Lin Zhixia’s ninth birthday fell on September 24, 2004.
Jiang Yubai had firmly committed this date to memory.
Prior to this, Jiang Yubai had already acquired a new private tutor—a graduate of the top university in their province. This university ranked among the top five nationwide, with its School of Mathematical Sciences placing in the top three across the country.
Jiang Yubai inquired of his new tutor, "Have you studied physics?"
The tutor adjusted his glasses. "I was in an Olympiad class during high school. I participated in both math and physics competitions."
"Excellent," Jiang Yubai nodded in approval. "Please recommend to me the most difficult physics competition workbook available. It must be the most challenging and the latest edition—nothing of ordinary difficulty."
The tutor questioned, "At the high school competition level? I’m afraid you might struggle to comprehend it... What do you plan to do with it?"
Jiang Yubai tapped his pen lightly on the paper. "I need the latest edition of the most difficult physics competition workbook in history." Deliberately mimicking his father’s tone, he added, "I’m sorry, but that involves personal privacy. I cannot elaborate further."
The tutor was filled with bewilderment. Nevertheless, being a mathematics tutor with strong professional integrity, he soon recommended to Jiang Yubai a series of excellent physics workbooks, including International Youth Physicists’ Tournament , Princeton University Physics Competition (USA) , British Physics Olympiad , Sir Isaac Newton Physics Contest (University of Waterloo, Canada) , and Chinese Physics Olympiad .
Just the names alone sounded incredibly difficult! Jiang Yubai steeled himself and began writing furiously.
Looking at the list of books he had compiled, he anticipated that Lin Zhixia would soon be on the verge of tears, ready to retreat in the face of such challenges.
On September 24, 2004, Jiang Yubai shouldered his backpack and carried a heavy tote bag.
He had successfully gathered all the compiled exercise books—available in both Chinese and English. Moreover, Jiang Yubai had spent an entire night tearing out all the answer keys from the books.
Yes, he had torn out the answers.
He knew it was an unethical, improper, and dishonest act. His conscience was tormented.
In the end, however, his competitive spirit gained a slight upper hand.
At 7:17 a.m. on September 24, burdened by the weight of his heavy load, Jiang Yubai slowly stepped into the classroom of Class 1, Grade 4. His expression appeared no different from usual, but inwardly, turbulent waves surged and churned within him.
He speculated that Lin Zhixia might cry.
His movements in arranging the workbooks grew hesitant.
If she cried, what should he do?
He couldn’t make his deskmate cry, nor could he be overly cruel. He ought to be a good person, so that he could grow into a fine man someday.
Jiang Yubai glanced sideways at Lin Zhixia.
Her cheeks were fair with a rosy tint, and the crisp morning light made her eyes sparkle like a galaxy. She had spread open her notebook and was writing her Human Observation Diary .Lin Zhixia wrote: September 24, 2004. Today I will continue gathering material. My deskmate Jiang Yubai has been struggling with complex number theory lately. He hasn't truly grasped the vector significance in complex space. It might take him some more time to apply mathematical tools to practical theories. Yesterday when I explained my understanding of superstring theory to Jiang Yubai, I discovered he knew nothing about the famous general relativity either...
The words "knew nothing" stabbed at Jiang Yubai's eyes like needles.
Withhold your pity, Jiang Yubai warned himself. Pity for the enemy is cruelty to oneself.
Clenching his fists, he resolved himself and called out in a voice cold as hell: "Lin Zhixia."
Lin Zhixia was writing rapidly, her pen moving as if divinely inspired. "What is it?" she asked casually.
Jiang Yubai emptied his bag onto the desk.
The most challenging international physics competition problem sets - "Chinese Physics Olympiad," "International Young Physicists' Tournament," "Princeton University Physics Competition," "British Physics Challenge," and others - were suddenly laid out completely before Lin Zhixia's eyes.
"All for you," Jiang Yubai said deliberately, speaking like a demon. "I tore out all the answer keys."
Lin Zhixia raised her head and stared into his eyes.
He added: "Tore them out of every book, completely clean."
Just as Jiang Yubai had anticipated, mist gathered in Lin Zhixia's eyes, tears accumulating until they filled her eye sockets.
Her earlobes began turning red, like sunset clouds on a midsummer evening. Even her whole body trembled slightly, as if she had become a fish just caught from a lakeshore. Her nose tingled with emotion, and she couldn't hold back her tears, crying harder and harder until she couldn't stop. Her beautiful eyes blurred with tears as she whispered pitifully to him: "I know I shouldn't cry, but... but some feelings are uncontrollable... Last week when you asked about my birthday, I wondered if you were going to give me a present... This is the first time I've received a birthday gift from a classmate... Never before... No one has ever treated me like this..."
