But she only thought about those things occasionally.

The college entrance examination is coming soon, and she doesn't allow herself to be too distracted by it.

After settling down, she began to review seriously.

She joined the study mutual aid group of Yu Wan's sister Yu Ling.

It was organized by the educated youth in the commune where the military region was located who registered for the college entrance examination together.

They won the support of the commune leaders and cleared out an abandoned classroom in the commune middle school. Anyone who had time could go there to study. They also specially invited a high school teacher from the province to come and tutor them for an hour every day.

The group learning atmosphere is strong, and everyone is racing against time to study. With the help of the teacher, we work together to make study plans, supervise each other, and encourage each other.

Su Ruo liked the atmosphere of the group very much. Anyway, the commune middle school was very close to the military district’s family compound, and she had nothing to do at home, so she went there with Yu Ling every afternoon to listen to the teacher’s lectures and study with everyone. If she had any questions, she would ask the teacher, or discuss with everyone to stimulate their thinking. This really made her progress much faster than reading alone at home.

Compared with others, Su Ruo has a solid foundation of knowledge and is not secretive. She patiently answers questions asked to her by others, so everyone likes her very much.

The days passed one by one.

At the end of November, Yu Ling caught a cold and missed the study group. Su Ruo would walk over by herself after lunch every day.

That day, Su Ruo finished discussing a composition topic with a male educated youth named Zhao Jin. She checked the time and saw that it was time to pick up Guoguo from the kindergarten, so she packed her schoolbag, said goodbye to everyone and prepared to leave. Unexpectedly, after she had taken a few steps out of the door and was about to go down the stairs, she was stopped by Zhao Jin.

Zhao Jin called Su Ruo, walked over and said, "Student Su, where do you live? I'm leaving soon, how about I give you a ride?"

Su Ruo originally thought that Zhao Jin had some questions to ask her about her studies, but she didn't expect that he actually wanted to give her a ride.

She was a little surprised, but seeing his natural expression, she didn't think much about it and smiled, "No, it's just a few steps away, we'll be there in a while, I can go back by myself."

In fact, it was not just a few steps, it would take about 20 minutes to walk. But although no one thought it was a big deal, it would always have a bad impact if a young couple was seen walking together.

Zhao Jin was not too disappointed. He smiled and said, "Then let's leave the school together."

It was not easy for Su Ruo to refuse this.

This is the only way, and both of them want to leave. She can't stop him from going, right?

Su Ruo said "OK", and the two walked out together. Zhao Jin said, "Student Su, I see that your basic knowledge is very solid, and you will definitely have no problem with this exam. Do you have any ideal school you want to apply for?"

After saying this, as if afraid that Su Ruo might misunderstand him, he smiled bitterly and said, "I am also at a loss, and I want to hear Comrade Su's opinion."

Now the college entrance examination requires filling out applications before the test, but this happens to be the first year that the college entrance examination has been resumed. No one has the admission scores of previous schools as a reference, nor does anyone know the competition situation. They don't even know what the test questions will be like or how difficult they will be. In short, they know nothing, so filling out the school application form really makes everyone confused.

Su Ruo also understood.

She said, "I will probably apply to a university in the provincial capital, but I still need to think about the specific school. However, Zhao has a solid foundation in math, physics and chemistry, so he should be able to get into his ideal school."

Qingdao University is a nationally renowned school. Although Su Ruo is confident, as Commander Gu's wife Zeng Yaohong said, the college entrance examination was just resumed this year and there are not many places available, but there are candidates who have been waiting for ten years to take the exam. Moreover, everyone has experienced going to the countryside and has strong perseverance and determination, especially after this period of contact with these educated youth, Su Ruo does not dare to underestimate the strength of others.

This is just a small commune.

Zhao Jin felt relieved after hearing her say that.

Just apply to a university in the provincial capital.

He smiled and said, "I want to apply for Qingdao University, but I really didn't have any confidence at all. During this period, I was very grateful to classmate Su for helping me analyze the essay questions, which helped me make great progress. Otherwise, I would definitely not have succeeded with the Chinese language holding me back."

Su Ruo said: "Student Zhao, you don't have to be so polite..."

"Aruo."

Su Ruo was talking and about to go down the stairs when she suddenly heard a familiar voice calling her.

She was stunned, thinking she had misheard. She looked up blankly and found a person standing at the corner of the other side of the stairs.

It turned out to be Han Zecheng.

Su Ruo was delighted. Why did he come here?

