Chapter 69: Farewell

The final year of undergraduate life finally arrived amidst a whirlwind of chaos.

When they first entered university, everyone was more or less the same. But as graduation approached, each person’s choices diverged wildly. Take Yin Mengxi’s dormitory, for example—she had decided to enter the workforce directly, Ren Weiwei was set to pursue a master’s degree at their current school, Wang Xueru planned to study abroad, and Min Rui was still wavering, unable to decide.

Min’s parents hoped she would return to her hometown to find a stable government job or get married and have children before considering anything else. But Min was not one to be controlled; she rejected both options outright. Disliking academia, she ultimately chose the same path as Yin Mengxi—to stay in City A and become a working professional.

“How about we rent together after graduation?” Min suggested enthusiastically. “We’ve lived together for so many years already—it’s like an old married couple. No one will mind the other.”

Yin Mengxi had no objections and was happy to continue living with a familiar friend. However, Min’s job prospects were tricky. She hadn’t done much interning during her undergraduate years, and her GPA wasn’t particularly high, making it difficult for her resume to catch the eye of HR departments. When Yin Mengxi suggested introducing her to their TV station, Min declined, saying the work there was too grueling. Luckily, Min excelled in beauty-related pursuits. Having previously organized pop-up events for a cosmetics brand, she focused her job applications on the fast-moving consumer goods sector. After a round of interviews, she secured a promising internship opportunity.

Meanwhile, Xiao Zhi had returned from his exchange program.

He remained the center of attention. As soon as he came back, the campus forum buzzed with news about him, gossip flying everywhere. The hottest topic was naturally his love life—

“Breaking news! Senior X and Princess rumored to reconcile! Pics or it didn’t happen!”

“[Image]”

“What the hell???”

“Is this Princess holding onto Senior X’s arm???!!!”

“What is this nonsense? Is it really a love triangle?”

“No way, I heard Senior X broke up with his girlfriend from the journalism department.”

“What? When did that happen?”

“Seriously? Spill the tea!”

“I also heard they broke up last semester. My friend lives in the same dorm building as his ex-girlfriend, and apparently, she cried her eyes out downstairs.”

“Wow, did Senior X dump her? Did he cheat?”

“Maybe. He was at Princeton last semester. Long-distance problems?”

“If that’s true, then Princess isn’t the third wheel. If the ex is already over it, isn’t this just fair game?”

“Not necessarily. Maybe Princess stole him away, and that’s why the ex got dumped.”

“Hilarious. Princess is so persistent.”

“So, has Princess’s dream come true? Are they together now?”

“Who knows?”

“Probably... Childhood sweethearts are timeless. Maybe after all this back-and-forth, it’ll end up being them again...”

“Actually, they do make a good match—looks, family, everything.”

“True.”

“Bullshit. Someone like Senior X should remain single forever. Neither the previous girlfriend nor this one deserves him.”

“Exactly. And didn’t she fail a course???”

“HAHAHAHA what kind of IQ is that? Dating someone who wins national scholarships and still failing a course?”

“What a mess... Let’s wait until Senior X confirms he’s taken before trashing this thread, okay?”

“+1 for trashing~”

“Anyone? More updates, please!”

...

Ridiculous “news” flew around again. Although Yin Mengxi was now an outsider, she couldn’t avoid being dragged into these discussions. She tried not to pay attention, but her obsessive tendencies made her click into those threads daily, watching strangers mock and discuss her behind their screens. There were even blurry photos of him and Tang Fei, supposedly showing her holding his arm—whether as friends or lovers, it was unclear. Yet she felt an overwhelming sadness, an irreversible loss she had no right to mourn or cry over.

Perhaps only then did she realize more clearly.

…She still liked him so, so much.

The first semester of senior year passed in a haze of drawn-out, fragmented sorrow.

In the second semester, the pace quickened as graduation loomed closer. The academic system issued a credit audit, informing students which courses they still needed to complete. Yin Mengxi had neglected her studies since her junior year, leaving her with a GPA of only 3.21 and missing several elective and required courses. To avoid delaying graduation, she had to hastily make up these credits in her final semester.

Her roommates knew she wasn’t in a good state—partly because of her exhausting internship work and partly because she still couldn’t let go of Xiao Zhi. Wang Xueru saw through everything. Unlike Min Rui and Ren Weiwei, she had never supported Yin Mengxi breaking up with Xiao Zhi. Seeing that Yin was short on elective credits, she quietly logged into the course selection system and enrolled her in a new class taught by Professor Jia: “Studies in Su Shi and Xin Qiji’s Poetry,” hoping to create opportunities for them.

