He thought to himself, *I’m such a nice guy; why is she ignoring me now?*

Is she really going to find a boyfriend? Is she going to break ties with this old classmate who might get in the way of her dating?

After finishing their mountain hike, Zhou Xiangming left alone.

He waited downstairs at Zhu Qing’s office, watching from his car.

Sometimes she left with her male colleagues. When they invited her to ride with them, she smiled and declined, walking alone toward the subway entrance.

Although she wasn’t as pretty as He Ye, many boys had pursued her over the years.

If she was serious about getting out of being single, she would soon find a great guy.

Zhou Xiangming suddenly couldn’t hold back anymore.

He Ye was going to her graduation ceremony, and for some reason, Lu Jin invited Zhou Xiangming to go with him. So, Zhou Xiangming quickly arranged to meet Zhu Qing.

Since it involved He Ye, Zhu Qing couldn’t refuse.

On the 19th, Zhou Xiangming went to wait downstairs at Zhu Qing’s office for Lu Jin to pick them up.

It was springtime, and Zhu Qing wore a student-like outfit. Her semi-long hair fell over her shoulders, gently swaying in the wind.

Her skin was fair, with light makeup and pink lips.

Zhou Xiangming wasn’t very tall, and his serious demeanor made it hard for him to start a conversation with her.

They stood in silence until a black Panamera pulled up in front of them.

Zhu Qing opened the back door and got in with an expressionless face, making her feelings clear.

Zhou Xiangming had no choice but to open the passenger door.

As he did, Lu Jin teased him: “This is He Ye’s special seat.”

Zhou Xiangming replied, “Say that again, and I won’t go!”

Lu Jin just glanced at him.

Zhou Xiangming wasn’t foolish; he pretended to be angry, closed the door, walked to the front of the car, and opened the back door on the other side.

Zhu Qing looked between the two of them but said nothing. She took out her headphones, put them on, and leaned back with her eyes closed to rest.

Lu Jin focused on driving.

Zhou Xiangming had been holding back his feelings. After they got on the highway, he took out a hamburger from his bag and handed it to Lu Jin.

Lu Jin replied, “I’m not hungry. You guys eat. I’ll treat you tonight.”

Zhou Xiangming then offered the hamburger to Zhu Qing.

She shook her head and took a sandwich from her bag.

Zhou Xiangming was speechless.

The atmosphere lightened when they arrived at the Jiaotong University campus.

Zhu Qing, who met up with He Ye, seemed like a different person, chatting and laughing.

Zhou Xiangming couldn’t take his eyes off her. This was the Zhu Qing he knew and liked.

At 11 PM, the four of them returned safely to Ancheng.

Zhu Qing got out of the car and watched the Panamera drive away with her friends and the university bully.

Ignoring Zhou Xiangming, she walked to the side of the road and took out her phone.

Zhou Xiangming stood a few steps away and said, “I’ll take you home.”

Zhu Qing ignored him. There was no way she would let Zhou Xiangming take her home again.

Before she opened the taxi-hailing app, He Ye sent her a photo.

It showed her sleeping on Zhou Xiangming’s shoulder.

He Ye texted: [If he doesn’t like you, I’ll change my last name!]

Zhu Qing was confused but quickly gave her friend a warning to stop.

She closed the chat just as she saw Zhou Xiangming approaching.

Zhou Xiangming stood beside her and said, “It’s ready; come over in about three minutes.”

Zhu Qing replied, “I’ll take a taxi myself.”

She opened the taxi-hailing app she had used earlier.

Zhou Xiangming saw it and suddenly felt angry, snatching Zhu Qing’s phone.

She looked up in disbelief.

Zhou Xiangming wanted to shout, but when he saw her eyes go from angry to cold, he felt very hurt.

He asked her seriously, “Am I that bad? Why wouldn’t you like me even if all the other guys were gone?”

He wasn’t as handsome or as smart as Lu Jin, but he wasn’t that bad, right?

Zhu Qing was stunned.

Zhou Xiangming’s words and the tears in his usually cheerful eyes surprised her.

He suddenly turned away, tilting his head up.

Zhu Qing was shocked that he was crying and asked, “Who said you were bad?”

“YOU!” he exclaimed.

“You told your roommates that in the second semester of your sophomore year. I was right behind you and heard everything.”

