Chapter 32

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What kind of decorum would it be if teachers argued in front of students?

Yi Rushi might not care about her own face, but Ye Yixuan absolutely couldn’t lose hers!

After the four of them exchanged glances for a moment, Ye Yixuan cleared her throat lightly to break the silence. Upon learning that neither Lu Wuqi nor Lan Xu had eaten lunch yet, she directly waved her hand and declared that she would treat them.

It wouldn’t look good for a teacher to lead students to eat at a roadside stall, so after asking for Lu Wuqi and Lan Xu’s opinions, Ye Yixuan used her status to bring her two students and a certain thick-skinned ex-girlfriend who wanted to get back together back to school. The four of them each ended up with a metal tray and appeared at a table in the faculty cafeteria.

“Have the exam results come out yet? What’s your GPA?” Ye Yixuan positioned herself in the teacher’s seat and began inquiring about the students’ academic situation.

Lan Xu, who had been caught eavesdropping, answered honestly, “We just finished the exam, and the system hasn’t updated the scores yet, but it should rank in the top thirty percent of the major.”

“One of the conditions for honors evaluation is ranking in the top thirty percent of the major,” Yi Rushi added appropriately.

Ye Yixuan turned her head and gave Yi Rushi a look, then said flatly, “Although it’s been over seven years since I graduated, my memory is still pretty good.”

Yi Rushi cleared her throat lightly and stuffed a mouthful of white rice into her mouth to cover her slight embarrassment.

Ye Yixuan sighed inwardly. She didn’t want her ex-girlfriend to lose face in front of the students, so she quickly added, “Teacher Yi, have you handled everything on the school’s side? I remember teachers’ holidays start a bit later than students’.”

Yi Rushi immediately swallowed the rice in her mouth upon hearing this and sat up straight like a student being questioned. “I’ve handled it all. The exams for the subjects I teach were scheduled on the first day of exam week. Before I came here, I’d already graded the scores and uploaded them to the system.”

“Is that so? That’s good,” Ye Yixuan replied, then began eating as well.

The seating arrangement for the four was actually quite interesting. Originally, Lu Wuqi and Lan Xu had planned to sit facing each other, but Ye Yixuan sat down first, and Yi Rushi quickly took the seat beside her.

As a result, Lu Wuqi and Lan Xu ended up sitting on the same side, which made it a bit harder for them to exchange dishes. On the other hand, the little interactions between their class teacher and Teacher Yi were almost impossible to hide from their eyes.

After chatting for a few sentences, the people at the table fell quiet. Aside from the sounds from outside, all that remained was the clinking of chopsticks against metal trays.

Lu Wuqi’s appetite was always a bit bigger than Lan Xu’s. With both their trays full, Lan Xu would feed some of her food to Lu Wuqi, trying not to waste any.

With two teachers sitting right in front of them, Lan Xu’s feeding motions became a little unnatural. She only used her chopsticks to pick up a few pieces of meat at the very beginning.

In comparison, Lu Wuqi was much more natural. She picked up the dishes her girlfriend liked with her chopsticks and fed them directly into her mouth, skipping the step of placing the food on the tray for the other person to pick up.

When Yi Rushi saw this scene, a flash of envy appeared in her eyes. After secretly observing Ye Yixuan’s expression, she quickly picked up a piece of braised pork and placed it on the other’s tray.

“Teacher Ye, you’ve worked hard proctoring the exams. Eat more to replenish your strength,” Yi Rushi said.

Seeing the extra braised pork on her white rice, Ye Yixuan paused her chopsticks mid-motion. Her gaze lingered on it for a second before she picked it up with her chopsticks and set it aside.

Upon noticing that her food seemed to have been rejected, clear disappointment appeared in Yi Rushi’s eyes, and her shoulders drooped slightly, making her look a bit dejected.

But this disappointment didn’t last long. After Ye Yixuan took a bite of her white rice, she picked up the braised pork again and put it in her mouth.

“Yixuan, the head chef at your school’s cafeteria has really good skills,” Yi Rushi perked up immediately and picked up another piece of braised pork while speaking.

“That’s enough. If the skills are good, you eat more,” Ye Yixuan frowned and said in a lowered voice. “Don’t give me any more. I already got my own food.”

“Got it, I’ll listen to you.” Yi Rushi’s response was loud and clear, even drawing curious glances from the teachers at the next table.

