We ordinary people also need to fall in love.

"Can we sit here?" Shen Nianning asked.

Weren't you already sitting there?

Mei Yulu glanced at her, then nodded: "Okay."

There were plenty of empty seats around, but she didn't bother to ask Shen Nianning why she was sitting there.

Two girls sat side by side, heads down, eating their meals. The gray sky outside the window mirrored their own somber mood.

"May I ask you a question?" Shen Nianning suddenly put down her chopsticks.

Is this presumptuous?

Mei Yulu didn't look up, paused for a moment before speaking, "...Mm."

There are still three days left in the intensive course, so there's no need to strain your relationship with your temporary deskmate.

"Hmm—" Shen Nianning hesitated for a few seconds, "I want to ask, what is your relationship with Li Mubai?"

"That's quite presumptuous," Shen Nianning said softly, leaning back slightly to observe the other person's reaction.

Mei Yulu didn't speak, still chewing her food, her cheeks slightly puffed out, her gaze fixed on the plate, as if she hadn't heard, or as if she didn't intend to answer.

Shen Nianning secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, the plate wasn't dumped on her head, or she was asked fiercely if she was looking for trouble.

"Actually, I didn't ask this out of gossip," she added. "If you feel it's presumptuous, then forget it."

"There's not much to say," Mei Yulu finally spoke, her voice not loud.

"We've been deskmates for a few days now, so I don't know you very well yet," Shen Nianning said gently. "That's why I checked your previous joint entrance exam scores and found that your grades were quite good."

"If there's nothing else, hurry up and eat. We still have to study this afternoon." Mei Yulu's voice turned cold.

Shen Nianning pursed her lips. She should have known better than to take this task. If it weren't for Wen Xiuyu's request, she wouldn't have done something so thankless.

She thought for a moment, then decided to finish her sentence: "You probably still like Li Mubai, but he's already with Xie Shu, so it's better to let it go."

"You don't understand." Mei Yulu paused, her gaze unconsciously drifting towards another direction in the cafeteria. "Besides, I don't like him anymore."

"You don't like it anymore?" Shen Nianning wondered.

Mei Yulu shut her mouth again, showing no intention of explaining.

Shen Nianning felt a headache coming on. Should she just give up? But Wen Xiuyu's promise of a reward resurfaced in her mind—a piano! She had always wanted to learn the piano, but her parents always refused, saying she was still learning.

"Like I just said, you have excellent grades, and your future life will be very colorful. Romance is only a small part of our lives, and it's even okay if we don't have it." She continued to lecture him, forcing herself to speak.

"Have you ever been in a relationship?" Mei Yulu suddenly asked. "Have you ever had someone you liked?"

"Hmm—I love my family, does that count?"

Mei Yulu looked at her as if she were an idiot.

"I'm talking about the kind of attraction one has for someone of the opposite sex who is the same age as them," she said.

After thinking for a few seconds, Shen Nianning shook her head: "No."

"How can you understand me when you haven't even had this kind of experience?"

"Those involved are often confused, while bystanders see things clearly," Shen Nianning said, sitting up straighter. "Maybe you're one of those involved, and you don't see things as clearly as a bystander."

Mei Yulu frowned slightly. Could she really not see clearly? She did not like Li Mubai. After all, they had not seen each other for a long time, and she had no idea what he looked like now.

What she cherishes is the obsession and resentment of losing something she did with her own hands, or perhaps she simply enjoys projecting her emotions onto others.

Seeing Mei Yulu deep in thought, Shen Nianning decided to strike while the iron was hot:

There's a saying: "To truly love someone is to let go."

She racked her brains before recalling the love knowledge her older sister had forced upon her.

"If you don't like him anymore, then let go and focus on your studies." Shen Nianning paused for a moment. "On the other hand, if you still like him, then you should congratulate him."

Congratulations to him? Mei Yulu frowned deeply, not understanding what those words meant.

Shen Nianning glanced at the other side of the cafeteria. Li Mubai and Xie Shu had finished eating and were walking out side by side. Even across several rows of tables, the natural and intimate distance between them was evident.

"I wish him that he has found a wonderful person, and that he is doing well now."

After Shen Nianning finished speaking, she shut her mouth. She had said everything she needed to say. If Mei Yulu still couldn't understand, then there was nothing she could do.

She wasn't originally trying to mediate the other person's emotional problems; she just wanted to address her inattentiveness in class.

