CHAPTER 17 (PART 2)

Realizing he was teasing her on purpose, Su Yuan glared at him and threatened to blow up,
“Fine, I admit I was wrong, alright? Can we not bring up the lying thing anymore?”

Just thinking back to that scene still made her want to bash her head against a wall from embarrassment.

Fu Mobai smiled helplessly and didn’t provoke her further.

They walked side by side toward the pen repair shop. Noticing that he didn’t need to ask for directions, Su Yuan asked curiously,
“How do you know the way? You’ve been here before?”

“No, I just heard a comrade mention it.”

Su Yuan paused, remembering his exceptional memory. He was a rare talent—someone the entire military compound was proud of.

Unlike her. Aside from looking decent, no one had ever praised her for anything outstanding.

“Let’s go in,” Fu Mobai said, breaking her wandering thoughts.

When they met the repair master, Su Yuan solemnly handed over the fountain pen.
“Please help me fix this.”

The master examined it and praised, “You’ve kept it in great condition.”

Su Yuan stared intently at the pen. “Master, can it still be saved?”

“Nothing serious. Just needs a new nib.”

Hearing that, she finally felt relieved.

While waiting, Su Yuan suddenly remembered,
“I recall Grandpa Fu gave you a fountain pen too. Where is it?”

Not seeing one on his chest, Fu Mobai said with a hint of regret,
“It’s in my dorm. Didn’t bring it today.”

Unmarried bachelors in the army all lived in dorms. Since he liked peace and quiet, he had a room to himself.

Su Yuan couldn’t help wondering—would someone as neat and proper as him have smelly socks in his room?
She didn’t dare ask.

Soon, the pen was repaired.

Fu Mobai suggested they stroll through the park. Alarmed, Su Yuan immediately refused.
“Better not. My friends are going to the park today. Let’s go next time.”

The way the two of them were sneaking around felt almost like some shameful, secret relationship. Fu Mobai didn’t like that. After thinking for a moment, he decided to take her for stinky tofu instead.

They went into a small restaurant and ordered two plates of steamed dumplings with cabbage and pork filling. The sight alone made Su Yuan’s mouth water—she hadn’t had dumplings in ages.

He poured her a bit of soy sauce, while for himself he opened a jar of stinky tofu. The pungent smell immediately filled the air.

Su Yuan wrinkled her nose. “Since when do you like this stuff?”

“Today.”

He picked up a piece and popped it into his mouth—it stank, but it was delicious.

Su Yuan glared at him, realizing this man was petty and vengeful. He might say he didn’t care about her lie, but he kept finding little ways to get back at her.

He wasn’t tormenting her body, but he was certainly torturing her soul.
Absolutely shameless!

“Fu Mobai, if you like it so much, why not buy a jar and eat it every day?”

That would stink you to death. Even dogs wouldn’t come near you!

Fu Mobai lifted his eyes and reminded her,
“Call me Brother Mobai. Don’t be so rude.”

“…”

Su Yuan was furious, but with their age gap, she couldn’t really argue.

“You’re heading back to the village tomorrow?”

“Mm. I need to report to the town middle school on the fourth.”

As for her background, she wasn’t ready to talk about it.

“How will you get to work? Is there a bus?”

Su Yuan answered honestly, “Brother Jiang has a horse cart. He can take me.”

The man’s expression tightened slightly. He asked casually, “Who’s that?”

“My godmother’s nephew. You could say he’s my cousin. They treat me very well.”

Not a real cousin—just like him. Fu Mobai followed up,
“You’re staying at his house?”

“Mm. There’s no dormitory for educated youths in our village, so we all stay with villagers for now.”

Su Yuan found the dumplings too hot to eat right away.

Fu Mobai used clean chopsticks to pick up a few, put them in her small dish, then cut each in half and pushed them toward her.

The motion was practiced and natural—he used to do it all the time.

“He’s not married yet?”

“Right, he doesn’t have anyone for now.”

She took his string of questions as casual conversation, picked up half a dumpling, and popped it into her mouth.
It was just the right temperature, and the taste was wonderful.

Fu Mobai watched her eat in silence for a few seconds before saying,
“The town’s middle school should have teachers’ dorms. You could move there in the future. That way you won’t have to rush back and forth every day, and you’ll save a lot of time.”

Su Yuan felt he had a point, but she was only a temporary teacher right now, so she couldn’t plan that far ahead.

Hearing her reason for not moving yet, Fu Mobai said nothing more.

After dropping her off at the guesthouse, he stuffed two large bags of snacks into her hands and asked,
“Can I take you tomorrow?”

There’s a saying — it’s hard to refuse when you’ve taken someone’s things. Su Yuan hesitated for a moment, but still chose to refuse.
“I really can’t let you take me. For now… you can only be invisible.”

Fu Mobai gave her a long, deep look, then unilaterally decided, “Next Sunday, we’ll meet,” in a tone that left no room for refusal.

Feeling guilty, Su Yuan decided to go along with it and nodded obediently.

….

The next day.

The women’s director led everyone onto the bus for the return trip. The past two days had been full of joy, and everyone looked full of energy.

Shen Qing was still sitting beside Su Yuan. Before the bus departed, she happened to glance outside and whispered,
“Hey? Doesn’t that jeep look like Fang Erya’s boyfriend’s car?”

