Jiang Yubai turned to the second page of the paper. He no longer complied with Teacher Lin, acting like a defiant bad student: “Could Teacher Lin give me a different problem?”

Lin Zhixia picked up her backpack, took out a “Human Observation Diary,” and recorded on the spot: “This morning, when Jiang Yubai was playing the piano, I sat on the grand piano lid. He grabbed my wrist and lowered his head to kiss the back of my hand. My heart was beating a bit fast… In the study, Jiang Yubai and I played a tutor role-playing game. I was the teacher, he was the student. I asked him how he felt when I kissed him, but he was unwilling to tell me…”

Jiang Yubai, watching her record each stroke, suddenly borrowed her question and asked: “When you kiss me, how do you feel?”

Lin Zhixia, without any concealment, openly said: “I’m especially happy, and want to kiss you a few more times.”

She placed both hands on Jiang Yubai’s shoulders. Jiang Yubai gazed at her for several seconds. She stared at him without blinking, and he moved closer and closer to her.

He gently embraced her back. She could jump off his lap at any moment, but she made no move. She remained sitting on his lap, as if in a safe harbor.

Jiang Yubai leaned back against the chair, no longer attempting to get close to her.

He decided to adhere to the principle of “gradual progress.” Last night’s dream had been realized… Before he could think of the next step, Lin Zhixia moved closer to him and kissed his face twice. Finally, she buried her face in the crook of his neck, reiterating what she had said before: “I like your scent.”

Years ago, Jiang Yubai had collapsed to the ground because of this sentence, but now he had matured a lot. He adjusted his breathing, intentionally disrupting the intimate atmosphere, saying: “It might be the scent of shower gel and laundry detergent.”

Little did he know he had dug another pit for himself.

Lin Zhixia followed his train of thought: “Did you just take a shower?”

Jiang Yubai softly said, “I took one this morning.”

Lin Zhixia asked again: “Do you have strawberry-scented shower gel at home?”

The reason Lin Zhixia raised this question was that she wanted to know if Jiang Yubai could emit the fresh scent of strawberries. However, her inquiry sounded different to Jiang Yubai.

Jiang Yubai put away a paper, the pages crumpled by his grip. His voice slightly hoarse, he said: “I’ll prepare it for you.”

Lin Zhixia asked in return: “You want to prepare a bottle of shower gel for me?”

Jiang Yubai kept his mouth shut.

Lin Zhixia pondered briefly, then whispered in his ear: “What are you thinking? If you don’t tell me, I’ll have to guess myself.”

Jiang Yubai assumed the role of a landlord: “Next September, if you can’t get a dormitory, you can move into my home. I have a bedroom here; come see if it’s suitable.”

Lin Zhixia’s first reaction was: “How much per month?”

Jiang Yubai symbolically quoted: “One hundred.”

“Pounds?”

“RMB.”

Lin Zhixia calculated: “At the Chinese restaurant near my home, one hundred RMB is only enough for the two of us to eat one meal, just rice with toppings, no drinks… Renting outside costs at least two thousand dollars a month. I have a classmate who shares with someone else, and her monthly rent is nineteen hundred yuan. My dormitory fee is one hundred and forty pounds per week. Calculating for a thirty-day month, that’s six hundred pounds monthly. Yesterday’s exchange rate was one pound equals ten yuan and seven cents RMB, so my monthly rent is over six thousand yuan. Your house is better than my dormitory, so the price should be higher.”

Jiang Yubai couldn’t possibly charge her six thousand a month.

Lin Zhixia never allowed Jiang Yubai to spend money on her. After thinking for a moment, Jiang Yubai came up with a solution. He sincerely discussed with her: “Let’s add a clause to the rental agreement: you’ll be my home tutor, offsetting your rent.”

Lin Zhixia repeatedly confirmed: “Are you sure? Do you want to hire me as a tutor? I’m not an economics student, and I haven’t studied economics in depth.”

Jiang Yubai turned on the computer monitor. He opened a Word document and drafted a simple rental agreement, including both Chinese and English versions. He was well-prepared, typing quickly with hardly a moment’s hesitation.

Lin Zhixia read through the conditions and made a request: “Please have the landlord outline the teaching scope for the home tutor.”

Jiang Yubai typed a line: “Mathematics and Statistics.”

Lin Zhixia asked again: “Do you have a mathematics tutor? What’s their monthly salary? I don’t want to take advantage of you.”

It was evident that Lin Zhixia’s approach to reviewing the “housing contract” was very serious. She had no intention of glossing over it. She truly considered “tutoring” as her future profession and wanted to save on rent through hard work.

Jiang Yubai analyzed clearly: “If you become a teaching assistant at the school, your monthly salary would be more than six thousand. My tutor… has a six-figure after-tax annual salary. By this calculation, I’m the one taking advantage of you.”

“Really?” Lin Zhixia was half-convinced.

“Of course,” Jiang Yubai said, “I wouldn’t lie to you.”

Lin Zhixia remained silent.

Jiang Yubai continued: “My mathematics is indeed not good…” He imitated the tone of a poor student: “I’ll be counting on you from now on.”

