Chapter 19: Graduation

It was another blazing summer, and Sheng Han, dressed in her graduation gown, had finally reached this long-awaited day.

Watching the new students wheeling their suitcases through the campus—faces full of confusion yet glowing with hope—she couldn’t help but think of herself four years ago, when she too had arrived at Migu, full of anticipation and dreams.

Some say graduation season is a time of harvest: freshmen stepping into their dream universities, reaping the rewards of years of hard work.
Others say it’s a season of farewell: every year, graduates leave behind beloved teachers and friends to step into a vast, unfamiliar world.

Perhaps that’s why so many try to avoid those sorrowful Tang poems and Song lyrics, and instead drink their melancholic beer while pretending to be bold and carefree.

Ling Fei and Ye Lin, too, didn’t escape the season of breakups.
It was Ling Fei who brought it up first.
When asked why, she shrugged with forced casualness and said,
“Ye Lin is like a clingy puppy. He’s fine for a college fling, but if we stayed together long-term, I’d feel like I had a full-grown son tagging along. It’s exhausting.”

As for Qiong Mo, Sheng Han didn’t want to go back there anymore.
That place had long since become unrecognizable.
Going back would only stir up more pain and regret.

Over these past few years, Tian You had always been by her side.
So, Sheng Han made her decision: she would go with him to Fengdu.

As graduation neared, the parties were endless.
Everywhere on campus, students in their gowns roamed in small groups or large crowds, taking photos, capturing memories—trying to preserve every ounce of beauty in this fleeting moment.

Outside the school gates, rows of secondhand stalls lined the sidewalks.
Clothes, daily necessities, gaming consoles, handwritten study notes—everything you could think of.
These stalls were always popular, especially among students who hadn’t yet achieved financial independence.
Here, with just a few bills, they could find real treasures.

Nearby, parcel counters were packed with students shipping their things home.
In just four years, that one small suitcase they’d brought when they first arrived had long ceased to be enough.
Now, with large cardboard boxes and woven bags in hand, they shuttled between dorm rooms and courier stands.

Once, they’d watched tourists flock to Migu, buying all sorts of souvenirs—feeling secretly pleased that they lived here and could see all this beauty every day.
But now, as they prepared to leave, everyone suddenly wanted to become a tourist too—eager to buy keepsakes, to hold onto even a sliver of memory from this place that had been home.

At first, Sheng Han had been full of boundless expectations for university.
But after all the disappointments, her feelings toward college had slowly faded into quiet indifference.

Just like always, she sat on the bench by the artificial lake, lazily soaking up the sun, watching the bustle all around her.

“Have you packed everything?” Tian You asked from beside her.

“Mm. I’ve already shipped home the stuff I don’t use often. What’s left is just what I’ll take with me to Fengdu.”

“Take these last few days to look around, visit the places you love.
It might be a long time before you get another chance to come back,” he said.

Sheng Han smiled faintly, glancing at the dormitories in the distance.
“No need. There’s really nothing here I’m that attached to.
Besides… I have you with me, don’t I?”

Tian You looked at her, smiling.
He reached over and held her hand tightly.

To others, this university might be a place they’d miss for the rest of their lives.

But to Sheng Han—

It might take a lifetime to forget.