Chapter 1: What's the Point of Class?

March, 2007.

Although it was early spring, the drizzling rain outside and the lingering chill of winter made it feel as if the cold season still held its grip.

Inside Class One of Jinling Agricultural Middle School, a slightly dilapidated classroom echoed with the sounds of youthful horseplay.

Lu Shixian gazed out the window, his eyes profound. But the view through the glass was a blurry haze, nothing clear to be seen.

Only upon closer inspection would one notice four digits he had heavily traced on the glass with his finger: 2007.

Though he found it hard to believe, Lu Shixian had already accepted the fact.

That's right. He had been reborn.

He vaguely remembered being in a laboratory at a second-tier university, serving as the school's top "workhorse." He should have been conducting an experiment analyzing tomato yield simulations and cost-benefit analysis for southern regions using the DSSAT-SUBSTOR model.

But now, as he looked around, he found himself in a simple classroom. His complex gaze swept over the youthful, smiling faces that seemed so out of place with his own state of mind.

He couldn't tell if the feeling in his heart was joy or regret. He looked up at the bright red banner hanging on the white classroom wall.

"Final 100-Day Sprint to Victory in the High School Entrance Exam!"

So, he was back to this day in his third year of middle school. As Lu Shixian stared, tears began to stream silently down his face.

In his previous life, he was the most outstanding top student at Jinling Agricultural Middle School. For three years, he had never placed anything but first in the grade, solidifying his status as the ultimate study god through one exam after another.

Logically, his grades should have earned him a recommendation for direct admission to Jinling No. 1 High School. But his three years of flawless victories had blinded him.

Jinling Agricultural Middle School was just a rural school established specifically for the children of migrant workers.

In 2007, the gap in resources between urban and rural education was like an insurmountable chasm.

Lu Shixian still remembered his prideful self stubbornly refusing his homeroom teacher's kind offer, choosing instead to apply for the Affiliated High School of Jinling University. Just getting into this school was a stepping stone to Jinling University, one of the nation's top ten universities, and countless of its students went on to the country's most elite institutions, Yanqing University and Shuimu University.

One could say that the Affiliated High School was a golden ticket to a prestigious university. His ambition at the time was not misplaced, but the problem was he had forgotten the harsh reality that talent from a poor background rarely rises.

The result, naturally, was failure. Although his score was far above the cutoff for Jinling No. 1 High School, the admission slots for students from Jinling Agricultural Middle School were already full.

With no connections whatsoever, he could only choose Jinling No. 3 High School, a dumping ground for underachievers.

It was a cradle for second and third-tier universities. Over the years, only a handful of students with special talents had managed to get into a few first-tier universities, and even then, you could count them on one hand.

Lu Shixian gave a bitter smile. He recalled how, even in the lax and poor learning environment of Jinling No. 3 High School, he had managed to get into Jinling Agricultural University through studying diligently from dawn till dusk. It hadn't been easy at all.

"Could it be fate's design, bringing me back to this fork in the road of my past life?" Lu Shixian murmured to himself.

Just as he was lost in thought, he felt a gentle tug on his long sleeve. A clean white handkerchief was offered to him.

At the same time, a sweet, lively female voice reached his ear.

"Have you been studying too much? Is something wrong up here? You're crying one moment and laughing the next. I heard that good students can easily turn into bookworms!"

Lu Shixian turned his head and was met with a face that was slightly tanned but no less beautiful.

Chen Yiyi, his deskmate in the third year of middle school.

As Lu Shixian's memories jumped a decade into the future, the image of this shy yet somewhat outgoing girl slowly overlapped with that of the gentle, elegant, and beautiful counselor at Jinling University.

Lu Shixian sighed and shook his head. He took the handkerchief from Chen Yiyi's hand and wiped away the tear stains on his face. The tension that had gripped his body, whether from excitement or nervousness, finally eased.

He smelled the faint, fresh scent on the handkerchief and looked at Chen Yiyi's eyes, which held a gaze tinged with admiration and worry.

Lu Shixian chuckled lightly, then turned back and wiped the neatly written "2007" from the window. He spoke seriously, "You're right. I'm just a bookworm."

With that, he returned the handkerchief to her.

"By the way, it smells nice. I like it. Thanks!"

Hearing this, the girl's face filled with surprise. A blush quickly spread across her cheeks. She hurriedly pushed the books on her desk into a pile between her and Lu Shixian, as if drawing a clear line between them, like the Chu River and Han Border.

"Is this what youth is like? It's quite wonderful. A pity I didn't cherish it back then."

Seeing the girl's reaction, he laced his hands behind his head, leaned against the wall, and stuck a pen from his desk into his mouth. He sighed inwardly, a lazy air instantly enveloping him.

Immediately, surprised glances came from all around. In their eyes, the school's golden boy had never acted like this. He was always buried in his studies, solving problems like a machine. When had he ever taken a break, let alone made such a frivolous gesture?

But this surprise was quickly dispelled by the ringing of the class bell. One by one, the students folded their hands on their desks and sat up straight.

In 2007, education had not yet been heavily influenced by foreign cultures. As children of migrant workers and students in the honors class, they were all as obedient as lambs.

Only Lu Shixian, accustomed to the open educational style of university in his past life, had yet to get into character. He propped his head up with one hand and stared quietly at the class schedule in the top right corner of the blackboard.

"Chinese, Math, Math, English; PE, Physics, Biology, History; Chinese, English, English."

It was just as he remembered. The golden hours of the morning were all core subjects, with an extra period rotating daily. The afternoon was a mix of PE, physics, history, and biology, with one core subject. As for the evening self-study session, it was more flexible, depending on which teacher was available.

He glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. It pointed to 11:15 AM, the last period of the morning.

"It's Teacher Wang. It's really been a long time!"

The image of a gentle, meticulous, and capable woman with short hair appeared in his mind. Lu Shixian sighed softly.

Teacher Wang was both the English teacher and the homeroom teacher for Class One. She was also the kindest and most influential teacher in his life, more so than even his "boss" supervisor in his past life.

He had been too ashamed to visit her in high school. By the time he was a graduate student and returned to Jinling Agricultural Middle School, he heard she had been transferred to teach at an elementary school in another county.

Later, after being beaten down by society, he finally understood why. He, who had carried the school's immense expectations, had ended up in the underachiever's camp at No. 3 High School. The school's reprimands, the gossip from colleagues, her own guilt—how could this gentle woman have borne it all?

Chapter 2: Reacquainted with Wang Chunya

Click, clack, click...

The crisp sound of high heels echoed from the hallway. Lu Shixian's eyes were fixed on the doorway.

Finally, a young woman with neat short hair, wearing a smart black blazer, walked gracefully to the center of the podium, holding her lesson planner with a faint smile on her lips.

Judged by Lu Shixian's aesthetic standards—which had been inadvertently raised after being poisoned by all sorts of plastic surgery and makeup wizardry in his past life—she wasn't exceptionally beautiful. In a crowd, she might even seem ordinary.

But in Lu Shixian's eyes now, it was as if her smile held a light, capturing his full attention.

"Class, in one hundred days, you will face the most critical test of your middle school careers. The results of this exam will determine which high school you attend, which will then determine your university, and ultimately, your life. Please cherish these last one hundred days and review everything you have learned."

"After discussion among the third-year teaching and research group, we have decided to hold the first preliminary mock exam next week. Based on the results, we will invite your parents to join you for a 100-day pledge ceremony..."

Her words continued, but Lu Shixian's mind had already drifted far away.

He stared blankly at her familiar yet unfamiliar face, a whirlwind of emotions stirring in his heart. Everything he had experienced with her in his past life flashed before his eyes.

Though he had never seen it himself, Lu Shixian could almost imagine, from the smile in her eyes now, the look of disappointment and heartache that must have been in them in his past life.

"This time, I will not let you down," Lu Shixian clenched his fists, making a silent vow.

His chaotic thoughts were only interrupted by the bell signaling the end of class.

Suddenly, a voice, somewhat stern but still gentle, sounded beside him.

"Lu Shixian, come to my office after lunch."

Lu Shixian snapped his head up. Wang Chunya had, at some point, walked over to his desk.

It’s just like before. Even after I spent the whole class spacing out, you're still too gentle to scold me in front of everyone.

Or perhaps you're worried I'll be late to the cafeteria and have to wait in a long line?

Lu Shixian looked into her clear eyes, which held a hint of concern, and his heart softened further. He pushed his chair back and stood up calmly.

"No need to wait. Let's go now."

As the top "workhorse" in his previous life, second only to his boss in the research group, he had naturally developed a certain aura of authority.

Hearing Lu Shixian's decisive, unquestionable tone, Wang Chunya raised a delicate eyebrow and frowned slightly. She never expected her star student to speak to her this way.

Throughout his first and second years, he had never voiced an opinion that contradicted hers. He was always so well-behaved.

Why does he suddenly sound like the grade director? How is his presence stronger than mine? Is he the teacher, or am I?

Wang Chunya was utterly baffled, but her gentle nature won out, and she agreed. She thought to herself that if she delayed his lunch, she would just take him to the teachers' canteen for a special meal.

Of course, this might have more to do with the special treatment afforded to a top student than her personality. If it were any other student, Wang Chunya's reaction might have been very different; she would have sent them off to eat long ago.

Lu Shixian then followed closely behind her to the third-year teachers' office.

The office was less than a hundred meters from their classroom, converted from a spare classroom. It was less an office and more a communal workspace, set up specifically to serve the graduating classes, especially the honors classes.

Given Jinling Agricultural Middle School's status and the economic conditions of the time, individual offices for teachers were out of the question. All the teachers of the grade worked together in one room.

"Teacher Wang hates the smell of smoke from the old chain-smokers. I remember her desk should be by the window in the middle, where the ventilation is best. And she loves plants. The one with the orchid must be hers," Lu Shixian had already located her desk before even stepping inside.

At that moment, some teachers who had no classes or had finished teaching were beginning to leave for lunch.

In an office like this, where you saw everyone every day, all the teachers were very familiar with one another.

Back then, the relationships between teachers at Jinling Agricultural Middle School were very harmonious, unlike the backstabbing he witnessed at Jinling No. 3 High School.

A female teacher of about forty with streaks of gray at her temples looked at Wang Chunya and Lu Shixian and greeted them, "Teacher Wang, not going to eat yet? You usually call in the underperforming students for talks. Isn't this your star pupil?"

Lu Shixian seemed to have a faint memory of her. She was likely Teacher Zhou, the homeroom teacher of Class Two, head of the Chinese language department, and also his Chinese teacher. He couldn't recall anything else about her.

"That's right, Little Wang. Lu Shixian is our school's brightest prospect. I won't allow you to make him cry," a gruff male voice came from the side. The speaker was a dark-faced man with a beer belly and a slightly receding hairline.

Judging by the physique, Lu Shixian knew who it was without having to think.

Zhou Wen, head of the third-year academic affairs group, head of the math department, and the math teacher for both honors classes.

Hearing his words, Lu Shixian pursed his lips and grumbled inwardly.

Wang Chunya was always soft-spoken, whether she was talking or teaching; she never lost her temper.

Weren't you, old Black-faced Wen, the one who always did the scolding and yelling? In fact, if any student in the classroom went home crying, even a delicate little girl, it was definitely the work of this Black-faced Wen.

Hearing their teasing, Wang Chunya smiled faintly. "Of course not. With the 100-day pledge ceremony coming up, I just called him over for a little chat."

"Well, watch the time. Don't take too long. If you're late, just bring him up to the second floor to eat."

With that, Zhou Wen led the other teachers out of the office.

Wang Chunya acknowledged him and then sat down at her desk.

When she turned around, she found that Lu Shixian had already found a stool and sat down before her, looking around curiously.

He didn't look like someone who had been called in for a talk at all; he looked more like a tourist. Had puberty hit him hard? Why had this child changed so much?

For a moment, she was both annoyed and amused.

However, she didn't forget the matter at hand and asked.

"Lu Shixian, why were you so distracted today? You barely absorbed a single concept during the fourth period."

According to Wang Chunya's expectations, Lu Shixian would now lower his head and silently reflect on his actions, just as he always did.

But what happened next surprised her.

Chapter 3: A Race Against Time

The reserved boy from his middle school days would certainly have reacted that way. But now, his young body housed the soul of a twenty-five-year-old. He was no longer the boy he once was.

In fact, upon hearing her question, Lu Shixian had anticipated it and had already prepared his speech.

"Socially necessary labor time is the amount of labor time required to produce an article under the normal conditions of production, and with the average degree of skill and intensity prevalent at the time. I believe, given my proficiency with the concepts you taught this morning, it's no longer necessary for me to expend that much labor time on them."

As he finished, Wang Chunya's red lips parted slightly, her eyes filled with disbelief.

"You... where did you read all this?"

Lu Shixian shrugged, casually blaming the political science teacher who had only taught them until the second year.

"In the second year, our politics class mentioned an introduction to the basic principles of Marxism. I found it interesting, so I looked into it a bit."

Although Wang Chunya was half-believing, half-doubting his explanation, she was skeptical about his claim of mastering the material.

If it were content they had already learned in the first or second year, she could understand. But her fourth-period class was on a reading comprehension passage, and some of the concepts were beyond the curriculum. Many of the words wouldn't even be taught until the first year of high school.

After teaching him for two years, she had a good grasp of Lu Shixian's academic level.

His ability to rank first in the grade for three years was partly due to his intelligence and aptitude, which were indeed unmatched among his peers at the school. But he wasn't a genius; his achievements were the result of constant hard work.

Barring any accidents, his grades made him a shoo-in for Jinling No. 1 High School, a top-tier high school in the city.

But now, her star student was starting to get arrogant, which was not a good sign.

At this thought, Wang Chunya frowned. Seeing his confident expression, she felt it would be inappropriate to criticize him directly.

Her years of experience as a homeroom teacher told her that with teenagers, guidance and encouragement were key. It was best to let them realize their own mistakes, and crucial to avoid triggering a rebellious attitude.

As she wondered how to get Lu Shixian to be more grounded, she suddenly remembered the upcoming preliminary mock exam. Her brow gradually relaxed.

"Alright, how about this? If you can still get first place in this mock exam, I'll allow you to have free activity time during English class, as long as you don't disturb the other students."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian's eyes lit up.

"It's a deal! Teacher Wang, I think this could be applied more broadly, not just for English," Lu Shixian immediately saw the broader application.

Hearing this, Wang Chunya frowned again. She was becoming increasingly speechless at Lu Shixian's wild ideas.

Why wasn't he this audacious in the past two years?

But the original intent of her proposal remained. If he failed, it made no difference whether it was for one subject or six.

As for the possibility of him succeeding, she truly wasn't worried.

The only thing to consider was whether the other teachers would agree. She could only make decisions for her own English class.

Thinking of this, Wang Chunya rubbed her temples and said, "I'll mention it to your other teachers. I can't promise they'll agree."

"Haha, just mentioning it is enough. If they don't agree, I'll negotiate with them myself."

With that, before she could reply, Lu Shixian quickly found an excuse and bid her farewell.

By the time Wang Chunya realized what had happened, Lu Shixian was long gone.

Back in the classroom, Lu Shixian was so happy he even started humming a little tune.

He had been worrying about how to convince all his teachers to let him study high school material in advance. Although he was a graduate student in his past life, possessing knowledge far beyond his current age, he hadn't studied basic education for many years. It would be a lie to say there was no chance of him crashing and burning. If he really did fail, he'd be a disgrace to reborn protagonists everywhere.

For him, much of the middle school content could be answered with common sense alone. But high school material was different. His undergraduate major was in agriculture, and his graduate studies were in crop genetics and breeding. Besides knowledge related to those fields, he had long forgotten everything else from high school.

And most importantly, he didn't have a System.

That's right. As a reborn individual, half a day had passed with no sign of one.

Did this mean he didn't deserve a rebirth cheat?

Of course, this didn't mean he had no advantages. If he chose to go into business instead of academia this time, he could do better than most people by leveraging his memories and experience of the next fifteen years, capitalizing on the information gap and policy trends.

But he had a deep-seated conviction, an obsession that pushed him toward an academic path.

Even when he ended up at the underachiever's haven, No. 3 High School, he had fought tooth and nail to get into Jinling Agricultural University.

Even though Jinling Agricultural University was a second-tier institution, he had resolutely walked the path of academia and even made some achievements along the way.

And if he was to walk the academic path, having suffered so much in his past life, he deeply understood the importance of a good platform.
Unless you can revolutionize the industry itself, to some extent, the prestige of your platform matters even more than your ability.

The level of projects you can apply for and the funding you can secure are directly related to the prestige of your platform.

Even with academic papers, whether domestic or international, if you're from a prestigious university, editors will look upon your work more favorably, perhaps even giving you more chances, suggesting only minor edits. But if you're from some lesser-known local key school, then sorry, it's major revisions or a complete rewrite.

He'd had the door slammed in his face far too many times.

Now he had a chance to choose again, and the only price was his grades.

And as for grades, honestly, with his advanced study methods and forward-thinking perspective, all he needed to stand out was time.

What he lacked was precisely that—time. He truly had no time to waste on relearning junior high knowledge.

As someone who had been reborn, he naturally knew the source of Wang Chunya's confidence in their bet.

This was also why he was confident the other teachers would agree to the deal.

Because he remembered clearly that Jinling Agricultural Middle School's first placement test was a joint exam held with five other junior high schools in Jinling City. It was only later, as the High School Entrance Exam drew closer, that the school decided to rank students internally to avoid crushing their confidence.

And he still remembered the results of that exam vividly; he had never forgotten.

The impression was so deep that with just a moment's reflection, he recalled all the results.

Chapter 4: A Major Interlude

Chinese: 105, Math: 118, English: 111, Physics: 95, Biology: 100, History: 80.

Chinese, Math, and English were out of 120 points. Physics, Biology, and History were out of 100.

It's worth mentioning here that Jinling City's 2007 High School Entrance Exam used a graded point system.

A score of 110 to 120 earned 9 points.

105 to 109 earned 8 points.

100 to 104 earned 7 points.

95 to 99 earned 6 points.

There was no need to mention the lower tiers, as Lu Shixian had never sunk to that level.

For the High School Entrance Exam ranking, only the combined 27 graded points from Chinese, Math, and English, plus 3 points from the physical fitness test, counted towards the total of thirty points.

The scores in Physics, Biology, and History were used as tie-breakers when students had the same number of graded points.

This was why Chinese, Math, and English always occupied the prime slots in the timetables of Jinling's middle schools.

Obviously, this ranking model was incredibly unfair. The feeling of painstakingly scoring a perfect 120 only to be worth the same as someone who casually scored 110 was easy to imagine.

Therefore, this ranking system was abolished a year later. In his past life, this system had royally screwed Lu Shixian over.

Of course, there was no need to dwell on the past. All it proved was that he wasn't a true academic genius, unable to ignore any test or challenge.

This score was actually the result of him performing exceptionally well, nearly ten points higher than his average. The distribution of his scores also fell within reasonable graded point brackets.

Converted to graded points, he had 26.

The joint placement test didn't include the physical fitness score, so he was just one point shy of a perfect score.

But at the time, dozens of students in all of Jinling had achieved a perfect 27 points, not to mention the top performers among those with 26 points.

Thus, his final rank was 68th in the city.

That's right. The student who had been first in his school for three consecutive years didn't even make the top fifty in the joint placement test.

This result might have been good enough for others, but how could his proud and arrogant self accept that?

He remembered falling into a slump for a while over it, only slowly recovering after Wang Chunya helped him through it.

At Lu Shixian's level back then, taking first place in this joint test was an utterly impossible task.

And that was the source of Wang Chunya's confidence in their bet.

Thinking of this, Lu Shixian shook his head with a light chuckle.

"Too bad I'm not the same person I was back then."

Lu Shixian lowered his head in thought as he slowly walked back to the classroom.

But before he could enter, someone blocked his path. A slender, graceful figure cast a long shadow in the sunlight.

Her voice reached him before he saw her.

"Hmph! Don't get cocky, Lu Shixian. You've even started slacking off in class. I'll definitely beat you in this placement test."

He looked up. On her blue and white school uniform, the undulating curves were like buds about to bloom. Beneath the loose-fitting blue trousers, her long legs were accentuated. Her smooth, glossy black hair was just a few centimeters short of her shoulders, thanks to school regulations.

"Big," Lu Shixian muttered under his breath, his gaze flicking past her to her face.

Gently curved, willow-leaf brows, fair skin, a delicate, straight nose, and pale pink cherry lips. Even compared to the so-called campus belles and department beauties of his past life, none could match her natural charm.

It seemed he had really missed a lot of the scenery along the way.

A familiar name surfaced in his mind.

Xu Youmeng.

If Xu Youmeng were to make a list of the villains she hated most, Lu Shixian would undoubtedly be at the very top.

Because from the first to the third year of junior high, she had only ever managed to take second place, the so-called eternal number two.

People only ever remember first place; no one cares who comes in second.

But this rule didn't apply to her.

In the common parlance of his past life, she was the class belle of Class Three-One, and also the goddess for all the boys at Jinling Agricultural Middle School.

But that didn't include Lu Shixian. In his eyes, there were only scores.

Xu Youmeng received no special treatment from him, only distance, because she threatened his position.

For the socially awkward him, indifference was his best weapon against Xu Youmeng.

Perhaps back then, he had truly embodied the mantra: with no woman in your heart, you become a god at your exams.

It was hard to believe that a private rural junior high that primarily enrolled the children of migrant workers could produce such a girl.

And at this moment, a hint of confusion appeared on the girl's bright and lovely face.

"What's big? Lu Shixian, what on earth are you talking about?"

Lu Shixian smiled and, without warning, leaned closer to the girl before him.

"I said, if nothing unexpected happens, I won't be paying attention in any of the upcoming classes. Your chances of beating me this time are very high. Congratulations!"

With that, he smoothly pulled away and left.

Xu Youmeng: ??!!

Lu Shixian's whisper still lingered by her ear. The heat of his breath brushed against the shell of her delicate ear, and a blush crept up her fair face.

For the first time, a ripple disturbed Xu Youmeng's calm heart. Her slender, pale hand clenched unconsciously as she looked up in surprise at the back of the boy who had once been so cold, murmuring, "What's with him! He's so weird."

The matter with Xu Youmeng was just an interlude for him.

Returning to his seat, he soon heard the bell for the afternoon nap.

But at this moment, almost all the students continued as they were, pens still in hand, locked in a difficult struggle with their "Five-Year High School Entrance Exam, Three-Year Mock Tests" or "Four-Round Review for the High School Entrance Exam Mathematics."

But what Lu Shixian did next made everyone look as if they'd seen a ghost.

He was seen slowly putting all the books on his desk into the drawer, then he lay his head down and became still.

Beside him, Chen Yiyi could barely hold her pen steady, staring at her deskmate as if he were an alien.

Xu Youmeng, who was in the same row but several seats away, cast a bewildered look in his direction.

The entire class exchanged glances, and the classroom fell so silent it was as if even breathing had stopped.

"What's going on?"

"The top student is actually taking a nap today???"

"I noticed he wasn't focused ever since English class this morning. Did he study too late last night and wear himself out?"

Soon, even the teacher patrolling by the window cast a strange glance his way.

But in the end, no one disturbed him, and he paid no mind to these odd looks.

This was the privilege of a top student.

It was no wonder his classmates were so surprised. Working overtime during the afternoon nap was a habit he had cultivated for three years of junior high.

To them, someone more outstanding than you working even harder than you was enough to make them admire Lu Shixian from the bottom of their hearts, overlooking his eccentric personality.

In their youth, they were full of energy. The trend of the entire class not taking afternoon naps was single-handedly started by him.

At first, the teachers made a big fuss about it, but after some tests, they found that the students' grades had actually improved slightly. So, they reluctantly turned a blind eye.

And now, the originator of this trend had entered the land of dreams.

Chapter 5: Lu Shixian - Reconnecting

The wind gathered, the clouds broke, and the rain had just cleared. The sun's reflection returned to the lake, warm and bright once more.

When he awoke, the sudden downpour had ceased, and the spring sunlight lingered gently.

The culprit that woke him was the feathery touch of a paintbrush gliding across his cheek.

"The sun's out! Teacher Lin told us to get ready for physical training," Chen Yiyi explained, a little nervously, seeing that she had woken him.

Lu Shixian quickly scanned his surroundings, then stretched out with a long yawn.

Thank God, this wasn't a dream.

The nervousness on Chen Yiyi's face, the sighs of the students around him.

All of it was real, unfolding before his eyes.

An unconscious grin spread across Lu Shixian's face. He spoke as gently as he could, "Thank you, little classmate Yiyi."

As expected, a blush spread rapidly across her face, seeming to tint even the cute peach fuzz on her cheeks.

In the end, all that was left in the classroom was the sight of her quickly fleeing back.

Lu Shixian raised his hand, looking at the youthful lines on his palm, then clenched it into a tight fist.

"Physical fitness test, huh? Sorry."

"This time, I won't let you be the stumbling block on my path forward."

In 2007, education was far less rigid than it was in his past life.

For example, the small lake next to the school's sports field was their playground.

Basking in the warm but not glaring sunlight, feeling the gentle spring breeze that skimmed across the lake's surface.

Standing in the crowd, the coarse voice of the gym teacher, like a cannon blast, rang in his ears.

But Lu Shixian didn't find it jarring at all; instead, he found it exceptionally pleasant.

"All of you are students from Class One. Compared to the other classes I teach, your academic performance is outstanding. But that is precisely why you need to build up your physical fitness."

"The physical fitness test is worth a full three points on the High School Entrance Exam. With tens of thousands of candidates in the city, a one-point difference can mean a gap of several hundred ranks. I don't need to tell you how important these three points are."

"I hope that in these last hundred-plus days, you will all train seriously and ensure you get these three easy points."

Lu Shixian looked at the determined expressions around him and couldn't help but think that it was a waste for Cannon Lin not to be a politics teacher.

Unfortunately, his younger self had been a bit too self-righteous.

Before he could continue his musings, Cannon Lin had already blown his whistle and shouted a command.

"Alright, everyone, attention! A ten-lap aerobic run around the track starts now. Squad one, move out and begin training!"

"Squad two, move out."

The departing squads were like a neat string of pearls, orderly and disciplined.

But then, for the third squad, Cannon Lin's command changed.

"Squad three, 10 sets of push-ups, then free training."

In the crowd, Lu Shixian shook his head with a wry smile.

Squad three was made up of students excused for special reasons.

Of course, the members of squad three were different each time.

After all, girls had their monthly 'relatives' to visit, but he didn't.

He was placed in squad three purely because he had a fear of high-intensity physical training.

What made him different from the other students who feared long-distance running was that he was first in the grade.

So, after he fainted during a training session once, the dean of students had personally come to plead his case, and only then did Cannon Lin begrudgingly agree.

It was just that his gaze towards him hadn't been very friendly since.

You could say that almost every teacher at Jinling Agricultural Middle School treated him like a treasure, with only Cannon Lin having a very poor impression of him.

With Lu Shixian's old eccentric personality, his relationship with Cannon Lin naturally grew more and more strained.

It eventually developed to the point where, as the High School Entrance Exam approached, Lu Shixian barely participated in the physical fitness mock tests. The final result was predictable.

Youthful and reckless, knowing no sorrow; a drunken dream in the clear autumn.

Thinking of this, Lu Shixian could only sigh inwardly.

Then, he took a small step forward and said loudly, "Report!"

"Teacher Lin, I want to participate in the long-distance running training!"

As soon as he said this, the gazes of several girls who were "visiting relatives" all focused on Lu Shixian's face.

And the whistle in Cannon Lin's mouth fell right out.

He slowly took off his sunglasses, looked at Lu Shixian for a few seconds, then put them back on, assuming it was just a whim.

He paid it no more mind, picked up his whistle, and blew it.

"Lu Shixian, fall in. A five-lap run begins now."

Hearing the command, Lu Shixian did a few warm-up exercises he often did in his past life, took a deep breath, and started running at a steady pace.

As soon as he stepped onto the track, Lu Shixian could feel the weakness of this body.

In his past life, in order to secure a postgraduate recommendation, he had gone through a period of insane training, winning the long-distance running championship at the university sports meet. After joining the track team and receiving professional training, he even had moments of glory at the National University Games.

But now, before even completing one lap, he could feel the lactic acid building up, slowing his pace step by step.

Even though he was trying his best to maintain a rhythm suitable for his current body, swinging his arms with proper technique, and leaning at the most energy-efficient angle.

He was, you could say, heading in the right direction.

But his core engine was lacking power. Even the most skilled housewife can't cook without rice.

Slowly, he could no longer maintain his initial running pace. He started gasping for air, and large beads of sweat dripped from his face.

Honestly, he had noticed a detail.

Cannon Lin's training command hadn't included the word "aerobic," which meant he could stop and rest midway.

But as someone who had undergone professional long-distance running training, he knew well that track and field was about constantly pushing one's limits.

It was like the ancient saying: with the first drum roll, spirits are high; with the second, they falter; with the third, they are exhausted.

He could slow down, but he absolutely could not stop until the task was complete.

Willpower makes up for a lack of physique; skill compensates for a lack of talent.

The only one who can defeat you is yourself.

Targeting his currently weak constitution, Lu Shixian quickly formulated a reasonable training plan in his mind.

Meanwhile, on the field, Cannon Lin had been keeping an eye on Lu Shixian's movements.

Although he wasn't fond of Lu Shixian, the conscience of a teacher and the pressure from Lu Shixian's top-student halo were undeniable.

If something happened to Lu Shixian on his watch, he had no doubt that "Black-Faced Wen" would show up at his house with a kitchen knife to have a word with him.

Watching, Lu Shixian, just as he had expected, slowed down more and more, and finally started walking.

He shook his head with an amused smile, thinking, so much for the so-called all-rounder.

But as time went on, Lu Shixian alternated between walking and running, but he never stopped.

His professionalism as a gym teacher allowed him to see what was going on.

"One, two, three, four... ten. Why does this kid always walk ten steps and then start running again?"

"After the first walk, he ran for about a hundred meters. After the second, he ran for about half a lap, two hundred meters. This kid is actually improving?"

At this moment, Cannon Lin's head was full of question marks.

"Could this kid actually understand timed interval training?"

Chapter 6: Reconciling with Himself

Honestly, if Lu Shixian could hear Cannon Lin's words, he would have praised him for knowing his stuff.

If possible, he would have preferred to use the more effective method of decreasing-time interval training.

But right now, he had no energy to spare for such things.

If one word could describe how he felt at this moment, it would be excruciating.

He was keenly aware that this body had reached its absolute limit.

Training was training, but he couldn't afford to train himself into injury. Heaven knew if he would ever get another chance to start over with a new character.

Building fitness was a long-term process; there were no shortcuts.

Choosing to walk the final lap, Lu Shixian finally completed his five-lap task.

By the time he returned to the group, a small portion of his classmates had already finished their ten laps.

The moment he returned, he was met with the stares of many students.

The eyes are the windows to the soul. With the experience from his past life, he quickly read the emotions of these young kids.

Relationships between classmates were still simple at this age, without so many twists and turns.

Most of their faces were filled with surprise. Of course, there was also Chen Yiyi's undisguised look of joy and Xu Youmeng's occasional challenging glance.

Cannon Lin timed it perfectly. Just as most people finished their ten laps, the bell signaling the end of class rang on schedule.

To many, the bell sounded like music from the heavens.

For the middle school students of Jinling at that time, gym class, being part of their final grade, was more of a demonic trial than Chinese, Math, or English.

After one final assembly, Cannon Lin dismissed the class but asked Lu Shixian to stay behind.

Instantly, many people shot Lu Shixian "good luck" glances. After all, everyone knew that Teacher Lin and Lu Shixian didn't get along, and their past unpleasant encounters were still fresh in their minds.

Although they wanted to stay and watch the show, they preferred to go back to the classroom and cool off under the electric fans.

Thus, the vast sports field was soon left with only Lu Shixian and Cannon Lin.

Lu Shixian didn't say anything. He wasn't reborn to be wronged.

Cannon Lin looked at him, and for a moment, the questions he had wanted to ask got stuck in his throat.

So all he could do was keep a straight face and maintain a serious expression.

The only result was that the atmosphere grew increasingly tense.

Lu Shixian just glanced at him and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

Cannon Lin was good to his students, but he was also really concerned with saving face.

He remembered returning to his hometown in his past life and hearing Cannon Lin sigh with regret, saying that if he had changed his teaching methods, perhaps Lu Shixian's life trajectory would have been better.

Thinking of this, a corner of his long-hardened heart softened.

"Sigh." He let out a long breath, having already made a decision in his heart.

Lu Shixian lowered his head and gave Cannon Lin a deep bow.

"Teacher Lin, please forgive my past willfulness. I promise I will train seriously from now on and never fall behind."

Cannon Lin blinked a few times, then took off his sunglasses. He rubbed his thinning hair and looked deeply at Lu Shixian.

At this moment, the usually eloquent Cannon Lin was once again at a loss for words.

However, he took a step forward and patted Lu Shixian lightly on the shoulder, then walked away without another word.

After he left, Lu Shixian looked up again at the warm spring sun after the rain and let out a soft laugh.

"Heh, to hell with feeling wronged!"

All reconciliation in relationships was, in essence, about reconciling with one's past self. Accepting all of oneself, tolerating the flaws of others, forgiving their mistakes—life was simply a continuous process of making peace with the world.
Being covered in thorns only hurts yourself and others.

As it was a boarding junior high, Lu Shixian spent the night in his dorm, recuperating.

When he went back to shower, he naturally took a good, long look at himself in the mirror.

Gazing at his fifteen year old self, he felt his still thick hair and smooth skin, nodding in satisfaction.

Stripped of his former gloom and eccentricity, he now had sharp brows and starlit eyes, giving him a fresh and handsome air.

If not devastatingly handsome, he could at least be described as suave and debonair.

“How come I never realized I was quite the looker when I was young? How did I end up letting myself go so badly later on?”

He glanced down one last time, a little sheepishly, then patted himself on the chest.

Not bad, not bad. Third best in the universe.

With that, Lu Shixian let go of his final worry.

Wednesday, six in the morning. He crawled out of bed an hour and a half before breakfast.

Feeling his body brimming with renewed energy, Lu Shixian once again sang praises to the glories of youth in his heart.

After a few warm up stretches, the athletic field in the northeast corner of the school bore his footprints, which were not fast, but steady and strong.

As for his classes that day, Lu Shixian had no choice but to play the part of a model student for a day, buying himself a bit of insurance by reviewing all the coursework from the first to the third year of junior high.

He didn't actually listen in class, of course, but he still had to get first place. His future plans depended on it.

All he could say was sorry to Xu Youmeng. Deep affection is never requited, as the old saying goes. What was the next line again?

Thursday marked the second day of his consistent workout routine. Finally, good news came from Wang Chunya: the teachers for all the major subjects had agreed to the bet.

Apparently, when the grim faced Teacher Wen first heard that Lu Shixian wanted to have free rein for the remaining hundred days, his face turned black as thunder.

But upon hearing the condition was getting first place in the diagnostic exam, all was well. He couldn't stop praising Wang Chunya for her cunning plan, calling it a stroke of genius.

Friday. With the exam halls being set up and the admission tickets distributed, the final weekend before the joint examination for all junior high schools in Jinling City arrived.

Friday was likely the most exciting day for many junior high students. Unlike Lu Shixian, who only went home for winter and summer breaks, most students were only boarders on weekdays and could reunite with their families on Saturdays and Sundays.

Finally, the fourth period in the afternoon arrived. There was no evening self study on this day, and five thirty in the afternoon was often the liveliest time for the entire school.

Many parents emerged from their children's dormitories carrying bags of all sizes, their faces beaming with simple, happy smiles.

In the classrooms, many parents who had learned about the upcoming large scale diagnostic exam took it very seriously. They weren't in a hurry to leave, busy taking their children to speak with the subject teachers to understand their child's specific situation at school.

The situation was even more pronounced in Class One of the third year, to the point where Lu Shixian and Xu Youmeng were, ironically, the ones with the most leisure time.

The classroom, already arranged for the exam, was suddenly vast and empty.

With no one else to block the view, the distance between the two of them, both in the second row, seemed especially close in such a large space.

"Hey, Dreamer, why aren't you going home either?" Lu Shixian pushed aside the review materials on his desk and stretched lazily.

A shadow crossed Xu Youmeng's smooth forehead. She had no idea what had gotten into Lu Shixian lately; he was acting abnormally.

Chapter 7: It Turns Out I Was the Clown

"My name is Xu Youmeng, not Dreamer, do you know?"

Lu Shixian waved a hand dismissively. "Youmeng, doesn't that mean 'to have a dream'? What else could it be?"

Naturally, Xu Youmeng didn't understand the allusion in his latter words, but she could clearly tell it was nothing good.

Just as the textbook in Xu Youmeng's hand was suspended in mid air, about to make its first intimate contact with his handsome face, Lu Shixian quickly begged for mercy. Getting hurt was a small matter, but disfigurement would be a catastrophe.

"Leaving the past behind, you arrive with a gentle sigh, dreaming of the Wu mountains. Satisfied now?" he recited with incredible speed, a string of seemingly unrelated poetic lines.

Anyone else would have found it baffling, merely a phrase containing the characters of Xu Youmeng's name.

But as she listened, Xu Youmeng's eyes quickly filled with tears.

The textbook she was holding trembled and fell from her grasp.

"You... how did you know that?" Xu Youmeng fought back the powerful emotions threatening to erupt from her heart as she questioned Lu Shixian.

Seeing the girl suddenly radiating an intense sorrow, Lu Shixian was momentarily stunned.

One moment she was a tigress, and the next she was about to burst into tears.

To be honest, that sentence was a message Xu Youmeng had left in his graduation yearbook before they parted ways.

There was nothing on the page but those three lines, unsigned.

Though it was a bit cryptic, it was easy to tell from the first character of each line that it was from Xu Youmeng.

Back then, his personality was cold, and he was utterly indifferent to Xu Youmeng. He would have simply ignored such a message, let alone felt any curiosity to explore its meaning.

Now, he just happened to recall it and quoted it naturally.

"Is there a problem?" Lu Shixian looked at her, bewildered.

But the girl just stared at him, with a resolute look that suggested she would get to the bottom of it no matter what.

Lu Shixian felt a headache coming on. He was just teasing her a little, how did it turn into such a mess?

He had no choice but to tell the truth. "Alright, I'll stop pretending. Time to lay my cards on the table. I'm actually from the future. I saw you write this with your own hands, okay?"

But seeing the tears about to breach their dams and the dramatic rise and fall of her chest, he quickly backtracked.

"Wait, I'll tell you right now. I just saw your name, and I'd read some poetry before, and I randomly made the connection."

Lu Shixian quickly fabricated an excuse on the spot. He suspected that if he didn't clear things up, given the girl's determination to get to the bottom of things, he wouldn't be leaving the classroom today.

Even though it was a fabrication, and one he felt wouldn't stand up to scrutiny, Xu Youmeng seemed to accept this explanation. Her emotions slowly began to stabilize.

"I won't go easy on you tomorrow. You'd better pray you can keep winning forever."

With that, Xu Youmeng gave him a deep look, gathered her belongings, and floated out of the room.

Leaving Lu Shixian utterly baffled and speechless.

What the hell was that? Today's attempt at being cool was a complete and utter failure.

The worst part was how hard it was to be a person these days. No one believed the truth anymore, but they readily accepted a load of nonsense.

The world had truly gone downhill!

And most importantly, did he need her to go easy on him? Even in his past life, you only beat me in the high school entrance exam once, and that was when they factored in the physical fitness test scores and I had an off day.

Thinking back to his past life, although Xu Youmeng's total score in Physics, Biology, and History was higher than his when their overall scores were similar, placing her a few ranks above him.

Details he had previously overlooked were slowly coming to light.

If he remembered correctly, the admission requirement for Jinling Affiliated High School was to be in the top twenty.

It seemed Xu Youmeng was just as far from that mark as he was. Yet, the admission list couldn't be faked; she had still gotten into Jinling Affiliated High School despite not meeting the ranking requirement.

He also recalled that the news of Xu Youmeng getting into Jinling Affiliated High School hadn't spread at all; her name just appeared on the admission list briefly.

And for such a major event that would have been great for recruitment, Jinling Agricultural Junior High had made no effort to publicize it.

This was highly abnormal.

Well then, the deduction was simple.

Holy crap, this girl is from a powerful family!

He thought he had victory in the bag, but it turned out she was already waiting for him at the finish line.

It turns out I was the clown all along!

Lu Shixian's face went green, the very picture of a sourpuss.

What good was being number one for three years? Could you eat it?

The day passed in a haze. It was a good habit from his past life never to dwell on any single issue for too long.

Lu Shixian quickly adjusted his unbalanced mindset, his passion reignited.

"What's a second gen kid? I'm the first generation God of Scholars of the Hua Nation."

Life is already so hard, why must the weekend be so short?

This was a heavy topic that would never disappear.

Saturday. Lu Shixian welcomed a rare, long period of solitude.

He made some slight adjustments to his previous plan.

Regarding physical fitness, after several days of consistent training, Lu Shixian could already feel his body adapting to the intensity. The only event was the 1000 meter run, five laps.

His current time was 4 minutes and 54 seconds, which converted to a score of 1 point.

Oh my god, he had finally broken the five minute barrier.

Lu Shixian let out a soft breath. Heaven knew how much effort he had put in to get this single point that others could get so easily.

It couldn't be helped; the foundation of this body was too poor.

But then again, paying this life's debts from the last one—wasn't that only fair?

Lu Shixian really couldn't complain.

Regarding his academic performance, Lu Shixian was steady as a rock. He quietly asked Wang Chunya for a few past high school entrance exam papers.

Chinese. Finished in 40 minutes. The subjective questions were a bit hard to judge.

"Hmm, I'll deduct the standard 1 point, shouldn't be a problem. As for the essay, the main points are clear, the structure is sound, and the emotions are genuine."

Lu Shixian was moved by his own writing. How could they not give it a perfect score?

So he took out a red pen and scrawled a flamboyant 119 on the paper.

Math. Finished in 20 minutes. Was this a joke?

Lu Shixian didn't even look at the answer key and gave himself a perfect score.

English. Finished in 30 minutes, with the listening section, worth only a quarter of the points, taking up half his time.

What could you do when they played dirty?

Checking against the answer key, Lu Shixian drew a series of continuous and beautiful checkmarks.

The results were in. "All right!"

"Well done!" Lu Shixian coolly wrote the evaluation Wang Chunya had given him most often at the bottom of the paper.

So this was the academic performance that had driven him to madness in his past life?

Lu Shixian suddenly recalled a famous and familiar advertising slogan from a certain "easy girl" product.

xxx—Mom will never have to worry about my studies again!

Chapter 8: Yuanfang, What Do You Think?

As for Physics, Biology, and History, while Physics wasn't his strong suit, junior high physics was just basic knowledge of mechanics, heat, sound, electricity, and light. Getting a perfect score should be more than achievable.

Biology was even less of a concern. Biology and agriculture were two sides of the same coin. For an agriculture student, biology was the ace among his aces.

It was his greatest loss that the biology score wasn't included in the total for the high school entrance exam. The fact that he was able to get into a top tier university from the underperforming Jinling No. 3 High School was largely thanks to his biology grades.

He merely glanced at the questions and lost interest in even starting. After all, waste was shameful, and conservation was a virtue.

He had to save every last bit of ink in his ballpoint pen.

He could guarantee this was definitely not an excuse for being lazy.

To be honest, History was his Achilles' heel. In junior high, it was his worst subject out of the six.

Even with diligent study, his scores always hovered between seventy and eighty.

Undoubtedly, this had cast a huge shadow on his competitive heart.

So he chose the science track in high school and studied agriculture in university.

In many people's eyes, agriculture and biology were much the same—both rather lackluster—but they were still science subjects.

Therefore, he had no connection to the humanities, nor any related foundation.

"I respect history, but history doesn't respect me. So, see you later," Lu Shixian said, simply turning in a blank paper.

Since they were destined to have no intersection, reviewing history was time consuming and laborious. Lu Shixian was very clear headed about this.

It had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that the questions gave him a headache.

Sunday. The pre exam atmosphere in the school grew thicker.

A large banner hung high above the school gate.

Lu Shixian looked up while chewing on a steamed bun from the cafeteria.

"Jinling City Agricultural Junior High School's First Joint Mock High School Entrance Exam."

"Sigh, it says the first, but it's probably also the last," Lu Shixian shook his head speechlessly. The school administration was probably so crushed by the results that they were forced to face reality.

If he remembered correctly, in this exam, the only presentable students from Jinling Agricultural Junior High were him and Xu Youmeng.

And their ranks were sixty eight and eighty eight, which sounded auspicious enough.

But with eight classes and over four hundred students, Jinling Agricultural Junior High pretty much took up the bottom five hundred spots in the joint exam.

Even within the same region, the gap created by differences in educational resources was like a chasm.

One could only imagine that in a region with extremely underdeveloped educational resources, the level of education he received might not even be as good as at Jinling Agricultural Junior High.

Thus, he could only silently thank his parents for giving him birth in Jinling, a developed region in eastern Hua Nation.

The morning was still dedicated to training.

Thanks to his rational training plan, his time had improved by another five seconds.

That is, if the stopwatch he borrowed from Lin Dapao wasn't broken.

In the afternoon, students began to return to school one after another.

Exam or no exam, the mood of returning students always seemed to be heavy, regardless of the stage or grade.

That evening, self study session arrived as expected.

Looking at the words "Chinese, Math, English" newly written on the blackboard, Lu Shixian couldn't help but sigh at how little respect the Physics, Biology, and History teachers had in Jinling at this time.

They probably had less say than the gym teacher.

However, this situation wouldn't last for long.

The so called professional status is determined by the social resources one possesses, but it is often expressed through professional prestige.

Later, when the national basic education reform was implemented on a large scale, and other subjects were included in the total score of the high school entrance exam just like the main subjects, there wasn't enough time to recruit new teachers. For a time, the Physics, Biology, and History teachers of that era became highly sought after.

Using economic theory, it was a case of increased demand with an unchanged supply curve. Under the principles of market equilibrium, their value shot up.

He had already bought the necessary insurance for his junior high phase, and for a moment, Lu Shixian found himself with nothing to do.

It couldn't be helped. At Jinling Agricultural Junior High in 2007, even as a top student, he couldn't do anything unrelated to the exam before the bet was won.

After all, school rules were paramount.

Of course, if he got first place, the situation would be different.

As the saying goes, school rules are rigid, but people are flexible. Sometimes, a little leniency is necessary.

Being a teacher with warmth, avoiding crude methods, promoting civilized teaching, and combining both to let school rules display wisdom and warmth without losing their essential nature.

Lu Shixian deeply agreed with this.

"Yuanfang, what do you think?"

Beside him, Chen Yiyi, who was engrossed in her studies, looked up and stared blankly at her deskmate.

"What Yuanfang? Are you talking to me?"

Looking at Chen Yiyi at this moment, her big eyes filled with confusion, Lu Shixian felt she lacked the intelligent and intellectual glow of her future self, appearing instead somewhat dorky and cute.

He didn't dare to speak the truth much anymore. After all, no one would believe him if he did.

He might as well spin some nonsense. That's what people bought into these days, wasn't it?

"You're the only one sitting next to me. If I'm not talking to you, am I talking to the air?"

"Yuan for a talented lady; Fang for the splendid prime of one's life."

"I'm calling you Yuanfang. Is there a problem?"

Beside him, Chen Yiyi seemed to have developed some resistance to his antics lately.

As the saying goes, you can work a bull to death, but you can't wear out...

Wait, wrong script. It should be that she had adapted to his new shape, or rather, his personality.

Though still a bit shy, she was no longer completely unable to handle it.

"Can you... be a little more serious?"

"You used to be so hardworking. Don't let your past efforts go to waste."

Hearing her well intentioned advice, Lu Shixian sighed inwardly. It made sense that the future Chen Yiyi would become a university counselor; it was a perfect fit for her profession.

"Well then, Classmate Yiyi, do you like the old me, or the me now?" The bored Lu Shixian pressed on, continuing to tease his poor deskmate.

This was a closed question trap. In the future, anyone with a bit of emotional intelligence would answer that they liked neither or both.

But at this moment, Chen Yiyi looked up and seemed to be seriously contemplating the question.

Innocent and romantic, that was the main theme of 2007!

After a full two minutes, Chen Yiyi finally spoke. "The old you was very outstanding, but I always felt you were so far away from us."

"Even though you were sitting next to me, I still felt you were as distant as the horizon, unreachable."

"But now, you seem more real, as if you're within reach. I didn't dislike the old you, but I think I like the current you more."

As expected, the naive and innocent Chen Yiyi of this time had truly fallen into the trap Lu Shixian had woven.

Lu Shixian grinned mischievously. "Oh, so you like me."

Chapter 9: Initiating Social Behavior

"Huh?"

"No... I..." The words caught in her throat, and Chen Yiyi's face turned beet red. She stammered for a long time but couldn't get a sentence out.

"So that means you don't like me?" Lu Shixian feigned a look of disappointment.

Chen Yiyi was no match for him. She immediately went into ostrich mode, turning her head to show him only her cute pigtails and falling silent.

Lu Shixian knew in his heart that this wasn't really "like," at most it was a slight fondness.

The pond was too small, and Chen Yiyi could only see him.

Once the water level rose and the view became unobstructed, she would be able to see farther. Her values would unconsciously align with those of society.

In human sociology, this isn't called being materialistic.

There's a famous saying, "Man is a product of his environment." Materialism may seem like an individual's subjective behavior, but everyone around them is an accomplice.

This was the deeper reason why first loves often ended without resolution, and graduation season was breakup season.

Thinking of this, Lu Shixian felt an even stronger desire to cherish this moment.

Perhaps everyone has a period of ignorant,懵懂 emotion, one without any impurities, as pure and clear as crystal.

And it just so happens that not everyone is qualified to enjoy such feelings. For some, youth cruelly ends before they even have a chance to experience it.

Lu Shixian casually picked up a small notebook that served as the "Chu River and Han Border" dividing their desks.

Inside, neatly arranged in dense rows, were all the key points the teacher had covered in a certain class.
Far from being unpleasant, the elegant yet childish handwriting possessed a beauty that was pleasing to Lu Shixian's eyes.

From this alone, he could imagine how serious and focused Chen Yiyi was about her studies.

Regardless of whether her methods were good or bad, she had managed to get into Jinling No. 1 High School one step at a time, and eventually succeeded in getting into Jinling University.

At the very least, she was far better off than him, who in his past life had experienced a meteoric rise only to fall just as quickly.

At this thought, the idea of offering her some more efficient study methods faded from Lu Shixian's mind.

It doesn't matter if a cat is black or white, as long as it catches mice, right?

Judging by the results, the current Chen Yiyi could be his teacher. What right did he have to criticize her?

Not everything done with good intentions leads to a good outcome.

Rashly changing someone else's normal life might lead to the opposite result, backfiring completely.

It was better to let some things take their natural course.

Coming to terms with himself once again, Lu Shixian felt his state of mind had matured considerably.

What a pity he couldn't switch to cultivation in this life, or he could have taken a moment to undergo a tribulation right now.

March 18, 2007.

Monday.

The atmosphere on the campus of Jinling Agricultural High School was a bit heavy today.

At least on the athletic field that morning, while Lu Shixian was exercising, he didn't see a single kindred spirit until it was almost breakfast time.

"What's this? You skip your workout just because there's an exam? Such a lack of dedication."

"The exam is for today, but working out is for a lifetime."

Lu Shixian muttered and complained to himself as he went to the cafeteria for breakfast, a solitary figure.

As expected, the cafeteria today was not as boisterous as usual.

"Auntie, the usual for the next few days, thank you," Lu Shixian said to the cafeteria lady.

A kind voice quickly replied from behind the service window.

"Alrighty, looks like our school's number one student is starting his growth spurt!"

Lu Shixian grinned but said no more.

His breakfast menu consisted of three steamed buns and a bowl of congee.

The steamed buns were two for fifty cents, and the congee was fifty cents a bowl, with free refills.

The prices in 2007 made Lu Shixian wish he could empty out the entire cafeteria, but the balance on his campus card sent him a stark warning.

Beep.

After a flash of red light, his balance successfully decreased by one yuan, leaving nineteen yuan and fifty cents.

Lu Shixian covered his face in resignation. Life was hard enough; some things were better left unsaid.

His forced social interaction had successfully saved him seventy-five cents.

The cafeteria auntie had only charged him for two steamed buns.

Thinking about how his funds were about to drop to single digits, it seemed he would have to ask his family for money again the next time he went home. Lu Shixian felt a headache coming on.

How many years had it been since he'd asked his family for money?

Was he back in the old business again?

Pushing the troubling thought aside, Lu Shixian arrived at the dining area, ready to eat.

Awake now. Time to chow down.

As Lu Shixian walked over with his tray, he was surprised to see a few of his classmates, along with many from other classes.

A dragon does not consort with snakes; that was his old way of thinking.

But now, Lu Shixian had long since abandoned his preference for secluded corners and sat down in a crowded area.

After all, humans are social animals. Even though after the high school entrance exams, he and these kids would just say goodbye without the kiss.

They would likely never cross paths again, but there was no need to look down on them just because his rebirth gave him a more advanced mindset.

In his past life, he could look down on others at Jinling Agricultural High School. But later, as a graduate of Jinling Agricultural University, what right did he have to be looked up to by anyone?

Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains.

So, being kind to others was also being kind to himself.

Thanks to his recent "business" of being social, these kids had already warmed up to Lu Shixian quite a bit.

They greeted him as soon as they saw him.

"Brother Time Limit is here."

He had gotten this nickname because he used to be strict with himself, putting time limits on both his studies and his life, which combined with his name, Shixian.

Of course, with Lu Shixian's old personality, they wouldn't have dared to call him that to his face, especially since it was also a homophone for "reality" (xiànshí), implying he was ignoring them.

When he first heard the nickname a few days ago, Lu Shixian immediately took back his earlier assessment that they were all innocent and straightforward.

They weren't malicious, but they could be a little petty.

He had to get used to it. The term "study god" didn't even exist in this era, as it was a meme that would only emerge in 2013.

As for titles like "Big Shot" or "God Lu," those were even further off.

"Time Limit" or "Reality," whatever. Lu Shixian just pretended he didn't hear the double meaning.

"Brother Time Limit, which exam room are you in?" The question came from a chubby kid, who, based on their interactions over the past few days, had to be from either Class Seven or Class Eight.

"Hold on, I'm actually not sure. Let me check." Lu Shixian quickly started rummaging through the pencil case in his school bag.

Suddenly, someone nearby sounded like they had collapsed.

He honestly wasn't trying to show off; even his previously arrogant self wouldn't have done something like this.

He had simply forgotten because he didn't care much about this exam.

"Exam Room 8, Seat 32," Lu Shixian read aloud from his admission ticket.

Suddenly, a boy with glasses in the crowd let out a cry of joy, as if he'd won the lottery.

"Haha! I'm in Class Eight, and I was the one who personally stuck the label for Seat 32. That's my seat! I can soak up some of his genius this time!"

A wave of congratulations immediately erupted from those around him.

Lu Shixian was speechless.

Chapter 10: The Mock Exam Begins

Soon, the pleasant breakfast time was over.

Even as Lu Shixian left, there were no passive-aggressive remarks or targeted comments.

His current school life was incredibly simple, revolving around nothing but studying.

It turned out that not every protagonist's story was filled with showing off, face-slapping, and plot-induced stupidity.

On his way to the exam room, Lu Shixian stretched.

Moving forward step by step according to a set plan—life like this was truly pleasant.

This joint mock exam completely mirrored the format of the high school entrance exam, with an identical schedule.

They had even set up various anti-cheating measures outside the school.

The exam was spread over two days. The first day was Chinese in the morning, followed by Biology and History in the afternoon.

The second day was English in the morning, with Physics and Mathematics in the afternoon.

It seemed that no matter the exam, Chinese was always the first subject.

This suggested that the subjective nature of Chinese had its uses; there were no uniform answer keys.

As long as your essay wasn't off-topic, even if the rest of your answers were a complete mess, you probably wouldn't come out crying.

By the time he reached the exam room, Room 8 seemed to be already full.

He saw many students clutching review materials, muttering to themselves, likely cramming for the fill-in-the-blank questions at the last minute.

Lu Shixian felt no sense of disdain; he had done the same thing countless times.

No matter how well you memorized something, your heart would always be pounding until you wrote the answer down on the answer sheet.

This was why some people even skipped the multiple-choice section to do the fill-in-the-blanks first.

This was where arriving a bit late had its advantages.

He didn't have to search for his seat.

A single glance revealed the only empty seat in the middle of the room, which was almost certainly his.

Sure enough, when he walked over, the information on the desk matched his own.

Lu Shixian sat down, neatly arranged his test-taking tools, and began to inspect them.

He was a veteran examinee with over twenty years of test-taking experience; he wouldn't make any amateur mistakes.

After checking that everything was in order, Lu Shixian's mind began to wander.

Spring was so comfortable, not too cold and not too hot. There were no damned cicadas to distract him, only the flags in the distance, fluttering in the wind.

The sound of chalk on the blackboard soon drew his attention back.

"Stay calm and composed, answer seriously."

He noticed two unfamiliar proctors had entered the classroom at some point. He had seen most of the staff at Jinling Agricultural High, so these must be teachers from other middle schools, rotating to ensure fairness.

Even though they were from other schools and facing the lowest-ranked Jinling Agricultural High, the proctors showed no signs of contempt or carelessness. They remained professional throughout the entire process.

There wasn't as much conflict and friction in the world as one might think. As the country grew stronger and society progressed, the world was, for the most part, a better place than people imagined.

One proctor stood at the front, the other at the back. After writing on the blackboard, the one at the front announced loudly, "This is the first joint mock exam for the Jinling City High School Entrance Examination, held at the Jinling Agricultural High School testing center, Exam Room 8. Please check your admission tickets to ensure you are in the correct room."

"Please adhere to the exam rules. After entering the room with your admission ticket and barcode, find your assigned seat. Place your admission ticket and barcode in the upper left corner of your desk for verification by the proctors at any time. Apart from 2B pencils, black ink pens..."

"If you find any errors in the distribution of the test papers, or if the text is unclear, misprinted, missing, or has pages missing, you may report it to the proctor... For those who do not comply with the exam rules, fail to follow the instructions of the exam staff, violate the principles of fairness and impartiality, or are found to be cheating..."

Although he had heard these instructions many times and could almost recite them from memory, this was the first time Lu Shixian had listened so attentively.

Same place, different state of mind, different scenery. This was what it meant.

After the sealed test paper envelope was shown to be intact under the surveillance camera, the papers were finally distributed to everyone.

After filling in their personal information, the exam bell rang. Many students, having used the inspection time to preview the questions, eagerly began writing at a furious pace.

Lu Shixian, however, was in no hurry. Instead, he lowered his head and gently smelled the test paper.

A fresh, pleasant scent of ink filled his heart, like two old friends in conversation.

"You've been waiting long?"

"You too!"

By the time the others were on the fifth multiple-choice question, Lu Shixian finally began.

To be honest, he had forgotten not only the content of the high school entrance exam but also most of what he had learned for the college entrance exam, except for a vague memory of the essay topics.

It had been nearly ten years since he graduated from high school. The content of this mock exam paper was completely new to him.

But that didn't matter.

He looked down at the first question.

Which of the following groups of words is written correctly and has the correct pronunciation for the underlined character?

Lu Shixian's eyes were like the Fiery Eyes of the Golden Monkey, quickly spotting the imposter hidden among them.

Option A, *mouqu*, not *maoqu*. Incorrect.

Option B, *dingli mobai*, not *mubai*. Unacceptable.

Option C, everything seems correct here.

As for Option D, let's just skip it. A fake can't become real.

Lu Shixian swiftly wrote a large C on his paper.

Question 2: In which of the following sentences is the underlined word used correctly?

Question 3: Which of the following sentences is grammatically correct?

Soon, he reached the poetry memorization section.

Where mountains repeat and rivers twist, it seems there is no road. What's the next line?

Resisting the urge to write "I still have to go for a run today," Lu Shixian wrote down the correct answer.

Why are my eyes always brimming with tears? What's the next line?

Oh boy. Lu Shixian's mind was flooded with the phrase "Because I'm acting too profound."

Lu Shixian was at a loss for words.

He sighed and put down his pen. He couldn't do this question; it was filled with the wisdom of his past life's netizens.

Forcing himself through the fill-in-the-blanks and other short questions, Lu Shixian finally arrived at the reading comprehension section.

Please read "The Reeds" and answer the three questions that follow.

First question: This poem uses descriptions of scenery. What kind of scene do these descriptions present to us?

The beautiful woman (or talented person) is right there, yet unattainable.

What else could it be? A simp.

And what is the fate of a simp? To simp until you have nothing.

Naturally, it's a bleak and desolate scene.

Second question: What emotions is the author of this poem expressing?

This was the type of question Lu Shixian dreaded most. He remembered a famous blunder from his past life that had become a laughingstock.

After a Chinese exam, the original author of a reading comprehension passage commented that he himself didn't even know what emotions he was trying to express when he wrote it; he just wrote what came to mind.

So, the real point of such questions was to see if you understood the general meaning and could rephrase it in a different way.

Of course, he couldn't write anything about simps here. To get points, he had to dress it up a bit.

After a moment of thought, Lu Shixian picked up his pen and wrote.

Chapter 11: Lu Shixian Teaches You How to Write an Essay

The entire poem uses the rhetorical device of symbolism, using the "one I love" to represent a cherished beauty or a talented individual, and the situation of being "on the other side of the water" to symbolize the common, seemingly attainable yet unreachable pursuits in life. It expresses the author's melancholy and poignant sorrow over the inability to attain the desired beauty or talent.

After writing it all in one go, Lu Shixian was quite satisfied.

This question was worth three points, which most likely meant there were three scoring points. If you only wrote that it expressed melancholy and poignant sorrow, you would only get one point.

Determining the number of scoring points based on the question's value and getting full marks was a basic skill for a top student.

Like leveling up by slaying monsters, the current Lu Shixian was like a high-level character slaying low-level mobs.

He cut through the questions with ease and soon reached the final boss.

Essay Topic: The Qinghai-Tibet Railway is a national Class I railway connecting a city in Qinghai Province to a city in the Tibet Autonomous Region. It is one of China's four major projects of the new century, the first railway to the heartland of the region, and the world's highest and longest high-altitude railway.

This railway is scheduled to be fully operational this year. What are your thoughts on this?

Write an essay of about 600 words. Any genre is acceptable except poetry.

The moment Lu Shixian saw the topic, he recalled some rumors from back in the day.

Some genius test designer had come up with this topic. It was originally slated to be the essay question for the actual high school entrance exam and was being kept under wraps.

However, some uninformed teacher on the outside released it ahead of time, forcing the official exam setters, who were already in sequestered hotels, to rack their brains for a new topic.

Rumor had it that this teacher was later forced to drink a lot of alcohol by those big shots. Who knows if his liver function is still intact.

Offering a moment of silence for the teacher's tragic fate a few months from now, Lu Shixian began to outline the essay in his mind.

When it came to current events-based essay questions asking for your thoughts, Lu Shixian's preferred way of looking at it was, of course, while sitting down.

Just kidding. This type of essay could be very simple or very difficult.

It was simple because anyone with half a brain knew to just write along the main, patriotic theme.

So, there was basically no chance of going off-topic.

But writing a good patriotic essay was a skill in itself.

It was like flattery. Some people could hit the nail on the head, while others would start praising and end up at the horse's hooves.

It seemed simple, but getting a high score was far from easy.

Lu Shixian began to analyze how to write this essay praising the motherland.

First, the most suitable genre for this kind of patriotic theme was an argumentative essay. Prose or narrative wouldn't work as well. Why else would the essay portion of the civil service exam only be argumentative?

Second, what kind of arguments and evidence should he use to make the essay seem more sophisticated? After all, feeding the grading teacher a state banquet was on a completely different level from feeding them a boxed lunch.

Finally, what kind of central theme should he use to elevate the essay? The ultimate form of an essay is the civil service essay, and the ultimate form of that is praise.

The great events and figures in our country's history have been praised millions, if not hundreds of millions, of times each year.

To stand out from those millions was harder than a tadpole finding its mother and being born into a good family.

However, Lu Shixian had a ten-year advantage in perspective. Although the source material was a bit basic due to the need to avoid creating paradoxes, the form could be advanced.

I praise the motherland not because I am forced to, but because I firmly believe in my heart that the nation's heroes deserve to be remembered, its mountains and rivers are beautiful and bountiful, and its undertakings are truly great.

As long as you write with conviction, your essay can be emotionally rich, inspiring, or passionate.

If you feel embarrassed, you shouldn't.

Because it is admiration for a great achievement already completed!

It is cherish and love for the wonderful life we have now!

It is earnest hope for the bright future of our country!

If you feel embarrassed writing it yourself, how can you expect to move others?

If you can elevate your perspective to encompass the country's glorious past and its bright future, then you've successfully elevated your theme.

So, how do you write a good argumentative essay? With sincerity.

What are your thoughts on the opening of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway?

Did a topic like this even need analysis?

Absolutely not!

There was no need for doubt, let alone any sort of pro-con debate.

To debate it would be to go against the successes of the past and the ever-improving life of the present.

And so, Lu Shixian's pen flew across the paper.

"The vast snowy land, the majestic Kunlun Mountains, have witnessed a miracle in the history of world railway construction. The Qinghai-Tibet Railway has given birth to the spirit of 'challenging limits, striving for excellence.'"

"Wandering on the roof of the world, the snows of the northern desert bring greetings from the harsh winds. The endless railway is like a soaring dragon. I sing praises for the arduous struggle of these builders, I cherish the hard-won life of today, and I extol my motherland's strength and prosperity."

"The spirit of craftsmanship, building dreams with ingenuity..."

"Cherish the present, strive through hardship..."

"The rise of a great nation, the rejuvenation of Huaxia..."

"As we feel proud of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway's opening, as we take pride in our country's great achievements, we, the future successors of China, should also... Our conviction to serve the country with utmost loyalty is as firm as Mount Tai, our fervent and sincere hearts as scorching hot as molten lava."

"The sun rises in the east, its path bathed in brilliant light. Today's Huaxia is flourishing more and more. Praise my Huaxia, beautify my Huaxia, build my Huaxia. With these three forces combined, we will build a beautiful, strong, and prosperous Huaxia. I firmly believe that Huaxia's future will be one where a time will come to ride the wind and cleave the waves, I'll hoist my cloud-sail and cross the sea."

Having written this far, Lu Shixian let out a long breath.

"The evidence might be a bit low-level, but with this progressive structure and emotionally rich thematic elevation, it should be okay."

Of course, another factor determining the essay score was handwriting. On this point, Lu Shixian adhered to one principle: keep it neat to please the grading teacher.

At this point, the Chinese exam was more or less over.

As long as the answer sheet wasn't filled out incorrectly, checking your work was usually a fool's errand.

Bloody experience had proven that unless you were one hundred percent certain of an error, any changes you made were likely worse than your first attempt.

Ding ding ding...

Soon, the bell rang.

"Time is up. All students, please stop writing."
Without a moment's hesitation, Lu Shixian placed the test paper flat on his desk, covering his answer sheet, and left the classroom without a backward glance.

Outside of testing hours, the examination hall was closed to students.

So after lunch, everyone could only return to their dorms to rest.

At this time, whether at the cafeteria or back in the dorms, the air was filled with the sounds of people discussing the exam.

The act of checking answers was ubiquitous.

Whether in his past life or the present, Lu Shixian was not the type of person who liked to check answers after an exam.

Because wasting energy on something so pointless was simply foolish.

Isn't that so?

Chapter 12: I am an Academic Ace, Devoid of Feelings

At noon, after finishing lunch, he took a short nap as was his habit.

Somehow, the schedule had his most dreaded subjects, biology and history, scheduled for the same afternoon.

At two-thirty sharp, the second exam began.

Lu Shixian dove right in, forging ahead.

Which of the following is not a biological phenomenon?

a) Flowers blooming and withering b) Wild geese flying south
c) A peacock fanning its tail d) The ebb and flow of tides

After reading the question, a sudden throb started in his forehead.

With a dark expression, he filled in option D.

Xiaoming and his classmates are investigating the living environment of pill bugs... According to their experimental records, what is a suitable environment for pill bugs?

Which of the following belongs to the ecological environment?

Like a car speeding past others on the highway, Lu Shixian raced towards the finish line.

He had no choice. If he kept at it any longer, he felt he would truly blend in perfectly with the lower-scoring brackets.

In just twenty minutes, Lu Shixian completed the entire 100-point biology paper.

He spent the rest of the time trying to calm the nauseous feeling rising within him.

Finally, with thirty minutes still left on the clock, he couldn't help but turn in his paper early with a grim face and leave the exam hall.

Four-thirty in the afternoon. The history exam arrived as scheduled.

He didn't like it, but life is what it is. Since he couldn't fight it, he might as well try to enjoy it.

After receiving the paper, Lu Shixian didn't immediately start writing. Instead, he flipped through it several times.

Since it wasn't one of his stronger subjects, he had to be strategic.

The bold, sweeping approach he usually took wouldn't work here.

First, he marked the questions he was confident about on the test paper. These were the ones he would strive to get full marks on and must be given the highest priority.

Next, he identified the questions that would take the least amount of time to answer. This way, even if he got them wrong, the sunk cost wouldn't be too high, making it a cost-effective strategy.

Only after finishing the above would he consider the remaining questions.

And from those remaining, he would prioritize the ones that seemed vaguely familiar, the ones he was unsure about.

With his preliminary plan set, Lu Shixian did a quick tally. There were 20 questions he was confident in, translating to 75 points.

There were 8 questions that were quick to answer, totaling 16 points, all multiple-choice.

The remaining 14 points were from the second or third sub-questions of the larger problems, commonly known as the grand finale questions.

Lu Shixian now had a rough estimate of his score for this history exam.

In other words, his score would be at least around 70. His ceiling depended on how many of the 16 points he could guess correctly.

As for the final questions, he might as well forget them.

Scribbling nonsense when you knew nothing wouldn't earn you any pity points from the grader, so why waste the effort?

History, unlike Chinese language arts, was different. For 99 percent of the questions that appeared on the test paper, there was one, and only one, correct answer.

Besides, even if he hadn't eaten pork, hadn't he seen a pig run? He had over twenty years of common sense to fall back on, after all.

Soon, Lu Shixian had secured those seventy easy points.

All that was left was to guess the answers.

In fact, for a pseudo-academic ace, guessing was a skill in itself.

Based on a researcher's statistical analysis of the distribution of multiple-choice answers in the Su Province middle and high school entrance exams over a continuous ten-year period in his past life.

According to probability statistics, with roughly 2015 as the dividing line, the distribution probability for options A, B, C, and D was approximately 23%, 26%, 26-28%, and 23% respectively.

After that, the probability distribution for options A, B, C, and D became roughly 23%, 26-28%, 26%, and 23%.

Later, it seemed the Education Examinations Authority became aware of this issue and began to intentionally skew the distribution of A and D to balance it, gradually rendering this statistical conclusion ineffective.

In reality, this only worked for pseudo-aces. A true academic ace dared to face any test paper head-on.

Unfortunately, when it came to history, Lu Shixian couldn't even be considered a pseudo-ace.

So, Lu Shixian quickly filled in C for all eight of the blank multiple-choice questions.

Using the average probability method, his chance of getting a question right was about 27%.

Therefore, his expected score was 8 times 27% times 2, which is 4.32 points, rounded down to 4.

His history score this time would be 79.

Lu Shixian glanced at the score on his paper without any particular disappointment.

After all, his score in his previous life was 80. Considering the bonus from his past life's experience and common sense offset by the knowledge he'd forgotten in this life, the two factors canceled each other out.

Being off by only one point meant the two effects were roughly equal.

Based on this experimental result, if anyone were to believe it, he could even publish a groundbreaking paper.

"A Study on the Influencing Factors of Academic Performance After Rebirth."

As Lu Shixian was lost in his wild flights of fancy, the bell for the end of the exam rang.

He handed in his paper with a touch of melancholy, leaving large blank spaces on the last two major questions.

At that moment, he was filled with regret.

"It's so hard for an academic ace to be an all-rounder. If only I had a system, I wouldn't need to be calculating every little point here!"

But, being a master of self-consolation, he quickly regained his composure.

He was already lucky enough to catch the last bus of rebirth arranged by the author. After all, even the damn author didn't have a system, so what was he doing dreaming on?

That evening, the school still had a self-study session. The content, naturally, was for the next day's exams: English, Physics, and Math.

In the classroom, Wang Chunya and Zhou Wen took turns strolling around the podium according to the schedule.

They briefly mentioned key topics that might appear on the next day's exams and then offered some words of comfort to students who seemed to have done poorly that day.

Watching them speak, Lu Shixian felt that their gazes kept unconsciously drifting toward him.

From their looks, Lu Shixian could almost hear their thoughts: No matter how capable the Monkey King is, he can't escape the Buddha's palm.

Lu Shixian felt no perverse pleasure in playing the fool to trick them.

After all, they weren't major villains; their intentions were for his own good.

But being so underestimated, he had to admit, was a bit frustrating.

He couldn't help but turn to his deskmate to complain.

"Yiyi, do you think I can get first place this time?"

Hearing this, Chen Yiyi immediately put down the formula book she had been clutching for half an hour and nodded earnestly.

"Of course. Don't you always?"

This time, it was Lu Shixian who was left speechless.

He began to gnash his teeth furiously in his mind.

"What's going on? How has this girl gotten so good at being captivating lately? I'm finding it hard to resist."

It was simple, really. To have one person's unconditional trust in a lifetime was already a blessing from the heavens.

"I am an academic ace, devoid of feelings."

"I am an academic ace, devoid of feelings."

"I am an academic ace, devoid of feelings."

Lu Shixian hurriedly recited the calming mantra several times to banish the thoughts from his mind.

Chapter 13: Slaying Hua Xiong While the Wine is Still Warm

The second day of exams arrived as scheduled.

After the first day's bombardment of questions, many students were starting to feel numb.

The entire second-floor examination area was quieter than the day before. Everyone was just hoping for it to end quickly.

Soon, the classroom speaker announced that the English listening comprehension section was about to begin.

Although his English score before the college entrance exam hadn't been particularly outstanding, his proficiency had improved by leaps and bounds during his university years from reading a vast number of English documents and papers.

Writing English papers was no longer a challenge for him.

Passing CET-4 and CET-6 was a piece of cake; otherwise, he wouldn't have met the prerequisite to be recommended for graduate school.

The first short audio clip finished playing, and Lu Shixian quickly looked at the questions and options on the paper.

"How is the weather today?"

Based on what he had just heard, the gist was that the weather was very nice today, and Xiao Fang wanted to go out and needed to buy a kind of umbrella beforehand.

Lu Shixian paused for a moment. The person who wrote this question was quite clever.

It was only the first question, and they were already setting traps.

If you missed the beginning and only heard "a kind of umbrella" at the end, you would most likely choose option C, Rainy.

But if it were raining, why would the speaker say the weather was very nice?

The "kind of umbrella" here must refer to a sun umbrella.

Lu Shixian quickly wrote down the correct option: A, Sunny.

From this one small detail, he could tell that the most important thing in English was to grasp the main idea. If you could understand everything, English was actually less difficult than Chinese language arts. After all, the Chinese culture had a profound five-thousand-year history.

The five short listening questions finally ended, leading to the longer listening section, where one audio clip corresponded to several questions, truly testing one's comprehensive abilities.

Unfortunately for the test, this was all just a piece of cake for Lu Shixian. The listening comprehension was as easy as asking him what he had for breakfast.

As soon as the listening section was over, Lu Shixian switched back to his sweep mode.

Cloze test? Not a challenge.

Reading comprehension? He read ten lines at a glance.

Vocabulary? Handled with ease.

Finally, he reached the writing section. Lu Shixian was actually starting to enjoy writing compositions; at least they offered a bit of a challenge.

Lu Shixian read the prompt with interest.

"Jinling City is a city with a long history. Please introduce your hometown. The word count should be around 80. Maintain a clear structure, neat handwriting, and coherent flow. Please do not mention real school or personal names in the text."

That was the general idea, anyway.

When it came to English compositions, after so many years of torment, Lu Shixian had summarized a few key takeaways.

To put it in one sentence: Analyzing the prompt is crucial, analyzing the prompt is crucial, analyzing the prompt is crucial. The scoring and deduction points were all hidden in the prompt itself.

The prerequisite was to never go off-topic, just like in Chinese. If the essay was completely irrelevant, a 20-point composition would immediately drop to 5 points or lower.

"Clear structure" was subtext for using paragraphs. If you didn't have transition words like "Firstly," "Secondly," and "Finally," you basically missed that scoring point. Having detailed supporting points was even better.

"Neat handwriting" was a reminder to practice your penmanship back in the seventh grade. Nothing more needed to be said.

"Coherent flow" was just another way of saying the beginning and end should echo each other, essentially restating the first paragraph in a more advanced way.

Hmm? What did "advanced" mean?

It meant using words beyond the syllabus. The more you went beyond, the better, as long as you didn't make grammatical mistakes, you had already won half the battle.

In truth, for this kind of composition, Lu Shixian could only say that as long as one's vocabulary was sufficient, it was far less difficult than a Chinese composition.

Without a second thought, he put pen to paper.

"As everyone knows, Jinling is one of the most beautiful cities in all of Su province. It is really famous for its long history and..."

"To begin with..."

"Simultaneously..."

"In the final analysis..."

"As a consequence... Why not come to this amazing city to get a rest and have a look at these beautiful sceneries. Just cherish this hard-won chance. Don't hesitate."

After writing the last word, Lu Shixian put down his pen and nodded at the composition he had just written.

"This should be about right. It looks much more modest. It's better to be conservative; going too far beyond the syllabus might not be a good thing."

One step ahead makes you a genius; two steps ahead often makes you a madman. Lu Shixian firmly believed this. There were educational resources that were inaccessible in his current environment. If certain things appeared prematurely, he would have no way to explain them, and he could easily expose himself with a single misstep.

He recalled the predicament of a certain celebrity from his past life, whose situation was the exact opposite of his, yet he had still managed to cause such a huge impact with his own actions.

Even though he was eager to conduct academic research now, with many important scientific achievements still fresh in his mind, he, with his current meager abilities, truly couldn't bear the weight of certain things.

For example, humanity's first exploration of a black hole had to be done slowly. Trying to swallow it all in one bite would only lead to trouble.

"Forget it. I'd better lie low and build up my strength for now. Stay steady, don't get cocky. My time to shine will come sooner or later." Lu Shixian completely extinguished the idea in his mind and stabilized his mentality.

Meeting the right person at the right time to do the right thing.

This was the only path to success.

Excellent. Just by writing a composition, he had another wave of enlightenment. This was a huge gain.

Lu Shixian suspected that if he had been reborn in a high-fantasy martial arts world, he would have already become invincible, yet here he was, still competing with a bunch of kids over rankings.

Pushing aside the flights of fancy in his mind, Lu Shixian turned in his paper half an hour early and walked out.

Noon arrived, and it was time for lunch. Lu Shixian could almost feel the restless excitement among the students.

Only two more exams to go, and it would all be over!

If Lu Shixian had felt a sense of impatience to speed things up before, he was now incredibly calm.

There were only a hundred days left of his middle school life. All he had to do was act with a clear conscience; the rest he would leave to time.

Unaffected by praise or criticism, he would watch the flowers bloom and fall in the courtyard; with no intention to stay or leave, he would gaze at the clouds rolling and unrolling in the sky.

At two-thirty in the afternoon, the physics exam began on time.

At four in the afternoon, the math exam began on time.

Lu Shixian took only twenty and twenty-five minutes respectively to charge to the front of the enemy's main camp.

He then spent another ten and fifteen minutes respectively to slay the enemy generals.

He figured he could be considered a budget version of "slaying Hua Xiong while the wine was still warm."

Chapter 14: You're Personally Collecting the Papers?

As for why he hadn't achieved the standard or deluxe versions, Lu Shixian carefully reflected and ultimately blamed it on his lack of a system.

After all, with so many steps in the solutions, just copying them down would take twenty minutes.

Finishing a paper in just a few minutes? That person would have to be a tentacle monster in human skin, something beyond human capability.

It was five o'clock in the afternoon, with one hour left until this placement exam was well and truly over.

Of course, he wasn't going to wait that long.

When the clock in the classroom pointed exactly to five-thirty, Lu Shixian stood up and left.

He left behind nothing but a cool and composed silhouette for everyone to see.

The candidates in Examination Hall 8 were not affected in the slightest.

After all, Lu Shixian's reputation was too formidable. For someone who had been first in the grade for three consecutive years, no exaggerated act would be too surprising.

But a little confusion was inevitable, because the old Lu Shixian, no matter how simple the exam, had never turned in his paper early.

At this point, even the most stoic invigilator in the room was growing curious.

He had heard from other teachers who had invigilated Hall 8 before that there was a candidate who always turned in his paper exactly half an hour early.

At first, they thought the person was turning in a blank paper—after all, Jinling Agricultural High's reputation was well-known.

But when they collected the paper, they saw that exam paper number 32 was densely packed with writing, filled out completely except for the history test.

Suddenly, the male teacher at the front stood up, and the invigilator's badge on his chest was exposed to everyone.

Beneath a stern, square-jawed face was a line of text.

"Jinling No. 1 High School, Dean of Students for First Year, Qian Zhengguo."

He then gave a meaningful look to the middle-aged female teacher sitting at the back.

The female teacher caught on quickly, seeming to understand Qian Zhengguo's intention at once, and slowly walked towards the front of the room.

He, however, leisurely strolled through the aisles of the examination hall for a few rounds, finally stopping, as if by accident, at an empty seat in the middle.

Without a doubt, this was Lu Shixian's desk.

Qian Zhengguo didn't even look at the answers Lu Shixian had marked on the test paper. He directly flipped over the answer sheet to look at the final, fully completed section.

It had started as a whim, but the more he looked, the more focused his attention became.

He was different from the other teachers who were invigilating subjects outside their expertise. Although he held an administrative position without teaching duties, who starts their career as a dean of students?

Before taking on his administrative role, he was a renowned senior mathematics teacher at Jinling No. 1 High School.

That was why he was savvy enough to go straight for the long-answer problems, the part that truly tested a student's real ability.

Since the exam was created by the education research office responsible for middle schools, he was not part of the question-setting committee, so even he was unfamiliar with the problems.

But the test paper was right there, so he picked it up to compare.

"As shown in the figure, the side length of square ABCD is 4. Point P is a moving point on side AB. Connect CP. Draw a perpendicular line from point P that intersects AD at point E. Construct square PEFG with PE as a side, with vertex G on line segment PC. The diagonals EG and PF intersect at point O."

Just from a first glance at the problem, Qian Zhengguo got a general idea of the difficulty of this math exam.

"A moving point in geometry. It's an old cliché, but the difficulty is decent. The real test is in the questions," he nodded and thought to himself.

"If AP=1, what is the length of AE?"

"Finding a value at a static point. Not very difficult."

Qian Zhengguo glanced at Lu Shixian's final answer, showed no reaction, and moved on to the second part.

"Prove: Point O must lie on the circumscribed circle of triangle APE. As point P moves from point A to point B, point O also moves. Find the length of the path traveled by point O."

"Proving the circumcenter of a right-angled triangle? Concyclic points, not very interesting."

"The second sub-question is also simple. Just draw the minimum and maximum values and it's obvious. The answer is just the leg of the right angle formed by the square's side."

Disappointed, Qian Zhengguo looked at the third part.

"As point P moves from point A to point B, the center M of the circumscribed circle of triangle APE also moves. Find the maximum distance from the center of this circle to the side AB."

This time, Qian Zhengguo's interest was slightly piqued.

"Oh? A hodgepodge of concyclic points, inscribed angles, circumscribed circles, similar triangles, the Pythagorean theorem, and the maximum value of a quadratic function? It mainly tests problem-solving thinking with little calculation. Could this be the work of Old Man Sun from the Jinling Affiliated High School's Math Olympiad team? He always pulls this kind of stuff."
Qian Zhengguo looked at Lu Shixian's problem-solving approach with great interest. He must have used the similar triangles theorem; that's the simplest method.

But when he finished reading, he found that wasn't the case.

Because Lu Shixian had chosen to solve the second and third sub-questions simultaneously.

"Let point A be the origin, establishing the x and y axes along the two sides of the square. Let the length of AP be x..."

"...From this, we can determine the coordinates of point O are..., and the coordinates of point M are..."

"...Because the range of x is 0 to 4, therefore..."

Qian Zhengguo didn't bother looking at the rest of the solution. The answers to these problems were obvious at a glance; the key was the thought process and the steps.

Qian Zhengguo then looked back at the previous question.

Question 24, completely correct.

Then Question 23, completely correct.

Finally, Question 22, also correct.

"This student..." Qian Zhengguo's expression slowly became profound. He then flipped to the front of the answer sheet.

"Lu Shixian? That name sounds familiar... I think he's the top student at Nongzhong from the last three years. What an unexpected surprise. Nongzhong has really produced a promising talent in recent years."

As the high school's dean of students, he naturally wouldn't have come to proctor a junior high exam for no reason.

The same was true for the vice principal in charge of teaching for the second and third years of high school. Although they were assigned to different middle schools, their mission was the same.

He mulled it over, quietly committing the name to memory.

As he was thinking, he suddenly heard the middle-aged female teacher beside him whisper.

"Director Qian, the exam ended a minute ago. Should we start collecting the papers?"

At that, Qian Zhengguo snapped back to reality. He quickly put on a stern face and said, "What are you doing? Why didn't you remind me sooner? What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and get the papers collected!"

The female teacher was utterly speechless. She had been trying to catch his eye for ages, but he had acted as if he hadn't seen her at all.

She was just a humble teacher from Jinling No. 4 Middle School. As a nobody, she didn't dare say or ask anything.

Her gaze involuntarily shifted to the exam paper on the desk, curious whose paper had so engrossed the renowned Qian Zhengguo.

But all she saw was Qian Zhengguo's large hand sweeping the paper away.

She really wanted to retort with a sarcastic thought: "So you collect papers yourself too, huh?"

Chapter 15: The Grim-Faced Zhou Wen

Lu Shixian, of course, was oblivious to the amusing incident he had caused in the exam hall. Even if he had known, he wouldn't have cared.

After leaving the exam hall, he strolled leisurely along the school's perimeter wall for a lap, summarizing the past two days of exams. Everything had gone smoothly. Except for history, which was dragging him down a bit, the other subjects shouldn't be a problem.

In his past life, although there were over twenty students with a perfect score of twenty-seven, the top student's combined score for physics, biology, and history was only in the two hundred and seventies.

He couldn't recall the exact name or score, but the name was still legendary.

Cheng Yixuan, from Jinling Foreign Language School, who was also that year's provincial science stream champion.

He had later attended Jinling High School Affiliated, won first prize in the provincial Math Olympiad, and though he didn't make the national team, he was said to have ranked in the top twenty, securing guaranteed admission to both Yanjing and Shuimu Universities.

But he ultimately chose to forgo the guaranteed admission and take the college entrance exam, and sure enough, he became the champion. He was practically the standard template for a novel protagonist.

In the past, Lu Shixian wouldn't have even dared to dream of competing with such a golden boy.

But this time, to achieve his plan, he would just have to inconvenience this big shot.

Of course, it had to be said, if he could get guaranteed admission, he wouldn't take the college entrance exam.

He was sick and tired of hearing stories from his past life, like that one celebrity who humble-bragged about getting into a top university through guaranteed admission.

If he did take the exam, it would only be because the price was right.

Lost in thought, Lu Shixian had already completed a lap, finishing his warm-up.

Next up was his extra training: long-distance running.

Although only a few days had passed, there was no obvious improvement from last time.

But Lu Shixian had already adjusted his mentality. Physical fitness couldn't be achieved overnight; it required steady, year-after-year accumulation of diligent exercise.

If his only goal was to pass the physical fitness test and get those three points, the remaining three months were more than enough.

After eating, Lu Shixian rested for a while before receiving a notice about evening self-study.

He himself was indifferent, but for the others in his class, it was like hearing a death sentence. The entire dormitory building filled with wails and howls.

It was said that this exam had dealt a crushing blow to the students of Jinling Nongzhong. The earlier subjects were fine, but after the physics and math exams, several girls from Class One and Class Two were so devastated they cried on the spot. In contrast, no one in the other, non-advanced classes was as upset.

He hadn't seen this with his own eyes, as he had turned in his paper early and left, but considering the overall academic performance from his past life, Lu Shixian figured it was most likely true.

But life is full of helplessness and regrets. That's just how it is.

He had been through it all before.

At eight in the evening, self-study officially began. The schedule was, as expected, the classic combination of math and English.

First up was math. It seemed Zhou Wen wanted to strike while the iron was hot.

But Lu Shixian suspected there was a deeper meaning to this schedule arrangement.

Sure enough, even though the results weren't out yet, Zhou Wen was already prepared to go over this joint mock exam.

"This exam was indeed a bit difficult, but there were a hundred points' worth of gimme questions and moderately difficult ones combined. I've gone over similar problems many times. My requirement is that all of you must secure every single one of those hundred points. Enough idle talk, I'll start explaining. Everyone take notes."

"First question, what is the opposite of 2? I don't need to tell you the answer, do I? Anyone who got this wrong, raise your hand."

After a few seconds of silence, not a single hand went up in the class.

Zhou Wen scanned the room and continued, "Good, no one raised their hand. Otherwise, you'd all be copying this problem a hundred times."

"Second question, in a Cartesian coordinate system, if Q is symmetric to P(2, 3) with respect to the origin, what are the coordinates of Q?"

"No need to explain this one either, right? You can see the answer at a glance. Anyone who got it wrong, raise your hand."

This time, after a couple of seconds, two hands suddenly went up.

Lu Shixian glanced over. One was in the last row. Hmm, understandable.

But when he looked at the second person, it was none other than his deskmate, Chen Yiyi.

Sure enough, Zhou Wen's face darkened, and the volume of his voice rose in direct proportion.

"Wang Bin, Chen Yiyi, what's wrong with you two?"

"Stand up! How did you get such a simple question wrong? Even if you couldn't figure it out in your head, couldn't you have drawn it on your scratch paper? Wang Bin, you first. What did you choose?"

A tall, skinny boy answered with a hesitant "A."

Hearing this, Zhou Wen seemed to get angry.

"How many times have I told you? Read the question, read the question, read the question! It clearly states symmetric with respect to the origin. Why did you treat it as symmetric with respect to an axis? You will copy this problem twenty times and bring it to my office tomorrow morning, you hear me?"

Then, he turned his somewhat intimidating gaze toward Chen Yiyi.

"Chen Yiyi, I remember we had a similar question on last month's test, and you got it right. Logically, you absolutely shouldn't have made a mistake. What happened?"

By now, tears were welling up in Chen Yiyi's eyes. She fought to keep from crying on the spot and explained, "Teacher Zhou, I had the right answer on my scratch paper. I don't know why I ended up choosing D."

This made Zhou Wen even angrier. He suddenly slammed his hand on the desk and roared, "A multiple-choice question is worth two points! How could you make such a basic mistake? What will you do on the high school entrance exam? If you can't even get these two easy points, where are you going to make them up? On the final comprehensive questions?"

At that, Chen Yiyi could no longer hold back. Shiny teardrops rolled down her cheeks and onto her desk.

Perhaps feeling he had made his point, Zhou Wen delivered one last reprimand before moving on to the next question.

"Write a self-criticism essay and bring it to my office tomorrow morning."

"Third question, a quadratic equation..."

In no mood to listen to Zhou Wen's rant, Lu Shixian couldn't help but glance at her face. He saw that her eyes were red and swollen; she had clearly been crying before this.

He looked as if he'd seen a ghost, his brow furrowed tightly. How could it be Chen Yiyi?

This was impossible!

No matter how much his memory had faded, he remembered that in his past life, Zhou Wen hadn't criticized Chen Yiyi during the first mock exam, which meant she definitely hadn't gotten this question wrong.

So what was happening now?

Had his memory failed him, or had he been reborn into the wrong timeline?

This didn't make any sense!

He racked his brains but couldn't come to a conclusion, and he couldn't dwell on it too much.

After all, the girl next to him was still sobbing incessantly.

She had just comforted him last time. He didn't expect it would be his turn to comfort her so soon.

Debts must be repaid.

With the teacher on the warpath, Lu Shixian didn't dare whisper. If Zhou Wen caught him, it wouldn't be a big deal for him, but Chen Yiyi would probably get another scolding.

He found a notebook and prepared to write on it quietly.

Passing notes to a girl... he never thought he'd see the day he'd be doing something like this.

"Yiyi..."

Chapter 16: You Are My Light

On the slip of paper, Lu Shixian slowly wrote out a poem he had loved in his past life. It was about a flower that was also a crop.

As an agricultural science and technology researcher, Lu Shixian could rattle off its entire taxonomic classification—Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Tribe, Genus, Species—in one breath.

Kingdom Plantae, Phylum Angiospermae, Class Dicotyledoneae, Subclass Sympetalae, Order Campanulales, Family Asteraceae, Subfamily Asteroideae, Tribe Heliantheae, Genus Helianthus.

He loved it not just for its flower language, which represented silent love, loyalty, health, vitality, and brave strength.

But also because, beyond its ornamental value, it possessed immense edible, medicinal, economic, and purifying value.

Thus, throughout history, while the world adores the peony, he alone loved the sunflower.

In the classroom, by the time Zhou Wen started on the comprehensive problems, the fire in his belly had nowhere to vent.

Because every time he asked who hadn't solved a problem, a forest of hands would shoot up.

Except for Lu Shixian, Xu Youmeng, and a few others, almost the entire class stood up.

Zhou Wen now had a much clearer picture of the exam situation, and his heart sank.

But he was helpless. In the end, he decided it was a case of "out of sight, out of mind" and told everyone to sit down.

Seeing Chen Yiyi finally sit down beside him, wiping her tears while stubbornly trying to copy down the solution steps on the blackboard, even as her tears smudged the paper, Lu Shixian suddenly understood.

He understood why this quiet girl in the back of the class would go on to have a brighter future than most of her classmates.

Indeed, the flower of success—people only marvel at its current brilliance. Yet, in the beginning, its bud was soaked in the tears of struggle and sprinkled with the blood of sacrifice.

No one succeeds by chance.

Unfortunately, the Lu Shixian of the past life was one of those who did not.

He collected himself, folded the small note he had written, and quietly slid it onto her desk.

Beside him, Chen Yiyi saw the note, looked at Lu Shixian, and froze for a moment. Then, she glanced furtively at Zhou Wen, who was still on the stage, speaking with gusto, spit flying, as he explained the problem.

With the air of a thief with a guilty conscience, she slowly moved the note behind the back of the student in front of her and unfolded it.

Lu Shixian's neat and tidy handwriting spread out before her.

"Starting tomorrow,
be a beautiful sunflower.
When the sunlight falls,
be serene, be peaceful.
In a world sown with seeds,
brave stems are all around,
every fallen leaf,
trembles with longing;

Starting tomorrow,
be a positive sunflower.
Lift your head,
gaze at the sun that fills the sky.
There's no need to feel small,
just because you are weak.

Whenever,
bravely stand on your tiptoes and take down Grim-face Wen."

As Chen Yiyi read,
her entire heart began to tremble uncontrollably.
A warm current, like a March spring breeze, swept through her.

When she saw the playful line at the end about taking down Grim-face Wen, she forgot to even wipe her tears and couldn't help but break into a smile.

In that moment, she felt the existence of light for the first time. She felt as if she were that sunflower, desperately raising its head just to gaze at the sun in the sky.

Yes, on her solitary journey of study, a ray of light had shone upon her hesitant, lonely face for the first time.

For the first time, she desperately opened the barren field of her heart to receive this sunlight, which was called care, perhaps mixed with other unknown ingredients.

Yes, she was from the countryside, her family was poor, she was slow-witted, she was timid, and she had been scolded.

But so what? None of it could defeat her ambitious and aspiring heart.

The glamorous world isn't short on princesses. Cinderella can live a brilliant life even without glass slippers!

Although there was plenty of blank space on the back of the note, Chen Yiyi chose not to reply on it.

Instead, while Lu Shixian wasn't looking, she secretly tucked it into her pocket.

Then she tore out a new slip of paper and wrote softly on it.

"Thank you, my dear deskmate."

"You must keep shining, because you are my light!"

There were only these two short sentences on the paper, but they seemed to hold all of Chen Yiyi's courage.

After handing the note to Lu Shixian, her entire face suddenly turned beet red, like the most vibrant base color on the oil canvas of youth.

Lu Shixian read the reply, his heart unable to calm for a long time.

He had compared Chen Yiyi to a sunflower, but she saw him as her light.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but laugh at himself.

So you really believe there's light in this world?

If there were, he thought, in his past life, a fleeting meteor in the sky like him would probably never have noticed the sunflower on the ground gazing up in longing.

Speechless, he could only feign a calm reply: "Thanks."

And in the end, Lu Shixian would never know the reason behind this slight alteration of history.

Because there was a secret hidden in Chen Yiyi's heart, one that she would, barring any accidents, never tell.

The reason she had written down the wrong answer was simply because her mind had drifted during the exam, and she had suddenly thought of him.

That was all.

With Zhou Wen's rapid pace of explanation, they soon reached the final comprehensive problem.

This time, he didn't even ask if anyone had gotten it completely right, and Lu Shixian was in no mood to show off.

And so, this math evening self-study session ended, filled with the anxiety of many, and the blossoming of a sincere friendship between a boy and a girl.

Soon, their homeroom teacher, Wang Chunya, walked in with gentle steps.

Just looking at her kind face seemed to calm one's nerves.

Seeing the dejected looks on her students' faces, Wang Chunya felt a pang in her heart, but she couldn't show it. On the contrary, she had to comfort them.

"Class, this math mock exam was indeed a bit more difficult than usual. Seeing your expressions, and from what some of you have told me, I know that some of you might not have performed as well as you'd hoped."

"But don't put too much pressure on yourselves, because the actual high school entrance exam won't be as difficult as this mock test. The real entrance exams are not that bad. I've had you all do them before, and they were pretty simple, weren't they?"

After Wang Chunya's words, many students slowly lifted their heads. While they weren't suddenly filled with passion, the gloomy atmosphere had certainly lessened.

At this, Lu Shixian had to applaud their perfect coordination.

Just as he had expected. One played the bad cop, the other played the good cop. With the stage set, they had put on a complete show.

Given Wang Chunya's personality, she probably wouldn't intentionally act this out.

That meant it must have been Grim-face Wen who, knowing how to use people to their strengths, deliberately arranged this by taking advantage of Teacher Wang's gentle nature.

Lu Shixian felt a sense of injustice and distress.

Wang Chunya was probably still in the dark, being used without her knowledge.

Perhaps even if she knew, she would endure it gladly. After all, in her eyes, she was willing to do anything reasonable and legal to improve her students' academic performance, even if it went against her own nature.

But so what? That didn't stop Lu Shixian from making a mental note in his little black book.

Chapter 17: Where Are My Grades?

The third period of the evening was, of course, the unchangeable Chinese self-study.

It was called self-study, but it was no different from a regular class.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but think of the vigorous "burden reduction" campaign from his past life.

If students from rural areas were deprived of the chance to make up for their disadvantages with time, the chance for the clumsy bird to start flying early, then what could they rely on to compete with students who had abundant educational resources?

Self-discipline?

But most middle school students' minds weren't fully developed. To be self-disciplined, one would have to be reborn like him.

Parental supervision?

But their parents might know fewer Chinese characters than their own children.

As he thought, his furrowed brow relaxed.

The world is simple, but people complicate it.

Why think so much? Bite off only what you can chew.

Doing your best within your capabilities is hard enough.

It was like that famous "extralegal maniac" from his past life, recalling his own fear of trouble, using a false sense of moral superiority to mask his inner cowardice.

So, for true knowledge to move from books to reality, there is still a very, very long road to walk.

We fight all this way not to change the world, but to keep the world from changing us.

Perhaps, having been reborn, he could make a small contribution. That would be enough.

The exams were over, and the school returned to its normal routine as if nothing had happened.

But everyone was thinking about the moment the results would be revealed, regardless of how they had performed.

On Wednesday morning, it was another combined assault of Chinese, Math, and English. All the students learned the specific details about the results from Wang Chunya.

The Jinling Municipal Education Department was taking this mock exam very seriously. All papers would be sent to the Education Examinations Authority for unified grading.

The final results and rankings would be announced this Friday morning.

The afternoon, naturally, was the stage for the non-core subject teachers, who went over their respective exam content in full detail.

Of course, although the scores for biology, history, and physics would also be released at the same time, they wouldn't be counted towards the total score, so no one would lose sleep over a bad result.

The teachers could only say, for the sake of their own dignity, a mild "be more careful next time."
When it came to history class, however, Lu Shixian paid close attention. He was quite concerned about his history score this time.

If it turned out that luck truly couldn't change fate, he would really have to march over to Jinling Agricultural University and file a complaint against his probability professor.

Lu Shixian focused on listening for the answers to the multiple choice questions.

As he expected, aside from the eight questions he had purely guessed on, he had gotten all the gimme questions correct.

But this brought Lu Shixian no satisfaction whatsoever. For him, the scores for biology, history, and physics were what truly mattered.

Soon, he got his answer.

Among the answers to those eight questions, there were three C's.

This meant his expected total score had increased by another two points, reaching 81.

At that, Lu Shixian frantically thanked Gerolamo Cardano, Bernoulli, Laplace, Chebyshev, and other mathematical giants in his heart.

Because of this, he made a point to listen carefully to the explanations for the long answer questions he had left blank.

But this was, in fact, completely useless for the high school entrance exam. He had no impression of the material at all, having never fully digested the textbook content. This meant his memory bank had no information on the subject. If a different question came up next time, he would still be completely clueless.

But what could he do? He was bored.

Heaven knows how the students of Jinling Agricultural High managed to get through that Thursday, because they all knew that the results would be announced the next day.

The reason the entire city of Jinling placed so much importance on the first mock exam was that its results allowed them to identify and fill in any gaps in their knowledge from previous studies. This enabled teachers to adjust the focus of their review sessions, and the remaining three months were ample time for improvement.

Even if someone underperformed, it wouldn't have a major impact; after all, there would be a few easier exams later on to act as a safety net.

And so it went. Who knows how many people lost sleep that night.

In any case, Lu Shixian slept soundly. He was even relaxed enough to decide on the menu for the next morning's breakfast.

One youtiao and two eggs. Perfect!

Friday finally arrived, either fashionably late under everyone's watchful eyes, right on schedule, or perhaps approaching at a full sprint.

But time is the fairest of all; it is merely that perception is born from the heart, and the heart moves with one's will.

Lu Shixian, naturally, was in the neutral camp, relatively calm.

After the second period, an announcement suddenly came over the school's broadcast system.

"Attention: The results for the first joint mock examination of Jinling Agricultural High School have been posted at the entrance of the main academic building. Graduating class students, please follow your teachers' instructions to view the results in an orderly fashion..."

With that, the announcement, like a stone tossed into a calm lake, shattered the previous tranquility.

A mix of cheers and wails erupted from the classrooms on the second floor.

Whatever the sound, the pedestrians on the road outside the school were startled.

Even though they had experienced similar moments many times before.

This time, however, Lu Shixian still found himself swept up in the atmosphere, his emotions stirring.

He was a bit too proud to rush in with these little kids, but in the end, he succumbed to his true desires.

To hell with being calm! I'm a third year junior high student right now. Who could possibly know I'm a third year grad student?

Having completely abandoned his sense of shame, Lu Shixian ran faster than anyone else.

After arriving on the first floor at lightning speed, he saw a vast, white sheet of result printouts already pasted onto a massive display board.

At that moment, Lu Shixian's heart began to pound violently.

Even though he had a good idea of what his score would be, he couldn't control himself now.

To be honest, he hadn't felt this mixture of nervousness and anticipation in a long time, not since he had been accepted into graduate school without an entrance exam.

Squeezing through the crowd, Lu Shixian looked straight ahead at the display board.

But to his disbelief, his name was nowhere to be found in the top row of the board. The person in first place was Xu Youmeng.

Chinese: 109

Math: 111

English: 115

Physics: 92

Biology: 89

History: 90

Two A+ and one A in the main subjects, for a total level score of 26. A combined score of 271 for Physics, Biology, and Chemistry.

Overall rank in Jinling City: 80th.

What was going on?

Where were my results?

Even with the experience of two lifetimes, Lu Shixian suddenly began to panic.

This is impossible! Absolutely impossible!

According to my plan, this should never have happened.

Lu Shixian had never dreamed that after casting aside his shame and coming eagerly to check his results, he would be met with such a nightmare.

He didn't have a score?

He stood frozen on the spot, as if his soul had left his body, completely numb.

The passage of time roared in his mind like the turning of a great wheel. Beneath this roar, the colors and sounds of his surroundings began to fade away.

What went wrong?

Where was the mistake?

Suddenly, before they vanished completely, he heard a cry of astonishment from the front.

"Oh my god, Lu Shixian, you got first in the entire city! Your total score is..."

Chapter 18: Knowledge Changes Destiny

"First place overall! That's incredible! Lu Shixian, you were on fire this time."

Though Lu Shixian still hadn't fully recovered, his mind eased slightly when he heard the words "first place."

But he felt completely drained, his body covered in a cold sweat that had just broken out.

If it weren't for his recent dedication to exercise, he probably would have fainted right then and there.

After resting for about ten seconds, Lu Shixian gradually returned to normal.

He walked briskly forward and saw a mobile display board with the words "Congratulations" printed at the top.

There, against a red background, were all of Lu Shixian's scores.

"In the recently concluded 2007 Jinling City First High School Entrance Mock Examination, your esteemed school's outstanding student, Lu Shixian, has achieved the exceptional result of first place in the entire city."

"Here, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to the educators of Jinling Agricultural High School for their silent, diligent efforts, and offer our sincere congratulations to the student who has achieved this outstanding result. We hope your school will achieve even greater success in the upcoming citywide high school entrance examination."

"Jinling City Bureau of Education, Jinling City Education Examinations Authority."

Seeing this, Lu Shixian finally let out a long sigh of relief.

He then looked down at his scores.

Chinese: 119

Math: 120

English: 120

Physics: 100

Biology: 100

History: 81

Three A+ in the main subjects, for a total level score of 27. A combined score of 281 for Physics, Biology, and Chemistry.

He now had some understanding of how Fan Jin must have felt after passing the imperial exams. Except Fan Jin went mad with joy, while he had nearly been scared to death.

He had truly experienced the rollercoaster of emotions today, the dramatic highs and lows.

And the news of his results spread like a virus.

Whether it was students in the first, second, or third year discussing among themselves, or teachers chatting in their spare time, the topic of the day inevitably turned to Lu Shixian's magnificent report card.

It couldn't be helped. While Lu Shixian had been impressive before, it had been confined to Jinling Agricultural High, a school of only four or five hundred students.

No matter how fiercely they competed internally, their fame never spread beyond the school gates.

But this time, all the graduating third year classes in Jinling had participated in the exam, and the number of students had swelled to several thousand.

Moreover, several of the province's most resource rich junior high schools had also taken part, especially the Foreign Language Junior High School.

For Lu Shixian to accomplish such a feat amidst this hellish difficulty was nothing short of a miracle.

Finally, as the class bell rang, the crowd surrounding Lu Shixian began to thin.

But his classmates refused to disperse. Like a hero, Lu Shixian was escorted back to the classroom.

In the crowd, he happened to see Chen Yiyi smiling and giving him a thumbs up.

She seemed to be saying, "You really did it. I'm happy for you."

Lu Shixian nodded back at her.

Everything was understood without a word.

Although the bell had rung, the classroom of Class 1, Year 3, remained in a state of excitement for a long time.

Everyone was fervently discussing the event. Though they weren't the legend, being able to witness the birth of a legend was thrilling enough.

The third period was math, taught by none other than Black-faced Wen.

But his face wasn't looking so black right now. He even uncharacteristically refrained from stopping the students' chatter.

A few minutes later, Zhou Wen gently tapped the lectern.

The classroom finally quieted down.

"Class, I believe you've all seen the results posted outside."

"In this mock exam, Lu Shixian's outstanding performance has created a new record for our school and brought it great honor. To be honest, not just me, but many of the school leaders and teachers were not expecting this. Let's give him a round of applause."

Instantly, thunderous applause filled the room, echoing on and on.

Lu Shixian's expression, however, was a bit wry. Black-faced Wen probably didn't call for silence just to congratulate him.

Sure enough, his tone suddenly shifted.

"However, Lu Shixian's excellent score does not represent the overall level of our school. I'm sure you've all seen your own scores for each subject."

"They're not that different from your usual scores, are they? But why, then, are your citywide rankings in the thousands?"

"I can tell you this unequivocally: apart from Lu Shixian, who ranked first, and Xu Youmeng, who ranked eightieth, ninety percent of the remaining students are in the bottom ranks of the entire city."

"Why was Lu Shixian able to achieve such a result? I believe you've all witnessed it. How could he have reaped such an excellent harvest today without his day after day of diligent study?"

"Students, there is a path to the mountain of books through diligence, and no end to the sea of learning but through hard work. Do you see the towering skyscrapers in the center of Jinling? Now look at the secluded mountain villages where we have lived for generations."

"Students, knowledge changes destiny! Don't you want to fly out from these high mountains, to walk out of this region and see the beautiful world outside?"

"Alright, I hope you all learn from Lu Shixian, work hard to improve your grades, and leave no regrets in your lives. Now, let's begin class."

Lu Shixian looked around at his classmates. Most of them still looked bewildered. In their current understanding of the world, they probably didn't grasp the full meaning of Zhou Wen's words.

Of course, a few didn't seem to care, some even looked dismissive. After all, even chicken soup for the soul can give you indigestion if you have too much.

Only a very small number had determined expressions, their eyes filled with longing and hope for the future.

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was unknowingly reminded of his former self and let out a soft sigh.

My past self must have thought the same way, he mused. Giving everything, betting it all, just to win a chance at a future.

It's a pity that some opportunities, once missed, are gone forever.

Don't advise others to be good if you haven't experienced their suffering.

With that, he no longer held any prejudice against his past self.

His current self was playing with cheats; he was unworthy of such praise and felt no sense of accomplishment.

He was just filled with gratitude and cherished this second chance.

And all he could do was keep moving forward.

He had won his bet this time, and he wanted to keep on winning.

After Zhou Wen's speech, whatever was happening outside, the mood within Class 1, Year 3, had calmed considerably, with only scattered whispers remaining.

Before the end of the fourth period, Wang Chunya brought up the mock exam again.

"Since the papers were graded centrally by the city, only the city rankings were compiled. We won't be able to get your test papers and answer sheets back."

"However, the exam papers of outstanding students from across Jinling have been faxed to all the major schools by the Education Examinations Authority. They will be posted on the public notice board this afternoon. I hope you can all learn something from them."

When the bell rang, Wang Chunya gave Lu Shixian a complicated look and continued.

"Alright, you can all go to lunch. Also, Lu Shixian, come with me to the office."

The others just assumed it was a routine commendation and were used to it, but Lu Shixian's brow twitched as if he'd thought of something.

"Could it be..."

Chapter 19: May You Be Born Ordinary

"They're going to talk to me about the bet?"

Lu Shixian suddenly felt a surge of excitement. After all this planning, it was finally time to reap the rewards. He could finally begin the next phase of his life's plan.

But as he walked, he realized something was wrong. The path she was taking was leading him astray.

If it weren't Wang Chunya leading the way, he would have suspected he was being led away by a kidnapper.

Seeing Wang Chunya's somber expression, Lu Shixian felt a sense of foreboding. He quickly stepped forward and blocked her path.

"Hey, Ms. Wang, you're going the wrong way. The office isn't this way! Let's go back, shall we?"

At this, Wang Chunya had no choice but to stop, forcing a smile at him.

"Lu Shixian, to be honest, I was incredibly surprised that you achieved such a result this time, but more than that, I'm happy for you. From your first year to your third, I've practically watched you improve step by step."

"But... forget it. You're still young, you wouldn't understand some things. Just come with me."

Now, Lu Shixian seemed to understand. He obediently stepped aside.

He had suddenly discovered the biggest flaw in his entire plan, an unavoidable problem that came with his rebirth.

He was only fifteen years old.

And how much say does a fifteen year old have?

His mind grew clearer, and his heart understood more and more.

The condition for a bet to be valid is that both parties can bear the consequences of fulfilling it, and there must be proof that the bet was made.

And right now, it seemed Wang Chunya couldn't afford to lose.

Meanwhile, he had nothing to prove its existence. Anyone could unilaterally break the agreement.

Lu Shixian took a deep breath. His young body felt as if it had already stepped into the adult world. For the first time, he saw Wang Chunya in a different light, like a sheet of ice, cold and solid.

And once a barrier is formed, perhaps things can never go back to the way they were.

"Fine," he thought. "If you don't have the final say, then I'll talk to someone who does. Having someone to talk to is better than having no one at all."

Hearing his unspoken thoughts in his demeanor, Wang Chunya suddenly froze for a moment.

Lu Shixian was becoming more and more of a stranger in her eyes. She didn't know if this change was good or bad, and her face was a mask of conflict.

She didn't know if what she was doing was right or wrong. Although the whole affair had started with her, its development had veered completely off course.

In her not so long teaching career, this was a first.

But one thing she knew for sure was that her care and concern for her students had always been consistent, never changing.

But some things were truly beyond her control. She just wanted to earnestly teach every student the knowledge she possessed and let all the children grow up healthy and happy.

Yet sometimes, the world wouldn't even let her achieve this simple wish.

In an ordinary and simple life, there are things we know we should do but don't, because we are truly powerless.

Splat!

A drop of water suddenly hit Lu Shixian's right cheek, splashing and disappearing.

Is it raining?

Lu Shixian looked up, but the sky was clear and vast.

When he looked back, he saw Wang Chunya's right hand furtively wipe across her face.

She was crying?

Lu Shixian's heart was deeply shaken. The wall of ice he had just erected seemed to meet the warm winter sun and quietly melted away.

Had she done something wrong? But in this world, there is no absolute right and wrong.

May you be born ordinary, yet never forget to create a better world.

He couldn't use his standards to judge others. What had she done wrong?

The fault lay with the era. He was enjoying the benefits of his youth, so naturally, he had to bear the shackles of his time.

As expected, Lu Shixian was slowly led up to the third floor of the office building.

The conference room, which usually only a select few could enter, was welcoming a junior high school student for the first time.

Lu Shixian looked up. The entire conference room was already filled.

From top to bottom, there wasn't an empty seat.

At the head, Principal Zhang Dewu.

Next, Vice Principal Chen Yun.

Third, Dean of Students Wu Chenghai.

In the ranks were all the third year teachers, including every single one of Lu Shixian's subject teachers.

English teacher and head teacher, Wang Chunya.

Math teacher and head of the third year research group, Zhou Wen.

And in front of him was the fourth seat, where the name card clearly read "Lu Shixian."

He sighed inwardly. Plans really can't keep up with changes.

"YY novels will be the death of me," he grumbled internally. "This is how it always plays out in the novels, so why has it turned into a three tribunal trial for me?"

"Did I get my rebirth method wrong? All I want is to study in peace."

Just then, the principal, sitting at the head of the table, spoke.

"Have a seat, Student Lu Shixian. We didn't invite you here to stand."

With that, in the first exchange, Lu Shixian had already lost the upper hand.

He quickly steadied his nerves, stopping his mind from wandering.

He pulled out the chair and sat down without a hint of panic.

So what if it's Zhang Dewu? He's just the staff member who handed me my award certificate every semester.

Why would I be afraid of him?

Seeing Lu Shixian's relaxed posture in front of so many people, Zhang Dewu couldn't help but nod to himself.

No wonder someone had reported to him that Lu Shixian had changed a lot recently. It seemed it wasn't a baseless rumor.

Geniuses often show signs of maturity. He didn't find it strange.

A sudden maturation in the third year of junior high wasn't unacceptable. As a principal, his perspective was much broader; he knew of the existence of university programs for gifted youth.

In comparison, Lu Shixian's situation paled in comparison.

"Ahem."

Zhang Dewu habitually cleared his throat and began, "First of all, congratulations on achieving first place in the entire city in this mock high school entrance exam. This is a very, very difficult honor to achieve. Let's give Student Lu Shixian a warm round of applause."

Since it was the boss's suggestion, thunderous applause followed. He motioned for it to die down and continued, "Secondly, on behalf of the school's leadership, I would like to affirm the work of Lu Shixian's teachers over these three years. Student Lu Shixian's result is not only a historic breakthrough for our school, but it also represents a significant improvement in our school's teaching standards across the city."

As soon as he finished, another round of thunderous applause erupted.

After a long preamble, he finally got to the point, asking Lu Shixian, "I have a general understanding of what happened, and I've discussed it with several members of the leadership team. May I ask, what was your motivation for proposing this bet?"

At that moment, the vice principal at his side suddenly interjected, "Student Lu, I know you have your own ideas, which is perfectly normal, and we can all understand. However, the results of the first mock exam are for reference only. They do not represent your actual performance on the real high school entrance exam."
"Besides, there are still a hundred days until the High School Entrance Exam. The safest bet is to stick with the review schedule."

"That's right! Principal Zhang and Principal Chen have a point." Voices of agreement rose from among the attendees, including many of his own subject teachers. Only a few lowered their heads in silence, Wang Chunya among them.

With a bit of maneuvering, Zhang Dewu had managed to shift the pressure of the entire room onto Lu Shixian, making him feel as if he were carrying a crushing weight.

Nearly every eye in the room was fixed on that seemingly frail yet resolute figure…

Chapter 20: My Original Aspiration and Mission

A thin layer of sweat appeared on his forehead as he carefully considered how to break the stalemate.

He was thinking of paving the way for his own future, while the school was thinking of how to best secure its honor.

After all, the results of a single mock exam weren't quite enough to go on.

If it wasn't absolutely necessary, he really didn't want to resort to his final option.

Although Jinling Agricultural Middle School had many flaws, it was still his alma mater. He had studied and lived here for so long that even if he didn't feel reluctant to leave, he at least felt a sense of nostalgia.

In the end, he stood up and gave a deep bow to everyone present.

"I am very grateful for the school's dedicated cultivation and for the tireless efforts of all my teachers. I truly am. However, I personally believe I no longer need to receive instruction on junior high level material. I can take full responsibility for my actions."

At this, the Dean of Students, Wu Chenghai, shot up from his seat, agitated. "Responsible? With what? How can you be responsible? Student Lu Shixian, as an outstanding student of the new century, you should abide by the school's rules and regulations and follow the arrangements of your teachers."

Lu Shixian's brow furrowed slightly, a thought stirring in his mind.

If he remembered correctly from his past life, this Wu Chenghai had been criminally punished for crossing a line and breaking the law.

What gave him the right to stand here now and lecture him about abiding by rules and regulations?

Could there be more to that story than he knew?

But he couldn't figure it out.

At that moment, Lu Shixian felt cornered, as if he were fighting an uphill battle against the entire establishment.

But he couldn't retreat a single step. If you give up on time, time will also give up on you.

He finally let out a soft sigh. "In that case, I'll choose the guaranteed admission to Jinling No. 1 High School. With my grades over the past three years, securing a spot shouldn't be a problem, right?"

Hearing this, Zhang Dewu and many of the school's leaders frowned. He truly had no way to refute that statement.

If even Lu Shixian wasn't qualified for guaranteed admission to Jinling No. 1 High School, then no one in their entire grade was.

That being said, it would be a waste of Lu Shixian's exceptional grades.

The honor that was so close, within their grasp, seemed about to slip away.

Jinling Agricultural Middle School was already overlooked, receiving less funding each year than other schools.

But they couldn't say these words out loud.

If they let this opportunity go, how long would they have to wait for another?

Moreover, the school's educational achievements were directly tied to their personal…

But they couldn't bring themselves to say that either.

A student's advancement, the school's honor, and even their own personal prospects could have been perfectly aligned.

Yet somehow, it had devolved into this complicated mess, a tangled knot that couldn't be sorted out.

Just then, Wu Chenghai spoke again, shattering the oppressive silence in the conference room.

"I believe that with your grades, you could easily give up the guaranteed admission spot. Give it to another student who needs it. I think they need this opportunity more than you do."

The statement dropped like a bombshell, exploding in the minds of everyone present.

It was as if Pandora's box had been opened, and all sorts of thoughts began to fester inside.

Joy, hope, anger, and even jealousy…

That's right! The cake is only so big, what gives Lu Shixian the right to take two slices?

And this reasoning happened to be the perfect weapon to attack with, all under the guise of defending the school's honor.

Many people fell into deep thought, including Zhang Dewu, who sat at the head of the table.

Lu Shixian took a deep breath. He never expected things to develop this way.

Was this the kind of treatment reserved for top students? He was finally getting a taste of it.

Thinking back on the events of his past life, Lu Shixian sneered inwardly. He thought he understood now.

The fog that had shrouded him in his previous life was suddenly blown away.

This Wu Chenghai was definitely a problem. No wonder he was the one constantly stirring things up.

No wonder so few people tried to persuade him in his past life after he gave up the guaranteed admission spot to apply for the High School Affiliated to Jinling.

And no wonder Jinling No. 1 High School's admission slots filled up so quickly before his application fell through the cracks.

After piecing everything together, he understood it all.

Whatever secrets this man was hiding, the decision to give up the guaranteed admission spot could only come from him, not be demanded by others.

Just because he had the ability, did that mean he had to sacrifice his own interests for the sake of others?

He wasn't some sanctimonious hypocrite, nor was he a moral crusader.

Right now, he just wanted to see the school's attitude. It would directly influence his final decision.

Some things could be compromised on, but others required sticking to one's principles.

This wasn't a situation where taking a step back would open up a world of possibilities.

It was a situation where one step back would lead to another, and another, until he was backed into a corner with nowhere left to go.

A dead silence fell over the room once more.

Though it was called a meeting, it felt more like an interrogation of human nature.

On one side was the school's honor, personal prospects, and perhaps the temptations of money, power, and lust that lay behind them.

On the other side were the student's interests and the constraints of morality.

Lu Shixian remained calm. Although he hadn't anticipated this exact scenario, he had already prepared for the worst.

Time ticked by, second by second. Many eyes flickered with uncertainty, and Zhang Dewu was struggling to open his mouth.

Just then, a firm voice cut through the crowd.

"I object!"

Hearing the female voice, nearly everyone turned to find its source.

Lu Shixian, however, gently closed his eyes. He didn't need to look to know who it was.

Who else could it be but that silly Wang Chunya?

"I firmly object to the school giving Lu Shixian's guaranteed admission spot to someone else without his consent."

"Only by staying true to our original aspiration as educators can we nurture our students to the end. As a teacher of the people, my original aspiration and mission tell me that if even we cannot remain objective and fair, and instead become obsessed with chasing so called honor, how can we possibly educate the next generation properly?"

Her words made many people's faces change. A look of awkwardness and shame appeared on the faces of many teachers, including Zhang Dewu.

But Wu Chenghai, far from reflecting, grew even more sharp tongued.

"You're his homeroom teacher. Of course you're happy if he gets the spot. No matter what happens, you get your performance bonus. What right do you have to speak?"

"Besides, you're a teacher who's only been here for a few years. What qualifications do you have to object in front of so many school leaders?"

"The leadership hasn't even made a statement yet. On what grounds are you expressing your opinion?"

"Firmly object? What nonsense. Original aspiration and mission? Utter rubbish!"

Seeing Wang Chunya standing isolated in the crowd, Lu Shixian's fists began to clench quietly. This Wu Chenghai was really starting to cross his bottom line.

What separates man from beast, what makes us human, is the capacity for moral freedom.

It seemed this Wu Chenghai was not so free.

Just as he was preparing to resort to his final measure, the door to the conference room was suddenly thrown open.

A commanding voice, full of vigor, boomed from behind them.

"Well said. A fine 'original aspiration and mission' indeed..."

Chapter 21: This World Is Never Indifferent

"Well said. As educators, we must not only impart knowledge but, more importantly, cultivate virtue and character.

Our original aspiration is to cultivate talent for the nation. Our original aspiration is to ensure every child receives a better education. Our original aspiration is to help children grow into useful members of society.

To truly unify learning, doing, and being, and to be good guides for our students' growth—that is our true original aspiration and mission."

As he spoke, an elderly man with a powerful presence walked slowly into the room, followed by a somewhat familiar figure.

With his hands behind his back, he wore a dark black Zhongshan suit. His weathered face was etched with wrinkles, deep and shallow.

At this, nearly everyone in the conference room was stunned. How did a meeting like this manage to summon him?

What day was it? They hadn't received any advance notice that the high ranking Director Ren Qingyuan was coming for an inspection.

Instinctively, Zhang Dewu hurried forward to greet him.

"Director Ren, Director Qian, welcome to Jinling Agricultural Middle School to guide our work."

The old man, however, shook his head. "I wouldn't call it guidance. But what I've seen at Jinling Agricultural Middle School today has certainly been an eye opener."

Zhang Dewu knew he had walked right into the line of fire. Who knew why this titan, who usually guarded his golden pheasants at the top schools, would come to see their flock of wild chickens? In the past, they had only ever heard his name but never seen him in person.

But what was done was done. All he could do was brace himself.

"Director Ren, it's noisy here. Perhaps we could move to my office for a more detailed discussion?"

Ren Qingyuan waved his hand, rejecting the offer outright.

"No need. It wasn't anything special to begin with. I was originally on my way to Jinling No. 1 High School today but ran into young Qian on the road."

"He told me a promising young student had emerged from Jinling Agricultural Middle School—quick witted and pure hearted, who scored first in the entire city on this mock exam. So I thought I'd come and have a look."

"But after a two hour drive from the city, I finally arrive here only to witness this scene."

He glanced around the room, his voice suddenly stern. "Is this the state of education in Jinling now? A fish rots from the head down."

"Is this the academic atmosphere in Jinling now? Such a display of authority, where those with less seniority can't even speak?"

"Is this the fine tradition of Jinling now, where a group of adults bullies a minor for their own selfish interests?"

Thud!

Suddenly, he slammed the teacup in his hand down on the conference table.

"All of you, tell me, what exactly is going on here?"

Cold sweat instantly beaded on the foreheads of several school leaders. This was a heavy accusation they couldn't afford to bear.

Knowing he was at fault, Zhang Dewu was about to offer a self criticism.

But unexpectedly, Wu Chenghai stepped forward to explain. "Director Ren, you don't understand. Some of our work at the grassroots level is very difficult."

"Student Lu Shixian did indeed perform very well on the exam this time. But he's trying to use it as leverage to demand that he be excused from all future classes, refusing to submit to the school's authority. Our intentions were for his own good."

"As for the matter of the guaranteed admission spot, I'm sure you can understand. Our school only has one such spot, and Jinling No. 1 High School only has twenty admission slots in total."

"With his academic performance, getting into Jinling No. 1 High School is more than certain. It would be better to give this opportunity to another student. We are doing all this for the students' development, wouldn't you agree?"

Lu Shixian's eyes narrowed. This Wu Chenghai was truly full of righteous rhetoric. He had twisted everything to make himself sound good, claiming his lengthy speech was all for Lu Shixian's benefit, yet Lu Shixian gained nothing from it.

His skill at making sweeping generalizations was masterful, and in an attempt to shift blame, he was trying to paint Lu Shixian as a disobedient student who wanted to skip class.

Once he was tagged with such a label, it would be a stain on his record no matter what he did in the future. This man was trying to ruin him.

"What grudge does this Wu Chenghai have against me? Why is he always the one leading the charge?"

I won't attack unless I am attacked. If I am attacked, I will certainly retaliate.

At that moment, Lu Shixian made a firm decision in his heart. He would settle this score sooner or later, squaring the accounts from both his past and present lives.

Ren Qingyuan, however, gave Wu Chenghai a meaningful look and said in a placid tone, "That's enough. I have eyes of my own. I was briefed on the situation before I came in."

With that, he walked forward and sat down at the far end of the table.

"Everyone, sit. Since I'm here today, we must resolve this problem completely. We cannot let our students be wronged."

With the top leader having spoken, the others could only comply. Zhang Dewu, however, no longer dared to sit in the head seat opposite Ren Qingyuan.

Ren Qingyuan tapped his fingers lightly on the table and continued, "The root of the problem is that student Lu Shixian wishes to have free activity time during the hundred days before the exam."

He suddenly looked at Lu Shixian and asked gently, "What do you mean by 'free activity'? As long as it's within reason, I can approve it for you."

Even Lu Shixian himself was a bit bewildered by this turn of events.

Who was this Qian Zhengguo? He didn't seem to have any impression of him.

And why was he speaking up for him?

It seemed his arrival had truly brought some changes to this timeline.

Whether they were for better or worse, he couldn't say for now.

Following the principle that it's foolish not to rely on a powerful backer, Lu Shixian tried to respond as concisely as possible, matching the man's style.

"I believe I have completely mastered the junior high curriculum. According to my life plan, I want to start studying high school science material in the classroom as early as possible."

His words genuinely piqued Ren Qingyuan's curiosity.

Clearly, this answer was not what he had expected.

He nodded, then looked toward Qian Zhengguo, who was sitting beside him.

"Although there's no precedent, it's a very reasonable request. Young Qian, do you have anything to say about this?"

Hearing this, Qian Zhengguo raised his head and looked at Lu Shixian.

His eyes were filled with admiration.

"To be honest, I was the one who proctored student Lu Shixian's math exam. Afterward, I went to the examination authority to review his graded papers for all subjects."

"Compared to other full score papers, his learning ability aside for a moment."

"There was one thing that struck me deeply. Through his essay, titled 'The Spirit of Craftsmanship, The Rise of a Great Nation,' I could see his sincere patriotism."

"On that point alone, I believe he is more than qualified to begin studying high school material ahead of schedule."

"Before you can teach, you must first nurture character. I, Qian Zhengguo, on behalf of Jinling No. 1 High School, promise that regardless of Lu Shixian's entrance exam score, he will be welcome to study at our school, and his admission will not count against Jinling Agricultural Middle School's quota."

At these words, many in the room were overcome with shame.

In the crowd, only the inconspicuous Wang Chunya watched him with a constant smile.

Perhaps the journey of life is filled with many obstacles.

But one must remember:

This world is never indifferent.

There is always someone loving you in secret.

Chapter 22: The Storm Will Eventually Subside

Lu Shixian's heart was deeply moved. In truth, that essay didn't really deserve such high praise from Qian Zhengguo. His motivation for writing it had been somewhat calculated. The majority of it was indeed to sing praises, but a small part was simply for the grade.

His patriotic heart was real, but how pure were his intentions? He knew the answer himself.

He had to admit, everyone in the world has selfish desires. No one is an exception, including him.

While Lu Shixian was engaged in self analysis, Ren Qingyuan spoke again.

"Then let's arrange it that way. Young Qian, you handle the necessary procedures later. The bureau will have people cooperate with you."

Seeing Qian Zhengguo nod in response, he continued, "Do you know why I came today?"

"Because the decision to recruit children from the mountainous counties and districts around Jinling was one I made five years ago. That's how Jinling Agricultural Middle School came to be. All these years, I have been paying close attention to the performance of these children."

"But their grades are even worse than what they were achieving in their original local schools. Sometimes, I truly reflect on whether that decision was too rash."

"Does seeing the outside world actually discourage their will to learn? Are these rural children really no match for the children in the city?"

"I came here today seeking only one answer."

As he spoke, he suddenly turned to look at Lu Shixian.

"No one is born outstanding. Even a genius must constantly work hard to become accustomed to excellence."

"Child, I'm waiting for you to give me an answer!"

Lu Shixian was moved and remained silent for a long moment. With just a few words, this old man had swept away all obstacles for him.

He could only answer with the utmost determination, "I will!"

Ren Qingyuan nodded at him, then looked at the people around them.

"This agricultural middle school has been growing wild for a few years. It's time to prune some of its branches."

"It's time to go, young Qian. I still have many things to do."

"Right away! Let me help you." After giving Lu Shixian an affirmative look, Qian Zhengguo left the conference room with Ren Qingyuan, leaving only the dusty silhouettes of their backs.

After seeing them off at the school gate and watching their car depart, Lu Shixian exchanged a greeting with Wang Chunya and also turned to leave, briskly and without hesitation.

He could ignore the others, but he really did not want to see Wu Chenghai's disgusting face again.

Meanwhile, a black Santana was driving along a winding suburban road.

"Ah, young Qian, coming here with you by chance today, I don't know whether to feel distressed or fortunate. Such problems have appeared in just a small, rural junior high school."

"Look at that Wu Chenghai fellow. Does he look anything like a teacher of the people? He's just like a vulgar merchant. What must the state of educators be across all of Jinling? It seems a rectification of the entire city's education system is urgently needed."

"Especially that Wu Chenghai. There have been anonymous complaint letters about him before. It's true that there's no smoke without fire. The relevant departments have already gathered some material. They were planning to let out a long line to catch a big fish, but it seems they'll have to reel it in early this time."

Qian Zhengguo shook his head with a smile and offered some comfort. "That's not entirely true. This person is just an isolated case. At least at Jinling No. 1 High School, I've never seen such a situation. Besides, poverty leads to change, change leads to solutions, and solutions lead to longevity."

"Every change is accompanied by growing pains. Once the painful period is over, things will run smoothly. And look at that young lady who spoke up for the student just now, wasn't she quite good?"

"That's also true. I'll have the archives look up that young lady's file when I get back."

Just one day later, a major campaign to rectify discipline and work style began throughout the entire Jinling municipal education system.

On Thursday, Wu Chenghai was found guilty of abuse of power and bribery. For the combined offenses, he was stripped of his teaching position and faced criminal charges.

On Friday, nearly the entire school leadership team was rotated out and reassigned to other posts.

With that, the matter finally came to a close, and the storm eventually subsided.

Although the process had been fraught with twists and turns, the ending was ultimately a good one.

Since Wu Chenghai had already received the severe punishment of the law, he would not pursue the matter further.

The subsequent events had nothing to do with Lu Shixian. He had already wasted too much time on this.

Everything was back on the right track.
In Grade 9, Class 1, the way all the students looked at Lu Shixian hadn't changed; to them, it was as if he had just stepped out for a moment.

But for many of the teachers, their gazes held a more subtle meaning.

After all, this was the student who had single handedly altered the entire educational landscape of Jinling City.

Even without witnessing it firsthand, the stories they heard were outlandish enough.

From that point on, he faced no further resistance at Jinling Agricultural High School.

In fact, the newly appointed principal, upon taking office, immediately assured Lu Shixian that the school would do its utmost to support his final one hundred days of study and that he could approach him directly with any needs.

When afternoon came, it was time for another long awaited break from school.

This time, however, he wasn't nearly as relaxed.

He had been informed by Wang Chunya that the entire school would hold a Hundred Day Countdown Rally next Monday, and all students' parents were required to attend.

He had another task: to speak as the outstanding student representative under the national flag.

To be honest, in both his past life and this one, he had grown to dread these kinds of speeches.

It was simple, really. He had just given too many of them and was sick of it.

But it was Wang Chunya's request, and he couldn't bring himself to refuse, so he had no choice but to accept.

If you were to ask who he feared most at school right now, Wang Chunya would undoubtedly top the list.

But that wasn't even the real problem. The problem was that he had to go home.

The apprehension of returning after a long absence wasn't the main issue.

The crucial thing was that he was out of money.

The school did offer a cash prize for placing first in the city, but that would be given out at the awards ceremony.

Could he really go up to someone and say, "I'm about to starve, can I get an advance?"

Lu Shixian believed his sense of shame hadn't sunk that low just yet.

As the final bell rang, students streamed out like a gust of wind, slinging on their backpacks and rushing towards their waiting parents.

Same time, same situation.

In the empty classroom, only Lu Shixian and Xu Youmeng remained once more.

Lu Shixian took the initiative, probing for information.

"Why aren't you heading back? Don't you need to go home and get your parents?"

Unexpectedly, all he got in return was an exasperated eye roll from Xu Youmeng.

"I don't have a home, and I don't have parents. End of discussion."

Lu Shixian nearly burst out laughing. It seemed Xu Youmeng had a bit of a sense of humor after all.

Her family was practically sitting on a gold mine, yet she acted so low key. Was she some kind of runaway princess?

Meanwhile, Xu Youmeng watched him, puzzled that he hadn't left yet.

"Why are you still here? How long has it been since you last went home?"

Lu Shixian held up his fingers and counted. "One, two, three, four... about four or five years, I guess. Besides, I'm trying to remember the way back."

This time, Xu Youmeng couldn't help but laugh.

"Are you trying to pull my leg?"

"Yep, I am. And only a fool would fall for it!"

"Lu Shixian, you're asking for it!"

Chapter 23: The Apprehension of Homecoming

"That psycho girl will never get married," Lu Shixian muttered, escaping from the classroom.

He ran a hand through his messy hair, which felt like a bird's nest, and quickly smoothed it down.

Losing his cool image was one thing, but being misunderstood would be a much bigger problem.

Standing at the crossroads by the school gate, Lu Shixian felt a little lost.

He hadn't been kidding earlier. After his family moved, he really hadn't been back to his old home in four or five years.

"I think I take the bus to Xingfu Town first. Which number was it... 808, I think!"

"Then I follow the main street through the market town, straight ahead, until I reach the edge of Xingfu Village and see the large stretches of farmland."

"And finally, there should be a utility pole by the road. My house is on the hillside opposite that pole."

With the route recalled, Lu Shixian didn't hesitate. Spotting the green number 808 bus approaching, he flagged it down and hopped on.

He didn't have to wait long. On Fridays, when students were let out, the transport company always increased the number of buses.

Sure enough, once he was on board, at least half the passengers were kids with small backpacks.

"What a handsome young man. All by yourself? Where are you headed?" a friendly ticket lady asked from beside him.

"Xingfu Town," Lu Shixian stated his destination.

"That'll be two yuan."

Lu Shixian pulled out the last ten yuan bill he had and handed it to her.

Although he lived in the countryside, Lu Shixian had it easier than some of his classmates.

Xingfu Town was a suburban township within Jinling District, and his home was within the town's jurisdiction, making it more convenient than for students from other counties or cities.

But Lu Shixian had always been fiercely independent. Since starting his third year of middle school, he rarely went home except for winter and summer breaks in order to maximize his study time.

His family were major grain growers in the town, cultivating around fifty mu of early season rice each year.

While the area was large, the price per unit wasn't high, so they weren't wealthy, but they had more than enough to support his education.

It was also worth mentioning that his family had followed the national family planning policy, so he had no siblings. As an only child, he was naturally doted on.

Later, after he started studying in the city, his consistently excellent academic performance became well known throughout the town.

Soon, the bus stopped at the entrance to the market town.

Getting such a long ride for just two yuan felt a bit strange to Lu Shixian as he stepped off.

Gazing at the familiar yet strange streets of the small town, Lu Shixian suddenly felt his entire body relax.

In his past life, he was reserved and quiet when he was out in the world, but back in his hometown, he was like a different person.

In truth, all his aloofness was just a facade to protect his inner self.

He walked along the old street. It was quiet, with few people around.

Except, of course, for the aunties minding their shops, dozing off in their chairs.

The good thing about a small town was that you could tell if someone was an outsider just by looking at them.

"Well now, isn't this old Lu's boy? I thought you were studying in the big city and wouldn't be back until summer break. What brings you home now?"

Lu Shixian couldn't quite remember who was speaking, but anyone who could identify him at a glance couldn't be a bad person.

"Auntie, our school is having a parent teacher conference, so I came back to get my parents."

"Oh, I see! Old Lu must be so proud, going to get another award! Why can't my girl be as smart..."

Seeing that the auntie seemed ready to launch into a long monologue, Lu Shixian seized the opportunity and made a quick escape.

After navigating several similar conversations along the way, Lu Shixian finally left the town center.

He wasn't antisocial, but chatting with the uncles and aunties always had a way of veering from the topic of education to matchmaking.

He was only fifteen! Even if the spirit was willing, the flesh was weak. It was just too much to handle.

Having finally escaped the gauntlet, Lu Shixian found himself on a rural road flanked by endless, connected rice paddies.

His pace slowed, and he began to truly understand the feeling of apprehension that comes with returning home.

He watched the shimmering surface of the water in the paddies, glittering with fine golden light under the sun's rays.

Lu Shixian spread his arms wide, as if embracing the entire world.

Following his memory, he arrived at the utility pole he had often climbed as a child.

The graffiti he had playfully scrawled on it was still there.

"Sow one seed in spring,"

"Reap ten thousand in autumn."

Lu Shixian smiled faintly, the last of his apprehension melting away.

He walked along the ridge of the field and slowly approached his "countryside villa."

It was called a villa, but it was really just a two story Western style house.

And it was called a Western style house, but it was really just a cinder block building with tiles on the exterior.

Compared to the finely furnished commercial apartment he had lived in during his previous life, it was certainly modest.

But he had no complaints and was deeply grateful for his parents' selfless sacrifices.

He was already very content with the life their hard work had provided.

He didn't know what his past self had been thinking, so focused on his studies that he could go months without returning home or even contacting his family, not even making a single phone call.

Just as he reached the front door, he saw a youthful figure he hadn't seen in a long time, washing clothes.

Xia Xiuman, a Chinese teacher at Xingfu Elementary School.

She had graduated through a correspondence course, and her ultimate goal was to retire with honor from Xingfu Elementary.

She was also the one who had first sparked his love for learning.

Seeing his young parents again, Lu Shixian broke into a happy grin.

"Mom! I'm home!"

The woman, engrossed in her laundry, suddenly looked up and saw Lu Shixian standing before her.

"Oh my, am I dreaming? Why is my boy back at this time? I thought you'd forgotten all about me and your dad."

Lu Shixian rubbed his forehead, where imaginary sweat beads had formed. He hadn't forgotten, but his past self most certainly had.

"Of course not. Where's Dad?"

Xia Xiuman replied, a hint of annoyance in her voice, "Where else? Out fussing over those wretched seedlings of his. He doesn't even know his own son is back."

Lu Shixian chuckled and quickly explained, "It was a last minute decision to come back. We had exams this week, and the school is holding a Hundred Day Countdown Rally on Monday. It's basically a parent teacher conference."

At this, Xia Xiuman's eyes lit up.

"Old Lu went last time, so it's my turn. No one's taking this from me. I'll tell him later."

Lu Shixian was momentarily speechless. He put down his backpack and ran towards the fields.

"Mom, I'm going to see what Dad's up to."

"Son, you haven't even changed your shoes! If you get your clothes dirty in the fields, your old mother here will have a hard time washing them."

But Lu Shixian was already far away, leaving only Xia Xiuman's cheerful laughter echoing behind him.

He arrived at the edge of the only terraced field that was green with life. Sure enough, a middle aged man with glasses was there, smoking a cigarette and staring intently at something.

Lu Jianguo, the biggest doggone grain grower in Xingfu Village.

He had attended high school but later dropped out, studied at an agricultural school, and worked as a village technician.

Now a professional farmer, he often boasted about his farming skills but was, in reality, a bit of a hack.

"The leaves aren't unfurling properly, and their color is a bit dull. It's a water retention problem," Lu Shixian said, knowing the issue with the rice seedlings in the paddy after a single glance.

"What the hell do you know?" the man snapped, whirling around.

And then he froze.

Chapter 24: A Parent's Love

"Son, what are you doing back?" Lu Jianguo was stunned.

His small eyes were filled with immense confusion.

Lu Shixian repeated the explanation he had given his mother.

Only then did Lu Jianguo nod, looking his son over.

"Not bad. You look much more energetic than you did at the start of the semester. You've got that look I had when I was young. I was a real handsome lad back then."

Lu Shixian couldn't help but let out a laugh.

"Didn't you used to say that Mom ending up with you was like a flower on a pile of cow dung? Why the change of tune?"

Lu Jianguo spat on the ground.

"Pah, what cow dung? That was a different era. Back then, girls were more popular, they were the flowers, and we guys were devalued. Nowadays, it's all about handsome young men. The market changes, you know?"

Lu Shixian just smiled and didn't argue.

But Lu Jianguo remembered what his son had said earlier and pressed him, "You just said it was a water retention problem. The water in this paddy is nearly overflowing. What does a kid like you know? You think you're better than your old man now?"

When it came to crop cultivation, Lu Shixian's eyes seemed to light up.

"On a sunny day, the ditches should be full; on a cloudy day, half full is fine. The key issue is that this particular paddy can't hold water."

Lu Jianguo was even more confused. This wasn't the kind of knowledge his son should have at his age.

"How do you know that?"

"It's simple. There are barely any weeds in the field, which clearly means too much glyphosate has been used, loosening the soil foundation," Lu Shixian began to explain with confidence.

Lu Jianguo smacked him on the back of the head. "I'm asking where you learned it from."

Lu Shixian spread his hands. "Knowledge is a treasure found in books. What can't you find in them? You just have to read."

Now, Lu Jianguo was truly baffled.

He knew his son was a brilliant student, but was education this down to earth now?

They even taught this stuff?

It seemed the nation's agricultural sector was poised for a revival.

With that thought, he clapped a proud hand on Lu Shixian's shoulder.

"Come on back with me. Your mom hasn't seen you in a long time."

Lu Shixian's old habits kicked in, and he wanted to keep observing the rice seedlings, but his father had already grabbed him and was pulling him away.

Oh well, Dad's the boss.

He had no choice but to return to the courtyard and sit down.

Meanwhile, Xia Xiuman had already taken out the meat she had been saving in the freezer to thaw.

Her precious son was back; a special meal was a must.

Old Lu grinned. "My son's home today, I'm happy. I can have a drink this time, right?"

Xia Xiuman shot him a withering look. "Don't even think about it. I'm already being generous by letting you smoke."

"By the way, our son's school has a parent teacher conference on Monday. It's my turn to go this time. I'll ask the principal for a day off. You're in charge of all the housework on Monday, got a problem with that?"

Lu Jianguo slapped his chest. "Don't worry, leave it all to me. Mission guaranteed."

Lu Shixian saw the gleam in his father's eyes and knew he was planning to let loose for a day.

However, his father didn't forget what was important, reminding Xia Xiuman, "Once you're done, don't dally. Our seedlings are just about ready. I need you back to help me with the planting."

"I think I can do it," Lu Shixian immediately raised his hand, offering to help with the labor.

But what he got in return was a two pronged attack from his parents.

"Study hard and make progress every day."

Lu Shixian was at a loss for words. Other kids were forced by their families to do chores.

All he wanted was to do a little work, so why was it so difficult?

Saturday, 6:30 AM.

Lu Shixian began his unwavering morning exercise routine.

Running barefoot on the damp, fresh country path was an indescribable pleasure.

It wasn't even July yet. By then, the rice paddies would be fully mature.

Walking through the fields, smelling the fragrance of rice and listening to the croaking of frogs—how wonderful would that be?

In the afternoon, as was customary, he reported his recent exam scores to his mother. His father never bothered with the details; as long as he knew his son was first, that was enough.

Suddenly, he received a sharp rap on the head from Xia Xiuman.

Lu Shixian yelped in pain and looked at his mother with watery eyes.

"Mom, what was that for? I improved, you know."

Xia Xiuman's face was a mixture of surprise and pride.

"So I'm not dreaming, it's real! My son has truly blossomed! First in the entire city! Hahahaha!"

Lu Shixian looked helplessly at his character of a mother. If she wanted to check if she was dreaming, she should have hit herself.

On Sunday morning, with both his parents present, Lu Shixian laid out his recent plans for them.

They reacted calmly to the news that he was studying ahead.

After all, parents who would grant his request to board at the school for such a long time were bound to be extremely open minded.

Not to mention, Lu Shixian's latest scores had reached a new high, giving them a pleasant surprise.

When it came to his education, his mother usually had the final say, while his father's role was often limited to listening without a vote.

So, Xia Xiuman nodded. "You're grown up now, and it's good that you have your own ideas. We're happy for you. But if anything happens at school, don't keep it to yourself. Talk to your teachers and contact us."

"Also, while you're living at school, make sure to air out your quilt and wash your clothes often..."

Listening to his mother's nagging, Lu Shixian no longer showed a trace of impatience.

Instead, he listened intently. He had already experienced the pain of being far from home, yearning to hear these words in person but having no opportunity.

In the afternoon, Lu Shixian and Xia Xiuman had to head to Jinling Agricultural High School early to avoid being late.

Before they left, Xia Xiuman took some cash from home and handed it to Lu Shixian.

Feeling the thickness of the stack, Lu Shixian's eyes widened. He counted it and laughed.

"Mom, are you getting forgetful in your old age? You usually only give me five hundred every few months. Why did you double it today?"

Xia Xiuman glared at him. "Can't you say something nice, you brat? Part of it is a reward for your exam results, and the other part is because you said you wanted to study high school material in advance. How can you do that without money?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian's smile vanished.

Parents always think of more than their children do, always have endless worries, and are always our warmest sanctuary.

Even if the whole world abandons you, only your parents will love you unconditionally.

A wave of emotion washed over him, welling up from his heart and almost taking his breath away.

He fought back the urge to cry and thanked his parents.

Lu Shixian and Xia Xiuman, carrying bags full of things, walked towards the town's bus station. Lu Jianguo stood at the door, watching them go, and didn't turn away for a long, long time.

The sun was setting, and a brilliant afterglow painted the horizon. The last rays of the sun dyed the entire sky a deep crimson, reflecting on the terraced paddies. For a moment, the water and sky merged into one. The two figures on the road, clad in the twilight glow, chatted and laughed. The scene was breathtakingly beautiful.

Chapter 25: A Delighted Xia Xiuman

Sunday, close to six o'clock.

Xia Xiuman and Lu Shixian finally arrived at the gate of Jinling Agricultural High School.

Lu Shixian wanted to pull his mom towards the dormitory to quickly unload the things they were carrying.

But when he glanced beside him, she was gone.

"Mom?"

Looking ahead, he saw her standing in front of the honor roll bulletin board a short distance away.

Since Sunday was the peak time for students to return to school, a large crowd of parents had already gathered in front of the results display.

Afraid of losing her, Lu Shixian hurried over and took her arm.

"Mom, I already told you my scores. What's there to see? Can we please put our stuff down first? I'm dying carrying all this."

Xia Xiuman retorted with dissatisfaction, "Is hearing it from you the same as seeing it with my own eyes?"

"Besides, son, why are you as scatterbrained as your father? If it's heavy, why don't you just put it on the ground and rest for a bit?"

Suddenly, a parent next to them exclaimed in admiration while reading the honor roll.

"This kid is incredible, first in the whole city! I bet he's going to have a bright future. I need to tell my own brat to learn from him later."

Hearing what sounded like praise for her own child, Xia Xiuman's eyes curved into crescent moons, and she couldn't have been happier.

However, she didn't say anything, nor did she have the urge to let everyone know she was Lu Shixian's mother.

In her view, her child's achievements were the result of his own hard work; their involvement was minimal.

Perhaps, in her eyes, her child's health was far more important than his academic performance.

Of course, Lu Jianguo was the complete opposite.

By this time, the outstanding exam papers from various schools had already been posted for all to see.

Lu Shixian had no choice but to browse through them one by one with Xia Xiuman.

Out of more than a dozen exemplary papers, Lu Shixian himself had contributed five.

As they looked, Xia Xiuman suddenly stopped in front of one particular paper.

It couldn't be helped. As a Chinese teacher, her professional habits were kicking in.
“Son, your writing has improved quite a bit, but your handwriting seems to have gotten a little worse. Looks like you still need to practice.”

Suddenly, her eyes lit up.

“This essay of yours is actually quite good! It's well focused, the main idea is clear, the theme is strong, and it's full of emotion—very relatable! Not bad, not bad. I'll share it with my class anonymously later for them to learn from.”

Lu Shixian was speechless. Seeing the growing crowd around them, he quickly pulled her away towards the dormitory.

A year ago, Lu Shixian had complained about a snoring roommate and being unable to sleep, so the school had directly assigned him a vacant dorm room.

So, Lu Shixian didn't live in a four person dorm; he had a room all to himself.

That was one good thing about studying at the Agricultural High School; the conditions were better than the schools in the lower districts, though of course, it couldn't compare to the other junior highs in the Jinling District.

After Lu Shixian's offers to help were brushed aside, an hour of hard work from Xia Xiuman left his dorm room looking brand new.

The bedsheets and quilt had been washed and hung on the clothesline, and the floor below was so shiny you could see your reflection in it.

“Mom, what are your plans for tonight after dinner?” Lu Shixian asked, a little worried.

Xia Xiuman glanced at him and replied, “What else? I'll probably go shopping for clothes and cosmetics, then find a hotel to stay at.”

“What? You want to come?”

Lu Shixian chuckled and shook his head. “Nah, just asking. Do whatever you want.”

It was just that in his past life, he'd been too deeply poisoned by wish fulfillment novels, the kind where the parent gives all their money to the child and walks all the way home, or saves money by sleeping on a park bench.

A plot like that might work once in a while to jerk some tears, but if it happens every time, who are you trying to fool?

It's undeniable that some families face extreme hardship, but on the whole, the standard of living for society was getting better and better.

After dinner, he saw his mom off.

Lu Shixian hadn't forgotten the task Wang Chunya had given him: to give a speech the next day.

Although Wang Chunya had given him a script to just read from, which was what he'd done in previous years.

But now, he felt it was meaningless. It wasn't his own words; he might as well not go on stage at all.

He could improvise and speak without a script, but this was a representative's speech under the national flag. It couldn't be too casual; it required a certain level of solemnity and respect.

So he put in an extra half hour of work and wrote one himself.

On Monday morning, he successfully met up with his mom.

After breakfast, as scheduled, they first gathered with the other parents in the classroom.

By then, the classroom was already filled with parents who had taken over the seats, leaving the students to sit on low stools.

Mothers tended to be more invested in their children's growth, so most of the parents who came were women.

When Lu Shixian entered with Xia Xiuman, they immediately became the center of attention for all the parents.

Parents from other classes might have only heard of Lu Shixian's name but had little impression of him, seeing him only a few times a year.

But it was different in Class One. Every Friday, they would hear praises from the teachers and admiration from the other children.

Seeing them enter, Chen Yiyi and her mother, who were already seated, greeted them and cleared the way.

“Oh, you must be Lu Shixian's parent! You look so young, and your boy is so outstanding. Yiyi is so lucky to sit next to him. I hope your son can help tutor her a bit,” a capable looking woman from a farming family said to Xia Xiuman with admiration.

Xia Xiuman was delighted, but she didn't let it show on her face, only offering a small smile.

“Oh, you're too kind. It's nothing for desk mates to help each other with their studies. Besides, your daughter is such a lovely girl. My stinky brat is the lucky one to be sitting next to her.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian, sitting beside her like a dwarf, covered his face, speechless.

Help tutor her? Help with her studies?

She really wasn't afraid of trouble. What if this tutoring session ended up in the woods?

Boys and girls weren't particularly precocious at this age, so it wasn't a big deal yet.

But in another year or two, the era of boys and girls sharing desks in the Jinling region would probably come to an end.

Just then, Wang Chunya finally appeared.

After taking attendance from her roster, she nodded.

“Alright, except for Xu Youmeng's parents who couldn't make it due to other commitments, all other students and parents are here.”

“The reason I've called you all here from your busy schedules today is, for one, because we held the first city wide mock high school entrance exam last week…”

Lu Shixian, however, wasn't listening. He glanced to his right.

Sure enough, Xu Youmeng was sitting all alone in her seat.

“I have no family, and no parents. End of topic.”

Remembering the girl's words, which had sounded like a joke at the time, a flicker of doubt arose in Lu Shixian's mind.

However, it ultimately had little to do with him, and he soon put it out of his mind.

Suddenly, an announcement came over the broadcast system.

“Will all graduating classes…”

Chapter 26: The 100 Day Countdown Rally

“Homeroom teachers, please lead your students and their parents to the athletic field in class order to assemble.”

And so, under Wang Chunya's lead, they began to move.

March 26, 2007.

They must have checked the weather forecast, because the weather today was exceptionally bright, with a clear, cloudless sky.

On the athletic field, the positions for classes one through eight had already been marked out with white lime.

There weren't too many people, so the eight classes quickly found their designated spots.

On the rostrum, the female teacher hosting the event announced the start of the Jinling Agricultural High School 100 Day Countdown Rally for the High School Entrance Exam.

Unlike the Gaokao, though this was also a 100 day rally, the scale was far smaller.

In reality, it was just an open air parent teacher conference.

“Esteemed leaders, parents, and students, good morning everyone! Today, we are gathered here to solemnly hold…”

Soon, after the host finished her opening remarks, she announced the first item on the agenda.

“Next, let's welcome our Principal Liang to deliver a message for the entrance exam.”

After a round of polite applause, the new principal—who had recently been appointed thanks to Lu Shixian—walked up to the podium, dressed in a suit and tie.

“Esteemed teachers, dear parents, and my dear students, in one hundred days, we will welcome the 2007 High School Entrance Exam, the grand test of your three years of hard work.”

“First, on behalf of the school, I would like to express my respect for all the teachers, graduating students, and parents. Thank you for your support of our school's educational work in the past.”

“For the remaining one hundred days, please continue to support the school's work as you always have. We will do our best to help every child face the entrance exam without regrets.”

“Finally, I want to commend the students who performed exceptionally well in the recent first city wide mock entrance exam.”

“Among them, Lu Shixian from Class One of our third year has studied diligently and excelled in his research. His score this time was the highest in the entire city.”

“After discussion, the school has decided to award him a scholarship of 1,000 yuan. We hope he can continue to maintain such excellent results.”

Prompted by Wang Chunya, Lu Shixian quickly pulled his mom towards the rostrum.

The two of them held up a placard that read “One Thousand Yuan,” posed for a photo with the principal as a fake smiling boy, and that part of the ceremony was over.

Although he was just a prop, the thought of getting money made Lu Shixian wish he could take a few more pictures.

He had his mom go down first while he waited below the stage, as it would be his turn to go up soon.

As expected, the host announced, “Thank you, Principal Liang, for your wonderful speech. Next, we will have the flag raising ceremony, followed by a speech from our outstanding student representative.”

As the loud, stirring national anthem began to play, everyone in attendance stood up on their own accord, watching as the flag was slowly raised.

Simultaneously, the entire assembly began to sing the national anthem together.

After the solemn ceremony, the hosting teacher gave Lu Shixian an encouraging look.

Lu Shixian took a deep breath and walked towards the podium.

Even though he had been through this many times, seeing so many eyes on him from below, he couldn't help but feel a little excited, unable to remain completely calm.

He had already written the speech, but since he had written it himself, he remembered every word without needing to look down.

“Esteemed leaders, teachers, and parents, and dear fellow students, good morning everyone.”

“It is a great honor to stand here and speak. My name is Lu Shixian. From the first to the third year of junior high, I believe many of you have heard my name. But perhaps your understanding of me is that of a genius, someone who always gets the best scores and seems to master every subject with ease.”

“But I am deeply aware of my own limits, my own foolishness, my own darkness. I am merely living towards the sun in borrowed time. I am used to setting goals and plans for everything I do, but recently, certain events have disrupted my plans, leaving me at a loss and with many feelings.”

“But we cannot live in the illusion that everything is arranged. Many of life's most important moments often arrive unexpectedly. Therefore, the only certainty in life is perhaps an uncertain life. In English, 'today' is a 'present,' a gift. In Chinese, the character for 'today' is very similar to the character for 'command.' So I treat today as both a gift and a command. By cherishing every today and completing every command, you can receive the gift that today offers, and thus face tomorrow with composure.”

“Achieving this result with borrowed time makes me increasingly apprehensive, even afraid that I am unworthy of my reputation. After all, luck is not an achievement. The boat of time has carried me to dimensions I've never been before, and the hand of fate has lifted me to heights I never dared to imagine, making me feel adrift, dizzy, and truly apprehensive.”

“I am afraid that the time I possess is but a fleeting shadow, so I can only study harder, not wasting a single minute or second. Now that I have achieved this first place, it has already become the past. The next stage of the long race has begun, and the horn for the charge has already sounded.”

“So, since I have chosen the distant shore, I shall press on through wind and rain.”

“Thank you, everyone!”

As his voice fell, a thunderous applause erupted.

Despite the roaring applause, Lu Shixian felt a sense of loneliness, because he knew no one had truly understood.

The students with less comprehension would just be vaguely impressed, while those who understood a little only grasped the surface meaning.

After speeches from the parent representative and the faculty representative, the 100 day countdown rally drew to a close.

After lunch, Lu Shixian walked his mom to the bus stop at the school gate.

Watching Xia Xiuman depart on the bus, his mother's parting words echoing in his mind, the sense of loneliness Lu Shixian had just felt slowly dissipated.

No matter what, he had people who loved him and people he loved by his side. He was already content.

Due to the special circumstances today, there was no afternoon nap.

But Lu Shixian didn't go to his dorm to rest.

He was now the proud owner of three thousand yuan, no longer the pauper whose campus card balance was nearing single digits.

First thing, he went to the cafeteria to top up his card. After all, for a foodie, food is life, and those who eat well are superior beings.

Only with a full stomach would he have the energy to study.

Second thing, he went to a nearby bookstore outside the school for a major shopping spree.

As for high school textbooks, Wang Chunya had already promised to get him a set from her nephew who had just graduated.

So, some necessary supplementary materials were a must buy.

Under the dumbfounded gaze of the store clerk, Lu Shixian held a large plastic bag.

“Five Years of High School, Three Years of Mock Exams,” in the bag.

“42 Sets of Must Do High School Papers,” in the bag.

“Golden Finger 45 Sets,” in the bag.

“Tianguoli 38 Sets,” in the bag.

“Classic Materials for Gaokao Essays,” in the bag.

He also wanted to get some specialized books for academic competitions, but unfortunately, this bookstore only sold what was popular and had none of what he asked for.

“Hey man, time to check out,” Lu Shixian said, waving a hand in front of the young clerk.

The bookstore clerk numbly began the repetitive task.

Finally, with a ding from the cash register, the total amount appeared, stunning him.

Chapter 27: Lu Shixian's Development Path

The amount displayed on the computer screen was 502.00 yuan.

In 2007, over five hundred yuan still had considerable purchasing power. It was only natural for the clerk to be surprised by such a large purchase at once.

“Hey student, your total is 502 yuan. You're a student at Jinling Agricultural High, right? Why are you buying so many high school materials? Do your parents know about this?”

The young cashier was a bit wary, afraid he had stolen money from home to splurge, which would be a real hassle to deal with later.

But spending it on study materials? That was a move he truly didn't understand.

In the end, he dazedly accepted the five large red bills Lu Shixian handed him.

“Keep the change. And by the way, the bills are all real. Chinese people don't cheat Chinese people.”

Lu Shixian tossed out the line, picked up the heavy bag of materials, and slowly walked back to the classroom.

Meanwhile, before the first class in the afternoon, Wang Chunya also gave him the textbooks in her office.

However, she had a condition: Lu Shixian could skip classes and not turn in homework, but he had to participate in the upcoming mock exams so she could keep track of his progress.

What could Lu Shixian do? Since it was a kind offer from Wang Chunya, he could only agree.

Lu Shixian's unusual behavior was naturally noticed by his classmates in Class One.

Curiosity got the better of them, and they went over for a look. Holy cow.

“High School Mathematics Required Course 1,” “High School Physics Elective 3,” “Tianguoli 38 Sets”...

Emm, this guy was not to be messed with. They quickly scurried away.

Soon, the bell for class rang, and now no one was bothering Lu Shixian.

Lu Shixian was contemplating his plan for the second phase, these next one hundred days.

Analyzing his current situation, he saw roughly four possible development paths.

First, study abroad.

But if he considered studying abroad, all his previous efforts would have been for nothing. His family didn't have a fortune for him to squander, so that was a direct pass.

Second, join the Gifted Youth Program.

Unfortunately, he was already fifteen, an awkward age.

The best schools with such programs required Gaokao scores and only accepted students under sixteen.

He wasn't yet fifteen, which meant he would only have one chance to apply next year as a first year high school student.

Although the chances were slim, it was the only opportunity he had left in his life. It would be a shame not to try.

Third, gain admission through academic competitions.

This path was very feasible for him. After all, there were five subjects: mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, and informatics.

Putting the others aside, biology was the main event he had already decided on, the centerpiece of his plan.

But there was an awkward point: many top universities, including Peking University and Tsinghua University, didn't have agronomy programs at the time.

If he got in, what would he study? Plant science in the biology department?

However, that wasn't something he needed to worry about at this stage.

The key issue was his lack of resources. Many specialized books and research materials were simply unavailable in a suburban school like Jinling Agricultural High.

He would have to make plans for that once he got to the city.

Fourth, take the Gaokao.

This path didn't conflict with the second one; it was just a matter of when he would take the exam.

So, the current goal was clear: prepare for the Gaokao in these hundred days, and depending on the results, decide if he needed to take the third path.

Then, depending on how the third path went, he would see if he needed to take the fourth.

With the general direction clear in his mind, Lu Shixian quickly laid out his preliminary study plan.

As the saying goes: exams, exams, exams, the teacher's secret weapon; scores, scores, scores, the student's lifeline.

Exams were the fastest way to assess one's mastery of knowledge and quickly identify weak points.

So, the next goal was to use past Gaokao papers to see how much he remembered from after his Gaokao in his previous life.

Lu Shixian decided to work through the 2006 Jiangsu Province Gaokao papers, subject by subject, to see where he stood.

He spent two and a half hours during the four afternoon classes on just the Chinese language paper.

After a short break to recover his energy, he continued with the mathematics paper during the evening self study session.

The next morning, he spent another two and a half hours completing the comprehensive science paper.

In the afternoon, Lu Shixian began grading his work against the answer key at the back.

Chinese was okay.

He lost points mainly on the required memorization of classical Chinese texts and poetry; he had almost no memory of them, and his recitation of famous lines was a complete mess.

Then there were the questions related to the textbook content. Even using his best guessing techniques, his accuracy was pitifully low.

He did well on the other sections.

Mathematics was not looking good.

To be honest, just looking at the answers, he had gotten most of them right.

The problem was that when doing the Gaokao paper, he instinctively used higher level calculus to solve problems. This was fine for multiple choice and fill in the blank questions, but it was a real issue for the free response questions.

Although there was no explicit rule at the time against using advanced math in the Gaokao, he couldn't guarantee the grader would give him points.

In practice, he could use it if he had to.

For example, if he wanted to use the "Squeeze Theorem."

For a free response question, he could directly state, "by the Squeeze Theorem, the limit of this expression exists and is equal to X."

But he would first have to write out the entire proof of the Squeeze Theorem.

In other words, if you wanted to use advanced mathematical theorems and principles, you had to prove them on the spot in the exam paper.

You couldn't just say, "by theorem X, the answer to this problem is Y."

That would be pretty dumb.

The time it would take to prove the theorem would be longer than the entire math exam.

So, mastering the use of high school level math formulas was a key problem he needed to solve.

Comprehensive Science had to be broken down.

He got nearly all the biology questions correct, but physics and chemistry were a disaster.

He could manage the first year high school content, but when it came to the second year content, it was a complete train wreck.

He was clueless about everything, his mind a total blank.

Lu Shixian now had a pretty good idea of his situation. He had pretty much returned all his chemistry and physics knowledge to his teachers.

Now that his weak points were identified, creating a relevant review plan was simple.

After his afternoon nap, Lu Shixian created a scientific short term schedule tailored to his situation.

6:30 AM - 7:30 AM: Wake up, wash up, then warm up for a long distance cardio run, as a fundamental long term plan.

7:30 AM - 8:00 AM: Have a non social breakfast.

8:00 AM - 8:30 AM: Take care of nature's call, then engage in a tutoring and academic exchange with a girl, to ensure his sexual orientation remains normal as a fundamental long term plan.
8:30-10:30 AM: Memorize and practice writing key poems and classical texts for Chinese class.

10:30 AM-12:00 PM: Read key texts aloud to grasp their main ideas.

As for the afternoon, he was still thinking...

Chapter 28: The Zhongkao Countdown

12:00-12:40 PM was, naturally, lunchtime.

12:40-1:30 PM: Reread the physics or chemistry textbook.

1:30-2:30 PM: The routine afternoon nap.

2:30-3:30 PM: Following the schedule, study the math textbook. Work through it in order, mastering the application of formulas and theorems.

3:30-5:30 PM: Take a full practice exam for one subject and grade it.

5:30-6:10 PM: Enjoy dinner.

6:10-7:30 PM: Rotate through subjects for another practice exam and grade it.

7:30-9:30 PM: Reviewing his error log and reflecting on his performance.

9:30-10:30 PM: Wash up and get ready for bed. Before sleeping, a quick review of key Chinese poems and classical texts, or math formulas.

Time flew by, slipping away unnoticed.

Having stuck to this schedule with single-minded focus for nearly a month, Lu Shixian suddenly received a message from Wang Chunya.

On April 22, 2007, Jinling City would hold its second joint mock exam for the Zhongkao.

Lu Shixian was a little surprised. After all, in his previous life, Jinling Agricultural Middle School hadn't participated in the second joint mock exam; they had run their own.

It seemed history had changed again because of his arrival.

But then he thought, considering even the school's leadership had changed, whether they joined the mock exam or not didn't seem like such a big deal.

On Monday, the meticulous and tense second joint mock exam officially began.

However, the scale was far less grand than the first time. The proctors were all teachers from their own school, the anti-cheating measures were gone, and there were no separate exam halls. Students simply rearranged their desks within their own classrooms for the test.

The first subject was Chinese again. After days of memorizing classic poems and texts, Lu Shixian felt his feel for the language had improved significantly.

He worked through the paper from front to back with increasing smoothness. The final essay he wrote in one fell swoop, filling it with numerous classical allusions and wide-ranging references.

After the Chinese exam, Lu Shixian reviewed the law of chemical equilibrium for a while, then took a short break to prepare for the second test: biology.

By now, the biology exam felt like practicing calligraphy to Lu Shixian. He wrote down the answers stroke by stroke, no longer chasing speed.

Even so, he still managed to finish the paper thirty minutes early.

Since the afternoon history exam was scheduled very close to the previous one, Lu Shixian didn't make any other plans.

But as for this subject, Lu Shixian had pretty much let it slide.

He hadn't read the book or done practice questions for a long time, as if he had given up on it.

Sure enough, you reap what you sow.

His performance on the history paper served as a perfect counterexample.

After reading the questions, he found that the total points for the gimme questions had dropped to 70, and the number of points he could guess correctly was still only four or five.

Lu Shixian shook his head, thinking he probably wouldn't get first place in the city this time.

But he didn't care; it wasn't part of his plan anyway.

The next day brought the long-awaited English exam.

Besides biology, English was the subject he was most comfortable with.

Able to fully read and comprehend the texts, he went on an absolute rampage.

From listening comprehension, multiple choice, and cloze tests to reading comprehension, vocabulary, and finally, the essay.

Not bad at all. Lu Shixian was on fire.

In the afternoon were the physics and math exams.

Lu Shixian tackled the problems one by one. Having restudied high school material, he couldn't help but incorporate some of those advanced concepts into his answers.

In the end, for the sake of neatness, he didn't bother to erase them. It didn't matter if points were deducted, as long as his score was still above 110, it wouldn't affect his overall result.

And with that, the second mock exam was over.

Lu Shixian felt it was a bit lacking compared to the last one. It was merely a test to fill in the gaps and correct weaknesses from the previous exam.

With the Zhongkao approaching, the higher-ups probably didn't want to make things too difficult for these poor students, so as to build their confidence.

Two days later, the results of the second mock exam were freshly released.

Since the papers were graded at their own school before the scores were sent to the Education Examinations Authority, everyone got their test papers and answer sheets back.

Just as Lu Shixian had expected, he ranked second in the city this time.

Chinese: 118

Math: 112

English: 120

Physics: 95

Biology: 100

History: 72

It was obvious his history score had dragged him down. His combined score for physics, biology, and history couldn't beat Cheng Yixuan's, so he was relegated to second place.

These results didn't cause much of a stir. The gap between the top and bottom students at Jinling Agricultural Middle School was too wide.

The same few names were at the top, with hardly any changes.

However, Lu Shixian noticed that Chen Yiyi's scores had been steadily improving.

If he remembered correctly, she had ranked in the twenties in the school last time.

This time, she had climbed into the teens. If she kept up this trend, getting into Jinling No. 1 High School shouldn't be a problem. Lu Shixian felt relieved for her.

He imagined that in her past life, she had also improved steadily, one step at a time.

As the atmosphere in the classroom grew more and more tense, the Zhongkao countdown on the blackboard kept shrinking. Only twenty-some days were left.

Another week passed, and May arrived, bringing with it Jinling Agricultural Middle School's third mock exam.

This exam was organized by the school itself and was basically the last major test before the Zhongkao.

To call it an exam was less accurate than to call it a morale booster for the graduating students.

Lu Shixian didn't know who wrote the questions, but they were ridiculously easy. For the first time, he felt that even history could be simple.

This kind of test was of zero help to him; it wasn't even enough for a warm-up.

If he had known, he would have just told Wang Chunya he was skipping it.

When the results came out, he had nearly perfect scores across the board.

But some of those perfect scores weren't because Lu Shixian was capable of getting a perfect score, but because that was the maximum number of points on the paper.

Lu Shixian's performance in these recent exams had put Wang Chunya at ease, and she had become more and more relaxed with him.

Just like that, May quietly slipped away, and June arrived as scheduled.

The countdown written in the classroom was now in the single digits.

On June 12, 2007, the Jinling City Junior High School Physical Education Examination officially began.

On the sports field, the timing equipment was all set up.

All the students put on vests with tracking chips and poured their sweat onto the track.

Bang!

At the starter's signal, Lu Shixian and the students in the other lanes shot forward.

One hundred days of relentless training erupted at this moment with extraordinary power.

For the first time, Lu Shixian went all out, sprinting the entire way like an arrow loosed from a bow.

The moment he crossed the finish line, he was a good half-lap ahead of the second-place runner in his heat.

The gym teacher recording the times couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement.

"That time, although the electronic result isn't out yet," he muttered.

"But that level is almost on par with the young talents in the city's training program."

Chapter 29: His Parents' Surprise

Ten minutes later, the results for Lu Shixian's group were out.

"Lu Shixian, 1000-meter middle-distance endurance test result: 3 minutes and 15 seconds! If there are no objections, please proceed to the check-in desk in five minutes to sign the result confirmation form."

In the crowd, the team leader, Big Gun Lin, looked at the results on the display board and clapped softly.

He wasn't the least bit surprised that Lu Shixian could achieve such a result.

He had seen Lu Shixian's daily morning training, day after day, and now it was time to reap the rewards.

After signing the confirmation form, Lu Shixian exchanged a few pleasantries with Big Gun Lin, then went to cheer on his classmates who hadn't yet been tested.

June 13, 2007, two days before the Zhongkao.

At this point, the pace seemed to have slowed down.

It was mostly free study time, as the teachers had stopped lecturing on new problems.

The usual sounds of recitation and memorization had also vanished; there was little point in it now.

What pleased Lu Shixian the most was that the food in the cafeteria seemed to have gotten much better.

The morning buns were thin-skinned and packed with meat, far better than before. The lunch and dinner menus featured more meat dishes, though the flavors were milder than usual.

All around the campus, various motivational banners were hung.

"Observe broadly, learn carefully; build a strong foundation for future success. Face the exam with a smile, victory is in sight."

"Have firm faith, perform beyond your limits. My name will surely be on the list of successful candidates!"

"Ten years of hard study to sharpen the sword; in June, the battlefield will test its edge."

"A hundred days of struggle for a single day's dream; may good news travel fast, and your name be on the golden roll."

June 14th, only one day left until the Zhongkao.

By this time, most teachers would just pop into the classroom for a quick look around before disappearing.

Of course, Wang Chunya was still busy. As the homeroom teacher, she not only had to share pre-exam tips with the students.

What if you need to use the restroom during the exam?

How do you overcome nervousness if you feel it during the test?

Besides that, she also had to hold onto the students' admission tickets for safekeeping and check if their pencil cases were fully equipped.

At fourteen or fifteen, students weren't fully mature. It would be a terrible shame if a lost admission ticket or a similar issue caused them to underperform on the Zhongkao.

So, the pressure on Wang Chunya was immense.

After the bell for the fourth period in the afternoon rang, it would, barring any surprises, mark the end of Lu Shixian's final class in middle school.

There was no evening self-study session today; the entire graduating third-year class had been let loose.

Wang Chunya reluctantly bid farewell to her students one by one.

"Class, go home, rest well, and get yourselves in the right state of mind. Do your best on the Zhongkao."

As Lu Shixian was packing up to leave, Wang Chunya suddenly said to him, "Although you have the promise from Jinling No. 1 High, and you don't need your Zhongkao score to get in, I hope you will take this exam seriously."

"Some major milestones in life, if you miss them, they're gone forever."

Lu Shixian nodded. "I will. I'll put a perfect end to these three years!"

Hearing Lu Shixian's promise, Wang Chunya smiled gently.

After dinner, Lu Shixian thought for a moment and decided to call home to explain the situation.

They had a right to know about his Zhongkao circumstances.

He went to the phone booth and dialed his home number.

Ring... ring... ring...

When the call connected, his mom's confused voice came through, mixed with some background noise.

"Well, well, if it isn't the busy man himself? You finally decided to grace us with a call?"

"What's up? Are you out of allowance?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian felt a pang of guilt. He had been so busy studying lately that he had barely contacted his family.

"No, I'm not a spendthrift. How could I use it up so quickly?"

"Mom, where are you? It's so noisy, I can barely hear you."

"Your mom is in the middle of a class. What is it? Spit it out."

Lu Shixian quickly told his family that he could get into No. 1 High regardless of his score, so they didn't need to worry about him.

"Okay, then you be safe at school. Bye."

Hearing the dial tone, it was clear his mom had already hung up.

Lu Shixian walked back towards his dorm, puzzled.

Mom was acting a bit strange today.

He remembered she never answered her phone when she was teaching a class.

But when he got back to his dorm, he saw two familiar figures standing at his door.

He understood at once. His parents had come to the school long ago.

An overwhelming sense of joy and happiness welled up inside him, gathering into a warm current that flowed into his heart and spread throughout his body.

"Dad, Mom, what are you guys doing here?" Lu Shixian's nose tingled, and he fought back the tears that threatened to spill from his eyes.

"To support you during your exam, of course. Even if you're guaranteed a spot, it's your Zhongkao. Wouldn't it be wrong for us parents not to be here?"

"You think we're like you? No word for months. If we hadn't asked Teacher Wang about you, we would've thought you'd gone missing."

After saying her piece, Xia Xiuman shot him a glare.

Lu Jianguo was much simpler. He just put a hand on his son's shoulder.

"Don't mind her. Just do well on the test."

Lu Shixian just nodded, unable to say a word.

That night, many tossed and turned.

But Lu Shixian, filled with the confidence of certain victory, drifted peacefully into dreamland.

The next day, just after six, he was up for another day of morning exercise.

By now, a huge banner hung over the gate of the Agricultural Middle School: "Jinling Agricultural Junior High School Test Site for the Jiangsu Province Jinling City Middle School Academic Level Examination."

Parents had already gathered at the school gate, eating breakfast and chatting.

The arrangements for the Zhongkao were not much different from the first mock exam, except this time, it was for real.

During the exam period, signs prohibiting honking were hung on the roads near the school, and traffic police were on patrol.

As time passed, more and more students gathered outside the examination site.

At 8:20, the security cordon outside the test site was opened.

All the students began walking towards their assigned exam rooms. Having checked their locations the day before, the process was orderly.

Lu Shixian, holding his freshly issued admission ticket, walked directly to Exam Room 6.

He sat down at desk number 42 in the very last row.

To be honest, he had never experienced a position like this before.

Sitting here for the first time, he truly felt a commanding view of everything.

Before the exam officially began, the proctor read out the rules and some important notices.

After showing the sealed test paper bags to the camera, the papers were distributed to everyone.

Lu Shixian quickly filled in his personal information and checked that the test paper and answer sheet were complete.

This sequence of actions was already second nature to him, perfectly smooth.

At 9:00 sharp, the exam bell rang out.

With that, the 2007 Zhongkao officially began.

Chapter 30: The Zhongkao in Progress

He still chose his brute-force approach of tackling the questions from front to back.

When one's learning runs deep enough, all test-taking strategies return to simplicity.

As the saying goes, the greatest sound is faint, the greatest form has no shape, the greatest wisdom seems foolish, and the greatest skill seems clumsy. This was the reason.

From the multiple-choice questions to the fill-in-the-blanks for poems and texts, Lu Shixian proceeded methodically, a bit slower than before, but with more care.

Soon, after filling in the famous lines from the texts, he reached the reading comprehension section.

The passage was an excerpt from the "Record of Rites: On Education."

"To express thoughts according to principles and seek out the virtuous is enough to gain a minor reputation, but not enough to move the masses. To learn from the worthy and associate with those of far-reaching vision is enough to move the masses, but not enough to transform the people. If a ruler wishes to transform the people and establish good customs, he must begin with education. Jade, if not carved, cannot become a useful vessel; a person, if not educated, cannot know the way. Therefore, the ancient kings who established nations and governed the people prioritized teaching. The 'Charge to Yue' states: 'Think of the beginning and the end, and let them be rooted in learning.' This is precisely what it means."

Lu Shixian scanned the passage, processed the main idea in his mind, and then began to answer the questions.

Next, Lu Shixian moved on to the next reading passage.

The reading comprehension was much more complex than the multiple-choice section, and he had to be careful about his handwriting, so it took him a bit more time.

Finally, he came to the essay question.

Lu Shixian was genuinely curious to see what kind of topic the test makers had cooked up this time.

He looked, and it was a semi-open-ended prompt.

"Companionship. What is companionship? Companionship is: 'I am willing to give you my time, and you are willing to give me yours.' On your path of growth, there must have been many people or things that accompanied you. Please use 'Companionship is a Kind of ( )' as your title to write an essay of about 600 words. The genre is not limited, except for poetry."

Well now. The creators of this prompt must have really wanted the teacher who correctly predicted the exam question to keep them company.

The topic was very broad; you could write about anyone or anything, in any style.

However, Lu Shixian thought that writing a persuasive essay on such a topic would feel like making a fuss about nothing.

The prompt essentially fixed the theme to one thing, not many, which made it difficult to come up with supporting arguments.

That left narrative or prose.

But then, probably everyone in the city would write a narrative, and ninety-nine percent of them would write about their parents.

Following that line of thought, Lu Shixian could already envision the grading teachers wanting to throw up at the sight of those words.

Clichés are the death of a good essay.

This meant that to get a high score, he had to take a different path.

"Sigh, I guess I'll have to use the 'scattered form, unified spirit' method."

Lu Shixian sighed internally and began to write "Companionship is a Kind of Strength" on his answer sheet.

"I wonder if you have ever noticed that beautiful flowers, with the companionship of green leaves, appear even more vibrant; that pure white clouds, with the companionship of the setting sun, become even more colorful. And I, with your companionship, am able to paint a brilliant blueprint for my life."

"I often ask myself, will you slowly leave me? You must also be worrying, will I still remember you?"

"Are you too heartless? No. Am I too fickle? No, either."

"You are like a steadfast candle. From the moment I saw you, I knew you would one day leave me. You are like a silent fruit tree. From the moment I saw you, I knew I would one day leave you."

"When the candle has burned to ash, when the peach and plum trees are silent, when you and I say goodbye, I will not feel lonely. Even if you are not by my side, I have your silent companionship. This is a kind of love, the most enduring confession, and more than that, a powerful strength."

Finishing in one go, Lu Shixian couldn't help but think of Wang Chunya. He hoped that in this life, she would have a better one than before.

After a quick check for any writing errors, Lu Shixian finished exactly twenty-five minutes before the end of the exam and left the room early.

When he got out, he saw that some people had already turned in their papers. Lu Shixian had to marvel that Jinling Agricultural Middle School was full of hidden talents.

He walked to the school gate, where his parents were, as expected, waiting for him.

Since there were no worries and Lu Shixian's grades were stable, Xia Xiuman asked about the exam without any hesitation. As a Chinese teacher, she seemed particularly interested in the first test.

"How was it? Did it go okay? What was the essay topic?"

Lu Shixian put on a solemn expression.

"I think I did alright. As for the essay, the topic was 'Companionship is a Kind of Something'."

"If you did alright, then why the long face?"

"It's just that seeing you two here with me for so long, and I didn't even write you into my essay to praise you... I feel very uneasy and regretful."
"Will some praise get us high scores?"

"Maybe, but it'll be tough."

"Then let's not. I'm already beautiful enough, I don't need you to tell me."

Afternoon, two o'clock sharp.

The biology exam began on time.

While checking, Lu Shixian's eyes lit up as he flipped through the test paper.

This biology test seems a little interesting.

Interesting for him, that is. For the other students, it was hellishly difficult.

It seemed there were fewer simple, brainless memorization questions and a few more that required calculation.

"Molecular weight of a protein? Gene frequency of allele 'a'? Probability of a genetic disease? Nicely done."

Lu Shixian silently thanked this year's biology test-setter as he worked through the problems.

When the history exam began, Lu Shixian knew there wouldn't be any problems.

He found that his estimated score could reach as high as 82, a new personal best.

It's in the bag. Lu Shixian couldn't help but hum a tune as he left the classroom.

"I head north, leaving the season with you..."

That evening, back in the dorm, the sounds of students discussing answers had died down. It seemed Wang Chunya's little pre-exam trick had been quite effective.

The torment of the final day was even worse than the first. Many students just stared wide-eyed at each other, unable to sleep.

But some unethical bastard, unable to sleep in the middle of the night, decided to bang his head against the wall.

The sound hammered Lu Shixian right out of a sweet dream. If the dorm supervisor hadn't intervened, Lu Shixian really would have gone knocking on his door in the middle of the night.

This directly led to Lu Shixian feeling rather sluggish the next day.

"I had everything going for me, but someone just had to come and mess with me."

Lu Shixian splashed his face with cold water, forcing himself to wake up and face the second day of exams.

At nine in the morning, the English exam officially began.

Fortunately, this was his best subject besides biology.

Although he wasn't in top form, even performing at half his usual level was enough to complete the test.

The essay topic was, yet again, the cliché "introduce a friend."

Isn't this just being a social networker? Lu Shixian was long tired of writing this kind of thing.

"I have a beautiful, cheerful, and cute friend... I believe you can get along well with her."

Fighting off drowsiness, Lu Shixian finally made it to the last thirty minutes.

After a final glance at his name, he handed in his paper and left.

Chapter 31: Credit for the Tutoring?

With an essay topic like that, combined with his current state, getting a perfect score was probably a long shot. But it didn't matter. He had done his best.

After lunch, Lu Shixian took a good nap and felt much more refreshed.

At two in the afternoon, the physics exam began on time.

After recently relearning high school physics, Lu Shixian suddenly realized how closely connected it was to the middle school curriculum.

It was basically an expansion and deepening of the concepts of sound, light, heat, electricity, and force.

It was like the foundation to a skyscraper; only by solidifying the base and laying the groundwork could one see higher and go further.

After a break until four, the final moment of the Zhongkao finally arrived: the math exam.

Even though it was the last test, almost no one dared to relax.

The intimidating power of the math exam was simply too great; it demanded one hundred percent focus.

Lu Shixian got the paper and glanced at the major problems.

This time it wasn't about moving points, but parabolas.

Lu Shixian put it aside for the moment and started on the multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blank questions.

The advantage of these questions was that Lu Shixian could directly apply theorems and principles beyond the curriculum to solve them.

He just had to calculate the answer and fill it in. As long as the answer was correct, no one cared how he got it.

Therefore, Lu Shixian worked through the problems at lightning speed.

It was basically assembly-line work: read the question, calculate on the scratch paper, and fill in the answer.

Soon, Lu Shixian reached the final boss.

"As shown in the figure, the parabola y = ax² - 5ax + 4 passes through the three vertices of triangle ABC. It is known that BC is parallel to the x-axis, point A is on the x-axis, point C is on the y-axis, and AC = BC."

Lu Shixian didn't look at the figure, but went straight to the first sub-question.

"Find the axis of symmetry of the parabola."

As expected, the first part was still a giveaway question.

Lu Shixian shook his head. Wasn't this just memorizing a formula?

He immediately followed the clues.

From the formula for the axis of symmetry of a parabola, x = -b/2a. He plugged in the values, got the answer, and dispatched the first scout.

It was over before he had even finished writing the line.

Too weak. Next.

"Write down the coordinates of points A, B, and C, and find the analytical expression of the parabola."

Anyone with hands could do this.

He quickly used his coordinate axis searchlight to pinpoint the locations of suspects A, B, and C.

Through the testimony of suspect A (-3, 0), he immediately learned of the suspects' recent whereabouts.

Could it be? Was it really this easy?

Lu Shixian looked expectantly at the third question and felt his heart settle.

"Exploration: If point P is a moving point on the parabola below the axis of symmetry, does there exist a situation where triangle PAB is an isosceles triangle? If so, please find the coordinates of all possible points P. If not, please explain why."

Lu Shixian lightly tapped his forehead; he had overlooked it just now.

So there were still remnants of a fallen dynasty running rampant, entangled with the traitors of today.

Lu Shixian took out his great guillotine, the auxiliary line, and slashed towards its possible hiding places.

Unfortunately, the scoundrel was like a cunning rabbit with three burrows; its scent lingered in three different locations.

He had no choice but to vanquish them one by one, finally concluding that all three places were its lairs.

Then, Lu Shixian wrote down the process of slaying the enemy as a battle report on the answer sheet, waiting for it to be submitted to the grading teacher.

To be fair, the third part of the final question did take him quite a bit of effort.

The idea was simple, but writing out the steps was the hard part.

By the time he did a final check for any missing information or smudges, an hour had already passed.

With nothing else to do, Lu Shixian stared into space for half an hour, then placed his test paper and answer sheet on the desk.

He then stood up, signaled to the proctor, and left the examination hall.

With that, the Zhongkao was over. His middle school life was also drawing to a close.

The moment he walked out of the exam hall, Lu Shixian relaxed, as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

If he went to Jinling No. 1 High School, his Zhongkao score wouldn't matter to him.

But in his heart, he still carried his promise to Wang Chunya, his gratitude to his parents, and a sense of duty to account for his three years of hard work in middle school.

He walked to the school gate and chatted with his parents for a while.

Half an hour later, the final bell rang.

Just a few minutes later, the cheers of students could be heard throughout Jinling Agricultural Middle School.

Then, it was as if it were snowing from the main school building.

Lu Shixian knew what was happening.

Many students were joyfully and wildly tearing up the test papers and textbooks that had tormented them for three years.

Lu Shixian sighed and shook his head.

"The youthful spirit truly never dies. A pity I can no longer join in."

He figured he couldn't go straight home after the exam; Wang Chunya probably had something more to say. So he asked his parents to wait for him in his dorm room first.

Sure enough, the school broadcast was already announcing for students to return to their original classrooms.

Stepping into the classroom of Class One, Year Three, he saw it had not yet been restored from its exam hall setup.

For the first time, it was empty, without any textbooks or materials.

Once everyone had returned, Wang Chunya began to give her final instructions.

"Class, it's getting late today. If you don't have your parents with you or if you live far from the school, please stay in the dorms for one more night and go home tomorrow."

"Before you leave, please pack up all your personal belongings. If you have any balance left on your campus card, you can get a refund at the finance office."

"In half a month, please remember to come back to the school to pick up your report cards and graduation certificates, and to fill out your high school applications. Don't forget."

Wang Chunya was as responsible as ever, but seeing the enthusiastic discussions and restless atmosphere around him, Lu Shixian knew her efforts were in vain.

They would all be asking around about when the report cards were coming out anyway.

Don't ask Lu Shixian how he knew; he had done the exact same thing before.

The moment Wang Chunya finally said "dismissed," almost everyone bolted out as if in a hundred-meter dash, more energetic than when they rushed to the cafeteria for a meal.

Looking at Chen Yiyi, who was still leisurely packing her things beside him, Lu Shixian asked casually.

"Yiyi, what are your plans for the break?"

But it seemed the concept of "going out to have fun" didn't exist for her. She looked puzzled for a moment, then said, "What plans? Help my family with farm work and chores!"

Alright, Lu Shixian surrendered immediately.

But Chen Yiyi's next words left him completely stunned.

"After Teacher Wang told my parents that my grades have been improving recently, my mom said it's all thanks to your tutoring. She wants you to come over to our house sometime so she can thank you."

What?

What was going on?

Was there some kind of misunderstanding here?

Was Chen Yiyi's academic improvement because of his tutoring?

"Ahem."

Lu Shixian felt a pang of guilt.

"Tell your aunt that I'll think about it."

Chapter 32: Beautiful and Leisurely

After sending Chen Yiyi on her way, Lu Shixian prepared to head back to his dorm.

Of course he would think about it, but the result of his thinking would naturally be not to go.

He returned to the dorm and met up with his parents.

Except for the bed, everything in the room had been packed clean, without a single speck of dust left.

Since it was already quite late, they couldn't go back home today.

So after dinner, the family discussed their plans and decided on the next steps.

His father and mother would find a place to stay outside, and they would all go home together tomorrow.

After his parents left, Lu Shixian was bored.

According to his schedule, he should be doing practice questions for one of his subjects right now.

But because of the Zhongkao, he had already missed two days of work.

Should he put in some overtime now and out-grind the other middle school graduates?

Lu Shixian thought this was a viable idea.

The students who passed by, fooling around, were all dumbfounded.

This guy was on another level. His mindset was beyond their imagination.

The next day, because his mother was in a hurry to get back to teaching—she had only taken two days off—she had to be at her school before 8:30 to teach the first class.

And so, Lu Shixian's uninterrupted morning exercise streak of over a hundred days was broken.

Looking at the still-dim sky outside the car window, Lu Shixian wanted to cry but had no tears.

At eight in the morning, the bus arrived on time in Xingfu Town, Jinling District.

Watching his mother hurry towards the school, Lu Shixian had no choice but to follow his father home.

Eight in the morning was the busiest time on Xingfu Long Street.

The consequence was that Lu Shixian was greeted by every auntie and grandma buying or selling vegetables.

In the end, he had to leave his father there to take the heat while he broke free from the crowd.

"That was terrifying. Coming back home is way harder than the Zhongkao."

Lu Shixian walked down the long street and soon arrived.

It was now mid-June, a critical period for the rice to turn green and tiller.

An experienced farmer could roughly estimate the yield just by looking at the number of effective tillers.

He stood on the high ridge of the paddy field, and looking out, it was as if he were standing on a green prairie.

In his family's field, it was almost all the most common Zao Feng No. 9 variety.

The leaves were dense and dark green, the stalks lush and strong, and the grains at the tips of the ears were plump.

It seemed his dad hadn't been slacking off these past few days.

After seeing the rice paddies he had been longing for, Lu Shixian happily went home.

By this time, his father had returned, carrying a large rooster that probably weighed three or four catties.

"Your mom told me last night to buy a chicken in town to nourish you. The food at school is definitely not as good as at home."

Lu Shixian had nothing to do, so he asked with anticipation, "How about I help kill it?"

Instantly, Old Lu's eyes filled with distrust. "You know how?"

"Dad, you underestimate me. How can a model student of the new era not know how to kill a chicken?" Lu Shixian protested.

"Then you do it." Old Lu handed the big rooster to him.

"Isn't it just killing the chicken, letting it bleed, then putting it in hot water to de-feather it, and finally gutting it? Even if I haven't eaten pork, I've seen a pig run." As he spoke, Lu Shixian started filling a tall bucket with hot water.

Lu Shixian had some confidence, after all, he had done it in his previous life.

However, to his surprise, after he pressed the rooster down on the stone ledge and just as he made the cut, the rooster squawked and flew out, escaping from his hands.

A fine line of blood sprayed through the air, getting all over Lu Shixian.

Old Lu, standing nearby, laughed like an idiot while quickly chasing after it. If the rooster's feet hadn't been tied with a rope, it might have actually gotten away.

"Hahahaha, how about that? Didn't you say you knew how?" Old Lu went into full mockery mode.

Lu Shixian was speechless. He knew it was because he lacked strength; his so-called exercise had only increased his endurance. His arm strength was just enough to hold a pen.

But he still argued, "My theory was perfectly sound. It was just that the test subject was unsuitable."

With that, he went inside to change his clothes.

When he came out, the once-majestic rooster had already passed on to the great beyond.

"My sins, my sins."

Thinking of the chicken leg he would soon be eating, Lu Shixian's mouth was already watering.

Suddenly, when he saw the chicken intestines his father was pulling out, his eyes lit up.

He couldn't kill a chicken, but surely he knew how to catch crayfish?

In 2007, the model of co-cultivating crayfish and fish in paddy fields had not yet become popular.

No one realized that raising crayfish in paddy fields could be a market.

The crayfish now were all wild, and this month should be the peak season for them.

With that thought, Lu Shixian found a bamboo pole, tied a white string from an abandoned fertilizer bag to it, and then tied a piece of fresh chicken intestine to the other end.

Finding a net and a tall bucket, Lu Shixian set off excitedly.

As he expected, when he put the chicken intestine into the paddy water, after only ten seconds, the white string floating on the surface began to sink.

A bite! Lu Shixian quickly picked up the pole and gently pulled it up. A deep red crayfish with huge pincers was clinging tightly to the bait.

It looked like he wouldn't even need the net. Lu Shixian waited for it to surface, then gave a sharp tug, pulling the crayfish onto the ground.

By pressing down on the crayfish's dark red back, it was completely helpless against him.

He put it in the bucket and started on the next one.

In less than half an hour, he already had a bucket half-full of crawling crayfish.

In reality, if he really wanted to catch them, he could just use a cage.

Put some bait inside, place it in the water, and come back later to collect it.

But that would take away the fun. This was a game he often played as a child, and now he was just reliving his childhood.

Soon, as noon approached, the sun became more and more scorching.

He had no choice. To protect his good looks, he had to end early.

On his way back, he could barely lift the bucket of crayfish.

When he returned to the cool shade under the eaves, his mother had come back, wearing a sun hat.

Normally, his mother would eat lunch at the school cafeteria, but it was obvious she had come back because of him.

"Oh, son, you went out in this heat to catch these things. Looks like we're in for a treat tonight, eh?" Ms. Xia Xiuman was very happy.

After lunch and a delicious chicken soup, Lu Shixian spent the afternoon waging a life-or-death battle with the half-bucket of crayfish.

Obviously, Lu Shixian won.

All the crayfish were washed clean and placed in a colander.

In the evening, Lu Shixian and Old Lu worked together to move a table outside.

The setting sun dyed the clouds in mottled shades of color, drifting across the sky.

Lu Shixian admired the splendor of the evening clouds while enjoying the cool evening breeze.

The fragrance of ripening rice came from all directions, so refreshing and pleasant.

Lu Shixian cast aside all pretense of elegance, grabbing the stir-fried, golden-red crayfish with his hands and popping them into his mouth.

He casually spat the empty shells onto the ground of their yard and washed it all down with a bottle of ice-cold happy water.

Not even an immortal would trade this life.

This was the beautiful and leisurely life of the countryside, and it had been a long time since he had enjoyed it.

Chapter 33: Mom, Did You Get a Raise?

He had been studying in the city before, constantly facing a world built of steel and concrete, shuttling between labs. Where would he find such a leisurely life?

This life continued for several days, and he finally started to feel restless.

Leisure was leisure, but dreams still had to be chased.

"As a model student of the new century, how can I just lie flat all the time? I must be ambitious! I must study for the rise of the motherland!"

Lu Shixian gave himself a mental pep talk.

So, the next morning, he immediately ran several full laps around the country roads, making up for the days he had missed.

During breakfast, Lu Shixian shared his thoughts with his parents.

To his surprise, he received his mother's strong support.

"Well said! As long as there is life, the struggle never ceases! I fully support you going to the city to study."

"Coincidentally, your uncle and your cousin work there. You can go stay with her, and we'll be at ease. That girl is a pretty good cook, though still not as good as me."

Lu Shixian's eyes lit up as he remembered a familiar person.

Now that the biggest problem was solved, Lu Shixian began to pack his bags again for his next journey.

There wasn't much to pack, really. A few sets of clothes and his main reference books, and he was ready to go.

Before he left, Lu Shixian received another five hundred yuan from his mother.

"Mom, did you get a raise recently? You're being so generous. I haven't even finished the living expenses you gave me last time," Lu Shixian said, looking sincerely at Ms. Xia Xiuman.

In return, he received a disdainful look from his mother. "It costs us more when you're at home, buying this and that all the time. Go on, get out of here so I can have some peace. Besides, when you go to your cousin's place, would it be right to show up empty-handed?"

Lu Shixian hadn't expected this to be the reason for his mother's eagerness.

At that moment, his father also came out to shoo him away.

"Hurry up and go. When you're home, your mom comes back every day for lunch, and it's driving me crazy."

It seemed his presence was seriously disrupting their time together. He had no choice but to sling his small backpack over his shoulder and bid a sorrowful farewell to his parents.

He was once again on the road to the city, but this time he wasn't going to the suburbs, so there was no need to take the 808 bus.
Fortunately, modern buses not only run on a schedule but also have their routes printed on the side.

"Happiness Town to Jinling City Center Bus Station. This is the one."

Lu Shixian eagerly waved at the No. 405 bus, a route he had never taken before.

The bus responded to his enthusiasm, pulling to a leisurely stop in front of him.

"Where are you headed, kiddo? Aren't middle and high schools on summer break now?" the ticket lady asked curiously, noticing the schoolbag on his back.

"I'm going to the city for cram school. No summer break for me," Lu Shixian lied with wide eyes.

As expected, he received a pitying look from the ticket lady.

"To the bus station, that'll be five yuan."

Lu Shixian took out the leftover change from his bag and paid her. He wouldn't dare take out the large bills he had on him.

The five yuan ticket bought him a full three hour journey that nearly made him throw up his breakfast.

That was the downside of public buses—the constant starting and stopping, and the swaying and bumping on rough patches of road.

By the time he reached the bus station, it was already noon.

Although he felt a bit nauseous, a man's gotta eat.

Thanks to having attended school in Jinling in his previous life, he was very familiar with the city; he could probably navigate it with his eyes closed.

However, a decade had passed, and the current Jinling only had the Jinling Tower as its landmark.

But since it was the city center, future development wouldn't be drastic. Even if there were minor differences in some places, the overall layout wouldn't change much.

The restaurants next to the bus station were expensive and mediocre. He remembered a time honored roast duck shop on the old street of Changxing Avenue.

The owner's duck was second to none in the area, and Lu Shixian planned to relive the taste.

Sure enough, his memory served him well. In less than twenty minutes, Lu Shixian found his destination.

Good wine needs no sign. Even though the foot traffic here wasn't heavy, there was still a line at the roast duck shop.

Smelling the aroma wafting from the oven, Lu Shixian decided his nausea was no longer an issue.

He spent fifteen yuan and enjoyed a grand roast duck meal. It tasted just as he remembered.

It was one o'clock in the afternoon. Time to get down to business.

He didn't need the address his mom gave him; he could recite his cousin Xia Yubing's current address from memory.

He was just that familiar with it from his past life.

He had often gone there for free meals, both during his undergraduate and graduate school years.

Xia Yubing's hometown, like his mother's, was in another county level city under Jinling's jurisdiction. But Xia Yubing had inherited the Xia family's academic talent. After graduating from a 985 university, she returned to Jinling to take the civil service exam.

She passed the provincial exam on her first try.

Based on the current timeline, she should be working as a grunt in the Propaganda and Education Division of the municipal propaganda department, reading newspapers all day.

So, all he had to do was head towards the government offices in the city center.

It wasn't even two o'clock yet, so Xia Yubing was probably on her break.

As for what gift to bring, Lu Shixian felt it was unnecessary.

They had seen each other every holiday and New Year since they were kids; they were already very close.

Bringing some vegetables and fruit would be enough. Besides, buying them was like buying them for himself, since he'd be eating them too.

He browsed a nearby wet market and bought some fresh vegetables and braised meat.

Of course, these were just extras. The most important thing was to bring the lychees his cousin loved.

Carrying bags big and small, Lu Shixian finally arrived at the dormitory building.

If he remembered correctly, it should be Unit Two, third floor, Room 201.

Normally, as a new employee, she wouldn't have been assigned such a desirable floor in the dormitory.

But her father, Lu Shixian's uncle, was a leader in another, unrelated department and worked nearby.

It's a society built on connections. Those who know, know.

Unfortunately, Lu Shixian was stopped at the gate. He couldn't get in.

It would be a major issue if just anyone could wander into the government dormitory in downtown Jinling.

"Uncle Chen, can't I just register? My sister really works here," Lu Shixian said, a bit exasperated.

In his previous life, this was the same guard. But once his face became familiar, there were no more restrictions, and he could come and go as he pleased.

The old man took a puff from his rustic pipe, looking surprised.

"How'd you know my surname is Chen, kiddo?"

Lu Shixian hadn't expected the slip of the tongue and quickly passed the buck.

"My sister must have told me, of course. Can I go in now?"

The old man was suspicious and quite principled. "Nope. Not unless someone comes to get you. You tell me which building and which unit, and I'll make the call."

Left with no choice, Lu Shixian had to give up Xia Yubing's name.

"Oh, that new girl. No wonder I haven't seen you before. Let me ask first."

The old man flipped through a registration book and finally dialed a number.

After a brief, muffled conversation, he finally let Lu Shixian in.

But just before Lu Shixian went inside, the old man added one more cutting remark.

"You two aren't on bad terms, are you? Your sister said it's too hot to come out and told you to climb up yourself."

Chapter 34: Isn't This a Little Too Revealing?

Yes, that was the stuff. That was very Xia Yubing.

He understood, but that didn't mean he could accept it.

He stormed up to the third floor and knocked forcefully on the door of 201.

Soon, the door opened.

Lu Shixian looked up. The woman before him was dressed in a flowing white gauze dress. Below her slender, jade like neck was a waist so slim you could circle it with one hand. A pair of long, snow white legs were completely exposed to the air, and her crystalline, jade like feet were bare on the floor.

Lu Shixian had never expected such a scene.

Isn't this a little too revealing?

A line of blood suddenly trickled from his nose, defying all command.

The woman quickly grabbed some tissues from the dining table and handed them to him, teasing, "I say, little bro, it's not even July yet and you're already overheating? Your constitution is a bit weak. How are you going to find a girlfriend in the future?"

Lu Shixian grabbed the tissues and quickly wiped away the blood, feeling incredibly frustrated and complaining inwardly.

I'm going to die. I have the soul of a twenty five year old!

This fifteen year old body just can't handle it.

And you're asking me why I got a nosebleed?

What does a weak constitution have to do with finding a girlfriend anyway?

"Sis, just take the stuff. Let me catch my breath."

Lu Shixian put down the bags and quickly sat down on the living room sofa.

He had to silently chant a few calming mantras until his mind settled.

Only then did he have the chance to survey the layout. It was mostly the same as in his previous life: three bedrooms, one living room, one kitchen, a standard layout.

Only the color scheme was a bit more subdued, not the warm, girly pink from his previous life.

The kitchen, in particular, wasn't very luxurious, just the most basic kind.

It seemed he had arrived too early in this life; the renovations weren't fully complete.

"Little bro, why didn't you go to my dad's place when you came to Jinling? His place is much bigger than mine."

Lu Shixian waved a hand at her. "Compared to seeing some grumpy old man, I'd much rather see a beautiful young lady who's easy on the eyes."

At his words, Xia Yubing's eyes lit up, and she felt a surge of delight. She immediately nodded. "Little bro, your taste has really improved."

She then glanced at the lychees in the plastic bag, and her eyes practically glowed.

"Wow, my favorite lychees! Your awareness is getting better and better. Did you get a little girlfriend at school?"

Lu Shixian was speechless. What was the necessary connection between these two things?

"Women will only slow down my problem solving speed. My heart has room only for studying."

Xia Yubing immediately shot him a disdainful look. "Tch, just wait until you get to high school, then you'll know how brutal the competition is. If you don't find someone now, you won't have time later. By the way, how did you do on your high school entrance exam?"

Lu Shixian replied listlessly, "So so. First in the city."

"Pfft!" She let out a disbelieving snort.

"Give me a break. I know the standards of your Agricultural High. First in the whole school is probably equivalent to around fiftieth in the city. If you can get first place, I'll jump from right here."

Lu Shixian couldn't be bothered to argue anymore. She already had a prejudice against Jinling Agricultural High; she wouldn't believe anything he said, so it was a waste of breath.

And most importantly, this was only the second floor; a jump wouldn't even break any bones.

Seeing Lu Shixian fall silent, Xia Yubing became even more convinced of her judgment.

"How many days are you planning to stay? You should know, your big sis is a corporate drone now. I don't have time to hang out with you."

Lu Shixian already knew her ways. He waved a hand at her. "I just need a key and a place to sleep. You can do whatever you want. I won't disturb your dates."

At that, Xia Yubing's fur stood on end. "What dates? Your sister spends all day reading newspapers, trying to come up with highlights for propaganda reports. I'm as busy as a dog, I have no time for men."

"You, on the other hand. Did you sneak here behind my aunt's back to meet a little girlfriend? Fess up."

Lu Shixian decided to just stay quiet.

His cousin, Xia Yubing, was great in every way. A fantastic figure, good family background, excellent education, outstanding abilities.

Such a wonderful person. A pity she was born with a mouth.

Sure enough, seeing that no one was paying her any attention, Xia Yubing quickly gave up.

"I have to go back to work this afternoon. You can hang out here for a bit. We'll figure things out when I get back."

"Be good and wait for me at home. Don't run around, okay?"

Lu Shixian nodded, understanding that it was impossible to make people see past his youthful body.

He had resigned himself to it.

As expected, Xia Yubing left for work on time just after two in the afternoon.

The door was, unsurprisingly, locked.

Lu Shixian could only wander aimlessly around the apartment.

But after a few rounds, there wasn't much to see. He was far too familiar with this place.

He thought about going to the balcony to enjoy the view, but an accidental glance at the various colorful items hanging there made him keep his distance, and he never went near it again.

He couldn't help it. For him, one drop of blood was worth ten drops of... well, he really couldn't afford the loss.

As the famous saying goes, the young don't appreciate what they have, only to cry in old age.

He waited and waited, and finally, it was past six in the evening.

Xia Yubing finally returned, bringing him a key.

"Here, just had it made. Don't you lose it."

For dinner, it was naturally Chef Xia Yubing's turn. Since Lu Shixian had brought the ingredients, she ended up putting four dishes and a soup on the table—two meat, two vegetable.

Lu Shixian picked up his chopsticks with a sense of nostalgia. Although her cooking was still a bit unrefined compared to her future self, it was already leagues better than his mother's.

He had no idea where she learned her skills.

When it was time for bed, besides the master bedroom, there were two guest rooms for him to choose from.

And each had its own private bathroom, just like a hotel.

To this, Lu Shixian had to say, this was so decadent (and I love it).

He told Xia Yubing that he would be going for a morning run and that she shouldn't worry about him for breakfast. After all, she would never be able to get up at six, so he might as well handle it himself.

The night passed without a word.

When Lu Shixian woke up to his biological clock, the sky was already brightening.

It was summer, so the sun rose early.

First thing every morning, give yourself a pep talk.

The whole day's work depends on a good start in the morning. Let's do this!

Packing his small schoolbag, Lu Shixian headed out the door.

He jogged all the way, treating it as exercise.

He ordered a basket of steamed buns and a bowl of congee at a street stall.

With a full stomach, Lu Shixian headed straight for his destination: the Jinling City Library.

If possible, he would have preferred to go to the familiar libraries at Jinling Agricultural University or Jinling University.

But those places weren't open to the public, and there was nothing he could do about it.

At this stage, the resources in the Jinling Library should be sufficient.

Fortunately, that was the good thing about the city center—places weren't too far apart, and getting around was convenient.

He didn't need to take a bus. A ten minute walk across the pedestrian overpass got him there.

Looking at the tall, imposing provincial capital library, who could have imagined that this very building would later be voted by Jinling netizens as the most ostentatious and impractical place?

Such a small collection of books for such a grand facade. Anyone who didn't know better would think it was the provincial library.

The criticism later spurred the municipal authorities to purchase a large number of books to quell the public opinion.

He wondered if they had what he needed now.

Chapter 35: Vowing to Shatter the Pecking Order

Currently, the first floor of the Jinling City Library was still empty. According to future plans, it was supposed to be used as an exhibition hall, hosting various cultural events and available for rent.

To read books, you had to take the elevator to the second floor. Although there were only three floors, the library was only equipped with an elevator and no stairs. It was hard to say if it was to save money or for show.

Regardless, as long as it was free, Lu Shixian would admit it was a well run library.

He stepped out of the elevator onto the second floor.

Even before entering, Lu Shixian could already smell the rich, scholarly aroma of books.

Of course, without getting a library card at the front desk, he couldn't get in.

Lu Shixian glanced at the front desk and saw a woman who looked to be in her thirties sitting there.

She didn't actually look old, and with the help of makeup, she was quite pretty. But her face was numb.

Her frosty expression was off putting, as if you owed her a great deal of money.

On a path with a predictable end, another salted fish had lost hope in life.

Alright, time to turn on the charm. Otherwise, he wouldn't even get in.

Lu Shixian sighed softly and cautiously approached her.

"Hello, big sister. May I apply for a reader's card?"

Upon hearing the words "big sister," Lu Shixian clearly saw a flash of joy on her face.

"Hehe, what's a little kid like you doing at the library all by yourself? Is no one from your family with you?"

Lu Shixian put on a pitiful look. "My family all work in the government buildings. They're usually very busy and don't have time to play with me. They told me to come to the library to read and pass the time."

At these words, the woman became even more enthusiastic.

Lu Shixian felt as if he had entered a bustling market.

"Oh, you're such a good kid. Forget kids, even adults rarely come here to read. You're quite motivated. Which type of card do you want? Let me introduce them to you."

Lu Shixian looked at the small booklet she took out.

Card A: 20 yuan deposit, borrow 5 books, one month loan period.

Card B: 35 yuan deposit, borrow 10 books, one month loan period.

Card C: 50 yuan deposit, borrow 15 books, one month loan period.

Students could get a five yuan discount with a student ID.

Lu Shixian nodded. Not bad, not too expensive. Compared to the hundreds of yuan it would cost in his previous life, this place was a treasure.

Soon, Lu Shixian used his student ID to get a Card B.

There was some contention over his student ID, as he was about to graduate.

But his recent social maneuvering had been very effective. However, Lu Shixian also believed his good looks might have played a key role.

In the end, he even saved the one yuan processing fee.

Lu Shixian took his newly issued library card and tapped it on the sensor.

"Beep! Student card, Type B."

Lu Shixian suddenly had the comical feeling of swiping a card to get on a bus.

Shaking the random thoughts from his head, Lu Shixian walked straight in one direction.

The woman's well intentioned reminder sounded from behind him.

"Kiddo, you're going the wrong way. The children's reading area is on the left."

Lu Shixian had no choice but to turn back with a forced smile and explain, "I'm just curious, taking a random look. You can go back to what you were doing, don't mind me."

Walking into the book borrowing area, he effortlessly found the shelves for the natural sciences.

Thanks to his extensive experience, a quick scan was all it took to arrive at his destination.

"Biological sciences. Here we are, old friend."

The books were like beautiful, alluring maidens, making his eyes shine.

"General Biology," "Botany (Complete Edition)," "Principles of Biochemistry," "Plant Physiology," "General Zoology," "Basic Ecology," "Cell Biology," "Biological Evolution"...

Seeing these books, Lu Shixian was already extremely satisfied.

Even if the collection here wasn't complete, lacking internationally renowned textbooks and specialized biology competition prep books, it didn't matter.

A thousand mile journey begins with a single step. These were the cornerstones of the great edifice of biology, and mastering them would be no small feat.

He had read some of these books before, like "General Biology."

It was an introductory university textbook, the Chen edition being the standard now. It provided a framework for the entire field of life sciences and was crucial for building a solid foundation.

Then there was "Cell Biology," the domestic bible for studying cells. A single phrase perfectly described its status:

With this book in hand, fear no cell.

And "Botany," a divine book that Lu Shixian had once read voraciously for a month, because he was a sucker for aesthetics.

The beauty of this book's inner pages and cover ranked in the top three among all related professional books.

But there were also books he hadn't had much contact with.

"General Zoology" was one of them. He hadn't even fully understood plants back then; he really didn't have the time to study animals.

This showed that the parts of agricultural science that touched on biology were actually quite shallow. After all, one studied application, the other theory.

Having been in the circle for some years, Lu Shixian understood that a pecking order existed in academia.

Those who built structural models looked down on those who ran regression analyses, who in turn looked down on those who did case studies.

Those who studied causality looked down on those who studied correlation; those who did experiments looked down on those who made observations.

Those who did theoretical research looked down on those in practical applications.

Of course, this was the most superficial kind of pecking order.

The hierarchies between universities, colleges, and disciplines went without saying.

Even within biology, different research directions had their own rankings. Biophysicists looked down on biochemists, who looked down on biotechnologists...

And so on. There were also pecking orders for research achievements, the status of research group members, the scale of projects, and more.

As the saying goes, where there are people, there is a "jianghu." The world of scientific research was no exception. The simple and pure life of a researcher, as popularly portrayed, was just an outsider's romanticized view.

But one thing he was certain of: in this life, he vowed to master both theory and application, attend the best and biggest university, do his utmost to become a principal investigator, publish in the best journals, and completely break free from the pecking order.

Perhaps he was getting ahead of himself. Lu Shixian's current plans hadn't reached that level yet.

First, he had to honestly read and understand this "General Zoology."

With so much to learn, efficiency would be low without a detailed study plan.

Lu Shixian took out a pen and slowly laid out the order of his future studies in a new notebook.

The biology competition was important, but the college entrance exam curriculum was also essential.

After all, he also planned to take the path of the Gifted Youth Program. Even if he only had one year, he didn't want to let the opportunity slip by.

Walking on two paths would provide more stability. His previous considerations had been a bit reckless.
This year's College Entrance Exam had already ended before the High School Entrance Exam. The Prodigy Class required a score in the top 30% of the College Entrance Exam, so he had to do his absolute best on next year's test.

But the provincial league for the Biology Olympiad was also in mid May. Only by winning a gold medal in the top fifty at the National Olympiad would he have a chance at guaranteed admission, making his score meaningful.

He had to get through the provincial league to enter the nationals. The two critical deadlines were perilously close.

This put him in an awkward position, forcing him to fight on two fronts.

But he had been reborn. If he couldn't even overcome a challenge like this, if he didn't even have the courage to participate, he might as well just find a block of tofu and smash his head in.

Chapter 36: Just That Heartless

The study schedule he had made during his hundred days at school was no longer quite suitable.

Considering the current complexities, he needed to devise a more detailed and scientific study plan.

So, first, a complete past exam paper.

Lu Shixian pulled out a set of papers from 2005, his heart aching.

It was for no other reason than that these past papers were precious. Each one he completed was one less he had.

Don't even mention mock exams being the same. If mock exams could be used like the real thing, the cutoff scores in every province would skyrocket to over six hundred.

He glanced at the electronic display in the library. The time was 9:20 AM.

Perfect. He could work until 11:50 and then head back for lunch.

Setting aside the books he had just gotten, Lu Shixian began grinding through the College Entrance Exam papers at his library desk, oblivious to his surroundings.

This time, he worked through the problems with considerable ease.

After more than three months of targeted training, he was already quite familiar with the key classic poems, literary texts, and famous essays of the exam.

Seeing these types of questions now, he would instinctively recall which textbook, which chapter, and which paragraph the original text was from.

Plowing through all the way to the essay section, Lu Shixian felt that it seemed much easier than the 2006 exam.

In reality, however, the difficulty of the two years' exams was quite similar; the 2005 one was even slightly harder.

To feel this way meant that Lu Shixian was truly making continuous progress.

He scanned the essay prompt, and a flowing, eight-hundred-word argumentative essay was soon freshly minted.

Some people felt that writing an essay took too long and was a waste of time, so they often only did the preceding questions and gave up on the essay.

But this was actually wrong. In the word "composition," the emphasis is on the *composing*.

One could never improve their writing style and prose without actually writing.

He glanced up at the display. It was just past eleven.

Perfect, he could grade his Chinese paper. Grading it against the key points of the reference answers—this process of comparison and summarization was often more important than doing the problems themselves.

Just doing the problems without reviewing them was a waste of effort.

After grading it, Lu Shixian came to a conclusion.

As far as handling the College Entrance Exam was concerned, he could set his Chinese studies aside for now and just reinforce them later.

On his way out of the library, Lu Shixian also checked out a copy of *Botany*.

If he had to follow a strict order, of course, he should start with the microscopic level: biochemistry, cell biology, molecular biology, microbiology, bioinformatics, and biostatistics.

*Botany* belonged to the macroscopic level, a key part of plant anatomy and taxonomy.

But this was the book Lu Shixian had the best grasp of previously. Following the principle of starting with the easy and moving to the difficult, this was a reasonable choice.

Soon, Lu Shixian arrived at the front desk.

"Hi, could you help me check this out?"

The middle-aged librarian had seen very few living souls at this time, so having someone to talk to brightened her mood.

Taking the book from Lu Shixian's hands, she glanced at it, and her eyes nearly popped out of her head.

Although she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she had some idea based on borrowing records.

Weren't all the kids these days into reading things like *Zhiyin Manke*, *Dragon Mania*, and *Comic Party*?

Especially titles released this May, like *Stealing the Moon's Nine Stars* and *Spirit Rankings*, which were very popular with the children.

But what on earth was this *Botany*?

She didn't get it, but she still had to check the book out. After all, the goodwill was still there.

She scanned the book's code, and sure enough, a line of information appeared on the screen.

This book: 1 copy in collection, 1 copy on loan, 0 copies available.

If it were some other popular book, she would have at least kept one copy in the library, but this kind of book was basically just there to pad the collection count. Almost no one read it. As long as it wasn't lost or damaged, lending it out was fine.

Soon, Lu Shixian was on his way back, happy. His trip today had been fruitful.

By the time he got back to his cousin's place, it was about ten past twelve.

Xia Yubing had also just returned, but the food was already cooking on the stove, and the rice cooker was steadily puffing out white steam.

Seeing Lu Shixian come through the door, Xia Yubing was a little curious. Who goes out to play carrying a backpack these days?

Could he have actually gone to study?

But school wasn't in session, and her little brother hadn't signed up for any tutoring classes. What the heck was he studying?

Speaking her mind and asking when confused was her usual style.

"Hey, little bro, what were you up to this morning? I heard the door go at six-something. Where'd you go?"

Lu Shixian set his heavy backpack on the table and replied, "What else? Studying. Studying makes me happy."

Xia Yubing looked amused and teased, "Your middle school exam scores aren't even out yet, are they? You're in the mood to study?"

"With that kind of time, you'd be better off enjoying the happy moments of your childhood."

Lu Shixian immediately shot her a look of profound disappointment. "Shallow, so shallow. Luo Binwang was composing immortal poems about geese at six, Gan Luo was appointed a high official at twelve, and Ning Bo was already in university at thirteen."

"And I'm almost fifteen, yet I've accomplished nothing. I'm so ashamed."

Hearing this, Xia Yubing burst into another round of laughter, holding her sides.

"I say, little bro, how come you've gotten so funny after just a few months? Who are those people? Prodigies! At your age, I've already accepted I'll never get to be the older sister of a prodigy in this lifetime. Whatever dreams you have, you can work on them when you're older."

Saying this, she treated it as a joke and hurried him to eat.

After a full lunch and a short nap, he got up and read for a while.

Around two o'clock, Lu Shixian shouldered his beloved little backpack and set out again.

Lying in a very unladylike manner in the master bedroom, Xia Yubing shook her head as she played on her phone.

In the afternoon, there was no need for any fake social niceties with the librarian. Lu Shixian swiped his student card directly.

That's right. Just that heartless.

The afternoon only had enough time for one exam subject. Lu Shixian immediately pulled out a math paper and started grinding.

An hour later, Lu Shixian put down his pen with a frown.

He stared silently at a problem on the test paper that he had circled.

He checked the answer key, and sure enough, he had only gotten that one question wrong. His problem-solving steps had become so sophisticated that they no longer showed any trace of advanced mathematics, using only high school level formulas.

But that didn't mean he couldn't use advanced math. It was a very useful trick for quickly calculating the answer for verification, or for working backward from the answer to deduce the process.

Although he had only missed one multiple-choice question, it meant he had basically mastered the important content tested in the College Entrance Exam.

However, his grasp of some of the obscure details, the fringe topics mentioned only briefly in the textbooks, was still insufficient.

There weren't many such questions, but looking at the exams from every year, they always appeared.

They existed in a gray area between the curriculum and being off-syllabus, a treacherous tool for the test makers to trip up students.

When questioned, the response would be that the topic had appeared in the textbook and thus was not off-syllabus.

Tell me, isn't that just devious?

Chapter 37: That Librarian Is My Downfall!

Lu Shixian had just inadvertently fallen into that trap. It was a multiple-choice question testing a simple concept, but he had absolutely no memory of it.

Of course, there were objective reasons he couldn't solve it, but the subjective factor was that his mastery of the textbook was not deep enough.

He couldn't shift the blame; he could only accept it.

"I haven't thoroughly digested the textbook. I'll have to keep reading it for a few more days," Lu Shixian concluded, adding a thorough textbook review to his plan.

Lu Shixian looked up at the time again. It was still a bit before dinner, and his study schedule for the day was already complete.

Lu Shixian took out *Botany* again and began to study it.

Yesterday's notes had stopped at the introduction.

Most people might skip the introduction and go straight to the main chapters.

But Lu Shixian felt it contained hidden treasures.

He had already reviewed the overview of plants, the classification of living organisms, and the content and branches of botany many times, so there was no need to dwell on them.

The crucial parts were the brief history and future trends of botany, and the methods for studying it.

As the saying goes, you can learn from others to see your own strengths and weaknesses, and you can learn from history to understand the patterns of rise and fall.

It wasn't that he disliked history; he just hadn't encountered a part of it that interested him.

If you were to ask about King You of Zhou—his date of birth, his name, his posthumous title—how many people would know?

But if you asked how King You of Zhou lost his kingdom, almost everyone knew the tale of lighting the warning beacons to amuse his consort.

It was the same principle.

The significance of history isn't limited to knowing the past, but to guiding the direction, actions, and methods of people in the present.

A deeper meaning is to re-examine the methodologies we now take for granted, to understand what goals can be pursued, what can be achieved, and how to achieve them under the dual constraints of today's social and scientific structures.

As for the study methods mentioned in the introduction, it was needless to say more. The author was practically spoon-feeding you the information. If you insisted on figuring it out yourself, well, to each their own.

When he saw the branches of botany again, he couldn't help but marvel at the endless road of pursuing knowledge and truth.

Botany alone had eleven branches, including molecular botany, metabolic botany, cellular and structural botany, and so on.

And botany itself was just one branch of biology. From this, one could see how arduous the pursuit of knowledge was.

After finishing the introduction, Lu Shixian didn't write down a single point of knowledge. He just lightly jotted down a few keywords on the page.

"Interest, imagination, levels of life."

"Morphological structure, function, and various processes of growth and development; basic theories of systematic evolution and natural classification; basic methods of plant identification; main characteristics of major plant groups; main characteristics and identification points of common families of seed plants."

The first line was the method of study; the second was the key points of study.

Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated. This was Lu Shixian's consistent approach to learning.

It was almost six o'clock. Lu Shixian packed his bag, ready to leave.

He stood up and stretched wide, lamenting how quickly time flew.

He hadn't had his fill of reading yet, but a person still had to live in the three-dimensional world.

When he got back, Xia Yubing was in the kitchen, wearing an apron and stir-frying vegetables.

Seeing Lu Shixian, she grumbled, "So my little master has finally returned? You really think of your sister as a maid, huh? You don't even play with me. What good are you!"

Lu Shixian knew her personality—a sharp tongue but a soft heart—so he didn't take it to heart.

"The way you are now, you're not qualified to be my maid."

This time, Xia Yubing was so annoyed she laughed.

"Then tell me, what would it take to be qualified?"

Lu Shixian put down his backpack and gave her a demonstration.

"You'd at least have to wear a maid outfit and say in a loli voice, 'Master, please feel free to command me.'"

Xia Yubing instantly flew into a rage, raising the spatula to chop at Lu Shixian's head.

"I think you're getting ahead of yourself! Die!"

Lu Shixian could only scurry away with his head in his hands, crying out.

"Ahhh, I was wrong, sis, give me another chance!"

"Impossible! Daring to disrespect your elder! I must teach you a lesson today and put you in your place."

The two siblings started roughhousing, seemingly forgetting something.

But Lu Shixian, with his ever-sensitive nose, suddenly caught a whiff of something he shouldn't have.

"What's that smell? It stinks!"

"Why are you looking at me? Ah, I forgot to turn off the stove! The food's burning!"

The battle finally came to an end.

Adhering to the principle that waste is shameful, the two of them, with bitter expressions, ate the blackened substance on the table, swallowing the bitter fruit of their own making.

Because he had been sweating, Lu Shixian took a shower that night. Feeling refreshed, he sat on his bed and began reading the second chapter: Plant Cells and Tissues.

The next day, Lu Shixian woke up early as usual and had breakfast.

He deliberately took a long detour, jogging around the city for a bit of exercise.

By the time he reached the library, it was just opening.

The librarian from yesterday had seen Lu Shixian on the entry log, but Lu Shixian hadn't given her a chance to talk, leaving her feeling a little wistful.

Now, as soon as the library opened, she saw Lu Shixian strolling in slowly, carrying his familiar little backpack.

"Little brother, you're quite early. Not many people your age are so disciplined and love studying."

Lu Shixian knew he couldn't escape and forced a smile.

"Morning. You seem even more elegant today than yesterday," Lu Shixian blurted out.

In her mind, only two kinds of people couldn't lie: children and drunkards.

The librarian was instantly delighted, a faint smile playing on her lips.

"Really? But am I not pretty?"

Lu Shixian cursed inwardly. So tricky. He should have just said pretty from the start.

But now he could only bite the bullet and explain.

"Of course... you're pretty. But prettiness is temporary, while elegance is eternal."

Thanks to Lu Shixian, the librarian had a wonderful morning.

Meanwhile, Lu Shixian had already fled the scene.

Middle-aged librarians were truly too much for him to handle.

They weren't as fun as young girls, who would blush after just a few words.

The area around his seat from yesterday was still deserted. Lu Shixian sat down and opened his backpack.

This morning's plan was to finish the 2005 comprehensive science paper to get a clear understanding of his overall situation.

He looked at the display. It was almost nine o'clock.

Lu Shixian gritted his teeth. He'd wasted half an hour.

That librarian is my downfall!

For the comprehensive science exam, Lu Shixian adopted a strategy of tackling the easy parts first.

That meant doing the biology questions first, then tackling chemistry and physics as they came, skipping any he couldn't solve.

After a hundred days of renewed study, he had no major problems with the basic and medium-difficulty chemistry and physics questions.

But when it came to the major problems, chemistry was manageable, as there were at least small sub-questions where he could pick up points.

But for the major physics problems, if you couldn't do them, you really couldn't do them.

For example, the final killer question in the 2005 comprehensive science paper's physics section: As shown in the figure below, there is a sufficiently large, vertically downward uniform magnetic field...

What figure? All I see are the stars outside the window.

Chapter 38: The Sudden Arrival of the High School Entrance Exam Results

That might be an exaggeration. He understood "uniform magnetic field," and he knew what a U-shaped metal frame was, but when the two started rubbing against each other, he was stumped.

It wasn't that he wasn't trying; the enemy was just too cunning.

He couldn't help but recall how lovely middle school physics had been. How did it get so naughty when it grew up?

With ten minutes left until 11:30, Lu Shixian gave up.

Just sitting there wasn't going to accomplish anything. He might as well use the time for grading.

He still had over half an hour before lunch. He had to hurry if he wanted to finish before then.

He spent a few minutes checking the answers, and the rest of the time thinking and summarizing.

Biology was still his most beloved girl, giving him the most passionate response, entrusting everything to him.

Chemistry was like a beauty half-hidden behind a fan. It was enthusiastic, but there was always a barrier, preventing true intimacy.

Only physics remained aloof, like gazing at the moon in the water, visible but unreachable.

Of course, history didn't even count; it had already been cast into the cold palace.

But Lu Shixian couldn't shake his bad habit. He made the same mistake all men make: the more he couldn't have it, the more he wanted it.

Thus, Lu Shixian resolved to redouble his efforts in conquering physics and chemistry, striving to get to first base as quickly as possible.

At noon, he went back for lunch.

In the afternoon, Lu Shixian officially entered the mode of "College Entrance Exam in the morning, Olympiad in the afternoon."

When you're truly focused on doing something, time really flies.

In the blink of an eye, two weeks had quietly passed.

At seven in the evening, while having dinner with Xia Yubing, she suddenly mentioned that many of her older colleagues at work were bragging about their children's High School Entrance Exam scores.

Lu Shixian suddenly looked up, a realization dawning on him.

These days of persistent struggle, swimming in the ocean of knowledge, had long made him forget that he was still a middle school graduate.

"High school exam scores? They're out? What's the date today?" Lu Shixian asked, a bit dazed.

Xia Yubing looked at him, amused and at a loss for words.

"Everyone else counts down the days, and you? You played so much you forgot."

"Hmph, we'll check your score in a bit. If it's worse than the worst score among my colleagues' kids, you can just pack up and go home. Eating my food, using my things, and now you're going to embarrass me."

This was, of course, a joke. She knew Lu Shixian's academic record. He might not be able to compete with those monsters from the Foreign Language Middle School, but getting into the top fifty or sixty should be no problem.

As she spoke, Lu Shixian finally realized that tomorrow was the day to pick up his graduation certificate, and the day before was when scores could be checked online.

He hoped there wouldn't be a repeat of the fiasco from the first mock exam, Lu Shixian reassured himself.

Finally, he gave her a meaningful look, crossed his arms, and declared, "Today, I, Lu Shixian, will show you, a shallow woman, what it means when they say thirty years the river flows east, thirty years it flows west; do not bully the young for being poor!"

"What are you standing there for? Go get the laptop."

Xia Yubing couldn't help but grind her teeth. Although she really wanted to smack him, she remembered that checking his score was important and held back, going into her room to bring out her beloved pink laptop.

Xia Yubing was clearly experienced, easily navigating to the Jinling City Education Examination Authority's website.

Finally, she opened the score inquiry page.

"There. Hurry up and enter your exam ID," Xia Yubing said, rolling her eyes at him.

He had forgotten the date, so naturally, he had forgotten his exam ID as well.

Lu Shixian pulled the admission ticket, which had been abandoned in his little backpack for half a month, and typed the numbers into the website.

He casually clicked the "Query Now" button.

It was hard to say if it was due to high traffic or Xia Yubing's poor internet connection, but after the page refreshed, the loading icon started spinning.

As the seconds ticked by, Lu Shixian, who hadn't been nervous, started to feel a little anxious.

"What's... what's going on?"
Seeing Lu Shixian looking a bit restless, Xia Yubing understood how he felt. For once, she offered some simple words of comfort instead of waxing poetic. "Don't worry, there are probably just too many people checking their scores, so the server's crashing. It'll be fine in a bit."

Lu Shixian nodded. He understood the situation perfectly well. It was like a bus—when too many people get on, it gets crowded.

But as Guo Moruo once said, "Even if a place bears the marks of countless others, we still yearn for it."

Finally, after three minutes, the green progress bar at the bottom of the page suddenly filled up.

The results page finally loaded.

The most prominent feature was Lu Shixian's ID photo at the top, complete with a forced smile.

Looking further down, displayed in bold, were Lu Shixian's high school entrance exam scores.

Chinese: 120, A+, 9 points
Math: 120, A+, 9 points
English: 116, A+, 9 points
Physical Fitness Test: 100, A+, 3 points
Biology: 100
History: 83
Physics: 100

Core Subjects: 27 points. Physical Fitness: 3 points. Total: 30 points.
Elective Subjects Total: 283 points. Final Ranking: First Place in Jinling City.

Seeing these results, Lu Shixian let out a soft sigh, his heart calming down. He'd actually been quite a bundle of nerves.

It seemed it was a false alarm. Looks like I really didn't do well on the English exam, losing so many points. Out of all these subjects, I only got a perfect score in four of them.

Xia Yubing, however, was completely dumbfounded, her red lips slightly parted as she stood frozen in place.

"First... in all of... Jinling City? Am I seeing things?"

She read it over and over again until she finally had to believe the fact before her eyes.

Then came an overwhelming wave of joy, and she started shaking Lu Shixian's shoulders frantically.

"Ahhhhhh! My little brother is first in the city for the entrance exams! I, Xia Yubing, get to see this day! Hahahahahaha."

Lu Shixian was about to get dizzy from her shaking, but seeing how happy she was, he let her be.

Even though she had a mouth on her, her kindness towards him had stood the test of time in his previous life.

Finally, a calmer Xia Yubing returned to normal, looking at Lu Shixian as if he were some kind of monster.

"Little bro, even I never got scores like these. Spill it, did you take some kind of smart pills? You didn't seem like this before, how'd you get so beastly all of a sudden?"

"With you as their dark horse top scorer, Jinling Agricultural High is probably going to be ecstatic."

Lu Shixian was speechless and had no desire to talk to her. What kind of outrageous thing was that to say?

Hearing her last sentence, he suddenly thought of the leadership at his old school. He hoped they wouldn't hear the news—it really wouldn't be good for their health.

Xia Yubing's mind jumped from one thing to the next. "Little bro, don't let them sweet talk you tomorrow. You have to, have to hold out. The admissions offices from Jinling's top high schools are probably all going to be looking for you."

"In Jinling, your choices are basically just Jinling Affiliated High and Jinling No. 1 High."

"Little bro, have you thought about which school you want to go to?"

Chapter 39: The Road Ahead is Your Own

Lu Shixian shook his head. "I don't know either."

His feelings were complicated when it came to choosing a school.

Xia Yubing was right. If he were to attend high school in Jinling City, he only had two real choices.

Either Jinling Affiliated High or Jinling No. 1 High.

The pros and cons of the two schools were quite obvious.

Jinling Affiliated High was more geared towards academic competitions and studying abroad. Every year, ten percent of its student body was guaranteed admission to top-ten universities through competitions.

They also had a famous international program that specifically prepared students for TOEFL and IELTS, with a significant number applying to study abroad each year.

Of course, their standard college entrance exam track was indispensable. Most of Jinling City's top scorers in recent years were produced by Jinling Affiliated High.

Backed by Jinling University, a top-ten domestic university and a world-renowned high-level institution, their educational resources were the most concentrated in the entire province, bar none. Consequently, they attracted the best students from across the province.

You could say it was a paradise for geniuses and a hell for top students.

Because geniuses were a dime a dozen and top students were everywhere you looked.

Any student who could get into Jinling Affiliated High was undoubtedly a top-tier student at their original middle school, but after enrolling, there was a high chance they would become lost in the crowd.

Excellence is relative. When everyone around you is just like you, you gradually lose your sense of being exceptional and are eventually surpassed by others.

Jinling No. 1 High, on the other hand, focused almost exclusively on the college entrance exam.

Although they had competition classes, they weren't formed directly. Instead, students were selected from all grades to participate in science competitions. If their competition results were not ideal, they were immediately sent back to their original classes to prepare for the college entrance exam.

Jinling No. 1 High had its fair share of students with guaranteed admission, but in recent years, none had secured a spot at Yan Jing or Shui Mu University.

As for the college entrance exam, Jinling No. 1 High used to have a rather glorious history.

Leveraging policy advantages, it attracted outstanding students from all over the province and once dominated the top scorer positions for both science and arts for three consecutive years, making history.

Unfortunately, the good times didn't last. As people's living standards improved, they began to seek more elite and specialized education.

Even without scholarships, they were willing to send their children to places with the best educational resources.

Due to its institutional structure, Jinling No. 1 High couldn't reform and adapt easily, thus losing its initial advantage.

It slowly declined, becoming less and less competitive against the more recently established Jinling Affiliated High.

But a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. Even so, the university admission rate of Jinling No. 1 High was far beyond what other high schools could compare to.

Every year, more than a dozen of its students were admitted to Yan Jing and Shui Mu University through the college entrance exam.

If Lu Shixian were being completely rational, he would undoubtedly choose the former.

Not to mention, Jinling Affiliated High was a lingering regret from his past life. Getting in this time around would be a way to give his past self some closure.

But the problem was, Lu Shixian couldn't be completely rational; he had his emotional side too.

Setting aside how much the tuition and material fees at Jinling Affiliated High would cost, and how much his parents would have to work for it.

There was the fact that Qian Zhengguo had unintentionally helped him, which led to Ren Qingyuan clearing the obstacles to his studies at the agricultural high school.

Furthermore, Qian Zhengguo had promised that he could get into Jinling No. 1 High no matter what his score was.

Regardless of whether his motives were pure, it was a debt of gratitude that he now owed.

On one side was rational thought, on the other was emotional hesitation.

Lu Shixian felt like he was about to be torn in two.

He looked up, hoping Xia Yubing could offer some advice.

Xia Yubing shrugged. "If it were me, I'd definitely choose the best, Jinling Affiliated High. But this is your decision to make. If you're not sure, I suggest you ask Aunt and Uncle."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian's eyes lit up and he looked at her.

"Here, take it." Xia Yubing pulled her phone out of her pocket and handed it to him.

Lu Shixian took the then-popular flip phone and opened the thin cover.

He skillfully dialed Ms. Xia Xiuman's number.

At this time of day, she should be completely free.

"Hello, is that Yubing?" His mother's voice came from the phone.

"Mom, it's me. There's something I want to discuss with you and Dad."

A puzzled tone came through the phone.

"Oh, it's you, you little rascal. Have you been having fun at Yubing's place these past few days? Go ahead and tell us what's on your mind. Your father and I are both listening."

Lu Shixian explained everything—the results he checked today and the reasons for his hesitation.

Beside him, Xia Yubing was hearing for the first time about what had happened to Lu Shixian at school.

She hadn't realized there was such a winding story behind it all and now understood why he wasn't immediately choosing Jinling Affiliated High despite his score.

The voice on the phone fell silent.

After a while, Old Lu's voice suddenly came through.

"Shixian, you've always been a very independent thinker since you were young, and your mother and I have always given you our fullest support."

"This time is no different. Your mother and I have discussed it. This is a major decision in your life, and we both trust that you have the judgment to choose the right path."

"As long as you don't regret it, we will accept whatever decision you make."

Hearing his father's voice, Lu Shixian knew this had become a major family matter.

Yet they still chose to trust him, to let him make the decision.

A surge of strength rose within Lu Shixian, causing him to lift his head, his resolve firming up. It seemed he had already made his choice.

Without a shred of hesitation, he spoke firmly to his parents on the phone, "I've thought it through. I will choose Jinling No. 1 High. Life isn't afraid of detours. What truly decides the future isn't the environment, but the calling of one's heart."

"As stars can illuminate the night sky, gratitude can measure the self. If someone offers me a peach, I shall repay them with fine jade."

"If I can achieve first place in the city at Jinling Agricultural High, then why can't I excel at Jinling No. 1 High? Jinling Affiliated High is certainly better, but they don't need another top scorer. In comparison, Jinling No. 1 High will value my future more, and I am more willing to go there and make history."

At these words, even Xia Yubing was a little stunned. To have such a level of thinking at his age was monstrous. But the gaze she directed at Lu Shixian softened.

On the phone, Lu Jianguo's hearty laughter rang out. "Haha, well said! Our Lu family values repaying kindness. Since you've made your decision, your mother and I won't come tomorrow then."

Suddenly, his mother's voice came through again.

"It seems you've grown up. From now on, the road ahead is your own to walk. Your father and I are just spectators."

Hearing this, he responded with a soft "Mm."

After hanging up, Lu Shixian's face was brimming with a happy smile, and his heart felt warm.

To have parents like these, maybe he really did save the galaxy in a past life.

Chapter 40: Temporary Guardian?

As expected, Xia Yubing wore an expression of envy and jealousy.

"Aunt and Uncle are too good to you. You're already so independent."

"My dad works for the government and insists I take the civil service exam too. I have absolutely no say in it."

Lu Shixian shook his head, speechless. "Haven't you heard? The end of the universe is a government job. Don't take your blessings for granted. If I were in your shoes, I'd be ecstatic."

Xia Yubing just smiled. Some things were better left unsaid. Everyone has their own path to walk.

The next day, at seven-thirty in the morning.

Lu Shixian slung his backpack on, ready to head back to school.

But unexpectedly, a graceful figure suddenly appeared beside him.

She had already put on light makeup, carried a slightly bulging ladies' handbag, and wore a flowing pale yellow dress. She was looking at him with a beaming smile.

Lu Shixian's hand, which was about to open the door, paused. He turned his head to glance at her.

"Well, look at that, the sun must have risen in the west! Sis, what's with you being up so early?"

Xia Yubing said cheerfully, "What are you looking at? I'm your temporary guardian now. I'm going with you to get your report card."

Lu Shixian was getting more and more confused.

"But it's not the weekend. Don't you have to work? Did you take the day off?"

At this, Xia Yubing's face lit up with excitement.

"Hahaha, little bro, you're my lucky star! I posted a screenshot of your scores in the propaganda department's group chat last night."

"All those people who were showing off before were left speechless. Then, after the director saw your scores, he told me not to come to work today and to make sure I accompany you to school."

Now, Lu Shixian understood completely.

She was shearing wool, and the sheep was him. She spent her days looking for highlights to report, only to find the biggest highlight right beside her.

Lu Shixian shot her a look. "So you just sold out your little brother like that? You really are a spy living right next to me."

Xia Yubing laughed. "How could I sell you out? I'm counting on you to get me out of my daily newspaper-reading duties."

In the end, the two siblings laughed and chatted as they boarded the bus to Jinling Agricultural High.

As for what Xia Yubing had mentioned, Lu Shixian had tacitly agreed. He wasn't averse to interviews, and he was actually quite happy to be able to help her out.

There are two sides to every coin. You can live a clearer life if you look past the surface to see the essence of things.

Fame might bring some inconveniences to one's life, but it also brings significant social influence and potential opportunities. It all depends on how one uses it.

Of course, it was too early for him to be thinking about that now. The impact of the high school entrance exam was relatively weak. Even if he became famous, the buzz would only last for a few days.

Once it passed, he would be forgotten.

He was very clear-headed about this.

The journey from downtown Jinling to the suburbs was quite a long one. After more than two hours, the two finally arrived at Jinling Agricultural High.

However, as soon as they reached the school gate, Xia Yubing poked Lu Shixian in the arm.

"What?"

"Look up."

Lu Shixian had a feeling and looked up into the sky above the school. A giant hydrogen balloon was slowly rising, with an eye-catching red banner hanging below it.

"Warmly congratulate our school's outstanding graduate, Lu Shixian, for achieving the top score in the city on the high school entrance exam!"

Lu Shixian immediately covered his face, suddenly feeling a bit mortified.

This was way too ostentatious. The most extravagant thing a college entrance exam top scorer might do is ride a horse in a parade, while the more low-key ones just have a sign.

What on earth was Jinling Agricultural High doing? They even brought out a hydrogen balloon.

Of course, he could understand the school's reasoning. They had waited so many years for an opportunity like this. A little showing off to attract some high-quality students was understandable.

Lu Shixian had no choice but to walk quickly towards his classroom, with Xia Yubing jogging to keep up behind him.

After the 100-day pledge ceremony, many people had already remembered this rather handsome young man.

Seeing him appear, they couldn't help but stop and turn their gazes towards him.

Lu Shixian felt a little unaccustomed to this kind of attention, but it was also quite interesting.

By the time he reached the familiar ninth-grade class one classroom, it was already packed with students and parents. Wang Chunya was in the middle of speaking to them.

But the moment he appeared, the entire classroom seemed to fall silent.

Then, a massive round of applause and cheers erupted, loud enough to be heard throughout the school.

Many of the boys he was more familiar with started shouting.

"Lu Shixian, you're awesome!"

On the podium, Wang Chunya saw him and revealed two lovely dimples, giving him a thumbs-up.

Lu Shixian met her gaze and could clearly see the pride and joy in her eyes.

In that moment, the first regret from his rebirth had been rectified in this life, vanishing without a trace.

Just then, Xia Yubing caught up, following Lu Shixian to his seat.

She glanced at the surroundings and, without being taught, preemptively sat down in his spot.

There was no way she was going to sit on a small stool.

Lu Shixian just shook his head, exasperated. He was already used to Xia Yubing's quirky antics.

Seeing as she was wearing a dress today, he decided not to argue with her.

Beside him, Chen Yiyi's gaze hadn't left Lu Shixian since he walked in.

Her mother was here again, and judging by the unstoppable smile on her face, Lu Shixian could guess that Chen Yiyi had done quite well this time.

Looking to his left, Xu Youmeng was still sitting all by herself, which made Lu Shixian frown.

Could what she said back then be true?

But if it was true, how did she get into Jinling Affiliated High in his past life?

However, Lu Shixian had no standing to investigate the matter, nor did he intend to disturb the normal course of someone else's life.

Once the classroom quieted down again, Wang Chunya's voice filled the room.

"The results for the high school entrance exam are out. We will now distribute the report cards."

She handed the cut-up report cards to a few students in the front row and continued speaking.

"But I believe most of you have already checked your scores online, so I won't say much more. Based on your previous performance, everyone did quite well."

Then, her gaze shifted to Lu Shixian.

"Especially our classmate, Lu Shixian. With a total of twenty-two students in the city achieving a perfect score of 30 points, he ranked first in the city with a combined score of 283 in Physics, Biology, and History."

"Let's give him a round of applause for his outstanding achievement."

With that, the classroom once again erupted in thunderous applause.

Although he had received such treatment before, achieving such a result at Jinling Agricultural High was incredibly difficult.

For the school, the significance and impact of this score were immense.

Therefore, they did not hold back their applause.

After the applause died down, Wang Chunya finally got to the day's agenda.

It was the most crucial step after the graduation exam, in some ways equivalent to a second exam after the main one.

Chapter 41: The Admissions Offices' Dispute

That was filling out their school choice applications. Of course, calling it a second exam was a bit of an exaggeration for high school, as the choices were quite simple, unlike the complexities of college applications.

So, the schedule for the day was: fill out applications in the computer lab in the morning, attend the graduation ceremony in the auditorium in the afternoon, and finally, take group photos on campus.

After finishing these things today, unless something came up, they would never have to set foot in Jinling Agricultural High again.

After announcing the day's plan, Wang Chunya left.

Some parents and students immediately followed her, likely to consult with her about their applications.

Another group of parents took their children directly to the school's computer lab, seemingly having already made their decision, or perhaps having no other choice.

But Chen Yiyi's mother, next to him, remained as steady as a mountain, refusing to leave, which left Lu Shixian completely puzzled.

But then he seemed to remember something, and a sense of dread washed over him.

Sure enough, when she spoke, she got straight to the point.

"Classmate Lu Shixian, last time I had Yiyi invite you over to our house to hang out, why didn't you come?"

"Yiyi ranked fifteenth in our class and 567th in the city this time. Ms. Wang said this score is good enough for Jinling No. 1 High. We really have to thank you for tutoring and helping her. You've really gone to a lot of trouble."

Lu Shixian felt extremely embarrassed. He could guarantee that Chen Yiyi getting into Jinling No. 1 High had absolutely nothing to do with him.

But he couldn't just say that out loud.

So he could only demur, "It was all the result of her own hard work. I really don't deserve the credit."

But her next words made Lu Shixian's scalp tingle.

"But our Yiyi said you were a huge help to her."

Looking at Chen Yiyi's grateful and expectant eyes, Lu Shixian was at a loss for words.

"I hope you'll keep shining, because you are my light!"
The words still echoed in his mind, refusing to fade.

He just couldn't bring himself to refuse. First blood!

"Are you saying you don't like our Yiyi because she's a bit shy and not as charming?"

Double kill!

"I know we live out in the countryside, and it's a long way to travel. We'd understand if you didn't want to come."

Triple kill!

Hearing this, Lu Shixian, whose scalp was already tingling, quickly cut Chen Yiyi's mother off.

He said with a wry smile, "Please, say no more. I'll go, alright?"

Just as he'd feared, what comes will come. There was no escaping it.

Having gotten the answer she wanted, Mrs. Chen immediately gave Lu Shixian their address, then said her goodbyes to go register for the high school entrance.

Lu Shixian turned around to find Xia Yubing looking at him with the scrutinizing gaze of someone enjoying a good show.

"What are you looking at? I'm about to lose my mind," Lu Shixian said, scratching his head in frustration.

With a teasing smile, Xia Yubing continued, "You tutored her all the way into Jinling No. 1 High. Isn't it normal for her mom to invite you over?"

"It would be one thing if I'd actually helped, but this really has nothing to do with me."

But hearing this only made Xia Yubing more interested.

"If it has nothing to do with you, that's even less normal. It means the young lady has a little thing for you. You youngsters should seize the opportunity."

Lu Shixian was even more speechless at her words.

He'd known about this for a while. However, interest didn't mean like, let alone love.

The key was that it wasn't the right time. At the wrong time, it was bound to cause big problems down the road.

Besides, Lu Shixian's mind was not on such things right now.

As the siblings were talking, a commotion at the door suddenly drew their attention, and they turned their heads in unison.

"Director Wang, don't even try to compete with me this time. What do you have to offer? The top scorers have all come to our Affiliated High for the past few years."

"Compete I must. How can you know the outcome before the end? I've come today with the utmost sincerity."

Two men who looked like middle aged teachers walked into the classroom as they spoke.

From the content of their conversation, Lu Shixian already understood what was happening.

Acting as if they owned the place, the two men pulled up chairs and sat down in front of Lu Shixian.

"Student Lu Shixian, it wasn't easy finding you."

"You're the only one left who hasn't signed. We went to your house earlier but couldn't find you. After discussing it, your parents told us to come find you here."

Lu Shixian nodded. It seemed his parents had known his score for some time and had already made a decision back then.

Looking at the two admissions officers before him, although he already had an answer in his heart, he still wanted to hear their offers. At the very least, he shouldn't miss out on the benefits he deserved.

Even if he didn't care, it would be wonderful if it could make his parents' lives a little easier.

Just then, one of the teachers, who was a bit chubby, suddenly spoke up first. "Since your parents have let you make the decision, I'll be brief. I am Teacher Dong from the admissions office of Jinling Affiliated High School. Our school sincerely invites you to pursue your high school studies with us."

"I can say that with your score, if you come to Jinling Affiliated High, you have a very high probability of getting into Yanjing University or Shuimu University for further studies. You can ask around. Last year, a total of fifty two students from our school were admitted to these two top universities. Thirty two of them earned recommendation spots through the five major national academic competitions, and twenty performed exceptionally well on the college entrance exam to gain admission. The top scorers in both the liberal arts and science tracks in 2005 were both from our school."

"If you choose our school, whether you want to study abroad or in the country, you will receive the best education and resources. These are conditions that no other school can offer. I hope you will consider it carefully."

After speaking, Teacher Dong confidently opened his thermos and took a sip of tea.

Lu Shixian nodded. It was more or less consistent with the information he had gathered. In terms of further education and resources, Jinling Affiliated High was truly unrivaled in Su Province.

He then turned his gaze to the other admissions officer, who was wearing glasses.

This teacher glanced at Teacher Dong beside him, then said with a wry smile, "I am Teacher Sun from the admissions office of Jinling No. 1 High. First, congratulations on achieving the top score in this year's high school entrance exam. Our Jinling No. 1 High has a long and storied history, approaching a century now. We once produced the top scorers in both liberal arts and sciences for three consecutive years."

At this point, Teacher Dong next to him seemed unable to sit still, afraid that Lu Shixian would be swayed.

"Wait, wait. Old Sun, you're talking about ancient history. Our Affiliated High wasn't even established back then. What you're saying is completely irrelevant."

Teacher Sun wasn't annoyed by his words, clearly having been called out on this many times before. He retorted, "So what? It's a fact, isn't it? Am I not allowed to say it?"

Having made his point, Teacher Dong didn't argue further, content to admire the scenery outside the window.

Teacher Sun had no choice but to continue his pitch from where he left off.

Chapter 42: A New Twist at the Graduation Ceremony

"I won't say much more. If an outstanding student like you enrolls in our No. 1 High, we will grant you a one time scholarship of 50,000 yuan upon enrollment, and we will also waive your tuition and miscellaneous fees for all three years."

"If you win any major awards or honors, our school will increase the original prize money by an additional 20%. The scholarship for a municipal level award is 1,000 yuan, provincial level is 5,000 yuan, and national level is 10,000 yuan."

"Finally, if you have a family member accompanying you to study, we will also provide a suitable job for them. If you prefer to live alone, we will find you an apartment free of charge, or provide you with a private dorm room. All of this can be written into the contract."

As soon as he said this, Teacher Dong next to him was dumbfounded and exclaimed.

"Has your school gone insane? Your annual recruitment budget isn't that large to begin with. If you give him this much, how will you recruit other outstanding students?"

Teacher Sun, however, was very calm. "This is the school's final decision. I am merely relaying it. But Director Qian told me that he is worth it."

At this point, there was no need for Lu Shixian to continue the act. He couldn't push his luck any further. Jinling No. 1 High had shown their utmost sincerity.

So, he extended his right hand toward Teacher Sun. "Compared to Jinling Affiliated High, I appreciate your school's rich history more."

Teacher Sun also extended his hand and shook his. "Welcome to the No. 1 High family. I hope you will shine with your own light here."

Seeing this, the admissions officer from Jinling Affiliated High clearly understood that the situation was irreversible.

The past few days of running around had been for nothing, and a sense of imbalance grew in his heart.

Before leaving, he left a single parting shot and stormed off.

"So what if your No. 1 High recruited this year's top scorer? The status of our Affiliated High remains unshakable."

Then, he directed his impotent rage at Lu Shixian.

"Student Lu Shixian, not joining our Affiliated High will be the biggest regret of your life."

Lu Shixian shrugged, unfazed. In his past life, his regret had indeed been Jinling Affiliated High. Whether that would still be the case in this life remained to be seen.

"Take care, Old Dong. I won't see you out," Teacher Sun said with a smile as he watched him leave.

Then, he took out a prepared contract from his briefcase.

"Student Lu Shixian, this is the contract regarding the scholarship and other matters we just discussed. Please take a look, and if there are no problems, you can sign and add your thumbprint."

"Your guardian has already signed a letter of authorization. If you breach the contract, your parents will bear the responsibility on your behalf, so your signature is legally binding."

Lu Shixian fell silent upon hearing this, took a deep breath, and began to read the contract carefully.

He read it through three times, from top to bottom, before finally writing his name firmly in the signature space at the end and pressing his bright red thumbprint onto it.

Teacher Sun glanced at the contract, which was in triplicate, gave one copy to Lu Shixian, and then stood up. "Student Lu, if you want to live alone, I hope you can come to the school a few days early. I will help you sort out your accommodation then."

Lu Shixian nodded and saw him off.

When he turned back, he was met with Xia Yubing's envious and resentful gaze.

"Bro, Jinling No. 1 High really went all out for you. A one time scholarship of 50,000 yuan, that's several years of my salary! You earned it all back in a single exam."

"And they're even waiving tuition and fees, plus a 20% bonus on prize money? What kind of divine treatment is this?"

Xia Yubing was astonished, and so was he, but at the same time, he felt the weight of a certain responsibility.

After all, anyone with such a heavy bet placed on them would feel a little pressure.

But Lu Shixian quickly adjusted his mood.

It was simply a case of "if you treat me as a great scholar, I shall repay you as one."

But the most fundamental reason was that he had confidence in himself.

Together, the two went to the computer lab and filled in the one and only choice on the website: Jinling City No. 1 High School.

After lunch, they had only rested for a short while before an announcement over the broadcast system called for the graduation ceremony.

So, everyone rushed to the auditorium without delay.

The auditorium had already been decorated, looking particularly solemn and grand.

With the addition of parents, the entire hall felt a bit crowded.

At this ceremony, all graduates would be awarded their diplomas, and for almost everyone, it would be their last assembly of their middle school years.

The procedure was almost the same as always. Principal Liang would speak, the outstanding graduate representative would speak, and then a parent representative.

Wang Chunya had informed him about this in the morning. He had wanted to decline, but his score this year had broken all records, creating a new history for Jinling Agricultural Middle School. If he didn't go on stage, the graduation ceremony would be lacking something significant.

Helpless, Lu Shixian had no choice but to agree.

Since there was no flag raising speech this time, Lu Shixian didn't prepare seriously, planning to just improvise a few words.

Soon, he went on stage to give his speech amidst the applause of the entire school's teachers, students, and parents.

"Softly I leave, just as I softly came. Three years have slipped away quietly. Our gathering feels like only yesterday, yet our parting is upon us. But all good things must come to an end. Our departure is not an end, but the beginning of a new journey..."

"Amidst the chirping of summer cicadas, graduation season is here again. We've shared so much, and now we part for years. Gathering and parting, a bittersweet affair. My thoughts will linger, my feelings will not fade. I send my blessings from afar, to accompany you on your long journey ahead!"

Lu Shixian had thought it would be over after all the speeches, but to his surprise, this year's graduation ceremony seemed different from the past, with a new segment added.

Principal Liang took the stage again. "Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, our three years of middle school have come to an end today. Ahead of you lies a new chapter in your lives. As our school motto says: Strive for self improvement, work with diligence. Success comes from perseverance, and dedication leads to brilliance."

"After discussion by the school administration, starting this year, we will establish an Outstanding Graduate Scholarship. It will not be awarded if no one meets the criteria. It is to reward graduates who have persevered in their studies, dared to strive forward, and ultimately achieved tremendous results. Today, we will present the first ever Outstanding Graduate Scholarship to its recipient, Lu Shixian."

This new twist at the graduation ceremony was something Lu Shixian had never encountered in his past life, but he could accept it.

"Alright, history has already been altered beyond recognition," Lu Shixian thought as he calmly went on stage to receive the 2,000 yuan scholarship.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but marvel. No wonder people in his past life said you could make money by studying. In just a few short days, he had received so much money his hands had gone soft.

Finally, the graduation ceremony ended amidst tremendous cheers and applause.

Just as they walked out of the auditorium, Xia Yubing looked at her phone and suddenly turned to Lu Shixian. "They're finally here."

Chapter 43: What Should I Do for This Era?

Sure enough, Wang Chunya came jogging to the classroom and said to Lu Shixian, "People from the Municipal Propaganda Department are here for an interview. The principal wants you to bring your prize money and report card to the conference room in the administration building."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian understood what Xia Yubing had meant. He glanced at her, and the three of them went to the administration building together.

He had to admit, returning to the conference room stirred up some complex feelings.

He walked in to see, my goodness, the entire school leadership team was present, along with many staff members carrying cameras.

Seeing him enter, Principal Liang walked over to his side. "Student Lu, these are comrades from the Municipal Propaganda Department and the Jinling Daily. This publicity is very important for our school's image. Could you please cooperate with them?"

Not to mention he was already planning to help Xia Yubing, and the school had just given him money, so he naturally agreed readily.

At this moment, a leader from the Propaganda Department also spoke up. "Let me first state that the theme of our interview this time is the issue of rural education. The main subject of the interview is the school. Little Xia, you first take a group photo of your brother with the school leaders."

"Then, the reporters from Jinling Daily will conduct their interview. Their subject is Student Lu. We'll do both at the same time to save time and get it in the papers sooner. What does everyone think?"

When a leader spoke, it carried weight.

Coupled with the school's eagerness and Lu Shixian's own desire to get it over with, everything came together with extraordinary speed.

Principal Cai immediately called over several school leaders and Lu Shixian's subject teachers. Lu Shixian, holding his red Outstanding Graduate certificate, naturally took the center position.

After the photoshoot was done, Principal Liang said to Lu Shixian with a broad smile, "Next, please cooperate fully with the exclusive interview. The other leaders and I will go to the office to talk."

He knew in his heart that calling it an "exclusive interview" was just a flattering term. His classmates and teachers would surely be interviewed as well.

A city level top scorer wasn't that big of a deal on his own. It was mainly because he came from a rural area, and this interview was riding the wave generated by the collision of rural and urban education.

Of course, no matter how favorable the winds, his own scores had to be solid.

Soon, the interview began.

Reporter Huang: "Hello, Student Lu."

Lu Shixian: "Hello, Reporter Huang."

Reporter Huang: "So, where is your hometown? Is it convenient to get to school?"

This question required no thought. He definitely couldn't say it was convenient, otherwise it wouldn't be convenient for the reporter.

Lu Shixian: "My home is in Xingfu Village, Xingfu Town, Jinling District. It's over a hundred kilometers from the school. I usually take the bus to school, and a round trip takes three hours."

Reporter Huang: "That is quite far."

Lu Shixian: "Yes, so I board at the school. I only go back during the winter and summer breaks."

Finally, the reporter got to the main point.

Reporter Huang: "I heard you achieved the top score in the entire city in this year's high school entrance exam. This is a truly remarkable achievement. Could you tell us how you study? Do you have any methods or tips to share with all the middle school students in the city?"

Lu Shixian thought for a moment, organizing his words.

"Personally, I believe that learning requires ten percent intelligence, twenty percent luck, and seventy percent hard work."

Because this was different from the commonly accepted version, Reporter Huang's curiosity was piqued.

Reporter Huang: "Oh, how do you explain that? Isn't the popular saying now that genius is one percent inspiration and ninety nine percent perspiration?"

Lu Shixian really wanted to tell him: Because three parts are destined by heaven, and seven parts depend on hard work, handsome.

But in the end, he answered honestly, "To excel in learning, you must have at least average intelligence and a little bit of luck. For example, the history section of this exam was relatively easy, which raised my score in my weakest subject, and that's why I came in first."

"Finally, you need to add unwavering perseverance to succeed. Just as I have consistently studied for the past three years with almost no rest. During breaks, when others were playing, I was studying. On weekends, when others were relaxing, I was still studying my heart out."

The reporter was somewhat moved by his experience and asked another question.

"Don't you find it boring? Did you ever think about giving up?"

Lu Shixian: "Never. My goal is to become a scientific researcher. What is there to be bored of or give up on when you are walking the path toward your dream?"

Reporter Huang: "You want to be a scientific researcher? Nowadays, everyone wants to be a big star or an entrepreneur. Your choice is quite rare. I hear it's a very tough profession. Why do you want to take this path?"

This question stumped Lu Shixian. It seemed he had never really thought about why he was walking this path.

Honestly, like other reincarnators, wouldn't it be great to make the most money, drive the fanciest cars, and date the prettiest women?

He had been fortunate enough to be reborn in this life, shouldn't he give himself some perks? Across two lifetimes, he had lived for half a century. Couldn't he just enjoy himself?

Wang Chunya had her original aspiration and mission as a teacher. What about him? Was he to live another muddled life?

Reborn? Can I only change my own destiny? What should I do for this era?

He repeatedly asked himself these questions in his mind.

The helplessness of his past life, the ignorance of his present one. When the two slowly overlapped, a new green shoot suddenly blossomed in his heart. He seemed to understand something.

Then, he slowly spoke to the camera, "Today, our motherland is growing stronger and stronger, and our economy is growing at a high speed. Compared to the past, the standard of living for every one of us is getting better and better."

"Because of this, everyone now has the opportunity to live a brilliant life. But everyone only has one youth. Against the backdrop of our nation's growing prosperity, as a student, we should strengthen our ideals and beliefs, and align our own ideals with the future of the nation and the destiny of its people."

"To serve the country with our intelligence and talent, to serve society with our pioneering and enterprising spirit. This is the reason I want to become a scientific researcher."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone in the conference room looked at each other in astonishment. Was this truly the awareness of a fifteen year old boy?

Immediately after, a sense of solemn respect for him filled them all.

In 2007, the principal contradiction in society was still the one between the ever growing material and cultural needs of the people and the backwardness of social production.

This predicament had persisted for a very long time, and many people, swept up by the times, lived in a state of confusion, passing their lives in mediocrity.

But now, Lu Shixian's words were like a ray of light, illuminating the path forward for many.

Chapter 44: Farewell, My Middle School Life

Originally, Lu Shixian's interview slot was only five minutes.

Now, it had far exceeded that time, but not a single person mentioned it.
Previously, Lu Shixian had been but a small boat, carried along by the great wave of educational reform sweeping the nation. Though he had initiated things, he was merely an add-on, a supporting character at best.

But now, his words had transformed him into a wave in his own right, one that could rise with the wind and fall with the tide.

Perhaps one day, he could become a true trendsetter of his era.

And that day might not be far off.

At four in the afternoon, with the interviews fully concluded.

The entire graduating class was summoned to the main gate of Jinling Agricultural Middle School.

Four to five hundred students lined up in order of class and height.

Class One of the third year was arranged right in the middle, and Lu Shixian was promptly pushed to the front row by his classmates.

Thus, he once again found himself in the center spot.

After taking a more serious photo, the photographer began setting up for the next one.

"Everyone, say 'cheese' with me!"

This time, however, Lu Shixian didn't force a smile.

Thinking back on the past three years, he couldn't help but feel a sense of attachment.

After the group photo, they returned to the classroom. This was probably the most complete gathering of his middle school classmates he would ever see in his life.

Many people were asking him to sign their yearbooks, which were already filled with well wishes and contact information from others.

Seeing the small mountain of paper in front of him, Lu Shixian had no choice but to start writing.

"Wishing you a boundless future, may you ride on the wings of your dreams."

"Wishing you peace, joy, and may everything go your way."

"The road ahead is long; may we meet again if fate allows."

Soon, he came to Chen Yiyi's yearbook. Thinking of her life's journey, he gently wrote at the end: "May you begin in humility and end in greatness."

Then, in Xu Youmeng's book, Lu Shixian wrote: "May you have a future to strive for, and a past to look back on with fondness."

By the time he finally finished, Lu Shixian felt as if his entire vocabulary had been drained.

But his hard work was rewarded with the unanimous appreciation of his classmates.

As one good turn deserves another, many began to ask where his yearbook was.

Originally, Lu Shixian hadn't planned on getting one. He’d had one in his past life and found it utterly useless; it just sat at home collecting dust until it disappeared completely during a move.

But for some reason, he had changed his mind and bought the plainest one he could find.

When he returned with it, nearly all his classmates scrambled to grab a page from his hands and start writing.

When he finally got it back, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

He found that the most common phrase written inside was "Should you become rich and noble, do not forget us."

What the heck?

Oh well, wealth and nobility it was. At least it was a bit better than the usual "study hard and aim high."

Then, Chen Yiyi's message to him was: "You're like a star in its orbit, shining brightly in my world."

And Xu Youmeng had left him: "Just how strong does first place have to be? How many more trials must be overcome?"

Lu Shixian was completely dumbfounded. Why had the tone suddenly gone so weird? He knew they were song lyrics, but couldn't they be a little less obvious?

To his utter astonishment, Lu Shixian even saw a message from Wang Chunya at the very end.

"May there be enough clouds to make a beautiful sunset in your life."

Just like an English teacher, he thought. Was she telling him that one must have a rich and varied life to truly appreciate its beauty?

Lu Shixian couldn't describe his mood. It was complicated. What was with all these messages?

He closed the yearbook, tossed it into his small backpack, and waved goodbye to his classmates who were already starting to leave.

In the end, the school grew quieter and quieter. Lu Shixian walked a full circle along the tall surrounding wall, returning to where he had started.

He then went to the school gate, waved it a final farewell, turned around, and got into a car, not looking back.

Time will answer the questions of growth, and growth will answer the call of dreams.

He was like a single, surging wave leaping into the sea of humanity, quietly awaiting the river's response.

Farewell, my middle school years!

Because people from her work unit had arrived, Xia Yubing left with them, supposedly to take charge of the report on the event.

Lu Shixian was left all alone, but he wasn't surprised. Xia Yubing's personality was always like a whirlwind.

He didn't go back to the city but headed straight home.

He arrived just in time for dinner.

The family had a happy meal together, and Lu Shixian recounted the day's events to his parents in detail.

Although they already knew he might receive a scholarship, they were still stunned speechless when they heard the figure of fifty thousand yuan.

Their annual income was less than twenty thousand yuan. Now, Lu Shixian had earned more than two years of their income just by putting pen to paper.

This solidified their resolve to support him in continuing his education for as long as he wished.

After spending a few days at home, Lu Shixian finally announced his departure.

Xia Xiuman and Lu Jianguo could only watch him leave.

They understood that their son was far more mature and insightful than other children his age. There were some things they couldn't control even if they wanted to. It was best to let him venture out into the world on his own.

A warm harbor is nice, but a fledgling must learn to fly, and an eagle must soar high. The scars in between are the price of growth.

Facing the rising sun, Lu Shixian began his journey once more.

This time, however, his heart was pounding a little.

He had to keep his promise to visit Chen Yiyi's home.

Since he had already agreed, he had to see it through. After all, her invitation came from a place of goodwill.

According to the address Chen Yiyi's mother had given him, she lived in the most remote county in Jinling City.

After asking for directions from many people along the way, he finally reached the county bus station.

It was already past one in the afternoon; he had spent five hours on the road.

The crucial part was, when he asked how much longer it would take to reach the final address, the answer was another two hours.

Lu Shixian felt a wave of despair. It seemed he was a fraud of a country boy. His complaints about long journeys and the inconvenience of getting to school paled in comparison to Chen Yiyi's situation.

In the county seat, Lu Shixian could still see traces of modern architecture.

But as the bus to the township laboriously climbed the winding mountain road, all he could see out the window were range after range of overlapping mountains, a sight he had rarely witnessed.

This was the true mountainous region. Although Xingfu Town, where he lived, had hills, it was mostly plains, with countless lakes and rivers.

Here, however, it was truly desolate. There was nothing but mountains.

Lu Shixian felt a little uneasy. What if he couldn't find Chen Yiyi's house later? Would he have to start a life of survival in the wilderness?

Chapter 45: Are You a Human or a Ghost?

Fortunately, after half an hour, as they entered the mid-level mountains, signs of human settlement began to appear sporadically, though they were not densely populated.

Unfortunately, this still wasn't his destination. Another half hour passed before he was told they were almost there.

By now, they had entered the high mountain area, where he could see eye-to-eye with the clouds shrouding the distant peaks.

A few minutes later, the bus came to a steady stop in the parking lot of a market town. This was the final stop; there were no more public buses.

He grudgingly paid the eight-yuan fare, got off the bus, and looked at the surrounding buildings. The town's level of prosperity was about the same as his own village.

Lu Shixian shook his head. It seemed the disparity was not just in education, but also in regional wealth.

Pushing those thoughts aside, Lu Shixian had been traveling all day and now just wanted to get to his final destination, Huangping Village, as quickly as possible.

But after asking around, he found that, as expected, there were no buses heading to the villages. Walking would take nearly an hour.

Although Lu Shixian was keen on exercising, his life was more important. In the end, his social skills landed him a ride on a motorcycle.

The driver was an old man in his fifties from Huangping Village, who happened to be heading back from town.

It was now June or July, the hottest time of the year.

But here, even under the sun, the wind blowing against him as he sat on the motorcycle felt a little cool.

Bored, he struck up a conversation with the old man.

"Kid, your accent doesn't sound local. What brings you to a place like ours?"

"Sir, a classmate of mine lives in your village. I came to visit her for the summer vacation."

The old man's interest was piqued. "Whose kid is she? Tell me her name, I'm sure I'll know her. I can take you right to her door."

Lu Shixian's eyes lit up. What a stroke of luck. This would save him some trouble.

"Her name is Chen Yiyi. She's about fifteen, a little on the short side..."

Before Lu Shixian could finish, the old man cut him off.

"Oh, that girl! She's our village's treasure. I hear she's a brilliant student, about to attend the best high school in all of Jinling."

Lu Shixian had no intention of correcting him and continued, "Yes, yes, that's her. Her mother invited me to visit sometime."

As they chatted, Lu Shixian took in the scenery. He found it quite nice here—peaceful, content, with simple and honest folk.

Soon, as the rural road beneath the motorcycle widened, Lu Shixian realized they had passed through the mountains and arrived in a small basin surrounded on all four sides by hills.

Looking at the vast fields and the houses scattered unevenly on the mountainside, Lu Shixian knew he must have reached his destination.

He habitually observed the farmland and was surprised to see that the continuous plots were all planted with a less common crop: tobacco.

In his past life, his research had focused mainly on edible vegetables and grains. He had only heard his teachers talk about tobacco in class and had never seen it grown in person.

The thought made him itch with curiosity, and he desperately wanted to jump off and examine it up close.

But he was still on the motorcycle, so he had to suppress the urge.

Oh well, he'd go to Chen Yiyi's house first. They surely grew it too.

Soon, the old man brought Lu Shixian to a house with a single story but several attached buildings.

Lu Shixian tried to pay him, but the old man adamantly refused.

After thanking him repeatedly, Lu Shixian, with his small backpack on, climbed the earthen steps and finally reached his destination.

As he got to the top, he happened to see Chen Yiyi, dressed in coarse cotton clothes, gathering dried radish slices.

Watching her deftly scoop the radishes into a bamboo basket, Lu Shixian was genuinely surprised.

She usually seemed so gentle and frail in everything she did, always wearing the same school uniform. This was quite a contrast.

"Let me help you."

Lu Shixian walked over and also began scooping the radish slices into the basket.

"Thanks," Chen Yiyi said without looking up, busy with her task. But as she reached for more, her hand suddenly froze mid-air. Something felt off.

Why did that voice sound so familiar?

Belatedly, Chen Yiyi turned her head and suddenly saw Lu Shixian standing right beside her.

Lu Shixian had expected to be greeted with a sweet smile, but the harsh reality dealt him a heavy blow.

He watched as Chen Yiyi stumbled back several steps, staring at him as if she'd seen a ghost.

"Are... are you a human or a ghost?"

Lu Shixian's good mood instantly crumbled. He had traveled all day to get here, only to be met with this reaction.

Of course, he could guess what was going through her mind. Subconsciously, she probably never thought he would come to her poor, remote village.

This was often a manifestation of a certain level of insecurity.

Lu Shixian composed himself and asked with a smile, "Classmate Yiyi, do you have a guilty conscience or something? Why else would you be afraid of a ghost visiting in broad daylight?"

Only then did Chen Yiyi realize it was really Lu Shixian, not a dream.

And now, she realized her reaction might have been a bit over the top. Would he be upset?

Chen Yiyi's heart pounded, and a blush quickly spread across her cheeks. Her gaze darted away from his.

"Why... why did you suddenly come to my house?"

Lu Shixian didn't know how to answer that question, so he chose to remain silent.

Of course, Chen Yiyi's question wasn't meant for him to answer; it was just a way to ease her own nervousness.

Then, she put down the basket and bolted into the house, leaving only a single sentence behind.

"I'll go get my mom!"

Lu Shixian watched her flustered retreat and couldn't help but smile, reminded of the old woman he had met in the library.

Old ladies were terrifying. Yiyi was much easier to tease.

Soon, Chen Yiyi's mother came out with her, wearing an apron. It seemed she had been cooking.

Seeing Lu Shixian, she was overjoyed. She quickly had Chen Yiyi bring out a chair for him while she went to make tea and fetch snacks and fruit.

