Chapter 39

I want to get into Z University because it’s in her city.

— Zhang Lurang

—

Back home.

Su Zai Zai unfastened the leash for the Little Short Legs.

Freed from its restraint, the pup ran around excitedly.

It dashed straight to the pet water dispenser in the corner and started drinking.

Su Zai Zai watched it for a while and teased, “Zhang Xiao Rang, you know, you should be grateful that our home has an elevator.”

She spoke as she walked to the coffee table, pouring herself a glass of water.

Then, she walked over to the pup and ruffled its head.

“Haven’t I told you? When I call you like that, you have to bark.”

She crouched beside it for a moment.

Soon, she stood up, went to the bathroom, and splashed cold water on her sun-heated face to cool down.

The sound of running water filled the air, and Su Zai Zai suddenly found herself zoning out.

She snapped back to reality and turned off the faucet.

Pulling out two tissues, she wiped her face.

Back in her room, she took out her phone from her pocket again.

The screen still displayed Zhang Lurang’s message from 8 PM last night.

—Why did you hang up?

Su Zai Zai hesitated, unsure how to reply.

Yesterday, when she heard him say, “You always guess right,” she thought he was responding to her playful remark: “Because I’m not by your side.”

Flustered and embarrassed, she hung up the call in a panic.

But after thinking about it for a while, she felt like what he really meant was…

“How do you always know when I’m feeling down?”

Su Zai Zai suddenly felt embarrassed.

After thinking it over for a long time, she was convinced that the latter interpretation was correct.

And yet, hearing that he was feeling down, she had just hung up on him…

Now, she didn’t dare to reply at all.

But leaving it unanswered forever wasn’t a solution either.

Steeling herself, Su Zai Zai finally sent two messages.

Su Zai Zai: I laughed for a second yesterday and accidentally hung up the call.

Su Zai Zai: Then I fell asleep.

Once the messages were sent, she let out a breath of relief and began packing her things to return to school.

But after a moment, something felt off.

She immediately grabbed her phone and typed out two new messages.

—Last night, when I heard what you said, I couldn’t stop crying my eyes out.

—Accidentally hung up the call.

Zhang Lurang: “……”

He was speechless.

Not paying it much mind, he sent a voice message.

—”Did you do your practice questions?”

Su Zai Zai, feeling a little sulky, replied with a voice message of her own.

“No. You’ve only been gone a day, and I still haven’t adjusted my emotions.”

“Study hard,” he said.

After graduating from high school, he would officially be an adult.

Zhang Lurang wanted to stay in Z City—the place where Su Zai Zai was.

He wanted to always have her there.

—

Time kept moving forward, never stopping.

June 8, 2014. High school seniors walked out of the exam halls.

Excitedly throwing their books in the air, screaming in joy, hugging each other with tears in their eyes.

With it, Su Zai Zai’s senior year had truly begun.

She sat at her desk and pulled out her latest grade slip from one of her books.

Her gaze moved from left to right.

Stopping at the second number.

Math: 98.

Pressing her lips together, Su Zai Zai stuffed a few math problem-solving books into her backpack.

Then, she walked out of the classroom and headed toward the dormitory.

The evening air was cool and comfortable.

The leaves rustled, making soft swooshing sounds.

Yet, inside, Su Zai Zai felt strangely restless.

Back in the dorm, she quickly took a shower.

After washing her clothes, she was about to climb into bed, switch on her small reading lamp, and start studying.

That was when she noticed Jiang Jia, her bunkmate, looking annoyed, tossing her phone onto the bed with a heavy sigh.

Blinking, Su Zai Zai asked curiously, “What’s wrong?”

Everyone in the dorm knew about Jiang Jia and Guan Han’s relationship.

So Jiang Jia didn’t bother hiding anything, sighing in frustration.

“It’s Guan Han. I don’t know what he’s thinking. He’s driving me crazy. We’re in senior year, and he still keeps playing on his phone all the time. He won’t listen no matter what I say.”

Because of her math score, Su Zai Zai wasn’t in the best mood either.

She didn’t really know how to comfort her.

After hesitating for a moment, she still tried, “You should talk to him properly.”

Jiang Jia picked up her phone again, sent a few messages, and even got teary-eyed.

Wiping at her eyes, she whispered, “It’s useless. I’ve talked to him so many times already. If he keeps this up, there’s no way we’ll get into the same university.”

Xiao Yu glanced over and tried to console her. “Hey, don’t cry…”

“I just feel so frustrated. He’s even making me not want to study anymore.”

Su Zai Zai spaced out for a moment before suddenly asking, “If you don’t get into the same university, will you break up with him?”

