Genius Girlfriend

Jiang Yubai took a copy of "Selected Song Dynasty Poems" from the bookshelf.

He opened the book and casually asked, "Is the club president's work going smoothly?"

"Quite well, very smoothly," Lin Zhixia lowered her head, glancing at the book in his hands. "Did you receive the letter I sent you last month?"

"I did," Jiang Yubai replied honestly.

In mid-last month, Jiang Yubai received Lin Zhixia's first letter.

In it, she expressed sincere friendship. Her handwriting was neat and beautiful. She had also enclosed two photos of osmanthus trees in the envelope, with "From Lin Zhixia to Jiang Yubai" written on the back.

Jiang Yubai treasured this letter. He framed the photos and placed the frame on his bedside table.

Now, Lin Zhixia looked up, gazing at him intently: "Why didn't you write me back?"

Jiang Yubai said softly, "I..."

Couldn't write it.

He often video chatted with Lin Zhixia on QQ, but never mentioned the letter. He had attempted to write many times, always dissatisfied, discarding countless drafts into the wastebasket.

Lin Zhixia moved closer: "Is exchanging letters a bit boring?"

"Not boring," Jiang Yubai insisted, "It's very interesting."

Lin Zhixia seemed puzzled. Her thick eyelashes fluttered as she tentatively said: "Back in seventh and eighth grade, when you wrote me those daily life reports, you managed just fine.""

Jiang Yubai explained: "Letters are different from reports. The words in a letter need to carry emotion."

Seeing how serious he was, Lin Zhixia couldn't resist teasing him: "You're not writing back because you have no feelings for me?"

The book in Jiang Yubai's hands fell to the floor. He bent to pick it up, his voice dropping even lower: "How could that be?"

Straightening up, he added: "You're my one and only best friend."

Looking straight ahead, he calmly stated the facts: "I've written over a dozen draft versions."

Lin Zhixia's heartbeat thundered in her ears. She had to step back, putting more distance between them. She grabbed a copy of "Selected Tang Poems," clutching it with both hands, and turned to face the doorway... Only then did the blush on her face begin to fade.

When writing work reports, Jiang Yubai never hesitated, always finishing quickly. He also wrote essays rapidly. At age nine, he had once Meditated for half an hour over an 800-word self-criticism. But since then, he had never encountered similar difficulties.

Yet for Lin Zhixia's letter, he actually drafted over ten versions?

Lin Zhixia composed herself and declared: "I want your reply letter, no matter how it turns out."

Jiang Yubai countered: "Are you sure?"

Lin Zhixia nodded: "Of course."

Jiang Yubai unzipped his backpack, pulled out an unsent letter, and handed it personally to Lin Zhixia.

To his utter surprise, Lin Zhixia opened the letter right in front of him. Without any reservation, she read aloud: "Lin Lin Lin Lin Zhixia, reading your letter feels like meeting you in person, I am Jiang Yubai. It's been a month since we last met, how have you been lately..."

Footsteps echoed from the corridor outside the classroom, and Jiang Yubai immediately stopped her: "Don't read it aloud, don't let others hear."

Lin Zhixia quietly read the letter's final sentence: "Wishing Lin Zhixia eternal health and happiness, going further and further on the path of pursuing truth..."She bounced over to him: "I love this letter so much! Don't draft anymore in the future—just write whatever comes to mind and mail it to me. I want to see your handwriting."

Jiang Yubai had just uttered a single "Okay" when two people walked into the small classroom—one was Duan Qiyan, the other Shen Fuxuan.

Many students from Class 27 of Grade 10 had joined the Classical Literature Club. According to the club's rules, the president must be the member most skilled at the "Flying Flowers Game." Any member could challenge the president, and whoever succeeded would become the next president.

Today, Duan Qiyan came to school specifically to defeat Lin Zhixia.

The club activity was scheduled from 1:30 PM to 3:30 PM. Duan Qiyan arrived ten minutes early and unexpectedly ran into Jiang Yubai.

