Chapter 215: The Harvest of the Heart

Leaving the Shanghai Medical College, Li Heng felt happy and exhilarated.

Although Xiao Han had once again politely declined to be his girlfriend today, he hadn't missed out on any kisses or hugs, and he had even slept with his head on her lap. Every time he came over, there was progress; every time he came over, he managed to pry open a little more of her heart. This was the greatest harvest.

Compared to the dawdling of his previous life, the relationship between the two in this life could be said to have leaped forward by a thousand miles, progressing extremely quickly. He believed that after a few more such surprise attacks, she definitely wouldn't be able to hold out.

Inviting her to Fudan University this time could also be considered a minor "sunny scheme"—to create a sense of urgency in her, so that she would agree to him sooner.

Having spent a lifetime together, Li Heng knew this black-bellied girl inside and out. Her greatest characteristics were: being understanding and warm-hearted, treating him even better than she treated herself, and possessing immense patience and resilience.

In other words, "marry a chicken, follow the chicken; marry a dog, follow the dog." Once she made a choice, no matter how bitter or tiring it was, she would grit her teeth and accept it.

Actually, Song Yu was also this type of person, but she was relatively proud and reserved; no matter how much effort he put in over a short period, he wouldn't see significant results. That she could accompany him to stay out overnight on her birthday last time was already an unprecedented achievement. Later, when he encountered Chen Zijin, hadn't she shrunk back again?

To summarize: she clearly advanced 10 meters, but the moment she encountered an issue, she shrunk back 9.5 meters, leaving a final progress of only 0.5 meters.

Moreover, Xiao Han's temperament was fiercer than Song Yu's. If he were to win over Song Yu first, the difficulty of dealing with the fickle Xiao Han would rise geometrically; it would be much harder than dealing with Song Yu later on.

So, this was also the reason why, between Song Yu and Xiao Han, he was more inclined to win over Xiao Han first.

Because Song Yu's temperament was gentler, when facing this type, as long as one could endure the time, the core essence was "grinding." Good things take time, after all.

Of course, the premise of "grinding" was that the other person had you in their heart. If they didn't, then waiting until the end of time would be useless. It would just be blind effort.

When he arrived at Yang Pu by bus, Li Heng didn't return to school first; instead, he went straight to the cake shop without stopping.

When he went out in the morning, he had ordered a cake here in advance.

As soon as he stepped through the door, he shouted, "Boss, picking up a birthday cake."

The boss came out from the back room, looked up at the wall clock, and said, "It's almost 9 o'clock, and you're only just coming? If it weren't for waiting for you, I would have closed up and gone home."

Li Heng smiled sheepishly and apologized, "I had something to do when I went out today, so I was temporarily delayed for a while."

The boss had been making cakes for many years and had seen all kinds of customers, so he didn't have much resentment. He took a cake off the shelf and placed it in front of him. "Take a look."

Li Heng lifted the lid to check, felt very satisfied, said thank you, and briskly carried it away.

It was indeed a bit late, and he wondered if Comrade Mai Sui was still at the small building at this hour? With these thoughts, he quickly hurried back to Lushan Village.

Yo, isn't this the fake Daoist?

Why does the woman beside him not look like Chen Siya?

Just as he reached the entrance of the Lushan Village alley, he ran head-on into the fake Daoist and a young woman; the two were chatting and laughing, presumably out for a walk.

Li Heng took the initiative to greet them jokingly: "Fu-sang, the sun is bright, and the spring scenery is brilliant!"

Old Fu grinned, baring his teeth, and said, "You brat! You're a person of some standing, yet you only know how to spout nonsense. Why are you carrying a birthday cake so late?"

Li Heng shook the cake in his hand: "It's Mai Sui's birthday today, it's for her."

"That girl's birthday? Save me a piece, I'll come over to eat some later," Old Fu said.

"Eh, sure. Then I'll go first, won't disturb you two." Before leaving, Li Heng quickly sized up the young woman; her external conditions were okay, not much worse than Chen Siya's.

After he walked far away, the young woman asked curiously, "Why are you so polite to a student?"

Old Fu adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and said in a refined manner, "Heh, this brat is no ordinary student. The water is deep; he's the owner of Building 26."

"It's him?" The young woman was also a teacher at Fudan and had obviously heard the rumors about the rental, so she was particularly surprised.

"It's none other than him."

"What does he do? Does he have a background at home?"

"Yu Laoshi says he has a great background."

The young female teacher knew that Fu Yanjie was the tightest-lipped person, so she didn't press him further.

Building 26.

