Pretending To Be A Boss

Li Xiaoyu was very passionate about anatomy, which, by comparison, made Zhong Xiuxiu's condition appear even more severe.

Tang Xian said:

"Why are you so keen on dissecting human brains?"

"Because I want to know the mysteries of biological construction. I want to know about things like the soul."

Zhong Xiuxiu didn't greet Tang Xian but continued with what she was doing.

Tang Xian didn't mind, knowing that Zhong Xiuxiu could have anticipated his visit explained a lot of things.

He probed:

"I believe when you speak of the soul, you're probably referring to a collective term for the spirit, thoughts, feelings, personality, and so forth?"

"Yes. Physiology has proven by studying the transmission of information between synapses in the brain's nerve cells—the neurons—

that the soul, or consciousness, is the activity of specific neuronal cells."

Pausing for a moment, Zhong Xiuxiu frowned in a way that was quite adorable if one could disregard her cutting into a brain.

She continued:

"We often say that quantitative changes can lead to qualitative changes, and the activity of these specific neurons represents the most mysterious qualitative change. I really want to understand their principle."

Tang Xian, watching Zhong Xiuxiu's serious expression, suddenly felt a sense of familiarity.

"So, have you figured it out? And why are you so eager to unravel this?" Tang Xian asked earnestly.

Zhong Xiuxiu was making thin slices of a brain cortex.

Tang Xian could see that Zhong Xiuxiu's control over her own body was exceptionally good.

Her precision was akin to how Tang Xian handled antibiotic resistance in organisms.

Every attack was timed to perfection.

"I've been called strange since I was young, almost as if I have no compassion for my own kind. It's hard for me to empathize, so I wonder, is it because I'm missing some part of my makeup? I want to be like Shang Lu, to have richer emotions," Zhong Xiuxiu said indifferently.

Tang Xian thought to himself that Shang Lu, in the eyes of the public, was also considered an oddity.

"It seems you haven't found the answer yet."

"Indeed. If I had, I would probably be described with words like cute as well."

"Shang Lu thinks you're cute already," Tang Xian remarked.

Zhong Xiuxiu paused for a moment before saying:

"He is quite cute too."

"I heard from Shang Lu that your parents have disappeared."

"Yes, when I was nine."

Tang Xian did the math; if his own parents' disappearance was in the same year, then this girl would be two years younger than him.

He ventured to ask:

"You're twenty-two this year."

"Hmm? What makes you think that?"

Zhong Xiuxiu pondered for a moment and realized there were no necessary proofs linking to this conclusion.

But Tang Xian's guess was correct.

"Just a guess."

Tang Xian's forefinger on his left hand trembled slightly as he continued:

"So, what were your parents' names?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"Yes, but I know that I took my mother's surname. Although they disappeared when I was nine, my life before that also had little to do with them.

Father and mother rarely visited me, and as a child, I was boarded in other people's homes.

Dad and mom would only visit me once or twice a year and left no clues. Their names are the only thing they gave me.

The last news of them was that they had gone missing in a mining area."

Tang Xian's expression changed abruptly.

After finding out Tang Suoye was from the 39th Fortress, Tang Xian had indeed thought for a moment that since this young lady also had the surname Tang and was born in the 39th Fortress...

But then he was sure that Tang Suoye and he were not blood-related.

After all, the world didn't have such a peculiar rule that friends couldn't share the same surname.

However, Zhong Xiuxiu's words today threw Tang Xian into some disarray.

Because his mother's name was Zhong Yao.

Despite this, there was still no way to prove any relationship with the young girl before him.

Tang Xian slowly calmed down.

Though Zhong Xiuxiu was talking about something that might sound somewhat sad, her tone was very flat.

It was as if everything had become trivial.

Or maybe she was just that kind of person, as if missing something.

Thus her emotions seemed too faint.

"By the way, why are you asking this? I thought you'd ask about something else," she said.

Tang Xian knew that the "something else" Zhong Xiuxiu referred to was the fruit of the ancestral Zudun tree.

But he had known the reason from the start, so he wasn't in a hurry to ask. Instead, he replied to Zhong Xiuxiu's question, saying:

"Your parents weren't with you most of the time; do you hate them?"

"Your questions are quite interesting, but I think I don't have that capability."

Because her behavior was too peculiar, she had been bullied a lot as a child.

However, facing those who bullied her, Zhong Xiuxiu didn't find them repulsive.

And to those who helped her, she didn't feel particularly grateful.

Ultimately, there were things she liked and didn't like, but everything was just too insipid.

Tang Xian understood her words and looked at Zhong Xiuxiu with even more complexity in his gaze.

Zhong Xiuxiu continued:

"But I don't think they did anything wrong."

"Why? Don't you wish they were with you more?"

Zhong Xiuxiu thought for a moment and then said:

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"I did fantasize about them spending more time with me, but I'm not sure if the extent of this fantasy qualifies as longing. As for why I think they did nothing wrong, it's because knowledge is so intriguing.

Being engrossed in such fascinating knowledge must be more enjoyable than looking after a weird child like me. I guess I'd do the same if I had children with Shang Lu, right?"

Tang Xian didn't necessarily disagree with that notion.