Without hesitation, Jiang Jia nodded. “Absolutely.”

Su Zai Zai’s expression froze. She didn’t say anything else.

Lowering her head, she stared at her phone, watching the tiny blinking notification light.

She turned on the screen.

Su Zai Zai: Rang Rang.

Zhang Lurang: Just finished evening study.

Zhang Lurang: What’s up?

She didn’t reply. Instead, she sent a WeChat message to her mom.

—Mom, sign me up for a math tutoring class.

After that, Su Zai Zai climbed into bed and reopened her chat with Zhang Lurang.

She thought for a long time but couldn’t figure out what to say.

Before she could type anything, another message popped up from his end.

Zhang Lurang: The other party is typing…

Su Zai Zai suddenly burst into laughter.

All the stress and frustration she had been feeling vanished in an instant—just because of his message.

After thinking for a bit, she finally asked the question.

Su Zai Zai: Rang Rang, how much did you score on your last English exam?

Zhang Lurang: 124.

Su Zai Zai: !!!

Su Zai Zai: Didn’t you get 110 last time? That’s amazing!

Zhang Lurang’s lips curled up slightly.

Then, he suddenly felt a little uneasy and asked, “What about your math?”

There was no response from her side.

—

—

“I woke up halfway through my sleep last night and saw your light was still on…” Jiang Jia took a bite of her bread and frowned. “What time did you sleep?”

“Ah, I didn’t pay attention.”

“With your grades, you can definitely make it into the top-tier university cutoff.”

Su Zai Zai stirred the porridge in her bowl, the rising steam blurring her vision.

Suddenly, her nose tingled with a sourness.

Jiang Jia looked worried. “What’s wrong with you?”

Su Zai Zai changed the topic.

“Jia Jia, how are things with Guan Han lately?”

Jiang Jia shrugged indifferently. “Same as always. If I don’t reach out to him, he doesn’t reach out to me either. Now that we’re not in the same class, not seeing him actually feels less annoying.”

“Do you still like him?” Su Zai Zai asked softly.

“What does it matter if I do?” Jiang Jia let out a bitter laugh. “He never thought about our future together, so why should I invest so much effort in him?”

“……”

“I’m not like you and Zhang Lu Rang. Long-distance relationships never end well.”

Su Zai Zai’s grip on her spoon tightened.

If she couldn’t get into Z University…

She would have to endure four years of a long-distance relationship.

A love filled with more separations than meetings.

She didn’t know if Zhang Lu Rang would still want that.

—

Su Zai Zai hadn’t replied to him again today.

Zhang Lu Rang ran a frustrated hand through his hair.

Suppressing the urge to call her, he forced himself to focus on a set of science practice papers.

Because of his bad mood, he didn’t even realize how late it had gotten.

After finishing, Zhang Lu Rang picked up his phone again and glanced at the screen.

In his chat with Su Zai Zai, the words “The other party is typing…” appeared.

He paused, lifting his eyes to the time displayed in the top-left corner of the screen.

2 AM.

His expression instantly turned cold as he sent a message.

——Why aren’t you asleep?

The other side seemed shocked that he was still awake.

A reply came immediately.

Su Zai Zai: ……

Su Zai Zai: I woke up halfway through my sleep.

Zhang Lu Rang reached out and turned off the lamp in front of him, leaning back against the wall.

The light from his phone cast a dim glow on his face, highlighting the tight press of his lips and the sharp lines of his tense profile.

The sour ache in his chest kept growing.

He didn’t even care how childish his next words might sound—he just needed to ask.

That one thing he couldn’t bear to accept.

——Do you not like me anymore?

There was a long pause.

Su Zai Zai: No.

Su Zai Zai: I like you very much.

Because she didn’t want to disturb her sleeping roommates, Zhang Lu Rang’s phone was on silent—even vibration mode was off.

He simply stared at the screen.

The other end was quiet, responding slowly, carefully, with just these two sentences.

But instead of relief, Zhang Lu Rang felt even more uneasy.

He hesitated, then quickly sent another message.

——What’s wrong?

Su Zai Zai: Ah, I was confessing to you.

Su Zai Zai: Rang Rang, aren’t you happy?

Something felt off, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

Zhang Lu Rang just wanted the college entrance exam to be over already.

So he could hurry to her side.

He curved his lips slightly and replied: Mm.

Zhang Lu Rang: Go to sleep.

Zhang Lu Rang: Even if you wake up, don’t play on your phone.

Su Zai Zai: Got it. You should sleep early too.

Su Zai Zai: Good night.