She hurriedly greeted Zhao Jin, and quickly walked in front of Han Zecheng, looked up at him and asked, "Why are you here?"

Smile with joy.

Han Zecheng saw the undisguised joy in her eyes, and his depressed mood finally improved a little.

He said, "I've finished everything for today, so I'll come pick you up."

In fact, he usually wanted to come and pick her up.

But she usually came and went with Yu Wan's sister Yu Ling, so it was not easy for him to pick her up.

After he finished speaking, he glanced at Zhao Jin, who had not yet retracted the surprise and a little hostility on his face, and said, "Aruo, is this your classmate?"

Su Ruo then remembered that she was still with her classmates... they studied together, so they could be considered classmates.

She turned around and said "hmm", then introduced: "Yes, Brother Han, this is Comrade Zhao Jinzhao, an educated youth from Hongqiao Farm. He also signed up for the college entrance examination this time and is studying with us."

He then introduced Han Zecheng to Zhao Jin, saying, "Student Zhao, this is... this is my lover, Comrade Han Zecheng."

Zhao Jin:......? ?

Love...lover?

He suspected he had heard wrongly.

He never expected that Su Ruo, who looked like a girl under 20 years old, was already married.

No...my love, is this a mistake?

Maybe it's just her partner.

He murmured, "Student Su, this is your partner, right?"

The word love is not something you can just say casually.

Han Zecheng's expression had already relaxed when he heard Su Ruo introduce the male educated youth as her "lover".

But when he heard Zhao Jin's words, his face immediately darkened again.

He glanced at Zhao Jin, who felt as if a cold current had swept through him, his entire body running cold.

Su Ruo felt a little embarrassed when she first said the word "lover", but after saying it, she felt it was nothing.

Maybe she has gotten used to it during this time.

She found Zhao Jin's surprised expression somewhat amusing and said, "Yes, my love. We have been married for five years."

But no matter how funny it was, now that Han Zecheng was here, she had no intention of inviting Zhao Jin to go with them.

She said, "Student Zhao, my lover and I will leave together first. See you tomorrow."

After saying that, he turned to look at Han Zecheng again and said happily, "Brother Han, let's go."

She looked up at him, her eyes curved and smiling, obviously very happy.

Is she happy because he came to pick her up?

Han Zecheng thought so, and the feeling of being choked up in his chest when he first saw her talking and laughing with a gay man finally subsided a lot.

He reached out and took the book from her. Seeing that a strand of her hair covered her cheek, he ignored Zhao Jin who was looking at them in a daze, and reached out to help her brush it back, saying, "Let's go."

The two of them walked down the stairs and onto the playground. He asked casually, "Was that a student from your study group?"

Su Ruo hummed, and said, "Yes, he is an educated youth from the provincial capital. His parents are middle school teachers. He is good at math, physics and chemistry, and his basic skills are very solid. But his Chinese is a little weak, and his composition is not good. I heard that the composition will account for a large part of the college entrance examination this time, so he is at a disadvantage with such a bias."

Su Ruo was in a good mood and talked more.

Following his words, I talked about Zhao Jin and also praised the diligence and learning of other group members.

But Han Zecheng felt heartbroken when he heard this.

The emotions that she had just put aside because of her joy that he came to pick her up came back again... He had already felt uncomfortable when he saw her standing and talking with Zhao Jin, and saw the undisguised admiration in Zhao Jin's eyes when he looked at her.

Unexpectedly, after joining a study group, she knew everyone's background and academic level clearly.

She was too defenseless against people.

And his discomfort was not just because of that male educated youth.

But because he knew this was just the beginning.

When she went to college, she entered a wider world.

By then, she will definitely be surrounded by many young men who admire her and share the same ideals as her, and they will attend classes, study and discuss together every day.

After being in contact for a long time, it is hard to say that no feelings will arise.

And he had no confidence in their relationship.

It's not that he doesn't have confidence in his ability to get her affection.

But he spent very little time with her, and the topics they had to talk about were also very limited.

She is very innocent now. It is easy to gain temporary affection, but it may be difficult to maintain it.

What's more, both of their marriages were unions under special circumstances.

Su Ruo didn't know what he was thinking, she continued to talk, "Before, I thought I would have no problem getting into Qingdao University, but now I feel a little narrow-minded."

"I have been in contact with these students these days. Although their foundation is not good and some of them have forgotten many knowledge points due to time, they have rich life experience and strong perseverance. They can learn very quickly after picking up the textbooks again and have made great progress. They really should not be underestimated."

