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

"No! I disagree!"

No sooner had the people from the Municipal Education Bureau left than Zhou Yayun's emotions, which she had suppressed for several days, finally exploded!

Her voice was sharp, carrying a hint of barely concealed fear and anger.

"Niannian! Did you hear that? A whistleblower letter! Someone's written a whistleblower letter to frame you! Why are you still insisting! Why!"

She rushed to Lu Nianci, grabbed her daughter's thin shoulders tightly, and tears streamed down her face like broken beads.

"Let's not go to that university, okay? Mom doesn't want anything, not you to be a prodigy, not you to be a genius, Mom just wants you to be safe and happy!"

"Let's stay in Harbin, right next to Mom and Dad, okay?"

Zhou Yayun cried her heart out.

That letter of denunciation was like a bucket of ice water, completely extinguishing any unrealistic fantasies she might have about her daughter, leaving only boundless fear.

This world has never been kind to geniuses.

The wood is beautiful in the forest, and the wind will destroy it.

She was afraid. She was truly afraid. She was afraid her daughter would be ruined by all these open and covert attacks.

The atmosphere in the living room was unusually heavy.

Lu Zhenguo had a dark expression on his face as he smoked one cigarette after another, and the ashtray was already overflowing with cigarette butts.

He just used his connections to inquire among his friends in the education system.

The feedback he received plunged him into despair.

"There is no precedent, and the risk is extremely high."

My friend was very direct on the phone.

"Old Lu, I'm not trying to discourage you, but it's already unbelievable that a kid is taking the college entrance exam. Now that it's been reported to the city government, the higher-ups are taking it very seriously and are in a very difficult position."

"How do you explain doing well on the test? Say our education system produced a once-in-a-century prodigy? That's a huge joke! Who would believe that?"

"If the child doesn't do well on the test, that's even more troublesome! People will say we're trying to create a god, forcing growth, and ruining a child! Will the child be able to handle that psychologically? And how much public pressure will you parents face?"

"This is a complete hot potato, a dead end where no matter which option you choose, you're in the wrong!"

Lu Zhenguo relayed his friend's words to his family verbatim.

He looked at the small, yet remarkably calm figure on the sofa and sighed wearily.

"Niannian, Dad knows you're smart and you have your own ideas. But this is really too difficult."

"Listen to your father's advice and take it easy, okay? Wait a few years, when you're older, and then you can take the exam. No one will be able to say a word against it then."

This time, even her father, who had always loved her the most, stood against her.

Even Principal Zhang of the school, after learning about this, personally visited her and patiently persuaded her for more than an hour.

"Nianci, I know you have lofty ambitions, but you have to take things one step at a time!"

"You're like a tender sprout just breaking through the soil; what you need is sunshine and rain, not the test of storms!"

Everyone is against her.

In the name of "love". In the name of "for your own good".

They built an impenetrable wall, trying to protect her in what they considered a "safe zone".

Lu Nianci listened quietly, without crying or arguing.

She could understand their worries and fears.

Because what they saw was just a vulnerable child who needed protection.

What they couldn't see was her indomitable spirit at thirty, yearning to break free from constraints and to take control of her own destiny.

After everyone had finished speaking, the living room fell into a suffocating silence once again.

Lu Nianci slowly raised her head.

Her gaze swept over her mother who was weeping for her, her father whose hair had turned white from worry, and her principal who was deeply concerned about her.

Finally, her gaze fell on her brother, Lu Xingzhou, who had remained silent throughout, simply sitting quietly in the corner wiping a military dagger.

She took a deep breath and then stood up.

"Mom, Dad, Principal."

"I know you all mean well."

"But have you ever considered whether what you call 'safety' is really what I want?"

"Hiding under your wings, going to school and graduating step by step, and then what? Staying in this small military compound for the rest of my life?"

"No, this is not the life I want."

Her eyes gleamed with a sharp and resolute light that was completely out of character for her age.

"You only see the risks, but you don't see the opportunities."

"This whistleblower letter is not a crisis for me, but the best stage!"

"Aren't they questioning me? Aren't they saying I'm a fraud, that I rely on opportunism?"

"Then I'll prove it to them in front of the entire city, even the whole province!"

"To prove whether I, Lu Nianci, am truly qualified!"

"I want them to know that some people's talents are beyond the imagination of ordinary people like them!"

"I will use an irrefutable victory to crush the faces of all those who doubt and slander me!"

"As for childhood..."

She paused, then gave a self-deprecating laugh.

"My childhood ended the moment my parents died, I was sold to someone for a dowry, and I fled from the south to the north with my younger brother."

"Everything I do now is to survive, and to live better."

"To reunite with my brother in Beijing and to uncover the truth behind my father's death—that's the meaning of my life!"

"The college entrance exam is the shortest and fastest way for me to achieve all of this!"

"So even if this road is full of thorns, even if there's an abyss ahead, I will still walk it!"

"No one can stop me!"

Her words resonated deeply, striking a chord in everyone's hearts.

Zhou Yayun and Lu Zhenguo were both stunned.

They stared in shock at their daughter, realizing for the first time that they might... never have truly understood her.

What kind of powerful yet lonely soul was hidden in her small body?

However, as shocking as it may be.

The worry remains.

They still couldn't bring themselves to support her crazy, almost reckless decision.

Seeing the continued hesitation and pain on her parents' faces, Lu Nianci's heart sank little by little.

She got it.

On this path, she ultimately fought alone.

She silently turned around, dragging her heavy steps back to her room.

It shut out all the opposition and incomprehension from the world.

The small figure looked incredibly lonely in the dim light.