hotmtlnovel Chapter 699 The Most Powerful Brain
Chapter 699 The Most Powerful Brain
By the way, have you all forgotten about those two little guys, Stellan and Inara?
Inara was alright; that girl was beautifully sculpted, with big eyes like beautiful sapphires, clever and endearing. Miss Truth liked her from the very first moment she saw her.
On ordinary days, I would hold her little hand and take her to the flower shop on the corner of the street to watch the butterflies flutter around the roses, or to the square to watch the performers perform tricks. Occasionally, I would take her to a dessert shop to buy a strawberry ice cream. Watching the little girl with sweetness on her lips, Miss Truth's eyes would almost overflow with smiles.
What about Kestron? That kid seems to have vanished into thin air lately; very few people can see him outside of the library.
"........."
When Stellan's whereabouts were mentioned, those in the know couldn't help but exchange knowing smiles; it was quite an interesting story.
Well, Mr. Deduction actually likes the current way of getting along from the bottom of his heart.
Every morning, all he had to do was carry a canvas bag with two unfinished books inside, and then hold Strand's little hand as they walked to the library, and the boy would be perfectly well-behaved.
Upon arriving at the library, they found a window seat. Mr. Detective opened his detective novel, while Stellan quietly read his own book. Sunlight streamed through the glass window, bathing them both in a tranquil atmosphere.
Occasionally, when Mr. Detective flips through a book too vigorously, he would subconsciously glance at Strand, afraid of disturbing him. But he would always catch the boy looking up, glancing at him with his clear eyes, and then quickly looking down again, looking just like a little squirrel stealing candy, which made Mr. Detective chuckle to himself.
Mr. Deduction felt extremely content to spend the whole day peacefully like this—this kid truly loved reading to his core.
.................................................. ........................
At first, Mr. Detective was quite pleased with Strand's quiet demeanor.
Come to think of it, most children this age like to hold brightly colored picture books, point at the little animals on them, and ask all sorts of questions. The fact that Strand can sit quietly and read a book is already a testament to his good behavior and understanding.
He was even thinking to himself that once the boy finished his current picture books, he should go to the bookstore and pick out a few more interesting ones, along with some picture books with simple text, to gradually guide him in recognizing words. Once, when passing by the children's book section, he even picked up a "Fox Encyclopedia," turned to the page with the little fox, thinking of bringing it to Stellan next time. But to his surprise, when he turned around, he saw the boy holding a thick book, squatting next to the adult bookshelf, engrossed in reading it.
Until one day, Mr. Reasoning got a little tired of reading, rubbed his eyes, and subconsciously glanced at Strand—that one glance made him swallow back the yawn that was about to come out.
What was spread out in front of Strand was not a picture book at all, but a thick law book! The cover was a dark brown hardcover with worn edges, and the inside was filled with dense black text, without a single illustration or even a decorative pattern.
Strand sat upright, his small body ramrod straight, holding the book in both hands, his head slightly lowered, his brow furrowed like a little adult, his eyes intently fixed on the pages, occasionally pointing to each word as he read. When he reached a crucial passage, he would pause, resting his chin on his hand, his brow furrowing even more deeply, as if pondering a complex legal provision.
Mr. Deduction couldn't help but tiptoe over and sit down beside him, trying to make his voice sound casual: "Stellan, you seem so engrossed in what story you're reading?"
Stran looked up, his eyes still showing a hint of seriousness from the book, and pointed to a passage on the page, asking, "Sir, what does 'self-defense' mean? If someone bullies Inara and I protect her, is that illegal?"
In that instant, Mr. Deduction's mind went blank for a moment, and he realized that he had been thinking too simply.
These two children are quite different. One seems innocent and carefree, pampered like a little sun by Miss Truth, yet always manages to say something surprising. The other seems quiet and reserved, preferring to bury himself in books, but he happens to choose the most dry and difficult law books and even ponders such serious questions.
Mr. Reasoning couldn't help but shake his head, but a barely perceptible smile appeared on his lips as he reached out and ruffled Stellan's hair: "It's not illegal, and you did the right thing. But this is a complicated issue, and I'll explain it to you slowly when you're older."
Strand nodded as if he understood, then lowered his head to continue reading. This time, however, he moved closer to Mr. Detective, his small shoulder touching the other's arm, as if seeking a silent approval.
Mr. Deduction looked at the earnest little guy beside him and thought to himself: Well, neither of these two kids is easy to deal with. The days ahead are probably going to be anything but boring.
.................................................. ........................
As it turns out, Mr. Reasoning was wrong. This is far more than just avoiding boredom—it's practically like finding a "human database of laws" as a sidekick.
That afternoon, the sunlight in the library was still slowly shining down. Mr. Detective was just about to talk to Stellan about a case from the law book he had just read when he saw the little guy close the book, look up at him, and have a confident look in his eyes that seemed to say, "Want to test me?"
Mr. Reasoning didn't take it seriously at first, casually mentioning a few basic legal provisions, thinking that it would be good enough if the child could remember them.
Kestron spoke fluently, without missing a single punctuation mark in the text, each word as clear as if he were reciting a memorized text.
Mr. Deduction paused, the ash nearly falling onto the pages of his book. He stubbed it out in the ashtray, his voice rising slightly: "You memorized it all? You're telling me you read this thick law book once and memorized every single legal provision?!" Σ(?д?lll)
He preferred to believe that Strand was talking nonsense, that it was just a childish act of bravado, rather than believe the absurd facts before him—after all, when he himself was studying law, he had stayed up several nights in a row to memorize only 30% of it.
Strand simply pushed the thick law book in front of him, propped his small hands on the table, and said earnestly, "Sir, please ask anything."
Mr. Reasoning got excited and started asking increasingly tricky questions, from the simple "distinction between intentional crime and negligent crime" to the complex "calculation of the statute of limitations for civil litigation," even turning to the most obscure chapter on administrative law in the book.
But Strand remained unfazed, answering questions about the specific provisions and applicable scenarios flawlessly. Even when Strand deliberately mispronounced a particular article number, he immediately pointed it out: "Sir, you just said Article 37, not Article 38."
Mr. Deduction broke out in a sweat, completely giving up. He flipped to page 182, stared at one line for a long time, and gritted his teeth before asking, "Then tell me, what's the seventh character in the fifth line of page 182?" (*｀へ′*)
He felt a little cheated as soon as he asked the question—this kind of detail wasn't meant to test memory; it was just deliberately difficult.
Without even thinking, Kestron replied, "That line only has seven words, unless you mean a period."
Mr. Reasoning looked down and saw on page 182, line 5, the words “This law provides otherwise”, exactly seven characters, followed by a period.
He stared at the pages for a full half minute before slowly raising his head to look at the calm-faced Stellan before him, with only one thought in his mind: This isn't a child; he's a born memory monster.
When Stellan saw that he didn't speak, he thought he had answered wrong, so he tilted his head and leaned closer: "Sir, did I say something wrong?"
Mr. Deduction rubbed his temples, then couldn't help but laugh, reaching out to pat him on the shoulder: "You're right, all correct. Alright, from now on you'll be my 'personal legal advisor'."
Strand's eyes lit up, and he picked up the book again, whispering, "Then I'll read it again, just in case I forget."
As Mr. Deduction watched his son's back as he buried himself in his book, he suddenly realized that not only would the days ahead not be boring, but he would probably have to be prepared to be amazed by this little guy's "superpowers" at any time.
Wow, what a brilliant mind!
(゜ ゜)