Chapter 13: An Extraordinary Sister
"What is this 2000 RMB job about?"
Xia Zhi was taken aback. He had no idea why his sister would suddenly be curious about a project that he was going to reject but he explained it patiently, "It’s to code a mini game. I’ve done something like this before but it took me four days. My senior wanted this done in two days so I’m sure I can’t finish it on time."
"Let me take a look at it..." Xinghe sat up in her bed. Xia Zhi quickly put away his laptop to stop her, adding, "Sis, please sit still, you’re going to pull out the IV."
"You worry too much. Let me see what kind of mini-game you’re making," Xinghe smiled.
Xia Zhi was an only son, so after his father took in Xinghe, she became the big sister that he always wanted but never had.
Maybe it was the power elder siblings hold over their younger counterparts but for some reason, Xia Zhi was always ready to entertain Xinghe’s requests.
Xinghe had never once coerced her brother into doing things with either words or force, but Xia Zhi had an unnatural obeisance towards his sister.
He intuited that there was something extraordinary and impressive about his sister even though he couldn’t exactly put his fingers on it. The last six years they spent together hadn’t cleared up the mystery either...
"This is it," Xia Zhi said as he turned the laptop screen around, "But Sis, why would you want to look at this?"
Xinghe moved the cursor around and clicked on a few buttons. She realized it really was a simple mini-game.
"Can you lend me your laptop for one hour?" she asked.
Xia Zhi assumed she want to play the game because she was bored.
"Sis, you should take this chance to rest. If you’re really that bored, why not sleep? Playing video games is not good for your recovery..."
"I’ll return it to you in an hour. I saw some books in your bag, that’ll keep you entertained in the meantime," Xinghe said in a tone that brooked no argument. Xia Zhi obediently complied.
As mentioned above, he rarely resisted his sister’s demands.
Above all else, he would feel inscrutably happy every time he managed to fulfill his sister’s demand...
Xia Zhi took out a programming text book and advised worriedly, "I’ll only let you play for one hour, okay? If you don’t return my laptop then, I won’t let you play with it next time."
Xinghe ignored him.
She stared at the screen as her fingers slowly warmed to the sensations that she was once familiar with.
Xinghe’s thoughts wavered as she stared at the codes that appeared on screen.
It had been years since she worked with these 0’s and 1’s.
She had forgotten the knowledge that was once imprinted in her mind.
There was still a barrier that stood between her and these piles of codes even though she should have recovered her memory.
It felt surreal even after she finished writing a line of code. She couldn’t help but wonder if the code she wrote were nothing more than a line of nonsense.
However, her fingers continued working as if they were moving on their own, surviving on motor memory that was seared into her brain. Things became clearer as more completed code began to appear on screen.
Her confidence grew as time went on until her fingers were dancing swiftly over the keyboard. Xinghe was lost in the moment.
Xia Zhi was curious what his sister was doing.
He pulled his body forward and peered at his laptop screen. When he saw the lines of codes that kept appearing on screen, he almost fell to the floor in shock.
How could this be‽
Since when did his sister learn to code and not only that, how was she so damn good at it‽
Xia Zhi rubbed his eyes and examined it closer to make sure she wasn’t typing random numbers.
He wasn’t imagining things, she was really writing that mini-game that he intended to reject.
She didn’t stop to think, refer to books, or even check for mistakes. She just kept on writing with a speed that he could barely keep up with.