She bustled about for a long time until Lu Shixian finally persuaded her to stop.

With a guest present, the mother and daughter naturally set aside their farm work to talk with him.

"Classmate Lu, why didn't you call ahead? I wasn't prepared at all."

At this, Lu Shixian suddenly remembered that Chen Yiyi had indeed written her phone number in his yearbook, but he hadn't paid any attention to it.

But this was probably for the best, to avoid causing them a lot of trouble.

"Just coming here is already a bother for you. Please don't treat me like such a formal guest, haha."

With that, Lu Shixian quickly changed the subject.

"Auntie, how many mu of land did you plant this year? What did you grow? How's the harvest?"

Chen Yiyi's mother looked at him with some surprise, not expecting someone so young to be interested in such things.

Chapter 46: Lu Shixian, You're Famous!

However, she had nothing to hide and answered directly, "Our family has over ten mu of farmland. We planted seven or eight mu of tobacco, and the rest is rented out to others. We also have some grapes planted on the mountain."

"And after the girl went to school, I'm the only one here to farm the tobacco, so I can't manage it all. That's why we let others farm some of the land."

"The climate here isn't good for growing grain, only tobacco. After we harvest it, we send it all to the tobacco station in town. The income depends entirely on the market price. The last few years have been terrible. We mostly rely on my husband working in the big city."

Chen Yiyi's mother was honest, telling him everything she knew without worrying if he understood or not.

But seeing how intently Lu Shixian was listening, she became even more animated.

They talked for a long time, until the sun began to set.

As if waking from a dream, Chen Yiyi's mother realized she had to make dinner. She quickly told Chen Yiyi to entertain him while she rushed off to cook.

Lu Shixian nodded readily and said to Chen Yiyi, "I'd like to walk around. Do you want to come?"

Unsurprisingly, Chen Yiyi nodded.

"Where are your fields?"

Chen Yiyi quickly went ahead to lead the way.

"I'll take you there."

Soon, the two of them arrived at a sizable plot of land at the foot of a mountain.

It appeared to be all summer tobacco, planted in mid-April. It was only June now.

The tobacco leaves were not yet very broad, only about the size of a cabbage.

Lu Shixian squatted down and felt a handful of the soil.

As an agricultural science researcher, his knowledge of soil was second nature.

With just a look and a touch, Lu Shixian identified the soil type.

It was a slightly acidic brown soil, likely derived from acidic rock parent material.

No wonder this place was suitable for growing tobacco. The suitability of acidic rock soil for tobacco was second only to soil developed from limestone parent material.

After looking at the fields, Lu Shixian enthusiastically climbed the mountain behind Chen Yiyi's house.

Sure enough, many grapevines had been planted with space between them.

To say they were "planted" wasn't entirely accurate.

The direction and size of the grapevines were mostly uniform, clearly originating from the same parent plant.

Lu Shixian could tell from a distance that these grapevines had been propagated from cuttings, a form of asexual reproduction.

The flowers on the vines had almost completely withered away. It would be another two or three months before they bore fruit.

By the time their tour was over, the sky was nearly dark. Lu Shixian reluctantly returned to the house with Chen Yiyi.

He had to admit, it got quite cold at night. The temperature dropped suddenly, making him shiver and hug his arms.

No wonder Chen Yiyi had been wearing a cotton jacket during the day. She was clearly prepared.

Fortunately, once inside, the temperature rose again, and Lu Shixian avoided the fate of freezing his tail off.

Chen Yiyi's mother had prepared a feast of dishes on the wooden table, all steaming hot.

Lu Shixian glanced over and counted at least eight or nine dishes. He was truly flattered.

"Auntie, you've made so much food. It's not even the New Year."

Chen Yiyi's mother replied warmly, "Oh, Classmate Lu, I invited you to visit before, but you didn't come. Now that you're finally here, who knows when the next time will be?"

"This is also to thank you for helping Yiyi with her studies in middle school. Otherwise, our Yiyi would never have gotten into the top high school. I told her father about it on the phone, and he was so happy. He insisted I make you a few extra dishes."

What could Lu Shixian say to that?

It seemed he would never live down the "tutoring" story.

He had been traveling all day and was starving. Eating was the priority.

After dinner, Lu Shixian wanted to help clean up but was shooed out of the kitchen by the mother and daughter.

He could only sigh. "Have I lost my working-class roots? They've even taken away my right to do chores."

That night, after a comfortable hot shower, Chen Yiyi's mother prepared Chen Yiyi's room for him.

As for Chen Yiyi, she would naturally sleep with her mother, as there were only two bedrooms.

Her mother didn't think anything of it, since the two kids were still young.

But Chen Yiyi was already blushing furiously, covering her face as she went to take a shower.

Lu Shixian was even more embarrassed. His mental age was in his twenties, an age where he would have been dating and thinking about marriage in his past life.

Lying on the soft palm-fiber bed, he could smell the faint, fresh scent that lingered on the sheets even after they had been changed, and he found it hard to fall asleep.

Lu Shixian glanced down and sighed at his body's reaction.

He cursed himself for being so pathetic, as if he'd never been around a girl before.

Of course, that was the truth, though he would never admit it.

"Counting sheep, counting chickens, counting stars... one, two, three, four, five, six, seven..."

Fortunately, Lu Shixian was experienced in distracting himself and soon found a way to focus his mind, successfully drifting off to sleep.

The next morning, the sky was just beginning to lighten.

Lu Shixian was woken by his internal clock. He sprang out of bed with a practiced motion and began to get dressed.

To his surprise, when he stepped outside, he saw Chen Yiyi's mother already working in the fields.
Sighing inwardly at the diligence of the working people, Lu Shixian unfailingly did a few laps around the fields for his morning exercise before bidding farewell to Mother Chen.

Mother Chen tried every trick in the book to make him stay, but Lu Shixian was one move ahead, using the excuse that his mom needed him to go visit relatives.

Having cleverly played the mom card as his shield, Lu Shixian successfully made his escape. Hopping into a car heading to town that Mother Chen had helped arrange, he left only a dashing silhouette behind for this village that felt like a world apart.

It wasn't that he disliked how undeveloped the place was; after all, he came from the countryside himself.

He had only ever planned to stay for a meal this time. He just hadn't expected to be delayed so long on the road, forcing him to stay the night.

That was his limit. He hadn't brought a change of clothes, which was very inconvenient.

Most importantly, it was just the mother and daughter living there. It wouldn't be appropriate for a young man like him to stay for too long.

Another long and tiring journey followed.

By the time Lu Shixian returned to the urban district of Jinling, it was evening once again.

This time, as he entered the government agency's dormitory building, the security guard, Old Uncle Chen, recognized him with a glance and buzzed him in.

He knocked lightly on Xia Yubing's door. She answered and quickly opened it.

When Lu Shixian stepped inside, he found her staring at him, her expression a little agitated.

He was completely baffled.

“Sis, what's wrong? Are you losing your mind or has menopause hit early?”

Xia Yubing grabbed him and started shaking him again. “Get lost! It’s you who’s blown up.”

“Blown up how? I was feeling pretty heated yesterday, if that’s what you mean.”

Lu Shixian was still confused, not understanding what she was cryptically getting at.

Finally, Xia Yubing just shoved the newspapers in her hand at him.

Now, Lu Shixian started to get it. It seemed he had made the papers.

But why were there two of them?

Chapter 47: The Guilt-Inducing Illness

He didn't need to ask, though. A quick look would tell him everything.

Lu Shixian picked up the first newspaper. As expected, it was the *Jinling Daily*.

The story about him was on the front page, the headline news.

To his secret delight, a handsome photo of him took up a large portion of the page.

The headline read: *Unity of Knowledge and Action: Middle School Exam Champion Ignites Opportunity with Patriotism*.

Aside from a brief introduction about Lu Shixian, the article quoted his interview almost verbatim, even bolding the text for emphasis.

Below the report were comments from various influential figures, including a familiar name: Ren Qingyuan.

Lu Shixian read it carefully.

“The hope of our nation lies with the youth, and so does the future of our people. Educators must earnestly guide students to actively integrate their personal ideals and pursuits into the various undertakings of the country... letting their youth blossom in the midst of unremitting struggle.”

Man, just how big of a deal was this?

Lu Shixian glanced at the other paper. Sure enough, it was the official *Jinling Agency Gazette*.

The placement wasn't as prominent as the *Jinling Daily*, though, only making it to the second page.

This was a classic case of a snake trying to swallow an elephant—pure greed on his part. News in the official gazette was usually published only if it held significant importance.

Education had gradually become a hot topic in the public sphere recently, which was how it had earned a spot in the paper.

Lu Shixian opened the gazette and saw the title: *Paving the Way for Dreams, Rural Students Have Their Spring Too*.

“When the young are strong, the nation is strong; the youth carry the future of our country. For the first time in a decade, the top scorer in Jinling’s middle school entrance exam comes from a rural middle school. This fully demonstrates that our city's foundational education has reached a new level, signaling a gradual narrowing of the gap between rural and urban education. Education is the greatest public good. In the future, we will continue to increase investment in the education sector to cultivate more outstanding students like Lu Shixian.”

Reading this, Lu Shixian couldn't help but give a thumbs-up.

Nice. Very civil service exam essay.

He wondered who wrote it; they had managed to interpret so much from him just getting first place. He really needed to learn from them.

But when he looked at the author's name, he saw that the correspondent for both articles was Xia Yubing...

He immediately looked at her and teased, “Sis, since when were you this good? No way, no way.”

Xia Yubing looked a bit embarrassed. “I did write the first one, but my dad gave me some pointers. The second one was penned by the *Daily*, I was just credited as a contributor.”

Alright, so it was his uncle's doing.

But Lu Shixian was still a bit puzzled.

“Sis, you said I’ve blown up? What can two newspaper articles prove? It’s not like I’m a celebrity debuting. How am I famous?”

At this, Xia Yubing said excitedly, “You have no idea. The *Jinling Daily* piece was selected for internal reference. I heard many provincial and municipal leaders are very interested in you.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian felt a little disappointed. There were no tangible benefits. He was just a student who hadn't even started high school, and he had no plans to pursue a career in politics.

But his ability to adjust his mindset was strong, and he quickly consoled himself.

It wasn't bad to be on the radar of local leaders. It might come in handy someday.

The night passed without event. Lu Shixian got a good rest, preparing to continue his great quest for knowledge the next day.

He had already wasted several days since picking up his report card, which had triggered an illness in him that constantly produced a sense of guilt.

Only by diligently atoning for his sins tomorrow could he alleviate the symptoms.

It was said that those who suffered from this illness would eventually become the top guns among academic aces.

The next day, Lu Shixian was indeed up bright and early.

Bathed in the dim morning light, his beloved little backpack on, he regrouped and set out once more.

Today, the old librarian finally saw Lu Shixian again after many days.

But this time, she already knew who he was; after all, his photo was still in the daily paper.

Her attitude leveled up again, reaching a point of qualitative change, as she showered him with solicitous questions.

Lu Shixian had no choice but to spend another twenty minutes on social pleasantries.

When he finally managed to sit down at an empty seat, he couldn't tell if it was his imagination, but the library seemed to have more people than before, most of them young.

Lu Shixian suddenly lowered his head, feeling a pang of guilt.

*No way, no way. Could I be the cause of this?*

But he quickly felt at ease again. This was a good thing. Reading more books was much better than playing games.

After all, books are the ladder of human progress. Gorky said that, not him.

Lu Shixian opened his backpack and took out his review materials.

Based on his last test, the focus of his college entrance exam review should be on physics and chemistry within the comprehensive science section. These required a great deal of effort to improve and couldn't be mastered overnight.

The secondary goal was to thoroughly master the math textbooks, which was also a slow-boil process, as the content was simply too extensive.

Speaking of which, he was still quite resentful about not having a system.

If you're going to provide a service, do it properly. Giving him just half a solution, leaving him hanging and having to figure out the rest himself, wasn't that just messing with him?

Something that could be solved with a "ding" now required him to put in thousands of times more toil and effort. Anyone would feel a little disgruntled.

But Lu Shixian was just venting. Deep down, he always believed that what one gained through a system wasn't truly one's own.

The path he carved out for himself, one step at a time, would be a more solid foundation, allowing him to go further.

In the afternoon, he officially finished *Botany*.

The idle time over the past few days had not been wasted.

According to his plan, the second book to tackle should be the microscopic-focused *Principles of Biochemistry*.

To state the importance of this book in one sentence: Biochemistry is one of the key microscopic disciplines for exploring the essence of life.

Following the same pattern, he wrote in his second notebook: "Environmental Conditions of Biochemical Systems, Chemical Substances of Life, Metabolism of Matter and Energy, Information Transfer and Regulation, and New Technologies and Disciplines in Biochemistry."

To be honest, this book was extremely difficult for him. It was almost impossible to master it in a few days like he had with *Botany*.

As a field of biological research at the intersection of biology and chemistry, it was subject to the short-plank effect.

His current biology level far surpassed his chemistry level, so the barrel of water was immediately half empty.

But it wasn't without its benefits. He could use biochemistry to guide his high school chemistry studies, and in turn, use his high school chemistry studies to build a solid foundation for biochemistry. It was a win-win situation.

Lu Shixian took a sip of warm water infused with goji berries he had just bought from the store and began the painful process of grinding through the book.

He breezed through the preface, but for what came after, it was as if he had put on a mask of agony.

"Part One: Environmental Conditions of Biochemical Systems. Chapter One: Water, pH, and Buffers."

"Chapter One has Section One: Introduction."

"And Section One: Introduction has Subsection I: The Importance of Water in Organisms."

“Is this a Russian nesting doll? This is torture within torture,” Lu Shixian complained weakly.

Finally, dinnertime arrived. Before leaving, he returned *Botany* and grimly checked out the book he was currently reading.

What a headache! He had no idea when he would even get the hang of it.

Unfortunately, this was the plan he had made for himself. He had to see it through, even if it meant crying his way through it...

Chapter 48: Reporting to No. 1 High School

At six in the evening, Lu Shixian returned to the dormitory building on time.

After everything that had happened, Xia Yubing now believed he was genuinely studying.

Furthermore, Lu Shixian had brought her some benefits this time, earning her praise from her superiors, which made her very pleased.

As a result, the most direct change Lu Shixian felt was that the food seemed to have gotten much better.

This did wonders for his mood.

That night, he continued to chew on the second section, The Properties of Water.

It included three topics: polarity, solubility and specific heat, and heat of vaporization.

Water is the source of life, so he wasn't surprised by the extensive content. But why did it have to bring physics into it?

Physics plus chemistry—it was double the torture, double the trouble! The叠加效应 nearly made him cough up blood from studying.

But a true warrior dares to face a bleak reality. At that moment, Lu Shixian was like the captain of a cavalry charge, relentlessly attacking the enemy until, piece by piece, he conquered them all.

In the blink of an eye, amidst a fulfilling routine of exercise and study, time flew by once again.

Lu Shixian checked his calendar. There were only five days left until the registration date for Jinling No. 1 High School.

It seemed it was time to report to the school. Teacher Sun had told him to find him early.

That evening, Lu Shixian said his goodbyes to Xia Yubing, also expressing his heartfelt gratitude for her feeding him all these days.

But before the words of thanks could even leave his mouth, he was KO'd by a flick on the forehead from Xia Yubing.

The next day, Lu Shixian headed to Jinling No. 1 High School with all his worldly possessions.

Xia Yubing had wanted to see him off, but something came up at work at the last minute, so she could only tell him to be careful on his way.

Lu Shixian was happy with this arrangement. It was actually quite peaceful without her sharp tongue nagging in his ear.

This time, he didn't run or walk. It was simply too far. Even though both places were in the city center, it would take half an hour to walk, and he was carrying so many things, including valuables. It was better not to.

Standing by the roadside, he hailed a taxi.

After giving the address and paying four yuan, Lu Shixian successfully arrived at the entrance of Jinling No. 1 High School.

Lu Shixian looked up. As expected of No. 1 High, the school gate alone was far more impressive than that of Jinling Agricultural High.

After explaining his situation to the security guard, Lu Shixian used the phone in the guardhouse to call Teacher Sun.

“Hello, Teacher Sun, this is Lu Shixian. Yes, I’ve arrived at the school early. What should I do next?”

Teacher Sun's voice came from the other end of the line: “Just stay put in the guardhouse. I’ll be right there to get you.”

Soon, Teacher Sun came jogging up to where Lu Shixian was waiting.

“Student Lu, my main task these few days is to sort out your accommodation. Would you prefer to live in the student apartments outside or in a single dorm room on campus?”

Lu Shixian thought for a moment and ultimately chose the single dorm room.

Besides the convenience of being on campus, the security would be guaranteed, right?

And so, before any other students had even registered, Lu Shixian had already moved into the student dormitory. His room number was also very auspicious, 100, practically the top-ranked room.

Since it was still the vacation period, Teacher Sun's task was complete, and he left.

For the next few days, Lu Shixian had to split his time between targeted problem-solving and studying macroscopic plant physiology.

As for meals, there were none. The school was practically deserted, so he had to go out to find food.

Several days passed, and time finally arrived at the golden month of September.

The first day of September was the day Jinling No. 1 High School began to welcome all its students.

A public notice board was set up in front of the administration building, already surrounded by circles of parents and students.

Lu Shixian deliberately slowed his pace, curious to see what was posted there.

Walking closer, he found it was something that concerned every student: the class assignment list for Jinling No. 1 High School.

Lu Shixian quickly walked over and saw that, as the top scorer, he was naturally assigned to Class 1 of the third year.

Seeing a few familiar names on the list, Lu Shixian seemed to understand something.

“Zhao Lei, Han Fang, and Li Qiuyi...” These few seemed to have been directly recommended to No. 1 High, bypassing the crucible of the middle school entrance exam.

Could it be that Class 1 was the recommended students' class, while Class 2 was for those who got in purely based on their scores?

Of course, he could have been placed in either class, but since he was assigned to Class 1, he didn't mind.

With his backpack on, Lu Shixian slowly found the classroom for Grade 10, Class 1.

People were already trickling in. It seemed these were his future classmates.

He casually took a seat. But even in the last row, he still drew the attention of many.

It couldn't be helped. Lu Shixian's fame had skyrocketed. Anyone who had read the newspaper would recognize him.

Soon, a balding middle-aged man with glasses walked in from outside.

His receding hairline was a bit concerning.

He placed his hands on the lectern and continued, “Welcome, everyone, to Jinling No. 1 High School. You are about to become a part of our student body.”

With that, he picked up a piece of chalk and wrote his name on the blackboard: Jiang Yunkun.

“Hello, everyone. I will be your math teacher for the coming year, as well as your homeroom teacher. I hope we can all cooperate pleasantly in the year of learning ahead.”

“You all come from different schools and don't know each other well. Therefore, I propose that each of you come up to the front for a brief self-introduction. Please follow the order as I call from the roster.”

“Number 1, Lu Shixian.”

At that, the entire class's gaze converged on him.

After all, this year's middle school exam champion seemed to have this name, and most of them had only heard of him but never seen him in person.

Logically, even as the champion, Lu Shixian should have been in Class 2. But they didn't know the full story. In a way, Lu Shixian did count as a recommended student; it was just that his score was so high that No. 1 High never brought it up later.

Jiang Yunkun, who had just stepped down from the stage, also turned his attention to the young man slowly walking towards the front. Because of Qian Zhengguo, he was very curious about this student. He only knew he was the top scorer in this year's exam and had yet to see what was so special about him.

At this moment, Lu Shixian stood straight at the lectern and addressed everyone: “Good morning, teachers and fellow students. My name is Lu Shixian, which means ‘to make even time envious.’ I am fifteen years old. I enjoy reading and sports. I hope to get along well with everyone in the time to come. Thank you.”

Jiang Yunkun, sitting below, nodded, forming a general impression of Lu Shixian. His speech was brief but concise. He spoke calmly, confidently, and politely. Indeed, a promising young man.

Next up was number two.

Lu Shixian didn't remember the details of her speech. She said a lot, but he only caught her name, Cheng Yixue. She was a recommended student from the Foreign Language Middle School, had won numerous honors, and had participated in many city and provincial level competitions, achieving excellent results.

Honestly, judging by resume alone, without looking at scores, this Cheng Yixue seemed even more impressive than Lu Shixian. He wondered why a student like her didn't go to Jinling Affiliated High.

Could it be that No. 1 High had a bigger recruitment budget this year? Lu Shixian speculated inwardly.

Because they were using a small-class, elite cultivation system, the entire recommended students' class only had about twenty students, so the self-introduction process went very quickly.

After listening to everyone, even Lu Shixian felt a hint of pressure. As expected of No. 1 High, it was full of talented people.

He wondered what the scene was like at Jinling Affiliated High.

Chapter 49: Lu Shixian, Crowned Against His Will

After all the introductions were done, Jiang Yunkun moved on to the next item on the agenda: electing the class committee.

“After hearing everyone's self-introductions, I believe you all have a better understanding of your classmates.”

“As is tradition, we need to elect members for the class committee. However, since we are a small class, electing so many subject representatives is unnecessary and would take up too much of your energy.”

“So, we only need to elect a class monitor and an academic representative. One will be responsible for daily life matters, and the other for academic matters. Anyone interested can nominate themselves.”

But after Jiang Yunkun finished speaking, several seconds passed in what felt like a frozen silence.

As the saying goes, the scariest thing is a sudden silence, and the second scariest is a sudden show of concern from the homeroom teacher.

So, Jiang Yunkun scanned all the students and said, “Since no one is volunteering, I will have to appoint someone.”

“This appointment will last for one semester. If you want a change, you'll have to wait until the next semester. Is there anyone who wants to volunteer?”

It couldn't be helped. By the time they reached high school, especially among outstanding students, the desire to be a class officer had diminished. They had experienced all that in middle school.

Scores were the only thing that mattered. Did they really expect that being a class officer would add a few points to their college entrance exam score?

After all, this wasn't the "Three-Good Student" award; the provincial-level "Three-Good Student" award was highly sought after back then, as it could grant bonus points on the college entrance exam.

At this point, Jiang Yunkun was out of options and had to say, “Alright, I’ll make the appointment then. Student Lu Shixian, as the top scorer in the entrance exam and a boy, you can help with any physical tasks. I believe no one will object to you being the class monitor.”

“Yes, yes, we all agree with the champion being our monitor.”

“Teacher Jiang, let’s just decide on that.”

The other students chimed in one after another, as if they had just gotten rid of a hot potato.

Lu Shixian's thoughts were something like this: Σ(°△°|||)

Who am I? Where am I?

I don't think I said a single word. How did I become the class monitor?
This whole scene feels like one of those "acclaimed by the masses" moments, doesn't it?

Just then, Jiang Yunkun, smiling, looked at the stunned Lu Shixian and said, "Lu Shixian, with so many of your classmates supporting you for class president, it’s clear the people’s eyes are sharp. We don't even need a secret ballot. From now on, you'll have to serve your classmates well. If you have anything to say, now's the time!"

Lu Shixian was speechless.

What else could he do? This responsibility had just been dropped in his lap out of nowhere. If he couldn't fight it, he might as well try to enjoy it.

So he stood up and addressed his classmates, "To be chosen by all of you as the president of Class One, Year One, I'm truly honored and a little intimidated. I know many of you here are more outstanding than me in many ways. In the future, if I do anything wrong, please don't hesitate to point it out. I promise to actively correct my mistakes."

Instantly, the classroom erupted in another round of boisterous applause.

Soon after, Jiang Yunkun appointed Cheng Yixue as the study commissar.

After her self introduction earlier, not a single person in the room dared to claim their resume was more impressive than hers.

Thus, her appointment also received widespread approval.

After Cheng Yixue also gave a short speech, the matter was settled in this dramatic fashion.

"Alright, Lu Shixian, you and Cheng Yixue will need to work well together from now on. Strive to make our Class One, Year One the most outstanding group, with no one left behind."

"Yes, Mr. Jiang. I'll do my best," Lu Shixian quickly slipped into his new role.

Next, Jiang Yunkun announced that military training would begin immediately, which was met with a chorus of groans.

Although they hadn't experienced it in middle school, the tales and firsthand accounts from the upperclassmen had already cast a long shadow over their hearts.

Soon enough, Lu Shixian was holding the class placard for Class One, Year One, leading the twenty odd students under his charge to the vast sports field of Jinling No. 1 High School.

Putting aside its current academic achievements, the facilities at Jinling No. 1 High School were truly luxurious.

With years of accumulated resources and donations from alumni who had made it big, if the school's facilities were called second best, no other high school in the entire province would dare claim to be first, not even the Affiliated High School.

Before long, all eighteen classes of the first year had assembled on the field.

Now *that's* what you call scale.

A single grade at Jinling No. 1 High School had several times the number of students as an entire middle school.

As they stood waiting under the scorching sun, their team of instructors jogged in formation to the front of the lines, one instructor for each class.

"All units, attention!"

"At ease!"

"Forward, march!"

"Double time, march!"

"Stand at attention for ten minutes, starting now!"

"Alright, ten minutes are up. Take a five minute break."

As soon as the words were spoken, the once orderly formation of Class One, Year One completely fell apart.

Everyone was slouched over, gasping for air.

Although these were basic military training exercises, they had never undergone this kind of militarized training in middle school. Compared to this, the so called 1000 meter run was just child's play.

It was only natural that they couldn't handle such a sudden increase in intensity.

At this moment, Cheng Yixue, her hair in a simple short cut, walked over to Lu Shixian. "Class President, I heard that Class Two is performing really well and has been praised by their instructor several times. Shouldn't we think of a way to change things?"

Lu Shixian glanced at her, surprised by her sense of responsibility and class honor.

After a moment's thought, Lu Shixian told her, "This is something the students have to work on themselves. The key is to spark their own intrinsic motivation."

"Worrying about it ourselves is useless. How about this: you take the class funds and go to the school supermarket to buy twenty five popsicles. I'll say a few words later, and we'll see how it goes."

"But including you and me, there are only twenty three of us. Why are you getting so many?"

Seeing the doubt on Cheng Yixue's face, Lu Shixian almost thought he had committed a crime.

He instantly understood that she thought he was trying to line his own pockets and eat three popsicles himself.

He was utterly exasperated. Of all the things to be greedy for, a few popsicles? Was she serious?

Besides, who would be so blatant about embezzling funds?

"What are you thinking? Did you think we'd just eat them here while the instructor and our teacher watch from a distance? Aren't you going to bring them a couple?"

"Even if they don't eat them, it's the thought that counts. If they refuse, you can bring them back for me, got it?"

Only then did Cheng Yixue understand his meaning. Her respect for Lu Shixian grew, and she hurried off to the supermarket.

It was understandable that Cheng Yixue hadn't quite left her schoolgirl mindset behind.

Having lived two lives, Lu Shixian was hardly a cunning mastermind, but he at least understood the basics of how people work. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been so successful.

Soon, the students of Class One were enjoying their cool popsicles, drawing envious looks from many of the neighboring classes.

Chapter 50: The Miserable Life of a First-Year

With a few minutes left before the next training session, Lu Shixian suddenly stood up and addressed his classmates. "Everyone, based on our recent performance, a lot of people think Class Two is doing better than us. As students of Class One, we have to rise to the occasion! As students who were admitted on recommendation, we can't let them look down on us."

"When we wear our school uniforms, we study hard. When we wear these military uniforms, we should be defenders of our nation, and we need to look the part. Now look at us, all slumped and out of sorts. If our country truly needed us, could we really bear that responsibility?"

"Think of the soldiers guarding our country's borders on islands, in deserts, and on plateaus. They stand guard day and night for the sake of national defense. Compared to them, is our training right now really that hard?"

His words hit home. The students of Class One, who had been laughing and chatting just moments before, suddenly found that the popsicles in their hands had lost their taste. One by one, they became fired up, as if they'd been shot up with adrenaline.

"Train hard, beat Class Two!"

"Train hard, beat Class Two!"

"Train hard, beat Class Two!"

Over in their rest area, the students of Class Two heard the impassioned cries from across the field and were completely baffled.

They had no idea that Lu Shixian had just turned them into an imaginary enemy.

The effect of the pep talk was immediately apparent in the afternoon's training. The squad's morale and movements improved drastically, and they instantly became the sharpest looking group on the field.

Not far away, Jiang Yunkun, who was observing the training, nodded in satisfaction. His impression of Lu Shixian had improved even more.

"The kid's got good organizational skills. The only question is whether he can adapt to the academic pace of high school."

Soon, the half month of military training was coming to an end. During this time, as they got to know each other better, Lu Shixian had built good relationships with the sixteen boys and five girls in his class.

The first year students of Jinling No. 1 High School were about to officially begin their academic life.

On the first Monday after military training ended, they had their first high school class.

"Hello, everyone. It's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Ouyang Qingyue. Ouyang as in Ouyang Xiu, and Qingyue as in 'clear wind, bright moon'."

"Barring any unforeseen circumstances, I will be with you for the next three years. If you have any questions about Chinese literature, please feel free to find me, and we can solve them together."

The speaker was Class One's future Chinese teacher. She was still young, likely not yet thirty, but had already taught two graduating classes. She could be described as young and promising, with a graceful figure and a beautiful, pleasant appearance.

She was an instant hit with the students, who all started clamoring about how they were going to master Chinese.

Soon, most of the teachers who had classes that day had met the students, and they all had a preliminary impression of one another.

The math teacher was, of course, their homeroom teacher, Jiang Yunkun. They were already familiar with his tendency to act profound, though he wasn't actually very stern.

The English teacher was a man in his thirties. His appearance and build weren't worth mentioning.

Lu Shixian's impression of him was that he spoke fluent American English and had experience as a returnee from abroad.

Because the first year required nine subjects simultaneously—including the sciences of physics, biology, and chemistry, as well as the humanities of geography, history, and politics—the first day's schedule wasn't completely full.

He only met the biology, chemistry, and politics teachers.

Among them, their biology teacher, Wen Shaoying, was already close to fifty and was rumored to be retiring after teaching their cohort.

Because he wanted to leave with no regrets, it was said that he would be stricter than ever before, causing many students to feel a bit intimidated just by looking at his stern, old face.

As the first day of classes came to a perfect close, their academic life slowly fell into a routine.

Even though it was only the first year, the students in the high achieving Class One felt immense pressure.

"I haven't even figured out this physics lesson, and now it's geography class already?"

In the Class One classroom, a male student named Chen Yaming wore an agonized expression.

His words immediately resonated with the surrounding students who were busy burying their heads in their notebooks.

"Yeah, nine subjects in one semester. My head hurts just looking at the schedule."

"Why does first year feel even harder than second year? I have decision paralysis. I feel like I'm not good at either science or humanities," a girl named Wang Min said with considerable distress.

Hearing their discussion, Lu Shixian was speechless. This was some next level humblebragging.

If it weren't for getting to know them over the past few weeks, he wouldn't have even understood their brand of flexing.

The reason Chen Yaming was in pain was because only adults make choices; he wanted to get a perfect score in everything.

And as for Wang Min, who claimed to be "not good" at science and humanities, her active participation in class discussions clearly marked her as a master of both.

Only a week into the school year, news suddenly spread that the Jinling City Mathematics Competition was going to be held.

The news was like a bomb dropped into the calm of the school, and many students became interested.

At that moment, the classroom of Class One, Year One was abuzz with discussions about the competition. Almost everyone was interested in signing up.

Lu Shixian wasn't surprised by their reaction.

This environment was a far cry from the lifeless atmosphere he remembered from his time at Jinling No. 3 High School.

He recalled that around the same time after school started, he hadn't even heard any news about such competitions.

The school didn't care, the teachers didn't pay it any mind, and the students had no confidence.

That was the reality for most ordinary high schools.

Soon, after the afternoon math class, Jiang Yunkun gave the students the most accurate information.

"This Saturday, the preliminary round for the 2007 Jinling City Mathematics Competition will be held at Jinling University of Science and Technology. Those of you who are interested in academic competitions can sign up with me. Only those who pass the preliminary round will be eligible to participate in the subsequent league."

"This competition is mainly aimed at second year students. If you're interested and capable, you can join our school's math competition team for professional training later. For this time, don't get your hopes up too high."

As soon as Jiang Yunkun finished, someone in the class heckled, "Mr. Jiang, why even sign up individually? Just send our whole class over to take the test. It's not that many people anyway."

"Yeah, even those of us who aren't planning on competing in math can go for fun, get some experience, and improve our test taking skills."

This time, Jiang Yunkun seemed swayed.

"In that case, is there anyone who doesn't want to go? Raise your hand."

Naturally, not a single hand went up.

Lu Shixian shook his head secretly. This was the gap in education.

Originally, Lu Shixian's desire to participate in the math competition wasn't strong. He knew his own math level.

It was just average, undergraduate level, and perhaps even a bit rusty.

Participating for fun was fine, but getting to the national competition through the math league would be very, very difficult.

As for placing in the national competition, he didn't even dare to dream of it.

But with so many people going, he would be out of place if he didn't.

Although it wasn't in his life plan, going for the experience was fine.

He never had the chance to experience something like this in his previous life.

Chapter 51: The Jinling City Mathematics Competition

What Jiang Yunkun didn't say was that for a city level math competition like this, if you were on the math team of a top school, you basically didn't even need to participate. You could go straight to the league, essentially getting a bye.

For them to participate as first years, unless they had a special talent in the subject, they were basically just going to get crushed.

Since this bunch of proud students enjoyed being humbled, how could Jiang Yunkun not grant their wish?

It would be best if they came back and listened to his lectures obediently.

"Heh heh heh..." Jiang Yunkun chuckled sinisterly as he walked away.

September 15th, Saturday.

After a final check, Lu Shixian packed his competition pass, student ID, national ID, and some test taking tools into his small backpack and left his dorm room.

It seemed this math competition had ignited the passion of many students. Apart from the third year seniors, almost everyone still at school on a Saturday was there for this exam.

He then went to the location Jiang Yunkun had designated. Soon, the students who had gone home for the weekend began to return to school, gathering at the meeting point.

At eight in the morning, Lu Shixian counted the students and reported to Jiang Yunkun, "Reporting, Mr. Jiang. Class One, Year One, twenty three students required, twenty three present."

Jiang Yunkun nodded and glanced at his watch.

"The driver should be here any minute. Just wait a little longer. The exam starts at nine. We'll get there at eight thirty, half an hour early is plenty of time."

While waiting, the class naturally couldn't stay quiet.

"I heard this year's competition is harder than before. It's not like it used to be; the question types and difficulty are more aligned with the league."

"Han Fang, how do you know that?"

"I have my sources. The city's Mathematical Society is setting the questions, and they said that as the provincial capital's association, they should raise the bar a bit to be on par with the provincial level."

"No way, does that mean we're screwed? Last year, our entire school only had two first prize winners at the provincial level, and neither of them qualified for the provincial team."

"So what happened to our province's spots?"

"Weren't they all taken by the Affiliated High School? Their school alone took up 90% of the spots on the provincial team."

"Looks like our school has really fallen behind!"

Just then, Jiang Yunkun interrupted the students' whispers, apparently unable to bear it any longer.

"The bus is here. Everyone get on. The students from Class Two will be joining us, though there are fewer of them."

"Regarding this competition, you all have plenty of test taking experience, so I won't repeat the usual reminders."

Soon, a brand new school bus pulled up at the side of the road nearby.

The students from Class One and Class Two lined up and boarded the bus in an orderly fashion.

Then, the bus started, heading towards the test center, Jinling University of Science and Technology.

Lu Shixian looked back at the few participants from Class Two; they were mostly strangers.

He figured that based on their scores, the students from rural middle schools who had gotten into the high school wouldn't have met the standards for the top classes.

Chen Yiyi was fine; he had already found out that with her city ranking in the five hundreds, she wouldn't get into Class Two, but getting into Class Six was no problem.

As for Xu Youmeng, he hadn't seen her at Jinling No. 1 High School at all.

It seemed that, just like in his previous life, she had probably gone to Jinling Affiliated High School.

As Lu Shixian was lost in thought, he heard the call to get off the bus.

Looking outside, he saw that they had indeed arrived at their destination.

He followed the group into the venue for the math competition, Jinling University of Science and Technology.

In reality, this wasn't even a preliminary round; it was more of a qualifying test. The real league competition would be held at Jinling University, and on a much grander scale.

However, Lu Shixian's purpose for participating was merely to experience the atmosphere of an academic competition in advance. His main goal was not math, but biology, so his mindset was very relaxed.

"Alright, everyone find your designated areas. After the exam, we'll meet at the main entrance of the university. Any questions?" Jiang Yunkun gave his final instructions.

Soon, following the assigned areas on their competition passes, the participants from Jinling No. 1 High School began to disperse.

Lu Shixian arrived at the third floor of Building C, Area B, and waited for check in.

Next, a staff member took his student ID and competition pass, carefully verifying them. They then used a scanning device to scan Lu Shixian's entire body, checking for a cell phone or any other electronic devices used for cheating.

In terms of strictness, it was even more rigorous than the high school entrance exam he had just taken. It was, after all, the most prestigious competition among the five major subjects.

Finally, Lu Shixian was able to enter the exam hall.

There were thirty seats in total. He found number 22, sat down, and began to arrange his tools.

Fortunately, he had done his homework beforehand. Apart from the necessary tools, he couldn't even bring scratch paper. Things like correction fluid or tape were completely out of the question.

By the time the exam was about to start, the seats were still not full.

It seemed there were quite a few people who signed up but didn't show up.

Sometimes, you shouldn't be intimidated by what seems like a huge number of participants.

At that moment, the proctors began to distribute scratch paper.

Lu Shixian took the paper and started to take deep breaths, adjusting himself into the best possible mindset for the competition.

Finally, the test papers were handed out, one by one.

Lu Shixian received Paper A, which meant the people sitting above, to his left, and to his right had Paper B.

There was no one below him because he was in the last row.

Once he had the paper, he could begin.

The exam time was from 9:00 to 10:30, not as strictly aligned with the league's schedule.

The first round of the league was held earlier, from 8:00 to 9:20.

Without further ado, Lu Shixian quickly scanned the entire test paper.

There were two types of questions: eight fill in the blank questions, eight points each, for a total of 64 points; and three problem solving and proof questions, for a total of 56 points. The total score was 120.

But if you thought you could finish these 11 questions in ten or twenty minutes, you were mistaken.

There was a reason they set aside about an hour and a half for the exam.

Lu Shixian did a quick tally and noticed a bias towards algebra questions.

Out of the 11 questions, 8 were algebra, with 2 geometry questions and 1 probability distribution question.

For Lu Shixian, the fill in the blank questions were meat served on a platter.

It didn't matter if he used the Mean Value Theorem or Euler's formula; all he had to do was write down the correct answer.

Lu Shixian looked at the first question: An arithmetic sequence {an} satisfies a2007 = a20 + a7. What is the value of the first term, a1?

Wasn't this a freebie?

Lu Shixian just needed to use the common difference to set up two equations from the problem statement and solve them simultaneously.

Solve the system of two linear equations, and the answer would pop right out.

Next question: If real numbers x and y satisfy..., what is the limit of the expression?

Lu Shixian smiled and wrote on his scratch paper: By L'Hôpital's Rule, the expression simplifies to 2/3.
Lu Shixian filled in the answer and moved on to the next question.

Finally, he reached the proof problems.

At that moment, after reading the questions, Lu Shixian's expression finally turned serious.

Chapter 52: I! Lu Shixian! Still Got It.

The first was an algebra problem. Given that an was the sum of a polynomial series, prove that for any positive integer n ≥ 2, a(n+1) < an.

When he first saw the problem, Lu Shixian was a bit stumped, and he froze on the spot.

After all, a pure algebra problem was a true test of one's ability for logical reasoning and making connections.

Could it be that he couldn't even solve the first proof problem? This was supposed to be the easiest one.

Lu Shixian suddenly grew nervous. If he couldn't even solve the first problem, it would be a huge blow to his confidence for the rest of the test.

He let out a soft breath, forcing himself to calm down.

The more nervous you get, the less you should rush.

Lu Shixian reread the problem and suddenly realized he had fallen into a common trap. To prove this kind of inequality, why bother substituting the values and then comparing them?

He just needed to shift his perspective.

Comparing a and b could also be done by looking at their difference or their ratio.

If the final result of a-b was greater than zero, or the result of a/b was greater than 1, then that would prove a was greater than b.

At this thought, Lu Shixian's eyes grew brighter and brighter.

He scribbled furiously on his scratch paper. For the expression an, he could use the distributive property to isolate n+1.

Then, he could derive the simplified form of an - a(n+1) for any positive integer n ≥ 2.

Finally, he just had to prove that the simplified form was greater than zero.

Therefore, a(n+1) < an.

Thus, the proposition was proven.

Having solved the problem, Lu Shixian heaved a long sigh of relief and started on the next one.

The second problem was on plane analytic geometry.

The gist of the problem was about a reciprocal function and a straight line that produced two intersection points. The question asked for the locus of the intersection point of the two tangent lines at those points on the reciprocal function.

It had to be said, if your logical reasoning skills weren't up to par, just reading the problem was enough to make your head spin.

But then again, this type of problem was Lu Shixian's strong suit. In mathematics, his greatest skill was transforming geometric figures into algebraic expressions.

It was nothing more than finding the coordinates of the intersection point.

He set up a system of simultaneous equations based on the given conditions. From the problem statement, the equation had to have two distinct real roots, x1 and x2, in the interval (0, +∞). Therefore, k≠1, and the discriminant (Equation 1) = 1+4(k−1) > 0. The sum of the two roots (Equation 2) and their product (Equation 3) were both greater than zero.

From this, he could determine the range of the slope k of the line. Finally, he took the derivative of the reciprocal function.

Simplifying, he obtained the equations for lines l1 and l2 (Equations 4 and 5).

Subtracting (5) from (4) yielded the expression for xp (Equation 6).

Substituting (2) and (3) into (6) gave xp = 2.

Adding (4) and (5) yielded the expression for yp (Equation 7).

Substituting a combination of (2) and (3) into (7) gave 2yp = (3−2k)xp + 2. Since xp = 2, it followed that yp = 4−2k.

Based on the range for the slope k, 2 < yp < 2.5.

Therefore, the locus of point P was the line segment between (2, 2) and (2, 2.5), excluding the endpoints.

By the time Lu Shixian finished this problem, there were only forty minutes left in the exam.

The second major problem wasn't actually that hard. The approach was simple, but the calculations were a bit complex and time consuming. This one question alone had taken him several dozen minutes.

With no time to complain, Lu Shixian quickly looked at the third major problem.

Let the function f(x) satisfy f(x+2π) = f(x) for all real numbers x.

Prove that there exist four functions, fi(x) (i=1, 2, 3, 4), that satisfy:

(1) For i=1, 2, 3, 4, fi(x) is an even function, and for any real number x, fi(x+π) = fi(x);

(2) For any real number x, f(x) = f1(x) + f2(x)cosx + f3(x)sinx + f4(x)sin2x.

The problem statement looked very concise, but Lu Shixian knew the solution would be many times its length, if not more.

Time was short, so Lu Shixian decided to tackle the first part first.

It was obvious to Lu Shixian that anything involving pi was almost certainly related to periodic functions.

He began by decomposing f(x) into g(x) and h(x), where g(x) was an even function and h(x) was an odd function, satisfying g(x+2π) = g(x) and h(x+2π) = h(x) for any x∈R.

Then, he substituted them into the four functions fi(x), for i=1, 2, 3, 4, to obtain expressions for f1(x), f2(x), f3(x), and f4(x).

Thus, fi(x), for i=1, 2, 3, 4, were even functions, and for any x∈R, fi(x+π) = fi(x).

This part was simple. Verifying it a limited number of times just required substitution; it wasn't mentally taxing.

Lu Shixian felt that as long as the number of cases was under 10, he could handle it. It would just use up some lead, that's all.

After all, it was better than staring at a problem for ages with no idea where to start.

However, it seemed this problem did offer the contestants some leeway, as Lu Shixian discovered the second part was closely related to the first.

He substituted the algebraic expressions he just derived in the first part into f(x) = f1(x) + f2(x)cosx + f3(x)sinx + f4(x)sin2x.

Next, all that was left was to discuss the cases.

Because of the range of values for x, there were six possible cases for f1(x), f2(x), f3(x), and f4(x).

Two of them needed no further discussion; they yielded easily.

The other four cases were still putting up a stubborn resistance, so Lu Shixian had to bring out the powerful tool of making assumptions.

Finally, they were beaten into submission, thus proving that all six cases were completely valid.

In conclusion, the equation was proven to be true!

Lu Shixian let out a long breath. When he glanced around, he realized the huge classroom was empty except for him.

A jolt of panic went through him. The exam isn't over yet, is it? No way.

Did everyone else finish the problems I worked so hard to prove that quickly?

Am I getting too old for this, or are the kids these days just too damn good?

He looked up and saw the proctor staring right at him.

What's that look for? Have I disappointed you?

I'm sorry, I'll admit it, I'm a total math scrub.

He got up melancholically to hand in his paper, then gathered his things, ready to leave this place of sorrow.

But as he was leaving, he heard the proctor's voice, full of admiration, from behind him.

"Hey, not bad! Everyone else in this room gave up and left early. You were the only one who kept at it."

Lu Shixian: ???

"Right or wrong, the fact that you finished makes it worth my while for watching you, and only you, for the last hour."

Lu Shixian felt a blush creep up his face.

His spirits, which had been at a low ebb, gradually began to rise.

So that means I'm actually not bad... I've still got it!

Chapter 53: This Student Lacks Spark

When he arrived at the gate of Jinling University of Science and Technology, he saw that all the participating students from Class 1 and Class 2 were there, waiting for him.

My bad, my bad. I've wasted the precious time of thirty or forty people all by myself.

Lu Shixian quickly jogged over to Jiang Yunkun.

Jiang Yunkun looked at him with some confusion. "What took you so long? Did you fall asleep in there?"

Lu Shixian replied apologetically, "Sorry, the problems were a little tough, so I spent some extra time thinking."

Jiang Yunkun knew that people often got stuck on a single point when solving problems, feeling compelled to solve it before moving on.

It seemed Lu Shixian had run into that situation.

He didn't think much of it and smiled at the students, who all seemed to be in low spirits.

"So, how did it go, everyone?"

"The test was too hard! I didn't finish at all," came the unanimous cry of despair.

"I only managed to solve two fill-in-the-blanks and one proof problem. I guessed on the rest."

"You actually solved a proof problem? I was completely lost. I was wrestling with that geometry fill-in-the-blank problem the whole time. In the end, we both lost, and I just walked out."

Lu Shixian blended into the crowd, not daring to speak. He had no idea what would happen if he said he'd finished everything. They'd probably beat him to death.

As soon as the city-wide math competition ended that morning, the city association, located downstairs from the Provincial Mathematical Society, began the grading process right after lunch.

Su Province wasn't considered a powerhouse in academic competitions. Except for informatics, which was a relative strength, its results in recent years had not been good.

And Jinling City was the province's main contributor, so they had been working hard to change the situation.

That was the reason for increasing the difficulty of the competition this time.

In fact, other regions in the province had already held their selection trials. Only Jinling City had postponed theirs because they had increased their educational outreach on the subject and wanted to see a more pronounced effect.

At this moment, the second floor of the Mathematical Society building was a scene of frantic activity. Because of their earlier postponement, the results had to be out by the next morning, which meant all the papers had to be graded that afternoon.

Although it was only the exam papers from Jinling City, the time constraint made the workload considerable.

Several young, bespectacled statisticians were rapidly sorting the papers.

Papers with the major problems left blank needed to be scored and registered by them.

Those with writing in the major problem sections were sorted into another pile. After they finished checking the fill-in-the-blank questions, these papers would be handed over to temporarily assigned senior mathematics experts, who would determine the scores for the major problems.

The grading continued until well after nine o'clock that night.

Finally, thanks to the sincere and unified effort of the Municipal Mathematical Society, the results of the selection competition were out.

They were then compiled and sent to the office of Mao Jinxi, the vice president in charge of the competition.

By now, Mao Jinxi's office was already packed with people. Everyone in the society was eager to see the results.

Seeing their expectant faces, Mao Jinxi couldn't help but try to lower their expectations.

"Heh, don't get your hopes up. The main contenders for the national competition are all training in their schools' math olympiad teams and didn't participate in this selection."

"Besides, the difficulty of this competition wasn't much easier than the provincial league. Don't expect a lot of high scores."

Just then, a young man sitting at a computer suddenly stood up and handed a printed score sheet to Mao Jinxi.

The moment he saw the first name, he'd just taken a sip of tea, and he spat it all out.

"Jinling No. 1 High School, Lu Shixian, 120 points?"

He had just said not to expect many high scores, and now there was a perfect one?

Doesn't that mean this person is already skilled enough to be on the math olympiad team? Then why was he participating in the qualifying round?

"Where did this Lu Shixian come from?" Mao Jinxi asked a young woman in charge of the contestant files.

The woman quickly found Lu Shixian's information on her computer.

"President Mao, according to the files, this person is a freshman in Class 1, Grade 10 at Jinling No. 1 High School. It seems his entire class signed up for the qualifying competition."

He wasn't surprised that an entire class would participate. There were always plenty of students who came to experience the atmosphere of a competition. As long as the registration fees were paid, he didn't care.

But for a freshman to get a perfect score on a test of this difficulty was truly impressive.

"Let me see this student's answer sheet," Mao Jinxi said, his interest suddenly piqued.

Soon, someone found a paper from the small stack of high-scoring answer sheets and handed it to him.

He put on his glasses and briefly scanned Lu Shixian's solution steps.

The more he looked, the more his brows furrowed, almost forming a deep crease.

A curious middle-aged man beside him asked, "Old Mao, what is it? Is there a problem with the grading? Isn't it a perfect score?"

Mao Jinxi put down the paper and sighed. "It's a perfect score, all right. It's just that this student lacks spark. His methods are completely by-the-book, utterly conventional."

"Not only did he use the most brute-force methods, but for the last problem, with so many cases, he could have used induction to finish it simply. But he insisted on using proof by exhaustion, writing out every single one, for both the first and second parts."

"Forget it. Just release the results as they are tomorrow morning. A perfect score is better than no perfect score."

If Lu Shixian could have heard the vice president's evaluation, he would have cried foul.

Just getting it right was hard enough, okay? What do you think, I have a System?

On Sunday morning, Lu Shixian was alone in the classroom, grinding through physics and chemistry practice problems.

Suddenly, the door opened, and Jiang Yunkun peered inside, quickly spotting Lu Shixian.

"Lu Shixian, you really stick to your routine, don't you? If you're not in the dorm or the cafeteria, you're in the classroom."

Lu Shixian wasn't about to be fooled by such praise. He retorted, "Mr. Jiang, you never show up without a reason. What's on your mind? Just spit it out."

Hearing this, Jiang Yunkun laughed and playfully scolded him, "Get out of here, you're the old man! I came to tell you some good news."

"The Municipal Mathematical Society released the results from yesterday's competition today. You won first prize in the city, and with a perfect score of 120."

At this, Lu Shixian suddenly put down his pen, his eyes shining. "That counts as a major award, right? Does that mean I get 1200 yuan?"

Now it was Jiang Yunkun's turn to be confused.

If he remembered correctly, he had given the boy a 50,000 yuan scholarship not long after school started. How was it that the first thing this kid thought of wasn't the honor, but the money?

This habit of his eyes lighting up at the sight of money had to be corrected.

Jiang Yunkun asked quizzically, "Are you short on money again? What happened to your scholarship?"

Lu Shixian waved his hand. "Of course I gave it to them. To help my mom and dad recover a bit, so they don't have to work so hard in the future, and to help renovate the house."

Jiang Yunkun suddenly felt a pang of shame. He had misjudged the boy's character.

One should never doubt a child's true intentions.

Chapter 54: Crap, I'm So BBQ'd

"In that case, you might as well participate in the provincial league. If you can get first prize in the province, you can get 6,000," Jiang Yunkun said, starting to entice him with a new plan.

At this, Lu Shixian's eyes lit up. "Can they stack?"

Jiang Yunkun lightly tapped him on the head. "In your dreams. For the same series of awards, you can only collect the prize money for the highest level you achieve in a given year."

"In other words, if you win first prize in the provincial math competition, but you've already collected the prize money for the city-level first prize, you won't get the subsequent prize money."

Lu Shixian understood now. It wasn't like there were so many bugs waiting for him to exploit. Otherwise, why wouldn't the olympiad team members participate in the preliminary rounds?

Now he stopped thinking about the prize money. A thousand-plus yuan was too low-tier. It seemed participating in the league was a must.

The next day, the first day of a new week.

After his routine workout, Lu Shixian slowly walked towards the academic building.

The exercise facilities at Jinling No. 1 High School were so good that he felt it was a waste of resources not to use them every day.

At this time, although it wasn't yet time for morning reading, the students who arrived early were often already engrossed in their studies.

The moment he stepped into the classroom, the sound of reading aloud around him suddenly stopped.

Lu Shixian snapped his head up, only to find everyone in the class staring intently at him.

"What's wrong? Did I not comb my hair this morning? Is it sticking up?" Lu Shixian subconsciously touched his bangs.

Cheng Yixue, with whom he had been getting along well recently, congratulated him, "Old Lu, you've been hiding your skills! Quietly snagged a first prize."

"That's awesome!"

"The class president is a beast!"

"Old Lu is about to take off!"

"Amazing, my man!"

Lu Shixian quickly stopped their flattery. "Whoa, whoa, hold on. This was just a qualifying round. You can congratulate me when I get the same result in the league."

"The class president is still amazing, planning to compete in the league. A pity we couldn't even get past the qualifiers."

This sentiment resonated with many others.

Fortunately, Jiang Yunkun, who came in right after, saved Lu Shixian.

"Alright, regarding the math competition, I'll say a few words. The results came out yesterday. Our class has one city first prize, two city second prizes, and ten city third prizes."

"First, congratulations to the students who received these honors. Second, congratulations to Lu Shixian for earning the right to continue on to the provincial league."

"Finally, I want to say that you all are only in your first year of high school. Achieving these results is already very impressive. If you want to try your hand at competitions, you need to put in more effort in your daily studies and strive to enter the league next year or join our school's math olympiad team directly."

"Alright, everyone, continue with your morning reading."

And so, amidst intense and fulfilling studies, Friday afternoon's last class soon arrived.

Life at school was monotonous, so any news tended to spread quickly.

Thus, students from several of the tenth-grade classes had heard that Lu Shixian from Class 1 had become the only one in their grade to qualify for the provincial math league. Before school let out, they all gathered outside Class 1's classroom to see the spectacle.

Although it was time for them to head home, they were instead giving Lu Shixian an early send-off.

"Class president, good luck in the league!" This was the voice of his classmates.

But many from other classes were also cheering him on.

"Go, God Lu! Punch the Municipal Affiliated High, kick the Math Olympiad Team, for the eternal glory of our first year!"

Suddenly, some witty genius shouted out an incredibly cringey slogan. The term "God Lu" had even appeared years ahead of its time.

But the line got a lot of people to join in, and they started chanting together.

"Punch the Municipal Affiliated High, kick the Math Olympiad Team!"

This made Lu Shixian a little nervous. If the school's math olympiad team heard this, wouldn't he die of social embarrassment?

Crap, I'm so BBQ'd.

Thinking about tomorrow's competition gave Lu Shixian a bit of a headache.

He was, after all, a fake math whiz. He'd probably take one lap around the league competition and his true form would be exposed.

Suddenly, he saw a familiar figure in the crowd.

Lu Shixian quickly gave her a subtle look, then made a hasty escape.

In 2007, milk tea started to become wildly popular. Advertisements for CUCU Duke Milk Tea began appearing all over Jinling City.

At the CUCU Duke chain store on the snack street near Jinling No. 1 High School, Lu Shixian and Chen Yiyi sat facing each other.

This was, in fact, the first time they had met since their last encounter at Chen Yiyi's house.

She was truly the only person he knew from his old middle school who was also at Jinling No. 1.
Having started high school, Chen Yiyi seemed to have shed some of her naivete. She had grown a bit taller and looked a little more mature than before.

But for some reason, she still couldn't shake the habit of getting shy whenever she saw Lu Shixian.

Lu Shixian ordered her their signature bubble milk tea and broke the silence.

Otherwise, he figured they could sit there until dawn without saying a single word.

“Classmate Yiyi, how have you been?”

“I… I’m doing fine. It’s just that I don’t go home as often after starting high school, so I can’t help my mom anymore.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian knew that Chen Yiyi must be boarding at school now, just like him.

It made sense. The trip back to her old home was even more trouble than his. Living at school was more convenient.

“What about your studies? Are you keeping up?”

“Mhm, it was a little hard to get used to at first, but I was fine after a week. There were so many classes that I felt overwhelmed, so later I decided to just listen first and only jot down the main points. Then I’d fill in the rest after class.”

Lu Shixian nodded. He had no doubt about her diligence. Otherwise, how could she have gotten into Jinling University in his previous life?

He guessed that all her free time was now dedicated to studying. The thought made him wonder if calling her out was holding up her progress.

Just then, the milk tea arrived.

Treating her to a milk tea would be a small compensation.

Lu Shixian quickly stuck the straw in one of the cups and passed it to her.

But Chen Yiyi just stared at the drink with her big eyes, completely at a loss.

“What kind of tea is this? Why is it brown? And there’s stuff inside… did some dirt get in? Is this drinkable?”

Lu Shixian cringed.

He covered his face with his hand, carefully composing his words before explaining, “Milk tea. As the name suggests, it’s milk plus black tea, which gives it this color. Of course it’s drinkable. But don’t blame me if you get fat from it.”

“I won’t. As long as I work hard, I won’t get fat.”

Chen Yiyi was finally reassured. Since he said it was drinkable, then it must be fine.

Sure enough, after a small sip, her eyes curved into beautiful crescents.

“This is delicious! It’s so sweet. How much is it?”

“Five yuan a cup,” Lu Shixian told her.

At that, Chen Yiyi was so shocked she almost spat out the milk tea she had just drunk.

“So expensive? Maybe I shouldn’t drink it. For five yuan, I could buy so many bottles of water.”

Chapter 55: Are You Just Here to Snag an Award?

Lu Shixian was speechless. He knew Chen Yiyi had always been frugal, but this was his treat. He had already paid.

“Don’t. I’ve already paid for it. Wouldn’t it be an even bigger waste if you didn’t drink it?”

That convinced her, and Chen Yiyi finally stopped hesitating.

Soon, they finished their milk tea and went back to their respective dorms.

For both of them, time was precious right now.

Before leaving, Chen Yiyi did something quite rare and told Lu Shixian, “Good luck.”

Though it was only two words, coming from her, it was a rare gesture.

Hearing her encouragement, Lu Shixian could only offer a wry smile.

She probably thinks I can do anything.

But I’m not a real math whiz.

Lu Shixian sighed inwardly. He returned to his dorm and continued to study.

Cramming for math at the last minute was impossible. In just a day or two, even if he pulled an all nighter studying competition material, he wouldn't make any breakthroughs.

You’d have to be crazy to even try.

He had already finished reading *Principles of Biochemistry*. While his understanding wasn't as deep as an expert's, he had a firm grasp of all the important concepts.

So, he had returned it to the library long ago and checked out another book, *Cell Biology*.

Following his established reading routine, Lu Shixian started from the introduction.

After reading the brief history of the discipline's development, Lu Shixian began to note down the key points of the book.

“The basic commonalities of cells and their characteristics as the fundamental units of life, the structural features of mycoplasma and the essential apparatus for cell survival and proliferation, the basic structural system of eukaryotic cells.”

“Understanding the basics of viruses (structure, classification), viral reproduction, and the relationship between viruses and cells in origin and evolution.”

Other necessary knowledge: the differences between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, and between plant and animal cells.

On Sunday, Lu Shixian followed his usual routine: exercise, then breakfast.

Next, following Jiang Yunkun’s instructions, he went to find the main contingent of the math competition team to go with them to the league tournament.

Jiang Yunkun obviously couldn’t escort him every time. Did he not have his own things to do?

Last time was only because the entire class had to go.

Although he had never been, he knew to just head straight for the Comprehensive Building.

It was said that all of Jinling No. 1 High School’s academic competition teams gathered there. He would find them eventually by searching floor by floor.

He entered the ground floor lobby and checked all the offices on both sides, but none of them were right.

They were either computer labs or storage rooms for teaching aids.

He climbed to the next floor, but it was empty, so that wasn't it either.

It wasn't until he reached the third floor that he heard the sound of discussion from a distance.

“I think we can use the method Descartes used to solve Pappus's problem for this question. On a plane, use one line as the baseline, define a starting point for it, and select another intersecting line. These would correspond to the x axis, the origin O, and the y axis, forming an oblique coordinate system.”

“Your approach is sound. That way, the position of any point on the plane can be uniquely determined by (x,y). The problem from the practice test then becomes a linear Diophantine equation with two unknowns. I think it’s feasible.”

Lu Shixian suddenly understood how his classmates felt. Was this the world of math whizzes? He felt a bit out of place.

But he was already here, so he couldn't just turn back.

He forced himself to walk forward. When it seemed they had reached a consensus and their discussion died down, Lu Shixian seized the opportunity.

He took two bottles of Wahaha from his small backpack and handed them over. “Seniors, you’ve worked hard. Have some AD Calcium milk to recharge. I’m the junior who’s tagging along.”

The two boys seemed unused to being called seniors. They glanced at each other, and then a look of realization dawned on them.

The AD Calcium milk did its job.

One of the boys said politely, “Don’t call us seniors. We’re both from Class 2-1. He’s Huang Zhongsheng, and I’m Li Ruhai. We’re just beginners on this path, we’ve only been on the math team for less than a year.”

The other boy, Huang Zhongsheng, seemed to remember something and said to him, “So you must be the only one from the first year qualified for the tournament. Truly, a new generation of talent rises to surpass the old.”

Lu Shixian resisted the urge to point out that those two phrases didn't quite go together and replied with his own pleasantries.

“Not at all. The results I achieved with all my effort are merely your starting point.”

As the three of them were chatting outside, a stern cough came from inside the room.

“Ahem, all three of you, get in here.”

Lu Shixian turned to see that the two seniors had already scurried inside, giving him a look that said, “There’s nothing we can do.”

He cautiously followed them in and saw four or five other people packing their things. A middle aged man of medium build was sitting in a chair. He looked a bit old, but his eyes were sharp and full of spirit.

Could this be the coach of the Jinling No. 1 High math team?

Huang Zhongsheng and Li Ruhai, who had been talking so eloquently outside, were now like two meek little lambs.

They both greeted the middle aged man in unison, “Hello, Teacher Zhang!”

Now even more certain of his guess, Lu Shixian followed suit.

The middle aged man’s eyes scrutinized Lu Shixian. “You’re this year’s top scorer on the entrance exam? Little Jiang’s student?”

The man’s presence was strong, and Lu Shixian felt a bit of pressure.

But Lu Shixian’s many years as a “corporate drone” had not been for nothing. This man’s aura was still a notch below that of the “bosses” in university labs who held the power of life and death over experiments.

“You flatter me, Teacher Zhang. I was just lucky to pass the preliminary round. I wanted to follow you and see the world.”

The middle aged man didn't bother with pleasantries. He was direct and said whatever was on his mind.

“Lucky? If luck can get you a perfect score, then what’s the point of me teaching anything?”

“I’ve seen your paper. It’s too formulaic. You probably don’t have much talent. Are you just here to snag an award?”

As soon as he said this, the office became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

But the expressions of the math team students inside didn't change at all. They were clearly used to the man’s way of speaking.

Lu Shixian was also a bit speechless. This was his first time meeting the man, and he hadn't offended him. His words were truly harsh.

But in his heart, he knew the man wasn't wrong at all.

He really didn't have any talent for mathematics. The only reason he had gotten this far was because of his foundation in higher mathematics.

And for a fundamental subject like math, if you wanted to go deep and excel, you couldn’t get far without talent and inspiration, no matter how hard you studied.

Chapter 56: The Emotionless Math Moocher

The man was just speaking the truth. Lu Shixian wasn’t angry. He replied calmly, “That’s right. I’m not really interested in math, and it’s not my focus. I’m just here today to snag an award. I’ll be gone as soon as I get it.”

This time, the middle aged man was taken aback. He hadn't expected such honesty. He looked at Lu Shixian with newfound respect and nodded. “Good. That way you won’t waste your youth. Stick with us later.”

With that, the middle aged man walked out, and the office came back to life.

Lu Shixian pointed towards the door and asked, “Hello, seniors. Who was that? He’s so fierce!”

At that moment, a female senior with glasses, who seemed to find him handsome and pleasant to look at, comforted him, “That’s our math team coach, Teacher Zhang Guoqiang. He’s just like that, he says whatever’s on his mind. Don’t take it to heart. Many girls have been scolded by him until they quit the team.”

“Actually, it’s quite impressive that you got a perfect score on this preliminary test. It was very difficult, almost at the level of the first round of the league tournament.”

Lu Shixian nodded, indicating that he was completely unaffected.

After all his years of struggle, if a few words that didn't even qualify as a scolding could shake his resolve, then he didn't deserve to be in this world.

Suddenly, another male senior beside them sighed with a hint of sorrow. “You’re lucky, at least you still have another year. For students like us who are in our last year and still stuck in the middle, if we don’t perform well in this tournament, we’ll have to quit the team and go back to preparing for the college entrance exams.”

Although Lu Shixian had never been in his situation, he understood the cruelty of the competition path and could empathize.

Among all the high schools in the country, there were at least tens of thousands of students participating in these competitions. First, they had to fight for a few spots on the provincial team, then participate in the national CMO to compete for 60 spots in the national training camp, and then another 45 would be eliminated to select 15 for the second round of training.

Finally, they had to compete for the final 6 spots to represent their country at the IMO. The entire process was like thousands of soldiers crossing a single plank bridge, filled with the hardship and sorrow of countless students and their families.

Even just securing a direct admission offer from a top university was no easy feat.

For some reason, a somber atmosphere suddenly filled the office.

Fortunately, Zhang Guoqiang’s voice came from outside, telling them to get on the bus.

Soon, the group boarded a bus headed for Jinling University.

Along the way, Lu Shixian chatted with them and learned quite a few inside stories.

Currently, Jinling No. 1 High School’s best performing academic competition was physics. In 2006, the physics team made it to the CPhO nationals. One student won a national gold medal and entered the national training camp, and had already been admitted to the physics department of Shuimu University.

There were also three national silver medalists who received direct admission offers from other prestigious universities. As for the others with national bronze medals, their chances of signing with a top tier university weren't great, so they opted for summer camps, winter camps, independent admissions, and the college entrance exam.

Next was information science. This was already a strong subject in Su Province, with a large number of top students entering the national training camp every year. Although Jinling No. 1 High was far from being as good as the Affiliated High School, it wasn't bad, and they still managed to get national silver medals.

The math competition had the most prestige, but Su Province was not traditionally strong in this subject. Although they had started to rise in recent years, with some faces appearing at the national competition, those achievements all belonged to the Affiliated High School of Jinling and had nothing to do with No. 1 High.

Against this backdrop, Zhang Guoqiang naturally had no patience for students with little talent.

Like the math competition, Jinling No. 1 High’s chemistry competition was just mediocre. Sometimes they got lucky and produced a provincial first prize winner; other times, they were completely wiped out.

The least relevant was biology. The biology competition team at Jinling No. 1 High had been disbanded long ago. They didn't even have the qualification to just get by, because every year, all the spots on the provincial biology team were taken by the Affiliated High School.

The rumor was that an alumnus who had graduated from the Affiliated High School decades ago was now an academician in the field of biological sciences. Out of a desire to give back to his alma mater, he had been providing significant support for its biology department over the years.

Hearing this news, Lu Shixian was floored. His face turned as black as charcoal.

What the hell?

Even though the Affiliated High School's biology competition was strong and had the backing of an academician, he didn't regret choosing No. 1 High.

But could they at least show some fight? Don't just give up so easily. At least put up a token effort.

To not even bother trying, did that mean he had to fight alone?

This was a total setup!

If he could file a complaint, Lu Shixian would definitely be calling the principal's hotline.

And so, with his mind in a whirl, Lu Shixian was brought to Jinling University.

This was the venue for the 2007 Provincial High School Mathematics League.

The league was a level higher, jointly organized by the Provincial Mathematical Society and the Provincial Department of Education.

All participants who qualified for the league had to take the first round test.

Based on the final scores of the first round, cutoff lines would be drawn for provincial third prize, second prize, first prize, and the provincial team.

Participants who passed the provincial team line would have to compete with students who qualified through other means for the final spots on the provincial team.

The rest didn't matter, because Lu Shixian’s goal was just to snag an award.

The second round? The CMO? What did any of that have to do with him? He was just an emotionless math moocher.

If he could get a provincial second prize, he wouldn't settle for third. If he could get a first, he wouldn't settle for second.

A provincial first prize was difficult, but that didn't mean there was no chance at all.

After all, the scope of the math league was officially claimed to be elementary and intermediate mathematics. Of course, that was just a claim.

Soon, the 8:00 AM exam time was approaching.

Lu Shixian and the other students from Jinling No. 1 High slowly dispersed into the sea of people.

Having been through this before, Lu Shixian quickly found his seat in a classroom on the fourth floor of a teaching building at Jinling University.

The test papers were distributed, and the competition officially began.

Lu Shixian immediately entered exam mode.

A quick scan revealed a difference. The official math league was worth a total of 150 points. The format had six more multiple choice questions and two fewer fill in the blank questions than the preliminary round.

Perhaps a reform is coming, Lu Shixian thought. In two years, the league's test rules would change drastically, removing multiple choice questions entirely and increasing the point value of fill in the blanks. It seemed Jinling City was preparing in advance.

The style of the questions this time was also completely different from the preliminaries. The last test was predominantly algebra.

But this time, eighty percent of the questions were geometry.

Time was tight. It didn't matter what kind of question it was, he just had to do it.

Lu Shixian quickly finished the first six multiple choice questions.

He had to admit, there was a reason for reforming the test to remove multiple choice. Whether you could solve it or not, you had a one in four chance of getting it right, not to mention methods like process of elimination that could boost your accuracy.

Next were the fill in the blank questions. Fortunately, apart from one geometry problem, they were all algebra.

Lu Shixian directly applied theorems and formulas from higher algebra, and the answers came out quickly.

Next came the proof and solution problems.

Chapter 57: Math League Results Announced

The first problem asked to prove an inequality existed within a given range for x.

Lu Shixian used the AM GM inequality theorem to transform the inequality into an expression under a single radical.

The resulting expression was monotonically increasing within the given range of x.

Therefore, the inequality held true.

Not bad. Lu Shixian steadied himself and began to look at the next question.

This one was on analytic geometry. In a Cartesian coordinate system, three points were given. The distance from point P to one line segment was the geometric mean of its distances to the other two line segments. The problem asked for the equation of the locus of P.

The third problem: In an obtuse triangle with a circumscribed circle, prove that three line segments being the three altitudes of the triangle is a necessary and sufficient condition for a certain equation to hold true.

Lu Shixian quickly formulated a plan and worked out the proofs for the last two problems on his scratch paper.

No way. Did I misread something? It can’t be this simple, can it?

But he couldn't see any flaws in his reasoning. This was the provincial tournament?

He thought it over and over, but in the end, he copied the process from his scratch paper onto the test booklet.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but glance at the other contestants around him. They were all still writing furiously, not a single one had finished early.

What does this mean? Am I just that good?

Even when the exam ended, Lu Shixian was still in a state of confusion.

As he walked to the meeting point, he was still trying to figure out what had gone wrong.

It had gone too smoothly, which was definitely not normal.

If it were any other subject, he wouldn't have this feeling. But this was math, a subject he didn't dare to underestimate in the slightest.

After regrouping with the Jinling No. 1 High math team, Lu Shixian could keenly sense that the faces of three of the members were grim.

Lu Shixian didn't dare make a sound or ask about the morning's exam.

He could only go to lunch with a heart full of doubt and quietly wait for the results to be announced in the afternoon.

As soon as the morning exam ended, the Su Province Mathematical Society immediately began the complex task of grading.

This way, they could establish the score cutoffs by the afternoon and determine the roster for the second round of the competition.

Without even time for lunch, the entire mathematical society began to operate at full tilt.

City level competitions could be graded by other personnel, but for the provincial league, all grading had to be done by the official grading teachers.

Although the workload was heavy, there were plenty of people to do it.

By 1:30 in the afternoon, nearly all the scores had been compiled.
Right now, all the graders were gathered together. They had worked through the entire afternoon, all for this one moment: the announcement of the results.

“The other problems were of standard difficulty, so I won't even mention them. But I'm guessing a lot of people are going to stumble on the final question. The trap was pretty subtle. If they only considered the plane geometry case, they'd only get a third of the points. They also needed to consider the solid geometry case.”

“This year's problems were definitely skewed towards geometry. The IMO loves setting these types of problems now, so the higher-ups are consciously shifting the focus in that direction.”

“I bet there won’t be as many perfect scores as last time.”

The graders chattered excitedly, each adding their own thoughts.

At 2:30 in the afternoon, all the contestants assembled.

On a large, open-air sports field at Jinling University, staff from the Provincial Mathematical Society had already set up the venue.

Since the Mathematical Society was mostly made up of academics, there was no pointless chatter. They got straight to the point.

The students from Jinling No. 1 High School stood together, anxiously waiting for the results to be announced.

“I know I'm done for this time. So many geometry problems… all that time I spent grinding advanced algebra problems was a complete waste,” Li Ruhai said, sounding like he was ready to give up.

“Tell me about it. I don’t even care if I make it to the second round. I just want a Provincial First Prize. That would be enough to secure a guaranteed admission spot at Jinling University,” the third-year senior said hopefully.

The other members of the math competition team remained silent, but the tension was visible on their faces.

While the students below were still whispering among themselves, the vice president of the society took the microphone and began to announce the cutoff scores.

“Based on the compiled results from this preliminary round of the league, we have determined the cutoff scores for the First, Second, and Third Prizes, as well as the cutoff for advancing to the second round.”

“The cutoff for the Third Prize is a score greater than or equal to 60 and less than 75. As there are quite a few recipients, those who have won a Third Prize, please proceed to the front desk later to check the display screen. If you have any objections, please report them to the competition committee.”

“The cutoff for the Second Prize is a score greater than or equal to 75 and less than 100. The recipients of the 2007 Su Province Mathematical League Second Prize are: Zhang Li from the Municipal Affiliated High School with 99 points, Li Yibin from the Municipal Affiliated High School with 96 points… Cheng Ruwen from Municipal No. 1 High School with 92 points… Huang Zhongsheng from Municipal No. 1 High School with 78 points…”

The announcement of the Second Prize winners instantly sparked a heated discussion. Within the Jinling No. 1 High School team, there was a mix of joy and sorrow.

The joy, naturally, was for Huang Zhongsheng. Winning a provincial silver medal right after joining the math team was a huge encouragement for him.

But for Cheng Ruwen, who was already in his third year, it was a heavy blow. He needed a Provincial First Prize, along with other awards, to have a solid chance at guaranteed admission to Jinling University.

His composure crumbled, and the young man, practically an adult, began to cry like a child.

The others on the team quickly gathered around to comfort him.

To be honest, Lu Shixian’s heart was pounding now too. So many people had scored in the eighties and nineties, which meant there had been widespread point losses.

Could he have avoided the same fate?

Based on his own assessment while doing the test, a complete washout was unlikely. He figured he had at least seventy-something points from the earlier questions.

And since his name hadn't been called for the Second Prize, it meant he was most likely in the Third Prize category.

Was it disappointment or something else? Lu Shixian couldn't say. His expectation from the start had just been to snag a medal.

To get a provincial-level award just by showing up was a net gain for him. That's how Lu Shixian tried to console himself.

Soon, the vice president began to announce the cutoff for the First Prize. This was what everyone was waiting for. In an instant, the entire sports field fell silent, with only the whisper of the wind audible.

“The cutoff for the First Prize is a score greater than or equal to 100. The recipients are: Zhou Yiming from the Municipal Affiliated High School with 120 points, Chen Fengze from the Municipal Affiliated High School with 120, Wu Shuang from the Municipal Affiliated High School with 118, Shen Ran from the Municipal Affiliated High School with 116, Wang Qian from Municipal No. 1 High School with 115…”

At that, someone from the Jinling No. 1 High School team jumped for joy. Wang Qian was the senior girl who had comforted Lu Shixian earlier, and she was also the captain of their math team.

“Captain, with that score, you’re definitely in the second round! That’s amazing!” Huang Zhongsheng exclaimed happily.

Mindful of the others' feelings, Wang Qian didn’t say anything, but she couldn't hide the joy in her eyes.

Lu Shixian, however, had no time to pay attention to them. His ears were ringing with the list the vice president was reading out.

Even though he had a feeling he'd probably only get a Third Prize, who could know the outcome until the very last moment?

Chapter 58: An Unexpected Little Surprise

As the scores of the First Prize winners got lower and lower, Lu Shixian knew the list was about to end.

But even down to the last 101-point winner, his name hadn't been called. Just as he was about to give up hope, he suddenly heard, “Lu Shixian from Municipal No. 1 High School, 100 points.”

His hands clenched into tight fists. He had just made the cutoff!

A wave of unexpected joy washed over him.

Life might not always be smooth sailing, but we must still believe that even in the not-so-great times, there will always be small, unexpected joys waiting for us!

Beside him, the other members of the math team stared at him with a mixture of disbelief and intense envy.

The ones who had only gotten a Second Prize, in particular, looked as if they’d just swallowed lemons. How were they supposed to compete with this?

He got in with exactly 100 points, just scraping past the First Prize line. Was that even possible?

He was a first-year student with no specialized training, and he’d already won a Provincial First Prize. Meanwhile, they were still messing around in their second year.

Lu Shixian rubbed the back of his head and said, a little embarrassed, “I was just really lucky this time.”

His expectations had been dropping lower and lower, so he truly hadn't anticipated this result.

“The cutoff score for the second round is greater than or equal to 112. The contestants who have qualified are: Zhou Yiming from the Municipal Affiliated High School with 120 points, Chen Fengze from the Municipal Affiliated High School with 120, Wu Shuang from the Municipal Affiliated High School with 118, Shen Ran from the Municipal Affiliated High School with 116, Wang Qian from Municipal No. 1 High School with 115… Zheng Xiangyun from Municipal No. 2 High School with 112.”

Hearing the second-round cutoff, it seemed he wasn't the only one who had luckily scraped by. At the same time, the overall results for Jinling No. 1 High School’s math team were now clear.

Including his own award, which he felt was just to make up the numbers, they had two Provincial First Prizes, two Second Prizes, and four Third Prizes, with one student qualifying for the second round.

The on-site award ceremony followed shortly. Although the second round hadn't been held yet, it didn't affect the confirmation of the prizes.

This award was actually quite significant. It was said that the person giving the speech this time was the Director of the Provincial Department of Education himself, not a deputy.

This forced the president of Jinling University to attend as well. The high-profile nature of the event had one major consequence.

The publicity and attention for this year's Mathematical League were skyrocketing.

“Today, I am delighted to see so many outstanding students gathered here. The National High School Mathematics Competition has been a regular event in our country since 1981. I will briefly make three points…”

As expected of an administrator, his "brief" speech went on for twenty minutes.

Although the contestants in the audience weren't really listening, they all maintained expressions of rapt attention.

Once the Director finished his speech, it was finally time for the medal presentation and group photos.

In the end, only a few student representatives who had made the provincial team cutoffs went on stage to receive their awards. Due to the large number of winners, everyone else had to collect their certificates from the competition committee after the ceremony.

After the ceremony ended, Lu Shixian quickly received the first medal of his high school career: a certificate for the First Prize in the Su Province Division of the National High School Olympiad in Subjects.

Lu Shixian opened it. It read: This is to certify that student Lu Shixian has won the First Prize in the 2007 National High School Mathematics Joint Competition. This certificate is issued as an encouragement.

There was no mention of his rank or score.

Lu Shixian was quite pleased. As long as he had this certificate, who would be bored enough to go online and check his exact score and ranking?

As long as I don't say anything, no one will know I was the very last person to make the cutoff.

With that, Lu Shixian had completely achieved his goal for this trip. Everything else related to this year's math competition had nothing to do with him anymore.

Returning with honors, the group quickly made their way back to Jinling No. 1 High School.

Just as they reached the entrance of the Integrated Studies Building, the ever-elusive Zhang Guoqiang appeared out of nowhere. He nodded at Wang Qian with satisfaction.

Then his gaze fell on Lu Shixian. He paused for a moment before saying just one word: “Good.”

Lu Shixian was stunned and flattered. To get a word of praise from this man was a great honor, especially since he hadn't even said anything to Wang Qian.

Whether he was praising his performance or his luck, however, was anyone's guess.

At this point, Lu Shixian could have just left, but for some reason, he followed the team up to the third floor.

In the math competition team's office, Zhang Guoqiang watched the tiptoeing Lu Shixian with amusement, though his face remained impassive.

“What, you want to pursue the competition track?”

Lu Shixian nodded, then shook his head. “I want to follow the competition track, but not for math.”

His words made everyone in the office turn to look at him curiously.

They couldn't figure out what he was thinking. He had just won a provincial gold medal in the math competition at the very beginning of his first year. With some targeted training, it wasn't impossible for him to make the second round or even get selected for the provincial team.

With such a great start, why would he not pursue math? The correct path was to build on his strengths and mitigate his weaknesses.

Zhang Guoqiang was also a bit puzzled. “You don't need to sell yourself short. Although I said before that you didn't have much talent, winning a Provincial First Prize proves your ability. If you want to join the math team now, I won't object.”

Lu Shixian smiled and shook his head. “Math is great, but I’d rather enter a field where I truly excel. At my level, this is as far as I can go. Investing more time won't yield any significant results.”

Zhang Guoqiang nodded. He had seen too many students like Lu Shixian, who rose like comets only to fade into obscurity. It was because they failed to recognize their own limits and chose a dead-end path.

He understood and appreciated Lu Shixian’s choice.

“So, which of the five major subject competitions do you want to pursue? In light of your performance today, I can help you with an introduction to the team.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian’s expression suddenly turned a little strange. He then said calmly, “Biology.”

This time, no one could remain calm. Huang Zhongsheng and Wang Qian’s jaws dropped.

Even Zhang Guoqiang, who had maintained his composure, couldn't help but let out a cough.

“Ahem, well, I can't really help you with that choice. No. 1 High School doesn't even have a biology competition team. It was disbanded two years ago.”

“Why bother? Our school has never produced any results in the biology competition. Besides, among the five major subject competitions, its status is at the bottom, along with informatics. Even if you don't want to do math, physics or chemistry would be good choices.”

Lu Shixian was well aware of the situation Zhang Guoqiang described. The problem was, he had no other choice.

His physics and chemistry were even worse than his math, and informatics was out of the question. Lu Shixian knew himself well.

He was never one to give up easily.

The only solution now was to create the conditions if none existed.

Even without a competition team, he would walk this path alone until the very end.

He had come to No. 1 High School to make history, after all.

Chapter 59: Why Are You So Outstanding?

After bidding farewell to the math team, Lu Shixian took a look at the training rooms for the other competition teams on the third floor.

Except for biology, the other subjects were buzzing with training activities, even on a weekend.

Lu Shixian remained silent, running his hand over the door of the biology training room. A layer of dust coated his right hand.

“Another hell-level challenge, huh?”

“But I like it.”

Only his dreamlike whisper lingered in the Integrated Studies Building.

The next day, it was Monday again.

Lu Shixian woke up and began his daily run around the wide track.

After finishing breakfast at the cafeteria, he noticed a large crowd gathered in the first-floor hallway of the academic building.

This hallway was a required path for all students, visible to every grade level as they passed by.

Lu Shixian walked closer and saw a portable display board with a red announcement poster on it.

“Congratulations to our school’s students for achieving outstanding results in the 2007 Su Province High School Mathematical League.”

Below that was a list of the award-winning students. Wang Qian’s name was naturally at the top.

However, the one who drew the most attention wasn’t Wang Qian, but Lu Shixian, listed second, because he was a first-year student.

“Senior Wang Qian is a given, but when did this dark horse Lu Shixian show up?”

“Yeah, he’s too strong. A Provincial First Prize as a first-year. Whether it’s guaranteed admission or bonus points, getting into a top domestic university should be a piece of cake for him, right?”

“You’re out of the loop. He’s this year’s top scorer on the high school entrance exam. Is it really that strange for him to casually pick up a Provincial First Prize?”

Hearing the discussions in the crowd, Lu Shixian quickly slipped away. If they found out he had just gotten lucky and snagged a First Prize, it wouldn't seem so "casual."

Back in the Class 1 classroom, Lu Shixian was naturally met with worshipful gazes from his classmates.

They couldn't even pass the preliminaries, yet Lu Shixian had achieved such an excellent result in a higher-level competition.

As a fellow first-year, he was naturally the object of their admiration and envy.

“Class President is seriously amazing!”

“Please accept my knee.”

“Why are you so outstanding?”

“He doesn’t make a move, but when he does, it’s a First Prize.”

“Of course! With the Class President’s skills, he’ll dominate the national competition too.”

Lu Shixian could handle the earlier comments, but when he heard the last sentence, he quickly held up his hands to stop them.

“Everyone, listen to me. Through this competition, I’ve had an epiphany. I’ve decided to withdraw from this year’s math competition. I’ll leave the remaining honors for others to fight for. I no longer care for them,” Lu Shixian said with a facade of calm.

“Is this the enlightened mindset of God Lu? Truly beyond the reach of ordinary people.”

Not everyone in the class was clueless; some knew a thing or two about the competitions.

But at this point, having become friendly with Lu Shixian, they certainly weren't going to expose him.

After all, even geniuses had to care about social graces.

The title "God Lu" was already becoming widespread and well-known.

He wondered when some other genius would invent the next big slang term.

In the afternoon, after math class, Lu Shixian was, as expected, called to the office by Jiang Yunkun.

Jiang Yunkun paced back and forth beside Lu Shixian, looking at him as if seeing him for the first time.

“Not bad, Lu Shixian. No wonder you haven't mentioned that thousand-plus yuan to me lately. You were planning to drive up the price, weren't you?”

Lu Shixian put on an indignant look. “That’s impossible! Someone must be slandering me. I’ll sue them for defamation.”

“Honestly, I was just bored and went along for the ride. Who knew I'd get lucky and win something? It had nothing to do with me, Mr. Jiang, you have to believe me.”

Jiang Yunkun was speechless. “If Provincial First Prizes were that easy to get, I’d hope you’d eat in the cafeteria more often.”

He then sat down at his desk and opened a drawer.

“Take it. I know you, kid. You think everything through ten times. You never make a move unless you’re sure of the outcome.”

Lu Shixian took the A4 paper. On it were the words: Jinling No. 1 High School Major Provincial Award Bonus Application Form.

Instantly, a wide grin spread across his face, and he quickly pocketed the form.

“Oh, you shouldn’t have.”

Back in the classroom, he began filling out the form with a passion that far exceeded his enthusiasm during yesterday’s competition.

Name: Lu Shixian

Class: Year 1, Class 1

Award Level: Provincial

Awarding Body: Su Province Mathematical Society, Su Province Mathematics Competition Committee

Award Won: First Prize, Su Province High School Mathematical Olympiad League.

Jiang Yunkun had already signed his name in the class advisor’s opinion section.

Lu Shixian glanced at it and saw that it still needed the signature of the head of student affairs and the approval of the school’s supervising leader.

“Damn, this money isn't easy to get. Why is it so complicated?”

Despite his grumbling, Lu Shixian’s feet moved quickly.

After dinner, just before the first afternoon class, Lu Shixian predicted that this would be the best time to find Qian Zhengguo.

Speaking of which, apart from the military training at the start of the school year, Lu Shixian hadn't seen much of Qian Zhengguo.

The man was truly a lucky star for him, having helped him with quite a few things. He had to thank him in person this time.

Although he had never been to Qian Zhengguo’s office, he knew heading to the administration building was the right move. He could just check the directory on the first floor or ask someone for directions.

As he hoped, he found the office with the "First-Year Head of Student Affairs" plaque on the second floor.

Seeing the light seeping from under the door, Lu Shixian figured someone was likely inside.

Knock, knock, knock…

Lu Shixian tapped lightly on the door.

A familiar voice came from within.

“Come in!”

Lu Shixian turned the doorknob and entered the office to find him writing a report.

Qian Zhengguo looked up as he came in and, clearly having a deep impression of Lu Shixian, immediately remembered his name. After all, as the top scorer of the entrance exam, he was on his radar.

Lu Shixian greeted him and then expressed his gratitude.

“Hello, Director Qian. Thank you so much for what you did back in middle school.” After speaking, he gave Qian Zhengguo a sincere bow.

Qian Zhengguo’s impression of Lu Shixian clearly improved even more, and a smile appeared on his face.

“Lu Shixian, that had little to do with me. It was mainly Director Ren who thought highly of you and gave you the opportunity. Looking at it now, even if we hadn't come, you would have started to shine sooner or later.”

“Besides,” he added, “who knows who will be thanking whom in the future.”

Lu Shixian wasn't about to just agree with him. Thinking of the report he had just been writing, he immediately countered, “Hehe, I came to Jinling No. 1 High School specifically to thank you.”

That was enough. Those who understood, understood.

Qian Zhengguo took a sip of tea, shaking his head with a smile. “You kid, I always feel like you’re not a first-year student. Go on, what did you come to see me for this time?”

A smile appeared on Lu Shixian’s face as he quickly pulled something out of his pocket to show him.

Qian Zhengguo took it, and a look of surprise immediately appeared in his eyes. He looked at Lu Shixian several times.

Chapter 60: Then I'll Be the First

“A Provincial First Prize in the math competition? Not bad at all. You just got here and you’re already winning provincial awards. It seems my judgment wasn’t wrong after all.” His eyes filled with both relief and satisfaction.

Lu Shixian put on a sheepish smile. “Hehe, it was pure dumb luck. I just barely scraped by the cutoff line to get the award.”
Qian Zhengguo nodded. "That's still very impressive. If a provincial first prize in the Math Olympiad doesn't qualify for a cash award, then no award would. I can sign off on it for you."

After speaking, he looked up at Lu Shixian again. "But are you sure you want to apply for the award now? Once your application is successful, you won't be able to change it even if you win a national-level award in your second year."

"You've already won a provincial first prize as a first-year. You have a great shot at the national competition next year. Don't you want to think it over?"

This was indeed the most logical way of thinking under normal circumstances, but Lu Shixian had long since planned out his path and naturally had no intention of agreeing.

He smiled and shook his head. "Although I'd love to enter the national competition and win a gold medal at the CMO, or even the IMO, I know my own limits. On the path of mathematics, this is likely the peak for me."

"The path of knowledge is vast and boundless. While mathematics is wonderful, it is not where my heart lies."

"Finding a path that suits me and being able to strive for it—that's my thinking right now."

When he finished, the admiration in Qian Zhengguo's eyes deepened.

"Well said. The hardest thing in life is often to see oneself clearly. No matter how fast you run, if you're going in the wrong direction, you're still slower than someone taking a single step the right way."

"Many people struggle for decades without understanding this principle, yet you've articulated it so clearly. It's no wonder you were able to rise up at Jinling Agricultural High."

With that, Qian Zhengguo pointed to the sofa in front of him.

"Have a seat. So, can you tell me what your direction is now? The school, or perhaps I myself, might be able to help you."

Lu Shixian sat down on the sofa naturally and began to lay out his recent thoughts and plans.

The more Qian Zhengguo listened, the more interested he became, leaning his whole body forward. When Lu Shixian finished, he was somewhat stunned.

He couldn't believe that such a meticulous and highly feasible life plan could be conceived without a master guiding him from behind the scenes. Yet, he was well aware of Lu Shixian's family situation—a rural family that was just making ends meet.

That meant it was highly likely he had figured it all out himself. This boy was truly extraordinary.

"You said you want to pursue both the Gaokao and the competition track simultaneously. I don't object; many people have the same idea these days."

"But isn't trying to accomplish it all in your first year a bit rushed? Especially when you're trying to prepare for two different paths. It seems a bit like haste makes waste."

Lu Shixian understood that to execute his plan, he had to convince the man before him. If he couldn't even get past the Dean of Academic Affairs, then it was all just a pipe dream.

Many procedures and formalities, such as studying half a year of grade ten and half a year of grade twelve, then skipping to grade twelve to take the Gaokao, had to go through the school.

He pondered for a moment before replying, "As you know, I've already been self-studying high school material for several months at Jinling Agricultural High. Based on my own assessment, while scoring above 680 might still be difficult, I can consistently score between 600 and 650 without much trouble."

"Given that, continuing to study at the high school level won't be very efficient for me anymore."

"Based on this, I've chosen to take the Gaokao in my first year. Even if my score doesn't meet the cutoff, I can still get into a top-tier C9 university through the tests for the junior class program."

"As for choosing the Biology Olympiad, I want to aim for the T2 universities. After all, a soldier who doesn't want to be a general is not a good soldier. As a student, I'd say any student who hasn't dreamed of getting into Yanjing or Shuimu isn't a good student."

After hearing his reasoning, Qian Zhengguo didn't offer any objections. Instead, he asked, "Let's put aside taking the Gaokao early for a moment. You said you want to pursue the Biology Olympiad?"

"But our school has no precedent of a student getting into a T2 university through the Biology Olympiad. In fact, our school's biology competition team was disbanded long ago after failing to produce any results for ten years."

"If you choose this path, you'll have almost no one to guide you. It will be very difficult. Have you considered that?"

Lu Shixian nodded. "I've heard about that."

"But aren't precedents made to be broken? Since no one in the history of this high school has done it, then let me, Lu Shixian, be the first!"

At that moment, the initial modesty and courtesy in Lu Shixian were gone, replaced by an immense and proud confidence. The change in his demeanor was night and day.

Qian Zhengguo found himself moved by this aura. It seemed that all great figures in history possessed such a quality.

With that, his heart began to lean in a certain direction.

But his face betrayed neither agreement nor refusal. He said to Lu Shixian, "How about this. You can head back for now. I'm aware of the situation."

"I'll find a chance to speak with the principal, and then we'll have the leadership committee discuss it. We'll try to give you a response within a week. Leave the application form with me; I'll help you submit it."

Lu Shixian understood that this was a decision Qian Zhengguo couldn't make on his own.

But this answer actually put him more at ease. If Qian Zhengguo had promised him on the spot that it would be no problem, he would have felt incredibly anxious.

With that, he had achieved everything he had set out to do.

After expressing his thanks, Lu Shixian walked out of the administration building feeling light and carefree, finding the sunlight exceptionally bright.

Regardless of the outcome, he had done all he could.

Three days later, the regular meeting of the Jinling No. 1 High School leadership committee commenced as scheduled.

In the top-floor conference room of the administration building.

All the members of the Jinling No. 1 High School leadership committee were seated at the round table, and the meeting officially began.

Seated opposite the main entrance was a man nearing sixty.

He was Cai Mingyuan, the principal of Jinling No. 1 High School and a National Superlative-Grade Teacher.

Cai Mingyuan glanced at the watch on his right wrist. "It's time. Let's begin the meeting."

"I'll say a few words first. It's Thursday again. Since Old Song has retired due to illness, and following yesterday's appointment document from the Municipal Education Bureau, Xiao Qian will be joining the leadership committee as Vice Principal."

"Principal Qian will take over Old Song's former duties, overseeing the academic work of our school. He will strengthen the development of our teaching staff and improve their professional and cultural standards."

"He will lead the Dean of the Academic Affairs Office in managing teaching work, ensuring the implementation of the curriculum and syllabus, and finally, organizing extracurricular, cultural, sports, science, and technology activities for students, tailoring education to develop their talents."

"As well as other assigned responsibilities. Does anyone have any questions about this?"

Chapter 61: A Flurry of Good News

The Education Bureau had already made the appointment, and the official documents were out. At this point, no one would naturally raise any objections.

And the "Xiao Qian" that Cai Mingyuan mentioned was none other than the former Dean of Academic Affairs for the first-years, Qian Zhengguo.

"Since there are no objections, let's begin the handover process starting today. Next, as is customary, if anyone has anything to report regarding their areas of responsibility, you may bring it up for discussion at the committee meeting."

At this moment, Yang Yijin, the vice principal in charge of administration, spoke up. "Principal Qian, you're a leader who has risen through the ranks here at Jinling No. 1 High School. We all know each other well, and we're all working for the development of our students, so let's skip the pleasantries."

"You were previously the Director of the Academic Affairs Office and concurrently held the less demanding role of Dean for the first-years. Now that you're in charge of the academic work for the first-year grade, a sudden change of command could affect the existing teaching plans."

"Furthermore, we don't have a suitable replacement at the moment. I suggest that for this academic year, Principal Qian temporarily continue to serve as the Dean for the first-years."

As soon as he said this, the others at the conference table nodded in approval.

Cai Mingyuan looked at Qian Zhengguo. "Old Yang has a point. What do you think, Xiao Qian?"

Qian Zhengguo nodded. "This falls under my purview anyway, so I naturally have no objections."

"Alright, is there anything else?" Cai Mingyuan asked, looking around the table.

"If there's nothing else, then today's regular meeting is adju—"

"Wait. I have something to report."

Just then, Qian Zhengguo, the newest member of the leadership committee, suddenly spoke up.

"Principal Cai, I have an application form I'd like you to look at."

His words piqued everyone's curiosity. It was rare for a newly appointed member to speak up so soon.

His action had certainly captured their interest.

Cai Mingyuan took out his glasses from the case on his right, put them on, and accepted the application form.

After a glance, Cai Mingyuan was a bit puzzled as to what Qian Zhengguo was up to.

"Xiao Qian, you could have just had the student bring this to me for a signature. Is there some hidden meaning in bringing it up at the meeting?"

Beside him, Yang Yijin also leaned over to look at the application, somewhat amused.

"This student won a provincial first prize in the Math Olympiad as a first-year. That's quite good, but it's just 'quite good.' Is it really necessary to make such a big deal out of it? You always like to speak in riddles. Stop being so secretive and just tell us what's on your mind."

So, Qian Zhengguo spent the next five minutes detailing Lu Shixian's situation.

By the time he finished, everyone looked intrigued.

"If I remember correctly, isn't this Lu Shixian the top scorer from this year's high school entrance exam? He certainly has some ideas."

"Only a first-year, and he wants to tackle both the competition track and the Gaokao. Setting aside his ability for a moment, this kid's got guts. He even wants to be the first to do it."

"Hahaha, it's been many years since I've seen such an interesting student at this school. I think we should give him a chance."

Hearing the discussion, even Cai Mingyuan couldn't help but smile.

"Indeed. The students these days are terrified of us. It's not like in our time, when we'd always be chatting with our teachers about this and that."

"The graduating class has only just entered their third year, and they already look so lifeless. Their eyes are dull, with no spark, none of the vitality of youth."

"If this kid can get into the third year, he might really be able to stir things up for them. I just wonder if he'll be a catfish or a goldfish."

Although the principal had spoken, Yang Yijin voiced a concern. "I also hope our school can produce such a talent."

"From this child's plan, we can tell he's very mature. However, if his academic ability isn't at the third-year level, I'm afraid it might backfire and end up ruining the boy, which would be a shame."

Just then, Qian Zhengguo suddenly made a suggestion.

"In that case, let's have the third-year teaching and research group create a test paper for him. If his results are unsatisfactory, then he can go right back to where he came from."

"But if he truly is at the level he claims, then there's no harm in helping him achieve his goal. After all, didn't you just say, Principal Cai, that we should tailor education to develop students' talents?"

At these words, the entire room erupted in laughter.

Cai Mingyuan even pointed a finger at Qian Zhengguo.

"Hahaha, you sly dog, Qian Zhengguo. So you were waiting for me here all along. When it comes to planning ahead, no one at this school can beat you."

Qian Zhengguo, however, threw up his hands in mock exasperation. "How was I supposed to know you'd agree so quickly?"

But Cai Mingyuan said meaningfully, "Not everyone has what it takes to get featured in the newspaper, to the point where every person in the provincial government office and policy research office has a copy."

"This matter is settled then. Let's get it done before next week. If he really has the ability, let him report directly to the honors class next semester. Also, I remember there's a new teacher who majored in biology among this year's hires, right? She should be in pre-service training now?"

"Have her tutor this kid exclusively. If it works out, this could be a great opportunity for her."

Soon enough, within a week, Lu Shixian received two pieces of good news from Qian Zhengguo.

First, the process for the cash award was nearly complete and would be disbursed soon.

Second, his study plan had been unanimously approved by the leadership committee, on the condition that he pass an ability test the following Monday.

Hearing the good news, Lu Shixian was so happy he almost jumped for joy.

For Lu Shixian, the money was nice, of course, but it paled in comparison to the second piece of news.

He had to admit, he was growing to love the educational environment at Jinling No. 1 High School more and more.

He was increasingly glad about the choice he had made.

And so, for the first time, Lu Shixian altered his study routine.

He temporarily abandoned his ironclad afternoon schedule of studying for the Biology Olympiad.

On Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, Lu Shixian became a total shut-in, barely leaving his room except for meals.

He had a good habit: he never fought a battle unprepared.

To avoid being disturbed by the sounds of classes, he even took a day off, hiding in his dorm room to focus on reviewing subjects like Chinese and Math.

The knowledge points he had previously set aside needed to be revisited.

At this stage, he didn't need to do full practice exams anymore; it was enough to do targeted problems to keep his skills sharp.

On Sunday night, Lu Shixian didn't look at another problem.

He simply washed up and went to bed. Preserving his energy was key.

To him, this test was as important as the high school entrance exam, perhaps even more so.

It deserved his utmost focus and his best attitude.

Chapter 62: How Fortunate to Meet a Fine Teacher

On Monday, Lu Shixian was listlessly listening to the diligent sounds of his classmates' morning reading.

Suddenly, he heard Jiang Yunkun's voice from outside the classroom door.

"Lu Shixian, come out for a moment."

He looked up and saw Jiang Yunkun beckoning to him.

Lu Shixian's heart skipped a beat. He called out in acknowledgment and hurried outside.

"What is it, Mr. Jiang?"

Jiang Yunkun looked at him with a half-smile. "What? Don't you know what you've done?"

"Looks like my Class One is too small a temple to hold you."

Lu Shixian suddenly felt a bit awkward. This was something he'd genuinely overlooked.

To be honest, Jiang Yunkun had been very good to him.

Even if he didn't have much say in the matter, he was still his homeroom teacher. He should have at least discussed it with him first.

Who would have known that things would fall into place so quickly after his meeting with Qian Zhengguo?

He had completely forgotten about it when he got back.

Lu Shixian explained with some embarrassment, "Hehe, Mr. Jiang, I just mentioned it casually to Director Qian. I didn't expect it to actually happen."

But Jiang Yunkun just patted his shoulder.

"You should call him Principal Qian now. Your situation was brought up for a special discussion at the leadership committee meeting. Every teacher at Jinling No. 1 High School has heard about it and is paying close attention."

"Do well on the test. When people say you came from Senior High Class One, it'll give me face too. The road is made by walking, and success by doing."

"I hope you can forge a new path for yourself. Remember, if you have the ability to do something, you must do it. Don't leave yourself with any regrets. The most important thing in life isn't where you stand, but in which direction you are moving."

Lu Shixian was touched. While Qian Zhengguo's help might have been tinged with other motives, he hadn't known Jiang Yunkun for long, nor had the teacher taught him much.

But the trust and understanding he had given him were priceless.

To meet such a fine teacher was a true blessing.

A man of such integrity and wisdom.

This must be what the classics described.

Soon, Jiang Yunkun led Lu Shixian to the floor dedicated to the third-year students.

Typically, to minimize external distractions for the graduating class, they were assigned to the upper floors for their studies and daily life.

During meal times, the school would also stagger the schedule by about fifteen minutes, prioritizing the graduating class's access to the cafeteria.

The passionate voices of teachers drifted from the classrooms.

Lu Shixian glanced over and saw that the students inside were almost all buried in their studies, oblivious to the world outside.

Even as he and Jiang Yunkun walked past the windows, not a single person looked up.

It was good, certainly, but it felt like something was missing. For a moment, Lu Shixian couldn't quite put his finger on it.

After all, it was only natural for students to study, wasn't it?

"This is it. You can go in, Lu Shixian. I have to get back to my class." Although Jiang Yunkun really wanted to stay and watch the entire test, he had a class to teach.

Between two goods, one must choose the greater. Teaching his students clearly won out.

After bidding farewell to Jiang Yunkun, Lu Shixian took a deep breath and walked into the third-year faculty office.

Upon entering, he saw Qian Zhengguo, as expected. The other teachers were unfamiliar; he hadn't interacted with them before. They must be the third-year teachers.

"Good morning, Principal Qian. Good morning, teachers," Lu Shixian greeted them first.

Putting Qian Zhengguo aside, the other teachers in the office were seeing Lu Shixian for the first time.

After all, the entire teaching and research group of over a dozen people had worked overtime on a weekend specifically for this one student. It would be a lie to say they weren't interested.

Now that they finally saw him in person, a middle-aged teacher with a receding hairline, sitting at a desk by the window, stood up and looked Lu Shixian over.

The current Lu Shixian was quite different from his middle school self.

Before, due to his irregular meals while studying, he had been thin. Although he looked scholarly, his one-hundred-and-seventy-five-centimeter frame was rather frail.

Now, after persistent exercise, while he might not have a six-pack, he looked much more solid.

Paired with his well-defined features, he had a striking youthful air.

This, in turn, improved the teachers' first impression of him.

Although the middle-aged teacher was balding, his head gleaming under the light, he still appeared quite energetic.

"You must be the Lu Shixian that Principal Qian told us about. A fine young man indeed."

"Since Principal Cai has given his approval, as long as you can pass our teaching and research group's ability test, I, Gu Chengzhi, on behalf of the third-year Jinlin Class, welcome you to join us."

Lu Shixian immediately understood that this man was the homeroom teacher of the honors class.

"I will do my best."

After Lu Shixian finished, Qian Zhengguo spoke up. "Since everyone is here, let's get started. Principal Cai is waiting for the final results."

"You'll take the test right here. Any problem with that?" Qian Zhengguo asked Lu Shixian.

Lu Shixian shook his head. He knew this was to prevent any possibility of a mix-up.

While some people might find it unsettling to be watched by so many, making it hard to focus on the test, it wouldn't affect Lu Shixian. In fact, it would excite him. The solid foundation of his knowledge had given him the makings of a big-game player.

"No problem. I can start anytime."

And so, a desk prepared especially for Lu Shixian was moved to the center of the office.

Soon, a brand-new Chinese language exam paper, created by the teaching and research group, was placed on the desk in front of him.

"The time is now 9:20. You have until 11:50 AM."

"You may begin!" With that, Gu Chengzhi placed a small alarm clock on the upper left corner of his desk.

Lu Shixian immediately began to answer the questions.
He glanced over the exam paper. It was a bit crudely put together. The questions were there, but no point values were assigned to them.

It was clearly a rush job, a subpar product thrown together at the last minute to fulfill the administration's request for a new test with no questions from previous exams.

Despite being a rush job, it was, admittedly, more taxing than a real exam.

After all, the actual Gaokao always included some gimme questions to ensure students could score some basic points.

But Lu Shixian had already patched up any gaps in his knowledge of Chinese language and literature.

He still worked through it smoothly.

Soon, he reached the essay question.

He looked directly at the prompt, which was based on a short text.

One day, after finishing his lecture, Confucius returned to his study. His student Gongxi Hua brought him a cup of water. Just then, Zilu rushed in and loudly asked his teacher for guidance, "Master, if I hear a correct principle, should I act on it immediately?"

Confucius glanced at Zilu and said slowly, "You must always consult your father and elder brothers. How can you act on something the moment you hear it?" Just as Zilu left, another student, Ran You, quietly approached Confucius and asked respectfully, "Master, if I hear a correct principle, should I act on it immediately?"

Confucius replied at once, "Yes, you should carry it out immediately." After Ran You left, Gongxi Hua asked in confusion, "Master, why did you give opposite answers to the same question?" Confucius smiled and said, "Ran You is humble by nature and hesitant in his actions, so I encourage him to be decisive. But Zilu is competitive and impetuous, often acting without thorough consideration, so I advise him to listen to others' opinions and think thrice before acting."

Based on this material, please share your thoughts.

Chapter 63: The Aptitude Test Before Skipping a Grade

After reading the prompt, he thought, *Jeez, these teachers really practice what they preach.*

He had just applied to skip a grade, and they immediately came up with an essay question about tailoring education to the student's aptitude.

Suppressing the urge to complain further, Lu Shixian thought for a minute, then immediately put pen to paper.

"All men are born different, and observing the trajectories of their lives, the final outcomes are even more varied. Some have stood upon the mountain's peak, looking down upon the world, seeing all other mountains as small. Others have fallen into valleys, living lives of mediocrity, lost in the crowd."

"These people are not necessarily inferior to the outstanding ones; part of the difference may simply lie in their education. I believe that a suitable educational method can benefit a person for a lifetime..."

At that moment, the surrounding teachers, sipping their tea, walked over to watch Lu Shixian write. They were all marveling at his fluency. For a teacher, it was like admiring a beautiful landscape, a sight one could gaze at endlessly.

By now, Lu Shixian was already writing his concluding paragraph.

"There are no stupid people in the world, only geniuses whose potential has been suppressed. A leaf, blessed by nature, possesses its own uniquely beautiful veins. Every student likewise bears a different kiss from nature. Educators should release their own preconceived notions and allow students to let their individuality blossom, acting as guides for their learning and facilitators for developing their potential."

"Under your pointer is a Watt, in your cold gaze a Newton, in your ridicule an Edison. Do not be so quick to drive them away. Do not wait until you are riding a steam engine, lighting an electric lamp, or studying calculus to realize that these were the so called 'poor students' you once looked down upon."

The moment Lu Shixian's pen stopped, Li Dezhang, the head of the third year Chinese Language Teaching and Research Group, clapped his hands in admiration.

"Alright, Lu Shixian, you can go have lunch and get some rest. We'll try to finish everything this afternoon," Qian Zhengguo said to him with a smile.

He nodded, stretched, and walked out the door.

Back in the office, Lu Shixian's exam paper had drawn a crowd of onlookers.

"Old Li, how is it? What kind of score can he get?" Qian Zhengguo asked, a little curious.

Li Dezhang shook his head. "I haven't looked at the earlier sections carefully, but his essay already has the flair of a master. His use of classical allusions and wide ranging citations is effortless and flawless."

"Alright, everyone, break it up. We'll continue the testing this afternoon. Old Li, after you've eaten, I'll have to trouble you to grade this as soon as possible. I'm counting on you," Qian Zhengguo said, a hint of a smile already on his face.

Chinese seemed to be fine, and there was no need to worry about the math score of a provincial gold medalist in the Math Olympiad. All that was left was the comprehensive science exam in the afternoon.

According to the test schedule, Lu Shixian was already back in the office at one thirty in the afternoon.

Otherwise, there might not be enough time to complete all three exams.

At one forty, Lu Shixian officially began the math test.

For Lu Shixian, while math didn't offer the intimate connection of a lover, the high school level problems were like a simple, warm embrace, and he greeted them with affection.

After the cold rejection of the last Math Olympiad, this test seemed to welcome him with sufficient passion.

He reveled in the beautiful waves of sets, monotonic functions, sequences and derivatives, trigonometric functions, and plane vectors.

He lost himself in the mysterious shadows of parabolas, solid geometry, analytic geometry, ellipses, hyperbolas, and geometric solids.

Even though she threw every high school level trick she had at him, Lu Shixian had long since reached that transcendent state where, with a mind free of distractions, his pen moved with divine inspiration. No matter what advanced techniques she employed, he remained as immovable as a mountain.

At three o'clock sharp, Lu Shixian gave the paper a quick scan and put down his pen.

The head of the third year Math Teaching and Research Group took the paper and immediately began grading.

He took a short break and drank some water.

At three twenty, Lu Shixian started the English test.

It was only in high school English that Lu Shixian finally experienced the joy of reading fiction. In middle school, the texts were like bland, uninspired diary entries; he couldn't even bring himself to complain about them.

After enjoying his dinner.

At seven twenty, he began the final test: comprehensive science.

As always, he started with his favorite, for is it not human nature to indulge in what one loves?

First, he entered the delicate realm of biology. Perhaps knowing Lu Shixian's strength, today's biology was more formidable than ever before.

"These old geezers who wrote the questions are really something else."

Lu Shixian sensed something was off from the very beginning. Today's biology was on steroids, and he found it difficult to handle.

From meiosis to mitosis, from the pericarp stage to the polar nucleus stage, it cycled through every possible process in a variety of ways.

From base pairing to DNA replication, from the central dogma to calculating gene frequency, Lu Shixian's mind was put under immense strain.

Unfortunately for the test, Lu Shixian had recently been honing his skills for the Biology Olympiad, and his perspective had broadened considerably. These little tricks no longer impressed him; they were just standard fare.

If this was the extent of its challenge, then, sorry biology, I'm conquering you completely.

Lu Shixian then turned his gaze to physics and chemistry, who were still waiting expectantly.

To him, the two were quite similar. Since that was the case, he decided to leave it to chance.

So Lu Shixian silently chanted: eeny, meeny, miny, moe...

In the end, it was physics that first captured his focus.

Though he had neglected physics before, after so many days of renewed intimacy, their bond had already deepened. Now was the perfect time to deepen their connection.

Coulomb's law, conservation of energy, electrostatic induction, uniform electric fields—all the gatekeepers that had previously blocked his path were no longer a match for him.

Lu Shixian had already crossed the threshold, striking directly at its very core.

Next was chemistry, which could not escape its ultimate fate and was conquered in turn.

Although there was a subtle dispute at the very end, caused by an imbalance of cations and anions in a major question, Lu Shixian thought back on the series of chemical reactions they had shared—oxidation, substitution, reduction, addition, and elimination.

How could he so easily forget the wonderful time they had spent together? Lu Shixian magnanimously chose to forget the recent unpleasantness.

In the end, of course, it was a satisfying conclusion, a journey undertaken with enthusiasm and completed with fulfillment.

The only flaw in the picture was the several shameless old men staring intently at him from the side.

With that, Lu Shixian left his mark heavily upon this "Portrait of Three Beauties," writing his name before making a graceful exit.

He moved through the fields of flowers, yet not a single petal clung to him; he left without taking so much as a cloud.

Instead of going to the classroom for evening self study, Lu Shixian returned to his dorm, took a hot shower, and fell straight into bed.

The continuous battles of the day had taken a heavy toll, draining him both mentally and physically.

Though it wasn't a perfect performance, it was the best Lu Shixian could do.

The fluency of this test fully proved that his efforts over the past period had been effective.

The transition from fumbling to flowing smoothly always required the dual price of time and effort.

He had done everything he could. He looked forward to seeing what surprises tomorrow's results would bring.

Chapter 64: A Fated Person, to be Cherished, Treasured, and Kept Company

On Tuesday, Lu Shixian went about his usual routine of exercising, eating, and attending morning self study, as if nothing had happened.

Seeing him reappear in the classroom, the students of Class One were all a little curious.

Counting last Friday when he took leave and the entirety of Monday when he was absent, Lu Shixian had been out of their sight for four consecutive days.

Although it had only been a month, the students in the class had already grown quite close to him.

This was especially true for Cheng Yixue, who often asked Lu Shixian for help with questions.

"Lu, where have you been all this time? If the head teacher hadn't said you were on leave, we would've thought you'd gone missing."

"Yeah, Class President, I was so lonely while you were gone," said the heavyweight Han Fang from the side, feigning sadness.

Hearing this, Lu Shixian shuddered but still offered an explanation.

"I have recently seen through the vanity of the mortal world and have decided to ascend to the realm of immortals in the coming days. I leave my worldly domain in your hands."

Instantly, the whole class booed, teasing Lu Shixian for reading too many novels and becoming so melodramatic.

Lu Shixian smiled secretly to himself. He wasn't entirely wrong. Third year high school students were indeed "cultivating immortality" every day with their intense studying.

He listened distractedly through two classes before finally being summoned by Jiang Yunkun during the break.

Lu Shixian shot up from his seat like a spring and rushed out.

"Mr. Jiang, what are the results?"

Jiang Yunkun smiled at him. "I don't know the specifics, but I heard rumors that you did very well. It should be pretty much a sure thing. Apparently, they even increased the difficulty of the test. Looks like you've really got some skills, kid."

Lu Shixian smiled upon hearing the good news. Having confidence in himself was one thing, but some things were not determined by one's own will alone.

"Alright, let's head to the conference room on the fifth floor of the administration building. Principal Cai is already waiting. They should be making the decision now."

Lu Shixian naturally agreed with pleasure.

The two of them walked towards their destination together. Because there were more people attending this time, they had moved to a larger conference room.

As soon as he walked into the hall, Lu Shixian heard a spirited old man on the stage speak into a microphone, "Alright, our main character has arrived. Everyone, please take your seats. Let's begin the second 2007 All Faculty Meeting of Jinling No. 1 High School."

The teachers who were in the know already understood what this was about, but many of the second year teachers were confused. What was going on? The mid term exams were still a month away!

The last all faculty meeting was when the Education Bureau came to announce Qian Zhengguo's appointment. Had something major happened again?

And why was there a student at an all faculty meeting? They wracked their brains but couldn't figure it out.

At that moment, no one paid their confusion any mind, because Cai Mingyuan had already begun to explain.

"I've gathered everyone here today mainly to announce two decisions, as well as a change in personnel responsibilities."

"Our Jinling No. 1 High School was founded in 1911 and has a history of nearly a century. From the initial Jinling University Hall to the Jinling Academy, then the Jinling Higher School, and so on, finally becoming the present day Jinling City No. 1 High School. Our school has changed its name eight times and moved its location five times. Through shifting stars and changing seasons, we have witnessed the vicissitudes of time, weathered storms, and reaped the fruits of our labor. We have advanced through twists and turns, and improved through development."

"However, in our hundred year history, one thing has never changed, and that is our school motto: Learn broadly and think carefully, be inclusive and eclectic."

"Our student, Lu Shixian, due to his outstanding character and academic excellence, and his exceptional intelligence, has already passed the graduation proficiency test. Therefore, after careful collective discussion by the school's leadership team and with the approval of the Municipal Education Bureau, it has been decided to officially move him to the third year Golden Qilin Class next semester."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian's hands clenched into fists, the joy and excitement in his heart overflowing.

But it wasn't over. Cai Mingyuan's voice continued.

"In addition, to comprehensively improve our school's teaching quality, we will continue to adhere to the theme of promoting teaching, learning, and innovation through competition. We will increase our efforts to send students with subject specific talents and innovative potential to the nation's top universities."

"Therefore, after careful consideration, we have decided to re-establish the Jinling No. 1 High School Biology Olympiad Team. The coach will be our own teacher, Ms. Mei Ting."

As soon as these words were spoken, the eyes of nearly every teacher in the room converged on the student sitting in the back row. They found it hard to imagine that such important school decisions were related to a student like him.

What kind of magic did this student possess? That the school would pave the way for him, braving the immense dual pressures of public opinion and internal dissent.

In the crowd, a young woman who exuded an air of "do not approach" suddenly furrowed her brow slightly and also looked back with curiosity.

As for Lu Shixian, facing so many scrutinizing gazes, he was completely unafraid. On the contrary, his heart was filled with surprise, excitement, and gratitude.

He hadn't expected the latter decision at all. That the school would go to such lengths for him truly moved him.

At that moment, he made a decision in his heart. If he achieved success in the future, he would repay the school a thousand times over.

"Today, I am proud of my school; in the future, my school will be proud of me." Although this phrase had become a cliché, it was the truest reflection of his feelings.

The Affiliated High School had the help of an academician, so what?

Lu Shixian made a vow in his heart that one day, he would stand among their ranks.

Why couldn't Jinling No. 1 High School have what the Affiliated High School had?

Perhaps some things are not deliberately arranged by fate, but are the result of a natural process of development.

The meeting ended, the people left, and the empty conference room was left with only a silent promise.

A school's inclusiveness, a boy's foresight.

Today's cause, a future effect.

And Jinling No. 1 High School would, in the future, be endlessly grateful for the decision it made today.

But who could truly see the reasons behind it all?

Accompanied by Jiang Yunkun, Lu Shixian slowly walked towards the first year classrooms.

"Lu Shixian, although there are still three or four months until the end of the semester, there's no need for you to stay here anymore."

"The school has done its best to provide you with the best environment and conditions. I hope you won't disappoint everyone's expectations of you."

"There's no need to say much more about that. You should think about how you're going to say goodbye to your classmates."

"Life is short. Cherish the people you meet and the things you experience along the way. In the vast sea of people, both the first meeting and the final farewell have their own meaning."

Lu Shixian nodded in silence. Although they had only been together for a little over a month, through his experience as class president, he had come to remember everyone in the class.

The Buddha said: For those with whom you have no fate, do not pursue, remember, or hope. For those with whom you are fated, you can cherish, treasure, and keep company.

Some say: A meeting is the result of five hundred glances in a past life, exchanged for a brief passing in this one. I meet you, you meet him; whether the connection is deep or shallow, it ebbs and flows, filling stretches of time, enriching the blank spaces of life.

After a few months, another acquaintance, another farewell.

He was about to set off on a new journey. Where would this great ship sail next?

Chapter 65: Where on Earth Did This Beauty Come From?

Lu Shixian didn't go directly to the classroom. Instead, he went to his dorm and took a comfortable hot shower.

He waited until evening self study to get dressed and head to Class One's classroom.

Before he even entered, he saw Cheng Yixue sitting at the teacher's desk, supervising the study session.

Below, every student wielded their pen like a sword, declaring war on the mountains of problem sets piled on their desks.

Lu Shixian took a deep breath, slowly walked up to the podium, and said to Cheng Yixue, "Can you give me five minutes?"

Cheng Yixue didn't know what he meant, but knowing him, if he was being this serious, it must be something important.

She took her workbook and stepped aside.

Lu Shixian stood in the center of the podium and gently tapped the desk.

"I'm very sorry to interrupt everyone's precious study time."

Below, all the students tacitly put down their pens and looked up at Lu Shixian with curiosity.

"Although I'm reluctant to say it, I have to. For certain reasons, I'll be moving to the third year tomorrow. I was very lucky to have met all of you."

"Thank you all for your trust and support this past month. I am very grateful," Lu Shixian said, bowing to them.

"This month, I was always busy with my own affairs and failed to fulfill the responsibilities and duties of a class president. I am ashamed."

"But all good things must come to an end. I am just heading out onto the unknown road ahead of me a little early. This road may be full of thorns, it may be full of hardships, but that is precisely what makes it worth seeking the paradise in our hearts. I hope that on our future paths, our efforts will not be in vain. May we, after a thousand sails have passed, return still as youths."

After speaking, Lu Shixian turned and left without looking back, because he didn't dare to see their eyes.

He was a little unused to this feeling, but everyone was walking nonstop on their own path in life, and farewells were for the sake of the next meeting.

Just as he reached the doorway, words of encouragement came from the classroom.

"Class President, you can do it!"

"You go on ahead, Class President. We'll be right behind you."

"You'll be the coolest guy in the third year too! Come back and visit us sometime!"

Lu Shixian nearly stumbled and fell.

The next day, he packed his things.

With the help of Gu Chengzhi from the third year Golden Qilin Class, Lu Shixian successfully claimed the middle seat in the back row.

Though it was called the back row, in the Golden Qilin Class, which had only fifteen students in total, it was actually the center of the entire classroom.

His arrival was quiet, not even attracting anyone's attention.

Lu Shixian didn't know if it was because they were used to the frequent rotation of seats, or if it was a form of isolation for a newcomer, or if they simply weren't interested in anything other than their studies.

No one spoke to him, and no one asked about his situation, as if his presence or absence made no difference.

The entire classroom was filled with a silent, tense, and oppressive atmosphere.

Lu Shixian gave a wry smile to himself. *So this is the atmosphere of a rocket class?*

Perhaps this was for the best. In such an environment, he could concentrate to the greatest extent on completing his plans.
By the third year of high school, especially for the students of the Golden Kirin Class, the class schedule had become meaningless. Everyone was reviewing according to their own pace and plan. The teachers' role had become infinitesimally small, and it was rare for anyone to seek them out for discussion.

Because, at least at the high school level, anything the teachers knew, they knew as well.

Thus, Lu Shixian quickly blended into this environment, attending classes and living his student life according to his own fixed routine. But he seemed to have forgotten one thing, and the consequences would be something he would never forget for the rest of his life.

It was Friday again.

In the evening, Lu Shixian returned to his dorm, took a shower, and was reading a book in nothing but a pair of shorts, letting the lingering water droplets on his skin air-dry.

Knock, knock, knock…

A crisp knocking suddenly sounded from the door.

Lu Shixian's train of thought was instantly broken. He frowned and put down his book with some annoyance.

Normally, no one would ever come looking for him at this hour. Dorm Sky-1 was famous for this; seven in the evening was his inviolable reading time.

He initially wanted to ignore it, but the rhythmic knocking forced him to get up and open the door.

As he walked, he wondered, *Han Fang or Huang Zhongsheng?* They were the only ones who dropped by recently. *But this secret knock feels a bit off, the force isn't right!*

Lu Shixian pulled the door open curiously, but the moment he did, his heart seemed to stop for a beat.

"You… you…"

Before he could speak, Lu Shixian stumbled backward, hastily covering his vitals with his hands.

His expression was a mixture of terror and fear.

Because the person at the door was a woman, and a very beautiful one at that.

The woman before him wore a black blazer. Beneath a matching knee-length skirt were stockings as thin as a cicada's wing. A pair of exquisite black pointed high heels forced the arches of her feet high, making her legs appear even straighter and longer.

But her brow was deeply furrowed, and her eyes, like a cold night, radiated an unstoppable chill.

As the woman drew closer, Lu Shixian trembled with fear.

*No way. This can't be happening.*

*They always say boys need to be careful when they're out on their own. I even gave up my apartment to live at the school, and I still can't escape this fate?*

"Who are you?"

"What do you want?"

"This is a boys' dormitory, how did you get in?"

Hearing Lu Shixian's rapid-fire barrage of questions, the woman just sneered. "You've forgotten me so soon? It's only been a few days."

Lu Shixian: (>﹏<。)～

He grew even more frightened. In his limited decades of memory, he was sure he had never crossed paths with the beauty standing before him.

But by then, he had backed into a corner, with no more room to retreat.

"Are you scared? Only the weak have something to hide."

That single sentence shattered all of Lu Shixian's defenses. He speechlessly raised his hands in a gesture of surrender, to show he was harmless.

The woman glanced at him almost imperceptibly.

"I didn't realize you had some nerve. A pity you're just soft-boned."

"In my eyes, you're no different from the smooth muscle and connective tissue of a lemur's cells."

Seemingly finding Lu Shixian a bit dull, the woman finally spoke again.

"You have three minutes to pack your things. I'll wait for you outside. Don't be late." After speaking, she turned and walked out, her heels clicking on the floor.

Lu Shixian felt like crying but had no tears. What the hell was going on?

Where the hell did this beautiful woman come from?

And so damn fierce!

This whole incident felt like a complete nightmare.

Lu Shixian grumbled to himself while trying to calm his traumatized heart.

Of course, his hands moved quickly. He was genuinely scared; he couldn't imagine the consequences of being late, nor was he in the mood to try.

In just two minutes, Lu Shixian had transformed back into a dashing young man, a world apart from his previous disheveled state.

Plastering on what he considered his most handsome fake smile, Lu Shixian walked out to face his sentence.

Seeing him emerge, the woman glanced at the ladies' quartz watch on her wrist and nodded.

"Not bad, two minutes and five seconds. Come with me." With that, she started walking ahead.

His practiced smile was utterly wasted. Lu Shixian quickly ran to catch up.

"Hey, miss, it's already so late. Where are we going?"

Chapter 66: Morality, Lost? Humanity, Twisted?

"You talk too much. Just follow me."

Utterly speechless, Lu Shixian could only follow her in silence.

He soon discovered that they were walking further and further away from the light of the academic buildings.

*What the hell?*

*A dark room?*

*A bad woman?*

*Putting it all together… an innocent little boy, a bad woman, a dark room…*

Lu Shixian's imagination painted an increasingly bitter expression on his face.

But as they walked on, they arrived at the foot of a pitch-black building.

Before fear could fully take hold, Lu Shixian noticed a discrepancy.

*Something's not right!*

*This place seems… familiar?*

He followed her up to the first floor.

Then the second floor.

And then the third.

The woman suddenly stopped here. In the dim, sound-activated light of the corridor, she took out a rusty key.

Click!

After two turns, the door opened, releasing a cloud of dust.

The woman walked in and pressed a button on the wall next to the door.

The sudden, blinding light made Lu Shixian instinctively shut his eyes.

When he opened them again, a slender hand with black and white nail art was extended before him.

"Let's get properly acquainted. Mei Ting."

By now, Lu Shixian had already started to guess when they arrived here.

Now, he understood completely.

So this woman was the tutor he had forgotten about.

*If you're unhappy, just be unhappy. If you're petty, just be petty. What's with the surprise attack?*

And this "properly acquainted" was about as brief as it gets. Suppressing the urge to complain, Lu Shixian lightly reached out and shook her hand.

It was soft as if boneless, smooth as jade. After a brief touch, Lu Shixian withdrew his right hand.

"You have twenty minutes. Clean this place up," Mei Ting said, still as aloof as ever.

Lu Shixian almost laughed out of anger. This teacher was way too bossy, with absolutely no regard for the budding flowers of the nation.

But what could he do? A student listening to a teacher and doing a big clean-up—seemed reasonable enough, right?

Although he wasn't sure of the woman's true capabilities, Lu Shixian was certain that even if she were just a pretty face, his learning efficiency would skyrocket.

*Forget it. Even though I really don't want to engage in this seemingly sycophantic act.*

*But who asked my current role to be inherently a step below hers?*

*Either don't do it, or if you decide to, do it seriously and do it well.*

This was a principle Lu Shixian lived by.

And so, thanks to the self-reliance he had cultivated since childhood, it only took him fifteen minutes to make the small classroom spotlessly clean.

Mei Ting, sitting in her chair, watched with amusement as he panted like a tired dog.

"Is this good enough?" Lu Shixian washed his hands and collapsed into the seat opposite her.

"Your recent actions, was it sensation first or motion first? And what are sensation and motion, respectively?" Mei Ting crossed her arms, which only served to accentuate the magnificent peaks before her.

Lu Shixian, however, was in no mood to notice.

*So it begins. A test of my skills before the tutoring even starts?*

Feeling a little defiant, Lu Shixian quickly began to search his memory.

Since it concerned people, it must be from physiology. Some people hear "physiology" and think it's medicine.

But while it has some overlap with medicine, it leans more towards biology.

Although this topic wasn't part of the biology olympiad curriculum and he hadn't reviewed it recently, for his past self, this was just basic undergraduate knowledge. With a little recollection, he remembered the answer.

"Naturally, sensory information is received first, then somatic motion is carried out. Sensation is the process where the sensory system transforms the external world into neural signals recognizable by the nervous system, thereby producing a sensation."

"Motion, on the other hand, is the life process where the body, through the motor system, converts motor concepts generated by the brain into specific muscle contractions, or turns a motor intention into an actual result."

"Sensation is a bottom-up neural process, from the periphery to the central nervous system, while motion is a top-down neural process, from the central to the peripheral."

With every sentence Lu Shixian spoke, the astonishment on Mei Ting's face grew.

Seeing her expression, Lu Shixian decided to give her a taste of her own medicine.

"Teacher Mei, I have a question for you too."

"What exactly is the difference between a true coelom and a pseudocoelom?"

Lu Shixian didn't ask a very complex question; he had to give her some face, at least. It was a question from an invertebrate zoology book he had been reading recently, about pseudocoelomates.

Due to his unfamiliarity with animals, he had to read it many times to gain a preliminary understanding.

But even if the question wasn't difficult, for someone who didn't know the subject, it would sound like complete gibberish.

However, to his surprise, Mei Ting answered almost without thinking.

"The true coelom first appears in invertebrates, starting with annelids. It is formed when the mesoderm splits, with one part lining the ectoderm to become the somatic mesoderm."

"The other part lines the gut wall formed by the endoderm, becoming the splanchnic mesoderm. The true coelom lies between the somatic and splanchnic mesoderms."

"The pseudocoelom, also called a false coelom or primary body cavity, is a remnant of the blastocoel from embryonic development. It is located between the somatic mesoderm and the endodermal gut wall. It lacks a coelomic membrane, and the gut wall generally lacks a muscle layer."

"Animals like nematodes, such as Ascaris, and rotifers belong to this category. They only have a somatic mesoderm but no splanchnic mesoderm."

"The main differences lie in the muscle layer and coelomic membrane: the former lacks a coelomic membrane and a muscle layer on the gut, while the latter has both."

Lu Shixian was dumbfounded.

*What kind of prodigy is she?*

*That's even more detailed than the textbook!*

An idea sparked in his mind. He quickly went up to her with a fawning smile, pretending to be a disciple paying respect.

"Goddess teacher, please accept this disciple's bow!"

Mei Ting watched his "arrogant then obsequious" act with a hint of amusement in her heart.

But her usual disposition kept her expression cool.

"Don't try that with me. Not a chance."

How could Lu Shixian give up on latching onto such a powerful supporter? He quickly sidled up to her and asked, "Teacher Mei, where did you work before this?"

Mei Ting knew what he was really asking.

So she answered slowly, "Yan University. Master's in Cell Biology from the School of Biological Sciences, and a Ph.D. in Paleontology and Stratigraphy from the School of Earth and Space Sciences."

At this, Lu Shixian's jaw dropped wide enough to swallow an egg. This was too much. Was the competition really this fierce now?

A Ph.D. from Yan University, who even switched fields, ending up as a teacher in a marginal, declining high school. Behind all this, was it a distortion of human nature, or a collapse of morality?

Lu Shixian suddenly took a step forward and asked her curiously.

"Teacher Mei, are you lonely?"

This threw Mei Ting for a loop. She glanced at him and continued, "Don't fall in love with me. It won't work out."

Lu Shixian knew at once that she had gotten the wrong idea. He quickly explained, "I heard that the 'Tomb Sect' of paleontology at Yan University only takes one disciple each generation. Is that true? If so, Teacher Mei, wouldn't that make you the Little Dragon Maiden?"

Chapter 67: Keep Talking, Don't Mind Me

Now Mei Ting was even more confused.

*Tomb Sect?*

*Little Dragon Maiden?*

"Do you know what I'm thinking right now?"

"What?"

"I'm thinking about prying open your skull to see how it differs from that of an ancient ape."

Lu Shixian instantly cowered. As expected of a woman who switched fields to study paleontology. Terrifying.

In the end, however, Mei Ting did answer his question. "You're overthinking it. When it's time for class, there are as many students as there should be. The professor doesn't just teach one person."

"I don't know where you heard that from, but it's true that I was the only one in my graduation photo."

Then, Mei Ting glanced at the time again and said to him, "Alright, that's enough for today. From now on, be here from 6:30 to 10:30 every evening. Any problems?"

"Of course, you can also choose not to come. But if you stand me up without my permission, you won't want to know the consequences."

"And a final friendly warning: don't come looking for me at any other time, especially not on weekends."

With that, she left on her own, leaving behind only the fading sound of her high heels clicking against the floor.

Lu Shixian stared at the empty air. He had never met a teacher with such a personality.

She was beautiful, fierce, and incredibly capable. And now she was his dedicated one-on-one tutor. Who wouldn't love a teacher like that?

After returning to his dorm and calming down, the day came to an end.

The next day, Lu Shixian had never looked forward to the end of the last afternoon class so much.

Although the Golden Kirin Class offered a great deal of freedom—as long as you didn't deliberately disturb others' study or rest, you could leave at any time within the campus—the learning atmosphere here was the best in the entire school. Why would he go anywhere else to study?

Based on the feedback from the last proficiency test, he had found out his final scores.

Chinese: 138
Math: 150
English: 148
Science Composite: 230

His total score was a very auspicious number: 666, a bit higher than his own estimate of 600-650.

Lu Shixian didn't bother to get his test papers. He figured most of the points lost in Chinese were probably in reading comprehension.

After all, he was quite confident in his essay and multiple-choice questions.

Math and English were self-explanatory. While his science composite score was a bit of a letdown, it was within his expectations.

Previously, his science score was only around 210 due to chemistry and physics dragging him down.

Now, with the increased difficulty of the test, he had improved by twenty points, which showed that his previous study plan was effective and his progress was significant.

In that case, his main focus for the college entrance exam content would have to be the science composite.

Honestly, he knew it in his heart.

With such a strong foundation in Chinese, Math, and English, if he could just casually score in the two-eighties on his science composite, he would have a good chance of competing for the top scorer title in the college entrance exam.

But he couldn't do it. He was just a plain, unremarkable student with a subject imbalance.

If chemistry and physics were as obedient as biology, why the hell would he be studying for the biology olympiad?

A score of 660 could at best get him into universities in the C9 League like Hujiao, Fuda, or Huake.

To get into Yan University or Shuimu University, you needed a score of 680 or higher, and even then, you couldn't just pick any major you wanted. To have the freedom to choose the best majors, you had to score above 690.

For someone like him, who wanted to secure a spot in his first year of high school, raising his score by about 30 points in a short time was simply impossible.

Otherwise, why would he take the narrow, winding path when he could walk the wide, paved road?

Many well-laid plans are the result of careful thought, not impulsive decisions made in the heat of the moment.

Lu Shixian had seen too many tragedies. The cost of trial and error, in the best-case scenario, was a few wasted years; in the worst, it was a lifetime of stagnation.

For example, if he spent five or six years at Jinling Agricultural University, he might slowly become a lecturer through seniority. But on a higher platform, with better academic credentials, he might be able to become an associate professor, or even a full professor, within five years by publishing in core SCI journals.

Lu Shixian didn't subscribe to the so-called "position-oriented" theory, but from a certain perspective, if he wanted to achieve results, he really had to strive in that direction.

As his mind wandered, it was suddenly 5:30 in the afternoon.

According to Mei Ting's instructions, he only had an hour. Lu Shixian hurried to eat dinner and then went to his dorm to shower.

At 6:20, with his hair still slightly damp, Lu Shixian arrived at the comprehensive building.

When he reached the classroom, which now had a "Biology Olympiad Team" sign hanging on it again, Lu Shixian didn't know what to say.

One student, one teacher.

It wasn't going to be easy to slack off.

At this moment, the classroom was still empty.

He waited until 6:30, when Mei Ting's graceful figure arrived right on the dot.

As soon as she entered, she saw Lu Shixian with his head buried in a book.

"Not bad, quite self-motivated. No wonder you had the courage to skip a grade."

Lu Shixian couldn't be bothered to respond, protesting with his silence.

Mei Ting paid him no mind and said, "Although I didn't get into Yan University through the biology olympiad, my roommate during my master's program was the gold medal first-place winner of the CNSBO that year. She also made it to the national training team and eventually the final four-person roster to represent the country at the IBO."

"Are you sure you don't want to listen to me?"

At this, Lu Shixian threw all sense of pride and reservation to the wind, abandoning his resistance.

"Teacher Mei, please continue. Don't mind me."

A faint smile touched the corners of Mei Ting's lips before she continued, "First, are you clear on the entire process of the biology olympiad? If you don't even know this basic information, there's no point in proceeding with the training."

"I only know the general key stages. I'm not very clear on the rest," Lu Shixian said honestly, shaking his head.

Mei Ting seemed to have expected this and didn't waste any words.

"First, in mid-April every year, preliminary contests are held locally. You're lucky because not every region holds these preliminaries."

"Only after passing the preliminary selection can you enter the league competition in mid-May. It's worth noting that only first and second-year high school students can participate in the league."

That last sentence made Lu Shixian's heart sink.

*No way. Then what was the point of me skipping a grade?*

*Did I just outsmart myself?*

Just as Lu Shixian was about to give himself a good slap, he heard her voice again.

"Although you're studying in the Golden Kirin Class now, your official student registration hasn't changed. You're still in your first year."

Only then did Lu Shixian feel his heart settle back into his chest. He looked at her with a hint of resentment. "I mean, Teacher Mei, can't you just finish a sentence in one go? You really scared me to death just now."

Mei Ting, however, just sneered. "You're the one who didn't pay attention to the details. Are you blaming me now?"

He had nothing to say. It was true, even the wisest can have a blind spot. He really hadn't noticed that fine print.

Thank goodness his student status hadn't changed. Otherwise, he would have been crying without tears.

He was relieved that all his previous efforts hadn't gone to waste.

Chapter 68: A Cruel Blow from Mei Ting

Mei Ting paid no attention to his mood and continued her introduction. "After passing the league selection, eight provincial team spots are chosen. If you can win a gold medal and place in the top fifty at the national competition in mid-August, then congratulations, you will receive a guaranteed admission offer from Yan University or Shuimu University."

"Finally, you'll enter the winter training camp. If you can achieve a top-four ranking in the camp, you will represent the country at the IBO, the International Biology Olympiad."
"If your only goal is to get into Yanda or Shuimu, then this doesn't really matter. Your primary goal is to be in the top fifty for a gold medal. If you can't achieve that, all your efforts will be for nothing."

Lu Shixian nodded, showing he understood. He then asked in a low voice, "What if I take the Gaokao next year?"

Mei Ting, who had heard about his situation, was a bit exasperated. "You're being a little too greedy," she said. "You're only a freshman and you already want to fight on two fronts? If your Gaokao score is good enough to get you in directly, then just pretend I never said anything today."

Lu Shixian gave a sheepish laugh and sighed inwardly.

If he had two or three more years, with his current foundation, would it really be that hard to get in on his own merit?

The key was that he had a shortcut he could take now. Why risk waiting for the Gaokao three years later?

Even considering the worst-case scenario, if he still had to face the final battle in three years, having a few extra insurance policies would be excellent.

"Alright, let's officially begin the first day of training." Mei Ting was decisive and wasted no time, getting straight to the point.

Lu Shixian rubbed his hands together, showing he was ready.

"Based on your performance yesterday, how much have you taught yourself so far?"

It seemed she was trying to gauge his level. Lu Shixian considered what he had mastered in his past life, combined with the results of burning the midnight oil for the past few months.

After a few seconds of thought, he said, "In terms of micro, I've read *Principles of Biochemistry*, *Cell Biology*, *Principles of Molecular Biology*, *A Course in Microbiology*, *Fundamentals of Bioinformatics*, and *Fundamentals of Biostatistics*."

"In terms of macro, *Botany*, *Plant Physiology*, and *General Zoology*. And recently I've been reading *Invertebrate Zoology*. That's all, I haven't had time for the rest."

As soon as Lu Shixian finished speaking, he saw a look of disbelief and doubt on Mei Ting's face.

"School just started. How could you have read so many books?"

Seeing her expression finally change, Lu Shixian smiled and replied, "I started reading books on these subjects back in my third year of junior high."

However, the surprise on Mei Ting's face vanished, replaced by sheer skepticism.

"Fine. Since you say you've finished cell biology, let me ask you: what are the main effects of the cAMP signaling pathway?"

Lu Shixian froze. The smile vanished from his face as he was shocked to find that his mind was a complete blank on that topic.

How was that possible? He looked up at Mei Ting, only to see her expression had returned to its usual cool detachment.

"Don't look at me. This is a very basic concept in cell biology. I didn't pull it from some graduate-level course to trick you."

Now, Lu Shixian was truly at a loss. He asked, bewildered, "If you had asked me what the cAMP signaling pathway is, I'd know. It's a pathway where an extracellular signal binds to a corresponding receptor, triggering a response by regulating the intracellular level of the second messenger, cAMP."

"But I've honestly never heard of these 'main effects'."

Mei Ting, however, had already figured out the truth. She hit him with a harsh reality.

"It seems you've only been reading introductory-level books. Based on your current knowledge, you're probably at the level of just making the provincial team. You still have a long way to go before you can enter the national competition."

Lu Shixian's world was thrown into chaos. So he'd just been hyping himself up all this time.

But he could understand why this had happened. His previous source of information was the Jinling City Library.

The books available there would naturally be mainly for popular science and introductory purposes. It would be strange to find more advanced knowledge.

So, if he hadn't come to Jinling, with the internet not being as developed in 2007, he might never have had access to high-level materials for the competition.

Sometimes, it's genuinely difficult for a gifted child from a humble background to break through, often because these high-end educational resources and information are monopolized.

And so, he immediately turned a pitiful, pleading gaze upon the cute, lovely, beautiful, and kind Teacher Mei.

Seeing that she had achieved her goal, Mei Ting didn't discourage him any further.

She walked to the blackboard, picked up a piece of chalk, and began to explain as she wrote.

"Biochemistry is quite fundamental. The book you read should be sufficient."

"What's your standard of English?" Mei Ting suddenly switched to English.

Hearing her perfect pronunciation, Lu Shixian seemed to guess her intention and replied in English as well.

"I think it's okay, but my spoken English sucks."

Mei Ting nodded. "Since your English seems decent, I suggest you read more internationally recognized works to broaden your horizons. For general biology, you can look at *Campbell Biology* and *Raven and Johnson's Biology*."

"To study botany, I recommend *Raven Biology of Plants* and *Stern's Introductory Plant Biology*."

"For plant physiology, you should read *Plant Physiology and Development*, and for zoology, *Integrated Principles of Zoology* will be enough."

By the time Mei Ting finished, the entire blackboard was covered.

Lu Shixian was completely stunned. Who could possibly handle all this?

"I can't be bothered to explain the reasons. I've given you the recommendations; whether you read them or not is your business."

"According to some secret intel from my best friend, back when they took the exam, there were four main modules. The point distribution for these modules might be different now, and next year's syllabus isn't out yet, but you can use this as a reference."

"Module One: Principles of Biochemistry + Microbiology + Bioinformatics + Cell Biology, about 25%."

"Module Two: Zoology + Botany + Plant Physiology + Animal Physiology, about 30%."

"Module Three: Ecology + Animal Behavior, about 15%."

"Module Four: Genetics + Evolutionary Biology + Systematics, about 30%."

Lu Shixian quickly took out his notebook and started taking notes. Although this woman had a difficult personality, everything she said was valuable information.

After he finished writing, a question suddenly occurred to him. "Teacher Mei, I agree with all your suggestions, but here's the problem: where do I get these books?"

Chapter 69: Lu Shixian's Red-Eye Effect

Mei Ting seemed to have known he would ask this. She suddenly took a card from her jacket pocket and tossed it on the table.

"An unregistered library card for Jinling University. It's valid for one year. Don't lose it before it expires."

Lu Shixian took the card, unsure of what to say. This was too awesome.

Just what was the status of his tutor?

He joked to Mei Ting, "Teacher Mei, I feel bad taking this. Is it too late to offer myself in marriage?"

Despite his words, he snatched the card with such speed that he didn't look the least bit embarrassed.

Mei Ting had figured him out by now.

Lu Shixian was the type who enjoyed walking a tightrope, constantly hovering on the edge of testing her limits and courting disaster.

But she couldn't be bothered to argue with him now. She continued, "Once you've mastered the theory, I'll take you to do the lab practicals."

"If your theoretical foundation isn't solid, then don't even think about it. It doesn't matter how good your lab skills are."

"It's ten o'clock. That's all for today. Sort yourself out. I'm heading back now."

With that, Mei Ting left as crisply and cleanly as she had the day before.

Lu Shixian looked speechlessly at the densely packed notes on the blackboard.

Was she trying to kill him?

Honestly, the amount of studying was enough for him to learn three years of high school physics and chemistry ten times over.

By that logic, it seemed it would be faster to just focus on physics and chemistry.

But the Gaokao was just a process; the real goal was to learn useful theoretical knowledge.

Now that he had the chance to learn it directly, why take the long way around?

His thinking had always been very clear.

The next morning, Lu Shixian sprang into action.

Famous places like this always had one-stop services.

Lu Shixian showed the leave slip approved by Gu Chengzhi to the gatekeeper, boarded a bus at the entrance of No. 1 High, and got off at the Jinling University stop.

Jinling University was also a famous tourist attraction. The campus was filled with historical artifacts and culturally rich architecture, and most areas were open to the public.

But Lu Shixian had no time to linger. He headed straight for the Jinling University Library.

He didn't have time to appreciate the library's rich history.

Lu Shixian swiped the card and went straight to the eleventh floor, the biological sciences section.

The university library's information system was already quite well-developed by then.

Lu Shixian typed the names of the books he wanted into the search computer at the entrance.

A university was a university, after all. Everything he needed was there.

He didn't know how many books the card would let him borrow, but he didn't care. At worst, he'd just have to make a few more trips.

He carried ten foreign-language textbooks to the library's front desk and, under the astonished gaze of the librarian, walked out coolly with the stack of books.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but marvel at how much easier things were with connections.

He had just clearly seen on the checkout system that the borrowing limit was 25 books.

He happened to know a thing or two about this; only full professors at the university had the privilege of borrowing 25 books at once.

So badass!

Lu Shixian was suddenly at a loss for words to describe the feeling in his heart.

In less than two hours, Lu Shixian was back at No. 1 High.

The following days were uneventful.

During the day, he reviewed Gaokao material. At night, he frantically absorbed cutting-edge foundational knowledge in biology.

Of course, no one noticed or cared when he occasionally peeked at his biology competition books during class.

During this period, after checking on him a few consecutive nights at the beginning, Mei Ting basically left him to his own devices.

She was very satisfied with Lu Shixian's self-learning ability; she liked students who didn't cause her trouble.

As a result, their teacher-student relationship became quite harmonious.

Lu Shixian's first semester at No. 1 High, which was also very likely his last, was coming to an end.

During this time, Lu Shixian had to take time out to deal with two rather important matters.

First, he used a school computer to log into the USTC Junior Class registration system and submit his application materials.

Second, he was required by Gu Chengzhi to participate in the third-year midterm exams. He could skip classes, but he couldn't escape the exams.

Lu Shixian had no choice but to go through the motions.

When the results came out, he couldn't help but be amazed by the terror of the Rocket Class.

His total score was 668, yet he ranked second to last in the Jinlin Class.

It was like something out of a fantasy novel, terrifyingly impressive. This only strengthened his resolve to take a shortcut.

It seemed he really wasn't cut out for the Gaokao.

However, when the scores were announced, his result sent shockwaves through the entire school.

Although he ranked near the bottom of his class, he was sixteenth in the entire school.

Thus, he was honored with a spot on the honor roll—or as some might call it, the deification board—located on the path to the cafeteria.

Unsurprisingly, a handsome photo of Lu Shixian with a shy, fake smile was posted up.

Next to it was his motto: "Everyone is so strong, I'm under so much pressure!"

Anyone who passed by and saw his age next to that motto had to suppress the urge to punch someone.

More importantly, the other role models on the board were all scruffy, pimple-faced, and generally haggard-looking oddballs.

Only Lu Shixian somehow had time for image management.

We're all short, nerdy wrecks, so why do you get to be tall, cool, and handsome?

And so, on some dark and windy night, the eyes on Lu Shixian's photo on the wall disappeared.

The red glass background behind the photo was clearly visible, creating a strange phenomenon.

At night, whenever light shone on it, Lu Shixian's picture would automatically emit a red-eye effect, which was quite amusing.

It became a running joke for a while, and more than once, Lu Shixian was asked by his old classmates at lunch to demonstrate the red-eye effect in person.

The matter troubled him for a time. He had no idea which bastard had done it, but if he ever found out, they would be treated to a Thousand Years of Pain.

After the final exams were over, it was almost time for winter break.

The results wouldn't be out until after the break, perhaps to let everyone have a happy New Year.

On the last night at school, Lu Shixian continued his solo grind on the third floor of the comprehensive building, as was his habit.

Only this time, Mei Ting, who had been gone for who knows how long, appeared silently before him.

"Not bad. I've seen the lights on almost every night these days."

The sudden voice in his ear made him jump with a shiver.

He had gotten used to the building being empty at night, so the sudden appearance of a pale, emotionless female voice was truly terrifying.

"I say, Teacher Mei, it's one thing not to check up on me, but you don't have to scare me like that. That's not very nice, is it?"

Mei Ting was as blunt as ever. "Only cowards get startled so easily. A person like you will never be able to appreciate the exquisite feeling of unearthing beautiful biological skeletons from a graveyard!"

Lu Shixian: (つ﹏⊂)

Chapter 70: A Man's Gotta Grow Up

This time, Mei Ting followed her usual routine and just dropped by for a look.

But seeing Lu Shixian diligently taking notes, she suddenly said, "We can test your theoretical knowledge when school starts next year. If you meet the standard for the national competition, I'll take you to do lab work."

Lu Shixian stopped writing, looked up, and nodded to show he understood.

As he watched her about to drift away, Lu Shixian suddenly remembered the date: December 31, 2007.

Tomorrow would be a new year, 2008.

He stood up, cupped his hands around his mouth like a microphone, and shouted at her retreating back, "Teacher Mei, Happy New Year!"

Mei Ting's steps didn't falter in the slightest, as if she hadn't heard.

But in the darkness, the rare curve of her lips was faintly visible.

Soon, the end of January was upon them.

One consequence of Lu Shixian joining the third-year class was that he no longer had a month-long winter break.

The miserable high school seniors only got a 7-day holiday, from February 1st to February 7th, 2008.

The freshmen and sophomores had happily gone home on January 18th to enjoy the care of their families and the joy of the New Year.

The entire graduating class had stayed at school, eagerly studying for another 13 days. Lu Shixian actually found that his study efficiency was even higher in this quiet environment.

On January 31st, Jinling No. 1 High finally began its holiday.

No matter how much Lu Shixian wanted to continue studying, it was impossible.

By this time, most of the school staff had gone home for the New Year. If he didn't go home, he would probably starve to death at school.

Besides, it had been a long time since he had been home, two months ago.

Thinking about it, he really did miss his mom and dad.

With that thought, Lu Shixian packed his bags, locked his dorm room, and left the school that day.

He took the 405 bus, then transferred to the 808.

After more than three hours, Lu Shixian was finally back in Xingfu Town.

On Xingfu Main Street, the town was already decorated with lights and banners, with bright red lanterns hanging from every eave.

Spring Festival couplets were posted on the doors of every household.

The atmosphere of the Spring Festival was palpable; it was the most lively and festive time of the year.

He continued onward, looking at the somewhat dry paddy fields, their water evaporated after the harvest, another rare sight.

Still looking for that landmark utility pole, Lu Shixian followed the direction it pointed, his steps gradually becoming more cheerful.

Carrying his small backpack, he arrived at his doorstep.

At home, he saw his old man and his mom working together to clean the house.

Standing on the ridge between the fields, Lu Shixian could no longer contain his emotions.

He shouted to them, "Dad, Mom, I'm home!"

The two people at the door looked down in unison, their faces breaking into joyous smiles.

"Well, look who it is. Whose distinguished guest is this?" His mom, Xia Xiuman, hurried over to take the backpack from him.

"The kid next door, old Wang's son, came back ages ago. You're the only one who's been dragging your feet at school," Xia Xiuman grumbled as they walked.

Lu Shixian felt a bit helpless.

"Mom, I'm a senior now, right? Everyone left at the same time. I couldn't just sneak off early, could I?"

Old Lu, in the courtyard, nodded in agreement. "Exactly. Our son's a senior. You're the only one nagging about it every day, like you're chanting a spell. It gives me a headache."

This remark displeased Ms. Xia Xiuman. She put her hands on her hips and stomped her foot. "So what if I nag? You're the only heartless one who never reacts. This boy popped out of my belly, so I'm allowed to worry about him, aren't I?"

Old Lu took a drag from his cigarette, said nothing, and went back inside.

Lu Shixian was speechless.

The two of them had been perfectly fine when he arrived. Why did they start arguing the moment he got back?

Could he be the legendary argument engine?

However, he wasn't worried that anything was wrong. In fact, it felt very familiar and comforting.

They had been a married couple for decades. It wouldn't be normal if they didn't bicker a little every day.

Because the New Year was approaching, the family had already bought plenty of festive goods, so there was no need to go grocery shopping.

Dinner was a feast. His mom slowly placed all sorts of dishes on the table that were hard to come by at school.

Lu Shixian began to wolf down the food as if he hadn't eaten in eight lifetimes.

According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, his meals at school only satisfied the most basic physiological needs for survival.

But back home, he could instantly enjoy the fourth level: the need for love and belonging.

It was a whole different class.

As the New Year drew closer, families began visiting relatives and friends.

Taking advantage of this time, Lu Shixian shamelessly collected quite a few red envelopes.

However, when he went to his mother's family home for the New Year celebration, he saw Xia Yubing again.

In front of everyone, Lu Shixian immediately held out his hand to her, demanding a red envelope. It infuriated her, but there was nothing she could do but hand it over in impotent rage.

Soon, he also received a red envelope from his uncle, Xia Yubing's father, who was currently the head of a municipal department.

Speaking of which, this was the first time he had seen him all year.
Feeling the thickness, Lu Shixian's heart skipped a beat. This has to be in the four digits, right?

His uncle, Xia Hongguang, looked at him with a pleased expression. "Ever since you came to Jinling, I've been following your progress. I've just been too busy with work to visit you at No. 1 High."

"But from what I've heard from the school, you're studying very hard. I hope you'll keep up the good work and, if you get the chance in the future, give back to Jinling."

Before Lu Shixian could reply, his grandfather, Xia Chengjun, who was sitting at the head of the table, suddenly looked displeased.

"It's the New Year. Enough with the speeches! Everyone, just eat."

When the old man spoke, no one dared to disobey.

The table immediately erupted into a lively scene of clinking glasses and toasts.

The short seven days were coming to an end.

Happy times are always fleeting, and it was time to say goodbye.

There was no time to celebrate the Lantern Festival; on the afternoon of the seventh, Lu Shixian had to set off on his journey back to school.

His mom, Xia Xiuman, and his dad, Lu Jianguo, stood at the doorway once again, watching their son depart.

"Old Lu, what's gotten into our son?" Xia Xiuman said, rather puzzled. "He's already in his senior year so soon, and now his winter break is only seven days long. Other kids are still out having fun!"

Lu Jianguo folded his arms and said proudly, "That's men's business; you don't need to worry about it. Our son is in his senior year at sixteen—that's a testament to his ability. The Lu family might just produce a student from a prestigious university."

Xia Xiuman shot him a dissatisfied glare. "Is that all you can think about? School isn't like harvesting rice; what's the big rush?"

"You just don't get it. Living like this, he's missing out on so much of the joy of childhood. I don't know why he's doing this. It's like he grew up overnight."

Old Lu took a drag from his cigarette, exhaling a smoke ring only after a long moment.

"A man has to grow up eventually, whether you like it or not. For some, it takes a long time. For others, it happens in an instant."

Chapter 71: The First Practice of the New Year

He returned to Jinling No. 1 High that same afternoon.

Although the holiday was over, the area outside the school was still immersed in the festive joy of the Spring Festival.

Inside the school, however, the senior year students were returning with heavy steps. The entire campus was filled with a sense of busyness and anxiety.

A thin wall seemed to separate two completely different worlds.

Despite the break being only seven days long, Lu Shixian didn't feel that way at all.

With the early return of the senior year, the cafeteria staff, dormitory supervisors, print shop workers, and all the subject teachers also had to end their New Year holidays early to serve them.

So, one shouldn't think they are the only ones working hard. There are always people in unseen corners silently supporting them.

By comparison, studying in a bright and spacious classroom was already a great blessing.

Lu Shixian went back to his dorm and changed his bedsheets and duvet cover.

That evening, the third floor of the academic building was brightly lit. But on the third floor of the comprehensive building, just a few walkways to the right, only a single light shone with a lonely glow.

That was Lu Shixian, alone in the Biology Olympiad training room, reading the last book Mei Ting had recommended to him.

Fundamentals of Biostatistics.

It was a classic introductory textbook on biostatistics, written by Professor Bernard Rosner of Harvard University.

Although a Chinese version was published in April 2004, Lu Shixian had recently become somewhat addicted to reading English academic works.

This was not meant to be derogatory, but once you could truly understand them, you would discover that there were subtle differences between the translation and the original text.

It's what you might call the attenuation effect of information during transmission; no matter the medium, some nuance is always lost.

This is why university professors now recommend international academic works, advocating for reading the original texts to grasp the fundamental principles.

Lu Shixian opened the plain blue green cover and began to study.

To put it bluntly, biostatistics is the application of mathematical statistics to biological research. It is a science that uses the principles of mathematical statistics and statistical methods to understand, analyze, infer, and explain various phenomena and experimental data in life processes. It falls into the interdisciplinary category of biology and mathematics.

His statistics skills were not very strong; it was a weak point for him. Statistics primarily uses probability theory to establish mathematical models, collect information from observed samples, perform quantitative analysis and summarization, and then make inferences and predictions.

From natural sciences to social sciences and even humanities, it has applications in almost every discipline.

And this book covered general descriptive statistics, including normal distribution, Poisson distribution, binomial distribution, statistical inference, single sample inference, two sample inference (parametric tests), and non parametric tests.

It also covered categorical data, tests for time series data like Fisher's test and the log rank test. The statistical methods relevant to biostatistics were all discussed in this book.

Almost all the statistical knowledge used in SCI papers could be found in this book, which conveniently helped him shore up his deficiencies in statistics.

Since tomorrow was the day Mei Ting would check his progress, Lu Shixian put in some rare overtime.

At eleven o'clock, all the lights in the classrooms had been extinguished. Looking through the windows, everything was pitch black. Lu Shixian stretched his back and saw that there was still about a quarter of the book left.

No other choice. With enough effort, you can grind an iron rod into a needle.

Lu Shixian gritted his teeth. Whether it ended up a rod or a needle would all depend on tonight.

It wasn't until one thirty in the morning that Lu Shixian, massaging his sore and swollen eyes, turned off the light and left.

He apologetically woke the nearly asleep dorm supervisor. Walking down the dormitory corridor, he could see light shining from under the cracks of many doors.

It seemed the late night stage wasn't his alone; many others were pulling all nighters to study.

But Lu Shixian couldn't go on any longer. He returned to his dorm, fell onto his bed, and was instantly asleep.

February 8, 2008, Friday.

For the first time, his biological clock failed him. He woke up and checked the time—it was already eight o'clock.

If he were only ten or so minutes late, he might have panicked.

But since he was already this late, he felt no sense of urgency.

He leisurely went to the cafeteria to see if there were any leftover steamed buns to fill his stomach.

Then he did some simple warm up exercises on the sports field to get his body moving.

Finally, he arrived at the classroom, entered through the back door, and sat down in his seat, all in one smooth motion.

The teacher on the podium merely glanced at him before continuing to gaze out the window.

No one paid any attention to or questioned his tardiness.

For the entire day, he didn't listen to the teachers' lectures or review high school material.

He summarized and organized all the knowledge he had learned before, restructuring it in his mind to build a detailed knowledge framework.

This would make it easier to recall and apply when needed.

The Biology Olympiad was truly different from other subject competitions like math, physics, and chemistry. There was so much that needed to be memorized.

In comparison, there wasn't as much emphasis on logical thinking.

This is why many people mistakenly believe that subjects like biology and economics are liberal arts.

Soon, it was time for dinner.

Lu Shixian ate until he was just shy of full, so as not to affect his performance later.

When he went up to the comprehensive building again, he was surprised to see Mei Ting, dressed in a snow white down jacket, already sitting in her seat.

This was the earliest she had ever shown up.

Lu Shixian smiled as he walked toward her.

"Teacher Mei, Happy New Year!"

"Any red envelopes for me?"

Mei Ting gave him a cold look, knowing he was being cheeky again.

She then tossed a stack of papers from her bag to him.

"Here's your red envelope. I hope you like it."

Lu Shixian took it and saw that it was, as expected, a printed test.

So this was the first practice of the New Year?

"You can start. You have two hours. It's six thirty now, I'll be back at eight thirty," Mei Ting said, giving him a meaningful look.

"This is internal material, don't share it. It's a past paper from the theoretical part of the provincial Olympiad that my friend at Yanda got for me."

"Although we can't calculate a T score right now, almost no one who made the provincial team in previous years scored below 120 on the theory section. You can gauge yourself with that."

Lu Shixian nodded to show he understood.

After Mei Ting left, he took a deep breath. Instead of starting right away, he began to browse through the questions.

Completely different from math, the Biology Olympiad paper had a staggering number of questions—120 in total, for 150 points.

The sheer volume was one thing, but the key was that they were all single choice and multiple choice questions.

Lu Shixian calmed the slight flutter in his heart and began to look at the first section: Biochemistry, Microbiology, Bioinformatics, and Cell Biology, thirty questions for a total of thirty five points.

The first question helped him relax a little.

Chapter 72: Persevere, Persevere, and Persevere Again

1. Among the following descriptions of plant cell organelles without a membrane, with a single membrane, and with a double membrane, which is correct? ()

a. Spindle fibers, vacuole and Golgi apparatus, chloroplast
b. Ribosome, chloroplast, mitochondrion
c. Ribosome, endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi apparatus, chloroplast
d. Spindle fibers, endoplasmic reticulum and vacuole, mitochondrion

Isn't this just high school biology? As long as you have a solid grasp of the knowledge...

He would bet that even a first year high school student could get this question mostly right.

The key concepts flashed through Lu Shixian's mind.

Single membrane: vacuole, lysosome, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus.

Double membrane: chloroplast and mitochondrion.

No membrane: centrosome and ribosome.

With almost no thought, Lu Shixian quickly wrote a capital C on the paper.

The entire process took less than two seconds.

At this pace, Lu Shixian soon reached the second section: Zoology, Botany, Plant Physiology, and Animal Physiology.

35 questions for 45 points.

31. The primary vascular bundles in the stem of an angiosperm originate from the ()

a. vascular cambium b. cork cambium c. procambium d. tertiary cambium

This was where having a mastery of the concepts and a well formed knowledge framework paid off; it was like searching for the answer directly in a database.

Botany to vascular plants to angiosperms to primary meristem.

Because the procambium is a type of primary meristem that forms primary vascular bundles.

With a sweep of his hand, Lu Shixian filled in another C.

This section was his strong suit, and he finished it even faster than the first.

Next was the third section: Ecology and Animal Behavior, 22 questions for 29 points.

Finally, the fourth section: Genetics, Evolutionary Biology, and Systematics, 33 questions for 41 points.

For any unfamiliar questions, or any that required more than a minute of thought, he skipped them directly.

As a result, his entire answering process was very smooth.

When he finished the last question and went back to review, there were only 8 questions left unanswered.

They were all from the third and fourth sections. They either required some calculation to get the answer, or they were things he had seen in a book somewhere but his mind had suddenly gone blank.

In the end, Lu Shixian finished the calculation problems and ended the test.

He didn't bother guessing the four remaining questions he couldn't recall. He just left them blank, planning to reinforce his knowledge on those topics later.

This wasn't an official exam, so there was no need.

When he looked up at the clock in the training room, it was just past 8 p.m.

Lu Shixian stretched and stood up to move around a bit.

Thinking back on the test taking process, Lu Shixian actually found it quite satisfying.

That smooth feeling of converting knowledge input into output was truly fascinating.

It was a perfect example of reaping the rewards of diligent preparation.

At eight thirty, Mei Ting appeared before Lu Shixian on schedule and handed him an A4 sheet of paper printed with the answers.

Lu Shixian took it and eagerly began to check his answers.

"C, B, C, D, B, A, C, B, D, C..."

"Huh, how did I get this one wrong? I shouldn't have..."

Lu Shixian muttered to himself as he checked.

When he finished, Mei Ting didn't ask what he got wrong, but asked directly, "Score?"

"Should be 121 points. I lost points on 6 questions where I hadn't memorized the concepts firmly enough, costing me 15 points. There were 5 multiple choice questions where I was misled by plausible sounding answers, and finally 2 calculation problems I got wrong for some reason, for a total of 16 points lost."

Mei Ting nodded. "With that score on the theory part, after calculating the T score, you'd probably make it to the experimental round."

"This score isn't a sure bet for the provincial team. But there are still about two months until the Olympiad begins, so you have room to improve."

"From now on, you'll have to review the concepts on your own. I'm mainly going to talk about the experimental part next."

Hearing her words, Lu Shixian couldn't help but complain to himself. When had he not been self studying the concepts? She was quite the hands off manager.

After his silent complaint, Lu Shixian quickly focused on what she was saying.

"The experimental content can be divided into macroscopic and microscopic experiments. Macroscopic experiments cover animal, ecology, plant, and plant physiology. Plant physiology rarely has experimental questions, but it's on the syllabus almost every year, so you have to study it just in case. The main content of microscopic experiments is biochemistry, molecular cell biology, and genetics."

"Biochemistry experiments usually test enzyme activity assays, Michaelis constant determination, and measuring the content of substances. These are free points; just follow the lab instructions carefully. You need to be familiar with some of the equipment involved, like the spectrophotometer, centrifuge, mortar and pestle, and so on."

"Molecular biology experiments will generally test your ability to extract DNA and perform a series of related experiments, such as polymerase chain reaction and DNA electrophoresis."

"Cell genetics experiments..."

"Animal dissection experiments..."

"Ecology experiments..."

"Plant experiments..."

"Plant physiology experiments..."

Lu Shixian: (ノ｀Д?)ノ

He felt like flipping the table. Mei Ting was just force feeding him information like he was a pig, without any regard for whether he could digest it all.

And she was speaking so fast that his hand couldn't keep up.

Lu Shixian didn't know if having such a mentor was a blessing or a nightmare.

Fortunately, he had heard of, and was even very familiar with, some of the experiments. He could ignore those for now and focus on recording the others.

"Are you free tomorrow morning?" Mei Ting suddenly asked after finishing her explanation of the experiments.

Lu Shixian nodded quickly, indicating he was available.

He had no choice. Mei Ting's time was far more precious than his; she was the type you could never find, so he had to seize the opportunity.

Hearing his affirmation, Mei Ting laid out her plan for the next day.

"Tomorrow we'll go to the school's lab building and go over everything I just mentioned. You'll watch me first, then you'll practice yourself. I'll only do it once. If you have any more questions after that, you can ask the lab teachers yourself."

"Understood? If you understand, I'm leaving."

Lu Shixian gave a wry smile. How could he dare say he didn't understand? He could only watch her leave for the day.

But Lu Shixian still had to stay and organize his mistakes.

While cursing the mean woman in his heart, Lu Shixian found the content of the questions he got wrong in his books and reinforced his memory of them.

Even though Lu Shixian had a genuine interest in biology, the process was incredibly tedious.

It was just memorizing and reciting, day in and day out.

Unlike subjects like math and physics, where solving a difficult problem gave you clear positive feedback.

But having come this far, there was no turning back. The only way forward was to persevere, persevere, and persevere again.

Chapter 73: Participating in the Biology Olympiad Preliminaries

The next morning, fulfilling his duty as a student, he went to ask Gu Chengzi for half a day's leave.

But he ended up getting his homeroom teacher's approval to go wherever he wanted, as long as he didn't leave the school campus, without needing to ask for permission.

What could Lu Shixian say to that? He felt even less pressure about being late or leaving early.

So, he quickly headed for the lab building.

After waiting for about ten minutes, Mei Ting, as expected, arrived right on time to meet him.

"Let's go. I've managed to apply for your access to the small lab for the next half month. I'll take you there today, and after that, the lab administrator will let you in directly," Mei Ting explained as they walked.

Lu Shixian asked with some doubt, "Does Jinling No. 1 High even have the facilities for Biology Olympiad experiments?"

Mei Ting was once again rendered speechless by him and shot him a look.

"Don't you underestimate Jinling No. 1 High. It's still the top high school in a provincial capital, and it was once the best high school in the entire province."

"Its history is several times your age. Although the current students aren't as competitive, the lab equipment is still quite complete."

"Some of the equipment might be a bit outdated, but it's more than enough for basic biological experiments."

As she spoke, Mei Ting led him through a corridor and into a smaller laboratory.

She took off a lab coat, put it on, and went to the lab bench to prepare the equipment, speaking to Lu Shixian as she did.

"The Olympiad experiments may seem like a test of your practical skills, but they are actually mostly testing how solid your theoretical knowledge is. That's why I had you master the theory first."

"Recently, the popular topics for biology experiments have been plant and animal experiments. Biochemistry and lab equipment questions have become less common."

"So I predict that the questions this time will focus more on pure biology."

"And this year is a very special year. As for whether the focus will be on plants or animals, you can guess from the year."

Lu Shixian could understand what she had said before, but this last part left him a bit baffled.

"What's so special about it?"

Mei Ting said as she washed a beaker, "It's just a silly rumor. 2008 is an even numbered year, so this year it should be the Botanical Society and Yanda's turn to set the questions. In odd numbered years, it's the Zoological Society and Yan Normal University."

Lu Shixian understood in an instant, utterly astonished. There was such a thing?

As the saying goes, your position determines your perspective.

If this rumor was credible, then this piece of information was worth at least twenty points.

"Of course, that's for the national competition. The provincial leagues are set by each province independently, so the questions are all over the place, and anything is possible."

"Alright, that's enough idle talk. If you don't know how, just watch me. You can try it yourself later."

As she spoke, she actually pulled a sprig of peach blossoms out of her pocket.

"It's peach blossom season right now. Do you know how to dissect one?"

Lu Shixian thought for a moment and nodded. "A little."
He might not be an expert at dissecting animals, but plants were another story. After all, he had the fundamentals down.

“You want to try?” Mei Ting asked, willing to give it a shot.

Lu Shixian didn't waste time with pleasantries. He answered her skepticism with action; this was something he'd done countless times in his past life.

Taking the tweezers from her hand, Lu Shixian plucked the freshest peach blossom.

He didn't rush to start. First, he observed the flower's external shape and its position on the stem.

A moment later, he pinched the pedicel and, working from the outside in, used the tweezers to sequentially remove the petals and sepals.

Then, he removed the corolla, stamens, and pistil, placing them in order on the lab paper.

Watching his proficient movements, Mei Ting was genuinely astonished.

“Your technique is very precise. Have you done this before?”

Lu Shixian just laughed it off. “I’m just more interested in plants. I don’t know much about animals.”

Mei Ting didn't press the matter, instead continuing with her instructions. “Based on the dissection, write out the floral formula.”

In truth, for a common flower like this, he could write the formula without even looking through a microscope.

But this was an experiment, so he had no choice but to follow procedure. He observed the petals and stamens, then finally removed the ovary, dissected it, and examined the placenta and ovules.

He then wrote the floral formula for the peach blossom on the desk: K5, C5, A∞, G1:1.

He knew very well that every step of the experiment had to be perfect. If he missed a single detail, points would be deducted even if his final answer was correct.

Mei Ting was thoroughly surprised and offered a rare compliment. “Not bad. It seems you have a real talent for lab work.”

Little did she know, Lu Shixian’s performance in the next part would drive her to the brink of a breakdown.

“Huh? Why is the earthworm still moving after I cut it? How am I supposed to dissect this?”

“Anesthetize it! Anesthetize it! You have to anesthetize an animal before you operate!”

“Don’t touch the dorsal blood vessel along the dorsal midline!”

“Oh my god, how did you manage to snip the cerebral ganglia again?”

In the end, the animal experiment concluded in failure, with the earthworm in pieces.

“Didn’t you just watch me do it once? How did you make such a mess?”

“And what about before? Your plant dissection was perfect! The moment you touch an animal, your skills fall apart?”

Mei Ting continued to lecture him while taking a break.

Lu Shixian could only offer an embarrassed smile. “I get a little nervous working on living things.”

But only he knew the truth. He had never done this kind of experiment before; for a first-timer, this was a perfectly normal performance, okay?

It was just that his flawless plant dissection had set Mei Ting's expectations way too high, which was why she was now losing her mind.

Hearing his explanation, Mei Ting said, her patience worn thin, “Just memorize the key steps and their order. Practice on your own later. I’m done with you for today. We’ll continue with the biochemistry experiment tomorrow.”

Leaving Lu Shixian standing there with a wry smile. It seemed being too outstanding had its downsides!

On Tuesday was the biochemistry experiment. Mei Ting’s assignment for him was to determine the protein content of broccoli using at least three different methods.

On Wednesday was the molecular biology experiment. His task was plasmid DNA extraction and quantification, as well as a PCR amplification experiment, with a focus on mastering gel electrophoresis.

And so, amidst this fulfilling period of study, the preliminary round of the Jinling City Biology Olympiad in April quickly arrived.

Lu Shixian sat alone on the bus heading to Jinling Affiliated High, looking rather solitary.

It couldn't be helped. At Jinling No. 1 High, he was the only competitor in biology, a lone representative without any companions.

Meanwhile, Mei Ting had made it clear that she wouldn't bother with meaningless things like chaperoning him to exams unless he made it to the national competition.

Fortunately, he was quite used to being alone.

Soon, the ticket collector’s announcement of the stop brought him to the gates of Jinling Affiliated High.

If all went according to plan, he would be spending his time here for all subsequent competitions, right up to the provincial team selection.

Who could blame them? Jinling Affiliated High was just that awesome!

It was a weekend, but the crowd of people there for the preliminary round was a veritable sea of people.

Weren't there supposed to be fewer people in the biology competition? What was going on?

Chapter 74: I Really Don't Want to Show Off and Put People Down

With so many people, the competition instantly felt more intense, and even he couldn't help but feel a bit of pressure.

Following the signs hanging from the trees lining the path, Lu Shixian quickly found his assigned seat.

He soon felt relieved after overhearing the chatter of the contestants next to him.

It turned out they were students from other counties and cities.

By that logic, everyone in the entire Jiangsu province participating in the 2007 preliminary round was probably gathered here.

At this, Lu Shixian felt both happy and regretful.

He was happy because the competitive pressure had lessened. He was regretful because, compared to the math competition which had testing centers in almost every prefecture-level city, biology was clearly neglected and not taken seriously.

But all he could do was sigh. In his current position, he couldn't change a thing.

Lu Shixian’s attention was soon drawn to the proctor reading out the exam rules.

Finally, the biology competition test paper was placed in his hands.

Lu Shixian began to focus on the paper before him.

But with just a quick glance, he had already passed judgment on it.

The level seemed a bit low.

Question 1: What is a characteristic of facultative heterochromatin?

Did he even need to think? Any high school student would know this.

Obviously, it was B: It can be transcribed when the chromatin is decondensed.

He quickly moved to the second section. The first question was about the placentation types found in a pistil that forms a capsule fruit.

If you hadn't studied placentation, you might be stumped. But if you’ve read a botany textbook? Child's play.

Axile, free-central, and parietal placentation.

Surely no one would get this wrong?

Lu Shixian breezed through the test as if it were a walk in the park, constantly oscillating between self-doubt and doubting the person who wrote the exam.

Was it really this easy? Is this the preliminary round? Or did they go easy this year?

After finishing, Lu Shixian couldn't help but look up at the others. They were all still hunched over, working furiously.

He had to admit to himself that biology was different from math. In math, if you couldn't solve a problem, you really couldn't, so you gave up quickly.

But biology was all multiple choice. It was just a matter of picking A, B, C, or D.

Even guessing gave you a chance of being right!

If they got lucky with their guesses, they might just make it to the league round.

With that kind of wishful thinking, who would be willing to give up easily?

Lu Shixian shook his head. Seeing that time was about up, he signaled to the proctor that he wanted to turn in his paper early.

He packed up his things and found his backpack in the designated area.

With his small backpack on, Lu Shixian strolled away under the envious gazes of the other contestants.

He came alone, and he left alone.

He was a lone figure representing the entire biology competition force of Jinling No. 1 High.

On the way back, the bus was filled almost entirely with students from the competition.

The discussion on the bus was so heated it felt like an impromptu post-exam conference.

Suddenly, a girl sitting in front of Lu Shixian asked, “For that question in the second section, about the life cycle of algae with heteromorphic alternation of generations where the sporophyte is dominant, the answer is Polysiphonia, right?”

“I saw the other three answers didn’t have the character for ‘algae’ in them, so it’s obviously Polysiphonia. Why would they even ask a question like that? Isn't it a waste of time?”

At her words, Lu Shixian covered his face, at a loss for what to say.

She was treating the exam setters like idiots.

To his surprise, however, many others started to agree with her.

This was absurd!

To Lu Shixian’s relief, someone finally raised a doubt.

“You’re mistaken. Do you really think the examiners would make it that simple?”

“Ever heard the saying, the most obvious choice is often a trap? I read in a popular science book that Ectocarpus and Ulva are types of algae. So the answer is either A, Ectocarpus, or D, Ulva.”

As soon as he spoke, the boy earned an admiring look from the girl.

Watching this unfold, Lu Shixian was utterly speechless.

Good grief, these people were like masters of eliminating the correct answer.

Lu Shixian hadn't intended to get involved, but for the sake of rescuing a naive young lady and taking down the "villain"...

He couldn't hold back any longer and decided to educate them properly.

“In the life cycles of most brown algae, there is a distinct alternation of generations, which can be either heteromorphic or isomorphic.”

“Isomorphic alternation of generations means the sporophyte and gametophyte are similar in size and shape, like in Ectocarpus. Heteromorphic alternation of generations means the sporophyte and gametophyte are very different in size and shape, with the sporophyte being more developed in most species, like answer C, Kelp.”

“Polysiphonia, which you mentioned, is a red alga, and Ulva is a green alga. Both of them undergo isomorphic alternation of generations.”

The boy’s face immediately flushed with embarrassment, while the girl now looked at Lu Shixian with pure admiration.

“You’re amazing! I feel like I guessed on so many questions. I wish I were as smart as you!”

A chorus of groans from those who had guessed wrong filled the bus. Lu Shixian felt a little awkward; he swore he didn't mean to interrupt the other guy's moment to show off.

But their reasoning was just too ridiculous. Guided by his desire to spread the truth, Lu Shixian felt he couldn't let them wallow in a mire of falsehoods.

Unexpectedly, the boy seemed unwilling to back down.

“It seems you’ve read a book or two. But if you can tell me the correct answer to this question, then I, Chen Chen from No. 2 High, will concede that you’re good.”

Lu Shixian gave a wry smile. He truly had no intention of creating a scene where he put someone in their place. At his level, getting caught up in squabbles over a qualifying exam was beneath him.

But before he could refuse, the boy had already read the question aloud.

“The total variance of a certain randomly mating population is 1.461, while the variance of an inbred homozygous line is 0.867, and the narrow-sense heritability, h², is 38%. Do you know the answer to this one?”

He had to admit, the boy had a good eye. This was undoubtedly the final, most challenging question on the preliminary paper.

Not only was it in the most difficult fourth section, testing knowledge of genetics, but it was also a multiple-selection question.

The combination made it quite difficult.

Unfortunately for him, to Lu Shixian, this question was equivalent to an introduction to genetics.

A face had been offered up for slapping. Should he slap it or not?

Should he engage in this rather low-level flex?

After a moment's thought, Lu Shixian succumbed to the situation. After all, it would be a waste not to. A flex is a flex.

“If I remember correctly, the total phenotypic variance, Vp, is 1.461. The variance of the homozygous line, which is the environmental variance Ve, is 0.867. The narrow-sense heritability, h², is 38%. Let's denote dominance variance as Vd, additive variance as Va, broad-sense heritability as H², and total genetic variance as Vg.”

“So, for option A, the percentage of phenotypic variance accounted for by environmental variance is Ve / Vp = 0.867 / 1.461, which is exactly 59.3%.”

“For option B, the percentage of phenotypic variance accounted for by dominance variance... The formula for narrow-sense heritability is h² = Va / Vp. Solving that equation, you’ll find the answer is not 38% for option B.”

“Therefore, the final answers are A, C, and D.”

In truth, as soon as Lu Shixian had explained why option B was wrong, the boy’s arrogant demeanor had vanished.

Students who participated in the biology competition weren't complete novices. With Lu Shixian’s detailed explanation, they naturally understood whether he was right or wrong.

In fact, they felt his explanation was even more detailed than their own coaches’.

Chapter 75: The Biology League Begins

At that moment, even the supervising teachers who had been resting with their eyes closed on the bus began to pay attention to Lu Shixian.

After all, you can tell an expert by their work.

Someone who could explain the final, most difficult question with such incisive clarity must have an exceptionally firm grasp of the concepts.

Could he be a student from the Affiliated High on his way home?

Several teachers exchanged glances. “Excuse me, are you a student at the Affiliated High?”

Lu Shixian knew what they were thinking and answered truthfully.

“No, I’m from No. 1 High.”

Hearing his answer, they began to question reality.

In their impression, wasn't No. 1 High's biology competition strength even weaker than their own schools?

They heard it didn't even have a biology competition team; their schools were at least coasting along.

Just as they were about to ask how he prepared for the competition, Lu Shixian’s stop arrived. He left them with nothing but a cool, departing figure.

Lu Shixian’s return to school was unremarkable. It caused no ripples and drew no one's attention.

In fact, aside from a few people, no one even knew where he had been.

Lu Shixian was happy with this arrangement.

A few days later, Lu Shixian received two pieces of good news.

First, he had performed exceptionally well in the preliminary round, winning first prize at the city level.

Since the preliminary round didn't test experimental skills, he dominated the field with an outstanding score of 148, surpassing the second-place contestant by a whopping 22 points to claim first place.

Second, the University of Science and Technology of China had approved his application for their Junior Class Program and had mailed him his college entrance exam registration certificate.

Actually, if possible, he would have preferred to apply for the Junior Innovation Class. That program gave extra credit for competition results, and with a provincial first prize in math under his belt, he would have definitely chosen the more advantageous option.

Unfortunately, the Junior Innovation Class wouldn't be established for another two years. Lu Shixian couldn't pursue something that didn't exist yet.

May arrived quickly, and Lu Shixian could feel the entire senior class entering a state of high pressure.

It was almost suffocating.

Of course, this pressure wasn't coming from the teachers. On the contrary, the students had the least amount of homework in their three years of high school.

The pressure was all self-imposed. It came from a stubborn refusal to fall behind, from the expectations of their parents, and from their own ambitions for self-improvement. Nearly everyone was putting in extra hours and extra work.

By the end of April, Lu Shixian had successfully earned Mei Ting’s approval. His weaknesses were gradually being shored up, and his experimental skills had improved by leaps and bounds.

Toward the end, Mei Ting offered him almost no guidance at all. Lu Shixian couldn't find her anywhere, as if she had left him to fend for himself.

He didn't mind in the slightest and continued with his recent study rhythm.

As his mastery of both the college entrance exam material and biology competition topics grew, Lu Shixian moved beyond the initial phase of frantically reading books.

He entered a phase of targeted problem-solving, scoffing at the idea of aimlessly drowning in a sea of practice questions.

As time ticked by, Lu Shixian encountered an awkward situation.

His third mock exam was scheduled very close to the biology league competition. Taking both in succession would affect his performance.

Fortunately, he had been steady as a rock in the first and second mock exams.

His rank consistently hovered between 15th and 20th in the grade, never really rising or falling.

The third mock exam was, in effect, not as crucial as one might think.

So, with the school turning a blind eye, Lu Shixian simply skipped it.

May 11, 2008.

Lu Shixian once again headed to Jinling Affiliated High, but this time he was not alone.

Accompanying him was Jiang Yunkun, who had come to see him off and offer support for the biology league.

Sitting on the bus, Lu Shixian hadn't brought any study materials. He seemed completely relaxed.

His calm demeanor even rubbed off on Jiang Yunkun, who sat beside him.

“Looks like you’re in good shape. What are you aiming for this time? Top what for a gold medal?”

Lu Shixian shifted from the lounging position he had held for a while and replied, “My standards aren't high. Top eight, guaranteed.”

Jiang Yunkun was stunned.

He understood the subtext: making the provincial team was a certainty.

To be honest, he didn't have high expectations for Lu Shixian’s first attempt. He had no idea how well Lu Shixian had prepared in just a few short months.

The only one who knew was Mei Ting, but even he couldn't get a hold of her, let alone anyone else.

Ever since becoming Lu Shixian’s advisor and shedding her teaching duties, Mei Ting seemed to have completely let herself go.

Still, confidence was a good thing. Seeing that they were almost there, Jiang Yunkun stopped asking questions.

“Mr. Jiang, I’ll head in now.” Arriving at Jinling Affiliated High again, Lu Shixian navigated the campus with practiced ease.

“Good luck!” Jiang Yunkun waved goodbye.

As a provincial league competition, the event was on a much grander scale than the preliminary round.

A large red banner hung on the school campus: “Welcome Students to the 2008 Chinese High School Biology Olympiad (CHSBO) Jiangsu Provincial League.”

Lu Shixian quickly found the main assembly area for contestants. In the plaza between several academic buildings, outstanding students from all over the province were gathered.

There were far fewer contestants than at the preliminaries; a quick glance suggested maybe just over two thousand.

Despite the large crowd, the plaza was surprisingly quiet.

Looking around, everyone was clutching study materials, their noses buried in books.

Only Lu Shixian stood with his backpack on, head tilted back to enjoy the warm sunlight, looking conspicuously out of place.

The students nearby glanced at him and then perfectly avoided his vicinity.

The aura of effortless confidence he naturally exuded was practically blinding, creating a distinct empty zone around him.

At 9:40 AM, the check-in process officially began.

Lu Shixian followed the sea of people to his designated exam room.

After a strict check by the proctor at the door, Lu Shixian entered the classroom.

He had already been through this at Jinling University. Even though it was a one-and-done trip, he had at least gained some experience and earned six thousand yuan in the process.

Unlike the preliminary round, everyone participating in the league took the exam seriously. Barring any emergencies, no one would drop out.

The scattered exam rooms meant there were hardly any familiar faces. The contestants around him were all adjusting their mindset, in no mood for socializing.

At 10:00 AM sharp, the theory exam officially began.

Lu Shixian took the paper and first skimmed through it.

The volume and question types were roughly similar to the preliminary round, but the difficulty seemed to have been ramped up.

Lu Shixian gradually discovered a rule of thumb for biology: the length of a question was the easiest way to judge its difficulty.

Part 1, Question 1: Modern biological research often takes a 'holistic' approach, studying the overall gene expression patterns in a cell, known as omics. These can be further broken down into different omics based on the level of study. Which of the following arranges the omics in the correct order according to the gene expression pathway?

a. Genomics - Proteomics - Transcriptomics - Metabolomics
b. Genomics - Transcriptomics - Proteomics - Metabolomics
c. Metabolomics - Proteomics - Transcriptomics - Genomics
d. Metabolomics - Genomics - Proteomics - Transcriptomics

Good grief, I concede, you win.

Is this question a matching game?

Chapter 76: I Think I Know the Answer

Just looking at the options made his eyes swim.
Accustomed to a fast-paced, straightforward style, the first question of this league competition threw him off a bit.

This was where the benefits of his rich experience and solid foundation became apparent.

When a question was long, you had to find the key information, ignore the fluff in the prompt, and simplify the complex.

So, what was the key information in this question?

Lu Shixian quickly circled the two words on the test paper: gene expression.

Knowledge points related to gene expression quickly surfaced in Lu Shixian's mind.

The process of gene expression: gene transcription forms mRNA → mRNA translation forms proteins → proteins participate in metabolism.

Thus, the order of the -omics: genomics → transcriptomics → proteomics → metabolomics.

Although Lu Shixian knew this, for this particular question, even if someone didn't know what "-omics" were and couldn't place genomics, it wouldn't affect the answer being B.

But if you hadn't even mastered a fundamental concept like gene expression, all the tricks and experience in the world were useless.

So this was what multiple choice questions were like.

This was the Biology Olympiad.

While setting up a barrier, it also opened a window for you.

As expected, the league competition's questions were on a much higher level than the preliminaries.

Even Lu Shixian found it a bit strenuous as he worked through them.

It wasn't that he couldn't solve the problems or had no clue what to do.

Rather, the sheer volume of questions was overwhelming. Finishing 120 rather difficult questions within two hours, which also had to include time for reading the questions, answering, and bubbling in the answer sheet, was a tall order.

So it was hard to get through it all in one go; getting stuck somewhere along the way was inevitable.

The process was, in fact, a dual test of one's mental and physical stamina.

Lu Shixian chose to be selective, first plowing through the gimme questions whose answers were obvious at a glance, then circling back to tackle the ones that required calculations.

At 11:30, with about half an hour left before the exam ended, Lu Shixian was still undecided on six questions.

They were all multiple select questions. Some of them were cleverly worded, playing games with language. Even if you knew the concepts, one or two of the options were always a bit ambiguous.

There were quite a few questions like this. Lu Shixian felt that if his language skills weren't strong, the number of doubtful questions would be far more than just six.

Based on past experience, a score of 120 out of 150 on the theory section could get you a provincial first prize.

To make the provincial team, assuming a normal performance in the lab section, a baseline of 130 was needed to be safe.

But for the Biology League, this wasn't entirely accurate, because the final ranking was based on a weighted T-score.

Even if your total score was higher than someone else's, there was still a possibility of being overtaken in the final ranking.

At this point, contestants began turning in their papers one after another.

Lu Shixian remained calm. He jotted down his tentative answers for the six questions on his scratch paper and began to check his answer sheet for any missed or incorrectly bubbled answers.

In the last twenty minutes, after careful consideration, Lu Shixian found a flaw in one of the multiple select questions and corrected his answer.

In the final ten minutes, Lu Shixian chose to be done with it, transferring the tentative answers from his scratch paper onto the answer sheet.

At this point, Lu Shixian stopped struggling.

He let go of the few questions he had been agonizing over. Based on his feeling during the test, he thought he was probably on solid ground this time.

Making a mental note to review the topics mentioned in those tricky questions when he got back, Lu Shixian found his backpack and calmly left the attached high school.

When he returned to his classroom, the teacher was already going over the questions from the third mock exam. Lu Shixian instantly felt out of place; he hadn't even taken it.

Review for the Gaokao or continue studying for the Biology Olympiad?

Rather than be distracted and do something inefficient here, he ultimately chose to go for a stroll.

He had been under a lot of pressure before the league competition.

Now that the exam was over, surely no one would object if he balanced work and rest and slacked off a bit.

But as he walked, Lu Shixian somehow found himself at the door of Class 1 of the tenth grade.

He was about to step inside out of habit, but then he realized with a sense of helplessness that he didn't seem to belong here anymore. His classroom was on the third floor.

But then he suddenly remembered that his student registration was still with this class. Officially, he was still a student of Class 1.

With that, Lu Shixian no longer had any psychological burden.

So he quietly slipped in through the back.

At that moment, the voice of the female English teacher could be heard.

“ok, open the book and turn to page 100! look at the picture, answer my question!”

“what’s the title of the article? stand up, answer my question.”

“sit down! who can answer my question? who can try?”

It had to be said, many students immediately raised their hands to answer, but it seemed all their answers were wrong.

The English teacher’s expression darkened.

“Did none of you preview this text from a past exam? I’m going to start calling on people randomly. Anyone who can’t answer will stand up.”

“you try! If you can't try, you try! You try! If no one can even try, what's the point of this class!” The English teacher suddenly blew up.

“You're supposed to say 'i don’t know, sorry teacher,' and then I'll let you sit down. Otherwise, you stand up! forever!”

As more and more students were called upon, a sense of panic rose in Lu Shixian.

*No way. Am I that unlucky? I just dropped by for a visit, and this is happening?*

He quickly lowered his head, praying the teacher wouldn't see him.

But Lu Shixian forgot that the more you try to hide, the more suspicious you look.

What little movements could a teacher standing on the podium not see? Sometimes they didn't call students out simply because they couldn't be bothered.

But now, it only fueled her anger. She pointed to the last row.

“you try! right now!”

At that, all eyes followed the direction of her finger. Everyone caught in the line of her finger leaned back to get out of the way.

“Huh, isn't that spot just for storing books? When did a person get there?” someone asked, puzzled.

As the students in the second-to-last row moved aside, Lu Shixian had nowhere left to hide.

“The class president?”

“Lu Shixian?”

Sounds of shock and surprise filled the classroom.

Lu Shixian managed an awkward yet polite smile, secretly glancing at the exercise book on the desk in front of him before speaking.

“i can try……”

Chapter 77: Provincial Team Selection, Second Round

Wen Shaoying's face also showed great surprise, wondering why this particular student had suddenly returned.

But being close to retirement, he was immensely experienced in teaching.

He beckoned to Lu Shixian and said, “First, let's welcome student Lu back. Please, have a seat! I think you can probably afford not to know the answer. Let's give the other students a chance.”

Lu Shixian quickly seized the opportunity to sit down.

Alright, that was almost a social death.

If he hadn't known everyone so well, he would have died of embarrassment.

After class, Lu Shixian was immediately greeted with a warm welcome from his classmates.

Skipping two grades to compete with third-year graduating students and still managing to do so well—they were in complete awe of him.

Although his rankings weren't the highest, Lu Shixian had managed to squeeze onto the honor roll in every third-year mock exam, except for the one he had skipped.

People tend to feel resentful of those who are just a little better than them, but for those who are far superior, they can only look up in admiration.

Three days later, the Su Province Middle School Biology Olympiad Committee released the league competition test paper and a draft for review.

On Friday, the official answer key was finally out.

Shortly after, everyone's scores were published online.

If you were on a dedicated competition team, a teacher would be responsible for bringing your results to you.

Unfortunately, their makeshift team consisted only of Lu Shixian and Mei Ting, and the latter was the hands-off type.

So Lu Shixian had to begrudgingly find Jiang Yunkun, planning to borrow his computer to avoid the long trip to the school's computer lab.

As it happened, Jiang Yunkun was in his office, chatting with a few first-year teachers who had dropped by. Hearing that Lu Shixian was there to check his score, he immediately gave up his seat.

The other teachers, hearing that the Biology League results were being checked, also grew curious and stood by without moving.

It looked like they wouldn't leave until they saw the final ranking.

After all, Jingling No. 1 High's performance in academic competitions had been declining, so just making it to the league competition was already a great achievement.

What's more, Lu Shixian was a celebrity figure in the school; he had already proven himself with his excellent mock exam scores after skipping grades.

As for the Biology Olympiad, restarting the team was just a small experiment by the school. From the school leaders to the teachers, basically no one had taken this competition seriously.

If a team consisting of a fresh, inexperienced new teacher and a first-year high school student could actually achieve something, then they had truly wasted all their years of work.

“Lu Shixian, how are you feeling? Think you can make it to the next round?” Jiang Yunkun asked with concern as he turned on the computer.

“Shouldn't be a problem, I think,” Lu Shixian said, not at all worried about the final result. He had only come to register for the next round.

The onlooking teachers chuckled to themselves. Since when was getting into the next round so easy?

But they didn't show it on their faces. After all, Lu Shixian was their school's top student. They would leave the job of delivering any hard truths to old Jiang Yunkun.

And so, with varying thoughts, they all waited for the final result.

Jiang Yunkun typed in the URL and immediately saw the link: “Notice Regarding the Announcement of the 2008 National High School Biology League (Su Province Division) Scores and the List of Students for the Provincial Selection.”

Generally, a top-fifty finish in the theory exam was enough to advance to the second round.

So, all they had to do was see if Lu Shixian's name was in the top fifty.

However, to their surprise, the very first thing they saw when the page loaded was Lu Shixian's name.

“Name: Lu Shixian City: Jingling School: Jingling No. 1 High”

“Grade: Tenth Grade Total Score: 140 T-score: 92.6 Rank: 1”

First place in the league? They could hardly believe their eyes.

Jiang Yunkun was utterly shocked at first, but soon he patted Lu Shixian's shoulder with satisfaction. “Well done. The folks at the attached high school are probably going to be furious this time.”

Sure enough, looking further down the list.

“Name: He Jingqiu City: Jingling School: Jingling Attached High”

“Grade: Eleventh Grade Total Score: 128 T-score: 81.6 Rank: 2”

“Name: Chen Kuangsheng City: Jingling School: Jingling Attached High”

“Grade: Eleventh Grade Total Score: 125 T-score: 79.2 Rank: 3”

“Name: He Mingqian City: Jingling School: Jingling Attached High”

“Grade: Eleventh Grade Total Score: 125 T-score: 78.4 Rank: 4”

It was a long way down before they finally saw a student from another school.

“Name: Du Pengcheng City: Yancheng School: Yancheng No. 2 High”

“Grade: Eleventh Grade Total Score: 111 T-score: 69.8 Rank: 16”

No wonder people said that the provincial team spots were almost always taken by Jingling Attached High.

Lu Shixian now understood. Having an academician was indeed a huge advantage.

Other schools couldn't even get a bite of the meat, and rarely even a sip of the soup.

It was no wonder Jingling No. 1 High had withdrawn from the biology competition; the gap was just too wide.

But that was also why the teachers in the office were even more dumbfounded by Lu Shixian's score.

A theory score of 140, a full twelve points ahead of second place.

This was an almost unimaginable achievement in the history of the biology competition, and now it was happening right in front of them.

“Are you all done looking? I need to register.”

Finally, the onlookers snapped out of their daze and moved away from the screen, letting Lu Shixian sit down at the computer to register for the next round.

And so, the news of Lu Shixian winning first place in the preliminary league competition by a huge margin spread through Jingling No. 1 High at lightning speed.

That same day, Principal Cai Mingyuan immediately issued a directive: the school would provide the best logistical support for Lu Shixian's subsequent biology competition exams.

And so, on that Saturday, Lu Shixian immediately received treatment he had never enjoyed before.

The school dispatched a special bus to transport him alone, along with a large escort group.

Many teachers and school leaders expressed their desire to accompany him, as opportunities to one-up Jingling Attached High were rare.

Perhaps fearing the possibility of a failure in the lab section, in the end, only Qian Zhengguo, Gu Chengzhi, and Jiang Yunkun went with him.

In fact, in later years, the league competition would no longer include a lab component, only fill-in-the-blank questions about lab knowledge.

In the league, the theory and lab scores were weighted 70% and 30%, respectively.

At the national competition, the weight of the theory score would be reduced to 50%.

Amidst Lu Shixian's somewhat overwhelmed state, the three teachers saw him off into the competition venue.

Following the staff's directions, Lu Shixian and the other contestants arrived at a small auditorium.

Lu Shixian hadn't known there would be a prelude like this before the second round began.

A banner hung above the stage read: “2008 Biology Competition Provincial Team Selection Mobilization Meeting.”

By now, everyone had arrived.

Although the auditorium wasn't large, with only forty-two contestants, it felt rather empty.

Despite there being only about forty people, they were clearly divided into three factions.

About twenty students sat together in the front rows; judging by their uniform school attire, they were all from Jingling Attached High.

Another twenty or so students sat in the middle. Their school uniforms were a rainbow of colors, and their accents varied, indicating they were from all over the province, excluding Jingling Attached High.

And then there was Lu Shixian, sitting alone in the back rows.

At this moment, it was clear that the anti-attached high school army wanted to recruit Lu Shixian.

A few of the more sociable students suddenly turned around and began enthusiastically probing for information about him.

“A pleasure to meet you. Hey, you look really young, don't you?”

Chapter 78: It's All Up to God Lu's Mighty Power

Lu Shixian frowned. This guy seemed a bit clueless.

Didn't he know you shouldn't keep bringing up how young someone looks?

Don't judge a book by its cover.

Considering it was his first offense, Lu Shixian decided not to make a big deal out of it.

The person hadn't approached with malice, so there was no need for him to be prickly like a hedgehog.

“Not that young. I'm in tenth grade now.”

At this, many of the contestants turned their attention toward him.

Making it to the provincial second round as a tenth grader was a rare sight.

“So which school are you from? It's hard to tell without a uniform,” a tall, skinny boy next to him asked with sudden interest. “Nice to meet you, I'm Du Pengcheng from Yancheng No. 2 High.”

Hearing his self-introduction, Lu Shixian's eyebrows shot up. Wasn't this the standard-bearer of the anti-attached high school army?

The student with the highest theory score among them?

Since he had asked, Lu Shixian didn't hold back and responded generously, “Jingling No. 1 High. Lu Shixian.”

Jingling No. 1 High and tenth grade—these two phrases combined were synonymous with "dark horse."

Add Lu Shixian's name to the mix, and he was practically the king of dark horses.

The moment he said this, almost every student in the auditorium instinctively turned their heads, searching for the person who had just spoken.

Many of the teachers on stage who were adjusting equipment also paused their movements and looked toward Lu Shixian.

The look of disbelief on Du Pengcheng's face was plain to see.

“Lu Shixian?”

“You're that God Lu who beat out all those top students from the attached high school?” Du Pengcheng suddenly noticed the unfriendly glares from the attached high students up front and remembered this was their home turf, so he dared not say more.

Lu Shixian hadn't expected a nickname meant as a joke to have spread to other schools.

He really didn't want to get cornered by students from the attached high school before he even left the campus.

He quickly tried to deflect the praise. “Not at all, not at all. I just got really lucky and guessed a lot of questions right.”

“If we're talking about gods, you're the real God Du. You represented Yancheng all by yourself, broke through the attached high's encirclement, and still managed to get such a great score.”

“You're the role model we should all look up to.”

At this, beads of sweat started to form on Du Pengcheng's forehead. He thought to himself, *This dark horse isn't just dark, he's toxic.*

“nonono, I'm not worthy of representing Yancheng. You're the real god here. A score of 140 is completely out of reach. None of us are even thinking of competing with God Lu today!”

“Don't you all agree?” Du Pengcheng said, suddenly summoning his reinforcements.

“Yeah, we're probably just along for the ride again this time. It's all up to God Lu's mighty power,” another flatterer chimed in.

As more people joined the conversation, Lu Shixian quickly found himself overwhelmed.

*Who am I? Where am I? Am I really that amazing?*

“Hello?”

Thankfully, the sound of a microphone being tested came through the speakers, putting a stop to their chit-chat.

The person holding the microphone on stage was Su Changqing, the president of the Su Province Middle School Biology Olympiad Committee and also the dean of the School of Life Sciences at Jingling University.

After a glance at his watch, Su Changqing began to speak.

“Congratulations to all of you for successfully making it to this year's provincial team selection competition. Just being here is a success in itself, and I believe the certificates you will be awarded in a few days will provide a small boost to your path to higher education.”

“So, no matter how you perform today, please maintain a positive outlook and don't place too much importance on the results of this exam.”

“Next, please follow the staff in your two assigned groups to the laboratories. Every action you take will be recorded and graded by the proctors, so please be sure to think carefully before you begin.”

With Su Changqing's announcement that the second round had begun, all the contestants found their places and headed to their respective locations.

By the time they arrived, it was exactly nine in the morning.

The lab portion of the league competition wasn't as rigorous as the national competition, which required four experiments. The league only required two.

One in the morning, one in the afternoon. Once the scores were tallied and the provincial team members were determined, the day's events would be over.

Soon, Lu Shixian received the topic for the morning's experiment. It was a biochemistry lab: the determination of the Michaelis constant of catalase.

This was a problem that had been within the scope Mei Ting had given him, and Lu Shixian had done it before. However, there were many methods to determine the constant, and the problem didn't specify which one to use.

If it was the conventional method, it would just be a matter of repeating his previous work. As long as he didn't make any mistakes, there shouldn't be any major issues.
The only reagents on the lab bench were hydrogen peroxide solution, potassium permanganate solution, and other basic solutions. Didn't that just scream potassium permanganate titration?

Lu Shixian took out six conical flasks and added the reagents according to the predetermined experimental sequence.

He followed the experimental design step by step, ultimately calculating the Michaelis constant, Km, from his results.

Lu Shixian’s procedure was a perfect copy of Mei Ting’s. Given her level of expertise, even if Lu Shixian had only mastered half of it, it would have been enough to make the proctor look at him in a new light.

Although the morning session consisted only of the practical exam, it was a complex one, with this single section being worth fifty points.

Even though Lu Shixian was skilled, he deliberately avoided speeding up, prioritizing stability and accuracy.

By the time he had completed the experiment and written up his procedure, it was already past eleven o'clock.

In the afternoon, the next task was announced: an animal experiment involving dissection. The subject of the dissection, however, was a cockroach.

Hearing this, he felt a wave of despair. Why another animal experiment?

It wasn't that he had anything against cockroaches; it was just that Mei Ting's training had tormented him to the point of nausea.

Ever since she discovered that animal experiments were his weak spot, Mei Ting would bring him a few invertebrates to dissect every few days.

Cockroaches were frequent guests. In the beginning, he had thrown up several times, but he gradually grew accustomed to it.

Sigh. Even if it made him sick, he had to do it again, unless he was willing to forfeit the points.

Following standard dissection protocol, Lu Shixian observed the cockroach's abdomen, then made an incision along the marginal line. He pulled back the abdominal exoskeleton and cleared away the yellow fat bodies.

Finally, he exposed the digestive system, completely intact, and recorded his observations.

The entire process took less than an hour, and with that, the task was complete.

The proctor standing beside him watched his deft movements and gave him a thumbs-up.

What the proctor didn't know, however, was that Lu Shixian's proficiency was the price paid by countless cockroaches that had perished one after another at his hands.

After signing off, Lu Shixian changed his clothes and left the lab early.

Breathing in the fresh air outside, he stretched his arms, the stuffiness of the lab instantly swept away.

But just then, he heard the wail of police sirens from outside.

What was going on? Why were there police sirens on campus?

Lu Shixian's heart sank. Had something happened?

Chapter 79: Keep Your Feet on the Ground and Look Up at the Stars

He bolted towards a window in the laboratory building.

Looking down, he could only see that the entire area below the building was cordoned off with police tape.

His view was obstructed, making it impossible to see what had happened.

Soon, the siren of an ambulance joined the chorus.

What on earth was going on?

Just then, Lu Shixian received a notification from the organizing committee staff: all students who had finished their experiments were to assemble in the auditorium immediately and were not permitted to enter or leave at will.

Filled with confusion, Lu Shixian returned to the auditorium.

At this point, there weren't many people inside; it seemed most were still working on their experiments.

But after waiting for half an hour, as more and more people filled the auditorium, Lu Shixian noticed that the expressions on the faces of the newcomers seemed off.

They all had one thing in common: they all appeared to be from Group Two.

A short while later, Du Pengcheng also walked in. Lu Shixian couldn't hold back any longer and whispered to him, "Hey man, what happened? Why all the commotion all of a sudden?"

Du Pengcheng glanced at him and sat down in the seat in front, his tone heavy. "A girl in Group Two, she was terrified of the cockroach and got so nervous she couldn't do the dissection. She ended up having a complete mental breakdown. I kind of remember her; she was always very frugal and quiet. No one ever imagined she would end up choosing to..."

Du Pengcheng didn't finish his sentence, but Lu Shixian understood everything.

"Will she be okay? I just saw an ambulance arrive."

Du Pengcheng just shook his head. "Who knows? It was so sudden. No one saw it coming, and no one had time to stop her. To work so hard to get to this stage, only to have it all end like this because of a small setback."

"Was it worth it?" Lu Shixian's mood plummeted. "Making it this far means you've already secured a first-prize award."

"I don't know. But as a fellow Olympiad student, I can understand how she felt. Everyone only sees our glory, our so-called special admissions privileges."

"But who knows the immense pressure we're under? The unimaginable effort we put in behind the scenes?"

As he spoke, Du Pengcheng let out a self-deprecating laugh. "You know, to get my theory score in the Biology Olympiad, I enrolled in the best prep course in my area. A single session cost nearly a thousand yuan. To support my continued participation, my dad had to sell his favorite car."

"And that's not even mentioning the experiments. The money and energy spent are immeasurable. The world is inherently unfair, but we still keep striving."

"I'm lucky my parents are relatively easygoing, so I didn't have to waste much energy dealing with that side of things."

"But what about others? I can't even imagine. You have to understand, the Biology Olympiad is already subject to so much prejudice, and a provincial first prize has limited impact. I probably won't make the provincial team this time, but I have no other choice."

As he finished, tears began to well up in his eyes.

Lu Shixian was silent. He was at a loss for words. Beyond feeling a sense of sorrow, there was nothing he could do.

The incident happened suddenly, and it ended just as abruptly.

In the end, the matter was quickly closed, attributed to the immense pressure of the competition and the student's possible pre-existing mental health issues.

It was like a pebble tossed into a well. Apart from a single splash and a few ripples spreading across the water's surface, there was seemingly no other proof it had ever existed.

Everything quickly returned to normal. Everything seemed so natural.

He didn't know the girl's current condition, nor did he know her name.

To him, she was just a stranger.

Yet, the incident had touched him deeply.

As the saying from *Teahouse* goes: "Every speck of dust from our era becomes a mountain when it falls on an individual."

He was now beginning to see everything with an increasingly objective eye.

It wasn't just about the competition. In the present of 2008, or in the future a decade from now, how many more tragedies like this would occur?

There was no point in dwelling on what had already happened.

Perhaps what we should focus on are the underlying problems. What should we do?

What should we truly understand, and what should we do in the future? Perhaps that is the key significance of this event.

Several hours later, as dusk began to fall, the Jiangsu Provincial Biology Olympiad Committee for High School Students finally began to announce the final results.

"Based on the scores from this practical examination, the competition committee has fairly and impartially calculated each contestant's score relative to the average performance using a weighted system, and then ranked them accordingly."

"The following 8 contestants whose names I read are the members of this year's provincial team. If a spot becomes vacant due to withdrawal or other unforeseen circumstances, it will be filled by the next person in the rankings."

"I will now announce the members of the provincial team."

"First place, Lu Shixian from Jinling No. 1 High School, with a total score of 239 and a T-score of 110.6."

"Second place, Chen Kuangsheng from the Affiliated High School of Jinling, with a total score of 224 and a T-score of 105.2."

"Third place, He Mingqian from the Affiliated High School of Jinling, with a total score of 212 and a T-score of 99.6."

"Fourth place, Li Mengmeng from the Affiliated High School of Jinling, with a total score of 211 and a T-score of 98.9."

"The above results will be posted on the website for public review. If there are no objections within three days, the award ceremony will be held next week. The location of the ceremony will be announced subsequently."

Despite achieving first place in the practical exam and making the provincial team, Lu Shixian couldn't muster a shred of excitement.

Except for the students from the Affiliated High School, everyone else had to head back before night fully fell.

Just before leaving, Lu Shixian suddenly heard shouts from Du Pengcheng and other students from different cities and counties.

"Lu Shixian! Hey! Are you listening?"

"I hereby officially declare you the captain of the resistance against the Affiliated High School army!"

"You're our only hope! You'll carry the torch for us, won't you?"

"Starting tomorrow, we forget the Olympiad and go back to studying for the Gaokao! You have to keep fighting!"

"Go, Lu Shixian! You have to get out of Jiangsu and make it to the national team!"

Listening to the blessings coming from different places in the distance, and thinking back to Du Pengcheng's earlier words, Lu Shixian abandoned his usual calm and rationality.

He could no longer remain silent, no longer suppress the emotions surging within him.

He silently wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes while waving back at them frantically.

"I will!"

"Don't you worry!"

"I'll carry your hopes with me... to the very end!"

On this day, what the Biology Olympiad brought Lu Shixian was far more than just a score.

Perhaps they had once been lost, once been misunderstood, and perhaps in the beginning, they hadn't started studying for the Biology Olympiad out of pure passion.

But at the very least, they had persevered from start to finish.

Countless nights spent burning the midnight oil might have been just to understand the bonding patterns of a few polypeptide chains they had never seen with their own eyes.

Only in light can one see the light. The world is inherently dark, so you must burn yourself to illuminate the path ahead.

It might sound distant, unrealistic, but this was precisely what Lu Shixian was pursuing at this moment.

He suddenly understood that he had never been alone.

In front of him, beside him, and behind him stood countless others who shared the same dream, standing on the solid ground beneath them, gazing up at the star-filled night sky.

Chapter 80: The Star of the Award Ceremony

In the evening, just after six o'clock, the school bus from Jinling No. 1 High School arrived punctually near the entrance of the Affiliated High School.

"Lu Shixian, I just got the news that you got into the provincial team with the top score in the practical exam! Beautifully done! This is a historic breakthrough for our school in the Biology Olympiad!" Inside the bus, Jiang Yunkun's excited voice could be heard before he even stepped out.

But as he got closer, he suddenly noticed that Lu Shixian's mood seemed a little off.

What was going on?

In his memory, he'd never seen Lu Shixian like this.

"Lu Shixian, it looks like you were crying earlier. Is everything alright?" he asked with concern.

Lu Shixian was now a top priority for Jinling No. 1 High School. The school's focus on him had intensified, and they couldn't afford for anything to go wrong.

Lu Shixian composed himself and forced a smile. "I'm fine, Teacher Jiang. I was just overjoyed."

"Teacher Jiang, why is human life so fragile? Since all life eventually withers, why do we strive so hard to bloom?"

Hearing this, Jiang Yunkun's heart sank as a thought struck him.

Could Lu Shixian be dwelling on the accident that happened this afternoon?

Just as he was organizing his thoughts to offer some guidance, he heard Lu Shixian continue, speaking to himself, "Perhaps the meaning of life is to make one's life and soul purer, more beautiful. What's important in life is the journey, not the destination."

"The withering of life, in a narrow sense, is merely a biological demise. The human spirit possesses a power that transcends life. An ordinary person's spirit is generally inherited by the individuals around them. But the spirits of some will exist as part of humanity's body of knowledge."

"This surviving spirit is shared and propagated by humanity. Perhaps this is the transcendent power we have been searching for."

Jiang Yunkun was speechless.

You've said everything yourself, so what am I supposed to say?

However, seeing the light return to Lu Shixian's eyes, Jiang Yunkun let out a sigh of relief. If he could work through it on his own, that was for the best. It saved him a lot of effort.

They took the school bus back to No. 1 High School.

Lu Shixian chose to take a shower and go straight to bed. The night passed without a word.

The next morning, all the students were drawn to a bright red announcement board placed on the first floor of the academic building.

"Huh? It's not time for the Gaokao results yet. What's this good news about?"

"Maybe some genius won another award."

"It's already May. Could it be the preliminary round of the Chemistry Olympiad?"

"That can't be right. Our school's Olympiad program might be in decline, but we haven't fallen so far that a preliminary round result warrants a formal announcement."

Through it all, they never considered the other possibility.

When they finally read the contents of the announcement, their eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"Broke the provincial record? Entered the Biology Olympiad provincial team with the top score in the provincial league practical exam?"

"We have such a beast in our school? Someone who can actually beat those monsters from the Affiliated High School?"

"How long have you been out of the loop? That's our school's God Lu!"

"You don't even know God Lu? Skipped a grade in his first year, casually scores over 600 on mock exams, first prize in the Math Olympiad... is it really that strange for him to casually make the provincial Biology team?"

"I hereby declare! The old gods have abdicated, long live God Lu!"

Hearing their inexperienced cries, Lu Shixian quickly made his escape.

What kind of line was that? It was just too embarrassing.

As soon as he entered his classroom, a dozen pairs of eyes immediately fixed on him, as if they were seeing him for the first time.

This was the first time Lu Shixian had ever received such treatment in the Jinlin Class.

Having previously been the class nobody, he was now the center of attention and felt a bit uncomfortable.

"My esteemed masters, what can I do for you?" Lu Shixian cupped his hands and asked weakly.

Suddenly, the Jinlin Class monitor, Zhou Wenwu, a titan who consistently ranked first with mock exam scores over 700, stood up and nodded at him. "Lu Shixian, you now truly have the right to be a member of the Jinlin Class."

"Making the provincial team is just the beginning. I hope to see you next year by the Boya Pagoda, on the shores of Weiming Lake."

Lu Shixian nodded, not daring to speak. Was this the aura of a 700-plus-point titan?

Had a slacker like him, who could only score 660 and ranked near the bottom of the class, finally earned their recognition?

It had been so hard.

He suddenly felt an urge to cry.

On Friday, because most of the first-prize winners and provincial team members were from the Affiliated High School, and even the chairman of the organizing committee was the dean of Jinling University, the award ceremony for the Biology Olympiad was ultimately set at Jinling University, not far from the Affiliated High School.

Although this year had produced an anomaly in Lu Shixian, there was nothing to be done about it. This kind of situation couldn't be reversed overnight.

Though they couldn't secure the venue, Jinling No. 1 High School still sent a large contingent of school leaders.

To be able to best the Affiliated High School in their area of strength was a great honor for them.

So today's delegation was exceptionally grand. Aside from Cai Mingyuan, all the other school leaders were present.

A convoy of three or four cars headed towards Jinling University.

Sitting in the same car as Mei Ting, Lu Shixian asked curiously, "Teacher Mei, didn't you say you wouldn't accompany students to competitions unless it was the national finals?"

At the mention of this, Mei Ting seemed a little annoyed.

"It's a pain. The organizing committee called me, saying I'd been named some kind of 'Outstanding Coach'."

"And since all these old geezers are going today, I couldn't get out of it even if I wanted to."

Lu Shixian had nothing to say. It turned out she was the real master of winning without trying.

Due to the large number of distinguished guests, this award ceremony was very formal.

The venue was set in a large reception hall, much more spacious and brighter than the small auditorium from before.

Cai Yunkun had suggested Lu Shixian invite his parents, but Lu Shixian felt that for an event of this level, there was no need to make his mom and dad travel all that way.

According to his plan, there would be more awards to come. Did they really need to make several trips?

So, Lu Shixian declined the suggestion.

Soon, the delegation from Jinling No. 1 High School was warmly received by Jinling University, and the school leaders were invited for tea.

Lu Shixian and Mei Ting were escorted backstage.

Unlike the Math Olympiad, although it was still a first-prize award, the significance was different.

Now, he was the star, a member of the provincial team. Naturally, he wouldn't be represented by someone else on stage.

"Please wait here backstage for a moment. When the award ceremony officially begins, your names will be called. When you hear your name, please proceed from the entrance to the stage."

"Oh, and Lu Shixian, during the first-prize presentation, since you are the gold medal first-place winner, you'll need to stand in the very center of the group. Afterwards, you'll give a representative speech of thanks. Don't forget!" a female university student volunteer explained the details to him.

Chapter 81: Where the Heart and Dreams Reside, Live Up to the Fleeting Years

Lu Shixian simply nodded, calmly indicating that he understood. The female student, however, was already completely charmed by him.

It couldn't be helped. Since it was a ceremony, one had to be solemn.

His youthful face, now displaying such a mature temperament, created a huge and adorable contrast.

Soon, the award ceremony outside began in an orderly fashion.

Standing backstage, Lu Shixian could hear the host's voice coming through the microphone.

"Respected leaders, esteemed guests, dear teachers and students, good afternoon!"

"Welcome to the 2008 National High School Biology Olympiad (Jiangsu Division) Award Ceremony. This competition has spanned several months, featuring fierce competition among outstanding students from all over the province. During the competition, all participants have upheld a spirit of good..."

Before Lu Shixian could hear the rest, a voice from the side interrupted his listening.

"You won this time, but I absolutely will not go easy on you at the national competition!"

Huh? What was with this sudden declaration of war?

Lu Shixian turned his head to find a tall, well-built boy standing right in front of him.

"Excuse me, who are you? Do I know you?" Lu Shixian generally didn't have a pleasant attitude towards troublemakers, with the exception of beautiful women, of course.

The boy opposite him didn't expect Lu Shixian to be so direct. He puffed out his broad chest and said, "You just need to remember that my name is Chen Kuangsheng. If our team captain hadn't withdrawn, you would have had no chance of getting first place."

Lu Shixian suddenly felt an absurd sense of being in a novel plot.

Did this person come with an intelligence-lowering debuff?

Was this really appropriate? Was he not using his brain?

What had he done to deserve an opponent like this?

Thinking this, Lu Shixian spoke to him in a pained tone, "First, we are not adversaries. If it weren't for the Biology Olympiad, I doubt our paths would have ever crossed."

"Second, whether I get first place or not is completely unimportant to me. All I need is a spot on the provincial team. You can consider me eighth place right now for all I care."

"Third, whether you go easy on me or not at the national competition makes no difference to me. I'm not just competing against you; I'm competing against contestants from dozens of regions across the country. Your presence or absence makes little difference, understand?"
Fourth, as students from the same province, even the same city, you'll be hometown folks when you get to university. As people from the same place, you should be thinking about how to stick together for support, not fighting amongst yourselves. Got it?

This barrage of soul-crushing questions from Lu Shixian sent Chen Kuangsheng's head spinning.

The fierce look he had just been putting on was now replaced by one of utter confusion. In the end, all he could do was slink back to where he came from.

The volunteer, a young woman who had watched the entire exchange from the side, couldn't help but twitch her lips.

"What was that? Did you just bamboozle him completely?"

Lu Shixian feigned ignorance. "How can you call what civilized people do 'bamboozling'? This is called enlightenment. Was there a single thing I said that was wrong?"

"Now that you mention it, it all seems to make sense," the young woman admitted, starting to get confused herself.

Lu Shixian spread his hands. "See? There you have it."

Just as they were talking, an announcement came from the main stage. "We now invite our honored guests to present the awards to the student representatives who won first prize in the league."

Hearing this, the volunteer quickly gestured for Lu Shixian to walk ahead.

And so, eight members of the provincial team, each in their respective school uniforms, walked onto the stage together.

Lu Shixian, alone in the blue uniform of No. 1 High, was sandwiched between the rows of students in the black uniforms of the Affiliated High School.

This, paradoxically, made him stand out even more, as if everyone else was there simply to make him shine.

Holding his certificate, Lu Shixian stood dazzlingly on stage and gave his impromptu acceptance speech.

"Hello, everyone! As a first-year high school student, I am both grateful and incredibly proud to have achieved this result. I want to thank my alma mater, Jinling No. 1 High School, for its tireless cultivation; my parents for their trust and encouragement; and my mentor, Mei Ting, for her immense help. I thank them from the bottom of my heart."

"It is often said that a seed can only grow with boundless vitality when it is deeply rooted in fertile soil; likewise, a student can only thrive and flourish in a vibrant atmosphere! I am immensely proud that from the very beginning of my life, I have been growing in the beautiful and fertile soil of Jinling. It is in such a wonderful environment that this brilliant splash of color was added to the canvas of my life."

"To live up to all this, I will transform my gratitude into action and give back to my school, my hometown, and my country. I wish for us all to find a home for our dreams, and to live our youth to the fullest."

The moment he finished, sincere and enthusiastic applause erupted from below the stage.

After all, who wouldn't like a child who was poised, articulate, academically gifted, and, most importantly, knew the value of gratitude and giving back?

That speech made many of the distinguished guests in attendance remember his name.

When he returned to his seat, the president of Jinling University made a decision on the spot: as long as Lu Shixian met the minimum score for top-tier universities in the Gaokao, he would have a place at Jinling University anytime.

To this, Lu Shixian could only express his thanks.

Next was the announcement of the outstanding mentor awards, and Mei Ting received a certificate shortly after he did.

But Lu Shixian noticed her expression was completely blank; she probably thought nothing of it.

Finally, after receiving his award, Lu Shixian first took photos with the various distinguished guests, followed by group photos with his mentor Mei Ting and the teachers from his school.

After the on-site signing of the provincial team agreements, the day's award ceremony came to a close.

Aside from Lu Shixian from Jinling No. 1 High, the other seven students from Jinling Affiliated High would also return to their school for classes. They wouldn't meet again until the provincial team training camp during the summer vacation in July.

Surrounded by his school's teachers, Lu Shixian returned laden with honors and was met with a warm welcome from his classmates.

While the other members of the provincial team might still be basking in the excitement and pride of their honors, Lu Shixian had no choice but to return once more to the busiest and most tranquil routine of studying.

Because the 2008 Gaokao was just around the corner.

In just over ten days, he would be competing fiercely with hundreds of thousands of students from across the province.

Perhaps aware of Lu Shixian's situation, no one disturbed him in these final ten-odd days.

Lu Shixian temporarily put the biology competition out of his mind and began to create a final sprint study plan for the Gaokao.

Anyone who knew Lu Shixian knew what came first.

Time for a set of past papers!

Practice with provincial exams for a thousand days, to use them on this one day.

If not now, when?

Based on the feedback from the practice tests, Chinese, Math, and English only required consolidation to maintain his current level.

He could temporarily ignore high school biology. Being the provincial champion of the Biology Olympiad granted him that kind of swagger.

The main focus was on Chemistry and Physics, where the goal was to play it safe.

There was no longer a need to conquer the final, most difficult problems.

During this time, he would commit all the fundamental knowledge to memory, reviewing it again and again.

The plan was to not lose a single point on the easy questions and to score as many points as possible on the capstone problems.

Chapter 82: The Gaokao Has Arrived on the Battlefield

It had to be said, with double provincial first-place gold medals in both the Math and Biology Olympiads, he could have easily coasted through the rest of his high school life and gotten into a top-tier university without any effort.

But alas, this was the path he had chosen, and he had to see it through, even if it meant crying.

Lu Shixian returned to the three-point routine of the cafeteria, the classroom, and the dormitory.

Perhaps at this stage, many people would be anxious, but in Lu Shixian's class, everyone was acting as if it were just another ordinary day.

They were all top students, confident in their abilities, so they felt no panic at all.

Slowly, banners began to appear on the campus of Jinling No. 1 High.

"Decisive Battle in the Gaokao, Change Your Destiny!"

"Sprint to the Finish, Seize the Laurel Crown; Fight with All Your Heart, Top the Honor Roll."

"Classmates Through Thick and Thin, the Struggle Starts Now; Twelve Years of Wind and Rain, Success or Failure Rests on This Year!"

As the countdown ticked down to single digits, the Gaokao drew ever closer.

Lu Shixian still made a call to his mom and dad, asking if they wanted to come and see him.

He had to. After this Gaokao, who knew if he would ever have the chance to take it again.

June arrived.

The school's leaders, teachers, and support staff became increasingly attentive to the graduating class.

At the same time, society as a whole grew more tolerant of this special group of students.

If one were to ask for the simplest way to change a person's destiny, the answer would undoubtedly be the Gaokao.

One extraordinary performance could benefit you for a lifetime.

At this point, with less than a week to go before the exam.

All the admission tickets for the graduating students had arrived, but they were kept by the homeroom teachers and would only be distributed on the morning of the exam to prevent any accidents.

Even the students of the Jinlin Class were no exception. The closer it got, the less Jinling No. 1 High dared to relax its vigilance.

Lu Shixian was probably the only student in the entire school to receive his admission ticket early.

His had been sent directly to him by Huazhong University of Science and Technology in May.

In the end, he chose to take the exam at the Jinling No. 1 High test center.

With two or three days left before the Gaokao, all the first and second-year students were sent on vacation to free up the examination halls for the graduates.

Before their break, all the students of Class 1, Year 1, gathered to cheer Lu Shixian on, hoping he would achieve a great score and bring honor to their class.

On June 5th, Chen Yiyi gave Lu Shixian a postcard with a sunflower printed on it.

On June 6th, Lu Jianguo and Xia Xiuman arrived at No. 1 High to support him during the exam period.

On June 7th, the good weather of the past few days continued. It was sunny and breezy, which seemed like a good omen.

By this time, Lu Shixian was fully buffed and charged onto the battlefield.

At nine in the morning sharp, the first enemy he encountered was Chinese.

Round One: Lu Shixian used the Taunt skill on it.

Lu Shixian's taunt was successful. The enemy general's information was revealed.

"Sections One, Two, and Three of this paper are multiple-choice questions. Sections Four, Five, Six, and Seven are non-multiple-choice questions."

Round Two: Chinese flew into a rage and sent out its minions, Basic Knowledge, to probe Lu Shixian's strength.

"In which of the following groups of words is the pronunciation of the underlined character entirely correct? ()"

a. 卓著(zhuo) 质量(zhi) 褒义词(bāo) 因噎废食(yē)
b. 比较（jiào） 恫吓（hè） 着重号(zhuo) 熠熠生辉(yi)
c. 处理(chu) 恪守(kè) 嘹望哨(liǎo) 刚愎自用(bi)
d. 供应(gong) 参与(yu) 骨子里(gu) 装聋作哑(long)

His eyes scanned ten lines at a glance. Lu Shixian quickly spotted the tricks in A, C, and D, and found the one true answer in less than five seconds.

The next few multiple-choice questions were also unable to stop Lu Shixian's slaughter.

He spent five minutes reading through the classical Chinese text in the final multiple-choice section.

The material came from an old acquaintance from their textbook, the man who had gifted everyone with "A Farewell to Ma Sheng of Dongyang."

The classical text was an excerpt from "A Record of the Longyuan Free School" by the famous late-Yuan, early-Ming writer Song Lian.

Having read it through, he saw through everything and easily dispatched the classical Chinese multiple-choice questions.

With that, the vanguard of cannon fodder from the Chinese section had been completely annihilated by Lu Shixian.

Now it was time for a real, blade-to-blade fight.

Translate sentences from "A Record of the Longyuan Free School"?

Was this not a freebie?

Next, analyze the poem "Immortal at the River" by the Song Dynasty writer Hou Meng?

Lu Shixian channeled his inner drama queen, imagining himself as Hou Meng and breaking through it with method acting.

Next question: Fill in the blanks in the poems?

"Alas for the falling and fading of grass and of trees..."
"See you not, my lord, the mirror in the high hall, grieving the white hair..."

Not bad. The effects of his painstaking memorization of famous lines and passages were showing.

The familiar answers surfaced in his mind naturally, and Lu Shixian cut them down one by one.

Then, Reading Comprehension sent out "Fog" by the master of Chinese studies, Ji Xianlin, in an attempt to confuse and muddle through.

But Lu Shixian paid it no mind. His discerning eyes saw through the trick, and he brought his greatsword down upon the head of Reading Comprehension.

It bled profusely, already heavily wounded, and had to summon Lu Xun's "Medicine" to heal itself.

But how could Lu Shixian not press his advantage at such a moment, striking while the iron was hot?

Finally, Lu Shixian arrived at the final stage.

The topic for the essay: "In a Gesture."

Lu Shixian gave the enemy's final general the respect it deserved, taking five minutes to think.

This topic was both easy and hard to write about. The gestures themselves were easy to describe, but the meaning behind them was difficult to articulate.

The key to cracking this topic was to see the big picture in small details.

So, he imbued his three main points with the most invincible weapons in the world: truth, goodness, and beauty.

The conclusion elevated the theme once more, its scope breaking through the heavens.

With that, the first subject, Chinese, had been conquered.

After a quick check, Lu Shixian turned in his paper at eleven o'clock and left.

As soon as he stepped out of the school gate, before he could even meet up with his parents, he was caught by a reporter who had been lying in wait.

"Hey there, you seem to be the first one out of the Jinling No. 1 High test center. As the first to rush out of the exam hall, how are you feeling right now?"

Lu Shixian never thought he'd be interviewed after the Gaokao one day. He casually dropped a line that sounded like a joke.

"I'm not feeling anything in particular. For me, the Gaokao is just another exam. Life goes on as usual."

This left the reporter completely stunned, watching him walk away in a daze.

He soon found his mom and dad. Neither of them asked about his performance. He was taking the Gaokao as a first-year student; they felt no pressure regardless of how he did.

Their only thought was to do their best to provide logistical support over these two days.

He rested for a bit in his dorm room.

At three in the afternoon, Lu Shixian began his second battle.

To be honest, the second subject, Mathematics, put much less pressure on him than Chinese did.

The easy questions were a given; anyone with hands could do them.

The medium-difficulty questions on the paper were like toddlers learning to speak.

Lu Shixian struck out with a heavy fist. That must have hurt, right?

Finally, he reached the long-answer section. The topics were distributed quite evenly, from derivatives to analytic geometry and finally to solid geometry.

Although the types of problems were somewhat similar to those in the Math Olympiad, the level of difficulty was worlds apart.

If the Olympiad had featured problems like these, he would have been laughing in his sleep.

Chapter 83: I'm Sorry! I'm Truly Powerless.

Lu Shixian looked at the first proof question.

"Given the function f(x) = a⋅e^−x + sinx, where a∈R and e is the base of the natural logarithm."

"(1) When a = 1, prove that for all x∈(−∞, 0], f(x) ≥ 1."

"(2) If the function f(x) has two local extrema on the interval (0, π), find the range of the real number a."

Lu Shixian glanced at the point value. Only 10 points? Was this a joke?

He didn't even need to work it out on scratch paper. For a problem like this, Lu Shixian could basically figure out the process through mental calculation.

It is easy to prove that f(x) is monotonically decreasing on (−∞, 0], therefore f(x) ≥ f(0) = 1.

Of course, he couldn't write it that way on the answer sheet.

It was a proof question, after all. His math teacher always said the process was important!

Lu Shixian was certain that if the first part wasn't attached to a long-answer question, it wouldn't even qualify as a fill-in-the-blank.

He then looked at the second part.

Alright, he had overestimated it. It wasn't much better than the first part.

It was actually a problem with a very simple line of reasoning; the question setter just had a twisted sense of humor and wanted you to write out a few extra steps.

Using the local extrema, you could deduce the intervals of monotonicity step by step.

Finally, you could use the intervals of monotonicity to prove the range of the real number a.

There wasn't much calculation involved, just writing out the reasoning.

That's it?

He couldn't help but sneak a peek at the final, capstone question.

Oh, come on!

The problem read: Let f(x) be a function defined on R (where a_i ∈ R, i=0,1,2,3,4). When x=−1, f(x) attains a local maximum, and the graph of the function y=f(x+1) is symmetric about the point (−1, 0).

(1) Find the expression for f(x).

(2) Find two points on the graph of f(x) such that the tangents at these two points are perpendicular to each other, and the x-coordinates of the points of tangency are both in the interval [−2, 0].

At that moment, Lu Shixian's heart sank.

What was he supposed to do?

Even the long-answer math questions were phoning it in and giving away points.

Lu Shixian suddenly felt a bit nostalgic for Grandmaster Ge. A Gaokao without experiencing Grandmaster Ge's questions was an incomplete Gaokao.

Half an hour later, Lu Shixian stared blankly at his completely filled answer sheet, suddenly feeling a sense of emptiness.

It was as if he had entered sage mode.

"I was once lost, disappointed, and had lost all direction, until I saw that being ordinary is the only answer."

Fine!

Let it all burn. I'm tired.

Of course, simple as it was, getting a perfect score was the real skill.

This wasn't like the graded scoring system in middle school; every single point was crucial.

Lu Shixian quickly adjusted his mindset and meticulously checked his work from top to bottom two or three times.

There seemed to be no problems.

When the time came, Lu Shixian left the exam hall half an hour early.

This time, Lu Shixian didn't walk so fast, planning to let the other students who finished early leave the school first.

Surely no one would ambush him on his way out this time, right?

But to his surprise, he didn't see many people along the way.

This was impossible!

He thought of the geniuses in the Jinlin Class. They couldn't still be working on it, could they?

They were going to wait until the very end?

Although he could understand the reasoning, that was just too passive!

And so, he looked at the microphone in front of him, on the verge of tears.

This time it was a different reporter, though he didn't know which media outlet she was from.

A reporter: "Young man, that was the math exam. Was it very difficult? Are there any questions you'd like to complain about?"

Lu Shixian scratched his head. How should he answer this?

Forget it, he wouldn't complain about the question setters. He could use this opportunity to give his school some publicity. Perfect.

So he said to the camera, "You see me walking out with my backpack on, shouldn't that tell you everything?"

"In the eyes of us Jinling No. 1 High students, there's probably no such thing as a difficult Gaokao paper."

"Anyone who knows about the Jinlin Class should be aware of this. To be honest, most of the people in there probably finished a long time ago. They just didn't dare to come out because they thought it might seem too rash."

"Staying for an extra half hour doesn't do anything. We just need to be the best version of ourselves in the limited time we have."

This statement left the reporter dumbfounded, but the parents behind her burst into laughter.

After returning to his dorm, Lu Shixian relaxed for a bit, then went to sleep to prepare for the next day's exams.

June 8th, nine o'clock sharp.

The love-it-or-hate-it Comprehensive Science (or Arts) exam began.

Of course, Lu Shixian was taking the science version. If it were the arts, it would have been a disaster.

Speaking of which, the 2008 Comprehensive Science exam was a bit unfair to biology.

Out of a total of 300 points, the exam covered three subjects: Physics, Chemistry, and Biology.

But Physics alone was worth 110 points, while Biology was only worth 90, not even meeting the 100-point average.

Lu Shixian was not pleased.

It wasn't that he could only score 90; it was that the paper only had 90 points to offer.

But he couldn't change the environment, so he could only change himself.

After writing his name, Lu Shixian went straight to the biology section.

One glance, and it was all child's play.

No matter what, he had to secure these 90 freebie points first.

In less than 20 minutes, Lu Shixian had conquered biology, taking everything it had to offer.

Next up, he decided to do physics.

Lu Shixian remembered losing a lot of points on a long-answer chemistry question last time. He held a grudge.

No rush. He'd let chemistry wait.

He looked at the physics section.

"Object A has a mass of 1kg and is placed on a horizontal surface. The coefficient of kinetic friction between the object and the surface is μ = 0.2. Starting from t = 0, the object slides to the right with a certain initial velocity v0 while simultaneously being subjected to a constant horizontal force F = 1N to the left. Which of the following graphs correctly represents the frictional force Ft acting on the object as a function of time? (Take the rightward direction as positive, g = 10m/s^2)"

Lu Shixian was too tired to complain. It seemed physics could never escape friction.

Ever since Newton's three laws were discovered, friction has been like a piece of sticky candy that you can't get rid of, appearing everywhere.

Fine, friction, friction, let's all rub together on this smooth floor.

In reality, once you understood the nature and types of friction, this question was no challenge at all.

Initially, the kinetic friction force is opposite to the direction of velocity, i.e., horizontally to the left. When the object's velocity decreases to zero, due to the constant force to the left, the object will be subjected to a static friction force to the right.

If the rightward direction is positive, then the force is first -2N, and then 1N.

Comparing this with the graphs, the answer was obvious. Lu Shixian filled in 'A' in the parentheses.

However, not all paths were this smooth. He finally met an obstacle.

It was the familiar uniform electromagnetic field and a U-shaped...

Alright, Lu Shixian chose to switch directly to the chemistry section.

After spending an hour and a half, Lu Shixian had carefully checked all the questions where he was guaranteed to get points.

Then, he checked for any issues in the areas where he could potentially score more points.

As for the questions he left blank, those were peaks he could not reach, heights he could not aspire to.

I'm sorry! I'm truly powerless.
Chapter 84: The Gaokao Ends, The Media Frenzy

Since he had done all he could, there was no point in staying any longer.

Staying until the end wouldn't add a single point to his science composite score.

He waited with a clear conscience until the earliest possible time to turn in his paper, then left the examination hall.

When he got out, he unexpectedly ran into the same reporter from the afternoon.

This guy was quite the stakeout artist; it was a shame he wasn't a paparazzi.

Seeing him emerge, the reporter wasn't upset in the slightest; instead, he grew even more excited.

What does the news need? Attention!

From what he had observed, this student had been the first to leave the exam hall three times in a row.

That meant there were only two explanations: either he was truly brilliant, or he was just a grandstanding clown.

Either way, it was the kind of news the public loved to see.

If this wasn't a hot topic, what was?

And so, he approached with far more enthusiasm than the day before.

“Hello there, we meet again. What a coincidence!”

Lu Shixian had already resigned himself to his fate. He asked with perfect composure, “If you were a girl, I might actually believe that.”

“So, what do you want to ask this time?”

The reporter was momentarily speechless, thinking to himself that this kid was truly interesting.

But he stuck to his pre-written questions. “So, how do you feel you did on the science composite exam?”

Seeing that the reporter wasn't asking any malicious, baiting questions, Lu Shixian decided to answer him properly.

He recalled leaving a considerable number of blanks on the paper, which would probably cost him quite a few points.

With that in mind, Lu Shixian replied, “Well, it'll be in the triple digits, at least. Probably not amazing, but not terrible either. For me, it's good enough.”

This answer once again left his reporter friend stunned.

Since when was “good enough” a thing for exams?

Isn't it always the higher, the better?

In truth, there was nothing wrong with Lu Shixian's statement.

His exam admission ticket had been issued by the University of Science and Technology of China.

His Gaokao score was only relevant for getting into their Special Class for the Gifted Young. Even with a perfect score, he couldn't get into Peking or Tsinghua University.

Not that he could reach that level anyway.

After having lunch with his parents, Lu Shixian soon faced his final exam: English.

To be honest, Lu Shixian planned to vent all the frustration he'd built up from the physics and chemistry sections right here.

“Heh, the biggest mistake the Gaokao ever made was not including an oral English component.”

Head held high, Lu Shixian was determined to win this round.

He had only one goal: a perfect score.

Not even Jesus could stop him, and he'd be the one to say it.

The only section that could make him spend thirty minutes on a single major question was the English listening comprehension.

For that alone, it had earned its right to be proud.

The cloze test was no sweat at all.

The reading comprehension was a joke.

The vocabulary section was child's play.

Only the essay required a little bit of attention.

After all, the memory of once being tripped up by a curveball and failing spectacularly was still fresh in his mind.

Who could possibly stop him this time?

He looked at the prompt: Assume you are Li Hua. Your friend Peter from Jili Country has written to you asking for advice on how to learn Chinese well. Please write a reply based on the following points.

Points: 1. Attend a Chinese language class; 2. Read Chinese books, periodicals, and watch TV; 3. Learn to sing and dance; 4. Make Chinese friends.

What was that saying again? For math, you look for Xiao Ming; for English, you ask for Hua-zi; and for law, you study Zhang San.

Lu Shixian had lost count of how many letters he had written for Li Hua, who seemed to be either a networking agent or an immigration consultant.

Though he himself wasn't qualified, he hoped the people he'd written for were doing alright now.

Compared to those, learning Chinese was one of the more harmless requests.

Lu Shixian summoned his literary flair, elevated his style slightly, and stopped holding back so much of his true ability.

He was just one step away from finishing it in a single, fluid motion, the only reason for the pause being that he almost wrote the third point as learning to sing, dance, and rap.

It wasn't intentional; the prompt was just that tempting.

After finishing the essay, Lu Shixian carefully checked his work a couple of times.

Finally, he put down his pen, turned in his paper, and left.

When he got outside, he found that many other students were already sprinting away from the school.

Huh? The math exam was that easy and they didn't leave early?

Does my English exam not deserve the same respect?

But this was good too. He wouldn't have to engage in a battle of wits with his reporter friend.

Even though reporters from various media outlets were currently armed with cameras and long lenses, with some even specifically looking for him, Lu Shixian had already blended into the crowd and made his escape.

Even from a good distance away, he could still hear the roars from behind him.

Words that had been suppressed for so long were finally unleashed in this moment.

“I'm finally free!”

“Dance crew, looking for seven!”

“Cai Raorao, I have a crush on you!”

Lu Shixian didn't know what to say. It seemed these people had been holding it in for a long, long time and were now letting their true selves fly.

In any case, he couldn't bring himself to do something like that anymore.

If he got filmed, it could become a black mark on his record for life.

It wouldn't matter if he remained unknown, but if he became famous, having that footage resurface would be like digging up a corpse just to whip it again.

After leaving, he quickly met up with his parents, who asked him about his plans for the near future.

Lu Shixian thought for a moment and discovered a bitter truth.

For third-year high school students, once the Gaokao was over, assuming they weren't planning to retake it, they were effectively graduated.

Starting tomorrow was a three-month-long vacation. If you did reasonably well, it was arguably the most carefree period of your academic life.

But the key issue was that he wasn't a real graduate. He was just going to the Jinlin Class to witness the brilliance of the titans there.

In reality, he was still a student of Class One, Grade Ten!

The tenth and eleventh graders weren't on summer break yet. When the Gaokao ended, it was time for them to return to school and continue their studies.

Tears almost welled up in Lu Shixian's eyes at this realization. So, he was the most hardworking laborer of them all, with not a single day off.

But he quickly consoled himself: A vacation? What vacation? Only people useless to the country take vacations. As a future pillar of the nation like myself, how could I possibly take a break?

And so, on June 9th, Lu Shixian returned to his life as a tenth grader.

Back in Class One, nearly every classmate who saw him asked how he did on the exam.

At first, Lu Shixian answered quite seriously. Based on his own estimates, his score should be fine for the C9 League, and passable for the 985 Project universities.

But after several days, students from other grades started asking, and Lu Shixian was tormented to no end.

He ended up hiding in the classroom for a few days without going out, and only then did the matter slowly die down.

In truth, even though he was back in tenth grade, no one treated him like a tenth-grade student anymore.

Frankly, he was just one acceptance letter away from university.

Lu Shixian's seat had long been moved to the back row.

The teachers of Class One had already started to automatically ignore him, letting him do whatever he pleased.

Meanwhile, in the outside world, the days following the end of the Gaokao were a constant buzz of activity.

During this period, no hot topic could compete with the Gaokao. Even the entertainment industry had to avoid activities during this time and would even try to ride on its coattails.

And naturally, the Gaokao essay prompts were the hottest of the hot topics.

There was a funny joke about it: Why does everyone only discuss the essay after the Gaokao? It's not like Chinese is the only subject tested. Why doesn't anyone talk about the others?

Chapter 85: Nowhere to Shelter from the Rain?

Someone gave a brilliant reply: Because we don't understand the other subjects! The essay is the only thing we can chime in on.

And indeed, that's how it began. Newspapers, the internet, and casual conversations were all focused on the topic of "a simple gesture."

But the appearance of a news video immediately relegated "a simple gesture" from the leading role to a supporting one.

On this day, a video was broadcast on the local channel of countless televisions in Jinling.

In less than a day, it exploded in popularity throughout the city and began to spread like wildfire from Jinling outwards.

The video's title was unremarkable: The First Student to Leave the Exam Hall: Calm, Composed, and Down-to-Earth in His Responses.

On the screen, a handsome young man, his face still bearing a trace of boyishness, was being interviewed.

The background was the main gate of Jinling No. 1 High School.

Reporter: You were the first to rush out of the exam hall. What are you feeling right now?

Youth: Nothing in particular. The Gaokao is just an exam. Life goes on.

Reporter: Was the math exam very difficult? Are there any questions you'd like to complain about?

Youth: In the eyes of a Jinling No. 1 High student, no Gaokao paper is difficult. To be honest, most people were probably done long ago but didn't come out because they were nervous. Staying for an extra half hour is useless. You have to be the best version of yourself in the limited time you have.

Reporter: How did you do on the science composite?

Youth: Triple digits. Probably not amazing, but not terrible either. It's good enough.

Individually, the clips were fine. But when three videos from different times were edited together into one segment, the effect was extraordinary.

It was one thing when it aired on television, but when it was reposted online, things got a little out of hand.

That night, countless netizens left comments and complaints on Renren and Kaixin.

“Down-to-earth my ass!”

“Quick question, what kind of school is Jinling No. 1 High?”

“So composed indeed. A truly down-to-earth aura emanates from his every gesture.”

“Scores don't have to be high, as long as they're good enough!”

At first, the comments were relatively normal and friendly. After all, the internet was just starting to become popular, and smartphones were not yet widespread.

Keyboard warriors and online trolls had not yet come into their own.

But with the appearance of a certain article, the tide slowly began to turn.

The Jinling Business Daily published a signed article titled: Hothousing Talent for What? A Young Prodigy or a Grandstanding Clown?

After brewing for just a few days, the article directly triggered a wave of dislike for Lu Shixian among many people, and even dissatisfaction with the school's inaction.

The online outcry against Jinling No. 1 High grew louder and louder.

This time, the school couldn't sit still. They quickly summoned Lu Shixian to inquire about the situation.

In a small conference room, several school leaders were present.

On the conference table lay several copies of the latest Jinling Business Daily.

“Lu Shixian, the main reason we've called you here today is to understand the situation regarding your Gaokao,” Qian Zhengguo said, getting straight to the point.

This left Lu Shixian a bit bewildered.

It had only been a few days.

Were they already asking about his results?

Besides, his Gaokao score wasn't going to be particularly high, and he couldn't use it to apply for university through the standard process. It didn't seem to hold much significance for the school.

Seeing his expression, Qian Zhengguo seemed to understand his thoughts and pointed to the newspaper on the table. “Take a look at this, and you'll understand.”

Lu Shixian picked up the newspaper, and his eyebrows shot up.

“Lu Shixian, a tenth-grade student at Jinling No. 1 High, was able to skip directly to the twelfth grade to study after just finishing his first semester. He then participated in the Gaokao two years early this June, leaving the exam hall thirty minutes early each time. From this, one can infer the nature of his character.”

The subtext was clear: he couldn't possibly get a good score, and everything he did was for attention, a sign of a crooked mind.

Then, the author's tone shifted.

“This situation deeply reflects the school's lack of rigor in relevant oversight and its disregard for the healthy development of its students. Accelerated education is not only detrimental to a student's physical and mental health and the cultivation of their personality and emotional intelligence—leading to issues like an inability to care for oneself, poor social skills, and arrogance…”

“Moreover, this practice not only goes against the laws of a student's physical and mental development but also violates the laws of nature.”

“So-called 'accelerated education,' while claiming to produce talent quickly and early, is in fact a case of killing the goose that lays the golden eggs—a misguided approach and a pitfall in youth education.”

Lu Shixian glanced at the author's name at the end and immediately understood everything.

To the surprise of the others, Lu Shixian remained perfectly calm throughout and even offered a few words of praise.

“It's very well-written. I just hope he doesn't write another one.”

“It has substance, strong arguments, and is highly inflammatory. A truly rare model of argumentative writing.”

Watching his performance, a few of the school leaders were baffled. This didn't seem like the right time to be complimenting the opposition.

Cai Mingyuan, sitting at the head of the table, actually smiled and casually put down the newspaper in his hand.

“Lu Shixian is right. This isn't a press release; it's a model of argumentative writing.”

At that moment, Qian Zhengguo spoke with considerable worry. “According to our investigation over the past few days, this Dong Biyan is the director of the admissions office at the High School Affiliated to Jinling University.”

“It's possible that he still harbors resentment from last year's middle school entrance exams, when our admissions officer, Xiao Sun, poached some of his targets.”

“Or perhaps he's using this as an opportunity to leverage the current controversy surrounding accelerated education to damage our school's reputation.”

Hearing Qian Zhengguo's detailed analysis, Vice Principal Yang Yijin sighed in frustration. “Killing two birds with one stone. This is a hostile move. The public debate over accelerated education is already heated. What are we going to do?”

“For some reason, the official media outlets like the Jinling Evening News haven't published any news about Lu Shixian, which is the only good news we have so far.”

At this, Qian Zhengguo glanced at Lu Shixian but said nothing.

While everyone in the room, except for the composed Cai Mingyuan and Lu Shixian, was wringing their hands and racking their brains for a solution, Cai Mingyuan suddenly put on his reading glasses.

“Why has everyone gone silent?”

“Are you all stumped by such a small matter?”

“Jinling No. 1 High has weathered a century of storms. After all these years, are you telling me we can't even protect one of our own students?”

“A mere drizzle, and yet under the trees of our academy, is there truly no place to shelter from the rain?”

As soon as Cai Mingyuan spoke these words, a sense of shame filled the conference room.

“Principal Cai, we were just waiting for you to teach us a lesson! We won't have the chance once you've retired!” Qian Zhengguo's remark instantly made everyone in the room laugh.

Cai Mingyuan couldn't help but chuckle as well. He took a sip of his tea and said, “As the saying goes, in literature there is no first, in combat there is no second.”

“The fact that there's a controversy means this issue has both its downsides and its benefits.”

“He's writing argumentative essays to reason with us, so why can't we reason right back at him?”

“We're all educated people. When it comes to a battle of the pens, who's afraid of whom?”

Chapter 86: I Can't Sleep at My Age

When the old principal made his move, the effect was extraordinary.

The conference room, which had been as still as stagnant water just moments before, was instantly revitalized.

“Principal Cai really has a way with things!”

“Indeed, give him a taste of his own medicine.”

Yang Yijin was so eager he looked ready to make a decision on the spot.

“Should I have the office write a targeted article right away and have Xiao Sun from the admissions office publish it under his name?”

But at this moment, Qian Zhengguo frowned. He looked at the nodding heads around him and finally fixed his gaze on Cai Mingyuan.

“While this approach seems like the best response, there is one problem.”

“The problem is, without a decisive advantage, we could easily get bogged down in an endless debate.”

“He who hesitates is lost. If we constantly appear in the media like a bickering shrew, it will only damage our school's image. We'll create a new problem before the old one is solved. The loss outweighs the gain.”

Qian Zhengguo didn't hold back, directly stating the concerns on his mind.

His words plunged the conference room back into heated discussion.

Finally, the impatient Yang Yijin couldn't take it anymore.

“This won't work, that won't work, so what are we supposed to do?”

“Exactly! Why don't we try the plan we just discussed first, and if it doesn't work, we can reconsider,” other members of the leadership team chimed in.

Just then, Qian Zhengguo once again glanced at Cai Mingyuan.

“Principal Cai, since you proposed this method, you must be aware of its potential problems. I'm sure you already have a brilliant plan in mind, don't you?”

Hearing this, Cai Mingyuan shook his head helplessly. “You people, always focused on your own little patch of land, never looking outside.”

“Since we're at a stalemate, we should borrow momentum and use their own force against them. I wonder if any of you have paid attention to the news from late March this year. At the 30th-anniversary celebration of USTC's Special Class for the Gifted Young, the Innovative Experimental Zone for Interdisciplinary Talent Cultivation was officially inaugurated.”

Cai Mingyuan didn't say more, but nearly everyone present understood.

This meant that the model of accelerated education had already received preliminary approval from the higher-ups.

With that as a premise, the central argument of Dong Biyan's article no longer held water; it became water without a source, a tree without roots.

Some people are excellent in every aspect, with all the right conditions, yet they often fall short at the final hurdle, unable to achieve true success.

Short-sightedness is their greatest enemy. If one can step outside the box to view the problem, one can achieve the effect of using four ounces to move a thousand pounds.

By this point, the entire school leadership had reached a consensus.

All eyes suddenly focused on Lu Shixian.

“Student Lu, do you think your Gaokao score is good enough to get you into the second-round exam for USTC?” Qian Zhengguo asked, having received a signal from the others.

Lu Shixian had been a bystander this whole time, and he was surprised to find the spotlight suddenly on him.

He thought for a moment, weighing all the factors, and then spoke. “Let's put it this way: barring any accidents, my chances of getting into the second round aren't 100%, but they're at least 99%.”

“However, I'm not sure about my chances of passing the second round.”

Hearing Lu Shixian's answer, the decision was made on the spot, concluding the hours-long meeting.

“We'll proceed with this plan.”

Lu Shixian walked back, deep in thought, having already guessed what was coming.

If he could, he really wished he hadn't understood so quickly.

He just wanted to simply conduct academic research, to be a scientific worker who stayed out of worldly disputes.

Unfortunately, not just now, but also in the not-so-distant future, it was incredibly difficult for a pure researcher to achieve anything significant in the current social environment.

This mechanism where "bad money drives out good" would only lead to more and more people who were keen on grandstanding and networking.

The true, pragmatic, and pioneering "master craftsmen of a great nation" would become increasingly rare.

Therefore, we still have a long way to go.

And so, two weeks passed.

Lu Shixian was suddenly called to Jiang Yunkun's office again.

“Not bad, you're taking it pretty well!” Jiang Yunkun said, unable to resist a bit of teasing when he saw that Lu Shixian was in good spirits.

Lu Shixian knew he was talking about the storm of controversy brewing outside.

He waved his hand dismissively. “They've never met me, never known me. If they want to curse me out, let them. It's not like I'll lose any weight over it.”

Jiang Yunkun had to admire Lu Shixian's mental fortitude. Based on his recent observations, however, he asked with some confusion.

“You've already finished the Gaokao, so why are you still reading physics review books? You should be preparing for the National Biology Olympiad right now!”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian felt a sense of helplessness.

“The training camp for the Bio Olympiad is next month anyway, so it's not too late to review then.”

“But the second-round exam for the Special Class only tests math and physics. Math is fine, but if I don't start reviewing physics now, it'll be too late.”
"Can anyone tell me what I'm supposed to do?" Lu Shixian was at his wit's end.

Hearing Lu Shixian's complaint, Jiang Yunkun couldn't help but feel a renewed sense of admiration for him.

This kid was just too strict with himself.

He was treating himself like a machine, working nonstop. Jiang Yunkun couldn't help but try to console him.

"Honestly, I don't think you need to be in such a hurry. Your best time to shine will be in your second year."

"Your foundation is already much stronger than most first-year high school students. With this time, you'd be better off going home to rest."

Lu Shixian spread his hands in helpless exasperation.

"How am I supposed to sleep?"

"At my age, at this stage of my life, sleep is the last thing on my mind!"

"I still need to make something of myself."

Jiang Yunkun was speechless.

Seeing Lu Shixian looking like he was constantly pumped full of adrenaline, he decided not to press the issue.

Any more of this and he felt he'd be the one going crazy.

It was the first time in his entire teaching career that he had to tell a student to stop studying and go to sleep.

He suddenly felt a bit foolish himself.

"Alright, alright. Today's the day to check the Gaokao scores. It'd be inconvenient for you to use the computer lab, so I figured I'd just check them for you here in my office." Jiang Yunkun finally revealed the real reason he had summoned him.

Hearing this, Lu Shixian felt a sudden urge to laugh. He knew the school was anxious to find out his score.

In truth, the school was usually the first to know the results, as the teachers had all the students' admission ticket numbers.

Lu Shixian was the exception, as his admission ticket was issued by Huake University.

That meant the graduating class's scores were also out.

At this thought, he couldn't help but ask curiously, "Mr. Jiang, are all their scores out? How did the Jinlin Class do?"

Jiang Yunkun shook his head. "The province just opened the portal for checking scores. The school is still compiling the statistics, so I don't know the details yet. But for now, the highest score in our school should be Zhou Wenwu with 717 points."

Lu Shixian was rendered speechless, marveling at the terrifying power of a true academic titan.

It seemed a slacker like him with unbalanced subjects could only ever hope to look up to them from afar.

"Isn't that a top scorer's score?" Lu Shixian asked, a hint of envy in his voice.

Unexpectedly, Jiang Yunkun's response was pessimistic.

"The school has already analyzed it. The math section of the Gaokao was generally easier this year, which puts him at a disadvantage. In previous years, this score would have been a sure thing, but this year, it's not so certain."

Don't be a fool and ask why a reincarnator like him wouldn't know who the top scorer of the Gaokao was.

After so many years, who would remember the name and score of the top scorer from two years before their time?

Chapter 87: The Tide of Public Opinion is Reversed

It was hard enough just remembering your own score; on that point, he considered himself much better than most.

Hearing Jiang Yunkun's words, Lu Shixian couldn't help but sigh internally, feeling dejected.

It seemed he really was a disgrace to all reincarnators. As one of them, he was utterly pathetic.

Other reincarnators started their new lives with a cute and sweet school belle and the core data for a photolithography machine.

They would casually control their scores to hide their true strength, then effortlessly ace the Gaokao to become the nation's only top scorer with a perfect raw score.

Or they would participate in every single subject competition, ignoring the constraints of time and space, dominating domestically and remaining unbeatable internationally, winning countless gold medals.

And then there was him. He had already poured an unknown amount of painstaking effort into just one subject, the Biology Olympiad, to say nothing of the Gaokao.

At this thought, tears of envy were already streaming down Lu Shixian's face.

Just then, Jiang Yunkun opened the Gaokao score-checking webpage and gestured for Lu Shixian to begin his performance.

Lu Shixian sighed softly, typing in his admission ticket number. "Getting into the preliminary round for the Junior Class shouldn't be a problem. What's there to check? Compared to the top students in the Jinlin Class, my score is nothing, right?"

"This year's Gaokao was relatively easy. No need to check, I can already estimate my score. It should be around 680."

Jiang Yunkun couldn't help but be struck by his unintentional humblebrag.

He glanced at him and smiled. "You should be content, kid! Others can only dream of getting a score like that."

"No wonder Principal Qian was asking me about your score. Even the people from the Publicity Department told me to report your score to them as soon as I found it. That's another teaching metric fulfilled."

At that moment, the results finally loaded on the webpage.

Both of their gazes converged on the screen.

Chinese: 140
Mathematics: 150
English: 150
Science Comprehensive: 246
Total Score: 686, Provincial Rank: 368.

Seeing the result, Jiang Yunkun's eyes lit up with joy. "Six points higher than you guessed! With this ranking, you could get into any of Huake University's flagship programs just by applying directly."

Thinking of this, he felt a twinge of regret for Lu Shixian.

"What a pity, what a pity!"

"If your student registration had been moved to the third year, with this score plus the points reduction from the Math Olympiad, you could have gotten into the best programs at Shanghai Jiao Tong or Fudan."

Lu Shixian remained silent.

Was it really a pity?

In his heart, he didn't feel a shred of regret.

If, in this life, he didn't even have the courage to try for Peking University or Tsinghua University, he would truly regret it for the rest of his life.

Even if he performed poorly in the Biology Olympiad and ultimately failed, he still had the Junior Class at Huake University as a safety net. He could still attend a top-tier university before his second year of high school was over.

Although Huake University wasn't ranked as highly as Peking or Tsinghua, its academic and research capabilities were by no means inferior.

Perhaps he would even have the chance to become the junior of Harvard's youngest full professor.

And the senior of that famous "Graphene Master" from his previous life.

Thinking about it, that didn't sound too bad either.

And so, his determination to grind physics grew even stronger.

Jiang Yunkun watched as Lu Shixian, suddenly filled with passion again, walked away, feeling utterly bewildered.

"I have no idea what's gotten into that kid now."

"But perhaps that's the reason he can keep moving relentlessly toward his goals!"

June 22, 2008.

Sunday.

The campus of No. 1 High School, which should have been quiet, was bustling with noise and excitement.

Because the second Gaokao of 2008 had arrived.

That is, filling out university applications.

At the same time, a large Gaokao achievement bulletin had been erected at the school gate.

Every student and parent passing by could see it clearly.

Lu Shixian had just finished his morning workout and decided to join the crowd. After all, he had fought and participated in it.

He squeezed through the crowd and got a closer look.

"Glorious June Results from the Century-Old No. 1 High School; Frequent Tidings of Success from the Famed Jinling Institution."

"Jinling No. 1 High School, 2008: Total number of examinees: 1364 (including 1 first-year student). Number meeting Tier 1 university admission score: 664 (including 1 first-year student). Number meeting undergraduate admission score: 1182."

"Highest Science Score: 717 (3rd in the province). Highest Liberal Arts Score: 667 (1st in the city). Number of Science students with scores above 680: 25 (including 1 first-year student)..."

Reading this, Lu Shixian covered his face. Who the hell wrote this bulletin? Could they stop with all the parenthetical explanations!

He could already hear the surrounding parents pointing and murmuring.

"How come there's a first-year kid?"

"Could this be that grade-skipper everyone's been talking about?"

"To get over 680 as a first-year... this student must really be something!"

"You're right. Maybe we misunderstood this kid."

Lu Shixian was no longer in the mood to read the rest of the bulletin.

The parents might not recognize him, but the graduating students with them were another story.

If he was recognized, there would be no escape.

After a quick scan of the remaining content, Lu Shixian quickly made his exit.

However, what he didn't know was that with the release of the Gaokao scores, the first thing to go viral wasn't who the year's top scorer was, or what the highest scores in science and liberal arts were.

Instead, it was a copy of Lu Shixian's score report, which had been "accidentally" leaked from some unknown source.

The impact of this 686-point score report, paired with the youthful face next to it, was undeniably immense.

Shortly after, an article titled "How Top-Tier Innovative Talents Can Break the Shackles of Exam-Oriented Education—Advanced Education Must Both Gaze at the Stars and Keep Its Feet on the Ground" was published on the front page of the Jinling Evening News.

The article began by posing two questions that stung countless Chinese people: "Why do our schools always fail to cultivate outstanding talents?"

"Why has China been repeatedly overlooked for the Nobel Prize?"

After an in-depth analysis of exam-oriented education, the article pivoted: "Perhaps advanced education is one way to break the shackles of exam-oriented education."

"This March, during the 30th-anniversary celebration of Huake University's Junior Class, the Innovative Experimental Zone for Interdisciplinary Talent Cultivation was officially established. The Junior Class pioneered a training program that tailors education to individual aptitude and respects personalized development."

"Children cultivated through advanced education should be idealistic, possess a great sense of responsibility, and become advocates for social progress, leaders in various fields, and drivers of their era."

"Allocating more educational resources to cultivate elite talents does not imply some so-called privilege, but rather means shouldering more responsibility and duty than ordinary people."

Once this article was published, it immediately swept through all print media. At the same time, other traditional media outlets also began to voice their support for advanced education.

Any local state-run media outlet with half a brain could easily see that the innovative experimental zone was a sign of a new direction.

And following the prevailing winds was the foundation of their survival.

Dong Biyan, who had been so arrogant before, was completely dumbfounded.

They weren't playing fair! This was like using an anti-aircraft cannon to shoot a mosquito; it was a battle on a completely different level.

Even his standard-bearers had tucked their tails and fled. The natural result was a resounding victory for Jinling No. 1 High School.

The ground they had previously gained was reversed in an instant!

Chapter 88: No. 1 High Offered More

As the matter continued to ferment, more and more details about Lu Shixian were uncovered.

The inspirational comeback story of an ordinary person was often the easiest to circulate and go viral.

A student from a rural background who, through sheer effort, became the top scorer of the Jinling high school entrance exam.

Then, in less than a year, he won first prize in both the Math and Biology Olympiads, even making the provincial team for the latter to compete against participants from all over the country at the national level.

Most miraculously, as a first-year high school student, he was able to skip to the third year to take the Gaokao and achieve an excellent score of over 680.

With that score, he could essentially pick and choose from any university except for a select few like Peking and Tsinghua.

If becoming the top scorer of the entrance exam had caused ripples in Jinling, then this was like making a massive splash. He was now seen as a prodigy, the quintessential "other people's kid."

Things were fine at school. Although the students there recognized him, they would at most spare him a few glances without doing anything else.

But now, if he were to walk outside, he would most likely be recognized and draw a crowd, getting a taste of what it felt like to be a celebrity.

However, by staying on campus, he avoided these troubles.

He remained clear-headed, knowing that his current achievements were nothing.

Compared to the goals he had set for himself, there was still much more to be done.

A few days later, after the university applications were submitted, the graduation ceremony for the third-year students began.

As a former member of the Jinlin Class, Lu Shixian was naturally invited.

After the ceremony, the entire third-year Jinlin Class took a group photo at the school gate.

As the youngest member, Lu Shixian was specially placed in the front row.

After the photo, they gathered in their classroom for the last time, all together, and for the first time, they chatted with such ease.

From what he had gathered that day, Lu Shixian now had a detailed understanding of the Jinlin Class's Gaokao performance.

Excluding him, of the fifteen students in the class, five had applied to Peking University and seven to Tsinghua. The remaining three, even if they hadn't performed their best, could still get into the flagship programs of other C9 League universities.

When Lu Shixian first heard this news, he drew a sharp breath.

It was terrifyingly impressive, plus ultra!

Before they departed, the titans of the Jinlin Class, led by Zhou Wenwu, extended a sincere invitation to him.

"Lu Shixian, keep it up! We hope to see you in Beijing next year. We'll get together and catch up then."

Lu Shixian nodded gravely, understanding their meaning.

Being around such outstanding people really did pile on the pressure.

But instead of being afraid, Lu Shixian was filled with passion.

Soon, the scorching days of July arrived.

The third-year students had graduated, and the first and second-year students had begun their joyous summer vacation.

But Lu Shixian had no chance to enjoy it.

He had already received the training camp notification from the Jiangsu Provincial Biology Olympiad Committee.

The eight provincial team members who had excelled in the last league, as well as the first-prize gold medal winners who aspired to compete in the next national Biology Olympiad, were all eligible to sign up.

Unlike math and physics, third-year students were not allowed to participate in the Biology Olympiad.

This meant only first-year students who had won a provincial first prize this year could participate.

Due to these restrictions, the number of participants was much smaller than in other Olympiads.

The training camp was ultimately located at the School of Life Sciences at Jinling University.

Lu Shixian had expected this. After all, the minority had to yield to the majority; he understood.

Jinling University's School of Life Sciences was the foremost institution representing biological research and education in all of Jiangsu.

Aside from essential daily necessities and study materials, Lu Shixian didn't bring a single book, traveling light.

If the training camp was just going to cover knowledge he could find in his books, there would be no point in attending.

Since he had little to carry and everything fit in one backpack, Lu Shixian declined the school's offer of a dedicated car.

Conserving public resources starts with me!

According to the arrangements, the members of the provincial training camp were assigned to three vacant four-person student dormitories.

He wasn't quite used to this idea. He was someone who really disliked it when people snored while he was trying to sleep.

In his past life, as a relatively successful employee at his university, it wasn't hard for him to secure a single dorm room for himself.

Even when he traveled, he would just book a hotel room for convenience.

And now he had to live in a four-person dorm. The thought gave Lu Shixian a headache.

He couldn't help but sigh at the old saying: it's easy to go from frugal to lavish, but hard to go from lavish to frugal.

It was only for seven days. He could endure it.

If he couldn't overcome a small difficulty like this, how could he achieve great things in the future?

Lu Shixian kept giving himself a mental pep talk.

When he arrived at his assigned dorm room, someone was already there, tidying up.

He peeked inside and saw a familiar face.

Wasn't that Chen Kuangsheng, the guy who had wanted to declare war on him before?

As if sensing someone had entered, the people in the room subconsciously looked toward the door.

A hint of awkwardness appeared in their eyes.

Lu Shixian saw it all, but there was nothing he could do.

He was a lone wolf, unlike them, who all came from the same school and the same Olympiad class.

He didn't mind, though, and made his way to the last empty bed.

Seeing him come in, perhaps because their last conversation had been effective, or for some other reason, Chen Kuangsheng took the initiative to speak.

"You're here early. It's almost time for dinner. After we eat at the cafeteria, we have to gather at the School of Life Sciences."

Lu Shixian looked helpless and retorted, "You think I'm like you guys, where it only takes a few minutes to walk over from the Affiliated High School?"

Hearing this, Chen Kuangsheng asked with some confusion, "Lu Shixian, I've been reading the news about you recently. You were last year's top scorer in the high school entrance exam. Why didn't you end up at Jinling Affiliated High?"

As soon as he asked this, the others in the room stopped what they were doing, their interest piqued, and joined the conversation.

"Yeah, if you had come to our school, No. 1 High wouldn't have stood a chance in this year's Biology Olympiad."

"If you're interested in biology, coming to our school would have been the best choice. You might have even had the chance to be taught by Academician Peng himself. If he took a liking to you, that would be incredible."

Lu Shixian knew this, of course, but looking back now, he had no regrets. His previous choice had been extremely wise.

The level of support Jinling No. 1 High School gave him was definitely greater than what the Affiliated High School would have offered. Plus, he was very comfortable with the school-wide learning atmosphere at No. 1 High.

But he couldn't say any of that, so he just gave a simple, direct answer. "Isn't it obvious? My family doesn't own a mine. No. 1 High offered more!"

Chapter 89: No! You Want to Be the Captain

At his words, the three others in the dorm exchanged glances and accepted his explanation.

Alright, that was a powerful reason.

They had all heard a little about Lu Shixian's family background, so they didn't doubt his words. They could only blame their bad luck for running into him in this Olympiad.

Because of this, however, the relationship between them warmed up a bit, saving them from an entire trip of cold, silent treatment.

At 5:30 PM, the four of them went to the Jinling University cafeteria for dinner.

In his past life, Lu Shixian had been to Jinling University many times for various events, so it felt like revisiting an old haunt.

Soon, the four of them arrived at a common classroom in the School of Life Sciences.

There, he saw the few remaining participants of the training camp.

No wonder they needed three dorm rooms. It turned out there were two girls, who were lucky enough to enjoy a two-person room.

There were ten people in the training team in total. Besides the eight from the provincial team, there were indeed two first-year kids from other cities and districts. One was named Zhang Yicheng, and the other was Wang Dongxiang.

Seeing Lu Shixian, the two of them seemed very excited, looking at him as if they were meeting their idol.

Lu Shixian, naturally, greeted them warmly like a big brother, completely forgetting that he was also a first-year student.

At exactly 7:00 PM, a young man who looked to be around thirty walked up to the podium.

He gently tapped the lectern.

"Everyone, please quiet down. My name is Liu Xianhua, and I'll be your head teacher for this seven-day training camp. You can just call me Mr. Liu."

"I've gathered you all here tonight mainly to go over the schedule for the next seven days. I hope that you will all study hard, cooperate with us, and strive to achieve excellent results in the national competition in August."

After he finished speaking, the air was suddenly a bit quiet.

Lu Shixian glanced around and noticed that everyone was quiet, with no reaction.

Why isn't anyone responding? You could at least make a token effort!

So, he took the lead and started clapping.

Following Lu Shixian's example, the others awkwardly followed suit.

In the end, a sparse round of applause finally filled the classroom.
Liu Xianhua glanced at Lu Shixian with great interest and suddenly spoke. "You must be Lu Shixian, the one who took first place in the league competition. But that's not enough if you want to be the provincial team captain. Not unless you get first place in the final exam too."

When Lu Shixian heard this, he was dumbfounded.

So, he thought I was trying to become captain just because I showed off a little?

He quickly waved his hands at Liu Xianhua. "Professor Liu, you've misunderstood! I don't want to be the captain!"

"No, you do!"

"I really don't!"

In the end, the debate concluded with the sound of Lu Shixian's surrender.

Liu Xianhua took a satisfied sip of water, then picked up a piece of chalk and began writing on the blackboard.

"July 2nd, Evening: Lecture on National Biology Competition Rules, Lecturer: Liu Xianhua"

"July 3rd: Overview of Theoretical Knowledge, Lecturer: Liu Xianhua"

"July 4th: Detailed Explanation of Experimental Procedures, Lecturer: Liu Xianhua"

"July 7th: Review of Final Exam Paper, Lecturer: Liu Xianhua"

"July 8th: Tour of the State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology"

"July 9th: Closing Ceremony, Host: Su Changqing"

After finishing, Liu Xianhua tossed the chalk precisely into its box.

He clapped his hands and said, "The schedule for the next seven days is on the board. You're all elites from your respective schools, so I won't waste time with nonsense about classroom discipline."

"Now, let's get down to business. I'll be explaining the rules for the national competition. I don't care if you've heard this before, but for your own sakes, I hope you'll listen carefully."

"First, the timing. The competition committee usually releases the specific dates about ten days before the nationals begin."

"Based on past experience, it's typically in mid August. The schedule is as follows: registration, opening ceremony, theory exam, lab exam, academic tour, and closing ceremony."

Just as he said this, the resident smart aleck, Chen Kuangsheng, had a sudden realization and exclaimed, "So our seven day schedule is just a copy of the national competition!"

Lu Shixian was speechless. This kid's EQ really wasn't his strong suit. His attempt at being clever was just awkward.

Sure enough, Liu Xianhua's expression darkened.

"Young man, you need to understand the concept. Plagiarism and emulation are two different things. How can you call it plagiarism when it's all organized by the biology competition committee? We're doing this to help you adapt more quickly to the format of the nationals."

"Alright, I won't say any more about the schedule. Let's talk about the participating teams."

Liu Xianhua took a sip of tea to soothe his throat and continued, "Each province, municipality, and autonomous region can only send one team. But there's one exception."

"The host province gets a special privilege: they can have a second team. And this year, that privilege belongs to Dongshan Province."

Hearing Liu Xianhua's explanation, the students below understood.

"Does that mean Lu the Prodigy and his team get a free, all expenses paid trip to Dongshan? They're so lucky!" said Wang Dongxiang, the chubby first year student, with a hint of envy.

Pfft!

Lu Shixian almost burst out laughing, and the other students couldn't help but chuckle.

Their focus seemed a little off.

