021 The Heir of the Qi Family

"You parents still don't truly understand your child. Ayi is far more perceptive than you realize; her temperament already carries a touch of the recluse," he said. Seeing the confused expressions on Mr. and Mrs. Xie, he sighed and explained in plain terms, "To put it simply, Ayi is somewhat lazy. She needs a push to get things done. Give her a nudge, and she'll move forward; but if you don't, she'll settle comfortably where she is. There's nothing wrong with this personality, really, but it wastes her talent and the opportunities this era offers."

"That's why I must be the one to push her, so she can't stop. Only when she becomes accustomed to it and discovers her sense of responsibility, she won't need me to push her anymore—she'll be able to advance on her own. So, as parents, you needn't worry about anything else. All you must do right now is support my decision."

Mr. Xie paused, then nodded immediately, "I agree to let Ayi follow Grandfather and learn. If she must take the Qi surname, that's fine too; she can have her mother's surname."

"No need," Grandfather Qi waved his hand dismissively. "My bloodline has its heirs. Both your uncles’ sons bear the Qi name. Now, I am choosing a Qi family successor, an inheritor; the surname is irrelevant."

An inheritor passes on spirit and culture, not just a name or blood. So, the surname doesn’t matter, especially since Xie Yihuang is his granddaughter, half his bloodline.

Mr. Xie, hearing this, felt even less opposed, and simply answered, "I was just expressing myself. We'll do as you say, Father."

Grandfather Qi was a man of swift action. That very evening, after the discussion with Mr. and Mrs. Xie, he went to speak with the principal of Red Flag Elementary as soon as dawn broke.

Grandfather Qi’s name was renowned throughout Tianhua. The principal naturally knew him and said, "In principle, there’s no issue. But first, I’ll need to give her a few test papers. As long as she passes, she may suspend formal schooling and study at home."

In truth, the principal envied Xie Yihuang. Grandfather Qi's talent and scholarship were unmatched in Tianhua; mention any famous person here, and none would be unfamiliar with him. Not only was Grandfather Qi accomplished in both literature and martial arts, he was also proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry, wine, and tea—he simply lived modestly. If he were to personally mentor her, she would surely grow into someone extraordinary.

Grandfather Qi readily agreed. With Xie Yihuang’s abilities, elementary school knowledge could hardly fill her capacity.

Indeed, this proved true. When Xie Yihuang learned the principal would be testing her, she showed no sign of panic and began the papers at once.

It wasn’t that Xie Yihuang had suddenly become a top student in this life; it was simply that elementary school posed no challenge whatsoever. The contents of two hour-long exams took her only forty minutes. As for scores, for a first-grader’s tests, if she didn’t achieve perfect marks, her gift of photographic memory would be wasted.

Xie Yihuang herself didn’t care, but the principal was delighted. There had been students who scored double hundreds, but none quite like her. The principal could see at a glance: others scored a hundred because their ability reached a hundred; Xie Yihuang scored a hundred because the test only offered a hundred points.

Seeing her ease, the principal brought out fifth-grade papers.

The fifth-grade tests didn’t trouble Xie Yihuang either. For most students, the difficulty lay only in the essay, since there’s no standard answer. But she had glimpsed the future and read countless outstanding compositions; at the current elementary level, she had little worry about losing points. As expected, she achieved perfect scores on all written fifth-grade exams.

The principal immediately assured Grandfather Qi, telling him to go ahead and take her; she only needed to attend the midterm and final exams.

Nowadays, as long as students have talent, teachers are quite lenient. And so, Xie Yihuang followed Grandfather Qi, moving into the Qi household from that day forward.

Capital City, second floor of a teahouse

Yu Shangchen sat by the window in the teahouse, gazing at the myriad people below. His expression was enigmatic, his thoughts wandering elsewhere.

After striking a deal with Yu Shangchen, he used the Time Reversal Law to return to 1980—a pivotal year for Yu Shangchen, now a turning point for himself.

As an Immortal Lord, he could learn anything about this world with a mere thought. Yet, the world's Dao was too weak; here, he could only use a fraction of his power. But since there were few spirits or demons, even that fraction sufficed. Moreover, he hadn’t planned to directly enter the battlefield; rather, he wished to try changing the world.

The human heart is most resistant to probing, as is faith.

He simply wanted to see how the people of this world, united by hardship and the need to improve their environment, stood together. The external forces had compelled all of Dahua to unite as one.

He wondered: if the nation's conditions improved in every way—even its global standing—would the people's faith still burn so fiercely, would they still act with such resolve? So, for now, he chose to improve Dahua’s weapon technology as a genius, which seemed a better path than becoming a warrior.

Yet, precisely because of this genius persona, certain matters always found their way to him, like now.

"I knew I'd find you here," said a man bearing a striking resemblance to Yu Shangchen, his second brother.

"You were the one who invited me here, so isn’t it perfectly natural I’m here? Don’t act so innocent," Yu Shangchen replied with a faint smile, looking at Yu Huacheng.

Yu Huacheng conceded, "I won’t argue with you. The weapon design schematics you submitted last time were recognized as excellent. They’d like you to join the Weapon Research Institute."

One had to admit, Heaven favored the Yu family; none of them were ever plain-looking. Each possessed their own uniqueness and charm. Before him, Yu Huacheng exuded a rugged, determined aura, earning him fame as a young elite in the capital.

Yu Shangchen snorted, "That was just a random bit of tinkering. I prefer designing civilian products—televisions, refrigerators, washing machines. These are important for generating foreign exchange, much more so than weapons. As for armaments, if inspiration strikes, I’ll draft something and you can pass it on."

"That’s a truly irresponsible attitude," Yu Huacheng said helplessly, looking at Yu Shangchen. Born of the same mother, how could their personalities be so different?