Chapter 61: Swallow springs.

Qin Qianyu came alone, her parents had to work and would officially finish their last day the next evening.

They, along with Grandpa Wú planned to come together to surprise and cheer Qin Qianyu on.

Qin Qianyu had a light breakfast at her hotel and went out soon after to explore the location where the SIC competition would be held.

The hotel she stayed at was less than 10 minutes away from the venue.

She arrived in high spirits, the entire area outside the stadium was decked out with stalls, games and entertainment for the general public to enjoy.

Modern music blared out in an upbeat tempo, Qin Qianyu's face started to twist a little as she cringed.

There were people wearing cutouts of Owen Xi's face and it was his song blasting away at the entrance way.

Qin Qianyu was amazed at the sight of all the young adults attending, even if they were just here to partake in the opening festivities. Most though, were high school age that have come to enjoy the atmosphere under the guise of "learning" because it involved science.

It was nothing more than a day trip for school kids.

Many people were lined up, she saw the line she had to go to for picking up her SIC pack.

Qin Qianyu bypassed the long line, her action drew the attention of others. Some became irate because they had already waited long enough.

Others sniggered at her. She wasn't the first one to head to that line and try to enter the venue, only to walk back in shame and join the tail end of their line.

Those that had been waiting for a while learnt that the line was for competitors. Seeing how young Qin Qianyu looked they waited for her to do the walk of shame.

"Look at this fool! Does she think that because she's pretty. she'll be able to get in through that line. Haha watch how she joins the back of ours very soon."

Many others said similar things, Qin Qianyu heard the jealous filled comments that were coming from mostly females in one of the lines.

She paid them no mind as she walked briskly.

There were two people manning this gate and just behind them a team of security guards.

"Welcome to to this years Science Innovation China, Competition. May I see your forms please."

A woman manning the gate asked.

Although she thought that Qin Qianyu was a school student wanting to gain access quicker than the rest, she and the man next to her had already been warned not to judge, as many younger people had qualified to participate in SIC. So the woman maintained a professional manner.

Qin Qianyu smiled and handed in her forms and collected her id lanyard and entry card for the competitions start the next day.

The woman wiped the invisible sweat from her brow.

"Enjoy the festivities today and good luck during the competition."

"Thanks! You have a great day too!"

Those that had mocked Qin Qianyu earlier pretended not to see anything. Some seeing Qin Qianyu go through decided to try their luck only to be denied.

Qin Qianyu paid no attention to the gate.

She walked around and watched several stage performances gleefully.

With several large companies sponsoring the event and all of the best universities playing host, they invited many idols, singers and bands to perform for the masses.

Some Universities had alumni that became idols or musicians that were more than happy to perform on the university's behalf.

The games weren't all traditional or typical amusement park style games, but rather ones that tested the mental fortitudes of ones mind.

One such game was the Mathlete challenge.

It was a head to head battle consisting of a series of random equations that are picked out of a bin and the first to solve them all won the prize.

Cheers boomed out on the stage as a new champion was made.

Many of them were excited by the atmosphere alone, Qin Qianyu was no different.

Qin Qianyu found many sponsored stores here, all of them had in someway a relationship with various scientific fields.

Qin Qianyu thought of her lab and decided to do some light shopping. Most people thought that Qin Qianyu was just there to play around with the gadgets and equipment that were on display.

Qin Qianyu started with the more well known brands.

The salesperson didn't pay her any mind. Qin Qianyu did the same. If she wasn't served, Qin Qianyu would go to their competitor's store and buy what she needed.

She gave preferential acknowledgement to the more attentive salesperson and she found that the most attentive ones came from the lower end or lesser known brands.

She didn't mind helping out all these smaller companies with sales. Most of the equipment she bought all had similar specifications to each other so it didn't matter to her in the end.

Qin Qianyu then went from stall to stall, tent to tent, store to store. If something interesting passed by her, she picked it up without fail.