Liu Xianhua coughed to get their attention back.

"Alright, now! A trip? I'll be impressed if you don't come back in tears."

"To be frank, and perhaps a bit pessimistic, if it weren't for Academician Peng Bowen's efforts to cultivate the biology program at our affiliated high school in recent years, most of us would probably get knocked out in the first round of the nationals."

With that, Liu Xianhua quickly wrote the names of several provinces on the blackboard.

"Chuanzhong, Nanhe, Xishan, Ebei, and Dongshan, among others. These are the first tier powerhouses in the biology competition. The National First Prize Gold Medals are most likely to come from these provinces each year."

"So don't think that making it to the provincial team here in Su Province is some great achievement."

"You have to remember, there's always someone better out there. The path of competition is brutal. The only way forward is to constantly improve yourselves."

At this point, one of the only two girls in the class seemed to have learned her lesson and raised her hand before speaking.

Seeing her gesture, Liu Xianhua called on her. "He Jingqiu, what's your question?"

The girl's personality matched her name; she seemed quiet and gentle.

"Professor Liu, what tier does our Su Province belong to right now?"

He Jingqiu's question voiced what everyone was thinking. All eyes turned to Liu Xianhua.

Liu Xianhua first gave a wry smile, then sighed. "Normally, one shouldn't air their dirty laundry in public, but since we're all on the same team, I'll be direct."

"The biology competition is not our province's strong suit among the academic olympiads, so…"

Chapter 90: The Bible of Biology

"Before, you could say we weren't even in the running. We're a bit stronger now, enough to be considered an average province in the biology competition."

Hearing Liu Xianhua's words, the ten students in the classroom fell into a collective silence.

Sometimes, that's just how it is. The further you go, the more you realize the gap between yourself and others. The more you experience, the more you appreciate the importance of learning. The more you learn, the more you discover your own ignorance.

In this atmosphere, no one joked around anymore. Everyone listened intently as Liu Xianhua finished the rest of his lecture.

Liu Xianhua himself hadn't expected his casual remark to have such a profound impact. It was an unexpected but welcome outcome.

At nine in the evening, Liu Xianhua's lecture ended.

Everyone now had a much deeper understanding of the national biology competition.

Back in the dorm, Lu Shixian noticed that the other three seemed a little less distant towards him.

After showering and lying in bed, he overheard them discussing which recent song was the best, and the debate seemed quite heated.

"I think *The Old Man and the Sea* is amazing. The simple lyrics hold such deep meaning," the chubby Wang Dongxiang declared first.

"That's because you haven't heard Eason Chan's *Don't Speak*. I have a feeling it'll still be a classic in ten years!" Chen Kuangsheng argued confidently.

Then, he turned his gaze to Lu Shixian.

"Lu Shixian, you should weigh in too. A lot of songs have come out this year, there must be one you like."

Lu Shixian hadn't expected to be pulled into the conversation. He rolled over and answered without thinking.

"*Fragrant Rice*! It's always been my favorite song."

But to his surprise, the others looked at him with confusion. "What song is that? How come I've never heard of it?"

Now it was Lu Shixian's turn to be embarrassed. He suddenly remembered.

Right, *Fragrant Rice* wouldn't be released until October of this year. It was only July now, so of course, no one had heard it.

Thinking of this, he did some serious self reflection. It seemed he'd been getting a little carried away lately, speaking without thinking.

Finally, he shook his head. "My mistake, I must have gotten it wrong. I haven't been following music recently, so I'm not sure what's new."

"But I do love the classic *Nocturne*. When Nocturne plays, it's time to go on stage and accept your award. I love that feeling."

Wang Dongxiang's face lit up with understanding. "Oh, so you're a Jay Chou fan! He's popular, but a lot of people don't like him now. I think his songs are pretty good, though."

Chen Kuangsheng shook his head. "He's no good. You can't even understand his lyrics, and besides, I heard on the news that he's Japanese."

Lu Shixian was left speechless and didn't try to argue.

All prejudice stems from the limited perspective and understanding shaped by one's environment.

Just then, the guy in the bunk across from Lu Shixian chimed in with a mischievous grin. "You guys are talking about kid stuff. Real men listen to 'Flying to Someone Else's Window.'"

With that one sentence, the topic of conversation immediately shifted to girls.

Who's the prettiest?

What's so and so's figure like?

Who's secretly dating whom?

It seemed that no matter the era, these questions were timeless topics in any boys' dorm.

Of course, it was probably the same in the girls' dorms, just with different subjects.

The next morning.

His biological clock woke Lu Shixian up right on time.

He stretched, feeling like he had slept pretty well.

He'd found a little trick for falling asleep: as long as he dozed off before the other three, their snoring wouldn't be a problem.

After all, he was a heavy sleeper. Once he was out, nothing could bother him.

After getting up, Lu Shixian quietly washed up and left the dorm.

He quickly found Jinling University's newly built Number 3 Stadium.

After running a few laps according to his usual workout routine, Lu Shixian had breakfast and went straight to the classroom.

As soon as he arrived, he saw Liu Xianhua, wearing a gray coat, already sitting at the teacher's desk preparing for the lesson.

Seeing Lu Shixian walk in, Liu Xianhua instinctively glanced at his watch and then smiled.

"Lu Shixian, you're early. It seems you really do want to be captain."

He was speechless that this topic had come up again. What was with Professor Liu? He just wouldn't let it go.

He quickly changed the subject. "It's not that early, the sun's already high in the sky. And if we're talking about early, you were here first."

Liu Xianhua didn't put on any airs; he felt a good rapport talking with Lu Shixian.

"During my PhD, I was always in Dean Su's research group. I never worked as a teaching assistant, so I don't have much experience!"

"Who knew Dean Su would suddenly ask me to train you guys for a week, just because I also got into university through the biology competition."

"If I don't prepare well and you all get wiped out, I'll be in big trouble."

That explained it.

Lu Shixian asked curiously, "So, Professor Liu, how did you do in the biology competition back then?"

At this question, Liu Xianhua shook his head. "It's a bit embarrassing to say, but I was just the only National First Prize Gold Medalist from our province that year. I didn't make it to the national training team to compete for the country."

Now, Lu Shixian didn't know what to say. He'd just been hit with a massive humblebrag.

A National First Prize Gold Medal was already an incredible achievement. The fact that he was the only one from the entire province said it all.

The two of them chatted idly as the other students quickly filled the classroom. Liu Xianhua began the day's first lesson.

"Alright, today we officially begin the first day of instruction, which will be an overview of theoretical knowledge."

"Because we only have seven days, even if I spent the entire week on theory, I could never cover everything."

"Therefore, I'll mainly be giving an overview this time, to provide everyone with a deeper understanding of the theory section of the national competition."

"After all, it's better to teach a man to fish than to give him a fish. I hope to teach you not just problem solving techniques, but also methods for independent learning."

As he spoke, he suddenly picked up a book from his desk and showed it to everyone.

"First, let me be clear, I'm not a bookseller, and I have no affiliation with them. The reason I'm recommending this to you is because this book is called the bible of biology by many. If you want to go further in this field, you must read this book."

"The breadth of knowledge it covers is enough to make it one of the most classic biology textbooks. Let me put it this way: for all biology-related academic competitions, from the toughest American competition, the USABO, to the British BBO, and even to the highest level, the IBO, *Campbell Biology* serves as the perfect textbook."

This piqued the interest of everyone in the classroom. They craned their necks and straightened their backs to see what book could be called the bible of biology.

As the cover slowly came into view, the title of the book appeared before their eyes.

*Campbell Biology*

Lu Shixian was completely stunned, because the book looked incredibly familiar.

Isn't this the book Mei Ting recommended for him to solidify his foundation in general biology?

Chapter 91: I Admit, I Was Tempted

No wonder it had been so dense and difficult to read. He had chewed on it for three days straight with little progress.

Later, he got smart and only focused on the parts related to general biology.

At the time, he had wondered why, in such a thick book, less than a sixth of it was relevant to general biology.

He had even been puzzled about why Mei Ting had recommended it to him.

Well, now Lu Shixian understood.

It seemed his clever little shortcut back then just made him look like a fool now.

Lu Shixian had now come to understand a certain truth.

The advice given by elders or teachers who have walked the path before you is often experience summarized from their own lives.

The vast majority of it is incredibly beneficial to you. You may not see its value from your current perspective, and might even feel resistant to it.

But as time passes and your experience grows, you will discover just how precious their guidance was.

At this point, having introduced the supplementary book, Liu Xianhua moved on to the main topic of the day.

"If any of you are interested, you can look for it later. Today's content is primarily an overview of the theory section."

"The types of theory questions in the national competition are actually not that different from the league competition. However, the nationals have a larger volume of questions, and the proportion of difficult questions is higher. At the same time, the proportion of microbiology topics will increase, while macrobiology will decrease."

"So, let's start with the first section: cell biology, microbiology, and bioengineering..."

"Don't be fooled by the fact that cell biology only studies biology at the cellular level. Its content is among the most complex of all the branches. Because it's all microscopic, it's also quite difficult to understand and poses a significant learning challenge."

"I'm sure you've all studied it on your own before. It mainly covers cell structure and function, vital cellular activities... cell differentiation and regulation, cell senescence and apoptosis, the origin and evolution of cells, and cell engineering."

After speaking, Liu Xianhua's gaze began to wander around the classroom.

"So, let me ask you a question to see how well you've grasped cell biology."

Getting called on by the teacher was truly an inescapable fate in the classroom.

You could often tell how well a student knew the material just by observing their expressions and actions before being questioned.

In the classroom, aside from Lu Shixian and the quiet He Jingqiu, everyone else looked eager and confident.

Seeing the students so animated, Liu Xianhua asked with satisfaction, "What is the mechanism of action between E1, E2, and E3 in a cell?"

The moment the question was asked, the students who had been eager to answer instantly froze.

Who am I?

Where am I?

What am I doing?

"Why don't I even understand the question?"

Scanning the room, he saw that only Lu Shixian's expression remained unchanged. Liu Xianhua had a pretty good idea of the situation.

"If no one can answer that question, then just give a simple answer: what are E1, E2, and E3?"

The classroom remained just as silent.

Frustrated, Liu Xianhua had to ask again, "Does any student know the answer to this question?"

But the room remained quiet.

Liu Xianhua looked towards Lu Shixian, only to find him still showing no reaction at all.

This kid won't lift a finger without a reward! Liu Xianhua complained internally, then said aloud, "The student who answers this question will get an extra experiment session tomorrow."

As soon as he said this, Lu Shixian's eyes, which had seemed to be lost in thought, lit up, and his hand shot up.

Liu Xianhua was both amused and exasperated, but he had no choice but to call on him to answer.

Lu Shixian walked to the front, took a piece of chalk, and wrote out the explanations for E1, E2, and E3 on the blackboard.

E1: Ubiquitin activating enzyme; E2: Ubiquitin conjugating enzyme; E3: Ubiquitin ligase.

"Their mechanism of action is ubiquitination, which is the process where ubiquitin is covalently attached to a target protein through the catalysis of a series of enzymes. The ubiquitination process usually requires the synergistic action of these three enzymes."

"The process is a bit complex, so I'll keep it brief."

"First, with energy supplied by ATP, the ubiquitin activating enzyme E1 activates the ubiquitin molecule."

"Then, the ubiquitin activating enzyme E1 transfers the activated ubiquitin molecule to the ubiquitin conjugating enzyme E2."

"Finally, the ubiquitin ligase E3 attaches the ubiquitin from E2 onto the target protein."

When Lu Shixian finished, Liu Xianhua started to applaud, and the surrounding team members looked at him with admiration.

They were already in their second year of high school and had no clue about the question, yet Lu Shixian, only a first year, was so familiar with the topic that he could describe it without any hesitation.

No wonder they called him Lu the Prodigy. This was the difference!

"Lu Shixian's explanation was excellent! He kept it concise, but it was basically just as he described, with no major inaccuracies."

Liu Xianhua first praised Lu Shixian, then immediately used him as a model student to lecture the others.

"You all need to learn from Lu Shixian. The biology competition is very different from other subjects, but it also has things in common, one of which is that success comes from long term accumulation."

"What dark horse? What out of nowhere talent? In reality, it's all just the result of consistent, hard work."

By evening, nearly everyone was rubbing their throbbing temples as they hurried back to their dorms.

"Oh my gosh, didn't he say he was just giving an overview? How come he touched on everything? I'd never even heard of some of the things Professor Liu talked about," the pretty Li Mengmeng said, blinking her big eyes at Lu Shixian in admiration.

"Lu Shixian, how did you know most of the advanced topics Professor Liu brought up? Where did you learn all that?"

Before Lu Shixian could speak, the first year student Wang Dongxiang, who had already become his number one fan, immediately replied.

"You should call him Lu the Prodigy now. I'm seriously impressed. Did you see the look of shock on Professor Liu's face today? It was hilarious!"

But Chen Kuangsheng, standing nearby, seemed a little unconvinced. He turned his head away and said, "You had your moment in the spotlight today, but it was miserable for the rest of us. Lu Shixian, you're so cruel. Could you really bear to watch us get lectured the whole time?"

Lu Shixian laughed to himself, then put on a helpless expression.

"I didn't want to, but Old Liu said if I answered, I'd get an extra experiment session tomorrow. I have to admit, I was tempted."

At the mention of experiments, Chen Kuangsheng's energy returned.

"Just you wait. Watch me shine in the lab session tomorrow. I've been practicing every day with my dad at his research institute."

Lu Shixian was momentarily speechless.

Well, that explains his arrogance. Turns out his father is in the field.

My apologies!

However, when they arrived at one of the School of Life Sciences' labs for the experiment session the next day, Lu Shixian's performance once again left them dumbfounded.

Chapter 92: Oh My God, I'm Screwed

"Not bad. This drawing of the tomato's bicollateral vascular bundle is very well done. Lu Shixian is clearly skilled; you can't get this good without putting in the hard work!"

"Everyone, learn from his example!"
"Very good. Lu Shixian's temporary mount of an onion epidermal cell is perfectly standard."

"Lu Shixian..."

At nine o'clock at night, after the day's practical lab session had concluded, nearly everyone was utterly exhausted.

"Ugh, not only does my body feel like it's falling apart, but my ears are about to grow calluses from all the listening," He Mingqian grumbled on the way, clearly drained both mentally and physically.

"You know, even though Teacher Liu looks young and seems to be a bit of a Lu-fan, his skills are the real deal! He can handle any type of experiment with ease!"

The quick witted Chen Kuangsheng forced an ugly smile; he was thoroughly convinced today.

After a full day of experiments, aside from the animal labs where he might have had a slight edge over Lu Shixian, he had failed miserably in everything else.

"Of course. I know a little about Teacher Liu's background." As soon as Chen Kuangsheng spoke, all nine of them, including Lu Shixian, stopped in their tracks and turned their attention to him.

"I was curious too. I asked him several questions yesterday, and he answered every single one in no time," said Zhang Yicheng, a first year, with great admiration.

Chen Kuangsheng organized his thoughts and recited the information as if reading from a file.

"Liu Xianhua, 29 years old. Bachelor's and Master's from Shuimu University."

"Currently a Ph.D. candidate in Neurobiology at Jinling University."

"He has won First Prize in the National High School Biology Olympiad, and was named an Outstanding Graduate of Shuimu University and an Outstanding Graduate of Yanjing City. He is also a recipient of the National Scholarship, as well as First Prize in both the Yanjing City and National levels of the National Life Science Competition..."

"He is now a core member of Professor Su Changqing's research team at Jinling University's School of Life Sciences, focusing on the discovery and identification of genetic causes of cardiovascular diseases."

Hearing Liu Xianhua's stellar resume, everyone was left speechless.

"Wow, amazing! So he's a senior from the biology competition world. No wonder they had such a young teacher training us for the provincial team!"

"The National Scholarship at Shuimu University is just insane. Even getting it for one year makes you a top dog. I heard it's incredibly hard to get, the competition is fierce, and it holds a lot of weight," Wang Dongxiang exclaimed in awe.

Just then, He Jingqiu asked in confusion, "Isn't Teacher Liu a biologist? Why is he researching cardiovascular diseases? Did he switch careers to become a doctor?"

In the crowd, Lu Shixian, who was listening in, nearly slipped and fell.

How to put it? For someone studying biology, that question wasn't particularly professional.

But then he remembered they hadn't officially entered the field of biology yet, so he let it go.

Compared to real biology, what they were learning now was just scratching the surface.

Fortunately, Chen Kuangsheng, who had just earned the new nickname "Mr. Know It All," cleared up her confusion.

"That's where you're mistaken! The topic they're researching is at the intersection of biology and medicine. The two fields are closely related, and most cutting edge biological breakthroughs nowadays come from this area."

"Although Jinling University's biology program as a whole is slightly weaker than other universities at its level, their biomedical science program is incredibly strong. They have a State Key Laboratory."

"I think that's why Teacher Liu came to Jinling University for his Ph.D."

And just like that, the morning of the fourth day arrived.

The three people in the dorm room looked at Lu Shixian's empty bed and couldn't help but sigh.

"It's been like this for days. Do you guys know what 'God Lu' is doing up so early?" asked the roommate on the top bunk opposite Lu Shixian's.

Below, Chen Kuangsheng replied without even lifting his eyelids, "I asked him during dinner yesterday. At first, I thought some vixen had stolen our God Lu's soul."

"Guess what he said?"

"What did he say? Stop keeping us in suspense!" the other two protested.

Chen Kuangsheng yawned and said:

"Warm up: 5 sets of 10 squats, 4 sets of 10 pull ups..."

"Then, a five kilometer mid distance morning run on an empty stomach."

As soon as Chen Kuangsheng finished, the other two were too shocked to speak.

"My god, I'm done for! I can't beat him in studies, and now I won't even be able to beat him in a fight."

"Tell me about it. I feel like a parasite on the new generation of youth—all I do is eat and sleep!"

When they got to the classroom, Lu Shixian was engrossed in reviewing the material from the past two days.

Baffled, he suddenly received a thumbs up from his roommates.

What the heck?

Unable to figure it out, Lu Shixian chose to ignore them. He didn't have time to deal with their antics.

The final exam was about to start, and he wanted to use it to gauge how much he had learned over the past couple of days.

Soon, Liu Xianhua walked into the classroom carrying a stack of test papers.

"Alright, this morning we will be having our final exam."

"The content will mainly cover what we've learned these past few days. Due to time constraints, we won't be doing a practical exam in the lab. Instead, your experimental skills will be tested on the paper. I predict this will be the trend for future biology competitions."

"The number of questions and the difficulty level are similar to the national competition. I will have the results graded by this afternoon, which will determine who becomes the provincial team captain. Please take this seriously."

At that, Lu Shixian couldn't help but roll his eyes. Being some damn captain wasn't nearly as appealing to him as the test paper itself.

The other students in the classroom were also quite calm. For top students like them, taking tests was probably as natural as breathing.

Before long, a test paper landed on Lu Shixian's desk.

He habitually flipped the long test paper to the last page for a look.

Alright, just as he expected, a torturous 120 questions.

The question formats were indeed similar to the league competition; many were just old wine in new bottles.

The same knowledge points were tested repeatedly, just presented in a different way.

Take the literature based questions, for example. They always looked impressive and were worded convolutedly, which made them difficult to understand and needlessly increased the difficulty.

But once you analyzed the question and understood what it was asking, it was nothing special.

As time ticked by, Lu Shixian noticed that many of the key points Liu Xianhua had emphasized were reflected in the test.

It even included important notes and steps from the second day's lab session.

This is a well designed test!

As he worked through the problems, Lu Shixian even had the spare mental capacity to start grading the paper itself.

Meanwhile, Liu Xianhua occasionally walked around the classroom, observing the students' progress. He would nod one moment and shake his head the next, plunging several students in the classroom into a complex mood.

Chapter 93: Visiting the State Key Laboratory

In the afternoon, the tests from the morning were already graded, and the gap in scores was quite large.

It seemed Lu Shixian was likely the only one with a real shot at making the national training team. To avoid putting too much psychological pressure on the others, the scores...

And so, Liu Xianhua walked into the classroom with an unreadable expression.

"Class, the results of this morning's final exam are out. Since this is an internal test, I won't be announcing the scores publicly. As I go over the test, you'll have a good idea of your own score."

"Additionally, based on the exam results, Lu Shixian will be the captain of the provincial team. What does everyone think?"

As soon as he said this, everyone understood it meant Lu Shixian had scored the highest.

Over the past few days, their respect for Lu Shixian had grown, so naturally, they had no objections.

And so, with a helpless expression, Lu Shixian became the captain of the 16th Su Province team for the National Biology Olympiad.

On July 8th, during class time, everyone gathered outside the classroom.

Led by Liu Xianhua, the group of eleven put on sterilized white lab coats and entered a grand, towering building.

As they walked, Liu Xianhua proudly introduced its history.

"The State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology was established in 1989. Its main research directions are the fundamental biology of diseases, drug target screening, and biomedical research..."

"Right now, many scholars are conducting research here, including numerous 'Changjiang Scholars,' 'Distinguished Young Scholars,' and talents from the 'New Century Talents Project.' The lab has also undertaken a large number of 973, 863, and other major national level projects."

"Humbly, your Teacher Liu is also pursuing his doctorate here. Next, I'll show you the experiments my research group is currently working on."

With that, Liu Xianhua led the way, finally bringing them to a laboratory on the third floor.

Upon entering, they saw several young looking graduate students miserably tending to white mice.

Seeing so many people come in, they put down the mice without any surprise, as if they had already been notified.

They took off their gloves and greeted Liu Xianhua, complaining, "Senior Liu, when are you coming back? The big boss is pushing us to speed up every day. Without you in charge of the neuron specialization experiments, we've lost our backbone."

Liu Xianhua laughed and comforted them, "I should be done by tomorrow. I can't help it; this is also a task assigned by the boss. It's quite interesting, hahaha!"

Then, Liu Xianhua began to introduce his research group's work.

"We are currently conducting research and development on a targeted, high efficiency antithrombotic protein drug. The project was initiated in 2006, and it's almost time to wrap it up, which is why Dean Su is rushing us."

Seeing the blank looks on their faces, Liu Xianhua stopped there, not intending to go into detail.

He had brought them here mainly to broaden their horizons and, at the same time, to advertise the lab.

These were, after all, the most outstanding students from this year's biology competition in Su Province. Making a good impression couldn't hurt.

But to his surprise, a student actually asked a question.

"An antithrombotic protein? As far as I know, targeted recombinant human antithrombotic proteins can be used to treat cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases."

"It seems there are no related drugs on the market, domestically or internationally. Teacher Liu, you're actually developing a new drug? That's incredible. If this type of drug is successfully created, it will be a blessing for patients with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases!"

Lu Shixian gave a thumbs up and said with admiration, "That's really amazing. When you delve deep enough, researchers can also save lives and cure diseases."

Now, everyone in the lab exchanged glances, beginning to realize this student was something special.

A graduate student wearing thick glasses took them off and wiped them vigorously.

In fact, when he received the notice that morning about members of the provincial biology competition team visiting the lab, he had been rather dismissive, even a little annoyed.

He had reached his current position step by step after the college entrance exams, and he looked down on these students who were visiting through the "crooked path" of competitions.

He had only kept a straight face out of politeness.

They were just high school students still in the rote learning phase. What could they possibly understand?

Probably just more tourists here to check a box.

However, this student had greatly surprised him. What he had just said was something a layman could never have come up with.

Liu Xianhua was also astonished. "You know about this?" he asked.

Lu Shixian hadn't expected his casual remark to attract so much attention. He quickly shook his head. "I only know the basics. Biomedicine is already a difficult interdisciplinary field to study, let alone understanding its cutting edge research directions."

Speaking of which, he truly admired those who studied biomedicine. Although most major breakthroughs in recent years were concentrated in interdisciplinary fields, biology was already hard enough. Adding medicine to the mix? The experience would be indescribably intense.

In the morning, they toured the lab.

In the afternoon, the group was taken to visit the literature room.

In truth, how do you judge if a lab has a future? How strong is it?

You don't need to pay too much attention to the researchers' qualifications, the scope of their projects, or their funding.

You just need to look at their research publications in recent years.

The first and foremost indicator is their publication record.

If you can get your paper published in CNS, everything else is self evident.

Hmm?

You ask what CNS is?

You've probably heard of them individually, but the acronym might seem unfamiliar.

They are Cell, Nature, and Science. The acronym for these three journals is CNS.

It's no exaggeration to say that in the face of a CNS publication, even other top tier SCI journals have to bow their heads.

It is the pinnacle of academic journals. If a paper is published in one of these three, it means the author's research ability has reached the top international level.

This leaves no need to prove the researcher's qualifications.

At the same time, all sorts of national level projects and endless funding will automatically come your way.

But I digress. Zhang Xianhua let them browse freely. The papers displayed outside were all reprints, so it wouldn't be a big deal if they were damaged.

By now, Lu Shixian had spotted the neatly organized collections of papers in the literature room.

Lu Shixian flipped through a few, and it was just as he expected.

There were no recent papers from CNS journals, but there were quite a few from top tier journals.

Lu Shixian's eyes swept over them, recognizing major international journals that had once been far beyond his reach.

PNAS, the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Although it later fell to the same level as newer journals like Nature Communications and Science Advances, it was still an SCI journal with an impact factor of over 10, one of the big three general science journals in its early days.

Chapter 94: On to the Junior Class Retest

Then there was Cell Research.

Cell Research is an international journal sponsored by the Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences. It publishes original research papers, reviews, rapid communications, and commentaries in cell biology and related fields from around the world, all in English.

Cell Research was the only Chinese journal indexed in the cell biology category of ISI SCI in the US. In 2008, its impact factor was 8.479, and it later soared to a terrifying 25+.

Although it was a domestic journal, its academic level was close to or on par with Nature and Cell subsidiary journals, placing it among the world's outstanding academic journals.

It later faced some skepticism, with some suspecting its reputation was overblown, but its status as "the pride of national journals" was indisputable.

Finally, Lu Shixian also saw BMC Biology.

Founded in 2003, it is a broad journal covering all areas of biology, with numerous subsidiary journals. Its impact factor is between 6 and 8, and it later became known as one of the four top general biology journals, alongside Current Biology, eLife, and Cell Reports.

Lu Shixian could rattle off facts about them as if he were an expert, but there were some journals he knew nothing about.

Based on the English translations, they were likely related to medicine.

But since they were placed alongside the three journals mentioned above, they couldn't be far behind, most likely also top tier SCI journals.

Of course, among them, Lu Shixian also found many second tier "watery" journals with impact factors of 3 to 4.

They were probably submissions from interns in the lab.

Some journals were very familiar, like his old acquaintance, Biomass and Bioenergy.

During his master's studies, he had managed to publish a filler paper in it, which was even reported in the school newspaper. Thinking back on it now was rather embarrassing.

There were also others like Applied and Environmental Microbiology, PLOS Computational Biology, and Applied Science.

For journals like these, as long as you had a sufficiently cozy relationship with the university, and your manuscript wasn't complete trash, it would generally get accepted.

Of course, this only applied to prestigious universities.

Because at the end of the day, even a second tier watery journal was still an SCI journal.

Back then, as a graduate student from an ordinary university, Lu Shixian had spent countless sleepless nights just to get one paper published in a second tier journal.

The others next to him found it amusing to see Lu Shixian's eyes light up as he flipped through the papers one by one.

Chen Kuangsheng even teased him, "I say, Lu Shixian, don't tell me you're actually serious about reading these?"

"This is all in English. I have so many of these at home, and they just give me a headache."

Since he was asked, Lu Shixian didn't want to crush their spirits too much.

He ended up saying vaguely, "They're really difficult. I can't quite understand the content."

Hearing this, they paid him no more mind.

What they didn't know was that Lu Shixian meant the content of the papers was too profound to grasp, not that he couldn't read the words.

To put it simply, he recognized every word, but his mind went blank when he tried to put them together.

July 9th.

Nine in the morning.

The closing ceremony officially began at the School of Life Sciences at Jinling University.

Besides Liu Xianhua and Su Changqing, there were just the ten students, making a total of twelve people.

After Su Changqing summarized the seven day training camp and shared his hopes for their performance in the upcoming national competition, the brief training officially came to a close.

The conference room was small.

The closing ceremony was simple.

The number of attendees was very few.

But the feeling it left was unforgettable.

Before leaving, everyone received a small gift from Liu Xianhua.

A dandelion specimen encased in an acrylic block.

Under the sunlight, shining through the acrylic block, the complete dandelion sphere seemed to be breathing and growing ceaselessly, as if revealing the most beautiful form of life.

"The beauty of life lies in life itself. It arrives simply, yet grandly; while it is here, it is rich and full; when it leaves, it is light and beautiful."

"I hope all of you, like this dandelion, will bravely persist on your journey of chasing your dreams."

"Even if you are tossed about by the wind, as long as you bravely explore the unknown path ahead, you will one day reach your destination and find new life."

Treasuring the gift, Lu Shixian, along with the others, bid farewell to Liu Xianhua and Jinling University.

Happy times are always so fleeting. The training camp ended without a ripple.
That afternoon, he returned to Jinling No. 1 High School.

Normally, after seven consecutive days of intense study, things should have slowed down for a bit.

But Lu Shixian was out of luck. He had already received a notice for the next round of testing from the Special Class for the Gifted Young at the University of Science and Technology of China.

The tests were scheduled for the 12th, 13th, and 14th of this month, and today was already the 9th.

Although it wasn't particularly far, the trip would take up several days, so Lu Shixian had to leave a day or two early to get settled in.

These days, he had free rein on campus, but leaving the school grounds required official approval.

Needless to say, this was even more true for cross-province travel.

As soon as Lu Shixian reported the matter, the school immediately arranged for Jiang Yunkun to escort him to Hefei in Anhui Province for the re-examination, all expenses paid.

July 10th.

When Jiang Yunkun met up with Lu Shixian, he highly suspected the boy was so happy to see him mainly because of the all expenses paid trip.

Of course, he was right, though Lu Shixian would never admit it.

By evening, Jiang Yunkun had finally secured his leave and rescheduled his Friday class.

He then went to the train station to buy their tickets in advance, handing one to Lu Shixian.

The next morning, Jiang Yunkun and Lu Shixian officially set off for Hefei in Anhui Province, the home of USTC.

At the station, Lu Shixian had the rare chance to re-experience the feeling of a "green-skinned" train.

In his past life, once high speed rail and subways became commonplace, he'd never ridden one again.

Each era has its own creations. At this point in time, even the first high speed rail line from Yanjing to Tianjing had yet to officially open.

The train stations of this era were essentially the bus stations of the future, just with different vehicles.

Since they had bought tickets in advance, they boarded the carriage without a hitch.

Jiang Yunkun and Lu Shixian sat facing each other and began to chat idly.

"It's convenient for us that USTC is in Anhui. If it were in Yanjing, the train ride would be torture."

Chapter 95: A Straight Line, Comfortable All the Way

Jiangsu Province wasn't far from Anhui, so Lu Shixian naturally understood his meaning.

Speaking of which, it was quite a winding history.

In the 1960s, the state re-planned the universities in Yanjing, relocating a large number of them while keeping only a small portion. USTC was on the list of universities to be moved.

Most of these relocated universities were moved to places like Dongshan, Beihe, Beie, Nanhu, and Anhui. But when it came to USTC's relocation, apart from Anhui, not a single other region would accept it.

Only Anhui showed immense sincerity. A saying from that time is still powerful to this day.

"No matter how hard it gets, the people of Anhui will starve before they let China's budding scientific talent be lost."

Later, when the situation improved, USTC always wanted to move back to Yanjing. After all, Yanjing was the cultural and educational heart of the country, and its supervising body, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was also there.

To persuade USTC to stay, Hefei, a city not geographically part of the centralized heating system, overcame immense pressure to install heating for the university, an unprecedented move. They also established a dedicated Hefei to Yanjing transport line to make it easier for the university's faculty and staff to visit their families back home.

Because of these efforts, the University of Science and Technology of China gave up the idea of returning to Beijing and dedicated itself to operating in Hefei.

Today, some regions complain about their lack of top-tier universities and the imbalance of higher education resources.

But Anhui seized that chance opportunity, giving the province a world-class, high-level university. Of the many top-tier national laboratories established by the country, Anhui has several, second only to Yanjing.

And it's no exaggeration to say that, internationally, USTC's reputation might even outshine that of Yan University and Shuimu University.

With company, the two chatted along the way and didn't find the journey boring.

After a ride of just over three hours, Lu Shixian arrived at his destination.

Neither of them had been to USTC before, so they had to ask around for directions.

Thankfully, USTC was a local landmark, and anyone they asked could point them in the right direction.

Carrying their luggage, the two went to the bus station and boarded a bus that went directly to the university's entrance.

About twenty minutes later, they successfully arrived at the gates of USTC.

Looking at the unremarkable gate before him, which wasn't even as impressive as the non-prestigious university he attended in his past life, Lu Shixian felt a surge of emotion.

This "Old North Gate" was more than just a gate; it had witnessed the immense difficulties USTC faced during its relocation to Anhui and its continuous rise from hardship.

The Old North Gate carried the collective memory of the people of USTC, symbolizing their spirit of fearlessness in the face of adversity and their pursuit of excellence.

Sometimes, a good university doesn't need luxurious academic buildings or a grand, imposing gate.

Just as the educator Mei Yiqi once said: "A great university is not so called because it has great buildings, but because it has great masters."

It was nearly dusk. Jiang Yunkun took Lu Shixian to a nearby hotel, and at Lu Shixian's request, they only booked one room.

Even though it was an all expenses paid trip, one should save money where one could.

They were both grown men, what was there to be afraid of?

This was exactly what Jiang Yunkun wanted, as it would make it easier for him to keep a close eye on Lu Shixian.

And so, the two of them rested there for the night.

July 11th.

With one day to spare, Lu Shixian reviewed the key concepts in mathematics and physics that were likely to be tested.

When he was confident, he could relax, perhaps even use the time for some sightseeing.

But the USTC Special Class retrial tested physics, his weak point, and math, which he was only half-decent at.

To go out and have fun at a time like this would be pure idiocy.

July 12th.

It was a Saturday, the weekend.

Students from USTC could be seen walking all over the streets.

"Welcome, students, to the 2008 enrollment retrial for the USTC Special Class for the Gifted Young." A red banner fluttered between the trees lining the road.

Lu Shixian did a quick check of his essentials, then slung his backpack over his shoulder and walked to the school gate.

After registering his personal information with his student ID and national ID, he finally stepped onto the USTC campus.

Jiang Yunkun waited outside.

With no time to admire the campus scenery, Lu Shixian followed the staff's directions and quickly arrived at the examination hall.

His competitors looked very young, which made him feel quite out of place.

He was, after all, approaching the age limit, making him one of the "older" candidates.

The sense of disparity almost made Lu Shixian think he had been reborn again, sent back to his middle school days.

Lu Shixian glanced around. There were quite a few people, probably around one hundred and twenty.

But it was important to remember that these hundred-plus individuals had been selected from millions of students across the entire country.

The ratio was terrifyingly low.

Lu Shixian now understood why some people said that getting into USTC's Special Class was harder than getting into Yan University or Shuimu University through the Gaokao.

The waiting area wasn't crowded with over a hundred people standing together, but the atmosphere was tense.

At 8:30 AM, the math test officially began.

Lu Shixian took the paper and, with a quick scan, couldn't help but marvel that the selection process for the Special Class truly lived up to its reputation.

There wasn't a single multiple choice question. The crisp white paper only had about ten problems printed on it.

Five short-answer and five long-answer problems.

Anyone familiar with the Math Olympiad preliminaries would know the difficulty of such short-answer questions.

It took him twenty minutes to solve them all.

Lu Shixian looked at the first long-answer problem, which asked for the product of the maximum and minimum values of a certain function.

Not bad. This was a freebie.

Product of what? To put it bluntly, it was just calculating the extreme values.

Lu Shixian quickly moved on to the second problem. The question asked to discuss the real roots of an equation.

With that, he completely relaxed. It seemed this math test wasn't exceptionally difficult, just reaching the level of the Math Olympiad league competition. He could handle it.

Don't be fooled by the exponent in the problem reaching x to the power of 2008.

Problems like this usually had an extremely simple calculation method; they wouldn't actually make you calculate what x to the power of 2008 is.

Lu Shixian was a firm believer in a certain theory.

A sentence his undergraduate advanced mathematics professor once said had stuck with him to this day.

It was that for any given problem, the law of conservation of effort applies.

This was a theory of his own making. It meant that if a single problem had multiple solution methods, these methods would adhere to a conservation law.

For example, the easier your method is to think of, the more difficult your calculation process will be, but the simpler your thought process.

Conversely, the harder your method is to think of, the simpler your calculation process will be, but the more difficult your thought process.

It's like climbing a semicircular hill versus descending into a semicircular valley of the same radius. The distance you travel is the same, and the work you do is identical.

The only difference is whether you want to be comfortable in the first half of the journey or the second half.

Of course, Lu Shixian chose to be comfortable the whole way.

This theory applied when one's skill level was on par with the problem's difficulty. Lu Shixian had already transcended that circle, so he simply took the straight path.

Chapter 96: The Folly of Irrational Demands

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line.

So Lu Shixian worked incredibly fast. But to his dismay, by the time he was finished, less than half the people were left in the exam room.

Any trace of smugness that had just sprouted in his heart vanished without a trace.

Alright, geniuses don't walk, they fly. So much for taking the straight path.

12:00 PM sharp.

Time for lunch.

Jiang Yunkun glanced at Lu Shixian's expression, which seemed decent enough.

So, while ordering food, he asked, "What kind of math questions do they have for the USTC retrial? I never really looked into it."

Lu Shixian shrugged. "Ten questions in total, a bit easier than the Math Olympiad league competition. Half short-answer, half long-answer. The topics were mathematical analysis, linear algebra, and abstract algebra."

Hearing this, Jiang Yunkun quickly took a sip of water to calm himself.

"That brutal? It really is the Special Class, huh!"

Lu Shixian shook his head helplessly. "That's why I'm not very confident now. This testing mechanism is really unfriendly to me. All that biology knowledge I crammed recently was completely useless."

Jiang Yunkun chuckled at his words. "See? Now you know biology is no joke! That's just how the environment is these days. Why not come back and keep studying math?"

This last sentence earned him a merciless death glare from Lu Shixian.

He was beginning to understand. Ever since he'd gotten on this damn biology train, his seat had probably been welded down. There was no getting off.

3:00 PM sharp.

The physics test officially began.

Lu Shixian took a deep breath to steady his mind and looked at the questions.

Thank goodness, there were multiple-choice questions.

But even with multiple-choice, Lu Shixian soon froze.

A hydrogen atom in its ground state absorbs a photon and releases electromagnetic waves?

He understood the first part; it was from Bohr's theory. A hydrogen atom in its ground state absorbs a photon and transitions from a low energy state to a high energy state.

But what the hell was "releases electromagnetic waves"?

I don't get it!

Assemble the experimental apparatus according to the schematic diagram?

My god! Why are there lab questions?

At this point, Lu Shixian was starting to get nervous.

A thin layer of sweat appeared on his forehead.

His mind was slowly starting to short-circuit.

A wave of regret suddenly appeared and swirled relentlessly in his heart.

The end result was that Lu Shixian didn't even know how he walked out of the exam room.

But one thing was crystal clear.

He had definitely bombed the physics test.

Sometimes, when you produce a terrible test paper, you have a pretty good idea of what your score will be, deep down.

You just really don't want to think about it.

Seeing that Lu Shixian's expression was a bit off, Jiang Yunkun didn't ask about the test.

The July night sky was dotted with stars, the moon bright and clear.

Lu Shixian lay in bed, hands behind his head, his body bathed in the moonlight.

The sweltering night wind blew in, but he felt a slight chill.

His thoughts gradually began to drift, following the thread of that afternoon's physics test.

To be honest, he hated this feeling of being completely at the mercy of the test paper, unable to control anything.

The tight schedule and lack of preparation time were merely objective reasons for what happened that afternoon.

Perhaps the main reason was that he had grown arrogant. He had to admit he had underestimated his opponent.

First, he hadn't formulated a reasonable study plan for this retrial at all.

He hadn't made detailed preparations in this area, not even bothering to find out the number and types of questions on the test beforehand.

As they say, you reap what you sow.

Second, clinging to a false sense of security by reading some largely useless physics review books was, in fact, a form of self-deceiving ostrich behavior.

And this was completely at odds with his usual habits.

It seemed his recent string of successes had made him a little complacent.

It had to be said, engaging in deep self-analysis is an incredibly painful process.

Mental torment often lasts far longer than physical pain.

He, who had always been optimistic, felt a pang of melancholy at this moment.

So I'm really not omniscient after all!

So this is how it feels to bomb a test! It's awful!

So I really can't fight on two fronts?

Should I just give up like this?

But his physics performance was truly abysmal, so bad he couldn't even bring himself to state his score.

He was so unwilling to accept it.

He clenched his hands into fists with all his might, until red marks appeared on his skin.

But what good was refusing to accept it?

The world did not revolve around his will, and he had no power to change what had already happened.

Suddenly, a voice that sounded like a sleepy mumble came from across the room. It was Jiang Yunkun.

"Lu Shixian, you're a bit too hard on yourself. That can be a good thing, but when it becomes overly demanding, it often backfires."

"Remember what should be remembered, and forget what should be forgotten. Change what can be changed, and accept what cannot be. What's meant to be yours will find you, and what isn't, you can't force."

"We are just one among the countless masses. When we look up, we cannot see the ground, and when we look down, we cannot gaze at the sky."

"So why make such irrational demands of yourself?"

As the words reached his ears, Lu Shixian's clenched fists slowly relaxed.

That's right, when is life ever perfect?

Besides, it hadn't reached the point of giving up yet. There were still two more days of testing.

Just like with the math league competition, until it's over, who knows what will happen at the last moment?

He had become too preoccupied with gains and losses, worrying too much about the past and fearing the future.

But yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, and today is a gift.

Lost in thought, Lu Shixian drifted off to sleep.

The next day, he calmly walked into the same examination hall that had filled him with despair just the day before.

According to the retrial schedule.

From 8:30 to 11:30 AM was the Mathematical Learning Aptitude Test.

From 3:00 to 6:00 PM was the Physics Learning Aptitude Test.

For each, two professors would teach the relevant material, and a test would be administered immediately afterward.

This method of assessing ability was truly rare. Apart from the Special Class, he had almost never seen it anywhere else.

However, it had to be said that this was very advantageous for him. His ability to learn and comprehend independently had always been his strong suit.

But the intensity of this assessment was immense. Learning and then being tested immediately required extreme concentration and was mentally draining.

So that night, the moment his head hit the pillow, he fell into a deep sleep.

The third day was also the final day of the Special Class retrial.

This time, the assessment method was even more unique: an interview.

The interview was conducted in a group discussion format. The candidates in each group were divided into two sides (four against four) to discuss a designated topic. The entire interview was recorded.

It seemed that each group had a different interview topic. When the topic for Lu Shixian's group was announced, his heart suddenly began to pound violently.

Because his chance for a comeback had seemingly arrived.

Chapter 97: Even Regret is Worthwhile

The world is truly a wondrous place; you never know what will happen in the next second!

The interview topic for Lu Shixian's group was: What is your perspective on life?

He suddenly smiled. As a provincial gold medalist in biology, he had so much to say on this topic.

The depth and breadth of knowledge he possessed on this issue were simply incomparable to the others.

Because he had so many great biologists who had come before him, paving the way and helping him answer this very question.

There was Darwin, the founder of the theory of evolution.

There was Linnaeus, the king of botany.

There was Fabre, the Homer of the insect world.

There was Harvey, the pioneer who discovered the circulation of blood.

With so many great minds backing him up, his confidence suddenly surged.

Because the topic had no specific constraints, he could speak freely as long as he didn't go off-topic.

Soon, someone was the first to speak.

"I believe that life is the most precious thing we have. Each person only has one life. How should this one life be spent?"

"I strongly agree with a quote from Ostrovsky: when I look back on my life, I will not regret the years I wasted, nor be ashamed of my inaction."

"The value of life lies in optimism, progress, proactivity, and contribution. The meaning of life is not just in its continuation, but more importantly, in maximizing its value as much as possible. We must be good at discovering the truth, goodness, and beauty in life, to make our lives full and splendid."

The one who dared to be the first to speak was indeed skilled.

The judges on the panel nodded while jotting down scores on their papers. Clearly, this student's performance was acceptable.

Lu Shixian's brow suddenly furrowed. It seemed another piece of bad news had emerged.

The interview wasn't just about content. Other abilities might carry even more weight.

Although that student's content was a bit cliché, his delivery was passionate and his expression was calm, indicating he had no problems with social interaction, and so he was recognized.

The second speaker was a girl.

"Whether we are the successful people others admire, or the quiet observers who admire the simple lives of others, as long as we can treat life well, cherish every millisecond of it, and enjoy the reality of living and the joy of being alive, our lives are meaningful, and we will be masters of our own lives."

"The meaning of life also lies in living happily and, as much as possible, bringing happiness to those around us."

The girl's response was poised and confident, showing no stage fright.

But because of this, the look in Lu Shixian's eyes grew more solemn.

He couldn't help but sigh inwardly: It seems I underestimated these kids after all.

Anyone who made it this far was truly the cream of the crop. Hoping for them to slip up now was just wishful thinking.

In that case, the only thing that could change the outcome was his own performance.
Soon, it was Lu Shixian's turn, the third to last to present.

Lu Shixian was already prepared. He stood up with a smile.

"Before the natural sciences were well developed, people were mystified by the vibrant and dazzling diversity of life. They often saw life and non life as two completely separate and unrelated domains, believing that life did not obey the laws of motion governing inanimate matter."

As soon as Lu Shixian finished this sentence, the surrounding candidates whipped their heads around to look at him.

The judges' eyes lit up, as if to say, "Now this is interesting!"

His voice continued.

"Later, in the 1940s, people came to recognize that life is a form of motion of matter. The basic unit of life is the cell. The phenomenon of life is the comprehensive expression of the movement and transmission of matter, energy, and information within this complex system."

"Darwin, the father of evolutionary theory, in his *On the Origin of Species*, explained our journey from life in the oceans to our eventual evolution into humans. He revealed to us the genetic code of life: species are mutable, organisms evolve, and natural selection is the primary driving force of that evolution."

"Mendel, the father of genetics, with his three laws of inheritance, explained the recombination of hereditary factors, single handedly dethroning the theory of pangenesis and ascending to the throne of heredity."

"Schrödinger, the father of wave mechanics, in his *What is Life? The Physical Aspect of the Living Cell*, told us that physics and chemistry could, in principle, interpret the phenomena of life, sounding the prelude to uncovering the microscopic secrets of heredity."

"Watson and Crick, the fathers of DNA, proposed the double helix molecular structure model. This model successfully explained how DNA replicates by unwinding its double helix and using each single strand as a template to synthesize a complementary strand, and how genetic information is encoded in the sequence of bases along the long chain. It heralded the imminent unveiling of the mysteries of heredity, helping people to understand the processes of life more deeply."

"Bertalanffy's general systems theory, Prigogine's theory of dissipative structures, and Harvey's theory of blood circulation, among others, later revealed to us the wonders of the living world."

"They have answered almost all the questions about life from 1 to 100, but the question of 0 to 1 remains unanswered."

"Where did life originate? In the rose garden of truth seeking, while the blossoms are beautiful, they are also surrounded by thorns."

"One day, we will surely understand where life comes from and where it is headed. The answer, perhaps, is hidden within this continuous exploration."

"And one of my future goals is to make my own humble contribution on this path."

"That concludes my presentation. Thank you."

With that, Lu Shixian bowed and sat down.

The other candidates were completely stunned, as if they had been struck dumb.

We're here talking about the meaning and value of our own lives, and this guy just brought out the entire ancestral history of humanity.

It was just ridiculous!

As a result, the presentations of the next two candidates were directly affected.

Not only did they not know what to say, but even the audience wasn't paying attention to what they were talking about.

Seeing the judges nodding at him frequently, Lu Shixian felt a sense of relief.

I should have passed this stage, right?

Lu Shixian let out a light breath and walked out of the examination hall, his body relaxing completely, free of any burden.

He met Jiang Yunkun at the school gate, planning to have lunch before heading back.

Around one in the afternoon, the two boarded a bus to the train station, bidding a silent farewell to the city.

Whatever this trip brought him, it was now complete. After all, even regrets have their own value.

Lu Shixian returned to Jinling that same day.

With the second round of interviews for the Gifted Youth Program temporarily behind him, Lu Shixian returned to his normal routine.

However, this "normal" was relative to him and did not apply to others.

With the national Biology Olympiad less than a month away, he needed to get back into that material.

The next day, when he arrived in his classroom, his classmates all knew he had gone to USTC for the Gifted Youth Program interview.

Every one of them was dying of curiosity.

Lu Shixian had already braced himself, preparing answers for their various questions.

But the very first question left him speechless.

"God Lu, what did the girls and guys at the Gifted Youth Program interview look like? Were they good looking?"

Chapter 98: God Lu Has Completely Descended into Madness

What? Lu Shixian was suddenly mortified.

Shallow. So incredibly shallow!

"Aren't you guys concerned about how I did on the exam?"

The classroom erupted in jeers. "Do you even need to ask? You obviously nailed it!"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian felt a pang of guilt. This time, he really wasn't confident.

They were hyping him up way too much.

"Aren't you curious about the questions on the test?" he asked, quickly trying to change the subject.

He still got the same answer: "We don't even qualify to take it, so what's the use in asking?"

Fine. Lu Shixian had no choice but to answer their original question truthfully.

"They were alright, I guess. Though still a little lacking compared to me."

And for that remark, Lu Shixian was hit with a combo of disdainful looks from his classmates for his narcissism.

The next day, Lu Shixian had barely had a day to readjust to being back in Class One when he received a human message from Mei Ting.

He didn't know what instructions she had for him this time, but he knew he had to go.

And he had to be quick about it.

Speaking of which, he had been running around so much lately that it felt like a long time since he had been to the Biology Olympiad classroom on the third floor of the comprehensive building.

Coming back again, he felt a wave of nostalgia.

"Not bad. It took you less than five minutes to get here after I sent for you," Mei Ting said with a slight nod as he entered.

Lu Shixian pulled out the chair at his designated seat and asked, "Teacher Mei, what are your instructions?"

"You're not going to give me some predicted exam questions, are you? If so, I'm not picky. A few multiple choice questions would be fine."

Mei Ting was long immune to his antics and showed no reaction.

"I'm just worried you'll get eliminated too quickly at the nationals and embarrass me."

"There's about a month left until the national competition. During this time, I don't want you thinking about anything else. Just focus on preparing for it, understand?"

What could Lu Shixian say? The decision had already been made for him. Did it matter if he understood?

Mei Ting ignored his silent protest and continued, "Based on your current level, you shouldn't have a problem winning a gold medal, barring any surprises."

"But your goal is to be in the top fifty. In the time we have left, I'll be targeting your weak spots, covering some more obscure knowledge points to prevent any unexpected situations."

"So, tell me the specifics of the training camp."

When it came to the national competition, Lu Shixian didn't dare to be careless.

Competing against the elites from all over the country, he really didn't dare to underestimate them. With Mei Ting taking the trouble to help him, he couldn't be more grateful.

He quickly recounted, in great detail, everything he had learned at the training camp the previous week.

After listening, Mei Ting nodded slightly. "It seems I don't need to say much more about the microscopic aspects. Your training camp instructor seems quite skilled in that area, likely specializing in physiology."

At this, all Lu Shixian could feel was a profound sense of admiration.

Liu Xianhua had a doctorate in neurobiology, so of course he researched subjects in physiology and pathology.

He felt like he had only mentioned some unrelated course content, yet she could deduce all that.

Was this what they meant by an expert's insight?

"Alright, in *Animal Behavior*, what is silent heat?"

Mei Ting fired a question at him directly.

"Uh... I think it's when there are internal changes but no external ones," Lu Shixian replied after a moment's hesitation, managing to recall the answer.

"Too slow. You haven't mastered it."

"In *Ecology*, what is the difference between Bergmann's rule and Allen's rule?"

More animals? Lu Shixian suppressed a sigh and quickly tried to remember the answer.

"Bergmann's rule states that for endotherms, body size tends to be larger in colder climates and smaller in warmer ones."

"Allen's rule states that the appendages of endotherms tend to be shorter in colder regions, and vice versa."

Just as Lu Shixian thought he had passed, he was met with Mei Ting's merciless scorn.

"An excellent summary. Which is why I'm giving you a zero."

"I asked for the *difference* between the two laws, not for you to recite them. You're not just answering the wrong question; you're doing it with flair."

She made so much sense that Lu Shixian was left speechless.

And so, Lu Shixian made rapid progress through a constant cycle of answering questions and reading.

Mei Ting's job now was to help him shore up his weaknesses.

Then, with fifteen days remaining, Mei Ting paused this work and made a request that left Lu Shixian somewhat bewildered.

For this final half month, he was to study the history of biology, its important milestones, and the stories of prominent biologists.

According to her, this was to complete the final piece of the Biology Olympiad puzzle.

Ever since he learned that the general biology book Mei Ting had recommended was considered the bible of biology, Lu Shixian no longer dared to cut corners.

Sometimes, what he thought of as his own cleverness was merely a joke to those who were truly in the know.

Alright, he'd better just hit the books obediently.

And so, for the last two weeks, Lu Shixian practically lived in the Jinling University library.

His library card was about to expire anyway; it would be a waste not to use it.

His harvest over these last few days included *On the Origin of Species*, *A Brief History of Humankind*, *God's Fleas*, *The Secret Life of Flowers*, and *Guns, Germs, and Steel*.

He was particularly struck by *Guns, Germs, and Steel*. He hadn't realized until he read it how profoundly shocked he would be by Jared Diamond's meticulous knowledge structure and grand historical perspective.

The histories of different peoples unfolded along different trajectories, not because of biological differences, but because of environmental ones.

He had to admit, in his past life, he had never spent time reading books like these. Now it seemed he had missed out on something.

Judging by the title, he had originally thought it was a novel, completely unrelated to biology.

But after opening it, he discovered it was a treasure trove of geography and history.

It seemed that what the author, Diamond, wrote about was human history and geography, unrelated to biology.

But it involved the biogeography of agriculture and its wild ancestors, the behavioral ecology of domestic animals and their wild ancestors, the molecular biology of human germs and related animal pathogens, the epidemiology of human diseases, as well as genetics, linguistics, archaeological research, and more.

What he learned from this book was far more than just facts; it was a way of thinking about the world from multiple dimensions.

And so, in the final few days, he seemed to have descended into madness.

A male deskmate: "Lu Shixian, you're reading all day. Don't you ever need to use the bathroom?"

Lu Shixian: "The essential thing in metabolism is that the organism succeeds in freeing itself from all the entropy it cannot help producing while alive."

A female classmate: "Lu Shixian, why don't you talk to us much anymore?"

Lu Shixian: "No creature in this world exists in isolation, nor does it live for itself alone."

"Aah! He's gone crazy! He's lost it! One thought away from god or demon, God Lu has completely descended into madness..."

Some troublemakers were already pretending to panic.

Chapter 99: Arrival at the National Finals

Meanwhile, in Hefei, hundreds of kilometers from Jinling, in a closed office, several gray haired, bespectacled old professors slowly stepped away from their computer desks.

This signaled the completion of the meticulous and demanding grading process.

At that moment, everyone moved to another, larger conference room.

Chen Tang, the executive dean of the School for the Gifted Young at USTC, sat at the head of the table.

"The exams should all be graded by now, right? How are the statistics looking?"

A middle aged male teacher beside him turned on the projector and said, "Dean Chen, the results have just been compiled. Based on the total scores from the four exams and the interview in the second round, the final list of the top forty six students is on the screen."

Hearing this, Chen Tang began to read down from the first name.

"Not bad. The first place has a total score of 492, with only 8 points deducted in the interview. This shows the student has a very solid foundation."

He made no further comments until his gaze stopped at the forty fourth name on the list.

"Lu Shixian: Total score 454. Math 100, Non Intellectual Factor Tests 95 and 98."

"Physics 62? Interview 99?" A strange expression crossed Chen Tang's face.

"What's the deal with this kid? How did a student with such a skewed profile get into the second round?"

Hearing his question, several teachers in charge of admissions quickly began to search through their files.

"Dean Chen, his Gaokao score met the assessment criteria, so he was included in the second round list."

"He took the 2008 Gaokao in Su Province. His total score was 686, ranking 368th in the province. His scores in the other subjects were all very good, but his science composite was only 246."

As soon as this was said, a look of speechlessness fell over the teachers in the conference room.

"With that score, he could have gotten into our university even without participating in the Gifted Youth Program interviews."

"Looks like this kid really is unbalanced. If his science composite score were a bit better, he could have been a top scorer in the province."

Chen Tang's interest was piqued. He asked, "So what is his strong subject?"

"According to the information provided by the Su Province Department of Education, he won first prize in the provincial Math Olympiad in 2007, but it seems he gave up on competing for the nationals in math the following year. Instead, he participated in the Biology Olympiad this year and has already entered the provincial team with the top score in the semi finals."

Now, everyone understood Lu Shixian's situation.

They were all at a loss for words.

If that was the case, his biology score in the science composite must have been good.

From this, one could deduce just how abysmal his physics and chemistry scores must be.

In all their years of admitting students to the Gifted Youth Program, they had rarely seen a case like this.

Students with such unbalanced Gaokao scores almost never even qualified for the second round interviews.

Hearing this, Chen Tang thought of another key point.

"One more question. If it weren't for this interview score, he would have been eliminated. Who were the judges responsible for his interview panel?"

At this, a female teacher stood up and replied, "Dean Chen, I was in charge of the interview for Lu Shixian's group of eight. His interview was very different from the other candidates."

"His performance was indeed the best of the eight. I looked at his file. He comes from a rural background, yet he has such insight and ambition. I believe he deserves that score."

The female teacher's explanation only served to pique the interest of everyone present.

"Oh? Where is the recording of their session? Play it back for us."

The male teacher in charge of the equipment quickly began to work on the computer.

Soon, the scene of Lu Shixian's interview was replayed.

"...And one of my future goals is to make my own humble contribution on this path."

Lu Shixian's firm and determined voice still seemed to echo in the room.

After watching, Chen Tang chuckled and immediately made a decision.

"It's been a while since I've seen such an interesting student. Go ahead and publish the results. After the public comment period, send out the provisional admission offers to these forty six students. Pay special attention to this Lu Shixian. Do your best to get him to sign."

The days of studying always passed by so quickly and felt so full.

After the first week of August, Lu Shixian received the assembly notice from the competition committee.

The national competition was just around the corner.

Lu Shixian finally put down his books and began to pack his things to gather at Jinling University.

His classmates in the classroom all breathed a sigh of relief. If this had continued, they would have gone crazy before Lu Shixian did.

This time, their mode of transportation was upgraded to an airplane.

This was his first time on a plane since his rebirth, and he was actually a little excited.

But when he looked at the nonchalant expressions of his other teammates, he immediately labeled himself a country bumpkin.

So what if it's a plane? It's not like I didn't fly in my past life. I shot down more planes than I can count.

What's there to be excited about?

Fortunately, there were no typhoons recently.

On August 14th, the Su Province team, a total of eleven people, arrived at Daoqing High School in Dongshan Province.

The team consisted of eight members, two liaison staff, and one team leader.

The team leader was a familiar face to Lu Shixian and the others. His surname was Feng, a greasy middle aged man who liked to smoke.

They had met him many times during the training camp. He was said to have led the provincial team for several consecutive years and was very experienced.

During their stay, the host organization was responsible for receiving the provincial teams.

When he arrived at the destination, he could already see teams in various matching uniforms.

Daoqing High School also seemed to have prepared well in advance.

A banner reading "Welcome, contestants from all over the country, to the 16th National Biology Olympiad at our school" fluttered in the wind.

The sidewalks on both sides were dotted with the blue "CNBO" Biology Olympiad logo.

Looking at the lively scene, a female team member, Li Mengmeng, said with some envy, "I wish we could host a national competition at our home ground someday!"

Hearing this, Team Leader Feng coughed somewhat unnaturally. "That will depend on you guys. Provincial associations and high schools can apply to host two years in advance. Then the National Olympiad Committee will organize a site visit to the applying institutions before making a final decision."

"So the competition is fierce. However, under the same conditions, provinces that have recently won medals at the International Biology Olympiad and those that have never hosted the national competition are given priority."

Now they understood.

And at the same time, they all drooped like wilted eggplants.

"What's the point? I'd be satisfied with a national gold medal. Winning a medal at the International Biology Olympiad is completely out of reach."

"And even if we could win one, we wouldn't get to enjoy the benefit of hosting. It would be all for nothing."

Team Leader Feng had only said it casually and didn't actually expect them to win international medals, but he still lightly chided Li Mengmeng.

"What's with you, kid? You have no sense of the bigger picture. Wouldn't it make things easier for the next generation of students? How can you say it's for nothing!"

This left the young girl feeling a little down for the rest of the journey.

But at her lively and active age, bad moods came and went quickly, and soon Li Mengmeng was back to her cheerful, bouncing self.

The team was quickly settled in under the arrangements of the host.

Chapter 100: Learning to Perform at the Opening Ceremony

It was worth mentioning that each team was assigned two female volunteers.

The girls from Dongshan Province were very enthusiastic.
With the help of a young lady from the staff, each of them received their admission ticket, competitor's handbook, two sets of team uniforms, a tourist map of Dongshan Province, and some souvenirs.

Finally, the Su Province team followed the other teams' lead and took a group photo with the mascot of the 16th Biology Olympiad.

Forgive him, but he really couldn't tell what the mascot was supposed to be.

Lastly, they gazed in awe at the photos showcasing the glorious achievements of Daoqing High School's titans from the previous International Science Olympiads.

It had to be said, once you reached the national competition, the arrangements were so lavish it was as if money was no object. Everyone was staying in a grand hotel.

Two people shared a large room, and it didn't feel crowded at all.

With eleven people in six rooms, the last remaining single room naturally went to Team Leader Feng.

Lu Shixian's new roommate was He Mingqian, who seemed to be a man of few words.

His personality was the polar opposite of the quick witted Chen Kuangsheng; he wasn't one for talking, but Lu Shixian didn't mind.

Speaking of which, this was his first time in Daoqing City. He'd heard the most famous attraction here was Mount Lao, the highest peak along the vast coastline.

Unfortunately, the national competition was too important, and with it officially starting tomorrow, he really wasn't in the mood for sightseeing.

That evening, Team Leader Feng gathered all the provincial team members in his room for a meeting.

"The opening ceremony is tomorrow. I believe your teacher, Mr. Liu, has already gone over the competition procedures with you, so I won't go into too much detail."

"So tonight, I'll mainly be talking about some things to keep in mind during the competition. I know it's the same old story, but these issues still pop up every year at the national finals."

"First and foremost, manage your mindset. Over the years, I've seen too many contestants who are clearly very skilled get overwhelmed by nerves at the national finals. They underperform, and all their years of hard work go to waste, falling at the final hurdle."

As he spoke on this topic, Team Leader Feng's tone was heavy; he had clearly seen too much of it.

"Next, we have about a day until the official exam. During this time, I hope you all pay attention to your schedules and don't maintain your training pace. You all know the consequences of taking an exam while mentally fatigued."

"This is just one exam; it's not going to decide your entire life. So no matter the outcome, your future is full of infinite possibilities. The closer you get, the more you need to stay calm and take things as they come."

"Finally, we'll meet for breakfast in the restaurant tomorrow at 7:30 sharp. After we eat, we'll head to Mingzhi Plaza to join the main group."

With that, Team Leader Feng declared the meeting over, and everyone returned to their own rooms.

At this point, his teammates had no time left for idle chat, and the usual smiles were gone from their faces.

Looks like everyone's a bit nervous!

Back in his room, he saw He Mingqian was already reading.

Lu Shixian had no intention of disturbing him. He took a hot shower and went straight to bed.

The next day, time was tight.

For the first time in a long while, Lu Shixian broke his unbreakable daily exercise routine.

Breakfast was a lavish spread, but most of the team members had no appetite.

At a little after eight in the morning, thirty teams had gathered in Mingzhi Plaza. The dazzling array of different team uniforms was a sight to behold.

If it weren't for the placards identifying each province, it would have been hard to tell them apart.

Out of nearly a hundred thousand contestants nationwide, only these rare 240 had made it to the national competition.

Seeing this, Lu Shixian couldn't help but feel a little emotional. This was a true process of elimination.

And it wasn't over yet. Next, they had to sift for gold within that sand.

This path was truly arduous!

At nine o'clock sharp, all teams were present and accounted for.

According to the schedule, it was time for the opening ceremony.

Because the weather in Daoqing City had been excellent recently, the ceremony was held in Daoqing High School's largest venue, Stadium No. 1.

The opening ceremony was hosted by the vice principal of Daoqing High School.

Then came the speeches, one after another.

An address from the principal.

An address from the Director of the National Biology Olympiad Committee.

A speech from a leader from the Daoqing Municipal Education and Propaganda Department.

A speech from the Deputy Director of the Dongshan Provincial Department of Science and Technology.

The expert panel took their oath.

And finally, a representative of the competing students from Dongshan Province took their oath.

The entire opening ceremony was a tedious affair, but everyone in the stadium appeared to be listening intently, and the applause was, of course, thunderous.

To be honest, Lu Shixian had no interest in opening or closing ceremonies.

If he could, he would have started the exam right then and there. But some things were beyond his control; he could only change himself.

So he had no choice but to endure the entire process, treating it as a test of patience.

He could even pick up a thing or two about acting along the way, so at least it wasn't a complete waste of time.

He finally made it through to the end of the ceremony, only to be notified that there would be a group photo in Mingzhi Plaza.

This he didn't quite understand. It was the first time he'd ever seen a competition take a group photo at the very beginning.

Could it be that they were afraid some people would bomb the exam and be too devastated to stick around?

Lu Shixian speculated with a touch of dark humor.

Flashing a peace sign, Lu Shixian perfunctorily completed the task.

He checked the time. It was already 11:00 AM.

The next item on the agenda was inspecting the exam venue.

It had to be said, this was the national competition after all, and fairness was meticulously arranged.

But it was worth noting that there was a huge trap here. If Mei Ting hadn't warned him beforehand, he might have fallen for it today.

The venue for the theory exam was straightforward enough; you just had to check the hall and your seating arrangement.

But the practical exam was where the real trap lay.

All the equipment to be used in the practical exam would be displayed in the exam hall.

And this was where things got interesting. Wasn't deducing the experiment's topic from the equipment an essential skill for top students?

But whatever you could think of, how could the competition committee not?

To be frank, the tricks you were playing now were their old tricks from years ago.

That's why, in past years, the practical exam halls at the national competition would be set up with highly misleading tools.

For example, they might place a dissection scalpel on the lab bench. You'd see it and assume you were going to dissect an invertebrate.

But in reality, the topic might be on vertebrates, requiring you to examine its bones. The scalpel was just a red herring.

In short, not only would the equipment provide no useful information, it would actively mislead you.

On a national stage like this, relying on cheap tricks was useless. All you could rely on was your own accumulated knowledge, built day after day.

Therefore, when Lu Shixian inspected the practical exam venue, he simply memorized the location of his lab bench and the placement of the equipment.

11:50 AM, lunchtime.

There was an hour-long break afterward, but Lu Shixian was sure very few people would be able to sleep.

Anyone who could fall asleep at a time like this had to be a true master.

Lu Shixian only dared to doze off for a bit, not wanting to fall into a deep sleep and affect his performance in the afternoon.

Chapter 101: The Uninspired Theory Exam

At 1:30 PM, as team captain, Lu Shixian had to hold the provincial placard and lead his team into the exam hall.

Suddenly, to his right, he saw a large group of people all wearing the same team uniform.

While most provinces only had a mere handful of members, this team's appearance immediately drew the attention of the entire crowd.

"Based on my reading of the stars, this must be the Dongshan Province team," Chen Kuangsheng declared with mock seriousness.

But he was ruthlessly mocked by his teammates.

"Give me a break. Everyone knows Dongshan Province has a first and second team. You can tell at a glance. We don't need your astrological readings for that."

However, Chen Kuangsheng was completely unfazed by being called out, possessing the kind of shamelessness where if he wasn't embarrassed, someone else was.

"Alright, I'll tell you something you don't know. See that skinny guy with glasses on the left? Do you know who he is?"

Having never paid attention and having no sources of information, of course no one knew.

So Chen Kuangsheng said smugly, "Don't be fooled by his frail appearance. That guy is an absolute beast."

"How much of a beast? Is he as beastly as God Lu?" someone challenged.

Lu Shixian quickly waved his hands. "Let's just keep the 'God Lu' stuff as a joke among ourselves. Here at the nationals, the competition is fierce. You never know how strong your opponents truly are."

"Besides, with so many factors at play, I don't think anyone can guarantee they'll win a gold medal. So let's not mention it out here. If I underperform, I'll just become a laughingstock."

His showboating interrupted, Chen Kuangsheng quickly signaled that he had important intel to share and continued his introduction. "His name is Wang Fuwen, from Yingdong No. 1 High School. Last year, he won a national first prize in the Informatics Olympiad."

Hearing this, the entire team was nearly speechless.

"That's insane. I've only heard stories about Terence Tao winning an IMO gold medal at 13. I never thought I'd see someone win a national first prize in their first year of high school with my own eyes."

"He's still a far cry from a god like Tao, but he's way stronger than us. So why is he competing in the Biology Olympiad now? Aren't both biology and informatics pretty niche?"

Chen Kuangsheng chuckled. "That's where you're wrong. It's because his score wasn't quite high enough for a guaranteed admission spot at Yanda or Shuimu. I heard he was off by just one place."

"The Biology and Informatics Olympiads are similar in that they both require memorizing a massive amount of information. The key is that this guy's memory is freakishly good. Even if it's not a true photographic memory, I bet it's not far off."

"He just switched his focus to biology this year and immediately took first place and a gold medal at the provincial level. So his school has high hopes for him."

All you could really say to that was "impressive."

Sometimes, you just had to marvel at how some people could achieve so much more than you in the same amount of time.

Just then, they saw the Dongshan Province team heading inside.

They quickly ended the conversation Chen Kuangsheng had started and hurried to the competition area, finding their randomly assigned seats.

After a short wait.

At 2:00 PM, the theory portion of the exam officially began.

The exam would run from two to five in the afternoon, giving them three hours to complete it.

Upon receiving the paper, Lu Shixian habitually assessed the exam.

The number of questions was the same as the joint practice exam: 120 questions spread across 14 pages.

And the question structure was odd. The first few sections didn't seem very difficult; they were all standard questions.

But in the latter half, especially in genetics, evolutionary biology, and systematics—the fourth part—the sheer length of the questions made Lu Shixian's eyes glaze over.

Simply put, the easy questions were too easy, and the hard ones were too hard.

This probably meant the theory exam wouldn't be a major factor in differentiating the students.

So this was the national exam?

With no time for感慨, Lu Shixian decided to start answering. The difficult questions were all at the end anyway. He could worry about them later.

He looked at the first question: The key to successfully cultivating medicinal herbs like ginseng and sanqi is ().

a) controlling the appropriate temperature

b) controlling for sufficient moisture

c) controlling for low light conditions

d) providing fertile soil

Lu Shixian smiled. This was a freebie.

When it came to crops, he wasn't going to hold back.

First, he looked at the options: abiotic environmental factors.

Next, the question stem: ginseng and sanqi are undergrowth plants in dense forests.

Finally, he instantly deduced that they required low light conditions, making the answer c.

It was actually a somewhat interesting question. If you ignored the word "key," you'd find it quite agonizing.

Because all four options seemed like correct answers.

Question 2: In which phase of the cell cycle does cell differentiation occur?

Seeing this question, Lu Shixian momentarily thought he was doing a college entrance exam biology paper.

Did he even need to look at the options?

Of course! Because he had to find which option corresponded to the interphase of cell division.

Doing questions at this level was becoming a rather painful experience.

When you could find the option directly from the answer in your head, it was like seeing everything laid bare, utterly uninteresting.

Sometimes, it's more fun when there's a bit of mystery, a hint of suspense.

Question 3: The ICM (inner cell mass) is composed of?

Lu Shixian wanted to cry. He quickly scanned the options for "embryonic stem cells."

Question 4: Which of the following characteristics is unique to cancer cells?

He held back the urge to weep and simply recited all the characteristics of cancer cells from memory.

"1. Uncontrolled cell growth and division."

"2. The ability to invade and metastasize."

"3. Altered cell-to-cell interactions."

The first three parts went so smoothly that Lu Shixian almost thought he'd been given a fake exam paper.

As time ticked by, Lu Shixian finally hit his first roadblock.

A definition-based inference question.

Inversion refers to a phenomenon where a chromosome breaks in two places, and the segment in between rotates 180 degrees before reattaching, reversing the gene sequence on that segment.

The question provided a definition and then asked: During the synapsis of homologous chromosomes, different situations can occur, including?

This type of question was demanding. It required you to quickly understand the given definition and then use your existing knowledge to infer the answer.

But for the current him, this kind of question was where he truly felt the joy of problem-solving.

When you clearly understood every detail of homologous chromosome synapsis, you too would reach this state of mind.

After finishing that question, he immediately encountered the first problem that required written calculation.

The question was about the probability of hereditary diseases in offspring, a staple of high school biology genetics problems.

Lu Shixian really wanted to complain. People should get pre-marital health checkups, you know? It's too late after the baby is born.

So calculating this probability was utterly pointless.

Alright, back to the question: Congenital deafness is a genetically heterogeneous monogenic recessive disorder. A couple are both congenitally deaf, with genotypes a1a1A2A2 and A1A1a2a2, respectively. What is the probability that their offspring will be congenitally deaf?

Chapter 102: NTR? They're All Paper Tigers

Lu Shixian quickly solved it using the dragon-slaying saber of genetics: Mendelian laws of inheritance.

Once you understood the concept of a heterogeneous monogenic recessive gene, the question wasn't difficult.

The amount of calculation required was less than elementary school math.

At this point, Lu Shixian was in a state of constant self-doubt.

Could it be that I'm really doing a fake exam paper?

It's really not that hard!

Even when the difficulty increased slightly later on, it was only at the level of the provincial league competition.

But soon, he wanted to shove those words right back into his mouth.

What the hell is this question?!

"A woman maintains an intimate relationship with two men simultaneously and gives birth to three children. The two men, both claiming to be the biological father of all three children, have taken the custody dispute to court."

"The blood types (ABO, MN, and Rh systems) of the two men, three children, and their mother are shown in the table below."

"From this, we can conclude that? (Multiple choice)"

Before even looking at the options, Lu Shixian's mind was already racing.

So what kind of "intimate relationship" was this?

Why were both men claiming to be the father?

Was this an explosion of lust or the desperation of loneliness?

Well, well, has the spirit of NTR spread even to the Biology Olympiad?

This question-setter is something else.

Of course, Lu Shixian was talking about the difficulty.

It's so complicated. Who belongs to whom?

Two men, one woman, three kids. The problem nearly made his head spin. There were just too many scenarios to consider.

It wasn't possible to accurately determine which child belonged to which father just from the table.

So he would have to test each of the options.

This would take some time. For the first time, Lu Shixian's brain began to spin at high speed.

After failing to calculate the probabilities of who was the offspring of whom, Lu Shixian shook his head, clearing all the recent thoughts from his mind.

No, no, my approach must be wrong.

How do I crack this?

He had already ruffled his hair into a bird's nest.

I'm doing a multiple-choice question for a biology competition, not conducting a paternity test at a forensic lab!

As he thought, a flash of inspiration struck him.

He suddenly discovered a blind spot he had overlooked. It was like he had been stuck in a mental black hole.

"Damn it! I'm doing a multiple-choice question! Not a free-response question."

"What's wrong with my brain? I was on such a roll that I almost forgot about my good old buddies: process of elimination, comparative analysis, combination screening, causal analysis, and contradiction analysis."

So, in the end, Lu Shixian opted for some outside help. But as he tried them one by one, his first four buddies didn't seem to be of much use.

It's been a while. Why are you guys so useless now?

Resigned, Lu Shixian had no choice but to turn to his fifth buddy and perform a contradiction analysis on the question and the options.

If he still couldn't solve it, he would really have to give up. This question had already cost him too much time and energy.

"Let's assume option A is correct."

"Male contestant number one."

"No, if Man 1 is the father of Child 1."

"Then based on the information in the table, options B, C, and D would be incorrect."

And this was marked as a multiple-choice question where more than one answer could be correct.

Naturally, he could be 100% certain that A was not a correct answer.

With that, Lu Shixian had a plan. The next step was to follow the same pattern.

However, when he got to option B, if B was correct, it resulted in two correct options, with another one being indeterminate.

What a headache!

Lu Shixian reluctantly looked at option C.

He was suddenly delighted to find that option C was also wrong.

So, according to his number one buddy, the process of elimination, making a comeback in a multiple-choice question with two or more correct answers, the result seemed obvious.

There is only one truth!

Options B and D.

Lu Shixian had successfully helped Man 2 find his biological child, Child 3, and helped Man 1 find his biological child, Child 2.

As for the rest, he was powerless to help.

He was truly exhausted.

But there were still eight or nine questions left, probably of similar difficulty to the last one.

The long march had only just begun.

He couldn't afford to lose his composure at this critical moment.

Lu Shixian forced himself to keep his spirits up.

He glanced at the time. Thanks to his smooth performance earlier, he still had an hour left to grind through these.

Whether he could get into the national team or not would depend on whether that feeling of inspiration came to him again.

Lu Shixian braced himself and looked at the next question.

"A matrilineal alien species, the Moss, is similar to diploid organisms on Earth. In the Moss, individuals with gene H are charming, while its recessive mutant allele g determines an ugly appearance."

"An ugly individual marries a charming individual. All their offspring are ugly boys and charming girls."

"From this, we can conclude that? (Multiple choice)"

Lu Shixian was speechless. At least this time it was one-on-one.

But here was the problem: who was ugly and who was charming?

The male or the female? That was the crucial question
Not this trick again, is it?

Lu Shixian once again sought outside help.

But to his surprise, none of them worked?

What was going on?

He must have torn out a handful of hair.

After reviewing the question several times, Lu Shixian was suddenly at a complete loss for words.

"Marry! Marry! Marry!"

It seemed the ugly one was the female alien.

In that case, the answer seemed obvious.

But just as he was about to write down the answer, his peripheral vision caught some information he had often overlooked.

"A matriarchal society?"

His hand, which had been happily filling in the answer, froze.

Who the hell wrote this question!

Are they sick? Don't they feel happy unless they trip up a few people?

After changing his answer, Lu Shixian had a complete epiphany.

They were all just paper tigers!

Next, Lu Shixian encountered the last few tricky questions.

Then he came to the final one.

"Evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins once described gene-driven behavior in 'The Selfish Gene'."

"Successful genes are passed down from generation to generation, while failed genes and their hosts are annihilated from the world. That is, genes that endanger the survival of the individual cannot be passed on."

"Which of the following options best aligns with Richard Dawkins's theory?"

The trick to this question was that every option looked similar, all having something to do with evolutionary biology.

Some differed by only a word or two.

Anyone who didn't know better would think the question was asking them to spot the differences.

At this moment, Lu Shixian was incredibly thankful for having crammed biology and the history of biologists in the final month.

Thus, a question that seemed difficult was one he answered even faster than the simpler ones before it.

With a racing heart and trembling hands.

Lu Shixian directly selected the theory of progressive evolution.

The feeling of overcoming these difficult problems one by one was simply wonderful.

This meant the theory portion of the national competition was in the bag!

At this thought, he was overcome with excitement. The sense of achievement from slowly growing stronger was indescribable.

So it really was true: you just focus on working hard, and leave the rest to fate!

And right after that came another saying: Heaven rewards the diligent.

Every single diligent day and night, from the summer after his third year of middle school until the eve of the national competition, had finally paid off in this moment.

Lu Shixian's entire body was trembling slightly with excitement.

On the platform, the proctor noticed Lu Shixian's unusual behavior and couldn't help but break into a cold sweat for him, growing nervous himself.

"Was it really that difficult?"

"Other kids just tap the desk lightly at most, but this kid is literally shaking, and yet he's still smiling?"

"Am I going to have to call an ambulance from a psychiatric hospital for him later?"

Chapter 103: Becoming the Person You Want to Be

To the proctor's relief, Lu Shixian held on until the end without any incidents or causing him any trouble.

No one turned in their paper early for this exam, not even Lu Shixian, who had finished with ten minutes to spare.

At five in the afternoon, the bell signaling the end of the exam rang unceremoniously.

It was followed by the sound of many people scrambling in a panic.

Walking out of the examination hall, Lu Shixian felt as if the once clear sky had become blanketed with dark clouds.

Except for a very small number of people whose expressions were normal, everyone else wore a deep frown.

Lu Shixian could even hear the faint sound of crying from not far away.

Seeing this scene, the joy Lu Shixian had felt in the exam hall began to cool.

Sigh, there was nothing to be proud of.

What right did he have to be arrogant, having just suffered his own Waterloo at the re-examination for the prodigy class?

With a soft sigh, Lu Shixian turned and left the venue for the theory competition.

He finally arrived at the meeting spot Team Leader Feng had arranged with them.

By now, almost everyone was there.

Lu Shixian's gaze swept across everyone's faces; they were practically all cut from the same mold.

Filled with numbness, depression, and disappointment.

"How did you guys do? I was clueless the whole way through. Why do I feel like all 120 questions were the hard ones from the four major sections of the league competition?"

"I'm screwed! I spent too much time on the first part and had no idea the questions at the end would be so insane. I pretty much guessed on all of them!"

"Heh! I just skipped the hard questions at the beginning. Even with time for genetics and evolution, I still had to guess."

Chen Kuangsheng, however, could still laugh without a care. After speaking, he turned his gaze to Lu Shixian.

"Lu Shen, how did you do this time? If you bombed it too, then our Jiangsu Province team is really going to be wiped out."

Hearing his question, Lu Shixian was at a loss for how to answer.

If he said he did well, he was afraid they'd overthink it.

If he said he did poorly, they'd also overthink it when the results came out.

Just as Lu Shixian was considering how to give a vague answer, Team Leader Feng arrived.

This saved Lu Shixian a headache.

Team Leader Feng's face appeared quite calm. It was as if he already knew the results without even needing to look at their expressions.

"Alright, don't be so disheartened."

"I've gotten a pretty clear picture of the situation with this year's national biology competition theory exam." Team Leader Feng seemed rather optimistic.

"It could even be called the hardest in the last five years. But it's not just you who found it difficult; the other provinces feel the same way. So, adjust your mindsets quickly and prepare for tomorrow's practical exam."

Speaking of the practical exam, Team Leader Feng added another sentence: "The practical portion of the national competition accounts for 50% of the score. Moreover, in the case of a tie in the T-score, the ranking is determined by the practical exam score. It's not just one or two people who turn the tables with the practical exam each year."

"You're all veterans. I don't need to teach you not to check answers after an exam, right? After dinner, once the practical exam groups are announced tonight, get some good rest."

"Go eat. Stop thinking about it. Meeting dismissed!"

Hearing his words, the atmosphere in the team lightened up a bit.

At this point, besides the top students who did well and the carefree ones like Chen Kuangsheng, who was in the mood to eat?

But the interesting thing about life is that even when you know you can't stomach what's on your plate.

You still have to force yourself to finish it, fighting back the nausea.

After dinner, Lu Shixian was about to insert his room key and return to his room when he heard a sound from inside.

He opened the door to find someone hiding under the covers, crying softly.

It was his roommate for the past few days, the wallflower He Mingqian, a nickname naturally given by the little imp, Chen Kuangsheng.

Sigh, it had come to this. Lu Shixian had to say something; after all, he held the title of team captain.

"What's the point? It's just an exam. There's still the practical tomorrow!"

"Besides, everyone generally found the questions to be on the harder side. Keep a good mindset and do well tomorrow..."

But to his surprise, before Lu Shixian could finish, He Mingqian shouted at him, "How could a genius like you ever understand the suffering of ordinary people like us?"

Lu Shixian was taken aback. This was the first time He Mingqian had ever spoken so loudly.

Hearing his words, Lu Shixian laughed self-deprecatingly. "Do you really think I'm a genius?"

"I fought with my life to get to this point, and you're going to use the word 'genius' to erase all my hard work?"

"I came all the way from a small village elementary school. Compared to that, you, at the Affiliated High School of Jinling, don't seem to have the right to say that to me, do you?"

Hearing Lu Shixian's words, He Mingqian's tears started to fall again.

"Do you think everyone who studies at the Affiliated High School of Jinling is rich? I'm just like you. I was just lucky enough to be selected through a special program for ethnic minorities, that's all."

"No matter how hard I tried, I could never catch up to the top group."

"On weekends, they always had teachers from famous universities tutoring them in biology, while I could only study by myself in the dorm. The funny thing is, I was still excited about learning one new piece of knowledge after another. But when I looked at the actual competition questions, I found I couldn't even understand the question stems."

"It wasn't until I read a sentence in the answer key: 'This was all covered in the XX summer camp,' that I suddenly understood."

"I had already lost before I even began!"

"The most ridiculous part is that everyone in my class was from Jinling except me. The teacher taught in the Jinling dialect, and I barely understood a word for the entire first semester."

"It was as if we were separated by another world. I didn't fit in at all."

"It was there that I truly understood what a chasm-like gap felt like."

"I guess a worm crawling on the ground, even if it dreams of flying, is ultimately just indulging in a fantasy."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian fell silent.

The so-called environment shapes character. No wonder He Mingqian barely spoke in front of others, living like a ghost.

In comparison, Lu Shixian now felt he had even less right to lecture him.

To have come this far, how heart-wrenching and soul-crushing must his efforts have been.

Without the opportunity of rebirth, if he were in He Mingqian's shoes, could he have done it?

So, never counsel others to be virtuous when you haven't endured their hardships.

Lu Shixian let out a long breath and said, "Not everyone can become the person they want to be, but everyone can strive to become the person they want to be."

"Believe in yourself. Even the humblest, tiniest crawling insect has the chance to break out of its cocoon and become a butterfly, let alone us in the prime of our youth."

"The spring breeze that lifts us is growing stronger. The sky that belongs to us will become wider and wider in the future, so the dream of flight is not beyond our reach."

After speaking, Lu Shixian took his towel and went into the bathroom.

When Lu Shixian came out, He Mingqian's state was much better than before, no longer so hysterical.

Just as Lu Shixian was about to leave, he suddenly heard a soft "thank you" by his ear.

Lu Shixian paused his steps and smiled. "Me too."

Because He Mingqian had taught him a lesson with his own personal experience.

At nine in the evening, the lottery for group assignments began in the hotel.

Lu Shixian drew station D-36.

He didn't know if this 36D would bring him good luck.

But he knew he would give his all in tomorrow's practical exam!

Chapter 104: The National Finals Practical Exam Concludes

In the blink of an eye, it was August 16th.

Today's schedule was packed to the brim. The exam would run from 8 in the morning until 6 in the evening.

So, he had an extra fried dough stick for breakfast, trying to have enough energy to get through the entire day's exam.

The content of the practical exam, like the theory exam, was divided into four parts: Botany, Zoology and Ecology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and Genetics and Development.

Each part of the exam was 90 minutes long.

He had already heard this from Liu Xianhua during the provincial team training camp.

At the time, he had marveled at how the league and national competitions were on completely different levels.

Now, it seemed that was indeed the case.

Eight o'clock in the morning sharp.

The practical examination of the 16th National High School Biology Olympiad Finals of 2008 officially began.

Area D, station 36.

On the table were already six different types of flowers and various dissection tools.

As expected, it was the botany practical.

Lu Shixian looked at the exam paper already prepared on the table.

Question 1: Dissect and observe the characteristics of these six flowers, such as K, C, A, G, and fill in the flower numbers in the identification key.

Truly outrageous, six flowers at once.

The league competition would probably only test one.

No, wait, he suddenly remembered that the league practical only had two parts, and neither of them was botany.

As expected of the Botanical Society, to come up with a question of this caliber right off the bat.

However, this also brought him some good news, as it meant the Zoology and Ecology practical wouldn't be too difficult.

Lu Shixian relaxed slightly and began the experiment.

If you truly mastered the key points of flower dissection, there was really no difference between one flower and six.

Question 2: Create a dichotomous key based on the characteristics of their stamens and pistils.

A dichotomous key is a method used in plant taxonomy to identify and classify plants, and it is the most commonly used type.

Its principle is to assign the same number to each pair of opposing characteristics, which are then aligned at an equal distance on the left side of the page.

Each pair of numbers can only be used once in the key, starting from the highest rank of kingdom all the way down to species, with the indentations increasing.

This task was actually very tedious and required a great deal of patience.

But it was manageable. At least they didn't ask him to create a parallel key at the same time.

He was quite satisfied with that.

After creating the dichotomous key, Lu Shixian quickly looked at the third question.

The paper provided a new set of definitions and concepts, and he had to use a microscope to determine which category of structure the pollen belonged to.

This tested not only the candidate's ability to learn on the spot but also their practical skills and foundational theoretical knowledge.

This kind of hybrid question was quite difficult. If you were unfamiliar with any single part, you were done for.

Therefore, it demanded a high level of comprehensive ability from the candidates.

But when it came to botany, Lu Shixian was practically an all-rounder with no weaknesses.

This question was done in twenty minutes!

The fourth and fifth questions were both experimental design problems.

One involved using a micrometer to measure the size of pollen, while the other was to verify the existence of signal transduction between the above-ground and below-ground parts of a plant.

These were very common experimental topics, but the difficulty of biology competition practicals never lay in the content itself, but rather in the process.

Every step you took had to adhere to the main principles of experimental design.

Generally, these were the principles of control, randomization, parallel repetition, and single-variable.

Moreover, it had to be carried out according to the prescribed steps of the scientific method.

Even if you didn't explicitly label which step it was, the grader had to be able to tell from the stages of your design.

Lu Shixian gently closed his eyes and ran through the entire process in his head.

"First, both questions require a complete process: designing the experimental plan, conducting the experiment, and analyzing the results."

"Second, what biological principles do these two experiments need to apply to achieve their objectives?"

"Then, based on the principles, propose a hypothesis for the experiment and predict the results. The line of thought must also fully consider what can be achieved with the provided equipment."

"After that, design the experimental steps and carry out the experiment."

"Finally, record the experimental phenomena and data, and draw a conclusion based on this content."

Sound complicated?

Yes, just explaining it would take up quite a few words.

Let alone strictly following these steps to do it.

The slightest error could lead to a massive deviation.

The final experimental data would be completely unusable.

This single experiment alone, with its level of difficulty, would probably deter many people.

"The national finals are truly on another level. The league competition is like child's play," Lu Shixian couldn't help but sigh.

However, Lu Shixian felt an inner excitement, especially when it was time to do experiments.

He always felt like he was using tools like the microscope to observe this wonderful world from the perspective of other living organisms.

But in reality, this type of experiment was only a rather basic one.

To be honest, he had done this kind of thing to death.

Anyone in an applied science field would first encounter the experimental method, and he was already thoroughly familiar with it.

Plus, this was his old turf; doing botany experiments was second nature to him.

After completing the botany practical, Lu Shixian took a few minutes' rest.

He needed to calm his slightly agitated state of mind and recover some of his depleted energy.

Next was the zoology practical. As he had expected.

The task was to dissect a locust, and it tested the candidate's knowledge of its external morphology, nervous system, and digestive system in sequence.

It was a relatively traditional question of average difficulty.

The ecology practical was to plot a population survival curve and determine the population growth rate.

This question was the easiest of all, even appearing frequently in the league competition. It was basically a freebie.

The biochemistry practical was to separate and purify proteins using His-tag affinity chromatography and to determine their concentration using UV spectrophotometry.

This was the second most difficult practical among the four, after botany. It primarily tested the participant's hands-on skills and their understanding of the experimental principles and procedures.

The Genetics and Development practical ranked third in difficulty, mainly focusing on chromosome staining and observation, mitosis, and meiosis.

But in reality, the most crucial part of this experiment was preparing the slide. As long as the slide was clear enough, this practical was basically on the same level as the ecology one, two peas in a pod.

You could simply write down the answers based on your memory of the relevant definitions.

It was the final exam session, and Lu Shixian persevered to the very end.

At six in the evening, the practical exam officially concluded.

Lu Shixian dragged his somewhat exhausted body, signed his name, and left.

As for what score the proctor would give him, that was no longer his concern.

At this hour, you could see candidates supporting each other everywhere.

At this moment, besides exhaustion, you couldn't see any other expression on their faces.

A full day of battle had left them physically and mentally drained.

Who had the energy left to be dejected or excited?

Lu Shixian understood this feeling all too well.

Chapter 105: Hide Your Blade and Bide Your Time

The eight members from Jiangsu Province quickly gathered again at their usual meeting spot.

By now, everyone was there except for him.

Lu Shixian looked over at them and found them deep in a heated discussion.

Although the exams were all over, checking answers was understandable.

But he still couldn't help but sigh inwardly. The questions must have been too easy if they still had the energy to compare answers.

"Damn, who the hell designed the botany practical? It was terrifying. Each sub-question could have been a final boss in the league competition!"

"Tell me about it! The first question was so hard it almost scared the piss out of me. Luckily, I was smart enough to look at the later questions, which saved my mentality from collapsing."

"I think I can only be sure of getting points on the first sub-question. I'm not confident about the other four at all. I allocated all my time to the later sections."

"No way, you guys thought the later parts were easy? Why was it that when I used UV spectrophotometry, I spent ages preparing six 5.0ml protein solutions of different concentrations, but the concentrations measured with them had a huge margin of error? In the end, I just had to make do with what I had as a last resort."

Just then, seeing Lu Shixian arrive.

Chen Kuangsheng called out to him as if seeking rescue, "Lu Shen, hurry up and explain it to him. I've been trying to explain for ages and he doesn't get it. I can't make it clear to him."

Lu Shixian listened again to the problem they had been discussing and immediately understood.

"There are four methods for UV spectrophotometry. Since you used six test tubes, it means you were trying to use the most common 280nm light absorption method."

"But you overlooked one problem: the concentration of the provided standard protein solution becomes too low after dilution. In that situation, it leads to inaccurate measurements."
"Therefore, for this problem, you can't use 280nm light for absorbance measurement. Instead, you should use the difference in absorbance values between 215nm and 225nm, determining the concentration of the dilute protein solution via the standard curve method."

As Lu Shixian explained this, some students had already reached a moment of clarity, their faces showing sudden understanding. But he still finished his last sentence.

"So, this question specifically requires you to use the 215nm and 225nm absorbance difference method."

At this point, someone on the team was already wearing a mask of agony.

"Aaaargh! My genetics score on the theory exam was a total disaster, I couldn't get the botany experiment to work, and I didn't even get full marks on biochemistry."

"Should I just start packing my bags and go home now?"

Hearing his complaints, the others knew his spirit wasn't truly broken.

So they paid him no mind and began to estimate their own scores.

"If that's the case, I'm probably done for too. The national training team is out of reach, and a gold medal is a long shot. I guess you could say I'm just here for the experience."

"The questions were disgusting. The titans from the powerhouse provinces and teams definitely aced them. That puts us at a huge disadvantage."

"If I could, I'd trade a year of my life for a gold medal right now."

As they were talking, Li Mengmeng's large eyes suddenly focused on Lu Shixian's face.

She asked with curiosity, "God Lu, why are you so quiet? I want to know how you did."

"Just be honest. It might be a blow to our egos, but I'm really curious."

With the pretty girl's question, the others also started to chime in. "Yeah, hurry up and tell us so we can go out and flex later."

"You're the last hope and the face of Su Province! Don't hold back, we can take it."

Now, Lu Shixian was feeling a bit embarrassed.

Should he tell them the truth?

It seemed like they really didn't mind.

"So, I should really say it?" Lu Shixian tested the waters one last time.

The quick witted Chen Kuangsheng couldn't wait any longer and practically buzzed in with the answer.

"Yes, definitely, absolutely! Stop dragging it out and just tell us!"

Lu Shixian had no choice but to be slightly evasive. "Well, maybe, perhaps, I probably didn't get a perfect score."

His voice wasn't loud, but it landed like a sledgehammer on everyone's heart.

Chen Kuangsheng: It's over. My heart aches. I might need some nitroglycerin.

Li Mengmeng: The gap is too wide. I'm just going to go draw circles in a corner.

He Jingqiu: I'm so jealous!

The others had similar reactions.

Seeing their expressions, Lu Shixian finally understood that he'd been played.

This was what they called "not taking it to heart"?

Well, he wasn't the one feeling uncomfortable, and it wasn't like he had insisted on telling them.

And so, Lu Shixian went to dinner with a clear conscience, leaving the others behind to suck on their lemons.

After dinner, the evening was free time with no other scheduled activities.

But Lu Shixian had already made up his mind. This was the time to go back and recharge.

If he went out to party and dropped dead from excitement, it would be a classic case of snatching tragedy from the jaws of victory.

The next day, according to the itinerary, the host city was supposed to act as a tour guide, leading the students and team leaders from all over the province to some of Daoqing's famous scenic spots.

However, due to bad weather, the plan was changed at the last minute to an expert lecture.

At first, Lu Shixian felt it was a shame. He had come all the way to Dongshan Province but hadn't had a chance to look around.

But when he saw the speaker's name, all he could think was: Never mind, this is awesome.

It was actually Wang Zhixin, an academician from the School of Life Sciences at Tsinghua University.

This man's name was renowned, even in Lu Shixian's previous life.

His life story was the stuff of legends.

From a sent down youth in the countryside to becoming the youngest academician in the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

He was in charge of the State Key Laboratory of Biomolecular Engineering and was a powerhouse in the domestic research of molecular enzymology, protein chemistry, and structural biology.

He loved to use mathematics to study biology and had made incredibly creative contributions to the theory and application of irreversible inhibition kinetics, especially in the development and promotion of enzyme activity irreversible inhibition kinetics.

Lu Shixian had only heard of his name before; he never imagined he would have the honor of attending his lecture in person.

This rain was a blessing in disguise!

Filled with anticipation, Lu Shixian walked into Zhiyuan Hall with his teammates.

The venue was already set up.

After a while, the titan finally appeared before them.

His kind voice echoed from the speakers on both sides of the hall.

"It is a great honor to be invited here today to the finals of the 16th National Biology Olympiad..."

"The topic I'll be sharing today is 'Hiding the weapon on your person, and waiting for the right time to act'..."

"The 'weapon' is your personal ability, accumulated through hard work. The 'time' is the opportunity that arises, which you must be vigilant to grasp accurately."

But to Lu Shixian's disappointment, the lecture didn't contain the content he was hoping for.

The titan's theme for the day was about how a wise person prepares and waits for the right moment, recounting how he successfully seized opportunities through prior effort and ample preparation, which ultimately decided his future.

Alright, so he'd successfully received a dose of chicken soup for the soul from an academician.

Chapter 106: National Competition Results Announced

After downing the bowl of chicken soup, Lu Shixian finally heard the academician mention his recent primary research topic: the protein structure prediction problem.

But it was only a brief mention, without any detailed explanation.

In reality, Lu Shixian had been daydreaming to think he would discuss specialized knowledge in this setting.

Even if he had, very few people in the audience would have been able to understand his lecture.

So it would have been meaningless.

What left him speechless, however, was that the titan actually ended up giving an advertisement for Tsinghua University.

Seriously? They were already starting to recruit students?

Were they afraid Peking University would snatch everyone up during the training camp there?

After lunch, Lu Shixian could feel that everyone was a bit distracted.

He understood why. That afternoon, the scores and rankings would be announced.

This would directly impact everyone's honor, and to put it dramatically, their fate and future.

The waiting period was often the most agonizing.

Someone would inevitably start to overthink, imagining what score they might get.

Finally, four o'clock in the afternoon arrived.

According to the schedule, the final results should have just been released.

The freshly baked scores could now be checked online.

At this moment, the entire provincial team was gathered in Team Leader Feng's room, waiting with bated breath.

He was the only one with a laptop for work.

"Team Leader Feng, hurry up, hurry up! The results are out!"

"Yeah! Mr. Feng, what kind of relic are you using? If I'd known, I would have brought my own computer from home."

Listening to the incessant urging, Team Leader Feng found it rather amusing.

"Why are you all so eager? You think you all made the silver medal cutoff?"

Li Mengmeng explained with a hint of pride, "Even better. God Lu is probably going to make the national training team, and his ranking might be pretty high."

The others nodded in agreement.

"That's right, let's see God Lu's score first! I need to absorb some of his good luck."

Team Leader Feng was completely bewildered by their confidence.

His eyes darted back and forth to Lu Shixian, finding it hard to believe.

During the provincial team training, he had heard that Lu Shixian was the most likely to win a gold medal.

But a national first prize gold medal didn't guarantee a spot on the national training team; only the top fifty gold medalists qualified.

And the difficulty of ranking high was easy to imagine.

It wasn't that he wanted to boost others' prestige at his own team's expense.

He also hoped that Su Province could achieve a breakthrough in this national competition.

But realistically speaking, they were considered a weaker province and a weaker team.

The powerhouse provinces and teams weren't just sitting around doing nothing.

Although he had his doubts, he didn't want to spoil everyone's excitement.

Once the results were out, everything would be clear.

As the webpage slowly loaded, seven or eight heads immediately crowded around the computer screen.

Team Leader Feng and Lu Shixian couldn't even squeeze in.

Lu Shixian found it both funny and exasperating. Why did these people seem more anxious about his score than he was?

Weren't they concerned about their own results?

Just then, a chorus of gasps echoed through the room. Even the quiet He Jingqiu was no exception.

"Holy shit!"

"Holy shit!!"

"Holy shit!!!"

Hearing the universal descriptor, Lu Shixian was speechless. Now he was getting anxious too.

"This is not the time for 'holy shit'."

"Can you just tell me what's going on?"

Suddenly, the decibel level in the room seemed to surpass Mount Everest.

"First!"

"First place!"

"God Lu is a beast!"

"We're the champions!"

At this, Lu Shixian could no longer contain himself.

He hurried over to the computer.

Beside him, Team Leader Feng looked as if he'd seen a ghost and also took a few steps forward.

"No way, did a pie really just fall from the sky?"

Their eyes finally converged on the first name in the first row.

Province: Su Province | Name: Lu Shixian | Total Theory Score: 142 | Theory T-Score: 86.7209 | Lab T-Score: 71.6387

Total T-Score: 79.1798 | Overall Rank: 1 | Medal: Gold

Although he had anticipated a good score, he couldn't be certain he would take first place.

In that instant, Lu Shixian felt like he was floating on cloud nine.

An immense wave of happiness washed over him, drowning out the voices of his teammates.

Team Leader Feng turned to look at Lu Shixian and swallowed hard.

"This... this..."

"My God! This is huge!"

He was suddenly at a loss for words, and then an enormous sense of joy surged through him, his mouth stretching into a grin that nearly split his face.

For the first time, he felt he could laugh so freely.

He took out a cigarette, ready for a puff, but found it was scorching hot.

Looking down, he realized he had put the lit end in his mouth in his excitement.

Ignoring the pain on his lips, he whipped out his phone, dialed a number, and rushed out.

But even from the hallway, everyone could hear his report.

"President, President, great news! Incredible news!..."

Lu Shixian didn't comment on Team Leader Feng's sudden outburst and his blunder. Seeing his teammates still marveling at his score, he asked, rather exasperated, "Aren't you going to check your own scores?"

As if waking from a dream, they quickly started searching for their own names on the list.

Lu Shixian also began to check the other results.

Province: Dongshan 1 | Name: Wang Fuwen | School: Yingdong No. 1 High School | Total Theory Score: 131 | Theory T-Score: 78.6132 | Lab T-Score: 69.7864 | Total T-Score: 74.1998 | Overall Rank: 2 | Medal: Gold

Province: North E | Name: Yang Yihang | School: Affiliated High School of HZNU | Total Theory Score: 122 | Theory T-Score: 70.7209 | Lab T-Score: 70.5463 | Total T-Score: 70.6336 | Overall Rank: 3 | Medal: Gold

Province: Chuanzhong | Name: Li Baiming | School: Jincheng No. 7 High School | Total Theory Score: 121 | Theory T-Score: 70.3124 | Lab T-Score: 70.6125 | Total T-Score: 70.4625 | Overall Rank: 4 | Medal: Gold

Lu Shixian looked at the provinces and scores. As expected, they were all from famous schools in powerhouse provinces for the Biology Olympiad.

And the titan who had just won the national first prize in informatics had indeed surpassed himself again, taking second place in biology.

At this time, their own scores were gradually found.

And the room once again erupted in exclamations.

Because apart from Lu Shixian, they had discovered another surprise.

Chen Kuangsheng had a burst of inspiration and performed exceptionally well, achieving a very good rank.

He and He Mingqian won silver medals with ranks of 74th and 102nd, respectively.

But before the guy who said he was going to pack his bags and go home could cry, Chen Kuangsheng burst into tears first.

"How can I be so unlucky? I missed it by just 0.3 points! There are 73 gold medals in total. If I had moved up just one spot, I would have gotten gold."

"Are you kidding me! My mentality is shattered!"

Everyone couldn't help but laugh at his antics.

And so, the results for Su Province in this year's Biology Olympiad were out: one gold, two silvers, and four bronzes.

If Lu Shixian wasn't included, this result was actually not much different from previous years.

This was the true level of Su Province's biology competition team.

Chapter 107: Tsinghua University's Recruitment Offer

With the organizing committee's official announcement, almost everyone following the Biology Olympiad could now see the full results and rankings on the official website.

The release of this list meant that tonight was destined to be a sleepless one.

By now, a beaming Team Leader Feng had returned and beckoned to Lu Shixian.

Lu Shixian seemed to have guessed what was happening and obediently followed him out.

He followed him to a deserted corner.

"Lu Shixian, I'm sure you understand the situation now."

"Because you're the first place gold medalist, I expect admissions officers from all the top universities will be trying to sign you."

"But the award ceremony and closing ceremony are tomorrow. We can only head back after that's over."

Team Leader Feng seemed very experienced, showing no signs of panic.

As he spoke, his phone kept ringing nonstop.

"I was just on the phone with the president, and I also received a call from your school."

"They told me that during this period, you are not to make any verbal commitments, no matter what."

"Even if you have a preference for one university, wait until you get back to Jinling to discuss anything. Understand?"

"Also, contact your parents later. If anyone calls them, tell them not to make any decisions lightly."

Lu Shixian nodded in agreement.

If he were his old self, he might have rebelled, refused to listen, and snapped back.

Who are you?

Why are you telling me what to do?

Can't I make my own decisions?

But now he understood that this was all to secure the best possible outcome for himself.

Even when signing a contract, you had to shop around, right?

With his results, he had already made it into the national training team, and in first place at that.

His position relative to the top universities had completely flipped.

Now, it was his turn to choose the school, not the other way around.

The party with the upper hand in negotiations could often dictate the terms and secure more resources.

Principles that had once seemed opaque and difficult to understand were now perfectly simple to him.

As Lu Shixian and Team Leader Feng were talking, a group of people suddenly appeared in the hotel corridor.

The leader was a portly middle-aged man with a prominent beer belly, but he had a kind face and an approachable demeanor.

"Hello, excuse me, is Lu Shixian from the Su Province Biology Olympiad team staying in room 8209?"

Lu Shixian was a bit speechless.

That was fast. It hadn't even been twenty minutes since he found out his score.

And they had already found out his room number.

Fearing Lu Shixian wouldn't be able to handle it, Team Leader Feng stepped forward. "I'm the team leader for the Su Province Biology Olympiad team. If there's anything, you can speak with me first."

The middle-aged man's face lit up, and he extended a hand to Team Leader Feng.

"A pleasure to meet you. My name is Zhou Shaowen, from Tsinghua University. First, congratulations to your team for achieving such excellent results in the 16th Biology Olympiad."

Team Leader Feng was an old hand at this, skilled in adapting his words to the situation.

"Ah, Director Zhou."

"Not at all, not at all. Our results are nothing compared to other provinces. We still have much to improve. Your university will find the truly outstanding students there."

Zhou Shaowen's expression didn't change, his smile still in place. "That's not necessarily true. A student like Lu Shixian, who has grown through his own continuous hard work from a rural background, fits our Tsinghua admission criteria perfectly."

After saying this, he suddenly turned his gaze to Lu Shixian, who was trying to stay out of the spotlight behind Team Leader Feng.

"You must be the student Lu who dominated the national competition. A truly impressive young man. You should know what Tsinghua University represents in China, right?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian inwardly groaned. This guy was tough.

Was he that famous already? Recognized at a single glance?

Since he had been spotted, there was no point in playing ostrich.

Lu Shixian stepped out from behind Team Leader Feng.

"What does it represent? I really have no idea."

Although he knew Lu Shixian was feigning ignorance, Zhou Shaowen patiently gave him the introduction anyway.

"Our Tsinghua University is a comprehensive research university directly under the Ministry of Education, selected for the 985 and 211 Projects, and is considered a world-class university."

"Student Lu, I won't bore you with the general information about Tsinghua. I'll focus on our biology department. Our biology department has a long and storied history of over eighty years, unparalleled in the country. More than thirty academicians from the Biology Division of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have worked or studied at our university."

After this, Zhou Shaowen began to entice Lu Shixian directly.

"In fact, one of those academicians was here just yesterday to give a lecture. If you come to Tsinghua, you'll have the chance to see academicians teaching students anytime. If you meet the requirements, you might even become a direct student of an academician."

"Student Lu, you are the champion of this national competition. Only at Tsinghua can your talents be nurtured to their fullest potential. If you want to make a name for yourself in the field of biology in the future, choosing Tsinghua is your best option."

"If you come, we will do our best to meet any conditions you have."

Even with his firm resolve, Lu Shixian was almost swayed by these sugar-coated bullets.

An offer from Tsinghua University was not something most people could brush aside.

In the end, Lu Shixian still shook his head. "Your university is indeed excellent, but I'm still a minor. It's no use telling me all this."

Zhou Shaowen smiled slightly and continued, "That's not a problem. As long as you have the intention to sign with Tsinghua, we can handle the rest by signing a contract directly with your parents."

As an experienced director of admissions, he had thoroughly investigated all of Lu Shixian's records before coming.

He could tell from his life trajectory that this was a child with a very strong sense of self; his parents had likely not had to worry much about him.

In other words, as long as he could win over Lu Shixian himself, the rest would not be a problem.

Lu Shixian thought for a moment and said, "But I've already passed the second round for the Junior Class at the University of Science and Technology of China and can be pre-admitted at any time. Peking University has also sent me an offer with very generous terms."
"This is a decision that will affect the rest of my life, so I hope you'll understand that I need to consider it very carefully."

At that, Zhou Shaowen was completely dumbfounded.

How was this possible?

Fearing that Peking University might pull some tricks during their training camp, they had specifically come to sign the contract on the day of the national final.

According to their files, Lu Shixian had indeed taken the entrance exam for the University of Science and Technology of China's Special Class for the Gifted.

But how could Peking University have swooped in and poached him ahead of them?

Knowing the PKU admissions office's fondness for surprise tactics, he conceded that such a scenario was entirely possible.

Realizing this, he understood that he would likely be leaving empty handed today.

Chapter 108: A Happy Dilemma

Generally speaking, Tsinghua held an advantage when compared to the USTC.

But against Peking University, that competitive edge wasn't as clear.

The two schools had been locked in a fierce rivalry for years without a clear winner.

With that thought, Zhou Shaowen knew it was impossible to finalize anything today.

It looked like they would have to battle it out with PKU later.

And so, he announced their departure.

"In that case, we'll take our leave. We still have many students waiting for us to sign with them."

"However, Student Lu, given how sincere we've been today, I hope you'll give Tsinghua serious consideration," Zhou Shawen said, looking back at Lu Shixian as he walked away.

Lu Shixian nodded. "Thank you for your high regard. I will think about it seriously."

After they were long gone, Team Leader Feng looked at Lu Shixian and asked with a sigh of admiration, "I can't believe you also passed the second round for the USTC's Special Class for the Gifted. That means you were also putting effort into the college entrance exams. You really don't play by the book, do you!"

Lu Shixian quickly shook his head. "I did take the second round exam, but as for whether I passed, I have no idea."

Team Leader Feng asked, puzzled, "Then when did Peking University send you a signing offer? You don't have a phone, and I never got any message."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian explained with an amused smile, "Is it so unbelievable that PKU would want to recruit me? I figured it wouldn't hurt to borrow their name in advance."

At that, Team Leader Feng finally understood. The kid had been running a magnificent bluff.

Who would have thought a teenager would pull such a move? He had even fooled him.

No wonder the admissions officer from Tsinghua had believed it.

At seven in the evening, the schedule was set for various universities to hold their recruitment presentations.

Meanwhile, in another conference room, Lu Shixian soon welcomed the admissions team from Peking University.

According to his introduction, the team was led by Chu Wenbin, the director of PKU's admissions office.

"My apologies, Student Lu. The traffic was a bit heavy, so we're a little late."

"Peking University has come today with the utmost sincerity. We implore you to consider us."

Lu Shixian used the same stalling tactic to handle Chu Wenbin.

He explained that Tsinghua had just been there and that he was still undecided and needed some time to think.

Chu Wenbin was naturally experienced and knew this was just an initial meeting to get acquainted.

The real recruitment battle would come later. So, without dragging things out, he left.

Beside him, Team Leader Feng stood up, stretched, and said to Lu Shixian, "Let's go. There probably won't be any more schools."

"You're the national first prize gold medal champion of this biology competition. Other than these two, the other universities probably won't set their sights on you."

However, the moment the words left his mouth, another group of people appeared at the conference room door.

"Hello, Student Lu. I'm Teacher Wu from the admissions office of the University of Science and Technology of China."

Team Leader Feng had to eat his words.

Lu Shixian had no time to tease him. He quickly stood up and shook hands with the USTC admissions officer.

"Hello, Teacher Wu. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Lu Shixian hadn't expected USTC to come looking for him and felt a flicker of confusion.

Of course, he wouldn't voice it at a time like this.

Teacher Wu was straightforward and got right to the point. "I've come today at the special request of the dean of our university's School for the Gifted Young to invite you to join our Special Class for your studies."

Lu Shixian's eyebrows shot up, completely surprised by this string of good news.

He had long since given up hope of getting into the Special Class.

They were only accepting forty to fifty students out of over a hundred. With his physics score, no matter how well he did in the interview, he thought the outcome was sealed.

So, he asked Teacher Wu directly, "Are you saying I passed the second round?"

Teacher Wu nodded. "I don't know the specific details, but I do know that I received a message from Dean Chen even before you won the first prize in the national biology competition."

Now, Lu Shixian understood completely.

There were no other factors. He had actually managed to turn the tables.

The thought filled him with elation. This was a truly pleasant surprise.

Just then, Teacher Wu suddenly said to him, "Student Lu, I know other universities may have contacted you before us."

"But our USTC has significant advantages in certain fields. If you intend to pursue a path in scientific research, I urge you to consider us before making your final decision."

"The offer we give you will be no less favorable than what Peking University or Tsinghua can provide."

Teacher Wu was a direct man. There were no winding words. After saying his piece, he left.

In the room, Team Leader Feng was overjoyed and congratulated Lu Shixian.

"Way to go, Student Lu! In just a short while, you've already been courted by three top universities."

"I really underestimated you before. Your future is limitless!"

"So, how does it feel to turn down famous universities? Pretty great, right? Hahaha, savor it! Out of millions of students in the country, only a handful get this kind of treatment."

Lu Shixian smiled faintly. To be honest, he had never experienced anything like this himself.

He had only heard news reports about how, after the college entrance exams, major universities would use every trick in the book to snatch up top students from each province.

He never thought it would be his turn. For a moment, it felt a little strange.

But he had to admit, the feeling was incredible. It was an exhilarating feeling, like a lifetime of struggle finally paying off.

All the effort and hard work he had put in over the long months had been rewarded in this single moment.

Team Leader Feng, curious, asked, "Tsinghua, Peking University, and USTC have all come. So, where do you actually want to go?"

"Don't worry, I'll keep it a secret for you."

Lu Shixian thought of his past life, where he had given his all just to barely scrape into a second-tier university.

And now, he could freely choose from among the best universities in the country.

It seemed that hard work, diligence, and opportunity were truly important.

He sighed with emotion. "I don't know either. I'm very lost right now. Before, all I knew was to chase forward with all my might, without thinking about the result."

"Now that I've finally reached my goal, I honestly don't know how to choose. It's truly a happy dilemma."

Team Leader Feng could understand his feelings. He had seen similar situations many times in other science olympiads, though not so much in biology.

However, this was not something he could advise on. When it came to such a major life decision, Lu Shixian had to figure it out for himself.

Soon, the other members of the provincial team returned.

Several of them had already reaped their rewards before Lu Shixian.

Chen Kuangsheng and He Mingqian didn't take direct admission offers to top universities but chose to participate in the independent admissions programs of Peking University and Tsinghua.

As silver medalists, they had also qualified for the winter camp.

Chapter 109: The Grand Awards Ceremony

As for the other C9 League universities, they generally weren't very interested in provincial first prize winners in biology.

But at the national level, even students who won a bronze medal were highly sought after.

Indeed, the two girls, Li Mengmeng and He Jingqiu, had secured direct admission offers from Nanjing University and Shanghai Jiao Tong University, respectively.

The remaining two bronze medalists on the provincial team, while not opting for direct admission, had signed point-reduction agreements with their desired universities. As long as they met a certain score on the college entrance exam, they would benefit from the policy and be admitted to their top programs, which was not a bad deal either.

For them, unless they performed exceptionally poorly, their admission was more or less secured.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but think about something.

Although the Biology Olympiad wasn't as prestigious as the Math Olympiad, at least in 2008, there were still some favorable policies at the national level.

In the future, only the top fifty would get direct admission. For anyone ranked fifty-first or lower, there would be no policy benefits at all. What a cruel reality that would be.

But there was nothing he could do about it.

The next day, at nine in the morning.

The closing ceremony and awards ceremony for the Biology Olympiad was held in the largest auditorium of Daoqing High School.

As the most dazzling star to emerge from this competition, Lu Shixian was naturally invited backstage. He had quite a few tasks today.

Besides receiving his award on stage, he also had to give a representative speech.

Meanwhile, backstage, he was greeted by many prominent figures, leaving him feeling both flattered and overwhelmed.

Fortunately, the president of the Dongshan Biology Olympiad Committee branch, who had been in charge of the final, came to his rescue and introduced him to many important people.

"Student Lu, this is Director Gu Hongya of the National High School Biology Olympiad Committee, a professor at Peking University's School of Life Sciences, and the vice chairman of the Botanical Society of China."

Lu Shixian was completely taken aback. He never would have guessed that this delicate and refined woman before him was the head of the competition committee and a professor at PKU.

He hurriedly paid his respects.

"Professor Gu, it's a great honor to meet you!"

Gu Hongya smiled at him, seemingly very interested in Lu Shixian.

"You're Student Lu, correct? I hear you're from Jinling in Su Province?"

Lu Shixian had no idea why she was suddenly asking about his hometown.

Could it be...

As his mind raced with possibilities, he quickly nodded. "Yes, I'm currently studying at Jinling No. 1 High School."

However, Gu Hongya's next words made him realize he had been mistaken.

"That's interesting. I graduated from the biology department at Nanjing University. I consider that place my old home as well. So, we're practically from the same town," Gu Hongya said, her gaze on Lu Shixian growing even warmer.

What could Lu Shixian say to that? He could only maintain his smile. He couldn't exactly get chummy and call her "fellow townsman."

As the director of the committee, Gu Hongya was naturally busy and couldn't chat with Lu Shixian for long.

But before she left, she said something that left Lu Shixian at a loss for words.

"This year's national training camp will be held at our Peking University. You'll have a chance to experience the learning environment and atmosphere there. I truly hope to see you on campus in the future."

"Thank you for your high regard," Lu Shixian said, understanding her underlying meaning and quickly thanking her.

Seriously? Even the head of the committee was on recruitment duty for PKU?

Lu Shixian was floored.

Next, the branch president quickly made another introduction. "You should have seen this gentleman at the lecture before. Professor Wang Zhixin from Tsinghua University, an academician, and a distinguished guest at this awards ceremony."

Academician Wang was more direct. He nodded at Lu Shixian and said, "I wrote some of the theory questions in this final. Your score of 142 is a new record for the theory section of the Biology Olympiad in the last decade. It's truly remarkable."

"I've watched the recordings of you in the lab. Your thinking is clear, and your technique is precise. It's clear you have great potential. Come to Tsinghua University, and we will devote all our resources to nurturing you."

Lu Shixian was a little awestruck. An academician personally recruiting him? This was too crazy!

Should he accept, or should he accept?

In the end, reason triumphed over impulse. Lu Shixian quickly replied, "Thank you, sir. I will consider it carefully."

The branch president standing beside them was speechless. These two were titans he could barely get a word in with on a normal day.

They held immense prestige and reputation in the country's academic circles, yet here they were, both showing such high regard for a student who had just started his first year of high school.

But he could understand. There was a popular saying in society now: "Math is the fire that lights the lamp of physics; physics is the lamp that illuminates the path of chemistry; chemistry is the path that leads to the pit of biology; and biology is the pit that buries science students!"

Perhaps that didn't provide a clear enough picture. Just think of the notorious "four great pits" among university majors: biology, chemistry, environmental science, and materials science.

Biology had the honor of being at the top of the list.

At the same time, although biology programs were expanding their enrollment every year, there was actually a severe shortage of top-tier biological talent in the country.

After he left, another important figure arrived.

"Student Lu, this is Director Chang from the Dongshan Provincial Department of Education."

"Director Chang, hello!" By now, the smile on Lu Shixian's face had practically become muscle memory.

At the same time, the closing and awards ceremony officially began.

First, the competition anthem was played. Lu Shixian couldn't see the screen from backstage, but he thought he heard the song being called something like "Gun of Life."

The host of the ceremony had now been replaced by Director Chang, whom he had just met.

With all the distinguished guests from various fields present, the principal of a high school was no longer senior enough to command the stage.

After a series of official speeches from leaders and guests.

Next, the director of the National Olympiad Committee handed over the competition flag to the representative from Yucheng Bashu High School, the host of the next National High School Biology Olympiad.

This meant that the next national final would be held in Yucheng.

But none of that concerned Lu Shixian.

He had no intention of continuing to his second year of high school to participate in the 17th Biology Olympiad.

Finally, the most important part of the closing ceremony arrived: the presentation of the gold, silver, and bronze medals for this year's national final, and the announcement of the members selected for the national biology training team.

Unlike the provincial league, at the national competition, every award winner, no matter how many there were, had the chance to go on stage.

Director Chang had already begun reading the list of names.

"In this year's National Biology Olympiad, 96 students have won bronze medals, 71 have won silver medals, and 73 have won gold medals. Due to the large number of winners, each award will be presented in several groups."

"Will the students whose names I call please come to the stage to receive their awards. The winners of the bronze medals for the 16th National High School Biology Olympiad are..."

About twenty people went up to the stage each time. After five groups, all the bronze medalists had received their awards.

Lu Shixian was a little worried for the director hosting, afraid his voice would give out.

Even sitting in the audience felt draining; reading out so many names for so long was a real feat of endurance.

Next came the silver medals. About fifteen people per group, and after five groups, those awards were also successfully presented.

Finally, it was time for the gold medalists.

Chapter 110: Life Like Summer Flowers, A Race Without End

This award carried immense weight. From hundreds of thousands of participants nationwide in the preliminary round, a few thousand were selected. The provincial league then narrowed it down to 30 provincial teams totaling 240 people. Finally, from those 240, the top 73 were awarded the gold medal.

Everywhere you go, people only remember who won gold.

Before they even took the stage, the audience erupted in thunderous applause.

First to go up were those who had won a gold medal but were not selected for the national training team, meaning the national first prize winners who were not in the top fifty.

"Now, I will announce the list of students selected for the 2008 National High School Biology Olympiad National Training Team. I invite the award presenters to present the awards to the named participants and take a group photo."

At this moment, the atmosphere in the venue grew even more fervent.

Achieving this result was likely the greatest goal and dream for the vast majority of biology competitors.

Because of this, the cheers and applause from the audience were continuous and overwhelming.

After all seventy-two of them had taken the stage, Lu Shixian was still waiting, as he was set to be the grand finale.

At this point, the host, perhaps seeing only one name left on the awards list, was filled with excitement, and his tone became passionate.

"Next, I invite Ms. Gu Hongya, Director of the National High School Biology Olympiad Committee, Professor at Peking University's School of Life Sciences, and Vice Chairman of the Botanical Society of China, to present the gold medal and the special champion's award to the gold medal champion of the national final, Lu Shixian!"

Hearing his name, Lu Shixian immediately straightened up.

Finally, my turn! It hasn't been easy!

Not because he was excited, but because he had been waiting in the chilly backstage area for what felt like an eternity, so bored he was about to fall asleep.

At this moment, Lu Shixian glanced at his reflection.

He nodded in satisfaction.

"Not bad, not bad. The handsome young man looks quite presentable."

Then, maintaining his composure as best he could, he walked onto the awards stage.

Gu Hongya, whom he had met earlier, smiled as she placed the gleaming gold medal around his neck and handed him the certificate.

But that wasn't all. Next, Gu Hongya took a dazzling crystal trophy from an exquisitely crafted box.

Lu Shixian accepted the crystal trophy and saw that it was engraved with the logo of this year's biology competition, along with a line of text: Life Like Summer Flowers, A Ceaseless Race — Special Award for the Gold Medal Champion of the 16th National High School Biology Olympiad.

After receiving his awards, Lu Shixian bowed to everyone in the audience to express his gratitude.

Then, the host announced the next item on the agenda: a thank you speech from a representative of the award winners.

Lu Shixian knew it was his turn to give his acceptance speech.

He took a microphone from a staff member. He had no script; he would speak off the cuff.

At that moment, the atmosphere in the entire venue reached its peak. Countless spotlights, gazes, and rounds of applause converged on him alone.

This was the highest stage he had reached so far. Lu Shixian took a deep breath, dispelling the slight nervousness and anxiety in his heart.

"Thank you all again for the applause!"

As he began to speak, the noise from the audience gradually subsided.

"I am truly honored to receive this award today. First, I want to thank my parents, who raised me through hardships. Then, my alma mater, Jinling No. 1 High School, for giving me tremendous support in my studies."

"Finally, I want to thank all the teachers who have guided me along this journey, especially my mentor, Teacher Mei Ting, who showed me the way and helped me so much."

At this, another round of thunderous applause erupted from below the stage.

Meanwhile, in an unnoticed corner of the grand auditorium, a woman wearing ladies' sunglasses also revealed a gentle smile, blooming quietly like a snow lotus.

Lu Shixian's voice continued. He suddenly raised the crystal trophy in his left hand.

"This trophy feels very heavy in my hand, because it represents the ideals and goals that countless biology competitors have pursued one after another. It is filled with everyone's sincere passion and love for biology. It is this passion that has allowed us to withstand immense pressure and continue to study tirelessly."
At the same time, this trophy is quite light; I can lift it with one hand. This reminds me that all awards and honors are like flowers. Their beauty is fleeting and will eventually wither. Therefore, what's most important to me is to live with composure, certainty, and hope.

On my journey of studying biology, I've often marveled at the intricate structures within a living cell and been troubled by the complex expressions of its genes.

A green leaf swaying in the wind is not just dancing; it is performing photosynthesis, day after day. A red flower blooming in spring is not just displaying its beauty; it is the culmination of a long journey of differentiation and development from an embryo.

At this point, Lu Shixian spoke to everyone with a sigh of emotion.

She is simply too vast, like the boundless oceans of this blue planet, and like the cosmic sea of stars I long for. The more I learn about this world, the more I feel the insignificance of an individual's life.

I am humbled to find that what I see is merely the tip of the iceberg. The achievements I am faintly proud of now are truly insignificant before the vastness of biology.

But isn't this the very beauty of biology that we so arduously pursue?

Thank you all!

After speaking, Lu Shixian bowed once more in thanks and left the stage.

Immediately after, a thunderous applause erupted from the audience, echoing for a long, long time.

It was because Lu Shixian's words were filled with his thoughts and emotions, resonating with people and moving them deeply.

Even many of the professors and teachers in the front rows clapped with shared feeling. As for the admissions officers from several schools seated as guests, they became even more determined to recruit Lu Shixian.

After giving his acceptance speech, Lu Shixian returned to the seating area where his team was.

Everyone, from the team leader to the members, gave him a thumbs up.

Awesome!

Seriously awesome!

Beyond awesome!

Lu Shixian was momentarily speechless.

Are you guys trying to one up each other or something!

Chen Kuangsheng, who had already secured his guaranteed admission agreement, was now acting completely unrestrained. He mimicked a girl's voice and said, "Lu-shen is so amazing! Not only is he handsome and smart, but he also speaks so beautifully. I wonder if he has a girl he likes?"

What's he doing?

Did he have a stroke?

But when he saw Li Mengmeng next to him blush like an apple, repeatedly swatting Chen Kuangsheng's arm, he instantly understood.

He said, half joking and half serious, "With no woman in my heart, my blade strikes true. My journey is to the sea of stars. Girls will only slow down my studies."

Was that the sound of a heart breaking?

It was as if something that had neither appeared nor begun had already ended.

After enjoying their last free lunch at Daoqing High School, all the teams began their journey home that afternoon.

Chapter 111: A Guaranteed Spot at Peking and Tsinghua, I'm So Jealous!

Boarding the plane again, on the same route, everyone's state of mind had changed.

On the way back, everyone was much more lively.

Some chatted idly, some gazed out at the sea of clouds, each doing their own thing.

In short, the atmosphere was very relaxed.

Even Team Leader Feng was humming a little tune, letting them fool around as they pleased.

His mission this time had been more than accomplished. A casual trip had produced a national gold medal champion. He could boast about this at work for a good while when he got back.

The plane landed safely, and the group boarded a special bus sent by the Jinling City Competition Committee.

The moment the bus stopped at the entrance of Jinling University, a throng of media was already there, with an array of cameras and lenses aimed and ready for their arrival.

Through the window, Lu Shixian saw a dense crowd of people.

Most of them were familiar faces.

Standing in the very front were Ren Qingyuan, the director of the Education Bureau whom he had met once, leaders from the propaganda department, and Su Changqing, the dean of the School of Life Sciences at Jinling University.

Finally, among them, he even saw his old uncle and Xia Yubing.

Further back were the leaders and teachers from the two high schools.

He wasn't very familiar with the ones from the Affiliated High School, but there seemed to be quite a crowd from Jinling No. 1 High School.

Besides his homeroom teacher, many other teachers had come to see the excitement.

As soon as Lu Shixian got off the bus with the team, they were surrounded by major media outlets from Su Province and Jinling City.

Looking at this scene, it seemed there was no getting away.

Fortunately, the experienced Ren Qingyuan suggested holding a small press conference to answer all the reporters' questions at once.

The venue was naturally handled by Su Changqing. As the president of the Su Province Competition Committee, he was more than happy to see more news coverage about the province's competitions and readily agreed.

In the end, everyone moved to a small auditorium that had already been set up for a conference.

"Excuse me, how did Su Province perform in this year's biology competition?"

A question like this was best answered by Team Leader Feng.

He naturally took the lead. He used to watch the team leader for the Su Province physics competition enjoy the spotlight, and now it was finally his turn.

So, with a smile, he said, "This biology competition represents a new breakthrough in our province's history of biology competitions. It signifies that the level of our biology education is rapidly improving with the support of various departments in our province."

"Our provincial team had eight members this time. In the 2008 National High School Biology Olympiad held at Daoqing High School in Dongshan, Lu Shixian, a student from Class 1 of the first year at Jinling No. 1 High School, won the national first prize gold medal. Furthermore, with a groundbreaking score, he received the special Gold Medal Champion award from the National Competition Committee."

"Finally, top universities such as Peking University, Tsinghua University, and Huazhong University of Science and Technology have all expressed their intention to offer Lu Shixian guaranteed admission. Chen Kuangsheng and He Mingqian from the second year of the Affiliated High School of Jinling won the national second prize silver medals..."

Soon, after the basic questions about the competition were answered, the microphone was passed to Lu Shixian.

Reporter: "Do you have any experience in subject learning that you can share with everyone?"

He found this question difficult to answer. This path was arduous and cruel.

Not everyone had the opportunity to walk this path, and even those who did were very likely to fall by the wayside.

In the end, he chose a universal answer.

Lu Shixian: Study more, observe more, think more, and practice more.

Reporter: "Which top university will you ultimately choose?"

At this moment, he finally had the right to say that line.

Lu Shixian: "Peking University is alright, and Tsinghua is decent. But I'm still considering. I might even end up choosing Huazhong University of Science and Technology."

Reporter: "You have a guaranteed admission offer from a top university as a first-year high school student. Will you choose to continue your studies in high school or go directly to university?"

Hearing this question, Lu Shixian was taken aback for a moment. He hadn't really considered this yet.

After thinking for a moment, he finally replied, "I will probably enter university early to begin my studies."

This question was actually easy to answer.

If he didn't go to university early, then what was the point of skipping a grade and pouring all his effort into this competition? It would have all been for nothing.

The only question was how much longer he needed to stay at Jinling No. 1 High School.

Soon, as it was getting late, the press conference was hurried to a close.

It was time for everyone to go their separate ways.

Jinling No. 1 High School had sent a special bus to pick them up.

In the end, Xia Hongguang and Xia Yubing also got on the bus with him.

As soon as she got on, Xia Yubing eagerly grabbed Lu Shixian and stared at him intently for a long time.

It went on until Lu Shixian felt his skin crawl. He quickly changed seats and asked, "Sis, is there something wrong with your eyes? Why are you staring at me?"

Xia Yubing giggled. "You're right, your big sister has a case of the green-eyed monster. A guaranteed spot at Peking or Tsinghua, just like that. I'm so jealous!"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian couldn't accept it.

"It was tough, okay? I had to fight my way through pandas and golden monkeys, overcoming one strong opponent after another to get this result."

"I can't accept you saying it was 'just like that'!"

Xia Yubing reached out her demonic claws towards Lu Shixian's face and kneaded it vigorously.

"It's the original, alright. I guess you're not an imposter."

Lu Shixian: (°ー°〃)

He was completely stunned. Luckily, he was used to her antics and jokes, or he would have been driven mad by her.

Fortunately, Xia Hongguang, who was sitting beside them, couldn't watch any longer and stepped in to uphold justice for Lu Shixian.

"Alright, Yubing, stop messing around. He's your little brother, we should be happy for him."

"Let Shixian rest. He just got back from Dongshan Province and went through such a long interview. He must be exhausted."

There's always someone to put you in your place. Lu Shixian shot her a sidelong, smug glance and said, "Uncle's right. Jealous of what?"

Hearing this, Xia Yubing ground her teeth, itching to give him a beating.

But with her source of amusement gone, she could only play with Lu Shixian's gold medal like a child.

Jiang Yunkun, sitting in the front, turned around and gave Lu Shixian a thumbs up.

"Lu Shixian, you've brought great honor to the school this time. The school leaders are waiting for you, and by the way, your parents arrived at the school this morning."

At this point, Jiang Yunkun couldn't help but smile. "If your parents' phones hadn't been ringing off the hook these past two days with calls asking about the situation, we wouldn't have known you were going to be such a sensation."

Lu Shixian found it a bit amusing as well. His mom and dad were probably getting sick of all the harassing phone calls.

Speaking of which, it had been a long time since he'd seen them. He was starting to miss them.

In just over ten minutes, the school bus came to a steady stop at the entrance of Jinling No. 1 High School.

As soon as he got off, Lu Shixian saw the huge banner hanging over the school gate.

"Congratulations to our student Lu Shixian for winning the National First Prize Gold Medal Champion in the 16th Biology Olympiad and being selected for the National Training Team!"

Not only that, but an official announcement of good news from the National Biology Olympiad Committee was also posted at the entrance.

Almost every passing parent and student could see it, and from time to time, people would stop to see what happy event was happening at the school.

"That name, Lu Shixian, sounds so familiar! Isn't he the one who skipped a grade because of his good grades?"

"Can someone fill me in, what's the use of this national first prize gold medal champion in the biology competition?"

"Oh, nothing much. Just gets you guaranteed admission to Peking or Tsinghua University."

"That amazing? I'm telling my granddaughter to aim for this high school."

Chapter 112: Lu Shixian's Choice

Hearing the discussions around him, Lu Shixian suddenly found himself the topic of conversation.

He didn't feel anything special about it.

He had remained unfazed before when he was put on public display and faced so many pointing fingers.

The only difference this time was that the negative comments had turned into positive ones.

He had never cared much about what others said about him.

Without a backward glance, Lu Shixian followed Jiang Yunkun through the school gate.

As they walked, Jiang Yunkun suddenly stopped and said to Lu Shixian.

"Lu Shixian, you should go get something to eat. Your parents are in your dorm room right now."

"We've been informed that the admissions officers from the three universities will be coming to sign you tomorrow."

"Tonight, the school leaders would like to have a good talk with you and your family to understand your thoughts."

Lu Shixian nodded, seeming to understand.

It seemed the universities were a different league, even able to get the school to plead their case.

But it was about time to make a decision.

After all this hard work, it was finally time to reap the rewards.

Watching Jiang Yunkun leave, Lu Shixian parted ways with Xia Hongguang and Xia Yubing, heading to eat first.

He told them to wait for him in the dorm.

Walking towards the cafeteria, Lu Shixian could finally quiet his mind and think alone about the path ahead.

The option of studying abroad for his undergraduate degree was immediately dismissed. He didn't want to go abroad for his master's or Ph.D., let alone his bachelor's.

So, he only needed to consider studying at a university within the country.

He currently had three choices.

Since there were choices, there had to be comparisons.

The first was the Junior Class at Huazhong University of Science and Technology.

Passing their second-round test was something he hadn't anticipated.

Combining his current situation with his knowledge from his past life, HUST's advantages were clear.

HUST placed great emphasis on cultivating students for academic research and was adept at guiding them to the front lines of scientific inquiry.

Most importantly, it was very convenient for students to choose and adjust their major.

However, considering his actual circumstances, HUST's Junior Class wasn't quite right for him.

Firstly, he already had a certain foundation in research. He couldn't waste too much time in the early stages coddling newcomers like they would have to.

Secondly, his path should be very clear: studying both theory and application in parallel, the former being biology and the latter, agriculture.

Ultimately, he would use theory to advance application, and use application to discover theory.

This should be the preliminary direction of his future development.

Therefore, he didn't need a process of trial and error to find a major that matched his interests and strengths.

Finally, the management style of the Junior Class wasn't a good fit for him either.

First, the Junior Class was managed very strictly, in some ways even more so than the final year of high school. Almost everyone had to adhere to the schedule arranged for them by the school.

On this point, Lu Shixian had no lack of self-discipline. He was perfectly capable of creating his own study plans and schedules based on his needs.

Second, to prevent students from being ruined by excessive praise, all members of the Junior Class, including their parents, were forbidden from accepting individual interviews.

He had already had thoughts on this matter.

Fame and influence were a double-edged sword, with both benefits and drawbacks.

Given his obsession and ultimate goal, a scientist with great renown would have an easier time achieving it.

Thus, it seemed he could only regret the effort he had put into this option.

The second was the School of Life Sciences at Peking University or Tsinghua University.

These two options could be considered together.

Truthfully, every university has its own strong suits.

When it came to biology, to be frank, he was more inclined towards Peking University.

In terms of disciplinary history, Peking University's Department of Biology was one of the earliest to be established.

It was worth noting that in 1953, the biology departments of two other universities merged into Peking's, and one of them was Tsinghua's.

In terms of rankings, the two universities were actually quite similar.

In later disciplinary assessments, both were rated A+.

Some said Peking was stronger, others said Tsinghua.

Because faculty is fluid, the strength of a discipline largely depends on its teaching staff.

So it was hard to say for sure, unless you specified a time frame.

What truly tilted the scales for Lu Shixian was his memory.

Although neither university had an agriculture program, if he remembered correctly, in just a few years, in 2017, Peking University would establish the Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, which would include a focus on modern agriculture.

It was worth noting that the future dean of this academy would be the current president of Peking University, Xu Zhihong.

And Xu Zhihong, as an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, specialized in plant development, tissue and cell culture, and bioengineering.

This field, in fact, had a high degree of overlap with agricultural research.

At the same time, Xu Zhihong was an educator he deeply respected.

He vaguely remembered that in the year 2000, when Peking University graduate Lu Buxuan was invited back to give a speech, he had said:

"I have brought shame and disgrace to my alma mater. I am a negative example."

At that time, the old president, Xu Zhihong, had responded with this line: "Peking University students can become national leaders, they can become scientists, and they can also sell pork."

What incredible charisma!

After thinking all this through, Lu Shixian no longer hesitated. His mind was made up.

After dinner, he returned to his dorm.

He found his mom and dad chatting with Xia Yubing and Xia Hongguang.

Seeing Lu Shixian enter, his mother Xia Xiuman's eyes lit up. She hadn't seen him in a long time.

She stood up, ran over, and gave Lu Shixian a big hug, saying with a hint of complaint, "Son, you didn't tell us about something this huge. If the admissions officers hadn't called, we wouldn't have known anything."

Lu Shixian quickly wriggled out of the hug and explained, "I was planning to tell you when I got back. It's not that big of a deal, right? It was bound to happen sooner or later, I just brought the process forward."

Hearing this, Xia Yubing couldn't stand his humblebragging and shot him a mock-indignant look.

It was as if to say, "My little brother's getting a bit full of himself lately."

Besides Xia Yubing, everyone else in the room laughed at his words.

As they talked, the conversation eventually turned to the most important matter at hand: his university choice.

"Little bro, which university do you actually want to go to? The admissions officers from all three schools are coming tomorrow."

After Xia Yubing spoke, Uncle Xia Hongguang also showed his concern.

"That's right, Shixian. Although your parents will be the ones signing tomorrow, you're the one who will be studying. It's not for us to decide."

"You should make a decision soon, so we have a target to help you negotiate for."

At this, his father and mother showed no signs of anxiety at all.

Looking at her son, Xia Xiuman was filled with pride. "We've always said, the path ahead is yours to walk."

"We've done our research. All three are among the best universities in the country. Whichever one you choose is fine."

Hearing their voices, Lu Shixian finally revealed his choice.

Chapter 113: The School's Candor, Signing the Agreement

"Peking University, then."

Hearing Lu Shixian's voice, Xia Hongguang seemed to let out a breath of relief.

The others showed little reaction; to them, all the choices seemed equally impressive.

By now, it was the time they had agreed upon to meet with the school officials.

So, the four of them walked together towards the administration building of Jinling No. 1 High School.

To Lu Shixian's surprise, when he walked into the conference room, several of the school's top leaders were present.

Especially the principal, Cai Mingyuan, whom one rarely got to see.

After they were seated, the white-haired Cai Mingyuan looked at Lu Shixian with great emotion.

"Student Lu, first of all, congratulations on achieving such an outstanding result in this year's biology competition."

"To be honest, we never expected you to get this far. If we had known, we should have given you more help in this area."

Lu Shixian quickly shook his head. "Principal Cai, you're too kind. The school has already done so much for me."

"I have a spacious and bright classroom, a beautiful and capable supervising teacher, and so many teachers who care for and look after me."

"The school has provided me with so many resources. I think it's already wonderful."

What he said was the truth. Jinling No. 1 High School had truly done everything it could for him.

They couldn't possibly disrupt the normal order of the school just for him, could they?

But Lu Shixian felt that the most crucial thing was the school's decision to appoint Mei Ting as his supervising teacher.
Although he didn't know the story behind a Yan University PhD showing up here.

Although Mei Ting's personality was cold and distant, she was difficult to talk to, and she had barely taught him a proper class.

But Lu Shixian could feel that she was genuinely putting her heart into teaching him.

Without her help, Lu Shixian was certain he would have taken many more wrong turns.

All in all, he was very grateful to the school.

Hearing his words, the leaders of No. 1 High School were deeply moved.

It is difficult to cultivate an outstanding student, but it is even more challenging to nurture one who possesses both integrity and talent.

As the saying goes, respect and understanding are mutual.

The more this was the case, the more Cai Mingyuan seemed to hesitate, as if he had something to say but was holding back.

Lu Shixian already had his suspicions, so he wasn't surprised. He smiled and said, "If there's something on your mind, please just say it!"

"If it's something within my power to help with, I won't refuse."

At that, Cai Mingyuan no longer hesitated.

"Student Lu, I'll swallow my pride and get straight to the point."

"Tomorrow, the admissions offices from several universities will be here. We don't know which school you're leaning towards."

"But we hope you'll give Yan University and Shuimu University your fullest consideration."

"And if you've already decided between those two but don't have a strong preference, we hope you'll give some extra thought to Yan University."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian raised an eyebrow. It seemed Yan University had really been digging its hooks in deep lately.

Before Lu Shixian could say a word, Cai Mingyuan began explaining on his own.

"Whether you get into Yan or Shuimu through the entrance exam or the competition, it will be a huge boost to our school's appeal for new students."

"It will also help us meet the enrollment targets set by the higher ups, which in turn helps the school receive greater support."

Lu Shixian nodded, understanding completely.

Even now, Yan University and Shuimu University were the gold standard of higher education; no other institution could compare in terms of prestige.

This was even more true back in 2008, a trend that would only intensify.

But he couldn't quite understand how Yan University had managed to turn a top high school in a prefecture-level city into its personal lobbyist.

He didn't have to ask. Qian Zhengguo, who was beside him, sighed and revealed the answer.

"The offers from the other two schools are excellent, but Yan University's bargaining chip is an extra admission slot for next year, contingent on you signing an early admission agreement with them."

Now, Lu Shixian understood everything.

Well, for a high school, that was truly an irresistible temptation.

If he agreed, counting himself, the school would gain an extra spot at Yan University for both this year and the next.

But he was also a little puzzled.

Did Yan University really think that highly of him?

He could understand it if he had won a gold medal at the International Biology Olympiad (IBO).

But for the time being, he couldn't figure out the reason.

With so many people waiting for his response, he could only bury the question in his heart for now.

So, Lu Shixian smiled at Cai Mingyuan and said, "What a coincidence. I was already planning on attending Yan University."

As soon as he said it, he could visibly see the delight spread across their faces.

Soon after, Lu Shixian returned to his dorm to rest.

His mother, on the other hand, went back to the reception center the school had prepared for them.

Meanwhile, Xia Hongguang and Xia Yubing, having seen enough of the excitement, headed back together.

He was truly exhausted from the day's travel and couldn't hold on much longer.

The past few days had been intense, and Lu Shixian quickly fell into a deep sleep.

The next day, Lu Shixian was back to his normal routine.

After his morning workout and breakfast, he received a notice from the school.

The admissions officers from the various universities had arrived.

However, since he had already made his decision, he let his parents handle the final negotiations with them.

After politely but firmly declining the offers from Huazhong University of Science and Technology and Shuimu University, Lu Shixian and his parents met with the admissions officer from Yan University.

To his surprise, it was a familiar face: Chu Wenbin, the director of the admissions office who had approached him before.

Seeing Lu Shixian again, Chu Wenbin was even more enthusiastic.

"Student Lu, we are thrilled you've chosen Yan University. I'm confident you won't be disappointed with your choice."

Next, his father stepped forward and signed his name on the early admission agreement.

At that moment, watching the scene unfold, he felt a surge of happiness. After all, he had just rectified another regret from his past life.

The path had been a bit winding, but in the end, he had made it.

Having accomplished the main goal of his trip, Chu Wenbin was also very pleased.

Before leaving, he brought up another matter with Lu Shixian.

"Oh, right, Student Lu, there's one more important thing. Professor Gu specifically asked me to invite you to join the national training team for the selection winter camp of the International Biology Olympiad team."

"With your abilities, as long as you place in the top four during the training camp selection, you'll be able to represent our country on the international stage and bring honor to the nation."

Lu Shixian knew this was bound to happen. As the first place gold medalist, it would have been strange if he wasn't invited to the winter camp.

However, some students, after securing their early admission, would only attend the winter camp to fulfill the obligation but decline to be selected for the national team.

Technically, Lu Shixian had already achieved his goal and could do the same.

The biggest problem was that he was the national first place gold medalist. If someone of his caliber didn't even try, it would be hard to justify.

It was a matter of attitude, and anyone with a bit of emotional intelligence wouldn't do that.

Still, he decided to test the waters. "Director Chu, now that I have early admission, is it possible for me to skip the IBO?"

Chapter 114: Hello, My Name is Seria

At that, the smile on Chu Wenbin's face froze, then slowly vanished.

His mind raced, trying to figure out how to stop Lu Shixian from this crazy idea.

Finally, he hit on a point.

"You can, but I strongly advise against it."

"Besides, I have some good news for you."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian's eyes lit up.

He hadn't expected there to be an actual perk. Intrigued, he asked.

"Director Chu, what good news? Does it have to do with me?"

Chu Wenbin suddenly became secretive, deliberately lowering his voice. "Student Lu, have you heard of Yan University's Yuanpei Program?"

The moment he heard this, Lu Shixian's heart began to pound.

He had a feeling he knew what Chu Wenbin was about to say.

Of course, Chu Wenbin didn't know what was going through his mind. He had only asked to pique his interest and continued.

"You might not be aware, but the old Yuanpei Program has been completely upgraded."

"Just last year, our university established Yuanpei College. Since it's the first year, spots are extremely limited. They're only recruiting less than two hundred students from across the country, about 70 to 80 for humanities and a bit more, 120 to 130, for the sciences."

Then, Chu Wenbin finally got to the crucial point.

"Student Lu, if you're interested in Yuanpei College, then this International Biology Olympiad is an opportunity you can't afford to miss!"

Chu Wenbin didn't finish his sentence, but Lu Shixian already understood the subtext.

It was simply that the competition to get into Yuanpei College was fierce, and his national first place title in the biology competition wasn't quite enough.

If he wanted in, he'd have to achieve something significant at the IBO.

It had to be said, Chu Wenbin had hit Lu Shixian right where it mattered.

He had been thinking about this before. In the future, Yan University would launch an elite mathematics program, the Guanghua School would have its MBA, and computer science would have the Turing Class.

Being in one of those programs would undoubtedly accelerate a student's growth.

Unfortunately, none of them were a good fit for him. The School of Life Sciences did have an intensive "Life Science Challenge Program," but that wouldn't be established for another two years.

Now, with a chance to join Yuanpei College right in front of him, how could he not be interested?

So he stepped forward, shook Chu Wenbin's right hand, and declared, "Say no more, Director Chu. We youth should aim high and live our passion to the fullest."

"I will do my absolute best in the winter camp, strive to be selected early, and join the national team."

"Then, I will engage in friendly competition with the elites from every country, bring honor to our nation, and let our flag fly proudly on foreign soil!"

Seeing Lu Shixian's performance, Chu Wenbin was a bit speechless but also found himself admiring the boy.

It seemed Lu Shixian's verbal skills were quite impressive as well.

"Well then, Student Lu, just wait for the winter camp training notice! Since you've already signed the agreement, I'll be on my way. I'm quite busy!" With that, Chu Wenbin made his exit.

After lunch, Lu Shixian found himself feeling a bit lost.

There was still some time before the winter camp training, which would likely start around March of next year.

If he successfully made it onto the national team, he wouldn't be done until after the IBO in July.

During that period, according to the rules, he couldn't be enrolled in university, as the competition was limited to high school students.

It looked like he wouldn't be able to start preparatory courses this September after all. It seemed he'd really have to wait until his third year of high school.

He felt a bit exasperated. Man proposes, God disposes.

His original plan would have to be adjusted again.

Even though it meant a year's delay, Lu Shixian felt it was completely worth it.

First, participating in the IBO would not only expose him to the international academic environment and broaden his horizons.

A good result would also serve as a powerful credential back home. Otherwise, on what basis could he expect others to recognize and accept him?

Second, he wouldn't be wasting his time. He would be exposed to more advanced biological knowledge and meet many great teachers and friends along the way.

Some things he had wanted to do but hadn't dared to could now be set in motion.

Finally, it was worth mentioning that if he could get into Yuanpei College, it had a flexible academic year system.

If he remembered correctly, students could apply to graduate a year early or postpone graduation by one or two years based on their interdisciplinary and personalized study plans.

In other words, the year he was losing now could be made up for there.

With that, Lu Shixian immediately set his next mission: Go all out for the IBO and get into Yuanpei College.

Counting the days, it was only August.

Except for a few students who chose to stay at school, everyone else was still on summer vacation.

There were still about ten days or so until school started. How should he spend this time?

And what about the period after school started but before the winter camp?

He had just seen his parents, so there was no real need to go back to his hometown.

He was so bored!

Maybe he should take a nap?

Lu Shixian took an afternoon nap, and when he woke up, he still didn't know what to do.

Work out?

So he went to the sports field and released some of his pent-up energy.

Finally, exhausted, he lay on the lush green lawn, staring at the blue sky, feeling a bit melancholic.

He had to admit it: he felt empty.

What was he going to do with all this free time?

This wouldn't do!

The nation's prosperity must be achieved through hard work, and the sails of life's ideals must be hoisted through struggle.

How could he just lie flat like this?

Suddenly, an idea struck Lu Shixian, and he shot upright.

Maybe he could find Teacher Mei. She would definitely have plenty of ways for him to enrich himself.

But he immediately dismissed the thought.

Mei Ting had warned him multiple times not to disturb her even on weekends, let alone during the summer vacation.

Suddenly, another idea came to him.

If Mei Ting was unreliable, he could always find Liu Xianhua!

The more he thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. That was it.

He had performed well in the national competition this time; Liu Xianhua would probably be too embarrassed to refuse if he asked for a favor.

And if he did refuse, Lu Shixian would just resort to his ultimate move: pestering him relentlessly.

Once he had a plan, he acted on it. The next morning, Lu Shixian packed a few things and boarded a bus to Jinling University.

Places like Jinling High School and Jinling University were now as familiar to him as the back of his hand, after all, he'd been there so many times.

He navigated his way to the School of Life Sciences at Jinling University with ease.

He had once gone to Liu's office to ask a question.

Because Liu was an important member of Dean Su Changqing's research group, his office was on the third floor of the Life Sciences building, right below the dean's office.

Lu Shixian wasn't worried about not finding him. The so-called summer vacation only applied to undergraduate students.

For a researcher, there was no such thing as summer or winter break. The lab was their home.

Besides, at this time of day, he probably wouldn't be in the lab yet.

Lu Shixian tiptoed to his office on the third floor, planning to sneak up on him.

Sure enough, the office door was ajar, meaning he was likely inside.

He hugged the wall, lightened his steps, and slowly entered.

As soon as he was inside, he heard a familiar female voice from an anime-style game.

"Hello, my name is Seria!"

Chapter 115: Strike Fast, Strike True

Lu Shixian: ???

Old Liu's gotten cocky, has he?

He's actually playing video games?

Lu Shixian walked in to see Liu Xianhua on screen, chasing a few small squirrels with a sharp longsword.

Unfortunately, his swordsmanship seemed to be lacking. Not only could he not hit the monsters, but he was also frequently frozen by the icy breath of the Ice Squirrels.

He was on the verge of death, yet Liu Xianhua still hadn't thought to use a health potion.

Sure enough, with a cry of "Ah!", Liu Xianhua's swordsman fell to the ground.

A message popped up on the screen.

"Press X to use a Revival Coin."

Liu Xianhua frantically searched his keyboard for the X key.

Lu Shixian couldn't bear to watch any longer. He suddenly said, "Not bad at all. So bad I think I've lost my appetite for lunch."

Startled by the voice that suddenly came from behind him, Liu Xianhua jumped.

His hand trembled, and he gave up on reviving his character.

The screen went black. By the time he respawned, his health bar was already half empty.

Liu Xianhua quickly looked behind him and saw an unexpected face.

"Lu Shixian?"

"Aren't you on vacation?"

"What are you doing here?"

The three consecutive questions showed just how surprised he was.

Lu Shixian didn't bother with formalities. He was already very familiar with him and found a chair to sit in on his own.

"The national competition just ended, and I got bored. So I came to seek refuge with you, Teacher Liu."

Liu Xianhua wasn't surprised to hear this. He said with a chuckle, "I knew you couldn't sit still."

Then he brought up the biology competition.

"You did great, kid! I checked the official results online. You won by a landslide. Which school did you end up signing with?"

Lu Shixian shrugged slightly. "Zhongguancun College of Arts and Sciences."

Liu Xianhua was stunned for a moment before bursting into laughter. "The people at Yan University would go crazy if they heard that nickname."

"I can't believe you chose Yan in the end. I forgot to tell you, you should have come to Shuimu and been my junior. I would've had your back."

At this point, Liu Xianhua added with some regret, "I still have a lot of unused coupons for places around campus."

Lu Shixian laughed at that and said teasingly, "They aren't discount coupons for nearby motels, are they? I can't handle that kind of favor! Don't lead me astray."

This time, it was Liu Xianhua who backed down. He stopped boasting and changed the subject.

"I really misjudged you. Based on your performance in the final exam, I thought you'd be doing well to get a gold medal. I never expected you to become the champion."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was a little exasperated.

"Isn't it because you said the one with the highest score would be team captain? So I held back a bit that day."

"But who knew that even after holding back, I'd still end up in first place!"

Beside him, Liu Xianhua just shook his head, not knowing what to say.

With that explanation, it all made sense.

As time passed, Lu Shixian started to subtly steer the conversation toward his real purpose.

"Teacher Liu, how do you have time to play games? Aren't you working on your research project?"

Hearing his question, Liu Xianhua answered truthfully, "That project was supposed to be wrapped up in the first half of the year, but Dean Su got delayed for a while because of the biology competition."

"Now that the league is long over, the project is naturally finished. We're currently undergoing a patent evaluation. Before the next project is approved, what's wrong with playing a little game?"

"By the way, this game just launched in open beta, and it feels pretty good. I've only been playing for a little while and I'm already over level ten. I feel like my skills have improved a lot."

Lu Shixian didn't want to comment on Liu Xianhua's skills.

Since he had nothing better to do anyway, he decided to give him a demonstration, lest he lose his appetite for dinner as well.

Lu Shixian took his seat and began to explain as he played.

"When you play a swordsman, you have to embody the way of the phantom blade, you know?"

"First, you must desire a worthy opponent."

"Use a sharp sword and a sharp eye."

"Strike fast, strike true."

"Be precise and elegant."

"And in the end, they won't dare to fight back."

And so, a strange scene unfolded: a prospective Yan University student and a Jinling University PhD, hiding in an office, happily gaming away for a whole morning.

Of course, perhaps wearing suits would have added a greater sense of ceremony.

But as the saying goes, extreme joy begets sorrow. The stalker is always stalked.

The two, completely engrossed, failed to notice a figure slowly materializing behind them.

"You two seem to be having a rather leisurely time, don't you?"

Who was that? The voice sounded a bit familiar.

Both of them turned their heads in unison, only to see an old man with neatly combed, graying hair at the temples, dressed in a black Zhongshan suit.

And in unison again, they cried out in surprise.

"Dean Su???"

This? It seemed they'd been caught red-handed.

Lu Shixian wasn't too bothered. Although he rarely played games, it was perfectly normal for someone his age to do so.

Liu Xianhua, however, was a different story. A look of pure embarrassment spread across his face.

Then, Su Changqing, with his hands behind his back, said to him, "Although our project is finished, the experimental data and results can be written into quite a few papers."

"With this much free time, you might as well publish a few Q1 articles. Don't bother with the low-impact ones."

Hearing this, Liu Xianhua's face fell.

It looked like his hard-won vacation was already over.

Beside him, Lu Shixian almost burst out laughing.

It was true what they say: happiness is built on the suffering of others.

Lu Shixian shot him a sidelong glance, his eyes seeming to say, "See? This is what you get for playing games in your office. You've learned your lesson now, haven't you?"

But to his surprise, Dean Su's gaze then shifted to him.

"Student Lu, you may have won the national gold medal, but that doesn't guarantee you a spot on the national team. Don't get complacent."
I heard Yanda University already signed you. Wouldn't it be a joke if a life sciences major didn't know statistics?

Since you've got nothing better to do, how about I give you a problem to build your foundation? If there's anything you don't understand, you can just ask Little Liu.

The smile on Lu Shixian's face vanished instantly, while Liu Xianhua next to him immediately put on a gloating expression.

So, happiness doesn't disappear, it just gets transferred?

Then again, he had come here looking for some fun in the first place.

Now that someone was giving him something to do, he couldn't ask for more, so he agreed to Su Changqing's proposal.

Seeing Lu Shixian nod, Su Changqing smiled and pulled a sheet of A4 paper from beneath the printer.

He then took a fountain pen from his breast pocket and began to write furiously on the paper.

Leaving behind four problems, Su Changqing had arrived quietly and left just as quickly.

Lu Shixian picked up the paper and began to read the problems. Liu Xianhua, standing beside him, couldn't help but peer at the sheet as well.

The professor's handwriting was indeed elegant and flowing. If he hadn't honed some skills in his past life, he might not even have been able to decipher the questions.

The first problem read: Design a biological experiment.

The second problem: Organize experimental data and calculate characteristic statistics.

The third problem: Perform statistical inference on the experimental data.

And the fourth problem, just as he expected, was to conduct hypothesis testing.

But it was Dean Su's final note that made his heart stir.

Chapter 116: The Older, the Wiser

"You may choose your own topic, as long as it is related to biology."

With his boss gone, Liu Xianhua let out an exaggerated laugh on purpose.

"Hahaha, that's what you get for gloating. Now you've got your work cut out for you."

"Problems one through four are all key topics in biostatistics. But if you can master them, this course will be a breeze for you in the future. You'll have basically grasped the subject."

With that, Liu Xianhua shut down his computer and continued explaining to Lu Shixian, "Dean Su has a point. Biostatistics is crucial in both theory and application. All biological data contains a certain degree of error, so you must use experimental design to control for it and apply statistical analysis to interpret the data."

"Its core principle is to draw correct conclusions from large amounts of data by eliminating the interference of errors. There are two key aspects to this: a scientific experimental design and an accurate, scientific research method."

Lu Shixian was already quite familiar with biostatistics, and after a moment of recollection, the relevant concepts came flooding back to him.

What troubled him now was what kind of experiment he should design.

What kind of experiment would be interesting enough to get him through this long waiting period?

First, the data had to be firsthand. If the experimental data was secondhand, or from a previously published paper, he would just be performing a simple replication.

Others had already done such experiments countless times; doing it again would merely serve to corroborate their findings.

Second, the conclusion drawn from the experiment had to have some practical significance. The experiment needed to be grounded in the real world, a genuine experiment solving a genuine problem.

To put it simply, it's like using common sense or logic to know that ten dollars is more useful than five.

If you were to use a mountain of data and arguments just to prove that people do indeed prefer ten dollars to five, that would be purely pointless research.

It would serve no purpose whatsoever.

No, Lu Shixian's statement was too absolute.

Without such pointless research, the difficulty of graduating for undergraduates would increase by several notches, and the number of students delaying graduation each year would rise significantly.

This was one of the reasons why the Ministry of Education later expanded its random inspections of theses to include undergraduate papers.

In short, there was a lack of originality and a need to strengthen problem-oriented awareness.

As he thought, Lu Shixian began to consider what direction would be best for him at his current stage.

Anything too specialized was out of the question. Given the skills and conditions he had displayed to the outside world, producing something at the level of an SCI paper would be utterly ridiculous.

In biology, some conclusions are simply impossible to reach without the proper observation tools and professional instruments.

Did you think you were some amateur scientist?

The manuscripts for the "four great inventions" sent to journals each year could probably fill a house if stacked up.

A quick public service announcement on the four great inventions: anti-relativity, anti-evolution, proving Goldbach's conjecture, and building a perpetual motion machine.

With a clear line of thought, the next step was to decide on a direction.

Speaking of which, Lu Shixian actually had quite a few topics in mind.

He could think of a whole bunch off the top of his head; after all, he had been around the block in his previous life.

Things like a preliminary study on the biological characteristics and breeding of spherical cabbage.

Or a preliminary study on the tissue culture and genetic transformation system of sweet potatoes.

These were all his specialties, but unfortunately, the tools required were hard to come by, and the timeframes were too long, making them unsuitable for him at the moment.

So now, he needed to focus on a topic that was heavy on discovery and light on experimentation.

Lu Shixian searched through his mind.

He started from the present moment and began to rewind.

Memories of the past flashed before his eyes like snapshots.

Finally, a picture of him catching a crayfish with his bare hands slowly came into focus.

A stroke of inspiration hit Lu Shixian, and he slapped one hand against the other.

I've got it!

The rice-crayfish co-culture model!

The practice of raising crayfish in conjunction with rice paddies actually appeared as early as 2001.

It started in Jiangqian, in northern Hubei, a place later dubbed the "Crayfish Empire" by the media.

However, the locals hadn't figured out the right method yet. Although it increased the income from the rice paddies, there were time conflicts between raising crayfish and growing rice, so the economic benefits were not significant.

It could only be called rice-crayfish rotation, a far cry from a mature co-culture model.

He still remembered something from his past life.

Once, Huazhong Agricultural University from Hubei came for an exchange. A professor from the university mentioned the national crayfish industry development report of that year during a lecture.

He remembered a simple but striking statistic very clearly.

From rice cultivation to rice-crayfish rotation, and finally to rice-crayfish co-culture, under good management, the net income from grain alone remained constant at 524 yuan.

But the net income per mu was 524 yuan, 2,524 yuan, and 3,524 yuan, respectively.

This was enough to demonstrate the immense potential of the rice-crayfish co-culture model.

Having found a new goal, Lu Shixian's eyes were once again filled with light.

Lu Shixian folded the A4 paper, placed it carefully in his backpack, and then said goodbye to Liu Xianhua.

"Mr. Liu, I'm heading back to work on the experiment. I'll be leaving now."

Before Liu Xianhua could respond, Lu Shixian was already out of sight.

Liu Xianhua smiled, speechless.

"This kid..."

Meanwhile, Lu Shixian was already on his way back.

Returning to his dorm at No. 1 High School, Lu Shixian began to pack his things.

After quickly packing up, he thought for a moment and went to the guardhouse to make a call to Jiang Yunkun.

"Reporting, Mr. Jiang! I need to go home to visit my family. Requesting permission to leave!"

Jiang Yunkun's voice, holding back laughter, came through the receiver, "Haha, permission granted!"

"You should have gone back to rest a long time ago. You've already signed with Yanda, what are you still doing at school?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian's eyes lit up. He had things to do recently and didn't want to go to school anyway.

So he seized the opportunity and asked, "In that case, is it okay if I don't come to school for the next few months?"

This question stumped Jiang Yunkun. He had just been making a casual remark.

He never expected Lu Shixian to press his advantage and ask for several months off.

You used to love studying so much. Kid, you've changed!

The thought gave Jiang Yunkun a bit of a headache. He could only reply, "You have to come on the first day of school. We'll talk about the rest later."

"What? I still have to show up for the first day?" Lu Shixian wanted to argue further.

But all he heard was a dial tone.

Lu Shixian was instantly frustrated.

This old ginger is still the spiciest. He's mastered the divine arts of stalling and hanging up the phone.

Maybe he really had something on that day. But Lu Shixian didn't dwell on it. At worst, he would just ask for leave again on the first day of school.

With that, Lu Shixian left the guardhouse.

After so many days, he was finally on his way home.

Chapter 117: What Would He Be Without Me?

This time, Lu Shixian knew his trip home would be anything but quiet.

Knowing his father, Lu Jianguo, the whole village had probably already heard that he had received early admission to Yanjing University.

He would likely be swamped with social activities upon his return.

It would probably waste a lot of time, but there was nothing he could do.

Life isn't just about the moon in the sky; it's also about the frost on the ground.

One can't always be lost in poetry and distant lands; the daily necessities of life are indispensable.

Having mentally prepared himself, Lu Shixian boarded the familiar No. 808 bus, ready to go home.

After a journey of over an hour, he finally arrived at the bus station in Happiness Town.

It was August, and the sweltering summer heat had yet to fade. The incessant chirping of cicadas buzzed in his ears, adding a touch of irritation to the air.

It was past three o'clock, and the sun was beginning to set.

But Lu Shixian could still feel the scorching waves of heat in the air.

He quickly ducked into the only bit of shade the bus shelter offered.

He cautiously peeked his head out to check the situation on Happiness Long Street and slowly felt relieved.

"Not bad, hardly anyone around."

So he took off his small backpack, placed it on his head as a makeshift sun hat.

Then he walked briskly toward Long Street, the only way back to his home.

Walking in the cool shade beneath the eaves, Lu Shixian glanced around.

The people were still there, but they were all napping on lounge chairs in their main halls.

They wouldn't come out to work until the sun slanted west and the temperature dropped.

"A godsent opportunity," Lu Shixian thought, no longer hesitating, and quickened his pace.

But he hadn't taken more than a few steps when a small black dog suddenly darted out from his right.

The puppy panted with its mouth open, its tongue hanging out, as it watched him warily.

Lu Shixian froze, looking at the puppy that seemed ready to gank him, and was momentarily at a loss for words.

Having lived here for so long, he knew all the dogs on Happiness Long Street very well.

Two big yellow ones, one big white one.

The three dogs had grown up in Happiness Town and had never been anywhere else.

Of course, there was nothing particularly special about them. Their scientific name was Chinese rural dog, and their common name was better left unsaid.

But he had never seen this dog before. A grim look suddenly appeared on Lu Shixian's face.

"No way, am I really this unlucky?"

Before Lu Shixian could even let out a sigh, the puppy started barking.

Hearing the sound, he knew the situation was now beyond saving.

A nearby grandpa, who seemed to have forgotten his reading glasses, instantly switched into combat mode.

The entire street echoed with the grandpa's booming questions.

"Hey, hey, hey! What little thief is this? Daring to cause trouble in Happiness Town?"

"Watch me roar like Zhang Fei at the bridge, a shout to break the beams and make the river flow backward!"

"With my Green Dragon Crescent Blade, I shall slay gods and ghosts and banish all sorrow!"

Heads poked out from every storefront, their gazes converging on a single, tiptoeing figure.

Lu Shixian was instantly speechless. It was fine for the old man to listen to Beijing opera, but why did he have to shout so loudly?

He slowly took the backpack off his head, revealing an innocent face.

"Doesn't that look like the Lu family's boy?"

"The one who got into Yanda?"

"The Yanda genius?"

And so, Lu Shixian was subjected to greetings from nearly every resident in the vicinity.

He received countless invitations to visit their homes, to which he cleverly added a series of qualifiers like "if I have time," "barring any unforeseen circumstances," and "definitely next time."

Finally, he managed to escape from the crowd of onlookers.

By the time he got out, he barely knew his own name.

Thankfully, he at least hadn't forgotten the way home.

He subconsciously quickened his pace and finally made it home before the sun set.

Under the beautiful evening glow, the family began to enjoy their dinner outside.

His mother, Xia Xiuman, chided Lu Jianguo as she ate.

"It's all because of your big mouth. Every time you go out, you're showing off about our boy going to Yanda."

"This is all the boy's own hard work. What does it have to do with you? Since he was little, have you ever taught him anything?"

"By now, the only ones in town who don't know are probably the few pigs being raised at the pig farm on the right."

Hearing his mom's words, Lu Shixian almost spat out a mouthful of rice from laughing.

But Comrade Lu Jianguo was not only unrepentant but also quite pleased with himself.

"A few years ago, Old Zeng from town was so happy when his son got into Jinling University of Science and Technology."

"Every time he saw me, all he talked about was how great his son was. Now that I finally have something to be proud of, how can I not say a few words?"

As he spoke, he seemed to find more and more reason in his argument.

"Besides, what do you mean it has nothing to do with me?"

"Would he even exist without me?"

This time, his mom, the language teacher who usually talked his dad into silence, was at a loss for words.

And Lu Shixian had to give his father's logic a thumbs-up. From a certain perspective, he wasn't wrong at all. It was a very persuasive argument.

That night, after dinner, the family sat together and chatted for a while.

But after all that talk, no one asked him why he had come back.

Perhaps in their hearts, Lu Shixian was already like a kite with a broken string, free to fly wherever he wished, only stopping by occasionally.

After just one night of rest, Lu Shixian began his grand experimental plan the next day.

First, he needed to design an experiment that was as rigorous as possible.

This process was actually very important. Many people overemphasized data processing and cut corners on experimental design.

This was putting the cart before the horse. If the experiment itself had too many uncontrollable variables, what use was the data obtained from it?

If you deceive the truth, the truth will deceive you in return.

For him, this task was actually quite simple.

The results of the experiment were already in his head; he just had to work backward to figure out the procedure.

He would select three rice paddies that had been cultivated for the same number of years, all planted with the same high-quality mid-season rice variety, Xiangfengyou 180.

Using the same rice variety, he would introduce different quantities of crayfish into the paddies at arithmetic intervals during the sowing period, thereby creating variations in crayfish density in the rice-crayfish co-culture model.

He would then investigate the content of reducing substances in the soil and the economic benefits under different crayfish densities in the co-culture models.

The experiment would have three treatments: T1, collect mixed soil samples from the topsoil using a five-point sampling method, break them up, remove gravel, roots, and other debris, and store them in a refrigerator at a suitable temperature.

T2, simultaneously introduce different quantities of crayfish into the three paddies. (Minimize errors caused by the crayfish themselves as much as possible.)

T3, collect mixed soil samples from the three paddies at the same time.

Step T3 would be repeated five times at equal time intervals.

The economic benefits of the rice-crayfish co-culture would include the production value of rice and crayfish, as well as costs for rice seeds, fertilizer, labor, etc.

The production values of rice and crayfish would be calculated based on their actual yields, and their prices would be based on the average market value of the most recent year. All costs would be calculated based on actual usage.

Anyway, that was the general procedure. Lu Shixian would never admit to the fact that his experiment was very crude due to limited conditions.

Because he really had tried his best.

Chapter 118: Young Man, Your Tastes Are a Bit Peculiar

Now that the experiment was designed, the next step was implementation.

If you had to ask why he chose the Xiangfengyou 180 mid-season rice?

Why he chose three mid-season rice paddies?

It was because those were the only conditions available. For anything else, you'd have to ask Comrade Lu Jianguo.

His family happened to have set aside a few fields for mid-season rice this year, and only three of them were roughly the same size and planted with this specific variety.

Therefore, his confidence was as unshakeable as his reasoning was flawed.

The preliminary work began today.

That meant catching crayfish. By any means necessary, he had to catch all the crayfish in these three paddies and temporarily keep them in an unused field.

This process took him a full three days.

Next was to let the paddies rest, to eliminate as much as possible any interference from previous factors.

Under natural conditions, the cycling of ecological matter is very slow.

This wait lasted for ten days.

Finally, on the day before school started, Lu Shixian began to collect soil samples from the three paddies and started introducing the crayfish.

Since he was in a waiting period, Lu Shixian decided to make a trip to school after all.

After all, school was starting, and he should at least show his face.

So he set aside a day, planning to just go through the motions on September 1st.

The next day, Lu Shixian slung his backpack over his shoulder and prepared to return to school.

As soon as he entered the classroom, Lu Shixian was greeted with enthusiastic hospitality from his classmates.

"It's only been a few days, but I see Lord Lu has taken another great leap forward in the realm of gods."

"I always knew the so-called national finals were just a piece of cake for Lord Lu. He could take first place without even trying."

"Yeah, just a few months ago, Lord Lu was sitting in the same classroom as us, and now he's got early admission to Yanda, while we've just barely stepped into our second year of high school."

"Is this the difference between a god and a mortal?"

After several quiet days, Lu Shixian found the chatter from his classmates a bit overwhelming.

Weren't they laying it on a bit thick?

But then, he also grew curious. He didn't seem to recall mentioning which university he was going to during the interview.

So he asked, "How did you all know I got into Yanda?"

When he asked this, his classmates thought he was playing dumb.

He had just pulled off a high-level humblebrag, inflicting a second round of damage to their fragile hearts.

How could they stand for this?

Almost all the male students then swarmed around him.

"Hehehe, Lord Lu, have you ever enjoyed the feeling of being an airplane?"

Seeing this formation and hearing those words, Lu Shixian's heart sank. This was bad.

"Don't you come over here!"

Lu Shixian let out a tragic cry and began a frantic escape.

Only when he ran out of the classroom, panting, did he discover the reason.

It turned out his name had been put up on the school's display screen.

It was cycling through some of the school's promotional slogans and a single sentence.

"Congratulations to our school's 2007 class student, Lu Shixian, for his early admission to Yanjing University."

Alright then!

No wonder he hadn't noticed.

And no wonder he had almost been sent flying.

Lu Shixian strongly condemned this kind of behavior.

Did they think they were making steamed egg custard at home?

Now feeling a bit traumatized by the school, Lu Shixian reported to Jiang Yunkun and then immediately made a run for it.

The school's leadership had already given their approval for this matter.
Jiang Yunkun could only watch him leave the school in a flash, sighing inwardly.

How times have changed. Where had that kid who did nothing but study gone?

Joking aside, he was actually quite happy for Lu Shixian's transformation. After all, people weren't machines.

Little did he know what Lu Shixian was actually up to.

Soon, it was October.

Over a month had passed in the blink of an eye.

Lu Shixian had finally collected the last set of replicate data.

With all his experimental samples in tow, Lu Shixian returned to Jinling University.

Arriving at Liu Xianhua's office once more, he found the professor looking rather haggard. But when Lu Shixian's gaze traveled upward, he burst out laughing.

"What are you laughing at, Lu Shixian?" Liu Xianhua instinctively glanced down at his outfit.

Nothing wrong here, he thought. What's gotten into this kid?

Lu Shixian pointed to the top of his head. "Professor Liu, it looks like you've gotten smarter."

Liu Xianhua immediately caught the jab and was exasperated.

"This is all your fault! If you hadn't insisted on that game demo, Dean Su wouldn't have caught me red-handed. Why else would I suddenly be stuck writing a paper?"

He heaved a long sigh, rubbing his receding hairline. "I'm stressing out over this. Getting published in a Q1 SCI journal is no walk in the park!"

"And I can't just publish some filler. I was originally planning on just writing a review paper."

Lu Shixian felt a pang of sympathy for him for half a second before getting down to business. "Professor Liu, do you have a lab that can measure reducing substances? I'd like to borrow it."

At these words, Liu Xianhua's attention instantly shifted from his computer screen.

"Oh? You're still working on that experiment? It's been so long, I thought you'd given up."

"Dean Su even asked me about you once. Why don't you just find some data somewhere and follow the steps in the textbook?"

Lu Shixian simply shook his head. "I'm already somewhat familiar with biostatistics. If I just used someone else's data, wouldn't that be a pointless exercise, a waste of time?"

"My principle is this: either don't do it at all, or if you do it, make sure you produce something real."

This time, Liu Xianhua was the one who laughed out loud, teasing him, "And you can guarantee that the experiment you're doing now isn't a pointless exercise?"

Still, he admired Lu Shixian's bold willingness to try.

He remembered a time when he was just as stubborn, refusing to turn back until he hit a wall.

Reminiscing about his own green youth, he led Lu Shixian to the biology lab.

"Due to regulations, there's no way I can let you into the National Biomedical Laboratory to run experiments," Liu Xianhua explained carefully.

"And since the new semester just started, Jinling University's general labs are a bit tight on space."

"The most I can get you is one day for biochemical experiments. Any more than that, and I don't have enough pull."

Hearing there was a chance, Lu Shixian was already overjoyed and quickly made a confident promise.

In truth, for a simple biochemical experiment like this, Lu Shixian could get it done in half a day.

But it was always better not to overpromise; for him, the more time, the better.

Liu Xianhua had no intention of leaving right away. He was quite curious to see what on earth Lu Shixian was plotting.

When he saw Lu Shixian pull a yellowish lump out of his tool bag, Liu Xianhua's eyes widened.

"What on earth are you studying? Proctological microbes? Kid, you've got some heavy tastes!"

"I'm halfway in the medical research field myself, and even I can barely stomach this."

Lu Shixian's face darkened.

But to be fair, it did look a bit similar.

If he hadn't known what it was beforehand, he probably would have made the same mistake.

Chapter 119: Guess If I'll Guess

Lu Shixian immediately questioned Liu Xianhua's professional judgment.

"You're a PhD, for crying out loud. Why would that need to be tested for reducing substances?"

Liu Xianhua had just reacted instinctively and wasn't about to back down now. He retorted, "Why not? Maybe they were broke and had to eat dirt?"

Lu Shixian gave him a skeptical look.

As expected of a PhD, he thought, always so quick on the uptake.

Tired of arguing with him, Lu Shixian put on a sterilized lab coat, shoe covers, a mask, and took other necessary precautions.

He began preparing the glassware, mixing reagents, and calibrating instruments.

He arranged everything neatly, placing clear labels on the reagents.

Then, based on his testing objectives, he began to register and number the samples.

Beside him, Liu Xianhua's initially casual expression grew stranger and stranger.

In scientific research, there's a saying that holds true: details determine success or failure.

Lu Shixian's procedures seemed unremarkable, but they were the cornerstone of a successful experiment.

This was something only those who had truly stepped into the world of research would understand.

He knew Lu Shixian's background. Even as a national gold medalist in the Biology Olympiad, the experiments in that competition were child's play compared to real scientific research.

So, before the experiment began, he finally couldn't hold back his curiosity.

"Lu Shixian, where did you learn all this?"

Lu Shixian knew what he was asking and, without a shred of guilt, passed the credit to his mentor.

"My high school Biology Olympiad coach. You just watch and learn, right?"

Liu Xianhua grew even more puzzled. Was he out of touch with the times?

High school teachers were at this level now?

However, this wasn't the time to dwell on it.

Lu Shixian's experiment had already begun.

Testing for reducing substances was a complex process involving the measurement of many different components. Combined with the large number of samples he had, his workload for the day was significant.

He needed to determine the total amount of reducing substances, active reducing substances, Fe2+, Mn2+, and the content of active organic reducing substances.

Soil reducing substances were extracted with Al2(SO4)3, and the total amount was determined by the potassium dichromate oxidation method.

The content of active reducing substances was determined by potassium permanganate titration.

Fe2+ content was measured using the o-phenanthroline colorimetric method, and Mn2+ content by the potassium periodate colorimetric method.

The active organic reducing substance content was the difference between the active reducing substance content and the Fe2+ content.

The morning was nearly over, with only a few samples left to test.

Seeing this, Lu Shixian decided not to take a break, even skipping lunch.

This was highly unusual for him, as he always maintained a regular and disciplined schedule for sleep and meals.

But compared to scientific research, those things took a lower priority.

In his past, it was common for him to forget to eat or drink.

He continued working, and soon it was past two in the afternoon.

The experiment was finally over, and he had the data he needed.

He began shutting down the power and desk lamps, disposing of waste, cleaning the countertops, and arranging everything on the lab bench neatly.

Finally, out of habit, he placed the waste liquids and materials into the recycling containers.

He took off his lab coat, let out a soft breath, and walked out of the lab to stretch his limbs.

His original plan was to finish the tests in half a day, but this wasn't the first or second time his carefully laid plans had been disrupted.

As long as he could complete the task today, he had met his own expectations.

Liu Xianhua, who had followed him out, was at a loss for words.

He had watched Lu Shixian's movements go from clumsy to fluid, a condensed journey from novice to expert.

He had thought the boy's talent lay in theory, but it seemed he had an intuitive grasp of experimental work as well.

Was this the power of a national gold medalist champion?

What a monster!

He couldn't stop marveling inwardly.

Only then did he find a moment to ask, "What's the point of measuring all this?"

"It's just some redox reactions. Isn't this more in the realm of chemistry?"

Having achieved his goal for the trip, Lu Shixian was in a good mood and decided to joke with him.

"Why don't you guess? Guess what I'm trying to do."

Liu Xianhua replied irritably, "You guess if I'll guess."

Since Lu Shixian wanted to be mysterious, he didn't press further.

To him, whatever experiment Lu Shixian was doing was quite low-level from his perspective.

"Are you done with your experiment? Then I'm outta here. You might be finishing up, but my paper is still nowhere in sight!"

With that, Liu Xianhua fulfilled his role as a facilitator and made his escape.

Lu Shixian, on the other hand, planned to fill his stomach first. For him, the hardest part was over.

For this kind of experiment, once you had the data, the rest of the work was straightforward.

After lunch, Lu Shixian found a computer in Jinling University's electronic reading room.

The experimental design for the first question was long complete.

His current task was the second question: data organization and calculation of characteristic numbers.

There were specialized data processing software for this. In his previous life, he often used the DPS Data Processing System developed by Zhejiang University, as well as Statistical and MATLAB.

But for data processing of this level, with all due respect, he could do it with an Excel spreadsheet.

He entered and organized the data using Microsoft Excel 2008.

The data he obtained were all continuous variables. Generally, the process involved sorting, finding the range, determining the number and width of groups, selecting group limits and midpoints, and then grouping the data.

Next, he inserted functions for mode, median, arithmetic mean (average), geometric mean (geomean), quartile, standard deviation (stdev), and variance (var).

Then came the third question: statistical inference.

For this step, his task was parameter estimation. Since the sample size was small, he used the value of the sample statistic as an estimate of the population parameter, a method known as point estimation.

Then came the sampling distributions, where he performed calculations for the χ² (chi-squared) distribution, t-distribution, and F-distribution.

The χ² distribution is the sampling distribution of the variance, illustrating the probability that the variance s² of a random sample from a normally distributed population will be close to the population variance.

The t-distribution, denoted as t(n), is formed by a random variable X~N(0,1) and Y~χ²(n), where X and Y are independent.

The F-distribution is the distribution of a statistic formed by the ratio of two independent chi-squared variables divided by their respective degrees of freedom, where X follows a chi-squared distribution with k1 degrees of freedom and Y follows one with k2 degrees of freedom.

Next came the most critical step.

Chapter 120: How Could You Lie to a Kid?

This was the final, crucial step: to determine whether the differences between samples, and between a sample and the population, were caused by sampling error or by a fundamental difference.

The fourth question, hypothesis testing, was actually done in conjunction with statistical inference. Su Changqing had probably separated them to make it easier for Lu Shixian to understand, as this was his first time encountering it.

This process followed a rather fixed procedure. First, he proposed a null hypothesis, H0, for the population under study: Crayfish have a positive effect on the increase of total reducing substances in paddy fields.

And an alternative hypothesis, H1, which was the opposite of the null hypothesis.

Since the sample followed a normal distribution, the population variance was unknown, and it was a small sample, a t-test was conducted.

H0: μ = μ0 = 33.46 mg/kg
H1: μ ≠ μ0
α = 0.05

The calculated test statistic was t = 1.956.

Consulting the t-distribution table, t < t(0.05, 5).

Therefore, H0 could not be rejected, indicating the difference was not significant. He concluded that crayfish have a positive effect on the increase of reducing substances in paddy fields.

The remaining dependent variables—active reducing substances, Fe2+, Mn2+, and active organic reducing substances—were analyzed following the same procedure.

At this point, if he only wanted to prove that crayfish had a positive effect on reducing substances in paddy fields, the hypothesis testing was complete.

After seeing all these steps, does it seem complex and difficult?

In reality, using statistical analysis software like SPSS, if you have the data ready, a fast operator could do it all in less than a minute...

But Lu Shixian chose not to use the software. Hey, he was just having fun!

It had been too long since he'd played with this stuff, and his skills were a bit rusty.

He couldn't resist showing off a little.

Finally, Lu Shixian wrote down the experimental results in his notebook, strictly following the order of the questions.

Mission accomplished.

Lu Shixian snapped his fingers, ready to turn in his homework.

He had to grumble about why he couldn't just use email; it took him three tries to finally track down Su Changqing.

It had been a while since the questions were assigned, and Su Changqing had assumed Lu Shixian had given up on them, thinking it was just a whim on his part.

He never expected Lu Shixian to actually show up.

Though he was busy, he figured it wouldn't hurt to take a look.

He took the draft paper and began to browse through the experiment.

The moment he saw the experimental design, Su Changqing's eyes lit up.

It seemed to be a study on the influence of animals on plants.

A good direction!

Although one was a crop and the other an economic animal, it seemed to lean towards agronomy.

But animals and plants were fundamentally within the scope of biology, so it was perfectly acceptable.

Su Changqing then spent a few minutes reading through the results of Lu Shixian's nearly month-long effort.

Afterward, he nodded at Lu Shixian. "While your experimental design has many flaws, you've maintained the basic experimental principles. Very good!"

"But your choice of topic is really interesting. If your experimental data is sound, you can indeed conclude that crayfish have a positive impact on paddy fields."

As he spoke, something suddenly occurred to Su Changqing. He flipped the paper over and over, seeming to grow quite fond of it.

"The 'Three Rural Issues' is an area of great national concern recently. This discovery of yours could very well change the landscape of rice cultivation in the south. Excellent!"

"If this is successfully demonstrated and leads to the development of a stable, replicable rice-crayfish co-culture model, it could help farmers increase production and income. This is a research result of immense value."

Then, he voiced a slight reservation.

"However, the potential negative impacts of crayfish on paddy fields are still unknown. If field management is inadequate, it could very well lead to the opposite result. It's a double-edged sword."

"But overall, the merits far outweigh the flaws. Very good!"

He had lost count of how many times he had said "very good."

At this point, Lu Shixian couldn't help but secretly give him a thumbs-up.

Unlike the so-called experts who were all talk, true professors and scholars were on another level.

Even if this wasn't their primary field of research, their accumulated knowledge gave them an incredibly sharp perspective.

He had immediately extrapolated, seeing both the positive and negative potential impacts.

Lu Shixian smiled and asked, "Professor Su, does this mean my homework is complete?"

Su Changqing, as if struck with amnesia, looked at him with a bewildered expression.

"Complete? You're far from it."

Lu Shixian's face filled with mock indignation, looking at the professor in disbelief.

"You're the dean of a whole school. How could you lie to a kid?"

Su Changqing's expression didn't change as he cleared his throat lightly.

"Go downstairs, turn left, and ask anyone you find. Is there anyone in the life sciences school who doesn't know how to write a paper?"

Lu Shixian was on the verge of tears. Everyone knew that the offices downstairs were filled with your grad students!

Wasn't this just sending him on a wild goose chase?

Seeing his expression, Su Changqing revealed a mysterious smile.

"I'm doing this for your own good."

"With a result like this, not writing a paper would be a complete waste! Others couldn't even dream of it."

"Write it up properly, and I'll help you look it over. Later, we can see about getting it published. That way, when you go to Yan University, you can proudly say you're a product of Jinling!"

Of course he wasn't unwilling; Lu Shixian had intended to write a paper all along.

But when the dean himself told him to do something, he had to at least feign some reluctance, to put up a little protest.

And so, he was about to walk the same path as Liu Xianhua.

He wondered how long his thick, dark hair would last.

Lu Shixian was deeply concerned about this.

For the time being, there was no need to stay at Jinling University.

Writing a paper was a slow, meticulous process. Even with his experience and confidence, it was impossible to finish a first draft in a few days. There were too many details involved to list.

Returning to his classroom at No. 1 High School, he saw the sign outside now read "Year 2, Class 1."

It dawned on him that he was now a second-year student.

Time truly waits for no one.

After greeting his classmates, Lu Shixian sat down in his dedicated seat in the last row, feeling a wave of emotion.

Glancing around, he noticed the class roster had changed slightly.

To his relief, no one had fallen behind and transferred to a regular class.

A few girls had moved to the liberal arts track, while several top students from other classes had joined their new family.

So the total number of students remained roughly the same.

His old classmates from the first year were used to his presence, but the new students seemed quite excited to see Lu Shixian.

They frequently cast looks of curiosity and admiration in his direction.

Evidently, the legend of "God Lu" was well-known even in the regular classes.

Chapter 121: Physics is Vast, Too

By now, Lu Shixian neither turned in homework nor paid attention in class.

With his early admission agreement to Yan University, he was like a mascot.

Students from other second-year classes, and even new first-year students, would often come to the back door in groups to observe him.

At the same time, teachers sometimes liked to use him to liven up the atmosphere.

By the second year, subjects were specialized, and all the key learning material would be on the exams.

So the students below were all listening attentively.

"Alright class, today we'll begin learning the remaining key topics in Chapter 3, Magnetic Fields."

"We've already systematically studied magnetic phenomena and fields, magnetic induction intensity, several common magnetic fields, and the force of a magnetic field on a current-carrying wire."

"Next, we will study the motion of charged particles in a uniform magnetic field. Please turn to page 54..." The teacher was the same physics teacher from his first year, Gao Yuan.

She was a very humorous female teacher, and what Lu Shixian remembered most vividly was her self-introduction on the first day of class.
Because my parents gave me one less 'Yuan' character in my name, I can't appear before you as an image on a television screen, formed by an electron stream bombarding a phosphor display.

But I can project my image onto your retinas, after light refracts through the cornea, lens, and other refractive media of your eyes.

At that moment, Gao Yuan picked up a piece of chalk and wrote on the blackboard in large letters:

The Hall Effect.

Then she continued, "This is a relatively simple question. I briefly mentioned it last class."

"Can any student help me out with the definition?"

The moment she finished speaking, a forest of hands shot up from below.

But after searching for a while, Gao Yuan surprisingly called on the most unexpected person.

"Lu Shixian, since you're here in class, could you please help answer this question?"

"You're the biology competition champion, and biology and physics are closely related. I imagine this question won't be too difficult for you, right?"

Lu Shixian, who was slacking off at his desk, was suddenly called upon and stood up in a daze.

Hearing a classmate next to him whisper the answer, Lu Shixian felt like he'd just met his savior.

"Uh..."

"Oh, it's when a metal conductor plate is placed in a uniform magnetic field perpendicular to it. When a current passes through the plate, a potential difference is generated across the two sides perpendicular to both the magnetic field and the current."

"That is the Hall effect."

Gao Yuan nodded after listening, without offering any comment.

Then she smiled at him and said, "You may sit."

"Lu Shixian, if you treated physics with the same dedication you show for biology, I believe these major problems wouldn't be a challenge for you at all."

"Even though you've already been admitted to Yan Jing University, physics is still a vast and beautiful field. It wouldn't hurt to appreciate its beauty."

Instantly, the class erupted in laughter.

He sat down, speechless, and touched the tip of his nose, feeling like he'd just been subtly roasted.

So what if I can't solve a problem about a U shaped metal frame passing through a uniform magnetic field?

So what if I made a few remarks in my award acceptance speech?

So what if I'm not that interested in physics?

Is it really necessary to drag me out and beat a dead horse like this?

Of course, Lu Shixian knew everyone was just joking, so he simply laughed it off and didn't pay it any mind.

Because in biology class, under Wen Shaoying's frequent praise, he always managed to get his groove back.

Attending class was just an interlude. After several days of thought, Lu Shixian finally sorted out the ideas for his paper and began to write it formally.

He had already decided on the title: An Inquiry into the 'Rice Crayfish Co culture' Model: An Analysis of the Impact of Procambarus clarkii on the Content of Reducing Substances in Paddy Soil and its Economic Benefits.

Sitting in front of the computer, Lu Shixian became an emotionless word churning machine.

Abstract: By introducing varying quantities of Procambarus clarkii into paddy fields with similar conditions, thereby altering the soil flooding duration before rice planting, this study explores the state of reducing substances in the cultivated soil layer under the rice crayfish co culture model and analyzes its economic benefits using the input output method...

The results indicate that in the rice crayfish co culture model, increasing the quantity of Procambarus clarkii leads to significant changes in the total amount of reducing substances in the cultivated soil layer, but the active reducing substances...

As the number of crayfish increases, rice production value gradually decreases while the costs of co culture rise. However, the production value from crayfish increases significantly, leading to an overall rise in the comprehensive production value of the model, though the rate of this increase diminishes as the crayfish population grows.

Keywords: Rice crayfish co culture model; reducing substances; economic benefits;

abstract：differentquantitiesofcrayfishwereputintoricefieldswithprocambarusclarkii…….

keywords：……

The rice crayfish co culture model, evolving from rice crayfish rotation, is a novel symbiotic system that facilitates the mutually beneficial coexistence of rice and Procambarus clarkii, thereby increasing farmers' income. This model greatly enhances resource utilization efficiency and profitability for farmers...

The burrowing habits of the crayfish act as a form of tilling, increasing soil oxygen content, which is beneficial for the activity of aerobic microorganisms and fauna, as well as the growth of rice roots. [1]

The excretion and molting of the crayfish can increase the organic matter content in the soil, improve soil fertility, and enhance the soil's carbon sink capacity. [2]

Therefore, rice crayfish co culture can reduce the application of pesticides and chemical fertilizers, lowering chemical residues in the soil and water, resulting in a greener, more pollution free product. [3]

Furthermore, the chitosan rich shells of the crayfish help increase the content of water stable aggregates in the soil, improving its structure and stability. [4]

...(5,000 words omitted)...

Currently, the rice crayfish rotation model has been widely adopted in the country. Although it increases the income from paddy fields, the temporal conflict between shrimp farming and rice cultivation limits the improvement of economic benefits.

In response to this situation, this paper innovatively proposes the rice crayfish co culture model...

With that, the literature review was complete.

Lu Shixian began to write the first section: Materials and Methods.

First came the source of the samples and a general description of the experimental site.

The experiment was conducted in Xingfu Village, Xingfu Town, Jinling District, Jinling City, Su Province, located at longitude...

Next was the experimental design... hmm, he just copied and pasted the design he had prepared earlier.

Following that was data processing and analysis, which simply required him to include the work he had already done in the lab.

Then, the second section: Results and Analysis.

This mainly involved analyzing the content of reducing substances in the soil and the differences in yield and production value under the rice crayfish co culture model.

Finally, the discussion.

Chapter 122: Just a General Publication?

Reducing substances in soil are important indicators of its redox state, significantly affecting the physicochemical properties of the cultivated layer and acting as a key factor constraining crop growth, development, and yield [14]...

In summary: this indicates that from the perspective of the soil's redox state, the rice crayfish co culture model is an effective measure for promoting a favorable soil redox state.

At this point, Lu Shixian stretched, having finally completed the task.

He was about to save and leave when he suddenly remembered he hadn't written the references.

That was something he couldn't skip, so he turned back to finish it.

Although what's shown here is only a few hundred words, the actual paper was five or six thousand words long.

Just writing this relatively straightforward paper had taken him several days.

He took a good night's rest. The next day, he appeared in Su Changqing's office.

It didn't take Su Changqing long to finish reading Lu Shixian's paper. But he kept nodding and then shaking his head, which left Lu Shixian feeling confused.

"What is it, Dean Su? Is there a problem with my paper?"

"There are no major problems," Su Changqing said, looking at him with admiration. "Your paper's formatting is very standard. I thought I'd have to go over that with you."

"Your issue lies with the paper itself. Firstly, you've only demonstrated that crayfish have a positive effect on the paddy soil under certain conditions, not directly on the plants themselves."

"You're using one influencing factor's relationship with another to indirectly explain the issue."

"This isn't a conclusion, but a hypothesis. Therefore, the greater significance of your paper lies in proposing the concept of rice crayfish co culture."

"What a pity. There's still so much work left to be done. If you publish this paper now, many people will immediately follow your line of thought to conduct their own research, and it won't be considered entirely your achievement," he said, sighing.

"If you could fully substantiate this model and provide a universal methodology, you would become the leading expert in the field of rice crayfish co culture in the country."

Lu Shixian understood what he meant.

It was as if he had discovered a new idea. He could have kept it quiet and capitalized on it, only sharing it after he'd made enough money. But by publishing it now, everyone could use the idea to make money, and his first mover advantage would be gone.

However, Lu Shixian knew his own situation and didn't find it to be a pity.

"Dean Su, if I were to really do as you suggest, I would need to conduct much more rigorous experiments under strict conditions." He spread his hands helplessly. "Just preparing the field modifications would take a huge amount of time and energy. It would take years to accomplish."

"And right now, I'm at a critical stage of my studies. It's not worth it to sacrifice that for the so called title of an expert on rice crayfish co culture. Being known as a pioneer is enough for me."

Hearing Lu Shixian's words, Su Changqing's admiration for him grew, but so did his regret.

"It's a shame you've already been admitted to Yan Jing University. If only you were coming to our Jinling University!"

He had always remained composed when praised by others.

Of course, Su Changqing was just expressing his feelings. He knew full well that people strive for better things, just as water flows downward. When a better option is available, who would be willing to maintain the status quo?

Next, Su Changqing asked about the submission.

"Which biology journal are you planning to submit to? Unfortunately, our university only has the Journal of Jinling University and the Biomedical Exploration Report that are somewhat well known."

"The former is a university journal, a step above a general publication, while the Biomedical Exploration Report is in the CSSCI and is a national core journal. Neither is suitable for your paper."

Lu Shixian thought for a moment before slowly saying, "My first choice is Agriculture and Technology."

Hearing this, Su Changqing frowned. "That one? Although it's a national comprehensive agricultural publication, as far as I know, it's just a general publication."

Lu Shixian was a bit stunned. What did he mean, *just* a general publication?

Big shots really do speak with confidence. He even looks down on a national comprehensive agricultural publication.

He asked, amused, "Then which journal do you think I should submit to?"

"My recommendation is the Chinese Journal of Rice Science. It's a bimonthly academic journal sponsored by the China National Rice Research Institute and is a Yan Jing University Chinese core journal."

"Although its impact factor isn't high, it's still ranked among the top in its category," Su Changqing said matter of factly.

Lu Shixian was dumbfounded. "But that's a core journal! Do you really think my paper has a chance?"

Su Changqing couldn't help but laugh. "You underestimate yourself. Your paper may be a bit simple, but the theory it proposes is advanced, and its underlying significance is profound."

"Moreover, it has a remarkable effect on increasing yield and income. Just go ahead and submit it. If it gets rejected, come find me."

With that, Lu Shixian could only leave, half believing and half doubting. He still found it hard to believe.

A paper he just cobbled together could get into a Yan Jing core journal?

But since Su Changqing had said so, he could only give it a shot, treating a dead horse as if it were still alive.

Back at No. 1 High School, Lu Shixian went to the school's computer lab, found the submission email for the editorial department of the Chinese Journal of Rice Science, and sent over the paper he had written.

After finishing this task, he had no idea when he would get a response.

But this was out of his control. As the saying goes, a man is known by his reputation, a tree by its shadow.

He wasn't from a prestigious university, nor was he a famous scholar.

His paper would most likely just gather dust in their inbox.

He was pessimistic about the whole thing, not holding out much hope, and was even mentally prepared to go back and complain to Su Changqing.

Lu Shixian gave himself a deadline of half a month. If he didn't hear back within that time, he would switch to the journal he had originally planned on.

For these fifteen days, the matter of the paper was temporarily put aside.

He enjoyed a few rare days of rest. He had been so busy recently that he'd had almost no free time.

In the morning, bored, he was once again slacking off in the back row of the classroom.

Suddenly, he saw a school leader on patrol in the hallway appear and disappear like a ghost.

Before leaving, he saw the leader pull a phone from his pocket and start a call.

Wait a minute!

What did I just see?

No keypad?

That looks like a smartphone!

Lu Shixian suddenly remembered something. Although smartphones didn't truly become popular in the country until 2009, you could still buy them now.

Lu Shixian was suddenly overjoyed. In his previous life, phones had become people's second companions.

They were carried everywhere.

There was a funny question: Why is it getting harder and harder for thieves to steal phones these days?

Chapter 123: Too Rigorous After All

The answer is that people now have reached a state of human device unity, never separating from their phones, whether they're eating or using the toilet.

How could a thief possibly find an opportunity?

Although students weren't supposed to have phones, he had long been an exception.

He just hadn't wanted to buy a feature phone with a keypad.

Now that he could finally use a smartphone, he was so moved he almost wanted to cry.

Do you have any idea how he's gotten by these past few years?

He left school and went to a phone store. After stating his requirement of no keypad, he was shown three models.

In the end, he chose a newly released smartphone from HTC.

It was a brand from Taiwan. Although the brand would later fade into obscurity, it was a hot seller in 2008.

Don't ask why he chose it.

Supporting a domestic brand was the right thing to do.

Back then, SIM cards didn't require real name registration. Lu Shixian quickly got his first phone number in this life: 188725xxxxx.

Got the card, slid it in!

Lu Shixian was now also someone who could whip out his piece at a moment's notice.

He returned to school slowly, a "Wang Yousheng" style grin on his face.

Before going back, however, he switched it to vibrate mode.

He might not have the pressure of the college entrance exam, but it would still be a bad look to have his phone ring or make noise in the classroom.

Although only a day had passed, Lu Shixian still made a trip to the computer lab in the afternoon.

He was, after all, quite concerned about the first paper of this life.

Even though he knew it was unlikely to have a result so soon, he couldn't help but check. What if a miracle happened?

Of course, the result was just as he expected. There was no so called miracle.

That evening, Lu Shixian used his new phone to call his parents and a few other relatives and friends whose numbers he remembered, telling them to save his new number.

His parents were actually delighted by this.

It meant they could call and bother him whenever they wanted.

Just like that, two weeks were about to pass.

If there was still no response on this final day, he would accept his fate.

It would mean that his current level was not yet sufficient to make a mark in a Chinese core journal.

Lu Shixian had become a regular at the school's computer lab these past few days. Once again, he sat down at a computer.

As he opened his email inbox, Lu Shixian found himself feeling slightly nervous.

He looked at the screen and saw a message that had never appeared before.

"New mail in your inbox!"

Oh my god!

It's finally here!

He clicked on the inbox, and sure enough, an email from the China National Rice Research Institute in Zhejiang Province was lying there quietly.

Lu Shixian suddenly sat up straight, rubbing his slightly sweaty palms.

"Let's see if I'm lucky or not."

He opened the email, and a reply appeared before his eyes.

"Dear Mr. Lu Shixian, We have received the paper you submitted to our journal, An Inquiry into the 'Rice Crayfish Co culture' Model: An Analysis of the Impact of Procambarus clarkii on the Content of Reducing Substances in Paddy Soil and its Economic Benefits."

"This paper studies the impact of Procambarus clarkii on the content of reducing substances in paddy soil and analyzes its economic benefits, and it also explores the 'rice crayfish co culture' concept you first proposed..."

"The model is quite novel, providing innovation and optimization upon existing rice crayfish models, as well as offering a certain theoretical basis and direction..."

This was all boilerplate. Lu Shixian skimmed through it, his eyes flying down the page.

"Based on the opinions of two reviewers, your paper meets the requirements for inclusion in our journal. However, they have raised the following points regarding the content of your paper. Please revise and resubmit it to our journal's email address."

Reading this, Lu Shixian let out a sharp breath of relief, followed by a wave of immense joy.

Minor revisions!

No way?!

It's actually going to be accepted?!!

As for the issues raised below, Lu Shixian felt they were no problem at all, as long as the paper got through.

He quickly looked at the first point: Regarding your paper's content, there is still much to be explored in the 'rice crayfish co culture' model. We suggest changing your paper's title to a Preliminary Inquiry.

Lu Shixian: (·_·?)

Fine, preliminary it is. You're the core journal, you call the shots.

Lu Shixian looked at the second point: The data processing and analysis in the first section of the paper are too brief. We suggest adding computational verification content.

He could understand that. In fact, for his hypothesis, a simple t test for significance would have been enough to prove his point.

Since the reviewer wanted him to add other tests, he would just add them.

The third point was related to the previous one. Because the verification content was lacking, the discussion was naturally brief, so their suggestion was to expand the discussion section.

Fourth point: When calculating the economic benefits, costs such as machinery, crayfish feed, pesticides for rice and Procambarus clarkii, and soil and water amendments were not included, which is not rigorous enough. Additionally, the data on the production value of rice and crayfish is questionable.

Lu Shixian: ...

They really are too rigorous.

This reviewer really has a hawk's eye.

However, he really couldn't figure out some of the missing costs. There was no way he could calculate them that precisely.

As for the production value of the rice and crayfish, he had an idea why.

The rice yield was measured by weighing the harvested grain, so there were bound to be errors.

The crayfish issue was because although he had set up fences to prevent them from crawling all over and affecting the data's accuracy, he really couldn't control the crayfish digging holes and escaping. That was a condition beyond his control.

Finally, the fifth point: We suggest increasing the number of cited references.

Seeing this point, Lu Shixian immediately felt wronged.

It wasn't that he cited too few; it was that you could count the number of papers on rice crayfish co culture on one hand.

Right now, he had only one thought.

He hoped that one day, he could be like Qian Xuesen and boldly write on his paper: "This paper requires no references. I am the reference."

Haha, seemed like he was daydreaming again.

He'd better just obediently patch up these five holes first.

To be honest, revising a paper is a painful process, because it's hard to satisfy all of the other party's requests in one go.

What's more, he wasn't communicating directly with the reviewers but through the editorial department, a two way messenger.

The back and forth wasted a lot of time.
The whole process took even longer than writing the paper itself. It was absolute torture.

Ten days later, the first revision was rejected. The reviewer’s comments pointed out three remaining issues.

Twenty days later, the second revision was returned with two more suggestions.

A month later, there was only one suggestion left, the same old problem: the lobster production value data was questionable.

Lu Shixian was about to lose his mind!

He really couldn't nail down the lobster production value data. This kind of data was inherently prone to error, wasn't it?

After racking his brain for a solution to no avail, Lu Shixian sent the paper back as it was.

He simply added a note at the end: The error in this data is random, not systematic.

If there are any further issues, it's because the evidence has been digested in the author's stomach!

Chapter 124: So I Was Just a Tool All Along

Several days passed with no further feedback from the editorial department.

It wasn't rejected, nor was he notified of its acceptance.

Just as Lu Shixian was going crazy over it—was this paper really never going to pass?

Finally, a week later, he received the final message from the editorial department.

"Mr. Lu Shixian, congratulations, your paper has been accepted by our journal. Please provide the necessary personal information in the required format."

Reading this sentence, Lu Shixian finally let out a long sigh of relief.

After months of battling wits with reviewers and editors, he had finally achieved a satisfactory result.

Lu Shixian began to enter his main information into the editor in the email: name, gender, date of birth, ethnicity, hometown, education level, graduating institution, and so on.

Some information he didn't have at the moment, so he left it blank.

Just like that, Lu Shixian sent his information off.

However, he had no idea what a shock this simple act would cause for the journal's editorial department, far away in Jiangsu and Zhejiang.

But the matter of the paper was soon pushed to the back of his mind.

Because the New Year was approaching again.

According to the lunar calendar, he was officially stepping into the year 2009.

This was the second New Year he would spend at home since his rebirth.

And it was far livelier than the last.

With the New Year upon them, relatives and friends from both sides of the family had returned home for the holidays. Plus, since Lu Shixian had been granted early admission to Peking University, he wouldn't have much free time the following year.

As the old saying goes, there are three great joys in life: one's wedding night, success in the imperial exams, and meeting an old friend in a foreign land.

In a way, his achievement counted as success in the exams.

So his parents decided to take advantage of the timing and hold a celebration.

Lu Shixian had initially been against making a big fuss, feeling it was unnecessary to be so ostentatious.

He used to detest this sort of thing, always feeling it was like showing off.

But he didn't think that way anymore. As long as his parents were happy, he would let them be. How many days like this does one get in a lifetime?

Since coming back in this life, he increasingly felt that a simple, ordinary life was the greatest happiness.

He was working hard for the future, but he couldn't ignore the most fundamental sources of joy.

He had already seen his parents' aging faces, the first white hairs in their strands, the worried looks they wore for him.

So, for some things, he really should yield to them.

Thus, several days before the New Year, the two of them sent out invitations to numerous relatives and friends.

"You are cordially invited to a university acceptance banquet to be held on January 21, 2009, at Group Eight, Xingfu Village, Xingfu Town, Jinling District..."

Rural areas usually weren't about pomp and circumstance, but when they were, it was a grand affair.

A giant red inflatable arch was placed at the entrance to the town's main street.

On the arch, below the four large characters for "Success in the Exams," was the golden name of Peking University.

Along the road leading to his house, small flags guiding the way fluttered in the wind.

On that day, Lu Shixian lost count of how many relatives and friends, both familiar and not, he met.

But this was just the appetizer; the real excitement was on the second day.

From his mother's side came relatives from the Xia family and her colleagues from Xingfu Elementary School.

From his father's side, it was mostly the familiar elders and folks from Xingfu Town, almost all of whom came to show their support.

As for Lu Shixian, he only invited a few of his middle and high school teachers, and that was about it.

He thought about inviting his classmates but decided against it. They weren't graduates yet, and it was better not to disturb their studies.

It didn't seem like a lot of people, but the actual number of guests far exceeded his imagination.

Due to space limitations, they couldn't set up too many tables, so they had to double the number of rounds.

He didn't know how many rounds there were, but Lu Shixian saw that the head chef's hand, wielding the large ladle, was trembling.

However, the end of the banquet didn't mean it was over.

The truly difficult part was during the New Year itself. Not only was the travel exhausting, but wherever he went, he had to politely socialize with people he knew and people he didn't.

For him, this was not an honor, but an ordeal.

This is why some people lament that the holidays are more tiring than work.

There are reasons for everything.

After surviving the New Year, Lu Shixian couldn't wait to go back to school.

He couldn't stay at home for the time being.

Arriving back on campus, Lu Shixian finally recovered from the hustle and bustle of the New Year, and his life became peaceful again.

A month later, he suddenly received a training camp notification from the National Biology Olympiad Committee.

Lu Shixian whipped out his phone to check. Was it already the end of February?

He had been waiting for this news for a very, very long time.

How did he feel?

A little excited.

A little sentimental.

It was a complex feeling, difficult to put into words.

Because you might not understand the feeling of being suppressed for too long, unable to express it.

After handling some school procedures and bidding farewell to his parents and teachers, Lu Shixian was about to set off alone...

Wait!

He looked at the luggage in his hands and was suddenly dumbfounded.

Looking up, he saw a completely unexpected figure.

"Teacher Mei?"

"You're going too?"

Mei Ting was wearing a black trench coat, ladies' sunglasses, and a red crossbody bag, looking for all the world like she was going on vacation.

She pushed her sunglasses up her forehead and glanced at him.

"Let's go!"

"What are you standing there for?"

"The plane tickets are already booked."

Lu Shixian's expression at that moment was: (⊙_⊙)

Utterly dumbfounded!

He truly hadn't expected Mei Ting to go with him.

He vaguely remembered her saying last time that she wouldn't do something as meaningless as chaperoning unless it was for the national competition.

But he hadn't seen a shadow of her even after the finals ended.

He had assumed she was just joking, but today the sun must have risen from the west.

Just about two hours later, Lu Shixian and Mei Ting landed at Beijing Capital Airport.

After taking a car to the main gate of Peking University, Mei Ting suddenly held out her hand to him.

What for?

Lu Shixian was a bit speechless. Was she asking him for the cab fare?

"Teacher Mei, talking about money hurts our relationship!"

"Can't we find a place to settle down first before we discuss this?"

Mei Ting seemed taken aback by his train of thought. She took off her sunglasses and said, "What are you thinking? I meant your luggage."

Only then did Lu Shixian understand, but then another question arose.

"Aren't you here to chaperone me?"

Mei Ting's meaningful gaze swept across his face.

"At your age, do you still need me to take care of you?"

"If I didn't use chaperoning as an excuse, how would I get a chance to vacation in Beijing?"

With that, she picked up her luggage and bid him farewell.

"I'm off to find my best friend. You're on your own!"

Watching her receding back, Lu Shixian felt a wave of emo wash over him.

So, I was just a tool for you from the very beginning!

However, Lu Shixian quickly put the matter out of his mind.

Frankly, whether Mei Ting was here or not made little difference to him now.

Chapter 125: Training Camp Begins, A Tour of the Peking University Campus

According to the committee's notice, he was supposed to gather at Peking University's School of Life Sciences first.

The winter training camp was called the Peking University Life Sciences Camp. Although it bore the name of life sciences, the registration was actually open to provincial team members in math, physics, chemistry, and biology, as well as those with first-prize provincial awards in multiple of the five subjects.

It wasn't limited to the fifty people on the final list for the biology training camp.

When Lu Shixian followed the signs and slowly walked to the School of Life Sciences, he indeed saw several hundred people gathered there.

Looking at the bustling crowd, it was no surprise that these were all elites selected from all over the country.

Regardless of how they performed in this life sciences camp, they were all bound to have a place for themselves in the future.

It had to be said, for Peking University and Tsinghua University, it truly felt like all the world's best and brightest were falling into their grasp.

The most outstanding portion of the country's youth was almost all concentrated here. It was no wonder they produced so many great figures.

Looking back through history, from 1955 to 2009, Tsinghua University, by including the Peking Union Medical College in its statistics, ranked first with 104 academicians elected to the two academies.

Peking University had 73 academicians, ranking second in the nation.

However, the two universities had different focuses. Peking University had the most academicians elected to the Chinese Academy of Sciences, while Tsinghua University had the most elected to the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

As for other universities, there was no need to mention them, as they couldn't even reach half these numbers.

But there was nothing to be done about it; this gap would likely widen in the future.

As the number of people grew, teachers from the life sciences camp began to maintain order.

They waved different flags in the air.

"Students, please gather under the flag corresponding to the subject you registered for," a teacher with a name tag said loudly into a microphone.

Hearing his voice, the students attending the winter camp began to move in an orderly fashion toward their destinations.

Lu Shixian stood on his tiptoes and glanced ahead, quickly finding the biology contingent.

Since he wasn't in a hurry, Lu Shixian stood at the back of the line.

As he looked around, he noticed the biology camp had the most people, almost twice as many as the other camps.

However, it wasn't because the Biology Olympiad had suddenly become popular.

It was because most of the provincial first-prize winners from other subjects had already participated in the Autumn Camp.

Therefore, the Autumn Camp was the most prestigious of the training camps, having already gone through one round of screening.

To put it delicately, the Peking University Life Sciences Camp was for discovering students who excelled in multiple subjects and provincial team members who had underperformed in their respective finals.

Overall, the competition was fierce, but the admission benefits were substantial.

By now, the students from the other camps had been led away by their team leaders, leaving the biology camp members waiting here.

While waiting, Lu Shixian began to observe his group.

He saw many familiar faces, mostly people he had met at the National Biology Olympiad finals.

The most memorable was Wang Fuwen, the cool, bespectacled top student who had won first prize in two subjects.

Then there was Yang Yihang from the High School Affiliated to Central China Normal University in Hubei, and Li Baiming from Bashu Middle School in Sichuan.

Next, he unconsciously looked at the girls in the group.

It was strange. Among so many people in the biology camp, girls were actually in the majority. But during the national finals, it seemed the top scorers were all boys.

He wasn't sure why that was.

Just as Lu Shixian was pondering this, his shoulder was suddenly slapped hard.

"Hiss!"

Who dares to ambush me?

Lu Shixian whipped his head around and saw that familiar, punchable face again.

"Chen Kuangsheng?"

"I'm telling you, can you go a little easier!" Lu Shixian complained, rubbing his shoulder.

It seemed Chen Kuangsheng had been living well recently.

His originally round face had gotten a whole size bigger; now it looked like a flatbread.

The flatbread-faced boy grinned and sidled up to Lu Shixian, looking in the direction he had just been staring.

"I spotted you a while ago. You were staring at that girl for quite some time."

"No good, man. That girl didn't even make it to the national training camp. You two are not a match!"

Lu Shixian was momentarily speechless. This Chen Kuangsheng was really letting himself go these days.

He tried to explain, but to no avail.

It seemed he was already convinced of the fact that he was peeping...

Er, openly staring.

"Say no more. Let me introduce you to a girl, also from this year's national biology training camp. Her name is Feng Yanan."

"Don't let the name fool you. She's actually fair-skinned, beautiful, with long legs. I think you could give it a sh—"

Before Chen Kuangsheng could finish his sentence, the voice of the training camp teacher rang out from the front.

"Members of the Biology Olympiad training team, please stand on the left. Other students participating in the biology camp, please stand on the right."

With the command given, the students began to line up as instructed.

Many people walked past them, forcing Chen Kuangsheng to hastily say goodbye to Lu Shixian.

Soon, only a few dozen figures remained in the large space in front of the Peking University School of Life Sciences.

The training camp teacher glanced at the line and continued, "Next, I'll take attendance. When your name is called, please raise your hand and say 'here'."

Lu Shixian's name was the very first. The moment he raised his hand, dozens of eyes turned to him.

Although the maximum score for the theory part of the Biology Olympiad was generally 150, even in the finals, scoring above 130 was a rarity.

Let alone Lu Shixian's terrifying score of 142.

To be honest, they were all very curious about him.

At the awards ceremony, they had only seen a full-body figure from a distance and hadn't seen his face up close.

This naturally drew attention, and whispers of "so handsome," "so smart," and "badass" could be heard from the group.

Since there were few people, the roll call ended quickly, with exactly fifty people present.

Hearing this number, Lu Shixian couldn't help but think to himself that everyone's commitment was quite high.

At this point, the registration for the day was actually complete.

However, it seemed the competition committee was worried they might get lost on the Peking University campus, making them hard to find later.

So, they assigned a tour guide to accompany them the whole time, explaining the cultural and natural scenery of the university.

The first place they came to was the Boya Pagoda.

The guide's explanation came through the megaphone.

"The Boya Pagoda is one of Peking University's most famous landmarks. It was built in the style of a Liao Dynasty dense-eaved brick pagoda, modeled after the Randeng Pagoda in Tongzhou. It was originally a water tower for the campus..."

"Next, the lake we see here is the famous Weiming Lake of Peking University. This lake is a symbol of the university's culture; you could say Weiming Lake is the soul of Peking University. In spring and autumn, you can stroll along its shores; in summer, you can cool off in the shade; and in winter, you can go ice skating..."

"This is the Audio-Visual Education Building, the most unique teaching building on campus. If you visit in spring or summer, you'll see the entire building covered in greenery. It's very beautiful..."

Chapter 126: The Intense Training Camp Classes

"This is Shaoyuan Garden..."

"This is the Bell Pavilion..."

"This is the Qianlong Stele..."

Along the way, as the guide introduced each site, exclamations of amazement rippled through the group.

Lu Shixian remained silent, but he was quite fascinated himself.

He had never imagined that he would one day be able to stand here, let alone study and live here in the future.

Today's tour fulfilled all his fantasies about Peking University.

The sun began to set, and the sky gradually dimmed.

Finally, the group stopped in front of a bronze statue.

According to the guide, this was the last stop for the day: the statue of Cai Yuanpei.

Without needing an introduction from the guide, everyone looked at the statue before them with deep respect in their hearts.

With his educational philosophy of "freedom of thought and inclusiveness," he set a model for universities across the country to respect academia.

He made outstanding contributions to the development of Peking University and the nation's education system.

A great leader once praised him as: "A titan of the academic world, a model for all generations."

This was very high praise, but it was well-deserved.

After a moment of reverence, everyone was led to the Jingyuan Lawn to rest.

In just one day, they had only gotten a brief glimpse of a few of Peking University's main attractions.

But the university's rich heritage went far beyond this; unfortunately, time was too limited to show them everything.

Suddenly, someone's stomach let out a protest.

The "gurgle gurgle gurgle" sound was heard by everyone.

Even the guide couldn't help but chuckle.

"Alright, according to the schedule, my task is complete after I take you to your temporary accommodations."

"Everyone, follow me. Someone will arrange your food and lodging shortly."

That evening at dinner, Chen Kuangsheng, as if led by a dog's nose, sniffed out Lu Shixian's location.

Carrying his tray, he sat down directly opposite Lu Shixian and brought up the topic he hadn't finished earlier.

"Hey, are you really not interested in what I was talking about this afternoon?"

Lu Shixian didn't know what had gotten into him to be so focused on this issue now.

He had no choice but to dash his hopes, saying, "We're both biology students. Don't you know that even the most beautiful fairy has to poop? Where did all your knowledge of metabolism go?"

As soon as he said this, the food Chen Kuangsheng had just put in his mouth lost its flavor.

Finally, he said in a tone of utter shock, "My god! I'm eating! And could you please not shatter my beautiful fantasies?"

"You really have no romance in you!"

Lu Shixian gave a cold laugh. "If I had any romance with you, I'd be done for."

Seeing Chen Kuangsheng appear here alone, Lu Shixian felt a little puzzled.

He remembered that He Mingqian from their provincial team also wanted to get in through independent recruitment. He hadn't seen him at all today.

When he asked Chen Kuangsheng about it, he learned that He Mingqian had gone to Tsinghua University's engineering camp.

"What about the others from the provincial team? Don't tell me it's just the two of us from the great Jiangsu biology camp?"

Hearing this, Chen Kuangsheng smiled. "Who else did you expect to come with you? Apart from those with guaranteed admission, most of the biology competition students went to the independent recruitment camps for other subjects."

"And those who didn't study it definitely wouldn't come here."

Alright, that was biology for you.

The two chatted for a while before returning to their respective rooms to rest.

The entire training camp was said to last only four days, and the first day was already over.

Therefore, the schedule was very tight, and one could imagine how intense the next few days would be.

The next morning.

After breakfast, Lu Shixian appeared in a large classroom in Peking University's School of Life Sciences.

By this time, everyone had arrived.

The training camp teacher from before counted the students and then walked up to the podium.

"Hello everyone, I am the head teacher for this winter camp. My surname is Tong, you can all call me Teacher Tong."

"Please be quiet. What I'm about to say is very important, so please listen carefully."

At these words, the classroom, which had been buzzing with chatter just a moment ago, instantly became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Teacher Tong nodded in satisfaction and continued, "This morning's schedule consists of lectures from two professors. They will be asking questions at any time during their lectures."

"For each correct answer, I'll make a note of it. Ten points per question. A wrong answer will get you negative ten points."

"These points will be added to your in-class theory test scores and will account for 10% of your total grade."

Lu Shixian looked at his classmates, who had instantly become on high alert, and was at a bit of a loss for words.

The pace of this training camp was a bit intense!

And you could even get a negative score. That meant raising your hand to answer a question came with a certain amount of risk.

As he was thinking this over, Teacher Tong began to introduce the first professor.

"Please welcome Professor Lu Zhiyuan from the School of Life Sciences at Yanjiang University."

After speaking, he went to the back row to observe.

As applause filled the classroom, a male professor, about forty years old and looking quite dapper, walked in from outside.

Without any preamble, Lu Zhiyuan turned on his laptop and the classroom projector.

The first page of his presentation slowly appeared before everyone.

"Bioinformatics"

"Lu Zhiyuan"

The first page flashed by. He clicked a remote in his hand, and content related to bioinformatics immediately appeared on the projection screen.

"Time is tight, so I'll cut to the chase."

"Bioinformatics. I believe most of you have had some exposure to it in high school, but perhaps not in depth."

"Does any student now know the definition of bioinformatics?"

No way.

The questions were starting already?

While Lu Shixian was still processing, a sea of hands had already shot up.

Lu Zhiyuan’s eyes swept across the room, then he suddenly pointed to a boy in the second row.

"You were the first to raise your hand. Go ahead."

The boy, who looked studious and refined, was very confident.

"Bioinformatics is a discipline that deals with the acquisition, processing, storage, distribution, analysis, and interpretation of biological information related to genomics research."

After he finished, Lu Zhiyuan gestured for him to sit down.

"That's a good answer. What's your name?"

"Wang Yaoqing."

Asking for his name might have seemed like an unnecessary step, but everyone in the room understood that Teacher Tong had already added ten points next to his name in his little notebook.

After the first question, the atmosphere in the room grew even more tense.

Everyone's focus sharpened instantly, as if a bucket of ice water had been thrown on their faces, leaving them wide awake.

Professor Lu Zhiyuan continued, "That was a very simple question. The difficulty will now gradually increase."

"Bioinformatics is an interdisciplinary field that emerged in the late 1980s with the launch of the Human Genome Project."

"So, my question is: what are the composition structures of the DNA sequence in the human genome?"

Almost everyone paused for a moment. Weren't they talking about bioinformatics? Why the sudden jump to the human genome?

In that brief second or two, two people had already shot their hands up to answer.

Chapter 127: A True Teacher and True Knowledge

Everyone subconsciously looked in the direction of the raised hands.

They wanted to see who had reacted so quickly.

A glance back revealed it was Lu Shixian and a girl.

A smile touched Lu Zhiyuan's lips. "You two raised your hands at almost the same time, but the student in the third row is a girl. Ladies first."

Damn it!

Lu Shixian, in the fifth row, cursed inwardly and pulled his hand back. How damn embarrassing.

The girl in the third row quickly stood up. "My name is Feng Yanan. The composition structures are single-copy sequences, moderately repetitive sequences, and highly repetitive sequences."

After she finished, Lu Zhiyuan nodded in approval for the first time. "An excellent answer. And this student is very sharp, stating her name right away to save time."

As she sat down, Lu Shixian glanced at her back. So that was the Feng Yanan that Chen Kuangsheng couldn't stop talking about.

She really was something!

Of course, Lu Shixian was referring to her quick reflexes. It was a shame she wasn't into gaming.

Lu Shixian, single for so long, couldn't even out-react a girl. It was simply humiliating.

Whether it was bad luck or something else, for the next few questions, he raised his hand the moment he heard the question, but someone was always just a little bit faster.

But as the lecture delved deeper, the number of raised hands dwindled.

Finally, the sixth question arrived.

Lu Zhiyuan asked, "Bioinformatics databases can be divided into four main categories. What are they?"

The moment he finished speaking, only four or five hands went up.

"Very good. The male student in the fifth row was the first to raise his hand." Lu Zhiyuan gestured for him to speak.

He'd finally snagged a question. That wasn't easy at all.

Lu Shixian let out a long sigh and stood up from his seat.

"Hello, Professor Lu. My name is Lu Shixian."

"My answer is: genome databases; primary structure databases for nucleic acids and proteins; three-dimensional spatial structure databases for biological macromolecules, such as the MMDB, or Molecular Modeling Database; and secondary databases built upon the three types I just mentioned."

"That concludes my answer."

After Lu Shixian finished, Lu Zhiyuan nodded and gestured for him to sit down.

"This student was a bit long-winded, but he's absolutely correct!"

Lu Shixian wanted to flip a table.

He saw many people looking over at him with smirks.

But it was a standard, logical, three-part structure! How was that long-winded?

But for the sake of those ten points, Lu Shixian decided not to dwell on it.

Next, after explaining a new concept, Lu Zhiyuan began another round of questions.

"Common nucleic acid sequence databases contain DNA and RNA sequence data, sourced from numerous research institutions, sequencing groups, and scientific literature."

"Each record in the database represents a single, continuous, annotated DNA or RNA fragment. They play a vital role in molecular biology research, updating common nucleic acid sequence information, and academic exchange."

"So, my question is: what are the three major international nucleic acid sequence databases today?"

This time, Wang Fuwen, who like Lu Shixian had been unable to answer first, finally found his moment to shine on a question that required a strong foundation of knowledge.

He raised his hand before Lu Shixian and was given the chance to answer.

"Wang Fuwen. GenBank, EMBL, DDBJ."

After speaking, he immediately sat down.

Lu Zhiyuan looked up at him, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

He had just called the last student long-winded, and this one was as concise as could be.

But he still nodded. "Correct. This student's answer is right."

"Now, let me elaborate on these three major nucleic acid sequence databases."

"GenBank was established by the NCBI (National Center for Biotechnology Information) in the United States. It has become the most important and influential database in almost all fields of biological research, with its data accessed and cited by millions of researchers worldwide. GenBank continues to grow at an exponential rate, doubling in size roughly every 18 months."

"EMBL (European Molecular Biology Laboratory) is a molecular biology research institution. As early as January 1998, the number of sequences in EMBL had exceeded one million, covering 15,500 species, with over 50% of the sequences from model organisms."

"DDBJ (DNA Data Bank of Japan) is a nucleic acid sequence database that collects DNA sequences, located at the National Institute of Genetics (NIG) in Shizuoka Prefecture. It is also a member of the International Nucleotide Sequence Database Collaboration, or INSDC."

At this point, Lu Zhiyuan's tone suddenly became somber.

"In 1988, these three gene banks reached an agreement to exchange data on a daily basis. Therefore, it can be assumed that these three databases contain the same data at any given time."

"But I wonder if any of you have noticed that even Japan has its own nucleic acid sequence database, yet our country is not a part of this."

"And this is all fundamental biological data. If international tensions rise, and these foreign databases decide to cut us off, to deny us access to open-source data, what are we supposed to do?"

At this, nearly everyone fell into deep thought.

Lu Zhiyuan paused for a full minute after saying this.

Only when the time was up did he resume his lecture.

He asked a few more questions, and by then, the classroom had practically become a two-man show between Wang Fuwen and Lu Shixian.

However, if one could see the records in the notebook at the back, they would find that Lu Shixian still had the upper hand in the number of correct answers.

Finally, Lu Zhiyuan glanced at the watch on his left wrist. Seeing that time was almost up, he prepared to conclude the class.

"Although foreign countries were ahead of us in establishing many bioinformatics institutions and systems..."

"Fortunately, we have also begun to recognize the significant commercial value of bioinformatics. We have successively built the Southern and Northern Human Genome Centers, and here at Yanjiang University, we have also established the Bio-City project."

"In the future, our country will also be able to acquire and utilize biological information and data to gain huge benefits in areas such as shortening drug development cycles and securing gene patents."

"I believe that day is not far off."

After saying this, Lu Zhiyuan finally opened his tea cup and moistened his throat.

"Alright, that's all for my class today. If any of you are interested in my course, please apply to the Department of Biology at Yanjiang University!"

No one expected Professor Lu to end with an advertisement.

Three seconds later, the classroom erupted in fervent applause.

Almost everyone in the room was captivated by his profound professional knowledge and moved by a spiritual quality not often found in teachers.

A true teacher shouldn't just teach what's in the textbook.

Likewise, true knowledge isn't always found in the classroom.

And he had achieved that.

Chapter 128: You Can Call on Students Like That?

Next was a ten-minute break.

But as Lu Shixian looked around, no one was relaxing or chatting.

Every single person was gearing up, eagerly anticipating the second class of the morning.

After all, there were only so many questions, but there were fifty students, not to mention the top contenders who could answer several questions on their own.

It was a fierce competition for a limited number of opportunities.

Ten minutes passed in a flash.

Teacher Tong, who had just been sitting by the lectern announcing the break, stood up again.

"Alright, class is about to begin. Next, let's welcome Professor Liang Xin to give our lecture."

As applause sounded, a professor who looked quite elderly walked in from outside.

Unlike the suit-and-tie-wearing Lu Zhiyuan, this professor was dressed in plain, ordinary clothes—the kind that would make him blend into any crowd.

Was this the teacher for their next class?

Everyone's main concern was what topic this professor would cover.

Many people kept their eyes fixed on Liang Xin, hoping to glean some clue from his movements.

They even hoped he would turn on the projector soon to see what branch of biology he would be teaching.

To their disappointment, the professor never touched the classroom computer.

Most notably, he had walked in empty-handed, bringing nothing but himself.

Then, he suddenly picked up a piece of chalk from the lectern.

And he began to write on the blackboard.

But after a couple of strokes, everyone was surprised to see he wasn't writing, but drawing.

He first drew something that looked like a box, then slowly began to fill it with things.

After a few deft strokes, almost everyone understood what topic he was going to teach.

Because what he drew was a perfect match for the illustration in their textbook.

In less than two minutes, a detailed diagram, not just a simple sketch, appeared before everyone.

Then, the professor finally spoke.

"Who can come up and label this?"

Having learned their lesson from the previous class, many students had gotten smarter.

No matter what the professor asked, as long as they knew the answer, they would raise their hands immediately, without hesitation.

As a result, almost everyone in the classroom now had their hands up.

Old Professor Liang Xin nodded with a smile. "My eyes aren't so good. I can't tell who raised their hand first."

"So, I'll just pick someone at random!"

Hearing this, many of the students with quick reflexes looked at each other, realizing their speed had been for nothing.

The rest, however, wore hopeful expressions, wishing for a lucky break.

Finally, the old professor looked around and made his choice.

"Today is March second, so could the student in the third row, second seat from the left, please come up and show us?"

Everyone was stunned. You can call on students like that?

And that was considered random?

The student in the third row, second seat, was a girl with pigtails and glasses.

When she heard the professor's words, she didn't react at first. After counting, she realized she was the lucky one.

Her pigtails bounced cheerfully as she walked.

Lu Shixian didn't know how skilled she was, but he knew she must be very happy at that moment.

She walked briskly to the front and began her work.

It seemed the girl's fundamentals were quite solid. She wrote from top to bottom without any hesitation.

"Microtubule, mitochondrion, ribosome, endoplasmic reticulum, microfilament..."

A moment later, she returned to her seat, ten points richer.

Old Professor Liang Xin began his lecture. "By now, everyone should know the topic of today's class."

"The importance of the cell needs no further explanation. As Schleiden, Schwann, and Virchow stated in their cell theory, all plants and animals are composed of cells."

"The cell is the basic unit of life for all plants and animals, and all cells arise from the division of pre-existing cells."

"I wonder if you've ever heard the saying that even the smallest cell is far more complex than humanity's most sophisticated instrument. Its contents are as vast as the ocean. Even if I were to lecture on it for a lifetime, I could never exhaust the subject."

"Rather than scratching the surface, it is better to get to the root of the matter! Therefore, my lecture today has only one topic: the cytoskeleton."

Here, his tone took a sharp turn.

"There are so many topics in cell biology, so why did I choose to talk about the cytoskeleton?"

"The cytoskeleton is a structure unique to eukaryotic cells, and it has many functions."

"For example, it's involved in vital life activities such as the movement of sperm, the separation of chromosomes, the transport of substances, and so on."

"It also provides mechanical support for the transport of substances and organelles within the cell, power for cell movement, anchoring sites for messenger RNA, facilitates the translation of mRNA into polypeptides, and participates in cell signal transduction..."

The old professor recited this long list without a single pause, the entire delivery completely natural.

Instantly, everyone was filled with a sense of awe and respect for him.

One couldn't just dismiss this by saying he'd been teaching for years and that any elementary school teacher could do it.

Because even a single branch of biology contains a breadth of knowledge that high school content could never touch.

It intersects with various other disciplines, and it even updates as new fields emerge.

Therefore, to be able to do this in a core branch of biology meant he was undoubtedly a master in his field.

At this moment, Professor Liang Xin reached a key point: "However, in my opinion, its most fundamental role is to maintain the cell's shape, withstand external forces, and preserve the orderly structure within the cell."

"Imagine what would happen if humans had no skeleton. We would be unable to stand upright, unable to maintain our human form. Perhaps over the long course of time, we would have evolved into soft-bodied creatures. Would we have had the chance to create so many brilliant civilizations?"

"Similarly, if cells had no skeleton, the microscopic architecture of all living things would collapse, and all macroscopic concepts would cease to exist."

"It is the stability and strength of the skeleton that slowly formed cells, formed organisms, and formed this beautiful world."

Here, the old professor suddenly stopped mid-lecture.

He had noticed Teacher Tong in the back row signaling to him.

He then realized he wasn't in his classroom at Yanjiang University, but at a training camp.

So, he quickly tried to make up for it by asking a question.

"So, can anyone tell me what the cytoskeleton is composed of?"

This time, every single person in the classroom raised their hand.

My goodness, wasn't this a freebie question?

The diagram of the cytoskeleton was still on the blackboard.

Many who hadn't scored a single point yet began to think to themselves, old folks really are the kindest!

Unfortunately, they had forgotten one principle: the older, the wiser.

Chapter 129: Love is the Tomb of Learning

Seeing so many hands raised again, the old professor used the same method as before.

"The student who just answered said her name was Yu Li. The character for her surname has three strokes, and for her given name, seven."

"So, could the student in the third row, seventh from the left, please stand up."

The student who was called upon was a boy. Hit by this pie falling from the sky, he was incredibly excited.

Just as he was about to give the answer, he heard Professor Liang Xin's voice.

"Yes, I'm talking about the student in front of you."

The boy was completely stunned. He never expected a professor to be so tricky.

All that excitement for nothing!

He sat down sullenly.

And the boy in front of him never expected such a plot twist either. He scrambled to his feet and quickly gave his answer.

"My name is Ma Yuheng. The cytoskeleton is composed of microfilaments, microtubules, and intermediate filaments."

Seeing this, many people couldn't help but chuckle.

The city is full of tricks; I want to go back to the countryside.

Look how scared the kid was.

Just as everyone thought he would move on to the next topic, the old professor shook his head with a smile.

"You spoke well, but that is not the correct answer."

"However, it's not entirely wrong, so I'll just give you half credit. A deduction of five points will do."

At these words, almost everyone was shocked.

What the hell?

That wasn't the right answer?

They recalled the cytoskeleton diagram from the beginning of the class.

At that moment, the way everyone looked at Professor Liang Xin changed.
This was likely beyond a mere clever trick; it was the ultimate, cosmic-level trick within a trick.

Ma Yuheng, who had answered incorrectly, looked like he was about to faint from crying right there. The student behind him could feel his own mouth twitching, a mixture of relief and speechlessness.

Truly, life was unpredictable—just one complication wrapped inside another.

When Liang Xin asked for the answer to the question again, almost no one dared to meet his gaze.

The man’s knowledge was profound, but he was just too cunning.

Seeing that no one was raising their hand, Liang Xin gave them two minutes to think.

Even Lu Shixian was a bit unsure about this question.

The main issue was that the field of cell biology was simply too vast.

If you were to highlight the key points, you’d end up highlighting nearly the entire book.

If forced to choose, Lu Shixian would say the cell membrane, cell signaling, cell junctions, the extracellular matrix, and the endomembrane system were major topics.

But the cytoskeleton was definitely not one of them. It took up very little space in the textbook.

Moreover, biology competitions before 2008 had rarely ever tested on the cytoskeleton.

So, it was understandable that not many people paid special attention to it.

Then what was the real answer to this question?

Lu Shixian thought back to Liang Xin's evaluation of Ma Yuheng's answer.

Not entirely correct. That meant there were two possibilities.

Either there were more than the three components he mentioned, and Ma Yuheng had missed some.

Or, there was something else entirely, possibly something that stood in opposition or contrast to those three.

The possibility of Ma Yuheng missing something was almost nonexistent, because if Lu Shixian had been asked, he would have given the same answer.

Following this line of reasoning, things started to become a little clearer.

Contrast or opposition?

Cytoskeleton versus the human skeleton.

Small versus large.

At this thought, it was as if a bolt of lightning flashed through Lu Shixian’s mind.

He shot his hand up.

Liang Xin immediately spotted the lone hand, like a single sprout in a field, and said, "You, please share your thoughts."

Lu Shixian immediately spoke, voicing the answer he had just formulated.

"In addition to what the previous student said, I would add that it is composed of the nuclear skeleton, the cytoplasmic skeleton, the cell membrane skeleton, and the extracellular matrix."

As soon as Lu Shixian finished, some students slowly began to understand, while others were still completely lost.

Hearing his answer, Liang Xin nodded in satisfaction. "Very good. Although the content on the cytoskeleton isn't extensive, that doesn't mean you can ignore it."

"In the process of learning, thinking, summarizing, and organizing is often more useful than aimlessly reading the book."

If the previous class was a world divided between Lu Shixian and Wang Fuwen, the rest of the time was purely Lu Shixian's show.

It couldn't be helped. Who hadn't studied cell biology?

But most had only skimmed the section on the cytoskeleton, rarely delving deep.

Lu Shixian, however, was an exception. He was the type to devour a book until he had completely digested its contents.

And his level of understanding far surpassed rote memorization.

During the class, Liang Xin even invited Lu Shixian to consider pursuing a master's degree in cell biology under his supervision.

A faint air of jealousy inevitably filled the room.

However, time flew by, and the cell biology lecture was drawing to a close.

Before leaving, Liang Xin left them with a meaningful remark.

"It seems most of you are not very familiar with the cytoskeleton. But it is because of its skeleton that a cell can live and thrive, and it is because of their skeletons that humans can stand tall and proud."

"And that is our backbone!"

The classroom fell into a long, profound silence.

After this battle, everyone in the training camp began to have a clear understanding of Lu Shixian's capabilities.

Many of the boys cast him looks of admiration and respect.

Many of the girls looked at him with curiosity and intrigue.

However, this only lasted for a few minutes.

After all, the in-class quiz was just an appetizer, accounting for only 10% of the total grade.

According to the schedule, after lunch, the afternoon was dedicated to the written theory exam.

You had to take care of yourself before you could worry about others.

And so, the students all went to lunch in groups.

In the end, only Lu Shixian and Chen Kuangsheng were left to keep each other company.

In the school cafeteria, the two sat facing each other.

Chen Kuangsheng grumbled in frustration, "This is so annoying. Man, when is our province gonna step up?"

"Look at that guy from Nanhu Province. He's got four girls eating with him. I'm dying of jealousy."

Lu Shixian couldn't help but laugh. Although it was March, Yanjing still felt like the dead of winter.

But this Chen Kuangsheng seemed to have awakened with all of nature, as if it were mating season all over again.

All day long, it was girls this, girls that, until Lu Shixian's ears were about to fall off.

Following his gaze, Lu Shixian saw that it was indeed one guy with four girls, but his focus was completely different from Chen Kuangsheng's.

"Whoa, Nanhu Province is stacked this year. They've actually got five people on the national training team."

"Hey, isn't one of those girls that Feng Yanan you're always talking about? No wonder you're so bitter over here."

Lu Shixian had suddenly found his point of attack.

Hearing this, Chen Kuangsheng didn't get defensive but instead grew a little gloomy. "She's a big shot on the national team."

"A nobody like me who didn't even make the team barely gets to see her. I'll probably just be looking at her from afar for the rest of my life."

Lu Shixian's jaw nearly hit the floor.

"No way, no way! Love is the tomb of academics!"

"Don't tell me you've already fallen in?"

Chapter 130: National Team Selection Theory Exam

Chen Kuangsheng, however, was unfazed. "So what? I'm an adult. Even if I can't get into Yan University or Shuimu University, I can still easily get into any other 985 university."

"Don't I even have the right to pursue something beautiful?"

But Lu Shixian remained unconvinced. "At this stage," he said firmly, "I could jump from this spot right now, and I still wouldn't have any thoughts about girls."

"What girls? They're called goddesses! And if you say that again, our friendship is over!"

"So what? Even goddesses are out of the question!"

"Oh, right, I forgot you haven't fully developed yet. No wonder. You poor thing!"

"You scared of my abs? Think you can take a punch from me?"

"Oh my god! An eight-pack? Where did you get an eight-pack? Bro, let's talk this out! We can discuss this."

Thanks to Chen Kuangsheng, it was the slowest lunch he had ever eaten.

By the time they finished, it was nearly one o'clock.

The theory exam was scheduled for two, so Lu Shixian decided to head straight to the classroom.

As it turned out, quite a few people had the same idea. Many had already arrived at the classroom right after eating.

Lu Shixian shook his head and sighed internally. The grind really was intense.

You could say that just by sitting here, you were already one of the elites.

Learning is like rowing upstream; if you don't advance, you fall behind.

Yet they still treated every challenge and every exam with the utmost seriousness.

This was why the most outstanding people tended to become even more outstanding; they were already used to it.

While he was lost in thought, Teacher Tong walked in, holding a stack of exam papers.

Standing at the podium, he did a quick headcount and nodded.

"Everyone's here. Looks like you're all very disciplined."

"As I mentioned before, your next task is the theory test. The content will include, but is not limited to, what was covered this morning, so please be prepared."

Teacher Tong then went on to emphasize the importance of the theory test.

"This test accounts for 30% of your total score. We will begin grading immediately after the exam."

"Then, based on your in-class quiz scores and the scantron exam scores, we will calculate the T-scores and determine your final score based on the weighted percentages."

"According to the rankings from this test, only the top twenty students will be able to participate in tomorrow's practical exam and the interview the day after. The results will be announced at seven this evening."

After delivering this information in one breath, he began distributing the papers.

A sense of urgency rippled through the students below.

His words were clear: out of fifty people, only twenty would remain for the practical and interview portions.

That meant thirty people from the training camp would be eliminated directly.

That was a huge cut. After today, more than half of them could pack their bags and go home.

By now, Lu Shixian had his exam paper.

He forcibly pushed those thoughts from his mind and began to focus on the paper on his desk.

The exam paper was starkly simple. Below the four bold characters for "Theory Test" were the questions themselves. There were no notes or instructions, not even point values or reminders about multiple answers.

Seeing this, Lu Shixian was suddenly reminded of the placement test he had taken at No. 1 High School before skipping a grade.

He had a pretty good idea of what was coming. This exam wasn't going to let up until it had broken someone.

Centering the paper on his desk, Lu Shixian began to read the first question.

Question 1: The graph below shows the change in carbon dioxide absorption of a plant over the course of a day. Which of the following analyses is incorrect?

What the hell!

Something feels off!

Why is the first question about plants?

Hello?

Biochemistry, Cell Biology, Microbiology, Bioinformatics, where did you guys go?

He had grown accustomed to a certain format, and this sudden change was genuinely jarring.

But he adapted quickly.

He immediately began to carefully examine the graph and the information in the options.

The x-axis of the coordinate system was time, and the y-axis was the rate of carbon dioxide absorption.

Isn't this high school level content?

But when Lu Shixian looked at the options, he understood.

It wasn't asking about the time of the lowest point, highest point, or intersection points.

Instead, it was a chaotic mix of content.

It set a threshold and then asked you to determine the plant's specific state at that time.

And the content in the options wasn't limited to botany. In other words, this question looked like it was about plants, but it could test anything.

This was outrageous!

Aside from option A, which mentioned the amount of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate, a topic related to photosynthesis, the other options tested knowledge from cell biology, biochemistry, and other fields.

The little bit of complacency that had started to form in Lu Shixian's mind vanished instantly.

If the first question was this difficult, he could only imagine what the rest would be like.

He looked at the second question: Which of the following statements about ABA is incorrect?

Huh?

A test on the plant hormone abscisic acid?

There probably aren't too many tricks you can pull with a question like this, right?

With a sense of eagerness, Lu Shixian looked at the options.

A. It is usually produced under adverse environmental conditions and inhibits cell senescence.

This seemed fine. It looked pretty much like the standard definition.

Lu Shixian moved on to option B: ABA is a necessary control factor for the synthesis of storage proteins.

That was fine too. As far as he knew, abscisic acid played an important role in maintaining seed embryo dormancy, promoting dormancy and inhibiting vivipary.

Calling it a control factor wasn't a problem.

Soon, he made a major breakthrough with option C.

Option C stated that ABA biosynthesis occurs in the chloroplasts.

Honestly, he could spot this kind of error a mile away. If the chloroplasts had a monopoly on it, the other plastids would have a bone to pick with them.

Just as Lu Shixian was about to write down C, he suddenly remembered something.

The exam paper didn't specify point values or mention multiple correct answers.

Was it possible that every question could potentially be a multiple-choice question with multiple answers?

Thinking of this, he quickly went back to the first question.

After a careful check, he confirmed there was only one incorrect option, and he relaxed slightly.

Thank goodness it wasn't that twisted.

Although the process of elimination had already told him the correct answer was C, he was now paranoid—once bitten, twice shy.

Was option D really completely flawless?

As he carefully read it word by word, he actually found a problem.

The biosynthesis pathway of ABA is mainly through isopentenyl pyrophosphate, farnesyl pyrophosphate, carotenoids, xanthoxin, abscisic aldehyde, and abscisic acid.

He had only skimmed it before and hadn't noticed the details.

Looking back now, this description seemed a bit problematic.

The pathway given in the option was only the indirect pathway. The direct pathway was much simpler: isopentenyl pyrophosphate, farnesyl pyrophosphate, abscisic acid.

Lu Shixian shook his head with a wry smile.

These questions were really designed to mess with you, testing your reading comprehension and the solidity of your knowledge to the absolute limit.

And this was only the second question...

Chapter 131: The Ridiculous Theory Exam

But there was no way around it.

No matter how difficult the questions were, they had to be answered.

After wrestling with three more questions, he suddenly felt like his brain was running on empty.

The questions were truly a hodgepodge, with each one containing three or four different concepts.

A single question was used to test your comprehensive ability.

When he looked at the next question, it was, as expected, another equally difficult one.

Just reading the question took a long time, let alone choosing an answer.

Lu Shixian felt he couldn't go on like this.

If he continued at this pace, he might not be able to finish.

He didn't know how others were doing, as everyone was buried in their papers.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but glance at the guy sitting to his right.

He saw the guy wearing what looked like several layers of a mask of agony, as if he were being brutally tortured.

It seemed it wasn't just him; the exam was probably just as difficult for everyone.

He felt a little relieved.

Wait, he felt like he had forgotten a detail.

He had habitually assumed this was like the national or provincial competition papers, so he hadn't paid attention to the specifics of the exam sheet.

Just then, he seemed to notice something. Could it be that the number of questions was off?

He quickly flipped to the back.

Question 100.

Question 110.

Question 120.

Huh? He was wrong?

The number of questions was the same as before, neither more nor less.

But the difficulty had been cranked up so much?

What was the meaning of this?

His eyes began to scan the bright, clean paper.

A few seconds later, looking at the exam, Lu Shixian suddenly understood.

He began to read at a glance, rapidly assessing all the questions.

Time was of the essence!

He quickly found thirty questions out of the one hundred and twenty that were very short.

Short questions meant he could save a lot of time on reading.

Then, he found another twenty questions that were directly related to the two lectures from the morning.

Five of them were the exact questions the professors had mentioned, and the other fifteen were new questions adapted from them, but they tested the same concepts.

So he chose to do the original questions and the adapted ones first.

Ten minutes later, he had easily conquered the twenty questions that were basically a test of his mastery of the morning's lectures.

Next, Lu Shixian began to tackle the thirty short questions.

It had to be said, some of them had very obvious answers, but there were still about ten questions with traps waiting for people to fall into.

Some of them, even he couldn't be sure if they had multiple correct answers.

But he couldn't wait any longer.

There were still seventy questions left.

The sense of urgency in his mind grew louder and louder.

No more waiting. Lu Shixian began the most insane move of his life.

After bubbling in the answers to the 52 questions he had already solved, he began to rapidly fill in the remaining empty spots on the answer sheet.

In just three minutes, Lu Shixian had filled the entire answer sheet.

If anyone had been next to him, they would have shouted, "Crazy!"

Because all the answers were a straight line of Ds.

This was an outrageous move.

Was he just giving up on the rest of the questions?

Changing the answers he had already bubbled in would also take a lot of time.

The trade-off didn't seem worth it.

But Lu Shixian paid it no mind and only then began to look at the remaining seventy questions.

He spent a full twenty minutes and managed to correct the answers to three more questions.

One other question's answer happened to be D; he couldn't believe he had guessed one correctly.

Lu Shixian didn't know if he was lucky or unlucky.

Just as he was about to start on the fifth question, Teacher Tong's voice suddenly came through the speakers.

"Time is up. Everyone, please leave the room immediately."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian finally let out a huge sigh of relief. It seemed his gamble had paid off.

A low murmur of protest rose from the classroom.

"No way!"

"How much time has passed?"

"I feel like I just started!"

"You guys at least have a score. I didn't even get to fill in my answer sheet..."

Lu Shixian couldn't help but let out a laugh at some girl's comment.

Truly, there was always someone worse off.

Lu Shixian kept congratulating himself on the impromptu decision he had just made.

He was glad he had noticed one crucial detail: the so-called theory exam had never specified a time limit.

And the exam paper itself contained nothing but the questions.

Behind every unreasonable thing, there must be a reasonable explanation.

To throw them off, they had even set the number of questions to be the same as usual.

But the difficulty of the first few questions, and indeed most of the questions, was completely abnormal.

That meant there was only one truth: this exam was never intended to be finished.

And sure enough, Teacher Tong was now revealing the secret.

"Since you have all passed the national competition and made it to the training camp," he began.

"Our expectations for you are stricter than during the nationals. Our ultimate goal is this year's International Biology Olympiad in Tsukuba, Japan."

"The host country for this year's IBO is different from any previous one. According to the directives from the Science and Technology Association leadership and the competition committee, we must make a statement and showcase the prowess of our nation, planting our flag on Japanese soil."

After that explanation, he started talking about the exam they had just taken.
So we designed a more difficult exam and set a shorter, one-hour time limit.

The goal is to select the most adaptable, fitting, and capable team members to compete in the Sun Country, because for this competition, victory is the only option. We cannot afford to lose.

Mr. Tong glanced at the time on the classroom computer and said no more.

Alright, it's five o'clock. Everyone, take a break! At seven o'clock sharp, we will announce the names of the twenty who are moving on.

As his words fell, a look of relief washed over many of the students, save for a small few.

They weren't among those who had performed well. On the contrary, most of them saw little hope of making the national team.

For them, leaving early might not be such a bad outcome after all.

Chapter 132: First Round Results Announced

From five to seven was only two hours.

After factoring out time for dinner, bathroom breaks, and walking, there wasn't much left.

By the time he returned to the classroom, it was already past six.

Seven o'clock sharp.

Mr. Tong returned, not with more exam papers, but clutching only a single, thin sheet of printed paper.

From the moment he entered, all eyes in the classroom were fixed on that sheet.

Clearly, this was the list of results from the past two days.

Mr. Tong, seeing the students' expressions, smiled and placed the paper on the lectern.

Alright, everyone. Your answer sheets from this afternoon have been scanned by the scoring machine and manually verified. The scores have been tallied.

Combined with yesterday's quiz results, your weighted T-scores have been calculated.

Based on the ranking of your total T-scores, we have selected the following twenty students to continue with tomorrow's lab practical and interview.

For those whose names are not called, feel free to take a tour of Yan University before you leave.

You've all secured offers from either Yan University or Shuimu University, so I won't offer any empty words of comfort.

I hope you'll use the upcoming vacation to enrich yourselves. Of course, you can also choose to attend preparatory courses and strive to shine when you start university.

Having given his preamble, he finally began the moment everyone had been waiting for: reading the results.

First place, Lu Shixian. Quiz score: 120. Theory exam score: 86. Weighted total T-score: 37.8.

At this, he paused, looking toward Lu Shixian to praise him publicly.

Lu Shixian placed first in both sections. The quiz score speaks for itself.

But I must mention the theory exam. He was the only one in the class who finished it.

Just as everyone turned to look at him, about to exclaim in surprise, Mr. Tong revealed the secret.

Although he chose D for most of the questions, he didn't make a single mistake on the easy ones, including the concepts we covered yesterday.

He demonstrated the best strategy for dealing with the time constraint.

The moment he finished speaking, the classroom erupted in enthusiastic applause.

Honestly, that 'select all D' strategy alone was worth a round of applause.

Most people would just work through the exam from front to back. The smarter ones might skip difficult questions.

But how did Lu Shixian foresee the committee's plan and prepare accordingly?

It was a gamble.

With so little time, spending any of it filling in and potentially changing answers on the sheet was an extremely risky move.

If his guess had been wrong, he would have wasted precious time on a futile effort, and his score would have been even worse.

After the wave of praise, he continued reading the list of the top twenty.

Second place, Wang Fuwen. Quiz score: 100. Theory exam score: 72. Weighted total T-score: 31.6.

Third place, Feng Yanan. Quiz score: 90. Theory exam score: 74. Weighted total T-score: 31.2.

No one had expected Feng Yanan to break into the top three; her ranking in the national training camp hadn't been particularly high.

But then they remembered that the scores at the national competition were very tightly clustered; a difference of several ranks often meant only a few points.

Soon, the names of the top twenty had been read.

This meant the remaining thirty students would be heading home.

Yet, few seemed disappointed. Instead, most wore expressions of pure relief.

Having already secured admission to Yan University or Shuimu University, what was there to be miserable about?

After the results were announced that evening, the remaining students drew lots for their seat and lab station numbers for the next day's practical and the interview to follow.

Watching his thirty peers pack their things and leave, Lu Shixian felt a pang of emotion.

But life had to go on. Soon, it was time for the next day's lab exam.

March 3rd. There were only two lab practicals: Macroscopic Biology and Microscopic Biology.

The remaining students were split into two groups of ten, alternating between the two exam rooms in the morning and afternoon.

The difficulty was manageable; Lu Shixian didn't find it any harder than the national competition.

The intensity, however, was another story. Though there were only two practicals.

The range of possible topics within macroscopic and microscopic biology was vast.

And sure enough, it was a series of nested problems.

Despite there being only two sessions, they went through some of the most representative experiments in both fields.

March 4th. The interviews arrived as scheduled.

The day was split into a general interview in the morning and an English interview in the afternoon.

For the general interview, a panel of six experts served as judges. Students were interviewed in groups of five, randomly drawing a topic. Each group's interview was limited to one hour.

He didn't know how the other groups performed, but his group had already drawn their question.

Human lifespans are continuously increasing. Numerous experiments have successfully extended the lives of various species, from yeast to mice, leading many scientists to firmly believe that human longevity is also achievable.

However, others argue that the vast differences between humans and other species mean that the lifespan elasticity observed in them is not applicable to us. So, students, my question to you is: how can we extend human life?

A professor with glasses read the topic aloud, then gestured for the five students before him to begin their performance.

The topic of extending life was a bit premature for them.

The question seemed simple, but it was anything but.

If you approached it from a general wellness perspective, it was easy. But this was biology!

It was a question that even many great scientists hadn't solved; otherwise, many wealthy people wouldn't have faced life's most tragic fate: passing away before their money ran out.

The great equalizer in this world is death. No one can live forever, and nothing lasts for eternity.

How could a few students who hadn't even started university possibly have a clear answer?

However, an interview wasn't a research project. Everyone knew the key was to structure their answer around their subject knowledge and present a coherent argument.

With a question like this, there was a first-mover advantage. If you said the simple things first, you left later speakers with nothing to say.

Soon, a brave soul stepped up to take on this hot potato, seemingly with some confidence.

I believe that from a human physiology standpoint, the way to achieve longevity is to maintain a healthy weight and exercise regularly. Being overweight places a significant burden on bodily functions, leading to a host of diseases.

Only by paying attention to diet and strengthening our bodies through exercise can we keep our physiological functions in their optimal state and slow down the aging process.

Physiology was at least related. The six teachers remained noncommittal, quietly jotting down a score for him.

The second student was clearly less confident. He scratched his head for a moment before offering an answer that stunned everyone.

Chapter 133: High Score Courtesy of the Competition

I think that in addition to exercise and a controlled diet, you also need to be rich to live a long life. Super-wealthy people abroad have access to better medical care and a higher standard of living.

Robert Ettinger proposed human cryopreservation. Based on the principle that cells become inactive at low temperatures but can be revived when returned to normal temperatures, it could give people a chance at a longer life.

Hearing this, even the expert panelists on the stage chuckled.

You're talking about science fiction, not science. While human cryopreservation has been proposed, it has not been proven. It's a surreal concept. Perhaps it will become a reality in the future, but it hasn't happened yet, and whether it ever will is unknown.

Your answer is a bit absurd, but since cryopreservation is technically within the field of biology, we can give you a passing grade.

After all, we encourage free thinking here.

Perhaps encouraged by the second brave soul, the third student offered his answer.

First, Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity tells us that both motion and time are relative. Velocity and gravity can affect the passage of time.

If you place one clock on the ground and another on an airplane flying east, the clock on the plane will run slower relative to the one on the ground. If it flies west, it will run faster. Therefore, to live longer, we could take more flights heading east.

Furthermore, according to Stephen Hawking's *A Brief History of Time*, because the Earth is rotating, the farther you are from the ground, the larger the radius of your rotation. Since the Earth's angular velocity is constant, and we rotate with it, living at a higher altitude means you are moving faster. Based on my previous point, this means living up high can extend your life.

When he finished, the room fell into a dead silence. No one knew what to say.

Lu Shixian, who was terrible at physics, had to give this physics whiz a thumbs-up in his mind.

But he also suspected the guy had wandered into the wrong room. This was a biology interview, for crying out loud.

After a good seven or eight seconds, one of the judges finally cleared his throat and spoke.

That was very well said, student. Just... don't say it again next time.

While everything you said is correct, you could probably spend your entire life on a plane and not gain an extra hour of life. So, it's not very practical.

The judge didn't mention a score, but everyone in the room understood that this student was toast.

To talk about physics in a biology interview—that took some serious nerve.

But Lu Shixian could understand. Saying that was better than saying nothing at all.

Maybe the guy had already given up on making the national team and just wanted to have a little fun.

Soon, it was Lu Shixian's turn. On the question of whether humans could achieve longevity, he didn't have any grand theories to offer either. It was, after all, one of the world's unsolved mysteries.

Why else would the previous guys have struggled so much?

Lu Shixian figured the interview was mainly a test of one's ability to think on their feet; as long as you could present a coherent argument from a biological perspective, you'd be fine.

Fortunately, while cramming biology history, he had happened upon a report that touched on some research findings in this area.

After organizing his thoughts for a moment, Lu Shixian began his answer.

Regarding the century-old question of human longevity, the U.S. National Institute on Aging has made some attempts to study it. In an anti-aging trial, volunteers underwent a strict diet for a full year while researchers monitored their metabolism and other indicators that could suggest their rate of aging.

Some conclusions have already been drawn. The successful methods for extending life primarily focus on a few areas: caloric restriction, lowering levels of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), and preventing oxidative damage to body tissues.

These three factors may influence each other, but to date, that influence has not been proven. We still can't be certain through what pathways these methods connect to help humans live longer. But at the very least, we now have a direction for our research.

As soon as Lu Shixian finished, the eyes of several judges lit up. They exchanged glances and all gave him high scores.

Well-reasoned and evidence-based. Very good. I give it a 95.

Grounded in reality with a clear direction. I'll give you a 96.

Your knowledge is broad and you speak fluently. I'm giving a 98.

In a matter of moments, the six judges had given him the highest average score of the interview so far: 96.

Lu Shixian retreated after his success, leaving the other four in his group to stare at his back, trembling.

Lu-shen is so strong. Is this the power of the national finals gold medal champion?

As expected from the man who scored over 140!

Hearing their comments, Lu Shixian wanted to say, "It was nothing special; my score only looks high by comparison."

But he decided not to crush their spirits and said modestly, "I just happened to have read something on the topic."

Then he quickly changed the subject.

How did you guys do on the earlier exams?

One of the boys shook his head with a wry smile. "It was a total fluke. During the theory exam, I couldn't do any of the hard problems, so I just focused on the easy ones. I can't believe that got me into the top twenty."

The student who had talked about relativity looked at Lu Shixian with admiration. "Lu-shen is the real deal. I was totally lost up there. All I do is grind practice problems. How would I know about any of that stuff?"

I was this close to saying we should either try to become immortals or go find Tang Sanzang.

At that, the remaining students burst out laughing and gave him a big thumbs-up.

The morning passed quickly amidst the laughter.

During lunch, Lu Shixian was too worried about his English interview to even bother with Chen Kuangsheng.

He had terrible spoken English!

Why did they even have an English interview?

Lu Shixian was panicking.

But it was time to face the music.

In the afternoon, the English interview was conducted by two experts, with each student getting about ten minutes.

He quickly became the center of attention with his laughably bad Chinglish.

There was nothing he could do about it. He knew what he wanted to say in English, but it came out all wrong.

The other students he was interviewed with were all from foreign language high schools or experimental middle schools.

The moment they opened their mouths, authentic American accents poured out, completely outclassing him.

While others were generally scoring in the 80s, he got a 67.

The score earned him quite a few snickers from the other team members.

By five in the afternoon, all the selection work for the national team was complete.

The committee began to calculate and summarize the scores of the remaining twenty students.

And this final score would directly determine the national team roster!

Chapter 134: International Competition Team Roster Announced

The weighting for the final selection score was as follows: National Competition 10%, In-class Theory Quiz 10%, Theory Exam 30%, Lab Practical 30%, and Interview 20%.

The scores were calculated according to these percentages, summed up, and then ranked from highest to lowest.

The top four would earn the right to represent our country at the 16th International Biology Olympiad in the Sun Country.

Although Lu Shixian had bombed the English interview, his advantages in the first four sections and the general interview were significant.

In the end, he secured the first ticket to the national team with a commanding first-place overall score.

As expected, Wang Fuwen was right behind him. He had vowed to break his curse of being the eternal second place, but he only managed to gain a slight edge in the English interview.

Following them were Yang Yihang from the Affiliated High School of Hua Shi in Hubei Province and Feng Yanan from Yali High School in Hunan Province.

Even Lu Shixian was surprised by this result.

Li Baiming, who had been in the top four at the national competition, had been pushed out entirely.

It seemed heroes really could come from anywhere, and comebacks were always possible.

That day, the roster for the 16th International Biology Olympiad national team was announced on the organizing committee's official website. The Botanical Society and the Zoological Society quickly shared the news.

These developments instantly attracted the attention of the media.

Suddenly, news stories blossomed everywhere.

More Good News from the Competition Circuit.

The roster for the Chinese team at the 16th International Biology Olympiad has just been announced.

The four team members are Lu Shixian, a male student from Jinling No. 1 High School in Su Province; Wang Fuwen, a male student from Yingdong High School in Dongshan Province; Yang Yihang, a male student from the Affiliated High School of Hua Shi in Hubei Province; and Feng Yanan, a female student from Yali High School in Hunan Province.

The four national team members hail from multiple provinces. Three are from provinces traditionally strong in the biology competition, while the first-place winner has emerged as a dark horse, breaking Su Province's decades-long streak of having no one on the national team!

Most of the ink was spilled on Lu Shixian, and this particular article was one of the more restrained ones.

It couldn't be helped; the biology competition happened every year and wasn't as eye-catching as other Olympiads. He was simply the most newsworthy topic.

Back in the training camp classroom at Yan University, the four-day selection process was coming to an end.

Everyone was packing their things, preparing to go home.

The four newly selected national team members had been called to Mr. Tong's office.

It's only March now, and the International Biology Olympiad doesn't start until July. In between, we will organize another training camp at the Botanical Association to prepare, just to ensure everything goes off without a hitch.

The tentative dates are late May to early June. We'll notify you with the details.

Alright, meeting adjourned!

The four of them walked out together.

Only now did Lu Shixian have a moment to properly observe his three teammates.

Wang Fuwen was rather cold and aloof, a man of few words. He seemed like the dedicated tech guy.

Yang Yihang was a bit chubby.

Lu Shixian suddenly recalled a saying: there's always a chubby guy in every group, and that chubby guy always has something special up his sleeve, proving crucial at key moments.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but wonder if this chubby guy was hiding his true abilities.

Finally, his gaze shifted to Feng Yanan.

Her sleek, straight bob was held in place by a simple black hairclip, giving her a clean look.

Her skin was fair, but her face held a sharp, dashing aura, which made Lu Shixian wonder about her fighting ability. Her fists probably packed a punch.

No wonder Chen Kuangsheng was so smitten; this must be his type.

As he was looking, a teasing voice suddenly came from beside him.

Have you had your fill of looking?

Lu Shixian looked up and was startled to find Feng Yanan standing right in front of him.

Uh, I was just looking at the scenery over there. It's really nice, Lu Shixian said, lying through his teeth without a hint of embarrassment.

Awkward feelings usually stemmed from desire.

He felt none of that for Feng Yanan, so he was perfectly calm.

Feng Yanan smiled slightly. "What scenery is so beautiful? Could it be me?"

Lu Shixian: (⊙.⊙)

He was completely thrown. Five words instantly popped into his head.

A true social powerhouse!

As expected of a spicy Hunan girl.

They had reached the dormitories, which were separated by gender.

As they parted ways, Feng Yanan left him with one last sentence.
"Good luck in Tsukuba!"

Lu Shixian nodded back at her. "You too!"

After packing his bags, Lu Shixian didn't know where Mei Ting had gone, nor did he care to find out.

Now that he'd achieved his goal, he could proudly say to himself, "In my eyes, Mei Ting, you were just a tool to me too."

But a sudden voice by his ear made him jump.

"What are you muttering about?"

Lu Shixian looked toward the door and was stunned to see Mei Ting, whom he hadn't seen in a long time.

What the?

Why does she always pull these surprise attacks?

This is bad!

She didn't hear what I just said, did she?

He glanced at her face, but saw no change in her expression.

Only then did he relax and ask, "Teacher Mei, what brings you here so suddenly?"

Hearing the emphasis Lu Shixian placed on the word "suddenly," Mei Ting's delicate eyebrows twitched slightly.

"What? You don't want to see me?"

Lu Shixian gave a sheepish laugh and immediately began to complain with a world of grievance, "Teacher Mei, you didn't even come to see me. Four days! Do you have any idea what I've been through these past four days?"

"This winter camp is no place for a human! Besides the first day, we had exams for three out of the four days."

Mei Ting, however, ignored his complaints and, with her usual crisp efficiency, handed him a plane ticket.

"Let's go. Don't worry about the cost of the plane and train tickets, and don't worry about me asking you for the money."

Just as Lu Shixian was about to feel a surge of gratitude, he heard her voice drift back as she walked ahead of him.

"The school will reimburse it anyway."

Lu Shixian was speechless.

Right. He never should have gotten his hopes up with her.

That same day, Lu Shixian returned to Jinling.

Upon his return, he was once again received by the leaders of the city's education department.

The same old official platitudes were repeated.

The gist of it was: perform well in the Land of the Rising Sun. When you come back, there will be a celebratory welcome and great rewards waiting for you.

At first, student Lu Shixian remained impassive.

But once he understood the part about the rewards, he was instantly fired up, as if he'd been shot full of adrenaline. He declared on the spot that he would bring honor to his hometown.

To be honest, the international competition had always been his goal. Now, with new rewards on the table, he couldn't ask for a better deal—unequal pay for the same work, but in his favor.

Back at Jinling No. 1 High School, he was once again welcomed by his classmates.

They were all asking about the national team.

However, the question they asked most wasn't about the selection process, but where the international competition would be held.

Lu Shixian had already anticipated this question.

The answer was the Land of the Rising Sun, where life is supposedly pretty good.

Not long after he returned, he received a summons from Jiang Yunkun.

Arriving at his office, Lu Shixian asked curiously, "Teacher Jiang, don't tell me you're applying for my international competition prize money in advance?"

Hearing this, Jiang Yunkun found it quite amusing. "Don't you worry. As long as you meet the conditions, the school won't shortchange you."

"I called you here for something else."

"Oh? What is it?" Lu Shixian's curiosity grew.

Chapter 135: Liu Xianhua's Twisted Mask

Jiang Yunkun pulled a flat package from his drawer with a curious expression.

He then asked him, "A few days ago, Old Yang from the school's mailroom suddenly told me there was a package for someone in my class, sent from another province."

"Since that had never happened before, I was a bit curious at the time. So I went over to take a look."

"And there it was. It had your name on it, and it was even sent from some Rice Research Institute."

Jiang Yunkun chuckled as he spoke. "I called you over this time to show you just how rampant scammers are these days, even targeting students who are still in school..."

But before he could finish, upon hearing the words "Rice Research Institute," Lu Shixian understood everything.

He excitedly tore open the package. Sure enough, inside was a sample copy of *China Rice Science* and several offprints.

Lu Shixian took one of the sample copies and handed it to Jiang Yunkun.

"Fresh off the press. I'd be honored to have your critique, Teacher Jiang."

At that, Jiang Yunkun's smile instantly turned to a look of confusion. He wanted to see what kind of mysterious trick Lu Shixian was playing.

But as he took the journal and glanced at it, his expression changed dramatically.

"A Preliminary Study on the 'Rice-Crayfish Co-culture' Model: Analysis of the Impact of *Procambarus clarkii* on the Content of Reducing Substances in Paddy Soil and its Economic Benefits?"

"First Author: Lu Shixian??"

"Affiliation: Jinling No. 1 High School???"

As if in disbelief, he flipped to the cover and looked again, but the result was unchanged.

"This... you submitted this? When did you cook this up?"

Of course, the question didn't need an answer. He was slowly coming to accept the fact.

As a teacher, he had his fair share of dealings with academic papers.

From time to time, there were requirements to write a few papers on teaching methods.

But those were minor endeavors, at best getting published in a city education newspaper, or with a bit of luck, a provincial magazine.

They were a far cry from any professional journal, but his judgment was sound.

The China Rice Research Institute—any official research institution with "China" in its name was no simple matter.

So he asked, somewhat uncertainly, "What level of journal is this?"

Lu Shixian smiled. "A Chinese Core Journal. I submitted it on a whim, didn't actually expect it to get accepted."

Recalling past events, Jiang Yunkun suddenly had a moment of clarity.

"So that's what you were doing when you were absent from school! I was wondering why you'd stopped studying."

"The impact factor for this journal must be pretty high, right?" Jiang Yunkun wasn't familiar with the agricultural field and asked him.

Lu Shixian shook his head. "It's not that high, just over one point, but that's considered quite good compared to similar journals. But really, it was just a fluke that I got in."

Jiang Yunkun couldn't help but laugh. "Don't say that. If I could get a paper into a core journal, I would have been promoted long ago. If something like this can happen by 'fluke,' I'd ask to be your disciple. How about you be my teacher?"

Lu Shixian quickly waved his hands. "I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare. Of course, if you insist on paying tuition, I won't object."

At these words, Jiang Yunkun pretended to hit him.

Lu Shixian fled in haste.

Leaving Jiang Yunkun standing there, marveling to himself.

There was still over a month until the training camp in May, and Lu Shixian was living a life of leisure.

During this time, he even made a trip to Jinling University.

He went specifically to thank Su Changqing in person for his guidance. Without it, he never would have thought of submitting his paper to a Chinese Core Journal like *China Rice Science*.

He still remembered the look on Liu Xianhua's face when he gave him an offprint—a face so astonished it was practically twisted.

He could even guess Liu Xianhua's inner monologue.

"Damn it! I've been meticulously analyzing data and haven't even finished my paper, yet this kid just messes around and gets published in a Peking University Core Journal out of nowhere? I can't accept this!"

After returning from Jinling University, he actually reflected on the reasons for this outcome.

First, he had underestimated the paper's importance. The value of a paper isn't just in its theoretical merit.

One must also look beyond the theory to the potential economic and humanistic value that can be derived from its application.

And his paper happened to have enormous potential in terms of economic value.

Second, he had overlooked a crucial point in time. In his past life, when the "rice-crayfish co-culture" model was first proposed, it didn't get much attention at first.

It was only after many people had verified its profitability that it slowly became well-known, and later, through word of mouth, caught the attention of the authorities, who then began to research its theoretical basis.

But now, with the growing national call for urban-rural integration, increasing farmers' income was a major topic of social discussion.

Therefore, the impact of this paper would extend far beyond a single journal publication, but that was a story for another time.

Afterward, back at the high school, he took some time to check in on Chen Yiyi.

They both came from Jinling Agricultural High, so it was only right to show some concern.

When he asked how she was doing, Chen Yiyi didn't answer right away, but instead expressed her sincere happiness for his current success.

In their later conversation, he learned that she was now the academic representative for Class 5 of the second year at Jinling No. 1 High School.

Lu Shixian felt very gratified. This was much faster progress than in his previous life.

It seemed she had also been working relentlessly.

But after they parted, Lu Shixian had no idea what he might have missed.

"After starting high school, you truly shine even brighter! But no matter how hard I try, it feels like I'm only getting farther away from you!"

"But a sunflower is content just to gaze at the sun from afar, isn't it?"

Chen Yiyi's whisper gradually faded, carried away by the wind.

Finally, Lu Shixian went home.

He stayed home for nearly half a month, the longest he had stayed since his return.

