Although there were many small movements in the exam room, it was still very quiet. 

Just as Old Tang passed by their group and headed towards the podium, little paper balls flew everywhere in the exam room while his back was turned.

"Not passing answers," He Chao's palm was empty, and there were no little notes. Xie Yu's hand was a bit cold, and he couldn't help but say, "...I wanted to do this last time."

Raindrops hit the glass window, creating ripples.

After a while, Xie Yu asked, "Is it enough?"

"Not yet," He Chao replied.

"..."

"Just hold hands for a bit longer." 

Xie Yu paused, feeling a bit speechless yet wanting to laugh, "Are you a scoundrel?"

As Old Tang was about to walk past them, the scoundrel reluctantly let go of Xie Yu's hand. 

Old Tang stopped in front of He Chao's seat for a few minutes, looking at He Chao's answer sheet. The more he looked, the more furrowed his brow became. Finally, with a complex expression, he sighed at the answer sheet that was filled with answers on both sides: "..."

After Old Tang left, He Chao poked Xie Yu with his pen and asked, "What does he mean by that?"

"Brother Chao, why don't you take a look at what you wrote yourself?" Xie Yu said. "Don't you have any idea in your heart?"

After Xie Yu finished speaking, he felt a bit helpless. This idiot really didn't have any idea in his heart.

For someone whose grades were so bad that even eight cows couldn't pull him up to the passing line, He Chao still thought he did pretty well and was full of confidence.

After the morning exam was over, during the lunch break, everyone was basically checking their answers. 

"Brother Chao, your 'guaranteed pass' charm didn't work. I got several math problems wrong," Wan Da returned the charm to He Chao. "You should keep it for yourself."

"I also think it's useless," He Chao picked up his phone. "I had my first Chinese exam this morning, and Old Tang even sighed while looking at my paper. I'm going to ask the seller."

Xie Yu didn't quite understand his boyfriend's actions. "Why ask the seller?"

"Just to ask if I'm using it correctly."

"How else can you use it? Burn it and drink it?"

"...It can't be so evil, surely."

The few of them grouped together and discussed for a while, when the seller finally replied: "If you're sincere, it'll be effective."

"If you're sincere, it'll be effective," He Chao handed the charm back to Wan Da. "Why don't you...adjust your emotions a bit better this afternoon?" 

Xie Yu felt like He Chao was trying to deceive people.

Unfortunately, Wan Da was actually deceived and said, "Okay, I'll try again this afternoon."

After two full days of exams, Xie Yu felt exhausted and had no other feelings. To help everyone relax, Liu Cunhao found a comedy movie on the computer. The movie was watched halfway through, but the class remained silent, and the class representative anxiously asked, "Why aren't you laughing? Isn't it funny? Be happy."

Wan Da had no expression and said, "Just turn it off. I really can't laugh. By the way, Master Linghui is now one of the people I hate the most."

"I can't even guarantee my own life," Luo Wenqiang said, lying on the desk. "I need to think quietly about my survival for a while." 

Only He Chao gave him some face, and said with a great attitude: "This movie is pretty good, why aren't you guys watching it?"

Xie Yu went out to answer a phone call.

Last night, Mother Lei asked him when he would finish his exams, and as soon as he finished, Zhou Dalei called him.

Zhou Dalei squatted in a small alley and put out his cigarette as he answered the phone. Then he switched the phone to his other hand and said, "Boss Xie, did you finish your exams?"

"Mm."

"Do you want to get together sometime? Aunt Mei learned how to make a new dish a few days ago and has been talking about making it for you when you come over..." Dalei stopped talking halfway and turned his head to someone next to him, making a clicking sound. "You little brat, you're still trying to mess with me. Hold him down for me. If I can't kill you today, I'll spell my name backwards."

Hearing this, Xie Yu felt that something was off and asked, "What's going on over there?" 

"Not a big deal," said Zhou Dalei as he walked a distance outside the alley, the noisy sounds gradually fading away. "Those thieves, damn it, dare to steal in this area. Let them know the power of the people's unity in Blackwater Street..."

Xie Yu nodded knowingly, "Be careful when beating him up."

As Zhou Dalei walked, he suddenly remembered something and chuckled, "Boss Xie, do you remember that little thief that Mother Wang woke us up in the middle of the night to catch? I was really scared that night, I thought something had happened."

Leaning against the wall, Xie Yu's gaze pierced through the classroom, as if he had returned to that familiar little street that never made it to the top of the street community environment evaluation every time.

He felt a bit dazed.

It was a few years ago when Mother Wang's house was robbed in the middle of the night. 

The thief was still clinging to the window, unable to climb in. He locked eyes with Mother Wang for a moment, but never expected a middle-aged woman to be so fierce. Not only did she throw pots and pans at him, but she also screamed at the top of her lungs, waking up the entire street: "Catch the thief!"

The young thief had no chance of escape. As soon as he jumped down the water pipe and landed on the ground, a slipper hit him in the face. 

Mother Lei, wearing her pajamas, took off her other slipper and shouted from the balcony: "Here he is! How dare you run? I'll beat you to death!"

The whole night was chaotic, with everyone chasing after the thief for three blocks. 

Even Xie Yu and his friends joined in the pursuit, running around like crazy. 

That summer, even the wind blowing at night was hot. Before being taken to the police station, the thief was cornered by them and begged for mercy while crying, "I won't come here again..."