Ye Yixuan: …

Sure enough, she shouldn’t have softened and said anything extra. Who knew better than her how good Yi Rushi was at climbing up the pole shamelessly?

Lu Wuqi and Lan Xu exchanged food while watching the drama, keeping their heads buried low.

They had no choice—if they looked up, the gossip gleam in their eyes would be impossible to hide.

–

Ye Yixuan still needed to proctor exams in the afternoon, so after finishing lunch, she started shooing them away. Without exception, all three were forced to leave the school.

“Teacher Yi, we’re planning to go shopping this afternoon. Want to join us?” Lan Xu asked at the school gate, tentatively extending an invitation.

Yi Rushi glanced at the little couple with their hands in the same pocket and gently shook her head. “I’ll just find a place nearby to sit. I’m waiting for your class teacher to get off work.”

“But Teacher Yi, our school has more than one exit. If the class teacher is heading home, the other car-free exit is closer,” Lan Xu reminded her. “Maybe you should ask the class teacher?”

Yi Rushi smiled. “I know. In a bit, I’ll message Yixuan and tell her where I’m waiting. If she wants to see me, she’ll probably choose the main gate.”

“If I don’t see her, I’ll just have to keep trying harder,” Yi Rushi said, pausing before adding with a self-mocking tone, “I need to keep trying harder anyway.”

Lan Xu blinked, then a flash of realization crossed her face.

Was this the tug-of-war between teachers? So profound and thought-provoking.

“Hope Teacher Yi gets what she wishes for,” Lu Wuqi offered her sincere blessings, then took her girlfriend’s hand and left.

Let the teachers sort out their own emotional entanglements. Xuxu would be heading back to her hometown in a few days—she needed to make the most of their time together!

–

On the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth lunar month, Lan Xu went back to her hometown with her parents for the New Year. Unable to meet Lu Wuqi in person before leaving, she could only video call as a farewell.

“It’s fine. When you’re home, we can video whenever you’re free. I’ll wait for you to come back,” Lu Wuqi said with a smile. “Go on. I hear Teacher Du urging you.”

“Got it. Wait for me to come back.” Lan Xu hung up reluctantly.

She was just going back to her hometown for a short trip—why did it feel so inexplicably sad?

It was all Lu Wuqi’s fault for being too good to her and sticking to her every day. The thought of being apart for more than ten days without seeing each other made her want to cry for no reason.

After the video call ended, Lu Wuqi stared blankly at her phone screen until it auto-locked after three minutes.

Xuxu wouldn’t be back until the ninth day of the first lunar month—they’d be apart for a full twelve days, almost two weeks.

“System, Duan Qian has been taken away by the police for investigation. Xuxu’s fate should have changed, right?” Lu Wuqi suddenly asked.

The usually unobtrusive System suddenly perked up. 【Of course. I’ve told you before, Host. Once you appeared here, any events from the original trajectory are just references.】

【Simply put, everything changed the moment you met Lan Xu.】

“Is that so? That’s good,” Lu Wuqi said, though her wistful mood left her feeling listless.

Love really was a magical thing—it could change her so much. Was she even the same person as before?

【Host, every Lu Wuqi is you. You don’t need to dwell on it. At most, the one from another world is a bit more impressive, so you can influence any Lu Wuqi.】

【Put it this way: If this world’s Lu Wuqi went to another world, she’d at most give you an extra memory. It wouldn’t affect you much.】

“Why?” Lu Wuqi keenly caught the logical flaw in the System’s words. “By that logic, when I came to this world, my mind should dominate. So why did I… completely fall apart the moment I saw Xuxu?”

【Well…】 The Redemption System started hemming and hawing. 【Maybe because you’ve never been in love, Host? So you fell in love at first sight with Lan Xu. Uh, you know I’m just a newly created system—I can’t give a specific explanation.】

The Redemption System spouted a few random lines, then quickly went offline, claiming it was busy.

Hm? That reaction was clearly off. If it truly didn’t know, it wouldn’t react like that.

The Redemption System’s evasive attitude made it seem like it knew something but couldn’t say it.

–

Mother Lu had always made it a habit to eat both dumplings and rice dumplings for New Year. Even though it was just her and Lu Wuqi at home this year, she still wrapped nearly a hundred meat rice dumplings as usual.

After boiling them in batches in a large pot, she even had Lu Wuqi deliver six to each of the left and right neighbors as New Year greetings.