He had a premonition that in the future, it might be a long time before he had the chance to come back.

He used this leisure time to properly accompany his parents.

May 15th.

He received the training notice from the Botanical Society of China.

Here, he would undergo a month-long training program.

Once again, he was in Yanjing.

What was different this time was that he was all alone, with no companions.

But Lu Shixian was not the least bit unused to it.

Because on this path, he had been fighting a lone battle for a long time.

He alone represented the entire strength of Su Province in the biology competition, and in the future, he would represent the country to continue the fight in Tsukuba.

By this point, his small backpack was no longer sufficient.

Carrying a portable suitcase, Lu Shixian arrived at the main gate of the Botanical Society of China.

The sign-in sheet in the security office at the entrance already had two names filled in.

It seemed that besides him and Wang Fuwen, two others had already arrived.

As soon as he entered the compound, he was captivated by the lush greenery everywhere.

Truly befitting of the Botanical Society.

Chapter 136: How Deep is Your Cunning?

According to the directions from the security office, he was supposed to report to the society's General Affairs Office first.

Someone there would arrange everything else.

"General Affairs Office..."

Walking into the society's office building, Lu Shixian muttered to himself as he searched for the sign in the hallway.

Fortunately, it seemed this department was specifically for reception.

Lu Shixian quickly found it in the room opposite the second-floor landing.

After confirming the name on the office door again, Lu Shixian knocked gently.

"Come in!"

A gentle female voice came from inside.

Lu Shixian opened the door and saw a woman of about forty, tending to an orchid in her office.

His gaze subconsciously swept over the nameplate on the woman's desk.

"Deng Xiaolian, Director of the General Affairs Office."

Seeing the newcomer, Deng Xiaolian stopped what she was doing and smiled. "Ah, it's young Lu. You're here to report. Would you like some water?"

Lu Shixian took out a bottle of mineral water from his jacket pocket and gestured with it. "No, thank you, Auntie Deng. I have water here."

Deng Xiaolian nodded. "Two other students have already arrived. Please have a seat."

After he sat down, she continued, "I'm sure you're aware of the situation. This training session will start tomorrow and last until mid-June, exactly one month."

"Normally, the national team training isn't this long, but this year is special since the competition is being held in Tsukuba, Japan. The relevant department leaders are taking this international competition very seriously."

"So, for this month and during your time in Japan, I will be in charge of all your logistical support. Your training for the month will be handled by Instructor Li."

Next, she asked Lu Shixian for some basic information and documents.

After all, since they were going abroad, things like temporary visas were unavoidable.

After giving her final instructions, Deng Xiaolian led him to the dormitory building.

"Since there are only a few of you, is it okay for the three of you to share one dorm? It will also be a good opportunity for you to bond as teammates."

Lu Shixian naturally agreed readily. After his experience at the provincial team training camp, he was no longer so afraid of multi-person dorms.

Sometimes, they could be quite interesting.

Lu Shixian declined her offer to help with his luggage and went up to his temporary dorm room alone.

Someone had already set up their bed and was sitting on the edge, engrossed in something on their phone.

Although he couldn't see the person's face clearly because their head was down, Lu Shixian knew without guessing that it was Yang Yihang.

After all, of the two who had arrived, it couldn't be Feng Yanan in here.

Having come all the way from the national competition, even if they hadn't met before, their faces were now familiar.

So he took the initiative to greet him.

"Hey, when did you get here? You're pretty early!"

Yang Yihang's face lifted from his phone screen, and he saw Lu Shixian.

He seemed to have a rather friendly personality, standing up and giving Lu Shixian a smile.

"God Lu, you're finally here. Add me as a friend first."

Lu Shixian was confused.

He was a bit baffled. Could it be that his Bronze-rank god status on the education network server had been discovered?

But that thing wouldn't be out for another two years. For a moment, Lu Shixian felt a chill run down his spine.

But Yang Yihang's next move made him not know whether to laugh or cry.

He saw him bring his phone over and open it, revealing the QQ interface.

While opening the "add friend" screen, he asked Lu Shixian for his QQ number.

Alright then.

Lu Shixian was about to blurt out a string of numbers without thinking.

"9421xxxx."

But he swallowed the words just as they were about to leave his mouth.

He suddenly remembered that this was his old number, the one Xia Yubing had helped him apply for during the New Year.

By now, QQ numbers were probably all ten digits long.

Although it wasn't a particularly special number, it had been with him for many years.

The thought that he would likely never encounter it again in this life filled him with a sudden complex emotion.

"I don't have one," Lu Shixian said, his tone a bit subdued.

Yang Yihang assumed he either didn't have money, his parents hadn't bought him a phone, or he had never been exposed to it.

So he directly handed him his old-fashioned Nokia phone.

"Just use mine to apply for one. It's really convenient for chatting and stuff."

"As long as you remember the number and password, you can use it in the future. It's much better than text messages."

Lu Shixian shook his head and pulled a brand-new smartphone from his inner jacket pocket.

This move left Yang Yihang completely dumbfounded.

He suddenly felt like a clown...

It seemed that Tencent wouldn't release the official mobile QQ 2009 version until the end of 2009.

But at this point in time, it should be starting to become popular.

Since almost no one around him used it much, he had forgotten about it. Being reminded now made him feel a bit nostalgic.

Applying for one now was a good idea. This was the future trend of communication. After all, WeChat hadn't come out yet, and you couldn't do without QQ.

Under Yang Yihang's guidance, Lu Shixian went to the website.

He quickly downloaded the software and applied for a new number.

As expected, it was ten digits.

He logged in and filled in some basic information, only hesitating at the screen name.

In the end, he still chose the name he had used in his past life to lament the heartlessness of time: Shi Buyu.

Yang Yihang asked for his new number and sent him a friend request.

Within a second, his phone made the familiar coughing sound notification.

A classic, indeed. Lu Shixian smiled and opened the friend request.

"'How Deep is Your Cunning Tel' has requested to be your friend."

Seeing this name, another smile spread across Lu Shixian's face.

"What's wrong? Is there a problem? Hurry up and accept!" Yang Yihang seemed to be an impatient person, constantly urging Lu Shixian.

Lu Shixian had no choice but to quickly accept the request.

And thus, the first QQ friend of his new life was born.

Around ten o'clock, Wang Fuwen also arrived.

Only then did Lu Shixian get a chance to properly size him up.

His outfit looked like it cost a fortune. The Blancpain on his wrist alone must have been worth a lot.

He hadn't expected him to be a rich kid.

But considering he was a national first prize winner in informatics, Lu Shixian was no longer surprised.

At this stage, you needed money to get into that field.

Compared to Yang Yihang, he was much quieter.

But although he spoke little, at least he was normal in conversation and didn't trail off, unless you were truly asking him nonsense.

This was a relief to Lu Shixian. If a teammate was difficult to get along with, it would affect his mood.

In reality, people who were truly arrogant and looked down on others were rare.

Aside from a very small number of people with genuinely bad behavior, the overall quality of most people was actually quite high, and some were exceptionally outstanding.

It was unscientific and inappropriate to negate an entire group just because of the misdeeds of a small fraction.

Meanwhile, Yang Yihang was back to his great undertaking of adding friends.

Then he pulled everyone into a group chat.

It was just that the group name made Lu Shixian a bit anxious.

Chapter 137: So Today Wasn't Just for Reporting?

Before Lu Shixian could even see what was being sent in the group chat, he saw the group name flashing repeatedly.

"Spirited Fruit Fly Baby."

He was truly impressed. This Yang Yihang was a real character, and apparently a bit of a closeted eccentric.

If he didn't know a bit about genetics, he would have thought it was a cute name.

Lu Shixian couldn't remember the exact anecdote.

He only remembered the general idea was that the geneticist Morgan, while conducting genetics experiments, obtained a mutant fruit fly that was on the verge of death.

Just as he was worrying about it, the mutant fruit fly suddenly had a burst of vigor, mated with a female fruit fly, and unexpectedly passed on the precious mutant gene.

Through fruit fly cross-breeding experiments, his experiments proved the laws of linkage and crossing over, discovered the third law of heredity, and completed the final piece of the puzzle of genetic laws.

Later, in the 1920s, he founded the famous gene theory, revealing that genes are the hereditary units that make up chromosomes, controlling the development of hereditary traits, and are also the basic units of mutation, recombination, and exchange.

In 1933, Morgan was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his creative achievements in biological heredity.

So, Fruit Fly Baby?

He refused to acknowledge it.

However, before Lu Shixian could protest, the group chat had already erupted.

[An Old Friend's Changed Heart]: Who came up with this group name???

Change it!

Right now! Immediately!

In the dorm room, Lu Shixian looked at Wang Fuwen, who was now staring motionlessly at his phone, and Yang Yihang, who was furiously tapping away on his.
It suddenly dawned on him who "But the Old Friend's Heart Has Changed" was.

Just then, Yang Yihang seemed to have finished editing. He had already heard the notification for a new group message.

[Pursuit of the Sphincter]: Sister Yanan, aren't fruit fly babies cute? :D

This was too much for Lu Shixian, who jumped into the group chat fray.

[Time Waits for None]: Are you seriously calling yourself ‘full of vigor’? /pigface

Lu Shixian had searched for the dog face emoji for a while but couldn't find it, so he had to use the pig face instead.

He remembered the pig, cat, and dog emojis used to be right next to each other.

They weren't there now. The app must have been updated.

Soon after, Feng Yanan launched another attack. The name had clearly gotten under her skin.

[But the Old Friend's Heart Has Changed]: I don't care if you're full of vigor or not, I don't want to see the words 'fruit fly baby' ever again! Say it one more time and I'll beat you until you look like a fruit fly baby!!!

Only then did it click for Lu Shixian, and his respect for Yang Yihang grew.

Weren't fruit fly babies just larvae? The second stage of an insect's life. In other words... maggots.

This time, Yang Yihang seemed genuinely intimidated. He stopped clowning around and quickly changed the group name.

Feng Yanan finally seemed to let it go, and her messages stopped appearing for several minutes.

Lu Shixian picked up his phone to look. The group name had been changed to "The Four Musketeers of Tsukuba."

Alright, it wasn't a great name either.

But at least it was a huge improvement over the last one.

Back in 2009, the main function of QQ was instant messaging. It didn't have many other fun features, at least not in Lu Shixian's eyes.

With no one chatting, the group fell silent.

By the time they had all finished making their beds, it was already afternoon.

They had just received a notification from the Botanical Society to assemble.

The three of them set off together for the designated location.

Calling it a classroom was a bit of an exaggeration; it was just a small, empty conference room.

There were only four of them, and this space was more than enough.

Someone was already inside, sitting and waiting for them.

It was Feng Yanan, of course.

The moment she saw Yang Yihang walk in, she fixed him with an icy glare.

If looks could kill, he would have been pierced by a thousand arrows by now.

Yang Yihang was already cowering. He took a step back and hid behind Lu Shixian, afraid to show his face.

After they sat down, they had only exchanged a few words of small talk when the sound of footsteps approached from outside.

Four pairs of eyes turned in unison toward the door as a rather lean, middle-aged man walked in.

"Team members, my name is Li Wendong. I am the coach and team leader for the national team in this year's biology competition."

Li Wendong didn't look very strong, but his voice was incredibly loud. The force of it made Lu Shixian's head spin.

He had no choice but to open a window as he continued to listen.

"I won't repeat the importance of this international competition. Even if you don't understand the significance of the host country being Japan, you should be able to see it from the scale of our training this time."

"Since the four of you have been selected as members of the national team, you have enjoyed the honor, and now you must bear the responsibility and duty of winning glory for our country."

"I believe you all understand what that means. We must go in with the determination to win."

"Even if we ultimately lose to other teams, our team's total score must be higher than Japan's. That is the bottom line!"

"Do you understand?"

"Shout it out for me!"

Li Wendong seemed to have a military-like style and was fond of these kinds of drills.

But you had to admit, it was somewhat effective.

Even the usually calm Lu Shixian and the quiet Wang Fuwen felt their spirits stir.

As for the most excited, that would be Feng Yanan and Yang Yihang.

"Understood!"

Hearing their loud, unified response, Li Wendong began to lay out the upcoming schedule.

"Like in previous years, the IBO consists of two parts: theory and practical. The theory exam covers a broad range of biology."

"But it's basically the same scope as our national competition, not much different. It covers cell biology, molecular biology, animal and plant anatomy and physiology, ethology... and so on."

"There will be four practical exams, chosen from a pool of common topics to be used as the final competition questions. Although the International Biology Olympiad Committee has not officially disclosed the weighting, based on past years, the theory and practical sections are each worth about fifty percent."

Li Wendong seemed extremely familiar with the rules, moving on to the next topic without pausing.

"The award criteria are slightly different from our domestic competitions. Medals are awarded based on a percentage of participants, regardless of the score."

"The top ten percent of students will receive a gold medal, the top twenty percent will receive a silver medal, and the top thirty percent will receive a bronze medal."

He paused here, giving the four of them a moment to process the information.

"Does everyone understand?"

All four nodded. Aside from a few minor differences, it was largely consistent with the domestic system.

Seeing their reaction, Li Wendong was finally ready to conclude his speech.

"Alright, our plan for this month is as follows: the first half of the month will be focused on consolidating and improving your theoretical knowledge, and the second half will be for practical lab training."

"Both the theory and practical sessions will be taught by professors from other universities who are part of the Botanical Society."

"The professor for the first class is on his way and will begin shortly. You have twenty minutes to prepare!"

With his last sentence, he turned and strode briskly out of the conference room.

He left the four of them inside, staring at each other in bewilderment.

"So?"

"Isn't today just for registration?"

Chapter 138: So Young, What’s Wrong With You?

However, less than ten minutes later, a professor from Peking University arrived.

He was also from the School of Life Sciences, but not one of the two they had met at the winter camp.

He introduced himself with the surname Peng.

This Professor Peng would be teaching microscopic biology for the next half-month.

Furthermore, his lectures would run from the afternoon all the way into the evening.

The next morning, he was replaced by a female professor from Beijing Institute of Technology, who was responsible for the macroscopic topics in the theory portion.

Because the professors were incredibly busy, they were squeezing in time from their packed schedules just to come and teach.

This created a problem: the professors would lecture from the front, while the four of them listened intently below.

But when they wanted to ask questions after class, they would find that the professors had already left.

It was impossible for them to stay behind for detailed guidance.

Of course, they had no complaints.

The two professors had no personal connection to them and were only here to fulfill a task.

Besides, who else could get a private course from two professors, and with only four students?

Such an opportunity was once in a lifetime.

But it was tough on the four of them. It was pure force-feeding education.

It was as if the professors were saying, "I've taught the material; whether you understand it is up to you," very much in the spirit of "the master opens the door, but you must enter by yourself."

This high-intensity learning continued for five full days, with no weekend break.

Because after five days, Li Wendong, who had been absent for a while, reappeared before them.

Over the weekend, Li Wendong would test their grasp of the week's material, using a format that completely mirrored the international competition.

On Saturday morning, they were allowed to review on their own.

In the afternoon, the test began at one o'clock and didn't end until after five.

And indeed, the theory questions were quite different from the national competition, even though the scope was similar.

The theory paper was divided into two sections, A and B.

Section A was worth 100 points and consisted of standard single-choice and multiple-choice questions.

However, there was no indication as to which were single-choice and which were multiple-choice.

Section B was more interesting. Although it was only worth 80 points, it was significantly harder than Section A, with much more complex problems.

At the same time, the question formats had changed considerably.

There were not only multiple-choice questions but also fill-in-the-blanks, experimental calculation problems, and even true-or-false questions.

The result of these changes was that almost none of them could adapt to the new format.

Although they had the morning to relax a bit, the four straight hours of intense focus in the afternoon left them miserable.

The duration was so much longer than the national competition, posing a huge test of the contestants' stamina and willpower.

At 5:20 PM, time was up, and their answer sheets were collected.

They could finally go eat and take a break.

On Sunday, Li Wendong announced the results and rankings for the theory test.

The student who ranked last would have to give a public oral reflection and summary lasting no less than ten minutes.

Surprisingly, the scores and rankings had shifted once again.

First Place: Lu Shixian, 143 points
Second Place: Wang Fuwen, 129 points
Third Place: Feng Yanan, 121 points
Fourth Place: Yang Yihang, 119 points

The top two spots were still held by Lu Shixian and Wang Fuwen, but third place had changed hands, now belonging to Feng Yanan.

Yang Yihang, the former third-place holder, had been overtaken and was now bringing up the rear.

And so, on Sunday afternoon, Yang Yihang delivered a profound reflection and summary in front of everyone.

By "profound," it meant he used every excuse he could think of just to fill the ten-minute requirement.

The whole process was an ordeal for him.

Forcing a member of the national biology team, someone with guaranteed admission to Peking or Tsinghua, to do something like this was an experience that would likely be etched in his memory forever.

That evening, he made a solemn vow in the "Four Musketeers" group chat.

"Just you wait. I'll make a comeback in the next test. I will not be last again."

Of course, no one was about to give him that chance.

Another week passed.

The second theory assessment began.

Driven by the "simple" goal of not finishing last, everyone, even the usually placid Wang Fuwen, began to compete fiercely in secret. Perhaps this punishment was the most painful for him.

And so, the four of them gave it their all in the exam.

On Sunday, the scores and rankings were announced once again.

After adapting from the last practice run, everyone's scores had improved significantly.

The results were as follows:

First Place: Lu Shixian, 164 points
Second Place: Wang Fuwen, 142 points
Third Place: Feng Yanan, 133 points
Fourth Place: Yang Yihang, 132 points

The moment the results were announced, Yang Yihang looked like he was about to burst into tears.

He used to be a big shot back in his school, for crying out loud.

Now he was relegated to being last every single time.

Even Li Wendong kicked him while he was down, criticizing him a bit.

"Yang Yihang, what's going on with you? Feng Yanan's scores used to be lower than yours, but now she's beaten you twice. What are your thoughts on that?"

Yang Yihang was on the verge of tears, but he could only continue with his profound self-criticism.

That night, he became the butt of jokes in the group chat.

If things went as expected, this would be their last complete theory test in the country.

Time ticked by as the four of them soldiered on, mentally and physically exhausted.

The calendar turned to June 1st.

They spent a special day at the Botanical Society of China in 2009.

Li Wendong brought them Children's Day greetings and a gift: they could now go to the lab for practical experiments.

The four of them showed almost no reaction to the news; they were nearly numb from the torment.

Only Yang Yihang let out a few neurotic, silly laughs.

This immediately caused the other three to put some distance between themselves and him.

"Yang Yihang, are you okay? Don't do anything rash, okay?"

"Yeah, man, there's no obstacle in life you can't overcome!"

"You haven't even gotten your 'vigor' back yet. You're so young, what's wrong with you?"

In the end, what they received was a declaration of war from Yang Yihang.

"You're the ones who need to cheer up! In these practicals, I'm going to show you what a true maestro with his hands looks like."

Unfortunately, his grand ambition was over before it even began.

They received a notice from Li Wendong that the practical sessions would not be tested. The focus was on self-practice to achieve mastery, with the instructors only covering the key points of the procedures.

But that was the nature of lab work. Being taught a hundred times was no substitute for doing it once with your own hands.

Upon hearing this news, tears welled up in Yang Yihang's eyes.

"The heavens conspire against me. What can I do?"

Chapter 139: To Japan, Swords Aimed at Tsukuba

The main experiments they practiced in the Botanical Society's labs were plant physiology, morphology, and anatomy; animal morphology, anatomy, and systematics; microbiology and biotechnology; and genetics.

The rules were also quite different from before. Each experiment was allotted only one hour, and time could not be carried over, placing even greater demands on the contestants' skills.

When it came to lab work, Lu Shixian was no longer the fumbling novice he once was.

Beyond plant physiology experiments, he was becoming increasingly adept in the other areas as well.

After all, even if the subjects were different, the underlying principles of the experiments were largely the same. Once you grasped the core concepts, you realized it wasn't as difficult as you imagined.

Finally, the fifteen days of practical training came to an end.

No one wasted the remaining time, using it to shore up their weaknesses based on their individual needs.

All four of them stayed in Beijing, choosing not to go home.

Everyone understood that at this stage, they were no longer studying just for themselves.

So, each of them was exceptionally dedicated.

June departed in silence, and July's footsteps arrived softly.

The team heading to Tsukuba, Japan, was ready.

Everyone was gathered together.

Besides the four national team members, there was one team leader and two observers.

The leader was, of course, Li Wendong. They had met one of the observers before: Deng Xiaolian from the Botanical Society.

The other observer was a complete stranger to all of them, a very young woman who seemed quite formidable.

Li Wendong then introduced the team members to everyone.

"Ms. Deng will be primarily responsible for the national team's logistics abroad. This is Ms. Meng Yunyun, a graduate student from the Russian department at the College of Foreign Affairs, who will be accompanying us to Tsukuba."

"You may not be aware, but in addition to representing China in voting on International Biology Olympiad affairs, we also have to manage the relationships between our team and those of other countries."

"But our most important job is actually to translate the next day's exam questions for you."

This statement surprised everyone, including Lu Shixian. They truly had no idea that they translated their own exam papers.

Weren't they worried about the risk of leaks and cheating?

Li Wendong quickly addressed their concerns.

"Every year, the IBO organizing committee prepares two sets of exam papers, one in English and one in Russian. The team leaders and observers from each country translate the papers into their native language."

"After the opening ceremony, we must separate from you, stay in a different location, and all contact is forbidden. This will last until the IBO competition is over. You will not have anyone looking after you during this period, so you need to be mentally prepared."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian instantly understood the purpose of the English interview.

Indeed, everything exists for a reason. Just because you don't understand it doesn't mean it's meaningless.

It just means you haven't reached the level where you're qualified to know.

Li Wendong's voice was as powerful as ever.

"On the afternoon before the practical exam, the jury, which we are a part of, will review and begin translating the exam questions. The same goes for the theory exam, except that happens on the morning before the test."

"This work will keep us up late into the night to ensure that the translation, copying, sorting, and sealing of the exam papers are completed before 7 AM the next day. It's a task that severely tests our translation speed, stamina, and ability to stay up all night."

"So, don't think you're the only ones fighting. Our entire team is a single unit. Only with the sincere cooperation of every member can we achieve outstanding results."

Over the next few days, they focused on learning about things to be aware of when abroad, respecting the customs and traditions of other countries, and so on.

With only a day or two left before departure, the competition committee didn't schedule anything, allowing them to move about freely nearby, relax, and take care of personal matters.

Since Japan was also in Asia, they didn't need to set aside time to adjust to a time difference.

Beijing Time.

July 12, 2009.

The Chinese team for the International Biology Olympiad, a group of seven, had arrived at the airport and boarded an international flight to Tsukuba, Japan.

This was his first time traveling abroad.

Although he had no prior experience to draw upon, he was already full of confidence.

And the source of that confidence was the solid, diligent studying he had done over the past many days.

The plane landed, and they had arrived in a foreign land.

Tsukuba is located northeast of Japan's capital, within Ibaraki Prefecture. Its development began in the 1960s, and it is well-known for its style as a "Science City."

Mount Tsukuba is the city's most famous tourist destination, often compared to Mount Fuji, which over time led to the saying, "Fuji in the West, Tsukuba in the East."

The University of Tsukuba and the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology are located here, earning it the nickname "Japan's Silicon Valley."

The University of Tsukuba was also the venue for their competition.

Upon arrival, following the arrangements of the host, the Japanese competition committee, the Chinese team was checked into a hotel designated for foreign guests.

Because there were seven of them, they were given four rooms.

According to the arrangement, Lu Shixian and Yang Yihang shared a room, Team Leader Li was with Wang Fuwen, and Feng Yanan roomed with Meng Yunyun.

Deng Xiaolian was lucky enough to get a single room.

But it didn't really matter. After spending so much time together, they were all very familiar with one another, and he would have been fine rooming with anyone.

At this point in time, very few people had the opportunity to travel abroad; many might never leave the country in their entire lives.

So, the members of the national team were all visibly excited.
Yang Yihang, in particular, was practically beaming, bouncing around the hotel room and touching everything in sight.

With a chatterbox like him around, the "Swordsmen" group chat quickly came back to life.

Pursuit of the Sphincter: So this is the island nation? So cool!

I just saw a bunch of pretty ladies smiling and bowing to me. Am I really that popular already?

Seeing his goofy expression, Lu Shixian decided to hit him with a harsh dose of reality.

Time Waits for No Man: You're getting ahead of yourself. Even if a beggar walked in, their smiles and the angle of their bows would be exactly the same as they were for you.

That wiped the smile right off Yang Yihang's face. So he'd been excited for nothing.

Suddenly, another message popped up in the group.

He didn't even have to think to know it was a snarky comment from Feng Yanan, but when he looked, he realized he was wrong.

Du: Team Leader Li wants you all to come over. He has something to say.

Chapter 140: This Red Ginseng, See How White It Is?

Soon, all seven members of the national team were seated in one room.

Seeing that everyone had arrived, Li Wendong began.

"The opening ceremony is this afternoon at the University of Tsukuba. We'll head over together in a bit."

"Sometime tomorrow afternoon or evening, Ms. Meng and I will be sequestered to review and translate the exam questions."

"We'll be out of contact during that period. If there's an emergency, call your Auntie Deng's number or the hotel's emergency line."

Finally, Li Wendong got to the last and most crucial point.

"Don't go looking for trouble, and don't wander off. There are a lot of international visitors here right now, and any incident could be difficult to handle."

"Of course, if you do get bullied, there's no need to be timid. On the premise of protecting yourselves, you can use firm, legal means to handle it."

"After all, this is Asia. China's influence is no joke."

With that last sentence, there wasn't much else to say.

This was all stuff they'd heard many times before, repeated several times back home.

They all understood the stakes and nodded in agreement.

Tokyo time, 3:00 PM.

A solemn and grand opening ceremony was held in the largest reception hall at the University of Tsukuba.

A total of fifty teams from around the world were participating in this year's IBO, representing nearly every major nation you could name.

Although the number of teams wasn't huge, the level of competition and the prestige were in no way inferior to other science olympiads.

Lu Shixian glanced around and saw the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, India, the Czech Republic, Italy...

If you were there, you couldn't help but be moved by the scene.

It was like a world fair of humanity, with people of every color, holding their unique national flags, gathered together in celebration.

Soon, an official from the International Biology Olympiad headquarters stepped forward to give a speech.

He was the chairman of this year's steering committee, but Lu Shixian didn't quite catch his name—it was a long string of syllables, so he probably wasn't American.

At that moment, the entire hall fell silent as he began to speak.

Although the IBO headquarters is in Prague, Czech Republic, he still spoke in English.

It had to be said that English remained the most prominent and widely accepted lingua franca in the world.

The benefit of this was that almost everyone present could understand the gist of his speech.

"Beginning in 1990, only six countries were interested, and from that, the International Biology Olympiad was founded."

"Now, in 2009, we have fifty participating countries from all over the globe."

"It has continued to grow and evolve with the passage of time. We believe that winning a medal is just one small goal; the ultimate key is to promote cultural exchange and explore our mutual interactions."

"On behalf of the International Biology Olympiad Steering Committee, I declare the 20th IBO officially open!"

As the opening ceremony was officially declared open, all the contestants began to applaud, and thunderous cheers filled the venue.

Everyone's voices merged into one, and the national flags in their hands formed vast patches of color, like the most magnificent clouds.

If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, Lu Shixian would have found the scene hard to believe.

The sight before him sent shockwaves through his soul.

It turned out that human beings of different races, beliefs, skin colors, cultures, and languages really could connect so closely.

Different peoples and civilizations could communicate and compete with goodwill through such peaceful means.

At that moment, for the first time, he clearly felt the tangible reality of a "community with a shared future for mankind."

This scene was deeply etched into his memory and would have a subtle and profound influence on his future.

Next came the performances, which he found a bit difficult to appreciate.

It wasn't that they were bad; he just didn't have an artistic bone in his body and couldn't understand what was going on.

After the opening ceremony, only Lu Shixian and the other three contestants were left.

They had the afternoon to themselves. Aside from the requirement to stay within the University of Tsukuba campus, there were no other rules.

Since they couldn't visit Mount Tsukuba or see Lake Kasumigaura, they decided to buy some souvenirs as proof they had been there.

Of course, this decision was made by Feng Yanan, goaded on by Yang Yihang, with Lu Shixian and Wang Fuwen dragged along against their will.

The four of them walked along the modern streets, browsing the shops.

Eventually, they arrived at a modern department store.

As soon as they stepped inside, they heard a saleswoman bow and greet them sweetly.

"Irasshaimase."

Yang Yihang, who had been striding ahead and looking around, jumped in fright.

He turned to the other three and whispered, "What's she saying? I can't understand this bird-speak!"

The others didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Even if you didn't understand the words, it was easy to guess the meaning given the time and place—it was just some variation of "welcome" or "come again."

Once inside, Yang Yihang's unsophisticated exclamations could be heard from time to time.

"A single box of apples costs 10,000? This is robbery!"

Feng Yanan had to explain patiently, "Use that thick skull of yours and look at the symbol. It's yen, not yuan."

But then she added thoughtfully, "Though Fatty has a point. Converted to Chinese currency, that's still several hundred yuan. It's definitely expensive."

"Finally, some characters I can read! No way, they even have ginseng here, and it's only 100 yen."

Lu Shixian was amused again and teased him, "This red ginseng, do you think it's white?"

Only then did Yang Yihang realize it was a carrot.

"It does seem pretty red."

Feng Yanan was already bent over laughing, and even the silent, cool Wang Fuwen cracked a smile.

After browsing the fresh produce section, they ventured a little deeper inside.

They suddenly found themselves in a colorful, neatly arranged magazine section.

It took up more than half the floor space.

Since they were here, they started browsing the manga to see how Japanese comics differed from those back home.

Lu Shixian casually picked up a manga with "Jump" in its title and, sure enough, saw Luffy's iconic grin.

Could this be Weekly Shonen Jump?

Intrigued, Lu Shixian flipped through the pages and saw the Railgun on the "onee-san's" fingertip charging up.

Then came the Copy Ninja rapidly forming hand seals.

And finally, the never-ending saga of Kurapika...

Putting the book down, he saw others nearby with "Sunday" and "Magazine" in their titles, as well as magazines covered with images of Sailor Moon.

He shook his head, about to sigh with nostalgia, "This is youth..."

But before the thought could fully form, another one popped into his head unbidden: Compared to its agriculture, its digital media industry is certainly more developed, isn't it?

Chapter 141: The IBO in Progress

Everyone was engrossed in their reading; even Feng Yanan was completely absorbed.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but feel that these comics had practically defined their childhoods.

When Yang Yihang tried to enter an inner room, however, the shop owner stopped him, flatly refusing him entry.

The owner said a long string of words, but none of them could understand.

Fortunately, Lu Shixian had sharp eyes and noticed that the items displayed inside looked a bit... off. He quickly pulled Yang Yihang back.

"What's the deal? Why won't this guy let me in? I saw that Japanese uncle go in just now," Yang Yihang said indignantly, feeling he was being treated unfairly.

Lu Shixian explained with a hint of helplessness, "That's the adult section, paid content. It's R-18. What's a little kid like you doing in there?"

At his words, Yang Yihang froze, and the others burst into laughter once again.

In the end, each of them left the store with a hardcover edition of *Weekly Shonen Jump* as a souvenir.

They had done enough shopping for now and chatted as they walked back.

"Japan is such a small place, scarce in natural resources and not that strong in scientific research. Why hold the IBO here?"

"They're so far behind us. I really don't get why the international committee chose this place."

After his recent embarrassment, Yang Yihang was full of complaints.

"You have a point, but the committee probably had its reasons. Japan is the world's second-largest economy, after all," Feng Yanan offered her opinion.

Wang Fuwen remained coolly silent, offering no comment.

Lu Shixian had to pick up the conversation, expressing his own view. "As a science student, your statements are far too imprecise."

"Aside from it being a small country, the rest of what you said is basically wrong."

His words made the other three look at him curiously, wondering what he meant.

Lu Shixian understood. After the grand Olympic Games held in Beijing last year, their sense of national pride and identity was at an all-time high.

At the same time, their environment had fostered an almost paranoid sense of disdain for Japan.

He shook his head slightly. "You're not entirely correct about their scarce natural resources. While they lack land and mineral resources, their marine and fishery resources are matched by very few countries."

"Their coastline alone is estimated to be at least 30,000 kilometers. And the Hokkaido fishing grounds are the number one in the world, second to none."

After Lu Shixian finished, even Wang Fuwen, who had been lost in his own thoughts, turned his gaze toward him.

"Now that you put it that way, it does make some sense," Yang Yihang said, seeming somewhat convinced.

Lu Shixian paid him no mind and continued, "As for you saying their research capabilities are weak, that's complete nonsense."

By now, they had reached the hotel, but the other three seemed to have become interested.

He had touched upon a blind spot for them, and they all urged Lu Shixian to explain himself.

"Research capability is hard to express in words, but let me give you a few data points, and you'll understand."

"First, universities are the main force for a country's scientific research, right?"

All three nodded.

Although there were various research institutes and R&D teams in both the public and private sectors, Lu Shixian's statement was not wrong.

"Do you really think the top universities in Asia for research are our own Yan and Shui Mu?"

"Aren't they?" Feng Yanan asked naturally.

Lu Shixian actually smiled and stated a fact that was hard for them to accept.

"Whether we're willing to accept it or not, we can't deny that for a very long time, the University of Tokyo has been the strongest in Asia. No exceptions."

Seeing them still stunned, Lu Shixian continued, "While the Nobel Prize doesn't tell the whole story of academic strength, getting one almost every year probably does."

This statement provoked an even stronger reaction.

"That's impossible! Japan has that kind of capability?" Yang Yihang refuted it without a second thought.

"No way. If you said the US, I'd believe it. But Japan is a tiny island nation. How many people do they even have?" Feng Yanan also firmly stated her opinion.

Wang Fuwen looked at the disagreeing parties and, for once, spoke up.

"I think I saw some news about Nobel Prizes when I was browsing the foreign internet."

"I don't remember the details, but I have a feeling Lu Shixian is probably right."

Lu Shixian glanced at him before continuing, "A few years ago, Japan announced a technology plan to win 30 Nobel Prizes in 50 years."

"Let's not talk about the distant past. You probably haven't paid attention to the Nobel Prizes in recent years."

"In 2000, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry went to Hideki Shirakawa."

"In 2001, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry went to Ryōji Noyori."

"In 2002, the Nobel Prize in Physics went to Masatoshi Koshiba, and the Nobel Prize in Chemistry went to Koichi Tanaka."

"And just last year, the Nobel Prizes in both Physics and Chemistry went to..."

Lu Shixian hadn't finished, but Feng Yanan stopped him.

"You don't have to say it. Last year's winners were just announced, we all know."

"I can't believe it. We've fallen so far behind in this area without even realizing it," she said with a sigh.

Yang Yihang said indignantly, "The Nobel Prize doesn't necessarily prove anything, but I have a hard time accepting that a tiny country like Japan has more than us."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian shot him a look and teased, "Then you go and win one!"

That left Yang Yihang speechless.

July 13, 2009.

Since Li Wendong and Meng Yunyun were sequestered to review the exam papers and couldn't be contacted, the team was led by their sole remaining pillar of support, Deng Xiaolian.

That morning, she led them to a magnificent, splendid conference hall prepared by the University of Tsukuba.

Under the brilliant, shining lights, fifty teams from all over the world had gathered.

Because the seating was arranged by continent, the Asian teams were mostly in the same area.

This allowed them to get a clear view of the Japanese contestants holding their sun flag.

Perhaps it was a perk of being the host nation, but their seats were right in the center of the hall.

Regardless of how other teams performed, defeating them was the biggest mission of this trip.

Lu Shixian turned his gaze to the Japanese contestants.

To his surprise, their team composition was identical to theirs: three boys and one girl.

Observing the team opposite them, Lu Shixian interrupted his teammates' chatter and pointed toward the center of the hall. "See them? That's the target we must defeat on this trip."

Yang Yihang was unfazed. Hearing Lu Shixian's words, he wasn't sure what he was getting at.

"We noticed them a while ago."

"What's up? Is there a problem?"

Chapter 142: A Pep Talk from the Father of iPS Cells

Lu Shixian put on a worried expression. "Their team composition is the same as ours. If our girls face off, Feng Yanan has the advantage."

The other three were completely baffled by this statement.

But Lu Shixian's next words were a bit hurtful.

"As for me, I can immodestly say I can take care of one of their guys."

"So, aside from me and Feng Yanan, you two weaklings probably can't even touch their shadows."

"Therefore, it's 2v2. Our advantage isn't that great. You could even say we're evenly matched. This is going to be a tough fight."

His meaning immediately dawned on them.

Feng Yanan shot him a glare. "While your assessment is spot on, this is a science olympiad. Who's competing in Taekwondo?!"

Just then, a voice from within the conference hall brought their conversation to a halt.

Fortunately, it was in English, so they could all understand.

"Next, please welcome a member of TIME magazine's '100 Most Influential People in the World,' winner of the Robert Koch Prize, founder of induced pluripotent stem cells, and professor at Kyoto University, Dr. Shinya Yamanaka, who will read the competition rules."

Having the head of the jury read the rules was a standard procedure in almost every science olympiad, so they were used to it.

It was just like in major exams back home, where the rules and regulations were always emphasized one last time.

What was different, however, was that when the middle-aged man in a suit appeared on stage, the hall erupted in thunderous applause.

Lu Shixian joined in the applause, paying his respects to the man walking to the podium.

Putting all other factors aside, at this moment, he truly deserved such a reception.

All pioneers who walk the path of exploring scientific truth deserve the utmost respect.

Because on the road to pursuing infinite truth, not many can leave a lasting mark, and he was certainly one of them.

Meanwhile, the rest of the team was startled by the commotion.

"Whoa, what the heck! That scared me."

"As expected of someone who's been in TIME magazine. Just showing up gets such a huge reaction," Yang Yihang remarked with feeling.

"Lu Shixian, you're clapping so hard. Don't tell me you know this guy?" Feng Yanan asked suspiciously.

Hearing their questions, Lu Shixian finally stopped clapping.

"He's a titan in the field of biology! Being in TIME magazine is actually his most trivial accomplishment."

"He's a world-renowned medical scientist, the leading authority on stem cells in Japan, the founder of induced pluripotent stem cells, President of the International Society for Stem Cell Research, a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, and has won the Robert Koch Prize and the Shaw Prize in Life Science and Medicine."

After that long list of titles, everyone acknowledged the achievements of the jury head.

But Lu Shixian could still hear Yang Yihang muttering, "So amazing, but he still hasn't won a Nobel Prize."

He was momentarily speechless, but there was nothing he could say.

He couldn't possibly reveal that in three years, Shinya Yamanaka, along with British developmental biologist John Gurdon, would win the 2012 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their groundbreaking contributions to cellular reprogramming.

He could only sigh to himself: A true master is a master, no matter what. Successful people really do succeed at everything they do.

Originally, Shinya Yamanaka's main research area was in cholesterol and lipid metabolism. He had switched to stem cell research by a twist of fate not long ago, and then, through a stroke of serendipity, discovered that introducing just four genes (Oct3/4, Sox2, Klf4, and c-Myc) could transform mature cells into stem cells.

The process was so simple that even he could hardly believe it. When he submitted it to *Cell*, he was worried it would be questioned and rejected.
But in the end, he succeeded. A postdoctoral researcher studying cholesterol, through an experimental error, had serendipitously discovered a method for inducing pluripotent stem cells, thereby becoming the world-renowned father of stem cells.

That’s why the path of scientific research is so fascinating; you never know when a breakthrough is just around the corner.

However, it must be emphasized that behind every accidental discovery lies a certain inevitability.

And that inevitability is the researcher's curiosity, love for truth, relentless pursuit, and the round-the-clock, uninterrupted experiments.

Although in 2018, his research institute was hit by an academic fraud scandal.

But he was merely caught in the crossfire. A research institute can have anywhere from a few to dozens of people.

As the director, responsible for both research and administration, how could he possibly be on top of every single detail?

At this moment, Shinya Yamanaka had finished reading the competition rules and, as was customary, was expected to give a speech.

After all, it was quite necessary for an accomplished titan in the field to offer some encouragement to the young newcomers.

So, he combined the speeches he had given at the Japan Society for Bioscience in December 2007 and at the Transplantation Society in September 2008.

He was speaking in Japanese, so the students below had to put on simultaneous interpretation devices, or else they wouldn't have understood a thing.

“Because I frequently broke bones while playing sports in my student days, I aspired to become an orthopedic surgeon after graduating from Kobe University. However, I discovered that in reality, there are still many injuries and illnesses that even famous doctors cannot cure. So, I decided to pursue basic medical research, to benefit more people through basic clinical medicine.”

“In 1999, I became an associate professor at the Nara Institute of Science and Technology. It was the first time I led a research team. My research topic was iPS cells. As a newcomer, I was afraid no one would join my group, so I had to coax everyone, telling them that there was a future with me, that they should come and chase their dreams.”

“Through repeated research and experiments by our team, my childhood dream was finally realized. The members of my research group also received their due honors, and the birth of iPS cells brought hope of survival to patients with terminal illnesses.”

As his voice fell, the entire hall erupted in continuous cheers and thunderous applause, everyone filled with admiration for his contributions to humanity.

As the head of the judging panel, his task was complete, and he left the venue directly.

Of course, his role was merely a formality.

A small International Biology Olympiad like this, were it not for the word "Olympiad" in its name, would not have warranted a special trip from him.

As the saying goes, the most potent inspiration often comes from the simplest of narratives.

Although Shinya Yamanaka's words were somewhat plain, the members of the Chinese team were deeply shaken. A seed of pursuing science for the nation and for the benefit of the people was planted in each of their hearts.

And Lu Shixian, watching his departing figure, felt a turmoil that would not subside.

“So, by pushing academic research to its absolute peak, one can truly gain immense honor and status, and thus transcend the limitations of race, color, and all forms of unfair discrimination?”

Chapter 143: A Surprising Practical Exam

The main procedures were mostly complete.

What remained was to draw lots to determine the examination rooms.

Fifty countries or regions, with four members per team, amounted to two hundred participants.

For this competition, ten examination rooms were arranged for these two hundred people.

Each room accommodated only twenty people, and all were equipped with the current international standard anti-cheating devices.

At this moment, neither radio signals nor electromagnetic waves could penetrate the rooms.

Having been forewarned, all four students had been careful to leave their phones at the hotel and had not brought any electronic devices.

They were still outside, looking at the exam desks spaced nearly a meter apart.

Feng Yanan couldn't help but exclaim, "With security measures this strict, who could possibly cheat successfully?"

"The IBO is truly on another level!"

Hearing her, Lu Shixian nodded in agreement. It certainly seemed that way.

But Yang Yihang refuted her point.

"You're mistaken. A veteran from our school who participated in the IMO told me that it's not impossible to cheat in this kind of competition."

"Even the IMO for mathematics has had instances of cheating, let alone the IBO. Although the exam setters aren't supposed to be present, if you really want to establish contact, it's not impossible with some effort. These things can be arranged."

"It's said that in a previous IBO, one student was discovered cheating and disqualified."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian began to understand and picked up the thread.

"That makes sense. It's just an opportunity for exchange. Even winning a gold medal doesn't fundamentally change much."

"But if you're caught cheating here, it would directly ruin that student's academic future. The weight of a gold medal versus the future of an elite talent—it's an easy choice to make."

Feng Yanan laughed outright. "By that logic, if you helped one of the contestants cheat, they might end up hating you for life."

Lu Shixian spread his hands without speaking, but his meaning was clear.

Everyone felt they had learned something new again. You really don't know what the world is like until you step outside.

By the afternoon, the contestants from fifty countries and regions were ready for the upcoming practical exam.

That's right, according to the international committee's schedule, the practical exam came first. Based on past precedent, there should be four problems.

Everyone was divided into two groups and would proceed in sequence.

So the labs they had drawn lots for in the morning were about to be put to use.

The first group of contestants quickly followed the guides into the laboratories.

Lu Shixian was in the second group, along with Wang Fuwen and Feng Yanan.

For now, they could only pray that Yang Yihang, who had just gone in, would complete the experiments smoothly.

But soon, they would have to worry about themselves.

Because it was almost the second group's turn.

Finally, guided by the staff, the three of them entered the lab they had drawn that morning.

However, this time, there were two experimental problems given.

Lu Shixian almost thought his eyes were deceiving him.

Why were there two experiments?

But after carefully reading the questions, he confirmed that it was indeed the case.

"Total Score: 100 points. Time: 90 min"

There were two experiments, but both fell under the category of molecular and cell biology.

It seemed this year was a bit different, a slight deviation from the previous format. This sort of thing happened every year at the IBO.

Lu Shixian could almost imagine the surprised expressions on his teammates' faces when they saw the paper.

People are often filled with curiosity and unease when faced with the unknown.

Lu Shixian felt this too, but right now, his curiosity far outweighed his unease.

After all, unexpected things happened in every competition. It was normal, and it wasn't incomprehensible for the question setters to introduce some innovations.

But overall, there wouldn't be any subversive changes from previous years; it would generally be acceptable.

He picked up the paper, which had been translated into Chinese characters, and began to examine the first question.

You might think an experimental problem would be just a few lines long, but in reality, the question description itself filled several pages.

Lu Shixian had to scan for keywords to quickly identify the core of the experiment.

Seeing the word "enzyme," Lu Shixian already had a good idea.

Looks like this is a biochemistry experiment.

Anything involving enzymes and catalytic reactions generally falls within the scope of biochemistry.

Before rushing into the experiment, Lu Shixian began to rapidly access his mental knowledge base on β-glucuronidase to prepare for the procedure.

β-glucuronidase is a hydrolase that can hydrolyze bilirubin diglucuronide, producing glucuronic acid and water-insoluble unconjugated bilirubin. It is widely present in various body tissues, most commonly in organs like the liver, gallbladder, and pancreas.

In short, wherever there is E. coli, you will find it.

Abroad, as early as the 1980s, the assay for β-glucuronidase levels was used as a basis for determining the presence of E. coli.

This method is fast, inexpensive, highly specific, and has a low error rate, leading to its widespread use in major hospitals and testing institutions.

So, this question was likely designed based on that background.

It was just like testing for E. coli in a hospital; nothing to be afraid of.

But that was just Lu Shixian's way of reassuring himself.

In a lab, applying the detection principle directly meant every step was crucial. One missed step could render all previous efforts useless.

In a hospital, they mostly relied on instruments, following a fixed procedure and directly reading the values to determine the concentration.

The results might seem similar, but the amount of work involved in the two processes was worlds apart.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but check the point value for this question, and suddenly he was baffled.

What the heck?

12 points?

The first experiment was only worth 12 points?

Lu Shixian quickly looked further down.

He saw that the title of the second question was "The Presence of Cyclin."

And the point value for this question was a terrifying 86 points!

He quickly scanned down and realized that the first experiment was relatively simple, only requiring confirmation of the presence of β-glucuronidase, not a measurement of its concentration.

The second experiment was more complex, revolving around a "cyclin precursor."

Below it was a dense list of sub-questions, all related, forming a series.

Difficulty being proportional to point value—that made perfect sense.

And don't ask where the remaining two points went.

They were on the first page of the exam paper: a total of four true/false questions, worth 0.5 points each.

True/false questions in a practical exam?

Lu Shixian was completely dumbfounded. This was a scenario he had never anticipated.

But he quickly adjusted his mindset and stopped overthinking.

This innovation was interesting, but it was only a change in the question types and quantity; the fundamental core remained unchanged.

The true/false questions were all related to the two experiments below, testing the understanding of the properties of β-glucuronidase and the cyclin precursor.

In less than three minutes, Lu Shixian secured those two points.

For him, it was a novel experience.

Of course, this was just the appetizer.

Because the real test was yet to come!

Chapter 144: The Incredible Haruna-san

Lu Shixian officially started on the first question.

Confirming the presence of β-glucuronidase.

With only 12 points, this question was basically a giveaway.

He began to check if there were any special restrictions in the question.

Oh? None!

This meant he had to design the experiment based on the provided equipment and apparatus.

And these were all conveniently listed next to the question, so he didn't have to search for them on the lab bench.

Lu Shixian's gaze swept over the listed equipment and apparatus.

He ignored the common materials and equipment, and suddenly, he found the answer among the chemical reagents.

[1 small centrifuge tube, containing fixative solution.]

That wasn't much, but what came next immediately pointed him in the right direction.

[1 small centrifuge tube, containing fixative buffer (FB).]

[1 small centrifuge tube, containing substrate buffer (SB).]

[1 small centrifuge tube, containing substrate X-Gluc (S).]

Like a natural reaction, upon seeing the substrate buffer, Lu Shixian knew he was supposed to use the enzyme-substrate method.

And when he saw X-Gluc, a broad smile spread across his face.

The main methods for measuring enzyme activity were the stopped-assay method and the continuous-assay method.

He had thought there might be some new trick, that he would have to use methods like fluorescence, polarimetry, or electrochemistry, and then use photochemical or electrochemical instruments for measurement.

It turned out to be the same old routine after all.

X-Gluc, or 5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indolyl-β-D-glucuronide, is a chromogenic substrate for detecting the β-glucuronidase gene.

The principle of its measurement is simple: glucuronidase cleaves X-Gluc, producing colorless glucuronic acid and a deep blue precipitate of chloro-bromoindigo.

If the goal was simply to determine the presence of β-glucuronidase, no further steps were needed.

Then, the deep blue precipitate would be measured using a spectrophotometer at a wavelength of 615nm.

Finally, he would write down the complete experimental procedure and conclusion on the answer sheet, and the question would be finished.

The entire process took him a mere ten minutes.

Having already secured 14 points, Lu Shixian let out a long sigh of relief. The first step of a long journey was complete.

With no time to linger, Lu Shixian began to tackle the second question.

This was the real tough nut to crack.

The question began with a brief introduction.

He had already skimmed it to answer the true/false questions.

Now, he needed to read it carefully, or he might not be able to proceed with the questions below.

[Trypanosomes are parasites that cause sleeping sickness in humans and animals... To better understand the functions of different proteins involved in the trypanosome cell cycle and infection pathways, a deletion of the cyclin precursor is performed. It is a surface protein found in trypanosomes, not yet discovered in other related species...]

This part introduced the cyclin precursor, serving as a primer with little practical value, so he read it quickly.

Its only function was to give Lu Shixian some context, to know what he was dealing with.

He continued reading.

[Step 1: Trypanosome cells are transfected or continuously transfected with an expression vector encoding both GAPR and β-glucuronidase proteins, and then cultured as a pure line. β-glucuronidase is not present in wild-type trypanosomes and serves only as a convenient reporter gene in this experiment...]

Reading this, Lu Shixian suddenly understood the purpose of the first experiment. No wonder there were two experiments; it was all planned.

This paragraph explained the experimental principle and was extremely important. Lu Shixian read it almost word for word, jotting down key information on his scratch paper.

The final paragraph.

[You need to manipulate the trypanosome strain to delete the gene encoding the cyclin precursor, which is crucial for confirming whether it has been infected... Since the deletion efficiency is not 100%, you need to separate the cells in which the cyclin precursor gene has been deleted from those where the deletion did not occur...]

This part described the experimental procedure and objective.

After reading the material, Lu Shixian finally had a grasp of the context of this experiment.

Now he could start answering the questions.

Scanning from top to bottom, he saw a total of 7 questions.

The first question was further divided into 3 sub-questions, each telling him how to proceed.

[How to use the counting chamber?]

This was a relatively easy question, as it laid out all the steps for him.

He just had to follow them.

Thus, only a few minutes after finishing the first experiment, Lu Shixian was in motion again.

He didn't notice at all that behind him, a girl was occasionally glancing at his movements, paying frequent attention to him.

Although there were partitions between the lab benches to block the line of sight, they only covered the desks.

They could prevent someone from inadvertently peeking at the answers on your exam paper.

But this didn't apply to the upper bodies of the contestants, as it was impossible to conduct experiments while sitting down.

Because she was doing an experiment, the girl's shoulder-length black hair was tied into a single ponytail.

She had already noticed Lu Shixian working with the counting chamber.

Looking at her own progress—still measuring the spectrum of the blue precipitate with a spectrophotometer—she quietly murmured "Sugoi" and "Chotto matte."

As a high school student from Japan, being a female representative for her country at the IBO meant her abilities had been rigorously tested.

Although theory was her weak point, her practical skills were a cut above her teammates.

She glanced around. The contestant next to her was from Russia, and sure enough, he was slower than her.

Yet, even so, compared to this boy, she was lagging far behind.

She found it incredible.

In the lab, a proctor was walking around, closely monitoring everyone's movements, especially the two contestants from his own country in this lab.

Unlike in China, although they were proctors, they acted more like security guards maintaining order in the lab; they didn't need to stare at each contestant's procedure.

Because all the questions were on the paper, and all procedures and answers had to be written down.

They were all professors or lecturers from various Japanese universities.

Unlike the cross-disciplinary proctoring model in China, they were all experts in the field.

At this moment, a professor with a proctor's badge had noticed the girl's unusual behavior.

"What is Haruna-san doing? Why is she so distracted?"

However, when he followed the girl's gaze, he too was stunned.

This student's movements are so fluid!

Wait, this isn't the procedure for the first question.

It's only been a few minutes. He's already started the second question?

Then, under the pretext of patrolling, he walked over to Lu Shixian's side and glanced at his exam paper.

Instantly, he couldn't stop repeating in his mind: Shinjirarenai.

Truly unbelievable!

The steps were written in great detail and were very likely all correct.

Contestants from other countries were only halfway through the first experiment, and he had already finished the first part of the second experiment?

He had seen Chinese contestants in this lab before.

While some were skilled, they all worked methodically.

Fine work takes time; it was impossible to be this fast.

What was going on with this contestant?

Chapter 145: Mysterious Power from the East

However, Lu Shixian was completely unaware that he was being watched.

He was fully focused on tackling the second question.

It was another procedural question: [Washing the magnetic beads]. Wash the magnetic beads twice according to the steps.

This part also had three steps, purely testing operational skill, serving as a bridge between the previous and next parts.

It was probably not very important, as no point value was given on the paper.

So Lu Shixian had no interest in spending too much time on it.

First step, pour in phosphate-buffered saline (PBSB). Second step, place the centrifuge tube on a magnetic rack and allow the beads to be pulled down.

Third step, discard the supernatant, resuspend the beads in 35ml of phosphate-buffered saline, and finally place it on ice.

For experimental steps without points, Lu Shixian's hands always moved quickly.

Soon, he reached the third question: [Testing the density of trypanosomes that do not bind to the magnetic beads].

Following the steps, pull down the cyclin precursor trypanosomes in the three samples T1, T2, and T3.

This question was clearly a difficult one, with 10 sub-questions and a point value of 37.5.

Lu Shixian's focus sharpened instantly.

After a few minutes of reading and thinking, he began the procedure once again.
Lu Shixian had never felt an experiment go so smoothly.

In fact, this type of exam, which provided the steps and tested practical skills, was perfect for him.

This was the result of an accumulation of experience from two lifetimes, where quantitative change had led to a qualitative leap.

It was like building a house where the blueprint had already been provided. The most important thing now was to follow the given design and gradually complete it.

Question 4: [Test the total density of trypanosomes].

Determine the total density of trypanosomes in the original suspension.

Question 5: [Probability of successfully deleting the cyclin precursor].

This was the ultimate goal of the experiment: based on the average of the counts, calculate and compare the density of trypanosomes not bound to magnetic beads with the total density in the initial suspension.

But first, he had to calculate how many significant figures the standard error of the mean (semean) had…

This question was a bit ridiculous; it had five sub-questions in total.

The calculation was rather extensive, with the numbers in the problem going to four decimal places.

But with a calculator, it was manageable.

Question 6: [Confirmation of binding to magnetic beads].

Next was to confirm under the microscope whether the reduction of trypanosomes after being pulled down by the magnetic beads was due to the binding of the trypanosomes and the beads.

After finishing this question, Lu Shixian looked at the paper again.

He suddenly realized there were no more experiments to do, because this question simply said, "Please describe your results."

Could it be?

So short?

It's already time for the summary?

If he strictly followed the experimental procedure, there should have been at least two more questions.

Lu Shixian could even come up with a couple of questions for it himself.

For example, the correlation between the reduction of trypanosomes and their binding to the magnetic beads, the deletion efficiency among the three trypanosome species, and so on.

How could it just be over?

After writing the experimental summary, Lu Shixian put down the paper and picked up the sheet for the second problem.

This one seemed to test content related to plant physiology and anatomy.

Meanwhile, the girl behind him no longer dared to watch Lu Shixian's movements. She forced herself to lower her head and start her own experiment.

If she kept watching, she was afraid she would lose all confidence to continue.

It wasn't just the person behind him anymore; even the guys to his left and right had noticed his situation.

“OMG! Is this the mysterious power from the East?” an African brother's mouth fell open, his expression exaggerated.

This situation only gradually subsided after the proctor began to patrol around Lu Shixian more frequently.

Lu Shixian had breezed through the biochemistry experiment.

Now, he had arrived at the botany experiment, his specialty.

This process would only be smoother.

An hour later, Lu Shixian had completed both experiments.

There was still half an hour left before the exam ended.

Although he was done, Lu Shixian chose not to leave early this time.

Because the IBO allowed for corrections, as long as the changes were clearly marked.

Moreover, the results of the international competition were quite important, not just to complete the mission of winning glory for his country, but also to secure an excellent ranking to help him get into Yuanpei College.

Therefore, he didn't dare to slack off in the slightest and began to meticulously check his exam paper.

Although the experimental procedures couldn't be changed, any errors in the answers he filled in or wrote could be found and corrected.

So, he waited patiently until the proctor announced that there were five minutes left.

By then, he had already checked the paper twice.

Only then did he have a moment to observe the situation of the contestants from other countries in the exam hall.

He didn't know until he looked, but one glance left him stunned.

No way.

How could there be people with so much left blank?

That guy's mood must be as explosive as his hair!

Is this the national team or the preliminary round?

The last time he saw something like this was...

Emmm, he realized he had never seen such a situation even back in China.

Because experiments were only part of the provincial and national competitions, and a situation where a large number of participants failed to finish had seemingly never occurred.

Five minutes were up, and the proctors began collecting the papers.

Everyone started to leave in an orderly fashion.

Lu Shixian escaped the stuffy laboratory and walked out quickly.

Staying in the same place for too long really causes eye strain. As soon as Lu Shixian got out, he stopped and began to rub his slightly swollen eyes.

Suddenly, a clear female voice reached his ear.

“Konnichiwa!”

Huh?

Lu Shixian lowered his hands and turned his head to find a girl standing gracefully in front of him.

The girl was only as tall as his shoulder, with delicate features, looking quite petite.

Wasn't this that... that what's-her-name.

Finally, his slightly foggy brain managed to function. Connecting it with the language he had just heard, wasn't this the girl from the Japanese team?

What does she want from me?

They didn't seem to have any connection, did they?

He was growing more and more confused.

Needless to say, he didn't speak Japanese, so Lu Shixian began to communicate with her in English.

“Hello, can I help you with something?”

“If not, I’ll be going. I’m in a hurry!”

Although Lu Shixian's spoken English wasn't perfect, it was good enough for her to understand.

Hearing Lu Shixian's words, the girl was suddenly taken aback.

Her large eyes filled with confusion.

Leaving already? In a hurry?

But there was still a long time before the second practical exam.

As if afraid he would really leave, the girl quickly asked, “My name is Hoshino Haruna. May I ask your name? And which team are you on?”

Lu Shixian was completely dumbfounded.

What is this situation???

I don't think I did anything, right?

Why is a girl asking for my name?

Could she be trying to get information about our team through me?

The more Lu Shixian thought, the more absurd it seemed. He hastily threw out a sentence and slipped away.

“My name is Ma Baoguo, from the Taiwan Provincial Team of China. And I really do have somewhere to be.”

Chapter 146: He Must Have Our Blood

The incident was rather bewildering, and Lu Shixian couldn't figure out the motive the entire walk back.

He decided to just put the matter out of his mind.

At this point, there was about an hour left before the second practical exam.

Deng Xiaolian waved them over. The "Four Musketeers" had gathered once again.

“How did the practical go, kids? What were the topics?”

As members of the national team, there was no taboo against discussing answers, as everyone had strong psychological resilience.

At this, the four of them glanced at each other, then quickly looked away.

Finally, the gazes of the other three gradually shifted to Lu Shixian.

“Come on, aren’t you God Lu? Recalling the exam questions is torture for us, but it’s a different story for you,” said Yang Yihang teasingly, having never called him ‘God Lu’ before.

Lu Shixian shook his head with a smile and briefly summarized the two problems.

Then he asked them, “How about you?”

The three of them nodded. “We thought there might be differences after being grouped, but it turns out they were all the same.”

“Forget the botany experiment, that cyclin precursor one was just insane! My mind went completely numb! I guess my score will just be enough to not drag the team down,” Yang Yihang began to complain.

At the mention of this, even the usually optimistic Feng Yanan and the calm Wang Fuwen looked grave.

“That must be the ceiling for difficulty in this year's IBO practical exam. The later questions definitely won't be harder than that.”

“Anyway, I finished everything, but I can't be sure about the accuracy. Experiments have a strong subjective component.”

“I should be fine on the points I'm supposed to get. The rest is the practical operation part, and I'm not sure how many points the committee will give for that,” Feng Yanan assessed her exam paper quite objectively.

At this point, Wang Fuwen also stated his situation.

“Too many questions, didn't score fully.” He was concise as always.

“I’m pretty much the same as you guys, I guess…”

Just as Lu Shixian was about to report his situation, the others stopped him in unison.

“You don't need to say.”

Finally, all eyes converged on Yang Yihang again.

Yang Yihang suddenly looked aggrieved, his heart and soul deeply wounded.

“Why are you looking at me? At least I finished. There were plenty of people who didn't even get that far.”

“That curry-bro next to me wasn't as fast as me. The key thing is, that curry-bro loves to eat. He'd do a bit of the experiment, then eat something, treating the place like a restaurant.”

“If my willpower wasn't so strong, I might have been distracted by him.”

At that, the others all burst out laughing.

Deng Xiaolian explained with a smile, “This exam is very demanding on one's physical stamina. As long as the food is inspected, the IBO committee doesn't prohibit eating in the exam hall.”

“Alright, don't put too much psychological pressure on yourselves. Remember, you've passed through the preliminaries, the provincial league, the national competition, and the national team selection trials to get here.”

“Other countries don't have such a rigorous selection process, so as long as you perform at your normal level, you should be fine.”

With Deng Xiaolian's words, the spirits of the Chinese team members suddenly lifted.

“That's right, we were the ones who stood out from hundreds of thousands of students. We've overcome so many difficulties and obstacles to reach this stage.”

“Why let a single cloud obscure the sunlight that covers the entire blue sky?”

“Part the clouds and mist to see the clear sky!”

It had to be said, sometimes having a veteran member on the team really made a difference.

They have walked so many roads and seen so much scenery that their casual words can point the way for those who are lost.

At this moment, even Lu Shixian felt invigorated, as if nothing could stop them.

An hour later, the four members of the Chinese team, armed with their newly acquired buff, charged into the second practical exam.

Previously, two sets of experimental equipment were set up at the same time. This time, the exam format was slightly different.

The laboratory was the same one as before; the one-hour break was just to allow the staff to change the experimental equipment.

Lu Shixian didn't know what considerations the Japanese organizing committee had for arranging it this way, but it made no difference to him.

He arrived at the same exam hall and lab bench again.

The previous set of equipment was indeed gone, replaced by brand new apparatus.

The first major question was on animal anatomy, physiology, and systematics.

It also presented a piece of material, explaining that in Indonesia, the salt concentration in brackish water is strongly affected by the seasons, decreasing significantly during the rainy season and increasing sharply during the dry season.

This experiment tested the acute response of juvenile fish to drastic changes in salt concentration.

Though it was called an experiment, it was more like a statistics problem.

The data from three repeated experiments were already provided in the question.

He just had to plot a linear function graph of the average mortality rate against salt concentration for the three replicate experiments, and then it tested some knowledge related to systematics.

The following questions were even simpler.

It actually tested probability and statistical analysis. He had to take the logarithm of all the given data and then use the least squares method to estimate the data.

After calculating the final result, it was over.

Lu Shixian was at a loss for words.

This was a practical exam?

An experiment that required no practical operation…

You've really outdone yourself!

Finally, Lu Shixian quickly moved on to the second question: ecology and ethology.

There were three sub-questions in total: island biogeography for 17 points, primary succession after a volcanic eruption for 52 points, and speciation in songbirds for 31 points.

They were all related to ecology and biodiversity, including topics on succession and plant community structure, and the dispersal biology of Ficus plants.

Seeing this, Lu Shixian already understood the overall situation of this IBO's practical exams.

If he had to rank the four practical exams by difficulty, then molecular biology would definitely be first, followed by animal anatomy, physiology, and systematics, then plant anatomy and physiology, and finally ecology and ethology.

Of course, this was his personal ranking; how others saw it was none of his business.

For instance, the fourth experiment was considered one of the easiest types back in China. Even if the IBO increased its difficulty somewhat, it didn't change the fact that it was essentially giving away points.

He spent fifty minutes finishing it, and also checked it over carefully.

Lu Shixian looked at the timer; there were exactly thirty minutes left.

So, for the first time, he used the small flag to call the proctor.

He expressed his intention to turn in his paper and leave the lab early in English.

Amidst the astonished gazes of everyone present, he walked out of the exam hall alone.

“Unbelievable!”

“He must have our blood.”

“The Chinese can always create miracles!”

Many of the foreign guys were shocked by this.

Chapter 147: Not Ma, This is Lu

Half an hour later, crowds began to pour out of the exits of the several laboratories.

At that moment, in a corner of a teaching building at the University of Tsukuba.

For the first time since the competition began, the Chinese team was assembled so completely.

“Huh?”

“Team Leader Li, Sister Yunyun, you’re back!”

“Weren't you not allowed to come out during the exam period?” Feng Yanan was both happy and curious to see the two of them.

Li Wendong explained.

“According to the organizers' arrangements, the team leaders from each country must participate in grading the practical exams to ensure the fairness of the competition.”

“And you all will have a group activity tomorrow, probably some sightseeing. The theory exam will be the day after.”

Hearing this, Feng Yanan and Yang Yihang jumped up in delight.

Lu Shixian, on the other hand, had to give a thumbs-up to the organizers, saying with a peculiar expression, “Foreigners sure know how to have fun, going sightseeing the day before an exam.”

Hearing this, Deng Xiaolian smiled and said, “Different countries have different customs. Some countries emphasize liberating one's nature, while we are more reserved and introverted.”

“Since you have this opportunity, just go and have fun. Everyone is in the same boat anyway. Just get your minds back on track before the exam.”

Hearing this, Yang Yihang nodded in strong agreement.

“That's right. Even if we don't do well on the exam, at least we have to have fun. Can't fail at both, right!”

His twisted logic immediately drew a merciless glare from Feng Yanan.

“You damn jinx! Can't we just do well on the exam AND have fun?”

Finally, the conversation turned back to the practical exam.

“You should all really thank Miss Meng Yunyun. She helped translate most of the content on your papers from Russian.”

“This time's questions were very strange. A lot of the English-to-Chinese translations were misleading.”

Suddenly, Lu Shixian remembered the sight of many foreign guys scratching their heads in frustration, and he seemed to understand something.

“No wonder! So some of them couldn't do it not because they lacked the ability, but because their translators were saboteurs!”

Hearing Lu Shixian's joke, joyous laughter erupted from everyone in the corner.

The next morning, as expected, they received a notice to gather at the entrance of the University of Tsukuba.

Japan has a subtropical monsoon climate. The average temperature in the capital during the coldest month is 6.1°C, and the average during the hottest month is 27.8°C.

Tsukuba was not far from the capital, and it was currently July, the height of summer.

So, they all changed into short sleeves and shorts.

Feng Yanan was wearing a denim overall dress. If she covered her long hair, she looked a bit like a tomboy.

When they stepped out of the school gate, the boys were stunned by the captivating sight before them.

Blood suddenly dripped from Yang Yihang's nose.

“My God, are these really high school students with figures like that?”

“Compared to them, Sister Yanan is like…”

However, before he could finish his sentence, he was cut off by Feng Yanan's menacing voice.

“Fatty, what are you trying to say?”

A drop of cold sweat appeared on his face as he mentally cursed himself for getting carried away.

But he was quick to salvage the situation with his words.

“Like a little fairy.”

Feng Yanan knew what he was thinking, but she also knew his character, so she didn't press the issue.

A moment later, he suddenly pointed to a blonde, blue-eyed girl not far away and said, “I'm done for. That girl is exactly my type.”

Everyone followed his gaze and saw that she was a member of the Russian national team.

Looking at her, even Lu Shixian had to admit that Yang Yihang's taste was not bad.

So he teased him with a smile, “Didn't Professor Yamanaka say it? If you have a dream, go chase it! Maybe she'll come looking for you.”

Yang Yihang pouted and said, “Chase my foot. As if anyone's looking for you.”

Just then, a girl with a gentle smile suddenly appeared next to their group, bowing as she asked.

“I’m so sorry to bother you all, but is Mr. Ma here?”

Hearing the voice, everyone turned around to find a girl with long, straight black hair standing before them.

Lu Shixian, however, was a bit stunned. Although the girl had changed from a uniform to a short skirt, he would never mistake that height.

Wasn't this... that Hoshino Haruna?

I already told her my name was Ma Baoguo and I was on the Taiwan team, so what's going on?

No way, she found me even with that?

Lu Shixian quickly and casually turned his body to gaze at the distant scenery.

At this moment, no one noticed Lu Shixian's strange behavior.

Since she had spoken in English, Feng Yanan, who was closest to her, also replied in English, “It's okay. There's no one with the surname Ma here. You might have the wrong person.”

But she didn't notice the sly glint in the girl's eyes. The girl suddenly pointed in a certain direction.

“Isn't that Mr. Ma?”

“That's not Ma, that's Lu!”

“Oh, then I'm not looking for Ma anymore. I'm looking for Mr. Lu now.”

At this, Yang Yihang's eyes were about to pop out of their sockets.

What the hell?

What is this situation now?

By now, the girl had already walked up to Lu Shixian and extended her right hand to him.

“Mr. Lu, sorry to bother you. I'm Hoshino Haruna from the high school affiliated with Tsukuba University.”

“It's a pleasure to meet you.”

Lu Shixian had no choice but to turn around, forcing an awkward but polite smile.

“Hello, there!”

He really didn't know why this girl seemed to be stuck on him. If it was because of some good quality he had...

Fine, he would definitely change it!

That was, of course, a joke. The main reason was that he was completely baffled.

A stranger approaching you for no reason must have a motive.

This was a golden rule.

Just as he was about to get to the bottom of it, the girl surprisingly left quickly, leaving a small gift for everyone.
If it weren't for the tangible weight of the exquisite "Complete Guide to Touring Tsukuba" in their hands, everyone would have thought they were seeing things.

Suddenly, a hint of sourness filled the air. It was Yang Yihang.

"Is there no justice in this world?"

Instantly, Feng Yanan and Wang Fuwen also cast inquisitive glances his way.

"What's going on? Can someone please explain?"

Lu Shixian was in a real bind. It was something he couldn't even explain to himself, let alone to others.

He had to fight fire with fire. "I can't even keep up with all the pretty girls back home, why would I have time for the ones in the island nation?"

"That's impossible, and I state that for the record."

Seeing the others nod in agreement, Lu Shixian finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Just when he thought the matter was settled, Yang Yihang chimed in with a sour remark.

"You could just win her over and bring her back!"

"How come I never get a chance like this to bring glory to our country?"

For some reason, hearing this made Lu Shixian suddenly think of a certain Sister Ling...

Chapter 148: Ordinary Yet Extraordinary

This included Mount Tsukuba and Lake Kasumigaura, places they had wanted to visit but couldn't before, which made up for a small regret.

Soon, it was the next day.

The four members of the Chinese team were on high alert, because this was the final, and most crucial, competition.

Tokyo time, 8:00 AM.

The 20th IBO Theoretical Exam officially began.

Lu Shixian took the freshly delivered test paper and began to review the questions.

"Dear participant, today you will be taking the theoretical portion of the exam, which will last a total of 260 minutes."

The meaning was clear. This was going to be a battle of more than four consecutive hours. The test of endurance had arrived.

"The test paper consists of two parts, A and B."

"Some questions in Part A are multiple choice, which means there may be various answers, but only one multiple-choice answer is correct... The situation in Part B is more complex, with variations in the answering format..."

This was more or less the same as during training, so he continued reading.

"Do not make corrections on the answer sheet. If you must make a change, it must be very clear..."

"Answer in any order you like. We wish you success!"

Although he had seen similar phrasing during training, Lu Shixian still had to read it through carefully.

If he missed any subtle changes and made a huge mistake due to negligence, it really wouldn't be worth it.

There were no section markers; the paper immediately presented him with cell biology.

He gave Part A a quick scan. There was nothing worth writing home about; it was all just an appetizer.

He looked at the first question: How are polypeptides transferred from their synthesis site on cytoplasmic ribosomes to the mitochondria?

Just as expected, not much of a challenge.

Lu Shixian began to briefly review his knowledge on the topic.

"The transported polypeptide has an initial signal sequence. Transport proteins recognize these sequences and bind to them, eventually carrying these proteins to the surface of chloroplasts and mitochondria."

"Then, through the action of transmembrane proteins, they reach the interior of the mitochondria and chloroplasts. Finally, the signal sequence is cleaved, and the proteins are reassembled and folded into their required forms."

With a sense of anticipation, Lu Shixian circled the large B and C options on his test paper, hoping to encounter a more interesting question later.

He looked forward to the second question, which asked how the number of mitochondria and plastids increases in a cell.

Uh, is there some mistake?

Am I taking the college entrance exam in biology?

He did a few more questions, and sure enough, they were all gimmes.

A strange expression began to creep onto Lu Shixian's face.

Because one question suddenly almost made him lose his composure.

In which phase does DNA replication occur?

A. G1 phase B. S phase C. G2 phase D. M phase

How was he supposed to comment on a question like this?

So this was the international competition?

It was ridiculously simple.

But it was still somewhat acceptable.

After all, with so many questions, there were bound to be one or two basic ones mixed in.

Lu Shixian resigned himself to it. Even if it was simple, he still had to put pen to paper and complete it.

Soon, Lu Shixian had breezed through all the questions in Part A, as they posed no obstacle to him whatsoever.

Next, he carefully examined Part B.

Some of these questions looked quite difficult.

The questions were long, seeming like they were meant to be the final, most challenging ones.

But as he began to work on them, he was pleased to discover they were all paper tigers, formidable on the outside but weak on the inside.

"So, they look decent, but that's all they are."

"Do they really think setting five options—A, B, C, D, and E—in a multiple-choice question can confuse anyone?"

He was now at question 86, which asked for the molecular formula of a polymer made of 10 glucose (C6H12O6) units.

"Surely no one would actually choose answer B, C60H120O60, right? This is a condensation reaction, hello!"

Simply put, during the condensation of a decasaccharide, 9 molecules of H2O, or water, would be lost in the process.

Lu Shixian was unfazed by now. There could be no other answer, so he directly chose option E, C60H102O51.

It really wasn't hard.

Had the question-setter been overworking lately and fried his brain?

He conquered the next few long questions that looked like final bosses one by one.

Then, he couldn't help but glance at the performance of the other contestants around him.

The big guy from the Americas in the third row to his left was staring blankly at the paper, eyes rolled back like a dead fish.

And why did the pale-faced kid in the second row to his right suddenly look like he'd just downed a bottle of vodka?

How many drinks did he have? Why was his face so red?

Was it really that hard?

Lu Shixian suddenly seemed to understand something, and it all became clear.

It wasn't that the questions were too easy, but that I have evolved!

He had overlooked one thing: it wasn't that the questions weren't difficult.

The difficulty was actually the same; it was he who was no longer the same person he was during the national competition.

After more than a month of arduous training, his knowledge base and problem-solving abilities had undergone a qualitative leap.

If the journey of learning were likened to the stages of a scholar, he had already passed the first stage of confused searching, of "Last night the west wind withered the green trees. Alone I climbed the high tower, to gaze my fill along the road to the horizon."

He had also crossed the second stage of diligent, tireless practice, of "My belt grows looser, but I have no regrets. For her, I am content to waste away."

And now, he was in the third stage of enlightenment, where knowledge and practice became one, of "I searched for him a thousand times in the crowd. Suddenly, I turned back, and there he was, in the dimming lamplight."

So it was an illusion.

Out of the total time of over four hours, Lu Shixian spent nearly three hours sweeping through the hundred-plus questions in Parts A and B.

With more than an hour left, Lu Shixian checked his answers again and again, then covered his answer sheet and began to draw.

Of course, sleeping was out of the question. Your actions are uncontrolled in dreams.

If he dreamt of something and tore up his test paper, it would truly be a case of joy turning to sorrow.

In an hour, a scientific illustration of a chickweed plant appeared on the paper.

Then, Lu Shixian wrote eight characters next to it as a note.

"A verdant herb, known as chickweed."

There were many reasons to like chickweed, but perhaps the most crucial was its symbolism: born into obscurity but refusing to be ordinary.

12:20 PM.

With that, the IBO theoretical exam officially concluded.

All participants began to leave the hall.

On the desk, the lifelike white flower, the size of a little finger, was still blooming with effort.

And Lu Shixian himself seemed to stand even taller.

This time, he didn't attract anyone's attention.

He slowly disappeared with the crowd.

Ordinary yet extraordinary.

Chapter 149: The IBO Finally Concludes

The completion of the theoretical exam did not mean the end of this year's IBO.

There were still a series of events to follow, such as answer reviews, score verification, the award ceremony, and the closing ceremony.

The members of the Chinese team met up again, and this time they had fewer reservations.

They complained when they wanted to complain and said whatever was on their minds.

"Who wrote these questions? I feel like they're not even up to the level of our national qualifiers."

"You fatty, you say that like you can get a perfect score."

Hearing this, Yang Yihang scratched his head and said, "Hehe, a perfect score is impossible, but getting a high score shouldn't be a problem, right?"

Perhaps because the pressure was off, or perhaps because he had done well, even the usually quiet Wang Fuwen spoke up. "To be honest, this set of theoretical questions really isn't on par with the national competition, but there were a few very difficult questions in Part B."

"Especially that one about converting a freshwater fish to a saltwater fish and the main theoretical problems to solve. That question was such a trap. Why a fill-in-the-blank instead of a multiple-choice? I only knew osmoregulation."

Lu Shixian listened to their discussion in silence, not daring to voice his own opinion.

Just then, Team Leader Li heard their discussion. "Alright, alright, since the exam is over, you all should relax."

"According to the organizers' schedule, tomorrow is for reviewing the answers and scores, and then the final medal rankings will be decided based on the results."

"And your itinerary for tomorrow is a visit to Hitachi Seaside Park. In the evening, at the bonfire party, each country is expected to prepare a short performance."

As soon as he said this, the four of them were stunned, exclaiming in unison.

"A performance!?"

They had been quite happy to hear about visiting the park.

But performing was something completely out of their wheelhouse.

"Team Leader Li, I've never heard of this being a part of the IBO before," Yang Yihang said, looking the most distressed.

It was clear he was the most resistant to the idea.

Lu Shixian looked at his pathetic state and laughed. "There are fifty countries, which means fifty performances. How long is one evening?"

"I bet it's just like a fashion show, you go up, walk around for a bit, and you're done. You think we're debuting as a group?"

Hearing Lu Shixian's analysis, the others instantly felt much better.

The next day, a large group of several hundred people traveled to Hitachi Seaside Park in Ibaraki Prefecture.

Lu Shixian had initially thought there wouldn't be much to see, but when he arrived, he realized he was wrong.

It was summer, and millions of blue nemophila flowers were in full bloom. Standing there was like wading in an ocean of flowers.

Even with Lu Shixian's poor aesthetic sense, he was somewhat captivated by this vast, boundless sea of blossoms.

A seaside park naturally couldn't be without a coastline.

That evening, a grand bonfire party was held there.

The lights, the starlight, the moonlit night, and the crashing waves combined and pieced together into a series of heart-stirring images.

Breathing in the fragrance of the flower sea, the nearby lights and distant starlight reflected off each other, illuminating the sometimes calm, sometimes turbulent surface of the sea. From a distance, it looked like a vast river of stars, or a sky full of a thousand evening stars.

The reflection in one's eyes was the most unforgettable sight.

Tonight, some sang their hearts out, some danced gracefully, and some laughed joyfully.

And you would never guess what the Chinese team's performance was.

That's right, Chinese martial arts!

Feng Yanan, it turned out, was full of hidden talents. The three artistically challenged members had forced her to show off some of her fancy moves.

But even so, it drew cries of astonishment from many of the foreigners that night.

"Incredible! Chinese kung fu!"

The third day.

At nine in the morning, in the same hall where the opening ceremony was held.

A grand closing ceremony was taking place, where teams from fifty countries and regions gathered for the last time.

"Lovely boys and girls, today we gather here to celebrate the perfect success of the 20th International Biology Olympiad. On behalf of the IBO committee, I now declare the closing ceremony officially open!"

After another round of song and dance, it was time for the main event, the most exciting moment of this IBO.

"We will now announce the bronze medal winners of the 20th IBO. Please welcome the award presenters to present them with their medals."

As expected, no names from the Chinese team were on the host's list.

After the routine applause and photos, several groups of bronze medals were awarded.

"We will now announce the silver medal winners of the 20th IBO."

Hearing this, the members of the Chinese team began to listen intently.

Based on their own estimates, it was impossible for them to get anything less than a silver.

Therefore, once the list of silver medalists was confirmed, they could deduce how many gold medals they had won.

But even after the host read the last name, not a single one of them had been called up.

Back in their seats, Deng Xiaolian, who was still with the team, gave the four of them a thumbs-up with a smile.

"Four gold medals. You all did great!"

Including Lu Shixian, although everyone appeared calm, they were all suppressing the joy in their hearts. It was not yet time to release it.

The announcement of the gold medal winners had now begun.

According to the rules, only 10% of the participants could win a gold medal.

This meant that only twenty gold medals would be awarded at this IBO, based on ranking.

"The twentieth place gold medalist is Polina from Russia."

As the words fell, a doll-like girl walked up to the awards stage with a look of ecstatic surprise, and a gleaming gold medal was hung around her neck.

Below the stage, countless rounds of applause rang out for the lucky girl.

When the sixteenth name was called, a Chinese name appeared for the first time.

"...is Yihang Yang!"

At these words, the Chinese team shot to their feet, applauding wildly.

"Fatty, what are you spacing out for!"

"Go get your award!"

Yang Yihang seemed to have just been snapped awake. A moment of daze was followed by immense surprise.

Although he had anticipated this result, sometimes you just couldn't be at ease until you heard it with your own ears.

He immediately scurried up to receive his gold medal.

For the next several names, no one from the Chinese team was called.

The three still in their seats could no longer sit still.

Just as they were getting anxious, they heard the news that Wang Fuwen had won the 10th place gold medal.

The applause was continuous. After a few more names, it was Feng Yanan's turn to take the stage.

Fifth place gold medal, that was her result!

As she ran onto the stage, Lu Shixian could even see the tears in the corners of her eyes.

Including this time, she had been constantly improving. Lu Shixian could imagine how many nights of burning the midnight oil it had taken to achieve this result.

Another three people went on stage. Next came the grand finale of the day, the first place gold medalist.

"I will now announce that the World Number One of the 20th IBO is..."

Chapter 150: An Unforeseen, Legendary Twist

"Lu Shixian!"

"Let's all stand and congratulate him, from the distant East."

The host from the International Olympiad Committee shouted with joy.

The entire venue erupted in incredibly enthusiastic applause, whistles, and cheers.

At this point, all twenty gold medalists were standing in a row, basking in the glow of the flashing cameras.

After the photo op, Lu Shixian was about to leave with the others but was stopped by the host.

"One moment, please! Mr. Lu. And could everyone else please remain calm for a moment."

Lu Shixian looked at him, wondering what he was up to. In any case, he already had the gold medal, so waiting a little longer was no big deal.

Below the stage, the crowd slowly quieted down.

The host finally began to reveal the mystery.

"Although each IBO is slightly different, the difficulty level does not fluctuate greatly, so the results are comparable. This year's results have also been fairly reviewed and unanimously decided upon by the expert panel and the team leaders from all countries."

"The student next to me achieved an astonishing weighted average score of 98.7 across the four practical exams, which directly shatters the historical record recognized by the International Olympiad Committee."

"And his theoretical score has also created a miracle, with a 100% accuracy rate in both Parts A and B, tying the best record."

The host suddenly raised Lu Shixian's right hand.

"He has broken the record, he has made history, he has created a miracle. I now declare him officially crowned as World Number One!"

Instantly, the crowd of onlookers below exploded, and the atmosphere reached its peak.

The initial chaos slowly became a unified chant over time.

"Miracle! Miracle! Miracle!..."

That probably translates to Miracle Boy, right?

Lu Shixian didn't quite know what to say. His feelings were rather complicated.

At this moment, he had no idea what kind of legendary twist this was and could only let it continue.

The host grew even more excited, veins popping on his neck.

"Therefore, after discussion, the International Biology Olympiad Committee has successfully applied to the International Olympic Committee to bestow upon him the first-ever Olympic olive wreath crown in history, to commend him for his breakthrough achievements in the Biology Olympiad."

As soon as he said this, the entire hall fell into a strange silence for a few seconds.

Then came a roar of celebration that broke through the heavens. The atmosphere, having just reached its peak, was elevated once again.

Awarding an academic olympiad champion an olive wreath crown, even though they both bore the "Olympic" name, was something that had never happened before.

But at this moment, starting with him, history was made.

Below the stage, even his teammates were astonished.

"Holy cow, Lu Shixian has really been crowned a god this time. I'm going to have to call him God Lu from now on."

"This is too insane! I don't think even a perfect-score IMO champion gets this kind of treatment," Yang Yihang said, his eyes wide with shock.

Although Feng Yanan usually bickered with him, at this moment, she had to agree with his point.

Deng Xiaolian, standing beside them, offered her own insight.

"I think, first and foremost, Lu Shixian's performance truly conquered them. You have to understand, the Biology Olympiad isn't like the Math Olympiad. No matter what methods they use, the final answer doesn't lie. That's why every few years you hear about someone getting a perfect score and a gold medal at the IMO."

"And while Lu Shixian didn't get a perfect score this time, in biology experiments, it's impossible for anyone to be perfect. Error is something that can never be eliminated, so the judges can always find a reason to deduct points."

"So not only has his score surpassed all predecessors, but it will likely be very difficult for anyone in the future to surpass him."
Glancing at the dashing young man basking in the spotlight, Deng Xiaolian added, "Secondly, I think that compared to how well other academic competitions are thriving, the International Biology Olympiad Committee was getting antsy."

"This person had to have competition results that were beyond reproach, while also appealing to the general public's aesthetic. I don't think anyone is better suited for this task than him."

"So, the committee meticulously orchestrated a star making campaign to garner some media attention and give the declining biology competition a much needed boost. I can't think of any other reason they would go to such lengths."

After her analysis, the others all nodded in understanding.

Meanwhile, the ceremony on stage continued.

"Now, let's welcome the Chairman of the International Biology Olympiad Committee, Jaroslav Havel, to bestow upon him the Olympic olive wreath."

At that, the chairman who had just spoken reappeared from backstage.

This time, he was holding a wreath woven from olive branches, walking slowly toward Lu Shixian at the front of the stage.

"Son, you've made history. I look forward to your future!" With that, Jaroslav Havel carefully placed the wreath on his head.

Lu Shixian was completely caught off guard. As far as he knew, there was no precedent for this.

Once the honor was bestowed, he took half a step back and bowed to everyone.

The hall once again erupted in thunderous applause.

The committee chairman had already left the stage, and the host spoke again, "Having achieved this historic honor, is there anything you'd like to say, Student Lu?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian felt a wave of awkwardness.

Was his spoken English really good enough to show off?

Wouldn't that just be a disaster?

Besides, he'd used up all his prepared material at the national competition, banking on the fact that the IBO didn't have a segment for acceptance speeches.

Why did one suddenly pop up now?

He was speechless. If he had known, he would have just said something simple last time. Wouldn't that have been better than being put on the spot now?

But with so many people watching, he was cornered. He had to go through with it.

As for the spoken English problem, he had already thought of a solution.

He took the microphone and began to speak in flawless, standard Mandarin, "Thank you to the committee for this great honor. Thank you to all the students here for your enthusiasm. And thank you to the team that has been silently supporting me from behind the scenes."

His first sentence left the international translators backstage stunned and the audience completely baffled.

What was he saying?

Just then, Team Leader Li brought Meng Yunyun over to the translator's booth.

"Miss Meng, can you handle this?"

Meng Yunyun smiled and nodded. "Russian is my primary field, but English was one of my double majors in my undergraduate studies."

"I've never done English Chinese simultaneous interpretation, but with my experience in Russian Chinese, it shouldn't be a problem."

Hearing this, Li Wendong directly pulled the stunned translator up from his chair.

"Hey, buddy! Make some room. We're commandeering this spot."

Just then, a voice suddenly came through the previously silent interpretation headsets. Many in the audience put them on in surprise.

It was the translation of Lu Shixian's first sentence.

And he was still speaking!

Chapter 151: I Suspect She Was After My Life

"I believe many of you are not yet familiar with me, so allow me to give a brief introduction."

"My name is Lu Shixian. I come from Jinling, China, one of the most ancient cities in the world. I am truly honored to receive this unprecedented award."

"There is a saying in China: 'Ripe grain hangs its head low; a mature person speaks little.' It means that the more mature and full the head of grain, the lower it bows. The more mature and stable a person's character, the more profound they become."

"For millennia, we have excelled at discerning patterns in the cycles of nature and have grown accustomed to finding philosophy in the behavior of flora and fauna."

"We seek to understand the origin of life and to perceive the mysteries of biology. Materialism posits that all things are born of water and return to water, that all matter is merely a conversion from one form to another. Man and nature are an indivisible, unified material body."

"Idealism, however, believes that the foundation of all things is not concrete, perceptible matter, but abstract numbers. Numbers are the essence of everything."

"What is the origin of life, and what is the essence of matter? To this day, we still do not know. All things are born from a single point and return to a single place."

"Life is a double helix ladder, twisting and climbing into an ever expanding labyrinth. The world is a labyrinth in which we live moving towards death, and yet we continue to press forward, picking up where others left off."

"That concludes my speech. Thank you all!"

After his final words, Lu Shixian bowed to everyone in the hall and walked off the stage.

The entire venue had fallen into a dead silence.

In the audience, the entire Chinese team was dumbfounded.

Yang Yihang was utterly and completely impressed.

"What are you all staring at? Applaud!"

The moment he spoke, a thunderous roar of applause erupted, seeming to shake the very heavens.

Today, in the Golden Reception Hall of the University of Tsukuba, everyone cheered and celebrated him.

The 20th IBO awards ceremony had seemingly become Lu Shixian's personal stage.

On the flight back to China.

The group of seven was still excitedly discussing the events of a few hours prior.

"God Lu, I truly bow down to you."

"What the heck were you even talking about? I could follow the beginning, but the rest was all Greek to me."

"It's one thing for me not to get it, but you left all those foreigners dumbstruck too."

"Haha, that was hilarious."

Yang Yihang had completely submitted. He was convinced. From now on, he would just call him God Lu.

Feng Yanan, hearing this, remarked with some emotion, "It seems you've already surpassed us by a great deal. But one day, I will catch up to you on this path."

Hearing her words, Lu Shixian was suddenly at a loss.

Has it been that long? Feng Yanan really lived up to her name!

Defeating Wang Fuwen wasn't enough for her; she was already plotting a coup?

That's some intense competitive spirit!

Hearing her, Li Wendong suddenly said, "Feng Yanan, your competitive drive is strong. That's your strength, but it's also your weakness. You don't have to follow the path others have walked."

"Life is short. Walk your own path, see your own sights, and live to the rhythm of your own life."

"No one's path can be replicated."

Hearing this, Feng Yanan fell into deep thought about her life and remained silent for a long time.

With the only female in the vicinity now preoccupied, the topic of discussion gradually shifted to stranger territories.

"God Lu, how did it feel being surrounded by all those girls when we were leaving?"

"Why didn't they give me a farewell hug? I want to know what it feels like to be held in the magnificent embrace of those young ladies."

Hearing Yang Yihang's envious tone, Lu Shixian instantly recalled his recent tragic ordeal.

"Trust me, you don't want to experience that feeling of near suffocation. Especially that American girl. I suspect she was trying to smother me."

At this, Yang Yihang's voice turned sour with jealousy.

"Smother you? What for? The worst that could happen is a peaceful death. I think she was trying to steal your soul."

Lu Shixian couldn't help but give him a thumbs up for that comment.

That had actually happened later on. For Yang Yihang to have such a forward thinking idea was truly impressive.

Finally, Yang Yihang silently leaned in close, startling Lu Shixian.

"What the hell!"

"Fatty! What's with you?"

His shout immediately drew the attention of the others nearby.

Wang Fuwen subtly shifted away, looking a little worried.

Feng Yanan, however, just sneered and said deliberately, "The fatty's finally making his move?"

Yang Yihang instantly realized his actions had been misunderstood.

An expression of utter indignation appeared on his face.

"Am I that kind of person?"

"I just wanted to ask what was in the letter that girl wrote to God Lu!"

At his words, all eyes suddenly focused back on Lu Shixian's face.

"A girl?"

"A letter?"

"So what's the story?"

Being stared at by so many people, the pressure was suddenly on Lu Shixian.

He turned to glare at Yang Yihang.

This damn fatty was definitely a spy planted in his life. How could he have seen something so discreet?

But now wasn't the time to blame Yang Yihang. He had to get through this first.

It was nothing, really. He had already opened the letter. The content was just about how to perform biology experiments more quickly and effectively.

So he raised his hands in surrender. Leniency for those who confess, severity for those who resist. He was hoping for a lighter sentence.

"It's really nothing. It was just discussing biology."

"Oh! Biology? Then it's even more serious!"

"What are you thinking? Biology experiments!"

"Animal experiments or physiology experiments?"

"Are you guys nuts?"

"Hahaha... hic!"

Amid their laughter and cheerful chatter, the plane landed in Yanjing.

To their surprise, a crowd of reporters was already waiting for them at the airport.

The scene was so intense that many other passengers thought a celebrity had arrived, but they couldn't spot anyone famous after looking around.

Fortunately, the Chinese Olympiad Committee was prepared and had sent a private car to wait for them.

On the way to the Botanical Society, the group was still a bit shaken.

"Those camera flashes nearly blinded me. What was that all about? Why were there so many reporters?" Yang Yihang complained, rubbing his eyes.

Deng Xiaolian smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry, the association anticipated this. It's mainly because the news about Lu Shixian spread from overseas and has gone viral."

"Our team will have a press conference shortly. After that, we can go to the celebration banquet."

"The Olympic olive wreath, four gold medals, and first place in the team total score. You all were truly the best this time!"

The mention of food immediately placated Yang Yihang.

Lu Shixian's focus, however, was completely different. He propped his face up with his hand and asked, "So, can we go home after dinner?"

Chapter 152: Another Little Brother

Yanjing time, 7:00 PM.

A unique press conference was being held at the Xidun Hotel.

The group, having just returned from their triumphant trip to Japan, was once again under the spotlight, basking in their glory.

"Student Lu, you single handedly broke the record for the best individual score in the history of the 20th IBO. How did you manage to do it?"

Lu Shixian hadn't expected the first question to be for him. He picked up the microphone and began to answer.

"There's a problem with your phrasing. There was no 'single handedly'."

As he spoke, he gestured with his right hand toward the others beside him.

"We are a team. This achievement is not just due to my own efforts, but also to the tireless and expert translation from Team Leader Li and Sister Yun."

"It's due to Auntie Deng's thoughtful care in our daily lives and her comfort when our spirits were low."

"And it's due to my three teammates. We helped each other, we encouraged each other, and we overcame all sorts of difficulties to forge ahead."

As he spoke, everyone he mentioned looked at him with a gratified smile.

"We are a team. We are in this together. That is why we created this success."

"That's all."

When he finished, heartfelt applause filled the hall.

His answer wasn't just good; it was practically perfect.

Next, it was another reporter's turn.

"Student Lu, what are your thoughts on receiving the Olympic olive wreath at the IBO awards ceremony?"

Lu Shixian thought for about ten seconds before giving his answer.

"Perhaps it's because it's a plant, which falls right into the domain of biology."

"But it's more than just a plant. It symbolizes peace, victory, and hope, representing humanity's spirit of universal love. It has incredible vitality, able to survive in all kinds of harsh natural environments. So it is also a symbol of resilience and life, representing an unyielding spirit of struggle."

"I believe the International Committee awarded it to me to convey a message of world peace, and also as an encouragement to me."

"Even in barren soil, without the meticulous care of a gardener, even in the cracks of a rock, with only the faintest sunlight and the gentlest spring breeze, we can still grow wild and free, untamed and unyielding."

As his words fell, another wave of thunderous applause erupted.

The reporters had all done their homework on Lu Shixian's background, and his words resonated with them.

For an ordinary child from the countryside to have come this far truly embodied that sentiment.

However, when another reporter tried to interview Lu Shixian again, he declined.

Now, the reporters had to find other subjects to interview.

"Team Leader Li, could you tell us about the specifics of your team's results this time?"

Li Wendong took the microphone and began his introduction. "In this 20th IBO, our team members displayed an indomitable spirit of perseverance. The four of them won gold medals with rankings of first, fifth, tenth, and sixteenth, respectively."

"Among them, student Lu Shixian was awarded the Olympic olive wreath for setting a new IBO record in the practical exam and tying the best score in history with a perfect score on the theoretical exam."

"Receiving a champion's wreath for an academic competition is a first in the world!"

Li Wendong seemed to know exactly what the reporters wanted, and everything he said hit all the right notes for them.

With the most crucial information recorded, the rest of the questions were routine.

Twenty minutes later, the press conference concluded.

Next came the celebration banquet.

At this point, the members of the national team were seated around a large circular table.

Ms. Gu Hongya, Director of the Chinese Olympiad Committee, Professor at Yanjing University, and Vice Chairman of the Botanical Society of China, smiled as she poured Lu Shixian a glass of coconut milk.

"Little Lu, since you've already signed an agreement with our Yanjing University, I won't call you 'Student Lu' anymore."

"What are your plans now? Are you planning to enroll this year or next year?"

Lu Shixian thanked her and answered with a firm "this year."

For him, the question didn't even need to be asked. Otherwise, all his hard work taking this shortcut would have been a joke.

But when this question was asked, the other members of the national team were suddenly stunned.

"Holy crap, you're a first year high school student?" Yang Yihang's perception of Lu Shixian was shattered for what felt like the hundredth time.

Lu Shixian understood what he meant and said deliberately, "Who said that? I'm a second year now."

"I mean, you were in your first year when you won the national first prize?"

"Yeah!"

Yang Yihang suddenly didn't feel like talking to him anymore.

Wang Fuwen gave him a thumbs up.

Feng Yanan, however, was quite happy.

"I have another little brother, yay!"

Lu Shixian felt an urge to flip a table.

After the celebration banquet, it was already ten o'clock at night.

Lu Shixian's wish to return to Jinling was naturally dashed.

He didn't even know if he could go back tomorrow, as he had been notified to make a trip to Yanjing University.

A thought sparked in Lu Shixian's mind. It seemed they were going to arrange his college placement and sign a supplementary agreement ahead of schedule.

It was easy enough to figure out. He was different from the others.

His original agreement was just for guaranteed admission to Yanjing University, with no specifics about his major or college.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but sigh in admiration. Yanjing University really was efficient.

As soon as he met the requirements, they were ready to fulfill their promise.

Kudos to Yanjing U, seriously.

If he were ever interviewed one day.

He would also say: I participated in the high school biology league, got first place in Su Province, then won a gold medal at the Biology Olympiad, and then got guaranteed admission to Yanjing University.

His words of encouragement for the students of that year would be: "Keep it up, and welcome to Yanjing University!"

Haha, his imagination was running wild again.

To reach that height, he probably still had a long way to go.

The next day, he arrived at the admissions office and met Chu Wenbin.

Chu Wenbin greeted him warmly, feeling quite emotional.

"Back then, I was just worried you wouldn't be able to think things through, so I mentioned it casually. I never thought you'd actually do it, and far exceed our expectations."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian suddenly panicked.

No way.

Was that ridiculous plotline someone dreamed up going to happen again?

Please, no!

Fortunately, Chu Wenbin only expressed his admiration for a few moments before handing him the supplementary agreement.

Lu Shixian looked it over carefully.

The candidate (Party B) intends to apply to Yanjing University and hereby signs the following supplementary agreement with Yanjing University (Party A):

1. Party B has achieved outstanding results in the International Biology Olympiad and has been approved by the school's admissions leadership team. Party B has been confirmed by Party A as a candidate for guaranteed admission to Yanjing University for the year 2009. The final qualification is subject to the review and announcement on the Ministry of Education's "Chaoyang Gaokao" platform.

2. I agree to be pre admitted as a guaranteed admission student to your university's Yuanpei College, Class of 2009.

3. I will strictly abide by the guaranteed admission agreement, will not apply to other institutions, and will not participate in the college entrance examination. If I violate the relevant regulations, I will bear all consequences.

4. I intend to enroll in the college I am admitted to at Yanjing University and will not request to withdraw my application.

Chapter 153: Though Jinling is Joyful, It's Better to Return Home Soon

He checked it again. No problems.

Then, Lu Shixian filled in his name in the space for Party B, and then signed on behalf of his guardian.

With this step, his efforts over the past many days had once again paid off.

After staying one night at the hotel arranged by the committee, he couldn't wait to go back.

Even the luxurious king sized bed at the five star Xidun Hotel couldn't keep him there.

On his third day back in Yanjing, he packed his suitcase, ready to return to Jinling.

Although the students were already on vacation, the leaders of No. 1 High School heard he was coming back and still organized a sizable welcoming ceremony.

Receiving the news, Lu Shixian had to abandon his plan of going straight home.

When he arrived at the main gate of No. 1 High School again, he saw that the school was indeed prepared.

"Congratulations to our student for winning the gold medal championship at the 20th IBO!" The conspicuous banner and display screen worked in tandem.

This time, the text on the display screen wasn't scrolling or changing; it just continuously showed this one sentence.

At the school gate stood almost all the school leaders, along with some teachers who had stayed behind.

But the person standing at the very front was someone Lu Shixian had never seen before.

Even Ren Qingyuan was standing behind him. This person must be a big shot.

As Lu Shixian thought this, he quickened his pace toward the school gate.
Even from a distance, Cai Mingyuan, the principal of No. 1 High School, was already making introductions. "Student Lu, this is a leader from our provincial education department. You can just call him Director Ding. He's made a special trip here to commend you for your achievements at this year's IBO."

At that, Lu Shixian immediately understood what he meant. The way he looked at the official was as if he were gazing upon a God of Wealth.

After a round of pleasantries and staged photos, Comrade Ding, representing the provincial education department, expressed his deep concern and high expectations for him.

He also congratulated him on his breakthrough achievement at the IBO and expressed his hope that he would achieve even greater things in the future, bringing honor to his hometown.

Lu Shixian immediately stated that he would temporarily set aside the honors he had received and embrace the next stage of challenges with renewed enthusiasm and tireless effort, striving ceaselessly to surpass himself.

His speech was well-received, but after a round of group photos, what Lu Shixian didn't expect was that the leaders actually just left.

He watched the backs of the several leaders as they departed, feeling like crying but having no tears.

Hey!

Did you guys forget something?

Weren't there supposed to be great benefits?

How can you not keep your word?

Of course, Lu Shixian was just grumbling a bit to himself.

To him, these things were just side benefits that came with his continuous effort toward his goals.

It would be nice to have them, but he wouldn't be heartbroken if he didn't.

After all, his greatest reward had already been cashed in yesterday.

Honor was merely an affirmation of the past, and at the same time, a brand new starting point.

He had already come to terms with it.

However, in the afternoon.

Just as he was preparing to leave school and head home.

He suddenly received a message from the school, asking him to go to the principal's office.

"It's probably about my student records," Lu Shixian thought to himself as he walked.

After all, he was essentially going to university a year early, so there were some procedures to follow.

However, when he arrived at Cai Mingyuan's office and saw the two application forms on the desk.

He was stunned.

"Jinling No. 1 High School Major International Award Bonus Application Form."

"Provincial 'Triple-A' Student Application Form."

The first one was understandable; it was only a matter of course.

Even if the school hadn't brought it up, Lu Shixian would have asked about it.

But what was with the second application?

One had to understand that a Provincial "Triple-A" Student award was a big deal at the time; the bonus points it provided for the Gaokao had not yet been canceled.

This award could add a minimum of 5 and a maximum of 20 points to one's Gaokao score, but it was of little use to him now.

So, Lu Shixian asked tentatively, "Principal Cai, isn't giving this spot to me a bit of a waste?"

"I've already been admitted through recommendation! Won't the other students have a problem with it?"

The moment Lu Shixian said this, Cai Mingyuan became quite displeased, his tone turning stern.

"Let's see who dares to have a problem with it! Tell them to come and say it to my face."

"Awards and honors should be given to those who are most qualified to receive them, to inspire their intrinsic motivation to constantly strive for excellence. It should be a spiritual pursuit, a recognition of value."

"That is its greatest worth, not for some so-called fringe benefits! Many people have long gotten their priorities backward, but our school never will!"

At this moment, Cai Mingyuan suddenly realized his tone had become a bit harsh and promptly adjusted it.

"Student Lu, this time you have brought honor not only to Su Province but also to our school. We are now in the process of replanning our training for the biology olympiad."

"And thanks to you, our school now has an advantage in applying to host the next National Biology Olympiad. This means more of our students can make it to the provincial team, making us much more competitive against other provinces."

"You truly deserve this honor."

Speaking of which, Cai Mingyuan hesitated slightly before adding, "However, due to time constraints, we probably won't be able to hold an award ceremony."

"I've heard that you want to start your university studies this year. The school will handle all the necessary procedures for you, so you don't need to worry."

After listening, Lu Shixian nodded heavily.

In the end, all he could offer was a simple "thank you."

Some things are simply too pale and feeble to be expressed in words.

He chose to prove it with time and action!

Next, it was time to go home.

Since leaving after the Chinese New Year in February, it was now nearly August. He finally had the chance to return.

Half a year was long enough to stir the deepest feelings of longing in his heart.

Some say: homesickness is a tiny stamp, I am on this end, and my mother on that. If homesickness is only pure distance without the vicissitudes of life, then such homesickness is thin...

In these few months, he had experienced so much, whether it brought him joy or sorrow.

All that remained now was the thought of that quiet, peaceful little village.

Five o'clock in the afternoon.

Perhaps he had timed it perfectly, for by the time he returned to Xingfu Town, crooked plumes of cooking smoke were already rising from the rooftops of every home.

This time, when he encountered people, there was no longer the sensation he had caused at the beginning of the year.

For them, getting into Yan University through recommendation was already the greatest honor a student could achieve.

What's an IBO?

A gold medal?

Breaking a record?

What are those? Never heard of 'em.

Therefore, Lu Shixian was able to return to Xingfu Village very smoothly.

Summer in Xingfu Village was his favorite.

It was fragrant, whether it was the scent of earth mixed with morning dew in the early morning, or the aroma of rice paddies that filled the house as he slept at night.

It was green, for whenever the wind blew, the waves of grain rippled like the tide.

It was also golden, because it was his entire childhood!

Chapter 154: Yan University First-Year Arrives Early

It was now August, and the start of the school year at Yan University was drawing closer.

This time, Lu Shixian didn't choose to wander about.

He waited patiently until it was nearly time for school to start.

This time, his mom and dad insisted on accompanying him.

Lu Shixian was happy to let them fuss over him, dressing in the newest clothes from their wardrobes, as if it were New Year's.

His mother was as meticulous as ever, not only buying the train tickets to Beijing in advance but also helping Lu Shixian check if he had forgotten anything.

"You brought the acceptance letter that was mailed from Beijing, right?"

"It's in my backpack!"

"And your ID card, registration photos, the bank card they sent..."

"Brought them all."

"What about clothes for all four seasons, your underwear, and daily necessities..."

"Mom, don't worry. Whatever I'm missing, I'll just buy it!"

"What's that? You're already starting to squander money just because you have some?"

Lu Shixian: π__π

On August 20th, the family arrived in Beijing a day early and even took a short tour of the Forbidden City that day.

After all, his parents had never been to Beijing, so this trip also fulfilled their wish to see the capital.

Don't ask why they went so early.

Doesn't school start on September 1st?

That's because the notes accompanying Yan University's acceptance letter were very clear.

New students were required to arrive at the university by August 21st to officially begin their thirteen-day military training, which would end on September 2nd.

Apparently, each university had a different check-in date, but most were concentrated in early September.

Only a few universities required students to arrive so many days in advance for military training.

The benefit of this was that it provided the maximum amount of time to adapt to the new environment.

As expected of Yan University!

His parents had been worried about how to get to the university, but as soon as they stepped off the train, they saw a promotional sign on the platform that read, "Yan University Welcomes You."

Yan University had organized staff specifically to guide new students to the campus on the first day of check-in.

Although almost every major university did this, it still left Xia Xiuman and Lu Jianguo very satisfied, and their impression of Yan University improved even more.

They boarded a shuttle bus headed for the campus, which was filled with other new students just like him.

Almost everyone had a brilliant smile on their face, which was understandable.

Getting on this bus was likely the shared hope of all parents in the world.

Upon arriving at the university, they saw many sun shelters set up on the square.

This was the first stop for welcoming new students, where almost all of them would get information and find out where their dormitory building was.

Lu Shixian scanned his surroundings and, as expected, saw no clichéd drama unfolding.

In reality, during the new student orientation, there weren't senior students with nothing better to do than to hit on the fresh-faced junior girls or boys.

If there were, it could only mean they weren't a Yan University student.

Everyone at Yan University is busy, okay?

Those who have class go to class, and those who need to study go study.

Otherwise, it's easy to fall behind with just a moment's carelessness.

The academic pressure here was far greater than in other places; it wasn't just one or two students who got expelled each year for failing grades.

So, the people working at the orientation were likely mostly from the volunteer association. They were very experienced, and their service was excellent—something that couldn't be achieved without long-term volunteer work.

Thus, as soon as Lu Shixian and his parents got off the bus and approached the welcome desk, they were greeted enthusiastically by a senior student.

"Hey there, which major are you in? The students checking in here are generally from the Yanyuan campus."

"I can tell you where your dorm building is. I know the locations for every major."

This put Lu Shixian in a bit of an awkward position.

He spread his hands and said, "Hello, senior. While I'd love to know where my dorm is, I really don't have a major!"

This statement left the senior student dumbfounded. Nearby students and parents who overheard also turned to look.

To everyone's disappointment, there was no face-slapping scene here.

No one said something like, "You want to get into Yan University without a major? Are you kidding me?"

Or, "Security! There's an imposter posing as a new student here. Help me drag him out."

The senior student thought for a moment, then pulled out a sheet of paper with relevant information from the desk.

"Classmate, which college do you belong to?"

Finally, getting to the key point, Lu Shixian immediately gave his answer.

The moment he heard the answer, an expression of disbelief appeared in the senior's eyes.

"No way! Out of more than four thousand new students this year, I actually got to meet a titan from Yuanpei College?"

Lu Shixian hadn't realized Yuanpei College was so famous that it would elicit such a surprised reaction.

He replied humbly, "I wouldn't call myself a titan. Learning is learning, no matter where you do it."

Although the senior's voice wasn't loud, it had already attracted the attention of those around them.

Since Yuanpei College was a relatively new thing, most people didn't know much about it, which sparked a lot of curiosity.

Seeing so many people waiting for his explanation, the senior student became a little embarrassed.

He waved his hand and said, "I don't know much about Yuanpei College either, but I've heard the selection process is incredibly strict. Besides getting good exam scores, you can't get in without some real skills."

"The entire college probably has less than two hundred students."

As soon as he said this, all eyes focused on Lu Shixian's face.

A college with only just over a hundred students was extremely unusual.

In high school terms, it was like everyone else being in a regular class while you were in a small, elite one.

Noticing a crowd starting to gather, Lu Shixian quickly asked the senior, "Please, just tell me where the dorm building is."

The senior hurriedly looked at the information in his hand and read aloud, "Building 36."

Watching Lu Shixian's retreating back, he couldn't help but marvel at his own good luck. He had managed to encounter someone with a four percent chance of appearing.

He decided he would try to confess to the girl he liked later to see if he would be successful.

Lu Shixian, of course, had no idea that his appearance had even helped bring about a happy event.

He was now waiting at Building 36, and his parents had finally caught up.

The dormitory assignments for new students were already posted for public viewing in Building 36.

Many students were already there, checking their room locations.

Lu Shixian hurried forward to search as well.

He quickly found his name in Room 4012 on the fourth floor.

Besides his own, there were the names of three other boys.

It seemed these would be his future roommates.

His tolerance for multi-person dorms had grown significantly; he was no longer solely focused on convenience as before.

Being alone was certainly quiet, but it also meant missing out on a lot of fun, didn't it?

Chapter 155: What Kind of a Dorm Room is This?

Following the directions, the three of them soon arrived at Room 4012.

The door to the room was wide open.

Sure enough, when he went inside, there were no signs of any roommates having been there yet.

Having arrived in Beijing a day early, it seemed they were among the first batch of new students to arrive.

Next, with the help of his mom and dad, the three of them worked together and quickly cleaned the entire dorm room until it was spotless.

To be honest, seeing his dorm room, Lu Shixian felt a little disappointed.

In his past life, he had seen promotional videos and photos of Yan University dorms posted by students, and they were beautifully decorated.

The hallways were adorned with scholarly calligraphy and paintings. The rooms were fully equipped with beds, desks, closets, air conditioning, and internet. There were even wisteria flowers outside the balcony, quietly waiting to bloom.

But now, as he looked around, it was no different from a non-elite university!

The sense of disparity was a bit hard for him to accept.

But he quickly realized that this was a relatively old dormitory building.

The people in charge of promotions weren't fools; they would obviously feature the newly built, beautiful dorms.

But it was what it was. Lu Shixian had no choice but to accept this reality with a heavy heart.

In the afternoon, Lu Shixian went out with his parents to tour Beijing for a while, fulfilling a small wish of theirs.

However, because the cost of accommodation in Beijing was too expensive.

The two of them decided to return to Su Province that same day. Even staying in Jinling would save them a lot of money.

Lu Shixian couldn't persuade them, so he let them be.

They had been frugal their whole lives, and such habits were impossible to change.

What Lu Shixian didn't expect was that when he was seeing them off at the train station, Ms. Xia Xiuman actually pulled him into a corner.

"Mom, what's going on? Why so secretive?" Lu Shixian found it a bit amusing. In his memory, something like this had never happened before.

His mother had always been straightforward, and there was never any whispering of secrets.

So what was happening now?

However, to his astonishment, his mother's first sentence completely floored him.

"Son! Even though you're in university now, you're still young. There are some things you can't handle."

"Especially when it comes to getting along with girls. Your mother is still young, I don't want to be holding a grandchild just yet."

Lu Shixian's jaw dropped. He never imagined his mother would talk to him about this!!!

This was too much!

Although he wanted to argue, he had to admit that for his current self, the waters were indeed a bit deep.

So, Lu Shixian could only silently accept his mother's concern.

He vaguely remembered that in his past life, she had been quite eager for him to get married. Why was she suddenly so open-minded now?

Though it had been said many times, he really wanted to declare that he was not that young.

He was almost seventeen now, okay?

He watched the train depart until it was no longer in sight.

Gazing at the sky in the direction of Yan University, Lu Shixian finally turned and left.

His every step was forceful, as if leaving a trail of footprints on the ground.

When he returned to the dorm, his three roommates had all arrived.

Seeing Lu Shixian walk in, they all greeted him warmly.

"You must be Lu Shixian! I saw your luggage when I came in just now. We were just wondering where you'd run off to," said a boy with a very impressive build.

Even without hearing his voice, just from his northern accent, one could tell this was a tough guy.

The other two boys, who were busy tidying their beds, also turned their attention to him.

A rather thin boy, who looked a bit malnourished, sized Lu Shixian up from head to toe.

Finally, he spoke with a hint of dejection, "This is depressing. Looks like I'm destined to be the fourth oldest."

Lu Shixian grew even more confused. What was this all about?

Were they already establishing a hierarchy?

Sure enough, the last one, a boy with glasses who hadn't spoken yet, cleared up his confusion.

"Those two were bored just now and went from self-introductions to talking about who would be the dorm leader. You can just ignore their nonsense."

Hearing this, the tough guy couldn't stand it.

"How can you call it nonsense? As Mencius said in 'The Path of Small Steps': 'Reason needs no inquiry, for a kindred spirit understands. A fine steed knows its master, and an elder brother is like a father.'"

"What's wrong with the eldest being the leader? I was born in '91, so don't even bother checking. I'm definitely older than you guys," the tough guy said, quite pleased with his reasoning.

Honestly, Lu Shixian felt a bit out of place.

That physique didn't seem to match the words at all.

Could someone who lifts weights every day be so eloquent?

Was being a try-hard really the only way to succeed in this world?

But when he looked at the others, they didn't seem surprised at all.

At this point, the boy with glasses retorted again, "That's enough, Zhang Mengting. We all know you repeated a year and clawed your way to become this year's liberal arts champion of Dongshan Province. Your chanting is giving me a headache."

At these words, Lu Shixian's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

The big guy?

The provincial champion in liberal arts?

My god! What has this world come to? It seemed a bit different from his understanding.

So he asked curiously, "Big... uh, Brother Mengting, how are you in liberal arts? Isn't this dorm supposed to be for science students?"

Zhang Mengting shrugged, giving his answer.

"Who knows? When the admissions office found me, they told me that everyone who gets into Yuanpei College is the cream of the crop at Yan University, where I could 'meet friends through literature, and support benevolence through friendship.'"

"But now it's clear they deceived me. I just found out that I'm the only one in this dorm studying liberal arts."

At this, the three of them in the room looked at each other, and then a burst of laughter echoed far from Room 4012.

Through subsequent conversations, Lu Shixian gained a basic understanding of his new roommates.

The thin boy was named Chang Wenchao, from Hubei Province. He was this year's IChO (International Chemistry Olympiad) gold medalist. Although he wasn't number one in the world, he was the top-ranked member of the national team and third in the world.
This roommate made Lu Shixian a little worried. It was a joke, of course, but with a chemistry whiz like that around, he'd better keep a close eye on the dorm's water dispenser from now on.

The one with the glasses was named Lin Chenyi. Like Muscle Bro, he had gotten into Yan University the normal way, through the Gaokao, he just didn't have to repeat a year.

He'd said he was the weakest of the bunch, only scoring 575 in the science stream.

A science score of 575 to get into Yan University? Naturally, nobody believed him at first.

But it turned out to be true. He was from Shanghai, where the total score was only 630. His score had made him this year's top science scholar of Shanghai.

After hearing everyone's introductions, Lu Shixian could only think one thing: this was insane.

Two top scholars out of four people, and another with an IChO gold medal. They were all freaking prodigies!

What kind of freakish dorm room was this???

Chapter 156: Freshman Orientation

Lu Shixian was feeling the pressure.

No wonder Chu Wenbin had hinted that being number one on the national IBO team wasn't enough. This was just ridiculous!

Suddenly, Lu Shixian, who had been trying to fly under the radar, was called out.

“Lu Shixian, how about you tell us your story? Especially your age. Put me out of my misery,” Chang Wenchao said, noticing him trying to stay quiet.

Being called out so suddenly, he wasn't flustered; he was prepared for this.

He just had to tell them the truth.

“I won the IBO gold medal this year. I'll be seventeen soon. Nothing compared to you guys,” Lu Shixian said, remaining humble in front of his accomplished roommates.

And yet, even this brief introduction didn't sound humble at all.

“What? Seventeen?”

Chang Wenchao was overjoyed. It looked like he wouldn't be the youngest—the 'fourth brother'—after all.

Lin Chenyi and Zhang Mengting, on the other hand, were stunned.

“Holy crap, you're the guy from the news!”

“What news?” Lu Shixian thought he remembered something, but he wasn't sure.

“'Miracle Boy Crowned World's Best, Conquers Foreign Audience with Speech!' You made history at the International Biology Olympiad, winning the Olympic Laurel Crown, the only one of its kind in the academic Olympiads so far.”

Lu Shixian understood immediately. He knew who the culprit was.

If he ever found out who wrote that, he'd smack them with a brick.

Could they not call him 'Miracle Boy'? It was so lame!

But his three roommates didn't seem to think so. In fact, they thought it was awesome.

“So, after all that talk, it turns out you're the most badass one here.”

“You were probably laughing at us on the inside while we were talking, weren't you? Fess up!”

Muscle Bro Zhang Mengting cracked his knuckles, pretending to be angry.

Lu Shixian knew he was joking and played along. “You've got it all wrong! Which one of your eyes saw me laughing? Besides, the Gaokao and the Olympiads are two completely different paths. You can't even compare them!”

Glasses Guy Lin Chenyi shook his head. “No, no, no. Once you get to the international level, it's a whole different ball game.”

“The Gaokao is a domestic competition. The IBO is competing against the best from all over the world.”

“We're fighting for our own futures, but you guys are winning glory for the country. It's on a completely different level.”

The dorm's first big discussion ended with a declaration from Chang Wenchao.

“Hehehe, even if you're number one in the world, you're still Little Four.”

With that, Zhang Mengting and Lin Chenyi naturally took the roles of Eldest and Second Brother.

Lu Shixian didn't bother fighting it.

'Little Four' it was, then. It's not like he had any other inclinations. They could call him whatever they wanted.

Friendships in school are simple.

In just one afternoon, the four of them had become fast friends, slinging arms over each other's shoulders as if they'd known each other for years.

After tidying up the dorm, the next most important thing was to go to the cafeteria together to get their meal cards.

This was a big deal. If Muscle Bro hadn't reminded them in time, they all would have forgotten.

After dinner, they learned from neighboring dorms that there would be a freshman orientation meeting that evening.

Military training started the next day, so it made sense to hold the meeting beforehand.

It was worth noting that Yuanpei College had its own exclusive Russian Language Building for its students to study in. Students from other colleges generally couldn't use it.

Lu Shixian had just learned this. Yuanpei College operated on a residential college system, and Dorm Building 36 was exclusively for Yuanpei students from all four years.

The four of them followed the crowd to the Russian Language Building. To their surprise, it wasn't as tall as they'd imagined.

It was only two stories high, with tall red pillars dividing it into nine sections. The walls were painted red and white.

From a distance, it looked rather plain, almost like a single-story bungalow.

Passing three massive trees at the entrance—so thick it would take two people to wrap their arms around them—

the group entered a large classroom on the second floor. Many students were already seated.

A huge screen was embedded in the wall behind the lectern, and several middle-aged people stood nearby—likely the professors who would be speaking.

The classroom was vast, and this year's Yuanpei freshman class seemed smaller than expected.

Even with everyone seated, the room felt empty.

So, Lu Shixian and his dorm buddies sat in a row in the third row, looking like a team ready for a LAN party.

A few minutes later, the first Yuanpei College freshman orientation officially began.

The giant screen lit up, displaying eight large characters.

“Yuanpei's Journey Begins This Year, Together Side by Side.”

A professor with glasses took the microphone and gave a brief self-introduction. He was Zeng Fanzhu, the dean of Yuanpei College, and he hoped to spend a pleasant academic career with everyone.

He then began to introduce the history of Yuanpei College, welcoming the 140 new students on behalf of the college and thanking them for injecting new vitality into it.

Lu Shixian was taken aback. The number was even smaller than he'd imagined.

He had thought there would be close to two hundred, if not more.

But the actual number was only 140.

Finally, Dean Zeng mentioned the schedule for the next day.

Starting at six in the morning, they would head to a military training base in another district of Yan京 for thirteen days of training. He hoped everyone would be mentally prepared and pack the necessary daily items in advance.

And with that, the freshman orientation was over.

Lu Shixian was a bit confused. It seemed too simple.

Logically, since Yan University put so much effort into this program, they should take it more seriously, right?

But his roommates later told him this was just a small affair. The truly grand ceremony would be on September 2nd, the official start of the school year.

That night, in Dorm 4012, Building 36.

Lu Shixian watched his three roommates busily packing, then picked up a thin, soft package, feeling speechless.

“Seriously, do you guys have to be so extra? You're even using these? It's military training, not your period.”

Glasses Guy Lin Chenyi gave him a mischievous grin. “Little Four, you don't get it. According to reliable sources, the military training at Yan University is killer.”

“Didn't you hear Dean Zeng? We're training at a base in another district. You have to understand, that's a whole different concept from Shuimu University doing their training on campus.”

Lu Shixian didn't know where they got their intel, but as the saying goes, where there's smoke, there's fire.

If there were rumors, they had to have some credibility.

So, Lu Shixian started packing his own things.

“By the way, where on earth did you guys buy these?”

“Didn't they think you were perverts?”

Chapter 157: Some Things Are Not for Kids to Know

As soon as he asked, the dorm fell silent.

The guys exchanged a look, and then Lin Chenyi cleared his throat. “Just use it. Your big bro wouldn't lie to you.”

“I don't need to tell you how to use it, right? Just fill the sheath with cold water, and you've got a cooling pack to hug.”

“I've tested it myself, it works great. Not only does it feel cool to the touch, but it also has a fresh scent!”

“As for its other uses... well, some things are not for kids to know.”

Hearing this, Chang Wenchao laughed and couldn't help but chime in, “I've been meaning to say this. Look at Lu Shixian's age, height, and build. Aside from being a bit less built than Zhang Mengting, does he look seventeen at all?”

“I was totally fooled before. I thought I was the youngest and was going to be Little Four.”

Lin Chenyi burst out laughing. “You're not entirely right. I think Eldest Bro's muscles look intimidating, but they're all for show.”

“That kind of muscle isn't flexible and lacks core strength. When Little Four was changing earlier, I took a peek. He's lean, but believe it or not, he's got an eight-pack.”

But his comment drew the ire of two people at once.

Zhang Mengting and Lu Shixian both turned to him with menacing glares.

“Hehehe... Show muscles, huh? I bet you'll have a new appreciation for them after today!” Zhang Mengting cracked his knuckles, looking eager to start.

Lu Shixian was tempted too. “Peeking at me while I change, were you? And you have the nerve to say it out loud? You're asking for it, aren't you?”

A few minutes later, Lin Chenyi's cries for mercy echoed from Dorm 4012.

“Aah!”

“I was wrong!”

“My heroes, spare me!”

His screams traveled far, becoming a legend in Building 36.

August 21, 2009.

Yan京 University, outside the Yuanpei College Teaching Building.

Six in the morning.

Several school buses were parked neatly outside.

He boarded a bus with the crowd. At first, Lu Shixian could recognize the route, as it wasn't his first time at Yan University.

But soon, he lost his bearings. All he knew was that they had arrived at a military training base in the Changping District.

Here, they would spend the next thirteen days in military training.

Initially, Lu Shixian was on the same bus as his dorm mates.

But once they were organized into squads, the four of them were split up.

Lu Shixian was assigned to the Fourth Squad. For some reason, the squad was composed of 70% female students and 30% male students.

Lu Shixian attributed this to the fact that the ratio of humanities to science students was fairly even, and Yuanpei College had a good number of female students to begin with.

After all, outliers like Zhang Mengting were rare. Most humanities students were female, and when you added in the top female science students, it was fair to say that women held up half the sky in this year's Yuanpei class.

Based on those numbers, the probability of one squad having so many female students was understandable; it was only a 20% increase from the average.

As they say, you pick the tallest among the short. The drill instructor appointed Lu Shixian as the squad leader, giving him no room to negotiate.

But no one would have guessed that Lu Shixian had essentially skipped grades to get into Yan University. He was one of the youngest there, but his appearance was deceiving.

After the squads were formed, just when everyone thought they would break for breakfast, the instructor ordered them to stand at attention for half an hour.

Everyone stared at the instructor with pleading eyes, as if to say, “Sir, we haven't eaten yet! Have mercy, just a few bites!”

This move shattered their expectations.

Fortunately, after the drill, breakfast was quite palatable. While not as varied as the school cafeteria's food, it was at least nutritious.

The rest of the morning was spent on basic formation drills.

In the afternoon, they practiced halting and turning while marching, including commands like 'at ease,' 'attention,' 'forward march,' and turning in all directions.

That was the routine during training. During breaks, it was time for singing military songs.

Don't think being a squad leader was some cushy job. In fact, it was rather miserable.

When the instructor was around, you had to set an example. Your posture had to be perfect, or how could you have the nerve to stand at the front?

When the instructor was away, it was your job to give commands and lead the training. That meant you had to be the first to arrive, or how could you have the nerve to hurry others along?

The following days were quite grueling. As the saying goes, he rose earlier than a rooster, slept later than a dog, and worked harder than an ox.

But it wasn't without its benefits.

During the talent competition, the Fourth Squad, with its abundance of female students, had many hidden masters.

They were unassuming on a normal day, but when it mattered, out came the classical singers, traditional dancers, and Beijing opera 'aficionados.'

Thanks to Lu Shixian's hard work over the past dozen days, he earned the unanimous approval of nearly all the students, male and female, in the Fourth Squad.

Every day, they greeted him with “Brother Shixian this” and “Brother Xian that,” completely unaware that he was actually younger than most of them.

August 31st.

Finally, the last day arrived.

A final collective drill would be held on the main training grounds.

When it was their turn, the 'women's army' of Yuanpei College's Fourth Squad, with their resounding voices and spirited momentum, won the unanimous approval of the judges and received a high score.

In the end, because he was the squad leader, had played a positive role, and was extremely popular within the squad, Lu Shixian was named a 'Model Trainee.'

Receiving the award on stage, Lu Shixian didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He finally understood how Mei Ting must have felt.

Honestly, many other squad leaders had far better form, and plenty had worked harder than him.

He never expected that an honor given to only ten out of several thousand students would fall to him.

After stepping off the stage, Lu Shixian touched his face and couldn't help but think smugly, “I guess when you're this handsome, you can get away with anything.”

Back at school on September 1st, the college was considerate enough to give them a day to recover. Nothing was scheduled, allowing everyone to get familiar with the campus.

His dorm mates didn't even have the energy to be envious.

They all declared they were going to lie down for a full day, complaining about how much they had suffered over the past two weeks.

Muscle Bro Zhang Mengting, in particular, perfectly recreated the 'Ge You slouch' the moment he got back to the dorm, looking like he had become one with his bed.

And so, the topic of his 'show muscles' was brought up again.

Only this time, he had no energy to argue back.

Chapter 158: The Yuanpei College Opening Ceremony

Outsiders might not notice, but his roommates could see he looked like he'd shrunk a size.

The others weren't as dramatic as Zhang Mengting, but they had all been worn down, their skin tanned dark as charcoal.

Lu Shixian was exhausted too, but since he could still move, he was pitifully sent out to buy breakfast.

And so, the group spent a rare day just lazing around in their dorm.

The next morning, they got up.

The four were men of action once more. Even if they felt drained, they had to pull themselves together and head to the college.

Today was the Yuanpei College opening ceremony, held in a large classroom in the Integrated Science Building.

When they arrived, college staff had already decorated the venue with a sense of ceremony.

Posters with slogans like “Full of Vitality,” “Live Up to Your Youth,” and “A Fulfilling Life” were everywhere.

The banner on the screen read: Yan京 University Yuanpei College Class of 2009 Undergraduate Opening Ceremony.

Below that was the date: September 2, 2009.

At 8:30 a.m., the opening ceremony officially began.

A vice president of Yan University and all the leaders of Yuanpei College were in attendance. The ceremony was hosted by Yang Feipeng, the vice dean of Yuanpei College.

From what Lu Shixian could tell, Yan University's opening ceremony wasn't much different from other universities; the format and procedures were quite similar.

According to the host, the first speaker was Professor Peng Xiaofeng from Yan University's School of Mathematical Sciences, representing the Yuanpei College faculty advisors.

Professor Peng Xiaofeng looked relatively young, perhaps in his thirties, and his speech was quite down-to-earth.

“Hello, everyone. It's that time of year again. To be honest, I'm just like you. This is my first time speaking as a representative of the faculty advisors, and I'm very excited.”

“Before the pioneer of probability theory, Jacob Bernoulli, proved the 'law of large numbers' through experimentation, probability existed for a long time merely as an empirical tool for gamblers.”

“But after he happened to take an interest in it, probability transformed into a powerful tool for explaining, predicting, and changing the objective world, and it began to serve the development and progress of science.”

“Today, probability theory is a vital guarantee for the prosperity and development of human society. Therefore, interest is the best teacher. I hope that all of you can discover your own interests at Yuanpei and, using them as your guide, go further and further on your path in life.”

Professor Peng's speech resonated with many students. Whether he was using the opportunity to promote the mathematics major was another question, but Lu Shixian could already see the eyes of many students shining with excitement.

Forgive him, but he really didn't feel much of anything, whether it was about probability theory or mathematics in general.

Next to the stage was the representative for current Yuanpei College students, Fang Qiancheng, a senior from the class of 2006 majoring in condensed matter physics.

As a senior, he naturally introduced the college's situation.

To be honest, Lu Shixian's knowledge of Yuanpei College wasn't very deep. He only knew it was a unique undergraduate education model at Yan University but wasn't familiar with the details.

Now that someone was here to clear things up, he was more than happy to listen carefully.

“When I first entered Yuanpei, I was just as lost as all of you. But after participating in the 'Freshman Training Camp,' I gradually found my direction.”

“During the camp, the college invites renowned professors from different fields to give special lectures on their subjects.”

“This helps everyone understand the characteristics of each discipline and allows you to choose your major and courses independently.”

“Additionally, the college has a mandatory freshman seminar in the first semester of the first year.”

“Excellent professors from various disciplines are invited to teach these seminars, helping everyone adapt to the rhythm and patterns of university study and understand the thinking and research methods of different academic fields.”

“If you still feel a bit lost, the college also offers a series of lectures on various academic disciplines in the first semester.”

“Professors who have made significant academic contributions will talk about their important research, helping to spark everyone's interest in academic research…”
Lu Shixian didn't know whether to laugh or cry. After all that talk, it was all about helping everyone find their direction.

But he really didn't need it!

How could he not be clear about his own direction?

Still, this was good in a way. Now everyone was at the same starting line, giving him the perfect opportunity to overtake on the curve.

As his mind wandered, the award ceremony reached its final segment: the Dean's address.

This Dean, Zeng Fanzhu, had appeared earlier, so everyone was already familiar with him.

The Dean stated that the more than one hundred students present were among the most outstanding from all over the country, and he expressed his profound hopes for them all.

He hoped that every student would strive for daily improvement and soon become pillars of the nation. Yuanpei College would do its utmost to cultivate them into talented individuals who would serve the motherland.

At the same time, he also acknowledged Yuanpei College's shortcomings. As it had only recently been established, its educational philosophy was not yet mature. He used a vivid metaphor: everyone present was crossing the river by feeling the stones.

Therefore, as pioneers, they had to bear the responsibilities of pioneers. They must not fear hardship, must make brave choices, courageously accept challenges, and carve out their own unique paths, leaving behind footprints for those who would follow.

Finally, he elevated the purpose of learning and growth.

He declared that their country was increasingly moving toward the center of the world stage. As youth of the new century, as students of Yan University and Yuanpei College, they should grasp the pulse of the times, shoulder the nation's destiny, and make their voices heard by the world.

When he finished, the entire hall erupted in thunderous applause.

As Lu Shixian clapped along, he couldn't help but think that this was exactly what you'd expect from a leader's speech.

Just a few casual remarks and it was already several times longer than the student representative's speech.

But he had to admit, the Dean was highly skilled, and what he said was indeed very reasonable.

At this point, the opening ceremony for new students was drawing to a close.

You might be wondering why there was no speech from a new student representative this time.

Actually, Lu Shixian was curious too. In the end, he could only guess that since everyone was equally outstanding now, having one person represent them all probably wouldn't sit well with the others.

In the afternoon, just as the senior student had said, it happened.

The "Freshman Training Camp" was held in the teaching building.

Here, Lu Shixian learned that at Yuanpei College, he could choose a major from any school in the entire university. He could also opt for Yuanpei's unique interdisciplinary majors, which included "Paleontology," "Politics, Economics, and Philosophy," and "Foreign Languages and Foreign History," among others.

Unfortunately, none of these interdisciplinary majors were suitable for him.

Choosing paleontology like Mei Ting was absolutely out of the question, unless he had lost his mind.

If he could, he would have loved to choose the "Integrated Sciences" major, a program that deeply integrated life sciences with other quantitative disciplines.

It was a pity that this major wouldn't be established until 2014.

So, he might as well stick to biology.

Chapter 159 He Can't Be Allowed to Go Astray

Many people assume that Yan University's biology department would have a wide array of majors.

But in fact, the opposite was true. The School of Life Sciences had almost the fewest majors of any school in the university.

At the undergraduate level, it only offered two majors: Biological Sciences and Biotechnology.

Only at the graduate level did it branch out into eight specializations, including Botany, Zoology, Physiology, Cell Biology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Biophysics, Bioinformatics, and Biotechnology.

It seemed his earlier premonition was about to become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

It looked like he really was going to study botany within the field of biology.

But for now, he needed to decide between Biological Sciences and Biotechnology and not get ahead of himself.

Though the names differed by only one word, the actual difference was huge.

At some universities, the curriculum for the two majors was largely the same, but the former leaned towards biological theory, while the latter focused on technical application.

This sometimes led to a ridiculous situation where, in those schools, Biological Sciences was considered a science, but Biotechnology was classified as engineering.

This had sparked quite a few complaints.

What the hell?

I study natural sciences all the way through, and in the end, my graduation certificate says Bachelor of Engineering instead of Bachelor of Science?

But at Yan University, the curricula for the two majors were clearly delineated.

The main courses for Biological Sciences included Animal Biology, Plant Biology, Microbiology, Biochemistry, Cell Biology, Genetics, Developmental Biology, Neurobiology, Molecular Biology, and Ecology.

These were all traditional biology disciplines with long histories.

But Biotechnology had a different flavor. Its curriculum was rather peculiar: Inorganic Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Biochemistry, Pharmacology, Pharmaceutical Analysis, Immunology, Biochemical Separation Technology, Genetic Engineering, Cell Engineering, Enzyme Engineering, and Fermentation Engineering.

With all the chemistry and pharmacology, anyone looking at the course list without context would never guess it was a biology department.

But this was also a recent trend. As the integration of multiple disciplines with biology deepened, more related emerging courses were being developed.

The intersection with mathematics was quantitative biology; with computer science, bioinformatics; with engineering, synthetic biology; with agriculture, botany; with chemistry, chemical biology; with physics, structural biology; with medicine, biomedical science; and with psychology, neurobiology.

It was strange. It seemed biology could cross with anything and everything, but when it came to standing on its own, it struggled.

However, that wasn't even the most critical issue.

Why was biology known as a pitfall major?

Lu Shixian had summarized a few reasons.

First and foremost was the employment problem. You may not have experienced the feeling of being unemployed right after graduation.

But many biology students had.

The Ministry of Education perennially red-flagged certain majors, and biology accounted for two of them.

Job prospects were very narrow. It was either go abroad for a PhD or stay at the university for a PhD.

Of course, if you just wanted a degree and had no intention of working in a related field, then unemployment and red flags weren't an issue. You could go wherever you wanted; some company would always take you.

Second, once you fell into the biology pit, it was basically a lifelong commitment.

How to put it? With just a bachelor's or master's degree, a dedicated research career was out of the question, though you might find work as an assistant in a research institute or R&D department.

If you wanted to do serious research, you were looking at a postdoc as the starting point.

Calculated at a minimum of four years for a bachelor's, six for a PhD, and three to four for a postdoc, that was at least thirteen years.

In other words, after more than a decade, you were just stepping over the threshold of a research career. The time it took to become established could be even longer than in medicine.

Third was the issue of graduation itself.

If you lacked the ability to stand out among the horde of biology grunts, graduating with a PhD could be a huge problem. Delays were almost a certainty.

Of course, with PhD programs becoming increasingly difficult to get into these days, you might not even have to worry about delaying graduation.

Because you wouldn't get in at all.

Fourth was probably the income issue. Most people's earnings during the aforementioned periods were meager.

Of course, let's not dwell on that. We're all people of science; talking about money would just be crass.

Those who made it to the end were inevitably those who endured to the end.

After all, who wasn't driven by a sheer passion and wholehearted love for biology?

Of all those who truly embarked on this path, who started out with the attitude of just playing around?

They were all dating with the intention of getting married, weren't they?

"After all, love can be a fleeting impulse, but marriage is a lifelong commitment," a plainly dressed, ramrod-straight old professor on the stage said with reverence.

You think this is a mandatory psychology seminar?

No, no, no!

This was, in fact, just a freshman seminar at Yuanpei.

The person speaking was a familiar face: the old professor, Ma Yuheng, who had given a lecture on the cytoskeleton to the fifty national training team members. He had left a deep impression on Lu Shixian.

"From the microscopic to the macroscopic, and then to an even grander macrocosm. The division and replication of cells are constantly occurring, every moment, following their own rules. They constitute you, you constitute me, and who will I constitute in turn? They now play the part of you, and what part will you play?"

"That's all I have to say about the life sciences. I hope none of you will make a rash decision out of a momentary impulse, only to deeply regret it years later."

"But I want you all to know that all beauty and art are merely reflections of the journey of life, and this is a discipline where you can truly feel the beauty of life itself."

Professor Ma truly lived up to his reputation for profound knowledge. His words immediately resonated with everyone in the classroom.

Even though he had spoken about the harsh realities of biology earlier, no one was paying attention to that now.

Even if not many would choose it, at this moment, almost everyone had begun to see the relationship between life and science through a scientific lens.

This was a true scholar!

After speaking, Professor Ma took a sip of tea. As he lowered his head, he suddenly spotted a familiar face in the back row.

"Huh? Isn't that the kid, Lu Shixian?"

"I specifically looked for his name on the college's freshman roster earlier and thought he'd changed paths."

"So he was hiding here in Yuanpei. He didn't go straight to the School of Life Sciences, which means his conviction isn't firm. He might jump ship at any moment!"

"This won't do. I can ignore the others, but this one is a promising seedling for biology. I can't let him go astray!"

The old professor's mind raced as he sipped his tea.

Chapter 160 What the Hell Are They Testing?

Soon, the thirty-hour freshman training camp was over.

For five consecutive days starting from September 2nd, at the same location, there were academic presentations—a different feast for the ears each day.

The morning of September 2nd was the opening ceremony, Yuanpei's history, Earth and Space Sciences, and Paleontology. The afternoon was Archaeology, Foreign Languages, and Urban and Environmental Sciences.

The morning of September 3rd was Chinese Language and Literature, Engineering, and Guanghua School of Management. The afternoon was Economics, History, and Chemistry.

The morning of September 4th was Information Science and Technology, International Relations, and Physics. The afternoon was Sociology, Philosophy, and Public Administration.

It wasn't until the afternoon of September 6th that it finally concluded.

The last few academic presentations that afternoon were Mathematics, Law, and Life Sciences.

The class Professor Ma was teaching now was the very last one.

Over these few days, all the students had gotten a preliminary overview of every major in the university.

On the way back to the dorm, the four of them started chatting, the topic naturally being the freshman training camp.

"I don't see what's there to talk about. I decided long ago I'm dead set on chemistry," Chang Wenchao said with an air of indifference.

Zhang Mengting and Lin Chenyi, however, were more conflicted.

"Fourth Bro, you don't have to think about it. First place in the IBO world finals, you're definitely going for life sciences."

"But I'm so lost. I want to study Chinese, but I also want to study history," Zhang Mengting said, his face a mask of agony.

Lu Shixian understood his dilemma and teased him, "What's there to be conflicted about? Only kids have to choose. You can have it all!"

"Yeah, just go for a double major!" Chang Wenchao chimed in from the side.

Zhang Mengting shot a look at his friends and their terrible advice.

"Get lost, you guys. History plus Chinese would literally kill me."

"From now on, I'll start chanting loudly in the dorm every morning and see if you still come up with these bright ideas."

Meanwhile, Lin Chenyi was hesitating between Guanghua School of Management and Public Administration, unable to make up his mind.

Suddenly, Chang Wenchao pulled out his phone and said in surprise, "There's an announcement in the main group chat. Looks like we have a test."

"No way! We haven't even had a single proper class yet! I've almost forgotten the periodic table. What the hell are they going to test?" Chang Wenchao was so agitated that his charming local dialect slipped out.

The others quickly took out their phones to check the message.

"To all students:"

"In accordance with the 'Undergraduate Teaching Work Plan for the 2009-2010 Autumn Semester,' and to help students determine their preliminary direction and select courses in a timely manner, the college has decided to organize a freshman entrance examination."

"The entrance examination for the first semester of the 2009-2010 academic year is scheduled for September 7, 2009. Please refer to the '2009-2010-1 Semester Examination Schedule' for details and prepare accordingly."

Chang Wenchao had the biggest reaction to the notice, practically jumping to his feet.

"You're scaring me to death! Ever since I got my guaranteed admission to Yan University, I've been running wild like a horse with no reins."

"I was planning to buckle down and study hard once I got to school."

"I never expected an entrance exam. I'm freaking out now. What if it's not on chemistry?"

Chang Wenchao hadn't gotten into Yan University through the national college entrance exam, so he was quite worried about the content of tomorrow's test.

It was as if their roles had reversed. Zhang Mengting and Lin Chenyi were now the calm and steady ones.

"Heh heh, serves you right for getting guaranteed admission. This is what happens when you don't study."

Lin Chenyi glanced at Lu Shixian and noticed his expression was completely unfazed. He asked curiously, "Fourth Bro, you're not panicking? I remember the IBO just ended, right? Did you have time to read anything else?"

Lu Shixian replied, exasperated, "What the hell is there to panic about? Did none of you read the whole notice? There's another small line at the bottom."

The others quickly scrolled back to the notice and found an addendum at the end.

"PS: This examination is solely for the purpose of helping the college assign advisors and determine students' academic directions."

"Additionally, after the entrance exam, students will be assigned to classes and counselors."

Seeing that line, they finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"I was wondering why we hadn't been assigned to classes yet. We don't even have a counselor, and other schools have already started classes. It's ridiculous," Zhang Mengting couldn't help but vent his frustration.

Hearing his complaint, the others laughed.

"Hahaha, didn't you hear what Dean Zeng said?"

"The Yuanpei model isn't mature yet. We're all crossing the river by feeling the stones. Just get used to it," Lin Chenyi said optimistically.

Lu Shixian also offered some comfort, "Don't panic, everyone. What's past is past, and what's to come is on its way."

"Nothing is set in stone. We might be guinea pigs now, but we'll all become dark horses."

Just then, Chang Wenchao interjected, "Isn't there something called reproductive isolation? If a guinea pig can turn into a dark horse, does that mean I can turn into Ultraman without a transformation device?"

"So, is your IBO championship fake?"

Instantly, the path was filled with another round of cheerful laughter.

That evening, perhaps because of the upcoming exam, the fourth floor of Building 36 was much quieter than usual.

And in their dorm room, though his roommates had claimed not to care, they had all taken out their books and started studying.

Lu Shixian, sitting at his desk below his bunk, glanced at his roommates and shook his head with a silent, amused smile.

Just as he was about to read for a bit before resting, the group chat, which had been silent for a long time, suddenly lit up.

The Four Musketeers of Tsukuba? Ah, it was his old competition teammates.

He guessed it was Yang Yihang who sent the message.

He opened the chat, and sure enough, it was him stirring things up.

[SphincterSeeker]: What's everyone's situation? Report your locations. If you have a chance, come to Shuimu University's School of Life Sciences to meet up.

Lu Shixian was still typing when he saw someone had already replied.

[OldHeartsChange]: Meet up your head. Aren't we in the same school?

[SphincterSeeker]: But we're in different classes! We can still meet up.

Lu Shixian chuckled as he sent his own update.

[TimeWaitsForNone]: Everyone's welcome to come find me at Yuanpei College, Peking University. My treat.

The group chat went silent for a few seconds, then exploded with messages.

[SphincterSeeker]: Awesome! That's the college of death! (Thumbs up)

[SphincterSeeker]: I heard Yuanpei is full of beasts. Most of them are provincial Gaokao top scorers or international science olympiad gold medalists.

[OldHeartsChange]: The competition there seems even fiercer than ours! Go, God Lu! I believe you're the best!

[TimeWaitsForNone]: As if you guys aren't international science olympiad champions.

Just then, a message from Wang Fuwen stunned everyone.

Chapter 161 The Entrance Exam

[Ferryman]: MIT, School of Computer Science.

Wang Fuwen's message had a huge impact.

Although they knew students from their school had gone abroad, they were never in the same class.

They had mostly just heard about it. They never expected someone they knew well would also be studying abroad.

And at a top-tier university, no less.

The messages in the group chat now came even more furiously than before.

[SphincterSeeker]: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, you're amazing, my man! (Strong)

[SphincterSeeker]: But why did you switch to computer science? Is biology not cute enough for you anymore? You've had a change of heart. (Wicked grin)

[OldHeartsChange]: Fatty, don't put it so crudely. That's what he originally studied. (Fist)

Lu Shixian laughed when he saw that.

Everyone has their own choices to make.

How many people are truly able to turn what they love into their career?

So he completely understood Wang Fuwen's decision.

He just couldn't help but marvel internally at how different things were for the rich second generation.

In 2009, studying abroad was gradually becoming a trend of the times.

Studying abroad not only broadened one's horizons but also provided access to more high-quality educational resources, making one more competitive in society and opening up wider personal prospects after graduation.

As the country's reform and opening-up policies continued to expand and the national economic level rose, the number of students studying abroad would only increase.

But you really couldn't do it without money, especially at the undergraduate level, where scholarships were very strict. At least at the graduate and doctoral levels, there was some financial aid from the universities.

So, he also sent a congratulatory message.

[TimeWaitsForNone]: May you live up to your youth and have a brilliant future!

He had wanted to add a line about returning to the country soon, but on second thought, he decided against it.

Why impose his own ideas on others?

Being independent didn't mean you could be pigeonholed. Every person was an individual who could not be defined.

He couldn't control what others thought; he could only decide for himself.
For him, anyway, if he could study domestically, why bother looking far and wide?

Even with a gun to his head, he would still think the same.

Soon, the group chat fell silent due to the quietness of the main subject, Wang Fuwen.

Lu Shixian also put the matter of the QQ group to the back of his mind.

He needed to get plenty of rest today to face tomorrow's entrance exam.

Even though this exam was only meant to help students choose their majors and courses, leaving a good impression on the professors would be well worth it.

In the future, if any good opportunities came up, there was a high chance they would fall into your lap. That was just the way things were.

Sometimes, perhaps just a special slot or a project could change your entire life!

In this world, there was no such thing as love without reason, nor hate without a cause.

All favoritism had its conditions from the start. How could someone say, "I just like this student, for no reason!"

Ask yourself, is that even possible?

Barring any shady dealings, that would be a blatant lie.

If a student didn't have something unique that attracted a teacher, how could the teacher possibly come to like that student?

So, the question was, what was the fastest way to attract the attention of the professors and the college?

Of course, we're talking about positive attention here.

Naturally, it was through outstanding ability!

At this early stage of the school year, when classes hadn't even been assigned, how could you show that you were more outstanding than others?

Without a doubt, it was through the exam.

To be honest, what most students were best at nowadays was taking exams.

So why were his roommates still secretly studying after hearing that this exam was only for reference?

That was the crux of the matter.

No one was a fool, and there was no such thing as a free lunch!

All progress stems from a slowly accumulated beginning.

All results come from silent, persistent effort.

With these thoughts in mind, despite the faint, flickering light of a desk lamp, it didn't stop Lu Shixian from falling asleep.

September 7th.

Room 201, Yuanpei College's teaching building. The entire classroom had a fan-shaped layout, making the space feel very large.

The 140 students found their desks according to a randomized seating chart.

Lu Shixian sat in the fourth row, the second seat from the right.

After the exam papers were distributed, only one teacher remained to proctor the entire room.

The college didn't seem worried about anyone cheating.

Of course, this was very much in line with the style of a prestigious university.

The kind of students who liked to cheat wouldn't even make it past the Gaokao, okay?

Those who ended up here might still have some gaps in their academic abilities, but in terms of academic integrity, there was little difference among them.

Upon receiving the paper, Lu Shixian quickly began to scrutinize the questions.

Oh! No, he was scrutinizing the entire exam paper.

Ever since being tricked by the competition committee at the National Biology Olympiad, he had developed the habit of carefully checking the exam's instructions first, rather than jumping straight to the questions.

"Yuanpei College, Peking University 2009-2010 Academic Year First Semester Entrance Examination."

"Welcome to Yuanpei College, students. This exam consists of 150 questions. Aside from three subjective questions, all others are multiple-choice."

"The options provided may cover content from any subject. Please answer carefully."

"Exam duration: 200 minutes."

Reading this, Lu Shixian began to understand.

In other words, among the 147 multiple-choice questions, any subject could appear.

This matched his expectations. Gold medalists from nearly every academic Olympiad were gathered here; it was impossible for the exam to focus on just one subject.

Although this still put them at a slight disadvantage compared to students who only took the Gaokao, it was within an acceptable range.

Lu Shixian looked at the first question.

1. The focal point of the fundamental opposition and struggle between materialist dialectics and metaphysics lies in whether to acknowledge that ().

a. Connections are complex and diverse.
b. New things will inevitably triumph over old things.
c. Qualitative change is the necessary result of quantitative change.
d. Contradiction is the driving force of development.

Isn't this from Marxist Principles?

Well now, the first question certainly had a distinctive flavor.

Although he had long forgotten what he learned in his university's Marxist Principles course, the question wasn't too difficult if you grasped the keyword.

The key to cracking this question was the word "focal point."

There were many reasons for the fundamental opposition and struggle, but the focus was on contradiction.

Only by acknowledging that contradiction is the driving force of development can one scientifically explain the changes and development in the motion of things, and only by upholding the viewpoint of development can one uphold the viewpoint of universal connection.

With the first question solved, Lu Shixian looked at the second, eager to see what other monstrosity awaited him.

2. The writer who marks the highest achievement of the Northern Song Poetry and Prose Reform Movement is: ()

a. Wang Anshi
b. Su Shi
c. Fan Zhongyan
d. Ouyang Xiu

So, why are we on Chinese literature now?

Chapter 162: The Old Fox Finally Shows His True Colors

Although the jump was a bit big, Lu Shixian was already mentally prepared and managed to remain calm.

He could already hear the soft gasps of surprise from many students around him.

But his focus quickly returned.

Because this question left Lu Shixian a bit stumped.

Aside from the correct option, the three distractors were all very tricky.

They were all writers from the Northern Song dynasty, making the process of elimination somewhat ineffective.

This touched upon a blind spot in his knowledge.

What poetry and prose movement?

He had never even heard of it.

But if it was a question of who had the highest literary achievements, he could say a thing or two.

Did he even need to think? The most famous one was Su Shi, wasn't it? Even Wang Anshi couldn't compare.

So, he quickly filled in answer B.

As for whether it was correct, he really had no idea.

There were plenty more questions to come; he couldn't afford to get bogged down on this one.

Next, he encountered questions related to physics, chemistry, mathematics, economics, and law.

The most outrageous part was that there was even a question about gender.

Seriously, no biology?

Half an hour later, at question 36, he encountered the first biology question.

36. The founder of the gene theory is:

a. Biologist Fleming
b. Biologist Morgan
c. Geneticist Mendel
d. Botanist Unger

Lu Shixian was a bit speechless. What the hell was this?

Could this even be called a biology question?

It was like he had brought a twenty-meter broadsword to fight a boss, only to find the final enemy was a tiny ant.

He barely had to think about the answer; the memory of those energetic fruit fly babies was still fresh.

At this point, he had a preliminary judgment of the test paper.

None of the individual questions were very difficult; they mostly tested general knowledge.

But the crucial issue was that the exam covered a bit of everything.

Just like that Chinese literature question, there was always bound to be a question that touched upon your blind spot.

No one could be omniscient, so the overall difficulty of the test was elevated.

As time passed, even Lu Shixian found himself stumped by some of the later questions.

The feeling was something like: you could understand every single word, but when you put them together, you were completely lost.

This was the worst feeling, because you had no idea what it was even talking about.

After stumbling through the 147 multiple-choice questions, Lu Shixian turned to the subjective questions.

Looking at them, Lu Shixian had to give a five-word evaluation: So very Yuanpei.

First question: What is your perspective on Yuanpei?

Actually, Lu Shixian wasn't clear on this question at first.

After all, true knowledge comes from practice; without experiencing it, one has no right to speak.

But now, after learning so much over the past few days, an idea had gradually formed in his mind.

So he began to write.

"In my view, the current Yuanpei is immature, like an infant learning to speak."

"Under this immature model, we may face all sorts of challenges and problems, things that simply do not exist in other colleges."

"Whether the Yuanpei model can succeed depends primarily on each and every one of us."

"Therefore, to me, Yuanpei is not an honor, but a responsibility."

"We and Yuanpei are one and the same; we build each other up. I believe that choosing Yuanpei is choosing responsibility. The essence of Yuanpei's philosophy is to cultivate true industry leaders and elites, which means we shoulder the historic responsibility of building a better future for our country."

"Getting into Yuanpei was an accident, but I believe the final outcome will be no accident. But what rose is without thorns? Only adversity can help us grow faster."

"And an infant learns to walk by stumbling and falling. In these four years, I hope to work hand in hand with Yuanpei, to grow together!"

For a question like this, getting straight to the point with some practical observations was often more effective than empty platitudes. It was only for reference, anyway.

And this was what he truly wanted to say.

Then he looked at the second question: What are your expectations for yourself?

Seeing this, Lu Shixian understood. The old fox was finally showing his true colors.

After all this time, all the questions he had answered before were just a prelude.

This was the main event!

"Expectations" was just a cover; what they really wanted to know was which direction he wanted to pursue.

Lu Shixian seemed to have anticipated this question and directly wrote down the answer that had long been buried in his heart.

"In the fragrance of rice paddies, we speak of a bountiful year; a bountiful year keeps guests with ample chicken and pork—to become a researcher who makes a modest contribution to agricultural science."

The third question: What do you think Yuanpei can give you?

Lu Shixian scratched his head. It seemed he had already answered this one.

So, with a wave of his hand, he simply left seven words: Responsibility, companionship, and growth.

Perhaps he had spent too long thinking, as he could feel that many people around him had already finished, turned in their papers, and left.

But Lu Shixian didn't. This time, he timed it just right.

Not long after he finished, the proctor announced that it was time to collect the papers.

Lu Shixian turned in his paper and left. Outside, his roommates were waiting for him as expected.

The guys all looked pretty normal, either because the exam went too smoothly or because they had strong resilience.

"What were you doing in there, little four? Writing a novel? What took you so long?" Zhang Mengting must have been the first to finish, so he had been waiting the longest.

His face showed a hint of impatience.

Lu Shixian shook his head with a smile, feigning depth. "Not a novel, just contemplating the philosophy of life after I finished."

"What philosophy? You were contemplating for dozens of minutes?"

"The world is so wonderful, yet you are so irritable! That's not good, not good at all!"

"Oh, get lost."

"I can't believe you guys still have the energy to argue. Let's go eat, chop-chop!"

After lunch and a short rest, they received a notice to gather at the college in the afternoon for class assignments and course selection.

Finally, the moment has arrived!

Upon hearing the news, almost everyone on the fourth floor of the dorm erupted in excitement.

We can finally attend classes, it's been too long!

That's right, even Lu Shixian felt this way.

After several days without formal classes, he felt an emptiness inside.

As a top student, how could he tolerate this?

Thus, long before the appointed time, Lu Shixian was forcibly dragged out by his roommates.

Of course, when they arrived, they discovered that before the class assignments and course selection, there would be interviews.

Essentially, it was a meeting with an academic advisor.

Professors from ten different departments were distributed in different classrooms.

According to the posted list, Lu Shixian was in the third interview room, Room 304 of the Russian Language Building.

It seemed none of his roommates were with him.

Standing outside Room 304 and looking around, he noticed that the number of people queuing at each classroom was different.

Could this be the college's preliminary selection?

"Next!" Suddenly, a young counselor's voice came from Room 304.

Lu Shixian quickly pushed the door open, only to be stunned when he went inside.

How could it be him?

Chapter 163: Life Is Full of Unexpected Encounters

Why is it you again? Professor Ma!

Lu Shixian remembered that the School of Life Sciences had several advisors for Yuanpei!

Why was it always him he kept running into lately?

Was he that free? Didn't the School of Life Sciences have any classes for him to teach?

Of course, Lu Shixian was just grumbling to himself.

He still held great respect for Professor Ma Yuheng.

"Hello, Professor Ma. Hello, counselor," Lu Shixian said, his expression betraying nothing as he greeted them.

After the counselor closed the door and left, Professor Ma Yuheng revealed a meaningful smile.

"Have a seat, Student Lu. We meet again."

"Life is full of unexpected encounters. What a coincidence."

"It's been two months since we last saw each other in July, and here we are again."

Lu Shixian managed a smile as well. "Professor Ma, you great men are often forgetful. Didn't we just see each other in the classroom yesterday?"

"Did we? I must not have noticed." Ma Yuheng deflected, then suddenly asked, "By the way, Professor Gu specifically asked me about you."

"She asked me to ask you: Did the School of Life Sciences do something to wrong you?"

Lu Shixian was momentarily stunned. What was this all about?

Could he nod? Of course not!

"Professor Ma, you're exaggerating. I've always had a very good impression of the School of Life Sciences. There's no question of being wronged."

Hearing this, Ma Yuheng's face suddenly turned stern. "Then why did you come to Yuanpei College?"

"Our School of Life Sciences couldn't even keep this year's IBO world champion. People are already pointing their fingers at us and calling us incompetent."

Lu Shixian gave a sheepish laugh. "Professor Ma, it's not that dramatic, is it? There are plenty of students in the School of Life Sciences who are more outstanding than me."

"Besides, I can still study at the School of Life Sciences even though I'm in Yuanpei College. It doesn't affect anything."

At this, Professor Ma suddenly shook his head with a wry smile. "Any reform is never that simple. That's just what you think."

"Yuanpei College only has an administrative body, not a teaching one. It only has its own required general education courses."

"All students take their classes in other colleges. It's like borrowing another's hen to lay your own eggs."

"It's not apparent on a normal day, but if an outstanding student makes an achievement..."

Ma Yuheng trailed off, shaking his head with a smile. "I must be getting old and muddled, talking about this with a student. You probably don't understand much of it anyway."

But how could Lu Shixian not understand now? It turned out that not everyone within Peking University was in favor of this.

It seemed this model would face considerable resistance as it tried to move forward and develop.

But Lu Shixian's face remained impassive as he continued to listen to Professor Ma.

"I've seen your exam paper. We won't talk about your performance on the first part."

"You said you want to pursue a career in agricultural science?"

Lu Shixian nodded. "I am indeed quite interested in that area."

Hearing this, Professor Ma smiled. "Very good. Although Peking University doesn't have an agriculture major right now, botany is an interdisciplinary science between agriculture and biology."

"You can just choose the life sciences track. While my main field is cell biology, I can certainly handle undergraduate-level biology."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian couldn't help but smile to himself.

This Professor Ma was truly interesting. He clearly wanted to recruit him as a student but was too proud to say it directly.

However, Lu Shixian approved of Professor Ma Yuheng's character and conduct. A little pride was understandable.

After all, the older one gets, the more one cares about such things.

Moreover, the fact that a professor was actively extending an invitation to a student was quite moving in itself.

So, he quickly and deliberately asked, "I have indeed decided to pursue this direction. In that case, could you be my advisor?"

Hearing this, the look in Ma Yuheng's eyes as he gazed at Lu Shixian grew even more satisfied.

With Lu Shixian signing his name on the statement of intent, the matter was settled.

And so, over the course of one afternoon, all the students decided on their preliminary academic directions.

Next up was the class assignment.

Lu Shixian didn't know how they were divided, but there were five classes in total, each with twenty-eight students.

Third brother Chang Wenchao was in Class 1, he and Lin Chenyi were in Class 2, and Zhang Mengting was in Class 4.

The classes were a mix of humanities and science students, with people choosing all sorts of directions. It was like a chaotic free-for-all.

But then he remembered they wouldn't be taking their major courses together anyway, so he felt at ease.

Seven in the evening.

After dinner, everyone gathered again in the teaching building.

Only this time, everyone had a place they belonged.

Lu Shixian walked into Room 302 and took a seat. This would be the permanent home base for Class 2 of his year.

The counselor, who was already waiting at the podium, stood up.

The counselor was a woman who didn't look very old. She was a former Yuanpei student herself, which gave her a very approachable feel.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Yuan Qingmei. I was a student in the 2003 PPE (Philosophy, Politics, and Economics) track of the Yuanpei experimental program. Although it wasn't a college back then, I suppose that makes me your senior."

"Once again, welcome to Yuanpei. Although you've all been together for some time, you may not know each other very well now that you're in different classes."

"Therefore, as per tradition, we'll do a round of self-introductions, followed by an election for class officers. And then our task for today will be complete!"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian glanced around the room. The ratio of male to female students seemed fairly balanced.

A student was already on stage, introducing herself according to the seating order.

It was a tall girl who seemed quite attractive, immediately drawing the attention of many of the boys.

"Hello, everyone. I'm Zhang Mengyue. Zhang as in the character with 'bow' and 'long,' Meng as in 'dream,' and Yue as in 'moon.' Volunteer service is my hobby, and helping others is my strength. We'll be spending a lot of time together, and I hope I can be of help to everyone. Also, I'm from Hainan Province. I'll treat you all to coconut juice when I get the chance!"

After she finished, Yuan Qingmei led the applause.

"Well said. Student Zhang Mengyue is this year's top liberal arts scorer from Hainan Province. Very impressive indeed! Let's give her a round of applause!"

Instantly, many in the audience joined in, with a small group of boys clapping the most enthusiastically.

As expected, a pretty face is popular everywhere.

As the next person went on stage, Chang Wenchao, who was sitting to Lu Shixian's right, turned to him, his eyes gleaming. "That girl's not bad!"

Lu Shixian looked at him, then at Zhang Mengyue's retreating back.

He shook his head. "Not bad, I agree, but I'm afraid you're not her type."

Chang Wenchao was puzzled. "What makes you say that?"
Chapter 164: Quite the Outstanding Young Man

Lu Shixian had no choice but to break it down for him. "First, when no one knows each other, the only way to get a sense of someone is through their self introduction. Hers was incredibly smooth, without a moment's hesitation, which means she's been preparing for a long time."

"Second, her intentions were too obvious. Words like 'volunteer service,' 'eager to help,' 'assistance,' and even 'coconut milk' were all strong psychological cues."

"Finally, right after she finished, you could see that some people were far more enthusiastic than others. That means she's already gathered some supporters."

"All in all, it's clear she's going to run for either class monitor or branch secretary. She's a natural at administration."

"How could she possibly hit it off with a clueless tech guy like you?"

With every sentence Lu Shixian spoke, Chang Wenchao's heart sank a little deeper.

"Is there really no chance for a surprise? Can't I be the wonder boy?" Chang Wenchao clung to his last shred of hope.

Hearing the "wonder boy" joke again, Lu Shixian was momentarily at a loss for words.

"Alright, I'll stop teasing you. As long as you believe in the light, miracles can happen. I'm just afraid that even if a miracle happened, you wouldn't be able to handle it."

While the two were joking around, nearly half of the twenty eight students had finished their introductions.

As expected, they were all heavy hitters, the kind of academic gods from their original high schools.

Soon, it was Lu Shixian's turn.

Lu Shixian had no intention of running for any class officer positions, so he was quite nonchalant.

"Hello everyone, my name is Lu Shixian. My family is from Jinling, but I grew up in a small village with a few dozen acres of farmland. I'm young, not wealthy, and lead a simple, quiet life. Currently single, by the way, and open to good news!"

After he finished, everyone was stunned for a moment.

Then, the room erupted in laughter. Many of the girls who had been whispering amongst themselves looked up at him.

Their expressions seemed to say, *this guy is pretty interesting*.

At this point, Yuan Qingmei didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She flipped open the class roster and said with a smile, "Lu Shixian, is it? You're a very outstanding young man, not simple at all."

"Winning a gold medal in the Math Olympiad and a national gold in the Biology Olympiad in your first year of high school, then placing first in the world at the IBO in your second year. Your academic journey has been anything but plain."

"However, while we don't forbid relationships here at Yan University, you'd best wait until you're of age next year!"

As soon as she said this, many of the girls were dumbfounded, especially those who had been in military training with him.

Thinking back to how naturally they had called him "big brother," a wave of embarrassment washed over them.

After saying this, Yuan Qingmei still seemed a bit worried. She turned to the girls in the class and asked, "Did all you young ladies hear that clearly? Only after next year, okay?"

Her words sent the class into another roar of laughter. Lu Shixian had single handedly provided all the comic relief for the evening and the next few days.

Returning to his seat, Lu Shixian felt a bit helpless.

He hadn't wanted to run for anything and just thought he'd be a little cheeky, but he was exposed on the spot.

He wasn't being given any chance at all, not that he had any such intentions for the time being.

Soon, it was time to elect the class officers.

And what do you know, once in university, the number of people eager to be class officers seemed to have grown again.

The blackboard was already filled with several names for most positions, with only a few spots left empty.

Yuan Qingmei glanced at the board and asked, "Is no one running for Hygiene Monitor?"

"Any other volunteers? This is a great way to build character. Be more proactive, everyone."

Just then, Chang Wenchao, sitting next to Lu Shixian, made his move.

He walked up to the podium and wrote his name in the empty space.

Lu Shixian looked at the returning Chang Wenchao in surprise.

"Third Brother, what's going on? I get Eldest Brother, but didn't you say you were going to focus on your studies?"

Chang Wenchao gave him a sly look. "I just realized, as the Hygiene Monitor, I get to conduct inspections everywhere. You get it!"

Lu Shixian was instantly speechless, wanting nothing more than to call the police.

Hello? Police?

Yes! There's a freaking pervert right next to me.

Lu Shixian couldn't be bothered with him and looked back at the blackboard. There was still one position with no candidates.

Looking closer, he understood.

PE Representative. Ah, that explains it.

It was an absolutely thankless job. It didn't seem like much most of the time, but it became a nightmare during the university sports meet.

This was a true test of one's social skills, because absolutely no one wanted to sign up.

Sure enough, despite Yuan Qingmei's repeated calls, the class remained silent.

You could roar like a lion for thirty years, and I'd remain as unmoving as a great pine tree.

But it seemed the advisor always had a way to make someone submit.

"Since no one is willing to be the PE Representative, let's do this!"

"We'll use the ancient method of selecting the wise and capable. Everyone, please recommend the most suitable candidate."

For some reason, upon hearing this, Lu Shixian's heart skipped a beat.

His sixth sense was correct.

The moment the advisor finished speaking, several girls from the fourth platoon spoke his name in unison.

"Shixian... little brother is great. He was our platoon leader during military training, and a standard bearer too."

With that, the entire class started to chime in.

A triumphant smile appeared on Yuan Qingmei's face. "Student Lu, I didn't realize you were also a military training standard bearer!"

"It seems you're the popular choice. With so many students recommending you for PE Representative, it shows that everyone recognizes your abilities."

"And since you have no competition for this position, we don't even need to hold a vote. Wouldn't you all agree?"

"Yes!"

The sound echoed throughout Classroom 302.

Lu Shixian knew the tide had turned; there was no escaping it now.

PE Representative it is, then. It would only be busy for a short while.

At least it was better than being the Hygiene Monitor. He wouldn't have to inspect dorms and classrooms every week.

Next, with the exception of Lu Shixian, a secret ballot began for the other positions.

In the end, Zhang Mengyue defeated three other candidates with a resounding 21 votes to become the class monitor of Class Two.

A rather rugged looking, square faced boy named Huo Yanghao became the Branch Secretary with 18 votes.

The Academic Committee member was a girl who had mentioned achieving nearly perfect scores in all her subjects during her introduction, Song Qi.

The last position to be announced was the Hygiene Monitor.

That's right, even this position had competition.

In the end, Chang Wenchao won by a slim margin of two votes, becoming the Hygiene Monitor.

With that, the evening came to a close, and Yuanpei College was finally on the right track.

All that was left was to select their courses in the computer lab tomorrow morning, generate their schedules, and then they could start attending classes.

On the way back to the dorm, sounds of joyful laughter could be heard all around.

That's right, because they could go to class tomorrow.

Everyone was imagining what their classes would be like.

Everyone was eager to absorb new knowledge.

Everyone was hungry for growth.

And this was Yan University!

This was Yuanpei!

Chapter 165: Come on in, Valued Customer!

Back in the dorm, after a brief chat, the four roommates began to report on their evening's achievements.

Eldest Brother, Zhang Mengting, had ultimately chosen Chinese Language and Literature and, by virtue of his "sutra chanting," had successfully become the class monitor of Class Four.

Second Brother, Lin Chenyi, had chosen Guanghua, but his bid for Propaganda Committee member had failed, leaving him a bit down.

Third Brother, Chang Wenchao, needless to say, was in the chemistry track and was the Hygiene Monitor for Class Two.

Fourth Brother, Lu Shixian, was in the life sciences track and was the PE Representative for Class Two.

It was a rather bizarre setup. One dorm room, four people, four different classes, a mix of humanities and sciences, and four different majors.

It was truly a mixed dormitory, but that was a hallmark of Yuanpei College.

The next morning, the four of them composed themselves and went off to their respective classes to select their courses.

Lu Shixian had chosen Biological Sciences.

According to the requirements for this major, he needed to complete 138 credits over four years to graduate.

This included public foundation courses, general electives, and major specific courses.

Of course, this was just a preliminary plan; he could change it at any time based on his situation.

Students at Yuanpei College typically declared their intended major at the end of their second semester and formally confirmed it at the end of their third semester.

It wasn't like other colleges where once a major was chosen, it was very difficult to change.

It was just that Lu Shixian had already decided on his path long ago.

The public foundation courses were all mandatory, so he didn't fight it and simply checked them off on the computer.

Among the humanities courses was College English, which was required since he wasn't an English major.

The political theory courses included Moral Cultivation, Modern Chinese History, Introduction to Mao Zedong Thought, Principles of Marxism, and Contemporary World Politics and Policies. There was no escaping these.

The required science and engineering courses were College Mathematics and College Physics. However, chemistry was an unavoidable hurdle for life sciences, so it was also mandatory. It seemed computer science would start in the second year.

So for now, he needed to take Calculus I & II, Linear Algebra, General Physics I & II, General Chemistry I & II, and Organic Chemistry.

Next were the General Education Core Courses. This option was already grayed out on the selection page, meaning it had been chosen for him.

Lu Shixian glanced at it. He needed to select one course from each series—Western Civilization, Eastern Civilization, the Modern World, Science and Technology, etc.—to meet the credit requirement.

This was flexible, so like the general electives, he quickly made his selections.

Finally, he reached the major courses. The curriculum could vary greatly between different universities and majors.

He clicked open the list of courses for Biological Sciences. For students in this major, all of them were required.

These were mandatory, so he obediently checked them all off, including Biochemistry, Genetics, Basic Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, Physiology, and Biostatistics.

Finally, from the major electives, he chose Botany, Microbiology, Developmental Biology, and Ecology to add to his schedule.

After finishing his course selection, Lu Shixian looked at his rapidly filling schedule and felt a growing sense of fulfillment.

Although the sight of physics, chemistry, and mathematics gave him a bit of a headache, he accepted it, knowing they were foundational courses that couldn't be avoided.

Besides, to delve deep into biology, a certain understanding of these subjects was essential.

In reality, the curriculum at Yan University was dynamic, not set in stone.

There would be slight variations at different times, but overall, it was divided into these main components.

He printed out his schedule.

Today was Tuesday, and his second class in the morning was, coincidentally, Botany. The instructor's name was clearly listed: Professor Gu Hongya.

Lu Shixian covered his face, already imagining the invisible smoke of battle that would fill the classroom later.

After picking up his textbooks from the undergraduate affairs office warehouse, his once empty backpack was once again full.

The first class of the morning was scheduled from 9:00 to 9:50 AM.

It was a public elective, and Lu Shixian had casually chosen Management.

It would be useful, he thought, since the world revolved around the concept of management.

He swore it wasn't because the elective credits for Management were higher that he chose it.

The course's high value of two credits was like a beautiful young woman with a slender figure, waving at him incessantly.

As if to say, "Come on in, valued customer!"

But he would later find out why, so long after the freshman course selection period had started, there were still so many open spots.

Forgive him, he had never taken this course during his previous school life, otherwise he wouldn't have fallen into this trap.

There were quite a few new faces in the Management class this time.

Without a doubt, they were all students from Yuanpei College.

The lecturer didn't seem to mind, carrying on with his lesson with a grand air of welcoming all comers.

The fifty minute class passed in a flash.

Lu Shixian's assessment of it was four words: worth the time.

For an individual, it could help in better managing time and plans in future studies and work.

For a group, it could help organize members to cooperate and achieve a predetermined long term organizational goal.

Leaving his name on the attendance sheet and taking his page full of notes, Lu Shixian left with a flourish.

10:00 AM.

Lu Shixian arrived ten minutes early at Classroom 501 in Building B of the School of Life Sciences.

He glanced around the room, which was already full of students. It looked like several classes from the School of Life Sciences were combined.

Keeping his head down, Lu Shixian quickly snagged a seat in the last row.

While waiting, he looked at the building around him and suddenly remembered something amusing.

The Yan University School of Life Sciences building, which cost over a hundred million to build, had just won the Lu Ban Prize, China's highest award for construction quality. But not long after, it was exposed for having quality issues, such as cracked walls.

Was it the wrath of Godzilla or the might of the local earth god?

He thought he might get to enjoy some drama, but then he remembered this was old news from several years ago, and his interest waned.

Just then, the class bell rang.

A solemnly dressed female professor walked in through the front door.

As the professor's gaze swept over the students, Lu Shixian quickly propped his forehead with his hand, pretending to be deep in thought.

Opening the lecture slides on the classroom computer, the professor's voice rang out.

"Class, a few days ago, we talked about the yesterday, today, and tomorrow of botany."

"We witnessed the brief history of the development of plant science, from descriptive botany to experimental botany and finally to modern botany, learning about the different periods of its development."

"Today, our topic is the important role of plant science, as well as the classification of the plant kingdom and the branch disciplines of plant science."

As the professor finished, the sound of textbooks being flipped open filled the room.

"Since the semester has just begun, I've been going slowly to give everyone some time to adjust and get to know the subject."

"To catch up, I may not go into as much detail from now on. You will need to study and understand more on your own after class."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian had a sudden realization. He could practically recite the contents of botany backwards.

No wonder they were still on the history of botany in the introduction after so many days.

Chapter 166: It's a Small World After All

With a click of the professor's finger, the slide changed to the next one: The Important Role of Plant Science.

The slide was instantly filled with a dozen or so points.

At the same time, students next to him began furiously taking notes in their books, copying from the slide.

Lu Shixian shook his head with a smile. This was actually the most unnecessary content to memorize.

He could list a whole bunch of points even without looking at the PowerPoint; understanding was far more important than memorization.

Importance is always relative to an object. Without an object, the concept of importance doesn't exist.

Going from large to small, let's start with the Earth.

What is the importance of plants to the Earth?

Undoubtedly, the most crucial role is maintaining the balance of material cycles.

For the natural world, they act as primary producers.

For the biosphere, they regulate temperature, conserve soil and water, and purify the atmosphere and water quality.

For humanity, they provide water, food, nutrients, tobacco, medicinal herbs, landscapes, fiber, and so on.

With this kind of logical framework, memorization was often unnecessary.

Sure enough, Gu Hongya only mentioned it briefly.

She focused on the important role of plant science in the national economy.

Huh? The level of discussion had suddenly been elevated.

Lu Shixian's interest was piqued, and he began to listen attentively and take notes.

"When we study any subject, we must know what role it plays, whether for the individual or for society. We can't just study blindly."

"First, it provides the fundamental theories and basic knowledge for utilizing and modifying plants."

"Second, it allows us to explore the mysteries and patterns of plant life at the micro, macro, and even higher levels."

Pure theory is rarely convincing for beginners.

So, Gu Hongya began to give examples.

"The first breakthrough in rice breeding in our country was the dwarf breeding in the 1960s. This breakthrough directly increased our country's rice yield per mu by more than 20%."

"The second breakthrough came in the mid 1970s with the theory of hybrid rice. This achievement increased the yield per mu by another 20% on top of the high quality dwarf varieties."

"Now, the direction for the third breakthrough has emerged: heterosis exists between subspecies of rice. By utilizing this advantage, we can cultivate super hybrid rice. Under the leadership of Academician Yuan, this project has already achieved the goals of 700 kilograms and 800 kilograms per mu in 2000 and 2004, respectively."

"Can the theories of plant science bring about profound changes for humanity?" Seeing that the students were beginning to think, she smiled, waited a moment, and changed to the next slide.

"We use molecular biology to study the essence of the plant's microscopic world, and ecology to study the relationships between different biological communities at the macroscopic level. Do you all see the three academic journals on the screen?"

"Plant Cell. This is a top tier journal published by the American Society of Plant Biologists and is the most influential journal in the field of plant biology, with a recent impact factor as high as 9.8. Similar journals include Plant Physiology and The Plant Journal."

"The first two are SCI Q1 journals in the field of botany, and the last one is a Q2 journal. We also have a relevant Chinese core journal, the Journal of Integrative Plant Biology."

"If any of you are interested in this, you can accumulate knowledge and study hard during your freshman year, and strive for the opportunity to conduct related research. If you can get published in these journals, the college will offer rewards."

Lu Shixian was listening intently when he heard the word "rewards."

Suddenly, he slapped his hand on the desk.

He had completely forgotten about that.

At universities, the school gives rewards to students for publishing academic papers!

The Chinese Journal of Rice Science was a Chinese core journal. That should be worth at least ten thousand yuan, right?

The thought made his heart ache.

It wasn't that he was obsessed with the ten thousand yuan, but that it was legitimate compensation he should have received for his labor.

Hearing this news now, he suddenly felt like he had been working for free.

As he was lost in thought, he noticed the classroom had suddenly become silent.

He looked up, confused.

What's going on?

Why is everyone looking at me?

Huh, when did Professor Gu walk over to me?

Crap, I've been discovered!

"Excuse me, student, are you in the wrong classroom? I don't seem to recall seeing you in the previous classes," Gu Hongya asked, looking somewhat surprised.

Hearing this, Lu Shixian's scalp tingled even more.

You personally gave me an award just a few months ago, have you forgotten?

I'm so toast. She must be holding a grudge, why else would she say that?
When a woman holds a grudge, it’s not something that goes away in a day or two.

How could he dare bring up the Yuanpei College matter now? He could only force a bitter smile and explain, “I’m in the right place. I just heard that your lectures are exceptional, Professor Gu, so I came to sit in.”

At his words, a smile touched Gu Hongya’s lips. She continued, “Since you think my lectures are alright, why didn’t you come to the School of Life Sciences?”

Lu Shixian was suddenly at a loss for words and could only grin foolishly without saying anything.

Fortunately, Gu Hongya was just teasing him to let off a bit of steam and decided to let him off the hook in the end.

“You can sit, but please don’t make any noise next time.”

Lu Shixian quickly sat down. The tension just now felt like facing a firing squad; his heart was still pounding in his chest.

“Why can’t I just control my own hands?”

Just as Lu Shixian began to reflect on his actions, Gu Hongya had already moved on to the next topic.

“The earliest division of the plant kingdom can be traced back to 1735, when Linnaeus made the groundbreaking move of dividing the living world into the plant and animal kingdoms. This was the earliest two-kingdom system.”

“Later, the biologist Haeckel built upon Linnaeus’s work and proposed a three-kingdom system, adding the kingdom Protista.”

“Then, Whittaker proposed the four-kingdom and five-kingdom systems in 1959 and 1969 respectively, successively adding the kingdoms Fungi and Monera. The advantage of this system is that it horizontally displays the three major directions of biological evolution and vertically displays the three major stages of biological evolution.”

At this point, Gu Hongya didn't elaborate on these two sets of three.

Instead, she suddenly posed a question to the dozens of students in the classroom: “Does anyone know about the subsequent developments in classification? This isn’t mentioned in the textbook. Does anyone know?”

As expected of Yanda University, it was full of crouching tigers and hidden dragons. Even students who had just enrolled possessed a vast store of knowledge.

Soon, a few scattered hands went up.

Gu Hongya randomly called on a student. It was none other than the class president of the 2009 Biological Sciences Program, Class One: Yu Junlan.

When he stood up and Lu Shixian saw his face, he suddenly recognized him. This was an acquaintance!

Wasn’t this the physics whiz from the comprehensive interview at the National Biology Olympiad selection camp?

He hadn’t expected him to choose Yanda University as well.

It really was a small world.

Chapter 167: So This is the Legendary Lu Shen?

This time, Yu Junlan seemed much more reliable, no longer spouting nonsense about Einstein's special theory of relativity.

“In 1949, Copeland proposed a six-kingdom system that included Metazoa, Metaphyta, Fungi, Protista, Monera, and Viruses.”

Just when everyone thought he was finished, he continued.

“In 1989, Cavalier-Smith proposed an eight-kingdom system.”

“Eukaryotes were divided into the superkingdom Post-eukaryota and the superkingdom Arche-eukaryota. The Post-eukaryota superkingdom includes the kingdoms Animalia, Fungi, Plantae, Chromista, and Protozoa, while the Arche-eukaryota superkingdom mainly consists of the kingdom Archezoa. The rest are prokaryotes, which are divided into the kingdoms Eubacteria and Archaebacteria.”

After he finished speaking, everyone looked at him with admiration.

Lu Shixian was also a little surprised.

Huh, not bad at all.

One should look at a person with new eyes after an absence of but three days.

But then he remembered that a long time had passed, and he wasn't the only one working hard and improving.

It was only natural, and with that thought, he felt at ease.

Gu Hongya also gave him a nod of approval.

“Very good. Please give him a round of applause.”

After the neat round of applause, Gu Hongya did not move on to the next topic.

“The journey from the two-kingdom to the eight-kingdom system represents the collective wisdom of all biologists. But this isn't the end of the line for classification. Can anyone else add to this?”

This question left many people stumped.

“It’s not over yet?”

“Don’t tell me there’s a ten-kingdom system? The only Ten-Tails I know is from Naruto.”

“It can’t get any more detailed, can it?”

Many people began to show expressions of helplessness. Even Yu Junlan, who had just answered, was lost in thought.

Time ticked by, but there was no response.

Gu Hongya’s gaze swept over everyone’s faces, finally settling on Lu Shixian, who was slacking off in the back row.

“Student Lu, this question shouldn’t be difficult for you. Please answer it.”

Lu Shixian hadn't expected to be called on again so soon after calming down from the earlier incident.

But he had no choice. A question asked was a question that had to be answered.

“In addition to those, there is also the three-domain, six-kingdom system.”

“The three domains are Archaea, which includes methanogens, extreme thermophiles, and extreme halophiles; Bacteria, which includes bacteria and cyanobacteria; and Eukarya, which contains the kingdoms Protista, Fungi, Plantae, and Animalia.”

Just as Lu Shixian finished, the pleasant sound of the bell signaling the end of class rang out.

Gu Hongya, however, ignored it and took the lead in applauding.

“Student Lu’s answer is very accurate.”

“Professor Gu, the proposal of the three-domain theory was also because Whittaker’s five-kingdom system was gradually becoming insufficient for the needs of biologists, right?” Lu Shixian asked, seeking her guidance.

Gu Hongya nodded. “Indeed. With the continuous development of molecular biology, sequence analysis of rRNA and rDNA has generated more and more phylogenetic data for biological systems.”

“Molecular phylogenetics has shown that the entire living world can be divided into three major groups with independent origins. The traditional Whittaker five-kingdom system can no longer fully represent the five evolutionary lineages of life.”

“In 1978, based on the data generated from these developments in molecular biology, Whittaker and Margulis proposed the new three-domain theory. They believed that in the early stages of evolution, all life evolved from a common ancestor along three different evolutionary paths, eventually developing into three domains.”

After Professor Gu finished her explanation in one breath, Lu Shixian took the opportunity while she caught hers to add to it.

“Those are the three domains I just mentioned. Essentially, prokaryotes have two major evolutionary branches, so they were divided into two domains: Archaea and Bacteria. Eukaryotes were classified as a single domain, which led to the proposal of the three-domain system.”

Gu Hongya nodded again in satisfaction. “That’s right. Compared to the six-kingdom system, the three-domain, six-kingdom system incorporates the ideas of the endosymbiotic theory of eukaryotic origin. In the biological community, it is the truly widely recognized method of classification.”

The two of them went back and forth, one speaking after the other.

Meanwhile, the dozens of students below found they couldn't even get a word in.

Because they realized they barely understood what was being said.

This was ridiculous.

Was this guy really just sitting in on a class?

Who was the life sciences major here, him or them?

Finally, after some explanation from Yu Junlan and others who followed the Biology Olympiad, chants of “Lu Shen” suddenly erupted in the classroom.

“So this is the legendary Lu Shen?”

“IBO World’s Number One. My apologies for the disturbance.”

“Haha, so he’s one of our own. Okay, my confidence is restored.”

The bell had rung some time ago. Remembering he had another class, Lu Shixian hurriedly started packing his things.

But before he could leave, Gu Hongya stopped him.

To free up the classroom, the two of them stepped out into the hallway.

“Little Lu, to be honest, I understand why you chose Yuanpei College.”

The professor advised him earnestly, “But you must pursue a life sciences track, you understand?”

“On behalf of the School of Life Sciences, I welcome you to study with us.”

“Also, give me your student ID card for a moment.”

Lu Shixian was about to express his thanks when he heard her last sentence and grew curious.

“What do you need my student ID for?”

Gu Hongya glanced around and suddenly whispered, “Even though Yuanpei College students can take courses from any school, some resources are still not open to them.”

“Give me your card. After I enter it into the backend system, you’ll have free access to the school’s archives and literature rooms. After registering, the smaller labs can also be opened to you.”

Lu Shixian’s heart skipped a beat. He hadn't known such a workaround existed.

He immediately handed her his student ID card.

“Thank you for your trouble, Professor Gu.”

Taking his card, Gu Hongya asked with concern, “Little Lu, what happened in the classroom just now? Were you not feeling well?”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian couldn't help but laugh and had to tell her what had happened.

“What? You published a paper in a Chinese core journal while you were still in high school?” Gu Hongya was astonished. Although she already held him in high regard, she realized she had still underestimated him.

“Yes, Professor Gu. The one I wrote is considered a Yanda Core journal. Do you think it could also qualify for the school’s awards?” Lu Shixian asked, still holding out a sliver of hope.

Gu Hongya smiled. “You’ll have to ask your Yuanpei College about that. But it’s highly unlikely. Generally, the requirements are that the paper must be published while you’re a student, and the primary affiliation must be Yanda University.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian instantly gave up all hope.

He didn't meet a single one of the criteria.

Chapter 168: To Be Honest, It Was a Bit Basic

“By the way, what field was your paper in? I’m quite curious,” Gu Hongya asked.

“The main field is agronomy,” Lu Shixian replied after a moment of thought.

At this, Gu Hongya’s eyes lit up, and she became even more interested.

Her own research areas were in plant systematics, evolution, and plant molecular biology.

Hearing that Lu Shixian’s paper was on agronomy, which was closely related to botany, her interest was immediately piqued.

“Which journal was it published in, and what’s the title of the paper? It’s possible it passed through my desk for review.” Professor Gu wasn't mistaken. As an authority in the field of botany in the country, she served as a reviewer for several botany and agronomy journals.

Although she normally couldn’t review manuscripts from Yanda University to avoid conflicts of interest, Lu Shixian hadn't been a Yanda student at the time.

“It was submitted to the *Chinese Journal of Rice Science*. The main topic was a preliminary study on the rice-crayfish co-culture model…”

Lu Shixian hadn't even finished speaking when he noticed Gu Hongya’s reaction was a bit strange.

“No way, you’re the one who published that paper?”

“Why don’t we go to my office to talk?”

Gu Hongya was already in a state of shock, and her voice had grown louder.

“Is that appropriate? My next class is about to start,” Lu Shixian said, unsure why she was reacting so strongly. He was still hesitant about skipping a class so early in the semester.

“It’s fine. What’s your next class? I’ll call and get you excused.”

What else could Lu Shixian say? He could only follow her obediently.

Once they reached her office, Gu Hongya had already contacted the lecturer for his elective course and excused him.

Normally, such matters required going through a counselor, and for more important courses, even a trip to the student affairs office.

But for a professor to occasionally excuse a student, it was basically just a matter of a single phone call.

She opened the door, and Lu Shixian followed her into an office that was surrounded by greenery.

“Little Lu, have a seat. I’ll make you some tea.” Gu Hongya immediately got busy upon entering.

Naturally, Lu Shixian couldn't let a professor make tea for him. He politely declined several times and ended up getting a glass of water for himself and sitting down.

Finally, the conversation returned to the previous topic.

“I really didn’t expect this. I’ve heard the phrase ‘rice-crayfish co-culture’ so many times these past few days my ears are about to fall off, but I never imagined you were the one who wrote the paper.”

“I didn’t realize you had heard about it too. I just worked on it over the summer vacation out of boredom. It’s a bit rough, so please don’t laugh.”

Lu Shixian continued to grin foolishly. He had already guessed that his paper might have attracted some attention.

Perhaps some people had already started to supplement and expand upon his research.

Seeing that he still hadn't grasped the gravity of the situation, Gu Hongya found it amusing.

“You probably don’t know this, but because of your paper, the Ministry of Agriculture has designated the study of the rice-crayfish co-culture model as a national-level key research project for next year. It’s not just rice researchers applying for it now; even soil scientists and aquaculture experts are applying for this project.”

“Some are already saying that the rice-crayfish co-culture model will become a typical representative of modern agriculture in our country, a revolution in modern agriculture. It’s a revolution, and you, the one who raised the flag, are still in the dark.”

By now, Lu Shixian’s jaw had dropped. Although Su Changqing’s reminder had made him take his paper seriously, he had thought that getting it into a core journal was its absolute limit.

He had never imagined its impact would be so great as to directly spawn a national-level research project.

In truth, he was a victim of the limitations of his previous life's perspective.

Many might think, you’re a master’s student, how could you not have realized this? How naive!

But in reality, a person’s perspective is directly related to the size of their platform and their own capabilities.

Frantically padding out papers with filler content and publishing them in low-impact journals meant dealing with lower echelons of academia. Naturally, one’s insight would be less profound. It was a matter of course.

Some things aren’t as simple as just thinking them through and concluding, "Ah, it must be so, I'm so smart!"

Sometimes, without the experience, you really don’t have the right to speak on the matter.

At that moment, Gu Hongya interrupted his thoughts, her tone tinged with confusion.

“That’s not right. Logically, someone should have contacted you and invited you to join a research group. Haven’t you received any news?”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian abruptly pulled out his phone.

He opened his blocklist. It was nearly full, with numbers from provinces all over the country.

“Well…” Lu Shixian said, a little embarrassed. “Professor Gu, there were too many calls from out-of-province numbers before. I thought they were spam calls, so I set my phone to only accept calls from my contacts…”

His words left Gu Hongya speechless as well.

“I reckon the future citation count for this one paper of yours will soon surpass the total for all the papers I’ve written in the last few years,” Gu Hongya said. Then, as if remembering something, she continued, “Little Lu, what did you think of the content I lectured on earlier?”

Lu Shixian didn’t know what she meant by that.

Was he supposed to say it was good, or was he supposed to say it was good?

“Do you want the truth or a lie?” he asked directly.

His question made Gu Hongya laugh. This kid is really interesting, she thought.

“The truth, of course. I won’t take offense.”

“To be honest, based on just that one class session, it was a bit basic.”

Hearing this, Gu Hongya wasn’t angry at all. Instead, she smiled and asked, “Then would you be interested in doing something more interesting?”

“What is it?” Lu Shixian’s interest was immediately piqued.

Although his recent school life had fallen into a routine, it was still a bit dull. He was looking for something exciting to do.

“The National University Student Extracurricular Academic Science and Technology Works Competition,” Gu Hongya said without keeping him in suspense.

“Whoa, the ‘Challenge Cup’?” he asked, surprised.

This wasn’t some small-scale competition where a niche group of people played among themselves.

It was the most popular national competition in the country with the highest level of attention and participation, as well as the most representative, authoritative, exemplary, and guiding competition for university students.

One phrase could describe its prestige: the “Olympics” of Chinese university student academic and technological innovation.

The Challenge Cup is divided into the "main challenge" and the "minor challenge." The main challenge was the competition Gu Hongya had just mentioned. The minor challenge was called the “Creating Youth” National University Student Entrepreneurship Competition.

The Challenge Cup is held every two years, with the two competitions alternating.

Lu Shixian did a quick mental calculation. It seemed like it was the main challenge’s turn this time.

“So? Are you interested?” Gu Hongya asked, seeing him lost in thought.

“Of course, I’m interested!”

“By the way, could I enter that paper I wrote before?” Lu Shixian asked jokingly.

Chapter 169: Hold On, That’s a Lot of Information

“Generally speaking, graduation theses, term papers, degree dissertations, and works that have won awards in international competitions are not eligible. Your previous paper has no procedural issues, but are you sure you want to use that one? Submitting it wouldn’t really serve the purpose of challenging yourself.”

In truth, Lu Shixian was just speaking casually. If he entered a paper that had already been published in a core journal, all he would have to do is register and then sit back and reap the rewards. No effort would be required.

But his goal in participating was to find a challenge, not just to collect an award.

“Did you complete that previous paper independently, or did someone guide you?” Gu Hongya asked a crucial question.

Lu Shixian thought for a moment. Although he had completed the paper himself, without Su Changqing, it might not have had the impact it did.

So he replied, “Dean Su Changqing of Jinling University provided some guidance.”

Gu Hongya understood. She pondered for a moment and said, “In that case, as long as it doesn’t affect your studies, I suggest you form a two-person team and register under your individual names.”

“Then you can complete the paper through teamwork, which will effectively reduce the workload.”

“I completely agree with your suggestion.” Lu Shixian had the same idea.

At this stage, his studies were the priority. A good academic paper could consume an immense amount of time and energy.

“How about this? I’ll introduce you to a teammate. I have a student in my research group with a very strong foundation. He’s already published an SCI paper this year. He can show you the ropes,” Gu Hongya said, readily offering up her student.

“That would be great.”

Lu Shixian hadn't expected Professor Gu to be so kind as to even find him a teammate.

He had originally planned to ask a few of his dorm mates, so having a ready-made partner was a welcome surprise. It would also be a good opportunity to exchange experiences.

After getting his new teammate’s contact information, the matter was settled.

Since he had missed the last class of the morning, and there was only half the class time left, he didn't bother going to pick up the scraps.

So, after lunch, Lu Shixian went straight back to the dorm.

As expected, the room was empty.

After the lunch rush, the other three slowly trickled back in.

“Morning classes are done! Time to have some fun today,” Chang Wenchao said, tossing his books onto his desk and flashing a peace sign above his head.

Beside him, their dorm leader, Brother Mengnan, scoffed. “You want to have fun at Yanda? Half a day of class, half a day off?”

“I think you’re living in a dream.”

Chang Wenchao was confused. “My schedule is empty this afternoon. Why can’t I have some fun?”

As the class president, Zhang Mengting was already in the know.

“The Freshman Seminars are about to start. It’s a mandatory course for Yuanpei students. We’re all going to be divided into small groups for discussion, two class hours per week.”
"The groupings will be decided this afternoon, and the first small-group discussion class starts tonight."

Zhang Mengting dealt Chang Wenchao a merciless blow, causing him to instantly become completely crestfallen, like a vegetable wilted by frost.

Sure enough, it wasn't long before a notification about the afternoon's grouping and the first discussion class was sent out in the main group chat.

Immediately after, the respective class group chats forwarded the message.

Lu Shixian, however, was dumbfounded, because he had classes that afternoon.

He glanced at the time. It was a direct conflict.

"I'm screwed. I have a major course, an ethics and law class, and a general elective this afternoon. Are they kidding me?"

"When am I supposed to find the time for this?" Lu Shixian was in a bind.

Hearing his complaints, his roommates nearby grew curious.

"Shixian, I remember you went straight to class this morning after you finished course selection. How could you possibly have three classes this afternoon?"

"Usually, there are more classes in the morning than in the afternoon. Don't tell me you only had one class this morning? Are you pulling my leg?" Lin Chenyi, being the observant one, immediately pinpointed the issue.

This instantly drew everyone else's attention.

"That's just how it is!" Lu Shixian couldn't be bothered to explain and simply walked out the door.

If you have trouble off campus, find a policeman. If you have trouble on campus, find your counselor. You can't go wrong!

In fact, every floor of Building 36 had a residential advisor, and even a tutor on duty, available to answer student questions at any time.

But for class-related issues, it was more reliable to find the class counselor.

He arrived at the Yuanpei College academic building and found Yuan Qingmei's office.

He knocked on the door. As expected, Yuan Qingmei was inside, along with another female teacher.

They hadn't taken a break yet; it seemed they were preparing for the afternoon's discussion group assignments.

"Oh, isn't this Student Lu? What can I help you with?" Yuan Qingmei was curious, guessing he was probably there to ask for a leave of absence.

Students at Yanda University were generally very independent and could manage their lives and studies well. They rarely sought out their counselors unless they were sick and needed to take leave.

"Go on, tell me which class you can't make this afternoon. I'll handle the leave request for you," Yuan Qingmei said, acting swiftly. Before Lu Shixian could even speak, she had already pulled a leave request form from her drawer.

Seeing her action, Lu Shixian gave a wry smile and quickly said, "Ms. Yuan, I am here to request a leave of absence, but it's for the afternoon grouping, not my afternoon classes."

A giant question mark seemed to appear over Yuan Qingmei's head.

"That can't be right!"

"Major courses are usually in the morning, and the grouping is scheduled for after five. First-year students don't typically have classes at that time."

Lu Shixian knew what she was thinking and realized it would be difficult to convince her with words alone. He had no choice but to hand her his course schedule.

The moment she glanced at it and saw a dense wall of text, Yuan Qingmei was stunned.

"Why did you select so many major courses? Are you trying to finish all your sophomore year courses at once?"

Her voice attracted the attention of the counselor for another class sitting across from her.

"What's this about so many major courses?"

The female counselor put down the form in her hand and, overcome with curiosity, walked over to take a look.

"'Higher Mathematics,' 'Linear Algebra,' 'General Physics,' 'General Chemistry,' 'Organic Chemistry,' 'Botany,' 'Biochemistry,' 'Genetics'..."

"My god, are you insane?" the female counselor's voice was filled with disbelief.

Yuan Qingmei was even more baffled.

"Student Lu, with so many courses, will you even be able to keep up?"

"If you fail the final exams, you won't get any credits. And with a schedule like this, how will you find the time to participate in the freshman discussion course this semester?"

Lu Shixian was a bit speechless. Wasn't that the very question he was here to ask?

"Isn't that why I've come to you for a solution, Ms. Yuan?"

"The purpose of the freshman discussion course is mainly to lay a foundation for future academic choices and undergraduate research."

"First, my academic focus is already set on biological sciences and will not change."

"Second, I already published a paper in a Chinese core journal during high school. Humbly speaking, my foundation in research is quite solid."

"Participating in another freshman discussion course would be something of a waste of time for me, so..."

Before Lu Shixian could finish, Yuan Qingmei interrupted him.

"Hold on. That's a lot to take in."

"Let me process this for a moment!"

Chapter 170: A Peachy Surprise?

Yuan Qingmei organized her thoughts and continued, "You said you're certain your academic focus won't change, is that right?"

But as soon as she asked, she felt the question was a bit foolish.

"No, that's right, you were the world's number one in this year's IBO. It's only natural for you to choose biological sciences."

She quickly grasped the key point.

"You said you published in a Chinese core journal as a high school freshman?"

Lu Shixian then repeated the explanation he had given Gu Hongya that morning.

Once again, he was met with the stares of two counselors looking at him as if he were some kind of monster.

Even though they themselves were graduates of Yuanpei's experimental program and had been top students in their high schools, publishing in a Chinese core journal was something they couldn't have managed. It was just too fantastical.

"How about this, I'll report this to the college leadership first. As for whether it will be approved, I can't make any guarantees."

"I'll also report the scheduling conflict between your courses and the freshman discussion class."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian knew he had accomplished his goal for the day.

All he had to do now was wait for the results.

After bidding farewell to the two counselors, Lu Shixian headed back.

Since the freshman discussion groups were being formed at five in the afternoon, Yuan Qingmei didn't dare to delay. Not long after, she went to the school's leadership to explain the situation.

It had to be said that Yuanpei College truly valued its students, genuinely putting people first. It was governed by rules, but its administration never lacked a human touch.

Soon, the college's leadership team held a small meeting specifically to discuss Lu Shixian's case.

"Let's hear everyone's thoughts. How should we handle this student's situation?" Zeng Fanzhu tapped the handle of his teacup, his expression unreadable.

"Dean Zeng, I believe the student's reasons are sufficient and very convincing. I suggest we accommodate his personalized needs."

"I second that! Although the freshman discussion course is a required class we developed to help students, and in principle, everyone should participate, we must also make special arrangements for students in special circumstances."

"Indeed! After Yuan mentioned his paper, I looked into it and discovered I'd even heard of it. It was the catalyst for a national-level project that the Ministry of Agriculture is launching next year."

With that statement, the matter was settled.

Lu Shixian's request was officially approved.

At four in the afternoon, Lu Shixian received a message on QQ from Yuan Qingmei.

[Qingmei]: Student Lu, congratulations. Based on the decision of the college leadership, you are no longer required to participate in the first-semester freshman discussion course.

Seeing the message, Lu Shixian let out a huge sigh of relief.

He immediately replied to thank her.

He didn't know that while this matter had caused him a bit of trouble, it had also left a deep impression on several leaders at Yuanpei College.

As they say, misfortune is what fortune leans on, and in fortune lurks misfortune. The most fundamental philosophies are born from life itself, and this was no exception.

Six o'clock in the evening.

The last class of the day was over.

This time, after dinner, he chose not to return to his dorm.

An idea struck him as he thought of the contact information Gu Hongya had given him that morning.

The campus competition would be starting soon. It would be better to contact this teammate sooner rather than later.

Anyone who could be teamed up with him must also be an undergraduate.

To publish an SCI paper as an undergraduate, regardless of the process, the result alone could only be described with two words.

Badass!

"138762xxxx." Lu Shixian dialed the number while muttering it to himself.

"Beep... beep... beep..."

After a few seconds, there was still no answer.

Then, a recorded voice came from the receiver.

"The user you are dialing is busy. Please try again later."

"What the heck, did I just get rejected?" For the first time, Lu Shixian began to doubt his social skills.

"No way. Maybe they're just busy? I'll have to try calling again later."

He put his phone away and started walking back toward Building 36.

But in an unexpected turn of events, before he had taken more than a few steps, his phone vibrated.

"You have a new text message!"

He opened it without a second thought. It was from the very number that hadn't picked up.

"+86138762xxxx: Hello, I saw I missed your call. How can I help you?"

Lu Shixian's eyes lit up. Looks like there's a chance!

He hurriedly began to compose a text message. To be honest, he hadn't used this feature in ages.

He was a bit rusty, and it took him a while to type out a message of just a dozen words.

"Hello, sorry to bother you. I'm Lu Shixian, referred by Professor Gu Hongya."

He kept it brief. If Professor Gu hadn't mentioned him, there was no point in him explaining everything.

A dozen seconds later, he received another message.

Perhaps he had given the correct password, because the other person's tone was no longer so formal.

"+86138762xxxx: Hey junior, Professor Gu already told me about you. Texting is too expensive though, let's switch to QQ to chat. My number is 8643xxxx."

"Things are looking up tonight," Lu Shixian thought as he excitedly sent a friend request using the number.

Add [Bamboo & Morning Glory] as a friend?

He clicked confirm, and a dozen seconds later, his request was accepted.

This pro must be very busy, so he decided to seize the opportunity and take the initiative.

[Shi Bu Yu]: Hey, about the Challenge Cup in September, QQ feels a bit limiting. Would you be free to meet in person and chat?

To his surprise, the reply came quickly this time.

It was almost instantaneous.

[Bamboo & Morning Glory]: Sure! So sorry for the wait, I just got out of the library. I'll wait for you in the third-floor study hall of the Science Education Building.

Library? Study hall?

Definitely a true academic god. Hearing such a polite response, Lu Shixian felt both surprised and flattered.

What had he done to deserve such treatment from a god-tier student?

Lu Shixian quickened his pace, heading toward the agreed-upon location.

He had long heard about the third-floor study hall in the Science Education Building; it was one of the most popular study spots for Yanda students.

There was a saying that circulated widely at Yanda: "In the third-floor study hall of the Science Building, it is auspicious to watch the sunset; it is inauspicious to only watch the sunset and not study."

If you wanted to enjoy a beautiful sunset, the Science Building study hall was the place to be.

The lingering glow of the setting sun, just like you, appears on every page of my poetry!

And as it happened, the sun was indeed setting.

With no mind for the beautiful evening clouds in the sky, his head was filled with thoughts of the Challenge Cup.

When he reached the third floor, he stopped and sent a short message.

[Shi Bu Yu]: I'm on the third floor. Where are you? I'll come find you.

He quickly received a reply.

[Bamboo & Morning Glory]: By the window in the English Corner. The view here is amazing, and there's no one around!

He suddenly paused.

Hmm? This prodigy's tone seemed a bit... unusual.

It couldn't be, could it?

A peachy surprise?

Chapter 171: Holy Crap! Are You Even Human?

Of course, this was just his preconceived notion; he wasn't colorblind.

He wasn't Liang Shanbo, so the cliché drama of failing to realize Zhu Yingtai was a woman wasn't about to happen to him.

Therefore, he immediately figured that this prodigy was likely a girl.

In that case, everything made sense.

If it had been a guy, he really would have had to reconsider whether he wanted to team up.

Thinking back to Yuan Qingmei's QQ name, he even hazarded a blind guess at this girl's name.

Zhuyan, Chaoyan, Huayan... even Zhuhua wasn't out of the question.

With a sense of mystery to uncover, Lu Shixian walked quickly toward the corner of the study hall.

This was the English Corner, situated far from the main study area, so talking here wouldn't disturb anyone.

Soon, he passed through rows of desks and arrived at a low, circular sofa.

A graceful figure was already sitting there, quietly flipping through a thick book.

As expected!

Lu Shixian breathed a sigh of relief and quickly went up to greet her.

"Hi, senior! I'm Lu Shixian," he said with a polite smile.

The girl's reading was interrupted. She frowned for a moment, but her expression quickly softened.

When she turned her head, a well-proportioned boy appeared before her.

He was wearing a white shirt with the Yanda University logo, and under his fine bangs were a pair of clear eyes. Though he wore no extra accessories, he had a very clean and fresh aura.

So this was the junior Professor Gu had mentioned?

He was kind of cute.

"Have a seat, junior," the girl said, brushing back the short hair tucked behind her ear to cover her slightly flushed earlobe.

She wasn't shy, just unaccustomed to being in such a place with a strange boy.

Lu Shixian didn't stand on ceremony. Whatever her reaction, he was here to talk business.

Of course, he wouldn't be too casual either. It was their first meeting, and being too direct would seem abrupt.

Since it was a circular sofa with a solid center, he could only sit next to her on the edge.

"By the way, Professor Gu only told me to find you, but I don't know your name yet. And what's your major, senior?" Lu Shixian decided to speed things up, taking the initiative to build rapport so they could get down to business.

The girl paused for a moment, then quickly replied, "My name is Qu Xi. I'm a third-year student majoring in biological sciences at the School of Life Sciences."

He had already guessed her major. To be in Professor Gu Hongya's research group, she was most likely in that field.

But her name was a real surprise. He hadn't guessed a single part of it correctly.

Seriously?

Determined to get to the bottom of it, he asked, "So, is there any meaning behind your screen name? I thought your name might be in it."

"No meaning, I just picked it randomly," Qu Xi said with a smile, surprised that Lu Shixian was interested in that.

"It's just that I once did a plant extraction experiment where the main ingredient was the morning glory flower."

Hearing this explanation, Lu Shixian felt completely defeated. He had been playing a guessing game with himself for nothing.

"Professor Gu said you've published an SCI paper. I'll have a lot to learn from you for this Challenge Cup," Lu Shixian said, strategically steering the conversation toward their task.

Sure enough, the innocent, girl-next-door senior fell for his trap.

"Professor Gu is flattering me. The results really belong to the lab. I just used the data to write a paper, and I was only the second author."

"Being the second author is still amazing. What are your thoughts on this year's Challenge Cup?" Lu Shixian asked, his expression unchanged.

Qu Xi thought for a moment, then answered, "The last Challenge Cup was two years ago, and I had just enrolled, so I didn't participate."

"But I did participate in the innovation program last year. Based on my experience, as long as we stand out in the campus-level selection, we're looking at a national first-prize award at the very least."

Lu Shixian hadn't expected that. He quickly asked for more details.

Qu Xi explained carefully.

"It's related to the university's research level, and the competition here is far more intense than elsewhere. Just making it out of Yanda is a huge achievement."

"Based on Professor Gu's recommendation, we should be entering the natural science academic paper category. Yanda can directly recommend six works from the campus-level selection to the national competition. The other three have to be negotiated with the provincial organizers, but they usually make it to the nationals as well."

"So, the perks for host universities don't really do much for us at Yanda."

He understood instantly. It was a matter of the gap between universities.

In other words, he just needed to advance past the campus competition to beat a vast number of competitors.

The two continued to chat for a while longer. She was surprised to learn that Lu Shixian wasn't even from the School of Life Sciences.

Seeing that people were starting to leave the study hall, Lu Shixian suggested they talk again another time.

He had more than accomplished his goal for the day. Not only had he gotten closer to this pro, but he had also gotten the information he wanted.

Even if this pro was a little different from what he'd expected.

When he returned to the dorm, his roommates had already showered and were lounging on their beds.

The moment he pushed the door open, the phones in their hands lost their appeal.

"Shixian, what's going on?"

"We didn't see you at the freshman discussion class today."

"No way, you dared to skip the dean's first lecture for freshmen?"

The three of them peppered him with curious questions.

Lu Shixian understood the concern hidden in their words; they were worried he'd get caught for skipping class.

A warm feeling spread through him, and he explained, "My schedule is a little packed, so I applied to be exempt from the freshman discussion course for the first semester."

"A little packed?"

"I've got to see just how 'little' this is." Chang Wenchao was intrigued. Unable to contain his curiosity, he hopped off his bed and walked over to Lu Shixian's desk.

"Shixian, if you don't have anything to hide, I'm going in!"

Lu Shixian didn't care and handed him his backpack directly.

Chang Wenchao took it casually, but he was caught off guard by the unexpected weight. Combined with the fact he was wearing slippers, he lost his footing and took a comical spill, falling flat on his face.

The loud thud immediately drew the attention of the other two roommates.

"Whoa! What the hell is in here? It's so heavy!" Chang Wenchao said, looking completely baffled.

The next moment, room 4012 erupted with the wild laughter of three people, laughing so hard their faces began to cramp.

"I say, how long are you going to keep bowing to me? I really don't have any lucky money for you," Lu Shixian said, trying to hold back his laughter.

"Screw you. Could you even handle me kowtowing to you? I'd be worried you'd lose years off your life."

Hearing this, Chang Wenchao scrambled to his feet and checked himself over.

It was fine, just a small scrape. Nothing serious.

Even with his minor injury, he continued to open Lu Shixian's backpack.

"I've got to see what secret is hidden in here."

When he pulled out a sheet of paper from between the thick books, he was utterly dumbfounded.

"Holy crap! Are you even human?"

Chapter 172: I Need Your Reason
"Dear Lu Jun, sorry to bother you. I know you must be confused receiving this letter. Please forgive me, Haruna really wants to know your…"

Lu Shixian had been rather indifferent at first, but as he listened, he realized something was wrong. Wasn't that the letter the girl had written to him?

With lightning speed, before they could even react, he snatched it away.

That was careless of me. How could I have forgotten about the letter?

Lu Shixian then pulled his class schedule out of his bag and tossed it to them.

But who was interested in that right now?

"Dear... Lu Jun?" the three of them repeated the first line in a highly exaggerated tone.

Lu Shixian was speechless. "I say, do you guys really have to drag out those first two words for so long? It's just a normal letter."

In truth, Chang Wenchao had already finished reading the letter, but he wouldn't be Chang Wenchao if he didn't make a big deal out of it.

"Please forgive me, Haruna really wants to know why you're so fast?"

"So, fourth brother, are you really that fast? Is it a painful experience?"

The other two also craned their necks, looking at Lu Shixian with the eager eyes of gossip mongers.

He explained helplessly, "If you're going to read it, read the uncensored version. She was clearly asking why I finished the experiment so quickly."

"You guys! I finally understand how some news stories are created these days."

"It all starts with one picture, and the rest is completely made up! Third brother, you should go report directly to the department of sensationalist headlines. It's a perfect fit for your skills."

After bickering for a while, the four of them gradually shifted the topic to Lu Shixian's class schedule.

They were once again shocked, because the schedule was absolutely insane.

It took several hours before his dorm mates finally accepted his class schedule, giving him a look that said, "Good luck, you're on your own."

Taking a lot of classes didn't always mean you could pass them smoothly just by being capable.

When final exam times overlapped, it was pure torture.

The next few days were packed with classes.

Some evenings, he had time, but Qu Xi didn't.

When Qu Xi had time, he didn't.

So, the two agreed to draft a topic by this Saturday and then proceed with the registration.

Saturday.

The usual spot, the study hall in the Science Building.

"My initial proposal is to focus on plant lectins from a molecular biology perspective. Let me explain my reasoning."

"Plant lectins are proteins with specific sugar binding activity, because they have one or more non catalytic domains that can specifically and reversibly bind to monosaccharides or oligosaccharides."

"Therefore, their most significant feature is the ability to recognize glycoproteins and glycolipids, especially the complex sugar chains on cell membranes, which are the cell surface determinants. They play a crucial role in almost all life processes of plants."

Lu Shixian frowned, speaking with some doubt, "Your topic certainly fits the theme of the Challenge Cup, but it's far too broad. It's a bit too high level for us."

"If the topic is too vague, it will be very difficult to write the thesis, because we won't be able to cover all aspects."

"My idea is to start with something small and specific to tackle a larger issue. We should choose a topic with more practical applications. Even if the topic itself isn't huge, if there's potential for exploration behind it, the resulting paper will not only be easier to argue but will also have more depth and value."

Hearing this, Qu Xi didn't hesitate and stuck to her opinion.

She was like a completely different person during discussions, nothing like her usual quiet and serene self. Instead, she seemed rather assertive.

"The functions of plant lectins can be highlighted in several key areas. We can discard the ones with little practical value and focus on one with significant research potential, can't we?"

"This would save time and emphasize our theme. I can suggest a few directions, and we can choose one as our main research focus."

"First, lectins are storage proteins in plants, but they can provide key theoretical guidance in crop breeding. Second, lectins promote the division and differentiation of lentil and rice embryos. Finally, they are also present in the symbiotic relationship between legumes and rhizobia."

"In conclusion, I believe studying this topic through molecular biology offers immense research value at the microscopic level."

Lu Shixian frowned and said, "Lectins are indeed a gem in the field of botany, but the academic world has already gone through a wave of intensive research on them."

"I understand what you're saying, but choosing this topic means we lose a certain pioneering edge. Unless we can discover a new property of plant lectins."

Qu Xi continued to express her opinion clearly, "If we could find a new property of lectins, I'm afraid we could get published directly in a top tier journal like CNS."

"But the fact is, the two of us don't have that capability. We just need to find a bit of innovation within one of its existing properties, and we should be fine for this Challenge Cup."

Lu Shixian's brow remained tightly furrowed as he weighed the pros and cons.

"No! I still can't accept this topic. The pioneers have already seen all the sights. If all we can do is leave a note saying 'we were here,' that's just too lame, isn't it?"

Qu Xi was so exasperated she almost laughed. "Then you suggest a high level topic, one that also allows us to get first hand data and successfully complete the paper."

Lu Shixian pondered for a moment, then brought up a topic he had been thinking about for a long time. "What if we research a universal method for the artificial cultivation of sea buckthorn?"

"Sea buckthorn?" Qu Xi had no idea how his train of thought had jumped to such an uncommon plant, so she asked bluntly.

"Unless you can convince me. I need your reasons!"

Lu Shixian had anticipated this and shared the thoughts from his heart.

"First point: from an ecological value perspective, a single three year old sea buckthorn plant can have a root system that extends horizontally up to six meters. Just one plant has an unbelievably large soil fixing range, covering an area of up to 4.8 square meters."

"Sea buckthorn can effectively prevent soil desertification. It can form a natural barrier along the path of sandstorms, gradually reducing their intensity until they stop completely."

"Furthermore, it can halt the movement of shifting sand dunes, protecting farmers' basic farmland, preserving grasslands, and preventing the desert from gradually encroaching on our land."

Seeing that Qu Xi wasn't refuting him and was lost in thought, Lu Shixian pressed his advantage.

"Second point: from an economic value perspective, its roots, stems, leaves, and especially its fruit are rich in bioactive substances and can synthesize some amino acids that the human body cannot produce on its own."

"According to records, sea buckthorn fruit has an extremely high vitamin content, along with other important substances including proteins, fatty acids, various trace elements, alkaloids, and flavonoids. All of these are essential biological substances for maintaining human life and health."

Chapter 173: Being a Scumbag at Yan University Takes Courage

"Additionally, sea buckthorn is excellent firewood with a high calorific value. Just two to three tons of sea buckthorn firewood can generate the same heat as one ton of raw coal. It's edible and has commercial uses. I can't think of any reason to refuse it."

"The third point is its enormous potential medicinal value…"

Hearing Lu Shixian's detailed presentation, Qu Xi cut his long speech short.

Qu Xi still didn't nod, her expression somewhat neutral.

"You don't need to say the rest. I can see you've done a lot of preparation for this."

"Sea buckthorn is indeed a great research subject. If we can develop a high efficiency artificial cultivation method, it would certainly be very meaningful."

"But scientific research isn't something that succeeds just because we get excited about an idea. Overcoming the theoretical difficulties and key challenges isn't the work of a single night. Otherwise, why hasn't anyone proposed this topic before now?"

At this moment, Qu Xi was unusually calm, a completely different person from before she had entered her thinking state.

Although she had repeatedly rejected his idea in her mind.

However, Lu Shixian's approval of her was growing.

Scientific research indeed carries risks; a project doesn't yield results immediately upon establishment. There are plenty of people who research for decades without any major breakthroughs.

There's nothing wrong with promoting a spirit of bold exploration and innovation, but it comes with one condition: one must maintain a truth seeking attitude and a rigorous scholarly style.

Lu Shixian suddenly smiled. "Giving up without even trying isn't my style."

"I already have some inspiration. My intuition tells me that if we head in this direction, there's a high probability of success."

But Qu Xi's reaction was different from usual. Her voice had become somewhat serious.

"Junior, if you fabricate, falsify, or piece together research results or experimental data just to reach a conclusion you've subjectively imagined, that's academic misconduct."

"In any case, I will never do something so opportunistic and out of context. If you do that, you won't even make it past the university level competition, and I absolutely will not waste my time following you."

Lu Shixian was speechless.

He shook his head inwardly, sighing that even after being reborn, success didn't come so easily.

There was often a huge gap between ideals and reality.

His confidence stemmed from a special treatment method for sea buckthorn seeds.

He had accidentally discovered this method during an outdoor agricultural economic survey of desertified areas in his previous life.

At the time, he hadn't paid it much mind because sea buckthorn cultivation technology was already very mature. Even if his method was undiscovered, its practical application wouldn't have been much different from the technological level of that era.

So, he hadn't thought much of it then, as it was not significant enough to even squeeze a paper out of.

But now it was only 2009, and the development of sea buckthorn resources had only been underway for less than twenty years.

If this twenty year development period were divided into three stages, the first would be the promotion and mobilization stage, the second the initial breakthrough stage, and the last the market driven stage.

The first stage was roughly from 1985 to 1988.

During this period, the nation and society gradually recognized the importance of this plant, its fame grew, and it gained recognition in some provinces and cities, but there wasn't much movement in terms of industrial development.

The second stage was from 1989 to 1998, during which a nationwide survey of sea buckthorn resources was completed, mastering the quality and quantity of our country's resources and proposing a new classification system for the sea buckthorn genus.

But the biggest breakthrough during this period was actually the establishment of systems for sea buckthorn introduction, selection, breeding, and propagation of improved varieties.

The third stage was from 1999 to the present. Our country's market economy system gradually began to improve, and government actions began to weaken. Patents and breeding theories related to sea buckthorn started to appear and develop.

The achievement of this stage was the continuous development of the market mechanism for the utilization and development of sea buckthorn resources.

The value of anything can only be reflected in the context of its time.

And now, in the third stage, was precisely the time when patents and breeding theories for sea buckthorn were scarce and highly valued.

He was certain that once his paper was published, it would definitely attract a lot of attention.

But how could he explain this to Qu Xi?

Don't tell me we're going to break up before we even start?

This was just too tragic.

It seemed they wouldn't reach any conclusion today.

Lu Shixian could only tell Qu Xi they would continue the discussion tomorrow.

To his surprise, the moment they stepped out of the study hall, Qu Xi seemed to automatically switch modes, returning to the quiet, intellectual girl next door.

"I'm sorry, Junior. I just get very serious whenever I'm doing experiments or having discussions."

"If I said anything wrong just now, please forgive me."

Seeing her somewhat guilty expression, Lu Shixian was at a loss for words.

"Not at all, Senior. What you said was very reasonable."

Lu Shixian had a headache, but he couldn't say Qu Xi was wrong.

After all, Qu Xi was his collaborator, not his subordinate. From her perspective, her points were certainly valid.

He had to admit, she was a bit stubbornly principled.

But the fun part was, scientific research truly required this kind of meticulous, principled spirit to produce real results.

So now he felt both admiration and exasperation toward Qu Xi.

His feelings were quite complicated.

It was like being defeated before the battle even began. Why was this so hard?

Do I just not have that kind of presence?

Weren't protagonists in novels supposed to just tremble their mighty bodies and have everyone bow before them, their bodies radiating the aura of a conqueror?

And then all the female leads would be shaken and fall in love with the protagonist.

Something's wrong with this script, isn't it?

How can I not even handle one dorky senior?

Sighing softly, it seemed he had to use his ultimate move.

An hour later, Qu Xi and Lu Shixian walked out together again.

This time, the guilt was gone from Qu Xi's face, replaced by a calm expression.

But if one looked closely, one could see a hint of reluctance on her face.

"Junior, we'll register for the Challenge Cup with the topic you proposed."

"But I'm telling you right now, if I find even a hint that you're faking the data collection or processing later on, I'll never speak to you again."

"I guess you got your way this time," she said, her eyes turning a little red.

Lu Shixian looked at the strange glances from passersby and was at a loss for words.

"Young man, now that you've won her over, you must cherish her!"

"Being a scumbag at Yan University takes some courage!" a retired old professor nearby suddenly lectured him.

Chapter 174: They Must All Be Talented Individuals

What exactly did I win over?

And Fish Leong didn't give me any courage either!

Lu Shixian was about to go crazy. He gave the old professor a few perfunctory words.

Then he pulled the senior's sleeve and led her to a less crowded area.

"Senior, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't just say whatever you want!"

"What do you mean, I 'got my way'???" Lu Shixian questioned Qu Xi, utterly exasperated.

Qu Xi hadn't expected the words she blurted out in the heat of the moment to cause such a misunderstanding.

Instantly, she became incredibly shy.

"Junior, I'll go register now. We'll proceed with the plan as we discussed later," she said, then quickly covered her face and hurried away.

Lu Shixian, on the other hand, was in a great mood. It would have been even better without the misunderstanding just now.

Let's rewind to an hour ago.

In the office, Gu Hongya was holding Qu Xi's hand and persuading her, "Little Xi, you know, your spot in the graduate program was secured long ago. This Challenge Cup is for you to help him find problems and gain knowledge."

"It's not for you to help him win an award. So what if he doesn't place in the end? We're not chasing after rankings for the sake of rankings."

"He's only a freshman. If he can learn something from this Challenge Cup, it'll be worth it."

"Okay, I'll cooperate well with my junior," Qu Xi nodded, a small sense of grievance naturally rising in her heart.

Why does it feel like Professor Gu is even nicer to him than to me?

So love doesn't diminish, it just gets redirected?

After registering, the Challenge Cup matter was mostly set aside for the time being.

Since it involved experiments, he suggested to Qu Xi that they go to Qinghai Province for field experiments during the winter break.

Qu Xi, who was serious and responsible about experiments, agreed without the slightest hesitation.

With a major problem solved, he couldn't be happier.

Walking back to the dormitory, Lu Shixian was even humming a little tune.

"I know neither of us was wrong, we just forgot how to back down, the promises made with such conviction…"

Before he could finish the song, the phone in his pocket suddenly vibrated.

He looked at the caller ID. It was Yuan Qingmei.

What's going on?

As the saying goes, the only thing scarier than sudden silence is a sudden call from your counselor.

What could she want, calling on a weekend at this hour?

But the phone was ringing, and he had to answer.

"Hello! Teacher Yuan!"

"What? I need to come to your office right away?"

When he arrived, he found Chang Wenchao winking at him. The other members of the class committee were also there.

Soon, Yuan Qingmei cleared up the confusion in Lu Shixian's mind.

"Next week, we will be holding a four day club recruitment fair, also known as the Hundred Clubs Battle. As class committee members, you must actively organize students to participate and take the lead."

"How about this, I won't ask for too much. As long as it doesn't affect your studies, each of you joining at least one club shouldn't be a problem, right?"

Lu Shixian was about to make an excuse, but then he heard the others respond.

"No problem!"

"Mission guaranteed to be completed. In fact, I don't mind joining two," Chang Wenchao added before leaving, managing to score some points with the counselor.

Lu Shixian shook his head with a smile, thinking he'd just have to find some useless club to blend into.

It wasn't like he hadn't joined clubs before. Some were incredibly annoying, constantly pinging everyone to participate in activities.

But some clubs were pretty good. Besides the membership fee, they had no other requirements.

To be honest, he liked those kinds of clubs.

Of course, some clubs really did help develop one's abilities, but he just wasn't interested at the moment.

Returning to the dormitory building, as expected, discussions about clubs were everywhere.

His own dorm was no exception; in fact, they were even more hyped up than others.

"I declare that I am now a member of the cosplay division of the Yuanhuo Anime Club," Chang Wenchao announced loudly, seeming to have done his research.

"You'd be pretty good cosplaying as Kisame," Lin Chenyi commented with a wicked smile. "You'd just be playing yourself. It's a great likeness."

"No way, my ideal role is Dr. Jekyll," Chang Wenchao shouted in protest.

Macho Bro was having choice paralysis again.

"I like the Mountain Eagle Club and the Charity Club, but I also want to join the Literature Club. What should I do?"

Lin Chenyi seemed to be in a mood to pick on people lately. He said to Zhang Mengting, "Maybe you shouldn't. Boss, you should just stick to donating blood. You trying to 'donate love' would be an eyesore."

Zhang Mengting ignored him and continued his contemplation.

Seeing he had lost his target, Lin Chenyi turned his attention to Lu Shixian.

"Fourth brother, what club do you want to join?"

Lu Shixian understood his intention and replied with a deliberate smile, "The Slacking Off Association."

Lin Chenyi was speechless.

The what?
The next day, as expected, the sprawling club recruitment fair kicked off in full swing near Yanda University's Triangle Plaza.

Nearly a hundred student clubs had set up their respective headquarters, waiting for bright eyed freshmen to join their ranks.

Everyone from Dorm 4012 was already out and about.

The only difference was that his three roommates were heading to the recruitment fair with their arms slung around each other's shoulders, while Lu Shixian had to go to his first class with his backpack on.

Only during the break after his first class did he have time to take a quick look and complete his mission of signing up for a club.

The bell rang at eight fifty.

By the time Lu Shixian reached his destination, it was already nine o'clock.

But this was, in fact, the busiest time.

The area was a sea of people, buzzing with a cacophony of voices.

He couldn't be bothered to find his troublemaking friends, so he wandered alone down the long street of recruitment booths.

It was the first time he had witnessed the sheer number and scale of Yanda's student clubs.

He also encountered many bizarre club names for the first time.

Many of the clubs had put up catchy slogans to attract new members, leaving him almost overwhelmed.

Youth Astronomy Society: Shatter into stardust for one eternal embrace.

Romance Club: Love may rise and fall, but romance is until the end of time.

Charity Club: We exist because of love.

Sanda Club: If you can take a punch, come! If you can't, you need to come even more!!!

Drama Club: Pigsy says, if you don't join the Drama Club, the Master is gonna get kidnapped again!

Mountain Eagle Society: Those who fear climbing great heights will wander at the foot of the mountain forever.

After a walk around, he had to admit that these students were quite the wordsmiths.

Their slogans were so stirring that even he was tempted, but thankfully, he managed to suppress the urge.

Love on the wind? The place where dreams begin?

What's that got to do with me? I seriously don't have the time!

I just want to find a club where I can slack off!

After wandering almost to the end of the street, Lu Shixian finally found an association that looked perfectly chill.

The Plant Protection Association?

Not bad, not bad at all!

There was hardly anyone around it.

And the name sounded so nice, so sophisticated.

Everyone in this club must be a genius, right?

Chapter 175: Just Give It Everything You've Got

Soon, Lu Shixian proudly became a member of the Plant Protection Association.

What pleased him most was that the guy in charge of registration seemed more excited to see the twenty yuan Lu Shixian handed over than he was to see Lu Shixian himself.

Four short days passed, and the club recruitment period quickly came to an end.

As he had expected, the association was indeed a slacker's paradise. After he joined the group chat, it remained silent for ages.

But he, on the other hand, became busier than ever.

Because the sports meet was coming.

And it wasn't just any ordinary school sports meet.

As the class sports representative, he was miserably in charge of organizing for the Capital Collegiate Autumn Track and Field Meet for General Students.

It was a competition for all the universities in the capital. Founded in 2009, this was the very first one.

Therefore, the entire university took it very seriously.

"Chen Xin, as an outstanding student of Class Two of Yuanpei College, we must strive to ignite our youth and dreams, and embody the spirit of 'Faster, Higher, Stronger' in sports."

"I have a variety of packages for you to choose from, including shot put, discus, javelin, 1500 meters, 5000 meters, 10000 meters, 3000 meter steeplechase, 5000 meter race walk, and 20000 meter race walk," Lu Shixian said, sounding exactly like a diligent salesman promoting his products.

Unfortunately, his customer didn't seem very interested.

"Shixian, aren't there any shorter events? Or maybe the long jump, do you have that?" the female student asked, looking at him with hopeful eyes.

Lu Shixian was at a loss for words. He shook his head. "We really don't have that!"

Suddenly, the girl clutched her stomach and said, "Oh, sorry, I think I just got my period."

Watching her walk away with a spry and healthy gait, Lu Shixian buried his face in his hands. That was the eighth girl to have a visit from her "aunt."

The guys were easier to handle; if no one else signed up, he could just fill in himself. But for the women's events, he was truly out of options.

After seeking help from his wise counselor, her suggestion was that every female member of the class committee had to sign up for at least one event.

As a result, Lu Shixian, who had asked the question, received a unified glare from all the girls on the committee.

Lu Shixian had successfully taken the fall. He suspected Yuan Qingmei might have even been deliberately waiting for him to ask.

Due to the large scale of the event, an internal selection trial had to be held within the university.

After a period of selection, all the students who qualified would form the Yanda University sports delegation and compete at the Beijing Sports University.

On October 15th, all the universities in Beijing gathered at the venue.

"Life is in motion! Let us warmly celebrate the official opening of the first Capital Collegiate Autumn Track and Field Meet for General Students!" a leader from the Beijing sports department announced loudly.

And Lu Shixian had become the sole representative for Class Two of Yuanpei College.

He had qualified for the 1500 meter and 3000 meter long distance races.

On the day of the race, almost the entire class showed up to cheer for him alone.

Lu Shixian felt the immense weight of responsibility, determined to win at least one honor for Class Two.

At that moment, he was already on the track, getting ready.

The competitors in the eight lanes were lined up diagonally. Lu Shixian glanced at his opponents' warm up postures and immediately felt a sense of relief. So none of them were professional athletes!

But I, on the other hand, have trained!

This is in the bag!

He was in lane seven. Although he was at the front, the lane was slightly disadvantageous for him, but he was already brimming with confidence.

Wearing a pair of borrowed track spikes, he was now in a half crouch.

"On your marks! Set!"

"Go!"

As the starter's pistol fired, Lu Shixian shot forward like an arrow released from its bow.

"Go, Lu Shixian, go!" Cheers from the Yanda students erupted from the sidelines.

At this moment, there were no Yuanpei students, only Yanda students.

From the announcer's booth, the commentator's passionate voice boomed.

"Ladies and gentlemen! The final for the 1500 meters has officially begun!"

"They're off! They're off! It looks like a clean start, no false starts!"

"The runners in all eight lanes started almost simultaneously... wait a minute!"

"It seems the runner in lane 8 got a faster start!"

"He's pushing hard right from the beginning of a middle distance race. How long can he maintain this lead?"

"My goodness! He's still sprinting!"

"Oh my god! He's approaching the finish line!"

"He's won!"

"Let's give a huge round of applause and cheers to congratulate the number 8 runner from Yanda University, Lu Shixian, for winning the 1500 meter championship by a massive margin!"

The judge at the finish line raised his right hand and then lowered it.

Lu Shixian let out a low roar and made a triumphant gesture.

The goal was achieved. He did it!

Although his opponents were all amateurs, it didn't diminish his excitement in the slightest.

The rousing, triumphant sports anthem began to play.

Lu Shixian stepped onto the champion's podium to receive the award from the guest presenter.

After a long time, with a gleaming gold medal once again around his neck, Lu Shixian returned to the Yanda spectator area.

Not just his classmates, but even students from other colleges gave him a thumbs up.

Chang Wenchao, who knew him best, punched him on the shoulder.

"Damn! It's one thing to study so hard all the time, but you can even win a gold medal in a race? How are the rest of us supposed to live?" He felt a little indignant.

But Lu Shixian was in no mood to joke with him.

Because the announcement for the next check in was already coming from the speakers.

"Will Lu Shixian from Yanda University please report for check in for the Group B 3000 meter race and proceed to the track immediately."

The so called General Students meet was essentially a competition where a bunch of amateurs pecked at each other after all the high level athletes were excluded.

There were three groups in total: Group A was for students from sports colleges or non sports majors in universities with sports programs.

Group B was for schools not in Group A with a student population of over 8,000.

Group C was for schools not in Group A with a student population of under 8,000.

Although it was a clash of the amateurs, Lu Shixian was not in good shape right now.

Standing on the track again, the fatigue from the previous race had not yet faded.

But giving up was not an option. He would have to use a bit of strategy.

This time, his luck was better; he was in lane three.

As the starter's pistol fired.

"Let's do this!"

Lu Shixian immediately broke into a sprint, a very risky move.

On the third lane, a figure once again appeared at the very front of the pack.

In the announcer's booth, the commentator was stunned.

"My goodness! The number eight runner is sprinting again!"

"This is the 3000 meters! Does he think this is the 100 meter dash?"

Soon, Lu Shixian was nearly half a lap ahead of everyone else.

To outsiders, it looked like he was maintaining a steady pace, but in reality, he had already used up a lot of his energy.

With no time to worry about himself, Lu Shixian kept an eye on the runners behind him out of the corner of his eye.

Seeing that the runners in three other lanes were starting to pick up their pace, Lu Shixian smiled faintly and began to slowly decrease his own speed.

Even though several people had overtaken him, he didn't seem to mind at all.

He was now focused on maintaining his breathing rhythm, strictly following the plan he had laid out, and keeping the most physiologically efficient breathing frequency.

Soon, it was the final lap. The runners who had been leading the pack started to slow down due to exhaustion.

"Go! Go! Go! If I collapse, so be it!"

Lu Shixian abandoned all his plans. Just give it everything you've got.

Worry about the consequences after crossing the finish line!

At this moment, he unleashed his inner cosmos again, overtaking the four runners ahead of him at a speed visible to the naked eye, reclaiming the top spot.

The others could only watch anxiously as he passed them, helpless as their energy was completely depleted.

Lu Shixian was the first to cross the finish line again!

He had won another gold medal!

Chapter 176: Look How Big and Round That Sunset Is

However, this victory came at a painful price.

His entire body felt like it was falling apart.

Although his physical fitness was worlds apart from his middle school days, it couldn't withstand such an intense burst of exertion.

So, without even staying to watch the rest of the competition, he had Chang Wenchao help him back.

"How are you feeling right now?" In the school clinic, a young female intern with wide eyes asked about the patient's sensations as she continuously felt his calf.

Lu Shixian's expression darkened. Is this girl new here?

"You don't need to feel it. The symptoms are muscle soreness, limited mobility in the strained area, some bruising or swelling, and muscle stiffness or weakness."

"This is a mild muscle strain. Just get me some ibuprofen or etoricoxib to reduce the inflammation, and then some topical analgesic plaster for external application."

The female intern froze for a moment, a strange feeling welling up inside her. She just assumed he was a medical student.

Back in the dorm, he slept for half a day.

When he woke up, he still felt a twinge of pain whenever he walked.

But there was nothing he could do; he had classes to attend.

The only good news was that there were no major events in the coming days, and even if there were, he would try to get out of them.

And so, Lu Shixian's life once again became regular and simple.

Over a month later.

This tranquility was shattered.

Because there was just over a week left until final exams.

Typically, during exam week, the library would be packed to the brim.

This rule probably applied to every university.

Unable to stand the crowds, he had no choice but to return to his dorm to study.

In the dorm, his roommates were either watching dramas, playing games, or lost in the abyss of online chatting.

However, it would be a mistake to think the three of them were only playing around and not studying properly.

Generally, there are several types of students in a university.

Besides the common types who don't study and do poorly, and those who study hard and do well.

There is another type who appears to study very hard, so much so that they even move themselves. After the exam, they feel ecstatic, as if the world is their oyster. But when the results are announced, their true colors are revealed.

Then there is another type who is usually a slacker. They get along well with you, and when you're having fun, they're right there with you.

These students are terrifying. When the results are announced, they turn out to be among the top in the class.

Everyone was slacking off, so why are you at the top while I'm at the bottom?

Some say that success depends on effort, and trying your best is what counts.

My learning ability is just what it is; this grade is already very good.

So, diligence is not the goal, but merely the process.

Study methods are truly important. Aimless effort can only impress yourself and your parents.

If you're heading in the wrong direction, no matter how far you run, you're only getting further away from your destination.

In reality, there's no need to blindly imitate others' study methods, nor should you care if others are smarter than you.

Finding a study method that suits you and making steady progress is the key to success!

Therefore, Lu Shixian wasn't worried about them. He even guessed that they were already well prepared.

The real work is done throughout the semester. Relying solely on the last week to review, or even worse, cramming with a gambler's hope, is just deceiving yourself.

To put it bluntly, even if Lu Shixian didn't review now, he could still get good grades.

So what was the purpose of reviewing now?

For the GPA, of course!

In university, it's not uncommon for people to retake a course three or four times just for a better GPA.

And he wanted to solve the problem in one go, once and for all.

At this moment, Lin Chenyi, who was playing a game, turned his head and suddenly noticed Lu Shixian engrossed in a book.

He consciously began to lower the volume on his computer.

"Fourth Bro, you're back in the dorm. Why didn't you say anything to us?"

"You guys do your thing, don't mind me. I'm just organizing my notes," Lu Shixian said without looking up.

Just then, Zhang Mengting, who was watching a drama on his chair, suddenly felt that "Chinese Paladin 3" on his screen had lost its appeal.

He slammed his hand on the desk. "Barring any accidents, Sister Ling'er, we will never meet again."

"From now on, I will learn from Fourth Bro and spend every day studying in the library. This desk is my witness!"

At that moment, Chang Wenchao, who was in the middle of a heated chat, interjected with a sly grin.

"Boss, do you see any reaction from the desk? Anyway, you're a literature major. You can just make something up on the spot when the time comes."

As if his weak spot had been hit, Zhang Mengting tried to change his roommate's perspective with great righteousness.

"Make something up, my foot! The beauty of language and literature is something a brute like you could never appreciate."

"It lets you see the twilight glow and think, 'The evening clouds and a lone goose fly as one; the autumn waters merge with the endless sky,' instead of just, 'Wow, that sunset is so big and pretty.'"

Lu Shixian couldn't help but join the discussion. "It should be, 'Look how big and round that sunset is, just like this bowl, so big and wide.'"

As soon as he said it, the whole dorm burst into laughter.

Everyone laughed and gave Lu Shixian a thumbs up.

After the laughter died down, Zhang Mengting asked Lu Shixian with some concern, "Fourth Bro, you've chosen so many courses. What if there's a conflict in your exam schedule?"

Speaking of which, Lu Shixian also had a bit of a headache.

"What else can I do? If they're close together, I'll just have to rush from one to the next."

"If the times completely overlap, I'll have to give up one and take the make up exam."

Hearing this, the others asked curiously why Lu Shixian was taking so many credits in his freshman year.

Lu Shixian just shook his head and said, "It's a secret," maintaining his air of mystery.

Soon, the exam schedule was announced in the main group chats and the class group chat.

Lu Shixian quickly logged into the campus network on the new computer he had bought not long after the semester started.

To his surprise, he had no exams that completely conflicted with each other.

But there were still some that were scheduled very close together or had a slight overlap.

After all, the exam week was only so long, and with his heavy course load, it was impossible for them to be perfectly spaced out.

But he was already very satisfied with this result.

So what was going on?

With this question in mind, Lu Shixian walked into the examination hall for his first final exam.

After a short wait, the exam papers were distributed.

The subject printed on the paper was clearly: "Ideological and Moral Foundations and Legal Cultivation."

He had expected this, as it was clearly written on the schedule.

Lu Shixian barely had to think as he filled in the answers, as most of them were common sense questions.

After answering numerous questions with a difficulty level equivalent to "Do you think university life is good?", he finally came across an interesting one.

23. Which of the following is a scientific belief?

a. Money is everything; with money, you have everything.
b. Life and death are predestined; wealth and honor are determined by heaven.
c. The individual is an end in itself; the collective is merely a means to achieve individual goals.
d. Acquire scientific knowledge and professional skills from various fields to realize one's value in life.

Lu Shixian suddenly smiled.

When science is the subject, was there any doubt about the answer?

Chapter 177: The End of Final Exams

Instantly selecting D, Lu Shixian quickly moved on to the open ended questions.

He glanced over them and felt relieved.

Fortunately, there were no questions like "Please describe your Ideological Cultivation teacher using beautiful language."

Believe it or not, in his past life, a university had actually asked this question: What is your course instructor's name?

Answering incorrectly or not at all would result in a deduction of 41 points.

This meant that if you couldn't answer, you were guaranteed to fail the course.

To be honest, he really didn't know his Ideological Cultivation teacher's name.

It wasn't that he didn't respect the teacher, but he had too many other things to remember. Where was the mental space to care about such minor details?

Soon, the Ideological Cultivation exam was over.

But this was just an appetizer for the day.

Lu Shixian immediately turned in his paper early and headed for his next exam, Linear Algebra.

Awkwardly, by the time he got there, the exam had already started.

However, according to Yanda University's exam regulations, students were allowed to enter up to twenty minutes late.

He was still well within that time, which was why he had been in such a hurry to submit his previous exam.

Linear Algebra is a subject that almost every science student must face in university.

It is an upgrade and expansion of the vector knowledge learned in high school.

It studies vectors, linear spaces, and finite dimensional systems of linear equations.

Because non linear models in scientific research can often be approximated as linear models, it is widely used in the natural sciences, which is also the source of suffering for many science students.

Lu Shixian took the exam paper and quickly scanned it.

This Linear Algebra paper seemed exceptionally brutal!

There were no multiple choice questions. The first section directly presented four or five determinants for you to calculate.

The second part was also about solving determinants, but required showing the process.

The third part was solving matrix equations.

The fourth part tested knowledge related to non homogeneous systems of linear equations.

Unfortunately for the exam, Linear Algebra was just a freshman course, hardly a formidable opponent in the grand scheme of advanced mathematics.

Reading the questions, calculating, working out the steps, writing the answers.

Twenty five minutes later, Lu Shixian handed in his paper and left.

In the classroom, some of the students had originally been watching him, ready for a show, when he arrived late.
They were stunned, watching his dashing figure retreat.

Thanks to his brilliant performance on the linear algebra exam, he arrived at his third test just as the papers were being handed out.

This was the last exam of the morning, and it was for a specialized course.

Receiving the cell biology paper, Lu Shixian wasn't as rushed as before.

Although it was still about cells, this class wasn't taught by Ma Yuheng, but by another professor from the School of Life Sciences.

Though it wasn't right to judge a teacher behind their back, Lu Shixian couldn't help but compare the two during class.

One could only say that this young professor's skill was, for the time being, no match for that cunning old fox, Ma Yuheng.

Still, he was more than qualified to teach cell biology at the undergraduate level.

Because the subject was related to biology, Lu Shixian's interest was immediately piqued.

He decided to test the mettle of the School of Life Sciences' final exam.

Full of anticipation, he looked at the first question.

The first scientist to discover cells was

a. Robert Hooke

b. Leeuwenhoek

c. Flemming

d. Schwann

e. Hertwig

Uh…

How was he supposed to critique this question?

Did they think we wouldn't recognize the names just because they used the English versions instead of the Chinese ones?

No way, right?

But don't be fooled by it being the first question; there was actually a small trap.

If you were to be precise, the first person to discover living cells was the Dutch biologist, Leeuwenhoek.

But the question was clear: the discovery of cells. That would include dead cells, wouldn't it?

In 1665, the English scientist Robert Hooke discovered some small empty cavities in cork using a crude compound microscope, though the image wasn't very clear.

So he cut an extremely thin slice, placed it on a black stage plate, and illuminated it with a plano-convex lens.

What he saw next was the gateway to a new world!

Through the microscope, he discovered that the slice of cork was full of pores and holes, just like a honeycomb.

And just like that, the cell was first discovered in 1665.

This discovery pushed open the mysterious door of biology.

Because when magnified, the inside resembled a honeycomb with its empty spaces.

The original meaning of "cell" was a small room, and from this, the term for a biological cell was born.

Although there is still some debate over who discovered the cell first.

Setting aside the academic contributions of the two biologists, strictly speaking, what Hooke saw under the microscope were only the walls of dead plant cells and the cavities they enclosed; he did not see the protoplast.

Leeuwenhoek, on the other hand, observed free-living cells like bacteria, red blood cells, and sperm. If the title "Discoverer of the Cell" were to be awarded to him, he would be fully deserving.

The true meaning of "cell" as we know it was collectively established by biologists in the early 19th century.

But in the domestic academic world, it was almost universally accepted that Robert Hooke discovered the cell in 1665, a fact that was even certified in textbooks.

There was no need for him to argue the point.

After finishing the entire cell biology exam, Lu Shixian let out a long sigh.

He could see that Yanda University was trying its best to increase the exam's difficulty; it was at least a level higher than that of other universities.

In terms of difficulty alone, not content.

It had only just reached the level of a provincial biology olympiad.

He had to admit, the sense of superiority the biology olympiad had given him in this area was a bit much.

Since he wasn't rushing, he took thirty minutes to complete the paper.

Most of the students taking the exam here were from the School of Life Sciences. Seeing Lu Shixian's retreating figure as he handed in his paper, they were all numb to it.

Honestly, they had gotten used to it during regular classes!

In their hearts, he was a true beast.

Who wouldn't greet him with a "Hail, God Lu"?

Even if it was just in a joking tone.

Five days after the cell biology exam, Lu Shixian completed all his finals.

The solemn and tense exam week was over.

Just a few days passed.

Next up was the Yanjing University 2010 New Year's Gala.

Generally, each college would host its own gala.

But Yuanpei College had too few students at the time, so they simply solicited acts from the entire college to join the larger, university-wide New Year's Gala.

Since Yuanpei College was newly established, the university leadership had intentionally given Yuanpei two performance slots, allowing its students to shine in front of the entire university.

But this put all the Yuanpei students in a tough spot.

The college began soliciting performance acts from all its classes.

Because there were few people and the quality requirements were higher.

The college lowered some restrictions: any student from Yuanpei College could participate, regardless of class or year.

To be honest, Yuanpei College was full of talented people, as had been demonstrated during military training.

But on a university-wide stage, their acts fell a bit short.

The problem was that they were too homogenous.

The dean slammed his hand on the conference room table.

"Can't we, with so many people in Yuanpei, come up with a single refreshing and original act?"

Chapter 178: Let the Show Begin

Truth be told, the students of Yuanpei College were quite proactive.

Almost every student with a special skill had performed for the college, but many were cut.

In the end, one original act made it through: "The Path of Yuanpei."

It wasn't exceptionally brilliant, but it was at least an act that fit the college's style, telling the story of Yuanpei's past and present and the spirit of constant innovation and personalized education it represented.

The program mixed various forms like songs, dance, and drama, which was a kind of innovation that wasn't exactly innovative.

But for this New Year's Gala, Yuanpei College needed to provide two acts, so there was still one slot to fill.

This had the teachers in charge of the gala on edge for days.

The event was fast approaching, and they still hadn't found a second act.

Finally, the college had no other choice and began to lure students with activity credits.

While activity credits didn't affect your final graduation or degree, they served a very important purpose: they were a key reference for scholarship evaluations and recommendations for graduate school.

If that sounds a bit abstract, let's put it more simply.

It was essentially a form of proof that you had brought honor to the school and shed sweat for it.

We won't mention shedding blood; that's a bit of an exaggeration.

So, seeing as you had put in the hard work even if you didn't achieve great merit, the school gave you a little compensation and psychological encouragement.

As the saying goes, great rewards bring forth brave men.

A second wave of enthusiastic sign-ups quickly swept through the college.

And what do you know, even Lu Shixian was tempted.

When it came to scholarships, he was wide awake!

And getting a grad school recommendation is pretty sweet, isn't it?

Could anyone refuse that?

Probably not.

And so, at Lu Shixian's initiative, Dorm 4012 held its first official meeting of 2009.

"I propose our dorm puts on an act to earn some credits. Who's in favor? Who's opposed?" Lu Shixian called for a vote.

But he was met with dead silence. Not a single person agreed.

The third eldest, Chang Wenchao, sighed. "It's not a matter of whether we want to, but whether we can."

"I really want those three activity credits, too!

"Boss, Second, why are you so quiet? Don't you want them?"

At this, the eldest, Zhang Mengting, and the second, Lin Chenyi, who had been holding back their laughter, finally revealed the reason under questioning.

"Sorry, but we've already secured those three points, thank you!"

Lu Shixian and Chang Wenchao turned their heads in unison, two pairs of eyes staring daggers at them.

"What's going on? You two went and did something behind our backs?" Chang Wenchao demanded loudly.

Zhang Mengting explained, exasperated, "What do you mean, behind your backs!

"Didn't they recruit actors for 'The Path of Yuanpei' the other day? Didn't I post it in the dorm group chat?

"You two were busy, one reading and one chatting, and didn't pay any attention. We went to try out, and thanks to our literary talent, outstanding looks—in short, our excellent image and temperament—we were selected."

Chang Wenchao was speechless, so he could only take a jab at them to vent his frustration.

"Damn! You guys call that outstanding looks? Excellent image and temperament?

"At that rate, my literary skills would rival Li Bai's, and my looks would surpass Pan An's!"

He was about to say more when Lu Shixian pulled him into a corner.

"Looks like it's just the two of us huddling together for warmth again. I have an idea, not fully formed, but I wonder what you think."

"Let's hear it. I'll decide after I listen." Having been burned by his dorm mates, Chang Wenchao had developed a good habit.

Lu Shixian shared his idea.

As expected, it was met with skepticism from Chang Wenchao.

"You think the two of us can beat out all those competitors with this? And actually get chosen for the final program?

"I don't think that's very realistic. Just you and me?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian became a little displeased and immediately corrected his mistake.

"Please remove the 'me' from 'you and me.'

"It's obviously all me. You're just a tag-along. If we fail, it has nothing to do with you. So, have you faced reality yet?

"One word: are you in or out?"

Chang Wenchao turned his head and happened to see the eldest and second laughing heartily at them.

With a surge of determination, he threw caution to the wind.

"I'm in. Looks like my on-stage debut is going to be a disaster."

"What's there to be afraid of? Even if we don't make it in the end, not many people will see me. Who would know?"

Dark lines appeared on Lu Shixian's forehead.

The words were right, and the logic was sound.

But why did it sound so wrong coming from his mouth?

So, Lu Shixian first took out his props.

Then, the two of them hid on the green field of the sports ground, a place for sweating it out, and began their first practice.

Boys and girls passing by frequently cast strange, curious glances their way.

"I can't! I can't do this! I can't take it anymore!"

"There are too many people here! This is too embarrassing!"

"You're giving up already? You're so lame!"

"Don't you want the credits? You call this a lot of people? You'll probably piss your pants in fear on the final stage!"

"How can a man say he can't do it?"

"Worst case, I'll just sacrifice my reputation. Anyway...!"

"Relax! Don't take a tag-along so seriously."

"Everyone will definitely be looking at my handsome face. Who's going to pay attention to you?"

"Damn! I'm not nervous anymore, but I really want to punch you right now!"

"Bring it on! Don't you forget I have an eight-pack?"

A day later, they arrived at the college's audition room with a completely new look.

Three teachers responsible for the selection sat on the stage. The one in the middle extended his right hand and said.

"Oh? Just the two of you?"

"Right, given your outfits."

"Now, please begin your performance!"

Half an hour later, Chang Wenchao walked out of the college's academic building, his face a mixture of disbelief and delight.

"No way. Did we just get the last performance ticket that easily?"

"Hahaha, even a salted fish can flip over one day!"

"Boss and Second can only be extras, while I'm already the male lead!"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian couldn't help but retort, "If you're the male lead, does that make me the female lead?"

"Not quite. I'm Male Lead Number One, and you're Male Lead Number Two!" Chang Wenchao said, beaming.

Lu Shixian couldn't be bothered with his narcissism.

He had worked hard enough for these three credits, a single pro carrying a total liability all the way to the finals.

With this kind of skill, he could shamelessly claim to be a god-tier player himself.

If he could carry him to victory in the grand finals.

Who wouldn't hail him as an epic carry?

Chapter 179: The Golden Ox Bids Farewell to the Old Year

Surprisingly, Chang Wenchao was completely nonchalant after returning to the dorm. He didn't mention the afternoon's events at all, acting as if it were a normal day.

Seeing this, Lu Shixian could only give him a thumbs-up from behind.

It seemed someone really had the potential to be an Oscar-winning actor.

Lu Shixian played along with his wish and didn't expose him.

Two more days passed.

The Golden Ox bows its head, bidding the old year adieu; The Auspicious Tiger leaps forth, heralding a spring anew.

Time finally passed 2009 and entered 2010.

On the evening of January 1, 2010.

The grand New Year's Gala was held in the Centennial Memorial Hall.

As the numbers on the giant screen counted down from ten to one.

Dazzling opening fireworks and steam erupted from the sides of the stage.

Two hosts in magnificent formal wear walked to the center of the stage from opposite sides.

"With a wave of the hand, we bid farewell to 2009."

"With fireworks as bright as day, we begin a new decade."

"As we embark on a new journey, we look back at the Yanda people from all corners of the world!"

"United as one, we overcame hardships together."

"A spectacular Olympics, a showcase of Yanda's spirit!"

"The spring rain falls silently, gently nourishing Unnamed Lake."

"The summer breeze blows unseen, lingering around Boya Pagoda."

"The autumn leaves rustle, as plants wither and dew turns to frost."

"The winter snow flutters, like catkins carried by the wind."

"Though the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, and the years turn and seasons change."

"What remains unchanged is our campus, always as warm as the beginning, just like every one of you!"

"A New Spring Begins, With You All the Way. The Yanjing University 2010 New Year's Gala now officially begins."

"Next, please enjoy the folk music performance 'A Joyful Welcome to the Festival' by the Yanda Folk Orchestra!"

Don't ask why the lines were so clear. It was because Lu Shixian and Chang Wenchao were backstage.

The speakers were right next to them, so loud their ears were about to go deaf, and every word was heard with perfect clarity.

All the performers were waiting in the wings, and the program list had already been distributed.

Their act was tenth, while "The Path of Yuanpei" was twenty-third, making it one of the closing acts.

Although, in all honesty, the quality of "The Path of Yuanpei" might not have been as good as other similar programs.

But for some indescribable reason, it was placed in the finale spot.

Lu Shixian had no choice but to accept it.

"Fourth, I can't stop laughing when I remember the look on Boss and Second's faces when they saw us at the rehearsal," Chang Wenchao said, clutching his stomach.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but chuckle as well. Just imagining the scene was amusing.

Chang Wenchao could still laugh now, but as the performances went by one by one.

Sweat began to bead on his forehead.

This time, it was Lu Shixian who got a scare.

"Hey, are you alright?"

"Weren't you fine during the rehearsal?" Lu Shixian asked with concern.

At this moment, Chang Wenchao's hands, holding the props, were trembling slightly.

"I don't know, the feeling right before going on stage is just different. My heart is suddenly pounding!"

"I'm really nervous. What do I do?"

Lu Shixian was speechless. He realized that nothing was ever easy.

One could only say that the gap between ideal and reality was just too vast.

Dropping the ball at a critical moment—that was Chang Wenchao for you.

But he could understand. After all, performing was different from taking an exam.

It was very common for someone who rarely appeared on stage to react this way on a major platform.

So Lu Shixian had to resort to strong medicine.

"What the hell are you nervous about? When it comes to the lines, I'm the one saying all the good ones."

"When it comes to looks, I'm miles ahead of you."

"Everyone is listening to me talk and watching me move. What does it have to do with you?"

"Just think of yourself as a prop."

Of course, this was a deliberate exaggeration. In their performance format, both parts were crucial.

But believe it or not, after Lu Shixian said this, Chang Wenchao's pressure instantly lessened, and his complexion improved.

A dozen minutes later, the host's voice came from the stage, introducing the next act.

"The year before last, our university's first specialized undergraduate college, Yuanpei College, was formally established. This marked a new stage in Yanda's undergraduate education reform and is one of the 40 defining moments in our university's history."

"Next, let's welcome freshmen from Yuanpei College, Lu Shixian and Chang Wenchao, with their crosstalk performance, 'Behold, This Sunset, So Very Big and Round.'"

As expected, the moment the host read the lines, nearly all eyes in the audience focused on the center of the stage.

Any new thing attracts attention, and Yuanpei was no exception.

Their every move usually drew notice.

This was the first time Yuanpei students were appearing before the entire university.

And now, through Lu Shixian, Chang Wenchao, and the later performance of "The Path of Yuanpei," the entire university faculty and student body could see a microcosm of Yuanpei.

This was why the leaders of Yuanpei College placed so much importance on it; the first impression was simply too crucial.

"Let's go! It's our turn!" Lu Shixian gave Chang Wenchao a push.

The two of them, each holding a fan and dressed in dark long robes, appeared at the center of the stage.

Chang Wenchao paced back and forth at the front of the stage with a worried expression.

Lu Shixian glanced at him a few times and said, "What are you doing? Everyone's watching!"

"You're walking back and forth like a pendulum. Are you trying to hypnotize the audience so we can clock off early?"

As he finished, the audience of teachers and students burst into laughter for the first time.

Chang Wenchao finally stopped. "Hey! It's just that I went back to my hometown during the National Day holiday."

"Shouldn't you be happy to go home? What's with all the sighing?" Lu Shixian opened his fan and fanned himself elegantly.

"I saw my childhood friend. That kid's really made it big now," Chang Wenchao said, slapping his fist into his palm.

Lu Shixian sounded puzzled. "That's not right. If your childhood friend made it big, you should be happy for him. People say you'd take a blade in the ribs for a brother, but are you planning to put two blades in his?"

At this, the audience roared with laughter again.

Chang Wenchao quickly shook his head. "Of course not! Am I, Wenchao, that kind of person?"

"Then what's the situation?"

"It's just that he didn't even finish middle school, and now he's earning millions a year, while I'm still all alone with empty hands!" Chang Wenchao let out a long sigh.

Lu Shixian didn't say a word. He walked right over and lifted Chang Wenchao's eyelid.

"What are you doing? We're on stage! I'm warning you, keep your hands to yourself!" Chang Wenchao retreated repeatedly.

Lu Shixian shook his head and said decisively, "I'm checking to see if you're green with envy. That's a sickness! It needs to be treated!"
Chang Wenchao sighed again. "Hey! You're the one who's lost it! I told him I'm studying at Yan University now and I'm bound to make something of myself in the future. Guess what he said?"

"What did he say?"

"He said he barely knows how to read, but isn't he a boss now? He said when I graduate, he'll be happy to hire me to work for him! Now you tell me, where's the justice in that? Do you think there's any point in me studying?"

At that moment, the entire audience fell into a contemplative silence. You could hear a pin drop.

Just then, Lu Shixian suddenly shook his head, laughing loudly.

"Hahaha, that is a fallacy!"

Chapter 180: The New Year's Gala Awards Ceremony

"What's fallacious about it? I thought it sounded pretty interesting!" Chang Wenchao continued playing the straight man.

Lu Shixian once again flicked open his fan.

"An education allows you, upon seeing the twilight glow of the setting sun, to recall the lines 'The evening clouds and a lone egret take flight together, the autumn river mirrors the endless sky.' You won't just say, 'Wow, the sunset is so big and round, just like this bowl is big and wide.'"

As soon as he said this, the entire hall erupted in laughter again.

"Well said!"

The atmosphere, once somber and silent, was swept clean. Even many of the university leaders stood up to applaud vigorously.

"What if you see snow?"

"An education allows you, upon seeing snowflakes dancing in the sky, to spontaneously recite, 'As if a spring breeze had come overnight, adorning thousands upon thousands of pear trees with blossoms.' You won't just exclaim, 'Holy cow, that's a lot of snow! I'm blown away!'"

"So what if I just don't study?" Chang Wenchao was getting into the rhythm, his timing with Lu Shixian becoming seamless.

A smile touched Lu Shixian's lips. "If you don't study, when others feel successful, they'll say, 'Riding high on the spring breeze, my horse gallops swiftly; in a single day, I've seen all the flowers of Chang'an.'"

"And what would I say?"

"You'd just say, 'I'm so hyped!'"

Chang Wenchao made a helpless sound. "Oh, come on! I don't even know what I'm going to say, and you've already said it for me!"

These were all scripted lines. Lu Shixian continued directly, "Others will say, 'A winding path leads to a secluded spot, the meditation hall is deep among flowers and trees'; you'll just say, 'This road is so crooked.' Others will say, 'It is better to forget each other in the rivers and lakes'; you'll just say, 'I wanna break up.'"

At this point, the atmosphere in the hall reached its peak.

The entire auditorium exploded with thunderous applause.

While waiting for the applause to die down, Chang Wenchao put on a puzzled expression.

"Wait, wait, wait!"

"What's wrong?"

"You've been talking all this time, but this 'other person' only seems to know ancient poetry? Are there any who aren't literary scholars?" Chang Wenchao asked, as if on instinct.

Lu Shixian smiled and asked, "May I ask what you are studying?"

"I'm studying chemistry!"

"Alright then. Let's say you confess your feelings to a girl, she rejects you, and makes it clear you have no chance."

Chang Wenchao feigned an angry look. "You're trying to insult me, aren't you? And what does this have to do with chemistry?"

Lu Shixian gave another mysterious smile. "Ah, that's what you don't understand!"

"You should say: 'I'm sorry, I do have a chance. After all, I study organic chemistry, not inorganic!'"

And with that, the performance came to an end.

Lu Shixian gave Chang Wenchao a look, and together they bowed to the audience.

Then, the lights slowly dimmed, giving them time to exit the stage.

At that moment, the entire venue erupted in fierce, unceasing applause.

Backstage, Chang Wenchao, who had been standing ramrod straight, suddenly felt unsteady.

He staggered, nearly falling over again.

Fortunately, there were chairs everywhere backstage, allowing him to lean on one and rest.

Hearing the still-enthusiastic applause from outside, a look of relief washed over his face as he patted his chest repeatedly.

"Well, that was a first for me, like a bride in a wedding sedan for the first time!"

"My legs were shaking like crazy just now."

"Good thing I managed to pull through."

The female host, who was waiting there, gave them an affirmative look and covered her mouth with her hand as she chuckled.

"You two were amazing! The reaction out there is incredible! It's even delaying the next act."

A full five minutes passed before the next performance began.

Lu Shixian and Chang Wenchao returned to the Yuanpei College seating area.

They instantly became the center of attention for the college, with many students turning to look at them.

However, Chang Wenchao was much calmer now.

He had, after all, come from the chemistry Olympiad scene and was considered a prodigy at his old high school. He just lacked experience performing on stage.

But after this, Lu Shixian believed he would see a qualitative improvement in that area.

The two went to their Class Two section and sat in the last row.

Their classmates all turned around and gave them a thumbs-up.

Yuan Qingmei also smiled, a look of shared honor on her face.

"Your act should get a lot of votes."

"Although I heard some people commenting that it's just another preachy, self-help piece disguised as positive energy, I thought it was excellent! Its strength lies in its profound message, which more than makes up for any minor flaws!"

"You refuted the 'studying is useless' theory in such a witty and engaging way. I bet most people will love it."

The two nodded at her, and after a few pleasantries, they began watching the show.

Over an hour later, the final few acts finally began.

The 23rd performance started, which was the college's grand finale, "The Path of Yuanpei."

As archival footage began playing on the screen, the actors on stage started their synchronized performance.

The intro music played, and a female student began to sing a well-known song.

As the song neared its end, a male student began to narrate a historical voiceover.

Finally, all the actors on stage delivered a passionate youth oath.

And with that, the performance concluded.

If forced to give an evaluation, Lu Shixian would offer five words: a textbook gala performance.

As the classic closing song "Unforgettable Tonight" began to play, the two hosts returned to the stage together.

Their job was to keep the energy up and manage the atmosphere.

To put it bluntly, the performances were over, and they were now in the filler time, waiting for the judges to finish scoring before the awards were announced.

They had to stall to maintain order and prevent the audience from leaving early.

The students might not, but there were many people from outside the university in attendance.

The two hosts brought up the recent performances again, chatting about this and that for several minutes.

Finally, the compiled results from the judges' panel arrived.

The two took the card handed up from below the stage and finally began the last segment of the evening: the awards ceremony!

Everyone waited intently for the final results.

"I hereby announce that the recipients of the Excellence Award for the 2009 New Year's Gala are: the School of Life Sciences' dance 'Circle of Life,' the School of Computer Science's chorus 'Tigers Roar,' the School of Environment and Engineering's song 'The Yellow River's Might, the Yangtze's Beauty'..."

After the announcement, several award presenters got busy.

Hearing this award being announced, Lu Shixian raised an eyebrow.

Looks like the School of Life Sciences isn't doing so well this year.

Isn't the Excellence Award just a "thanks for participating" prize?

This award is specially conferred for your encouragement.

Please come again next time.

At this moment, Chang Wenchao, who had just managed to calm down, became nervous again.

"I wish they'd just read them faster! The suspense is killing me."

Lu Shixian, however, was as steady as a rock. "Don't panic. I told you I'd carry you to victory this time, so there's no way we can lose."

"The number of first-prize slots is limited and can be affected by other factors, but second prize is a sure thing."

His words immediately made Chang Wenchao feel much better.

He actually had a good temperament; he was just a bit overwhelmed with anxiety from participating in such a large-scale gala for the first time.

After the third-prize winners were announced, the host's voice came through again.

"And the second-prize winners are..."

Chapter 181: Bearing the Weight While Others Live in Peace

"The School of Mathematical Sciences for their poetry reading 'Embracing Tomorrow,' the School of Journalism and Communication for their clapper talk 'Heralding the Spring'... and the Graduate School of Education for their skit 'No Gifts for the Holidays.'"

There were quite a few second-prize winners, but they listened to the very last one without hearing the name of Yuanpei College.

At that moment, the entire audience began to applaud for the winning colleges.

This included the students from Yuanpei College, but Lu Shixian knew they were applauding for themselves.

Because this meant that both of Yuanpei College's performances had won first prize.

Sure enough, in the subsequent announcement of the award list, Yuanpei College had two programs selected.

Since only one representative from each program went up to receive the award, Lu Shixian gave the opportunity to Chang Wenchao.

The academic credits from the three activities were already secured.

With that, his goal was accomplished.

After all, Chang Wenchao had put in a lot of effort; he deserved a chance to show off.

"I didn't expect the day I'd overcome the system with my talent would come so soon," Lu Shixian remarked with a sigh. His actual expectation had been second prize.

"The Path of Yuanpei" was a likely first-prize winner, but he hadn't expected his own act to be rated so highly.

Beside him, Yuan Qingmei let out a chuckle.

"Where do you get all these life philosophies? Compared to other universities, Yan University has very few of those complicated politics."

"Even if the university shows us some favoritism, it's still within reasonable limits, because our finale performance was truly top-notch."

"Although the first-prize slots are tight, the excellence of your program was clear for all to see. Winning first prize is well-deserved."

Lu Shixian nodded at her, indicating he understood.

He was just making a casual joke.

Unspoken rules exist everywhere, and Yan University was already doing an excellent job in that regard.

After the awards ceremony came the beautiful fireworks show.

Yan University, being well-funded, had hired a professional fireworks team.

On the night of January 1st, at the close of the New Year's Gala, the fireworks display that lit up the night sky stunned everyone, pushing the atmosphere to its climax.

As the glittering "2009" faded high in the sky, it was replaced by a brand new "2010," followed by an incomparably brilliant and dazzling display of fireworks blooming one after another, a riot of colors that captivated the eye.

The bloom of a firework is ephemeral, yet so vibrant, so passionate. It shines to its brightest and then slowly fades into the night sky. Though its beauty is but a moment, it leaves an unforgettable impression on people's hearts.

Lu Shixian also looked up, gazing blankly at the beautiful scene.

Perhaps fireworks were the only flowers whose destiny he could not divine, admired because they gave their all for a single moment of splendor.

Farewell, then!

To this fruitful year of 2009!

After the lively gala, everyone was about to welcome their first winter vacation of their university careers.

Lu Shixian clearly remembered he still had a mission to complete.

There was still nearly a month until the Lunar New Year, and he had already made detailed plans for this period.

The next time he saw Qu Xi was on the shuttle bus to the train station.

"We're almost at the station, senior. Let me help you with your bag!" Perhaps thinking that Qu Xi had indeed been wronged that day, Lu Shixian proactively offered.

In reality, Qu Xi hadn't brought much with her, just a small suitcase.

And Qu Xi hadn't taken that day's events to heart at all. Just like the first day they met, she smiled and told him there was no need.

They boarded a train together at the station, but it wasn't headed towards either of their hometowns.

Printed on the side of the train was their destination for this trip: Qinghai Province.

Here, they would complete their experimental design and preliminary preparations.

Sea buckthorn is actually distributed across 19 provinces and autonomous regions in the country. Shanxi Province has one of the largest cultivation areas, while the northern and southern regions of Xinjiang are its native habitat.

The reason for choosing Qinghai was simple: it was an experimental site provided to them by Gu Hongya. There was a Sea Buckthorn Plateau Research Institute here, whose main research focus was the comprehensive development and utilization of plateau sea buckthorn plant resources.

A former student of Gu Hongya held an important position there.

So the saying "it's easier to get things done when you know people" is never outdated.

The journey from Yan京 to Qinghai was not a short one.

The travel time alone was between 11 to 15 hours.

After nearly a full day on the train, the two arrived, travel-worn, in Qinghai's provincial capital, Lingxi.

It was also where the Sea Buckthorn Plateau Research Institute was located, which was good news.

As soon as they got off the train, they saw a scruffy-bearded uncle holding a sign that read, "Welcome, junior brother and sister."

Seeing the two approach, the uncle hurried over to greet them.

"You must be Senior Brother Wang Jinye, whom Professor Gu introduced us to? It's an honor to meet you!" Lu Shixian was the first to extend his right hand.

As their hands shook, Lu Shixian could feel the thickness of the calluses on his hand. This was a true researcher.

At the same time, the strong smell clinging to him proved he was also a heavy smoker.

Lu Shixian took a pack of cigarettes he had prepared from his pocket and offered him one.

It should be noted that after 2010, Lu Shixian was officially an adult.

Although he didn't have a smoking habit, an occasional cigarette was harmless.

Wang Jinye was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and accepted the cigarette. "You're a bit different from the other university students I've met, kid."

"What's so different? Still one nose and two eyes."

Lu Shixian was about to light it but realized he hadn't bought a lighter.

That was truly awkward.

Wang Jinye saw his predicament and lit it for him, his gaze becoming even friendlier.

"Oh, it's different. Some people's noses are above their eyes."

"Professor Gu called me and said a couple of young ones were coming here for some practical experience. I was a bit puzzled."

"You know, she hasn't asked me for anything in many years. You two must be her star pupils now, right?" Wang Jinye chatted as he smoked.

"Let's go. We'll have a proper welcome for you back at the institute."

With that, he led the way, and the three of them got into a small car and headed straight for the research institute.

Qu Xi, beside them, seemed a bit uncomfortable with this kind of scene and remained rather quiet the whole way.

The car finally stopped inside a bio-industrial park. As Lu Shixian helped with the luggage, he couldn't help but ask, "Senior Brother, how long have you been here?"

Wang Jinye thought for a moment. "I used to do botany research at Yan University. After graduating with my doctorate in 2000, I responded to the country's Western Development Strategy and volunteered to come here. It's been nine, no, ten years now."

Looking at his chapped lips and dark, weathered face, Lu Shixian felt a wave of emotion.

A phrase suddenly came to mind: Go west, go to the grassroots, go where the motherland and the people need you most.

There are always people bearing heavy burdens while others live in peaceful times.

There are always people who hold fast to their ideals and beliefs.

There are always people who deserve our utmost respect.

Chapter 182: The Most Beautiful Place in the World

Soon, the two were settled in.

Strangely, there was no farmland in the bio-industrial park; it was almost entirely buildings.

Wang Jinye offered an explanation for this: "Our experimental fields are outside. And perhaps for Qinghai, solving the problem of resource utilization is the key. Currently, we're still focused on primary products like raw pulp, beverages, fruit oil, and fruit powder. Later, we will conduct research and development on different parts of the sea buckthorn, carry out intensive processing, and form an industrial chain from cultivation to beverage and health food to extract comprehensive development."

