What must come will come sooner or later.

At these words, the people in the office didn’t notice anything amiss at first; instead, they immediately matched the comment to the prominent figures they’d known at their own universities. Chen Xuan found herself rather curious—Li An didn’t seem like someone who would seek the limelight.

Li An calmly stepped forward and extended his right hand. “Welcome, junior Wang Panpan.”

“Please, that’s not necessary,” Wang Panpan replied, giving his hand the lightest of touches before immediately withdrawing and turning to Qin Yong. “Brother, which desk is mine?”

A shadow flickered in Li An’s eyes—so they were siblings.

With Wang Panpan’s back to the group, no one noticed the details of the handshake. But Qin Yong, who watched from the side, was puzzled. He knew his cousin well; though direct and bold by nature, she was not without manners. He wondered if something had happened between her and Li An during their university days. But then again, knowing Li An, it was unlikely he would hold a grudge against a young girl. Perhaps he was overthinking it. He proceeded with his original plan and assigned Wang Panpan’s desk to the east side, next to Li An and Chen Xuan.

The three desks formed a tight, upright triangle, with Wang Panpan at the top.

Wang Panpan had no objection to this arrangement. Ma Tao and Xu Hongxin eagerly helped move a desk from another office for her, while Wang Panpan joined in, occasionally chatting affectionately with “Sister Xuan.” Within moments, she seemed to have merged seamlessly into the office atmosphere—except she ignored Li An entirely.

Li An didn’t mind. He returned to his desk and quietly filled in Wang Xiaohu’s course progress records.

Ever since Qin Yong had blurted out “Wei Three Bowls,” Li An had started preparing himself mentally. He had no intention of forever hiding from the events of his predecessor’s past at university.

He and Wang Panpan had barely interacted—perhaps once shared a meal. The previous Li An had been playful but, in matters of the heart, reasonably restrained; however, after being cheated on by a manipulative girlfriend in his junior year, his attitude changed. To fill the emotional void, he began flirting with the innocent upper and lower classwomen around him, following a “don’t refuse, don’t commit” mantra while still sweet-talking his ex. Among these was the “Pipa Junior,” Wang Panpan’s dormmate, who was only a freshman at the time. However, still hung up on the girl who betrayed him, the original Li An soon lost interest and grew cold toward the Pipa Junior as well.

During that same period, an older student discovered that Li An was flirting with more than one girl on his phone. Heartbroken, she stormed into the boys’ dorm, demanding an explanation. The incident quickly spread throughout the Rongcheng Conservatory of Music. The former Li An went from being the star of the 2017 piano class to an infamous heartbreaker, shunned by the female students. That was why, in the second half of his junior year, he moved out of the dorm.

Li An had his own reservations about the whole matter. In this fast-paced era of fleeting relationships, a “player” like the previous Li An—who was willing to spend money but not deceive women—didn’t seem all that terrible. But wrong was wrong, and he had no choice but to bear the consequences. Now that he had moved to a new home, Li An felt more at ease. Since the reckoning was inevitable, he might as well start with Wang Panpan.

As lunchtime approached, Qin Yong, eager to treat everyone after a busy morning, invited the group to a meal. Since their manager was treating, no one refused. They headed to a nearby dumpling house recommended by Old Dong.

Since they still had work in the afternoon, Qin Yong raised a cup of tea instead of wine and said, “Panpan just graduated and may still have some student habits. If you notice anything amiss at work, I hope you’ll help her improve.”

His tone was sincere, without a hint of favoritism, and he glanced at Qin Jian as he spoke. After more than half a month of observation, Qin Yong had figured out the dynamics of the west office: though Li An wasn’t talkative, he was the backbone of the team. Qin Yong’s words were also a subtle attempt to smooth over the earlier awkward handshake.

Taking the hint, Li An responded first, “We share this office, so we should support and encourage one another. On behalf of the west office, I welcome Wang Panpan to our family.”

He raised his cup to Wang Panpan, once again reaching out, this time addressing her formally as “Teacher Wang.”

Wang Panpan’s scorn deepened. If she didn’t already know what kind of person Li An was in private, she might well have been deceived by his upright demeanor. Still, out of consideration for her cousin and the others, she clinked her cup with his.

The rest of the meal centered around work topics. Knowing her place as the newcomer, Wang Panpan humbly asked questions and sought advice.

“Panpan, you majored in cello. Why not teach?” Ma Tao wondered.

Wang Panpan explained graciously, “I’ll start with administration to get familiar with the work here. Maybe I’ll teach once there are students. There aren’t many kids who study cello nowadays.”

Ma Tao nodded in agreement. “True, not many learn low brass instruments either.”

“What did you study?” Panpan asked.

“I studied trombone and also teach tuba. Xu Hongxin plays trumpet, Sister Xuan the flute, and Brother An—you know—he’s an amazing pianist.”

Qin Yong interjected, “With your specialties, you could form a small chamber ensemble. Panpan could play the bass.”

The group launched into a lively discussion. Except for Li An, everyone here was from the winds and strings department and had participated in orchestral rehearsals during university.

Suddenly, Wang Panpan looked at Qin Yong and smiled, “And we already have one ready-made—” She was cut off by a stern look from Qin Yong. “Let’s eat and chat. After the meal, you can all rest a bit before getting back to work.”

On the way back, Wang Panpan pestered Chen Xuan to buy bubble tea; Ma Tao offered to pay, and Xu Hongxin was dragged along for fun. Not wanting to be the odd one out, Li An took the elevator back up with Qin Yong.

“Have you settled into your new place?” Qin Yong asked.

“All set. The commute is much easier now,” Li An replied with a smile.

The elevator stopped at the ninth floor, and the two went their separate ways back to the office.

Li An arranged three student files neatly on Wang Panpan’s desk before heading to the classroom.

[Ji Yang’s teacher-student index has increased to 58.]

Keep going!

Li An quickly immersed himself in practice. Meanwhile, the others returned with bubble tea, Wang Panpan chatting away animatedly with Chen Xuan. “Thank you, Sister Xuan. Next time, I’ll treat you to strawberry cheese tea.”

Earlier, Chen Xuan had hurriedly paid for the bubble tea—she liked Wang Panpan at first sight, and having another young woman in the office felt like gaining a companion. Besides, when Panpan ordered, she seemed to forget Li An, so Chen Xuan took the initiative to order one for him too. It wouldn’t do for Panpan to treat her, and then for her to pay for Li An herself.

Back in the office, everyone handed their student growth manuals to Wang Panpan, who began checking each child’s progress in accordance with the tasks Qin Yong had previously assigned.