Reborn in 1977, I will no longer be my brother's blood bag.

After their reunion, life seemed unchanged.

The Qiming Project continues as usual, courses are held as usual, and the library remains packed.

But only Lin Xiuhe herself knew that some things had changed.

For example, right now—she's sitting by the window in the library, with an English book in front of her, but ten minutes have passed and she hasn't even turned a single page.

Gu Xiaolan couldn't help but wave her hand in front of her eyes: "Xiuhe?"

"Um?"

"This is the sixth time you've spaced out today."

Lin Xiuhe snapped out of her daze: "Really?"

"Yes," Gu Xiaolan said decisively.

Liu Xue immediately added, "And every time she's spacing out, it's like she's thinking about someone."

"..." Lin Xiuhe closed the book directly.

The two roommates immediately burst into laughter.

But as she was laughing, Su Qing suddenly spoke up: "Actually, I also find it strange."

The dormitory fell silent: "What's strange?"

"That Zhou Zhiyuan."

Lin Xiuhe raised her head.

Su Qing adjusted her glasses and said calmly, "He doesn't seem like a trainee."

Gu Xiaolan was taken aback: "What do you mean?"

"At yesterday's meeting, everyone at the research institute was discussing it, but he was the only one who directly offered a solution." Su Qing paused for a moment, "And he was very skilled at it, like he had done it many times before."

The derivation route I came up with yesterday was too advanced, too advanced for our time.

Thinking of this, Lin Xiuhe slowly lowered her head and remained silent.

But the doubts in my heart grew stronger and stronger.

Meanwhile, at the training center, Zhou Zhiyuan was also lost in thought.

"Old Zhou? Old Zhou?" His colleague called twice before he snapped out of his daze.

"What's wrong?"

"Have you been having something on your mind lately?"

"no."

"That's a lie." Several trainees laughed, one of them even saying directly, "Something's been off ever since we went to Tsinghua yesterday."

Zhou Zhiyuan lowered his head to drink water and did not respond.

But the scene in the conference room reappeared in my mind—the derivation route, the look in his eyes, and the final moment of eye contact.

Others might not notice, but he did. When Lin Xiuhe saw her own train of thought, she was clearly taken aback, as if she recognized something.

Thinking of this, Zhou Zhiyuan's eyes flickered slightly, and for the first time, a thought became clear: she knew, she knew that method. But the question was, how could she know?

The wind rustled the leaves outside the window.

After a long silence, Zhou Zhiyuan slowly exhaled: "No way..."

In the afternoon, the Qiming project team held its first formal meeting, chaired by the project leader.

Lin Xiuhe stood in front of the blackboard, assigning tasks, distributing materials, and setting schedules.

The whole process was carried out in an orderly manner, and even Director Qin couldn't help but nod in approval.

Many students have good grades, but they may not be good at organizing. Lin Xiuhe is different; she seems to have a natural talent for coordination.

After the meeting, Director Qin suddenly smiled and said, "First time leading a project?"

"Um."

"I can't tell."

Lin Xiuhe smiled but didn't explain. It was indeed her first time, but in her previous life, she had led a team, and many things were ingrained in her very being.

Just then, footsteps suddenly came from outside the door.

The next second, Zhou Zhiyuan walked in, holding a document in his hand: "Supplementary data for the training center."

Li Mingyuan looked at Zhou Zhiyuan, then at Lin Xiuhe, feeling that the atmosphere was a bit strange, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"Put it here," Lin Xiuhe said.

"Okay." Zhou Zhiyuan nodded, put down the documents, but did not leave immediately.

The two looked up at the same time, their eyes meeting.

At this moment, it seemed as if everyone was observing and testing each other.

A few seconds later, Zhou Zhiyuan suddenly spoke up: "This management style is good, it doesn't seem like that of students."

Li Mingyuan didn't hear anything, Zhao Guodong didn't hear anything either, but Lin Xiuhe's heart skipped a beat.

The next second, she suddenly laughed: "Your thinking is also good, and it doesn't seem like you're training a student."

boom.

The air seemed to freeze for a moment.

Zhou Zhiyuan looked at her without saying a word.

Lin Xiuhe looked at him calmly.

But both of them understood that some things had already begun.

Director Qin was still flipping through the documents, while Li Mingyuan was taking notes.

As I left the automation building, the sun was setting.

Zhou Zhiyuan walked alone on the tree-lined path, his pace slow.

After a long while, he suddenly smiled, because he had finally realized one thing: Lin Xiuhe was really not right.

Meanwhile, downstairs in the dormitory building, Lin Xiuhe stood under a tree, looking at the distant sky.

After a long pause, she whispered, "As expected..."

The wind rustled through the leaves, and no one heard what she said next.

But she already had the answer in her heart: Zhou Zhiyuan, that didn't seem right either.

******

It was already getting a bit cold in Beijing at the end of October.

The ginkgo leaves in Tsinghua Garden are beginning to turn yellow. When the wind blows, the leaves fall one by one, covering the tree-lined path.

