Shu Lan’s heart skipped a beat.

She had forgotten that Xue Jiao and Lin Yinyin had met before!

And they had become enemies!

At that moment, Shu Lan was filled with regret.

Had she remembered the previous incident between Xue Jiao and Lin Yinyin earlier, she would have left with her friends much sooner!

Lin Yinyin was petty and always held grudges. If she remembered Jiaojiao… she would make things difficult for her!

Shu Lan remained silent, glancing at Lin Yinyin from the corner of her eye, hoping she wouldn’t recognize Xue Jiao.

It wasn’t only Shu Lan who remembered the consequences of Lin Yinyin recognizing Xue Jiao; Yu Cheng and Wen Fangfang also had strong impressions of that face.

A face that had made Lin Yinyin lose face, one so beautiful it was hard to forget once seen—Yu Cheng remembered her.

However, since the girl was clearly with Shu Lan, Yu Cheng didn’t say anything, pretending not to recognize her.

Wen Fangfang’s expression changed slightly. During a time when she was dissatisfied with Lin Yinyin yet had to please her, there had been a girl who was better than her in every way and had dared to directly refuse Lin Yinyin—this was something she would remember forever.

Wen Fangfang noticed Lin Yinyin’s strange expression and spoke up: “Oh? It’s you! We’ve met before!”

Xue Jiao looked at her. She knew this person was most likely referring to that day at the Great Wall last year.

It had been quite some time, and she only remembered Lin Yinyin’s face; she didn’t recognize any of the others.

So Xue Jiao didn’t respond and walked over to Mai Jiajia’s side.

Wen Fangfang, whose arm was linked with Shu Lan’s, felt a tug. Shu Lan was trying to stop her from continuing.

But Fangfang pretended not to notice and continued casually: “We have met before, at the Great Wall last year. You and Yinyin had a little conflict!”

As soon as these words were spoken, Lin Yinyin’s face changed dramatically.

She glared fiercely at Wen Fangfang with a look that could kill her.

Wen Fangfang was stunned.

Was this… misdirected anger?

Shouldn’t she be glaring at the girl instead?!

Lin Yinyin was so angry her liver hurt. If this girl truly had something with her third uncle, she wouldn’t dare offend her even if it killed her!

She desperately hoped Xue Jiao wouldn’t remember the Great Wall incident. This Wen Fangfang knew how to bring up the worst topics.

She glared at Wen Fangfang again—

I won’t let you get away with this!

Then she turned to look at Xue Jiao, slowly and stiffly forcing out a smile: “Hello, I’m Lin Yinyin. I’m sorry about what happened at the Great Wall before. I’ve been wanting to apologize to you, but I couldn’t find you.”

Lin Yinyin smiled, though her smile was somewhat creepy, but she tried her best to smile.

Shu Lan: “…”

Yu Cheng: “…”

Wen Fangfang: “???”

Had Lin Yinyin been replaced by an impostor?!

Xue Jiao was also startled for a moment. Aside from their previous encounter, from Shu Lan’s descriptions alone, she knew this girl had a bad temper, so this…

She didn’t know what had happened, so she just politely nodded and then looked at Mai Jiajia: “What’s going on here?”

Mai Jiajia shrugged: “Lin Yinyin threatened Shu Lan’s boyfriend to go sing. It’s that simple.”

“Threatened?” Xue Jiao was still confused.

Wen Fangfang looked at her, her heart skipping a beat.

A girl who could make Lin Yinyin bow… could she be… someone important?

She tugged at Shu Lan and asked with a smile: “Lanlan, is this beautiful lady also your roommate?”

Shu Lan nodded.

“Hello, I’m Wen Fangfang, Shu Lan’s best friend.” Wen Fangfang said with a smile in her eyes.

She wasn’t extraordinarily beautiful, more delicate-looking, but when she smiled, she appeared quite innocent.

Xue Jiao nodded: “Hello, Gu Xue Jiao.”

Having introduced herself, she didn’t say anything more.

The relationships here were too complicated, so she just kept quiet and stood obediently next to Mai Jiajia.

Though she didn’t speak, her presence changed the atmosphere considerably.

Lin Yinyin forced a smile: “I… was just joking. Yu Cheng, enjoy your date with Shu Lan. We’re going to have fun now.”

Wen Fangfang was stunned.

Yu Cheng, however, smiled happily: “Thank you, have a good time!”

