Lin Zhixia’s ninth birthday fell on September 24, 2004.

Jiang Yubai memorized this date firmly.

Before this, Jiang Yubai had already gotten a new tutor—this teacher had graduated from the best university in the province. This university is ranked in the top five nationally, and its School of Mathematical Sciences is among the top three in the country.

Jiang Yubai asked his new teacher: “Have you studied physics?”

The teacher pushed up the glasses on his nose: “I was in the competition class in high school. I participated in mathematics and physics competitions.”

“Very good,” Jiang Yubai nodded in approval, “please recommend the most difficult physics competition exercise book for me. It must be the most difficult, most recently published one, not ordinary difficulty.”

The teacher questioned: “High school competition level? You probably won’t be able to understand it… what are you buying it for?”

Jiang Yubai held his pen and tapped it lightly on the paper: “I need the most recently published, historically most difficult physics competition exercise book.” He deliberately imitated his father’s tone: “I’m sorry, it involves personal privacy, I cannot answer your question in detail.”

The teacher was thoroughly confused. But after all, he was a mathematics tutor with professional integrity. Soon, he recommended to Jiang Yubai a series of excellent physics problem collections, including “International Young Physicists’ Tournament,” “Princeton University Physics Competition,” “British Physics Challenge,” “Canadian Waterloo Newton Physics Competition,” and “Chinese Physics Olympiad.”

These names sounded very difficult! Jiang Yubai gathered his spirits and wrote feverishly.

Looking at the list of books he had made, he anticipated that Lin Zhixia would soon be in tears, knowing when to retreat in the face of difficulty.

On September 24, 2004, Jiang Yubai carried his backpack and picked up a heavy handbag.

He had successfully collected all the problem sets, complete with both Chinese and English versions. Moreover, Jiang Yubai had spent an entire night tearing out all the answer sections from the books.

Yes, he had torn out the answers.

He knew this was an immoral, undignified, and dishonest behavior. His conscience was severely tested.

In the end, his competitive desire slightly prevailed.

At 7:17 a.m. on September 24, Jiang Yubai, bearing his heavy burden, slowly stepped into the classroom of Class 1, Grade 4. His expression appeared no different from usual. But inside, massive waves were surging, churning tumultuously.

He guessed that Lin Zhixia might cry.

His movements in placing the exercise books became hesitant.

If she cried, what should he do?

He couldn’t make his desk mate cry, nor could he be too cruel. He should be a good person, and when he grows up, become a good man.

Jiang Yubai glanced sideways at Lin Zhixia.

Lin Zhixia’s cheeks were rosy white, with the clear morning light making her eyes appear like they contained galaxies. She opened her notebook and was writing “Human Observation Diary.”

Lin Zhixia wrote: September 24, 2004, today I will continue to accumulate material. My desk mate Jiang Yubai has been struggling with complex number theory lately. He hasn’t truly understood the vector meaning of complex number space. He may need more time before he can apply mathematical tools to practical theories. Yesterday I described my understanding of string theory to Jiang Yubai, and I found that Jiang Yubai knows nothing about the famous general theory of relativity…

The four characters meaning “knows nothing” stung Jiang Yubai’s eyes.

Put away your pity. Jiang Yubai warned himself. Pity for the enemy is cruelty to oneself.

He clenched his fists, determined, and called out in a cold, hell-like voice: “Lin Zhixia.”

Lin Zhixia wrote quickly, her pen seeming divinely guided. She asked casually: “What is it?”

Jiang Yubai emptied the handbag onto the desk.

“Chinese Physics Olympiad,” “International Young Physicists’ Tournament,” “Princeton University Physics Competition,” “British Physics Challenge,” and other historically most difficult international physics competition problems were, at that moment, completely presented before Lin Zhixia’s eyes.

“All for you,” Jiang Yubai said slowly, speaking like a demon, “I tore out all the answers.”

Lin Zhixia looked up, gazing into his eyes.

He added: “Every single book, torn out completely clean.”

Just as Jiang Yubai had anticipated, Lin Zhixia’s eyes misted over, tears gathering, filling her eye sockets.

Her earlobes began to turn red, like the sunset glow of late summer. She even began to tremble slightly, as if she had become a fish caught by the lakeside. Her nose soured, and she couldn’t help crying, crying more and more uncontrollably. Her beautiful eyes were covered with tears as she complained to him in a pitiful voice: “I know I shouldn’t cry, but, but, some emotions can’t be controlled… Last week, when you asked me when my birthday was, I wondered if you were going to give me a gift… This is the first birthday gift I’ve received from a classmate… Before, no one… no one has treated me like this…”

Jiang Yubai hadn’t expected her reaction to be so intense.

He had already lost the joy of victory.

