Watching Cartoons Together

Although the final results didn't reveal what Lin Yue's parents had done to her brain, it was an established fact that her brain had been tampered with.

However, after examinations, the doctors at the private hospital all stated that regardless of what had been done to Lin Yue's brain before, its current state was normal.

It was just that her own brainwaves and the development of her emotional center were somewhat abnormal. In these two aspects, there was nothing they could do medically—it could only rely on Lin Yue herself to gradually release her self-suppression and learn to experience emotions.

The Grangers, holding the detailed examination report, walked out of the brain examination department corridor and into the lobby. Hermione immediately spotted Lin Yue standing in a corner of the lobby, staring blankly ahead, muttering something under her breath.

Looking at Lin Yue's dull, expressionless face, Hermione's nose stung instinctively. Without even needing to go over and listen, she knew Lin Yue was probably reciting a textbook chapter in her mouth...

Her brain had been tampered with. How helpless and desperate must she have felt back then? And the ones who did it were her own parents. Just thinking about it made Hermione, an outsider, feel a chill run down her spine.

Lin Yue back then must have felt even worse. A surge of impulse rose in Hermione's heart, and she didn't care that they were in the hospital lobby or about politeness anymore.

She spread her arms and sprinted over, tightly embracing Lin Yue as if trying to melt her into her own body to protect her.

Lin Yue paused in her textbook recitation, looked expressionlessly at the person hugging her, and after confirming it was Hermione, she went back to reciting.

Hermione closed her eyes, took a moment to steady herself, then let go of Lin Yue and forced a smile at her.

"Let's go home."

Lin Yue's eyes, as lifeless as still water, stared at Hermione. She didn't want to smile. Her brain instinctively analyzed and pinpointed the incongruity in Hermione's expression.

The muscles in Hermione's smile were abnormally stiff, clearly showing she didn't want to smile. Combined with her reddened eyes and unusually heavy breathing, Lin Yue could basically confirm that the smile wasn't genuine.

"If you don't want to smile, then don't." Lin Yue said this without any emotion in her heart.

A voice deep in her brain told her clearly that she didn't want Hermione to force a smile like this.

As for why she didn't want that... Lin Yue hadn't figured it out. She just didn't want it.

Hermione almost broke into a real smile, though no tears fell from her eyes.

She reached out and gently ruffled Lin Yue's hair, her voice soft.

"How could that be? I do want to smile. I love smiling the most."

Someone who barely had emotions herself, who didn't even understand what feelings were, was trying to comfort her. Lin Yue really was... kind to the point of being endearing.

Lin Yue nodded without any change in her expression. "Alright."

Since Hermione said so herself, she had no further questions. After all, she didn't really understand why Hermione would force a smile.

While the two girls interacted, the Grangers stood nearby, but neither of them interrupted. They wanted to give the children space, respecting their interactions and relationships—these basic things they could still manage.

But watching his daughter and Lin Yue together, even Mr. Granger, who wasn't particularly perceptive in these matters, started to notice something.

He turned to Mrs. Granger uncertainly. "Dear, Hermione and Lin Yue... is this?"

Mrs. Granger raised an eyebrow. Her husband had noticed. So soon? She'd thought it would take him much longer.

But since he had noticed, Mrs. Granger saw no reason to hide it. Her husband wasn't a narrow-minded person, just overly protective of their daughter.

"Mhm," Mrs. Granger nodded at Mr. Granger. "But for now, it's probably just Hermione having feelings for Lin Yue. Given Lin Yue's condition... and Hermione likely hasn't fully recognized her own emotions yet."

In other words, Hermione didn't yet realize she had actually fallen for Lin Yue from the bottom of her heart.

Mr. Granger nodded, his gaze complex as he looked at Hermione and Lin Yue.

Lin Yue was a girl worthy of sympathy, but she didn't understand emotions—she had to learn and experience them from scratch. He could already imagine how exhausting this relationship might be for his daughter in the future.

Having been together for so many years, Mrs. Granger could easily read her husband's thoughts. She reached up and gently patted his shoulder.

