He was a disabled military officer who doted on his research work in the Northwest.

The amplitude was so small that it would have been impossible to notice unless he had been staring intently at it.

It was neither a twitch nor a spasm, but a clear, controlled bending motion.

Mu Qinghan suddenly covered her face, and something burning hot welled up from her eyes.

He hadn't cried for many years. The last time he shed tears was on the battlefield when he watched his comrade die beside him.

But at this moment, under the moonlight unseen by anyone, this man, whose condition was deemed "irreversible" by everyone, trembled silently like a child.

His leg—it can be saved.

Mu Qinghan closed his eyes, letting the tears flow. After his breathing calmed down, he slowly opened his eyes, and the long-dormant light in his dark eyes reignited.

Tomorrow, she will bring him breakfast. She will also call him "cousin".

It's okay.

The day he stands up again—he will make her change her mind.

……

Early October.

The day of the transfer exam has arrived.

In early October, the wind on the Gobi Desert in Northwest China already carried a hint of chill.

Outside the east wing, Xiao Li had already polished the Forever brand bicycle until it shone. A satchel made of military green canvas was hanging on the handlebars—it was made overnight by several military wives in the compound when they heard that Shen Tang was going to school.

Shen Tang was wearing a faded light blue polyester shirt today, with two long braids hanging down to her waist in front of her chest. She was holding two sharpened Zhonghua brand pencils in her hand and was about to go out.

"Did you bring your exam admission ticket?"

The sound of a wheelchair rolling over blue bricks came from the doorway, and Mu Qinghan stopped at the entrance of the side room at some point. He was dressed in a neat military uniform, the hem of which was so smooth that there wasn't a single wrinkle, and his deep eyes were fixed on the cloth bag in Shen Tang's hand.

Shen Tang patted her handbag with amusement: "I brought it."

"Is the pen fully filled with ink?"

"It's full."

"Should the school provide draft paper, or should we bring our own?" Mu Qinghan frowned slightly, seemingly considering whether to ask Xiao Li to go to the logistics department and get another stack of blank paper.

Shen Tang couldn't help but burst out laughing when she saw the rare look of anxiety, like that of an elderly father seeing his child off to an exam, appear on his usually stern face.

She took two steps closer, her eyes crinkling as she looked at him: "Cousin, you're even more nervous than I was when I took the doctoral entrance exam... even more nervous than I was myself." She almost let slip the words "doctoral entrance exam."

The way he called him "cousin" came out so naturally that Mu Qinghan frowned again when he heard the address. When would he stop using that term?

He said, "How could I not be nervous? I wasn't even as nervous when I first went solo as I am now."

Back then, when you fly, your life is in your own hands; you only think about how to operate the aircraft and don't care about being nervous at all. But now, seeing her go to the exam hall, he can't help but worry.

Shen Tang blinked. Mu Qinghan was a pilot, and this was his first solo flight? That meant his life was tied to the control stick. Wasn't it a bit of an exaggeration for him to compare this to a high school transfer exam?

"Alright, alright, I'll definitely be fine." Shen Tang patted his shoulder, her tone as confident as if she were saying the sun would rise in the east tomorrow. "Just relax and wait for my good news. Little Li, let's go!"

Xiao Li responded crisply and pushed her bicycle out of the yard. Mu Qinghan sat in her wheelchair, watching the light blue figure disappear around the corner of the gate before silently turning her gaze away.

……

A high school for children of employees.

The school wasn't big, with two red brick teaching buildings in the front and back, and a dirt playground in the middle, with a few crooked poplars planted along the edge of the playground. The wind and sand in the Northwest were strong, and the poplar leaves were always covered with a layer of dust.

Xiao Li dropped Shen Tang off at the school gate and then went back. Shen Tang walked into the school gate with her canvas bag on her back and immediately saw the sign for the Academic Affairs Office—a single-story building with old newspapers pasted on the windows and two wilted cacti placed at the door.

