The Escort – Chapter 6

Shao Mingwei was befuddled.
“What is this?”

 

Sister Zhang glanced at him.
“How would I know?”

 

“I can't accept this.
Sister Zhang, help me return it to Mr.
Min.” Shao Mingwei didn't open the box on the table, but when he heard that it was from Mr.
Min, his heart suddenly skipped a beat.

 

“Why don't you open it first? See if there's any perishable food.
If it gets spoiled after I send it back, it would be a waste.” Sister Zhang's attitude was logical and justified.
It seems that she doesn't have a tad bit of an idea of what Mr.
Min gave to Little Shao¹.

 

“That won't do… ” Shao Mingwei hesitated, but he couldn't deny the fact that Sister Zhang made sense.
He struggled for a while, however he couldn't bear to waste the chance to gain the upper hand, so he began to open the box.

 

He removed the wrapping gently and cautiously so as not to tear it.

 

“This is…”

 

A pair of limited edition sneakers from a well-known brand.

 

Although Shao Mingwei has no time to care about these products that he could only buy if he only eats and drinks once a day, he is a young boy, after all.
He loves sports.
In addition, there is a person who pays attention to sneaker updates and loves to collect sneakers.
His roommate, Liu Yang.
He can also say one or two things about this brand.
When this sneaker came out, Liu Yang was moaning and groaning² in the dormitory all day, and Shao Mingwei couldn't help but ask him what's going on with him.

 

Liu Yang mourned.
“I can't afford it, even if I starve to death this time.

 

When Shao Mingwei saw these shoes, he didn't know what to say for a moment.
The pair of shoes were handed to him in an unobtrusive way, which was very considerate.
It's just that….

 

He looked at his shoes.
Although they were wiped clean and looked decent, it was only a cheap leather shoe, after all.

 

That night³, Shao Mingwei wore the same leather shoes.
He only had one pair and had no other shoes to use on other occasions.
He didn't ask how Min Yu knew about his shoe size, but if a person is determined to know something, he will surely find a way.

 

After Sister Zhang completely quenches her curiosity, she doesn't mention Shao Mingwei's intention of returning the gift.
Her line of sight once again turned back to her phone, then she said, “Those shoes are pretty good, you should keep them, ba.
It's now getting late, you quickly go back to work.”

 

Even if she was his boss, Shao Mingwei couldn't help but feel astounded by Sister Zhang's inconsistent and heartless remarks.

 

He put the sneakers back into the box and restored the packaging to its original state, then he said to Sister Zhang, “These shoes are too expensive.
I can't keep them.
Sister Zhang, you should help me return it to Mr.
Min.”

 

Sister Zhang glanced at him and saw that he was serious.
She clicked her tongue and sighed, this kid is indeed an upright gentleman, but it does not prevent her from saying, “These shoes are nothing to Mr.
Min in general, it's guaranteed that if I return it to him, he won't wear it, he will either abandon it in a shelf or will directly throw it away.
I won't dare provoke him like this.
What if he takes his anger out on me, won't it be a loss for me? You have to give it back by yourself.”

 

“Mr.
Min is not that kind of person.” Shao Mingwei instantly regretted it as soon as he finished speaking.
He and Min Yu had only met each other not so long ago, so how can he be so sure of each other's character? Besides, Sister Zhang refused Min Yu many times, and she subconsciously feels guilty for refusing.
So Shao Mingwei is even more reluctant to get her involved.
After all, this is between him and Min Yu's affair.

 

Sister Zhang glanced at him but said nothing.

 

Seeing no other options, Shao Mingwei had no choice but to say, “Then I'll figure out a way myself.”

 

Saying that he'll find a way, in reality, Shao Mingwei couldn't think of a better solution himself.
Those shoes, he really didn't want to keep them.
Even if it's not a big deal for Min Yu, he didn't want to accept gifts for no reason.
It's just that he didn't want to face Min Yu directly so he wanted to return it through Sister Zhang, and if he returned it face-to-face it was like he wanted to use the situation as an excuse for them to meet, giving people room for unnecessary hope.

 

The matter was at a stalemate, so Shao Mingwei had no other choice but to keep it.
He couldn't do such a thing as resell the shoes or wear such good shoes when going to school and work, so he had to place them in the corner of the room to eat dust.
However, when Liu Yang saw the shoes, he started hollering in the dormitory for a while, holding and drooling over the shoes like it was a rare treasure, calling out Shao Mingwei's unjust treatment towards the shoes then asked him where it came from.
After all, he knew a bit of Old Shao's⁴ situation at home, so the other party would absolutely never buy such an extravagant thing.

