Rebirth 08: A Happy Life Begins in Elementary School

The weather hasn't really gotten hot yet, and the light rain hasn't released the heat that's accumulated on the ground.

Li Zhao, who went down to the first floor, only felt a comfortable coolness.

There was no one to be seen on the playground, so he decisively headed towards the parking shed.

Sure enough, as soon as Li Zhao turned into the passageway behind the teaching building, he saw a small pink umbrella.

It was swaying slightly as it walked forward.

The awning was quite large; you wouldn't need an umbrella while standing inside. It seems He Shuyao had taken a stroll downstairs.

Li Zhao took a few steps forward, but his footsteps were not very noticeable because of the rain hitting the awning.

He had originally planned to tap He Shuyao's umbrella with the handle, but worried about startling her, so he spoke directly instead:

"Shuyao".

The pink umbrella shrank abruptly, shaking off a shower of raindrops that nearly sprayed onto Li Zhao's face.

It seems that He Shuyao was quite startled.

The girl turned around, her face full of disbelief. "Li Zhao? You... what are you doing here?"

"Looking for you."

"..." He Shuyao glanced at the stone stool next to her, put away her umbrella, and sat down.

Li Zhao also walked over and sat on another stone stool.

These two stone blocks were used to secure large umbrellas before the canopy was installed, but no one has moved them since.

"I just want to take a walk by myself."

"Bad mood?"

"A little."

He Shuyao lowered her eyes, stretched out her legs, and swung her toes.

"It's because of the exam results."

"Hmm." He Shuyao sighed softly.

"Is this your secret base?" Li Zhao asked a question that He Shuyao hadn't expected.

Why do you say that?

"Last time I asked you for pocket money, you took me here on your own initiative."

"Well, actually... I used to come here occasionally to be alone."

Well, this girl, when discussing the methodology of happiness, even took the initiative to ask Li Zhao, "Can we go out at noon?" It turns out she had already done it before.

"Never encountered a teacher?"

"...Yes, I just said I couldn't sleep at noon and came over to clear my head."

"So that's how it is."

……

Quiet.

The silence left He Shuyao somewhat puzzled.

"You called me just to say this?"

"Of course not," Li Zhao smiled, "but I don't know if you want to talk about those things, so let's wait a bit."

"Inflexible." He Shuyao gently nudged Li Zhao with her elbow.

It's cool.

"Sometimes it's better to be a little rigid. Being too self-righteous can hurt others without you even realizing it," Li Zhao responded.

He Shuyao was taken aback, looking at her toes. "If I don't want to tell you, then you've come all this way for nothing?"

"It wasn't a wasted trip. Sitting here and listening to the rain is quite nice."

He Shuyao stared at Li Zhao's profile for a while, then stiffly turned her head away.

"What's so nice about this rain... Never mind," she said, pulling her feet back and resting her head on her knees. "Why do you think I'm in a bad mood?"

Honestly, Li Zhao had to be so self-righteous.

"As I just said, it's because of my exam results."

"What's the deeper reason?"

Poor grades and a bad mood are a normal combination, right? Why are there deeper reasons?

Oh... Li Zhao was reminded once again of the immense pressure he felt during exams when he was a child.

The panic that hits after an exam when you feel uncertain or realize you made a mistake; the racing heart before the results are announced; the helplessness after discovering your grades have dropped…

He knew what he would face when he got home, but he was powerless to do anything about it. For him, when his grades dropped, everything around him seemed to lose its color.

The world he sees, hears, and feels will actually be completely different.

Some opinions that were unheard of before now sound particularly jarring; what should have been comforting words sound like nothing more than noise; even the blue sky seems a bit blinding.

During high school, Li Zhao learned that the world seen through the eyes of children with autism and depression is completely different from that of ordinary people, and he felt a deep sense of empathy for them.

To some extent, the later obsession with success was also a form of self-protection.

The fact that his parents are not as strict with his grades now may be due to changes in their attitudes, but the core reason is that Li Zhao is performing "beyond expectations".

"Is there pressure from your parents?" Li Zhao asked.

He Shuyao shook her head in surprise.

"Is it...your own dissatisfaction?"

There are only two possibilities.

He Shuyao hesitated and nodded, then shook her head.

Li Zhao was at a loss.

"Actually, my family doesn't have high expectations for me. You asked me about it last time. My dad is the director of the planning bureau. He always says that as long as I'm willing to study hard, I don't need to be outstanding. So, even if I did poorly on this exam, he'll still praise me when I get home."

Li Zhao was stunned.

"My mom is the same way. She says she's not that outstanding herself, so she can't put too much pressure on me. As long as I'm willing to study, that's enough."

He Shuyao frowned slightly as she said these two sentences.

"I don't understand. I'm clearly... not bad, am I? I'm not just 'willing to study hard,' I want to..."

At this point, she glanced at Li Zhao and didn't continue.

He Shuyao didn't understand, but Li Zhao did.

She is the only daughter of a provincial bureau chief and comes from a well-off family. With these two advantages, she is more than qualified to marry into a good family in the future.

A perfect match, a powerful alliance.

Therefore, her parents' expectations for her were completely different from Li Zhao's. As long as He Shuyao could study normally, not become a delinquent, and not be led astray by any shady people, that would be enough.

Li Zhao envied such a family when he was a child, but now he realizes that it's not a good thing.

Whether it's the starting point of "finding a good family to marry into" or the low expectations placed on He Shuyao, both ignore He Shuyao herself.

He Shuyao's individuality as a person is not important in her parents' eyes.

What kind of life she wanted to live is not important; the effort she put into it is also not important.

They are essentially the same as Li Zhao's parents.

They desperately demanded that Li Zhao become the person they imagined, but what Li Zhao wanted to be, and the pain he felt in the process, were all unimportant.

"Of course you're not bad, you're excellent," Li Zhao said.

He Shuyao did not look up.

"And you work very hard."

He Shuyao rubbed her fingers.

"Among so many classmates who ask me questions, only your questions are becoming more and more insightful, and you are gradually starting to touch on the most valuable thing in learning—method."

He Shuyao looked up, her beautiful eyes sparkling as she stared at Li Zhao.

"Under the exam-oriented education system, many 'excellent' achievements are actually castles in the air. They rely solely on memorizing knowledge and problem-solving strategies to learn, and it is difficult for them to achieve anything after leaving the exam room. Moreover, it may be okay for elementary and middle school, but it is completely insufficient for high school, university, and even work and research."

Li Zhao stood up and faced He Shuyao.

"You've started thinking about how to learn and are beginning to develop your own learning logic, which is very beneficial for understanding the world and building a knowledge system."

He Shuyao was stunned.

"In short, you are the most capable elementary school student I know. If your parents are ignoring your abilities, then prove them wrong."