"According to the results of the recent provincial survey on sea buckthorn resources, the total area of sea buckthorn in the province has reached nearly 2 million mu, with about 800,000 mu of natural forest and 1.2 million mu of artificial forest. The harvestable fruit area is about 600,000 mu, with a yield of 20-40 kilograms per mu, meaning the annual harvestable fruit volume is nearly 20,000 tons."

"So, the main task of our Plateau Sea Buckthorn Research Institute is resource utilization and development. Currently, the deep processing of sea buckthorn in Qinghai is still in its infancy and has not yet formed a large-scale production capacity. Therefore, the potential of sea buckthorn resources has not been tapped at all. This means that market demand simply cannot be met by the vast production capacity here; the utilization and management of resources are not compatible with the abundant raw materials."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian instantly understood. It was simply a case of abundant natural resources not being utilized. Possessing a mountain of gold but being unable to dig it out was no different from having a pile of rocks by the roadside.

At this thought, Lu Shixian suddenly froze. He glanced at Qu Xi beside him and then said, "In that case, it seems our paper won't have much significance."

Qu Xi also nodded. "You're right, junior brother. Sometimes, if you don't go out and conduct in-depth fieldwork, you really don't know the situation. Even if the paper is written, its value will be greatly diminished."

Lu Shixian found this hard to accept. The plan he had set had encountered another variable, and he really didn't want to give up halfway and return home.

But continuing with a research paper that had little practical significance was also a waste of time.

Wang Jinye was curious. He wanted to know what kind of paper required them to travel thousands of miles to conduct an experiment.

He had been a student too and knew how things worked.

One could choose a microscopic molecular or cellular experiment, which could be done in an indoor lab, with the occasional opportunity to slack off.

But conducting ecological or applied projects in the field meant much harsher conditions. You had to eat and sleep in the open. Without a bit of perseverance, it was simply impossible.

This was one of the reasons why more people researched microscopic topics these days—the conditions in the city were better.

After a few days of getting to know each other, the three had become quite familiar. So he asked directly, "What kind of experiment are you planning to do? Maybe I can help."

So Lu Shixian told him their purpose.

Wang Jinye's face lit up with understanding, and he laughed heartily. "So it's about that! You're wrong, then. Your research is meaningful."

"Senior Brother Wang, what do you mean by that?" Lu Shixian's eyes brightened.

Having lived here for a decade, Wang Jinye's understanding of the situation was encyclopedic.

"Although our sea buckthorn resources are abundant here, that's not necessarily the case for wild sea buckthorn elsewhere. Moreover, we have problems here with scattered resources and low utilization rates. Most wild sea buckthorn grows on remote mountain slopes and in valleys, making it very difficult to harvest."

"Furthermore, the artificially planted sea buckthorn is mostly for fuelwood, with extensive management. The ratio of female to male plants is severely imbalanced, resulting in low fruit yield per unit area. And some sea buckthorn forests have high canopy density, making them difficult to enter for harvesting, so they can't be effectively utilized. We may seem rich in natural resources, but in reality, less than 40% of our sea buckthorn resources are actually usable."

"So, if there's a highly efficient method for artificial cultivation, it would be very meaningful, even here."

Hearing his explanation was like seeing a new village after the willows and flowers. Lu Shixian and Qu Xi's confidence was once again solidified.
To save time, finish the experiment quickly, and avoid the Spring Festival travel rush, the group planned to head to the experimental field that very afternoon to begin the first phase of their plan.

At three in the afternoon, the three of them got in the car and set off for their destination, Tong County.

Because the local altitude was over four thousand meters, halfway there, Qu Xi started to feel unwell.

Her unnatural pallor made her look extremely uncomfortable.

Seeing her like this, Lu Shixian quickly asked what was wrong.

Wang Jinye glanced at her in the rearview mirror.

“This is normal, don't panic. Junior Sister Qu must be having a reaction to the altitude. People who come to the plateau for the first time often experience chest tightness, shortness of breath, nausea, and fatigue. You, on the other hand, are still full of beans, which means you must work out regularly.”

“Eating some fruit should help. If that doesn't work, I've got an oxygen tank in the back.”

His tone was very calm; it was clear he'd seen this many times before.

Sure enough, after getting some vitamin C and resting for a while, Qu Xi's condition improved significantly.

Lu Shixian shook his head with a wry smile. He had thought of himself as fairly experienced, having been on quite a few research trips, but now it seemed he was more of a lab-based researcher.

Two hours later, they arrived smoothly at a village in Tong County, which appeared quite desolate, with sparse signs of dense population.

Fortunately, Wang Jinye's group was warmly received.

“Director Wang, what brings you down here today?” The speaker, they were told, was Li Huan, the head of Changtong Village.

“Just bringing a couple of kids down to get some experience. How's the harvest this year?” Wang Jinye seemed very familiar with the place, having clearly been here more than once or twice.

“It's been alright this year, much better than before. And it's all thanks to you for teaching us the transplanting technique!” The old village head said, a sincere smile on his face.

Hearing this, Wang Jinye shook his head. “Transplanting wild seedlings is convenient, yes, but the yield can't be guaranteed. Ultimately, the path forward is through selective breeding of high-quality varieties. Other regions are already ahead of us on this.”

With that, he didn't even step inside, heading straight for the fields.

Li Huan wasn't surprised by this at all, and the group followed him to the edge of the experimental plot.

As expected, there were large groves of sea buckthorn growing here.

But as it was now winter, and sea buckthorn is typically harvested and sold from September to October, the trees were all bare.

Lu Shixian suddenly crouched down and grabbed a handful of soil.

The first sensation was dryness and cold. He murmured to himself.

“Alpine cold desert soil and frozen winter soil.”

Wang Jinye nodded in approval. “That's right. In other places, land that people casually abandon might be far more fertile than this. The conditions here are harsh and the climate is unforgiving, but they have lived here for generations.”

Li Huan chimed in with a smile, “What can you do? A dog doesn't desert its poor master, and a son doesn't find his mother ugly. In our eyes, this is the most beautiful place in the world!”

“Are we supposed to look down on our own hometown?”

Chapter 183: Blossoming in a Bitter, Cold Land

Hearing Li Huan’s words, Wang Jinye shook his head and said.

“Nature is the fairest witness of all. Different environments create different plant characteristics. The plateau's unique geography and climate have forged this unique natural landscape. Observing the symbiosis of plants is like reading through a chapter of evolutionary history.”

“Even on such barren land, rare plants like purple feather grass, noble rhubarb, and blue poppies can grow. According to statistics from 2008, not counting the Hengduan Mountains, there are 222 families, 1,543 genera, and 9,556 species of vascular plants alone. A rough estimate puts the number of higher seed plants at around 10,000.”

“Here, plants compete mainly with nature, blossoming in this bitter, cold land. In terms of ornamental value, it’s no less than any other place. Developing tourism resources also has great potential.”

To Li Huan, it was all Greek to him. Lu Shixian understood that Wang Jinye was speaking for his and Qu Xi's benefit. Not knowing much about the topic, he couldn't offer an opinion, so the two of them just listened attentively, committing it to memory.

As they walked, the group suddenly saw an entire mountainside covered in extremely dense sea buckthorn forests, stretching on and on, seemingly without end.

Even without fruit, the sight was still magnificent from a distance, like platoons of sentinels guarding the northern plateau.

Now he finally understood what Wang Jinye had meant earlier by the abundance of wild sea buckthorn resources.

After mentioning it to the group, Li Huan said with a sigh, “Before, the annual per capita income in our village was just over a thousand yuan. We were classified as a poverty-stricken village in the county.”

“Our living standard was just enough to support a family's basic needs. We couldn't afford to build new houses or buy new clothes, just enough to get by, nothing else.”

“For generations, our village sat on mountains full of wild sea buckthorn, but nobody knew what it was good for. We just used it as firewood.”

“If Director Wang hadn't come, we'd still be treating it like a weed. Now, it's our village's treasure. None of us ever thought we could rely on it to escape poverty and get rich. Now people have something to strive for, and you can see them smiling as they walk around.”

Hearing Li Huan's voice, both Lu Shixian and Qu Xi were at a loss for words, even though Lu Shixian also came from a rural area.

Some things, unless you experience them firsthand, you can never truly feel their overwhelming impact.

Unless you see it with your own eyes, it's hard to imagine that some people's lives are so vastly different from what you might assume.

Unexpectedly, Wang Jinye shook his head again. “Even if I hadn't come, someone else would have helped you develop the sea buckthorn industry. It's mainly because the national policies are getting better and better, the development and construction of the western regions are accelerating, all to achieve coordinated development between the east and west.”

“Don't worry. As infrastructure and ecological construction continue to make new breakthroughs, your standard of living will surely see sustained and stable improvement.”

By now, they had reached their destination: a few plots of cultivated land at the foot of the mountain.

Although this farmland might not look like what they were used to.

A sign nearby clearly read: “Plateau Sea Buckthorn Research Experimental Field.”

“There's a temporary observation station from our institute nearby. If you need to do field experiments, I can section off an area for you.”

“The institute won't be using it this season, and I need to let the staff go home for the New Year soon. The conditions might be a little rough, though.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian smiled.

“Don't you worry. If we were afraid of that, we wouldn't have come. Right, Senior Sister?”

Qu Xi nodded firmly.

So Wang Jinye said with a smile, “The observation station should be well-stocked with daily necessities. Let me know if you're short on anything. You can also buy some produce from the village.”

“I have things to attend to at the institute, so I'll be heading off. Keep in touch by phone.”

After he and Li Huan left, the vast, empty wilderness was suddenly left with only Lu Shixian and Qu Xi.

The atmosphere suddenly became a little different.

Lu Shixian turned his gaze to the slightly uncomfortable Qu Xi.

“Senior Sister, it's getting late. Shall we get started?”

Qu Xi hesitated before nodding. They finally went to the observation station and began their work.

“Let's start with the experimental design!”

“The core of our paper is a new cultivation method for sea buckthorn. So the experimental group should involve treating seeds of different varieties. Then we’ll set up a control group with seeds of the same varieties, allowing them to grow naturally under the same conditions.”

When it came to the experiment, Qu Xi’s demeanor suddenly changed.

She abruptly looked up and said, “That control group isn't enough. We must add another control group using the same sea buckthorn variety cultivated with traditional methods. Otherwise, how can you prove your cultivation method is better than the traditional one? That’s what will give your new method practical significance.”

Hearing her, Lu Shixian smiled, his goal achieved. “That was an oversight on my part. You're absolutely right. Although the cultivation methods in many places aren't much different from natural growth anyway.”

“So what experimental data do you plan to collect to prove the efficiency of your method?” Qu Xi cut straight to the chase.

Lu Shixian thought for a moment. “March to June is the period for the provincial preliminary review and application submission, and the university-level competition is in April.”

“That means we need to have the paper ready before April. The timeline is a bit tight, so we probably can't collect data over a long period.”

“My initial plan is to collect data on morphological structure, some phenological phases, parts of the annual growth rhythm, and growth volume. As for yield performance and fruit quality, we won't be able to do that.”

At this point, Lu Shixian frowned and continued, “Even if we only collect data for an incomplete growth cycle, we still need to observe and record data, process it, and write the paper. I'm worried we might not even have the paper finished by the time the university competition starts.”

But Qu Xi shook her head, refuting his point. “You probably haven't participated in the Challenge Cup before. You’re missing some things. Even after finishing the paper, there's still a lot more to do, including presenting the academic findings and preparing for the thesis defense. All of that takes a lot of time.”

The more he heard, the more of a headache Lu Shixian got. Fortunately, he wasn't a complete novice anymore and knew there were ways to speed up the paper-writing process.

Excluding ghostwriting and falsifying data, these were the tricks that allowed some people to publish several SCI papers a year.

There was no need to keep these tricks to himself, so he voiced his thoughts directly.

“How about this: the introduction, materials, and experimental methods sections of the paper don't have to wait until the experiment is completely finished. We can write them as we go.”

“And we don't necessarily need the complete dataset to start. As soon as we have some data, we can begin the analysis and then add to it later. This will reduce the workload significantly.”

Qu Xi, who had always done things by the book, was stunned by his words, as if a whole new world had opened up to her.

“Are you sure you can even do that???”

Chapter 184: Where Did That Handsome Boy Go?

Lu Shixian nodded with a smile. “Why not?”

“We can even write the conclusion and discussion after the initial data analysis is done. That way, by the time our experiment is finished, most of the paper will already be complete.”

Qu Xi hadn't fully accepted this theory, so she blinked with a mix of belief and doubt.

“Well, I'm just here to do the grunt work for you anyway. Since that’s the plan, we can divide up the tasks.”

“Since only you know the method, the experimental operations are your responsibility.”

“And since you're the lead on this Challenge Cup entry, the final defense will definitely be up to you to arrange. The rest of us can just follow along.”

Lu Shixian gave her a thumbs-up for this arrangement, accepting it completely.

That afternoon, the two of them got busy, preparing all the materials they had brought.

The evening didn't unfold with any of the romantic scenes one might imagine. The observation station had several small, enclosed rooms.

Calling them rooms might be an overstatement; capsules would be a more fitting description.

The days that followed were simple and regular.

Every day was spent recording, monitoring, and processing data.

And so, a month passed.

Qu Xi looked at Lu Shixian's current state and burst out laughing.

“Haha, you look no different from one of those angsty emo types from back in the day.”

“I told you to come with me for a haircut once in a while, but you refused.”

Lu Shixian ran a hand through his messy hair and touched the soft, fuzzy beard on his chin.

He realized he had lost all sense of image in front of his senior sister.

But he didn't mind. He stretched and said, “You girls are so high-maintenance. It's just a month without a haircut.”

“How's the data processing for the last part of the experiment coming along? Shouldn't be a problem, right?”

For her, this was actually a piece of cake. Lu Shixian had handed over most of the data processing for this experiment to Qu Xi, to keep her from getting suspicious.

As expected, he received an affirmative answer from Qu Xi, and Lu Shixian finally let out a sigh of relief.

“This is an original research paper, not a review. We've already completed the materials and methods, and the results and discussion sections.”

“The introduction and abstract require looking up some references. I'll find time to write them when I get back to Yan University.”

“You've worked really hard during this time, Senior Sister.” Lu Shixian offered a smile, which Qu Xi ignored.

His current appearance was simply indescribable. If he went back to the dorm now, even his roommates probably wouldn't recognize him.

After packing up their things, the two looked back at the sea buckthorn groves, still growing tenaciously. It was finally time to leave.

When they returned to the institute, the biological park was no longer bustling with its usual activity, with only a few people left holding down the fort.

Wang Jinye had settled down here, so he didn't need to go home.

After expressing their gratitude to him once more, the two finally set off on their separate journeys home.

The date was now February 8th, exactly one month after they had left campus.

It was also only five days until Chinese New Year's Eve.

Thankfully, the thoughtful Qu Xi had already bought their train tickets in advance during a trip to the county town. Otherwise, they'd be experiencing the soul-crushing agony of trying to snag a ticket.

Of course, even with tickets, they now had to join the Spring Festival travel rush.

At the train station, Lu Shixian bid farewell to Qu Xi again and boarded a green-skinned train to Jinling alone.

As he watched the scenery fly past the window, moving away from him, Lu Shixian thought back on the month of experimental life, and a sense of fulfilling pleasure welled up in his heart.

He had gained far more than just a paper here.

He had toured the magnificent and unique landscapes of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and witnessed the powerful figures of wild animals on the run.

He had met simple and honest villagers from ethnic minorities and participated in their unique local customs.

He had trekked through endless groves of sea buckthorn and walked across boundless Gobi deserts.

But now, all he wanted was to go home for the New Year.

Of course, before arriving home, he remembered to stop by a barbershop near the Jinling train station for some image management.

Better safe than sorry, after all.

If he got home and was asked, "Who are you?"

Lu Shixian was certain he would have a meltdown. For real.

Because he had already called his parents that morning, he could see their waiting figures from a distance as he reached the village.

A wave of joy naturally radiated from him, and his pace quickened.

He was finally home. But his father's first greeting left him stunned.

“Hey, son, didn't you go on a trip? How did you get as black as a piece of charcoal?”

Beside him, Ms. Xia Xiuman added another blow, “Where did my handsome boy go? Are you an imposter?”

Hit by two consecutive strikes, Lu Shixian's smile froze on his face.

This year's Spring Festival was much more comfortable than the last.

Although he visited the same relatives and friends.

And although many people still asked about his situation at Yan University, he was no longer as flustered as he had been last year.

The whole family sat together to watch the Spring Festival Gala.

On this year's gala, Faye Wong was still singing about that one extra glance in the crowd.

Liu Qian was still performing close-up magic with his usual shill, Dong Qing.

But tonight's "Unforgettable Tonight" was missing Teacher Gu, and it felt like it had lost its soul.

As the closing song ended, it seemed another year had quietly slipped away.

February 28th, it was time to return to school.

Without even time to catch up with familiar classmates, Lu Shixian had already dove headfirst into the library.

Before March 8th, 2010, all individuals or teams had to submit their application materials to the university.

And he still had a lot to do.

The main body of the paper was complete; what remained was to add the beginning and end and polish it.

The introduction was simply a matter of describing the research background, citing literature, pointing out existing problems, and then presenting the important content of this study, along with the methods and conclusions.

The abstract is the finishing touch of a paper, as it's the first impression a reviewer gets.

Although these parts were important, with the rich resources of the Yan University library, Lu Shixian quickly took care of the introduction, abstract, and citations.

Nearby, a senior preparing for the graduate entrance exam, locked in a fierce battle with Calculus III, felt a pang of sympathy watching his proficient work.

How many times must he have done this to be so smooth? Finally, the senior couldn't help but ask.

“Hey, senior, what year are you in your master's program? What kind of hair growth tonic do you use? You look so young!”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was suddenly taken aback.

It seemed like a long time since he'd been called "senior."

A mischievous smile spread across his face. “Hello, junior. I'm in my third year of my master's.”

“And, keep up the fight! Good luck with the exam!”

With that, he left the library without a backward glance.

The stunned grad school hopeful was left utterly bewildered.

“Did I hear him right?”

“Did he just say third year of his master's???”

Chapter 185: Lin Chenyi, the Werewolf Who Revealed Himself

It was already eight o'clock at night when he left the library.

He would pop into the study hall later to help Qu Xi take a look, and then his work on this Challenge Cup project would be more than halfway done.

Although she had said he was the lead, it was still a project they had completed together.

And while he felt Qu Xi wouldn't find any issues, he still had to go through the motions.

Sure enough, after Qu Xi carefully read the entire paper, she looked at Lu Shixian suspiciously.

She immediately concluded that Lu Shixian must have asked Professor Gu to polish it for him; otherwise, it couldn't possibly be this smooth.

This left Lu Shixian speechless. He didn't bother to argue, just letting her think whatever made her happy.

By the time he parted ways with Qu Xi, it was already past nine o'clock, yet this was the earliest he had returned to his dorm recently.

As of today, March 5th, he had been grinding in the library for four or five days straight.

In those few days, he had not only completed writing the paper but had also converted it into a polished PowerPoint presentation.

Since he had done it all himself, there was no need to familiarize himself with the material.

While he might not be able to recite the content of the slides from memory, he could certainly convey eighty to ninety percent of it without issue.

So, he was ready to go back and get some rest.

As expected, when he returned to the dorm, he was immediately interrogated.

“Fourth Bro, you've been a ghost these past few days, we haven't seen you at all. What's been going on?” Chang Wenchao asked, genuinely puzzled.

He was in the same class as Lu Shixian, but right now he felt like they were on completely different wavelengths.

The fact that he occasionally ended up going to class with the first and second oldest in the dorm instead was, to him, utterly bizarre.
Lin Chenyi stepped out of the bathroom, phone in hand, and suddenly spoke.

"No need to ask. I just got a tip. Someone saw our Little Four sitting real close to a girl in the study hall."

"Looks like Little Four might be the second one in our dorm to get out of the singles club."

As soon as he said that, the entire dorm room fell silent.

Zhang Mengting and Chang Wenchao exchanged a look, then asked in unison, "So who's the first?"

Lu Shixian froze, at a complete loss for words.

What a genius. Trying to drag me down with him, and he accidentally exposed himself.

You could tell at a glance—Lin Chenyi was a wolf.

At that moment, the towel in his hand dropped to the floor. He snatched it back up with lightning speed and then performed a bizarre, cringeworthy maneuver.

"By the power of Balala—by the might of Chenyi—your memories are now erased!"

"What was I just saying? You can't remember, right?"

Lin Chenyi put on a show, deceiving himself more than anyone.

The Boss, Zhang Mengting, let out a cold "Heh heh heh." "You can't walk by the river all the time without getting your shoes wet. And here I thought we told each other everything. I can't believe you'd hide this from us."

"Yeah, spit it out already! So that's where you got that set of high tech gear during military training. Putting some 'unwanted items' to good use, were you?"

Chang Wenchao's expression grew even more aggrieved as he spoke. He had been trying so hard to find a girlfriend, only to find out someone had beaten him to it, and was even keeping it underground. There was even a high probability that this person had already left the ranks of virginity...

That, he could not tolerate.

The implications of that last line were a bit much. Lin Chenyi couldn't possibly admit to it and hurriedly clarified the facts.

"What the hell are you guys talking about? 'Unwanted items'? I swear, we've only held hands."

But to his surprise, Zhang Mengting and Chang Wenchao broke into sly grins. "So you finally admit it! Out with it. Confession brings leniency, resistance brings severity."

Lin Chenyi now understood. He'd been played all along. In the end, he had no choice but to explain.

"Nothing much to tell. Her name is Cheng Linlin, a freshman in the Foreign Languages Department at Yan University. We were high school classmates."

When he finished, the guys looked at each other, green with envy.

Before Lu Shixian could comment, he quickly ducked into the shadow of his bed.

It had only been a summer vacation, but the dorm room already felt so unfamiliar it sent a chill down his spine.

They'd accidentally exposed Number Two, and now the schemes were coming one after another.

What was truly terrifying to consider was, what if this was all a diversion...

Suddenly, Lin Chenyi's voice cut through the air. "Little Four, stop hiding."

"When you stand in the shadows, even your own shadow will desert you."

"Just confess like I did."

At this point, Lu Shixian was beyond speechless. This Lin Chenyi was toxic!

So it's true, the boy who slays the dragon eventually becomes the dragon?

"I'll come clean. The person you saw is my teammate for the Challenge Cup. She's a junior now."

"So go on, do whatever. You've got enough gossip from just now to chew on for a while."

Just as Lu Shixian predicted, this successfully shifted their attention.

"Holy crap, I just heard someone talking about that. I was planning on signing up for this year's Innovation Program."

"I can't believe you're already ahead of us," Zhang Mengting said, his eyes wide with a mix of admiration and surprise.

Chang Wenchao chimed in, "A true all rounder, excelling in every area. Compared to Little Four, I suddenly feel so inadequate."

Lu Shixian quickly waved his hands. "You're exaggerating! People usually start this stuff in their sophomore year or later. I'm just trying it out for fun."

"There are too many geniuses at Yan University. I can't even guarantee I'll make it past the university level competition!"

His words of reassurance seemed to calm them down.

But speaking of all around development brought their minds back to the recent final exams.

"Alright guys, listen up. From the Boss down to Little Four, report your grades in order."

"Whoever has the worst grades does a hundred squats. Deal, bros?"

Lin Chenyi was suddenly full of energy, actively bringing the topic up. It seemed he had done quite well.

But the others in the dorm were no slouches either. Who didn't have a few tricks up their sleeve?

They immediately agreed. The four of them would open the campus network together, check their grades, and face the group's judgment.

To be honest, Lu Shixian himself had almost forgotten about it.

Since they were so enthusiastic, he decided to play along.

He already had a pretty good idea of how he'd done on his exams, but he was curious to see the actual results.

He calmly opened the campus network website and entered his student ID and the last six digits of his national ID as the password.

The Yan University network was impressively fast; the results appeared in seconds.

The "2009-2010 Academic Year, First Semester Final Exam Results" page loaded in an instant.

After a quick glance, his heart became as still as an old well.

"Damn, how are all of you guys scoring above ninety?"

"I was hoping to make fun of you all, but you didn't even give me a chance."

"Hey, Number Three, how'd you only get an 89 in Moral Cultivation?"

"Your moral cultivation isn't up to snuff? Shouldn't you face a wall and reflect for half an hour?"

"Come on! It's not that. I knew my cursive handwriting would get me docked major points by the grader."

Finally, the battle turned to Lu Shixian. The three of them walked over to his desk.

"So, Little Four, how'd you do?"

Chapter 186: How About We Just Drop It?

"Hahaha, he had the most classes and his exams were all crammed together. Do we even need to look?"

"Little Four, you might as well start your squats now."

The reason Chang Wenchao was so calm was that he was sure someone would be at the bottom to cushion his fall.

Lu Shixian moved his chair aside and said, "Don't celebrate too early. Have you forgotten about the existence of miracles?"

"Save it. Not even a miracle can save you now."

"Miracles are just wishful thinking. Just accept reality!"

Chang Wenchao was the most eager, striding over to the computer in a few steps.

But as soon as he got close to the screen, he froze as if he'd seen a ghost.

"Am I seeing things?"

"Advanced Mathematics, 100? Linear Algebra, 100? University English, 100..."

Hearing his voice, Lin Chenyi and Zhang Mengting couldn't hold back their curiosity and craned their necks to see.

"Holy shit!"

"Botany, 100? Cell Biology, 100? Moral Cultivation is also 100? No, wait, thankfully his Moral Cultivation is only a 96."

"Perfect scores in everything except a few of the political education courses? That's just insane!" the three of them exclaimed in unison.

Lu Shixian shot a wicked grin at Chang Wenchao. "Everyone knows that in multiple choice questions, absolute statements are probably wrong. How come that rule doesn't apply to you?"

"What are you waiting for? Let's see those hundred squats."

No words could describe Chang Wenchao's mood. He felt as awful as if he'd just eaten shit.

But he wasn't a sore loser. He immediately started doing squats.

All the while, he kept muttering, "These grades aren't scientific! I can't accept this!"

It took them a long while to slowly come to terms with the reality.

"Just asking, can I post this on the BBS? I just wanna show it off," Chang Wenchao said, struck by a sudden idea.

"It's not your score, what's the point of you posting it?" Lin Chenyi retorted.

Zhang Mengting, ever the steady one, added, "Exactly. It could cause a huge misunderstanding."

"I'll just say it's my genius roommate. Then a bunch of girls will definitely ask me about Little Four, and one thing will lead to another, and I'll get their QQ numbers, right?" Chang Wenchao was truly a twisted genius to come up with such a plan.

But you had to admit, there was a certain crooked logic to it.

After all, getting a girl starts with getting her contact information.

"Little Four, just say the word, is it okay or not?"

That tone of voice made Lu Shixian's skin crawl.

"Do what you want, but don't leak my personal information online, or you'll regret it."

In truth, Lu Shixian didn't really care. As long as it didn't affect his normal studies and life, Chang Wenchao could post whatever he wanted.

Having gotten the green light, Chang Wenchao began his work on the computer.

At that time, Weiming BBS was the only official online forum for Yan京 University.

Though founded in 2000, its daily active users far surpassed platforms like QQ and Weibo. Even during winter break, the number of concurrent online users still exceeded a thousand every day.

"Definitely can't post in the 'Ask Me Anything' section, or the girls won't know I'm the one who posted it."

"'Jokes' is completely unsuitable, and 'Matchmaker's Bridge' is too obvious. Looks like I'll have to post in the 'Triangle' section."

Muttering to himself, Chang Wenchao quickly composed a post with masterful skill.

"Hey guys, take a look. What do you think? Give me some feedback!" After hitting send, he asked for their opinions.

The other three opened the forum on their computers.

The moment they saw the title, they lost it.

[Yan U's Little Daniel Wu: Shocking! My roommate is not human!

The OP is a freshman. I recently saw my roommate's final exam scores and was absolutely floored, so I had to share them with everyone. Screenshot of the grades is attached below.

P.S. My roommate has already shared his study methods with me. Interested parties, please PM me. Girls get priority.

I must study in secret, surpass him, and then stun everyone.]

"Aside from you calling yourself 'Little Daniel Wu,' which is a bit much, the rest is okay. The title and content are pretty eye catching," Zhang Mengting and Lin Chenyi offered.

Lu Shixian, however, couldn't let it slide. "My roommate is not human? Are we still going to be able to hang out after this?"

Chang Wenchao gave an apologetic smile. "Of course! I've already heard a lot of students from the School of Life Sciences calling you God Lu."

Lu Shixian couldn't be bothered to argue with him, because the post had exploded the moment it was published.

[A_Smile_Lasts_A_Thousand_Years]: This has to be a troll post, right? I know the life sciences curriculum. The photoshop job is so unprofessional!

[Big_Ben]: I just want to ask, can a freshman take courses from both the Biological Sciences and Biotechnology majors at the same time? And you expect me to believe the life sciences program doesn't have Zoology?

[Yan_U_Troll_Master]: This 'Little Daniel Wu' is a new account. Probably doesn't know his way around the forums, doesn't even know how to troll properly. Come find me, I'll teach you for free.

[Light_of_Justice]: Reported! The admin should be deleting this soon. Just wait, everyone!

In dorm room 4012, the guys looked at each other. Then, everyone except Chang Wenchao burst out laughing.

"Hahaha, I'm dying. You didn't attract any girls, but you got a whole crowd trying to school you," Zhang Mengting said, slapping his desk as he laughed. Lin Chenyi and Lu Shixian were also doubled over with laughter.

A moment later, Chang Wenchao's indignant voice echoed through the room.

"Damn it! The admin actually deleted my post."

"Doesn't he know that Yuanpei College students can take courses across different majors?"

Lin Chenyi finally composed himself and offered some emotional guidance.

"How about we just drop it? Honestly, just sending a love letter the old fashioned way is fine too."

"You know, online dating is risky, meeting up requires caution, and taking it offline often ends in disaster."

But Chang Wenchao couldn't let it go. "This is so unprofessional!"

"No! I have to go argue with him."

"I won't be able to sleep tonight otherwise."

After another flurry of furious typing, and about ten minutes of silence, Chang Wenchao's excited voice finally broke through.

"Hahaha, all I had to do was taunt him a little, and he went to check the academic affairs office's network himself."

"He got the permissions and told me to pass on a message to Little Four: 'Your roommate is a god!'"

"Oh yeah! My post is back up. He's going to keep the personal info confidential, though."

At his words, the others started laughing again.

You had to admit, the way this whole thing unfolded was pretty damn funny.

With the semester just starting, none of them had much else to do, so they continued to follow the post.

It had reappeared in the 'Triangle' section, but this time, there was a note from an administrator attached below.

[Night_Blooms] (Super Moderator): After verification, these grades have been confirmed as authentic. I apologize to user Yan U's Little Daniel Wu for the hasty deletion of the post.

The re-emerged post was like a depth charge, instantly forcing many lurkers to the surface.

As more and more people viewed the post, the number of replies skyrocketed.

Chapter 187: The Extracurricular Academic Science and Technology Works Competition Opens

"Here they come, here they come. So many girls are adding me all of a sudden." Chang Wenchao got busy with his own affairs.

He was smart. Whenever someone asked who the roommate was, he would give a vague answer and brush them off.

But as the saying goes, there is strength in numbers.

Although Chang Wenchao had concealed the key information, people quickly deduced that the owner of the grades was a freshman from Yuanpei College who had chosen the life sciences track this year.

This narrowed the scope considerably.

Yuanpei College only had 140 students in total, and you could count the number who chose biological sciences on one hand.

Fortunately, Lu Shixian had always kept a low profile. Plus, aside from the general education courses they took together, he rarely interacted with other Yuanpei College students.

So, he wasn't immediately identified.

But whether anyone had figured him out or not, he no longer had time to care.

Because the final round of the "Challenge Cup" Yan京 University Student Extracurricular Academic Science and Technology Works Competition, which also served as the selection for the national competition, was about to be held.

On March 8th, he changed into slightly more formal attire and went with Qu Xi to the venue for the competition defense.

They were actually participating in the second round, which was equivalent to the final judging stage.

A few days prior, they had been notified to submit their project for the first round of blind text review.

The fact that they received the notice to participate in the second round meant they had already passed the first.

Yan京 University certainly hosted its events on a grand scale, dedicating an entire academic building for the occasion.

Before even reaching the venue, he could see many contestants wearing competition badges hurrying along the paths.

The scene was bustling not only with contestants from various schools but also with students and teachers who had come to observe. The crowd had already swelled to over three thousand people.

And the number was still growing, a testament to the heated atmosphere of the event.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but feel a little moved.

Beside him, Qu Xi asked with some confusion, "Junior, aren't you a gold medalist from the IBO? You must have seen scenes like this before."

Hearing her question, Lu Shixian knew she hadn't participated in academic olympiads and explained.

"High school academic competitions are actually very niche. Everyone just does their own thing. Even the CMO finals don't have many spectators, let alone the biology olympiad. When I competed in biology, it was really just the contestants hyping themselves up."

Qu Xi understood after his explanation. "You can't quite put it that way, but it does have a lot to do with the different nature of the two types of competitions."

Chatting as they walked, the two arrived at their exhibition booth.

That's right, they had been informed that their project had been selected as an outstanding work and was being featured in the exhibition area.

But "booth" was a generous term. It was really just a long display board set up, on which the main content, merits, and application prospects of their paper were posted.

Before the defense officially began, they were required to stand here and explain their project to passing students and faculty.

In front of their display area were several sea buckthorn trees that Lu Shixian had brought back from Haiqing.

He had originally thought about making specimens to prevent them from withering, but then he remembered the resilience of sea buckthorn and gave up the idea.

A short while later.

At 9:30 AM, the opening ceremony of the competition officially began.

A host in a suit and tie walked onto the makeshift stage and began reading from a script.

"Technology lights up our youth, and research forges our dreams. This year's 'Challenge Cup' university competition, through the collaborative efforts of the university's Youth League Committee and various departments and schools, continues to promote the spirit of Yan University, strengthen ideals and beliefs, and encourage innovation and creation, contributing our wisdom and strength to push the scientific research of Yan University students to new heights."

"The guests and leaders attending this final round of the university competition include leaders from the Yan京 Municipal Science and Technology Department and the Municipal Association for Science and Technology, Vice President of Yan京 University, Chen Li, and the chairman of this year's judging committee, Professor Peng Changyun, who is also the chairman of the university's academic committee..."

"Now, let us welcome Vice President Chen to give the opening remarks."

As applause erupted, a man in his forties walked onto the stage and began to speak.

"Since its launch last September, this year's 'Challenge Cup' competition, following mobilization and selection rounds within each school, has received a total of 406 entries recommended by 24 different schools."

"After a rigorous blind text review by our judging committee, which consists of over thirty expert professors from various disciplines, a total of 152 outstanding projects have successfully broken through to enter the final judging round."

"Among these are 28 academic papers in Information Technology and Mathematical Sciences, 18 in Energy, Chemical Engineering, and Life Sciences, 21 in Mechanics and Control, and 32 investigation reports or academic papers in Philosophy and Social Sciences."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian grew curious. "Senior, there were school level competitions? I don't think we participated in one."

Qu Xi chuckled lightly. "It's simple. When we registered, I put your name down as the applicant, so our paper was considered a submission from Yuanpei College by default."

Lu Shixian understood immediately without needing further explanation.

Yuanpei College had only just been established; it was likely that any project submitted from there would automatically advance to the university level competition.

Whether it could make it to the final round, however, depended on whether the quality of the work could pass the blind text review.

As he listened to the end, Lu Shixian couldn't help but sigh. "I'm so jealous that the Philosophy and Social Sciences category can submit investigation reports. Their number of entries is almost double ours."

"But 28 plus 18 plus 21 plus 32 only adds up to 99 projects. If I remember correctly, he just said there were 152."

Qu Xi didn't answer his question, instead gesturing for him to keep listening.

Sure enough, Chen Li quickly addressed this point.

"The 99 projects I just mentioned have already been designated as outstanding works and are displayed on the exhibition boards. After the final judging is over, anyone interested in these projects can go and view them. In past years, many projects have received opportunities for patent commercialization or have been published in top tier journals."

"The remaining 59 projects will not proceed to the final defense round but will be directly awarded a university level third prize during the awards ceremony."

After his introduction, the next part of the proceedings was the standard reading of the competition rules by the chairman of the judging committee, Professor Peng Changyun.
I have to say, with the chairman of the Yanda University Academic Committee on the judging panel, surely no one would dare to cheat, right? That would be like poking the bear.

Next, it was time for the student representatives of outstanding individual and group projects to take the stage and make their pledge.

By now, all the opening ceremonies were concluded.

“I declare the 5th Challenge Cup Yanda University Extracurricular Academic Science and Technology Competition officially open!” The host's passionate voice echoed throughout the science building.

Although 59 of the projects were not participating in the finals, there were still 99 projects that required a final review.

Just as Lu Shixian had expected, the projects were ultimately divided into four categories: Information Technology and Mathematical Sciences; Energy, Chemical Engineering, and Life Sciences; Mechanical and Control Systems; and Philosophy and Social Sciences.

These four categories of projects would be presented and defended in four separate conference rooms.

The final step before it all began was drawing lots.

This process would directly determine the order of the defenses.

Chapter 188: The Tense and Exciting Defense Session

“Senior, go on! It's your turn.”

“I feel like my luck has been pretty bad recently,” Lu Shixian said, handing the task over to Qu Xi.

Qu Xi froze for a moment, then understood that he wanted to give her a chance to participate, since the one who presented the defense on stage was always the one who shone the brightest.

“What if I draw one of the first three or last three spots?” she asked, hesitating slightly.

“Then I'll just accept my fate. We either get it over with early or take a nap beforehand.” One of Lu Shixian's strengths was his excellent mindset.

Qu Xi left in her white sneakers but returned quickly with the result of the draw.

“Well?” Lu Shixian asked casually.

She smiled. “I didn't let you down. There are eighteen projects in total, and we're ninth in the defense order.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian gave Qu Xi a thumbs up. “Excellent. If we advance, you'll get a lot of the credit.”

At that time, the defenses were not open for public viewing, to prevent anyone from interfering with the competition. However, they were later opened up after concerns were raised that the closed door format could easily foster corruption.

So, Lu Shixian could only wait boredly for a staff member to call his number.

Fortunately, his number was 9, placing him right in the middle of the 18 project defense order.

It was a relatively comfortable spot.

A little over an hour later, he suddenly heard a young woman with a staff badge at the conference room door shouting.

“Contestant number nine, please prepare for your defense.”

Here we go!

Lu Shixian's spirits lifted. He straightened his slightly wrinkled shirt.

He took a deep breath, puffing out his chest and holding his head high. His demeanor was completely different from before.

Gently pushing open the conference room door, he saw six judges seated and discussing something. It seemed they were still discussing the previous contestant.

He turned to close the door, and when he faced them again, he was met with the six judges' emotionless, scrutinizing gazes.

To be honest, many people wouldn't even have the courage to meet their eyes directly.

A single glance was enough to shatter all the courage you had built up outside.

This would cause them to falter right from the start, ultimately making a fool of themselves and even provoking roars of laughter.

But the hardest thing in life is to see things from another's perspective.

When you're an outsider, anyone can be calm. But when you're in the thick of it, who can remain composed?

Fortunately, he had seen many scenes like this before.

From the interview for the gifted youth program to the selection for the IBO national team, he was, one could say, a seasoned veteran.

Even though the challenge was even greater this time, with him alone on the stage facing six judges.

Even though these judges were all senior professors and scholars from the field of Energy, Chemical Engineering, and Life Sciences.

Even though he didn't recognize a single one of the six judges.

But he was fearless!

His extensive competition experience, his practical background, and his ability to deliver after long preparation were the true sources of his confidence.

After greeting the judges, he stood neither obsequiously nor arrogantly to the right of the screen.

At this moment, the judge in the second seat glanced at the materials and suddenly showed a curious expression.

“Yuanpei College? You're the first author on this paper, correct?”

“Aren't the Yuanpei students this year only freshmen?”

“Making it to the final review as a freshman is quite impressive!”

Hearing this, almost all the judges became interested.

The elderly man sitting in the center, however, picked up the collection of papers on the table and glanced through it.

With just one look, his expression changed slightly.

He focused his gaze back on Lu Shixian, and it seemed to have changed somehow.

“A New, High Efficiency Method for the Artificial Cultivation of Sea Buckthorn?”

“A very rare topic for this competition. Can you tell me why you chose this topic?”

As soon as the old man spoke, the other judges glanced at him in surprise before listening attentively.

Lu Shixian understood that this was the first stage: the on the spot inquiry.

He had long anticipated this question. Without much hesitation, Lu Shixian gave his answer.

“First, I am already certain about my future research direction, which lies in the fields of botany and agronomy. This is what I am passionate about.”

“Second, I hope that the results of my research can have a positive impact, however small, on society and people's lives.”

“Finally, sea buckthorn is a plant I greatly admire. As one of the oldest and most resilient plants on Earth, and the only one that integrates economic, ecological, and social benefits, I can think of no reason not to choose it.”

At these words, a slight smile finally appeared on the old man's serious face, and he led the applause.

“Very well said. But I hope your content can live up to those words.”

The other judges also began to applaud and signaled for him to proceed to the second stage.

“Excellent. Now for the PowerPoint presentation. You have ten minutes to present the content of your paper to us.”

Lu Shixian nodded and opened the pre checked file he had prepared.

“According to the latest data from the National Forestry and Statistics Bureaus, as of the end of 2009, the total area of desertified land in the country has reached 2.6237 million square kilometers.”

“As shown in the figure, desertified land has spread across 508 counties in eighteen provinces, accounting for 27.33% of the country's total land area. Sea buckthorn is characterized by its resistance to cold, drought, and poor soil, as well as its ability to rapidly propagate and form forests.”

“It is a green barrier that slows desertification and a pioneer species for windbreak and sand fixation forests.”

Lu Shixian switched to the next slide, which showed photos he had taken with his phone in Haiqing.

“At the same time, based on my field research in Changtong Village, Tong County, Lingxi City, in Haiqing Province, I found that the main source of income for farmers in the plateau region is still traditional household operational income from farming and animal husbandry.”

“Their wage and property income are basically zero. They have few accumulated production and living materials and a poor capacity for self development. They have long been plagued by difficulties in finding employment, seeking medical care, securing housing, production, development, and low income.”

“Due to the high altitude, cold climate, and fragile ecosystem, among other harsh natural conditions, they cannot even guarantee a stable household operational income and are still fundamentally at the mercy of the weather.”

At this point, Lu Shixian's speaking pace began to quicken, as he was afraid he wouldn't finish in time.

“And according to the local Plateau Sea Buckthorn Research Institute, developing the sea buckthorn resource industry, conducting research and development on different parts of the plant in the future, and carrying out deep processing will form an industrial chain from cultivation to beverages, health foods, and comprehensive extract development.”

“This will be a highly feasible path to help them escape poverty and embark on the road to prosperity. This model has already been proven by both market and theoretical validation to be the only viable path for local economic development.”

With that, Lu Shixian's background introduction was complete.

But then, a sudden round of applause from the judges interrupted his presentation.

Chapter 189: Your Data Isn't Rigorous

After a brief pause, Lu Shixian continued with the core content of his paper.

“As the title of my paper suggests, based on the background I have already stated, my teammate and I jointly discovered a new, high efficiency method for the artificial cultivation of sea buckthorn.”

“Currently, there are three common methods for artificial sea buckthorn cultivation: first, seedling cultivation; second, seed grown seedling cultivation; and third, cutting propagation.”

“These three methods each have their pros and cons, but compared to cutting propagation, new seedlings grown from seeds have the advantages of strong adaptability, vigorous growth, and faster growth speed.”

“First, I will explain the core principle of this paper, which is the key step in seed treatment. Because sea buckthorn seeds are small, it is very important to maintain the soil's water retention capacity before sowing. We need to soak the seeds before sowing, using 35 to 55°C warm water to soak them for 6 to 8 hours, allowing the seeds to fully absorb water and swell.”

“An environment of 22 to 25°C is the optimal temperature for germination. Place the seeds in a moist environment, and if 30% to 40% of them have cracked open, they are ready for sowing. The best time for sowing is when the accumulated temperature at a soil depth of 5cm reaches 14 to 16°C.”

“The sowing depth is generally 1.0 to 1.5cm, and it's best to cover it with a 2.5 to 3.0cm protective soil layer. The row spacing for drill seeding should be maintained at around 20cm…”

After spending a few minutes explaining the principles, Lu Shixian immediately moved on to presenting his evidence, the data display.

He quickly switched the screen to the charts he had prepared earlier.

Data charts are crucial in a paper; they allow people to quickly understand your point by making the object's attribute data intuitive and visual.

His paper actually had over ten tables, but for the sake of brevity and to highlight the key points, he presented only the most critical data.

“After this seed treatment method, according to the experimental results, compared to traditional breeding methods, seedlings from the new method are more vigorous in their morphological structure, and their growth rhythm is 12% faster than that of ordinary sea buckthorn seedlings…”

A thesis defense is similar in principle to a speech; you gradually get the audience to accept your viewpoint and resonate with it.

Having gone through a graduation thesis defense before, Lu Shixian was well versed in this. Emphasis was an excellent expressive technique.

In his narration, words like “more vigorous,” “lusher,” and “faster growing” constantly appeared, deepening the judges' impression, almost like a form of conditioning.

This was also a public speaking technique: to revolve around a central idea, using different words to express your point, achieving a subtle and imperceptible effect.

“In conclusion, the new sea buckthorn cultivation method we propose has numerous advantages over traditional methods, such as faster growth speed, and has extremely high application value.”

“This concludes my presentation. Thank you, esteemed judges.” Lu Shixian bowed and took a step back, indicating he was finished.

But the defense was not over. There was still one final stage: questions.

“Convincing and well organized,” a few judges commented positively.

“But according to procedure, we still have to ask a few questions.”

“What do you estimate the commercialization rate of your paper to be?” a judge with glasses asked the first question.

The type of question depended on the type of paper.

If Lu Shixian's paper had been on fundamental mathematical or physical sciences, they generally wouldn't ask such a question.

Things that are more theoretical often have less direct practical application.

But as the mathematician Felix Klein once said, the main characteristics of an era are closely related to the mathematical activities of that era.

Mathematics influences the development of science and technology in all fields, even the theoretical ideas of social and philosophical sciences.

Any innovation in physical or mathematical theory could become the cornerstone for the flourishing of other disciplines, so it could no longer be summarized as just one subject.

The commercialization rate generally refers to the technology commercialization rate.

It is an index that measures the conversion of scientific and technological achievements into commercially developed products, essentially the journey from scientific theory to practical application.

Currently, China's technology commercialization rate is only around 10%, while in developed countries, the figure is 40%. This is actually quite a large gap.

For theoretical science, it's fine to be modest, but for a paper on applied science, this indicator directly affects your paper's value.

Therefore, when this question is asked in a defense, if you have any sense, you won't sell yourself short.

Sometimes, even if your thesis does have certain flaws, and even if they are pointed out, you need to state them tactfully and firmly believe that the problem will be solved in the future.

Just as nothing is perfect, neither is a paper.

If you really look for flaws, it's impossible not to find any.

But if you yourself show a lack of confidence in your paper, how can you convince the judges?

Of course, Lu Shixian did not have a problem with a low commercialization rate.

He answered with great confidence, “In terms of effect, our new cultivation method can significantly increase the growth rate of sea buckthorn seedlings.”

“In terms of cost, compared to traditional methods, the only increase is some labor cost, which is almost negligible.”

“In terms of principle, it is not obscure or difficult to understand. Even a farmer can quickly grasp the operational points and put them into practice. Therefore, I predict the technology commercialization rate of this paper can reach over 80%.”

The judges all nodded. They knew what they were looking at; asking this question was just a way to test the contestant's understanding of their own paper.

Next, a few judges exchanged glances, ready to ask Lu Shixian to step outside and await the final result.

Just then, the elderly man in the center suddenly spoke again.

“Your data isn't rigorous. Therefore, I believe your data is insufficient to support your conclusion.”

At these words, everyone was stunned, including the other judges who had been quite satisfied just moments ago.

They had no idea what this meant. This was just a competition, not a critical degree thesis defense. Was it necessary to be so harsh?

But they were seasoned enough to remain silent and offered no opinion.

At that moment, Lu Shixian was dumbfounded.

What the hell?

The experimental data doesn't support the conclusion?

If this assessment was true, it would fundamentally negate the entire meaning and value of his paper.

Experimental data was the very foundation of a paper.

Although this judge didn't say the data was fabricated, the comment still dealt him the heaviest blow.

He started to feel dazed.

Who is this guy? This is way too hostile!

Chapter 190: A Trivial Little Accomplishment

Qu Xi herself helped him process this data!

Could it be that his senior had stabbed him in the back?

This was no joke!

But his trust in Qu Xi quickly stopped his mind from racing.

Impossible! Absolutely impossible!

Because his senior had no motive to sabotage him.

Based on his understanding of her over the past few days, her personality was one of a quiet and calm exterior, but at her core, she despised evil.

She was the one most worried about academic fraud, so how could she lead the charge in faking data to frame him?

Since the paper had passed her scrutiny, it meant there were no logical flaws.

So, there was only one truth: the problem he raised wasn't a problem at all.

Lu Shixian's expression gradually shifted from dazed to fearful, and finally to calm.

He suddenly remembered hearing that in defenses for outstanding undergraduate or graduate theses, even when the papers had no major issues, many advisors would deliberately point out a non existent flaw.

Suddenly, the way he looked at the old professor changed.

That's brutal!

To use a trick like this… I'm just a freshman sprout!

If you actually believe what they're saying, trust me, you will suffer.

Because a truly accomplished researcher must have unwavering faith in their own findings.

They grow through challenges and thrive amidst doubt, completely unshaken by the words of others.

And so, his gaze became firm once more.

This entire process took less than a minute.

“May I ask in what respect you find the data not rigorous enough?” Lu Shixian steadied himself and began his counterattack.

The old man's expression remained unchanged as he continued, “According to your presentation, your proposed new cultivation method has a cultivation efficiency 12% higher than traditional methods. Since your data is based on growth amount and growth rhythm, you only showed the germination, bud swelling, initial leaf expansion, and full leaf expansion stages.”

“The subsequent stages—initial flowering, flower drop, fruit maturation, terminal bud formation, leaf color change, and leaf fall—were not covered.”

“And the most critical issue is that for an economic plant, you failed to mention fruit quality and yield performance. No paper researching economic crops would make such a mistake. How do you explain that?”

Cold sweat suddenly beaded on Lu Shixian's forehead. Who on earth was this old professor?

His firepower was too intense; he was so bombarded he could barely withstand it.

Of course he knew about this issue, but the key was that there was no time!

He also wanted to include all the stages, but by then, the competition would have been long over.

His emotions were once again on a roller coaster.

To be honest, it was a real mind game.

But complaining now would solve nothing. The only way forward was to find a solution.

Wait, the professor had asked for an explanation, right?

He didn't outright reject it, which meant there was still room to negotiate.

And so, less than a minute later.

Lu Shixian looked up again and began his defense, “I believe there is no such problem.”

“My paper is titled 'A New Cultivation Method,' which means it only needs to prove its effectiveness during the seedling cultivation stage compared to other methods.”

“That's just sophistry. It's not a very convincing theoretical argument,” the old professor continued to press, seemingly unwilling to let him go.

Fortunately, Lu Shixian was prepared and continued to elaborate.

“Furthermore, I'd like to add that the main factors affecting fruit quality and yield performance are divided into internal and external factors.”
"The internal factors are likely the plant's stored nutrients, the fruit maturation period, and the number, volume, and intercellular spaces of the plant cells."

"The external factors are mainly light, temperature, water, and nutritional conditions."

"Let's set aside the external factors for now, as they aren't comparable. But regarding the internal factors, the seedlings cultivated with this new method have an advantage over other seedlings in terms of stored nutrients, cell count, cell volume, and intercellular spaces."

"Therefore, I believe the problem you mentioned is essentially a non-issue."

At this point, Lu Shixian no longer expected to pass immediately. He knew his explanation wasn't particularly rigorous, especially without the backing of experimental data.

Sure enough, the old professor posed another question, but it was one he hadn't anticipated.

"Can you introduce yourself?" the old professor asked, completely out of the blue.

Lu Shixian: ???

What's going on?

What kind of question is this?

But he wasn't an idiot. Having spent a long time in academia, he was sharp enough.

He immediately realized the professor had likely taken an interest in him.

This wasn't uncommon. Sometimes, a professor would spot a student they liked and pull them directly into their research group, or even take them on as a personal disciple.

Could such good fortune really be falling into his lap?

Lu Shixian immediately began to introduce himself, his demeanor no longer as nonchalant as it had been in class.

He knew very well when to be modest and when to show off.

He listed almost every strength he had, and if he didn't have one, he created one.

It was just like writing a resume; not to the point of fabrication, but a little embellishment was crucial.

Lu Shixian thought for a few seconds and began, "Hello, esteemed judges. My name is Lu Shixian. I am currently a freshman at Yuanpei College, majoring in botany within the biological sciences track."

"In middle school, I graduated to high school with the top score in the entire city. In my first year of high school, I won gold medals in both the Jiangsu Provincial Mathematics Olympiad and the Biology Olympiad."

"In my second year, after intense competition, I represented our country in the 20th International Biology Olympiad, where I won the first place gold medal and the Olympic Olive Branch award."

"During that same period, I published a paper in *Chinese Rice Science*, a core Chinese journal from Yan University. It has since been designated as a national-level research project for this year by the Ministry of Agriculture."

After a moment's thought, Lu Shixian decided to mention his lesser honors as well, figuring they could at least pad the list.

"During my freshman year of university, I represented the school in the first Capital Universities' Autumn Sports Meet for General Students, winning the championship in both the 1500m and 3000m middle-distance races."

"In last year's final exams, I achieved the top rank in my major with a perfect score in all my major courses."

"The above are just some of my humble achievements. I hope to make further contributions to the fields of botany and agriculture in the future. Thank you all for listening."

After speaking, Lu Shixian bowed in thanks.

Below the stage, the professors looked at one another, speechless.

The old professor who had given Lu Shixian so much trouble just moments before broke into a wry smile.

"If you call these 'humble achievements,' then there might not be a more outstanding student at Yan University!"

Chapter 191: What the Hell? Dismissed Just Like That?

Hearing Lu Shixian's introduction, several of the judges seemed to recall something.

"I think I heard that this year's IBO champion was from China and even broke the world record. I didn't expect it to be you. It seems the Yan University admissions office has recruited some talented students these past few years."

"A national-level project led by the Ministry of Agriculture? Could it be the hot topic of the rice-crayfish co-culture system? I seem to recall hearing that the concept was first proposed by a high school student."

At that moment, the way all the judges looked at Lu Shixian had completely changed.

While Yan University had many outstanding students, it was rare to see one who had achieved so much as a freshman.

Is this it?

The moment I get noticed by a reclusive master, taken in as a personal disciple, and taught unparalleled secret techniques.

Then I live happily ever after with my junior martial sister, spending romantic nights under the moon and among the flowers, a beautiful companion for a life of carefree bliss!

Isn't that how the script for a male protagonist usually goes?

Lu Shixian was full of anticipation.

But just then, the old professor glanced at the watch on his right wrist and said coolly, "Your defense is over. The list of those advancing to the university-level competition will be announced shortly. You may leave."

Lu Shixian: ???

"What the hell? I'm dismissed just like that?"

"Hey! Isn't there something else you're supposed to say?"

Though his mind was racing with all sorts of thoughts, Lu Shixian could only maintain his composure as he left the stage.

My imagination is going to be the death of me!

It's true, you can't just make things up out of thin air, or you're bound to lose your cool.

Set higher standards for my own goals, but don't have too many expectations of others.

Whatever, isn't it better to rely on myself anyway?

Lu Shixian habitually consoled himself.

By the time he was out of the competition hall, his mind was perfectly calm.

His senior, Qu Xi, was waiting for him by the display stand. Seeing him approach, she was filled with curiosity.

"I was just counting. It's been over twenty minutes since you went in. I saw most people come out in about ten or fifteen."

"So, how did it go? Did the defense go smoothly?"

Lu Shixian didn't quite know what to say, as he couldn't tell if the judges were interested in him or his paper.

If they were interested in the paper, did they have to be so harsh?

If they were interested in him, shouldn't they have at least said something like, "Hey handsome, I've got my eye on you!" as he was leaving?

So what was the deal?

Of course, even so, he was still very confident in his project.

He wasn't going to let a few questions shatter his conviction.

So he gave a conservative estimate: "I looked at the other projects on display. As expected of Yan University students, everyone is brilliant. Nearly every paper could be published directly."

"But we're no pushovers either. Our competitive edge lies in our practicality, significance, and authenticity."

"Don't worry, Senior. The month we spent out in the field wasn't for nothing. If we don't get a good result, how could they justify me getting tanned black as charcoal?"

Qu Xi nodded, her mood lifting as well.

In truth, Lu Shixian's conservative estimate was a bit modest. The projects that made it to the university-wide selection had all been carefully vetted by their advisors before being submitted.

Many were even on topics given by their mentors, with their guidance along the way.

To say such projects were merely "publishable" was a real underestimation.

An hour or so later, the defenses for all the projects in his group had concluded.

But he still had to wait for the other, larger groups to finish.

Waiting was always agonizing, but he was used to it, and at least he had someone to talk to.

At 3:30 PM, all the project defenses were complete.

At 4:00 PM, after several tense minutes of evaluation, the announcement for the award ceremony finally came from the podium.

The host, now in a fresh outfit, returned to the stage.

After a few sentimental lines, it was finally time for the main event of the day: the university-level competition awards.

Prizes for first, second, and third place would be awarded to works in three categories: academic papers in the natural sciences; social survey reports and academic papers in philosophy and social sciences; and scientific and technological inventions.

The third-place university-level awards had already been decided. As the host announced the names, dozens of individuals and teams went up to receive their certificates.

For the upcoming second and first-place awards, a different person took the stage to make the announcement.

Soon, Professor Peng Changyun, the chairman of the review committee, began to read the list of winners from a red booklet.

Academic papers in the natural sciences were first on the list, so Professor Peng began with them.

"I hereby announce the second-place winners for academic papers in the natural sciences are: from the College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, 'A Study of Plankton and Water Quality in the Yangtze River Delta Basin'; from the School of Life Sciences, 'Microscopic Identification of Several Rare Dicotyledonous Plants'; from the School of Mathematical Sciences, 'Some Innovations on Optimal Variable-Weight Optical Orthogonal Codes'..."

Lu Shixian and Qu Xi listened intently through the entire list of ten second-place winners.

Their project was clearly not among them.

There were a total of eighteen entries in the natural sciences academic paper category this time, which meant that the remaining eight, including theirs, had all won first place.

But that didn't guarantee they would advance.

To be honest, he didn't care much about the university-level first prize. His goal had always been to successfully advance to the provincial competition and then to the national finals.

Next, the second-place awards for the other categories were announced.

Finally, it was time for the most exciting part: the announcement of the first-place university-level awards.

The venue instantly grew lively, filled with cheers and applause.

Although the outcome was no longer a surprise, the ceremony still had to be completed.

Sure enough, Professor Peng soon read out the name of their project.

Lu Shixian gently nudged Qu Xi, signaling for her to go up and accept the award.

But she turned around, a puzzled look on her face.

"You're the first author. Why are you telling me to go accept the award?"

Lu Shixian feigned a sad expression and said, "Don't you think this will be our last time accepting an award?"

That left Qu Xi speechless. She had no choice but to go on stage with the other contestants to receive the first-place certificate.

When she returned, she handed one of the certificates to Lu Shixian and said, "Keep this safe. Even a university-level award can add some bonus academic credits."

"I'm pretty much guaranteed a spot in Yan University's graduate program, so this isn't that useful for me."

Lu Shixian was speechless.

He knew his senior didn't mean to show off, but that kind of unintentional flex was devastating.

He suddenly didn't feel like talking anymore.

While they were speaking, the ceremony had reached its most critical moment.

The list of selected projects to advance would be chosen from the first-place winners.

But it was important to note that it wasn't a matter of selecting six projects from each category.

Instead, the six best projects would be chosen from all the entries.

This was incredibly strict. After all, the projects sent by many other universities were barely on par with Yan University's second-place winners.

The benefit of such intense competition, however, was that nearly every selected project would pass the qualification and format review by the provincial organizing committee and the preliminary evaluation by the provincial review committee, heading straight for the national finals.

Just then, the voice announcing the final selection list rang out.

Chapter 192: Best Defense Performance

"After careful consideration by the review committee, we have decided to select the following projects to advance to the next round of the competition, the municipal-level selection."

"They are: from the School of Physics and Technology, 'Research on 3D Object Morphology Measurement Technology'; from the Law School, 'A Study on the Application of the Necessity Defense in Criminal Cases in Yanjing City'; and from the Guanghua School of Management, 'Research on the Development of Specialty Industries in Impoverished Mountainous Areas from the Perspective of a Circular Economy.'"

As soon as he finished, another wave of dense applause erupted from the audience.

Lu Shixian could even hear someone's joyful cry of having been selected.

Qu Xi turned to him, a hint of worry in her eyes.

Although she didn't need the boost from the award, she had been involved in nearly the entire process.

To say she didn't care at all would be a lie.

Lu Shixian gave her a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry, there are still three spots left."

"Trust me, we have a good chance."

With that, Lu Shixian turned his gaze back to Professor Peng, who was reading the list.

In truth, he wasn't entirely sure either. In a situation like this, who could truly guarantee they would advance?

Celebrating before an Olympic event is over, only to be overtaken at the last second—that kind of blunder has happened more than once.

A minute later.

Finally, the moment of revelation arrived.

"Lastly, we will be selecting three projects to send to the National Organizing Committee of the 5th Challenge Cup competition. To be honest, at this final stage, all the projects are outstanding."

"Our review committee had a very difficult time. We were reluctant to let go of any of them, and many professors even argued over the final spots."

Professor Peng's words triggered another burst of applause from the entire hall.

Many in the audience were deeply moved, while many of the remaining contestants held their breath in suspense.

This was the charm of competition.

Professor Peng finally got to the most crucial part.

"Therefore, by a collective decision of the review committee, we have decided to make our selection based on three dimensions of performance during this defense."

"First is the Most Academically Valuable Work. It comes from the School of Materials Science and Engineering: 'Preparation, Microstructure, and Electrical Properties of Zirconia-Based Solid Electrolyte Nanocrystalline Thin Film Materials.'"

As he announced the project, a cheer erupted from a corner of the hall.

It was undoubtedly the author of that work.

"Next is the Most Valuable for Technological Commercialization. It comes from..."

At this point, even Lu Shixian felt a surge of nervousness.

His paper's value for technological commercialization was actually quite high, a point the judges had already raised.

Could it be?

Lu Shixian was suddenly filled with hope.

But to his disappointment, the name of the next school shattered all his expectations.

It was a project from the School of Electronics Engineering and Computer Science, focusing on a computer imaging system for digital stereoscopic television.

According to the introduction, a patent for this paper had already been filed with the National Patent Office, with an estimated commercialization rate of over 90%. It was said that several major domestic home appliance giants were already preparing to vie for the patent license.

What could he say to that?

Only that Yan University was on another level.

These people were absolute beasts!

Now, only one last hope remained.

There was only one ticket left to the national finals.

Was there still a chance?

Lu Shixian glanced at Qu Xi and saw her biting her lip, her usual calm and serene demeanor gone. She was clearly extremely nervous too.

He took a deep breath and waited for the result, as if awaiting a final verdict.

Finally, the suspense was over, the mystery solved.

"And lastly, the award for Best Defense Performance goes to... from Yuanpei College, 'A New and Efficient Method for the Artificial Cultivation of Sea Buckthorn.'"

Hearing this result, Qu Xi jumped for joy.

Lu Shixian also clenched his fist and pumped it in the air excitedly.

In fact, he had an inkling as soon as he heard the word "Yuanpei."

But at this moment, words couldn't describe his feelings.

The more intense the competition, the greater the sense of accomplishment.

"Best Defense Performance! Junior, we really have your performance to thank this time!" Qu Xi praised him with a smile.

Lu Shixian smiled back at her without explaining.

The paper did indeed have some issues and flaws. It couldn't compare to others in academic value, nor in its potential for technological commercialization.

However, he had managed to win over the judges purely through his outstanding performance during the defense.

So, if life offers a chance for a comeback, why can't it be me?

Many people don't quite understand.

In a defense, the "defend" part is crucial.

This stage is not as simple as it seems.

"Answering" refers to responding to others' accusations, charges, and difficult questions.

"Defending," however, is about justifying one's own actions or arguments.

Many people only know how to answer. They habitually assume that the scrutiny from their elders must be correct.

This leads them to doubt themselves, and they never mount a defense because, fundamentally, they lack confidence in themselves.

On the path of scientific research, one encounters endless scrutiny and doubt. Learning to stay true to oneself and defend one's work is incredibly important.

With the most important announcements concluded, many people were already approaching the creators of the most eye-catching patents and inventions.

Why is science and technology the primary productive force?

Because there are three main elements of productivity: laborers, tools of labor, and objects of labor.

When science and technology are mastered by laborers, they become a productive force of labor.

When science and technology are materialized as tools and objects of labor, they become a material productive force.

On the spot, he even overheard talk of patent transfer fees reaching the millions.

Unfortunately, none of this had anything to do with him.

After all, what huge profits could a humble sea buckthorn bring these businessmen?

The value of a patent is primarily determined by the practicality of the technology itself, its technical lifespan, the purpose of the valuation, and the type of value.

The comprehensive industrial chain for sea buckthorn was far from fully developed at this point. Even with its titles of "Holy Fruit of the Desert," "Treasure of the Plant Kingdom," and "King of Vitamin C," it wasn't enough to entice these businessmen.

As for its role as a "Guardian Against Desertification," that was even less of a concern.

What entrepreneur would care about land desertification if it wasn't related to their profits?

Therefore, among the six selected projects, Lu Shixian's was the most overlooked.

He didn't mind. With the conclusion of the Challenge Cup university competition, Lu Shixian returned to his normal academic routine.

He had missed quite a few classes that day.

For every class he had skipped, he now had to suffer through self-study.

When his roommates heard that his paper had earned a direct pass to the national competition, their faces were green with envy, and they all declared that they had to win big in this year's student innovation project.

During this time, he also found a moment to report back to Gu Hongya's office with Qu Xi.

Although this advisor had provided little direct help, Lu Shixian hadn't asked for any, so there was no issue of her failing to provide guidance.

Besides, just introducing him to a capable member of her research group was a significant gesture of goodwill.

Sure enough, when Gu Hongya heard that Lu Shixian had managed to advance in the university competition after just over a month of work, her expression was a picture.

"So, I sent you to get some experience, and you came back with a direct pass to the nationals?"

Chapter 193: Jiang Yunkun's Three Pieces of Good News

In the face of her praise, Lu Shixian simply smiled and deflected, insisting it was all thanks to his senior's efforts, earning playful glares from Qu Xi.

Gu Hongya looked at Lu Shixian with a hint of regret. "It's a pity my most recent special project from the National Natural Science Foundation has just concluded. Qu Xi has already used the data from it to publish several papers. Otherwise, I could have invited you to join. I'll find you next time there's an opportunity."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was inwardly amazed.

Although a special project from the National Natural Science Foundation was only a second-tier research project, not as prestigious as a general program or a key program, any project from the National Foundation was a huge deal.

In his previous life, the best Lu Shixian had managed was to participate in a provincial-level foundation project, and even then, he was just doing grunt work, like a laborer. Making any real contribution was like finding a needle in a haystack.

And now, he had a chance to participate in a National Foundation project, and it was a direct offer from the boss.

So, does the platform you're on matter or not?
Is a Mentor Important?

Just as Lu Shixian stepped out of the office, lost in thought, his phone suddenly rang.

He picked it up and was surprised to see the caller was someone he never would have expected: Jiang Yunkun, his homeroom teacher from his first year of high school.

Typically, once students went off to university, they rarely heard from their high school teachers again.

What was this about?

Not bothering to guess, Lu Shixian simply answered the call.

“Well, Mr. Jiang, long time no see! What can I do for you? I’ll do my best not to say no.”

Lu Shixian could hear his teacher's laughing rebuke on the other end.

“Oh, you. Still as cheeky as ever, even in university.”

“I’m calling you with three pieces of good news.”

At that, Lu Shixian’s interest was piqued.

Good things came in threes now, not just pairs? Works for me.

He was all for it, so he quickly asked, “What news? Go on, tell me.”

“First, there’s a supplementary bonus for you.”

Lu Shixian was both pleased and puzzled.

As far as he knew, after he won the gold medal at the IBO, the school had promptly arranged for his 24,000 yuan prize money.

Although the “Jinling No. 1 High School Major Awards and Recognition Policy” stated the highest award for a national-level prize was only 10,000 yuan, Lu Shixian’s achievement had shattered records for the school, the city of Jinling, and even the entire Su Province.

Therefore, the school had made an exception and added a new tier of reward: 20,000 yuan for a major international award, plus a 20% bonus, which came out to 24,000 yuan.

He voiced his confusion.

Jiang Yunkun explained that it was the reward for being named a “Su Province Three-Good Student.”

This was also considered a major provincial honor, and the education department offered a scholarship for it.

But because Lu Shixian had been in a hurry to start university, the paperwork couldn’t be processed in time.

It had only just been finalized.

It finally dawned on Lu Shixian. He’d never experienced anything like this before.

So what the school leaders said about “great benefits” was actually true!

All this time, he thought it was just a red certificate of honor.

Now it all made sense.

Well, it was a government department, after all. They had to follow rules and procedures. You couldn’t just hand out money before the paperwork was done, so a little inefficiency was understandable.

“So what’s the second piece of good news?” Lu Shixian asked immediately.

Jiang Yunkun’s voice turned mysterious. “I was wondering if it’s convenient for you to come back for a visit?”

At this time? For what? Lu Shixian couldn’t imagine.

“Just tell me what it is, and I’ll see what I can do,” Lu Shixian prompted.

“Well, this year’s graduating class is about to have their 100-day pledge ceremony. The school wants to invite some outstanding alumni back to give a talk.”

“Everyone from the Jinlin Class probably got an invitation, but since your official records were always with our regular class, the school asked me to contact you. The students who give a talk will receive a small gift from the school.”

Lu Shixian understood immediately.

He knew this routine! It was all about giving the third-year students a motivational boost.

They held this event almost every year, but he had already secured his guaranteed admission and wasn't at school at the time.

Thinking back to his past life, he had once been in the audience for one of these talks.

He remembered how envious he felt, watching others show off their universities on the projector screen.

But in his year, the best result from his No. 3 High School was probably just admission to Jinling University, right?

The thought of it was tempting, even if he wasn’t interested in the so-called small gift.

After all, weren't this year's third-year students his former high school classmates?

He wanted to go back and see them.

After he agreed, Jiang Yunkun finally mentioned the last item.

“Also, a professor from Huanong Agricultural University has been asking for you by name. He actually came all the way to the school.”

“We thought he was a scammer at first, but it turned out to be real.”

“He couldn’t reach you by phone, so he came here as a last resort. He asked us to pass on a message, hoping you would join his research project.”

Wow, they actually went to the contact address I originally provided?

It was only then that Lu Shixian recalled what Gu Hongya had mentioned. He had since figured it out.

He now understood why so many research teams wanted him on board when applying for national-level projects.

As the originator of the concept, his participation was equivalent to having his original paper on their team, which would significantly increase their chances of a successful application.

A campaign without a just cause is doomed to fail because it lacks moral high ground.

And right now, Lu Shixian was a banner. Even if he were just a spectator, his presence would be immensely valuable.

After agreeing to the first two matters and telling Jiang Yunkun he would consider the third, Lu Shixian hung up.

Come to think of it, after the campus round of the Challenge Cup was over, he really didn’t have much to do.

The period until June was for provincial preliminary reviews and application submissions.

None of that concerned him.

He wouldn’t be involved again until July through November, for the national semifinal, final, and award ceremony.

This was a perfect opportunity to find something to do in the meantime.

Two weeks of school life flew by, and soon it was April.

This was the time Jiang Yunkun had set for the alumni talk.

Lu Shixian requested two days off from his academic advisor in advance, which, combined with the upcoming Qingming Festival holiday, gave him a nice five-day break.

Since most of the speakers were from the Jinlin Class, Lu Shixian decided to travel back with the other Jinling No. 1 High alumni who were also at Yanda University.

And so, on March 31st, an unusually large group set off for Jinling.

The Jinlin Class he had been part of was from the year before last, so he had missed the chance to meet and interact with Zhou Wenwu and the other titans.

How he wished he could say to them: The student who finished last in your class finally made it!

However, while Lu Shixian didn’t know them, these alumni all knew who he was.

For the past year, they had lived under the shadow of banners celebrating his achievements.

To them, he was a true academic god.

Chapter 194: To Be a True Chaser of Light

The moment they saw each other at the Beijing railway station, they finally met in person.

“Hi, Lu-shen!”

Even though they were now students at Yanda, seeing Lu Shixian still felt like meeting an idol.

Lu Shixian waved his hand bashfully. “What ‘Lu-shen’? Don’t take those jokes seriously.”

“We’re all fellow students at Yanda. Everyone here is outstanding.”

“If someone overheard that outside, they might think I’m some kind of cult leader.”

But to his surprise, a girl stepped forward and blurted out, “Lu-shen, I grew up hearing legends about you!”

Instantly, dark lines formed on Lu Shixian’s forehead.

“But you’re older than me!”

The girl just smiled sweetly. “Growing from seventeen to eighteen still counts as growing up!”

To that, Lu Shixian had no comeback.

On the train back to Jinling, it was the first time he had traveled with so many companions.

The journey passed pleasantly, filled with idle chatter, gossip, and cracking sunflower seeds.

After a few hours, a school bus arranged by Jinling No. 1 High picked them up, and they returned to the alma mater where they had spent several years of their lives.

They received a warm welcome from the school, which had arranged high-end food and lodging for them.

They finally met up with the speakers from other universities.

It had to be said, even if Jinling No. 1 High was on a bit of a decline, the lineup of graduates it could casually assemble could still crush most other high schools in the Jinling area.

On April 1st, at the university exhibition fair, Lu Shixian saw the logos of many top universities.

Yanda and Shuimu were a given, but nearly every 985 university was represented, along with some top-tier 211 universities.

In fact, the slightly less prestigious 211 schools didn’t even qualify for a booth.

That day, all the enthusiastic third-year students, and even some from the second year, swarmed the venue.

The entire place was instantly buzzing with excitement.

The Yanda University booth, located in the most prominent spot, became the most crowded.

The prestigious name of Yanda was certainly a factor, but it was more likely because Lu Shixian was there.

Without exception, nearly all his former classmates came to see him.

“Lu-shen, you’re awesome!”

“You’re finally back to visit your old home!”

“I’m going to get into Yanda too!”

The lively scene infected all the third-year students.

After all, the current third years were his former schoolmates, the very ones most influenced by him.

Soon, the name “Lu-shen” echoed throughout the exhibition hall, and the crowd surged toward him.

How many of them were just joining in the hype was anyone’s guess.

Fortunately, a teacher from the school arrived to maintain order. It was likely the dean of students for this year, and his presence was effective.

The situation was quickly brought under control, and the event returned to its normal flow.

Lu Shixian and his fellow Yanda students began their proper introduction of the university.

In reality, very few students could get into Yanda through exams or guaranteed admission, but almost every student, driven by curiosity, would wander over to their booth.

As a result, the group was kept incredibly busy.

When the crowd finally thinned out, Lu Shixian at last had a moment to drink some water.

The others were exhausted and began to complain.

“I feel like the entire grade showed up.”

“Drop the ‘feel like.’ They totally did.”

“If the school doesn't give us a bonus for this, it’s just not right!”

Lu Shixian was about to join the吐槽 with a smile when a familiar voice sounded beside him.

“Hello, senior! Do you have any more Yanda admissions brochures?”

“Sorry, we’ve already run out of…” Lu Shixian turned his head, and the professional smile on his face froze.

“Yiyi?”

Before him stood Chen Yiyi, whom he hadn’t seen in a long time.

If there was anyone at Jinling No. 1 High he could call an old acquaintance, she would probably be number one.

It was the same familiar face and voice, but her appearance now was completely different from what he expected.

She still wore the school uniform, but her once shoulder-length hair was now a neat bob, and her once frail figure had become slender.

But what struck him as most different were her eyes, clear and bright.

The eyes are the window to the soul, and he could sense her current state of happiness and calm.

“Is it convenient to go for a walk?” Chen Yiyi asked with a smile, her eyes curving into beautiful crescents.

“Sure!”

Lu Shixian smiled back.

This girl had truly changed so much. She had become poised, cheerful, and graceful.

But he could feel that the strong and kind nature deep within her remained unchanged.

His teammates watched in surprise as Lu Shixian walked away with the unfamiliar girl, not daring to say a word.

As they walked, they found themselves back at the familiar milk tea shop.

Chen Yiyi took the initiative again. “What would you like to drink? They have a lot more flavors than before.”

“I still remember you bought me my first cup of milk tea last time. You can’t fight me for the bill this time!”

Lu Shixian chuckled, surprised she remembered it so clearly.

“A duo mix, please.”

After ordering, Chen Yiyi sat across from him and asked about his life at university.

“What’s it like being in university?”

Lu Shixian could hear the anticipation and longing in her question.

He answered thoughtfully, “It’s very free.”

“Not just freedom of movement or material freedom, but more a freedom of thought, a kind of spiritual freedom.”

“You see people strolling by the shimmering Weiming Lake, and others reading under the steadfast Boya Pagoda.”

“The Marble Boat is bustling with people, while the Red Building remains brightly lit through the night.”

“Some stop to admire the scenery, while others hurry past.”

“Everyone is studying and living at their own pace.”

Hearing this, her eyes grew even brighter.

As they talked, Lu Shixian asked about her current situation.

Chen Yiyi thought for a moment before saying, “Although I ranked first in my class on the first mock exam, my overall school ranking is only in the top fifty.”

“I still want to study in Jinling, to be closer to home. So my goal is probably the astronomy program at Jinling University. It’s their top program.”

“Astronomy?” Lu Shixian had expected her to choose Jinling University, but astronomy was a surprise.

Previously, she had checked the box to accept any assigned major, so her major hadn’t been her own choice, but it definitely wasn't astronomy.

Now that her grades allowed her to choose, why astronomy?

When he asked, Chen Yiyi gave a gentle, radiant smile.

“You have to promise not to laugh at me!”

“I promise I won’t laugh!” Lu Shixian assured her.

Chen Yiyi continued, “When I was little, after a long day of work, I would lie on the cool mat outside at night and wonder, who are the stars and the moon in the sky?”

“They always disappear with the first light of dawn and reappear after the world falls into darkness. They always guide us home after a day’s labor.”

“Why can they shine so constantly, without ever changing, no matter how long I stare at them?”

“In my childhood, in that small mountain village.”

“My world was very small, but my gaze toward them stretched very, very far.”

“My movements were confined by those mountains, but my imagination was not.”

“So now, I want to be a true chaser of light.”

Chapter 195: Whose Youth Isn’t Filled with Confusion?

It seemed that in this life, she was already walking a completely different path.

A path far more uncertain and difficult than before.

But we can only go as far as our minds can travel.

Lu Shixian was genuinely happy for her.

She had become more confident, because she now had a light of her own in her eyes.

She no longer needed to walk by borrowed light.

Perhaps the next time they met, he would see a Chen Yiyi who had completely transformed, like a butterfly emerging from its chrysalis.

They parted ways once again at that same milk tea shop.

The same place, yet a different state of mind.

Whose youth isn’t filled with confusion?

But only those who set a goal for themselves can find their way.

This was true for every him and every her.

The afternoon was scheduled for experience-sharing sessions.

A representative from each notable university was chosen to share their experiences with the third-year students.

Yanda and Shuimu were, of course, included.

He wasn’t the main speaker for Yanda, but as a representative student who had taken the competition and guaranteed admission route, he was still expected to share some related experiences and thoughts.

Jinling No. 1 High took this event very seriously. Because of Lu Shixian’s presence, whose experience was no longer directly applicable to the third-year students, the school had also called in the first and second-year students.

Three o’clock in the afternoon.

The main auditorium of Jinling No. 1 High.

Students from all three grades were gathered here.

Lu Shixian was currently engaged in a lively chat with a few other speakers.

Among them was Huang Tao, a model student whose grades had been consistently stable from his first to his third year, eventually earning him a spot at a prestigious university.

There was also He Dajie, a super dark horse who had been unremarkable for the first two years but had burst onto the scene in his final year.

They each represented a different path to achieving excellent results in high school.

“You raised your score by nearly 200 points in one year to get into Shuimu University? You’re seriously amazing. Here, have a drink.” Lu Shixian sincerely offered a bottle of water to the master.

He Dajie politely declined. “If I had been good enough from the start, who would want to languish at the bottom?”

“I wish I could have started with a royal flush, like Brother Huang, and stayed in the top three in every exam.”

Speaking of Huang Tao, he was also a university alumnus, currently studying at Yanda’s Guanghua School of Management.

Huang Tao shook his head and smiled. “Not at all. If I had truly started with a royal flush, I wouldn’t have been three points short of the provincial top scorer from the previous year.”

“If we’re talking about true masters, it has to be Lu-shen. After all, he didn’t even need to take the college entrance exam and was directly admitted to Yuanpei College. We can’t even hope to catch up.”

Just as the three of them were engaged in this polite social dance, a voice from the stage called for the next speaker.

“Let’s welcome He Dajie, an outstanding graduate of our school’s class of 2009! He was the unassuming master in the eyes of his classmates and the super dark horse in the eyes of his homeroom teacher.”

“From a score of 512 on his second-year final exams to 691 on the college entrance exam, what was his secret?”

“Let’s have He Dajie enlighten us. Please give him a warm welcome.”

Amid thunderous applause, He Dajie was warmly received by the students.

People need role models, especially relatable ones.

His past experience represented the most common student demographic. The story of an underdog’s triumph would surely be a timeless tale at the school.

He Dajie was very down-to-earth. He didn’t preach any grand theories. After a brief introduction, he shared his journey.

“At the end of my second year, my score wasn’t even high enough to get into a first-tier university. So, facing the even heavier workload of the third year, I worked harder, but my grades just wouldn’t improve.”

“I often doubted myself and even thought about giving up. The pressure was just too much, and I didn’t want to push myself anymore. I thought it might be better to just quit.”

“But then one day, I happened to see my father. He was outside under the scorching sun, fixing an air conditioner.”

“Tears just started streaming down my face. I grabbed my hair and kept asking myself.”

“Am I really that tired?”

“Who am I studying for?”

“Why am I studying so hard?”

“What do I really want to achieve in the future?”

“To achieve that goal, what do I need to do?”

“What does my current studying have to do with my future?”

“In that moment, I suddenly understood. This might be the single easiest path in my life to change my destiny, and I no longer had a way back.”

“My classmates were studying with their hearts, but I was studying with my life.”

“So, having no way back is the best way forward. Don’t let anything hold you back.”

“That is all I have to share.”

At this, everyone applauded him again. His speech resonated with all the students and teachers, and the applause was long and loud.

No one achieves success easily. After all, even being born into the right family is a skill.

He himself probably couldn't match that kind of dedication.

He was someone who excelled at making plans and always had multiple backup options.

He couldn’t compare the two approaches, as everyone’s path and circumstances are different.

But that didn’t stop Lu Shixian from paying him his deepest respect.
He proved with his own experience that all roads lead to Rome.

Next up was Huang Tao, the academic god who had dominated all three years of high school in every aspect.

He spoke about how to grow accustomed to excellence.

About the effort he had put in behind the scenes to maintain his grades for three whole years.

All of this was hidden beneath the shiny report cards and honor rolls.

It's easy to be a top student once, but it's incredibly difficult to become an academic god.

His speech was also warmly welcomed by everyone, receiving an enthusiastic response.

At this point, it was finally Lu Shixian's turn.

"Lastly, let's give a warm round of applause for Lu Shixian, an outstanding graduate of Jinling High School's class of 2009. Since entering our school, he has walked a path completely different from others and is a model of our school's principle of teaching students according to their aptitude."

"From skipping his freshman year to his senior year, from choosing to compete in the Biology Olympiad, to turning down an offer from the Special Class for the Gifted, he did not choose the path taken by the majority. Nearly every step he took was different from everyone else. According to statistics, the time he spent actually studying in school was less than half a year."

"He is the miracle boy who made history at the IBO, the prodigy in the eyes of the media. He has shone brilliantly and has also been the subject of controversy. What kind of inspiration will his experience, so vastly different from the previous two students, bring us?"

Hearing the teacher's voice from the stage, Lu Shixian silently gave him a thumbs-up in his mind.

Regardless of how well the speech was delivered, didn't the term 'miracle boy' sound so much better?

At first, he hadn't known what to say.

His experience was difficult to replicate and offered little practical value to others.

At most, the students below would be impressed, give a thumbs-up, and that would be the end of it.

Doing things with little meaning was something he had always disdained.

But now, hearing the host's voice, he seemed to have found his inspiration.

Walking to the front of the stage, Lu Shixian picked up the microphone and began his speech.

Chapter 196: Engaged with the World, Yet Untainted by It

"I vaguely remember the last 100-day pledge ceremony was back in junior high. That was where my dream began anew."

"To be here again for another 100-day pledge ceremony, I must say, I'm filled with emotion."

"The school asked me to talk about my experience in the Biology Olympiad, but honestly, there isn't much to say about that path."

"It simply began by chance, was fueled by interest, suited my personality, and was sustained by passion."

"Interest is the best teacher, and perseverance is the best testament."

"The students just now spoke of their personal destinies. The teacher said that nearly every step I took was different from everyone else. So, I want to talk about something different from him."

"I suddenly remembered something. My homeroom teacher told me a few days ago that I'm still so mischievous even after starting university."

At this point, Lu Shixian looked down at Jiang Yunkun and asked, "Mr. Jiang, would you say I'm childish?"

Jiang Yunkun hadn't expected this move, but he still shouted back, "Very childish!"

Instantly, the entire audience burst into laughter.

Lu Shixian smiled freely. "Childish is exactly right."

"Some might ask, aren't you a so-called prodigy? Shouldn't you act more mature?"

"But as the saying goes: A great person is one who has not lost their childlike heart."

"Though I am young, I have walked far and seen much over the years."

"I don't want the passage of time to make me even a bit jaded, or what some might call sophisticated."

"I hope I will always have a childlike heart, so that at a certain moment, I can help an elderly person who has fallen, without a second thought for the consequences; so that I can blurt out 'I can do it!' when the country needs me."

"Of course, there are all sorts of people at all times—those who play it safe, those who just get by, and even sycophants."

"But the ones who are forever remembered are the national role models. Their statuses may be ordinary, but the spirit behind them is profound."

"It is because of their existence that I understand that only when the year turns cold do we see that the pine and cypress are the last to fade."

"That I know only in turbulent times are a hero's true colors revealed. They spend their entire lives writing the story of a pure and sincere heart."

"I have met many people over the years. The ones who left a deep impression on me include my junior high teacher, who stood against pressure just to uphold the original mission of a teacher."

"There's our own high school's old principal, who acted with righteousness to defend the school's fairness and justice."

"And there's an alumnus who, after earning his doctorate, went to support the western regions and has been there for ten years, holding on tenaciously to the ideals in his heart."

"I firmly believe that a jaded and sophisticated person can hardly make world-changing achievements in scientific research. So, if possible, just let me stay childish forever."

"Finally, I hope you all can engage with the world, yet remain untainted by it."

"May you journey for half a lifetime and return with the heart of a youth; may you travel through mountains and rivers and still find the world worthwhile."

At this point, his speech was more or less over.

Lu Shixian was about to offer his thanks but was interrupted by a sudden burst of applause.

He didn't linger. Leaving the microphone behind, he returned to his seat.

Soon, the alumni sharing event came to an end.

Everyone was about to welcome the Qingming Festival holiday.

In an office at Jinling High.

Jiang Yunkun was smiling as he spoke to him. "You've got some nerve, Lu Shixian. I say one thing about you, and you just call me out by name, making sure the whole school knows who I am."

"Well, I didn't know what to talk about, did I? Thankfully, Mr. Jiang, you gave me some inspiration," Lu Shixian explained, knowing he didn't really mind.

The two chatted about everything from Lu Shixian's high school days to his life at Yan University, and finally, the topic landed on the third piece of good news.

"You really have a lot of pull. That professor I mentioned last time is still waiting for you in Jinling. Are you going to see him or not? If not, I can reply to him."

Reminded of this, Lu Shixian remembered.

After a moment of thought, he finally said, "Since he's already here, I should definitely meet him."

"It's not easy for him to come all the way from Bei'e. Could you give me the professor's contact information? I'll get in touch with him myself."

So, the next afternoon, Lu Shixian contacted the professor.

The two agreed to meet at a teahouse.

"Student Lu, it really wasn't easy getting in touch with you." After some conversation, Lu Shixian learned that the man speaking was Professor Ke Jie from the College of Fisheries at Huazhong Agricultural University, already close to fifty years old.

"Professor Ke, I'm truly sorry to have put you through the trouble of a long journey to Jinling to find me. I feel very bad about it," Lu Shixian said, and he genuinely felt that way.

It was one thing for a professor to come looking for him, but for one of his age to do so was quite something.

"May I ask why you came to see me?" Although he already had a guess, Lu Shixian still asked.

Instead of explaining right away, Ke Jie took a stack of documents from his briefcase.

"Student Lu, you'll understand once you take a look."

He took the documents and began to browse. The moment he started, his eyes were glued to the pages.

"Analysis of the Prospects of the Rice-Crayfish Co-culture Model"

"Analysis of the Advantages and Techniques of the Rice-Crayfish Co-culture Model"

"New Approaches to Aquaculture Based on the Rice-Crayfish Co-culture Model"

Lu Shixian flipped through page after page, all of them published papers on the topic. And in the reference sections, every single one cited his paper: "A Preliminary Study on the 'Rice-Crayfish Co-culture' Model: Analysis of the Effect of *Procambarus clarkii* on the Content of Reducing Substances in Paddy Soil and Economic Benefits."

He was truly stunned.

The timelines of these papers covered the period from shortly after his own was published until March of this year.

He had originally thought this professor was just like the others who had called, merely looking to ride the coattails of a national-level research project.

Now, he realized he had been terribly wrong.

As his mind raced, Ke Jie's voice sounded again.

"Student Lu, can you see our sincerity now?"

"I am now formally inviting you, on behalf of the Huazhong Agricultural University Rice-Crayfish Co-culture Research Group, to join us. I know you are a student at Yan University, and many other universities have contacted you."

"But in this field, we at Huazhong Agricultural have our own unique advantages. When the world thinks of crayfish, it thinks of China. When China thinks of crayfish, it thinks of Bei'e. Therefore, when conducting related experiments, we have a huge industrial advantage."

"Currently, Huazhong Agricultural has already established multiple rice-crayfish co-culture experimental bases across the province. We sincerely hope you will join us in finding a universal and popularizable co-production plan."

Although this was a research group from the College of Fisheries, which seemed completely unrelated to his intended path, a decision was already forming in his mind.

Because only true passion could make someone gesticulate with such excitement as they spoke.

However, he still had some doubts.

"But I'm studying at Yan University. Is it really okay for me to join a research group at Huazhong Agricultural?"

"Also, I might not have much time to spend on experiments."

"Is that acceptable to you?"

Chapter 197: All Plant Protection Members, Assemble!

Hearing this, Ke Jie immediately understood that he had more or less agreed.

He said happily, "What's wrong with that? You're not the project lead, just a participant."

"There are no such restrictions in the country right now, and I don't think Yan University would have such a rule either."

"Besides, it's not just undergraduates working on projects across schools and provinces; even international collaborations are fine. As long as you have the ability, the world is your stage."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian no longer hesitated and extended his hand. "Thank you for inviting me to join your research group."

Ke Jie also smiled broadly. "Then I'll see you in the summer. Even if our application for the national-level project doesn't succeed, we will continue with this project."

After they parted ways, Lu Shixian didn't linger and chose to go home.

It wasn't his style to come all the way to Jinling and not stop by his own home.

He went home, saw his parents, and rested for a few days.

On April 5th, Lu Shixian, with a suitcase full of things, embarked on his journey back to Yanjing.

In dorm room 4012.

"Little Four, I heard you actually took two days off to go home. That's a miracle!" his roommates exclaimed, munching on roast duck.

Lu Shixian said irritably, "I bring you guys food, and it still can't shut you up."

Chang Wenchao, his hands greasy, said with envy, "Don't even mention it. We've been so busy preparing for the University Student Innovation Program that we couldn't even go home for the holiday. Not like you, who's already guaranteed a first prize."

The other two wholeheartedly agreed.

Since they were all in different majors, they had formed different teams and had been swamped lately.

Lu Shixian didn't bother them, sticking to his own routine of working out and attending classes.

But these peaceful days were soon disrupted by a notice.

The source of the news was a place he would never have expected.

What the heck?

All Plant Protection Members, Assemble?

The club that hadn't shown any signs of life in ages was actually holding an event?

All members of the association were required to gather in the School of Life Sciences extracurricular activity room at 2 p.m.

Lu Shixian checked his class schedule.

His first afternoon class started at 3:30 p.m.

It seemed he didn't even have an excuse to decline; having time was one thing.

Another was that he was curious what kind of event it was. As far as he knew, this association did practically nothing all year round.

A little after one, Lu Shixian woke from a short nap and prepared to head out.

He had met all the members of the Yan University Plant Protection Association on the day of the club fair.

There weren't many of them in total, but perhaps because girls who liked plants were more numerous, over half of the twenty-odd members were female.

Many of them were familiar faces from his classes.

Of course, there were also a few students from other schools who were simply interested in the topic.

The president was Huang Yifa, a junior from the School of Life Sciences.

He seemed to be busy preparing for graduate school recommendations and wasn't managing the club much anymore, basically acting as a hands-off leader.

The vice president was a girl, also from the School of Life Sciences, a year older than him. Her name seemed to be Su Qingqing.

But small as it was, it had all the essential parts.

The small club of only twenty-something people was fully equipped with an organization department, a technical department, a public relations department, a publicity department, and so on.

Lu Shixian hadn't signed up to run for any position, but in the end, he was somehow assigned the role of Head of the Technical Department.

Although he didn't think he had any technical skills, and he had no idea what criteria they used.

In any case, he was the department head, and he even had three or four people under him.

All he could say was, small clubs were ridiculous.

By the time he arrived at the extracurricular activity room, the blackboard already read: Second General Meeting of the Yan University Wild Plant Protection Association.

Lu Shixian suppressed the urge to laugh and casually found a seat.

You could count the members on one hand, yet they were holding a "general meeting."

The first one was probably back during the club fair last year, right?

Sitting at the front was, without a doubt, the vice president, Su Qingqing.

"I know everyone is busy, and so am I."

"But I've called everyone here today for something important. The university has given us a task."

"Our university will be hosting the National Wild Plant Protection Exchange Conference soon. Plant experts and scholars from all over the country will be attending."

"Our job is to be volunteers, providing services such as directional guidance, information consultation, and emergency assistance to the attending guests."

With that, everyone understood.

Generally, volunteer opportunities for conferences like this were highly sought after.

You could rack up volunteer hours and broaden your horizons, making them very popular among students.

And it was perfectly reasonable for the Plant Protection Association to volunteer for the National Wild Plant Protection Exchange Conference.

So Su Qingqing continued, "This is a very rare opportunity. I managed to get a number of spots from the conference organizers at Yan University. The spots are limited, so I hope everyone will sign up enthusiastically."

As soon as she finished, most of the members rushed towards her.

Only a few people didn't move, and Lu Shixian was conspicuously one of them.

After all, people as laid-back as him were in the minority.

Most people joined clubs hoping to do something and gain some experience.

Lu Shixian actually had some thoughts about it, as it was in a field he was interested in.

Why did the concept of wild plant protection even exist?

What did wild plants have to do with humans?

Why should we protect them?

I can barely take care of myself, okay?

It all came down to two words.

Biodiversity.

On a small scale, human life—our clothing, food, shelter, transportation, and cultural life—is closely tied to the maintenance of biodiversity.

On a larger scale, biodiversity regulates the composition of the atmosphere, the Earth's surface temperature, and the redox potential and pH of the surface sediment layer.

It's no exaggeration to say that a single gene can influence the rise and fall of a nation, a single species can determine a country's economic fate, and a healthy ecosystem can improve a region's environment.

In short, it is the foundation upon which human society depends for survival and development.

One biologist once predicted that if a keystone plant species were to go completely extinct, without even a trace of its genetic information left behind, humanity could potentially perish along with it.

Therefore, it must be protected. But a crucial point is that protecting wild plants has a high probability of harming the interests of farmers.

How to properly protect wild plants while also taking agricultural development into account is a key issue in plant protection work.

Lu Shixian was also very interested in this.

But unfortunately, by the time he thought about signing up, he was told all the spots were gone.

Looking at Lu Shixian, Su Qingqing asked with a grin, "Junior, you want to join too?"

"How about I go ask the organizers for one more spot for you?"

Chapter 198: Lu Shixian the Instigator

Lu Shixian had never been one to trouble others, especially people he didn't know well.

Because it meant that what you received now, you would have to pay back several times over later.

He didn't think it was worth it just to be a volunteer.

After all, he knew how these things worked; he might not even be able to get into the conference hall.

Politely declining Su Qingqing's offer, Lu Shixian prepared to leave.

He still had class in the afternoon. Watching others go off to do hard labor, he surprisingly felt a pang of envy.

I must be crazy!

Right, the spiritual victory method worked its magic again.

He went back to his dorm, grabbed his small backpack, and set off for class.

He had Gu Hongya's class this afternoon.

By the second semester of his freshman year, the botany curriculum had become more advanced. Some of the topics Gu Hongya discussed were already cutting-edge, and even he wasn't very familiar with them.

So, he planned to listen attentively.

He couldn't be too arrogant.

At 4:20 p.m., the second class of the afternoon officially began.

"Today, we'll review the topics from last time on Systematic and Evolutionary Botany," Gu Hongya's voice echoed from the front of the classroom.

"As usual, I'll discuss a few examples of theory applied to practice. In the past, our country had two major related research projects. One was the molecular phylogeography study of the alpine plant *Gentiana striata*, and the other was the taxonomic position of the genus *Acanthochlamys* and its relationship with closely related families."

Hearing *Gentiana striata*, Lu Shixian naturally thought of his time on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

It was a rare plant mainly distributed in the northeastern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and its adjacent high-altitude mountain regions.

It was an annual, or rarely perennial, herb.

Because of this characteristic, studying its phylogeography could shed light on how plant communities in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau region have changed since the Quaternary glaciation.

As expected, Gu Hongya went on to explain it in more detail.

"Professor Chen from the Key Laboratory of Adaptation and Evolution of Plateau Biota, Chinese Academy of Sciences, studied the sequence variation of the cpDNA non-coding fragment trnH(GUG)-psbA in 155 individuals from 13 populations within its geographical distribution. His work ultimately revealed the geographical distribution pattern of *Gentiana striata* haplotypes, the genetic structure of its populations, and its glacial refugia and post-glacial migration routes."

"This research achievement directly filled a gap in the field of molecular phylogeography research on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau."

After discussing that, Lu Shixian understood that her real focus was the second example.

Speaking of *Acanthochlamys*, one couldn't help but mention another legendary female botanist.

In 1978, while examining specimens, she happened to come across a peculiar plant specimen of this kind.

Normally, who would pay attention to something unrelated to their work? But she ended up studying it for over 30 years, ultimately achieving great success through it.
Since Linnaeus established classical plant taxonomy in 1753, not a single new family had been established by a Chinese national. All naming and classification were done by foreigners, leaving us with only the privilege of translation and adoption.

At the same time, with the passage of time, the discovery of new plant families has become increasingly difficult in the modern era.

"But the family she researched and established, Acanthochlamydaceae, became the first new family established by a Chinese national, and to this day, it remains the only one." Gu Hongya's voice was filled with pride, a clear sign of her deep admiration for the botanist.

"The discovery of Acanthochlamydaceae elevated China's contribution to botanical taxonomy from the level of genus and species to that of family. It filled a historical gap of over a hundred years in which no Chinese botanist had established a new family, making China's voice heard in the international study of plant classification."

However, as today's lesson was on systematic and evolutionary botany, Gu Hongya only touched upon this topic briefly.

"Acanthochlamydaceae is a family endemic to the Hengduan Mountains, a region where the ancient continents of Laurasia and Gondwana, along with the Tethys Sea, once converged."

"Molecular phylogenetic studies have proven its kinship with Flagellariaceae, a family found in the Southern Hemisphere and the Arabian Peninsula."

Having said this, Gu Hongya began to pose a question. "Does anyone know the significance behind this research finding?"

But after she spoke, a long silence followed. There was no response.

She scanned the classroom and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

Among the students from both classes, almost no one could follow her line of thought. She had laid out all the essential pieces; all that was left was to pierce the final veil of understanding.

But this was understandable. This was a research achievement from the past two years with major international impact, representing a world-leading level in its field in China.

It was a cutting-edge research direction in botany, and the students were only in the second semester of their freshman year. It was perfectly normal for them not to grasp it.

Just then, Guo Yuxin, the recently risen academic ace from Class Two of the School of Life Sciences, stood up.

"The discovery of Acanthochlamydaceae provides crucial data for the evolution and distribution of the East Asian flora. Furthermore, based on its kinship with Flagellariaceae as you mentioned, it strongly suggests a connection in the floristic origins of East Asia, North America, and Europe, which is likely related to crustal movement and plate tectonics."

Gu Hongya smiled and nodded. "Your thinking is very sharp, Guo Yuxin. Not only did you consider the East Asian region, but you also elevated it to the question of floristic origins among several continents, and finally proposed that it was caused by crustal movement and plate tectonics."

"Very good. I hope everyone in class will participate actively and share your thoughts. Even if you're wrong, it's still meaningful. It can help broaden your thinking and deepen your impression and understanding."

After he finished, the students from Class Two began to applaud, creating a stir, in stark contrast to the quiet Class One beside them.

"Does anyone have a different opinion on Guo Yuxin's view?" Gu Hongya asked, her eyes encouraging.

Lu Shixian kept signaling to Yu Junlan beside him with his eyes, urging him to step up.

"I remember you used to be in a league of your own. How come you can't even keep Class Two in check now?"

"You're a national team ace, for crying out loud! Come on, show them what you've got!" Lu Shixian fanned the flames.

Yu Junlan shook his head with a wry smile. "In a league of my own is an exaggeration. It's always been one superstar versus many strong contenders, alright?"

"You might not know since you're not in the School of Life Sciences, but at the beginning, we students from the competition track did have an advantage over those who got in through the standard college entrance exam. But that was a foundation we built through training in high school."

"After a few months, as their foundational knowledge solidified, our slight advantage doesn't really count for much, especially since some of them are exceptionally talented."

Seeing the atmosphere grow increasingly awkward, Lu Shixian couldn't stand it anymore. He leaned in and whispered something in Yu Junlan's ear.

Chapter 199: Apologies, I'm One Step Ahead

Sure enough, a dozen seconds later, Yu Junlan suddenly stood up.

"Professor Gu, I'd like to add something. Guo Yuxin's points were excellent, but some parts were incomplete."

"I believe that the close relationship between Acanthochlamydaceae and Flagellariaceae, a disjunct distribution that spans continents and hemispheres, is of great significance in studying the origin of species on Earth and the genesis of biogeographic regions."

"Furthermore, the discovery of Acanthochlamys in a unique region like the Hengduan Mountains helps unravel the mysteries of life and the Earth, providing important evidence for the theory of plate tectonics and the theory of continental drift."

As soon as he finished, he received Gu Hongya's affirmation.

"That is a textbook answer, a very precise summary of the answer to my question."

Instantly, the students of Class One erupted in applause far more enthusiastic than that of Class Two. They all looked proud and utterly delighted, as if they had answered it themselves.

After sitting down, Yu Junlan was also beaming.

"It might be a bit unsportsmanlike, but damn, it feels good."

Ring ring ring...

Just then, the bell signaling the end of class rang from outside.

Lu Shixian patted Yu Junlan, ready to slip away.

But unexpectedly, Gu Hongya called out to him again.

What the heck?

Could it be something good again?

Though curious, Lu Shixian walked over to her.

As soon as he got close, he heard Gu Hongya's voice.

"So? Did you have fun just now?"

"You didn't raise your hand yourself, but whispered the answer to Yu Junlan for him to say?"

Lu Shixian hadn't expected to be found out so quickly. He thought his actions had been very discreet.

"Hehe, I was doing it for everyone's sake!"

"I saw that things were about to get awkward, right? Having Yu Junlan answer was also to stir up the competitive spirit between Class One and Class Two!"

"How did you find out?"

Gu Hongya smiled faintly and glanced at him. "You're the one full of clever tricks, aren't you?"

"I've been doing research for so many years and teaching for so many years. If I can't even tell a student's true level, wouldn't I have wasted all that time?"

"And as for 'unraveling the mysteries of life and the Earth,' I don't think anyone in this class besides you, Lu Shixian, could come up with such dramatic nonsense."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian felt a bit indignant.

"How can you call it nonsense? Don't the origin of life and the theory of plate tectonics represent life and the Earth?"

"You know, even Darwin..."

Before Lu Shixian could finish, Gu Hongya cut him off.

"Alright, alright. I called you over for something else."

Then, she took a card from her bag, handed it to Lu Shixian, and said, "It's not good to always be cooped up studying. It's easy to end up working in isolation."

"I have an invitation here. If you have time, you can go check it out. Get a feel for the atmosphere of academic exchange."

With that, she left.

Lu Shixian picked up the card and was stunned.

"Invitation."

"2010 National Wild Plant Conservation Exchange Conference · China · Yanjing."

"Yanjing University, Biology Building, Lecture Hall 1."

"May 15, 2010."

He couldn't believe it.

Wasn't this the conference he thought he was going to miss?

Good thing he didn't sign up to be a volunteer greeter.

Otherwise, wouldn't that be me welcoming myself?

A week later.

The time was mid-May.

It was a Saturday, so there were no classes.

Lu Shixian suddenly seemed to remember something and quickly checked the time.

"Okay, it starts at nine in the morning. It's just past eight now, still have time."

With that, Lu Shixian immediately started getting his things together, ready to leave.

"Right, almost forgot I have the invitation." Lu Shixian put on a white shirt, then changed into slightly more formal attire.

The most crucial part was tying his tie correctly.

Joking aside, if he was denied entry for being improperly dressed, that would be a total bummer.

In fact, ever since his last thesis defense, Lu Shixian had felt he should buy a suit to have on hand.

He didn't particularly like wearing them, but that didn't mean he didn't need one.

On formal occasions, dressing properly was also a sign of respect for others.

Don't even ask why a certain academician could wear cloth shoes and carry a small flask to his lectures.

To be honest, Lu Shixian wanted to be that carefree too.

But what was that person's status?

Not to mention being an academician, he was also a giant in the domestic remote sensing field.

At that level, one could naturally be willful, and even be praised for it, hailed as a real-life hidden master.

Then he looked at himself in the mirror. What was he now?

Still accomplished nothing, with empty hands, without even a single SCI paper to his name.

But then again, he had to admit he was a natural clothes horse; he looked good in anything.

Even without a suit, at least his looks were on point.

Time was tight, no more time for admiration. It was time to go.

Fortunately, he was quite familiar with the Biology Building. He walked quickly and didn't spend much time on the road.

When he arrived outside the main entrance of the Biology Building, he saw that a red carpet had already been laid out.

Banners welcoming plant conservation experts and scholars from all over the country were hung outside.

Of course, the most conspicuous were the several volunteers standing in a row, wearing volunteer badges and uniform shirts printed with a heart-hand gesture, greeting the distinguished guests.

Unfortunately, he knew most of them.

Leading the group was Su Qingqing, her hair in a single ponytail.

Watching their enthusiastic display, Lu Shixian suddenly didn't know what to say.

If they ran into each other, wouldn't it be incredibly awkward?

So he quickened his pace, hoping to remain unseen.

But ideals are lofty, and reality is harsh.

Before he even stepped onto the red carpet, he was stopped by Su Qingqing.

"Hello, sir. This is the 2010 National Wild Plant Conservation Exchange Conference. Only distinguished guests on the invitation list may enter. Please show your invitation."

Su Qingqing seemed to have memorized this line, reciting it almost without thinking.

But when she looked up at the person's face, she was taken aback.

"Junior Brother Lu?"

"Didn't you say you weren't coming?"

"Don't tell me you changed your mind and want to be a volunteer?"

Lu Shixian gave an awkward yet polite smile, then pulled the bright red invitation from his pocket.

He opened it, and there, printed inside, was the name Lu Shixian.

"Senior Sister, my apologies. I'll be heading in first." With that, he walked inside, leaving the stunned group to stare at each other in his wake.

Lu Shixian finally understood why so many people enjoyed playing the fool only to reveal their true strength.

Speaking of which, although it was a bit awkward at first, the feeling afterward was pretty darn satisfying.

Though he had no intention of creating such a scenario.

This was all prepared by Gu Hongya in advance; it had nothing to do with him.

He shifted the blame with practiced ease.

After walking in, he saw that the entire venue was already set up, and the conference was about to begin.

He had to admit, Yanjing University was seriously rich.

This conference hall was far more magnificent than the hall where he had attended the IBO finals award ceremony at the University of Tsukuba.

Chapter 200: Attending the National Exchange Conference

Upon entering, many of the guests had already taken their seats.

Lu Shixian found a random spot and sat down. This conference had nothing to do with him; he was just here for the experience.

Although it seemed like experts and scholars from all over the country had come, this kind of conference was actually relatively small-scale. Only those on the invitation list could enter.

Moreover, something like wild plant conservation was a rather niche research area.

You could usually tell the level of a conference by its venue. The fact that this exchange was held in the Biology Building instead of Yanjing University's Centennial Hall or the Grand Auditorium spoke volumes.

If you were to remove the word "Exchange" from the title, then the conference would carry some weight. With the country's increasing emphasis on environmental protection and sustainable development, conferences of this type would receive more and more support in the future.

At the very least, some ministerial-level leaders would come to preside over the meeting, which would elevate the prestige and level entirely.

Of course, the truly bustling events were the international exchange conferences.

The most high-end were the large-scale, comprehensive, multi-disciplinary academic conferences.

Many world-changing, epoch-making research findings emerged from such academic gatherings.

Nine in the morning.

The 2010 National Wild Plant Conservation Exchange Conference officially began.

Jiang Weinan, the Dean of the School of Life Sciences at Yanjing University, delivered the opening remarks, welcoming the experts and scholars from related fields to Yanjing University, and then briefly introduced some of the university's achievements in this area.

Next, Peng Changyun, the President of the China Wild Plant Conservation Association, delivered the keynote report, titled "We Must Protect Plants as We Protect Our Eyes."

The number of higher plant species in our country can reach over 35,000, accounting for about 10% of the world's total, ranking third globally. At the same time, our country is also the richest in the world in terms of horticultural and flowering plants, with over 7,500 species.

The Dawn Redwood, the Ginkgo tree, and others are "living fossils" that have survived in China. Our country is home to 62% of the world's relatively ancient plants.

Our country is also one of the four major centers of origin for cultivated plants in the world, with over 1,000 species of timber trees, over 4,000 species of medicinal plants, and over 300 species of fruit plants.

With such a rich endowment of plant resources, we should strive to improve the conservation and management of wild plant resources, protecting, developing, and utilizing these precious resources well, so that they can continue to exist for generations to come.

Finally, he expressed his hope that all the representatives attending the conference would engage in extensive exchanges and pool their wisdom.

Lu Shixian listened very attentively.

Only when applause filled the hall did he realize the speech was over.

This was a blind spot in his knowledge. He hadn't even fully mastered botany yet, let alone wild plant conservation.

The president's speech mainly introduced the country's plant resource endowment. He didn't steal the spotlight, but rather served to get the ball rolling.

The list of speakers for the exchange must have been arranged in advance.

Next, experts and scholars from various regions shared local case studies on wild plant conservation, exchanging experiences and insights.

What impressed Lu Shixian the most was an expert from Yanjing City, who spoke about Yanjing's measures to protect the Baihuashan grape, a national first-class key protected plant.

The Baihuashan grape is currently only found within the Yanjing region. As of 2010, there was only one wild plant, which was in an extremely endangered state. Its growth was declining, it wasn't flowering or bearing fruit, and it faced the possibility of extinction at any moment.

To save this endangered species, they had made extensive efforts, launching an artificial breeding and cultivation program this year. However, in the end, only two artificially cultivated plants survived.

Lu Shixian shook his head slightly. It seemed plant cultivation was a difficult task everywhere.

In fact, even breeding a new crop variety was already arduous, let alone artificially cultivating an extremely endangered plant species.

Many people might ask, isn't it just a wild grapevine?

Aren't there plenty of them at the fruit stands?

What's the difference what kind of grape you eat? What's so special about protecting this one?

But as someone in the know, he understood perfectly why it was necessary to save this species.

Looking past the surface reveals the essence.

A species is just a manifestation of biological genes.

What they were truly saving were the biological genes within it.

It's well known that hybrid rice was initially bred from a cross between wild rice and common rice. They could complement each other's desirable traits, resulting in a superior hybrid rice variety.

The rapid development of hybrid rice in our country might be partly attributed to the discovery of a male-sterile wild rice plant in November 1970. With a nationwide effort, the three-line system for rice was completed, ultimately breeding the indica hybrid rice that stably increased yields by 30%.

So, who would dare say that this wild Baihuashan grape couldn't be crossbred with other grape varieties to produce a new type of grape, similar to hybrid rice?

Of course, some might argue, can grapes be compared to rice?

No matter how much the yield increases, you can't eat it as a staple food.

To that, you could only say, you win.

Their perspective is too narrow; there's nothing more to say.

Setting aside the potential for hybrid vigor, the rich genetic material contained within it alone could play a crucial role and have profound significance.

Besides case studies on saving such individually rare plants, there were also examples of designating ecological protection zones and enacting relevant policies for their conservation.

In 2010, wild plant conservation work was still in its nascent stages. Their examples provided valuable experience for those who would follow, and the attendees all listened intently, some taking notes.

But time waits for no one.

Soon, the conference was drawing to a close.

But to Lu Shixian's surprise, there was a final, heavyweight guest to close the event.

An expert from the Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, was actually here.

As far as he knew, the Institute of Botany boasted several academicians and two state key laboratories.

In the field of botanical research in China, the institute's difference from and status compared to other research institutions was perhaps like that of the main empress versus the imperial concubines.

The moment he began to speak, Lu Shixian could feel that the level and perspective were on a completely different plane.

"In 1992, humanity established the Convention on Biological Diversity. At the sixth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in 2002, 187 countries agreed for the first time and unanimously adopted the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation. The Global Strategy for Plant Conservation states: without plants, there is no life; the functioning of the planet and the survival of humankind depend on plants."

"As of this year, the targets of this strategy have been updated to 2020. Our country needs to fulfill a total of 16 targets across five major categories."

"As a signatory to the Convention on Biological Diversity, our country officially released the Chinese and English versions of the China Strategy for Plant Conservation at the end of February this year, in line with the sixteen targets of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation."

Chapter 201: You're Telling Me I'm Not First?

He then elaborated on the related work done in the country from five aspects: background survey and conservation status assessment of plant species resources, conservation of plant diversity, sustainable use of plant species resources, popular science communication and public education on plant diversity conservation, and capacity building for plant diversity conservation.

Although it was a bit bewildering, Lu Shixian listened attentively.

After listening through it all, he figured this counted as being educated on the topic.

After he finished speaking, the conference concluded amidst applause.

After the session, Gu Hongya, who was sitting in the front row, saw Lu Shixian as she was leaving and took the opportunity to ask him how he found it.

"So? What did you think? Any impressions from your first conference like this?" Gu Hongya asked him with a smile.
Lu Shixian scratched his head and replied, "What the last expert said was too high-level and abstract. It was all about things on an international and national scale. I could hardly resonate with it, and it didn't really mean much to me."

After listening, Gu Hongya nodded without saying anything. She had only brought him along to let him get some exposure, to prevent him from just burying his head in his studies.

But she hadn't expected Lu Shixian to continue, "However, this conference made me realize something."

"Some work might seem meaningless at first, but if you think about the connections, you'll find that many different fields have things in common. It gives you a sense of being able to draw parallels."

"How so?" Gu Hongya asked, her interest piqued.

Lu Shixian continued, "Let's not even talk about obvious connections, like how protecting biodiversity and maintaining ecological balance are related to environmental and resource conservation."

"For example, crop breeding requires a large number of desirable traits. And the genes for these traits mostly come from wild plants."

"So, doing a good job of protecting wild plants is, in effect, also maintaining the gene pool for crop hybridization. It's incredibly important for the cultivation of cash crops."

Gu Hongya hadn't expected Lu Shixian to have such an insight, and she offered him another word of praise.

The two said their goodbyes and left the venue. Lu Shixian couldn't help but feel that this trip had been well worth it.

Before, his perspective had been somewhat narrow. He had always arbitrarily separated different fields of work.

In the past, he would never have given a thought to something like wild plant conservation; he might even have scoffed at it internally.

Within the plant production category of agricultural studies, there was a major called plant protection, but it lacked the word "wild." The two fields were vastly different, like apples and oranges.

The plant protection major, based on disciplines like botany, zoology, microbiology, agricultural ecology, and information science, focused on studying the patterns of harmful organisms and developing integrated management techniques for them.

It was a discipline that studied "diseases" and "pests."

But even this major was near the bottom of the academic pecking order.

Let alone something like wild plant conservation.

So what the hell did that stuff have to do with his research in crop breeding?

How could protecting these neglected things be more useful than my research on increasing crop yield and efficiency?

You'd have to be an idiot to study that.

But he no longer thought that way.

This experience had planted a seed in his mind.

Only now did he feel the truth in the saying: Young people still see very little, yet they are lost in a sea of information. But information is not the same as vision.

Your vision determines the breadth of your thoughts, and the breadth of your thoughts determines the height of your potential achievements.

After attending the conference, Lu Shixian began to frequently look for lectures and meetings nearby.

He had no time on weekdays, so he specifically looked for ones held on weekends.

And he didn't limit his search to Yan University. The Yanqing area was home to many top universities, which was a huge convenience for him.

But searching on his own was too inefficient. Lu Shixian finally opened the QQ app he had all but forgotten.

He opened the Jinlin Class group chat, which he had joined later, and posted a message.

[Shi Buyu]: Hey seniors, I was wondering if any of your universities have any upcoming lectures or conferences in biology. If you know of any, please PM me. I'll make it worth your while!

They had all been in the same class, but because Lu Shixian had postponed his enrollment for a year to participate in the IBO, his former classmates were now seniors in the second semester of their sophomore year.

To be honest, Lu Shixian felt a bit embarrassed asking. It was hard for him to bring himself to do it.

But that was nothing compared to the pursuit of knowledge and the broadening of his horizons.

With Lu Shixian's post, the once-quiet group chat quickly came to life.

The first to respond was, surprisingly, from Yan University.

[Wen Ji Qi Wu]: Hey, not bad! Little junior, you made it to Yan University so quickly. You really lived up to my expectations. Looks like you got into the School of Life Sciences. Keep it up, fellow life scientist! The 21st century is the century of biology! The dawn of life sciences is just ahead!

Lu Shixian glanced at the group member's name: Zhou Wenwu.

He resisted the urge to block him and sent back a loaded reply.

"Heh."

He was already at Yan University, did he really need Zhou Wenwu to give him information?

The guy was clearly just teasing him.

It seemed the once-serious academic titan had developed a mischievous streak.

Lu Shixian made a mental note. He would remember this.

He would be sure to tease him back the next time they met.

But soon, many more helpful messages came in.

[Shi Yu Mengmeng]: Shuimu University here. This Saturday, molecular plant biology lecture, given by a full-time academician. If you come, I'll grab a spot for you.

The contrast couldn't have been starker. Lu Shixian was filled with nothing but gratitude.

He immediately replied to her.

[Shi Buyu]: I'm definitely interested! You're the best, senior! [Sending love emoji]

The senior was saying something else, and her message box kept flashing.

But having achieved his goal, he had already moved on to the next message.

Just that ruthless!

[Beiming Piaoxue]: The Agricultural University has a lot. Come quick and grab a spot.

Lu Shixian immediately sent back a thank-you emoji.

Speaking of which, he had completely forgotten about Yanqing's Agricultural University. It firmly held the top spot in agricultural studies among Chinese universities.

What a huge oversight. Maybe he should just keep an eye on their events from now on.

But then he remembered he still had to study biological theory and gave up the idea.

Next, he replied to another classmate.

[Wudi Junqiao Xiao Langjun]: I sent this as soon as I saw your message. How am I not the first? Junior, why are you replying so slowly?

Lu Shixian quickly sent an apology emoji and moved on to the next message without pause.

Before long, Lu Shixian had filled his schedule for the entire semester.

His timetable was even more packed than the last semester.

In addition to his classes from Monday to Friday, he now had to attend lectures and conferences on the weekends.

The guys from dorm 4012 basically never saw Lu Shixian except at night.

He had no time to participate in the many internal activities organized by Yuanpei College.

He was completely detached from the main group, quietly enriching himself.

Living at this pace, Lu Shixian passed the final semester of his freshman year.

He was about to face his second round of final exams.

Chapter 202: What's the Happy Occasion?

Having gone through the ordeal of final exams once before, Lu Shixian was now familiar with the routine.

He opened the Yan University academic affairs system and clicked on the student exam information query.

There it was!

"Yanqing University 2010-2011 Academic Year Spring Semester Final Exam Week Schedule."

But as soon as he opened it and glanced over the schedule, he noticed something was wrong.

One of his major courses and a public elective were scheduled for the exact same time: 9:00 to 10:30 in the morning.

Damn it. Lady Luck must have deserted him.

Although he could take a make-up exam later, this meant he was about to get the first failing grade of his life.

He refused to accept it.

Besides, sitting back and waiting for disaster was never his style.

He immediately headed for the Yan University Student Affairs Office.

For something like this, going to his academic advisor was useless, since the exams were set and reviewed by the central Academic Affairs Office.

The final scheduling was handled by each individual college.

It was his first time stepping into the Yuanpei College Student Affairs Office.

Although the door was open, Lu Shixian still knocked lightly.

"Come in," a relatively young man's voice called from inside.

Though he hadn't really met this instructor before, Lu Shixian had done his homework.

His dorm leader, Zhang Mengting, being the class president, had more contact with the college's faculty.

According to him, the full-time instructor at the Yuanpei Student Affairs Office was named He Ming. Gender: male, interests: female, age: thirty, responsible for student affairs.

"Hello, Mr. He!" Lu Shixian said as he entered.

He Ming put down his work, looked up, and was surprised to see who it was.

"You're Lu Shixian from the freshman Class Two, right?"

"How did you know who I am?" Lu Shixian asked, looking puzzled.

As far as he knew, he'd had almost no contact with He Ming.

Could it be that he had become famous after the New Year's Gala?

He Ming couldn't help but chuckle at the question.

"Our college doesn't have that many students to begin with. And even if I didn't recognize anyone else, I'd have to recognize you."

"Last semester, for every freshman discussion class, your name was the only one on the absentee list on the sign-in sheet."

"And during the college's advisor meetings, Little Liu, who's in charge of the fourth floor, told me you're up at six in the morning and back in the dorm after ten at night, every single day, rain or shine."

That shut Lu Shixian up. He could only laugh sheepishly.

"So, what brings our busy man to see me?" He Ming asked.

Lu Shixian immediately explained the problem he was facing.

"So that's the situation. If the times were just slightly staggered, I'd at least have a chance to take both exams. But my Modern History Outline and Biochemistry exams are at the exact same time."

"Mr. He, can you help me out here? I'm really at a loss," Lu Shixian said, his face a mask of distress.

To his surprise, He Ming also looked hesitant.

"If it were a general education course within our college, I could probably help."

"But you have one university-wide course and one major course from the School of Life Sciences."

"We don't have authority over other schools' departments; we can only help you get in touch. Why don't you go ask at the other schools?"

At that, Lu Shixian understood.

After all that, it turned out he was in the wrong place.

He thanked the instructor and hurried off toward the School of Life Sciences.

He Ming watched him go with a wry smile.

This was actually one of the teething problems of the newly established Yuanpei College. Most people never ran into this kind of trouble.

Among the hundred or so students in Yuanpei College, he had never seen a case like this before.

But today, he had.

Since a college-level course was easier to reschedule than a university-wide one, Lu Shixian went to the School of Life Sciences first.

Fortunately, the problem was solved there.

As it turned out, although he wasn't officially in the School of Life Sciences, his name was well-known there.

This was because last semester, as a student from another college, he had actually ranked first in their major.

It had caused quite a stir at the time.

So, the instructor at the School of Life Sciences' Student Affairs Office readily agreed to his request.

They promised to move him into the exam slot for biochemistry make-ups or retakes.

He double-checked his exam schedule, and this time, there were no more conflicts.

Walking out of the School of Life Sciences building, Lu Shixian let out a sigh of relief.

Finally sorted out. Just taking his finals had been a huge hassle.

Soon, time flew by to the end of June.

The final exams arrived as scheduled.

Five days later, after surviving the intense exam week, Lu Shixian welcomed the first summer vacation of his university life.

"Xiao Si, that roast duck last time was great. When we come back after the summer, I'll let you all experience the true spiciness of central Sichuan," Chang Wenchao said to his roommates while packing his things.

"The Sichuan food in the Yan University cafeteria is authentic, sure, but it has no soul."

Zhang Mengting replied with a look of disdain, "Give me a break. You can't even handle spice as well as I can. I think you're a fake Sichuanese. I'll bring back some braised chicken for you guys to try."

The group boarded the campus shuttle to the train station.

When they arrived at their destination, it was time to part ways.

The four of them were heading to different places.

"Hey, why does your ticket say Jiangcheng?"

"Don't tell me you're really seeing someone now?" Zhang Mengting, ever the literature student with a keen eye for detail, immediately spotted it.

At his words, the others all crowded around to look.

It really was!

Facing three pairs of teasing eyes, Lu Shixian said irritably, "What are you thinking?"

"A research group at Huanong University invited me to join them. I'm just going to tag along and gain some experience."

Before they could interrogate him further, Lu Shixian had already boarded the train to Jiangcheng.

This was, in fact, his first time visiting the city.

Jiangcheng was rich in educational resources, with a density of universities perhaps second only to Yanqing.

It had two "985" universities and seven "211" universities.

His destination today was one of them.

When they had been in contact earlier, Lu Shixian had politely declined the offer to have someone pick him up.

It wasn't like the university was in the middle of nowhere. Huanong University was right in the city, and he could just ask for directions. There was no need to make a big fuss.

Soon, he arrived at the main gate of Huanong University.

He had been looking at the Yan University campus for a year, and now, seeing the completely different scenery of Huanong, he had to admit it was a refreshing change.

Unfortunately, he wasn't here for sightseeing.

Following the address Ke Jie had given him, Lu Shixian quickly found the College of Fisheries.

He arrived at the college's administrative building and checked the office door number.

Yes, this was it.

Lu Shixian knocked.

Knock, knock, knock...

Because he had called ahead, the door was opened quickly.

Ke Jie was indeed inside. Seeing Lu Shixian, he stood up with a smile to welcome him.

"Professor Ke, what's the happy occasion? You look so pleased," Lu Shixian said, setting his luggage down by a chair.

Chapter 203: To the Experimental Fields

"Even better than that!" Ke Jie said cheerfully, not keeping him in suspense as he answered Lu Shixian's question.

"Just before you arrived, I received some great news."

"We beat our biggest competitor, Yannong University, and successfully secured a national-level project from the Ministry of Agriculture this year. The one million yuan in research funding will be disbursed this week."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was pleasantly surprised.

He had just been feeling regretful that Gu Hongya's National Natural Science Foundation project had ended.

Now, a project he had casually joined had turned into a national-level one.

It was like buying a lottery ticket on a whim with no expectation of winning, only to find out you'd won the five-million-yuan grand prize.

It was a classic case of a watched pot never boiling.

Although Huanong University was a "211" university, its profile wasn't particularly competitive among the applicants.

A team specializing in fisheries had somehow managed to beat a host of competitors specializing in crops to come out on top.

"That's fantastic news. No wonder you're so happy," Lu Shixian said, also beaming.

Ke Jie suddenly said with emotion, "Actually, the results we had before weren't that much better than anyone else's. I think what ultimately swayed the Ministry of Agriculture was your paper."

"A big reason is that the findings they published later almost all cited your paper."

"Just now, Professor Cheng from Yannong University, who was in charge of their project, called me to complain. He said I didn't play fair by recruiting you for our team."

Lu Shixian suddenly understood. He had become the tipping point.

A previously deadlocked situation had been instantly decided.

However, he was also aware that his paper didn't contain much technical innovation; its main advantage was that it had been the first to propose the concept.

"You're too kind, Professor. The project would have had a chance of success even without my paper."

"The most crucial part was your previous work. My contribution was merely the icing on the cake."

Ke Jie didn't say anything more to Lu Shixian's words, but in his heart, he knew that "lifeline" was probably a more accurate term.

After resting for a night at Huanong University, the two of them set off for the experimental fields the next day without another word.

It couldn't be helped. For this kind of research, if you didn't get your hands dirty in the fields, producing any results was just wishful thinking.

"Currently, we have experimental fields set up in Jinzhou, Jiangqian, and Mentian in northern E province. I originally thought it would be more convenient in Jiangqian, the hometown of crayfish."

"But I never expected that Jinzhou would be the one to yield the most results," Ke Jie explained, giving Lu Shixian an overview of the project's current status as they drove.

"Including you, our team now has 10 people. Besides the four stationed in Jiangqian and Mentian, the other four are all gathered in Jinzhou right now."

Lu Shixian listened intently, gaining a deeper understanding of their research progress along the way.

As expected of a professional team, their experimental design was far more sophisticated than his had been.

They were using rice-crayfish fields that had been in operation for two years.

By using different rice sowing periods paired with rice varieties of different growth periods, they created variations in the soil flooding duration in the co-culture model. This allowed them to study the effects of different rice sowing conditions on the growth and economic value of both the rice and the crayfish.

The experiment involved two dependent variables, rice and crayfish, unlike Lu Shixian's earlier shortcut of only studying the soil's reductive substance content.

Just as Su Changqing had said, using one dependent variable to indirectly explain another was not precise.

It couldn't be called proof, only a hypothesis.

Soon, the car pulled up in front of a building in the Jinzhou district of Jinzhou city.

It seemed they had been expected, as a few young people—two men and two women—came out of the building shortly after the car stopped.

"Professor Ke, you're finally back," one of the men said as he helped with the luggage, looking curiously at Lu Shixian.

"Is this the Mr. Lu you mentioned?"

Ke Jie nodded without hesitation. "That's right. From now on, Lu Shixian is a member of our research team."

"And I have more good news for everyone. Thanks to Mr. Lu, we've successfully secured the national-level research project for the rice-crayfish co-culture model this year."

At these words, joy appeared on everyone's faces.

Clearly, the experience of participating in a national-level project was a rare and valuable credential for them.

And if they could publish some high-quality papers through this project, that would be even better.

In an instant, everyone was warmly welcoming Lu Shixian.

He responded to each of them, expressing his thanks.

He understood that he was benefiting from Ke Jie's kindness; the professor was deliberately embellishing his role to help him integrate into the team more quickly.

After some introductions, Lu Shixian got a better sense of the group.

Among the four, three were graduate students, and one was a third-year undergraduate from Huanong's College of Fisheries.

They didn't linger long at their temporary base.

Ke Jie immediately gathered the team, ready to head to the experimental fields.

"Xiao Han, have you collected the data for the last few cycles while I was away?" Ke Jie asked on the way, already catching up on the experiment's progress.

"It's all been collected. The data curves are relatively normal. The rice tillering is proceeding as expected, and the crayfish are also growing steadily in size," replied the graduate student named Han Changfeng.
He had been in the research group longer than anyone else. Now in his second year of graduate studies with Ke Jie, he had plenty of hands on experience.

Ke Jie nodded. "It's July now, which means we're heading into a critical period for the experiment. You all need to get out to the paddies more often and check for anything unusual."

"We have to be extra cautious at this stage. Otherwise, all our previous work will have been for nothing."

The others understood the situation and all nodded in agreement.

Soon, they arrived at the edge of the experimental paddies.

The field was planted with rice varieties at different stages of growth, so even though they were in the same place at the same time, they all exhibited different growth patterns.

This was possible because the climate in the south allows for double cropping rice.

The early to mid season rice is generally sown in April, transplanted in May, and harvested in July.

The late season rice, on the other hand, is transplanted in July after the first harvest and matures in October.

Clearly, the plants with firm, green leaves were the late season rice, while those with yellowed, drooping leaves were the early to mid season variety.

After carefully inspecting the condition of several paddies, Ke Jie turned to Lu Shixian with admiration. "I don't know how you came up with this model. It's a truly brilliant idea."

"I'd venture to say that once the rice crayfish co culture model is fully developed, it will completely change the landscape of grain farming in the south. One paddy, two sources of income—it will create new revenue streams for farmers."

"I looked closely at your paper. The experiment site, Xingfu Village in Jinling District... that's near your home, isn't it?"

Lu Shixian nodded. "Yes, it is. But this model isn't without its risks. It can easily lead to other problems."

"Oh? What do you have in mind?" Ke Jie asked, seemingly knowing the answer already.

Chapter 204: Progress Comes from Learning to Think

"The crayfish might improve soil fertility, but they also pose a potential threat of secondary gleyization, which weakens the soil's biological activity and reduces the mineralization of organic matter. If not prevented, this can lead to stunted, underdeveloped rice seedlings, delayed maturation, and low yields."

At this single sentence, the other students, led by Han Changfeng, looked at Lu Shixian in astonishment.

They had heard that Lu Shixian was a student from Yan University, but he was only a freshman.

Although the paper, hailed as a landmark, had been praised to the skies, seeing is believing.

While they had been polite to Lu Shixian on the surface, they hadn't truly spent time with him and didn't know what he was really capable of.

But now, with just a single sentence, it was clear he knew his stuff.

This one statement was enough to show that his understanding of the rice crayfish co culture model was far ahead of many others.

Ke Jie looked at his students and nodded with a smile. "Lu is right. From a broader perspective, everything has two sides. Contradiction is universal; all things are a unity of opposites."

"We can't let the vast potential and huge profits of the rice crayfish co culture model blind us."

"You should also think about what other drawbacks the model might have. Only by understanding them can we better prevent them," Ke Jie said, turning the walk into a pop quiz for his students.

Although Lu Shixian had an answer in mind, he remained quiet.

This was clearly a teaching moment for Professor Ke, and there was no need for him to get involved.

After a moment of thought, Han Changfeng was, as expected, the first to speak.

"From an aquaculture perspective, the profit from raising crayfish can easily surpass that of growing rice. Plus, raising crayfish requires far less labor and resources."

Hearing this, the others, who had been deep in thought, had a moment of realization.

Even Lu Shixian was a bit surprised by the answer. His own thoughts were similar, but his starting point was different.

Ke Jie smiled and affirmed his answer.

"Not bad, Changfeng. You've been my student for over two years now, and you're finally showing some real progress."

"However, you're still not getting to the heart of it. You're close, but you haven't hit the nail on the head."

"Anyone else have something to add?"

The remaining students looked at each other, none of them knowing what to say.

Lu Shixian shook his head with a wry smile, his respect and admiration for Ke Jie growing.

It was rare to have such a mentor.

This was, in fact, a journey he had once traveled himself.

He used to just do experiments as his advisor instructed, working on fragmented tasks.

He thought he was doing well just by completing his experiments and not holding the team back.

But he didn't realize that aside from becoming more proficient at the experimental procedures, he wasn't gaining anything else.

This kind of head down work, without any real thought, prevented him from seeing the bigger picture: What role did his part of the experiment play in the larger project?

What kind of impact or effect would the project he was participating in have? Would it be positive or negative?

What expectations would these effects meet, or what consequences might they cause?

The result of this is that you could do experiments your whole life and likely remain just a "worker bee."

In truth, many advisors don't guide their students this way. It all comes down to the old saying, "The master opens the door, but the student must enter by himself."

It's not that the advisors are irresponsible; it's just a matter of whether you have the aptitude to figure it out.

But taking the long way around was a certainty. Lu Shixian knew this from experience, having only been given the lead on a small project in his third year of graduate school.

"No one has an answer?" Ke Jie's gaze swept over his students before settling on Lu Shixian.

"Lu, you were the first to propose this model. You must have some thoughts on the matter."

Lu Shixian organized his thoughts for a moment before speaking. "Senior Han made a very good point."

"My family grows rice, and the rice harvested from the field is completely different from the polished rice you buy in the market. It has to go through cleaning, hulling, milling, and finishing before it can be eaten."

"Generally, aside from what farmers keep for themselves, they have two ways to sell the bulk of their rice. They can either sell it to merchants or processing plants—what we call grain dealers—who come right to their door. This is convenient, but there's a problem: the price isn't very high."

"The other way is to sell it to the state grain reserves, where the price is higher due to government subsidies."

"But I'll be honest, if you don't have some connections, you might not even get a spot in the queue. So, many people are forced to choose the first option."

Lu Shixian spoke in great detail. These were the kinds of intricacies that someone without a rural background wouldn't know, so the other students listened intently.

Ke Jie also watched him with approval, gesturing for him to continue.

"When you subtract the cost of seeds, fertilizer, and other expenses, the profit margin for farmers growing grain isn't actually that high. So, that's the root of the problem Senior Han mentioned."

"If the income from selling crayfish is much higher than that from growing rice, farmers will gradually develop a mindset of prioritizing crayfish over rice, or even abandoning rice altogether. This could lead to a situation where a large number of farmers only raise crayfish and either don't harvest or don't plant rice at all."

Lu Shixian's tone had grown heavy.

"Compared to the issue of soil gleyization I mentioned earlier, this is the problem that could truly lead to major consequences."

He didn't need to explain any further.

What Lu Shixian said was detailed enough.

If things reached that point, the "farmers" would exist in name only, having transformed into aquaculturists.

Food is the first necessity of the people. If nobody grew grain, the consequences would be unimaginable.

What was intended as a way to help farmers increase their income could, if not handled carefully, turn good intentions into a disaster.

Suddenly, all of them were lost in deep thought.

This was a scenario they had never considered before.

Ke Jie looked at Lu Shixian, his eyes filled with admiration. "You have a very broad perspective when you think about these things."

"Too much of a good thing can be bad. Everything requires a sense of balance. Go beyond the limit, and you'll end up suffering for it."

"But you don't need to be too anxious. If you can see these problems, don't you think the higher ups can see them too?"

Lu Shixian replied with a smile, "That's where the difference between necessities and non necessities comes in. With the state's macroeconomic controls, the prices of necessities tend to remain stable."

At that moment, a female student had a flash of insight. "That's right! We can eat rice for a lifetime, but we can't eat crayfish for a lifetime."

Another male student picked up where she left off. "By the same token, we can grow grain for a lifetime, but we can't necessarily raise crayfish for a lifetime."

Chapter 205: Junior, Did You Understand?

After that discussion, the students in the research group no longer treated Lu Shixian with the same polite but distant air they had at the beginning.

Lu Shixian's easygoing and cheerful personality allowed him to quickly fit in.

"Junior Lu, what was your score on the college entrance exam to get into Yan University?" asked Yu Li, a first year master's student, her curiosity piqued.

At her question, the other four stopped their chatter and turned their attention to them.

For students from top universities like Yan and Shuimu, this was probably the most frequently asked and most interesting question.

Lu Shixian had expected this and wasn't surprised. "I didn't take the exam last year," he replied. "I was recommended for admission."

He said it casually, but it immediately struck a nerve with them.

Alright then.

Minus 10 HP.

The senior took a little bit of psychic damage. The question probably shouldn't have been asked.

She suddenly recalled that her own exam score hadn't even broken 600.

What gave her the courage to ask a Yan University student about his score? How dare she?

After a moment of silent reflection, she decided it was best to change the subject.

"Junior, you should be starting your sophomore year soon, right?"

"So that means you're almost 20 this year?"

"So young! I can't believe we look about the same age, but I'm already three years older than you."

Yu Li couldn't help but lament how quickly time flew, making one feel old.

Lu Shixian was a bit speechless. He had just been aged up by two years out of thin air.

Did he really look like an old piece of bacon already?

"Not at all. I just turned eighteen this year," Lu Shixian felt the need to clarify.

Minus 10 HP.

For some reason, Yu Li suddenly felt a pang in her chest.

Beside her, the guys were doubled over with laughter.

"Haha, Yu Li, that's a hefty age gap. Too much to handle!"

Minus 10 HP.

"Don't worry, as long as you're young at heart, I'm sure you'll be forever eighteen."

Minus 10 HP.

"Yeah, Senior, you're only four years older than him. And 23 is still young!"

Yu Li gritted her teeth, her defenses starting to crumble.

What was wrong with these people? Could they please stop mentioning age gaps, being forever eighteen, and being four years older?

Did they think she didn't know?

For some reason, even though it wasn't that time of the month, she felt deeply wounded.

Weren't these the usual topics of conversation?

With their senior sister retreating in defeat, the group's conversation eventually returned to the main topic.

"Senior Han, how did you guys handle the paddy modifications? They look very well done," Lu Shixian had been wanting to ask this for a while.

For this type of experiment, modifying the paddies was of utmost importance and could directly affect the subsequent experimental data.

His own previous modifications had been a mess; otherwise, his paper wouldn't have been sent back so many times for questionable data.

Han Changfeng, truly Ke Jie's most prized disciple, was intimately familiar with the experimental procedures and began to explain without a moment's hesitation.

"Professor Ke noticed your paper almost as soon as it was published in the *Chinese Journal of Rice Science*. He started preparing for this research back then. Otherwise, we wouldn't have so many results now."

"After spending a few days on the experimental design, we began making some basic modifications to the existing crayfish ponds that were in a crop rotation system. However, due to the uncontrollable movement of the animals, the initial data we collected wasn't accurate. After processing, the results weren't statistically significant."

"Moreover, the data from repeated experiments had too much variance. Later, we realized the problem was with the paddy modifications. So, we dug a 4.5 meter wide, 2.0 meter deep crayfish trench along the outer edge of the paddy. We built an outer ridge around the trench and finally installed a 40cm high barrier fence."

Han Changfeng explained while pointing to the actual structures.

"We made a few more minor adjustments after that and finally managed to obtain relatively accurate data."

"Anyway, just the paddy modifications alone took up a huge amount of our time and energy, but it had to be done."

Lu Shixian nodded. It seemed his decision not to tackle this part himself had been the right one.

Otherwise, he might have just wasted his time on it.

Just then, Ke Jie returned from a distant paddy and began assigning tasks, pointing to the paddies in front of them.

"The early to mid season rice in these paddies, along with the crayfish, will be ready for harvest soon."

"We can now prepare for the complete data processing for the early to mid season rice group."

"Let me lay out the tasks for this phase."

At the sound of his voice, the group stopped their joking and began to listen intently.

Ke Jie nodded. "Since Lu is only here for the summer, a portion of the data processing for the early to mid season group will be assigned to him."

"Changfeng, you were in charge of this work before, so you two will complete it together."

"As for the subsequent tasks, they will proceed as previously arranged. Once the control experiment data from the other four is in, we'll move to the concluding stages."

"Let's aim to wrap up the project before October. Any questions?"

Aside from the change to Han Changfeng's task, little had changed for the others, so naturally, there were no objections.

As for Han Changfeng, having one more or one less person didn't make much of a difference to him, so he also nodded in agreement.

A few days passed quickly.

The time came to harvest the early to mid season rice group.

Han Changfeng and Lu Shixian had already returned to Huazhong Agricultural University.

The previous samples had already been tested in the lab, so the data was ready.

In an office, Han Changfeng began processing the data with Lu Shixian.

"Junior, our current experiment is more complex than the one you initially designed, so the data is more complicated. Although we have two research subjects, rice and crayfish, Professor Ke wants us to focus primarily on the rice. We've only collected key data for the crayfish," Han Changfeng said, understanding that Ke Jie had put them together so he could pass on some of his experience.

First, Lu Shixian was no competition for him, and second, he was naturally a generous person.

Hoping to build a good relationship, he explained everything in great detail.

"You previously only collected data on the reductive substances in the soil, whereas we are collecting data on various key indicators throughout the rice growth process. We want to understand the effects of different conditions on the rice in the co culture model and ultimately determine the optimal conditions for it through comparison."

"Junior, did you understand all that?" Han Changfeng had spoken a bit quickly and, fearing Lu Shixian hadn't followed, asked again.

Lu Shixian immediately nodded to show that he understood perfectly.

In fact, this was his own initial concept. He had only used a simpler experimental design and taken a shortcut because he lacked the necessary conditions.

Seeing him nod so readily, Han Changfeng felt a little uncertain, afraid he was just pretending to understand to save face.

It was normal for the person who first proposed the concept to be reluctant to admit they didn't understand something.

Young people, after all. He had been there himself.

So, he asked casually, "Junior, let's divide up the tasks to increase our efficiency."

"How about this, you can assign the tasks. You just pick which data sets you want to work on, and I'll handle the rest."

Chapter 206: Weren't You Using Excel?

"Just do the parts you know how to do. I can handle the rest, no problem."

Han Changfeng said this while observing Lu Shixian's expression.

Seeing no significant change on his face, Han Changfeng began to relax.

He figured Lu Shixian must at least be familiar with one of the data indicators.

Of course, Lu Shixian was unaware of Han Changfeng's little scheme.

And even if he did know, he would have probably just laughed it off.

He thought for a moment. Although he could handle all the data himself, that wouldn't be the right way to go about it.

Han Changfeng had been with the group for so long, and he had collected most of the data.

It wouldn't be right for him to just take credit for all of Han Changfeng's hard work.

The best approach would be to find a balance where Han Changfeng didn't feel slighted and he himself had work to do, making his trip to Jiangcheng worthwhile.

So he said, "How about this: Senior Han, you've been in charge of the rice growth process indicators all along, so you should continue to handle the seedling floating rate, cold resistance, heading uniformity, panicle position uniformity, and so on."

"That part is more important. The remaining parts are all relatively simple, so I'll take care of everything else, including stress resistance, disease resistance, total yield, and the economic benefit comparison."

"What do you think, Senior?"

"Okay," Han Changfeng replied automatically, hearing him fluently lay out the work plan.

But two seconds later, it suddenly struck him that something was off.

What the hell?

He knew all of it.

For a moment, Han Changfeng felt as if his advisor was the one assigning the tasks.

"Hey, wait a minute. Junior, did you say you'll handle everything except the growth process data?" Han Changfeng asked, needing to confirm.

"Yeah. Those parts are all pretty simple, not too difficult. I should be able to finish them in about a week," Lu Shixian said, estimating the workload.

At that moment, a stampede of a thousand alpacas thundered through Han Changfeng's mind.

Putting aside the fact that he knew all the data indicators—perhaps Professor Ke had briefed him beforehand.

But if he remembered correctly, wasn't the tool Lu Shixian used for data processing in his paper Excel 2008?

Could you really use that for this?

This wasn't meant to be a slight.

Even if you were an academician, a master of tools like MATLAB, SAS, or Matplotlib, you could never guarantee you wouldn't need Excel.

While convenient, its shortcomings were glaring.

With the massive amount of data they had, Excel would probably crash. Besides, its data analysis capabilities were limited; it couldn't handle some of the more complex analyses.

So, finishing the data analysis in a week? Was he joking?

But on the outside, Han Changfeng remained composed and readily accepted Lu Shixian's arrangement.

Though right now, he really wanted to laugh.

If any other freshman had made such a request, he would have refused without a second thought.

Had he even finished his professional coursework?
Taking on so much. Does he even know his own limits?

If you don't have the skills, don't take on the job.

But Lu Shixian was from Yanda University, and he had already published a paper in a core Chinese journal back in high school. He couldn't be judged by ordinary standards.

So he figured he would step in and help if Lu Shixian couldn't finish it all in time.

Until one day, when he casually glanced at Lu Shixian's progress and was utterly flabbergasted.

It was only the third day, and he had already completed the analysis for stress resistance, disease resistance, and yield.

All that was left was the final comparison of economic benefits.

And given Lu Shixian's astonishing speed, that part wouldn't last long either.

He then glanced at the group's normality, the homogeneity of variance between different groups, and finally, the significance of the t test and variance analysis.

What the hell?

The curve of the scatter plot was as smooth as the skin of the goddess from his dreams.

This meant the data was accurate, with no gross errors.

Finally, he looked at the software Lu Shixian was using to process the data, and it completely baffled him.

"Aren't you using Excel?" Han Changfeng blurted out in surprise.

Hearing his question, Lu Shixian turned his head in confusion, wondering what he meant by that all of a sudden.

"Nope. I saw SPSS on the office computer, so I just opened it up and used it."

"It's super convenient. You don't need to write any code or programs. Just input the data, click the function you need."

"And the analysis results pop right out. It's pretty much idiot proof."

Lu Shixian said, stretching lazily. "It's like driving. If you can drive an automatic, why bother with a manual?"

Han Changfeng's mind went blank.

Was it really idiot proof?

So after all this time, you knew how to use other software? Then why would you go through all the time and effort to use Excel?

He was finding it harder and harder to understand the younger generation.

And his opinion of Lu Shixian was being revised again and again.

Was this really a freshman?

He seemed different from what he had imagined.

Are students from Yanda this strong now?

Using SPSS as a freshman?

Even if it was idiot proof, plenty of their own university's graduates didn't know how to use it.

Right, he must have met a fake freshman.

Six days later, Lu Shixian stretched lazily.

He transferred the various generated tables and final data from his computer to a portable hard drive.

"To do a good job, one must first sharpen one's tools. The ancients truly did not deceive me!"

"It seems I underestimated the importance of professional software. I actually finished the task a day early." Lu Shixian shut down his computer, ready to leave.

After handing over all the data to Han Changfeng, Lu Shixian bid farewell to all the group members on campus and Professor Ke.

He had arrived alone, but his departure was quite the grand affair.

Their hospitality was too great to refuse, so Lu Shixian had no choice but to spend a few more days with them, visiting the attractions near Huazhong Agricultural University.

He walked through South Lake Park, where the cicadas' chirps made the trees seem quieter, and the birds' calls made the mountains more serene.

He visited the National Museum, contemplating how life is like a dream, and offered a toast to the river moon.

He gazed upon the Dan Chi Garden, where the scenery was uniquely beautiful.

Lu Shixian waved goodbye to them and boarded the train back home.

A few hours later, Lu Shixian returned to the long awaited Happiness Town.

The sun was already setting in the west. Standing on the long street, he watched the bustling figures of his fellow townspeople as they prepared dinner.

Recalling the prosperity of Yanjing and Jiangcheng, a wave of emotion washed over him.

Whether it was the curling smoke from kitchen chimneys in a small village or the glittering lights of skyscrapers at dusk.

Everywhere he went was a part of the motherland's mountains and rivers that he loved so dearly!

As the afterglow of the sunset painted the sky like brocade, Lu Shixian waved to his parents, who were toiling in the golden waves of wheat.

"Mom, Dad, I'm back!"

Hearing the familiar voice and greeting, Xia Xiuman and Lu Jianguo straightened up and put down their sickles.

Sweat dripped down, their smiles speaking volumes...

Chapter 207: What the Hell? A Zaunite Girl?

This time, even though there was still a month before school started, Lu Shixian chose to spend some quality time with his parents at home.

Monday to Friday were packed with classes, and Saturdays and Sundays were for extracurricular lectures.

Although he had gained a lot, to be honest, he had really overexerted himself this semester.

He understood the importance of balancing work and rest.

Health is the capital for the revolution!

He knew perfectly well which was more important: studying once or studying every time.

Because he was staying at home for quite a while, Lu Shixian could clearly sense the change in his parents' attitude toward him.

It was just like what you see in the news.

"Stark difference in treatment before and after the college entrance exams. Son just finished his exams, and his own mother serves him a hodgepodge of leftovers!"

He was only staying for a little over a month, right?

Was it really that big of a deal?

Finally, one day, his mother, Xia Xiuman, couldn't hold back anymore and assigned him a task.

"Son, since you're just idle at home anyway, you might as well put your spare energy to good use and help tutor your second uncle's kid."

Lu Shixian was speechless and questioned, "Spare energy?"

"'Surplus of energy,' shortened to 'spare energy,' get it?" As a Chinese teacher, Xia Xiuman had a way with words.

"There are too many kids in the village, you wouldn't be able to handle them all. But your second uncle has mentioned it to me several times. I always put him off by saying you were busy with your studies."

"Now that you've been lazing around at home for so long, you might as well help them out with tutoring. We're relatives, so helping out a little is no big deal."

At this point, his father also cast a vote of approval. "That's right. Old Xia is a good guy. You might even be more comfortable over there than at home. It's just that his daughter can be a bit mischievous."

Lu Jianguo was about to say more but was silenced by a dangerous look from Xia Xiuman.

"What are you talking about! This is the age to be mischievous. Wasn't our son the same when he was little, running around in the fields? I washed plenty of his dirty clothes." Xia Xiuman tried to smooth things over.

Lu Shixian looked at the two of them, who had already formed a united front, and sighed inwardly.

Here comes the familiar plot again. Isn't it normal for a top student to tutor a slacker?

Could he really say no?

At least at his second uncle's house, he wouldn't have to eat leftovers every day!

As for the person he was supposed to tutor, he seemed to have some impression of her, since they ate together every year.

Her name was Xia Youyou, right? She was in her third year of junior high.

A typical ABB style name.

History had been changed once again, but Lu Shixian was already used to it.

Because in his previous life, he had never been asked to tutor Xia Youyou.

How could a student from an average university possibly be invited to tutor a student attending a key junior high school in the city center?

The next morning, he set off for his mother's old home empty handed.

He was very familiar with the place, and it wasn't far.

A few dozen minutes later, he successfully arrived at his destination.

Knock, knock, knock...

Even though the side door was open, Lu Shixian still knocked on the main gate.

"Coming! Who is it?" A mature female voice came from inside the house.

Lu Shixian secretly guessed it was his second aunt, Mo Lina.

"Hello, Auntie!" As the door opened, his guess was confirmed. Lu Shixian greeted her.

Seeing who it was, Mo Lina's face lit up with a surprised smile.

"Shixian! Your mom called me earlier and I could hardly believe it. I didn't think you'd actually find the time to come."

"How is it? You must be busy at Yanda, right?" Mo Lina asked enthusiastically as she found him a pair of slippers.

Lu Shixian certainly wasn't going to expose his mother's little white lie, and besides, what she said was true.

"It is quite busy! The competition at Yanda is fierce. If you don't study hard, you might not even graduate," Lu Shixian exaggerated slightly.

As expected, Mo Lina believed him without a doubt.

"Haha, well, I'm really sorry to bother you. Ever since my Youyou came home for the holidays, all she does is play games. She won't listen to a word I say."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian instantly got the picture.

Ah, the "save the internet addicted girl" plot. How cliché.

He never thought he'd encounter such a common trope.

But he quickly came to terms with it. At this stage, the external factors affecting one's studies were usually either teenage crushes or video games.

It was quite normal.

"Youyou, come out! Your cousin is here!" Mo Lina yelled at the top of her lungs.

But there was no response. She said to Lu Shixian, a bit embarrassed, "She must be engrossed in her game. How about I go get her."

"No need, I'll go have a look," Lu Shixian decided to take the initiative.

Although one shouldn't just barge into a girl's room, Xia Youyou was his cousin.

And since he already knew she was playing games, there was nothing to worry about.

As he walked to her room, Lu Shixian could already hear the frantic sound of a keyboard being mashed.

That frequency was a bit terrifying!

What the hell?

A Zaunite girl?

Heaven did not birth me, the Keyboard Warrior; the eternal way of the keyboard is like a long night?

Lu Shixian knocked on the door, only to find that the slightly ajar door had been pushed open a crack by his knock.

"Hello? Xia Youyou, are you in there?" Lu Shixian tried to give her a chance to tidy up her room.

But a full minute passed with no response.

Well, he had no choice. Lu Shixian pushed the door open and went in.

The room was surprisingly clean and tidy.

Not bad!

It seemed the news reports about messy girls' dorm rooms were a bit off.

Sure enough, a girl was sitting at the computer desk, her ten fingers flying across the keyboard.

So focused? No wonder she didn't react when he called her.

He slowly walked up behind her and saw that Xia Youyou was indeed playing a game, not just typing.

A glance at the screen put Lu Shixian at ease.

Several anime characters were performing dazzling dance moves on the screen in time with the music.

And at the bottom of the screen, up, down, left, and right arrow keys flashed continuously.

Wasn't this QQ Dance, the so called successor to Audition?

Thinking about the timeline, it seemed to have come out not too long ago. It was indeed the kind of game girls liked.

Just like the later Genshin Impact, its anime style was very popular.

The number one rank in the top left corner and the song's difficulty level at the bottom proved that she was an expert.

"You can dance so well to 'Narcissus' on 9 stars? Not bad, Youyou! I'm impressed!" Lu Shixian exclaimed, both amazed and surprised by her skill.

But for Xia Youyou, it was a fright. Her right hand trembled, and a big "MISS" appeared on the screen, the special effects completely vanishing.

Xia Youyou turned her head angrily, only to see someone she never expected.

But that didn't stop her from complaining.

"Cousin? What are you doing here?"

"I was just about to get a 10 Perfect combo, and you suddenly scared me."

"I don't care, you owe me a 10 Perfect combo!"

Xia Youyou was brazen, even though she was in the wrong.

Chapter 208: Don't You Think It's Heartbreaking?

"Keyboard, come!"

Lu Shixian was confident in his abilities and not the least bit flustered, so he requested to enter the battle.

Xia Youyou stood up and looked at Lu Shixian suspiciously. "Cousin, what's up with you?"

"I remember you never used to play games with us."

"Are you sure you know how to play? This is a 9 star difficulty. Don't try to fool me with a 1 star song."

Xia Youyou was sharp for her age and actually began to doubt Lu Shixian's skills.

Lu Shixian couldn't stand for that and sat right down.

"It's just 9 stars. Watch me!"

After scrolling through the song list for a while, he finally found his target in the playlist.

It was "Qi Li Xiang," also a 9 star difficulty song.

Xia Youyou already had a look on her face like she was waiting for a good show.

The familiar intro began, the battle music sounded.

As expected of one of the game's hardest songs, it started with a rapid sequence of seven or eight characters.

Lu Shixian's eyes and hands were quick. He swiftly entered the sequence in order, but unfortunately, he hit the spacebar too early, only getting a "GREAT."

Learning from his mistake, he aimed for the light dot and hit the spacebar a second time, but now he was too slow, getting a "COOL."

Beside him, Xia Youyou burst out laughing.

"I say, cousin, you promised to pay me back with a 10 Perfect combo. You haven't gotten a single one yet. Are you really up for this or not?"

Lu Shixian heard her but said nothing.

Another person questioning whether he was "up for it."

He had only ever watched others play before and had never tried it himself.

But now he was starting to get the hang of it. This game seemed like a good way to train one's coordination.

Especially on difficult levels like this, it required the seamless cooperation of the eyes, brain, and fingers to play well.

Of course, this excluded those with clumsy hands.

Lu Shixian was certainly not one of them; on the contrary, his hand speed was astonishingly high.

Of course, for this game, hand speed was just the foundation. The most crucial part was that final press.

As the song reached its climax.

"The rain falls all night, my love overflows like rainwater."

Lu Shixian felt it, a moment of inspiration.

Perfect x1!

"The butterfly on the windowsill, like a beautiful chapter from a poem."

Perfect x2!

"I continue to write, writing 'I love you forever' into the poem's end."

Perfect x3!

As the special effects on the computer gradually turned from pinkish white to golden yellow, Lu Shixian's streak of highest ratings grew longer and longer.

Xia Youyou slowly became dumbfounded.

Finally, the last line arrived!

"You are the only one I want to understand."

Perfect x14!

Lu Shixian had successfully proven himself, exceeding the mission's requirements.

"How about that?"

"Your cousin's still got it, right?" With that, he made his triumphant exit from Xia Youyou's bedroom.

Looking at the game's chat box, a question mark popped up from her regular partner.

"Summer Youyou, did you switch players?"

At that moment, Xia Youyou suddenly felt her computer had lost its appeal and quickly followed Lu Shixian out.

Now she was stuck to Lu Shixian like glue, following him wherever he went.

"Cousin, just tell me! How on earth did you do that?"

"I'm sure you didn't know how to play at first. Did you suddenly master some secret technique?"

A triumphant smile appeared on Lu Shixian's face.

"It's all in the wrist. What secret technique?"

Xia Youyou naturally didn't believe him. After a good deal of wheedling and pestering, she finally got Lu Shixian to answer her question.

"It's simple!"

"Assuming you hit all the characters, to get a 'Perfect,' you need to press the spacebar precisely when the light dot is in position."

"But through my observation, the length of the character sequence and the speed of the progress bar exhibit a quasi proportional function."

"Given that the distance is the same, the speed changes. You just need to calculate the time to press the spacebar based on the speed, and you're done."

Lu Shixian made it sound easy to understand, but Xia Youyou was already completely lost.

"Also, the frequency of the window switching is sometimes fast and sometimes slow."

"But frequency is defined as the number of times an event repeats itself per unit of time. When frequencies are the same or similar, it's called being in sync."

"And since the universe is in motion, all things are in motion. Motion creates vibration, and vibration creates frequency. Therefore, all matter has its own inherent vibrational frequency. When the frequency of an external signal matches or is close to its own vibrational frequency, the amplitude of the vibration increases. This phenomenon is called resonance."

"So, you need to adjust your own vibrational frequency to match the window switching frequency, and you'll be in sync with the game. This is called the principle of sympathetic resonance."

The more Lu Shixian spoke, the more animated he became, almost believing it himself.

"Look at your cousin. It's because I'm good at studying that I'm good at games."

After all that buildup, he finally revealed his true purpose.

"So, don't you think we should study hard? If you don't study hard, you can't even play games well."

Seeing the dazed look on Xia Youyou's face, Lu Shixian couldn't help but feel smug.

He had really gone to great lengths to save this internet addicted girl.

If he were a tutor, he would surely feel a great sense of accomplishment.

But just a moment later, Xia Youyou's eyes turned cunning, and she asked, seemingly casually.

"But I heard you have a weak subject, cousin. You're a biology major, why are you explaining physics principles to me?"

Lu Shixian's smug expression instantly froze.

Something's not right.

How does this girl know I have a weak subject?

Although it was true, he couldn't show weakness now.

So Lu Shixian said grandly, "Who told you my physics is weak? And even if I am a biology major, is there a problem with me teaching a junior high school student physics?"

"Now hurry up and get your report card from last semester's final exams. I'm going to analyze it and plan your tutoring schedule."

Hearing his command and seeing Mo Lina's "smiling" expression in the distance, Xia Youyou had no choice but to comply.

When the report card was handed to Lu Shixian, he was about to analyze it seriously to let Xia Youyou know that her cousin's authority was not to be challenged.

But as soon as he looked at it, he was at a loss.

Chinese: 115

Math: 120

English: 117

Grade Rank: 1

Are you kidding me!

You're telling me this is an internet addicted girl?

Then he looked at her history score. The bold black 96 deeply stung his heart.

"Cousin, help me see where I need tutoring!"

The corners of Xia Youyou's mouth turned up, like she was baring little devil fangs.

"Ahem, not bad!"

"You got first place last semester, but you have to know that there's always someone better, and for every rise in virtue, there's a greater one." Lu Shixian started to ramble.

Xia Youyou kindly pointed out his grammatical error, "Cousin, your Chinese must not be very good. Those aren't even part of the same saying."

Lu Shixian finally couldn't take it anymore. "But your biology is only 92. You lost a full eight points."

"Just as Nobel said: 'Life is a jewel that nature gives to mankind to carve.'"

"Don't you think it's heartbreaking?"

Chapter 209: You Look More Like a Troublemaker to Me

"But I got a perfect score in physics! Why should I be heartbroken?" Xia Youyou asked, looking puzzled.

"But you lost 8 points in biology."

Xia Youyou remained unfazed.

"But my history score is 96. Cousin, what was your history score on the high school entrance exam?"

Lu Shixian's face darkened. Could this conversation even continue?

Could this tutoring session even proceed?

Unwilling to give up, Lu Shixian started flipping through Xia Youyou's summer homework.

After looking through it, he sighed wistfully in his heart.

"Alright, it seems I misunderstood my parents' intentions."

"They just wanted me to come over and mooch a meal."
After staying here for so many days, he had to admit his Second Aunt's cooking was out of this world. She came up with something new every single day.

Even someone like Lu Shixian, who wasn't particularly picky about food, was starting to get spoiled.

Could it be that the Xia family's talents were hereditary? Not just for academics, but for cooking too?

If so, did that mean he, too, had the potential to be a master chef?

Finally, after freeloading at Xia Youyou's house for over ten days, Lu Shixian couldn't help but announce his departure.

He felt a little guilty, since Xia Youyou's grades didn't need his tutoring at all.

He couldn't just accept their kindness without contributing anything in return.

After repeatedly declining the family's warm invitations to stay longer, Lu Shixian returned home to rest his body and mind.

By then, the start of the school year was just around the corner.

This was the first time he had ever stayed home for such a long stretch.

He had a feeling his life was about to get a lot less peaceful.

So, if he could, he should spend more time with his parents.

During this time, Lu Shixian found a moment to ask Jiang Yunkun for the Gaokao scores of this year's graduates.

After reminding him not to post them online, Jiang Yunkun readily sent him the list of scores.

Lu Shixian opened the Excel spreadsheet, pressed Ctrl+F, and typed in Chen Yiyi's name.

A row of scores quickly appeared.

Chinese: 121

Math: 136

English: 142

Science Comprehensive: 273

Total Score: 672

Lu Shixian breathed a sigh of relief. With this score, she could get into any major at Jinling University without a problem.

Chen Yiyi had achieved her dream, and he was genuinely happy for her.

It seemed he also needed to work harder toward his own goals.

Two weeks later, Lu Shixian had no choice but to set off on his journey back to school a day early.

Because someone in his dorm had used the power of money, Lu Shixian, despite leaving so early, was only the second person to arrive.

The first to arrive was the guy with glasses, Lin Chenyi, who had taken a direct flight from Shanghai to Yanjing.

That was a speed Lu Shixian could hardly hope to match.

Soon, with all the members of Dorm 4012 assembled, Lu Shixian got to taste the local specialties from other provinces.

Aside from the chili sauce Chang Wenchao brought, which was a bit of a trap, the snacks from other places were actually quite good.

A month after returning to school, Lu Shixian was not only a sophomore, but he had also become an upperclassman. As a class officer, he also needed to help prepare for welcoming the new students.

Last year, because they were the first cohort, there were no senior students from their college to welcome them.

From this, Lu Shixian had concluded a pattern.

It seemed like all the good things were snatched up by the next class of students. He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination.

Though he was envious, the work still had to be done.

September 2, 2010.

Lu Shixian and a dozen of his peers put on T-shirts printed with "Yuanpei College," set up their booth at the school gate, and prepared to welcome the newcomers.

It had to be said, Yuanpei College didn't have many students, but they still had an imposing presence.

With more than a dozen of them standing there, they gave off a palpable sense of pressure.

Thanks to the existence of Lu Shixian's batch of "guinea pigs," the enrollment quota for the 2010 class of Yuanpei College seemed to have increased by a few dozen.

This increased their workload by about ten-odd minutes.

With the massive Yuanpei College banner fluttering in the air, they didn't need to ask freshmen what their majors were, unlike the other colleges.

Anyone from Yuanpei College was heading to Building 35.

It was a foolproof operation. Before 12 o'clock, all 180 freshmen on the list had completed their registration.

Their task complete, Lu Shixian and the others began to pack up and leave under the envious gazes of the other colleges.

"Fourth, while this year's class of Yuanpei girls isn't as numerous as last year's, the overall quality is much higher," Chang Wenchao said, his eyes gleaming. It was clear he had been observing for quite some time.

"I don't know if by 'quality' you mean their looks or their character, but you can't even win over the girls in our own year that you see every day. And you're already thinking about hitting on the freshmen girls?"

"I can only say four words to you: you're aiming too high!"

As if his secret had been exposed, Chang Wenchao retorted indignantly, "It's not my fault!"

"Our classes are almost never in our own college building. All the girls from our 2009 class have been snatched up by guys from other colleges. It breaks my heart just thinking about it!"

Lu Shixian let out a schadenfreude-filled laugh. "Didn't you say you were going to be a Miracle Boy? How are things going with Zhang Mengyue?"

At the mention of this topic, Chang Wenchao's heart sank.

"Don't even start. I just sent her one message: 'The moonlight is beautiful tonight, would you like to go for a walk?'"

"And she replied: 'I'm really sorry, you're a good person, but I only see you as a good friend.'"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of water in laughter.

"Okay, she friendzoned you a bit dramatically, but your opening line was also pretty strange."

"Is 'The moonlight is beautiful tonight' something you can just say casually?"

Chang Wenchao, who clearly wasn't the most emotionally intelligent person, still couldn't get Lu Shixian's point.

"What was I supposed to say? 'The sky is clear tonight'? Whatever, it's a lost cause for me now."

His expression was a little dejected. No matter how gently it was phrased, rejection never felt good.

Just then, Lu Shixian's phone vibrated.

Lu Shixian flipped it open. Speak of the devil.

The class monitor, Zhang Mengyue, had @everyone and posted an announcement.

"The selection for the 2009-2010 academic year National Scholarship and the Yanda University Freshman Scholarship for Yuanpei College will soon be held in the main conference room of the teaching building."

"All students interested in applying for the scholarships are encouraged to actively submit their materials and awards. After a preliminary screening, a second-round list of candidates will be announced for the final selection in the main conference room."

Lu Shixian and Chang Wenchao exchanged a look.

Lu Shixian: "So? Any thoughts?"

Chang Wenchao: "Of course! How can Zhang Mengyue be more tempting than a scholarship?"

Lu Shixian: ...

Chang Wenchao: "Unfortunately, besides my major coursework grades, I don't seem to have anything else presentable. Looks like it's a lost cause for me."

Lu Shixian: "Are you disrespecting the First Prize for the New Year's Gala performance that we worked so hard to win?"

"Besides, for freshmen, it's mostly a competition of coursework grades. As long as you're outstanding enough, even if you don't get the first prize, can't you at least get the third?"

Hearing that, Chang Wenchao immediately felt much better.

"Whatever, I'm applying first and we'll see! I am, after all, the Optimus Prime of the Chemistry Department," Chang Wenchao said, suddenly filled with a mysterious confidence.

Lu Shixian couldn't stand it anymore and said to him, "I think you're more like a shit-stirrer!"

Chapter 210: National Scholarship Selection

"If you put it that way, then the rest of you must be the shit!"

"Injure the enemy by a thousand, but lose eight hundred yourself. I don't think that's necessary!" Chang Wenchao had improved; he actually knew how to fight back now.

Lu Shixian shot him an annoyed look. "What do the affairs of the Chemistry Department have to do with me?"

"Don't just expand the scope of application like that. Didn't your Chinese teacher ever teach you about the common types of grammatically incorrect sentences?"

"Chinese teacher? Who's that? You think I ever saw one in high school?"

The two of them bickered as they walked back to their dorm.

Evidently, Zhang Mengting and Lin Chenyi had also received the news from their respective class group chats and were discussing the issue.

"There's one problem. In other colleges, everyone studies the same major and takes the same exams."

"That makes the evaluation for awards very fair. But our majors are all over the place; they're all different."

"So how exactly are they going to rank us and select for the scholarships?"

The meticulous Zhang Mengting quickly identified the problem with the selection mechanism.

But it had to be said, this was indeed one of the many stumbling blocks on the road to undergraduate general education reform.

Chang Wenchao was quick to voice his opinion. "Hehe, it should obviously be decided by the rankings within the department you're studying in!"

After he finished speaking, the others all shot him a disdainful look.

By now, everyone in the dorm knew he was ranked first in the chemistry major.

It was true that where you stand depends on where you sit. The statement made a certain kind of sense.

But for this guy to say it without even blushing was something else.

There was only one way to describe it: such a narrow mindset!

Lin Chenyi, however, seemed rather indifferent, as if he had seen through it all.

"I doubt I have a chance. The Guanghua College is full of freaks. You've all seen my grades; not a single one is below 90, yet I'm only ranked seventh."

Hearing their discussion, Lu Shixian smiled and comforted them.

"Instead of worrying so much, you'd be better off preparing your materials. You know the first round of screening is about to start."

At Lu Shixian's reminder, the others all started to get busy.

At a time like this, other materials were easy enough to get, but the print shop was practically overflowing with students trying to print their transcripts.

So, the earlier, the better.

For someone who was a bit messy and left their things scattered everywhere, this was a particularly painful time.

Because when you desperately needed to find something, you couldn't find it no matter how hard you looked.

Fortunately, Lu Shixian had a habit of collecting things. Anything relatively important, or files of the same type, he would keep in one place.

It made things very convenient when he needed them.

So he just had to go make a copy, and that was that.

He handed the materials to Yuan Qingmei, and for the time being, the matter was closed.

Five days later, after the initial phase of personal applications and material review, Yuanpei College announced the second-round list of 34 students who would proceed to the final selection.

The numbers were fairly evenly distributed among the classes, with Class One having slightly more at nine, while the other four classes each had around six.

To everyone's surprise, all four members of Dorm 4012 had made the list of 34.

Chang Wenchao and Lin Chenyi, in particular, were overjoyed.

To be honest, their competitors were no pushovers, and they had been rather unconfident about their chances of winning an award.

But now that they had all been selected, it showed that each of them had been working quite hard.

After all, this was a form of motivation and encouragement for their diligent studies.

When they arrived at the main conference room, the atmosphere was quite intense.

Seated at the front were several authoritative college advisors, all experts and scholars in their respective fields.

And behind them sat the entire student body of the college.

This was perhaps the most complete gathering of the entire college in the past year.

Soon, Dean Zeng Fanzhu rose from the judges' panel to personally preside over the meeting and give an opening address.

"We are gathered here today to select the scholarship recipients for the past academic year. To ensure the fairness and impartiality of the scholarship review, the college has formed a judging committee of six advisors from various disciplines."

"Based on the preliminary screening, we have selected a total of thirty-four scholarship candidates from last year."

"The purpose of our scholarship selection is because it symbolizes a spirit of striving for excellence, not just a material reward."

After saying this, Zeng Fanzhu began to explain the selection criteria, and the four roommates, who had been zoning out, started to listen attentively.

"Because the nature of Yuanpei College is different from other colleges, many of our students are top performers in their respective majors. Regarding the selection criteria, after intense discussion, we have decided to measure candidates based on two aspects."

"That is, possessing both moral integrity and talent. We do not judge solely on grades; on the contrary, we hope to downplay the influence of rankings at Yuanpei. Therefore, we place 'integrity' first. Its meaning is broad and refers not only to moral character but to a comprehensive assessment of a student's overall quality and abilities."

"And 'talent' does not just refer to grades. While academic performance is an important indicator we consider, we are more interested in seeing a student's unique characteristics, or perhaps 'spark' would be a more appropriate term."

With this explanation, almost everyone understood.

At Yuanpei College, grades were just a stepping stone, not the deciding factor.

At this point, Zeng Fanzhu surprisingly began to read out names again.

"Based on the collective decision of the judging committee, the following students have been awarded the 2009-2010 academic year National Third-Class Scholarship of Yanda University's Yuanpei College."

Soon, Chang Wenchao heard his and Lin Chenyi's names among them.

"What the hell? I even wrote a speech. And you're telling me I just get the award directly, no presentation needed?" Chang Wenchao found this a bit hard to accept.

Lin Chenyi, however, was quite happy and looked at him with a hint of disdain for his greed.

"Give me a break. Most of the people here are Gaokao top scorers and members of national Olympiad teams. Everyone is equally outstanding. It's already a great achievement to win an award, okay?"

Chang Wenchao replied with a grin, "I don't really care if it's third, second, or first prize. I just really wanted to go up on stage."

Next, Zeng Fanzhu announced the list for the National Endeavor Grant.

Many people had already guessed the next step in the process.

It was likely that there would be a competition to decide the recipients of the first and second-class scholarships.

Sure enough, Zeng Fanzhu explained the upcoming procedure in great detail.

"The next 8 candidates will, according to a randomly drawn order, give a presentation of no more than 4 minutes, introducing their achievements and takeaways from the past academic year in areas such as professional studies, scientific research and innovation, social practice, and public service."

"The college's judging committee will score them on the spot based on a comprehensive assessment of the applicant's actual situation and their presentation."

"Finally, based on the scores, the list of first-class scholarship recipients will be selected and submitted to the university for consideration for the 2009 university-wide Freshman Scholarship."

"Does anyone have any further questions?" Zeng Fanzhu asked one last time.

Chapter 211: I'm Really Just Ordinary

No one in the audience had any comprehension issues.

So there were no problems.

Soon, the eight candidates, including Lu Shixian, began to draw lots and wait outside.

Lu Shixian hadn't expected to be competing against his own people this time.

Speaking of which, he was quite happy for Zhang Mengting.

"Fourth, what number did you get?" Zhang Mengting was not at all surprised that Lu Shixian had made it to the final candidates.

Though he had a rugged exterior, he was a very perceptive person at heart.

He was well aware of Lu Shixian's enthusiasm for learning.

Although he himself studied diligently, there were always periods, like the seven-year itch, when a sense of detached aversion would creep in.

But the Lu Shixian he saw loved to create study plans for himself and seemed to never tire of learning. Perhaps that was true passion.

This point made even him feel a little ashamed.

At that moment, Lu Shixian unfolded the slip of paper in his hand.

A seemingly lucky number 8 was revealed.

But this order was very unfavorable. Without an overwhelming advantage, it was very likely that the judges' palates would be spoiled by the preceding speakers.

"Boss, what about you?"

Seeing the number, Zhang Mengting burst out laughing.

"The grand finale, huh! Good luck." After speaking, he also revealed his draw, a large number 2.

Since each person had less than four minutes, the two barely exchanged a few words before it was Zhang Mengting's turn.

Lu Shixian's gaze followed his powerful figure inside.

He had listened to the presentation of the first candidate.

Liu Chenguang, a sophomore from Class Three of Yuanpei College, majoring in philosophy.

He was ranked second in his major at the School of Philosophy. His most outstanding achievement during his freshman year was winning the Best Work Award in the national "Integrated Media Works Competition: Looking Back at the New Century, Ten Years Together" with his essay, "May Our Souls Share a Metaphysical Impulse."

The concept of integrated media had only just been proposed last year, so this competition had a very wide audience and was highly prestigious, carrying a lot of weight.

Yanda's Department of Philosophy had a long and distinguished history, founded in 1912.

Later, in 1995, it merged with the Department of Religious Studies to become a single academic unit.

To achieve the second rank in his major here was enough to prove his excellence, not to mention his award.

Even Lu Shixian couldn't help but applaud him.

By now, Zhang Mengting had taken the baton from Liu Chenguang and begun his own presentation.

Lu Shixian had no idea, but once he started listening, he had to give him a thumbs-up.

His narration was very sophisticated, citing numerous poems and classical allusions. His language was ornate yet highly logical and structured.

With skills like these, his game with the ladies was probably maxed out. Compared to Chang Wenchao, they were worlds apart.

Lu Shixian did a quick mental summary.

In his professional studies, he was ranked fifth in the Chinese Language and Literature major.

In terms of awards, he had won the Second Prize in the 2010 university-level "Internet+" University Student Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition, the 2009 College Student Union Outstanding Cadre award, and the 2009 College Outstanding Class Officer award.

In social practice, as a key member of the student union, he participated in a large-scale social practice event themed "Pioneer's Journey, a Tribute to Youth" and was named an Outstanding Practitioner.

As for public service, it was more of the same, involving all sorts of hard work and effort.

He spoke so well that even Lu Shixian was moved.

Unbelievable!

Sure enough, after he finished his presentation, the judges below all began to applaud.

It was hard for them not to like a resume like that.

Next, five more candidates took the stage one by one to compete.

Among them was a god-tier student who had won the Yanjing Municipal Outstanding Youth Medal, a titan who had participated in and won first prize in the National English Competition for College Students, and a Best Oralist from the Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition.

This last debater was exceptionally articulate and hoped to become an international lawyer representing the country. He was just short of flying to the sky to stand shoulder to shoulder with the sun.

His performance drew praise from many of the advisors.

After listening to their presentations, even Lu Shixian felt a little inadequate.

Although he had been studying constantly and had earned some honors, he had never participated in or won any awards from social activities.

But he didn't regret it.

Everyone has their own path to walk.

He didn't aspire to surpass others; he only wished to do his own best.

The seven candidates had all finished their showcases, and their moves were all slick.

Next, it was Lu Shixian's turn.

He felt the pressure was immense, but it was just about showing off some slick moves, right?

As the saying goes, the most subtle flex is the deadliest.

He was familiar with that!

So he picked up the microphone and began to speak.

"Hello everyone, my name is Lu Shixian. Although I'm the last one to come on, I can assure you it wasn't the producers who arranged for me to be the grand finale."

"After listening to the experiences of so many outstanding students, I feel quite ashamed. It seems I really don't have any remarkable achievements to show."

"Although I did win first prize at the New Year's Gala and happened to pick up a couple of running championships along the way."

"But I still have a huge regret from my freshman year. One is that I failed to complete the required credits. Out of a total of 148 credits, I've only managed to earn 112 so far, which is still a long way from my goal."
"But I believe I will definitely earn all my credits this semester!"

"Speaking of credits, although I didn't lose any points in my major courses last year, my GPA was only a 3.99 out of 4.0. This fully exposes the fact that my development in other subjects is unbalanced and insufficient."

"As the saying goes, no gold is pure, and no person is perfect. But only by holding myself to a stricter standard can I make greater progress."

"The third matter concerns last year's Challenge Cup. Through round after round of selection, my project was fortunate enough to win the first prize at the university level and was sent directly by the school to the national final judging."

"Although it was praised as the best presentation at the time, not a single company has approached me to commercialize the patent from my paper to this day."

Hearing this, the expressions on many students' and even some professors' faces were strange, as if they didn't know what to say.

"The fourth matter's origins trace back to high school. A paper I just tinkered with, by an incredible stroke of luck, was published in a Chinese core journal. Later, by a twist of fate, it actually led to a national-level project spearheaded by the Ministry of Agriculture."

"As luck would have it, during the summer of my freshman year, a professor from Huanong University invited me to join his research group because of that paper. I never would have imagined that the group I joined would successfully apply for a national-level project."

And at this point, the conference hall, which had been filled with quiet murmurs, fell completely silent.

"While it's hard to deny that luck played a part, I really want to say, I'm just a very ordinary person."

"This is the imperfect me. But imperfection is, in itself, a kind of perfection. It will continue to inspire me on the path toward perfection."

"An ordinary life is suited for ordinary experiences. I hope everyone can be a little more tolerant and understanding of me."

"Thank you all!"

Chapter 212: You're Just Bullying the Weak and Fearing the Strong

In the year 2010, in that era, Lu Shixian's performance completely stunned everyone.

There wasn't a single word of self praise in his entire speech, but between the lines, the meaning was all about flexing.

Many people exclaimed in surprise, "So you can introduce yourself like that!"

The few judges in the front row exchanged glances, all unable to suppress their amusement.

But recalling his speech, they realized Lu Shixian's experiences over the past year were anything but simple.

Although Yanda University was full of hidden talents and many students could achieve such things, for a freshman, it was particularly outstanding.

It wasn't that the other presenters hadn't mentioned academic achievements, but their accomplishments were on a lower level, mostly from well known but low impact journals in the industry, the kind you use just to pad a resume.

The judges could recognize quality, and this indicated that Lu Shixian possessed a high degree of talent for academic research.

The dean, Zeng Fanzhu, seated in the center, thought back to the scene a few days ago when Yuan Qingmei had come to him, and he couldn't help but shake his head with a smile.

"Dean, Lu Shixian didn't attend a single discussion class last semester. You asked me to keep an eye on him, in case any problems arose." Yuan Qingmei said as she handed him an envelope containing some documents.

Zeng Fanzhu glanced at it. It was labeled "Scholarship Application Materials."

"What's the matter? I know his situation. Although he's taking quite a few courses, according to the feedback from the School of Life Sciences, his grades are still excellent."

"Under these circumstances, I think it's understandable that he doesn't have time for extracurricular activities and competitions."

Hearing this, Yuan Qingmei had a strange expression.

"No, Dean, just open it and you'll see."

Zeng Fanzhu still remembered that his composure at that moment had been nowhere near as calm as it was today.

"Alright, everyone, let's hurry up and tally the scores!"

"Let's get this done and submit the list."

At Zeng Fanzhu's urging, the judges finally began to score Lu Shixian's performance.

But in truth, even without the scores, the people below already had a good idea of who would win.

As students, they had their own sense of judgment.

Sure enough, the final list of national first prize scholarship winners announced by Zeng Fanzhu contained only four names.

Among them were Liu Chenguang, Zhang Mengting, Lu Shixian, and that top debater.

The meeting concluded, and the students began to disperse.

A few judges remained, still quietly discussing the presentations.

"In the end, the few students who stood out truly deserved their awards. Each has their own area of expertise. Liu Chenguang's ability to win the highest award in the field of integrated media shows he is a person who enjoys self reflection and critical thinking."

"Although Zhang Mengting's awards and honors aren't particularly outstanding, her strength lies in being well rounded and comprehensive; she has something to say about every aspect."

"Shen Xiangfei has put in a great deal of hard work in International Law. His professional ability is very strong. He understood everything we asked, and we understood everything he said. He truly has a high aptitude for law."

At this point, the conversation paused.

Then someone asked, "What about Lu Shixian?"

"Uh, I can't really evaluate this student."

"I just confirmed it, and it's exactly as he said. There's a national level project from the Ministry of Agriculture this year that was born from his paper."

"To compete for this project, many experts who study rice published a lot of related research this year, but in the end, it was a team from Huanong University that studies aquaculture who successfully secured it, and Lu Shixian played a positive role in that."

"In all my years, at least in my memory, I've never seen a student like this."

"From this perspective, it seems our most competitive student for the university wide freshman scholarship is him."

As they were discussing, Zeng Fanzhu just smiled and then brought something up.

"You probably all didn't look at last year's entrance exams. I read every student's answers to the last three essay questions."

"Especially the second question: What are your thoughts on the Yuanpei Program? His answer left a deep impression on me back then."

"He said that for him, Yuanpei is not an honor, but a responsibility. The students and Yuanpei are one and the same; they achieve greatness together. Choosing Yuanpei means choosing responsibility. The essence of the Yuanpei philosophy is to cultivate true industry leaders and elite talents, who shoulder the historic responsibility of building a better future for our country."

Upon hearing this, the surrounding judges fell silent, their impression of Lu Shixian improving even more.

That level of thinking?

To be able to say such things, he had to be someone who held lofty ideals and ambitions in his heart.

Seeing their reactions, Zeng Fanzhu continued, "This is also why I agreed to let him skip every single one of the mandatory discussion classes."

"Since he has his own ideas, we might as well give him a push."

With that, they too began to leave.

Meanwhile, Lu Shixian was walking back to the dorm with his roommates.

"Nice one! Dorm 4012 had a clean sweep today. I propose that the person who won the most prize money treats us to a late night snack. All in favor? All opposed?" Chang Wenchao suddenly called for a vote.

"Aye!"

"Seconded!"

"Agreed!"

Finally, all three pairs of eyes landed on Lu Shixian.

"Little Four, looks like you can't escape treating us tonight."

Seeing the three of them subtly surrounding him, Lu Shixian found it both funny and exasperating.

"I say, how are you guys so sure I'll get the most prize money?"

"Boss got a first prize too, you're just bullying the weak and fearing the strong! I protest!"

Lin Chenyi let out a mischievous laugh. "Hehehe, protest denied!"

"I disagree. We don't know if Boss is tough or not; no one's tried."

"But none of us are blind. This is probably his limit. But you, Little Four, still have a great chance to go further. If you can get the Yanda Freshman Scholarship, you'll really be rich."

Chang Wenchao also chimed in with nonsense, "That's right. According to the law of large numbers, as long as you don't perform abnormally, the scholarship quantity function will absolutely converge. Based on the function's distribution and probability density, the mathematical expectation of the amount of scholarship money you'll receive is far greater than Boss's."

"So, are you treating us or not?"

At this, Lu Shixian finally gave in.

It's just a late night snack, why couldn't they just say so?

To think they'd pull out all that nonsense just to pad the word count, he was truly impressed.

That night, the four of them did indeed go to a barbecue restaurant on Yanda's snack street.

After eating their fill, they managed to mercilessly fleece Lu Shixian of a huge sum of money, a grand total of 128 yuan.

The next day, Lu Shixian received a notification from the university. After multiple rounds of selection, he had successfully made it to the final list of ten candidates.

He needed to prepare a PowerPoint presentation within three days and present his case—ah, no, I mean, give a presentation and defense—in front of several thousand people at the Centennial Hall.

Chapter 213: The Freshman Scholarship Defense

The previous selection within the college was really just a self introduction, where everyone mostly just talked about themselves.

But at the university level, it was a whole different league.

Every year, the competition for the Yanda and Shuimu University Undergraduate Special Scholarships was a battle of gods.

It would also attract the attention of many media outlets and onlookers, who would sigh and wonder why, as students, these individuals could be so outstanding.

Of course, this was just the Freshman Scholarship, not yet at the level of the Special Scholarship.

The Special Scholarship was the highest honor within Yanda University, where all students from all majors were judged by the same standard.

Ten candidates each from the undergraduate and graduate pools would be selected to engage in fierce competition.

So, the format of this competition was actually similar to the selection within Yuanpei College.

It was just much more formal.

Friday, 9:00 AM.

Students from the class of 2009 from all colleges had gathered here.

Yanda University had established a new reward system for outstanding freshmen two years prior.

It was divided into three tiers: First Prize Scholarship: 50,000 yuan.

Second Prize Scholarship: a total of 25,000 yuan.

Third Prize Scholarship: a total of 10,000 yuan.

Lu Shixian could guarantee that his eyes weren't lighting up just because the prize money was so generous.

Rather, the Freshman Scholarship was something each student only had one chance to apply for, at the beginning of their sophomore year. Missing this chance could mean missing it for a lifetime.

Unlike other scholarships that could be won annually, this one was highly commemorative.

Its evaluation criteria were also slightly different from the National Scholarship.

Besides the usual requirements of loving the country and the university and obeying rules and regulations, there were three main criteria.

The first was for students from families with financial difficulties, who could not afford the costs of four years of undergraduate study and living expenses.

The second was for those who had achieved outstanding results in national or world level competitions of various categories. Those with exceptional talents in certain areas and a good social reputation could also be considered.

The third was for students with excellent academic records from high school through their freshman year, who were comprehensively well rounded.

After studying it, Lu Shixian found the selection mechanism to be very fair.

From the first to the third criterion, they corresponded respectively to students with financial difficulties, competition winners, and top scorers on the college entrance exam.

Many universities also had freshman scholarships, but they often selected and awarded them right at the start of freshman year.

Yanda, however, tested another dimension.

That was the student's ability to adapt to a new environment, whether they could continue to be outstanding in university, and so on. That was why the selection was held at the beginning of the sophomore year.

Ten minutes passed.

According to the scholarship selection schedule, the evaluation had now officially begun.

The leaders and distinguished guests attending this Freshman Scholarship selection included the university's vice president and deans and professors from various colleges.

After everyone had given their speeches, the formal part of the selection began: the defense presentations.

Besides Lu Shixian and Liu Chenguang from Yuanpei College, the other eight students were from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering, School of Aeronautics and Astronautics, School of Architecture, Department of Computer Science, Department of Chinese Language and Literature, and so on.

Yuanpei College had a significant advantage. Despite having only one hundred and forty students, it had two slots.

Of course, this was related to its terrifyingly high quality student pool.

If not for the need to show some courtesy to the other departments, the number of slots would likely be far more than just two.

At 9:30 AM, the defense presentations officially began.

Over the course of two hours, the ten candidates would take the stage one by one to give their presentations.

Behind them, a PowerPoint presentation displayed corresponding content, providing a direct visual experience.

Lu Shixian didn't think there was much to write home about here.

Those who had made it this far were basically shoo ins. All ten of them would receive a scholarship; this part was just a formality, a way to inspire the other students.

After the presentations, the review committee would ask questions. Some candidates were asked very little, just a few words, while others seemed to be targeted by the committee.

Unfortunately, Lu Shixian was one of the latter.

"This student, listening to your presentation just now, as the world's number one in the 20th International Biology Olympiad for High School Students, since you later chose the field of biological sciences, why didn't you enter the School of Life Sciences back then?" a female professor asked him, holding a microphone.

Hearing this question, Lu Shixian couldn't help but glance at the nameplate on the judge's desk. Sure enough, she was a professor from the School of Life Sciences.

Don't tell me women really hold such a grudge. Gu Hongya was the same way at the beginning and had asked him the exact same question.

The only difference was the setting.

Back then, he had managed to get by with a foolish grin. Now, he had to answer.

Answering this question poorly could, in the worst case, trigger animosity from two different colleges. That would be a total disaster.

After thinking for a second, Lu Shixian began his answer.

"The School of Life Sciences is indeed where my heart lies, and I am willing to grasp true knowledge and learn real skills in the field of biological sciences."

"But I yearn for the unknown and am not afraid of challenges. The field I truly want to touch and dedicate my life to does not yet exist at Yanda."

"For this reason, I was deeply attracted to Yuanpei College's educational philosophy of strengthening fundamentals, promoting interdisciplinary studies, respecting choices, and teaching according to aptitude."

Lu Shixian didn't specify what field it was, but the research achievements he had described earlier had already spoken for him.

Soon, another professor followed up with a question.

"Student Lu Shixian, it's very impressive that you were able to publish a paper in a core Chinese journal during high school, which also had a significant impact."

"Could you please tell us why you chose to go so far afield, joining a university across provinces that isn't considered top tier, instead of any of the universities within Beijing?"

Hearing this question, Lu Shixian was a little shocked.

Damn!

That's harsh.

Putting it so euphemistically, you might as well just say Huanong University's name.

He glanced at the professor.

This guy really had the guts to say what he was thinking.

That classic move of feigned politeness before an attack, praise before criticism, was executed flawlessly.

A slightly poor answer to this question would be like opening fire on the whole map.

He sighed inwardly. Sure enough, there were prejudiced people everywhere.

Located in the nation's capital, as a top university, it wasn't strange to have this kind of superiority complex.

People with a sense of superiority are prone to becoming irritable, prejudiced, arrogant, and stubborn.

Of course, the professor probably didn't think of himself as having a superiority complex, but rather saw it as a matter of course.

This was normal. Never mind Yanda and Shuimu.

Even students from many first tier universities more or less possessed a kind of university cultural superiority.

That is, my alma mater is a hundred times better than other universities, so I am also better than students from other universities.

This kind of campus superiority is everywhere because people can always find a school a tier below their own.

A sense of superiority is not the same as a sense of pride, because one looks upward, while the other looks downward.

It's normal to have a sense of superiority, but we shouldn't become obsessed with it.

Chapter 214: Just Another Passive Aggressive Critic

It seems I've digressed. The most important thing now is to answer this professor's question.

"One point I'd like to emphasize is that I didn't join another university. I am still a student of Yanda University, without a doubt."

"Furthermore, I'd like to say that for anything to succeed, it requires the right timing, the right location, and the right people."

"The timing was the emergence of this national level project, which encouraged many research teams to continue to perfect the concept I proposed."

"The location was that Huanong University is situated in Hubei province, possessing superior geographical advantages and convenient experimental conditions."

"The people refers to the fact that everyone in the research group shared a common goal and worked tirelessly toward it, all pulling in the same direction."

He could have ended it there.

But Lu Shixian felt it was necessary to add one more thing, even if it would offend this professor, even if his view conflicted with the current mainstream opinion.

"Finally, in my personal opinion, whether a university is 'top tier' isn't for me to say, nor for you to say, and certainly not for rankings to decide."

"So called rankings are just one facet of evaluating a university and cannot reflect the whole picture. We shouldn't be blinded by them."

"Instead of being held hostage by ranking lists, we should strengthen our confidence in our disciplinary development and institutional resolve. By focusing our energy and attention on innovation and breakthroughs in our own advantageous fields and unique directions, even some universities that appear low in the rankings can become world class institutions."

As soon as he said this, Lu Shixian could see the professor's face turn ashen.

And the venue fell into a deep silence.

Evidently, Lu Shixian's words had made the majority of the audience uncomfortable.

After all, at Yanda, people with a sense of superiority were only more numerous.

In the second row of the VIP section.

An old man who had been wearing a serious expression suddenly smiled.

"Just like last time, he really dares to say anything, doesn't he!"

"On Yanda's home turf, isn't he just shooting himself in the foot?"

An old professor of similar age next to him also laughed upon hearing this.

"That's just how the kid is, no respect for his elders. Is that something he should be saying?"

"Maybe I should have a word with him later. I've been so busy with the CAR T clinical trials lately, I haven't had time to look after him."

The old man just shook his head slightly. "The fact that he can defend his team and say such a thing shows he wasn't thinking about the consequences. It proves his mind is focused on his research."

"His intentions are pure and clear. This is a promising young talent."

"The ugly words are often the truth, but the pretty ones aren't necessarily so."

"What he said isn't without reason. After being a university president for so many years, what kind of absurd things haven't I seen, all for the sake of chasing world rankings? Especially when it comes to international students."

"To fight for a so called top university title, the ranking lists are dizzying, the assessment metrics convoluted. This impetuous and utilitarian atmosphere has become an unbearable burden for schools, teachers, and students alike."
The old man paused, sighed softly, and continued speaking.

“I have a feeling that things might turn out just as he said. Universities will gradually return to the true essence of education, focusing on building a higher education system with our own country’s characteristics, rather than blindly chasing after foreign rankings.”

Hearing this, the old professor seemed to recall something.

“Didn’t you say last time…”

But the old man simply waved his hand.

“The time isn’t right yet. There’s some truth to what that kid said about the right time, place, and people.”

“At his current pace, I think you can find something for him to do, especially in the micro-level fields.”

“He has a certain talent for macro-level concepts, but the 21st century is the era of the genetic revolution. Without learning molecular marker technology, without understanding genomics, without grasping gene expression and regulation…”

“We’ll forever be stuck peering through a crack in the door at the fundamental laws of life governing growth, development, and metabolic regulation.”

Soon, the matter of the freshman scholarship came to a close.

As for Lu Shixian’s words at the meeting, they caused a bit of an uproar when they first got out.

But as time passed, the incident gradually faded from the public eye.

After all, it wasn’t a major event—he had merely spoken a few truths.

Except for that one judge, who was probably still feeling sore about it, the other students had long since put it out of their minds.

It was like a scene from an old tale: When I departed in a rage, my long hair turned to dust, my crown and jade cast aside. Heedless of the morning breeze, I set sail upon the waters and laughed my way into the distance. Just another brilliant, untamed scholar. Such figures are common enough!

As the new semester began, Lu Shixian immediately noticed a problem.

His class schedule had many empty slots.

This meant he had far fewer courses to attend.

After a few days of classes, Lu Shixian found it rather unsettling.

“No classes this morning? Seriously?” He had encountered something truly outrageous.

How could he have no classes to attend during such precious morning hours?

Lu Shixian found this unacceptable.

Should he just camp out in the library?

But just then, his phone rang. It was Yuan Qingmei.

“Lu Shixian, come to the third-floor classroom in the academic building immediately.”

“Your faculty advisor has invited you for a second meeting.”

“Okay.” Lu Shixian hung up, feeling a bit bewildered.

What the hell?

Faculty advisor?

If Yuan Qingmei hadn’t brought it up, he would have completely forgotten he even had an advisor.

What was his name again?

He seemed to recall it was that old Professor Ma who said something about life sciences making you happy.

He couldn't remember the full name. Well, whatever. He had nothing better to do anyway, so he might as well go and see.

Speaking of which, it had been a long time since he’d been to his department’s classrooms.

Was it room 302 or 303?

Lu Shixian quickly arrived at the department’s academic building and bounded up the stairs to the third floor.

He peeked into each of the two classrooms.

The moment he stuck his head into room 302, he heard someone call out.

“Lu Shixian, over here! May I ask what you were doing, walking past and then walking back again?” Yuan Qingmei hit him with a soul-searching question.

Another person chuckled and said, “Haha, I bet he forgot which classroom was his.”

Lu Shixian looked over. The man wore a brown jacket and black trousers, a simple, casual outfit. His hair was slightly gray at the temples.

The familiar attire instantly transported him back to 2008.

“Professor Ma Yuhang?”

Seeing that he had arrived, Yuan Qingmei covered her mouth to stifle a laugh and walked out.

Ma Yuhang politely extended his right hand toward him.

“Have a seat, Lu Shixian.”

“What a coincidence. It’s a small world, isn’t it? To think we’d meet again.”

Lu Shixian was speechless. Why did that line sound so familiar and strange?

“Professor Ma, if I recall correctly, this is the fourth time we’ve met, right?”

“And it’s been a full year since we last met at the start of the school year!”

“I’m truly honored that you still remember me.”

So we’re playing the passive-aggressive game, are we?

Two can play at that.

Ma Yuhang didn’t get angry at the veiled jab.

He had indeed, for certain reasons, been neglectful in guiding the few students under his supervision.

It was only natural for them to have some resentment.

Chapter 215: A War Without Gunpowder

Ma Yuhang thoroughly detested the act of charming someone and then disappearing.

But it was a different matter entirely if the person doing it was himself.

“Lu Shixian, aren’t you curious about what I’ve been doing all this time? It was official business, something I couldn’t get out of even if I wanted to.” Ma Yuhang, well aware of the importance of changing the subject, continued, “I was participating in a major project.”

Sure enough, Lu Shixian’s attention was immediately captured.

“What kind of project? Can you give me a hint, Professor?” Lu Shixian asked curiously.

Ma Yuhang held up two fingers, shaping them into a ‘T’.

Lu Shixian understood at a glance and blurted out, “T cells?”

“CD4+ or CD8+?”

Just seeing that letter was enough to get Lu Shixian excited.

According to statistics, the hottest areas of international research related to diseases were, in order: T cells, bone marrow, cell lines, tyrosine kinase, BCL2, the nervous system, and RNA interference.

T cells were right at the top of the list, and research projects were inseparable from funding.

Therefore, Lu Shixian knew without a doubt that this had to be a massive project, possibly one of the highest-level projects in the country.

The CD4+ and CD8+ he mentioned were the two main types of white blood cells in the human body, also known as T cells.

The former were helper T cells, and the latter were cytotoxic T cells. They played a fundamental role in maintaining the body's immune function.

Helper T cells have a large number of CD4 molecules on their surface, hence the name CD4 cells. Their job is to send signals to the immune system when a virus invades the body, acting like sentries in an army, relaying information about the pathogen.

The principle behind HIV transmission is its ability to recognize specific protein molecules on the surface of CD4+ T cells. After the virus invades, it integrates its own genes into the DNA of the CD4+ T cell.

What follows is like a parasitic storyline.

As the human CD4+ T cells continuously divide and reproduce, they also replicate the HIV virus along with them.

When the HIV virus has grown and multiplied to a certain extent, it breaks free from the CD4+ T cell, and the result for the host cell is complete death.

CD8+ T cells refer to suppressor T cells. Their role is to receive information from the sentries and then suppress and fight the virus.

Their function is much like that of frontline combat troops; they handle all the fighting.

That’s why nowadays, to determine an HIV infection, doctors often test the ratio of CD4+ to CD8+ cells in the body, known as the immune regulation ratio. A normal value is between 1.4 and 2.0.

Although the number of T cells in the human body can fluctuate significantly depending on physiological periods, the ratio of CD4+ to CD8+ remains relatively stable, providing a basis for detecting viral infections.

Generally, after being infected with HIV, the ratio of CD4+ to CD8+ cells will be less than 1.

In a person not infected with HIV, the ratio is usually greater than 1.

Ma Yuhang gave him an appreciative look for his quick thinking.

T cells can be divided into three subtypes. Besides the two Lu Shixian mentioned, there are also regulatory or suppressor T cells, with CD25+ being a common molecule.

It was just that the first two were mentioned more often.

But it seemed neither of Lu Shixian’s guesses was correct.

Ma Yuhang shook his head. “It’s CD19.”

Hearing this, a flash of insight struck Lu Shixian.

“CAR-T cell therapy?”

Hearing Lu Shixian’s response, Ma Yuhang was finally a little surprised, but he quickly nodded.

“You seem to know quite a lot!”

“Ever since the 1880s, when William Coley, the father of cancer immunology, initiated the history of immunotherapy for cancer with ‘Coley’s toxins,’ humanity learned for the first time that the coordinated immune response of the immune system could lead to tumor regression.”

“In 1989, the first generation of CAR-T cell therapy was born, composed of three parts: an extracellular targeting domain, a transmembrane spacer, and an intracellular signaling domain.”

“In 2002, building on the first generation, a co-stimulatory receptor signal was added. This allowed CAR-T cells to not only accurately find cancer cells but also to effectively proliferate, making them more lethal than the first generation.”

As he spoke, Ma Yuhang’s tone grew more urgent.

“Just this year, CAR-T cell therapy targeting CD19 has officially entered clinical trials.”

“Currently, there are more than five research teams internationally racing to develop the final CAR-T product. Most teams have chosen CD19 as the target, while some have chosen BCMA.”

“And according to estimates, the global market for CAR-T products is projected to be over 300 billion US dollars.”

“Now it’s a race to see who can be the first to develop a product that passes FDA inspection. This is a tough battle!”

Hearing this news, Lu Shixian’s mood grew heavy as well.

Academic competition.

Those two words failed to capture the bitter struggles of countless individuals.

Many people spend their entire lives without making a single major breakthrough.

But perhaps that wasn't the most despairing part.

One must understand a key concept: no cutting-edge research direction is ever pursued by only a single team.

Perhaps you’ve never imagined it: after spending decades of your life and countless research funds, you finally see a glimmer of hope.

But at the final moment, you suddenly hear that a competitor has published their results and filed for a patent before you.

In that instant, almost all your previous efforts are rendered meaningless.

It was like the fierce academic rivalry between Einstein and Hilbert a month before the publication of general relativity.

On November 20, 1915, Hilbert presented the mathematical equations for general relativity in a paper.

Einstein proposed his final equations five days later, on November 25.

Their equations were similar but had one crucial difference.

Hilbert's equations were not truly generally covariant, and he had not performed the contraction of the Ricci tensor.

In the end, all the honor and priority went to Einstein.

A century later, most people only remember the Einstein in the textbooks. Who remembers Hilbert, the one who lost the academic race?

And that was just one of the most famous examples encapsulated by those two words.

Countless other stories have been buried in the dust of history, known only to those involved.

Scientific and technological innovation is the definitive expression of a nation's competitive strength.

Science may have no borders, but scientists do!

So, rather than calling it academic competition, it was more like a war.

A war without gunpowder.

Chapter 216: A Pillow for a Drowsy Head

At this thought, Lu Shixian’s attitude did a complete 180-degree turn.

“Hehe, Professor Ma, so what brings you here today? Don’t tell me you’re inviting me to join the CAR-T product development team?”

Hearing this, Ma Yuhang retorted irritably, “In your dreams, kid.”

“This is a special project under the National High-Tech Research and Development Program. You’re not qualified to join just yet.”

Lu Shixian had, of course, just been speaking casually, but he hadn’t expected to actually get some information out of it.

While feeling a sense of awe, it also confirmed his suspicions.

It really was a huge project!

Many people might not be familiar with the National High-Tech Research and Development Program, but they would surely know its other name.

The National 863 Program!

On March 3, 1986, a report titled “Proposal on Tracking World High-Tech Development” directly led to the creation of the “High-Tech Research and Development Program Report,” which became known as the “863 Program.”

Its main purpose was to comprehensively track global high-tech advancements and formulate our country’s own high-tech development plan.

The 863 Program considered global trends and our country's practical needs, encompassing seven fields: biotechnology, aerospace, information technology, advanced defense, automation, energy, and new materials, with a total of 15 thematic projects.

In 1996, marine technology was added as a new field.

Lu Shixian wasn’t too familiar with the other fields, but he knew the thematic projects in biotechnology like the back of his hand.

Theme 101: New high-yield, high-quality, and stress-resistant plant and animal varieties.

Theme 102: New drugs, vaccines, and gene therapy.

Theme 103: Protein engineering.

Clearly, the CAR-T cell therapy project belonged to Theme 102 in the biotechnology field.

Unfortunately, for now, Lu Shixian could only look on with envy.

He knew very well that this project was probably crawling with academicians, and even if Ma Yuhang had joined the project team, he was likely just a peripheral figure…

“So, what did you come looking for me for? I’m very busy lately,” Lu Shixian’s attitude had clearly shifted.

Hearing this, Ma Yuhang’s beard bristled.

“Busy my ass!”

“Professor Gu asked you to participate in the Challenge Cup project, and you went off to mess around with that, fine.”

“Then, you even had time to join another university’s project during the summer break.”

“And now that I’m asking you, suddenly you’re busy?” Ma Yuhang’s tone was rather unfriendly.

Lu Shixian could only offer a placating smile. “Come on, Professor, just tell me what it is. Don’t leave me hanging like this.”

Ma Yuhang finally got to the point of his visit.

“The 863 Program is massive. Within its eight major fields, there are 15 thematic projects. Theme 102 has three special topics, and CAR-T cell gene therapy is just one project under the gene therapy topic, which is further divided into many research groups.”

“My role in the project team was on the CAR-T cell delivery technology sub-project, which is a less critical part of the overall therapy.”

“Now that the theoretical framework for the CAR-T cell gene therapy project is mostly complete, the rest is up to the theoretical application and R&D teams.”

Now Lu Shixian understood why he had suddenly sought him out. He really was free now.

After all that preamble, Ma Yuhang finally got to the main point.

“The delivery method for first-generation CAR-T therapy no longer meets current technical needs. Because the cells are significantly hindered from penetrating and expanding in the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, CAR-T cells show poor activity against solid tumors.”

“My sub-project existed to solve this problem. We innovated a new CAR-T cell delivery method by designing a self-assembling pNP hydrogel. This hydrogel can encapsulate CAR-T cells and stimulating cytokines, making it suitable for CAR-T cell delivery.”

“Through verification, we found that our new delivery method is not only applicable to CAR-T cell therapy but is also effective in treating metastatic tumors or other tumors that are difficult to deliver to via direct injection or catheter.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian said with a touch of envy, “That result sounds like it could be a standalone paper.”

Ma Yuhang said very proudly, “Of course. We’ve already submitted it to *Current Biology*. There shouldn’t be any issues; it’s just a matter of time. It’s going through the review process now.”

Lu Shixian gave him a thumbs-up. “*Current Biology*, a Cell sub-journal. Impressive!”

Old Ma was on another level. When he made a move, it was for a top-tier journal, SCI and JCR Q1.

The journal focused on biochemistry and molecular biology, with an impact factor that was consistently above 9.

Ma Yuhang was quite pleased with the flattery and continued with a smile, “And the experiments for CAR-T cell delivery generated a lot of data that can be used to study other directions.”

“So I’m planning to gather all my students from Yuanpei College—that’s you and three others.”

“What results you can produce will depend on your own abilities. Of course, you can also ask me for project ideas.”

Lu Shixian understood instantly and showered Ma Yuhang with more praise.

“Professor Ma, you’re too kind! After finishing the main course yourself, you still remember to leave some soup for your students.”

Ma Yuhang felt something was off about that remark and replied with a half-joking scowl, “Why do you sound so sarcastic and passive-aggressive, you little… Hey!”

Before he could finish, he seemed to remember something.

“And to think I originally thought you were a simple-minded kid.”

Lu Shixian grinned. “Isn’t it because you taught me so well? I’m just learning from the master. I can’t compare to you.”

This left Ma Yuhang speechless.

He could only toss Lu Shixian a portable hard drive, already preparing to make his escape.

“This contains some of the data from my research group. Although my sub-project was a less critical part and the security level isn’t that high…”

“It’s still part of a national-level project, so you better keep it safe. The password to open it is the probability of DNA replication mismatch in genomics.”

“I’ll be checking the research progress of all four of you before the end of this semester. If I’m not satisfied, I will note it down in your advisor evaluation.” With that hurried parting shot, Ma Yuhang left.

Lu Shixian was stunned. This…

He didn’t think he’d even agreed yet.

As for the advisor evaluation, Lu Shixian wasn’t too concerned.

After all, if word got out that his advisor had been missing for a full year, he’d be the one in the right.

Of course, while he might think that, his hands were honest as he carefully put the portable hard drive away.

He had just been wondering how to plan his semester.

Wasn’t this a pillow arriving just as he was getting sleepy? The timing was perfect.

Chapter 217: There’s Still Romance and Girlfriends in Life

With the portable hard drive in hand, Lu Shixian returned to his dorm and began to plan his schedule for the semester.

Previously, his time had been so packed that he was constantly being pushed along, so there had been little need for planning.

But now, with very few courses to attend, he had a great deal of free time.

It was time to put scientific time management on the agenda.

First, he listed the things he needed to do immediately.

These were the most urgent tasks with the shortest deadlines.

To be completed this week were eight major-specific classes, two general education electives, and two lab courses.

That’s right, Peking University’s curriculum included not only theory but also lab courses.

This meant he would have to start doing experiments from now on.

To be completed this month was the final round of the Challenge Cup, which was set to officially begin in early October.
I need to prepare for this properly. After all, you have to see things through to the end; otherwise, how could I justify all my previous efforts?

Additionally, this year's school sports meet is starting again. As the sports committee member, I'll definitely have to put in some time and effort.

The goals to achieve this semester are to complete the final exams and get good grades.

At the same time, the open-ended essay assigned by Professor Ma Yuheng also needs to meet my own high expectations.

So, my schedule for the near future is pretty much set.

Aside from my regular classes and extracurricular activities.

Most of my remaining free time will be taken up by studying ahead and working on my research project.

There's not much to say about the Challenge Cup and the final exams; I just need to follow the plan.

But the research project is another story.

Because it's an open-ended essay.

It's not a single point, but a whole range.

So the first task is to find a topic I'm interested in before I can even think about anything else.

I glanced at the time. The computer screen showed 4:20 PM.

All of today's classes were over.

Maybe I should…

Grab dinner and then head to the library to look for a research direction?

But there's no such thing as an unchanging life, nor a foolproof plan.

Plans can't keep up with changes, because there's a chasm between the world you anticipate and reality itself.

And just like that, the unexpected arrived.

Just then, the dorm room door was suddenly thrown open with a gust of wind.

Chang Wenchao burst in, his face flushed with excitement.

"Huh? I'm not the first one back?"

Glancing at Lu Shixian sitting in his chair, he felt a bit surprised.

"Xiao Si, why are you back so early? This isn't like you!"

"Had something to take care of, so I came back early." Lu Shixian looked up and noticed that Chang Wenchao seemed unusually hyper.

"What's up with you? You're so worked up, you look like you're on something."

At the mention of this, Chang Wenchao let out a mischievous grin.

"Cheng Linlin's dorm wants to have a mixer with us. I heard the other girls are all total knockouts. You think I should be happy or what?"

Lu Shixian's reaction was a beat slow. "Who's Cheng Linlin?"

"Oh, right, my bad. She's Lao Er's girlfriend."

Seeing Lu Shixian's cluelessness, Chang Wenchao was a little dissatisfied.

"You barely joined any of the dorm activities last year, and now you can't even remember our Second Sister-in-law? That's not right!"

"Life can't just be about studying! There's also romance and girlfriends! Otherwise, you'll be single forever!" he declared with great earnestness.

This left Lu Shixian speechless.

"You really have a talent for twisting things, don't you? What's the connection between studying and being single forever?"

"Can't I just be in a relationship with my studies?"

Hearing this, Chang Wenchao covered his face and sighed dramatically to the heavens. "Even though I'm a straight-laced guy, I at least know how to try and save myself."

"But you... you're a lost cause."

It seemed Chang Wenchao was completely obsessed, so Lu Shixian couldn't be bothered to argue with him anymore.

Before long, Zhang Mengting and Lin Chenyi returned to the dorm one after another.

Lin Chenyi glanced in Lu Shixian's direction, a little surprised.

"Oh, Xiao Si's here. Good, saves me a phone call."

"Today's our dorm's first mixer. I had to pull a lot of strings to set this up with Linlin's dorm. Now it's up to you guys to seize the opportunity."

This time, Zhang Mengting was on their side too.

"Yeah, Xiao Si, you don't have plans tonight anyway. You've got to come this time, just for us."

"Even if it's just to relax a little."

"You're always either in the library or the classroom. You're practically an ascetic monk."

What could Lu Shixian say to that?

According to his original plan, he was supposed to decide on his research topic tonight. It seemed that was all down the drain now.

But then again, it's wise to hear all sides of a story.

Maybe what they were saying wasn't entirely without reason.

He mocked himself internally. Perhaps he was being a little too intense.

When you've muddled through decades of your life only to find you have a chance to do it all over again.

Because he had lost it all once before.

That's why he was always running.

That's why he cherished every moment now.

That's why he constantly put so much pressure on himself.

Some people rush straight to their destination, ignoring the scenery along the way.

Some linger over the scenery and forget their destination entirely.

And some, while on their journey, pause occasionally. The beautiful sights make them forget their fatigue, allowing them to press on toward their destination with renewed vigor.

Yes, to pause once in a while is, in itself, a beautiful scene.

With this thought, Lu Shixian no longer hesitated. He put down his pen and paper.

Led by Lin Chenyi, the four of them headed to their destination.

It was a restaurant specializing in rustic, local cuisine, said to be popular among students for its authentic farmhouse flavors.

Listening to them praise the restaurant, Lu Shixian really wanted to say that he'd grown up eating farmhouse meals.

He never thought it would be considered such a delicacy in their eyes.

But not wanting to be a wet blanket, he kept his thoughts to himself.

Liking farmhouse food is better than liking foie gras and fancy Western dinners, anyway.

No offense intended, of course.

Every culture has its unique aspects; it's just not his personal preference.

Since Lin Chenyi was treating, they, as the hosts, had to arrive early.

When they arrived at the private room they had booked, it was still empty.

The decor really did mimic a rural style, with red brick walls and mortar, with a few green plants dotted in the gaps.

It actually had a certain charm.

The timing was perfect. Just as the dishes were starting to arrive, the four girls showed up together.

Lu Shixian quickly stood up with the others. While Lin Chenyi was making small talk, Lu Shixian finally had a chance to observe their mixer partners.

It was obvious Lin Chenyi was already familiar with all four girls and acted quite naturally.

Especially the girl standing in the second row, with long, flowing hair, delicate features, light makeup, and an affectionate gaze.

She had clearly put a lot of effort into her appearance.

A woman adorns herself for the one who delights in her. It was clear this must be Cheng Linlin.

The girl in front had her hair in a ponytail, with only a black clip for decoration, but her expression held a hint of scrutiny.

This one seems like she's not to be trifled with.

Chapter 218: A Mere Temptation Won't Shake My Dao Heart

Lu Shixian secretly guessed she was the "big sister" type of the dorm.

Her aura seemed quite strong, much stronger than Zhang Mengting's.

The third girl was tall and slender with fair skin, wearing small black leather shoes and a long white dress, a gentle smile playing on her lips.

The last girl was named Su Xiao. At probably only about 160 cm, she might have only reached Lin Chenyi's shoulder.

She looked very small and cute, her small, round face flushed, likely from shyness.

Two dorms, a total of eight people.

Generally, students at this stage were still quite reserved, so they didn't mix their seating.

At the long rectangular table, the two groups sat facing each other, clearly divided.

Lin Chenyi and Zhang Mengting sat in the middle, and opposite them were Cheng Linlin and the first girl.

As for Chang Wenchao and Lu Shixian, they sat at either end like two sentinels.

Opposite him was the girl in the white dress, while across from Lu Shixian was the last girl.

King against king, general against general.

He wasn't sure if it was intentional.

But the arrangement seemed very reasonable.

At this point, Lin Chenyi and Cheng Linlin naturally took the lead in getting the atmosphere going.

"This is the first mixer between our two dorms. Thanks to all you beautiful ladies for gracing us with your presence."

"Let me make the introductions." Lin Chenyi began to introduce everyone in order, from Zhang Mengting to Lu Shixian.

Getting to know people in college wasn't that complicated.

It was just simple names, ages, and hobbies.

Unless someone had ulterior motives, it rarely involved things like family background.

After the guys were introduced, it was naturally the girls' turn.

This time, Cheng Linlin made the introductions.

"This is our dorm leader, who's also our class president, Fang Hui."

"Her name is Jiang Xiaoqin. She's the officially recognized beauty of our class."

Finally, Cheng Linlin's gaze fell on the last girl, who had her hair up in a bun.

"And this is the darling of our dorm. Don't let her size fool you, she has a beautiful singing voice."

By now, all the dishes had been served.

Lin Chenyi urged everyone to start eating.

They chatted idly while they ate, and the meal was quite pleasant.

"This is the first time I've seen your whole dorm together. You must have time on the weekends, Lu Shixian. Why didn't you hang out with Chenyi and the others before?" The question came from Fang Hui.

It was her first time meeting Lu Shixian, and she seemed curious.

But Lu Shixian knew what she was really asking was whether he had something holding him back, or perhaps some flaw in his personality.

From just one question, Lu Shixian could tell she was no simple character.

Out of politeness, Lu Shixian offered a smile and defended himself, "I couldn't help it. They all know my situation; my schedule is packed from Monday to Friday."

"My weekends are for studying ahead and attending lectures. I really couldn't find the time, I'm truly sorry."

Hearing this, Fang Hui nodded in understanding. "So you're a super-scholar."

"More than a super-scholar, I'd say he's evolved into a study demon, on the verge of..." Chang Wenchao got excited at this topic.

He was about to say more but was cut off by a dangerous look from Zhang Mengting.

He caught himself and quickly backtracked with a laugh, "I mean, his grades are just too good."

"A GPA of 3.99, the top-ranked monster in the School of Life Sciences."

At these words, all the girls turned to Lu Shixian with looks of surprise, their impression of him changing considerably.

After all, to achieve such grades at Yan University meant he was truly outstanding.

As Yan University students themselves, they knew just how intense the competition was.

Lu Shixian just smiled it off, as he had never cared much about what others thought of him.

So the topic quickly shifted elsewhere.

Over dinner, the members of the two dorms got to know each other a little.

Normally, this would be when the mixer would end.

But the boisterous Chang Wenchao wasn't about to let this golden opportunity slip away. Hearing that someone was a good singer, he proposed they all go to a KTV.

Before Lu Shixian could even give his opinion, the proposal was passed.

What could he do?

Soon, the group of eight quickly made their way to a place called Starry Moon KTV.

Maybe it was because they were in the capital, or because it was near the university.

The name was rather quaint and refreshing.

Anywhere else, it would surely be called something like 'Prosperous Age,' 'Dynasty,' 'Paradise,' or 'Royal.'

He wasn't sure if it was for grandeur or... something else.

Once inside, to be fair, Fang Hui quickly suggested a rule.

All eight of them had to pick one song. Whether they could sing it or not, they had to at least sing along with the original track.

Zhang Mengting, Lin Chenyi, Fang Hui, and Cheng Linlin soon took the stage.

Zhang Mengting sang "I'd Brave the Cold Wind for You." Though he was a bit off-key, he at least poured his emotions into it. One could only hope he wouldn't get too lost in the role.

The Lu Shixian-brand rating machine gave him a 70, which was decent.

The song Fang Hui chose was rare among young people, but very famous.

A rendition of "Tale of a Small Town," her delivery was calm and narrative, not an emotional outburst.

The Lu Shixian-brand rating machine gave her an 80. The song suited her perfectly.

Lin Chenyi even took the opportunity to engage in a public display of affection, singing a duet of "Encounter" with Cheng Linlin.

Perhaps it was to commemorate their meeting in the vast sea of people.

Regardless of how they sang, their eye contact was on point.

After listening to them, Lu Shixian felt a flicker of a desire to have someone by his side.

But he quickly quashed such distracting thoughts.

Was this some kind of joke?

Have you published in the SCI?

Have you graduated?

Are you in a combined master's-doctoral program?

A mere temptation won't shake my Dao heart!

As for Chang Wenchao, the higher he had been jumping around earlier, the more miserable he looked now.

Lu Shixian didn't know how good he was, but based on his usual shouting voice, it probably wouldn't be pleasant.

But in reality, Lu Shixian found that even that assessment was an overestimation.

His rendition of "Blue and White Porcelain" nearly made the class beauty flee the room in shame.

Lu Shixian had no comment on his performance, other than to say it was a waste of such a good Jay Chou song.

After enduring his torturous singing, it was finally the class beauty Jiang Xiaoqin's turn.

She also chose a song that sounded beautiful, "Angel's Wings," which seemed to be a new release from this year.

Lu Shixian could tell she'd had some training before; her breath control was clearly different from an average person's.

Paired with her sweet voice, it actually had a certain charm.

According to KTV standards, the Lu Shixian-brand rating machine gave her a 90.

Now, it was finally down to Lu Shixian and Su Xiao.

Following the principle of ladies first, he decided to let Su Xiao sing.

He could swear this had absolutely nothing to do with him and Chang Wenchao being brothers in misery.

But then, the unexpected happened.

Chapter 219: It's a Lie, It's All a Lie

The moment he heard the first line, Lu Shixian was stunned.

That coloratura?

Those high notes?

He looked at the song title on the screen. It was called "Moonlit Night on the Spring River."

What the hell?

Is this a professional who's wandered into an amateur competition?

Can we even play together anymore?

Lu Shixian's gaze fell on Su Xiao, who was singing with intense focus. He was astonished that such a powerful and melodious voice could come from such a small frame.

Though she was still a bit raw compared to the professional singers on TV, she was already at a professional level.

Lyrical coloratura is characterized by its warmth, agility, and lightness.

It was a complete mismatch with her outward appearance.

It made him subconsciously think that Fang Hui had introduced her incorrectly earlier.

He thought he was facing a beginner, but it turned out to be a master.

Soon, Su Xiao's performance ended.

Her singing won the unanimous approval of dorm 4012.

All of them, including Lin Chenyi, had looks of utter surprise.

It just went to show you can't judge a book by its cover.

Once Su Xiao was done, there was no one left for Lu Shixian to yield to. He had no choice but to go up and pick a song.

To be honest, his mind was filled with countless excellent musical works that hadn't even been released yet.

Even though, in this timeline, their original creators hadn't composed them.

Unfortunately, Lu Shixian still had no intention of brazenly taking them and passing them off as his own.

Even if doing so would earn him a lot of attention and admiration.

So be it.

To gain is a joy, to lose is no sorrow. He would stay true to himself.

So he went up and chose "Said Goodbye," a new song that had just been released four months ago.

Although Jay Chou was often teased for his creative genius far outstripping his singing ability, one had to admit that his early songs were not easy for just anyone to sing.

So he consciously turned on the original track and started singing along.

In less than five minutes, Lu Shixian had sung through the song earnestly.

While he didn't go off-key, he was completely faking his way through the high notes.

He had to admit he had zero talent in this area.

Sure enough, when he came back down.

His buddies were doubled over with laughter.

"Hahaha, I've finally found your weak spot! So there really is something you can't do, huh?" Zhang Mengting said, leaning against the wall for support.

Chang Wenchao was even worse, directly mimicking Lu Shixian's out-of-breath singing style.

"Get lost. Your ghostly wail of a singing style is hardly any better than mine, and you weren't even on key."

"And you have the nerve to mock me? How dare you?" Hearing this, Lu Shixian couldn't help but retort.

Their bickering sent the others into another round of laughter.

In the end, the role of judge was given to the most professional one among them, Su Xiao.

"Sister Su Xiao, just tell me, wasn't my singing better than Lu Shixian's?" Chang Wenchao was now shamelessly boasting.

Lu Shixian also turned his gaze toward her.

Facing so many stares, she lowered her head slightly and whispered, "I'm not very familiar with pop singing, but... I don't think what you were doing could be called singing?"

"Lu Shixian, on the other hand, while he couldn't hit the high notes, his rhythm and pitch were very stable."

Her words triggered another explosion of laughter.

The few karaoke fiends took turns at the mic, singing a few more songs.

The time quickly approached ten o'clock.

If it got to eleven, things would get dangerous.

Because your name would be recorded in the dorm advisor's little black book.

Plus, everyone was tired from all the fun, so it was finally time to call it a night.

After saying their goodbyes, it was time for each group to head back to their respective dorms.

To Lu Shixian's surprise, it seemed that some of them were still reluctant to part.

Especially Chang Wenchao, who didn't want to leave at all, looking back every three steps.

"I've decided. Jiang Xiaoqin is now the goddess of my dreams."

Hearing his declaration, the others teased him, "How many goddesses of your dreams does that make now?"

On the way back, their laughter and someone's futile protests echoed again.

Back in the dorm, it was time for showers and sleep.

Tonight, perhaps someone's dreams would feature something new.

The next morning.

Everyone was back to the normal rhythm of their studies.

Those with classes went to class, those with free time went to study.

Each one left earlier than the last.

Mind you, Lu Shixian had gotten up at just past six.

And now he could only stare at the empty dorm room.

So, was this whole "dorm mixer" thing actually a conspiracy against me?

What was that about "life can't just be about studying"?

Lies! It was all lies!

He glanced at his class schedule. Another day with no morning classes.

So, today's mini-goal was to study ahead for new lessons and decide on a research topic.

Grabbing his textbooks and laptop, Lu Shixian headed out.

Five minutes later, he appeared at the entrance of Yan University Library.

After swiping his campus card, Lu Shixian entered.

Even though it wasn't exam week, the library was still absurdly crowded.

Everywhere you looked, there were students with their heads buried in books.

Seeing this, Lu Shixian couldn't help but think of something funny.

You never know what students are actually reading in the library.

Yan University, Tsinghua, and a few other schools were relatively normal in this regard.

According to recently released data from major universities, the ranking of most borrowed books at Yan University was something like this:

1. *On American Democracy*

2. *Selected Declassified Russian Archives*

3. *The Wealth of Nations*

4. *The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order*

5. *Those Things in the Ming Dynasty*

6. *A History of World Civilizations*
7. Extended Continuation to the Zizhi Tongjian

8. Thirty Tumultuous Years

9. The Big Data Era: A Great Revolution in Life, Work, and Thinking

10. Currency Wars

Tsinghua's reading list seemed to have swapped places with Peking University's, with its strong focus on the humanities.

1. The Republic

2. Dream of the Red Chamber

3. Poetic Remarks on the Human World

4. A History of Western Philosophy

5. Fortress Besieged

6. From the Soil: The Foundations of Chinese Society

7. One Hundred Years of Solitude

8. Ordinary World

9. The Kite Runner

10. The Three-Body Problem

But looking at the top-ranked books at some other universities, the vibe started to get a little strange.

A certain university for ethnic minorities: The Grave Robbers' Chronicles

A university in Shandong: Stories of the Ming Dynasty

A university in Wuhan: The Return of the Condor Heroes

A university of finance and economics: The Grave Robbers' Chronicles

A university of foreign studies: The Grave Robbers' Chronicles

After laughing, he found himself unconsciously lost in thought.

He was certain that all of the above were excellent works.

He himself had even read them avidly in his spare time, unable to put them down.

But Lu Shixian had to admit, individual choices didn't really matter.

A collective choice, however, could sometimes, from a certain angle, reveal a problem that wasn't really a problem.

Of course, it was highly likely he was just making trouble out of nothing, worrying needlessly.

He was overthinking it!

Lu Shixian slapped his forehead, snapping himself out of it.

Time to get down to business!

Opening his notebook, Lu Shixian began to preview the textbooks for the semester.

Of course, for him, most of the content was likely a review.

Soon, two hours had passed.

The time was now nine in the morning.

Lu Shixian set aside the textbooks on his desk.

He opened his laptop and took out the external hard drive Ma Yuheng had given him.

But then he froze.

He had suddenly realized a problem.

A very big problem.

Chapter 220: I'm Such an Idiot

He had already guessed the hard drive's password!

But after entering it several times, it showed a password error.

If he couldn't open the hard drive and get the data, what the hell was he supposed to do?

That Old Ma was really something else!

Giving him data but setting such an insane password.

If he remembered correctly, Ma Yuheng had said it was the mismatch probability of genomic DNA replication.

He was very clear on the mechanism of DNA replication.

Using the parental DNA strand as a template according to the complementary base pairing rules, the replicated nucleotide sequences would be identical.

DNA polymerase is template-dependent and can select the corresponding bases for pairing based on the template's base sequence.

When an error occurs, due to the exonuclease function of DNA polymerase, it can remove the mismatched base and select the correct one for pairing.

But even if the polymerase could clear mismatched bases, there was still a 0.0001% mismatch rate.

However, that was not the final answer.

The DNA polymerase involved in DNA replication has an exonuclease function that can proofread the previously set pairs. Once a mismatch occurs, the enzyme excises it and fills in the correct base, reducing the mismatch rate to 10 to the power of negative six.

After further self-mismatch repair mechanisms within the cell, the mismatch rate can be reduced to around 10 to the power of negative nine.

So the password should be 0.000000001.

What's wrong with that?

Could it be that Old Ma got it wrong, or was what he learned different from everyone else?

Lu Shixian felt hurt.

This was definitely a challenge to his entire knowledge system.

Sometimes, shattering one's cognition is not a pleasant experience.

It creates a conflict with the established boundaries of your knowledge.

You start to feel that all your previous learning was in vain, a complete negation of yourself.

The most severe cases involve one's core values, which can lead to depression and collapse.

Of course, what Lu Shixian encountered was just a trivial problem in the vast ocean of knowledge.

He could still handle it.

Since he couldn't rely on himself, Lu Shixian could only seek outside help.

After much thought, Lu Shixian opened the Four Musketeers group chat and posted a request for help.

Of course, his wording was rather tactful.

He had his pride, you know?

Time Waits for No Man: A junior girl asked me about the mismatch probability of genomic DNA replication.

How should I explain it to her as concisely as possible?

Urgent, urgent, urgent!!!

Perhaps the exclamation marks Lu Shixian typed had an effect, as someone quickly answered his question.

Pursuit of the Sphincter: A junior girl? What's going on? School just started and you already have a junior girl asking you questions? Why don't any junior girls come ask me questions?

An Old Friend's Heart Has Changed: A question that even the great Lu doesn't know? Never thought I'd see the day.

Lu Shixian was at a loss for words.

These guys' focus seemed to be completely off.

He was in a hurry.

Time Waits for No Man: You're getting off topic! Off topic! I'm waiting online for the answer.

His urging had an effect.

Soon, the two of them sent him their answers.

Pursuit of the Sphincter: Isn't it just exonuclease function and the mismatch repair mechanism? What's there to explain?

Pursuit of the Sphincter: Just tell her the answer is 0.000000001.

Pursuit of the Sphincter: And then tell her, if you can't understand such a simple question, don't bother me again.

Seeing that his answer was the same as his own, Lu Shixian was about to send a word of thanks, but then he saw another message pop up.

Pursuit of the Sphincter: Unless you become my girlfriend.

He immediately dismissed the thought.

Feng Yanan also quickly gave her opinion.

An Old Friend's Heart Has Changed: Fatty is right about the first two sentences. If you elaborate a bit, it should be easy to understand.

An Old Friend's Heart Has Changed: You have to be more patient with junior girls! You might get an unexpected reward. (giggling while covering her mouth)

After reading the entire chat history, Lu Shixian could only sigh speechlessly.

What was all this nonsense?

He was just about to send a perfunctory "thanks" when he saw a message from Wang Fuwen, who was across the ocean.

Crossing: 10e-9.

With just one glance, it was like a sudden enlightenment for Lu Shixian; he almost ascended to heaven on the spot.

In his excitement, he clenched his right fist, about to slam it on the table.

But he suddenly remembered he was in the library and caught it with his left hand.

Ignoring the pain, Lu Shixian quickly entered this answer into the dialog box.

As expected, this time the computer did not display a password error message.

Accessible!

Lu Shixian wanted to slap himself on the head.

I'm such an idiot.

Computers use scientific notation. Who would type out all those zeros?

He was finally in.

Lu Shixian wanted to cry but had no tears.

So, he @-mentioned Crossing.

Time Waits for No Man: Thank you so much. I'll treat you to a big meal when you get back to the country.

And so.

Pursuit of the Sphincter: ???

An Old Friend's Heart Has Changed: ???

Lu Shixian didn't dare to reply. The more he said, the more he would give away.

A lot of time had already been wasted. The priority now was to check the data.

He opened the folder, and sure enough, it was filled with experimental data related to the delivery of CAR-T cells.

Through the experimental data, Lu Shixian quickly determined the principle behind Ma Yuheng's new method.

A special PNP hydrogel was used to inhibit the passive diffusion of cytokines, while allowing the encapsulated CAR-T cells to move actively, forming a transient inflammatory niche after injection.

Ultimately, this promoted the expansion of CAR-T cells in vivo and induced a more tumor-responsive CAR-T phenotype.

It was indeed a highly practical and creative method.

But all this data existed to prove the delivery effect.

That's right!

He could write some papers based on the data.

For example: A study on cell infiltration and expansion in an immunosuppressive environment.

The differences between CAR-T cells and cytokines before and after modification.

A brief discussion on the principle of passive cytokine diffusion.

But these were all very simple and easy-to-understand concepts.

They were even defined in textbooks; the experimental data here merely confirmed them again.

Did he really need to make a big fuss and write a paper to prove something that was already in the textbook?

Wasn't that a pointless exercise?

But in fact, this was Ma Yuheng's original intention.

To first let his students figure out how to draw conclusions from experimental data, write a paper, and get a final result.

Unfortunately, Lu Shixian didn't need that. He didn't want to waste time on such meaningless things.

That being said, it was rare for a university professor to assign such a task to a student who had just started their sophomore year.

It could only be said that Lu Shixian had already come too far in this regard.

And now, he was thinking about how to blaze a new trail and write something new.

Chapter 221: Silence is Weiming Lake Tonight

But if innovation were that easy, there wouldn't be so many students in China who couldn't graduate on time each year because they lacked a published paper.

Lu Shixian had chosen the most difficult and torturous path.

He held his head in his hands, closed his eyes, and began to think hard.

But after several tens of minutes passed.

No direction!

No clue!

His mind was drawing a blank!

What should I do?

Oh my god!

Growth, development, heredity, variation, metabolism, immunity, origin, and evolution.

Just give me one, for crying out loud!

Meselson, who proved the semi-conservative replication of DNA; Avery, who proved DNA was the genetic material; Watson and Crick, who created the double helix model.

And Jacob, who proposed the operon theory; Boivin, with the theory of DNA content constancy; Beadle, who proposed the "one gene, one enzyme" theory...

Esteemed giants of cell biology, could you please give me a little inspiration?

Lu Shixian ruffled his hair frantically. When he looked up, his hair was a complete bird's nest.

A passing student glanced at his crazed appearance, seemingly unfazed.

"Oh no, another one's gone crazy!"

Lu Shixian paid no mind to the people passing by.

He checked the time; it was almost lunch.

It seemed today was destined to be a fruitless endeavor.

After lunch, he finished his afternoon classes.

Sitting in his dorm room, Lu Shixian felt a little lost.

Go back to the library and waste more time?

Without a direction, he would just be drifting aimlessly in an ocean of information.

He vaguely remembered the last time he felt this lost was probably during the vacation before the IBO.

Back then, he had found his thesis topic, "Rice-Crayfish Co-culture," by reminiscing about the past.

He had just tried that trick again.

Unfortunately, this time his memories couldn't offer him any help.

After many days, he had finally met another major obstacle.

As the saying goes, if you keep something in mind, you'll eventually get a response.

But he had very little understanding of this field before.

Naturally, he wouldn't gain anything.

Fortunately, after the past few setbacks, Lu Shixian had matured a lot and was able to adjust his mentality well.

"Sigh!"

"I'll just go for a walk later," Lu Shixian said, uncharacteristically putting on his running shoes, preparing for a night run.

His habit had always been to wake up at six in the morning for a morning run.

A night run was a very new experience for him.

Weiming Lake after dinner was a sight he had rarely seen.

Nearby, the light from the streetlamps illuminated the path as if it were day.

In the distance, the surface of the lake, stirred by a gentle breeze, shimmered under the light.

On the path, some were strolling, some were walking briskly, and some were jogging competitively.

Putting on the hood of his sweatshirt and plugging in his earphones, his favorite songs played on a loop.

Lu Shixian joined the ranks of the night runners.

A frantic run was a release for his frustrations.

The autumn wind fell silent for him.

And silence was Weiming Lake tonight.

At ten o'clock, drenched in sweat, Lu Shixian returned to his dorm.

After a shower, his mood suddenly felt as vibrant as a new spring shoot.

He suddenly understood something.

Although his foundation in cell biology was relatively solid.

When it came to cutting-edge knowledge related to CAR-T cells, his accumulation was insufficient, and his perspective was too narrow.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been so clueless.

He hadn't even learned to walk, yet he was already thinking about running.

He had to reflect on the fact that his series of successes had made his mindset a bit impetuous.

Alright, he had finally found a direction that wasn't quite a direction.

He would start by devouring recent prominent international literature and research papers on the topic.

Golden September slipped away without a trace.

The time had already reached the end of September.

A special season was about to arrive.

It was also a day that all students eagerly awaited.

The seven-day long holiday was enough to hold all their hopes and joys.

Before five in the afternoon, the entire dorm room 4012 was bustling.

The guys were all discussing their plans to go home to visit relatives or travel.

After packing their bags, the three of them were ready to leave campus.

But they found Lu Shixian still sitting as steady as a mountain, looking as if he was completely unaware that a long holiday was about to begin.

"Fourth Brother, what are you spacing out for? Let's go have some fun!" Chang Wenchao was the first to invite Lu Shixian.

Lu Shixian shook his head with a wry smile. "A few days ago, my academic advisor gave me an assignment. I don't have any ideas yet, and I'm a little afraid I won't be able to finish it."

"So you guys go ahead! I can't rest easy until I get this done."

Hearing this, the others understood the situation.

They all knew Lu Shixian's character; he was very independent and had his own ideas, not easily swayed by others.

Besides, this was very much in line with his habits.

Although they didn't know what Lu Shixian was busy with, it was clear they couldn't help.

So they didn't try to persuade him further.

Before leaving, each of them patted him lightly on the shoulder.

"Good luck!"

With his roommates' blessings, Lu Shixian slung his backpack over his shoulder, took his laptop, and charged towards the library, fully revitalized.

On the way.

He could see bright red national flags everywhere on campus, fluttering enthusiastically.

The National Day, a celebration for the whole country.

His own spirits were lifted along with them.

This time, his task was to read all the cutting-edge papers and literature on T-cells from the past three years.

That's right, he had set a broad direction.

He decided to break away from the framework of CAR-T cell therapy shown in the data.

Instead, he chose the broader field of T-cells.

After several days of thinking, he had figured it out.

In the field of CAR-T cell therapy, it was impossible for him to find any groundbreaking direction.

At this stage, all theories based on the current era were nearly perfected.

CAR-T products were about to be developed.

This was no longer a race between one person or a few teams.

It was a power struggle between several countries.

The hardest thing for a person is to know their own limitations.

Regarding the outcome of the research competition for CAR-T product development, he actually already had an answer in his heart.

If nothing unexpected happened, the process would likely unfold like this.

In August 2017, the world's first CAR-T cell product, Kymriah, was approved for marketing.

In December of the same year, China's first clinical trial application for a CAR-T therapy was just being submitted.

In October 2017, the world's second CAR-T cell product, Yescarta, was approved.

In July 2020, the world's third CAR-T cell product, Tecartus, was approved.

In February 2021, the world's fourth CAR-T cell product, Breyanzi, was approved.

In March 2021, the world's fifth CAR-T cell product, and currently the only one targeting BCMA, Abecma, was launched.

As for China's products...

Chapter 222: When the Stars of Humanity Shine

The two domestically produced CAR-T cell products, Relma-cel and Idecabtagene Vicleucel, were not approved for marketing until June and September of 2021, respectively.

Although many external, uncontrollable factors contributed to this process.

This was still a leap forward for our country in the field of immunotherapy, reaching an internationally leading level.

Even though the final outcome was already set in stone.

It is still worth paying tribute to those research teams who poured their hearts and souls into their work.

Previously, he had subconsciously thought that since the butterfly effect existed, perhaps he could help improve this situation.

But now, Lu Shixian had given up.

Although he was reluctant to admit it, he had to say it.

Right now, he was not qualified, nor did he have the ability.

He had been reborn, it was true, but rebirth only gave him a second chance.

It was not some kind of sudden enlightenment or a cheat code that defied all logic.

So, it was better to just study hard for now.

He wouldn't have known if he hadn't looked, but once he did, he was shocked.

T-cells were truly a cutting-edge, hot topic.

The disciplines with the most related papers were medicine and health.

Next was biological sciences, and then agricultural sciences.

At first, Lu Shixian was a little puzzled as to how it was related to agriculture.

But he quickly realized that it wasn't just humans who have immune cells.

Animals have them too, and animals are an important part of agricultural research.

However, his current research area had been limited to cell biology by Ma Yuheng.

After filtering by this criterion, there wasn't much literature left.

But there were still over three thousand entries.

This number was still immense for him.

So he had to filter again, prioritizing SCI papers.

After several rounds of this, only about fifty papers remained.

He quickly found what he needed.

"Foxp3: A Key Transcription Factor for the Development of Regulatory T Cells"

"A New Subtype of CD4+ T Cells: Th17 Cells and Their Biological Effects"

"The Role of Toll-like Receptors in Regulating T- and B-Lymphocyte Function"

"Characterization of QDs-labeled Immunoregulatory Peptides and Their Interaction with T Cells"

The following days were quite tough.

He spent all day reading papers, and nothing but reading papers.

Fortunately, Peking University was wealthy and had signed a contract with CNKI.

The school's teachers and students could download and study interested literature for free.

Thus, the folders on Lu Shixian's computer grew denser at a visible rate.

It was fine if he could understand them, but the key was that there was some content that even he couldn't quite grasp.

So he had to spend a lot of time figuring out the parts he didn't understand.

He didn't need to have an in-depth understanding, but he had to understand the general meaning of the entire text.
Naturally, the first thing he delved into were the papers on the discovery of T-cells.

In January 1965, *Nature* published a paper by Max Dale Cooper and his colleagues, which proposed a two-component immune system composed of two types of lymphocytes: B-cells, which produce antibodies, and T-cells, which mediate cellular responses.

This discovery completely revolutionized cellular immunology, paving the way for nearly all new cancer treatments over the past few decades, including the recently hot-button topic of CAR-T cell therapy.

However, it wasn't entirely fair to attribute the full honor of discovering B-cells and T-cells to him alone.

As early as 1961, Jacques Miller had discovered in his experiments that mice whose thymus glands had been removed did not exhibit a rejection response to skin grafts from another mouse strain.

This experimental result proved that the immune cells related to the rejection response were formed in the thymus, marking the earliest experimental record of T-cell formation.

But his experiments were not widely accepted by the scientific community. It was commonly believed that lymphocytes were the sole source of antibodies, but the connection between the lymphocytes involved in rejection responses and those that produced antibodies remained unknown.

It was much like the initial reception of quantum mechanics, the tunneling effect, and the Big Bang theory, which were once unacknowledged or even scorned.

But as it turned out, the truth is often held by the few.

Stefan Zweig once wrote in *Decisive Moments in History*:

The buttons that determine the course of history are placed in the hands of a few. Those who come later can only replay that fleeting moment of brilliance, again and again.

Building on Jacques Miller's research, immunologist Max Dale Cooper continued with clinical observations, providing early proof for the existence of two types of lymphocytes.

Later scientists finally proved in experiments that the lymphocytes capable of producing antibodies and the thymus-derived lymphocytes that cause rejection responses were two completely different things.

In the field of cellular immunology, almost all fundamental discoveries in the following 50 years depended on the innovative research of these two men.

Without their efforts, the advent of anti-cancer drugs might have been delayed for an unknown number of years.

The funny thing was, such a monumental, century-spanning research achievement failed to attract much attention at the time.

Lu Shixian remembered this vividly.

It wasn't until 2019 that they were awarded the Lasker Award, a major prize in the biomedical field, for their outstanding achievements in cellular immunology.

The award citation read: "This is a landmark achievement that provided the organizational principle of the adaptive immune system. This pioneering work has driven enormous progress in basic science and medicine."

This award is also hailed as a "bellwether" for the Nobel Prize. Although they were nominated many times, they unfortunately never managed to win the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Next.

Lu Shixian numbered all the papers he needed to study.

On the first day, Lu Shixian finished four papers, completing 7% of his total progress.

These were still relatively foundational theories, papers related to the origins of the field, so the difficulty wasn't profound.

Lu Shixian calculated that at this pace, it would take him two weeks to finish all the papers.

This instilled a sense of urgency in him, yet this was something that couldn't be rushed.

The acquisition of knowledge is always a long process; there are no shortcuts.

This was especially true for someone like Lu Shixian, who liked to read thoroughly and digest everything completely.

"Recent studies have found a new type of CD4+ effector T cell, different from Type 1 and Type 2—the T helper 17 cell (Th17)?"

His interest piqued, Lu Shixian murmured the words aloud.

"This cell differentiates from naive T-cell precursors, has independent differentiation and developmental regulation mechanisms, and specifically produces the interleukin-17 effector..."

Lu Shixian was so engrossed that by the time he snapped out of it, his stomach was growling in protest.

"What time is it? I'm hungry already?" Without taking his eyes off the page, Lu Shixian picked up his phone to check.

"What's going on?"

"It's already three in the afternoon?" Lu Shixian had completely lost track of time.

Chapter 223: Because of Studying

Although he wanted to continue immersing himself in the ocean of knowledge, his fatigue level had already reached 50%.

Food is the staff of life; you can't function on an empty stomach. Lu Shixian understood the difference between cramming and sustainable learning.

Fortunately, the cafeterias at Yan University not only had service windows for meals but also food stalls that stayed open for long hours.

Lu Shixian casually ordered a bowl of beef noodles, and his fatigue level dropped back to 20%.

He didn't even know what it tasted like, as his mind was still replaying the induction, differentiation, membrane surface molecular markers, and functions he had just read about.

After finishing the beef noodles, Lu Shixian headed to the campus supermarket.

He grabbed a large bag of instant Nestlé coffee and rushed to the checkout counter.

Time waits for no one. When you have to grind, you have to grind.

Three hours later.

Six in the evening.

Lu Shixian reached the tenth paper, accounting for 1/5 of his total task, bringing his progress to 20%.

However, this was the result of two days' work.

This meant it would take at least ten days to finish all the literature.

Not good enough!

This pace was still a bit too slow.

If he still hadn't found a direction after the National Day holiday, his time would become very tight.

It was best to complete all his set goals during the long National Day break.

After another trip to the cafeteria for dinner, Lu Shixian continued to persevere in the library at night.

Although this was typically the time when the Yan University library was least crowded, when he lifted his head and looked around, he found quite a few people working just as hard as he was.

He nodded in satisfaction. I am not alone on this path!

His enthusiasm value rose from a critical 60 to 80, and he continued to focus intently on the documents before him.

Sometimes, that's just how it is.

Many factors can promote one's learning.

While self-discipline is undoubtedly a crucial internal factor, having a good learning atmosphere is also very important.

Four hours later.

It was already ten at night.

His fatigue level had reached 90%.

Lu Shixian took a sip of coffee and looked around.

His section of the library was now completely empty.

After a few seconds' pause, Lu Shixian re-entered a state of deep focus.

Half an hour later, he couldn't stay even if he wanted to.

At this time, an auntie from the Yan University library would kindly remind everyone that it was closing time.

Packing up his things, Lu Shixian prepared to change battlefields.

The library was dark, but there was still a study hall that was brightly lit and open 24/7.

This was probably standard for all universities.

Normally, it was almost impossible to find a seat here.

But during the seven-day holiday, Lu Shixian easily found a spot by the window.

Setting down his laptop, Lu Shixian resumed the work he hadn't finished.

Three hours later, if there were a system panel, Lu Shixian's status bar would look like this:

Enthusiasm: 5%

Fatigue: -20%

Gently rubbing his slightly red and swollen eyes, Lu Shixian really couldn't stay awake any longer.

If it weren't for the physiological warning signs pulling him out of his focused state, he probably wouldn't have even noticed the passage of time.

At this point, not even the strongest coffee could save him from his drowsiness.

"That's enough for today," Lu Shixian decided, and left without another moment's delay.

It was already one in the morning.

Lu Shixian could even feel the biting chill of the late-night wind.

And ahead of him, there were still over twenty peers diligently studying their books, so engrossed they didn't even notice him walk past.

Watching this scene, Lu Shixian's steps became lighter and slower.

He couldn't help but recall a passage.

Because of learning, we are all seekers of knowledge, still curious about the world.

Because of learning, we distance ourselves from vanity and shallowness, and learn to be with ourselves.

Because of learning, in our finite lives, we can expand our minds infinitely.

Having finished the 12th paper, his progress for the day had reached 24%.

Back in the dorm, he washed up and went to sleep.

Day three, progress reached 36%.

Day four, progress reached 45%.

Day five, progress reached 51%.

He suddenly realized his learning efficiency seemed to be getting lower and lower.

The continuous high-intensity study had left him physically and mentally exhausted.

So on the sixth day, he let go of all his thoughts and goals.

He turned off all his alarms and ringtones.

And, for a rare change, he slept in.

When he woke up, it was already five in the afternoon.

Looking at the dimming sky outside his dorm window, Lu Shixian couldn't help but shake his head.

"Looks like I really overdid it these past few days."

"I have to refuel." Patting his empty stomach, Lu Shixian rolled out of bed, got up, and dressed.

After treating himself to a lavish meal, Lu Shixian's stats were full again.

He picked up his bag and set out once more.

One evening's work brought his progress to 56%.

The final day of the holiday had finally arrived, which was also the day many students returned to campus.

The campus became lively again, filled with the sounds of youth everywhere.

But the liveliness was theirs; Lu Shixian had nothing.

All he had in his mind were the remaining 22 papers.

Ten-thirty at night.

"Closing time, we're closing! Lights out soon!"

"Everyone, please pack up your things quickly and leave the library in an orderly manner."

The familiar voice of the library auntie echoed in his ears.

At this moment, Lu Shixian had only completed 72% of his intended goal.

Despite how hard he had worked, the results weren't always what he hoped for.

It had been a long time since he felt this helpless.

It seemed he had overestimated himself.

Some papers included terminology and knowledge points from many other fields.

In fact, he had spent a significant amount of time just understanding these unfamiliar areas of knowledge.

Just as he started to pack up, he saw the auntie had already come to his section to "shoo" people out.

"Excuse me, student, please hurry up..."

"Hey, I've seen you here until this time every day during the holiday." The auntie's voice was filled with admiration.

"What a good young man, so hardworking even after getting into Yan University."

"Not like my daughter, who's at university out of town. She just plays on her phone all day when she's back for the holidays."

Lu Shixian hadn't expected even the library auntie to recognize him.

For a moment, he didn't know how to respond.

Anything he said would sound like self-praise.

In the end, he resorted to the great art of changing the subject.

"Auntie, what's your daughter's major?" Lu Shixian was clever enough not to ask which school she attended.

He didn't know her daughter's situation, so asking would avoid potential awkwardness.

"I think it's something like biochemistry? I don't really get it, it's not my field," the auntie replied after a moment's thought.

Catching the keyword "bio," Lu Shixian's eyebrows shot up. A colleague, it seemed.

There was no such undergraduate major, so she must be a graduate student.

"Is your daughter in grad school?"

"Yes, yes. Maybe it's my influence, she loves holing up in the library, but she's such a procrastinator, she can never find a seat."

As she spoke on this topic, Lu Shixian could see the exasperation on the library auntie's face.

Chapter 224: I Feel Like I'm Just a Freeloader

"My daughter just started this year. And I don't know what's wrong, but now she gets terrified whenever she sees her advisor. I heard that just the thought of going to do experiments with him keeps her up all night in fear," the auntie said, chatting with him with a smile.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but laugh.

Emm, so was this another poor soul tormented by biochemistry?

After a bit more small talk, the library auntie had to get back to work, and the conversation came to an end.

Lu Shixian shouldered his backpack and left the library.

Perhaps the chat had helped, as his mood was surprisingly cheerful.

Happiness is built on the suffering of others. There was some truth to that saying.

In the days following the National Day holiday, Lu Shixian scheduled time to tackle the remaining 14 papers.

By mid-October, Lu Shixian's state had shifted from leisurely to busy.

Temporarily setting aside the papers on his mind, he now needed to prepare for the national finals of the Challenge Cup.

There wasn't much to prepare, really. Most of the work had been done for the previous campus-level competition.

All he needed to do was re-familiarize himself with his own paper.

On October 15th, the Yan University team traveled to the host institution, Yan京 Aeronautics and Astronautics University.

The next day, the National Organizing Committee of the Challenge Cup held its second plenary meeting, reporting on competition preparations, presenting the qualification and format review report, approving the final review schedule, and drawing lots to form the review committee and the qualification review committee.

On the third day, a grand exhibition of the participating projects would be held at Yan Aeronautics.

Here, all the projects received an unprecedented level of attention, far greater than back at Yan University.

"Junior, do you think there's a chance our paper will be noticed and lead to a technology transfer this time?" Qu Xi was once again participating in the Challenge Cup with him.

Having reached the finals, Qu Xi's focus on the competition had intensified.

Although the award was just icing on the cake for her, the experience itself was precious.

Lu Shixian just shook his head.

"I don't know. I'm certain our paper has high potential value, but whether anyone can see it, and has the ability to tap into it, that I don't know."

Hearing his words, Qu Xi understood.

In a word, difficult.

It was true that sea buckthorn had high economic value.

It was also true that their paper could promote its survival rate and growth speed.

But comprehensive utilization and development was a major issue at present. Whether any company would dare to take it on was a question.

To their surprise, a company actually expressed interest in their research.

"Excuse me, students, do you hold the patent rights?" a representative in a suit and tie asked them, initiating contact.

Hearing his voice, Lu Shixian's eyes lit up. A company had actually taken an interest in their technology. It seemed this company must be quite capable.

But soon, Lu Shixian discovered he was terribly mistaken.

The technology transfer price they offered was only one hundred thousand yuan.

Although this was a large sum in 2010, Lu Shixian firmly believed the future prospects of his technology were worth far more than that.

No one could tolerate their work being sold off on the cheap.

Neither could he.

While on a trip to the restroom, he looked up the company on Tianwangcha.

He found that their registered capital was less than one million yuan.

Although it was registered under the business scope of food production and processing, it was actually just a small company.

It seemed this company was just trying to be opportunistic, betting that he didn't know the value of his own technology and would sell it for a low price.

They would then wait a few years for its value to appreciate and finally resell it to make a profit on the difference.

He had seen this kind of tactic many times before.

So, he made an excuse to get rid of the company representative and told Qu Xi about it.

"Well, at least someone recognized its value. It's a shame he took us for fools. I can't stand for that."

Qu Xi was both happy and angry. "Yeah, they probably saw that it was just the two of us at the booth."

"If only Professor Gu were here!"

Hearing this, an idea sparked in Lu Shixian's mind.

"That's right, I can ask Professor Gu Hongya! After being a professor at Yan University for so many years, she must have some connections."

"Her name is listed as the supervising professor on the application form, after all. She probably wouldn't refuse such a small favor!"

"Having her step in would be completely different from just the two of us."

With this in mind, Lu Shixian stopped dwelling on the matter and focused on preparing for the upcoming final review and Q&A session.

Lu Shixian soon participated in the final review and defense for the natural science academic paper category.

Qu Xi had drawn their number again; they were fourth.

Although it was a bit of a disadvantage, it didn't matter.

At least it was better than the poor guy who was first.

Finishing early meant they could go back early.

This time, the Q&A was once again handled by Lu Shixian.

But honestly, the difficulty this time was far less than at the campus competition.

The questions from the review committee were mostly general and friendly. To him, it felt like they were just going through the motions.

"What is the core principle of your paper?"

"Why did you choose this topic?"

"What application prospects do you see for your paper?"

Lu Shixian had overcome the deliberate刁难 last time.

These questions were just small potatoes for him.

As expected, when the final results were announced, their project was awarded the National First Prize.

As for the Grand Prize, it was out of his reach.

In fact, Lu Shixian believed that if he hadn't performed so well in the defense, they might have even been downgraded to a Second Prize.

Although most of the projects submitted by Yan University won First Prizes, accidents could happen; there were precedents, after all.

The event lasted for several hours, from nine in the morning until the closing ceremony at five in the afternoon.

Bringing back the freshly won trophy and certificate, Lu Shixian and Qu Xi went to Gu Hongya's office.

After a short wait, Gu Hongya's curious voice came from outside the door.

"Why have you two come together?"

But she quickly remembered. "Oh, look at my memory."

"You were at the finals at Yan Aeronautics today. How did it go?"

"As expected," Lu Shixian replied calmly.

Qu Xi, feeling both amused and ashamed, said, "Professor Gu, you asked me to mentor him well before."

"But I feel like I wasn't much help at all."

"He could have achieved this result even without me. I suddenly feel like I'm just a freeloader."

Hearing this, a strange feeling arose in Gu Hongya's heart.

Her real intention had been to give Lu Shixian a powerful ally to lean on.

Who could have expected the story to unfold like this?

It was ridiculous!

Chapter 225: There's a Chance! At Least a Bronze Medal

Lu Shixian naturally wouldn't accept the praise so readily, and said modestly, "Senior Qu Xi is exaggerating."

"She helped me a lot back in Haiqing."

"Without her, the paper would never have been completed so quickly."

After a few more exchanges, they finally moved past the topic.

Lu Shixian and Qu Xi finally found the opportunity to bring up the matter of the technology transfer with Gu Hongya.

"Alright, I'll help you make some calls. I'll contact you when I have news." It was a small matter, and Gu Hongya readily agreed to his request.
A week after classes resumed.

The date was October 20th.

The second annual Yanjing University Autumn Sports Meet kicked off once again.

Lu Shixian once again began the task of recruiting participants.

This time, however, his job went much more smoothly.

The students were all eager to sign up.

At first, Lu Shixian thought it was because of his own popularity.

But then he heard they were all just in it for the activity credits.

Lu Shixian suddenly felt a bit hurt.

Of course, these were just the qualifying trials.

To make it to the Capital Region University Games, one had to pass through multiple rounds of selection to qualify for the Yanda representative team.

As the reigning champion of the 1500-meter and 3000-meter long-distance races, Lu Shixian naturally didn't need to go through the preliminaries for these two events.

October 25th.

This time, the grand opening ceremony was held at Yanjing University of Technology.

Building on the experience from the first meet, this year's competition system was more refined. In addition to men's and women's divisions, the competitors were also divided into professional and non-professional groups.

It seemed the organizers were planning to make the Capital University Autumn Sports Meet a long-running brand.

Lu Shixian, naturally, was blending in with the non-professional group.

Lu Shixian's events were scheduled for later, so his roommates dragged him along to watch the women's division competitions.

Of course, their official excuse was to cheer for their school.

Their true purpose, however, was self-evident.

According to the resident expert on such matters, Chang Wenchao, girls had a special kind of beauty when they were exercising.

And he had a point. Quite a few students from their school had made it through the trials to the Capital Games, including several girls.

So their first stop was the shot put.

These girls might look delicate, but to make it to the qualifying rounds, they definitely had some real skill.

The five-kilogram shot put rested on their necks for a few seconds before they spun and hurled it through the air.

They each had three attempts.

"Result: 8.23 meters!" the judge announced, recording the girl's best score in the book.

Chang Wenchao clapped Lu Shixian on the shoulder. "Let's go, she's out. That score won't get her into the finals."

"Whoa, so heartless? She's from our class, after all. Shouldn't we go over and console her?" As the class sports representative, Lu Shixian felt he should fulfill his duty.

But Chang Wenchao's next words nearly made his resolve waver.

"Didn't you know? Liu Miaomiao already has a boyfriend. He'll probably be arriving on the scene in ten seconds. What's the point of you trying to comfort her?"

Lu Shixian was speechless.

The foot he had been about to step forward with froze in place, as he saw a boy sprinting over with a bottle of water and tissues.

Jeez!

What's so great about having a boyfriend?

After cheering on the students in the earlier events, it was finally time for Lu Shixian's race.

Bang!

With the sound of the starter pistol, the non-professional 1500-meter race officially began.

Eight figures shot forward on the wide synthetic track.

Lu Shixian was in the third lane.

And he was currently in third place.

Lu Shixian stared at the two backs in front of him, feeling a bit speechless.

He was certain he hadn't been holding back much.

That could only mean one thing: his opponents had gotten stronger.

But it made sense. In the first meet, everyone was probably inexperienced, and the schools might not have taken it seriously.

By the second time around, the competitors' abilities were bound to have skyrocketed.

But Lu Shixian wasn't a pushover either.

You guys are this bold? Did you even ask for the former champion's permission?

Perhaps his competitive spirit had been ignited.

Lu Shixian decided not to hold back for the 3000-meter race later. The schedule had been adjusted anyway, so it wouldn't affect his performance much.

With that thought, Lu Shixian went all out.

Every muscle in his body was instantly engaged.

He had once specifically studied a paper that analyzed the factors affecting long-distance running speed from a biological perspective.

In running, the two main variables that affect speed are stride length and stride frequency.

The main factors influencing stride length are muscle strength, lower limb length, and hip joint flexibility.

Hip joint flexibility, in turn, is related to the central nervous system's coordination of skeletal muscles, the size of the tissues around the hip joint, and the elasticity of muscles and ligaments.

The factors affecting stride frequency are simpler, mainly related to the flexibility of neural processes and the percentage of fast-twitch muscle fibers by area.

But after all that, it could be summarized in three words.

Just do it!

So, it was time to draw the sword!

When paths narrow, the brave prevail!

Lu Shixian deliberately lengthened his stride, and his stride frequency subconsciously synchronized with it.

Under the influence of these multiple factors, the result was an incredibly clear positive feedback.

From the announcer's booth, the commentator was already fired up.

"My goodness, contestant number 24 has suddenly unleashed his inner cosmos!"

"He's overtaken them! He's now in first place!"

"This contestant was the champion of this event last year. Will he successfully defend his title, or will he fall in defeat?"

As Lu Shixian ran, he suddenly heard that last line and his body gave an indescribable twitch.

Fall in defeat my ass!

With such a huge lead, how could I lose?

At the thought, Lu Shixian's speed seemed to increase even more.

After finishing the last big lap, he finally reached the final sprint.

Lu Shixian could almost see the hem of victory's skirt.

Suddenly, he saw a familiar face at the finish line.

A girl was shouting encouragement for him, while her boyfriend stood right beside her.

"Is that?"

"Liu Miaomiao?"

For some reason, Lu Shixian suddenly felt an inexplicable sense of dark satisfaction.

What the hell?

Is there something wrong with me?

No! I'm definitely not that kind of person.

Lu Shixian was suddenly lost in thought.

In his daze, he stumbled.

He tripped and fell to the ground.

He landed hard, flat on his face.

Fortunately, at the critical moment, Lu Shixian instinctively threw his hands out in front of him.

His face was important; he couldn't worry about the other parts of his body for now.

It all happened in a few seconds.

The cheers from the crowd paused for a moment, then erupted even more fiercely.

The guys behind him never expected such a twist.

Thinking their chance was lost, they now summoned every ounce of their strength and charged forward.

Lu Shixian scrambled back to his feet.

Are you kidding me?

Trying to steal my first place?

But just as he was about to run the last few steps to the finish line, his eyes caught sight of his badly scraped right hand.

"If I don't treat this, it's probably going to get inflamed, right?"

Wait!

Inflammation?

Suddenly, a flash of insight shot through his mind. He was instantly bursting with inspiration.

And so, he took off towards the edge of the field with the speed of a hundred-meter sprinter.

This scene left everyone stunned once again.

"Student, what are you doing?"

"You still have a chance! At least a bronze medal!" a referee shouted from a distance.

"Sorry, I forfeit!" Leaving those words behind, Lu Shixian hurried away.

Chapter 226: Tell Me, Are You Serious?

Was that the guy who just fell?

He was injured during the race, so leaving the field temporarily was understandable.

But his current sprinting speed was like a world-class runner.

And you're telling me you forfeit?

Is this some kind of joke?

Even the commentator in the booth was speechless.

"Ahem, due to an unexpected situation, one of the contestants has chosen to withdraw from the race."

"The gold medal now goes to Peng Bowen from Yanjing University of Industry!"

This announcement left many people dumbfounded.

This guy had been several places behind, and now he was taking first?

Many Yanda students found it incomprehensible.

The coach from the sports college leading the Yanda team found it even more unacceptable.

Gold medals were a crucial performance indicator.

If the student had been lagging far behind, quitting would have made some sense. But he was about to win.

"Does this student of yours have any sense of collective honor or sportsmanship at all? Quitting without a word." The speaker was the team leader, and he had a fiery temper.

"Yanda is now short two gold medals because of him."

A complaint call went straight to the student affairs office of Yuanpei College.

"Hello, you've reached Yuanpei College." The student affairs office eventually gave a temporary reply: "We will verify the situation and get back to you."

The staff at the student affairs office reported the information to the college leadership.

In response, Zeng Fanzhu replied domineeringly, "My Yuanpei College does things its own way; I don't need to explain myself to you."

"He must have his reasons for doing what he did. All we need to do is support him."

Zeng Fanzhu threw out those few sentences.

The representative team leader immediately backed down.

Before becoming the dean of Yuanpei College, Zeng Fanzhu was a renowned leading figure in the field of environmental science, specifically atmospheric chemistry and environmental health.

With the selection for new academicians coming up in November, this hot-tempered man was on the candidate list for the Earth Sciences division.

And so, the matter was suppressed and didn't cause any major waves.

Meanwhile, the person in question was currently sprinting towards the library, the injury on his hand completely forgotten.

He was afraid that his newfound inspiration would be fleeting.

It was hard to describe the feeling at that moment. It was like striking a match against the box, creating a flicker of hope.

But this flame was very weak; the slightest breeze could extinguish it.

That was why he was so anxious.

Turning on his computer, Lu Shixian plugged in his portable hard drive.

The experimental data that had once stumped him appeared before his eyes again.

But what he did now was strange.

He hid almost all the data from the normal delivery experiment samples.

What remained was the data that had errors due to various factors.

This was the source of his inspiration.

Although it was all data that had been discarded.

While reviewing it before, he had unintentionally noticed a set of data.

That particular lab mouse had developed an inflammation, so its delivery experiment data showed a significant random error after processing.

This data set had been immediately discarded, but now he treasured it like a jewel.

He isolated this data set for analysis.

Now, it served as the experimental group, while the other normal data became the control group.

If his feeling before had been vague and uncertain, at this moment, his direction was completely clear.

The change in T-cell function under inflammatory conditions.

Although he himself had not yet realized it, he was following his intuition.

Inflammation is a defense response of living tissue with a vascular system to injurious agents.

Speaking of inflammation, one could not fail to mention its main markers.

In the medical world, they were perhaps far more famous than in the world of biology.

The first was procalcitonin, or PCT, a specific marker for bacterial infection. It is a pro-peptide of calcitonin with no hormonal activity.

Under normal conditions, its level in the body is extremely low, synthesized mainly by the C-cells of the thyroid.

But when the body undergoes an inflammatory response, parenchymal tissue cells in almost all organs can synthesize PCT, leading to a massive release of procalcitonin, making it a key indicator for detecting inflammation.

The second was interleukin-6, or IL-6, a multifunctional cytokine with a wide range of functions.

IL-6 can regulate the growth and differentiation of various cells and plays a role in regulating immune responses, acute phase reactions, and hematopoiesis.

In addition to these two, there were also tumor necrosis factor (TNF-a) and C-reactive protein (CRP).

As if by a natural reaction, Lu Shixian input all the data from the inflamed mouse into the software.

Then, he discovered a mysterious, smooth curve.

The quantitative indicators of inflammation markers actually had some sort of regular correlation with indicators like T-cell activation factors and pro-inflammatory cytokines.

Thump, thump, thump…

Lu Shixian's heart suddenly began to pound like a heavy hammer.

His intuition told him that something was hidden behind this data.

Behind this seemingly irrational curve must lie a fundamental law of the world's operation and life's existence.

And this had to be the thing he had been searching for so desperately.

But the fire in his heart quickly cooled.

At a time like this, he had to remain calm.

Due to the small sample size, he couldn't be sure if the pattern he had discovered was universally applicable in the material world.

Or if it was something that others had already discovered and he was simply unaware of.

The more mysterious the unknown, the more reverence one must maintain.

After a brief analysis in his mind, he realized that all he had right now was this curve.

What he needed to do now was to uncover the secret hidden behind it.

This involved the microscopic world, a field he had rarely touched upon before.

The research methods were vastly different from his previous studies, and it would require a large number of specialized instruments to proceed.

Two words naturally formed in his mind.

"Outside help!"

Taking out his phone, Lu Shixian immediately called Professor Ma.

But after he dialed the number, a full twenty seconds passed before the call was answered.

Ma Yuhuan's hushed voice came through the receiver.

"Oh, it's you, kid. What's up? I'm in a meeting!"

Suppressing his excitement, Lu Shixian tried to keep his voice calm.

"Professor Ma, I've made a huge discovery in the data you gave me!"

"Inflammation markers affect T-cell activation factors and pro-inflammatory cytokines through some kind of pathway."

*What data did I give him?* Ma Yuhuan was momentarily confused, but he quickly remembered giving Lu Shixian the experimental data on CAR-T cell delivery as a sort of game.

At that moment, Ma Yuhuan was completely dumbfounded.

They had had that data for at least several months, if not half a year.

How long had it been for him? And he already had a huge discovery?

Was he pulling his leg?

"Tell me, are you serious?" Ma Yuhuan asked, his voice wavering.

Chapter 227: The Researcher's Weapon

But he noticed a detail and quickly caught on.

He had said a huge discovery, not a huge result.

There was a big difference between the two.

That made it much more plausible.

"You don't need two words, one is enough."

"Or, I could wait until your meeting is over to explain in detail?" Lu Shixian asked tentatively.

Ma Yuhuan now believed him and was extremely curious about this discovery.

He wasn't about to wait around.

"No need. Where are you now? I'm coming over right away."

Lu Shixian told him his location.

It wasn't an important meeting anyway, so Ma Yuhuan quickly strode out of the conference room.

Soon, the two met in a study room in the library.

They could talk here without disturbing anyone.

Seeing Ma Yuhuan enter, Lu Shixian didn't waste any time and got straight to the point.

"Professor Ma, it's about the data you sent me before. By processing the various indicator data from one of the inflamed mice, I got this curve."

Ma Yuhuan didn't even have time to sit down. He immediately turned the laptop around and began to examine Lu Shixian's process.

With just one glance, as a senior professor of cell biology, he immediately made a judgment.

"T-cell expression under inflammatory conditions… this seems to be a direction no one has ever considered."

Ma Yuhuan looked up and stared at Lu Shixian for several moments, a look of disbelief on his face.

He looked at Lu Shixian as if he were looking at a priceless, uncut gem.

Lu Shixian waved a hand in front of his face. "Professor Ma, are you okay?"

"I don't get it. I really don't get it." Ma Yuhuan's forehead was creased with wrinkles.

"What's not to get? Just look at the graph I made. It's pretty easy to understand," Lu Shixian asked with a smile.

Ma Yuhuan came to his senses. "Never mind, now's not the time to dwell on that."

"Your reason for calling me was probably to get help finding a place to run experiments, right?"

The old fox had guessed his intentions in an instant.

Lu Shixian nodded. "As expected, nothing gets past your sharp eyes."

"My foundation in this area isn't very strong, so I'll need your guidance."

Hearing this, Ma Yuhuan showed a half-smile. "So, you're treating me like a babysitter, kid?"

Lu Shixian feigned concern. "How would I dare trouble a great professor like you? Besides, with your old arms and legs, I couldn't take responsibility if anything happened."

Just as Ma Yuhuan was about to be touched, Lu Shixian added cheekily, "If I were to ask for help, I'd find someone young and pretty!"

That was enough to thoroughly annoy Ma Yuhuan.

He huffed, his beard and eyebrows bristling. "Is that any way to ask for guidance?"

Lu Shixian brought up his previous leverage again.

"Well, you weren't exactly acting like a college mentor before, were you?"

That shut Ma Yuhuan up. With a look of mock disgust, he said, "When are you free? I'll take you."

"I'm free right now," Lu Shixian replied without a second thought.

Ma Yuhuan looked at Lu Shixian and suddenly noticed the dried, scabbed wound on his hand.

While silently nodding in approval of his passion for research, a hint of concern also crept into his voice.

"Where did you get that?"

"It's nothing. In fact, I should be thankful for this injury."

"How so?"

Hearing his confusion, Lu Shixian told him about how he had gotten the inspiration and forfeited the race.

Ma Yuhuan was momentarily stunned.

His teasing was just for show, of course. Lu Shixian's personality actually got along well with his.

In his heart, he held a deep admiration for the boy.

If only he could be my graduate student.

"What a pity…" he sighed internally, letting the thought pass.

In the end, at Ma Yuhuan's strong insistence, Lu Shixian finally agreed to go to the campus clinic to get his wound treated first.

The laboratory was different from the outside world; one had to pay attention to details.

Many of the reagents and samples involved in molecular or cellular experiments are toxic.

If not handled properly, it could lead to serious consequences.

It was extremely unsafe for Lu Shixian to enter a lab with an open wound.

After the wound was medicated and bandaged, the two of them arrived at the Life Sciences Experimental Building.

After signing in, Lu Shixian followed Ma Yuhuan to a laboratory.

"You've taken Little Song's lab course before, right? What's your proficiency with cell biology experiments?" Ma Yuhuan wasn't his instructor for that course, so he asked about his current skill level.
Lu Shixian considered his situation for a moment before saying, “I know some of the basic operations, but I haven’t had much lab time, so it’s not all fresh in my mind. I'm not too familiar with the equipment either.”

Hearing this, Ma Yuheng chuckled.

“Yanda is lucky to have these facilities, and you’re complaining about not having enough time?”

“Are you familiar with the major steps involved in cell research?” At that moment, Ma Yuheng slipped into teaching mode and started quizzing him.

Although Lu Shixian wasn't skilled in micro-experiments, he knew the theory.

“That would be the stages of acquisition and preparation, culturing, separation, cryopreservation, and analysis.”

Ma Yuheng nodded in approval, then pointed to an orange and yellow instrument. “This is the gentleMACS Octo Dissociator from Miltenyi Biotec in Germany.”

“Its advantages are convenience and safety. One machine supports two applications: the C tubes can isolate single-cell suspensions, while the M tubes can prepare subcellular materials.”

He had used this instrument many times before. The operation was indeed simple, but he only knew how to use it. He could never be as intimately familiar with the equipment as Ma Yuheng.

“Guess how much a small machine like this costs?” Ma Yuheng asked with a sly grin.

