Xue Rui first learned about Bitcoin around 2017.

Back in college, he’d run a small side hustle on campus and saved up a bit of money, planning to get a new computer.

But... Bitcoin skyrocketed, and it dragged all the other cryptocurrencies up with it.

Some cryptocurrencies were "mined" using graphics cards.

This caused the price of gaming graphics cards to remain stubbornly high.

On top of that, smartphone shipments had reached an all-time high back then, so RAM and flash memory prices went up too.

And to make matters worse, didn’t some wafer fab in Korea catch fire or something?

With all these negative factors piling up, graphics card prices multiplied several times over. An 8GB stick of RAM cost 1,000, and a 250GB hard drive sold for 700...

In the end, for a build that would normally only cost five or six thousand, Xue Rui had to spend a full twelve thousand.

The expense stung him for quite a while, which was why Bitcoin had left such a deep impression on him.

"Muxue, do you have a bank card with online banking enabled?" Xue Rui asked.

He couldn’t get online banking with his current status. ’A girl like Gu Muxue probably shops online, right?’ he thought.

"No." Gu Muxue shook her head.

She thought for a moment. "Do you need to borrow money? Or buy something?"

She hadn’t heard what Xue Rui and Xue Jianfeng were talking about.

But through the glass on the door, she had seen Xue Rui hand his red envelope to Xue Jianfeng with a look of displeasure, so she assumed he was short on cash.

"Forget it." Xue Rui waved his hand. ’If it comes to it, I’ll just use Ren Jun’s bank card,’ he thought.

"Oh." Gu Muxue was a little disappointed. ’I was hoping he’d have to beg me for help,’ she thought.

Suddenly, a dog’s head poked through the crack in the door.

"I have to get back to work." The waitress stuck her tongue out playfully and brought Da Huang back.

Xue Rui held back a laugh. Da Huang was all dolled up, with a small white flower tucked behind his ear and blush on his cheeks. With his tongue hanging out, he looked exceptionally cute.

"Ooh? Where’d this doggy come from?" Xue Yao’s inner child came out in full force. She crouched down to pet Da Huang’s head.

Xue Rui quickly tried to stop her. He knew Da Huang was a guard dog and could be a bit temperamental. A stranger should be careful when petting him for the first time; it would be bad if she got bitten.

But to his surprise, even when Xue Yao impolitely pulled at Da Huang’s cheeks, the dog didn’t resist and just squinted his eyes contentedly.

"He’s my friend’s dog. I’ll take him back to his place later."

Xue Rui’s eye twitched. ’Is Da Huang only aggressive towards guys?’ he wondered.

Da Huang had been thoroughly played with. There was even a small flower stuck on his tail.

However, when Gu Muxue saw Da Huang, she actually shrank back.

"WOOF!" Da Huang’s nose twitched, and he barked once at Gu Muxue.

Gu Muxue jumped in fright and quickly hid behind Xue Rui.

"Good doggy, don’t bark."

Xue Yao pinched Da Huang’s mouth shut, forcing him to let out only small whimpers.

"You’re afraid of dogs?" Xue Rui held back a smile. This was the first he’d ever heard of it.

"I... I don’t like dogs," Gu Muxue said, her expression serious.

She had been bitten by a dog when she was little.

Once bitten, twice shy. Ever since, she’d always made a detour whenever she saw a dog.

"But I do have a cat. Let me show you," Gu Muxue said with a grin, taking her phone out of her bag.

It was an iPhone 4s, covered in cartoon stickers.

Xue Yao leaned in, curious as well.

"Huh? Sister Muxue, I had the same stickers as you, but I lost them."

Xue Yao sounded regretful. She had really liked that sticker book, and it eventually went out of print.

The corner of Xue Rui’s mouth twitched. ’Those *are* yours...’ he thought.

He had just swiped them and given them to Gu Muxue.

Xue Rui smiled. ’I can’t believe this girl actually put them on her phone.’

Gu Muxue paid no mind to the sticker issue. She showed the two of them the photos she had taken of her cat.

"So cute, a blue-eyed kitty..."

"Yaoyao, this is a Ragdoll cat. I’ll bring her out for you to play with next time."

Xue Rui just glanced at it.

’Ragdolls will be a dime a dozen in the future, but they already have them in the country now?’

"How much did you buy this cat for?" Xue Rui asked out of curiosity.

The Ragdoll in the photo was of near-perfect quality, the kind that could be entered into competitions. At this point in time, 2012, it must have cost a fortune.

"Hm?" Gu Muxue frowned. She felt that Xue Rui’s question really killed the mood.

