In the quiet of the night, her voice seemed to carry some kind of bewitchment that was soft and lingering.

Lu Huaiyu stood in front of the French windows and looked out at the flashing of the beautiful flowing light.

He laughed, his voice low and languid.

“Do you miss your brother?”

Shen Li shrank back under the covers of her bed again and answered softly.

“Yes.”

He tilted his head and slightly raised his head. His jawline was sharp and smooth, and his slender fingers with distinct joints slowly tugged at the collar of his shirt.

He chuckled, his voice a little hoarse.

“However, brother more than misses you.”

He did not seem to have said anything, yet it also seemed as if he had said everything.

The tips of Shen Li’s ears felt like it was boiling hot.

He asked, “Shall I go to look for you today?”

Shen Li thought for a moment.

“Shall we have lunch together? Grandpa asked me to return to Hong Kong Cty with my first uncle and the others today. We should be leaving in the afternoon.”

Lu Huaiyu was silent for quite a while.

“Second Brother, are you still listening?”

His melodious laughter reached her ears, causing them to tingle.

“Shen Tangtang.”

He asked with a languid smile. His words were tinged with a rare feeling of regret and pity, but also sounded as if he was suppressing something. Beneath the calm surface of the sea, an undercurrent was quietly surging.

“Why, you’re not even twenty years old yet.”

She was Shen Zhijin’s daughter, and also the young miss of the Gu family.

The family was her blood relatives, and the pearl had finally returned. So of course, for the moment, he would not compete with them.

However, the longing in his heart was also hard to restrain.

Just having a meal together was not enough for him.

“Now that the situation is like this, I don’t have a status. How can I compete with the Gu family and Teacher Shen for you?”

He teased with a smile.

She was a member of the Shen family and also a member of the Gu family.

However, she was not a member of the Lu family yet.

“Is there even a need to compete?”

Shen Li understood what he meant and could not help but laugh.

“Lu Huaiyu, what are you thinking about?”

Lu Huaiyu raised his eyebrows.

“I miss you. It’s because I miss you so much that I want to compete for you. Shen Tangtang, look to your conscience. Is this all your fault?”

It had already been difficult enough to woo his girlfriend, and now it was even more so.

Shen Li thought about it seriously.

“What you said seems to make sense.”

She had to spend time with her family on both sides, so she naturally had less time for Lu Huaiyu.

After thinking about it repeatedly, she asked tentatively, “Then… shall I help you?”

When Lu Huaiyu heard this, he did not immediately understand what she meant. He only asked subconsciously, “Hmm?”

Shen Li rolled over.

“I said, let me help you. Then, look at your chances of winning. Don’t you think your chances would be a little higher?”

Lu Huaiyu finally understood.

He laughed. His slightly raised voice was filled with undisguised joy.

“Oh? So, the referee wants to be biased?”

“No?”

Lu Huaiyu was silent for a moment. Then, a low and husky sound spilled out of his throat, as if he was laughing.

“Yes.”

Why not?

Shen Li’s eyelashes fluttered slightly, and her voice was soft.

“Lu Huaiyu, actually, you really don’t have to compete for me.”

“Because even if you didn’t compete for me, I’ll still be yours.”

…

The various departments of Xijing University had different holidays, and the Institute of Physics was one of the earliest.

After the end of the final exams, Shen Li’s holiday officially began.

She rarely slept in, but this morning, she only woke up at 10 am.

When she came out of the bedroom, she found that Shen Zhijin was still at home. She was a little surprised.

“Dad, weren’t you going to the lab today?”

Unlike her, who was already on holiday, Shen Zhijin still had a lot of work to do.

The three senior brothers were still at the school, continuing to work on their experiments. They would only be on holiday for two weeks during the New Year. As a teacher, Shen Zhijin also had a lot of related matters to deal with.

Apart from that, he still had a few projects on hand. He really did not have much leisure time.

When Shen Zhijin saw her come out, he reheated a sandwich and warmed up some milk before placing it on the table.

“You’re awake? Come over and eat. I’ll go after you’re done.”

Ever since she had moved here, Shen Zhijin had brought a lot of his work home in order to spend more time with her.

He was also very insistent on small things like eating breakfast together.

Even if it meant that it made him very late.

Shen Li walked over, pulled out a chair, and sat down. She smiled at Shen Zhijin.

“Thank you, Dad.”

Shen Zhijin also sat down to eat with her.

Shen Li took a bite of the luncheon meat and said, “Dad, you don’t have to wait for me all the time. I can make breakfast myself.”

She did not want to waste Shen Zhijin’s time because of this.

After spending the past few months as a teacher and student, she knew very well how strict Shen Zhijin was in his way of doing things.

His time was very precious. Everything was arranged in an orderly manner, even to the point of being precise to the minute.

He had an extremely precise system of measuring when to do what, and how to do what.

Shen Zhijin handed her a napkin. His handsome and clean face looked the same as before as he said calmly, “It’s more important to have breakfast with you.”

He did have a lot of work to do, but those things could never be compared to her.

Those things were not even in the same dimension at all. He would never compare her with those things, regardless of whether it was horizontal or vertical.

Shen Li took a piece of tissue paper to wipe away the crumbs at the corner of her lips. When she heard that, her eyes curved in a smile.

Shen Zhijin asked, “Are you going to Hong Kong City in the afternoon?”

“Yes, I’ve already spoken to uncle and the others.”

“That’s good. You’ve been busy revising and taking exams recently. You should go and have some fun.”

When Shen Li heard him say that, she suddenly thought of something and leaned forward.

“Dad, when will you be going? You’re not really just going to wait until the 8th, are you?”

Shen Zhijin pursed his lips slightly but did not immediately answer her question.

In fact, he rarely went to Hong Kong City all these years.

Shen Li blinked.

“There are still so many days in between. Won’t you miss me?”

Shen Zhijin did not answer her second question.

His expression softened and he smiled.

“There’ll be a two-day meeting of the Scientific Advisory Committee on the 5th at the Mill Institute of Astrophysics in Hong Kong City. I’ve already agreed to attend. I’ll go over after I’m done here.”

The Mill Institute of Astrophysics was one of the five major international institutes of astrophysics. It was very famous.

Shen Zhijin was one of the seven scientific advisory committee members.

In the past, he would usually attend such meetings in the form of a video conference.

However, this time was different.

When Shen Li heard him say that, her lips curled into a playful smile.

“Then, I’ll wait for you in Hong Kong City.”