He gripped Shu Lan’s hand tighter and turned to look at her with joy.

Mai Jiajia suddenly said: “Shu Lan’s boyfriend, you should go have fun. We’re heading back to school with Shu Lan right away. We have plans.”

Shu Lan was surprised but didn’t object.

Yu Cheng looked disappointed, his voice becoming low: “Alright then. But I don’t want to go have fun anymore. Let me see you all off.”

“Yu Cheng, you’re not going?” Wen Fangfang’s voice became urgent for a moment.

Ding Qi snorted coldly: “Weren’t you worried about Yu Cheng betraying Shu Lan and wanting to keep an eye on him? Now that he’s not going to have fun, why aren’t you happy?”

Her words were so sarcastic that Wen Fangfang’s face paled. “That’s… not true…”

Lin Yinyin took a deep breath and said: “We’ll be going now.”

After speaking, she led her group away, giving Xue Jiao what she thought was a “friendly” smile before leaving.

Xue Jiao: “…”

She rubbed her arms, that smile had given her goosebumps.

Yu Cheng escorted the four to the entrance. Wen Fangfang followed the entire time, arm-in-arm with Shu Lan, saying how much she missed her and how reluctant she was to part.

She even said: “Shu Lan, you should spend more time with Yu Cheng. He… must be feeling quite sad.”

After saying this, Yu Cheng gave her a grateful look.

Ding Qi pulled Shu Lan forcefully through the school gate, with Xue Jiao and Mai Jiajia quickly following.

“What exactly happened?” Xue Jiao asked confusedly once they were back in the dormitory.

She had just taken a call from Cheng Suo, and how had the scene changed so dramatically?

There were too many people earlier, so she hadn’t asked in detail.

Mai Jiajia sighed, twirling a pen with her fingers, and recounted the conversation word for word.

Xue Jiao listened and was stunned.

“This, this, this…” Her eyes widened in disbelief.

“Shu Lan, what grudge do you have with Lin Yinyin?”

Shu Lan sighed, also looking confused: “Actually, I don’t know either. In our senior year of high school, one day, for some unknown reason, Lin Yinyin suddenly rushed over, called me a white lotus, said I was cheap, and swore she would never let me off.”

“You never asked why?” Ding Qi asked, puzzled.

Shu Lan shook her head: “I did ask, but she just said—’ You know what you did!'”

“Either Lin Yinyin is crazy, or she has some misunderstanding about you. But whether she has a misunderstanding or not, this girl isn’t simple. And that friend of yours has ulterior motives toward your boyfriend. You need to be careful of her. Also, Shu Lan…” Mai Jiajia paused, her voice becoming concerned.

“Hmm?” Shu Lan looked over.

Her brows were furrowed together as if she had some unspoken worries.

Mai Jiajia opened her mouth, then spoke: “I feel that… Yu Cheng is controlled tightly by his parents, and he might not have the ability to challenge them. Your personality is also weak. In the future, you both might…”

Mai Jiajia’s words were very accurate. Xue Jiao nodded, then looked at Shu Lan, waiting for her response.

“I know.” Shu Lan lowered her head, her voice very soft. “That’s why I was afraid to be with him before. I’ve tried to avoid it, to be heartless, but I like him and can’t help but soften when it comes to him…”

“So, can you accept that years later, or perhaps even longer, Yu Cheng’s parents might demand that he marry someone else? What will you do then? The deeper your feelings, the more painful it will be.”

Shu Lan kept her head lowered, with something dripping down.

Xue Jiao sighed and squatted in front of Shu Lan—

“Being together isn’t a necessary condition. Being together can be a sufficient condition for liking each other. If you’re together, you definitely like each other. But just because you like each other doesn’t mean you can be together forever. Liking each other is between the two of you, but being together forever involves everything around you, your life, and everything else combined. You need to think all of this through. Do you have the courage and determination to accept events like today happening again or even more dramatic things happening?”

Tears fell one after another from Shu Lan’s eyes. After a long time, she opened her mouth—

“But… I love him so much…”

Loved him so much that even knowing the road ahead was full of obstacles, she still wanted to walk it.

Xue Jiao was stunned.

She didn’t quite understand Shu Lan. Like with her and Yi Tianyu, when she felt the other person had become a pressure she couldn’t bear, she immediately retreated into her shell.

Yet Shu Lan, knowing full well the outside world was far from what she desired, was still willing to step out because of her feelings…

Xue Jiao didn’t understand and looked at her puzzledly.

