Xu Tangcheng tossed two packets of buy-one-free-one Lay's potato chips into the shopping cart. When he heard what Yi Zhe said and turned his head, he even forgot to take his hand back.

"He withdrew?" After his surprise, he very quickly realised the thing that wasn't quite right about the matter. "Wait a minute, he's so close to Cheng Xu?"

"I'm not sure."

Yi Zhe had basically repeated Zheng Yikun's exact words and had only decided by himself to remove the phrases "little senior" and "your partner." He saw Xu Tangcheng frown and fell into silence after asking those two questions, and couldn't be sure if he should fill him in on the parts he had omitted so that he would not affect Xu Tangcheng's judgement.

"What are you thinking?" he asked tentatively. At the same time, he reached into the shelves and picked up two bottles of yogurt by their necks.

"I'm thinking… that I'm finally going to meet this legendary Zheng Yikun." Xu Tangcheng bent slightly and took out the yogurt that Yi Zhe had just put in the shopping cart. "Have you told him?"

His words weren't detailed. For a moment, Yi Zhe didn't understand and immediately asked doubtfully, "Told him what?"

Holding the yogurt, Xu Tangcheng stuck out his index finger and thumb, pointed at Yi Zhe, then at himself.

"Oh." Yi Zhe got it now and explained, "No. He realised it himself."

This time, Xu Tangcheng did not have any expression of surprise. He only nodded calmly, like it was within his expectations.

He was wearing a cotton jacket today in a warm light brown colour, paired with a parka with a lambswool collar. It was a style that Yi Zhe liked a lot. Xu Tangcheng's clothes tended to have a simple and neat style. His outer garments were basically the slightly loose type and were mainly monochromatic. They were mostly not flashy, and were warm and gentle, just like his personality.

In this conversation where so many words were redacted, Xu Tangcheng thought of something and briefly turned his head to one side of the refrigerated shelves, letting out a laugh.

It lasted less than a second. Like his ears had automatically blocked the voices around them, Yi Zhe could even hear clearly the droning coming from the refrigerated shelves.

He suddenly thought that perhaps he should buy a camera.

If given the time, Yi Zhe felt that he could probably stare at this person who was in front of him for a few days and a few nights. Because, in his eyes, every part of Xu Tangcheng was special.

For example, right now, he was turning the bottle of yogurt in his hands. The white light from the refrigerated shelves shone on his fingers, two shades of pale colliding, interspersed with a layer of water droplets from the mingling of the chill and the warmth, altogether turning into a very gentle scene.

His fingers were better looking than other people's. Stray locks of his hair fell forward, and the shape of his head that was revealed was also cuter than other people's.

A person's perception was sometimes wilful and rude, pushing their way roughly towards their beloved.

As this thought ran through his mind, without him noticing it, the corners of Yi Zhe's mouth were lifting up. Xu Tangcheng happened to look up at that moment and saw that, and asked rather curiously, "What are you smiling at?

The yogurt was put back on the shelf by Xu Tangcheng. Yi Zhe pushed the shopping cart forward and back, the wheels rubbing against the floor, polishing the smooth and shiny tiles. The frequency at which the trolley moved to and fro was almost like that of a person's student days: the person they liked suddenly poked their head over to strike up a conversation; in the moist, humid air, they gripped their pen nervously, their index finger bending unconsciously to rub against rubber grip on the shaft.

He didn't speak for a long time. Xu Tangcheng brought a hand up to touch his arm, then asked again with a smile, "I'm asking you a question, what are you secretly smiling at?

"Nothing." He revealed a small dimple to Xu Tangcheng, just like he had the other day. "I'm happy."

Perplexing and childish. Xu Tangcheng looked at him for a long while, then said softly, "Aren't you silly?"

After paying, just like before, the two of them separated the items into two bags on a bench. Yi Zhe tossed a box of chocolates into Xu Tangcheng's portion but Xu Tangcheng immediately took it out. "I don't eat chocolates. It causes pimples."

"Oh, then give it to me." Yi Zhe rummaged through the bag. "I'll give you the biscuits then."

Xu Tangcheng frequently stayed in the lab for an entire day. Yi Zhe was thinking that when he was hungry, he could eat a little something at any time and prevent his stomach from getting upset.

The weather today was very good. Even though it was winter, when they came out of the supermarket, the sunlight outside pierced through the cold wind and there seemed to be no distance between the humans and the sky.

