Chapter 10
Shen Yan shook hands with him, a bit surprised as he asked, “Mr. Qin knows me?”
Qin Mofeng smiled, revealing a set of bright white teeth. “Of course! I have a close relationship with Old Su; I have to report any developments he has. Oh, by the way, you should change how you address me. This ‘Mr.’ stuff is too formal. Just call me Brother Feng; that’s what my students call me.”
Old Su? Su Yunzhe?
Shen Yan used to call classmates that way in school to create a friendly atmosphere, but for some reason, hearing someone call Su Yunzhe that felt quite unexpected.
Perhaps it was because he subconsciously categorized Su Yunzhe as someone outside the realm of normal people, as if he had never experienced the life of an ordinary person.
And then there was Qin Mofeng, who wanted his students to call him Brother Feng—this style was quite unique among teachers.
However, Shen Yan had to admit that during his school days, he would have loved to meet a teacher like that.
So, his impression of Qin Mofeng inexplicably improved, and he smiled, calling out, “Hello, Brother Feng.”
This greeting seemed to please Qin Mofeng, who laughed heartily. He turned to Su Yunzhe and said, “Old Su, not bad! Where did you find such a sweet and obedient girl? You didn’t just pick her up off the street, did you?”
Su Yunzhe ignored him and walked straight toward the lakeside villa.
Qin Mofeng wasn’t having it. “Hey, hey, hey! What kind of attitude is that? Do you know how busy I’ve been lately? Tomorrow is the deadline for next semester’s teaching plan! I even made time to come see you today, which is a real act of love! You left me hanging for so long, and now you’re giving me the cold shoulder? Don’t you have any conscience?”
Su Yunzhe shot him a glance and replied indifferently, “You’re a physical education teacher for the graduating class; do you even need a teaching plan?”
Qin Mofeng protested, “What’s wrong with teaching physical education? Do you look down on P.E. teachers? Old Su, you’ve changed! Don’t you remember how much you looked forward to P.E. classes back in school? You were happier to see the P.E. teacher than your own dad! And let me tell you, I’m not teaching P.E. next semester!”
“Oh, finally got fired?” Su Yunzhe replied.
Qin Mofeng rolled his eyes. “What do you mean, fired? I’m switching to teach physics! Speaking of which, I’m really pissed off. Didn’t I tell you we got a new colleague at our school? I seriously suspect he has connections; how else could a young guy like him become the head of the senior class so quickly? Somehow he found out that I used to teach physics and switched to P.E. after transferring from Qishan High School. He personally went to see the principal and suggested that I teach the graduating class in physics next semester, citing my previous teaching achievements at Qingyuan Middle School. You know my teaching skills are top-notch; the principal saw it and immediately agreed without consulting me!”
Qin Mofeng spoke animatedly, as if he had been holding this in for a long time.
Su Yunzhe clearly had no interest in the matter. His clothes still carried the scent of medicine, so once he entered the house, he went straight upstairs to change.
Qin Mofeng didn’t mind. Since Su Yunzhe wasn’t listening, he turned back to Shen Yan and continued, “Miss Yan, can you understand how I feel right now? Do you know how wonderful it is to be a P.E. teacher for the graduating class? Before every P.E. class, all the other subject teachers come to butter me up, actively requesting to take over my teaching duties. Honestly, I’ve never felt such love from my colleagues before. But now…”
Qin Mofeng looked heartbroken, even gritting his teeth as he said, “I have to teach physics! Miss Yan, do you know how long it’s been since I properly touched a physics textbook? These past few days, preparing the teaching plan for next semester has made me more exhausted than studying for the college entrance exam. I’m pretty sure I’ve turned some of my hair gray!”
“No way, no way! Brother Feng’s hair is still black and shiny enough to do a shampoo commercial,” Shen Yan laughed, trying to comfort him, while inwardly complaining about the nickname “Miss Yan.” Qin Mofeng was really friendly; after just a couple of sentences, he had already assigned her a nickname.
Qin Mofeng was amused by him and couldn’t help but be a bit narcissistic. “It’s mainly because I, Brother Feng, am naturally charming.”
