He Yan's appearance instantly silenced the crowd, while Xu Chengbo stood in the middle of the group. As he turned to look at her, his eyes reflected a mix of complex emotions—anger and grievance, but mostly an undisguised pain and disappointment. It was at this moment that He Yan truly felt that this boy had a peculiar affection for her.
He looked at her, then turned to glare at the two girls without saying a word. He then picked up his backpack and walked away from the crowd.
"Xu Chengbo." He Yan calmly called his name and said, "Your performance is coming up. Go backstage and get ready."
In the end, Xu Chengbo gave her a face. He paused for a moment, then turned and walked quickly towards the backstage.
He Yan then looked at the two girls involved in the incident. The girl who had been slapped was covering her face and avoiding eye contact, while her companion was looking provocatively at He Yan. She asked, "Ms. He, does this mean Xu Chengbo hitting someone will be overlooked? Are you trying to protect him?"
He Yan earnestly replied, "Of course, it cannot be overlooked. But we are currently rehearsing, and this incident is taking up everyone's time. Fang Tiantian, right? You need to hold on for a while. Wait for Xu Chengbo to finish singing this song. I'll have him take you to the hospital for a check-up. Don't worry, coming back late is not a problem. I'll get you both excused from your counselor later."
The greatest harm of being slapped is psychological rather than physical. It's unnecessary to go to the hospital for a check-up. With He Yan's words, the two girls were at a loss for how to respond. They glanced at each other. The one who had spoken up earlier said, "There's no need to go to the hospital. Just have him apologize publicly to us."
"Apologizing is a must. Not only should he apologize, but he also has to get checked. In any case, boys should not hit girls, as it is a matter of principle." He Yan smiled faintly and said deliberately, pausing for emphasis, "However, as a girl, always using derogatory language is also inappropriate. It's a matter of character. Don't you think so? The young lady, you're naturally quite pretty, but your speech diminishes your appearance. It's a pity! When you encounter someone with a sharp tongue, you might get a black eye. When you meet someone nasty, they might say something like 'you have a blockage in your heart, everything you see is crap.' Wouldn’t that be a tough situation for you?"
Some people couldn't help but chuckle, and the two girls' faces turned red and white, looking awkward. He Yan's way of speaking left no room for criticism; it was like a teacher earnestly educating students, making it difficult for people to find fault, and there was no other way besides direct confrontation.
But they only had the courage to gossip behind her back. When it came to a direct confrontation, they didn't dare, because no matter what, He Yan was their teacher.
He Yan ignored them and clapped her hands, loudly saying, "Stop crowding around and get on with what you need to do!"
The two girls turned and walked away, and the crowd followed suit, focusing their attention back on the stage. Most had missed the previous performers' acts, but as the performers left the stage, they generously applauded.
After the dimming and brightening of the lights, timely music began to play. He Yan recognized it as the band Blue's song "Goodbye." It was originally a song with a strong rhythm that could stir up the atmosphere. However, as the prelude ended, the melody unexpectedly slowed down.
She looked up in surprise, and on the stage, Xu Chengbo sat alone on a high chair, cradling a guitar, and softly singing with bowed head. The clear and clean sound of the acoustic guitar complemented his gentle and mellow singing, which was very pleasant to listen to, yet it carried a hint of deep sorrow.
Yan He frowned slightly, feeling somewhat at a loss for a moment facing this adolescent boy at the end of his puberty. It seemed that he thought he hadn't caused her enough trouble and insisted on finding something else for her to do.
Sure enough, the next morning, the head of the department summoned her again. Yan He was prepared, calmly asking the head of the department, "Director, I think I did nothing wrong. Can you point out what I said was not right?"
She hadn't said anything wrong, and the head of the department couldn't argue with her. In the end, he could only lightly say, "Students nowadays are not easy to deal with. You should be more cautious, especially in your interactions with students, you should be mindful of maintaining a certain distance and boundary."
In the past, Yan He would never have accepted such words, but after experiencing Fu Shenxing, these words and matters were inconsequential to her. With no intention of getting entangled with the head of the department, she smiled and nodded, replying, "Okay, I'll be more careful in the future." Secretly mocking him.
Her attitude was so amiable that the head of the department felt a bit guilty, and added, "Teacher He, rest assured, the school still trusts you, work well, and everyone recognizes your efforts."
Yan He still smiled faintly, "I will."
She returned to her office, took out the secret phone to check, but her old classmate hadn't replied yet, so there was no useful information. She turned off the phone, wrote down "Fu Shenxing" and "Shen Zhijie" on a piece of paper, trying to guess where they might intersect.
Fu Shenxing went abroad three years ago while Shen Zhijie was still in prison. Since the current Fu Shenxing was Shen Zhijie, who was the Shen Zhijie back then? And where did the original young and talented head of the Fu family, who had developed the company into the current economic giant, the proud and outstanding Fu Shenxing, go after that?
Was it a reincarnation of the soul? Shen Zhijie died, yet he was reincarnated into Fu Shenxing, the two souls merging together? Otherwise, with the background of a fugitive, how could Shen Zhijie have controlled the Fu family? Oh, Fu Shenxing was still in Spain now, and he even spoke Spanish!
Was there any better explanation other than being possessed by a ghost?
No, she didn't believe it. People die and their souls cease to exist; reincarnation is just a ridiculous notion concocted by people, it doesn't exist in reality!
If it had nothing to do with the soul, then "Shen Zhijie" must have been secretly replaced by another person three years ago, while the fake one took his place in prison, and the real one went abroad under the name "Fu Shenxing." But how did these two living people switch places in front of everyone? Did it leave any trace to track? Who could stay in prison, keeping the secret calmly and waiting for their death? Who would be the one eventually executed?
If only Officer Chen was still alive, that would be good.
Yan He unconsciously pursed her lips, hesitated for a moment, and then stood up to tear up the paper she had drawn on. Then she put on her coat and went out. There was a card-operated public telephone in the hall downstairs, but she ignored it and walked straight out of the academic building. She found a random phone booth on the side of the road and called Chen Heguo.
The phone rang a few times before Chen Heguo answered. When he heard Yan He's voice, he seemed a bit surprised, saying, "Teacher He, it's really a coincidence. I just entered the gate of your H university and was about to look for you in the English department!"
It was indeed a coincidence. Yan He asked her whereabouts, told her to walk along the main road, and hurried over to meet her. Chen Heguo's pace was obviously much slower than Yan He's, and Yan He had walked all the way to the front of the swimming pool before she saw her approaching.
However, she wasn't alone.
Yan He slightly paused in surprise, then walked up to her with big strides, politelty bending down and looking at the elderly person in the wheelchair, "Mrs. Chen, hello."