Be Passionately In Love

01

Li Ke and Zhang Yu officially became a couple in their junior year. In the early days of their relationship, wherever they went on dates, they would drag Chen Luzhou and Xu Zhi along. Chen Luzhou couldn’t be bothered to play along—Li Ke was too competitive, even in relationships, and Chen Luzhou had no patience for it. But Li Ke believed that everyone had seen how Chen Luzhou treated Xu Zhi over the years. He had become the gold standard for boyfriends among the girls, and now that Li Ke finally had a new identity as someone’s boyfriend, he naturally wanted to measure up and compete.

“Zhang Yu texted me saying Li Ke invited us to watch a movie tonight.”

After reading Zhang Yu’s message, Xu Zhi sighed and turned to Chen Luzhou, who was busy running stock quant simulations on his computer.

He had just joined Professor Liu’s lab and was working with a few senior students on stock quant projects for several companies—he was swamped.

“What movie?” Chen Luzhou asked absentmindedly, still typing away.

“ A Dog’s Purpose .”

“...” Chen Luzhou cursed under his breath. “Not going.”

Who knew what Li Ke was scheming?

Seeing his firm refusal, Xu Zhi couldn’t help but laugh, giving him a look that said, You coward , and deliberately prodded, “Scared?”

“Whose side are you on?” Chen Luzhou leaned back in his chair, tossing his mouse aside, and shot her an annoyed glance.

“Alright, alright, we won’t go,” Xu Zhi quickly soothed him, immediately showing her loyalty by picking up her phone and rejecting the invitation without hesitation. “Done. Replied.”

But Li Ke wasn’t about to let him off so easily. He seized every opportunity to compete, though Xu Zhi usually brushed him off with a few words. On this matter, the two of them had an unspoken agreement—they would never let the other become Li Ke’s “comparison tool.”

Besides, all of Li Ke’s competitive tactics—like Zhang Yu stayed on the phone with me for three hours last night or she made me handmade cookies over the weekend —were things Chen Luzhou and Xu Zhi had already done years ago. If Chen Luzhou really wanted to engage in a serious competition, Li Ke would probably be left in the dust.

Chen Luzhou thought his antics were childish, just the result of being in a new relationship with hormones running wild—pure boredom.

If they really wanted to brag, just the huge hoe Xu Zhi had given him back then was enough to last him years.

Chen Luzhou didn’t have time for this nonsense.

But Xu Zhi had plenty of free time and ended up chatting with Li Ke for a bit.

Li Ke: “Wanna make a bet?”

Xu Zhi was resolute—she would never use Chen Luzhou as a bargaining chip.

Xu Zhi: “No.”

They had actually made a bet once before. A while back, when a group of them went to an amusement park, Li Ke had confidently declared before entering that Chen Luzhou would never ride a roller coaster—he had always disliked extreme rides. Just like when Feng Jin once asked if he was into street racing, Chen Luzhou had firmly declined, saying it was too dangerous. It wasn’t fear—he just didn’t enjoy it. When Xu Zhi asked what he wanted to ride at the amusement park, Chen Luzhou nodded toward the luxurious kiddie ride area and said, “That one.”

Li Ke raised an eyebrow. “Told you he wouldn’t go on a roller coaster.”

Xu Zhi thought for a moment, then said decisively, “I’ll bet you 500 bucks—I’ll get him on the drop tower.”Li Ke immediately agreed with gusto, as if money had fallen from the sky. "Not to be rude, Xu Zhi, but your boyfriend can be a dragon anytime, anywhere—except in places like this. He’d rather be a worm. You didn’t know, did you? Haha, he’s afraid of heights. Even a roller coaster is pushing it, let alone a drop tower. You’re practically asking for his life—"

Xu Zhi glanced at the screaming passengers on the nearby drop tower, unmoved and utterly cold. "Are you betting or not? Stop wasting my time."

Li Ke tried to persuade her further.

Xu Zhi: "Five-to-one odds. If he doesn’t go, I’ll give you 2,500."

"Deal!"

No sooner had he spoken than Xu Zhi dragged Chen Luzhou off to buy tickets without another word.

