An accidental collision beneath a cherry tree quietly brought together the paths of Lin Jianqing, the math prodigy admired by the whole school, and Shi Qinghe, a colorful young artist who was hopeless at math and science. A dark blue notebook picked up by mistake and an embarrassing test paper left behind became their first secrets. His notebook held observations and sketches hidden beneath his cool, restrained words, while her test paper bore adorable doodles she'd tried to cover up but couldn't keep from showing.
Throughout their three years of high school, he was an untouchable academic star, while she struggled to catch up. The feelings they secretly developed for each other took shape in every tentative stroke of the pen, every evasive glance, and every quiet gesture of care and encouragement. By exchanging notebooks in the most old-fashioned way, they became part of each other's youth, yet a thin sheet of unspoken words remained between them.
Their four years at university kept them far apart, one in the north and one in the south. He studied the cosmos at a top university, while she sketched out her colorful world at an art school. Distance did nothing to dim their longing. Letters and messages crossed mountains and rivers, recording the confusion, perseverance, and joy of their journeys as they grew, while carrying the feelings they kept buried deep inside, growing more intense with time.
After graduation, fate brought them together again in the same city. Leaving their youthful campus days behind for the complexities of adult life, they faced the trials of reality, choices about their dreams, and doubts within themselves as newcomers to the working world. Through one encounter, misunderstanding, and tentative approach after another, standing side by side, the feelings that had been building for so long could no longer stay hidden...
It turns out that there really are people who love someone and will pave the way for them.
I really like it; it's very engaging to read. [Thumbs up]