Jiang Ruotang coaxed, “Oh, don’t be like that! When we go to university later, you’ll be studying sports and I’ll be doing art, so we definitely won’t be together. Won’t you regret it if you miss me and we don’t even have a photo together?”

“Bah, bah, bah, what regret, that’s nonsense!”

Zhao Changfeng was impatient, but it was rare for him to be dressed so nicely today, so taking a picture with Jiang Ruotang was fine.

So the two of them huddled together. To match Jiang Ruotang’s height, Zhao Changfeng even specifically bent down. They stood quite close. Zhao Changfeng initially didn’t want to smile, but Jiang Ruotang kept pinching the soft flesh on his waist, making Zhao Changfeng laugh.

This scene was captured on Zhao Changfeng’s phone.

In the distance, Qin Zhanchao had returned to his mother’s side. Their gazes happened to fall upon Jiang Ruotang and Zhao Changfeng, who were playfully taking photos.

“Ruotang has changed quite a lot this year; he’s completely different from what I remember.”

“Oh? How is he different?” Qin Zhanchao looked at his mother.

“Just last year, he was upset because his father was with Zhao Yunshu, but look now, how well he gets along with Zhao Yunshu’s son? Like biological brothers. A harmonious family is more important than anything.”

“Isn’t it because Zhao Yunshu agreed to the property notarization? It’s said that only Ruotang can inherit Uncle Jiang’s shares. With the stepmother and stepbrother no longer a threat, Jiang Ruotang doesn’t need to be wary of them anymore. It’s better to show fraternal harmony in front of outsiders.”

Qin Zhanchao thought of his own uncle and cousin. Having experienced infighting and family strife, he never believed in kinship, only eternal interests.

“But from what your Uncle Jiang said, Ruotang is genuinely very good to Changfeng. Changfeng’s trainer and physical coach were both specially requested by Ruotang from his father, and even when Changfeng was selected by Capital University of Sports for tryouts, it was Ruotang who specifically edited his game videos and sent them to the opposing coach. Ruotang cares a lot about Changfeng. Among boys, once they understand each other, their feelings improve exceptionally quickly.”

Qin Zhanchao glanced at Jiang Ruotang. He had only played like that with his cousin when they were very young.

There was no blood relation between Jiang Ruotang and Zhao Changfeng. In the future, if Zhao Changfeng ever touched Jiang Ruotang’s interests, would he still be so good to him?

The banquet ended, and Jiang Ruotang sat in the back seat of the car, flipping through his photos on his phone.

“Tsk, tsk, narcissistic,” Zhao Changfeng grumbled.

“Is that so? Is this considered narcissistic?” Jiang Ruotang extended his phone to Zhao Changfeng, the screen showing Zhao Changfeng’s cheeks puffed out from eating.

“You took a candid shot of me!”

“To be fair, I practically shoved the phone in your face; you were just too engrossed in eating!”

“You… you’re not allowed to send it to the group, or I’ll break up with you!”

“I’ll keep it for my own enjoyment, reviewing your silly eating face every day.”

After some playful bickering, the two arrived home.

After showering, Jiang Ruotang returned to his room and checked his phone, finding that Zhao Changfeng had already posted many photos in the small group chat.

There were various delicacies and night views outside the restaurant’s floor-to-ceiling windows. Although the guy paid no attention to composition when taking photos, it was enough to elicit gasps of “wow” from Cai Ji and Jian Sha.

Jiang Ruotang originally wanted to post his own photos too, but that would seem truly narcissistic.

Moreover… Lu Guifan hadn’t said a word in the small group, probably reading.

Couldn’t this guy pay attention to anything besides math and physics?

Jiang Ruotang inexplicably felt a strong urge to fill this academic prodigy’s mind with some fun things.

He selected a few of his own photos and sent them directly to Lu Guifan.

[Am I handsome?]

After a long while, Lu Guifan didn’t respond. Jiang Ruotang pouted, thinking that this guy must be reading the journal Professor Yang sent him from overseas.

How annoying, journals are more important than living, breathing people!

But even if Lu Guifan saw his photos, he’d probably just calmly comment “vain.”

A few minutes later, Lu Guifan returned to his room after showering, read for a while longer, and only when setting his alarm before bed did he realize Jiang Ruotang had sent several messages that he hadn’t seen.

His deskmate looked very handsome in his tuxedo, with a refreshing smile and sparkling eyes, like a luminous body.

Lazy, casual, lively, and even a little cute.

Lu Guifan leaned back against the headboard, his fingers zooming in on Jiang Ruotang’s photo. He didn’t know when it started, but he always felt that everything about Jiang Ruotang was good. The way he leaned close was adorable, and his eyes seemed to hold stars when he smiled.

Lu Guifan didn’t know what counted as a good-looking person, but Jiang Ruotang was truly good-looking.

Unconsciously, Lu Guifan leaned back and looked for a long time.

Although he knew Jiang Ruotang was probably asleep by then, seeing his message [Am I handsome?], he still typed “very handsome” on his phone.

