"What are you all implying! I never said I wouldn’t let him go. I only brought Chen Yuan along because he had experience in the arts department back in high school." Liu Tingyue shot them a sidelong glance, but she wasn’t the least bit angry.
In fact, she was quite pleased by their teasing.
It made them seem very close, which was exactly why she had deliberately stuck by Chen Yuan’s side.
Knowing how a girl should take the initiative is a profound art.
Liu Tingyue believed she was toeing the line perfectly. This level of forwardness wasn’t enough to give Chen Yuan a reason to dislike her.
"Chen Yuan, I’ll save you a seat. Otherwise, you’ll have to stand for the whole meeting."
"You don’t have to, Senior Sister."
"It’s fine. It’s not like I’m guaranteed to get one anyway. If I can’t, we can just stand together."
Chen Yuan didn’t know what to say, so he simply fell silent.
He was out of his league, facing a vixen with a thousand years of practice. He made sure to maintain the boundaries of a fellow student, but her attitude always felt... off.
’If Jiangg Yao were here...!’
’She would’ve landed a flying kick on her ages ago! She’d kick Liu Tingyue’s leggings so hard the seams would split!’
’As if she’d let Liu Tingyue get away with this brazen behavior!’
The spacious, brightly lit conference room on the ninth floor was already bustling with people. Many students, regulars at these meetings, had already snagged their seats and were playfully fighting over them with their neighbors.
The atmosphere was quite cheerful.
In reality, the student council at Landa University wasn’t like the power-tripping cliques at many other colleges. On the contrary, even someone like Liu Tingyue would earnestly serve the student body.
This was because the university’s leadership was genuinely excellent, not just a bunch of old fossils stuck on formalities.
Landa University’s graduation gala went viral every year. A few years back, a performance of "The Wind Rises" by a group of upperclassmen racked up several million views.
So, even though the university was only ranked in the top ten and had never quite reached the top tier, many students still considered it their dream school.
The boisterous chatter didn’t last long.
A tall, broad-faced young man with neat, short hair walked in and knocked on a table.
"Shh! The Deputy Secretary of the Youth League Committee is here. Quiet down, and remember to welcome them in a moment."
This was Fang Tiankuo, the current president of the Landa University Student Council and an exceptionally outstanding student.
The vast conference room fell silent in an instant.
Everyone broke into hushed whispers, wondering with anticipation just who this new Deputy Secretary was.
CLACK CLACK CLACK—
The sound of high heels on the floor was distinct yet pleasant, and a beautiful figure appeared at the conference room entrance.
The heavy door was pushed open.
Jiangg Ning walked in, holding a thick stack of documents. She came to a stop at the front of the room and looked out at everyone with a smile.
Everyone was stunned. They had considered many possible candidates for the Deputy Secretary position, but they all figured it would just be one of the same old geezers.
Who would have thought it would be Professor Jiangg Ning!
In their shock, everyone completely forgot Fang Tiankuo’s earlier instruction. It took a short, sharp cough to snap them out of it, and then they all erupted into a cheer with perfect, unspoken unison.
"Whoa!"
"Professor Jiangg Ning!"
"I can’t believe Professor Jiangg got the position... It’s incredible..."
The cheers were loud enough to blow the roof off the conference room, a testament to how excited everyone was.
This was a clear sign of Jiangg Ning’s popularity at Landa University. But more important than her popularity was the fact that a young person would be managing other young people; communication and collaboration were sure to be much smoother.
Chen Yuan’s eyes also widened in shock, but after a moment, a surprised smile touched his lips.
’Is this... a surprise?’
’She didn’t say a word about it yesterday. She’s really good at keeping secrets.’
He clapped along with the other students, lost in the surging crowd. Jiangg Ning didn’t notice him at first, her expression poised as she gracefully handled everyone’s enthusiasm.
"Let’s give a warm welcome to our new Deputy Secretary of the Youth League Committee, Professor Jiangg Ning!" the student council president shouted.
Then, another round of applause erupted on cue.
With that, the meeting officially began. Jiangg Ning quickly waved her hand, signaling for everyone to quiet down.
...
"So, that’s the general overview. I’ve never been responsible for university administrative affairs before, so please bear with me and don’t hesitate to point out anywhere I can improve."
She concluded her brief remarks a few minutes later.
Jiangg Ning’s humble attitude warmed everyone’s hearts.
’As expected of our most popular professor. She has such a great personality, and she’s gorgeous... With her in charge, we’ll be totally motivated to do our student council work!’
