There’re Always Paranoid Thoughts to Monopolize Me - Chapter 21.1

“Ke Ke? What’s wrong?”

“Huh?” Qin Ke snapped out of it and looked at Gu Xinqing, who had asked the question. “What?”

Gu Xinqing looked at her in confusion, “Since this new teacher came in, your expression has been so strange, like you’ve seen a ghost.” Saying this, Gu Xinqing glanced at the stage in the multifunctional hall, sizing up Huo Jingyan standing behind the podium. Then she turned back, even more puzzled, “I think Teacher Huo is quite handsome. He must have been a heartthrob when he was young. Why do you look like you’re scared of his appearance?”

Qin Ke slowly regained her composure, her accelerated heartbeat from the shock gradually calming down.

She lowered her eyes and sighed silently.

“I just didn’t expect that he would be our teacher.”

“Huh?” Gu Xinqing was stunned, “You know this new teacher of ours?”

“…”

Qin Ke fell silent.

She shouldn’t know him.

At least, in this lifetime, she shouldn’t have had any interaction with Huo Jingyan.

Even though in her previous life, Huo Jingyan had treated her as his own.

——In the vast and cold Huo family, aside from Huo Zhonglou occasionally spending time with her, the only one who could and dared to talk to Qin Ke was Huo Jingyan.

Huo Jingyan had cared for her like a father or older brother, comforting and guiding her; in her darkest times, when she was almost suicidal, Huo Jingyan was the one who taught her how to keep living.

She still remembered what Huo Jingyan had told her—

[Life isn’t about breaking through thorns to see roses, nor about enduring storms to see rainbows. Most people’s lives are full of thorns and battered by storms. What you need to learn is not to bitterly chase after elusive roses and rainbows, but to learn to dance on the thorns and sing in the storm.]

It was this sentence that supported her until the end. Although the outcome couldn’t be changed, she was truly grateful that such a mentor-like figure had appeared in her life.

Qin Ke had never imagined… that in this life, Huo Jingyan would actually become her teacher.

After all, based on what she knew—Huo Jingyan came from a prestigious university, had a brilliant resume, and had served as an honorary professor at several universities abroad. However, because he was the adopted son of Huo Zhonglou’s father, Huo Shengfeng, and his overseas studies were supported by Huo Shengfeng, when Huo Shengfeng grew old and asked Huo Jingyan to return to assist his only son Huo Zhonglou, Huo Jingyan resolutely gave up his promising future and returned to manage the Huo family.

In both the internal affairs and the vast business of the Huo family, Huo Jingyan managed everything meticulously. In her previous life, when Qin Ke married into the Huo family in place of her sister Qin Yan, Huo Jingyan was already over forty. She had witnessed firsthand Huo Jingyan’s unwavering loyalty to the Huo family and Huo Zhonglou, and she was well aware of this butler’s capabilities and skills.

Because of this, Qin Ke felt as though she were dreaming when she saw Huo Jingyan at Qiande High School.

However…

Qin Ke recalled something, her eyes flickering.

——

In a previous life, during a casual conversation, Huo Jingyan had mentioned to her that his most desired lifestyle was teaching and educating, helping children who were just beginning to understand the world to gain even a little more insight into its truths before they chose their futures.

So now, in this lifetime, is he living that life?

Qin Ke felt incredibly conflicted.

She looked up at the stage in the multifunctional hall, where Huo Jingyan stood behind the podium.

Huo Jingyan looked no different now than he had in her previous life. This man seemed to possess a natural ability to defy aging, making it difficult to guess his age.

This fact had obviously caught the attention of the other students as well.

A third year girl couldn’t help but jokingly ask, “Teacher Huo, how old are you this year?”

“…”

Huo Jingyan, who was adjusting the microphone on the podium, slowly raised his gaze. After steadily looking at her, he smiled faintly.

“My age should be more than twice that of most people present.”

“What—?”

The girls dragged out their exclamations in surprise.

Twice their age would mean around 36 years old—yet Huo Jingyan looked barely over thirty.

“That’s incredible,” Gu Xinqing couldn’t help but marvel. “Ke Ke, don’t you think so? He doesn’t look 36 at all!”

“Yes,” Qin Ke replied with a helpless smile.

If they saw Huo Jingyan in his forties, they would find that he still looked just as youthful as in his early thirties.

But as soon as she finished speaking, Qin Ke’s expression froze.

She couldn’t help but hold her breath.

——

Thirty-six years old.

If she remembered correctly, Huo Jingyan had once told her that on his thirty-sixth birthday, he had made a decision that he regretted for the rest of his life. Because of that decision, a car accident caused him to lose the woman he loved most.

Qin Ke hurriedly turned to Gu Xinqing.

“Xinqing, what’s the date today?”

“Huh?”

“What’s the date today!”

“I… let me see,” Gu Xinqing, startled by Qin Ke’s urgency, quickly took out her phone to check the date. Halfway through, she suddenly remembered, “We just started school a week ago, so today must be September 7th.”

“…..”

Qin Ke’s tense body suddenly relaxed.

In those few short seconds, a thin layer of sweat had already formed on her back—September 7th. And Huo Jingyan’s birthday was at the end of October, so there was still time.

Huo Jingyan was the person who had saved her life. She thought that perhaps heaven had allowed her to live again to give her the chance to repay those who had helped her…

She would definitely help Huo Jingyan prevent that catastrophic decision from happening.

Gu Xinqing was still bewildered beside her. “Ke Ke, what’s wrong with you today? You really seem off.”

“…Sorry.” Qin Ke apologized to Gu Xinqing. “Did I scare you just now?”

“I’m fine. But are you alright?”