What Are You So Proud Of?

When Xia Tianhuo arrived at Jianzhou City Airport, Xiang Kun and Lao Xia had already picked him up.

Moreover, it wasn't just Xiang Kun and Lao Xia; Tang Baona and Yang Zhen'er were also there.

To be honest, he hadn't seen Tang Baona for a long time. He did like Tang Baona a lot back then, but as Lao Xia said, he hadn't actually met Tang Baona many times and didn't know her well. What he liked was more of a personality and image that he had imagined based on Tang Baona's appearance.

Before going abroad last year, he had already let go and become more open-minded. His life-or-death experience in Myanmar brought about a subtle change in his understanding of himself and the world, which is commonly known as "refreshing his worldview" - only not a major refresh, but a small upgrade, with many new perspectives he had never had before.

So now, he can face Tang Baona calmly and greet her normally.

His attention, however, was more focused on Xiang Kun and the guests that Xiang Kun and his group had come to pick up at the airport.

Before leaving the country before the Lunar New Year, he had staked out the neighborhood where Xiang Kun lived and met Xiang Kun once.

To be honest, Xiang Kun gave him a pretty good first impression. He wasn't the kind of lazy pretty boy, weak scholar, or playboy. Although he wore glasses, his bald head and strong physique made him look quite tough and steady.

Even though he was shorter than him, when they were face to face, he still felt a sense of pressure from Xiang Kun.

This gave Xia Tianhuo a strange sense of relief, thinking, "Nana's taste isn't so bad after all."

Of course, when he learned that Xiang Kun could actually hang out with Lao Xia often, his impression of Xiang Kun naturally improved.

Seeing Xiang Kun again after several months, although there was no change in appearance or physique, the overall feeling was somewhat different. Perhaps it was because Lao Xia was there, but intuitively he felt that the pressure from Xiang Kun was less.

Moreover, a few months ago, Xiang Kun gave people the impression of being quiet yet astute, always keeping an eye on everything around him. But now he is very different, as if he has suddenly become much more "Buddhist" and reserved—of course, he was not flamboyant before either.

In short, Xiang Kun seemed to have undergone an inexplicable change, which made him feel strange.

Of course, since they had only met once before, he wasn't really sure if his feelings were purely due to psychological changes brought about by his experience in Myanmar.

However, Xia Tianhuo Xiang Kun and his group had picked up.

When he arrived at the airport and saw Tang Baona and Yang Zhen'er, he initially thought that Xiang Kun and Lao Xia were there to pick them up. However, after getting closer to their MPV and seeing the people standing next to the car, he Xiang Kun that Xiang Kun and Lao Xia had come to pick up someone else. Tang Baona and Yang Zhen'er had also come all the way from Tongshi Town to pick someone up.

They came to pick them up; it was a father and daughter, or more precisely, a canary.

Xia Tianhuo was genuinely surprised; it was the first time he had ever seen someone out for a stroll with a pet bird.

When he got into the car, the middle-aged man sitting in the passenger seat, whom Xiang Kun and the others called "Professor Li," started talking about birds:

"To ensure 'Gold Glitter' could board the plane, I took it to get its quarantine certificate the day before yesterday. But I was still a little worried, afraid that 'Gold Glitter' might get frightened or something, being alone in the checked baggage compartment. However, 'Little Apple' trusted 'Gold Glitter' quite a bit and was very confident that it could survive the several-hour journey. I know how much 'Little Apple' cares for 'Gold Glitter,' so if she said so, then it should be fine. Sure enough, after we settled down, got our luggage, and picked up 'Gold Glitter,' the little guy looked lively and energetic in its cage, without any problems. I was really worried that if 'Gold Glitter' had any stress reaction, it would be hard to explain to you, Mr. Xiang. Sigh, if 'Little Apple' hadn't insisted on bringing it with me to Tongshi Town, I would have preferred to leave it at home and have someone take care of it for a few days."

Xiang Kun came to pick up people this time in a seven-seater MPV. "Professor Li" sat in the front passenger seat, and the two seats in the back were Lao Xia and Xia Tianhuo. In the third row, Tang Baona and Yang Zhen'er were sandwiched between a pretty girl called "Little Apple".

