Hua Shu eventually came to the conclusion that it would be better not to make a scene in the middle of the restaurant by continuing to provoke He Rui.
Besides making her look like a troublemaker in the eyes of those around her, there was also the risk that Liu Fengying would see her as someone who couldn't go out without causing trouble—something Hua Shu truly did not want. Moreover, if He Rui proved capable of withstanding all her provocations, wouldn't that place him in a favorable light? In that scenario, she would be nothing more than "cannon fodder," destined to be trampled by the hero.
However, there was a much simpler solution to ruining He Rui's plans: she could simply make him leave by telling him she was busy and couldn't continue the conversation. Then, after he was gone, she would have more than enough time to destroy his image in front of Liu Fengying.
As soon as this idea crossed her mind, Hua Shu hurried to put it into practice.
"Anyway, my classmate and I still have some things to discuss about the physics project we're working on together, so I can't keep entertaining you…" she said to He Rui, simultaneously withdrawing her gaze from him. Hua Shu thought that as long as he wasn't a dog, he would understand that he no longer had any place at their table.
Of course, Hua Shu hadn't ignored the possibility that he might actually behave like a dog and insist on staying, but she still had a backup plan. More precisely, choosing a school-related excuse to end the conversation with He Rui had not been accidental: she planned to threaten him with telling her father that he hadn't allowed her to study in peace.
"...", He Rui was thrown off balance by Hua Shu's indifference, her behavior seeming increasingly strange to him. Usually, whenever she was dissatisfied with someone, she made sure that person knew exactly why.
Her excuse for ending the conversation also struck him as odd. Hua Shu—whose father complained every single time about how unmotivated she was when it came to studying—was suddenly discussing projects right after class? That would probably only happen if the sun rose in the west that day. He Rui was certain she had simply come up with a random excuse because she wanted to get rid of him.
Still, how could he leave so easily when he hadn't even come close to achieving his goals? So, even though he felt humiliated to press his face against a cold ass, he decided to try to make Hua Shu withdraw her eviction order.
"Well, since your birthday is coming up, I was thinking of taking advantage of the fact that I ran into you to treat you to dinner. So what do you say about you and your classmate joining me at my table, where I'm sitting with a friend? Of course, I intend to cover the costs for both of you. Besides, I was quite good at physics in high school, so I could help you out if you have any questions about the project you're working on…" he said, thinking he had come up with a very tempting offer.
He estimated that, for Hua Shu—whom he knew didn't receive much pocket money from her father—the prices at this restaurant must be quite steep. As for her classmate, he suspected she was in a similar situation; he knew how "well" Hua Shu got along with rich kids, so how could she possibly be dining with one of them?
Unfortunately for him, his words sparked no enthusiasm on Hua Shu's face. On the contrary, she now looked even more bored.
'Arrogant brat! If your father weren't Professor Hua…' He Rui barely managed to keep his anger under control. What was Hua Shu's attitude supposed to mean? Was he not even worthy of treating her to a free meal? When had he ever been treated with such contempt?
Still, it wasn't as if everything was lost. He thought that as long as Hua Shu's classmate was tempted by his offer, there was still a chance he could make Hua Shu accept it; no matter how unreasonable Hua Shu was, she would still feel guilty if she denied her friend the opportunity to enjoy a free meal.
There was, however, a small inconvenience: he had approached the table from Liu Fengying's side, and she was practically facing away from him, making it impossible for him to gauge her attitude. But that was something that could be fixed in a second; he simply took a step to the side of the table to get a clear view of her face.
Hua Shu was taken by surprise by He Rui's sudden closeness.
"You, what—"
"I think I forgot to introduce myself to your classmate…" He Rui hurried to interrupt Hua Shu, guessing that she was about to reject his invitation.
Then he turned his gaze toward Liu Fengying and… that was it; He Rui's mind went blank the moment his eyes met her face.
Not only was he captivated by Liu Fengying's beauty, but her temperament was also completely to his liking; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that He Rui fell in love with her at first sight.
But how could this be the first time he was seeing Liu Fengying? Hadn't he come specifically for her?
Well, it seemed that Hua Shu had been mistaken: He Rui's target had never been Liu Fengying, but Hua Shu herself.
That said, it wasn't as if he had been in love with Hua Shu until that moment and then forgotten his old feelings upon seeing Liu Fengying. In truth, he didn't feel attracted to Hua Shu at all. Of course, he couldn't deny that she was beautiful, but he found her style and behavior utterly irritating; in his mind, Hua Shu remained exactly as she had been the first time he saw her—a troublesome brat.
But in that case, a question naturally arose: if he didn't like Hua Shu, why was he trying so hard to ingratiate himself with her now?
The answer to this question was fairly simple. Although he was not in love with Hua Shu, He Rui was in love with her father. Well, only figuratively speaking—this was not the kind of scenario Hua Shu had described earlier when she had tried to provoke him. More precisely, he was enamored with the influence Hua Shu's father wielded in the academic world, an influence capable of propelling his career to great heights should he become the man's son-in-law.
He Rui had not started out with such ambitions. Confident in his own abilities, he had believed that as long as he worked hard, his career would progress smoothly.
Life, however, had dealt him a harsh lesson: a person may control their own actions, but without influence, they have no way of controlling the actions of others. So how could everything unfold exactly as he had planned? It was like a film director being allowed to decide the lines for only a single character.
