Chapter 001

July and August are the hottest months in Ancheng, and cicadas begin chirping early in the morning.

He Ye stood at the bus stop outside the east gate of the community, watching as the bus turned the corner.

As the bus drew closer, Zhu Qing waved enthusiastically at her through the car window.

Encouraged by Zhu Qing’s gesture, other passengers noticed the girls on the platform. They appeared to be high school students, around 16 or 17 years old, with dark eyes, fair skin, and a slight smile that made onlookers feel the joy of youth.

The bus door opened, and Zhu Qing jumped out, grabbing He Ye’s arm. She looked at the “Xiaofeng Yaju” behind He Ye and said, “The new community is so different; the facade looks beautiful!”

Zhu Qing had come to visit He Ye’s new home.

He Ye smiled and adjusted the parasol to shield both of them.

“Uncle is so good to you. To create the best learning environment for you, he even bought a house here. My mom said your house is equivalent to five or six of ours!”

Zhu Qing was genuinely envious.

He Ye replied, “The area where you live is about to be demolished. My dad is very envious of you.”

Zhu Qing chuckled but then suddenly paused, asking, “Is Guangming Supermarket owned by Uncle?”

He Ye answered, “Yes. Shall we go shopping first?”

Zhu Qing replied, “I have to go. I haven’t seen Uncle for a while.”

There were not many customers in the supermarket at that time, and He Yong was not at the checkout counter. He Ye called out, “Dad?”

A voice responded with a “hey” from the corner of the shelf.

He Ye and Zhu Qing walked over and saw their father, carrying a basket of small items and placing them on the shelves.

He Yong, who is 40 years old and stands 1.8 meters tall (tall for Ancheng), has regular facial features but walks with a limp due to a traffic accident ten years ago.

Although he had grown accustomed to it, He Ye still felt distressed seeing her father like this.

He Yong saw Zhu Qing and said happily, “Xiao Qing is here. Uncle is busy, so you two can play and have lunch here.”

Zhu Qing agreed, “Sure, my parents aren’t home at noon anyway.”

After spending some time in the supermarket, Zhu Qing took He Ye’s arm and asked curiously, “Did your father rent or buy this shop?”

He Ye replied, “He bought it.”

Zhu Qing’s eyes widened, “Your dad is amazing!”

She and He Ye had known each other since elementary school, but both He Yong and He Ye dressed very simply, so they didn’t seem wealthy at all.

He Ye explained, “My father worked very hard, getting up early and going to bed late every day. Besides the compensation from the traffic accident, he also sold houses and shops in the old community to buy this place.”

Despite this, He Ye never considered her family wealthy.

From childhood to adulthood, she had seen her father work from dawn to dusk and her grandparents grow vegetables and crops in the countryside.

He Ye couldn’t help much with the adults’ affairs, so all she could do was study hard and bring home good grades in every exam.

After sharing her feelings, Zhu Qing shifted focus and enjoyed the scenery of the community.

“This place is only one kilometer away from our No. 2 Middle School. Are you going to be a day student in your senior year?”

“Yes, riding a bicycle or taking the bus is quite convenient.”

“It’s better to go to school as a day student. Hey, look over there!”

Zhu Qing suddenly pulled He Ye behind a camellia tree, pointed ahead, and asked, “Is that Lu Jin?”

Her sudden movement made He Ye’s shoulder brush against some flower branches. She made sure her face wasn’t poked before leaning forward to look.

In the community’s children’s playground, most people were elderly folks bringing their children to play. But next to a swing, a high school student in a white short-sleeve shirt stood out. He had a tall and straight figure, a handsome face, and an aloof aura that didn’t quite fit with the surroundings.

It was indeed Lu Jin, who went to the same high school as them.

Although it was not popular to select campus beauties and hunks at No. 2 Middle School, Lu Jin’s high reputation came from his excellent grades, always among the top five in every exam, his outstanding appearance, and his impressive running speed at sports meets, comparable to that of sports students.