The canary named "Gold Glitter" and its cage were placed on the middle floor of the second row.

Xia Tianhuo looked down at the canary and noticed that the canary in the cage was also tilting its head and sizing him up. But after only one glance, it turned its head away, puffed out its chest, and hopped to the side of the cage closest to Lao Xia, seemingly somewhat disgusted.

This surprised Xia Tianhuo. The canary had actually made such a human-like gesture, and he actually had a clear feeling of being disliked and looked down upon.

Something's not right with this bird!

Besides, you're just a bird, a caged bird at that, what's so great about you?

After the car started moving, through the conversation between the three girls in the back seat, Xia Tianhuo learned something that shocked him greatly—the girl "Little Apple" sitting between Tang Baona and Yang Zhen'er was actually blind!

When Xia Tianhuo arrived at the airport to meet them, "Little Apple" and her father had not yet gotten into the car.

This girl, who looked to be about seventeen or eighteen years old, wasn't wearing sunglasses. She had big, beautiful eyes with a lively gaze, and you couldn't tell at all that she was blind.

More importantly, when he approached, "Little Apple" naturally looked at his location, her gaze precisely fixed on him.

Later, when she got on the bus, she could do it easily on her own, and there was no sign of any vision problem. But now, judging from the conversation between Tang Baona and the others, it seems that she has been blind since birth, and completely blind at that?

Unable to contain his curiosity, Xia Tianhuo turned to look at "Little Apple," but before he could ask a question, his eyes met "Little Apple's."

Then, surprisingly, the "blind girl" spoke first, "Uncle Xia, aren't you curious about how I just 'saw' you?"

"Ah... ah? Yes, yes." Xia Tianhuo was startled. This child seemed to be able to read minds, "I heard Zhen'er say that you can't see, but when I came over just now, you definitely 'saw' me? And when you got into the car, you were very natural and didn't need much help."

"Little Apple" laughed and said, "Because although I can't see, my ears are very sharp. I heard your footsteps coming towards us, and Zhen'er called you, so I 'looked at you.' Just now, I also heard the sound of your chair and knew you were turning around, so I guessed that you probably heard Zhen'er and Sister Nana say that I can't see and have a question to ask."

Yang Zhen'er couldn't help but laugh, "Big Guy, you're so big! Every time you move, the chair screams!"

Xia Tianhuo flicked his cousin's forehead, causing her to let out a pained scream.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Li Yang turned around and smiled, "Since learning Mr. Xiang's 'Object-Sensing' training method and having 'Gold Glitter' by her side, 'Little Apple' has really been training herself to the point where she can use her 'ears' instead of her 'eyes' these past few months. During walks in the neighborhood, I can walk beside her without a cane, completely on her own. She can tell where people are walking and what's there just by hearing. At home, it goes without saying that she moves around much more freely than I do most of the time. But for now, it's still only in familiar areas. I don't feel comfortable leaving the neighborhood outside if the terrain is complicated."

"To be honest, when Mr. Xiang first told us about this 'Object-Sensing' training method, I didn't take it seriously. But I didn't expect it to be so effective on 'Little Apple'. Later, I looked up a lot of related information, literature, and papers, but I still couldn't figure out what the principle was."

"I've also talked to some of my old classmates from medical school. Although they offered some guesses, they were mostly psychological, suggesting it was a form of self-suggestion and the stimulation of potential. But I always felt it was more than just a psychological influence."

Xiang Kun was driving, laughed and said, "It's mainly because 'Little Apple' herself has very strong hearing, so the effect is very obvious. You see, I also practice, but my effect is very limited."

"Yeah! Nana and I practiced it too, and it was basically ineffective for us!" Yang Zhen'er added.

After getting to know "Little Apple," they also learned that under Xiang Kun's guidance, "Little Apple" was practicing a meditation-like "Object-Sensing" exercise. Through this exercise, she further enhanced and developed her already strong hearing, which she used to make various judgments.

Of course, Xiang Kun had explained the specifics regarding "Emotion-Infused Object," "Super-Linked Object," and other things from another world that appeared in dreams and perceptions, as well as the connections established with "Gold Glitter," which "Little Apple" naturally wouldn't reveal to anyone.

