A young boy from the 1970s, separated from his family, fled famine and led his younger brother into

"Chen the Cripple! What are you dawdling for! Get up and go!"

"If you don't go now, believe me, I'll kick you to death!"

The two young police officers were still shouting and cursing at the old man's retreating figure without restraint.

Their faces were filled with mockery and... a morbid pleasure in degrading others.

In their eyes, this "stinking intellectual" was someone they could bully and vent their anger on at will.

Lu Nianci clenched her fists tightly.

She wanted to rush forward, she wanted to reason with him, and she wanted to use all the principles and rules she knew to seek justice for the old man!

But she couldn't. She knew very well that she, a five-year-old child, had no power or influence.

Her rash intervention will not only fail to help the elderly man, but will also push him into an even more dangerous situation!

She could only watch helplessly as that thin, hunched figure picked up the foul-smelling bucket and staggered away, disappearing at the end of the corridor.

Each step felt like a heavy, humiliating blow to her heart.

Lu Nianci stood there for a very long time.

Until the bell rang for class.

She did not return to the classroom.

Instead, he turned around and went back to the library.

She found the German version of "Critique of Pure Reason" that the old man had just been reading.

She hugged the book along with several other books on Western philosophy that she had found on the bookshelf.

Then, she walked out of the library and headed straight for the place she never wanted to set foot in again.

Public toilet.

……

A pungent stench hit her face, almost making Lu Nianci vomit.

She forced herself to endure the churning in her stomach and walked to the latrine behind the toilet.

The old man was laboriously scooping the filthy stuff into the latrine bucket, spoonful by spoonful.

His movements were slow and laborious.

His thin body swayed precariously under the heavy labor, as if he might collapse at any moment.

Lu Nianci remained silent.

She simply walked silently to the old man's side and gently placed the books she was holding on a relatively clean stone.

The old man heard the noise and slowly raised his head.

When he saw Lu Nianci and the books in front of him, a look of surprise flashed in his cloudy eyes.

"You... what brings you here?"

"Grandpa, I've come to... return the book." Lu Nianci pointed to the German version of Kant. "I've finished reading this book."

What?! You've finished reading it?! The old man was completely stunned!

A five-year-old child finished reading a German original copy of "Critique of Pure Reason" in one afternoon?!

How...how is this possible?!

"You...you understood?" The old man's voice trembled.

"Yes." Lu Nianci nodded. "Thank you, grandpa. I... understand everything."

The old man stared intently at her. He tried to find a trace of lying on her face.

But no. Those eyes were clear and open, filled with a devotion to knowledge and... a radiant wisdom that had seen through the truth.

The old man fell silent. He put down the dung scoop in his hand, and with trembling hands reached out to pick up the book by Kant.

His fingertips gently caressed the book cover, as if he were stroking his long-lost child.

A very, very long time passed.

He slowly raised his head and looked at Lu Nianci with an extremely complicated expression.

"Who...are you?"

"My name is Lu Nianci."

"No, I'm not asking about your name." The old man's gaze sharpened like never before, as if trying to see right through her soul. "I'm asking where your knowledge, your thoughts... come from?!"

"There is absolutely no such thing as a self-taught genius in this world!"

This question was even more fatal than when Gao Jianjun asked her about her "chess skills"!

Knowledge can be faked, but ideas cannot be hidden!

Lu Nianci knew that any lies or pretense would be pale and powerless in front of this learned and wise old man.

She remained silent for a moment.

Then, she did something that the old man would never forget.

She took a step back, facing the ragged, foul-smelling old man who was cleaning a latrine.

With a "thump," he knelt down on both knees!

She respectfully kowtowed three times loudly!

"Student Lu Nianci!"

"Greetings..., Teacher!"

Boom! The old man froze on the spot, his eyes filled with disbelief.

He looked at the exquisitely beautiful little girl kneeling before him, at her eyes filled with piety, devotion, and... a burning passion.

He felt his heart, which had long since grown cold and parched from endless humiliation and despair, being instantly pierced by a surge of scalding warmth!

Teacher... how many years has it been since he last heard that title?

Ten years? Or twenty years?

He couldn't remember anymore. All his students distanced themselves from him. Some avoided him like the plague.

Some even turned against him, verbally attacking him and using his name as a stepping stone to climb the social ladder... a pledge of loyalty.

He thought he would live his life like a stray dog, dying silently in humiliation and loneliness.

He thought that all the knowledge and ideas he had devoted his life to studying would vanish completely with his death.

But he never expected it! At the darkest and most desperate point of his life.

To my astonishment, a five-year-old child was willing to kneel before him and respectfully call him... teacher!

His throat tightened, and a sour feeling rose in his nose.

His cloudy eyes could no longer hold back, and two streams of hot tears flowed down his cheeks!

"You...you get up! No! No!" The old man frantically tried to help her up.

"I won't get up unless the teacher agrees!" Lu Nianci knelt on the ground, stubbornly raising her head.

"I...I'm just a janitor...I...what right do I have to be your teacher..."

"No!" Lu Nianci interrupted him decisively, "In my heart, you are not a sweeper! You are... the most knowledgeable and wisest scholar in the world!"

"Your knowledge shouldn't be buried in a cesspool!"

"Your thoughts should not be tarnished with your passing!"

"Teacher! Please accept me as your student!"

"Please impart all that you have learned in your life to me!"

"I assure you! I will dedicate my life to ensuring that your name and your teachings shine brightly once more, resounding throughout the entire world!"

These words were powerful and weighty!

Like a flaming hammer, it struck the old man's heart hard!

He looked at the small yet incredibly determined figure kneeling on the ground.

He knew he had no reason to refuse.

This was the best gift God gave him before he died, and also... his last hope.

He nodded slowly.

His voice was hoarse, yet filled with an unprecedented... solemnity.

"Okay, I... I'll accept you."