Li Ke was stunned for a second before hastily pulling Zhang Yu along to catch up, trying to brainwash Chen Luzhou while affectionately using his nickname. "Hey, damn it, aren’t you afraid of heights? We’re not risking our lives for 500 bucks, are we?"

Chen Luzhou, though seemingly reluctant, let himself be dragged along by Xu Zhi. He spared a lazy glance at Li Ke. "Who said I’m afraid of heights?"

Li Ke racked his brains. "Last time during our class outing at the amusement park, the class monitor said so. She asked you to ride the roller coaster, and you said you were afraid of heights—damn it!"

……

…………After a long silence.

Li Ke finally caught on and exploded. "...You bastard! Not a single word of truth comes out of your mouth, does it?!"

Chen Luzhou remained unfazed. Xu Zhi was already in line for the drop tower tickets. Watching the ride’s sudden drops and the passengers’ screams, he had zero interest and couldn’t be bothered to defend himself. He simply whispered to Li Ke, "Surrender for half—250?"

Li Ke cursed inwardly, "..."

In the end, they didn’t even get on the drop tower, and Li Ke got scammed out of 250 by Chen Luzhou.

So here he was again, determined to win that 250 back.

Li Ke: 「A Dog’s Purpose. If he cries, I’ll give you 1,000.」

Xu Zhi was firm: 「No bet. If he cries, I’ll have to comfort him. Too annoying.」

Li Ke: 「I’ll screenshot this and send it to Chen Luzhou—tell him you’re sick of comforting him.」

Xu Zhi grew even more impatient: 「Raise the stakes.」

Li Ke: 「...1,500. That’s my final offer. His tears aren’t made of pearls.」

Xu Zhi: 「Deal.」

The moment she sent it, she turned to see Chen Luzhou holding a cup of warmed milk for her, glaring coldly. "Selling me out again?"

Xu Zhi tossed her phone onto the table, leaned back in her chair, and sighed without a shred of remorse. "Can’t help it. I didn’t want to bet, but he offered 1,500."

Chen Luzhou: "..."

Of course, Xu Zhi still didn’t understand Li Ke. "Why does he always pick fights with you?"

Chen Luzhou knew exactly what Li Ke was up to—he just wanted to show Zhang Yu who the most reliable man in the world really was.

Chen Luzhou had always been one to help others fulfill their wishes, so he could only pocket the 1,500 with "tears."

But Li Ke didn’t expect to lose on both fronts. After the movie, Zhang Yu posted on her social media:

Zhang Yu: 「If I’ve committed any sins, I hope the law punishes me—not by making me sit through A Dog’s Purpose while the entire theater sobbed their hearts out, only for my boyfriend to ask me, ‘If a dog remembers its owner’s scent over three lifetimes, how long do you think it’s been since he last showered?’」

Xu Zhi: ……

Chen Luz Zhou: ………

Zhu Yangqi: …………How does someone like this even have a girlfriend?

02While the couple had already been on several romantic dates, Zhu Yangqi remained clueless, still acting like a naive and impulsive youngster. He sent Chen Luzhou a WeChat message, bluntly asking if Cai Yingying was just stringing him along.

Cai Yingying had been admitted to Sichuan Normal University the following year, and Zhu Yangqi frequently made trips to Sichuan whenever he had free time. Occasionally, during holidays, Cai Yingying would visit Beijing, and the two would bicker and banter, but they never broached the topic of their feelings. Over time, even Zhang Yu, who hadn’t known them for long, could tell what Cai Yingying was hesitant about. Yet Zhu Yangqi, oblivious as ever, continued to pester Chen Luzhou every now and then.

Coming out of the school cafeteria—Zhu Yangqi’s call.

Leaving the lab—Zhu Yangqi’s call.

On a business trip with Professor Liu—Zhu Yangqi’s call.

Even in the middle of kissing and flirting with Xu Zhi—Zhu Yangqi’s call.

They had no choice but to pause. Xu Zhi rolled herself up in the blanket and obediently scooted to the side, giving him a glance to signal he should answer. But Chen Luzhou was far from ready to stop. He grabbed his phone, turned it off with a snap, and tossed it onto the nightstand in irritation, fully intending to resume what they’d started.

