We ordinary people also need to fall in love.

Seeing Li Mubai return home with a joyful heart, Li's mother had mixed feelings.

She was conflicted; her simple-minded thinking made her believe that puppy love was a bad thing.

But then I thought about it again, and in the past, it was common for girls in rural areas to get married at the age of seventeen or eighteen.

When Li Mubai got home, he opened the door and went in. He saw Xie Shu standing in the living room, and her gaze immediately fell on him.

"Okay, my parents have agreed."

Xie Shu's tense and anxious heart finally settled down. If she couldn't find a place to stay, she really had nowhere else to go.

"Thanks……"

She was about to say thank you when, as if remembering something, she slowly walked over and gently hugged Li Mubai before he could react.

A faint jasmine scent wafted from her, indistinguishable from the smell of shampoo or shower gel.

"Xie Shu, you don't mind if you sleep in my room, do you?" Li Mubai said.

"I don't mind," Xie Shu said. Then she asked, "Where will you sleep?"

I sleep in my brother's room.

"……good."

"Let me show you my room first."

Li Mubai gently patted her back, and Xie Shu released her hand.

Compared to Xie Shu's spacious room, Li Mubai's room was much smaller, but it was still neat and simple.

"I'll go find you new duvet covers and bed sheets to change into," Li Mubai said.

"That's fine."

"This was my mother's instruction," Li Mubai added.

Xie Shu pondered for a moment, then nodded slightly.

Li Mubai left the room, leaving Xie Shu alone inside.

She looked around curiously, observing every corner of the room, some of which she had seen in a video call last semester.

Then I looked at Li Mubai's desk, where the winter break homework for this semester was still piled up, neatly stacked on the corner of the desk.

My gaze shifted back to his bed.

The blankets were folded neatly and squarely, not piled up haphazardly. Nowadays, not many people get up to fold their blankets; most people just spread them out flat.

However, this was all thanks to Lan Shiyu. Once, she came to their house for a free meal, and Li Mubai didn't even bother with his blankets, which made him quite embarrassed.

Xie Shu looked at the bedside table next to the bed, on which were several things: "The Little Prince", a wooden doll, and his portrait.

"Xie Shu, let me change your bed. If you're tired, get some rest." Li Mubai walked in with a brand new three-piece bedding set and saw Xie Shu sitting on the edge of the bed, holding something from the bedside table.

"Li Mubai," she called his name, a gentle smile playing on her lips.

"What's wrong?"

"A very nice name."

……

Li Mubai helped her change the sheets and duvet cover, and then told her which parts of the wardrobe she shouldn't rummage through.

"Xie Shu, my parents won't be back from closing the shop until 10 p.m. If you're tired, you can get some rest earlier."

"it is good."

She was indeed exhausted. She hadn't brought anything with her; her phone was broken, and she hadn't brought her wallet. She could only rely on her memory to walk to Li Mubai's restaurant.

"Use this to brush your teeth, it's all new."

Li Mubai brought over a new toothbrush and tooth mug, which his mother had bought for a penny on Pinduoduo. Although cheap, they were at least usable.

dong dong dong.

There was a gentle knock on the door, and Xie Shu's gaze was immediately drawn to it.

Li Mubai walked over and opened the door.

"Hello, your takeout is here."

Li Mubai accepted it.

"Did you buy this?" Xie Shu asked curiously as he leaned closer.

Li Mubai nodded. He opened the bag, inside which were a pair of brand-new slippers and disposable face towels.

"It seems we don't have any new slippers at home, so I can only buy you a new pair."

He originally wanted to go to the supermarket to buy it, but thought that Xie Shu might feel cramped staying at home alone.

goo—

Just then, a low, muffled thud was heard.

Li Mubai looked up at Xie Shu, his eyes filled with doubt: "Xie Shu, have you... eaten dinner?"

Xie Shu lowered his head shyly and said softly, "No."

"Then let me take you out to eat first before you rest, otherwise you'll get hungry."

"I...don't really want to leave."

