After Marrying the Aloof Beauty, I Totally Fell for Her - Chapter 30

Chapter 30: Do I Like Teacher Mu?

An Ning froze, and in that moment, she unconsciously loosened her grip on Mu Yan’s wrist.

The person beneath her furrowed her brows—those usually gentle eyes suddenly turning sharp.
Without warning, Mu Yan grabbed a handful of snow and smack!—slapped it right onto An Ning’s face.

“Ah!” An Ning’s vision went dark from the snow, her face stung from the cold, and she almost collapsed directly onto Mu Yan.
Luckily, she reacted quickly and braced herself on the ground in time to keep from falling.

But Mu Yan didn’t care about her “good intentions.” Taking advantage of the moment, her slender frame twisted like a slippery fish and slipped out from under An Ning.

Before An Ning could react, Mu Yan—now standing—delivered a swift kick to her backside, clearly furious.
It wasn’t hard—An Ning barely felt it through the thick layers of winter clothing—but it was enough to send her, still off balance, tumbling back into the snow’s embrace.

While brushing the snow off her body, Mu Yan looked at An Ning, who lay face down in the snow like a murder scene victim. Her mind trembled with only one repeated phrase:

Unbelievable. Absolutely unbelievable.

She hadn’t expected An Ning to do something like that—especially in broad daylight.
Sure, the only “audience” was a group of kids too caught up in their own snowball fight to notice anything, but that didn’t make it less embarrassing.

Just thinking about how she’d been pinned down, helpless, and finally had to beg for mercy made Mu Yan’s neck flush red with shame.

Wasn’t this girl well-behaved as a kid? When did she pick up so many bad habits?

Reading shipping threads, saying the wrong thing and just tackling people into the snow…

So what if you’re strong?!

After a long while, when Mu Yan had mostly brushed off the snow and her blush had faded, she finally noticed that An Ning—whom she’d kicked into the snow earlier—was still lying there.

Mu Yan: “…”

Didn’t she just swear not to speak to this person for 24 hours?

She hadn’t used much force in that kick. It shouldn’t have caused any real harm.

But it had been… what? Five minutes?

Her worry eventually overpowered the last shreds of her pride. Mu Yan cautiously walked over, not daring to crouch too close for fear of being ambushed again. She gently poked An Ning’s leg with the toe of her boot.

“You okay?”

Still no reaction. The tall girl was completely motionless in the snow—like the scene of a crime.

“An Ning?!”

Now thoroughly panicked, Mu Yan dashed over, no longer thinking defensively, and reached out to grab An Ning’s coat.

Before she could touch it, An Ning suddenly pushed herself up.

Mu Yan: “!”

Startled, she instinctively stepped back—thinking it was a trap—but An Ning simply froze there.

“Huff… huff…”
The girl panted like she’d just run a marathon, and after a long moment, slowly turned to look at her.

“ Teacher Mu…”

Her tone was timid, completely lacking the arrogance she had just moments ago when forcing her to surrender.
Her round face was dusted with snow, her hair damp and clinging softly to her forehead. Her doe-like eyes were full of panic and confusion. Her cheeks were red—like an overripe apple.

Anyone seeing this might think Mu Yan was the one bullying her. And not gently, either.

Seeing that An Ning was okay, Mu Yan’s worry morphed into justified rage from having been deceived.

“What were you doing lying there for no reason?!” she snapped, her voice involuntarily rising.

“I… I’m sorry.”
An Ning opened her soft lips but couldn’t come up with any excuse. She just kneeled in the snow like a guilty puppy, head bowed—but still clutching at the hem of Mu Yan’s pants, like she was afraid she’d leave.

Mu Yan: “…”

No matter how angry she was, she couldn’t bring herself to scold this An Ning.

“Had enough fun?”
Mu Yan let out a long breath, forcing down the burning frustration in her chest and softening her tone.

“Mhm!”
An Ning nodded vigorously.

“If you’ve had enough, then get up. What kind of posture is that?”
Mu Yan turned as if to walk away, but seeing how red and frozen An Ning’s fingers were, she couldn’t bring herself to take that step.