Still, she explained, "It was a gift from a relative who brought it back from abroad."

Xue Rui gave a wry smile. He had only asked casually.

It was because he was reminded of Da Huang’s price tag... a mere five bucks.

"Want to go for a walk? Uncle Gu and my dad are going to be drinking late, so we don’t have to wait for them." Xue Rui winked.

Gu Muxue’s heart leaped with joy. That was exactly what she had been thinking, too.

’Does... does this count as a date?’

’But where should we go? Where does Xue Rui usually hang out?’

Her knowledge of Xue Rui was still limited to how he was at school.

’What is Xue Rui like outside of school?’

Gu Muxue, with her small crossbody bag, followed nervously behind Xue Rui. She was worried Old Gu wouldn’t agree.

"Uncle Gu, Dad, I’m taking Muxue for a walk around the neighborhood."

Xue Rui poked his head in and let them know.

"It’s already getting dark..."

Gu Qingshan was about to refuse, but Xue Jianfeng slung an arm around his neck and cut him off. "The kids are all grown up. It’s not like they’re going to get lost, right?"

Xue Rui nodded and smiled at Zhao Lizhen, then backed out of the room.

The two of them and the dog left the restaurant through the back door.

Gu Muxue was a little unhappy. ’Why did Xue Rui bring the dog? Is he trying to scare me?’

’Then again, Xue Rui has always been like this. Back in elementary school, he loved catching bugs to scare me.’

「Out on the street.」

The fiery sunset clouds on the horizon cast a crimson glow on Gu Muxue’s face, making her look all the more pure and captivating.

Xue Rui couldn’t help but steal a few more glances. ’She’s just so beautiful.’

"Let’s just wander around the streets," Xue Rui said with a smile.

He had purposely sent Xue Yao away when they left, just so the two of them could be alone.

Plus, by leaving through the back door, they had also avoided Gu Muxue’s family driver.

It was almost seven o’clock, the middle of the evening rush hour, and the traffic was heavy.

Many young couples were walking hand-in-hand down the street, the girls holding ice cream cones and occasionally offering their boyfriends a bite.

Gu Muxue saw them too. ’They’re so bold,’ she thought. ’Aren’t they afraid someone they know will see them?’

’On second thought,’ she mused, ’those couples are already adults, so they don’t have to worry about being seen.’

A flicker of anticipation sparked in her heart. ’When I’m grown up...’

Suddenly, Xue Rui took Gu Muxue’s small hand and pulled her into a little spin on the spot.

To be precise, they had switched places.

Gu Muxue stood there stunned. ’What is Xue Rui doing?’

’Is he spinning me around like we’re little kids?’

"There are a lot of cars on the outside. What if one swerves out of its lane? It’s too dangerous," Xue Rui said with a serious expression.

Gu Muxue looked from side to side.

She realized that Xue Rui was now walking on the outside, with the passing traffic on his right. It looked very dangerous.

She was startled. She hadn’t even realized she had been walking in such a dangerous spot just now.

But now, Xue Rui had switched places with her.

She was standing on his left, and the flow of traffic was blocked by his body, which felt like a protective wall around her.

"Mm," Gu Muxue nodded.

She had thought Xue Rui was still the same mischievous, childish little boy.

But so many years had passed, and without her realizing it, Xue Rui had grown to be half a head taller than her.

He had spun her around before, but back then it was just to tease her.

But now, it was for her safety.

She felt her heart pounding so fast, as if something was about to burst out of her chest...

Gu Muxue didn’t even notice that her hand was still being held by Xue Rui.

As for Xue Rui, he had just been looking for an excuse to hold Gu Muxue’s small hand.

’For her safety? Of course, that was part of it, but it was just a bonus.’

Gu Muxue’s hand was really soft and smooth. It felt surprisingly good to hold.

He couldn’t resist rubbing it a few times with his thumb.

Gu Muxue felt a tickle on the back of her hand, and it was only then that she realized Xue Rui was taking advantage of her.

She tried to pull her hand away, but Xue Rui’s grip suddenly tightened, not letting her go.

Gu Muxue’s brows furrowed, her wide eyes staring at Xue Rui, expressing her displeasure.

Xue Rui noticed her gaze, but he pretended not to see it.

Gu Muxue’s cheeks puffed out in a pout. She really wanted to pinch Xue Rui.

But then she remembered that she had forgotten to get Xue Rui a present...

Gu Muxue’s hand gradually relaxed, letting Xue Rui hold it.

’Just ten minutes... consider it compensation.’