We ordinary people also need to fall in love.

"Dear teachers and students, everyone..."

"Stop." Xie Shu interrupted him, sitting down next to him with one hand on the edge of the table. "You can speak a little slower. Do you remember before? Even though a year has passed, take it slow and try to recapture that feeling."

Li Mubai put down his speech and asked, "Xie Shu, may I take a look at your speech?"

He was a little curious about how Xie Shu wrote his speech.

"I can show you," Xie Shu paused, "but I didn't write it."

"Didn't you write it? How are you going to speak on stage then?"

"Improvisation."

Li Mubai recalled Xie Shu's speech on stage each time, and it seemed that it was indeed very brief. Sometimes he would stop halfway through his speech, which made the host a little embarrassed.

"Don't you think it sounds a bit stiff to start with 'Respected teachers, dear classmates'?" Xie Shu added.

Li Mubai looked down at the speech draft he had written according to the template in his hand, and didn't say anything.

"Of course, you're different," Xie Shu added.

"Am I different?" He looked up.

Xie Shu slowly looked away: "When you read it, 'teacher' and 'classmate' both refer to me."

Li Mubai was stunned for a moment, then realized what she meant and gave a helpless laugh.

"What are you laughing at? Isn't that right?" Xie Shu's cheeks puffed out slightly, looking a little angry.

"Of course, my dear teacher Xie, class monitor Xie, classmate Xie." He rattled off the three titles in one breath.

"It sounds like a thank you speech." Xie Shu paused and held up one finger. "But you've missed one."

"What?" Li Mubai pretended not to know.

"It's... that, the one we agreed on before."

Xie Shu thought he had forgotten, so she subtly reminded him.

Li Mubai pretended to think for a moment before slowly speaking, "Shu Bao."

Xie Shu's ear tips slowly turned a light red. She didn't say anything, but just tilted her head slightly and leaned on his shoulder.

Li Mubai's arm wrapped around her back, his fingers gently running through her loose hair, the touch smooth and soft.

Is the word "Shu Bao" really that damaging? He might find it difficult to say it in public, but this was in the library office, just the two of them.

He looked down, unable to tell whether the faint fragrance was coming from Xie Shu or from the jasmine plant on the table.

Xie Shu's lips curled slightly, and a faint blush rose on her fair skin.

Who possessed my aloof academic genius and turned me into a docile little bird? Li Mubai's thoughts drifted by with a touch of joking.

"Okay, I need to study now." He gently patted her shoulder.

"You can learn like this too." Xie Shu lingered, not moving. "I need to rest for a while."

"With you leaning on my right shoulder like that, I can't hold my pen," Li Mubai said, both amused and exasperated. "And besides..."

"Then I'll switch to the other side." Xie Shu straightened up, making a move to switch to the other side.

"And the provincial mock exam is next weekend." Li Mubai finished speaking before being interrupted.

Xie Shu stopped moving, and after a few seconds, she slowly sat back down.

"Then you should study hard. This provincial mock exam is quite important, as it's the first test for the college entrance exam in June."

"Um."

When the topic of the college entrance examination came up, they seemed to become very quiet. They all knew that if things didn't turn around, Xie Shu would have to study abroad after the exam.

The office gradually returned to quiet and silence, with only the faint sound of ballpoint pens scratching on notebooks remaining.

At the end of February, a trace of winter's chill still lingered, and the wind brought a touch of coolness.

Evening self-study was over, but the campus still seemed a bit desolate, because only the senior students added a bit of life to the huge campus.

There weren't many students on the road, and Li Mubai and Xie Shu slowly made their way towards the dormitory.

Thank you for your letter.

"Um?"

"..."

Xie Shu glanced at him, while Li Mubai's gaze remained fixed on the ground, lost in thought.

"What are you thinking about?" She nudged his arm.

"Hmm—" He hesitated whether to say it or not.

"You should speak your mind. If it's a difficulty, I'll help you analyze it; if it's a problem, we'll solve it together."

"Xie Shu, do you...do you think I should still take the Peking University entrance exam?" He finally voiced the doubt that had been weighing on his mind.

Xie Shu slowed her pace, not answering immediately, but taking two more steps before regaining her original pace: "Why do you ask that?"

"It's just... if you're not in Beijing anymore, then what's the point of me going to Beijing?" He spoke very slowly.

Even if she comes back during winter and summer vacations, Xie Shu won't be in the north. So perhaps he should be waiting for her in Pingyang or in Jiangnan.

Xie Shu stopped and turned around. The light from the streetlamp fell on her face, making her originally gentle features appear serious.

"Is that all?" she asked.

"Actually, there's another point: Peking University is not easy to get into."

After countless exams, Li Mubai now clearly understands the gap between himself and Xie Shuneng. He estimates that Xie Shuneng is the only one in the entire school who is guaranteed admission.

He waited for her to say something, or for her to show disappointment, but what appeared in his sight was a pair of fair hands that gently pulled up his left hand, which was hanging naturally at his side.

He looked up, and Xie Shu's face showed no disappointment. The seriousness she had shown earlier had mostly disappeared, leaving only her quiet and bright gaze.

"Actually, no matter where you go, whether in the north or the south, as long as you're there, I'll come find you, you know?"

She wrapped her two hands around his left hand, her fingertips applying slight pressure, a gentle smile on her face.

"So, whether you want to go to Peking University or not, it's fine."

A gentle evening breeze blew from the open space, brushing a strand of hair from her temples onto her cheek. Li Mubai stretched out his free right hand, his fingertips lightly touching her slightly cool cheek, and tucked the strand of hair behind her ear.

Xie Shu lowered his gaze, looking away with a hint of embarrassment.

"I'm still at school..." she said softly.

"But you were holding my hand too, weren't you?"

"I'm trying to give you confidence," she said, releasing her grip.

Li Mubai chuckled inwardly. It was indeed at school; if it weren't, he would have gently embraced her already.

"However," Xie Shu spoke again, his tone softer than before, "even if I'm gone, you can't just give up on yourself."

"What do you mean 'gone'? You should say 'not together anymore'," Li Mubai smiled, correcting her.

Xie Shu pondered for a moment and said, "That can't mean we're not together. We'll always be together. So the point is that I'm not by your side."

"Hmm." Li Mubai nodded. "I have Little Dragon. Didn't you say it's like your avatar? So, when I hug it to sleep, it's like I'm hugging you..."

He suddenly stopped midway through his sentence.

Xie Shu tilted his head slightly: "Hold me? To sleep?"

"No, I was just kidding," he quickly added.

"Hmm..." Xie Shu lowered his head as if he was thinking.

"Let's hurry up, the dorm doors will be closed soon."

Li Mubai interrupted her, afraid that she would become interested in this behavior, after all, he had made a promise to Xie Zhiqiang!

"Okay." Xie Shu followed.

A cold wind carrying the darkness of night flowed past them, and the streetlights intertwined the shadows of the two people cast on the ground.

Li Mubai revisited the question in his mind: if he didn't go to Peking University, where else could he go?

But as he had thought before, getting into Peking University was not just a destination for him, but more like a form of proof, so at least for now, he should continue to move in that direction.

Just after they turned the corner, the light in the stairwell flickered on.

A figure emerged from the shadows, carrying a garbage bag, and walked towards the landfill with his head down, his footsteps so light they were barely audible.