“Aren’t you afraid he’ll show up at the door later?”

No sooner had she spoken than the doorbell rang—calm and unhurried.

Xu Zhi, wrapped in the blanket, looked at him with innocent eyes: “…”

Chen Luzhou was both exasperated and amused. Reluctantly, he got out of bed, pulled on his pants, and grumbled, “I swear, your mouth…” He then grabbed her clothes from the side and tossed them onto the bed. “Get dressed before coming out. I’ll get the door.” As he stood up, hands in his pockets, he glanced down at her still lying in bed while trying to hook his scattered slippers with his feet. With a lazy smirk, he added, “Promise me one thing—next time we buy a house, let’s not give him the address, okay?”

Xu Zhi, gazing at him longingly, replied earnestly, “You buy it first, okay?”

“Can you not be so money-minded?”

“Can you hurry up and make money?”

“Isn’t that what I’m doing? Who was it that self-righteously lent out our wedding fund to Li Ke for his startup?”

Just bringing it up made Chen Luzhou fume. He sat on the edge of the bed, pinching her nose and refusing to let go.

Xu Zhi, stubborn as ever, held her breath defiantly and mumbled, “It was an investment.”

“Oh, so you’re still mad?” Chen Luzhou pinched her cheek.

Xu Zhi didn’t dare argue further. Back then, they had fought over this once, and for a while, Chen Luzhou’s WeChat replies had been limited to single words: “Okay,” “Hmm,” “Got it.” Xu Zhi knew he was upset that she’d so readily invested the money. That fund had included Chen Luzhou’s years of scholarship earnings and income from aerial photography, as well as Xu Zhi’s own scholarships and project shares—though Chen Luzhou’s portion was larger. Xu Zhi knew he’d been saving up for their wedding and wanted to contribute, so she’d added her share without hesitation. But then, at the end of 2019, COVID-19 began spreading, Li Ke’s project hit roadblocks, and many partners backed out, forcing his venture to stall. Knowing that Chen Luzhou had been heavily involved in the early planning, Xu Zhi couldn’t bear to see his efforts go to waste and suggested lending their wedding fund to Li Ke as an emergency lifeline.Xu Zhi had done the math back then. Chen Luzhou had just started his postgraduate studies, and it was unclear whether he would pursue a Ph.D. afterward. Marriage was probably not on the cards for them anytime soon. If they left the money in the bank, the interest over a few years wouldn’t amount to much—better to invest it directly. Both of them trusted Li Ke’s capabilities. They just hadn’t expected to run into such a disaster, one that drained all the youthful passion out of them. Not just Li Ke—even Xu Zhi, who had been busy with the early-stage preparations for the project at Li Ke’s studio, had been pretty disheartened at the time.

It wasn’t that Chen Luzhou had refused to lend the money. When Li Ke was short on funds during the initial project preparations, he had stepped in to help. Back then, he was relatively well-off. One year, Lian Hui had suddenly transferred a million yuan into his account. He had a pretty good idea who it was from, but he neither touched the money nor returned it. He had thought that if Li Ke really needed it, he could lend him some from that sum.

He just hadn’t expected Xu Zhi to suggest dipping into their marriage fund first.

So, that time, he couldn’t hold back either and asked coolly, “This time it’s Li Ke—who’s next? Is marrying me so unimportant that I have to step aside whenever someone runs into trouble?”

How could the two things even be connected? If they had been planning to get married the next day, she definitely wouldn’t have lent the money. After all, their financial situation wasn’t stable yet—he was still in school, and Xu Zhi was just an intern at the time. Marriage wasn’t even on the horizon. The money would just be sitting there anyway.

Xu Zhi fell silent for a moment, thinking that Chen Luzhou’s way of thinking really was different from others—so sensitive and adorable.

After some thought, she conceded that he had a point and smoothly changed her tune. “Then we won’t lend it?”

“Did I say we shouldn’t lend it?” He was upset again.

Xu Zhi laughed. “Then what do you want?”

“Can’t you just fucking sweet-talk me a little?!”

