MTB - Chapter 2
Chapter 2: Teach... er... Tang?
Yun Yang, an outstanding third-year student in the Chinese Department with a 4.0 GPA, and a well-known player whose exes and current flings could fill a 100-person lecture hall, was now facing the most unprecedented disaster of her life.
“...I only came to our university last year. I currently teach specialized courses in ancient literature and some electives related to traditional arts,” Tang Yuelou said, pausing for a moment. A gentle smile touched her lips as if she had thought of something, and then she continued, “There should be some third-year students from the Chinese Department here. If you choose my course next semester, we may meet again.”
Tang Yuelou’s makeup was light today, reminding Yun Yang of their first meeting. Back then, she had been on the lecture stage, speaking about traditional Chinese painting to over a hundred students. Her expression was no different from when she held a wine glass in the nightclub—both times, she was effortlessly in her element, completely within her professional domain. It was just that Yun Yang was in no mood to appreciate it now.
She stared at Tang Yuelou without blinking. For a fleeting moment, she truly wanted to stand up and demand an explanation, but she managed to restrain herself. Then she thought about pulling out her phone to ask for clarification on WeChat, only to remember that she had already blocked her.
Tang Yuelou had never mentioned that she was a teacher, just as Yun Yang had never told her which university she attended. Yun Yang had only heard that she owned a small shop near University Road and had naturally assumed she was just the manager of a porcelain store.
No, wait. Yun Yang frowned. Could this possibly be her fault? Was it because she had never asked? How could there be such a coincidence? Was Tang Yuelou messing with her?!
Didn’t that mean she was completely screwed for this class?
“Yangyang?” Guan Yan asked, confused. “What’s wrong?”
“I remember you went to the Academic Affairs Office to drop a class after the semester started last year,” Yun Yang asked. “What’s the process?”
“I couldn’t drop it. They won’t let you without a valid reason. You have no idea how fierce that teacher in the office was, so damn arrogant.”
Yun Yang was speechless.
“What class are you trying to drop? My advice is, unless you have a reason you absolutely have to drop it for, just bear with it. Don’t go looking for trouble.” Guan Yan waved her hand, recalling the unpleasant memory. “Let’s not talk about that. I just asked a senior. He took this teacher’s elective last year and said she gives really high grades. Can you believe the lowest score was an 89? An 89, and that was the lowest! It’s a shame she’s only teaching us for two weeks… Sigh, if she taught for the whole semester, I’d never skip a single class.”
“The teacher is my ex-girlfriend. Does that count as an ‘absolutely have to drop it’ reason?”
It took Guan Yan two seconds to react. She put down her phone and thought for a slow moment. “Which ex-girlfriend?”
“...The last one.”
“What?!”
Even for someone as open-minded as the Pacific Ocean, Guan Yan’s jaw nearly hit the floor. This was quite possibly the juiciest piece of gossip she had heard since starting university. She couldn’t process it right away. Putting herself in her friend’s shoes, she thought that if it were her, upon seeing Tang Yuelou right here, right now, she would have probably used her toes to dig a hole on the spot and escape the classroom.
In reality, Tang Yuelou was just conducting a normal lecture. There was no “special attention” or “retaliation”—at least not yet. It was as if she hadn’t even noticed that the person who had left without a word was sitting right below the lectern.
But the two of them still slipped out of the classroom after the first session. With over a hundred people in the lecture, no one would notice.
They ended up at a milk tea shop on campus. Guan Yan pushed a large, full-sugar bubble milk tea in front of her, trying to comfort her friend. “Have something sweet.”
“No, thanks.” Yun Yang was agonizing over a friend request she hadn’t sent yet. “I’m quitting sugar,” she mumbled.
“But I don’t think it’s a big deal. It’s a relay course, after all. Worst case, you just don’t come next week. The final is an open-book exam anyway.” Guan Yan thought for a moment. “She probably won’t take the opportunity to retaliate… I mean, she’s not entirely blameless, so there’s no need for her to make things difficult for herself, right?”
