Puzzle Madness

Chapter 50 Sky View
Growing up in a normal environment?

The mathematician felt that this was not a correct judgment: Doudou did not look like a guy who grew up in a "normal environment".

Moreover, when Richard and Doudou were communicating, they kept trying to blur each other's age - why was that?
Doudou clapped his hands, his face full of sudden realization:

"Oh—I think I understand a little bit. Oh, no, I still don't quite understand."

Richard nodded in agreement:
"That's normal. I don't quite understand it either. Besides, I've been dealing with these things for a while—there are quite a lot of intricacies involved. I'll explain them to you one by one."

"Come on, second question:"

"Have you lived in an administratively organized area above a village or town for a long period of time within the past three to five years? If so, does the city have a permanent population of over one million? What's the crime rate? Never mind, I know the answer to that question myself."

"Mang Cai City is just above the threshold, just over a million. It's not bad in Jiaozhi Autonomous Prefecture; after all, it's only been returned to China for about 20 years, so it can't compare to the mainland."

"Doudou, are you from Mong Cai?"

Doudou unzipped his yellow raincoat. Inside was a white T-shirt with the "I Love Mong Cai" logo, though it had faded slightly from washing. He shook the T-shirt and zipped it up again.
"No, I moved here around the time I was in elementary school. My family used to live in Singapore, in Chinatown. Oh! We also lived in Malaysia. But I don't know where I was born."

The mathematician continued to stare at Richard—but his expression didn't seem to change at all after hearing his answer:
[Does Doudou's situation have little connection with Singapore and Malaysia? ]

"You're saying—is the emergence of this so-called [symptom] related to the population of the city? And what about the crime rate? You haven't explained this clearly at all."

Richard's eyes were filled with concentration, as if he was completely unaware that the mathematician was staring at him:

"I don't know either. After all, while this system is called a self-test, the actual results still need to be submitted to the department for analysis. However, it can be said that the probability of the occurrence of the [symptom] is roughly positively correlated with the local [population]."

The mathematician raised his hand high—but in the end he only dared to lightly tap the table:
"That's nonsense! If we're talking about probability, then naturally the more people there are in a place, the more people with superpowers there are; and the greater the likelihood of exposure. So, naturally, they're more likely to be counted!"

Richard used his index finger to draw an upward slash on the plastic tablecloth:

"No, they are different things. If a person moves from a remote and uninhabited mountain area to an international metropolis, the likelihood of him or her developing [symptoms] will increase—and the larger the population base of the place, the greater the likelihood."

"And according to your idea, Doctor: No matter where the person I used as an example lives, it will not affect the probability of him showing symptoms."

The mathematician waved his hand, indicating that he couldn't find a direction to attack at the moment:
".Forget it, go on. This thing seems very counterintuitive."

Doudou's eyes were darting around, and no one knew where he was looking.

"Uh-uh, really? Very counter-intuitive!"

He felt his mind was in a mess and his scalp was itching. Fortunately, Doudou had mastered a secret to participating in a conversation - repeating the other person's last sentence.

Unlike his treatment of mathematicians, as soon as Doudou opened his mouth, Richard immediately became serious:

"Is it counterintuitive? It does feel a bit that way. But it could just be that I'm not very good at expressing myself."

"However, there's also a very intuitive part: in reality, we privately rely on this question to determine whether any symptoms have appeared. It's much more convenient than random questionnaires, and it's also easier to verify." "That is, the last question:"

"Outdoors, in an open area without high obstructions, while observing the sky—do you see any unusual objects or phenomena? If so, what is the approximate size of the object or phenomenon? You can also describe it in terms of the approximate proportion of the field of view."

When the mathematician heard the first half of Richard's question, he looked up at the sky.

It's strange; this action is perfectly normal, but he rarely has the leisure and time for it. Who would stare upwards for no reason? Especially during the day in Mong Cai, when the sunlight, even through the clouds, can pierce your eyes.

Through the dirty lens - there are no thick clouds, but there are no stars either: the flickering city lights have already obscured these distant celestial bodies; even in a small town like Mong Cai, it is the same.

Only the moon was bright and clear, with a hazy white jade halo; it hung abruptly in the oblique angle of midnight. Although it was not full - it was still a few weeks away from Mid-Autumn Festival - but apart from that, there was nothing else.

The mathematician smacked his lips and shrugged. He had always felt that he had no connection with these strange and supernatural things.

"Why is this included? It feels strange; it's like mass hysteria. What will we see? UFOs?"

No one answered. Richard was looking at Doudou, observing his reaction, but Doudou didn't even look up:

"Oh! There's nothing strange in the sky, only my mom and dad. I told the doctor, my parents are in heaven."

The mathematician suddenly realized that
When I was still in the apartment building, I didn't really understand what Doudou meant.

The mathematician leaned forward, almost wanting to press his entire body against Richard. At this moment, he desperately wanted an answer:

"What does it mean if you see something unusual in the sky? If you can see it, it means you have special abilities, right?"

Richard did not answer the mathematician's question, but continued to ask Doudou:

"Doudou—can you see the moon tonight? Are there any stars now? Are there any clouds in the sky?"

The mathematician saw it: Richard gripped the disposable chopsticks tightly, making a clicking sound. Even if his expression didn't show it, his body couldn't suppress the tension.

"What? Oh, let me see."

Doudou suddenly raised his chin, his hair hitting the back of his neck. He turned his head left and right, looking up at the sky for a long time; suddenly he waved his hand toward the sky, then turned back:

"I can't see the moon. And I can't see a single star either. The whole sky is blocked by my parents; they're thrashing around like they're pantomiming, so I can't see anything. And it seems there aren't many clouds today, right? Usually it seems fine."

The mathematician saw Richard's face turn pale—perhaps just the poor lighting in the food stall; but the trembling of his lips was perfectly real, revealing something about Richard's emotions at the moment. The mathematician leaned closer to Richard:

"What do you mean? What did Doudou mean?"

(End of this chapter)