You're My Belated Happiness - Chapter 31 Part 1

Translated by Team DHH at http://dhh-workshop.blogspot.com.

You’re My Belated Happiness

Chapter 31 Part 1

As Ruan Yu imagined the bloody scene of her heels penetrating Xu Huaisong’s shoes, Ruan Chengru’s voice came from behind her: “Yuyu, come sit over here.”

Xu Huaisong took a glance behind her and said: “You go ahead, let me go to say hi to Mr. He first.”

Go ahead? Did he mean that he would come by shortly and sit with her at the same table?

Hum, had he taken all this trouble to arrange the encounter here just so he could meet her parents?

Ruan Chengru called her again: “Yuyu.” Ruan Yu took a look at Xu Huaisong and Zhou Jun and said: “I’ll go over there then.” She sat down on the left side of Qu Lan.

He Chong sat at the table with his relatives and the table Ruan Yu at was occupied mostly by retired teachers from the school.

After sitting down, Ruan Yu greeted several teachers whom she knew. Not too long afterwards, Xu Huaisong and Zhou Jun walked over together.

The seat to the right hand side of Ruan Chengru was still not occupied.

Ruan Yu looked sideways and just as she had expected, when Zhou Jun was about to touch the empty chair, Xu Huaisong suddenly moved quickly to her father’s side.

Ruan Chengru naturally looked up.

Ruan Yu was waiting to see how Xu Huaisong would greet her father. What she didn’t expect was that the person who spoke first was her father: “Ou? This is…… Huaisong?”

Ruan Yu: “......”

She was so disappointed with her father. How could her father greet his student first? Besides, it had been eight years already, how could her father still remember this student?

Xu Huaisong slightly bent over and lowered his head to say: “Mr. Ruan?” He was perfectly showing modesty and respect and with a hint of  uncertainty.

“Come sit down, sit.” Ruan Chengru smiled with squinted eyes: “I haven’t seen you for so many years. I remember that you went to the US after graduation?”

Being reminded by Ruan Chengru, other teachers at the table also remembered Xu Huaisong. They started talking to him with smiles: “Huaisong? Ah, you were the one who played piano on stage at the school’s 40th anniversary celebration?”

“Aiyo, you’ve become much more handsome now!”

“Your grades were excellent at the time as well. You were ranked first in the libertal arts classes while also preparing to go abroad.”

Xu Huaisong was too popular among the teachers; Ruan Yu and Zhou Jun put together weren’t able to compete with him. All the teachers’ focus was on him; none of them were moving their chopsticks.

Xu Huaisong politely nodded to each of the teachers and answered their questions one by one.

Finally, it was Qu Lan’s turn: “What do you do for a living now, Huaisong?”

Xu Huaisong turned his body sideways to nod at her: “I’ve been a lawyer in the US, but, this year, I just planned to come back to work here.”

Ruan Chengru’s eyes sparked slightly when he heard the word “lawyer.”

Ruan Yu sensed something different in that familiar expression in her father’s eyes. Just as she expected, her father continued: “Xiao Xu is such an accomplished young man. Are you married?”

Though Ruan Yu knew that most teachers, when meeting their former students after many years, would care the most about the students’ careers and families, in the Ruan family, however, “Xiao So and So” was the standard way of addressing someone whom her father deemed suitable to be his son-in-law in the future.

Less than one minute after Xu Huaisong sat down, he had already ascended from being “Huaisong” to “Xiao Xu.”

Ruan Yu held her forehead and silently questioned whether her father had considered how “Xiao Liu” would feel about this?

Xu Huaisong noticed Ruan Yu’s movement. He gave her a glance, then answered: “Not yet, Mr. Ruan.”

Ruan Chengru nodded and kept chatting with him. While they were talking about his career, Ruan Chengru turned his head to take a look at Ruan Yu: “Yuyu, look at Xiao Xu, he was in the same year as you. See how much he has accomplished!”

It was actually simply a courteous way of praising “someone else’s child” among parents. But Xu Huaisong replied before Ruan Yu could open her mouth in a humble and sincere manner: “No, no, she has accomplished much more than I.”

Ruan Yu’s eyes slowly moved over and met Xu Huaisong’s eyes.

Zhou Jun also smelled something unusual about to happen. He stopped chatting with the teacher next to him and listened attentively.

Translated by Team DHH at http://dhh-workshop.blogspot.com.