After having dinner with Chen Jialing, he would drop me off on the way home whenever he was free. I was embarrassed at first, but sometimes I really had questions that I didn't understand and needed his help, so I often missed the bus home.
So later on, I would no longer refuse, but would take the initiative to treat him to a midnight snack.
But what I didn't expect was that the news that the new handsome and rich teacher was my high school alumni quickly spread in this small training school. I thought that training schools would be different from orthodox schools, and everyone would be more focused on their studies. But the fact is just the opposite. The students here have all been through the world, and they seem to be more concerned about such gossip and trivial matters.
Chen Jialing had only been attending classes for a week, but his reputation had already spread.
Handsome, rich, from a wealthy family, and single, these conditions meet the mate selection criteria of many young women. I just finished a physics class, and a girl who usually likes to dress up but doesn't like to talk to others suddenly came up to me. She sat next to me with a textbook in her hand, and the noise she made scared me.
"Hi, classmate." She patted the chair and motioned me to sit down.
However, I didn't really want to sit next to her, after all, the smell of her cheap perfume was really pungent.
"What's the matter?" Although I disliked her, I still paid attention to her so that I wouldn't seem unfriendly.
"I heard that you are Teacher Chen's schoolmate?" She said with great joy. There were whispers of laughter coming from all around her, but she obviously didn't care.
"Yeah." I replied.
"Does he really not have a girlfriend? That's unlikely!"
"This..." I suddenly didn't know how to answer. I didn't know much about Chen Jialing's affairs, so I couldn't say anything. So I thought about it and said directly: "I don't know either. You'd better go and ask him directly."
"Then do you have his contact information? Private?" She looked at me eagerly, with an urgent look from the bottom of her heart.
"Oh, yes, there are—"
Before I could finish my words, a cold cough interrupted us. I turned around subconsciously and saw Chen Jialing walking in with a textbook under his arm, and his eyes never left me. For some reason, I felt that he seemed a little unhappy. Did he hear our conversation just now?
I knew I was in the wrong, so I took my textbook and sat aside. The girl seemed to have noticed something and stopped asking questions.
Chen Jialing's class started like this. I have to say that he is not just a name, his lectures are really wonderful, every time I listen to his class, I can understand the difficult points very thoroughly, and I don't find the process boring. It seems that the teacher is right, he can really give me a lot of help.
It's just that this person who could help me a lot doesn't seem to want to help me now.
He still had that cold face, glanced at me casually, picked up his book and left. I held my notebook, hesitant, not daring to ask questions.
At this moment, the girl chased after him with her bag, and Chen Jialing was stopped by her.
At this moment, the students who should have left for lunch long ago all looked like they were enjoying a good show and stayed in the classroom unwilling to leave.
However , what shocked everyone was that before the girl could speak, Chen Jialing turned around and said to me in an imperative tone: "Pei Jixing, come with me."
I looked up in surprise. What was he going to do?
But before I could react, he walked around the girl in front of him and strode out of the classroom, leaving the girl standing there awkwardly.
At this moment, a familiar little girl next to me nudged me and said, "Why are you still standing there? The teacher is calling on you!"
She had an ambiguous smile on her face, and the other students all looked as if they knew what was going on.
I'm the only one who's still confused.
But she was right. Since Chen Jialing was looking for me, I should go as soon as possible. After all, he looked like someone who was not someone to be trifled with.
I thought Chen Jialing would be waiting for me in that small office, but in fact he had already put on his coat and was standing by the window at the corner of the stairs, smoking and waiting for me.
To be honest, I have never seen him smoking, let alone thought that he would smoke. After all, that is something that ordinary officials would do, so how could a deity like him do it?
Seeing me coming over, he smiled faintly and put out the cigarette in his hand.
"Teacher, what do you want from me?" I asked him respectfully, not wanting to offend him at all.
He crossed his arms, looked down at me, and looked at me with a smile, which made me feel uncomfortable. After a long stalemate, he suddenly said, "Pei Jixing, you really can torture people."
After saying this, he sighed with a look of sadness, as if he was defeated.
I looked at him in confusion, not knowing what was going on.
"I thought that after returning to China, when I saw you again this time, you wouldn't torture me like before." Although he said this, his face didn't blame me at all. The next second, he leaned over and whispered in my ear, gently and solemnly: "Stay with me, okay?"