Following her gaze, Su Yuan shook her head.
“No.”

Because the license plate belonged to Fu Mobai.

Was he secretly here to see her off?

The thought made Su Yuan’s lips curl upward in inexplicable happiness.

As the bus started and slowly pulled out of the station, the distance between them grew farther and farther.

….

Inside the jeep.

Fu Mobai withdrew his gaze, lips pressed into a thin line, returning to his usual cold composure.

Sitting beside him, Qiu Ye found it remarkable.
“So, what’s the deal between you and that girl? When did you two start dating? You still haven’t explained it to me.”

“No explanation.”

Ignoring Qiu Ye’s wounded expression, Fu Mobai started the engine and drove back to the base.

….

Back in Baiyun Village, the village chief kept his promise and gave everyone twenty work points.

But the joy didn’t last long — it was back to the fields for autumn harvest. Shen Qing was dismayed, especially since she hadn’t managed to win over Jiang Song yet, so no one would help her.

Su Yuan, however, was going to teach at the town’s middle school, so she didn’t have to join the harvest.

On her first day, she was surprised to find that out of thirty students, only twenty had shown up.

For a moment, she wasn’t sure if the lesson should even go on.

Thanks to Jiang Yuan’s promotion and glowing praise, the students had a great impression of her and eagerly offered suggestions.

“Teacher, they’ll be back after the harvest’s over.”

“Miss Su, why don’t you play games with us? Better than just sitting here.”

Su Yuan smiled softly and opened her Chinese textbook, intending to continue the lesson. Those absent would get a make-up session later.

Hearing that class would go on, the students groaned in protest.

“Teacher, you’re really this cruel on the first day?”

“How about we have a welcome party instead?”

“Yes! Let’s welcome Teacher to our class!”

Looking at their bright, eager faces, Su Yuan’s smile deepened.

She thought of how the college entrance exams would resume in a few years, and how these students would be the lucky ones to catch the opportunity. Her heart filled with purpose.

She made up her mind to teach them well.

“Starting today, our class will have a reward system. If you study diligently and make progress, you’ll have a chance to win a prize. Also, I’ll give each of you a cloth pouch — like a little ‘wish bag.’ You can write down a wish on paper and put it inside. Whenever your wish comes true, no matter how long it takes, you can come to me to claim a reward. As long as you’re willing to work for it, your wish will come true one day.”

The class buzzed with excitement. Jiang Yuan raised her hand.
“Teacher, can the wish be big or small? Is there a standard?”

She was afraid that if it was too big, it might never happen.

Su Yuan looked at her seriously.
“You have to believe you have limitless possibilities.”

That lesson didn’t follow the textbook. Instead, she told them all sorts of interesting things about the outside world.

They listened with great interest.

“Teacher Su, have you climbed the Great Wall? Have you met the Chairman?”

Su Yuan smiled.
“I’ve climbed the Great Wall, but haven’t met the Chairman yet. Still, I believe that as long as I become more outstanding, I’ll see him one day.”

A student was puzzled.
“You’re already our teacher. Isn’t that outstanding enough?”

“There are many people far more outstanding than me. Learning never ends. Let’s all work hard together.”

And so, amidst laughter and chatter, Su Yuan’s first class as a teacher came to an end.

When the bell rang, the students came up to collect their wish bags. Some didn’t rush to write their wishes but instead admired the stitching.

“Teacher Su, did you sew this yourself? The embroidery is beautiful!”

Su Yuan nodded, not intending to hide it.
“If you like, I can teach you.”

“Really? Thank you, Teacher!”

After handing them out, Jiang Yuan quietly beckoned her over. Su Yuan understood, and stepped outside.

“Teacher Su, see that person over there wiping windows with the students? That’s the one you wanted to meet.”

Su Yuan looked in that direction. The woman had short, ear-length hair, dressed plainly, with a stern demeanor that made her seem unapproachable.

“She’s the labor instructor?”

“Yes. Everyone’s afraid of her. I get nervous whenever I see her. Why do you want to meet her?”

Facing Jiang Yuan’s puzzled look, Su Yuan lowered her gaze.
“I’ll tell you later.”

Everyone has secrets — Jiang Yuan understood that and didn’t press further.

….

At lunchtime, the students who stayed on campus rushed to the boiler room to fetch their lunchboxes.

Not wanting to trouble the Jiang family, Su Yuan hadn’t brought her own food. She planned to find something outside the school instead.

Just as she stepped out of the school gate, she spotted a familiar jeep parked not far away.

The man inside saw her and got out.

Su Yuan, startled, hurried forward, pushed him back into the car, and quickly slid into the passenger seat — the whole motion smooth and seamless.

“Why are you here?”

After spending two days together, Fu Mobai had already gotten used to his current “unspeakable” status. He leaned over, pulled two aluminum lunchboxes from the back seat, and set them on her lap.
“I guessed you didn’t bring food, so I brought you some.”

The lunchboxes were still warm. Su Yuan touched them, inwardly shocked.
“Don’t tell me… you got this from the army cafeteria?”

Fu Mobai couldn’t help but laugh, then said with deliberate seriousness,
“Of course not. You’re not officially a military family member yet — you can’t take advantage of those benefits.”