"In a relationship, both sides have to give. Since Hermione likes Lin Yue, she'll be willing to run toward her, even if that child is wrapped in thorns. Hermione will tear those thorns away without hesitation and pull her out."

Mr. Granger fell silent for a moment. Yes, that's what liking someone was, wasn't it?

"Mhm," Mr. Granger smiled gentlemanly and patted the back of his wife's hand resting on his shoulder. "You're right. We just need to support them."

"Lin Yue is a good kid too. If Hermione ends up with her, I'd actually feel at ease."

Mrs. Granger chuckled softly and raised an eyebrow at him. "You've only known her for a short while, and you're already sure she's a good kid?"

Mr. Granger shook his head with a smile. "Isn't it obvious? Polite, diligent, and so well-behaved it's heartbreaking. That can't be faked. I'm sure you feel the same."

"Mhm." Mrs. Granger pressed her lips together and gave a soft affirmation.

Indeed, compared to other children her age, Lin Yue was far too well-behaved—so much so that Mrs. Granger wished she could be more lively, more rambunctious, anything better than this rigid, mechanical state where she did everything flawlessly.

Ushering the two girls into the car, Mr. Granger slowly started the engine and drove home. Mrs. Granger handed the packed breakfast to Hermione and Lin Yue in the back seat.

"Eat something to tide you over, but not too much. We'll have lunch soon after we get home."

Hermione and Lin Yue each took a portion and nodded in unison.

Lin Yue opened the bag, pulled out a slice of bread spread with jam, opened her mouth wide, and shoved it in. In the blink of an eye, the jam bread was gone.

Before Hermione could stop her, she watched Lin Yue practically "swallow" the bread whole.

Gently grabbing Lin Yue's wrist, Hermione looked at her helplessly. "Eat slowly, okay? There's no rush."

Lin Yue blinked mechanically and replied, "Okay."

With that, she took out another slice of jam bread and began eating slowly, bite by bite.

Seeing Lin Yue finally slow down, Hermione breathed a sigh of relief. She eagerly pulled a sandwich from the bag, brought it to her mouth, and took a big bite.

Mmm! Delicious! Hermione's eyes lit up. Not that her mom's sandwiches hadn't been good before, but...

The sandwiches Lin Yue made were a completely different style from the ones Mrs. Granger made, and Lin Yue's style was exceptionally delicious.

Because Mrs. Granger had warned them not to eat too much beforehand, Lin Yue stopped after two pieces of jam toast, and Hermione stopped after one sandwich.

Packing up the bag, Lin Yue was pulled back into Hermione's arms. She slowly closed her eyes and began simulating again in her mind—not potion-making this time, but herb cultivation. Believing she had successfully let Lin Yue rest by falling asleep during the ride, Hermione happily curled up the corners of her lips and silently decided to push Lin Yue to "sleep" as much as possible like this at Hogwarts.

The car slowly stopped in the Grangers' garage. Hermione, who had been holding Lin Yue, had unknowingly fallen asleep herself.

Mrs. Granger turned back and couldn't help but stifle a laugh, calling softly, "Lin Yue, Hermione, we're home."

Hearing her full name, Lin Yue instantly snapped out of the herb cultivation simulation in her mind, opening her eyes wide. Her clear, alert gaze made it obvious she hadn't actually been asleep.

Mrs. Granger was momentarily stunned. She couldn't sleep herself, yet she didn't refuse Hermione holding her to let her sleep?

Lin Yue was such a good child. If she still acted like this after learning emotions, wouldn't Hermione bully her?

At this point, Mrs. Granger had apparently forgotten that Hermione was her own daughter, and was instead worrying about whether Lin Yue would be bullied in the future.

Slowly turning her head, Lin Yue looked up at Hermione's still-sleeping face.

Carefully reaching out a hand, Lin Yue pushed Hermione as if touching a fragile piece of art.

"Hermione. Hermione. We're home. Wake up."

The utterly flat call sounded in Hermione's ear. It carried no emotion, but to Hermione, it was incredibly pleasant, making her want to open her eyes immediately and see the person before her.

