Unknown

City Library.

It was already completely dark, and the number of readers crowded in the library gradually decreased.

Jiang Zhizhi stood between two rows of bookshelves piled high with books, and took the books off the shelves one by one. It only took a few seconds for each book to be clearly remembered in her mind.

[Knowledge Absorption] This ability is so powerful that it is terrifying.

Moreover, every time she absorbs the content of a book, she will receive corresponding reading rewards.

In less than two hours, more than 200,000 yuan was deposited into her system.

It's like a dream.

All along, she didn't dare to waste any time for that medicine, for fear that if something happened to Cheng Yuping, she would not be able to come up with the one million yuan to save her life.

But now, the pressure is gone, which makes her feel a little confused.

Next, it's time for her to live for herself.

But what does she really want?

Jiang Zhizhi thought about what Xu Qingbo had just said. Those words were almost identical to what she had said to Lu Xiye before.

Logically speaking, she should have skipped a grade.

But emotionally, she couldn't bear to do it.

In her previous life, she was unable to continue her studies, so in this life, she really cherished every day of her school life.

She wanted to take the high school entrance exam with Lin Qingyu and Li Rongrong and get into university together.

If she skipped a grade, she would never be on the same track with them again.

Jiang Zhizhi absentmindedly finished brushing the two bookshelves in front of her. There was only half an hour left before closing time.

She came out of the library area feeling a little tired. When she was about to leave the library, she suddenly saw a red figure in the rest area not far from the door.

Jiang Zhizhi looked over subconsciously and saw that it was indeed Lu Xiye.

He was lying on the table, half of his face resting on his arm, sleeping soundly.

Jiang Zhizhi walked over, but instead of waking him up directly, she sat down opposite him.

"It's closed, it's closed!"

Lu Xiye heard the staff's urging voice in a daze and woke up from his sleep.

Is it closed? Nine o'clock?

He stretched and yawned sleepily, his mind still a little fuzzy.

His dazed eyes subconsciously raised and met Jiang Zhizhi's gaze.

“I’ll go…”

Lu Xiye shuddered with fear, "Why are you here?"

"I was about to ask you, didn't you sleep all night yesterday? Why didn't you rest at home but came to the library to catch up on your sleep?" Jiang Zhizhi looked at him with amusement.

"I think I can sleep more soundly here, is that not okay?" Lu Xiye quickly looked away, with a guilty look clearly on his face.

Jiang Zhizhi was too lazy to argue with him, so she stood up and said, "Let's go, it's time to go home."

*

Summer nights are cool, especially when you ride an electric scooter through the streets with the breeze blowing.

Jiang Zhizhi sat sideways on the back seat of the electric motorcycle and couldn't help closing her eyes to enjoy the comfortable tranquility.

Lu Xiye was riding a bike in front, but his mind kept thinking about the conversation between Xu Qingbo and Jiang Zhizhi today.

Jiang Zhizhi did not answer directly, which also meant that she was hesitating.

Actually, she wanted to skip a grade...

"Jiang Zhizhi."

"Um?"

"you……"

Lu Xiye wanted to ask, but couldn't bring himself to ask.

Of course, he didn't want Jiang Zhizhi to skip a grade, but he couldn't selfishly say to her, Jiang Zhizhi, I won't let you skip a grade...

It was as if he was a burden, pulling her down.

"Just say what you want to say. Why are you hesitating?" Jiang Zhizhi said.

"No, I have nothing to say to you." Lu Xiye snorted coldly and became angry again.

Jiang Zhizhi guessed that Lu Xiye might have heard her conversation with Xu Qingbo, otherwise he would not suddenly appear in the library.

However, she herself is very confused and cannot give a clear answer for the time being.

She looked at the rows of neon lights in the shops across the street and let out a long, deep breath.

Suddenly, the sign on the second floor of a shop opposite caught her attention.

Zhibai chess room.

It looks like a Go room.

Jiang Zhizhi suddenly thought of the Go board that Yang Fuyuan gave her some time ago.

She didn't know when Mr. Zong would come back from K City, so she could take advantage of this time to learn some Go.

It just so happens that she has been in a very messy mood recently, and maybe Go can help her calm down.

*

The next day, Jiang Zhizhi came to Zhibai chess room after breakfast.

The chess room is on the second floor of a commercial street. There is a hustle and bustle of traffic outside the window, but inside there is a sense of seclusion and tranquility.

Coming up from the stairs, one side of the corridor is covered with green bamboo leaf wallpaper, and on the other side is the half-open frosted glass of the chess room. Looking through the glass inside, you can vaguely see the layout of the chess room.

Half of it is semi-open private rooms, and the other half is fully open with rows of chessboard tables and chairs.

It's only eight o'clock now, and there are not many people in the chess room, but there are still a few tables where people are playing chess.

A little girl about her age was cleaning inside.

"Hello." Jiang Zhizhi greeted her politely.

The little girl turned around and looked at him. Her round face was very cute. "Hello, are you here to look for someone, or..."

"Do you have Go classes here?" Jiang Zhizhi asked.

"You want to learn Go?"

"Um."

"Of course, we have a dedicated Go classroom here, and professional players come here every week to give lessons. Of course, if you want one-on-one instruction, we can also arrange a private teacher for you. Have you ever heard of Go before?"

"I don't really understand." Jiang Zhizhi answered truthfully.

"How old are you?"

“13.”

"Like me, I'm also 13." The little girl smiled and said, "Wait a moment, my brother is playing chess with someone in there. When he's done, let him come and make arrangements for you. By the way, my name is Pu Yu, what's yours?"

"Jiang Zhizhi." Jiang Zhizhi asked, "Is this chess room yours?"

