Love Affairs in Melbourne-Chapter 121 - 118 Reunion

There’s a phrase often used to describe class reunions, "Holding a classmate’s hand, regretting not having made a move back then."

Girls change a lot by the time they turn eighteen; it’s hard to imagine what a female classmate, who hadn’t yet "transformed" in high school, would look like after college when she has been fully "reborn."

For instance, Yan Yan was a completely unremarkable girl in high school.

If it weren’t for Qi Yi "having bad taste," bizarrely taking a fancy to Yan Yan, she would have been just another shadowy presence in the class.

Before she got together with Qi Yi, Yan Yan was inconspicuous and barely involved in any class or school activities.

She came to class on time every day, never late or leaving early, always wearing her uniform, never drawing any attention.

Yan Yan back then and Yan Yan now looked absolutely nothing alike.

Today’s Yan Yan, aside from being stylish, had an aura that was hard to put into words.

Yan Yan had a strong presence, yet it wasn’t aggressive.

Of course, that was provided she didn’t actively use words to "attack" someone.

Those who once thought Qi Yi had poor taste would now start "worshipping" Qi Yi upon seeing Yan Yan.

"Our master’s vision is indeed incomparable. While we were still unable to see past our own noses, he had already won over Taishan," Weng Sheng said as he greeted Qi Yi, having been specially recruited for sports.

When Yan Yan heard the name Taishan, not a hint of a smile crossed her face; not retaliating just wouldn’t be the Yan Yan of today.

Qi Yi stepped in, speaking before Yan Yan could.

"Why is it that after all these years, your Chinese still sounds like it’s taught by a PE teacher?" Qi Yi asked Weng Sheng.

Yan Yan had been wondering why Qi Yi didn’t let her speak, but upon hearing what Qi Yi said, she was totally shocked.

What Qi Yi said was exactly what she had been about to say, not a word different.

How did Qi Yi know what she was going to say next?

Chu Ying also came over to greet Qi Yi. It had been busy before and after the wedding banquet, and this was the first time Chu Ying had spoken to Qi Yi since high school.

"It truly feels like a lifetime since I’ve seen our class leader again," Chu Ying said happily today, noting how number 44 remained 44 and hadn’t turned into 43, a fact of great significance for Chu Ying.

"He class leader? He’s irresponsible and uncommitted. Only ’Shadow’ is our class leader now, but, you know, Shadow, you’re a bit shady."

"You say shady? What do you mean by that?" Chu Ying was taken aback, having never been called shady before.

"How can you set up a class reunion as the ’second half’ of someone’s wedding night without considering the feelings of the bride and groom?" Yan Yan didn’t mince her words.

"What you say makes sense, but who waits until their wedding night these days? Don’t tell me that beneath your fashionable exterior beats a classic heart." Chu Ying was meticulous in his preparations; naturally, he had consulted Liu Siyan and Lu Ying before planning the class reunion on the same day.

"Wow, you even understand these things so thoroughly. It’s no wonder you managed to play the role of Chief Steward so effectively at the wedding today," Yan Yan often left people speechless and suffocating with her words.

Without the high skill level of Qi Yi, conversing with the current Yan Yan could easily result in internal injuries.

The class reunion was not exactly like a class meeting. Jiang Zhaoxue sang a song with another art special recruit and then led everyone to sing the class anthem, warming up the atmosphere. After that, she stepped down from hosting duties.

Graduates huddled in small groups, reminiscing.

The former class leader, Qi Yi, having just rejoined the group after being labeled as "missing," was undoubtedly the center of attention.

Classmates lined up to have a drink with their "Old Team Leader" and sniff out when Yan Yan and Qi Yi’s big day might be on the horizon.

Many of the female classmates were already being pressured by their families to get married, enforcing upon others what they wouldn’t wish for themselves.

Wenzhou was such a peculiar place. During school years, including university, most parents would persistently warn their daughters against dating.

But the moment college was over, those same parents would start worrying that their "daughters" were becoming spinsters, wishing they could marry off their children right after graduation.

If their children were attending a classmate’s wedding, they’d inevitably comment, "Your classmate is getting married, how come you don’t even have a boyfriend yet?"

For parents, the marriage timeline of girls like Liu Siyan and Lu Ying was something to celebrate.

However, parents seemed to overlook a crucial issue: after graduation, if one had never been in a relationship, where to even start talking about marriage?

Once parents realized this, they’d rush to set up arranged dates in a bid to compensate for the oversight.

The culture of arranged marriages thrived in Wenzhou, drawing in girls who were just barely into their twenties.

Logically, in such times, marriages initiated by arranged meetings should be more prone to failure, yet Wenzhou’s divorce rate had consistently been lower than the national average.

Wenzhou was progressive in business thinking, yet more traditional in customs, very much like its classical dialect.

Facing marriage pressures from classmates, Qi Yi would respond with a smile or bluntly redirect them by saying he wasn’t in charge, advising them to ask Yan Yan instead.

Yan Yan had anticipated dealing with a lot of gossips at the reunion today, especially about her hoarding Qi Yi for herself.

But the reality differed from her expectations; perhaps due to Qi Yi’s previous implicit acknowledgment, no one seemed to care about Yan Yan’s act of concealment anymore; instead, everyone was pushing her towards marriage.

Yan Yan’s parents, being more liberal-minded, never pressured her about marriage.

This was the first time Yan Yan faced such intense pressure to marry in her life, an unexpected magnitude.

Earlier in the day at Lu Ying’s home, the Bridesmaid Team had already heavily hinted at marriage, but the real pressure surged during the reunion.

If today wasn’t Liu Siyan and Lu Ying’s wedding, Yan Yan would surely have exclaimed, "What have I done to you, why are you so eager to bury me?"

But they were at someone else’s wedding venue, and although Yan Yan was known for her sharp tongue, she still knew how to stay within the bounds of propriety.

Yan Yan’s biting wit stemmed from years of suppressing her true nature when she was younger.

Once no longer targeted, she regained her natural sense of self, and her words took on the sharp edge they now had.

The Yan Yan of the past, who presented a facade, did so out of suppression.

The Yan Yan of today, whose appearance belied her true thoughts, did so out of a deliberate desire to stand out.