She Is So Hard To Get - Chapter 3
Chapter 3: Offense
From Yan Ningxi’s words, Ming You sensed the unique authority of a teacher, suggesting that the moniker “pretty lady” had caused the “pretty lady” some displeasure.
A slight smile played on Ming You’s lips: “I didn’t see you when I was in high school. You must be a new teacher who joined after I graduated, right? You look so young, and you aren’t much older than me. Calling you ‘teacher’ makes you sound old.”
Had she not encountered her again today at He Huan’s wedding, she wouldn’t have cared what Yan Ningxi’s name was, let alone cling to her and ask her questions like this.
Seeing that Yan Ningxi seemed distracted, Ming You called out: “Sister Yan?”
Being called “pretty lady” by a stranger in every setting made Yan Ningxi feel awkward and, even more, offended. She was relieved that Ming You had changed her address and dropped the word “pretty.”
She then thought that she probably wouldn’t see the girl again after today, so she didn’t bother arguing. She raised her hand and pointed ahead: “Those two tables are for Teacher He’s past students. Do you recognize any of your classmates?”
Ming You shook her head instinctively. She was probably the only uninvited guest at this wedding.
Without an invitation card, she wasn’t even considered a guest.
“No?” Yan Ningxi was skeptical of the girl’s answer, but she played along: “If not, and you feel uncomfortable, you don’t have to go over and eat with a table full of strangers. You’ve already caught up with Teacher He privately. Your sincerity and blessings have been delivered.”
“How could a few words of blessing be enough?” Ming You chuckled, lowered her head, unzipped her crossbody bag, and took something out: “Thanks to Sister Yan’s reminder, I almost forgot a very important matter. This is my true gesture of goodwill, and I must trouble Sister Yan to pass it on to Teacher He.”
The girl’s gaze drifted toward the stage: “Don’t worry, it’s not a cash gift. Teacher He wouldn’t accept it if it were, but she will definitely accept this sentiment. Please help me pass on a ‘thank you,’ and tell her that the item she lent me a few years ago has finally returned to its rightful owner.”
If Yan Ningxi hadn’t suddenly appeared, if Yan Ningxi hadn’t been the woman she spent the night with, and if Yan Ningxi wasn’t He Huan’s bridesmaid, this item would have likely been thrown at He Huan’s feet in Ming You’s fit of pique.
After hearing the girl’s statement, Yan Ningxi’s anger subsided a little, and a wave of compassion moved her. She lowered her eyes and agreed to the girl’s request: “Alright.”
The item the girl handed to Yan Ningxi was indeed not the typical red envelope used for wedding banquets. It was a burgundy envelope sealed with gold wax, and it felt substantial.
However, the thickness and texture she felt between her fingers suggested it was heavier than ordinary letter paper.
“Sister Yan is the bridesmaid, so I’m sure you have a lot of things to do. I won’t take up any more of your time. It’s already twelve o’clock, and I’m really a little hungry. Since I’m here, I should at least eat.” Ming You rubbed her stomach, pretending to be very hungry.
“Wait. You…”
“Hmm?” Ming You turned around, her expression innocently confused: “Is there something else, Sister Yan?”
“I just heard Teacher He call you ‘Ming You,’ right?”
“…” Hearing her name for the first time from Yan Ningxi in such a questioning way, perhaps the woman truly didn’t know who she was.
It made sense. From the moment she asked He Huan, “Can you reconsider our relationship?” on graduation day, she had completely become a hidden existence in He Huan’s world. How could He Huan possibly mention her to anyone else?
For two entire years, she had listened to He Huan, never missing a class, excelling in every subject, and receiving scholarships every year, yet even seeing her during the holidays was a luxury.
She finally realized that her so-called gamble last night had been hopeless. She had already lost from the very beginning.
“‘On a victorious day, the daylily garden is small; in the western wind, the oranges and pomelos grow long.’ My name is Ming You. Sister Yan heard correctly.” Ming You reported her name again in a more literary way.
During her senior year of high school, she memorized countless classical poems—those for the exams and those not. It was less for academic necessity and more for the person who bought her books and helped her memorize.
At the time, she always thought that how well she scored wasn’t important; being He Huan’s pride was.
She was the earnest practitioner.
He Huan, however, was the detached observer.
The girl recited an obscure, lesser-known Song Dynasty poem. Yan Ningxi had seen it in a book once, but hadn’t memorized it.
‘…in the western wind, the oranges and pomelos grow long.’
What a coincidence.
It contained both of their names.