As the last class of the afternoon ended, the students from the Automation Department walked out with their books.

Gu Xiaolan groaned as she packed her things, "I get a headache just looking at calculus now."

Liu Xue immediately chimed in, "I only get a headache when I see English."

"Then you can switch with Xiuhe."

"I dare not."

The group burst into laughter.

Lin Xiuhe couldn't help but smile.

Just then, a voice came from the classroom door: "Lin Xiuhe".

The voice wasn't loud, but it drew the attention of many people in the classroom at the same time.

Gu Xiaolan's eyes lit up instantly: "They're here, they're here!"

Liu Xue chimed in, "Here we go again!"

At the doorway, Zhou Zhiyuan stood holding a brown paper bag. Seeing Lin Xiuhe come out, he handed her the bag: "I bought this while passing by."

Lin Xiuhe took the bag; it felt warm inside. She opened it and found roasted chestnuts.

Gu Xiaolan immediately let out a meaningful "Oh".

Lin Xiuhe's ears felt a little hot: "Thank you."

Zhou Zhiyuan smiled and said, "Just treat me to a meal."

-

There were many people at the noodle shop outside the east gate of the school.

The owner already recognized them; as soon as they sat down, he called out, "Two bowls of beef noodles?"

Zhou Zhiyuan nodded: "As usual."

The boss responded and turned to go into the kitchen.

The noodle shop was small, with somewhat old tables and chairs, and faded menus on the walls, yet it was unusually lively. Students surrounded it, some discussing exams, others English, and still others debating the latest international news.

Lin Xiuhe gazed out the window, lost in thought.

In her previous life at this age, she thought about next month's salary every day, not exams or the future.

Life has truly changed.

"What are you thinking about?" Zhou Zhiyuan asked.

"It's nothing."

"That's a lie."

How did you know?

"Because you like to look out the window when you're daydreaming."

Lin Xiuhe was slightly taken aback. She herself hadn't even noticed this habit, but Zhou Zhiyuan knew it.

The noodles were served quickly, steaming hot. The two of them lowered their heads and ate.

After a while, Zhou Zhiyuan suddenly spoke up: "Actually, there's another noodle shop behind the East Gate."

Lin Xiuhe subconsciously looked up.

"The beef is better here."

As soon as she finished speaking, Lin Xiuhe almost instinctively added, "Isn't it not open yet?"

...paused for a moment.

The surroundings remained lively; the owner was still collecting money, and the students were still chatting. But their table suddenly fell silent.

Zhou Zhiyuan stopped holding his chopsticks and slowly raised his head. Lin Xiuhe was also stunned, because she realized that she had said the wrong thing.

Their eyes met, but neither of them spoke.

A few seconds later, Zhou Zhiyuan suddenly laughed: "How did you know?"

Lin Xiuhe lowered her head and took a sip of soup, her voice calm: "I guessed."

"You guessed right."

"Good luck."

Neither of them continued the topic, but some things had quietly changed.

-

After finishing their meal, it gradually got dark. The two of them slowly walked back along the path outside the school.

The streetlights had just come on, casting a dim yellow light on the ground. The ginkgo leaves rustled in the wind.

Neither of them spoke first.

Halfway there, Zhou Zhiyuan suddenly said, "Beijing has changed a lot."

"Have you been here before?" Lin Xiuhe asked casually.

As soon as she finished speaking, she suddenly realized something and looked up at Zhou Zhiyuan.

The man paused slightly, then nodded: "I've been here before."

"When?"

Zhou Zhiyuan was silent for a moment, his gaze fixed on the distance, as if looking at something very far away. Then he smiled and said, "A long time from now."

……

In that instant, it felt like something exploded in Lin Xiuhe's mind.

She instinctively clenched the paper bag in her hand; the chestnuts inside had gone cold, but her palms began to feel warm.

Zhou Zhiyuan didn't explain, as if he had just said it casually, and continued walking forward.

Lin Xiuhe stood there, watching his retreating figure, and for the first time, an absurd thought occurred to her—

If... just if. What if she wasn't the only one to return to this world?

Just then, footsteps sounded behind them. A young man from the training center came running up, panting, "Brother Zhou! I finally found you!"

Zhou Zhiyuan turned around: "What's wrong?"

"The list is out." The young man handed over the notice. "The training in Shenyang has been moved up."

"in advance?"

"Yes, I'll leave in November."

Lin Xiuhe's expression changed slightly.

Zhou Zhiyuan, however, showed no surprise after reading the notice, as if he had known all along.

The young people were still complaining, "I don't know why the time was suddenly changed, it's really strange."

Zhou Zhiyuan simply folded the notice, put it in his pocket, and said casually, "Perhaps, many things are different now."

A gust of wind blew, and ginkgo leaves fell at their feet.

Lin Xiuhe suddenly raised her head.

Zhou Zhiyuan had already turned and left without looking back.