In that instant, Duan Qiyan lost his fighting spirit. He rushed over in a few quick strides and exclaimed, "Jiang Yubai?"

Jiang Yubai calmly chose a seat and sat down. He looked at Duan Qiyan and called his name: "Duan Qiyan."

Shen Fuxuan, standing nearby, smiled ambiguously. Meanwhile, Duan Qiyan continued questioning Jiang Yubai: "Hey, how was Beijing?"

Jiang Yubai remained silent. He pulled several boxes of Beijing specialty pastries from his backpack and distributed them to Shen Fuxuan, Duan Qiyan, and Lin Zhixia. The strawberry-filled pastry belonged exclusively to Lin Zhixia.

Duan Qiyan happened to be quite hungry. He tore open the wrapping of his box of pastries, swallowed one whole, and immediately choked. After coughing several times, Shen Fuxuan quickly offered his water bottle.

Duan Qiyan bent his head and took a large gulp of water. After catching his breath, he suddenly realized: "Hey, Shen Fuxuan, how could I drink from your bottle?"

Shen Fuxuan leaned back in his chair and said leisurely, "You've already drunk it—what can you do now? Without my water, you'd have choked on that pastry. No offense, but have you never seen good food before? Jiang Yubai gives you a box of pastries, and you eat like a starving ghost."

Duan Qiyan flushed red: "Screw you, 'starving ghost'."

As the classroom gradually filled with more people, Duan Qiyan didn't dare argue with Shen Fuxuan. He was Lin Zhixia's classmate and couldn't afford to disrupt her event during the club activity, disregarding their camaraderie.

Today was October 7th, the last day of the National Day holiday. The Classical Literature Club had nearly full attendance, which greatly pleased Lin Zhixia. She stood at the front of the classroom, with two vice presidents standing rigidly behind her like her left and right guardians.

Lin Zhixia began: "Thank you all for coming to today's club activity. Last Wednesday, we welcomed two new members—Shen Fuxuan and Duan Qiyan from Class 27 of Grade 10! Let's give them a round of applause!"

After she finished speaking, the members applauded enthusiastically.

Duan Qiyan stood up, responding to the applause: "I'm Duan Qiyan, your next president."

Most of the Classical Literature Club members fell silent, while a few began whispering among themselves. Duan Qiyan showed no fear.

Previously, Duan Qiyan and Shen Fuxuan had played the Flying Flowers Game over a dozen times, with Shen Fuxuan consistently losing badly. Shen Fuxuan had claimed that Lin Zhixia was at a similar skill level and suggested that Duan Qiyan challenge her to take over the Classical Literature Club.

Duan Qiyan had agreed.The vice president of the Classical Literature Club was a senior from the second year of high school. He let out a soft sigh and announced loudly, "The first rule of the Classical Literature Club: challenging the president takes effect immediately."

Lin Zhixia clapped and cheered, "Immediately effective!"

Jiang Yubai raised his hand and asked, "Are you going to play the Flying Flowers Game?"

"Yes," Lin Zhixia nodded.

Jiang Yubai asked again, "Do you need a referee?"

Lin Zhixia made a "please" gesture. "Classmate Jiang Yubai, could you help us keep time?"

Jiang Yubai was wearing an expensive watch. The brand was Piaget, made in Switzerland, though Duan Qiyan didn't recognize it. There was no clock in the classroom, so Jiang Yubai took off his watch to serve as a timer. Duan Qiyan questioned him, "That watch of yours doesn't look like an electronic watch. Is it accurate?"

Shen Fuxuan sat in the first row. He glanced at the watch and sneered, "Duan Qiyan, you really haven't seen anything nice."

Duan Qiyan found it strange—why was Shen Fuxuan picking on him so much today? Did he think he was easy to bully? Just as he was about to lose his temper, Lin Zhixia stopped him. "The competition has started. You choose the character for the Flying Flowers Game."

Duan Qiyan was startled. "I choose the character? Aren't you afraid of losing?"

