We ordinary people also need to fall in love.

"Mommy, what are my older brother and sister doing?"

Upon hearing this, the mother glanced at the boy and girl sitting to her right, quickly reached out to cover her child's view, and whispered, "Xiaoxin, don't look. Your older brother and sister are being naughty and dating."

What is puppy love?

Seeing her six-year-old son staring at her with a blank look, she decided to take this opportunity to talk to him about the downsides of early romantic relationships.

Li Mubai vaguely overheard the conversation between the mother and daughter and felt somewhat embarrassed.

He looked down and got closer, only to find that Xie Shu not only had mud on his trouser legs, but also several gray-black marks on his school uniform polo shirt, as if he had gotten them while climbing over the wall.

He struggled to free his right hand and gently stroked Xie Shu's somewhat messy hair, slowly smoothing it with his fingers.

"Xie Shu, you're such a...bad student." Li Mubai lowered his voice, as if talking to himself.

"Hmm..." Xie Shu leaned on his shoulder, her voice muffled.

Li Mubai's fingers ran through her hair, very gently, as if he were petting a kitten snuggling against him, a kitten that was now meowing.

But he's gone bad, hasn't he? He talked back to the teacher yesterday, and although he denied it at the time, it's true.

He didn't know when his high school life started to change. He had planned out his senior year of high school: study hard, take the college entrance exam, get a high score, choose a school, go to university, it was that simple.

Is this the life he wants?

Thank you for your help...

Thank you for your letter.

"Hmm?" she mumbled a question from his shoulder.

"Did you fall when you were climbing the wall?" Li Mubai asked.

"no."

"Really not?" he pressed.

He had already straightened Xie Shu's hair, and the warmth of his palm gradually calmed her previously anxious mood.

"I didn't fall. That wall wasn't high; it was easy to climb over."

Li Mubai's breath hitched: "Don't do that again, it's dangerous."

"Okay." Xie Shu nodded slightly. "But you must tell me as soon as you encounter any difficulties in the future."

"I'm sorry, I was delirious with fever last night and didn't have time to tell you." He apologized again. If he had told her earlier, Xie Shu wouldn't have risked running away.

"That's not it."

"Not this matter?" Li Mubai was taken aback.

"Did you... have a fight with Zhong Jianjun yesterday?" Xie Shu asked softly.

"No...no..."

Xie Shu sat up from his lap and looked up at him.

Under her clear gaze, Li Mubai quickly succumbed.

"Xie Shu, how did you know?"

He suddenly thought of Xiao Qingqing from Class 1. Actually, it was already quite obvious. At that time, only he and Zhong Jianjun were in the office. Zhong Jianjun couldn't possibly be angry at thin air, so his story might have already spread among the girls.

But unexpectedly, Xie Shu shook his head: "I guessed it. They only said that this happened, but nobody knows who it was specifically."

"Nobody knows?"

"Hmm." Xie Shu nodded gently. "So, what happened?"

"I put my books in my schoolbag, and Zhong Jianjun saw them and took them away. I wanted them back, but he said he would return them to me after the college entrance examination."

"What book?"

"The Little Prince".

Xie Shu frowned upon hearing this.

"So you weren't reading in the classroom, you just left your book in your bag, and he took it away?"

"Yes."

Why is he so mean to you?

There was a hint of life in Xie Shu's voice, something Li Mubai had never seen before.

He couldn't figure it out. He felt that Zhong Jianjun was being overly hostile towards him. Was it simply that he disliked him? He was a veteran teacher; surely it couldn't be that...

It's also possible that he and Xie Shu were always making a scene in front of him, challenging his authority as the dean of academic affairs, and he was under some kind of pressure but couldn't take direct action, so he could only put pressure on him in various ways.

Of course, all of the above are just his guesses.

"It's okay, I'll just hang in there for another year."

Li Mubai reached out and touched Xie Shu's head again. His fever had subsided a lot, but his complexion was still a little pale. He gave Xie Shu a smile that said he was alright.

What could he do? He was penniless and powerless. The only thing that could make the teachers in school take notice of him was his decent grades, but that wasn't enough to allow him to do whatever he wanted.

Xie Shu raised his hand, grabbed his right hand, took it off, and held it.

"I'll go ask for you."

Li Mubai's heart skipped a beat.

"Don't ask, it's okay," he reassured her.

"Studying in this kind of class will affect your grades," Xie Shu said seriously.

She was just as stubborn as Xie Zhiqiang, and she also gave her own reasons.

"Actually, it's not so bad." Li Mubai forced a smile. "You see, some high schools are even more insane. They have to be in the classroom for morning reading at 6:30 or even 6:00 in the morning. We're doing alright now."

He didn't know what Xie Shu was planning to do, but whether it was asking her parents for help or confronting Zhong Jianjun in person, it was something Li Mubai didn't want.

"We can't compare ourselves to the inferior ones," Xie Shu said.

Li Mubai was slightly taken aback. His mother often used this phrase to urge him to study hard, but he never expected that Xie Shuhua would use it now.

He didn't speak again, perhaps because he knew that once Xie Shu made up her mind, she would definitely do it. He rubbed Xie Shu's cold hands, which still had some rough stone chips on them.

Li Mubai gently pulled his hand away from hers and, under Xie Shu's puzzled gaze, took out a pack of toilet paper from his right trouser pocket.

"Xie Shu, open your hands."

Knowing roughly what he was going to do, Xie Shu obediently opened his palm.

Li Mubai took out a tissue and carefully wiped the dust off her palms.

"Remember to go to the bathroom to wash up."

Toilet paper can only wipe away obvious dust, while some dust has already stuck to your hands.

"it is good."

"Cough cough." Li Mubai coughed twice. His fever hadn't completely subsided, and Xie Shu couldn't stay here for too long, otherwise he would also risk getting sick.

"Xie Shu, why don't you go back? It'll be too late if you stay any longer, and you're also more susceptible to infection in the hospital."

Xie Shu hesitated for a few seconds before finally nodding slowly.

"I'll head back now. Let me know when you're feeling better."

She stood up, ready to leave.

"Xie Shu," Li Mubai suddenly called out to her, "Don't do anything foolish, or I'll feel guilty. Just bear with it for a year."

Zhong Jianjun also said he wouldn't interfere anymore, but he didn't know what kind of interference he meant. Did he mean he wouldn't collect his homework? If Li's parents found out, they would probably be very angry, so he didn't dare to tell them.

Xie Shu turned around and nodded slightly.

"Also, did you bring an umbrella?" Li Mubai took out his umbrella. He had already noticed that Xie Shu hadn't brought anything except a cell phone. "Bring an umbrella, so you don't get wet."

"It's okay, it shouldn't rain anymore. What would you do with it if I took it? I'll just take a taxi back to school." She smiled gently, didn't take his umbrella, and turned to leave.

Ugh--

Li Mubai let out a long sigh in his heart.

Xie Shu washed his hands in the bathroom, then looked down at the obvious gray stains on his school uniform.

She took out a few tissues, dampened them, and tried to wipe the fabric a few times, but the dust had already seeped into the cloth and could only be removed by washing it in a washing machine.

Never mind, I'll wash it when I get back.

It's just past one o'clock now. If I take a taxi back to school, I should still make it in time.

She walked out of the community hospital, then suddenly stopped in her tracks.

A familiar BMW was parked quietly by the roadside near the gate.