Shu Lan cried for a while and then didn’t speak anymore. Xue Jiao and the others didn’t try to persuade her further.

They all knew she had made her decision.

But Xue Jiao was somewhat perplexed.

Could she have such courage because of love?

Love?

How strange.

While Xue Jiao and her roommates comforted Shu Lan before returning to their tasks, Lin Yinyin and her group didn’t go sing either.

Lin Yinyin had something on her mind and returned home early.

“Oh, you’re back so early today?” Lin Yinyin’s father, Lin Sheng, said unpleasantly.

Xu Jiaohong nudged Lin Sheng: “It’s rare for our daughter to come home early. Can’t you two talk nicely?”

“Hmph—” Lin Sheng snorted.

Lin Yinyin seemed lost in thought, not responding. She just flopped onto the sofa and sat still, lost in her thoughts.

“When you have time, you should learn how to run the company properly. Don’t just go out and play all day. Our company isn’t as powerful as others think. People outside treat you well because they think we have good relations with the Lin family, but you know the actual situation, don’t you? Work hard and achieve something in the future!” Lin Sheng lectured.

Lin Yinyin remained motionless on the sofa, completely lost in thought.

Lin Sheng grew angry: “Lin Yinyin! I’m talking to you!”

“Old Lin, don’t get angry, don’t get angry.” Xu Jiaohing hurriedly patted his chest, while glaring at Lin Yinyin. “Yinyin! Apologize to your father right now.”

After a long while, Lin Yinyin finally said—

“I met Third Uncle’s woman today.”

“What?” Lin Sheng and Xu Jiaohing immediately turned to look at her, even Lin Sheng’s angry expression froze, transforming into disbelief.

Lin Yinyin explained: “The woman I saw Uncle eating with in Wuliu Lane last year. I met her again today.”

“How do you know she’s your Third Uncle’s woman?” Xu Jiaohing asked her.

“Isn’t Third Uncle… unable to have contact with women? He seemed very intimate with that woman before…”

Lin Sheng suddenly glared at her: “It’s been a whole year. If your Third Uncle had any issues, how could there be no movement for an entire year? Lin Yinyin, don’t imagine things all day. Focus on your studies. If our company falls in the future, you need to have the ability to support it!”

“I’m telling the truth…”

“Shut up and go study hard. No going out to play tomorrow!” Lin Sheng glared at her.

Lin Yinyin returned to her room, feeling wronged.

She would find evidence!

Fermat’s Last Theorem can be verified using the method of contradiction, as Xue Jiao had mentioned before. But in fact, the method of contradiction is commonly used in current proofs of Fermat’s Last Theorem, though not exclusively.

Neither following in others’ footsteps nor verifying it independently is an easy task.

Xue Jiao placed her computer on the right side of the desk, with a stack of thick books on the left.

She held a pen in her hand, constantly writing on the white paper in front of her.

On the computer screen was a table, which she occasionally looked up at, and sometimes she would flip through the books.

Lowering her head, she continued writing.

No!

This isn’t right either!

What about this way?

Still not right!

Let’s try again.

Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!

Xue Jiao sighed heavily, then put down her pen and rubbed her head, feeling somewhat headache.

She was now stuck in an impasse, with one point constantly tripping her up, unable to figure it out.

Beside her, Mai Jiajia came over and stuffed a lollipop to her lips.

Xue Jiao opened her mouth and mumbled: “Strawberry flavor?”

Mai Jiajia nodded, also sucking on a lollipop, and said with a smile: “Strawberry flavor is sweet. It’ll help you change your mood. I see you’re about to pull all your hair out. I envy you having so much hair to waste.”

“Hmm?” Xue Jiao was confused.

Mai Jiajia said: “You should rest a bit, my goddess. High-intensity brain activity can cause baldness. If you don’t want to go bald, you should balance work and rest.”

Bald?

Xue Jiao instinctively touched her hair and shuddered.

“Okay…”

She stood up and tidied her things.

It was Friday, so she could go mooch a meal from Lin Zhihua and replenish her energy.

Her hair… she should take preventive measures.

Xue Jiao packed her things and walked toward the school gate, but inevitably, she still thought about her progress.

How to connect everything?

She was stuck at a middle point, trying to figure out how to convert rational numbers into integers.

Xue Jiao walked with her head down, her gaze gradually becoming vacant.

