14

The next day, Zhong Yan arrived at Jifeng's workshop "as promised," bringing a bag of lychees as her ticket.

Ji Feng cleared a clean space for her to look at the large metal engraving machine that resembled a parcel locker.

Zhong Yan didn't find it boring at all.

She watched as the robotic arm sculpted intricate and delicate parts, some resembling fan blades, others like nuts, and all sorts of other shapes.

On the other side, Jifeng was operating a machine tool, cutting a slightly larger cylindrical shell.

As the mechanical blade sank down, rings of silvery-white waste slid off and accumulated on the rolling cylinder.

It's like a giant pencil sharpener, cutting effortlessly.

Zhong Yan couldn't help but ask, "Isn't this thing dangerous?"

"You can't touch anything that hasn't been certified," Ji Feng said.

Zhong Yan asked, "Did you get certified?"

"You can take the Level 5 exam at eighteen."

"Ji Feng, how do you have so much energy to learn so many things?"

Zhong Yan was so focused on preparing for the college entrance examination that she had no energy or time to think about anything else.

“If you want to, there’s nothing you can’t do.” Ji Feng laughed. “When I was a kid, I would get up at three in the morning to play video games. My parents were sleeping soundly at that time and didn’t even notice.”

Zhong Yan said, "That's amazing, I can't even open my eyes at three o'clock."

“You can’t do it just because you don’t think about it that much,” Ji Feng said. “Lack of willpower means your passion isn’t deep enough.”

"How can I love something as much as you do?" Zhong Yan frowned slightly and said, "I... I don't seem to have the ability to love."

Ji Feng stared at her intently and said softly, "If your life were counting down, would you waste time on things you don't like?"

/

Research on monsoons has not gone smoothly.

Zhong Yan watched him constantly adjusting data on the computer and fiddling with various instruments. Time passed by unnoticed, and she gradually understood some of it. She would hand him an angle grinder or help him gather screws of the same size when the time was right.

They had a good understanding and worked well together.

Zhong Yan was secretly pleased.

She started asking some simple questions, and Jifeng answered them patiently.

An hour later, Monsoon said, "I have an account; you can check it out if you're interested."

So Zhong Yan got a tablet, on which she saw an account with millions of followers.

She exclaimed in surprise, "You're MIND?"

Monsoon said, "Have you seen it?"

Zhong Yan shook her head. "I've heard it from the boys in my class."

During breaks, some students would gather in groups of three or five to chat and relax. The girls would talk about the TV series or novels they watched on the weekend, or their pets or new clothes they bought while shopping. The boys liked to talk about sports, new cars, or spaceships and rockets.

They also enjoy watching people assemble things online.

She had heard the name MIND many times by chance, and they regarded him as a god.

Ji Feng handed her a new pair of headphones; he needed a quiet working environment.

Zhong Yan took the video and watched it quietly.

The blogger MIND did not show his face in the video. If Zhong Yan hadn't known the truth, she probably wouldn't have been able to recognize him immediately from his fingers, Adam's apple, and voice.

Zhong Yan looked up several times at the monsoon she was studying with a furrowed brow.

She thought to herself.

If Jifeng were to show her face, her fan base would likely multiply several times over.

She doesn't deny that this world is judging by appearance.

And Jifeng is very beautiful.

Perhaps for this reason, his videos mostly focus on showcasing his own work.

The earliest video is from five years ago.

Zhong Yan calculated the time and realized it was when Ji Feng was a freshman in high school.

Zhong Yan couldn't help but sigh secretly.

Did they attend the same high school?

Although the school is relatively lenient and many students bring their phones to school, the academic workload is extremely heavy. Not to mention, some students secretly skip ahead and have their free time completely filled up.

Zhong Yan doesn't have a cell phone, and she has been given extra tutoring and workbooks since the first year of high school.

At this time, Ji Feng, who was already a senior in high school, still maintained a posting frequency of one video every two or three months, until he stopped posting for half a year in the second semester of his senior year.

Fans in the comments section were like headless flies, speculating about the whereabouts of the content creator.

Some people say he either went out or went in.

Some people say he has lost his creative spark and can no longer produce good videos.

The summer after the college entrance exam, MIND returned with a video of a homemade flying machine, which garnered millions of likes.

Zhong Yan spent the entire afternoon watching his videos.

The video contains a series of popular science introductions he made, which is how Zhong Yan got started. She was able to understand the male students' enthusiasm for this topic and that Ji Feng was truly a genius.

"How's the look?"

Zhong Yan only looked up when she heard the voice, her eyes crinkling as she said, "I feel like I've learned how to use my eyes."

Ji Feng's tired eyes curved into a smile. "You still haven't mastered it?"

"It's not that easy," Zhong Yan sighed softly. "The will is there, but the ability is lacking."

"Are you really interested in this?" Ji Feng asked curiously.

Zhong Yan repeated, "I originally wanted to apply to the Aviation University as well."

Ji Feng stopped what he was doing and stood up straight. "But you don't seem to understand these things."

"Not all high school seniors know clearly what they want to study, and I am one of them..."

"On a whim?"

"Yes," Zhong Yan couldn't deny.

Firstly, it was because of my father, and secondly, the university was far away from home.

"It was before."

It was just a passing fancy.

