In September 2012, Lin Zhixia said goodbye to her family at Beijing Capital International Airport.

Lin Zhixia dragged her carry-on suitcase and walked forward alone when Lin Zeqiu suddenly called out to her: “Call home as soon as your plane lands.”

Lin Zhixia nodded: “Okay.”

Lin Zeqiu murmured: “Buy plenty of good food when you see it, don’t be stingy with money, don’t go hungry.”

Lin Zhixia turned back to his side: “Don’t you save money either, don’t stay up late writing code, eat on time, get enough sleep, health is the most important thing… Brother, I’ll miss you.”

Lin Zeqiu felt a tightness in his throat.

Lin Zhixia said sincerely: “I lived in the school dormitory for three years before I realized how troublesome it is to wash clothes, air quilts, mop and sweep floors… From childhood, you’ve been the one cleaning my bedroom, changing my sheets, and quilt covers. This summer vacation, you still won’t let me do housework. Brother, thank you for all these years.”

After she finished speaking, Lin Zhixia turned around and walked straight to the security checkpoint.

Lin Zeqiu’s vision blurred for a moment. Dad asked in surprise: “Qiuqiu, are there tears in your eyes?”

Lin Zeqiu mumbled: “I’m afraid she’ll be bullied abroad. She’s not even an adult yet, she stands out wherever she goes, and there’s no one to look after her.”

Mom comforted him: “Qiuqiu, don’t worry, your sister is very smart. She’ll call us if anything happens. Study well in Beijing, your father and I are heading home now.”

Lin Zeqiu remained worried.

He simply assumed that Lin Zhixia was going abroad all alone.

He didn’t know that Jiang Yubai and Lin Zhixia had already arranged to take the same flight.

Jiang Yubai had originally wanted to give Lin Zhixia a first-class ticket, but she refused. On his seventeenth birthday, they had confessed their feelings to each other, but he still didn’t have the opportunity to cover her expenses. She always said, “Jiang Yubai, it’s okay, I have money too.”

To sit with Lin Zhixia, Jiang Yubai gave up first class and voluntarily chose economy.

Sitting next to Lin Zhixia in economy class for the first time in his life, Jiang Yubai truly experienced how narrow the seats were. In such a limited space, he felt an indescribable pleasure because Lin Zhixia had placed her hand on his.

He stroked the back of her hand, his fingertips slowly moving back and forth. She leaned her head against his shoulder, nuzzled once, and then said: “It tickles a bit.”

She really knew how to be coquettish.

Jiang Yubai gripped her wrist firmly.

*

At 10 PM Beijing time, the cabin lights were dimmed, and Lin Zhixia felt drowsy, so she curled up in her seat to sleep.

As the plane passed over Russian airspace, it encountered a strong cold front. The temperature in the cabin dropped, and many passengers felt cold. Jiang Yubai unfolded two blankets and gently covered Lin Zhixia. In her foggy, dreamlike state, she vaguely sensed Jiang Yubai was very close to her. Her body completely relaxed, and she slowly leaned toward his side.

Jiang Yubai directly pushed away the armrest, and Lin Zhixia fell into his arms. Jiang Yubai carefully embraced her, silently enjoying the sweet fragrance from her body. In the dim, hazy environment, he cautiously released his arms, letting her head rest on his lap.

He tucked the blanket around her.

She slept soundly.

Jiang Yubai leaned against the seat back, without any trace of drowsiness.

The passenger next to them was watching a movie, the electronic screen emitting a faint glow.

By that slight light, Jiang Yubai’s gaze lingered on Lin Zhixia’s face for a moment, and inappropriate thoughts stirred in his heart. He raised his left hand, slightly covering the corner of his lips, to suppress his wayward thoughts.

*

The following evening, Lin Zhixia and Jiang Yubai successfully arrived in London.

They departed from London’s Heathrow Airport, took a business sedan, traveled via Highway 1, and quickly arrived in Cambridge.

Lin Zhixia’s dormitory building was called “Pearce Hostel.” Jiang Yubai escorted Lin Zhixia to the entrance of “Pearce Hostel.”

The September weather was somewhat cold, with a dark, endless night sky. On this unfamiliar night in a foreign land, Lin Zhixia took a deep breath and silently stepped out of the car.

Jiang Yubai picked up Lin Zhixia’s luggage with one hand and accompanied her to the dormitory reception. The staff verified her identity documents and gave her a key.

Lin Zhixia excitedly found her room and pushed open the door. Through the dormitory window, she could see the ancient street scenery under dim streetlights. She expressed with feeling: “For the next year, this will be my home.”

Jiang Yubai put her luggage on the floor. He looked around, his gaze falling on the single bed: “You don’t have blankets or pillows, how will you sleep tonight?”

Before Lin Zhixia could answer, Jiang Yubai suddenly suggested: “You could come to my house, make do for one night, sleep in the guest room, the mattress there is very soft.”

Lin Zhixia found a cylindrical package in the closet: “I prepared in advance. I ordered a bedding package from the dormitory…” She opened the package and indeed shook out a new set of pillows and blankets.

With Jiang Yubai’s help, Lin Zhixia made up the bed.

Lin Zhixia then dug out a bag of strawberry cookies from her suitcase and invited Jiang Yubai to share them. There was no sofa in the dormitory, so Jiang Yubai and Lin Zhixia both sat on the edge of the bed. Lin Zhixia took a bite, chewed for a moment, and exclaimed: “It’s strawberry flavor, I’ve come back to life.”

Jiang Yubai had flown for more than ten hours, barely eaten on the plane, and had hardly closed his eyes. He still didn’t feel tired now, supported by his excited subconscious. He explained to Lin Zhixia: “You just moved into a new dormitory and need to buy quite a few things. Tomorrow I’ll take you to the commercial street…”

At this point, Lin Zhixia carefully gazed at his face and frowned: “Your eyes have red bloodshot lines.”