Jiang Yubai hadn't expected her reaction to be so intense.
He had lost any sense of victorious joy.
Stammering, he said: "S-sorry, Lin Zhixia, I didn't actually throw away the answers, this afternoon—"
Before he could finish saying he would definitely bring all the answers to her this afternoon, Lin Zhixia wiped her tears and told him: "Thank you, thank you! This is the best birthday present I've ever received! Jiang Yubai, you're my best friend! You'll always be my best friend! Jiang Yubai! You're so wonderful!"
Jiang Yubai felt somewhat bewildered.
Lin Zhixia was so happy that she actually grabbed his wrist: "I never look at answer keys anyway... I don't like looking at answers. I really dislike answers. Because those answer approaches are completely different from my way of thinking. I only need to discover problems - problems help me think, and the thinking process is what matters most. You understand me so well, you really 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 desktop, finally understanding that Lin Zhixia had been crying tears of joy earlier.Lin Zhixia's eyes were red-rimmed, like a little rabbit's. She kept chattering on: "Without the answers, the books feel lighter. I'm so happy! Today I'll continue telling you about superstring theory! Yesterday we mentioned that superstring theory unifies general relativity and quantum mechanics! Do you know about 'tachyons'? 'Tachyons' refer to hypothetical subatomic particles in theoretical physics that move faster than light, never slowing down to speeds close to light... The supersymmetry in superstring theory refers to the symmetry between Fermions and bosons, isn't that fascinating! Can you imagine the connection between supersymmetry and tachyons..."
Jiang Yubai grabbed his tote bag and stuffed it into Lin Zhixia's desk drawer. He said: "For carrying your books."
Lin Zhixia nodded: "Okay."
Jiang Yubai propped his chin on one hand, murmuring to himself: "I won't lose."
Lin Zhixia looked puzzled: "Lose what?"
Jiang Yubai remained enigmatic. He wouldn't let Lin Zhixia detect this competitive crisis too early.
The tear stains on Lin Zhixia's face hadn't dried yet. She pulled out a tissue to wipe her face. Sitting in the corner of the last row, none of the students in front noticed her intense emotional fluctuations. After a while longer, Lin Zhixia seemed to have calmed down. Jiang Yubai looked out the window and changed the subject: "There's an airplane flying in the sky."
But Lin Zhixia said: "I've never flown on a plane before."
Jiang Yubai was surprised: "Really?"
"What's it like to fly on a plane?" Lin Zhixia asked him.
At this moment, Dong Sunqi, who also served as the "math class representative," was collecting homework.
Dong Sunqi stood beside Jiang Yubai, issuing important instructions to each group: "Anyone who hasn't turned in their homework! All names will be recorded! No exceptions!"
Then, Dong Sunqi answered Lin Zhixia's question: "Before flying, you need to buy a ticket. When you enter the airport, you choose your seat at the check-in counter..."
Jiang Yubai interrupted Dong Sunqi: "Private jets don't require tickets."
Dong Sunqi, holding a stack of math homework books, looked down at Jiang Yubai: "Does your family own a private jet?"
Jiang Yubai replied humbly and modestly: "I didn't purchase it."
"Nonsense," Dong Sunqi questioned, "how could you possibly buy an airplane?"
Jiang Yubai, provoked into competitiveness, said: "When I grow up, I'll definitely buy one myself."
Dong Sunqi immediately tried to one-up him: "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 threw himself wholeheartedly into the battle: "I'll buy thirty domestically produced J-8 fighter jets, thirty American-made Lightning fighters! I also want aircraft carriers, missile destroyers, intercontinental missiles..."
"Why do you want these things?" Jiang Yubai challenged him.
Dong Sunqi froze on the spot, unable to explain himself.
Jiang Yubai sneered coldly: "Do you think you're playing Age of Empires?"
Age of Empires was a computer game popular among all the boys in school. Players accumulate resources like gold, food, wood, and population to produce armies and military weapons, fighting against enemies to achieve ultimate victory.
Dong Sunqi was left speechless by Jiang Yubai's remark. He moved aside and began urging everyone to hand in their homework again.When collecting homework, Dong Sunqi's mind never stopped working. He finally came up with an idea. So he ran back to Jiang Yubai and solemnly declared: "Jiang Yubai, want to come to my house this weekend? We have a computer! With Age of Empires installed. We also have a DVD player with complete box sets of Slam Dunk, Yasha, Pokémon, and Detective Conan. Have you seen them?"