Now she is indeed interested.

Ji Feng left with the words "You wait," then turned around and rummaged through boxes and cabinets. Not long after, he came back carrying a box.

"This is a model I printed before. You can assemble it for fun."

Zhong Yan said, "I'm not very good at putting in effort."

Ji Feng dragged over a stool. "I'll teach you. It'll take another four hours to print over there."

He anticipated Zhong Yan's concerns and offered an explanation she could accept.

Zhong Yan changed the subject: "Does it take four hours to assemble this?"

The monsoon said, "I don't need to use it."

Although Zhong Yan was a novice, with expert guidance from Ji Feng, she did quite well and even learned more about airplanes, gaining a general understanding of the location and function of the wings, ailerons, landing gear, and engines.

Two hours later, she finished assembling the main body of the puzzle, and her fingers had several small cuts.

Jifeng found some iodine and told her to apply it.

"This job often involves injuries; the lathes over there can even cut off your fingers..."

Zhong Yan said, "You seem to be doing this very easily."

Ji Feng stretched out his left hand. "I've also suffered quite a few injuries, but they've all healed now."

Taking the opportunity, Zhong Yan carefully observed Ji Feng's hands and found that there were indeed many scars on them, some deep and some shallow, like the grain of a growing tree, each with its own story.

“My dad doesn’t support me doing these things either,” Ji Feng said. “But I just want to do them. I’ll even get up in the middle of the night to do them secretly. Later, he realized he couldn’t control me anymore, so he could only turn a blind eye.”

At lunchtime, Jifeng ordered takeout.

Zhong Yan said, "It's a good thing you can't cook either."

"There are still many things I don't know," Ji Feng said. "It's just that I'm good at playing to my strengths and avoiding my weaknesses, so that people don't know."

He spoke frankly, and Zhong Yan couldn't help but laugh.

Ji Feng looked at her, his eyes warm and bright.

Zhong Yan suddenly thought of Chen Baoran and Coco.

They were the kind of girls who were very outgoing and straightforward, and often said things that made Zhong Yan blush.

They always tease her, saying her smile is beautiful, like a marshmallow, so cute that you just want to kiss her.

Zhong Yan had no idea how Ji Feng saw her.

But his gaze inexplicably made her feel... embarrassed.

Does he think his laughter is strange?

Or perhaps you think she looks strange?

But Ji Feng never judged girls. His gaze was clear and bright, like the sea illuminated by sunlight, its shimmering waves turning into dazzling fragments of gold by the wind.

While eating, Zhong Yan was still watching Ji Feng's videos.

His initial video data was not good, and the content was simple, just a boy showing off his favorite airplane model, sometimes including the assembly process.

Later on, he gradually increased the difficulty, modifying the model by adding a receiver and an electric motor, turning it into a remote-controlled airplane model.

Because of his lack of technical skills, he crashed countless planes during test flights.

But he didn't get discouraged. He made adjustments and improvements time and time again, condensing hundreds of hours of video into forty-three minutes.

Finally, the airplane model was successfully and safely launched into the blue sky.

From the airplane's perspective, the boy wearing a hat gradually becomes a black dot on the ground, while before him lies a vast expanse of sky and earth.

This became MIND's first viral video.

The comments section says:

"The uploader is so persistent, he didn't give up even after crashing so many times."

"I've learned so much from this blogger, it's been so helpful! Thank you!"

"Chasing dreams of the stars and the sea, a strong youth makes a strong nation!"

Judging from the timeline, the monsoon season is currently in the second semester of the first year of high school.

He neither neglected his studies nor gave up his interests.

After lunch, Zhong Yan continued assembling the model, while Ji Feng went about his own business. At four o'clock in the afternoon, they took Xiao Haiyan swimming in the sea.

Zhong Yan wanted the little petrel to fly into the sky, but the little petrel had also learned its lesson. Instead of working hard when the fish flew up, it waited for the fish to fall down and then picked up the fish from the sea.

Zhong Yan couldn't help but say, "I really want to put an engine on it and send it to the sky."

Jifeng said, "Do you want an electric one or a gasoline one? The electric one is smaller and more suitable for the petrel's size."

Zhong Yan's eyes widened. "I was just joking."

Ji Feng said with a half-smile, "Oh, what a pity."

He added, "That really goes to space."

The hellish joke made Zhong Yan hug Xiao Haiyan tightly and say tactfully, "You're a little naughty."

"Thank you," said the monsoon. "That's one of my strengths."

Zhong Yan had almost forgotten that Ji Feng also had a "weird and unpredictable" side.

At this moment, Jifeng said, "Why don't you make a real flying machine that can actually fly into the sky, and you can name it Mother Swallow?"

They had all seen "Fly with You" and knew the role of the "mother goose," which is an important tool for guiding goslings and leading them to their habitat.

But Zhong Yan, who had seen compilations of crashed aircraft, did not believe that she could build an aircraft on her own.

Zhong Yan asked, "Me?"

Monsoon said, "Don't you want to give it a try?"

Zhong Yan hesitated and asked, "Can I make it?"

Ji Feng smiled and said, "I'm still here."

/

Sunday, August 17, 2025

Why is he looking at me like that? Is my smile weird?

Oh my god, I really care, but I don't dare to ask him.

A coward his whole life!