Hidden Assassin 134

“You…” Hearing Jia Ming’s words, Dongfang Wan’s smile froze on her face. She took a deep breath, suppressing her urge to lash out. “I wasn’t joking!”

“Actually, neither was I…” Jia Ming shrugged lightly, waving his hand with a smile. “Uh, never mind. What’s up?”

Originally, Dongfang Wan was so furious that she wanted to swear, but Jia Ming’s “never mind” blocked all the words in her throat. She pursed her lips. “It’s like this, you know about the school anniversary?”

“Yeah, I know.”

“Could you please perform a program?”

“Sure.”

“Huh?” Unprepared for Jia Ming’s quick agreement, Dongfang Wan was momentarily stunned. “Uh, well…”

“Six hundred bucks per performance, wearing a mask on stage.”

“…”

“Uh.” Looking at Dongfang Wan’s expression, Jia Ming sincerely said, “Why are you looking at me like that? Don’t get angry, look, we’re classmates, I’m already giving you a discount. Usually, we perform at Bluebird, three thousand bucks a month, one performance a week, averaging seven hundred fifty bucks per performance. Considering this is a school event, I’ll give you a twenty percent discount. If you’re bad at math, you can use a calculator. See, seven times five is thirty-five, five times eight is forty, it’s exactly six hundred, right?”

“Gu Jia Ming——”

In an instant, Dongfang Wan’s shout echoed throughout the classroom. Some students who were still packing up and hadn’t left were surprised and looked over. Even those in the corridor outside subconsciously stopped and looked at what was happening inside: The always assertive Dongfang Wan was standing with her hands on the desk, while the usually shy and introverted Jia Ming was cowering in his chair, his cheeks slightly twitching.

Taking two deep breaths, Dongfang Wan remembered her original intention and suppressed her anger. It was strange. She could calmly control her emotions around others, but with Jia Ming, she always ended up losing her temper again and again. In the end, maybe it was because she knew about some of Jia Ming’s outstanding qualities hidden beneath his ordinary appearance, so subconsciously, she treated him differently than others.

“You… Do you have to talk about everything in terms of money?” Sitting back down, her voice lowered, Dongfang Wan said through gritted teeth. “Are you really that short of money?”

“I’m just taking what I deserve.” Leaning back against the chair, facing Dongfang Wan who was leaning forward with anger, Jia Ming said, “This little bit of class funds shouldn’t be a big deal, right?”

“Don’t even think about it.” Dongfang Wan put her hands on the desk, her voice firm. “I won’t spend class funds on something like this. If you really want money, I can give you six thousand, sixty thousand, six hundred thousand, what does it matter if you sell yourself to me? Can’t you just do something for the class?”

“Selling myself is a different price.” Jia Ming chuckled nervously. “Don’t come any closer, everyone is looking at us.”

Dongfang Wan breathed heavily and turned to look. Sure enough, everyone was still looking over, her face flushed slightly. “Hmph, anyway… I absolutely won’t pay class funds for this.”

“Then there’s no point in talking.”

“I don’t understand.” Looking at Jia Ming who started packing up again, Dongfang Wan asked, “You’re clearly not short of money, why do you always act like this? It was the same with the basketball team last time. If you didn’t like it, you could have just refused. Why did you have to charge by the hour? Even if your skills are better than Michael Jordan’s, they won’t let you in again.”

“You know I’m not short of money?” He rolled his eyes at her, casually saying, “I told you, it’s what I deserve.”

“Of course you’re not short of money, Huang Jia gives you enough. Plus, Ye Ling Jing and Liu Huai Sha don’t need your money to support them. They’re not like that—neither of them are your girlfriend, Ye Ling Jing isn’t, Liu Huai Sha isn’t either!”

Although her voice wasn’t loud, the content was definitely shocking. Seeing Jia Ming suddenly stop moving, Dongfang Wan felt like she had hit the nail on the head. She smiled and stood up, meeting his eyes.

“What else do you know?”

“Hmph, see, I got it right. I’m saying, Ye Ling Jing and Liu Huai Sha aren’t your girlfriends. Even though you live together, you’re just using them as a cover! Nothing’s going on between you.”

Jia Ming nodded. “Of course nothing’s going on between us, we’re just friends.”

“Hmph, pretend! Keep pretending!” Dongfang Wan proudly raised her chin, then smiled and looked towards the classroom door. “Look, Teacher Ya Han is here to find you. Have you decided? I’m not paying class funds!”

“Then there’s nothing I can do…” Carrying his bag, Jia Ming sighed. “Six hundred bucks a time, do it or don’t.”

“You…” Seeing Jia Ming walk out without caring, Dongfang Wan stomped her foot in anger. She wanted to say something, but Ya Han, with a stern face, was already calling out at the door. “Gu Jia Ming! Get out here! You were late again yesterday, right?!”

