"Shan Shan, are you busy?" a deep and steady voice asked.
"Just about to grade papers, Dad, do you need something?" Pang Shan replied.
"Hehe, your mom will tell you."
"What’s with the mystery... Mom, that’s you, huh. What, a blind date?" Pang Shanshan suddenly widened her eyes and said, "A blind what? Can’t I find someone myself? I really don’t want to treat marriage so blindly!"
"Shan Shan, you’re not getting any younger. Listen to Mom, I promise you’ll be satisfied with this match."
"Forget it, Mom, I think I’m still very young. There’s no need to rush into marriage."
"Don’t reject it so hastily, do you know who he is?"
"Who is it?" Pang Shanshan asked listlessly.
"Wei Li! Do you remember? You met him when you were a child. Speaking of which, his family and ours go way back. When your mom and his mom were pregnant with you and him at the same time, your dad and his dad said if the children were the same gender, they would become sworn siblings, but if of opposite genders, they would become husband and wife. Although they moved to England later, Wei Li has come back to fulfill the marriage agreement set by our families. Your dad and I have met him already, and he’s really quite a catch—great manners, good temperament. You’re sure to like him once you see him."
Pang Shanshan paused and murmured "Wei Li," recalling the crybaby from Mister Wei’s family she had met as a five or six-year-old girl. Since she was just a little girl back then and Wei Li had gone to England with his family around that time, the only image in her mind of him was still as a sniveling little brat.
"Shan Shan, are you listening to what Mom’s saying?" On the other end of the phone, Madam Pang, seeing that her daughter was silent, added, "Wei Li came to our house and heard you’re in Baiyun City. He took a flight over this afternoon. He has your phone number, and tomorrow is Saturday, right? He’ll probably come to see you then. Have a good talk, get to know each other well, okay?"
"Ah!" Pang Shanshan sighed, thinking that since he had already come, it would not be good to say anything now. You have to respect the Buddha for the sake of the monk; after all, the two families have a long history. She couldn’t be too disrespectful, and besides, after so many years, she was indeed a bit curious to see how Wei Li had changed. With that, she agreed and hung up the phone.
When Leng Xuan returned to the class, he ran into Xu Renjie and his buddies Niu Peng and Zhou Qiang in the hallway by chance, just as they were stepping out of the classroom to sneak a smoke in the restroom.
"Pfft! Boss, look quick, the kid’s back!" Niu Peng burst into laughter when he saw Leng Xuan, thrilled that Leng Xuan had been put in his place by them, feeling incredibly smug inside.
Zhou Qiang laughed loudly and said, "Haha, the kid looks so upset. Wonder how Teacher Pang schooled him?"
Xu Renjie lit a cigarette and glanced at Leng Xuan mockingly before walking past him with his two sidekicks without a further glance, purposely taunting, "Wonder what color Teacher Pang’s underwear is..."
"Hahahahaha!" The three guys laughed together!
Leng Xuan was already in a foul mood, and here come Xu Renjie and his cronies mocking him at this time; it was truly annoying. He walked past them expressionless, not quickly, but soon he was less than a foot away from the oncoming Xu Renjie. Just as Xu Renjie was about to say something sarcastic, Leng Xuan suddenly slapped him across the face, "Smack!" a crisp sound, sending Xu Renjie stumbling nearly into the wall as he cried out, "Ow..."