Mother Lu had no intention of visiting the Lu Family relatives, and as for her own maternal family, she just made a phone call without any plans to meet those so-called blood relatives.

“Mom, want to go see a movie tomorrow? There are lots of New Year films showing. I saw the trailers—they look pretty good,” Lu Wuqi said, popping dumplings into her mouth one after another.

“Will the theaters be open on the first day of the lunar new year? Won’t it be too crowded?” Mother Lu was a bit tempted. She had never tried going out to play on New Year’s Day before.

In past New Years, Mother Lu had always been busy with chores. If Lu Fu took her back to his hometown, she was the hardest-working among the sisters-in-law, handling all the dirty and tiring tasks.

Not only did she have to prepare food for the whole big family by herself, from buying vegetables and washing them to cooking, only Lu Wuqi would help her.

The other relatives either sat chatting or lounged in other homes bragging. At best, they’d offer polite words without lifting a finger.

The most ridiculous part was that Mother Lu, who did the most work, didn’t even have a seat at the table back home. She only got one after the kids finished and left.

After Lu Fu’s right hand was crippled, things changed a bit.

Perhaps worried about being pestered or simply unwilling to lend money to Lu Fu, the Lu Family didn’t invite him and Mother Lu back for the holiday.

Handling meals for just three people was easier for Mother Lu than at the Lu Family hometown, but Lu Fu wouldn’t stay idle. If they didn’t go back, he’d call over three or five so-called friends to eat and drink at home, leaving Mother Lu as the one doing the most work again.

“The theaters will be open, and the mall will have events. We can get you a facial and a new hairstyle,” Lu Wuqi said.

She hadn’t had the ability to change her mother’s situation before, but now she had enough confidence to give Mother Lu a truly happy and joyful New Year.

“Mom, how about trying a travel New Year? We could leave on the third day of the new year, play around, and come back on the eighth,” Lu Wuqi suddenly suggested.

If two people celebrating New Year felt too lonely, they could go somewhere lively. Anyway, she didn’t need to work during the holiday, and Xuxu wasn’t by her side.

“Travel? Won’t that be inconvenient?” Mother Lu hesitated. Traveling during New Year was too novel for her. Weren’t people supposed to rush home from outside during New Year? Going traveling would be going against the flow.

“No inconvenience at all. I’ll rent a small sedan,” Lu Wuqi said, a solid plan forming in her mind.

Seeing how confidently Lu Wuqi spoke, Mother Lu didn’t object.

She only had one daughter left now. If her daughter wanted to take her out to have fun and see the world, she’d happily go along.

–

Mother Lu went to bed early after watching a bit of the Spring Festival Gala. Lu Wuqi wasn’t very interested in it and sat cross-legged on the sofa instead, holding her phone and chatting with Lan Xu.

Lan Xu: Driving off for a trip? Great idea. Remember to buy lots of local specialties on the way back.

Lu Wuqi: “Sure, once I get to the new place, I’ll take photos for you. You can look at them as much as you want, and it’ll count as you having been there.”

Lan Xu: “No way. I have to see it with my own eyes, truly experience it, and breathe the local air before it counts. Just looking at photos misses way too much of the fun.”

Lu Wuqi: “Then how about we go out and play during summer vacation?”

Lan Xu: “Sounds great! By then, I should have my driver’s license, and we can take turns driving!”

Lu Wuqi: “Deal. Then I’ll be the pioneer this time and scout ahead for any pitfalls.”

Lan Xu: “Then this tough mission is all yours! Make sure you complete it with top quality and quantity.”

Lu Wuqi: “Yes, ma’am!”

After seeing Lan Xu holding her phone and grinning foolishly, Mother Lan’s eye twitched. She couldn’t help but speak up. “Xuxu, who are you chatting with?”

“Lu Wuqi. I’m chatting with Lu Wuqi,” Lan Xu said without hesitation. “Lu Wuqi said she plans to take Auntie on a trip to some other place for fresh air in a few days. I told her to buy lots of souvenirs for me.”

“Oh, really? That’s great. Very thoughtful,” Mother Lan replied. She swallowed back all the words she wanted to say and went back to watching TV intently.

She really shouldn’t have asked that question!

Who else could make her daughter grin like a fool while clutching her phone? It could only be Lu Wuqi, the one who had lured her daughter away!