He avoided her direct gaze: “That’s normal, I just need to sleep.”

“You must have been very uncomfortable on the plane,” Lin Zhixia reflected, “how did I end up using your thigh as a pillow… I’m sorry.”

Jiang Yubai insisted: “It’s nothing, I’m not tired.”

Not only was he not tired, but he was quite happy.

Lin Zhixia asked again: “Can you go shopping tomorrow? I’ll come to your house at noon tomorrow to see how you’re doing. The day after tomorrow, I have to attend a new student Q&A session and meet my supervisor, so I won’t have time to accompany you.”

Jiang Yubai could imagine that after Lin Zhixia met her supervisor, she would be fully devoted to her research. His opportunities to see her would depend entirely on his efforts.

Jiang Yubai had also heard that the school only guaranteed dormitory rooms for first-year doctoral students. In the second year, if students couldn’t get a dormitory, they had to rent accommodations outside… And next year, Lin Zhixia would be eighteen, entering her second year of doctoral studies, and could live with him. They could see each other every morning and evening, go to school together, and he could take care of her daily life—it would be advantageous in many ways.

Jiang Yubai fell into deep thought, and Lin Zhixia asked him: “What are you thinking about?”

“Nothing,” Jiang Yubai casually concealed, “it’s getting late, I’ll head home now, see you tomorrow.”

The words “see you tomorrow” evoked pleasant memories for Lin Zhixia. She smilingly agreed: “Alright, see you tomorrow.”

Not long after Jiang Yubai left, Lin Zhixia turned off the lights and went to bed. From today, her doctoral journey officially began. She would meet more classmates and teachers, and achieve fruitful results in the laboratory. In the near future, she would also have her own team, her own laboratory… She hoped Jiang Yubai would always accompany her, sharing the same boat, overcoming each of life’s hurdles.

She was both tired and sleepy, mentally drained, yet still thinking of Jiang Yubai.

Less than ten minutes after they parted, she was already looking forward to seeing him tomorrow.

*

At nine o’clock the next morning, Lin Zhixia got up.

She took a hot shower, changed her clothes, and went out looking radiant. Following the phone’s map navigation, she successfully found her way to Jiang Yubai’s front door. She saw a lush garden and a villa with an ordinary exterior, much more simple and low-key than the mansion she had imagined.

The breeze that blew toward her was mixed with the scent of flowers. Lin Zhixia approached the garden and called Jiang Yubai.

The phone rang several times before Jiang Yubai answered: “Good morning.”

“Good morning!” Lin Zhixia urged, “Open the door for me, I’m here.”

Jiang Yubai thought he was still not fully awake. He looked at the wall clock—eleven thirty-seven in the afternoon—he was wearing loose pajamas, sitting silently on the bed, and Lin Zhixia was waiting outside the door.

Lin Zhixia didn’t wait long before the housekeeper came to open the door for her, and only then did she learn that Jiang Yubai hadn’t gotten up.

Jiang Yubai was showering at the fastest speed of his life.

Steaming mist filled the bathroom, water droplets from the shower head clung to his body, he grabbed a snow-white towel and draped it over his shoulders. The floor-length mirror reflected his lean, streamlined muscles—he could withstand the most critical scrutiny from any angle. But he paid no attention to his reflection, just used a razor to shave off his stubble, casually put on a set of clothes, and ran out of the bedroom straight to the reception room where Lin Zhixia was.

Lin Zhixia sat properly on the sofa.

The housekeeper had prepared tea and sushi for her. She had only eaten two strawberry cookies in the morning, and now seeing several plates of sushi, she couldn’t help but use the chopsticks, not even noticing when Jiang Yubai appeared.

It seemed that food could always keep Lin Zhixia content.

Jiang Yubai sat down leisurely beside Lin Zhixia.

Lin Zhixia turned to look at Jiang Yubai: “Are you awake now? Are you hungry?”

Before Jiang Yubai could answer, Lin Zhixia picked up a tuna sushi and brought it to his lips. She held the chopsticks with her right hand, supporting from below with her left, and said in a soft voice: “Try it, it’s very delicious.”

Lin Zhixia fed him sushi with her own hands.

He savored the taste of the sushi carefully—this was the most satisfying meal he had eaten since coming abroad. He picked up a cup of green tea, took a sip, and then said: “I slept well last night, let’s go to the street later.”

Lin Zhixia planned: “The communal kitchen in our dormitory has a refrigerator, stove, and microwave. I want to buy pots, pans, ladles, and seasonings… but I suddenly realized I’ve never cooked before.”

Jiang Yubai had never cooked either.

Lin Zhixia had asked the wrong person.

Jiang Yubai had barely visited his own family’s kitchen. But he didn’t show any signs of inexperience. He pretended to be very familiar, speaking in the tone of someone experienced: “Cooking isn’t easy, you need to control the heat, master the amount of seasonings…”

He was just about to say “why not come to my house for meals” when Lin Zhixia happily continued: “I love controlling experimental variables. Hearing you talk about it, cooking sounds quite interesting. Alright, I’ve decided to cook for myself, and I’ll come to your house to eat with you when I have time in the future.”

Jiang Yubai hadn’t expected to lift a rock only to drop it on his foot.

That afternoon, Jiang Yubai and Lin Zhixia went to the commercial street.

Pedestrians came and went on the street, items in shop windows were dazzling and varied. Lin Zhixia walked with interest, stopping occasionally, naturally holding Jiang Yubai’s hand. Their fingers intertwined, palms touching, each a source of warmth for the other.