Genius Girlfriend

There was a screaming groundhog inside Jiang Shaoqi's heart.

His wife was still gazing at him with loving eyes.

He slightly turned his body, glanced at Jiang Yubai, then looked toward the violin case, hoping Jiang Yubai would understand his profound meaning.

Jiang Yubai was his nephew, who had inherited their family genes and was presumably an intelligent child skilled at reading people's expressions. As long as Jiang Yubai picked up the violin case and handed it to him, there would still be room for maneuver in his wedding.

However, Jiang Yubai sat upright in his seat, completely unaware of Jiang Shaoqi's inner anxiety.

The spotlight shone over Jiang Shaoqi's head, and his palms were covered in a thin layer of sweat. He forced himself to maintain a calm demeanor as he delivered his wedding speech. The bride, Jessica, had been looking at him affectionately the entire time. He knew that next, the host would have them exchange rings, followed by a public kiss.

Jiang Shaoqi wanted to skip the "ring exchange" step and go straight to kissing his wife in front of everyone.

But no matter how many meaningful glances he gave the host, the host ignored him and proceeded with the program: "Mr. Jiang Shaoqi, Miss Jessica Yeung, today marks the beginning of your happy marriage. Your fate began even earlier—twelve years ago at a concert, when Jessica first met Jiang Shaoqi..."

Jiang Shaoqi was held by the arm by his wife.

If he wanted to retrieve the ring himself, he would first have to shake off his wife's hand.

Shaking off his wife's hand in front of a large audience at such a solemn and grand wedding—such behavior was absolutely something Jiang Shaoqi couldn't bring himself to do.

A stiff smile hung on Jiang Shaoqi's lips. His mind went completely blank, unsure how to handle the upcoming situation. It didn't matter if he alone lost face, but he was afraid of making Jessica lose face along with him.

Jiang Shaoqi looked somewhat dazed.

Jiang Yubai noticed his uncle's unusual behavior. Just as he found it strange, he heard Lin Zhixia ask, "Does your family hide wedding rings in hard-to-find places during weddings?"

"What?" Jiang Yubai didn't understand.

Lin Zhixia told him, "Three minutes ago, I saw your uncle place a diamond ring inside the violin case."

Jiang Yubai was too shocked to speak.

Lin Zhixia was absolutely certain: "Really, I clearly remember every detail."

During the rehearsal yesterday morning, Jiang Shaoqi hadn't misplaced the ring. Jiang Yubai guessed that his uncle had messed up at the critical moment. He finally understood why his uncle had been staring at him earlier—because his uncle hoped he would deliver the ring.

Jiang Yubai asked quietly, "How can Uncle save the situation?"

Lin Zhixia rested her chin in her hands and replied, "Uncle takes the wedding ring out of the violin case, puts it on Jessica's finger, and says Jessica is the soulmate he's been searching for all these years, his forever beloved wife, his inseparable other half. Oh, and add this line: without music, there would be no past him; without Jessica, there would be no future him."

Time waited for no one. Jiang Yubai immediately stood up from his seat. He walked to where the violin case was, picked it up, and slowly ascended the glass steps step by step. The surrounding light was dim, so he didn't attract much attention, as most guests were focused on the bride and groom.Jessica is a Singaporean Chinese who is fluent in Mandarin, but she has relatives who grew up in the United States and only understand English. Therefore, the emcee on stage would first speak a passage in Chinese, then translate it into English—which bought Jiang Yubai enough time.

When the emcee said, "Please exchange rings, groom and bride..." Jiang Yubai pretended to be a groomsman and slowly walked over to Jiang Shaoqi's side. He slightly bowed his head and presented the violin case with both hands.

Jiang Shaoqi was deeply moved.

His nephew truly hadn't been doted on in vain!

Jiang Shaoqi took a slight step to the side, and Jiang Yubai quietly repeated Lin Zhixia's words.

Jiang Shaoqi was momentarily stunned. He retrieved a diamond ring from the violin case—the exquisitely cut pink diamond glittered brilliantly.

The emcee was highly experienced. Thinking on his feet, he asked on behalf of the audience, "Ah, why did the groom take the ring out of a violin case?"

After Jiang Yubai left the stage, Jiang Shaoqi raised the microphone and began improvising: "I am a violinist. The violin was once my sole pursuit in life, until I met you."

Jessica locked eyes with him.

He paused before continuing, "You are... the soulmate I've been searching for all these years, my eternally beloved wife, the inseparable other half of my life."

Her eyes welled with tears, reflecting the hazy glow of the lights.

Emotionally, he said, "Twelve years ago, we met at a concert. Music brought us together. I'm grateful to the violin—without music, there would be no past me; without you, there would be no future me. Jessica, thank you for marrying me."