Blearily opening her eyes, Hermione looked at Lin Yue, still a little blurry in her vision, and instinctively reached up to touch her cheek.

Only after fully waking did she yawn, take Lin Yue's hand, and get out of the car.

The four of them got out together. As soon as they entered the Grangers' house, Lin Yue's first action after changing her shoes was to look up at the clock she had already located the night before.

Eleven in the morning. Time to make lunch. Putting on her slippers, Lin Yue walked toward the kitchen without a pause.

It was so natural that Hermione and the Grangers were both frozen for two seconds.

Then the three of them snapped out of it and hurried toward the kitchen together.

In the kitchen, Lin Yue was already taking ingredients out of the fridge. At the same time, her brain was constantly calculating the ratios and nutritional balance of various foods.

Her parents had placed great importance on this before. They firmly believed that only by eating healthily could they be physically fit, so every time Lin Yue cooked, she would calculate the ratios in advance and make a reasonable combination.

When they ate, they would both try to eat slowly, making sure to get every kind of dish and every nutrient. Often, Lin Yue would finish her meal, and they would still be eating thirty minutes later.

Now that she thought about it, Uncle and Aunt and Hermione should probably pay attention to this too. It would be good for their health.

So Lin Yue's brain automatically began calculating the ingredient ratios according to habit.

Mrs. Granger watched Lin Yue's practiced movements and sighed, stepping forward to gently take the things from her hands.

"Lin Yue, you just had your checkup and gave blood. Why don't you go rest with Hermione for a while? I'll make lunch."

Lin Yue looked up at Mrs. Granger, her eyes vacant, and nodded. "Okay. Thank you, Auntie."

"Good child. Go on, go sit on the sofa with Hermione and watch some TV. Dinner will be ready soon." Mrs. Granger gently pinched Lin Yue's cheek and nodded to Hermione to take her away.

Hermione quickly stepped forward, took Lin Yue's arm, careful to avoid the needle mark from their blood draws, and led her to sit on the sofa. Mr. Granger stayed in the kitchen to help his wife.

Turning on the TV, Hermione aimlessly flipped through channels—stage plays, movies, cartoons... She really had no idea what to watch.

Turning to Lin Yue, Hermione decided to ask for her opinion. "Lin Yue, is there anything you want to watch?"

Lin Yue turned her head mechanically, her face completely expressionless as she looked at Hermione.

TV... She had basically never watched it. At home, it was usually her father and mother who watched. She never had time to relax and watch TV. She couldn't afford to slack off.

But... deep in her memory, she seemed to have watched some very old cartoon once, secretly in a shopping mall.

She was very young then, about eight years old. Her mother had taken her shopping, told her to go read books in the bookstore, and went to the clothing store herself.

On her way to the bookstore, she saw a shop with many TVs inside. One of them was playing a cartoon that looked very old, featuring two bears and a bald man.

That cartoon was completely different from the ones nowadays that simply teach children how to study and develop study habits.

That cartoon made her feel very... very what? Lin Yue's brain ached. Her powerful memory simply couldn't recall what she had felt at the time.

She only remembered that later, her mother caught her secretly watching the cartoon there. Her mother slapped her, then called and reported the shop.

The reason was that it was playing meaningless cartoons that affected children's learning.

After the call, she turned around and told her to get up from the floor herself, then took her home.

Looking up at Hermione, Lin Yue spoke in a flat tone. "I want to watch a cartoon."

Hermione nodded and changed the channel to one playing cartoons. On the TV, Thomas the Tank Engine was showing.

Putting down the remote, Hermione gently wrapped an arm around Lin Yue and watched the cartoon with her.

To be honest, she had started to find cartoons boring around the age of ten. Or maybe she had just watched enough of them.

But now, watching with Lin Yue... the cartoon seemed to have some interest again. She turned her head to look at Lin Yue beside her.

Her eyes were still vacant, her face still expressionless. But somehow, Hermione felt she saw a flash of light flicker deep in her eyes.