At five o’clock on Monday morning, Lin Zhixia got up. Her mother had just returned from restocking supplies, and both her parents were organizing the warehouse. Lin Zhixia, wearing slippers, tiptoed into the kitchen.

She peeled two apples, mashed them into a puree, and added rock sugar and starch… Suddenly, her mother’s voice sounded behind her: “Xiaxia, what are you busy with?”

Lin Zhixia turned to look at her mother and honestly explained: “Mom, I want to make two apple pies.”

Last night, they had eaten dumplings, and there were still some wrappers left in the refrigerator.

Her mother washed her hands in a basin of tap water, took out the dough wrappers from the refrigerator, and then said to Lin Zhixia: “Go back to your bedroom and sleep, Xiaxia. Mom will make apple pies for you.”

Lin Zhixia yawned and rubbed her eyes: “I want to make them myself.”

“You’ve never cooked before, don’t know how to use the gas stove, and you’re not even as tall as the water pipe. What can you do?” Her mother delivered her final ultimatum, “Go back to sleep. When it’s six o’clock, I’ll wake you up.”

Lin Zhixia was indeed very sleepy. She returned to her bedroom, wrapped herself in a cotton quilt, and quickly fell asleep. When she woke up, she smelled the aroma of apple pies. Her mother had put the pies on a plate and set them on the stove to cool.

Lin Zhixia packed the pies in a glass food container and stuffed the container into her backpack.

On her way to school that morning, Lin Zhixia skipped and hopped along. The azure sky stretched endlessly, and her mood was incomparably good. Each step felt as if she were treading on clouds, making her soul and body float together in the free-flowing breeze.

Aquarium! Aquarium! Visiting the aquarium!

In her backpack, she also had strawberry milk, strawberry cookies, and apple pies!

Lin Zhixia was super happy!

Lin Zhixia carried all her assets and excitedly rushed into the classroom of Class 4(1).

The school bus would arrive at the school gate at seven fifty. But now it was only seven ten, and the classroom was sparsely populated and relatively quiet.

Jiang Yubai was already there.

Jiang Yubai stood beside his seat, observing the campus scenery on the first floor. Lin Zhixia ran up to Jiang Yubai, opened the food container, took out the lunch box inside, and handed Jiang Yubai a fork.

She said: “These are apple pies made at my home. I mixed the filling myself. Try one.”

Jiang Yubai wasn’t hungry at all. But Lin Zhixia was looking at him with sparkling eyes, and he felt embarrassed to refuse, so he had to reluctantly accept. He lowered his head, took a bite of the apple pie, and after chewing slowly, he finally said softly: “Quite delicious.”

Lin Zhixia raised her head: “I’m glad you like it. This is your container, I’m returning it to you.”

Jiang Yubai declined: “Gifts given to others, I don’t take back.”

“Do you want more apple pie?” Lin Zhixia asked.

Jiang Yubai was very restrained: “Thank you, no need.” He had a backbone of steel, absolutely forbidding himself to be bought off with food.

Lin Zhixia observed his expression and deliberately said: “Then I’ll give it to someone else to eat.”

That morning, labor committee member Han Dawei had arrived at school at six fifty. Han Dawei had cleaned the classroom all by himself and was just feeling hungry when he heard Lin Zhixia say: Give it to someone else to eat. Han Dawei took three steps in two and jumped to Lin Zhixia’s side: “Lin Zhixia! What delicious food do you have?”

“This!” Lin Zhixia held up the lunch box.

“Give it to me!” Han Dawei reached out with both hands.

Jiang Yubai pulled open his schoolbag and pulled out a large bag of Hainan specialty fruit crisps and coconut cakes. He tossed all these high-quality snacks to Han Dawei.

In an instant, Han Dawei’s surprise turned into wild joy: “Wow! Jiang Yubai! You’re so generous!”

Jiang Yubai took back the lunch box from Lin Zhixia and rezipped his backpack. Without saying a word, he sat back in his place, keeping his merits and fame deeply hidden.

Lin Zhixia turned away from him, looked out the window, and put on an air of having figured out all the world’s mysteries: “Jiang Yubai, will you still have this personality when you grow up?”

“What personality?” Jiang Yubai asked seriously.

“That kind of personality,” Lin Zhixia described, “what you think in your heart and what you say with your mouth are not quite the same.”

Jiang Yubai was about to refute her when she turned and smiled at him. He suddenly forgot what he was going to say and remained quiet in his seat like a mute.

*

At seven forty that morning, the seven classes of the fourth grade had all lined up.

Each class had two escort teachers in addition to the homeroom teacher. The teachers repeatedly instructed that all students must obey the aquarium’s rules and regulations, avoid running around and shouting, and not damage the school’s reputation.

Teacher Wu faced the students of Class 4(1) and emphasized again: “Once you step out of this school gate, you represent not just yourselves, but also the face of the teachers and the school, do you understand? Our Class One is a key class, and also the top-ranked class in the grade. You must follow the rules and have a sense of collective honor! Okay?”

The students shouted in unison: “Okay!”

The momentum was overwhelming, soaring to the clouds.

Teacher Wu waved her hand. Class monitor Dong Sunqi hurriedly followed Teacher Wu’s steps. Then, all the students orderly boarded the bus.

Jiang Yubai sat in the last row, with Dong Sunqi and Ding Yan as his neighbors, while Lin Zhixia and Gan Shuli sat in front of him. The two girls whispered to each other and soon started giggling “hee-hee.”

Ding Yan spoke up: “Lin Zhixia, are you telling jokes? Include me, I want to hear too.”

Lin Zhixia and Gan Shuli were having so much fun they completely ignored Ding Yan’s request from the back seat.

Ding Yan rested his hands on his knees, turned his head to Jiang Yubai, and said: “I have a good idea.”

Jiang Yubai asked him: “What idea?”

Ding Yan whispered secretively: “Lin Zhixia and Gan Shuli won’t tell me what jokes they’re telling. Let’s laugh a few times, and when they come to ask us, we won’t tell them either!”

After explaining, Ding Yan laughed: “Haha haha, Jiang Yubai, haha haha.”

Jiang Yubai said: “You’re nuts.”

Abandoned by both female and male friends, Ding Yan suddenly understood the hardships of life. When he looked up, he noticed that Jiang Yubai had an earphone in his left ear. He leaned in for a closer look and discovered that Jiang Yubai was holding an iPod 4 player.

An iPod 4 player!

Forget about 4, Ding Yan wanted to buy a 3, but his parents wouldn’t agree.

Ding Yan hooked his arm around Jiang Yubai’s shoulder and pleaded: “Let me play with your iPod 4.”

Jiang Yubai agreed. So, the iPod 4 player fell into Ding Yan’s hands.

Ding Yan noticed that this iPod 4 player was the latest model released by Newman in September this year. The display screen was as big as Ding Yan’s palm, with a clear screen, high resolution, and metal buttons with a slight dull feel. Ding Yan pressed a button with his finger and immediately felt elated, as if seamlessly connecting with the latest high technology of 2004.