Jessica blinked, and tears streamed from her eyes. She revealed an astonishing secret: "I've liked you for twelve years..."

Jiang Shaoqi slipped the ring onto her ring finger. She tightly grasped his hand, looked up, and kissed him. The venue erupted in prolonged, enthusiastic applause. Jessica's parents were very satisfied with their son-in-law.

Lin Zhixia vigorously clapped from her seat: "So wonderful!"

Jiang Yubai sighed, "Thanks to you."

Lin Zhixia clapped while replying, "It was nothing. I'm just glad your uncle's wedding wasn't disrupted."

Jiang Yubai then turned to his parents and said, "Thanks to Lin Zhixia."

Several silver lamps stood on the table, casting a soft glow. The light fell on his mother's profile as she gently said, "Thank you very much. Please convey our gratitude to your friend."

Jiang Yubai frowned slightly. But Lin Zhixia directly responded, "You're welcome. Thank you for your hospitality—the food today was super delicious."

Lin Zeqiu covered his forehead. He clearly didn't want Lin Zhixia to keep talking, but she sincerely added, "The weddings I attended before were all outdoors. The groom's parents would slaughter pigs and sheep in the yard, then give guests Red Eggs and Brown Sugar Steamed Buns... Have you ever tried Brown Sugar Steamed Buns?"

Jiang Yubai indeed hadn't. He asked, "What are those?"

Lin Zhixia explained, "Literally, steamed buns made with brown sugar."

"Can you make them?" Jiang Yubai asked again.

"I can learn," Lin Zhixia declared confidently.

Jiang Yubai praised, "You learn everything quickly."

Lin Zhixia suddenly became modest, "Not really."Lin Zhixia and Jiang Yubai kept chatting casually. Neither of their families interrupted or cut in again.

The waitstaff began serving dishes in batches, and Lin Zhixia finally got the strawberry cake she had been longing for. After taking a bite, she exclaimed, "The strawberry cake is delicious."

Jiang Yubai revealed, "I prepared a box of strawberry fresh cream cake for you. You can take it back... to eat tonight."

Even though his dad and mom were sitting right beside him, Jiang Yubai made no attempt to hide his relationship with Lin Zhixia. He believed he had maintained the boundaries of friendship with her.

At a little past four in the afternoon, the lengthy wedding banquet finally concluded.

After receiving a wedding favor and bidding farewell to Jiang Yubai, Lin Zhixia took her brother's hand and left the hall.

Jiang Yubai entered through a side door of the hall with his parents and grandparents.

The side door led to a spacious lounge where Jiang Shaoqi and his wife Jessica had settled. Jiang Shaoqi was holding a plate of cake, feeding Jessica a bite. When he saw his family enter, he quickly set the cake down on the table and called out, "Dad, Mom, big brother, sister-in-law..."

Jiang Yubai stood before the floor-to-ceiling window. Jiang Shaoqi came up behind him and asked, "Xiao Jiang, how did you know I left the ring in the violin case? Was my expression so obvious that you guessed?"

Jessica was talking with her parents and didn't notice Jiang Yubai and Jiang Shaoqi.

After glancing around, Jiang Yubai replied, "Lin Zhixia has an excellent memory. She saw what you did and reminded me that you'd left your ring behind."

Jiang Shaoqi praised repeatedly, "That little genius Xiao Lin - not only is she smart, but she's also so helpful, just like your uncle's character. Speaking of which, if it weren't for her today, I would've been utterly humiliated."

Jiang Yubai agreed, "That's right."

Jiang Shaoqi laughed and said, "Xiao Jiang, your uncle is broad-minded. I even sent a wedding invitation to my rival - though I never expected he'd actually come..."

Any interest-related circle has its conflicts, and Jiang Shaoqi's music circle was no exception. Jiang Shaoqi had a long-standing rival who often publicly commented on his violin skills, claiming Jiang Shaoqi only knew trivial techniques that couldn't grace elegant occasions.

Hugging his arms, Jiang Shaoqi said with lingering fear, "If I'd made a fool of myself, he would've laughed at me for years and even started newspaper columns to mock me."

"You didn't embarrass yourself," Jiang Yubai analyzed objectively. "Most guests were quite moved, including Jessica's parents."

Jiang Shaoqi corrected him, "Don't call her Jessica. She's your aunt."

Jiang Yubai asked again, "Doesn't she have a Chinese name?"

"She does," Jiang Shaoqi finally introduced. "Her Chinese name is Yang Yi. Sometimes I forget how to write the character 'Yi'."

Jiang Yubai kindly reminded him, "Don't let her know about your cultural literacy."

Jiang Shaoqi gave his nephew a reproachful look: "My cultural literacy isn't really different from your dad's or your grandpa's."