After a half-minute silence, Mei Yulu stood up with her tray, having lost her appetite.

Watching her departing figure, I wondered if she had successfully completed her task.

Never mind, let's eat.

Over the next two days, Wen Xiuyu would casually glance at every seat in the classroom during breaks in her lectures.

Her gaze slowly shifted from the last row to the first row, and she noticed that even Mei Yulu, who was usually the most easily distracted, was now taking notes with her head down.

She breathed a sigh of relief. What she feared most was not that students couldn't learn, but that they didn't want to learn.

"Alright students, our intensive course is coming to an end. I wish you all success in your endeavors and that you all gain a lot from your studies."

"Huh? Seven days? That's fast?" someone exclaimed.

"I just got to know the people around me, and I never expected that we would be parting ways soon."

"It's okay, we can exchange contact information so we can stay in touch in the future."

Wen Xiuyu smiled and said gently, "Alright, students, Teacher Wen is also very happy to spend this winter vacation with you all, but life is full of joys and sorrows, and the time for parting always comes."

She paused for a moment, then changed the subject.

"However, Professor Wen has also prepared New Year's gifts for everyone, hoping that everyone will achieve their dreams and get into Tsinghua or Peking University in the new year!"

Li Mubai fiddled with the stationery gift box given to him by Teacher Wen, which contained a notebook, a bookmark, and a pen.

"Do you have time tomorrow night?"

He put down the gift box, looked at Xie Shu, and nodded: "There should be one."

"Shall we go out tomorrow night?"

"sure."

Tomorrow night is Lunar New Year's Eve. Normally, we would go back to our hometown for the New Year, but this year, because he has to attend classes, Li's parents decided to spend the New Year in Pingyang.

On New Year's Eve, there shouldn't be anything else to do after the New Year's Eve dinner, right?

He slung his backpack over his shoulder and followed the crowd toward the elevator with Xie Shu.

With a ding, the elevator doors opened, and everyone else rushed in. Li Mubai and Xie Shu stood at the elevator doors.

The elevator doors slowly closed, and Li Mubai saw a figure appear outside the elevator doors, so he reached out and pressed the elevator doors shut.

"..." Mei Yulu stood outside the door, as if she hadn't expected the door to open again. She froze and didn't move for several seconds.

"Come on in, there's still room," someone urged.

Just as Mei Yulu was about to use the same trick again, a clear female voice reached her ears.

"There are still passengers available, but the next trip will take a long time," Xie Shu said.

Mei Yulu hesitated for a moment, but finally walked in with her head down.

The elevator doors closed, and the numbers dropped one by one. She wanted to move further away, but the elevator was only so big and full of people, so there was nowhere to move.

"Ding, first floor, arrived."

Li Mubai and Xie Shu were the first to walk out and lift the windproof curtain. Although it was already February, the wind outside was still cold.

"Xie Shu, Li Mubai." A voice called out to them from behind.

He and Xie Shu turned to look, and Shen Nianning was standing not far away.

"Happy Chinese New Year, goodbye." She waved.

"Okay, goodbye."

Li Mubai nodded, and Xie Shu waved in response. They turned around and walked straight toward the subway.

Shen Nianning narrowed her eyes slightly, and it seemed that the hands of the two people in front of her were gradually coming together.

She really didn't know how Li Mubai and Xie Shu got together. Oh well, it's none of her business anymore. She withdrew her gaze, turned around, and went upstairs.

"Are your hands still cold?" Li Mubai asked.

"I'm not cold anymore, but my other hand is still cold."

"Shall we switch hands?"

"Okay~" Xie Shu looked up at him, a smile on her face.

Li Mubai smiled and was about to switch hands with her when another voice came from behind: "Li Mubai, Xie Shu."

The two of them turned around at the same time.

Mei Yulu stood a few steps away, her schoolbag on her back. The wind blew her hair across her forehead, revealing her clean brow. She glanced at Xie Shu, then at Li Mubai.

"Xie Shu, you are a very good person. I wish you happiness." She forced a smile.

"...Um, thank you," Xie Shu replied indifferently.

"Goodbye." Mei Yulu smiled again, this time more naturally than before.

She didn't say anything to Li Mubai, but turned around and walked in another direction, quickly disappearing around the corner.

"Did you hear that? She said we should always be happy." Xie Shu looked away.

"I heard that, so let's take her good wishes."

"Always happy..." Li Mubai pondered these four words in his heart.