We ordinary people also need to fall in love.

"Study during the first evening self-study session. I have something to take care of. Don't let me come back and see you arguing." After saying this, Teacher Chen left the classroom.

The classroom fell silent again, with only the sound of papers being turned over and the swishing of pens across the paper.

Li Mubai stared intently at the math homework on the table, his hand gripping the pen as he made calculations on the draft paper.

Suddenly, a faint smell of smoke appeared in the air, and Li Mubai couldn't help but frown.

The light around him dimmed briefly, then quickly returned to normal.

He looked up and saw Zhong Jianjun with his hands behind his back, his face grim, slowly walking up to the podium from the aisle.

"Wang Rui, why are you ignoring your classmates? Are you being aloof?"

Li Mubai put down his pen, turned slightly to look at Wang Rui, lowered his head, and smirked.

"First, you're not tall, and second, you're not cold."

Zhong Jianjun spoke slowly and deliberately, and Zhao Feng almost couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"Lastly, if you want to be a cultured young man, wait until college. Don't waste your study time in the classroom." Zhong Jianjun raised his hand from behind his back, revealing a book.

It's likely that Wang Rui was secretly reading a book and was discovered by Zhong Jianjun. But when did the latter's way of speaking become so...humorous?

Zhong Jianjun's gaze moved slowly across each student's face, and wherever it fell, the students lowered their heads.

"Look how restless you all are! You have absolutely no sense of crisis!"

Li Mubai also looked away, deciding to do his homework first...

"Do some people think they did very well on the test? They can't help but get excited when they hear other classes are going on autumn field trips?"

Li Mubai paused for a moment, sensing that the words were directed at him.

"If you want to go on the autumn outing, then show me your grades before we talk!"

Zhong Jianjun paused for a moment, and some students quietly looked up at him.

"You have to score higher than the top high school in the midterm exams to be eligible for the autumn field trip!"

"What the heck... isn't this ridiculous? It's already a bit difficult to get past the Third Middle School, let alone the First Middle School?" Mao Zhouzhou's eyes, which had been brightening, slowly dimmed again.

"Putting everything else aside, at least my Chinese language score ranked second on average in this exam; otherwise, there's no point in discussing anything else."

The average score of the Chinese class is second? It seems there is still some hope. There are three schools and five key humanities classes. They used to rank third. Although this time we have to add the two key humanities classes from Tsinghua University High School, there shouldn't be any major problems.

"Teacher Zhong." Teacher Chen's voice rang out from the doorway.

Zhong Jianjun turned his head, nodded, and walked out of the classroom...

"As long as the average score in Chinese class is second, we can go together?"

"Mm." Li Mubai nodded to Xie Shu.

"Then you'll have to work hard," Xie Shu gently tapped his shoulder with her fingertip. "If we go on the autumn outing together, I'll bring you some snacks."

"Maybe we're going hiking or visiting some tourist attraction?" Li Mubai smiled. "Besides, my efforts won't help; it requires the whole class to work together."

"Then let our Chinese language genius, Xiaobai, tutor the students in Class 18 in Chinese."

Li Mubai turned his head to look at her. Xie Shu squinted slightly, the corners of her mouth curling up gently. For some reason, he reached out and gently pinched her cheek.

Xie Shu opened his eyes and looked at him with some confusion.

"Ahem..." Li Mubai withdrew his hand and coughed twice. "Don't joke around. Wouldn't I be exhausted if I tutored the whole class?"

"oh."

Xie Shu's voice was indifferent. Li Mubai glanced at her and saw that she had already turned back. Through her drooping hair, her fair cheeks were gradually turning red.

Xie Shu is also a young girl who often blushes and feels hot in the ears...

After finishing the exam on Saturday, Li Mubai looked up at the exam room and found that Lin Xinle had also made it into the top thirty.

"Xie Shu, am I going home? See you tomorrow."

"Li Mubai." Xie Shu called out to him, carrying his schoolbag.

"Um?"

"Come ride with me."

"Huh?" Li Mubai was stunned.

"My dad is picking me up today, and we're going the same way, so I can give you a ride home," Xie Shu explained.

