Riding his bicycle against the night breeze, Song Yunshen returned home and immediately ducked into his bedroom.
He took Xia Jinshu's reply out of his schoolbag, then retrieved the Future Diary he kept locked in his drawer and the diary he currently used, setting them both aside for later.
Then he solemnly placed Xia Jinshu's reply in the middle of his desk, gently opened the envelope, and pulled out the faintly fragrant letter paper.
In fact, Xia Jinshu's current handwriting still differed slightly from her writing style in the Future Diary.
Compared with the more casual yet mature handwriting in the Future Diary, the writing in this reply looked much neater and more careful. He could tell that Xia Jinshu had taken particular care when writing it.
But that also gave the reply a somewhat youthful feel.
Compared with the Xia Jinshu of seven or even eleven years later, she was still just a second-year high school girl.
He began reading the reply, and the graceful, delicate handwriting met Song Yunshen's eyes.
[Hello, fellow student,]
[Thank you so much for your advice. After that, I also had a thorough talk with Mom, and she gave me her tentative approval.]
[As for my grades, please don't worry. Although Ningjiang Middle School only ranks around fifth among schools in the city, I think being among the top ten in my year is respectable enough.]
[English in particular is one of my strong subjects.]
[If you have a suitable opportunity to recommend, please do recommend me. I'll give this job one hundred percent of my effort and take it seriously.]
[Of course, Mom also said she'd like to know more about the details. I hope you understand.]
[Thank you again for being willing to lend a helping hand. I look forward to your reply.]
[Xia Jinshu, Class 4, second year]
As Song Yunshen read the reply, an unsurprised expression appeared on his face.
Everything was more or less as he had expected.
After all, Xia Jinshu was in urgent need of tutoring opportunities, and he happened to be able to provide one. With the right remedy for the ailment, why worry that his future girlfriend wouldn't take the bait?
But when he reached the end, Song Yunshen couldn't help raising an eyebrow, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
She had actually signed her name.
In her first letter, Xia Jinshu had simply been submitting a letter to the English Club to practice her English grammar, as she usually did. She had thought Teacher Jiang would reply as before, so she hadn't signed it.
But when she wrote her second letter, for some reason, Xia Jinshu hadn't gone directly to find him in Class 5 of the first year. Instead, she had once again left the letter on the English Club's bookshelf.
Song Yunshen reasonably suspected that it was because too many boys usually pursued Xia Jinshu.
If someone saw her personally delivering a letter to a boy in Class 5, word would probably spread like wildfire through the school's gossip circles the next day.
After all, there were plenty of information brokers at school like Zhong Long, who sat behind Song Yunshen, and every one of them was well informed.
Once Zhong Long saw it, one could basically assume that everyone at school who paid attention to gossip would know.
On the other hand, Xia Jinshu probably didn't want to reveal her identity to an ordinary pen pal, either.
Otherwise, if she gave a young boy some unrealistic fantasies, she might end up with yet another troublesome suitor.
Thinking of it that way, Song Yunshen felt he could understand.
Still, understanding was one thing, and he couldn't help feeling a little uncomfortable.
Now that he had finally gotten Xia Jinshu's own signature, Song Yunshen actually felt a little pleased at having successfully trained her.
Hmph~
You wouldn't sign before, but didn't you write it in the end?
My girlfriend from seven years in the future-her body sure is honest.
Quite satisfied, Song Yunshen put the reply away. After a little thought, he began writing his own reply.
When he finished, he checked whether the Future Diary had updated.
Seeing that the contents of the letter had appeared in the Future Diary again, he immediately began reading carefully.
[Saturday, July 5, 2025]
[Today was my first day working at the milk tea shop.]
[I asked my little sister to cover for me and told Mom we were going to the library to study. Actually, Xiao Nuo was the only one who went to the library.]
[I didn't sign up for the school's tutoring class I'd originally agreed to attend, either. That saved two hundred yuan, enough to get them some clothes, so they won't have to wear their school uniforms all the time over summer vacation and can wear something new.]
[When I get paid next month, I'll put two thousand yuan toward Mom's rent. With the rest, the whole family can go out for a nice meal, and then I'll buy some things for everyone at home.]
[The last time we went shopping during the New Year, Mom spent a long time looking at handbags in the mall, but didn't buy a single one.]
[This time, I want to give her one.]
[Hmm... I don't know what else to buy when I get my second paycheck in September. Having money and figuring out how to spend it is troubling too.]
[I hope Mom won't be angry when she finds out.]
After reading the new diary entry, Song Yunshen fell silent for a long time.
His living conditions were so good that it was usually hard for him to feel the pain that came from having no money.
But now, as he read one entry after another from Xia Jinshu's Future Diary, he couldn't help feeling his heart tighten.
Especially when he read about her careful budgeting, every time, Song Yunshen felt as though a little hand had gripped his heart and gave it a gentle squeeze from time to time, leaving him feeling stifled and miserable.
After spending a while on the rooftop in the night breeze, Song Yunshen returned to his bedroom.
He sat at his desk for quite a while, and only after getting his feelings in order did he finally pick up his own diary and begin writing today's entry.
[Monday, June 23, 2025]
[I treated Xia Yunuo to lunch today.]
[She probably doesn't usually order meat dishes. Today, after I had her order steamed egg with meat patty, I saw her gazing longingly at the braised lion's head meatballs in the pot, so I took it upon myself to order some for her.]
[She kept saying it was enough, but in the end, didn't she still eat every last bit, including the two braised lion's head meatballs?]
[Haha, Xia Yunuo looked pretty cute being so stubborn.]
[I originally wanted to use this chance to keep treating her to meals from now on, but unfortunately, she refused.]
[I can understand, I guess. I'll just have to find another chance to help her later.]
[I got a reply from the English Club tonight, and she also agreed to the tutoring arrangement.]
[Next, I just need to ask what she thinks and see whether she's actually willing to be my tutor.]
[Come to think of it, is a hundred yuan an hour a little low?]
[I remember Uncle mentioning around the New Year that high school tutoring costs between a hundred and fifty and two hundred yuan an hour these days.]
[Dad only gave me a budget of a little over three thousand. I originally figured that at a hundred an hour, with one hour of lessons every day, it would come to exactly three thousand a month.]
[If it's two hundred an hour, then I can only have lessons every other day.]
[But it doesn't really matter, does it? It's not as though I actually want to study English seriously.]
[If I get her to be my teacher, she'll definitely be a little easier to fool than a proper tutor.]
[When the time comes, I can slack off a little, and the hour will fly by.]
[Yeah, I'll ask her in my reply tomorrow. I slack off, she lies flat, and everyone has a bright future.]
"Big sis, what are you looking at?"
Xia Yunuo's question came from beside her.
In her fluster, Xia Jinshu closed the diary, then kept her composure as she replied, "One of my old diaries."
"Oh." Xia Yunuo didn't ask any more questions and buried herself in her studies again.
Xia Jinshu glanced at her little sister, and after making sure she hadn't noticed anything, read Song Yunshen's diary entry from tonight once more.
Slacking off...
Since I'm going to be your tutor, how could I just go through the motions?
Wouldn't that be letting Uncle Song down for the tutoring wages he's paying?
I'm not becoming a tutor to live off people's sympathy.
If that were the case, I'd be better off working at the milk tea shop.
Xia Jinshu's gaze turned earnest and serious. She already had a plan of her own.