Lu Shixian didn't even have to think. When it came to imported equipment from abroad, one word summed it up: expensive.

But then he considered its small, portable size.

Besides, obtaining a single-cell suspension wasn't exactly cutting-edge technology; he could even do it by hand.

So, he ventured a guess, aiming as high as he thought reasonable. “One hundred thousand?”

Ma Yuheng burst out laughing at his guess. “One hundred thousand might get you the lowest-end model. The one Yanda purchased is the top-of-the-line version. It cost two hundred and fifty thousand.”

Lu Shixian was left speechless.

That was ridiculous!

He had already tried to guess high.

A small device for making cell suspensions cost a quarter of a million?

And this was 2010.

Ma Yuheng paid no mind to his shock and continued introducing the lab equipment.

For a researcher, understanding the performance and function of their instruments was crucial.

If words are the tools of a journalist, then lab equipment is the lifelong arsenal of a researcher.

Ma Yuheng truly was a seasoned professor; everything he did was methodical, and every step was carefully considered.

Chapter 228: Conducting the Cell Experiment

“I won’t go into detail about the functions of these fluorescence and inverted microscopes. One is for observing molecular interactions, the other for cell counting and morphology,” Ma Yuheng said, his pace quickening.

“Also important is the CO2 incubator. Its principle is to simulate the in-vivo growth environment for cells and tissues by strictly controlling the temperature, carbon dioxide concentration, and humidity inside.”

“We’re currently using the Thermo Fisher series. Although many manufacturers produce these incubators…”

Here, Ma Yuheng sighed softly. “I have to admit, at this stage, the products from overseas are still the best.”

“As for the clean benches, centrifuges, liquid nitrogen tanks, and other general equipment, I won’t elaborate. You can familiarize yourself with them on your own.”

Lu Shixian nodded. Different labs had different core instruments, and he would need to master all of them.

But a person’s energy is finite, which is one reason why specialization is valued over being a jack-of-all-trades.

An expert with authority in a specific field is often more sought after than a polymath.

“Alright, you can start designing your experiment now.”

“Although I’m in charge of this small lab, I still need to go through some procedures with the school for you to use it. I’ll give you the key later.”

As they walked, Ma Yuheng instructed, “From now on, besides providing you with the necessary materials, I want you to try and complete everything independently. If you’re truly stuck, then come find me.”

“Any questions?” Ma Yuheng had reached the door.

“No questions!”

Of course, Lu Shixian had no questions. What he needed most was a lab.

Ma Yuheng nodded. Just as he was about to leave, he seemed to remember something.

He turned his head back and added, “Oh, right. There’s one more important thing.”

“Be frugal with the experimental materials and solutions. It’s my lab’s money you’re spending.”

Lu Shixian couldn’t help but chuckle at that, giving him a nod of agreement.

After he left, Lu Shixian didn't blame him for being stingy; he completely understood.

You don't know the cost of living until you're the one paying the bills.

Many people don’t understand why a single research project can cost hundreds of thousands or even millions.

Large-scale projects can have budgets in the tens of millions or even over a hundred million.

The crucial part is that, quite often, a massive investment of time and energy might still yield no significant results.

This naturally leads some people to conspiracy theories.

Where did all our research funding go?

But nowadays, the regulations on funding are extremely strict, especially the auditing process, which requires detailed, receipt-based reimbursement.

After a project or topic is completed, it will most likely be audited.

Every single expense must have a reasonable explanation.

Therefore, with very few exceptions, the bulk of experimental funding is spent on purchasing lab equipment and chemical reagents.

Doing experiments is inherently a process of trial and error; success on the first try is nearly impossible.

Humans are subjective, so the experiments they design will naturally have flaws and can never be perfect.

In an experiment, whether it's a flaw in the design or an error in execution, it can lead to failure.

In the back-and-forth, the consumed reagents and the depreciation of equipment are often the most costly parts.

Of course, if unnecessary and significant waste is caused by human factors, it can even lead to accountability.

In comparison, the travel and labor costs for the project team members are minimal.

It’s a stark contrast to the entertainment industry.

Yet people often have a greater tolerance for the exorbitant salaries of celebrities, while nitpicking over things like “who pays for this bottle of glucose.”

So, some people imagine that the glucose is billed to the patient, or that a project is useless and fruitless, a complete waste of taxpayer money.

Perhaps what researchers need most isn't flowers and applause, but genuine understanding and respect from the public.

Even a fraction of the tolerance shown to celebrity idols would be enough.

Lu Shixian felt more and more that a compassionate society should be one where the hard work of every individual is not taken for granted.

Pushing aside these thoughts, Lu Shixian sat down and began to design his experimental protocol.

This was a cell biology experiment.

The focus, naturally, was on cell culture.

Things like subcellular localization and protein interactions were all downstream steps.

The main experimental process would roughly follow these steps:

Prepare the cells for culturing or differentiation.
Culture or expand the cells.
Conduct subsequent experiments under inflammatory conditions.
Achieve gene expression in T-cells.
Observe and record the research indicators.

Of course, it was just a few phrases when said aloud.

But the execution was far from simple.

During cell culture, each generation of cells goes through five stages: lag phase, attachment or suspension phase, latent phase, logarithmic growth phase, and stationary phase.

This process alone takes a considerable amount of time and involves very complex procedures.

Not to mention, this was only the first step of a long journey.

After completing the initial experimental design, Lu Shixian reviewed it briefly, checking for logical errors, ensuring the control groups were set up reasonably, and so on.

It was always best to reduce or eliminate any mistakes that could be avoided with carefulness.

Lu Shixian had no desire to be nagged by Ma Yuheng later; he was here to do an experiment, not to cause trouble.

After disinfecting, he put on a white lab coat and officially stepped up to the workbench.

He prepared all the tools and reagents he would need, and after a final check, he began his work.

For the source of primary T-cells, he chose the spleen of a lab mouse.

It seemed that since 30% of its cells were immune cells, the spleen was an indispensable organ for most immunology experiments.

Although human cells would be the best primary cells, such experiments required strict ethical review. Conducting them without approval could lead to severe consequences.

He had been told this during his very first lab course.

This was a common problem for all biologists.

Without experiments, you can’t get data.

Without data, you can’t uncover principles.

So, to conduct experiments, one must find substitutes for the subjects.

In terms of genetic similarity, chimpanzees would be excellent subjects.

But these primates are now endangered, making them a highly unsuitable choice.

Ultimately, biologists turned their attention to the common lab mouse.

They are numerous, reproduce quickly, have a clear genetic background, possess a known microbiota, and exhibit stable and significant model traits.

Most importantly, the genetic similarity between mice and humans is as high as 85%, and their chromosomal base pairs are also very similar.

Finally, one has to admit that reputation is very important.

Its "infamous" status as a pest meant that experimenters didn't have to bear any stigma.

Eliminating pests, after all, does not involve ethical or public opinion issues.

Chapter 229: A Self of Flesh and Blood

From this perspective, some believe that lab mice have made an indelible contribution to humanity's quest to understand the ultimate laws of life.

If the Nobel Prize had a lifetime achievement award, they would be worthy candidates.

Therefore, with a sense of respect, Lu Shixian took a mouse and tried to make its passing as peaceful as possible.

This time, his cervical dislocation technique was, in his own opinion, the most efficient he had ever performed, clean and without hesitation.

After soaking it in alcohol for about fifteen minutes, Lu Shixian began the dissection.

He had become very proficient in animal dissection.

Though not yet on par with his skill in botany, he had improved immensely.

When the time was up, he removed the mouse's spleen and began to grind it, finally obtaining a single-cell suspension of spleen cells.

Of course, with the help of the tissue dissociator, Lu Shixian only had to move his fingers.

He was incredibly grateful in his heart for the invention of all this lab equipment, which saved him so much time from tedious experimental procedures.

Next was the separation of T-cells using specific markers.

According to his experimental design, he needed to obtain all CD4 T, CD8 T, Th, and Treg cell subsets, so using CD3 as a surface marker was sufficient.

This was also simple. There was an instrument for separation, and using a magnetic cell sorter was incredibly convenient.

Then came the in-vitro cell culture.

The most critical components for this step were two cytokines, anti-mouse CD3 and anti-mouse CD28, along with the T-cell growth factor, IL-2.

The former were for stimulating and activating T-cells in vitro, while the latter was a growth factor. All three were indispensable.

Finally, he seeded the previously obtained T-cells into the CD3-coated plate, like planting seeds, adding culture medium, serum, and other components of the culture system to each well.

After plating, a long wait began.

This period usually lasted about four days, during which the medium needed to be changed.

Placing the culture plate in the incubator, Lu Shixian let out a sigh of relief. He began to clean up the lab equipment and dispose of the waste fluid.

After completing this series of tasks, Lu Shixian locked the door and left the laboratory.

Walking back to the dorm, it was already 5:30 PM.

Gazing at the sun, which was no longer glaring, he stretched.

The experiment was progressing smoothly, and he was clearly in a good mood.

It wasn't dinnertime yet, so Lu Shixian went straight back to his dorm.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he walked through the door of Room 4012, his roommates were all staring at him with strange expressions.

“What’s wrong? Why are you all looking at me?” Lu Shixian was baffled.

Zhang Mengting gave him a thumbs-up. “You’re something else, man!”

“That hurdler really got injured, that’s why he had to withdraw with regret.”

“But you? You were about to win the gold medal and you just quit. You’ve got style!”

Lu Shixian instantly understood they were talking about the morning’s track meet.

“I was injured too, you know?” Lu Shixian said defensively.

His words, however, were met with collective scorn.

“Injured my ass! Everyone saw you,” Chang Wenchao scoffed.

“You left the field faster than you ran on the track.”

“Who are you trying to fool?”

Finally, after the other two had set the stage, Lin Chenyi got to the point.

“This afternoon, we saw the team leader, and he was furious. His face was thunderous. I heard from a student near him that they’re going to issue a campus-wide notice of criticism about you.”

At this, all three of them looked worried.

While it wasn't as severe as a demerit or a formal warning, being publicly criticized was a serious matter for an outstanding student.

Not only would his reputation be ruined, but he could basically kiss any awards or honors goodbye.

Lu Shixian immediately understood the consequences.

But for him, it wasn't the end of the world; he didn't care much about such external things.

What he truly couldn't accept was having a formal criticism on his record. That would completely derail his future plans.

Without a word, he spun around and bolted out the door, heading straight for the school’s student affairs office.

For most people, it would have been a difficult choice at that moment.

But Lu Shixian’s reaction was instinctive, a decision made in less than a second.

Forfeit the race!

He hadn’t considered the consequences at all.

All to chase a fleeting wisp of inspiration.

Even if it all ended up being for nothing.

On the way, Lu Shixian was anxious, but he had no regrets.

On some matters, he liked to deliberate over the outcomes and make long-term plans for himself.

But at other times, when he believed he was doing the right thing, he was extremely impulsive.

A person's character is never one-dimensional.

It is changeable, and it is unpredictable.

It is all these different facets that make up a real, true self—a self of flesh and blood.

This was true for Lu Shixian, and it is true for every one of us.

He glanced at his phone. There were still a dozen minutes before closing time.

There was no time to wait. He was already sprinting toward the Yuanpei College student affairs office.

He saw a counselor packing up, ready to leave for the day.

Lu Shixian grew more anxious and hurried to Yuan Qingmei's office.

Thank heavens!

Looking through the open door, he saw she was still at her desk, writing something.

Knock, knock, knock…

Lu Shixian knocked on the door and heard her reply, “Come in.”

Hearing the hurried footsteps, Yuan Qingmei looked up, and an unexpected figure entered her view.

“Student Lu Shixian?”

“Is there something I can help you with?” Yuan Qingmei asked instinctively.

But she quickly remembered what had happened at the competition that morning and asked with concern, “I heard you fell during the race. Are you alright? Are you hurt?”

Lu Shixian immediately shook his head. He had something more important than an injury to worry about.

“Regarding my withdrawal from the race this morning, I have my reasons. Professor Ma Yuheng can vouch for me. Could you please help me speak with the school leaders about the notice of criticism?”

Seeing Lu Shixian's tense expression, Yuan Qingmei instantly knew what he was worried about and completely understood his feelings.

Unfortunately, this was not something she could decide.

“About you forfeiting the race, Professor Feng, who was in charge of the university sports meet for Yanda, called this morning.”

“We reported it to the school leadership right away. We don’t know the final decision yet.”

As she spoke of this, Yuan Qingmei also frowned. She glanced at the time and immediately stood up.

“There’s no time to lose. The dean should still be in his office.”

“I’ll go with you. Make sure you show a good attitude and admit your mistake, and I’ll help plead your case.”

“This whole thing should blow over then,” Yuan Qingmei told him, taking her responsibility seriously.

But she didn't expect Lu Shixian’s subconscious reply.

“Admit what mistake?”

Chapter 230: He Thought, and He Acted

But he quickly realized it was a matter of perspective and position.

In the eyes of most people, his actions must have been completely wrong.

To be honest, Lu Shixian was now conflicted.

All he had to do was admit he was wrong, and this problem would be solved.

But he truly didn't believe he had done anything wrong.

Yet, a person can't always live in a world defined by their own perceptions.

And he wasn't someone who stuck to his guns inflexibly.

Thinking about it from their perspective, his actions had indeed caused trouble for others.

He had failed to bring the expected honor to the university.

Thinking of it that way, he felt a sense of release.

Although he was still a bit uncomfortable with the idea, some things were just too important to him.

For the sake of his goals, he could overcome anything, as long as it didn't cross his bottom line.

Yuan Qingmei had heard Lu Shixian's retort and thought he hadn't come to his senses yet. She was about to say something.

But then she heard Lu Shixian say, “Let’s go.”

Yuan Qingmei paused for a moment, then glanced at him.

Lu Shixian's expression was still calm. She couldn't help but think more highly of him.

Since the decision was made, they wasted no more time.

With a few minutes to spare, they hurried towards the dean's office.

When they arrived, Dean Zeng Fanzhu was just at the door, about to lock up.

Seeing Yuan Qingmei and Lu Shixian behind her, Zeng Fanzhu calmly opened the door again.

Sitting back down in his plush chair, Zeng Fanzhu feigned ignorance and asked, “Xiao Yuan, you’ve brought a student with you. Is there something?”

Hearing his question, Yuan Qingmei explained the morning's events in detail.

Just as they had expected, Zeng Fanzhu’s expression grew grave.

“Dean Zeng, although what Student Lu did was improper, he now deeply recognizes his mistake.”

Then, with a pleading look, she continued, “Lu Shixian’s grades last semester were excellent, and he is a very responsible class officer. I hope you can give him another chance this time.”
A whirlwind of emotions swept through Lu Shixian, and he didn't know what to say.

It seemed he had always been lucky; the teachers he encountered had always treated him well.

At least, none of the counselors he had during his undergraduate years had ever been as dedicated as she was.

They were always elusive, probably busy with their own affairs, only making an appearance when something important came up.

Pleading with the dean directly on a student's behalf was something that almost never happened.

For the most part, you were expected to bear the consequences of your own actions.

Of course, it might have had something to do with the fact that his previous university wasn't as prestigious.

Lu Shixian took a deep breath and stepped forward.

He couldn't just stand by and let a woman shield him from the storm.

Any so-called shame or indignation he felt shattered in that instant.

He raised his head, his eyes meeting Zeng Fanzhu's.

"Dean Zeng, this was my f—"

But then, to his surprise, Zeng Fanzhu cut him off with a cough.

"Where do you think you went wrong?"

Lu Shixian hesitated for a moment before saying, "I shouldn't have dropped out of the race on a whim."

"Then what were you thinking at the time? Be honest. There's no point in hiding anything now."

Lu Shixian finally spoke his mind. "I wasn't thinking about anything. I just had an idea and went for it."

To everyone's surprise, Zeng Fanzhu smiled.

"Exactly. You had an idea and you went for it!"

"So, what did you do wrong?"

"I already dismissed the matter when Feng Yuankai called me."

At this, Yuan Qingmei and Lu Shixian were both stunned.

"But don't be so surprised," Zeng Fanzhu continued. "Although we advocate for openness and inclusivity in the university, being overly casual is not permitted. I'm taking this stance because I've observed you and have a good sense of your character. Ordinarily, you wouldn't do something like this. So, can you tell us now what exactly you went off to do?"

Lu Shixian never expected to receive such trust. This series of events moved him beyond words.

He now finally understood the depth of Yan University's supportive culture and its profound heritage, and how a positive campus atmosphere could subtly and profoundly influence every student who studied here.

"Professor Ma gave me an assignment, and I had a flash of inspiration while I was running," Lu Shixian said, telling the truth. "I discovered a potential pattern in biological cells that hasn't been verified, and I spent the afternoon trying to figure out its actual mechanism."

This time, it was Yuan Qingmei's turn to be astonished, while Zeng Fanzhu's expression remained unchanged.

Yuan Qingmei truly hadn't expected this to be Lu Shixian's reason.

And she finally recalled what he meant when he blurted out, "What is there to admit?"

But she had completely overlooked his other words: "I have my reasons."

She had simply relied on her own preconceived notions, assuming, even insisting, that Lu Shixian was in the wrong.

And even so, he had chosen not to argue.

Yuan Qingmei couldn't help but ask, "Then why didn't you say anything?"

"If you had, I wouldn't have made you come here to apologize."

Lu Shixian replied matter of factly, "But I did fail to finish the race, and I didn't bring the honor our university and department deserved."

"Besides, quitting has never been my style. Since I went against that, I should accept some punishment."

Hearing this, she was stunned, and then a wave of shame washed over her.

People are accustomed to seeing things only from their own perspective, rarely considering others'.

She had failed to do so, but a student who had just come of age had.

At that moment, Zeng Fanzhu began to clap, a laugh escaping him.

"Haha, Little Yuan, back when you were a student, you often lectured your professors with philosophy."

"Now that you're a counselor, it seems you're getting a lesson from your own student!"

Turning to Lu Shixian, Zeng Fanzhu said.

"Acting on an idea when it strikes you, that's not a bad thing for you."

"I never had that kind of opportunity, but now that I'm the dean, I'll do my best to create those opportunities for my students."

"Alright, it's getting late. You two can go about your business."

Zeng Fanzhu waved them off, signaling for them to leave.

"In the future, for things like this, you don't need to come plead with me."

"As long as I'm here, Yuanpei is your home. No one on the outside can stir up trouble for you."

Lu Shixian and Yuan Qingmei exchanged a look and quietly walked out of the office.

"I'm sorry..."

"I'm sorry..."

After leaving the building, they both stopped and spoke the exact same words in unison.

The heavy atmosphere from before vanished instantly.

Yuan Qingmei finally smiled and asked, "Student Lu, what do you have to be sorry for?"

Chapter 231: Not Bad at All! Worthy of Praise

"Of course I'm sorry for making you run around and worry about me, not to mention having Dean Zeng bring up your embarrassing past. How could I not feel bad!"

"And I'm a bit curious, Ms. Yuan. How did you use philosophy to shut people down back in the day? Teach me a few lines!"

"Then we can call it even for today." Lu Shixian had suddenly brought up a topic he shouldn't have.

Sure enough, Yuan Qingmei's smile froze.

Just as she was about to scold him, she saw that Lu Shixian was already walking away.

And Yuan Qingmei, standing there, felt her smile gently reappear.

Of the two classes of students she had counseled, Lu Shixian had truly left the deepest impression.

Lu Shixian, meanwhile, was on his way to the cafeteria.

With the matter resolved, he let out a long sigh of relief.

He never would have guessed the situation would take such a turn; it just went to show that plans could never keep up with reality.

He had thought a simple apology would be the end of it, but he never expected Dean Zeng to be so understanding.

He had also noticed a small detail.

In his speech, Zeng Fanzhu had said "for you."

That kind of trust was rare and carried a heavy weight.

And so did the responsibility of not letting that trust down.

He would press on without hesitation, no matter how many difficulties and challenges he faced.

Just as the saying goes: If you are determined to shine, no mountain can block your path, no sea can bar your way.

Four days passed in the blink of an eye.

During this time, besides attending his regular classes, Lu Shixian would occasionally stop by the lab to check on the growth of the T-cells.

After changing the medium, he found that the cells were growing vigorously.

Since T-cells are semi-adherent and semi-suspension cells, their cultivation method differs from that of purely adherent or suspension cells.

Because cells are also present in the supernatant, one must be especially careful when changing the medium.

Lu Shixian paid special attention to this issue.

Arriving at the lab again, Lu Shixian was ready to begin the next step.

But this time, the result was something he found hard to accept.

He saw that a large number of cells in the culture medium were showing signs of apoptosis and extrusion.

This scene was an exact match for the descriptions of cell crowding he had read about in textbooks.

The cell layer is a structure with physical vulnerabilities; once local crowding occurs, cells will be extruded from the tissue.

Damaged, apoptotic, and dead cells are then produced and eliminated by the tissue.

It was clear that the number of surviving T-cells was insufficient for the subsequent research and experiments.

Was this just a bad start?

To fall at the first hurdle before the formal experiment had even begun.

But this was often the nature of research; you never knew what would happen next.

Lu Shixian collected himself and began to review his experimental design.

But after careful consideration, he found no logical errors in his design. Even if there were minor flaws, they wouldn't have caused such a result.

He started to recall his experimental procedures.

After wracking his brain, he finally found the culprit.

The well plate for seeding the primary cells!

He had chosen one with too few wells. For the number of T-cells his experiment required, a 96 well plate would have been most suitable, but he had used a standard 24 well plate.

The larger number of wells would have allowed for a more even distribution, preventing the extrusion effect caused by local crowding.

It seems I'm still not very familiar with cell experiments!

Lu Shixian thought to himself, then let out a soft sigh.

Well then! Time to start all over again.

Lu Shixian felt a pang of pity for the funds from Ma Yuhuan's lab that had just been burned.

Then, he began his procedure once more.

Another four days later.

As expected, the cell culture was a great success this time.

Lu Shixian pumped his fist in the air, celebrating his first step forward.

Next up was the formal experiment.

The next step was to create inflammatory conditions.

Any factor that can cause tissue damage can trigger inflammation, including biological factors, non biological factors, foreign bodies entering the body, and potential inflammatory agents.

Based on Lu Shixian's current understanding, there were two main types of inflammation models: infectious and non specific.

Infectious inflammation was common in pneumonia caused by influenza and viruses. The only one Lu Shixian had seen in the literature was the Klebsiella pneumoniae severe pneumonia model.

Non specific inflammation models were the most numerous and allowed for the observation of the inflammatory process at different time points, including acute and chronic inflammation.

But the protagonist of Lu Shixian's experiment this time wasn't inflammation itself, so he didn't need any particular speed or model.

If he managed to develop an infection model, that itself would be a significant achievement.

But right now, all he needed was an inflammatory environment, which could be achieved by infecting the mice with the prepared virus.

It was the most straightforward method.

After infecting the mice, which had been raised for several days, Lu Shixian collected some of their key tissues at different time points.

He fixed them in a paraformaldehyde solution, embedded them in paraffin, and then proceeded to sectioning, arriving at the most critical stage.

The immunohistochemistry experiment!

Next, he just needed to observe the relationship between the number of markers expressed by T-cells, T-cell activation factors, and pro inflammatory factors under viral infection.

The principle of immunohistochemistry is the high specificity between antibodies and antigens, which allows for the qualitative or quantitative study of unknown antigens in tissues and cells.

Common methods included immunofluorescence, immunoenzymatic methods, and the immunoferritin technique.

Lu Shixian began the next steps, full of hope.

But an hour later!

A new problem arose!

There were too many types of T-cells, and they expressed too many subpopulations.

The number of cells whose parameters needed to be measured was simply enormous, and the time required was immense.

It was clear that he couldn't complete such a huge workload by himself.

For the first time, Lu Shixian felt the insignificance of an individual.

For the first time, he felt powerless.

Was the experiment going to end here?

He had been able to solve the initial problems he encountered.

But now, it seemed that no matter what he thought of, he couldn't solve this one.

If only I had a helper!

Lu Shixian sighed in frustration.

But speaking of helpers, it suddenly occurred to him that he hadn't come here alone, had he?

His spirits lifted instantly!

The experiment was about to grind to a halt!

If this didn't count as a time of need, then nothing did.

Acting on the thought, Lu Shixian walked out of the lab and immediately dialed Ma Yuhuan's number.

Lu Shixian had given up on finding him in person; it was clearly unrealistic for someone like Ma Yuhuan, who had a habit of disappearing.

Fortunately, the call connected quickly this time.

A few seconds later, Ma Yuhuan's teasing voice came through the phone.

"Not bad!"

"It took you more than ten days to call me."

"Worthy of praise!"

Chapter 232: This Must Be a Humblebrag

Lu Shixian's expression darkened. So the old man had so little faith in him.

He never expected him to be able to complete the experiment on his own.

But he was right.

Lu Shixian quickly said to Ma Yuhuan, "Professor Ma, I really need your guidance this time."

Unexpectedly, Ma Yuhuan's cheerful voice came from the other end.

"How's it going?"

"There's a limit to what one person can do."

"Now do you understand the importance of teamwork?"

Lu Shixian nodded. Unlike a subject like mathematics, which relies heavily on talent and inspiration, going it alone in other fields of research rarely yielded results.

He had understood this long ago, but there was nothing he could do.

Others had a whole team of people at their disposal.

But he was just a rookie right now, trying to trick...

Er, recruit others.

That was naturally impossible.

So in the end, he still had to turn to old Ma!

"Go ahead. As long as it's not about whether Malthus was wrong or the biological basis of consciousness."

"I can chime in on most other things," Ma Yuhuan quipped.

Lu Shixian immediately described the problem he had just encountered.

After listening, Ma Yuhuan's tone unexpectedly changed.

"What was that?"

"You've already reached the final step of the experiment?"

Lu Shixian nodded in response. "That's right. The problem I'm facing now is that T-cells differentiate into several subpopulations, and they behave differently in response to inflammation."

"I can't handle such a massive workload of observation and recording on my own."

Hearing his problem, Ma Yuhuan asked him a seemingly unrelated question.

"Have you heard of flow cytometry?"

"There may be a limit to manpower, but technology is the primary productive force."

Experience really did count for something.

With just one question, Lu Shixian's eyes lit up like the morning star.

"That's right, how could I not have thought of flow cytometry?"

Flow cytometry is a technique used at the cellular and molecular level to perform multi parameter analysis of individual cells and other molecules using monoclonal antibodies.

Its main features are its high speed and efficiency.

And the biggest advantage of flow cytometry is actually its ability to count subpopulations of cells within a mixed cell population.

It was the perfect solution to his problem.

But a second later, another doubt arose.

"The technique is great, but it's useless if I don't know how to use it!"

A simple analogy could describe its function.

It was the CT scanner of the laboratory, one of the most advanced cell quantitative analysis techniques today.

But the more advanced the technology, the higher the difficulty of use.

This was in line with the previously mentioned law of conservation of energy.

The only reason Lu Shixian even knew about it was from hearing others in the field chat about it from time to time.

For some reason, hearing Lu Shixian's words put Ma Yuhuan in a very good mood.

A smile even appeared on his face.

"You may not know how to use it, but I do! It's very simple."

"Just you wait, I'll give you a demonstration in a bit."

With that, Ma Yuhuan hung up.

Unfortunately, he didn't see the triumphant look in Lu Shixian's eyes on the other end.

Ten minutes later, Ma Yuhuan appeared in the cell biology lab as promised.

He then unveiled a cloth from a very hidden corner, revealing an instrument inside that was the size of two washing machines.

Standing beside it, even Lu Shixian had to admit: impressive.

"Access to the lab is so strict. Why did you hide it there?" Lu Shixian was a little speechless.

Although he knew that such a high precision experimental instrument must be very expensive, this seemed a bit overly cautious.

Ma Yuhuan, however, looked proud. "What do you know? This is the greatest treasure in my lab. This one machine is worth several houses."

Now Lu Shixian had a concrete idea of its value and could only help him carefully move it to the lab bench.

Well, it seemed that micro-biology had always been more expensive than macro-biology.

In any case, he had never come into contact with such an expensive instrument before.

After starting up the flow cytometer, Ma Yuhuan began by explaining the principle of the instrument.

"The operating technique is secondary. When using any tool or method, we must understand its principle, otherwise we're just following the steps blindly."

"You place the cells to be tested, which have been stained with specific fluorescent dyes, into the sample tube. Then, under air pressure, the cells are forced into a flow chamber filled with sheath fluid."

"Confined by the sheath fluid, the cells line up in a single file and are ejected from the nozzle of the flow chamber, forming a cell column that is easy to observe. Then, a laser excites scattered light and fluorescent signals, which are collected by a laser detector."

Ma Yuhuan's explanation was concise and easy to understand.

Hearing this, Lu Shixian nodded. He pretty much understood the operating principle of the instrument.

Ma Yuhuan didn't finish explaining the parts that weren't the biological focus.

But it probably involved amplifying the signal through a photomultiplier tube, then converting it into an optical signal, and finally inputting it into a computer for electronic analysis.

Fearing he hadn't understood, Ma Yuhuan had him repeat it.

The result was that Lu Shixian's explanation left him stunned.

"Isn't it just like the peashooter in Plants vs. Zombies?"

"You shoot the stained cells out one by one under pressure, and then with the help of fluorescent probes, you obtain various signals from the cells to perform various quantitative and purification analyses on them, right?"

Ma Yuhuan had never played Plants vs. Zombies, but he pretended to understand.

With a cough, he moved on to the next topic.

"It consists of three systems in total, including the fluidics system, the optics system, and the data processing system..."

After listening to his explanation of the flow cytometer's structure, Lu Shixian could only marvel at its ingenious design and concept.

At the time, it had linked three seemingly unrelated systems together.

From 1936, when microspectrophotometry was first creatively introduced for cell counting.

To 1954, when the photoelectric particle counter was invented.

Then to 1969, when the first fluorescence-based cell detector was invented.

Finally, to 1975, when the advent of monoclonal antibody technology pushed the development of flow cytometry to its peak.

Now, with continuous technological upgrades, its optical system, detector unit, and electronic system have become more integrated and modular.

Finally, Ma Yuhuan got to the operation and use of the instrument.

"Common fluorescent dyes include fluorescein isothiocyanate, phycoerythrin, and Texas Red..."

"Common data parameters include FS, SS, and FL..."
"Finally, you'll use gating analysis to select the specific cell population you want to analyze. This part depends on your preference, but common types include linear, rectangular, and polygonal gates..."

After listening to the entire explanation, Lu Shixian was completely dumbfounded.

This has to be a humblebrag, right?

"Professor Ma, are you sure this is simple?"

Chapter 233: I'm Finding That You're Just Ridiculous

Ma Yuheng finally broke into a smug smile.

It was as if he were thinking to himself, *Gotcha, kid. Finally impressed you, haven't I!*

"Whether you think it's simple or not, I find it quite simple."

"I've only been learning to use this machine for less than two years," he said, a statement that was just asking for a beating.

Listening to him, Lu Shixian detected a hint of "I don't care what you think, I only care what I think."

His blood pressure instantly shot up.

Although part of it was due to how long the professor had been at it, he still admired the old man from the bottom of his heart.

The truth was, many people, after reaching a certain age or status, were no longer willing to learn new things.

"Live and learn" was often just a slogan.

Next, with Ma Yuheng demonstrating personally, Lu Shixian performed a few simple flow cytometry operations.

Though he wasn't proficient yet, at least he was now clear on the procedures.

After Ma Yuheng left, Lu Shixian spent the entire day familiarizing himself with the instrument.

Since he wasn't using materials for a formal experiment, aside from some common lab consumables, he didn't incur much expense.

That night, for the first time, Lu Shixian went to bed on time at ten o'clock.

The next day, he appeared in the lab full of vigor.

Today was the most crucial day.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the eager anticipation stirring within him.

Until the results were out, he couldn't relax for a single moment!

He began the final, formal experiment.

He performed specific fluorescence staining on the T-cells that had been prepared under inflammatory conditions.

Then, the cells were ejected at high speed under the pressure of the sheath fluid.

All of this happened within the instrument, in the blink of an eye.

Lu Shixian could only rely on his imagination to understand it.

He ultimately chose to use forward scattered light.

According to Ma Yuheng, this type of scattered light could be used as a threshold to exclude debris and small particles around the measured cells, reducing interference and improving detection accuracy.

The forward scattered light and fluorescence signals shot out from the emitter, sweeping across all the measured cells.

Like a celestial radar, everything happening to the T-cells was completely converted into electrical signals and transmitted to the information processing system.

At this moment, he couldn't help but marvel at how he was reaping the benefits of his predecessors' work.

If this technology didn't exist, he could stare until he went blind and never achieve such results and efficiency.

He gently pressed the button to display the data.

Lu Shixian's breathing grew heavy.

The results that followed would directly determine whether all his efforts over these many days had been in vain.

He had truly given so, so much for this result.

Even luck should favor a hardworking person by now!

He was an atheist!

But at this moment, he couldn't stop praying in his heart.

This is it, make or break!

Come on, show me something!

Come on!

As his fingertip pressed down, the computer screen lit up.

The single-parameter histogram showed the number of particles for a given scattered light or fluorescence intensity.

On the dual-parameter scatter plot, the two axes represented two different measurement parameters of the cells.

This was one of the most important pieces of data.

Based on these two parameters, the expression position of the measured cells on the graph could be determined.

At this point, after excluding some obvious error points...

Almost all the charts indicated that under inflammatory conditions, the activation and pro-inflammatory functions of T-cells after expression produced a regular pattern of change.

At the same time, that miraculous curve had, astonishingly, reappeared!

This meant it was a biological law that could be verified through repeatable experiments.

And Ma Yuheng had told him long before that, in the year 2010, research on immune expression under inflammatory conditions was still a virtual blank slate.

Very few people focused their attention on this specific condition.

Lu Shixian's heart suddenly began to pound violently in his chest.

Holy cow!

This time, I might actually hit the jackpot!

Although he had imagined this scene happening in his mind many times...

When it truly occurred, Lu Shixian couldn't help but feel incredibly excited.

Quickly tidying himself up, Lu Shixian rushed out of the lab and called Ma Yuheng again.

Ma Yuheng didn't have much going on recently, so he answered the phone quickly.

Almost as soon as the call connected, a voice boomed from the receiver.

"Professor Ma, my experiment was a success!"

"The results this time are almost identical to the curve I discovered by chance before."

"It's a biological law that can be repeatedly verified!"

Lu Shixian's voice was unusually loud, roaring so forcefully that it nearly deafened Ma Yuheng.

But instead of being annoyed, Ma Yuheng's face showed an expression of surprise and shock.

"Wait for me in the lab. I'm on my way."

Ma Yuheng didn't even bother to put on his coat, rushing straight for the lab.

As he walked, his heart still couldn't calm down.

In truth, he hadn't held out much hope that Lu Shixian would discover anything significant.

If new discoveries were so easy to find, there wouldn't be so many unsolved mysteries in the world.

Scientific research would not be such a lonely yet glorious path.

Because the element of chance in experimental data is truly immense.

Some data sets that appear highly regular are actually the lucky result of countless permutations and combinations that finally appear before you.

When you begin your research full of expectation, you often find that it's just two completely unrelated things.

Ma Yuheng had seen this happen far too many times.

It wasn't just students and professors; even renowned and accomplished authorities had been mocked by this coincidence on multiple occasions.

If one had to put a number on it, an actual answer might only appear once in hundreds of thousands of coincidences.

Of course, under the guidance of a correct theory, this probability would be greatly increased.

Therefore, he was all the more shocked by Lu Shixian's discovery.

He arrived at the lab at top speed.

This time, it took Ma Yuheng two minutes.

An 80% improvement in efficiency compared to before.

Putting on his white lab coat, with no time for pleasantries, he asked Lu Shixian directly, "Where's the data? Let me see it."

Lu Shixian handed him the hard drive on which he had already copied the data.

Ma Yuheng sat down at a computer in the lab and began to carefully examine the data and charts on the drive.

A few minutes later.

"The sample size is sufficient."

"The experimental data and the curve show an excellent fit!"

"We can basically confirm that this is indeed a new discovery."

After saying this, Ma Yuheng looked at Lu Shixian as if he were looking at a monster.

"I'm finding that you're just ridiculous!"

"It seems like you can cook something up wherever you go."

"There was that national-level project, and then the Challenge Cup that Professor Gu had you participate in."

After a pause, Ma Yuheng added, "Though that latter one was a bit low-level, not very technically demanding."

Lu Shixian had just been about to feel smug when he heard this last sentence.

He couldn't help but protest, "What do you mean, low-level?"

"It was still a national first prize in the Challenge Cup, you know."

Although he knew in his heart that from Ma Yuheng's perspective, this was probably true.

But it was still an achievement he had handled entirely on his own.

How could he not argue back a little?

Chapter 234: Living Long is What Really Matters

What's that saying? A father never finds his son ugly, right?

Anyway, as long as he wasn't embarrassed, the other person would be.

Sure enough, Ma Yuheng's tone softened a bit.

He comforted him, "You don't need to be so self-deprecating. The value of a research achievement can't be judged solely by its so-called technical content or level."

"It needs to be evaluated from multiple dimensions. Sometimes, when you're standing in the tailwind of policy, even a pig can fly."

Lu Shixian was just putting on an act. He seemed to have guessed Ma Yuheng's intention.

He was probably afraid that Lu Shixian would get too full of himself and lose his way.

So he was deliberately knocking him down a peg.

He didn't have that kind of problem, but he played along to put the professor's mind at ease.

After that, Ma Yuheng finally got to the matter at hand.

"What are your expectations for this discovery?" Ma Yuheng asked, looking up.

Lu Shixian replied without hesitation, "An SCI paper, of course!"

Hearing this answer, Ma Yuheng wasn't surprised. "In that case, your task isn't over. Just having this discovery isn't enough."

"You must dig deeper into the mechanism of this law, to find out the fundamental principle behind why it occurs."

Lu Shixian had already anticipated this and nodded. "That's a given. I'm just a bit anxious."

"What if someone else discovers this result too?"

Hearing this, Ma Yuheng couldn't help but laugh, but he understood the young man's thoughts.

He recalled feeling the same way when he made his first research breakthrough as a young man.

He smiled nostalgically. "Haha, I was in pretty much the same mood as you back then."

"I could barely even sleep at night."

Lu Shixian laughed too. "I think at your age back then, you probably couldn't sleep much anyway."

Ma Yuheng ignored his teasing and continued, "But after it happened a few more times, it gradually started to feel dull."

Lu Shixian was instantly speechless. So, this was a case of the well-fed man not knowing the starving man's hunger!

Professor Ma was now fifty-four. Never mind his undergraduate years.

Starting from his graduate studies at twenty-three, a total of thirty-one years had passed.

Over such a long span, Ma Yuheng had probably published countless papers and achievements.

No wonder he could say something like that.

At that moment, Ma Yuheng seemed to read his thoughts from his expression.

"Alright, I'll help you brainstorm the remaining research."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian's face lit up. "That would be great."

"So, when do we start?"

As if he had anticipated the question, Ma Yuheng replied, "Not now. Let's do it this afternoon."

"I just realized I didn't wear my coat. It's actually a bit cold now."

With that, the two agreed to meet again in the afternoon.

As they left, their conversation could still be heard.

"Professor Ma, you really need to take better care of yourself!"

"It's only October, not winter yet."

"Get outta here!"

"When you're young, you don't know your limits. You'll understand when you get to my age."

"You'd better not sit for too long usually. Make sure to get out and exercise more. Health is a researcher's greatest asset."

"I go for a morning run every day, okay? If it weren't for that fall, I'd be winning the long-distance running championship again."

After lunch, on the way back to his dorm.

Lu Shixian recalled Ma Yuheng's words and couldn't help but feel a little emotional.

Health is a researcher's greatest asset.

There was real truth in that statement.

Not only were results achieved through long, hard work...

Sometimes, even honors were a competition of who could last the longest.

Everyone knew of Mendeleev, right?

Famous worldwide for the periodic table of elements, renowned globally for his book *Principles of Chemistry*.

He discovered and summarized the periodic law, created the world's first periodic table based on atomic weight, and even predicted some yet-to-be-discovered elements.

For such an achievement, he was passed over for the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1905 and 1906 due to personal feuds.

And in 1907, this world-renowned chemist passed away from a myocardial infarction, bidding farewell to the Nobel Prize forever.

Of course, perhaps Mendeleev didn't care about it.

But there was another real-life example of someone who passionately pursued the Nobel Prize.

The founder of galactic astronomy, the pioneer of observational cosmology!

The father of extragalactic astronomy, Edwin Hubble.

That's right, the world's largest space telescope was named after him, a testament to his contributions to world astronomy.

As a man with a strong sense of vanity, he greatly desired the recognition of the world's highest honor, the Nobel Prize.

But there was no Nobel Prize in Astronomy. So he proposed that Hubble's Law provided empirical evidence for the expansion of the universe.

In 1953, after being jointly recommended by many giants in the fields of physics and astronomy, just as he had a chance to win the Nobel Prize in Physics, he suddenly died of a cerebral thrombosis just days before the prize was to be announced.

One could only say it was a matter of timing and fate.

It seems that living a long life is what truly matters!

Back in his dorm, he followed his routine and took a nap for about half an hour.

Someone of Ma Yuheng's age probably wouldn't be too early.

So, Lu Shixian headed to the lab at two in the afternoon.

Unexpectedly, when he arrived, Ma Yuheng was already there waiting for him.

"Professor Ma, you're here so early. Don't you take an afternoon nap?" he asked, surprised.

Ma Yuheng immediately threw Lu Shixian's words from that morning back at him. "How can you sleep at your age?"

The remark left Lu Shixian stunned.

"Since you're here, let's get started early."

The research work that followed was rather tedious.

It involved using various methods to find the ultimate decisive biological factor.

It was like peeling an onion layer by layer, tracing back from many indirect factors to find the final, direct one.

This work required a massive amount of time and effort.

The afternoon flew by in an instant.

"Are the subsequent experimental plans and operating procedures all designed?"

"All designed!"

"Have all the lab equipment and materials been inventoried? Running back and forth to fetch things later is a major taboo."

Lu Shixian nodded again in response.

"Alright then, that's it for today. I'll drop by from time to time to check on your progress." Leaving that sentence behind, Ma Yuheng made a quick escape.

"Old folks really can't handle the late nights!" Lu Shixian shook his head and sat back down at the lab bench to continue his unfinished experiment.

Over the next few days.

No matter how busy he was, Ma Yuheng would come by to check on Lu Shixian's experiment and offer some guiding advice.

This actually came as a pleasant surprise to Lu Shixian.

And you had to hand it to him, an old professor was an old professor.

The few casual remarks he made always hit the crux of the problem, saving Lu Shixian a great deal of time he would have wasted on detours.

Half a month later.

Under this fulfilling yet intense rhythm, Lu Shixian finally narrowed the target range from cytokines to biological targets.

The final battle was about to begin.

Chapter 235: Does This Count as a Nobel-Level Discovery?

On an evening on November 5th.

The time on the computer showed ten o'clock.

In the lab, two figures, one old and one young, were still fighting a hard battle under the incandescent lights.

Ma Yuheng would normally never be here at this hour.

But they had reached the final juncture.

Over the past half-month, through countless experiments, Lu Shixian had finally narrowed the suspects down to three.

And now, the mystery was about to be revealed.

The true culprit was about to surface.

"Professor Ma, the final analysis is out. As expected, it's not interleukin-2," Lu Shixian said to Ma Yuheng, who was sitting and observing from the side.

Ma Yuheng took off his glasses and rubbed his tired eyes, trying to wake himself up a little.

Staying up late was already a great test for him.

"Take a look at the morphology under the microscope. See what it is."

Lu Shixian was also feeling weary, but now was clearly not the time to rest.

He forced himself to stay alert, placed the substance from the final analysis under the microscope, and observed it for a moment. It didn't seem to be any cellular substance he was familiar with.

"It seems to be neither the soluble protein nor the inducible protein we predicted."

Hearing this, Ma Yuheng found it strange.

"According to my estimates, it should be one of those two receptors."

"Take another close look at the protein morphology. My old eyes can't see clearly, but surely you can?"

Lu Shixian had no choice but to observe carefully under the electron microscope.

"The structure is a bit complex, but it appears to be a membrane protein."

The more he spoke, the more Ma Yuheng felt something was off.

"You can't recognize it? Your foundation in cell biology should be quite solid."

Lu Shixian gave a wry smile. "The image is a bit blurry, and it doesn't look like several of the common proteins."

"But based on the number of helices, it seems to resemble that one... but that's too outrageous. I suspect my eyes are playing tricks on me."

Ma Yuheng grew more and more curious about what he was saying, because he knew Lu Shixian wouldn't joke around during an experiment.

He quickly asked, "What is it? Tell me."

After a moment, Lu Shixian said, "The morphology looks a bit like a GPCR!"

"What?" Ma Yuheng shot up from his seat with a start.

"You didn't see it wrong, did you?" His tone was filled with disbelief.

Lu Shixian knew he would have this reaction and explained, "The resolution on your electron microscope isn't good enough!"

"My eyes are about to go blind, and I still can't make out the specific structure clearly. I can only see a few transmembrane helices."

Ma Yuheng's previous calm and fatigue vanished, replaced by a surge of intense excitement.

"What do you mean, not good enough? You just don't know how to use it. Watch me."

"You go rest on the side. Let me take a look." Ma Yuheng quickly shooed Lu Shixian away and pressed his own head to the microscope's eyepiece.

He skillfully began to make fine adjustments to the electron microscope.

A few minutes later, a relatively clear image appeared in Ma Yuheng's view.

Indeed, there were 7 transmembrane helices.

And on the intracellular loop connecting the 5th and 6th transmembrane helices, there were G-protein binding sites.

This was the classic structural hallmark of GPCRs.

Ma Yuheng was completely stunned. He stood up, looked at Lu Shixian, and after a long pause, squeezed out a sentence.

"You are absolutely ridiculous!"

"It actually turned out to be a major discovery!"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian could no longer contain his excitement and rushed back to the electron microscope to look.

With just one glance, his blood surged, as if he'd been injected with adrenaline. It was a little frightening.

Perhaps no one had heard of GPCRs, but if you mentioned its other name, almost everyone would know it.

G protein-coupled receptor!

The first GPCR was discovered in the retina of the eye in the 19th century.

It has a long history of discovery, but research on G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) has seemingly always been a key focus and hot topic in cell biology.

This was evident from the number of Nobel Prizes associated with it.

A single protein receptor that spanned the fields of biology, chemistry, and physics.
As early as 1936, the physiologist Otto Loewi was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his discovery of acetylcholine's role in the nervous system.

The acetylcholine receptor is, in fact, a GPCR, though at the time, no one knew it was a G protein-coupled receptor.

In 1957, the Italian scientist Daniel Bovet received that year's Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for inventing a highly effective anti-allergy drug. His antihistamines primarily targeted the H1 and H2 receptors, both of which belong to the GPCR family.

In 1967, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was shared by three scientists from different countries for their research on the mechanism of rhodopsin in the visual system. Rhodopsin and photopsin are among the most extensively studied members of the GPCR family.

In 1994, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Americans Alfred G. Gilman and Martin Rodbell for their discovery of G-proteins and their role in signal transduction in cells, which laid the foundation for the concept of GPCRs.

The Nobel-winning achievements in Physiology or Medicine in both 2000 and 2004 were also related to GPCRs.

If he remembered correctly, in 2012, the American scientists Robert Lefkowitz and Brian Kobilka would share the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their studies of GPCRs.

Their award-winning work was on the internal working mechanisms of G protein-coupled receptors.

And his current experiment happened to prove the significant role of G protein-coupled receptors in biological immune regulation.

Lu Shixian couldn't contain his joy as he turned his gaze to Ma Yuhuan.

"Professor Ma, would you say this is a Nobel-level discovery?"

Hearing this, Ma Yuhuan burst out laughing.

"In your dreams!"

"A Nobel-level discovery?"

"This idea was proposed by foreign scientists long ago. They started researching this back in 1980 and spent decades on it to get their results. How long have you been at it?"

Ma Yuhuan continued his relentless reality check.

"The theories they've proposed are a hundred times more complete than yours. At best, you've just chipped off a tiny piece at the edge."

After hearing this, Lu Shixian understood. He had gotten a little carried away.

The Nobel Prize!

Even if some in the country held it in utter contempt, claiming it was monopolized by foreign capital, that was beside the point.

If that prize were dangled in front of him, he would immediately eat his own words.

It was truly the honor and award that every researcher dreamed of.

But how could a discovery of that caliber be so easy to find?

Putting aside his unrealistic fantasies, Lu Shixian finally calmed down.

His knowledge of the cutting edge of cell biology was indeed limited. Fortunately, an expert was sitting right next to him, and it was much more convenient to just ask.

"Professor Ma, what is the research value of this discovery?"

"Since someone has already proposed the idea, do I still have a chance of publishing in an SCI journal?"

Chapter 236: A Bit of Strategic Association

"Why wouldn't you be able to publish it?"

"And let me tell you, your work can be considered a supplement and verification of their theories."

"Plus, GPCRs have been a hot research topic for years. You've basically tapped right into a trend."

With Ma Yuhuan's reassurance, Lu Shixian felt a great deal of relief.

He had been immersed in the fields of botany and agriculture before, and he never expected to cross over into cell biology.

Although he felt a bit uncertain, he was lucky to have a seasoned veteran guiding him. Otherwise, he would have taken many more wrong turns.

Ma Yuhuan yawned and mumbled, "You can start writing the paper. Remember, it has to be entirely in English."

"Figure that out yourself. I'm going home to sleep."

He didn't need the reminder; Lu Shixian knew what was required for the paper. Still, he expressed his gratitude and walked the professor to the lab entrance.

It was unavoidable. To submit to international journals these days, you basically had to write in English.

You couldn't get into an international journal without a decent command of the language.

Next up was the paper-writing grind.

But before that, Lu Shixian just wanted to sleep.

He was utterly exhausted.

For the past half-month, he had been arriving at the lab at 8 AM and leaving at 11 PM, almost every single day.

As for his classes, he had already asked Yuan Qingmei to request leave for him.

This period had been even more intense than his last semester.

His roommates saw Lu Shixian leaving early and returning late. They knew he was busy, but they had no idea what he was up to this time.

Of course, they were used to it by now.

Just then, Lu Shixian pushed open the door to their dorm.

The three of them instinctively glanced at the time on their phones.

"Something's not right with the time. It's only eight o'clock. You're back way too early, Fourth Brother!" Lin Chenyi teased with a grin.

Chang Wenchao was even more over the top.

"I say, Fourth Brother, why do you look so drained?"

"Were you out getting into some kind of trouble?"

Lu Shixian was too tired to even muster a retort. He grabbed a towel and headed straight for the bathroom.

When he emerged a dozen minutes later, the dorm had fallen silent.

Lu Shixian climbed onto his bunk as quietly as possible.

Less than five minutes later, he was in a deep sleep.

In the dorm room, the glow of three phone screens quietly reappeared.

The night passed without a word.

When Lu Shixian woke up, thanks to his resilient biological clock, it was already ten in the morning.

He quickly got ready and ate breakfast.

Grabbing his laptop, Lu Shixian headed straight for the library.

Sigh, it was time for the paper grind again.

Great. Last time he'd binge-read over fifty papers; now it was his turn to write one.

Lu Shixian felt that after this, he would seriously need to find some time to let his liver recover.

But writing a paper and reading one were two completely different things.

Reading papers was about grasping the main ideas without getting bogged down in every detail, choosing to read in-depth or skim based on your needs.

But whether you read closely or skimmed, the key was to understand the paper's core concepts and principles, without fussing over minor points.

Writing a paper, however, demanded a rigorous structure, concise expression, and solid evidence, all while using standardized professional terminology.

In short, you had to pay attention to details everywhere; there were a lot of rules.

But in Lu Shixian's own view, writing a good paper was much like what Yan Fu wrote in the preface to his translation of *On Evolution*.

"Translation presents three difficulties: faithfulness, expressiveness, and elegance. To achieve faithfulness is already a great challenge. Yet, if a translation is faithful but not expressive, it is as if it were not translated at all. Thus, expressiveness is paramount."

In other words: accuracy, clarity, and elegance.

This time, his target was an SCI journal, and hopefully one that was not a low-impact one.

On top of that, there were three more requirements.

Originality, solid evidence, and significance.

This depended partly on the quality of his research results, but a large part also depended on how well the paper was written.

Because results are presented through the paper.

Even if your findings are astounding, it's all empty talk if what you've written fails to support your conclusion.

Opening a blank document, Lu Shixian began writing the first part.

To avoid missing anything and to keep the paper focused, he decided to skip the keywords and title for now.

Instead, he started with Materials and Methods, and Results.

This paper employed flow cytometry for extensive experimental observation of T-cell expression, and through microscopic observation, it was discovered that...

The main instruments and reagents used in this experiment include...

Writing the paper now, Lu Shixian felt as if a floodgate had opened in his mind. Words flowed from his internal logic straight onto the document.

His efficiency was far greater than when he wrote his first paper.

By the time he paused, he had reached the Discussion section.

The results and introduction were simply presentations of the experiment's outcomes, straightforward to write.

He only needed to think for a moment, and the content appeared naturally.

Read ten thousand books, and you shall write with divine aid.

Of course, this state of flow wasn't just because he had read a massive number of papers.

The most important factor was having been involved in the experiment from beginning to end, which gave him an intimate knowledge of every step.

Writing the paper was simply the process of recreating the thought process behind his experiment.

Next came the Discussion and Conclusion.

This part was actually less concerned with strict logic and structure.

Previously, he would write whatever came to mind, as long as he could justify it in the end.

This time, he decided to strictly follow the template of international journal articles.

Anything for an SCI paper. No shame in that.

Part One: Core research findings.

Part Two: A paragraph-by-paragraph in-depth narrative of important experimental indicators and data.

Part Three: Limitations and highlights.

Surely no one would actually write about their own paper's flaws, like potentially inaccurate data or unclear theoretical logic, right?

As for the highlights, he would just elevate them as much as possible.

A little embellishment was fine, but nothing too exaggerated.

Here, Lu Shixian prepared for a bit of strategic association.

He would try to closely link the significance and impact of his paper to the research of the Nobel laureates from two years later.

To be fair, his research findings were indeed a small piece of their theoretical puzzle.

Paying homage. A basic move.

The final abstract and title would be the easiest part, no need to elaborate.

The basic outline and framework of the paper were now complete.

Lu Shixian's next step was to slowly fill it in, like adding flesh and blood to a skeleton.

Five days later, thanks to all these favorable factors, a paper titled "The Role of a GPCR in Cellular Immune Function Regulation Under Inflammatory Conditions" was freshly completed.

Chapter 237: Are You Sure You're Really Just a Sophomore?

Out of curiosity, Lu Shixian did a quick search on CNKI, just to see if any other clever minds had been on the same wavelength as him.

The result was, as expected, nothing. This was his own genuine idea.

In that regard, Lu Shixian was confident.

But having done mostly outdoor experiments before, this was the first time he had written a microscopic-level paper involving molecular and cellular biology.

After printing a copy at the print shop, Lu Shixian decided to find Ma Yuhuan first to get his feedback.

He gave him a heads-up, and this was his first time visiting Ma Yuhuan's office.

What he didn't expect was to find another young man already inside.

He didn't seem to have seen him before, but he appeared to be quite familiar with Professor Ma.

"Ah, perfect timing. Let me introduce you."

"This is my current doctoral student, Zhang Yunliang."

Lu Shixian glanced at Ma Yuhuan in surprise. He hadn't realized the professor was so accomplished.

He was a doctoral supervisor.

The requirements for being a doctoral supervisor were profound achievements in undergraduate teaching, an academic level at the forefront of the country, and a research direction that was internationally leading.

At that moment, Zhang Yunliang extended a friendly hand toward Lu Shixian.

"Well, a new junior, are we?"

"What year of your Master's are you in?"

Lu Shixian shook his hand while explaining, "Hello, Senior Zhang. My name is Lu Shixian. I'm a sophomore."

"Oh, a second-year Master's..." But Zhang Yunliang quickly processed what he'd heard.

"What did you say? A sophomore?" His expression froze.

Zhang Yunliang couldn't help but turn to look at Professor Ma.

Ma Yuhuan, however, explained with a cheerful smile, "This young man here has produced a Nobel-level discovery. What right do I have to be his teacher?"

Hearing this, Zhang Yunliang's expression grew even stranger.

Meanwhile, beads of sweat formed on Lu Shixian's forehead.

What on earth?

"Please, don't tease me, Professor. How will I ever show my face again?" Lu Shixian pleaded.

"Haha, didn't you finish your experiment already? Why are you back here instead of working on your paper?" Ma Yuhuan asked, curious.

"I just finished writing it."

"I was hoping you could take a look for me," Lu Shixian said with a smile.

Hearing this, Ma Yuhuan looked at him with renewed interest.

"You're a fast writer, kid. Looks like you've pulled a few more all-nighters."

"Hand it over. Didn't I tell you not to stay up so late when you're young?"

Lu Shixian had actually been very efficient these past few days and hadn't stayed up late much at all.

So he ignored the last part of the professor's comment and handed him the printed paper with both hands.

Beside them, Zhang Yunliang curiously craned his neck to see.

A sophomore?

An experiment?

A paper?

So mysterious.

What was this all about?

But the moment his eyes fell on the page, his curious expression began to change.

He was a doctoral candidate at Yan University specializing in cell biology. To be accepted by Ma Yuhuan, he was naturally quite skilled.

He only needed to see the title: *The Role of a GPCR in Cellular Immune Function Regulation Under Inflammatory Conditions*.

Picking out the keywords, he knew this paper was no simple matter.

GPCR was one of the most important and heavily researched areas in cell biology.

That made it incredibly difficult to produce new results, because countless researchers had poured their energy into it for decades.

If there was something to be found, it likely would have been found already.

But on the other hand, if you did find something, it was likely to be a major discovery.

So?

Could it be?

He couldn't help but steal a glance at Lu Shixian.

This kid was something else.

Zhang Yunliang's mind was racing with curiosity, but the paper was in Ma Yuhuan's hands, and he didn't dare snatch it away to read the rest.

Fortunately, a few minutes later, Ma Yuhuan finished reading the entire paper.

He handed it to Zhang Yunliang while nodding in approval. "The paper is well-written!"

"Especially the English narration. It's very authentic. It's clear you didn't just run this through some shoddy online translator."

"Those things are aptly named. The translations they spit out are truly toxic."

At this, even Lu Shixian couldn't hold it in and burst out laughing.

Around this time, online translation software had just emerged.

Many people found it convenient, allowing them to translate various languages anytime, anywhere.

Of course, it also led to numerous jokes, with academic papers being a prime example.

Many students, whether for simplicity or novelty, would use translation software to convert their Chinese papers into English.

But a mechanical online translation could only convey the most basic meaning.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but think to himself: it seems even the professors at Yan University have been suffering from this recently.

By now, Zhang Yunliang had finished the paper. He was utterly astonished and gave Lu Shixian a look of deep admiration.

"Junior Lu, are you sure you're really just a sophomore?"

"This paper could probably get into an SCI journal, right? You must be one of the top students in your college."

Lu Shixian quickly waved his hands. "Not at all, not at all. Yuanpei College is full of hidden talents. I'm just an insignificant member."

Zhang Yunliang hadn't attended Yan University as an undergraduate. Hearing Lu Shixian's words, he was left speechless.

"Are all the undergrads at Yan University this strong now?"

"You don't even rank among the top in your college?"

Professor Ma finally stepped in, shooting a look at Lu Shixian.

"Don't listen to this kid. He's just joking around."

"Everyone in Yuanpei College studies different things, so it's hard to compare. But if he were in the School of Life Sciences, he'd probably be number one or two."

Now Zhang Yunliang understood.

As long as everyone else was still human, he could rest easy.

Otherwise, life would be impossible. He silently compared his own papers to Lu Shixian's.

He was completely outclassed.

It was one thing for his research findings to be on a lower level than Lu Shixian's; after all, besides skill, that sometimes came down to connections or luck.

But to have written papers for years and still be less adept than a sophomore was a bit hard for him to accept.

While Zhang Yunliang was lost in his thoughts, Ma Yuhuan finally gave his evaluation of the paper.

"This paper still has some flaws, but they're all minor issues. Not many changes will be needed."

"Which journal are you thinking of submitting to?" Ma Yuhuan asked curiously.

He knew Lu Shixian was aiming for an SCI journal, but the choice of journal was actually very important.

Every journal has different preferences and styles.

General social science journals were out of the question, completely mismatched.

Lu Shixian's paper could be submitted to a general science journal or a specialized journal.

And he was no academic novice anymore. Compared to general science journals, specialized SCI journals had the advantage of high academic value and strong specialization, but the disadvantage was that they were very difficult to get into, as everyone in the field was a competitor.

You'd have to have a truly major breakthrough that could beat out all other high-quality papers from the same period.

Lu Shixian thought for a moment and gave his answer.

Chapter 238: Isn't That a Bit Too Much of a Leap?

"*Nature*..."

At that, the hand Ma Yuhuan was using to hold his cigarette trembled almost imperceptibly.

Zhang Yunliang's mouth twitched uncontrollably.

"Junior Lu, are you serious?"

"Honestly, if you said *Cell*, I could kind of understand."

"But *Nature*... isn't that a bit too much of a leap?"

Lu Shixian looked at their reactions and couldn't help but say, "Can you let me finish?"

"I was about to say, *Nature Cell Biology*."

Hearing his explanation, the two of them finally nodded.

Okay, that made sense.

They understood his reasoning.

Many people had similar ambitions.

Before becoming an international authority, the allure of CNS—Cell, Nature, Science—was just that powerful.

If I can't publish in a main CNS journal, then a subsidiary journal should be fine, right?

But in reality, even the subsidiary journals weren't that easy to get into.

Any journal bearing the name of CNS or The Lancet generally had an impact factor of around 20 or higher.

Subsidiary journals like these, alongside other established top-tier journals, formed the second tier, just below the main publications.

The third tier of journals consisted of those indexed by SCI or other common databases.

Besides the lesser-known SSCI, SCIE, and CPCI, EI used to be quite popular as well.

As one of the giants in scientific and technical literature indexing, its journals were of very high quality and extremely authoritative.

But at some point, publishing in SCI journals became the standard metric for quantifying a researcher's level, both in China and around the world.

And the trend only intensified from there.

Moreover, you had to be in Q1 at the very least to even reach the threshold of the third tier.
In 2010, the number of papers Chinese scholars could publish in CNS journals was just over one hundred.

Although the number published in their subsidiary journals was slightly higher, the authors were still leading figures in their respective fields.

There was no helping it; scientific research, in truth, also ran on connections and favors.

For a paper of average quality to be published in such a top-tier journal, it was highly likely the author was an old acquaintance of the editorial department or one of the top three scholars in their field.

We often find that the quality of research published by domestic scholars in other journals is on par with that published in CNS.

This was because, aside from truly world-class breakthroughs, they simply wouldn't give you the time of day, automatically tossing your paper to one of their subsidiary journals for review.

Therefore, the inner workings of academic journals were not something that could be explained in just a few words.

However, in their eyes, Lu Shixian's idea to submit to *Nature Cell Biology* was still a bit of a gamble.

Because Lu Shixian was just a nobody right now. After his paper was sent to the editor's email, it would most likely just gather dust.

Who would ignore the papers of renowned university professors to pay attention to the work of an undergraduate?

Just then, Zhang Yunliang gave Lu Shixian a good suggestion.

"Junior Brother Lu, although your paper is quite novel, it's still an incremental innovation."

"A *Nature* subsidiary journal is the real deal, of course, but it's too much of a long shot. The time cost in the middle is just too great."

"To be safe, I think you'd be better off submitting to *Cell Research*, a journal founded by our own people."

As soon as he said this, even Ma Yuheng nodded in agreement.

"That's right. *Cell Research* is also an SCI Q1 journal. Its impact factor has already reached 9.417 this year."

"Yunliang's suggestion is excellent. Your chances of getting accepted there are very high."

Lu Shixian fell silent after hearing this. How could he not know that submitting to *Cell Research* was a near-certain acceptance?

He even knew that in ten years, this journal's impact factor would skyrocket to 20.507.

It would directly surpass many high-end subsidiary journals under *Nature* and *Cell* in its field, including *Nature Structural & Molecular Biology* and *Molecular Cell*.

Even *Nature Cell Biology*, the journal he was about to submit to, would be among them.

But he couldn't bring himself to settle.

*Cell Research* was impressive, yes, but that was ten years in the future.

The paper he submitted now couldn't just sit there and appreciate in value like other assets.

If he missed this opportunity, he truly didn't know when he would next discover something worthy of such a journal.

He carefully weighed the gains and losses.

In the end, he made a different decision from the first time he submitted a paper.

He chose to stand firm in his own idea, unswayed by others.

"It's fine. I'll just consider it trying my luck."

"The worst that can happen is it gets rejected, and I'll just submit it to another journal," Lu Shixian said to the two of them.

All they could do was offer advice.

Since the person involved had made his decision, Ma Yuheng and Zhang Yunliang both nodded and said no more.

After bidding them farewell, Lu Shixian returned to the library, found a spot with a good campus network connection, and began the process of submitting his paper.

To be honest, he felt a little uncertain at this moment.

In the field of cell biology, this journal's authority was second only to *Cell* magazine itself.

It was extremely specialized. To what degree?

The acceptance rate was incredibly low. About 96% of manuscripts were rejected in the first round, with only a very small number proceeding to peer review.

But this opportunity was too rare to pass up. He wouldn't be satisfied until he tried.

He had made this decision after deep consideration.

The sunk cost was well within a range he could bear.

And if he succeeded, the return would be far greater than the investment.

He opened the journal's official website and, following the all-English information, eventually found the submission email address.

Before submitting, Lu Shixian began a final check of his paper.

According to the address on the website, the journal's editorial office was in Gilly Country.

He started revising some of the wording to conform to British English grammar and style, then saved the document.

Generally speaking, there are three ways to submit to an SCI journal.

By mail.

By email.

Online submission.

With the maturation of information technology, the last two methods had become the most common.

The last time, Lu Shixian had chosen to send an email.

He had also experienced its drawbacks.

The back-and-forth communication between him and the reviewer, mediated by the editor, was extremely inefficient and had caused him considerable frustration.

So, this time, he chose online submission.

The first step was to register an author account.

He clicked on the "Online Registration" section.

Lu Shixian began to follow the steps.

Name: Shixian Lu

Institution: Yanking University

Address: Yuanpei College of Yanking University

Next came his phone number and email...

Finally, it was time to input the paper.

He needed to enter the paper's contents into the designated fields: title, authors, abstract, keywords, main text, and so on.

This step allowed for no carelessness; he had to ensure every part was complete.

Sometimes, a minor mistake causing incomplete content would lead to even greater trouble.

Chapter 239: The Opportunist and the Megalomaniac

After entering all the content of the paper, Lu Shixian had considered writing a self-introduction.

But this submission method, unlike email, didn't have a space in the main body for an introduction.

Although he could add it in the website's online editor, that would add something to the paper that didn't belong.

He didn't like that feeling.

An IBO championship was nothing to brag about here.

The only thing he could really write about was his research experience from publishing a paper in a Chinese core journal.

But in reality, writing about a Chinese core journal was the same as writing nothing at all.

So, he decided against it.

After clicking "Submit."

Within minutes, an automated email receipt from the editorial office was sent to Lu Shixian's inbox.

This meant his paper had been successfully submitted.

Lu Shixian saved the confirmation page that popped up on the website after the successful submission and let out a long sigh of relief.

Now began the long wait.

Online submission was convenient, but it required being online frequently to check the status.

However, this wasn't a problem for him.

By this point in the semester, he had a lot of free time.

So much so that he was already starting to worry about how to spend the second semester of his sophomore year.

He was afraid he might run out of classes to take.

But it wasn't time to decide that yet; he still had plenty of time to think.

Picking up his textbook, Lu Shixian began to catch up on the classes he had missed over the past few days.

The paper was important, but he couldn't slack off on his final exams either.

If his GPA wasn't up to par, even with great achievements in competitions and academics, he wouldn't be admitted.

Of course, for him.

This work was far more pleasant than being in the lab. It was like being on vacation.

Half a month later.

Western Europe, Gilly Country.

In a domed turret across the ocean.

A charming-looking, middle-aged blond man walked into a luxurious office.

He turned on the gas switch on the wall-mounted furnace, and the temperature in the room gradually rose.

Pouring himself a glass of fine wine, he sat down in a chair upholstered with soft genuine leather.

He was Barov Willocks, the editor-in-chief of *Nature Cell Biology*.

As one of the oldest subject areas under the *Nature* umbrella, his status among the editors of other subsidiary journals was quite lofty.

From nine in the morning to twelve noon.

And again from one in the afternoon to five in the evening.

Although he held great power, he had always diligently maintained an eight-hour workday.

Never less, and never more.

Barov took a sip of wine, opened his computer, and prepared to officially begin the day's work.

As the final editor, the manuscripts he saw had already been through a preliminary review by the handling editors.

So his workload wasn't too heavy.

He clicked open the internal webpage, and a full page of neatly arranged paper manuscripts appeared.

The quality of the manuscripts that reached him had already been vetted, and his main job was to select the reviewers.

Generally, authors might specify reviewers to avoid, but this was rare. A significant portion required the editorial office to decide.

Years of experience in the industry made him incredibly efficient.

With a flick of his fingertips, he assigned several papers to a few reviewers.

But when he reached the third-to-last manuscript, his gaze froze.

A Chinese name?

How rare!

Although it wasn't uncommon for Chinese authors to submit to CNS subsidiary journals, not many passed the editorial review, and those who passed the peer review were as rare as a phoenix's feathers.

Spread across all the journals, it was even rarer for one to land at *Nature Cell Biology*.

In the past year, he could count the number of submissions he had received from China on one hand.

Unsure if it was the author's fortune or misfortune, Barov found himself more interested in this manuscript.

After all, seeing some new faces amidst a busy workload was a form of entertainment.

He had been about to casually assign it to a few reviewers who were free recently, but this momentary pause made him reconsider.

Before becoming editor-in-chief, he had worked his way up from being a handling editor, so his professional skills were naturally sharp.

Curious, he opened the main text, ready to see what new breakthroughs this mysterious Eastern country had made in the field of cell biology.

Having dealt with them before, he had an impression of several top cell biologists from China.

"Let me guess, is it Zhai or Zhou?"

But when he saw the institution, he realized he had guessed wrong.

"Yanking University? Then it must be Cheng! He's been very active in the field of calcium signaling in cells recently. A beautiful field."

But what he saw next was a direct shock to his system, something he found a little hard to accept.

"Bloody hell!"

"An undergraduate?"

"I must have overexerted myself last night to be seeing this!"

Barov shook his head, struggling to banish the enchanting memories of the previous night from his mind, then wiped his glasses.

But the information he saw remained the same.

"What the devil!"

Barov cursed, his curiosity about the paper's content growing even stronger.

This feeling compelled him to read on, which was a very rare occurrence.

"The Role of a GPCR in the Regulation of Cellular Immune Function under Inflammatory Conditions."

But after just one glance, he lost interest.

"Damn it, do these people have nothing to write about besides GPCRs?"

"Every single one of them treats GPCRs like a gold mine. They've been digging at it for decades and still won't stop."

"Do they really think GPCRs can still win a Nobel Prize?"

"Fine for those old fossils, but now even an undergraduate is joining the circus. This is just insane."

Barov fell back into a state of aesthetic fatigue and didn't read any further.

He had lost count of how many papers on GPCRs he had received.

But very few of them ever made it past the reviewers.

Barov shook his head, originally planning to just find a few random reviewers to deal with it as he had before.

But then, a thought struck him, and he suddenly smiled and changed one of the names.

"Let's send this paper to disgust that big-bearded American."

"A nauseating opportunist is a perfect match for a delusional megalomaniac."

"Simply perfect."

As he moved on to the next manuscript, he chuckled in anticipation, "I wonder how that stubborn Robert will 'educate' this undergraduate."

"Probably something like, 'Who the hell do you think you are to be researching GPCRs? Get the hell out of my sight!'"

"'You're not even weaned yet, go back to your mother's womb and play in the mud!'"

"Hahaha."

With his wild laughter, the manuscript was sent across an ocean in an instant.

Chapter 240: This Doesn't Seem Quite Right?

"We are shared, rented, occupied. It is the cherished belief of human beings that we are engaged in orders of work that outweigh the labors of all other living creatures. We could be saved from this conceit if we were able to feel for a moment the shiver of recognition. We are not. We are a part of the system." (Essay 1: The Lives of a Cell)

"An accidental assembly of orderly structure, never destined to be permanent, keeping its poise by the skin of its teeth, ready to relapse into chaos at a moment's notice, and holding out against entropy only because of the unremitting, constant flow of energy from the sun." (Essay 5: The Music of This Sphere)

"The mitochondria and chloroplasts are, in a sense, the most important living things on Earth. Between them, they produce the oxygen and arrange for its use. In effect, they run the place." (Essay 14: Organelles as Organisms)

In the Yanking University library.

He had long since finished this semester's textbooks.

With nothing else to do, Lu Shixian made a reading list for himself.

Lewis Thomas's *The Lives of a Cell* was one of the books on it.

Since he couldn't mark up a borrowed book, he began to copy the original sentences into his notebook, one word at a time.

Closing the book, Lu Shixian wrote down his own thoughts and feelings in a way he understood.

"We are not truly independent individuals; we are shared, rented, and occupied by other lives. Small beings like mitochondria are stable lodgers within our bodies. Though unseen, it does not mean they do not exist."

"Many people sit atop roofs made of polymers, glass, and steel. They dangle their legs and gaze at the writhing life on this planet, unaware that they have already become separated from nature."

"The Earth is not the bubble rising gently from the surface of a country pond as we imagine, nor is it a flock of fragile little birds. It is the most resilient membrane in the universe, ignoring probability and shielding against death."

What happens when a physician, a biologist, and a science writer are combined into one? Lewis Thomas provided his own answer.

Reading such a book, which encompassed thoughts on life, society, and even the universe, was like admiring the world's most beautiful scenery without ever leaving home.

He nudged the mouse next to his right hand and logged onto the journal's official website.

Checking for the red dot indicating a new message had become something of a habit for him.

Since it was a foreign website, there was a slight delay in loading.

Five seconds later.

In the upper right corner of the webpage.

Lu Shixian was stunned to see that the icon next to his name was different from before.

A bright red dot had appeared before his eyes.

"No way."

Lu Shixian rubbed his eyes hard.

This was still just the review stage.

The last time he published a paper, most of the time was spent on revisions; the initial response had been very quick.

But this time, he had waited for over a month.

This was highly unusual. Even for an SCI journal, the review period was typically around seven to thirty days.

The month-long silence had made him suspect that his submission hadn't gone through successfully.

And now, finally, there was a result.

Lu Shixian quickly grabbed the water bottle beside him and took a small sip.

He felt his heart wasn't beating as wildly as it had been a moment ago.

He clicked on the red dot, and a dialog box popped up.

"MS. REF. NO.: XXX-S-10-00242"

"TITLE: The Role of GPCR in the Regulation of Cellular Immune Function under Inflammatory Conditions."

One was the manuscript number, the other the paper's title.

This was basic information, so Lu Shixian skipped right over it.

Below it were the reviewers' comments on his paper.

The content was, of course, entirely in English, which Lu Shixian automatically translated in his head.

"Dear Lu,"

"The reviewers have now commented on your paper and have recommended reconsideration of your paper following major revision. If you are prepared to undertake the work required, I would be pleased to reconsider your manuscript."

"For your guidance, the reviewers' comments are included below."

Generally, an SCI journal has 3-5 anonymous reviewers.

Lu Shixian glanced through and saw that he had received comments from three reviewers.

Reviewer #1: "This paper innovatively proposes the important role of GPCR in the regulation of biological immune function under inflammatory conditions. It is a significant supplementary proof of GPCR's participation in physiological processes."

"Therefore, this finding is highly significant, but the paper has several issues that need to be addressed."

"1) The paper uses flow cytometry. Such a research method requires structured tables and charts for better presentation."

"2) Do not include too many emotional factors towards other scientists in the text. Trust me, that bearded guy isn't as great as you think."

"3) You must select some examples from previous literature for discussion, which has been largely neglected in this paper."

Reading through the comments one by one, Lu Shixian breathed a sigh of relief.

This reviewer's questions seemed numerous, but they were all minor issues that were easy to revise.

The second reviewer's comments were similar, just without the second point.

A sense of joy welled up in his heart.

Next, he immediately looked at the third set of reviewer comments.

But the moment he saw it, he was dumbfounded.

What the hell?

It started right off with criticism.

Reviewer #3: "1) Your English tone is disgusting. Do you normally eat with that mouth? Be smart, use proper, standard grammar, will you?"

Although being scolded like this was unpleasant, it didn't touch on any substantive issues, so he decided to ignore it.

Speaking of grammar, he suddenly remembered that he had made some minor changes at the end.

Could it be?

The reviewers weren't all from Gilly Country?

He suddenly realized his move had been rather foolish.

It seemed this reviewer had quite a temper.

Lu Shixian braced himself for the storm that was to follow.

But when he looked at the next comment, he was utterly stunned.

"2) After revision, I would be pleased to re-review it in greater depth, because the content of your paper is excellent, very different from other submissions."

"Just as you said, studying the working mechanism of GPCRs will surely be a great work."
What in the world?

This completely threw Lu Shixian for a loop.

The turnaround was too fast. Something seemed a little off, didn't it?

But he had no time to dwell on it.

Because his eyes had already landed on the final line: the overall recommendation for his paper.

Chapter 241: Doesn't This Deserve a Perfect Score?

"Once the aforementioned issues are adequately addressed, the paper will be suitable for publication in this journal."

A sudden surge of joy washed over him as he read that line.

After all, while the itemized list of comments above was long.

A dozen plus sprawling comments—quantitatively, it certainly looked like a major revision was in order.

But many of the suggestions weren't difficult to implement; none of them touched upon the fundamental logic of the paper.

Lu Shixian immediately set aside his reading plan and got to work on the revisions.

But while he was celebrating, little did he know that on the other side of the ocean, someone was utterly bewildered because of him.

"Something's wrong. Terribly wrong."

"The other reviewers recommending 'accept with revisions,' I could let that slide."

"But how could even Robert be speaking up for him? And with so many words of praise in his review, no less." Barov couldn't make heads or tails of it.

Just two days prior, he had received responses to all the review requests he'd sent out.

He had specifically pulled up the review file for this Chinese undergraduate, eager for some drama.

He never expected the result would leave him so dumbfounded.

Almost all the comments were about trivialities.

Especially Robert's. The opening sentence was harsh, sure.

But the rest was nothing but encouragement and praise.

He had to search hard just to pick out a seemingly innocuous sentence to include in the reply letter.

Was this something "the Beard" would do?

Could the online flame war he'd seen between him and Mobius on social media have been fake?

Mobius was a professor of medicine at the Gilly Imperial College, whose research focused on the treatment of diseases like diabetes and aldosteronoma (APA).

He had simply published a paper related to GPCRs in *Nature Cell Biology*, which Robert somehow stumbled upon later.

The two of them went at it on social media for nearly a week, ending with Robert blasting him: "I can't believe a piece of incoherent garbage written by a layman could get published. It's hilarious."

Barov had been enjoying the drama from the sidelines, never expecting the fire to spread to his own doorstep.

From that day on, Robert was on the internal blacklist of reviewers for *Nature Cell Biology*.

So this outcome was truly beyond all expectation.

Barov now had a deep impression of this undergraduate from the East.

Unable to contain his curiosity, he logged onto an academic journal website and searched for "shixianlu."

Huh?

It actually exists!

There was one article in *JPNJVETRES* (Journal of American Veterinary Research).

Shixian Lu, College of Animal Husbandry Engineering and Technology, "Treatment Methods for Postpartum Diseases in Sows and Key Points of Postpartum Care."

Impact Factor 0.627?

What the hell is this journal?

And it's even indexed in SCI!

And wasn't he an undergraduate?

How did he suddenly become a master's student?

At that moment, Barov's mind was a complete mess.

And Lu Shixian had no idea how much trouble he had caused for a certain someone.

The rest of the process went smoothly.

Two days later, he opened the journal's official website again and resubmitted his paper.

That was the beauty of online submissions. In less than half an hour.

Lu Shixian received a reply: the paper had been sent to the reviewers.

Another three days passed.

After an agonizing wait, his eyes glued to his inbox, he finally received a reply from the editorial office.

"Accepted!"

The rest of the email informed Lu Shixian that his paper had been accepted for the next issue of *Nature Cell Biology*.

Seeing the news, Lu Shixian pumped his fist in the air.

After nearly two months of hard work and waiting, his efforts had finally paid off.

*Nature Cell Biology* had an impact factor of over 20, making it an absolute top-tier journal at the time.

Although there was an element of luck involved, publishing a paper in this journal was undoubtedly a high affirmation of his current research abilities.

From the start of the experiment to the completion of the manuscript, this paper had taken much less time than his previous one.

Yet the energy he had expended was no less than what he had spent on the sea buckthorn research, and in fact, it was much more.

After a few moments of reflection, Lu Shixian got down to business.

After a paper is accepted, there are still matters of copyright and publication fees to handle, followed by the final proofreading of the galleys.

His joy a moment ago was matched only by his pain now.

Because the payment interface on his computer showed a publication fee of 1,200 US dollars.

Converted to RMB, that was nearly ten thousand.

He smiled as he paid through his online bank.

But inwardly, he was screaming. The pain! It was too painful!

But it was a cost he had to bear.

He was torn between joy and pain.

However, the thought of the cash awards the college gave to students who published high-level papers made him feel much better.

He just wasn't sure if the publication fee could be reimbursed.

The papers he had published before were all through his research group, and the costs were covered by project funds.

This one was published under his own name, so he was a bit unsure.

But regardless, Lu Shixian felt much more at ease.

At the very least, his goals for the semester were basically complete.

He took out his planner from his backpack.

All his courses for the semester were finished.

He had drawn lines through the "Challenge Cup" finals in October and the Capital Universities' Autumn Sports Meet.

Now, all that remained were the upcoming final exams and the research task assigned by Ma Yuhang.

He seemed to have developed a compulsion with his to-do list; once a goal was nearly complete, he had to finish it immediately.

Hearing that Ma Yuhang was in his office, Lu Shixian grabbed the official acceptance notice for his manuscript and headed straight there.

At that moment, Ma Yuhang was alone in his office.

Seeing Lu Shixian rush in, he chuckled to himself.

"This kid hasn't come looking for me in ages. The submission results must not be out yet."

"Now that finals are around the corner, he's finally starting to get anxious."

Though that's what he thought, his face remained perfectly serious.

"So? How does it feel submitting to *Nature*? Quite the experience, isn't it?" Ma Yuhang teased subtly.

Hearing this, Lu Shixian looked at Ma Yuhang with some surprise.

How is the old guy so well-informed?

How did he know I succeeded?

But he just assumed Peking University had its own channels of information and grinned at him.

"Professor, you're putting them in the same league."

"How can a subsidiary journal compare to the main one?"

"I really have to thank you for your guidance, Professor Ma. How could I have succeeded without it?"

Lu Shixian's string of words left Ma Yuhang stunned.

"What did you say?"

"You succeeded?"

Lu Shixian took out the acceptance letter and respectfully handed it to Ma Yuhang.

"Mission accomplished."

Then, as the professor's smile froze on his face, he asked cheekily, "Professor Ma, for my academic evaluation this year... it'd be wrong not to give me a perfect score, don't you think?"

Chapter 242: You Are Not the Fish, How Can You Know Its Joy?

Ma Yuhang took the notice and saw that it was indeed an acceptance letter from *Nature Cell Biology*.

The official stamp on it couldn't be faked.

He looked up and gave Lu Shixian a long, deep look.

"You are truly something else!"

Although the quality of Lu Shixian's paper was good, and getting it into an SCI journal was practically a sure thing.

But getting into a second-tier journal was still a difficult feat.

After all, this was *Nature*!

Even if it was just a subsidiary journal, not many doctoral students could publish there.

It took Ma Yuhang several minutes to accept this fact.

After sending Lu Shixian off with a promise, Ma Yuhang suddenly remembered something.

He had copied the same data for four people.

The other three had submitted their work a month ago.

As Peking University students, they took tasks assigned by their advisor quite seriously.

The formatting of their papers was standard, a testament to their strong learning abilities.

As for the quality, it was good enough for a regular domestic journal at best, as they lacked any real innovation.

It seemed Lu Shixian was already far, far ahead of his peers.

At this thought, Ma Yuhang's gaze grew profound as he became lost in thought.

As December faded away.

The calendar turned another page.

The year 2011 arrived unannounced to meet everyone.

With the end of the semester approaching, there wasn't much else going on.

He had already reviewed all the material for his exams.

Thus, Lu Shixian started spending more time in the dorm.

"Time flies, it's already 2011? And finals are in five days." Chang Wenchao was suddenly in a bit of a panic. "My major courses are fine, but I haven't even started reviewing for my general education classes."

"I'm doomed, doomed!"

He had been riding high lately. After some matchmaking from both sides, he had successfully started dating the class beauty, Jiang Xiaoqin.

He took the relationship very seriously, spending all his time on dates, chatting, and watching movies, which led to him slacking off in his studies.

"We swore an oath of eternal devotion to our studies, and you go and cheat on them behind our backs." Lu Shixian gave him a contemptuous gesture. "Now you're facing the wrath of your one true love, aren't you? Go kneel on a washboard!"

Chang Wenchao was about to retort when his phone buzzed with a message. Forgetting his words, he immediately rushed to reply.

Lu Shixian shook his head as he watched him.

"He's a lost cause! A lost cause!"

Now in dorm 4012, besides Lu Shixian and Zhang Mengting, everyone else had a girlfriend.

But Zhang Mengting was different from Lu Shixian.

Although he was in Yuanpei College, he often took classes in the School of Liberal Arts.

The School of Liberal Arts was teeming with girls. Zhang Mengting had a rugged appearance and a touch of literary talent, making him the ideal type for many girls, and he was quite the center of attention there.

Rumor had it that several girls had already written him love letters.

He was extremely popular.

Lu Shixian, on the other hand, had been keeping a low profile lately and was hardly known by anyone.

Except for the students in the School of Life Sciences who still remembered the title "God Lu," many of his own classmates probably didn't have a strong impression of him anymore.

But it couldn't be helped. Socializing would take up a huge amount of time.

He wouldn't be able to continue his research, and the results related to GPCRs would likely be delayed.

But in this world, nothing is perfect.

So he had no regrets.

"Fourth brother, I think that Su Xiao is pretty great," Lin Chenyi started his nagging again.

He had quite the knack for matchmaking these days.

"You should consider it. If it works out, it would be a match made in heaven for our two dorms."

Lin Chenyi didn't mention their eldest dorm mate.

That was because Zhang Mengting and Fang Hui's personalities seemed to clash.

True to his literary studies, Zhang Mengting was more emotional than rational.

Sometimes he could be stubborn and prone to male chauvinism.

And Fang Hui, needless to say, had a very strong personality.

Experience had proven that the two of them simply couldn't be together.

So Lin Chenyi had started trying to persuade Lu Shixian again.

But Lu Shixian's impression of Su Xiao was still stuck back at the mixer.

He was more interested in her ability to sing high notes than in her as a person.

There was nothing to be done!

These things required effort from the person involved.

The car was ready for him, but since Lu Shixian wouldn't add any fuel, it naturally wouldn't move.

Lin Chenyi talked until he was blue in the face to no effect, and finally had to give up.

After another round of final exams, Lu Shixian welcomed his second summer vacation.

The previous summer, he had spent most of his time with the rice-crayfish co-culture model research group.

Last December, he had received a call from Ke Jie informing him that the project had been concluded.

The new ecological model of rice-crayfish co-culture was being trialed in a location in Northern Hubei.

This time, however, he had nothing else planned, and since he hadn't gone back for the National Day holiday, he decided to go home.

What Lu Shixian found amusing was that this time, he was the only one in his dorm going back to his hometown.

Zhang Mengting had extracurricular activities at school, and the other two were too busy with their relationships to think of home.

Lu Shixian didn't know what to say.

Perhaps it was a case of "you are not the fish, how can you know its joy."

With his bag packed, he boarded the train from Beijing to Jinling.

He had heard that by the end of this year, the high-speed rail line from Beijing to Jinling would be fully operational.

Until then, he had to endure the roar of the old green train.

On the way home, bored, he opened his phone.

Unexpectedly, he received a QQ message from Chen Yiyi.

That was rare.

He had gotten her contact information after she successfully got into Jinling University as she had wished.

Although Chen Yiyi's personality was much more cheerful than before, he rarely received messages from her.

He did, however, see many of her updates on her Qzone feed.

Lu Shixian's policy had always been to like but never comment.

He opened the flashing chat window, and Chen Yiyi's message appeared.

[Sunlight Overwhelming the City]: Half the class is going back to visit this summer. They asked me to ask you if you're going.

"The class?" Lu Shixian was stunned for a moment, then immediately realized she was talking about their junior high classmates.

To be honest, it had been a long time.

He could barely remember what some of his classmates even looked like.

After some thought, Lu Shixian decided to go back and take a look.

He had nothing better to do, and he kind of missed Wang Chunya.

In his past life, Lu Shixian had never had the courage to go back and visit her.

By the time he found an opportunity to return, he was only met with the news that she had already passed away.

Now was the time to make up for that regret.

Having made his decision, Lu Shixian immediately replied to Chen Yiyi with his thoughts.

Since many universities had different vacation schedules.

The date was finally set for a week later.

Because Jinling Agricultural Middle School was mentioned, Lu Shixian's heart was stirred by memories of the past.

Looking back on his journey from junior high, it was truly a nostalgic feeling.

He found himself looking forward to this event with a little more anticipation.

Chapter 243: A Mind-Boggled Lu Shixian

He arrived home safely that day.

Since he hadn't returned in October, nearly half a year had passed since his last visit.

This time, he was greeted with enthusiastic hospitality from his parents.

It made him feel a little unaccustomed to it all.

He had gotten used to the heating in Beijing, and it took him several days to slowly readjust to the climate in Jinling.

Seven days later.

This was the time agreed upon with Chen Yiyi.

At this point, the entire junior high school would also be starting its winter break soon, and it would be very difficult for them to find their teachers at school.

Before seven in the morning, Lu Shixian had already put on a thick down jacket and set off from his village.

At seven o'clock sharp, the second bus from Xingfu Town to the Jinling district would depart.

He boarded the familiar No. 808 bus.

Two hours later, Lu Shixian once again stood at the gate of Jinling Agricultural Middle School.

By now, quite a few people were already standing at the entrance.

He glanced over and saw a group of about a dozen boys and girls, chatting away.

As Lu Shixian approached, a girl facing him was the first to spot him.

"Hey... Lu Shixian, you came too!" The girl drew a blank for a moment, but in less than a second, she remembered his name and greeted him warmly.

"What a coincidence, we were just talking about you, and here you are!"

This time, it was Lu Shixian's turn to draw a blank.

He looked at the girl for a few moments but couldn't recall her name for the life of him.

This was quite awkward.

Fortunately, the others came to his rescue at that moment.

While there might be some students in his year at Jinling No. 1 High School who weren't too impressed with Lu Shixian—after all, there were many top students who got into Peking and Tsinghua—at Jinling Agricultural Middle School, he was a legend.

His arrival quickly pushed the atmosphere to a high point.

Most of the students who came back to see their teachers were those who had done well in this year's college entrance exams.

Therefore, most of them were students from No. 1 High School.

From Jinling Agricultural Middle School to Jinling No. 1 High School, they had witnessed Lu Shixian's meteoric rise, and they felt both a sense of closeness and admiration for him.

"We were actually planning to organize this during the summer, but we heard God Lu went to Jiangcheng and couldn't make it back, so we postponed it," a boy with glasses said, handing him a bottle of mineral water. "That's why we asked Chen Yiyi to check if you were free ahead of time this time."

Lu Shixian took the water and instantly remembered who he was.

Cheng Yihai, who had been in the same class as him.

He was one of the top students in their year at Jinling Agricultural Middle School, consistently ranked in the top five.

His name often appeared alongside Lu Shixian's, so the impression was quite deep.

"Hehe, you guys really didn't have to wait for me. It's embarrassing to have so many people waiting," Lu Shixian said with a wide grin.

"No way, you're the only one from our year who got into Peking University. If you didn't come, we wouldn't have our pillar."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian naturally asked about this year's college entrance exam results.

He had gone to university a year early and wasn't familiar with this cohort's performance.

He had previously asked Jiang Yunkun for a list of exam scores, so he knew a little.

But scores didn't always equal university placement; unexpected things often happened.

Cheng Yihai was clearly one of the lucky ones, his face beaming as he spoke.

"For this year's cohort, among our classmates at No. 1 High, Chen Yiyi probably got the best score."

"I don't know why she ended up at Jinling University."

"I'm at Anhui Jiaotong University now, and Tian Mei got into Jiangnan University..." Cheng Yihai introduced everyone one by one.

The people whose names he mentioned were basically all here.

Lu Shixian took the opportunity to reacquaint himself with everyone.

Besides the students from No. 1 High School, there were also a few who had attended other high schools and gotten into university through relentless effort.

After hearing his introduction, Lu Shixian was somewhat surprised.

Because he knew that in the past, there definitely weren't this many people who got into key universities.

"Not bad, several from 985 universities, and quite a few from 211s too."

Cheng Yihai scratched his head and said modestly, "I just performed well on the exam, it was a fluke."

The others also began to share their experiences with the college entrance exam and choosing their majors.

As they chatted, their group grew larger as more people continued to arrive.

Soon, even Chen Yiyi, who lived the farthest, had arrived.
She went around actively greeting her classmates.

When she saw Lu Shixian, a smile naturally blossomed on her face.

The students from No. 1 High were already used to it, but the students from the other high schools found it a bit strange.

Is this Chen Yiyi?

You've got to be kidding me.

This event was organized by Cheng Yihai. At that moment, he was counting the people standing at the school gate.

“Twenty-eight, twenty-nine... thirty-one.”

“We’re still short one person! There should be thirty-two in total!”

Hearing his words, many people began looking at each other, trying to see who hadn’t arrived yet.

Lu Shixian was about to help, but he realized that while he recognized everyone, he couldn't quite recall some of their names.

In the end, he gave up the idea.

Since the list was in Cheng Yihai’s hands, he started checking the names on his phone one by one.

Soon, his voice rang out in sudden realization.

“Found her! It’s the class president who isn't here yet!”

This sentence was like a wake up call for the many people still searching.

“That’s right, how could I have forgotten the class president?”

“I haven’t seen her in ages, haven't heard anything about her lately.”

“Wait, I'll give her a call and see what's up.”

Their words instantly sparked a memory for Lu Shixian.

The class president?

A name suddenly surfaced in his mind.

Xu Youmeng.

It really had been a long time.

“Just you wait! I’ll definitely surpass you next time!” The girl’s defiant voice still echoed in his ears.

He wasn't sure when, but at some point, her name had slowly faded from his memory.

Now, it had suddenly come rushing back.

Dust covered memories flashed before his eyes like a movie.

“The class president said she’s almost here. Everyone, just wait a moment.”

Cheng Yihai had barely finished speaking when a slender figure approached from the distance.

A tall, beautiful girl, exuding a fashionable aura, appeared before everyone.

Everyone was stunned by her.

It wasn't just because of her delicate, fair face, but because her entire demeanor seemed even more outstanding.

“Sorry to keep you all waiting.” Xu Youmeng’s first words left everyone thunderstruck.

Even Lu Shixian was dumbfounded.

What the hell?

Were those words that Xu Youmeng could actually say?

Lu Shixian could still remember the scene of her chasing him around the classroom, hitting him with a book.

So, what he was seeing today had to be a fake, right?

By now, many people were already scrambling to greet her.

Xu Youmeng was very polite, not missing a single person, maintaining a smile the whole time without showing any sign of impatience.

Lu Shixian suddenly began to question his reality.

Chapter 244: I Really Never Expected This

Did she go through some kind of trauma?

Just as he was thinking this to himself, he realized Xu Youmeng had, at some point, walked up to his side.

“Congratulations on getting into Yan University. It seems I’ll never be able to surpass you.”

Lu Shixian's scalp tingled. Was this really Xu Youmeng?

He almost didn't recognize her.

He had no idea what could have possibly happened to her.

“What about you? How did you do on the college entrance exams this year?” Lu Shixian quickly changed the subject.

Xu Youmeng smiled and shook her head. “Can't compare to you. I’m going to the Beijing Conservatory of Music.”

At these words, everyone around them exchanged bewildered glances.

This was a scenario no one had ever imagined.

Xu Youmeng was actually going to study singing???

Although Lu Shixian also found it hard to believe, he still offered her his congratulations.

He wanted to ask what was going on, but just then, Cheng Yihai was calling for everyone to head inside.

Lu Shixian could only put his doubts aside, register at the school gate, and follow the large group into the school.

To avoid disrupting the normal school order and classes, they had specifically waited until just before the lunch break.

After that, it was time for everyone to go their separate ways and find whichever teacher they wanted to see.

After parting with the group at the academic building, Lu Shixian thought for a moment. He had originally planned to go straight to Wang Chunya.

But at this time, she was probably already surrounded.

Back in their year, when it came to the most popular teacher among students, she was the undisputed number one.

So, he headed straight for the sports field.

On the way there, he was surprised to find that Nongzhong Middle School seemed to have changed quite a bit.

Arriving at the edge of the athletic field, he saw Lin Dapao, as usual, helping students with their training.

Only now, the students seemed to be training for different events.

In addition to long distance running, the standing long jump had been added.

But none of that had anything to do with him anymore.

The sports field was very empty during class time.

Lin Dapao quickly spotted Lu Shixian observing from a distance.

His booming voice was enough to make one's head spin.

“Hey, student, which class are you in?”

“Don't you know class isn't over yet? Who’s your homeroom teacher?”

Hearing his roar, Lu Shixian felt a sense of familiarity.

He smiled and called back, “Mr. Lin, I’m back!”

That voice definitely didn't sound like a middle schooler's. Lin Dapao walked a few steps forward curiously.

Only to find someone he never would have expected.

“Lu…”

“Lu Shixian???”

“What brings you back, you rascal?” Lin Dapao's expression changed from cloudy to sunny.

As he walked up to him, Lu Shixian realized he was now a little taller than his teacher.

“I came back to see you all!” As he spoke, Lu Shixian handed him a bag of fruit he had prepared.

Lin Dapao had never received such treatment.

It wasn't that no graduates ever came back to visit their teachers.

But who comes back to see the P.E. teacher!

This was truly a first.

And it was a student who he’d had a bit of a rough relationship with in the past.

Even though they had reconciled later, he never thought someone would do this.

But Lu Shixian had completely shattered his expectations.

He was so happy he couldn't stop grinning from ear to ear.

He quickly pulled Lu Shixian over to his students and announced, as if showing off, “Everyone, stop for a moment.”

“Let me introduce someone to you. This is your senior, Lu Shixian.”

“He used to study here at our school, then went to No. 1 High, and has now been admitted to Yan University with a recommendation. You all need to learn from him and strive to get into No. 1 High too.”

Hearing Lin Dapao’s voice, all the young middle schoolers looked at Lu Shixian as if he were their idol.

At this stage in their lives, just getting into No. 1 High was an incredible achievement.

As for being admitted to Yan University with a recommendation, that was something that only existed in their wildest dreams.

They had never imagined someone could actually make it a reality.

Just as Lu Shixian was about to say a few modest words, Lin Dapao spoke again. “Originally, he couldn't get a single point on his high school entrance P.E. exam, but after taking my class, he immediately got a perfect score and became the top scorer in the city that year.”

Lu Shixian was speechless.

The words he was about to say got stuck in his throat.

Alright, so this Lin Dapao was the same as ever, always needing to save face, always loving to boast.

What necessary connection was there between him becoming the top scorer and taking his class?

Whatever. For old times' sake, Lu Shixian decided not to expose him.

A dozen or so minutes later, class ended, and the two of them walked to a shady spot to talk.

“I could understand you getting into No. 1 High.”

“But you getting a recommendation to Yan University, I really never expected that!” Lin Dapao’s tone was filled with surprise.

“What’s so strange about that?” Lu Shixian said with a smile. “Am I not allowed to study hard?”

“Of course you are. I was just curious, during that P.E. class, what made you suddenly want to run?”

“I remember you used to be very resistant to it,” Lin Dapao recalled, feeling a bit wistful about the past.

Lu Shixian just shook his head. “I don’t know. Maybe I just had a sudden epiphany.”

“I just felt that I couldn't go on like that anymore.”

“I had to make a change.”

Lin Dapao nodded in agreement, thinking to himself that perhaps it was his good fortune to have encountered such a student.

After bidding farewell to Lin Dapao, Lu Shixian finally arrived at Wang Chunya’s office.

There were still a few students sitting there, talking with her.

Seeing him enter, the students tactfully took their leave.

Although Wang Chunya had already heard the news of Lu Shixian's return, she was still incredibly happy to see him.

What teacher doesn't hope for their students to have a bright future?

In her heart, that was perhaps the most important thing.

As for whether they came back to visit her, she truly didn't mind.

“Lu Shixian, you’re here!” A smile appeared on her face.

He nodded, presenting her with a gift of fruit as well.

“You should have just come, why bring anything?” Looking at the gift, Wang Chunya had no intention of accepting it.

“It’s just a small token of my appreciation, nothing expensive.”

“Ms. Wang, you’re not going to look down on it, are you?” Lu Shixian was prepared for this and had his response ready.

Now, she couldn't find a reason to refuse and had to accept it.

Wang Chunya chatted with him for a long time, feeling genuinely happy for Lu Shixian’s current situation.

Half an hour later, not wanting to delay her lunch, Lu Shixian said his goodbyes.

It seemed that Wang Chunya was truly much happier now than before.

With increased funding, Nongzhong Middle School looked much better than it used to.

The old communal office space was gone.

She was now the grade level director and had her own office.

Remembering the heartfelt smile on her face just now, the regrets from Lu Shixian’s past life completely dissipated at this moment.

Chapter 245: Yes, I Am Very Happy

Coming out of the office building, he reached the stairwell when a beautiful figure suddenly appeared before him.

“Xu Youmeng?”

“Are you here to see Ms. Wang too?” Lu Shixian asked her.

She nodded her head gently. “Yes. There were too many people earlier, so I went to see Mr. Liu first.”

Taking this opportunity, Lu Shixian asked the questions that had been weighing on his mind.

“You’ve changed so much too! Why did you suddenly decide to study music?”

Xu Youmeng noticed a particular detail in his words and asked him in return.

“Too?”

Lu Shixian smiled and mentioned, “Yeah. Do you remember Chen Yiyi?”

“She used to be very introverted, but now she’s become so cheerful and confident.”

“And you, you used to be so extroverted, like a…”

Lu Shixian thought for a moment, swallowing the words “crazy woman” that were about to escape his lips.

“Like a what?” Xu Youmeng asked, her curiosity piqued.

“Uh, like a bit of a wild child.”

Hearing Lu Shixian’s description, Xu Youmeng seemed to recall her middle school days and a small smile appeared on her face.

“It’s a long story.”

“Let’s walk and talk.”

And so, Lu Shixian had no choice but to follow her to the edge of the spacious athletic field.

It was noon now, and there weren't many people around.

“I remember there used to be a small lake here. I can’t believe it was filled in after just a few years,” Lu Shixian said with a hint of regret.

Over the past three years, whenever he felt troubled, he would come here to clear his head.

You could say this place held many of his memories.

But now it was gone.

After listening, Xu Youmeng also spoke with feeling, “Yes. Many people say that things stay the same while people change.”

“But looking at it now, it’s not just people who are changing. Everything in the world is changing, and maybe even faster than we are.”

“Do you know what that line really meant?”

Lu Shixian was taken aback. He turned to face her and asked, “What line?”

“The one you joked about before, about being from the future, the one you said you saw me write.”

Now he remembered.

“‘Betraying the past, You came forth, a Dream entering Wu Mountain?’”

This time, hearing the phrase, Xu Youmeng remained very calm.

“That’s right.”

“My father didn't have much education. After leaving the army, he became a police officer.”

“And he found my name in a classical poem. He said that even though he was barely literate himself, he wanted to make sure I was well mannered and well read. That’s why I have this name.”

At last, Lu Shixian understood the origin of her name.

But that didn't answer his question.

“But why did you cry when I said it back then?”

Xu Youmeng brushed a strand of hair, blown astray by the wind, from her face. Her gaze suddenly lifted towards the sky.

“That’s because…”

“My father was already gone by then.”

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked.” Lu Shixian never thought a plot point so common in novels would happen to him in real life.

He had heard this trope so often that he thought he was immune to it.

But now, it still felt heavy.

Some single parent families weren't just a turn of phrase; they were truly single parent.

For a child, parents divorcing was already a heavy enough burden.

If this was the reason, he truly couldn't imagine how Xu Youmeng had gotten through all these years.

Bringing up the topic again, Xu Youmeng seemed to have genuinely come to terms with it, as she continued on her own.

“My dad was a police officer, and he was in a particularly dangerous line of work.”

“When I was ten, he fought with a drug lord during a mission. In the end, he died in the line of duty.”

“All he left behind was a large sum of compensation money and a certificate of honor.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian understood everything.

No wonder Xu Youmeng was able to attend the prestigious Jinling Affiliated High School despite her less than ideal circumstances.

It was because she was the child of a martyr, and she was given priority by policy.

Sometimes, when faced with the unknown, you really can’t just rely on your own subjective assumptions.

Thinking of his past speculation about her being from a rich family, a wave of shame washed over him.

Xu Youmeng didn't know what he was thinking and continued her story.

“And my mother fell ill around that time.”

“So it wasn't that I didn't want to go home, it was that I really didn't have a parent who could come.”

“Everyone only saw my strong and stubborn side, but who knew that I would often hide under my blanket at night and cry softly.”

Lu Shixian remained silent, simply acting as a listener.

It was true that even the strongest exterior could hide a fragile heart.

Behind every radiant smile, there were often moments of secret tears.

Often, the faces we see are just a mask.

Xu Youmeng’s voice continued.

“Thankfully, after I started high school, my mother emerged from her depression, and I had someone to rely on again. I learned to let things go.”

“I chose music because my dad loved listening to military songs.”

“When I was little, I would often hide in his broad embrace and listen to him sing.”

“But he was a terrible singer!”

“I used to despise it so much back then.”

“But how was I to know that after that time, I would never hear it again…”

“I told him then that when I grew up, I would sing beautiful songs for him.”

“But he’ll never get to hear them…”

At this point, she could no longer maintain her composure, and tears finally broke through.

She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and spoke in a lonely voice.

“Just now, a lot of my old middle school classmates were chatting with me, joking that I was going to be a pop star, a big celebrity, and that they’d come ask for my autograph in the future.”

“But none of them know that I’m studying vocal performance, singing classical and folk music, not pop.”

“Sometimes I find it really strange.”

“Every single person I talk to, I know them.”

“But I still feel so lonely.”

“I…”

At this, Xu Youmeng seemed to realize she had lost her composure.

She fell silent and quickly turned away, unable to face Lu Shixian’s gaze.

But she didn't know why she had just poured it all out like that.

This boy seemed to have a unique magic about him; the feeling he gave her was truly different from others.

Especially his incredibly deep eyes, and an air about him that was far beyond his peers.

At this moment, Lu Shixian let out a soft breath, unsure of what to say.

Because you can never truly feel what another person is going through just by listening.

When he was a child, he couldn't help but indulge in unrealistic fantasies.

What if his family was secretly very rich?

What if his parents were actually tycoons pretending to be poor, just to test him before he inherited the family fortune?

But as he slowly grew up, he discovered the truth.

His parents were ordinary people. They hadn't brought him any extra glory.

They hadn't made him wealthy; he lived in a brick house and ate simple, home cooked meals.

Occasionally, he even found them embarrassing.

Why did they have to haggle over something that was only a few cents cheaper?

Why did they like smoking those cheap, low quality cigarettes?

Wasn't it shameful?

Had they no self respect, no dignity?

But a person's true strength doesn't come from protecting their pride, but from letting it go.

Now, he felt truly content.

Yes, he was very happy.

Chapter 246: Class! We Must Have Class!

“It’s getting late. Ms. Wang should be done with lunch by now. I’m going to have a quick word with her and then head home.” Xu Youmeng had finally composed herself and said her farewells.

Before she left, Lu Shixian offered her his best wishes.

“You really don’t need to care so much about what other people think.”

“The things that make us sad, one day we will be able to talk about them with a smile.”

“I hope we can both become the people we want to be.”

Lu Shixian made a cheering gesture at her.

“You can do it!”

Xu Youmeng smiled.

It was like the ocean embracing an island, like stars leaping on the waves, like a coconut palm sheltering its fruit.

With that one smile, she chased away all the darkness in his heart.

“You too!”

Waving goodbye to her, Lu Shixian prepared to head home.

Though it had only been a short day, he had gained a lot from it.

He couldn't help but think: perhaps the people we meet and the things we experience are all destined to teach us how to grow.

The bus came to a steady stop at the Xingfu Town station.

Lu Shixian stepped off the bus.

He watched the setting sun gradually fall into the vast field of stars.

Only then did he realize that the day had slipped away, and the sky had already turned dark.

This winter break, Lu Shixian didn't get up to any mischief.

He spent a full month completely with his parents.

Of course, it wasn't all play; he was still required to do a good amount of housework.

Although college students, especially one from Yan University, were still quite sought after at this time, Xia Xiuman and Lu Jianguo showed no signs of spoiling him.

Lu Shixian noticed a huge difference in their attitude towards him before and after he turned eighteen.

Before, although they had meant to let him be independent, on certain matters, they couldn't help but act with parental authority and worry.

But now, he could feel that this sentiment had vanished.

They had truly begun to see him as an adult with his own thoughts and judgment.

It was a really good feeling.
With New Year's Eve of 2010 over and the Spring Festival Gala watched, time slowly crept into February of 2011.

On the 13th, he returned to school.

The next day was the 14th, a Monday.

It was the first day of the second semester of his sophomore year. Everyone was about to attend their first class of 2011.

"Huh? It's almost time for the third period."

"Shixian, why are you still in the dorm?"

"What's going on? Don't you have class?"

In the dorm room, Chang Wenchao, the last to leave, looked at Lu Shixian in confusion.

Lu Shixian sat motionless in his chair.

Then he let out a long sigh and said with a touch of melancholy, "I want to go to class, too."

"But alas, I can't!"

With that, Lu Shixian handed him the class schedule he had printed out the day before.

Chang Wenchao took one look at the schedule and was completely floored.

"What the heck?"

"You only have PE left?"

The expression on Chang Wenchao's face was one of utter disbelief.

"Are you kidding me!!!"

He knew Lu Shixian had been on a crazy tear during his two semesters of freshman year.

He had even seen the ridiculously intense daily schedule that had shocked him to his core.

But this was only the second semester of sophomore year!

He was already out of classes?

Lu Shixian was now heaving sigh after sigh.

"I had originally calculated that I would finish all my courses this semester, so I didn't select that many last semester."

"It was only recently that I heard our college has a new policy. It's such a headache."

"The graduation credit requirement for the biology track was lowered from 148 to 128, and I'm already several credits over."

Hearing this, Chang Wenchao felt a wave of pure envy.

"I've got nothing to say. You're just ridiculous. I'm heading to class."

Tossing out a hasty sentence, Chang Wenchao quickly left to go grab a good seat.

The dorm room instantly felt empty.

Lu Shixian was suddenly at a loss for words.

Plans really can't keep up with changes.

While he had ways to pass the time—holing up in the library, for instance—what was the point of staying at school for that?

Wasn't it a waste of time?

He had never liked that feeling.

The sea of learning is boundless; how could his semester be over before it even began?

There was still so much knowledge waiting for him to absorb.

Lu Shixian slammed his hand on the table and shot to his feet.

Class!

He must attend class!

Although this was a situation his previous plans had never accounted for.

He quickly thought of a way to adjust.

Since he had no more classes in the biology track, couldn't he study another major?

Pursuing a second major should be a standard move for a top student, right?

Right now, he had the time and the means.

It was simply perfect.

On another note, he had paid the publication fee for his last paper out of his own pocket.

Now was a good time to ask if he could get reimbursed.

Lu Shixian gave himself a thumbs-up for his cleverness and headed straight for the college's Student Affairs Office.

Because he had frequented the office during the last month of the previous semester, and because his grades were particularly outstanding when he was evaluated for scholarships, he was now recognized as a top student.

The teachers and advisors in the Student Affairs Office almost all knew him.

The big boss in charge of all student work for Yuanpei College was He Ming.

He was also the direct superior of all the college's advisors.

At this moment, he looked at Lu Shixian standing before him with some curiosity.

"Student Lu, if you have an issue, shouldn't you see your advisor?"

"Coming to me is going over his head. If it's not something very important, please go back."

"I've been really busy lately!"

There was no way Lu Shixian was leaving. He had done his homework and come specifically to find him.

"Mr. He, I really do have something important."

"What is it? If it's not under my purview, I can't help. If it is, I'll do my best," He Ming said, his attitude toward Lu Shixian surprisingly pleasant.

Lu Shixian grinned. "I'm sure you can help."

"Well, you see, isn't there this new credit reduction policy that was announced this semester?"

"I suddenly have no classes left. Oh, what am I to do?"

He Ming's reaction was identical to Chang Wenchao's.

"You're out of classes?"

"No way."

"Is there something wrong with the academic affairs system?"

As he spoke, he quickly opened the Yuanpei College academic affairs system.

He entered the administrator account, logged in, and saw that it was exactly as Lu Shixian had said.

"Name: Lu Shixian"

"Major: Biological Sciences Track"

"Student Status: Class of 2008"

"Freshman Year, First Semester Credits: 56"

"Freshman Year, Second Semester Credits: 58"

"Sophomore Year, First Semester Credits: 18"

"Total Credits: 132"

He Ming looked up, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "It's true. You really are something else."

"I'd heard you were taking a lot of classes. But I never imagined you'd earn 114 credits in your freshman year alone."

"I even asked around later. I heard the staff at the College of Life Sciences were tearing their hair out just scheduling exams for you alone."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but laugh.

So that was the real story!

Having never worked in academic administration, he had genuinely thought he was just lucky.

He never expected there was this hidden reason behind it all.

Chapter 247: I'm Like a Fish in Your Lotus Pond

"Alright, spit it out. What did you come here for?" He Ming finally got to the point.

Lu Shixian then explained his situation.

"Mr. He, that's basically it. I have no classes this semester except for PE."

"So, I'd like to pursue a second major in another field."

He Ming was speechless. He gave Lu Shixian a look of sheer admiration.

"I've been working at Yanda University for seven or eight years now."

"But I've never seen anyone take classes the way you do."

"So you mean you want to pursue a dual degree?"

Lu Shixian nodded, indicating that He Ming had gotten his point.

He Ming thought for a moment, a contemplative look on his face, which then creased into a frown.

"This is a bit tricky. Based on your academic performance, there's no problem with you pursuing a dual degree, but you should have applied earlier."

"According to Yanda's dual degree regulations, first, you must demonstrate you have the capacity for extra study, which means you can only apply after completing the requirements for the first year of your primary major. That's obviously not an issue for you."

"Second, once approved, you can begin the program in your second or third year. However, you cannot choose two closely related fields for your primary and dual degree majors."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was a little surprised; he hadn't known about that rule.

"So if my primary major is Biological Sciences, I can't choose Bioengineering?" He had already planned out his second degree, but it seemed he had been getting ahead of himself.

However, he quickly came to terms with it.

If he couldn't choose another biology-related field, so be it. Studying something different to mix things up would be fine too.

Ever since reading many literary classics in high school, it felt as if he had entered a new world.

What he had once thought was a waste of time, reading, had now broadened his experience and knowledge.

It had helped him immensely from a different perspective.

So, he was no longer opposed to learning things outside of biology.

"And the third requirement?"

He Ming gave a wry smile. "This is the most critical issue."

"You have to apply one semester in advance for your course information to be entered into the system for the next semester's schedule."

"Even if you apply now, you won't be able to attend any classes!"

Now Lu Shixian understood. He should have just applied last semester.

But he couldn't control that.

He never expected so many variables to pop up.

"So, is there really no way?"

"Do I have to wait until next semester, my junior year, to start?"

"But I really don't want to just take PE this semester!"

Hearing his plea, He Ming first let out a laugh.

"You're in a situation others would kill for." After saying that, he pondered for a few more seconds and continued.

"How about this? Leave me your phone number."

"I'll go ask my superiors about it later."

If any other student had come to him with this problem, He Ming's response would have been a firm: everything must follow the rules and regulations.

Focus on your main courses first; taking classes next semester isn't too late.

But Lu Shixian was different.

This was the freak who had managed to complete all four years' worth of credits by the first semester of his sophomore year.

Most importantly, he not only learned fast, but he also scored well.

Although his GPA wasn't as terrifying as the 3.99 from his freshman year, he still maintained the number one rank in his major.

At this point, Lu Shixian had done all he could.

He thanked He Ming and left the office.

With nothing else to do, Lu Shixian decided to go for a walk.

Not on the Yanda campus.

This time, he planned to visit Shuimu University.

To be honest, he regretted not having taken a closer look at the only other domestic university that could go toe-to-toe with Yanda.

Academician Wang Zhixin had personally tried to recruit him back then. Although there was no direct offer to take him on as a student, he had actually considered Shuimu.

He only gave up that option for the sake of his ultimate goal.

But that didn't mean he disliked Shuimu.

Some say distance creates beauty.

Perhaps the long-standing love-hate relationship between Yanda and Shuimu had something to do with their proximity.

The most direct route was from Yanda's east gate to Shuimu's west gate, a distance of less than two kilometers, easily walkable.

He had been to Shuimu once before, but he had taken a bus to make it to a specialized lecture.

He hadn't stopped anywhere or spent time on anything else.

Now, however, since he had no classes, he might as well treat it as a small trip.

About twenty minutes later, Lu Shixian arrived at the west gate of Shuimu University.

Truth be told, the scenery on Shuimu's campus was no less impressive than Yanda's; each had its own unique heritage and character.

Because he had a different purpose in mind and wasn't just wandering aimlessly, Lu Shixian headed purposefully toward Shuimu's more famous landmarks.

He passed through layers of woods and arrived before two small, elegant, and serene ancient pavilions. The name inscribed on the plaque read "Shuimu Qinghua."

The name of Shuimu University itself originated from a line by the Jin dynasty poet Xie Kun.

"The setting sun gathers the chirping birds, the water and trees are clear and beautiful."

He followed a small path to the edge of a calm pond, smooth as a mirror. The landmark was called "Moonlight over the Lotus Pond."

But it was currently broad daylight in early spring.

There were neither lotuses nor moonlight.

It was utterly plain.

But its fame wasn't derived from a simple collection of scenery.

Surely no one has not heard of this name.

"Above the winding lotus pond, a field of leaves fills the eye. The leaves rise high out of the water, like the skirts of graceful dancing girls."

Mr. Zhu Ziqing's essay had bestowed a new meaning upon it.

"Let us enjoy this boundless moonlight over the lotus pond!"

And if someone is familiar with this place because of the lyric "I'm like a little fish in your lotus pond," well, no more need be said.

With a touch of nostalgia, Lu Shixian went on to see the Garden of Nearby Spring, the Great Hall, and, what he was most looking forward to, the library.

Finally, standing downstairs from the library, Lu Shixian took out his phone and made his move.

Shibuyu: Senior, are you there?

Soon, the chat message began to flash.

Lu Shixian was pleasantly surprised. What a fast reply!

Shiyumengmeng: I happen to be at my computer. What's up, junior?

Shibuyu: I came here specifically to thank you for helping me get a spot at the lecture last time.

Of course, he had embellished that a little.

He had originally just come for a tour.

He only remembered the matter halfway through and decided to express his gratitude while he was at it.

But he wasn't stupid; he certainly wouldn't say it like that.

Sure enough, a surprised emoji sticker came from her side.

Shiyumengmeng: It was nothing, you're being too kind.

Where are you? I'll come find you right now.

Soon, with his senior's guidance, the two successfully met up.

Sitting under a pavilion, Lu Shixian thanked her, and then they chatted about this and that.

Their conversation ranged from the Jinlin honors class at Jinling No. 1 High School to the different academic styles of Yanda and Shuimu.

As the saying goes, when fellow townsmen meet, their eyes brim with tears.

While it wasn't that dramatic, they had a very pleasant chat.

Finally, Lu Shixian asked her curiously, "Senior, what's your major?"

Chapter 248: Rationality and Sensibility

"Ugh, don't get me started."

"The vast blue sky is bottomless, so are Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, and Jurisprudence," the senior sighed in frustration.

"The Peach Blossom Pool is a thousand feet deep, so are Civil, Commercial, and Procedural Law, and Legal History," Lu Shixian quickly completed the secret code with her.

He had heard this saying at Yanda as well.

"Law, huh?" he said with a smile of shared understanding.

As the saying goes:

Advise someone to study law, and you deserve death by a thousand cuts.

Advise someone to study medicine, and you'll be struck by lightning.

Advise someone to study forensic medicine, and you'll get the cuts first, then the lightning.

But this was really just a joke.

The rumored low employment rate for law graduates was actually a reflection of polarization within the broader environment.

And the dividing line was the bar exam.

Law, like biology, was a field that people either loved with a passion or detested with every fiber of their being.

But upon further reflection, couldn't the same be said for most majors?

So the most crucial factor was the person.

After chatting for several dozen minutes, Lu Shixian quickly became familiar with this senior named Shi Yumeng.

"Senior Shi, if I were to pursue a dual degree as an undergrad, what major do you think would be suitable? I want to learn something useful for myself."

Shi Yumeng was already a junior at Shuimu's law school and had a certain understanding of these matters.

She quickly offered her perspective.

"That mainly depends on your own life plan."

"I can't make the choice for you, but I once heard a saying that really resonated with me."

"Any discipline that seems useless is almost always because no one knows how to apply it. Once you learn how, its power can be immense."

"Even philosophy plays a vital role in human society."

Lu Shixian nodded, understanding what Shi Yumeng was saying.

The senior continued with a faint smile, "I know it's a cliché, but I still want to say that philosophy guides people in understanding and transforming the world."

"The aesthetic education of literature can cultivate a well-rounded and free personality."

"Economics can help us solve problems of resource allocation and rational utilization."

Shi Yumeng must have been the type of girl who read widely during her studies.

Almost every sentence she spoke could be traced back to a similar passage in a famous work, and when spoken with her own understanding, it was incredibly convincing.

"So, think about it carefully. My words can only serve as a reference for you."

At this point, the senior bid Lu Shixian farewell.

She wasn't as idle as Lu Shixian; she still had several term papers to write.

Waving goodbye to her, Lu Shixian then paid a visit to Shuimu's College of Life Sciences.

Since he was here, it wouldn't be right not to see his two friends.

That evening, thanks to the warm hospitality of Yang Yihang and Feng Yanan, Lu Shixian had a delightful dinner there.

With neon lights twinkling everywhere, he didn't have to worry about the dark on his way back.

Under the cover of night, with a cool breeze on his face, Lu Shixian walked along a green path, beginning to contemplate his plan for the semester.

If his schedule really was empty, he would still attend classes anyway.

He would just be a so-called "ghost student," auditing classes without being officially registered.

It wasn't impossible, but he would miss out on a degree.

He tried to console himself: knowledge is its own reward; having the certificate isn't that important.

But unfortunately, he hadn't yet reached that level of enlightenment.

Even if he didn't become a master in the field, it would still be good to enrich his resume.

But just then, a sound.

"Want to go back in time, try to let the story continue..."

The ringtone of his phone jingled in his pocket.

Ever since joining Professor Ke Jie's research group, he had disabled the caller-specific ringtone settings.

Sometimes, missing an important call just wasn't worth the risk.

The screen lit up, showing the call was from Yanjing.

He answered without hesitation.

"Hello, who is this?"

A familiar male voice came from the other end.

"Student Lu, this is He Ming."

"I hope I'm not disturbing you by calling at this hour."

Lu Shixian's heart skipped a beat. Could it be news about the dual degree?

He quickly replied.

"Not at all, not at all."

"Is there something I can help you with?"

Then, He Ming spoke in a congratulatory tone, "I reported your situation to Academician Zeng earlier."

"He just got back from a business trip and told me that rules are rigid, but people are flexible."

"He said we should do our best to accommodate students' reasonable and individualized requests and serve them well."

Hearing this, a wave of joy washed over Lu Shixian.

Then he noticed He Ming's choice of words.

"Academician Zeng? Are you talking about the Dean?"

He Ming confirmed his question with a laugh.

"That's right. Academician Zeng was successfully elected as a new member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in the Earth Sciences Division at the end of last year. We posted the news on the college's official website and in all the group chats!"

Lu Shixian was a bit speechless. He had been so busy during that time, he hadn't had a moment to look at any news.

Immersed in the ocean of knowledge, he had somehow missed even this.

He Ming didn't dwell on the issue. "You can go ahead and apply now. We'll have someone arrange it for you in the backend."

"Thank you, I've really troubled you during this time," Lu Shixian said, quickly expressing his gratitude.

On the other end of the line, He Ming's attitude grew even warmer.

"Haha, it's no trouble at all."

"But it seems Academician Zeng thinks very highly of you!"

"You just focus on your studies. If you have any other problems, you can bring them up too."

"No, I don't have any other issues right now."

"Alright then. I have something else to attend to. We'll talk next time."

As He Ming hung up, Lu Shixian couldn't help but marvel inwardly.

It really was true that if you study hard, the whole world will come to your aid.

From the very beginning with the freshman seminar, to them not pursuing the matter of him dropping out of the competition, and finally to today's events, Yuanpei's support for him had been truly unwavering.

So now it came down to the final question.

Which major should he choose?

Given the constraint that he couldn't choose a closely related field.

Absolute rationality dictated that he choose either physics or chemistry.

But the key was, he couldn't bring himself to do it.

Honestly, for him, a working knowledge of those two subjects was enough.

The thought of having to truly master them, to delve deep into their intricacies, was genuinely painful.
Otherwise, my academic performance wouldn't have become so skewed.

Besides, another biology major was out of the question.

Studying math, needless to say, would only be more agonizing.

Computer science, to be honest, was an excellent choice.

Bioinformatics, which intersected with it, was certain to be a hot research field in the future.

It was also one of the main backup options he had previously considered.

But after hearing what senior Shi Yumeng said today, he had other ideas.

It was true that the science and technology from scientific research could propel human society forward, but the knowledge from the humanities was what carried on and developed civilization.

If there were only technological advancement without the inheritance of a cultural spirit, such a human society would be incomplete.

Just like each of us, we cannot live on reason alone.

There must also be emotion, engraved deep within our hearts.

Reason and emotion are woven into every thread of life, constructing the rich tapestry of our existence.

Chapter 249: What a Shame, Not Studying Hard

Three days later, thanks to the high efficiency of the Yuanpei College faculty, all the procedures were completed.

Lu Shixian sat, as he had wished, in a lecture hall of a school he had never set foot in before.

"Hello, everyone. It's been over a month since last semester's classes ended. Let's review: what exactly is economics?"

"Because human desires are infinite, economic resources are, by comparison, scarce. So, how do we satisfy people's needs with limited resources?"

"The science that studies this is economics. Its main foundational subjects are microeconomics and macroeconomics, which are the primary focus of our undergraduate studies."

The lecturer was a slightly plump female professor from Yanda's School of Economics.

That's right, Lu Shixian had ultimately chosen economics from the many available majors.

Because of its close ties to mathematics, it was one of the very few majors open to both arts and science students.

But strictly speaking, it leaned more towards the social sciences.

In our country, it's classified under the liberal arts.

Generally, minor courses are taught in dedicated classes, held on weekends and in the evenings.

But Lu Shixian had already missed too many classes and couldn't possibly catch up by joining the minor program directly.

Besides, those class times were brutal.

Since he didn't have a primary major to attend to at the moment, he was now taking classes with this year's freshmen.

He needed to complete a total of 45 credits of major courses, including Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, Econometrics, Principles of Accounting, International Trade, History of Western Economic Thought, and Industrial Organization Theory.

Just then, the professor's sharp gaze suddenly landed on Lu Shixian in the last row, who looked completely lost.

"You there, you're a sophomore, aren't you?"

Lu Shixian was pleasantly surprised. Could it be that He Ming had put in a good word with the economics professors, asking them to give him some extra help?

Otherwise, with a half-semester gap in his foundational knowledge, it would be difficult to catch up with the main group in the second semester.

So he nodded and replied, "Yes!"

But to his surprise, the professor's attitude took a sharp turn for the worse.

"In that case, as a student retaking the course, you should be listening to my lecture even more carefully, not just burying your head in a book with a vacant look in your eyes."

"I shouldn't have to say this, but you all worked so hard to get into Yanda, and your parents work tirelessly to support your education. It's not so you can fail your classes."

"Pay more attention next time."

At her words, many students who hadn't noticed Lu Shixian before turned their heads to look at him.

Retaking a course or taking a makeup exam had always been synonymous with underachieving students.

Generally, having to retake a course was even more serious than taking a makeup exam.

Because most students who retook a course were those who had already failed the makeup exam.

Lu Shixian could even guess what they were thinking from their gazes.

No way. How can someone have to retake a freshman course?

He's so handsome. What a shame he doesn't study hard!

He was instantly speechless.

Although he could understand why she thought that way.

He really wasn't retaking the course!

Just as he was about to explain, the professor had already resumed her lecture.

Lu Shixian sighed, looking up at the ceiling.

What an awkward situation!

Back at Yuanpei and the School of Life Sciences, he had never been treated like this.

He was actually being used as a bad example.

And this was only the first class.

The first impression was already this bad.

He could already imagine what his future classes would be like.

And so, the first class at the School of Economics ended in a haze of confusion.

Lu Shixian had gotten absolutely nothing out of it.

After class, Lu Shixian was about to go find the professor to explain.

But suddenly, his competitive spirit flared up.

So what if he had no foundation at all?

So what if he was mistaken for a student retaking the course?

He refused to believe he couldn't master it.

Lu Shixian's eyes burned with determination, full of fighting spirit.

To be honest, it had been a long time since he'd felt this motivated.

Previously, it was only his internal drive that pushed him to learn on his own.

But this misunderstanding had really gotten to him.

With both external and internal factors now in play, he was filled with soaring ambition.

He wouldn't rest until he reached his goal!

Evening.

Back in his dorm, he felt a bit frustrated.

It was all because of the full day of classes at the School of Economics.

He could understand some of the simpler theories with just his common sense.

But whenever a topic was a continuation of last semester's content, he was completely lost.

Frustrated, Lu Shixian grabbed a towel and took a long, comfortable hot shower.

When he came out, his mind was much clearer.

He had previously thought that since economics was a liberal arts subject, it wouldn't require too much effort.

For the courses he missed last semester, he figured he could just listen to the later lectures, understand the concepts, and then apply them retroactively.

Now it seemed he had underestimated it.

While his failure to preview the material was partly due to the rush, the attitude behind it was more fatal.

He certainly had an advantage over others in biology.

But he now clearly understood that he was no genius.

He couldn't just master other subjects by drawing parallels, glancing at a book, and remembering and understanding everything perfectly.

Perhaps, what he needed now was an "empty cup" mentality.

"Empty your cup so that it may be filled; become empty to have totality."

An empty cup meant not being defeated by temporary failure or setbacks, and more importantly, not getting carried away by past achievements.

Seven in the evening.

Lu Shixian went to the library.

He was ready to seriously plan out how he would spend this semester.

His first principle of action was to not do anything that wasted time senselessly.

Either don't study it at all, or since the decision has been made, study it well.

And that was his second principle.

He hadn't realized that although he had been studying diligently later on, he hadn't returned to the state he was in when he was preparing for the Biology Olympiad for a long time.

That was a true point-of-no-return resolve.

Constantly putting pressure on himself.

Constantly forcing himself forward.

And now, that feeling was back.

This time, there was no one pushing him forward.

He was walking this path alone.

So, it was time to create a complete study plan.

Success depends on preparation; without it, there is sure to be failure.

After so many years as a student, he had developed a method for making plans that suited him.

Let's call it the Realist Planning Method.

Step one: Gather intelligence. Know yourself and know your enemy.

Winning every battle was getting old.

As Guanzi once said: If you do not understand the enemy's politics, you cannot ally. If you do not understand the enemy's situation, you cannot make treaties. If you do not understand the enemy's generals, you cannot advance your army. If you do not understand the enemy's soldiers, you cannot form your ranks.

First, understand what kind of discipline economics is.

What are the key concepts?

Are there any good learning methods?

What can we achieve after learning it?

Second, understand his own current level.

What stage of learning was he at?

Beginner, proficient, or master?

Once familiar, what were his weaknesses and shortcomings?

Step two: Be practical and scientific in planning.

Anything detached from science and reality is just a castle in the air.

Chapter 250: Studying Makes Me Happy.jpg

So what was the reality now?

The reality was that Lu Shixian had virtually no foundation to speak of.

Step three: Adjust as needed based on results.

We need to know that reality is not static.

There will be many variables.

No matter how many contingency plans you make, a completely perfect plan does not exist.

We need to adjust the established plan when necessary, based on feedback.

With the logical direction clear in his mind, Lu Shixian began to write furiously on a blank sheet of paper.

Early stage: First, create a knowledge map.

Outside of class, catch up on the first semester's curriculum as quickly as possible and build a solid foundation of key concepts.

In class, try to mark the key content of the second semester for deeper understanding later.

Mid stage: Accurately understand the textbook content.

As self-study efficiency increases, he should be able to catch up with the main group at this point.

He might even be able to study ahead, cross-referencing the teacher's ideas with his own understanding.

Late stage: Construct his own knowledge system.

Based on his accumulated knowledge, gradually form his own system and be able to generate his own unique understanding.

And be able to articulate his understanding rationally and persuasively.

To put it simply, it was a process of knowledge from input to output.

This is also why all knowledge can survive and develop.

Only through generations of passing the torch, sifting the chaff from the grain, can humanity gradually grow stronger.

However, the late-stage matters could wait.

What Lu Shixian needed to do now was lie low and build up his strength.

So, studying makes me happy.jpg

And so, his days became regular again.

Apart from his scheduled classes, all his remaining time was spent on self-study to catch up.

"As the Enlightenment period ended, we entered the Classical period."

"The representative figure of the classical school of economics, Adam Smith, mentioned in 'An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations' that people are governed by an invisible hand."

"People pursue only their personal interests, but under the natural order, society as a whole reaps the greatest benefits. This order harmonizes individual and social interests, leading to the growth of overall wealth."

"Time moves to the late nineteenth century, and the classical school, which emphasized the economic roles of different social classes and the laws of distribution, was replaced by neoclassicism."

At this point, Lu Shixian's mind was filled with many seemingly profound theories.

"Walras proposed the general equilibrium theory, where the prices and supply and demand of all commodities and factors of production are interconnected, mutually influential, and mutually restrictive."

"Marshall proposed the theory of supply and demand. In the market, there are producers and consumers. Producers determine the supply, consumers determine the demand, and the needs of consumers directly affect the supply from producers."

"Next up is Keynesianism?"

"Hmm? Keynes?"

Just seeing the title, Lu Shixian couldn't help but feel a strong interest in the name.

Other stages of economic development were advanced by many economists collectively.

But this man's name alone represented an entire era?

That in itself said something.

Lu Shixian looked into this period with great curiosity.

His rise was accompanied by the Great Depression.

Unsold goods, plummeting prices, and bank failures directly led to a worldwide economic recession.

All of Europe seemed to have fallen into a chasm of despair.

Classical economics was dragged from its pedestal.

But then, this man appeared.

He appeared, wreathed in a seven-colored halo.

A book, 'The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money,' raised the curtain on reform.

Its appearance directly announced the rejection of the laissez-faire school and the refutation of Say's Law.

People found a policy in Keynes's General Theory: abandon the principle of free equilibrium and implement state intervention to stimulate consumption, increase investment, and ultimately achieve full employment.

He believed that the unemployment brought by the economic crisis was not an inevitable product of the system; its root cause was effective demand.

So, Keynes's General Theory is really about the theory of effective demand.

He believed unemployment was caused by insufficient effective demand. Under normal circumstances, because investment is not enough to cover the gap between income and consumption, the level of employment determined by aggregate demand is lower than the full employment level, and the entire economy operates below full employment.

To put it simply.

The number of jobs available depends on the level of social demand.

Therefore, unemployment must be caused by a lack of effective demand.

And aggregate demand = consumption demand + investment demand.

Consumption demand is directly related to income.

An increase in income will inevitably lead to an increase in consumption demand.

But people obviously don't spend every penny they earn.

Thus, the increase in income will be greater than the increase in consumption, and the difference between them is a manifestation of insufficient demand.

Insufficient demand naturally leads to employment difficulties, at which point investment demand is needed to fill the gap.

We often hear the phrase "boosting domestic demand" on TV or in newspapers.

In fact, while the two are not unrelated, they share a similar principle.

But theories proposed in the context of a specific era are eventually abandoned by time.

As stagflation set in, Keynesian theory was challenged by the monetarist school, the rational expectations school, and the supply-side school.

"The development of economics has now entered its final stage: neoliberalism."

"Neoliberalism is like the Hundred Schools of Thought, with various schools emerging and blossoming everywhere."

"The new Austrian school, also known as the Vienna school, is led by Hayek. They oppose Keynesian state intervention, believing, based on the monetary theory of the business cycle, that state macroeconomic control through monetary policy leads to the creation of business cycles."

"The monetarist school, also called the new Chicago school, is represented by Friedman. Monetarists believe that money is the most important factor affecting the economy, and that the price level or nominal income level arises from the equilibrium state of money demand and money supply."

"The new Cambridge school, which calls itself modern Keynesianism, is represented by Robinson, Sraffa, Kaldor, and others. They proposed a theory of distribution, advocating for analyzing and solving distribution problems on the basis of value theory. This theory advocates for state intervention in the economy to achieve equitable income distribution."

Just like that, a month passed.

In the dorm room, Chang Wenchao had just returned from PE class, back from the court.

Drenched in sweat, he immediately chugged three large glasses of water.

Watching him drink, Lu Shixian suddenly remembered something.

"Third Brother, according to the law of diminishing marginal utility, did you feel very satisfied after drinking the first glass of water?"

"Then after the second glass, you didn't feel as thirsty?"

"And by the third glass, did your stomach start to feel a bit bloated?"

Chang Wenchao looked at him with a puzzled expression, then shot back a sentence.

"I think you're the one who's full of it!"

Chapter 251: What Does the Rat Race Have to Do with Me?

Just then, Zhang Mengting also returned, carrying a bag with a check mark on it.

In front of everyone, he took a pair of shoes out of the plastic bag and put them on.

"Guys, help me see how they look. Nike was having a sale just now, it was so crowded I almost didn't get them."

However, before the ever-ready complimenter Chang Wenchao could express his envy, Lu Shixian blurted out.

"Assuming a perfectly competitive market, the price and demand for the Nikes you bought, Eldest Brother, would be represented by a downward-sloping line."

"At the same time, the price and supply of the product would be represented by an upward-sloping line."

"Because of the discount, demand skyrocketed while supply decreased, creating a state where demand exceeds supply."

"This market behavior is consistent with the theory of supply and demand."

Beside him, Zhang Mengting and Chang Wenchao exchanged a look, then focused their gazes on Lu Shixian.

"That's not a biology theory, is it?"

"Holy crap, Fourth Brother, are you leaving your beloved biology?" Chang Wenchao was the most shocked.

Like Lu Shixian, he had decided on his direction from the very beginning.

He was still persevering in chemistry, and now Lu Shixian was jumping ship?

"I think you should consider it carefully, Fourth Brother. Even though we all complain about it, our major is actually pretty good."

"Since you already have a great foundation, you should stick with it," Zhang Mengting added, trying to persuade him.

At that moment, Lu Shixian finally emerged from his deep thoughts.

Hearing their words, he asked, a little confused, "Who told you I was leaving biology?"

"Then what were you rambling on about?" Chang Wenchao asked, completely bewildered.

Lu Shixian smiled knowingly. "I didn't have any classes, so I picked up a dual degree. But the rule is it can't be too similar to your primary major, so I ended up choosing economics."

"I used to think economics was about how to make money."

"Only after studying it did I realize this major is no simple matter."

At this, both of them gave him a thumbs-up in resigned admiration.

"You're really something else!"

"I feel like I'm dying just studying one major."

Chang Wenchao slipped back into his relentless complaint mode.

"Do you have any idea how my brain is about to explode from studying physical chemistry?"

"And there's structural chemistry in it, which is pure torture."

"If it weren't for my solid foundation and my willingness to dig deep, I probably wouldn't have kept my number one spot."

The first part of his rant sounded normal enough, but when he got to the last sentence, Zhang Mengting couldn't help but laugh.

"That was a clumsy brag."

"The transition was too forced, it didn't sound natural."

"You need to learn a thing or two from Fourth Brother."

This comment left Lu Shixian completely puzzled.

"When did I ever brag?" As far as he could remember, he was pretty low-key.

Zhang Mengting shook his head and sighed. "It's in the way you're so casual about it."

"You're starting to get to all of us."

"Especially the other two. Last semester, Third Brother almost failed a required foundational course. Luckily he passed the re-exam this semester."

"Second Brother's grades in his major have slipped a bit. You don't see him around, do you?"

"He's definitely hiding in the library, studying his butt off."

Hearing this, Chang Wenchao couldn't resist adding, "Even when he's studying, he's off with Cheng Linlin, happy as can be."

"No one would think you're mute if you just kept quiet," Zhang Mengting shot him a sideways glance, then turned back to Lu Shixian.
“Anyway, Fourth Bro, you gotta keep it up!”

“Our chances of getting into grad school and winning awards are all on you now.”

Lu Shixian was speechless.

They were obviously joking, but it made him sigh inwardly.

Is the rat race in our dorm starting with me?

But he quickly put his mind at ease.

The term ‘involution’ didn't get popular until 2020.

Nobody even knows what that is yet, so what's it got to do with me?

The flowers of April faded.

Before he knew it, it was the middle of the second semester.

“As per the curriculum requirements, you all need to complete a term paper by next Monday. There are no restrictions on the topic, as long as it stays within the undergraduate scope. A micro or macroeconomic focus is preferred, and it would be best if it relates to the economic principles we've learned this semester,” the female professor recited, reading the requirements from the PowerPoint slide.

“The grade for this term paper will be part of your regular assessment, accounting for 40% of your final grade.”

Ever since she had called out Lu Shixian that one time, she hadn't paid him any special attention.

In a university, she felt that giving a well-intentioned reminder once was more than enough for a professor to do.

After assigning the task, she left with that final sentence.

The professor turned and made a clean exit.

A term paper, huh?

Lu Shixian was lost in thought for a moment.

A few minutes later, he realized the classroom was completely empty.

He gave a wry smile.

He couldn't help but lament how miserable it was to be a ‘repeater’ who had joined the class late.

These classmates, a year younger than him, were polite on the surface, but he couldn't fit in with them at all.

It wasn't like they were from two different worlds, but it certainly felt like there was a world between them.

Was this the treatment for a poor student, or had the extra year on his record created a generation gap?

But logically, he was the same age as these students now.

Lu Shixian quickly pushed the thoughts from his mind.

Away with you! Be gone! Vanish!

“I'm just here to take the class. As long as I learn something, that's all that matters.”

“Whether they talk to me or not, or what they think of me, has nothing to do with me.”

“I don't care at all!”

Since his morning classes were over, he had lunch and headed to the library.

On the way, Lu Shixian kept pondering what kind of paper he should write.

To be honest, with things like term papers, he used to just find something online, make a few changes, and brazenly slap his name on it.

The professor would usually turn a blind eye and give him a passing grade.

It was something most people didn't care about, an unspoken understanding among everyone.

But at Yan University, he wasn't sure if the same would fly.

Regardless of how strict the professor might be, Lu Shixian was no longer the person he used to be.

Putting aside whether it aligned with his life philosophy or values, doing something like that was just utterly meaningless and a complete waste of time.

Clearly, the man he was now would take it seriously.

He just needed to think carefully about the direction.

Sitting in the library, Lu Shixian's thoughts gradually returned to why he wanted to study economics in the first place.

He was certain that his real reason for choosing it was not just a spur of the moment decision.

Soon, Lu Shixian had his answer.

Agricultural economics was, in theory, a branch of economics, and an applied one with great research value at that.

That's right, what I've wanted to study all along is agriculture!

Chapter 252: What a Cliché Plot

Over the weekend, Lu Shixian sat at his computer.

He officially began his assignment.

A term paper is different from a degree thesis.

A term paper only requires using the knowledge from a specific course to study a problem, proving that you have a certain level of understanding of the subject.

The requirements for length and format are far less strict than for a thesis. A fast worker could finish one in just a few hours.

This was why many professors used it as a homework assignment.

With the experience of having written a near-SCI-level paper under his belt, writing this kind of paper was child's play for Lu Shixian.

Even though an economics paper was in the social sciences, which was different from the natural sciences he was familiar with, the fundamental logical core wasn't all that different.

With his incredibly solid foundation, he was done in less than two hours.

A fresh paper titled “The Application of the Pareto Principle in China's Tomato and Tomato Product Industry” was born.

The paper was just over two thousand words and used the Pareto Principle from economic law to conduct an in-depth analysis of tomatoes and their processed products.

Many people might not recognize the name Pareto Principle, but it has another famous moniker.

The 80/20 rule!

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the economist Vilfredo Pareto discovered an interesting pattern: in any given group, the most important items constitute about 20% of the total, while the remaining 80% are of secondary importance.

Its most famous application is probably that 20% of the population controls 80% of the wealth.

Whether at the national or industry level, this conclusion applies to most wealth distribution scenarios.

After finishing the paper, Lu Shixian gave it a quick check for typos or awkward phrasing.

Once he was done, he closed his laptop, picked up a book he had borrowed earlier, and started reading.

No matter what, he had to study economics, but he couldn't let his biology fall behind either.

The book was titled *The Long, Long Life of Trees*, written by Fiona Stafford.

There was no Chinese version available yet, so he was reading the English edition.

But after reading the introduction, Lu Shixian realized it wasn't a book exclusively about botany.

Even so, the book drew him in completely.

The author blended folklore, natural science, literature, and mythology, using vivid prose, unique insights, and profound philosophical thought to narrate the relationship between humans and trees, sparking contemplation about nature.

“Planting a tree is often a fundamental act, a public commitment to future prosperity.”

“Trees grow not to replace those whose lives have been cut short, but to perpetuate memory.”

“It creates a tranquil space for contemplation, offering some solace to the living.”

Time moved on to Wednesday.

Two days had passed since the last microeconomics class.

It was time for that class again.

The female professor walked in from outside in her high heels, carrying her textbook and lesson plan.

“I've read all the term papers you sent to my email on Monday.”

“I won't be announcing the grades. You reap what you sow.”

“How well you usually study is perfectly evident in these papers.”

“But that's on the premise that you wrote the paper yourself, word by word, and thought it through.”

Her sharp gaze swept across the classroom, then paused on a certain spot for a moment.

“Three students wrote excellent papers, fully integrating the content I taught last semester and this semester.”

“It's clear they have truly studied diligently, understood the material deeply, and can apply it as their own.”

After saying this, she paused and cleared her throat.

“Ahem, I want to give special praise to one student.”

“Lu Shixian, who is retaking the course from the sophomore year. The paper he submitted was highly original, expanding and deepening the Pareto optimality theory I taught not long ago.”

“He deeply connected the Pareto Principle with the trade of an agricultural crop, which was a breath of fresh air.”

“Now, I'd like to ask Lu Shixian to come to the podium to share his main ideas. I hope you all can learn from him.”

“Let's welcome him with a round of applause!”

As the professor's voice fell, the classroom became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Everyone turned to look at him.

Many exchanged bewildered glances, as if they had just heard something unbelievable.

It felt like a long time since they had last heard that name.

He had never been mentioned during daily Q&A sessions or the occasional praise for outstanding homework.

Other than sharing a classroom, they had no interaction with him, so they had long forgotten him.

But the results of years of quality education were impressive.

A round of formulaic applause still erupted.

Lu Shixian, however, was sighing inwardly.

The primacy effect really can be the death of you sometimes.

In psychology, it's also known as the first impression effect. The impression someone leaves during an initial meeting influences how people interpret their subsequent actions and behaviors.

The professor probably didn't ask me to come up here just to share and learn, did she?

It seems I've been underestimated.

While I couldn't be bothered to explain myself, that doesn't mean I'll let myself be suspected of plagiarism.

What a cliché plot!

To think that I, of all people, would one day be suspected of plagiarism!

Not caring what others think is a good mindset, it's true.

But crossing the line is not okay!

He would fight to clear his name.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Lu Shixian walked up to the stage at a steady pace.

The professor stepped aside from the podium, her expression complicated.

Without any unnecessary explanation, Lu Shixian got straight to the point.

“China's agricultural trade in tomatoes primarily takes two forms: inter-industry trade and intra-industry trade. In recent years, however, inter-industry trade has shown a greater advantage than intra-industry trade.”

“As a major agricultural nation, China possesses a factor endowment advantage in tomato products. Based on this advantage, our country has entered the international tomato market's trade competition. However, due to certain limiting factors, there is still a significant gap between China and other trading nations in the import and export of tomatoes.”

The paper was over two thousand words long.

Lu Shixian obviously wasn't going to recite the whole thing, nor was there any need to.

He just had to present the most essential part—the logical theoretical argument.

It was the core that supported the paper's theory.

“According to the Pareto Principle, we should adjust the input ratio of production factors to achieve industrial scaling and increase the size of enterprises engaged in the export of tomato products and their derivatives…”

“Furthermore, management expert Joseph Juran believed that most product quality defects have controllable causes. That is, 80% of defective products are caused by 20% of the defect-inducing factors, and 20% of the problems lead to 80% of the negative outcomes.”

“Therefore, we must strengthen the research and development of processed tomato products, creating products that suit the dietary habits of our target trading countries. At the same time, we must pay attention to the storage and preservation capabilities during transport, doing our utmost to minimize that 20% of problems…”

At that moment, the entire classroom fell silent once again…

Chapter 253: Natural Science and Social Science

After speaking, Lu Shixian walked off the stage on his own.

His job done, he brushed off his sleeves and left, concealing his deeds and name.

The way everyone looked at Lu Shixian had changed.

What the hell?

If he wasn't possessed, then I must have been hallucinating just now.

But time is the ultimate judge; under its gaze, no one can hide.

The freshmen began to marvel at the breadth of Lu Shixian's knowledge.

Driven by curiosity, the professor also spent about ten minutes asking around about Lu Shixian.

Unlike lecturers, professors at Yan University typically spend most of their time on research projects, papers, and events.

Teaching was actually done by squeezing time out from these other commitments.

She didn't know the students in the School of Economics very well, let alone a student from another college like Lu Shixian.

But asking around was one thing; the information she received left her stunned.

A student of the Class of 2009, Yuanpei College.

Winner of the 2010 Yan University Freshman Scholarship.

Completed all his credits by his sophomore year.

He was at the School of Economics merely to pursue a double major, not to repeat any courses.

Her image of Lu Shixian was completely overturned.

She just never thought she'd be the one to misjudge someone so badly.

But it certainly wouldn't happen a second time.

A day after this incident, the professor called Lu Shixian over after class and apologized to him.

“I'm truly sorry, Student Lu.”

“Double major courses are not usually held with freshmen. I assumed you were here to repeat the course.”

“If I said anything harsh before, please don't take it to heart.”

Lu Shixian just shook his head. “You're being too serious. Most students would love to hear that kind of feedback.”

“Besides, your intentions were for the students' benefit. Saying those things shows that you care about us.”

Hearing this, the way the professor looked at Lu Shixian changed yet again.

And what he said was indeed true.

With the exception of a few special institutions, universities and high schools were at two opposite extremes.

In high school, every teacher was especially strict with students; harsh words were commonplace.

If a day came when your teacher turned a blind eye to your misbehavior or seemed oblivious to your declining grades, that was when you really needed to panic.

But in university, generally speaking, aside from a few counselors or class advisors who might say a word or two, no professor or teacher would point out your problems.

My only job is to teach my class well. Whether you listen or not is your own business.

So, Lu Shixian's words really struck a chord with her.

The professor suddenly remembered something and said to him, “The fifth Hope Cup National Undergraduate Economics Paper Competition has just started. You could participate in the undergraduate division.”

“Although it's a competition open to all universities in the country, I think you could give it a shot with this term paper of yours.”

“Have you written a formal academic paper before?” the professor asked out of the blue.

Lu Shixian nodded and briefly described his academic experience.

This elicited a sound of surprise from her.

“You've truly surprised me today!”

“No wonder your paper was so polished. There were almost no flaws to be found.”

“However, you should still refine the paper a bit more at the end.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian immediately and humbly asked for her guidance.

He had written it entirely based on his own ideas, so naturally, he needed to hear the opinion of a professional.

Without a moment's thought, the professor told him, “No theory is unassailable.”

“Not even the Pareto Principle proposed by Vilfredo Pareto. Although it has been verified by many examples, the Pareto Principle doesn't always hold true.”

“Your paper's conclusion is too absolute. You must have mostly written papers in the natural sciences before.”

Lu Shixian looked at the professor with curiosity.

She was spot on. To be a professor, you really had to know your stuff.

The professor's voice sounded in his ear.

“Natural science papers are primarily based on quantitative analysis, so they strive for rigor in their proofs, and the conclusions drawn are very precise.”

“But social science papers are mainly based on qualitative analysis, and the discussion section is open-ended and exploratory.”

“Of course, in some cases, the two can intersect. But which one takes precedence is usually fixed.”

Lu Shixian had a moment of epiphany.

“No wonder economists argue over these things. That's why Keynes wrote at the end of *The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money*: ‘Practical men who believe themselves to be quite exempt from any intellectual influence, are usually the slaves of some defunct economist.’”

“‘Madmen in authority, who hear voices in the air, are distilling their frenzy from some academic scribbler of a few years back.’”

“But Mankiw criticized him for it in his *Principles of Economics*, quoting him and saying: ‘He was right. The academic scribbler who is now influencing public policy is often Keynes himself.’”

Hearing Lu Shixian's words, the professor was surprised he had such insight and nodded with a smile.

“You're right. The study of economics isn't like solving a math problem or an equation. It's actually an expression of ideas and must be based on real people. It's normal for different ideas to produce different views.”

“Menger called them ‘men with the capacity to adapt,’ which he believed was one of the prerequisites for economics to become an exact science.”

“I tend to agree with Hayek's view that economics is a science of the unintended consequences of intentional actions.”

The knowledge he had been studying recently collided in his mind, and the professor's answers sparked many new ideas.

Lu Shixian now had a new question and asked her, “The natural sciences have theories that are accepted by almost everyone, and they are supported by experimental data.”

“But economic theories never seem to be definitive. They've even split into numerous schools of thought, with countless economists arguing endlessly.”

“If that's the case, what is the necessity and meaning of studying economics?”

The professor smiled, her appreciation for Lu Shixian growing.

While most students were still busy cramming for their studies, she was truly surprised that Lu Shixian could ask such a question and even had the mind to ponder the meaning of economics' existence.

This way of thinking and his angle on problems were truly remarkable.

The professor finally took a few seconds to think before sharing her view.

“Mankiw discussed this in *Principles of Economics*: ‘Because of differences in scientific judgments and differences in values, disagreements among economists are inevitable. But we should not overstate the amount of disagreement.’”

“‘There is far more consensus among economists than is commonly understood. According to experiments, certain policy propositions garner the agreement of a majority of economists, but most of these propositions have not gained acceptance among the general public.’”

Chapter 254: Studying Science, Of Course It's Meaningful

“Friedman once said in a 1985 speech: An economic prediction may take ten years to get the new evidence you need, whereas in the natural sciences it's much easier to do an experiment and get a prediction.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian felt as if his mind had been opened.

That's right!

Every discipline has its own characteristics.

It was precisely because of the delayed verification of its predictions that economics created such confusion.

But that didn't mean studying economics was meaningless.

Economics is a science too!

As if to confirm his thoughts, the professor's next words gave him the confidence to stand by his idea.

“The establishment of the Nobel Prize in Economics has been heavily criticized. Myrdal shared the Nobel Prize with Hayek, but he later had a change of heart.”

“He argued that economics is not a science in the same sense as physics, chemistry, or medicine. But Friedman believed Myrdal was wrong, and that everyone should distinguish between the scientific work that economists do and the other work they do.”
An economist is both a member of society and a scientist!

At this point, the professor asked a rhetorical question, "So, is studying economics meaningful?"

Lu Shixian smiled in realization. "Of course it's meaningful to study a science!"

After his conversation with the professor ended, Lu Shixian was overcome with curiosity and went to look up information about her.

More than half the semester had passed, and he still didn't know her name.

How embarrassing!

Although there had been a small misunderstanding before, her intentions had been for the students' own good.

On the contrary, this only increased Lu Shixian's respect for her.

Soon, he found her information on the School of Economics' public notice board, under the 'Distinguished Faculty' section.

Xu Lijie.

She had completed her undergraduate studies at the School of Economics at Yanjiang University, earning a Bachelor of Economics.

Funded by the China Scholarship Council, she pursued her master's and doctoral degrees consecutively at Stanford University.

After completing her studies, she returned to China to teach at Yanjiang's School of Economics, where she was a full professor.

Her main research areas were Western economic schools of thought, the history of foreign economic thought, and credit theory and policy.

Alright, Lu Shixian finally understood.

No wonder she could lay out her arguments so convincingly, one point after another.

She researched the history of economic thought.

A glance at the time showed it was already past eleven in the morning.

Lu Shixian had been about to go for lunch.

But he suddenly remembered the essay competition Xu Lijie had mentioned.

So he went to the library to look up the details of the competition.

The Hope Cup Undergraduate Economics Essay Competition was part of the Hope Cup series, open to all university students in the country interested in economics.

It was divided into three categories based on academic level: undergraduate, master's, and doctoral.

It was a national-level academic essay competition, highly popular among finance and economics universities, and considered quite prestigious.

Xu Lijie really hadn't steered him wrong.

That being the case, he decided to enter.

He opened the registration website and immediately registered with his student information.

After his registration was approved, Lu Shixian revised his paper according to the direction she had suggested.

Once he had submitted his paper, Lu Shixian was ready to get lunch.

Just then, his phone rang again.

This time, Lu Shixian didn't even bother to look, simply tapping the answer button.

An unfamiliar voice came through the phone.

"Hello, you have an international package at the Yanjiang University EMS service center. Please come pick it up before six o'clock this evening."

Hearing this, his heart suddenly pounded with excitement.

He hardly needed to guess.

It was almost certainly the author's copy and offprints of his published paper, sent by the editorial department.

That settled it. Lunch could wait.

Lu Shixian bolted straight for the courier center, afraid it would close if he was too slow.

EMS back then was reliable, for sure.

The only issue was that they were quite punctual about closing up for the day.

Thankfully, he made it with five minutes to spare before noon.

Seeing the old man already packing up to go for lunch, Lu Shixian quickly called out to him.

After signing and confirming his information, Lu Shixian successfully collected the package.

Back in the dorm, his buddies had already returned from lunch and were resting.

They happened to see Lu Shixian unwrapping a package and couldn't help but be curious.

It wasn't the package itself.

By this time, online shopping had already become popular.

Many university students were already buying things online, and they were the main force behind e-commerce.

What really surprised them was Lu Shixian himself.

"Fourth Brother, this is the first time I've seen you so relaxed lately. You actually have time to shop online?" Zhang Mengting said as he and Lin Chenyi stood behind him, trying to see what it was.

Chang Wenchao, on the other hand, didn't even have the interest to glance over, walking straight past them.

"What's there to see? It's either something a relative sent him or some extracurricular book he bought online."

Lu Shixian paid him no mind, focusing on opening his package.

To be honest, there's a real thrill in unboxing a package.

But this was the most intense he had ever felt in his life.

The tightly sealed packaging was slowly opened, revealing the outline of what was inside.

"Third Brother, you really know him. It really is a book!" As expected, Lin Chenyi lost interest and prepared to climb into bed for his afternoon nap.

Zhang Mengting was also about to go wash his face, but as he turned, he noticed something was off.

"Huh, why is the cover all in English."

Lu Shixian just smiled and pulled the sample journal out completely.

"Haha, you all guessed wrong," he said.

"It's the latest issue of a journal. Want to see?"

Curiously, Zhang Mengting reached out and took the journal.

"A journal?"

"Fourth Brother, what paper did you submit this time?"

"It doesn't look like a domestic one, does it?"

But as the cover came into view, one English word instantly dazzled him.

"Nature?"

Then, when he saw the familiar name on the offprint...

"Holy shit!"

The volume of Zhang Mengting's voice set a new record in the dorm room.

Beside him, Lin Chenyi also gasped in shock.

Chang Wenchao, however, was baffled by their reactions.

"What's a 'nay-chur'? What are you guys screaming about?"

"Are you trying to let people sleep or not?"

Zhang Mengting stared at Lu Shixian as if he'd seen a ghost.

As a student who dealt with professors frequently, he certainly knew the significance of the journal in his hands.

"This is *Nature*!"

"Are you kidding me?"

At this, Chang Wenchao was finally stirred.

"No way. Are you talking about CNS?"

Slipping on his slippers, he could no longer hold back and rushed over.

What he saw blew his mind.

"Holy shit!" An exclamation far louder than Zhang Mengting's nearly echoed through the entire floor.

"Are you even human?"

Instantly, students from the surrounding dorm rooms were drawn over by the commotion.

They were all from Yuanpei College and in the same year, familiar with the residents of dorm 4012, and often dropped by each other's rooms.

"What's going on? Don't tell me you guys ganged up on Old Chang again?"

Chapter 255: That's Right, Just That Confident

"No way!" Chang Wenchao retorted loudly. "This guy is just too ridiculous! He went and published a paper in *Nature* without a word!"

At this, the onlookers outside could no longer remain calm.

"What the hell?"

And one by one, they all squeezed into the room.

Seeing the room fill up with more and more people, Lu Shixian quickly explained, "I need to clarify!"

"It's not that big a deal, it's just a subsidiary journal."

With that, he quickly handed out the offprints from the package, one to each person.

By the end, he was left with only the single sample journal in his hands.

Meanwhile, in the room, everyone was staring at him as if he were a deity.

Chang Wenchao looked at the pages in his hand, practically radiating jealousy.

"I don't understand a word of it, but I am thoroughly shocked."

"We were all competition winners, so why are you so damn outstanding?"

Beside him, Zhang Mengting and Lin Chenyi quickly followed suit.

"We're all roommates, so why are you so damn outstanding?"

"We're all from Yuanpei College, so why are you so damn outstanding?"

After that, even though Lu Shixian didn't say anything intentionally, the news spread far faster than he had imagined.

Early the next morning, his phone began to ring nonstop.

But to his surprise, the first person to call him was He Ming.

But it wasn't surprising for someone in student affairs to be well-informed.

"Hello! Is this Student Lu?"

"I heard you published a paper in *Nature*?"

"It's not that big a deal, just one of its subsidiary journals."

"That's still a huge deal! Why didn't you tell us sooner? We only found out through a message students were forwarding in a group chat."

"Hehe, I was just waiting until everything was completely confirmed to say anything."

But He Ming's next words left Lu Shixian stunned.

"But the School of Life Sciences already posted the news on their official website yesterday afternoon. We're in a very passive position now!"

"Student Lu, you're a Yuanpei College student. You should report things like this to our college first."

"Never mind that for now. Student Lu, I'm coming to find you right now." With that, He Ming hung up.

Those words left Lu Shixian dumbfounded.

What was going on?

I just got the package yesterday at noon, and the School of Life Sciences announced it in the afternoon? Could there be a mole?

After some rigorous deduction, Lu Shixian quickly identified the suspect: a certain old man.

Damn it, Old Ma, you don't play fair.

He quickly opened his laptop and searched for the official website of Yanjiang University's School of Life Sciences.

Sure enough, in the latest news bulletin, he saw his name.

"Nature Cell Biology | Our University's Undergraduate Publishes in Top-Tier Journal, Revealing the Impact of GPCR on Cellular Immune Regulation Under Inflammatory Conditions."

"On February 26, 2011, Yanjiang University undergraduate Lu Shixian published a research paper online in the journal *Nature Cell Biology* titled 'The Role of GPCR in the Regulation of Cellular Immune Function Under Inflammatory Conditions'."

"*Nature Cell Biology* is a subsidiary journal of *Nature* and a top-tier journal in the field of cell biology, with an impact factor as high as 20.628. Student Lu Shixian is currently pursuing his undergraduate studies in our school and has maintained excellent academic performance for two consecutive years."

"This achievement of publishing in a top-tier journal is not only a validation of his learning abilities but also a reflection of the phased improvement in our school's undergraduate teaching capabilities..."

"The study found..."

Emm, alright then.

No wonder He Ming was so worked up.

In less than ten minutes, He Ming appeared in Lu Shixian's dorm room.

"Student Lu, where's your author's copy?" He Ming got straight to the point.

He immediately handed him the journal from his desk.

Flipping to page thirty-two, He Ming found the article from the photo of the offprint that had been circulating in the group chat.

When he saw the corresponding institution and address, he breathed a sigh of relief and said to Lu Shixian.

"Student Lu, you didn't disappoint us, but you sure gave us a scare."

"In the future, for any major achievements like this, remember to give the college a heads-up first."

He Ming returned the journal to him and continued, "I've already reported this to the college leadership, and they are taking it very seriously."

"They've already issued a directive. Based on your past performance and this academic achievement, they've decided to nominate you, on behalf of the college, as a candidate for this year's university-wide Special Scholarship. You should prepare for it."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian's eyes lit up, but he asked with some hesitation.

"Is that really appropriate?"

"There are many other outstanding students in the college. Isn't it a bit unfair to nominate just me?"

Hearing his words, He Ming just smiled and shook his head. "This was a collective decision by all the college leaders. If anyone has an objection, they can go take it up with Academician Zeng first."

"Besides, I believe that if any other student can publish a paper as the sole author in a journal of this caliber, the college would give them the same opportunity."

That left Lu Shixian with nothing more to say.

He Ming then brought up the topic Lu Shixian was most interested in.

"Student Lu, according to our college's current reward policy for student academic publications, publishing a paper in an A+ category English journal grants a student author a total of 50,000 RMB."

Speaking of which, He Ming suddenly remembered something and remarked with some emotion.

"Oh right, no wonder you mentioned something about publication fees to me last time."

"I just assumed it was for a regular journal, like with the other students."

"Who knew you were preparing such a surprise for everyone? That's no problem either. Once the verification process is complete, the funds should be disbursed to you soon."

After he left, Lu Shixian's face was filled with delight.

With this reward money, Lu Shixian no longer cared about the publication fees he mentioned.

That's right. He could afford to be that confident.

A one-time prize of 50,000 RMB.

This had already broken his personal financial record.

It was a tremendous encouragement for all his previous efforts.

Perhaps many people couldn't understand. Reborn into this life, why not just buy some stocks, accumulate some capital, and then make big money through investments?

Why would he care so much about a mere 50,000 RMB?

But, to put it sentimentally, he truly hoped to become wealthy so he could do many good things.

There are many ways to achieve a goal, but that was not one of them.

Nothing of true value in this world can be obtained without arduous and diligent labor.

When capital came into the world, it dripped with blood and dirt from every pore, from head to toe.

While you play with capital, capital will ultimately play with you!

Chapter 256: Actually, I Feel Quite Insecure Sometimes

But as the saying goes, no need to rush; what's meant to be will be.

Even Lu Shixian himself hadn't expected Gu Hongya to give him such a surprise.

"Little Lu, that patent commercialization you asked me to look into for you? I've got a lead."

"Huaguo Sea Buckthorn Industry Co., Ltd. is interested in your cultivation method. Because your method isn't very difficult and its long-term value isn't exceptionally high, you should be prepared for a price that isn't too high."

This was a pleasant surprise for Lu Shixian.

He knew of Huaguo Sea Buckthorn Industry Co., Ltd. It was the largest sea buckthorn enterprise in the country, integrating planting, research, development, production, sales, and investment.

It was a world apart from that small company that had tried to get a bargain.

Hearing this good news, Lu Shixian didn't mind her precautionary words at all.

Anyway, Gu Hongya wouldn't steer him wrong. As long as it was more than what that shell company offered, he'd be happy.

"Go ahead and tell me. As long as it's reasonable, I can accept it."

From the other end of the line, Gu Hongya relayed the offer.

"Their highest offer is 350,000 RMB. Can you accept that?"

"This price probably hasn't reached their absolute bottom line, but it's close."

"I've worked with the VP of R&D at Huasha before, so it wouldn't be right to push them too hard."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian quickly agreed.

"I can accept that."

In fact, if he had negotiated it himself, his expected price would have been around 250,000.

Getting this price was largely thanks to the other party giving face to Gu Hongya.

With an extra 100,000, how could he possibly be dissatisfied?

"Alright then. Are you free in the coming days?"

"Yes, I am."

Hearing Lu Shixian's affirmative answer, Gu Hongya told him, "Huasha has a branch office in Yanjiang. The day after tomorrow, they'll send a specialist to meet with you."

"Then you just need to sign the patent licensing transfer agreement."

"Also, regarding the patent transfer, there are a few things you need to be aware of…"

Her voice didn't stop for a full five minutes.

After listening to Gu Hongya's advice over the phone, Lu Shixian felt quite touched.

He immediately expressed his gratitude to her over the phone.

"Thank you so much for all the trouble."

Gu Hongya just laughed. "It's a small matter, nothing at all."

"I heard you published a paper in *Nature Cell Biology*?"

"I haven't had the chance to congratulate you yet. Even for me, I can only publish a few papers a year in a journal of that caliber, and sometimes it just comes down to luck."

"Then I guess my luck was just a tiny bit better than yours—it completely exploded," Lu Shixian replied, taking her cue to be modest. He soon heard a light chuckle from the other end.

"Alright, have you been learning bad habits from Ma Yuheng this semester?"

"When did you become so glib?"

"Just don't forget about the day after tomorrow. I'm hanging up now."

After acknowledging, Lu Shixian waited for the dial tone before hanging up as well.

Pacing back and forth on the side of the road, Lu Shixian decided to give He Ming a call.

Although the amount involved in the patent transfer wasn't enormous, it was still a few hundred thousand.

In 2011, that sum of money still had considerable purchasing power.

It was a fairly big deal.

Last time, He Ming had come over specifically to remind him to report any major events to the college first.

If he stood him up again this time, Lu Shixian could imagine how resentful he would be.

When the call connected, Lu Shixian quickly gave He Ming a brief rundown of the situation.

As expected, He Ming was very pleased and immediately said the college would provide some support the day after tomorrow.

Two days later, Yuanpei College actually held a small signing ceremony in a conference room.

In addition to the few college leaders in attendance, campus media from both the college and university levels were also present.

The authorized representative from Huaguo Sea Buckthorn Industry Co., Ltd. was a middle-aged man in a suit and tie who looked quite shrewd.

The terms of the agreement had already been settled, so he had originally come just to go through the motions.

Knowing that the other party was a current student, he wasn't dismissive, but he certainly hadn't taken it very seriously either.

But now, he had changed his mind.

"Student Lu, you're truly accomplished for your age!" he said, shaking Lu Shixian's hand enthusiastically.

"Not at all, not at all. In fact, I still feel quite insecure sometimes," Lu Shixian replied, quickly getting into character.

Under the flash of cameras, the two signed their names on the agreement.

With that, the ceremony was officially over.

The news was quickly written up and posted on the university's official website.

During a period with no other major events, this counted as a piece of moderately significant news.

A few days later, Lu Shixian was walking to class when he suddenly received a text message.

"[Smart ABC: Your bank card ending in 1856 received a transfer of 300,000.00 RMB (Interbank Transfer) on March 7. Current balance: 305,297.88 RMB.]"

Not bad at all!

His empty wallet seemed to be full again.

Even though it was just a few numbers, Lu Shixian couldn't be more delighted.

The remaining 50,000 wasn't withheld or missing.

He had already decided to give it to Qu Xi.

Gu Hongya had helped him immensely, but that was a favor owed.

Qu Xi, on the other hand, had genuinely spent a month with him stationed on the plateau.

Although her name was on the paper.

For some reason, when the patent was later filed, only Lu Shixian's name ended up on the certificate.

But she deserved a share of the proceeds from the patent commercialization.

The two were separate matters, and he was very clear about that in his mind.

Just as he expected, less than half a minute later, he received a call from Qu Xi.

"Why did my bank account just get 50,000 RMB?"

"I see the sender is some Sea Buckthorn Industry company."

"Is this the patent commercialization fee we talked about?"

"Junior, I can't accept this money."
"I really didn't do much. You came up with the core steps for the patent all by yourself."

"I really can't take this."

Before Lu Shixian could even get a word in, Qu Xi had already rattled off a long list of reasons.

But he had anticipated this, so he immediately tried to reason with her and appeal to her emotions.

However, Qu Xi still adamantly refused.

In the end, they reached a compromise: Qu Xi would accept the money.

But she would donate it in both their names to the Project Hope in Haiqing Province.

Only then did she finally relent.

Having exhausted himself talking, Lu Shixian shook his head, speechless.

He couldn't help but sigh. Is it really this hard to give money away these days?

But after a moment's thought, something still felt off.

So, he took out fifty thousand from his own funds.

Together, they pooled a hundred thousand yuan to help children in the plateau regions who had dropped out of school due to poverty.

Looking at his remaining balance, Lu Shixian didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

After all that, he was back to two hundred and fifty thousand, which was exactly what he had mentally budgeted for in the first place.

Was this fate?

Chapter 257: Did You Go on Vacation in Africa?

As the days slowly passed.

The semester was drawing to a close.

A few more things happened during this time.

First, regarding the Hope Cup National Economics Essay Competition for University Students that Xu Lijie had mentioned.

His revised submission actually won the gold prize in the undergraduate category.

This wasn't part of his plan, but he was quite grateful to Professor Xu for the extra certificate.

Second, and this was unbelievable.

Around the beginning of May, he received another package.

When he opened it, he found another sample issue of an SCI journal.

He was stunned.

Was he still dreaming?

It was only when he opened it that he realized it was indeed related to him.

He hadn't expected Professor Ke Jie to be so efficient. Although that national-level project was already nearing its end back then.

The time it took to write the final paper, submit it, and get it published wasn't supposed to be this fast.

He flipped through the sample issue.

He discovered it was a domestic Chinese core journal, *Chinese Agricultural Science*.

But its English edition was indexed in the SCI database.

The corresponding institution was naturally Huazhong Agricultural University.

What surprised him was that he was listed as a co-first author, while Ke Jie was only listed as the corresponding author.

Although the impact factor was relatively low, around 1.0432.

It was nothing compared to the sister journals of *Nature*, which could easily surpass 20.

But it was still an SCI paper, and this journal's influence in the domestic agricultural field was unparalleled.

Lu Shixian was more than satisfied.

Finally, at the end of the term.

Due to his outstanding grades and performance over the past year, Lu Shixian was awarded the title of Outstanding Student of Yuanpei College.

Although it was only a college-level honor, Lu Shixian was happy to accept the certificate.

After all, it represented the college's recognition of his efforts.

With the end of final exams.

The two-month-long summer vacation had arrived once again.

But upon returning home, he was ceaselessly busy.

This year, the early rice harvest in Xingfu Town was bountiful.

As one of the village's major grain growers, Lu Shixian was miserably conscripted to help with the harvest.

Although his family had bought a combine harvester before.

The machine still needed an operator, and there were many trivial tasks that required manual labor.

After a busy summer vacation, Lu Shixian was finally able to return to school.

Without realizing it, he had become a junior.

The moment he arrived at school, he was summoned by his counselor, Yuan Qingmei.

He didn't know what it was about, but he went anyway.

He arrived at the college and found her office with ease.

Her very first sentence struck a blow to Lu Shixian's heart.

"Student Lu, did you go on vacation in Africa this summer?"

"How did you get so tan?"

Lu Shixian resisted the urge to cough up blood and explained, "Africa is out of the question."

"I was busy with farm work back home."

"I got tanned by the sun, there was nothing I could do about it!"

His explanation piqued Yuan Qingmei's curiosity.

At the time, very few students who got into Yanda University came from rural areas.

And even among those who did, it was rare for them to personally work in the fields after getting in.

A student like Lu Shixian was truly a rare sight.

After her initial surprise, Yuan Qingmei quickly got to the point.

"Alright, I called you here for official business."

"Professor He should have already spoken to you about this."

"The college will be recommending you and another female student as candidates for the 2011 Yanda University Special Scholarship. The selection process should be starting soon, so you need to prepare."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian immediately remembered the matter.

But at the time, He Ming had said it was only him; now there was another spot.

He was curious to know who this other person was.

When he asked, Yuan Qingmei quickly explained, "The other female student applied on her own behalf. She passed the college's preliminary review, but she still has to go through the university-level screening."

"But you're different. You were sent directly by the college to the final list of fifteen candidates."

"You just need to be in the top ten in the final vote to receive the 15,000 yuan scholarship."

"Only fifteen thousand?" Lu Shixian subconsciously latched onto the key number.

Yuan Qingmei gave him an amused look. "Fifteen thousand is already very good."

"The most important thing is the spiritual recognition for outstanding students. The money is just a bonus."

"You received a fifty-thousand-yuan prize for your paper and a three-hundred-fifty-thousand-yuan fee for the patent transfer," Yuan Qingmei teased. "What's wrong? Feeling too proud to care about this now?"

Lu Shixian quickly replied, "Of course not. I was just saying."

After he left.

Lu Shixian was indeed full of motivation.

He began to prepare seriously.

Just as Yuan Qingmei had said.

Although the prize money was a mere fifteen thousand, the meaning behind it was significant.

The Yanda and Shuimu Special Scholarships were the highest honors in their respective universities, awarded to recognize students who studied diligently, developed comprehensively, and excelled in their specializations.

The selection process for the Yanda University Special Scholarship usually began with student applications, followed by a defense within their own department. Only after passing the departmental review would they be recommended to the university's scholarship committee for further screening to determine the final candidates.

Finally, the candidates would hold a public defense, and only after approval by the university council could the awards and prize money be conferred.

The entire process was extremely rigorous and complicated; the college had simply spared him the initial steps.

Anyone who could stand out in this competition was undoubtedly one of the most outstanding students of their time.

Why "of their time" and not "of their year"?

The reason was that the Special Scholarship did not restrict participation based on the student's year of study.

Even a freshman was technically eligible to participate, though it would likely be a futile effort.

This was a stage for seniors. After three years of study and life at Yanda, their achievements in various fields were incomparable to those of students from lower years.

Of course, a small number of juniors could also participate, but their chances of winning were very low.

As for freshmen and sophomores, it was out of the question.

The fact that Lu Shixian could be recommended to stand on this stage and give a representative speech was largely due to his paper published in a sister journal of *Nature*.

He understood this point clearly.

Without the boost from this paper, he really wouldn't have stood a chance in such a fierce scholarship competition.

Even he had to admit that Yanda was full of brilliant people.

There were definitely many prodigies who had joined their advisors' labs and published research findings as undergraduates.

Among these prodigies, quite a few had published SCI papers.

But in terms of academic research, Lu Shixian's advantages were the tier of the journal and his status as the sole author.

That's right, he had wanted to add Ma Yuheng's name, but the professor had directly refused.

Ma Yuheng had indeed provided significant guidance on the paper.

But the old professor's response was, "I've written enough papers to build a mountain. Do I really need one more of your SCI papers?"

Chapter 258: Yanda Special Scholarship

A paper in a top-tier journal with an impact factor over 20 was a rare achievement even for some professors, let alone an undergraduate student.

Secondly, Lu Shixian's background also played a very positive role.

It was strange, but in the grand city of Yanjing, where powerful connections were everywhere.

His simple, humble background—perhaps "impoverished" was an exaggeration, but he came from the most ordinary of farming families.

In the end, having no background became his greatest background.

Furthermore, Yuanpei College had just been established, its model yet to be proven, and some worrying signs had already appeared.

Lu Shixian's success, to a certain extent, represented the success of the Yuanpei model.

This was the fundamental reason why the college was sparing no effort to push him onto the stage.

And so, Lu Shixian had to miserably prepare another speech.

He was starting to develop a fear of public speaking.

Not because of stage fright, but because he had absolutely no idea what to say.

He had given so many speeches before that he had already said almost everything there was to say.

He couldn't just regress, could he?

The thought left him deeply troubled.

After a week of rigorous screening, the final list of fifteen candidates for the Yanda University Undergraduate Special Scholarship was released.

Excluding the graduate school, Yanda had a total of seven faculties and over sixty direct-affiliated colleges.

But there were only fifteen finalist spots, and only ten would ultimately win.

Due to the fierce competition, many colleges had no one pass the screening at all, ending up with a clean slate.

Unfortunately, besides Lu Shixian, no one else from Yuanpei College had made it through.

But it couldn't be helped. They were the first batch of students since the college's founding.

Having just moved up from their sophomore year, it was normal that they couldn't compete with the seniors.

Just one day after the list of candidates was announced.

The Yanda University Undergraduate Special Scholarship Defense and Award Ceremony officially began.

As Yanda's most prestigious honor, the scale of this ceremony was at its peak.

The defense was held in the most iconic venue, the Centennial Hall, which also boasted the most advanced stage on campus.

The judging panel consisted almost entirely of academicians from the Chinese Academy of Sciences or the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

The audience was also the largest for any event; basically, any student without something urgent to do had come to watch the spectacle.

The Centennial Hall, which could accommodate several thousand people, was packed to the rafters, a sea of dark heads stretching as far as the eye could see.

The media presence was also unprecedented. Not only was the event being recorded by the university's media team, but social media outlets had also come to join the fun.

The aisles were lined with reporters and their high-resolution cameras.

The equipment had long been set up, and the opening ceremony of the awards officially began.

The opening dance was the classically elegant "Dance of the Rainbow Robe and Feathered Skirt." Numerous women in Han and Tang dynasty costumes began to dance gracefully, their figures ethereal, their skirts fluttering.

Perhaps only the verses of the Drunken Poet could describe the scene.

Rainbow robes and rosy capes, a crown with swaying ornaments, jeweled pendants in clusters, tinkling like coral. So graceful she seems unable to bear the weight of her silks, pausing in her steps to listen to the suspended chimes.

2011 was the peak of the Korean Wave's influence. At university galas and opening ceremonies that year, one could see traces of K-pop girl group dances, all seemingly designed to showcase the female form to its fullest.

But Yanda held fast to its cultural heritage, a romance and aesthetic that was uniquely Chinese.

The entire scene was a poetic painting, and even Lu Shixian, who didn't understand art, could perceive its beauty.

The dance ended to thunderous applause.

The dazzling background faded to the simple university emblem of Yanda, red characters on a white background.

Two seal-script characters in the style of ancient roof tiles appeared.

"Yanda"

Above them, in large red English letters, and below, the year 1898, silently narrating its history.

Besides that, there was nothing else. It felt like something was missing.

That's right, Yanda had no official motto.

Not even President Cai's famous "Follow the principle of freedom of thought, and adopt the doctrine of inclusiveness" was adopted as the school motto.

Perhaps having no motto was the greatest motto of all.

Soon, after an introduction by the host, the president of Yanda University would deliver the opening remarks.

The current president of Yanda was Zou Qifeng.

An academician of the Chemistry Division of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

He was a true Yanda man through and through.

After graduating from Yanda in the sixties, he stayed on to teach. Later, he was sent by the state to the United States to study polymer science and engineering.

After receiving his doctorate, he returned to Yanda to continue his work, successively serving as an associate professor, professor, department head, and associate dean of academic affairs.

He was elected as an academician of the Academy of Sciences in 1999 and was an authority in the field of polymer chemistry in China.

He had served as the principal investigator for numerous key projects of the National Natural Science Foundation and 973 Program projects, and had won the National Science and Technology Progress Award.

His speeches had a very distinct style, perhaps related to his rich academic career. They possessed both Eastern modesty and a touch of Western frankness.

All in all, as a president, his affability was undeniable, and he was very popular among the students.

His speech was long, but his lively narrative style made it anything but dull; in fact, it was easy to listen to attentively.

When he finished, everyone, including Lu Shixian who was waiting backstage, felt a little reluctant to see it end.

He seemed to have forgotten that another heavyweight was sitting right next to him.

"Student Lu, you don't seem nervous at all."

"Your composure is excellent," Academician Zeng said, looking at him with approval.

Lu Shixian grinned at him. "With you sitting here backing me up, what's there to be nervous about?"

As the dean of Yuanpei College, he would be the first to go on stage to introduce Lu Shixian.

This job should have been Ma Yuheng's, as it was usually handled by the student's academic advisor.

There was no precedent for an academician going on stage to introduce a student.

The reasons for this were complex. According to Lu Shixian's own speculation.

First, Ma Yuheng might have tipped off the College of Life Sciences.

Second, Yuanpei College was newly established and needed a success story.

By supporting Lu Shixian, he was also supporting Yuanpei College.

Finally, it had been less than a year since his election as an academician last November, so part of it might be that he hadn't fully transitioned into his new status and position.

As the host announced the start of the next segment.

Zeng Fanzhu, dressed in a sharp suit, left Lu Shixian with a dashing view of his back.

As he slowly walked to the podium, the large screen on the stage displayed the introductory poster each candidate had created.

Lu Shixian had put quite a bit of thought into his design. The entire poster background was a blurred image of a verdant ocean of rice paddies.

On the right side of the poster were a few handsome photos he had selected.

No matter what others said, he himself was struck by his own good looks.

On the left, his reasons for being a candidate were summarized in an outline.

The full content was as follows.

Chapter 259: The Starry Sky Above and the Moral Law Within

2011 Yanda University Special Scholarship (Undergraduate) Candidate.

Lu Shixian, Biological Sciences, Yuanpei College

[Solidifying Foundations Through Academic Excellence]

Freshman Year Major Ranking: 1/124

Sophomore Year Major Ranking: 1/121

Achieved A+ in twelve courses.

Currently pursuing a second bachelor's degree in Economics.

2010: National Scholarship, Yuanpei College

2010: Yanda University Freshman Scholarship

2010: Outstanding Student, Yuanpei College

[Engaging in Competition and Research]

2009 Challenge Cup National University Student Extracurricular Academic Science and Technology Competition: First Prize (University Level) / First Prize (National Level).

2011 Hope Cup National Economics Essay Competition for University Students: Gold Prize.

Holds one certified patent from the National Patent Office (already transferred).

Shixian Lu, The role of GPCR in the regulation of cellular immune function under inflammatory conditions.

IF: 20.147.

NCB, 2010.

Shixian Lu, Changfen Han, Li Yu, Yifan Huang, Analysis on eco-agricultural model and technology application of rice-shrimp co-cultivation.

IF: 1.0432.

ASC, 2010.

[Strengthening the Body, Enjoying the Arts]

2009 Yanda University Autumn Sports Meet: 1500m / 3000m Champion

2009 Capital University Students' Autumn Games: 1500m / 3000m Champion

2009 University New Year's Gala: First Prize for Performance.

As this poster was magnified and displayed on the giant screen.

It caused a bit of a stir at first.

Only two years of academic results were shown, which meant he had just finished his sophomore year.

It was rare for a sophomore to make it this far.

But the excitement quickly subsided.

Even if he was first in his major for two years, which of the candidates present wasn't at the top of their class?

Until they got to the research section.

If the first prize in the Challenge Cup was impressive, then the top-tier journal paper with his name alone on it was like 24-karat gold, almost blinding everyone.

The entire hall instantly erupted in discussion.

"A top journal starting with N... if I remember correctly, that's a sister journal of the *Nature* series."

"Am I seeing things? Two SCI papers as a sophomore, and one of them is a top journal in its field?"

"This guy in the photo is kind of cute. And he's a fresh-faced underclassman."

Ignoring the lovesick comment, the heavyweight academicians on the judging panel exchanged glances and nodded.

But as Zeng Fanzhu walked onto the stage, the buzz of discussion quieted down and then disappeared.

This newly elected academician had drawn a great deal of attention at the university last year.

Through that, many students had come to recognize him.

His appearance was met with a round of enthusiastic applause.

When the applause died down, Zeng Fanzhu smiled, picked up the microphone, and began his opening remarks in a light and humorous way.

"I still remember the last time I stood here, I was the main character."

"I never thought that just a few months later, I'd be playing a supporting role."
But I was very happy to play a supporting role today. As a dean, there is nothing more joyful than watching the children of our college achieve success and grow up happy.

To be honest, here at Yuanpei College, Lu Shixian wasn't a student who caught your eye right from the start, even though his competition results from high school were exceptionally brilliant.

As soon as he said this, the hall erupted in another round of roaring laughter.

Lu Shixian, who was backstage at that moment, couldn't help but give him a silent thumbs-up.

This humblebrag about the college was truly a class act.

Could it be that ever since his humblebragging-style defense at the college, the trend had spread far and wide?

Now, even an academician had mastered the art.

Then, Zeng Fanzhu continued with a smile, "I won't elaborate on matters of scientific research and awards. You can all see the information on the posters."

"What I really want to talk about is the origin of that top-tier journal paper, which many of you might not be aware of. I'd like to take this opportunity to share the story."

"Perhaps some of you have heard that during last year's Capital University Games, a student fell and was injured right when he was about to win a gold medal."

"Then, despite still having a chance to win, he chose to forfeit and walk off the track."

"This incident sparked some controversy at the time, and some school officials even threatened to issue a formal reprimand."

As he spoke, his narrative reawakened memories long buried by time for many students who had participated in the games.

In their minds, the image of a figure sprinting away from the track gradually became clear.

A realization dawned on many of them: So that person was him!

Zeng Fanzhu paid no mind to the crowd's reaction and continued his story. "From your perspective, giving up the race was naturally wrong, and a reprimand would have been deserved, right?"

Seeing many people nod, Zeng Fanzhu said with a smile, "But from the very beginning, the college chose to trust him."

"That's right. Because I believe that every student of Yuanpei College possesses both moral integrity and intellectual ability, and is a well-rounded individual. They certainly have the capacity to make judgments based on their own moral compass."

"I guessed that at that moment, he must have faced a choice, whether it was for an instant or for several minutes."

"In the end, it turned out that our assumption was correct, and the trust we placed in all of you was not betrayed."

"Because he was injured on the track, he stumbled upon an inspiration for his research. He followed that spark, delving deeper, unraveling it thread by thread until he found his final goal. And that is the origin of this paper."

The atmosphere in the hall had gradually fallen silent.

With a single sentence, Zeng Fanzhu once again stirred the students' emotions.

"Of course, I'm not here to advocate for abandoning the spirit of sportsmanship. There's a quote from Kant that I think puts it very well."

"Two things fill the mind with ever new and increasing admiration and awe, the more often and steadily we reflect upon them: the starry heavens above me and the moral law within me."

"I believe that whether an action is moral does not depend on its consequences, but on the motivation behind it."

"An act can only be called moral if it satisfies the principles of universality and autonomy, and is devoid of utilitarian motives."

"Here, I hope we can all show a little more tolerance and understanding for one another."

"Finally, I wish that you all may see the brilliant starry sky above your heads and always preserve the moral law within your hearts."

"Thank you, everyone!"

Chapter 260: There's Nothing Wrong with Only Knowing How to Solve Problems

After Zeng Fanzhu finished, the entire hall thundered with applause.

Everyone could feel the personal charisma radiating from his words.

"Next, the stage belongs to the young people."

With that, Zeng Fanzhu put down the microphone and left the stage.

This was also the cue for Lu Shixian to go on.

He took a deep breath and walked toward the center of the stage.

The screen displayed his achievements.

A bright red carpet was laid out beneath his feet.

Thousands of spectators were seated below the stage.

This was his second time on a major new stage since winning the IBO world championship.

And it was, of course, the time with the largest audience.

A brief glance downward revealed countless faces looking up at him.

Thousands of pairs of eyes converged on him, and the pressure was immense.

He picked up the microphone, only to find that he couldn't remember the first line of the speech he had written.

That's right, he was getting nervous.

Pressure is a strange thing; even seasoned performers who are on stage every day can't escape it.

For many, this would surely be an unforgettable experience.

Fortunately, Lu Shixian was a veteran competitor with nerves of steel. He quickly composed himself.

If he couldn't remember it, he would just speak from the heart.

"Thank you so much to the college and the university for giving me this opportunity, for letting me be the first to stand on this stage to share my story and my thoughts."

"I've walked a long road and endured many hardships to finally arrive here from a small village thousands of miles away."

"The journey of my education, spanning nearly twenty years, has been full of obstacles. Though it wasn't easy, I found joy in it."

"My academic journey began in a rural elementary school in my hometown. It was a bit dilapidated back then, but it had a very heartwarming name."

"Happiness Elementary."

A faint smile touched Lu Shixian's lips as he mentioned the name.

"I'm truly ashamed. Unlike many of the students here, when I look back on my school days..."

"There weren't diverse sports activities. All we could do was run lap after lap around a dirt track."

"There weren't abundant learning materials either. Many used old textbooks that were years out of date, or even books passed down from relatives who had just graduated."

"Of course, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them scrap, because many of those kids would never use them again."

At this point, Lu Shixian turned to look at the poster on the big screen, a wave of emotion washing over him.

"As you can all see, compared to many others, my extracurricular activities are sorely lacking, though my research experience is a bit richer."

"Let's not talk about running. After all, it's one of the first things you learn after being born—either walking or running."

"Oh, right, there was also a performance. I'm sure many of you still remember it, a sort of ambiguous crosstalk act."

"Although it received a great response and positive reviews, I heard people whispering behind my back, 'You call that a talent show? It's a far cry from real crosstalk.'"

As he said this, the venue gradually quieted down.

Yet, Lu Shixian wore a smile the entire time, seemingly unfazed by any embarrassment.

"After joining the big family of Yenching University, I could feel how outstanding everyone is."

"Sometimes it really troubled me. Some people can dance Latin, some can play the piano, some are amazing singers. Others can paint, practice martial arts, play the ukulele, the guitar, or Go..."

"People would ask me, what can you do? What are your hobbies?"

"But when I thought back on my past academic life, I was dismayed to find that all I had was a pen."

"Yes, it seems the only thing I know how to do is solve problems."

"As far as I can remember..."

"I have no other skills besides solving problems."

"I have no other hobbies besides solving problems."

"Other than using a sea of practice problems to get high scores, it seems there's nothing else I can boast about!"

"I'm truly fortunate that for both the college entrance exams and the competitions, all I needed was to be good at solving problems to get here."

"So I am deeply grateful to have been born in this country, to have grown up in this society."

"There isn't much more to say, really. A thousand words can be distilled into the love I hold in my heart for my country."

"I hope that through my continuous efforts, I can do my part to serve the nation and give back to society."

"I believe that through hard work, I will one day shake off mediocrity and shine."

"And even if I remain ordinary in the end, I will smile it off with no regrets."

"Just like a chickweed flower, plain yet unwilling to be ordinary."

"Thank you!"

After his final words, Lu Shixian bowed, left the stage, and exited.

The entire hall was silent!

It was an unprecedented speech from a student representative.

Even if Lu Shixian had eventually remembered the contents of his script, he still used no flowery language, simply narrating his educational journey and his true feelings.

But truth itself is a kind of beauty.

Even if it's not always pretty.

Five seconds later, the academicians in the front row abruptly stood up and began to applaud him from the bottom of their hearts.

One white-haired old man even closed his eyes, tears welling in their corners.

Ordinarily, at their age and with their experience, very few things could move them to such empathy.

But for those who had come from their era, who among them hadn't grown up by solving one problem after another?

Of course, the crueler reality was that in an age of scarce educational resources, many of them didn't even have the chance to solve problems.

Ten seconds later, the hall exploded with an unprecedented roar of applause.

Clap, clap, clap, clap...

An empty stage, met with thunderous applause.

It was a rare scene in the Centennial Hall.

But such is the charm of language.

Such is the power of genuine emotion!

Backstage, Academician Zeng was still waiting for him.

Seeing him approach, Zeng Fanzhu placed a hand on his shoulder.

Lu Shixian had expected a few words of praise or comfort.

He never imagined what his first words would be.

"Little Lu, you spoke very well just now, but don't do it again next time."

But the academician's second sentence left him not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"Honestly, what are you doing, trying to make an old man cry?"

"If I weren't so seasoned, I might have fallen for it too!"

Lu Shixian just shrugged and smiled. "I don't have that kind of power. I was just sharing my own journey. What does that academician's crying have to do with me?"

"Everyone has their own story as they journey through life."

"He wasn't crying for me, but because he was reminded of his own story and old memories."

"That's all!"

Hearing his rebuttal, Zeng Fanzhu laughed as well.

"There's nothing wrong with only knowing how to do problems."

"In fact, although our country is developing rapidly, we also face many difficult problems."

At this, he continued with a sigh.

"The more you learn, the higher you stand, and the farther you can see."

"And the more you realize that many of our vital technological lifelines are not in our own hands."

"And technological self-reliance is fundamental to national development."

"We need more problem-solvers to crack these tough nuts!"

Chapter 261: All True Joy Must Come from Constant Effort

It was clear that Zeng Fanzhu's feelings ran deep.

"It's just that many people now don't cherish the hard-won opportunity to learn."

"Over the years, I've seen many graduate students, even doctoral candidates, who are aimless and content with mediocrity."

"They get lost in games or entertainment, slacking off in their studies."

"In the end, they can't even graduate and have to be dismissed when their time limit is up."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian also sighed softly.

"The terror of amusing ourselves to death doesn't lie in the entertainment itself."

"Perhaps we will ultimately be destroyed by the things we once loved."

"All true joy must come from constant effort!"

After a few more brief words, Zeng Fanzhu left the auditorium.

As an academician of the Academy of Sciences and the dean of Yuanpei College, he carried immense responsibilities.

He had to conduct research while also managing administrative duties.

His time was truly precious.

Watching him hurry away, Lu Shixian silently returned to the auditorium.

Although he was eager to get back to his own work, he couldn't be absent from this event.

The next fourteen students began to present their academic achievements and personal growth one by one.

One could only say, this was Yenching University, after all.

It was truly a clash of titans, and the rest of us were just spectators.

There was a student from the School of Information Science and Engineering who had led his team to victory in the National University Robot Competition. That same year, he represented the country in the international competition and once again took first place.

He also published a paper and gave a keynote speech at ICML, a top-tier international academic conference in the field of artificial intelligence. Although his presentation was the shortest, it was a moment of glory for China's youth.

The prestige of this competition was honestly not much less than that of the Challenge Cup, and at the international level, it even surpassed it by a significant margin.

Held annually since 2002, its purpose is to cultivate and develop the intelligence and innovative spirit of university students, showcasing their robot-building capabilities and application of high-tech skills.

Even more incredibly, there was a student who had won a gold medal in track and field for the country in the 2008 Olympics.

China's track and field performance was quite good, even top-tier, by Asian standards.

But on the international stage, it was a bit less impressive.

Probably somewhere in the upper-middle tier.

But this student, in his event, had single-handedly elevated China to a world-leading level.

There was also a senior who, after studying at Yenching for a year, chose to enlist in the army.

The university held his student status for him. During his service, he received numerous commendations and applied his professional expertise to improve a certain technology within the military.

Even Lu Shixian couldn't help but give them a thumbs-up.

One after another, they were truly formidable!

But then he remembered that this group was essentially the most outstanding cohort from across the country in recent years, and he felt a sense of acceptance.

It is precisely because of the existence of such people that our country has a stronger new generation of talent, enabling it to become more prosperous and powerful.

Several hours later, the fifteen candidates finally completed their presentations.

Next came the most tense and exciting part: the voting and ranking.

Only ten of the fifteen candidates would receive the Grand Scholarship.

The remaining five, though also outstanding, would have to go home empty-handed.

Finally, after intense deliberation among the academicians in the front row, the results were quickly determined.

Their opinions would serve as the primary basis for the selection.

The university president, who had been the first to leave, now returned to the stage.

His task was to announce the list of winners and give a concluding speech.

"After rigorous and detailed discussion by the Grand Scholarship review committee, I hereby officially announce that the following ten students will receive the 2011 Yenching University Undergraduate Grand Scholarship."

"They are..."

Lu Shixian walked along a path in the Yenching campus, his hands in the pockets of his light summer clothes, watching the yellowing leaves drift down with the autumn wind.

Beside him, Qu Xi, bundled up in a thick trench coat, stood giving him a constant stream of praise.

"Junior, you're really something else!"

"I would never even dare to dream of getting that scholarship."

After saying this, she pretended to be a reporter, holding her clenched fist in front of him like a microphone.

"Excuse me, sir, as a junior who has just won the highest honor for an undergraduate at Yenching University, how are you feeling right now?"

Seeing her playful antics, Lu Shixian smiled and shook his head. "Do you know what I wanted to do right after I finished my speech?"

Qu Xi just shook her head, looking puzzled.

He immediately explained, "My first thought was, I still have a few books I haven't finished. Can they let me go back now?"

Qu Xi was instantly speechless. "That's so you! I should have known."

"But then again, without that kind of mindset, you probably wouldn't have won first place with the highest number of votes."

Lu Shixian didn't want to dwell on things that were already in the past.

He finally got to the real reason he had asked Qu Xi to meet.

"Last time, you said you wanted to donate the patent transfer fee I gave you."

"I thought about it, and your idea is great. I'd like to do the same."

"How about we pool our money for a total of one hundred thousand yuan and donate it to the Project Hope in Haiqing Province in our names? It would be a way of giving back for the experiments we conducted there."

"Taken from it, and given back to it. What do you think, senior?"

Hearing his words, Qu Xi was clearly surprised by Lu Shixian's decision.

Her expression was a bit hesitant. "You... you really don't have to follow my lead."

"While this fifty thousand yuan isn't a huge amount for me, it could be a very important sum of money for you."

"I think you should reconsider..."

Before Qu Xi could finish, Lu Shixian cut her off.

"Alright, alright, I get it."

"But I still have two hundred and fifty thousand left, which is already a lot for me."

"Besides, I have no dependents right now. As long as I have enough for my personal needs, that's fine."

"What's the use of having so much money if I can't even spend it all?"

After some persuasion from Lu Shixian, he finally convinced Qu Xi.

The matter was ultimately left for Qu Xi to handle.

As a first-year graduate student, she had more free time at the beginning of the semester and took the initiative.

Perhaps it was out of a desire to compensate, trying not to cause Lu Shixian any trouble.

Before leaving, Qu Xi gave him a "fighting" gesture, as if to say, "I've made it to the other side, you've got to keep it up!"

Lu Shixian could only shed silent tears of envy.

This whole affair had a definite impact on him.

It planted an idea in his mind.

"I'm already a junior, just like that!"

"Time really flies."

"Of the phased plans I made back in Jinling, it seems only the final step remains unfulfilled..."

Chapter 262: Old Ma Really Wasn't Kidding

Back when he was in Jinling, thanks to Chu Wenbin, the director of admissions for Yenching University, he had become interested in joining Yuanpei College.

He then participated in the 20th International Biology Olympiad, which delayed his undergraduate studies by a year.

Although he didn't feel that competing in the IBO was a waste of time, he had still invested an extra year for the sake of joining Yuanpei.

Now, it was time to collect on that debt.

He had long since figured out that after years of exploring the Yuanpei Program, the college had established a flexible duration of study since its founding. Students could apply to graduate one year early or postpone graduation by one to two years.

Of course, what he needed was to graduate early.

He found his way to Ma Yuheng's office with practiced ease and knocked gently on the door.

"Come in!"

Hearing the voice from inside, he pushed the door open.

He found Ma Yuheng wearing reading glasses, poring over a stack of all-English printouts.

A quick glance revealed the arXiv watermark on the edge of the pages.

Lu Shixian instantly understood what Old Ma was doing.

Truly seasoned researchers looking for the latest international findings wouldn't bother with already published journals.
What you might see as a newly published paper is often the result of a discovery made months, or even years, ago.

They would go directly to the website arXiv to find the latest breakthroughs in their respective fields.

arXiv, founded on August 14, 1991, is a repository for article preprints, primarily in the fields of physics, mathematics, computer science, and biology.

To put it simply, many scientists, to prevent their research from being plagiarized before official publication, upload their manuscripts to arXiv as a pre-publication record.

The upload generates a timestamp, making it a document repository that can prove the originality of a paper.

But the functions of arXiv extend far beyond that. It also serves as an important platform for academic exchange, where many of the latest international findings are presented.

For biology, however, the most relevant preprint sites are actually bioRxiv and medRxiv.

The former is more focused on the life sciences and was established by the renowned Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory.

The latter, medRxiv, concentrates on medicine, clinical science, and health sciences. Its papers are not peer-reviewed and thus cannot be used for clinical applications or be reported on by the media.

Although arXiv later sparked controversy by acting as an academic arbiter, this does not negate the positive role it has played in global academic exchange.

Several minutes passed.

Ma Yuheng’s attention finally shifted from the preprint in his hands.

“What brings you here again, you rascal?”

“Things must be going pretty well for you lately, huh?” Ma Yuheng asked with a smile.

Lu Shixian shook his head. “I wouldn’t say ‘well’.”

“On the contrary, I’ve been bogged down with trivial matters. I feel spread too thin, and it’s disrupting my normal study routine.”

Hearing this, Ma Yuheng sighed with understanding.

But he wasn't particularly surprised.

After spending some time with him, he had come to understand Lu Shixian's character very well.

In his words, people like him were born to do research.

So he then asked, “Spit it out. You think I don't know you by now?”

“You wouldn't deign to visit an old codger like me unless you needed something.”

Lu Shixian couldn't help but laugh. He immediately shared what was on his mind.

“Yuanpei College has a flexible study program. I want to finish my undergraduate studies a year early and move on to the next stage.”

Ma Yuheng raised an eyebrow, his expression showing no surprise.

“Finally couldn't hold it in anymore?”

“I figured as much when you took so many courses in your freshman year.”

“So, for your graduate studies, do you want an academic master's or a professional master's?”

Hearing this question, Lu Shixian answered without hesitation, “Academic!”

Though it seemed like a small difference in name, only those who had experienced it knew how vast the gap was.

The difference between them was like being the biological son versus the stepson.

Ostensibly, the former focused on academic research, while the latter focused on practical application.

But the higher tuition and the lack of provided housing, forcing students to find their own off-campus accommodation, was enough to deter many people.

He had pursued a professional master's before. While he wouldn't say he suffered greatly, it was certainly no small amount of trouble.

Ma Yuheng nodded, seemingly unsurprised, and continued to ask, “What field do you want to research in the future?”

“Botany or crop science,” Lu Shixian replied instantly again.

Hearing this answer, Ma Yuheng revealed a mysterious smile.

“Very good, but I can't help you.”

“You didn’t choose cell biology, and besides, your student record is with Yuanpei College. The only one who can truly make the decision is the college itself.”

Lu Shixian had anticipated this. That wasn't his purpose for coming.

“Then could you give me a thesis topic for my degree? I can’t graduate without a thesis!”

“I have an opportunity here for you. It’s up to you whether you can seize it,” Ma Yuheng said, not answering his question directly but posing another one instead.

“What kind of opportunity?” Lu Shixian was both curious and excited.

This meant there were benefits to be had!

As expected, Old Ma wouldn't lead me astray.

But just then, Ma Yuheng suddenly shook his head again.

“Wait until you get the college's permission first.”

“That old fellow Zeng Fanzhu is getting more and more petty.”

“If he agrees to let you go, I’ll tell you the details. In any case, you must cherish this opportunity.”

Lu Shixian wanted to press for details, to see what he could get out of him.

But no matter what he said, Ma Yuheng had only one reply: No comment. That’s all I have to say.

With no other choice, Lu Shixian had to leave the office with a heart full of questions.

Next stop, find Zeng Fanzhu.

For a matter like this, although the rules were already in place, there was no precedent at Yuanpei College.

For something without precedent, even He Ming probably couldn't handle it, let alone Yuan Qingmei.

Only the dean could make the final call.

So Lu Shixian rushed over to Zeng Fanzhu’s office without stopping.

After the incident with the special scholarship, he was much more familiar with Zeng Fanzhu.

But as for whether he could get the college's permission, he was apprehensive.

After all, starting graduate studies at this point meant leaving Yuanpei.

And he, to some extent, had become the poster child for Yuanpei.

Whether they would let him go early had become a real question.

Knock, knock, knock! The sound of knocking echoed.

Because he had inquired about the dean's schedule with the student affairs office beforehand, he quickly received a positive response.

“Come in!”

After entering, before he could even explain the situation to Zeng Fanzhu, the dean glanced at him.

The first words he spoke left him utterly astonished.

Chapter 263: Leave a Little Wiggle Room, for a Better Tomorrow

“Getting ready to graduate?”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was stunned for a moment before it sank in.

What’s with these guys? Do they all have telepathy?

But he still confessed frankly, “Yes, I feel that my undergraduate studies are no longer very challenging for me.”

“I need a higher platform to absorb knowledge from the next stage.”

“Alright!” Zeng Fanzhu's words were, as always, simple and direct.

“What?” Lu Shixian could hardly believe his ears.

Zeng Fanzhu repeated with an amused tone, “I said, on behalf of the college, I approve your request.”

“There are just two conditions.”

“Please, tell me!” Lu Shixian was ready to agree to almost anything at this point.

Zeng Fanzhu spoke unhurriedly, “Generally, apart from the final thesis, we don't have other requirements for students to graduate.”

“But since you want to be the first to graduate early, we must hold you to a higher standard.”

“First, you must have a letter of recommendation from a doctoral advisor or someone of higher academic standing.”

“Second, whether you go abroad, stay at Yanda, or switch institutions, the university you choose must have a research level in your chosen field that is no worse than Yanda's.”

Now, Lu Shixian was a bit dumbfounded.

The second point, Lu Shixian could manage.

Except in special circumstances, no one who wasn't a fool would make such a choice.

You can't go backward in your studies, after all.

But the first point was a real killer.

Where was he supposed to find a doctoral advisor to write a recommendation for him?

There were only a handful of universities with academic standards comparable to Yanda.

So this requirement was truly difficult for him.

Logically, Old Ma fit the bill perfectly.

But he taught cell biology! If he taught agronomy or botany, Lu Shixian would have shamelessly latched on to him long ago.

Gu Hongya would have been a good choice, but she had just stepped down from her position as a doctoral advisor due to her lack of energy.

It looked like he'd have to go schmooze with some qualified candidates.

By schmooze, he meant finding potential graduate advisors, talking to them in advance about his strengths, and piquing their interest so they would take him on as a student.

Instead of taking the entrance exam, his choice was naturally to secure a recommendation for admission.

On this point, Lu Shixian had no doubts about himself.

He just needed to choose from among the options at Yanda or a university Yanda could recommend.

Then he would find a suitable advisor, come to an agreement, and have them write a letter for him. That would be the end of it.

It seemed like a high bar, but in reality, it wasn't much different from the standards he set for himself.

Although it was a bit of a hassle, to achieve his goal, he had no choice but to go out and sell himself.

Of course, before that…

He needed to see what this opportunity Ma Yuheng mentioned was all about.

When he found Old Ma again, he was only given a location.

And he was told that he would understand when he got there.

“What’s this? Why all the mystery?”

In the end, Lu Shixian couldn't contain his curiosity and went to the address Ma Yuheng had given him.

“Yanda’s Zhibeizi Garden?”

To be honest, he had heard of this place.

It was originally the villa of the Qing imperial clansman Zai Zhi, commonly known as "Zhibeizi Garden," or "Lord Su's Garden."

But he rarely came here.

Because it later became the office building for Yanda's Institute of Philosophy and Culture.

What was a biological sciences student like him doing here?

Though his mind was filled with questions, Lu Shixian could only go and see what on earth Old Ma was up to.

When he reached his destination and entered, he saw only the back of a figure with a full head of silver hair, who appeared to be an old man.

“You’re here?” The old man slowly turned around.

Lu Shixian took one look and was completely stunned.

Wasn't this a "nemesis" he had met before?

Frankly, he still remembered the incident vividly.

During the university-level defense for the "Challenge Cup" competition, the most absurdly difficult questions he faced came from the person standing before him.

And it wasn't just once or twice. Of course, the outcome was good in the end, which left a deep impression on him.

But why did the address Old Ma gave him lead here?

And why did the old man in front of him seem to be waiting specifically for him?

Just as Lu Shixian was about to ask a question, he suddenly heard the man speak.

“Do you know how to sing 'Invisible Wings'?”

This question left Lu Shixian completely bewildered.

What the hell?

“Every time?”

“I grow stronger in lonely wanderings?” Lu Shixian sang softly.

The old man’s mouth twitched after hearing it, and he then said, “It seems you’ve heard it. The lyrics are right, and the tune is right.”

“But how does it sound so awful coming out of your mouth?”

Lu Shixian resisted the urge to beat up the old man in front of him and held himself back.

Still as sharp-tongued as ever!

You’re the one who asked me to sing, and you’re the one who says I sing terribly!

What do you want from me!

However, after silently repeating the mantra "respect the old and cherish the young" several times in his head, Lu Shixian finally calmed down and said nothing more.

And after asking this out-of-the-blue question, the old man inexplicably switched to another topic, like a child at play.

Jumping from one thing to another, impulsive and unpredictable.

“What are your views on genetically modified crops?”

Hearing this question, Lu Shixian looked at the old man in surprise.

He really wasn't good at singing, but when it came to his area of expertise, he wasn't going to hold back.

“The principle behind GM crops is to introduce artificially isolated and modified genes into an organism's genome.”

“The introduced genes are then expressed within the organism, ultimately causing heritable changes in its traits to achieve the goal of crop modification.”

“This is one of the most advanced breeding technologies today, subverting the traditional method of gene flow within the same species and breaking the boundaries between organisms, enabling cross-species gene transfer and combination.”

After saying this, Lu Shixian paused.

To be honest, this was a sensitive topic at this time, and he didn't want to speak carelessly.

But the old man frowned and said, “You’ve memorized the textbook well.”

“But if this is all you’ve got, I think your performance at the defense back then was undeserved.”

Lu Shixian was speechless.

What kind of person was this?

His words were like knives. Didn't he know not to burn his bridges?

He had planned to stop there, but since the topic had been raised, Lu Shixian continued.

“I believe it is a breakthrough in traditional crop breeding and will have significant meaning or impact on the future development and survival of humanity.”

“As we all know, because GM crops combine genes for multiple desirable traits, they have a significant advantage in yield per acre over traditional crops.”

“At the same time, because of their various genes for cold resistance, lodging resistance, pest resistance, or high yield and high efficiency, there is no need to invest heavily in planting, transportation, and sales costs.”

“A significant reduction in costs and an increase in yield will inevitably bring substantial profits to growers.”

“However…”

At this point, Lu Shixian paused involuntarily.

Chapter 264: To Offer Oneself, To Become a Pillar of the Nation

“There is currently no absolute proof that GM crops are completely safe.”

“Their safety risks are uncontrollable. Although there have been no food safety issues with GM products so far, the absence of problems does not mean there are no risks.”

“The main concern in the academic community regarding GM technology is that implanting foreign genes may have unknown effects on the overall gene expression. If consumed over the long term, could it cause harm to the human body?”

“Secondly, could it lead to genetic pollution, thereby disrupting the balance of the biosphere and food diversity? To be more formal, perhaps ‘gene drift’ would be a more appropriate term.”

After listening, the old man was still frowning.

“Just tell me your own opinion.”

“These are all points that others have already raised. No matter how much you cite them, they are still someone else's ideas.”

“Besides, everything has its pros and cons, especially a high-tech technology. I want your true, innermost thoughts.”

“If this is still your answer, then I’ll be leaving.”

So, Lu Shixian thought for a moment.

Even for an examination, the questions would usually end here.

Because this was an unproven mystery.

Even an academician like Old Yuan couldn't be certain of the answer, only speculating that determining whether it was harmful to humans would take a very long time, at least two generations, to reach a conclusion.

A question that even academicians couldn't answer for sure, what exactly did he want to ask?

Lu Shixian’s mind began to race.

He didn't want to be underestimated, nor did he want to miss this opportunity.

Although he didn't know the old man's identity, Ma Yuheng had never led him astray.

Circles are a curious thing.

For Ma Yuheng to know and recommend him, he must also be a doctoral advisor.

With his graduation on the line, he had to seize this chance.

It seemed now that he wasn't just being asked to recite the pros and cons of GM technology.

His thoughts began to wander, and he started to ask himself.

It was as if he had returned to the first time he heard the term "genetically modified," the first time he heard the arguments for and against it, the first time he watched "The World According to Monsanto."

It was a devastating scene of ruin and scars.

Profit and morality were in confrontation, and humanity was subjected to a great trial.

Lu Shixian let out a long breath and finally gave the answer from his heart.

“As a country with a large population, food is our nation's lifeline, and food security is the key to the problem.”

“Healthy food produces healthy people, healthy people make a strong nation, a strong nation makes a great country, a great country makes a stable society, and a stable society makes a peaceful world.”

“Since we cannot currently determine the safety of GM foods, my choice is not to use them.”

But then, Lu Shixian looked up at the vast sky.

“But if we halt our progress because of safety concerns about genetic modification, we will lose a rare and enormous opportunity for development.”

“Our country's biological breeding technology and market will be controlled by others, and we will be utterly defeated in the international competition for agricultural products.”

“And if you fall behind, you'll be beaten.”

“We have tasted that bitterness many times.”

“Actually, I hate history. Saying I'm not interested is just an excuse.”

“It’s because I don’t want to be a spectator looking back too often. It’s simply too heavy.”

Lu Shixian’s gaze suddenly fell.

“But the road ahead is long. We can't just look forward; we also need to look back at the moon.”

“Just like gunpowder back then. We invented it, but its development was banned, and we stood still.”

“In the end, when we were invaded by foreign powers, holding cold steel swords against their firearms, did we suddenly realize that this thing was originally ours?”

At this moment, the old man’s frown had quietly smoothed out.

But Lu Shixian had no time to pay him any mind.

He was completely lost in his own thoughts.

“Practice has proven that when facing the unknown, blind fear and isolation are not the way.”

“Only by experimenting boldly, verifying cautiously, and applying prudently can we find the necessary path forward.”

After saying this, Lu Shixian suddenly heard a firm round of applause from nearby.

Then, the old man spoke, “You are right. We must be extremely cautious with GM technology. Scientists also bear a social responsibility and must adhere to common moral and ethical principles in their research.”

“This includes protecting research subjects, protecting the environment, and conducting safety studies to ensure the benign development of science.”

“In fact, most of the crops we eat today are the result of long-term artificial selection and gene transfer by humans. But a small portion of people still don't even understand what a gene is.”

“Only through rational discussion to address the uncertainties in scientific and technological development can we promote scientific progress and social advancement.”

Lu Shixian nodded in complete agreement. “Exactly. Science and technology are the primary productive forces, but they are also a double-edged sword.”

“Like the atomic bomb and the hydrogen bomb. We never hope to see them detonate, but for the urgent needs of the country, they must exist.”

“Everything for the country, everything for the people. What the older generation of scientists sacrificed for the 'Two Bombs, One Satellite' project is beyond our imagination.”

“These are the older generation of scientific and technological workers who deserve our respect. The interests of the nation and the people are paramount.”

Suddenly, the old man looked at Lu Shixian and asked, “Even if it means, like Oppenheimer, having hands…”

He paused abruptly.

But Lu Shixian nodded without hesitation. “Yes. A legacy for the ages, a benefit for all generations to come.”

The old man fell silent for a moment. “Very good. Ma Yuheng has told me everything.”
"I have a letter of recommendation here. Take it."

With those words, he took a kraft paper envelope from his coat pocket.

Lu Shixian accepted it, feeling a bit bewildered, and stared blankly as the man walked out in silence.

For some reason, he had a feeling that this meeting would change the course of his life.

Untying the white string wrapped around the clasp, Lu Shixian found a handwritten letter inside.

He opened it and saw eight bold characters written simply inside.

"Always strive to rise, and ultimately become a pillar of the nation!"

Then, when he saw the name signed at the bottom, Lu Shixian froze.

So he was Xu Zhihong.

Suddenly, it all started to make sense.

The former president of Yan University, an academician of the Academy of Sciences.

A plant physiologist he himself had often mentioned.

Lu Shixian's feelings at this moment were simply beyond words.

A figure who seemed a world away and things that had only existed in dreams were suddenly appearing and coming true, one by one.

He had never set this as a goal, nor had he ever striven in this direction.

But sometimes, surprises truly come out of nowhere.

That’s why seizing opportunities is so incredibly important.

Chapter 265: Alright! No More Freebies

Lu Shixian didn't even know how he managed to walk back.

A single thought kept circling in his mind.

"Am I going to be an academician's student?"

By the time he came to his senses, he found himself standing at the foot of the college's administration building.

As time passed, Lu Shixian's mind grew clearer.

An academician is an academician!

And you are you!

The halo effect from this is basically…

Well, it's useful, sure.

But before that, how about you learn some real skills first and escape the risk of being incompetent?

Thinking this way, Lu Shixian's excitement quickly subsided.

It seemed he had nearly been captivated by a sense of superiority.

Achieving an expected goal was certainly gratifying, but he shouldn't get carried away.

He had to guard against arrogance and impatience.

Lu Shixian told himself this, deep in his heart.

He had now regained his composure. Since he was already here, it wouldn't make sense not to go up.

Holding the recommendation letter, Lu Shixian quickly found Zeng Fanzhu's office.

Because it was a last minute decision, he hadn't called ahead, only knowing that Zeng was on campus recently.

This time, he waited for over an hour before he finally caught a glimpse of Zeng Fanzhu.

Zeng Fanzhu, clutching a briefcase and looking travel worn, had apparently just returned from outside.

"Lu Shixian?"

"What is it this time?"

As he spoke, he unlocked the door to his office.

Only after he sat down, opened a window, and took a sip of tea did Lu Shixian hand him the envelope.

Zeng Fanzhu suddenly remembered something and said with an amused smile, "You're quite efficient, I see."

"Found a supervisor to take you on already?"

"Are you planning to do your graduate studies in the country or abroad?"

Hearing his question, Lu Shixian answered with conviction, "Studying abroad is out of the question."

"I refuse to believe I can't get a good education right here in our country."

Zeng Fanzhu nodded. "That's the spirit. The decision is yours to make."

"Let me see which professor you found."

With that, he began to guess with great interest.

"With your undergraduate grades and research experience, as long as there's an opening, no one should turn you down."

"So you most likely approached a professor in the School of Life Sciences. Old Rao is unlikely. He works in molecular neurobiology, and besides, he's probably got his hands full lately."

"Then it must be Professor Wang Huizeng. He's made quite a name for himself in developmental biology."

Seeing Lu Shixian shake his head, a few more names popped into his mind.

"Then it must be Professor Liu Guangxin from Shuimu University. He's an authority in plant structural and reproductive biology."

Watching Zeng Fanzhu trying to deduce the truth, Lu Shixian found it rather amusing. It seemed Academician Zeng knew him quite well.

He knew the field of research he wanted to pursue, and all the names he mentioned were experts in related areas.

But even Lu Shixian himself could not have guessed the real answer.

Not getting a positive confirmation from him, Zeng Fanzhu's curiosity was piqued.

Finally, he couldn't resist taking the recommendation letter out of the kraft paper envelope.

To his surprise, it took him a full few minutes to read the mere eight characters.

Putting the letter down, Zeng Fanzhu gave Lu Shixian a long, deep look.

"Impressive. Very impressive."

"I never thought you'd be able to get a recommendation from the old president."

"Due to his age, he hasn't taken on any students for a very long time after stepping down as president."

"And even if he did, he would only accept doctoral candidates."

Lu Shixian just shook his head. "To be honest, I'm still in a daze myself."

"I had only ever heard of Academician Xu's name; I'd never even met him."

"Then today, he suddenly gave me this recommendation letter. It was all so sudden."

Zeng Fanzhu smiled as he handed the letter back.

"You should be counting your lucky stars, kid. An undergraduate getting to study under an academician."

"And he's not just the old president of Yan University; he was also the director of the State Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics."

"He is the leading authority in plant developmental biology in the country. You must study hard under him."

Lu Shixian nodded. That went without saying.

He cherished this opportunity deeply.

Next, Zeng Fanzhu finally brought up the matter of graduation.

"Logically speaking, that paper of yours has long surpassed the standard for an undergraduate degree, and has even met the requirements for a doctorate."

"However, according to regulations, you still need an unpublished paper to serve as your undergraduate thesis for the defense."

"That shouldn't be too difficult for you, right? Once you complete the thesis, the college will organize a degree defense for you."

"Okay, thank you!" Lu Shixian bowed to express his gratitude. "Academician Zeng, I have something else to attend to, so I'll be going now. I'll come to you again when I need to."

"What could a kid like you possibly have to do?" Zeng Fanzhu chuckled. "I bet you're just eager to get started on your graduation project, aren't you?"

Watching Lu Shixian's retreating figure, he couldn't help but sigh with admiration.

"It seems Lu Shixian was scouted long ago, he just didn't know it himself."

"If the Department of Earth Sciences had a student like this, I can't say I wouldn't be tempted myself."

"Professor Ma, this 'opportunity' of yours was quite a shock! Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Lu Shixian immediately found Old Ma in the School of Life Sciences and voiced his complaint.

Ma Yuhuan glanced at Lu Shixian's expression and knew instantly what had happened.

"I wanted to give you a surprise, didn't I? If I told you early on, where would the suspense be?"

Lu Shixian couldn't help but retort, "I'd say it was more of a scare than a surprise."

After a bit of friendly banter, Ma Yuhuan remarked with wonder, "Old Xu only had a slight impression of you at first, but then he gradually started paying attention."

"I never thought you'd actually succeed, kid. He's famously strict; most people can't get past his scrutiny."

Lu Shixian deeply agreed with that.

Strict was an understatement.

His previous evaluation had been downright nitpicky.

The slightest hint of retreat or timidity would have meant all his efforts were for nothing.

But thankfully, Lu Shixian had persevered to the very end.

Behind all excellence lies persistence and self discipline.

There was no truer saying.

Lu Shixian quickly got to the main reason for his visit.

"Professor Ma, about my graduation project, got any brilliant ideas for me?" he said with a smile, winking at Ma Yuhuan.

He was eager to get another freebie.

Last time, it was an assignment from Ma Yuhuan that led to his chance to publish in a top journal.

The fact that his mentor was now an academician was also somewhat related to Old Ma.

Thinking about it, Old Ma was practically his lucky star.

It would be a crime not to seek him out again.

But this time, Ma Yuhuan had wised up and refused to be taken advantage of.

"Go on, get out of here. A guy who can publish in *NCB* can't come up with a bachelor's thesis?"

"I don't have any brilliant ideas. Figure it out yourself!"

With that, Ma Yuhuan began to playfully shoo him away.

Lu Shixian left, a little disappointed.

Alright! No more freebies to be had.

Looks like he'd have to figure this out on his own.

Chapter 266: A Thesis Finds Its Direction

Leaving Ma Yuhuan's office, Lu Shixian fell deep in thought.

After nearly three years of study at Yan University, Lu Shixian's expertise in biology was no longer limited to just plants.

He could handle both macro and micro level research.

But this also presented a new problem: he had no research ideas.

Without ideas, he had no direction.

He had dabbled in too many fields, giving him too many choices.

Sometimes, having no choice means having fewer worries.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.

Fortunately, the pressure this time wasn't immense.

It was just a degree thesis.

If he had to, he could produce several papers at a moment's notice.

He could even use the thesis he wrote for his previous graduation.

But that would be useless.

He was now studying biological sciences, not agriculture.

The topic wouldn't match his major. It'd be dead on arrival.

No, wait!

Lu Shixian suddenly remembered that, to a certain extent, the line between the two fields wasn't that distinct.

He also didn't have to worry about repeating meaningless past achievements and ending up with nothing to show for it.

Because now, he could use the methods of microbiology to study agricultural crops.

The research methods he had mastered now gave him the confidence to innovate in this field.

As his thoughts became clearer, his path forward became more distinct.

The most intensive link between agriculture and biology is botany.

And in botany research, there is one word you can't escape.

Hormones.

Plant hormones are trace organic compounds produced within plants.

Though small in quantity, they play a crucial regulatory role in the process of plant growth and development, capable of promoting or inhibiting their own physiological processes, from cell division, elongation, and differentiation to germination, rooting, flowering, and fruiting.

They even influence a plant's sex determination, dormancy, and abscission.

Currently, six major types of plant hormones have been identified and confirmed: auxins, gibberellins, cytokinins, abscisic acid, ethylene, and brassinosteroids.

So, for crops, which is the most important plant hormone?

The answer was obvious.

Auxin!

And speaking of auxin, one had to mention a name that was almost tiresome from textbooks.

Darwin!

Many people only know Darwin as the father of evolution, the author of the monumental work *On the Origin of Species*, who proposed the theory of biological evolution, shattering the cornerstones of creationism and the immutability of species.

Although auxin was named by Went, its initial discoverer was actually Darwin.

In 1836, during his round the world voyage on the HMS Beagle, Darwin was amazed to find that a pot of canary grass seedlings always bent toward the direction of sunlight.

Phototropism in plants is a common, everyday phenomenon. Most people know it happens but not why. Darwin, however, conducted extensive observations and experiments on this phenomenon thereafter.

If the tip of the seedling was covered with tinfoil or other opaque paper, the seedling no longer bent towards the light.

Darwin called this phenomenon "phototropism" and recorded it in his 1880 paper *The Power of Movement in Plants*, making a pioneering contribution to the discovery of auxin.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but think that great minds always seemed to possess a certain quality: a knack for discovering patterns.

This quality helped them see perspectives others missed, ultimately allowing them to achieve things unattainable by ordinary people.

After a moment of routine admiration for the great man, Lu Shixian began to consider his own direction.

With an idea in mind, Lu Shixian quickly found his research direction.

A study on the effects of polar transport at different auxin concentrations on the growth and development of several major crops.

Much of the past research had been very macroscopic, focusing on all plants in general.

It seemed few had specifically studied the effects of auxin polar transport on crops.

The level of research would shift from macro to micro, and the methodology from general to specific.

Finally, the direction was relatively new and had a degree of innovation.

This was the research he wanted!

Generally, auxin is synthesized primarily in the leaf primordia, young leaves, and developing seeds of plants.

The auxin synthesized in these organs needs to be transported via polar transport to reach the target cells.

That is, auxin is transported within the plant from the morphological upper end to the lower end.

This "upper" and "lower" doesn't always correspond to geographical orientation.

Plant auxin is always produced at the stem tip, transported down to the root base, and finally to the root tip.

This transport can even occur against a concentration gradient, but it requires carriers and energy.

Lost in thought about his graduation project, he returned to his dorm to find it completely empty.

It seemed that by the third year, everyone had gotten busy.

Lu Shixian wasn't surprised. He decided to just work on his experimental design right there in the dorm.

Auxin polar transport is widely involved in various stages of plant growth and development, including leaf development, flower differentiation, vascular differentiation, embryonic development, photomorphogenesis, and lateral root development, among others.

Therefore, the observational subjects in his experimental design would mainly be the leaves, flowers, vascular tissues, embryos, lateral roots, and photomorphogenesis of the crops.

With the experimental design complete, Lu Shixian began to prepare for the subsequent work of acquiring samples, performing procedures, and collecting data.

This was actually a type of microscopic experiment he was once less familiar with.

But after the arduous experience with GPCRs last time, this work had become second nature to him.

In scientific research, data acquisition is one of the most time consuming steps.

Last time, Ma Yuhuan had provided him with some data, which greatly shortened the time it took for him to get results.

But this time, he was starting from scratch.

Several long months passed by in a flash of experiments.

Time flew to September 2011.

Lu Shixian had finally crossed the threshold into the second semester of his junior year.

After his efforts last semester and over the summer break, Lu Shixian had finally completed his degree thesis.

He immediately contacted Zeng Fanzhu.

As it turned out, the great professor was a little curious as to why he was only submitting his defense application now.

At his current level, a paper of degree thesis quality shouldn't have taken long.

But Lu Shixian had been off the grid for several months, which only heightened Zeng's anticipation.

"Very good. You will now need to provide a draft of your defense thesis and a written application for early graduation."

"During this period, the Yuanpei College Bachelor's Degree Committee will conduct a qualification review. The review will cover credit requirements, academic performance, daily conduct, supervisor evaluations, honors received..."

"If any of the above criteria are not met, your application will be rejected," Zeng Fanzhu explained to Lu Shixian in great detail.

This was the unique early graduation process of Yuanpei College, a system that had been continuously refined over the years.

Chapter 267: Yuanpei College's Final Stand

"This process generally concludes within half a month. Afterwards, the college will arrange for at least three professors from relevant fields to form the defense committee."

"However, to avoid any conflict of interest, supervisors you are relatively familiar with will not be assigned to it."

"Understand?" Zeng Fanzhu had high hopes for him and was very thorough in his explanation.

Lu Shixian nodded. "So, that means I just need to wait for the defense notification now?"

His comprehension was spot on, earning him an affirmative look from Zeng Fanzhu.

After thanking him, Lu Shixian walked back with a heavy heart.

The college's requirements for his defense were indeed high!

Zeng Fanzhu had said "relatively familiar," which meant even professors he had only met a few times would be included.

Ma Yuhuan was out of the question.

He estimated that most of the professors in the School of Life Sciences would not receive an invitation.

This meant that his defense would likely be in front of scholars from outside the university.

And they would be the kind who really knew their stuff, otherwise they wouldn't have connections with Yan University.

Clearly, the rigor of a degree thesis defense was several levels higher than that of a competition or a scholarship review.

"This is pretty intense," Lu Shixian couldn't help but remark.

However, despite what he said, he was actually filled with motivation.

Of course, there was still pressure.

After all, nothing in life is a hundred percent guaranteed.

Although he had confidence in himself, the time, place, and defense committee members were all unknown.

These three unknown factors could introduce many variables, and the possibility of failing the defense existed.

"But there's no need to worry too much. I'll just stick to my usual routine," Lu Shixian quickly put his mind at ease.

He spent the afternoon reading some more literature.

When he returned to the dorm that evening, all his buddies were there.

No matter what, he had to give them a heads up about this.

After all, graduation meant parting ways.

Over the past three years, he had developed a deep friendship with his three roommates.

It was better to tell them now, to avoid it being abrupt and emotional later.

As soon as he told them, all three reacted strongly.

"What the hell, you're having your defense already?" Chang Wenchao's eyes were wide with disbelief.

"When we first started at Yan University, you and I were in pretty much the same boat. Now I'm still attending classes..."

"And you're about to graduate???"

Chang Wenchao felt a mix of emotions.

To be honest, he didn't usually notice it.

He just thought Lu Shixian was really diligent.

But now, hearing the news of his graduation, the gap between them suddenly felt immense.

Lin Chenyi was also shocked.

"The semester just started, and you're already graduating?"

"You're on another level!"

Perhaps the person who accepted it the most was Zhang Mengting.

But his tone was slightly downcast.

"I heard from the upperclassmen that during senior year, people in the dorm leave one by one."

"Watching the beds empty out, one after another, the sense of nostalgia and loneliness grows day by day."

"I had a feeling you'd be the first to leave, Little Four."

"But I never thought this day would come so soon."

This left Lu Shixian at a bit of a loss.

He explained with an amused smile, "I said I'm about to have my degree thesis defense, not that I'm graduating immediately."

"Don't jinx me, you guys. If your 'cheering' has the opposite effect, I'll be too ashamed to show my face."

Lu Shixian meant what he said.

If he failed his thesis defense, it would likely become a dark chapter in his history.

Even if he became successful in the future, it would be mortifying to have this story told as some kind of inspirational tale.
Chang Wenchao, however, set a fine example. He said one thing, and the others immediately fell into formation.

Chang: "Is there a difference?"

Lin: "Is there a difference?"

Zhang: "Is there a difference?"

Yuanpei College's efficiency was astounding. In less than half a month, they had sent him the notice for his thesis defense.

"Student Lu, according to the college's arrangements, your degree defense is scheduled to officially begin after the Mid-Autumn Festival, on September 15th." Yuan Qingmei's voice carried a hint of emotion as she spoke.

At Yanda, it was a common sight for one generation of talent to be succeeded by the next.

In the past, there had been more than a few students who graduated early.

But since the founding of Yuanpei College, Lu Shixian was truly the first to do so.

Whether anyone would follow in his footsteps remained to be seen, but at the very least, he was unprecedented.

When Lu Shixian received the notice, he was reading in the library.

He had already prepared his defense PowerPoint, a hard copy of his thesis, his presentation speech, and various other materials for the defense a week prior.

Then he spent another day writing the acknowledgments section.

That's right, Yanda didn't have an agriculture program.

Still, some overlap was better than none.

He had already decided to venture further and further into the field of botany.

It was just as he had once predicted; now, it seemed his words had become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

For the time that followed, he spent most of his days reading cutting-edge botanical treatises.

And it paid off. After a few days, his notebook was filled with notes, and he had made some real gains.

The National Natural Science Foundation of China had recently placed a greater emphasis on and provided support for research in the field of plant hormones.

In 2007, the foundation launched a major research initiative on the "Molecular Mechanisms of Plant Hormone Action."

In the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, biosynthesis models for various plant hormones had been established, and multiple pathways for their modification, inactivation, and even degradation had been discovered.

In 2009, scientists both in China and abroad raced to study and resolve the protein structures of auxin and ABA receptors.

In the past, there was a significant gap between the research level in China and that of international peers in the fields of plant hormone signal transduction and molecular mechanisms. Most plant hormone receptors had been discovered by foreign biologists.

However, with the continuous increase in research funding and talent investment in recent years, China had made major breakthroughs in the study of the genetic regulatory networks of plant biosynthesis and signal transduction pathways.

The gap with top-tier international laboratories had now narrowed significantly.

This also strengthened Lu Shixian's confidence in continuing his studies in China.

September 15th. Morning.

The time for his final degree thesis defense had finally arrived.

Dressed in formal attire, Lu Shixian made his way to the location specified in the short-notice announcement: the large conference room on the third floor of the Yuanpei College building.

He had spent most of his time studying at the School of Life Sciences.

If he passed the defense, he would become a student of Academician Xu Zhihong.

After stepping down as the president of Yanda, Xu Zhihong had returned to the School of Life Sciences to teach.

In other words, as soon as this semester ended, he would be granted an exceptional admission waiver to pursue a master's degree in botany at Yanda's School of Life Sciences.

After all the twists and turns, he was set to become a student of the School of Life Sciences once again.

Holding the defense here was perhaps Yuanpei College's last act of stubborn pride.

The people walking through the college hallways at this time were mostly freshmen and sophomores from the last two years.

Seeing Lu Shixian in his formal suit, walking past them with his head held high, they all turned to watch him in admiration.

"Can people from outside the university just walk into our college?" a younger female student wondered aloud.

Chapter 268: The Degree Thesis Defense

"You must be a freshman, right?" a male student next to her seized the opportunity to enthusiastically explain.

"You don't even know Lu-Shen?"

"He's a legend. Two SCI papers in just two years, including one published in a Nature-series journal."

"Just last semester, he won the special scholarship for undergraduates."

Seeing the look of adoration that instantly filled the younger student's eyes, the boy pressed his advantage. "We should exchange contact info sometime, you know, to chat."

The girl was completely lost in her own world. "He looks so handsome in a suit."

"Huh? Senior, what did you just say?"

The boy suddenly felt his heart sink.

Lu Shixian, meanwhile, was completely unaware of the amusing incident he had just caused.

He had only one destination in mind.

He walked into the large conference room and took it all in at a glance.

The defense venue inside was already set up.

The seats in the first row were arranged in a long line.

Sitting there were three defense committee professors Lu Shixian had never seen before.

Fortunately, however, their nameplates indicated who they were.

From left to right, they were: Yan Weiqing, a specially-appointed researcher from the Institute of Botany, Huaguo Academy of Sciences, and a professor at Shuimu University.

Peng Dashan, vice president of the Botanical Society of Huaguo, a recipient of the Distinguished Young Scholars Fund from the National Natural Science Foundation, and a professor at Huaguo Agricultural University.

Kang Yongjian, a national-level candidate of the "New Century Talents Project," a Changjiang Scholar Distinguished Professor, and the vice president of Yanjing University.

Lu Shixian took a deep breath. This lineup was a bit intimidating.

But he quickly comforted himself with the thought that at least there were no academicians present.

Sure enough, after this mental adjustment, he felt much calmer.

He walked over to the computer on the lectern and plugged in his USB drive.

Soon, the first slide of his PowerPoint appeared on the screen.

A Study on the Effects of Auxin Polar Transport on the Growth and Development of Several Major Crops at Different Concentrations.

But this was just the preparatory step.

The first part of an undergraduate thesis defense was the candidate's self-introduction.

Now, having regained his composure, he told himself this was no big deal.

Yuanpei College had clearly gone to great lengths for this defense.

Kang Yongjian had previously been the dean of the School of Life Sciences, and his primary research area overlapped with Lu Shixian's thesis. He had since become a vice president. He hadn't had much contact with Lu Shixian, which naturally satisfied the conflict of interest requirements. At the same time, his stature was sufficient to command the respect of the two professors from other universities, ensuring Yanda's leading role in the proceedings.

Although Kang Yongjian had only met Lu Shixian a few times, he had heard his name on many occasions.

Thus, his attitude toward Lu Shixian was relatively warm.

He extended his right hand in a gesture. "Student Lu, you may begin whenever you're ready."

Lu Shixian responded immediately, walking naturally to the center of the lectern to begin the first part.

"Respected members of the defense committee:"

"Good morning."

"My name is Lu Shixian, and I am a third-year student at Yuanpei College, Yanjing University. I was granted an admission waiver to Yanda after winning first place and a gold medal at the 20th International Biology Olympiad."

"In terms of my ideological development, I have continuously strengthened my theoretical studies to firmly establish a correct outlook on life, morality, and values. I diligently studied courses such as Ideological and Moral Cultivation, Introduction to Mao Zedong Thought, Principles of Marxism, and Modern Chinese History. I keep abreast of current national affairs and the latest theories to arm my mind, enhance my sense of responsibility, and cultivate a sense of mission."

"Academically, due to my personal interests and future plans, I chose biological sciences as my major direction in my first year at Yuanpei College. I completed all the required credits for graduation last year with excellent grades, ranking first in the biological sciences major for three consecutive years."

"In research, I participated as an individual in the 'Challenge Cup' National Undergraduate Extracurricular Academic Science and Technology Competition during my freshman year and won a national first-prize award. In my sophomore year, I published two SCI papers in the professional journals Nature Cell Biology and Agricultural Sciences in China."

"In my personal life, I get along well with my teachers and classmates. As the sports representative for my class, I have conscientiously organized important athletic activities. At the same time, I am committed to regular physical exercise and have developed a good habit of morning workouts."

"That concludes my introduction. Thank you."

Lu Shixian delivered the entire speech in almost a single breath, following the most standard self-introduction format without any hesitation.

The theme of each section was concise, with virtually no filler.

In a defense like this, empty platitudes are useless.

The professors sitting before him had sharp eyes.

So-called technical embellishments were pointless; a quick scan of the materials in front of them was all they needed to gauge his level.

The content of Lu Shixian's narration was largely consistent with the information they already had; in fact, he had even understated some of his achievements.

The professors began writing comments on their note sheets. The specifics varied, but they all boiled down to praise for his precise timing, concise language, and clear expression.

There were no issues with this part; he passed it smoothly.

Kang Yongjian turned to exchange a look with the other two professors, then addressed Lu Shixian. "Next, you will have about five minutes for your thesis presentation. Please try not to exceed ten minutes."

Hearing the instruction, Lu Shixian acknowledged it with a nod.

He also understood that the main event of the defense was about to begin.

Generally, candidates prepare a script for this part of the defense and are allowed to read from it.

But Lu Shixian had written the thesis himself and knew it inside and out; he had no need for a script.

The purpose of the presentation is to showcase the content of your thesis and verify your familiarity with it.

Typically, the presentation should cover the topic selection, its significance, the logical structure, key findings, innovations, and limitations.

To cover all these points in just a few minutes is quite a challenge.

Although the professors all had hard copies of his thesis on their desks, Lu Shixian had still prepared a PowerPoint.

The content of the slides was perfectly aligned with his speech, allowing the professors to grasp the core points of his thesis as quickly as possible.

Lu Shixian officially began, his speech rapid but his enunciation clear.

"The title of my thesis is 'A Study on the Effects of Auxin Polar Transport on the Growth and Development of Several Major Crops at Different Concentrations.'"

"The background for my topic selection is based on the existing gap in domestic research on auxin's effects on specific crops. Therefore, I studied the impact of auxin polar transport on common crops like rice and wheat at various concentrations."

"This research re-validates the dual nature of plant auxins and explores the differences in sensitivity to polar-transported auxin among different crops, at different growth stages, in different organs, and between different plants. It provides a scientific basis for the scientific cultivation of crops."

Chapter 269: What is Old Peng Up To?

"Next, I will briefly introduce the structure and basic logic of my thesis."

"The first part of the main text introduces the definitions of plant auxin and polar transport, as well as their roles in plant physiological processes."

"The second part is a literature review of domestic and international research in related fields of auxin polar transport, explaining the necessity of this study."

"The third part describes the experimental methods and content used in this thesis."

"The fourth part discusses the effects of auxin polar transport on plants based on the experimental data, considering different crops, concentrations, organs, and growth stages."

"The first two parts are rather conventional. Since you are all experts in this field, I believe there's no need for further elaboration."

"I will now focus on the experimental methods used in this thesis and the discussion of the results…"

Lu Shixian had already allocated his time mentally.

To explain his entire thesis in full detail would likely take over an hour, but he had less than ten minutes.

This required him to be as concise and refined as possible.

He breezed through the introductory parts with a single sentence each, focusing mainly on the core content.

During this time, the three professors would not interrupt him unless something unexpected occurred.

They would flip through his thesis as he spoke to cross-reference his statements.

But this was where the benefit of the PowerPoint became apparent.

Their eyes simply followed the content Lu Shixian displayed on the screen, eliminating the need to flip through the hard copies themselves.

Shifting from active searching to passive reception saved the three professors a considerable amount of effort.

In any case, this state of ease was conducive to a good mood.

As long as his thesis contained no fundamental errors, their good mood would steadily raise the baseline score for his defense.

Nine minutes later.

As the final slide appeared on the screen, Lu Shixian's voice came to a halt.

"That concludes my presentation," he said with a practiced smile.

A smiling face and high spirits were also a key technique for making a good impression.

He didn't know if acting was a respectable productive force or if good looks were a scarce resource, but he understood that projecting a vibrant and positive spirit was even more important.

Kang Yongjian shifted his gaze from the screen to Lu Shixian's face and gave him a slight nod.

"Your presentation was very clear, and the content was well-prioritized. It seems you've prepared thoroughly."

"I think we can move on to the next stage. What do you two think?"

Hearing this, the other two professors also agreed.

"Yes, let's proceed."

Soon, it was time for the third stage: questions and answers.

"Who would like to go first?" As the host, Kang Yongjian deferred to the two visiting professors, turning his head to ask for their opinion.

"I'll start, then." Professor Yan Weiqing from Shuimu University's School of Life Sciences cleared his throat and posed the first question.

"Student Lu Shixian, correct? Please explain in detail which method you used to measure plant hormones in your experiment, and briefly describe the procedure."

Hearing the question, Lu Shixian quickly began to organize his thoughts.

Worthy of a professor from Shuimu, he thought. Straight to the experimental procedure.

A high-quality experimental thesis required a vast number of experimental groups.

In his presentation, Lu Shixian had only mentioned the experimental method without going into the specifics of any particular experiment.

Yan Weiqing's question was a test of the authenticity of his data and his practical experimental skills.

If he were to give a vague or irrelevant answer, he would be done for.

You claim all your data came from experiments, but you can't even describe the method and procedure for a key one? That would be self-deception.

In less than ten seconds, Lu Shixian had formulated his answer in his mind and began to speak.

"The method I used to measure plant hormones in my thesis was the bioassay method, which is common and easy to operate."

"It indirectly measures hormone levels by observing the intensity of their physiological and biochemical effects on plants or explants. The main steps of the procedure are…"

Lu Shixian answered the question fluently and without delay.

Professor Yan nodded, unsurprised by his performance.

After all, anyone who could publish in an SCI journal would have this level of competence.

Next, it was Professor Peng Dashan from Huaguo Agricultural University's turn to ask a question.

He was very interested in Lu Shixian.

He was already aware of his contributions to promoting the "rice-crayfish co-culture" model in the country.

Thus, he began his question with a smile.

However, the question he posed was in sharp contrast to his amiable tone.

"Student Lu, thesis topics related to auxin are extremely common. Every year at graduation, I hear a ton of similar proposals."

"Although you've shown some innovation in your experimental methods and subjects, the theoretical value isn't particularly high."

"Can you explain the future prospects and significance of your thesis?"

As soon as he asked this, the other two professors glanced at him.

They couldn't help but grumble internally, "What is this Old Peng up to?"

"This thesis is already among the best of the undergraduate theses."

"His abilities are plain to see. We should just be going through the motions."

But the question had been asked, and it couldn't be taken back.

So, the three professors waited together for his answer.

A brief moment of thought is permitted during a defense, but the answer must be given on the spot, under the watchful eyes of the video camera and the committee.

Lu Shixian's heart tightened, and his brow furrowed slightly. This question was clearly unexpected.

Millions of papers are produced worldwide every year, and a significant portion of them lack profound theoretical value.

Many are simply comprehensive reviews based on the theories of predecessors.

In comparison, his work already had some value.

But he couldn't argue with a professor over such a subjective matter.

It was merely a difference in personal standards.

He had to find a new angle.

Lu Shixian's gaze swept over Peng's nameplate. An idea began to turn rapidly in his mind, slowly taking shape.

The process seemed convoluted, but to an outside observer, only a dozen seconds had passed.

Soon, Lu Shixian finished his thought process and began his answer.

Chapter 270: The Footsteps of Graduation

"There is a type of pesticide widely used in agricultural production today: plant growth regulators."

"They are synthetically produced or extracted organic compounds that have the same growth-regulating effects as natural plant hormones."

"However, many farmers are currently imprecise with the dosage, using excessive amounts and concentrations. This doesn't promote plant growth; on the contrary, it inhibits it, leading to deformed leaves and withered roots and stems."

"Currently, there is no precise information on the proper dosage for these regulators in the pesticide market or on their packaging. Application is often based on word-of-mouth or past experience."

"This paper investigates the effects of auxin on several major crops at different concentrations, determining the optimal concentration for crop growth. This provides an important reference for establishing precise application rates marked by dilution ratios."

Professor Peng Dashan nodded upon hearing this. "Although there's a slight issue with your reasoning, since you didn't directly experiment with plant growth regulators, it's perfectly valid as a reference."

"What you've described is indeed a real-world problem. Compared to herbicides and insecticides, most plant growth regulators are considered non-toxic or low-toxicity pesticides, and this has become a fixed notion."

"But recent studies have shown that many plant growth regulators pose a potential hazard to both plants and animals."

"Control in this area is currently lax. I expect a special campaign to rectify this will be launched sooner or later. Your research certainly has practical application significance."
With that, he looked at the other two professors and said, “I’m finished with my questions. Chancellor Kang, you’re up.”

Kang Yongjian nodded and, as the chair of the defense committee, began to ask his own questions.

“Student Lu, to be honest, I read your thesis carefully as soon as you submitted it.”

“For an undergraduate thesis, I have no major objections to passing you.”

“However, there is one thing I’d like to ask. I can see that you seem to have intentionally chosen a research topic that leans toward agriculture.”

“You’ve already made significant achievements in cell biology. Why not continue to dig deeper in that field?”

Hearing this question, Lu Shixian fell silent.

He understood Kang Yongjian’s subtext.

If Peng Dashan weren’t sitting right there, Kang Yongjian would have likely been more blunt.

What Kang Yongjian really wanted to ask was, why not stick with basic research?

Why jump back and forth, getting into applied research now?

Lu Shixian could understand why he asked.

In the country, scientific research was currently divided into roughly three tiers.

They were basic research, applied research, and technological research.

Basic research was academic, focused on establishing general knowledge and universal principles.

Applied research, on the other hand, used the principles and results from basic research to propose practical applications and methods.

Technological research was similar to applied research but was slightly more theoretical.

These three tiers should have been of similar status, complementing one another, as all three played a crucial role in the development of science and technology.

But at some point, funding from the National Natural Science Foundation, project grants, academic promotions, and research bonuses had all become heavily tied to basic research.

This directly led many to believe that basic research was superior to all else.

However, there was a problem with doing basic research. The impact of new theories and discoveries on society and daily life might not be seen for a long time, and the salaries were not high—one might even call them meager.

Applied research, in contrast, directly served economic activity in society. It was in high demand, and the average salary was very high.

If it was successfully converted into a popular market product, the financial returns could be enormous.

This had created a subtle opposition between the two groups, with each looking down on the other.

Lu Shixian, however, felt they shouldn’t be separated.

Basic science helps us understand the world; applied science helps us change it.

Neither could be done without the other.

So, following his own line of thought, he chuckled. “You have to learn the basic theories well, but you have to do applied research too.”

That left Kang Yongjian with nothing more to say. He simply broke into a laugh.

“You certainly are ambitious.”

“But youth is its own capital. I can understand.”

“We’re old now. The next generation is in your hands.”

After saying this, he began to lead the concluding remarks.

This signaled that the defense was about to end.

By this point, Lu Shixian knew in his heart that he was in the clear.

But he couldn’t celebrate just yet. He had to see things through to the end and deliver his closing statement.

“I feel that this graduation project was one of the smoothest I’ve worked on in recent years. This fully demonstrates the importance of a solid foundation, and I will actively learn from the experience…”

“I want to give special thanks to my faculty advisor, Professor Ma Yuheng, for his help during my experiments. I also want to thank the three professors present for their diligent guidance during my defense…”

Stepping out of the wooden main doors of Yuanpei College.

“We will forward the recommendation form to Yuanpei College. Barring any unforeseen circumstances…”

“Congratulations, you have successfully passed your graduation defense!” Recalling Kang Yongjian’s final words as the committee chair, Lu Shixian still felt a bit dazed.

I’m graduating?

Although he had seen it coming, now that the moment was here, he was still filled with emotion.

He didn’t know how he made it back to his dorm.

The moment he returned, he was immediately grilled by his roommates.

They knew he had his defense today and had been waiting in the dorm for him.

“You’re finally back!”

“Quick, quick! What’s the verdict?” the three of them asked in unison.

Lu Shixian gave them an “OK” sign.

“Guys, I don’t think there’s a problem.”

The dorm room instantly erupted in a joyous uproar.

“Holy shit!”

“You’re a beast!”

“You’re really graduating?”

Finally, they asked the question they were most concerned about.

“Doesn’t that mean you’ll have to move out soon?”

Lu Shixian just spread his hands. “If I move out, I’ll have nowhere to live. Why would I do that?”

“The semester just started, and a lot of the paperwork isn’t finished yet.”

“I’ll probably study with my advisor for a while first. When the main batch of students takes their graduate entrance exams or gets their recommendations, I’ll complete the procedures with them and get assigned a new dorm then.”

Hearing this, the three of them breathed a sigh of relief.

To be honest, they would really miss Lu Shixian if he left.

A few days later, Lu Shixian received news from the college.

His graduation defense had been officially approved. The diploma and degree certificate would take some time to prepare.

But he could start preparing for his graduation photos.

He was told the college was holding a graduation ceremony just for him.

It seemed the day of his official graduation was drawing ever closer.

Chapter 271: Seize the Day, Live Up to Your Youth

The next day, Lu Shixian was called over to take his graduation photos.

Dressed in his bachelor’s gown, he posed in front of Yuanpei College and several other famous landmarks on campus.

“Great, that’s the expression!” Without the photographer needing to tell him to say “cheese,” Lu Shixian expertly broke into a smile.

Click, click, click…

Lu Shixian finished the photoshoot at lightning speed.

A week later.

Lu Shixian received his graduation photos and two certificates at the same time.

He opened the diploma.

“Lu Shixian, male, studied in the Biological Sciences program at Yuanpei College from September 2009 to September 2011. Having completed all required courses in the undergraduate curriculum with passing grades and having passed the graduation defense, he is hereby granted graduation.” The diploma also bore the name of the university president, Zou Qifeng.

As for the degree certificate, it was, of course, a Bachelor of Science.

Years of his life seemed to have been condensed into these few photos and certificates.

After a moment’s thought, Lu Shixian took a picture of them with his phone, added a caption, and posted it to his Q-Zone.

“All that is past is prologue. Grateful to have met, no regrets in parting.”

In 2011, WeChat had just been released and was nowhere near as popular as it would later become.

The reflex to pull out your phone and post to your Moments whenever something happened didn’t exist yet.

Q-Zone was the main platform where most students shared their daily lives.

Q-Zone updates would trigger a real-time notification on QQ.

And so, in less than a minute, the like notifications on Lu Shixian’s Q-Zone were about to explode.

Lu Shixian’s QQ friends list was very systematic; there were no online strangers, only people he knew in real life.

About 56% were students and teachers from Jinling No. 1 High School.

Another 40% were classmates from Yan University, mostly from Yuanpei College and the School of Life Sciences.

The final 4% were students he had met during the biology olympiad.

Lu Shixian had intended to post and run, but the red notification dots were driving him crazy.

He had no choice but to open Q-Zone on his phone.

The post was flooded with likes and comments.

The comments were sorted by the number of likes.

The most-liked comment was pushed right to the top.

“Lu the Great is awesome! We were in the same year, and now I’m only a sophomore. By the way, Yan University is so beautiful.”

Lu Shixian scrolled down.

“What the hell? Didn’t the semester just start? God Lu, you’re already graduating?”

“Congratulations to our class’s sports representative for being the first to graduate! Everyone else, study hard and complete your degrees too!”

The likes on this comment were rising rapidly. Lu Shixian looked at the poster.

Of course, the username was “Plum Blossom Sniffer.” It was his counselor, Yuan Qingmei.

Putting down his phone, Lu Shixian began to ponder his next steps.

As an academic master’s student, this year’s first-year graduate students had already registered in late August and early September.

Yan University hadn’t used up all its graduate recommendation spots that year.

So, upon Yuanpei College’s application, his case was handled specially, and he was fast-tracked to become a first-year master’s student.

Since he had missed the graduate dorm assignments, he could only continue living in the Yuanpei dorm building for the time being.

The administrative process for all this would take some time.

He would only be officially notified to move out after the School of Life Sciences had everything arranged.

He didn’t have to live there yet, but he still had to attend the first-year graduate courses.

That’s right, his favorite part was here.

According to the information sent to him online by the graduate school counselor, he still needed to complete 36 credits of required and specialized courses in his first year.

The required courses were similar to his undergraduate ones, including public courses, foundational disciplinary courses, and core professional courses.

Seeing his public course list, Lu Shixian couldn’t have been happier.

There were only three: the new additions were “Introduction to the Dialectics of Nature” and “Theory and Practice of Socialism.”

“English” was still a sticky piece of candy he couldn’t get rid of.

The foundational disciplinary courses included “Advanced Biochemistry,” “Molecular Biology,” “Experimental Design and Statistical Analysis,” and “Modern Biology Grand Experiments.”

The core professional courses included “Plant Ecophysiology,” “Advanced Plant Physiology,” and “Morphology and Anatomy of Seed Plants.”

Additionally, he had to choose from courses like “Modern Agriculture,” “Plant Tissue Culture,” “Crop Cultivation Physiology,” “SPSS Statistical Analysis,” and so on, to accumulate at least 14 elective credits.

Lu Shixian took a look and saw it was just as he had expected.

Most of these courses were to be completed in the first semester of his master’s program, with fewer courses in the second semester.

After the first semester, he would officially join his advisor’s research group to work on projects.

He knew that even with an academician as his advisor, he still had to go through this process.

But attending classes was actually something he looked forward to.

He had never systematically taken graduate-level botany courses before.

Even though he was already familiar with much of the content.

So, his next task was to complete the first-year coursework as quickly as possible and then join the research group.

But before that, he hadn’t forgotten that there was one more thing he needed to do.

He had only received one degree certificate.

He still hadn’t completed the defense for his dual degree in economics.

At that thought, Lu Shixian ran a hand through his hair in frustration.

Having to do an undergraduate defense while already a graduate student was a rather complicated feeling.

Obtaining a second bachelor’s degree was less stringent than the primary major. A defense wasn’t always required, but a thesis had to be submitted to the school.

And so, a week later.

Given Lu Shixian’s special circumstances, after he submitted his thesis and filed an application, the Degree Committee of the Yan University School of Economics decided to grant him graduation.

Lu Shixian soon received another degree certificate.

This time, however, he didn’t post anything about it.

The real graduation was over, and what needed to be commemorated had been recorded.

There was no need to show off anymore.

Soon, all of Lu Shixian’s undergraduate affairs were settled.

His old undergraduate student ID was replaced with a full-time graduate student ID.

The dorm room assigned to him by the School of Life Sciences was also announced.

So, it was time to say goodbye.

Over the past few days, Lu Shixian had left almost all of his group chats, keeping only his class group.

He let out a soft breath and then typed a message in the group.

“We always say graduation is a long way off, but in the blink of an eye, we face parting.”

“So I’ll be brief with my thanks, because we have a long road ahead!”

Instantly, the class group chat erupted with activity because of him.

All sorts of well wishes began flooding the screen.

Reading them one by one, Lu Shixian smiled warmly.

He turned off his phone. In dorm room 4012, his bed had been cleared, leaving only the wooden frame.

His three roommates walked him to the graduate student dormitory of the School of Life Sciences.

The four of them stacked their hands together for what felt like the last time.

Then, Zhang Mengting, the big shot from the School of Chinese Language and Literature, stepped forward and offered a blessing on behalf of the entire dorm.

“Seize the day, live up to your youth.”

“May all your wishes come true, and may you find joy in everything!”

Chapter 272: How Did You End Up in the Biology Pit?

The next day, Lu Shixian woke up early as usual.

He continued his long-standing habit of a morning workout.

On the athletic field, he could see the first light of dawn.

Looking up, he could watch the sun rise in the east.

It felt like a brand new beginning.

After his workout, while eating breakfast, Lu Shixian glanced at his class schedule.

The very first class was an elective: “Crop Cultivation Physiology.”

Filling up a water bottle, Lu Shixian headed straight for classroom 306 on the third floor of the teaching building.

The classroom was already filled with this year’s newly enrolled graduate students.

He looked around and was surprised to find that he recognized almost no one.

But it made sense. He was starting his graduate studies a year early, so the people he knew were still third-year undergraduates.

Besides, a significant portion of the students here hadn't done their undergraduate studies at Yan University.

Beside him, a boy with glasses suddenly struck up a conversation.

“Hey, there!”

“I haven’t seen you in the last few classes.”

“We’ve already finished the first chapter of this course, on the physiology of crop seed germination and emergence. We’ll probably start on crop growth and regulation today.”

Asked this question, Lu Shixian felt a bit helpless.

It seemed he was fated to miss the first class of a semester.

“I was busy with graduation stuff before, so I didn’t have time to come,” Lu Shixian said truthfully.

The boy immediately looked confused. “What school were you at before? The semester has already started, what could you be busy with?”

Lu Shixian hadn’t expected to run into such a chatterbox with so many questions.

But he still replied, “Yan University.”

Hearing this, the boy’s expression immediately turned respectful.

“Oh, a master! My apologies!”

But that only made him more curious.

“That doesn’t seem right.”

“Your first degree is also from Yan University, so how did you end up in the biology pit? And setting that aside, you’re not studying popular fields like biochemistry, molecular biology, or bioinformatics. Why did you come over to study botany?”

Although every field has its masters, Lu Shixian was well aware of the current state of botany.

If you were a prospective graduate student considering botany and asked senior students for advice, the final answer you’d likely get would be: What? What were you thinking? Why would you want to study botany?

Botany and agriculture have no future. Even if you’re aiming for a career in research, it’s more competitive than other fields.

Sure enough, here was the question.

Other than genuine passion and love for the subject, how else could Lu Shixian answer?

The boy soon gave him a thumbs-up.

“Impressive! To be honest, I came from a lower-tier 211 university. I’m here for grad school.”

“I really don’t want to study this, but I had no choice. I was transferred into this program.”

“I’m putting up with it for the golden reputation of Yan University.”

Lu Shixian could no longer keep a straight face at his words.

In the time they had been chatting, the class was about to begin.

Just as the bell was about to ring, a middle-aged male professor arrived in the classroom within five seconds.

After getting set up, he began his lecture.

“Today’s lesson is Chapter Two: Crop Growth and Regulation.”

“Before we start, I have a few related questions.”

“First, what is the relationship between vegetative growth and reproductive growth?”

“Second, what are the differences between the root systems of monocot and dicot crops?”

“And finally, what are the practical applications of the theory of crop growth stages?”

As soon as the professor finished, hands shot up all over the classroom. It was truly a gathering of elites.

Lu Shixian was obviously among them.

He wasn’t stupid; answering questions like this would boost his participation grade.

But just then, the professor recognized him.

It couldn’t be helped. Although Lu Shixian hadn’t been a student in the School of Life Sciences before, his legend was known throughout the school.

The professor smiled and looked at him. “Student Lu, first, congratulations on joining the life sciences family.”

“However, this question is quite basic and wouldn’t be much of a challenge for you. Let’s give the other students a chance.”

As he said this, the entire class turned to look for the person the professor was talking about.

Lu Shixian was momentarily speechless and slowly lowered his hand.

The following days of study fell into a regular pattern.

Although most of his courses started like today, covering foundational content that was merely a review for him, as the lectures progressed, the content and difficulty gradually deepened and broadened. Lu Shixian rediscovered the joy of absorbing new knowledge.

He didn’t find the time hard to pass at all; in fact, he was enjoying himself.

Strangely enough, ever since seeing Academician Xu in Yan University’s Zhi Bei Zi Garden, he hadn’t seen him again.

But thinking about it, he could understand.

He wasn’t a complete novice anymore and knew a few things.

Academicians rarely took on master’s students.

At this stage, a graduate student’s research journey was just beginning, and they needed to build a solid foundation.

How could an academician have so much time to guide students on such basic knowledge?

Even if they did accept a student, they would assign a co-supervisor from their team to help guide them.

The time and opportunities for direct, face-to-face guidance were very rare.

Clearly, he was no exception. For now, he could only hope his co-supervisor would be reliable and easy to get along with.

But by November, midway through the semester, Lu Shixian’s perspective began to change.

He suddenly received a text message from Academician Xu.

The older generation really did prefer sending text messages.

“Little Lu, come to my office for a moment.”

Seeing the message, he was both surprised and curious.

Was he finally going to get into the lab?

During his undergraduate years, he could occasionally enter Ma Yuheng’s lab to run some experiments.

Now, as a graduate student, he had long since returned the key. The experiments in his current classes were all very basic.

Moreover, he had to follow the instructor’s requirements during class and couldn’t operate freely.

His hands had been itching for a while.

With a sense of anticipation, Lu Shixian arrived at the door of Xu Zhihong’s office.

This was his first time in an academician’s office.

After receiving permission, Lu Shixian pushed the door open and entered.

The floor and walls of the office were brand new. It seemed the school had specially prepared it for Academician Xu.
The space was vast, yet the decorations were surprisingly spartan. Aside from a few green plants, there was nothing else superfluous.

He saw Academician Xu, whom he hadn't seen in a long time, impassively tackling a thick academic report.

Seeing the hefty stack of papers, Lu Shixian finally broke the silence, smiling as he asked.

"Academician Xu, was there something you needed me for?"

Hearing the question, Xu Zhihong finally snapped out of it. He had been so absorbed in his reading that he’d forgotten someone else was in the room.

"Oh, right. There's a Plant Physiology Academic Annual Conference on the fifteenth of this month. You can come with me and have a look."

"You have the time, don't you?"

Lu Shixian hadn't expected such a great opportunity. Life had been so uneventful lately that he was bored out of his mind.

He answered immediately, "Of course I do!"

Chapter 273: Plant Physiology Society Academic Annual Conference

"Good. You can skip your classes around next Tuesday. I'll go have a word with them in a bit."

Lu Shixian volunteered at once, offering to help arrange their travel plans.

But Academician Xu quickly gave him a rude awakening. "Just send me your personal information. An assistant will handle everything else."

Lu Shixian froze.

Right. He had forgotten that at the level of an academician, the perks were on a whole different level.

But this was good, too. It saved him the trouble.

Monday, November 14th.

Since the conference was in Dianzhong, quite a distance from Yanjing, they needed to arrive a day early to rest at the hotel arranged by the organizers.

Soon, Lu Shixian received his plane ticket to Dianzhong.

Thanks to Academician Xu, his first-ever business class flight was today.

The plane started with a tremendous roar, then took off, carving a beautiful arc through the sky.

In the spacious business class cabin, Lu Shixian's seat wasn't far from Academician Xu's.

Once they were on the plane, Lu Shixian finally found a chance to ask the question that had been nagging him.

He glanced around and asked curiously, "Academician Xu, is it just the two of us?"

"What about the other senior lab members?"

Xu Zhihong knew what he was thinking and chuckled. "I only took on a few students in my early years."

"When I was the university president, I was so busy with this and that, I didn't want to hinder anyone's development, so I stopped taking students."

"Right now, your youngest senior is already a postdoc. Auditing this kind of lecture won't do much for them anymore."

After speaking, Xu Zhihong leaned back and closed his eyes to rest.

Well, then. Lu Shixian didn't dare say another word or ask another question.

Impressive. That was all there was to it.

He wasn't sure if he was fortunate or not. He had been hoping for a few peers to chat with.

He never imagined he'd be the only one.

After what felt like a short nap, the plane landed at Dianzhong Airport.

Dianzhong truly lived up to its name as the City of Eternal Spring.

Even though it was already winter, being there felt like the beginning of spring.

With an average annual temperature of 15 degrees Celsius, it was no wonder its slogan was "A World-Class Spring City That Doesn't Need Air Conditioning."

As soon as they exited the terminal, they saw a bright red banner waving in the distance.

"Welcome, esteemed experts and scholars, to the 2011 National Plant Physiology Academic Annual Conference."

Before they even got close, several people sitting at the reception desk stood up.

The man in the lead, middle-aged and wearing glasses and a suit, had clearly recognized them.

"Oh, Academician Xu, welcome to Dianzhong! I was just thinking today what we would do if you were absent this year."

"Seeing you here, I can finally breathe a sigh of relief," the man said enthusiastically, extending his hand for a handshake.

Xu Zhihong was clearly familiar with the man and spoke without much formality.

"Old Huang, you know I never miss the Plant Physiology Society's annual conference."

"I wasn't originally planning to come. But once you get old, your energy just can't keep up."

"It's perfectly reasonable to take a break, isn't it?"

With that, Xu Zhihong glanced back at Lu Shixian.

"This time, I'm mainly here to let my student broaden his horizons."

"Little Lu, this is Professor Huang Yifei, the president of the Baiyun Province Plant Physiology Society."

With that one sentence, the focus of the conversation immediately shifted to Lu Shixian.

Huang Yifei, who clearly knew Xu Zhihong well, showed a look of surprise before turning his full attention to Lu Shixian.

"Academician Xu, as I recall, you haven't taken on a student in a very long time. It seems you've found a promising one this time."

"He's not bad. He independently published a paper in a *Nature* subsidiary journal not long ago, though it was in the field of cell biology," Xu Zhihong said with a smile.

Hearing this, Huang Yifei's interest was piqued.

It wasn't surprising for someone on an academician's team to publish in *Nature*.

But to do it alone, and in a research area completely different from his supervisor's...

"To achieve that as a first-year PhD student is truly rare."

"Not like my own students, who are not nearly as promising. They're already second-years and still worrying about their papers," Huang Yifei said, not sparing his praise.

To avoid any awkwardness, Xu Zhihong seamlessly changed the subject.

The conversation quickly turned to who had new findings to present at the conference and the latest cutting-edge discoveries in plant physiology at home and abroad.

Lu Shixian found he couldn't get a word in and was relegated to being the bag carrier.

It wasn't that he didn't understand; it was just that they were discussing novel theories.

This was a field he knew nothing about, so he had no right to speak.

A car was waiting for them, and they were soon driven directly to the hotel where the conference was being held.

Lu Shixian had to admit, even just as an observer, he was deeply impressed by the high standards of such a large-scale national academic conference.

The plant protection exchange conference he had attended at Yanjing University seemed shabby in comparison.

Nearly the entire five-star hotel was dedicated to serving the event, with promotional slogans for the conference visible everywhere.

That night, resting in the hotel, he truly experienced the cool and pleasant climate of the Spring City.

The next day, his biological clock woke him, and Lu Shixian went to find something to eat on his own.

That's right. After bringing him here, Academician Xu had no time for him.

He had barely been there a few minutes before he was whisked away by someone.

Lu Shixian hadn't even seen a shadow of him since.

Sometimes, when you reach a certain position, you truly don't have control over your own time.

After finishing breakfast in the hotel restaurant, Lu Shixian entered the conference hall by himself.

His seat was in a rear section, like an observer's.

Most of the people around him were young, like himself.

They were probably all students brought by their advisors, serving as spectators.

At nine in the morning, the conference began as scheduled.

The massive conference hall was packed with over a thousand people.

As the large screen lit up, blue text appeared.

Conference Theme: Plant Physiology and Scientific Development.

November 15th - 18th, 2011

Baiyun · Dianzhong

The moment the host appeared, Lu Shixian immediately felt the sheer prestige of the event.

The introduction on the screen read: Tang Jianye, Chairman of the Society, Academician of the Academy of Sciences.

Alright then.

An academician as a host. He had seen his fair share of things, but this was a first.

Standing at the podium, Tang Jianye began his opening remarks.

"Today, the National Academic Annual Conference of the Plant Physiology Society grandly opens in Baiyun, Dianzhong. A total of 1,362 members, including representatives from various provinces, municipalities, districts, society branches, research institutes, and enterprises, are gathered here to participate."

"This conference is hosted by the Plant Physiology Society and organized by the Baiyun Province Plant Physiology Society. Since the society's establishment in 1963, under the guidance of the Association for Science and Technology, we..."

Although it was the usual spiel, Lu Shixian listened attentively.

After all, he didn't know when he would next have the chance to participate in such a major, cutting-edge conference in this field.

Chapter 274: You Have Got to Be Kidding Me

But what Academician Tang said next left Lu Shixian speechless.

"Next, we have remarks from our distinguished guests: the honorary chairman of the society and former president of Yanjing University, Academician Xu Zhihong; the president of Baiyun Province Agricultural University, Academician Chen Lusheng; and the dean of the Institute for Advanced Study at Luojia University, Academician Han Yufeng."

"In addition, our guests participating in the conference include the director of the Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Academician Feng Lisheng; the director of the Center for Excellence in Plant Stress Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Academician Li Huazhang; the director of the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Academician Yin Wenbin..."

Suffocating.

It was nothing but suffocating.

He had attended his fair share of student lectures and exchange meetings.

But what had he done to deserve to be here?

Lu Shixian couldn't help but wonder if this conference had rounded up every academician in a plant-related field in the entire country.

Soon, Tang Jianye, as the opening host, began to announce the conference agenda.

First were the guest remarks, discussing the future direction and outlook for the society.

Second, the society would present its annual work report, financial report, society charter, and membership fee standards to all members for review and deliberation.

Then, there would be an award ceremony to commend scientific and technological workers who had made outstanding contributions to the field of plant biology. The conference would present the Outstanding Achievement Award, the Outstanding Young Scientist Award, and the Young Innovator Award.

Finally, there would be the exchange of academic achievements.

Over the following two days, high-level academic exchanges and presentations of results from the Chinese Academy of Sciences would be held in fields such as plant hormones and developmental biology, plant abiotic stress, plant genomics and new molecular breeding technologies, plant nutrition and the environment, and plant-biotic interactions.

To be honest, Lu Shixian was only interested in the last part.

But he had no choice; not everyone shared his sentiment.

Of course, if his name were on the awards list, that would be a different story.

It was worth noting that immediately after the host finished, it was his own advisor, Xu Zhihong, who took the stage.

Although he had always known his boss was a titan in the field of plant physiology, seeing it with his own eyes still filled him with a sense of honor by association.

After the remarks, the much-anticipated awards ceremony finally began.

Receiving an award at a conference of this level was essentially the highest honor in the domestic field of plant physiology.

Soon, two young scholars from the Chinese Academy of Sciences received the Outstanding Young Scientist Award and the Young Innovator Award.

An academician from a university received the society's Outstanding Achievement Award.

With that, the morning session came to a close.

After waiting until two in the afternoon, Lu Shixian finally reached the part he was most looking forward to.

But it also brought a dilemma.

Several breakout sessions for academic exchange were happening at the same time.

At two o'clock, Hall One on the third floor was hosting "Plant Genomics and New Molecular Breeding Technologies."

But Hall Two on the third floor was hosting "Plant Abiotic Stress."

These two research areas were undoubtedly the hottest topics related to botany.

If he could, he would have gone to both.

But he couldn't be in two places at once. After some intense deliberation, Lu Shixian ultimately chose the latter.

To put it bluntly, he was still more interested in plant abiotic stress.

The concept of "stress" was famous in the world of crops.

It was impossible to study crops without dealing with stress.

Stress refers to environmental factors that have a harmful effect on plants.

These factors are diverse, including physical, chemical, and biological elements, but they can generally be divided into two major categories: biotic stress and abiotic stress.

Abiotic stress is the most widely applicable to crops, as physical and chemical stresses like drought, flooding, temperature extremes, salinity, and pollution are far more common than biotic stresses like diseases, pests, and weeds.

A professor from a 985 university walked up to the podium as scheduled.

"The title of my report today is 'Research Progress on Plant microRNA and Stress Response,' and the results have been published in this month's issue of the journal *Hereditas*."

"As you all know, microRNA is a type of non-coding small RNA molecule commonly found in living organisms. It is encoded by endogenous genes and regulates gene expression at the post-transcriptional level by mediating target mRNA degradation or translational inhibition. It is an important regulatory factor for gene expression in eukaryotic cells."

"Next, I will introduce an innovative research method for microRNA by discussing its biosynthesis, its mode of action with target genes, its biological functions, and stress-responsive microRNAs."

After listening to the entire presentation, Lu Shixian leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling lights.

He felt like he had listened, but at the same time, like he hadn't.

He understood plant stress response; he could explain it clearly.

In their natural environment, plants lack the ability to move freely, so they often face harsh abiotic stresses such as drought, flooding, and salinity throughout their life cycle. These stresses can have significant adverse effects on the entire growth and development process of plants, and in severe cases, can lead to large-scale death.

But it was natural selection, survival of the fittest.

Through long-term evolution, plants have gradually developed a unique adaptive mechanism to perceive and transmit stress signals. During this process, beneficial changes occur in the plant's morphology, physiology, biochemistry, proteins, and genes, allowing it to adapt to the environment.

Studying the physiological responses of plants to stress not only helps humans understand the connection between organisms and their environment but also reveals the physiological mechanisms of plant adaptation to stress.

Most importantly, it provides a theoretical basis for protecting plants from stress damage in production, improving their stress resistance, and creating favorable environmental conditions for their growth and development.