“What videos do you have?” Ding Yan eagerly asked.

“Detective Conan, Pokémon, Black Cat Sheriff.” Jiang Yubai operated the buttons to bring up the playlist.

Neighboring Dong Sunqi poked his head out and exclaimed: “Detective Conan!”

“Let’s watch Black Cat Sheriff?” Ding Yan suggested, “My dad doesn’t let me watch Black Cat Sheriff. He says a lot of people died in Black Cat Sheriff… no, a lot of animals died.”

Jiang Yubai didn’t care much: “Whatever you want.”

Ding Yan immediately selected Episode 4 of Black Cat Sheriff, titled “The Mantis That Eats Her Husband.”

“The Mantis That Eats Her Husband!” Ding Yan exclaimed in amazement, “Damn! That title is so intense.”

Lin Zhixia suddenly turned around and told them: “I read in ‘Life Science Research’ that the probability of a male mantis being eaten by a female mantis during mating is not high. Because male mantises have well-developed wings, their flying ability is stronger than female mantises. It lies on the back of the female mantis…”

At this point, Lin Zhixia abruptly stopped.

Ding Yan, Jiang Yubai, and Dong Sunqi all stared at her blankly.

She shrank back to her seat as if she had seen a ghost in broad daylight. Her cheeks turned completely red, with the blush extending to her ears. A sudden intense feeling of embarrassment wrapped around her like a cocoon, so tightly that she could hardly breathe.

“I was just talking about science!” Lin Zhixia announced softly, “Do you guys understand?”

Jiang Yubai took the lead in answering: “Life science.”

Lin Zhixia took a slight breath of relief: “Right! It’s life science.”

She exchanged seats with Gan Shuli. She sat by the window, and Gan Shuli was closer to the aisle.

Inside the bus hung a kind of blue curtain. This foldable curtain was pushed to the other side by Lin Zhixia, allowing her to gaze at the scenery outside. The bus had just climbed onto an elevated bridge, carrying a busload of passengers, climbing higher and higher. In the distance, skyscrapers stood in rows, the city skyline was staggered, and the blue sky and white clouds merged seamlessly with the city scene.

Looking at the miniature of modern society before her, Lin Zhixia couldn’t help but think of the origins of human civilization. She thought of the Sumerian civilization on the Mesopotamian plain—academically recognized as the earliest traceable written records in human history with Sumerian cuneiform script. The Liangzhu civilization originated from the Yangtze River. In the land of Liangzhu, about four or five thousand years ago, Chinese people were already able to make exquisite jade cong, jade bi, lacquerware, and silk.

Jade cong and jade bi were both ritual objects used by ancient Chinese during major ceremonies, such as sacrifices. The ancients emphasized “using bi to worship heaven, using cong to worship earth.” It seemed that all the wonders left by ancient civilizations around the world were related to heaven, earth, gods, and religious beliefs. Why was this? Lin Zhixia pondered this new thought.

She also recalled that the Pumapunku ruins in South America were a pile of finely processed megalithic stones. The stones were all made of extremely hard andesite and diorite. And the Pumapunku people from fifteen thousand years ago could drill perfect round holes, horizontal straight lines, and standard regular polygons in that kind of rock. She suspected those ruins were formed by casting rather than polishing.

When Gan Shuli asked her, “Lin Zhixia, what are you thinking about?”

Lin Zhixia could only answer vaguely: “Me? I don’t know.”

*

Twenty minutes later, the school bus arrived at the parking lot of the Ocean Aquarium.

The autumn sky was clear, with no wind or rain, and the temperature was neither cold nor hot. Lin Zhixia got off the bus, stood in the class line, and happily jumped up and down.

“Aquarium! Aquarium!” she shouted happily.

“Quiet!” Teacher Wu issued orders from the front, “All of you be quiet! No noise, maintain formation! No one can fall behind! If one person is missing, none of us can go home!”

The students immediately fell silent and obediently followed the teacher through the main entrance of the aquarium.

The aquarium arranged a guide for each class. The guide for Class 4(1) was a young woman in her early twenties. Dressed in her work uniform, she led a group of children through the hall.

Some visitors, including Lin Zhixia, couldn’t help but let out a “wow.” This was because they were walking through an underwater tunnel. Above everyone’s heads was an arched glass, and countless marine creatures were slowly moving on the other side of the glass.

These enchanting creatures from the ocean perfectly presented fluid dynamics.

They captivated Lin Zhixia, making her stop in her tracks.

The colorful shallow sea world was within arm’s reach. Lin Zhixia clung to the glass and murmured: “So many fish, so many, many fish.”

All kinds of fish were dazzlingly diverse, and Lin Zhixia couldn’t take them all in.

Jiang Yubai, however, showed little reaction. He walked past Lin Zhixia as if no one was there. Lin Zhixia found it strange and asked him: “Jiang Yubai, seeing so many fish, aren’t you surprised?”

“What’s there to be surprised about?” Jiang Yubai replied. “It’s just a bunch of fish?”

Lin Zhixia corrected him: “A large bunch of fish.”

Jiang Yubai humbly accepted: “Hmm, a large bunch.”

Lin Zhixia asked him again: “Have you been to an aquarium before?”

Jiang Yubai asked back: “Which city’s aquarium?”

Before Lin Zhixia could answer, Jiang Yubai spotted a blue-green fat fish. He exclaimed: “This fish is very fat.”

“This is a Humphead wrasse, belonging to the order Perciformes, suborder Labroidei, family Labridae of the class Actinopterygii,” Lin Zhixia introduced to him, “mainly distributed in the Indo-Pacific region. It’s a fish with a very gentle personality and is very cute. It’s not called a fat fish.”

Jiang Yubai’s gaze fixed on Lin Zhixia. Lin Zhixia tilted her head slightly. Jiang Yubai imitated her and tilted his head too. She said: “Don’t copy me.”

Jiang Yubai said, “I still think this fish is very fat.”

The Humphead wrasse seemed to understand their conversation, flicked its graceful tail, and swam away angrily.

“There are many Pacific Blue Tangs over here!” Lin Zhixia pointed to a location, “Look quickly, Pacific Blue Tangs aren’t fat, they’re flat.”

The Pacific Blue Tangs had blue-purple bodies but bright yellow tails. They frolicked among the coral, quite eye-catching. Lin Zhixia told Jiang Yubai, “Did you watch ‘Finding Nemo’ that was released last year? The fish called Dory in ‘Finding Nemo’ is a Pacific Blue Tang.”

She turned to look at him: “Pacific Blue Tang, do you like it?”

Jiang Yubai repeated: “You, Ci, Wei, Diao?”

Lin Zhixia nodded: “Right! Ni, Ci, Wei, Diao.”

