108: Birthday wishes and handmade gifts

Time flew by. As the snow on the mountains outside the base melted once more, revealing the lush green beneath, Excellence welcomed another birthday at the "Candle Dragon" base.

Compared to his last birthday, when he was still in a repressed and tense atmosphere with severely impaired cognition and an uncertain prognosis for recovery, this year's day was shrouded in a completely different, warm, and hopeful atmosphere.

Su Mu and Evelyn had started secretly planning weeks in advance. Avoiding Excellence's occasionally overly sharp eyes and ears, they discussed every detail as if preparing for a major battle.

This time, their goal was not merely to ensure his physical safety or cognitive stability, but to genuinely bring him joy—a simple and pure celebration appropriate for his age.

They hoped that through this birthday party, they could tell him, and everyone else, that he was not just an "asset" or a "patient" who needed to be strictly guarded, but an important partner and family member who was sincerely cared for by everyone.

Preparations were conducted in top secret. The location was chosen as a rarely used small auditorium inside the base that had been simply cleaned and decorated.

It had no windows, but the space was spacious, avoiding outside interference and making security control easy.

Su Mu was in charge of the "soft furnishings." She found some colorful paper streamers and, together with a few kind-hearted and dexterous female researchers, cut them into various shapes and carefully hung them on the walls and ceiling; she also used ornamental plants grown inside the base, which were unlikely to cause allergies, to decorate the corners, adding a touch of vitality.

Evelyn used her access and technical knowledge to acquire some safe, dimmable LED light strings and a few helium balloons printed with cartoon patterns (with strictly controlled quantities and buoyancy to ensure safety), giving the whole space a dreamy starlight effect when the lights were dimmed.

The cake was the biggest challenge. Although the base's cafeteria provided balanced nutrition, it was not specialized in making exquisite birthday cakes.

Su Mu had to talk until she was blue in the face to persuade an old master who used to work in a pastry shop to use limited materials to bake a not-too-large but simply and cutely styled cream fruit cake.

On the cake, "Happy Birthday, Excellence" was written crookedly with jam. Although the handwriting was unprofessional, it was full of the sincerity of being hand-crafted.

They even secretly contacted Wang Jianguo, Xiao Zhang, the attending physician Dr. Chen, and several researchers who had the most daily contact with Excellence and had established trust and goodwill with him.

When Su Mu and Evelyn proposed wanting to give Excellence a surprise birthday party, these usually serious and steady adults all agreed without hesitation, their faces revealing rare, warm smiles.

Wang Jianguo specially approved a short gathering time and instructed the security team to be on alert on the periphery to ensure nothing went wrong.

On his birthday, Excellence was preparing for his morning cognitive training as usual. However, Su Mu mysteriously told him that there was a "special activity" today that required his cooperation. Then, she took out a soft silk scarf and gently covered Excellence's eyes.

"Squad Leader, where are we going? What kind of activity is it?" Excellence asked curiously, his voice filled with a trace of anticipation and innocence.

He trusted Su Mu, and although he couldn't see, he obediently let her lead him by the hand, winding through the familiar corridors of the base.

"It's a secret! You'll know when we get there!" Su Mu's voice carried undisguised laughter and a hint of nervousness.

Evelyn followed alongside, carefully watching the road underfoot to prevent Excellence from tripping. Seeing Excellence's defenseless, trusting appearance, a complex warm current welled up in her heart as well.

The moment the blindfold was gently removed, after Excellence adapted to the sudden light, the scene before his eyes made him completely freeze.

In the small auditorium, under the warm lights, familiar and unfamiliar faces looked at him with sincere smiles. Colorful streamers gently fluttered on the walls, balloons floated overhead, and on the table was that cake that looked a bit clumsy but incredibly intimate, with colorful number-shaped candles inserted on it. The candlelight jumped, reflecting every smiling face.

"Happy Birthday, Excellence!"

The neat, blessed greeting echoed in the not-so-empty space, striking Excellence's eardrums and his heart. He stood there blankly, his eyes wide, as if unable to process this scene that was too beautiful and too warm.

After a few seconds of stillness, a huge, incredible surprise and a surge of emotion like a tide finally broke through his brief stupor.

The corners of his mouth began to rise uncontrollably, forming a huge and brilliant smile, but his eyes instantly turned red, and moist moisture quickly gathered.

