We ordinary people also need to fall in love.

"Uh—class monitor, we can take a taxi, it should be more convenient."

Without a second thought, Li Mubai rejected Xie Shu's suggestion. Not to mention how ambiguous it would be, he would be riding his bicycle with Xie Shu and a big fat cat on the back. If something went wrong, the two of them and the cat would become a speed bump.

"It's not easy to get a taxi here, but you can try," Xie Shu said.

Li Mubai didn't believe it. He took out his phone, set the location, and started calling a ride-hailing service.

He looked towards the end of the road, where a green taxi appeared and sped closer. Li Mubai raised his hand to indicate that he wanted to take the taxi.

call out--!

The taxi sped past without stopping, its red roof light indicating it was carrying passengers. Li Mubai glanced at it and saw only the driver inside. What was going on?

He looked at Xie Shu, who was looking at him with a half-smile.

"Did you manage to get a taxi?" Xie Shu asked.

Li Mubai picked up his phone and glanced at it. The screen flickered, and a ride-hailing car accepted the order, estimated to arrive in eight minutes.

"I got it." He turned his phone to show Xie Shu.

"Really? Take another look," Xie Shu said.

Li Mubai turned his phone back to face him—the driver had canceled the order.

Damn it, why is no one taking orders here? Do they think the pay is too low? It's less than three kilometers, and the estimated fare is less than ten yuan.

"Let's ride bicycles," Xie Shu suggested again. She explained, "There's a bicycle rental shop right at the main entrance of the Confucius Academy; we can rent one."

"Then we can rent two cars. Wouldn't one be too cramped? Besides... my driving skills aren't that good," Li Mubai said.

"I can't ride a bicycle," Xie Shu said calmly, explaining that she indeed couldn't ride a bicycle.

Is there anything Xie Shu can't do? Li Mubai wondered.

"Or we could rent a two-seater bicycle, you sit in front. It's getting late, so let's decide soon..." Xie Shu paused for a moment before adding, "Come back soon."

"All right."

Li Mubai could barely accept a two-seater bicycle, but after taking one last look at the ride-hailing interface, his last glimmer of hope vanished, and he immediately canceled the order.

Xie Shu is right. The sooner you go, the sooner you'll come back. He still has to take a bus for more than an hour to get home.

There were indeed many bicycle rental shops near the Confucius Temple, and he and Xie Shu randomly chose one and went inside.

"Gentlemen, would you like to rent a car?" the shop owner, a man in his thirties, asked.

Li Mubai nodded and pointed to a tandem bicycle that looked cleaner, saying:

"How much does it cost to rent this car?"

"Fifteen yuan an hour, thirty yuan a day."

It seems like renting for a day would be more cost-effective, but Li Mubai and Xie Shu can't ride for a whole day; it might only take an hour.

"Rent for one hour," Li Mubai said.

Just as the boss was about to say yes, the girl next to the boy suddenly said:

"Rent for one day."

Li Mubai turned to look at Xie Shu in confusion.

"An hour might not be enough," she explained.

"It's alright, you two. Being ten minutes late won't hurt," the shop owner said with a smile.

……

"Rent for a day." Xie Shu took out a crisp thirty-cent coin and handed it to the shopkeeper.

"Okay." The shop owner naturally didn't mind making more money. He took the money and then said, "I need to leave one item as collateral, either my ID card or my phone will do."

"Use mine." Li Mubai took out his ID card from his wallet and handed it to the shop owner. Xie Shu glanced at it and then looked away.

Li Mubai pushed the car out of the shop, without asking why he wanted to rent it for a day. He turned to Xie Shu and said:

"Squad leader, I'll get on the bicycle first, then you can get on."

"Mm." Xie Shu nodded gently.

Li Mubai climbed onto the bicycle, feeling a little nervous. The steering wheel was in his hands, and if he didn't operate it properly, it could result in three lives lost. Moreover, because the road was wide and there were few vehicles, passing cars were driving very fast, and being hit could turn a hero into pieces.

As Xie Shu got on the bike, Li Mubai, who had previously been able to easily maintain his balance, had to exert some effort to avoid losing it.

"Is the class monitor seated?" he asked from the front.

"Sit still." Xie Shu's tone seemed to carry a hint of pleasure.

Li Mubai stepped onto the pedals, and because it was a tandem bicycle, he had to pedal harder than a single bicycle.

As the bicycle gradually accelerated, there was no need to worry about balance anymore. Li Mubai took the opportunity to look back. Xie Shu had a smile on her face, and a gentle breeze was blowing her loose hair. Her feet were not on the pedals.

