Chapter 103 - Regret Turned My Guts Green

After the last evening self-study session ended, Bai Yuerou and Xia Xinya bid farewell to Tang Huaijin and left the classroom together.

By rights, Shen Yiqiu was not someone who would be late, but even after everyone in the class had left, Tang Huaijin still didn’t see Shen Yiqiu’s figure in the corridor.

He waited for quite a while before he finally saw a figure slowly approaching from a distance.

Tang Huaijin was already feeling a bit impatient and was about to speak, but when he saw the person’s face clearly, the words he was about to say got stuck in his throat.

Shen Yiqiu was no longer wearing the seductive teacher’s uniform she had on during the Chinese class. Instead, she had changed into an elegant beige floral dress, looking very dignified and graceful.

What surprised Tang Huaijin the most was that Shen Yiqiu had put on some light makeup, with a bean paste-colored lip gloss. This cute makeup style made her look much younger, giving off the vibe of a girl who had just graduated from high school.

It wasn’t that she didn’t look good, but Shen Yiqiu usually had a mature and alluring style, and this pure, youthful look made him feel a bit uneasy.

Shen Yiqiu initially had a somewhat obedient expression, but upon noticing Tang Huaijin slightly frown, her face turned unpleasant, and she asked, “Does it not look good?”

“It looks good, it looks good.” Tang Huaijin dared not say it didn’t look good, although he did feel that Shen Yiqiu’s makeup wasn’t particularly exquisite, giving off a sense of discord.

“Let’s go.” Shen Yiqiu finally hummed with slight satisfaction and led Tang Huaijin out of the school.

Shen Yiqiu had her own car, a white Audi S8. Tang Huaijin’s eyelid twitched at the sight; this car wasn’t cheap. Shen Yiqiu usually dressed very modestly, giving no hint of such a well-off background.

Tang Huaijin was about to open the back seat to get in when Shen Yiqiu said blandly, “Sit in the front, the passenger seat.”

His expression stiffened, and after a moment of hesitation, he sat in the passenger seat.

Shen Yiqiu fastened her seatbelt, but due to her impressive figure, the black strap sank into a deep cleavage. Coupled with her light-colored outfit today, her fullness was particularly conspicuous.

Tang Huaijin’s curious gaze instinctively drifted over but quickly realized and hurriedly looked away.

Shen Yiqiu caught the hint of heat in his eyes, her lips curling slightly as she softly asked, “What are you looking at?”

“…” Tang Huaijin awkwardly replied, “Nothing…”

“Oh~” Shen Yiqiu’s tone was somewhat playful as she delicately reached into her neckline and pulled out a jade pendant, asking, “Were you looking at this jade pendant?”

“Uh, yes.” Tang Huaijin chuckled awkwardly, “This jade pendant is really beautiful, it must be very expensive.”

Indeed, something so large and white couldn’t be anything but beautiful.

“It is quite expensive.” Shen Yiqiu looked down at the jade pendant around her neck, her tone complex as she said, “This is the Shen Family’s heirloom jade pendant.”

Hearing this, Tang Huaijin’s gaze finally shifted to the jade pendant.

The round jade pendant was a creamy white throughout. Judging by its fine and smooth texture, it was a high-quality white jade, with dragon and phoenix patterns carved on both sides. It was indeed a piece of excellent jade, and being the Shen Family’s heirloom, it was beyond mere words like ‘quite expensive.’

Shen Yiqiu looked at him, pursed her lips, and softly asked, “Is it beautiful?”

Tang Huaijin nodded, admiring, “It truly is a fine piece of jade.”

Shen Yiqiu squinted slightly, looking into Tang Huaijin’s eyes, her red lips parting, “As long as you get a place in the national calligraphy exhibition, I will give it to you.”

Tang Huaijin frowned, asking, “National calligraphy exhibition?”

Shen Yiqiu nodded gently, taking a document from her bag and handing it to him, explaining, “The national calligraphy exhibition is the most important event of the national calligraphy association each year, held in Jingdu. If you get nominated by three local presidents of the calligraphy association, you can participate.”

Tang Huaijin then remembered the task reward he had been told about before, the entry qualification for the national calligraphy exhibition.

He took the document, glanced at it, and quickly lost interest, saying, “This exhibition is of no use to me…”

Shen Yiqiu patiently persuaded, “This is something many calligraphy enthusiasts dream of attending. Winning works can be exhibited online and in art galleries, and the first prize comes with one hundred thousand yuan, a win-win for fame and fortune.”

Fame was something he truly didn’t desire, and he wasn’t short of money now, so he couldn’t care less about a mere hundred thousand. Calligraphy was just a hobby for him; if it weren’t for his father’s last wish, he might not have even joined the calligraphy association.

Tang Huaijin shook his head, saying, “Thank you for your kindness, Teacher Shen, but I’ll pass.”