"Actually, it might be because I'm blinded by my first impression of him. When I heard you brought up Zheng Yikun in the past, he gave me the impression of being very…" Xu Tangcheng tilted his head and paused, "...astute. But Cheng Xu is actually very, very guileless. I keep feeling that he's just like a child."

Yi Zhe agreed with those words. Zheng Yikun looked like a frivolous person but in actual fact, he hid a deep awareness inside him. So he nodded and echoed, "That's true."

Afraid that Xu Tangcheng would worry, Yi Zhe thought for a while and added, "But he's not a bad person."

"I believe you." Xu Tangcheng looked at Yi Zhe. "Someone you can be friends with, they must be a pretty good person."

Yi Zhe was momentarily stunned. He walked a few steps further before realising that this was a form of validation. When he turned his head to ask further, he saw Xu Tangcheng rubbing his eyes.

"Didn't sleep well last night?" he asked immediately.

"I slept okay. I went to sleep right after saying goodnight to you and only woke up at eight." Xu Tangcheng turned his palms slightly to the back, spreading them open, and took a subtle stretch of the body. "Maybe it's just because it's easy to feel sleepy after lunch."

"Then, don't go back to your lab. You can go back to your dorm and take a nap before going to the lab."

But Xu Tangcheng shook his head. "The dorm is too far. I'm too lazy to walk all the way."

His lab was near the university's west gate. It was practically the furthest point from his dorm in the entire campus.

"Why don't you nap at my dorm?" He had just finished speaking when he received a look from Xu Tangcheng, and Yi Zhe immediately reflected on himself. "Never mind, I guess it's not appropriate."

Xu Tangcheng looked at him and let out a laugh. He didn't say anything.

"I said I'll fetch you there on my bike but you refused."

Hearing him grumble, Xu Tangcheng couldn't help placing a hand on the shoulder next to him and pressed down. "Did you purposely buy one without a pillion seat to fetch me?"

Yi Zhe angled his body and leaned towards Xu Tangcheng, his mouth remaining stubborn. "It wasn't on purpose…"

His explanation was cut off by a female voice interjecting. Two fliers were separately pushed into their hands.

"Friend, would you like to get a mobile service subscription? We have new packages and there's a promotion period of one year now. Please have a look." Holding a stack of fliers, the girl walked backwards, keeping up with their pace while introducing the content of the packages. Her speech was very rapid, not giving them any chances to interrupt.

Yi Zhe didn't show any response. He only held the flier and pressed his lips together as he listened. On the other hand, after hearing the girl speak a couple of lines, Xu Tangcheng stopped walking and listened to her finish talking.

Perhaps she had been standing outside for too long, the girl's cheeks were flushed from the cold. She kept a very sweet smile on her face the whole time but there were a few times when she had no choice but to pause the smile and sniff hard.

After she was done introducing the packages, Xu Tangcheng even nodded at her with a smile and said that he would consider it carefully. Perhaps it was part of her standard procedure or perhaps not; the girl fumbled in the blue vest that was printed over with words like an ad and dug out two stacks of post-it notes. She said it was a tiny commemorative gift for them.

The two of them walked away. Xu Tangcheng passed one of the stack of post-its to Yi Zhe but Yi Zhe said, "It's flower-shaped."

Hearing his distaste for the shape, Xu Tangcheng wanted to put both stacks into his own pocket but Yi Zhe held his hand back and took one stack, saying that he could make do with it. Xu Tangcheng couldn't be bothered with him and continued to study the flier in his hand.

Yi Zhe asked curiously, "You want to get one?"

"Nope but since a girl like her has to give out fliers on a cold day like this, I'll just take a look. Who knows, I might feel like getting one. 3G…" Xu Tangcheng dragged out the word. Then, having thought of something, he turned to Yi Zhe with a smile. "How long do you think it'll be before 3G turns to 4G?"

"I don't know," Yi Zhe answered honestly.

China entered the era of 3G in 2009. After more than a year, the masses had yet to fully grasp the concept.

Xu Tangcheng read everything on both sides of the flier before folding it with the corners neatly overlapping. He made a guess. "I don't quite understand this thing but I can't help but feel that 3G won't be used for long. When the standard criteria for 4G is fixed, it'll be over very quickly."

There was still a long way to the lab. On the entire way there, the two of them discussed this matter intermittently. Yi Zhe had just started Year 2 and had yet to go very deep into his specialisation. The little that he understood were mostly from the different lecturers talking freely during class. Hence, most of the time he was the one asking questions while Xu Tangcheng answered them.

