Qu Qingzhu watched quietly from the side without saying a word, but his eyes were full of curiosity. He gently pulled Qin Yunie's sleeve and shook his head slightly, signaling her not to ask too much.

Qin Yunie understood. She patted Su Banxia's hand gently and said softly, "Xia Xia, since Professor Lou wants to talk to you about something important, then go and talk to him. Feel free to call us if you have anything else, okay?"

Su Banxia raised her head, her eyes full of hesitation and entanglement. She bit her lip and whispered, "Sister Yu Nie, I..."

Qin Yunie smiled gently and comforted him, "Don't worry, just talk about it and get it resolved."

Su Banxia took a deep breath, nodded slightly, then mustered up her courage and followed Lou Jiyu towards the other side of the path.

Watching the two people's backs gradually walking away, Qin Yunie and Qu Qingzhu stood in place, their eyes full of curiosity and concern.

"Tell me, what exactly happened between the two of them?" Qin Yunie asked softly.

Qu Qingzhu shook his head, a faint smile on his face: "Who knows, but it seems that Professor Lou cares about Xia Xia very much."

Qin Yunie sighed softly, a hint of worry in her eyes: "Xia Xia and Professor Lou only keep in touch more at school. They don't seem to be in touch much during normal times. Has anything happened between them recently that we don't know about?"

"Don't worry about it for now. What happened between them will be known sooner or later. Let's go and continue walking."

"good!"

The two smiled at each other, then turned around and continued walking on the path, walking away in the opposite direction of Su Banxia and Lou Jiyun.

*

On the other side, the afterglow of the setting sun dyed the entire plum garden a warm orange. Su Banxia lowered her head slightly, like a frightened deer, and followed Lou Jiyun cautiously.

Her steps were a little hesitant, her hands clasped nervously in front of her, and she would secretly look up from time to time, glancing at Lou Jiyun who was walking in front of her out of the corner of her eye.

Soon, they arrived at Lou Jiyun's car. Su Banxia frowned slightly, her eyes full of confusion. She raised her head and looked directly at Lou Jiyun with a clear question in her eyes, as if asking, "Why did you come here?"

"I'll take you somewhere else to talk." Lou Jiyun's voice was low and calm. He tilted his head slightly, his eyes briefly meeting Su Banxia's, then he opened the car door neatly and got into the driver's seat.

Su Banxia nodded slightly. Although she was still a little nervous, she subconsciously walked to the back seat and reached out to open the car door.

However, the car door did not move at all, obviously it was locked.

Her hand froze in mid-air, a hint of embarrassment appeared on her face, and her brows furrowed even tighter.

At this moment, the passenger window slowly lowered.

Lou Jiyun's face appeared behind the car window. His eyes were deep and focused, and his voice was low but unyielding. It was especially clear in the gradually darkening night: "Xia Xia, take the passenger seat."

Su Banxia stood motionless beside the car, as if frozen in place. A fierce internal struggle was raging within her, her eyes filled with conflict, her fingers tugging at the hem of her clothes.

Lou Jiyu just sat quietly in the car, looking at her through the window, with a hint of patience and tenderness in his eyes, and did not urge her.

After a long while, Su Banxia finally seemed to have made up her mind. She took a deep breath, slowly stretched out her hand, and reluctantly opened the passenger door.

Her movements were a little slow, as if she was doing something extremely difficult.

After getting into the car, she leaned tightly against the seat, her hands on her legs, not daring to move, her eyes staring straight ahead, as if she was deliberately avoiding Lou Jiyun's gaze.

Lou Jiyun did not start the car immediately, but tilted his head and looked at Su Banxia quietly.

Su Banxia felt uncomfortable when he looked at her. She bit her lower lip, and her pink lips turned slightly white due to the force.

Finally, she couldn't help but ask, her voice trembling: "What's wrong? Aren't you leaving yet?"

Looking at her embarrassed look, Lou Jiyun raised the corners of his mouth slightly and chuckled softly. His chuckle was deep and magnetic. "Do you want me to help you fasten your seat belt?"

Su Banxia's face turned red instantly, from her cheeks to her ears.

She looked embarrassed, her eyes full of panic, and she hurriedly pulled the seat belt and fastened it quickly.

Her fingers were a little out of control due to nervousness, and she had to work hard to fasten the seat belt.

"I'm sorry, I forgot," she whispered, a hint of shame in her voice.

Lou Jiyun didn't say anything, but just looked at her quietly, with a hint of doting in his eyes.

Then he turned around and started the car.

The car slowly drove out of the plum garden and headed towards an unknown direction, but the atmosphere inside the car was still filled with a hint of tension and ambiguity.

The car was driving steadily in the night, and the atmosphere inside was quiet and a little depressing.

Su Banxia always maintained the same posture, her head stubbornly turned towards the car window, her eyes fixed on the street scenes passing by outside. The neon lights flickered alternately on her face, but could not dispel the entanglement and uneasiness in her heart.

Along the way, she pursed her lips and said nothing, as if everything around her had nothing to do with her.

Halfway through, the car slowly stopped at a traffic light.

Lou Jiyun withdrew his gaze from the traffic light in front of him, turned his head slightly, and looked at Su Banxia beside him.

"Xia Xia, are you hiding from me?" His voice was low and calm, and it was particularly clear in the quiet carriage, like a stone thrown into a calm lake, instantly breaking the silence.

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