“It’s a fish,” Jiang Yubai commented, “but its name has both ‘hedgehog’ and ‘carving’. This fish has lost its self-identity.”

Lin Zhixia couldn’t stop laughing: “Wei means tail, and Diao is written with the fish radical and the character Zhou.”

Jiang Yubai questioned out of ignorance: “What?”

Lin Zhixia wrote on her palm: “Diao is written like this, pronounced as ‘diao’, first tone.”

“I know too few Chinese characters,” Jiang Yubai deeply reflected.

After leaving the underwater tunnel, Class 4(1) disappeared at the end of the tunnel. Lin Zhixia and Jiang Yubai had mixed into Class 4(2)’s queue. Lin Zhixia hurriedly grabbed Jiang Yubai’s sleeve and pulled him forward to run.

The tunnel was a one-way path. Just as Lin Zhixia and Jiang Yubai ran out, they bumped into the guide sister.

All Class One students and teachers were standing in an open area, and the lady told everyone: “Our Ocean Aquarium warmly welcomes all teachers and students from Experimental Elementary School! Today, I will be your guide. On our tour, I will have some small questions. Whichever child knows the answer, tell the sister, and each question has a corresponding prize!”

All the students cheered in unison.

Lin Zhixia, mixed in with the crowd of students, cheered along: “Prizes! Prizes!”

Jiang Yubai only asked: “What prizes?”

“She’s carrying a bag,” Lin Zhixia pointed out, “the prizes are all in the bag.”

Although Teacher Wu repeatedly emphasized that all students must maintain order, there were many people and many voices in the ocean aquarium. Students gathered in groups of threes and fives, and the teachers gradually couldn’t manage them all. The three escort teachers from Class 4(1) formed a triangle, keeping all students within their line of sight.

Lin Zhixia closely followed the guide sister, shadowing her every step, just like a little tail to the sister.

Finally, when they came to the “Jellyfish Exhibition Hall,” the sister began to ask: “Children, do you know how big the largest existing jellyfish in the world is?”

Lin Zhixia immediately raised her hand: “I know! The lion’s mane jellyfish can reach a diameter of three meters and weigh over five hundred jin!”

The sister opened her backpack and gave her a jellyfish refrigerator magnet.

Lin Zhixia was super happy. All classmates cast admiring glances at her.

The sister continued to explain: “The little friend just told us about the largest jellyfish. Does anyone know how small the smallest existing jellyfish in the world is?”

“Irukandji jellyfish!” Lin Zhixia raised her hand again, “It’s only one cubic centimeter in volume, but it’s very toxic! It can kill an adult!”

The aquarium asked elementary school students questions because they adopted an educational approach of “self-questioning and self-answering, teaching through entertainment.” And that guide sister hadn’t anticipated that there would be a little girl who could consistently give correct answers.

The sister was stunned for a moment, then took out another jellyfish refrigerator magnet and gave it to Lin Zhixia.

Lin Zhixia passed this magnet to Jiang Yubai.

Jiang Yubai asked her puzzledly: “Why give it to me?”

“I want to give it, so I gave it.” Lin Zhixia’s answer was slightly arrogant.

Jiang Yubai opened his backpack, pulled out a strawberry candy. He directly stuffed the strawberry candy into Lin Zhixia’s clothes pocket. Lin Zhixia asked him: “Why are you giving me strawberry candy?”

Jiang Yubai took a step away, further from her: “Because I can’t eat it all.”

Lin Zhixia frowned: “Really?”

Jiang Yubai said: “Really.”

The light in the jellyfish exhibition hall was dim. Jellyfish of all sizes floated in the dark light, some already in a dissolving state, no longer maintaining their complete and graceful shape.

Jiang Yubai didn’t understand what “jellyfish self-dissolution” was. He faced the glass window and described: “This jellyfish looks like a soaked bird’s nest.”

“It’s dying,” Lin Zhixia explained beside him, “when jellyfish self-dissolve, they look like this.”

Jiang Yubai turned to look at her: “Lin Zhixia.”

Lin Zhixia stopped: “What’s wrong?”

Jiang Yubai asked her: “Doesn’t your brain get tired remembering so many things?”

“Sometimes it’s a bit tiring,” Lin Zhixia honestly confessed, “my memory is very strange, and I’m a bit afraid that everyone will find out. You should understand, right? When you become an outlier in a group, it may bring corresponding risks.”

Jiang Yubai seemed to understand her very well. He also reminded her: “You memorize texts very quickly, three seconds per lesson text, the whole class knows.”

Lin Zhixia described herself: “At that time, I had just started first grade and was a bit dazed. Now when I take exams, I occasionally deliberately get two questions wrong, so I don’t always get perfect scores.”

While she was talking to Jiang Yubai, the guide sister raised some new questions. Lin Zhixia didn’t participate anymore. She unwrapped the strawberry candy Jiang Yubai had given her. The candy packaging was exquisite, and it was a spherical soft candy. She took a bite, smiling brilliantly: “So sweet, thank you.”

Jiang Yubai didn’t hear. He had gone far away with Ding Yan and Dong Sunqi.

After leaving the jellyfish pavilion, visitors entered the penguin hall.

The penguins lived among icy mountains and snowy lands, either lying down or sitting, with none in an active state. So, some elementary school students stood outside the display window, beating their chests, jumping up and down, making all sorts of strange howls, trying to attract the penguins’ attention.

The penguins still refused to approach the window, watching the human offspring as if they were watching fools.

Homeroom Teacher Wu promptly stopped her class’s crazy behavior. She scolded: “Be quiet, you few! Visitors are not looking at the penguins anymore, they’re all looking at you! How can you be so shameless!”

The guide sister smoothed things over: “Alright, children, this is the Polar Penguin Exhibition Hall! Do you know what the largest penguin in the world is called?”

The visitors came and went around, and Class 4(1) gathered into a group. Everyone heard the guide’s question. Class monitor Dong Sunqi was the first to answer: “Emperor penguin! The largest is the emperor penguin!”

Vice monitor Tang Leqin also said: “It’s the emperor penguin!”

The guide took out a small penguin plush toy. This plush little penguin was about thirty centimeters tall, with round black eyes, a grayish fluffy back, a white chubby belly, and pink little feet, truly adorable.

Lin Zhixia’s soul was captivated by the little penguin. She raised her hand without hesitation and said loudly: “Sister, sister! You just asked about the largest penguin in the world. Well, the largest existing penguin’s full name is the Emperor Penguin, scientific name Aptenodytes forsteri, and it can reach a height of 120 centimeters when fully grown. Also! Scientists discovered the Kardas Ancient Crowned Penguin on Seymour Island in Antarctica! Scientific name Palaeeudyptes klekowskii! This species is extinct! But they could grow to two meters tall! Two meters tall! Taller than Emperor Penguins! They lived in Antarctica 37 million years ago.”

The entire class suddenly fell silent.

Visitors also looked over.