He is good-looking, excels in academics, and stands out in sports events watched by all the students at school. It’s hard for people to forget him.

If Zhu Qing’s familiarity with Lu Jin was only 0.1% from watching him from afar, then He Ye’s familiarity might be around 0.2% due to her exceptional performance and the fact that she once sat in the first examination room during a grade-level exam. However, that was all. He Ye was not in the same class as Lu Jin, and they had no interactions in the examination room.

“Did he move to this neighborhood too?”

“Who? That boy? No way?”

“Hey, his profile is amazing!”

He Ye felt helpless: “Let’s go; it’s too hot outside.”

Zhu Qing replied, “You’re just too much of a homebody. You don’t feel hot with so many kids around.”

He Ye said, “Children aren’t afraid of getting tanned. Aren’t you worried?”

Zhu Qing: …

He Ye lives in Room 1503, Building 7. It’s a typical three-bedroom, two-living-room layout with a refreshing and simple decoration.

There are few people in the family: He Yong lives in the master bedroom, He Ye lives in the second bedroom, and the smallest room is used as a study, which belongs entirely to He Ye.

“Wow, Uncle even bought you a notebook! My mom said she’ll get me one after I get into college!”

“Open it, I want to play a game.”

Zhu Qing grabbed a chair, so He Ye had to stand beside her and turn on the computer. Before playing games with her good friend, she casually checked the school website and found that the transcript for the final exam of the second year of high school was already out.

There were class transcripts and overall school rankings.

He Ye had always ranked around 70th or 80th in the grade, but this time she did not perform well and ranked 98th, almost falling out of the top 100.

Seeing that He Ye was a bit unhappy, Zhu Qing helped analyze the situation: “Your Chinese score was quite low this time, and your English score wasn’t great either. Your math score was over 140, and your comprehensive science score was 270.”

He Ye replied, “I’ve always struggled with liberal arts.”

Zhu Qing said, “That’s compared to the top students. It’s still quite high compared to us.”

He Ye was still looking at the results of the top students in the grade. Lu Jin ranked third this time, with excellent grades in all subjects.

Zhu Qing commented, “He got full marks in math—what a genius. But I heard his parents are both in scientific research, so he’s naturally different from us.”

He Ye and Zhu Qing cooked together at noon. He Ye packed her father’s portion in a thermos. After eating, she brought food to her father when she sent Zhu Qing away.

“You stay here. I’ll wait for the bus by myself. It’s too hot outside. Let’s just go alone.”

After accepting an ice cream from He Yong, Zhu Qing said goodbye to He Ye and went to the bus stop.

He Ye watched her good friend get into the bus before lying dejectedly on the cashier counter.

He Yong swallowed his food and asked, “What’s wrong? Are you reluctant to let  Xiao Qing go?”

He Ye replied, “No, the final grades are out, and I didn’t do well in Chinese and English.”

In other families, children might dislike studying, and parents might worry. But in He Yong’s case, he worried that his daughter cared too much about grades and put too much pressure on herself.

“It doesn’t matter if you didn’t do well in the exam once. Just do better next time. Don’t think too much about it.”

He Ye understood the advice, but she couldn’t shake her immediate disappointment.

He Yong suggested, “How about we sign you up for a tutoring class?”

He Ye said, “No, tutoring classes are too expensive. I’d rather study on my own.”

He Yong replied, “We can afford it. The important thing is to improve your grades and get into a good university.”

He Ye said, “I can get into a good university on my own. Dad, stop talking and eat quickly. After you finish, I’ll go back to studying.”

He Yong shook his head, but in reality, he was prouder than anyone else.

He was too busy running the supermarket alone and could only provide his daughter with three meals a day. He had no time to help with her studies, and he didn’t have the educational background to do so. Fortunately, his daughter worked hard, won awards throughout her childhood, and, upon entering senior high school, was admitted to the best high school in the city, consistently ranking in the top 100 among many talented students.

At the parent-teacher meeting, the teacher said that as long as He Ye continued to perform steadily, she would have no problem getting into a 985 university in the future.