Being able to quote such a poem made Yan Ningxi look at Ming You with a touch more admiration: “Let’s go, I’ll go with you.”
Ming You blinked, a mischievous smile on her face: “Sister Yan doesn’t trust me that much? I’m already an adult…”
“In your teens, you’re not an adult yet.” Yan Ningxi finished speaking and walked ahead of Ming You.
A boy from Ming You’s graduating class recognized her. He stood up, waved, and greeted her warmly: “Ming You, you’re finally here! I thought you weren’t coming. Come and sit here. We’re from the same year. I was the class monitor in Teacher He’s class. We met in the office before. Do you remember me?”
Ming You’s eyes, however, were cold. She had prepared not to acknowledge anyone before coming here.
Yan Ningxi noticed her detached expression, checked the time on her phone, and cautioned: “Since you’ve come alone, it’s best not to drink alcohol.”
Ming You nodded several times: “I know my limits. I won’t drink with just anyone like I did last night. Thank you for your concern, Sister Yan.”
Ming You had figured it out a few minutes ago after hearing He Huan call her “Teacher Yan” in the resting room.
The full name of Teacher He’s bridesmaid was: Yan Ningxi.
She had only learned the news of He Huan’s wedding banquet on National Day when her former high school class monitor privately messaged her on QQ, asking if she wanted to send blessings to Teacher He together. Before receiving that message, she hadn’t even known He Huan had a boyfriend, let alone that things had been quietly progressing to marriage.
She never read the occasional messages in the high school group chat, whether before or after graduation, nor had she ever added any high school classmates individually.
Among all her teachers, He Huan was the most popular. So, she wasn’t surprised that they were fiercely discussing He Huan’s wedding in the group, talking about what kind of gift to give, what the groom would be like…
She just numbly watched the messages scroll by, seeing an informed classmate reveal that Teacher He’s bridesmaid was the new goddess of the high school’s Chinese language group—Yan Ningxi.
After learning the time and location of the wedding from the message history, she left the group and didn’t reply to the class monitor.
She changed her original plan not to return to Huai’an, bought a ticket, and returned. She wanted to see for herself how good He Huan’s wedding and He Huan’s man were. She had seen it. It was nothing special.
…
Yan Ningxi was most familiar with the student representative in He Huan’s class who frequently visited the Chinese language office. She leaned over and whispered a few words to the young girl before leaving.
“That beauty seems to be from another class, right? Look quickly, is that the art student?”
“Quiet down, it is her. They say the school she got into is quite famous.”
“Tsk, who knows how many times she’s gone under the knife or had work done on that face.”
“Do you remember? In our second year, a boy in our class got into a fight with her during gym class, and he was bleeding from his nose. They were almost reported to the grade office…”
As soon as Ming You sat down, people started whispering among themselves.
Ming You, meticulously made up and dressed, wore a dark green shirt dress that accentuated her cool, pale complexion like snow. When expressionless, her demeanor was cold and aloof, perfectly fitting the image of the high-class, dominant woman from a novel.
For a pretty girl, the attention points for boys and girls were generally different, and people usually didn’t bring up gossip to her face.
With a beauty in front of them, the boys weren’t afraid of rejection. One after another, they proactively tried to strike up a conversation, but Ming You only responded selectively.
“Hello, Xuejie (senior)!” A girl with a baby face and large eyes from the next table walked up to Ming You, her voice a little timid: “I’m the Chinese language representative in Teacher He’s class, Jiang Lai. The ‘Jiang’ from Jiang Ziya, and the ‘Lai’ from Penglai Island.”
“Hello, I’m Ming You. Did Teacher Yan ask you to come to me?” Ming You was so polite to her precisely because she had seen Yan Ningxi speak to her privately before leaving.
“Um, Teacher Yan asked me, asked me to keep an eye on you…” Jiang Lai wasn’t sure if she should relay the words exactly, but Xuejie Ming You was so beautiful that she couldn’t organize new words.
“Keep an eye on me?”
“No, that’s not what I mean. It’s, well, if you need anything, you can find me… No, wait…” Jiang Lai was flustered and incoherent.
“Speak slowly. I’m not a beast, so you don’t have to be nervous.” Ming You took a heart-filled chocolate from the plate of wedding candies on the table and handed it to her, as if comforting a child: “Have something sweet.”
“Ah? Okay.”
Jiang Lai obediently accepted the chocolate, immediately unwrapped it, and put it in her mouth, chewing to relieve her inexplicable nervousness: “Teacher Yan asked me to watch you and make sure you don’t drink too much alcohol. She also said to notify her if you drink too much.”