Lin Zhixia replied calmly, "It's fine. Go ahead and choose.Duan Qiyan had crammed poems related to the character "moon" last night, boasting an extremely rich cultural reserve. So, he proposed, "Let's recite poems related to the character 'moon.' You and I will take turns saying a line containing the character 'moon,' with only thirty seconds to think. Exceeding the time by even one second means losing."

"Okay," Lin Zhixia accepted calmly.

Duan Qiyan didn't know that within the Classical Literature Club, many members enjoyed watching Lin Zhixia compete against others. Because Lin Zhixia hardly ever lost, watching from her perspective always brought the joy of victory.

The classroom fell into brief silence—the prelude to a great battle. Duan Qiyan crossed his arms and took the lead: "I raise my head to gaze at the bright moon, lower it and think of home."

Lin Zhixia faced Jiang Yubai and responded, "Over the sea, the bright moon rises, at the ends of the earth we share this moment."

She looked at Jiang Yubai as if that ancient poem were spoken to him.

Duan Qiyan didn't notice that Lin Zhixia was still pursuing poetic ambiance. Confident, he called out, "In wilds, skies stoop to trees; in clear river, moon approaches men."

Lin Zhixia said, "The parting one is silent, the moon is soundless; the bright moon has light, people have feelings... by Li Zhi of the Tang Dynasty, from the poem 'Farewell on a Moonlit Night.'"

At this point, Duan Qiyan began to feel slightly nervous. Shen Fuxuan had once told him that Lin Zhixia didn't know how to play the Flying Flowers Game. Duan Qiyan thought Shen Fuxuan wouldn't trick him. He had no grudge against Shen Fuxuan; his only enemy was Jin Baihui. Unless Shen Fuxuan... had a secret crush on Jin Baihui, there was no reason for him to make Duan Qiyan lose face in public.

Thinking this, Duan Qiyan felt relieved.

Jiang Yubai reminded him, "Duan Qiyan, you have five seconds left to think."

Duan Qiyan hurriedly said, "How I love the third night of the ninth moon! Dew like pearls, moon like a bow."

Lin Zhixia still looked at Jiang Yubai: "East and west boats are silent, only seeing the autumn moon white in the river's heart."

Jiang Yubai knew this line came from Bai Juyi's "Song of the Pipa Player," but Lin Zhixia's gaze never left him. She emphasized the characters "Jiang" and "Bai" distinctly.Jiang Yubai suspected that all the verses she had recited earlier were meant for him. Holding his watch, he continued timing as Duan Qiyan finally blurted out: "The moon rises over willow tips, people meet at dusk."

The vice president immediately intervened: "That's wrong, Duan Qiyan. It should be 'The moon rises over willow tips, people rendezvous at dusk.'"

Duan Qiyan had misspoken one character in his haste. But there was no chance for regret - in the Flying Flowers Game, once one side makes a mistake, the game terminates. Duan Qiyan's challenge had failed, and he slunk back to Shen Fuxuan's side.

Lin Zhixia had once again preserved her position as club president.

Following her plan, she proceeded with the club activity. She divided members into several groups based on seating arrangements, then organized word games by group, such as "Poetry Chain," "Guess the Poem from Images," and "Quick Response on Historical Allusions." The classroom atmosphere quickly became lively, and two hours passed in the blink of an eye.

Jiang Yubai and Shen Fuxuan were in the same group, and both thoroughly enjoyed themselves. As they parted, Shen Fuxuan asked Jiang Yubai: "Are your new high school classmates more interesting than us?"

"Hard to say," Jiang Yubai described, "Half of my new high school classmates can't speak Chinese."

Shen Fuxuan shrugged: "Then you can't play word games with them."

Jiang Yubai said honestly: "The classmate sitting in front of me often plays word spelling games with letters."

Shen Fuxuan mocked: "That's something nerds like."

Jiang Yubai retorted: "Are you a nerd?"

"How could I possibly be a nerd," Shen Fuxuan answered with great confidence.

Jiang Yubai asked casually: "How many pull-ups can you do now? Have you reached full marks in the thousand-meter run?"