“Oh, okay.”
The girl quickly stood up but still kept her head down, not daring to meet her gaze.

“…Let’s go.”
Mu Yan grabbed the girl by her sleeve and started pulling her back toward their lodging.

Even though she had clearly been the one wronged, she now somehow felt… guilty?

Still caught in a whirl of conflicted emotions—anger and concern—Mu Yan didn’t notice anything unusual behind her.

Not until she turned away did An Ning finally dare to lift her head and look at her back.

Compared to herself, Mu Yan’s frame was petite and delicate.

But An Ning swore she’d never thought of Mu Yan as weak.

This woman had talents she could only dream of, stood up for her against malicious rumors, and climbed mountains at her side.
So then, why—

Why was she now so terrified?

Because just a moment ago, she had pinned Mu Yan into the snow, forced her to surrender…

Looking at Mu Yan’s reddened eyes and stubborn glare…

She had actually… felt pleasure from it.

She had even wanted to kiss her. Taste those tightly pressed lips.

If Mu Yan hadn’t smacked her with that snowball in time, who knew what she might’ve done?

The realization made An Ning tremble inside.

How was that any different from a creep?! What was wrong with her?!

She knew these feelings weren’t from reading too many fanfics. None of those ever described this kind of situation.

And the old her—she never would’ve dared do something like this.
Knowing Ms. Mu’s personality, she would’ve been completely ignored.

Could it be… I like Teacher Mu?

That single, sudden thought seemed to explain everything—but brought even more confusion.

Can liking someone really happen this fast?

She thought back on every moment she’d shared with Mu Yan. There weren’t many, but each one stood out clearly.

When they took wedding photos and she helped straighten her clothes.
Standing between her and Hong Tianjiao.
That gentle look when wiping her sweat.
Being obedient on the mountain, worried she might be upset.
That warm body in the cave.
The gentle hug after the competition…

Every one of those memories tugged her closer to Mu Yan. Made her want to understand her more. Get closer.

Is this what liking someone feels like?

She asked herself again and again, but couldn’t find an answer.

She had never been in love before—no reference point to guide her.

All she knew was that what she felt for Mu Yan was completely different from anyone else.

How could someone realize they liked another person… because they discovered they had “impure” thoughts about them?!

An Ning pulled at her hair in frustration—caught between emotional confusion and guilt.

She didn’t know how to define her feelings, and she feared Mu Yan might still be angry about earlier.

Even if she’d never been in love, she knew you don’t leave a bad impression on someone you like.

And just now? She basically used brute force to bully her.

Teacher Mu must be mad.

Her gaze dropped to the hand still holding her sleeve.

And a warm wave of comfort—and joy—rose up in her chest.

At least… she still cared about her.

Then the guilt crept back.

Her feelings for Mu Yan had mostly developed after they reunited, but Mu Yan’s tolerance of her… probably came from her past self.

But the past her—would she have wanted to kiss Ms. Mu?

Would Teacher Mu accept this new version of her?

An Ning didn’t know whether to feel jealous or grateful toward her former self.

“You okay?”
Back in the warmth of their room, Mu Yan finally noticed An Ning’s odd state.

The girl still stared blankly at her, dazed and helpless, just like when she’d first pulled her out of the snow.

Had she… gotten brain freeze?

She remembered An Ning’s arms had been trembling slightly when she held her sleeve.

“You should go shower. Warm yourself up.”
Mu Yan pushed her toward the bathroom, no longer holding onto her anger.

“Ah, okay.”
An Ning had completely lost the will to resist and let herself be pushed in.

Technically, it wasn’t really a bathroom—it was more like a small indoor hot spring. A round pool made of stone, steaming gently with clean water. There was probably a built-in filtration system.

As the steam warmed her up, An Ning’s mind cleared a little. She looked at the closed bathroom door and sighed.

The sigh echoed in the empty room—like the soft, ambiguous feelings swirling inside her with nowhere to go.

She soaked in the warm water, staring at the ornate patterns on the ceiling, slowly sorting through her thoughts.