After chatting for a while, Su Yunzhe came downstairs wearing simple t-shirt and pants, his hair still damp, as if he had just taken a shower.
He didn’t pay any attention to the two and turned to walk toward the back of the living room.
Shen Yan was unfamiliar with the layout of the house and didn’t know what Su Yunzhe was up to, but he told Qin Mofeng that he was getting up to follow him.
He figured Su Yunzhe hadn’t brought him there just to keep Qin Mofeng company, so he thought he should show some awareness and not just sit there like a wooden stake.
To his surprise, he found that Su Yunzhe had entered the kitchen, and it seemed like he was going to cook.
No way? The benefactor, coming from such a background, actually knows how to cook?
This was beyond his expectations.
In his impression, that domineering CEO brother of his had never stepped into a kitchen, and most of the other aristocratic youths he knew were just as bad—he couldn’t even make a fried rice dish himself.
But Su Yunzhe had this skill?
“You really don’t mind the trouble, cooking for yourself at this hour?” Qin Mofeng followed him in and leaned against the doorframe to ask.
Seeing Qin Mofeng’s nonchalant demeanor, Shen Yan suddenly realized he had overreacted. He quickly wiped the surprise off his face and stepped into the kitchen.
Noticing some green vegetables on the sink, he reached out to wash them, but as soon as he turned on the tap, someone grabbed his wrist.
“Don’t touch the water! Get out!” Su Yunzhe’s tone was quite cold. After speaking, as if afraid Shen Yan wouldn’t listen, he directly pulled him out of the kitchen and shot him a warning glance before turning back to continue cooking.
Shen Yan stood at the kitchen door, staring at the little band-aid on his fingertip with a puzzled expression.
He just wanted to help out. After all, Su Yunzhe was his benefactor; it didn’t seem right for his benefactor to cook for him while he stood by idly, did it?
Yet he was met with hostility!
It was just a tiny cut, and it might have healed by now. Was Su Yunzhe’s reaction really that excessive?
“Come on, don’t mind him. Ever since he became a domineering CEO, he’s been all about maintaining his persona; he wasn’t like this before,” Qin Mofeng said, seemingly unfazed by Su Yunzhe’s overreaction. He pulled Shen Yan back to the living room while complaining about Su Yunzhe, “I’m telling you, don’t look down on him; he was pretty normal back in school.”
Since Shen Yan had nothing better to do and was curious about what Su Yunzhe had been like in the past, he asked, “What was Su Zong like in school?”
“Oh, just like everyone else. Don’t be fooled by how serious he seems now; back in school, he fought, skipped classes, and smoked—he did everything! If he weren’t so smart and had good grades, he’d be the typical delinquent, the kind that gives all the teachers headaches.”
Shen Yan was quite surprised.
Perhaps it was because he had labeled Su Yunzhe from the very beginning, but he hadn’t imagined that he had lived such a relatable and down-to-earth life, which wasn’t mentioned in the book.
“I can’t really picture that,” Shen Yan said with a smile, shaking his head.
Qin Mofeng said, “You didn’t think he was born this way, did you? He was young and passionate too! I remember… it was during our second year of high school. A girl in our class was bullied by some local thugs. Someone in our class shouted, ‘Hey, our class’s people can be bullied too? Let’s go beat them up!’ and all the boys in our class went to settle the score after school. Old Su went in, throwing punches left and right, hitting hard.”
“Later, this got out of hand, and the school found out. When they asked who was leading, Old Su was particularly righteous and stood up for everyone. He took the blame and got a warning for it. But it was a good thing he did, as his grades were good, and the teachers liked him, so they were quite lenient. If the student who originally led it had to stand up for himself, he’d probably have been expelled. After that, all the students in our class were really grateful to him; they would call him Su Ge, and whenever something good happened, they wouldn’t forget to mention him.”
“Really?” Shen Yan could hardly believe it.
How could someone who stood up for his classmates and took the blame possibly be the ruthless villain described in the book?
Qin Mofeng laughed. “Of course it’s true! Your Brother Feng was there the whole time. Honestly, if Old Su hadn’t been forced by his father to take over the family business right after starting college and had to deal with those old foxes in the boardroom all the time, he wouldn’t have turned out like this.”