In the end, Xu Zhi collapsed into laughter in his arms. “Chen Jiaojiao, you’re really—just too cute.”

“It’s not like I can’t do the math. I know we don’t need that money right now, but if you casually lend out our marriage fund, isn’t it fair for me to be pissed?”

“I know. That’s why I said if we needed the money urgently, I wouldn’t lend it. But since we don’t, why not lend it to him as an emergency fund? Think of it as storing the money with Li Ke. I told him he has to pay it back before we get married. He swore up and down that if he didn’t, he’d cut off his own head.”

“Right, and I’ll carry his head to our wedding.”

“……”

……

That’s what they said, but with the pandemic affecting everything those years, the industry was generally in a slump. Back then, Chen Luzhou spent every day in the lab with Professor Liu, running sandbox simulations and risk assessments for various companies. The risk evaluations they conducted for several firms connected to Professor Liu were all pretty grim—layoffs here, shutdowns there. A fledgling studio like Li Ke’s had even bleaker prospects than Xu Zhi had optimistically imagined.

Xu Zhi’s loyalty moved Li Ke, but it couldn’t move heaven and earth. Li Ke’s project was still barely limping along, teetering on the edge of collapse at any moment.

But Xu Zhi believed that while Li Ke might be a bit childish in relationships, he was absolutely a shrewd businessman when it came to work. Investing with him wouldn’t be a loss. She firmly maintained that Li Ke was a stock with potential.

Chen Luzhou ignored her. This girl was money-crazy."Whether he's a potential stock or not is another matter. I warned you back then to stay away from that provincial top scorer who knows how to do business, remember? And you kept betting with him. One day, you might just lose your entire capital."

Xu Zhi, wrapped in a blanket, laughed and kicked him lightly. "Go open the door! Why does it sound like you're a bit jealous of me and Li Ke? Chen Jiaojiao."

Young Master Chen indicated that he had never experienced jealousy and thus didn’t quite understand.

Xu Zhi couldn’t stop laughing.

The one truly consumed by jealousy was Zhu Yangqi. The moment he entered, he gulped down a whole bucket of water, yet it did nothing to quell the waves of sourness rising in his heart. Frustrated, he vented his grievances at them, his tone downright ferocious. He glared at Xu Zhi and demanded harshly, "Xu Zhi, you better tell me the truth—does Cai Yingying have something going on?!!"

Xu Zhi had just finished tidying up and walked into the living room, where she saw the two of them sitting on the sofa with serious expressions. At his words, she looked utterly bewildered. She glanced at Chen Luzhou, then turned to Zhu Yangqi. Just as she was about to speak, Chen Luzhou cut in.

Leaning lazily against the sofa with an expression that clearly said he wasn’t in the mood for this, he snatched the water cup from Zhu Yangqi’s hand, refusing to let him drink any more, and placed it on the side table. His tone was just as unfriendly, laced with impatience. "If Cai Yingying has something going on, why are you taking it out on her? Can’t you speak properly? Taking it out on my girlfriend? Do you want me to kick you out?"

Under normal circumstances, Zhu Yangqi would have immediately plastered on his usual smile, but right now, he was burning with anxiety and had drunk quite a bit. His face was flushed like a pig’s liver, and he couldn’t bring himself to soften his tone. He could only sit there in sullen silence.

Xu Zhi walked over, shook her head at Chen Luzhou, and then perched on the armrest of the sofa beside Zhu Yangqi. "What’s going on with Yingying?" she asked.

Chen Luzhou kept his eyes fixed on Zhu Yangqi, who finally softened his tone. "A few days ago, I laid my feelings out to her. She said she’d think about it, but since then, she hasn’t answered my calls or replied to my WeChat messages. What does that mean? I’m seriously done. To her, I’m just a backup option."

Xu Zhi wasn’t really in a position to comment on this. Yingying had always been a girl with strong opinions. After what happened with Zhai Xiao and an online dating incident, she had developed a fear of men. Even as everyone around her got into relationships, she showed no desire to date. Though she often joked about wanting a boyfriend, in reality, she didn’t dare to pursue one. Over the years, Zhu Yangqi had dropped hints here and there, but knowing Cai Yingying wasn’t ready, he had never pushed her, waiting for her to sort things out before confessing properly.

