Chapter 12: Young Love
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Zhou Xia admitted that her past relationship with Shen Lin was part of her plan in the beginning. When they dated, she could not deny that she was still inexperienced. She didn't even fully understand what liking and loving someone meant. However, no one else made her heart flutter and befuddled her mind apart from Shen Lin.
People would always say that your first love was unforgettable. When Zhou Xia was young, she felt this saying was too pretentious. Thinking about it now, she realized it was really true.
After all, it was the only moment in one's life where people could naively open their hearts to another person. Zhou Xia felt so silly that she actually fell for Shen Lin. She became reluctant to trick or scheme against him.
Even though Shen Lin was still standing in front of her, Zhou Xia had to admit that she would not be so naive as to fall for him like before.
Zhou Xia was like a bystander as she considered Shen Lin's marriage proposal. She did not rely on her emotion as she evaluated his suitability. She became uncertain about having Shen Lin as a lifetime partner.
At a young age, pure love was easy to come by. Why did it become so rare as people aged?
Zhou Xia turned her head and stole a glance at Shen Lin. She noticed that he was still tense. She felt even more guilty. "If my behavior in the past has hurt you, I apologize."
"No need." Shen Lin said coldly, "You were in such a hurry to break up with me. But why didn't you get any good results in your exam?"
Zhou Xia's abated anger suddenly surged up again. She was displeased. "Isn't Huachen University among the best too?"
Shen Lin did not give her any face at all. "Even good schools have low-scoring majors."
Zhou Xia was like a deflating balloon with its air sucked out.
Her college entrance examination score was lower than all the mock exams, so she couldn't major in Clinical Medicine at Huachen University. The only available option was to major in Preventive Medicine. In the end, she somehow obtained her Ph.D.
"Let's return first. We'll talk later." Shen Lin urged her impatiently.
Zhou Xia followed behind Shen Lin and grunted at his back before getting into the car.
She lowered her head to fasten her seat belt and pretended to be relaxed as she asked, "How much is your mid-year bonus?"
If it wasn't a lot, Zhou Xia could just compensate him to be rest assured.
Shen Lin looked straight ahead. He stepped on the accelerator and replied calmly, "Not much. Just a little more than 60,000."
Zhou Xia's eyes widened in disappointment. "Over 60,000?"
"What's wrong? Do you think it is not much?"
"The mid-year bonus is more than 60,000 yuan. As for the year-end bonus, it would be at least 120,000 yuan. What do you mean by not much? I can only earn half of your bonus if I work as a sales agent for a year."
To be honest, Zhou Xia was a little jealous of him.
They were both medical students, so why was there such a huge difference in their income?
The more Zhou Xia thought about it, the more flustered she became. "I can't afford to pay more than 60,000 yuan. We'll talk about the divorce after you get your mid-year bonus then."
"Alright," Shen Lin agreed. His tone was calm and flat.
After a moment of silence, Shen Lin asked her, "Where should I drop you?"
"I'm going back to my parent's house."
When the car was about to reach the main entrance of the residential area, Zhou Xia suddenly realized something. She quickly asked Shen Lin to stop the car. Shen Lin stopped the car steadily at a junction away from the residential area.
He glanced at her and said coldly, "Are you afraid that your parents will find out?"
Zhou Xia turned her head away to avoid eye contact with him. She did not want to look at his well-defined face. It always reminded her of the past.
When she was with Shen Lin, they went to school and came home together. However, the two would reach their house at different times.
Zhou Xia did not answer Shen Lin's question. She changed the topic. "My mother said that you and your mother are moving back. Is it true?"
"No, she came back to live on her own. This place is too far away from the First People's Hospital of Huachen. It would be a hassle."
"Yeah, the travel is really inconvenient. I struggled with going to school from here too."
Otherwise, she wouldn't have rented an apartment outside.
"Why don't you live in the school dormitory?"
Zhou Xia rolled her eyes at him. "Aren't I selling those things? It would be troublesome to stay in the dormitory."
As for what she was selling, she didn't need to explain to him.
"Why aren't you studying hard? Why are you doing all these things?"
"I'm short of money."
Shen Lin did not expect that. "You want money? How much do you need?"
Zhou Xia looked at him in confusion. "Why do you ask?"
"Let's see if I can help you. After all, even if we can't stay married, we were once classmates."
-- Gift
received