“…” Shen Yiqiu was silent for a moment, biting her lip as she said, “Even if you don’t achieve anything, I can still give you this jade pendant…”

“There’s really no need, Teacher Shen,” Tang Huaijin said softly. “A gentleman does not covet what others cherish, especially when it’s your family heirloom. It’s too precious, and I can’t accept it.”

Seeing his firm attitude, Shen Yiqiu was instantly infuriated. She shot Tang Huaijin a cold glance and scolded, “Tang Huaijin, do you know how many people envy your talent in running script? You’re wasting it! You’ve really disappointed me.”

After speaking, she didn’t bother to let him fasten his seatbelt and slammed on the gas pedal.

Tang Huaijin glanced at her with a headache but said nothing, fastening his seatbelt himself.

The Audi S8’s power was evidently strong, and soon they arrived at the entrance of Tang Huaijin’s residential area.

Stopping the car, Shen Yiqiu pushed open the door without a word and walked into the complex. After a few steps, she turned back, glared at Tang Huaijin, and said coldly, “You walk ahead, I don’t know the way.”

Tang Huaijin almost burst out laughing but held it in, nodding and walking ahead of Teacher Shen.

Inside the elevator of the building, Shen Yiqiu’s expression was unexpectedly tense. She awkwardly adjusted her clothes, obediently following behind him, watching him take out the key and open the door.

Tang Yaoyao, sitting on the sofa, had already been informed by her brother about the teacher’s visit. She quickly stood up to greet them with a smile, saying, “Welcome back, Jin.”

“Welcome…”

Halfway through her words, she suddenly stopped.

“Yaoyao?”

“…Yiqiu?”

The two women exchanged glances, both stunned.

Tang Huaijin blinked, not understanding the situation before him, and said, “Sis, this is my counselor. Do you… know each other?”

“Hehe, yes, we know each other,” Tang Yaoyao’s expression was somewhat awkward as she looked at Shen Yiqiu and asked, “Yiqiu, are you my brother’s… teacher?”

Shen Yiqiu looked at this long-lost good friend, her mouth twitching slightly, and asked, “So… Tang Huaijin is your brother?”

Tang Yaoyao nodded with a complex expression, forcing a smile, and said, “What a coincidence, come in quickly, Jin, go make some tea.”

It turned out that Shen Yiqiu and Tang Yaoyao were both students in the Chinese Department at Jizhou University, not only in the same year but also roommates, with a good sisterly relationship. Unfortunately, Shen Yiqiu graduated early after the second year, reportedly due to some family incident, and moved to Jingdu.

Since then, Tang Yaoyao had rarely heard from this best friend, only recently learning that she had returned to Jizhou City.

After the initial awkwardness of meeting, Tang Yaoyao recovered and was somewhat excited to see her long-lost best friend, pulling Shen Yiqiu to sit on the sofa and chat.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Tang Yaoyao glanced at her brother and said, “Jin, go back to your room first. I want to talk with your Teacher Shen.”

Tang Huaijin didn’t think much of it, just found it quite coincidental, nodded in agreement, and returned to his room.

Once Tang Huaijin left, Tang Yaoyao breathed a sigh of relief, looked at Shen Yiqiu, and smiled awkwardly, saying, “I really didn’t expect this…”

“Hehe, yes, I really didn’t expect it,” Shen Yiqiu was already somewhat doubting her life.

Tang Yaoyao finally couldn’t help but laugh, somewhat complaining, “Yiqiu, why didn’t you tell me my brother was your student?”

“How was I supposed to know he was your brother? You hid it so well; in two years of university, I didn’t even know your brother’s name,” Shen Yiqiu looked at Tang Yaoyao with a somewhat resentful gaze and asked, “So, when you asked if I wanted to be your brother’s pretend girlfriend, you meant him?”

Tang Yaoyao nodded, “Yes.”

Shen Yiqiu regretted it deeply, realizing she had kicked away a shortcut that was right in front of her.

But soon, her eyes lit up, and she asked, “So he and Bai Yuerou are also pretending?”

Tang Yaoyao hesitated for a while, then nodded, somewhat embarrassed, and said, “Yes.”

Shen Yiqiu felt relieved and curiously asked, “Why did you want him to find a pretend girlfriend, Yaoyao?”

Tang Yaoyao’s expression was somewhat awkward, stammering, “Jin doesn’t want to date for now, so he found a shield.”

Seeing Shen Yiqiu believe her, Tang Yaoyao also relaxed. She knew her best friend was extremely averse to physical contact with men, so she thought if Shen Yiqiu could pretend to be her brother’s girlfriend, it would be foolproof.

Unfortunately, Shen Yiqiu said she already liked someone…

Thinking of this, Tang Yaoyao’s expression turned somewhat gossipy, curiously asking, “Yiqiu, tell me, who is it that you like?”

She was genuinely curious, wondering who could make the ice-cold Shen Yiqiu, who was extremely averse to physical contact with men, have a crush.

“Hehe…” Shen Yiqiu forced a difficult smile and said, “He’s dead.”