Short, Light, Free

"It"s what I"m here for, don"t mention it," I said humbly before turning around to leave .

There was a tall building outside of the museum, and my office was on the extreme left corner of the first floor .

My name is Lu Qiao, and I am the curator of Blue Wave Museum .

I"ve been working in the museum for 12 years and have been the curator for three .

My job was to explain our nation"s history to these children .

Blue Wave occupies 12,061 square meters .

It doesn"t sound small but when compared to the size of our planet, it is extremely insignificant .

Blue Wave is just a country, and there are over a thousand like it on the planet .

The earthquake was the cause of separation, but it also led to the constant development of nations .

The population severely declined, which meant that resources became ample .

Our mainland, vast and boundless, was now surrounded by the ocean .

Our ancestors learned to unite, which resulted in an oligarchy .

These political regimes slowly led to our nation today; progress in science did not change the outcome either .

Nations had arms and equipment but there weren"t wars or conflicts since none could guarantee common development if they were to gain control of two or more nations .

Theologians saw the earthquake as a punishment from G.o.d, and people were afraid that war would lead to another one that could potentially wipe out the planet .

What everyone had to do was to ensure their nation"s continuation with their original resources .

A thousand nations carried countless verbal and written languages and a thousand different lifestyles .

Even with the invention of steamships and airplanes, the impression that mainland China was our homeland did not change .

In terms of our market and resources, we could be considered a closed country .

There wasn"t any way of concealing things . For example, if a neighboring nation wanted to construct a big building, surrounding countries would be able to witness and perhaps attempt to duplicate, or even jeer and celebrate, when the nation"s construction collapsed .

Blue Wave was just a tiny nation among the thousands; it was visibly weak in all areas .

Of course, no nation is perfect, and Blue Wave gave up everything in order to increase its quality of life .

As mentioned, Blue Wave possessed the best water source on Earth .

There were 63 kindergartens, 43 elementary schools, 27 middle schools… these were schools I had to service daily as a curator .

The kindergartens usually bring more than one batch of students, and I am in charge of explaining our nation"s history to them . The staffs of the museum would then bring them into the exhibition centers . It"s been this way for 12 years .

Almost all the students were aware of my existence by my third year as the curator .

School teachers never failed to bring their students here, just as how every citizen of Blue Wave would be able to sing the national anthem .

Students usually visited the museum more than once, the first time during kindergarten, second during elementary school and finally in middle school .  

I started working in the museum at 22 and worked my way up to where I am today . I am pa.s.sionate about my job .

My museum is situated in the center of Blue Wave, and everything inside explained the differences between Blue Wave and other nations .

I was in my office, filling a gla.s.s with tap water .

I raised the gla.s.s toward the window and let the light shine through .

It was clear that there was no impurity in the water at all .

I could see the dust in the air falling onto the water surface .

"Blue Wave"s the greatest," I cheered before finishing the gla.s.s of water, not wanting to contaminate it further . When that was done, I wiped the gla.s.s with a towel on my desk .

Someone knocked on the door .

"Come in," I said, still wiping the gla.s.s .

"There"s no need, Curator . Another batch of middle schoolers is here . The machine"s already been reset . You have five more minutes to rest," the a.s.sistant informed .

"Got it," I answered .

I aimed the gla.s.s toward the window again to make sure that it was completely clean .

I put the towel back on the desk, inverted the cup, and placed it on top to prevent dust from collecting inside . I wanted only the purest water .

I took a moment to appreciate being able to lead such a carefree life in Blue Wave .

It was time to work . I exited the museum and saw the students waiting patiently for me .

My a.s.sistant came forward to hand me the earpiece and microphone, which I quickly put on .

I walked toward the students and cleared my throat . "Sorry to keep you waiting, students . I"m the curator of this museum and my name is Lu Qiao . Today, I"ll be introducing…"

My life consisted of attending to a few batches of students a day, knocking off, returning home to prepare dinner, and finally lying down on my bed, wondering if I would meet familiar faces the next day at work .

It might sound dull to some but I absolutely loved what I was doing .

One night, I was awakened by my phone buzzing .

It was 2 AM .

It was an incoming call from my a.s.sistant .

He"d never called me this late before, but I answered anyway .

"Curator, are you there?" he greeted happily .

"Did something happen at the museum?" I asked immediately . There couldn"t be any other reasons for him to call me at this time .

"The mineral water factory is in trouble," he answered .

"What has that got to do with you and me? Why are you calling me?" I asked, confused . It seemed serious and I wondered if something had happened to the water that was our nation"s pride .

"The factory director committed suicide last night . "

"What?"

"I heard that yellow mud appeared in the western region . Something about a tube being connected wrongly . Staff"s mistake, but the director felt guilty and chose to end his life . "

"Again, what has that got to do with me?"