As they chatted, Xu Tangcheng suddenly asked Yi Zhe, "Have you thought of what you want to do in the future?"

Yi Zhe's immediate reaction was naturally the same thought he had a long time ago—to continue studying, and to study the same specialisation as him.

"Actually, I think it'll be quite fun to work with standards, you can consider it." Meanwhile, Xu Tangcheng didn't sound like he was seriously discussing future developments with him. There was a playful tone in his voice, like he was sharing a joke. "I have a shixiong working in a standards organisation overseas. There's this 3GPP conference, do you know it? They participate in the conference. A while ago, he told me that it's basically held once every two months, and the location every time is one of those tourist cities with beautiful sceneries. They'll discuss for a while, then go out to have fun."

"So nice?"

"Yeah, but I think that might not be the case in the future. Setting the standards for 3G took so many years but 4G won't be the same. It'll continue to advance after 4G. I guess they'll be more and more busy."

Mankind spared no effort in continuing to push the development of technology. There were innovations every day, the choices were endless, the possibilities boundless. No one knew how long the phrase "leading" could be maintained, just like how the big players of the industry had—with just one public statement—given up on the development of UMB that had persisted all this while and turned completely towards LTE. Mankind was inevitably playing both leader and follower of technology. They needed to increase their pace, and needed to gain new ideas every day.

As for that conference that might or might not still be leisurely, as well as the gradually increasing pace of the standardisation process, Xu Tangcheng had hit the bullseye with his comment. In a few years' time, he would be proven true.

On the evening that they ate with Zheng Yikun, Xu Tangcheng drove over. Cheng Xu wasn't on campus during the day, so Yi Zhe was the only passenger in the car. The two of them entered the dining area, one in front of the other. Xu Tangcheng immediately saw Zheng Yikun and Cheng Xu sitting next to the window. However, the positioning of their bodies at the moment made him pause without realising it—Zheng Yikun had one arm draped across the back of Cheng Xu's chair and his body was slanted; meanwhile, Cheng Xu was leaning towards the window, avoiding him.

Cheng Xu was the first to notice them and immediately craned his neck and waved. Zheng Yikun followed suit and slowly turned his head. He smiled at them but did not change the position of his body at all. When Yi Zhe and Xu Tangcheng sat down, Zheng Yikun finally turned his body to sit properly and greeted Xu Tangcheng.

"I won't bother with how Yi Zhe calls you." After the introductions and handshakes, Zheng Yikun passed him a menu. "Cheng-ge, have a look and see what you want to eat. Don't stand on formalities with me today, order anything you like."

Xu Tangcheng laughed and pushed the menu over to Cheng Xu. "Cheng Xu, why don't you take a look? I'm not picky."

Cheng Xu hastily shook his head. "You guys order, I don't know how to."

One menu was passed from person to person. Zheng Yikun cut to the chase by taking it and tossing it to Yi Zhe. "You pick."

Yi Zhe shot him a look. He lowered his head and opened the menu, placing it in between Xu Tangcheng and himself.

When picking the dishes, no matter what they asked Zheng Yikun and Cheng Xu, the other two always answered with "Okay." But in Xu Tangcheng's eyes, the same word contained different meanings.

For Cheng Xu, that was his personality. For Zheng Yikun, he probably didn't care what they ate for this meal.

But after they decided on their order and Xu Tangcheng was just about to tell the server that that was all, Zheng Yikun suddenly reached out and intercepted the menu that he was about to give to the server.

"I'll add one more." As he flipped through the menu, he smacked his lips. "Get a portion of small mantou with condensed milk for my little senior."

Beside him, Cheng Xu immediately pushed his glasses up. "I don't want it."

But Zheng Yikun pointed at the picture in the menu and repeated to the server, "Mantou with condensed milk."

Sitting opposite Cheng Xu, Xu Tangcheng was rather dumbstruck by this "little senior" and the mantou with condensed milk.

"There's no need." Cheng Xu was still stopping Zheng Yikun. "We've ordered too much, we can't finish everything."

"I'll eat it."

Ignoring his objections, Zheng Yikun closed the menu.

Xu Tangcheng glanced at Yi Zhe and happened to meet his gaze. Seeing how Yi Zhe was pressing his lips together and looking like he wanted to say something but was hesitating, Xu Tangcheng understood that Yi Zhe had concealed the thing about calling Cheng Xu "little senior" from him.

