Chen Chun thought for a moment, then called Yan Yuan aside.
Yan Yuan first glanced at Linlin.
Linlin nodded, signaling that he should go over.
“Yan Yuan, you’re old enough to start thinking about marriage. You need to save some money.”
Yan Yuan smiled and nodded. “I know, Teacher Chen.”
Thinking he hadn’t understood, and unable to put things delicately, Chen Chun got straight to the point. “You’re not married yet. You need to keep your money in your own hands.”
Yan Yuan shook his head with a laugh. “Teacher, if she’s willing to spend my money, I’ll be thanking heaven. Before, I only had to worry about feeding myself. If it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have come to find you.”
He paused. “I want to become someone worthy of her.”
Yan Yuan was one of the talented people Chen Chun had high hopes for. As his teacher, Chen Chun was displeased to hear that. “What kind of nonsense is that? You’re a fine-looking young man yourself... Which school does she attend?”
“Capital Aviation University.” Yan Yuan cleared his throat, unable to hide his amusement. “She was the top science student in the province of Nan last year. She’s majoring in aircraft design and won the first-class scholarship last year.”
Chen Chun fell silent for a moment. “Does she need money? Should she come work here?”
“She doesn’t.”
Work here required a great deal of time and energy. Linlin needed to focus on her studies and wouldn’t put her mind to this sort of thing.
Chen Chun felt somewhat regretful, but could only let the matter go.
He then assigned Yan Yuan a small project to rewrite the inventory system for a government department. Yan Yuan wasn’t in any hurry to begin. He took Linlin home instead.
After coming to Zhongguancun, Linlin had a lot of questions.
She wasn’t concerned about how much money the job would earn. Instead, she worried whether taking on the part-time work might have a negative impact on Yan Yuan.
Yan Yuan pushed his bicycle along as she walked beside him, looking deeply troubled. His heart softened into a pool of spring water.
“Don’t worry. Teacher Chen has the support of the Association for Science and Technology and the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The work is officially classified as the commercialization of scientific research achievements, and everyone involved has a regular job as well. Nothing will happen.”
Linlin walked backward, watching him. “If you’re short of money, tell me. I can support you. But don’t do anything dangerous, all right?”
“All right.”
Yan Yuan’s low, husky laugh was magnetic and sensual, overflowing with delight.
“I only wanted to give you a surprise. I’ll discuss it with you next time.”
Now that he had earned a considerable sum, Yan Yuan said, “I’m not working today. I’ll spend the whole day with you and we can use all this money. How does that sound?”
Linlin hurriedly pressed a hand over her purse and scolded him, “Are you some kind of spendthrift?”
Nearly seven hundred yuan was enough to eat until you were stuffed—even if you were eating gold.
Yan Yuan didn’t know what had gotten into him. He simply wanted to spend money on Linlin.
But Linlin refused. Considering his “nonsense” earlier and the fact that he had bought a washing machine without saying a word, she confiscated the money and put it away for him.
Yan Yuan naturally didn’t object.
It was Saturday. Linlin didn’t have class, and Yan Yuan didn’t have any work either.
The two of them had the entire day to spend together.
At Linlin’s suggestion, Yan Yuan took her to climb Jiufeng Mountain near Zhongguancun.
After leaving their bicycles at the foot of the mountain, Yan Yuan locked them up and took Linlin’s hand as they started up the trail.
Unlike the bustling crowds at Fragrant Hill, there were only lush green trees covering the mountain. The breeze in May was fresh and pleasant, neither cold nor hot.
Yan Yuan lowered his eyes to the crown of the girl’s head in front of him. Just then, a cool breeze swept past, stirring her glossy black hair. A strand caught around his arm.
It was a pity that men didn’t wear long hair nowadays. Otherwise, he could cut off a strand of hers and they could tie their hair together—a traditional symbol of marriage.
After falling in love, Yan Yuan suddenly realized what an uninteresting person he was.
Fortunately, Linlin’s greatest hobby was studying. Taking advantage of that, he could bring up practically any theory, and the two of them would discuss it for a long time.
The farther they climbed, the steeper the trail became. The second half was more difficult than the first, and parts of the path were uneven.
Linlin was wearing leather shoes that day, and before long, she began to struggle.
Yan Yuan noticed that her steps had slowed. He glanced at the leather shoes on her feet, then crouched down in front of her and turned his head toward her.
“Come on. I’ll carry you.”
“No need. I can still walk.”
“There’s still a long way to go.” Yan Yuan didn’t move, remaining crouched. “By the time you reach the summit, your feet will be covered in blisters.”
Linlin stared at his back and hesitated for several seconds. In the end, she climbed onto him.
Yan Yuan supported her steadily as he rose, then continued upward at an unhurried pace.
Linlin wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her chin on his shoulder. As she breathed in the soapberry scent drifting from his shirt collar, the tips of her ears quietly turned red.
“Am I heavy?”
Yan Yuan gave her a little bounce and smiled. “About as heavy as a basket of crabs.”
“Ah! You’re so annoying!”
The two of them chatted and laughed as a group of people appeared around the bend ahead.
There were four or five of them, men and women, talking and laughing together.
When they saw Yan Yuan and Linlin, they all froze for a moment.
Lu Zeyu had been looking down as he talked to one of his friends. When he noticed everyone stop, he raised his head as well.
The moment he saw how close Linlin and Yan Yuan were, and the position they were in, the smile on Lu Zeyu’s face stiffened slightly. Without caring that others were present, he demanded, “Linlin, what are you doing here?”
Yan Yuan set Linlin down.
Hearing the accusation in his voice, Linlin was displeased as well. She shot back, “Why can’t I be here?”
Lu Zeyu’s expression turned ugly.
Although he had caught the two of them behaving intimately the last time, seeing them like this still filled him with anger.
One of the girls beside Lu Zeyu asked, “Who’s that?”
Lu Zeyu didn’t answer. He kept his eyes fixed on Linlin. “Are you dating him?”
Yan Yuan’s eyes shifted slightly, but Linlin had already answered first.
“Yes. Do I need to file a report with you?”
Her tone was edged with sarcasm.
Linlin had always considered herself and Lu Zeyu nothing more than ordinary classmates. What she chose to do had nothing to do with him.
For Lu Zeyu to question her like this was simply rude.
Lu Zeyu’s expression changed several times. “You’re only a freshman, and his family situation is complicated. He’s just a teaching assistant. What do you see in him?”
The girl beside Lu Zeyu sensed what was going on, and her expression turned cold.
She had grown up in the military compound, and Lu Zeyu was often brought there by his uncle to play.
With both families encouraging them to get together, she had indeed developed feelings for Lu Zeyu.
He was handsome, had excellent grades, and came from a family of comparable standing. In their social circle, he was undeniably an outstanding young man.
But she had never expected that while Lu Zeyu spent time with her and often visited her parents, he had secretly fallen for another girl.
It was true that she had suggested this hike up Jiufeng Mountain. But if Lu Zeyu hadn’t wanted to come, he could have refused. Likewise, if he didn’t like her, he could simply have made that clear to both families.
What was this supposed to mean?
Unable to contain her anger, the girl shoved past Lu Zeyu and ran down the mountain.
One of the boys chased after her. The others remained where they were, eager to watch Lu Zeyu’s humiliation.
But Linlin had no desire to get tangled up with them. She took Yan Yuan’s hand and continued uphill, passing them by.
As they brushed past, Yan Yuan cast Lu Zeyu a cool glance.
The warmth in his eyes when he looked at Linlin had vanished. In its place was a clear warning.
