Chapter 613
Bitter Coffee
"Han Zhou, you're joking with your teacher, right?"
Despite Han Zhou's unprecedented humility, Ouyang Lianyu's expression still turned serious.
She didn't take the coffee, letting the rising steam blur their expressions.
"Teachers don't like jokes like that."
Han Zhou did not get up, but remained in the posture of bending over to hand out coffee. However, the embarrassment on his face gradually faded, replaced by an almost solemn seriousness.
“Teacher Ouyang, I’m not joking.”
Ouyang Lianyu waved her hand, as if trying to dispel some unspeakable emotion, then stood up, her heels clicking crisply on the floor. She gently closed the office door, then sat back down in her office chair, continuing to watch her student who was still bent over.
"Teacher Ouyang, I was wrong."
Han Zhou lowered his head and said sincerely, "But I hope you can hear my explanation first."
Ouyang Lianyu did not respond.
The air seemed to have been sucked out, leaving only the ticking of the clock on the wall.
After a long silence, she finally couldn't bear it. Those stern words circled on her lips several times, but in the end, they only turned into a helpless sigh.
"Alright, you're not apologizing to the teacher, so what's the point of apologizing to the teacher? Get up."
Han Zhou did not move.
Only after Ouyang Lianyu accepted the coffee did he slowly straighten up, but he didn't dare to sit down again. He just stood there obediently like a student who had just been scolded, waiting for the teacher's punishment.
"sit down."
Ouyang Lianyu put the coffee on the table and glared at him, annoyed. "If others see this, they'll think the teacher is punishing you."
If Chen Long were there, he would definitely have a lot to say after hearing this. If Han Zhou only stood for a few seconds and that was considered corporal punishment, then what was it like to be made to clean the toilets? Was it torture?
Han Zhou then sat down.
Seeing his cautious expression, Ouyang Lianyu hesitated, unable to say anything harsh, and could only sigh: "Tell me, your third point... who is the third girl you like, Zhong Ling or Wang Lengqiu?"
"Wang Lengqiu," Han Zhou answered honestly.
"I knew it was her..."
Ouyang Lianyu rubbed her temples. "It seems you've already seen that photo. What, was that photo enchanted? Not only did it make Wang Lengqiu wait for you for so long, but it also made you fall in love with her in just a few days?"
She knew perfectly well what Han Zhou had done by taking so many days off last week.
Han Zhou hesitated for a moment, then gave a wry smile: "You could say that..."
"Ok?"
Ouyang Lianyu almost laughed out of anger. Although she didn't have the heart to say anything harsh, the thought that this guy had only taken a few days off from school and already had another woman on his side made her feel increasingly suffocated. That's why she couldn't help but make a sarcastic remark. Unexpectedly, he actually went along with it and admitted it.
"Then tell me, what kind of magic is it?"
Han Zhou shook his head: "This matter is very complicated to explain, and I can't tell you yet, at least not right now."
"you……"
Ouyang Lianyu thought he was just being perfunctory and was about to say something, but after thinking about it carefully, she realized that as a teacher, although she should educate and nurture students, she didn't really have the right to interfere in his love life. So she had no choice but to suppress her discomfort.
"Forget it, I don't care anymore. You figure out how to explain this to Guzheng and Mo Yixia yourself."
Noticing that she was upset, Han Zhou quickly said, "Teacher Ouyang, I'm not lying to you. I really can't tell you the whole story yet. Not just you, I can't tell anyone else for the time being."
Ouyang Lianyu adjusted her glasses, remaining noncommittal: "So, how many people have you told about your affair with three men?"
“Strictly speaking, you are the first…”
"What if it's not strict?"
"The second one, Yixia guessed it herself..."
Looking at Han Zhou's obsequious demeanor, Ouyang Lianyu felt a strange thought. Making Han Zhou feel her authority as a teacher was something she had always wanted to achieve, but now that the day had finally come, she began to dislike the feeling. "Don't use 'you' anymore. We're friends now."
"what?"
Before Han Zhou could react, Ouyang Lianyu continued to ask, "Why did you tell me first?"
Han Zhou was stunned for a moment: "Because..."
"Is it because you think only I am willing to help you?" Ouyang Lianyu interrupted him.
Han Zhou nodded awkwardly: "To be more precise, I feel that only you, teacher, will tolerate me..."
Despite feeling completely trusted, Ouyang Lianyu felt a strange and inexplicable sense of loss welling up inside her.
Since she couldn't get angry at Han Zhou, she simply took off her glasses, avoided looking at his face, and tried to put on a stern face, saying irritably, "No wonder you never respect me at all. So you think I'm that easy to talk to?"
She didn't notice that, without realizing it, her way of addressing herself had completely changed from "teacher" to "I".
Perhaps it was because they hadn't seen each other for so long, Han Zhou felt that Teacher Ouyang was acting a bit strange today. After hesitating for a moment, he honestly replied, "She is indeed very easy to talk to."
"you!"
Ouyang Lianyu was speechless for a moment, her chest heaving violently. Just as she was about to say something, the office door was suddenly pushed open, and two female teachers walked into the office and greeted Ouyang Lianyu.
She had no choice but to suppress her turbulent emotions, put on a professional smile, and politely respond.
Han Zhou was a regular at this office, and the two female teachers obviously recognized him as well, greeting him with smiles: "Looking for Teacher Ouyang again?"
Han Zhou nodded with an awkward smile.
One of the female teachers glanced at the lunchbox on Ouyang Lianyu's table, her smile deepening as she said enviously, "I wish I could have as much popularity as Teacher Ouyang someday."
Another teacher joked, "Even if you have the same popularity as Teacher Ouyang, you might not be able to find a student who is willing to bring you meals regularly."
As they talked, they smiled and said goodbye to the two men, then left the office with their lesson plans.
He does not mean that.
Before this, Ouyang Lianyu had always thought that the reason Han Zhou was so respectful to her today was because he needed her help.
But now that I think about it carefully, even when he didn't need my help, he would often come to bring me food and help me with chores. Otherwise, my two colleagues wouldn't be so familiar with him and would be able to exchange a few jokes with him whenever they met.
She then realized that she had been so angry that she had almost forgotten these obvious things.
So she put her glasses back on and finally saw that Han Zhou was "sneaking around" looking at her. She couldn't help but feel a little helpless: "What are you looking at?"
"I wasn't looking at anything." Han Zhou subtly shifted his gaze.
Ouyang Lianyu didn't mind and picked up the cup of coffee on the table, which had already gone cold: "You should go back first. I might not be free this weekend. If I am free, I will go to Guzheng's house with you."
Han Zhou was taken aback: "Aren't you going to lecture me?"
When did I ever lecture you?
Ouyang Lianyu rolled her eyes at him. "I told you, the person you've wronged isn't me. There's no need to apologize to the teacher. When you really need to apologize, the teacher won't be able to help you."
"Go back now, the teacher is about to eat."
Han Zhou wanted to say something more, but Ouyang Lianyu waved her hand, signaling him to leave.
He had no choice but to turn around and leave the office.
In the office, Ouyang Lianyu watched his departing figure, then looked away and took a sip of coffee.
Although a little sugar was added.
But it was still bitter.
At least on this point, Han Zhou still hadn't figured out her taste. (End of Chapter)