"I've watched Yasha, Pokémon, and Detective Conan!" Lin Zhixia slapped the table, responding with surprised delight.
Jiang Yubai thought Lin Zhixia was going to visit Dong Sunqi's house. He immediately turned to look at Lin Zhixia: "My house has anime DVDs too. Come to my place."
Lin Zhixia was taken aback.
Jiang Yubai said: "My house has everything."
Actually, Jiang Yubai's chauffeur, manor, and Aston Martin were already famous throughout their grade.
A sixth-grade senior claimed his parents both worked for the Jiang family company. The senior also said Jiang Yubai's grandfather was on the Hurun Rich List, and Jiang Yubai's maternal family operated the province's construction materials and steel industry.
The senior's descriptions were profound and difficult to understand.
The students of Class 1, Grade 4 more or less knew that Jiang Yubai was very wealthy.
Thus Jiang Yubai's nickname became "The Richest in Class 1."
So what would the home of "The Richest in Class 1" Jiang Yubai look like?
Dong Sunqi was very curious to find out. He bent over and put an arm around Jiang Yubai's shoulder, asking in a "buddies" tone: "Can I come to your house to play?"
Just as Jiang Yubai was about to refuse, Dong Sunqi suddenly added: "Jiang Yubai, you wouldn't only let girls come to your house, would you? Don't look down on boys. You're a boy yourself."
"Fine." Jiang Yubai ended up inviting four people: his deskmate Lin Zhixia, class monitor Dong Sunqi, Gan Shuli who sat in front of Lin Zhixia, and his friend Ding Yan.
Strangely enough, Zhou Bufeng also turned around, rocking back and forth on his chair. His gaze remained fixed on Jiang Yubai, as if waiting for an invitation too. But Jiang Yubai swore to himself: I will absolutely not invite him.
At 6:00 on Sunday morning of that week, Jiang Yubai woke up.
He followed his regular routine - going to bed at 8:30 PM, waking at 6:00 AM, then washing up, morning exercises, showering, and eating breakfast.
At 7:30 AM, the piano teacher came to give Jiang Yubai a lesson.
While playing the piano, Jiang Yubai suddenly wondered if he could play a piece for Lin Zhixia? Would she understand the melody? If she didn't, then he would have successfully turned the tables.
With the lingering notes fading, he pressed the final key, constructing a blueprint in his heart.
By 10:30 AM, Jiang Yubai was clear-minded and neatly dressed. He left his bedroom, went downstairs, and stood before a floor-to-ceiling window, patiently waiting for his classmates.
Outside the window stretched an endless lawn, broad roads, and towering street lamps.
Jiang Yubai's family sent 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. Yet having returned to China for less than a month, he had quickly integrated into the class, joined the group, and made many friends - which greatly comforted Jiang Yubai's mother.
Dad said: "Different lands breed different men. Jiang Yubai is clearly more adapted to life in China."Mom also said, "Our son will have to interact with people from all walks of life when making decisions in the future. He can’t only be familiar with one social class in Singapore."
Jiang Yubai’s father sat on a bar-style terrace on the top floor of the estate. He picked up his glass and glanced at his watch again: "I should get going. This time, I’ll be in Beijing for half a month, then head to Shanghai and Suzhou. My schedule is packed..."
His wife smiled and urged him, "Alright, hurry along."
The two kissed on the breezy terrace.
Until the wind stilled.
Two cars drove onto the road below. Once the cars stopped, five children stepped out—two girls and three boys.
Jiang Yubai remembered 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 also a boy he had never seen before. The boy stepped forward and introduced himself, "I’m Dong Sunqi’s neighbor. I’m thirteen, and my name is Nie Tianqing."
Nie Tianqing had a handsome appearance and a tall, slender build. He stood on the lush green lawn, wearing the school uniform of the city’s No. 1 High School.
He claimed to be Dong Sunqi’s neighbor.
Jiang Yubai’s emotionless gaze fell on Dong Sunqi.
Dong Sunqi quickly explained, "Nie Tianqing graduated from the same elementary school as us! He’s in eighth grade this year! His family moved into the apartment above mine two years ago, and I often play video games with him..."
Dong Sunqi slung an arm over Jiang Yubai’s shoulder: "Jiang Tycoon, I brought an extra person to hang out. Do me a favor? Next time you come to my place, you can bring as many people as you want."
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