Homeroom Teacher Wu said to another teacher: “Oh my, our class’s Lin Zhixia particularly loves reading books, unlike ordinary students. I taught this kind of book-loving student in my previous class too, but they didn’t remember things as clearly as Lin Zhixia.”

That teacher asked: “Lin Zhixia… is very smart, right?”

Teacher Wu smiled and said: “Children, you know, have good memory. She doesn’t like too much attention. I’ve spoken with other teachers to give her more freedom, and that makes her happy.”

Meanwhile, an awkward smile was frozen on the guide sister’s face. She was a biology undergraduate who had just been assigned to the ocean aquarium for an internship this year. Of course, she knew about the Kardas Ancient Crowned Penguin, but she had forgotten its scientific name. Why were elementary school students nowadays… so knowledgeable!

“This little friend is amazing.” The guide sister came back to her senses and gave the little penguin plush toy to Lin Zhixia.

Lin Zhixia hugged the toy and happily spun around in place.

“Why do girls all like plush toys?” Ding Yan asked puzzledly.

“They won’t like them when they grow up,” Jiang Yubai guessed.

“Jiang Yubai, are you still going to compete with Lin Zhixia?” Ding Yan asked again, “Look how strong she is, even that… Kaka Gugu Penguin, she knows about it!”

Jiang Yubai corrected him: “It’s not Kaka Gugu, it’s Kardas Ancient Crowned Penguin.” In his pocket was the refrigerator magnet Lin Zhixia had given him. He put his left hand in his pocket, gripping the magnet, and suddenly felt energized. He didn’t like visiting the aquarium. He had seen many marine creatures before, had even gone diving at the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, played with helicopters, and now felt a bit bored.

This refrigerator magnet reminded him that today was a good opportunity to compete with Lin Zhixia.

There were many girls around Lin Zhixia.

The girls all wanted to hug the little penguin plush toy. But Lin Zhixia was reluctant to let go of the little penguin. She held the plush toy tightly and hid behind Homeroom Teacher Wu.

No one in the class was willing to approach Teacher Wu.

Lin Zhixia successfully shook off all her classmates—except for Jiang Yubai. Jiang Yubai still stayed by Lin Zhixia’s side. Lin Zhixia asked him vigilantly: “Are you also going to snatch my little penguin?”

“Yes,” Jiang Yubai answered.

Lin Zhixia was dumbfounded.

She froze for a good while, tears glistening in her eyes, with droplets clinging to her eyelashes. She lowered her head slightly, made a monumental decision, clutched the little penguin, and handed it to Jiang Yubai: “For you…”

Jiang Yubai was stunned.

Lin Zhixia added: “For you! Take it quickly! Or I’ll change my mind.”

Jiang Yubai suddenly smiled. He didn’t smile often. As he smiled, Lin Zhixia became much more timid, no longer able to righteously force others to accept her gifts.

Jiang Yubai also told her: “Only girls like plush toys.”

Lin Zhixia hugged the little penguin tightly again: “That’s not true! We shouldn’t use the concepts of boys and girls to define what a person should like or dislike.”

She held the little penguin with both hands, presenting it in front of Jiang Yubai: “Touch it, it’s super cute.”

Jiang Yubai was firm: “No touching.”

Lin Zhixia said softly: “You’ve missed a valuable opportunity.”

She turned her head and ran to the front, walking side by side with Teacher Wu. This time, not even Jiang Yubai followed Lin Zhixia.

*

Near noon, the guide led everyone to the freshwater fish hall.

The freshwater fish were divided into four major categories, distributed across eight areas. Many visitors were eagerly taking photos, and class monitor Dong Sunqi was also grabbing his camera, looking for scenes everywhere.

More than half of the classmates had cameras, including Jiang Yubai. However, Jiang Yubai was too lazy to take photos; he didn’t even take his camera out of his backpack. He walked around the aquarium as leisurely as if strolling in his garden.

At this time, the guide sister asked again: “Children, do you know which freshwater fish has created the world record for the largest freshwater fish?”

Jiang Yubai immediately answered: “Mekong giant catfish.”

The guide sister had already noticed Jiang Yubai. She smiled slightly and handed him a catfish greeting card.

Yes, a catfish greeting card.

A greeting card printed with a catfish.

All the previous prizes had been tasteful. Why did the budget plummet so sharply at the freshwater fish hall? Jiang Yubai took this catfish greeting card, which was completely ungiftable and gave him no sense of superiority over Lin Zhixia whatsoever.

To make matters worse, Lin Zhixia swayed over to him.

Lin Zhixia was somewhat puzzled: “You don’t want the little penguin, but you accept the catfish.”

Jiang Yubai defended himself: “Catfish are edible, penguins are not. Sole fish and Yangtze leather catfish are types of catfish, quite delicious.”

Lin Zhixia jumped in place: “This is…”

Jiang Yubai looked at her: “What is it?”

“Arapaima!” Lin Zhixia pointed behind him.

Jiang Yubai turned around and saw a bizarre fish with an enormous body and a sharpened head.

Lin Zhixia placed one hand on the glass window and introduced to Jiang Yubai: “Arapaima can grow very, very large. Its home is in the Amazon in South America. This fish is extremely ferocious!”

Jiang Yubai asked: “How ferocious?”

“It eats very quickly, swallowing in one gulp,” Lin Zhixia told him. “Arapaima can eat piranhas. Amazon piranhas, you know, are also very fierce.”

The glass window was ice-cold, with water waves slightly swaying in the dark light. The arapaima slowly swam to a position near the visitors. Their heads were relatively small, their eyes even smaller. As it moved sideways, one of its eyes seemed to meet Jiang Yubai’s gaze.

Jiang Yubai immediately walked away. He grabbed Lin Zhixia’s sleeve and, with his catfish greeting card, headed toward a safe area.

The hour hand pointed to noon, and some classmates started clamoring for lunch.

The aquarium cafeteria had prepared boxed meals for everyone, one per person, with two vegetable dishes and one meat dish. The vegetables were stir-fried bok choy and braised tofu, while the meat dish was beef brisket with radish. Lin Zhixia lined up and received her boxed meal, cherishing it dearly. She told Gan Shuli: “This boxed meal is much better than I imagined.”

Gan Shuli felt the same way.

She and Lin Zhixia found seats at random. Soon after, Jiang Yubai, Ding Yan, Dong Sunqi, Han Dawei, and others all carried their boxed meals and sat near Lin Zhixia.

Han Dawei lifted the transparent plastic cover of his boxed meal, broke apart the disposable bamboo chopsticks, and shouted: “The food smells so good!” He held the boxed meal with his left hand, chopsticks in his right, and shoveled food into his mouth messily.

“The rice has a good texture! The beef brisket is delicious!” Han Dawei wiped his mouth with his sleeve and expressed his appreciation. He noticed that Jiang Yubai was hesitant to start eating and asked curiously: “Hey, Jiang Yubai, why aren’t you eating?”