"Thank you... thank you everyone!" He choked, his voice trembling, his hands unconsciously rubbing the corners of his clothes, so excited he didn't know what to do.

This kind of lively scene, surrounded by everyone and sincerely blessed, was as distant to him as something from a previous life.

In the fragments of his memory, there seemed to have been similar warm scenes, but they were all covered by the long illness and loneliness that followed. At this moment, this regained warmth made him feel like a child who had finally found home, joy mixed with a trace of grievance and lingering fear, his emotions pure and intense.

Su Mu stepped forward, gently putting her arm around his shoulders, and led him to the cake: "Come on, birthday boy, time to blow out the candles and make a wish!"

Under everyone's gaze and the gentle birthday song, Excellence closed his eyes and put his hands together, his expression extremely pious and focused, as if performing an extremely important ritual.

His long eyelashes cast soft shadows under the candlelight, trembling slightly. He wished for a long time, so long that everyone kindly waited in silence.

When he finally opened his eyes and puffed out his cheeks to blow out all the candles in one go, applause and cheers erupted.

Su Mu couldn't help but be curious, leaned over and whispered: "What wish did you make? Can you tell me?"

Excellence turned his head, looking at Su Mu's face close at hand, full of concern and smiles, and then looked at Evelyn, who was standing a little further away, also smiling and looking at him.

A shy blush appeared on his face. He scratched his head and said with a voice that wasn't loud but clear enough, a bit embarrassed: "I hope... Squad Leader and Sister Evelyn... can always happily accompany me... and tinker with these strange things together... just like now..."

This extremely simple wish, without any grand ambitions, was like a stone thrown into the center of a lake, rippling in the hearts of everyone present.

Su Mu's nose soured, and she almost shed tears. She nodded vigorously and held Excellence's hand tightly. Evelyn's eyes also warmed slightly; she turned her head away and quietly wiped the corners of her eyes with her fingers.

Even tough guys like Wang Jianguo and Xiao Zhang showed rare softness and emotion in their eyes.

This wish so purely reflected Excellence's deepest longing—not for power, not for knowledge, but simply for the joy of companionship and sharing. This was more touching than any grand words.

Next was the gift-giving session. Su Mu took out her gift first. One was the latest, full-featured high-end precision tool set. She knew Excellence loved to work with his hands, and this set of tools would make his future "hand-crafted" career even more handy.

The other gift was even more thoughtful: a thick, handmade bound comic diary. Su Mu used her unprofessional but inspired paintbrush to draw, page by page, the bits and pieces from the first time she saw the comatose Excellence in the hospital, to accompanying him in rehabilitation, watching him make mischief, and overcoming difficulties together.

The style was cute, and there were short, sometimes amusing, text explanations next to it. This diary did not record medical records, but a warm life journey.

Excellence opened the diary and saw himself in the painting, sometimes silly, sometimes focused. His eyes widened even more, and he let out a "Wow" of surprise, unable to put it down.

Evelyn's gift reflected her style. A beautifully bound complete collection of science fiction novels covering the Golden Age to the latest trends—she knew Excellence's imagination needed nourishment.

There was also a smart desk lamp she had designed and assembled herself in her spare time. The special thing about this lamp was that it could perceive changes in the user's brainwaves (EEG) through non-contact sensors and automatically change the color temperature and brightness of the light according to his different states of focus, relaxation, or pleasure, creating the most comfortable light environment. It was full of technology and filled with thoughtful care.

Excellence was very interested in the sci-fi books, but even more curious about the desk lamp. He asked to try it on the spot. When the light became bright and cool as he tried to focus, and turned warm and dim as he relaxed, he shouted excitedly like a child who had discovered a new toy.

Just when everyone thought the gift session was about to end, Excellence suddenly became a bit coy and mysterious. Blushing, he took out a box from behind that was wrapped crookedly with wrapping paper and taped messily, about the size of a shoebox.

"I... I also prepared a gift!" His voice was not loud, but carried a sense of pride and anticipation, "It's a birthday gift for myself! And... and it's also for Squad Leader and Sister Evelyn!"

This statement surprised and curious everyone. A birthday gift for himself, and then given to others? Everyone's eyes were focused on this box that looked extremely roughly handmade.