Who knew that this wait would stretch into four or five years?

At one point, they had a huge fight, exchanging harsh words. Afterward, Cai Yingying came to Beijing to see Xu Zhi and cut off contact with Zhu Yangqi. For two years, they barely spoke. Later, because of Xu Zhi and Chen Luzhou, they inevitably had to see each other again. But every time they met, Zhu Yangqi would act sarcastic, deliberately saying things to provoke her. Whatever little affection Cai Yingying had left for him was completely eroded by his own actions.

Unconsciously, years of bickering passed between them. To Cai Yingying, they were probably better off as friends.

"I made it clear to her—either we’re together, or we cut ties completely."Xu Zhi and Chen Luzhou exchanged a glance. Chen Luzhou, his head tilted back against the sofa, stared at the ceiling and said after a moment's thought, "Then how about this—we get married, I’ll send you an invitation, and you can just send a red envelope. No need to show up in person."

Zhu Yangqi: "Are you even human?"

Chen Luzhou, still gazing at the ceiling, gave a lazy smile and didn’t respond.

Xu Zhi finally spoke up, "So you still don’t get it? As long as Chen Luzhou and I are together, you two will never completely cut ties. You’ll have to see each other eventually. Unless Chen Luzhou cuts you off first."

Chen Luzhou shot her a surprised look.

Zhu Yangqi: "See? My bro would never agree—"

But Chen Luzhou, unfazed, looked at Xu Zhi and said, "Hey, how did you read my mind?"

Zhu Yangqi: "..."

Chen Luzhou: "No choice. My girlfriend only has one best friend, but I’ve got plenty of friends. Without you, there’s still Keke, Jiang Cheng, or at the very least, Wang Yue counts too. Recently, while doing research with Professor Liu, I met someone else—old enough for me to call him ‘uncle.’ Really interesting guy. Thinking about it, I don’t even want Li Ke anymore."

Zhu Yangqi: "You’re seriously not human." A statement, not a question.

Chen Luzhou shot him a sidelong glance and let out a heartless chuckle. "You’ve known that for a while."

Yet, despite Zhu Yangqi’s endless grumbling all night, that utterly heartless guy still sat there on the sofa, wrapped in human skin, and listened to him until the end. Xu Zhi, exhausted, went to bed, but could faintly hear their voices still drifting from the living room.

"Back when I saw you and Xu Zhi together, I thought my bro had it rough. Never imagined I’d end up worse off than you."

"You are worse off. But I’m not."

"..."

"Xu Zhi treats me really well."

"......"

"Does anyone build you a house?"

"......"

"How many birthdays do you celebrate a year? Xu Zhi celebrates two birthdays for me. Oh, sorry, I forgot—you only get one every four years."

"Can you shut up?"

"Can you lower your voice?"

"No, that's the sound of my heart breaking."

"............"

Xu Zhi sighed. Why bother? Everyone knew how harsh his words could be, yet they still rushed to him for comfort.

"You just asked if I was serious—what exactly did you mean?" Zhu Yangqi asked.

"Exactly what it sounds like."

"Then what do you consider serious? Like how you are with Xu Zhi? I really can’t do that. You’ve always overthought things since we were kids, and you’re cautious in everything. I’m definitely not as good as you in that regard. If Cai Yingying holds me to the same standard as you with Xu Zhi, then I think she’s being unrealistic. Zhu Yangqi is Zhu Yangqi—I have my own strengths, okay?"

He chuckled, his voice as cool and carefree as that afternoon when they first met in the senior high building. Yes, carefree—that was the word Xu Zhi had struggled to pin down about his current state. Like an unrestrained breeze rippling across a calm surface, yet still pure and clear: "What are you thinking? Why bring me and Xu Zhi into this? What I mean is, if you haven’t thought it through, don’t pursue Cai Yingying. What’s holding her back is the relationship between me and Xu Zhi. Without us, she might’ve already said yes to you. Cai Yingying isn’t quite like Xu Zhi. Xu Zhi has always had clear goals—she fell for me at first sight, though she’d never admit it—"

"Shut the hell up! She fell for your mom at first sight! Idiot."

