After the New Year holiday.

Ling Ling took a week off to return to Y City for Cao Zijin’s wedding. At the wedding, she watched the boy she’d secretly loved for years become someone else’s groom, and felt utterly miserable. At the same time, she couldn’t help comparing herself to the bride.

The more she compared, the angrier she got.

Whether it was her figure, her looks, or even her aura, Ling Ling was convinced she blew the bride out of the water.

Unfortunately, no amount of sulking would change anything. When Cao Zijin brought the bride over to their table to toast, Ling Ling could only smile and play nice.

For some reason...

She suddenly found herself missing that little city in the south—or, more accurately, missing that sweet, gentle big boy. But the moment she remembered that the boy had someone he liked, she felt even more down.

To be honest...

Ling Ling didn’t think this meant she had any improper feelings for Lin Zishen. She figured she’d just been feeling a little empty after Cao Zijin’s wedding, which was why she kept thinking about Lin Zishen.

During the New Year holiday...

Ling Ling had chatted with Lin Zishen on WeChat. In a moment of impulse, she’d asked him outright if he had a crush on Shan Shan. As soon as the question left her mouth, she found herself hoping he’d say no. Things didn’t go her way.

After that...

For reasons she couldn’t explain, she told him about her own crush on Cao Zijin, then used it to urge Lin Zishen to give up sooner rather than later.

She didn’t know what had gotten into her. She used to want to help Lin Zishen win Shan Shan over, but lately, she didn’t want to see them together at all.

Ling Ling thought it over for a long time, then blamed the change on her professional ethics as a teacher—and her jealousy. “Cao Zijin and I couldn’t make it work, so what makes you two think you can?!”

That was more or less how she felt.

A week later...

The day before Ling Ling was due to leave, her best friend Qin Man called. A decent private high school in Y City was hiring an intern music teacher.

“Ling Ling, don’t go back to that little city in the south,” Qin Man said over the phone. “Just take the music-teacher job at the high school I told you about. The pay’s good, the benefits are great, it’s close to home, and no one will bully you. What’s not to like?”

For just a moment, Ling Ling was tempted. A boy’s face flashed through her mind, but she still turned her friend down. “Manman, thanks for thinking of me. I want to stick it out a little longer. It’s already early January, so I should at least finish the semester. I’ll see how things look next semester.”

Qin Man nagged her for a little while longer.

But Ling Ling still insisted on staying in that little southern city.

……

Late January.

It wasn’t Friday. School let out at five that afternoon.

Ling Ling had just finished work. She was walking from the office back to the staff dorm and planned to pick up a package at the school gate on the way. When she was less than five meters from the gate, she happened to see Lin Zishen and Shan Shan talking there.

Even though it wasn’t Friday, Shan Shan was a day student, so she was still heading home at that time.

Ling Ling saw the whole thing. Lin Zishen had approached Shan Shan to start a conversation. She listened to him absentmindedly as she took out her earphones and put them in, then left campus while the boy watched her go.

Ling Ling saw the boy’s dejected, lonely silhouette. Without thinking twice, she walked up to Lin Zishen’s right side and tapped his left shoulder.

Lin Zishen snapped out of it almost instantly. In the same moment, he perked up and smiled at Ling Ling.

Ling Ling was a little surprised. She couldn’t help admiring how strong and sensible the boy was. Well, how should she put it? She was growing fonder of this student by the day.

Of course...

It was only a teacher’s fondness for her student.

During the New Year holiday, Ling Ling and Lin Zishen had already had a heart-to-heart over the phone. She’d asked him directly if he had a crush on Shan Shan, and he’d admitted it without hesitation.

She didn’t have to hold back anymore. Putting on a slightly irreverent, grown-up act, she reached out, rose onto her tiptoes, and gently ruffled the boy’s messy hair. “Don’t be sad.”

Lin Zishen looked a little put out and muttered, “You and Ai Guo—one of you likes patting my head, and the other likes throwing an arm around my shoulders... I really can’t deal with you two teachers.”

To be honest...

Lin Zishen minded Ai Guo throwing an arm around his shoulders quite a bit. Mostly because Ai Guo’s figure was just too good. It made it way too easy to have dirty thoughts.

But he didn’t mind Teacher Ling Ling ruffling his hair. Things were a little strained between him and his family, and they rarely showed each other affection. Deep down, he probably still craved care from an older person.

So he thought of Teacher Ling Ling as an elder, and it all felt perfectly natural.

Ling Ling teased him. “It’s fine. You’re already 1.8 meters tall. Even if my touching your head stopped you from growing any taller, it wouldn’t be a big deal.”

Lin Zishen gave Ling Ling a faintly aggrieved look and let out a soft snort. “Hmph. Fine. You touched my head, so you have to buy me dinner.”

Ling Ling got the feeling Lin Zishen was being just a tiny bit clingy right then. The wolfish boy had turned into a sweet little puppy—so adorable, she loved it. The thought hit her right in the heart. Distracted, she nodded. “Sure. Come with me, then.”

It was the first time Ling Ling had invited Lin Zishen to eat in the staff cafeteria.

To put it simply, the staff cafeteria was just the third floor of the student cafeteria.

Ling Ling was a little cautious. She didn’t want the school administrators to catch her sneaking a student upstairs for a meal, so she waited until the cafeteria rush had passed, after five-thirty, before taking Lin Zishen to the staff cafeteria.

She didn’t have much choice.

Ling Ling already had a terrible reputation. If the school administrators caught her privately eating with a male student, she’d probably be called in by the disciplinary office.

Back to the present.

In a corner of the cafeteria, Ling Ling noticed that Lin Zishen still looked unhappy. Feeling they were fellow sufferers, she decided to tell him about Cao Zijin’s wedding. Sure enough, it caught his interest.

Lin Zishen asked, “Oh... Is he the perfect-score guy you told me about on WeChat last time? No wonder you took time off last week to go home. You were going to his wedding.”

After saying that...

Maybe he thought Ling Ling had it rough, because he put the chicken drumstick from his own bowl into hers. She laughed at him and said, “In the end, it’s still my money, one way or another.”

Lin Zishen looked a little embarrassed and rubbed his chin. “When I start working, I’ll treat you to dinner all the time.”

“Yeah, right. How old are you? You’re only in your second year of high school. Count it out—there are at least five years until you graduate from college.”

“No, no, I won’t get into college. I’ll probably go to a vocational college. Then I can do it in four years!”

Ling Ling looked at the boy beside her, speaking with such conviction, and the gloom in her heart lifted all at once.

Then she seemed to notice something. She lowered her head, took a packet of tissues from her pocket, and affectionately wiped the grease from the corner of the boy’s mouth.

Lin Zishen was a little slow to catch on. He didn’t seem to mind what she was doing.

Ling Ling sighed again. “Four years... By the time you start working, your teacher will probably be old.”

Seeing Ling Ling looking so wistful, Lin Zishen thought she was still caught up in the sadness of watching the boy she’d loved for years get married. He suggested, “If I remember right, Teacher Ling Ling, you like drinking. I’ll make time to have a drink with you.”