Damn it! The girl he likes insists on dragging him to a blind date.

In an instant, Xia You stopped in her tracks.

At this moment, all the noise in the world became background noise, and all I could hear was the pounding of my own heart.

Sheng Zongche ran up to her and bent down to pick up the basketball.

The boy looked up and met Xia You's bright, sparkling eyes.

The moment their eyes met, the girl felt as if she had been burned; the tips of her ears turned bright red, and she hurriedly looked down at the ground, lowered her head, and ran away quickly.

Sheng Zongche stood there, staring at the thin figure, until He Yunqi called him, then he strode back to the court.

He Yunqi put his arm around his shoulder and grinned mischievously, "Brother Che, why are you staring at that girl? Have you got your eye on someone else?"

Sheng Zongche spun the basketball, rolled his eyes at him, and said, "What did you fancy? I didn't even see her face, I only know she's a woman."

Gu Chi shouted from a short distance away, "The game is about to start!"

He Yunqi: "We're here."

Sheng Zongche tossed the basketball to He Yunqi and started running again.

As the boy ran, he couldn't help but wonder, "This girl seems to have been running around the track for quite a while now. It's so hot at midday, what is she doing? Is she trying to lose weight?"

……

The days drifted by like sycamore leaves by the playground, half a semester passing in a flash.

Xia You always seems to bump into Sheng Zongche unexpectedly in various places.

In the morning in front of the cafeteria, in the afternoon sunlight on the basketball court, and even on the tree-lined path back to the dormitory after evening self-study, she could occasionally see him and his brothers walking side by side. Every time her eyes swept over them, it was enough to make her secretly happy for a long time.

December 31st, the last day of the year, arrived in the blink of an eye.

This day was Sheng Zongche's seventeenth birthday.

Several days ago, Xia You had heard the girls in her class chattering about giving a birthday present to Sheng, the school heartthrob in the second year of high school.

Xia You didn't have money to buy a gift, and even if she did, she wouldn't dare to give it away for fear of being laughed at.

That night, there would be a New Year's Eve fireworks show at the mouth of the East China Sea in Haicheng. Xia You spent fourteen yuan and took the subway for a very long time to get to the seaside.

Fireworks burst in the night sky one after another, and amidst the bustling crowd, their vibrant colors illuminated half the sky.

The girl stood alone at the edge of the crowd, looking up at the dazzling starlight, a faint smile on her lips, silently murmuring Sheng Zongche's name, hiding her joy in the brilliant night.

"My love for you is like fireworks exploding in my heart, and my prayers are filled with thoughts of you."

Happy 17th birthday, Sheng Zongche.

"I hope that one day you will get to know me."

A few days after New Year's Day, it was the end of the first semester of the first year of high school.

Xia You never expected that she would have another opportunity to get up close and personal with Sheng Zongche.

That day was the end-of-term awards ceremony. Xia You received the title of "Excellent Student" in the first year of high school and went on stage to receive the award with the winners from the second and third years of high school.

She followed the team onto the podium, her gaze instinctively locking onto Sheng Zongche's figure.

The girl's fingertips, still warm from holding the certificate, caught a glimpse of Sheng Zongche standing not far away.

Although there were two or three classmates between her and the camera during the group photo, the moment the camera captured her looking to her side, the corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn up, and she clenched the certificate in her hand even tighter, her heart full of sweetness that she couldn't hide.

That evening, Xia You sat at her desk and carefully tucked the photos she had printed from the school forum into the last page of her notebook.

She held the pen and wrote down stroke by stroke in the notebook—

I really like Sheng Zongche, should I confess my feelings to him?

As soon as she put down her pen, Xia You turned her head and caught sight of her worn-out canvas backpack in the corner.

Outside the door, Xu Huizhen called out, "Youyou, your uncle is working overtime and won't be home today. Hurry up and come out to cook!"

"Oh, Auntie's here!"

Xia You finally tore out the page that read "Should I confess my feelings?", closed the notebook, and got up.