As the saying goes, all roads lead to Rome, and this was another way to achieve increased production and yield.

This was why he was so interested.

But now, he found that he couldn't fully understand the theory this professor was describing.

He was speechless.

He knew every single technical term and concept.

Yet when they were strung together, it all became a bit fuzzy.

Helpless, he could only take out his notebook and jot down the parts he didn't understand.

He would have to look them up when he got back.

But what came next was even greater despair.

After a short break, another professor took the stage for an academic exchange. His topic was "A Study on the Activation and Mechanism of CCaMK in ABA Signal Transduction."

Lu Shixian was completely stunned.

Why did that topic sound so familiar?

He couldn't resist looking at the speaker's name and affiliation on the screen.

[Jinling Agricultural University · Wang Chenguang]

Holy crap.

This was just ridiculously unbelievable.

It couldn't get more ridiculous than this.

Chapter 275: Who's This Greenhorn?

Because Wang Chenguang had been his advisor in his previous life.

His former advisor was doing pretty well for himself now.

He was even presenting at the Plant Physiology Society conference.

This was the project he had heard Wang Chenguang mention once before.

But it had been shelved for a long time because he could never secure project funding.

Could it be that in this life, without him, his advisor had made greater progress?

Impossible! Absolutely impossible!

Of course, he was just saying that. In his heart, he was very happy for him.

After all, back then, when he was studying alone far from home, his advisor was probably the only person who had shown him any real concern.

He listened to the presentation with a heart full of emotion.

With that, the afternoon's conference content came to an end.

Watching Wang Chenguang walk out of the hall with a smile on his face, Lu Shixian subconsciously wanted to go up and exchange a few pleasantries.

But the foot he lifted suddenly hesitated.

It would be too abrupt.

To him, Lu Shixian was just a stranger now. What reason did he have to approach him?

In the end, Lu Shixian gave up the idea.

Seeing that he was doing better than before was enough.

Why disturb the peace of someone's life for no reason?

With that thought, Lu Shixian's initial impulse faded.

Perhaps it was better to part ways and let things be.

Back in his room, Lu Shixian organized the notes he had taken that day.

But without other learning materials to help, his understanding was still incomplete.

He spent an uneventful night at the hotel.

With the experience of the first day, Lu Shixian knew what to do on the second.

He no longer attended the breakout sessions led by academicians or senior professors, instead opting for the Young Scholars Forum, which the conference had specifically set up.

The speakers here were young scholars from various universities across the country who had made significant achievements in the field of botany.

"Young" in the academic world was a broad concept.

It referred to outstanding young professionals in a relevant research field, generally under the age of 35.

In the social sciences, this age limit could be extended to around forty-five.

So, an academic career was somewhat similar to medicine or politics; one's peak was often around fifty.

In other industries, someone in their thirties or forties might be considered an older professional.

But on the path of academia, they were still considered a youth.

As for Lu Shixian, by age, he was practically an infant.

But he was getting sidetracked.

He should just listen to the forum.

Soon, after an introduction by the host, an associate professor from a 211 university was about to present a paper titled "A Study on the Growth and Development of Plant Root Hairs and Their Molecular Regulatory Mechanisms."

"Plant root hairs are the primary organs for nutrient absorption in plants. Understanding the role of root hairs in plant growth, development, and genetics can provide a basis for understanding the mechanisms of plant nutrient uptake. The core thesis of this paper is the use of comparative genomics to..."

Just a few sentences in, Lu Shixian's confidence came rushing back.

He could completely follow the speaker's train of thought. Although there were still some fuzzy areas, it was nothing like the complete confusion of before.

This was more like it.

He had actually started to think he'd suddenly become a terrible student again.

But that wasn't to say their level was low.

In fact, everyone who got to present was a leader in their age group.

They needed to have a high level of academic proficiency in their field, considerable influence in their region, and have published papers with original innovations or significant applied value.

On the final day, Lu Shixian was even happier.

Because almost the entire day was dedicated to the Doctoral Student Forum.

The content of this forum consisted of doctoral students from major universities presenting and discussing their recent research findings.

This was all material he could absorb, and he could even come up with his own insights from time to time.

He had finally found a sense of participation among the doctoral students.
He felt like crying. Attending a conference and not understanding a thing had to be the most miserable experience possible.

As the final speaker took the stage, Lu Shixian's focus sharpened. The title of the paper on the screen was unmistakable: *A Study on the Mechanism of Rice Structure-Specific Restriction Endonuclease in Meiosis*.

Onstage, a man of about thirty switched on the microphone at the lectern.

The first slide of his presentation appeared, displaying his name and affiliation.

Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Wang Zhongxuan.

His voice resonated through the vast hall.

“As we all know, rice is not only one of the most important food crops but also a key model plant in molecular biology.”

“Many recent studies have shown that a significant number of functionally characterized genes in rice are related to meiosis. I need not elaborate on the importance of meiosis for eukaryotes.”

“During plant meiosis, the cell divides twice after DNA replication. The number of cells doubles, yet the number of chromosomes in each cell is only half that of the parent reproductive cell.”

“This process involves the recognition, pairing, and recombination of homologous chromosomes, all of which contribute to their eventual segregation.”

After this introduction, he finally arrived at the core of his thesis.

“With the continuous development of modern molecular biology and molecular marker technology, we can now identify plant genes using convenient and rapid methods.”

“Through these technologies, we know that single nucleotide polymorphism sequences correspond to different restriction endonucleases and different cleavage sites. Therefore, we can leverage this characteristic to monitor the process of rice structure-specific restriction endonuclease involvement in meiosis.”

The forty minute presentation ended quickly.

The hundreds of people in the audience gave him a generous round of applause. It was, indeed, a highly innovative idea.

The doctoral student forum was the lowest tier sub-session of the entire conference.

And he had been scheduled by the organizers to be the very last academic exchange.

The fact that he could still draw such a large crowd spoke volumes.

According to his presentation, if this method truly had universal applicability, then the most significant discovery of this paper wasn't about rice meiosis at all.

It was that the method could be applied to any plant, which would open up a vast number of research possibilities.

Thus, the proposal of a new method was of immense value.

“Does anyone have any questions?” the moderator asked, as a matter of routine.

In China, this kind of Q&A session was often just a formality.

You couldn’t just ask anything; there were many factors to consider.

It was a society built on relationships, a fact everyone understood without it needing to be said.

Ask a question that was too advanced or pointed, and you risked offending someone.

Ask one that was too basic or foolish, and you risked making a name for yourself for all the wrong reasons.

Just as a presentation revealed a person's academic level, so did their questions.

And so, academia sometimes also followed the doctrine of the mean.

But to the moderator’s surprise, a few seconds later, someone actually raised their hand to signal they had a question.

*Who is this reckless kid?* the moderator couldn't help but grumble internally.

Chapter 276: Observe More, Listen More, and Talk Less

The reckless kid he was thinking of was, of course, Lu Shixian.

Lu Shixian, however, hadn't considered any of that.

Who cared about all those things? The only thing that mattered was genuinely learning something.

And so, under the watchful eyes of everyone present, Lu Shixian stood up. A nearby staff member quickly handed him a microphone that had been sitting idle for a long time.

Holding the microphone, Lu Shixian asked the question that had been circling in his mind.

Of course, while he acted on impulse, he wasn't a fool. He understood the principle of civility before confrontation.

“Dr. Wang, it’s an honor to be here and exchange ideas with you.”

“Your theory has been incredibly enlightening, but I have a small question I’d like to ask.”

Wang Zhongxuan hadn't expected a question just as he was about to step down, and a flicker of surprise crossed his face.

But as a top student from one of the country's premier universities, he had the composure to handle it.

More importantly, he truly had the expertise to stand on that stage.

So he wasn't flustered at all.

Wang Zhongxuan smiled generously and said, “I’m also very happy to discuss matters related to my paper with you.”

The subtext was clear: don't go off topic. If it’s not about the paper, don’t ask me.

Lu Shixian naturally understood.

But if he hadn't been listening to this presentation, he wouldn't have had a question in the first place.

So, he got straight to the point. “By definition, a restriction endonuclease recognizes a specific nucleotide sequence. It’s called a restriction enzyme because it can cleave the phosphodiester bond between two specific nucleotides in each strand.”

“The ‘restriction’ aspect is actually a protective mechanism where the enzyme degrades foreign DNA to maintain the host's genetic stability. Methylation is a common modification in this process, where adenine and cytosine are methylated for protection.”

“Methylation is a crucial way for a plant to distinguish its own genetic material from foreign material.”

“So, my question is, in your study of restriction endonuclease involvement in rice meiosis, how did you handle the methylated DNA?”

“This is a point you didn't clarify in your presentation,” Lu Shixian stated very clearly, explaining the source of his confusion.

At this, the audience members who had been sitting back, ready for some drama, were stunned.

“Wow, he’s actually asking a serious question. This kid’s got some substance!”

Wang Zhongxuan’s expression toward Lu Shixian became one of respect.

He replied in the most concise way possible, “The rice genome itself may indeed contain sequences recognized by the enzyme, but it’s possible that these recognition sequences or cleavage sites are methylated.”

“However, this doesn't mean that all restriction enzymes are incapable of cleaving DNA from an organism just because it’s methylated. In fact, most restriction enzymes are quite sensitive to DNA methylation.”

“Therefore, when a restriction enzyme’s target sequence overlaps with a methylation site, we ultimately need to consider three possible effects on cleavage: no effect, partial effect, or complete blockage.”

Right! So he’d been trapped in his own rigid thinking.

As expected of a PhD student from Shanghai Jiao Tong University. His thoughts were clear and layered, his way of thinking truly unique.

The man had real talent.

Hearing this, Lu Shixian already understood the gist of it.

But out of politeness, he listened intently until Wang Zhongxuan finished.

“The intrinsic and unpredictable properties of restriction enzymes give rise to their ability to cleave methylated DNA. In my paper, I considered both DNA methylation and the sensitivity of the restriction enzyme to that type of methylation, ensuring that the resulting cleavage data is statistically significant.”

“Do you have any other questions?”

Lu Shixian nodded to him. “No, that’s all. Thank you for clarifying.”

Applause filled the hall again as everyone began to leave in an orderly fashion.

With that, all the academic exchange sessions were concluded.

All that remained was the closing report in the afternoon, and the conference would be officially over.

Just as Lu Shixian was about to head off for lunch, he felt a light tap on his back.

He turned around and was surprised to see Wang Zhongxuan, the man who had just answered his question.

“Hey, man. What school are you from?”

“Let’s exchange contact info. Maybe we’ll have a chance to work together in the future.” Wang Zhongxuan was actually asking to connect with him.

Offstage, Lu Shixian realized Wang was quite a heavyweight, a fact that coincidentally matched his name.

*The food at Shanghai Jiao Tong must be good,* he thought.

Since he wasn't looking for trouble, Lu Shixian's tone was friendly.

“I’m at Yan University. My number is 188-XXXX-XXXX.”

Wang Zhongxuan pulled out his phone to save the number, asking curiously, “Are you also in enzyme engineering?”

“Did you come with Professor Peng from Yan University? I remember that’s his main research area.”

At this, Lu Shixian was at a loss for words.

“You probably won’t believe this, but I don’t have a research direction yet.”

As he expected, Wang Zhongxuan looked at him with disbelief.

“That’s impossible, right?”

“Usually, you decide on a direction during your master’s and then continue to specialize in your PhD.”

“It’s not like applying for grad school where you can switch fields. Were you in a different area before?”

Lu Shixian just sighed and shook his head, finally telling the truth. “Honestly, I haven't even joined a research group yet.”

This time, Wang Zhongxuan's expression was one of utter shock.

“Are you kidding me?”

“You’re only a first-year master’s student?”

“Is Yan University this insane now?”

He considered himself a fairly outstanding PhD student at Shanghai Jiao Tong, the kind who published several SCI papers a year.

But he didn't think his work was so shallow that a brand-new graduate student could poke holes in it.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been given the chance to speak here.

Lu Shixian managed to chat with him for a bit longer, finally steering the conversation away from the topic.

The two exchanged contact information and went their separate ways.

After lunch, just a few hours later, the closing report in the main hall concluded, and the conference officially came to an end.

While checking out of the hotel, Lu Shixian finally saw Academician Xu Zhihong again.

His face was still etched with fatigue; clearly, he had been burdened with many responsibilities over the past few days.

Lu Shixian didn't even get a chance to speak with his advisor.

All he knew was that the people Xu Zhihong had been with recently were all highly influential figures, ranging from academicians of the two academies to high-ranking government officials.

It was truly on another level.

On the flight back to Yanjing, Xu Zhihong remained silent and quickly fell asleep.

He didn't say a single word to Lu Shixian the entire time.

This left Lu Shixian feeling a little unsettled.

But after some thought, he felt a sense of relief.

Every advisor had a different personality and habits.

Not everyone was as meticulous as Gu Hongya.

Perhaps Xu Zhihong’s intention was for him to observe with his own eyes at this stage.

In other words: observe more, listen more, and talk less.

Chapter 277: Go Out and Bring In

Humans have two ears but only one mouth.

This tells us to observe and listen more, and to speak less.

This is the essence of Festinger’s Theory.

To observe more means not just seeing the surface of a problem.

The beauty of the world is all around us, but it requires us to have eyes that can see beauty, to see the essence beyond the phenomenon.

To listen more is to humbly hear the opinions of others.

When encountering difficult problems, one should seek advice from those with greater wisdom and listen to their opinions with an open mind. But the most crucial part is to learn how to filter and discern what is useful.

To speak less does not mean to not speak at all.

As a famous saying goes, a person takes two years to learn how to speak, but a lifetime to learn how to stay silent. Sometimes, trouble truly does come from an unguarded mouth.

On the flight to Yanjing, Lu Shixian came to understand many more things.

Combined with what he had learned at the conference, he had gained a great deal.

This trip was well worth it.

While he was lost in thought, the plane carrying Lu Shixian and Xu Zhihong began its descent into Yanjing Airport.

Back at school, Lu Shixian spent some of his free time catching up on the classes he had missed that week.

Although he had already mastered most of the material, he went over it all again to be absolutely sure.

The following days fell into a repetitive rhythm for him.

Attending classes, reading books, going to lectures…

Lu Shixian was either studying or on his way to study.

But the results of this routine were astonishing.

In the final exams of his first semester as a master's student, Lu Shixian once again placed first, leaving the second-place student behind by a huge margin.

This achievement was inseparable from his tireless efforts.

But this also led to an unexpected problem.

“Sir, I don’t really want to participate in this inter-university exchange program.”

“It’s a bit chaotic abroad. It’s not as comfortable as it is here in China,” Lu Shixian argued, holding an application form.

“Besides, as you know, I come from a rural area. How could I afford to study abroad?”

Across from him, a man about ten years his senior wore a helpless expression.

“Lu, I don’t know why you’re so against this program. With the support of the scholarship, your expenses over there would be very minimal.”

“This is a rare opportunity. We’ve seldom had a spot like this in the past.”

“If someone with your grades doesn’t qualify for this spot, then no one else will.”

To his surprise, Lu Shixian once again firmly rejected the opportunity.

“No, I refuse to believe it. Can’t we become successful talents right here in our own country?

“Do we really need to go abroad to make major breakthroughs?”

Seeing that he couldn't be persuaded, his counselor had no choice but to leave.

Lu Shixian was also a bit speechless, wondering why this counselor was so persistent.

He had been trying to convince him to apply for the Yan University 2011-2012 Academic Year Inter-University Exchange Program.

Recently, Yan University had been promoting its international student exchange program.

It involved sending domestic students to a country of their choice for a year of study at a local university. Exchange students could choose to go to countries like the United States, the UK, Italy, or Japan.

As exchange students, they could study, live, and participate in various school clubs just like local students. Through this extraordinary experience, they often gained exceptional skills and insights.

At the same time, they could study, discuss, and conduct research with peers in colleges with the same research focus.

There was no better way for a student to become familiar with and master a foreign language in just one year.

What was even more valuable was that during a year of study and exchange abroad, students' abilities in all aspects—including social skills, learning, and perspective—were enhanced, greatly enriching their life experience.

Students who participated in this international exchange program would be highly sought after by top universities and companies upon their return. Although it was hard to admit, going abroad did have some positive effects.

This activity not only helped to develop a student's well-rounded personality and mature thinking but also greatly broadened their horizons.

Unfortunately, Lu Shixian was not interested. He firmly believed that he could become a successful talent sooner or later right here in China.

So, he unhesitatingly refused his counselor’s suggestion.

But soon, he received a summons from Xu Zhihong.

Arriving at his office again, Lu Shixian felt a little excited.

He had gained a lot from attending a top domestic academic conference with Academician Xu last semester.

If he could do that a few more times, Lu Shixian wouldn't mind at all.

But to his surprise, Xu Zhihong had called him over to talk about the very same exchange student matter.

“Little Tan told me that you are very reluctant to participate in this international student exchange program.”

Although Lu Shixian didn't know why he was asking this question, he nodded affirmatively.

“That’s right. I’ve always believed that China can cultivate real talent. We don’t necessarily have to follow the trend of studying abroad.”

“Although more and more students are choosing to study abroad, a large portion of them stay overseas and never return.”

“While I can understand the choices they make, based on my own sense of patriotism and national mission, I cannot accept it.”

Hearing this, Xu Zhihong suddenly smiled and nodded at him.

Just as Lu Shixian thought he had passed this test, Xu Zhihong continued.

“What you said is indeed very compelling.”

“But you are actually mistaken.”

Lu Shixian looked at him with confusion, eager to hear the academician's perspective on the issue.

Xu Zhihong then explained, “It’s undeniable that the situation you described does exist. But we cannot deny the gap that currently exists between our country and developed nations because of it.”

“Some things can’t be figured out just by burying our heads in the sand here.”

“Besides, the prerequisite for achieving internationally leading levels of independent innovation is knowing what the international level actually is.”

Seeing Lu Shixian fall silent, Xu Zhihong continued to state his views.

“I wonder if you’ve heard a phrase from a great leader.”

“Bring in, and go out!”

“For decades of reform and opening up, these six words have comprehensively raised the level of our country's engagement with the outside world. It has enabled us to participate in international economic and technological cooperation and competition on a larger scale, in a wider range of fields, and at a higher level, which has greatly promoted our country's economic development.”

At this point, Xu Zhihong finally got to the main topic.

“I believe that in academia, we desperately need a spirit of ‘going out and bringing in’.”

“Although we have made considerable progress in the field of biology,”

“We must ultimately face the fact that our country is and will long remain in the primary stage of socialism. In many areas, we need to learn from others.”

Chapter 278: A Great Reputation is Never Undeserved

“After all, sometimes, if you don’t go out and see for yourself, you’ll never truly know how high the sky is or how wide the earth is,” Xu Zhihong said with deep feeling.

Walking out of the academician’s office, Lu Shixian’s mind was still replaying Xu Zhihong’s words.

“Go out, and bring in!”

As this phrase settled deeper into his heart, he began to realize that his previous views might have been too stubborn, too deeply ingrained.

He had been too fixated on the form of things.

As long as the result was the same, what did it matter if the process was different from what he had envisioned?

In his previous life, he had always moved within the small confines of Jinling.

Now, the farthest places he had been were Yanjing and Haiqing.

Perhaps he really did need to open his eyes and see how big the world was.

With this thought, Lu Shixian finally felt a sense of release.

As long as he held true to his principles, what difference did going abroad make?

Having figured this out, Lu Shixian quickly stopped dwelling on it.

Soon, he found his counselor and explained his change of heart.

The counselor was very pleased that he had come around.

His earlier attempts to persuade Lu Shixian were not just about fulfilling a duty, but also out of genuine goodwill.

Given the context of the times, a "sea turtle"—a student who returned after studying abroad—had a much brighter future than someone who stayed in China and slowly worked their way up.

One person’s strength could not fight against an entire era.

Sometimes, you really couldn't be too rigid; following the general trend was very important.

The counselor quickly brought him the application form for the exchange student program.

Lu Shixian had originally thought that since it was only for a year, the process wouldn't be too complicated.

But he would soon discover how wrong he was.
The documents you need to submit next are the application form with your basic information filled out, a copy of your personal identification, a letter of recommendation from your advisor, your undergraduate and first-year graduate transcripts, and proof of foreign language proficiency, among other things. If you don't have proof of foreign language proficiency, you won't pass the first round of material screening.

"So complicated? Does the national College English Test count as proof of foreign language proficiency?" Lu Shixian asked a crucial question.

The counselor couldn't help but chuckle. "That's up to you."

"If you're aiming for second-tier universities, then a high level of foreign language skill really isn't that important."

With that, Lu Shixian instantly understood.

Alright, it looked like taking the TOEFL or IELTS would have to be added to his schedule.

If the university he went to for the exchange was weaker than Yan University, it would be a complete waste of time.

"And after the material screening?" Lu Shixian was starting to get interested in the rest of the process.

"Next is the second round of selection: the interview. A review panel composed of members from Yan University's International Cooperation Department, Academic Affairs Office, the Graduate School, and professors from the relevant major will interview all students who pass the material screening to determine the final recommended candidates." The counselor was clearly very familiar with the process, having gone through it more than once.

"For undergraduates, the recommender must be a professor from their major. For graduate students, the recommender must be their own advisor, and the letter must specify the advisor's title and contact information, and be signed by the advisor personally."

"Another very important point is that the letter of recommendation must state the name of the recommended host university."

"The interviews are tentatively scheduled for mid-to-late June. All students who pass the interview will be qualified for a recommendation. After that, you'll prepare your personal materials according to the exchange university's application requirements."

"But whether you are ultimately admitted is decided by the host institution."

Lu Shixian was utterly speechless after hearing the entire process.

"So, you're saying this is incredibly strict!"

"What if I manage to get through the university's selection process, but the host university rejects me? Wouldn't that be all for nothing?"

The counselor could only indicate that there was nothing he could do about it.

"That's right. It's a mutual selection process. The time and financial costs for the university to run this program are immense. To minimize waste, we try to ensure that every student can gain something from the experience."

"Besides, you should know that the tuition during the exchange is completely waived. The only thing students need to cover is their living expenses."

"And that cost can easily be covered by scholarships!"

"That's why this program is so popular among students every year. You need to be prepared for fierce competition."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian now fully understood.

He nodded, thanked the counselor, and left, already sensing that he had a tough fight ahead of him.

In the first stage, the application form and personal documents were straightforward.

The slightly more troublesome parts were the proof of foreign language ability and the letter of recommendation.

But the language requirement depended on the university named in the recommendation letter, as that determined which country he would be going to.

Although English was widespread, it wasn't the native language of every country.

And so, he headed straight for Xu Zhihong's office.

When he arrived, however, a passing professor told him that Xu had gone to the lab.

It wasn't until after nine o'clock that night that Lu Shixian finally caught sight of Academician Xu Zhihong.

He must have been running experiments all day; the exhaustion was visible on his face.

So, Lu Shixian explained his purpose as concisely as possible.

Hearing Lu Shixian's words, Xu Zhihong nodded to himself in approval.

A student who could actually listen to advice was a rare find.

He replied immediately, "I can write your letter of recommendation."

"But you need to choose the university yourself."

This gave Lu Shixian pause.

The range of choices was truly vast; there were countless universities around the world.

First, his foreign language ability was limited to English and only English.

That meant an English-speaking country was the best choice.

At the same time, the institution's research strength had to be no weaker than Yan University's, at least in the field of biological sciences.

That narrowed the scope considerably.

"I really don't know how to choose! How about you recommend a few schools, and I'll pick one from your list?" A spark of inspiration hit Lu Shixian as he came up with a brilliant idea.

Academician Xu had traveled the world for years. To have reached his current position, his insight was certainly far deeper than his own.

And he wouldn't steer him wrong, so listening to his advice was definitely the right move.

Xu Zhihong glanced at him, naturally knowing what he was up to.

But he was, after all, a student he held in high regard. He thought for a moment before speaking. "Great reputations are earned, not given. Only the strong can stand the test of time."

"The world's strongest universities in the biological sciences are almost all concentrated in the United States and Great Britain."

"In the US, given your personality, your top choices should be MIT, Stanford, the University of California, Rockefeller University, and Yale."

"In Great Britain, you should consider Oxford, Cambridge, and Imperial College London."

"These are all currently first-rate institutions in the field of biological science research."

At this point, an interested look appeared on Xu Zhihong's face.

"I think with your abilities, you have a decent shot at any of the universities I just mentioned. So, what is your choice?"

Chapter 279: This Is Truly Remarkable

Lu Shixian nodded. To be honest, he had done some research beforehand. Globally, these were pretty much the top-ranked institutions in the field of biological sciences.

As for Princeton, that Gothic-style campus wasn't on the list. Its traditional strengths lay in mathematics, physics, and the social sciences.

Although its ranking was also high, its main advantage was in biochemistry. After weighing all his considerations, he finally made his decision.

"The University of California, Davis."

Hearing his choice, Xu Zhihong was surprised at first, but then found it quite reasonable.

He lifted his teacup and took a sip. "I thought you would choose MIT, Harvard, Oxford, or Cambridge, like most people."

He then smiled at Lu Shixian.

"Haha, based on world rankings, that school is probably outside the top one hundred. Are you sure you want to choose it?"

"I'm aware of that, of course. But as it turns out, what suits you is what's best," Lu Shixian said with a nod.

Seeing Lu Shixian's determined expression, Xu Zhihong's admiration for him grew. "Honestly, so many people are obsessed with rankings these days. It seems you have a very clear direction in mind."

"In that case, I don't need to say much more. Where's that letterhead you brought? I'll write the recommendation for you right now."

With that, Xu Zhihong took the paper, which bore the red letterhead of Yanjing University, from his hands.

This time, Xu Zhihong wrote the recommendation letter in English with great care.

"Mr. Lu Shixian is a master's student in Botany at the School of Life Sciences, Yanjing University. He is an excellent communicator with a modest character and possesses great potential for scientific research. I believe he meets your esteemed university's selection criteria."

"Furthermore…"

"In conclusion, I am pleased to recommend this student for an exchange study program at your institution."

The entire page was filled with his evaluation and opinion of Lu Shixian.

After leaving Academician Xu's office, Lu Shixian felt the weight of the expectations placed upon him.

Xu hadn't given him any specific instructions regarding his research.

But this often signified the greatest trust and anticipation.

Because they understood the importance of teaching students according to their individual characteristics and respecting their personalized learning needs.

And Xu Zhihong knew that Lu Shixian was the type of student with a clear direction and a strong mind of his own.

Such students didn't need excessive guidance; they only needed to be nurtured in the broader aspects.

And so, with a recommendation letter personally signed by an academician, Lu Shixian sailed through to the second round of selection.

In a classroom at Yan University's International Exchange Center.

Four interviewers sat not far from Lu Shixian. They were experts from various fields, some stout, some slim, both men and women.

They were highly experienced, having already weeded out many students who were just looking to pad their resumes under the guise of an exchange program.

A lean male interviewer, his presence commanding, was the first to launch an inquiry.

"Mr. Lu Shixian, could you please tell us your original motivation for applying to Yan University's international exchange program?"

Lu Shixian had been through so many interviews that he was practically a seasoned veteran.

He had even faced a panel full of academicians.

What reason did he have to fear a scene of this level?

Lu Shixian's expression remained unchanged; he even felt a slight urge to laugh.

"Some people go abroad hoping to gain a new perspective on the world. Some do it to experience different educational methods. Still others do it to improve their employment opportunities and enhance their competitiveness."

"But my purpose for this exchange is simple: to go out and to bring in."

"To go out means to travel to countries and regions with advanced technology and knowledge. To bring in means to learn these core technologies and knowledge, and then, based on our country's unique conditions and practical realities, to develop a knowledge system unique to China that can be applied and promoted."

"That concludes my answer."

After he finished his speech, the interviewer who had asked the question fell silent.

What the hell?

What was with this kid?

He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but he felt as though he were a student listening to a lecture.

But I'm the one conducting the interview, not attending a class!

He turned and exchanged glances with the other interviewers, signaling that they had a tough nut to crack.

After a brief silence, another interviewer, a slightly heavyset woman, quickly formulated a new question.

"Currently, our country's social productivity and comprehensive national strength have seen significant improvement. Not only has our GDP reached 39.8 trillion yuan, with an average annual growth rate exceeding 10%, but our fiscal revenue has also increased from 3.16 trillion to 8.31 trillion yuan."

"At the same time, we have achieved major breakthroughs in cutting-edge technologies such as manned spaceflight, the lunar exploration program, supercomputers, and the national high-speed rail project."

"This fully demonstrates that even without going abroad, we are capable of independent innovation and achieving world-renowned accomplishments."

"So why do you believe it's necessary for us to 'go out and bring in'?"

As the female professor finished, Lu Shixian felt a hint of pressure.

Her use of these major national projects as examples was incredibly persuasive; she was really pressing him.

Her argument was actually very close to a view he himself had once held, when he had stubbornly believed that China could achieve independent innovation without relying on foreign countries.

But he eventually discovered a problem.

Time.

There are many ways to reach a common goal, and there was no need for him to waste time because of his own stubbornness.

In today's information age, knowledge was being updated far too quickly.

He could spend years working behind closed doors in China and finally achieve an independent creation.

But by the time it was ready for research and application, he might discover that the technology, once common internationally, was already obsolete.

All his previous efforts would have been for nothing.

Perhaps that wasn't entirely accurate; at the very least, he would have gained some experience.

But his current view was that it was simply unnecessary.

He thought for a moment before replying, "You are absolutely right. Our country has indeed made significant breakthroughs in manned spaceflight, lunar exploration, supercomputers, and high-speed rail."

"However, I must still point out that our technology industry continues to face critical bottlenecks. We are heavily reliant on imports, especially in areas like semiconductor chips, engines, advanced materials, CNC machine tools, industrial software, and research instruments."

"Take the high-speed rail project you mentioned, for example. Over the past few years, we have accomplished what almost no other country could."

"On December 31, 2002, the maglev demonstration line was completed, becoming our country's first high-speed rail system."

"On October 11, 2003, the Qinhuangdao-Shenyang passenger line was fully operational, our first national high-speed railway."

"On June 11, 2005, construction began on the Shijiazhuang-Taiyuan high-speed railway, marking our official entry into the era of standardized high-speed passenger rail construction."

"On April 18, 2007, the sixth major national railway speed increase was launched, and our railways began to enter the high-speed era."

"This is truly remarkable!"

At this point, Lu Shixian's tone suddenly shifted.

"But…"

Chapter 280: Gold Will Shine Anywhere?

"Regrettably, our high-speed rail is not yet fully domestically produced. Roughly 10% of the key technologies have not been mastered, especially the manufacturing of train wheels and bearings, which are heavily dependent on foreign imports. The United States, Japan, and Sweden hold a monopoly in this field."

"If we don't master the core technologies from the ground up, we can only operate on the periphery of the market and at the downstream of the industry. The moment others impose sanctions on our raw materials, our economic and industrial development will slow down or even grind to a halt."

Lu Shixian paused there.

Honestly, without personally experiencing something like the "chip incident," it was hard for others to understand his feelings.

The interviewers were now looking at each other, a single thought crossing their minds: this student is quite the orator, very skilled at stirring emotions.

As for the content of his speech, they remained somewhat noncommittal.

But Lu Shixian's abilities had already left a deep impression on them.

The remaining two interviewers reached a consensus. One more question would be enough.

The final male interviewer followed up, "According to the materials you submitted, you are applying to the University of California, Davis."

"However, I've carefully reviewed your academic and research performance during your undergraduate years and the first semester of your master's program. You are an exceptionally outstanding student."

"Based on your academic record, you have a strong chance of being accepted into a top-ten university in the world. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, I believe no institution would reject you."

"But this university, while part of the University of California system, is, if you'll forgive my bluntness, not particularly highly ranked among the world's many institutions."

"So, may I ask, what is your intention in applying to this university?"

Ten days earlier, while reviewing student applications, the male professor had noticed this oddity. Now was the perfect chance to satisfy his curiosity.

Students these days would do anything to get into a famous foreign university, especially Harvard, Oxford, and Cambridge, which were the three hottest choices.

It was almost a joke, but for a time, MIT was less popular than far inferior institutions simply because its name included the word "Institute."

Lu Shixian was a bit speechless. This was a question he hadn't anticipated.

Wasn't it usually the case that the better the school, the stricter the application?

He was applying to a "subpar" school ranked outside the top hundred, and they were still questioning him about it?

But since the question had been asked, he had to answer it.

The answer was actually quite simple.

"While my perspective might differ from most, I'd like to repeat something I once said at the Yanjing University scholarship award ceremony."

"I personally believe that rankings don't say much about whether a university is top-tier or not."

"So-called rankings are just one facet for evaluating a university; they cannot reflect the whole picture. We shouldn't be blinded by them."

"Some institutions may have lower rankings because they focus all their energy and attention on innovation and breakthroughs in their own areas of strength and unique specializations. But to me, they are world-class universities."

Lu Shixian continued, "You may not be aware, but the University of California, Davis is the world's center for research and education in agricultural and environmental sciences. Its programs in forestry, animal and plant sciences, and animal husbandry have long ranked first or second in the world."

"For me, it is the best possible university for an exchange."

"That concludes my answer!"

After Lu Shixian finished, the interviewers exchanged glances, all of them trying to hold back a smile.

The lean man, who was the lead interviewer, nodded at him. "Very good. Based on the preliminary consensus of the four of us, we are quite supportive of your application for the exchange program."

"However, the final results will be based on the official list published on the website. Your interview today was excellent."

"You may leave now. Next, please."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian bowed politely in thanks and exited the room.

In the time leading up to this, Lu Shixian had taken both the IELTS and TOEFL exams.

Unlike the domestic CET-4 and CET-6, these tests had the convenient feature of being offered very frequently.

There was an exam almost every week, usually scheduled for a Saturday, which meant there were over 40 test dates a year.

Each university had different requirements for foreign language proficiency.

For example, King's College London in Great Britain required a GPA of 3.3 or higher, an IELTS score of 7 with no sub-score below 5.5, or a TOEFL score of 100 with no sub-score below 23.

GPA was just grade point average, so that was self-explanatory.

The IELTS was scored out of 9, with each 0.5 increment being a different level. The average score for test-takers from China was around 5.7.

The TOEFL was scored out of 120, and the average score for Chinese test-takers was around 80.

The requirements for King's College were considered quite high.

But generally speaking, the more competitive the university, the higher the required scores.

This was indisputable, as it served to screen out a large number of applicants.

Lu Shixian had taken both tests.

His final scores were 6.2 on the IELTS and 81 on the TOEFL.

To be honest, his scores were not outstanding; they were rather average.

But he was happy enough not to have dragged down the average.

This was for two reasons. First, both tests included a speaking component; the former was a conversation with an examiner, while the latter was with a machine.

Second, due to the high bar for entry, not many people in China actually took these tests, and those who did were generally already quite skilled in English.

The CET-4 and CET-6 already served as a barrier for most students, many of whom couldn't even pass Level 6.

His own clumsy spoken English had dragged down his otherwise high scores, resulting in his final marks.

Fortunately, the school he had chosen was not as competitive, which meant that his scores were sufficient to pass the language proficiency test.

Soon after, the results of the interview were announced on the official website of Yan University's International Exchange Center.
In the graduate student section above, Lu Shixian saw his name, just as he had hoped.

Name: Lu Shixian
College: College of Life Sciences
Interview Score: 89
Intended Host University: University of California, Davis

Lu Shixian couldn't help but snap his fingers. Next up was the university's review process.

To be honest, as long as nothing unexpected happened, he wasn't worried about this stage. Not even counting high school, his undergraduate record alone was enough to get him into most top tier universities.

And as he had predicted, during the summer break, Lu Shixian quickly received a notice from the exchange center. His application had been accepted by the host university, and they had shown great enthusiasm.

At the same time, he was completely dumbfounded to learn that a professor had already inquired about his details and contact information through the university.

He couldn't help but think, a little smugly, "Is this what they mean when they say true talent shines anywhere?"

As for that old saying about being a big fish in a small pond? He would never admit to that!

Nope, not at all!

Chapter 281: Of Course, I’m Not So Bad Myself

Soon after, a professor named David Knox found him through the contact information provided by Yan University.

Foreigners didn't use QQ, but they were wizards with email.

Lu Shixian soon received a letter in his inbox from across the ocean.

There were many differences between life abroad and in China, not just in communication methods but also in personality. They typically didn't use screen names.

davidknox: Hey! I'm a professor at the graduate school of UC Davis. I saw your resume through the intercollegiate exchange system. It’s clear you’re a very outstanding young man, so I’m inviting you to join my research team. Trust me, you won't regret this choice.

After reading these two sentences, Lu Shixian was a little speechless.

These foreigners were certainly direct.

However, he did need an advisor. Otherwise, he would have had to start looking for one upon arriving at UC Davis.

But Lu Shixian didn't reply immediately. Instead, he first found a way to access the official website for the UC Davis graduate school. As expected, he found the professor's information among the faculty roster. The name and email matched perfectly, which basically ruled out the possibility of a scam.

Even though the connection was made through the university, there was no harm in being cautious. After all, a boy has to protect himself when he's out in the world.

He clicked on the professor's detailed profile on the website.

A registration photo of a smiling man popped up. The first thing he noticed was a large nose and a full head of hair. Judging by the condition of his skin, he seemed to be around forty five years old. He looked rather approachable, though you could rarely tell much from appearances alone.

Compared to that, Lu Shixian was more interested in his academic and research experience.

Soon, Lu Shixian found Professor Knox's basic information below.

Work Experience

After receiving his Ph.D. in Agronomy from Cornell University in 1986, he stayed on as an assistant professor.
1992–2011, Full Professor in the Department of Biology and Life Sciences, Graduate School, University of California, Davis.
2002–2006, Visiting Professor at ETH Zurich.

Primary Research Areas

Hormone receptor perception mechanisms and signal transduction; analysis of plant pathogen interaction mechanisms. Specializes in using genetics, cell biology, bioinformatics, and structural biology to study the molecular mechanisms of plant disease resistance and pathogen virulence.

Research Achievements

Served as a reviewer and editorial board member for top journals such as Plant Cell, PNAS, and Plant Physiology. Authored three books, including Plant Hormones, Principles of Plant Pathology, and Plant Pathogenic Cells. He had also published a great number of papers, mostly in top journals in the plant science field, though occasionally journals from cell biology and genetics would appear.

It seemed his most prolific period was from 2006 to 2010; after that, his output dwindled. But this was consistent with the usual pattern of academic productivity.

After a careful review, Lu Shixian began to relax.

The professor seemed quite reliable.

What puzzled him, however, was why this professor would proactively reach out to a nobody like him. It didn't make much sense. Could it be that he possessed some brilliant qualities that even he himself hadn't yet discovered?

But another detail caught his attention. If he wasn't mistaken, the professor's doctoral research had been in agronomy. But later on, he seemed to have completely changed direction, dedicating himself to botany.

What was that all about?

Lu Shixian suddenly had an absurd feeling, like being in a besieged city: those inside were desperate to get out, while those outside were desperate to get in.

Well, even though he didn't know why the professor had contacted him, his academic credentials were more than sufficient for him to be his advisor.

So, Lu Shixian immediately replied to him by email.

"Dear Professor Knox, I am very pleased to receive your letter."

"You are a scholar of high academic standing, and I am delighted to accept your invitation. Naturally, I am quite capable myself. I have previous research experience with plant auxins, so I am confident this will be an excellent match."

Lu Shixian carefully checked his message one more time before hitting send.

There were many things to be mindful of when communicating with foreigners.

First was ensuring the email was correct. Emails are permanent; once sent, they couldn't be retracted after three minutes like messages on instant messaging apps. Any errors in title or grammar would be terrible.

Second was to be concise and clear. Professors with established academic reputations received at least ten emails a day and didn't have time to read long winded essays.

Acknowledging receipt of the professor's email was also essential, as it made a good impression.

Finally, this wasn't Facebook or a blog's comment section; no one appreciated emojis or emoticons. His relationship with his advisor wasn't at that level yet, so the writing had to be formal and serious.

It was worth noting that abroad, especially in the United States, excessive modesty was often seen as a lack of confidence. Sometimes, acting a bit more forward, even "arrogant," could actually win favor.

So, although it was just two short sentences, it was packed with subtle considerations.

A few hours later, Lu Shixian received another reply from Professor Knox.

"Davis welcomes you…"

At this point, only one final step remained before Lu Shixian's departure: applying for a visa.

This wasn't his first time going abroad, but his previous trip to Japan was for a short stay, and the procedure had been much simpler. This time, there were many more steps to complete.

After filling out the non immigrant visa application form and paying the fee, Lu Shixian finally reached the last stage: the interview at the U.S. Embassy.

This was a new experience for him, and he had to admit he was a little nervous.

But according to the staff at Yan University's international exchange center, this type of visa was usually the easiest to obtain, as long as you had an acceptance letter from a local institution. Of course, he would have to find out for himself how it would really go.

Two days later, the day of his scheduled interview arrived.

In a room at the U.S. Embassy, Lu Shixian sat across a round table from a visa officer. After a simple greeting, the interview began.

"Name?"

"Lu Shixian."

"Age?"

"Twenty one."

"Occupation?"

"Student."

"Graduating university and major?"

"I graduated from Yanjing University with a bachelor's in Biological Sciences and am currently a graduate student in Botany at Yanjing University."

At this, the visa officer, who had been scribbling notes, finally looked up.

Chapter 282: Welcome to UCD

"It seems you are a very excellent student. After all, that is the best university in China."

After some basic questions, he finally got to the crucial part.

"Why are you going to the United States?"

"For an academic exchange program."

"What is your purpose for studying in the United States?"

Lu Shixian paused for a moment at this question before answering.

"I hope that by going to the United States, I can gain a new perspective, experience a different educational system, and at the same time, improve my employment opportunities and future prospects, thereby enhancing my competitiveness."

The interviewers at Yan University's international exchange center might have found that sentence familiar, but the visa officer didn't. He quickly moved on to the next question.

"What are your GPA and TOEFL scores?"

"My GPA is 3.8. My TOEFL and IELTS scores are…"

"What major will you be choosing? Can you tell me why?"

"Plant Biology. If I had to give a reason, it would probably be because I love plants."

"A very good reason. How many schools did you apply to before this, and why did you choose this one?"

"None, this is the first one. As for why I chose it, I believe you know better than I do. The University of California, Davis, has always been a leader in the fields of animal and plant sciences and agriculture in the United States."

"How much is your annual tuition?"

"Yanjing University has waived the tuition for me, so I don't need to pay it."

"What do your parents do for a living? Can they afford your expenses abroad?"

"My father is a farmer, and my mother is an elementary school teacher."

"Additionally, I'm quite confident about that second point, as I am certain I will receive a scholarship. I also have income from a patent commercialization that I can use."

With that, the interview was essentially drawing to a close. As it concluded, the visa officer shook his hand.

"Your answers are consistent with your documents, so your visa application has been approved."

"Even though your spoken English isn't great, I wish you good luck!"

Lu Shixian resisted the urge to scowl and forced a strained smile as he shook the officer's hand.

"Thank you."

"Besides, I've always been a lucky person."

Stepping out of the embassy, Lu Shixian quickly put the matter behind him. After all, the officer was just speaking the truth.

He had already done some preliminary research. Most universities in the U.S. were very different from those in China. For example, the University of California system has three quarters a year, each about eleven weeks long. This meant that a term was less than three months long, comprising the fall, winter, and spring quarters.

He had chosen to enroll in the fall, which meant he had to be there by the end of August. Lu Shixian needed to arrive at least a week early to get settled.

Since he might not be back for the next year, Lu Shixian made a special trip home. He also met up with his dorm mates, his friends from Tsukuba, senior student Qu Xi, and a few other close friends to catch up and let them know about his plans.

In mid August, at Yanjing Airport, Lu Shixian traveled light. His suitcase contained only essential documents, some clothes, and the books he was currently reading.

He boarded an American Airlines international flight. The journey from Yanjing to San Francisco was about 10,000 kilometers, which translated to a flight time of roughly fourteen hours.

At first, he was curious about the elegantly dressed American flight attendants. But soon, the sheer length of the flight wore him out. He drifted off to sleep at some point and woke up to the announcement that the plane was about to land in San Francisco.

Pushing his luggage cart out of the airport, Lu Shixian was still feeling a bit disoriented. By normal time, it should have been getting dark already, yet it was still broad daylight. He quickly remembered that China used Beijing time, while San Francisco was on Pacific time. Although there were slight differences for daylight saving, a standard time zone calculation meant San Francisco time was three to four hours ahead of the date back home.

After some more effort, following the directions in his orientation guide, Lu Shixian made his way from San Francisco to the capital of California, the city of Sacramento. It seemed just like in China—the further west he went, the more the vibrant city lights gave way to tranquil, quaint small towns.

After another long and tiring journey, Lu Shixian finally reached his destination, the town of Davis, from which UC Davis gets its name.

As he got off the bus, a strong, burly man suddenly reached out to him. Before Lu Shixian could react, his suitcase was in the man's hands. Just as Lu Shixian was feeling bewildered, the man explained.

"Hello! Don't worry, I live here. I'm a resident of the town."

"You can call me David. From the looks of it, you must be a student at UCD, right?"

Lu Shixian finally relaxed. Even for someone as calm as he was, that had been startling. He nodded and started chatting with the man named David.

"You look Asian. Are you from Japan?"

"No, I'm from China."

"Chinese? That's rare. Is this your first time here?"

"Yes, and my first time in the United States."

"Trust me, you'll love Davis," the man said, handing the suitcase back to Lu Shixian. "Alright, the campus gate is over there. You can go in and register. I've got to head home."

"Thank you!" Lu Shixian said gratefully.

Regardless, his first impression of Davis was quite good.

Dragging his suitcase, Lu Shixian couldn't help but look around. Once inside the town, he saw very few modern vehicles. Most passersby were getting around on bicycles. It seemed worlds away from the hustle and bustle of a big city; greenery was everywhere. But then he remembered that UC Davis was once the university farm for UC Berkeley, which made it less surprising.

Attending school on a farm—that was certainly a novel experience.

It seemed to be the peak season for returning and new students at UCD. As soon as Lu Shixian entered the campus gates, he saw some student volunteers for orientation.

A blonde girl with blue eyes greeted him.

"Welcome to UCD!"

"Hey! Over here."

It was the height of summer, and the girl was dressed simply in a tight white shirt and blue denim shorts. But the simplest outfits often packed a different kind of punch; the attire did wonders to accentuate her figure and curves. Lu Shixian could only meet her sapphire like eyes, trying his best not to let his gaze drift downward.

"Are you a freshman this year? Which college are you in?" the girl asked attentively.

Chapter 283: Nowhere to Hide This Handsomeness

"I guess I don't count as a freshman. I'm an exchange student from Yanjing University, so I should be in the graduate division," Lu Shixian said, shaking his head. Since he was only studying here for a year, he wasn't really a new student.

"Wow, a grad student? You look so young and handsome! I thought you were an underclassman," the girl said with surprise. "How old are you?"

"I just turned twenty one," Lu Shixian answered truthfully.

Hearing this, the girl let out an exaggerated gasp. "What a coincidence, I'm the same age as you! You must be very brilliant. The other Chinese people I've met all seem to be great students."

"Other Chinese people?" Lu Shixian immediately figured he wasn't the only compatriot studying here. But now wasn't the time to look into that, so he filed the thought away.

At this point, Lu Shixian glanced around again and asked, "There's still over a week until school starts, right? Are there already this many people on campus?"

The girl knew it was his first time here, so she didn't find the question strange.

"Some international students don't go back for the holidays, and there are elective courses during the summer break, so the campus is quite lively right now," she explained enthusiastically, handing him a freshman guide.

"I think you'll need this little thing. Also, if you're an exchange student, you'll need to find your advisor at the school. He should be able to help you get properly settled," the girl said, looking at him a bit sheepishly. "I thought you were a freshman, so I'm not too clear on the process for graduate exchange students."

"This is more than enough for me. Thank you for your help," Lu Shixian said, not minding at all. He could figure out the rest on his own.

But before they parted, the girl slipped him a small piece of paper with her contact information on it.

"But you can ask me anytime about other things. My name is Emily."

"By the way, your muscles look nice. Can I touch them?"

Emm…

Walking alone on the pavement, Lu Shixian felt a mix of emotions.

Ah, this cursed, inescapable handsomeness of mine!

Back at Yan University, even though he'd been as low key as possible, several girls had still subtly tried to start conversations with him. He wondered if his roommates had leaked his QQ and phone number. Of course, he had eventually brushed them all off with generic, noncommittal replies.

But that had all been online. This was the first time someone had been so brazen. This American girl wanted to get hands on right away. It was too wild.

Having mercilessly rejected Emily, Lu Shixian decided to take a stroll around the campus first. There was still a week until the term started, so there was no rush to register. It was better to observe the new environment first.

Because he still had his suitcase with him, Lu Shixian didn't dare to go too far, just walking along the main road for a while.

UC Davis was founded in 1905 and had a massive campus, covering about 27.58 square kilometers.

This was an astonishingly large area. The main campus of Yan University was less than 3.4 square kilometers. The largest university campus in China belonged to the Civil Aviation Flight University, at around 11 square kilometers. In other words, one UC Davis campus was about the size of two plus Civil Aviation Universities, or eight Yan Universities.

So, it was best not to wander off before he got his bearings.

Of course, campus size was just a talking point. What truly mattered was the university's academic prowess. Although UCD was often ranked outside the top 100 universities in the world and in the thirties within the United States.
But it had to be said, the University of California, Davis, was the global hub for research and education in biological, agricultural, and environmental sciences.

And that wasn't just lip service.

Its programs in Plant and Animal Science, Veterinary Medicine, and Agricultural Science were truly world-class.

In the West, the library is often called the heart of a university.

Sometimes, you can gauge the strength of a university just by looking at its library.

Given UC Davis's vast campus, its libraries were also immense—as many as four of them.

They included the Peter J. Shields Library, the Physical Sciences & Engineering Library, the Carlson Health Sciences Library, and the Blaisdell Medical Library in Sacramento, with a total collection of over 3.5 million volumes.

Among them, the Peter J. Shields Library was the main one, a treasure trove of knowledge in agriculture and life sciences. It also happened to be the world's largest library on viticulture and enology.

The library was the third-largest among all California universities, named after Mr. Peter J. Shields, who had helped fund its construction.

While famous in academic circles, its relatively remote location meant it wasn't widely known to the general public.

If all went according to plan, Lu Shixian would become a frequent visitor here in the future.

Gazing at the library from a distance, he was struck by something odd: he could see at least three different architectural styles in the single building.

It was obvious, however, that parts of it had been renovated and expanded later on.

This resulted in a diverse mix of styles, a juxtaposition of old and new.

It was a scene symbolizing the fusion and exchange of different cultures.

After a tour around, Lu Shixian had a general feel for the place.

Unlike most universities situated in city centers, this one was like a hermit, far removed from the hustle and bustle, quietly observing the mortal world in peaceful solitude.

Walking towards the dormitory area, Lu Shixian couldn't help but think.

The air here was certainly fresh, but it wasn't as sweet as it was back in Jinling.

According to the freshman guide.

UC Davis had three dormitory areas: Segundo, Tercero, and Cuarto, with a total of 29 residence halls.

At first, Lu Shixian was a bit dumbfounded. What kind of names were those?

They were English letters, so why couldn't he recognize them?

But a quick search on his phone cleared things up.

He discovered, with a sense of speechlessness, that they were just ordinal numbers in Spanish.

Basically the equivalent of "Dorm Area One," "Dorm Area Two," and "Dorm Area Three" back home.

How anticlimactic!

Any sense of sophistication he had just felt instantly vanished.

It didn't even compare to the dorms at Yanda University he used to pass every day, like Zijing Apartments, Changchun Garden, and Wanliu Apartments.

Forcibly ignoring the names, Lu Shixian finally dragged his suitcase to the graduate student dormitory.

The building's manager stopped him at the entrance.

"Hey! You look new around here. Are you a freshman this year?"

"No, I'm an exchange student. Could you tell me how to check in?" Lu Shixian had never studied abroad before, so he had to figure everything out on his own.

The dorm manager was an African American.

After a brief chat, he learned the man's name was Terry.

Chapter 284: Yeah, Right.

"Got any proof, kid? I can't just take your word for it." Terry's pearly white teeth were a stark contrast to his skin.

Lu Shixian was prepared and handed over his exchange student documents.

"China?" Terry gave him a surprised look, then continued, "Are you sure you want to live on campus?"

Lu Shixian didn't understand why he was repeating the question.

But he quickly nodded, affirming his choice.

He had lived on campus ever since middle school.

It was convenient, of course—easy to get to classes and the gym.

Most importantly, it was safe. Generally speaking, there was no place safer than a school.

But Terry's next words shocked him.

"Great! A single room is $16,000 a year, and a triple is $12,000."

"What? It's not April Fools' Day, is it?" Lu Shixian now suspected the man was trying to scam him. The price was simply outrageous.

Based on the current exchange rate of 1 USD to 6.4614 RMB, a single room would cost him 103,382.4 yuan a year.

That's insane!

Although he could afford it, it didn't mean Lu Shixian was a fool.

As if reading Lu Shixian's mind, Terry pulled out a price sheet.

Lu Shixian took it and saw that it was indeed the official on-campus housing policy for UC Davis.

The prices were the same, and the official university seal on it couldn't be faked.

He was completely stunned.

Just then, Terry offered him another option. "You could choose a triple room without air conditioning for just $8,000. Trust me, you won't find a cheaper dorm than this."

"Yeah, right!" Lu Shixian turned and walked away.

Even $8,000 was an unbearable expense for him.

He finally understood why people back home said you couldn't go abroad without money.

Now he believed it.

On-campus housing was now completely out of the question. Lu Shixian decided he had to find another way.

He had seven days before the semester started to sort out his living situation, or he'd be in trouble.

Things were definitely not going as smoothly as he'd hoped.

He had just arrived and already run into a major problem.

He wouldn't go to Professor Knox unless it was a last resort.

The semester hadn't even started yet, and though the professor was likely in his lab, Lu Shixian refused to believe he couldn't handle a small problem like this on his own.

Then, to his surprise, he remembered the note Emily had left him. It might actually be a huge help.

She was a junior now and would surely know the school inside and out.

Asking her was the right move!

So he turned back and headed to the school gate to find her.

But it was nearing dinnertime, and as expected, she was gone.

Standing in the shade of a tree, Lu Shixian had no choice but to pull out his phone and call Emily.

Although he was still a bit intimidated by her forwardness, sometimes you had to make sacrifices. Getting this sorted out was more important.

The phone connected, and a familiar voice came from the other end.

At Lu Shixian's request, Emily enthusiastically suggested they meet at a restaurant in the Segundo dormitory area.

What else could he do?

He had to accept, of course.

His fear of her was just an exaggeration of his own mind.

In reality, Lu Shixian just hadn't fully adjusted to the personalities and social norms of Westerners yet.

While they waited for their food, Emily began to explain the housing situation to him.

"At UCD, or rather, at most universities in California, there are three main types of student housing."

"First is on-campus housing, which I assume you've already tried. How was it?"

Lu Shixian shook his head speechlessly. "Way too expensive. I just can't accept that."

Hearing his complaint, the girl across from him burst out laughing.

"Haha, actually, the dorm fees at Davis are considered relatively low in California, since it's in a more suburban area."

"But even so, very few international students choose to live on campus."

"So what do the other students do?" Lu Shixian asked, getting to the heart of the matter.

"That brings me to the other two options. One is renting off-campus, which usually costs around $6,000 a year, depending on the specifics of the house."

"Of course, you can also choose to live with roommates, which makes it a little cheaper. Most of my classmates rent together. You don't have to worry about living with the opposite gender, since an apartment often has four or five bedrooms."

After hearing this, Lu Shixian already had a decision in mind.

But he still wanted to hear about the last option.

"The final option, which is also quite popular, is a homestay with a local family."

"You don't have to worry about that; the residents here are very welcoming and can help you settle in more quickly."

"As for the cost, it's probably a little more expensive than renting off-campus, but not by much."

After her explanation, Lu Shixian had a much better understanding of the housing situation.

After the meal, he insisted on paying and expressed his gratitude to Emily.

Just before he left, she gave him another piece of information.

"The last time I was in my coffee class, I met another Chinese student who mentioned they were looking for a roommate from the same country."

"You could try contacting them. It's been a while, though, so I'm not sure if the offer is still available."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian felt an indescribable surge of excitement.

If this information was accurate, it would be perfect.

Living with a fellow countryman in a foreign land would be a wonderful experience.

"Do you have their contact information?" Lu Shixian quickly asked.

Emily shook her head. "I'm not a physics major, so we're not in the same classes. I don't know them well."

"But I can ask for you. One of my friends is dating a guy from the physics department."

"That would be a great help, thank you," Lu Shixian said with a sigh of relief.

After he left, he saved Emily's contact information in his phone.

Regardless, the American girl he had met by chance had been a huge help to him.

Just as Lu Shixian was wondering how to spend his evening.

Around three in the afternoon, Emily sent him a text with the specific address of the house looking for a roommate.

Even with the detailed address, it took Lu Shixian a full two hours to find the place.

Now, Lu Shixian stood staring at the house in front of him, at a loss for words.

You've got to be kidding me!

This was clearly a small villa, a far cry from the apartment he had imagined.

Was this really the right place?

The rent for a place like this would probably be terrifying.

Was Emily playing a joke on him?

But as Lu Shixian took a few steps closer, he spotted a key detail.

Taped to the front door was a roommate notice.

Written on it in Chinese were the large characters for "Roommate Wanted."

But below that was a line of smaller text.

Chapter 285: The Ability to Make Money is the Real Truth

"Question: What does a Ricci-flat compact complex manifold represent?"

And below that was a string of formulas that looked like gibberish.

Lu Shixian's mind went blank.

What the hell?

They were Chinese characters, but he couldn't understand a single word.

Then, he seemed to grasp something.

It looked like you had to answer this question to be considered as a roommate.

But how was he supposed to know this stuff?

"Ridiculous, this is absolutely ridiculous!"

"This person must be a weirdo!"

"Why would a fellow Chinese person make things so difficult for another?" Lu Shixian couldn't help but complain.

Just then, a mature and calm voice came from behind him.

"Who are you calling a weirdo?"

Lu Shixian instinctively turned around to find a woman in sunglasses with a canvas bag slung over her shoulder, dressed stylishly, standing before him.

"A weirdo... I'm talking about you," Lu Shixian stammered, barely able to form a complete sentence.

Crucially, she had spoken in perfect Mandarin. She was clearly Chinese.

You really couldn't appreciate it until you were abroad, that feeling of seeing a fellow countryman in a foreign land.

"Hey, I didn't say it!" the woman chuckled. "So, you're the one looking for a room?"

Lu Shixian nodded, then shook his head. "I do want to find a place with roommates, because the on-campus housing is a total rip-off."

"But I didn't expect you to be a woman, so... sorry to bother you."

Lu Shixian prepared to turn and leave. This was practically cohabitation.

A man and a woman living alone together felt improper.

But the woman's voice quickly followed with an explanation. "It's not just you."

"A year before you, another boy and girl moved in here."

That made it much more acceptable to Lu Shixian, so he stopped.

But he didn't expect to hear her mischievous voice again.

"I didn't realize you were so innocent. But even if it were just the two of us in this house..."

"You'd be no match for me."

"I'm a Taekwondo black belt, after all!"

Lu Shixian was increasingly speechless. As if this was about fighting?

But he just wanted to get settled quickly, so he got straight to the point.

"How can I move in?"

The woman glanced at the paper on the door and said.

"It's written right there, isn't it?"

"Just answer the question."

"But I don't understand it at all. What did you even write?" Lu Shixian was on the verge of tearing his hair out.

"That's the DNA of string theory. It seems you can't appreciate the beauty of a Calabi-Yau manifold," the woman said with a sigh of regret. "I was even planning to give a physics student a fifty percent discount on the rent."

"But you... you'll have to pay the full amount."

Lu Shixian, who had always prided himself on his composure, felt his defenses crack.

But what could he do?

There didn't seem to be a better option.

Fortunately, even the full price was within his budget.

The rent was $5,000 for a one-year lease.

This price was already cheaper than many places he had looked into.

It seemed this woman wasn't so heartless after all, despite her mischievous streak.

So he readily took out the cash he had prepared.

He handed over the money, signed the agreement.

Lu Shixian successfully obtained the right to occupy a large room on the second floor, along with a key.

He checked out the room and found it had a private bathroom, kitchen, and shower.

According to her, the room had been vacant for over four years.

But he was very satisfied with how clean it was.

He put his luggage down in the room.

Through their brief conversation, Lu Shixian learned that the woman had come abroad for high school.

She was now a Ph.D. student in theoretical physics.

She had been at UC Davis since her master's program and had been here for four or five years.

And she had, with unbelievable wealth, rented the entire house from the landlord for five years.

The idea of getting roommates had only come up in the last year.

As for her name, he had just seen it on the agreement.

Cheng Qingqing.

The name sounded quite feminine, but the fact that her main field of study was string theory just struck him as... odd.

Seriously, would a sweet girl really be interested in this stuff?

And honestly, this woman had a wicked sense of humor.

But regardless, his first major problem in America was solved.

Feeling relieved, he cleaned the entire room again.

He then spent the next few days getting a preliminary understanding of the campus.

Time flew by to September.

It was the start of the fall semester.

The entire UC Davis campus became much livelier than before.

Lu Shixian navigated through the crowds and found his way to the Graduate Studies office building.

UC Davis was a very specialized institution.

The entire university was comprised of just three main divisions.

The College of Letters and Science, the professional schools, and Graduate Studies.

The former had four colleges, while the latter had six schools.

As for Graduate Studies, because the number of students in each major was relatively small, they were all managed centrally.

Few students were heading to the office building now, as many had already started their classes under their teachers' arrangements.

Lu Shixian didn't have a teacher yet, only a boss he had never met.

That's right. In STEM fields, students often referred to their advisor as their "boss."

The advisor would apply for projects and research topics, secure funding, and then pay their students a stipend. Under this system, the advisor gradually became the "big boss" who handed out the money, and the students were the "workers."

Social science students, on the other hand, usually just called their advisor "teacher."

Perhaps it was because they couldn't secure as much funding.

So they focused more on the personal connection.

After some inquiries, Lu Shixian successfully found his boss's office.

Because he had an appointment, he quickly received Professor Knox's permission to "come in."

"Professor Knox, it's an honor to meet you. I'm Lu Shixian, the exchange student from China." He greeted the professor while beginning to observe his new boss.

His appearance wasn't too different from his profile on the official website—not very tall, a bit overweight, with a particularly distinctive rosacea-reddened nose.

But Lu Shixian only gave his appearance a passing glance; he was more interested in the office environment.

The location, office furniture, and degree of decoration could indirectly reveal Professor Knox's standing within the university.

Compared to high school and undergrad, a graduate student's advisor had a peak level of influence over them.

This was his first time in the US, and he was completely in the dark about UC Davis.

While he could identify top researchers by their publication records and apply to work with them, it wasn't like back home, where academic prestige didn't always equate to status within the university.

After all, sometimes the real truth was that the ability to secure funding was what truly mattered.

Chapter 286: You Can't Handle It

But a top researcher might not accept him or have the time and energy to mentor him.

In that case, it was better to choose an advisor one tier down.

So choosing an advisor was like a lottery; you got who you got.

But looking at things now, it seemed his luck was pretty good.

Of course, it was also related to his field of study. As a professor specializing in plant science at a university renowned for its animal and agricultural sciences, he was unlikely to be doing poorly.

Professor Knox looked at him and nodded. "Lu, you're cuter than I imagined."

"It looks like you'll have a pleasant year in America."

Just as Lu Shixian was accepting the compliment, the professor's next sentence left him a bit speechless.

"After all, you know, young American girls can be quite enthusiastic about boys, especially the tall and strong ones."

Lu Shixian didn't know how to respond.

But at times like these, changing the subject was an excellent strategy.

And that happened to be his specialty.

"Professor Knox, may I ask how you came to know of me? As you know, we've never crossed paths before!" Lu Shixian directly asked the question that had been buried in his mind for a long time.

Although his application materials were excellent, they weren't enough to prompt a professor to personally invite him.

It was a matter of status and roles.

It was like saying water never flows uphill.

If it did, there must be an external force at play.

After all, he firmly believed that there was no such thing as unprompted affection or concern.
Therefore, he was eager to uncover the truth hidden beneath the surface.

Just then, upon hearing Lu Shixian's question, Professor Knox burst into a bewildering peal of laughter.

"Hahaha, Lu, you may not know this, but I have to say, this is quite the coincidence."

"As you Chinese would say, it takes a hundred years of fate to cross a river in the same boat, and a thousand to share a pillow."

Lu Shixian hadn't expected Knox to be something of a Sinophile. Although his Mandarin was a bit clumsy, Lu Shixian could still make out the words.

He really wanted to correct him, though; that proverb was completely out of place here.

However, what Professor Knox said next captured Lu Shixian's attention.

"Did you know? I recently reviewed a paper on the immune response under inflammatory conditions."

"That paper caught my eye."

"You see, my current research happens to be in the field of molecular mechanisms of plant disease resistance and pathogen pathogenesis."

In that instant, everything clicked for Lu Shixian.

What a coincidence indeed!

Now everything made perfect sense.

It turned out that this man was one of the reviewers for his paper published in *Nature Cell Biology*.

He just didn't know which of the three reviewers he was.

Meanwhile, Knox continued.

"Although plants don't have immune cells, their marvel lies in their ability to sense and resist pathogen invasion."

"Over the long course of evolution, plants have developed hundreds, even thousands, of immune receptors in their genomes. These receptors help them recognize and respond to pathogens."

"Your research has given me a great deal of inspiration. You have a real talent for cell biology and immunology." As he said this, Professor Knox's face lit up with excitement.

"I have high hopes for your research on plant cells. I believe your joining my team will bring a fresh perspective to my current project."

Lu Shixian, however, was floored.

"No, no, Professor Knox, I don't think my primary focus is in plant physiology," Lu Shixian quickly explained. He had, after all, come to the United States mainly to study agronomy.

"My God, you published in a journal like *NCB* as an undergraduate. That proves you have an extraordinary gift for cellular immunology." Knox's smile vanished, replaced by a look of utter confusion. "Then what on earth is your plan?"

"As I recall, your advisor at Yan University is Xu, and he's quite the expert in plant physiology. And now you're telling me you don't want to specialize in it?"

Lu Shixian decided to be frank with him. "My real interest lies in the field of crop genetics and breeding."

The study of botany is generally divided into five areas.

Plant Physiology, Plant Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Environmental Botany, Resource Botany and Plant Cell Engineering, and Plant Genetics.

Plant Physiology primarily studies the metabolism and regulation of plant hormones in crops, the mechanisms of hormone action, techniques for hormone measurement, and the development of new plant growth regulators.

This includes the mechanisms of stress-induced damage to plants, as well as agricultural disaster prevention and mitigation.

Professor Knox's research could largely be categorized under plant physiology.

Plant Biochemistry and Molecular Biology focuses on the metabolic pathways of primary and secondary substances in plants and their applications.

Environmental Botany investigates the impact of environmental factors on plant growth, including the toxicity and mechanisms of environmental pollutants on major crops, techniques for phytoremediation of contaminated soil and water, and the use of plant physiological and biochemical indicators to monitor environmental pollution levels.

Resource Botany and Plant Cell Engineering mainly involves the study of plant biodiversity, introduction and domestication, and the development and utilization of natural products.

And Plant Genetics, as the name suggests, is the study of the laws of plant heredity and development.

This field primarily uses modern cell and genetic engineering techniques to improve and create new plant germplasm, as well as to locate and clone target genes of application value through molecular markers.

Shi Gong once said in 2007 that the 21st century is the century of life sciences.

At the same time, genetic engineering is the core of modern biotechnology.

Thus, the scientific community had once predicted that this would be the century of genetic engineering.

He didn't have a cheat system; all he had was his own step by step effort.

To take center stage in the world, one could only follow the prevailing trend.

But at that moment, Knox's expression was exceptionally strange.

He spoke in a very peculiar tone, "Not plant genetics? But crop genetics and breeding?"

"Isn't that just bloody agronomy?"

"I barely managed to crawl out of that pit!"

"Do you have any idea how much effort that took? And now you want to jump right back in?"

Lu Shixian suddenly remembered that Knox had a doctorate in agronomy and had to struggle to keep a straight face.

"Yes, I'm very interested in this field."

At this, Knox shook his head in strong disapproval.

"Trust me, genetic engineering is a murky business. You're getting in over your head."

"There's a group of lunatics who are already way ahead of everyone else, and they're starting to show some unsettling tendencies."

"I once saw Agent Orange raining down from the sky with my own eyes. You do not want to see what that looks like!"

Chapter 287: The Door to the Future

Lu Shixian fell silent. He understood what Professor Knox meant.

Agent Orange, named for the orange stripes on its shipping containers.

Many people know it as a defoliant or herbicide, but few know it was a deadly poison laced with the highly toxic substance, dioxin.

Not only could it cause widespread defoliation of jungles, but it also posed an immense threat to human health.

The main components of Agent Orange are 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzodioxin and tetrachlorobenzene.

Both are potent carcinogens, chemically stable, and require over a decade to break down under natural conditions alone.

Once this substance enters the human body, it takes a full 14 years to be completely expelled.

But even after being expelled, it can circulate in nature through the food chain, making it utterly infamous.

According to statistics, due to the persistent contamination and transmission of Agent Orange, as many as 3,181 villages were sprayed, and the number of affected people exceeds 4.8 million.

To this day, a certain country still has millions of children with birth defects, for which there is no cure.

Even so, due to the disparity in national power, that country has been unable to seek compensation.

It was an inhumane chemical weapon.

On the surface, it seemed to have no connection to genetic engineering.

But Lu Shixian knew that the producer of this product and the holder of over 90% of genetically modified seed patents were one and the same.

At this moment, Knox's voice carried a slight tremor.

"You probably don't know this, but the original inventor of Agent Orange was from the Cornell College of Agriculture."

"That's right, the very place I used to be. I watched it being developed as a plant growth hormone with my own eyes."

"It could have helped soybeans flower and fruit better, but none of us ever imagined that the Detrick labs would use that plant hormone to develop... this."

Now, Lu Shixian understood completely.

Why a Ph.D. in agronomy would resolutely switch his field of research.

Behind everything that seems unreasonable lies a greater reason.

It's just that the truth is often hidden by the passage of time, known to no one.

"So, even knowing all this, you still want to study genetics?" Knox fixed his gaze on his face.

Lu Shixian didn't hesitate for long before nodding again.

"Yes. Every invention, every scientific and technological achievement, is a double edged sword from the moment it is created."

"The door to the future has appeared. We don't have to open it, but we must have the key," Lu Shixian's tone was firm and resolute.

Professor Knox was left somewhat speechless by Lu Shixian's words, looking as if he wanted to say more but couldn't.

But he quickly recovered, laughing it off. "Haha, well, I hope you find that key one day."

Knox suddenly felt he was worrying needlessly.

Not everyone is qualified to walk the path of truth and leave their name behind.

This path was far from easy, even for the exceptionally talented.

Lu Shixian's ideals were noble, but they weren't something that could be achieved just by talking.

So he smiled and patted Lu Shixian's shoulder. "In any case, if you run into any problems, you can come to me. I won't hold anything back."

After his conversation with Knox, Lu Shixian began to plan out his year.

He was in the United States on a one year exchange program. Exchange students were divided into two types: exchange scholars and visiting scholars.

The former had their tuition waived, while the latter had to pay their own way.

Lu Shixian was the former. Unlike international students, exchange students do not receive a degree.

But that didn't mean they were there just for a casual exchange; they were still required to study.

At the end of the year, a transcript would be sent to Yan University to serve as his academic record for the year.

He would even need to submit a summary report of his exchange.

Therefore, top-tier universities were actually very strict in their management of exchange students.

With that, his plan for the year began to take shape.

Knox had given him one semester to attend classes, after which he would join the lab and participate in the professor's project.

Lu Shixian had chosen a direction in crop genetics and breeding.

This was quite different from his advisor's main research area, which would be a fatal problem for most people.

But not for Lu Shixian. His advantage was that Knox himself had previously been a doctor of agronomy.

This dual identity would provide Lu Shixian with many conveniences.

So, until then, it was time to focus on his classes.

The so called admission letter only decides where you study.

As for the quality of the internet connection, that wasn't his concern.

In the United States, both high schools and universities use a system of course selection and credits, which is broadly similar to that in China.

The difference, however, lies in the immense autonomy students have in choosing their courses. All classes must be selected by the students themselves.

This is because even for the same course, the class time, location, and instructor can vary.

Every student can choose courses from different fields based on their own direction and interests.

Lu Shixian was familiar with this.

In fact, this was the very model that Yuanpei College was currently implementing.

Knox had given Lu Shixian a deadline of one semester, roughly three months, to complete all his course assessments.

This might seem demanding, but in reality, the University of California, Davis, did not have a high requirement for total credits.

This didn't mean, however, that they didn't value grades.

There is a common misconception that American universities focus on diverse skill development and don't care much about students' grades.

This is, in fact, a fallacy. The first standard by which an American university evaluates a student is their academic performance.

The GPA (Grade Point Average) requirements at most prestigious American universities are often stricter than those in China.

And so, with Lu Shixian's enrollment confirmed, UCD opened a dedicated account for him as an exchange student.

Logging into the university's online course selection system, Lu Shixian went straight for the agronomy courses.

But a dazzling array of classes quickly filled his vision; the computer screen was covered with all sorts of agronomy courses.

This was because the field of agronomy in the United States is broadly divided into seven categories.

These include Life Sciences, Agricultural Sciences, Animal Science, Plant Sciences, Food Science, Environmental Sciences, and Economics and Management.

Each of these categories had numerous specialized courses under it.

Lu Shixian scanned the list and immediately ruled out Animal Science, Food Science, and Environmental Sciences.

Life Sciences mainly included bioengineering, biological sciences, microbiology, and biometrics.

He thought for a moment and selected only one bioengineering course.

He had actually taken most of these foundational courses at Yan University, but Lu Shixian wanted to see what the difference was between the domestic and international approaches.

So he picked one to test the waters.

Chapter 288: The First Class at UCD

As for Agricultural Sciences, Lu Shixian checked off everything except for courses in International Agriculture and Rural Development, and Agricultural Communication.

And it goes without saying for Plant Sciences; he maxed out on basically every available course.

Soon, Lu Shixian's first class arrived.

Soil and Fertilizer Science. It was one of his major agronomy courses.

The course might not seem directly related to crops.

But plants cannot live without soil, and crops cannot grow without fertilizer.

Lu Shixian had originally assumed that at the graduate level, there wouldn't be too many students.

After all, the number of graduate students is far smaller than that of undergraduates.

At that moment, in the tiered lecture hall on the fourth floor of the College of Agriculture building.

To his surprise, the hall was packed with nearly three or four hundred people. Even the seats at the very edges were taken.

This was just absurd.

Actually...

"Hey! Excuse me, is this the classroom for Soil and Fertilizer Science?" Lu Shixian asked a small statured young man next to him who looked approachable. "Why are there so many people?"

The young man had a tan complexion, making it hard to guess his nationality, but his accent was perfect.

"Are you kidding? You should know that agronomy courses at UCD are never empty!"

"Besides, our school's student to faculty ratio is about 20 to 1. Where would the university find enough professors to teach us all in small classes?"

Lu Shixian glanced at him and asked, "What year are you?"

"Sophomore," the young man was clearly talkative and asked back.

"What about you?"

Lu Shixian figured since he was a second year master's student, he could count as a sophomore as well.

This answer piqued the young man's interest.

"What a coincidence. This is actually a graduate level specialized course."

"But among the people attending, graduate students are actually the minority."

"It's not common for students in their first or second year to take this class," the young man gave him a knowing look.

"And that's only part of the reason why it's so crowded."

"What's the other reason?" Lu Shixian was intrigued.

The young man's gaze shifted to the man at the front, who was setting up his teaching equipment, and continued, "The main reason is that this professor is someone special."

"You've heard of the Wolf Prize, right?"

With that, Lu Shixian immediately understood.

"Are you saying the professor standing before us is a Wolf Prize laureate?"

The young man nodded. "That's right. The 2008 Wolf Prize in Agriculture was awarded to Professor Massey Lewis of the University of California, Davis, for his pioneering work in the improvement of soil structure for agricultural crops."

Lu Shixian nodded and said no more.

How could he not know of the prestigious Wolf Prize?

The Wolf Prize was established by the Wolf Foundation in 1976 with the aim of promoting science and art for the benefit of mankind.

The Wolf Prize is awarded annually. The science categories include Medicine, Agriculture, Mathematics, Chemistry, and Physics.

The art categories include Painting, Sculpture, Music, and Architecture.

Its prestige and influence are second only to the Nobel Prize. Moreover, most scientists who win the Wolf Prize often go on to win the Nobel Prize, earning it the nickname of a "Nobel predictor."

It's worth noting that the Wolf Prize in Mathematics is one of the highest international awards in the field, often hailed as the "Nobel Prize of Mathematics."

Whether it or the Fields Medal holds higher status has always been a matter of debate, hence the "one of" qualifier.

But for agriculture, the Wolf Prize is undoubtedly the world's highest honor.

In 2004, Academician Yuan, whom he greatly admired, was awarded this prize for his innovative development of hybrid rice and his discoveries regarding the genetic basis of heterosis in this important staple food.

Therefore, anyone who could win the Wolf Prize in Agriculture had undoubtedly provided a tremendous impetus to the advancement of global agricultural technology.

Just then, as Professor Lewis's voice came through the speakers on the wall, the entire lecture hall gradually fell silent enough to hear a pin drop.

"Hello, young men and women from every continent and every country. Welcome." Although Professor Lewis was past fifty, he still looked vigorous and in high spirits.

As cheers and applause erupted, his voice continued to resonate.

"This is this year's first lecture on Soil and Fertilizer Science. Seeing so many of you have chosen this course, I am genuinely delighted."

"This course didn't actually exist at UCD in the very beginning, much like when I first decided to study soil."

"Many people told me, if you're going to study agronomy, then study agronomy. Delving into soil science is just foolish."

"But I always believed that my path was the right one, and as it turns out, it was. I won the Wolf Prize for it, and those who mocked me were left speechless."

"The relationship of soil to a crop is like that of a mother to her infant. The nutrients for crop growth come directly from the soil, and are then transported to the various branches and leaves of the plant through the xylem and phloem."

"The soil provides the necessary nutrients and water for crop growth and development. It is also a vital place for the exchange of matter and energy in the ecosystem."

"And because there is a very large contact area between plant roots and the soil, the exchange of substances between them is extremely frequent."

Professor Lewis gave a basic introduction to the course for the semester, and finally summarized.

"Therefore, the purpose of this class is to learn how to influence plant growth and yield by controlling this important ecological factor: the soil."

At that moment, a burly student from a South African nation suddenly stood up and asked, "Professor Lewis, I have a question."

Lu Shixian glanced around and noticed that everyone else seemed completely accustomed to this scene.

Professor Lewis, despite being interrupted, was not annoyed. Instead, he looked at the African student encouragingly and said, "Excellent. Please, state your question."

The student continued, "It is common knowledge that crop growth and development are diverse. Different regions have different geographical and climatic conditions, and even the same region can have different soil conditions."

"So, the current agricultural model is generally to plant suitable crops based on the existing soil conditions."

"In that case, what is the significance of your proposal to use soil to influence crop yield and growth?"

After hearing the question, Lu Shixian couldn't help but give the student a mental thumbs up.

Now that's what I call courage.
Back in China, you'd rarely see a hothead fundamentally challenging a Wolf Prize laureate in Agriculture, would you?

Professor Louis didn't answer the question right away. Instead, he asked, "What's your name? And which college are you from?"

The young man seemed entirely unconcerned about getting on the professor's bad side and casually gave his information.

"My name is Rivide, a third-year international student from the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences."

Chapter 289: He Truly is Remarkable

"Very good. Although your question made me a bit uncomfortable, you have indeed hit on the heart of the matter." Professor Louis said, gesturing for him to sit down.

"This question is more like a debate topic, one that truly asks about the role of soil amelioration. To put it simply, the fundamental purpose of soil amelioration is to take a soil environment unsuitable for plant growth and, through human intervention, transform it into a soil type suitable for a specific plant."

"And your point is that we should adapt to local conditions, planting whatever crops are suitable for the local soil. This would eliminate the need for soil amelioration and save a great deal of expense, correct?"

Seeing many students nodding in agreement, Professor Louis actually smiled.

"It's a bit of a paradox. While it's true that selecting crops based on a comprehensive consideration of natural conditions like soil and climate is correct, it doesn't mean we don't need soil amelioration."

At this point, Professor Louis scanned the nearly four hundred people in the classroom and continued, "Since we've touched on this topic, let's use a debate-like format for our first class."

"This student just proposed the view that soil amelioration is of little significance. Now, can anyone tell me what the significance of soil amelioration is?"

"Of course, you can also support Rivide's argument. Feel free to speak your minds!"

With that, the entire lecture hall practically erupted. The first class of the semester had instantly turned into a live debate.

"Whoa!" The short guy jumped up from his seat. "It's about time! It's finally my turn, Jeffries, to show what I've got."

Beside him, Lu Shixian couldn't help but laugh at his antics. "So your name is Jeffries!"

"I have a few questions for you."

Jeffries casually folded his arms. "Shoot. I'll do my best to satisfy your curiosity."

"I'm curious, which country are you from?" After asking, Lu Shixian pointed to the crowd, which was already starting to stir. "And are you so sure you'll even get a chance to speak?"

Jeffries suddenly flashed a mysterious smile. "I can answer the first question. I come from the only country in the world that is also an entire continent."

"As for the second question, it seems you haven't taken Professor Louis's class before. But you'll see in a moment!"

Jeffries was deliberately leaving him in suspense, and it must be said, he successfully piqued Lu Shixian's interest.

So, he stopped letting his mind wander and focused his attention on the front of the lecture hall.

Professor Louis had already made a downward pressing gesture with his hands, and the buzzing classroom slowly quieted down.

"Very good. It seems you are all as enthusiastic as ever."

"Due to time constraints, we can't let every student have a chance to speak, but we will try to be as fair as possible."

"So let's use the old method!" With that, he opened a document on his computer as if he had prepared it in advance.

Soon, the class roster appeared on the computer screen.

The names on it had already been divided into several sections according to some classification criteria.

The number of names in each section varied.

And he happened to be in one of the smaller groups.

Just as Lu Shixian was trying to figure out the pattern, Professor Louis revealed the answer.

"I took a look at the beginning of the semester and saw that many international students have enrolled in my class. Therefore, this activity will proceed according to geographical distribution by continent."

"First, from Europa, the land of the setting sun. I'd like students from Europe to present their views first."

The number of European countries is vast, and most are developed nations, making up more than half of the international students.

Soon, a blonde girl from Sweden seized the opportunity, winning the chance to speak from among dozens of people.

"I agree with the proposition. Due to our long-term and heavy use of chemical fertilizers, the land we depend on for survival suffers from compaction, acidification, salinization, and even soil degradation."

"This directly leads to restricted crop growth or even the growth of toxic fruits. If these fruits are consumed by humans and livestock, they pose a huge potential threat to organisms or the human body, and in severe cases, can even lead to death."

"Therefore, I believe that soil amelioration is imperative."

After the girl finished speaking, the room filled with applause.

Professor Louis gave her a look of approval and made a note in the document.

"Excellent. This student has articulated her point of view from the perspective of how chemical fertilizers can lead to soil degradation."

"Next, let's hear from the students from Asia, the land of the rising sun."

At this point, fewer than twenty names were displayed on the screen.

Asia was one of the least represented continents in this class.

Lu Shixian noticed that most of the names on the list were from island nations.

Ordinarily, Lu Shixian wasn't very competitive; it was just a chance to speak his mind.

But at this moment, backing down was not an option. He had to compete.

In front of so many international friends, how could he lose out to students from the island nations?

After all, for a question of this format, there was a huge first-mover advantage. The earlier you spoke, the better.

When you're alone abroad, to some extent, you represent your country's image.

Of course, one had to be cautious in such a public setting. With limited ability, you might not be able to bring glory to your country, but you absolutely must not bring it shame.

And it just so happened that Lu Shixian had his own understanding of this issue; he had a right to speak on it.

Without much hesitation, Lu Shixian stood up and gestured to Professor Louis.

His black hair and yellow skin were very conspicuous here.

The moment he stood up, he was noticed by Professor Louis and became the center of everyone's attention.

"What is your name, student, and which country in Asia are you from?"

Lu Shixian, showing no stage fright, reported his information.

Hearing his self-introduction, Professor Louis seemed somewhat interested.

"So you come from the distant Eastern nation. Yang and Yuan are both very famous agronomists."

"Especially Yuan. I saw him at the Wolf Prize award ceremony in 2004. He is truly remarkable. Not only did he massively increase rice yields, but he also selflessly published the techniques and knowledge for cultivating hybrid rice. He is undeniably a great man."

Lu Shixian offered a standard smile. "Thank you for your praise of him. If I have the opportunity, I will pass it on to him."

Professor Louis nodded. "Very good. Please begin your statement."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian calmly began to present his line of thought.

There might have been some nerves, but it was nothing.

After all, a scene like this was no big deal for him.

His voice rang out in a foreign land for the first time.

"I couldn't agree more with your philosophy. Soil amelioration is essential, both for increasing crop yields and for the ecological environment..."

Chapter 290: Are You a Demon?

"Due to uncontrollable natural forces and, in some regions, unrestrained land use, these two factors, acting alone or together, lead to soil degradation."

"Unrestrained land use includes overgrazing, deforestation, extensive farming, reckless land reclamation, and the irrational use of water resources."

"They manifest as grassland degradation from overgrazing, declining soil fertility from insufficient fertilization of arable land, soil salinization from improper irrigation, and the pollution issue mentioned by the previous student. All of these can trigger the problem of land desertification."

As he spoke, Lu Shixian's thoughts became increasingly clear.

Since his spoken English wasn't perfect, he deliberately slowed his pace slightly so that everyone could follow his train of thought.

"Although a dry climate with little rainfall can also cause land desertification, compared to uncontrollable natural forces, the speed at which human activities cause desertification is far greater than that of natural forces. This is the main reason for the acceleration of land degradation."

"Land degradation not only reduces land quality but can also cause it to completely lose its use value, a transformation that may even be irreversible. And since soil is the space upon which human survival depends, we must take effective preventive measures to improve it."

At this point, Lu Shixian almost started to sound like he was giving an advertisement.

"As everyone knows, my country is a populous nation, so our area of arable land is a lifeline. We place great importance on the issue of soil amelioration. For the past several decades, we have been striving to solve land desertification, this cancer of the Earth."

"In my country, one of the primary manifestations of desertification is land sanding. Therefore, sand prevention and control, and national greening are the main measures we have taken to combat desertification."

"For over thirty years, we have launched massive ecological restoration projects like the Three-North Shelterbelt Program, the Beijing-Tianjin Sandstorm Source Control Project, the Natural Forest Protection Program, and the Grain for Green Program, all at enormous cost."

"The results of these measures have been astonishing. Since the year 2000, over the past decade or so, our land re-greening area ranks first in the world, contributing nearly 25% of the global increase in green leaf area."

But that wasn't enough. Since he was here, he felt a responsibility to speak about the wisdom his country had contributed to the global fight against desertification and the immense price it had paid.

"There are many great projects currently underway in my country, but this one is the most special. You could even say it's an arduous and extraordinary battle. We are fighting against land desertification and sanding with almost the full strength of our nation."

"I'm sure you all know about the world-famous Great Wall in my country. Well, now we have built another Great Wall."

"From 1949 to today, 2011, from a forest coverage rate of 8.6%-12.5% to the current 21.6%, the youth of countless people has been dedicated to this green Great Wall."

"They include couples who have dedicated their entire lives to a shelterbelt forest farm, three generations of the same family working together to combat desertification, and farmers and herdsmen who voluntarily returned their farmland to forest and grassland."

"Whether in the deserts of the northwest or on the shores of the East China Sea, you can see the figures of China's sand fighters. Their weapons are not steel, but the far more fragile grass and trees, and an unwavering ideal and belief."

"That concludes my speech. Thank you."

The moment Lu Shixian finished, the entire hall erupted in thunderous applause.

Many people looked shocked. Such a nationwide effort just to combat desertification and improve the soil was simply unimaginable in their own countries.

Even Professor Louis was a bit lost in thought. He had studied soil amelioration for most of his life, but his work was mostly theoretical and focused on increasing crop yields.

This large-scale, long-span soil amelioration project, spending so much to combat desertification, was astonishing to him.

This level of thinking and method of amelioration was something he had never envisioned before, providing him with a wealth of research ideas. He gave Lu Shixian a thumbs-up.

"That is truly an incredible country. If I have the chance, I hope you can take me to visit and see it for myself."

Then, he turned to the students in the classroom and continued, "Indeed, compared to land pollution caused by isolated incidents, land degradation is the problem that truly requires our widespread attention."

"It seems China has already made an indelible contribution in this area. Given that the world shares one biosphere, one atmosphere, and one circulatory system, in a sense, we should also thank them for everything they have done."

"Let's give a round of applause for this magnificent feat of China." Led by Professor Louis, the hall once again erupted in incredibly enthusiastic applause.

Having achieved his goal, Lu Shixian retreated from the spotlight, even catching the attention of several girls around him.

Beside him, Jeffries stared at Lu Shixian, dumbfounded.

"I haven't even started my performance, and you've already stolen the show! Are you some kind of monster?"

Lu Shixian just shrugged. "This is the collective effort of thousands upon thousands of people. It doesn't really have much to do with me. I just described it."

Hearing this, Jeffries just shook his head, speechless. "Forget it, forget it."

"I've met a few Chinese people before. Most of them are quite reserved. Even the occasional outgoing one is nowhere near as dramatic as you."

"You really know how to talk! Treating this like your own personal speech, huh?"

Soon after that class, it's unknown which random onlooker was secretly recording.

A video of Lu Shixian's speech was uploaded to the UCD campus forum.

Although the video quality was a bit rough, it was carefully edited, and the cover photo of Professor Louis giving a thumbs-up was magnified several times.

A Wolf Prize laureate was extraordinarily famous at UCD, and combined with a very catchy title:

"Chinese International Student's Speech Shocks Audience, Wolf Prize Laureate Gives Him a Thumbs-Up!"

The video quickly attracted the attention of many viewers.

Lu Shixian found that when he walked on campus, he would occasionally be recognized. Many people would greet him, which left him a bit baffled.

But the video's circulation on campus was just the beginning. After it was uploaded to YouTube, it garnered several million views in just one day.

Ten days later, the video's view count surpassed ten million.

Twenty days later, the view count climbed to fifty million.

In the United States, whether for politicians or celebrities seeking attention, the most traditional and effective method is public speaking.

It's well known that even the US presidential election uses this method for campaigning.

Lu Shixian had inadvertently struck a chord with the American public, and so he inexplicably became a minor celebrity.

This development was something even he couldn't have imagined. It was fine in the quiet town of Davis.

Just as he was trying to make sense of it all, an overseas call suddenly disrupted his peaceful student life.

Chapter 291: You're Not a Scammer, Are You?

It was an unknown number.

But the caller ID showed Beijing. He guessed it was probably a teacher or staff member from Yan University calling him.

"Hello? May I ask who is calling?" Lu Shixian answered the phone and asked directly.

A very formal female voice came from the receiver. Lu Shixian could even detect the tone of a news anchor.

"Hello, Student Lu. I am Lu Shanshan, a staff member from the overseas division of the National Television Station."

Lu Shixian was completely bewildered.

What the heck?

It wasn't Yan University, fine, but why was the television station looking for him?

And they even shared the same surname.

Filled with confusion, Lu Shixian asked, "May I ask what this is about?"

"We recently noticed that your video online has received a lot of attention. Your performance in it presents a positive image of our country and has served as excellent publicity abroad."

"Therefore, after discussions with the station's leadership, we have decided to invite you to film a promotional video for the shelterbelt forest project. If the response is strong, we will subsequently invite you to be our overseas image ambassador."

Lu Shixian was stunned.

He knew his online video had some views, but to attract the attention of the television station?

That was truly unexpected.

He asked in surprise, "Are you sure you're really from the television station? You're not a scammer, are you?"

Although Lu Shixian had never experienced it himself, in his previous life, he had often heard news about people losing money to telecom fraud.

While he wasn't exactly rich now, he did have a bit of money in his pocket, so he was somewhat sensitive to this.

But the person on the other end was amused by his words. "Student Lu, you have a great sense of humor!"

"We obtained your contact information from Yan University. We also know that you received the Yan University 2011 Special Scholarship and are currently studying abroad as an exchange student."

"Do I need to provide more details?"

With that, Lu Shixian's doubts were dispelled, but he was still hesitant.

"But I have no experience in filming! What if it backfires?"

Lu Shanshan had clearly been doing this kind of work at the TV station for a long time. She was very patient and experienced.

"Don't worry, modern filming technology is beyond your imagination."

"If you're worried about your appearance, while we can't use beauty filters, we will do your makeup."

"If you're worried about forgetting your lines, you can even just say '123,' and we can dub it in post-production."

"If you're worried about the distance, you can also give us authorization, and we can use special effects to digitally place your face onto a body double."

Lu Shixian was speechless again.

This was too much.

She had blocked all his escape routes.

Then, Lu Shanshan continued, "Of course, as a national media outlet, we have professional ethics."

"We won't resort to these methods unless absolutely necessary."

"So, Student Lu, have you considered it?"

"This is a great opportunity for you to grow!"

Cooperating with the national media for overseas publicity was a good thing and within his capabilities. Of course, it was his duty.

But he had one last question.

"But I'm currently attending classes abroad and don't have time to return to the country for now."

At that moment, Lu Shanshan's words dispelled his final hesitation.

"Don't worry. As far as I know, the US has several terms in a year. You can come back during a future break."

"As for your travel expenses, they will be reimbursed by us."

With that, Lu Shixian no longer hesitated and directly accepted her invitation.

He hadn't planned on returning home during the holidays.

This unexpected turn of events meant he could go back for a visit for free, which was quite nice.

As for payment for the filming, he didn't ask, nor did he need to.

How many performers on the Spring Festival Gala ever got paid? Many would pay for a chance to be on it and still not get it.

Just being able to appear on such a mainstream media platform was a huge boost in prestige.

Not to mention it was for promoting the shelterbelt forest project.

Afterward, because Lu Shixian had become a minor celebrity and was receiving a bit too much attention, he deliberately kept a low profile for a while to avoid disrupting his normal studies and the school's order.

His first semester at the University of California, Davis, ended just like that.

Lu Shixian completed all his courses with top marks in the final exams.
"Lu, are you heading back to China already?" The one who spoke was one of his roommates, Macon.

He was the only other guy among the four of them who lived together, a die-hard sports fanatic—the kind who would buy a ticket to a game in the middle of the night.

He had once smashed his expensive Kindle to bits after his favorite team lost a game.

Since they were both guys, they would often chat for a bit when heading back to their rooms, and so they had become quite familiar with each other.

"Yeah, I have to go back to handle some things, but I won't be gone for long. I'll be back soon."

"Really?" Macon said with a hint of regret. "Well, I was going to invite you to the Davis sailing competition. There's a match against the Berkeley campus during the break. It's going to be incredible!"

Lu Shixian just smiled. "Next time, if there's a chance."

Although he wasn't familiar with popular Western sports, his casual chats with Macon had given him some understanding of the main sports at Davis.

Western universities had a very close relationship with athletics. Many sports had established collegiate leagues, creating a very strong competitive atmosphere.

As a result, pretty much every mainstream sport was represented at Davis.

But when it came to performance, Davis's main strengths were in soccer, gymnastics, field hockey, rowing, sailing, and men's basketball.

In the first few, the University of California, Davis was quite competitive in the Big West Conference of NCAA Division I.

As for sailing, the Davis men's crew club was well-known on campus and across the US and Europe. In 2008, they had won the national championship at the ACRA Championship in Tennessee.

The men's basketball team, however, was a bit of a sore subject. After a glorious run of four consecutive championships in the nineties, they hadn't seemed to achieve any noteworthy results since.

The UCD men's basketball team was undoubtedly the culprit behind the demise of Macon's Kindle.

Lu Shixian didn't know much about these sports, so he couldn't really understand Macon's feelings.

It was a real shame. Apart from having played basketball, Lu Shixian had never tried any of the other sports.

Take field hockey, for example. He had never even heard of it before.

It was one of the many new things he had encountered since arriving in the United States.

Although he hadn't been in the US for long, only a few months, he had already deeply felt the stark difference between its educational approach and China's.

Regardless of how much his knowledge had increased, his horizons had truly broadened.

Chapter 292: Maybe It's Because I'm Handsome

On the first floor, Cheng Qingqing happened to come out and saw Lu Shixian dragging his suitcase, a look of confusion on her face.

"How long have you even been in the States? You're going back already?"

"Making a trip back, then coming back again soon after—it's a waste of energy and money. Not worth it."

Since no agreement had been signed, nothing was set in stone.

Lu Shixian didn't want to be too specific, so he just made up an excuse.

"My mom called me home for dinner. She's covering the ticket."

He thought this explanation would earn him an envious look from Cheng Qingqing.

Instead, her response left him speechless.

"Don't tell me you're a mama's boy?"

Seeing the probing look in her eyes, he suddenly felt a little defensive.

"I can't be bothered to explain. I'm in a hurry, gotta go."

Leaving her with those words, Lu Shixian hurried away.

Women of a certain age really do think differently.

After getting to know her over the past few months, Lu Shixian had figured it out. Cheng Qingqing was the type of person who got so bored with her research that she loved to joke around and have some fun.

Lu Shixian mentally labeled her a sly one.

His plane ticket back to China was already booked.

The Boeing 777 jumbo jet took off from Los Angeles International Airport, ascended, and then carved a beautiful arc through the sky.

Having learned from his last trip, Lu Shixian played around for a bit before settling in for a peaceful sleep on the plane.

When he woke up, he could already see the neon nightscape of Yanjing in the distance.

Coming out of the airport's T-shaped terminal, Lu Shixian thought for a moment. It was already late.

He decided to head back to Yanda University first.

Lu Shixian quietly returned to his dorm and rested for the night.

The next day, he informed Lu Shanshan of his return and spent an hour cleaning the dust from his dorm room.

"Mr. Lu, you're quite fast, aren't you?" Lu Shanshan's surprised voice came through the phone.

"Well, I have to be considerate to cooperate with your promotional efforts," Lu Shixian said, naturally not mentioning that he was just there for a free trip home.

On the third day, at the agreed-upon time, Lu Shixian went alone to the national television station building.

Nearly all of the channels of China's national television station had their offices in this building.

He took the elevator and pressed the button for the 19th floor.

When he arrived, a staff member with an ID badge said to him, "This is the office floor for the overseas channel."

"Who are you looking for? Do you have an appointment?"

"I have an appointment with Ms. Lu Shanshan," Lu Shixian quickly explained.

"Oh! Please wait a moment, then. Sister Shanshan went out this morning and will be back shortly."

Lu Shixian nodded and went to wait in the guest lounge.

Nine o'clock in the morning.

The door to the lounge was pushed open.

A woman in high heels walked in from outside. She was dressed in standard professional attire. Due to the cool autumn weather, she wore a white blouse and a thick, black blazer, paired with a black knee-length skirt and black stockings.

Lu Shixian looked up, guessing that this must be Lu Shanshan, the person he had been in contact with.

She looked quite young. To be working at the national television station at her age, she was definitely a career elite.

Their appointed time was exactly nine o'clock, and Lu Shanshan arrived right on the dot to meet him.

"Hello, Sister Shanshan. I could tell from your voice that you were a great beauty, but I didn't expect you to be even more lovely in person," Lu Shixian said, standing up and extending his hand.

After a simple handshake, Lu Shanshan smiled at his words. "Mr. Lu, you truly live up to your reputation as a top student from Yanda. You even speak so sweetly. No wonder you could go viral just by attending a class in the US."

At this, Lu Shanshan asked with some curiosity, "As far as I know, you're a science major, but you really don't act like one."

"Since your communication skills are so outstanding, are you interested in working at our station? Who knows, you might even be my boss someday."

This was, of course, a joke to break the ice.

Lu Shixian naturally responded in kind. "Well, everything's already set up. Why don't we just have the job interview right now?"

"Haha." Lu Shanshan's light laughter once again filled the lounge.

After some pleasantries, the two quickly got down to business.

"Mr. Lu, some details might not have been clear over the phone, so this is a good opportunity to clarify things in person."

"This all started when our station's leadership saw your video on YouTube."

"You know how it is, a Chinese face appearing in a popular video always tends to attract attention."

Lu Shanshan briefly explained the origin, then continued, "You should understand that publicity can also be a form of productivity. Promoting our country's excellent culture and spirit to the world plays an important role in presenting a positive national image."

"I won't even mention the secondary benefits of boosting tourism and the economy, as that's not the main focus of our station. But overseas publicity is very different from domestic publicity."

"It's become clear that our old methods aren't quite hitting the mark anymore. The last few events and programs we produced were lukewarm at best and didn't make much of an impact."

"But your video, the one of you answering a question in class, even though the resolution is terrible and the production is shoddy, it managed to get a huge amount of attention. This proves that you have a quality that appeals to foreigners."

Now, Lu Shixian felt a bit embarrassed.

"What quality? I haven't noticed any."

"Of course, I suppose it could also be because I'm handsome!"

Hearing this, Lu Shanshan finally couldn't help but roll her eyes at him before continuing.

"This is also why we strongly requested that you return to China to cooperate with our promotional efforts."

"The work we need to complete together is, first, to finalize the promotional script. This will involve refining the content from your video, and we'll have specialists responsible for that."

"So, your job for the next few days, Mr. Lu, will be to familiarize yourself with the script and undergo some brief training on facial expressions and emotional delivery."

"Once you meet the requirements, we'll head out to the main filming locations, like the Northeast Shelter Forest, to complete the shoot. This might involve about half a month of being on the road."

After laying out all the arrangements with clear logic, Lu Shanshan finally asked him, "Any questions, Mr. Lu?"

Lu Shixian, of course, shook his head.

And so, he checked into the hotel provided by the television station and began his training.

Three days passed in a flash.

Although it was only a few days, Lu Shixian had actually learned some useful things.

He learned that when facing the camera, his facial expression should remain calm, his eyes bright and focused, and his posture standard.

He learned that when delivering lines, he needed to infuse his own emotions, paying attention to intonation, cadence, and pacing.

There were many things to keep in mind.

Chapter 293: This is Definitely a Big One

Over the next few days, Lu Shixian and the staff from the overseas television channel formed a small filming crew.

The team consisted of five people: besides Lu Shixian, there was a director, a cameraman, a young woman in charge of his makeup, and two logistics staff.

Their journey took them to the country's major shelterbelt forest projects.

In front of the camera, Lu Shixian narrated eloquently in English while the rest of the crew meticulously captured every frame.

"...they are planting not just saplings, but also the hope of resisting desertification; they are watering not just with the sweat of their hard work, but also the blueprint for lush mountains and clear waters."

"That's all for now on the shelterbelt forest. It is, in fact, a microcosm of China's focus on sustainable development. This land is changing and becoming more beautiful with each passing day, and the flowers of ecological civilization are quietly blooming here," Lu Shixian said, delivering his final line.

"Cut!" the director of the promotional film, Zhang Tianfeng, called out.

The frame froze on Lu Shixian's smiling face.

"Alright, as of now, all the shots requiring you, Mr. Lu, are finished. You can leave the remaining transition shots to us," Zhang Tianfeng said, his attitude toward Lu Shixian having shifted from professional formality to warm friendliness.

It wasn't that Lu Shixian had reached the level of a professional actor.

Rather, for this promotional film, his performance had already met their expectations.

During the days of filming, Lu Shixian had been as cooperative as possible.

Zhang Tianfeng could see his progress and growth at a practically visible rate.

After packing his things, Lu Shixian looked back at the magnificent landscape before him and bid farewell to the small team with a sense of emotion.

"May our paths cross again!"

The others waved back at him.

"Until we meet again!"

"Safe travels!"

"Take care!"

This was just an interlude.

Six o'clock in the evening, Los Angeles time.

Lu Shixian had once again returned to the small town of Davis ahead of schedule.

Unlike the regular school year, where the break between semesters was only about ten days, this time was different. So, aside from a trip back to his hometown of Jinling, he hadn't made any other plans.

He spent a day or two adjusting to the time difference.

Finally, the second semester at UCD was about to begin.

Lu Shixian was looking forward to it.

Because, as agreed, he would be spending his time in the lab from now on, barring any surprises.

While classes were fulfilling, only those who had truly worked in a lab would know.

Sometimes, doing experiments could be genuinely addictive, the kind you just can't stop.

Having made an appointment with Knox in advance, he once again stepped into the professor's office.

Lu Shixian greeted him naturally, only to find that Knox's eyes were bloodshot, his face etched with an unconcealable weariness.

"Professor, you don't look very well," Lu Shixian remarked, making him a cup of coffee in the office.

Knox took the cup, gently swirling the coffee inside, and thanked him.

"Thank you for the coffee, Lu."

"I know why you're here today."

"How were your grades last semester?"

Lu Shixian was prepared and handed him a printed copy of his transcript.

Knox took it but didn't look at it, simply placing it gently on his desk.

"Very good. I'll take you to the lab this afternoon." A hint of relief entered his tone. "With one more person, our work should progress much faster."

"These past few days have been exhausting. I took on a project, and it's been at a critical stage for days, but our efficiency hasn't been very high," he said, taking a sip of the bitter coffee.

Lu Shixian finally couldn't help but ask curiously, "Professor, what project are we working on now?"

He knew Knox was a very experienced professor.

His years of research must have made him a seasoned veteran, having encountered all sorts of unexpected situations. It should be rare for him to get stuck.

A problem that could trouble him must be anything but simple.

"It's a project Tyson Foods contacted me for, mainly on the molecular mechanism of viral resistance in a commercial crop."

Now, Lu Shixian understood.

So, it was a side project the professor had taken on.

He knew this was quite similar to the situation back in China.

In reality, the salaries universities paid professors for teaching weren't very high. The base salary, plus various allowances and performance points, might only amount to a few thousand dollars.

But for many professors with research projects, they didn't even pay attention to their pay stubs, as that was just pocket money.

Their real income came from the commissions on various research projects.

Projects from government sources were collectively called vertical projects, including those from the National Natural Science Foundation, the Social Science Foundation, and various ministries.

Although these projects came with a large amount of funding, the commission they could take was not high, usually around 10 percent, often fluctuating based on performance. Sometimes it was possible to work for nothing. But the benefits of completing such projects were obvious.

Putting aside lofty talk about advancing science and technology, completing them brought tangible increases in attention and raised one's prestige.

Once your prestige was up, projects and grants would come flooding in. It was a snowball effect, and the amount of funding you could apply for would grow larger and larger.

At the same time, it would also attract the attention of companies outside the university.

Projects in collaboration with companies were called horizontal projects, and the commission rates for these were often staggering.

Sometimes they could reach over 30 percent, and the requirements for project completion weren't as strict as for vertical projects.

This meant that for a twenty-million-dollar project, you could have nearly six million in hand before you even started.

The larger the company or corporation, the more generous they were.

Their faces basically screamed three words: "We've got money."

Even if the results you produced in the end weren't great, they might just consider it making a friend.

But this wasn't universal. Even among professors, the "wealth gap" could be huge.

Lu Shixian glanced at Knox. It seemed he was one of the latter, and a very capable one at that.

He had said it casually, but Lu Shixian had always been sensitive to matters related to agriculture.

Tyson Foods was founded in 1935.

After merging with IBP, Inc. in 2001, it had become the world's largest supplier and producer of chicken, beef, and pork.

It controlled 25% of the US chicken market alone. Although it wasn't ranked very high on the Fortune 500 list, that was a characteristic of the industry. Tyson Foods could be considered the leader among global agricultural enterprises.

This was definitely a big one.

He had once participated in a project for a city-level leading agricultural company, and even that had been incredibly exciting for him.

He never expected to now have the opportunity to participate in a project for a world-class enterprise.

Sure enough, a different platform meant exposure to different things.

Lu Shixian was getting more and more excited for the afternoon.

Chapter 294: A Decently Human Affair

At three in the afternoon, with Professor Knox's approval, Lu Shixian accompanied him to a tall laboratory building.

This was where the difference of a university specializing in a particular field became apparent.

This entire building was filled with agriculture-related laboratories, interspersed with labs for biochemistry, molecular biology, and animal and plant sciences.

Although Professor Knox's standing at Davis wasn't among the absolute top tier, his past research achievements were undeniable. Many of the projects he had completed were key projects for the US Department of Agriculture and other departments.

So his rank was firmly in the second tier, just below the winners of the Wolf Prize in Agriculture, the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, the National Medal of Science, the World Food Prize, and the World Agriculture Prize.

However, based on Lu Shixian's speculation, Professor Knox had already been nominated for the World Agriculture Prize many times. Sooner or later, he would join the ranks of Davis's most elite scholars.

They took the elevator and arrived at the eighth floor of the lab building.

"Here we are. Nearly half of this floor is our lab space."

With that, he placed his right eye in front of the camera on the access control panel.

A green light flashed, and the heavy laboratory door slid open automatically.

"You can go register your iris in the system later, so you can get in and out easily," Knox explained to him. "It's a bit of a hassle, but it's for lab security. You should understand."

Lu Shixian nodded in understanding.

Still, he was a little surprised that Professor Knox used an iris recognition system.

This was 2011, after all, when the most common biometric technology was fingerprint scanning.

Iris recognition had the lowest error rate of all biometric technologies.

Because the iris is fully formed after the fetal development stage and remains unchanged throughout a person's life, this trait determined its biological uniqueness. Among all biometric technologies, iris recognition was, to date, the most convenient and accurate method.

In the 21st century, it was already widely regarded as the most promising biometric authentication technology.

But back in China, many labs still used door access systems that couldn't be more traditional: physical locks and keys.
But there was nothing to be done about it.

Who wouldn't want to install the latest and greatest technology?

But it all came down to one word: poverty.

The money for an access control system could buy a great deal of experimental reagents or common instruments.

He completely understood and agreed with spending money where it counted.

Following Knox through the main gate, Lu Shixian could see that the laboratory was quite large.

Although it hadn't yet reached the level of a national key laboratory, it wasn't far off.

For Lu Shixian, it was more than enough.

Lu Shixian had spent a fair amount of time in labs.

Though he had previously only conducted experiments in small or micro-labs, he was already quite familiar with the inner workings of a laboratory environment.

From top to bottom, it was like a strictly defined food chain in a biological ecosystem.

At the very top of the chain was the Big Boss, Knox. The second tier consisted of the Junior Bosses—associate professors or even lecturers who researched in the same or a similar field as the Big Boss.

If the Big Boss was a heavyweight champion, then the Junior Bosses were the lightweights.

The next level down was the workforce.

This referred to the master's and doctoral students under the bosses. Despite putting in a great deal of effort, they mostly received only a meager income.

Because any reasonably large project or topic would be broken down into smaller tasks, the work that ended up in their hands was often just repetitive, mechanical application of basic skills and knowledge.

It was like working on an assembly line, with no chance to grasp the full picture or the core content of the experiment. This was likely where the term "research grunts" came from.

If one encountered a particularly unscrupulous advisor, an exaggeration might be something akin to the indentured laborers described in Xia Yan's "Baoshengong."

The final tier was probably what they called the "research dogs."

The former, the grunts, were often treated better because their extensive experimental experience made them useful to the bosses.

But the "research dogs" were often newcomers to the lab or graduate students who weren't as capable.

Therefore, they were typically tasked with the most basic work, all under the noble-sounding guise of "learning."

This included, but was not limited to, feeding lab mice, fetching tea and water, and picking up packages for those higher up the chain.

In reality, "research grunts" and "research dogs" were just self-deprecating terms they used for themselves.

This was also a reflection of a trend in the development of modern scientific research.

The path of scientific research was not an easy one, and only a select few could ever climb to the top.

Many showed brilliant promise in their student days, their grades far surpassing their peers.

Their hearts were filled with pride, their eyes set on distant horizons.

But as the pressure of competition mounted and they encountered increasingly brilliant rivals, they came to a stark realization.

In today's world of modern science, which increasingly emphasizes teamwork, there are times when, without the help of others, one hits a bottleneck or a difficult problem and suddenly realizes they are, after all, just an ordinary person.

Perhaps just as they stepped into the world of graduate studies, that pride and those distant horizons were shattered into dust.

The deeper he went, the more people he saw.

What came into view were the "worker bees," all busy with their tasks.

Some were young, others looked quite mature, but they had one thing in common: the vast majority were male.

At the university, Knox's status wasn't at the very top, but in this laboratory, his authority was absolute.

Almost everyone stopped what non-essential tasks they were doing to greet Professor Knox.

Knox didn't stop, merely nodding in acknowledgment as he walked past them.

Finally, Lu Shixian followed Knox to a stop in front of an office door.

Soon, he was brought before a middle-aged man wearing thick glasses.

"Wood, I've brought you a promising candidate this time. Although he's just started his graduate studies, he already has some achievements in immune response. It just so happens that your part of the Tyson Company project involves virus infection experiments. You can have him work under you."

The man named Wood looked up at Lu Shixian, his expression neither cold nor particularly warm.

He asked impassively, "Japanese?"

Knox shook his head. "No, he's Chinese."

"Coincidentally, he published a paper in NCB as an undergraduate, and I happened to be the reviewer."

Wood's expression finally changed slightly. "Oh? Not bad!"

"Then who was the corresponding author? The cell biology circle in China isn't that large; I might know them."

Knox smiled. "You might not believe it, but the corresponding author was him."

At this, Wood's gaze instantly shifted to Lu Shixian.

"Which means he basically completed it independently. That is impressive!"

With that, a hint of a smile touched his lips. "Knox, you've finally done something halfway decent for a change."

Chapter 295 Let Me Bear This Pain Alone

"The lab has so many important projects lately, yet you don't assign any to me."

"Either that, or give me a long vacation. You know, it's been a month since I've enjoyed the company of a woman."

"And that's not all. Now you're asking me to work on such a simple corporate joint project. I strongly suspect you're insulting my intelligence, and it's causing me great pain."

Wood's words were a complaint, but strangely, his tone was perfectly calm.

Knox clearly knew him well and didn't bother explaining. "This is a project from Tyson Company. If you don't want to do it, I can give it to Douglas. I'm sure he'd be more than happy to take it."

This statement seemed to hit Wood right where it hurt. He rejected the suggestion without a second thought.

"Let's not. You know he lost a lot on the stock market recently; he's desperate for money right now."

"If he hears about this, I'll never get a moment's peace from his big mouth."

"Heh, I suppose I'll just have to bear this pain alone."

Having achieved his goal, Knox smiled and continued, "Alright, Wood, you can show him around the lab. There are some things you need to explain to him in advance to avoid any mistakes."

"Honestly, if I weren't so tied up with trivial matters myself, I wouldn't be letting you have Lu."

"I have a few other projects to check on, so I'll be going."

With that, Knox turned and left, leaving only his back in view.

Only Lu Shixian and Wood remained in the office.

Hearing Knox's words, Wood had now developed some interest in him. His attitude toward Lu Shixian softened slightly as he gestured for him to have a seat.

"Lu, sit down!"

"Welcome to the UCD Plant Pathology Laboratory."

After Lu Shixian sat, Wood's voice continued.

"As you've heard, the main research direction of this lab is the molecular mechanisms of plant disease resistance and immunity, as well as the pathogenesis of pathogens."

"You can call me Professor Wood. I'll introduce you to the members of this project team later."

"You'll have one day to familiarize yourself with the research environment, after which you'll be assigned tasks for the project."

"I hope your joining us will help the project progress more smoothly."

Lu Shixian nodded. "No problem. I'll follow your arrangements."

Being new here, he knew it was best to observe quietly and not offer opinions too readily.

This was a rule that applied in many situations.

What he hadn't expected was how smoothly his integration into the lab was going.

The United States, for all its slogans of freedom and equality, was actually quite exclusive, even towards its own citizens of different skin colors.

It seemed that paper had really brought him a lot of hidden benefits. Working under a Big Boss was a different experience altogether.

Soon, Professor Wood stood up and led Lu Shixian out of the office.

As they walked into a large hall, Wood explained, "Don't be fooled by the fact that our lab isn't very famous right now. It's actually one of the few P3 labs at Davis. This is related to our field of research, so there are many precautions to be aware of."

"The first thing you need to do is memorize the UCD Plant Pathology Laboratory Safety Management Regulations."

"Any problem with that?"

"Of course not!" Lu Shixian immediately understood.

Not famous right now meant it would be, or was about to be, famous in the future.

Before entering the lab's main gate, even with Knox leading the way, he had been subjected to a lot of questioning and registration.

He had guessed then that the lab's security level wouldn't be low, and it seemed he was right.

Biological laboratories are classified into four safety levels based on the hazard level of the biological agents handled, requiring different levels of physical containment measures.

They are BSL-1, BSL-2, BSL-3, and BSL-4. Because physical containment is sometimes abbreviated as P, they are also known as P1, P2, P3, and P4.

Many people have probably heard of P4 labs, famous for studying highly dangerous microorganisms.

These pathogens are extremely infectious and deadly, and crucially, there are currently no effective treatments for them, such as the Ebola and Marburg viruses.

Studying these viruses is virtually impossible without a P4 laboratory.

The world's first prototype of a P4 lab came from Fort Detrick in the United States. To this day, the exact number of P4 labs worldwide is unknown.

But what is certain is that they are extremely rare due to their exorbitant cost, and most of them are located in the United States.

A P3 lab is second only to a P4 in terms of safety level, capable of handling research on pathogens like SARS. If needed, it can even be upgraded to BSL-4 within 24 hours.

This showed just how important Knox's lab was at UCD.

"Our project team will have a brief meeting later. We'll make some minor adjustments to the division of labor, but overall, there won't be much change," Wood said as he gave him a tour of the project team's area.

Clearly, the staffing for this project was not on the same scale as the other project teams he had seen.

The number of researchers here was consistently around eight or nine.

Since there were so few people, there was no need to call a formal meeting; everyone was already there.

He tapped his fingers lightly on a desk and said, "Everyone, put down what you're doing for a moment. I have an announcement."

"This is Lu. From today on, he will be joining our project team."

Hearing this, many people looked up at Lu Shixian.

A smattering of perfunctory applause followed, but most people seemed indifferent.

Professor Wood paid it no mind and continued, "Because we have a new member, your workload will be lightened a bit."

"I'm re-dividing the project. First, Chloe, your group will continue to be responsible for the initial experimental data collection."

"Lu will join the second task group for the virus infection experiments. The main procedures he will be responsible for are..."

"The third task group will be..."

And just like that, Lu Shixian began working smoothly in the UCD Plant Pathology Laboratory.

It was not what he had expected.

As time went on, Lu Shixian could clearly feel that the others' attitudes towards him had improved significantly since the first day.

Unlike the cold shoulders he received before, now people would even strike up conversations with him.

The project team was small; you could almost count the members on one hand.

His task group consisted of only three people.

Aside from one woman, the rest were men.

"Hey! Lu, I just heard someone say they saw you come in with Professor Knox. Are you one of his students?" The speaker was a young man named Lambert.

Lu Shixian shook his head, then nodded. "He is indeed my advisor, but I probably won't be here for too long. I'm an exchange student."

Chapter 296 A Member of the Drosophila School?

"That's a real shame," Lambert said with a shrug. "Professor Knox used to be the purest successor of biochemical genetics. It's a pity he moved away from the field of biological genetics."

"Biochemical genetics?" Lu Shixian was initially confused. As far as he knew, Professor Knox had previously been a professor of agriculture, not a genetics expert.

It was a subfield of genetics that studied the chemical properties and functions of genes from a biochemical perspective.

The title "purest successor" puzzled him even more.

A Ph.D. who should have been studying agriculture was the successor to a branch of genetics but ultimately chose botany and dove headfirst into the field of plant pathology.

What was all that about?

But drawing on the knowledge in his mind, Lu Shixian quickly made a connection to a closely related theory. "One gene, one enzyme?"

Lambert nodded, pleased with his quick thinking and knowledge.

"Exactly. Although Garrod studied inborn errors of metabolism in humans back in 1909, he can only be called a pioneer. The true founder was George Wells Beadle."

"Professor Knox was his last disciple. Beadle's influence was also why he became an assistant professor at Cornell University after getting his doctorate."

Now, Lu Shixian understood everything.

He finally saw why Knox had such a perplexing career path.

The reason was that Beadle himself had started out studying crop seed embryos before later switching to genetics.

Speaking of which, Beadle was a legendary figure in his own right.

As early as 1933, while studying Drosophila, Beadle discovered that the different eye colors in the fruit flies might be caused by gene regulation.

He published a paper suggesting that genes produced different pigments and that gene mutations could disrupt this process.

In 1937, Beadle collaborated with Tatum to isolate and identify the substances that affected eye color in Drosophila.

This was undoubtedly a major discovery, but then they encountered a problem that no researcher ever wants to face.

They got scooped. Another research group published similar findings before they could.

Years of research suddenly seemed like a waste, years of fruitless effort.

Such a setback was like a stock market crash, a devastating blow for anyone.

But as history has shown, any figure who leaves their mark on time has their own unique brilliance.

Beadle did not give up. After nearly three more years of constant exploration and experimentation, he and Tatum found a new direction.

They decided to switch their research subject from fruit flies to the bread mold Neurospora crassa to study the function of genes, as the latter had a much simpler genetic system.

While studying Neurospora, Beadle and Tatum observed a peculiar phenomenon.

The mold required vitamins to grow, and crucially, they noticed that certain mutations in the mold required specific vitamins, like B1 or B5.

From this, he proposed the famous "one gene, one enzyme" hypothesis.

This hypothesis suggested that genes regulate chemical reactions within an organism by producing a specific enzyme that directly affects one step in a metabolic pathway.

This discovery caused a huge stir in the field of genetics at the time, and indeed in all of biology.

The hypothesis was proven and became a theory.

The theory they proposed played a monumental, milestone role in the development of biological sciences.

Subsequently, Beadle and Tatum were awarded the 1958 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discovery that genes act by regulating definite chemical events—the "one gene, one enzyme" concept.

If Professor Knox's mentor was Beadle, then what Lambert had said was no exaggeration.

Just then, Lambert leaned in conspiratorially. "But there's more. I bet there's something else about Beadle you don't know."

"What is it?" Lu Shixian's curiosity was successfully piqued. He was always fascinated by the histories of biologists.

There was a strange sense of thrill in it, like a fan following their idol.

If ordinary people idolized celebrities, then his idols were the scientists who had made outstanding contributions to the natural sciences.

Clearly, Beadle—the founder of biochemical genetics and a Nobel laureate—was one of them.

With an extra pair of hands to do the grunt work, and a temporary one at that, Lambert was in a good mood and didn't drag out the suspense.

"Beadle did his postdoctoral research at Thomas Hunt Morgan's biology laboratory. During that time, Morgan had an immeasurable influence and inspirational effect on him."

"Beadle's choice to enter the field of genetics and to initially select the fruit fly as his research subject was inseparable from Morgan's influence."

Lu Shixian was stunned. He truly had not expected this connection.

My God!

So, his current advisor was Knox.

Knox's mentor was Beadle.

And Beadle's mentor in genetics was Morgan.

By that logic, Morgan was practically his academic forefather.

After all, Morgan was the founding father of modern genetics.

"Does that mean I'm a member of the Drosophila school?" Lu Shixian couldn't help but joke.

Lambert hadn't thought of it that way, and he couldn't help but chuckle.

"We don't really do that here in the States, but you're not wrong."

Then, as if thinking of something amusing, Lambert added, "Things seemed to have gone off track starting with Beadle, though. Even though he eventually left the fruit fly research team, at least he stayed on the big ship of genetics."

"Then Knox decided to jump ship and strike out on his own."

They looked at each other and suddenly burst into laughter.

"Lambert, Lu, what are you two laughing about? I could hear your silly giggles all the way from the changing room," a blonde woman said as she entered from the break room, wearing a light beige trench coat.

"Just a joke!" Lambert said, turning to the woman. "Vasha, you're finally out!"

He quickly changed the subject. "So? Any progress with the experiment?"

The woman shook her head. "Even though it's just a corporate project, this one from Tyson Company is clearly not going to be easy."

"The material in the broiler feed formula they developed and provided is a type of grass seed."

"But this plant isn't a common grain. It's now being attacked by an unknown pathogen, causing a sharp decline in yield, and there are currently no existing examples to reference or adapt from."

Hearing this, Lambert couldn't help but complain.

"I knew that bonus wouldn't be easy to earn. What is Tyson Company doing with such an obscure formula?"

"Corn-based feed has long been proven in the market. They're ignoring easy money for something that's all effort and no reward."
Chapter 297: Americans Sure Are Bold

Lu Shixian, however, shook his head and offered his own perspective. "A world-class industry leader like this has the scale and capital to do exactly that."

"From feed crop cultivation to livestock farming, then to the deep processing of raw materials, and finally to the market sales—they can design and effectively manage every link in the chain, from source to consumer. This facilitates the rational allocation of resources."

"They've already established a complete, vertically integrated industrial chain that covers both upstream and downstream sectors. It allows them to develop in either direction and creates a high degree of strategic synergy."

"My guess is their purpose in developing this broiler feed is to cultivate higher-quality chicken, which would allow them to target a more premium market, leading to greater profitability and risk resilience."

His words immediately drew the attention of the other two.

Vasha, who was clearly on good terms with Lambert, deliberately teased him.

"Look at Lu, and then look at you. All you know how to do in your free time is go clubbing. You've been shown up this time, haven't you?"

Lambert, seemingly used to Vasha's jabs, didn't retort. Instead, he turned to Lu Shixian with curiosity. "Lu, aren't you one of Professor Knox's students?"

"As far as I know, he has nothing to do with the College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences."

"Did you study agricultural and resource economics on your own before?"

Lu Shixian shook his head, knowing what they were thinking.

In truth, he had never received a formal education in agricultural economics.

But the Bachelor of Economics he had earned during his undergraduate studies was more than just a piece of paper.

Economics has numerous branches, including agricultural economics, industrial economics, international economics, and labor economics.

When it came down to it, the core principles of agricultural economics weren't all that different from the others.

Perhaps the only real difference was which industry one ended up serving after graduation.

After he briefly explained this to them, they dropped the subject.

Lambert glanced outside. "It's getting late. About time to clock out."

"Dinner, and then the start of a beautiful nightlife!"

With that, Lambert gave Lu Shixian a suggestive wink. "Lu, interested in hitting a bar with me tonight?"

"You don't see many Asian faces there. With your looks and build, you're sure to attract a lot of attention. I guarantee you won't want to get up the next day."

A shiver went down Lu Shixian's spine. He had never received such a proposition in his life.

Americans sure are bold!

He hadn't even officially started the experiment yet, and he was already experiencing a massive cultural gap.

Back in China, researchers didn't really have "off hours."

Weekends and holidays were more than likely spent in the lab.

Going out to party on a weekday night was simply unthinkable.

Fortunately, Vasha noticed the look on Lu Shixian's face and came to his rescue.

"The boss may not be super strict about this project, but it's one thing for you to go out and fool around, Lambert. Don't go corrupting Lu. He's officially starting in the lab tomorrow."

Of course, Lambert had only been making a casual suggestion. It wasn't his first time dealing with people from China.

As dusk settled, the area where their project team was located began to empty out.

Lu Shixian had no choice but to leave the pathology lab with them.

Although he was eager to get his hands on the experiment, he knew there was no need to rush.

After a large bowl of beef noodle soup at a Chinese restaurant for dinner, Lu Shixian took a leisurely stroll back to his place.

He greeted a few of his housemates, had a brief battle of wits with his sly landlady, and then returned to his room to shower and sleep.

He could finally get started tomorrow. It was crucial to be well rested.

Filled with anticipation, he quickly drifted off to sleep.

The next day was just as sunny.

Lu Shixian arrived at the pathology lab early.

"Morning!" a few team members who arrived after him called out.

Lu Shixian returned their greetings one by one.

Soon, the three members of his task group had assembled.

After some simple pleasantries, the three finally turned to the matter of dividing up the experimental tasks.

As the newcomer, Lu Shixian decided to lie low and observe for a while, so he didn't offer any opinions.

Lambert was the first to speak up.

As he spoke, his gaze shifted to Vasha.

"Now that Lu's here, can I hand off some of my tasks to him?"

From that one sentence, Lu Shixian immediately understood that the woman before him was the team leader.

Vasha glanced at Lu Shixian, then thought for a moment. "Our group's main objective is to complete the plant pathogen experiments for the experimental group and obtain firsthand data."

"Our tasks were already assigned. Lambert was responsible for the hands on experimental procedures, while I was in charge of designing the experiments and recording and collecting the data."

"Since you have prior lab experience, now that you're here, you can choose to help either Lambert or me," Vasha continued. "But this is likely your first time with this type of experiment. This isn't an ordinary lab; it's a P3 laboratory, which means there are far more details to be mindful of."

"So, if you choose the former, I suggest you first observe Lambert's procedures. Only start hands on work once you're completely familiar with everything."

Lu Shixian wasn't surprised by this; he was already prepared.

"No problem! But I'd still like to do the experiments."

Lambert was delighted to hear this and clapped him on the shoulder.

"Excellent! A scientist who doesn't want to do experiments isn't a good scientist. I've got a good feeling about you!"

Vasha shot Lambert a glare. "You talk too much!"

"If you want to slack off, then you'd better teach Lu properly. Otherwise, you'll have me to answer to."

"He probably hasn't worked in a setup like ours before."

Lambert shrugged, unconcerned. "What's the big deal? Don't you worry about a thing!"

With that, he led Lu Shixian to the center of the lab.

"Lu, for the next few days, you can be my temporary lab assistant."

"You can watch my procedures first. If you have any questions, feel free to ask anytime, and I'll answer them."

Lu Shixian nodded in agreement.

"No problem. I've participated in and even independently completed several experiments before, so I have some experience. You don't need to explain the simple procedures in too much detail."

Lambert almost chuckled at that but didn't dwell on it.

Instead, he continued, "But before that, I need to introduce you to the equipment we'll be using for this experiment. While you may have heard of or even used some of it, I should mention that it might be a little different from what you have back home."

It went without saying that the equipment they used for themselves was better than what they sold abroad.

Chapter 298: A Useless Newbie?

"For example?" Lu Shixian asked, feigning ignorance.

He wanted to hear the American perspective on the matter.

Just as he'd hoped, Lambert explained with a hint of pride in his voice, "Take this general purpose electron microscope right next to you, for instance."

"Although many countries can now manufacture their own, the current situation is that their domestically produced instruments can only capture the low to mid range market, while our instruments dominate the high end."

"And in scientific research, as you know, capturing the high end market is as good as capturing ninety percent of the market share."

Lu Shixian nodded silently, not saying a word.

He knew that what Lambert said was the truth.

Lambert's voice continued, "I have to admit, the copying ability of certain countries is extraordinary. The products they make aren't bad, and in some aspects, they might even be slightly better than ours."

"But that's almost useless, because we set the standards. We control most of the world's top tier journals, which have extremely high standards for experimental equipment, sometimes even specifying the brands."

"If they want to publish in these top journals, they have to follow our requirements."

Lu Shixian remained silent. Though he knew Lambert wasn't singling anyone out—this applied to most countries from the American perspective—the words still left him with a complex feeling.

In reality, what Lambert mentioned was only one part of the reason.

It wasn't about blindly worshipping foreign things, but for purchasing departments in China, most of them simply didn't have much confidence in domestically produced instruments.

For various reasons, they subconsciously worried whether Chinese equipment would fail at a critical moment. This lack of confidence was the most concerning issue of all.

For national industries and domestic brands, earning the trust of the people was perhaps just as important as ensuring the quality of their own products.

Lu Shixian quickly pushed these thoughts aside.

This wasn't something he needed to worry about for now. It was better to focus on doing his own job well.

Just as he was thinking, Lambert began his experiment.

Lu Shixian could see it now.

Lambert might seem unreliable and goofy on a daily basis.

But once he was in work mode, it was like he became a different person. His entire demeanor changed.

"Lu, please get the experimental samples provided by Tyson from the incubator."

Lu Shixian immediately turned, his actions serving as his response.

When he returned, Lambert took the diseased specimen from his hand, placed it under the electron microscope, and after a few glances, knew what he was dealing with.

"Very obvious symptoms of plant disease. Lu, come take a look," he said, stepping aside.

In fact, one could tell the plant sample had problems just by looking at it.

The five most typical symptoms were spots, rot, discoloration, deformation, and wilting.

And the four most common signs were powdery substances, leaf spots, blights, and wilts.

On his way back, he had already noticed the yellowing leaves and white spots.

But science couldn't be solved with eyes alone. Sometimes, the very thing that deceived you was what you saw with your own eyes.

Human vision is limited. It can only observe macroscopic biological structures, not the intricate microscopic world.

At a clear viewing distance of 25 cm, if two objects are less than 0.1 mm apart, the optic nerve will tell the brain they are a single object.

Therefore, humans learned to use instruments to help us peer into the tiny cells nearby or the vast galaxies far away.

The limit of an optical microscope is about 0.2 micrometers, allowing observation of cell walls, nuclei, and chloroplasts.

An electron microscope, however, has a limit of about 0.2 nanometers. Its higher resolution allows for the viewing of much finer membrane structures.

Lu Shixian leaned in for a look.

Sure enough, at the spots, he saw nuclei that were clearly different from those of the plant cells.

An amoeboid protoplasmic mass, or pseudoplasmodium, was clearly visible under the electron microscope.

This was a unique characteristic of fungal organisms.

At this point, the possibility of a non biological infection could essentially be ruled out.

"I feel like something's not quite right."

Plant pathology was a research area Lu Shixian had never touched before, so he wasn't entirely sure what Lambert meant.

"What's not right?"

Lambert frowned slightly as he explained, "The characteristics of this plant pathogenic fungus are a bit ambiguous. I can't immediately determine which group it belongs to."

"Lu, based on your judgment, what group of pathogens do you think is causing this disease in the bean plant?"

Lu Shixian just shook his head.

To be honest, his knowledge of plant pathology was still confined to textbooks.

Being asked to answer on the spot was a bit much for him.

Fortunately, Lu Shixian's solid theoretical foundation gave him the confidence to speak, so he wasn't completely at a loss for words.

"Based on observation, the symptoms are clearly those of downy mildew, which affects the plant during its seedling and senescence stages."

"In the initial stage, light yellow circular or polygonal spots form on the leaf surface. In the middle stage, when the air is humid, a frost like mold layer appears on the underside of the leaves, which is likely where the disease gets its name."

"In the later stages, the spots resemble those of verticillium wilt, and in severe cases, the leaves turn yellow and die."

Lu Shixian stopped there, as he didn't know any more.

As expected, Lambert smiled and shook his head. "You've memorized the textbook well. It seems you haven't worked in this field before. What was your previous research focus?"

Lu Shixian thought for a moment. "I hadn't settled on a research direction, but my plan was to go into crop genetics and breeding."

At this, Lambert put his face in his hands. "Alright, it seems your advisor back in China has quite the personality."

"What about your previous research accomplishments? You wouldn't have caught Professor Knox's attention without them."

"The immune response of T-cells and the mechanisms of plant auxins," Lu Shixian answered truthfully.

Lambert looked like his brain was short-circuiting. "So, don't tell me you've never done a plant pathology experiment before!"

Under Lambert's widening gaze, Lu Shixian slowly nodded. "That's right."

"My God!" Lambert suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion.

He'd thought he was getting a powerful assistant who would free him from the tedious lab work. He never expected to get a total newbie who would just drag him down.

"I think Professor Knox must have assigned you to the wrong group."

Though weary, Lambert still answered his earlier question.

"What you said was just the surface level stuff. It's undoubtedly a member of the Peronosporales order."

"But identifying which pathogen within that order is the key, because that will determine our subsequent infection experiments!"

Chapter 299: The Three-Person Team

Lu Shixian didn't argue, merely nodding.

He knew his own level of expertise in the field of plant pathology.

But no one can be omniscient, so he smiled with genuine ease.

"So I don't know how to do it. Does that mean I can't learn?"

"That just makes it more of a challenge, doesn't it?"

"And that's precisely why I came here."

Hearing Lu Shixian's words, Lambert looked at him with some surprise.

His perception of this man from China shifted, and he gave him a thumbs-up.

"You're not like the other Chinese people I've met."

"Lu, I thought you'd take a long time to adjust, just like them."

"In that case, I'll help you. You can ask me anything you don't understand," Lambert offered, extending his goodwill.

Then, as if remembering something, he added, "During work hours, of course."

Lu Shixian was both amused and a little speechless. "Don't worry, I won't bother you unless it's necessary."

Lambert smiled and then went back to explaining the previous problem.

"There are numerous families and genera within the Peronosporales order, but the symptoms displayed by the sample are not distinct, making it difficult to determine the exact plant disease."

"However, based on my initial judgment, it seems very similar to Sclerospora graminicola, which causes downy mildew in millet. But as you know, in research, we can't rely on subjective speculation. We need further experimental verification."

"We've said enough about the disease symptoms. Let's move on to the second step: observing the morphological characteristics of the fungus."

Lu Shixian said nothing. Since this was the case, he'd just have to start from the ground up, beginning as a lab assistant.

"That was just a rough observation. Now we'll begin the formal observation," Lambert said, then turned back to ask, "Lu, do you know how to prepare EM samples?"

Lu Shixian nodded readily.

He understood the implication in Lambert's question.

Knowing how and being able to do it were two different things.

Preparing experimental samples was a basic lab skill, but electron microscope samples were a different beast.

Due to the EM's ultra-high resolution and image clarity, the preparation of samples and the ultrathin sectioning process were far more delicate and complex than for an optical microscope.

Getting his prompt response, Lambert hesitated for a moment but continued, "Alright then, you can prepare the EM observation samples."

"And just to be safe, please make a few extra spares."

"Okay," Lu Shixian replied without further comment.

To be honest, his status as one of Knox's students and an exchange scholar had certainly afforded him some conveniences. The group members, including Lambert, showed no significant distance or hostility toward him.

He could sense Lambert's goodwill, but on their first time working together, that trust was limited.

At a time like this, words were powerless.

So he turned and began preparing the electron microscope samples.

It sounded simple, but it was a skill that required thousands of repetitions to master.

This was because, with the exception of the environmental scanning electron microscope, all other types of EMs required the sample to be observed in a vacuum.

This placed much higher demands on sample preparation.

First and foremost was making it ultrathin.

This "ultrathin" was perhaps different from what one might imagine, as the unit of measurement here was nanometers.

During the process, a single misstep could create artifacts—structures that didn't exist in the original sample—which could confuse or even mislead the final observation.

Strangely enough, however, the actual procedure for preparing EM samples was not vastly different from that for light microscopy.

None of this was a problem for him, and he quickly got to work.

Sampling, fixation, dehydration, infiltration, sectioning, staining...

It had been a long time since he'd done hands-on lab work after graduating from Yanda.

He went from initial awkwardness to a smooth, fluid motion, but he was meticulous with every step.

Three o'clock in the afternoon.

Lambert looked at the several sectioned samples on the bench with some astonishment.

"You're much faster than I expected. But let's see how they turned out," he said, quickly flipping the air switch to start up the electron microscope.

The AIR button was pressed, and the sample chamber opened automatically.

Lambert placed one of the samples inside and began his observation.

Soon, a microscopic image at the molecular and cellular level appeared on the computer screen.

But it wasn't over yet. There was still a crucial step: image adjustment.

An electron microscope displays a two-dimensional projection of a three-dimensional object, so the image can vary depending on the spatial angle.

Therefore, it needed to be adjusted to its optimal state to eliminate astigmatism.

Generally, due to various unavoidable issues during sample preparation, Lambert used to spend considerable effort selecting a suitable area for observation.
But now, compared to before, he completed the entire procedure in a fraction of the time.

The next step was to capture the images and save the data.

But Lambert didn't do that. Instead, he opened the sample chamber again and swapped in another specimen.

A few minutes later, he turned to Lu Shixian and said admiringly, "This electron microscope specimen you prepared is one of the best I've ever seen."

"There's almost nothing to adjust. Pretty much any pathological area is good enough for the final image."

"Lu, have you had special training for this?" Lambert's voice was filled with curiosity.

Lu Shixian nodded, though he wished he was a natural.

But that was obviously impossible; he couldn't have done it without the solid foundation he'd built through diligent practice.

Lambert gave him a thumbs up. "No wonder. That's really impressive."

"Your work has saved us a significant amount of time. I'll be sure to note your contribution to our progress in the lab report."

"Looks like we'll be able to move on to the infection experiments very soon."

Lambert sounded pleased. This meant he could finish his own research tasks that much faster.

Soon, it was time for a break. As expected, the news had already reached Vasha, who was waiting for the experimental data.

She walked into the break room with a smile, greeting Lambert and Lu Shixian.

Clearly, the good news had put her in a great mood as well.

"Nice one, Lu! If we finish our part of the project ahead of schedule, I'm treating you to a feast."

Lu Shixian knew she was talking about the specimens. He responded with a blend of the humility ingrained in his Chinese upbringing and a deliberate show of confidence.

"Haha, that's mainly thanks to Lambert's experience."

"But based on how things are going today, I think it might take more than just one feast."

His words made all three of them laugh.

In that moment, Vasha and Lambert had truly accepted Lu Shixian.

The small trio had begun to form.

Chapter 300: Lu Shixian, the Tool?

Los Angeles time, just after four in the afternoon.

Lu Shixian chatted with Lambert and Vasha as he followed them out of the lab.

People were already trickling out of the research building.

On his way downstairs, Lu Shixian took the opportunity to observe the members of other project teams.

He wasn't sure how many people were still in their labs, but he could already see a difference in the research atmosphere here compared to back home.

Unlike the hurried pace in China, these researchers from world renowned universities mostly walked at a leisurely pace, chatting enthusiastically with each other in small groups.

Is the research culture in America really this intense?

Lu Shixian was a little surprised.

But when he deliberately moved closer to overhear two middle aged men, he heard some unfamiliar words.

One of the men said with a sigh, "This year's crop of rising stars is a bit dazzling! Neymar, Lukaku, Coutinho, Wickham, Lamela, McEachran…"

"I have a strong feeling that these guys might all become world superstars that everyone will be chasing."

The other man's tone was dismissive. "Neymar is decent, sure. Chelsea, Real Madrid, Man City, and Inter all want him, but he's not fully developed yet. He's still a long way from being an international superstar."

"As for the others you mentioned, I'm not optimistic. After all, there's only one Messi in the world. Not everyone can become a top tier player."

"Especially McEachran. His passing is alright, but his physique is subpar. He'll get bullied in physical contests. A few dirty tackles and his career would be over."

Lu Shixian stopped listening after that.

Alright, can I take back what I just thought?

In comparison, the research spirit back home seems much more commendable, doesn't it?

He didn't know much about soccer, limited to the names of a few top players.

Of course, this was partly due to the national team's consistent underperformance.

For a sport to become popular, it needed official guidance in addition to its own playability.

There was a reason table tennis had become the national sport of China.

But even though the old fellow sounded a bit harsh, he wasn't wrong.

As a soccer novice, the only name among the newcomers from that period that sounded familiar to him was Neymar.

At this stage, Neymar had only just been selected for the Brazilian national team after showing promise. He was still far from the future glory of being a Champions League winner, an Olympic gold medalist, a Golden Boot recipient, and a FIFA World Player of the Year.

Unfortunately, the real world we live in isn't always as smooth sailing as someone's resume might suggest.

As far as he knew, before joining Paris Saint Germain, Neymar would be eliminated from the crucial Champions League by Real Madrid and Manchester United.

After joining PSG, a flood of negative news followed: fighting for penalty kicks, losing matches, even punching a fan. Doubt, verbal abuse, criticism, and injuries all came one after another.

But true heroes aren't afraid of rumors, and success comes from a strong mind.

In the end, he did successfully become one of the world's top soccer superstars.

Thinking of this, he suddenly had a bold idea.

"I know the results of a few key matches. Should I try my hand at sports betting, make a little pocket money?"

But he quickly dismissed the thought, resisting the temptation. He couldn't set that precedent.

His goal had always been clear and firm: he wanted to be a peerless scientist, a national treasure, not some speculator who just buys low and sells high.

Neymar's later story was very inspiring. Although Lu Shixian couldn't share it with anyone in advance, he'd drink this first bowl of chicken soup for the soul himself.

Right. Hard skills are what truly matter.

That rule applied in any situation.

So, it was time to grind again.

Without looking back, Lu Shixian headed straight for the Peter J. Shields Library, the largest at Davis.

Due to various trivial matters before, he had never really been able to get into a state of fully focused study there.

He had, however, taken care of the borrowing procedures in advance.

He navigated to the botany section with ease. Lu Shixian ran his hand lightly across the spines of the neatly arranged, tightly packed books, as if caressing a treasure.

As his eyes scanned the many world renowned works on botany, he felt a little hesitant.

The fastest way to get started would be to read the works of the top experts in plant pathology from his home country.

But first, he didn't have access to them here; it was nearly impossible to find a Chinese language work.

Second, his purpose in coming here was to learn from the advanced knowledge in disciplines where foreign countries excelled, and then combine it with the situation back home to form his own unique knowledge system.

So, there was no need to force it.

He quickly zeroed in on a few books from the vast sea of literature.

*Principles of Plant Infection and Disease*, by the Swedish botanist E. Gäumann. According to the introduction, the book focused mainly on the resistance of plants to infectious diseases.

*Plant Pathology: Problems and Progress, 1908–1958*, by the American scientist C.S. Holton.

Strictly speaking, it wasn't a true monograph, but rather a collection of papers from the 50th anniversary symposium of the American Phytopathological Society.

Although decades had passed since its publication, the content of the book still held significant guiding value.

*Principles of Plant Pathology*, by the British biologist J.G. Manners.

The book covered the causes of plant diseases, the physiology of host parasite relationships, the genetics of host pathogen interactions, epidemiology, and plant disease control.

*Physiological Plant Pathology*, co-authored by the two scientists Heitefuss and Williams.

While this book also discussed host parasite interactions during the course of plant disease, its perspective was still unique even by today's standards. It approached the subject from the level of modern molecular biology, incorporating knowledge from cytology, physiology, biochemistry, and genetics.

"Lambert was right. The number of species just within the downy mildew order is staggering," Lu Shixian murmured to himself, sitting at a long table in the library.

For the past dozen days or so, he had been spending every spare moment in the library.

Although he had won the approval of his two team members with his exceptional lab skills.

In his personal view, those who relied solely on practical skills were often the first to be eliminated.

In a corporation, for a decision maker, having only technical skills without management ability would be a disaster for the company.

The same logic applied to scientific research. Knowing only the practical techniques without the theory was also a tragic fate. One would be reduced to being just a tool.

And being just a tool was clearly not what he wanted.

He had already begun to supplement his foundational knowledge in the field of plant pathology.

A clear classificatory framework of plant pathogens had already formed in his mind.

Chapter 301: Group Meeting Report

For him, the formation of this knowledge framework undoubtedly gave him a substantial understanding of the plant pathology system.

And all this had taken only half a month.

This pace and efficiency of acquiring new knowledge were certainly gratifying.

Of course, this result was also inseparable from his solid and firm foundation in basic biology.

Take the downy mildew order, which he hadn't known much about before. Although it was a topic within the classification of plant diseases, the components making up this new knowledge point were mostly things he had already learned.

There were many causes of plant diseases, but in his understanding, they could be roughly divided into six categories.

Pathogenic fungi, pathogenic bacteria, pathogenic viruses, mycoplasma like organisms, nematodes, and parasitic seed plants.

Words like fungi, bacteria, and viruses were all too familiar to him. With just a quick glance, he had already fully and deeply understood the essence of the concepts.

He was now understanding more and more the meaning of the phrase "a thousand story building rises from the ground."

Mastering the foundational knowledge of a discipline was incredibly important. If he had been a bit fuzzy on Lambert's explanations before, it was now as clear as seeing the moon after the clouds part.

Although there were hundreds or thousands of pathogenic colonies and plant diseases, making them difficult to memorize, a careful organization revealed a thread connecting them all.

Taking the downy mildew order as an example, parallel to it was the water mold order, both belonging to the Oomycetes class.

Parallel to the Oomycetes class were the Plasmodiophoromycetes, Chytridiomycetes, and Hyphochytriomycetes classes.

And they all belonged to the Mastigomycotina subphylum.

Parallel to the Mastigomycotina subphylum were the Basidiomycotina, Ascomycotina, Deuteromycotina, and Zygomycotina subphyla.

And they, in turn, all belonged to pathogenic fungi.

He had now captured the entire network of fungal pathogenic colonies.

Just like that, one sixth of the vast knowledge of plant pathology was under his belt.

For the rest, he just needed to follow the map.

"Looking at it this way, plant pathology doesn't seem that hard after all!" Lu Shixian closed the book, this thought surfacing in his mind.

But he quickly adjusted his mindset. "However, while I've basically mastered the knowledge in the books, I'm still a long way from practical application."

Plant Pathology P3 Laboratory.

Tyson Davis Joint Project Team Office.

The junior supervisor, Wood, leaned on the glass conference table with both hands, his gaze sweeping across the faces of the members of the various task groups.

"It's Monday, time for our weekly group meeting report."

"Let's have everyone report on their task progress."

As he spent more time with the project, Lu Shixian gradually learned that because this project wasn't large in scale and was less difficult than other projects in the lab, the deadline was very short, only a few months.

And now, with more than half the time remaining, there was still plenty to spare.

Furthermore, since this project didn't involve official government bodies, the level of rigor was far less than that of the Challenge Cup competition he had participated in back in China.

So, the atmosphere in the conference room was relatively relaxed; there were basically no worried faces to be seen.

However, although the groups within the project were cooperative, they were also in competition with each other.

This involved a matter of interest: individual performance, group performance, and team performance.

It seemed Americans had been conducting in depth research on performance management for a long time, but one had to admit it was quite fair.

It involved a detailed calculation based on an individual's contribution to the group and the group's contribution to the entire team, which resulted in a weighted score.

That might sound complicated, but to put it in Chinese terms, it was basically "to each according to his work."

For large scale projects, this affected authorship attribution, which was something researchers valued most.

Of course, for this project, it only determined the size of the bonus.

But even without a publication, a bonus was still very nice.

At that moment, a tall man stood up. He was the leader of the second task group.

The project team was small. Although Lu Shixian hadn't interacted with him much, they had met before.

As he clicked the remote, the PowerPoint on the screen began to display his content.

"Our group was assigned the preliminary experiments for pathogen infection. To achieve this, over the past period, our team has completed viability tests, isolation, and detection experiments for this plant pathogen."

"Because the experiments were relatively simple, we didn't encounter any particular problems along the way."

"The only task left for our group is the extraction of secondary metabolites, which we expect to complete within the next four days."

After he finished his report, the others all nodded.

Anyone who could be the first to report naturally had some skill.

Currently, although the Knox Plant Pathology Laboratory was not yet famous, it was accelerating its development. The people who could get in here had basically all gone through a rigorous selection process.

Although these experiments themselves weren't highly difficult, they required a certain level of proficiency. To be able to finish them so quickly was a testament to his ability.

Wood also gave a token round of applause. "Good. Sela's group is making fast progress. If you can complete all your tasks by next week, you'll have finished ahead of schedule."

There were only about a dozen people on this project, so there weren't many groups.

Soon, it was Lu Shixian's group's turn.

Vasha, the leader of his group, stood up from her seat with a confident smile and began to present their progress.

As a woman, she received a lot of attention in the lab.

But she was no vase. At this moment, her presence was commanding and dazzling.

The presentation she had made opened on the screen.

There was no convoluted text, only concise diagrams and tables.

"According to our initial experimental design, we had already made a preliminary judgment on the plant samples sent over by the Tyson Group. The conclusion at the time was a fungal infection, most likely a plant disease under the downy mildew order."

"Now, according to our observational results, we can indeed confirm it as soybean bleaching disease, although we did encounter some difficulties along the way."

Vasha did not seem like the gentle type; she had a rather fiery personality, so her voice sounded crisp and clear.

Hearing this, although Vasha hadn't finished speaking, she had already piqued Wood's interest.

It was simple: besides the disease resistance experiments, Vasha's group's task was the most core part of the entire project.

Not to mention Vasha herself, her advisor was Wood, and the trust between them was very high.

He also knew Lambert's capabilities. Although his personal life was a bit of a mess, his research skills were solid. A project of this difficulty shouldn't pose any problems for him.

Could it be…

Chapter 302: Unimaginable Happiness

Wood's gaze inevitably shifted to the spot behind Vasha.

At the time, because of Knox's instructions, he had, if not placed high hopes on Lu Shixian, at least treated him well, assigning him directly to a relatively important task group.

Could it be that this Chinese man's performance was a far cry from Knox's evaluation?

It was no wonder he would think that, because in his eyes, the only variable in the entire task group was Lu Shixian.

Below, Vasha saw Professor Wood's reaction, and with a quick thought, she immediately guessed what he was thinking.

She then smiled and continued, "Our group's task is to identify the plant pathogen. Although we had already guessed the result, we needed further confirmation."

"During this process, based on naked eye observation of the plant's disease characteristics, we could already identify it as a disease under the downy mildew order, but we couldn't confirm the specific genus."

"To achieve this, we conducted further observational experiments, examining its morphological features under an electron microscope. And here, I want to thank our new group member, Lu."

"His outstanding ability to prepare EM observation specimens directly boosted our experiment's progress by at least 20%. We started the infection experiments a few days ago, so I predict we can complete all our experimental tasks by tomorrow."

As soon as she said this, many people turned their eyes for the first time to the yellow skinned young man at the conference table.

Professor Wood also dismissed the suspicions and thoughts that had just arisen in his mind, then nodded in her direction, showing his approval.

"Very good. It looks like your group will be the first to complete its assigned tasks."

"When the time comes, if you are indeed the first to pass the project review, your group's share of the bonus can be increased by 5%."

"As for Lu, he can receive his bonus based on a higher performance metric."

At these words, the others all nodded, as if this was already customary.

For this project, Wood was the boss. His word was final. The meeting quickly moved on to the next group's report.

Lu Shixian didn't pay close attention to the rest of the agenda.

After the meeting was dismissed, he quickly voiced the doubts in his mind to the two members of his group.

After so many days together, the three of them had dispensed with most of the formalities and restraints.

"Hey, I joined the project halfway through, and I'm an exchange student. I was just placed here by Professor Knox. I'm not really a member of the pathology lab. Can I get a bonus too?"

Hearing his question, both of them looked at him as if his idea was incredible.

"Oh, come on, Lu! What are you thinking?"

"Of course you do! It's only natural, isn't it?"

Seeing their reactions, Lu Shixian had some thoughts.

Alright. It seemed that in the United States, they didn't care much about seniority or who came first.

What they cared about most was ability; in other words, the tangible contributions one could make to the established goals.

He couldn't comment much on which of the two systems was superior.

But this was indeed the second difference in the research environment he had experienced since coming to America.
The very next day, Lu Shixian's team completed their final set of infection experiments, and their lab report was successfully verified for the project.

This meant their part of the job was over. Vasha and Lambert had already packed up and left to attend to their own business.

But the entire project wasn't finished yet. Their assigned task was just one of the preliminary stages in a much larger experiment.

Namely, identifying the fungal species in order to prescribe the right treatment.

This work was important, but not as crucial as the subsequent stages, like the disease resistance trials, which formed the true core of the project.

The upcoming experiments didn't have much to do with him, but he still planned to report to the lab on time the next day.

He really had no duties, but he was going just to be a spectator.

He had mentioned the reason long ago: simply being satisfied with one small part of a project was no way to truly grow.

Getting a glimpse of the whole through a small part was nice, but it was easy to end up with tunnel vision.

"Lu, your hands on lab skills are really something else," Sela praised with a smile.

"But you're so diligent. Aren't you going to take this chance to relax a little?"

"You've helped us a lot these past few days, but none of it was on your official task list."

"So you probably won't get any extra compensation for it."

Lu Shixian just shook his head. "You know I've been cramming pathology lately. And what better place to reinforce that knowledge than in a lab?"

"I'm doing this for my own improvement. If it were just about the money, I wouldn't be here."

Hearing this, Sela looked a bit confused. "From what I understand, you haven't done research in this field before."

"That being the case, why not just experience it for a bit? No need to be so intense about it. You know, knowledge is infinite, but our energy is limited."

"Besides, everyone needs a break, but you're almost like…"

Sela paused.

He had been in close contact with Lu Shixian lately because of the experiments.

Initially, he had pretty much ignored Lu Shixian, but his attitude began to change when Lu Shixian proactively offered to help.

In his eyes, Lu Shixian was either running an experiment or on his way to run one.

Finally, he found a fitting descriptor in his mind.

"Uh, an ascetic. Seriously, I've never seen you do anything for fun. You and Lambert are complete opposites."

"I have to admit your technique is excellent, but is doing experiments really that fascinating?"

"Are all you Chinese people this serious? Don't you ever get tired of it?"

Lu Shixian was taken aback by the sudden questions.

It was the first time he'd ever been described that way, and he didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

But he just smiled it off. "Your first question actually helps answer your second one."

This piqued Sela's interest. "Oh? How so?"

Lu Shixian continued to explain, "Like you said, I've never touched this field before, so for me, this is all about exploring different possibilities."

"And when a person is encountering something new, how could they possibly get bored?"

That shut Sela right up.

What the hell?

That actually kind of makes sense!

But he quickly realized that wasn't what he had been asking.

"No, no, no! I'm talking about studying. Even though you've switched to a new research area, you're still fundamentally studying."

"So, is studying really that enjoyable?"

But under Sela's gaze, Lu Shixian slowly nodded.

"Yes. A kind of joy others can't imagine."

Chapter 303: An Invigorated Lu Shixian?

Another month passed, and the project concluded with the development of a new treatment method for a type of cereal albino disease.

On the day of its completion, a grand ceremony was held at the UC Davis campus.

As a member of the project team, Lu Shixian was on the invitation list.

To be honest, such events didn't mean much to him, but he had a lot of free time lately, so attending wouldn't hurt.

Professor Knox, the head of the Plant Pathology Lab, served as the host.

A project of this level wouldn't normally require his personal involvement, but the Tyson Group had offered too much money, and their industry standing was undeniable.

Meanwhile, Craig, the regional general manager of the Tyson Group in Los Angeles, was slated to speak as the guest of honor.

"I am delighted that Tyson has had this opportunity to cooperate with UCD. After verification by our group's R&D department, this new treatment method provided by the Davis Pathology Lab has achieved a prevention rate of over 80% for cereal albino disease."

"I look forward to more opportunities for collaboration between Tyson and UCD in the future…"

The closing ceremony soon ended amidst applause.

The dozen or so members of the task force were all beaming, as they were about to receive a long vacation and a handsome bonus.

The other attendees showed little reaction, seemingly accustomed to such events.

Lu Shixian shook his head with a wry smile. "To think that the first project I participated in after my undergraduate graduation would end just like that."

Truth be told, his involvement in the larger experiment wasn't very high. He had only handled a part of the preliminary trials. As for the later experimental process for the treatment method, his involvement was somewhat restricted, and he wasn't able to participate in the entire process.

It wasn't entirely due to American exclusivity or guarding trade secrets—the project wasn't at that level—but rather because a non disclosure agreement had been signed with the Tyson Group in advance.

The patent was now the property of the Tyson Group. Subsequently, the treatment method would enter the product development phase and would soon be transformed into a new type of pesticide.

However, Lu Shixian's days became incredibly boring.

Every day, he did nothing but attend classes and grind through books at the library; he couldn't find anything else to do.

This wasn't what he wanted, but he felt powerless to change his situation.

Professor Knox was too busy with preparations for the lab to pay him any mind.

Los Angeles time was fifteen hours behind Beijing time.

It was already ten o'clock at night for Lu Shixian, while his classmates back in Beijing were just waking up.

[Shi Bu Yu]: Aaaargh! Damn it, I feel like I'm just coasting right now.

[Shi Bu Yu]: Just waiting to coast through the next few months and then get ready to leave.

Lu Shixian sent a message in his old dorm's group chat, "To Yanda for Linlin."

The group's name, though a bit embarrassing, was a long running inside joke among the four of them and had eventually become the name of their dorm chat.

The four of them were scattered across the country, even across the ocean, but shouting out in the group chat from time to time had become a part of their daily routine.

[Ru Chen Yiran]: You *feel* like you're coasting? I *am* coasting. I'm swamped every day but have no idea what I'm even busy with!

The first to reply was Glasses Bro, Lin Chenyi, the only one in the dorm who chose to enter the workforce directly after graduation, which was consistent with his goals.

He had passed the civil service exam right after graduating and was now working in a provincial department. As a newcomer, he was still in the gofer stage, but his starting point was already much higher than most.

[Meng Li Yun Gui He Chu Xun]: I'm so jealous of you guys getting to coast abroad. I just got accepted into the graduate program at Yanda, so I guess I'll never get the chance to go overseas.

Lu Shixian didn't even have to guess; the username alone told him it was Muscle Bro, Zhang Mengting. He had chosen to continue grinding away in literature, pursuing a master's degree in Chinese Language and Literature.

As for the latter part of his message, it was best taken with a grain of salt.

[Chang Wenchao]: Don't listen to him, guys. He's totally humblebragging again.

[Chang Wenchao]: Not like me at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Now that's what I call a leisurely life.

As soon as he said that, the other three simultaneously sent the "scorn /bs" emoji.

It was obvious. Chang Wenchao's username was, of course, his real name.

He was, as he said, a graduate student at the Institute of Inorganic Chemistry at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

As for "leisurely," he was obviously just showing off, but it seemed he still hadn't grasped the essence of humblebragging, leaving the other three unsure whether to laugh or cry.

Seeing that they didn't seem to believe him, Lu Shixian explained a bit more.

[Shi Bu Yu]: I'm serious! My advisor in the US has completely left me to my own devices.

[Chang Wenchao]: Pfft, I know your tricks. You're just setting up for a plot twist.

At this point, no one paid any attention to Chang Wenchao's deliberate antics.

[Meng Li Yun Gui He Chu Xun]: Fourth Bro, how's it feel being abroad?

[Shi Bu Yu]: It's really different. It's a completely different model from back home.

[Shi Bu Yu]: How should I put it… although the research environment in the US is a bit better than in China, I feel more used to the way things are back home.

[Ru Chen Yiran]: By the way, I was browsing online earlier and came across a video titled: Shocking! Wolf Prize Laureate Gives a Thumbs Up to a Chinese Exchange Student.

[Ru Chen Yiran]: It said it was from your university. I thought the student in it, seen from the back, looked a bit like you.

Seeing this message, Lu Shixian was speechless.

Had the clickbait journalists already emerged at this time? He had no idea where they had reposted it from, but the story was indeed true.

[Shi Bu Yu]: Uh, that was a coincidence.

As soon as he sent that, a reply came back instantly.

[Chang Wenchao]: See! Fourth Bro is at it again, just waiting for us to take the bait!

Lu Shixian couldn't be bothered to respond to his clowning, and neither could the other two.

So the chat was left with only Chang Wenchao chattering away.

Bored, Lu Shixian opened another group chat, The Four Musketeers of Tsukuba.

Even after three or four years, the group's name remained unchanged, perhaps because it held a shared memory for the four of them.

There were some chat logs, mostly of Feng Yanan and Yang Yihang bickering.

Lu Shixian quickly typed out a message and sent it to the Musketeers group.

[Shi Bu Yu]: I'm in the US too now. You guys won't believe it, but I'm now a successor to the fly school.

The message immediately caught their attention.

Without a doubt, the first to respond would be Yang Yihang.

And sure enough.

[Sphincter's Pursuit]: What? Tell us everything!

This group was mostly made up of life sciences people, so their interest was instantly piqued.

Soon, Feng Yanan also replied with questions.

So Lu Shixian explained the situation in the group.

This immediately caused a stir among the other three in the group.

[Sphincter's Pursuit]: Holy crap! Looks like you're really invigorated this time.

Chapter 304: Turning a Blind Eye

The smile on Lu Shixian's face froze.

That fatty really knew how to touch a sore spot.

Just as he was about to fire back a few retorts, he saw Feng Yanan's message.

[Bian Que Gu Ren Xin]: Haha, I can't believe you actually have a connection to Morgan now.

[Bian Que Gu Ren Xin]: But your advisor, Knox, sounds like a real character.

[Bian Que Gu Ren Xin]: I can't believe you've gone abroad too. You're the second of the four of us now.

[Bian Que Gu Ren Xin]: I'd love to go see the world too, but I'm too busy with classes right now, no time at all.

[Bian Que Gu Ren Xin]: Speaking of which, what are the differences between being abroad and being in China?

Feng Yanan typed out a long stream of text, expressing her questions.

Lu Shixian read through them one by one, slowly responding to her questions.

Actually, the person who should have been answering these questions was Wang Fuwen. He was studying directly at a foreign university, unlike Lu Shixian, who was just on exchange. He was the most qualified to speak on the matter.

However, Wang Fuwen's tendency to speak in single phrases made Feng Yanan give up on that idea.

After chatting for a while longer, the time in Los Angeles had passed eleven at night.

Meanwhile, it was almost time for classes back in China.

And so, the conversation came to an end.

Hearing one of them rushing to class and the other to the lab, Lu Shixian suddenly felt a pang of melancholy.

He was terribly bored right now.

Not only were there no lab sessions to do, but he also had very few classes to attend.

In reality, his course load at Davis wasn't much different from anyone else's.

But compared to back in China, the number of in-classroom lectures was much lower.

And at his pace, he had already finished most of these courses and earned the credits.

In other words, he had already fulfilled the academic requirements for the exchange program. All that was left was to wait out the remaining few months.

The rest of this time is going to be a tough to get through.

As he thought, and as the time on his phone screen slowly ticked past midnight, Lu Shixian gradually drifted off to sleep.

It was the first time he had stayed up so late, and as a result, he didn't wake up until the sun was already high in the sky.

Lu Shixian shielded his eyes from the glaring sunlight and pressed his fingers against his brow. The contents of his dream slowly came back to him.

The dream was a bit embarrassing to recall. The setting seemed to be his first time performing an experiment in the Plant Pathology Lab.

"Lambert was way crazier than usual. Turns out he's a master of time management."

"He actually wanted to invite me to that kind of place to try something new. Good thing I refused."

"But he had it pretty rough in the end. I think he ended up in the hospital after a marathon session with multiple partners."

Lu Shixian shook his head, quickly dispelling the images from his mind.

"The next part seems to be me being forced into the position, taking over Lambert's mess."

Of course, "forced" deserved to be in quotation marks.

Despite saying that, the dream version of himself seemed quite happy, having taken the lead on the experiments their team was responsible for.

"It's a shame this was just a dream," he muttered. Even though the person in question wasn't there, a sudden wave of guilt washed over Lu Shixian.

"Sorry, man. I really didn't mean to jinx you."

"What came after that? I can't seem to remember."

Lu Shixian rarely dreamed, and now, for the first time in a month, he couldn't recall the rest of it.

If he couldn't remember, he couldn't remember. He was about to let it go, but a strange sense of unwillingness lingered in his mind.

He took a step, and suddenly, a term came to him as if by inspiration.

"Peronosporales!!!"

Prompted by this word, he finally recalled the rest of the dream.

The judgment he had made in his dream was slightly different from what had happened in reality.

The main difference lay in the genus of the fungal colony on the cereal sample sent over by the Tyson Group.

If he remembered correctly, Lambert had indeed been a bit puzzled at first, as the pathological characteristics of the cereal were not obvious.

It was only through an electron microscope that they confirmed it to be *Sclerospora graminicola*, under the order Peronosporales.

But in his dream, his diagnosis had been a downy mildew from the genus *Peronospora*.

This diagnosis, however, was something that the current Lu Shixian couldn't bring himself to believe.

Dreams were truly unreliable. Having crammed so much information recently, he knew perfectly well that there were no recorded instances of pathogens from the genus *Peronospora* affecting cereal crops.

It mostly appeared on grapes, chrysanthemums, roses, melons, tobacco, cabbage, soybeans, and other cruciferous plants.

But as the saying goes, what you think about by day, you dream of by night. It wasn't born from nothing.

He understood that the dream had occurred because his own first impression had been that it was *Peronospora*.

After all, for a layman, seeing the order Peronosporales, one would naturally think of the genus *Peronospora*, right?

He just hadn't said it out loud at the time, out of respect for Lambert and a lack of confidence in himself.

Lu Shixian shook his head and smiled. "But I'm not a layman anymore."

"The project is already concluded, and it passed the Tyson Group's inspection. It's impossible for that many people to be wrong at the same time."

The more he thought about it, the more certain Lu Shixian became.

"That's right. They're even about to develop a reagent specifically for this plant disease. I must just be too bored."

Thinking of this, for some unknown reason.

Lu Shixian's train of thought suddenly switched tracks, as if a railway switch had been thrown.

"Right, the reagent?"

He suddenly remembered something. A few days ago, at the project handover ceremony, the general manager of the Tyson Group's Los Angeles division had said something in his speech.

"The new treatment method has achieved a prevention rate of over 80% for cereal albino disease."

But he knew in his heart that this number had been inflated.

He had participated in the entire resistance testing process that followed. Calculated according to the lab's highest standards, the prevention rate should have been over 70%, but it definitely didn't reach 80%.

There was no doubt about this, because Sela had personally discussed it with him.

The project team had held a special discussion about this before.

Generally, for a plant disease treatment to meet the accepted standard in the US at the time, its prevention rate needed to be close to 80%.

Therefore, strictly speaking, the treatment method provided by the lab was substandard.

But in practical application, due to various environmental and human factors, if a plant disease treatment could achieve an actual prevention rate of 50%, it was already considered quite good.

So, at the time, the Tyson Group had turned a blind eye and approved it.

The difference from the standard wasn't huge and didn't affect the final efficacy, so there was no need to make a big deal out of it.

Of course, the fact that it was a corporate joint project, which was less strict, also played a role.

But the problem was precisely here. According to the lab's original projection, this treatment method should have achieved a prevention rate of around 85%.

This was a value that had already been verified for other cereal albino disease treatments.

Chapter 305: Heading to Berkeley

This seemed somewhat unreasonable.

But something made it reasonable: specificity.

This plant disease reagent was specifically designed to prevent the pathogenic fungus that caused albino disease in cereals.

Without this specificity, the harm caused by pesticides might have wiped out the world we live in countless times over.

So, the spark that had just ignited in Lu Shixian's mind was extinguished.

He knew that behind every unreasonableness lies a greater reason.

He had used this maxim to help himself find inspiration before.

But he couldn't possibly use it in reverse now, could he?

So the question remained.

What was the reason for such a large discrepancy in the prevention rate?

At the time, the lab had attributed it to a margin of error. After all, it was normal for there to be a discrepancy between a manufactured product and theoretical calculations.

But this explanation couldn't completely convince Lu Shixian, yet he couldn't articulate why.

So what could be done?

"Forget about it!"

Lu Shixian muttered to himself and started to get out of bed to brush his teeth and wash his face.
It had always been his habit not to dwell on things he couldn't figure out, problems for which he had no solution.

Lu Shixian decided to shelve the matter for now, pushing it to the back of his mind to be dealt with later.

After tidying his room, Lu Shixian stretched languidly, preparing to go hunt for some food.

He pushed open the door and happened to run into his housemate, Macon.

It was exactly eight in the morning, the time Macon usually got up after countless internal struggles against the urge to stay in bed.

But according to Lu Shixian's usual habits, by this time he would have already been back from several laps of his morning run.

This was practically the first time this semester they had run into each other like this.

A look of delighted surprise quickly spread across Macon's face.

"Whoa! Unbelievable!"

"Look who it is! Lu, is it always this hard to catch a glimpse of you?"

Hearing his joke, Lu Shixian retorted, "I guess if you were a pretty, hot girl, it would be much easier."

As soon as he said that, Macon burst out laughing like a kindred spirit.

Just then, a familiar female voice floated up from the first floor.

"Oh? Then why is it I never seem to see a trace of you?"

Lu Shixian didn't even need to lean over the wooden staircase to know who was speaking.

Who else could it be but that black-bellied landlady of his, Cheng Qingqing.

Perhaps because her research work was so tedious, finding amusement in other places seemed to have become ingrained in her habits.

Most girls don't make crude jokes, but sometimes, when they do, they go harder than the guys.

She had lived in the States for a long time, so naturally her habits and personality had started to align with the local culture.

Undoubtedly, Cheng Qingqing, the "old leftover woman," was a prime example.

That was why Lu Shixian usually did his best to avoid her; after all, she was a bit hard to handle.

Sure enough, Cheng Qingqing's interrogation followed.

"What, am I not pretty enough, or not hot enough?"

The question left Lu Shixian at a complete loss.

What could he do now?

Lu Shixian threw his hands up in surrender. Betraying his conscience, he wimped out and said, "Sister Qingqing, in my heart, you're the most beautiful."

Hearing this, a satisfied expression appeared on her face, but she pressed on, "So who's more beautiful? Me, or your girlfriend?"

At that, Lu Shixian instantly relaxed. For him, this was the easiest question in the world to answer.

"Of course, it's you."

His quick answer was clearly not what Cheng Qingqing had wanted to hear. Not being able to see a flustered expression on his face made her feel it was no fun at all.

Just then, Macon smoothly inserted himself into their conversation, complaining to Lu Shixian.

"A few months ago, during the break, I was going to invite you to the sailing regatta between Davis and Berkeley. It's a shame you went back to China then. You really missed out on a great race."

"Well, as it happens, there's an outdoor soccer invitational this weekend. Lu, are you free?"

Hearing this was like music to Lu Shixian's ears, leaving him almost no room for thought.

"Yes, yes, of course I'm free!"

"Let's go, let's go. We can talk over breakfast."

Lu Shixian slung an arm over Macon's shoulder, and they quickly made their way out the front door.

Naturally, he had no interest in watching any soccer match, but he had an immense need to escape Cheng Qingqing's soul searching questions.

Besides, he was single at the moment, so hanging out occasionally wasn't a bad idea.

After all, Macon was different from Lambert; his interests were in actual sports.

He had been in the States for several months now, constantly immersed in high intensity studying and lab experiments, and it seemed he hadn't had any recreational activities at all.

Since he had already agreed, it would be good to go out and relax.

After having breakfast together at a nearby diner, the two agreed to head to UC Berkeley on Saturday to watch the game.

Like UC Davis, Berkeley was also one of the ten universities in the University of California system.

But the former was far more renowned worldwide than Davis.

It had once been one of the world's centers for academic research, holding significant influence in mathematics, natural sciences, and engineering.

Among the famous figures associated with it, Chinese people were familiar with the Chinese American mathematician, Master Chen Shiing Shen, a founder of twentieth century differential geometry. Master Chen had taught in Berkeley's math department since 1960, and there was even a "Chern Hall" on campus.

Meanwhile, the Chinese American mathematician and Fields Medalist, Master Yau Shing Tung, had also received his doctorate there.

Both Robert Oppenheimer, the "father of the atomic bomb," and Edward Teller, the "father of the hydrogen bomb," had served as physics professors here. The former established the Center for Theoretical Physics, which later evolved into the Berkeley Center for Theoretical Physics.

Later, the university welcomed the Chinese American female physicist, Master Wu Chien Shiung.

Many knew her as the "mother of the atomic bomb," the only female physicist to participate in the US Manhattan Project, but few knew that she had earned her Ph.D. in physics here in 1940.

As for engineering, Berkeley's status could even be compared to MIT. The "father of prestressed concrete," Chinese American structural engineer Master Lin Tung Yen, also graduated from Berkeley, where he later served as a professor of engineering.

The "father of nonlinear circuit theory" and "father of cellular neural networks," Chinese American engineer Master Leon Chua, had served as a professor of electrical engineering and computer sciences here.

So, when you looked into it, this university truly had many deep connections with people of Chinese descent.

This was why Lu Shixian had a great interest in the university, even though it wasn't particularly famous for its biology research.

According to the map, the distance from Davis to Berkeley was just over sixty miles.

Converted to kilometers, that was exactly 100 kilometers.

"Macon, that's the straight line distance. How long will it take us to get there now?" Lu Shixian asked from his seat in the back of the bus.

Chapter 306: Actually, This is No Big Deal

Macon shrugged helplessly and looked out the window. "If we were driving, it'd only take a little over an hour. But right now, we'll be lucky to get there before noon."

Lu Shixian followed his gaze. Hordes of people were lined up for the bus.

Alright, Lu Shixian had already given up hope of reaching the city of Berkeley within two hours.

But it would be a mistake to think this meant public bus transport was popular in the US.

In fact, the opposite was true. Almost every American family owned a car, so the number of buses and passengers was typically very low.

This scene was happening because they were in the small town of Davis, and on weekends, students here would take the bus to nearby big cities for fun.

Lu Shixian wasn't exactly a homebody, as he went out for a run every morning, but he was by no means a travel enthusiast. In all this time, his activities had been confined to the town of Davis.

After a journey of nearly two hours, the bus came to a steady stop in front of the UC Berkeley campus.

As fellow UC system schools, the connection between them was relatively close, with some commuter bus routes available.

"Lu! Let's go. It's lunchtime. My treat today," Macon offered first.

Lu Shixian nodded, not bothering with pleasantries.

He had already learned a bit about Macon's situation during their chat on the way.

He used to have a Chrysler, but it was totaled in an accident.

His family then bought him a Ford, which was currently in the shop for repairs.

Lu Shixian had immediately dubbed him the "Car Wrecker."

Macon's view on the matter, however, was: It's a cheap car, no heartbreak!

By comparison, this guy was a real big shot.

He didn't feel the slightest bit guilty about fleecing him once in a while.

Though the Western style feast wasn't quite to his taste, he enjoyed the meal immensely.

After eating, Macon confidently led him to the green field inside the Berkeley campus.

"Today's game is going to be a good one. Get ready for a real treat," Macon said, his face beaming as he found some seats near the front.

"Oh? How so?" Lu Shixian asked curiously.

As far as he knew, this was just an ordinary invitational soccer match. Even if it was somewhat competitive, there shouldn't be too many highlights.

Macon was clearly in the know and immediately explained, "The Davis and Berkeley varsity teams have had several intense clashes before over rankings in the NACC."

"Berkeley used to have the upper hand, but Davis recently got a new coach. He's scouted a lot of promising new talent and has studied Berkeley's playstyle thoroughly. Personally, I think their strengths are pretty evenly matched now."

At this, Macon added with a laugh, "Unfortunately, because of past results, fans on both sides are still pessimistic about Davis's chances. Right now, Davis desperately needs a win to prove themselves."

"I see. Looks like Davis is on the rise," Lu Shixian said. He didn't understand the intricacies, but he knew to offer his support.

Suddenly, the people around them started talking animatedly.

Seeing the excited faces of the fans on either side and the players already on the field, Lu Shixian understood that the game was about to begin.

Although he didn't recognize the players on either team, the jerseys with the blue ringed university crest were very conspicuous, making it easy for him to find the team to cheer for.

The moment the game started, Davis came out with incredible momentum. Two teammates executed a perfect play in the penalty area, their graceful movements shaking off the Berkeley defenders.

One of the players saw his chance and took a powerful shot. The soccer ball spun through the air in a beautiful arc.

The goalkeeper from Berkeley clearly hadn't expected Davis to be so formidable today. By the time he reacted and dived forward...

Thump!

It was a goal!

And only two minutes had passed since the start of the game.

Davis took a 1-0 lead away from home!

The cheers from the crowd suddenly died down. This was Berkeley's home turf, and countless fans simply couldn't believe their eyes.

Beside him, Macon had already started cheering before anyone else.

"UCD! UCD! UCD..."

Soon, some Berkeley fans recovered and joined in with applause.

But amidst the vast sea of Berkeley supporters, the cheers for Davis seemed faint and insignificant.

There wasn't much technical skill in the goal; it was purely because the Berkeley team had been overconfident and let their guard down.

Consequently, the Berkeley goalkeeper was immediately showered with "kind" regards from many in the audience.

The moment the goal was scored, Lu Shixian could clearly see a flicker of disarray in the Berkeley team's formation.

But it didn't take long for them to return to normal.

They were all seasoned veterans!

In the past, they had rarely ever lost to the Davis team, and in their minds, this time would be no exception.

Now on their guard, the entire Berkeley team's demeanor changed.

Facing their opponent's fierce attacks, they seemed to know Davis's style inside and out, defending meticulously with ease.

Soon, the game reached the thirty minute mark.

Berkeley, which had been on the defensive the whole time, suddenly capitalized on a small passing error from Davis.

In a flash, possession of the ball changed hands.

As soon as they got the ball, Berkeley instantly switched tactics and went on the offensive, revealing the fangs they had kept hidden for so long.

A player took a chip shot. The soccer ball traced a path like a crescent blade, sailing cleanly into the net for a goal.

"Cool!!!"

Almost all the fans leaped to their feet, celebrating the spectacular goal.

"Cal! Cal! Cal..."

The roar of cheers thundered through the sky, a stark contrast to the response to Davis's goal.

Although Lu Shixian didn't understand much about soccer and wasn't a fan of either Berkeley or Davis—he was just there for the show—his mood was still infected by the passionate atmosphere around him.

He reined in his excitement slightly and remarked to Macon, "This atmosphere is incredible. Truly the world's number one sport!"

Hearing him, Macon scoffed slightly.

"This is no big deal, really. If you've ever been to a Premier League, Bundesliga, or World Cup match, you'd fall in love with the sport."

"It's not just the sheer number of fans in the stadium, the level of competition is beyond your imagination."

"If I had to describe it in one word, calling it an arms race wouldn't be an exaggeration."

"You won't see it here in the States, but if I get the chance in the future, I can take you to an NBA game."

Macon was about to continue his pitch for Lu Shixian to go to more games with him, but before he could get the next sentence out, his shoulder was gripped tightly.

"What did you just say?"

Macon turned to see Lu Shixian's eyes shining with a startling intensity.

Chapter 307: A Sudden Spark of Inspiration

"I said you'd have a hard time seeing a soccer match of this caliber in the States, and that maybe I could take you to an NBA game in the future!"

Macon thought it was the letters "NBA" that had elicited such a reaction from Lu Shixian.

It was understandable. When it came to basketball, the NBA captured nearly the entire world's attention, and players from every country considered it an honor to play in the league.

But to his surprise, Lu Shixian didn't react as he had expected.

"No, no, not that sentence. I think it was the one before."

Now Macon was completely confused, but he answered anyway, "I said that the competition in those top leagues is so intense, calling it an arms race wouldn't be an exaggeration."

Hearing that, Lu Shixian instantly identified the source of the jolt he had just felt.

"Arms race!"

He connected it to the question that had been haunting him for the past few days.

His imagination seemed to have sprouted wings, carrying his thoughts soaring through a vast blue sky.

"I think I'm starting to understand."

Just like last time, inspiration could be so irrational, arriving without any warning or preamble, catching one completely off guard.

But the beauty of it was precisely that, and countless people still yearned for its arrival.

He didn't have time to finish the game. He could only bid a hasty farewell to Macon.

"Sorry, Macon, something urgent has come up and I need to get back to the lab. I'll treat you to dinner next time."

With that, Lu Shixian turned and left the Berkeley stadium.

Perhaps all his accumulated good karma had burst forth today. Just as Lu Shixian reached the parking lot, he saw a commuter bus bound for Davis preparing to pull away.

"Stop!"

Since it had just started moving, Lu Shixian easily caught the bus.

"You're just in time. This is the last bus to Davis today," the driver said without turning his head.

Hearing this, Lu Shixian bought his ticket and subconsciously checked his phone.

The time was four in the afternoon.

"No way."

"It's only four o'clock and this is the last one?"

Seeing that Lu Shixian was a foreigner, the driver kindly explained.

"If it weren't for UCD in Davis, this route wouldn't even exist."

Alright then.

Lu Shixian resignedly turned around and picked a seat from the many empty ones.

Based on his experience that morning, the trip from Davis to Berkeley took an hour and a half.

It was now four in the afternoon, which meant he would be back in Davis around five thirty.

Although he was anxious to verify his idea, he didn't have the means to do so right now.

But he didn't stay idle on the bus.

It was already 2012, and the touchscreen smartphone he had bought a few years ago was long obsolete.

It didn't have a memo or document function to record the sparks of inspiration constantly igniting in his mind.

But people can be resourceful in a pinch; in other words, you find a way.

Opening his phone's messaging app, Lu Shixian's fingers began tapping on the digital keypad.

His movements were sometimes fast, sometimes slow.

But lines of text quickly appeared in the message composition box.

They weren't logically connected sentences, but rather a few seemingly unrelated terms.

"Plants and pathogens!"

"Invasion and defense!"

"Arms race!"

"Downy mildew (*Peronospora*) and *Dactylaria*!"

Next, Lu Shixian typed a long horizontal line.

Below it, he added the annotation "Gene expression."

But this term was followed by a question mark.

At this point, Lu Shixian was slowly thinking through the problem that had once perplexed him.

His heart swelled like a rising tide, joyful and surging.

Yet his gaze, fixed on the view outside the window, remained as calm as ever.

He murmured to himself, "If that's the case, then it all makes sense."

5:42 PM, Los Angeles time.

After a journey of over an hour, Lu Shixian finally arrived in the familiar town of Davis.

With no mind to stop and admire the vast expanse of farmland scenery, Lu Shixian rushed to the plant pathology lab at once.

Although the project he had participated in was over, his access to the lab was still valid.

He hurried to the joint project lab where he had spent so much time.

But when he got there, the sight that met his eyes made him freeze.

The cold reality was like a bucket of icy water dumped over his head.

"Where's the research data?" Lu Shixian opened the filing cabinet, only to find it empty.

"It was all here before."

With that, he immediately turned and ran towards the lab administration office.

Although it was after hours, the administration office was responsible for the lab's daily operations and for providing services to the research fanatics who worked there.

After all, not everyone clocked out as punctually as Lambert.

The person in charge of the plant pathology lab's daily management was a white man.

Though he saw him every day, they didn't interact much.

Fortunately, the man was still inside when he arrived.

From a few casual chats, Lu Shixian remembered his name was Mishou.

"Hey, Uncle Mishou! Do you remember me?" Lu Shixian tapped lightly on the glass of the service window.

Mishou was an excellent cook; rumor had it he used to be the lab's chef and was a favorite of Knox's.

As he got older and could no longer handle the wok, he was later assigned to be the administrator for the pathology lab.

The job was somewhat similar to being a security guard at a lab entrance back in China.

But his work was far easier than a security guard's, as campus security handled the actual safety measures.

At that moment, he put on his reading glasses before he could see the figure at the window, who seemed to be a stranger.

He was responsible for the daily cleaning and management of the entire laboratory complex. A large lab could have dozens, or even hundreds, of people.

The pathology lab, which was in the process of becoming a national level laboratory, was clearly the latter, and personnel turnover was frequent.
Anyone else would have needed to look it up to know, but Lu Shixian’s distinctly East Asian features jogged his memory.

It seemed that a few months ago, Knox had personally brought over a young man from China. He thought this was the one from the registration.

“Oh, it’s you. If I remember correctly, after your project wrapped up, everyone on your team went on vacation. What brings you back?” Uncle Mitch asked, a little surprised.

With no time to answer, Lu Shixian cut right to the chase. “Where is the experimental data from our last project? I need to look something up urgently.”

Mitch didn’t think much of it. He’d seen this sort of thing plenty of times.

He’d even seen professors jump out of bed in the middle of the night, rush to the lab, and work straight through till morning.

“What was the name of your project?” Mitch asked.

Chapter 308: Carve a Path Through Mountains, Build a Bridge Over Rivers

Lu Shixian told him the name, and Mitch’s response came quickly.

“Oh! I remember now. I was the one who disbursed your project bonus,” Mitch said, the related details flooding back after a moment’s thought.

“The experimental data is stored in the archives now. The security clearance for the Tyson-Davis project isn’t high, but you still don’t have the authority to access it, even though you were a part of the team.”

At this, Mitch added a rare explanation, “You know how it is. Tyson Corporation has already filed a patent for that control agent.”

“According to the confidentiality agreement the lab signed with them, we have a duty and an obligation to maintain its secrecy.”

Lu Shixian was at a loss for words. He understood the reasoning.

You get paid, you do the job. It’s only right and proper, isn’t it?

But he desperately needed that data to verify his idea.

“Then how can I get the clearance to access the project files?” Lu Shixian immediately asked.

A small obstacle like this wasn’t going to stop him. If he didn’t have clearance, he would get it.

When you meet a mountain, you carve a path. When you meet a river, you build a bridge!

He couldn’t give up over such a minor setback.

“You could ask Professor Knox. It’s his lab, after all, so he has the highest authority. But he’s on a business trip to Washington D.C. and won’t be back for another two days.”

Lu Shixian felt a headache coming on. It was one problem after another.

Did he really have to wait two days?

He quickly dismissed the thought. When an opportunity arises, you have to strike while the iron is hot, not wait.

In two days, it was anyone’s guess whether he could even hold on to this spark of inspiration.

“Is there any other way? It’s really urgent,” Lu Shixian pressed.

This time, Mitch gave him a surprised look before answering.

“You really don’t give up, do you? Well, it’s not impossible. According to the Plant Pathology Lab’s confidentiality regulations, you need to find someone with sufficient clearance to sponsor you. Then you just have to fill out a supplementary confidentiality agreement.”

Lu Shixian was momentarily speechless, mentally grumbling at how bureaucratic everything was here. He was a member of the project team, for crying out loud.

Back in China, this was probably something that could be solved with a familiar face or by asking someone to put in a good word.

But here, it was so much trouble.

He had to admit, though, that the Americans had a point in this regard.

Such a system could prevent a lot of risks.

Of course, he had a second option: repeat Lambert’s experiment to get the data himself.

But he vetoed that option within a second.

Never mind that he’d need to apply to run the experiment in the lab; the time it would take to repeat it would be better spent just waiting for Professor Knox to return.

Fine, he’d play by the rules.

The supplementary agreement was the easy part. The crucial thing now was to find someone to sponsor him.

This person needed to have enough authority and also a certain degree of trust in him, as sponsorship carried its own risks.

An image of a person quickly formed in his mind: Professor Wood.

He was likely the best choice.

Lu Shixian soon found him in his office at the Davis College of Biological Sciences.

As an associate professor, Wood also had regular teaching duties.

Lu Shixian knocked and entered, just in time to see him preparing his lesson plan for the next day’s botany class.

“Professor Wood, I think Davis ought to pay you more.”

Wood finally looked up. Seeing who it was, a look of surprise crossed his face.

“Lu?”

“Aren’t you on vacation?”

“Is there something I can help you with?”

Lu Shixian took the opportunity to briefly explain the trouble he had run into.

“You’re saying you need some of the experimental data from the last project?” Wood quickly got to the heart of the matter.

Lu Shixian nodded. “That’s right. I had a new idea based on the experiments my subgroup conducted. It could very well help me publish a paper.”

He quickly added, “Of course, the data I need isn’t directly related to the core principles of the control agent.”

Hearing this, the slight frown on Wood’s face instantly relaxed.

A student needing to publish a paper was the most normal thing in the world at a university.

However, plant disease control wasn’t exactly a hot research topic at the time.

Instead of choosing a cutting-edge area of plant research, he was looking for inspiration in such a low-level project?

This was the research prodigy Knox had personally invited from China?

To be honest, he was a little disappointed in Lu Shixian’s choice.

He had thought Lu Shixian’s performance on the project was decent, but certainly not what he would call genius.

But it wasn’t his place to stop him, nor did he have any reason to antagonize Knox.

“A very reasonable request. I can sponsor you,” Wood said, immediately signing the document Mitch had provided.

“Also, you’re free to use our small lab, but you’ll need to log your usage according to regulations.”

“Okay, thank you for your help.” After expressing his gratitude, Lu Shixian headed straight for the lab without delay.

Lu Shixian had no idea what Wood was thinking, or rather, he was in no mood to guess. His mind was completely consumed by two words: “arms race.”

Arriving at the lab and completing the paperwork with Mitch, Lu Shixian successfully obtained what he needed.

The electron micrographs taken at the time appeared on the computer screen.

Lu Shixian zoomed in again. The detail that he—that everyone—had overlooked before was once again revealed.

Lu Shixian pumped his right fist through the air.

“That’s it!”

His theory was confirmed.

“Just as I thought. Although the vast majority of the fungi exhibit the morphological characteristics of *Verticillium*, a very small portion shows characteristics of *Peronospora*.”

This was the very thing that had puzzled Lambert at the time.

But now, it had become a piece of evidence.

With this evidence, Lu Shixian had reason to believe his hypothesis was real.

Of course, it was just a belief, not a confirmation.

Though Lu Shixian’s heart was pounding with excitement, it didn’t change the fact that his idea was still just a hypothesis.

The next step would require more detailed and meticulous experiments to prove it.

And the time and energy required for that were more than he could handle alone.

He quickly made up his mind to meet with Professor Knox.

The creation and approval of a research project wasn’t a simple whim. It involved many considerations, requiring a rigorous feasibility analysis, theoretical backing, and financial support.

Knox would be back from Washington in two days.

That gave him plenty of time to prepare.

In these two days, he needed to complete a proposal that was as detailed and comprehensive as possible to convince Knox.

And that would be no simple task.

But Lu Shixian was filled with ambition.

He was determined to succeed.

Chapter 309: I Have High Hopes for Your Future

Over the next two days, Lu Shixian made meticulous preparations.

He wrote a dedicated project proposal.

In it, he explained his core hypothesis, documenting the idea’s journey from inception.

Most importantly, it contained his vision for this hypothesis.

People say that hard work pays off, that fortune favors the diligent.

This time, he hoped Lady Luck would smile on him.

Forty-eight hours seemed to fly by in an instant.

Of course, Lu Shixian knew it had nothing to do with the actual speed of time; it was merely a psychological perception.

After all, for many students waiting for a long holiday, every day at school felt like torture.

The morning of the third day arrived.

He had learned that Knox would be flying back from Washington and arriving on campus this morning.

Lu Shixian grabbed the printed proposal and headed straight for Knox’s office to wait for him.

Nine-thirty in the morning, Los Angeles time.

After a two-hour wait, Knox finally arrived at Davis.

Carrying his briefcase, he walked up the stairs of the office building.

As he reached the top, he saw Lu Shixian standing in the hallway by his door.

Knox looked a bit worn out. He had been running around a lot recently for the national lab upgrade.

After the long journey, he looked quite travel-worn.

But he still managed a smile and greeted Lu Shixian warmly. “Hey, Lu! Long time no see!”

“What are you doing standing out here in the hall?”

Lu Shixian wasn’t in great shape either. The past two days had drained him of immense energy and effort. Coupled with standing for nearly two hours, even his remarkable physical constitution was almost at its limit.

Hearing Knox’s voice, he forced himself to rally and replied, “There’s something I’d like to report to you.”

“Oh? Is there a problem with Wood’s project?” Knox asked naturally.

Aside from the projects he personally led and a few other key lab initiatives, he hadn’t paid much attention to such small-scale projects in a long time.

They simply weren’t worth his energy.

Lu Shixian shook his head. “No, that project went very smoothly. It concluded over half a month ago.”

“I’m here to see you about something else.”

Hearing this, Knox was a bit surprised, but he opened his office door and invited him in to sit.

Once they were both seated, Knox thought for a moment and continued, “Is this about your return to China?”

“There are still over two months left in the exchange program, but you can rest assured. Based on your performance and grades here at Davis, I’ll be giving you an ‘excellent’ on your end-of-year evaluation.”

Lu Shixian shook his head again, handing over his proposal with both hands. “You’ll understand once you see this.”

Now curious, Knox took the stack of papers.

His initially casual expression immediately turned serious.

He switched on his desk lamp and sat up straight.

One page, two pages, three…

Nearly ten minutes passed, and Knox’s hand reached the final page.

His gaze shifted from the proposal to Lu Shixian’s face.

At the same time, his voice, once relaxed, took on a solemn tone.

“You believe there might be a co-evolutionary relationship between plants and pathogens?”

Hearing Knox accurately grasp his core point, Lu Shixian nodded.

“Exactly. Through the plant samples sent by the Tyson Group, I accidentally discovered that a pathogenic fungus of the *Peronosporales* order actually exhibits two different disease manifestations on this plant, although the signs of the second disease are very subtle.”

“At the same time, I observed that the plant has a stimulus-response to both diseases.”

“This stimulus-response has a pathway that can reach the plant’s cell nucleus, thereby influencing the expression of its disease-resistance genes, and even affecting the plant’s next generation.”

“Therefore, I hypothesize that plant pathogens and their hosts are in a long-term state of co-evolution, similar to an arms race.”

Knox had already clearly understood his viewpoint from the proposal, but hearing him articulate it again still felt somewhat incredible.

“This is a truly brilliant concept!”

“Although it’s very hard to believe, I have to say, if this can be proven, it will be this year’s most significant discovery in the field of plant pathology…”

Knox paused, then corrected himself with a voice full of passion.

“No! It would even become the most brilliant discovery in the fields of evolutionary biology and genetics.”

“Of course, I imagine it won’t be easy. Research at the microscopic, cellular level in plants is incredibly complex, not to mention pinpointing a specific response mechanism.”

Lu Shixian smiled faintly. “But that’s the nature of science.”

“The more difficult the research process, the greater its value.”

“And the stronger the sense of accomplishment it brings.”

Knox laughed in agreement, relating completely to the sentiment.

Though he knew the answer perfectly well, he asked anyway, “So, what is your purpose in coming to me?”

Lu Shixian looked him straight in the eye. “Professor Knox, in proving this hypothesis, I desperately need your help.”

“After all, the Plant Pathology Lab has arguably the best research environment in the world.”

Knox nodded but didn’t agree right away. Instead, he asked, “Do you have any idea how many dollars we’d have to burn through to prove this hypothesis?”

Lu Shixian was silent for a moment, then replied, “Mindlessly wasting funds is burning money. But I am confident that I can prove this with my own hands.”

“Besides, your lab could use a discovery that will shake the world, couldn’t it?”

Hearing this, Knox gave him a long, deep look.

“I accept your request. And also…”

“I have high hopes for your future.”

Walking out of Knox’s office, Lu Shixian’s tense state gave way to relief.

But as a result, he suddenly felt a bit dazed.

He reached a hand behind him and felt his back. It was soaked in sweat, as if he had just spent the last hour in a steam room.

He had succeeded.

Although the conversation in Professor Knox’s office lasted less than an hour, it was the culmination of nearly a year of tireless study in plant pathology and half a month of meticulous investigation and thought.

One minute on stage takes ten years of practice offstage.

Lu Shixian was beginning to truly understand the wisdom in that proverb.

And in reality, this was only the first step of a long march. If he couldn’t complete the experiments, it was all for nothing.

But even completing this first step had cost him an unknown amount of sweat and effort.

And it was still a risk. He didn’t know if Professor Knox would be interested in his discovery, or even try to claim it as his own and kick him out of the project.

The chances of that happening were small.

But he had to take the gamble. He had no other choice.

Chapter 310: Fighting His Corner, Showing His Mettle

And so, in that moment, his desire to have his own laboratory became incredibly strong.

But clearly, achieving that goal would not be easy.

Many researchers work their entire lives without ever reaching that point.

Three o’clock in the afternoon.

Knox invited Lu Shixian for a second meeting.

After a few hours of rest, both men had recovered from their fatigue and looked much better.

As soon as they met, Knox once again expressed his admiration for Lu Shixian.

“Lu, when I invited you here from China, my original plan was for you to join the project I was leading.”

“Putting you on Wood’s team temporarily was just to let you get used to the environment and our different research methods here.”

“As it turns out, you’ve adapted very well. It seems my original plan is no longer necessary.”

Faced with the praise, Lu Shixian’s expression remained as calm as ever. “Thank you for your high regard. I’m truly honored.”

After the initial pleasantries, the two quickly got down to business.

“Over lunch, I seriously re-examined the hypothesis you proposed,” Knox said, his tone turning serious as he discussed work.

“If it can be proven, it could help the authorities formulate more scientific plant protection policies and breed new disease-resistant varieties. But its theoretical value extends beyond plant pathology; it covers evolutionary biology and genetics, making it incredibly significant.”

“Therefore, I intend to give this project my full support, making it a key project for the lab. Funding and personnel will be fully guaranteed.”

At this point, Knox suddenly hesitated before asking, “But can you really handle a large-scale project like this? And I’m afraid others might have their objections. Are you sure you can manage that?”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian immediately understood the subtext.

The second critical moment had arrived. The thing he had been worried about was here.

The “handling it” part was actually about the position of project leader.

This was an issue that would come up anywhere, be it in China or abroad.

Lu Shixian was only in his early twenties, with no reputation or accomplishments to his name yet.

Was a master’s student capable of leading such a project?

Even if he did become the project leader, would the researchers under him truly be convinced of his ability?

So, while Knox had agreed to support him, he still had unavoidable doubts about these two questions.

Putting himself in Knox’s shoes, Lu Shixian completely understood his hesitation.

But on this matter, there was no room for negotiation. He was determined to have it.

It was a simple matter.

In a research team, the hierarchy almost directly determines the authorship on the final paper.

He was using Davis’s lab, and he had offered this project as a bargaining chip for Knox’s support.

Therefore, when the paper was published, the affiliation address could only be the UCD Plant Pathology Lab, and the corresponding author would, one hundred percent, be Knox.

If he didn’t fight for the lead now and lost the initiative, he might not even get first authorship on the paper.

That was something he absolutely could not accept.

At that moment, Lu Shixian’s body tensed unconsciously.

He had to fight his corner.

“Professor Knox, I don’t believe your concerns are necessary.”

“First, this hypothesis came entirely from me. Therefore, I am more familiar with this project than anyone else and possess a sense of direction that others lack, which will greatly shorten the time to produce results.”

“Second, I have sufficient experience in managing a project from start to finish. As you saw in the paper published in *Nature Cell Biology*, that work was entirely the result of my own efforts.”

“Finally, regarding the project personnel, I don’t believe that will be a problem. It’s very easy to solve.”

“Oh? How would you handle it?” Knox asked, his interest piqued.
Lu Shixian replied, his tone firm and resolute, “Nominally, you will serve as the project head. The rest of the team will be composed entirely of doctoral or master's students, such as the members from my previous project group.”

Upon hearing this, Knox was utterly stunned, a sense of absurdity washing over him.

If he hadn't heard the words with his own ears, he would have thought he was hallucinating.

“Are you sure you’re not joking?” Knox quickly added, “There’s no precedent for this at Davis.”

In a large-scale scientific research project, the personnel structure was generally composed as follows.

The head of the lab, the principal investigator, would personally serve as the project head. This person typically held the rank of a full professor or was even an academician.

The next level consisted of the leaders of the various task groups, usually junior faculty members like associate professors.

Following them were researchers with lecturer or assistant professor titles, as well as doctoral students.

At the very bottom of the hierarchy were the master's students, colloquially known as the lab grunts.

As for smaller projects, a junior faculty member could handle them completely, with a personnel structure similar to the collaborative project Lu Shixian had previously participated in.

Of course, this ranking was not always exact. Sometimes, due to individual capabilities or unexpected outcomes in title evaluations, there could be a one-level fluctuation up or down.

This was why Knox found the proposal so absurd.

Never mind that Lu Shixian, a master's student, was to be the person in charge.

The rest of the team members were also doctoral and graduate students.

A research team composed entirely of students?

Knox couldn't stop shaking his head. “This is absolutely insane!”

“Besides, even doctoral students are not so easy to manage.”

But at this, Lu Shixian broke into a confident smile. “Professor Knox, in China, we have a classic text.”

“If someone was born before me and learned the truth before I did, I would follow them and learn from them as my teacher.”

“If someone was born after me, but learned the truth before I did, I would also follow them and learn from them as my teacher.”

“I seek the truth; why should I care if my teacher was born before or after me?”

“Therefore, there is no high or low status, no old or young. Where the truth resides, there resides the teacher.”

“Its meaning is that learning cannot be judged by age or seniority. A capable person can surpass their predecessors. Therefore, regardless of status or age, wherever the truth is found, there you will find a teacher.”

Seeing Professor Knox looking pensive, Lu Shixian pressed his advantage. “I may not have my master’s degree yet, but I firmly believe I possess the equivalent academic ability of a doctoral candidate.”

“So, do you have any other questions?”

Knox stared blankly at the confident and sharp-edged Lu Shixian.

For a fleeting moment, he saw a shadow of his own mentor, Wells Beadle, in Lu Shixian.

And so, he shook his head with a wry smile, then asked with curiosity, “Who was the author of that passage you just quoted? He must have been a thinker of profound wisdom.”

Chapter 311: Excuse Me, Do You Believe in Light?

“Indeed. He is a very famous writer, thinker, and philosopher in China,” Lu Shixian gave him a brief introduction.

Soon, the meeting concluded just as Lu Shixian had wished.

This result was achieved, firstly, due to the relatively open research environment in the United States.

Had he been in China under the same conditions, the difficulty of achieving this would have multiplied.

Secondly, it was due to Lu Shixian’s own outstanding abilities—not just his research skills, but also his excellent communication skills.

While the latter was not the decisive factor, it was certainly a great help, saving him from many detours.

But in the final analysis, it could all be summarized by something a former teacher once told him.

The size of your stage is determined by the size of your ability.

And now, the preliminary work of building that stage was finally coming to an end. He looked forward to giving a performance that would satisfy himself.

Three days later, an email was sent out unannounced to many people’s inboxes.

In a bedroom in disarray, a hungover Lambert was awakened by the notification sound from his phone.

In the past, he had a good habit of turning off his phone before his escapades, but after missing several important meetings, he had learned some restraint.

Opening his drowsy eyes, he irritably grabbed his phone from the nightstand.

Before he even unlocked it, he was already cursing, having guessed from past experience what it was.

“Fucking hell!”

“What’s old man Wood up to? The holiday isn’t even over and a notification is already here.”

Sure enough, he opened his inbox, and it was just as he’d expected.

“Dear Dr. Tristan Lambert,”

“We hope you are enjoying your holiday. After a rigorous selection process, you have been invited to join a key laboratory project. Basic experimental materials are attached. If you are interested, please reply to this email and attend the first group meeting tomorrow at 8:30 AM. If not, please disregard.”

“Sincerely,”

After reading it, Lambert was a bit dumbfounded. It was expected, yet unexpected.

The email was somewhat different from what he had imagined.

Although he was in the Knox Plant Pathology Lab, he was a student under Professor Wood.

Judging by the content of this email, it was definitely not from Professor Wood, nor was it a project on the annual plan.

Otherwise, the tone wouldn't be so inquisitive. It could only be a project added at the last minute.

In a large lab, this was generally a rare occurrence. A project, from proposal to implementation, required a long period of time, often measured in months or even years.

And for such projects, the invitees had the right to refuse; after all, the United States often prided itself on its democracy.

“Work overtime? Not a chance. Not in this lifetime!” Lambert was about to ignore it, but after seeing the words “key project,” his hand had a mind of its own and he clicked open the attachment.

“Research on the relevant mechanisms of co-evolution between plants and pathogens?”

Lambert was completely stunned. This was absurd, because this was truly a *key* project.

As a researcher in the field of botany, he was highly sensitive to certain information.

In 2005, to mark its 125th anniversary, *Science* magazine listed “the interaction and co-evolution of plants and pathogens” as one of the 125 most challenging frontier problems for the next twenty-five years.

This showed just how hot the topic was, but its difficulty was also self-evident.

Back then, many famous international labs had chosen to take on this challenge.

But the result was always the same: they announced their attempts with great fanfare, only to retreat in silence.

He never would have imagined that the key project mentioned in this email would be so low-profile.

But did the Knox Plant Pathology Lab have the ability to solve it?

Lambert placed a large question mark over it in his mind.

“This will surely become a discovery that will shake the world of botany, and even biology, this year.”

Reading the last line, as if possessed, he suddenly changed his mind.

The next day, eight in the morning.

There was still half an hour before the meeting officially began.

In a conference room at the far end of the Plant Pathology Lab.

Knox sat at the head of the table, turning to Lu Shixian beside him to ask, “So?”

“I doubt many people replied to yesterday’s email, did they?”

“You should have listened to me. You shouldn’t have been so explicit in the attachment, or you should have let me ask their advisors to talk to them, to require their participation in their advisors’ names.”

Lu Shixian chuckled. “Professor Knox, I don’t think you understand how young people think.”

“Thirty emails were sent out yesterday. As of seven this morning, I have received eighteen replies.”

Hearing this number, Knox was quite surprised. “What gave them the courage?”

“Don’t they know how difficult ultra-frontier problems are?”

Generally, whether a research direction was at the frontier could be determined by counting its appearances in recent journals.

But there was an exception: frontier problems officially declared by top-tier journals.

Sometimes, due to their extreme difficulty, one would not see related papers published regularly.

But they were undoubtedly frontier problems, and any confirmed findings would almost certainly be accepted.

These were also known as ultra-frontier problems.

Lu Shixian didn’t answer him. Instead, he mischievously asked a completely unrelated question.

“Professor Knox, do you believe in light?”

Knox was baffled, but assumed he was talking about religion. “A scientist doesn't believe in God, only in the truth!”

“I can already imagine them leaving in a storm of anger after the initial shock.”

“To be honest, it’s been a long time since I’ve done something this crazy as an adult.”

Knox’s mood was clearly not as carefree as he appeared.

“If this project fails, the sunk costs will set back my previous efforts by several months.”

“I don’t know if I made the right decision. I just think you’d be a top-notch salesman or politician.”

But the more critical the moment, the calmer, and even more excited, Lu Shixian became.

He smiled freely. “Please, just wait and see.”

“After all, am I not also betting my youth and my future on this?”

Hearing this, Knox fell silent.

He knew Lu Shixian was right.

Good news stays home, but bad news travels fast.

With so many witnesses, if Lu Shixian failed, his name would quickly become infamous in the American research community, spreading to other places as a joke.

It was hard to say what would happen in China, but he would certainly have a difficult time making it abroad.

Knox would be fine; he was at most a supporting character, and the incident would be forgotten over time.

But if they succeeded, it would become a celebrated story, providing a huge boost to the Plant Pathology Lab’s bid to become a national-level laboratory.

At the same time, it would become the lab’s most attractive advertisement for talent.

For both of them, this had become an extremely high-stakes gamble.

And they had already placed their bets.

Betting on themselves to win.

Chapter 312: We Create the Miracle

Time passed quickly as they chatted.

With nearly ten minutes to go before the scheduled 8:30 AM start, the first person entered the conference room.

Although Lu Shixian had handled the invitation list, there were many people he didn't know well, who had been recommended by Professor Knox.

Lu Shixian was unfamiliar with this person, but he had done his homework beforehand.

The newcomer's name was Thomas Sayne, an American.

He was currently a botany PhD student at Davis, focusing on plant abiotic stress.

Lu Shixian had to forgive himself for the lack of preparation due to the tight schedule; this was all he could remember.

But he had tried his best.

At that moment, Sayne first stole a glance at Knox, who was sitting at the head of the table, then shifted his gaze to Lu Shixian.

He seemed puzzled, as if surprised that he wasn't the first to arrive.

After he sat down, other attendees began to trickle in, in twos and threes.

Soon, more familiar faces appeared in the room.

At a glance, he could see Lambert, Vasha, and Serra…

The former was even winking and making faces at Lu Shixian. If not for the formal setting, Lu Shixian was sure he would have started bragging about his holiday conquests.

Soon, the dozen or so chairs arranged in the lab were all filled.

Lu Shixian glanced at the clock on the wall and discreetly gave Knox a look, signaling that it was about time.

Knox understood immediately.

To be honest, although he was not optimistic about Lu Shixian on this point, he still hoped deep down that Lu Shixian would succeed.

They now shared a common goal. In colloquial terms, they were in the same boat.

So his cooperation was at its peak.

Knox tapped lightly on the table, drawing the attention of the dozen or so people present.

Then, he cleared his throat and continued, “As you saw in the email, we have gathered you all here today for a key project for the lab.”

“For this project, the Davis Plant Pathology Lab will provide substantial funding and logistical support to ensure its smooth implementation. This project is of great significance to the lab, and I hope everyone can participate and give it their all.”

As soon as Knox finished, an impatient student asked, “Excuse me, Professor Knox, but I’d like to ask, how much confidence do you have in this project?”

Another person stood up, not to be outdone. “I’d also like to ask if the lab has made any major breakthroughs on the issue of the co-evolutionary mechanisms between plants and pathogens?”

With Professor Knox present, these doctoral and master's students were still somewhat restrained, and only a few people voiced their questions.

But these few questions represented the doubts of everyone present, so there was no need for others to repeat them.

Seeing the somewhat intense reaction, Knox gave Lu Shixian a ‘you’re on your own’ look.

“The following questions will be answered by this… uh, student next to me. He will be in charge of the subsequent experiments.”

As soon as he said this, the room was stunned!

It was as if everyone had suddenly been put on pause; the room fell terrifyingly silent.

Those who had worked with Lu Shixian on the previous project turned to look at each other, confirming if they were seeing things correctly.

And those who knew him well were also in disbelief.

Lambert’s jaw dropped, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.

Lu Shixian smiled faintly, stood up, and faced the gazes of shock, suspicion, and even anger from everyone present.

Then, the crowd erupted!

“What? You’re not the one leading this? There isn’t even a professor in charge? You must be joking, right?”

“This project is doomed to fail. I don’t think making a mockery of us is very funny.”

“What happened today has really changed my opinion of Davis.”

The scene was on the verge of spiraling out of control.

Knox remained silent, glancing at Lu Shixian again, wanting to see how he would handle it.

If he couldn’t even solve this problem, there was no way to proceed.

Lu Shixian would not only fail to get what he wanted, but he would also be permanently cut off from this project.

But sometimes, the world is very fair.

You want to lead a project? Fine. You want first authorship? Fine. You want glory? Fine.

Prove yourself with your ability!

Lu Shixian had remained silent until now.

He knew in his heart that the third critical moment had arrived.

Erupt in the silence, or perish in it.

He slammed his hand on the table, his expression incredibly calm as he spoke the most furious of words.

“Everyone, quiet down.”

Taking advantage of the brief silence, Lu Shixian spoke again.

“To be honest, I am very disappointed right now!”

“Because the email you saw was drafted by me personally.”

“A total of thirty invitations for this project were sent out. In the end, only eighteen replied.”

“So I believe that the vast majority of you saw the final sentence I included.”

“This will surely become a discovery that will shake the world of botany, and even biology, this year.”

At this point, Lu Shixian’s gaze swept across everyone’s faces.

“I think many of you came here because of that sentence.”

“Do you desire glory, but are unwilling to put in the extra effort?”

“Do you only ever want to be the yes-men trailing behind those who have already succeeded?”

“Are you forever accustomed to waiting for the highest bidder, hesitating at every turn, and acting with timid deference?”

The large conference room now echoed with Lu Shixian’s voice alone.

“I believe many of you know that this project is an ultra-frontier problem.”

“Of the 125 frontier problems listed by *Science*, very few are in the field of biological sciences, and even fewer are in botany.”

“Its difficulty is unparalleled. But I already have an idea, because this project exists because of me.”

“All I need is your trust.”

“We are here!”

“We are together!”

“And so, we will create the miracle!”

“And so, the world will be shaken by us!”

“Immense glory will be ours to share!”

At this moment, Lu Shixian was exceptionally passionate and wild, a side of him rarely seen.

But it was this version of him that possessed a unique charisma.

In this atmosphere, many people found their emotions being unconsciously stirred by him.

“To hell with it, I’m in!”

“It’s just a waste of a little time. I’m in too!”

“This is so damn crazy. People will probably laugh at us for this, but I can’t seem to refuse.”

Los Angeles time, eleven in the morning.

After scheduling the next detailed work allocation meeting, this one finally came to a close.

Chapter 313: Lambert's Wild Imagination

When everyone had left, Lu Shixian finally released the tension and collapsed into his seat.

Knox came over from the side lounge with a cup of tea.

“Hey! Try this Chinese green tea I bought.”

“Lu, you really surprised me today. So even if you fail this time, I still believe you will succeed one day,” Knox said, his tone now sounding very certain.

Hearing his words, Lu Shixian just smiled wryly. “Professor Knox! You’re talking about failure before I’ve even started. That’s not a good sign! In China, you might be blacklisted from collaborations for that.”

“Regardless of whether I succeed next time, I intend to succeed this time.”

Professor Knox, whether he had come to terms with it or for some other reason, was no longer as anxious as before.

“Your speech and your powers of persuasion are truly incredible. You know, even I felt a little excited just now. I think politicians could learn a thing or two from you.”

Lu Shixian took the tea, inhaling the familiar aroma before taking a small sip, knowing he was joking.

“If I could rally everyone with a single call, who would resort to such tactics?”

“To put it bluntly, I just haven’t accumulated enough. My foundation is lacking.”

“It’s like the early days of a startup—always difficult, rarely smooth sailing.”

But Knox just shook his head. “No, no, no! What I mean is, you’re carrying a weight that someone your age shouldn’t have to bear.”

“It’s like a small horse pulling a large cart. To have achieved this result is, in a way, a success in itself.”

“Let me see, at your age, I was probably chasing some beautiful romance, hopelessly lost in the scent of a woman.”

At the mention of this topic, Lu Shixian was at a loss for words.

Women and all that seemed distant to him; it was a matter he hadn't yet considered, even subconsciously.

But he was more than happy to listen to other people's gossip.
"Professor Knox, you seem like a man with a story. Would you care to share some of it?" Lu Shixian asked, feeling better after his rest and getting a bit chatty.

But Knox was apparently very tight-lipped and wouldn't reveal a thing.

Well, that was that. And with that, the spark of gossip in Lu Shixian slowly died down.

After bidding farewell to Knox, he turned and left the conference room.

The moment he stepped out, he was startled to find several pairs of eyes staring blankly at him from the doorway, giving him the creepy feeling of being in a ghost story.

He looked closer and saw they were his old teammates from the original project.

The expressions on their faces were all very strange.

Lambert's reaction was the most exaggerated of all, as if he'd seen a ghost. "Oh my god! Lu, what kind of magic potion did you give Professor Knox?"

"Or are you his secret son?"

"But I remember his wife is English."

"So the truth is he had an affair?"

"He's actually letting you lead this project personally!"

"Does the lab really have that much funding to burn?"

Lu Shixian was speechless. This guy's wild imagination was clearly not being put to good use.

He replied irritably, "Do you really think that's possible?"

"If you dare say any of that in front of Professor Knox, then I'll be impressed."

Hearing this, Lambert immediately backed down.

He was just using hyperbole to express the shock he felt.

The others, though surprised, were at least managing to act like normal human beings.

"Lu, how on earth did you do it?"

"The moment you stood up, I was just completely floored."

So, Lu Shixian gave them a brief rundown of what had happened recently.

As they listened, it was Lambert whose feelings were the most complex.

After a long pause, a sentence tumbled out of Lambert's mouth. "The pathological morphology of the samples from Tyson Group had puzzled me before. I even noticed that detail before you did and tried to explain it to you."

"But I didn't think anything of it. I never thought to dig deeper, let alone connect it to co-evolution."

Beside him, Vasha gave Lu Shixian a thumbs up while deliberately teasing Lambert, "There's nothing more to say, then. That's why he's the one on the road to success, and deservedly so."

"If you spent a little less time thinking about women, I'm sure your achievements would be far greater than they are now."

This seemed to hit Lambert hard. He fell silent, lost in thought.

After parting ways with his teammates at the lab entrance, Lu Shixian returned to his apartment.

At this time on a weekday, the apartment was usually empty and quiet, a perfect moment for solitude. Lu Shixian completely relaxed.

There’s a saying: Only after experiencing life in a group do you truly appreciate the value of being alone.

The past few days had been incredibly draining for him, taking a heavy toll both physically and mentally.

He cleared his mind, refusing to dwell on what came next.

First, he would catch up on some sleep.

Five hours later, when he awoke, a crescent moon was hanging high in the sky.

After eating, Lu Shixian felt his spirit replenished and his energy restored.

He took out a pen and a blank sheet of paper and began to map out his next steps.

Due to the limited time, he hadn't been able to create a detailed plan for the events that had just transpired.

But he had run through a simple simulation of them in his head.

He was confident that with enough time, he could have done better instead of relying solely on improvisation.

First, time. There were less than five months until the end of his exchange program.

Without considering an extension, this meant his project had to be concluded within five months.

Troublesome.

Second, personnel. The team, hastily assembled, had barely had time to gel. Their effectiveness was a big question mark.

But that wasn't even the core of the problem.

The crucial point was that even though he had essentially conjured a team out of thin air with an inspiring speech, attracting or perhaps luring a group of people to his cause...

Unfortunately, some people just weren't buying it.

That's right. Of the eighteen people at that meeting, two had ultimately chosen to withdraw.

He could understand, though.

Both were close to graduation and needed to work on their final dissertations. In their own words, they didn't have time to "mess around" with Lu Shixian.

They parted on good terms. As long as they didn't regret their decision later, it was fine.

This meant that his research team, including himself, was now down to seventeen people.

What a pain.

But there was good news, too.

He reviewed his short term and long term tasks.

Thanks to his usual self discipline and hard work, the only thing he needed to complete was this project.

He didn't need to divide his attention between unfinished courses or grades.

He could focus entirely on preparing for and completing the project.

And for the project, he needed to create the most detailed plan possible.

This was incredibly important to him.

His right hand moved ceaselessly across the blank paper.

And in the white spaces, he was writing the story of his own relentless struggle.

Chapter 314: The Birth of Project Yimi

With that, all of Lu Shixian's preliminary preparations were complete.

Though it hadn't truly begun, the foundation for the long journey ahead had been laid.

A few days later, the Davis Plant Pathology Lab's research project on the mechanisms of co-evolution between plants and pathogens was officially launched.

Nearly every researcher in the lab attended the launch ceremony.

Professor Knox hosted the event and delivered a statement.

His spirits were exceptionally high. After Lu Shixian's maneuvering, he had placed great hope in this project.

"This project is one of the few in the Plant Pathology Lab in recent years to be designated as a key priority."

"Furthermore, it is the only major project in all of Davis, and perhaps in the entire United States, where all the participants are students."

As soon as he said this, many reporters who had been dozing off snapped awake, transformed into cats that had caught the scent of a big story.

What they had thought was a routine assignment was now incredibly exciting.

Experience and instinct told them this was a sensational piece of news, one that would send massive waves through the recently quiet scientific community.

Even many of the university's own professors and faculty wore expressions of astonishment.

Most of them only knew that Knox's lab seemed to have hastily added a new project, but they were unaware of the details.

This was utter nonsense!

A waste of the university's research funds!

It was doomed to fail!

Countless thoughts like these sprouted in their minds.

But even so, nothing could stop Knox's voice from reaching everyone in the hall.

"Initially, I shared the same worries and hesitations, until I saw them ride the winds, break the waves, and clear a path through every obstacle."

"They are young, they are passionate, they charge forward like burgeoning sprouts, like the rising sun, gathering momentum!"

"Therefore, I hereby officially name this project's codename: Yimi."

Many people looked confused, and Knox explained in due course, "The Yimi flower grows in the deserts of the African continent."

"Amidst drought and high heat, it spends years accumulating strength. Once it has gathered all the nutrients needed to blossom, it blooms in solitary splendor."

"After a moment of brilliance, it withers and vanishes completely. One life, one moment of beauty."

"It symbolizes miracles, tenacity, and sanctity."

"It is a miracle of nature, and so I expect and believe that the Yimi project team will create a miracle of their own."

"But whether they succeed or fail, this will become a historic moment for this university, and perhaps for the entire country."

As his voice fell, Knox stepped back, his part done.

The hall was silent.

Then, prompted by applause from an unknown corner, the clapping grew louder and more dense.

Many professors who knew Knox well applauded with looks of utter disbelief.

They all knew Knox.

Was this the same person?

Meanwhile, backstage at the conference.

Knox patted Lu Shixian's shoulder with deep emotion.

"Thank you for the speech you wrote. It only reinforces my previous opinion."

"I believe that even if you didn't pursue research, you would find success."

"I've already made a huge promise out there. If you fail to create a miracle, we'll both become laughingstocks..."

Knox didn't finish his sentence.

But Lu Shixian knew that the consequences for himself would be far more severe.

But so what?

He had always been accustomed to thinking three steps ahead for every one he took, only attempting something when he was certain of a high probability of success.

He was mature, he was prudent, he had lived two lives!

But that couldn't change the fact that he was still a young man in his prime.

He had passion, he had fire, he was in the flower of his youth!

In the following days, the once obscure Davis became a hot topic of conversation.

From word of mouth to news reports, Davis was frequently in the spotlight, a rare occurrence in its long history.

Everyone, from casual observers to professionals, offered their opinions and views.

The vast majority, however, became trolls and keyboard warriors, unleashing a torrent of verbal and written criticism.

In truth, Knox's speech had some effect, but not much.

Their target of criticism simply shifted from the original project leader to another person.

Knox took most of the blame, which was, of course, the result of their prior discussion.

It had been Lu Shixian's idea, naturally.

Knox's schedule was too packed for him to be involved in the project.

Having lost a key supporter, Lu Shixian had to squeeze every last drop of value out of him: attracting the media's fire to reduce the psychological pressure on the team members.

The project launch was just an interlude.

Perhaps because the outcome seemed like a foregone conclusion, the uproar lasted less than a month.

The lab adopted a cool-headed approach, ignoring all the noise.

The next phase of the schedule proceeded relatively smoothly.

As the de facto project leader, Lu Shixian meticulously divided the project's tasks during a group meeting.

Based on each person's skills and strengths, the sixteen members were evenly split into four task groups.

But this didn't change the fact that the project was still short-staffed, so Lu Shixian had to act as both leader and a member of the most labor-intensive group.

Soon, the seventeen project members, including Lu Shixian, began their formal experiments.

Half a month later.

The Yimi team, which had been sailing smoothly, encountered its first major obstacle, one that could affect the entire project's progress.

"Lu, according to the experimental plan you provided, we were supposed to narrow down our target area by continuously analyzing experimental results to explore the unknown mechanisms of plant-pathogen co-evolution."

"With the excellent experimental materials we have, the initial experiments were very successful, but now we've run into a problem." Lambert, from the second group, approached Lu Shixian, who was personally conducting an experiment in the third group, holding electron microscope images and experimental data.

Lu Shixian had no choice but to hand the reagent he was holding to a team member beside him. "The plant cells have just begun to proliferate. Be extra careful with the next step."

Freeing himself from the experiment, Lu Shixian asked Lambert while taking off his lab coat, "What's the situation?"

"See for yourself. It's about the plant's disease resistance response."

"Our initial idea was to first exclude and screen a batch of possibilities based on the presence and magnitude of the resistance response."

Lu Shixian nodded. "Right, that approach should be highly feasible."

Lambert just shook his head. "But what we didn't anticipate was that when the plant encounters a pathogen, the plant cells at the site of infection often undergo apoptosis in a very short amount of time."

"Once the cells die, the substances inside them trigger biochemical reactions that create huge interference for our instruments. We can't use this method to measure disease resistance at all."

"In other words, our entire approach was wrong from the very beginning!"

As he said this, the atmosphere in the surrounding area suddenly grew tense.

Chapter 315: An Unsolvable Problem?

This roadblock was clearly not made of paper like the previous ones.

Yet Lu Shixian's expression remained as calm and composed as ever.

Over the past half month, they had encountered all sorts of problems, but under Lu Shixian's leadership, they had conquered one challenge after another, big and small.

After nearly twenty days of working together, the sixteen members had gradually developed a trust in Lu Shixian.

His position as the core of the team was slowly solidifying.

At the same time, some members were beginning to shine in their own right.

The second group was responsible for the task he had described: identifying the key areas of the plant's stress response by measuring its disease resistance.

In the past, Lambert had been known as the first person to clock out of the lab on time, often distracted by trivial matters in his personal life that drained his energy.

But now, seemingly moved by Lu Shixian's earlier words, his personality and habits had changed dramatically.

He was now almost always one of the last to leave the lab, and the astonishing progress of the second group was inseparable from his hard work.

But when a person is completely immersed in something, they tend to overlook certain details.

For instance, these words probably shouldn't have been spoken so loudly within the group, but Lu Shixian didn't hold it against him.

On the contrary, he was pleased by the change, seeing another lost soul guided back to the right path.

Was partying every night really more important than the pursuit of truth?

With a word of apology, Lu Shixian led Lambert to his temporary office.

He rarely actually came here, spending most of his time in the lab.

This was one of the reasons he was so well-regarded by the team.

Flipping on the office light, Lu Shixian picked up the experimental data and examined it carefully.

After a long moment, Lu Shixian finally spoke.

"That can't be right. Even if apoptosis is rapid, it should still be possible to obtain relatively accurate experimental data. There shouldn't be such a large margin of error."

"So, is it possible the problem lies with your experimental design or your technique?"

Hearing this, Lambert's brow furrowed tightly.

"While I can't rule out that possibility, the chances are very low."

"My experimental design was validated with rigorous theoretical logic. The probability of an issue there is small."

"As for technique, honestly, I admit I'm not as precise as you are, but I'm better than most of the PhD students on this team."

"Which means if my technique is the problem, then this project might as well be over."

Lu Shixian let out an involuntary sigh.

In his heart, he knew Lambert was telling the truth.

He had indeed underestimated the disadvantages of a team composed entirely of graduate students.

Many of them lacked fundamental lab skills and weren't even very smooth with basic experimental procedures.

But the problem was that, whether Lambert's hypothesis was true or false, it was a massive obstacle to the project's progress.

If the direction was wrong, starting over would be the biggest waste of time.

It would mean all their preliminary preparations and work would become a pile of useless paper.

If the technique was the problem, improving the team members' skills would undoubtedly require a huge investment of time and money.

The problem Lambert had raised seemed utterly unsolvable.

"You can go back for now. I'll think of something," Lu Shixian said, his tone as relaxed as ever.

Once he was alone, he gently pressed his right hand to his forehead.

Lu Shixian's breathing grew heavy.

How could he solve this?

Redesign the experimental plan?

Or conduct emergency training?

The former was time consuming and laborious; the latter was unreasonable.

The time and effort involved in the first option needed no explanation.

To be honest, he had really overestimated the graduate students in America.

Even these elites studying at Ivy League universities.

After all, while Lambert's lab skills were decent, this was a guy who used to spend more than half his free time in nightclubs, though his natural talent certainly played a part.

But his skills were only at an upper-tier level. If he was the standard, then nearly half the people here were unqualified, especially for an experiment this delicate at the cellular level.

Clearly, they hadn't put much effort into it.

Experimental technique might seem like a basic research skill.

But in reality, not many researchers around the world actually spend much time at the lab bench.

Putting aside the older generation of scientists who had moved away from benchwork due to age and physical limitations, many people took shortcuts, using pre-existing data or focusing entirely on pure theory.

There was no need to punish himself for others' laziness. He had no obligation to help them improve their skills for free.

His goal was simply to complete the project, not run a charity.

Of course, he wasn't a heartless person, but that was contingent on them asking for help themselves.

Two hours passed, and Lu Shixian was still torn.

Over the past few weeks, he had solved dozens of problems.

But with this one, he felt trapped in a mental box, unable to see a way out.

However, a man can't let a full bladder kill him.

It dawned on Lu Shixian that he hadn't even confirmed where the problem actually was.

Trying to find a solution without even identifying the problem was like a deaf man trying to enjoy an opera—a complete waste of effort.

He had been letting his concern cloud his judgment; after all, this project meant a great deal to him.

He put his white lab coat back on, appeared at the second group's lab bench, and handed Lambert a piece of paper.

"Dr. Lambert, repeat the experiment according to the design I've written here!"

"Just perform the procedure as you normally would."

Lambert immediately understood Lu Shixian's purpose: to confirm the root of the problem.

If the general direction was correct, and there were only two variables, he could control one to find the answer.

With the same level of technique, if a different experimental design produced a different result, it clearly meant the design was the issue.

If the result was the same, then the problem was obviously with the technique.

It was the most primitive, and also the most effective, method.

But he felt a strong resistance to it. Whether the problem was his design or his technique, Lu Shixian's first instinct wasn't to look for flaws in his own approach but to attribute the problem to him.

"Lu! Are you so certain your overall direction isn't the problem?"

"You know, if the direction is wrong, everything you're doing now is meaningless."

"You'll just be heading further and further down the wrong path."

Lu Shixian was already mentally exhausted, and hearing this challenge, he instantly felt a surge of irritation.
If team members can question the leader's decisions at will, the research team will never get far.

It was true that Lambert's personality had changed, but he had also become more stubborn.

Chapter 316: This Guy is Hardcore

“If the direction is wrong, I will take full responsibility.”

“What you need to do right now is follow orders.”

Their voices grew louder and louder, even attracting the attention of members from other task groups, who stopped what they were doing.

To them, this was a rare sight.

Although Lu Shixian was the de facto leader of the project, he never lost his temper or argued with anyone.

What on earth was going on?

But as they listened more closely, they gradually understood what was happening.

The two working with Lambert were also male PhD students. Vasha, who was closest to him, had been assigned to the fourth group.

Her excellent writing and data processing skills would greatly speed up the paper's completion.

“Lambert, you should just listen to Lu. Almost all of his past decisions have been proven correct,” one of the PhD students couldn't help but advise.

But this sentence seemed to trigger his rebellious streak. He grew even more sullen, and his voice rose.

“I don't think I'm wrong at all. Why should I listen to him?”

“This replication experiment isn't difficult. Lu, why don't you do it yourself?”

“And with so many people in the project group, why don't you ask them to do it?”

As soon as these words were out, the entire lab held its breath.

This guy is so hardcore!

They never expected the drama to suddenly involve them.

Especially Vasha from the fourth task group, who frowned and walked over to his side.

“Lambert?”

“What's gotten into you? Why have you become so paranoid?”

“Lu asking you to do the experiment is a sign of his trust in you!”

Hearing this, Lambert burst out laughing. “Trust? What a joke!”

“If he trusted me, would he ask me to do a verification replication experiment?”

Lu Shixian was reaching his limit as well.

“Lambert, if you don't want to do it, then don't. I don't think our project needs a troublemaker.”

But Lambert seemed unfazed. “Hahaha, so what if I don't do it?”

“Are you going to kick me out?”

At this, he suddenly looked up at the crowd that had gathered and pointed with his right hand.

“Not only is the project group short-handed, but I can guarantee my experimental skills are among the best here.”

“If I leave, who will your project rely on?”

“Him? Her? Or him?”

“Or the other third-rate hacks just here to fill the numbers?”

His right hand swept over Serra, Vasha, and another male member.

Then he took off his safety gloves and slammed them down on the lab bench.

“Whoever you want to do it can do it. Anyway, my time here has been a waste. It's a good time for me to take a break.”

With that, he turned and left.

At that moment, the corners of almost everyone's mouths twitched, a chill running down their spines.

This guy must be crazy, like a rabid dog, biting everyone in sight.

The most crucial part was, after so many days of observation, the people he had pointed out were relatively close to him.

This was just outrageous!

Lu Shixian's brow furrowed. He looked at the surrounding crowd and said, “Since he doesn't want to continue, let him go! All of you, disperse!”

But before they left, Lu Shixian suddenly added, “I'm sure you all heard him.”

“What Lambert said might have been harsh, but there's some truth to his crude words. I can't always rely on him to complete the experiments.”

“But I have to admit, his skills are indeed very strong.”

After saying this, Lu Shixian left directly.

The entire laboratory fell silent.

It was obvious his words had deeply wounded their pride.

Why is that Lambert so arrogant?

Just because he's a little better at experiments?

It's not like no one else can do it. A strange mix of emotions stirred within everyone.

A few minutes later, in a coffee shop outside the plant pathology lab.

Lambert smiled and raised his cup to Lu Shixian. “Lu, I really went all out for your plan.”

“My image in everyone's eyes has hit rock bottom now.”

Lu Shixian just gave him a slight smile. “Lambert, if you ever decide to chase a dream in showbiz, I think you'd have a bright future. If I didn't know beforehand that you were following my script, I almost would have believed it was real.”

“I think you'll have to explain things to Vasha afterward. She seemed a bit down.”

Lambert shook his head, rejecting the suggestion. “If you're going to put on a show, you have to go all the way. With Vasha there, my performance seemed all the more seamless.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian just sighed. “I really have to thank you this time.”

“Your questions reminded me that our experimental skill level doesn't represent everyone's.”

“But we can't possibly complete all the experiments ourselves. This project ultimately relies on the strength of the collective.”

“Besides, many people were full of drive when they first joined, but as time went on, they gradually lost their fighting spirit and just wanted to get by.”

Lambert was not surprised at all. “That's normal. This project is difficult to begin with, and the team members weren't rigorously screened. Many of them aren't fully focused on the pursuit of truth.”

“They're just thinking about getting a graduate degree and then making money in the real world. You're really playing on hell mode this time.”

“If I were in your shoes, I would have given up long ago.”

Lu Shixian shook his head repeatedly after hearing this. “It's good enough that we have people participating. We can't ask too much of others. When problems arise, we have to look for the cause within ourselves.”

Lambert sighed as well. “Honestly, if I had figured this out sooner, I could have been a great help to you.”

“But now, we can only hope these people will change.”

“Judging by our little play today, even Vasha was provoked by you. That means it was very effective!” Lu Shixian said with a smile instead. “Therefore, I have reason to believe that everyone in the project group will experience tremendous growth in the future.”

“Of course, the most crucial thing is that our experiments can proceed more smoothly.”

A month later, the atmosphere of the entire project group had indeed changed dramatically, just as Lu Shixian had predicted.

It was like the catfish effect; the problem was a very real one.

Lu Shixian had discovered this issue long ago.

Many people's experimental procedures were not standardized, creating numerous errors and having an immeasurable negative impact on the experiments.

If this continued, they could work until they went blind and still not be on the right path.

Therefore, change became the top priority!

And so, Lu Shixian and Lambert directed and acted in a fierce argument in the lab, with the goal of boosting the team members' motivation.

Chapter 317: Never Judge a Book by Its Cover

This brought up the disadvantage of not having a heavyweight figure on the team.

Although Lu Shixian had won their approval with his excellent communication skills and genuine knowledge, this didn't mean he had earned their respect.

In their subconscious, a Chinese exchange student like him was, at best, a like-minded colleague, not a leader who could guide them to success.

This was precisely why Lu Shixian had painstakingly orchestrated this whole drama.

Although the minds of strategists are often considered dirty, he dared to guarantee that he remained untainted.

Because he had copied it from the Thirty-Six Stratagems. Wasn't this just "crossing the sea under camouflage"?

Spurred on by this incident, many people's experimental skills improved visibly.

Lu Shixian had to give them credit. It was truly arduous. Although he enjoyed doing experiments, he had to admit that it was an incredibly draining task.

Take the plant disease resistance experiment Lambert had done before; if there was even a slight delay, the experimental data could end up being inaccurate.

Therefore, many experiments were quite tedious. They were never isolated but were closely and logically linked to previous ones. The slightest bit of slack could mean losing the chance to obtain accurate data.

This was one of the main reasons Lu Shixian valued experimental ability so highly.

A month later, through the joint efforts of the team members and after countless experiments, they finally narrowed their focus to different organelles such as the cell membrane, chloroplasts, and the nucleus.

“Currently, all the disease resistance experiments are complete.”

“Lu, it turns out the experimental direction you proposed at the very beginning was indeed the right path,” Lambert's seemingly conciliatory words put a final punctuation mark on their previous argument.

But new problems followed one after another. They had lost their direction again, as the first phase of experiments and results was coming to an end.

During a regular group meeting.

“It's clear that some kind of connection exists between these organelles, allowing them to coordinate their actions, ultimately prompting the plant to mount various effective responses when facing pathogen attacks.” A PhD student named Lucas had become the second team member to stand out due to his excellent performance in the third group, catching Lu Shixian's attention.

“Obviously, what's left is to figure out the mechanism of connection between them. I believe then our project will be solved.”

Lu Shixian nodded, affirming his idea.

“You're right. All the experiments are getting closer and closer to my own thoughts, which is highly consistent with my initial hypothesis.”

“Therefore, I believe our next key objective is to understand the details of the plant's stress response.”

At this point, Lu Shixian began to explain in detail.

“Based on my speculation, I have a few preliminary hypotheses. One is indirect regulation, where certain endogenous plant molecules participate in the division of labor among organelles to regulate the plant's response to disease.”

“Another is direct regulation, where the plant secretes certain biomolecules that inhibit the spread of pathogens, directly striking the pathogen to complete its response to the stimulus.”

“The last one is gene expression. This method mainly involves signal transduction, where a mechanism transmits signals from outside the cell to the inside, thereby affecting the expression of genetic material in the nucleus, activating or creating a defense mechanism to cope with pathogen invasion.”

After laying out the three hypotheses, Lu Shixian looked around the conference table and asked, “Someone doubted my direction before, and although facts have proven my previous research direction was correct, can anyone now offer their opinion on our next experimental direction?”

However, this time, no dissenting voices were heard.

Lu Shixian was a little dissatisfied. Although his explanation was detailed, his goal was not to turn the project group into an echo chamber where he had the only say.

One person's ability is ultimately limited. To accomplish something, relying on the strength of the collective is crucial.

So, Lu Shixian offered a little clarification: “Feel free to speak your minds. We haven't officially decided on the next experimental direction yet. Every suggestion you make could spark new inspiration.”

Soon, someone offered their opinion: “I think indirect regulation is the most likely. If diseased plants were that intelligent and could carry out precision strikes against pathogens, there wouldn't be so many plants withering from invasions.”

But others had a different opinion: “What era is this? It's the age of genetics! I think it's highly likely that some signal causes a favorable change in the expression of genetic material to resist the pathogen.”

“I believe gene expression is the most probable!”

These two views were the most popular, but they weren't the only ones. Someone did choose direct regulation.

“I think you're all overlooking one thing: co-evolution.”

“According to you, it's always the pathogen forcing the plant to change. If the pathogen never changes, then how can you even talk about co-evolution?”

After this guy's point, the entire room fell silent.

Because what he said did make a lot of sense.

But if that was the case, all three research directions were highly plausible.

This was impossible; they clearly didn't have the energy or time to verify all three directions simultaneously.

So, the time had come to make a choice.

The pressure now shifted back to Lu Shixian, as he was the one who had to make the decision.

He was the one to give the final word, and he had more to consider. It was an extremely difficult moment.

“I…” Just as Lu Shixian was about to make a decision, someone suddenly spoke up.

“Lu, I have to admit your intuition on this kind of project is very sharp. You're truly talented.”

“Each hypothesis you've proposed is highly feasible, but is it possible that all three types of regulation are compatible?”

“It's just that we can't determine which one takes the lead!”

At this, the once-debating conference room fell utterly silent.

Including Lu Shixian, this was indeed a possibility they hadn't considered at first.

He looked up at the speaker. Indeed, you can't judge a book by its cover, nor measure the sea with a bushel.

The speaker was named Arc Brandon. In the team, he had the weakest academic credentials, coming from some unknown university in Africa—they couldn't even be sure if it was a diploma mill.

Brandon was in the first task group and usually seemed unremarkable, not as flamboyant as Lambert, almost like he was invisible.

No one had expected him to come up with such a constructive suggestion!

Chapter 318: Might as Well Go Big

This was indeed a very plausible scenario.

But this hypothesis wasn't flawless.

Someone quickly raised an objection to his idea.

“If we do that, we'll need to consider all three directions simultaneously. What if one of them turns out to be a dead end?”

“That would waste a lot of time and energy. I feel it's not worth the risk.”

“I think it's better to focus our efforts on trying one first. If it proves feasible and we get results, then we can consider the other possibilities.”

“This way, we can also use facts to respond to some of the earlier criticism.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he immediately got a lot of support.

This was something they felt deeply.

From the moment the project was publicly announced and the team members were revealed, doubters, mockers, and the envious had descended upon them like a plague of locusts.

It was clear that none of them had received recognition from their classmates or even their professors.

There was open disparagement and secret slander.

But the best response to all this was to prove them wrong.

If they could produce strong, powerful results, they could shut those people's filthy mouths.

This was undoubtedly what many of them yearned for.

However, he was still refuted by another faction.

The two sides debated heatedly, but after a long time, they still couldn't reach a consensus.

Finally, the gazes of both sides fell upon Lu Shixian.

“Lu, you proposed all three research directions, so you should be the one to decide.”

“That's right. Whatever you say, we'll do.”

After the Lambert incident, the team's perception of Lu Shixian had undergone a subtle transformation.

In their minds, he was no longer just a peer.

Lu Shixian listened to the entire argument from both sides.

Their words were impassioned, but their core points were actually easy to understand.

It was simply a question of whether to divide their forces into three or to unite as one.

The former was a big, ambitious step, but it could easily run into obstacles, and a single setback could be demoralizing.

The latter consolidated the wisdom and strength of the entire team to tackle one point, which would be highly efficient.

This was one of the few truly memorable moments of the project.

Lu Shixian took a deep breath and looked up, meeting the dozen or so expectant gazes of his team.

It was as if they were saying they would support whatever decision he made.

From a scattered group to a united force, this trust had not come easily.

This feeling was truly wonderful—everyone working hard for the same goal.

With a team like this, his heart swelled with heroic spirit!

He slammed his palm down on the conference table, the sound echoing through the room.

“Separate results aren't good enough.”

“Instead of fiddling with small stuff, we might as well go big!”

“For the battle ahead, does everyone have confidence?”

As his voice fell, the crowd erupted with excitement!

“Of course! I've been raring to go.”

“It just means being a turtle in its shell for a little longer.”

“We will succeed, and then we'll make those people shut their filthy mouths!”

The first phase of the research was complete, and they had made some positive progress.

So, Lu Shixian immediately disbanded the previous task groups.

The original four groups were reorganized into three.

Their tasks shifted from a vertical, sequential relationship to a horizontal, parallel one.

Even Lu Shixian hadn't considered that this change would have an additional, greatly beneficial effect on the team.

That is, by dividing a project from start to finish, there would inevitably be a distinction between critical and non-critical stages.

This was unavoidable.

But the parallel division of labor filled every group with drive.

Yes, they were a team, but there wasn't just cooperation among them; there was also competition.

With full cooperation and fair competition, everyone could have their moment to shine and a chance to stand out.

PhD and Master's students in China are often treated as "research dogs." The situation is slightly better abroad, but not by much.

At first, they really didn't have much faith in themselves, but as time passed, they slowly gained confidence.

Although the project often hit roadblocks, like a newborn toddler stumbling and falling, they would get back up and keep walking.

This undoubtedly proved they were on the right path to success.

Yes! They could see hope!

From then on, Lu Shixian also invested more and more of his energy into this project.

If before he would occasionally go for a morning workout or go back for a nap, at this stage, he was practically eating and sleeping in the lab.
It is now known that over the long course of evolution, plants, in their battle against pathogenic invasion, have developed the ability to accurately detect the entry of pathogens, mount effective defensive measures, and ultimately eliminate them.

So, based on the current experimental results, this process seems to be…

“Lu, you’re really pushing yourself. How long have you been cooped up in here?” Vasha remarked, looking at Lu Shixian, who was still lost in thought even though he was in the break room.

Lu Shixian’s train of thought was broken, and he frowned instinctively.

Seeing his expression, Vasha immediately looked apologetic.

In the past, Lu Shixian was often in this state after leaving the lab.

Sometimes, due to urgent matters or time constraints, she had no choice but to interrupt him.

But she had never seen him look displeased before, which clearly meant that what he had just been thinking about was extremely important.

This time, however, Lu Shixian didn't complain. He simply asked, “Do you have a pen?”

Without hesitation, Vasha pulled a sheet of paper from the stack of lab reports she was holding and flipped it over to its blank side.

As if it were just a piece of scrap paper, not the analysis report she had just spent immense effort writing.

Lu Shixian took a fountain pen from his breast pocket and began to write on the paper.

As the nib moved, words began to appear. It seemed Lu Shixian's interrupted train of thought had reconnected.

Curious, Vasha couldn't help but glance over.

“Plant disease resistance mechanism: Signal recognition to signal transduction to defense completion.”

But he quickly drew a question mark next to “defense completion.”

Then he drew a vertical line down from it and wrote, “Pathogen enhancement, defense failure.”

Lu Shixian drew another line, but this time, he couldn't seem to add any notes.

The thought had come in a flash, and it left just as quickly.

In the end, Lu Shixian still couldn't find the answer he was looking for.

He finally looked up at Vasha. “Do you mind if I take this paper?”

Vasha shook her head. “Of course not!”

“What’s up?” Lu Shixian had no time for pleasantries, getting straight to the point.

He knew Vasha’s personality; she wouldn't disturb him unless it was something important.

Vasha quickly explained, “There is something. It's starting to affect the project's progress because…”

Before she could finish, Lu Shixian had already thrown on his coat and stood up.

Chapter 319: I Think This is a Misunderstanding

On the way to the lab.

“What exactly is going on?” He had lost count of how many fires he’d had to put out. Some problems were certainly easier to handle the sooner they were caught.

Vasha explained as concisely as possible, “Sela got into an argument with personnel from another lab. Based on how things look, it could escalate at any moment.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian felt a headache coming on.

To be honest, he hadn't heard any good news in a long time.

Instead, he'd been dealing with one unexpected problem after another.

And now this threatened to bring everything to a halt.

The project team was already small, and everyone was shouldering a heavy workload.

Losing even one person would have serious consequences.

When he arrived at the scene, his view was blocked by the surrounding crowd, but he could still hear the argument inside.

“Mira, I clearly registered in advance for the biochemistry lab. On what grounds are you stopping me from entering?”

“According to the regulations for key projects in the Plant Pathology Lab, we're allowed to use this lab five times a week.”

A sneer was heard in response.

“What's the point? Your project is a complete waste of the lab's funding.”

“You've monopolized all the labs. What are we supposed to use?”

“Your project is a project, but mine isn't?”

“You can't be naive enough to think some miracle is going to happen, can you?”

“Relying on that wet-behind-the-ears exchange student from China?”

“I think you're losing your touch. That place is so backward, not even a dog would go there, and you're actually taking orders from him.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian struggled to remain calm. He turned his head to Vasha and asked, “The first voice was Sela's. Who is he arguing with?”

Vasha was clearly well-informed. “This is probably just a coincidence. That guy is just using this as an excuse to stir up trouble.”

“He’s in the same class as Sela. He lost the scholarship competition to Sela last year and has held a grudge ever since. This time, he's just trying to get under Sela’s skin.”

Hearing her explanation, Lu Shixian just shook his head.

“You're only seeing part of the picture. It would be great if it were that simple.”

“Look around. Besides our own people, how many are trying to break up the fight?”

“Hardly any. That shows that the others are, more or less, indifferent to this, or even letting it happen.”

“Their attitude says it all. It looks like they're targeting Sela, but ultimately, it's aimed at our lab.”

Vasha quickly understood and sighed.

“But there's not much we can do. Our project is advancing on three fronts simultaneously, so the intensity and frequency of our experiments are much higher than before.”

“As a result, we're taking up too much time in the shared labs, which has caused resentment among members of other labs.”

“Actually, it's not just arguments. They already had a low opinion of us, so they used it as an excuse to close off these labs. Even for the ones that are open, the equipment inside is long obsolete.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian’s brow furrowed. The situation was clearly more serious than he had imagined.

The consequences of Knox being away were now on full display.

But he had anticipated this.

Lu Shixian pushed through the crowd, came to Sela's side, and stared at the man opposite him.

“So you're the one who just said not even a dog would go to my homeland?”

Mira hadn't expected that just by running his mouth and making a sarcastic comment, he'd summon the man himself.

Lu Shixian didn't quite fit his image of a Chinese person.

Seeing Lu Shixian's tall and sturdy build, which carried a certain physical intimidation, Mira immediately felt an urge to back down.

He wasn't an idiot. For a Chinese exchange student like Lu Shixian to be doing so well here, he had to have some ability.

But as the saying goes, there's courage in numbers.

With so many people watching, he couldn't just back down.

So he stubbornly retorted, “Am I wrong?”

“I once heard a story from my Japanese friend about 'No Dogs or Chinese Allowed.'”

“That actually happened, right? Are you going to deny it?”

Hearing these words, the usually calm Lu Shixian felt a surge of anger for the first time.

He hadn't reacted this strongly even when he'd heard the insults directed at himself.

At that moment, he wanted nothing more than to stuff his fist into Mira's foul mouth.

No wonder some of the project members had mentioned the urge to punch someone. Some people were genuinely infuriating.

But the angrier he got, the calmer he became.

Sometimes, force couldn't solve a problem and could even make things more complicated, especially in a foreign country.

He knew very well that abroad, every individual represents the image of their group.

It was like an actor he admired who specialized in villain roles but refused to play them overseas, no matter the fame or money.

The principle was the same, so he couldn't be the first to throw a punch.

But that didn't mean he couldn't fight back.

“I will report your words verbatim to Professor Louis.”

“He's planning to accompany me on a visit to China after this academic year.”

“I imagine he'll have some thoughts on this. And from what I know, he happens to be the chairman of the Davis Academic Review Committee.”

Though Lu Shixian's voice wasn't loud, it struck Mira's heart like a heavy hammer.

He didn't need Lu Shixian to explain. Everyone at Davis knew the name Professor Louis.

In a place renowned for agriculture and botany, the name of a Wolf Prize laureate was the ultimate seal of approval.

He certainly didn't think Lu Shixian was bluffing.

If he remembered correctly, Lu Shixian had already made a name for himself with a presentation in Professor Louis's class.

It seemed plausible.

The whole conflict with Sela had started over last year's scholarship assessment. If Professor Louis heard about this, this year's scholarship could be affected too.

If he came from a wealthy family with money to spare, he wouldn't care so much about the scholarship.

But his family wasn't rich. He desperately needed that money to pay for his tuition and living expenses.

Clearly, it wasn't a gamble he was willing to take.

A battle of wills was worthless in the face of survival.

“I think this is a misunderstanding. I didn't mean it that way,” Mira quickly backed down.

“China is a beautiful country, I admire it very much. My Japanese friend just misled me.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian shook his head inwardly.

No one was a fool.

If Mira had any integrity and stuck to his guns, Lu Shixian was confident he had plenty of other legal ways to make him miserable.

After all, many of the slick moves from ten years in the future were beyond Mira's comprehension.

With the matter resolved, the crowd dispersed.

Sela and Vasha followed Lu Shixian on the way back.

“Lu, thank you! You've even changed many of my stereotypes about East Asians,” Sela said sincerely.

Chapter 320: You’ve Got Three Minutes for Your Show

“Don't mention it. I was letting off some steam for myself, too.”

Lu Shixian shrugged. “That guy really does have a foul mouth, but he also knows when to back down. If he had kept running his mouth, I would have taught him a lesson he’d never forget.”

“Of course, if he's colorblind, that's another story.”

“Haha, after this, I don’t think he’ll be causing any more trouble,” Sela said happily.

Hearing this, Lu Shixian shook his head. “He’s just small fry. Not worth worrying about.”

“The bottlenecks we’re facing in the project are what we really need to rack our brains over.”

The topic shifted to the project, and Sela’s interest was piqued.

“How’s the progress on the three fronts?”

Lu Shixian shook his head again. “To be honest, I still underestimated the difficulty of such a cutting-edge problem.”

“Advancing on three fronts simultaneously is a huge test for me and for all of you.”

“Right now, we've preliminarily determined that the plant's stress response process to pathogens is: signal recognition—signal transduction—defense execution.”

“But we don’t know enough about the details. During the plant’s defense process, is it direct regulation, indirect regulation, or gene regulation that plays the dominant role? We don’t have an answer yet.”

“Moreover, the plant’s defense isn't always successful. If it fails, what are the subsequent mechanisms? We still know nothing about that either.”

Sela was astonished.

“I can’t believe your thinking has already reached this stage.”

“Honestly, just the plant stress response process you outlined could be considered a significant achievement.”

“Don’t push yourself too hard.”

Then, Sela added with great admiration, “You know, you’re only 22. That’s an incredible age.”

“To be leading a project team at your age, especially a key project… I've never seen anything like it, at least not in my experience.”

“In that regard, you’re the only one I admire.”

Lu Shixian smiled faintly, remaining modest. “Just right place, right time. Pure luck.”

Walking behind them, Vasha heard this and couldn't help but roll her eyes at the back of Lu Shixian's head.

But in truth, there was no exaggeration in what Sela said.

In the world of scientific research, it takes a very, very long time for an ordinary research grunt to grow into a project leader who can stand on their own.

For starters, would a Master’s graduate dare to command people with higher qualifications?

Even a PhD student was just a slightly more valued research grunt, with no real change in status.

After graduating with a doctorate around the age of thirty, you would toil for several more years to finally become a postdoc.

Or your title might change from assistant lecturer to lecturer, and finally to associate professor, a process that spanned a very long time.

Take Wood, whom both Lu Shixian and Sela knew. He was nearly fifty and had only just made it to associate professor, serving as a project leader in a lab.

This showed that participating in a project and leading one were two completely different things.

Whatever luck Lu Shixian had, to achieve at his age what others only did in their forties was a testament to his abilities.

They almost jogged all the way back to the lab. By now, the members, whether they had witnessed the event firsthand or heard about it, were all looking at Lu Shixian with admiration.

It seemed there was nothing this man from China couldn't accomplish.

The “fire chief” nickname really was well-deserved!

“What are you all looking at me for?” Lu Shixian coughed pointedly to get their attention.

“Are the cell cultures done?”

“Have you finished the replication experiments?”

“Are the lab reports written?”

This triple-barreled, soul-crushing interrogation sent them all scurrying back to their workstations to do their jobs.

At that moment, the team felt different than before. A sense of cohesion was forming among them.

It seemed insignificant, but it was crucial for teamwork.

Three months later.

The “Yimi” Project meeting room.

Only one month remained before the end of the exchange program.

In just a few months, Lu Shixian’s expression had gained a new maturity.

He was now adept at mastering the secrets and rhythm of project research.

“It has been exactly four months since the project was established.”

“According to the decision we made in the last phase, we’ll now have the three groups report on their progress.”

“Then, based on the situation, I will make adjustments to our previous direction.”

By this point, Sela had become Lu Shixian’s most visible number one supporter in the project group.

He quickly gestured, earning the first chance to present.

“Our group’s task is to investigate the direct regulation mechanism of plants in response to pathogens.”

“Under the brilliant guidance of our boss, and after nearly three months of hard work, we have determined the specific form of this mechanism through countless experiments. It was incredibly difficult, but…”

Before Sela could finish, Lu Shixian cut him off.

“Cut the crap. Our time is precious. Just get to the point.”

Sela sheepishly abandoned his long-winded speech and got straight to the heart of the matter.

“Specifically, the plant first perceives specific pathogen signal molecules through the cell membrane, generating a signal that a pathogen is invading. Next, we found this signal inside the plant cell's chloroplasts, which proves that the second stop for the disease resistance signal is the chloroplast.”

“Using molecular tagging techniques, we finally found traces of these signal molecules in the cell nucleus. This conclusively demonstrates that the plant's stress response pathway to pathogens is: cell membrane—chloroplast—cell nucleus.”

“But obviously, this method contradicts known signal transduction pathways. When discussing it with the boss earlier, we decided to name this pathway ‘retrograde signaling.’ This is clearly a major discovery!”

As he said this, Sela’s voice was filled with excitement. Those few short sentences contained the fruits of his and his team's round-the-clock efforts.

Clap, clap, clap…

Enthusiastic applause filled the meeting room. It was indeed a moment worth celebrating.

But Sela grew anxious and quickly continued, “Hey! Wait, I’m not finished.”

Lu Shixian gestured for the applause to stop, then gave Sela a look that said, “You’ve got three minutes for your show.”

Sela got the message and immediately sped up.

“And the fundamental method of direct regulation is through this retrograde signaling, which allows the cell to transmit the pathogen invasion signal from the outside to different compartments within the plant cell's chloroplast.”

“As the special organelle that enables photosynthesis, the chloroplast is undoubtedly the core of the plant's response to stimuli…”

Chapter 321: Unexpected Results

“The above is the entirety of our group’s findings from the past few days.”

After Sela finished, the room once again erupted in fervent applause.

This was the first time such a mechanism had been discovered in the world, making it immensely valuable and significant.

Lu Shixian also nodded in satisfaction. “Although I proposed the direction and provided some suggestions along the way…”

“I witnessed this discovery emerge from nothing. The members of the first group have all put in a great deal of effort.”

At this point, Lu Shixian said something that made everyone erupt.

“Regarding the direct regulation mechanism in plant pathogen stress response, the first authorship on the paper resulting from this conclusion is rightfully theirs.”

As soon as he said this, Sela froze as if stunned.

Then, he jumped up in joy, shouting repeatedly, “Boss, I love you!”

The other two groups laughed while also looking on with envy.

For a scientific researcher, or rather, for a research grunt, there was no reward more appealing than this.

But in Lu Shixian’s mind, they deserved it.

He simply put on a deliberately disgusted expression. “Get outta here. You're barking up the wrong tree. I'm not gay.”

After the joke, Lu Shixian steered the conversation back on track.

“Group One has finished. Does anyone else want to go next?”

After the previous example, everyone's enthusiasm was ignited, and they all vied to be the second to speak.

In the end, the opportunity went to Lambert, the leader of Group Two.

The moment he raised his hand, the others didn’t dare compete with him.

Clearly, the memory of the last incident was still fresh in their minds.

Lambert looked around, then stood up as if it were his right.

“Our group is responsible for researching the mechanism of direct regulation after a plant responds to pathogen invasion.”

“At the time, based on theory and past experience, we predicted that the plant would secrete some kind of biomolecule to inhibit the spread of the pathogen, thereby directly attacking it and completing its response to the stimulus.”

“We've made some progress in this direction, but we also discovered something different along the way, something I believe everyone will be interested in.”

His words piqued the interest of many in the room.

Lu Shixian, having been involved throughout the process, naturally knew what he was leaving unsaid. He was just a bit speechless at his methods.

Even at a time like this, he was still trying to build suspense.
However, he wasn't the one being kept in suspense, so what did it matter to him?

In fact, this was a perfect opportunity to strengthen the bond between Lambert and the other members, a development he was more than happy to see.

This, however, was torture for the members of the other two groups, their faces etched with impatience.

But they were hesitant to ask directly, holding their tongues.

Among a dozen people, however, there was bound to be someone who had no fear of Lambert. Vasha, from Group Three, quickly urged him impatiently, "Spit it out."

Vasha's tone was quite annoyed. The reason she was so blunt was that she knew the truth always comes out eventually.

Vasha, who was on reasonably good terms with both Lu Shixian and Lambert, had once privately discovered a crack in their supposedly hostile relationship.

Lu Shixian and Lambert, who should have been like fire and water, were actually chatting and laughing together. The sight had almost made her question reality.

Faced with Vasha's questioning, Lambert naturally didn't dare to put on any airs and immediately satisfied her curiosity.

"First, through our research, we discovered the specific direct regulatory mechanism plants use when facing pathogens."

"We observed a type of pattern recognition receptor on the plant cell membrane. When encountering a pathogen, this receptor identifies its molecular patterns and ultimately activates the immune defense function to resist the invasion."

"This situation was more or less what we had anticipated."

"But then we discovered a special case. Plants are obviously not always invincible; they have their moments of failure."

"Even after a plant's initial defense fails, it doesn't mean the war against the invasion is lost. We found that their cells remain active, which clearly indicates the plant won the war through some other means."

At this point, Lambert's expression turned to one of deep regret. "But to this day, we still haven't figured out what that method is."

"And yet, it draws us in, compelling us to pursue it!"

At that moment, everyone was stunned.

They never imagined that after Group One's presentation, there would be another discovery this astonishing.

Although the truth behind it had yet to be uncovered, not all papers published in journals are based on fully proven discoveries.

Sometimes, a sufficiently captivating prediction or conjecture is more eagerly pursued by scientists than established theorems.

Examples included the Four-Color Theorem, the Goldbach Conjecture, Fermat's Last Theorem, and the Riemann Hypothesis.

Leaving aside the money and honor that came with proving such a conjecture, the immense sense of achievement from successfully pursuing truth was simply unparalleled.

Applause once again filled the conference room, praising their work.

Soon, it was Group Three's turn to present their work on using gene-mediated methods to counter pathogen invasion.

The one who stood up to present was Brandon. He had a keen sense for gene expression and had later earned the respect of the others with his solid genetic experiment techniques, becoming the group leader.

As an international student from Africa, reaching this point must have taken immense effort, and it was by no means easy. Lu Shixian admired him greatly for it.

At this moment, Brandon stood with more confidence and conviction than he had during his last presentation.

"To this day, I still firmly believe in the view I held months ago, and it now seems there is sufficient evidence to prove my point."

"Through cloning technology, we successfully replicated hundreds of sets of experimental materials. In infection experiments, a portion of these materials exhibited immunity or high resistance. These traits are controlled by one or several major-effect genes, most of which appear to be dominant."

"However, as the physiological race of the pathogen changes, the resistance shown by these materials gradually disappears. We have named this phenomenon 'vertical resistance.'"

"At the same time, another portion of the disease resistance traits is controlled by many genes of weaker effect. Although the results are slower to appear, we found that this resistance often lasts for a very long time, even achieving durable resistance. Based on this, we have named it 'horizontal resistance.'"

Hearing this, many people's jaws dropped, their hearts filled with a mixture of astonishment and disbelief.

They were each responsible for the work within their own group and only had a decent understanding of their own progress, knowing little about the others.

They never would have expected that almost every group had produced significant results.

This was completely unexpected.

Chapter 322: Knox's Amazement

But Brandon wasn't finished. His voice continued.

"Based on my private discussions with Lu, I believe that regarding..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Lu Shixian cut him off.

"That's enough!"

"The rest is just an unfinished idea."

Then, Lu Shixian looked around at every member and said with deep emotion, "Everyone has worked so hard these past days. Having gone through it myself, I know just how hard-won these achievements are."

"Although there is still work to be done, there is no doubt that we have created a miracle."

"We have not failed our own efforts, nor have we failed the codename 'Yimi.'"

As he finished speaking, everyone broke into empathetic applause, not just for others, but more so for themselves.

Throughout this process, many had grown and transformed, reaping immense rewards.

At this point, almost any one of them could be a core member of a project team.

It seemed that after such a long period of hard work, the season of harvest had finally arrived.

However, Lu Shixian's next words left everyone dumbfounded.

"So, I'm proposing that Group Two and Group Three can also be listed as first authors on their own papers."

It was common knowledge that with the continuous advancement of science and technology, it was becoming increasingly difficult for a single person to independently solve cutting-edge research problems.

Therefore, an academic paper typically had multiple co-first authors, depending on the division of labor among the members.

This was normal and the future trend of scientific research.

But a situation where a project with over fifteen members had everyone listed as a first author, with no second authors, was virtually unheard of.

While many were scratching their heads, Lambert seemed to have guessed something and asked him, "So you mean you want to publish in parts?"

Lu Shixian snapped his fingers. "Exactly. There's no need for us to reveal everything at once."

"So my plan is to release our findings in stages. We'll publish one result at a time, bombarding the academic world and dominating the journals."

Everyone was stunned once again. Was that even possible?

But upon reflection, it seemed perfectly reasonable.

However, the conditions to achieve this were incredibly demanding; not all research could be broken up this way.

Their study on the plant stress response mechanism to pathogens, even when divided into three papers based on each group's research direction, was more than qualified to meet the publication standards of not just any journal, but top-tier ones.

"Lu, you always manage to surprise people!" a female Ph.D. student from Brazil couldn't help but exclaim.

Lu Shixian just smiled. "No, it's actually an easy idea to come up with. Everyone is just constrained by conventional thinking."

Of course, he wouldn't admit that his insight came from ten years in the future, where he had seen countless such slick moves.

"In China, we have a proverb: 'For a gentleman, ten years is not too late for revenge.'"

"So, it's time to slap the faces of those people outside and teach them a lesson."

"A single slap won't be nearly enough to make their faces swell, will it?"

Hearing Lu Shixian's jest, the conference room erupted in joyous and cheerful laughter.

"Alright, I'll make the final arrangements."

"For now, everyone pause the experiments you haven't finished and save the data."

"Our next task, still working in our original groups, is to organize the results from the past period and write them up into papers."

"Then, according to the plan, we will respectively..."

"What? You're saying you've already made significant progress and are preparing to write up your conclusions for journal submission?" Knox, who was on a visiting exchange at the National Laboratory for Enzyme Biology at Yale University, received Lu Shixian's call.

"Yes, we've delivered! The results we've obtained these past days include..." When Lu Shixian had contacted Knox before, he had never proactively mentioned the project's progress until there were concrete results.

If the experiment had failed in the end, it would have been far too cruel.

He wasn't the kind of person who gave people hope only to snatch it away.

But this time, he planned to report on the project's status.

Knox's busy schedule and long absences from the lab had caused some difficulties for Lu Shixian.

But upon reflection, he realized it might not have been a bad thing.

Some say that warfare is an art of dictatorship, and there is some truth to that.

An army can and must have only one commander-in-chief.

This was even more true for a research team. Knox's presence would have, to some extent, created interference for Lu Shixian.

So even when Knox had free time, he had chosen not to return to the lab.

This was a sign of considerable trust.

Therefore, Lu Shixian felt that the big-nosed old man had been genuinely good to him, truly appreciating and admiring him.

Of course, from a utilitarian perspective, one could also say that his own value to Knox was increasing day by day.

He was just about to organize his thoughts when he only managed to catch the last sentence from the other end of the line.

"I have to go. I'm heading back right now!"

Yale University.

Academic Exchange Center Conference Hall.

Knox, sitting in the front row, suddenly leaned over and whispered something to the middle-aged man beside him, then left with his assistant.

To raise the profile of the Davis Plant Pathology Laboratory, Knox had been running around to academic conferences at major universities, building a name for the lab.

Yale was one of the top five universities in the entire United States, a highly prestigious institution. Knox had made extensive preparations for this presentation.

And yet, at this critical juncture, Knox just...

Left?

From the small, familiar gestures, the assistant could tell that he seemed very...

Excited?

"Professor, your presentation is in fifteen minutes. Where are you going?" The assistant's small eyes were filled with immense confusion.

If Professor Knox hadn't been under his watch the entire time, he would have thought he'd been replaced by an impostor. This was just too out of character.

Knox offered no explanation. "Buy two plane tickets back to Davis. For today!"

Then he added, "If there aren't two, one will do. You can arrange your own transportation back."

The assistant was speechless.

That evening, at 9:30 PM Los Angeles time, Knox had already rushed back to Davis.

He immediately arranged to meet Lu Shixian in the lab.

After reviewing all the experimental data and results, Knox was both thrilled and amazed.

"In just five short months, you've given me such a huge surprise. This is simply incredible," he said, unable to tear his eyes away from a map of cell-specific signaling molecule distribution he held in his hands.

"And the results far exceed expectations. Your talent and ability are truly beyond words."

Chapter 323: Relax! It's Just *Cell*.

With results like these, he could already picture the sensation the Plant Pathology Laboratory was about to cause.

"Last year, our lab had six key projects, but only five produced results within the year."

"In other words, with just one project, you've accomplished more than half of what our entire lab produces in a year."

"And you did it with a team composed entirely of graduate students."

"Oh! You've truly created a miracle!"

At this, he added with some guilt, "I owe you one for this. After all, I played no role in the project, yet I'll be taking the title of corresponding author."

Lu Shixian just shook his head, not finding it unreasonable at all.

From a business perspective, Knox was the investor, providing the manpower, materials, and other resources.

Lu Shixian, as the high-level employee, contributed his intellect and managed the project.

This was a timeless employment model in later years; there was nothing to complain about.

On a more personal level, both at home and abroad, it wasn't unheard of for supervisors to attach their names as first authors on students' papers without contributing, reaping the rewards of their work and threatening to withhold graduation if they refused.

In comparison, Knox was incredibly conscientious. Besides, he didn't owe Lu Shixian anything.

Therefore, Lu Shixian didn't feel he deserved anything extra.

He was truly grateful to have come this far.

Despite receiving praise multiple times, Lu Shixian remained clear-headed.

"Professor Knox, I believe our work isn't over yet. Turning our results into a paper will take a considerable amount of time."

"If you don't mind, perhaps you could help guide the project to accelerate the process so we can submit it as soon as possible!"

"Yes, yes! You're right!" Professor Knox had now turned into a cheerleading machine.

When it came to matters he cared about most, Professor Knox was incredibly efficient.

That very afternoon, he headed straight to the project's data room and began guiding the three groups in completing their papers.

This, of course, scared the wits out of everyone at first.

What does it feel like for a lab rat to have their first close contact with the big boss?

This time, they truly experienced it.

Knox's experience in writing papers was masterful; even Lu Shixian learned a great deal from him.

With the help of a renowned professor, their progress in completing the paper was very encouraging.

Half a month later, their first paper, "On the Direct Regulatory Mechanism of Co-evolution between Plants and Pathogens," was complete.

With Professor Knox's introduction and recommendation, Lu Shixian submitted the paper to *Cell*.

This was the first time he had personally submitted a paper to a CNS journal. He could feel his right hand trembling slightly as he clicked the send button.

He considered himself a man of the world, but he couldn't help it. The more you care, the more nervous you get.

Beside him, Knox finally found a chance to feel superior as a supervisor.

"Relax! It's just *Cell*."

"The first time I published in *Nature*, I didn't feel a thing. My professor told me that if I put his name on it, it would get accepted easily."

"Now that my name is on it, I believe the effect will be the same."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian couldn't help but complain silently in his head.

Has even the identity of one's advisor become a topic for humblebragging these days?

Knox's advisor was George Wells Beadle.

The 1958 Nobel Prize winner in Physiology or Medicine, the father of biochemical genetics!

An appearance from someone of his stature was naturally extraordinary. Even a paper that just bore his name would receive the highest attention from these journals.

It wasn't just a patent of ordinary people to follow the successful; these top journals did the same.

Of course, it might also have to do with the fact that even a casual piece of work from a Nobel laureate was streets ahead of what professors from average universities could produce.

As for whether Knox's name could achieve the same effect...

Lu Shixian decided it was best not to comment, lest he touch a sore spot.

Missouri Botanical Garden, USA.

In the director's office on the third floor of the office building.

Peter Leven, nearly seventy-five, was wearing his glasses and browsing a manuscript on his computer.

If forty is the best age for conducting research and fifty is the best age for receiving honors, then at his age, one has seen through all honors and titles.

He had too many titles to count.

A leader in global plant diversity and conservation research, a "Guardian of the Earth," a recipient of the National Medal of Science, the International Prize for Biology...

Even more remarkably, he was an academician of the national academies of sciences in over twenty countries.

China, of course, was among them.

To achieve this was as difficult as reaching for the sky, but he had done it.

Despite his advanced age, he maintained abundant energy for pure academic research.

"*Cell*'s recent publications related to botany haven't been very novel. Most are just old wine in new bottles, rehashing old ideas."

"I wonder how this manuscript in the field of botany will be?"

Leven certainly had the confidence and seniority to critique *Cell*. Occasionally accepting review requests from CNS and other top botany journals was one of the few things that brought him joy in his retirement.

But recently, that joy had diminished, as these manuscripts didn't make him feel that the world was progressing.

It was a terrible feeling.

Glancing at the corresponding institution and authors, Leven felt a little disappointed.

Botany papers from UCD were mostly related to agriculture, not pure botany.

And Knox was merely a rising star in plant pathology; there weren't many brilliant moments he could recall.

Ignoring the first and second authors, out of a rigorous commitment to academic research, Leven began to read the paper's content seriously.

"Hmm?"

"On the Direct Regulatory Mechanism of Co-evolution between Plants and Pathogens?"

"This topic is rather interesting. It's a type I haven't seen before, yet it feels somewhat familiar!"

A regular and disciplined lifestyle, combined with timely reflection, had kept Leven's memory from declining much.

He soon remembered the source of his familiarity.

"Isn't this one of the cutting-edge topics the editor-in-chief of *Nature* consulted me on and asked me to recommend?"

Leven's interest was suddenly piqued. Such a frontier topic required the collective opinion of many experts in related fields before it could be publicly proposed.

Although it wasn't his opinion alone, he had provided considerable guiding advice. He wanted to see if this paper lived up to its name or was merely an empty shell.

Chapter 324: The Dragon Slayer Becomes the Dragon?

"This is interesting!" Leven spent about ten minutes reading the entire paper and naturally formed an evaluation in his mind.

At his level of knowledge and status, he didn't pay much attention to the paper's format and editing.

He focused mainly on the author's method of thinking and problem-solving—their line of thought.

"The researcher's thinking is exceptionally clear. They knew exactly what they wanted at every step of the process."

"The transition between each stage of the plant's stress response is very natural, with very little cost from trial and error."

"Looking at the data from repeated experiments, there are some minor experimental errors. It seems the operational skills could be improved, but it's not a major issue."

"It appears the primary researcher is a young scientific worker of exceptional talent."
"Quite the spark of genius! I look forward to more surprises they'll bring to the world of botany."

He had already made up his mind about the review. For research on a cutting-edge topic, once the findings were verified as credible, the manuscript's quality was certainly high enough to be accepted.

But at the same time, a sliver of doubt crept into Lewin's mind.

He just felt like something was missing. It was a powerful premonition.

He glanced at the author list, which he had previously overlooked. The names were all crammed onto the first line.

"Hmm?"

"shixianlu, martinez·sela, anderson·smith..."

"No secondary authors?"

"That first name looks Chinese." Having been to China many times, Lewin was immediately intrigued by the unique combination of names.

"It seems China's scientific research has been developing rapidly lately. Quite a few new talents are starting to make a name for themselves."

Meanwhile.

National Institute for Disease Control, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Gao Defeng sat in his office, sipping fine tea while reviewing a paper from his email.

As an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, moments of leisure like this were rare for him.

As a highly renowned expert in pathology, he was often invited to be a peer reviewer for various major journals.

However, pathology hadn't been a hot research field for a long time.

Still, the lesser journals weren't prestigious enough to invite him, and the major, top-tier journals had received precious few submissions in his field lately.

So he had almost forgotten he even held the title of reviewer.

But at seven this morning, an anonymous manuscript from *Cell* had caught his attention.

"Plant pathology?"

"No wonder!" Gao Defeng immediately understood why the email had been sent to him.

"It seems a foreign lab has made another major discovery." He sighed softly, his feelings a complex mix of curiosity and wistfulness.

Recently, Chinese scientists had been appearing frequently in major international journals, but that was in other fields, especially in cutting-edge physics, where they repeatedly achieved major breakthroughs.

In the life sciences, specifically pathology, he hadn't seen a Chinese name in a long time.

But regardless, the paper had to be read. His professional duty came first.

After several tens of minutes, Gao Defeng submitted his review, recommending acceptance.

"The experimental process is watertight, the logic is clear, and the writing is very polished." Gao Defeng thought to himself that it must be the work of one of the famous international labs.

However, his task was now complete.

Being in China, he had no intention of digging deeper, even though he had ways of finding out the authors' identities ahead of time.

Three days later.

Cell Press Editorial Office, United States.