When summer vacation began, He Ye bought a bunch of tutoring materials and exercise books. While other classmates were traveling, she stayed in the study room, reading and doing exercises. After the final exam results were released, He Ye focused even more on liberal arts.

That morning, it was drizzling, and the weather was cooler than usual. To save electricity, He Ye did not turn on the air conditioner, just the fan.

Her dad suddenly called: “Xiao Ye, come help me watch the supermarket. Your grandma is having chest discomfort. I’m taking her to the hospital.”

He Ye asked anxiously, “Is it serious?”

He Yong replied, “It should be fine. It’s just an old problem. Don’t worry.”

He Ye quickly packed her schoolbag and hurried to the supermarket.

She had already learned all the tasks in the supermarket. He Yong gave her a few instructions and rushed out.

He Ye sat at the cashier counter. When someone bought something, she was responsible for collecting the money and giving change. If no one came, she would lower her head and read a book.

Around three o’clock in the afternoon, the rain stopped, and her dad called to report that he was safe. He had given her grandma a full set of examinations and found no major problems. However, he still needed to take her back to the countryside and might not return to the community until around seven or eight o’clock.

He Yong said, “Go to the restaurant next door and buy something for dinner. Don’t eat instant noodles. They have no nutrition and will affect your studies.”

He Ye replied, “Got it.”

After hanging up, He Ye stretched her shoulders, walked out from behind the cashier counter to inspect the shelves, and then went to the warehouse to pick out a basket of goods that needed replenishing.

She was busy and focused.

At the supermarket entrance, someone pushed open the closed, transparent glass door.

Guessing that the boss might be in the warehouse or the bathroom, Lu Jin went straight to select the target products.

Walking through rows of shelves, Lu Jin arrived at the last row.

Turning a corner, he unexpectedly saw a girl standing a few steps away, on tiptoe, holding a large bag of instant noodles with both hands, placing it on the top shelf.

She held her head high, her arms white and slender, her cheeks flushed from the effort, and her cherry-colored lips slightly open.

She was so focused on her task that she didn’t notice her short-sleeved shirt had pulled up, revealing part of her waist.

The high school student who accidentally wandered into the slightly dark and narrow corridor seemed to have done nothing, but he also made some mistakes.

He Ye put down the instant noodles only to notice someone nearby. She tilted her head and was stunned for a few seconds when she recognized Lu Jin.

Lu Jin appeared calm, even indifferent: “I’m buying something—vinegar.”

He Ye came back to her senses and pointed to the northwest corner of the supermarket. “Over there. Do you need any help?”

“No need,” Lu Jin replied, taking two steps back and walking through a row of shelves.

He Ye guessed that he probably didn’t recognize her, even though they had taken the exam in the same examination room and their seats were far apart.

After washing her hands, He Ye quickly returned to the cashier.

Lu Jin came over with a bottle of rice vinegar and some snacks.

He Ye entered the information one by one with skillful movements.

On the cashier counter was a high school Chinese exercise book, and Lu Jin’s gaze fell on her face again.

She had a ponytail, fair cheeks, and drooping eyelashes.

She looked very pure, comfortable, and beautiful.

“Would you like a shopping bag? A small one costs two cents.”

“Um.”

He Ye helped him pack his things and handed them over.

After paying, Lu Jin walked out with the bag. Just as he was about to step out the door, he stopped and looked back.

He Ye was about to sit down, and seeing this, she smiled and said, “Anything else?”

It was the smile of a supermarket employee welcoming a customer.

Lu Jin paused and asked uncertainly, “Are you a student from No. 2 Middle School? I think I’ve seen you before.”

He Ye’s smile changed. Although the difference wasn’t that significant, Lu Jin could feel that she had shifted from being a supermarket employee back to a high school student of the same age as him.

“Yeah, I’ve heard of you, too.”

At that moment, an aunt entered the store.

He Ye glanced at the new arrival.

Lu Jin took one last look at her and walked out with the bag.