This familiar voice belonged to Cheng Kun.
As soon as he finished speaking, a woman walked in through the doorway.
The woman was in her forties, yet her skin was fair, clearly well-maintained over the years. Her attire was simple but impeccably coordinated, and her face wore a kind smile.
This woman was none other than Teacher Qin, whose original name was Qin Yuan.
"Students, Teacher Qin is here!" Cheng Kun announced to the crowd once more.
The moment his words fell, Xiao Gang and Cheng Ao approached the woman.
"Teacher Qin, we've finally been waiting for you. The students miss you dearly!"
"Hello, students!" Qin Yuan smiled faintly at their greeting.
Looking at the people before her, Qin Yuan couldn't help but fall into a reverie. These individuals had once been little brats trailing after her, and time had flown by incredibly fast. In the blink of an eye, they were all grown adults.
Just then, her gaze suddenly froze.
"Yuxiang? Why are you here?"
Even after so many years apart, Qin Yuan recognized Qin Yuxiang at a glance.
"Teacher Qin, Xiao Gang and the others brought me," Qin Yuxiang said, her eyes slightly moist as she looked at Qin Yuan. "Teacher Qin, how have you been all these years?"
Qin Yuan was silent for a moment, then nodded.
"I'm doing well."
Following that, she looked around at everyone.
"I'm sorry, everyone! Have you been waiting long? Please, have a seat!"
Qin Yuan resumed her earlier kind expression.
Soon, under Xiao Gang's welcome, Qin Yuan was seated in the most central position.
The "most central position" meant she was flanked by Cheng Yu to her left, and Cheng Ao and Xiao Gang to her right.
Xiao Gang, eager to curry favor with Qin Yuan, lavished her with compliments throughout the meal. Having studied for a few more years than others, his flattery was truly beyond anyone else's reach.
The area around Qin Yuan instantly became lively.
In contrast, Qin Yuxiang's side of the table was much quieter.
Looking at the smiling Qin Yuan, Qin Yuxiang felt happy, after all, this was the person who had helped her for so many years.
Yet, at the same time, Qin Yuxiang felt a pang of disappointment.
She had come to see Teacher Qin with nervous anticipation, but she hadn't expected that when Teacher Qin saw her, she would merely offer a few brief words of reply and then seemingly forget her presence.
"Don't worry, Teacher Qin must care about you. Otherwise, why would she call out your name among so many people?" Cheng Feifei, who sat nearby, noticed her thoughts and began to console her.
Qin Yuxiang nodded, indicating she was fine.
But at this moment, Lin Xiao Tian couldn't help but ponder.
He felt something was amiss.
Why had Teacher Qin asked that question?
Among so many people present, many of whom were new, why did Teacher Qin specifically question Qin Yuxiang?
Did Qin Yuxiang not belong here?
After several rounds of drinks,
Cheng Ao and Xiao Gang were flushed red. Cheng Li, with his poor tolerance for alcohol and penchant for showing off, was showing signs of becoming unruly.
Qin Yuan, however, had been drinking tea throughout, so she remained in excellent spirits.
"Teacher Qin, when you arranged for Yuxiang to be married, you should have given me, Cheng Li, an opportunity. You're my teacher, and Yuxiang is also your student. Why let the fortune flow to outsiders?" Cheng Li, having had a bit too much to drink, spoke without reservation.
But before he could finish, a sharp gaze swept towards him.
Cheng Li met that gaze for only a second before sobering up instantly.
"Ptooey, ptooey... I've really had too much to drink. Teacher Qin, please pretend I said nothing." Cheng Li hastily explained.
"Heh heh! It's alright, Cheng Li, you're still the same old you, always trying to be strong. You should be more careful in the future and learn to act within your means!" Qin Yuan maintained her kind expression.
Cheng Li scratched his head and gave an awkward laugh.
Then, Qin Yuan turned to Qin Yuxiang.
"Yuxiang, how have you been lately?"
This was the second time Qin Yuan had spoken to her since their initial exchange at the door. Qin Yuxiang, like a student being questioned in class, immediately answered earnestly:
"Teacher, I'm doing very well."
"That's good!" Qin Yuan's expression was one of tender affection.
After that, their conversation ended abruptly, and Qin Yuan resumed chatting with other classmates, inquiring about their recent lives.
Qin Yuxiang's heart sank.
She suddenly realized that even with Cheng Feifei, Teacher Qin chatted much more than she did with her.
Qin Yuxiang even mentally counted the number of times Teacher Qin spoke to each classmate. She discovered that among the dozen or so people present, excluding herself, even the person who had the least interaction with Teacher Qin had exchanged five or six sentences back and forth.
She herself had only a meager two sentences, both of which were mere pleasantries.
Qin Yuxiang was not foolish.
She knew very well that Teacher Qin was being resistant towards her.
However, she truly couldn't understand what she had done wrong.
Lin Xiao Tian, sitting beside her, was equally puzzled.
Lin Xiao Tian couldn't figure it out.
Since Qin Yuan was willing to provide financial assistance to Qin Yuxiang, why was she so cold towards her upon meeting again?
Was it because Qin Yuxiang hadn't contacted her for so many years?
But according to Qin Yuxiang, Qin Yuan had forbidden her from contacting her.
Furthermore, and more crucially, Cheng Li's words had revealed a key piece of information.
The reason Qin Yuxiang married Li Da Zhu in the first place was Qin Yuan's idea.
Qin Yuan had been good to Qin Yuxiang, and if she had suggested it, Qin Yuxiang would have certainly obeyed.
However, Lin Xiao Tian couldn't comprehend why Qin Yuan wanted Qin Yuxiang to marry Li Da Zhu.
At that time, there were many suitable men in the surrounding villages, and Yuehai Village was far from Jinsha Village. Qin Yuxiang was essentially marrying far away. Wasn't Qin Yuan worried about something happening to Qin Yuxiang?
Another point was that since Qin Yuan had specifically chosen Li Da Zhu, it meant she should have known about him beforehand. However, in reality, although Li Da Zhu had some money back then, he was a compulsive gambler. He had been rejected by matchmakers several times, yet Qin Yuan insisted that Qin Yuxiang marry him.
The more Lin Xiao Tian thought about it, the more confused he became.
He truly couldn't understand what Qin Yuan was trying to achieve.
At this moment, Qin Yuan seemed to have noticed Lin Xiao Tian as well.
"Which student is this? I don't recall seeing them."
"Teacher Qin, he's Yuxiang's husband," Cheng Feifei introduced Lin Xiao Tian.
Upon hearing the word "husband," both Lin Xiao Tian and Qin Yuxiang were taken aback.
However, they both tacitly chose not to explain.
Qin Yuan's face registered surprise.
"You're... Li Da Zhu?"
Lin Xiao Tian shook his head, "I'm Lin Xiao Tian."
"Lin Xiao Tian? How is that possible? Where is Li Da Zhu?"
Now it was the others' turn to be astonished.
"Who is Li Da Zhu?"
"Li Da Zhu is Yuxiang's husband!" Qin Yuan explained.
"Teacher, you're mistaken. Yuxiang's husband is Lin Xiao Tian," Cheng Feifei said with a smile.