The Fox, the White Dove, and the Turtle

A pigeon cooed, warily watching the fluffy little fox in front of it.

The pigeon was pure white, without a single speck of dirt. Its eyes were dark and lively, and its claws were tender yellow, looking exceptionally clean. The little fox opposite it also had pure white fur, though its coat had some light blue markings.

At this moment, the little fox was rubbing its paws, wagging its big tail, and boldly reaching out to pet the white pigeon's head.

The white pigeon was the pet of a little girl in pink clothes. After her owner sat down, it had flown over from somewhere and landed on the girl's shoulder, cooing non-stop. The fox was Poseidon. Initially, after the journey, Poseidon had been a bit down, but upon seeing the new white bird nearby, it somehow perked up.

The pigeon spread its wings slightly, held its head high, and stared at the restless little fox, emitting a series of rapid, threatening coos from its throat. This white pigeon had not had its beak trimmed, so its mouth was very sharp, and its semi-transparent keratin layer showed an orange-yellow color in the sunlight.

The little fox carefully retracted its extended paw, glanced at Zheng Qing, whined a few times with a wronged expression, and then curled its tail up dejectedly.

Zheng Qing gave an awkward smile.

He still hadn't recovered from the shock of a moment ago.

Turning his head, he looked at the little girl again and finally couldn't help but ask, "Are you really going to study at First University? A freshman?"

The little girl pouted and didn't answer, much like the white pigeon on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry, I was just a bit startled." Feeling he had been a bit abrupt, Zheng Qing sincerely apologized. He took out a snack box from his grey bag, opened it, and offered it to the little girl, "Would you like something to eat?"

The box contained pine nuts, hazelnuts, figs, peas, peanuts, and other dried fruits. Zheng Qing had bought them at Huizi Market, all shelled and very convenient to eat.

Before the little girl could reply, the white pigeon on her shoulder had already hopped onto Zheng Qing's wrist. It stretched its neck, snatched a sunflower seed kernel, and swallowed it.

This time, it was the little girl's turn to feel embarrassed.

"My name is Li Meng, and I've been admitted to the Jiuyou Academy of First University. This is my admission letter." The little girl took out a hard-covered letter from her small backpack and showed it to Zheng Qing.

The letter had a triangular prism logo enclosed in a circle, which was the logo of First University.

"I'm also in Jiuyou Academy, Astronomy 08-1 class, Zheng Qing." He chuckled and stuffed the snack box into Li Meng's arms, praising her, "You're amazing! I thought the school only accepted students aged eighteen and above. I really didn't expect this."

"I'm also in Astronomy 08-1 class," Li Meng said excitedly, picking out a pecan and chewing it. "I fell asleep during evening study and was pulled into the First University examination hall. My interviewer told me that I'm basically the youngest candidate First University has had in nearly a hundred years!"

The little girl looked at Zheng Qing with a proud expression, as if expecting him to praise her.

"That's truly incredible!" Zheng Qing said with a smile, but he couldn't help but ask, "Why did they say 'basically the youngest candidate in nearly a hundred years'? Is there someone even younger?"

Li Meng pouted and shook her head, indicating she didn't know.

"Because there's another new student enrolling this year who is also twelve years old. He's the youngest entrant First University has had in nearly a hundred years," a boy with a bowl cut chimed in from the side.

"Twelve years old!" Zheng Qing was completely shocked. "Which academy is he in? Does the school allow such young students to enroll?"

"I'm also twelve years old!" Li Meng protested from the side. "Why is he considered the youngest?"

The round-faced boy with the bowl cut glanced at the dried fruit box in Li Meng's lap.

"Excuse me, I haven't introduced myself yet. What's your name?" Zheng Qing very politely took out another dried fruit box and offered it to the boy with the bowl cut. "Try this. These are dried goods stir-fried by Grandma Song at Huizi Market. They're delicious."

"Huizi Market?" The boy with the bowl cut looked closely at Zheng Qing and silently picked up a walnut, popping it into his mouth.

Beside them, the white pigeon and Poseidon were already rolling around together, nestled in Li Meng's arms, tamely waiting for the girl to pick out delicious dried fruits for them. Li Meng, meanwhile, was smiling as she stroked Poseidon's fluffy fur and occasionally scratched its big ears.

Zheng Qing glanced at the comfortable little rascal and pouted.

"Xiao Xiao, the Xiao from 'xiao sa' (bleak) and the Xiao from 'kai xin' (happy)," the boy with the bowl cut said, finishing the dried fruit in his hand and clapping his hands. He reopened the thick black-shelled notebook on the small fold-out table, flipping through it as he spoke rapidly. "I'm also a freshman at Jiuyou Academy. Or rather, all the freshmen in this cabin are from Jiuyou Academy."

"First University has two very young entrants this year, both twelve years old. One is a girl, the young lady next to us, and the other is a boy named Lin Guo, who is enrolled in Alpha Academy," Xiao Xiao said, glancing at Li Meng and adjusting his black-rimmed glasses. "As for why he ranks ahead of you, it's because Lin Guo was admitted without an exam. In fact, he could have enrolled at the age of ten, but the school delayed his admission due to his age."

"Don't call me a little girl, call me a university student!" Li Meng shouted indignantly.

Xiao Xiao didn't reply, only lowered his head and tugged at the hem of his pants.

Zheng Qing saw a palm-sized turtle with a faded yellow shell emerge from under Xiao Xiao's seat, biting his pant leg and stretching its neck, pulling hard.

Xiao Xiao sighed, picked up the turtle, and placed it on his lap, asking Zheng Qing for some pine nuts.

The turtle looked very old, its eyes cloudy, with white cataracts at the corners of its eyes. Its rough skin was covered in a multitude of fine wrinkles, and its faded yellow shell, as if from a violent impact, showed many cracks.

Poseidon seemed to have found a new toy, wriggling out of Li Meng's arms and jumping into Xiao Xiao's lap. It pressed its front paws firmly against the old turtle.

The old turtle ate the pine nuts one by one, slowly, completely ignoring the little creature bouncing on it. Only when Poseidon tried to bite its head did it flick its head, showing a hint of annoyance.

"Poseidon, come back!" Zheng Qing felt a bit embarrassed. He leaned forward, grabbed the struggling little fox, and brought it back into his arms, gently pinching its cheek. "Behave!"

Poseidon whimpered, its large tail swishing around, stubbornly refusing to cooperate.

"Poseidon! What a powerful name." Li Meng was grooming her white pigeon's feathers and looked up enviously. "Unlike my Xiao Bai, I named it too simply at first, and now I can't change it."

Zheng Qing's mouth twitched as he looked at the white pigeon, which was holding its head high and chest puffed out, looking incredibly proud.

It seemed very pleased with its name.