He clicked his tongue. "Are you done?"

"It was obviously you who fell for her at first sight. That night, you were already scheming—don’t think I didn’t notice. That power bank? You deliberately left it behind so she’d come looking for you again, right?"

"......"

"I learned from you. So later, when I had dinner with Cai Yingying, I ‘accidentally’ left my wallet behind too."

"And then?"

"And then the wallet actually got lost."

"............"

03

It was October 2021. The pandemic was still lingering, unpredictable as ever, but the economy was recovering. People had grown accustomed to wearing masks when going out. The world seemed changed, yet somehow unchanged—still brimming with passion for life.

Li Ke’s project had finally gained some traction. The moment he earned his first bucket of gold, he immediately sent Xu Zhi her share of the dividends—far exceeding the amount she had originally lent him. Of course, this was work. The two of them still occasionally made harmless little bets, like—

"Guess how much Zhu Yangqi, who hates cilantro, would pay to force Chen Luzhou to grow it if he got rich?"

"How many Chinese knots can you make from a pound of rice noodles?"

"Can Doraemon still shoot his Doraemon Beam after taking a bath?"

...And so on.

Li Ke was dead set on winning back that "two hundred fifty" (a playful term for a fool’s bet).

But the sum had grown day by day, now far beyond the original "two hundred fifty."Zhu Yangqi studied stage design. After graduation, full of ambition, he shamelessly sent his resume to the inbox of a renowned domestic director, only for it to sink without a trace. Then, after being tricked into working as a foot model for a few days by someone claiming to be a famous director with many hit works, he obediently used his father’s money to open an art studio in Beijing—a prime location right by the roadside with heavy foot traffic. Zhu Yangqi was speechless at his father’s choice. Who in their right mind would open an art studio by the roadside? Everyone else sets up in office buildings, okay?

Boss Zhu replied nonchalantly, “I was afraid you wouldn’t get any business.”

Well, business wasn’t bad. His first customer was an eighty-year-old grandma.

Zhu Yangqi patiently explained, “Ah, Grandma, this is an art studio, not a nail salon. I don’t do nails.”

“It’s not that I can’t paint them—I just don’t offer that service.”

……

“Well, if you can do it, just paint mine,” the grandma said casually, maneuvering her electric wheelchair slowly toward him. “I have a friend too—you can do both of ours. I saw a photo of nails posted at your entrance.”

“That’s body art!”

“Whatever,” the grandma turned and called out to someone behind her, “Meilan! This young man does nails!”

Zhu Yangqi: “……”

Following her in was a tall, handsome man—so striking that even Zhu Yangqi was momentarily stunned. Dressed entirely in black—a black shirt and trousers—he had a refined appearance and a magnetic voice. At first glance, he wasn’t overwhelmingly striking, but the longer you looked, the more handsome he seemed—almost as good-looking as Chen Luzhou. His eyes were especially clear, and his voice was crisp and polite. “Sorry for the disturbance,” he said before pushing the old lady out.

The grandma protested, “Li Jinyu! I want a manicure.”

“They don’t do manicures here.”

“Then what do they do?”

“They paint. Didn’t you hear Ye Meng calling you just now?”

“No, my phone died.”

“Seriously? Your phone’s dead, your wheelchair’s dead, and you still ran out to get a manicure? Could you watch fewer livestreams?”

“You only dare to lecture me! Meilan’s always glued to her phone—why don’t you scold her?”

“Fine. You two can wait to get scolded by Ye Meng together later. I’m not dealing with this. I’ll take you to the car first—I need to buy some crabs for Ye Meng next door. She’ll need energy to lecture you, right?”

“Li Jinyu!!!!!!!!”

Though she was cursing, the old lady’s eyes sparkled with amusement.

Zhu Yangqi didn’t know who they were, but he could faintly sense they had a story. The man had a scar on his wrist—his skin was too pale, his wrist too slender, making the raised mark stand out starkly.

Had he attempted suicide?

Maybe he was overthinking it. Perhaps it was just his artistic empathy at work.

