Chapter 39: Alluring

At 10:30, after checking the dorms, He Huan came out of the girls’ dormitory building and walked side by side with Yan Ningxi, half a meter apart.

He Huan turned her head to look at Yan Ningxi several times but said nothing, her mind swirling with myriad thoughts.

If judging solely by facial features, she and Yan Ningxi each had their own beauty, equally matched. In terms of height, she was two or three centimeters taller than Yan Ningxi, giving her a slight edge. But in body proportions, Yan Ningxi had the golden ratio, with a slender build that made any outfit look stunning on her. He Huan’s figure was fuller, and if the clothes didn’t match perfectly, she would look plump. Overall, Yan Ningxi won with her temperament.

These points circulated widely among the students and on the forums, naturally reaching the teachers’ ears as well.

She had never felt inferior about her looks or figure, nor had she developed any rift with Yan Ningxi over the students’ teasing. But after repeatedly recalling the scene of Yan Ningxi and Ming You embracing on the street, and Ming You’s utter deference to Yan Ningxi, she began to lose confidence.

She didn’t want to admit that Yan Ningxi was better than her, didn’t want to admit that Ming You and Yan Ningxi were such a “perfect match.”

As they neared the school gate, Yan Ningxi spoke first: “Does Teacher He have something to say to me?”

He Huan’s tone was melancholic: “Seeing her again today and noticing the changes in her gave me some feelings.” The girl’s obedience had taken on a new form, no longer exclusively hers.

“Rough jade can be polished and refined.” Yan Ningxi never thought Ming You was a stubborn rock.

“You’re still the one with the real knack for it.” He Huan forced a light laugh. “This can serve as your model case from now on, right? By the way, what did you decide about the principal’s invitation for that monthly ‘parental mental health education seminar’?”

“A long-term themed seminar involves complex preparations like topics, cases, and organization. It can’t be rushed.”

“Haste makes waste. We have to take it one step at a time.”

A car on the roadside flashed its hazard lights. As they headed out, the horn sounded.

It was Jiang Bin.

“Mr. Jiang is here. See you tomorrow, Teacher He.” After bidding farewell, Yan Ningxi turned toward the apartment.

“Yan Yan.” He Huan called out and followed a few steps to draw closer to Yan Ningxi, but not to see her off. “I’m really glad to have made a friend like you these past two years.”

It wasn’t hard to hear the deeper meaning in those words. Yan Ningxi curved her lips slightly: “Teacher He, I hope we’ll always be friends.”

He Huan didn’t respond to Yan Ningxi’s “hope,” just smiled: “See you tomorrow.” Their sisterly bond, which should have deepened into total openness, hit a snag halfway and was forced to diverge at the fork toward silence.

Was it fate playing tricks?

Perhaps from the first time she asked Yan Ningxi for help, it was destined that she and Yan Ningxi would drift apart.

Life was like that—gaining some things meant losing others.

…

Ming You sat on a bench outside the neighborhood. This spot seemed to be her real base, her lookout post. Yan Ningxi had told her to go back and wait, but when she reached the gate, the night breeze tripped her up. She wanted to wait and go back with Yan Ningxi.

“Sister Yan.” Seeing Yan Ningxi approach from afar, Ming You went up to her and held her hand.

There weren’t many people around, and even those who were hurried past: “Why not wait at home? This is a windy spot. You just got over a cold—how could you be so willful again?”

“I missed you. I wanted to spend more time with you, even if just ten extra minutes. It makes me happy.”

“Sweet talk. You’re getting more and more improper.”

“I’m clearly working hard to be an artist with words. Of course, I also want to be a master of actions.” She even sighed as she said it. “Sigh, to avoid Teacher Yan thinking I’m shameless, I won’t come back this weekend. I’ll stay at school and focus on preparing for the competition. See how sensible I am? Now Teacher Yan can’t find any reason to say I’m messing around, right?” The girl was fishing for praise again.

“Mm, very sensible.” When the girl did something right, Yan Ningxi didn’t hesitate to praise her.

“Sister Yan, while I was waiting for you just now, I thought of something tricky.”

“What is it?”

“Well, you won’t let me come back every week, and I left my car keys with you. If Teacher Qi has time this weekend, could you ask her to take the car out for a drive?” She shook the hand she was holding. “Can you? Sister Yan?”

“Sure.” Though she didn’t understand the mechanics behind it, the girl’s coquetry was something she truly couldn’t resist. “Stop shaking. Talk normally.”

Once inside, Ming You placed the flowers on the shoe cabinet. Without even changing shoes, she spread her arms and hugged Yan Ningxi. This woman must have cast some spell on her—why else would she always want to hold her hand, always want to hug her?

Yan Ningxi indulged her every time, never refusing. So what were her intentions?

Ming You “repaid” Yan Ningxi’s indulgence with abandon. A quick, light kiss landed on Yan Ningxi’s cheek: “I’m going to take a shower.”

Yan Ningxi leaned against the wall, her heart pounding like a drum.

When Ming You came out of the shower holding her clothes to toss into the washing machine, Yan Ningxi stopped her: “Leave them. I’ll wash everything together later.”

Ming You didn’t think much of it, assuming it was to save water, so she put the clothes back in the laundry basket and went to the bedroom to lie on the bed and play games. Before long, she fell asleep.

By the time Yan Ningxi came out of the bathroom, she had hand-washed both of their outfits.