Su Mu and Evelyn looked at each other and smiled. Under everyone's teasing, they carefully unwrapped the packaging. The things revealed inside once again caused everyone to fall into a brief silence and... a situation of trying hard to hold back laughter.

It was a device with an even weirder shape, which could be called the pinnacle of "cyber wasteland style." An acrylic board that was probably used as a base, cut unevenly, with a few small, slightly jerky robotic arms fixed on it with hot melt glue, a low-pixel camera removed from old surveillance equipment, and a heart-shaped red LED light that was obviously hand-welded.

The wires were still exposed like a mess, and the solder joints were still as touching as craters. In short, it looked... very "Excellence."

"This... what kind of new invention is this?" Su Mu held back her laughter and asked curiously, her tone without any mockery, only full of curiosity and encouragement.

Excellence suddenly got energetic, his face glowing. He moved the device to the center of the table, connected the power (a small battery box), and began to demonstrate triumphantly. He had Su Mu and Evelyn stand side by side in front of the device, with the camera aimed at their faces.

"Watch carefully!" Excellence, like a magician, pressed a crude button he had designed himself.

The indicator light on the camera lit up, making a slight "buzzing" sound, as if struggling to focus. A few seconds later, when Su Mu and Evelyn cooperated and smiled, the heart-shaped LED light suddenly "popped" and emitted a warm and stable red light!

At the same time, the robotic arms made a "creaking" sound and moved clumsily. One of the robotic arms held a pre-placed, beautifully packaged small candy at its end, tremblingly and slowly moved to stop in front of Su Mu. Then, the device seemed to perform a "reset" and repeated the process, handing another candy to Evelyn.

"It's called the 'Happiness Catcher'!" Excellence announced loudly, his face full of huge sense of achievement, as if he had just demonstrated an epoch-making great invention.

"It took me a long time to make it! I discovered that when Squad Leader smiles, there are special little wrinkles here at the corners of her eyes, like stars! When Sister Evelyn smiles, the dimple on the right is a little deeper than the left!

I wrote a program to let the camera learn to recognize your unique 'happy expressions'! As long as it detects it, this heart-shaped light will light up, representing 'happiness captured'! Then the robotic arm will send a piece of candy! This way... this way I can know when you are truly happy! I... I also want to give you candy to eat!"

This explanation caused the whole auditorium to fall into silence first, and then burst into a burst of irresistible, kind-hearted laughter.

This laughter was not because of mockery, but because they were deeply moved by this extremely clumsy but incredibly sincere intention. The technical level of this device was childish, and its logic was even more peculiar—using such a complex way to complete the action of smiling and handing candy.

But the emotion it contained was so thick and pure. Excellence was using the only way he was good at to try hard to observe, to understand, and to respond to the emotions of the people who gave him the most warmth, and tried to use his own "invention" to repay this warmth and pass on his happiness.

Wang Jianguo looked at this "work" full of childlike fun and warmth, and then looked at Excellence's smile that was clean without a trace of impurities, his heart filled with emotion.

At this moment, he was more firm in his belief: perhaps, guarding this pure beauty and innocent heart that had gone through hardships but still remained was far more important and meaningful than cracking more mysteries of the universe or fighting for higher technological heights. This was the value of all their efforts.

The birthday night came to an end in laughter, sharing cake, and relaxed chatting. Excellence's "Happiness Catcher" undoubtedly became the most popular "star" of the audience, although it made frequent mistakes in subsequent demonstrations—mistaking someone's yawn for a big laugh, or dropping candy on the floor because the robotic arm got stuck—but these small episodes only added more fun and became everyone's kind-hearted joke.

For Su Mu and Evelyn, this candy handed over by the clumsy robotic arm was sweeter than any delicacy in the world. They cherished this unique gift, and also accepted Excellence's unreserved, golden heart.

This birthday party had no expensive gifts, no grand spectacle, but was full of sincere emotions and mutual healing. It symbolized that Excellence was not only continuing to recover intellectually, but also growing vigorously in the emotional world.

He began to not only passively accept love and care, but also learned how to observe, understand, express, and cherish. This growth was a more gratifying gift to all those who guarded him than any technological breakthrough. Although the warm candlelight would go out, the heart fire that was lit would continue to radiate light and heat in the days to come.