The aquarium cafeteria was spacious and bright, arranged like a university canteen, with rows of blue plastic tables and red plastic stools as far as the eye could see. Sitting in such an environment, facing a boxed meal and disposable bamboo chopsticks, Jiang Yubai suddenly lost his appetite. He wasn’t a person who particularly cared about dining atmosphere, but he felt that today’s dishes would be hard to swallow.

“Jiang Yubai?” Lin Zhixia called his name.

He asked: “What is it?”

Lin Zhixia questioned back: “Have you never eaten a boxed meal before?”

As soon as she spoke, several nearby classmates stared intently at Jiang Yubai. The cafeteria lights seemed to converge on Jiang Yubai’s head, putting him in the spotlight. Without another word, he opened his boxed meal on the spot and ate solemnly and formally.

The tofu seasoning was too salty, the bok choy taste was average, the beef brisket had a slight fishy smell, and the rice… the rice was slightly overcooked. Just as Jiang Yubai had predicted, he wasn’t accustomed to this kind of food.

Ding Yan, ever the troublemaker, mocked him: “Haha, Jiang Yubai, you can’t eat it, right? I watched ‘The Story of Lord Ji Xiaolan,’ I’ve seen this episode! The noble young master travels incognito and can’t stomach commoners’ food… Jiang Yubai, you’re going to go hungry!”

Well, Ding Yan was indeed the friend Jiang Yubai had made through fighting.

Jiang Yubai didn’t argue. He unzipped his backpack, found his food container, and took out two apple pies, placing them on top of his rice. The pies had already cooled, but the rice was piping hot. The rising steam had a heating effect, causing the temperature of the pies to rise rapidly.

He ate the apple pies. The filling was soft, neither too sweet nor cloying, just to his taste.

Or perhaps his taste was randomly changing. He just remembered Lin Zhixia’s words, “I mixed the filling myself,” while eating the pies. Some uncles and aunts he knew would ask the chefs to create a story for each dish when dining at restaurants—as long as the story was moving enough, diners were willing to spend a fortune. Pure food connoisseurs were no longer welcome; appreciating food culture was the eternal refined pursuit.

Jiang Yubai didn’t expect himself to be so boring. Anyway, he finished the apple pies.

Ding Yan was quite puzzled: “Is this your food container?”

Jiang Yubai admitted: “Yes.”

Ding Yan exclaimed: “You’re so frugal? You even brought two pies from home?”

Jiang Yubai’s actions spoke louder than words. He picked up his chopsticks and continued to taste his boxed meal.

There was a souvenir shop next to the cafeteria. The students received permission from their teachers to browse the shop. The gathering time was one-thirty in the afternoon, and many students rushed into the souvenir shop as soon as they finished eating, not wasting a second.

At the entrance of the store stood a round display rack, hung with delicate key rings. The pendants were various small animals, including seals, dolphins, walruses, and so on. Lin Zhixia gently rotated the disc, and the seals, dolphins, and walruses rotated with it. She happily clapped her hands once: “So cute.”

“How much is each?” Gan Shuli asked.

Lin Zhixia checked the price tag: “Fourteen yuan each.”

Gan Shuli asked again: “Are you buying one, Lin Zhixia?”

“I’m not buying,” Lin Zhixia said, “it’s a bit expensive.”

Gan Shuli reluctantly let go of the dolphin pendant: “I brought ten yuan… not enough.”

Lin Zhixia put her hand into her clothes pocket: “I have three yuan in coins. If you borrow one yuan from someone else, you’ll have enough for fourteen.” As she was looking for coins, Zhou Bufeng brushed past her.

The souvenir shop attracted a large crowd of visitors. The bustling crowd gathered in front of the shelves, stirring up a bubbling cacophony of chatter.

Zhou Bufeng was rather short. He easily dove into the crowd, shielded with his sleeve, snatched four key rings, stuffed them into his backpack, and turned to walk out of the store. His movements were practiced and concise, like a seasoned street thief.

“Zhou Bufeng!” Lin Zhixia called out his name.

She saw him stealing!

As Zhou Bufeng’s classmate, Lin Zhixia felt obligated to monitor him. She grabbed Zhou Bufeng’s backpack and threatened in a low voice: “Put those things back. Otherwise, I’ll call security, call the shop assistant.”

“Get lost!” Zhou Bufeng pushed Lin Zhixia away.

The backpack strap slid from his shoulder and tangled around his elbow. He exerted force with his wrist, straining, his eyeballs fixed on the ground, still saying: “Let go! Let go! Who knows you anyway!”

The onlookers to this incident, besides Lin Zhixia, included Gan Shuli. Gan Shuli was one of Lin Zhixia’s few friends.

Gan Shuli had a very quiet and introverted personality, usually speaking in a slow and soft voice. But now, Gan Shuli shouted: “Someone is stealing! Teacher Wu! Zhou Bufeng is stealing and hitting people! Zhou Bufeng is stealing and hitting people!”

Teacher Wu rushed to the scene.

In a flash, Teacher Wu grabbed Zhou Bufeng and dragged him to the cafeteria. Under the watchful eyes of a large group of adults and elementary school students, Teacher Wu yanked off Zhou Bufeng’s backpack, opened it wide, pointed it toward the ground, and all the contents were poured out onto the floor with a “clatter.”

The four key chains from the ocean aquarium lay silently before everyone’s eyes.

Teacher Wu’s face turned from white to bluish, then to purplish. She tried hard to suppress her anger, with veins showing on her forehead, covered with gloom—it was the most terrifying expression Lin Zhixia had ever seen in her life.

“Stealing! You’re stealing again!” Teacher Wu scolded, “You just can’t control your hands! I’m calling your grandfather right now!”

Zhou Bufeng burst into tears with a “waaah.” While crying, he said: “I didn’t steal… I wanted to buy things!”

Surging tears dripped onto the tiles. Zhou Bufeng cried so hard he could barely breathe, like a burst water pipe. With his nose blocked by mucus, he breathed through his mouth and pointed at Lin Zhixia, arguing: “It’s her! She’s making things up!”

How pathetic, Lin Zhixia thought.

Although in Lin Zhixia’s view, most classmates had some intellectual deficiencies, Zhou Bufeng’s deficiency was unique. She didn’t even have the heart to expose Zhou Bufeng’s clumsy lies, because he had always lived in boundless illusion—to attract attention, he could do anything.

Lin Zhixia calmly faced Zhou Bufeng’s accusations and methodically listed the evidence: “After Classmate Zhou Bufeng got the key chains, he didn’t go to the cashier. He walked outside the store. I quietly told him to return the items, but he pushed me away.”

“I can testify,” suddenly came another classmate’s voice.

Lin Zhixia looked toward the voice and saw Vice Monitor Tang Leqin.

Tang Leqin held her backpack straps with both hands, standing firmly in front of Zhou Bufeng, and righteously declared: “Lin Zhixia is right! You did steal!”

