Chapter 43: Fourth Day After Recovering Memory

It was the weekend.

Jiang Wan sprawled over her desk, chewing on the end of her pen as she wrinkled her nose at the problems on her worksheet.

She recognized every individual character, but when they came together, she just couldn’t make sense of them.

Part of it was that she genuinely had no idea how to solve them, and part of it was that her mind wasn’t on the questions at all.

She scratched her head and slumped back in her chair in defeat.

Then she quickly grabbed her phone and sent a message to the person she’d been thinking about nonstop.

Good Night: Is Little Bei free today? There are so many questions on this physics worksheet that I don’t know how to do. Could you teach me? Just tutor me a bit, okay?

Wife (Tree): Sure.

Ever since regaining her memories, Jiang Wan had changed all of Bei Huai’s contact names to “Wife.”

With her wife’s straightforward reply in hand, Jiang Wan was so thrilled that she hugged her phone and spun in circles right there on the spot.

Good Night: Great! Then let’s meet at the milk tea shop on Xin’an Street Corner.

She’d originally planned to suggest a coffee shop but changed it to a milk tea shop after some thought.

Once Bei Huai agreed, Jiang Wan eagerly started picking out her outfit.

Oh, right—she’d need to do her makeup too.

She turned to rummage through her vanity for cosmetics.

But all she found was a single tube of lipstick.

Only then did it hit her what age she was right now.

Sixteen.

The most innocent and unadorned age of all.

With a sigh, Jiang Wan gave up on any elaborate primping. She dressed in her usual style from memory, gave herself a quick once-over, and headed out.

By the time she arrived at the milk tea shop, Bei Huai was already seated inside.

No telling when she’d gotten there.

The girl’s hair had grown out quite a bit and was now styled in a wolf cut, with a few stray strands falling over her forehead. She looked both cool and edgy.

She wore a gray sweater jacket, her chin propped on one hand, her eyes lowered in focus on something on the round table. A cup of milk tea sat beside her.

The usual aloofness and defiance were gone, replaced by a touch of weariness and laziness.

Just watching her from afar filled Jiang Wan’s heart with uncontainable joy.

She pressed her lips together in a smile and hurried inside, sliding into the seat across from Bei Huai. Propping her cheeks on her hands, she stared straight at the other girl.

“You’re here.” Bei Huai didn’t even lift her eyelids. She just extended her hand. “Give me your worksheet. I’ll see which ones you got wrong first.”

Jiang Wan touched her nose guiltily.

She’d asked Bei Huai out under the pretense of studying, but really, she just wanted to see her.

Luckily, she’d remembered to grab the worksheet before leaving.

“Here.” She fished it out of her bag and handed it over, then sat up straight and proper.

Bei Huai took the worksheet and instinctively glanced up.

The girl across from her wore a vintage British-style long skirt and a beret hat. Her almond eyes and snowy cheeks held a misty gaze, like a little deer bounding through the woods at dawn.

When Bei Huai looked her way, Jiang Wan immediately broke into a grin, flashing her little tiger teeth, her eyes curving into happy crescents. She was utterly adorable.

It felt like something had struck Bei Huai’s heart—not painfully, but with an itchy, tingling sensation. She lowered her head and coughed lightly to cover her fluster.

“What’s wrong? Do you have a cold?” Jiang Wan toned down her smile, asking with genuine concern.

Her worry clouded her judgment; she didn’t catch the subtle shift in the other girl’s expression.

“It’s nothing. Let’s go over the questions first.”

Bei Huai steadied her emotions and spoke with forced calm.

“This one isn’t hard, really. As long as you…”

“Then apply this formula, and you’ll get the final answer. Got it?”

After her detailed explanation, Bei Huai looked up, expecting Jiang Wan’s reaction—only to find the girl staring blankly at her, clearly not paying attention to the lesson.

“Oh, yeah, I think I get it a little.” Jiang Wan snapped back to reality and gave an embarrassed smile.

She didn’t mean to zone out, but with the object of her constant daydreams sitting right there, she couldn’t help herself. As Bei Huai spoke, her gaze kept drifting back to her face.

Bei Huai took a deep breath. “Fine, I’ll go over it again. Listen carefully this time.” She emphasized the last three words.

She only had this kind of patience with Jiang Wan. Anyone else, and she’d have lost her temper and walked out.

Actually, no—she wouldn’t tutor anyone else, period.

“Got it, Teacher Little Bei.” Jiang Wan nodded vigorously, looking perfectly obedient.