Lin Zhixia responded enthusiastically: “Alright, are you interested in the dynamical systems branch of mathematics? I haven’t looked at books in this area for a long time. When we have time, let’s exchange insights and feelings.”

Jiang Yubai printed two copies of the contract. He signed and affixed his private seal before handing the contract to Lin Zhixia.

Lin Zhixia followed suit. After signing, she frowned slightly, feeling something wasn’t right. She picked up a pen and added an explanation: “If Lin Zhixia is assigned a school dormitory in 2013, this contract shall be null and void.”

She trusted Jiang Yubai’s good intentions but still hesitated. After writing the “contract nullification clause,” she turned to see Jiang Yubai’s expression.

Jiang Yubai showed not the slightest concern. He tightly embraced her waist with his left arm, lowered his head to lightly kiss her cheek, and called her: “Xiaxia.” His voice was slow and intimate, mixed with a smile. She was powerless to resist this charm and consciously fell into his embrace.

Without any explanation needed, he always understood her.

*

Lunch that day was exceptionally sumptuous.

In the center of the dining table sat a strawberry cream cake, surrounded by delicious meat and vegetable dishes that were pleasing to the eye, fragrant, and tasty. Lin Zhixia stood by the table and sighed: “This reminds me of my eleventh birthday.”

Jiang Yubai took out a diamond-encrusted box.

He opened the box, which contained a strawberry carved from pink jade. The strawberry was exquisite and translucent, with a smooth and complete shape, though the carving was not refined and perfect, unlike the work of a master jade carver.

Jiang Yubai explained: “I used an electric diamond knife to carve a strawberry for you as your eighteenth birthday gift.”

Lin Zhixia immediately became excited: “Did you make it yourself?”

“Yes,” Jiang Yubai said, “After failing several times, I finally had a finished product.”

Lin Zhixia treasured this strawberry especially. She received the box with both hands, repeatedly admiring it and playing with it, not even paying attention to lunch. She decided to place Jiang Yubai’s hand-carved work by her bedside to accompany her to sleep every night.

*

The pleasant weekend passed quickly, and suddenly it was Monday. Lin Zhixia got up early and went to her office with her backpack.

Every Monday and Wednesday morning, their group held a morning meeting.

Lin Zhixia had heard that the Indian senior had just published a paper in Nature as the first author. This morning, the Indian senior would give a simple report at the group meeting. She intended to collaborate with Lin Zhixia and Wen Qi. Coming from a mathematics background, she needed a collaborator with a solid foundation in physics.

Lin Zhixia volunteered herself.

Before the group meeting, she directly approached the Indian senior, first complimenting her, then explaining her academic background, expressing her desire to collaborate.

The senior gave Lin Zhixia a high-five. She transferred the experimental data to Lin Zhixia’s desktop computer.

This was the first time Lin Zhixia had actively sought collaboration.

Not long ago, Lin Zhixia had chatted with Wei Ruoxing on QQ.

After obtaining her doctorate, Wei Ruoxing had secured a teaching position at a university in Shanghai. She was one of this year’s “Youth Thousand Talents” scholars. “Youth Thousand” refers to the “National Thousand Talents Plan for Young Talents,” where applicants must have “more than 3 years of overseas scientific research experience” and significant academic achievements.

Wei Ruoxing had overcome many challenges to successfully obtain the “Youth Thousand” title. Now, she was an associate professor at a 985 university in Shanghai.

Lin Zhixia consulted Wei Ruoxing via QQ, asking what she was busy with every day after becoming an associate professor.

To Lin Zhixia’s surprise, teaching was not Wei Ruoxing’s main task.

Wei Ruoxing participated in the “Shanghai University Outstanding Young Teachers’ Scientific Research Project.” She frequently interacted with colleagues, corporate executives, and government officials. She also mentioned that this was inevitable; socializing was part of a professor’s life.

After hearing Senior Wei Ruoxing’s teachings, Lin Zhixia again attempted to collaborate with others.

The Indian senior in her group became Lin Zhixia’s test subject.

The collaboration between the Indian senior and Lin Zhixia went very smoothly. In less than a week, they had made breakthroughs. Additionally, Lin Zhixia was organizing her paper materials—her supervisor had high expectations for this paper, and she wanted to write it as soon as possible.

Although Lin Zhixia and Jiang Yubai attended the same university, they did not see each other often. Jiang Yubai wanted to invite Lin Zhixia to a dinner party on Friday, but she declined.

Lin Zhixia had ample reason: “I’m very busy lately. Also, I’ve developed a habit of meditating on Friday evenings… I need to organize my work content for the week.”

Jiang Yubai expressed understanding.

On Friday evening, Jiang Yubai went to the dinner venue alone.

Many classmates came. Sun Dawei spotted him and waved from a distance.

Sun Dawei sat at the edge of a long table, with a girl in a black gown beside him. This girl had exquisite makeup and wore a pearl hairpiece shaped like laurel leaves, dressed like a Greek goddess.

In front of them, elegant utensils gleamed with silver, replica candles embedded with orange light bulbs emitted a soft glow, warm light surrounded the crystal vase on the dining table, and all guests wore suits or gowns. The banquet atmosphere was very relaxed, harmonious, and without pressure.