Soon she started feeling a little peckish so she made her way over towards the food tents set up.

Qin Qianyu soon came across a child bawling his eyes out, people where looking at him but that was all they did, no one would offer any assistance.

Qin Qianyu came to the boy's side and took his little hand in hers as she squatted down.

"Little one be calm, are you lost? Where are your parents? Where's your mummy and daddy?"

The boy settled some, the tears had stopped but his body was in a state that heaved and reacted with his breathing.

Qin Qianyu calmly and gently soothed the boy and secretly pushed a number of points on his body to ease the heaving.

"My name is Qin Qianyu, you can call me Big sister Yu. What's your name."

The boy was silent he just blinked while staring at Qin Qianyu.

"What does mummy call you?"

"Precious."

"Pre . . . Alright what about daddy? What does he call you?"

"Bunbun"

"Bao . . zi? . . Little one those are nicknames!"

Getting nowhere with that Qin Qianyu decided to try another tactic.

"Okay, Baobao, so tell me, did you come here with mummy, daddy or both?"

"Daddy! . . I came with daddy."

"Great, and what's daddy's name? What do you call him?"

"Daddy!"

" . . . "

"I should have seen that coming."

Qin Qianyu mumbled. Soon her stomach started growling and so did Baobao's.

She turned to a store owner and bought them several meat buns and asked if there was a police booth close by where she could take Baobao to.

The store owner tells her that she only knows that a station was setup for lost and found and gave her a general direction.

The pair sat and ate the buns. She wanted to wait with Baobao in case his father came by here looking for him. A while later Qin Qianyu borrowed a large card and markers from one of the stalls and made a sign.

"I've lost my daddy! Daddy! Baozi is here."

She wrote that on both sides of the card. Qin Qianyu then added a large arrow pointing downwards.

She attached the placard to a helium balloon so that the sign floated above Baobao and tied the other end to the child.

"Let's try the lost and found both, the police maybe close by too."

Qin Qianyu thought to herself. She told Baobao her plan then picked him up and placed him on her shoulders.

Qin Qianyu was already quite tall so she already stood out. Now with Baobao on her shoulders and a nifty sign in his hands they stood out even more.

The outstanding pair made their way in the direction of the lost and found booth that was set up.

Along the way, Qin Qianyu heard a group of boys talking,

"What century are they stuck in? Don't they understand that science and innovation move with the times?"

"Haha! They remind me of my grandparents, overly stubborn and stuck in the old ways."

"Just leave them, don't waste your breath on TCM people, it's totally a waste of time,"

"Heh! Let's go!"

Qin Qianyu watched as the four youths amble away and merge with the crowd disappearing just like that.

She turns to the direction they came from and found a young couple there. The young man was beaten up. A cheek and eye had swelled and puffed up real good, his nose and lip were red and a small amount of blood trickled down the corners of his mouth.

Behind him a girl around his age stood there stunned. Qin Qianyu found it odd. The pair looked like they were together but she wasn't helping him up all then she noticed why, it was because he sat there sulking,

"How could you embarrass me like that?"

"Huh!? You looked like you were having a hard time? Is it wrong for me to help you out?"

"Yes! . . No! It doesn't matter! It was four on one, and they sneaked attacked while our backs were turned, I was already disadvantaged because of it."

"You're the one that said you could beat them, I asked you to leave them be, that they're just out to cause trouble. How is that me embarrassing you?"

" . . . "

The young man was speechless, he had a slight crush on the girl, and had thought she felt the same way.

It only got worst as she continued,

"Listen, I was only doing this as a solid for your sister, let's stop all the pretences now that it's gotten to this point. From now on, if we ever see one another let it be as strangers okay."

Hearing her harsh scathing comment just then shattered what happy thoughts of being with her his mind had conjured.

With that said the girl walked away leaving a bewildered and beaten young man to his own devices.

Qin Qianyu watched the girl walking away, she thought it was familiar because the girls face was showing relief at having shook off a pest.