Having received the answer, Xia Tianhuo turned around, but some questions still lingered in his mind.

"Little Apple's" answer still doesn't explain some things. For example, even if "Little Apple" could tell from the sound of the chair that he turned around, how could she be sure he was going to ask her that question? Normally, it's also very likely he was talking to his cousin Yang Zhen'er or Tang Baona, right?

And... why does "Little Apple" call him "Uncle"? He's clearly of the same generation as Lao Xia and Yang Zhen'er! He calls them "Sister Bing" and "Zhen'er"!

Just as Xia Tianhuo was wondering how he had inexplicably grown a generation older, Yang Zhen'er sat up slightly, leaned on the back of the chair in front of her, and whispered to him, "Big Guy, you seem to have changed a lot."

Xia Tianhuo sighed and pressed Yang Zhen'er's head back into her seat, saying irritably, "Yang the Third, just say what you want to say! The car is only so big, everyone can hear you if you're talking so furtively!"

"Hey! I'm just trying to be considerate of your feelings, okay? So I'll just ask directly, what happened when you were kidnapped... didn't it cause you any psychological trauma or scars?" Yang Zhen'er asked.

"Yes, I have!"

"Huh?" Yang Zhen'er was taken aback. Although she often complained about her big, silly cousin, they actually had a good relationship. However, she didn't want the "Big Guy" to get hurt at all.

"I'm no longer addicted to cigarettes. I don't want to smoke at all, and I don't even feel any urge when I smell smoke. When I got off the ship, I asked a policeman in Myanmar for a cigarette, took a puff, and felt that I had no taste at all. That's when I suddenly quit smoking," Xia Tianhuo said.

This was indeed a very strange "side effect" he received after the kidnapping case ended.

Yang Zhen'er breathed a sigh of relief and nodded, "No wonder you look fatter."

"Same to you."

"I didn't!" Yang Zhen'er glared at her cousin fiercely, but unusually, she didn't dwell on the topic. Instead, she immediately continued, "By the way, if you haven't suffered any psychological trauma, tell us how you escaped from the kidnappers? I heard that one of the kidnappers on the ship suddenly had a change of heart, killed the other kidnappers, and rescued you? Could it be that the kidnapper wanted to be lenient and take all the credit, while actually, there were other heroes who rescued you, but they just 'done their job and left'?"

Xia Tianhuo was initially speechless, but upon hearing the last sentence, he couldn't help but burst out laughing, "Leave without a trace after the deed is done? Yang the Third, have you been watching too many martial arts movies? Besides, this is at sea. Where would you float if you left without a trace after the deed is done? Do you think you can stir up the waves with your bare hands?"

"Could you tell us what happened? There were other people around when I called earlier, so I didn't want to be too nosy. But now that you've come all this way to relax, why not satisfy our curiosity?" Yang Zhen'er said.

"What do you mean by 'we'? You mean it's just you!" Xia Tianhuo said.

"Hey! Just tell me! I'm just killing time anyway, and I don't have any gossip to hear, but I get carsick very easily. If I do, I might throw up. You're sitting in front of me, have you thought this through...?"

"Yang the Third, you... alright, I'll just give you a brief explanation."

"Tell me first why you called Lao Xia instead of my aunt and uncle to ask for the ransom? Did you really think Lao Xia could save you? Didn't you know she was in some remote mountain village in Haixi Province at the time?" Yang Zhen'er immediately asked excitedly.

Xia Tianhuo subconsciously glanced at Lao Xia, who was also sitting in the second row. The latter was looking down at his phone, seemingly uninterested in these topics.

"Because I know that the kidnappers weren't originally going to abduct me. Their original target might have died in an accident, and I was just 'incidentally' kidnapped. Using me to extort money was just a last-minute plan. From some of the things the kidnappers said and their attitude, I guessed that they were probably a group of desperate criminals with murder on their hands. Whether or not they got the ransom, the possibility of killing me was very high. So I wanted to use the ransom call to subtly convey as much information as I knew. I thought that only Lao Xia would understand my hints..."

Xia Tianhuo's main purpose in coming to Haixi Province this time was to seek help and answers from Lao Xia, so he simply followed Yang Zhen'er's question and began to recount his kidnapping and escape in Myanmar.