 

Shao Mingwei only said it was a present given by someone.

 

A while after, Liu Yang with a shy expression asked, “Lao Shao, can I try on your shoes?” Seeing this gesture, it can be compared to a peerless beauty bashfully confessing her feelings towards the other party she liked, however Liu Yang who was 5.3 feet, bearing a masculine body doing this was truly unseemly.

 

When Shao Mingwei heard what he said, the smell of Liu Yang's feet stinking with sweat almost materialized in his nose and he didn't even think about it.
“Won't do.” Even if the other party wailed like a ghost and howled like a wolf⁵ he wouldn't let it go, forcing Liu Yang into feigning tears and grievances.

 

Shao Mingwei shook his head, amused.

 

Entering mid-May, the weather is getting hotter.
The mid-term exam had already taken place some time ago, but the student's studying pace was still unrelenting.
In a few more days to come, the students will go into the final examinations review month.

 

This coming Saturday afternoon, Shao Mengwei will be attending a weekly meeting.
The academic advisor of the laboratory, Professor Xue Tanqi, has come back from abroad.
Professor Xue Tanqi is a prominent figure in the field of biology.
In addition to having his own laboratory at Q University, he often needs to travel to various places to give lectures.
He had a conscientious character and when in class, he's even more severe.
Even the students in his team who follow him are respectful and fearful of him.
And because he was stringent to students with unsatisfactory performance that cries of complaints from students has filled the road⁶ they secretly give him the nickname “to heave a sigh”⁷.

 

Xue Tanqi, to heave a sigh!

 

It's suitable indeed, it matches him perfectly.
The student who gave the nickname couldn't help but feel complacent about his ingenuity and exclaimed that Professor Xue's name matched him very well.

 

Although Professor Xue is usually conscientious, he is very kind to Shao Mingwei.
He's fond of this smart, hardworking, academically oriented and dedicated student very much, and he had the thought early on of taking him in on his research team.
But because Professor Xue is so busy, he can't often attend the weekly meetings of the research team, but he still communicates with Shao Mingwei via email or WeChat.

 

However, since Shao Rong's illness became worse, his priorities changed, and he gradually gave up the idea of doing postgraduate studies.
Even though he loves the course biology very much and wants to continue his studies, the dire condition he is in right now does not permit him.
Right now, he prefers to work as soon as possible after graduation, the stable income can make him rest assured.
He is now in his sophomore year, and right after the summer vacation is the opening of third year.
Although there is still a year left to decide whether to pursue postgraduate studies, Shao Mingwei does not want to be indecisive and give himself time to hesitate.
He wanted to express his decision personally to Professor Xue and then thank him for his great expectations of him, but it happened that Professor Xue was very busy during this period and could not attend several weekly meetings, the assistant advisor presided over it on his behalf.
Shao Mingwei couldn't find the opportunity to find him and he didn't want to inform him through email either.
But this week's meeting coincides with Professor Xue's return to school and he will be attending the weekly meeting.
Shao Mingwei planned this afternoon to have a proper chat with Professor Xue after the meeting.

 

At noon, he and Liu Yang had lunch at the cafeteria.
They walked towards the waste recycling truck with the leftovers on their plates.
Suddenly he was bumped into the shoulder by someone who was walking past him.
His hand shifted and the leftover foods on his plate almost fell on his clothes.

 

—————

Previous   Table Of Content   Next

 

Footnotes:

 

¹Little (Xiao) Shao.
Used as an endearment.

²Moaning and groaning (idiom) to express deep regret or helplessness.

³The night when Shao Mingwei accompanied Min Yu to drink.

⁴Old (Lao) Shao.
Used as an endearment.

⁵Idiomatic expression for a very loud crying.

⁶Idiom expression, which means complaints can be heard everywhere.

⁷Tanqi (潭祺) and to heave a sigh (学叹气) sounds similar but had different characters.

 

T/N's Corner: I'm so sorry for the delay, I was caught up with my exams and couldn't find a free time to translate.
I barely squeezed this out of my chaotic schedule, so please be patient with me.
And I've opened a Ko-Fi goal! If you're up for a bonus chapter, you can give me some coins.
Every time a goal is met, I'll be releasing a bonus chapter.