It reminded her of all the annoying flies she's come across. Sometimes they just don't get the hint.

"Big sister, let's help that uncle make a sign too!"

"Huh!?"

"Look he's hurt, let's make him a sign so that people won't hit him again."

"Haha, let's help him first, we'll talk signs afterwards."

Qin Qianyu approached the young man, he still sat there in disbelief.

Qin Qianyu cupped the man's chin and wolf whistled before she remarked,

"That's some pretty makeup you're wearing!"

"Huh!? . . What the hell! . . What's the matter with you!?"

The young man winced as he pulled away from Qin Qianyu.

Baobao cocked his little head to the side and tapped Qin Qianyu's head,

"Big sister! You need glasses! It's not pretty at all, his cheek looks just like an eggplant and that eye looks like a rotten peach!"

"Pfft! . . Bahahaha! . . Baobao, I was trying to make him feel better by complimenting him so he wouldn't be sad,"

Baobao leans in close,

"Oh, but it's not good to lie to people big sister! You'll have to kneel on a washboard if you do,"

Baobao whispered loudly. This action mixed with his retort made Qin Qianyu worse.

She snorted as she laughed which caused her to laugh even harder.

While in her laughing fit, she looked to the battered young man and tried to be serious,

"I'm so sorry, it's just Baobao, he . . Ah let me help you up. I'm not laughing at you I promise, it's just the situation with what Baobao said, . . "

"It's fine I get it."

Qin Qianyu helped the young man up and as she did she pressed a few points on the man's body then gave him a quick massage.

He was truly amazed,

"You're a practitioner too?"

"Hmm, nope, I just know a few things about bruises. I'm a fighter! . . Well, in training that is. These massage techniques are good for what you have."

The young man nodded.

"Anyway we're trying to get to the lost and found booth do you know where it is?"

"It's close to where we have a stall set up. Come on, I'll lead the way,"

"I'm Chen Yongqing of Renshi University. Thanks!"

"No sweat! I'm Qin Qianyu, nice to meet you."

"I'm Precious Baozi Baobao!"

Baobao cried out not wanting to be left out.

Chen Yongqing looked up and the kid still on Qin Qianyu's shoulders and spied the balloon and placard,

"Did you kidnap a child!?"

"Huh!? . . Yo if I did! Would I come here, help you, and ask for directions to lost and found?"

"For a uni student you're not very . . bright!"

" . . . "

"Big sister, I heard if you hit your head you can go dumb . . Maybe?"

"Mhm, but his head wasn't hit just his face, so, uh yeah,"

"Ah! . . I get it Big Sister! . . So he was already dumb!"

" . . . "

Chen Yongqing was only trying to make small talk, he didn't think it would actually lead to being mocked by a child and a teen.

The trio soon came to Chen Yongqing's stall. Qin Qianyu saw the swallow insignia branded everywhere around the stall.

On a table they had informative pamphlets and several other paraphernalia related to TCM.

"Renshi University's School of TCM Yan Zi Chunji."

Qin Qianyu read the title on the prospectus.

It had the swallow silhouette sitting inside of a brush stroked circle for the logo.

Baobao saw this and immediately started singing,

"Little swallow wears the flower cloth. The swallows come here every spring I ask the little swallow why they come here? They answer that "The spring is beautiful here" . . "

Soon, both he and Qin Qianyu were singing the children's nursery rhyme.

The young man lowered his head. Although he was use to it, he still sighed.

It was like this whenever he mentioned Renshi University's TCM school, Yan Zi Chunji.

No matter who it was, they would start singing Xiao Yan Zi.

Everyone from the school knew that the history of the school, dated back further than when the song first came out.

But that still didn't stop people's ridicules or constant teasing the students would face.

He couldn't even get angry though, as it was a popular children's song and that was exactly what Baobao was.

Qin Qianyu on the other hand.

He glared at her, she smiled even more and sung even louder just to spite his sour looks he was giving her.