Rebooting 60, let's go on a rampage with the orange cat!

Since April 5, 1959, at the 4th World Table Tennis Championships, when Rong Guotuan, representing the Chinese team, defeated his opponent Siddo 3-1 in West Germany to win the men's singles title for the first time in the history of the People's Republic of China, table tennis has been enthusiastically developed in schools across the country. Everyone actively learns from Rong Guotuan's spirit of "How many times in life can one fight? If not now, when?"

Shi Huai'an was no exception. In her previous life, she was a member of the elementary school girls' team. Now, she couldn't resist the urge to play and ran downstairs to the ping-pong table to watch the game.

The person playing ball with Gu Jingxing was Principal Ouyang, who had just received them. There were also two teachers watching the game. As soon as Gu Jingxing saw Shi Huai'an, he said, "Finished the exam? Want to play a game?"

Principal Ouyang was getting into a serving stance, preparing to serve a more difficult ball, when he suddenly noticed Shi Huai'an and asked with interest, "You little rascal, you can play ball too?"

Shi Huai'an was not afraid. She had never lost a game of table tennis at the senior citizens' club. She thought she could give this old man with his slightly messy Mediterranean hair, sweating and panting, a good match.

Huai'an chuckled inwardly, stepped forward and unceremoniously took Gu Jingxing's racket, assumed a defensive stance, and readily replied, "Bring it on!"

"Wow!" She was quite confident, and her precocious manner made the teachers around her burst into laughter. One of the middle-aged men crossed his arms and teased Principal Ouyang, "Don't worry, you might have a chance to win this round!"

Another young male teacher, suppressing a laugh, raised his fist and encouraged Huai'an, saying, "Keep it up!"

Gu Jingxing nodded to her. He had been pestered by Xiao Huai'an to teach her to play table tennis a long time ago, but it was only for the basics. Winning or losing didn't matter. The key was to let her relax. He was really afraid that she would become obsessed with studying every day, as she stayed at home all day.

He was still completely baffled as to why Shi Huai'an didn't remember anything about their past. Was it because of the drowning? He was deeply troubled by Huai'an's lack of memory of him and felt extremely distressed.

A hint of a smile flashed in Principal Ouyang's eyes. He just wanted to relax a bit; his actual skill level was indeed not that great, but he absolutely couldn't lose to an 8-year-old girl. If word got out, it would be... a little embarrassing...

He looked shrewd and calculating, preparing to launch a surprise attack with a tricky shot.

Principal Ouyang pondered for a moment, then tossed the ball up into the air with a deliberately mysterious air gesture. He then swung his racket forcefully and the ping-pong ball, like a wild horse, flew through the air in a beautiful arc and accurately entered Huai'an's half of the court.

Huai'an easily received the ball, and after a few peaceful exchanges, she suddenly jumped up, like a graceful swallow, and smashed the ping-pong ball heavily against the corner of the opponent's table. Principal Ouyang was caught off guard and could not defend against this sudden attack, losing the first point.

The people around them applauded in amazement, and the two teachers were also captivated.

They inquired about the little girl's background with Gu Jingxing: "Which elementary school does this little girl go to? She seems very impressive!" one of the teachers asked curiously.

Gu Jingxing smiled and said proudly, "Teacher He, her name is Shi Huai'an. She will be starting junior high school at our school soon. She is my younger sister."

Another teacher, Ms. Xia, exclaimed in surprise, "Huh? How old is it? It looks very small, and it's also a bit short."

Gu Jingxing smiled and explained, "She's only eight years old and hasn't started school yet."

Teacher He couldn't help but swear: "Damn, what are you saying? So young and already so amazing, you're a genius!"

Teacher Xia noticed something was amiss: "Cousin? Aren't you surnamed Gu? Her surname is Shi."

Gu Jingxing said proudly, "She's both a neighbor and a younger sister, she's really amazing."

The two teachers exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with curiosity, and continued to watch the changes on the field.

The ping-pong ball danced across the table like a leaping musical note. It moved rapidly between the paddles of both players, creating a constant stream of intense rallies.

Shi Huai'an unleashed a brilliant sidespin shot, momentarily stunning Principal Ouyang. Immediately afterward, Huai'an rallied and responded with a powerful smash, eliciting cheers from the onlookers.

With a swift, almost swift swing of her racket, Huai'an launched the ping-pong ball like a controlled missile, sending it hurtling precisely and rapidly towards her opponent's half of the court. Utilizing her agility, she controlled the ball with lightning speed, launching a fierce, all-out attack on Principal Ouyang.