At that time, the wind outside the window blew the hair on my forehead into a mess, and my heart became flustered.
Is all this true?
Is he crazy?
As it turned out, Chen Jialing was not crazy.
I am the crazy one.
Before I could figure out how to respond to his sudden confession, Tang Tang called me at the right moment.
I answered the call immediately as if I had grabbed a life-saving straw. I don't know if it was because he was too close to me or my phone receiver was too loud, but he could hear our conversation clearly.
"Pei Pei, are you free today?"
When Chen Jialing heard the word "Pei Pei", he was obviously surprised. After all, he only knew that my name was Xiao Xingxing, and he didn't know that most of my other friends called me Pei Pei.
"Yes, I'm free. Just tell me." I inevitably stuttered, holding the phone and not daring to look up at Chen Jialing.
"Oh, come to my house for hot pot tonight, my boyfriend will cook it for us!"
Tang Tang was about to say something excitedly, but I interrupted her immediately.
"Okay, I'll go over to help you right now!" After saying that, I hung up the phone in a hurry, said "sorry", turned around and was about to leave, but was grabbed by Chen Jialing.
"It's noon now, and she made an appointment in the evening." He looked at me amusedly, not seeming angry at all.
But my heart was still beating wildly, and every cell in my body was in a panic, like an ant on hot pot, unable to find peace.
I don’t know what’s wrong with me, I just want to see Tang Tang right away.
"There aren't many classes in the afternoon." I whispered, "I want to leave first, is that not okay?"
"Okay, I'll take you there." He smiled knowingly, but said something noncommittal.
In the end, he sent me to Tang Tang's house.
Fortunately, he did not follow me, but walked away gracefully. When I saw his car leaving, I suddenly felt extremely guilty. I don't know why, but I always felt that although he had always maintained a calm attitude, he must be very sad in his heart.
Tang Tang came over at this time. She followed my gaze and looked at Chen Jialing who was leaving downstairs. She asked curiously, "Who is it? Why haven't I seen him before?"
"My teacher," I answered mechanically, but after thinking about it, I felt that it was wrong, so I added, "He is also my schoolmate."
"Looks like he's in pretty good shape." She smacked her lips. "He made you so flustered that you skipped your afternoon classes and came to see me?"
My God, how does she know everything?
Seeing that I was very surprised, Tang Tang burst out laughing: "Hey, don't treat others as fools, okay? When he was sending you back downstairs, I saw it from the balcony. The way he looked at you was the same as the way my boyfriend looked at me when he was pursuing me. How do you think I could tell that?"
I was left speechless by these words. I sighed and looked at her helplessly.
"What about him? Do you have any feelings for him?" she asked very seriously.
"I... don't know." I shook my head. "Many times I feel that he is a mentor and friend, or in other words, a wise man from a different world from mine. In my eyes, he is like a god. There is nothing he can't do. Most of the time, I look up to him."
"So when one day this person you've always looked up to tells you that he likes you, you're stunned?"
"Maybe." I nodded confusedly, "I don't know, I really don't know."
"Alas!" Tang Tang sighed in anger and poked my head fiercely, "Pei Jixing, you really are a blockhead."
"Are you unable to be with anyone except Lu Mingyu in this life?" She crossed her arms and began to scold me, "In my opinion, this Chen guy is much better than that boy. No matter his knowledge, family background, ability, or looks, is he any worse than him?"
"That's not the case. Lu Mingyu, after all, I've loved you for so many years. It's impossible for me to let go just like that. But I've thought it through, and I'll let it go slowly." I explained, "Chen Jialing's arrival was too sudden and too unbelievable for me. It was so sudden that I didn't have time to realize whether all this was true or not, and whether God was playing a joke on me again."
"Why do you care if he's joking or not? You have nothing to lose!"
"Actually, I don't want to think so much right now. I want to study hard first. As for love, I don't have too many extravagant hopes. Tang Tang, you know, after loving Lu Mingyu for so many years, I seem to have used up all my energy."
After hearing what was in my heart, Tang Tang's angry look disappeared instantly. She hugged me without saying a word.
I rested my chin on her thin shoulder, my eyes sour: "I can't bear any more hurt, not even a little bit."