What Zhang Lu Rang didn’t know was that, on the other side of the phone…

After putting her phone down, Su Zai Zai picked up her pen again and continued doing practice questions.

Tears streamed down her face, overwhelmed and helpless, as she kept writing and writing.

Long-distance love—who could truly feel at ease?

No one.

—

The first major mock exam in Z City coincided with the first semester’s final exams for senior year.

During the semester-ending assembly, the results were released.

Su Zai Zai already knew she hadn’t done well, so she had no interest in checking the bulletin board.

Most of her subjects remained at the same level.

Based on last year’s Z University admission cutoff, she needed at least a 110 in math.

But her performance was inconsistent—her scores fluctuated wildly.

She always got nervous in math exams. Whenever she hit a tough multiple-choice question, her confidence crumbled.

Xiao Xiao went to check the board and soon returned to sit beside her.

She turned and said, “Zai Zai, you ranked 31st in the class this time.”

Su Zai Zai was silent for a moment before asking in a low voice, “How much did I score in math?”

“Ah, I didn’t check that part,” Xiao Xiao glanced toward the bulletin board before casually calling out, “Hey, Nan Shen, what did Su Zai Zai get in math?”

Wang Nan hesitated for a moment before answering, “I think… 92.”

Su Zai Zai lowered her gaze, her voice barely above a whisper: “Thanks.”

She never had grand ambitions.

If she wanted to attend Z University for her own sake, she would work hard for it.

If, after trying her best, she still couldn’t make it—then so be it.

Some things just weren’t meant to be.

But if Zhang Lu Rang wanted to go there…

Then she had to go too.

For the first time in her life, Su Zai Zai felt that life was unbearably difficult.

She stayed up until 2 or 3 AM every night, endlessly grinding through practice problems.

But her scores just wouldn’t improve.

Suddenly, she felt like a burden.

She didn’t dare tell him that she was struggling to raise her grades.

She was afraid it would affect his mood.

She was afraid he would, like Jiang Jia, choose to break up.

Even more than that—she was terrified that Zhang Lu Rang would say:

“If you can’t get into Z University, then I’ll go to the school you get into instead.”

She liked him. But she had never wanted to drag him down.

The pressure of studying, the uncertainty of the future—it was all crushing her.

Her eyes gradually reddened, filling with unshed tears.

She bit her lip and, unable to hold back, pulled out her phone.

With every letter she typed, another tear fell.

—— Zhang Lu Rang, I don’t think I can get into Z University.

—

After sending the message, Su Zai Zai immediately regretted it.

She reached out to wipe her tears and quickly recalled the message, replacing it with another:

Su Zai Zai: Rang Rang, it’s the start of the holiday today~

Su Zai Zai: I typed the wrong thing just now.

After sending it, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

People around her started packing up to go home.

The winter break wasn’t very long, but Su Zai Zai still wanted to bring back as many books as possible to read.

Because of this, she called her father to pick her up.

Before she could start packing, her phone suddenly rang.

Since she was in the classroom, she tensed up for a moment.

But she quickly relaxed when she saw the caller ID—

“My Heart’s Rang Rang.”

She froze for a second, then walked out of the classroom to the end of the hallway.

After making sure there was no one around, she finally picked up.

Clearing her throat, she called out to him, “Rang Rang.”

The other end of the line was quiet.

A few seconds later, Zhang Lu Rang finally spoke.

“Did you cry?”

Su Zai Zai’s throat tightened. “What are you talking about?”

She squatted down, covering her eyes with her hand.

“Did you not do well on the exam?” he asked softly.

Su Zai Zai tried to hold back her sobs. “Did you see it?”

“Mm.”

“Jiang Jia said Guan Han didn’t do well. She said if they couldn’t get into the same university, she’d break up with him.”

“I was afraid you’d do the same, so I didn’t dare to tell you.”

“…But my math score just won’t improve.”

…

Su Zai Zai didn’t even know what she was saying anymore. She just kept pouring out everything that had been weighing on her heart.

After listening to her finish, Zhang Lu Rang finally spoke.

“Then don’t take the exam.”

Su Zai Zai’s breath hitched.

His voice was hoarse and low, as if he had been affected by her sadness.

“Just take the one you can pass. As long as you’re happy, that’s enough.”

“Would you…” break up with me?

Before she could even finish, he interrupted her.

“Impossible.”

Su Zai Zai’s eyes welled up with tears, looking pitiful.

“Then you wouldn’t… give up Z University because of me, right?”

Zhang Lu Rang suddenly let out a short laugh and said, “No, I wouldn’t.”

After a brief silence, Su Zai Zai heard him say—

“I still have to take care of you.”