She remembered how it was in her previous life. Whenever she got bored, she’d have Little Bei explain her research to her. Little Bei would earnestly go through it all, only for Jiang Wan to snuggle into her arms, bat her eyes, and shake her head like a rascal, claiming she didn’t understand.

Every time, Little Bei would ruffle her hair, smile helplessly, and explain it again without a hint of impatience.

Looking at the faux-obedient girl across from her, Bei Huai wanted to roll her eyes, but the corners of her mouth tugged upward first.

Teacher Little Bei.

It had a nice ring to it.

This time, Jiang Wan stayed focused, hanging on every word.

About halfway through, Bei Huai ordered a glass of lemon juice for Jiang Wan.

Before Jiang Wan even arrived, Bei Huai had already ordered a glass of lemon juice. Unexpectedly, the girl finished it off in just a few sips while listening.

“Let’s take a little break.” She picked up the milk tea beside her, took a few sips, and set it back down.

“Little Bei got the strawberry milk tea? I want to try some too.” Jiang Wan spoke up out of the blue.

Bei Huai didn’t have time to react before Jiang Wan naturally picked up her milk tea and took a sip from the same straw.

“So sweet.” Jiang Wan set the milk tea back down.

“You…” Bei Huai wasn’t sure what to say.

It wasn’t germaphobia or anything like that—it just felt too intimate to share a straw.

“What’s wrong?” Jiang Wan looked even more puzzled and innocent.

But after seeing the awkwardness on Bei Huai’s face, she instantly realized her mistake.

She had gotten ahead of herself, too used to sharing food with her wife, forgetting that Little Bei wasn’t her wife yet. They weren’t even officially together.

With no other choice, Jiang Wan pretended she didn’t notice, sparing Little Bei any further embarrassment.

Bei Huai pursed her lips and murmured, “It’s nothing.” Then she silently sipped her milk tea through the straw, her ear tips quietly turning pink.

Once the tutoring session ended, the two of them left the milk tea shop.

Jiang Wan suddenly suggested, “My mom’s flower shop is right nearby. Want to go check it out?”

This… this was basically meeting the parents!

Bei Huai’s mind swirled with a thousand thoughts. Though her heart raced with nerves, she kept up a composed front. “Sure, why not.”

They stood at the crosswalk, waiting for the light to turn green.

A moment later, the green light flashed on.

But just as Bei Huai took a step forward, a deafening crash echoed from nearby.

She jumped in fright and whipped her head around. At the intersection, two cars had slammed into each other, their front ends crumpled. Vehicles behind them screeched to halts, jamming up the road in every direction.

Gasoline pooled across the pavement, the windshields shattered into countless shards mingled with streaks of blood.

Chaos erupted on the scene.

Bei Huai wasn’t close enough to make out the people inside the cars, but it didn’t look good.

Someone nearby had already called the police and an ambulance, so she didn’t rush over.

Car accidents were beyond her power to handle anyway.

But when she turned to check on Jiang Wan, she found the girl’s face ashen white. She stared fixedly at the crash site, her eyes hollow and lifeless, her entire body shaking violently.

“Wanwan, what’s wrong?” Bei Huai’s gaze darkened as she gripped the girl’s shoulders and frowned. “Talk to me.”

“No… no!” Jiang Wan seemed trapped in a nightmare. She clutched at her hair and screamed, her eyes brimming with terror.

Bei Huai had never seen Jiang Wan this fragile before.

A dense ache bloomed in her chest. Pursing her lips, she pulled the girl into her arms.

Her hands firmly covered Jiang Wan’s ears.

“Don’t be scared,” she whispered softly.

“Wanwan, don’t be afraid. I’m right here with you.”

She had no idea what had come over Jiang Wan or what had triggered her.

But she knew one thing: right now, Jiang Wan needed her.

Time passed—she wasn’t sure how long. By the time the police and ambulance arrived, Bei Huai’s arms ached from holding them up.

The girl in her embrace finally calmed down.

“You okay now?” she asked gently.

Jiang Wan nodded. “Thanks.”

Somewhat relieved, Bei Huai loosened her hold and stepped back.

But the instant she did, Jiang Wan grabbed her wrist.

Then, she felt a pair of soft lips brush against hers.

The kiss was featherlight, gone in an instant.

The girl’s voice murmured in her ear—soft and sticky-sweet as ever, but the words set Bei Huai’s heart thundering.

“Little Bei’s embrace is so warm.”

“Little Bei’s lips are so sweet.”