Chapter 26 Private Tutor: "A Beast in Human Form"

26

After a few days passed peacefully, Fang Huaixu returned home as usual in the evening. The room was quiet, with only the faint sound of Meng Yao's voice coming from the half-closed study door, as if she were on the phone with someone.

He quietly pushed open the door and saw Meng Yao sitting at her desk, gesturing wildly as she talked. The computer screen in front of her was showing a picture of her face.

Is it being broadcast live?

Fang Huaixu didn't disturb her, carefully closing the door behind him. Only then did Meng Yao turn around upon hearing the noise: "You're back?"

Fang Huaixu paused for a moment: "Are you live streaming? Why so suddenly?"

"No, no, I haven't done any live streams since the last transformation, and I haven't heard from them at all," Meng Yao said, glancing slightly at the computer screen. There were several small windows below, showing young faces of different skin tones: "They are some friends I met during the previous live streams. They are all learning French, and now I plan to focus most of my energy back on my studies. Today I'm chatting with them and practicing my spoken French."

She thought for a moment: "Could this be considered a study group?"

Fang Huaixu quickly understood what was going on by looking at the few books spread out in front of her, but he was still a little curious: "Won't making a video call affect your concentration?"

Meng Yao's eyes curved into a smile, with a hint of pride: "This is my unique experiential learning method, which is only effective when it is spoken aloud."

Fang Huaixu, a quiet type, obviously didn't understand. Meng Yao gave an example: "It's like if you bought a French model kit that you've been looking forward to for a long time, and you can't understand the instructions but you still force yourself to learn it word by word; if you're reading a French novel and you get stuck on a great part, you'll still be anxious to look it up even if you don't want to learn it; if you're complaining to a friend about some shocking gossip and you can't express it for a long time, you'll definitely be so anxious that you'd like to devour the dictionary to make it sound perfect."

Fang Huaixu chuckled, and Meng Yao shook her head: "You don't understand, words memorized this way leave a particularly deep impression!"

Fang Huaixu was also amused by her "even a rabbit will bite when cornered" learning method. Although the method was a bit unconventional, it was indeed very much in line with her style, vivid and efficient.

Just then, a prompt came from the computer. Meng Yao turned around and explained, "Désolée, un ami vient d'arriver." (Excuse me, a friend just arrived.)

Her pronunciation was standard and fluent, and her intonation was very natural.

Fang Huaixu, no longer wanting to disturb them, turned back to her work area, but the curiosity of the person on the computer was piqued by her words: "Il veut se joindre à nous pour étudier" (Does he want to join us in studying?).

Meng Yao glanced sideways at Fang Huaixu, who had already sat down on the other side of the room and was working on his tablet. She lowered her voice slightly and said, "Non, il ne travaille pas dans ce domaine." (No, he's not studying this.)

No sooner had the words left his mouth than someone with a gossipy smile immediately followed up: "I heard a male voice, plutt agréable. Il est beau garon" (I heard a male voice, such a nice voice, is he handsome?)

Meng Yao glanced over unconsciously. Fang Huaixu was still focused on the tablet. His profile looked exceptionally handsome under the light, with deep-set eyes and a high nose bridge. Every feature seemed to have been carefully sculpted by the Creator. She silently acknowledged the assessment of him as "handsome".

But she wasn't one to mince words, quickly retorting in French: "Laisse tomber… C'est un vrai traditionnel, très sérieux et un peu rigide." (Don't even think about it… He's a blockhead, very serious, and a bit old-fashioned.)

Disappointment and laughter inevitably came through the headphones, but someone still persisted, asking, "Mais, il est beau ou pas On ne t'a jamais entendu parler d'un homme si proche." (Stop beating around the bush, is he handsome or not? I've never heard you mention having any close male friends.)

It's always easy to feel guilty when people talk behind your back. Meng Yao made sure that Fang Huaixu was engrossed in his work and hadn't noticed her "international gossip." She pursed her lips: Anyway, Fang Huaixu wouldn't understand.

So, with a touch of helpless honesty, she said quickly in an even softer voice, "Oui, plutt beau."

A cacophony of screams erupted from the computer screen, startling Meng Yao, who quickly turned down the volume and gestured for silence while hastily changing the subject: "Enough already! Let's get back to our studies!"

The atmosphere quickly calmed down, and Meng Yao gradually got into the zone and became much more focused.

An hour and a half later, the alarm clock rang.

When her study time ended, Meng Yao turned off her computer, stretched, and let out a long sigh of relief.

At the same time, Fang Huaixu looked up to make sure she was free: "Are you done with your work?"

"Yeah, just finished." Meng Yao tilted her head back in the chair and stretched her stiff neck. "What happened?"

Fang Huaixu nodded: "I have something to discuss with you."

Meng Yao quickly sat up straight, and Fang Huaixu naturally got up and walked to her desk, his tone becoming more formal: "In the past few days, several influential third-party media outlets that we contacted have begun to publish articles on the in-depth timeline analysis and positive reports of your live broadcasts over the years."

To be honest, ever since she started live streaming, Meng Yao hadn't dared to look at her phone much, afraid that if she saw her haters digging up all her family's secrets and past, she might lose her temper and do something rash. So, hearing the good news, she was naturally happy: "Really? How was the result?"