The days that followed passed uneventfully, and before they knew it, it was time for the winter break of their second year of high school.

On this day, Xia You heard two pieces of news.

First, Sheng Zongche, a senior in high school, was admitted to the Finance Department of Ocean University of China, which has the highest admission score. Second, she has the opportunity to go to the United States for math Olympiad training during the winter break, and Sheng Zongche will also participate in this trip.

Xia You rejected the suggestion from her homeroom teacher, Shi Weize, almost without thinking.

A two-week trip to the United States would cost at least 50,000 to 60,000 yuan in food, lodging and other expenses, but she didn't even have 500 yuan.

The day before the start of winter break should have been Sheng Zongche's last day of regular school.

Then came his senior year, second semester, when the students who had been admitted through the recommendation system wouldn't come to school often.

That day, Xia You deliberately went to the basketball court that Sheng Zongche often went to and saw him walking on the sycamore-lined road with a backpack on his back, his figure tall and straight.

She watched that figure walk further and further away, feeling a bittersweet ache in her heart.

The setting sun shone on the boy's head, so warm it was dazzling. Xia You congratulated him in her heart and wished him a bright future. Even if they rarely bumped into each other on campus in the future, this feeling of attraction would remain a cherished memory.

I hope his new journey goes smoothly, and I look forward to meeting him again in the future.

A year and a half later, Xia You successfully entered the Finance Department of Ocean University, becoming Sheng Zongche's junior.

On the day she registered for university, she dragged her suitcase toward her dormitory.

The autumn sun shone brightly on the tree-lined path. The girl glanced at the basketball court out of the corner of her eye and suddenly stopped in her tracks.

The figure leaping to shoot had even more upright shoulders than last year, and his profile remained as handsome as ever. Her heart skipped a beat.

Sheng Zongche, it's been a long time.

This time, I can finally secretly watch you from behind again.

During their entire freshman year, Xia You and Sheng Zongche had almost no interaction.

She would occasionally run into him in various corners of the school and hear all sorts of rumors about him.

She doesn't allow herself to have too many extravagant desires because she needs to work hard to earn money for tuition and make a living; she doesn't have the energy to think about random things.

On the first day of my sophomore year.

In her efforts to make money, Xia You's social club at school has become increasingly unpopular. Just as she was sighing in her dorm room, Jiang Yunqian moved a chair over and sat down.

"Youyou, I suddenly have a great idea! Why don't you try getting Sheng Zongche into the social club? If he's willing to join, you'll definitely hit the jackpot!"

Hearing Sheng Zongche's name from her best friend made Xia You's heart skip a beat.

Is she really going to hit on the boy she's had a crush on for four years just to make money?

"This... doesn't seem like a good idea?"

Jiang Yunqian said, "What's wrong with that? It's about making money. Although Sheng Zongche seems cold, I've heard he's very polite. At worst, he'll just ignore you, he won't curse you. You won't lose anything."

After hesitating for a while, Xia You stood up.

Anyway, she never expected anything to happen between her and Sheng Zongche. Right now, there's nothing more important than earning her tuition fees.

To make money, she abandoned all shame and went to any lengths.

After that weekend, Xia You finished her work and, following Sheng Zongche's Rolls-Royce, stopped at the entrance of an old alley in Haicheng.

She gripped the strap of her canvas bag, her feet seemingly rooted to the spot, mentally rehearsing her opening remarks, afraid of being too abrupt or foolish, so nervous that she could only hear her own heartbeat.

Just as Sheng Zongche's bodyguards finished dealing with the people, and they were about to leave...

Xia You mustered her courage, jogged forward, bent down, knocked on the window of the Rolls-Royce, and sweetly began to speak—

"Senior Sheng, I'm also from Ocean University, one year below you. I'm a sophomore in the Finance Department. My name is Xia You, Xia as in summer, You as in pomelo."

"You've misunderstood. I'm not here to confess my feelings."

"Senior Sheng, what's so fun about beating people up? Want to make money with me?"