Sunlight fell on his face, highlighting his handsome features.

A phrase suddenly popped into Chu Xia’s mind: “Standing tall like a fragrant orchid or a jade tree, smiling like the bright moon entering one’s embrace. His beauty is unmatched, second to none in this world.”

Was this truly Cen Zhengnian, even more stunning in person than in the photos, standing right in front of her?!

Chu Xia blinked, realizing this was a real person. Her first thought was: Why is he back? Wasn’t he supposed to be busy with work?

Her second thought: He’s her husband, so how should she interact with him naturally?

They weren’t just in a simple boss-subordinate relationship; they were married, meant to sleep in the same bed!

Suddenly, Chu Xia felt a bit flustered.

Even though she had seen many cadavers during her medical studies, she had never been in a relationship, let alone slept with a man!

Her mind was in a whirl, and she mentally reassured herself: Why panic?

If they end up sleeping together, considering Cen Zhengnian’s looks and character, she wouldn’t be losing out.

As Chu Xia was lost in these thoughts, Cen Zhengnian, looking at the person in front of him, hesitated and asked, “Chu Xia?”

“It’s me.” Despite her inner turmoil, Chu Xia maintained a normal expression, neither too cold nor overly enthusiastic.

The weather today was mild, not too hot or cold.

Chu Xia wore a puffed-sleeve vintage red shirt and a pair of loose jeans, with the cuffs rolled up twice to reveal a bit of her ankles.

She was wearing a pair of white sneakers, and her hair was tied up.

She looked both energetic and stylish.

Over the past month, she had gained some weight, making her look quite different from when the photo was taken.

The difference from the original person was even more significant, so it was normal that Cen Zhengnian didn’t recognize her immediately.

If Chu Xia hadn’t seen Cen Zhengnian’s photo before, she wouldn’t have recognized him at first glance either.

As soon as Cen Zhengnian spoke, he regretted it.

After four years away and seeing her only in photos, not recognizing her immediately—how would she feel about that?

He felt that he had made a poor impression.

At this moment, Chu Xia walked to the door, holding a key in one hand, ready to unlock it.

Cen Zhengnian extended his empty hand and said, “Let me carry that.”

Chu Xia, finding it inconvenient to open the door while holding something, didn’t hesitate and handed him the bamboo basket in her hand.

Cen Zhengnian quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

Once inside the house, Cen Zhengnian, still holding the basket of shrimp, silently observed the room.

The house was the same one from when they got married, but the furnishings had changed a lot.

The walls, which used to be bare, now had several photos hanging on them.

Thin hemp ropes were nailed to the walls, and the photos were casually clipped to them, forming no particular pattern but looking very nice.

On the windowsill, there was a round-bellied clay pot with a few chrysanthemums and some wildflowers that seemed to have been picked from the roadside, placed inside without much thought.

On the table in the center of the room, there was a transparent vase filled with a large bouquet of chrysanthemums—big ones, small ones, red ones, yellow ones—all blooming vibrantly.

Besides these, there were many new things in the room: clean, elegant curtains, a green-checkered tablecloth on the table, a refrigerator and a television against the wall, and textbooks, study materials, and papers casually placed on the table.

All these things gave the room a homey feel, quite different from the cold dormitory where Cen Zhengnian lived.

He couldn’t help but relax, as memories of living in this room before came back to him.

He placed the basket of shrimp in the corner under the window, where some other vegetables were also stored.

After placing the shrimp basket down, Cen Zhengnian finally set the large suitcase he was carrying on the floor.

Chu Xia noticed that this suitcase was all he had brought back with him—it seemed to be his only luggage.

“I brought some things for you and An’an. This exercise book is for you. See if it might be helpful,” Cen Zhengnian said as he half-squatted on the floor and opened the large suitcase.

He took out a reddish-brown soft leather notebook from the top and handed it to Chu Xia.

Chu Xia looked at him, hesitated for a moment, and then accepted the exercise book.

