Fei Bai recalled Feifei’s exceptional agility when he last explained math problems to her. Whether she was stronger than others, he wasn’t sure, but she was definitely better than he was at her age. To Fei Bai, math problems were like a bowl of soup, and his brain was a fork. He recounted the incident to Dr. Song, adding, “But I’m not entirely sure if Feifei has extraordinary talent because she couldn’t solve a certain question I gave her, a high school exam question.”
Dr. Song listened attentively and then asked, “What type of high school exam question couldn’t she solve?”
“Analytical geometry, I think,” Fei Bai recalled. “Things like conic sections.”
Dr. Song suggested, “Perhaps she’s just sensitive to numbers.”
“Exactly, the questions I gave her were all calculation-based,” Fei Bai nodded repeatedly.
Dr. Song glanced intriguingly at Feifei. “How about we do an on-the-spot test?”
He casually selected two numbers. “What’s 12 x 34?”
Feifei usually ignored strangers, and this time was no exception. Fei Bai had to repeat, “Feifei, do you know what 12 x 34 is?”
Feifei used her fingers to count, and Fei Bai followed along, reciting, “Four, zero, eight. 408?”
He checked on his phone, and indeed, it was correct.
“Wow, Feifei, you’re amazing!” Fei Bai gave her a thumbs-up.
Dr. Song nodded and continued, “How about 408 x 1005?”
Fei Bai was about to say that it was too difficult for the little girl, but then he saw Feifei starting to use her fingers to count numbers. He quickly followed along, “Four, one, zero, zero, four, zero. That’s four…”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
MflMfl tjv jigfjvs oluegfv la bea ktlif tf kjr ralii mbecalcu ab vfafgwlcf atf cewyfg bo vlular.
“410,040,” Gg. Vbcu ajqqfv bc tlr qtbcf j ofk alwfr, atfc rwlifv jcv gjlrfv tlr tfjv, “Ktja’r mbggfma.”
Mfl Djl mbecafv bc tlr olcufgr jcv yfijafvis gfjilhfv, “Eluta, la’r j rlz-vlula cewyfg.”
Ktfc tf rjk Mflofl ulnf tlw j vlrvjlcoei ibbx.
Fei Bai felt a bit offended, “Isn’t it just being good at math? I can do it too.”
He looked at Dr. Song defiantly and said, “Grandpa Song, can you give me one too?”
Dr. Song happily joined in playing with the two children, “Sure, how about you tell me what 29 x 34 is?”
“Two thousand eight,” Fei Bai said immediately.
Dr. Song calculated on his phone, “You’re quite off.”
“Just say if it’s fast or not,” Fei Bai said confidently.
Dr. Song burst into laughter, “Fei Bai, I wonder if all young people nowadays are as interesting as you.”
Fei Bai suddenly realized his behavior was a bit childish. He scratched his head in embarrassment, then remembered something, “You mentioned earlier about paying more attention to Feifei’s strengths. Does that mean she’ll excel in this area in the future?”
“Not necessarily, it’s just a hopeful wish,” Dr. Song’s smile faded a bit, “Have you seen the movie 'Rain Man'?”
Fei Bai had seen the movie, where the protagonist Raymond had extraordinary mathematical abilities and photographic memory but, like Feifei, couldn’t adapt to modern society due to certain deficiencies. His talents were of little use besides helping his brother win some money at the casino, and in the end, he was sent back to the welfare institution due to a lack of independent living skills.
Thinking of the movie’s ending, Fei Bai understood Dr. Song’s point.
“Timing, luck, and fate,” Dr. Song leaned in and patted his shoulder, “Not just her, it’s the same for everyone.”
Fei Bai looked at the little girl sitting beside him, feeling a sudden sense of emotion. If Feifei were a child with normal intellectual abilities, coupled with her exceptional mathematical talent and the resources of the Luo family, he wondered how many people would envy her.
But unfortunately, she was as she was now—wealthy yet devoid of the concept of money, able to solve complex problems within seconds but unable to attend a regular school.
Truly, it was about timing, luck, and fate.
The living room fell silent for a moment, with only the TV still playing soothing background music. Sensing that Dr. Song had said all he needed to, Aunt Zhang tentatively suggested, “Dr. Song, should we call it a day?”
Dr. Song nodded and rose from the sofa. “Let me walk you out.”
Aunt Zhang waved her hands repeatedly. “No need to trouble yourself, Dr. Song. Please rest well.”
Dr. Song didn’t insist and simply said, “Please give my regards to Mr. Luo.”
The three of them walked out of the building towards the parking lot. Fei Bai glanced at his watch. It was now a little after nine. They would probably arrive at Luo Yu Sen’s house around eleven. Would eleven be a reasonable time for him to stay?
He didn’t dwell on this question for too long, as the driver’s car suddenly stopped midway, and a flash of lightning streaked across the sky, followed by a rumble of thunder.
“Ah, it’s raining,” Aunt Zhang muttered, turning her head from the passenger seat to look at Fei Bai, “Feifei is afraid of thunderstorms. Can you keep an eye on her?”
Fei Bai turned his head and indeed found the little girl cowering in the corner formed by the car seat and the door, her face a little pale with fear and her eyes nervously fixed on the sky outside the window.
It was strange—Luo Feifei wasn’t afraid of roller coasters, yet she was afraid of thunder.
At this moment, he heard the little girl softly repeating a sequence of syllables, and the familiar pronunciation reminded him of something. Yes, the last time Non-Non lost control, she made the same sound.
Similar to the words “don’t hit.”
Fei Bai quickly connected the two incidents. Feifei’s foster father worked in a private auto repair shop, which operated guerrilla-style under the noses of urban management. Such shops were usually open-air, so business would be slow on rainy days when no one came to repair or wash cars. Feifei’s stepfather wouldn’t earn much commission, which must have frustrated him. Returning home to see this adopted daughter who wasn’t his own, it would be hard to believe that such a scumbag could resist harming Feifei.
He sighed and gently pulled Feifei toward him. “Don’t be afraid, Fei Bai Gege is here.”
Feifei heard this and hugged Fei Bai’s arm with her little arms, pressing half of her face tightly against his sleeve.
Fei Bai patted her head and said in a relaxed tone, “You were pretty amazing when we were doing math at Grandpa Song’s house a while ago. Why are you scared now?”
Feifei ignored his teasing and repeated a phrase unclearly.
She said it several times, and Aunt Zhang in the front seat also roughly understood. “Mr. Fei, is Feifei asking you to stay with her tonight?”
Fei Bai paused, lowered his head, and asked softly, “Do you want me to stay, Feifei?”
___________________________________________________________________________
Thank You for the new chapter (灬♥ω♥灬)
Poor baby 😭
Thank you for your translation 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜
thanks for the chapter!