Chapter Forty: Bickering Lovers, the Goddess Invites Me to Dinner!

"Coach, what happens if I press the brake and the clutch at the same time?"
"What? Are you trying to take a screenshot of the car?"

This was the most memorable and hilarious joke Gu Yin had encountered while teaching students how to handle the brake and clutch. However, Gu Yin felt that if he were just a bystander watching the show rather than the instructor, Xia Qianyi’s sudden, spectacular, and utterly ridiculous move just now... he would have laughed his head off.

"Hey, where do you think you're going!"

Pushing the car door open, Xia Qianyi chased after him for two steps before turning back to grab her mask and sunglasses. She put them on while continuing to pursue Gu Yin.

"I’m going to pull your file and process your withdrawal," Gu Yin said, walking away with firm resolve. "Or perhaps I’ll see if anyone else wants to teach a celebrity. I’ll transfer you out."

Gu Yin truly regretted not handing Xia Qianyi over when Ma Jixiang was snatching students that day. Had he done so, he wouldn’t be suffering through this much today, let alone having to deal with Ma Jixiang's other students—those "beauties" inside the Santana—and taking on such a massive headache.

[Oh my goodness, this is just... hahahaha!]

The live stream for "Reconciling with Life" actually had quite a few of Xia Qianyi’s fans watching for the sake of their goddess, but even they felt a pang of sympathy for Coach Gu and couldn't claim he was in the wrong. Anyone who had ever learned to drive knew exactly how much of a nightmare Xia Qianyi was.

"You—are you really going this far!" Xia Qianyi’s tone was a bit guilty, but she didn't slow her pace. She quickly caught up to Gu Yin and tugged on the hem of his shirt. "As an instructor, how can you treat a student like this?"

"I..." Gu Yin opened his mouth, but eventually, seeing her pretty face, he swallowed his harsh words and simply pressed his palms together. "It’s not your fault, Miss. It’s mine. I’m not a good teacher, I lack the skill, and I’m not worthy of teaching a star like you. Please, just let me go, will you?"

In his frustration, Gu Yin started slipping into his local dialect...

"Don't, don't be like this, please." Xia Qianyi was flustered and at a loss. After all, she was a famous actress, a beautiful young woman whose public persona had always been quite aloof. How could this guy not give her even an ounce of face? Great, she was probably going to be trending on social media again today.

"I promise I’ll be careful from now on, I’ll really learn properly." With no other choice, the goddess softened her stance. "I’ll treat you to dinner. I’ll take you out to dinner tonight, okay?"

Ever since she became a big star, Xia Qianyi had forgotten the last time she had treated someone to a meal. The offer felt truly rare.

***

"You... sigh!"

Gu Yin sighed silently. In the end, he didn't actually process her withdrawal. It wasn't that he didn't want to, but it was impossible; the student had to do it themselves. If a coach tried to do it, the principal would surely tear him a new one. Given his already mediocre relationship with the principal thanks to Ma Jixiang, the meager salary he was killing himself to earn wasn't enough to cover the inevitable deductions.

"You..."

He pointed a finger at Xia Qianyi’s smooth forehead for a long moment, finally managing only four words: "Suit yourself!"

On an autumn morning, the temperature wasn't exactly high when the sun first came out. Although Xia Qianyi wasn't dressed too thinly, she wasn't wearing thermal underwear either. Having just rushed out of a heated car, she began to shiver as the cold wind bit at her.

"Achoo!"

As she sneezed, she pouted her pink lips, glaring at Gu Yin with a look that was "fiercely cute."

...

The day of driving practice slipped away once again. When they had started, there was no sun, but in the blink of an eye, the bright sun gradually changed hues, staining the clouds in the distance with beautiful, fiery gradients.

The Shandong region occasionally saw gorgeous sunset clouds, usually a day or two after rain. Since it had drizzled all night the day before yesterday, tonight’s sunset glow was late, but it had arrived.

"How beautiful."

Licking her dry lips, Xia Qianyi couldn't help but pull out her phone and press the shutter button toward the setting sun. To her surprise, the shutter clicked twice; one sound seemed to have come from right behind her.

Turning around, she saw Coach Gu walking over, holding a steaming paper cup. He handed it to her casually and said, "Have a drink. I saw you were thirsty all day... Go back to the car to get your things. Let’s go, I’ll take you home."

In her daze, her hand naturally reached out to take the cup. The young woman nodded blankly, and before she could even say "thank you," Gu Yin had already walked back toward the car.

"What a strange person..."

Xia Qianyi couldn't help but let her lips curl upward. Because she had left in such a rush and had to keep a low profile, she hadn't brought a water bottle. She hadn't had a drop to drink all day and assumed Gu Yin hadn't noticed. She hadn't expected him to be so attentive.

Under the sunset, Gu Yin walked with his hands behind his head, his retreating figure inexplicably giving off a sense of "carefree charm." Xia Qianyi thought to herself that while Gu Yin’s mouth might be coated in poison, his heart was not.

***

"Toward the clouds~"
"Across the mountains~"

Driving away from the driving school, Coach Gu was always in a good mood after work. Gazing at the fiery clouds in the distance, he couldn't help but sing a song he had dreamed of a few days ago.

"Can you write songs?" Xia Qianyi had wanted to ask yesterday. The song Gu Yin sang yesterday was quite nice, and today’s tune also seemed to have a lot of soul.

"Ha, would you believe me if I said I dreamed it up?" Gu Yin asked with a laugh.

"Do I look like a fool to you?" Xia Qianyi countered.

"No, you don't," Gu Yin shook his head. "I do."

"...Why are you being so snide?" Xia Qianyi felt a bit annoyed, sensing he was mocking her.

As the two bickered, the distance between them unknowingly closed significantly. In reality, many relationships are of the "bickering pair" variety; those who spend their days teasing and arguing often end up with the strongest bonds.

"Can you take that annoying camera off your chest?" Xia Qianyi had endured it long enough for one day.

"It’s not time yet. If I take it off, they’ll dock my pay," Gu Yin replied. "It’s fine. Nobody is watching anyway, don't worry about it."

"...Are you kidding me?" Xia Qianyi gritted her teeth, assuming he was being humble-bragging. She decided to be direct. "At the place we’re going to eat later, if someone sees where we are through your feed, it won’t be very convenient for our dinner."

"Are you really going to treat me to dinner?" Gu Yin said happily. "No need. I was just blowing off steam earlier. Now that I’m off work, I’m not angry anymore, and I can't take advantage of you like that."

"I’d still like to treat you," Xia Qianyi said, feeling a bit embarrassed. "If I feed you, maybe you’ll be soft-hearted. If you get angry again later, you can let it slide for the sake of the meal."

"You..." Gu Yin was momentarily speechless.

"Fine, fine."

A famous actress was offering to treat him to dinner; if he kept refusing, it would be a bit too unappreciative.

Tonight, it was destined to be an extraordinary night.