The store’s clerk and manager arrived one after another. Teacher Wu and the director of studies were responsible for the aftermath. The director’s expression was worse than Teacher Wu’s. They took Zhou Bufeng to the manager’s office—a small room without windows, containing a table and a wooden chair, permeated with the vintage smell of stacked old newspapers.

Teacher Wu pushed Zhou Bufeng’s back and ordered: “Apologize to them.”

Zhou Bufeng stammered: “I didn’t initially mean to take them…”

He was accustomed to putting on a trembling, timid act in front of adults, just like “Scabbers,” the little rat in “Harry Potter.” The little rat’s true identity was Peter Pettigrew. Everyone looked down on Peter. Yet Peter could trample on the high and mighty Sirius Black. That was the rat’s success, and also Pettigrew’s victory.

Zhou Bufeng appeared extremely panicked. However, that panic had not penetrated his heart. His heart was stable and peaceful, and he could even go back to the store to steal something more valuable.

Where was the genuine fear? He couldn’t feel it.

His fear was just an act.

Adults don’t believe children can be corrupted. His performance was also considered pure innocence.

Teacher Wu said to the manager: “I’m sorry, this child in our class is as stubborn as a mule; even his family can’t control him.” As she spoke, Teacher Wu dialed Zhou Bufeng’s home landline number.

The person who answered the phone was Zhou Bufeng’s grandfather.

Zhou Bufeng’s grandfather was already in his sixties. He had undergone major hip joint surgery last year and also had high blood pressure, so he shouldn’t get angry. After receiving the call from Homeroom Teacher Wu, he first expressed his anger: “Zhou Bufeng stole again?”

The old grandfather slapped the wooden sofa armrest: “Beat him! Teacher Wu, beat him! Parents send their children to school for teachers to educate them… Don’t worry about anything else, beat him! Beat him to death! This little beast!”

Teacher Wu had turned on the speakerphone, and the grandfather’s scolding voice floated in the narrow, cramped room.

After hearing this, the souvenir shop manager’s face showed a subtle expression. He whispered a few words with the director of studies and Teacher Wu, their voices so low that Zhou Bufeng couldn’t hear a word.

Then, just at that moment, the manager suddenly said: “Little friend Zhou Bufeng, why did you steal? Stealing is against the law. You’re a student from Experimental Elementary School. Today, for your teacher’s sake, we won’t pursue your responsibility… If you do it again in the future, no one will help you.”

Zhou Bufeng nodded desperately.

The office door was slightly ajar. Cool air flowed through the crack, and Lin Zhixia was standing at the doorway. She listened to the manager, the teachers, and Zhou Bufeng’s conversation, pondering thoughtfully for a few minutes before silently moving away.

Jiang Yubai tapped her shoulder.

She was startled: “What are you doing!”

But Jiang Yubai asked her: “What are you doing?”

“Me?” Lin Zhixia pointed to the wooden door of the office, “I was just collecting material for my ‘Human Observation Diary.’ Why do adults always want to give children chances, and believe that children will correct their mistakes?”

Jiang Yubai considered for a moment, then answered: “Children don’t understand things.” He imitated the tone adults often use. At that moment, he seemed no longer a 9-year-old boy; his way of thinking briefly resonated with that of an adult man over 20.

“Do you know?” Lin Zhixia secretly told him, “Children under 14 are considered to have no criminal responsibility capacity in law and don’t bear criminal responsibility.”

She spoke while walking outside with Jiang Yubai.

The two of them, whose ages added up to only eighteen, had already begun to discuss the Criminal Law and the Law on the Protection of Minors. Lin Zhixia believed that the standard for the age of criminal responsibility could be appropriately adjusted, while Jiang Yubai thought the implementation of “case law” was worth referencing.

Since Lin Zhixia had mastered too many legal professional terms, Jiang Yubai chatted with her for more than ten minutes and found himself confused. In his muddled state of consciousness, he asked: “Lin Zhixia, can you recite the entire Criminal Law text?”

Lin Zhixia stopped in her tracks.

Jiang Yubai also stood up straight.

The aquarium’s large glass tank stood behind them, with fish scattering in the water. Lin Zhixia was slightly distracted by the school of fish and casually replied: “Not just that. Besides the Criminal Law, I can recite many laws and regulations.”

“When Zhou Bufeng grows up, will he violate the Criminal Law?” Jiang Yubai raised a new question.

This question combined predictions, understanding of the law, and concern for their classmate Zhou Bufeng. Lin Zhixia felt that Jiang Yubai had found a very good entry point. She and Jiang Yubai had a new topic for them to analyze deeply.

Lin Zhixia candidly said: “I think Zhou Bufeng behaving like this, always stealing things, actually seems normal.”

Jiang Yubai asked skeptically: “Why?”

Lin Zhixia looked at him steadily: “I mean, Zhou Bufeng’s actions all conform to patterns. I heard his father and mother both went to Shanghai to work, leaving him alone to be raised by his grandfather. I heard his grandfather speaking outside the manager’s office, and his grandfather… doesn’t have much patience. At school, teachers and classmates don’t like him, and at home, no one gives him warmth and care. His current behavior is quite normal.”

She paused, then added: “Similarly, I don’t believe that a person who has experienced hardships and suffered torment… can become very kind, unless they find spiritual solace. Nietzsche proposed an ideal personality type in his ‘Superman theory,’ a superman who can overcome all suffering and create his new philosophy. Ordinary people just collapse under continuous blows. I agree with Nietzsche’s view.”

“Is that so?” Jiang Yubai fell into deep thought.

He wanted to ask, Do you like philosophy very much?

He raised another question: “Are you a superman?”

“I’m not,” Lin Zhixia shook her head vigorously, “From Nietzsche’s perspective, I’m also an ordinary person. I hate setbacks. When my mom scolds me, I get sad.”

Then, Lin Zhixia clapped her hands: “Remember the first day we met, I asked you, do humans have free will? According to Wegner’s experiments in ‘The Illusion of Consciousness,’ he concluded—’ the fundamental cause of behavior lies outside consciousness.’ The entire universe conserves energy, so how is training the human brain different from training an artificial neural network? One difference might be the input source and feature extraction process. By the way, ‘The Matrix’ is one of my favorite movies.”

Jiang Yubai felt dizzy from Lin Zhixia’s jumping thought process.

He stood in place and summarized her viewpoint: “Are you saying the entire universe is made up of mathematics, physics, and data?”

“That depends on how you define the word ‘data,'” Lin Zhixia answered.

The silence between them lasted for a long time.

Noisy sounds came from not far away.

A uniformed aquarium staff member accompanied a lady over sixty years old, walking quickly towards them. This lady was named Shen Zhaohua, a professor of physical oceanography at a top university in the province. Behind Professor Shen followed four doctoral students, three males and one female, all her outstanding students. She also brought a young graduate student who had just joined the experimental group this year.