She opened the first page and saw the word “Mathematics” written on it. Flipping through the pages, she found that it was filled with handwritten problems—each page neatly covered with math, physics, and chemistry exercises.

There were more physics problems than anything else, and Chu Xia suddenly remembered that she had mentioned in a letter that she might not do well in physics.

Chu Xia looked up at Cen Zhengnian.

He was busy taking out dried fruits and meat, along with two wooden toys and a wooden box containing something she couldn’t see.

Chu Xia had seen Cen Zhengnian’s handwriting before, and she recognized that the handwriting in the exercise book was the same.

It was clear that he had written it himself, but he didn’t seem inclined to mention it.

“Did you write this yourself?” Chu Xia asked him directly.

Cen Zhengnian replied with a simple “Hmm,” while still unpacking more items from the suitcase.

Most of it was for Chu Xia and An’an—only a few pitiful pieces of clothing belonged to him.

Chu Xia flipped through the exercise book, recognizing that every problem was a classic high school exam question.

Where did he find the time to write all of this?

She wondered about it, and then asked him aloud.

“The train ride was long. I thought it might be useful for you, so I wrote it,” he said, glancing at Chu Xia with a smile.

His tone was casual, without any hint of seeking praise.

But Chu Xia could feel the weight of the effort in that exercise book.

She couldn’t quite describe what she was feeling, but her impression of Cen Zhengnian had certainly improved.

Chu Xia continued flipping through the book, liking it more with each page she turned.

She almost couldn’t wait to start working on it.

She knew Cen Zhengnian was a genius, but she was still impressed that he could write such a comprehensive exercise book in just a few days.

After all, he had been out of high school for several years now.

Her imagination ran wild, thinking that even if Cen Zhengnian’s research career didn’t work out, he could probably make a good living by writing and selling practice books.

Suppressing her excitement, Chu Xia forced herself to put the exercise book down and went to the inner room to pour two glasses of water.

She handed one to Cen Zhengnian.

There were two fresh mint leaves floating in the water.

As she took a sip, the refreshing taste of mint filled her mouth, making her feel invigorated.

As she drank, Chu Xia asked Cen Zhengnian, “When did you arrive? Why didn’t you call ahead?”

Cen Zhengnian, holding the teacup, looked at the mint leaves floating in the water and said, “I came back in a hurry and didn’t have time to make a call.”

When Cen Zhengnian found out he had a break, he immediately started packing.

He had to buy things to bring home, gifts for his wife and son, and also get a train ticket.

By the time he was on the train, he realized he had forgotten to call his wife and hadn’t even told his parents.

He took a sip of the tea.

The coolness of the mint eased the fatigue from the long train ride, and he couldn’t help but take a few more sips.

Seeing him drink, Chu Xia pointed to the mint leaves in the cup and, with a deeper smile, asked, “Do you know where these mint leaves came from?”

Cen Zhengnian thought for a moment, but came up empty.

Honestly, he replied, “I don’t know. But the mint leaves are very fresh; they must have been picked just recently.”

The smile on Chu Xia’s face grew wider. “Of course, it’s fresh. An An planted it herself, right there on the windowsill in the inner room. Don’t tell her I picked it.”

Cen Zhengnian paused for a moment, meeting Chu Xia’s gaze.

He chuckled softly and took another sip, saying, “I drank it too, I won’t tell him.”

That’s so unfair! He said those words with such a handsome face that Chu Xia felt her own face flush a little.

She quickly stood up and said, “I’ll go make dinner,” wanting to escape the atmosphere immediately.

She went out and stood by the coal stove for a while until her mind cleared.

She remembered that she had planned to cook shrimp today, but she hadn’t taken anything out yet.

She felt a little annoyed at her lack of self-control.

But she had to go back and get it.

Chu Xia went back inside and saw Cen Zhengnian sitting at the table, calmly sipping mint water while flipping through her math book.

Suddenly, a wave of frustration surged in her heart.

While she was thinking all over the place, the instigator was sitting there so calmly.

It was so unfair! Unable to hold back, she walked over and shut the book closed.