We ordinary people also need to fall in love.

"Yulu, stop sitting there daydreaming. Come on, let's go eat, and see how the food is at the No. 6 Middle School cafeteria."

"Uh-huh."

Mei Yulu slowly came to her senses, gently packed her schoolbag on the table, and followed Yuan Na out of the auditorium.

The midday sun was a bit dazzling, and the campus was bustling with students, gradually becoming lively with their voices.

"By the way, Yulu, do you know how to get to the No. 6 Middle School cafeteria?" Yuan Na turned her head and looked at her blankly.

Just then, two deliberate, light coughs came from behind.

A boy who wasn't wearing the school uniform of No. 6 Middle School, but was clearly a student of the school, was walking slowly, his steps dragging as if he was deliberately waiting for someone to talk to him.

"Following the direction most people are going, that should lead to the cafeteria," Mei Yulu said calmly, her gaze naturally fixed ahead.

"Oh! You're so smart, Yulu!" Yuan Na immediately realized and praised her.

Mei Yulu simply gave a polite, slight smile and said nothing more.

The two walked straight past Yang Kun, who was moving at a snail's pace, without even glancing at him once.

"Haha, Chicken Bro, you're no good! They didn't even acknowledge you!" Zhao Feng chimed in at the opportune moment, mocking him mercilessly.

"At least I have the courage to gamble, do you?" Yang Kun retorted defiantly, his neck stiff.

"No, I'm afraid of embarrassing the school," Zhao Feng said frankly.

Zhao Feng not only mocked himself, but also shared the story in his dormitory.

"Yang Kun, why are you so eager to be in a relationship?" Li Mubai couldn't help but ask curiously.

"Sigh." Yang Kun sighed deeply, his tone filled with an indescribable weariness. "I feel like this is all I'll ever be able to do in my studies. I can't understand anything I learn. Even if I try my best, I can only get into a decent second-tier university at best, and if I work hard, I might just barely make it into a top-tier university."

Yang Kun's grades were often among the worst in Class 3, so attending an ordinary second-tier university was unacceptable to someone who had been admitted to a key high school and entered the top class.

As Li Mubai listened, a sense of regret silently arose in his heart.

"So what does this have to do with you wanting to be in a relationship?"

"My family knew long ago that I didn't have much hope of getting into a good school, so they told me to find a reliable partner while I was in school, so that when I went back to inherit the family fortune, all the women around me would be after my money."

"Wait a minute." Li Mubai abruptly interrupted him, "Excuse me for asking... how much wealth do you have?"

"I don't know the exact number, but there are probably several factories. I'll definitely be able to live comfortably for the rest of my life. To be honest, I don't really want to inherit it. I want to make a name for myself."

Li Mubai instantly swallowed his earlier regret; perhaps this is the kind of trouble the poor can never empathize with the rich.

Of course, Xie Shu is an exception.

Yang Kun was still complaining about the arrangements his family made for him, while Li Mubai put on his headphones and went to sleep peacefully.

"Students, lunch break is over. Please tidy up your belongings and let's begin our afternoon classes!"

"I'm going to sleep for another ten minutes. Remember to wake me up, guys."

Li Mubai didn't wait for the bell to ring before getting up; instead, he quietly finished washing up ten minutes early. As soon as the bell rang, he immediately went out and headed straight for the auditorium.

At this time, there were very few students in the auditorium; most people were still slowly washing up and getting ready in their dormitories.

As Li Mubai stepped onto the stairs and was about to push open the door, a figure in a blue and white school uniform walked out from inside.

He glanced at it indifferently, then looked away expressionlessly.

Perhaps seeing that no one was around and that the opportunity was rare, the other person stopped and spoke softly:

"Good afternoon, Li Mubai."

Li Mubai simply gave a perfunctory "hmm," and without stopping, prepared to walk past her into the hall.

"Li Mubai," Mei Yulu quickly called out to him again, her tone somewhat cautious, "How...did you do on the exam this time?"

She asked with extreme caution, afraid of accidentally touching his "sensitive spot" and making him angry so he would turn around and leave.

A few seconds of silence followed before Li Mubai spoke, his tone devoid of any emotion:

"Not bad, thirty-third place."

Upon hearing this answer, Mei Yulu secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

It was already quite good that the awkward, silent, and confrontational scene she had envisioned did not occur.

"It's so hard to get into the top three. I came in fourth this time, just five points away from third place." She spoke in a relaxed tone, as if sharing her thoughts with an old friend, or perhaps conveying some kind of signal.

Unfortunately, Li Mubai had no interest in this. He didn't say anything and walked straight to his seat.

Mei Yulu hesitated for a moment, but still silently followed.

"Thirty-third... As long as you stay consistent, you should be able to get into a pretty good university. Li Mubai, do you have a target university yet?"

In the empty and quiet auditorium, Mei Yulu's voice was exceptionally clear.

Several students from No. 1 Middle School and No. 3 Middle School, who had just woken up from their lunch break, instinctively looked over in the direction of the sound.

Li Mubai remained silent and walked straight to his seat.

Mei Yulu sat down behind him. Yuan Na, who was next to her, had gone to the bathroom to wash her face and hadn't returned yet.

Taking advantage of this brief moment of silence, she lowered her voice and tried to strike up a conversation again:

"Li Mubai, that poetry competition last time, was it you who participated? You won first place, that's pretty impressive."

She was like a drowning person trying to find a topic to pull herself ashore, while Li Mubai had no interest in reaching out to save her.

"Hmm," he replied dismissively.

"Li Mu Bai..."

She wanted to say something more, but people started walking in through the auditorium entrance.

Mei Yulu wisely shut her mouth and stopped bothering her.

Not long after, Xie Shu also came in.

She glanced indifferently at Mei Yulu, who was sitting in the back row looking reserved, without any extra expression, and went straight back to her seat.

She quietly took a bottle of jasmine tea from her bag, then turned slightly to look at Li Mubai:

"Your cup."

"Here it is, what's wrong?" Li Mubai obediently took out a water glass and placed it on the table, looking puzzled.

Xie Shu reached out and took the cup from him, unscrewed the jasmine tea, poured half a bottle into the cup steadily, and then handed it back to him.

"I remember you really liked this. Drinking a little in the afternoon will keep you from feeling sleepy."

After saying that, she poured the remaining half bottle into her water glass and screwed the cap on.

"Hmm...actually, you could buy two bottles." Li Mubai didn't quite understand why one bottle had to be drunk separately.

Xie Shu looked up at him, her tone natural and calm:

"One bottle is enough for the two of us."

Ok.

Just then, Yuan Na returned and noticed that Mei Yulu's expression was a little off. She whispered with concern:

"Yulu, you look terrible. Are you feeling unwell?"

"fine."

Hearing the brief exchange behind him, Li Mubai roughly understood why Xie Shu had only bought one bottle...