Professor Shen Zhaohua was the laboratory director of the provincial marine research institute and also the academic leader in “atmospheric-ocean dynamics.” Her team had just published two important papers in the journals “Physical Review Letters” and “Geophysical Research Letters” this year, and Lin Zhixia had happened to read the one about “mixed ocean turbulence distribution.” She remembered Shen Zhaohua’s photo and couldn’t help but follow the professor for a few steps.

The aquarium staff began: “Professor Shen, our aquatic life research center…”

One doctoral student interrupted: “Is this the research center co-organized with the aquatic biology research institute?”

“Yes, we’ve encountered some problems recently,” the staff member replied, “and we’ve troubled Professor Shen to come for this laboratory environment assessment.”

Professor Shen was discussing laboratory equipment details with the staff. The students Professor Shen brought were also whispering, and one graduate student spoke up: “I simulated an ocean circulation model a few days ago, based on the Navier-Stokes equation… I used pressure correction to solve the pressure field with Neumann boundary conditions, and my Poisson operator showed strong anisotropy related to the longitudinal coordinate axis. Can you figure it out? How should I do the preprocessor?”

Jiang Yubai only heard the phrase “anisotropy.” He repeated: “Anisotropy?”

Lin Zhixia explained to him: “Ah, this is an academic term, meaning that part or all of an object’s properties vary in different directions.”

Then, she said to the graduate student: “In your preprocessor, if you treat the integral result of the Poisson operator as a static water limit, you can solve your problem. However, this method has flaws and requires discretizing the entire space. This is a very common solution method… When you can’t evaluate a large continuous space, you can use discrete models to simulate the final result. If you want to establish an inherently iterable reference system, then use recursive algorithms to set benchmarks when preprocessing data, keep them constant, which can greatly reduce the subsequent computational burden.”

All four doctoral students stopped in their tracks. They lowered their heads, looking at Lin Zhixia.

Professor Shen Zhaohua turned around, her eyes meeting Lin Zhixia’s directly.

A strange atmosphere filled the surroundings. This atmosphere forced the doctoral students to remain quiet. For a moment, they didn’t know whether they should continue discussing the problem; no one was clear whether this little girl was just lucky in her guess or genuinely happened to have researched the relevant field.

Happened to have researched the relevant field?

This kind of description, by any measure, couldn’t possibly apply to a young child.

A smile appeared on Professor Shen Zhaohua’s face. Many visitors passed by her, and the joint laboratory of the aquarium and the aquatic biology research institute was not far away; everyone was waiting for her. Yet she took the time to softly ask Lin Zhixia: “Little friend, how old are you?”

Jiang Yubai answered for Lin Zhixia: “She just turned nine last month.”

“Nine years old?” a doctoral student repeated blankly, “Nine years old?”

Lin Zhixia nodded: “I’m nine years old this year.”

She stood in a position close to the glass tank, carrying a blue Doraemon backpack, hugging a little penguin plush toy. She even had twin ponytails, tied with pink strawberry hair ties.

Pink strawberry hair ties.

Indeed, she was a little girl who had just turned nine.

The contrast before them was too strong. The graduate students under Professor Shen suddenly felt inferior, with a sense of indescribable shame growing in their hearts. This graduate student stepped back and stood behind Professor Shen.

“Little friend, can you understand the Navier-Stokes equation, Poisson operator, and discrete space?” Professor Shen looked at Lin Zhixia, her gaze full of exploration.

Professor Shen had children and grandchildren; her grandson had just turned eleven and was still in elementary school. Unfortunately, no one in her children’s or grandchildren’s generations was truly interested in scientific research. Her eleven-year-old grandson aspired to become a civil servant and enter politics, a lofty ambition that received encouragement and support from the whole family.

Only Professor Shen still remembered when her grandson was young, pointing at the world map and saying, Ocean physics! Physical oceanography!

Ocean physics and physical oceanography are actually two different concepts. Now, if Professor Shen wanted to explain this to her grandson, he wouldn’t want to listen anymore.

Nine-year-old Lin Zhixia had caught Professor Shen’s attention.

Lin Zhixia was surrounded by them, feeling a bit panicked. Her scientific world had always been singular, independent, and lacking external communication. Although she had seen countless professors and scientists’ contact information on the provincial library’s computers, she had never bothered these academic giants, nor had she ever publicly expressed her insights.

Lin Zhixia was accustomed to reading, thinking, and recording in her brain—a one-way data input process. She wanted to answer Professor Shen’s question but was also reluctant to display her uniqueness in front of people.

Her eyes wandered, moving closer to Jiang Yubai.

Jiang Yubai asked her: “What are you afraid of?”

Lin Zhixia stubbornly replied: “I’m not.”

Jiang Yubai gently pushed her: “I have a lot of courage. I’ll give some to you.”

“I… I’m not a coward!” Lin Zhixia said.

She summoned her courage and stared at Shen Zhaohua: “I understand all the concepts you mentioned. But understanding concepts is one thing, solving them is another. Whether the Navier-Stokes equation has a unique solution, and what the limiting conditions for a unique solution are, still has no definitive conclusion… I haven’t researched it deeply. But I believe it has a smooth, unique analytical solution, not just in the common incompressible fluid two-dimensional laminar flow model. The current mainstream solution method is to use discrete numerical simulation under known conditions, and fast Fourier transform is well-known…”

The graduate student suddenly asked: “If you were to simply estimate the solution to a nonlinear system of equations…”

“What do you mean by ‘simply estimate’? The basics of ‘Numerical Analysis’?” Lin Zhixia questioned, “Have you tried the convergence method, Aitken acceleration convergence, or Newton’s method? Let me see your system of equations.”

Shen Zhaohua looked at one of her doctoral students. That doctoral student was only twenty-five years old this year. He was a talented student in a combined master’s and doctoral program, wearing black-framed glasses, a cotton shirt, sweatpants, and a windbreaker, looking every bit like a good student.

He understood his mentor’s deep meaning, suppressed the smile on his face, and looked only at Lin Zhixia, telling her: “We’re in a hurry now. This is my mentor’s business card, with our office landline number on it. If you want to visit our university’s laboratory, feel free to come anytime.”

Lin Zhixia was stunned, not reacting right away.

Jiang Yubai took the card for her and said thank you on her behalf.

The gathering whistle for Class 4(1) sounded in the cafeteria, and Professor Shen’s group gradually moved away.

Jiang Yubai handed the business card to Lin Zhixia and asked her: “Do you also suddenly zone out?”

Lin Zhixia was being stubborn again: “I didn’t suddenly zone out.”

Jiang Yubai pressed further: “Why were you silent just now?”

Lin Zhixia clutched the business card: “I was just a bit surprised.” She ran towards the class assembly area.

*

That afternoon, the guide sister led everyone to visit the aquarium’s dolphin bay.

