Extra 2: My Personal Reflections
Bonus 2: My Personal Reflections
I’m a freshman medical student. My score on the Heilongjiang Gaokao was 634—not high, not low.
In my first year of high school, the COVID-19 pandemic hit hard. While taking online classes at home, I got my first hands-on experience with a modern computer—a Windows 7 system.
I was full of curiosity about the unknown, and this computer opened the door to my enlightenment.
Facing a Windows 7 I had never seen before, I started from scratch. The first computer problem I encountered and wanted to solve was: how to permanently get rid of those desktop ads that filled the screen.
From that moment on, I began searching online for information, step by step teaching myself and understanding… gradually learning what file extensions were, what hidden files were… Throughout my entire first year of high school online classes, I bounced between computer studies and academic subjects, thoroughly enjoying myself.
However, my obsession with computers didn’t affect my grades. I got into the best high school in town, and soon after entering the best class, a Windows 10 laptop appeared by my side.
I was instantly captivated by this Windows 10 operating system. The clean, spacious desktop layout, the lively Start menu, the beautiful and elegant icons, the colorful features… it felt like a divine creation!
I simply couldn’t suppress my intense feelings for Windows. I couldn’t put this Windows 10 machine down. From that moment, the love-hate relationship between me and this computer began.
My parents were afraid it would distract me from my studies. Every time they caught me secretly with the computer, they would fly into a rage. Yet, this couldn’t stop my passion for Windows 10. Even if it caused chaos at home, my knowledge of computers only grew. And my grades only improved (not trying to brag) : )
Facing the heavy academic pressure of high school, I didn’t back down. I navigated between my coursework and the world of computers. While my classmates chatted about Genshin Impact, anime, and Bilibili, I knew nothing about what they were talking about—and I wasn’t interested.
I felt like I was isolated, out of sync with the times, completely immersed in the world of Windows.
Over four years, my method of learning computer knowledge was simple: one word—search.
Whenever I encountered a problem, I immediately “fired” a query at Bing. I asked Bing countless questions, roamed the world of Zhihu answerers, pondered in the realm of Baidu Baike, and struggled to find direction in CSDN articles…
My ability to level up kept improving, and one desire grew stronger and stronger.
I wanted to install a Windows 10 system with my own hands!!!
After reading numerous blog posts from tech experts online, I was filled with passion. I was sure I could do it! Installing a Windows 10 system would be a piece of cake!!
But reality hit me hard for the first time.
It was my 17th birthday. My birthday gift was my first USB drive—a Kingston 64GB USB. I was ecstatic. Holding that USB, I felt like I could see my first PE system.
I picked up the USB, plugged it into the computer, downloaded the WePE toolkit, and installed PE onto the USB. This was the operation I had dreamed of for years. I watched it complete the installation, ready to reboot and enter PE (I didn’t know how to use a virtual machine back then).
Excitedly, I rebooted. After pressing the boot key to enter the UEFI boot menu, I was baffled by what I saw.
There was only one boot option—the original system. Where was the USB boot option? That didn’t seem right?
Helpless, I had to boot into the system. At the time, I had no knowledge of disk partitioning, didn’t know what disk management was, and certainly had no idea about the partition structure of a PE boot drive…
Let me try making the PE boot drive again!
The result was just as merciless.
I made the PE drive 10 times. Ten failures. It felt like a blow to the head. My heart was a mix of emotions. Why? Why could others do this so easily, but I couldn’t? Whose fault was this? Why?
I even thought I was destined never to see a PE system.
Turns out, it wasn’t my fault.
At school, I saw a USB drive that looked exactly like mine.
The only difference: that USB had a Kingston logo on the back, while mine didn’t!!!!
It dawned on me. A ==counterfeit== had ruined me. The reason I couldn’t make a PE drive was that the USB was fake!!! I angrily threw it into the trash.
Another year passed. Another birthday. I got another USB drive: an aigo 128GB.
This one couldn’t be fake, right? I thought to myself as I held it.
First thing: make a PE system!
And I succeeded.
This was the first time in my life I saw my own PE system. What a bittersweet reunion!
However, I didn’t linger in PE for long. After seeing my PE, I immediately shut down.
There were only a few months left before the Gaokao!
I was still afraid it would distract me from studying, still afraid my parents would yell if they saw.
I made a silent vow: I will install a Windows 10 with my own hands after the Gaokao!
In the countless days and nights that followed, I stayed away from the computer. Preparing for the Gaokao, nothing could stop me.
But Windows was like my lover, occasionally tugging at my heart. For a while, every night I dreamed of installing Windows, dreaming of all kinds of installation failures (which later actually happened in real life).
On June 8th, the Gaokao ended. I rushed home. I instantly forgot all about the English exam I had just taken.
I picked up the USB, entered the long-missed PE, and smiled knowingly.
Following the memories from my dreams, I began installing the system skillfully. When I rebooted and entered the OOBE setup…
“A bosom friend afar brings a distant land near.”
“Hey, long time no see!”
What a bittersweet reunion!
I almost cried. I had waited three years for this day.
From 6 PM to 7 PM—just one hour—but it was three years of longing, three years of accumulation.
No one understood how joyful I was inside. No one around me was interested in Windows. My only companion was myself.
I continued to dig deeper.
But when I started researching BCD editing, VHD systems, and wimboot booting, I found a problem: there was less and less relevant information online. Countless searches yielded the same results. Many of my questions couldn’t be solved by looking up information anymore.
That’s when ChatGPT emerged. I seized the opportunity and started asking ChatGPT questions. ChatGPT 3.5 often gave me wrong answers—his instructions were frequently incorrect or incomplete. But I patiently kept asking.
I gradually turned to ChatGPT. With less and less knowledge available on the internet, I had to ask ChatGPT for insights. Through ChatGPT, I learned advanced topics like VHD and wimboot.
After a three-hour conversation with ChatGPT, I finally roughly understood the relationship between BCD files, UEFI firmware, and EFI programs. The sense of achievement was overwhelming.
Aside from a few sites like the Vision Forum, there were almost no learning resources—especially no systematic, comprehensive technical articles.
At that moment, an idea struck me: once I’ve learned enough, I will write systematic articles to introduce these technologies, so that Chinese people with the same interests can learn various Windows operations without too much effort!
So, I created a public account and started hand-crafting the articles you see now.
The road to success is always fraught with difficulties. This is what teachers and parents often say to us.
And what I want to say is: the road to success is indeed fraught with difficulties!!!
I am a doctor—a doctor who heals not only people but also computers.
You might ask, why didn’t you study computer science?
Because I hate studying math, just like you hate chewing on feces……