"Well, it was opened by my father. My father and my brother are both professional chess players. I came here to do odd jobs during the summer vacation." Pu Yu said with a smile.

"Which middle school are you from?"

"Foreign Language School. What about you?"

"I'm from No. 1 Middle School."

Jiang Zhizhi knew that the Foreign Languages ​​Middle School, although a private school, was a super key middle school like No. 1 Middle School, and almost all the students there were top students.

Moreover, foreign language schools pay more attention to cultivating students' foreign language skills. They not only offer English classes, but also courses in several other minor languages.

Xu Qingbo had previously worked on a set of math papers for a foreign language school, in which all the math questions were in English.

"No. 1 Middle School? Jiang Zhizhi? Wait, I think I've heard your name before..."

Pu Yu rubbed his chin, thinking for a moment, then suddenly realized, "You're the top student in the grade at No. 1 Middle School, right? The amazing guy who scored 191 on the second math league exam!"

Jiang Zhizhi didn't expect that this girl actually knew her, "Um, it's me."

"Oh my god! What a great guy! Come and shake hands with me." Pu Yu excitedly grabbed Jiang Zhizhi's hand and said happily.

Seeing her like this, Jiang Zhizhi felt a little embarrassed.

But the next moment, Pu Yu suddenly smiled, grabbed her hand and came closer, "But, Jiang Zhizhi, don't you know me?"

"Ah? Should I... know you?" Jiang Zhizhi looked at the girl in front of her, confirming that she really didn't know her.

"Oh, so arrogant?" Pu Yu seemed a little hurt. "But it's true. I was only seventh in the math league. If I was first, you would remember me, right?"

Although she said so, her eyes and eyebrows also revealed a bit of unyielding arrogance, which set off her delicate and pretty little face, giving a sense of astonishment.

"You are the seventh in the math league?" Jiang Zhizhi asked in surprise.

Xu Qingbo only ranked tenth.

This girl... is so amazing?

"You really haven't heard of me? Our school often discusses the top student in No. 1 Middle School. I didn't notice you at first, but in that math league, you scored 191 points in the second test! Jiang Zhizhi, you are the first one among your peers to surpass me!" Pu Yu looked at Jiang Zhizhi with some admiration, but more of it was a burning desire to fight.

"Could it be that you are the top student in your grade at the Foreign Languages ​​Middle School?"

"That's right. I thought I was quite famous in several nearby middle schools, but I didn't expect that you didn't even recognize me. I'm really shocked now." Pu Yu sighed resentfully.

"I'm sorry, I don't have many friends, and I don't usually go online..."

"Never mind, I don't blame you. By the way..."

As Pu Yu was speaking, an old man suddenly poked his head out of the private room behind him and shouted angrily, "Xiao Yu'er, where's my tea? How come you were so busy chatting that you forgot about my tea!"

"I know, I know. I'll be right there." Pu Yu replied and whispered to Jiang Zhizhi, "This stinky old man always gets angry with me when he loses a game of chess."

After she finished speaking, she turned and went into the tea room, where she made the tea in a very smooth and efficient manner in no time.

Jiang Zhizhi watched from the side and felt that when she was making tea, her whole body exuded an indescribable neat and elegant beauty.

"Shall we go? Do you want to go watch some chess together?"

Pu Yu held the tea and walked towards the old man's box while inviting Jiang Zhizhi with a smile.

Jiang Zhizhi also followed.

There were several people watching the chess game in the box, but except for the people playing chess, everyone else was silent and watched the game quietly.

"With this cup of tea from Xiao Yuer, I will definitely beat you in this round!" the old man said confidently.

The man opposite was a man in his forties. He laughed heartily and said, "Although I lost to Xiao Yu'er before, I will definitely not lose to Xiao Yu'er's tea. I have to win this round again!"

The two guessed who would go first and started a new round of chess.

Jiang Zhizhi watched from the side. The last time she was at Zong Lao's place, she only saw the chessboard where Zong Lao and Yang Fuyuan were playing chess. This was her first time watching someone else play chess.

The crisp sound of chess pieces falling on the chessboard seems to have a magical power that can calm people's hearts.

Although she couldn't quite understand it, she could still sense the changes in the game based on the reactions of the people around her.

"By the way, Xiao Yu'er, where is your brother?"

"Oh, him? He's playing chess with someone in the innermost box."

"What? Your brother is playing chess with someone? Why didn't you tell me earlier? Your brother is a professional chess player, it's much more interesting than this!"

As the man spoke, he ran inside in a hurry.

The two people playing chess on the board also stopped.

"Let's go and watch the chess first, and then we can continue playing when we come back."

The chess games played by professional chess players seemed full of temptation to them.

Pu Yu curled his lips and snorted, "You didn't ask me."

Turning her head, she looked at Jiang Zhizhi again, "Let's go, we should go there too. It's almost time, the game should have ended, so let my brother arrange some Go lessons for you."

"Yeah." Jiang Zhizhi followed her inside.

The uncle who ran over first uttered a plaintive cry, "Oh, why is it over?"

"Tsk, what a great chess game! Xiao Shao, why didn't you tell us you were playing chess..."

"That's right, we all missed it!"

A group of people were complaining, and a gentle and clear laughter came from inside.

"Sorry, sorry, I'll definitely do it next time."

The moment the voice came, two young men walked out of the box.

One of them is naturally Pu Yu’s brother, Pu Shao.

And the other one...

Jiang Zhizhi was stunned when she saw the person walking with Pu Shao.

"Senior Brother?"

Xu Honghan looked back and saw Jiang Zhizhi, his expression a little surprised and a little happy. He strode up to her, "Zhizhi? Why are you here?"