"This is just a small commune, but I feel like there are hidden dragons and crouching tigers here. What's more, there are so many of them all over the country. Ten years, ten years of classmates are competing together. I'm a little nervous now."

She was really a little nervous.

She didn't want to wait another year.

Han Zecheng wanted to say that he didn't care whether she could get into college.

Or sometimes he would have a very selfish thought and hope that she would not go to that university.

But as soon as this thought came to his mind, he would suppress it firmly, and he was disgusted with himself for being like this.

He said, “You are also very hardworking.”

Of course he knew how much she valued this opportunity.

Su Ruo smiled with her eyes curved.

He used to feel happy when he saw her smile like this, but now he felt very upset.

He said, "Have you thought about what department you want to apply for?"

"Department of Cultural Relics and Art,"

Su Ruo smiled and said, "I plan to apply for the Cultural Relics and Art Department of Qingdao University."

"Department of Cultural Relics and Art?"

Han Zecheng was a little surprised. He said, "I remember you were going to study architecture. Why did you want to change to the Department of Cultural Relics and Art?"

Department of Architecture...

She did originally plan to study architecture, but that was mainly due to the influence of her father and Aunt Yuan.

Her father studied architecture.

The Yuan family all studied architecture, and Grandpa Yuan was an overseas student in his early years. The Yuan family can be said to be a family of architecture.

She had been close to the Yuan family since she was a child. It was no exaggeration to say that Aunt Yuan, or Aunt Shu, treated her like her own daughter. She received her elementary education from her and really liked ancient buildings, so when she advised her to study architecture, she agreed.

But this time she thought about it carefully and decided to change it.

She said, "I like the Department of Architecture very much, but after thinking about it carefully, I am mainly interested in ancient culture and ancient buildings, as well as the restoration of ancient buildings. I am not very interested in architectural design. So maybe the Department of Cultural Relics and Art is more of my interest, because architectural restoration requires a lot of knowledge about cultural relics. On the contrary, I am not interested in the things that the Department of Architecture studies, such as building structure, building mechanics, and building equipment."

Han Zecheng hummed, and his mood improved a little.

But it's just a little bit.

He knew the relationship between the Department of Architecture and the Yuan family.

Her ex-fiancé and his family all studied architecture.

******

Su Ruo cooks in the evening.

Originally, Han Zecheng did most of the housework at home, and he would buy breakfast from the cafeteria when he went out for a run in the morning. Su Ruo insisted on making dinner by herself. Han Zecheng said that it was not necessary, and she could just buy it from the cafeteria, or he would make it if he came back early. But Su Ruo said that her head would be stiff after reviewing her homework every day, and making dinner was a kind of relaxation. So Han Zecheng let her do it, but when he came back early, he would help her prepare all the ingredients, and she would just be responsible for putting them in the pot.

Su Ruo's cooking skills are not that great, but she likes to tinker with a lot of tricks, and most of the time the food looks good but tastes bad, and the combinations are random.

But Su Ruo said, isn’t cooking about “color, aroma and taste”?

The dishes she cooked had both good appearance and good smell, except for the taste which was a little off, but at least they were cooked and they will surely get better in the future.

Since she said so, what else can Han Zecheng and Guoguo do?

However, after a month, I don’t know if it’s because they’ve gotten used to it, their tongues have become numb, or Su Ruo’s cooking skills have really improved, but now Han Zecheng and Guo Guo actually think it’s pretty good.

This evening we had sweet and sour fish with pine nuts, celery and lily bulbs, and a dish of steamed tofu with osmanthus.

Although Han Guo grumbled that the pine nut sweet and sour fish was too sweet and the osmanthus steamed tofu looked good but lacked flavor, the father and son still finished their meals politely.

After dinner, Su Ruo greeted Han Guo as usual, while she listened to the radio and read comic books, and then went to the kitchen to watch Han Zecheng wash the dishes.

Every day after she took care of Guoguo, she would watch him wash the dishes and talk to him for a while...although most of the time she was the one talking and he was the one listening.

This seems to have become a habit.

She watched for a while, and when she saw that he was almost done, she asked, "Are you unhappy today?"

Han Zecheng paused when he heard this, but he still quickly washed the last bowl, wiped it dry and put it on the shelf, then turned around to look at her.

Su Ruo then continued: "Although you are usually like this, you seem particularly unhappy today."