A pigeon cooed, warily watching the fluffy little fox in front of it.
The pigeon was pure white, without a single speck of Noise; its eyes were dark and lively, and its claws were tender yellow, looking exceptionally clean. The little fox opposite it also had white fur, but there were some light blue patterns on its coat.
At this moment, the little fox was rubbing its paws, shaking its big tail, and casually reaching out to touch the white pigeon's head.
The white pigeon was the pet of the Little girl in the pink dress. After its owner was seated, it flew over from somewhere, stood on the Little girl’s shoulder, and cooed incessantly. The fox was Poseidon. Originally, Poseidon had been a bit listless due to the long journey, but after seeing the new white bird next to it, it somehow regained its spirits.
The pigeon slightly spread its wings, held its head high, stared at the restless little fox in front of it, and let out a rapid, threatening coo from its throat. This white pigeon had not had its beak trimmed, so its mouthpart was very sharp, and its translucent keratin layer showed an orange-yellow color in the sunlight.
The little fox carefully retracted its extended paw, glanced at Zheng Qing, whimpered a few times, re-coiled its tail, and became listless again.
Zheng Qing smiled awkwardly.
He had not yet recovered from the shock he had just experienced.
Turning his head, he looked at the Little girl again, and finally couldn't help but ask, “Are you really going to First University for school? A freshman?”
The Little girl puffed out her cheeks, did not answer, looking very much like the white pigeon on her shoulder.
“I'm sorry, I was just a bit startled.” Feeling that he had been a little abrupt, Zheng Qing apologized honestly, took out a snack box from his gray bag, opened it, and handed it to the Little girl: “Want some tasty treats?”
The box contained dried fruits such as pine nuts, hazelnuts, figs, peas, and peanuts. These were some roasted goods Zheng Qing had bought at Hui Zi Market, all shelled and very convenient to eat.
Before the Little girl could reply, the white pigeon on her shoulder had already actively hopped onto Zheng Qing's wrist, stretched its neck, picked up a sunflower seed, and swallowed it with its head tilted back.
This time, it was the Little girl’s turn to be embarrassed.
“My name is Li Meng, and I was admitted to Nine Provinces College of First University. This is my admission notice.” The Little girl took out a hard-cover notice from her small backpack and showed it to Zheng Qing.
The notice had a triangular prism symbol enclosed in a circle, which is the symbol of First University.
“I’m also from Nine Provinces College, Astronomy 08-1 Class, Zheng Qing.” He chuckled as he put the snack box into Li Meng’s arms, praising, “You are amazing! I thought the University only recruited students aged eighteen and above, I really didn't expect this.”
“I’m also in Astronomy 08-1 Class.” Li Meng picked a pecan, and while chewing, said excitedly, “I fell asleep during evening self-study and was pulled into the First University examination hall. My interviewer told me that I’m basically the youngest candidate at First University in the last hundred years!”
The Little girl looked at Zheng Qing with a proud expression, as if saying, 'Come and praise me.'
“That’s truly amazing!” Zheng Qing said with a smile, full of admiration, but couldn't help but ask, “Why do you say ‘basically the youngest candidate in the last hundred years’? Is there someone even younger than you?”
Li Meng pouted, shook her head, indicating she didn't know.
“Because there’s another twelve-year-old freshman who entered the University at the same time this year, and he is the youngest entrant to First University in the last hundred years.” Next to them, the boy with the bowl cut joined their conversation.
“Twelve years old!” Zheng Qing was completely shocked: “Which college is he from! Does the University allow students that young 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 arms.
“Excuse me, I haven't introduced myself yet, what should I call you?” Zheng Qing very politely took out another dried fruit box and handed it to the boy with the bowl cut: “You try this, these are dried goods fried by Grandma Song’s family at Hui Zi Market, they’re very delicious.”
“Hui Zi Market?” The boy with the bowl cut looked carefully at Zheng Qing, then quietly picked up a walnut and put it into his mouth.
Next to them, the white pigeon and Poseidon were already rolling together, both snuggled in Li Meng’s arms, docilely waiting for the Little girl to choose delicious dried fruits for them. Li Meng, meanwhile, was smiling as she ruffled Poseidon’s fluffy fur, occasionally scratching its big ears.
Zheng Qing glanced at the comfortable little rascal and pursed his lips.
“Xiao Xiao, Xiao as in 'desolate,' Xiao as in 'happy.'” The boy with the bowl cut finished the dried fruit in his hand, clapped his hands, and reopened the heavy black-shelled notebook on the small table. He quickly spoke while flipping through it: “I’m also a freshman at Nine Provinces College. Or rather, all the freshmen in this cabin are from Nine Provinces College.”
“This year, First University has two very young entrants, both twelve years old. One is a female, which is this Little girl beside us, and the other is a male named Lin Guo, who enrolled in Alpha Academy.” Xiao Xiao looked at Li Meng and adjusted his black-rimmed glasses: “As for why he ranks before you, it’s because Lin Guo was admitted without an exam. In fact, he could have entered the University when he was ten, but the University delayed his enrollment due to his age.”
“Don’t call me Little girl, call me University student!” Li Meng protested indignantly.
Xiao Xiao didn't reply, he just lowered his head and tugged at his pant leg.
Zheng Qing saw a palm-sized turtle with a withered yellow shell crawl out from under Xiao Xiao’s seat, biting his pant leg, stretching its neck, and pulling hard.
Xiao Xiao sighed, picked up the turtle, placed it on his lap, and asked Zheng Qing for some pine nuts.
This turtle looked very old, its eyes were cloudy, with white cataracts at the corners, its rough skin was covered in many small wrinkles, and its withered yellow shell seemed to have suffered a violent impact, showing many cracks.
Poseidon seemed to have found a new toy, struggled free from Li Meng’s arms, jumped onto Xiao Xiao’s lap, raised its two front paws, and pressed down hard on the old turtle.
The old turtle ate one pine nut at a time, slowly, completely ignoring the small creature bouncing on its back. Only when Poseidon tried to bite its head did it shake its head, showing a hint of impatience.
“Poseidon, come back!” Zheng Qing felt a bit embarrassed, leaned forward, grabbed the struggling little fox back into his arms, and gently pinched its cheek: “Behave yourself!”
Poseidon whimpered, its big tail flailing everywhere, adamantly uncooperative.
“Poseidon! What a powerful name.” Li Meng groomed her white pigeon’s feathers, then looked up enviously: “Unlike my Little White, the name was too simple at first, and now I can’t change it.”
Zheng Qing’s mouth twitched as he looked at the white pigeon, which was puffing out its chest with a proud expression.
It was very satisfied with its name.