We ordinary people also need to fall in love.

Shen Nianning immediately noticed the commotion at the door. Her lips, which had been making small talk, tightened instantly, and her eyes subconsciously glanced towards the doorway.

On the other hand, Shen Nian'an was enthusiastically telling her sister about her bold speculations about Li Mubai.

"Ahem," Li Mubai said, reminding him.

"Go see for yourself if you want to know."

Shen Nian'an replied without turning her head. With her welcoming attitude, if Li Mubai wasn't a regular customer, he might have turned around and left immediately.

"Sister Shen."

Li Mubai called out softly, and Shen Nian'an immediately turned around. When she saw Li Mubai standing at the door, she gave a slightly awkward, dry laugh.

"Hey, brother, you didn't even tell me you were coming?"

"..."

Didn't he say so?

Shen Nian'an's smile faded, and she turned her attention to the girl standing next to Li Mubai. She hissed, and spoke with some uncertainty:

"So...you brought your partner to meet me?"

"No, I just came to see what books they have," Li Mubai quickly denied.

"Oh." Shen Nian'an felt a bit bored and glanced at Xie Shu, who was standing calmly beside Li Mubai. "Then you two can see for yourselves."

"Um."

After Li Mubai and Xie Shu had walked away, Shen Nianning lowered her voice and said:

"Sis, the girl next to Li Mubai is one of them from that day."

"Oh?!" Shen Nian'an became interested again. "Let me tell you, this girl came to the bookstore looking for Li Mubai before! She scared him so much that he performed a 'Qin King circling the pillar' routine on the spot. I still have the surveillance video."

"Really? Let me see it too."

As Shen Nian'an pulled out the video, Shen Nianning leaned in with a face full of curiosity to watch what had happened at the bookstore that day...

"Did you used to come to this bookstore often?" Xie Shu asked softly.

"Well, I found this bookstore by chance. It has a comprehensive selection of books, including both new and used ones, and even some out-of-print titles. The prices are also reasonable, so I come here often."

Xie Shu had come at least twice, and coincidentally, he also ran into Li Mubai, who was there to buy books.

"You seem to know the owner of this bookstore quite well." Xie Shu casually picked up a book and glanced at the cover and back cover descriptions.

"Uh... because very few people come to this store to buy books, I'm one of the few customers, so I'm probably more familiar with it."

Xie Shu nodded gently, put the book back, and continued searching for the next book.

Come to think of it, Li Mubai has never mentioned Mei Yulu to Xie Shu. If she knew, would she mind?

He glanced at Xie Shu furtively and saw that she was still focused on flipping through the book, her expression calm, showing no sign of wanting to ask any questions. Perhaps she had guessed something? Or perhaps she was just waiting for him to speak first?

"Sister Shen, I'd like these two books."

Xie Shu bought a copy, and Li Mubai also bought the exact same copy. She said it would be useful for learning history, even though he was already very good at history, but he followed his "heart".

"A total of eighty-four."

"We've already paid, so Sister Shen, we'll be going now."

"Okay, goodbye." Shen Nianan said crisply, without saying anything more.

"Wait, Li Mubai." Shen Nianning suddenly called out to the two who were about to leave.

Li Mubai turned to look at her with a puzzled expression.

"It's that..." Shen Nianning glanced at Xie Shu hesitantly, unsure whether she should say it.

"..."

Little sister, just say what you want to say. Why are you stammering and staring at Xie Shu like that? Anyone who doesn't know the situation would think there's some misunderstanding between them.

"If there's nothing else, we'll be going now," he said.

"Yes!" Shen Nianning immediately looked up, her tone certain. "It's just... didn't Xie Shu from your school transfer schools? Why didn't I see her in the last exam rankings?"

After she finished speaking, she nervously looked at the girl next to Li Mubai, feeling that obtaining information about girls from Li Mubai might displease this girl who was suspected to be his partner.

Li Mubai gave a strange look, and the atmosphere became a little awkward. Shen Nianning felt that her social anxiety was about to flare up. Why was no one talking?

"I didn't transfer schools. Something came up last time, so I didn't take the exam."

The girl standing next to Li Mubai spoke softly, and Shen Nianning finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Okay, thank you for your explanation." She bowed slightly.

"It's nothing," Xie Shu replied indifferently, without saying anything more, and then turned and left, with Li Mubai turning back to follow.

"Hey sis, why are you asking about girls from other schools? You wouldn't..." Shen Nian'an looked at her sister with a strange expression. It seemed she would have to lock the door properly from now on.

"How could you think of your own sister like that! I just think Xie Shu is really amazing, she actually got first place in the three-school joint exam, and I wanted to take her as my role model."

"Oh, I see." Shen Nian'an drawled, a pleased smile spreading across her face. She patted Shen Nianning's shoulder and praised, "Excellent! No wonder you're my sister, you've got ambition!"

"Then please, my dear older sister, learn from your younger sister and stop giving up."

"Never mind then, lying flat is fun for a while, and it's even more fun if you keep lying flat," Shen Nian'an said with a smile.

Shen Nianning was speechless at her sister's behavior.

"But you're already at the top of your class, why are you still thinking about improving? Do you want to be number one in the world in the college entrance exam?" Shen Nian'an asked, her smile fading.

"I want to be number one in the entire galaxy."

……

Should we go back to school now? Li Mubai glanced at Xie Shu, who was staring straight ahead, wondering what the other was thinking.

"Are we going back to school now?" he asked.

"Mmm," she responded softly.

The weather in May is somewhat unpredictable. What was a sunny afternoon gradually turned gloomy as a thick layer of clouds drifted in.

After being protected from direct sunlight, it wasn't so hot anymore...

Some people habitually put their hands in their pockets when walking, which appears somewhat casual.

Most people, however, will let their hands hang naturally at their sides, swinging them slightly as they walk to maintain their balance.

Li Mubai's gaze fell on Xie Shu's slender, white hands. He hesitated for a moment, then reached out and grasped the hand that was swaying slightly.

Xie Shu paused slightly. They had held hands several times already, but he still felt his heart race and never got tired of it.

"Before going back to school, I want to have some desserts," Xie Shu said softly, looking at Li Mubai beside her.

"Okay." Feeling his hand gripping him slightly tighter, Li Mubai nodded.

This isn't the suburbs, it's the city center. You can find a dessert shop every two or three hundred meters along the street.

Because desserts need to be kept at low temperatures, dessert shops will close their doors during the hot season to prevent heat from entering.

Li Mubai pushed open the heavy glass door and led Xie Shu into a dessert shop.

"Welcome." A mechanical voice sounded at the door.

"Hello, may I ask what you need...?"

The girl standing at the dessert shop counter looked up, about to ask a formulaic question, but suddenly stopped when she saw who it was.