Why it never ends

Chapter 1246 Competition
"But……"

Before Kiki could argue, she suddenly froze—she saw several adults approaching in the distance, chatting and laughing as they stood at the back of the crowd, including her sister Stella.

Qiqi suddenly felt a heavy pressure, as if someone were smashing a heavy stone slab down on her head.

She wished a large stone slab would smash down on her head right then and there!
If it were just a regular quiz competition, she wouldn't care how many rounds she lost, but... but in front of Stella?

Stella noticed Kiki looking in her direction from the crowd. She waved to her, but Kiki immediately looked away. Nothing could describe the fear she felt at that moment.

When her clumsiness, shyness, and ignorance are all exposed to her older sister Stella, the latter will realize that she is not some little orca-like girl at all; she is just a helpless sardine, and she doesn't deserve that kind of attention or care.

"Qiqi!" Eleven nudged Qiqi's shoulder. "Don't get distracted! It's about to start!"

Qiqi glared resentfully at her friend beside her, but Shiyi didn't even look at her.

...But what did Eleven do wrong? In the end, it was because she was too incompetent. Stella, being a smart person, would have seen through this scam sooner or later...This Q&A session only made her realize the truth of the matter sooner.

Amidst the noise, Qiqi could only clench her fists, trying her best not to be overwhelmed by fear.

Offstage, Stella sat down next to Xia Yixue: "...What's going on now? Are the three of them going to team up for the competition later?"

“Yes.” Xia Yixue nodded. “They’re still explaining the rules now, but the competition should start soon.”

"Why is it configured like this?" Stella asked curiously. "Isn't this like putting two second or third graders in a competition against middle school students? That's just too unfair!"

Stella then pointed at Gahodorei: "That...who's that, is she very powerful?"

“I’m not sure,” Xia Yixue said, “but Gahodore’s reading and writing are very fluent, and she is particularly enthusiastic about learning new things.”

Stella let out a thoughtful hum.

On stage, Qiqi and Shiyi's translation teacher, Xia Ying, returned to their side. She had just obtained the consent of the host and the three middle school students opposite them to help Qiqi and Shiyi understand the questions and options throughout the process, but she would not provide any off-stage information.

The game officially begins.

"First question," Xia Ying crouched behind Qi Qi and Eleven, "Which of the following organelles does a plant primarily rely on for photosynthesis? Mitochondria, chloroplasts, endoplasmic reticulum, ribosomes—"

Before Xia Ying could finish speaking, Eleven slammed one hand on the table and raised the other hand high.

A burst of laughter immediately erupted from the audience.

"Eleven, eleven, no need to rush to answer," Xia Ying quickly explained, "We just need to write the answers on this little blackboard."

"Oh!" Eleven put his hands on his hips, tilted his head to look at the small blackboard in Qiqi's hand, "So what should I choose?"

"You don't know what to choose?" Qiqi looked at Eleven in surprise. "You don't even know what to choose, yet you're raising your hand?!"

"But I'm afraid the other side might beat us to it!" Eleven glared at Qiqi. "Watch the time, kids," Xia Ying reminded them, "What should we choose?"

“…It should be chloroplasts,” Kiki answered uncertainly. “The second one.”

Xia Ying quickly wrote "B" on the blackboard and looked up at Jiahedore: "Do you have any objections?"

Gahodore paused for a moment, then shook her head.

Xia Ying handed the sign to Shiyi and told her to raise the sign only when the host asked her to.

A moment later, the host announced that time was up, and both sides raised their placards simultaneously. Eleven hadn't heard what she said clearly, but she still accurately deduced the command from the surrounding atmosphere and her opponent's movements. She raised the small blackboard in her hand high and shouted, "B!" as if she were announcing a victory.

Another burst of laughter erupted from the audience, and most of the audience—including the middle school students sitting opposite them—scattered around applause, cheering on the child who looked significantly younger than them.

"Answer—correct!" the host said in a dramatic tone.

Eleven looked at Qiqi: "I told you you were smart! How did you know?"

"Teacher Yan mentioned it when she took us on a spring outing before," Qiqi whispered.

Shiyi was stunned for a moment—she had only spent a short time at the children's center, but she had developed a deep dislike for several of the teachers there, especially Teacher Yan, who was lecturing eight out of ten sentences, constantly using the excuse that one should study hard and listen to the teacher to lecture people.

"You're amazing," Eleven couldn't help but say, "So there really are people who actually listen to her!"

The question and answer session continued.

Kiki had never felt time stretching out like this, but things didn't turn out the worst. Of the dozen or so questions, she answered four correctly, and Eleven guessed two. The scene she had imagined—"everyone sitting on the stage, desperate and powerless, unable to answer a single question"—did not materialize.

Moreover, there were two questions that left a deep impression on Qiqi: one was what the most abundant gas in the atmosphere is, and the other was what gas causes acid rain. She answered both questions immediately, although the other side also answered them correctly, but they had a heated discussion before giving the correct answer.

Kiki's palms were already sweating profusely. She still couldn't understand why Eleven dared to act so ostentatiously—while the triumphant air of presenting the correct answer was certainly pleasing, what if she got it wrong? Eleven seemed completely unconcerned about that…

Qiqi played and observed nervously, while Shiyi was completely immersed in his own "battle," jumping up and down, sweating profusely... The two children unknowingly captured everyone's attention.

Gabrielle sat there awkwardly the whole time.

She didn't need Xia Ying to translate for her; she could read the questions and options directly on the screen. However, most of the time, she didn't really understand what the questions were asking, nor could she quite comprehend the options. Only a few general knowledge questions—such as how many degrees the temperature drops for every thousand meters of altitude gained—were she able to answer with some confidence.

But Qiqi and Shiyi can also answer this question.

She overheard Qiqi and Eleven discussing something, but she couldn't understand the language of District Fourteen. She could tell from their tone that Qiqi was the main one answering the questions, and she was surprised that this little girl knew so much.

At first, Xia Ying would ask her if she had any objections to Qi Qi and Shi Yi's answers, but later Xia Ying stopped asking and just waved the answer board in front of her. Jia He Duo Lei could only nod and pretend to be calm.

No one heard her inner scream—"Just end this torture-like question and answer!"