He stammered: “I-I’m sorry, Lin Zhixia, the answers aren’t thrown away, this afternoon…”

Before he could finish saying that he would bring all the answers to her that afternoon, Lin Zhixia wiped away her tears and said to him: “Thank you, thank you! This is the best birthday gift I’ve ever received! Jiang Yubai, you are my best friend! You will always be my best friend! Jiang Yubai! You’re so kind!”

Jiang Yubai was somewhat bewildered.

Lin Zhixia was so happy that she grabbed his wrist: “I never look at the answers… I don’t like looking at answers. I dislike answers. Because those answers’ thought processes are completely different from mine. I only need to discover the problems; problems help me think, and the process of thinking is the most crucial part. You understand me so well, you understand me so well. Thank you for tearing out all the answers for me! Thank you, Jiang Yubai.”

Jiang Yubai withdrew his hand. He quietly looked at the surface of the desk, finally understanding that Lin Zhixia had been crying tears of joy.

Lin Zhixia’s eyes were red-rimmed, like a little rabbit. She continued chattering: “Without the answers, the books are lighter too. I’m so happy! Today I’ll continue telling you about string theory! Yesterday we talked about how string theory integrates general relativity and quantum mechanics! Do you know about ‘tachyons’? ‘Tachyons’ refer to a type of subatomic particle in theoretical physics that moves faster than light and will never slow down to a speed close to the speed of light… The supersymmetry in string theory refers to the symmetry between fermions and bosons, which isn’t that interesting! Can you imagine the connection between supersymmetry and tachyons…”

Jiang Yubai grabbed the handbag and stuffed it into Lin Zhixia’s drawer. He said: “For you to carry your books.”

Lin Zhixia nodded: “Okay.”

Jiang Yubai rested his cheek on one hand, muttering: “I won’t lose.”

Lin Zhixia was puzzled: “Lose what?”

Jiang Yubai was inscrutable. He wouldn’t let Lin Zhixia detect too early that this was a competitive crisis.

The tear marks on Lin Zhixia’s face hadn’t dried yet. She pulled out a napkin to wipe her face. She sat in the corner of the last row, and the classmates in front hadn’t noticed her intense emotional fluctuations. After quite a while, Lin Zhixia seemed to have calmed down, and Jiang Yubai, looking out the window at the world outside, changed the subject: “A plane flew by in the sky.”

But Lin Zhixia said: “I’ve never been on a plane.”

Jiang Yubai was very surprised: “Really?”

“What does it feel like to ride in a plane?” Lin Zhixia asked him.

At this time, Dong Sunqi, the class monitor who also served as the “mathematics representative,” was collecting homework.

Dong Sunqi stood beside Jiang Yubai, issuing important instructions to each group: “Those who haven’t submitted their homework! All names will be recorded! No negotiation!”

Then, Dong Sunqi answered Lin Zhixia’s question: “Before boarding a plane, you need to buy a ticket first. After entering the airport, you need to choose a seat at the check-in counter…”

Jiang Yubai interrupted Dong Sunqi: “Private planes don’t require tickets.”

Dong Sunqi, holding a stack of math homework books, looked down at Jiang Yubai: “Does your family have a private plane?”

Jiang Yubai humbly and modestly replied: “I didn’t buy it.”

“Nonsense,” Dong Sunqi questioned, “how could you possibly buy a plane?”

This provoked Jiang Yubai’s competitive spirit: “When I grow up, I will buy one myself.”

Dong Sunqi immediately competed: “I’ll buy too! I’ll buy ten!”

Zhou Bufeng, sitting in the front row, joined the competition: “I want twenty Boeing 747s.”

Dong Sunqi put down the math homework and fully engaged in the battle: “I’m going to buy thirty domestically produced J-8 fighters, thirty American-made Lightning fighters! I also want aircraft carriers, missile destroyers, intercontinental missiles…”

“Why do you want these things?” Jiang Yubai questioned him.

Dong Sunqi stood stunned, unable to explain.

Jiang Yubai coldly mocked: “Do you think you’re playing ‘Age of Empires’?”

“Age of Empires” was a computer game popular among all the boys in the school. Players accumulated resources such as gold, food, wood, and population to produce armies and military weapons, then fought against enemies to achieve final victory.

Dong Sunqi was choked by Jiang Yubai’s words. He walked to the side and began urging everyone to submit their homework again.

While collecting homework, Dong Sunqi’s brain didn’t stop working. He finally came up with a plan. So he ran back in front of Jiang Yubai and solemnly announced: “Jiang Yubai, want to come play at my house this weekend? I have a computer at home! With ‘Age of Empires’ installed. My home also has a DVD player, complete sets of ‘Slam Dunk,’ ‘Inuyasha,’ ‘Pokémon,’ ‘Detective Conan’ discs, have you seen them?”