“Bang—” She bumped into someone.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” She looked up and paused.

Then she smiled: “Lin Zhihua!”

Lin Zhihua’s expression, however, was not pleasant. This was the first time he looked at Xue Jiao with such serious, sharp eyes.

Xue Jiao shifted uncomfortably.

Lin Zhihua took a deep breath, his tone still carrying a bit of anger: “Xue Jiao! What’s wrong with you? You’re still distracted while walking. Are you not afraid of dying? It’s me you bumped into now, but what if it had been a car?!”

Xue Jiao had never seen him so fierce before and stared at him blankly.

“No matter what you’re thinking about, you must never be distracted while walking. There are so many car accidents nowadays. People get hit even when they’re walking properly, and you’re not even watching the road!” Lin Zhihua’s face remained stern.

Xue Jiao lowered her head, feeling inexplicably ashamed.

“I… will be careful in the future…”

Lin Zhihua glared at her: “What do you mean ‘will be careful’?! You must be careful!”

“Yes, yes, yes!” Xue Jiao put her palms together, looking regretful.

Lin Zhihua finally let out a sigh of relief. He simply couldn’t imagine how he would go on living if anything happened to Xue Jiao.

Looking at Xue Jiao with her hands pressed together in a gesture of repentance, Lin Zhihua’s expression gradually changed to one of helplessness.

He reached out and lightly knocked on her head: “You…”

Since knowing Xue Jiao, he had truly become like an “old father,” worrying about this and that every day.

Xue Jiao covered her head and said with a smile: “So… what are we eating tonight? I need to eat more and replenish quickly; my hair is almost falling out.”

Her change of topic was… quite abrupt.

Lin Zhihua shook his head helplessly, looking at her full head of hair, and said: “Let’s go, I’ll help you replenish your hair.”

The two walked toward where he had parked his car, with Xue Jiao asking Lin Zhihua what they would eat that day.

Lin Zhihua revealed a mysterious smile: “Today’s menu is a secret, but I can tell you what we’ll eat next week.”

“Oh?” Xue Jiao’s eyes brightened.

“How about a medicinal soup with Polygonum multiflorum?”

Polygonum multiflorum? It’s good for hair!

“Yes, yes!” She happily agreed, then suddenly remembered, “How do you always pick what I want to eat? I’m just mooching meals.”

Lin Zhihua’s mouth curved upward: “You just reminded me to start taking care of my hair. Although I’m smart, I don’t want to be completely bald.”

“Hahahahaha—” Xue Jiao laughed out loud, her eyes curving into crescents, laughing heartily.

Lin Zhihua laughed along with her: “Polygonum multiflorum only helps hair turn black. As for promoting hair growth…”

Xue Jiao turned to look at him.

“Black sesame seeds, walnuts, and black beans are more effective. But I think some Polygonum multiflorum is enough for you. Rather than worrying about hair loss, you should be more concerned about gray hair.”

“Hmm?” Xue Jiao was stunned.

Lin Zhihua reached out quickly. Before Xue Jiao could feel any pain, something had been plucked.

“Look, you have a strand of white hair.” Lin Zhihua held his hand in front of her.

Xue Jiao: “…”

She stared wide-eyed at the white hair, her expression gradually freezing.

White…

Her hair had turned white…

Xue Jiao’s expression was quite horrified, she looked terrified.

Seeing her expression, Lin Zhihua immediately laughed: “Little girl, I’m just teasing you. It’s just one strand, a random occurrence. There’s no connection between the random and the inevitable. This one strand is random; it doesn’t affect the inevitability of the rest.”

Xue Jiao’s expression became even more rigid.

She reached out and grabbed Lin Zhihua’s hand: “What did you just say?! Say it again!”

Her expression was somewhat unexpected to Lin Zhihua, but he repeated anyway—

“Just one strand, a random occurrence. There’s no connection between the random and the inevitable. This one strand is random; it doesn’t affect the inevitability of the rest.”

“Ahhhhh—” Xue Jiao jumped onto Lin Zhihua, hugging him: “I’ve got it!! I know how to derive it! Ahhhh!”

Her screams attracted the attention of people around them. Lin Zhihua was especially rigid, with a blush creeping up his face.

Xue Jiao quickly jumped down: “I’m not going to eat with you today!! I’m going back to school to continue calculating! I’ve figured it out!!!”

Her voice was too joyful. She turned to run back to school.