“I’m sorry, Teacher Ya Han, I won’t do it again.”

“You’re always like this. I’m not letting you take the final exam this semester unless you give me a proper explanation!”

“I’m sorry, Teacher Ya Han, I won’t do it again…”

In the light rain, students in twos and threes looked towards this scene. Ya Han’s strictness was well-known in the school. Actually, it had a lot to do with her family background. Many wealthy students with influence in the school didn’t dare disobey her. Otherwise, if this Teacher Ya Han went to their homes, they would basically lose a few deals. But in the eyes of others, over the past year, she had encountered a difficult situation – this Gu Jia Ming right here.

For nearly a year, Jia Ming’s impression in the school was mostly one of being withdrawn, cold, and ruthless in his pursuit of victory. After he demanded payment when the basketball team invited him to join, another label was added to his description: Money-hungry. But even though everyone criticized him, there was one thing that had to be admired – he was the only one who could repeatedly make mistakes and completely disregard Teacher Ya Han. This scene in the corridor had played out many times over the past year.

Being late, skipping class, leaving early, sleeping in class… Jia Ming, whose grades always hovered around the passing mark, was always good at avoiding major mistakes but constantly making minor ones. Therefore, he was often called in by Teacher Ya Han to be reprimanded. However, no matter what Ya Han threatened him with, Jia Ming always bowed his head and apologized with sincere regret. “I’m sorry, Teacher Ya Han, I won’t do it again…”

After repeating this phrase like a mantra so many times, it became completely meaningless. And from the reality of it, Ya Han, who could handle everything else in the school, had never been able to do anything about this annoyingly sticky piece of gum.

Except for the Dongfang siblings who had deliberately investigated and knew some of the inside story between this teacher and student, the rest of the people naturally looked on in admiration. This time was no exception. After n repetitions of “I’m sorry,” when they reached a deserted area, Ya Han whispered, “What were you doing with Dongfang Wan just now? Did the young couple have a fight?”

“Yeah, that’s right.” Jia Ming smiled and nodded, taking the blame without any shame. “We young couple had a fight.”

“Why?” Ya Han blinked.

“I saw a saying once that I thought was very fitting. See, it’s raining today.”

“So what?”

“The rain is falling from the sky. I guess it’s the Jade Emperor crying. He must be unhappy with his marriage to the Queen Mother. This unhappiness has two possibilities, one is that the Queen Mother left, the other is that the Queen Mother refuses to leave… Guess which one is us and Dongfang Wan?”

“Go to hell.” Seeing no one around, Ya Han kicked him. Water splashed on Jia Ming’s pants. “Don’t be a smartass! Tell me!”

“Yeah, she wants me to perform at the school anniversary.”

“I’m guessing you didn’t agree.”

“Troublesome.” Jia Ming said faintly. “But it seems like she knows some random secrets. Heh, even though they’re definitely not true, I find it very interesting… Uh? You’re so blatantly coming to intercept me, did something happen with Xu Yiting?”

“It’s not Xu Yiting, it’s my family. They started asking about Jian Suyan’s identity. I told them what you taught me last time, basically saying I don’t know anything. But I thought it would be best to tell you anyway. By the way, every time you pretend to be Jian Suyan and go to my place, I told them the truth. And I also confessed about Yiting’s situation. My dad said that since you’re involved too, we’ll keep Yiting’s drug treatment going for now. He’ll help negotiate with Huang Jia later.”

“Well, that’s good too.” Nodding, Jia Ming smiled faintly.

…

After roughly discussing more details about Jian Suyan, the two, who had been meeting in the shadows of the office building for half a day, parted ways. Jia Ming walked out, holding his umbrella. Ya Han turned towards the teachers’ parking lot below the office building. As soon as she went out, she saw Dongfang Wan standing next to her old car from afar. She hadn’t noticed her in the classroom when she saw Jia Ming. Now, she was dressed in a milky white cashmere spring suit with a light purple wool skirt, looking elegant and charming. Smiling as she walked over, Dongfang Wan first gave a curtsy. “Teacher Zhang.”

“Yeah, are you looking for Gu? He’s already left. He wasn’t with me.”

“No, why would I be looking for him?” Running her fingers through the hair by her ear, Dongfang Wan smiled. “I’m here specifically to look for Teacher Zhang. I went to the office to find you, but you weren’t there. So I just waited here.”

“Me?”

“Yes, last week, two classmates and I encountered something. An older sister named Jian Suyan saved us. I admire Suyan Jie very much. I heard she’s a friend of Teacher Zhang’s. So I wanted to know more about her.”

Dongfang Wan bowed slightly, her eyes sincere and clear. Ya Han’s mouth opened slightly. “Admire? Jian Suyan?”

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