“...Is that so.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t test her professional ethics. Just go apologize. Be sincere.”
“Absolutely not,” Yun Yang said decisively.
There was no way she would be the first to back down. She knew she wasn’t entirely in the right, but she was still defiant.
“I’m dropping the class tomorrow,” she declared, her head held high.
Yun Yang was always a woman of her word. If she said she was dropping the class, she was dropping the class. The next day, she rushed to the Academic Affairs Office just as the workday was ending.
The course selection period had just finished, so the office was crowded with students. The line stretched from the doorway all the way to the stairwell, and she was unfortunately the last one in it.
“Whoa, so many people.” The girl with her checked the time. “The staff gets off in an hour. Think we’ll make it?”
The girl who had come with her was Zheng Yufan, a junior she had met at Guan Yan’s birthday party. She was the center for the university’s women’s basketball team, had short hair, and was the type who was often mistaken for a handsome guy and asked for her WeChat—not Yun Yang’s type, but she was great as a friend.
Zheng Yufan had originally asked her to a movie today, but when she heard Yun Yang was going to the Academic Affairs Office to drop a class, she had volunteered to come along. Yun Yang hadn’t wanted to move things along so quickly, but feeling a bit short on confidence, she wanted someone with her, so she agreed.
Now, with the movie starting in forty-five minutes, Yun Yang secretly celebrated the convenient timing while sighing theatrically. “I’m sorry. If I’d known, I wouldn’t have let you come with me. Now we might miss the movie, and I’ve wasted your time.”
Zheng Yufan looked a little disappointed but still offered comfort. “It’s okay, Senior Sister. Your thing is more important. We’ll have other chances to see a movie.”
“Thanks.” Yun Yang moved a little closer, blinked, and smiled sideways at her. “Then how about I treat you to dinner next time we go out?”
In most social situations, “next time” basically meant “never,” but coming from her, it somehow took on a flirtatious tone that invited speculation. Zheng Yufan glanced at the hand Yun Yang had placed on her arm and suddenly felt a little shy. “Okay…”
“By the way, Senior Sister, why are you dropping this class? Didn’t people say it was pretty good?”
Yun Yang’s lips twitched.
“It’s nothing.” She composed her expression. “It’s just a time…”
“It conflicts with my internship schedule.” This was the “valid reason” she had found after asking several seniors. Yun Yang had even managed to get a fake certificate made. She was determined to succeed this time. But before she could finish her sentence, a commotion started at the front of the line. The students filling the hallway parted to create a path.
Yun Yang instinctively leaned against the wall, and when she saw the person walking against the flow of people, she cursed “holy shit” in her head.
The meaning of “enemies always cross paths” became crystal clear the moment Yun Yang saw Tang Yuelou.
Tang Yuelou looked like she had just finished a class, carrying books and a laptop. The metal frames of her glasses glinted coldly under the hallway lights. Dressed in a blouse and slacks, she walked with an air of confidence, yet she smiled gently as she nodded to students who greeted her. Yun Yang subtly tried to hide behind Zheng Yufan, hoping Tang Yuelou wouldn’t see her, or that she would just ignore her like she did in class… but her hopes were dashed.
“Yun Yang, what a coincidence,” Tang Yuelou said, stopping in front of her with a smile. “Here at the Academic Affairs Office for something?”
Yun Yang let out a soft “tsk” as if she had a toothache.
“Senior Sister, this is?”
“My teacher,” Yun Yang said with a hollow laugh. “But not for long.”
Zheng Yufan was confused.
Her words were a provocation, almost a tantrum, but Tang Yuelou either didn’t understand or didn’t care. She showed no sign of anger, simply smiling faintly and adjusting her glasses. “It seems you left class early last time?”
“I did. So what?” Yun Yang tossed her hair back and met her gaze directly. “Teach… er… Tang?”
Zheng Yufan was speechless.
Why did that not sound like the tone one uses with a teacher?
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