Lin Zhixia didn’t hesitate at all and readily agreed, “No problem.”

So she pulled Jiang Yubai back home.

Her parents had already gone out, and Lin Zeqiu also needed to go to work.

Lin Zeqiu shouldered his backpack and glanced at Jiang Yubai. Having heard that Jiang Yubai was so busy with work that he’d missed two meals, coming on an empty stomach early in the morning to pick up his sister, he suddenly felt that this guy was “someone who could be pitied despite being annoying,” so he reluctantly said a few kind words: “There’s hot porridge and steamed buns in the kitchen, with pickled radish and sour beans on the table. Have something to fill your stomach.”

Jiang Yubai stood behind him and responded naturally, “Thank you, big brother-in-law.”

Lin Zhixia burst into laughter.

Lin Zeqiu’s entire body stiffened.

He hadn’t officially acknowledged Jiang Yubai’s status as his “brother-in-law,” yet this guy already dared to call him “big brother-in-law”—how shameless! He pushed open the front door and left without looking back.

“My brother seems like he won’t argue with you anymore,” Lin Zhixia concluded.

Jiang Yubai agreed, “Arguments don’t solve problems.”

Lin Zhixia remarked again, “Your emotions are stable now, very mature, unlike when you were younger—if I teased you just a little, your ears would turn red.”

As she spoke, she walked forward. When passing by a pillar, Jiang Yubai placed his hand on it, blocking her path. She leaned against the cold pillar, initially keeping her head down. Later, her gaze moved inch by inch up his collar, stopping at his neck. He bent down, their breaths intertwining, and called her softly, “Xia Xia…”

Whenever he murmured “Xia Xia,” his subtext was always: I want to kiss you, I want to be close to you.

He always remembered Lin Zhixia’s exceptional memory, and each prelude to intimacy was filled with barely contained passion. Because he consistently displayed a conservative, ascetic demeanor, the contrast between his usual behavior and these moments made Lin Zhixia’s blood boil.

The white gauze curtains floated restlessly; the spacious living room seemed somewhat empty, and the interior fell into silence. Lin Zhixia drew close to his ear, her lips touching his earlobe, and responded in French: “tu peux m’embrasser” (you can kiss me). She emphasized, “tout moment” (any time).

They kissed in the morning sunlight. A thousand words melted away in that moment. Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the city had just awakened from the morning mist, and the marble tiles on the terrace reflected the fading shadows of the dawn.

*

At nine o’clock this morning, Lin Zhixia had to teach undergraduates.

She needed to leave by eight-thirty.

Around eight in the morning, Lin Zhixia was still sitting at the table, feeding Jiang Yubai a spoonful of porridge. Jiang Yubai appeared quite embarrassed. After just one bite, his movements became hesitant. Although he enjoyed Lin Zhixia’s care, in his memory, he had never troubled others like this.

Lin Zhixia, however, was excited as if she’d discovered a new continent: “Have a little more.”

She held out the spoon, bringing it to his lips.

Jiang Yubai picked up a bowl of white porridge and gulped down half of it like a butcher drinking liquor. He also used chopsticks to stir some “stir-fried pickled radish” into the bowl, showing absolutely no signs of being picky about food. He seemed like someone very easy to feed.

He ate all the steamed buns that Lin Zhixia placed in his bowl, making no sound throughout. Lin Zhixia had eaten with him many times and found that even watching him drink water or eat contained a certain pleasure in daily life.

She rested her chin on her palm, watching him attentively.

He put down his chopsticks and looked back at her.

Lin Zhixia’s eyes were still as clear and bright as ever, as if all the stars in the sky were shining in them. Jiang Yubai unconsciously became entranced, even thinking about proposing to her today… The ring was already bought, the velvet box placed at his bedside.

Lin Zhixia couldn’t guess Jiang Yubai’s thoughts. She only said, “It’s almost time, I need to go to work.”

Jiang Yubai checked his watch and picked up his suit jacket. “I’ll take you to school.”

*

Jiang Yubai and Lin Zhixia left home, walking along the road.

Lin Zhixia’s residential community was extremely close to the university. On the way, she encountered several students—she had seen these male students at the college’s opening ceremony, and those students had seen Lin Zhixia’s photos more than once. They carried soy milk and fried dough sticks bought from breakfast shops outside the campus, occasionally glancing back at Lin Zhixia, whispering a few words among themselves, and were full of anticipation for today’s “Quantum Bits and Computers” class.

Every student’s face was filled with smiles.

Lin Zhixia introduced them to Jiang Yubai, “They are all my students.”

“Undergraduates?” Jiang Yubai asked.

“Yes,” Lin Zhixia responded.

Jiang Yubai, in his position as the teacher’s partner, said politely, “They all look quite smart.”

“I think so too,” Lin Zhixia explained systematically, “which is why I’ve carefully designed the final exam questions and course projects.”

Jiang Yubai remembered that in the exercise notebook Lin Zhixia had once given him, it was full of competition problems that she had “carefully designed.” Any problem she marked as “most difficult” was terrifyingly challenging, one more horrifying than the next. Before looking at the answers, Jiang Yubai couldn’t figure out how to solve them, no matter how hard he tried.

Jiang Yubai had originally been somewhat concerned about the glances those male students cast toward Lin Zhixia. But subsequently, he felt a vague hint of sympathy for that group of young boys.

He casually reminded her, “At your school, the average course score usually has a certain floating range.”

Lin Zhixia understood immediately, “Yes, I must control the overall average. I’ll calculate the students’ test scores and usual performance, then apply weighted averaging to make all their grades conform to a normal distribution.”

As she finished speaking, Lin Zhixia arrived at the university gate.

She waved to Jiang Yubai, “Go ahead with your work. We’ll meet again when you’re free.”

Jiang Yubai grasped her fingertips and heard a student’s exclamation, “Teacher’s husband!” —it was Xu Lingbo’s voice. Jiang Yubai released her hand and said goodbye to Lin Zhixia, “See you tomorrow.”

See you tomorrow.

This was another kind of code between them.

Lin Zhixia smiled and said, “See you tomorrow.”

Jiang Yubai’s driver had already parked the car outside the school gate. Lin Zhixia watched as Jiang Yubai got into the car. Her student Xu Lingbo happened to run over, “Hey, Professor Lin? Did your husband just leave?”

Lin Zhixia explained on Jiang Yubai’s behalf, “He’s especially busy with work these days.”

Xu Lingbo spread his hands, “The Teacher’s husband runs a business, so he must be busy. I’m also busy selling things at school…”

As soon as the words left his mouth, Xu Lingbo realized what a terrible mistake he had made!

It was too late to remedy it.

Lin Zhixia asked him directly, “What do you sell at school?”