No matter what had happened before, or whether Ms. Mu would accept it…
If she liked her, she had to at least try.

People often described An Ning as “Buddha-like.”
But the idea of giving up on Mu Yan just to avoid being disliked—it left her unwilling.

She couldn’t let today happen again.

That sharp glare from Mu Yan still gave her chills.

Not because she feared what Teacher Mu might do—
But because she feared being hated by her.

She had to treasure Mu Yan’s patience with her. And then?

She had no clue.

She had zero experience chasing someone.
She had always been the one being pursued.

She tried recalling the ways others had courted her… and realized with dread—

Most of those things would probably annoy Mu Yan.

Maybe… she should just go with the flow for now.

After all, a few months ago she hadn’t even dared speak to Teacher Mu.
Now she’d literally wrestled her into the snow.

And despite everything, Mu Yan still didn’t walk away.

She really should thank her past self.

An Ning scooped up a handful of warm water and splashed it on her face.

Nothing to be jealous of.
The things she used to do—she can do them now, too.
Maybe even better.

All she needed was time.

With her decision made, An Ning felt calmer—until she went to get dressed and discovered a major problem.

She’d been pushed into the bathroom so suddenly… she hadn’t brought a change of clothes.

There was a bathrobe, sure. But no underwear.

She glanced at her dirty laundry—still damp.

No surprise there. She’d spent a good five minutes lying in the snow, then soaked in the bath without dusting the snow off.

Should she just wear them again?

No way she could ask Teacher Mu to bring them in.

That thought hadn’t even finished forming before An Ning slapped herself across the face.

“Are you done yet? Don’t soak too long—you’ll get lightheaded.”
Mu Yan’s voice came from the door.

Startled, An Ning’s hand trembled as she reached for her underwear—and her mouth moved before her brain could stop it:
“Uh—I forgot to bring my underwear.”

Smack!
She slapped herself again.

Silence outside the door. She rushed to fix it.
“It’s okay! I’ll just wear what I had. I’m coming out now!”

“I’ll get it for you. Wait there.”
Mu Yan’s voice returned. An Ning froze, mid-motion.

Wait where?!

She looked at herself… and at the completely open, unpartitioned bathroom…
Finally, her gaze landed on the steaming pool of water.

Soon, Mu Yan’s voice came again.
“Can I come in now?”

Already crouched in the farthest corner of the pool, An Ning barely managed a shaky reply.

“…Mm.”

The door handle turned.
Mu Yan walked in, fully dressed, and placed a bag of clean clothes on the rack.

An Ning thought she’d leave immediately—
But to her horror, she walked toward the pool.

“Teacher Mu!”
Panic exploded in An Ning’s chest. She instinctively backed away, but hit the stone wall. Nowhere to hide.

Her face turned red as a tomato. She knew the steam and water shielded her, but the playful gleam in Mu Yan’s eyes made her feel like she was completely exposed.

Truth was, Mu Yan couldn’t see anything—and didn’t intend to.

Even if she kind of wanted to—she had self-respect.

But when she walked in and saw this once-overbearing girl now curled up like a scared quail, the anger she’d suppressed came flooding back—as gleeful revenge.

“Why’re you cowering over there?”
Mu Yan stopped by the edge, smirking.
“Scared?”

She might have pride, but when An Ning’s pride collapsed first, she didn’t need hers anymore.

“Teacher Mu… could you please leave? I’ll be quick.”
An Ning’s voice was nearly pleading—and even used honorifics.

She saw Mu Yan kneel by the pool, dip her elegant hand into the water, and ripple the surface with her fingertips.

She’s not coming in… right?!

An Ning’s brain flashed through a few similar fanfics, and she lost the ability to form words.

But then she realized—she was overthinking it.

Mu Yan casually flicked a bit of water at her. The warm droplets hit her face like spring rain.

An Ning shivered.

Mu Yan’s dark eyes sparkled with mischief—gleeful, triumphant, vindictive.

“Do you surrender?”

The very words An Ning had thrown at her earlier—now repeated, full of teasing and irony.

An Ning: “…Huh?”