Advice

Early the next morning, Peggy's parents drove Link and Peggy to the Natural Science Museum. On the way, Linda said to Link, "I'm very glad you could come along."

"Peggy mentioned it to me yesterday. I'm also very interested in this lecture."

"That's good. I'm glad you share Peggy's interests. How are you finding your new school?"

"Very well. The teachers there are quite good, and the students are, well, rather intelligent, so it's easier for me to find common ground with them. Actually, I think Peggy might be able to attend that school too."

"That's a good suggestion, but Dallas is a little far away, and Peggy is still rather young. I'm not sure whether she could adapt to boarding school life."

When they arrived at the museum's lecture hall, Link immediately spotted a familiar figure in the front row. It was Sheldon.

Peggy recognized him just as quickly and said at once, "That should be Sheldon. Let's go say hello."

Peggy walked over to Sheldon and said, "Sheldon, it's been a long time. I'm glad to see you. Are you happy to see me?"

"Not that happy, but I am very happy to see Link again. Link, how do you know Peggy?"

"I told you about her before. She's my neighbor. We often discuss things together. Of course, most of the time, she talks and I listen."

"Oh, I can imagine."

The two sat down beside Sheldon. Peggy leaned close to Link's ear and whispered, "He's still the same. When I went to his house that day, I beat him at chess, and he got so angry that he flipped the whole board over."

"Really? To be honest, I've never seen him lose at chess before. It must have been interesting."

"It really was. You should have been there."

Although Link had seen it on television in his previous life, he still wanted to see Sheldon make that expression in person. Missing it really was a little regrettable.

But Sheldon clearly did not enjoy hearing this. "Excuse me, but I can hear what you're saying."

"Fine!" Link gave Peggy a look, and neither of them continued the topic. Then Link said to Peggy, "Peggy, can you wait here for a moment? I have something to do."

"What is it? The lecture is about to start."

"Don't worry, I'll be right back."

When he reached the entrance to the lecture hall, Link saw Linda waiting there. He immediately went up to her and said, "Thank you for waiting here, Aunt Linda."

"It's nothing. So what was it you wanted to talk about when you asked me to wait here?"

"Um... can we talk while we walk?"

"Of course."

There were not many people in the museum. Once they reached an exhibit hall with no one nearby, Link said, "Actually, Peggy told me yesterday that you and Mr. Barry seem to have some conflicts, and that many of them involve her."

"Oh, Link, thank you for your concern, but you know this is a private matter between Barry and me."

"I know this is a little presumptuous. Matters of the heart aren't something an outsider like me should interfere with. After all, I'm not involved.

"But what I want to say is that every time you argue, it hurts Peggy, especially when she thinks she caused the conflict."

"You're right. I know that, and I'm sad about it too. But child, sometimes things aren't as simple as you think..."

"I understand. I know you and Mr. Barry have many things to work through, so I think you could consider the suggestion I made this morning."

"What suggestion?"

"Send Peggy to Wilmott Academy for Gifted Children. This school is very suitable for smart children like Peggy. She would learn more here and meet outstanding friends.

"And I heard Mr. Barry say before that he also wanted to relive those happy times with you. It's just that you're too concerned about Peggy.

"So if Peggy came to Wilmott Academy for Gifted Children, then while she was at school, perhaps the two of you would have time to try repairing your relationship."

"All right, perhaps I'll consider it."

"Thank you, Aunt Linda. Then I'll head back first. Peggy is still waiting over there."

"All right, Link. No matter what, thank you for your concern."

"As long as you don't think I'm meddling."

"Of course not."

Link did not say anything more. In truth, he knew this was all he could do. As for whether what he said would help save Linda and Barry's marriage, Link was not very optimistic. From Linda's attitude just now, he could tell that she had not taken his words to heart.

In Link's view, sending Peggy to Wilmott Academy for Gifted Children so she would no longer have to watch her parents argue over her every day was definitely a good idea, but it was not something he could decide.

Whether Linda followed Link's advice or not, life had to go on. Before he knew it, two months had passed at his new school, and summer vacation had arrived.

Summer vacations in the United States were usually very long. Many schools liked to organize activities for students during the break. This summer, the Symphony Orchestra Link had recently joined had a half-month camping event.

Texas had a thriving agricultural industry, so the camp was held on a sizable ranch. And it was not just students from Wilmott Academy for Gifted Children; members of Symphony Orchestras from four other nearby private schools would also attend.

Naturally, this camp was not simply for the students to have fun. Its true purpose was for the students from the Symphony Orchestras of all five schools to compete.

There would even be professors from music colleges at the final competition to assess graduating Symphony Orchestra members who aspired to attend music college.

Of course, Link was only a newcomer. He had never touched any instrument before. It was only recently, at the recommendation of his new classmate Iris, that he had begun learning the violin, and at Iris's recommendation, he had joined the Symphony Orchestra as a new member.

This was also Link's first time participating in such an event. On the bus to their destination, Iris, who sat beside him, said,

"It seems I was right to recommend that you learn the violin. In just two months, you've already mastered the basics."

With his exceptional control over his body, his learning ability, and his willingness to put in the work, learning the basics of the violin had not been too difficult for Link.

The main reason Link had become interested in music was that it could increase his Charm and Perception attributes. Perception in particular had not seemed to have any good ways to improve before. Learning music could raise his perception, giving him sharper five senses than before, so Link had taken it quite seriously.

"Thanks, but speaking of music, I know a friend whose sensitivity to sound is extraordinarily high. You could say he has absolute pitch."

"Is that the neighbor girl Peggy you mentioned before?"

"No. Peggy's intelligence is far beyond ordinary people's, but her sense of pitch is still within the normal range. I'm talking about a friend I met at my previous high school, Sheldon.

"He's also a super genius. He's only ten this year, but he started high school last year. His sensitivity to sound far surpasses that of ordinary people. Even if you spoke softly through a door, he could hear you clearly.

"Once, their refrigerator developed a small problem that caused an unusual noise. You know, the kind of noise that an ordinary person could only barely notice by listening carefully beside the refrigerator.

"But he could hear it even while sleeping in his room, and it kept him awake. In the end, he found a book and took their refrigerator completely apart, piece by piece, until he found the component making the noise."

"Really? That is quite surprising. Does he play any instruments?"

"Actually, no."

"Why not? He has such a great talent."

"Because he wants to become a scientist more. And I remember that after the music teacher at his school discovered he had such talent, the teacher said he should become a musician. But he refused outright, on the grounds that most musicians become addicted to laundry detergent."

"That sounds so strange."

"He really is a strange kid. He actually came with me for the school interview, and he passed it too. But after staying at Principal Flora's house for only one day, he couldn't adapt and his parents took him back."

"Oh, he's only ten. It's perfectly normal that he can't be away from his parents."

"Actually, it was because there was a ceiling fan in the room. He kept worrying it would fall and slice off his head."

"...That really is strange enough."

"All right, let's talk about something else. I heard you wrote a song?"

"Yes, I originally wanted to perform it at that party..."

"I'm really sorry. I truly had something important to deal with that day."

"I know."

"I wonder if I'll have a chance to hear it later. Otherwise, I'll feel like I missed out on a fortune."

"Haha, all right. But it's only a song."

"No, I've been looking forward to hearing you perform..."