Zheng Yikun was a very good conversationalist. He was meeting Xu Tangcheng for the first time, but he could very naturally unearth a bunch of topics to discuss in depth with him. The few of them chatted idly and Yi Zhe naturally asked Zheng Yikun about his future plans. But what made Xu Tangcheng and Yi Zhe surprised was that Cheng Xu didn't know that Zheng Yikun had withdrawn from university.

Perhaps he was choking from the spiciness of the chili peppers or perhaps he was too shocked—after hearing the phrase "withdrawn from university," Cheng Xu suddenly started coughing hard, his entire face becoming flushed. Zheng Yikun exclaimed and passed him some tissues, then poured a glass of soy milk and pushed it over to him.

Cheng Xu downed nearly half the glass before turning his head to ask with his eyes full of tears, "Why did you withdraw?"

Zheng Yikun had heard this question many times already but when Cheng Xu asked, he still replied patiently. "I'm not made of the right stuff for studying in the first place."

"My dad is a nouveau riche, he has more money than he can spend. His only regret in his entire life is that he feels that he isn't educated. That's why he did not spare the rod and forced me to enter University A." He took a gulp of alcohol and let out a snort. "He wants me to get in so I got in. He promised to give me money if I got into University A anyway, so I just treated it as earning money. I can also satisfy his vanity for a bit and make him happy. There's no loss."

"But just because I got in, it doesn't mean I'll study."

This way of doing things was of course not conventional. Yi Zhe and Xu Tangcheng had already known about him withdrawing from university and were more able to accept this right now. But Cheng Xu had just been shocked by this piece of news and was naturally full of questions in his head.

"Wouldn't your dad scold you for this?"

"Why would he?" Cheng Xu was looking at Zheng Yikun with eyes full of bafflement and shock. On the other hand, Zheng Yikun was also looking at Cheng Xu in puzzlement. "If I don't tell him, he won't know. If I tell him, then it won't be a question of him scolding me. He can beat me to death."

How would he not know?

Cheng Xu felt that it wasn't quite right but his thoughts were suddenly stuck and he couldn't figure out why it wasn't quite right. Xu Tangcheng glanced at him and asked on his behalf, "He will know that you didn't finish university, won't he? There are records online. And you also won't have a graduation cert when the time comes, right?"

"Aiyo," Zheng Yikun laughed as he lowered his head. "I already said that my dad is a nouveau riche. How would he know that you can look this up online? I didn't tell him how to. He probably doesn't even know about things like graduation cert and academic cert. Furthermore, when the time comes, I will show him something. There are so many people selling fake certs, will I have trouble getting a graduation cert?"

These words shocked all three people at the table. Three pairs of eyes looked in unison at this person who wanted to get a fake certificate.

Zheng Yikun tapped on the table with his fingertips and explained to them. "Me, I'll go back home on time for the winter and summer holidays. When it's graduation time, I'll get a graduation cert and show it to him. Then, I'll tell him that I found a job in Beijing and that the benefits are pretty good. Do you guys think he'll be so free to suspect that I withdrew from school?"

At this point in time, in the world that Xu Tangcheng had come into contact with, Zheng Yikun's actions might not be considered extremely shocking but it was definitely considered unusually bold.

The nine years of compulsory education was of course a good thing but in the years when the boundaries of information couldn't be considered open and wide, due to the fact that they were limited to a simple environment when growing up, a lot of people would suddenly lose their goal after completing those nine years and entering a decent university. Studying became a habit and not an action taken upon consideration.

Xu Tangcheng didn't know what kind of living Zheng Yikun would make but at that time, he was very certain that this person would achieve the kind of life that he wanted.

Meanwhile, Yi Zhe was also very shocked but he only had a very simple thought: everyone was different from one another.

He actually hadn't had much interest in the things he and Xu Tangcheng discussed during the day but he could tell that Xu Tangcheng was truly interested in things related to this field of study. He could derive pleasure from it, and that was also Yi Zhe's pleasure. Hence, even though Yi Zhe felt that what he was learning now was very boring and very abstract, he had never thought of changing the current situation. After all, there wasn't anything that he was very interested in.

But Zheng Yikun was not the same. He had no interest in it, so he would not leave himself with any way to turn back and was unwilling to even do a perfunctory job of completing his studies.