Li Mubai thought for a moment and said, "Then I'll cook you some noodles, okay?"

Xie Shu looked up at him and nodded.

He originally wanted to order takeout for Xie Shu, but takeout seemed a bit unhealthy. Last time, Lan Shiyu ordered a milk tea after eating at his house, and ordered one for him as well, which caused him to have diarrhea all day.

Li Mubai walked into the kitchen, skillfully lit the fire to boil water, and prepared the soup base in a bowl. Xie Shu also followed him in.

"Xie Shu, could you please step out for a moment? I need to fry an egg; be careful the oil doesn't splatter on you."

"It's alright." Xie Shu hid behind Li Mubai.

Nourishes—

The eggs sizzled as they were dropped into the hot oil. After frying them briefly, he took them out of the pan.

By this time the water had boiled, so he scooped some boiling water into the soup base and then added the noodles.

He glanced at Xie Shu standing next to him and noticed that her gaze was fixed on the noodles bubbling in the pot.

It's almost eight o'clock now, and Xie Shu probably hasn't eaten anything since lunch.

After the noodles had been boiling in the pot for a few minutes, Li Mubai scooped them out, drained them, and poured them into a bowl. He grabbed the chili oil and was about to add it when he stopped halfway through, suddenly remembering that Xie Shu didn't eat spicy food.

Sprinkle some chopped green onions on top, and a bowl of clear soup noodles is ready. There's a fried egg and a few pieces of bright green vegetables on the side.

"Xie Shu, try it and see how it tastes. If it's too bland, I'll add some salt."

He added very little salt, afraid that too much would make her feel it was too salty.

Xie Shu took the chopsticks Li Mubai handed him, tasted them, and said, "It's ready, it's delicious."

"Then let's sit at the table and eat."

Li Mubai placed the food on the dining table and sat opposite Xie Shu. Watching Xie Shu, who was very hungry but still chewed slowly, a sense of satisfaction welled up in his heart.

"Do you want some?" Xie Shu looked up at him.

"You can eat, I've already had dinner." Li Mubai waved his hand with a smile.

"Open your mouth, ah—" Xie Shu picked up a chopstick of noodles and stretched it out towards him.

Looking at the chopsticks that Xie Shu had used, Li Mubai turned his head away.

"Open your mouth quickly, the noodles are about to fall onto the table," Xie Shu urged.

After a mental struggle, Li Mubai finally opened his mouth slightly, and the now-cooled noodles entered his mouth.

"Is it good?" Xie Shu asked.

"It's alright." He cooked the noodles himself, so he knew exactly what they tasted like. He took out his phone and stopped looking at Xie Shu sitting across from him.

Xie Shu quickly finished a bowl of clear soup noodles. Li Mubai didn't cook too much for her, remembering that she had a small appetite.

She changed into new slippers, finished washing up, and returned to the living room. Seeing Li Mubai still sitting on the sofa, Xie Shu walked over and sat down next to him, gently leaning on his shoulder.

Thank you for your letter.

"Um?"

Li Mubai stood up, picked up his schoolbag, took out a square box, and a copy of "Pride and Prejudice".

Xie Shu looked at him, puzzled.

"Xie Shu, today is your seventeenth birthday. Happy seventeenth birthday, and may you always be happy." He handed her the gift, "This is a gift I prepared for you, I hope you like it."

"Thank you." She smiled and said thank you as usual.

"What's inside?" Xie Shu took the box and prepared to open it with a puzzled look.

"Wait, open it when you get back to your room." Li Mubai pressed her hand down.

"Okay, I'm going back to my room now. Goodnight."

"Okay, get some rest, goodnight."

As night deepened, lying in bed in a strange house, Xie Shu still felt a little uneasy, even though it was someone he trusted very much.

She glanced out the window; it was pitch black. But looking up, she could see twinkling stars and a crescent moon.

Xie Shu had already opened the box and looked inside; it contained seventeen letters written by Xie Shu.

She thought the best gift wasn't what he gave her, but him himself.

Holding the box, she slowly closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep.