Lin Zhihua served food to Xue Jiao?!

Teacher Zheng looked over with slight surprise in her eyes.

Yi Tianyu’s eyes widened even more as he stared intently at the two.

Being watched by so many people, Xue Jiao felt a bit embarrassed.

However, she was also curious. Lin Zhihua had always been gentlemanly, and he had served her food before. Why were everyone’s looks so strange?

Despite being watched by everyone, Lin Zhihua remained calm. He extended his chopsticks again and placed a piece of fish in Teacher Zheng’s bowl.

“This is mild-flavored. Please try it,” he said.

His voice was calm and deep, his face characteristically expressionless.

So Lin Zhihua was just serving food to people on either side of him? Nothing else?

Immediately, Yi Tianyu breathed a sigh of relief.

Chu Sheng’s peripheral vision was still watching them, his eyes showing slight curiosity and gossip.

Afterward, Lin Zhihua continued serving food to Xue Jiao and Teacher Zheng.

Yi Tianyu, sitting on Xue Jiao’s other side, felt rather displeased.

He picked up a clean pair of chopsticks and grabbed some bitter gourd.

“Come on, have some bitter gourd,” he said, placing it in Xue Jiao’s bowl with a smile.

Xue Jiao looked at him without saying anything.

Yi Tianyu paused, asking in confusion, “What’s wrong?”

“She doesn’t eat bitter gourd,” Lin Zhihua quietly explained, his voice as calm as ever.

Yi Tianyu instinctively retorted, “How do you know she doesn’t eat bitter gourd?!”

The gazes of Teacher Zheng, Grandpa Wu, and Chu Sheng all turned toward them again.

Lin Zhihua wiped his hands and once more placed a boneless piece of fish in Xue Jiao’s bowl.

“Since we sat down at the table, she hasn’t touched the bitter gourd.”

Yi Tianyu: “…”

He lowered his head to observe. The bitter gourd was placed between Xue Jiao and him, so close… but she hadn’t eaten any!

“Zhihua is very observant,” Grandpa Wu said with a smile.

Yi Tianyu didn’t say anything more and didn’t dare serve Xue Jiao food again, but his gaze kept returning to the two beside him.

Why did he feel so uncomfortable about these two?

Across from them, Chu Sheng blinked, occasionally looking over, his eyes full of suspicion.

The meal finished in this strange atmosphere. After eating, Teacher Zheng lectured for a while longer, and then the three students were sent home to review.

Lin Zhihua was still there, clearly Teacher Zheng had more to say to him.

The three were quite perceptive and obediently took their leave.

Almost as soon as they stepped outside the door, Yi Tianyu moved next to Xue Jiao and said sourly, “Did you know Lin Zhihua from before?”

Xue Jiao rolled her eyes and glanced at him. “What’s it to you!”

She quickened her pace.

Yi Tianyu caught up, still mumbling, “So you do know him?! Bookworm, I didn’t realize your social circle was so wide?”

“It’s none of your business.”

“Bookworm…”

Lin Zhihua gripped the doorknob, listening to the gradually fading voices, his eyes dimming slightly.

“Zhihua,” Teacher Zheng called softly from behind.

Lin Zhihua came back to himself, closed the door, and slowly walked back.

As soon as he crouched down beside Teacher Zheng, she took his hand.

This teacher… was among the few women he could have physical contact with.

She was more like a mother, allowing him to rest a little.

“Teacher…”

Teacher Zheng’s eyes moistened as she said softly, “Jiaojiao is the girl you like, isn’t she?”

Lin Zhihua was slightly stunned.

Teacher Zheng smiled until her eyes narrowed, tears already at the corners, “I’ve lived long enough not to have lived in vain. Every time I saw you before, you were like a machine, doing and saying things almost without emotion. Look at you now… you seem alive, like flesh and blood.”

This Lin Zhihua she saw now was completely different from before.

She was happy, but also… afraid.

Lin Zhihua looked at the kind old woman and nodded gently.

“Yes… I love her. I want to spend my life with her.”

Teacher Zheng wiped her eyes, unable to hold back her tears.

“Teacher…” Lin Zhihua took a tissue and handed it to her, feeling distressed.

Teacher Zheng choked slightly as she looked at him, her trembling hand stroking his head.

“Zhihua… Zhihua… Jiaojiao is a good girl, but… but… she’s too young!”

Gu Xue Jiao was seventeen this year, Lin Zhihua was twenty-six. There was nearly a ten-year gap between them.

“I’ll wait for her,” Lin Zhihua said, still crouching, with a slight smile.

He raised his head slightly to meet Teacher Zheng’s gaze, his eyes determined yet warm.

Teacher Zheng shed more tears. “I thought you would spend your life alone. When I first heard you say you had someone you liked, I was so happy. Your grandmother… your grandmother would be comforted in the afterlife!”

Lin Zhihua continued wiping her tears.

“I know your personality. Once you’ve decided, you won’t change. Others might promise a lifetime but not necessarily follow through. But I know you will. If you say you want to spend your life with her, it truly means your entire life.”

She knew Lin Zhihua’s personality too well.

He appeared profound and indifferent but was very determined.

When such a person is committed to someone, it really would never change for a lifetime.

Teacher Zheng’s tears rolled down as she tightly gripped Lin Zhihua’s hand.

“She’s too young. Her life is full of variables. Zhihua, I’m afraid… I’m afraid… she won’t choose you in the end…”

What’s frightening in this world isn’t unchanging circumstances, but feeling like you’ve gained the whole world, only to lose it all.

Teacher Zheng’s heart ached. Xue Jiao was too young; she hadn’t even entered university yet, just a little eagle under an adult eagle’s wing.

Right now, Lin Zhihua could watch over her, look after her, and care for her.

But in the future, when she grew up and soared through the skies, would her gaze still rest on Lin Zhihua?

In Teacher Zheng’s heart, Zhihua was the best man in the world, but there was nearly a ten-year gap between him and Xue Jiao!

Time—that was something no one could buy.

Looking at the crying elderly woman before him, Lin Zhihua’s eyes gradually reddened.

His voice was very soft as if it might drift away with the wind at any moment—

“But Teacher, I have no choice. Loving someone is uncontrollable. In all my years of life, only Xue Jiao has entered my heart. She brings me light, a different life altogether. Without her, I would wither away.”

Without her… he would wither away…

Teacher Zheng wept uncontrollably, hugging Lin Zhihua.

Heavens, you’ve treated this child so poorly in matters of the heart for so many years, please take pity on him and fulfill his wishes just once!

——

Time passed quickly amid intensive review.

Seven days before Xue Jiao was to start school, Cheng Mingze returned.

Like a traveler returning from afar, he came back with bags full of luggage on an ordinary night, covered in dust from his journey.

Li Sitong was stunned and immediately approached him: “Mingze, you’re back! It’s so late, why didn’t you let us know in advance!”

She looked as if she might cry, her expression a mix of joy and concern.

Xue Jiao had once liked Cheng Mingze, but seeing Li Sitong’s concern for him still made her uncomfortable.

Back then, she felt her mother didn’t love her, and didn’t belong to her, so she felt both hatred and bitterness.

Xue Jiao didn’t have other emotions now. She had once sincerely accepted Li Sitong, but after being hurt, her expectations had diminished greatly.

She was concerned about Cheng Mingze, but Xue Jiao wouldn’t develop other thoughts about it.

After all, Li Sitong was now Cheng Mingze’s mother too. Cheng Shuo and Cheng Mingze also cared about her, so Xue Jiao no longer felt there was anything wrong with Li Sitong caring for Cheng Mingze.

Cheng Mingze hugged Li Sitong, then turned and hugged Xue Jiao.

Xue Jiao stiffened slightly.

Cheng Mingze quickly let go, stepped inside, and hugged Cheng Shuo.

After releasing him, he smiled and said, “I wanted to surprise you! How was it?”

“You rascal!” Cheng Shuo scolded with a smile, the joy on his face genuine.

Cheng Mingze had changed greatly from two months ago. His appearance was the same, but his smile was much more frequent.

His eyes were full of vigor and aspiration.

Xue Jiao smiled too.

“I’m staying for a few days before I leave again. I finished what I was working on in Silicon Valley with some people, learned a few things, and gained a lot. I also have some new ideas. I’m planning to report to Tsinghua early. I’ve already arranged to meet with Professor Tang in a few days to discuss my plans,” Cheng Mingze said after taking a few sips of water, smiling heartily.

“Is that Professor Tang from Tsinghua’s Computer Science department?!” Cheng Shuo was surprised. Since Cheng Mingze had confirmed his admission to Tsinghua, Cheng Shuo had done some research. Professor Tang was an extremely impressive figure in their department.

“Yes, that’s him,” Cheng Mingze’s eyes shone.

Xue Jiao smiled even more happily. Unlike in the original text where he forced himself to do things that made him unhappy, Cheng Mingze now had dreams in his eyes. He possessed the most sincere dream of a young man and was brave enough to pursue it.

Xue Jiao felt that in this lifetime, Cheng Mingze’s achievements might not be inferior to those in the original text.

In the original text, he was the leader in W City’s industry, but only within their city.

In this lifetime, Cheng Mingze might well make his mark in history.

“You just got back and now you’re talking about leaving again. Good thing we still have Jiaojiao…” Cheng Shuo pouted.

Cheng Mingze grinned, showing his white teeth—

“But next year, Jiaojiao will be joining me!”

Cheng Shuo: “…”

This time, not just Cheng Shuo, but even Li Sitong felt a lump in her throat.

“Dad, let’s move the company to Beijing,” Cheng Mingze suddenly said with a serious face.

He would likely stay in Beijing in the future, and Xue Jiao would most probably not return either.

Cheng Shuo stared at him. “You make it sound so easy. Do you think our company is Lin Corporation?”

Even as he said this, he suddenly muttered, “Even if we moved there, our family’s finances would shrink, and we’d have to start over with many things.”

Cheng Mingze spread his hands. “I can earn my own money. You don’t need to worry about supporting me financially in the future.”

Xue Jiao copied his gesture, spreading her hands. “Once I’m in university, I won’t need financial support either. I’ll have scholarships, and I can earn some money myself.”

All three looked at Li Sitong.

Li Sitong: “…”

She tentatively said, “I could buy fewer luxury items?”

Cheng Shuo suddenly clapped his hands, delighted. “Alright then, while I can still work, let’s give it a try!”

He excitedly continued, “I’ve had this idea for a while but was afraid you wouldn’t support me. I didn’t expect you’d be even more willing than I am!”

Cheng Mingze: “…”

Xue Jiao: “…”

So he had been planning this all along???

——

During the few days Cheng Mingze was home, Xue Jiao had tutoring, so they didn’t have many opportunities to see each other, just exchanging a few words when she returned each evening.

It was clear he was very happy now, his eyes animated when he talked about the things he loved.

It wasn’t until the night before Cheng Mingze was to leave that Xue Jiao entered his room for the first time.

In the past, when she was Gu Xue Jiao, Cheng Mingze hadn’t let her in. After she became Xue Jiao, she didn’t want to go in.

“Brother? Dad said you were looking for me?” Xue Jiao gently pushed open the door.

Cheng Mingze turned his head and smiled. “Come in quickly.”

Xue Jiao nodded and obediently entered.

Cheng Mingze’s room style was completely different from Xue Jiao’s—more European, with a cold hardness.

Everything was clean and tidy, with no excess items.

He was just getting up from his computer, and Xue Jiao hurriedly asked, “Am I disturbing you?”

Cheng Mingze shook his head. “Not at all. Please sit down.”

Xue Jiao obediently followed his gesture and sat on the edge of the bed.

“You’re about to start your senior year. Are you nervous?” he asked.

Xue Jiao nodded, answering honestly, “A little bit.”

“That’s normal,” Cheng Mingze nodded. “When I was in my senior year, I also found it very difficult. I even thought at one point, why didn’t I go to an international school? Senior year is a very, very difficult year.”

Xue Jiao tilted her head, blinking as she looked at him.

Cheng Mingze couldn’t help reaching out to ruffle her hair.

“I have a gift for you.”

He took out a piece of paper from the drawer. Xue Jiao opened it and was stunned.

It was a star chart, with densely packed stars and fine lines. The bottom right corner had a scale and range.

Xue Jiao stared at it intently, unable to snap out of her trance.

After a while, she reached out to touch it, her fingers trembling slightly…

“Is this… mathematics?”

Cheng Mingze smiled, his eyes showing delight as he pulled up a chair to sit across from her.

He bent down to meet her eyes. “I know you like mathematics. This is a copy of a mathematician’s work. His name was Migalxi, not very famous. He spent his life quietly researching the stars. In this star chart, there are two constellations and eighty-one formulas. Almost every point’s position was calculated through extensive mathematical computations. But this is just a small part of the known universe, and the known universe is a tiny part of the infinite cosmos.”

Xue Jiao’s gaze, fixed on the star chart, gradually drifted away, as if entering his words.

“My biggest realization from this trip is how small we are, and how short our time is! But the future is boundless. Jiaojiao, no matter how difficult senior year is, it’s just a doorway for us to enter the boundless. Persevere, and you can step into the starry sky of your future dreams.”

Xue Jiao suddenly looked up at him. Cheng Mingze smiled, speaking softly but firmly—

“Jiaojiao, keep going. I’ll be waiting for you in the future.”

——

Xue Jiao hung the star chart Cheng Mingze gave her next to her small blackboard, which read—295 days until the college entrance exam.

This small blackboard and the star chart were the first things Xue Jiao saw every time she opened her eyes.

Perhaps it was a meeting of minds, but while she was immersed in thoughts about stars and dreams, Teacher Zheng took them to view the stars.

It was the last day of tutoring. After dinner, Teacher Zheng smiled and said, “You don’t need to come tomorrow. This is the last night we’ll spend together this vacation.”

“Teacher…” they began.

Teacher Zheng continued with a smile, “I really won’t take any more students in the future. You could say you’re my last disciples. I’m old, my health isn’t good, and I don’t know when I’ll be gone…”

“Teacher, please don’t say such things!” Xue Jiao’s face paled.

Yi Tianyu nearly jumped up. “Tsk, tsk, tsk, we never heard that! Never heard that!”

He rarely liked a teacher this much, but this little old lady’s words were too unpleasant!

“This isn’t nonsense. I’m old, and I’ve come to terms with life and death. Before you leave, I want to give you one last lesson,” she stood up, and Chu Sheng and Yi Tianyu, the stronger ones, immediately went to support her.

“Let’s go to the rooftop,” the old lady smiled.

So, the three followed Teacher Zheng up to the rooftop.

The rooftop was open-air, half-covered with a glass ceiling, the other half completely open.

They sat down on chairs. Grandpa Wu brought tea, and the three quickly stood up.

“Thank you, Grandpa Wu.”

“It’s nothing,” Grandpa Wu smiled and sat down beside them.

The night sky was beautiful, filled with countless stars—a rare good night.

Teacher Zheng looked up at the starry sky, narrowing her eyes.

“In the past, when my students came to visit me, they were upset that I lived in such a remote place in the suburbs. They wanted to buy me a different house.”

“I didn’t want to move. They didn’t know I had searched hard to find this place, precisely because here… I can look up and see the stars,” Teacher Zheng’s voice was nostalgic.

The three listened quietly. Even the restless Yi Tianyu remained silent.

“I miss the starry sky I could see when I looked up as a child. I miss the mountains and waters, and I miss the people…”

The stars in the sky were bright. In an instant, Xue Jiao thought of the star chart.

She wondered if that forerunner was like Teacher Zheng, often looking up at the sky.

“When I was young, all my classmates had patriotic hearts. Back then, there wasn’t a single student in our class who didn’t study seriously. They were like sponges, frantically absorbing knowledge.”

Her voice grew softer and softer. “Nobody understood why I would walk for two days, ruining my health, to bring back a few students. They all asked if it was worth it.”

“What’s worth it or not? I just couldn’t forget those pairs of eyes. Education was the only way to change their lives. It was the only way they could grow up different from their parents. I had to bring them out.”

Teacher Zheng lowered her head to look at them. “Do you know what happened to those children later?”

Xue Jiao and the others shook their heads. They knew about her deeds but not about what became of those children.

“One eventually went back. He was afraid; the outside world was too big for him. I didn’t go looking for him again. I knew I couldn’t bring him back. Another was very smart but went to work right after finishing middle school. Never heard from him again. And then there was one child who, if he had gone home, would have lived like his parents, depending on whatever the land produced. So he worked especially hard and was the only one who went to university. Universities were quite valuable back then, and he eventually became successful…”

“Then what?” Yi Tianyu asked as Xue Jiao and Chu Sheng were also curious.

“He didn’t want others to know about his past, changed his name, later sent me some money, and hoped I wouldn’t discuss his background.”

Yi Tianyu was furious. “How could there be such a person!”

Without Teacher Zheng, he would never have escaped that mountain!

Teacher Zheng shook her head, completely unbothered.

“Then there was a girl, the one I had the highest hopes for. She wasn’t particularly smart, but she worked very hard. Unable to afford paper and pen, she would write on the ground every day. When I went to her home, they only had a mud hut and one dirty wooden bed where the whole family slept. But on the walls were countless written characters.”

“What happened to her later?” they asked.

“She…” Teacher Zheng choked up a bit. “Later, on her way to school, she fell down the mountain, broke her leg, and crawled a long way. When we found her, she was already gone… She had only written beside her—’I want to see the outside world.'”

Xue Jiao’s eyes stung, and tears rolled down.

Teacher Zheng continued, “No matter what happened to them later, I will never forget those eager eyes.”

She paused, sighing, “Times have changed. I don’t know when it started, but people’s hearts have become restless. Fewer and fewer people truly settle down to study, and there are fewer dedicated academic scholars. Everyone seems to be stirring up some kind of trouble.”

The three stared at her blankly.

“I don’t quite understand. This is supposedly the best era, so how has it become the most difficult era?”

Teacher Zheng’s voice was puzzled, but no one could answer this question.

“You three, especially Xue Jiao and Chu Sheng, the college entrance exam is no longer a problem for you. Your studies are for the exam, which I fully support. But what about after the exam?” She looked at the three, slightly furrowing her brows, serious and formal.

“Everything has a purpose. Others take the college entrance exam, so you take it too. Others apply to universities, so you apply too. Others say this major is good, so you choose that major too. And then what? Then use this popular major to find a good job. Then get married, have children, and invest everything in your children? And so the cycle continues.”

“I’ve seen too many people like this. Those students I thought had great talent all ended up this way, gradually entering mediocre lives, and becoming the most ordinary stars in this celestial canopy. Our lives are like stars in the night sky—ordinary and common. But even as ordinary stars, I hope you strive to be the brightest. If you can’t be the brightest, at least shine with a light that satisfies you.”

She looked at them. “So never stop learning. After the college entrance exam, your life is just beginning. Understand what you want, why you’re working hard, and keep working hard without getting caught up in restlessness.”

“Teacher’s final lesson is simply this—I hope you will be upright, kind, and stand firm on your dreams.”

All three fell into deep thought.

After a moment, Xue Jiao looked up at the sky, her gaze focused.

She had known for a long time that one should recognize the ordinary in life but not be content with it.

A life dedicated to pursuing dreams shines brilliantly.

Yi Tianyu and Chu Sheng also looked up at the sky. This was the first time in their youth that they seriously thought about life and the future.

But they were also fortunate. They had someone to guide them early on, rather than blindly following a path—that everyone else was taking.

The three of them had more possibilities to chase their dreams than many others.

——

When leaving, Xue Jiao took a photo of the starry sky and posted it to her Moments—

I want to be the brightest star.

Lin Zhihua saw it and commented with a smile—

[You definitely can be.]

You are the brightest star, and also my only star.

Xue Jiao saw his comment and put away her phone with a slight smile.

At this moment, the three had just come downstairs. It was very dark, but the street lamps were bright.

Yi Tianyu suddenly stopped walking. Chu Sheng and Xue Jiao turned back in confusion.

“Why did you stop?”

Yi Tianyu’s usually joking face suddenly turned serious. He stepped forward to stand in front of Xue Jiao.

Now, they stood under a street lamp. Yi Tianyu was facing the light, his eyes bright and shining.