Xue Rui looked at the group of spirited young men and couldn’t help but laugh to himself.

He had been their age once. How could he not know what these kids were thinking?

At their carefree age, not to mention they weren’t doing any back-breaking labor, did they really need alcohol to numb themselves?

These boys weren’t drinking because they liked alcohol. They were imitating adults, pretending to be mature.

They especially loved to put on a show in front of girls, not unlike silly peacocks constantly fanning their tail feathers to attract a mate.

They might not have been trying to get any particular girl’s attention, but in the heat of the moment, they’d think, ’The girls are watching. I absolutely can’t chicken out.’

They mistakenly believed that smoking and drinking were marks of a mature man. In reality, the true marks were responsibility and pressure; smoking and drinking were just the outward symptoms.

Picking up these bad habits so early, it wouldn’t be many years before they started to regret it.

Forcing yourself to smoke and drink when you’re young, only starting to understand them years later when you feel the pressure of life, then trying to quit after middle age...

Perhaps this was a required course in life for many men...

Now, from the girls’ perspective, how many of them actually enjoyed watching boys compete at drinking?

Perhaps some wild party girls might like boys like that, but it would never attract these girls who had just taken their college entrance exams.

The acts of smoking and competitive drinking would only make the girls find them obnoxious, or even repulsive.

Conversely, someone like Xue Rui, who politely and graciously sat down to eat with the girls, could more easily earn their goodwill.

...

"You just said you were sitting at the kids’ table? Are you saying we’re all children?" a girl asked with a laugh.

"Who isn’t still a baby at heart? I’m only five years and one hundred-some-odd months old. I’m still planning on celebrating Children’s Day next year," Xue Rui joked.

"Hahaha~" The girl burst into laughter, causing the boys at the surrounding tables to glance over.

Lin Ruoxi nodded, murmuring to herself as she mentally filed away the fact that Xue Rui wanted to celebrate Children’s Day.

...

Watching Xue Rui laugh and chat with the girls as they ate, Qiu Mengze’s lip twitched. Suddenly, the drink in his hand lost its appeal.

"Ahem, I think we should probably drink a little less in broad daylight," someone said.

After Xue Rui’s little display, the group’s enthusiasm for their drinking contest had dampened considerably.

They were truly envious of Xue Rui now. He hadn’t really done anything; he just boldly went and sat down, and someone immediately made space for him, even fetching him a bowl and chopsticks.

It occurred to them: could they have done the same thing if they had gone over?

But it was too late; there were no seats left at the girls’ table.

Lin Ruoxi would occasionally place food on Xue Rui’s plate, peel shrimp for him, and pick out fish bones.

Xue Rui sighed. ’This girl...’ he thought. ’She really can’t read the room. She has no idea what to do or when to do it. She’s the same every single day.’

But he didn’t have the heart to say anything; everything the young woman did was for his own good.

The young woman’s personality had changed quite a bit. She was no longer the type to sacrifice her own interests for just anyone.

A people-pleaser? Not really. The only one she seemed to want to please was him.

Perhaps it was because their fates were so closely intertwined?

Xue Rui casually picked up a piece of shelled shrimp and ate it. He wasn’t some legitimate psychologist; how could he clearly analyze the young woman’s mind?

"Sister Xi, how come you’re only getting food for him?" a girl asked with a smile.

The two of them were being so obvious. They were clearly a young couple...

"Eat your own food," Xue Rui said.

The young woman nodded, picked up another shrimp with her chopsticks, and popped it into her mouth, chewing it directly and producing a crisp "CRUNCH."

Everyone’s eyes twitched. They exchanged glances, completely baffled about what was happening.

They had assumed that a cold goddess like Lin Ruoxi would surely be elegant and refined when she ate.

After all, she was so adept at peeling shrimp for Xue Rui, they were certain she would peel one for herself, too.

They never expected Lin Ruoxi to eat in such a... remarkably down-to-earth manner.

"Sister Xi, why do you peel them for him?" someone asked.

Isn’t that the sort of thing a boy should be doing to impress a girl?

She wanted to ask Lin Ruoxi what she was thinking—did she like Xue Rui?

However, Lin Ruoxi didn’t understand the subtext of the question. She said blankly, "Because Xue Rui doesn’t like to eat shrimp shells."

This answer stunned everyone. ’Does anyone actually like eating shrimp shells?’ they wondered.

"Xue Rui, what’s your relationship with Gu Muxue?" Guo Qingqing asked in a low voice.

At school, Lin Ruoxi always gave off an unapproachable air and never ate together with Xue Rui.

However, outside of school, Lin Ruoxi was completely different, like a well-behaved and obedient little girl.

Xue Rui and Lin Ruoxi had such a comfortable chemistry, and everything seemed so natural, they must have spent a lot of time together.

"Just classmates. I confessed my feelings to her, but she never accepted," Xue Rui said shamelessly.

Of course, what he said was true; Gu Muxue had never accepted.

However, he felt that if he were to ask now, the young woman would probably agree in a heartbeat.

The young woman had sharp ears; she heard Guo Qingqing’s question and subconsciously glanced at her.

Guo Qingqing froze. ’Lin Ruoxi heard that?’

She was very curious about Lin Ruoxi’s thoughts, so she asked, "Lin Ruoxi, what do you think?"

Xue Rui feigned calmness and picked up a peanut with his chopsticks. If he were to interject now, he would only draw more attention to himself.

Girls were quick-witted; he had to feign indifference right now. Saying anything would be a mistake and would only make him look like he had something to hide.

"They’re good friends," Lin Ruoxi said.

She knew that Xue Rui and Gu Muxue were on very good terms.