"No need, I'll take the bus." Li Mubai raised his hand to refuse.

"It's okay, come with me."

Xie Shu grabbed his arm and headed towards the back gate of the school. Li Mubai had no choice but to follow.

The bus stop at the Confucius Academy was bustling with high school seniors leaving school. Chen Qiuhe stood on the familiar roadside waiting for bus number 76. She glanced to her left, perhaps waiting for more than just a bus.

The No. 76 bus appeared shakily from the end of the road, and she watched it slowly approach until it stopped in front of her.

Chen Qiuhe paused for a moment, then got on the bus and sat down by the familiar window as before. She subconsciously placed her backpack on the empty seat next to her so that she could reserve a seat for someone.

"Hello, may I sit here?"

It was a girl; she pointed to the empty seat.

"Hmm—" Chen Qiuhe paused for a moment, then took her schoolbag back. "Okay."

The No. 76 bus slowly started moving, and the bus was filled with the noisy voices of students.

Chen Qiuhe raised her wrist and sent a message to Li Mubai using her smartwatch:

"Look how late you are! The seat I saved for you has already been taken. You'll be standing for two hours as punishment!"

She waited a while before receiving Li Mubai's reply.

"There's no other way, I'm with Xie Shu now."

Oh……

Chen Qiuhe put down her watch and looked out the window at the receding mountains. Some mountains stood alone, while others connected with the surrounding mountains to form mountain ranges.

She took out her MP4 player, put on her headphones, and could hear the rustling of leaves in the autumn wind outside the car window, even through the headphones…

"You should coordinate these matters with General Manager Liu first, and then come back to me afterwards, understand?"

"Understood, Mr. Xie."

The car swayed slightly, probably because Xie Shu had finished putting away his suitcase and closed the trunk.

"Alright, have Xiao Dai bring the documents to my office on Monday afternoon."

"Okay, Mr. Xie."

Xie Zhiqiang hung up the phone in a hurry, and his face, which had been frowning just now, changed to a kind smile.

"Xiao Shu, why aren't you getting in the car?" He looked at Xie Shu, who was standing by the passenger door.

"Dad, is Li Mubai's house on the way? Can we take him along?"

Xie Zhiqiang then noticed a figure standing behind Xie Shu. The figure, wearing an awkward yet polite smile, took a step forward.

Hello, Uncle.

Xie Zhiqiang's amiable expression vanished instantly.

A few seconds later, he said expressionlessly, "Get in the car."

"Thank you, Uncle," Li Mubai said quickly.

Xie Shu opened the back seat and let Li Mubai get in first before getting in himself.

"Navigation has been provided to Hualian Residential Area. You are 19 kilometers from your destination..."

The car's navigation system started playing a mechanical voice. To his surprise, Xie Zhiqiang still remembered where he lived. That made sense, as he had recently investigated Xie Zhiqiang's background.

The Mercedes started, and Li Mubai sat somewhat stiffly, his body slightly hunched over, unlike Xie Shu who was relaxed and leaning back in his seat.

Xie Shu rolled down her car window, then turned to the side and reached out to touch his side.

"Should we open the window?" Li Mubai asked in a low voice.

"Um."

Before Li Mubai and Xie Shu could make a move, the car window had already been rolled down, and Xie Zhiqiang's left hand returned to the steering wheel.

The autumn wind blew in, dispelling some of the unease in the car.

"Li Mubai, let's play Gomoku," Xie Shu suddenly said.

"Gomoku?"

"Okay." Xie Shu took out his phone. "Download it on your phone. I'll invite you."

Li Mubai's expression froze. Taking out his phone in front of Xie Zhiqiang, would it affect his image?

"I've invited you," Xie Shu said.

Helpless, Li Mubai took out his phone from his pocket and accepted her invitation...

"I placed this piece in the wrong spot, can I take it back?"

"OK."

"Hmph, I won a round." Xie Shu chuckled softly.

"Impressive, impressive! But let's play one more round."

"Then I'll invite you again."

Xie Zhiqiang turned his gaze away from the rearview mirror, and drove quietly without saying a word.