She didn’t actually need to tell her about Teacher Yan’s instructions, but she was “tempted by beauty” and couldn’t resist coming over to make her acquaintance.
The two politely chatted about studies for a few moments, and Ming You agreed to Jiang Lai’s request to add her on WeChat.
Soon, at twelve o’clock and eight minutes, the wedding emcee picked up the microphone and delivered the familiar, unoriginal opening remarks.
In the wedding hall, a blend of pink and white, everyone’s attention was focused on the bride and groom who were kissing amidst applause and cheers. Only Ming You hung her head, blocking out the surrounding noise, and pinched her palm to calm her emotions.
The tender feelings had secretly grown in a dark crevice, briefly bloomed under the full moon in the dark night, and finally withered and perished under a storm of destruction.
On the stage, He Huan suddenly changed her mind and canceled the bouquet toss. She directly handed the bouquet, which symbolized the passing on of happiness, to Yan Ningxi.
“Yan Yan, I hope your share of happiness doesn’t arrive late.”
“Thank you.”
The bride and groom went from table to table to toast. When they reached the students’ table, everyone stood up with raised glasses, scrambling to offer various blessings. In the joyous atmosphere of communal toasting, Ming You, who couldn’t smile anymore, stood out awkwardly.
He Huan glanced at the silently standing Ming You, then quickly moved her gaze away.
Ming You sneered inwardly. She was tired of being the good student for so long, and she was sick of it.
On such a great and happy day, with two people joining in marriage, how could she not personally give the groom a wedding gift?
Just as everyone raised their heads to drink, the wine glass in Ming You’s hand slipped. The crisp sound of the stemware shattering on the glass tabletop was especially piercing amid the noise. Her dress was inevitably stained with several spots of red wine.
Ming You apologized while picking up the shards, and her left palm was cut by the glass, drawing bl00d.
“Ming You!” Seeing the bl00d flow, He Huan cried out and quickly rushed to Ming You’s side: “Let me see.”
As soon as He Huan touched Ming You’s hand, the girl pulled away.
Ming You’s sudden movement knocked the boy next to her, and the unfinished red wine in his glass spilled, splashing directly onto He Huan’s arm.
“I’m so sorry, Teacher He!” The boy apologized profusely, pulling out several tissues but hesitating to hand them over.
One moment, Ming You was showing a pained expression as she took the tissues from the boy, and the next, she forced a smile, pressing the tissues into He Huan’s hand, and said: “Teacher He, happy wedding.”
Happy wedding.
He Huan, hearing this blessing from Ming You’s lips, was not happy. She awkwardly withdrew her hand, maintaining an appropriate smile on her face, but her heart was heavy with mixed emotions.
“I also wish you a happy wedding, Mr. Jiang.” Ming You turned to the groom, picked up another drink from the table, and downed it: “This cup is my apology for breaking the glass.” She showed him no respect; he wasn’t worthy of a toast with wine.
The groom, Jiang Bin, a retired soldier, laughed carelessly and said loudly: “It’s nothing, nothing. ‘Sui Sui Ping An’ (may all breakages lead to peace and safety). Everyone, eat well, drink well, and have fun. Teacher Yan, He Huan and I are busy. I’ll trouble you to look after this female student. Thank you, you’ve worked hard today! We’ll treat you to a meal separately another day.”
Ming You, however, wasn’t done. She took a hundred-yuan bill from her bag and placed it on the table: “Mr. Jiang, is this one hundred yuan enough to buy this glass?”
Jiang Bin’s face instantly changed.
Not just him, everyone at the table was stunned.
“If it’s not enough…”
Yan Ningxi was about to step forward to defuse the situation when Ming You was pulled violently backward by someone. This action immediately drew everyone’s attention again.
The sudden force made Ming You stumble, and her waist hit a chair.
The girl who pulled her slightly nodded, smiling apologetically at He Huan: “Teacher He, please don’t worry about us. Ming You and I know each other. I’ll take her to treat her wound.” With that, she forcefully dragged Ming You toward the exit.
Yan Ningxi quickly grabbed a clean napkin from the table and motioned to He Huan: “Teacher He, you two go back to your duties. Leave this to me. It’s fine.”
“Yan Yan.” He Huan held Yan Ningxi back, her expression showing obvious anxiety.
Yan Ningxi heard her whisper: “The girl who pulled Ming You away is the class representative from my class last term. She has a strong personality. I don’t know how well she knows Ming You, but from the looks of it, it’s possible they’ve had a conflict in private.”
After He Huan finished, Yan Ningxi nodded: “Understood. I’ll handle it.”