Shen Yi, however, acted as if he hadn’t noticed. He took out a few more English test papers and said, "My uncle mailed these from the provincial capital. Let’s do them together."

"Alright."

For the sake of the test papers, Qin Jiao forgave Shen Yi for secretly drinking her water. Of course, when she realized she hadn’t poured her guest a drink, Qin Jiao grabbed a nearby cup, filled it with water for Shen Yi, and placed it by his hand.

Qin Jiao was completely immersed in an ocean of knowledge, while Shen Yi, when she wasn’t looking, would secretly glance up at her.

Even just sitting and doing test papers together like this filled Shen Yi with a quiet happiness. He had to actively suppress the immense joy in his heart just to keep from smiling.

However, Shen Yi was also a little puzzled about something.

He still remembered the time they’d eaten together. ’How did Qin Jiao know how to make that crab pot?’

After all, that dish didn’t even exist yet at this point in time.

He’d had his suspicions before, but now, that vague idea was becoming clearer. And Shen Yi started to feel a little panicked.

’If the Jiao Jiao before me is really the Jiao Jiao from my past life, would she still be willing to marry me again?’

Shen Yi’s fists clenched slightly. In his heart, he didn’t dare to face the answer.

Just then, Su Yun came upstairs carrying a small tray of food. It held piping hot fried sweet potato threads and vegetable balls. She had also brought a few frozen pears for the two of them.

Shen Yi immediately stood up to take the tray. "You don’t have to go to the trouble, Auntie," he said. "If there’s something to eat, just call for us. We can come down and get it ourselves."

"You two, once the New Year passes, you’ll only have half a year left before the college entrance exams. You have to keep your strength up with good food. After school starts, just come over to our house when you’re done for the day. I’ll be making Xiao Jiao a late-night snack, and I’ll make a portion for you, too."

"Thank you, Auntie!" Shen Yi was genuinely happy. Qin Jiao, however, felt her lip twitch. ’At this rate, won’t I be spending almost all my time with Shen Yi, except for when I’m sleeping?’

The thought she had previously suppressed—the one about changing seats when school started—began to stir again.

Just then, Shen Yi handed a pair of chopsticks to Qin Jiao and said, "Let’s stay desk mates next semester, okay?"

Startled that he had seemingly read her mind, Qin Jiao froze for a moment. "Why?"

Shen Yi picked up a vegetable ball with his chopsticks but didn’t immediately eat it. His eyes downcast, he looked a little forlorn. "I’m not familiar with the other students. You’re the only friend I have in our class. If I have to be desk mates with someone else, I probably won’t have anyone to discuss questions and study with like this."

Qin Jiao: "..."

She thought back carefully. ’Compared to the Shen Yi from her past life, his temper really is much better. He’s more willing to interact with people, and he’s very polite around elders. He even just thanked my mom.

But on the whole, he’s still a bit cold. At school, I only ever see him playing basketball with the other boys occasionally. It’s true he’s not particularly close to anyone.’

Shen Yi continued, "Chen Feng’s academic foundation is stronger than mine. If he can just focus and really apply himself, he could surpass me, but I don’t want to fall behind him. When the college entrance exam scores come out, I want Shen Zhengfeng to see our results."

God only knew that Shen Yi had long since stopped caring about his biological father. But right now, to keep Qin Jiao from changing desk mates when school started, he was using every reason and excuse he could muster.

All just to keep her by his side.