“Why don’t you take this class? It’s rare for Professor Jia to offer a new course...” she subtly encouraged Yin Mengxi. “Didn’t you get an A in his class before? Getting credits now should be easy. Plus, you’re familiar with Su Shi, so exams won’t be hard!”

These were surface-level excuses. The real reason was clear—Xiao Zhi was the teaching assistant. Yin Mengxi understood Wang Xueru’s intentions and initially shook her head in refusal. But deep down, she felt a flicker of hesitation.

She…

…missed him.

“Just take it, stop being stubborn!” Wang Xueru was more anxious than either of them. “Your breakup was so weird. Don’t you feel regretful? Go see him. If you can reconcile, great—if not, no harm done. What’s there to fear?”

“What’s there to fear?”

Too much.

Fear that her greedy desires would spiral out of control upon seeing him.

Fear of appearing pathetic, alternating between breaking up and seeking reconciliation.

Fear that unresolved difficulties would resurface, making her uglier and more miserable.

Fear… of destroying the last shred of his fondness for her.

…Yet, in the end, she still chose the class.

Honest desires couldn’t be denied. Walking into the classroom with her backpack felt like time traveling back to freshman year. She was still that shy girl from a small southern town who had worked hard to get into University A, and he was still the admired and talked-about Senior Xiao. The classroom was just as crowded as before, everything seemingly returning to its original state.

She sat in the back corner, watching his superior figure—his beautiful shoulder blades, which she had once touched, still vivid in her memory. But she could no longer approach him. Instead, she watched as fresh-faced first-year girls shyly gathered around him after class. Yes, he would never lack pure and lovely young admirers. They were innocent rabbits, gazing at him with clear, bright eyes, untainted by society’s dust or vulgar ambitions.

She silently observed from afar, her courage eroded bit by bit. Resigned to remaining unnoticed for the entire semester, she thought of this one-sided reunion as a long farewell before graduation. But he noticed her during roll call. When he called out “Yin Mengxi,” there was a faint trace of bittersweet melancholy in his voice.

“…Here.”

She stiffly raised her hand, meeting his gaze across the crowded classroom. His eyes were still beautiful, still rippling slightly when he saw her—a special treatment reserved for her alone. If she wanted, she could redeem it for something precious.

“Students interested in giving a midterm presentation can sign up with me after class,” his voice was quiet and low, though his words were directed at the entire class, his eyes lingered on her. “I look forward to your excellent performances.”

She understood—it was his test, his opportunity for her.

If she went, it meant returning to campus or at least wanting to reconcile. Not going meant she was unwilling to turn back, choosing to part ways forever.

…How much she wanted to go.

If she were still a freshman, she would have gone without hesitation, wagging her tail and looking at him with adoration. But now she had grown up. Society had taught her that economic foundations determined superstructures. The unresolved issues hadn’t disappeared; reconciling would only repeat the torment of the past.

Besides, she had so much internship work to do... In this critical period of securing a formal offer, she simply couldn’t spare enough time to prepare a report that would satisfy him.

…In the end, she didn’t sign up.

He must have been disappointed. What distant, unfamiliar look would he give her now? She wouldn’t know, because he was already surrounded by eager first-year students. Among them, surely some were academically gifted or at least diligent and hardworking, like she had been a few years ago.

Silently, she left the classroom. For the rest of the semester, her energy was consumed entirely by internships. At best, she managed not to skip his class. She barely finished the assigned readings, and her midterm paper, written over three sleepless nights, was mediocre at best. The final exam was closed-book. She did her best to answer the questions she knew, checking her watch and realizing she had fifteen minutes left. This, she thought, was likely her final goodbye to him.

When these fifteen minutes ended, her student life would be over.

She would step out of campus into a world completely unrelated to him. From then on, she would hear no news of him and have no chance to rewrite their ending.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

She heard time mercilessly racing forward. Standing at the front of the classroom, he grew farther and farther away with each indifferent tick. Finally, the bell rang, signaling the end of the exam. She joined the crowd of students heading to the front to submit their papers. As he accepted hers, it felt like a sacred handover ceremony. She handed over all her innocence and romance, all her ugliness and awkwardness. He received it all, nodding politely. A week later, a cold, rigid “C” appeared on her academic system—a shape like an incomplete period, yet it marked the most complete termination of a dazzling yet bleak first love.

…So be it.

I… must keep moving forward.