Guo Qingqing was stunned again. ’Good friends?’

’Can a man and a woman really just be "good friends"? Doesn’t that just mean they’re dating?’

’Lin Ruoxi is usually so quiet. How come she seems so dazed when she starts talking more...?’

’She looks so easy to fool.’

As the class president, she had once warned Xue Rui not to get close to Lin Ruoxi, but now it was clearly too late...

She glanced at Xue Rui, then back at Lin Ruoxi, and sighed helplessly.

Lin Ruoxi thought Guo Qingqing’s look was directed at her, so she said, "Um, Xue Rui and I are good friends, too."

The young woman thought for a moment. She could even step on Xue Rui’s stomach, so they must be a little better than just "good friends." She added, "Very good friends."

As Lin Ruoxi finished speaking, her almond-shaped eyes, which seemed to hold all the clarity of an autumn pool, fell gently on Xue Rui.

Guo Qingqing frowned and shot Xue Rui a vicious glare.

Xue Rui could read the look in her eyes. It said, ’Doesn’t your conscience hurt?’

"That’s right," Xue Rui said with a nod.

Hearing Xue Rui’s affirmation, the young woman’s eyes crinkled with a smile, and she placed a few more servings of food on his plate.

Guo Qingqing’s eyebrow twitched. ’Lin Ruoxi is a lost cause,’ she thought. ’And Xue Rui is a real scoundrel.’

After the little interlude, everyone fell into idle chatter.

...

"Xue Rui, I heard from Lin Ruoxi that you did well. Should be enough to get into a Project 211 school, right?" Guo Qingqing asked.

"Something like that. We’ll see once the score cutoffs are released," Xue Rui replied vaguely.

His score was already considered top-tier at their school, No. 2 High.

In truth, only a dozen or so students in their class would make it into an undergraduate program. That already broke a record for No. 2 High, but the rest of the students wouldn’t meet the cutoff score.

Some planned to repeat the year to retake the exam, while others were preparing to attend a vocational college.

Those who were headed for vocational college were feeling a bit insecure.

"I don’t want to go to a vocational college, but I just can’t seem to learn the material," a girl said, her expression growing more downcast.

Xue Rui could understand this feeling. His own talent was only average, relatively speaking. He had spent so much energy, taking the same college entrance exam twice, and had only barely qualified for a first-tier university.

He was no match for a monster of talent like Lin Ruoxi.

"I did really poorly on the exam this year. My family says my life will be ruined if I go to a junior college. They said I should either repeat the year or get a job, and I don’t know what to do," the girl said, on the verge of tears.

The classmates at the table didn’t know how to comfort her. If one of the high-scoring students spoke up, it would sound like condescending pity.

And those with similarly poor scores couldn’t bring themselves to speak either. What could they say? Words of self-deprecation?

Many of them fell silent.

Xue Rui sighed. What kind of bullshit was this educational system peddling? Always framing things as the end of the world.

In his view, aside from matters of life and death, there were no obstacles that couldn’t be overcome. Life had a ridiculously high tolerance for error.

"What’s all this talk about being ruined? Only a certain number of people get into undergraduate programs each year. Look at our class—so many people didn’t even finish high school, and aren’t they doing just fine?" Xue Rui said reassuringly.

"Really?" The girl paused, looking over at the boys who were drinking.

What Xue Rui said seemed to make sense. They did look like they were doing just fine.

"As long as you work hard, everyone is an important cornerstone of society. For example, if the master chef at this restaurant had gone to college, who would be here to cook for you? Do people stop eating once they get into college?" Xue Rui said with a smile.

"Mmm, people have to eat," Lin Ruoxi said.

The young woman tilted her head, thought for a moment, and asked in a low voice, "You can’t cook if you go to college? But I still want to cook."

Seeing the two of them, the girl suddenly burst out laughing, the sadness in her heart instantly washing away.

She realized that someone who could get into Qingbei wasn’t some mythical being with three heads and six arms. Instead, she looked endearingly dorky and cute, not at all like the legends in stories.

And besides, those classmates who had dropped out of school weren’t really ruined, either.

Everyone finished their meal, laughing and chatting, and started to pool their money to go downstairs and pay the bill.

Yi Bing’s expression grew conflicted. If his classmates knew he was the one paying, they would definitely insist on giving him the money. For a moment, he didn’t know what to do.

"I saw Yi Bing’s father when I was going to the restroom just now. He already settled our bill," Xue Rui announced loudly.

Yi Bing paused for a second before quickly catching on. "Right, my dad paid and then left."

Everyone was surprised; they hadn’t expected something like that to happen.

"Thank Uncle Zhang for us," Guo Qingqing said with a smile.

Yi Bing was stunned. Xue Rui’s move was brilliant. By saying an adult had paid, no one would try to force money on him, nor would they feel like they owed him anything. They would just treat it as a kind gesture from his father.

He walked over to Xue Rui’s side. "Brother Rui, you’re amazing."

After leaving the restaurant, the students started heading home, scattering in different directions.

Some classmates who were heading the same way shared a car. The rest who didn’t catch the bus lingered at the stop in front of the restaurant, chatting for a while.

"Sister Xi, Qingbei or one hundred million yuan—which would you choose?" someone asked, suddenly remembering the earlier question.

For them, it was just a hypothetical, but it seemed like Lin Ruoxi could actually have to choose...

No one knew where to get the hundred million, but for her, Qingbei was a genuine choice to be made.

Xue Rui froze. He really did have a hundred million, and Lin Ruoxi really did have her pick of Qingbei.

It was just that the young woman didn’t seem to be interested in either of them...

Lin Ruoxi faced her classmates’ expectant gazes, her chest rising and falling. "I..."