Of course, as a foodie, his empathy was strong in other ways too.

Ah, yes. It was crab season again.

Zhu Yangqi licked his lips longingly, suddenly missing Qingyi’s crabs.

He immediately sent a message in the group chat.

Zhu Yangqi: 「Going back for crabs?」

Li Ke replied instantly: 「Sure, but I bet Chen Luzhou can’t make it.」

Zhang Yu: 「Think Xu Zhi will even acknowledge you?」

Xu Zhi: 「How much are we betting?」

Li Ke: 「Everything you won from me last time.」

Zhu Yangqi: 「When was last time?」Zhang Yu: "Like, after Doraemon takes a bath and gets water inside, can he still shoot his Doraemon beams? And how much baijiu can Grandpa from Chibi Maruko-chan actually drink?"

Zhu Yangqi: "...Is there an answer to this?"

Zhang Yu: "Yes. They watched both anime series all the way through, analyzed every detail, eliminated all possibilities, and Xu Zhi won in the end."

Zhu Yangqi: "..."

Xu Zhi: "Fine, I'll take the bet. I bet Chen Luzhou definitely won't be able to come back."

Li Ke: "..."

That month, he truly couldn't return. Chen Luzhou was so busy he didn't even have time to reply to WeChat messages. The lab's research projects were endless, and he frequently had to travel for fieldwork with Professor Liu, which inevitably involved social engagements. Professor Liu had high expectations for him—whether Chen Luzhou pursued a Ph.D. or not didn’t matter, because even before finishing his master's, several top companies were already vying for him with exceptionally generous offers. He was in high demand.

Chen Luzhou was one of those people whose name you’d still hear around campus even after graduating—right up until senior year.

So, it wasn’t just Xu Zhi who felt this way. Whether it was his looks or his personality, Chen Luzou just hit all the right notes for her.

Even though Zhu Yangqi and Li Ke often joked that he was "100% a simp," he still managed to secure scholarships, grad school recommendations, and competition awards without fail.

Freshman year, he won the F Prize in the MCM/ICM.

Sophomore year, he participated in math competitions, including the Shing-Tung Yau Competition, becoming the only student at the time to receive full awards in all five categories.

...

Even at A University, he remained unmatched.

Though his mouth could be sharp, he was always softhearted toward her—and unabashedly so.

Back in high school, when Tan Xu helped her study, Xu Zhi had been grateful. For a while, she even accepted his sudden outbursts and complaints as something normal.

"Xu Zhi, it's me who’s helping you study. Without me, could you have scored this well?"

"It's me! I'm the one helping you!"

"Who do you think is to blame for my bad grades? Why are you calling me in the middle of the night? Can’t you ask your questions during the day?!"

"Xu Zhi, I’ve sacrificed so much time to tutor you, and this is the attitude you give me now?"

"Teachers are biased against weak students, Xu Zhi. You’re lucky you’re my desk mate—otherwise, you’d be getting scolded like Cai Yingying right now."

Sometimes, Xu Zhi couldn’t even tell if Tan Xu was cripplingly insecure or just unbearably arrogant. He refused to let anyone benefit from him. The only two years he ever felt proud were after transferring to Rui Jun High—where, as the top student, he aced every exam effortlessly, his awards plastered all over the display cases.

But Tan Xu hated when people "mooched" off him. No one was allowed to ride his coattails. If someone did, he’d hold it against them forever.

He even believed Xu Zhi had shamelessly clung to his success, lacking any self-respect.

Because of this "favor," Xu Zhi numbly endured all his verbal abuse and attacks.

Back then, she hadn’t understood anything—not even her own feelings. Mistaking gratitude for affection, she let him wear her down until nothing remained.

Then she met Chen Luzhou. It was that boy from Yifeng Alley who taught her what real feelings were—what it meant to like someone.

That truly liking someone wasn’t something to be ashamed of.

That you could like someone and still keep your dignity.

Even if you were willing to set your pride aside, he’d pick it up for you, smiling as he asked, "What are you doing?"

That was Chen Luzhou—the boy from Yifeng Alley who always had the upper hand.