---

The next morning, Jiang Ruotang was woken up by his alarm.

He groggily reached for his phone, glanced at the time, and saw one unread message.

Rubbing his eyes, Jiang Ruotang casually opened the message. It was a reply from Lu Guifan?

The words “very handsome” made Jiang Ruotang suddenly sit up, as if he had been injected with a burst of energy.

The iron tree had bloomed. Lu Guifan actually complimented him on being handsome?

Shouldn’t this guy have seriously replied “boring”?

Indeed, being deskmates meant deskmate treatment.

On the way to school, a quick scroll through his phone showed that Bai Yingchuan was once again dominating the headlines on major platforms. Fans’ affection for him had deepened, and his bold display of his flaw even earned him goodwill from some passersby.

Especially the phrase “Imperfect cracks are where light gets in,” which seemed to herald Bai Yingchuan’s “rebirth.”

But Jiang Ruotang only cared whether this wave of traffic had boosted Sweet Fruit’s popularity. The world was big, but making money was biggest.

Upon arriving at school, Jian Sha excitedly came over and asked him if he had seen any celebrities at the banquet.

Jiang Ruotang named a few major actors who often collaborated with Huanyu, and Jian Sha sighed, “Jiang Ruotang, your life compared to ours is simply like another world.”

Lu Guifan, beside them, lowered his eyes and quietly looked at his reference book.

Jiang Ruotang shrugged, “What other world? If you get a chance to go, you’ll see how boring it is. It’s no different from a parent-teacher conference, just people boasting. Except at parent-teacher conferences, they boast about their kids getting good grades without studying hard, and at that banquet, they boast about seeing celebrities without makeup or drinking with film emperors and empresses.”

Zhao Changfeng nodded: “The key is that the mini cakes weren’t even as good as those at the dessert shop three streets away from school.”

Jiang Ruotang nodded: “See? How practical Changfeng’s summary is.”

A moment later, Jiang Ruotang leaned towards Lu Guifan again, “Class monitor, we’ve been deskmates for over three months now.”

“Hmm, what’s up?” Lu Guifan raised his eyelids slightly.

“Let’s take a picture together. We’re deskmates, but we don’t have a single photo. If you become some famous scholar in the future, I’ll have no evidence to prove that we were once deskmates,” Jiang Ruotang said very seriously.

Before Lu Guifan could answer, Jian Sha teased, “Why does that sound like ‘we’re in love, but we don’t even have a single photo together, no proof we ever loved each other to reminisce about’?”

Jiang Ruotang’s face darkened: “Sister Sha, what kind of chaotic novels do you read every day? It feels like you’ve ruined your brain.”

Lu Guifan, however, said, “Then let’s take one.”

At this, Jian Sha’s eyes lit up, and she directly reached out to Jiang Ruotang: “Come on, come on, I’ll help you two take it!”

Jiang Ruotang hadn’t held out much hope, always feeling that Lu Guifan wasn’t the type to reminisce about the past. For him, high school was probably just a phase in life, no need for sentimentality, but he didn’t expect Lu Guifan to agree.

He looked at Lu Guifan with some surprise.

Jian Sha had already taken her phone and stood in front of them, snapping her fingers: “Two handsome guys, look at me.”

Jiang Ruotang’s throat moved. At that moment, his mind went blank. He didn’t care about striking a pose or whether he looked bad in the picture. He was simply happy, his heart pounding, an unparalleled emotion surging through his blood.

The twenty-eight-year-old Lu Guifan once showed Jiang Ruotang that high school graduation photo.

At that time, Jiang Ruotang had been marginalized in class due to his father’s situation, standing inconspicuously in the back corner.

Lu Guifan, however, sat beside the homeroom teacher, his calm and gentle gaze looking forward.

They were worlds apart in that small photo, as if separated by a thousand mountains and rivers.

But at this moment, Lu Guifan’s arm rested on Jiang Ruotang’s shoulder, his palm very warm.

Jiang Ruotang tilted his head. He didn’t smile too broadly, because once he smiled too happily, his eyes would curve.

“You two are so serious; you look like you’re together in body but not in spirit.” Jian Sha reached out her hand and pushed their heads closer together. “That’s better!”

After taking two more photos, Jian Sha returned the phone to Jiang Ruotang.

Jiang Ruotang smiled at Jian Sha: “You’re being so kind to take pictures for us? What do you want in return? Spit it out!”

Jian Sha wore an expression that said, “You truly understand me.” “I also want to take a set of commemorative photos at school before the college entrance exam. Jiang Ruotang, you’re a director’s son after all. With you, take a set of atmospheric blockbusters for me.”

Jiang Ruotang suddenly felt a heavy responsibility. “Atmospheric blockbusters?”

Does that mean I have to learn Photoshop temporarily?

On the blackboard behind them, the college entrance exam countdown changed from three digits to two. As it approached zero, everyone’s hearts were filled not only with panic about the exam but also with uncertainty about their future and… the sadness of impending separation.

Some small, transparent, pure things in life, after leaving this campus, how much of them could still be preserved?