She didn’t want to admit she had hurt him for so long.

Zhu Qing: “…”

She remembered that day and how Zhou Xiangming had disappeared for a while.

He was clearly upset, but Zhu Qing felt hurt too: “I didn’t know you were behind me…”

Zhou Xiangming scoffed, staring at the street lights ahead: “Because you didn’t know, you spoke your mind.”

Zhu Qing was silent for a moment, then turned away and said, “I don’t think you’re inferior. We’ve been classmates for years, so I don’t have any other feelings.”

Zhou Xiangming gritted his teeth and asked, “Do you really see me as just an old classmate?”

What old classmate does he care about so much? Lu Jin never even ate the fruit he washed for Zhu Qing!

Zhu Qing smiled faintly: “You were the one who said it first. We’re just old classmates.”

Zhou Xiangming: “When did I say that?”

Zhu Qing remembered clearly: “Before I said everyone was dead, I ran into five classmates from your class. There were three girls, and one was very beautiful.”

Zhou Xiangming: “…”

He vaguely remembered that day: “I just said that casually. You treat me as an old classmate, so I didn’t dare to say anything else.”

Zhu Qing replied, “It’s the same for you. You only treat me as an old classmate. Why should I tell my roommates anything else?”

Zhou Xiangming: “…”

Zhu Qing reached back to him: “Give me my phone back.” 

Zhou Xiangming held her phone in his left hand and grabbed her small hand with his right. 

Zhu Qing pulled back as if she had been burned.

Zhou Xiangming held on tight.

Just then, the online taxi he called arrived.

It was late at night, and there were only two people on the road. The driver stopped, rolled down the window, and confirmed the last digit of the phone number with Zhou Xiangming.

Zhou Xiangming smiled, showing his white teeth: “Yes.”

Then, he pulled Zhu Qing, who was still refusing to cooperate, into the car.

The driver turned back to confirm the address again.

Zhou Xiangming was about to nod, but when he saw Zhu Qing turning away and ignoring him, he changed his mind and said, “Change it to Lanting Huafu.” 

Zhu Qing suddenly looked over, surprised that Zhou Xiangming had mentioned the neighborhood where he lived!

Zhou Xiangming returned her phone and texted her: [This matter can’t wait until tomorrow; neither of us will sleep tonight.]

Zhu Qing gritted her teeth: [We’ll talk about it tomorrow.]

Zhou Xiangming: [No, I haven’t slept well since Valentine’s Day. I need to sort this out tonight.]

Zhu Qing: […It’s late; my mom is probably still waiting.]

Zhou Xiangming: [Just tell her you’re staying at He Ye’s place for one night. Once we sort things out, you can choose any room you want at my place.]

Zhu Qing: [Alright, but I don’t owe you anything!]

Zhou Xiangming: [Haha, great accountants are confident.]

Zhu Qing: [Unlike you, capitalist.] ^[1]refers to someone who supports capitalism or business practices.

It was late, and they were getting more and more excited.

The taxi stopped outside Zhou Xiangming’s neighborhood.

After getting out, Zhou Xiangming put away his phone and held Zhu Qing’s hand.

Zhu Qing tried to shake him off, but Zhou Xiangming pulled her into his arms and leaned down to kiss her.

Because he was taller, they didn’t quite kiss.

Zhu Qing took the chance to run away and glared at him angrily: “You, are you crazy?”

Zhou Xiangming looked at her and smiled: “Yes, I am crazy. There’s something wrong with my head, and I’ve wasted so many years!”

Lu Jin didn’t go to the same university as He Ye, but now he was close to her again. Yet, Zhou Xiangming felt stupid for only realizing the problem tonight!

“Come here!” He waved to her, just like when they used to play around.

Zhu Qing didn’t want to pay attention and ran in the opposite direction.

Zhou Xiangming chased after her.

Since high school, they often chased each other. Sometimes Zhu Qing would chase him and hit him, and sometimes he would chase her and playfully poke her head.

Now, they had both grown up.

Zhou Xiangming grabbed the petite Zhu Qing again.

This time, he didn’t poke her head or grab her neck.

He lifted her up high, pressed her against a nearby tree, and kissed her with all his might.

Tall, handsome, and rich, as long as she liked him, he was completely hers.