At this moment, the electric light was on, and Mai Sui was on the sofa opening reader letters, with several piles of letters placed on the coffee table in front of her.

The dozens of burlap sacks of reader letters were not only an affirmation of "Cultural Bitter Travel" but also the highest praise for the author himself. She picked out some reader letters to read with great interest, and while experiencing the readers' admiration, love, and praise for Li Heng, she also personally felt his enormous influence.

This was a fan letter.

This was a letter urging for a manuscript.

This was a literary exchange letter.

Eh, this, this is a love letter.

The readers were diverse, and the demands in black and white were also varied, especially this love letter, which stunned her!

Passionate! Crazy! Explicit! It even came with a photo.

The woman in the photo was clearly quite delicate; why could she write such words that made people have wild thoughts after reading them?

Halfway through reading the letter, Mai Sui, with burning ears, didn't dare to read any further and folded it up, preparing to put it back into the envelope.

Just at this moment, Li Heng pushed the door and entered.

He keenly felt that something was wrong. "Comrade Mai Sui, why is your face so red? Are you feeling unwell somewhere?"

It would have been better if he hadn't mentioned it; once he did, her face became even more flushed, burning and uncomfortable.

She couldn't explain it, so she handed the letter in her hand to him.

Li Heng took the letter, opened it, and took a look. He immediately burst out laughing, secretly thinking that the girl in front of him was still too conservative in her thinking. This was nothing; it was far behind the young ladies like Aso Nozomi and Maria Ozawa on the internet in his later life.

Seeing him laugh, Mai Sui became even more awkward and didn't dare to look at him.

Sensing her strangeness, Li Heng hurriedly restrained his expression and criticized solemnly, "This kind of letter should be thrown into the trash can; it has polluted Comrade Mai Sui's eyes."

As he spoke, he really threw the letter into the trash basket, then placed the cake he was carrying on the coffee table. "I saw you didn't have a cake yesterday, so I'm making up for it today. Happy birthday."

"Thank you." Mai Sui was a little happy, then asked with concern, "Why did you only come back at this hour?"

Li Heng said, "I overslept."

Mai Sui looked up, stunned: "Slept?"

Li Heng's facial muscles twitched, and he stared into her eyes and asked, "What are you thinking about?"

Her emotions hadn't completely receded from that love letter, so Mai Sui moved her gaze away calmly and joked, "Everything you do is legal; Xiao Han is your girlfriend after all."

Li Heng was speechless and sat down on the sofa opposite her: "So you really thought in that direction?"

Mai Sui smiled faintly and didn't speak.

Knowing that this girl had thin skin, Li Heng stopped while he was ahead, didn't pursue this topic, and instead said:

"It's already 9 o'clock. On the way, I was worried you had returned to the dormitory. Why don't you stay here for the night? I haven't had dinner yet, and it's rare to have free time, so keep me company and have some wine."

Hearing that he hadn't had dinner yet, Mai Sui got up and went straight to the kitchen to see what vegetables were left at home.

After a search, there were lettuce, pork ribs, eggs, and river shrimp.

Li Heng followed her in, "I'll take the ladle, you help me prep. Just make two or three dishes."

"Mm." Mai Sui habitually took the apron off the wall, preparing to tie it for him.

But halfway through, she paused, and the scene of the friction between the two last time suddenly appeared in her mind, leaving her at a loss for a moment.

Sensing this scene, Li Heng walked over, reached out to take the apron, tied it himself, and then picked up the pork ribs to wash them. While washing, he asked, "Which kind do you want to eat? Braised? Or soup?"

Mai Sui came back to her senses, her gaze fell on his back, and after two seconds, she said, "Braised, to go with the wine."

"Alright, then braised. Put more chili and garlic cloves in it; it'll be satisfying to eat." Li Heng was in a pretty good mood today, and even his speech was full of happy factors.

Mai Sui felt it and said with a soft smile, "Every time you come back from Xiao Han's side, you feel like a different person. Is this the power of love?"

"That's right, Comrade Mai Sui. When you meet true love in the future, you will understand that it is full of wonders everywhere," Li Heng said.

Mai Sui looked at the garlic cloves in her hand, was silent for a long time, and asked, "What is true love?"

Li Heng was stunned for a moment, then opened his mouth to answer: "This is hard to say, and there are no boundaries. Individuals judge based on their own circumstances."

Mai Sui's eyes were burning, "Then tell me your feelings."

Li Heng thought for a while and said: "Love is a thing that is sometimes very beautiful and sometimes very cruel. I'm afraid that if you hear it, you might not necessarily accept it."

Mai Sui pricked up her ears to listen: "It's okay, you tell me."

