. I didn't expect this to spark a rivalry between the Chinese Department and the Performing Arts Department... My bad, my bad. Here's a frontal shot of the beauty teacher, copied from the faculty's administrative system.
...
Ye Shuya wasn't new to seeing threads about herself on the forum, but they usually criticized her teaching as cold and dull. This time, however, she found herself at the center of gossip for the first time.
She could already envision the gleaming, gossip-hungry gazes her students would cast her way tomorrow. A headache was brewing, with a dull ache creeping up from her temples.
As she shut down the forum and prepared for bed, an unexpected call from Chen Qi interrupted her. It seemed that misfortunes never came singly.
Chen Qi was like a nefarious capitalist, his countenance as repugnant as his intentions. His change in address was swift and slick, "Little Ye, the results of Little Li's recent quiz are out. He scored an unprecedented one hundred and one in Chinese. We really have to thank you. You've been working hard tutoring Little Li lately. Don't have dinner tomorrow. I'll treat you to a good meal and settle this month's wages. Little Li will join us too. Little Ye, seeing you, a woman working so hard, I feel for you. Every time I look at you, I feel like I'm looking at Little Li. I care for you like my own daughter."
Her repulsion was palpable.
Not long ago, his gaze on her was overtly lascivious, as if eager to tear off her clothes. In the blink of an eye, he was treating her like a daughter, his words dripping with feigned affection.
She was no fool; she could discern the reasons behind Chen Qi's sudden change in demeanor. However, he was barking up the wrong tree—she had no relationship with Su Yao.
With a derisive snort, she responded coldly, "Mr. Chen, I'm afraid you're too old to have a daughter as old as me."
"Haha, age is just a number," Chen Qi quickly retorted, "Six thirty tomorrow night, at Madrid Western Restaurant. I've made a reservation. Don't stand me up, Little Ye."
With nearly half a year's mortgage money in his hands, no matter how repulsive his demeanor, she would go. But this time, it would be a final farewell; she had no intention of encountering such an employer again.
"I'll be there," she confirmed.