We ordinary people also need to fall in love.

"Exam over..."

The moment the bell rang, Li Mubai hurriedly put a period at the end of his English essay.

"alright."

Li Mubai got up and walked towards the door, listening to his classmates complaining in the same way they had just finished their Chinese exam.

This time, however, there was no one pushing him. He picked up his schoolbag and turned around, just in time to run into Mei Yulu walking over.

Li Mubai nodded slightly, then walked away from her.

Mei Yulu glanced back at his departing figure, then quickly looked away, silently slinging her schoolbag over her shoulder.

Come to think of it, it really is a coincidence. She always hoped to run into him in familiar places, but that idea always failed.

Now, they always seem to bump into each other in unexpected places.

Life is always full of surprises. Maybe today is the last time they will see each other. She gave a self-deprecating laugh to herself.

With her pink backpack on, she disappeared into the crowd of people who had finished their exams.

The rain had stopped, but the ground was still wet, reflecting the shadows of students carrying their schoolbags as they walked out.

Li Mubai habitually looked towards the familiar spot, where most of the people standing were parents of various kinds, holding umbrellas in their hands.

He turned his head and saw Xie Shu and Chen Qiuhe on the other side of the school gate. The two were standing side by side, and Xie Shu was listening to Chen Qiuhe say something.

"Li Mubai—!" Chen Qiuhe saw him first, raised her hand and waved twice, her voice carrying through the noisy crowd.

"Xie Shu, Chen Qiuhe, how did you do on the exam?" He walked up quickly.

"It's a bit difficult. I was hoping to get 130 on the English test, but I'll be happy if I can get 120 this time." Chen Qiuhe said resignedly, her arms hanging limply.

"Yes, it was definitely more difficult than the previous exams."

Xie Shu nodded, then changed the subject and continued:

"But there's no need to be overly anxious. Provincial mock exams usually have deliberately increased difficulty and stricter grading, so the scores from this exam have limited reference value. What's important is your ranking in the province."

"Really?" Chen Qiuhe looked up, her eyes brightening slightly.

Xie Shu nodded.

"That's good, that's good," Chen Qiuhe said twice.

Li Mubai breathed a slight sigh of relief; he had almost lost his Dao heart after the exam.

"Where are you going next?" he asked.

Xie Shu didn't reply, but looked at him, her meaning clear: wherever he went, she would follow.

"Hmm..." Chen Qiuhe thought for a moment, "I'll go home first."

"Don't you want to relax after the exam?" Li Mubai said half-jokingly.

"What's there to relax about? It's not like the college entrance exam is over yet." Chen Qiuhe rolled her eyes at him. "I'm going back to study hard."

"Alright, goodbye."

"See you tomorrow, Qiuhe." Xie Shu nodded slightly to her.

Chen Qiuhe glanced at them standing side by side, pursed her lips, and then relaxed them.

"See you tomorrow." She smiled and turned to leave.

Only Li Mubai and Xie Shu remained standing at the school gate, exchanging a glance.

"Are you going home?" Xie Shu asked.

"I guess so." His tone was full of uncertainty. "After what Chen Qiuhe said, studying is still more important."

"Then am I not important?" Xie Shu suddenly asked.

"Uh..." Li Mubai was stunned, and quickly waved his hand, "No, no, you've always been very important to me."

"Then come home with me, and we'll study together."

She grabbed Li Mubai's hand and pulled him toward the school parking lot.

There was a black car parked in the parking lot, but it wasn't the one Xie Zhiqiang usually drove.

Before Li Mubai could react, Xie Shu had already pushed him into the car.

He caught sight of the person in the driver's seat, and his body instantly stiffened.

With a muffled thud, Xie Shu slammed the car door shut.

Whether it was Li Mubai's imagination or not, he felt the temperature in the carriage was slowly getting colder, and he also felt slightly dizzy.

He's sitting in a two-million-dollar car right now.

"Go home?" Xu Ting asked.

"Mm," Xie Shu responded softly.

As the Bentley started, Li Mubai's body swayed.

He roughly understood why Xie Shu wanted to involve him; in this oppressive atmosphere, anyone would become taciturn.