Perhaps Huai'an hadn't played in a long time and missed the feeling of smashing, so she didn't hold back against Principal Ouyang. That's the advantage of being a child—direct, simple, and without complicated interpersonal relationships. Shi Huai'an, now like an 8-year-old, was completely letting loose. She also wanted to test the extent to which the system had increased her stamina. She felt quick-witted, agile, and her explosive power was tremendous, leaving her opponent helpless. Shi Huai'an secretly rejoiced, using Principal Ouyang as a practice target.

Huai'an easily won the first two rounds, and Principal Ouyang's face fell.

But as the principal of a school, he quickly adjusted his mindset, wiping away the few stray black hairs that had fallen from his forehead and pressing them back down. The game could be lost, but his hairstyle absolutely could not be messed up; this was Principal Ouyang's bottom line.

In the third game, Principal Ouyang gradually found his rhythm and managed to go toe-to-toe with Huai'an.

However, Shi Huai'an was still stronger. She seized on a mistake by the principal and smashed the ball, winning the crucial point.

In the end, Huai'an defeated Principal Ouyang with a score of 3:0.

The surrounding teachers applauded and cheered, while the principal smiled and shook his head, saying, "Truly, the younger generation surpasses the older one; I'm getting old!"

Huai'an scratched his head a little embarrassedly and said, "Principal, you flatter me. I was just lucky."

This match made Huai'an famous at school. Later, her classmates all knew that she was very good at table tennis, and many of them took the initiative to ask her to play against them.

Up in the teaching building, the Dean of Students, Teacher Liu, kept waving at them and calling out, "Principal Ouyang—come up quickly, I need to talk to you—Shi Huai'an—come up here—"

Principal Ouyang knew that Shi Huai'an's exam paper must have been graded and was waiting to be reported to him! He had just recovered from the embarrassment of losing the point and said to Huai'an with a smile, "Come on, there must be a result. Whether you can stay or not depends on you now."

Gu Jingxing excitedly followed Huai'an to the teaching building, and the two teachers also followed with great interest to see what was going on. Everyone was inexplicably a little excited.

The head of teaching, Mr. Liu, and two other examiners were already waiting in the principal's office.

The principal went into his office first, asking the others to wait outside. He and the director of studies talked for a long time before he opened the door to let Shi Huai'an in.

Principal Ouyang said, "Shi Huai'an, you did well on this exam. The total score is 300 points, and you scored 295 points. Although the bonus questions are not counted, you answered them all correctly. We have unanimously decided to admit you to the first grade (class 1). This is our class's key class. Work hard and you will have a bright future."

Teacher Liu also said, "You will report for duty on September 1st and take the entrance exam with everyone. The top three in the exam will be exempt from tuition and fees."

Upon hearing this, Teacher He immediately replied, "That day is also the school's table tennis team selection competition! You can play in matches after joining the school team!" Teacher He is not only a physical education teacher but also the person in charge of the school team. He attaches great importance to the students' training and competitions.

However, Mr. Liu frowned and said in a serious tone, "I'm afraid Shi Huai'an doesn't have time. We still need to arrange for her to participate in the math training group and prepare to go to the provincial math gold medal competition!" As he spoke, he patted Shi Huai'an's shoulder, as if conveying a sense of expectation and encouragement to her.

At this moment, Teacher Xia interjected, "No conflict, no conflict. What we advocate now is all-round development in morality, intelligence, physical fitness and aesthetics. I believe that Shi will be able to take all aspects into account and will not let everyone down." He is also a table tennis coach in the sports group and attaches great importance to the selection of good talents.

Shi Huai'an looked at the three teachers gratefully and said that he would give it a try and hoped not to let them down.

Then, she smiled a little shyly, patted her stomach, and said, "But it's almost noon, and I'm a little hungry! I'm going home to eat now, see you when school starts!" After all, for an eight-year-old child, eating is the most important thing, and she didn't want to continue being so polite.

Shi Huai'an waved and turned to leave the office. Three teachers watched her departing figure, their faces showing a relieved smile.

Principal Ouyang looked at the documents in his hand, a pleased smile on his face, and said with emotion, "Truly, outstanding talents emerge from among the young! I never expected that our school would recruit two students who skipped grades this year. It seems that our school has a very good chance of bringing glory to the city in this year's provincial subject competition!"

Upon hearing this, the head of the teaching department, Mr. Liu, couldn't stop smiling: "Yes, that student named Zhong Hanzhe took the exam two months ago and did quite well! I also heard that his family is poor and he is currently working part-time to support himself. It's really not easy for him. They say that poor children mature early, and that's certainly true!"

Principal Ouyang nodded and continued, "Fortunately, we have already applied to the Ministry of Education for an Outstanding Student Fund. If they can rank in the top three of their grade, their tuition and fees will be waived. This way, they can concentrate on their studies without worrying about tuition fees."

Teacher He and the others nodded in agreement, expressing their admiration and praise for the principal's wise decision. The office was filled with a cheerful atmosphere, everyone looking forward to the two new students.

