Four people left, and five returned, with an extra girl. Naturally, Da Qiang had to give up his front passenger seat.

Even without any explanation, anyone could tell that this girl had a close relationship with San'er, probably as his girlfriend.

Only Su Qing knew that their relationship hadn't reached that level, but it was even more painful than if it had.

The former might bring a tidal wave of sadness, while the latter was like a dormant volcano, wanting to erupt but lacking the outlet, not even having a proper identity.

In such a situation, the pressure just built up secretly, waiting for an eruption that would surely be earth-shattering.

In this day and age, there's plenty of free love and breakups, even estrangement, but such fiery passion is rare.

So even someone like Wang Xing, the gold medal simp, wasn't worried that a breakup would lead to self-harm. At worst, it would just mean he'd be down for a while, right?

So no matter how many times Wang Xing and Jiang Mengting broke up and got back together, he didn't care. It was inevitable they'd split for good, leaving his mind at ease.

But for San'er, it was unfortunate; if he'd been sensible, they might've lived happily ever after, maybe even had kids by now.

But then he was a fool, taking off without a care, while the girl waited for three years, running into him at last.

If he hadn't known about it, that would be one thing, but since he did, he couldn't just pretend he didn't. On the way back, he kept thinking about how to resolve this situation.

By the time they returned to the city, it was already past one in the afternoon. The road back wasn't as congested as it was that morning, so they made better time.

The five of them headed straight to the back gate of the Experimental High School and ordered five bowls of noodles at a place they frequented in high school.

Luckily, high school was busy and not yet on summer vacation.

No one mentioned anything about San'er, instead reliving old memories as they strolled around their usual high school hangouts.

They chatted and laughed, and Xu Yuezhen felt at peace visiting the places her beloved frequented. In the eyes of the group, she naturally stepped into the role of "San'er."

It was as if Xu Yuezhen was seeking traces of Meng Ziming in them, while they regarded her as a stand-in for San'er, fulfilling each other.

Miraculously, Xu Yuezhen fit in quickly, as she clearly knew their personalities, having heard about them more than once before. Meng Ziming often talked about his friends, even joking about their antics.

During those three years, she reminisced countless times about their brief time together, and she remembered their personalities clearly.

It made Su Qing and the others feel as if San'er had come back.

The basketball court.

"Pass the ball, pass the ball!"

"Damn it, Slender Dog, can you handle this or not?"

"Old A, quickly, get past him!"

"Qingzi, block him, block him!"

The five of them arrived at a basketball court. Despite the drizzle, their enthusiasm wasn't dampened. The court was empty except for them.

They didn't bench Xu Yueru on the sidelines; instead, they invited her to join in a two-on-three match.

They set ground rules: the girl could hold the ball without being blocked, and shooting wouldn't be guarded. In this setup, Xu Yuezhen's involvement wasn't lacking, or rather, she seemed eager to join.

Despite her frail frame and a shooting posture similar to most girls, everyone was having a good time.

After a while, they were worn out and headed straight to an internet café near the school, which had been around for years. It was a wonder it hadn't gone under, though its machines were now outdated, yet the five still chose it.

With the machines all sorted, the group sat together. Fortunately, high schoolers hadn't started summer break yet, or finding five adjacent seats would've been impossible.

Xu Yueru logged into San'er's account, whose login credentials they all knew well, having borrowed each other's accounts many times before.

Seeing that familiar QQ account online again after three years left them stunned for a moment.

On the game interface, guided by the others, Xu Yuezhen picked San'er's signature hero, Torosuo.

Five matches in a row, and not a single win. Despite the four of them playing exceptionally, Xu kept dragging them down. Previously, they would've started shouting, but now, regarding "San'er's" account, all they said was, "No worries, take your time!" "You'll carry from the bottom lane!" "The top lane will do great!" "Jungle, stop feeding!"

When the screen finally displayed the defeat screen, with their base crystal being destroyed, the five of them sat in silence. Especially Su Qing and the other three, just staring blankly at the screen.

Later, one day, when they finally had time to game, including Su Qing, they believed that awakening the gamer within was all they needed. They decided to wake themselves up.

"Hey, kid, wake up, it's gaming time, let's gather for a five-player squad!"

But they realized that 'kid' was no longer there.

When an adult tries to relive adolescent experiences, it might be easy to do, but the fun is greatly diminished, sometimes even lost entirely.

The most fun you can have gaming is when you're not playing to the fullest.

Gaming is only truly enjoyable with friends by your side.

In the past, when there were five of them, they'd always think they'd have plenty of time once they got into college, started working, got married, but that kind of happiness couldn't be replicated, no matter how well Xu Yuezhen fit in; she couldn't replace it.

In just three short years, it may not seem long, but some people leave and never come back.

Thinking back to when they just started high school, they'd eagerly rush to play in an internet café during their lunch break, risking being penalized for returning late.

Now, no one monitored them, no curfews imposed. They could play all day, all week, all month, or even a year if they wanted, but it just wasn't the same fun anymore.

The reason being, "It is never as exciting when buying osmanthus wine as tourists in their youthful days."

Feeling like they had enough, they left the café. Su Qing drove everyone around Jiang City, or, more precisely, took Xu Yuezhen on a tour of the city, even going to the outskirts to look at San'er's old home.

Especially when passing by his family home. Once a brand-new entrance, it seemed rundown after just three years, and the whole house lacked a certain vitality.

No one got out of the car; they just sat there, observing.

At eight in the evening, the group found a barbecue place near the school.

The sky was still gloomy, and it intermittently drizzled throughout the day, never really clearing up, yet many people were still eating barbecue.

Some drank, while others ate skewers.

"How long do you two plan to stay back this time?" Su Qing asked with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Da Qiang replied, "I've got a train at four in the morning tomorrow."

"In such a hurry?" They were all surprised.

In response, Ding Qiang shook his head with a bitter smile and said, "Gotta earn money!"

In just those four words, he left everyone silent.

"My dad's not in good health. As for me, I'm not good at studying, so I need to help earn money. You wouldn't believe it, but last month, when my dad called, he said, 'Son, can you buy me a portable charger? I'm not good at online shopping; it's hard to work without it.'

"Honestly, when he used that pleading tone, I felt terrible. Maybe it's finally time for me to grow up."

"It seems the once unreachable roof of our family is no longer protecting me from wind and rain. It's time I became a new roof myself."

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded. The price of growing up is never pleasant. Even Su Qing had to admit he hadn't really grown up yet. At least, his family didn't rely on him to hold everything together. Even if he wanted to, Old Su wouldn't agree, probably encouraging him to take it easy instead.

Da Qiang's father was a construction worker; his notebook wasn't filled with Old Su's diary entries but labor schedules.

As children, our parents wake us; when we grow up, it's the mundanity of life — rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and tea.

If growing up means that our parents still suffer, then there's no point in it. Da Qiang realized this way before any of us did.

It's him who, without a narrative, a few years from now, might regret not studying well or not becoming the apple of his parents' eyes.

Upon hearing this, the usually quiet Xu Yuezhen suddenly spoke up, "Back in college, there was this one time my grandpa sent me living expenses, five hundred, and then said sorry. I cried all night that day.

"But you still have a chance to make it up. Keep it up!"

With just two sentences, it was clear that this girl's family situation might have been tough, making her mature early.

"Thank you, I'll do my best," Da Qiang said as he placed the keychain he was carrying in front of her.

"San'er gave this to me. I'm giving it to you. Make money and live well!"

...

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