Qiu Yingying is reborn and bound to a learning system.

Squeezing out of the hospital, the afternoon sun was blindingly bright and irritating. Qu Xiaoxiao hadn't recovered from her earlier emotions, her steps were quick and heavy. Dr. Zhao followed behind her, his face tense the whole time, until they reached the parking lot, when he finally couldn't help but speak: "Xiaoxiao, you were too impulsive just now."

Qu Xiaoxiao paused, turned to look at him, her eyes still blazing with anger: "I acted impulsively? If I hadn't acted impulsively, who knows what would have happened to that girl now!"

"I'm not saying you were wrong to save someone," Dr. Zhao frowned, her tone full of disapproval, "but you didn't need to confront Dr. Xu like that. So many people were watching; it was so undignified. You just love to be in the spotlight, always wanting to stand out in any situation. Can't you tone it down a little?"

"Loves to show off?" Qu Xiaoxiao laughed out loud as if she had heard the biggest joke in the world, but her eyes inexplicably became hot. "Zhao Qiping, is that how you see me? That I only went to save people to show off?"

She took a step closer, her voice rising several decibels, "A matter of life and death, and you turn it into me wanting to stand out? That girl was so young, a living, breathing person! Should I just stand by and pretend to be dignified while watching her be driven to despair by Xu Qin's cold-blooded words?"

"I didn't say you had to watch her get into trouble!" Dr. Zhao also got angry. "There could have been a gentler way. Why did you have to be so harsh and offend everyone? Dr. Xu is a colleague. You embarrassed her like that. How awkward would it be if we saw each other all the time?"

"Awkward?" Qu Xiaoxiao's voice carried a hint of grievance, but even more so, disappointment. "In your heart, is the face of your colleagues, your so-called dignity, more important than a human life? I'm harsh? If I weren't harsh, if I hadn't shattered her illusions, would she have stepped down? Zhao Qiping, do you think everyone should be like you, gentle and refined, always putting on airs in their words and actions? But I'm not you. When I, Qu Xiaoxiao, do things, I only consider whether they're right or wrong, not whether they're dignified or not!"

She paused, her chest heaving, as a flood of suppressed resentment surged within her: "Did you look down on my personality from the very beginning? Did you think I was unruly, too flamboyant, and unworthy of your refined circle? Like last time, when I introduced you to my friends, you had a long face the whole time, and afterwards you said we were too noisy and tasteless. And last time when I helped Fan Shengmei with her family's affairs, you said I was meddling, that I was too impulsive. In your eyes, is everything I do wrong, that I'm just trying to show off? So what if you're educated? Do you look down on people like that?"

Dr. Zhao was speechless after being bombarded with her questions. After a moment, he said in a deep voice, "That's not what I meant. I just hope you can be more mature and consider the consequences of your actions. The problem between us has never been a single issue; it's that our ways of handling things and our values ​​are completely different. You always only care about your momentary pleasure and don't care about the consequences, while I value propriety and dignity more."

"Different values?" Qu Xiaoxiao's heart sank, and the light in her eyes gradually dimmed. "So, in your eyes, my honest act of saving people is seen as lacking tact and being a show-off? Zhao Qiping, I used to think you understood me, understood the sincerity beneath my seemingly flamboyant exterior, but now I realize you don't understand at all. I may be uneducated, but I still have basic morals. You look down on me, and you look down on yourself too."

She took a deep breath, her voice trembling slightly but unusually firm: "Since you don't agree so much, there's no need for us to force it anymore. Let's break up."

"What did you say?" Dr. Zhao was stunned, clearly not expecting her to suddenly bring up breaking up.

"I said let's break up." Qu Xiaoxiao repeated, turning her head away, not daring to look him in the eye again, afraid that she would soften her heart. "We are not compatible. Forcing ourselves to stay together will only torture each other. It's better to end it here and wish each other well."

After saying that, without waiting for Dr. Zhao's response, she opened her car door, got in, started the car, and practically fled the parking lot. In the rearview mirror, Dr. Zhao stood there, his figure getting smaller and smaller. Qu Xiaoxiao bit her lip, fighting back tears, and drove incredibly fast.

Back in the Joyful Ode residential complex, Qu Xiaoxiao didn't go home. Instead, she went to a nearby supermarket and bought two whole cases of beer and several bottles of strong liquor. Drinking as she walked, she carried the drinks back to apartment 2203, kicked off her high heels, threw herself onto the sofa, and gulped down the remaining beer. The icy liquid slid down her throat, carrying a spicy kick, but it did nothing to suppress the grievances and pain in her heart.

She drank glass after glass, from beer to liquor. The alcohol quickly took effect, making her head spin, but the sadness in her heart grew ever clearer. She couldn't understand why she was being criticized by the person closest to her for doing something she had a clear conscience; why she had given her all to this relationship, only to end up like this.

She didn't know how long she had been drinking when she slumped onto the coffee table, her consciousness gradually fading. She casually closed the door, but didn't close it completely, leaving a narrow gap.

Downstairs, Qiu Yingying hummed a song as she returned home from get off work. Reaching the 22nd floor, she immediately spotted the ajar door of apartment 2203. She wondered why Qu Xiaoxiao, who usually kept her doors tightly shut, had forgotten. She walked over and gently knocked: "Xiao Qu? Are you home?"

There was no response from inside, only the faint clinking of bottles. Qiu Yingying knocked again, raising her voice slightly: "I'm coming in?"

No one answered. Qiu Yingying hesitated for a moment, but in the end she didn't dare to push the door open and had to turn around and go back to 2202.

Upon entering, Qiu Yingying saw Fan Shengmei sitting on the sofa applying a face mask, while Guan Juer was reading at her desk. She tossed her bag aside and asked curiously, "Fan-jie, Guan-guan, did you know? Xiaoxiao's door wasn't closed properly. I knocked, but no one answered, and I heard some noises inside." Qiu Yingying hadn't given up apartment 2202; she occasionally stayed there when she missed her friends, but usually slept in 2204. Anyway, with our protagonist's current income, the rent was a piece of cake.

Fan Shengmei removed her face mask and sighed, "Don't even mention it. I ran into her at the entrance of the complex when I got off work just now. She reeked of alcohol, was staggering, and her hair was a mess. She looked terrible. When I greeted her, she just gave a perfunctory 'hmm,' her eyes were completely blank, as if she didn't recognize me at all. She was probably really drunk."

"Huh? So drunk?" Qiu Yingying's eyes widened. "What's wrong with her? She's rarely like this. Did something happen?"

Fan Shengmei shook her head, her face filled with worry: "Who knows? With her personality, she keeps everything to herself and won't tell anyone. Judging from the way she looked just now, she must have encountered something upsetting."

Guan Juer put down her book, frowned, and said, "Should we go check on her? It's dangerous for her to be drinking so much alone at home."

"Don't go," Fan Shengmei waved her hand. "She's a very strong-willed person, and she definitely doesn't want anyone to see her in such a sorry state. Let's not disturb her. If she wants to talk, she'll tell us when she wakes up tomorrow."

Qiu Yingying and Guan Juer exchanged a glance and nodded. 2202 fell silent instantly, with only the occasional sound of car horns outside the window. Meanwhile, in the next room, 2203, Qu Xiaoxiao was still slumped over the coffee table, silently shedding tears under the influence of alcohol, drowning all her grievances and pain in the liquid.