Li Heng turned his head to glance at her and said faintly: "Then I'll say it, you judge for yourself.

For example, some people only need sweet talk to experience others' love; some people use half a lifetime of savings but find it hard to get her future; some people use nonsense in a few words to exchange for her turning around; while some people use their heartfelt words only to be hurt by her.

Some people play with true feelings but become her exception, while some people give their true hearts but cannot become her preference; some people play-act and get her sincere treatment, while some people are deeply affectionate and dedicated only to be met with hypocrisy.

Some people love from school uniforms to wedding dresses, while some people change from one family to another; some people are light-hearted without love, while some people become neurotic when in love; some people have slept enough without even loving, while some people have gone crazy with love without even touching.

So, what is true love? Everyone who falls into it thinks they have encountered true love. It depends on what she is pursuing?"

Mai Sui was stunned, and it was a long, long time before she sighed and said, "Is this the difference between a blank sheet of paper and a man of letters?"

Li Heng felt dizzy: "I have reason to suspect that you are pointing at the mulberry tree while scolding the locust tree."

Mai Sui smiled charmingly, "Isn't it? I feel like there are several points that fit you."

"Oh, which ones?" Li Heng asked.

Mai Sui lowered her head to peel garlic and said, "Some people change from one family to another, some people have slept enough without even loving."

"I!"

Li Heng was speechless: "What do you mean without even loving? I admit my ambition is a bit big, but I am sincere to the three of them."

"Yes!" Mai Sui didn't argue with him.

Seeing her being insincere, Li Heng felt even more stifled and extremely depressed: "I am increasing your reserve knowledge so that you won't be deceived by a scumbag in the future. But you are using them to deal with me. Touch your own conscience and tell me, does it hurt?"

Mai Sui laughed out loud, "Actually, I quite admire you. Do you know your popularity in our management school girls' dormitory?"

Li Heng raised his eyebrows: "Very high?"

"Mm, very high. Take our dormitory for example, out of 7 days a week, at least two nights I will hear them mention you. And this is while I am inside. If it were other dormitories, they wouldn't have any scruples and would definitely be more frequent," Mai Sui said.

Li Heng didn't doubt the authenticity of these words. After all, the big king Zhou Shihe was a typical example. Every time the boys in Dorm 325 talked about women, they couldn't avoid the other party, and his ears were really almost calloused from hearing it.

Li Heng asked an extra question: "Besides me, there are quite a few other boys, right?"

Mai Sui looked at his profile and said meaningfully, "There are indeed others mentioned, but none are as frequent as you. I'm thinking, if one day Xiao Han comes to our school, I guess their hearts will be shattered all over the ground."

Li Heng replied: "The weekend after next, Xiao Han will indeed come over."

Mai Sui heard this and didn't make a sound, nor did she ask why it was the weekend after next?

Instead, she was instinctively considering: she had to take the clothes in the secondary bedroom back to the dormitory as soon as possible to avoid causing misunderstandings.

Li Heng was facing away from her and didn't notice the change in her expression, keeping on chattering and chatting with her. The 4 dishes were soon ready.

Just as he brought the braised pork ribs, stir-fried lettuce shreds, egg silk soup, and leek river shrimp to the table, Li Heng hadn't had time to take off his apron when he saw the fake Daoist enter with a bottle of Moutai in his left hand and a gift box in his right.

As soon as the fake Daoist entered the room, he said happily, "Cough, coming early is not as good as coming at the right time. My timing is pretty good, hehe. Student Mai Sui, happy birthday. I've come to mooch a meal, you don't mind, right?"

"We are all so familiar, Fu Laoshi, you are being too serious. Sit down quickly, thank you for the gift." Mai Sui took the gift and enthusiastically moved a stool for the other party.

Seeing this, Li Heng said to Mai Sui, "Yu Laoshi across the street is also at home. It's lively with more people, I'll go call her."

Mai Sui understood his meaning. Fu Laoshi had already come, so naturally, Yu Laoshi had to be called over. Otherwise, it wouldn't be good if one family came and the other didn't.

The fake Daoist himself was a person who loved liveliness and wished he could have more people to drink with him.

Li Heng ran outside the courtyard gate and shouted at Building 25: "Yu Laoshi, are you free? Come down and have a drink together?"

Hearing the movement below, Yu Shuheng appeared in the second-floor attic, looked down at him from a high position, and then smiled and nodded.

Yu Laoshi had come, so they added a pair of chopsticks, and the three people became four.

Fortunately, he had met Old Fu at the alley entrance and said he was coming, so Li Heng had reserved a hand in advance. The portion of the four dishes was large enough, so they could barely manage to eat and drink.