If the female students knew what the male students were thinking, they wouldn’t spit and say, "Tch! You’re just lusting after her." Instead, they would wholeheartedly agree.
Because they lusted after Jiangg Ning, too.
The mature, "cool older sister" type was lethal to all, men and women alike.
Jiangg Ning had only just arrived. She had spent her two days in Mingzhu City doing a lot of prep work. Now, facing such an energetic group of students, she felt very happy. This was the very reason she had chosen to become a teacher.
Being with these vibrant, flourishing students made her feel young again.
"Oh, right, please pass these documents around. They contain new directives from the university president. Make sure the students who are absent today get a look at them too..." Jiangg Ning came down from the stage, handing out the files. When she reached the far left side of the room, she offered the papers with a bright smile, but as she turned her head, she suddenly froze.
’Wait a minute...’
She whipped her head back around, her eyes wide as she stared at the familiar face.
He winked at her.
In that instant, a torrent of thoughts crashed through her, washing her mind completely blank.
’This has to be a hallucination, right?’
She hadn’t seen this face, hadn’t even thought of it, in days. ’I must be hallucinating,’ Jiangg Ning thought.
She turned stiffly and started walking back to the stage, nearly stumbling and falling in her high heels.
"Professor Jiangg, are you all right?!"
"I’m... fine," she said, steadying herself against the wall while trying to act casual.
Chen Yuan, watching from the back, was amused. ’So, Jiangg Ning’s composure isn’t all that great, huh... Is she this nervous because she’s in the same room as her boyfriend, surrounded by so many students?’
Once back on stage, it took Jiangg Ning a great deal of effort to sort through the chaos in her mind. As her reason returned, she snuck a quick glance in Chen Yuan’s direction.
’...He’s really here! It’s not a hallucination!’
’And... it looks like he’s watching me...’
Out of anyone’s line of sight, Jiangg Ning clenched her fists, a mix of emotions churning within her.
’I never imagined Chen Yuan would be in the student council. Does this mean we’ll be seeing a lot more of each other from now on?’
’How is it that the more I try to avoid him, the more we end up together?’ Jiangg Ning couldn’t understand it.
"Professor, what does item twelve in this document mean? Are we supposed to comply with it too?" a student asked, approaching her.
"Ah, let me see."
"Hey, I noticed that one too. Chen Yuan, look... ’Without prior clearance, university members are prohibited from privately posting information concerning the university on online platforms...’"
Liu Tingyue leaned closer to Chen Yuan and said softly, "Does that mean we can’t post short videos, either? What a weird rule."
"I don’t know."
"Our school makes really creative recruitment videos every year. I was the one who filmed last year’s. Do you want to see it? I can pull it up for you."
"I’ll pass."
"Come on, it’s not like we’re doing anything!"
’This is so annoying,’ Chen Yuan thought, ’this thirsty Senior Sister.’
’Jiangg Ning is right here, and you keep leaning on me. Are you trying to get my meal card confiscated again??? You’re not the one who has to appease her when she gets mad!’
The ridiculous thing was, despite Chen Yuan’s coldness, Senior Sister Liu’s smile remained radiant. She was practically trembling with laughter, as if blatantly declaring to all the other girls in the student council: ’I’m very close with Chen Yuan.’
Her voice was loud enough for Jiangg Ning to notice. When she turned her head, she recognized the girl in a single glance.
It was the girl from the public lecture the other day, the one who had deliberately sat right next to Chen Yuan.
「One week later.」
And here she was, through different means, sitting right next to Chen Yuan again.
Jiangg Ning frowned slightly, a wave of irritation washing over her. A knot of sourness tightened in her chest, and she lost all interest in reading the document.
...
The meeting concluded successfully.
As the student council members began to leave, Liu Tingyue and the other girls from the arts department were the first ones out the door, moving faster than anyone.
They were in a hurry to catch the elevator.
They had been cleaning all morning and were drenched in sweat. They needed to rush to the Landa University communal showers before all the spots were taken and they were forced to wait.
Chen Yuan breathed a sigh of relief, finally feeling a sense of liberation.
But just then, Liu Tingyue turned her head at the corner and shouted back to him, "Chen Yuan, we have something to do, could you go get the files for the show for us?"
"What files?" he called back.
"The show files! Get them from Professor Jiangg Ning! Don’t forget—"
Her voice echoed halfway down the corridor. He heard her, turned, and looked behind him.
’Now, where was the Deputy Secretary of the Youth League Committee’s office again?’
...
I’m so mad! So mad! So mad!
Jiangg Ning stormed into her office and flopped into her chair. She pressed a hand to her forehead, biting her lip hard.