This was the first time in Lin Zhixia’s life that she had observed dolphins up close.

She was too excited to speak.

The dolphin’s skin was very smooth, and their body structure perfectly applied fluid dynamics, allowing them to swim quickly in the water. Lin Zhixia also noticed that one dolphin was the most lively; it jumped out of the pool twice, splashing water all around.

Through a glass wall, Lin Zhixia gazed at the dolphins.

That dolphin seemed to be gazing back at her, too.

What kind of world do dolphins perceive?

If they realized that they would be confined in an aquarium for their entire lives, unable to return to the sea, would they think about it… Lin Zhixia drew a dolphin on the glass, also concluding today’s aquarium visit.

Homeroom Teacher Wu gathered all the students together and started counting them. Many students were deeply enchanted by the dolphins and beluga whales and couldn’t move their feet. Teacher Wu called three times before the students came to their senses.

Under Teacher Wu’s orders, the students stood in two lines according to their physical education class formation—boys in one line, girls in another. Jiang Yubai was the last in the boys’ line, and Lin Zhixia was the last in the girls’ line. Inevitably, they stood side by side once again.

After boarding the school bus, Lin Zhixia simply sat next to Jiang Yubai.

Everyone had walked all day and was more or less tired, Lin Zhixia being no exception. She leaned on the side of the seat, closed her eyes to sleep, and fell asleep shortly.

To Jiang Yubai’s left was Lin Zhixia, and to his right was class monitor Dong Sunqi. Dong Sunqi held his digital camera, asking Jiang Yubai to help him decide which photo was the best.

“I took photos for you,” Dong Sunqi revealed, “I secretly took two of you.”

Jiang Yubai raised his hand and held down the camera: “Class monitor, you secretly photographed me?”

The class monitor gently advised him: “Rich Young Master Jiang, don’t get excited.”

Rich Young Master Jiang was still somewhat excited: “Before taking photos, you need the person’s consent.” He took his portrait rights very seriously, because his uncle Jiang Shaoqi had fought more than one lawsuit over portrait rights. Jiang Shaoqi’s various experiences had given Jiang Yubai a vivid lesson.

Most of the students around were sleeping, especially Lin Zhixia, who was sleeping soundly. She curled up in her seat like a little kitten, much quieter than when she was awake.

Jiang Yubai didn’t dare speak loudly. His voice became very soft. But Dong Sunqi had no such concerns. Dong Sunqi laughed heartily, showcasing today’s harvest on the digital camera’s display screen.

“Jiang Yubai! Look!” Dong Sunqi exclaimed, “In this photo, I captured you looking super handsome! You should thank me!”

Jiang Yubai’s reaction was cold: “I should thank my parents. They determined my appearance.”

Dong Sunqi put his arm around Jiang Yubai’s shoulders: “How about this one! You, Lin Zhixia, Ding Yan, and Gan Shuli are standing together! Everyone’s so lively!”

Jiang Yubai’s response was unsociable: “Delete it.”

Dong Sunqi was greatly surprised: “This one too?”

“No.”

—The speaker was Lin Zhixia.

Lin Zhixia had been awakened by Dong Sunqi. She rubbed her eyes, hugged the plush little penguin tightly, leaned over to Jiang Yubai, and looked at the photo in the digital camera. She smiled very happily: “Don’t delete it, don’t delete it! Keep the photo for me, can you keep it for me? Please keep it for me.”

Dong Sunqi, as if after crossing a thousand mountains and waters, finally found someone who appreciated him. He eagerly asked: “Lin Zhixia, don’t you think this photo is good?”

“Yes! It’s good!” Lin Zhixia was not sparing with her praise, “There’s Lin Zhixia, and Jiang Yubai, Ding Yan, Gan Shuli. We’re all good friends. Please give me the photo, can you send it to my email?”

Dong Sunqi immediately agreed. Then he asked: “Lin Zhixia, do you want my selfies too? I’m not in this group photo. I’m the class monitor, how can it be without me?”

Lin Zhixia froze for a moment. She wasn’t very familiar with Dong Sunqi. She casually said: “Sure, send it.”

Dong Sunqi slapped his thigh: “Great!”

He was talking with Lin Zhixia across Jiang Yubai, and neither of them noticed Jiang Yubai’s expression. Jiang Yubai’s left hand reached into his backpack, and soon, he found his digital camera.

Jiang Yubai’s digital camera was the latest model, bought just last week. Moreover, this digital camera used a touchscreen interface, requiring users to adjust various parameters themselves.

Jiang Yubai just wanted to take a photo on the spot, but a huge menu selection box popped up on the camera screen.

He looked at those “saturation, sharpness, contrast” settings, not understanding what they were for. He didn’t bother to figure it out, pressed a few buttons randomly, and somehow hit something that changed the entire camera’s default language to German.

Yes, German.

Jiang Yubai felt like he was reading an unintelligible book.

Some German words looked quite similar to English and French but weren’t quite the same thing. The digital camera’s menu bar had become completely outside Jiang Yubai’s knowledge area. He pretended to be calm and reached for the power button, just about to press it firmly when he heard Lin Zhixia ask him: “Can you read German?”

Here it comes again! The competitor’s provocation had come once more!

Jiang Yubai had grown a lot in the past two months. He no longer felt as ashamed and angry as he had at the beginning.

He frankly and honestly admitted: “I was about to power it off.”

Lin Zhixia took the digital camera from his hand. She lowered her head and pressed a few buttons, and the camera, like a tamed beast, obediently listened to her commands.

She opened the camera and asked him: “Do you want to take a photo?”

At this point, he couldn’t let momentary pride ruin everything.

Jiang Yubai answered with a sense of the big picture: “Yes, I want to take a photo.”

The digital camera was given by Lin Zhixia to Ding Yan in the front row. Ding Yan secretly raised the camera, and while the homeroom teacher and the other two escort teachers were dozing off, Ding Yan turned around, pointing the camera lens at Lin Zhixia, Jiang Yubai, and Dong Sunqi. He took a new group photo of the three of them.

“This is… the memento photo of our return trip from the aquarium!” Lin Zhixia happily concluded.

This was also the only group photo in Jiang Yubai’s camera.

Why did he insist on taking a group photo with Lin Zhixia?

For this, Jiang Yubai had his understanding. Lin Zhixia was his competitor, and he kept a photo of his competitor precisely to urge himself to honestly face his shortcomings, just like U.S. President Lincoln respected and admired his political opponent Seward.

Jiang Yubai sorted out his logic and put away the camera.

When the bus returned to school, it was half-past three in the afternoon, and the sun was still bright. The parents of the fourth-graders had all rushed to the school gate to pick up their children, and Jiang Yubai’s family driver had also arrived. Jiang Yubai got off the bus and walked toward the driver. Lin Zhixia called out from a distance: “See you tomorrow!”

Jiang Yubai raised his hand, waved to her, and said loudly: “See you tomorrow!”