Fang Huaixu looked at the wide eyes that immediately opened and smiled affirmatively: "The public opinion response has been very good. There is almost no need for any control of the comments. It is even better than the most optimistic effect we initially expected. Now, there are so many videos of spontaneous reports about your event and your participation in charity that you can easily find them by scrolling through them."

Meng Yao finally breathed a sigh of relief, but quickly came to her senses: "However, overwhelming marketing can easily backfire. Are you suggesting that I should start making occasional appearances to build a new persona?"

“Yes,” Fang Huaixu affirmed her clear thinking: “This is indeed a very good momentum, so we should take advantage of this opportunity to do something good. Tianmu is having an annual charity gala next Wednesday night, which is a relatively important public event in the industry, and many media celebrities will be there.”

He paused for a moment, then politely asked Meng Yao for her opinion: "Considering your recent popularity, it would be a bit awkward for you to make a comeback soon, whether it's live streaming or continuing to make videos. It would be best if there was some kind of event to set the stage. In addition, we have already announced our collaboration on a charity project, so I would like to invite you to attend this dinner as a special guest. What do you think?"

Meng Yao paused for a moment: "I haven't attended many banquets like this before. Without a specific program, I might not perform well."

"Don't worry, there will be no more cameras inside. You just need to come in with us. The media are also pre-arranged by us and will not embarrass you."

Fang Huaixu patiently explained, confidently: "You can take this opportunity to present your new image after the transformation to the mainstream media and the public in a more formal setting, get your face recognized, and further enhance public awareness and positive image; secondly, you can also completely bind yourself to Tianmu, which can have a certain deterrent effect on those potential external threats, and there will be far fewer unnecessary troubles."

After weighing the pros and cons and considering the time involved, Meng Yao decided that this was indeed a worthwhile plan and readily agreed: "Okay, I have no problem with that."

Fang Huaixu also approved it.

However, Meng Yao's mind raced, and a mischievous smile appeared on her lips as she looked at him with a half-teasing tone: "But, although everyone is saying it's good for me, my popularity during this period has also brought a lot of revenue to the group, hasn't it?"

Fang Huaixu chuckled and replied, "Of course, thanks to the great star Meng for stepping in and instantly elevating my worthless team to a whole new level."

Meng Yao shamelessly pretended not to understand his flattery and shook her finger: "Now that I'm associated with your company's image, am I also considered a short-term spokesperson invited by President Fang?"

She winked mischievously: "Mr. Fang is someone who can easily buy two buildings, would he be stingy with my appearance fee?"

Fang Huaixu was amused by her sudden attempt to raise her price, and a happy smile appeared between his eyebrows. He indulgently asked her, "Have you decided what kind of appearance fee you want?"

If possible, Meng Yao really wanted him to help her find out where Professor Anderson was. She had asked Lin Tianhai for help before but hadn't heard anything since. Now that they had publicly severed ties, it was even less likely that she would ask him.

But considering that this was quite a troublesome matter, and that she had caused Fang Huaixu a lot of trouble in the days since they got together, Meng Yao hesitated. She decided to accumulate favors before making the request all at once. So she pretended to be helpless and said, "Never mind, I'll do you a favor, Mr. Fang. I'll make a special appearance. I just hope that Mr. Fang remembers that I have done a great service for the group and will spare my life if I cause trouble in the future."

Fang Huaixu raised an eyebrow, a wicked idea quietly rising in his mind: "If you haven't decided what kind of reward you want, I do have an idea."

After a moment of confusion, Fang Huaixu spoke again, but not in the familiar Chinese: "Et si je proposais de devenir ton professeur de franais particulier Gratuitement, bien sr." (What if I offered to be your private French tutor? Of course, completely free and open to everyone.)

Meng Yao was completely stunned by his fluent and authentic French. His pronunciation was clear and authentic, even with a touch of the local intellectual's accent, and he spoke slowly and deliberately.

Meng Yao felt as if struck by an invisible bolt of lightning, staring at him in disbelief, her mind nearly blank: How could Fang Huaixu not understand? He was practically an expert! Had he overheard her entire conversation? What had she been complaining about to her friends…?

Fang Huaixu adopted a very magnanimous demeanor: "Merci pour tonpliment sur mon apparence… et aussi pour cementaire plutt juste sur mon caractère." (Thank you for your compliment on my appearance… and for your accurate assessment of my character.)

With a sudden "buzz," Meng Yao felt her blood rushing to her face. If there were a crack in the ground, she would have crawled into it without hesitation.

However, she quickly realized that Fang Huaixu, that wicked guy, could clearly understand what they were saying from the beginning and could accurately repeat their conversation, but he pretended not to understand and secretly observed them?

Enraged, she reaffirmed Lin Yue's assessment: Fang Huaixu is a beast in human form.

The "wolf in sheep's clothing" she was referring to stopped pretending altogether, narrowing his eyes and asking, "Alors Tu eptes ma proposition" (So, are you going to accept this proposal?).

Helpless, she raised the white flag: "...Bon, d'ord."

Author's Note: Hehe, I'll try again to see if I can update a second time. If not, I'll just have to update two chapters tomorrow.

I've been really engrossed in playing games these past few days, I'm so sorry (slides to my knees)