We ordinary people also need to fall in love.

Fortunately, the students weren't told to go back and retrieve their paper airplanes. It would have been quite embarrassing if one of them had found it, opened it, and read the words inside.

As soon as the bell rang at 5:30, Li Mubai and Xie Shu finished their dinner together and then went back to their classrooms separately on the second floor.

Autumn nights come quickly; after the last rays of the sun fade away, the sky gradually darkens.

On Monday evening, Wu Changguo was the teacher supervising Class 18's self-study session. Seeing my former homeroom teacher, I couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness.

"Take out your test papers, and finish the ones from last week's exam during the first evening self-study session."

Wu Changguo glanced around and noticed there was still an empty seat in the classroom.

"Who's behind Li Mubai? Where did they go?" he asked loudly.

"Teacher, that's Lin Xinle's seat," a girl in the row behind whispered. "She's probably in the restroom."

"Sure?"

The girl immediately shut up and lowered her head.

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps sounded in the corridor, and Lin Xinle appeared at the classroom door, panting.

"Report."

"Don't be late for evening self-study." Wu Changguo glanced at her, gave her a word of advice, and then gestured for her to go inside.

"OK."

After receiving permission, Lin Xinle did not go to her seat, but instead walked to the podium.

"Teacher Wu, a teacher wants Li Mubai to go to the Academic Affairs Office."

Ok?

Upon hearing his name called, Li Mubai immediately looked up at the podium in confusion.

Wu Changguo frowned and pressed for an answer:

Which teacher?

Lin Xinle opened her mouth, as if she had paused for a moment:

"Teacher Zhong Jianjun."

"Oh." Wu Changguo's brows relaxed, then he looked at Li Mubai below the podium, "Teacher Zhong is looking for you, go quickly."

"OK."

He stood up and walked out of the classroom, just as he brushed past Lin Xinle, who was about to return. The latter glanced at him quickly, her eyes seeming somewhat complicated.

However, Li Mubai did not notice any of this. He was just wondering why Zhong Jianjun suddenly contacted him. Was Old Man Zhong preparing to repent?

He arrived at the Academic Affairs Office and saw a teacher coming out of the office. The teacher turned around, noticed him, his eyes flickered, and then he looked away.

Li Mubai felt strange; he didn't recognize this teacher.

He stood at the door and raised his hand to knock.

"Please come in."

It was that familiar voice.

He pushed open the door and went in, his eyes immediately falling on the desk, but the office chair was empty.

He glanced at the sofa again, and immediately stopped in his tracks.

Zhong Jianjun wasn't the only one sitting on the sofa.

Li Mubai's gaze lingered on another person for two seconds before confirming that it was Xie Shu's father, Xie Zhiqiang.

"Teacher Zhong, is there something you need?" He walked over, trying to make his voice sound normal.

Zhong Jianjun did not speak immediately, but instead turned his gaze to Xie Zhiqiang, who was standing to the side.

"This is Xie Shu's father. He wants to ask you about the situation. You..." he said.

Find out what's going on? Find out what's going on? A string in Li Mubai's heart slowly tightened.

"Teacher Zhong," Xie Zhiqiang put down his teacup, speaking politely, "I've met the young man a few times, no need for introductions."

Zhong Jianjun nodded and said nothing more.

"The young man and I might need a more private space, Professor Chung, what do you think?"

Zhong Jianjun looked troubled.

"Don't worry, Professor Zhong, I wouldn't go so far as to make things difficult for a student." Xie Zhiqiang chuckled twice. "I'm just talking to him about my daughter, Xie Shu."

Upon hearing this, Li Mubai's pupils contracted slightly, and his heart tightened suddenly.

"I'll be right at the entrance. If there's anything the school needs, I'll be happy to help."

Zhong Jianjun looked at Xie Zhiqiang, but as if speaking to Li Mubai, he stood up, opened the office door, and walked out.

With a bang, the door was gently closed, leaving only Li Mubai and Xie Zhiqiang in the Academic Affairs Office.

Li Mubai didn't speak, and neither did Xie Zhiqiang. He leaned back on the sofa, his right hand resting on the armrest, his fingers tapping rhythmically, and the smile on his face remained unchanged.

In the ensuing silence, Li Mubai finally succumbed to the pressure and spoke up:

"Good evening, Uncle. What can I do for you?"

"Li Mubai, your registered residence is Mengxi County in Xiyue, but you attended primary and secondary school in Pingyang. Do you consider yourself a native of Mengxi County or Pingyang City?" Xie Zhiqiang asked with a smile.

Li Mubai frowned slightly, not understanding why Xie Zhiqiang would ask this question.

He fell into thought. Someone had asked him this question before. He said he was from Mengxi County, a poor county, as if he was born with an inferiority complex. He said he was from Pingyang City, as if he was trying to extort money.

Before he could think it through, Xie Zhiqiang continued:

"In fact, Mengxi and Pingyang are both economically inferior to Jiangnan."

Li Mubai lowered his head slightly. This was the truth; otherwise, why would so many people from Pingyang go to the east to work?

He took a breath and slowly exhaled, then heard Xie Zhiqiang ask his second question.

What do your parents do?

Li Mubai did not answer, nor did he have an obligation to answer.

"The restaurant business," Xie Zhiqiang answered for him. "But recent research reports show that business in the area where Jixiang Restaurant is located is declining. Your parents must have had a hard time supporting your education."

How did Xie Shu's father know?! Li Mubai was shocked.

Xie Zhiqiang seemed to have anticipated that Li Mubai wouldn't speak. For a moment, he felt that Li Mubai was a lot like his daughter, always sullen.

He sat up straight and posed the third question of the evening.

Have you thought about what you plan to do in the future?

Li Mubai tried to open his mouth to show that he wasn't an ostrich burying its head in the sand, but as a high school student, he really hadn't thought about the future.

"Get into a good university." He found an answer that wasn't the answer.

"And then?" Xie Zhiqiang asked calmly.

Silence fell over the office again, until Xie Zhiqiang spoke.

"You students probably don't pay much attention to what's happening in society," Xie Zhiqiang said with a smile, offering his insights like an elder.

"In today's society, the employment difficulties for liberal arts majors are far greater than those for science and engineering majors. With the same 92 and the same degree, after finding employment, science and engineering majors can earn tens of thousands of yuan a month in good cities, but liberal arts majors struggle to even reach half that."

Xie Zhiqiang paused for a moment.

"Energy construction, mechanical manufacturing, materials and chemical engineering, etc., these are all aspects of our lives that are closely related to science and engineering. Which one can be separated from science and engineering? This is why so many people choose science and question the existence of humanities."

Li Mubai remained silent.

Xie Zhiqiang maintained a smile throughout, neither aggressive nor sarcastic; he simply stated the reality with a smile.

He picked up his teacup, took a sip of tea, and asked the last question of the day.

"Do you think getting into a good university will make your future better? To put it more bluntly, do you think you can give my daughter happiness?"