We ordinary people also need to fall in love.

"Dad, what did they talk about at the parent-teacher conference?"

As soon as the bell rang, Li Mubai stood at the classroom door.

Parents came out in twos and threes, some still talking to the homeroom teacher, others already carrying bags and walking out.

He waited for a while before he saw Li's father.

"Tell your senior year to focus on your studies, plan your target universities in advance, and don't let trivial matters like early romance distract you," Mr. Li said calmly, as if repeating something that had nothing to do with him.

"oh."

Li Mubai's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, eased slightly. He quietly observed his father's expression, which was the same as usual. It seemed that Zhong Jianjun had not deliberately brought him up.

"I'll take you to the back gate of the school, Dad. We don't get out of school until tomorrow, Saturday," Li Mubai said.

"Hmm." Mr. Li nodded expressionlessly.

He led Li's father downstairs, and they walked silently to the back door, where many students were already saying goodbye to their parents.

"Dad, shall I head back now?" Li Mubai pointed to the campus behind him.

"Li Mubai," Li's father suddenly spoke, his voice not loud, "You and that girl, think it over carefully yourself. Your mother and I have no other requests, we just hope you get into a good university and have a bright future."

Li Mubai lowered his eyes and did not reply.

"Alright, go back to your studies now." Mr. Li waved his hand. "I've seen your exam results; you still need to keep working hard."

After saying that, he turned and left first.

Watching his father's retreating figure, Li Mubai suddenly thought of a text from his Chinese textbook. However, his father's steps were neither faltering, and his destination wasn't to buy oranges...

He took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled, looked away, and turned to walk into the school.

"Mr. Xie, thanks to your sponsorship, our school library was able to be completed smoothly, and the students' learning environment has been greatly improved!"

"Principal Du, you're too kind. It's my duty to contribute my meager strength to the education cause in Pingyang City," Xie Zhiqiang said with a polite dry laugh.

"Mr. Xie, would you like me to have Xiao Zhang drive you?" Principal Du politely stepped aside.

"No need to trouble Teacher Zhang, I drove here today." Xie Zhiqiang waved his hand. "Principal Du, you can go ahead and get back to work. I'll head back now."

"Great, Mr. Xie, you can drive right into the school next time. Our school will let you through anytime."

"Hmm." Xie Zhiqiang nodded lightly.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Xie Zhiqiang turned and walked out of the school.

He was wearing a simple dark jacket, and compared to the school leaders in suits next to him, he looked like an ordinary student's parent.

The surrounding noise gradually faded behind him, and he walked slowly with his eyes fixed straight ahead.

A few students walked by, laughing and joking. Xie Zhiqiang looked at their backs and suddenly felt a little dazed. He rarely walked around the campus like this anymore. Back then, he was young and had a long road ahead of him.

How did he and Xu Ting get together? It seems that the homeroom teacher moved Xu Ting to sit next to him under the guise of tutoring each other.

As my thoughts drifted, a figure suddenly entered my field of vision.

Xie Zhiqiang did not stop walking, but his gaze returned to the present.

A few steps away, a boy was walking towards him without his glasses. It wasn't until he got closer that the boy seemed to suddenly recognize him.

Li Mubai.

If he had seen it from afar, Li Mubai could have chosen to take a detour or pretend he didn't see it, but now...

Hello, Uncle.

After a brief hesitation, Li Mubai finally spoke. Pretending not to see something so close would be like burying one's head in the sand.

There was no sound from Xie Zhiqiang in the humid air. Just when Li Mubai thought that the other party was going to ignore him, he heard Xie Zhiqiang give a faint "hmm".

Without any emotional involvement, Xie Zhiqiang simply walked past him.

Li Mubai glanced back; Xie Shu's father had already disappeared into the crowd. He breathed a slight sigh of relief…

"The exam is over. Everyone, please stop writing. Anyone who continues to write will be considered to be cheating."

Li Mubai immediately put down his pen, raised his head and rubbed his sore neck. He was exhausted from having to finish the Chinese, math, English and humanities exams in one day.

The invigilator only allowed students to get up and leave after counting the exam papers.

"Li Mubai! What did you choose for the last multiple-choice question in history?" Chen Qiuhe asked, bouncing over to him.

I chose B.

"Where is B correct?" Chen Qiuhe frowned, looking puzzled.

"B is more in line with the question." He stuffed his pencil case into his backpack and then slung it over his shoulder.

Chen Qiuhe thought for a moment, and when she saw Xie Shu walking over, she quickly asked the same question again.

"I also chose B," Xie Shu replied.

"Oh no, they didn't really choose B, did they?! My four points!"

"What's the rush? What if Xie Shu and I are wrong?" Li Mubai said.

"Little Deng, what did you choose for the last multiple-choice question in history?" Chen Qiuhe asked Deng Yi again.

"C".

"Haha, it's two to two now, so it seems you and Xie Shu might actually be wrong."

Li Mubai smiled. He was just offering a casual word of comfort. Since Xie Shu had chosen B, it proved that B was the right choice.

"Oh right, my parents are picking me up today, so I won't be taking the bus," he said, slinging his backpack over his shoulder.

Upon hearing this, Xie Shu immediately looked up at him, her gaze lingering on his face for a moment.

"OK, OK." Chen Qiuhe made a gesture and then said goodbye to them.

Li Mubai picked up his handbag, and Xie Shu dragged her suitcase as they walked towards the back gate of the school.

"Have you fully recovered from your fever?" Xie asked abruptly.

"I was fine the next day." Li Mubai paused for a moment. "Xie Shu, you should also be careful not to catch a cold."

Li Mubai was holding a handbag in his right hand. He didn't hear Xie Shu's voice from his left. He was about to turn his head in confusion when his left hand was suddenly covered by a soft warmth. He held it gently for a moment and then quickly let go.

Li Mubai paused almost imperceptibly, the warmth still lingering on his hand, fleeting as if nothing had happened.

"See you tomorrow," Xie Shu said.

She had already reached the back door. She stood by the door, waved gently at him, and the wheels of her suitcase stopped at her feet.

See you tomorrow, Xie Shu.

They parted ways at the back door. Li Mubai slowly made his way along the roadside and finally found his father's car at the end of the road.

He tried to pull the passenger door, but it wouldn't budge.

"Sit in the back," Mr. Li said, rolling down the car window.

Li Mubai was puzzled. There was clearly no one in the passenger seat, so why was he being asked to sit in the back?

He opened the back door and was taken aback.

"Hello, it's been a long time."

"No, Lan Shiyu, what are you doing in the car?"

"Get in the car first, I'm in a hurry to get home," Lan Shiyu urged.

Bang.

Li Mubai closed the car door and rolled down the window, making the car feel less stuffy.

"My parents had something to do today, so they asked Uncle Li to pick me up," Lan Shiyu explained.

"Oh—" Li Mubai suddenly realized.

No wonder Mr. Li, who usually lets him go home by himself, made an exception and drove to pick him up today.

"Were you transferred to Class 18?" Lan Shiyu asked.

"right."

"How's it going in the new class?" Lan Shiyu suddenly lowered her voice. "Is it hard not being able to spend as much time with the girl you like?"

Li Mubai glanced at her but didn't say a word.

"Oh, trying to act all high and mighty?"

"Remember to pay for the gas and the service fee," Li Mubai said.

"I'll give you thirty million. You must be happy, healthy, and blessed!"

Li Mubai chuckled. "But with 30 million, wouldn't that make him richer than the Xie family?" he wondered.

In the rearview mirror, Li's father glanced briefly at the back row before looking away.