For the first cup, the three toasted Mai Sui, wishing her a happy birthday.

Then

Then there was no then, just drink as you please.

After three rounds of drinks, the fake Daoist couldn't help but ask the doubt in his heart: "It's Mai Sui's birthday, why did Li Heng only come back at this hour?"

Li Heng said: "My girlfriend is in Shanghai. I had something to do today, so I went to visit her."

Although Xiao Han hadn't agreed in this life, he had hugged her and kissed her, and she had spent a lifetime with him in his previous life, so in his heart, she was his woman, and he had no psychological burden saying it.

When he said Xiao Han's name, he felt that Yu Laoshi looked at him several times.

When he looked up, Yu Shuheng had already withdrawn her gaze, looking as calm as water, as if what had just happened hadn't happened.

Could it be an illusion?

The next second, he denied this thought. It was definitely not an illusion. It seemed that Yu Laoshi had a certain understanding of his emotional life.

If he wasn't mistaken, it was the high school English teacher who told the other party, right?

Aiyo, with this thought, Li Heng stopped in time. He didn't want to delve into why the English teacher would tell Yu Laoshi about his emotional history?

The fake Daoist was confused, pointed at Mai Sui with the tip of his chopsticks, and then pointed at Li Heng, "So you brat didn't lie to me, Old Fu, last time?

Mai Sui really isn't your girlfriend. I thought you were just joking with me last time."

Mai Sui was afraid that Li Heng would be embarrassed, so she smiled and took over the conversation: "We have always played very well since high school."

She only said half of her words.

But the fake Daoist understood. They played well, so there were no scruples, don't think too much.

Yu Shuheng looked at Mai Sui, smiled elegantly, and asked, "Are you still used to Fudan?"

Mai Sui said: "It's okay, better than I expected."

The fake Daoist asked uncomprehendingly: "I heard that your college entrance examination score was only 2 points away from the Peking University cutoff line. It's a pity. Did you never think about repeating?"

Mai Sui asked: "Does Fu Laoshi think Peking University is much better than Fudan?"

The fake Daoist shook his head, took a sip of wine, and said happily: "I am eating Fudan's rice bowl now, so naturally, I shouldn't say too much. But if you have the ability to study at Peking University, I still recommend studying at Peking University."

Mai Sui pondered for a moment and said with a smile: "At first I thought so too, and I wanted to repeat. But later I changed my view. Actually, I am quite content coming to Fudan."

Hearing this, the fake Daoist raised his wine glass, "Open-minded! You are much more open than me, Old Fu. Come, this cup is for you."

Mai Sui was born to drink, so naturally, she wasn't afraid. She briskly raised her wine glass and clinked it with Old Fu's.

After drinking a cup of wine, the fake Daoist wiped the wine stains on the corner of his mouth with his sleeve and turned to ask Li Heng:

"I asked the old principal. Your first choice was Peking University. Why didn't you go to Peking University?"

Li Heng opened his mouth and said, "I didn't pass the exam. I was one point short in the college entrance examination."

"Heh, you brat, this kind of talk is fine to fool others. Among those present, who doesn't know that the score couldn't stop you from going to Peking University." The fake Daoist clearly didn't believe it.

Li Heng blinked, "My wife is in Shanghai, why would I go there?"

The fake Daoist looked at him, his eyes full of confusion: "That's the logic, it makes so much sense.

But, since your wife is in Shanghai, why did you fill in Peking University as your first choice? Don't tell me your wife also fell to Shanghai as a second choice?"

Mai Sui thought of Song Yu.

Yu Shuheng thought of Song Yu and Chen Zijin, thinking of one monk carrying water to drink, and two monks carrying water to drink. If Song Yu and Chen Zijin carried water with one heart, it probably wouldn't be so easy to carry, so that's why he came to Shanghai?

Li Heng shook his head: "That's not it. We discussed it with her when we filled in Peking University."

The fake Daoist still had some places he couldn't figure out, but he didn't ask anymore and kept greeting the three to drink.

Mai Sui had a huge capacity, so she wasn't afraid.

Li Heng's limit was one and a half cups of white wine; he couldn't take even one more drop, otherwise, he would fall immediately.

Yu Shuheng had been drinking quietly there, not showing her mountains or dew, and quite liked eating river shrimp. 8 out of 10 chopsticks were picking up small river shrimp to eat.

PS: Seeking subscriptions! Seeking monthly tickets!

The medicine is finished, I have to go get medicine in the afternoon, so I'll write up to here for now. I'll strive to update a chapter in the evening.

(End of chapter)