"The museum can do without a curator, but the factory can"t do without a director . It"s very important to our country, and I received a call and was told to inform you that you"re going to take over the director"s role starting tomorrow . "

It 39 s what I 39 m here for, don 39 t mention it, I said humbly before turning around to leave . There was a tall building outside of the museum, and my office was on the extreme left corner of the first floor . My name is Lu Qiao, and I am the curator of Blue Wave Museum . I 39 ve been working in the museum for 12 years and have been the curator for three . My job was to explain our nation 39 s history to these children . Blue Wave occupies 12,061 square meters . It doesn 39 t sound small but when compared to the size of our planet, it is extremely insignificant . Blue Wave is just a country, and there are over a thousand like it on the planet . The earthquake was the cause of separation, but it also led to the constant development of nations . The population severely declined, which meant that resources became ample . Our mainland, vast and boundless, was now surrounded by the ocean . Our ancestors learned to unite, which resulted in an oligarchy . These political regimes slowly led to our nation today progress in science did not change the outcome either . Nations had arms and equipment but there weren 39 t wars or conflicts since none could guarantee common development if they were to gain control of two or more nations . Theologians saw the earthquake as a punishment from G.o.d, and people were afraid that war would lead to another one that could potentially wipe out the planet . What everyone had to do was to ensure their nation 39 s continuation with their original resources . A thousand nations carried countless verbal and written languages and a thousand different lifestyles . Even with the invention of steamships and airplanes, the impression that mainland China was our homeland did not change . In terms of our market and resources, we could be considered a closed country . There wasn 39 t any way of concealing things . For example, if a neighboring nation wanted to construct a big building, surrounding countries would be able to witness and perhaps attempt to duplicate, or even jeer and celebrate, when the nation 39 s construction collapsed . Blue Wave was just a tiny nation among the thousands it was visibly weak in all areas . Of course, no nation is perfect, and Blue Wave gave up everything in order to increase its quality of life . As mentioned, Blue Wave possessed the best water source on Earth . There were 63 kindergartens, 43 elementary schools, 27 middle schools these were schools I had to service daily as a curator . The kindergartens usually bring more than one batch of students, and I am in charge of explaining our nation 39 s history to them . The staffs of the museum would then bring them into the exhibition centers . It 39 s been this way for 12 years . Almost all the students were aware of my existence by my third year as the curator . School teachers never failed to bring their students here, just as how every citizen of Blue Wave would be able to sing the national anthem . Students usually visited the museum more than once, the first time during kindergarten, second during elementary school and finally in middle school . I started working in the museum at 22 and worked my way up to where I am today . I am pa.s.sionate about my job . My museum is situated in the center of Blue Wave, and everything inside explained the differences between Blue Wave and other nations . I was in my office, filling a gla.s.s with tap water . I raised the gla.s.s toward the window and let the light shine through . It was clear that there was no impurity in the water at all . I could see the dust in the air falling onto the water surface . Blue Wave 39 s the greatest, I cheered before finishing the gla.s.s of water, not wanting to contaminate it further . When that was done, I wiped the gla.s.s with a towel on my desk . Someone knocked on the door . Come in, I said, still wiping the gla.s.s . There 39 s no need, Curator . Another batch of middle schoolers is here . The machine 39 s already been reset . You have five more minutes to rest, the a.s.sistant informed . Got it, I answered . I aimed the gla.s.s toward the window again to make sure that it was completely clean . I put the towel back on the desk, inverted the cup, and placed it on top to prevent dust from collecting inside . I wanted only the purest water . I took a moment to appreciate being able to lead such a carefree life in Blue Wave . It was time to work . I exited the museum and saw the students waiting patiently for me . My a.s.sistant came forward to hand me the earpiece and microphone, which I quickly put on . I walked toward the students and cleared my throat . Sorry to keep you waiting, students . I 39 m the curator of this museum and my name is Lu Qiao . Today, I 39 ll be introducing My life consisted of attending to a few batches of students a day, knocking off, returning home to prepare dinner, and finally lying down on my bed, wondering if I would meet familiar faces the next day at work . It might sound dull to some but I absolutely loved what I was doing . One night, I was awakened by my phone buzzing . It was 2 AM . It was an incoming call from my a.s.sistant . He 39 d never called me this late before, but I answered anyway . Curator, are you there he greeted happily . Did something happen at the museum I asked immediately . There couldn 39 t be any other reasons for him to call me at this time . The mineral water factory is in trouble, he answered . What has that got to do with you and me Why are you calling me I asked, confused . It seemed serious and I wondered if something had happened to the water that was our nation 39 s pride . The factory director committed suicide last night . What I heard that yellow mud appeared in the western region . Something about a tube being connected wrongly . Staff 39 s mistake, but the director felt guilty and chose to end his life . Again, what has that got to do with me The museum can do without a curator, but the factory can 39 t do without a director . It 39 s very important to our country, and I received a call and was told to inform you that you 39 re going to take over the director 39 s role starting tomorrow .