Returning to the room, she saw the girl sprawled asleep without even a blanket. With a sigh tinged with worry, she quickly pulled the covers over her, checked if her hair was dry, plugged in her phone to charge, and then went to hang the clothes.

When she finally finished tidying up and lay down on the bed, there were several unread messages from Luo Yongjun on her phone.

【Luo Yongjun: I booked the hotel for next Saturday night.】

【Luo Yongjun: Book your flight early and tell me the flight info. I’ll head over Friday and pick you up at the airport Saturday.】

She turned on silent mode and replied.

【Yan Ningxi: Thanks. You focus on accompanying the professor and them. I can just take a cab there myself.】

【Luo Yongjun: Don’t stand on ceremony with me. The professor would definitely want me to pick you up, or he’d scold me.】

【Luo Yongjun: Do you remember? Back in my third year of grad school, the first person to ask if we were dating was our sharp-eyed Professor Zhang.】

【Yan Ningxi: It’s late. You should sleep early too, senior brother.】

Just as she finished typing, the girl rolled over, her right arm slipping out from under the blanket and draping across her.

Yan Ningxi set her phone aside. Seeing the light at the top of the screen flash once, she ignored it. Lying down properly, she took the girl’s hand and tucked it back under the blanket.

The girl’s side of the bed was warm, unlike hers, which stayed cold year-round.

While doing her skincare, she spotted the hair tie from He Huan in the small trash bin on the windowsill. Was it discarded like trash because the item was useless, or was the girl making some statement?

The girl’s thoughts were sometimes hard to fathom, sometimes obvious. Overall, as long as she didn’t push too hard and gave her enough patience, things stayed within control.

How long could she keep it under control? And was the cost of control merely patience?

Thinking of the girl’s kiss, the light in her eyes when she looked at her, the smile on her face, her own racing heartbeat, the unstoppable concern—Yan Ningxi found it hard to sleep.

Lust clouds the mind. Was it destined to come true?

…

On Friday, the monthly exam results for the senior year came out. Jiang Lai’s language arts score set a new personal record, taking first place in her grade for the first time.

【Jiang Lai: Senior, I actually got first in language arts! My essay scored high too.】

【Ming You: Amazing! [Strong]】

【Ming You: Keep pushing in your other subjects too. Improve overall.】

【Jiang Lai: Teacher Yan teaches one class—the one that won the drama award—and their language arts average shot up this month, way ahead as the top in the grade.】

【Jiang Lai: Last month’s exam, our class was first in language arts. This time, second. [Cry]】

【Ming You: No one wins forever. National ping pong team excepted.】

【Jiang Lai: Haha, couldn’t agree more. Learning never ends. I’ll keep steady and improving. [Hehe]】

【Jiang Lai: Senior, I don’t think I’ve told you—Teacher He has used several of your essays as model examples, lecturing on them in both our classes.】

【Ming You: Next year, she’ll be teaching yours from this batch.】

【Ming You: Picked two books for you. They’ll arrive at school this weekend—check your phone.】

【Jiang Lai: Aaaah! Senior, you’re the best! [Heart]】

【Jiang Lai: Thank you, senior!】

A strong wind blew during the day, carpeting the campus of Hengyuan Media University with ginkgo leaves. In past years at this time, Ming You would have seen only desolation, but this year, she picked up the leaves and folded one into a golden rose.

One flower, one world. One leaf, one Bodhi.

The same scenery felt different with a changed mindset, leading to different insights.

Ming You skipped her night run that evening. She set out from the dorm and strolled the quiet paths around campus, letting the moonlight “wash” her heart.

After chatting with Jiang Lai, she didn’t care much anymore about the mention of He Huan.

Sitting on a stone bench under a streetlamp by the lake, she watched groups of young men and women or campus couples pass by, which stirred her longing for Yan Ningxi. Once ignited, the longing ran wild like a horse without reins.

They had only been apart less than a day.

…

Yan Ningxi was hanging clothes when the video call rang, making her heart skip.

She never made video calls herself—not to her father, not to Qi Xuexin, certainly not to colleagues. Few people called her either.

The last video group call was on her twenty-sixth birthday in March, when Qi Xuexin and her college roommates had planned a group birthday wish.

Seeing “My” on the screen, Yan Ningxi’s heart trembled even more wildly.

Should she answer?

Pretend she didn’t hear?

As a teacher, how could she ignore it?

Yan Ningxi removed her hair tie, smoothed her hair, sat on the sofa, and pressed accept.

“Sister Yan.” Ming You’s enlarged face appeared, the lighting dim, darkness behind her.

“You’re still outside? It’s really dark there.”

Ming You looked up at the streetlamp behind her. The bench was closer to the pole, so she was backlit. She stood decisively under the light: “Now? Can you see?”

“Mm, brighter now.”

“Sister Yan, do you always wear your pajamas this sexy when I’m not around?” Ming You hinted, poking the screen with her finger.

Yan Ningxi looked down.

The top button of her pajamas was undone. The collar already sat below her collarbone; with the first button open, leaning forward would expose her.

Should she button it?

Yan Ningxi’s fair fingers tugged the collars together but didn’t fasten the button. Her lips curved slightly: “This conservative pajamas—where do you see sexy?”

In this moment and scene, the words that came to Ming You’s mind besides “sexy” were “alluring.”