Shen Fuxuan shouldered his backpack and walked ahead, with Lin Zhixia's laughter ringing behind him. Lin Zhixia walked side by side with Jiang Yubai and told him frankly: "I still can't get full marks in the eight-hundred-meter run."

"It doesn't matter," Jiang Yubai encouraged her, "Just keep exercising and improve your physical fitness. Don't worry about the eight-hundred-meter score."

After all, Lin Zhixia was destined to be directly admitted to top universities - she had won the mathematics competition championship medal, so whether she got full marks in the eight-hundred-meter run was insignificant.

Yet Lin Zhixia said: "I'll still give it a try."

Standing at the gate of Provincial First High School, she forced composure and bid farewell to Jiang Yubai: "See you during winter break, Jiang Yubai."

With students coming and going nearby and traffic flowing continuously on the road, in such a noisy and chaotic environment, Lin Zhixia's melancholy feelings were diluted. She waved at Jiang Yubai, who simply watched her silently.

After a long moment, Jiang Yubai finally opened the car door and said unhurriedly: "See you during winter break, Lin Lin Lin Lin Zhixia."

"Mm!" Lin Zhixia responded.

Jiang Yubai closed the car door. His luggage was in the trunk - he was going directly to the airport to catch the 6 PM flight, arriving in Beijing that night to continue school early the next morning.

Just like during their previous separation, Jiang Yubai sat by the car window, looking back at Lin Zhixia. She remained standing in place, watching his car depart.

After returning to Beijing, Jiang Yubai registered for the North American Economics Challenge. This competition was divided into "Low Difficulty Division" and "High Difficulty Division."Logically speaking, given Jiang Yubai's academic level, he should have chosen the "low-difficulty group." However, he insisted on registering for the "high-difficulty group." Even when the teacher warned him that he would face significant challenges and might not achieve any ranking, his resolve remained unshaken.

In Jiang Yubai's class, aside from himself, there were only ten other students.

Observing the daily study habits of these ten, Jiang Yubai eventually invited a Korean classmate named Song Yunxi to form a team with him for the North American Economics Challenge.

Song Yunxi's mother was Chinese, and his father was Korean. He held a Korean passport and wasn't very fluent in Chinese, so Jiang Yubai usually communicated with him in English.

Song Yunxi's mother was a well-known lawyer specializing in international cases, while his father was an entrepreneur from a region in Korea. Both parents had high expectations for him, and he was exceptionally strict with himself, often studying relentlessly. He and Jiang Yubai hit it off immediately, both deciding to bravely aim for the high-difficulty group in the challenge.

The North American Economics Challenge required each team to consist of four students. After discussing for a few days, Jiang Yubai and Song Yunxi approached senior students to form a team. They successfully persuaded two high-achieving seniors—both Chinese—who also had experience from the previous year's challenge.

Only after completing all the preparatory work did Jiang Yubai update Lin Zhixia on his progress.

It was an early winter evening, cold outside but warm indoors. Lin Zhixia and Jiang Yubai were having a video chat on QQ when Jiang Yubai mentioned his plans and academic progress. Lin Zhixia seemed even happier about it than he was.

She said, "That's great! The competition will be livestreamed. Once you make it to the North American finals, I can sit in front of the computer and watch you conquer every round."

Jiang Yubai replied calmly, "Participation is what matters. I might not necessarily reach the North American finals."

Lin Zhixia insisted, "I believe in you. No matter how far you go, I'll always see you as the champion."

Then she added, "Jiang Yubai, I'm working on a new paper in computer science. I've been writing it for a long time and am still waiting for feedback from a professor. Winter break is coming up, and I want to submit my second paper."

Jiang Yubai felt genuinely happy for her: "Last time it was physics, this time it's computer science..."

Lin Zhixia started mimicking him: "Participation is what matters. I might not necessarily get it accepted."

Jiang Yubai was filled with confidence in her: "You can do it. Even if it doesn't get accepted right away, some revisions will make it pass. I'm certain that article is another new planet you've captured."