“I’ve seen ‘Inuyasha,’ ‘Pokémon,’ and ‘Detective Conan’!” Lin Zhixia slapped the desk, responding with surprise.

Jiang Yubai thought Lin Zhixia was going to visit Dong Sunqi’s home. He immediately turned his head, looking at Lin Zhixia: “I have anime discs at my home too, come to my place.”

Lin Zhixia paused.

Jiang Yubai said, “My home has everything.”

Jiang Yubai’s driver, mansion, and Aston Martin were famous throughout the grade.

A sixth-grade senior claimed that both his parents worked at the Jiang family company. The senior also said that Jiang Yubai’s grandfather was listed on the Hurun Rich List, and Jiang Yubai’s mother’s family ran the province’s building materials and steel industry.

The senior’s description was profound and difficult to understand.

The students of Class 1, Grade 4, more or less knew that Jiang Yubai was very wealthy.

Jiang Yubai’s nickname became “Class 1’s Richest.”

So, what would “Class 1’s Richest” Jiang Yubai’s home look like?

Dong Sunqi was very curious to find out. He bent down, put his arm around Jiang Yubai’s shoulders, and asked in a “we’re good buddies” tone: “Can I come play at your house?”

Jiang Yubai was about to refuse when Dong Sunqi suddenly said: “Jiang Yubai, you’re not only letting girls come to your house to play, are you? Don’t look down on boys. You’re a boy yourself.”

“Fine.” Jiang Yubai invited four people at once. They were his desk mate Lin Zhixia, class monitor Dong Sunqi, Gan Shuli, who sat in front of Lin Zhixia, and his friend Ding Yan.

Strangely, Zhou Bufeng also turned around, rocking back and forth in his chair. His gaze remained focused on Jiang Yubai, as if also waiting for Jiang Yubai’s invitation. But, Jiang Yubai swore in his heart: I will not invite him.

*

At 6:00 a.m. on Sunday of this week, Jiang Yubai got up.

He followed the rhythm of life, going to bed at eight-thirty, getting up at six, then washing up, doing morning exercises, taking a bath, and eating breakfast.

At 7:30 in the morning, the piano teacher came to give Jiang Yubai a lesson.

While playing the piano, Jiang Yubai suddenly thought, could he play a piece in front of Lin Zhixia? Would Lin Zhixia understand the melody? If she didn’t understand, he would have successfully turned the tables.

As the lingering notes faded, he pressed the last key, constructing a blueprint in his mind.

At 10:30 in the morning, Jiang Yubai was clear-minded and neatly dressed. He left his bedroom, went downstairs, stood in front of a floor-to-ceiling window, and patiently waited for his classmates.

Outside the window, the lawn stretched endlessly, the road was wide, and street lamps stood tall.

Jiang Yubai’s family sent out two cars to pick up classmates from different neighborhoods across the city. When studying in Singapore, Jiang Yubai had never invited anyone to his home as a guest. Yet he had been back in China for less than a month and had already quickly integrated into the class, the group, and made many friends—this made Jiang Yubai’s mother very pleased.

Dad said: “Different lands nurture different people; Jiang Yubai is more adaptable in his homeland.”

Mom also said, “Our son will have to deal with all sorts of people when making decisions in the future. He cannot only know one social stratum in Singapore.”

Jiang Yubai’s father sat on a bar-style terrace at the top of the mansion. He picked up a glass and looked at his watch again: “I should set off now. This time I’ll stay in Beijing for half a month, then go to Shanghai and Suzhou, my schedule is full…”

His wife smiled and urged: “Alright, you’d better go now.”

The two kissed on the terrace as the cool breeze blew.

Until the wind stopped.

Two cars drove in on the road below. After the cars stopped, five children got out—two girls and three boys.

Jiang Yubai remembered that he had only invited four people, so why were there five?

He scanned the group of classmates, besides Lin Zhixia, Gan Shuli, Ding Yan, and Dong Sunqi, there was another boy he had never seen before. That boy stepped forward and introduced himself: “I am Dong Sunqi’s neighbor. I’m thirteen years old, my name is Nie Tianqing.”

Nie Tianqing had handsome features and a tall, thin build. He wore the uniform of the city’s No. 1 Middle School, standing on the emerald-green lawn.

He claimed to be Dong Sunqi’s neighbor.

Jiang Yubai’s emotionless gaze fell on Dong Sunqi.

Dong Sunqi hurriedly explained: “Nie Tianqing was our senior at the same elementary school! He’s in eighth grade now! His family moved upstairs from my home two years ago, I often play video games with him…”

Dong Sunqi put his hand on Jiang Yubai’s shoulder: “Rich Jiang, I brought someone to play, can you give me this favor? Next time, when you come to my house, you can bring as many people as you want.”