No wonder he had such a hard time; it was all thanks to his starting and acceleration. He turned around and settled into being the bicycle's "power generator."

"Li Mubai, if it's a sunny day, riding a bicycle and enjoying the scenery along the way would be very pleasant." Xie Shu's voice was soft, like the wind reaching Li Mubai's ears.

He nodded. Who wouldn't want to leisurely ride a bicycle and enjoy the scenery along the way on a sunny day?

As Li Mubai rode his bicycle from the sparsely populated No. 6 Middle School to the commercial area near the university town, where there were more vehicles, he couldn't help but feel a little nervous and cautious.

"Take the right." Xie Shu's voice rang out as they reached a crossroads; she had already memorized the route.

Li Mubai turned right and rode for several hundred meters before reaching his destination.

He parked his bicycle in front of the pet hospital, which was neither too big nor too small, and went inside with Xie Shu.

"Hello, what can I do for you?" the hospital receptionist asked.

"Please get this cat vaccinated against rabies." Xie Shu put down the space capsule and placed it on the front desk.

"Meow," the orange cat meowed.

"Is this your first time calling?" the receptionist asked.

"Yes, this is the first time." Xie Shu paused for a moment and then said, "It's a stray cat."

"For stray cats, we suggest doing a simple physical examination first to check for any other illnesses, and then giving them vaccinations."

"Okay." Xie Shu nodded.

"How much does the physical exam cost?" Li Mubai interrupted.

"For the physical exam, we'll be checking its skin..." the receptionist began explaining the contents of the exam, then tallied the prices and said, "It'll come to around one hundred and fifty in total."

She glanced again at Li Mubai's school uniform and Xie Shu's youthful face and said:

"Are you students? We can offer a discount for students, and there's also a discount for rescuing stray cats. It will come down to between 100 and 120 yuan."

Wow, I didn't expect that wearing a school uniform would be an advantage. If he hadn't worn a school uniform like Xie Shu, he probably wouldn't have been able to enjoy the benefits, Li Mubai thought to himself.

"Okay, let's start with the physical exam."

The receptionist immediately called a doctor over and briefly explained the situation. The doctor opened the capsule and took out the orange cat. Although the orange cat was a little scared, it didn't breathe on the ground.

"This is a male cat, and it hasn't been spayed/neutered yet," the masked veterinarian said, before putting the orange cat back into the capsule.

Li Mubai nodded. Neutered cats usually have a corner of their ears clipped off. He had noticed this when feeding them before. It's best to neuter stray cats if possible, otherwise it will be troublesome when they go into heat.

"Then let's sterilize him," Xie Shuping said calmly.

hiss~

"Big Orange, don't blame me," Li Mubai thought to himself.

"Sterilization costs 200, plus the physical exam and injections, so the total will be 400," the doctor said.

Four hundred seemed acceptable. Li Mubai prepared to take out his wallet to pay in cash. Fortunately, he had been saving money since the start of the semester, and with what he had saved from last semester, he had five hundred in his wallet.

Xie Shu took out his phone and quickly scanned the QR code to pay.

Okay, then he gave it to Xie Shu, and Li Mubai silently put the wallet back in his pocket.

"Please sit down and wait a moment, it may take two and a half hours to finish." After saying that, the doctor carried the capsule into the examination room.

What? Two and a half hours? It's almost 6:30 now, so we'll have to wait until 9:00? It'll be dark by then. Li Mubai looked at Xie Shu; she should probably go back soon too.

Xie Shu turned to look at Li Mubai and asked:

"Two and a half hours is too late. We can admit the cat to the hospital first, and you can pick it up when you go back to school on Sunday. What do you think?"

That's alright, but I don't know how much it costs.

"Hospitalization would cost around 30 to 40 days, with student discounts available for 20 to 30 days, and a maximum of 60 for two days," Xie Shu continued, seemingly noticing Li Mubai's doubts.

That's alright. They had already agreed that the cost of treating the cat would be split among the three of them, which means they would pay 20 yuan for two and a half hours of treatment.

Li Mubai nodded in agreement.

"Okay, it'll be twenty-five a day. You can pay when you come back on Sunday," Xie Shu told the receptionist, who replied.

Not having to wait two and a half hours anymore, Li Mubai felt relieved. He and Xie Shu walked out of the hospital. He helped his bicycle onto the bike, preparing to return to school, when Xie Shu suddenly asked:

Are you hungry?