"Why did you have to steal?" Aunt Mei stood in front of him, rolling up her sleeves. "Look up, let's talk. Don't be afraid, we won't really beat you to death. We'll leave you half alive to teach you a lesson."

Madam Gu had always found it difficult to fit in with the neighborhood. Her education and manners over the years had taught her not to hit people casually. It was enough to send the thief to the police station, why resort to violence?

In the end, Madam Gu grabbed his ear and dragged him back home. "What are you joining in for?" she scolded.

Xie Yu snapped back to reality and said, "Let's do it this weekend. I don't have anything planned anyway."

"Okay," Zhou Dalei agreed readily.

The two of them chatted a bit more. 

Xie Yu stood at the corner of the stairs when He Chao slipped out of the classroom without anyone noticing and hugged Xie Yu from behind, asking, "What are you doing?"

At that moment, Zhou Dalei was about to hang up the phone when suddenly he heard this sentence from the other end.

The person's voice was low and close, as if speaking directly into Boss Xie's ear, with a slightly upward inflection at the end that made it sound...a bit ambiguous.

It also sounded somewhat familiar.

Zhou Dalei's body trembled, "Who is it? The voice doesn't sound like it's a decent person!"

Xie Yu said, "You even noticed that."

He Chao, who was inexplicably labeled as indecent, asked, "Huh?" 

"Oh...it's you. I remember you. We met in the station before," Xie Yu had given a simple reminder. He Chao had a good memory, and he hadn't forgotten the experience of squatting in the station and writing self-criticisms during the summer. 

He was his boyfriend's friend, and Xie Yu felt it necessary to please him. After wracking his brain, he finally complimented him, "Friend, you wrote a good self-criticism, great writing skills."

Xie Yu: "..."

The cigarette that Zhou Dalei had just lit almost fell out of his mouth: "..." 

"Who is this person anyway!" After asking, he pondered over the three word "station" and, coupled with this person's cheekiness, he remembered, "Is it that handsome guy who wore a mask?"

Getting closer, He Chao responded shamelessly in a loud voice, "Yes, it's me. The most handsome guy in the station." 

He Chao was a sociable person who could strike up a conversation with anyone, regardless of whether he knew them or not. Xie Yu couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Do you have no shame?"

Zhou Dalei actually wanted to continue chatting with this brother, "Hey, Boss Xie, what a coincidence, you guys are from the same school? Friends?"

Xie Yu paused for a moment and said, "Mm, friends."

Boyfriends, to be exact.

Zhou Dalei didn't think too much about it, and Xie Yu didn't say anything more. 

Although they were secretly dating at school, Xie Yu had no plans to hide their relationship. If Zhou Dalei ever asked, he would probably just admit it outright: Boyfriends, surprised?

After Xie Yu hung up the phone, He Chao asked, "Are you going back this weekend?"

"Yeah," Xie Yu said, "to my godmother's place."

He Chao thought for a moment, "That godmother who's a big shot in the underworld?" 

Xie Yu never expected that a casual remark he made to He Chao would still be remembered by him. Although Aunt Mei had a bit of a temper and gave off a vibe of a gangster, she was still a legitimate businesswoman.

Coincidentally, the school bell rang as everyone started packing up and leaving. The results hadn't been announced yet, so some were happy while others were worried. Liu Cunhao and his friends stood at the classroom door, waving at them from afar, "See you later!"

He Chao had his arm draped over Xie Yu's shoulder and maintained this posture as he waved back at Liu Cunhao, "Goodbye."

Liu Cunhao was no longer surprised by this scene. These two had openly held hands in class and there was even a huge CP for them on the school forum.

Xie Yu went back to the dorm to pack up his things, with He Chao following him every step of the way. 

He grabbed a few pieces of clothing and turned around to grab his phone charger. As he turned, he bumped into He Chao. "Can you find a quiet place to sit for a while?" he asked.

"I can't be quiet," He Chao replied. "I realized that we won't see each other for the next two days - 48 hours, 2880 minutes, 172800 seconds..."

Xie Yu was too focused on forcing He Chao onto the bed to notice anything wrong, and he didn't pay attention to He Chao's mental calculations.

"Sit down," Xie Yu said as he pushed He Chao onto the bed. He gritted his teeth and even patted He Chao's head, but his tone was not very good. "If you keep following me around aimlessly, I'll beat you up."

He Chao: "..."

Xie Yu didn't go directly to Blackwater Street, but instead went back to the Zhong family first. 

Madam Gu was still cooking, wearing her apron when she came to open the door. "You're back? Why didn't you give me a heads up?" she asked.

Gu Xuelan then bombarded him with questions about the school's food, whether he had lost weight, and the mid-term exam results.

Xie Yu took an apple from the fruit plate and leaned against the kitchen door. "It's okay," he said.

This "okay" was ambiguous, and no one knew what it meant.

"What do you mean by 'okay'?" Gu Xuelan asked. "Are you going to get second to last place again?"

Xie Yu didn't say anything, and Gu Xuelan didn't dwell on the topic. She inexplicably started talking about the student who ranked last in their grade: "Your desk mate, does he always get last place?"

After Gu Xuelan finished speaking, she sighed.

Xie Yu actually felt that his mood was probably similar to Madam Gu's at times. 

Madam Gu had originally planned to cook two dishes, but ended up cooking a few more and was busy in the kitchen for a while.

Xie Yu sat on the sofa waiting for dinner, but couldn't resist the urge to look down at his phone and type out each word slowly on the browser: "What should I do if my boyfriend doesn't like to study?"