Shi Huai'an was completely unaware of all this and happily went back with Gu Jingxing.

After saying goodbye, Shi Huai'an returned home, tidied up the textbooks he hadn't returned yet, took some candy, went back to his old place to return the books, played with a group of children for a while, and then went home.

As soon as he returned to his room, a "ding" sounded in his mind. Hearing the system's summons, Huai'an quickly entered the space and immediately noticed that the space had changed.

Fat orange cat Duoduo was already waiting in the space. It rubbed its fluffy head against Huai'an's leg and meowed, "An'an, hurry up and open the system, there's a reward!"

Huai'an quickly tapped its forehead, and the system's voice impatiently rang out: "Data shows you have gained a Fate-Changing Point, a reward of 2 points, 2 points of stamina, 10 points of intelligence, and one space upgrade. Your current point balance is 2300.01 points." Strings of text also flashed rapidly across the virtual screen.

Wow, I never expected this! This is such a pleasant surprise. In his previous life, Huai'an only graduated from elementary school. At this point in time, he should have been enrolling in first grade. However, because Huai'an passed the Hongqi Middle School's grade-skipping exam today, he officially became a first-year junior high school student. This can be considered Huai'an's first successful step in changing his destiny, and the system has rewarded him.

Ding~ The system beeped again. Since you have enough points to pay off the loan, 2000 loan points and 5% interest for 2 months will be automatically deducted, along with 200 points. The remaining balance is 100.01 points.

"Huh? Oh my god, I've even paid off my loan! That's so fast! It's only been less than two months! Amazing!" Huai'an really wanted to hug and kiss the system. Fat orange dog Duoduo jumped onto Huai'an's shoulder and cheered: "Meow~ Meow~ An'an is awesome~"

Huai'an knew that all of this was thanks to the system, which had given her three 10-point boosts to her intelligence, greatly benefiting her and making her studies seem divinely aided.

Honestly, studying really takes brainpower and requires intelligence. Even with 100% effort, an average person might only achieve average or above-average success, while someone with high intelligence could achieve it easily.

Some things cannot be achieved through hard work alone; success requires talent, effort, and luck, and none of these can be lacking.

Having a good family background can make things much easier, and it may take several generations of effort to cross a social class.

Huai'an sincerely thanked the system and said, "Thank you, System!" Otherwise, with his ordinary talent, how could he have stood out from the crowd?

The system was a little shy and didn't reply. Fat Orange jumped up and meowed, "Quick, go check what's changed in your space!"

Oh? Shi Huai'an looked around and discovered a white door open on the east side of the storage room! This door, like a mysterious passage, drew her gaze. Her heart began to race, as if countless questions were swirling in her mind. She cautiously approached the door, each step tinged with anticipation and unease. Finally, she reached the door and gently pushed it open.

The sight behind the door made her gasp – it was a spacious, open-plan kitchen! The kitchen was bright and airy, with a well-planned layout that created a comfortable and welcoming atmosphere. The cabinets were made of white solid wood with a European-style design, exuding elegance and sophistication. All kinds of appliances were readily available, from the stove and oven to the microwave and dishwasher, all showcasing the high-end quality of this kitchen.

Shi Huai'an was amazed; she had never seen such a luxurious kitchen. Everything here was so perfect, like a culinary paradise from her dreams. She imagined herself cooking delicious food here, and her heart was filled with joy.

The glass door was sensor-activated; it opened automatically as Huai'an approached, revealing a comfortably decorated living room with a touch of country style. A faint, pleasant fragrance permeated the room, creating a relaxing and pleasant atmosphere. Huai'an lay quietly on a large, soft, misty blue fabric sofa, feeling as if she were in a tranquil world.

Her gaze slowly swept across the surroundings, landing on the dazzling crystal chandelier overhead, its soft light illuminating the entire space. The walls were covered in light beige wallpaper, creating a warm and inviting atmosphere. The floor was covered in gray wooden flooring, adding to the elegant ambiance.

The living room was decorated with exquisite ornaments, such as small, delicate vases and exquisite photo frames, which made the whole environment more lively and interesting. Huai'an gently closed her eyes, enjoying this moment of tranquility and beauty, and feeling the warm atmosphere of this home.

Soft music played in the living room, and the chubby orange cat was already rolling around in its soft, comfortable cat bed, completely blissful...

She slowly walked to the large floor-to-ceiling window. Outside, all she could see was a gray haze, as if the whole world was shrouded in mist. She tried to open the window to breathe in some fresh air, but no matter how hard she tried, the window wouldn't budge.

Huai'an wondered what the scene would look like after the gray clouds dispersed, feeling both anticipation and unease.

Just like the original storage room, there are no real doors or windows here; everything will have to wait for future upgrades and unlocking.