Lin Zhihua instinctively reached out to hold her: “Eat first, then calculate…”

“I…”

“It won’t take long. You must eat.”

Xue Jiao looked dejected, suppressing her excitement. She knew Lin Zhihua was thinking of her well-being.

So she could only say: “Alright…”

The two got into the car. Lin Zhihua took out his phone and quickly sent a message—

[Chen Yan, someone is taking photos of me and Jiaojiao. Investigate immediately!]

He sent it, then drove while smiling as he listened to Xue Jiao explain how far she had gotten in her derivation. She had just had an inspiration for the most difficult part, and soon she would be able to accomplish what she had claimed—proving Fermat’s Last Theorem!

Xue Jiao was beaming with joy, immersed in happiness and excitement.

Lin Zhihua looked at her with doting eyes.

When she was happy, he was happy too.

Just like last time, Chen Yan was quick. Almost as soon as Lin Zhihua and Xue Jiao finished their meal and came out, he received a message that the person taking their photos was Lin Yinyin.

Lin Yinyin?

He knew this girl, but he didn’t interact much with the younger generation, so he wasn’t familiar with her.

Lin Zhihua guessed why she was taking photos but didn’t care much. He just sent a message—

[Warn her, then let it go.]

Putting down his phone, Lin Zhihua didn’t forget to remind Xue Jiao who was about to leave: “I know you’ll be very busy lately, but no matter how busy you are, you must eat, you hear me?”

“I hear you, I hear you!” Xue Jiao was eager to verify her idea.

She excitedly said goodbye to Lin Zhihua and went back to continue her derivation.

Even though she felt so close to the result, she remained busy from October all the way until almost January.

Especially after December, Xue Jiao completely stopped going to Teacher Tan’s office. As she got closer and closer to the result, she couldn’t spare any mental energy for anything else.

She hadn’t opened any social media apps, all with 999+ notifications, not once.

Mai Jiajia and the others had already started reviewing for exams, but Xue Jiao hadn’t begun yet, focusing all her attention on Fermat’s Last Theorem.

“Let’s finish up after everyone’s exams are over. We’ll work efficiently then, so everyone can go home early for the New Year. Though it’s not easy to ask undergraduate students for help during the winter break, so we might need to put in more effort.” Professor Tan said to several students.

“Alright.” Everyone responded.

Professor Tan was trying his best to let everyone go home early, and they understood.

At this moment, Xu Jing suddenly said: “Professor Tan, I haven’t been able to contact Gu Xue Jiao for two months now. She won’t even come help when I ask her!”

Her voice inevitably carried anger and accusation.

Professor Tan frowned slightly, and the others in the office who were in the meeting also paused.

“The little junior sister must be very busy…”

“I know everyone is busy reviewing for exams now, but was she busy two months ago? Last year, Zheng Jiakun wasn’t like this. Next door, Chu Sheng and others, who couldn’t spare time? And if she’s not busy, she could say so, but how come I haven’t been able to contact her for so long?” Xu Jing was still angry.

She was truly furious. In the past two months, she had sent Xue Jiao three WeChat messages, and only the first one got a response—”Senior, I’m extremely busy lately, I’m sorry.”

After that, she didn’t even reply to messages!

Disrespectful!

Not only disrespectful!

But also letting down the office!

Professor Tan sighed slightly and looked at Xu Jing: “Gu Xue Jiao asked for leave from me before. She said she might be very busy this semester because she has a big task to accomplish, so she might not be able to help us temporarily.”

Xu Jing had always been polite in front of Professor Tan, but her anger toward Xue Jiao had reached its peak, and she said directly—

“If that’s the case, she shouldn’t hog the seat!”

Xu Jing took a deep breath and softened her tone: “I don’t think whatever she’s doing could be more important than working on the project. If she’s been playing around these past few months, I suggest you should have a good talk with her, Professor Tan.”

Professor Tan was also puzzled, not knowing what Xue Jiao was doing.

But he still liked this student and was willing to give her a chance to explain.

After thinking for a moment, he took out his phone in front of everyone and called Xue Jiao, but there was no answer.

It was Sunday, and Xue Jiao and her roommates didn’t have classes.

Professor Tan frowned and called again.

This time it rang several times before being answered. The senior brothers, senior sisters, and Xu Jing all listened attentively.

Before Professor Tan could speak, an excited scream came from the other end of the phone—

“I’ve proven it!!!!”