"I guess you have three questions for me," Jiang Senlin said.
Jiang Ye remained expressionless.
"The first question is, will you ask if I know I was wrong? The second question is, will you ask how I managed to get so many people in the class to gang up on Lyle? The third question is, will you ask what I should do from now on, how to face Lyle?" Jiang Senlin looked up at Jiang Ye, "Is that right, Dad?"
Jiang Ye felt a chill run down his spine.
How old was this child?
How could he and Cen Yemeng have such a heaven-defying child?
Did the Rejuvenation Sickness give Jiang Senlin a brain fundamentally different from that of a normal person?
"I've been detained here for two days, and I've thought for two days. I feel like I was wrong now," Jiang Senlin answered the first question himself.
"Wrong about what?" Jiang Ye asked.
"Lyle, that person, lacks the spirit of a true man, lacks wisdom and courage. Such a nobody like him could never seize the position of the Commander. I could have simply treated him as a joke, there was no need to mess with him like this. When he grows up, he will forget his childish delusions, and he will also feel fearful for saying those words in front of me," Jiang Senlin said. "If he had the spirit of a true man, as long as he wasn't killed, he would do what he had to do. Beating him up would be useless."
"Damn it, you think like that?" Jiang Ye's eyes widened. "Why did you go after him then?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Jiang Senlin shrugged. "I am the Commander's son. He said he wants to be the Commander when he grows up. Whose position would he be taking?"
"You..." Jiang Ye paused. "You want to succeed me when you grow up? You want to be the Commander?"
"That's not what I meant," Jiang Senlin shook his head. "I know you and Mom are immortal, you can manage these planets forever. I'm still too young, I don't know what I should do in the future."
"So you were worried that Lyle would take my position when he grew up, and that's why you taught him a lesson?" Jiang Ye frowned.
"That's what I thought at the time. After calming down, I realized it was impossible, so I admit my mistake on this matter," Jiang Senlin nodded. "I'm still too young."
Jiang Ye was momentarily at a loss for words.
His son's thoughts were completely beyond his expectations.
Jiang Ye felt like he wasn't communicating with a child, but with a nearly mature adult. The traditional father-son relationship had collapsed, and a peculiar father-son relationship was growing.
It was like watering a seed, expecting to grow vegetables, but instead, it sprouted into a tree. Jiang Ye felt bewildered, not knowing what kind of fruit this tree would bear, nor how to care for it.
"Why did those classmates listen to you?" Jiang Ye asked. "I always thought that you, attending school here, had a pure friendship relationship with your classmates, like in a normal school."
"Dad, do you think monkeys in a zoo are smarter, or children our age?" Jiang Senlin asked.
"You are smarter," Jiang Ye said.
"Monkey troops have hierarchies, schemes, power struggles, deception, and fights. They groom each other for favor, and have all sorts of complex relationships and cunning," Jiang Senlin said. "We are smarter than monkeys, why do you think we would be very pure and simple? Adults think children are all blank slates, but children understand dozens of times more than adults imagine. Adults also walked our path when they were young, but they forget they were children when they grow up."
Jiang Ye fell silent.
He suddenly recalled his own childhood.
"Indeed, usually at school, we are just pure playmates and classmates. We play together, without considering many complex factors," Jiang Senlin said. "However, this pure relationship is the result of a conscious effort by all of us. We all know that if we didn't bring some of the rules of adults into school, we would have more fun, so we deliberately avoid certain things."
"For example, some classmates are children of high-ranking officials, while others are just children of platoon leaders. The children of high-ranking officials would actively play with the children of platoon leaders, adopting a very humble attitude, even calling them 'brother' or 'sister.' The children of platoon leaders would also try to remain neither servile nor overbearing, and then they could play together," Jiang Senlin continued. "The equality in these interpersonal relationships is built on the premise that both parties simultaneously realize their inequality. It is a result of everyone choosing to forget about their parents. First, there is inequality, and then there is equality."
"How did you all learn these things?" Jiang Ye asked.
"I learned them through experience and reading. You and Mom also set an example for me," Jiang Senlin said. "The other classmates in the class were probably taught by their parents. Before they went to school, their parents must have seriously and sternly told them not to bully classmates, not to fawn over classmates, not to show off their families, not to engage in comparison, to act a little foolish and cute, and to make friends with their classmates."
Jiang Ye took a deep breath.
The tree grew more and more lush, and at the same time, it grew stranger and stranger, making it impossible to tell what kind of tree it was.
"But," Jiang Senlin changed the subject, "once someone breaks these unwritten rules of the class, like Lyle, the entire class will immediately generate a force to correct the mistake."
"That night, we shared our ambitions. Some said they wanted to be scientists, some wanted to be zoo directors, and I said I wanted to continue being a painter. No one mentioned the military system. Only Lyle was foolish enough to say he wanted to be the Commander. He broke the rules, and the entire environment instantly changed. All the classmates understood their positions, and thus eleven people voluntarily came out to be my enforcers."
"What about the other classmates?" Jiang Ye asked.
"Perhaps they were kinder and didn't want to do such a thing," Jiang Senlin said. "Perhaps they felt their status was inappropriate, perhaps they didn't react in time, perhaps they were good friends with Lyle, for many reasons."
"You children... are too terrifying," Jiang Ye sighed. "You are still so young, how can your minds be so deep and dark? Son, I'm telling you, your mother and I have met many people, and our adult world is often not as complicated as yours."
"Really?" Jiang Senlin blinked, his expression clearly disbelieving.
"Really," Jiang Ye said. "I hope you children have fewer schemes. You rascal, I feel like you have more schemes than your father and mother combined. Isn't it better to be simple, honest, straightforward, and sincere? A class of dozens of children, with thousands of schemes combined, what is this all about?"
"Dad, we are different."
"Rascal, do you want to be spanked?"
Jiang Ye reached out and pressed the buckle of his belt.
Jiang Senlin shrunk his head, not daring to retort.
Jiang Ye's phone suddenly rang. It was Cen Yemeng calling.
"Hello?" Jiang Ye answered.
"I met Lyle's parents. Not only are they not angry, but they are also very scared, as if their child deserved to be beaten. They looked truly distressed," Cen Yemeng sighed. "I apologized to them, saying I was a negligent parent. I plan to compensate them five hundred million and promote Lyle's mother two ranks."
"A child's misbehavior is the parent's fault. This responsibility is not yours," Jiang Ye said. "Thank you for your hard work. After you're done, come and see your son."