Li Mubai placed his hands awkwardly on his thighs. Compared to Xie Zhiqiang, he was even less familiar with Xu Ting.

Suddenly, his heart clenched, and his right hand, which was resting on his thigh, was grabbed by someone and then dragged to the middle of the back seat.

This position would be easily spotted if Xu Ting simply glanced back...

But Xie Shu seemed indifferent. She held his hand, her palm slightly cold, and her gaze fell on the car window. Her blurry silhouette was reflected in the glass, and her expression was unreadable.

Li Mubai was unsure whether to let go, but seeing Xie Shu's downturned lips, he applied a little more pressure.

The air conditioner was turned up high, and cold air even blew onto Li Mubai's face.

"Xiao Shu, I've already rented an apartment for you at the London School of Economics and Political Science. You can move in right away when you go to study, and we can visit you there occasionally." Xu Ting casually brought up the topic of studying abroad.

"Mm," Xie Shu responded softly.

"You'll be eighteen this year. When you get your driver's license, do you think it's necessary to buy you a car for commuting?" Xu Ting asked again.

The carriage was silent for a moment.

Li Mubai slowed his breathing, lowered his head slightly, and unconsciously loosened the grip on his hands.

"No."

Xie Shu uttered three words calmly, then turned her gaze from the car window to Li Mubai, gripping his hand tightly to prevent him from letting go.

Li Mubai also came to his senses and looked up at her. Xie Shu was not far from him. Although they were separated by two seats in the back row, her hand was tightly holding his.

They were ultimately from two different levels, but Xie Shu consistently demonstrated through her actions that she and Li Mubai were on the same side.

Li Mubai forced a smile to indicate that he was alright.

Xu Ting didn't say anything more. Perhaps she noticed the two people making small movements in the back row, or perhaps she didn't.

Upon arriving at Yuehu Bay, Li Mubai hesitated even more. Looking at the magnificent villa, he thought to himself that this might be his only chance to step inside and experience it.

Li Mubai nervously surveyed everything in the villa, but couldn't find Xie Zhiqiang. A slight sense of unease crept into his heart; after all, Xie Zhiqiang was supposed to be quite amiable to him...

"Xiao Shu, go study first, I'll call you when it's time to eat." Xu Ting seemed to be ignoring Li Mubai, which made Li Mubai feel uneasy.

"Mom, Li Mubai is with us too," Xie Shu corrected her.

"Hmm," Xu Ting replied indifferently, then turned and walked into the study.

The air conditioning in the car was just as cold as inside the villa.

"Let's go to my room to study." Xie Shu looked at him.

"Hmm...maybe I should just go home." Li Mubai's mind started to waver.

"Let's go." Xie Shu grabbed his wrist.

Li Mubai's expression froze slightly for a moment. He should be someone who frequently entered and exited Xie Shu's room.

Her room was large; upon entering, one would find a study, and glancing to the side of the entrance, one could see a spacious bedroom. A wall separated the study and the bedroom, and both led to a balcony.

This was much larger than his simple room, and although it wasn't his first time here, Li Mubai was still a little shocked.

Xie Shu had already put his schoolbag on the chair. He turned around and saw that Xie Shu was still standing by the door, so he walked back and reached out to close the door behind him.

"Please sit down."

Li Mubai glanced around and noticed that there seemed to be only one chair in her study.

While he was still in a daze, Xie Shu went into the bedroom, brought out another chair, and placed it next to his own.

Li Mubai slowly sat down.

"How did you feel about the exam?" Xie Shu sat down and turned to look at him.

"It's quite difficult."

"Okay." She nodded. "I'll analyze your results for you after they come out. Let's brush up on your English first."

"Thank you, Shu." Li Mubai suddenly called out to her.

"Um?"

He opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything; it was as if a stone was pressing on his heart.

A few seconds later, he finally spoke: "Let's study first."

"Don't feel pressured, I'll always be there for you."

The clouds dispersed and the rain stopped, and sunlight slanted in through the balcony window.

He slowly raised his head to look at her, and Xie Shu shone with a faint golden light.

At least for now, they are both wearing black and white school uniforms...