Song Yunshen sat in silence for a long time, feeling as though his eyes needed to pee.
Then he thought of Yan Zhenxia standing by the elevator that day, head lowered as she twisted the hem of her clothes, and his chest felt a little tight.
Both Yan Zhenxia and the girl's mother had done it for their families, and neither had it easy...
For the time being, he couldn't bring himself to write a reply.
Song Yunshen took a deep breath, put the Future Diary away, and went up to the rooftop to get some air.
After clearing his head on the rooftop, Song Yunshen returned to his bedroom and sat down at his desk. He took out the Future Diary along with some paper and a pen, and after thinking it over for a long time, he finally set about writing in earnest.
[Hello, fellow student,]
[The fact that you want to help your mother shoulder the family's financial burden shows just how mature and considerate you are.]
[But from your mother's perspective, a child your age should be studying and enjoying life at school, and having a happy youth, rather than working hard outside to shoulder responsibilities that should fall to adults.]
[So neither you nor your mother is wrong. You are both wonderful and outstanding people.]
[If you want the best of both worlds, perhaps you could start by considering the type of part-time job?]
[For example, tutoring? If your grades are good enough.]
[This kind of part-time work would ensure that you don't fall behind in your studies, and it's relatively respectable too. Perhaps your mother would find it a little easier to accept.]
[If you and your mother discuss this later, I'd very much look forward to hearing from you again.]
[I wish your family all the best, and hope that life will only get better and better for you.]
[-Song Yunshen, class five, first year]
Song Yunshen didn't want to make his purpose too obvious, so he had only floated the idea of part-time tutoring in the letter.
There were still two weeks until summer vacation anyway, so there was no rush for now.
After finishing the reply, Song Yunshen took another photo and sent it to Great Emperor Doubao, asking her to translate it into English.
Then he took out a clean sheet of paper and carefully copied the English reply onto it.
Song Yunshen put the reply away together with the girl's letter, let out a long breath, and stretched. Then he took out the Future Diary again and reread the entry that had just appeared that afternoon.
"A part-time salary of three thousand a month..." Song Yunshen muttered. "That's still within what I can afford, I suppose."
He opened WeChat on his phone and saw that he had a new friend. Her WeChat name was "Sleepy Cub Can't Get Enough Sleep," and her profile picture was Umaru. She looked like a cute anime-loving girl.
She was the tenant of the apartment at Waterside Homes.
After adding each other, Song Yunshen had merely exchanged a few pleasantries with her and confirmed when the rent was due. That had been the end of it.
She had already paid this month's rent, and the next payment wouldn't be due until July 20.
When Song Yunshen learned this, he couldn't help grumbling to himself.
He had thought his dad was being generous, only for him to hand over a tenant whose rent he had collected just yesterday.
Lao Song really did pinch every penny he could. He even had to pull this on his own son.
Still, it was better than nothing, so he wouldn't hold it against his dad.
Song Yunshen put his phone away again, took out his own diary, and opened it to the latest page. As usual, he began writing today's entry.
[Saturday, June 21, 2025]
[I borrowed Xia Yunuo's English homework today. It's a bit of a shame that she wasn't the one.]
[The good news is that I took a letter from the English Club's mailbox. If only Teacher Jiang knew who wrote it. For now, all I can do is leave the reply on the bookshelf in the clubroom and wait.]
[I wonder if I'll get a reply.]
[Speaking of which, Xia Yunuo said I was handsome today. Oh my, oh my, it's really rather embarrassing.]
Since he had already written a reply today, Song Yunshen didn't write much in his diary. He jotted down a few brief lines, then put it away again.
That evening, Xia Jinshu finished her homework in the school library and looked over at Xia Yunuo beside her.
Thinking of the contents that had inexplicably appeared in the diary she had bought just last night, Xia Jinshu thought it over again and again before finally venturing to ask, "Xiao Nuo."
"Hmm?"
"Is there someone you like?"
"Huh?" Xia Yunuo, who was still doing her homework, looked visibly startled and didn't quite register the question.
The next second, someone's face flashed through her mind, but she quickly shook her head to banish it. "No. Why are you asking all of a sudden?"
"Oh..." Xia Jinshu tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and said softly, "A couple of days ago, I happened to pass by your classroom on my way to do something, and I saw you asking a boy about a problem."
"I was just asking about a math problem." Xia Yunuo's face tensed as she spoke with a serious expression. "Sis, you're being so strange. How can you think I like someone just because I asked him a question?"
"I was just a little surprised..." Xia Jinshu looked away, though ripples stirred in her heart. "Xiao Nuo, didn't you say you don't usually have any friends in class? I didn't expect you to ask a classmate about a math problem on your own."
Was what the diary said actually true?
As Xia Jinshu responded, she turned it over in her mind, somewhat surprised.
Of course, she wouldn't wander over to Xia Yunuo's classroom for no reason. After all, the first- and second-year classes weren't even in the same building.
But Xia Yunuo had actually admitted it.
She really had asked a boy in her class about a math problem.
And the diary entry that boy had written that night had appeared out of thin air in her own diary...
What on earth was going on?
"He's very good at math." Xia Yunuo felt a little guilty too. Too embarrassed to look her sister in the eye, she said quietly, "Final exams are coming up, and I want to improve my grades a little more. At least I can't do too much worse than you, Sis."
She still hadn't decided whether to tell her family that she could hear a male classmate's inner thoughts.
After all, it didn't seem to have done any harm so far.
And she couldn't prove it was true to her family when Song Yunshen wasn't there.
If her mother mistakenly thought she had some kind of mental illness and insisted on taking her to the hospital, they would have to spend a lot of money for nothing.
After thinking it over, Xia Yunuo decided to keep the secret for now.
And so the sisters, Xia Jinshu and Xia Yunuo, each had something on her mind and kept a secret buried inside, neither telling the other the truth.
Once they had finished their weekend homework, the two went home together.
Back at home.
Xia Jinshu immediately took out her diary, turned to the previous night's entry, and read it again.
She discovered that another new entry had appeared after it.
She bent over it and read carefully, then soon fell into a long silence.
A letter from the English Club... I just put a letter in the English mailbox today. He couldn't have happened to take mine, could he?
And Xiao Nuo... she actually told that boy to his face that he was handsome?!
With Xiao Nuo's personality... how could she... how could she...
For a moment, Xia Jinshu felt as though her brain had turned to mush. It wasn't until Xia Yunuo came to call her to dinner that she came back to her senses.
"Sis, why do you look so strange?"
"N-no, it's nothing..." Xia Jinshu looked at Xia Yunuo with an odd expression, and it was impossible to tell what she was thinking at that moment.