Connections, vested interests, the jealousy of superiors—in short, all the things that had nothing to do with one's job description—formed a tangled web that someone from a modest background had no idea how to navigate. As a result, three years after becoming a teacher, he was still working at a second-rate school on the outskirts of the city, with no sign that the situation would change anytime soon.
What was more, he hadn't even obtained this position solely through his own abilities; the fact that he was known to be favored by Professor Hua had played a decisive role. Thus, it would not be an exaggeration to say that his personal efforts had played only a minimal role in his career. Under such circumstances, how could he remain motivated to continue working hard?
In the end, He Rui concluded that if he didn't want to turn thirty without having made any progress, he needed to learn to play by the same rules everyone else followed. And he was not a man who dealt in half-measures: if he was going to dirty his hands, he had to secure the greatest possible benefits.
Fortunately for him, the path to gaining the most influence in his field was also the most accessible one—namely, through Professor Hua. Thinking about how many advantages the mere fact of having been the man's student had already brought him, he couldn't help but imagine what it would be like if they were also related.
Naturally, there was only one way to enter Professor Hua's family: to become his son-in-law. Once this thought took root, He Rui calculated that the plan was feasible, and probably within a reasonable time frame; after all, the professor's daughter was not far from adulthood. Moreover, he believed she held him in fairly high regard, so how difficult could it be to make her fall in love with him?
Honestly, seeing how neatly everything seemed to line up, He Rui felt as though an invisible hand had paved this path for him.
However, his appearance at the restaurant at the exact moment Hua Shu was there was not the work of destiny. More precisely, it was one of his close friends—someone he had consulted regarding his intentions toward Hua Shu—who had orchestrated this encounter.
Had He Rui's friend done this purely out of camaraderie? Of course not; his primary goal was to help himself.
Having been at the restaurant even before Liu Fengying and Hua Shu arrived, he had witnessed Liu Fengying's walk from the entrance to the table she chose, and like all the other young men in the room, he had been instantly enchanted by her.
Naturally, he thought he shouldn't miss the chance to make her acquaintance; otherwise, he might regret for the rest of his life letting the opportunity to pursue the girl of his dreams slip away. However, after seeing that Liu Fengying did not spare a second glance for the more handsome—and visibly wealthier—young men who had approached her table, his courage began to falter. This wasn't because he feared attracting ironic looks if he, too, were rejected, but because he dreaded the possibility of having his dreams shattered completely.
Still, as he surveyed the situation in search of a strategy that would ensure success, He Rui's friend eventually noticed the girl accompanying his target at the table and realized that she seemed vaguely familiar. Unfortunately, no matter how hard he tried to recall where or when he had seen her before, he failed; his job required him to meet countless people, and his memory had become rather selective, retaining information only about those who interested him.
But how could he give up now, when he already had a lead? Thus, he turned his attention to social media, analyzing his circle of acquaintances.
This proved to be a rather impractical method: how could he possibly go through tens of thousands of contacts in a reasonable amount of time? So he decided to ask for help, reaching out to several friends with broader connections in the city's upper circles, asking whether they recognized someone with Hua Shu's features. Luckily for him, this method proved effective, as one of them—who was involved in academic circles—identified her as Professor Hua's daughter.
Hearing about Professor Hua, he suddenly remembered where he had seen Hua Shu before: in a photo shown to him by his close friend He Rui about a month earlier, when He Rui had spoken about the girl he was considering courting in order to benefit from her father's influence. From there, it was only a small step to the idea of using the relationship between He Rui and Hua Shu as a bridge to get closer to Liu Fengying. Acting on this, he soon stepped out into the restaurant hallway and contacted He Rui to pitch the idea of a double date.
At the time he received the call, He Rui was still at the school where he taught, and he hesitated. As a teacher, it would be disastrous if word got out that he was dating someone who was still underage; while he had plans involving Hua Shu, he intended to execute them only after she came of age.
But how could his friend let such an opportunity slip through his fingers? He began to relentlessly persuade He Rui, explaining that since Hua Shu was beautiful and came from an excellent background, it was possible he wasn't the only one with his eye on her. So even if he didn't enter a relationship with her right away, it would be wise to make his presence felt more often, to ensure someone else didn't get there first.
Moreover, knowing that He Rui's financial situation was far worse than his own, he promised that as long as Hua Shu brought her friend along, he would be willing to pay for dates at all kinds of expensive venues. This would greatly ease the effort He Rui would need to put into winning Hua Shu over—after all, what girl didn't like being pampered?
His friend's words shook He Rui's confidence; there was no guarantee Hua Shu would choose him if better alternatives appeared. On top of that, she was extremely unpredictable; honestly, if he were to hear that she had eloped with a boy she'd known for only a few days—perhaps even solely online—he wouldn't be all that surprised.
Therefore, if he wanted his plans to proceed smoothly, he had to ensure that Hua Shu formed a very favorable impression of him—perhaps even developed an emotional dependence on him. To achieve that, he needed to become as involved in her life as possible.
With these thoughts in mind, He Rui hurried to finish his work, and the moment he left the school, he took a taxi to the location his friend had given him.
So, in broad strokes, this was the process that led to the scene now unfolding in the restaurant: He Rui standing frozen, staring at Liu Fengying, and Hua Shu rolling her eyes at his reaction.
"And he still thinks of himself as such a superior man. At least the others were capable of opening their mouths while staring at her…," Hua Shu couldn't help muttering. If there had been even the slightest doubt before that she had correctly deduced He Rui's intentions in coming to their table, she was now one hundred percent convinced she had been right.