Kang Wei opened the trunk and loaded Shan Yujun’s bicycle inside.

The women’s bicycle was quite compact, though its rear still stuck out slightly. Kang Wei secured it with rope, ensuring it wouldn’t fall.

“Thank you both!”

With her bicycle already in the trunk, Shan Yujun, who wasn’t one to be overly formal, expressed her gratitude.

She was from the Civil Engineering Department and, though not in the same year as Xia Xiaolan, lived in the same women’s dormitory building. They often ran into each other, and given their connection from the new student orientation, they were quite comfortable with each other.

Shan Yujun’s tire had been badly punctured, lying flat, and it hurt her heart to roll it along the road. If she hadn’t stopped to worry, pushing it another two li forward would have likely ruined the tire from friction between the metal rim and the road surface.

Wouldn’t patching a tire cost less than replacing it?

Any student would have to consider such things carefully.

“Senior Shan, I’m headed the same way anyway, no need for thanks.”

Xia Xiaolan was still driving, and Shan Yujun didn’t make a fuss about it. She had seen Xia Xiaolan practicing driving on University Road during enrollment last year, though the car was different now. Shan Yujun didn’t ask about it.

All the girls in their dormitory building now knew that Xia Xiaolan’s family were ‘private entrepreneurs.’ Teacher Dai had said Liu Fen was like Mencius’s mother, moving three times for her child’s education, relocating to Beijing for Xia Xiaolan’s schooling.

Nobody gossiped about Xia Xiaolan anymore—what was shameful about being an entrepreneur? Weren’t rural families allowed to work hard too? At least Xia Xiaolan’s family was striving, much better than parents who lacked ambition and solely relied on their children’s success. As for whom Xia Xiaolan was dating or why she had a car to drive—did such things matter?

When they got in the car, Xia Xiaolan introduced Kang Wei as a friend, and Shan Yujun greeted him naturally.

While Shan Yujun chatted with Xia Xiaolan, Kang Wei moved to the back seat, steadying the bicycle while secretly stealing glances at Shan Yujun.

Shan Yujun suddenly turned around: “Comrade Kang, I’m sorry for the trouble. I should be the one sitting in the back holding the bicycle.”

“No trouble at all, it’s what I should do!”

Xia Xiaolan noticed something odd about Kang Wei—usually quite talkative, he was unusually quiet today.

Perhaps because he wasn’t familiar with Shan Yujun?

Two streets before reaching the school, Shan Yujun asked to get out: “I remember there’s a repair shop at the end of this street. Junior Xia, I’ll get off here.”

“Alright, take care, Senior.”

Xia Xiaolan agreed readily, while Kang Wei slowly lifted out Shan Yujun’s bicycle, but didn’t hand it over:

“Sister Xia, I’ll accompany Student Shan to check. What if the repair shop is closed? She’d have made the trip for nothing.”

Shan Yujun felt quite embarrassed, but Kang Wei was already pushing the bike ahead, leaving her no choice but to follow.

Xia Xiaolan was left standing there.

Had the aftereffects of Kang Wei’s head injury only manifested today? His behavior resembled that of a young boy experiencing his first crush. Xia Xiaolan drove to another spot, and after about ten minutes, Kang Wei emerged with Shan Yujun. The tire was full again, but with Kang Wei still following, Shan Yujun couldn’t just ride away.

It would be strange for either Kang Wei to give her a ride or vice versa.

Young men and women in 1985 were still quite innocent. While socially active young women might go ice skating or dancing with young men, students like Shan Yujun, still in their ivory tower, would never do such things.

Sharing a bicycle ride between opposite sexes meant either you were close friends and family, or you were courting!

Watching Kang Wei refuse to let go of Shan Yujun’s bicycle, Xia Xiaolan understood everything.

After Kang Wei escorted Shan Yujun to the school gate, gazing longingly, Xia Xiaolan finally approached to give him the car keys.

He looked at her like an eager puppy, “Sister Xia, does Student Shan have a boyfriend at school?”

Xia Xiaolan suppressed a laugh, “You chatted the whole way and couldn’t find out?”

“How could I ask Student Shan such a question? What if she got the wrong idea!”

Kang Wei explained earnestly, then noticed Xia Xiaolan’s smile and realized she was teasing him. After a moment of embarrassment, he justified himself: Brother Zhou Cheng was only a few months older than him, and he’d been dating for a year already—if marriage wasn’t prohibited during university, they might even be married by now!

Xia Xiaolan couldn’t keep teasing someone still recovering from illness, so she stopped: “I don’t know if she has a boyfriend, I’ll have to ask around at school. But isn’t this a bit quick for your first meeting with Senior Shan?”

“It’s the second time.”

The second time.

At their first meeting, Kang Wei had thought of Dai Wangshu’s “Rain Alley,” surprised he even remembered such poetry. Later he learned the poem expressed the poet’s melancholy and aspirations, having nothing to do with love!

That moment of heart flutter hadn’t consumed Kang Wei entirely—otherwise, he would have turned Huaqing University upside down to find her.

But before he could completely forget that rainy day, he encountered Shan Yujun again.

Wasn’t this fate?

Kang Wei felt that with heaven making fate so obvious if he didn’t follow heaven’s guidance, he might end up alone forever.

Seeing his reddened face, Xia Xiaolan suddenly realized:

“So Senior Shan is your ‘Rain Alley’ girl…”

She remembered Kang Wei mentioning it once, though she’d thought he was joking since he never brought it up again.

Kang Wei clasped his hands in prayer, and Xia Xiaolan laughingly promised: “Wait for news, I’ll keep this in mind.”

After finally sending Kang Wei off, Xia Xiaolan took the matter seriously. Since Shan Yujun was from Civil Engineering and Yang Yonghong’s direct senior, she delegated the task to Yang Yonghong.

Yang Yonghong knew her way around the department and could gather information without asking Shan Yujun directly.

“She’s not dating anyone, but Senior Shan has a pen pal she regularly corresponds with, maybe like your Mr. Z.”

Previously, when Xia Xiaolan wrote to Zhou Cheng, Room 307 had called him “Mysterious Mr. Z.”

Having pen pals was normal these days, but when even those around knew about it, if it wasn’t a boyfriend, there were likely mutual feelings involved. Xia Xiaolan thought Kang Wei’s first love would probably end in disappointment, but Kang Wei remained optimistic:

“As long as she’s not married, I have the right to pursue her!”

Initially, at their first meeting, he had felt three or four points of attraction; at their second chance encounter, feeling it was fate, it rose to five points; hearing Shan Yujun might have someone, his attraction suddenly jumped to six points.

Out of ten points, six was enough to take action.

Kang Wei didn’t ask for Xia Xiaolan’s help though.

A capable young man asking for help in pursuing a girlfriend? Kang Wei couldn’t lose face like that!

Xia Xiaolan felt relieved.

By the time Liu Fen returned with goods, both Beijing stores had sold much of their first inventory—if she didn’t return from Canton soon, the stores would be empty.

Renovating the clothing store had taken Xia Xiaolan’s family, with Liu Yong leading the work, for quite some time despite their rush.

Zhang Cui opening a small restaurant was simpler—just clean up the space, buy tables and chairs, and they could open. With Xia Changzheng showing no movement since returning to South Henan, Zhang Cui grew anxious. The store was ready—should it sit empty without doing business?

She gritted her teeth and decided to handle it herself.

After putting the purchased ingredients in the store, Zhang Cui passed by Luna, remembering how Xia Ziyu had spent over a hundred yuan on one outfit, and cursed those “swindlers” in Luna’s direction.

As she turned her head, she got quite a shock—wasn’t that person in the store Liu Fen?!