Just as she was about to walk inside, she heard the sound of a car engine behind her.

Shen Tang turned around.

A slightly worn Jiefang brand truck was parked outside the school gate, and a clean-cut young man with a side-parted hairstyle jumped out of the driver's seat—Zhao Jianhui.

He went around to the passenger side, opened the car door solicitously, and helped a girl in a floral dress out.

It was actually... Shen Yao?

She was dressed more meticulously than usual today; her floral dress was perfectly ironed without a single wrinkle, and her hair was tied in a low ponytail that fell over her shoulders, making her look quiet and refined. She wore a pair of white leather shoes—in this day and age, not many girls in a small northwestern town could afford leather shoes, but the Zhao family certainly could afford them.

It seems the 300 yuan compensation for severing ties is too little.

She remembered that the last time she made curry, Lin Qiaozhen asked someone to make a mold at the machine factory. At that time, she heard that Director Zhao thought Shen Yao's low education level was embarrassing and forced her to go back to make up for her high school diploma.

I just didn't expect to run into them on the day of the transfer exam; it's just that fate has other plans.

Shen Yao walked into the school gate arm in arm with Zhao Jianhui, and immediately saw Shen Tang.

She paused for a moment, and then her eyes reddened.

"Sister?" Shen Yao released Zhao Jianhui's hand and walked over quickly, her face filled with a mixture of surprise and heartache, the proportions just right.

"Sister, how are you doing in the military region? I've been so worried about you... You're... here to study too? That's wonderful!"

As she spoke, she reached out to take Shen Tang's hand.

Shen Tang took a half step back without making a sound.

Shen Yao's hand missed its target, but her expression showed no embarrassment; instead, she looked even more pitiful.

She glanced back at Zhao Jianhui, then turned back, lowering her voice as if afraid of being overheard: "Sister... you've spent so many years in the countryside, your foundation might not be very strong. Exams are really difficult for students with weak foundations, I'm worried about you... Why don't you talk to the principal and see if you can lower the difficulty level a bit?"

That's very thoughtful and considerate.

But Shen Tang understood—every word was a double-edged sword.

What does "spending so many years in the countryside," "poor foundation," and "worried about you" mean? — It basically translates to: You, a pig farmer in the countryside, are you even qualified to take the high school entrance exam with me?

Shen Tang didn't reply, or even look at her.

Her gaze went past Shen Yao's shoulder and landed on Zhao Jianhui behind her.

Zhao Jianhui met her gaze and scoffed, "If your foundation isn't good, you can go to elementary school. Why did she have to be so greedy and go to high school? Doesn't she even know her own level?"

He spoke quite loudly, and several people were already standing at the entrance of the academic affairs office—teachers there to handle some business, and parents waiting to register. Several pairs of eyes turned towards him, some curious, some just watching the spectacle.

"Yeah, who is that? How can you get into high school without a foundation?"

"Yeah, you probably can't understand the lessons either."

"Is he/she a relative of someone who's here to gain prestige?"

Shen Tang remained unfazed by what the people around her said.

In her past life, she and her mentor debated fiercely at an academic defense, leaving the judges speechless. In this life, a spoiled brat who lives off his father and a few outsiders' gossips try to embarrass her with just a few words.

joke!

"Mr. Zhao," Shen Tang spoke, her voice soft but clear, "I remember I've already signed a severance agreement with the Shen family. And you're Shen Yao's boyfriend, not even a member of the Shen family. Whether I take exams or which school I attend is none of your business. You think too highly of yourself!"

Zhao Jianhui's face stiffened.

Shen Yao quickly tried to smooth things over: "Sister, don't be angry, Jianhui didn't mean it that way—"

"And another thing," Shen Tang said, looking at Shen Yao with a tone as flat as stating a weather forecast, "Shen Yao, since there's a letter severing ties, we have nothing to do with each other. If we run into each other at school in the future, don't pretend to be sisters; I find it disgusting."