Jiang Yubai fell silent.Jiang Shaoqi put an arm around his shoulder and said sincerely, "Thank you, Xiao Jiang, and Xiao Lin. You reacted quickly and helped me a great deal. Although Jessica isn't one to fuss over things, I couldn't let her lose face in public. I'll only feel at ease when that ring is on her finger."

"Why did you..." Jiang Yubai asked tactfully, "used to love practicing the piano so much, then suddenly shift your life's focus?"

Jiang Shaoqi seriously considered his nephew's question. After a long while, he finally said, "It wasn't really shifting focus—I still practice the piano every day. Xiao Jiang, you don't need to beat around the bush with your uncle. You just want to ask me why I started dating, right?"

"Yes," Jiang Yubai replied briefly.

Jiang Shaoqi smiled. "You'll understand when you grow up."

The sky outside stretched endlessly, clouds drifting across the vast blue expanse. Gazing into the distance, Jiang Shaoqi murmured to himself, "You won't have to wait too long... In a few years, you'll understand."

But Jiang Yubai said, "In a few years, I should be working at the company."

Jiang Shaoqi recalled the past: "Has your dad talked to you about work? The summer when your dad was eighteen... your grandfather threw him into the company for an internship. Back then, our family had just opened a new factory in the south. Your dad had just turned eighteen and had so much to learn. He was constantly busy, exhausted from morning till night. I'm thankful he's ten years older than me. Who would have thought it would be your turn so soon, Xiao Jiang? Uncle only has one piece of advice: cherish your carefree days now."

Jiang Yubai and his uncle discussed his career plans. The uncle and nephew had a pleasant conversation. His uncle even asked if Jiang Yubai had done any investing? Jiang Yubai suddenly remembered the "Lin Jiang" robot he had collaborated on with Lin Zhixia.

For Jiang Yubai, his college entrance exams would take place in mid-May this year.

Applying for undergraduate programs at UK universities required IELTS scores and A-level results—the former being an international English proficiency test, the latter equivalent to the British college entrance exams. The maximum IELTS score is 9, and Jiang Yubai scored 8.5, which was decent. He didn't aspire for a perfect score.

Since January this year, Jiang Yubai had focused entirely on exam preparation, with no time left for robotics. He had delivered "Lin Jiang" to Lin Zhixia's house, agreeing to work on it again during summer break. However, before winter vacation even ended, during one of their QQ video calls, Lin Zhixia showed Jiang Yubai Lin Jiang walking.

Lin Zhixia had closed her bedroom door tightly. Her room was messy, with toolboxes scattered across the floor. She had pushed all the furniture against the walls to clear space, allowing the robot to take halting steps forward on the floor.

The robot's face was equipped with a camera, and the video feed was transmitted to the computer. Lin Zhixia sent a screenshot of the desktop along with a "Lin Jiang Operation Manual." She said cheerfully, "Look! The robot's basic functions are all working! The code for several modules still needs adjustment, and the data analysis is relatively slow. I plan to connect it to a cloud server cluster."

Jiang Yubai opened the "Lin Jiang Operation Manual" and patiently read through it for a few seconds. He murmured, "It feels like I'm reading an academic paper."

"Maybe because..." Lin Zhixia came up with a reason, "I wrote it using LaTeX."LaTeX is a document preparation system widely favored in academia. Lin Zhixia never writes documents without using LaTeX.

Jiang Yubai rarely used LaTeX. Steering away from the topic, he said, "Now that you've completed the robot's basic functions, we can continue working on it during summer vacation."

Lin Zhixia hesitated, "Jiang Yubai..."

Through the computer screen, Jiang Yubai felt a sudden tension. "What's wrong?"

Lin Zhixia mustered her courage and said, "I can't hang out with you this summer. I received an email from Teacher Gu—I'll be attending a conference in Los Angeles in July, and in August, I'll be visiting Cambridge University in the UK and Munich in Germany with some seniors. I'll have the chance to see their Laboratories, and I'm really looking forward to it. Teacher Gu's research group has many brilliant students—some have published three papers in just six months, while I haven't even had one published yet..."

Before Jiang Yubai had even set foot near Cambridge's gates, Lin Zhixia was already preparing for an international trip. Jiang Yubai was actually a month older than Lin Zhixia... Fortunately, he had long grown accustomed to such disparities and could even comfort her in return: "Your seniors have been studying for several more years than you. Given some time, you'll catch up."

Lin Zhixia's fighting spirit ignited. "I'll work hard alongside you."

Jiang Yubai laughed. Mimicking her usual tone, he replied, "Okay, okay."

Lin Zhixia's cheeks flushed. "Why do you always copy me?"

Jiang Yubai didn't know the exact answer himself.