A middle-aged man with a stern expression and a sharp gaze sat in his office, preparing to hear a report from his subordinate, Glass.

"What's our acceptance rate for peer-reviewed submissions recently?"

Soon, a male editor's voice filled the room.

"This month, we received a total of 13,236 submissions from around the world. After the initial editorial screening, 324 proceeded to the peer review stage."

"Based on the returned reviews, 6 were accepted outright, 24 can be accepted after minor revisions, and 72 will require major revisions to be accepted. The rest were sent rejection emails at eight o'clock this morning."

The middle-aged man nodded slightly. "Very good. For the papers requiring major revisions, unless they are of exceptionally high value, push them all to our subsidiary journals."

After a pause, he added, "And be selective with the ones that need minor revisions."

Just then, Glass hesitated. "Editor-in-Chief, Professor Gwen's manuscript from Harvard is among them. He's an old friend of ours."

Glass's rapid pace of speech slowed inexplicably as he uttered the last few words.

The man shook his head. "His recent research on the three-dimensional structure of HIV particles has indeed been impressive. The paper we published from him last issue has a very high citation count."

Just as Glass thought he was about to relent, he heard his refusal.

"When the quality of papers is comparable, we can give them some priority. But if a paper doesn't meet our standards, it is absolutely not allowed, no matter who the author is."

With that, the voices in the office trailed off.

A few days later.

Davis Plant Pathology Laboratory.

Lu Shixian and Knox opened the email client on the computer.

Before clicking on the email, Knox looked at Lu Shixian with interest and asked, "Lu, if there's an update, what do you think the result will be?"

Lu Shixian answered without a second thought. "Either minor revision or major revision. I don't see any other possibility."

On this point, Lu Shixian was fairly confident. It shouldn't be an outright reject, right? For a paper on such a cutting-edge topic, that would be almost impossible unless the editors were out of their minds.

Knox nodded with a smile. "Let's wait and see!"

With a sense of anticipation, Lu Shixian refreshed the website. The submission status had changed from 'Decision in Process' to an answer he hadn't considered, or rather, hadn't dared to hope for.

Accepted!

Accepted?

Like a conditioned reflex, every cell in Lu Shixian's body seemed to jump for joy.

His first submission to a CNS journal was a success, just like that.

The moment felt surreal, almost dreamlike.

Beside him, Knox didn't look surprised at all.

This, in turn, made Lu Shixian look at Knox in a new light.

Was he hiding his influence so well?

Does Knox's name really carry that much weight?

And now I've become a beneficiary of the 'academic cabal' system?

So, does the boy who slays the dragon always become a dragon himself in the end?

Chapter 325: Don't You Know How to Treat a Lady?

Knox, old and perceptive, immediately saw something in his gaze and explained with a smile, "I think you've misunderstood something."

"This is precisely why I strongly recommended you submit to *Cell*."

Lu Shixian immediately recalled the situation.

At the time, he and Knox had disagreed on which journal to submit to.

With a paper of this caliber, submitting to a CNS journal was a given, but there were three choices.

He had leaned toward *Nature*. From his point of view, it was an easy decision.

The cutting-edge problem their paper addressed was proposed by *Nature* itself.

Since they posed the problem, they must be eager for someone to solve it.

That would mean their paper would be in high demand.

So, submitting to *Nature* seemed like the most logical course of action.

But Knox had a different opinion. At the time, he strongly recommended submitting to *Cell*.

Although Lu Shixian didn't quite understand, he didn't question it further.

Knox was the big boss of the lab, and with his age and experience, he surely had his reasons.

Now, it seemed there was some inside knowledge he wasn't privy to.

Knox soon revealed the answer. "It seems you don't know much about the history of these journals."

"Otherwise, on what basis did you think *Cell*, founded in the 20th century, could rise so quickly to stand on equal footing with *Science* and *Nature*, which had made their names in the previous century?"

"You have to understand, the main *Cell* journal is a specialized journal for the biological sciences, whereas *Science* and *Nature* are comprehensive, multidisciplinary journals. For it to achieve what it has, no one can underestimate it, or rather, the editorial team behind it."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian understood with just that little hint.

However, Knox's voice continued, "In reality, the quality of a journal depends on its editors. And for the past decade, under their high standards, the quality of papers published in *Cell* has arguably surpassed that of *Science* and *Nature*."

"In my personal opinion, it's hard to compare journals with different natures. But it's undeniable that its impact factor has now reached 31.95, on par with S and N."

"So, I personally believe that *Cell* currently offers a better environment."

"Speaking of which, a big joke just made the rounds in the academic world." As he said this, Knox could barely contain his laughter.

"What joke?" Lu Shixian's interest was piqued.

"Just recently, MDPI launched a journal called *Cells* to ride on *Cell*'s popularity. The whole academic community is getting a kick out of it."

Now that he mentioned it, Lu Shixian remembered hearing about this and laughed along.

Honestly, when it comes to knockoffs, all those other copycat brands were amateurs compared to this.

But you have to admit, *Cells* later achieved a peak impact factor of 7.66, a feat many older journals could never manage.

From Lu Shixian's perspective, its emergence wasn't necessarily a bad thing for a publishing world dominated by oligarchs.

After sharing the joke, the two said their goodbyes.

News that the paper had been accepted quickly spread through the project team, causing an immediate uproar.

Even in the United States, having a paper published in *Cell* was an extraordinary achievement.

Everyone congratulated the members of the first group, their hearts filled with envy.

This was undoubtedly news worth celebrating.

And so, with many people echoing the sentiment, Lu Shixian was grabbed by the arms by two burly guys and dragged off to a bar.

After a futile struggle, he gave up. After all, he was happy too.

After working so hard for so long, it was only natural to let loose and enjoy the moment.

You had to hand it to these Americans for their sense of ceremony; sometimes they would throw a party for the smallest of reasons.

With Lambert leading the way like a seasoned pro, the group of more than a dozen people soon arrived at a private room in a quiet bar in the town of Davis.

"To Yimi!"

"To our dreams!"

"To ourselves!"

"Cheers!"

Everyone raised their glasses, savoring the moment of celebration.

But after just one drink, someone was already starting to stir the pot.

"Lu, honestly, most of the people sitting here have you to thank, and I'm one of them. Without your guidance, I'd probably still be lost in a life of indulgence," Lambert said, raising his glass to Lu Shixian.

Following his lead, every member of the Yimi project took turns toasting Lu Shixian.

Since he had already started with Lambert, Lu Shixian found it hard to refuse the rest.

And so...

That night, at one in the morning.

"Retch..."

The triumphant Lu Shixian from earlier was now a pathetic mess, hunched over the toilet.

The high-proof alcohol numbed his nerves. In that moment, he found himself missing the watered-down baijiu back in China.

It was probably in the Lu family genes, but his tolerance for alcohol was decent. A few glasses were usually no problem.

But the brandy had been far beyond his limit.

After throwing up, Lu Shixian felt a little better. He collapsed onto the bed and was soon dead to the world.

When he woke up the next day, the sun was already high in the sky.

By this time, Lu Shixian would have normally read several pages of a book or jotted down a few lines of notes.

"Drinking really messes things up!"

Lu Shixian pressed a hand to his still-fragmented brain, then sniffed the alcohol-stale air in the room and murmured, "At least it's just a hangover. I'll have to be more careful from now on."

"This feeling of mental fog is terrible."

"I can't fall for their tricks again."

"Besides, we're not at the finish line yet."

He took a long shower and changed into clean clothes.

But as soon as Lu Shixian stepped out of his room, he was met by Cheng Qingqing's resentful and furious gaze on the first floor.

Honestly, her stare sent a shiver down his spine.

No way...???

Could it be?

The thought made his heart tremble.

Oh no! I haven't even experienced anything yet, and I've already been... devoured?

But there were no traces of anything in the room!

"Had your fun?" Cheng Qingqing asked, enunciating each word.

Lu Shixian's heart sank, but he maintained a final shred of composure. "What are you talking about?"

Cheng Qingqing continued through gritted teeth, "About last night."

Lu Shixian started playing dumb.

No, he truly didn't know anything.

"I really don't know what you're talking about!"

Cheng Qingqing began to cry pitifully. "Last night, you were so rough with me! You have no idea how to treat a lady!"

Lu Shixian: ???

He felt incredibly wronged. This was too absurd!

I just slept!

Her accusations continued, "Have you forgotten who carried you upstairs? I was kind enough to get you to your room, so why would you do that to me?"

"You have to take responsibility for this!"

Lu Shixian: ???

He was completely dumbfounded.

I'm still just a kid!

Chapter 326: The Grand Event Approaches

But he quickly noticed something was off.

If what Cheng Qingqing said was true, she shouldn't be moving so nimbly.

Besides, he wasn't completely unconscious when he came home last night. A person always has some degree of self-preservation.

He vaguely remembered the person who carried him home had a rather strong body odor, the kind that made him wince.

Clearly, that couldn't have been Cheng Qingqing.

The truth seemed to be revealing itself.

This Cheng Qingqing was definitely tricking him. He should have known.

With her mischievous personality, it would be a miracle if she didn't stir up some trouble.

Seeing the expression on Lu Shixian's face return to normal, Cheng Qingqing dropped her act, a look of disappointment on her face. "You're no fun!"

"I heard you're publishing a paper in *Cell* soon?"

Lu Shixian was surprised to hear this. "Even you know about it? Your sources are pretty good."

Cheng Qingqing said nonchalantly, "In Davis, it's hard to keep small news a secret, okay?"

For the first time, she looked at Lu Shixian with genuine astonishment. "What really surprises me is that you, an exchange student, became the head of a project. And the crucial thing is, you succeeded. I find that incredible."

"A lot of people on Davis Home were saying they couldn't wait to see you go back to China with your tail between your legs."

"Looks like they've got egg on their faces now."

"What's Davis Home?" Lu Shixian asked curiously.

"It's a forum on the UCD website for academic exchange. Generally, as long as it's not confidential, you can find it there," Cheng Qingqing explained. When she wasn't playing pranks, she seemed quite normal.

She quickly followed up with another question. "By the way, isn't your exchange program ending soon?"

"When are you planning to go back to China?"

Her question stopped Lu Shixian in his tracks.

That's right, it was almost time to return.

But he still had two papers to publish.

"Sister Qingqing, something urgent came up, I have to go."

Suddenly reminded, he left her with that sentence and hurried away.

On the way back to the lab, Lu Shixian kept pondering the problem.

He definitely had to go back, but not now.

He still had two research papers to publish. If he went back now, his status would change instantly. Wouldn't all his effort be for nothing?

Moreover, his research wasn't completely finished.

When you encounter a problem, you solve it.

So, the question was whether he could extend the exchange period.

He took out his phone and found the number for Yanda University's International Exchange Center he had saved earlier.

Thank goodness he had the foresight to save it. You never know what the future holds, and now it was coming in handy.

The person on the other end was clearly used to such international calls.

The overseas call was answered quickly.

"Hello, Yanda University International Exchange Center service hotline," a voice that wasn't particularly young said, speaking in English.

Since they were both Chinese, Lu Shixian saw no need to show off his English.

He quickly got the information he needed in Mandarin.

Generally, exchange students must return to their home country upon completion of their program.

But there were exceptions. There had been many cases of students being stranded abroad due to force majeure.

If an exchange student genuinely needed an extension due to practical reasons, they first had to submit an extension application to the exchange center. Then, their home institution and the host institution would have to send a joint letter to the university's exchange center.

After the exchange center reported it to the university leadership for approval, if the application was successful and the visa could be extended, the exchange period could be appropriately prolonged.

So he just needed to follow the same procedure.

Knox would be easy to deal with. Now he needed to inform his advisor back in China ahead of time.

He hadn't seen Academician Xu in a year. Although he often sent holiday greetings via text, they hadn't met in person, and he did miss him a little.

However, when he got through on the phone and explained his request for a three-month extension, Academician Xu agreed without asking many questions.

Afterward, he even broke character and asked if he was doing well and getting used to life in the United States.

This left him feeling incredibly flattered and a little surprised.

Then, he encountered no major obstacles from his home department either.

He just needed to provide a scanned copy of the personnel list from his lab's project proposal to prove he genuinely needed the extension.

This was quite normal. After all, research projects rarely finish exactly on schedule.

In fact, excluding intentional cases, this was the reason why over half of Yanda's past exchange students had overstayed their programs.

After the letters from both universities were sent to Yanda, Lu Shixian successfully applied for a three-month visa extension. Soon, he received news that his extension request had been approved.

The matter seemed complicated, but in the end, it was resolved smoothly.

Time slowly crept into October 2012.

There weren't many days left until the New Year.

He wondered if he would make it home before the New Year this year.

He called his parents to update them on his situation and received their admonitions to take good care of himself.

Lu Shixian once again immersed himself in the next phase of his research on plant stress responses.

Although the three research directions they had set out on were mostly complete and had yielded some results, there were still areas that could be explored more deeply.

For both him and the project team, this was an immense attraction.
Meanwhile, their second paper, "On the Indirect Regulatory Mechanisms of Plant-Pathogen Coevolution," had also recently been submitted to the editorial office of the journal *Cell*.

Everything seemed to be proceeding smoothly according to plan.

But as early October arrived, the global scientific community was abuzz over a grand event.

The 2012 Nobel Prizes were about to be announced.

It was an event that extended far beyond the world of researchers; calling it a nationwide celebration wouldn't be an exaggeration.

In China, countless people were following the results, far more than in any previous year.

This was because the writer, Master Mo, had been nominated as a candidate for this year's Nobel Prize in Literature.

Even those who were biased against the literature prize couldn't help but feel a sense of collective pride.

Although many were quick to attribute the achievements of ethnic Chinese abroad to the entire nation, no one from mainland China itself had ever won the award.

But today, that history might be broken.

Despite the many controversies surrounding the Nobel Prize, one had to admit it was far more rigorous than most of the world's honors.

Even the laureates themselves would only learn of their victory an hour and a half before the announcement, let alone anyone else.

But there was one exception.

October 8th, Stockholm time.

11:30 AM.

Lu Shixian sat in the corner of a Chinese restaurant in Davis, watching the award ceremony on the television.

Chapter 327: The Nobel Prize in Chemistry

In past years, he had never paid any attention to this news.

Firstly, because for him it was like an open-book test, and secondly, because it was all too distant from his life back then.

But now, he had some free time, so it wouldn't hurt to watch.

From October 8th to October 15th, a total of six prizes would be revealed: Physiology or Medicine, Physics, Chemistry, Literature, Peace, and Economic Sciences.

Of course, for historical reasons, all but the Peace Prize, which would be awarded in the Norwegian capital, would be announced in the capital of Sweden.

However, few people concerned themselves with such details.

The 2012 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was about to be announced.

At this moment, every diner in the restaurant, and the spectators who had come specifically for this, looked up, holding their breath, not daring to utter a word.

The students from Davis were especially focused, as the upcoming prize was the one most closely related to their fields.

Many were murmuring the names of the biologists or medical scientists they supported.

Only Lu Shixian remained calm, tucking into his meal.

Speaking of which, he was quite familiar with one of this year's laureates in Physiology or Medicine, having met him once in Tsukuba, Japan.

Back then, Yang Yihang had stubbornly pointed out that the man had not yet won a Nobel.

Several years had passed in a flash, and now, that moment had arrived.

He couldn't help but lament how quickly time passed, how relentless the years were.

Sure enough, the next moment, the television announced that British developmental biologist John B. Gurdon and Shinya Yamanaka, director of the Center for iPS Cell Research and Application at Kyoto University in Japan, would share the prize for their groundbreaking contributions to the field of nuclear reprogramming.

Just as the announcement finished, Lu Shixian finished his meal.

The laureates were on screen, delivering their acceptance speeches with immense excitement.

At that moment, they were undoubtedly the center of global attention, receiving congratulations and envy from all over the world.

Lu Shixian was, of course, among the admirers.

"Sigh, I wonder how far I am from that step," he thought to himself.

The success of others often inspires those who follow.

With that thought, he didn't linger. He put on his coat, walked to the counter to pay, and then turned to leave.

He had no interest in what followed.

But the grand event would not quiet down just because he had left.

On October 9th, the Prize in Physics was announced. French scientist Serge Haroche and American scientist David J. Wineland shared the 8 million Swedish kronor prize for their breakthrough experimental methods that enable measurement and manipulation of individual quantum systems.

On October 10th, the Chemistry Prize resulted in a major upset, quickly drawing a great deal of attention.

American scientists Robert Lefkowitz and Brian Kobilka won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their groundbreaking research on G protein-coupled receptors.

Their betting odds had been among the lowest of all candidates.

This immediately attracted a swarm of media. The moment the two had received their awards and given their speeches, a crowd of reporters surrounded them.

And the vast majority of microphones were pointed at one man in particular.

They were quick on their feet and had done their homework.

Whether these reporters had ever heard of this man's name or his achievements before, at this moment, they all knew that Robert Lefkowitz was famous for his audacious personality, never afraid to speak his mind.

With him on the stage, headlines and public interest were guaranteed.

It was almost as if a private interview was being held just for him.

He had already delivered his thoughts on the podium, so the reporters knew better than to ask such a pointless question again.

"Professor Lefkowitz, did you have confidence that you would win this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry?" a reporter from the *Qin Wu Times* asked first.

Lefkowitz was as bold as ever. "I've said it all along: the work of studying the mechanisms of GPCRs was bound to be a great undertaking."

"When I first said that, a lot of people took issue with me, thinking I was always lost in wild fantasies."

"And now? I suppose their insight isn't as sharp as their tongues."

Lefkowitz spoke at a rapid pace; it was hard to keep up if you weren't paying close attention.

"Especially Professor Mombis from Imperial College London. He should just stick to his diabetes research. An outsider dabbling in this field and actually getting published in *Nature Cell Biology*."

"It's a joke!"

Many in the audience were left speechless.

Most of them were professors from major universities and research institutes.

They had heard of Lefkowitz's fiery temper, but they never imagined he would dare to call someone out by name and retaliate right at the Nobel Prize ceremony.

He's got some nerve! Wasn't he afraid of making enemies?

But the reporters didn't care about that. All they needed was a hot topic to grab eyeballs.

And now, they had it.

But then someone in the crowd seemed to make a gesture, and the reporters' questions suddenly changed tune.

"Why have you remained so dedicated to GPCR research for all these years?"

"What is the real-world significance of your research? Could you please explain it in detail?"

"What are your plans for your next research project?"

"You've won several million Swedish kronor. How do you plan to use the prize money?"

These questions were so tame they were practically toothless.

Or to put it another way, they were so carefully phrased that the sharp-tongued Lefkowitz couldn't find any room to unleash his usual tirades.

Soon, they reached the final question.

"Professor Lefkowitz, who are the people who have helped you during your research?"

This was a softball question many reporters threw in as a small favor to the interviewee.

Answering it was a good way to build a positive public image.

But Lefkowitz suddenly burst out laughing. "Help?"

"Haha, what a joke. Have you ever seen a Nobel Prize won through 'help'? Even Brian and I are merely collaborators."

"If I had to name someone, though, there was a kid I've admired a lot in recent years."

"His research on GPCRs helped me complete the final piece of the empirical puzzle."

"It's just a shame I haven't seen any trace of him for a long time."

The reporters had been ready to wrap things up, since they couldn't ask the sensitive questions that would get the reaction they wanted.

But now, their interest was suddenly piqued.

Was this a case of trying to force a story and failing, only to stumble upon a better one by accident?

"Professor Lefkowitz, could you elaborate on that?"

Lefkowitz, as uninhibited as ever, said, "His name is Shixian Lu, I believe. Incredibly talented."

He then recounted the story of what had happened back then.

"That sounds like a Chinese name."

"That's right. A mysterious country. If I get the chance, I'd like to go there to learn martial arts. And to ask Lu why he stopped his GPCR research."

Having gotten what they wanted, the reporters made a graceful exit.

Chapter 328: Premeditated

Next up was the award that had garnered the most attention back in China: the Nobel Prize in Literature.

On October 11th, at 1:00 PM, the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature was announced.

"I declare that the winner of the 2012 Nobel Prize in Literature is Master Mo from China."

"His work, through a fusion of fantasy, reality, history, and social commentary, has created a world reminiscent of the works of Faulkner and Márquez, while also finding a new starting point in traditional and oral literature."

"Let us congratulate him!"

As the presenter finished his speech, Master Mo, who had already been informed of the result, stood up from the candidates' seating area without a hint of surprise.

Dressed in a sharp suit, he accepted the medal, the symbol of the highest honor in the literary world, from the chairman of the Swedish Nobel Committee.

The hall erupted in thunderous applause.

This had been the most suspenseful award of this year's Nobel selection.

Meanwhile, the popular favorite for the prize, Japanese author Haruki Murakami, had once again missed out.

He had been nominated several times before, and this was undoubtedly the closest he had ever come to winning. The Japanese media had even prepared grand celebrations back home.

But now, countless people were stunned. The champagne they held, ready to pop, suddenly lost its appeal. It felt as if everything had shattered in that one moment.

In China, however, cheers erupted from every corner of the land.

The two countries presented a study in stark contrasts.

As for the final prize in Economic Sciences, it received slightly less attention than the others, as it was awarded not in Stockholm but in faraway Norway.

Soon, time passed.

The buzz around the Nobel laureates slowly began to fade.

But a new hot topic was just beginning.

Just as the Nobel fever was about to break, the *Qin Wu Times* suddenly published a public search notice in a special section.

"Join Nobel Laureate Robert Lefkowitz in the Search for the Undergraduate Who Helped Him!"

The headline itself was incredibly captivating, linking two seemingly unrelated things: a Nobel Prize and an undergraduate student.

Beneath the headline was a transcript of the media's interview with Lefkowitz, with nearly every sentence being his own words.

But when pieced together, they created a strangely powerful narrative.

"Brian and I are just collaborators; there's no question of one helping the other."

"Separately, an undergraduate from China, Lu, helped me complete the final piece of the Nobel puzzle. His help was immense."

Riding on the coattails of the Nobel hype, the story caused a stir abroad.

But because the protagonist of the story could not be found and the person in question never came forward, the story had no further developments and quickly died down.

However, someone in China, browsing foreign websites, happened to see the news video and shared it domestically.

With Master Mo's Nobel win fresh in people's minds, the story of a Chinese undergraduate helping a Nobel laureate came right after, amplifying the nation's desire for recognition to its peak.

Thus, the news video went viral in China, sparking a nationwide craze to find "Shixian Lu."

"Have you found Lu today?" quickly became the catchphrase of the week and was still rapidly gaining popularity.

Even Lu Shixian himself probably never imagined that he would one day become the subject of a viral sensation, akin to "Your mom is calling you home for dinner" or the "true fragrance" meme.

Then again, even if he had known, he probably wouldn't have cared.

This kind of fame was highly coincidental and often just a flash in the pan. Besides, there were too many people in China with the same name; the chances of them finding him specifically were slim.

And so, the Nobel storm finally passed.

Time slowly moved into November.

In the past month, Lu Shixian had published another paper in *Cell* as a co-first author.

Their third paper was also already written, waiting for the right moment to be submitted.

His energy was once again focused on his unfinished work.

"Regarding our research on the mechanisms of plant responses to pathogen invasion, although we have published three heavyweight papers in a row, in a sense, they all belong to the same body of work," Lu Shixian said, leading a group meeting in the project team's conference room.

Although he could have already applied to conclude the project based on his previous results, his rigorous scientific attitude drove him to try and complete the follow-up research before the extension period ended.

"But while participating in the third group's research, I discovered that when a plant fails to fend off a pathogen invasion, it doesn't necessarily mean it's the end for the plant."

"Those that fail to defend themselves slowly adapt to the virus, giving rise to a different kind of stress mechanism."

"I believe this is what we need to explore next. I will be arranging some research work in this direction."

As Lu Shixian finished, the room was once again filled with applause and looks of admiration.

"Oh, no! I thought a vacation was just around the corner. But it's more experiments."

"Lu, don't you need to give yourself a break and get some rest?" The speaker was Sarah.

Everyone except Lambert nodded in agreement.

In their eyes, Lu Shixian was utterly obsessed with his experiments and research, to the point of neglecting to eat or sleep.

Moreover, they had all spent a tremendous amount of energy and personal time on the research over the past period, and they were all basically running on fumes.

To be honest, they really did need a break.

Lu Shixian looked at the weary faces of his team members in the conference room and immediately understood.

Well, what could he do?

He seemed to have overlooked one thing: he couldn't hold others to his own standards.

So, of course, he chose to give them a vacation.

"Alright, everyone can take a three-day break. We'll meet again the day after tomorrow."

As Lu Shixian's voice fell, sounds of surprised and cheerful relief filled the room.

Walking slowly along a farm path in Davis, feeling the gentle breeze of the countryside, he realized it had been a long time since he had felt this relaxed.

That's right, he had taken a break too.

With the team members gone, there was no point in him going to the lab alone.

This wasn't something he could handle by himself.

He had come to terms with it. Although he only had a month or two left before he had to leave, there was no need to force things when time was already so limited.

He had already achieved his initial goal. The rest could be left to fate.

Soon, in the final month of Lu Shixian's visa.

The second paper was successfully published.

And the third group's paper, "On the Genetic Regulatory Mechanisms of Plant-Pathogen Coevolution," was once again submitted to the editorial office of *Cell*.

This time, the people in the editorial office slowly began to notice a pattern.

Could it be that this research team had a plan all along?

Chapter 329: The Old Hand is the Best Hand

This was clearly a series of results from a single line of research.

When the first paper was published, they had thought it was a fluke, a blind cat stumbling upon a dead mouse.

After all, while the lab they belonged to had produced many results in the past, very few were of the caliber to be published in CNS journals—only a handful a year at most.

It was unusual for a lab that wasn't at the absolute top tier to produce such top-tier work.

But when the second paper was published, they began to give the UCD Plant Pathology Lab some real recognition.

It wasn't until the third paper arrived that they realized the Knox Plant Pathology Lab seemed to have taken a major step forward in the study of plant-pathogen coevolutionary mechanisms.

Now, they couldn't sit still any longer.

Because this meant that Davis might have even more profound results yet to come.

The *Cell* editorial office immediately sent someone to contact the Plant Pathology Lab.

"Dr. Knox, hello. This is Ian, Deputy Editor-in-Chief at the journal *Cell*." The middle-aged man who had made the decision in his office back then dialed the corresponding author's contact number.

On the other end of the line, Knox raised his eyebrows in surprise.

Deputy Editor-in-Chief?

That was a very high rank.

The positions within the journal were similar to those at a regular magazine.

The Deputy Editor-in-Chief was second-in-command to the Editor-in-Chief, who in turn answered to the Editor-at-Large.

Although he usually dealt with editor-in-chief level figures, it all depended on the journal's prestige. CNS held a monopoly in the world of academic publishing, so their status was naturally in a different league.

For *Cell* to swallow its pride and initiate contact was something else.

This seemed different from the CNS he knew.

Could it be...

Although he already had a guess, he replied politely.

"Editor Ian, a pleasure to speak with you."

Ian had no time for pleasantries and got straight to the point.

"Does your lab have any follow-up results regarding the research on coevolutionary mechanisms?"

"If you do, I hope you will continue to publish them in our journal."

"This would be a win-win for both your lab and our journal."

Knox's heart skipped a beat, but his tone remained casual as he made an excuse. "I agree. However, I'll need to check on the latest progress of the project before I can give you an answer."

Ian paused, thought for a moment, and nodded. "In that case, I look forward to hearing from your lab."

He wasn't suspicious; it was a perfectly normal response.

If a lab still had unpublished results after putting out three heavyweight papers in a row, that would be truly extraordinary.

A few minutes after the call, Lu Shixian was summoned by Knox.

Lu Shixian arrived promptly at the now very familiar office.

He didn't bother knocking and pushed the door right open.

Never mind the student-mentor relationship that had gradually formed between them; their mutual interests had already bound them tightly together.

They were very close now.

"Lu, you're here?" Knox extinguished the half-smoked cigar in his hand and smiled. "That was fast. What can I get you to drink?"

Lu Shixian shook his head, politely declining the offer, and then glanced at the professor's face.

"You seem very happy. Any good news recently?"

Knox let out a hearty laugh. "Your strategy worked."

"Ian, the editor from *Cell*, just called me. He insisted that we publish the project's upcoming results in their journal."
"What are your thoughts on this?"

After listening, Lu Shixian looked up at him and couldn't help but marvel inwardly. So this is what it means to be the one in charge.

Knox could have made this decision on his own, and that would have been perfectly understandable.

He was the one at the helm of the Plant Pathology Lab, but his current attitude was a direct display of his respect and high regard for Lu Shixian.

Lu Shixian gave it a moment's thought, though in truth, it was a no-brainer.

They definitely had to continue submitting to the journal.

Not only had they already built momentum, but publishing a series of results in the same journal would generate a greater impact.

Besides, submitting elsewhere might risk upsetting *Cell*.

No matter how they looked at it, they couldn't make such an idiotic decision.

So what Editor-in-Chief Ain had called a win-win situation was really true.

He shared his thoughts with Knox and quickly earned the latter's approval.

"You're absolutely right, Lu!"

"But I think we can leverage this for a better deal."

"How's the progress on your follow-up projects?"

Lu Shixian shook his head. "Not ideal. The interaction between plants and pathogens is clearly a highly efficient co-evolution."

"I call our previous findings the first layer of a plant's stress response to pathogens. The second layer involves the few pathogens that have survived through natural selection and now possess strong resistance to the plant's immune responses from the first layer."

"The mechanism of this layer is incredibly complex, involving mostly phenomena at an extremely microscopic level. We can no longer solve it with our old methods."

"To this day, our team is still at a complete standstill, and I don't have any leads at the moment."

Hearing this, Knox nodded without any surprise. "That's alright, you've already done exceptionally well. Reaching this stage has already exceeded my expectations."

"If you were to make another major discovery in such a short time, I think I'd have to retire on the spot and hand the lab over to you."

This was, of course, a joke, and Lu Shixian responded in kind. "Now that you mention it, I feel motivated again. Maybe the Plant Pathology Lab will be mine tomorrow."

At that, both of them laughed.

"But this doesn't stop us from using this information gap to our advantage," Knox said, quickly returning to the topic at hand.

"After all, no one else knows what stage our progress has truly reached."

Hearing him mention this for a second time, Lu Shixian grew curious. "What do you mean?"

"Getting something for nothing?"

"Not quite," Knox said with a gentle shake of his head. "We're just cashing in a small part of our future rewards in advance."

This time, Lu Shixian said nothing more, waiting quietly for his explanation. He had no experience to draw upon in this area.

In fact, at the level he had now reached, much of his past experience was no longer applicable. At only twenty-two years old, his accomplishments had far surpassed the achievements of his thirty-plus years in his previous life.

From now on, he would have to forge his own path, one step at a time.

Knox soon clarified. "I think we can absolutely aim for the cover story of this issue of *Cell*."

With that single sentence, Lu Shixian understood immediately. He couldn't help but marvel; there was truly no substitute for experience.

While he was still patting himself on the back for getting published in *Cell*, Knox was already aiming for its cover.

Chapter 330: My God! Are We About to Strike It Rich?

The covers of many journals are fixed and never change.

But this did not include CNS.

The purpose of a cover was easy to understand: influence and promotional power.

Whether it was a print or digital academic journal, the first thing a reader saw was the striking cover, making its role unparalleled.

Typically, a journal's cover features the most outstanding paper from the confirmed publications, presenting it as the marquee academic achievement of that issue.

But this wasn't always the case. Sometimes, due to the research field or a cover image competition, things could vary.

Therefore, becoming a cover story required a balance of the article's academic merit and the cover's artistic design.

"I believe this is highly feasible, not a major problem," Knox said with eloquence and confidence. His knowledge and vision were beyond what the current Lu Shixian could compare to.

"The academic merit of the third paper we submitted to *Cell*'s editorial department goes without saying."

"As for 'The Gene Era,' it is the core part of the entire series, both a continuation of the first layer and the beginning of the second."

"As for the cover design, honestly, that's the least of our worries."

Lu Shixian understood instantly.

Truly, in the United States, as long as you had money, most things could be solved; it was just a matter of cost-effectiveness.

"As it happens, I know a design team that has handled cover designs for top-tier journals multiple times," Knox explained. "Do you have any ideas for the design?"

Lu Shixian shook his head. "Let's leave professional matters to the professionals. However, if we could use the Yimi flower as the theme, I think it would be a great source of motivation for the team."

Knox nodded. "I'll ask them about it shortly. It shouldn't be a difficult request."

After saying this, he fell silent for a moment, then suddenly looked out the window at the sky and asked, "Lu, there's less than a month left until your exchange period is over."

"What are your plans after this?"

Lu Shixian was taken aback, only then realizing it was already December.

He hadn't expected three months to fly by so quickly.

It seemed it was time for him to start preparing for his return to China.

At the same time, this project needed to be wrapped up.

It wasn't a problem that could be solved in a short time, and there was no point in dragging it out any longer.

So Lu Shixian replied, "I suppose when I get back, I'll be preparing for my master's graduation."

Knox nodded, then formally extended an invitation to Lu Shixian. "Lu, are you interested in pursuing your Ph.D. here at the UCD Plant Pathology Lab? One year has been far too short for both of us."

"We worked so well together, didn't we?"

"We'll provide you with the best resources to support your development."

But Lu Shixian fell silent. He hadn't yet considered where he would do his Ph.D.

So he quickly replied, "Professor Knox, I can't give you an answer on this matter right now."

"After all, as you know, my original goal was genetic breeding. I just sort of stumbled into plant pathology by accident."

Hearing this, Knox was exasperated but amused. "Oh, Lu, you haven't given up on that yet?"

"Studying genetics means dealing with genes day in and day out. It's not so pure and simple."

"Are you going to abandon the achievements you've already made?"

"Sigh," Lu Shixian let out a soft sigh. "That's also what I can't let go of. There's still more to uncover in the co-evolution of plants and pathogens, but unfortunately, a person's energy is finite."

"However, researching crop genetic breeding has always been my determined goal. I can't give up on it."

"So..."

Lu Shixian paused before saying, "I'm sorry, Knox."

Knox just shook his head repeatedly. "No, no, no!"

"Everyone has their own pursuits. That's perfectly normal, even if it's a pity from my perspective."

"But you can still choose to come here in the future. The two aren't mutually exclusive."

"The doors of UCD will always be open for you!"

Lu Shixian nodded. "I will consider it seriously."

At this, Knox smiled. "When that day comes, I think UCD will have a surprise for you."

Lu Shixian never dwelled on things that were too far in the future.

After they parted ways, both of them began racing against time once more.

Lu Shixian started preparing for his departure from the university.

Knox, on the other hand, took charge of getting the final paper published.

The latter would undoubtedly be a major international highlight for the Plant Pathology Lab, providing a huge boost to its application to become a National Laboratory.

Lu Shixian had fulfilled his promise.

On his way back to the lab, he quietly reflected on the past year. His trip to the United States had been quite fulfilling and satisfying.

Though there were still regrets, there was a certain beauty in imperfection.

Real life wasn't like a novel, where everything is perfect.

In late December, just a few days before his visa expired, Lu Shixian completed the project wrap-up procedures one by one and booked his flight back to China in advance.

As the de facto head of the project, based on the weight of his contributions, he would receive a bonus of one hundred thousand US dollars from the lab. The other members received bonuses distributed according to their contributions.

With over a hundred members of the lab as witnesses, Knox handed him a check for one hundred thousand US dollars.

"You've earned this."

Lu Shixian accepted the check, feeling both amused and exasperated.

He hadn't really thought about this before.

This was a bonus on the level of a principal investigator.

Although he wasn't at that level, on this project, he had done the work of one.

It seemed Knox hadn't skimped at all!

Was being the boss this awesome?

Lu Shixian was suddenly overjoyed.

He couldn't help but start doing some quick calculations in his head.

Based on the 2012 exchange rate, one US dollar was equal to 6.25 yuan.

That meant it would become over six hundred thousand yuan back home.

My God!

I'm gonna be rich!

He couldn't help his excitement. That figure was a huge sum of money in 2012.

After all, the annual per capita disposable income at the time was just over twelve thousand yuan. This was more than fifty times that amount.

But then he remembered how many of his peers in novels were either born as mega-tycoons or became self-made millionaires, for whom earning a few million a day was just a small goal.

Thinking of it that way, his smile faded, and his sense of accomplishment diminished.

But then he suddenly recalled what Knox had said a few days ago: everyone has their own pursuits.

There was really no need to make comparisons. Earning this reward entirely through his own labor...

That was pretty good, too!

Chapter 331: The Yimi Flower Has Bloomed

"Hey! Lu, what are you spacing out for?"

"The boss was just calling you." Beside him, Lambert gave Lu Shixian a light pat on the back.

Lu Shixian snapped back to reality as if waking from a dream, only to look up and find everyone in the lab staring at him.

He drew a complete blank.

"What's going on?"

"Why is everyone looking at me?"

Knox thought he was just too happy to speak.

So he added, "The event is set for the day after tomorrow at the Graduate School Auditorium. you can prepare for it."

After saying that, he immediately had another thought and said with a smile, "Never mind. With your public speaking skills, I don't need to worry about that."

"Alright, meeting adjourned!"

With that, the crowd in the large conference room began to disperse.

Many people took the opportunity to express their congratulations and affirmation as they passed by Lu Shixian.

It was clear that he had now earned their recognition.

However, most of them were faces he had barely seen before. Lu Shixian smiled and nodded at each of them in turn.

Whether he knew them well or not, leaving a good impression might lead to collaboration opportunities in the future.

The academic circle wasn't small, but it wasn't that big either. Sometimes, you ended up seeing the same faces over and over again.

Just then, a large hand suddenly rested on his shoulder.

The pressure was just right—not too light, not too heavy. It neither hurt nor could be ignored.

Lu Shixian looked up and saw it was Wood, whom he hadn't seen in a while.

"Well done, Lu!"

"I used to have some issues with you," Professor Wood's voice was surprisingly loud, drawing the attention of many people nearby.

Lu Shixian kept his smile, knowing Wood definitely had more to say.

"You know, you poached almost all the members of my last project. I was left a general without an army."

"It takes a lot of time to get familiar with new team members, so I've been focused on teaching all this time, not research."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian understood at once.

In truth, while research teams have some personnel turnover, the core generally remains stable.

This is because a certain rapport has been established, and the leader is familiar with each member's strengths and weaknesses, which greatly improves research efficiency.

Over half of the Yimi project's members had come from Professor Wood's previous project.

Honestly, it was a bit of an underhanded move. If he were in Wood's shoes, he would have been quite upset too.

So he immediately apologized, "I'm sorry, Professor Wood."

"I really had no other choice. But this also shows how effective your guidance is."

"They are all outstanding, aren't they?"

At this, Wood broke into a smile. "No wonder Knox told me he was almost brainwashed by you."

"It seems your way with words is on par with your research skills."

"After that, I kept an eye on you, and your performance has been truly impressive."

Before leaving, Wood added one last thing: "You are not just an excellent researcher, but also an outstanding project leader."

"And the latter is much rarer."

Once the professors who had come to talk to him left, he was once again surrounded by his teammates.

"Awesome, boss!" Serra was the first to pop up and give a thumbs-up.

"I've never dared to speak to Professor Knox and Professor Wood in such a relaxed tone."

"The moment I see them, I subconsciously wonder if I've messed up an experiment. I usually take the long way around to avoid them."

This comment made everyone laugh.

Lu Shixian also shook his head with a smile. "Your experimental skills and experience have improved dramatically during this time."

"From now on, you should be wondering if Professor Wood is looking for you to shower you with praise."

But Serra shook her head in mock disgust. "No, no! I don't think I need a grumpy old man for that!"

This immediately drew another round of laughter.

After the cheerful banter, Lu Shixian finally asked about what had confused him earlier.

"What did Professor Knox say was happening in three days?"

"I wasn't paying attention."

At this, everyone was stunned.

Lambert, who had earned the nickname "Master of Comebacks," said in surprise, "So you really were daydreaming."

"How could you not hear something so important?"

"What is it?" Lu Shixian shook his head. He really couldn't think of anything more important than getting a bonus.

But the answer truly did surprise him.

He soon learned that a grand award ceremony was to be held for him in three days.

The University of California, Davis, was about to award him the Young Scientist Breakthrough Prize.

This was the highest academic achievement award a student could receive at UCD.

Generally, it was only open to undergraduate and graduate students at the university.

Moreover, in the past, the selection and award ceremony were always held at the beginning of the semester.

There had never been a precedent of it being awarded to an exchange student or at the end of the semester.

Although his achievements far exceeded the award's criteria, Knox must have pulled quite a few strings.

The Young Scientist Breakthrough Prize sounded impressive, but it was really just a university-level honor. Nevertheless, Lu Shixian looked forward to it.

After all, you have to walk one step at a time and eat one bite at a time.

In mid-December, three days passed quickly.

Davis was particularly lively today.

Almost every student had heard that the university was going to award the Young Scientist Breakthrough Prize to a Chinese student.

So, even before nine in the morning, the venue for the ceremony, the Graduate School Auditorium, was already packed to the rafters.

The annual—or perhaps once every few years or even decades—Young Scientist Breakthrough Prize was very famous at Davis.

Its selection criteria were extremely strict. As the name implied, it was only awarded after a young person had made a breakthrough achievement in scientific research.

The award ceremony was about to begin.

A university-level award ceremony like this wouldn't be very complicated.

The procedure was for the chancellor to read the award citation, then present him with the trophy.

Finally, he would say a few words, and that would be it. He wasn't nervous at all; in fact, he almost wanted to laugh.

Because he had just found out that this award also came with a scholarship of nearly ten thousand dollars.

A few minutes later, Chancellor Ken Fols-Olier briefly introduced the achievements he had made during his time at the university.

The audience was full of people who could appreciate the significance, and gasps of amazement rippled through the crowd.

Lu Shixian held the golden trophy in his left hand and the scholarship check in his right, a genuine smile on his face.

"As an exchange student, I am deeply honored to receive this award."

"While the many achievements I've made during my time here are related to my personal efforts, they would not have been possible without the university's dedicated cultivation, and the collaborative efforts of my team."

"Therefore, I want to thank the Graduate School for accepting me, the Plant Pathology Lab for supporting me, and my team members for trusting me."

"I faced a great deal of doubt along the way, but now, I have done it!"

"The Yimi flower has bloomed."

Chapter 332: A Bountiful Harvest, and the Return Home

On his last day before returning to China.

The Sun Bar.

It was a small bar located in the town of Davis.

The place wasn't large, but its advantage was its quiet and secluded atmosphere.

After his last experience, Lu Shixian wasn't really a fan of these gatherings.

But this time, it was a farewell party specifically for him, so it was an invitation he couldn't refuse.

In attendance were all the members of his project team, as well as his roommates.

Basically, everyone he had gotten to know over the past year was there to see him off.

This time, Lu Shixian had learned his lesson and decided to make a preemptive strike.

"I'd like to toast everyone first. Thank you all for your help over the past year, whether in my studies, my research, or my life."

"There's a saying in China: all good things must come to an end. As long as we live, we cannot avoid the joys and sorrows of partings and reunions."

"But there's another saying: parting is for the sake of a better reunion. Our paths are bound to cross again."

"I welcome you all to come and visit me in China!"

After he spoke, the others raised their glasses, clearly moved.

"Cheers!"

Everyone downed the drink in their glasses.

After that, no matter who tried to get him to drink more, Lu Shixian refused.

He was leaving tomorrow and needed to be in good shape.

Unless absolutely necessary, he disliked the feeling of being drunk.

A scientist always needed a clear head.

Since he hadn't drunk much, he was up early the next morning.
Lu Shixian returned to the place where he jogged almost every morning.

He didn't know if this would be the last time, but it was clear he wouldn't be back anytime soon.

This time, however, he didn't run. He simply walked a slow lap.

His path led him back to his apartment building, and Lu Shixian sighed softly to himself.

"Time to go."

Suitcase in hand, he walked away from the small town of Davis, one step at a time.

His suitcase wasn't heavy, so his steps were light.

He had arrived with little, and he was leaving with just as little.

But what was different was the precious research knowledge and experience he had gained.

His trip had been incredibly fruitful!

An hour later.

Lu Shixian was on an international flight from Los Angeles to Yanjing.

As was his habit, he hadn't told a single soul he was returning.

But at just past five in the afternoon, Yanjing time.

The moment he stepped into the arrivals hall at Yanjing Airport, he saw a group of people holding signs with his name on them, waiting for his return.

It seemed this had been planned in advance.

Lu Shixian looked out and saw Professor Ma Yuheng standing at the very front.

Behind him were Zhu Yuanzhang, the assistant to Academician Xu Zhihong, and several teachers from the School of Life Sciences' graduate school.

He had to forgive himself for not remembering some of the teachers' names after being away for so long.

Then, looking further back, he was completely baffled.

He at least recognized the people at the front, but he had no impression of the three or four people behind them.

Though puzzled, he didn't let it slow him down as he walked briskly toward them.

"Professor Ma, Assistant Zhu, and all the other teachers, hello!" Lu Shixian greeted them immediately.

To be honest, he could understand why there was a welcoming party.

After all, he had scanned and sent his newly issued visa to the university as part of his application to extend the exchange program.

It was perfectly normal that someone at the university would know his arrival time.

But this particular welcoming committee... that he couldn't understand.

Just then, an extremely excited Ma Yuheng gave him a light punch on the chest.

"Well done, kid!"

"I heard you secretly published two papers in *Cell*, and as first author on both?"

In that instant, everything became clear to Lu Shixian. So that's what this was about.

Looking around at the group, it all made sense now.

He chuckled. "What do you mean, secretly? It was all out in the open, wasn't it?"

"The whole world could see it!"

Receiving confirmation, Ma Yuheng was momentarily speechless. "You kid, always pulling surprises. You should have communicated something this important with the school right away."

"And you didn't even give us a heads-up you were coming back. If someone hadn't happened to spot your name on the passenger list, we'd all still be in the dark."

"Academician Xu has an important academic conference recently, so he specifically asked me to come welcome you back."

Lu Shixian just nodded without offering an explanation, chuckling inwardly.

What he didn't say was that making a special international call just to report this kind of thing would have been far too tacky.

It's like how a true master never calls himself a master; his reputation is built by the words of others.

At this point, he finally turned his attention to the strangers in the back.

"Professor Ma, and these are?"

Ma Yuheng finally snapped out of it. "Silly me!"

He quickly made the introductions. "They're from several of Yanjing's science and tech media outlets. A few days ago, they were the ones who discovered your publications in *Cell*, so they came here today specifically to interview you."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was a little surprised. "But my contact address on the papers isn't in China. How did you manage to find me?"

A middle aged man with glasses quickly explained with a smile, "Mr. Lu, as media professionals, we have a certain sensitivity for these things."

"Any Chinese name that appears in a CNS level journal is worth our attention and investigation."

Another man chimed in, "At first, we thought it might be another Chinese American, since the lab and other members were all in the States. I never expected that when we looked into it, you turned out to be an exchange student."

"Do you have time for an interview right now?"

But before Lu Shixian could answer, Ma Yuheng spoke up, displeased.

"It's getting late. Have some consideration for an old man like me."

"Can't this wait until after we've had a bite to eat?"

Zhu Yuanzhang stepped forward at the perfect moment. "I've already booked a table at a private restaurant. Why don't we talk while we eat?"

As an academician's assistant, Zhu Yuanzhang was naturally thoughtful and thorough.

Chinese people have a habit of discussing business over meals, and his suggestion was met with everyone's approval.

By the time they arrived at the restaurant, most of the dishes had already been served.

Everyone took their seats, and after some food and drink, the atmosphere became much more relaxed.

The middle aged man who had explained earlier began his work.

"Young Lu, I'm Lu Qifeng, an editor for *Veins* magazine. Could you briefly introduce your research achievements?"

Hearing the question, Lu Shixian didn't answer right away. He subconsciously glanced at Ma Yuheng.

He saw him calmly eating his hotpot, looking for all the world like an uninvolved bystander.

Like father, like son, as they say.

No wonder he'd led them here. Turns out they were on the same side.

Others might not know, but how could he not?

Wasn't this *Veins* magazine published by Yanjing University's own School of Life Sciences Press?

Though not part of the same department, the connection was definitely not small.

Lu Shixian gathered his thoughts and began to answer. "Everyone here is a professional in a related academic field, so I'm sure you all know about the 125 key questions that *Nature* proposed in 2005."

"Our achievement addresses one of them: the interactive relationship in the co-evolution of plants and pathogens."

Chapter 333: Can't Exactly Say It Was a Freebie, Can You?

The reporters and editors all nodded.

This was basic information they had already looked up before coming.

Soon, another took the baton. "I'm a reporter from *The Voice of Science*. Mr. Lu, could you explain the significance of this research finding?"

*The Voice of Science* was a popular science magazine under the Yanjing University Press.

Lu Shixian was no longer surprised.

He answered quickly, "By deeply studying the stress mechanisms of plants when facing pathogen invasion, we can provide crucial theoretical support for updating plant protection strategies and developing new disease resistant varieties."

"We have currently discovered an indirect regulatory mechanism and a direct regulatory mechanism. These two findings have been published as papers in the October and November issues of *Cell*, respectively."

As Lu Shixian spoke, the reporters and editors took detailed notes in the notebooks they carried.

What he said matched what they already knew.

Observing their expressions, Lu Shixian wondered if he should drop a bombshell.

He paused, then continued, "Additionally, we have also discovered a third, gene-mediated regulatory mechanism. This finding will also be published in this month's issue of *Cell*."

As soon as he said this, the entire private room fell silent. Everyone turned to stare at him.

As if he hadn't noticed, Lu Shixian added, "If nothing unexpected happens, it should be a cover article."

At that moment, Ma Yuheng suddenly spat out the food he had just put in his mouth.

Even Zhu Yuanzhang, who had remained calm the entire time, couldn't help but look over.

"Ahem, cough, cough!" Ma Yuheng coughed a few times, not even bothering to wipe his mouth with a napkin as he complained loudly, "Can't you learn to say everything in one go?"

"Also, are you sure you're not pulling my leg?"

"This can't be real, can it?"

Ma Yuheng was still deeply skeptical.

How long had it been? This kid had already reached this level?

Had the world changed, or was he just getting old?

Lu Shixian chuckled. "Believe it or not, the results should be out in a few days. I'm speaking of probabilities, not certainties."

The editors exchanged glances, all seeing the same headline news beckoning to them.

A shared regret bloomed in their hearts. They should have come alone today.

Now they had to share the story with several others, greatly diminishing its value!

They all rushed to ask him, "Mr. Lu, this is an incredible achievement. How confident are you?"

Lu Shixian thought for a moment before answering, "Conservatively, ninety percent."

"Unless a Nobel-level discovery appears this month."

His answer once again silenced them.

For some reason, Ma Yuheng just wanted to go up to the rooftop and feel the evening breeze.

Just then, the last person asked his question. "I'm a reporter for the science section of the *Yanjing Daily*."

"I noticed that while you are the first author on your previous two papers, the co-authors listed behind you seem to be different groups of people."

"What's the situation there? Were you involved in multiple projects at the same time?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian looked at the reporter with some surprise.

This was the only media outlet that wasn't closely tied to the university; it was a legitimate publication supervised by the Yanjing Municipal Propaganda Department.

As expected of the capital's media, they had immediately grasped the crux of the matter.

This was common knowledge in the American research community, but no one in China knew about it.

He had originally planned to hold this back; some things were better left unsaid.

But this question clearly wasn't letting him off the hook.

He had no choice but to respond, "Because I'm the project lead."

As the saying goes, the fewer the words, the bigger the news.

This answer was once again beyond everyone's expectations.

This was ridiculous, okay?

Ma Yuheng was starting to question his reality again.

He went straight to the point. "Are you kidding me?"

"You haven't even graduated with your master's degree, and you're telling me you were in charge of such a massive project?"

"Why don't you just say you can fly to the sun and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with it?"

Lu Shixian had anticipated this reaction. He picked out the most important points and explained the situation as concisely as possible.

"The project was born from my idea, and a lot happened along the way..."

"Anyway, that's the situation."

"Isn't that why I came back? To work on the next small goal of graduation?"

Though his words sounded casual, everyone present knew it couldn't have been a simple matter.

Especially for a Chinese national to achieve this abroad, it must have required immense effort.

Lu Qifeng immediately gave him a thumbs-up. "The younger generation is truly formidable!"

"Putting everything else aside, to have this kind of experience at your age... you've completed a journey that takes others more than a decade."

Lu Shixian just smiled at the compliment. "No, on the contrary, I think it was much easier to achieve this goal abroad."

His words once again left everyone in silence.

But it was also the truth.

This statement made Ma Yuheng nervous. He quickly interjected, "Let me tell you something!"

"Don't you think the outside world is so great just because you spent a year there."

"It's actually very chaotic abroad. A stray bullet could just pop out of nowhere and snuff you out."

Old Ma suddenly turned into a chatterbox, words tumbling out one after another.

"Now that you're back, just stay put at Yanjing University. It's better than anywhere else."

"Otherwise, how can you just give away all those achievements to the Davis campus for free?"

"Our lab could have shared in a few of them, right?"

Hearing his words, Lu Shixian didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

It seemed Old Ma still held quite a grudge.

But he maintained a straight face as he retorted, "Can't exactly say it was a freebie, can you?"

"They provided the funding and the resources. We used their money and their equipment. It's only natural they get credit, isn't it?"

Ma Yuheng's beard was practically bristling.

"What's so great about that? Is there anything they can give that Yanjing University can't?"

Lu Shixian continued to argue, "But they also gave me a Youth Science Breakthrough Award, which came with a ten-thousand-dollar prize."

"US dollars, mind you."

Ma Yuheng was so angry he slammed the table. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"As if we don't have awards like that! I'll go to the dean and apply for one for you."

Having achieved his goal, Lu Shixian finally smiled. "Professor Ma, you're the one who said it."

"Everyone here heard you. You wouldn't go back on your word, would you?"

It was only then that Ma Yuheng realized he had been tricked.

Old Ma's anger turned into laughter. "You clever kid, you were digging a pit for me to fall into this whole time."

"That's not very kind of you, taking advantage of a poor old man like me."

Then he feigned sadness. "Pity me, at my age, I probably don't have many years left."

Lu Shixian's voice was firm. "How can you call it digging a pit? This is a civilized matter of mutual consent."

"Besides, you don't stay up all night working anymore. You've got several more decades in you, easy."

The rest of the group burst into laughter.

They had never seen a teacher-student relationship quite like this one.

Chapter 334: You Really Surprised Me Today

After the interview, Lu Shixian's group and the reporters and editors went their separate ways.

The restaurant wasn't far from Yanjing University, so he, Ma Yuheng, and the other teachers from the School of Life Sciences graduate school decided to walk.

"You really surprised me today," Ma Yuheng said on the way, still sighing with emotion.

"I always knew you would achieve great things, but I never imagined you could kick up such a storm all by yourself in the States."

"This day came so quickly!"

Lu Shixian let out a soft breath. "Not fast enough, in my opinion."

"Terence Tao got his master's degree from Flinders University at 17, his Ph.D. from Princeton at 21, and became a full professor at UCLA by 24."

"At 31, he had already won the Fields Medal, the world's highest honor in mathematics, as well as the Ramanujan Prize and a MacArthur Fellowship."

"Compared to those who came before, I'm 22 and I don't even have my master's degree yet. It's quite shameful, really."

His words stunned Ma Yuheng. The teachers walking behind them were also taken aback.

Old Ma turned his head and looked at Lu Shixian with an amused expression. "That's quite the benchmark you've chosen for yourself."

"Tao's situation is unique. It might be decades, or even centuries, before we see another person like him. His talent is unparalleled."

"Besides, mathematics is a special discipline. The demand for time and accumulated experience isn't as strict."

"Pure mathematics doesn't even require experiments. It just needs a release of talent and inspiration, plus a pen."

Worried that Lu Shixian was getting ahead of himself, Ma Yuheng continued to explain, "But biology is completely different. It's an experimental science. Even if you study theory, you need the support of extensive experiments."

"Whether you admit it or not, the moment you conduct an experiment, there's a barrier to entry."

"We are limited by our experimental proficiency and various experimental conditions, and that takes time to overcome."

After this long explanation, Ma Yuheng finally got to his main point. "So you really don't need to be in such a hurry."

Lu Shixian still shook his head, looking up at the distant night sky. "I can't wait."

"A person's life is finite, but the pursuit of truth is infinite."

"There are still so, so many things we need to uncover."

Ma Yuheng didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Where did you learn all these grand phrases?"

"How old are you? Why are you already lamenting that 'the sunset is beautiful, but dusk is near'?"

"Putting academics aside, you have a good personality. Sometimes you seem naive, but other times you're quite profound."

Ma Yuheng raised a hand to his forehead, thinking. "How should I put it? I just can't quite figure you out, kid."

"If I had to say, it's that you seem like a walking contradiction."

His words made Lu Shixian fall silent.

He had to admit, Old Ma's years of experience were no joke. He could read people with such accuracy.

After a long moment, a soft sigh escaped his lips.

"After all, you only learn the value of something after you've lost it."

In the days that followed, Lu Shixian's life back at the university was incredibly peaceful.

There was still no news from the interview, and he had no idea what was happening with it.

His return to China happened to fall right at the end of the semester.

Normally, an exchange student would finish their term and return in September, at the start of a new academic year.

But he had extended his stay by three months. His classmates in the graduate program were now about to finish the first semester of their third year.

Thus, his next objective became clear.

Graduate!

And then, pursue a doctorate.

It seemed it was time to start preparing his master's thesis.

Of course, this was a matter he had to discuss with his advisor.

In the past two years, he had never received any direct guidance from Academician Xu Zhihong, nor had he participated in any of his projects.

To an outsider, it might have looked as if he'd been left to his own devices, ignored, and marginalized.

But he had never felt that was the case.

At the very least, he could feel that he was being watched over.

Over the past year, he had come to deeply understand that Academician Xu Zhihong's teaching style was different from others.

He didn't say much, but every decision he made had a profound meaning.

You might not feel anything while doing it, but when you looked back after it was done, you saw it in a completely different light.

Like this exchange student trip, which he had practically pushed for single-handedly.

Looking at it now, the achievements Lu Shixian had made were something he might not have obtained even after several years in China.

It had even altered the trajectory of his life, with far-reaching effects.

So, as soon as he heard that Academician Xu had returned to campus after his conference, he immediately headed for the School of Life Sciences.

With a complex mix of anticipation and hesitation, Lu Shixian knocked gently on the door.

"Come in!" A familiar, deep voice came from within.

Pushing the door open, Lu Shixian saw Xu Zhihong again after a year.

"Hello, Academician Xu!"

Hearing his greeting, Xu Zhihong looked up in surprise. "Lu Shixian?"

"You've got perfect timing."

"I just got back to the office, and you've already found your way here?"

Lu Shixian grinned. "Well, you're managing a million things every day, aren't you?"

"If I didn't come early, I was afraid I'd miss you again!"

Xu Zhihong was not Ma Yuheng. He paid no mind to his jokes, completely ignoring the flattery.

"I heard you made quite a splash in the States this time. You were able to adapt quickly to a new environment and achieve some impressive results."
"Very impressive. It seems I underestimated you."

Receiving his mentor's affirmation, Lu Shixian was filled with an indescribable joy.

However, Xu Zhihong only mentioned it briefly before asking, "But I remember you said you were very interested in genetics and breeding, didn't you?"

"In the past few years, your research has touched on cell biology, immunology, and plant pathology."

"Even though you've been jumping from one thing to another, you've somehow managed to come up with something."

"Are you not interested in my main research areas at all?"

Hearing his mentor's question, Lu Shixian gave an embarrassed smile.

Academician Xu's main research areas were plant developmental biology and plant physiology. In these related fields, he was a renowned authority, and since 1988, he had published several monographs, including *Tissue Culture of Economic Plants*, *Plant Protoplast Culture and Genetic Manipulation*, and *Molecular Mechanisms of Plant Development*.

The sense of accomplishment from authoring a book runs deeper than publishing a paper, but it also demands a higher level of professional expertise.

In any case, Lu Shixian felt he was still a long way from being able to write a textbook.

So, he scratched his head. "Well, I just haven't found the right opportunity."

"To be honest, the results I've achieved in the past two years were all inspired by serendipity."

"So, isn't that why I've come to see you now?"

Chapter 335: Terminal Straight-Man Chauvinism

Hearing this, Xu Zhihong seemed to have guessed his intention. "Oh? Are you preparing to graduate?"

Lu Shixian nodded, unsurprised. Anyone in a high position has been tempered by the ways of the world.

"Yes, I'm almost in my third year of my master's. It's time to think about graduating."

After speaking, Lu Shixian made his request. "Also, Academician Xu, I'd like to continue my doctoral studies under your supervision."

Generally, a doctoral advisor can also supervise master's students, but a master's advisor is not qualified to supervise doctoral students.

As an academician, Xu Zhihong naturally didn't have such constraints; he could even supervise postdoctoral fellows without any issue.

A slight smile finally appeared on his face as he nodded. "I'll grant your request."

"According to the university's regulations, the semester has just begun, and you haven't reached the required years of study. But since you want to graduate early, it's not impossible."

Xu Zhihong had indeed been paying attention to him and was quite familiar with his situation. "Although I haven't personally supervised your experiments, it's true that you don't need to invest more effort at the master's level. Publishing in *Cell* at this stage is more than enough to prove your research capabilities have reached the level of a doctoral student, or even higher."

"However, the university's rules must be respected and upheld, even if your abilities far surpass your peers."

After a pause, Xu Zhihong continued, "How about this? To address any potential questions from other students, you can submit an application to the school after the end of this month."

"Then, whenever you finish your thesis and pass the defense, you can graduate."

"But I believe that's just a formality for you."

Lu Shixian naturally had no objections. Academician Xu, true to his past role as university president, was thoughtful and fair.

"Then, regarding the topic for my graduation thesis, do you have any suggestions?" he immediately asked.

In truth, even a minor side project from his time at the Davis Plant Pathology Lab would have been more than enough for a master's thesis; after all, the prestige of cutting-edge research was on a different level.

But then again, as the student of a highly renowned academician in plant development and physiology, he naturally had to align himself with his mentor, even if he ultimately carved out a different path for himself.

He understood the gesture of paying homage.

This was not only a way to show closeness, but the other professors on the defense committee would also subconsciously consider Academician Xu's influence.

Lu Shixian didn't care about the latter, as he didn't need any special treatment. But he valued the former greatly. In the Chinese academic world, respecting one's teacher has always been a cornerstone of the student-mentor relationship.

Why do so many contestants on talent shows choose to perform their mentors' famous works? There are reasons for it.

Sure enough, the look Xu Zhihong gave Lu Shixian was now even more satisfied.

An academician was an academician for a reason; he came up with an idea in an instant.

"I heard your undergraduate thesis for early graduation was on the polar transport of auxin?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian nodded, a little embarrassed. He hadn't expected Academician Xu to know even that. The paper was acceptable as an undergraduate thesis at the time, but looking back now, it felt rather shallow.

But Xu Zhihong continued, "The research directions in modern plant physiology include photosynthesis, plant metabolism, plant respiration, plant water relations, mineral nutrition, transport in plants, plant movement, stress resistance, growth and development, and plant hormones."

"Although the level of your paper was a bit low, it at least covered two of those areas—plant hormones and internal transport—which fall under the scope of plant physiology."

"If I were to have you research auxin again now, I believe you could do much better."

Lu Shixian immediately understood Xu Zhihong's meaning and readily agreed.

For him, this was a way to measure his own growth. The same topic, after just a few short years—what kind of answer would he produce this time? He himself was looking forward to it.

Yanjing.

In a modest teahouse.

"Damn, I can't believe we two single dogs are spending New Year's Eve together," Chang Wenchao said, drinking the hot tea on the table with great frustration, his heart filled with an unspeakable sorrow.

Lu Shixian raised an eyebrow, both amused and curious. "I heard Laoda is doing pretty well at the country's biggest newspaper. He's written several impactful reports and was recently sent by his boss to Jiangnan to follow a hot news story."

"And Lao'er? Although he didn't choose a position at the provincial level or above, I hear he's climbing the ladder pretty fast in a local county-level city."

"Right now, you and I are the only ones left in Yanjing. Who else would I call for a get-together?"

Then he added, looking puzzled, "Wait a minute! I remember things were going pretty well between you and the class beauty, Jiang Xiaoqin, right? How are you a single dog again?"

"Look at you, a proud graduate of Yanjing University, now a master's student at the Institute of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences. You're a decent-looking guy, a total blue-chip stock!"

"You should be pretty attractive! Did your terminal case of straight-man chauvinism flare up and scare her away?"

Hearing this, Chang Wenchao scoffed. "Screw you, you're the one with the disease!"

"At least I've been in a relationship. You're still a virgin, aren't you?"

"You have the nerve to talk about me? If anyone's got a problem, it's you!"

Those words immediately silenced Lu Shixian, who retreated in defeat. But he was shocked internally. Has Laosan gotten this bold?

But then, Chang Wenchao sighed heavily. "Ah, I can't accept it!"

"I just lost to Yanjing's housing prices of 30,000 yuan per square meter."

"I can't afford a house or a car here. Why would she stay with me?"

"The woman I love is gone! What's the point of this combined master's-doctoral program? What's the point of publishing three SCI papers in *ChemRev*?"

At first, Lu Shixian felt sorry for Chang Wenchao, but when he heard the very personal style of humblebragging at the end, he couldn't help but laugh. At the same time, he felt relieved.

Hearing him talk like that meant he had already moved on.

So he joked back, "It's been years, Laosan, and your humblebragging game hasn't improved at all!"

"I told you a long time ago! Women only slow down the speed at which we draw our swords! Our journey is to the sea of stars!"

"Isn't it better to just stick with chemistry?"

Chang Wenchao looked at Lu Shixian speechlessly and, in the manner of an experienced man, patted him on the shoulder.

"Benefactor, it seems you have strayed onto the demonic path, your eyes temporarily clouded by the vixen that is biology."

"Watch as this humble Taoist priest severs your sinful thoughts and returns you to the righteous path!"

"Great Mighty Heavenly Dragon, Great Luo Dharma Spell…"

Lu Shixian: ......

Chapter 336: The Shocked Chang Wenchao

"Aren't you supposed to be Fahai? So what's with the 'humble Taoist priest' thing?" Lu Shixian was a bit baffled.

Chang Wenchao chuckled. "Monks can't be with women, but Taoist priests can!"

After enough joking around, their conversation gradually shifted to more serious topics.

"Are you that awesome now? *ChemRev*... I remember its impact factor reached 40.197 this year. That's got to be a top-tier journal in chemistry, right?" Lu Shixian wasn't very familiar with the chemistry academic circle, but the model for academic research was largely the same across all disciplines.

The impact factor refers to the frequency with which a journal is cited in a given year or period, and it's an important metric for measuring the influence of an academic journal.

Although there isn't a linear positive correlation between impact factor and the quality of academic work, it remains the simplest way to represent a journal's academic quality.

Chang Wenchao chuckled, deliberately showing off. "You wouldn't know about this, would you? For the past few years, the editorial department of *ChemRev* has been inviting my advisor to submit articles. Then, my advisor assigns the task of writing the review to a few students, and he reviews it afterward."

"This unworthy one was unfortunately chosen. Even though I was just doing grunt work, I still managed to snag a second author credit."

"Honestly, the feeling is just agonizing!"

Hearing his account, Lu Shixian suddenly felt the urge to punch him.

To be able to publish a review article in a top-tier journal, and an invited one at that, fully demonstrated one fact.

His advisor was definitely a top figure in the relevant field. Their research team must have a formidable international reputation, with not only world-leading academic standards but also a very high degree of global recognition.

He himself had to fight tooth and nail out there, putting in so much effort just for a chance at authorship.

For others, it was like being spoon-fed; all they had to do was eat.

Wasn't this "preferential treatment" a bit too much?

Seeing Lu Shixian's expression, Chang Wenchao couldn't have been happier. Opportunities to make him jealous were rare; at least during their undergraduate years, he never had the chance.

However, just then, Lu Shixian's phone suddenly rang.

Lu Shixian took out his phone and glanced at it. The caller ID showed "Lao Ma." What the heck?

He immediately checked the time. Yanjing time: 10 PM. What could he want, calling at this hour?

But he had to answer Lao Ma's call. As soon as he picked up, Ma Yuheng's excited voice came through the phone.

"Where are you? Get to the School of Life Sciences, now!"

Lu Shixian was confused. "What's up? I thought you don't work overtime?"

"I'm out having tea right now! I'm not coming over unless it's something important."

Ma Yuheng on the other end glanced around, his mouth twitching. He quickly shouted, "Kid, unless you're in a police station, you better get your ass over here."

"Yanda's School of Life Sciences is about to be overrun! It's not just me, Dean Rao is waiting for you too!"

"Could it be?" A guess formed in Lu Shixian's mind.

Although he wasn't entirely sure, he had already stood up, ready to leave.

"Laosan, I'll treat you next time."

"Something's come up, I have to go." With that, Lu Shixian was already preparing to bolt.

But Lu Shixian's phone was an old HTC he bought in high school. The sound leakage was pretty bad, and it had long been obsolete.

"Police station? Yanda overrun? The Dean?"

These words echoed in Chang Wenchao's mind, and huge question marks popped up in his head.

"What's going on?"

Yanda was also Chang Wenchao's alma mater. Having graduated not too long ago, his feelings for the university were still strong.

So he immediately stood up as well, following Lu Shixian out while asking curiously, "What on earth happened? Did someone get into trouble?"

Lu Shixian was instantly speechless. "Trouble your head!"

"It's a long story, I'll tell you later."

Lu Shixian quickly hailed a taxi on the side of the road and saw that the driver was an old man.

Before Lu Shixian could speak, Chang Wenchao had already eagerly called out, "Driver, Yanda South Gate, quick! A little faster, please! We're in a hurry!"

"Young man, don't talk in circles. I can't go any faster, this is Yanjing! I'm out here driving for fun, not to get you a meeting with the cops!" the driver explained.

His expression was remarkably calm, as if he wasn't flustered at all. His words completely shut Chang Wenchao down.

Lu Shixian didn't know whether to laugh or cry. An old hand is an old hand!

Now Chang Wenchao was out of options and could only head slowly to their destination with Lu Shixian.

A dozen or so minutes later, the taxi came to a steady stop at the Yanda campus gate.

After getting out, the two of them hurried toward the School of Life Sciences, located near the South Gate, which was the closest entrance.

Because they had been delayed on the road, they started to jog. They passed the Jinguang Building, and in just a minute or two, they arrived at their destination.

The sharp-eyed Ma Yuheng quickly spotted the panting Lu Shixian and immediately gestured to him.

As he walked toward Lao Ma, Lu Shixian finally had a chance to survey his surroundings.

Holy cow!

It's really happening!

A crowd of people holding cameras was gathered at the school's entrance, seemingly about to lay siege to the place.

And standing on the steps was Dean Rao, the center of the crowd.

"Dean Rao, could you please tell us the reason behind your recent letter to *Nature*?"

"Last August, you resolutely announced you would no longer run for academician. This year, Professor Liu, who failed last year, was successfully elected in the CAS academician supplementary election. This news has led many netizens and industry insiders to feel it's unfair to you. As the person involved, what are your thoughts?"

"Publishing in top-tier journals is undoubtedly a symbol of strength. In the past few years, the number of papers from your lab at Yanjing has been zero. What is the reason for this?"

Lu Shixian's movement toward Ma Yuheng didn't attract the attention of others, but it was caught by the sharp-eyed Dean Rao.

He let out a few sighs of relief internally. The main character had finally arrived.

Heaven knows how much talking he'd had to do in the past twenty minutes. To be honest, he was a hot topic himself right now, and these people kept pestering him when they couldn't find the person they were looking for, which was a huge headache.

So, he waved to Lu Shixian. "Student Lu, I've heard so much about you! Congratulations on publishing a cover paper in this issue of *Cell*."

"These are our friends from various newspapers and magazines. Their enthusiasm is quite overwhelming. Could you please help out and take some interviews?"

Then, he turned to the reporters below and said, "The person you're looking for is here. You can ask him your questions."

"However, due to time constraints, please limit it to one question per person."

At that moment, Chang Wenchao, standing in the crowd, nearly had his eyes pop out of their sockets.

Thinking about his own humblebragging just now, he suddenly felt like life had lost all meaning.

Chapter 337: The Swarming Media Reporters

"Holy shit!"

"Did I hear that right?"

"A cover article in *Cell*?"

No words could describe the shock in Chang Wenchao's heart at that moment.

Unlike Zhang Mengting and Lin Chenyi, being in the domestic research circle himself, he understood the significance of what he had just heard far better.

Because it often implied to the readers that this paper was the best work in that particular issue of the journal.

For some journals, being a cover story might just mean its topic, title, or images were more eye-catching or unusual.

But this absolutely did not include CNS. Before each issue was published, top scientists from every country would secretly compete for their cover papers. The competition was incredibly fierce.

For a Chinese person to publish a cover paper in such a journal was, without a doubt, a tremendous honor, the kind one would remember for a lifetime.

They say biology and chemistry are two sides of the same coin, so he wasn't a complete stranger to the School of Life Sciences.

Even if what he heard was an auditory hallucination, his eyes couldn't be failing him at the same time.

The person who had just spoken was clearly the figure who had caused a stir at Yanda last year and this year: the Dean of the School of Life Sciences at Yanjing University, Rao Yiming.

Rao enjoyed an international reputation in the field of neurobiology, and his achievements in the molecular and cellular mechanisms of neural development were world-renowned.

Although he had failed to be elected as an academician, in many people's eyes, his academic level and accomplishments were a cut above many actual academicians.

There was no possibility that his words were false.

So, this was real?

Lu Shixian, of course, had no time to pay attention to Laosan's expression.

As he passed Ma Yuheng, he suddenly received a look from Lao Ma. Although there was no verbal exchange, he understood Ma Yuheng's meaning.

He quickly walked to Rao Yiming's side, and just as expected, the reporters shifted their fire, thrusting their microphones toward his face.

"Click, click, click…"

At the same time, the camera flashes never stopped.

After all, a scholar who published a cover paper in a top international journal being so young was a highly newsworthy topic.

In this era, with the public's heightened attention on the nation's scientific and technological development, the concept of an "academic star" was no longer confined to small research circles.

Looking at Lu Shixian, many reporters couldn't help but recall a slender figure.

Just last year, that person had received widespread attention and sparked heated debate after being awarded one million yuan by his university for cracking the "Szpilrajn Conjecture," eventually becoming China's youngest full professor.

They weren't sure how the value of a world-class mathematical conjecture compared to a cover paper in *Cell*, but they knew in their hearts that this was what the public loved to see. Another academic star was about to rise!

Countless reporters were now scrambling to be the first to interview Lu Shixian, even if it was second-hand news that had just been reported.

Dean Rao, standing beside him, couldn't stand it any longer. Everyone was asking questions at once. How would this ever end?

So he made a gesture and said loudly, "Please maintain order. Ask your questions one by one, or we'll have to reschedule the interview for another day."

Lu Shixian looked at the dense crowd and then glanced helplessly at Rao Yiming.

Even if each person only asked one question, this was no small task!

Still, the novelty of the experience was intense. This was by far the most chaotic interview scene he had ever encountered.
Mr. Lu, just an hour ago, a paper was published on the cover of the journal *Cell*. You are listed as the first author and co-corresponding author. As we understand it, you have already published two papers as the first author in previous issues.

Including this one, that makes three. If I'm not mistaken, you just turned 22 this year, correct?

In all likelihood, you are the youngest scholar in the country to have a cover paper published in a journal of this caliber.

This is a remarkable achievement. How did you manage to do it? a reporter from a famous science magazine asked, being the first to get the chance to ask a question.

However, the question left Lu Shixian completely baffled. "What corresponding author?"

The reporter, clearly a professional, was well-prepared and took out the latest issue of the journal. In the byline for the corresponding authors, Lu Shixian was shocked to find his own name.

It dawned on him in an instant, without even having to think. This had to be Knox's doing.

This was unexpected. He wanted to call and ask about it, but now wasn't the time.

So, he quickly replied with humility, "I've never considered myself a scholar!

Achieving these results wasn't my accomplishment alone. I'm still just a newcomer to academic research."

After he said this, Lu Shixian could see Old Ma in the distance discreetly giving him a thumbs-up.

This was why Ma Yuheng had given him a look earlier. Being interviewed on camera was a world of difference from a normal conversation.

Many people freeze up in front of the camera, unable to even speak. Lu Shixian's performance could already be considered exceptionally poised.

Furthermore, the media is notoriously difficult to handle. One slip of the tongue or a controversial statement could easily be taken out of context or exaggerated, then spread widely, causing unnecessary negative repercussions.

In Ma Yuheng's eyes, although Lu Shixian had been interviewed by a few reporters and editors before, most were his own people from Yanda University who would report the facts objectively. Plus, spending a few hours with them had helped him relax.

But this was all happening so suddenly, with unfamiliar media outlets and unscreened questions, demanding an exceptionally quick wit.

Next, another reporter asked, "Mr. Lu, this year, fewer than a hundred papers from our country have been published in CNS journals, and all of them were by leading experts from top universities or research institutions.

You're still a graduate student, yet you alone account for three of them, all as first author, and one even as corresponding author.

Many professors can't even match your achievements. What are your thoughts on this?"

As soon as he spoke, the noisy scene quieted down a bit.

Many people looked at him, waiting to see how he would answer.

Lu Shixian glanced at the reporter, mentally adding him to his blacklist.

The reporter's subtext was clear: all those experts and professors had been researching for years, yet their results couldn't compare to a graduate student's. Their research had amounted to nothing.

It was one thing to joke about this in private, but if he actually acknowledged it, his future in the country would likely be fraught with obstacles.

Naturally, Lu Shixian wasn't about to fall for that trap. "I've always been a rather lucky person. And when it comes to scientific research, sometimes it really comes down to luck. Lady Luck just happened to smile on me this time. When she'll appear next is anyone's guess."

Chapter 338: National Key Laboratory

But the trials weren't over. It was time for Lu Shixian's battle of wits with the reporters to begin.

"Mr. Lu, according to the journal, the first corresponding author is from the Plant Pathology Lab at the University of California, Davis," the next female reporter began her interview.

"We've noticed that your previous achievements were also completed in the same lab, and apart from you, everyone else involved was a foreigner."

"Does this mean that such sensational results can only be achieved abroad?"

"Will you continue to go abroad for your research in the future?"

Lu Shixian mentally added this reporter to his blacklist again. He hadn't expected someone so young to ask such ruthless questions.

If he had to choose between the previous question and this one, he would rather have answered the former.

Down below, Ma Yuheng was fuming. He put a finger to his lips, signaling to Lu Shixian that it was okay not to answer if the question was too difficult.

In truth, as thorny as the reporters' questions were, they were what the public wanted to know.

Lu Shixian considered for a few seconds before deciding to answer this question.

"You're overgeneralizing a bit. In fact, I published a paper during my undergraduate studies, which was also featured in a top-tier journal in the field of cell biology, and I was in the country at the time."

"If you don't think that was sensational enough, it received praise from this year's Nobel laureate, Robert."

In that instant, all the media personnel remembered the viral event that had once taken the nation by storm: "Have you found the 'Lu' today?"

The buzz around the event had long since died down, so no one had made the connection.

But now, hearing the name, they understood everything.

Many stared with wide eyes in astonishment. So he was the undergraduate who had helped the Nobel laureate complete the final piece of his empirical puzzle!

The camera flashes went off incessantly again, illuminating the School of Life Sciences as if it were broad daylight.

Lu Shixian, still unsure why everyone was so excited, continued his explanation. "I must admit that, to some extent, research conditions abroad are indeed more convenient than here at home.

But these are just auxiliary factors. What truly determines one's success is oneself.

As for my future, I can't say for certain if I'll go abroad again. But if going abroad would help advance the level of science and technology in related fields for our country, I would be willing to stay there for a lifetime."

Coming from Lu Shixian, others might not grasp the depth of his feelings, but he meant every word.

Just as the next reporter was about to ask a question, Dean Rao, who had been standing to the side, suddenly stepped forward. "I hope everyone will focus more on the academics. A few questions like that are fine, but if there are any more, we'll end today's interview right here!"

The dean's words had an immediate effect.

The questions gradually became more normal.

Q: "Can the results you published in *Cell* be applied immediately? What is their significance?"

A: "No, they can't. For now, their greatest role is to provide a guiding direction for those still working hard in plant disease resistance research."

Q: "Mr. Lu, what are your next research plans?"

A: "To finish my master's thesis!"

Q: "What are your hopes for the future?"

A: "To work hard towards creating a better and happier life for everyone."

At eleven that night, Lu Shixian finally dragged his weary body back towards the graduate student dormitory.

The streetlights stretched his shadow long behind him.

In the past, he had enjoyed being in the spotlight.

But now, he would rather have spent the entire day in the lab.

"Lu, get some good rest when you get back." Dean Rao walked with him for the last stretch, as the faculty housing was just before the graduate dorms.

When they reached the point where they would part ways, Rao Yiming stopped and turned around. "You've worked hard today."

"You did very well today, with almost no slips of the tongue."

But he ended with a soft sigh. "A university should be a sanctuary for quiet learning, untainted by the world of fame and fortune.

After returning from Northwestern University in the US, my years here have taught me that we fear this world, yet we are compelled to approach it.

I believe you, having just returned yourself, understand this deeply.

But as you said, the crucial factor is the person. I hope you can always hold onto your original aspirations."

Watching Dean Rao's receding figure, Lu Shixian stood there for a long time...

The next morning, Lu Shixian was out early.

Today, his destination was his advisor Xu Zhihong's office.

He had a preliminary direction for his graduation thesis, but he lacked the means to complete it, as he needed a small lab.

Now was the time to ask Academician Xu for help. Surely, such a matter would be a trivial task for him.

But after Lu Shixian stated his request, Academician Xu's response caught him completely off guard.

"Welcome to the State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research!" Xu Zhihong said to him. "I was thinking of making this decision last year, but you hadn't settled on a research direction back then.

After much thought, I concluded that only by letting you see farther could you go farther in the future!

And the facts have proven this point. You've gained a great deal."

Lu Shixian nodded, deeply moved by Academician Xu's heartfelt words.

But words of gratitude felt so feeble at this moment; he could only hold them silently in his heart.

"Let's go! I'll take you there to get acquainted." Xu Zhihong took his coat from the rack and led the way.

Lu Shixian followed behind him, slowly heading towards a place he could once only have dreamed of reaching.

If he remembered correctly, as of last year, Yanda University had 1 national laboratory, 12 state key laboratories, and 24 ministerial key laboratories.

It seemed like a lot, but the national laboratory's research focused mostly on chemical or molecular sciences, which had little to do with him.

The twelve state key laboratories at Yanda were in fields like Artificial Microstructure and Mesoscopic Physics; Molecular Dynamics and Steady State Structure; Protein Engineering and Plant Gene Engineering; Biomembrane and Membrane Biotechnology; Turbulence and Complex Systems; Rare Earth Materials Chemistry and Applications; Regional Optical Fiber Communication Networks and New Optical Communication Systems; Chinese Information Processing; Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control; Natural and Bionic Drugs; Micro and Nanofabrication Technology; and Nuclear Physics and Nuclear Technology.

Just from the names, it was clear that not many were related to life sciences.

Besides the State Key Laboratory of Biomembrane and Membrane Biotechnology, there was the State Key Laboratory of Protein Engineering and Plant Gene Engineering.

And only one of them was a perfect fit for him.

Chapter 339: Cool Shade Under a Great Tree

It was safe to say that this lab was currently the most suitable place for him to conduct his research and studies in the country.

Walking towards the lab, Lu Shixian couldn't help but reflect on the past.

If not for wanting to enter university early, he wouldn't have participated in the Biology Olympiad.

If not for aiming for Yuanpei College, he wouldn't have competed in the IBO.

If not for meeting Professor Gu through the competition, based on his usual habits, he wouldn't have participated in something like the Challenge Cup.

If not for catching Academician Xu's attention at the Challenge Cup defense, he might not have gone abroad, nor would he have had the chance to enter a national key laboratory.

If any one of those choices had been different, how would his future have changed?

But there were no "ifs." Everything in the past was now history.

He no longer dwelled on such hypotheticals.

This was a new starting point!

He had goals, knowledge, growth, prospects, and a future.

This was certainly worth celebrating!

The State Key Laboratory of Protein Engineering and Plant Gene Research was not far from Yanda's School of Life Sciences, located just a few hundred meters away in the Jinguang Life Sciences Building.

After just a few minutes' walk, the two arrived at the building.

"The Protein Engineering and Plant Gene Engineering lab was established with the support of Yanda's School of Life Sciences. It's the most suitable for you right now, especially since you're still a student here," Xu Zhihong explained as they got into the elevator.

"The entire lab currently has only about thirty permanent members. The rest are graduate students like you.

The vast majority of them are Yanda students, so you should be able to integrate quickly."

At this point, Xu Zhihong added, "However, since you want to develop in the field of genetic breeding, I'll take you to an even better lab when a suitable opportunity arises."

Lu Shixian nodded repeatedly. This was already far beyond his expectations.

If there was a better lab, that was a matter for the future.

The security in the Jinguang Life Sciences Building was very tight. If Xu Zhihong hadn't been leading the way, he wouldn't have been able to take a single step.

As they reached the 6th floor, a figure suddenly approached them.

"Academician Xu?" The speaker was a middle-aged man with a decent head of hair.

He immediately stopped and greeted Xu Zhihong. "I haven't seen you in the Jinguang building for a long time, not since you became president!"

Xu Zhihong smiled back at him. "Old Li, that's because you never step out of your lab.

I'm in a secondary role now, so you'll be seeing me around here more often."

The middle-aged man's gaze then shifted "casually" to Lu Shixian, and he asked, "And this is?"

"A graduate student of mine. I'm bringing him to join the group today." Since it was an acquaintance, Xu Zhihong offered a brief explanation.

The middle-aged man immediately showed a surprised expression. "Well now! It's been a long time since you've taken on a student. This is a rare sight!"

Then he smiled and nodded at Lu Shixian. "To have caught the old president's eye, this young man must be very outstanding!"

Lu Shixian maintained his usual modesty and replied, "You're too kind. It's all thanks to the cultivation of the university and my advisor."

After the pleasantries, once the middle-aged man had walked away, Xu Zhihong explained in a timely manner, "That's Li Yufeng, the director of the Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology upstairs."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian suddenly understood the feeling of enjoying the cool shade under a great tree.

To be a lab director, one had to be at least a full professor, yet he had just smiled so brightly at a nobody like himself.

Of course, while academicians were not exactly rare at Yanda, part of it was because Academician Xu had just stepped down as the university's president.

Next, they encountered several more people.

They weren't at a level where they could strike up a conversation with Academician Xu, who merely nodded in acknowledgment.

But without a doubt, Lu Shixian received a great deal of attention.

However, Lu Shixian's ability to adjust was strong, and he quickly regained his composure.

After walking through a long corridor, Xu Zhihong finally stopped in front of a large door with the words "State Key Laboratory of Protein Engineering and Plant Gene Research."

When the door was pushed open, the scene inside took Lu Shixian by surprise.

The sofas in the lounge area near the entrance were packed with people, though many more were standing. Most of them were young.

Looking towards the sofas, Lu Shixian's heart skipped a beat. More academicians, and three of them at once.

Having spent a good amount of time in Yanda's School of Life Sciences, he might not have known every professor in the school, but he had a strong impression of every academician.

Zhu Xian, Director of the State Key Laboratory.

Although he had only been elected as an Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences last year along with Yuanpei College's Dean Zeng Fanzhu, he had been the director of the State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research for nearly a decade.

His main research areas were the molecular mechanisms of cotton fiber development and the study of stem cell regulation of shoot and root apical meristems in Arabidopsis.

If Elder Yuan represented the pinnacle of hybrid rice research in the world, then Academician Zhu was a luminary in the global field of cotton research.

Zhao Dongming, Deputy Director of the State Key Laboratory, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

For the past few years, he had been deeply involved in the field of phycology, making significant contributions to the study of cell differentiation and pattern formation in cyanobacteria.

The last one was an Academician of the Jili National Academy of Sciences, Niu Chengtang, also a Deputy Director of the State Key Laboratory.

Lu Shixian didn't know much about him.

However, it was worth noting that while domestically elected academicians were naturally seen as more prestigious and authoritative in the public eye, the academic weight of the two was not vastly different, and in some cases, the latter might even exceed the former.

Many factors were involved, which couldn't be explained in just a sentence or two.

At that moment, everyone in the room stood up in unison.

Of course, the person they were greeting was Academician Xu.

Come to think of it, Xu Zhihong was also a director, but he was the chairman of the Academic Committee.

In an academic organization, the chairman of the Academic Committee ranked a level above the laboratory director.

Members of the Academic Committee were not always professors from the same university, but they were all heavyweights in their respective fields, holding significant influence.

They were generally responsible for academic evaluation in the lab. Although they didn't engage in specific research, everything from the review and appraisal of routine academic achievements to the nomination and recommendation for academic honors every few years required their approval. It was safe to say their status was extremely high.

While Lu Shixian was lost in thought, the three academicians had already approached him.

"Old Xu, I can't believe I get to see you back here just as I'm about to step down," Academician Zhu said, looking at Xu Zhihong with great emotion. "The last time our lab was this full was three years ago, wasn't it?"

Chapter 340: Just a Basic Operation, Take a Seat

Xu Zhihong laughed. "If I told Old Zhong and the others what you just said, they'd surely have a bone to pick with me."

Academician Zhu was defiant. "I'd say the same thing to their faces.

They're at Tsinghua, not on our side. They certainly don't hold back when we're competing for projects."

"Haha, Old Zhu, you're about to retire, yet you're still so petty." Xu Zhihong shook his head with a wry smile.

Although he was busy catching up, he hadn't forgotten the real purpose of his visit.

So Xu Zhihong turned and brought Lu Shixian to the front.

"I'm here today to recommend a student to complete his thesis project in the lab. His name is..."

But before Xu Zhihong could finish, Zhu Xian interrupted him.

"No need for introductions. Lu Shixian, right?

Three consecutive papers in *Cell*. It's been blowing up online these past few days."

Then he sighed with admiration. "No wonder you haven't taken a student in years, and now you suddenly take on a graduate student.

I've read the papers carefully. He's a real talent!

I'll certainly grant you this favor."

Zhu Xian turned his head to a professor standing behind him. "Professor Tang, you're the chief steward of the lab. Let's assign Lu Shixian to you for now.

Give him his research tasks after he finishes his graduation thesis.

He's Academician Xu's prized student, so you'd better take good care of him. And don't you dare hold back any of your best tricks."
The professor who was addressed, a man in his thirties, immediately smiled and said, "Consider it done."

"However, given that Student Lu has published in *Cell*, my modest abilities might hardly be a challenge for him!"

This joke set the whole room roaring with laughter.

"Alright, you all help him get settled. The three of us are going to catch up with Old Xu," Zhu Xian said, then slung an arm around Academician Xu's shoulder and led the other two academicians out the main door.

As soon as the academicians left, the atmosphere in the room immediately relaxed.

And the center of everyone's attention shifted from Xu Zhihong to Lu Shixian.

"Lu, let me give you a rundown of our lab's basic situation," Professor Tang said, offering a brief introduction.

"Our lab has four main research directions: Macromolecular Biology and Biopharmaceutical Research, Plant Development and Functional Genomics, Plant-Microbe Interaction Research, and Bioinformatics and Genetic Evolution Research."

"This positioning is based on the current needs of the nation's fundamental research development."

"All of our projects are centered around these areas."

After finishing, Professor Tang began to introduce everyone in the room to him one by one.

"Some of the other professors aren't here today. I'll introduce you when you see them."

With that, he gestured to a male professor. "This is Professor Peng Shaowen. He's currently in charge of the RNA and Protein Function research group."

Lu Shixian: "Professor Peng, a pleasure to meet you."

"This is Researcher Li Wei. He's in charge of the Plant and Environment Interaction research group."

Lu Shixian: "Hello, Researcher Li."

"This is Professor Gu Yumeng. She's currently managing your advisor Academician Xu's Plant Cell Formation research group."

"In your daily life, if you run into any difficulties or have any questions, you can also go to Professor Gu. After all, women tend to be more thoughtful about these things than us rough old guys."

Lu Shixian: "Then I'll be counting on you, Professor Gu!"

There were over twenty such research groups in the laboratory.

By the time he had been introduced to all the professors in the room, more than half an hour had passed.

To be honest, this kind of socializing was not his cup of tea.

But Lu Shixian didn't feel the slightest bit of impatience.

In reality, the lab was doing this as a favor to his advisor, Xu Zhihong, helping him get his face known.

He certainly wouldn't interact with every single professor or researcher here, so it might seem like a waste of time.

But not only would it help him integrate into the lab more quickly, it would also help him slowly build his network.

A scene like this had happened only a handful of times in this laboratory.

Many of the doctoral students present wore expressions of envy, but they couldn't muster an ounce of jealousy.

In terms of connections, the man's advisor was an academician of the Academy of Sciences and the former president of Yan University.

In terms of ability, he had published three consecutive papers in *Cell*, an achievement many of the professors present had not reached.

After the introductions, the people in the lounge gradually left to continue their own experiments.

Professor Tang then led Lu Shixian to the research lab alone.

Several members of his research group followed behind.

Lu Shixian mentally counted them. There were fewer than he had expected, not even as many as in the first industry-sponsored project he had joined at UCD.

But then he remembered that the entire state key laboratory only had about thirty permanent members, and he felt at ease.

After all, at the Plant Pathology Laboratory, there were nearly a hundred researchers at the professor level alone.

Along the way, through some simple conversation, Lu Shixian quickly got a basic grasp of the research group.

There were six members in total: five men and one woman.

To his surprise, the group's female representation, at 16.6%, was well above average.

Girls were a rare sight in many labs, but this was the norm in the STEM fields of biology, chemistry, environmental science, and materials science.

Of course, if he switched to economics, he'd find a completely different landscape.

At that moment, a slightly chubby young man with glasses suddenly asked him curiously, "Junior Lu, are you really only 22?"

"That's just incredible."

"At your age, I had just graduated with my bachelor's degree, and even my graduation project needed my advisor's help with the topic and revisions."

"But you've already published three papers in CNS journals, one of them a cover article."

"I'm 28 and a second-year PhD student, and I'm nowhere near as impressive as you."

Before Lu Shixian could answer, another young man with some stubble had already switched into teasing mode.

"Zeng Feng, have you forgotten? He was already publishing in top-tier journals as an undergrad."

"Isn't publishing in CNS as a grad student just standard procedure for him? What's so outrageous about it?"

"That's just a basic move. Everyone, sit down!"

The person walking second to last, also the only woman in the group, now looked at Lu Shixian with a deliberately pitiful expression.

"I heard you were the real project leader. Your previous project group was so short-staffed they couldn't even form a full team, and two people even quit. The ones who stayed all got first-author credits just for sticking around."

"I bet those two who left are regretting it so much their guts have turned green."

"Junior Lu, seeing as your senior sister here has it so rough, how about you carry me a few times in the future?"

"I promise I won't drag you down!"

Chapter 341: The Light of China, a Future of Great Promise?

But her words immediately drew a complaint from the last man in the group.

"Wang Xiaoxiao, you say you won't drag people down?"

"Last time in Summoner's Rift, you played a useless Soraka. Not only did you not buy a Sightstone, you even stole my red buff when I was jungling."

"Don't ask me to play with you again!"

But Wang Xiaoxiao looked completely unbothered. "Chen Bowen, I'd be happy not to play with you. You can't carry anyway."

"Now that Junior Lu is here, I'll just team up with him from now on."

Chen Bowen was so thoroughly roasted he was nearly speechless. "You..."

Lu Shixian, however, was completely bewildered. He didn't seem to have any prior connection with these senior lab mates, did he?

So they already knew everything that had happened before?

When he asked them about it, Wang Xiaoxiao pulled her phone from her pocket.

Without even searching, she just casually scrolled through QianDu.

She quickly found what she was looking for and handed the phone directly to Lu Shixian.

Lu Shixian took the phone, and the news headlines on the browser's homepage came into view one by one.

[Found You at Last! The 'Lu' Nobel Laureates Were Searching For is Him?]

Still riding the coattails of the Nobel Prize?

Wasn't that a bit tacky?

Lu Shixian immediately lost interest and scrolled down, only to find another headline about him.

[Shaking the World! A 22-Year-Old Did *This*? Three Publications in the Top International Journal *Cell* Within a Month!]

This...

Lu Shixian was silent.

This editor was ready for a job at the Department of Shocking News.

He looked at the next headline.

[Making the Cover of *Cell*! Young Chinese Graduate Student Solves a Global Puzzle!]

This headline seemed relatively normal. Lu Shixian subconsciously glanced at the name of the media outlet.

*China Youth Daily*.

State-level media outlets really were different. The content of this report should be more balanced.

He clicked on the link with interest, and the news article appeared before his eyes.

"Pathogens and plants co-evolve? The top international journal *Cell* published the latest findings from a young Chinese graduate student online on December 31st, selecting it as the cover story."

"A *China Youth Daily* reporter learned on the 31st that 22-year-old graduate student Lu Shixian made a breakthrough in the field of plant pathology during his exchange studies abroad. He explored the co-evolutionary interactions between pathogens and plants, discovering three response mechanisms in plants facing pathogen invasion, and answered one of the 125 frontier questions posed by the journal *Nature*."

"As we all know, the relationship between plants and humanity is inseparable. Without plants, humanity would face extinction; they are the foundation of our spiritual and cultural lives. Lu Shixian's research can help humanity develop better strategies for preventing plant diseases and represents one of China's most sensational recent achievements published in a top international journal..."

"It is worth noting that on the December cover of *Cell*, Lu Shixian is listed as both the first author and co-corresponding author, which fully demonstrates his contribution and status within the research team..."

"Lu Shixian previously won first place with an overwhelming advantage at the 2009 International Biology Olympiad. According to our investigation, he has shown brilliant results at every stage of his education, and this now undoubtedly confirms his talent for life science research."

"Recently, when our reporter interviewed Wang Zhixin, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and a professor at Shuimu University, he gave him high praise in eight words: The light of China, a future of great promise!"

After reading, Lu Shixian noticed that most of these reports were dated around January 1, 2013.

Now he finally understood why Academician Xu had told him to wait until after the end of the month to apply for early graduation from his master's program.

It turned out he had long known that the media would be reporting on this at this time and the impact it would generate.

By the time they arrived at the research group's lab, they were already much more familiar with each other from chatting along the way.

Professor Tang turned to Lu Shixian and said, "The experimental conditions here are more than sufficient for your graduation thesis experiments."

"When they're not using the equipment or instruments, you can use them anytime."

"If you run into any problems with your thesis or experiments, anything you don't understand, you can ask me, or you can ask your senior lab mates."

"I have to step out for a bit. You can familiarize yourself with the surroundings first, so you don't get lost."

Lu Shixian nodded at him and expressed his thanks.

After Professor Tang left, Wang Xiaoxiao patted her chest and declared that if her junior brother needed anything, she would do her best to provide it.

Her words made the other senior brothers snicker, thinking to themselves that their little junior sister was getting a bit ahead of herself, forgetting her own place.

It's true what they say about big chests and empty...

Lu Shixian had managed to thrive as an exchange student at a foreign university, publishing significant work in *Cell* and causing a sensation.

They might call Lu Shixian their junior, but in their hearts, none of them saw him as just a junior or a fellow student.

He had become God Lu, a figure on the level of a mentor or even a professor.

In the end, however, Wang Xiaoxiao asked again, a little curious, "Junior, what's the topic of your master's thesis?"

"Is it another major discovery in plant pathology?"

"Do you need any help?"

As soon as she said this, the others silently retracted their earlier judgments of her and perked up their ears, waiting for Lu Shixian's answer.

Her game was on another level. So they were the clowns all along!

Lu Shixian naturally saw through her little scheme, but he could only tell her that he had to disappoint her.

"Senior Sister, Academician Xu chose a topic for me in the field of plant physiology."

"My preliminary plan is to study the polar transport of auxin in plants."

Although the field had been around for a long time, he had pondered this topic for a while.

Academician Xu had only asked him to choose one of the major research areas he had touched on before, plant hormones.

But he still wanted to increase the difficulty by including plant transport mechanisms as well.

It wasn't the answer she had hoped for, but Wang Xiaoxiao wasn't disappointed. Instead, she asked with great confusion, "Auxin and polar transport?"

"Isn't that a bit too..."

Wang Xiaoxiao was about to say "ordinary," but she quickly changed her words mid-sentence. "...conventional?"

"It might not be easy to get new results!"

The others nodded in agreement.

Wang Xiaoxiao had a point. Auxin and polar transport were indeed very important areas of plant research, and many people had studied them.

But precisely because of that, anything that could be discovered had likely already been found.

The possibility of making a new discovery in this field was minuscule, and even secondary innovations were no longer easy.

Chapter 342: Too Much Honor and Favoritism?

Lu Shixian just smiled. "It may be old wine in a new bottle, but the older the wine, the more fragrant it is. And figuring out how to bottle that wine for a new market is a skill in itself."

"Besides, as a master's thesis, it's more than sufficient."

Since the man himself had made his decision, the others all nodded and said no more.

Night fell in a blink, but in Yanjing, this often signaled the beginning of the nightlife.

At this moment, an old street not far from Fujing Road was particularly lively.

Many late-night food stalls were clustered here, but unless you were an old Yanjing local or had lived in the city for a long time, it was a hard place to find.

On a square table sat four bottles of beer and various meat dishes.

Zhu Xian, Zhao Dongming, Niu Chengtang, and Xu Zhihong sat around the wooden table, continuing the reunion they had started during the day.

If anyone knew, the other diners would probably find it hard to believe that four academicians, each with a rank equivalent to a vice-minister, were sitting next to them.

They had made immense contributions to the development of science and technology in China and stood at the pinnacle of the research community.

But at this moment, they were living the lives of ordinary people, eating at a roadside stall.

Academician Zhu picked up a piece of five-spice donkey meat, dipped it in sauce, and said, "Old Xu!"

"Now that you're back, do you have any plans to lead a project in the lab?"

Academician Zhao next to him added, "That's right! Our lab's performance in the recent evaluation of all national key laboratories hasn't been ideal. We've been stuck in the middle tier."

"If you come back, it would be a massive boost for us!"

Academician Xu seemed to have anticipated this question and shook his head with almost no hesitation. "I still have a mountain of things to deal with at the Institute of Plant Physiology of the CAS, and I'm also leading a project at the State Key Laboratory of Molecular and Developmental Biology."

"I came this time mainly to bring Lu Shixian here to complete his thesis."

"At Yan University, Old Zhu, your lab should be the most suitable for him."

Hearing his explanation, Academician Zhu shook his head with a laugh. "Old Xu, I never thought you'd care so much about this student."

"But I'd be the same. To have these achievements at his age, he's certainly worth treasuring like a gem."

At this point, Academician Niu, who had been silent, suddenly sighed. "The School of Physics and the School of Mathematical Sciences at Yan University have produced several promising young talents in recent years, with outstanding performances in various fields."

"Nowadays, the news about the physics and math schools is about which student won another award, while for the School of Life Sciences, it's about what some professor did."

"This is a very bad sign!"

"Although we have repeatedly applied to the university's admissions office to increase our enrollment quota, and the school has continuously introduced various score reductions and preferential policies to attract students,"

"But there aren't that many who truly stand out."

"Lu Shixian counts as one, but in the end, he didn't come from the School of Life Sciences. He was cultivated by Old Zeng's side."

Academician Xu couldn't agree with this and immediately retorted, "Old Niu, I don't like hearing you say that."

"We're all from Yan University. Why draw so many lines between insiders and outsiders?"

Academician Zhao seemed to be gloating a little, teasing him deliberately. "That's right! Now I finally know why you've never been promoted to a full administrative position, always stuck with 'vice' in your title."

"Your vision is always confined to squabbles between schools. Your perspective is too narrow."

"Look at Old Rao. He just came back from abroad and was parachuted in as the dean. He's not even a member of the academic division, yet he can walk all over you."

At this point, Academician Xu shook his head, cutting off the topic. "That's enough. There are some things we shouldn't say, even in private."

"Old Niu, you're the vice dean of the School of Life Sciences in charge of teaching. There are some things you need to think about carefully."

"It's not something that can be solved by just sitting around and complaining."

Academician Niu's eyes lit up, and he immediately seized the opportunity. "Old Xu, you've been a university president. Among the four of us, you've climbed the highest. How about you give me some pointers?"

Now, Academician Xu knew he had fallen into Niu Chengtang's trap, but he didn't seem to mind.

Putting down his chopsticks, Xu Zhihong looked up, lowered his voice slightly, and continued, "There are some things I probably shouldn't say."

"But I also came from the School of Life Sciences, and now that I've stepped down, I'm back here."

"Although Little Lu graduated from Yuanpei College, he basically lived and studied in the School of Life Sciences, and now he's a graduate student here."

"I can see that he's a person who values relationships and knows how to give back. He doesn't have a strong desire to go abroad or leave the university, so you could find a way to make him stay."

Niu Chengtang was clearly a scholar who focused more on scientific research and wasn't very sensitive to these kinds of intricate matters.

He still asked with some hesitation, "How do we make him stay? Who do I talk to?"

"He's already published in *Cell*. I've heard that Shuimu, USTC, and some top international labs are all interested in him."

Xu Zhihong replied helplessly, "I'm his advisor, so those words can't come from my mouth. But you can find some mutual acquaintances and play the sentiment card."

At last, the fog in Academician Niu's mind cleared, and he had a plan.

Nearby, Academician Zhu watched the two of them discuss this for a long time and couldn't help but laugh. "You two are really going to put this kid on a pedestal!"

"Don't forget, Lu Shixian is only 22. That's a very young age."

"Too much honor and favoritism is not a good thing for him."

"Haven't you seen the news these past few days?"

"They're praising him to the high heavens. We've all heard cautionary tales about prodigies who burn out, haven't we?"

"If we don't do something, we'll basically be roasting him over a fire in the future!"

Hearing Academician Zhu's words, Xu Zhihong fell silent for a moment, then said, "Old Zhu, you have a point."

"However, I've discussed this with Old Rao before, and his opinion was..."

Lu Shixian quickly settled into a routine, spending most of his time in the lab and rarely going out.

Compared to the previous clamor, his life seemed to have become much quieter.

"Junior, your phone in the locker in the break room is ringing." Wang Xiaoxiao's head suddenly popped in through the lab doorway. "Do you want to get it? You could take a break while you're at it. I've seen you in the lab for three or four hours straight."

"Even just coming out for a sip of water would be good!"

Lu Shixian's gaze finally moved away from the high-performance liquid chromatography display for auxin detection in front of him.

"Alright! I'll be right out."
Even so, Lu Shixian moved at a leisurely pace, only finishing after he had completely exported the measurement data to his portable hard drive.

This instrument required no derivatization, purification, or even high temperatures; it could quantify multiple plant hormones simultaneously in a single run.

Imported from Germany, the device was incredibly user-friendly and, consequently, very popular.

The time allotted for him to use it was short.

Chapter 343: Every Little Bit Counts

Taking off his white lab coat, Lu Shixian finally walked out of the laboratory.

"Here! This is good for you." Wang Xiaoxiao suddenly appeared, holding a cup of an unknown liquid.

Lu Shixian took it from her and joked, "Senior, you didn't put anything in this, did you?"

Although Wang Xiaoxiao knew he was kidding, she ground her teeth in mock anger. "Junior, I bring you something to drink out of the kindness of my heart, and you're suspicious of this and that."

"If you keep this up, I'm ignoring you next time!"

According to a book he had read, *The Psychology of Women*, if a woman frequently says the opposite of what she means, it indicates a deep-seated desire for attention.

Lu Shixian subconsciously felt this was a very dangerous sign.

He made an excuse and left the break room, heading for the changing room.

On the way, he downed the liquid in the paper cup in one gulp.

It was salty and very refreshing.

It seemed to be a 0.9% physiological saline solution.

Arriving at the changing room, Lu Shixian changed into his regular clothes and turned on his phone. Sure enough, there were several missed calls.

The changing room was some distance from the break room, yet Wang Xiaoxiao had heard his phone. He remembered clearly that he had turned the volume down.

His HTC phone, which had been with him for years, was still functional, but the sound leakage was severe.

Moreover, it had fallen far behind the pace of technological development.

Otherwise, he would have been able to see the news on his phone at the beginning of the year, instead of hearing about it through other channels.

He now felt it was necessary to get a new phone.

But for the moment, the priority was to see who had been trying to reach him.

Although the caller was listed as unknown, he could easily tell from the area code that it was a landline from Yanjing.

Furthermore, the first few digits were similar to the number he had saved for Yan University's International Exchange Center.

But that didn't rule out the possibility of a spam call; after all, it wasn't the first time someone on campus had tried to sell him life insurance.

However, adhering to basic etiquette, he had to return the call.

Three seconds later, the call connected.

"Hello," Lu Shixian said, taking the initiative, ready to hang up at any moment depending on the situation.

"May I ask what this is about?"

A vaguely familiar male voice came from the other end.

"Hello, student."

"This is Teacher Song from the Student Affairs Office of the Graduate Department, School of Life Sciences. After a rigorous selection process and reporting by our school, you have been successfully selected for the Yanjing University Graduate Academic Scholarship, the Scientific Practice and Innovation Award, and the Yizhang Outstanding Graduate Student Award Fund."

"The first two are university-level scholarships, and the last one is a school-level scholarship."

"Please bring the relevant supporting documents to the corresponding student affairs office in three days for a second review."

What the hell?

He didn't even know what was going on, and Yan University was already giving him scholarships?

While it was a pleasant surprise, it felt far too strange.

Adhering to a practical attitude, he asked doubtfully, "Teacher Song, I don't remember applying for anything?"

"Did you make a mistake? I'm not that kind of person!"

"If people say I claimed it fraudulently, how could I ever show my face again?"

Back in his office, Song Tingfeng was having his eyes opened.

He had never seen someone actively push money away, regardless of whether it was meant for them or not.

And this kid was interesting, forgetting him so quickly.

With a hint of exasperation, he asked, "Student Lu, I personally picked you up from the airport just over a week ago."

"That's not what you were saying when you were looking for Professor Ma."

At that, Lu Shixian immediately understood.

So it was a perk that Old Ma had secured for him.

It was a case of friendly fire; turns out it was one of his own people all along.

Hanging up the phone with a mix of awkwardness and politeness, Lu Shixian immediately headed to the lab's reading room.

Besides physical documents, there were several computers here.

They were all connected to the campus network, convenient for members to browse electronic literature.

But this time, he wasn't looking for papers.

He opened the official website of Yan University's graduate school and entered "Graduate Academic Scholarship" and "Scientific Practice and Innovation Award" into the navigation bar.

After carefully reading the award criteria, which were largely similar for both, Lu Shixian nodded slightly.

First: Comply with national laws and regulations and school rules.

This was a given. He was a patriotic, law-abiding model youth.

Second: Excellent academic performance, active engagement in scientific research, and good progress or achievements.

He shouldn't have to worry about this either. Both his GPA and his research accomplishments were more than sufficient.

Third: The recipient must be in good physical and mental health.

That went without saying. He was healthy, inside and out.

This should be in the bag.

He subconsciously glanced at the award amounts. Together, they totaled around thirty to forty thousand yuan.

Although it wasn't as much as he had received at UCD, every little bit counts.

Whether the award was big or small, it was a recognition of his efforts.

Of course, he could forget about receiving publication bonuses for the three *Cell* papers he had published earlier.

That had nothing to do with Yanjing University.

But the benefits those three papers brought him were far more than just material rewards; there were many intangible ones as well.

Of course, if he had published those three papers in China, their impact would have been on a completely different level.

But there was no point dwelling on the past.

Half a month later.

Lu Shixian could only watch as another thirty thousand yuan was deposited into his campus card account.

That night, when he went to sleep, he buried his head in his quilt and couldn't help but let out a muffled laugh.

It was worth noting that while the first two scholarships were credited as soon as the school's review was complete and the public notice period ended, the School of Life Sciences actually held a small-scale award ceremony for the third one. The ceremony was presided over by a vice dean he rarely saw.

Besides some of the school's leadership, many junior students from the School of Life Sciences were also present.

He didn't know if they had come voluntarily or if the school had required them to attend to fill the seats.

Although he suspected the latter was more likely, he had no choice. Since he took the money, he had to do the job.

Standing at the podium, he concluded his speech: "I am very grateful to Mr. Yizhang and the school's scholarship selection committee for this recognition."

"I would also like to thank Mr. Yizhang for his long-term attention and encouragement to the graduate student community, as well as his strong support for life science research nationwide and even worldwide."

"I am truly honored to receive the Yizhang Outstanding Graduate Student Award. It is both an affirmation of my past achievements and a driving force that will continue to spur me forward in the field of life sciences."

Click, click, click...

Flashes from media cameras, both from within and outside the university, lit up the room.

In the audience, Rao Yiming, who was not directly involved in the ceremony, nodded slightly, feeling more certain than ever about the decision he had made.

Of course, honor and applause were merely embellishments on the path of scientific research.

The main plot of his academic life was still the seemingly tedious and repetitive cycle of experiments and studies.

Chapter 344: Time to Show My True Skills

One month later.

Lu Shixian successfully completed a thesis titled *The Role of Polar Auxin Transport in Embryonic Development and Bilateral Symmetric Growth of Leaves*.

This thesis took him a month. Though not a long time, it was filled with his heart and soul.

The members of Professor Tang's project team had witnessed the entire process of him completing the paper.

Generally, with a supervisor's guidance, a qualified master's thesis could be completed in just ten days.

However, Lu Shixian had chosen not to seek help, independently completing this rather difficult paper.

From selecting the topic to conducting experiments to finally writing the thesis, the thirty days had cost him considerable effort.

But the results were gratifying.

"Junior Lu, that's amazing! In my opinion, the quality of this thesis is good enough to be submitted to an SCI journal without any problem," a mature-looking man praised him.

His name was Xue Licheng, the oldest student in Professor Tang Lifeng's research group. As the senior-most member of the lab, he had provided Lu Shixian with a great deal of help over the past month.

Now, he asked Lu Shixian with great curiosity, "When are you planning to have your defense?"

The other seniors nearby, especially Wang Xiaoxiao, all turned their heads, eager to know the answer.

The rumors they had heard over the past few days had given them an inkling of what was to come.

Lu Shixian thought for a moment before giving his answer. "I should be submitting my application for the defense to the school in the next few days."

"The thesis is done, but I still have some preparations to make for the defense itself."

Everyone nodded in understanding.

Although the difficulty of passing a thesis defense was child's play for someone who had become a full-time researcher, its significance was different. It was an important milestone in life.

Three days later.

Lu Shixian submitted an application to the Graduate Department of the School of Life Sciences at Yan University for an early thesis defense.

The application was quickly approved by the school's Degree Evaluation Committee.

After the school had made all the arrangements for this special defense, Lu Shixian was notified that it would take place in one week.

He had no objections. Inviting the defense committee, arranging the venue, coordinating communication, holding preparatory meetings, and familiarizing himself with the defense procedures—completing all of this in seven days was already highly efficient.

Soon, under the appreciative gazes of the defense committee members, Lu Shixian walked alone to the podium.

This session was prepared especially for him.

The three committee members seated below had accepted Yan University's invitation and set aside half a day to see this much-talked-about new academic star.

The caliber of this thesis defense was a step above his undergraduate one.

The chair of the defense committee was Academician Gao Defeng, from the National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The other members were Professor Huang Weifeng from the College of Life Sciences at China Agricultural University, and Professor Li Yanqing from the School of Life Sciences at Shuimu University.

Normally, to display a home-field advantage, the chair of the committee would be a scholar from the host university.

But Lu Shixian's situation was special. Most of the botany professors at Yan University's School of Life Sciences were quite familiar with him.

To avoid any appearance of impropriety and to ensure the utmost fairness and impartiality, the school had ultimately arranged for all three committee members to be from outside the university.

It was his first time facing such a distinguished panel for a defense, including an academician he had never met.

Although he wasn't sure why an academician from the field of disease control would be participating in a master's degree defense in botany, he had no doubt about his professionalism.

However, Lu Shixian wasn't actually too nervous. After all, he knew his stuff.

A graduate thesis defense was somewhat different from an undergraduate one.

Due to the increased depth, breadth, and complexity of the content, more time was required.

The defending graduate student needed to present their thesis within 20 to 30 minutes, during which they could use a pre-prepared script or slides to display their findings as completely and clearly as possible to the committee members.

The camera was already recording as Lu Shixian opened his meticulously prepared PowerPoint.

It was time to show his true skills.

"Good morning, respected members of the defense committee. My name is Lu Shixian, a 2011 master's student in botany at the School of Life Sciences, Yanjing University. The title of my thesis is *The Role of Polar Auxin Transport in Embryonic Development and Bilateral Symmetric Growth of Leaves*."

"I would like to thank the school and my supervisor for their guidance over the past few years. Furthermore, this thesis would not have been possible without the strong support of the State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research."

"Finally, I thank all of you for taking precious time out of your busy schedules to attend my thesis defense. I will now report on the objectives and main content of my thesis."

"If there are any inadequacies, I sincerely ask for your criticism and guidance."

These opening remarks might seem verbose, but they were actually very important and made a good impression.

Who wouldn't like a student who was polite, grateful, and composed?

Moreover, it was a necessary prelude before getting down to business, giving everyone a moment to get into the right frame of mind.

Below the stage, the committee members all nodded. They had heard of this student's reputation, and it seemed he really did have what it takes.

With the preliminaries out of the way, Lu Shixian began the main event.

"In 1973, the German botanist Bünning proposed the idea that without polarity, there is no differentiation. This shows the importance of polar development in the life activities of plants."

"The polar development of plants is also inseparable from the various hormones within the plant body, with auxin being one of the key ones. Due to the asymmetry of individual tissues and organs along the growth axis, the distribution of auxin in the plant body is extremely uneven."

"Polar development spans the entire life cycle of a plant, but plant hormones play a crucial role during the embryonic development stage. Therefore, I have invested a great deal of effort into my research on this period."

Six minutes passed, and Lu Shixian had successfully completed 20% of his presentation.

The pace was neither too fast nor too slow, but it would be a tight finish.

He needed to reserve a little time for any unexpected situations.

So, he slightly quickened his pace.

"In the 18th century, French scientists Bonnet and Monceau first discovered that plant growth and development were controlled by some substance within the plant. In 1880, German scientist von Sachs proposed that this substance exhibits polar transport characteristics within the plant and can affect the growth process."

"In 1983, Dutch scientist Kogl and his colleagues isolated the highly active auxin, indole-3-acetic acid, from malt and other plants. Its discovery perfectly explained the previously perplexing phenomenon of apical dominance..."

Chapter 345: The World Is Not Lacking in Beauty

The second part of Lu Shixian's presentation was the literature review.

As the name implies, it is a summary and refinement of the existing literature and historical research in a particular field.

Although it sounds tedious, it holds a very important position in academic research; otherwise, there would be no purely review-based papers and journals.

In fact, many peer reviewers can immediately judge the rationality and feasibility of your topic, as well as the originality and novelty of your paper, simply by glancing at the quality of your literature review.

Of course, Lu Shixian was not foolish enough to list everything; that would be a path to ruin.

The key to cited literature is quality over quantity; selecting representative achievements from key periods is sufficient.

Thus, after just a few minutes, Lu Shixian reached the critical moment.

"As a special plant hormone, the polar transport genes of auxin are expressed regularly within the cell, controlling the process of early embryogenesis and playing an extremely important role in embryonic development."

"But its role extends far beyond that, which brings me to the point mentioned in my thesis title: the effect of polar auxin transport on the bilateral symmetric growth of leaves."

As he said this, the committee members all sat up a little straighter, their attention now fully focused.

Seeing this, Lu Shixian's expression remained unchanged, and he even managed a formulaic smile.

In fact, he knew that for the committee members present, the preceding part was merely an appetizer.

The influence of polar auxin transport on embryonic development was a topic that had been studied to death.

No matter how brilliant his presentation was, it couldn't save the committee members' ears, which were already tired of hearing about it.

But even so, Lu Shixian had to present it in its entirety.

It was the preparatory work for the spectacular performance to follow, his moment to put new wine in an old bottle.

With everything proceeding according to his plan, Lu Shixian appeared even more confident.

"In the eyes of an artist, the symmetrical growth of a leaf is an expression of the pursuit of beauty."

"In the eyes of a physicist, it is a manifestation of balanced forces."

"In the eyes of an evolutionist, it is the result of natural selection."

"But in my eyes, it is the result of polar transport."

"Esteemed committee members, you are all experts in the field of botany. To save time, I will not explain Bergsdijk's 'Primacy Hypothesis'." At this point, his narrative style became refreshingly concise and powerful, immediately grabbing their attention.

"As we all know, low concentrations of auxin promote growth, while high concentrations inhibit it. According to my previous description, the regular expression of polar auxin transport genes controls the location where the embryonic cotyledons emerge."

"Thus, auxin from the first-formed organ is transported to the later-formed organ, causing the auxin concentration in the latter to rise and its growth to be inhibited. This process establishes the body axis in a regular pattern, and the plant grows symmetrically along this axis."

"To verify this idea, I conducted a large number of repetitive experiments, adding polar auxin transport inhibitors to different plants."

As he spoke, corresponding images and tables appeared on the large screen.

At this moment, the data on the screen was far more convincing than Lu Shixian's words.

"...The experimental results show that as I gradually applied inhibitors such as TIBA, HFCA, and CA, the leaves that were supposed to grow symmetrically began to lose their original aesthetic quality, eventually becoming trumpet-shaped."

"Moreover, the degree of this effect showed something akin to an inverse function in relation to the amount of inhibitor applied, with dicotyledonous plants being a particularly typical example..."

"In conclusion, the polar transport of plant auxin plays an indispensable role in both embryonic development and the symmetrical growth of leaves."

Taking another 20 minutes, he completely articulated the core ideas and principles of his thesis.

But Lu Shixian's performance was not yet over.

"The world is not lacking in beauty, but in the eyes to find it."

"But I believe what is even rarer is the intuition to see through the beautiful surface and discover the underlying principles behind it."

All content had been presented.

Lu Shixian bowed and announced, "That concludes my presentation. Thank you for your time."

From start to finish, the timer on the screen stopped at the 28-minute mark.

Clap, clap, clap...

The three committee members broke into synchronized applause, filling the hall.

"The first half was simple and unadorned, while the second half gradually built to a climax!"

"Logically progressive, well-reasoned, and compelling!"

"A truly brilliant presentation!" the chair, Academician Gao Defeng, was the first to give his evaluation.
"You're too kind," Lu Shixian said, bowing once more in thanks.

His expression remained unchanged at the academician's praise; he had been expecting it.

But Academician Gao's next words took Lu Shixian by complete surprise.

"To be honest, I only recently discovered that a paper from *Cell* I'd previously blind-reviewed was actually your work." Gao Defeng's statement captured the attention of Lu Shixian and the two professors beside him.

He continued with a sigh of admiration, "At the time, I assumed it was the work of some major overseas lab, right up until I saw the wall-to-wall news coverage a month ago."

"So, when I heard Yan University was looking for members for your defense committee, I gladly came here, specifically to meet you."

"Seeing you now, it's clear your reputation is well-deserved. Old Xu and Old Wang truly have a sharp eye."

This statement carried far more weight than the earlier direct praise, leaving Lu Shixian feeling overwhelmed by the honor.

Just as he was pondering how to respond, Academician Gao thankfully changed the subject and got down to business.

"Alright, regardless, we still need to go through the proper procedures." Gao Defeng moved directly to the expert questioning session.

"Can you explain how you found a novel approach, innovating from a different perspective on the polar transport of auxin?"

Lu Shixian listened, taking notes while resetting the slideshow to the first slide.

Following him, the second and third committee members asked their questions in turn.

Unlike his last defense, these three questions were quite conventional and of moderate difficulty. It was almost as if they were lobbing him softballs.

He was ready to answer in just three minutes.

Twenty minutes later, Lu Shixian left the conference room.

The committee, composed of the three defense panelists, would now vote based on the quality of his thesis and his performance during the defense.

"I won't say much more. If even he can't pass his master's thesis defense, then the vast majority of graduate students in this country would have to go back to the drawing board." Academician Gao Defeng's summary was brief but carried immense weight.

The other two professors glanced at each other, shook their heads with wry smiles, and said nothing. They simply cast their precious "pass" votes into the anonymous ballot box.

Once the votes were tallied, Lu Shixian had passed his master's thesis defense with a unanimous vote.

The result was officially recorded, witnessed by the camera.

Chapter 346: Why Has the Whole World Changed?

Meanwhile, Lu Shixian was waiting for the results outside the conference room.

It wasn't that he lacked confidence in himself, but he couldn't predict the future.

Facts of the past had already been subtly altered by his arrival.

Therefore, he was all the more skeptical of absolutes.

According to the procedure, the defense committee would report the summary and voting results to the Degree Assessment Committee.

After a rigorous review and final approval, Lu Shixian would be awarded a Master's degree certificate.

But that didn't mean he couldn't find out the result of the defense ahead of time.

Within the School of Life Sciences, he was well-known, both as an undergraduate and a graduate student.

Finding a staff member to ask about the situation wouldn't be a problem.

The outcome of the defense wasn't the final result, so there were no rules against it.

Soon enough, he learned from a faculty member setting up the venue that he had passed unanimously.

This should be in the bag.

His objective achieved, Lu Shixian began to walk away, humming a little tune.

"Fame and success isn't the goal, making yourself happy is..."

He hadn't even finished the line when a voice from behind stopped him.

"Student Lu, please wait a moment!"

He turned around, a look of surprise plain on his face.

"Academician Gao?"

"Is there something I can help you with?"

Gao Defeng smiled slightly and asked a question that Lu Shixian never saw coming.

"Are you interested in the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Institute of Disease Control? It's clear you have a great talent for plant pathology."

"Our country is a major agricultural nation. Although we have vast areas of farmland, our production technology is relatively outdated, leading to low efficiency. Current methods for preventing and controlling various plant diseases are still lagging, creating many hidden risks in production."

"The field of plant pathology has enormous potential. So, I came here today specifically to ask you: are you interested in pursuing a doctorate under my supervision?"

Lu Shixian had never imagined that Academician Gao had come specifically to recruit him.

The offer was both an honor and a shock.

He fell silent for a few seconds, then quickly shook his head. "Thank you, Academician Gao!"

"I've already decided to continue my doctoral studies with Academician Xu."

"Besides, plant pathology won't be my main area of research in the future."

Feeling his reply might have been too blunt, Lu Shixian added, "But if there's any way I can help you in the future, I'd be more than happy to."

Hearing this, Academician Gao felt a pang of regret.

But he wouldn't force the issue. Everyone has their own path, and all he could do was offer his blessing.

"It seems being close by truly has its advantages!" Academician Gao lamented, then offered some words of encouragement to Lu Shixian. "It appears you have a clear sense of who you are and what you want to do."

"That will allow you to take each step forward with solid footing. I hope to see you continue to shine on the international stage in the future!"

Watching Academician Gao's departing figure, Lu Shixian was deeply moved and stood there for a long time, lost in thought.

Not long after, Lu Shixian was notified to go to the School of Life Sciences for his graduation photos.

This was a clear sign that his graduation was imminent.

The news came just three days after his defense.

The speed was largely due to the school giving him the green light every step of the way, and partly because it was just after mid-term, so there were few major school-wide events.

Two days later, Lu Shixian received his Master of Science graduation certificate and degree certificate from Yan京 University.

By convention, it was a moment worth commemorating and sharing.

He hadn't done so for his scholarships, but this was an important milestone in his life.

So, Lu Shixian censored the key information on the two certificates and posted the picture to his social media feed.

He added a caption: "I just stood in the sunset for a moment, and then I graduated."

A minute after he posted it, his feed exploded with shocked comments and views.

"Awesome! I'm still preparing for the Gaokao apocalypse, and God Lu has already achieved enlightenment!"

"The upperclassman is so strong! Hope we can have an in-depth exchange sometime."

"Junior Brother Lu graduated early again???"

"A promising future ahead! Keep it up!"

After all these years, Lu Shixian's list of contacts had grown considerably.

The comments came from people across four generations: the young, the youth, the middle-aged, and the old.

Seeing the red unread message notifications constantly jumping in his social media backend, Lu Shixian felt a surge of happiness. After all, it was a sign of everyone's recognition.

But his happiness was short-lived, as his phone was now being blown up with calls.

"Hello, Student Lu! We sincerely invite you to join Shuimu University. An academician's team you can trust!"

"Thank you for the invitation, but I need some time to consider."

"Student Lu, interested in furthering your studies at Huazhong University of Science and Technology? We're a powerhouse, a perfect match for you."

"I'm sorry, I don't have any immediate plans."

"The University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences is having a grand opening promotion! Excellent research atmosphere, detailed development plans, contact our hotline at..."

"Sorry! This isn't him."

After frantically dealing with the calls, Lu Shixian checked his email, only to find it was nearly full.

He opened it to see a dense list of invitation letters from various laboratories.

Some were domestic, but most were from abroad, including some world-renowned international labs he recognized by name.

But it didn't stop there. This wasn't just happening online.

Over the next few days, wave after wave of people came seeking a meeting with him.

Some were representatives, some came in person, but no matter who they were, they all showed immense interest in him.

At that moment, Lu Shixian's first thought was that there was a spy in his midst.

Either lurking in his circle of friends or hidden within the school as an inside source.

He had lost count of how many times he had turned people down, even after making it clear that he had decided to continue studying under Academician Xu.

But the offers kept coming, and some people were relentlessly trying to persuade him.

Among them, some inevitably made offers that were tempting even to him.

A pre-tax annual salary of 300,000, a 200,000 settling-in allowance, a substantial housing subsidy, a solution to the household registration issue, priority in professional title evaluation, research bonuses...

For a fleeting moment, these terms made him lose his focus.

Oh my god!

Who am I? Where am I? What in the world just happened?

All I did was graduate!

Why has the whole world changed?

In truth, by graduating with a master's degree, he had already reached a level he had never achieved in his previous life.

It was only natural that he couldn't adapt.

According to a popular future classification system for research talent, there were roughly four tiers and seven categories.

High-level talent included academicians of the two academies and scholars of equivalent status, Hong Shen Distinguished Scholars, and Hong Shen Excellent Scholars.

Hong Shen Young Scholars were outstanding young talents with the potential for academic development and leadership, capable of aiming for the "Four Youth Talents" and equivalent honors.

Chapter 347: So This Was a Setup

The next tier consisted of full or associate professors.

The final tier was made up of lecturers and junior faculty.

This was the hierarchy used by a top domestic university to classify its researchers and was highly representative.

Although Lu Shixian seemed to have many achievements now, at his current level, he had not yet met the threshold for high-level talent.

The highest level of academicians was out of the question.

A step below, the Hong Shen Distinguished Scholars included Changjiang Scholars, Jieqing recipients, and Thousand Talents Plan scholars.

Even to be a Hong Shen Excellent Scholar, one needed to be among the "Four Youth Talents": Qingqian, Qingba, Qingchang, or Youqing.

But this didn't mean Lu Shixian wasn't competitive.

The people from these top universities, research institutes, and laboratories were no fools.

Which researcher in these places hadn't published in CNS?

Therefore, what attracted them most was not Lu Shixian's achievements, but his age.

To accomplish so much at his age meant he had a very high chance of becoming a Hong Shen Young Scholar by winning a "Four Youth Talents" award.

In the future, even if just by biding his time, he had a significant chance of entering the top tier of the domestic research community.

Everything happens for a reason.

If Lu Shixian had received such offers before making his decision, he might have hesitated and considered them.

But now...

It was a pity.

Just as Lu Shixian was lost in thought, he received a call from Old Ma.

After a brief conversation, he hung up the phone with an amused look.

"That Old Ma, why is he being so mysterious all of a sudden?"

Muttering to himself, he threw on a jacket and left his dorm.

Yan University not only had affordable and tasty dining halls but also restaurants with beautiful environments.

He soon arrived at Jinyu Tang, a rather high-end Chinese restaurant specializing in Sichuan cuisine, though it also offered other styles.

The prices here were not low, and Lu Shixian hadn't had many opportunities to eat here in the past.

But tonight, his meal was on Ma Yuheng.

After giving his name, Lu Shixian was led by a waiter to a small private room.

The moment he knocked and opened the door, he froze, staring at the people inside.

Two people he had never imagined together were sitting at the same table.

Something was wrong.

Very wrong.

"Professor Ma? Professor Gu?"

"What are you two...?" Lu Shixian asked tentatively.

Ma Yuheng, old and shrewd, guessed his thoughts instantly and laughed teasingly, "What are you thinking, kid?"

"Professor Gu and I are here on official business today, not like you with your head full of wild ideas."

Beside him, Professor Gu Hongya smiled and gestured for him to come in. "Little Lu, you're here!"

"Don't mind him. Come, sit down. The food has already been served!"

At that moment, the words "a setup" naturally surfaced in his mind.

But he wasn't surprised. He had already guessed what it was about. Whenever Old Ma sought him out, it was never for nothing.

He took a seat opposite them, not caring about their purpose for the time being.

It was dinnertime, and filling his stomach came first.

At first, the two professors didn't seem to mind, even putting plenty of food on Lu Shixian's plate.

But as twenty minutes passed, Ma Yuheng and Gu Hongya started to get restless.

They exchanged a glance, and finally, Gu Hongya broke the silence.

"Little Lu, you must be full by now, right?"

"Actually, we asked you here today because there's something we need to discuss with you."

The main event had finally arrived. Lu Shixian put down his chopsticks and looked at them. "Professors, if you have something to say, please just say it."

"In a way, I'm your student."

"As long as it's within my power, I'll do my best to help."

Hearing this, Gu Hongya didn't relax. Instead, she gave a wry smile. "Sigh, this isn't an easy thing to bring up."

"As your elders, we shouldn't interfere too much with your personal choices."

"But we were entrusted with a task, so we have to deliver the message."

"As for the rest, the decision is still up to you."

By now, Lu Shixian was one hundred percent certain of their purpose.

He dropped his playful demeanor and listened intently to her next words.

"The school sent the two of us to have a chat with you. First of all, congratulations on completing your master's studies ahead of schedule."

"To be honest, back at the biology competition that year, although I was delighted by your talent and invited you to study at Yan University..."

"...I never imagined you would grow so quickly, and be ready for your doctorate in just a few short years."

At this point, as if in a well-rehearsed double act, Ma Yuheng added, "Of course, there's no such thing as an absolute genius in this world."

"Since you entered Yan University, you've grown up right under my nose, so to speak."

"To others, your achievements might seem inseparable from your talent."

"But in my eyes, your attitude and passion for scientific research are the most crucial factors."

"Although talent is very important too. Why else would I say you were born for research!"

After they had both spoken, Gu Hongya finally asked the most critical question.

"So, have you considered continuing your doctoral studies at Yan University?"

After such a long buildup, it had finally come to this.

Lu Shixian paused slightly, then took a sip of water.

"I will likely be pursuing my doctorate with Academician Xu."

"I applied to him a long time ago, and he has already agreed."

"There shouldn't be any question about that, right?"

Gu Hongya breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "So it was already settled. Why did the school send us to do this work then?"

But Ma Yuheng, beside her, had a different reaction. He glanced at Lu Shixian. "I knew you wouldn't be so easy to deal with."

"You almost fooled me just now."

"You have to remember, Academician Xu isn't just Yan University's Academician Xu."

At Old Ma's words, Gu Hongya immediately understood, and her smile slowly faded.

Ma Yuheng finished his last cigarette and placed his hands on the table. "There are no outsiders here, so let's put our cards on the table."

"Academician Xu is not only the former president of Yan University and a professor at the School of Life Sciences."

"He also served as the Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He is currently the director of the CAS Institute of Plant Physiology and the director of the State Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics."

"Studying for your PhD under him doesn't necessarily mean you'll be studying at Yan University."

"And our Yan University is in great need of high-level research talent with potential."

"So, could you consider it? Whatever benefits you're entitled to, Yan University will provide every last one."

The words were direct and easy to understand.

But before answering, Lu Shixian remained silent for nearly ten seconds.

"Let me think about it."

Chapter 348: To Meet Someone Here

Seeing Lu Shixian in deep thought, Gu Hongya couldn't help but say, "Little Lu!"

"If you feel conflicted because of us, you really don't have to."

"We're just messengers. If you haven't made a concrete decision yet, we hope you'll give Yan University some consideration."

Ma Yuheng glanced at her as if to say, *We don't even have an answer yet, and you're already switching sides.*

But he quickly spoke up as well. "As your seniors, we want you to make even greater progress in the future, and that depends entirely on your own academic research plans."

"So this isn't about moral pressure. You just need to consider what's best for you. In any case, we've delivered the message, so our job is done."

After speaking, Old Ma took a leisurely sip of his tea, no longer resembling a lobbyist at all.

Gu Hongya, beside him, shot him a glare identical to the one he had just given her.

It seemed to say, *Look at you, and you had the nerve to criticize me.*

Lu Shixian paid no mind to their small exchange, but a warm feeling spread through his heart.

Honestly, both of them were seniors who had helped him a great deal.

Teachers who would come on a mission from the school but still put his interests first truly deserved his deepest respect.

With that thought, he finally made his decision.

"Yan University's help on my path of growth has been invaluable, and it holds many of my fondest memories."

"Moreover, it's hard to find a research environment in the country that can compare to it."

"Whether from a rational or an emotional standpoint, I can find no reason to refuse."

Just as Ma Yuheng and Gu Hongya were beaming with joy, Lu Shixian added one final sentence.

"So I will stay at Yan University. But I can't promise that I will *only* stay at Yan University."

But that was enough!

They had achieved their goal.

Hadn't they?

The three of them happily finished their meal, and Lu Shixian returned to prepare his doctoral application materials.

Generally, new student enrollment in the country is fixed in September each year.

But doctoral programs were an exception; many universities had two admission cycles a year.

This meant Lu Shixian could officially enroll this coming March.

By then, he would be a doctoral student in the Department of Biology at Yan University's School of Life Sciences.

But before that, he was going home.

That's right. Although 2012 was over on the Gregorian calendar, the Spring Festival had not yet begun.

Over the past year, he had rarely had the chance to visit his family.

During his time at the UCD Plant Pathology Lab, he had been too busy to find much time to contact them.
Moreover, his parents were always worried about the cost of international calls, so every conversation was just a few brief words to let him know they were safe.

But now, it was clearly time to make up for that.

Perhaps it was because Lu Shixian was now a PhD candidate at the School of Life Sciences.

Or maybe it was because he had been entrusted with a special task.

In any case, the school's leadership waved a hand and granted him a week's vacation ahead of schedule.

It might only be seven days, but it could mean the difference between calm travel and a sea of people.

No scrambling for tickets, no crushing crowds—he had successfully avoided the mad rush of university students heading home for the holidays.

January 19, 2013.

Lu Shixian settled comfortably into his seat on the plane from Yanjing to Jinling.

Although he could certainly afford the ticket, he still winced at the cost as he paid.

He kept silently asking himself, why didn't I just buy a train ticket?

But the law of delicious irony is a cornerstone of the human experience.

When he arrived at Jinling Airport two hours later, he selectively forgot his earlier reservations.

After ten minutes, he finally made his way to the airport bus terminal.

He stared blankly at the station sign for the Jinling district, lost in thought.

From here, he could be home in under three hours.

But after three seconds, Lu Shixian suddenly left the platform and hailed a taxi parked by the roadside.

"Driver, to Jinling University, please!"

"You got it! Isn't it a bit early for winter break, though?" the driver asked, pulling up beside him in a thick Jinling accent. "What's a young man like you doing going to Jinling University with a suitcase?"

It had been a long time since he'd heard that accent. "To meet someone," Lu Shixian replied with a sense of nostalgia.

The driver's interest was immediately piqued.

Ah, a familiar story!

"Oho! So you're here to see your girlfriend!"

"That's impressive! A young man like you, with a girlfriend at Jinling University!"

"That's the best school in our province, a top-tier '985' and '211' university."

"It's not easy to get into. You must be under a lot of pressure, no wonder you came at this time!"

Listening to the driver's constant stream of commentary, Lu Shixian didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

He didn't actually have a girlfriend, nor did he feel any particular pressure.

The driver's incessant chatter continued.

"Relax, son. I've been through this kind of thing."

"My wife's grades were way better than mine, but in the end, didn't she fall for me?"

"You're doing the right thing. As a man, you've got to be persistent, wear her down, and make it so she can't live without you."

After passively listening to his unsolicited "advanced" advice all the way there, Lu Shixian quickly paid and got out.

It seemed this man was quite the character in his younger days.

Coming to Jinling University wasn't a whim; he had a task to complete.

The school required him to personally deliver a sealed document to Professor Su Changqing, the dean of the School of Life Sciences at Jinling University. Otherwise, they could have just communicated online, saving him the extra trip.

But it was a small effort. It was on his way, and returning to Jinling University was a trip down memory lane.

Professor Su Changqing was an old acquaintance of his.

Entering through the school gates, he noticed the scenery was slightly different from his memories of a few years ago. Many new, unfamiliar academic buildings had appeared.

It seemed Jinling University had developed rapidly in recent years.

Fortunately, the main roads on campus hadn't changed much, and Lu Shixian quickly reached his destination: the Jinling University School of Life Sciences.

He instinctively looked up at the towering glass facade, which rose for dozens of floors.

Compared to the old building, the new Life Sciences building was a serious upgrade.

Though it felt a bit unfamiliar, it didn't stop him from finding the dean's office on the top floor.

Evidently, his luck was good; his knock was met with a firm response.

"Come in!"

Lu Shixian entered to find an old man in a Zhongshan suit with graying temples, bent over his desk, writing something.

Seeing that he was still busy, Lu Shixian greeted him, "Dean Su, it's been a long time!"

Lifting his head and seeing his visitor, Su Changqing's constantly moving pen came to a sudden halt.

"Well, well! Lu Shixian?"

"I wondered why the birds were chirping so much this morning."

"Turns out we have a rare guest!"

Chapter 349: On the Shoulders of Giants

Lu Shixian smiled and shook his head. "I wouldn't say a rare guest. I came specifically to see you this time."

Su Changqing naturally didn't believe his tall tale, but he was pleased to hear it nonetheless. He looked at Lu Shixian with a tone of deep feeling.

"You've grown much faster than I ever imagined."

"To consistently excel at Yanjing University and then make a name for yourself in the even more complex environment abroad... you're now quite well known in China's biological research community."

That description was quite apt.

Although Lu Shixian had been in the news a few times, it didn't mean he had become a universally recognized celebrity.

Unless he produced a groundbreaking achievement that benefited the entire nation, no amount of published papers could bridge the vast distance between his research and the lives of ordinary people.

Even if they heard about it, their reaction would be a fleeting, "Wow, a genius, so impressive!"

And with time, he would be forgotten.

Now, several months later, his reputation was mostly confined to the biological research community.

This situation was exactly what Lu Shixian had hoped for.

He desired fame, it was true, but he currently lacked the ability to convert that fame into true prestige.

Maintaining a low profile was for the best.

After just a few minutes of conversation, Su Changqing was deeply impressed by the breadth of Lu Shixian's knowledge.

"I read your study published in *Cell*. You've taken a great step forward in researching the interaction between plants and pathogens."

"And that single step will directly influence all subsequent research into the regulatory mechanisms and secretion pathways of major plant pathogens, as well as new strategies and ideas for controlling major crop diseases."

"But I get the sense that your research direction still has more potential to be explored, doesn't it?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian could only marvel internally. A master is truly a master. How could he see that?

Although Su Changqing was not yet an academician, his academic prowess was certainly on that level.

He was the director of the only State Key Laboratory of Biomedicine at Jinling University's School of Life Sciences.

Studying biomedicine meant dealing extensively with pathogens, which involved a deep understanding of pathology.

Plant pathology had slowly developed from the foundations of medicine and microbiology.

The history of Jinling University's biology department was long and distinguished, and most of the academicians on its academic committee had studied at Jinling University in their early years.

With so many titans backing him, his position as the lab director was quite secure and comfortable.

His only regret, perhaps, was not having been elected as a member of the Division of Life Sciences and Medicine.

Thus, Lu Shixian nodded in admiration. "Exactly. The three regulatory mechanisms I proposed are all based on the scenario where the plant successfully defends against pathogen invasion."

"If the plant's defense fails, the subsequent secondary regulatory situation is still unknown. It's also uncertain whether my previous conclusions would still apply."

Su Changqing smiled and shook his head repeatedly. "What you've done is already remarkable."

"Strictly speaking, plant pathology as a discipline is less than two hundred years old."

"In the last century, research in plant pathology primarily focused on disease resistant breeding and the genetic laws of resistance genes. During that time, the study of plant resistance gradually split into two schools of thought: vertical resistance and horizontal resistance."

Lu Shixian quickly nodded. "That's right. In my third paper on gene regulation, I cited Van der Plank's discussion of vertical and horizontal resistance from his book *Plant Diseases: Epidemics and Control*."

"I also referenced Professor Robinson's conclusions on vertical and horizontal pathogenicity. My main research revolves around major gene resistance and minor gene resistance."

"Without treading the paths forged by our predecessors, it's difficult to go any further. Just as Newton said: If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants."

Su Changqing chuckled. "That line is fine for impressing laymen when you're presenting your findings, but trying to use it on me is a bit less convincing."

"Many of our concepts and theories, like group theory, matrices, and non-Euclidean geometry, were proposed a long time ago. But their practical application can sometimes take hundreds or even thousands of years."

At this point, Su Changqing's tone became meaningful. "To stand on the shoulders of giants, the first prerequisite is being able to climb onto the giant's body."

"In fact, many people today can't even grasp the established bodies of knowledge that their predecessors developed hundreds of years ago."

"You've never been a dean, so you probably don't know the number of students who fail major subjects each year."

"Never mind advanced mathematics. Just look at botany, cytology, genetics, molecular biology, anatomy, biochemistry... few students can fully digest the textbooks, and many end up failing."

Lu Shixian's mouth twitched. Speaking of which, physics had always been the bane of his existence.

Su Changqing ignored his reaction and continued, "Not everyone is qualified to climb up there. So, are you sure you don't want to delve deeper into plant pathology?"

Lu Shixian gave the same answer he had given to Knox. "While plant pathology has a promising future, the field I truly want to pursue is genetic breeding."

"I believe the latter is the path that can truly change the world."

But after hearing this, Su Changqing suddenly shook his head.

"I can't say you're wrong, but from my personal point of view, you're being a bit single-minded."

"There's no need to abandon the advantages you already have. Sometimes, all roads lead to Rome."

Lu Shixian was surprised. He looked at Su Changqing, waiting for his explanation.

Su Changqing continued, "In this century, plant pathology has gradually concentrated on several key research directions. One is molecular plant pathology, which studies the molecular mechanisms of plant-pathogen interactions and strategies for their utilization. This is what you've been working on."

"Another is mycology and plant fungal diseases, which focuses on the classification of Fungi imperfecti, the utilization of fungal resources, and the study of fungal diseases."

"And the last one is plant molecular virology and antiviral genetic engineering breeding."

Here, Su Changqing paused and looked at him. "You probably don't know how much funding and effort the country invests each year in controlling major crop pests and diseases."

"Never mind major insect pests like rice planthoppers, fall armyworms, locusts, and borers, which cause untold economic losses every year. Then you have plant diseases like citrus greening, bacterial fruit blotch of cucurbits, and cucumber green mottle mosaic virus."

"So, I believe it's better to focus on prevention from the start, rather than trying to manage outbreaks after they happen."

Chapter 350: A Different Choice

Hearing these words, a few phrases naturally formed in Lu Shixian's mind.

"You mean antiviral genetic engineering breeding?" he blurted out.

Su Changqing nodded with a smile. "Exactly. Most genetic breeding research in the country today is focused on increasing yield per acre, pursuing absolute quantitative improvements. This trend has intensified ever since the development of hybrid rice became a global sensation."

"But very few research teams focus on virus prevention. It's human nature to follow in the footsteps of success. I'm not saying it's wrong, but it is an incomplete approach."

"By research field, it is a type of genetic breeding, and it also connects with your previous work. So, are you sure you won't consider it?"

Walking through the small plaza below the School of Life Sciences building, his task was complete, and it was time to leave.

Revisiting this old haunt, Lu Shixian took out his phone, snapped a photo of himself with the building, and posted it to his social media.

Leaning on the railing, Su Changqing's words echoed in his mind.

"Antiviral genetic breeding has great potential!"

To be honest, Su Changqing's words were already starting to influence him.

He had never said it out loud, but deep down, his ultimate goal was to become a scientist like the great Yuan Longping, someone who could benefit all of humanity.

"Hybrid rice to cover the globe, the dream of cooling off under its shade—an original intention without regret."

What a magnificent dream, thrilling just to think about, one that could inspire a lifetime of struggle to achieve.

Under his influence, research into hybrid breeding had expanded beyond rice to include many other important economic crops.

The pursuit of high yields seemed to be a road without end.

But high yield was just one, most direct way to achieve the goal. And hybrid breeding was not the only method of genetic breeding.

"Perhaps my earlier thinking was too simplistic," Lu Shixian murmured to himself. His eyes were on the stone tiles at his feet, but his thoughts had already drifted far away.

Just then, a crisp, clear female voice sounded behind him.

"What are you thinking about so seriously?"

Lu Shixian turned instinctively. The face of a short-haired girl came into view.

She wore no makeup, and the only accessory on her entire person was a single black hairpin clipped into her short hair.

A gentle breeze stirred, causing strands of her hair to sway.

The surprise was evident in Lu Shixian's voice.

"Yiyi?"

He never imagined that an old friend he hadn't seen in so long would suddenly appear before him.

Chen Yiyi took a step forward, standing shoulder to shoulder with him at the railing.

"You came to Jinling University without even letting me know beforehand?" Chen Yiyi's gaze was fixed on his face.

Lu Shixian felt as if he were sitting on pins and needles. How could he have expected such a coincidence in Jinling?

He knew perfectly well that Chen Yiyi was at Jinling University; he just hadn't wanted to disturb her normal life.

"Heh, how did you know I was here?" Lu Shixian asked curiously.

Chen Yiyi found his question rather amusing. "Because you like to post on social media. Even without a location tag."

"I've been studying here for so long. Others might not recognize the Life Sciences building at Jinling University, but how could I not?"

Lu Shixian was momentarily speechless.

Alright, so that was the problem. He truly hadn't considered that.

"What were you thinking about just now? You didn't even notice me when I walked right up to you," Chen Yiyi changed the subject, then asked with curiosity, "Did you have another breakthrough in your research?"

At her question, Lu Shixian's thoughts returned to the present. He shook his head. "I was busy with graduation before. Now that I've just graduated, I don't really have any new projects yet."

He let out a soft sigh and suddenly asked, "Yiyi, what would you do if a belief you've held since childhood was suddenly presented with a different choice?"

"Would you stick to your original idea or change your goal?"

Chen Yiyi was slightly taken aback. She had assumed it was something ordinary, not something so profound.

She thought for a moment before replying, "I understand what you mean."

"But do you know of Bruno?"

This time, it was Lu Shixian's turn to be愣.

The name was unfamiliar to him, but he knew Chen Yiyi wouldn't mention a name at random just to tease him, so he waited for her explanation.

"In the ultimate laws of celestial motion, although the heliocentric model was proposed by Copernicus, its most brilliant successor was undoubtedly Giordano Bruno."

"He was the author of *On the Infinite Universe and Worlds*, and the theory of celestial motion became famous because of him. He believed the universe was infinite, with stars scattered throughout endless space."

"In the context of his time, his ideas were far too advanced. For astronomy, some of his thoughts still shine with the light of truth today. But he could not be accepted by his era. He lived a life of wandering and was ultimately executed as a 'heretic'."

At this, Chen Yiyi shook her head gently. "But few people know that as a child, Bruno was trained as an orthodox missionary. Yet when faith clashed with scientific truth, he resolutely chose to break with the old ideas."

"He continued along the path opened by Copernicus, making immense contributions to the world's study of the cosmos."

"And in the end, history proved him right when he said: 'Fire cannot conquer me, for future ages will understand me and know my worth'."

Lu Shixian's eyebrows rose. He hadn't expected Chen Yiyi to offer him guidance in this way.

But she clearly wasn't finished, as she soon brought up another name.

"And then there's Laplace."

This time, Lu Shixian could be more than just a listener.

Bruno was a figure from the Renaissance, and in a field he had never studied, so it was understandable that he didn't know much about him.

But the name of Laplace's demon was very familiar to Lu Shixian. His achievements spanned astronomy, mathematics, physics, and chemistry.

"A founder of celestial mechanics, the creator of cosmogony, the originator of analytical probability theory, a pioneer of applied mathematics," Lu Shixian listed, then added with a sigh, "For an ordinary person, even one of those achievements would be a blessing from the heavens. But he had four. It's truly enviable."

Chen Yiyi smiled and shook her head. "Sometimes, when the world opens a door for us, it closes a window."

"A master of academic research can still be ridiculed in other aspects. But let's not dwell on that, because he is truly worthy of respect."

"Not everyone has the courage and ability to refute Newton, who proposed in his *Principia Mathematica* that divine intervention was necessary to maintain the stability of the solar system. Newton's theory had been widely accepted by the scientific community for over a hundred years before that."

Chapter 351: A Hard-Earned Good Life

Lu Shixian understood the purpose of her examples, and he couldn't help but feel that the once shy and naive girl had begun to shine.

The first example told him that science and truth were the only things we should ceaselessly pursue.

The second reminded him that when facing authority, it is sometimes crucial to hold onto one's own convictions.

At least, that was his interpretation.

All his purposes for coming here had been fulfilled. It was time to leave.

"Goodbye!"

After a heartfelt farewell to Chen Yiyi, Lu Shixian caught a ride home from the gates of Jinling University.

He had arrived bathed in the morning sun.

He left cloaked in the evening glow.

What was different was that an answer was slowly taking shape in his heart.
Perhaps because he hadn't been home in so long, Ms. Xia Xiuman was uncharacteristically enthusiastic that day. For dinner, she prepared a veritable feast that covered the entire dining table.

Staring at the mountain of food, Lu Shixian and his father, Lu Jianguo, exchanged a look. At a loss for words, Lu Shixian said, "Mom, have you been teaching so much you've lost track of time?"

"It's not even Chinese New Year yet. I'm not used to you going all out like this."

For the past few years, Lu Shixian hadn't asked his family for a single cent; in fact, he often sent money home to his parents.

With one less major expense to worry about, his family's financial situation and quality of life had improved significantly.

But his parents had always maintained their frugal habits, making a spread like this for just the three of them a rare sight.

Xia Xiuman, however, rolled her eyes at Lu Shixian. "You're the one who's dazed!"

"The last time you were home was last year. Can't we celebrate your visit? Besides, I heard you're about to start your PhD! Never mind your father's side, but on my side of the family, while we've had plenty of university graduates, you're the first to go for a doctorate. Your grandpa was thrilled when he heard the news."

"He said he wants to come stay for a while to see you, Shixian."

At the side, Lu Jianguo couldn't listen anymore. "What do you mean, 'never mind my side'?"

"All those years of effort from your family can't compare to our one-shot success. See? It's all in the genes. Besides, I bet the old man is just coming to stay in our newly built house, to try it out."

This remark made Xia Xiuman's brow furrow, and the two immediately started bickering again.

Accustomed to their squabbles, Lu Shixian simply helped himself to a large bowl of rice.

"This really whets the appetite!"

After dinner, Lu Shixian returned to his room.

The rebuilt family home was a world apart from the old one. The original single story brick house had been replaced by a modern three story villa.

Given the generally modest living standards of the time, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a countryside mansion.

His room had been moved to the second floor, into the largest and sunniest space available.

Apparently, his parents had already designated it as his future marital room, though that was of little concern to Lu Shixian.

Being back home, the improved quality of life brought a sense of joy.

Humming a tune, Lu Shixian began to contemplate the next steps in his life's plan.

It felt like a long time since he had last made such plans.

The wonderful feeling of moving step by step toward a self established goal was something others couldn't truly understand.

First, he had to accurately assess his current standing.

A Bachelor of Science from Yanjing University was his undergraduate degree.

A Master of Science in Botany from Yanjing University was his current highest level of education.

A PhD in Genetics from Yanjing University's Department of Biology was about to become his next.

Leaving other fields aside, a 23 year old doctoral student was exceedingly rare in the world of biology.

Setting aside more distant goals for now, the immediate plan was to complete all the remaining milestones of his student life.

PhD students were already the backbone of research teams, and could even serve as project leads on smaller projects.

But that wasn't what he wanted; he had already experienced being a project leader.

So, perhaps it was time to try participating in some larger projects?

Lu Shixian felt a thrill of anticipation.

He was looking forward to it!

A few days later, his maternal grandfather, Xia Chengjun, arrived as expected.

He brought with him a thick red envelope.

Feeling its weight, Lu Shixian's heart bloomed with a smile as his grandfather's words reached his ears.

He had expected some words of high praise, but instead received a heartfelt admonition: "Ah, Xian, the hardships our generation endured are beyond your imagination. We witnessed every step of the nation's journey from weakness to strength."

"Just having a bite to eat was a struggle. For most of us, simply not causing trouble was a great achievement."

After speaking, he glanced at the beautifully decorated villa and continued, "Life now is so much better than in the past. Back when we were eating tree bark and grass roots, we could never have dreamed of such good days."

"This wonderful life didn't come easily. As the saying goes, when you drink water, don't forget the one who dug the well. We can't forget our roots!"

"Now that you've reached this level, you must contribute more to the country."

Though his grandfather's words were simple and unpolished, the道理 they contained was profound. Having lived through the famine years, their generation had a much greater sense of contrast than the present one.

Lu Shixian nodded heavily. "I understand!"

His words were few, but each carried weight.

One month later.

In the blink of an eye, the winter break of 2012 came to an end.

Lu Shixian, suitcase in hand, prepared for his official enrollment as a PhD student at Yanjing University.

He had been looking forward to this day for a long time.

After a journey of several hours, Lu Shixian arrived back at the familiar campus of Yanjing University.

Next, he got his new student ID and was assigned a new dormitory.

His roommates, however, were becoming fewer and fewer. During his master's, he at least had one.

His impression of his previous roommate was limited to just knowing his name. They were both busy, and the times they saw each other could be counted on one hand.

Now, his new dorm room was for him alone.

Thinking back, he missed the dormitory life from his time at Yuanpei College the most.

After a few moments of reflection, Lu Shixian took some time to settle into his new environment completely.

Then, he headed straight for his supervisor Xu Zhihong's office.

He didn't know if his advisor had found him a lab mate during the break, but based on the intelligence he had gathered during a phone call over the Spring Festival, he was likely to be the only student again.

After a brief chat with Xu Zhihong, the reality was just as he had suspected.

Fine!

Only those who can endure solitude and loneliness can achieve great things.

"Professor, are there any suitable projects coming up?" Lu Shixian asked the question that was most on his mind.

Xu Zhihong, however, remained perfectly calm. "No rush."

"You have classes during your first year. For now, just attend them with everyone else."

"And while you're at it, see how it feels to teach a class yourself."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was stunned.

Chapter 352: The Pain! It Hurts So Much!

Walking back from Xu Zhihong's office, Lu Shixian's mind was still in turmoil.

Although he had no prior experience as a doctoral student, he had been in academia for years and had a good grasp of the situation.

The typical duration for a PhD program was three to four years, and similar to a master's program, the first year involved coursework.

Doctoral courses still consisted of general education, degree requirements, major specific classes, and electives. The teaching method was usually a combination of lectures by the supervisor and discussions both inside and outside of class.

At this stage, there were no final exams, as such tests were considered too rudimentary for doctoral candidates.

Instead, students were required to submit term papers or give a public academic presentation.

But coursework was ultimately just a supplementary part of the PhD journey. The core of a graduate student's life was research, and achieving research results and completing a dissertation were the only paths to graduation.

Even a decade from now, many universities would require their PhD candidates to have at least one paper published in a core journal before they could even apply for graduation.

Not to mention international indexes like SCI and EI, China alone had various core journal systems like SSCI, CSSCI, and CSCD.

Publishing one paper in any of these numerous options might seem easy, but different universities had different requirements. Some demanded publication in a "Beihe" journal, one of the Peking University Core lists, as the bare minimum.

The number of articles a journal could publish was limited, while the number of graduating PhD students each year was far greater, leading many to delay their graduation.

Besides research output, the doctoral dissertation itself was another major hurdle.

Generally, a dissertation in the natural sciences required around 50,000 characters, while one in the social sciences required slightly more, around 80,000.

But PhDs were not general.

Considering China's enormous population, once you left the university, you would find that people with actual doctoral degrees were as rare as phoenix feathers.

Therefore, a dissertation that met the graduation requirements was typically around 200,000 characters long, almost the length of a monograph.

It demanded an exceptionally, even harshly, strict set of comprehensive abilities from the student.

This made it easy to understand why so many doctoral students delayed their graduation each year.

But delaying graduation was a temporary fix, not a solution.

The immense pressure that resulted could sometimes become the unbearable weight of life.

At this thought, Lu Shixian couldn't help but sigh softly. "It seems that sometimes, the more you study, it doesn't necessarily mean you think more comprehensively or see the world more clearly."

Shaking the heavy thoughts from his mind, he turned and headed for the library.

He couldn't guarantee he would navigate it all without any problems, but if he didn't start reading now, he would have problems immediately.

Half a month later.

Lu Shixian put down the book in his hands, "Epigenetics," and glanced at his watch. It was already two o'clock.

After several days of genetics classes, the initial coursework of the semester felt a bit too simple for him; it wasn't enough to satisfy his academic appetite.

So, he started giving himself extra work.

Epigenetics, a branch of genetics, studies heritable changes in gene expression that do not involve changes to the underlying DNA sequence.

Its existence explained many phenomena that classical genetics could not.

Reluctantly marking page 32, Lu Shixian grabbed his water bottle and lesson plan and headed for the School of Life Sciences building.

He had been engrossed in his book all morning, but he still remembered he had a class to teach.

He spent the next half hour preparing his lesson.

That's right, Academician Xu hadn't been joking. His words were not just hot air.

At Yanjing University, many academicians chose to teach undergraduate courses.

This was a grand spectacle rarely seen at most other universities.

But for various reasons, Xu Zhihong hadn't taken on any teaching duties for several months.

So, Lu Shixian had been assigned as a teaching assistant to Professor Ma Yuheng.

Professor Ma was still in his old line of work, continuing to teach "Cell Biology" to a portion of Yanjing's undergraduates.

Unfortunately, a teaching assistant was not an assistant professor. The role ranked somewhere between a regular lecturer and an associate professor.

For a rookie just starting out on the lecture circuit, the school typically assigned TAs tasks like grading homework and exams.

As they gained more experience, TAs might become after class Q&A experts or lab assistants.

But in rare cases, whether by the professor's intention or oversight, a TA might end up taking on the teaching responsibilities for an entire course.

Preparing lessons, lecturing, assigning homework, and holding Q&A sessions—this was clearly beyond the scope of a TA's duties.

For Professor Ma, it was clearly the former.

The moment he heard Lu Shixian would be his TA, he was overjoyed and immediately started scheming.

And that was how Lu Shixian ended up in his current, miserable situation.

This was his first time teaching students at Yanjing University.

But it wasn't his first time teaching in general, so he wasn't nervous at all.

At 2:20 PM, Lu Shixian arrived 10 minutes early at classroom 602 in the Life Sciences building and walked directly toward the occupied back row.

A single glance was enough for him to nod in satisfaction. The academic atmosphere at Yanjing University wasn't just for show; it was solid.

The attendance was full, and most students were either preparing for the class or reviewing material, familiarizing themselves with the textbook.

The few who were talking to each other were likely discussing academic matters.

"Have you guys noticed a serious problem lately?" In the second to last row, a boy with glasses suddenly turned sideways and complained with some indignation, "Our school is so unfair!"

Lu Shixian had just sat down when he heard this, and it made him listen more intently.

Although it didn't really concern him, his role had changed.

A teaching assistant was still a teacher, after all, and he was getting paid by the university.

He needed to pay more attention to the students' thoughts and psychological states.

"You noticed it too?" The boy's words quickly found resonance and received an immediate response.

But the corners of Lu Shixian's mouth couldn't help but twitch.

"How come our year's 'Cell Biology' professor is an old guy, but when it's the freshmen's turn, they get a new teacher?!"

"Professor Ma is okay, I guess, but I'd choose the female teacher in black nylons!"

"Seconded! Too bad the good stuff is always for the next class, never for us."

"Brothers, you have to take the initiative to make things happen. I've already decided to go crash their class next time."

"Well said! Give me a shout when you go."

"Uh, let's talk about that later."

"Ahem..." Nearby, Lu Shixian had already decided to retract his earlier assessment.

He planned to have a good long talk with Professor Ma about his students' complaints.

A little "retaliation" against the old professor, with a side of tattling.

The pain! It hurts so much!

How could the teaching quality of a female teacher in black nylons possibly compare to that of a venerable, highly respected old professor?

This unhealthy trend must be stamped out!

Chapter 353: Don't Misunderstand, Bro!

As the students were chatting, they suddenly realized something was off.

Yanjing University did have large lectures, which could be considered public classes.

If the professor was skilled and popular, a class might attract hundreds of students.

But this was a specialized course for the School of Life Sciences, taught in small classes. It was set up for one teacher and one class, or at most two classes with sixty to seventy students.

Normally, a quick glance was enough to see who was absent, let alone spot an unfamiliar face.

"Hey man, I'm Huang Dafeng, a second year in Biological Sciences," one of the boys said, greeting him casually. "I haven't seen you around before. Are you a sophomore or a junior?"

Hearing the question, many others started to notice the intruder in their classroom.

However, they remained calm, casting a brief glance before burying their heads back in their books. Only the few in the back row kept their eyes on him.

At that moment, Lu Shixian was enjoying the conversation when he was suddenly called out.

He wasn't a freshman anymore. The question might have sounded like small talk, but it was really asking if he was there to crash the class or to retake it.

Lu Shixian was instantly speechless. This was the second time he'd been suspected of this, wasn't it?

The last time was when he was auditing an economics course. The memory brought back the image of the female professor who had lectured him so eloquently on Western economic history.

Her face and smile were still clear in his mind, though he couldn't seem to recall her name.

His brief moment of hesitation seemed to provide an answer.

The few students waiting for his response appeared to understand something. But instead of having any other thoughts, they started to worry for him.

This was a perfect example of the difference between academic disciplines.

Mathematics and physics could be truly unforgiving.

They were not subjects where effort alone guaranteed a corresponding reward.

Furthermore, one should never expect Yanjing University's final exams to be easy.

So, in the School of Life Sciences at Yanjing, failing a course was not a rare occurrence.

Lu Shixian just glanced at them; he knew exactly what they were thinking.

Last time, his silence had caused a misunderstanding. This time, he chose to be direct.

He reached out and patted Huang Dafeng's shoulder lightly. "Don't misunderstand, bro. I'm a first year PhD student."

As soon as he said it, the nearby students all looked up, their faces a mixture of amusement and disbelief.

Huang Dafeng couldn't hold back a laugh and, turning the tables, patted Lu Shixian on the shoulder. "Dude, it's not April Fool's Day yet, is it?"

He then held up his copy of "Cell Biology" and said, "If you're a first year PhD, I'll eat this textbook right here, right now."

The others didn't speak, but the stifled laughter on their faces betrayed their thoughts.

Ding ding ding...

Just then, the bell for class rang.

Lu Shixian stood up. He glanced one last time at the thickness of the book and said, "I trust that a student of Yanjing University will keep his promise."

With that, he walked up to the podium under the confused, baffled, and bewildered gazes of the students.

Yanjing University had a long and storied history. He didn't know what the future held, but most of its schools still followed old traditions.

The blackboards used for teaching a century ago were still diligently sowing the seeds of knowledge today.

Compared to the markers at UC Davis or the digital screens at other universities, he still preferred this seemingly primitive tool.

Lu Shixian picked up a fresh piece of chalk from the desk and wrote his name in the center of the blackboard.

"Ahem! Good afternoon, everyone!" Lu Shixian's actions captured the attention of the forty two undergraduates in the room.

"Professor Ma Yuheng has taken personal leave, so I will be responsible for your classes for the next half month. I hope we can all get along well!" He said this with a slightly menacing tone.

His first words were fine, but what came next was met with silence, a dead silence.

"My name is Lu Shixian. I'm a 2012 doctoral student at Yanjing University and the teaching assistant for this course. You don't need to doubt it; you can find my information on the official Yanjing University enrollment list for this year."

Everyone in the room was stunned. From the back row came Huang Dafeng's incredulous mutter.

"Holy crap, you're for real!"

Lu Shixian paid him no mind and continued with a smile, "I heard just now that some of you felt it was unfair that the freshmen got a new, young female teacher."

"I can't say I'm accomplished, but I can at least guarantee that I'm young."

"So, that makes us even now, right?"

Hearing Lu Shixian's words, a wave of laughter rippled through the classroom.

Students typically start university at eighteen, and as sophomores, the average age in the room was around twenty.

They had been shocked at first, but now they were gradually coming to accept the fact.

After all, almost no one would joke about something like this; it could easily become a dark mark on their record.

The idea that someone their own age was about to teach them sparked a novel feeling they had never experienced before.

Time was precious and not to be wasted.

After the brief introduction, Lu Shixian cut the chatter and got straight to the point.

"According to my understanding, Professor Ma just finished covering chapter three, 'Research Methods in Cell Biology,' in the last class."

"Professor Ma is a man of profound knowledge and exceptional skill, so I won't elaborate further."
"Reviewing the old to learn the new makes one fit to be a teacher. We need to go over some key points from our last class, and this will become a regular part of our lessons for the next half-month."

Lu Shixian stood at the lectern, his hands resting on the desk, his searching gaze sweeping across all the students.

"Next, I'll ask a few questions to test your grasp of the material. You can volunteer to answer, or I can call on someone."

"For each correct answer, you'll get one point added directly to your final exam grade. There's no upper limit."

With that, the relaxed atmosphere in the classroom vanished.

Everyone stared at each other. Was this for real?

But no matter how they looked at it, this was a huge bonus for them.

One point might seem trivial, but this was for the final grade, not just for class participation.

The final grade was usually a weighted average of participation scores and the exam score.

And the latter's weight was far greater than the former's.

From that perspective, the value of this one point was far more than just a single point.

There was still plenty of time before the final exam. If they could rack up a dozen or so points, not only would passing be a breeze, but couldn't they max out their GPA for this course?

At this thought, many students started to get restless, barely able to contain their excitement.

Seeing their reactions, Lu Shixian smiled as if he'd expected it, then continued.

"Don't get too excited just yet! I have one more thing to add."

Chapter 354: Did Someone Else Steal All the Limelight?

"If you volunteer and answer correctly, you get one point. If you answer incorrectly, you lose half a point."

"But if I call on you randomly and you answer incorrectly or choose to pass, you'll lose one point."

"Does everyone understand?" Lu Shixian raised his voice, his words echoing through the classroom.

It was easy to see that this rule was designed to encourage students to answer questions voluntarily.

Even if they got it wrong, their enthusiasm and active participation were still worthy of recognition.

But a complete reward and punishment system required corresponding consequences. There had to be a cost for trying and failing, just a lesser one for those who were proactive.

Clearly, his addendum hadn't dampened their spirits.

Looking at the sea of eager faces in the classroom, Lu Shixian couldn't help but marvel once again at the beauty of youth.

"Alright, while the last chapter wasn't long, in my eyes, it's more important than many of the key topics that follow."

"After all, only by mastering the methods of learning and research can you achieve twice the result with half the effort. That's why this material is placed at the very beginning."

After stating his view, he finally moved on to the moment the students had been waiting for.

"My first question is: who can briefly describe the history of the microscope? An answer that is 80% complete will be considered correct," Lu Shixian asked, posing a question no one had anticipated.

The classroom fell silent, as if someone had hit the pause button. Then, whispers began to ripple through the room.

"The history of the microscope? That's not part of this course, is it?"

"I thought he said we were reviewing the key points from last class?"

"I was wondering the same thing. Looks like that one point isn't going to be so easy to get!"

All over the room, hands that had been ready to shoot up were suddenly nowhere to be seen.

The question was indeed a bit beyond the syllabus, but it wasn't actually that difficult.

The difficulty in answering it lay precisely in the fact that it wasn't a specialized topic but rather general knowledge, something most people wouldn't spend much time on.

But the students who got into Yan University were elites, and soon, a young man stood up.

Lu Shixian checked the roster corresponding to the student ID. The young man's name was Peng Jie. He wasn't tall but had bright, focused eyes. He seemed a bit shy but possessed the distinct air of a top student.

Giving him a slight nod, Lu Shixian gestured for him to begin.

"I'm not exactly sure how the microscope first came to be. But as far as I know, the first person to design and use it was the British physicist Robert Hooke. In 1665, he made a slice of cork oak and was the first to observe the structure of plant cells under a microscope." The young man clearly knew his stuff. While many people knew this part of the story, he even remembered the year.

"He named these honeycomb-like pores 'cellulae,' which is the origin of the modern word 'cell'."

This was information that even a beginner in biology could recite, so Peng Jie didn't dwell on it and moved on.

"Next was the Dutch scientist Antonie van Leeuwenhoek. The microscopes he made himself could magnify up to 300 times, allowing humans to see living cells with the naked eye for the first time."

"In the 18th century, the German physicist Ernst Abbe improved the microscope again and named the wave theory of microscopic imaging the Abbe sine condition."

"In the 19th century, Bayer analyzed the structure of indole and synthesized fluorescein, which led to huge advancements in fluorescence microscopy."

"Finally, in the 20th century, the chemist Adolf Zsigmondy invented the ultramicroscope based on the principle of light scattering, which could be used to study objects smaller than the wavelength of light. Frits Zernike invented the phase-contrast microscope for studying transparent objects. Georges Nomarski invented the differential interference contrast microscope for studying unstained, living biological samples."

By this point, some students had already started to applaud him.

But on the stage, Lu Shixian was completely dumbfounded, utterly surprised...

This wasn't how the script was supposed to go!

Weren't several students supposed to try and fail, one after another, before he stepped in to show them how it's done, winning everyone's admiration and applause?

He had never imagined that someone would remember all this so clearly.

Of course, he wasn't going to go easy on them from the start. This question was meant to be difficult; otherwise, how could he set up his moment to shine?

Well, so much for that. Someone else had already stolen the show. What was he supposed to do now?

Peng Jie, unaware of Lu Shixian's thoughts, continued his performance.

"Next, building on the foundation of optical microscopy, the electron microscope began to develop, becoming one of the most important inventions of the 20th century."

"The scanning electron microscope, scanning probe microscope, laser scanning confocal microscope, and scanning tunneling microscope were gradually invented. Today, aberration-corrected microscopy, in-situ electron microscopy, and four-dimensional ultrafast electron microscopy are the cutting-edge fields of microscope research."

"I have finished my answer!"

With that, Peng Jie's presentation concluded, earning him the respect and applause of everyone in the room.

A wave of clapping filled the classroom.

Left with no other choice, Lu Shixian had to join in the applause.

He felt like a mere supporting actor, but he couldn't deny the student's ability.

Still, it remained to be seen who the real protagonist was.

"Peng, that was an excellent answer," Lu Shixian praised him, then asked curiously, "How do you know so much about this topic?"

To his surprise, Peng Jie became somewhat emotional. "Professor Lu, it's an honor. I'm a microscope enthusiast, so I just pay more attention to this area of knowledge."

Hearing this form of address, Lu Shixian raised an eyebrow with a flicker of recognition, as if he understood something.

It had been a long time since anyone had called him that.

"You were in the Biology Olympiad?" Lu Shixian asked.

Peng Jie nodded shyly. "Yes, but I'm nowhere near your level, Lu Shen. I wasn't able to win the first-place gold medal for our country at last year's International Biology Olympiad."

"The world record you set for the theory portion in Tsukuba still hasn't been broken."

This back-and-forth made the other students look on with new curiosity.

Lu Shen? A world record?

From the sound of it, this TA was something special.

Those with quick fingers were already searching his name on their phones.

It was one thing not to search. Although Lu Shixian had been in the media a few times, he wasn't widely known to the general public.

But now, a quick search revealed something utterly astounding.

Wonder Boy!

World's No. 1 in the Biology Olympiad!

Three consecutive publications in the top international journal *Cell*!

And most importantly, the reports said he was 23 years old...

Connecting that to his earlier mention of being a first-year Ph.D. student...

It was terrifyingly impressive!

Everyone's impression of Lu Shixian underwent a seismic shift.

Chapter 355: This Is Really the Last Thing

They were all aware of Peng Jie's abilities. His talent for biology was far beyond the average person's.

He had entered Yan University after placing first in the national Biology Olympiad and second in the world.

Upon entering Yan University, he had joined a professor's research group with a near-perfect GPA.

And yet, Lu Shixian had achieved even more remarkable feats at a much younger age.

In other words, this new teaching assistant was no simple character.

This thought began to form in many students' minds.

And the effect was several times better than anything Lu Shixian could have orchestrated himself.

Looking at the sudden appearance of new fans in the classroom, Lu Shixian didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

But whether it was a happy accident or not, he still had to finish what he had planned to say.

"Some of you might not understand why I asked this question, since it wasn't covered in the last chapter."

"You might think it's off-topic. But there are three things I want to share with you all."

Lu Shixian's words immediately captured everyone's attention.

They had been wondering about this, and now that he was addressing it, they all focused their gazes on him.

Lu Shixian didn't keep them in suspense. "You are all biology students, so you must be familiar with the saying: all living things are made of cells, and the cell is the fundamental unit of all life. The microscope is clearly one of humanity's greatest inventions. Before its invention, our perception of the world around us was limited to what we could see with the naked eye."

"But now, the invention of the microscope has unveiled the mysteries of the microscopic world, presenting a brand new world before us. Tiny plants and animals hidden for millennia, along with all sorts of minute internal structures, have been brought into clear view."

"From that point on, biology entered the cellular level, and our field of research expanded from the macroscopic to the microscopic."

Lu Shixian's voice wasn't loud, but at that moment, he was the only one speaking in the classroom.

"You could say that the development of cell biology is inextricably linked to the microscope. It is the most suitable tool for studying cells."

"We must understand the microscope as well as we understand our own eyes, because a craftsman must first sharpen his tools to do his work well. This is the fundamental reason I asked this question."

"Furthermore, although Peng Jie's answer was very detailed, I'd still like to add a few things."

"Many of you know that Hooke was the first to observe the cell's form under a microscope. Some of you might even know that it was in the late 16th century that the Dutch father-son duo of spectacle makers, the Janssens, accidentally created a precursor to the microscope with two concave lenses."

Lu Shixian paused, his gaze sweeping over the students.

"But very few of you probably know that 2,500 years ago, our ancestors had already recorded knowledge of concave mirrors in the *Mojing*, while foreigners were still playing in the mud overseas."

"Our compatriots invented super-resolution fluorescence microscopy, creatively applying fluorescence spectroscopy and microscopic analysis techniques to single molecules."

"Because our country's research on the scanning electron microscope has become deeper and deeper, our voice in related international fields has grown stronger and stronger."

"One last thing: I'm not saying all this to emphasize anything in particular, nor to defend some fragile sense of pride. I just want to tell you all that in recent years, our country has developed rapidly in every field. In just a few decades, we have traveled a path that took developed countries centuries to complete."

"What we need to see is that the presence of Chinese people can be found in many cutting-edge research fields, even if it's not always prominent."

"In fact, to put it another way, we should be proud of the achievements we've made through our strenuous efforts to catch up."

"But at the same time, in the field of scientific research, the situation of being constrained by others in core technologies has not yet changed."

"We need to face this situation squarely and balance these two mindsets, so that we neither belittle ourselves nor become complacent."

Just as he finished, the school bell rang from outside the window.

Lu Shixian raised his right hand. It was already past three; class was over.

He smiled helplessly and began to wrap up.

"Time flies!"

"Thank you for listening to me ramble on. I won't keep you from your break."

Lu Shixian picked up his mug and lesson plan, ready to leave, but then he seemed to remember something.

He opened his mouth to add, "Oh, right, I want to add one more thing. I promise, this is really the last one."

His words were met with laughter from the entire class.

The reason his serious tone got this reaction was that he had already gone back on his word several times, adding countless "one more things."

But Lu Shixian didn't mind, continuing on his own. "In the past, we have crossed a thousand mountains and a million rivers, but in the future, we still have mountains to climb and rivers to cross!"

"Alright! Class dismissed!"

After saying this, Lu Shixian's figure receded down the hallway until it disappeared from view.

What he didn't see was that after he left, the laughter in the classroom slowly died down.

Some students laughed it off, some looked bewildered, and some began to ponder...

Leaving the classroom, Lu Shixian walked back to his office, subconsciously starting to summarize his first lesson.

In terms of content, it seemed he had only asked one question and hadn't taught a single new concept.

To be honest, the class had completely derailed his original plan and was far behind schedule.

In terms of process, he had been a bit too eager, too anxious to share the ideas in his heart, overlooking the fact that changing one's mindset is not an overnight task.

In terms of effect, it naturally wouldn't be ideal.

Setting aside the lack of new knowledge, the students' understanding of the history of the microscope was still not deep enough.

To them, it might have even seemed somewhat random.

But it was still worth it!

For Lu Shixian, if even one person was beneficially influenced and began to think, that was enough.

Therefore, he would have to reserve judgment on his performance in his first class for a later date.

However, after this one class, all the students had a deep impression of him, and some had already formed an opinion.

As for whether that opinion was good or bad, that was not what Lu Shixian was currently concerned with.

For the first few weeks, Lu Shixian had to attend his own doctoral courses while also teaching undergraduates.

Coordinating both schedules made for a rather hectic time.

But as the frequency of his scribbling in his notebook during class decreased, his main learning battlefield shifted back to the library.

Now, apart from taking time out for lectures and answering questions, he spent the rest of his time immersed in the ocean of knowledge.

Mendel, who had specialized in classical philosophy, began to study biology because he had failed the biology and geology sections of his teacher certification exam.

In other words, the father of modern genetics might have once been a total flunky in biology.

Lu Shixian chuckled to himself, then returned to his reading.

Chapter 356: Feeling Lonely in a Crowd

Today, Mendel's law of segregation, the law of independent assortment, and Morgan's law of linkage and crossing-over have become the three cornerstones of genetics.

The entire edifice of genetics built by later generations rests on these three foundations. Without them, this towering skyscraper, no matter how high it reached, would instantly collapse.

Middle school students all over the world were now as familiar with Mendel's peas and Morgan's fruit flies as they were with Newton's apple.

But initially, Mendel had only hoped to obtain superior varieties through his pea experiments, not to explore the laws of heredity.

The scientific community of his time was confined to studying the overall form and behavior of organisms, but Mendel chose a path no one had ever discovered before: studying traits.

Morphological features, physiological characteristics, and behavioral patterns could all be considered traits.

Different dominant and recessive traits formed different contrasting pairs, which, through mathematical combinations and permutations, slowly composed the colorful and unique tapestry of life.

This concept would be considered marvelous even today, let alone over a century ago.

It was no wonder that in the meeting hall of the Brünn Natural Science Society, the conclusions drawn from his "meaningless actions" were met with incomprehension.

It wasn't until 16 years after Mendel's death, 34 years after his paper was published, and 43 years after he conducted his pea experiments, that people finally realized a great man had passed.

Closing the book *A History of Classical Genetics*, a sentence from one of Mendel's letters to a friend lingered in Lu Shixian's mind:

"I have tried to encourage some to do control experiments, and for that purpose I spoke about the pea experiments at the meeting of the regional society of natural scientists."

"As expected, I met with divergent opinions."

"But as far as I know, no one has gone on to repeat the experiment."

Lu Shixian pensively wrote "YyRr" in his notebook.

Despite being surrounded by the hustle and bustle of the city, he suddenly felt Mendel's solitude from that time.

Sometimes, when the wheels of history turn, an individual being a few steps ahead really doesn't change anything.

Once this thought arose, it lingered in his mind, refusing to be forgotten.

"Although there's still over half a month until the final exam week, today is the last class of the semester," Lu Shixian said, standing at the lectern in his Yan University faculty uniform.

This wasn't a public lecture, just an ordinary specialized course in the School of Life Sciences.

But below the stage, the classroom aisles, the back row, and the empty spaces on both sides were almost completely filled with students who had come to audit the class.

The catalyst for this was a gimmick, but the fundamental reason was that Lu Shixian's teaching content had won the approval of his peers.

"Damn, I only came to see what the 'handsomest TA at Yan University' looked like. I can't believe I listened all the way to the last class!" lamented a male student in the crowd.

But the classroom was filled more with the collective protests of the female students.

"No! But there's still half a month left!"

"Professor Lu, let me do the math for you. If you teach one class a day, that's seven classes a week. Even if we give you two days off for the weekend, in half a month, that's still about ten classes. So what do you mean this is the last one?"

"Yeah! Even though it's all Greek to me, I feel like I can keep going for just a little bit longer."

Most of the auditing students were freshmen, and the majority were female.

Hearing these comments, Lu Shixian didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Of course, he was quite pleased. Although their initial reason for attending his class wasn't purely for the sake of learning and getting ahead, they had stayed for the knowledge.
After all, the curriculum at Yan University was quite demanding. Time conflicts were inevitable, and spending time on a course unrelated to the final exams required sacrificing a significant portion of one's after-class rest time.

But since these students had persisted until now, Lu Shixian believed they had learned a great deal. They would have a much easier time with this course next year; at the very least, their time hadn't been wasted.

Was this a case of "came for the looks, stayed for the brains"?

Lu Shixian thought with a smug satisfaction as he responded, "Alright, enough chatter. Let's get back to the lecture."

"As usual, we'll begin with a review of the last chapter we covered: cell senescence and apoptosis."

At these words, all forty-two of the originally enrolled students instinctively tensed up, their spirits jolted.

Here it comes!

Points, points, points! A student's lifeblood!

This was because Lu Shixian hadn't forbidden the auditing students from answering questions.

At first, they didn't think much of it. But as the number of auditors grew, the need to answer quickly became more urgent, and they gradually felt the pressure.

For the auditors, answering a question might only require a bit of courage.

But for the enrolled students, what they stood to lose were actual, tangible points.

"For us humans, life and death is a ceaseless cycle. People grow old, and people pass away."

"Naturally, for cells, senescence and apoptosis also exist."

"All cells arise from pre-existing cells."

After this preamble, Lu Shixian suddenly posed a question: "How does the CEO of PCD work?"

Anyone who had missed the last class or hadn't prepared would be baffled by this question.

Wasn't this a biology class?

Why the sudden jump to an MBA topic?

But in reality, PCD stood for Programmed Cell Death.

Although PCD had been a concept for some time, in 2012, it was still a hot topic in cutting-edge biological research.

In 2002, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to British scientists Sydney Brenner and John Sulston, and American biologist Robert Horvitz, for their discoveries concerning the genetic regulation of organ development and programmed cell death.

So, what Lu Shixian was really asking about was the execution mechanism of apoptosis.

The question sounded simple, but answering it well was not so easy.

Because the detailed mechanism of apoptosis was still one of the world's great unknowns.

He looked at a familiar face and gestured to her. "Xiang Wei, your hand was up the fastest. Why don't you tell us?"

Hearing this, many students in their seats lowered their hands, their faces etched with frustration.

Xiang Wei was an outgoing girl with short hair, a freshman at Yan University, and a top performer in the IBO from the year after Peng Jie.

She had managed to answer quite a few questions in class, sparking a great deal of "public outrage."

Due to the nature of the subject, girls often had a slight advantage over boys in studying biology.

In Lu Shixian's judgment, although she was only a freshman, Xiang Wei's foundational knowledge in this course was even more solid than that of many sophomores.

Soon, a girl with a victorious smile stood up from a chair that had been moved into the aisle.

Chapter 357: Lu Shixian Felt Incredibly Wronged

"Although the detailed execution mechanism of apoptosis is not yet fully understood, we know that Dnase and Caspase enzymes play crucial roles."

"DNase is an endonuclease, which, as everyone knows, breaks the phosphodiester bonds in DNA, creating DNA fragments and disabling gene function. Caspase is a cysteine-aspartate protease, which I'll refer to as Caspase from now on. It breaks the peptide bonds in proteins, forming polypeptides and causing protein inactivation."

"This is all high school level knowledge, so I won't elaborate further." Xiang Wei's thoughts were clear, and she spoke fluently without any hesitation. "Generally, the process of apoptosis can be divided into an activation phase and an execution phase."

"Since Professor Lu asked about execution, I'll briefly describe the process of the execution phase."

Lu Shixian nodded, giving her an encouraging look.

Xiang Wei's voice gradually filled the classroom.

"The activation of executioner caspases initiates the apoptotic program. The caspases recruit proenzyme molecules, cleave them, and thereby produce active executioners that cleave vital structural and functional proteins in the cell. The appearance of these active caspases leads to apoptosis."

"Examples include Caspase-2 members like Nedd-2 and ICH1, Caspase-3 members like Apopain and CPP32, Caspase-6 represented by MCH2, and Caspase-7 members like MCH3, ICE-LAP3, and CMH1."

"Additionally, there is caspase-independent apoptosis. For instance, Endo-G (Endonuclease-G) can execute the apoptotic program even when caspases are not activated..."

Xiang Wei was indeed outstanding. To have accumulated this much knowledge at her age was enough to draw the attention of others.

But her personality was a bit too aggressive, a bit flashy. To put it simply, she was highly competitive.

If it weren't for the fact that she was a young woman, most of the boys in the class would probably have some complaints about her.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but glance again at Peng Jie, who was sitting in a corner.

This question shouldn't have been difficult for him, but his personality was the complete opposite: uncompetitive and unassuming, neither arrogant nor impatient.

Seeing the two of them, Lu Shixian was reminded of his own teammates from his IBO days: Feng Yanan, Yang Yihang, and Wang Fuwen.

He wondered how his teammates were doing now. He really needed to get in touch with them when he had the time.

"Excellent and very detailed, Miss Xiang. She deserves a round of applause!" Regardless of her personality, a system of clear rewards and consequences was the fundamental principle Lu Shixian adhered to.

A smattering of applause broke out, and Xiang Wei sat down with a satisfied expression.

Next came a few more questions on key concepts. This time, the forty-two enrolled students stepped up, securing those points for themselves.

But this was the last class of the semester. There was still over a month until the final exams.

Although classes were over, Lu Shixian didn't plan to just let them be. So, in the last few minutes of the class, he assigned homework.

That's right, it was the first homework assignment he had given all semester.

But when the slide appeared on the screen, it still elicited groans from the students.

The assignment was a very standard course paper, but the requirements were not low.

"Please complete a review paper of no less than 4000 characters within three weeks. The specific topic is open, as long as it revolves around cell biology."

"Special Note 1: A minimum of fifteen references must be cited, with at least five of them being foreign-language sources."

"Special Note 2: Please follow the basic requirements in the 'Yanjing University Thesis Writing Guidelines' for formatting."

"Special Note 3: The review paper will account for 30% of the final grade. An English version may be attached, which will be awarded bonus points based on quality."

"Special Note 4: Exceptionally outstanding papers may be recommended for publication in a journal."

"Office: Yanjing University Life Sciences Education Building A, Room 416. Email: ..."

After assigning the homework, Lu Shixian left with a wave of his sleeve, not taking a single cloud with him.

He left behind only the students, sighing and looking up at the sky.

"This is going to kill me!" Many of them could already foresee the all-nighters ahead.

It couldn't be helped. The three-week deadline Lu Shixian gave seemed generous, but one of those weeks was finals week.

That meant they only had half a month to prepare, and from that, they had to subtract time for other classes and studying.

In reality, there wasn't much time to actually write the paper.

Of course, if one were to simply copy, paste, and use a thesaurus to swap out words, that would be a different story.

But at Yan University, such practices were not tolerated, and almost no one would resort to them.

At that moment, people were coming and going in the small square of the School of Life Sciences.

Lu Shixian stared at Xiang Wei, feeling completely baffled.

"Miss Xiang, what did you just say?"

"Your professor wants to give me trouble?"

"What did I do to her? Do we have some kind of grudge?"

Xiang Wei shook her head, looking like she was enjoying the show. "It's not really a conflict."

"It's just that sometimes your class conflicts with hers, and some of the girls in our class 'take leave' to come listen to your lecture. I think she just found out about it recently."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was utterly speechless.

Taking sick leave or personal leave was one thing, but taking leave from one professor's class to attend another's...

Clearly, this female professor also taught "Cell Biology." As the saying goes, people in the same trade are rivals.

This was just...

Lu Shixian covered his face and looked to the sky. If he were in her shoes, he probably couldn't handle it either.

He had heard of idols having to pay for the actions of their fans before, but he had always just been a bystander watching the drama unfold.

He never imagined that this day would come for him.

Lu Shixian felt incredibly wronged, a hundred times more than she did.

It wasn't a matter of whether he had done anything; the blame had already been pinned on him.

If he tried to explain now, who would listen?

How could he explain it?

Was it that his looks and charisma were too appealing, or that his teaching skills were slightly superior?

All he could do now was lie low for a while. Fortunately, he wasn't planning on teaching any more classes anyway.

He could only hope that this professor was a reasonable and understanding person who would look at the issue rationally.

After thanking Xiang Wei and saying goodbye, Lu Shixian returned to the library to continue his unfinished work.

To his relief, the next few weeks were peaceful. No one came looking for him.

Well, if you counted Old Ma, who had reappeared after a long absence, then someone had.

"Kid, aren't you supposed to be teaching my class for me? What are you doing here?"

"You're not skipping out on your duties, are you?"

Old Ma's tone was rather unfriendly.

Chapter 358: What on Earth Are You Doing?

Lu Shixian felt even more wronged now.

"If we're talking about skipping out, shouldn't I be asking you that?"

"Who makes their teaching assistant cover the class from the very beginning?"

Having been countered so deftly, Ma Yuheng seemed a bit embarrassed and chuckled.

"That's just because I have faith in your abilities."

"So? Is lecturing fun? Exciting?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian gave him a weary eye-roll.

"I wouldn't call it fun. Exciting, maybe."

"The lecturing itself is fine. What I'm most afraid of now is answering students' questions."

"If they were all about biology, it'd be one thing. But they're all over the place. Recently, someone even came to me for relationship advice!"

At this, Old Ma burst into laughter without any regard for his image, the wrinkles on his face creasing into deep folds.

"Haha, so you finally understand my pain!"

"But, a teacher's role is to propagate the Way, impart knowledge, and resolve doubts. This just means you need more experience."

"How can you answer a student's question if you've never experienced it yourself?"

"So, while you're young and have the energy, the right path is to hurry up and find a partner. Academics can wait."

"Don't wait until you're an old man like me to cry tears of regret."

Lu Shixian was speechless. How had Old Ma veered off into such nonsense?

After a bit more small talk, the conversation finally returned to the main topic.

"So? How are my students grasping the material?" Though a bit of a rascal, Old Ma still cared about his professional duties. "Let me see their coursework grades."

Lu Shixian shrugged, then pulled the grade sheet from his bag and handed it to him. "Oh, so you do remember they're your students. I thought you'd forgotten."

After being jabbed so many times, Old Ma's reaction this time was different. He glared, his beard bristling. "The education of the next generation is no joking matter."

He then flipped through the grade roster in his hands. A quick glance turned into a stare.

"Kid, what's going on here?"

"Why are all their coursework grades perfect, except for the homework section?"

"And why is there not a single homework entry recorded?"

Generally, coursework grades for some classes at Yan University were composed of three parts: attendance, class performance, and homework completion.

These three components were then weighted to calculate each student's final coursework score for the semester.

But clearly, the grade roster in front of him had caught Old Ma's attention.

"If they're all the same, how can you differentiate between them?"

Lu Shixian seemed to have anticipated his reaction and said calmly, "Why must we differentiate? Except for those with excused absences, everyone had perfect attendance, and their class performance was excellent."

"Isn't a perfect score a natural result?"

"And who said there was no homework? Didn't I just assign one?"

Ma Yuheng asked doubtfully, "Only one assignment for the whole semester? What on earth are you doing?"

"And what are these handwritten numbers you've added at the end?"

As if speaking to someone who had never seen the world, Lu Shixian explained briefly, "The homework is a course paper. As for the scores, those are bonus points for their final grade."

Hearing this, Ma Yuheng's eyes nearly popped out of his head.

"What did you say?"

"Good heavens!"

"You assigned a course paper for a major-specific course, fine. But you're giving this many bonus points toward the final grade?"

"I just saw one with almost twenty bonus points. Doesn't that mean they're all going to get perfect scores?"

But Lu Shixian just gave a mysterious smile. "That's not necessarily true."

"Who says more bonus points guarantees a good grade? Professor Ma, you're being a bit too absolute."

At this, Old Ma suddenly had a bad feeling, though he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"You better not go too far!" Then, as if remembering something, he waved his hand. "Ah, forget it. You rarely mess things up. And even if you do, Old Xu will be there to bail you out."

After sending Ma Yuheng off, Lu Shixian checked the time. It was already past four in the afternoon.

"Maybe I'll call it a day. I have been pretty tired lately."

"I'll grab some dinner, then go for a walk tonight."

Having made a preliminary plan, Lu Shixian decided to give himself a small break.

Looking back on the past few days, Lu Shixian still felt a sense of fulfillment.

Over the last week or so, he had been continuously supplementing his knowledge in the field of genetics.

He had dabbled in everything, from mainstream to alternative theories, from hot topics to niche fields, from classical to modern genetics.

During this time, he truly understood the feeling of reaping the rewards of long and patient study.

The main branches of genetics included plant genetics, animal genetics, microbial genetics, human genetics, physiological genetics, developmental genetics, and so on.

Their existence collectively formed the vast kingdom of genetics.

Thanks to his solid foundation in botany, physiology, developmental biology, and microbiology, he found it easy to grasp the core principles of these genetic sub-disciplines, thereby expanding the boundaries of his own knowledge system.

In the evening, after a satisfying meal, he strolled to the bank of Weiming Lake.

In the past, present, and far into the future, it would always be a gathering place for strollers, thinkers, and young couples.

Lu Shixian rested a hand on a section of the railing, enjoying the cool yet gentle early spring evening breeze.

Seeing the vibrant, green life along the lake's edge, his mood brightened as well.

"Perhaps this is what Gide meant: 'The will and warmth of spring are gradually driving away the winter.'"

"Or the 'Peach Blossom Spring' that Fabre described: 'And in this small green world, countless busy little lives carry on, generation after generation.'"

"Nature itself is the ultimate beauty!"

Just as Lu Shixian finished saying this, a laugh came from nearby.

He couldn't tell if it was a sneer or a foolish giggle.

"Aesthetics does not include the beauty of nature. The beauty of art is higher than the beauty of nature. Everything that comes from the spirit is higher than nature." Not far away, a man with a goatee and a small, single braid suddenly turned toward him.

Uh, Lu Shixian was suddenly at a loss for how to describe him.

Calling him a boy seemed too young, yet youth didn't seem quite right either.

Since it was hard to judge by age, he decided to describe him from a purely physiological standpoint.

A male.

But this man was quite an eye-opener for Lu Shixian.

He exuded an artistic aura, not to mention his gaze, which was filled with a profound philosophical depth that was far from simple.

Fearing an inability to communicate normally, Lu Shixian chose to take the path of least resistance. After all, he hadn't come here to argue with anyone.

"Hey man, I was just thinking out loud. Don't mind me."

Hearing this, the man shook his head with a sigh. "Without frightening depths, there can be no beautiful surface."

At this point, Lu Shixian's expression had darkened slightly.

So you're calling me shallow, huh? Fine, I'll hold my tongue.

Chapter 359: Nothing of Consequence

"Right, right, you're right about everything." Lu Shixian had no intention of reasoning with him.

Sometimes, you couldn't expect everyone's worldview to align perfectly with your own.

The only way to coexist was to seek common ground while respecting differences.

Besides, some people always had a "my way or the highway" mentality.

"Want one?" Lu Shixian took a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and offered it to him.

Although he hadn't developed the habit, he would occasionally have one when the mood struck.

The things were bad for his health, but he had to admit, they were sometimes genuinely refreshing and relaxing.

They were also a gift that "decadent youths" found hard to refuse.

Sure enough, the man took one and expertly began to puff away, clearly a seasoned smoker.

With just one cigarette as a foundation, the atmosphere became considerably more relaxed.

"Brother, which department are you in? PhD student or professor?" Since he had nothing better to do, Lu Shixian asked casually.

The man just shook his head. "You flatter me. My name is Cheng Sixuan, a senior in the philosophy department."

The answer was somewhat unexpected for Lu Shixian, but upon reflection, it wasn't entirely surprising.

After all, some people couldn't be measured by ordinary standards.

"So you're a big shot from the 'Philosophy Gate'! My apologies for not recognizing you!" Lu Shixian genuinely admired students who chose such majors.

Although philosophy was a niche major among niche majors, it depended on the university.

Yan University was one of the first universities in the country to establish a philosophy department, effectively pioneering philosophy education in China.
The undergraduate philosophy program, much like life sciences, was split into two majors: Philosophy and Religious Studies.

Each year, only a mere hundred students were admitted, and a significant number of them would transfer to other majors.

Lu Shixian had no idea what it was like to study philosophy at Yan University.

For him, it was agony, but that wasn't necessarily true for others.

After all, only the true warriors could make it to the end, daring to face the endless abyss of philosophical contemplation.

"Big shot, where are you headed after graduation?" Lu Shixian asked, a hint of curiosity in his voice.

Cheng Sixuan spoke slowly, "Dominus illuminatio mea."

The phrase was Latin. Had it been anything else, Lu Shixian might not have understood, but this was an exception.

It was simply too famous—the motto of the University of Oxford.

Taken from Psalm 27 of the Bible, it signified an infinite pursuit of truth.

"While it may not be the top school for philosophy, when choosing between Cambridge, NYU, and Oxford, I ultimately went with the latter," Cheng Sixuan said, his tone incredibly nonchalant. "The pursuit of excellence and the free, open debate here are the reasons I chose it."

At that moment, Lu Shixian felt a powerful wave of flex wash over him.

"You actually had a choice? Damn, that's amazing!" Lu Shixian couldn't help but exclaim. "You must have gotten a full scholarship, right? At Oxford, that's got to be a lot of money. I'm so envious!"

Cheng Sixuan nodded silently. Only after extinguishing the cigarette in his hand did he reply, "It's nothing to be envious of. In fact, the scholarship isn't that much. It's about what I get for a month's pocket money."

"You must understand, money is merely a medium, a bridge. We cannot live on the bridge itself."

Lu Shixian was speechless.

It was clear that Cheng Sixuan wasn't the type to show off intentionally.

You could tell from his clothes and personality.

But this naturally exuded aura of superiority was truly suffocating to Lu Shixian.

As expected of someone who could study abroad on their own and pick and choose from top-tier universities. The word 'outstanding' was no longer enough to describe him.

You'd have to add 'filthy rich' to the list.

"So interested in scholarships. Are you a freshman this year?" Cheng Sixuan finally lowered his gaze from its forty-five-degree angle and asked his first question.

Lu Shixian nodded in response. "Right on the money!"

"I'm a first-year PhD student."

Meeting this big shot was just a brief interlude.

For some reason, recalling the stunned look on Cheng Sixuan's face gave him a secret thrill of satisfaction.

But he couldn't help but marvel that a random person he met by the lake could be so frighteningly brilliant.

"Yan University is full of crouching tigers and hidden dragons. There's always someone better out there."

Walking slowly toward the dormitory entrance, Lu Shixian came to a conclusion. "Looks like I'll have to keep being humble and modest!"

To gain such insight from a simple walk was a day well spent.

But just as the thought crossed his mind, a graceful figure appeared under the moonlight.

A teasing, questioning voice sounded in his ear. "Haven't seen you for a few days. Getting bold, are we?"

"I don't recall hearing you talk about being humble and modest when you were poaching my student."

The voice was mature and cool, particularly striking in the quiet night.

Most importantly, it felt strangely familiar to Lu Shixian.

He turned around and saw someone he found it hard to believe he was seeing.

Her face was backlit and not clearly visible, but the image of a person from his past was seared into his mind, impossible to erase.

A flood of joy burst through the dams in his heart.

"Mei... Mei..." Lu Shixian opened his mouth, but couldn't form a complete sentence.

"Never mind 'Mei.' Have the guts to own up to what you did?" As the moon rose higher, the figure became clearer. A woman of exceptional grace appeared before him.

Only then did the shock finally set in.

He had never imagined such a possibility.

Lu Shixian smiled sheepishly, scratching his head. "Teacher Mei, how can it be you?" he asked, full of curiosity.

"Weren't you teaching at Number One High School?"

"I went back to the school before, but I didn't see you."

"How did you suddenly end up back at Yan University, and as a teacher here?"

The barrage of questions left Mei Ting at a loss for words.

Just who was questioning whom here?

"Let's go," Mei Ting said, as concise as ever.

"Where to?" Lu Shixian asked reflexively.

This time, however, Mei Ting offered an explanation.

"To find a proper place to talk, of course," she said, exasperated. "It's been a few years. How have you gotten dumber with more schooling?"

"I seem to recall you being quite sharp back then."

It was as if Lu Shixian had just woken from a dream. The usually quick-witted man seemed to have lost his edge, his reactions sluggish.

After a few minutes' walk, he followed Mei Ting to a coffee shop.

It was located on the top floor of a commercial building near Yan University, exquisitely designed with a unique style.

Every night, it offered a panoramic view of the beautiful Beijing cityscape.

But it was a place he had rarely frequented in the past.

"What would you like to drink?" Mei Ting actually asked for his opinion.

Lu Shixian grinned. "As long as I'm not paying, anything's fine."

At that, Mei Ting could only sigh and order two Blue Mountain coffees.

"I hope you'll be able to stomach it later."

While waiting for their order, they sat at a round table, and Mei Ting finally began to answer Lu Shixian's questions.

Chapter 360: The Whole World Makes Way

"There's not much to tell, really." When the waiter arrived, she lifted her cup with great elegance and took a small sip. "The truth is, I'm not from Jinling, nor am I from Su Province."

Lu Shixian nodded, completely unfazed.

In fact, he had known this since their very first meeting.

As a native of Jinling, he'd have lived all those years for nothing if he couldn't even distinguish an outside accent.

But Jinling, as both an ancient capital and a modern metropolis, was a melting pot that embraced everything and everyone. No one cared about such trivial matters.

Mei Ting's explanation was concise.

"After I finished my doctoral dissertation and graduated, my father happened to be transferred to Jinling for work, so I went along to relax and unwind."

"Who would have thought my dad would also arrange a part-time job for me, which is how I ended up at Jinling Number One High School by a twist of fate."

"To be honest, I never wanted to be a teacher. My personality isn't suited for that kind of work."

Lu Shixian remained expressionless, but he nodded again in his mind.

He really wanted to say, "Looks like you have a pretty good sense of self-awareness."

But he didn't dare say it to her face.

Unaware of his inner thoughts, Mei Ting continued her story.

"Normally, I would have taken over for a biology teacher on maternity leave, but I never expected to become a biology competition coach."

"My resume had no mention of any biology competition experience."

Lu Shixian shrugged. "What's so hard to understand about that?"

"You're a PhD from Yan University. A little biology competition should be a piece of cake for you, right?"

But Mei Ting shook her head, refuting his words. "For certain indescribable reasons, the qualification I showed publicly at the time was just a bachelor's degree from a regular key university."

"In a provincial capital like Jinling, that kind of academic background is nothing special at Number One High School."

At these words, Lu Shixian's mouth fell half open, his mind filled with astonishment.

His first thought was: "Damn, and here I was thinking the school valued me so much that despite the poor teaching conditions, they had an invincible faculty and specially assigned a PhD to mentor me."

"I never thought I'd be the clown in this story."

He had wondered about this before, but firstly, his mind had been completely focused on his studies back then, so he paid little attention to such details.

Secondly, his perspective had not yet completely changed.

Now, more than a decade later, it was not at all uncommon for PhDs to teach at top high schools.

He still remembered a news report about hundreds of PhDs fiercely competing for positions at a high school in a major municipality. It was a world where PhDs were everywhere.

Now, everything made sense.

"That's too much of a coincidence, isn't it?" Lu Shixian couldn't help but exclaim.

I thought I was the chosen one, blessed by fate. Turns out I was just defying my destiny with a stroke of incredible luck.

If he were to rank the people who had helped him on his journey, Mei Ting would undoubtedly be near the top.

In all fairness, Mei Ting might not have pushed him that many steps forward.

It wasn't like riding a favorable wind to the heavens.

Instead, she gave Lu Shixian a ladder, allowing him to climb to the clouds step by step through his own strength.

That was it!

Without Mei Ting, he might have succeeded anyway.

As a reincarnator, he had at least that much confidence in himself.

But with that ladder, he was able to reach his goal in a much shorter time.

What Mei Ting had given him during his high school years was far more than just academic resources that were out of reach for ordinary people.

It was time!

And to him, nothing was more precious than that.

At this moment, his gaze toward Mei Ting was filled with gratitude.

"Thank you, Teacher Mei."

"Without you, I might not have been able to get this far, nor would I have the knowledge I have today."

Mei Ting was taken aback by his sudden display of emotion, then shot him a disdainful look.

"Alright, that's enough. You're laying it on a bit thick." She put down her cup with a shudder, stopping him from continuing. "Hold it right there. I don't recall teaching you all that much."

"If anything, thanks to you, I had more opportunities to slack off and go shopping."

"So don't say things like that again. I have a reputation to maintain."

Mei Ting herself seemed a bit wistful now. "After all, I didn't put in much effort, I never worried about you, and I never paid much attention to your studies."

"I've seen your file. To go from a rural middle school to a top university, from an ordinary student to a PhD at Yan University—your talent is undeniable, but your hard work is even more commendable."

"I can see that your goals have always been clear, and you've been striving for them constantly."

"So keep it up!"

"The whole world makes way for those who know where they're going."

As the sky grew darker, Mei Ting left with those final words.

Lu Shixian sat there for a long time. It wasn't easy to find someone who understood you.

Mei Ting understood him, but not completely.

"Does the world make way?"

"But I'd much rather walk with them."

After saying this, Lu Shixian suddenly smiled.

A passing customer shot him a look as if he were an idiot.

But he paid it no mind. After all that talk, he picked up the untouched coffee on the table and took a large gulp.

The moment the coffee entered his mouth, he spat it out.

"Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey..."

"What is this stuff?"

"It's so bitter!"

It was the height of summer.

After thoroughly dissecting the year's new college entrance exams, the students of Class One, Biological Sciences major at Yan University's School of Life Sciences, were heading to their first final exam of their second academic year.

Unlike the previous year, almost everyone walked with a relaxed expression, as if what awaited them wasn't a final exam, but a spa massage.

On the other hand, the atmosphere among other students heading to the same exam was not nearly as cheerful. Aside from a few top students who remained calm, many were still frantically flipping through their review materials as they walked.

"Hey, Ma Wei, I'm so jealous of you biology majors. You get extra credit just for answering questions, and it adds to your final grade, for crying out loud," a boy complained to his buddy, Wang Bin.

"Why can't our professors learn a thing or two from that?"

"Even though I'm not in his class, I've heard the girls in my class talk about Lu Shixian. At first, I didn't think much of it, and was even a bit unconvinced."

"But now I have to admit, he may look young, but he's really got something."

The boy named Ma Wei laughed and patted his friend's shoulder. "You bet! Good luck on the exam, Bin! I got 10 extra points this time, so this should be my easiest final ever. Hoping to secure a 90, aiming for 95."

Hearing that number, who could possibly understand the bitterness in Wang Bin's heart?

Aside from major-specific courses being split into smaller classes, students from different majors often attended lectures in the same classroom.

So he knew Ma Wei's academic level. He was about the same, squarely in the middle of their major. Otherwise, they wouldn't have become friends.

But now, it seemed his brother in arms was about to get rich first.

Chapter 361: Who's Thinking of Me?

8:30 AM.

In small classroom 706, on the 7th floor of the Life Sciences Education Building at Yan University.

The undergraduate class of 2011 from the School of Life Sciences, majoring in Biological Sciences, was about to begin their first exam of the semester: Cell Biology.

At Yan University, final exams for one's own school were generally not proctored by faculty from other disciplines.

However, the professor who taught the course would not be the one proctoring it either.

Therefore, the proctor for this exam was an associate professor from the School of Life Sciences who taught Zoology, Huang Mingpeng.

After distributing the exam papers right on time, Huang Mingpeng's job was done.

He plopped down on the podium and began flipping through a magazine to pass the time.

As for proctoring?

In his eyes, it was just a formality, a procedure to go through.

The barrier to cheating at Yan University was extremely high, but it wasn't a technical one.

Rather, it was the intense psychological pressure the cheater would have to endure.

That pressure alone was enough to deter most attempts before they even began.

There were indeed surveillance cameras in the exam hall, and they weren't just for show.

But their primary function was recording, not monitoring.

They were necessary for reconstructing events in case of any unexpected incidents.

Just then, the bell rang.

The exam began.

Ma Wei confidently wrote his name on the side of the paper and started answering.

No matter the university, the first question on a final exam was always the same: term explanations, which accounted for 30-40% of the grade.

A term from the textbook would be given, and the student had to explain its meaning, value, or impact.

It generally tested how well the student had mastered the textbook content.

Of course, this was also a standard format for graduate school entrance exams, considered a relatively basic type of question.

For any diligent student, these were free points.

This was even more true for the elites who had made it into Yan University.

Ma Wei answered the six term explanation questions with great fluency.

"Just as I thought, all major concepts from the textbook. It was worth spending all that time memorizing them."

He moved on to the next section with ease: fill-in-the-blanks.

He wasn't surprised to see fill-in-the-blanks as the second section.

It meant they were less difficult than multiple-choice questions.

But after just one or two questions, he started to feel the pressure.

The simplest fill-in-the-blanks were key terms that appeared verbatim somewhere in the book, requiring only memorization.

Slightly harder ones required comprehension to determine the answer.

The most difficult were the compound questions that tested memory, comprehension, and logical reasoning all at once.

After a Herculean effort, Ma Wei left one small blank empty and reluctantly moved on to the next section.

However, what he saw next surprised him.

"No multiple-choice questions!?"

Multiple-choice questions were a staple of almost any exam.

But this time, after term explanations and fill-in-the-blanks, it went straight to short-answer questions.

Ma Wei frowned but slowly accepted this reality.

But as soon as he read the first question, he was stunned.

1. Briefly describe the main research topics related to cell biology that won the Nobel Prize from 2008 to 2012.

As a biology student, he did indeed pay attention to the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine each year.

But he was just an undergraduate. Asking him to understand the details of a new Nobel laureate's work was asking too much.

He simply couldn't understand most of it.

Even just briefly describing the topics was not an easy task.

Having not made this a priority in his exam preparation, Ma Wei's mind was filled with nothing but vague, hazy impressions.

And that was just for the Physiology or Medicine prize; it didn't even touch upon the Chemistry prize, which could also be related to cell biology.

Hastily writing down "iPS cells (induced pluripotent stem cells)," Ma Wei's heart sank as he skipped to the next question.

2. Briefly discuss the main uses and features of the following instruments: (1) DIC (Differential Interference Contrast Microscope), (2) Confocal (Laser Scanning Confocal Microscope), (3) CCD (Charge-Coupled Device), (4) Flow Cytometry.

Forgive him, but he felt like crying now.

Seriously, he had seen every one of these terms in the textbook.

But the textbook barely covered the uses and applications of the instruments; he had only heard Lu Shixian mention them in passing, reeling them off like an expert.

At the time, he just thought the guy was showing off and figured a basic understanding would be enough.

With that mindset, he never imagined they would appear on the final exam.

Fortunately, his mind wasn't a complete blank. He could at least write something.

Thanks to the first lecture, Ma Wei had some knowledge about microscopes, but not much.

After scribbling a single line for the first two sub-questions, he looked at the third question with a dark expression.

3. The cell biology lab at Yan University has cloned a gene from yeast and discovered that its protein product is related to the regulation of the cell cycle. To study the function of its homologous protein in mammalian cells, how would you design an experimental plan? Please write out the main steps and briefly explain the rationale for your experiment.

After reading it, the pen suddenly slipped from Ma Wei's fingers.

He was now in complete despair.

Because he found he couldn't even begin to write.

What the hell was this?

The difficulty of the questions was far beyond his imagination.

Designing an experimental plan was not an unfamiliar question type. He had been exposed to it since high school and had become quite proficient.

But as his knowledge base deepened, a scientifically sound experiment was no longer something a simple control experiment could solve.

As a short-answer question, its difficulty ranked among the highest of all question types.

It tested both theoretical knowledge and practical skills, making it a complex and challenging problem.

On the verge of tears, Ma Wei looked around at the other students.

The only thing that gave him a sliver of comfort was that the few top students in the class were clearly not calm either, their hands pressed to their foreheads, motionless for a long time.

Meanwhile, the unusual activity in the exam hall gradually caught Huang Mingpeng's attention.

He finally stepped down from the podium and casually glanced at a student's paper as he walked down the aisle.

But with just one look, he too was dumbfounded.

The questions were indeed based on content from the Cell Biology textbook, but the difficulty of the exam was nearly at the level of a graduate school entrance exam.

What the hell?

Did I hand out the wrong papers?

If it weren't for the words "Final Exam" printed on the paper, he would have thought he was in a graduate school entrance exam hall.

Who the hell wrote this exam?

Are they trying to screw with the students?
As far as he knew, the professor for this year's Biological Sciences course was supposed to be Professor Ma Yuheng!

Couldn't you tell?

He's got some nerve!

Isn't he afraid this will blow up in his face?

There were quite a few students like Ma Wei, but at this moment, they all thought of one person with immense resentment.

In stark contrast to the time they spent answering the questions, it took them less than a second to guess who had set the exam.

So, all those extra points we earned before were for nothing???

At that moment, Lu Shixian, who was forced to stay dutifully in his office due to the arrival of finals week, suddenly sneezed.

"Who's thinking about me?"

Chapter 362: Still Not Competitive Enough

On the second day of finals week, Lu Shixian entered an intense grading phase.

It wasn't because he was overly dedicated, of course, but because he wanted to finish the task and get back to his research work as soon as possible.

Teaching, while important, and the feedback he received was excellent.

But ultimately, it wasn't his true calling.

Perhaps at some point in the future, he would choose to teach for an extended period, but for now, it was still a bit too early for him.

After two hours, Lu Shixian put down a stack of exam papers and took a sip of water.

Without even needing to enter the scores into the record, he already had a general impression of the exam results.

The outcome was not far from what he had anticipated.

An hour later.

After looking through the papers, Old Ma's eyelid started twitching violently.

"I say, are you kidding me, kid? Nearly thirty people failed!"

"If you release these scores, I'm afraid the students won't accept it."

"And if you report this passing rate, the university will be on your case too!"

But Lu Shixian sat firmly in his chair, completely unperturbed.

"Calm down, Professor Ma."

"These aren't the final grades yet. We still need to weigh them with their regular coursework scores and then add the extra credit points. The final sum is their total grade."

Only then did Old Ma relax a little, looking at him and saying irritably, "Then what are you waiting for? Get it done."

"The sooner we finish, the sooner we can go on break!"

"Oh, my old bones can't take this kind of excitement anymore."

With that, Ma Yuheng swiftly vanished from his sight.

Lu Shixian was long used to Old Ma's antics.

This was his typical style. If Old Ma ever suddenly rushed to do work, he must have hit his head.

Shaking his head, Lu Shixian began calculating the grades on his computer.

With all the key data available, it took him about three minutes to create a spreadsheet and set up the formulas.

A few seconds later, a complete overview of everyone's total grades was displayed.

The score distribution for the 2012 Biological Sciences majors was as follows:

1 person scored 90 or above.

14 people scored 75 or above.

26 people scored 60 or above.

1 person failed.

According to psychology.

This was clearly a difficult or complex task.

A lower level of motivation to obtain a grade would result in the best possible performance, thus satisfying the Yerkes-Dodson Law.

Lu Shixian quickly drew a conclusion: the student who got the highest score obviously didn't have a strong motivation to get a high score.

A name quickly surfaced in his mind.

According to mathematics.

The largest number of students scored in the 60-75 point range, accounting for 95.23% of the total.

The number of high-scorers and the number of failures were tied, each accounting for 2.38% of the total.

The class's scores closely matched a "normal distribution."

From this data, Lu Shixian could swiftly conclude: it seems these students are still not competitive enough!

Simply put, the more intense the internal competition, the less the results would conform to a normal distribution.

Although any statistical conclusion is based on big data, Lu Shixian clearly had no intention of expanding the sample size.

Next, after he entered the grades into the system.

Lu Shixian shut down his computer, yawned, and left the office.

His teaching assistant duties for the semester had finally, more or less, drawn to a close.

He had experienced everything he was supposed to, and he had rested well enough.

It was time to get down to business.

And he had been looking forward to this for a long time.

That evening, after dinner.

Lu Shixian excitedly headed straight for his supervisor's office.

"Academician Xu, I, Lu Shixian, am back!"

Hearing Lu Shixian's voice, Xu Zhihong put down his fountain pen and asked with some amusement, "Aren't you supposed to be a TA, handling teaching duties?"

"How was it? Teaching isn't easy, is it?"

"Aren't the students still in the middle of exams? Shouldn't you be checking up on them?"

Lu Shixian let out a "Hah!" and explained, "The grades are already out, what's there to check on?"

Now, Xu Zhihong was a bit surprised. "You're quite efficient!"

"How were their grades?"

Lu Shixian grinned and briefly described the final exam situation, the students' grasp of the subject, and some of his own thoughts on teaching.

After listening, Xu Zhihong just nodded slightly without saying much.

These things were outside his scope of concern.

Sending Lu Shixian to teach was just to let him get some experience and training.

He was quite pleased that Lu Shixian had managed to gain something from it.

Xu Zhihong quickly asked again, "So what brings you here today? I assume you didn't come specifically to talk to me about this, right?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian chuckled. "You really know me well!"

"Are there any good projects recently? I'm not picky at all."

"Just a General Program, a National Science Foundation grant, or a Young Scientists Fund will do."

This statement was clearly potent, as it made Xu Zhihong laugh out loud.

"You've got quite an appetite, asking for a General Program or an NSFC grant right off the bat."

Xu Zhihong thought for a moment, then nodded, but began to shake his head. "With your current abilities, you do indeed have the preliminary qualifications to join."

"I have three major projects on hand right now, but two of them are confidential. It's not impossible for you to join, but it would be very difficult to arrange."

"The other one is nearing completion, so there's not much point in you joining now. However, I'll probably be applying for a municipal-level Natural Science Foundation project in the second half of the year."

"How about I apply for a general university-level project for you to play around with for now?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was instantly disappointed.

Having had the serendipitous opportunity to co-lead a key lab project like the "Yimi Project," being asked to work on a general one felt rather tasteless.

The "Yimi Project" in the United States, as a key project at UCD, was equivalent in rank to a provincial or ministerial level project in China.

He couldn't be regressing, could he?

Rank didn't necessarily mean everything, but funding did.

Unlike social sciences or theoretical mathematics, the scale of achievements in the natural sciences is, to some extent, determined by the scale of the funding.

But having a project was better than having none.

This meant he now had two choices.

First, apply for a university-level project now and get started quickly.

Second, wait until next semester for the Yanjing Municipal Natural Science Foundation project that Academician Xu mentioned.

It took him less than three seconds to make his decision.

Of course, he would choose the latter.

"Municipal" might not sound very big, but this was Yanjing!

A direct-controlled municipality's project level was equivalent to a provincial or ministerial project.

Though he looked disdainful, of course he knew in his heart how sweet a provincial grant was.

After telling Xu Zhihong his thoughts, Lu Shixian bid him farewell and left.

Now, a new and vexing problem arose.

What on earth was he going to do with a two-month summer vacation?

Chapter 363: An Academician's Request

"This is so annoying. For the first time, I suddenly feel like having too long a vacation isn't a good thing," Lu Shixian lamented casually.

Luckily, no one was around to hear him, or it would have drawn another round of scorn from others.

Over the next few days, Lu Shixian created a detailed workout plan for himself.

In the past year, his morning exercise routine had been repeatedly interrupted to complete tight experimental tasks.

Although he had been exercising in the mornings recently, he had only done so lightly, afraid of affecting his performance in class.

It was barely enough to warm up, not even breaking a sweat.

Now, he finally had a chance to make up for it.

However, it seemed there was no such thing as a 100% perfect plan.

There were always unexpected events, and you never knew when they would suddenly arrive.

On the very first day Lu Shixian began his workout plan.

He suddenly received a call from an unknown number.

Nowadays, he didn't dare to hang up directly as he used to.

Because the call was from Yanjing, Lu Shixian answered without much hesitation.

"Hello? Yes!"

"May I ask what this is about?"

An older man's voice came from the other end of the line.

"Ahem, is this Little Lu?"

"This is Gao Defeng."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian almost dropped his phone.

Academician Gao?

Why was he calling him?

His mind quickly flashed back to the scene of his master's thesis defense, when the man had spoken with him.

Could he be trying to recruit him again?

But he quickly shook his head, dismissing the idea.

He was already under Academician Xu, and had been enrolled for a whole semester.

Something like that was completely impossible, unless Gao Defeng had suddenly lost his mind.

Since that was obviously not the case, it must be for something else, right?

Gao Defeng didn't have much interaction with him, so what could it be?

The thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant, and Lu Shixian quickly responded.

"Academician Gao, hello!"

"I was just wondering why my left eyelid was twitching all morning."

"So it was you, sir. What are your instructions?"

Gao Defeng's hearty laughter soon came through the phone. "Haha, you sure know how to talk, kid, completely distorting the truth!"

"I'm not that old, and I don't have any instructions."

"I'm calling you this time to ask for your opinion on something."

"It just depends on whether you're interested!"

After some simple pleasantries, the conversation quickly got to the point.

Lu Shixian asked curiously, "What's this about?"

"If it's something I can do, I certainly won't refuse."

With an academician asking, Lu Shixian naturally had to show respect and have the right attitude.

But he didn't make an absolute promise; after all, this wasn't his own supervisor, and he wasn't omniscient.

"This matter originally had nothing to do with me; it's an issue for the Nanjang Provincial Forestry Bureau," Gao Defeng said, passing the buck before he even finished his sentence.

Lu Shixian was both speechless and surprised.

What did Nanjang Province have to do with him?

And some forestry bureau didn't seem to have much overlap with his field either.

The only connection he could think of was wildlife protection and planning, but that seemed highly unlikely.

Gao Defeng clearly knew what he was thinking and immediately explained, "Ahem..."

"Here's the situation. Nanjang Province launched a project at the beginning of this year to renovate the roadside trees in the main urban area."

"But due to inadequate preliminary planning, the project is now suddenly facing a threat from the American white moth. Because of the urgency, conventional control methods are too late."

"The director of the Nanjang Provincial Forestry Bureau, in a state of desperation, called me and asked if I knew any experts in this area who could help in an emergency."

At this point, Gao Defeng sounded rather amused. "You're in the field, so you know we're the Institute for Disease Control and Prevention."

"Our main research is on viruses and infectious diseases. Pathogens aside, although we sometimes study parasitic pests, the control targets are completely different."

"We serve the general public, not trees."

"I figured, since they've come to me, it must mean their own pest control station doesn't have any good solutions."

After all that preamble, Gao Defeng paused and finally got to the point.

"Now they need to temporarily form a pest control research working group, and they're actually asking me for personnel."

"I'm about to start a special prevention project for summer hand, foot, and mouth disease, so I can't spare anyone at the moment. And I can't in good conscience send interns."

"That's when I thought of you. You have a background in botany and relevant experience in pest control research abroad."

"So? Are you interested? There should be a considerable subsidy."

"If you're interested, I'll reply to them right away. But the matter is a bit urgent; you might have to head over there today."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was already a bit stunned, and then he didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Being dragged off to do hard labor was one thing, but why couldn't they have told him earlier?

I was all set to lift weights for two months, and then they pull this on me.

Besides, he had pretty much decided to give up on deep diving into the field of plant pathology research.

It's true what they say: what you fear is what you get.

But he definitely had to go.

It was perfect timing with his summer break. Otherwise, would he just sit at home like a shut-in for two months?

That would be far too boring. It would be good to get out and about.

After all, his philosophy was the unity of knowledge and action.

How could knowledge be verified without being used to solve practical problems?

And how could new theoretical discoveries be summarized without solving practical problems?

After a moment's thought, Lu Shixian agreed to Academician Gao's request.

"Alright then, I'll call the Forestry Bureau right away. I'll send you the address, and someone will coordinate with you there."

"But don't worry too much. There should be experts from the province leading the effort. You'll just need to handle your assigned tasks," Gao Defeng said before hanging up, leaving only a dial tone.

Lu Shixian didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Was this Academician Gao really that enthusiastic?

What did Nanjang's roadside tree pest problem have to do with him?

Why was he putting in so much effort?

What was going on?

So he tried searching for Gao Defeng's information on Baidu.

Gao Defeng, born November 24, 1967, in Fengyuan City, Nanjang Province.

Alright then. So, after all that, it turns out it's his hometown.

Since he had made his decision, he stopped hesitating and started packing.

Five minutes later, he received a call from an unknown number in Nanjang.

Normally, he would never answer it.

But now, special circumstances called for special treatment.

He answered the phone, and as expected, it was a staff member from the Nanjang Provincial Forestry Bureau.

An hour later, Lu Shixian was already on his way to Yanjing Airport.

He had to admit, Academician Gao had a lot of clout.

They had already booked his ticket for him, so he didn't even have to pay upfront.

Fortunately, it wasn't the official start of the university students' holiday yet.

Just before the peak travel rush, Lu Shixian was on a plane from Yanjing to Nanjang.

Chapter 364: Slacking Off is Impossible

Although he had an hour to pack.

To be honest, he didn't really have much to pack, other than taking in the clothes hanging on the balcony.

Other than that, he just needed to bring some identification and a few changes of clothes.

Four o'clock in the afternoon.

Lu Shixian, carrying a backpack, came down from the terminal.

As soon as he got off the plane, he saw someone in the arrivals hall holding a sign with his name on it.

Lu Shixian quickly walked over, trying not to keep the person waiting too long.

The person holding the sign was a young man, whose appearance didn't quite match the voice from the phone; it seemed he wasn't the same person.

But as Lu Shixian walked past him, the man reacted as if he were a complete stranger, showing no recognition at all.

Lu Shixian helplessly extended his right hand and introduced himself, "Hello, I'm Lu Shixian."

Hearing this, the man was clearly taken aback, his surprised expression plain to see.

"You are Dr. Lu?"

Lu Shixian didn't need to guess to hear the doubt in his voice.

But he could understand.

Normally, anyone who had progressed step-by-step to a doctorate would be over thirty.

At that age, neglecting physical exercise combined with excessive mental exertion often made them look older.

But looking at Lu Shixian, with his sharp features, thick hair, and travel backpack, he was brimming with energy.

Ignoring the unique scholarly air he exuded, you could even say he was a high school student who had just finished his college entrance exams without it feeling out of place.

Left with no choice, Lu Shixian had to take out his ID from his backpack to show him.

The young man took the student ID with a mix of belief and doubt.

Was this for real?

But upon opening it, it actually was.

[Name: Lu Shixian]

[Student ID: 1301007001]

[Enrollment Date: March 10, 2013]

Date of birth, major, hometown...

The rest of the information also matched up.

It just felt a bit surreal.

Lu Shixian, looking helpless, made a gesture to take out his phone.

"If this isn't enough, here's Academician Gao Defeng's contact information. You can call him and ask."

At last, the young man processed the news.

After all, being able to mention Academician Gao's name already confirmed his identity.

Their department's operation this time was not public knowledge; it would be strange if any random person off the street knew about it.

He quickly extended his right hand, offering Lu Shixian an apology with an awkward yet smiling expression.

"Dr. Lu, I'm so sorry about this..."

"My apologies, I forgot my glasses when I left the office today, my eyes aren't working so well."

"The car is in the parking lot. Please, come with me."

Lu Shixian naturally didn't expose his excuse, just nodded and followed him out.

In the car, the young man introduced himself, "Dr. Lu, my name is Tan Lingyun."

"I'm sure you can understand, the bureau has been short-staffed recently because of this matter, so I'm the only one here to pick you up today."

"Once we get to the bureau, my job is done. Director Pang, who contacted you earlier, will take over from there."

Lu Shixian nodded, indicating he understood.

It was a provincial-level department, after all, so it had a certain standing.

It wasn't Academician Gao himself coming, so sending a junior staff member to pick him up was already showing considerable respect.

Besides, he wasn't some naive greenhorn and didn't care about pomp and ceremony. It really didn't matter if someone picked him up or not.

These empty formalities were not within his consideration; getting the job done was more important than anything else.

Nanjang Airport was located in the provincial capital, Jiangnan City, less than a ten-minute drive from the city center, making it very convenient.

Soon, the official car stopped at the main entrance of a building with a plaque that read "Nanjang Provincial Forestry Bureau."

With someone familiar leading the way, their passage was naturally unobstructed.

He was quickly led to the door of an office.

"Director Pang, this is Dr. Lu from the Institute for Disease Control and Prevention," Tan Lingyun said, then left the office.

Uh, although he really wanted to say that he actually had no connection to the Institute for Disease Control and Prevention.

But now was clearly not the time to correct him, unless he had a screw loose.
The middle-aged man in the office was slightly surprised to see him, then welcomed him in with considerable warmth.

“I was the one who contacted you, but I must say, I didn't expect Dr. Lu to be so young and accomplished! It's no wonder you're Academician Gao's right-hand man.”

“We'll really have to trouble you this time, Dr. Lu.”

This level of reception was on a completely different plane. This must be Director Pang Guangzhou.

Lu Shixian extended his hand for a handshake, smiling. “Not at all. Academician Gao sent me here to learn.”

“I just hope I'm not imposing on your institution.”

Pang Guangzhou then began to explain the living arrangements for his stay.

But after only a few pleasantries, Pang Guangzhou steered the conversation back to business.

“By the way, after dinner, there's an assessment meeting at 7:30 tonight in the bureau's conference room. The members of the temporary research working group for prevention and control are to attend.”

“Haha, if you have any difficulties with your living situation, feel free to find me anytime. But when it comes to the professional side of things, I'm not an expert. I haven't been handling the project-related matters; Station Head Wang has been in charge of it all along. You can contact him if you need anything.”

“Here's a document…”

After settling into the Nanjiang Grand Hotel, Lu Shixian sat in a chair, lost in thought.

In fact, less than five hours would pass between him receiving the news in Yanjing and the start of the evening meeting in Nanjiang.

Even for the government departments in Yanjing, this level of efficiency was astonishingly fast.

After such a long journey, they should at least give a person a night to rest and recover!

But no, they were getting straight to work right after dinner.

This indicated that the situation had already reached a critical stage.

It seemed a battle was brewing. He just hoped it wouldn't be too dull.

After all, he hadn't come here for a government-funded vacation.

Slacking off was out of the question; his only fear was that the enemy wouldn't put up a good fight.

After having dinner at the hotel, there was still an hour until 7:30.

With time to kill, Lu Shixian sat in his chair and began to study the meeting notice and attendee list in his hand.

Now this was interesting.

The meeting moderator was Feng Dezhang, Deputy Director of the Provincial Forestry Science Institute.

Besides Deputy Director Feng, the main members from the Forestry Bureau included Wang Congfa, Head of the Nanjiang Provincial Forestry Pest Quarantine and Control Station.

One group of members was from Nanjiang Forestry University.

He didn't know much about Nanjiang Forestry University, but a school with a name like that was typically a university jointly administered by the province and a national ministry.

The key members were Professor Li Changzheng from the College of Forestry, Associate Professor Jiang Qichang from the College of Landscape Architecture, and their respective graduate students.

Another group of members came from Nanjiang University.

Named after the province, the name sounded quite impressive.

Though it might sound harsh to say it, to be realistic, it was also a university jointly administered by the province and a ministry.

The only difference was that the former was co-administered with the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, while the latter was with the Ministry of Education.

They both had one thing in common: they belonged to the category of so-called "Double-Non" key provincial universities.

Chapter 365: The Full Story

As a comprehensive university, its main representative was Professor Chen Bolin from the College of Life Sciences.

As for the last name on the list, it was Lu Shixian, from the so-called Huaguo Institute for Disease Control.

Ignoring his own strange-looking entry on this list.

While judging a school by its rank and titles might be somewhat one-sided, it was the prevailing trend today.

No one could change it for the time being.

So, here was the question.

As far as he knew, there was a nationally renowned 211 Project university within Nanjiang Province: Nanhua Agricultural and Forestry University of Science and Technology.

Although this university wasn't highly competitive compared to other 211 universities, it was in a league of its own in the fields of agriculture and forestry.

Shouldn't it be significantly better than Nanjiang Forestry University and Nanjiang University?

They had ignored the best option and settled for the next best.

So that was the crux of the issue.

However, it had little to do with him.

The Forestry Bureau could invite whomever they pleased.

Seven o'clock in the evening.

With nothing else to do, Lu Shixian decided to arrive at the conference room half an hour early.

Apart from the staff who were setting up equipment and handling reception, quite a few people were already seated at the conference table.

The table was arranged in a hollow square, and place cards were already set out on the main inner ring of seats.

Lu Shixian quickly spotted his affiliation and name at the end of the table.

There were only a handful of place cards, which meant the graduate students brought by the professors would have to sit in the observer seats.

The moment Lu Shixian took his seat, he immediately drew a great deal of attention.

The reason was simple: the youngest person at the table besides him was an associate professor in his late thirties, and the most senior were old professors in their fifties or sixties.

But even a scholar who was actually in his thirties could pass for someone in his forties.

Except for Lu Shixian, everyone else was a researcher from within Nanjiang Province, and they all belonged to the same field.

Even if they worked at different institutions, they had at least heard of each other, if not met, and were relatively familiar.

Thus, the professors who knew each other quickly began to chat among themselves.

In a setting like this, they naturally wouldn't discuss trivial family matters; the conversations were mostly centered on academic research.

Had so-and-so recently secured a major grant?

What was the progress on so-and-so's project?

What had so-and-so published in which journal?

What major industry award had so-and-so recently won?

Lu Shixian sat at the table without a word, and no one struck up a conversation with him.

To be honest, even for someone who had seen his share of formal occasions, this situation felt quite awkward.

But there was nothing to be done. He still lacked seniority.

Setting other factors aside, back at UCD, he had mostly interacted with peers his own age.

Now, he was facing experienced old professors.

It was fine if they didn't initiate a conversation; he could take the initiative himself, and it probably wouldn't be a problem.

The vast majority of highly educated professors were reliable in terms of etiquette and wouldn't simply ignore him.

Besides, his previous interactions had been in his own area of expertise, biology, perhaps with a touch of agriculture.

But now, he couldn't even understand what they were talking about.

He knew absolutely nothing about forestry.

That was a bit of a problem.

As the saying goes, with age comes cunning.

If you tried to force a conversation, you'd expose your level of knowledge and understanding the moment you opened your mouth, letting them size you up and look down on you.

Lu Shixian was very self-aware.

He knew perfectly well that the deeper reason he had a seat at this table was the non-existent national-level title printed on his place card, and the academician standing behind him.

Fortunately, even the most trying half-hour has its limit.

Soon, a man entered from outside the conference room.

Everyone in the room stood up to greet him.

Lu Shixian didn't recognize him, but thankfully, someone else provided the answer.

“Director Feng!”

He mumbled the greeting along with the crowd, immediately knowing who the newcomer was.

The moderator for this meeting, Feng Dezhang, also the Deputy Director of the Provincial Forestry Science Institute.

As for the head of the institute, he seemed to have come from an administrative background.

Lu Shixian had just done a quick online search on the key figures.

Nanjiang Province's educational resources were average. Feng Dezhang was not a local, nor had he studied here.

He was a graduate of Yanjing Forestry University with a doctorate in forest protection, specializing in general pathology and entomology, as well as integrated pest management for forests.

He had previously taught and conducted research at a university in a neighboring province before being transferred to the Nanjiang Provincial Forestry Science Institute due to his outstanding capabilities.

The Forestry Bureau had made the right choice in asking him to moderate the meeting.

Without even time for pleasantries, as the clock struck 7:30, Feng Dezhang promptly announced the start of the meeting.

“First, I'd like to thank the professors from Nanjiang University and Nanjiang Forestry University for putting aside your work to support us. We're all old acquaintances, so I won't make introductions,” Feng Dezhang said, then turned his gaze to Lu Shixian.

“We also have Dr. Lu, who has come all the way from the National Institute for Disease Control in Yanjing. According to Academician Gao, he is a high-achieving graduate of Yanjing University and his trusted right-hand man. Let us welcome him.”

As he finished speaking, the focus of the conference room shifted to Lu Shixian.

A round of applause followed, sounding genuinely warm rather than perfunctory.

Almost everyone—the professors were composed, but especially the graduate students sitting in the back—cast looks of astonishment at Lu Shixian.

They had been extremely curious about him from the start, and now the mystery was finally solved.

So he was one of Academician Gao's people.

It was no wonder. His institution was a national-level institute, his alma mater was the country's top university, and even his mentor was an academician of the Academy of Sciences.

These three golden signboards were dazzling enough to be seen anywhere, sufficient to overlook any non-essential factors.

Although the first and third signboards were slightly askew, the details were minor discrepancies; the foundation was still solid.

Feng Dezhang certainly knew how to handle people.

On the surface, it was an introduction, but Lu Shixian understood he was doing him a favor.

He first cast a grateful look in his direction, then nodded to everyone present.

After introducing Lu Shixian, Feng Dezhang got straight to the point.

“Alright, time is tight, so I'll dispense with the pleasantries.”

“Once this matter is resolved, we'll have another opportunity to chat at length!”

“I believe you all know why you are here, but I will ask Station Head Wang to brief us on the specific details of the situation.”

Soon, a middle-aged man next to him began to detail the full story.

“Before I begin, I must ask everyone to refrain from spreading this information in person or online for the time being, to avoid any negative impact.”

After this precaution, and seeing everyone nod, Wang Congfa continued, “Due to historical reasons, the primary street tree species in the urban area of Jiangnan has been the camphor tree.”

“Although it has few pests and diseases and emits a pleasant fragrance, the fruit of the camphor tree falls and is crushed by passing vehicles and pedestrians. This creates a mess, which has been an obstacle in our city's campaign to be designated a National Civilized City.”

“Therefore, this March, with the approval of provincial leadership, our bureau passed the Jiangnan City main urban area street tree replacement and renovation project.”

Wang Congfa's voice continued.

Chapter 366: A Taste for Crabs

“The meeting decided to replace the existing camphor trees with poplar trees. After comprehensive consideration, it was determined that poplars have a faster growth cycle and can meet the aesthetic requirements for the National Civilized City inspection in a timely manner.”

“The budget for this project was 1,500,000 yuan, and the bidding, inspection, and fund allocation procedures were all completed a month ago. Only the project security deposit remains to be paid.”

“But what we didn't expect was that the American white moth, previously unseen in our province, has already spread to Nanjiang. Multiple moth infestations are currently being discovered in other counties and districts, with quite severe losses.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian fully understood the Forestry Bureau's baffling decisions from earlier.

This was just a case of bad luck. If the American white moth made an appearance, the project's over one million yuan budget would essentially go down the drain.

And as the implementing and supervising department, they couldn't avoid taking the heat from their superiors.

However, there was still a chance for remediation. The outbreak likely hadn't fully reached Jiangnan City yet, otherwise there would be no point in them being here.

No wonder the 'firefighters' they'd chosen were all from provincial universities—they were all insiders, people who would be easier to work with, which would help minimize the fallout.

Wang Congfa continued with a grave expression, “Although no traces of the American white moth have been found on the newly transplanted poplar trees in the main urban area yet, based on the experience from several counties and districts, the current spread is extremely severe!”

“We estimate it will spread to Jiangnan within one or two weeks. We need everyone's help to find a method of prevention before then. I'm begging you all!”

Hearing the details of the situation, the professors sitting in the front row all frowned in unison.

A little over a week. That was a very tight deadline.

The atmosphere in the conference room grew heavy.

Professor Chen Bolin from Nanjiang University suddenly asked with some confusion, “Station Head Wang, as far as I know, the American white moth wasn't just discovered recently, was it?”

“It was first discovered in the country back in 1979 and was listed as one of the first sixteen major invasive alien species.”

“So, after all these years, shouldn't there be a detailed set of countermeasures?”

Hearing this question, Lu Shixian also turned his gaze toward him.

To be honest, that was the very question he had been thinking. There were probably at least three or four established methods.

In contrast, however, Professor Li Changzheng and Professor Jiang Qichang from Nanjiang Forestry University appeared quite calm, as if they already knew the inside story.

Wang Congfa quickly explained.

“Old Chen, you don't specialize in forestry pest control, so you might not be familiar with this.”

“Generally speaking, yes. But if it were really that simple, we wouldn't be sitting here working overtime.”

“The American white moth may look small and harmless, but it is notorious worldwide. It's practically the number one killer of plants.”

At this, he sighed. “I used to joke that the American white moth hadn't found its way to Nanjiang, saving our province so much manpower and resources.”

“Even when it did appear in the past, it was only in very small, localized areas and wasn't serious.”

“But who knew that after such a short time, it would already be showing signs of spreading across the entire region. There's no longer enough time to use conventional prevention methods.”

Wang Congfa didn't finish his sentence, but almost everyone understood the subtext.

It was simply that it had come too fast, and they were unprepared.

At this point, Feng Dezhang took over the conversation. “In fact, we conducted a collective pest assessment late last year. Based on past precedent, our main adversary was still the carpenter moth.”

“According to pest monitoring data from the Forestry Pest Center's reporting stations, the emergence period of this year's overwintering adult generation of the American white moth was about a week early, and its larval stage was correspondingly earlier as well.”

“The heavily infested areas that should have been along the Yangtze River, in provinces like Northern Hubei and Jiangsu, instead exhibited a leapfrog-style spread, breaking out early in the areas along the Nanjiang River.”

“This is a natural factor beyond anyone's control. No one could have predicted it.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian couldn't help but give Feng Dezhang a mental thumbs-up.

The move to shift blame was seamless, a level above Wang Congfa's earlier attempt.

It seemed a waste for him to be just a deputy director.

Seeing that the others seemed to agree with his words, Feng Dezhang continued, “Therefore, our primary task now is to prevent an infestation in our city's street tree replacement project. After that, we will find a way to curb the spread of the American white moth in our province and implement scientific management in the heavily affected areas.”

“If anyone has any thoughts, please feel free to bring them up for discussion. The bureau leadership will comprehensively consider all viewpoints and opinions in their decision-making.”

As soon as he said this, the room fell quiet.

After more than ten seconds, it remained the same, though the atmosphere seemed to grow even colder.

Feng Dezhang quickly added, “Don't feel any pressure. These are just for reference.”

But clearly, the assurance of a single sentence had little effect.

The reason, of course, was clear to everyone. Nothing in this world came without risk.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

It was almost nine o'clock, nearly an hour and a half since the meeting started at 7:30.

All this time, and they still hadn't gotten to the main point.

He was tempted to take back his earlier assessment of their high efficiency.

Office politics existed everywhere; it was just this place's turn.

No one who climbed to a high position was simple. Lu Shixian had sensed this from Pang Guangzhou earlier.

It wasn't yet the final moment for blame-shifting. There was still one more chance to mitigate the risk, and there would be a period of calm before that.

Lu Shixian had no interest in these undercurrents. He had invested a great deal of energy in such things in his past life and wasted a lot of time.

But now, he was purely a researcher.

Time was precious, and its meaningless waste pained him.

So Lu Shixian cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention at a rather "inopportune" moment.

After all, whether by seniority or age, he ranked last at the table.

It clearly wasn't his turn to speak.

But when he thought of something to say, he said it.

It was as simple as that.

“Ahem, I have a proposal.” Lu Shixian's words suddenly captured everyone's attention.

The surprise on the faces of the graduate students in the back row was clearly visible.

Feng Dezhang paused for half a second. “Dr. Lu?” he asked, his expression unchanging. “Do you have a good suggestion?”

Lu Shixian reluctantly became the first to speak out, but an inner impulse compelled him to do so.

He sighed to himself. It seemed he just couldn't shake this habit of being the first to eat the crab.

Chapter 367: Scale, Severity, and Urgency

One cannot always choose to retreat in life just because of some obstacles and difficulties.

Retreating once or twice was of no great consequence; after all, "patience opens the door to a wider world."

But when retreating becomes a habit, you slowly weave an invisible cage for yourself, losing your freedom forever.

So, if you don't do something, someone else will.

But the willingness to act will gradually weaken over time, with the final result being that no one does it.

Therefore, someone always has to be the first to eat the crab.

If Lu Shixian had been listening to gibberish when they were discussing topics like "scientific forest cultivation," "large-scale somatic embryogenesis in trees," and "microorganisms in the rhizosphere of artificial forests," that was clearly no longer the case now that the topic had shifted to the American white moth.

He hadn't wasted his time in the plant pathology lab at UCD. The knowledge of plant pests and diseases in his mind was the foundation of his confidence.

So, at this moment, Lu Shixian's gaze was firm, his voice strong.

“Assuming the pest monitoring data is still valid, then based on what Director Feng and Head Wang have described, the pest situation is actually quite clear.”

“If we proceed with control measures through the normal channels, I think everyone here might be underestimating this invasive species.”

As soon as he said this, the entire conference room fell into a strange silence.

The smiles on the faces of the professors in the front row vanished, their expressions unreadable.

Feng Dezhang frowned slightly. Wang Congfa's mouth fell open in astonishment.

And in the back row, all the graduate students fixed their eyes on the figure in front of them, each with different emotions hidden in their hearts, afraid to speak.

Anyone with a bit of shrewdness could understand.

The reason was simple.

In reality, when Feng Dezhang had asked for opinions earlier, he had already laid out the plan quite clearly.
All that was left was for everyone to build upon his proposal and refine it.

But Lu Shixian's statement was tantamount to throwing the whole thing out and starting from scratch.

And what was that plan?

It was tentatively a "two-step approach."

Step one: prevention. Step two: control.

What does that mean?

It meant prioritizing the street tree replacement and renovation project in Jiangnan City's main urban area. Then, after securing that, they would address the pest infestation across the entire Nanjiang Province.

Still don't get it?

It means first ensuring the project goes off without a hitch, prioritizing covering their own asses, and by extension, the interests of the entire collective.

As for the infestation elsewhere, it could be put on the back burner. After they had freed up their hands, they could then make a tentative attempt to remedy it.

And if it really couldn't be saved, what could be done?

After all, it was an "unforeseeable" natural disaster, an uncontrollable factor that no one could be blamed for.

As for the infested trees, who cares if they were from a logging farm, a state-run forest, or were growing wild or on private land?

What's that got to do with us? After all, we're victims too.

In fact, with the entire region suffering a severe infestation, having the street trees in Jiangnan's main urban area remain unscathed might even earn them praise from higher-ups for their excellent prevention work.

Of course, this was just his personal speculation. It was a thought that didn't bear close examination.

The latter would suffer catastrophic losses, almost to an incalculable degree, while the former was merely a 1.5 million yuan project.

These people were all well aware of the situation.

Small and large, minor and major, slow and urgent—sometimes, just changing your perspective can reverse them all.

It might sound surreal, but that's often how reality is.

But the interesting thing about the world is how people react so differently to the same circumstances.

Some people's views are completely aligned with their self-interest.

Some see the truth but pretend they don't.

Some don't see it and can only try their best to align their views with the former.

And Lu Shixian saw it, but he couldn't be too direct, not unless he wanted to be finished in this line of work.

The only choice he had was to say it in an "unintentional" way.

"Therefore, I suggest we first contain the fall webworm epidemic within Nanjiang's borders. As for the project, if the former is achieved as expected, there will be nothing to worry about."

Hearing this, Wang Congfa suddenly couldn't hold back.

He didn't seem to be very good at controlling his expression. He stood up directly and said with a smirk, "Dr. Lu, you say we've underestimated this pest. As it happens, we've invited several professors. Why don't we have a proper discussion?"

The statement was crude and simple, but it hit upon the doubt in everyone's mind.

For Lu Shixian, however, it was clearly a barbed remark.

But whether it was crude or refined, simple or complex, direct or indirect, as long as it got the job done, it was fine. Besides, he wasn't the one making a scene.

As everyone's gaze suddenly fixed on him, Lu Shixian felt like he was walking a tightrope.

But he had no intention of putting on a show; he just needed to get across safely.

His calm voice once again filled the conference room.

"The American white moth, or fall webworm, is a moth of the order Lepidoptera, family Erebidae. It is an insect that undergoes complete metamorphosis through four stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult, just like mosquitoes and flies."

"The eggs are spherical, the larvae are yellow, and the adults are white. They are sensitive to foul, fishy odors. While not venomous, their bodies are covered in fine hairs that can be an allergen."

"Next, I'll discuss a few of its key characteristics. Many of you may have learned about them through various channels, but there's nothing like firsthand experience to truly understand."

Lu Shixian's words were detailed, clearly showing his familiarity with the insect.

But few people in the conference room reacted.

Everyone in this room had at least a master's degree. To an ordinary person, this was technical jargon, but to them, it was common knowledge.

So, Lu Shixian's voice continued.

"It is highly adaptable to harsh environments. According to report conclusions, it can tolerate both cold and heat, as well as hunger, surviving in temperatures ranging from -16° to 40° Celsius. In starvation experiments, mature larvae of the 5th instar and above could survive for more than 15 days without any food. This means it can survive on most continents, and at the very least, no part of the southern region of our country would be spared."

"Its reproductive potential is enormous. According to experimental data, an average female lays around 500 eggs at a time. Even the weakest female can produce about 300, while the record for a single, robust female is about 1900 eggs. Based on a calculation of three broods per year, a single ordinary female can produce hundreds of thousands of eggs."

"Furthermore, it has diverse methods of dispersal. Due to its strong adaptability, it can spread over long distances through various forms of transportation. In addition to the well-known artificial dispersal, it can also spread naturally via flight and wind, with a dispersal radius that can reach up to 22 kilometers."

By now, some faces in the room had grown grim, but Lu Shixian had no time to pay them any mind.

Chapter 368: Alarmist Talk

"Therefore, the degree of harm it can cause is very high... and the difficulty of eradication is immense..."

This was what Lu Shixian was about to say next.

But extracting information from experimental data to reach a conclusion is the most basic professional skill for a scientific researcher.

Therefore, the scholars in the conference room all frowned, most of them lost in their own thoughts.

Lu Shixian hadn't used any flowery vocabulary.

In the world of natural sciences, hard data is far more powerful than fancy words.

At that moment, an old professor sitting in the middle asked him a curious question. He wore old-fashioned glasses and was advanced in age but full of vigor.

"Young man, from what I understand, domestic research on the fall webworm is already quite systematic. Although the results have been fruitful, few conclusions have reached the molecular level."

"Where did you get your data? How is it so precise?"

After speaking, he seemed to feel his words might cause a misunderstanding and added, "Please don't misunderstand. I'm just a bit curious."

His words drew everyone's attention to this issue.

Of course, no one doubted the authenticity of the data.

Fabricating such logical and systematic data and conclusions was not something that could be done on the spur of the moment.

And this incident had happened suddenly; even they had only been notified at the last minute.

So they couldn't imagine any possibility of Lu Shixian fabricating it.

Lu Shixian glanced down at the name card on the table. It was Professor Chen Bolin from the School of Life Sciences at Nanjiang University.

So, a fellow professional, he thought to himself. How sharp.

Although Watson and Crick's double helix model marked the entry of life sciences into the era of molecular biology, back in 2013, not many research fields in the country had truly entered the molecular age.

Barring special circumstances, development almost always proceeded according to a priority sequence of importance and urgency.

Generally, a pest like this wouldn't be a priority.

After all, if there are herbicides for weeds, how could there not be pesticides for insects?

One spray and the effect would be immediate.

Although the history of research and control of this organism in the country could be traced back to 1984, it only truly received attention at a certain point in time.

The problem was, this organism caused a severe ecological disaster in Yanjing in 2005.

At that time, the nation's focus was on the global grand event three years later. How to ensure the beautification and greening of Yanjing's gardens and the safety of its ecological environment, and how to deal with this pest without causing pollution became pressing issues on the table.

Thus, it was honorably placed on the "most wanted" list of the country's highest authorities, as a pest.

After such an experience, it's fair to say that the country's understanding of the fall webworm became truly in-depth.

Professor Chen Bolin happened to be someone who had studied this pest extensively, or he wouldn't have been invited.

But even so, he could still sense that if Lu Shixian's conclusions were true, this research was significantly ahead of the domestic progress.

However, it was indeed true.

So, Lu Shixian explained directly, "I was an exchange student at the UCD Plant Pathology Lab during my graduate studies. By a fortunate coincidence, I came into contact with some of their research findings in the field of plant diseases and pests."

When he said this, the few graduate students in the back row had no particular reaction.

He was an exchange student abroad?

Awesome, bro!

But what school is UCD?

Is it famous?

But the way the professors looked at Lu Shixian was now anything but simple.

To become a professor, one's horizons were bound to be broad.

UCD might not be well-known to the general public, but it was renowned within the industry.

And the UCD Plant Pathology Lab had been making quite a stir internationally in recent years.

In just a few years, it had transformed from an obscure lab into an internationally renowned one.

It was said to have recently become a US National Key Laboratory, a world leader in plant pathology.

Most importantly, would an American lab's research results be so easily accessible to an exchange student?

That was the crucial point.

Suddenly, some of the hot news from the media at the beginning of the year flashed through their minds.

Could it be...

Several of them exchanged glances. Their faces showed little change, but they no longer regarded Lu Shixian as casually as before.

Lu Shixian had no time to care about their opinions of him. He just wanted to finish what he had to say.

"As I understand it, Nanjiang Province has two major rivers, the Yangtze and the Nanjiang. It is a transitional zone from low mountains and hills to the southwestern plains, situated where the subtropical and warm temperate climates meet."

"Because of its vast territory and suitable climate, its forest and vegetation resources are extremely rich, characterized by a mix of deciduous broad-leaved and evergreen broad-leaved forests."

"The vegetation resources here hold a very important position in the country's plant flora and play a crucial role in maintaining regional and even intercontinental biodiversity."

At this point, Lu Shixian raised his eyes and looked at everyone in the conference room. "Putting aside the artificial and secondary forests, a considerable number of tree species in the natural forests are on the fall webworm's menu. If we don't prioritize protecting them, it will be a huge loss for our country's plant life and will severely impact the ecological cycle and soil and water conservation within Nanjiang Province."

"Abandoning the former only lets ourselves down. But abandoning the latter means letting down the more than fifty million people of Nanjiang Province."

"It's obvious which is more important. Therefore, we don't need to focus our efforts solely on the transplanted street trees."

After he finished, the room once again fell into a deep silence.

The period from 1970 to 1979 could be considered the enlightenment period for environmental protection in the country. During this time, the first national environmental protection conference was held, and people's environmental awareness was just beginning to awaken.

This was followed by stages of legislative construction and large-scale governance.

And 2013 was a very unusual point in time.

Ecological civilization had just been included as a construction goal.

Constrained by the fixed mindset of "develop first, govern later" and other factors, many people were focused solely on economic development and hadn't considered these issues.

At this moment, Lu Shixian's words were like a hammer striking solid ice.

But while ice and snow are easy to melt in reality, breaking the ice of entrenched thinking was not so simple.

Wang Congfa frowned directly. "Dr. Lu, we called you here to solve a project's problem. Don't drag all this other stuff into it!"

"I, old Wang, have worked diligently in forestry prevention for over a dozen years. Although this pest outbreak was unexpected, we are doing our best to manage it. It's within an acceptable range. There are countless places with far more severe problems."

"How did this suddenly become about letting down the people? Don't be an alarmist!"

Chapter 369: I Think You've Studied Yourself Stupid!

"In the Nanjiang forestry system, who hasn't heard of Wang Congfa? I may not claim any great merits, but I've never dropped the ball. After all these years, even if there's no merit, there's been hard work."

"I, old Wang, may not be highly educated, but I've eaten more salt than you have rice. Am I to be judged by some snot-nosed kid who's barely out of school?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was momentarily speechless. He hadn't pointed fingers at anyone specific.

This guy was quick to jump out, and his words were thoughtless and barbed.

Just then, Feng Dezhang, who had been silent all along, made a "timely" entrance, casting a seemingly reproachful glance at Wang Congfa.

"Old Wang, what are you saying?"

"In terms of academic ability alone, Dr. Lu is leagues ahead of you."

"He's Academician Gao's prized student, and a guest from afar. We should be amicable!"

With that, he turned to Lu Shixian with an apologetic look and a placating smile. "I'm sorry, Dr. Lu. Old Wang has a blunt personality. He hasn't changed a bit over the years. Please forgive him."

Lu Shixian grumbled internally, but his expression remained unchanged.

As the saying goes, you don't hit a smiling face.

*Like hell*, he thought.

If you knew what Wang Congfa's personality was like, why did you wait until he finished speaking to step in and smooth things over?

This was undoubtedly a show of force!

But Feng Dezhang's way of speaking was a cut above Wang Congfa's.

With a simple sentence, he revealed his deeper meaning.

The him of his previous life at this age might not have understood, but now it was crystal clear.

Translated, the subtext was simply: *Just stick to your academic research. Out of respect for Academician Gao, we'll let this slide. Let's all save some face and each take a step back.*

Unfortunately for them, the old him might have hesitated.

Would it be worth it to stand up for some vague sense of justice?

It required not only immense courage but also shouldering enormous pressure.

Was doing such a thankless task really worth it?

But now, his answer was a resounding yes.

Wang Congfa's education level was not high; he had reached his current position based on seniority from his early years.

His expression was indignant, and combined with his tall, sturdy frame, he looked quite formidable and intimidating, casting a palpable sense of pressure.

In the back row, a flicker of fear could be seen in the eyes of many graduate students.

Lu Shixian raised his eyelids slightly, a faint smile also appearing on his face. "Not at all, not at all. I was just discussing the matter at hand. I didn't realize Director Wang was so sensitive. It is indeed my mistake."

"I believe we are all here to solve the problem, not to waste time. Our goals are the same; we just differ on the method."

"But that's not important, and no one will dwell on it, right?"

Lu Shixian first delivered a counterattack in his words: *I didn't say anything specific, I wonder who's taking it personally.*

Then he clarified his stance: he had no intention of targeting anyone and only wanted to solve the problem. As for any friction along the way, he wouldn't mind it at all, nor did he have the time to.

Wang Congfa couldn't read between the lines, but Feng Dezhang clearly understood.

He gave Lu Shixian a surprised look, his impression of him deepening considerably.

Over the years, he had met many academic researchers.

In his circles, it wasn't hard to meet many accomplished professors and scholars.

Most of them were highly knowledgeable, and a significant portion had put all their skill points into research.

While there were certainly slick and shrewd individuals among them, this was the first time he had gotten such a feeling from someone as young as Lu Shixian.

And there was something about Lu Shixian now that he couldn't quite put his finger on.

Seeing that the atmosphere was improving, Feng Dezhang seized the opportunity to steer the derailed meeting back on track.

"So, synthesizing everyone's opinions, we now have two directions. The first is to proceed step-by-step, from easy to difficult, from urgent to less urgent, focusing on resolving the issue with the newly planted street trees in Nanjiang's urban area first. Afterward, we will proceed with governance based on the principles of strengthening responsibility and prioritizing public awareness."

"We will clarify the primary responsibilities of each unit and individual. Within the epidemic area, whoever manages the area is responsible for prevention. We will actively provide technical consultation services and supply treatment agents."

"As for the areas outside the epidemic zone that have not yet been invaded by the pest, the main task is to actively promote public awareness and remind the public to be prepared."

After saying this, Feng Dezhang asked, "Comrades who agree with this proposal, please raise your hands."

As he finished speaking, a forest of hands shot up in the conference room.

There was no need for a count; a quick glance showed that only three people hadn't raised their hands, creating a rather awkward sight.

Lu Shixian, naturally, was one of them. He had no idea about the other two.

Wang Congfa was the first to put his hand down. He crossed his arms and looked at Lu Shixian with a grin. "Dr. Lu, since the misunderstanding is cleared up, I wonder if you've ever heard a saying."

Lu Shixian found this amusing but immediately feigned an expression of rapt attention, curious to see what pearls of wisdom he might offer.

"What saying is that? Please enlighten me, Director Wang."

Wang Congfa nodded with great satisfaction. Lecturing a PhD clearly gratified his vanity.

He said meaningfully, "I started as a grassroots forest ranger and climbed my way up, step by step. This line of work isn't easy."

"You get paid the least to do the most. It's a bit better now, but one thing is for sure: do more, and you can make more mistakes; do less, and you make fewer mistakes."

At these words, Lu Shixian's expression was a picture.

Why did that sound so familiar?

My goodness, someone who'd mastered the art of "lying flat" a decade ahead of time.

Of course, he was just joking to himself.

He had always understood that while phenomena may vary, the essence remains the same.

"The public has a poor awareness of potential risks, so if you do nothing, you can't be wrong, right?" Lu Shixian added with a touch of wicked humor.

But to his surprise, Wang Congfa denied this with a humorless smile.

"Heh heh, do nothing?"

"No, that won't work."

Lu Shixian soon heard his explanation. "I don't know how to summarize it well, but take this pest infestation, for example."

"I can get personally involved, or I can just issue a warning."

"The one thing I can't do is nothing at all."

"As long as I've sent out the notice and fulfilled my duty, if a problem arises later..."

At this point, Wang Congfa leaned toward him and whispered with a smile, "even if responsibility is assigned, it will have little to do with me. So why should we get personally involved?"
"Best case scenario, you just make up for your mistakes. Screw up, and the good outcome is getting sent packing. As for what's worse... well, I'll let you imagine."

"Heh heh, that's why you're too naive, kid. I think all that studying has made you stupid!"

After he finished speaking, he couldn't resist another sarcastic jab: "See? School is so much better. You don't want to know what happens to someone this naive out in the real world."

Chapter 370: It Really Wasn't Me This Time

Lu Shixian shrugged, remaining noncommittal, with no intention of responding.

Just then, Feng Dezhang finally began to address Lu Shixian's proposal.

But clearly, no one agreed with it.

Leaving aside whether they even understood his perspective, the herd mentality alone was not an easy thing to overcome.

The meeting ended, and they returned to the hotel.

His first day in Nanjiang had been a day of hitting brick walls.

Lu Shixian hung his jacket on a hanger and opened the window, gazing out at the bustling night view of the city center.

He could feel he wasn't welcome. Although the people in the temporary team seemed friendly enough, the distance in their eyes was a dead giveaway.

Even with the backing of being an academician's student, his age and lack of experience were clearly major drawbacks. No one took his views seriously.

Coupled with the risk-averse mentality of those involved, his words might as well have been wind passing through their ears.

Lu Shixian shook his head, a sense of helplessness welling up inside him.

This feeling was even more profound than when he was alone in the United States.

It was no wonder that many students chose to settle abroad after studying overseas.

Moreover, the treatment that established scholars received at home versus abroad was like the difference between clouds and mud.

In the field of biology alone, the public knew of at least three such luminaries who had faced this kind of treatment.

One was a "scientist without the usual prestigious credentials" whom he deeply respected. Despite achieving a major scientific breakthrough that caused an international sensation and even winning a Nobel Prize, she had been passed over for an academician position for certain reasons.

A bit later, during his time at Yanda University, the dean of the School of Life Sciences was eliminated in the first round of academician selections, despite his academic achievements and contributions to the country surpassing those of scholars selected in the second round.

The last he heard of this dean was that he had publicly berated several old academicians for fawning over a government official.

And then there was the female scientist who left for the United States. Her work on the three-dimensional crystal structure of the human glucose transporter GLUT1, a global milestone, was just one of her many achievements.

Thinking back to this point in time, she was probably still conducting research at Shuimu University.

It was a pity he never had a good opportunity to witness her brilliance.

If even academic titans were treated this way, what chance did he have, a PhD student who had barely left the starting zone?

So, he was actually quite calm at the moment.

After all, it was just as he had expected.

But to think this would be enough to make him lose heart was to sorely underestimate him.

"Trouble?" Lu Shixian suddenly chuckled softly.

"I may hate trouble, but I'm not afraid of it!"

Nothing eventful happened that night...

Nanjiang had a typical southern climate: hot and rainy in the summer, mild and less rainy in the winter.

Having lived in Yanjing for so long, he was actually finding it hard to get used to the temperature.

It was only seven in the morning, yet the low was already approaching thirty degrees Celsius.

According to the schedule, after the preliminary plan was discussed last night, it was to be approved by the leadership this morning and immediately move into the implementation phase.

Even Lu Shixian had to applaud such efficiency.

As for how effective it would be, Lu Shixian decided not to comment for the time being.

As last night's "loser," he didn't want to be accused of making snide remarks from the sidelines.

After breakfast and some simple stretches, Lu Shixian received a notice for another meeting.

This one, however, was on a much larger scale than last night's.

A leader whose place card read "Xia Lijun" personally presided over the meeting, announcing the start of the mobilization conference.

Sitting in the researchers' section, Lu Shixian could only watch him speak eloquently on the stage, met with constant applause from below.

"I declare that all agenda items for this mobilization conference have been completed. The relevant responsible units and personnel have spoken actively, shared profound insights, and presented detailed plans. The mobilization has been highly effective."

"Therefore, this conference is now successfully concluded! I hope everyone will remember the requirements of this conference and, according to the division of labor set by the leadership team's work plan, accurately grasp the special significance of this 'Clean Slate' operation..."

Two or three hours passed, and the conference was finally over.

Lu Shixian, who had sat through the entire thing, suddenly felt an inexplicable sense of guilt.

"Almost three hours!!!"

"Gone, just like that. What a waste, what a waste."

Nanjiang Forestry Research Institute Conference Room.

As per the personnel arrangements, he was naturally assigned to the research group.

Feng Dezhang was currently finalizing the task assignments.

This was a particularly crucial step in any research project. The earlier mobilization conference had only assigned leaders to a few broad areas; the work now needed to be further detailed.

Feng Dezhang's voice echoed in the conference room: "With the approval of the bureau's leadership, we will proceed with the 'two-step' research and treatment plan we discussed last night. While we still have time, we can brainstorm and optimize it further. Does anyone have any other thoughts?"

Seeing the silence in the room, Feng Dezhang was not surprised. "If there are no suggestions, I'll begin assigning the subgroups."

But as he finished speaking, an abrupt voice cut in.

"Wait, I have a suggestion."

Many people instinctively looked towards Lu Shixian. After all, in their minds, this wasn't the first time he'd done something like this.

Faced with so many stares, Lu Shixian was also a bit dazed.

What the hell?

His eyes were full of innocence, as if to say: What are you looking at? It really wasn't me this time!

The final result surprised everyone.

No one could have imagined that the speaker was Wang Congfa.

He cleared his throat and spoke again. "Ahem!"

"Actually, I went back and thought about it yesterday. Dr. Lu does have a point."

A hush fell over the room.

Everyone, including Lu Shixian, wore a look of utter astonishment.

What on earth is this old Wang up to?

Just yesterday they were at loggerheads, and today they were suddenly buddy-buddy and on the same side?

Feng Dezhang's expression, however, remained calm. "Director Wang, what suggestion do you have?"

Wang Congfa, unbothered by the stares, said with a smirk, "Since the plan is in two steps, I thought we could carry them out simultaneously to save time."

"Of course, our main force will focus on the street tree project, but that doesn't stop us from splitting off a small contingent to plan for the second step in advance."

"And since Dr. Lu is so concerned about the ecological damage caused by this pest, he is, of course, the natural choice to lead this second phase!"

At these words, no one was hung up on his misuse of the idiom anymore.

The sharper ones understood almost immediately.

This Old Wang, despite his lack of higher education, had been through the school of hard knocks and was clearly no simple character.

So much for reconciliation; he was already starting to sabotage him.

Chapter 371: A Good Start?

But upon hearing this, an idea suddenly struck Lu Shixian.

To be honest, he had already prepared himself to be sidelined.

He was waiting for an opportunity to step in if someone else couldn't handle the job.

But sitting around and waiting was not his style.

Firstly, he wasn't arrogant enough to assume that everyone present was incompetent and would achieve nothing.

Secondly, the situation was akin to a golden hour for a rescue; the longer they delayed, the worse the situation would become, and the harder it would be to control the pest outbreak.

But now...

Heh!

Oh, thank you, I'm so grateful.

Lu Shixian pretended to be troubled and looked at Wang Congfa. "Director Wang, I'm afraid that's a very difficult task."

"I can't handle such a responsibility alone. I think you should find someone more qualified."

Wang Congfa hadn't completely lost his senses and didn't make things too ugly, adding a follow-up.

"Of course not. We can assign you a standard survey team. Besides yourself, you can choose three graduate students as team members."

"And if any of the professors here are willing, including myself, you can also choose one to go with you."

The words were beautifully spoken, but they were just words.

Field surveys were not pleasant assignments, let alone being led by someone so young.

Not only would the established professors find it hard to accept, but even the graduate students would be resistant.

Now, everyone understood Wang Congfa's true intentions. They unconsciously turned their gazes to Lu Shixian, curious to see how he would refuse.

"That would be great! My thanks in advance, Director Wang." Lu Shixian not only spoke with surprising speed.

The content of his words left everyone stunned.

The same thought appeared in almost everyone's mind: What, he accepted?!

Feng Dezhang was also stunned for a moment. He glanced at Lu Shixian's expression, which didn't seem like he was joking.

But Wang Congfa had no such reservations, while he did.

Wang was old and had a low level of education; holding an important position in the provincial forestry bureau was his ceiling.

But Feng Dezhang was only forty, held a doctorate, and had immense potential.

He had been wanting to leave Nanjiang and advance his career for some time.

Connecting with Gao Defeng was undoubtedly a shortcut.

Thus, he tried to dissuade him. "Dr. Lu, don't listen to Old Wang, he's just joking."

"I was just about to ask you to be my lab assistant, but Director Wang beat me to it."

"Field research conditions are harsh. If Academician Gao heard about this, he'd fly to Nanjiang to have my hide."

This was undoubtedly a perfect way out. Anyone in this situation would accept Feng Dezhang's offer and climb down gracefully.

At this, all the graduate students were practically crying with envy, lamenting to themselves how good it was to have connections.

Feng Dezhang was a specially-appointed professor at Nanjiang University, known for his amiable personality and strong academic ability. His classes were always packed, with seats nearly impossible to get.

In their eyes, being his assistant was a VIP treatment.

But Lu Shixian's reply once again defied everyone's expectations.

"Thank you for your kind offer, Director Feng."

"However, I believe in the saying, 'True knowledge comes from practice.'"

"How can you know what the world is like if you don't go out and see it?"

As he said this, many in the conference room began to facepalm.

Feng Dezhang hadn't expected to be rejected. Still, he could somewhat understand Lu Shixian's thinking.

Young and headstrong, it was normal.

He had said what needed to be said and done what needed to be done. Whether the advice was taken was not his problem.

After that, the members of each group were quickly finalized.

Tasks were assigned to each person.

However, how to save the street trees was not within Lu Shixian's scope of concern, and he had no interest in listening.

At a little past eleven in the morning, the internal work allocation meeting came to a close.

People began to leave in twos and threes, heading for lunch.

As they reached the doorway, Wang Congfa, who had fallen behind at some point, suddenly spoke to Lu Shixian beside him.

"It's good for a young man to have ideas."

"But being willful is a bad thing."

With that, he quickened his pace and left.

Lu Shixian, left standing there, was a bit dumbfounded.

It had been a long time since he'd been targeted like this at every turn.

It actually made him a little nostalgic for the past when he used to hit a wall with everything he did.

Though this was completely unprovoked.

Still, thanks to Wang Congfa, although no professor was willing to join his survey.

Lu Shixian had at least become the leader of a four-person team.

It was nothing compared to his team at UCD, which had dozens of members at full strength, where he could summon twenty people with a wave of his hand.

But this was, at least, a good start, wasn't it?

Of course, that feeling would have been much stronger if the replies in the newly created four-person group chat had been more timely.

Two in the afternoon.

This was the third time Lu Shixian had looked at his watch.

The last person finally arrived, dragging their luggage.

Before Lu Shixian could speak, an angry female voice rang out: "Li Yongqing! What the hell are you doing???"

"Didn't Dr. Lu tell us in the group chat to meet at the gate at one-thirty?"

"You're even slower than me, and I'm a girl!"

The young man who was called out gave an awkward smile.

But there was no trace of embarrassment in his voice. "Well, we're going to be away for a while, so I had to pack a few more things, didn't I?"

"Besides, Gao Jing, now you remember you're a girl?"

"How rare!"

The two seemed to know each other and bantered back and forth heatedly.

The other young man, from a different university, appeared to be a man of few words and simply stood there in silence.

To be honest, Lu Shixian was getting a headache.

But he remained silent, simply observing his three teammates.

From his initial understanding, he knew the girl was Gao Jing, a first-year master's student in zoology from Nanjiang University.

She was also the only graduate student who had voluntarily agreed to follow him.

The other two were unlucky "sacrificial lambs," assigned by their respective advisors.

One was Li Yongqing, a classmate of Gao Jing's from the same university, major, and year.

The other was Meng Changchuan, a second-year master's student in forest protection from Nanjiang Forestry University.

A few minutes later, when they had run out of things to say, the scene finally quieted down.

Lu Shixian, showing no annoyance, glanced at the two and finally spoke. "Are you two done?"

"Then it's my turn to speak."

Hearing this, Li Yongqing and Meng Changchuan lowered their heads slightly, staring at something on the ground, an indescribably complex expression on their faces.

The only one who seemed normal, Gao Jing, was now also acting strangely, looking at Lu Shixian as if he were a celebrity.

Taking in their reactions, Lu Shixian continued calmly, "Alright, I won't say much more. We'll have plenty of opportunities later."

"Since everyone is here, it's time for us to set off."

Chapter 372: Not a Scholar Confined to a Lab

Although he wasn't fond of the way the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau operated, their hospitality was, at the very least, satisfactory.

They were reimbursing all travel expenses and had even dispatched an official vehicle to take them directly to their destination.

Besides them, there was also a dedicated driver, Luo Jianfeng, who would also serve as their liaison for the trip.

Ultimately, taking Lu Shixian's prominent background into account, the research group had assigned him the task of conducting a further survey of the distribution of the American white moth within Nanjiang's borders.

This also revealed that their expectations for him weren't particularly high.

A simple survey, even if done diligently, wasn't a very difficult task.

Perhaps the only challenge would be trekking through mountains and forests.

Lu Shixian had never conducted a forestry survey, but he was not a traditional lab-bound scholar. Surveying flora and fauna was his bread and butter.

In truth, all things in the world are interconnected, and the two fields shared a common thread.

It was essentially about applying census-like methods within a specific area to investigate the structure and evolution of the local forest ecosystem and to create a profile for the relevant pests. This was crucial for tracking pest population dynamics.

The main content of the survey would be to identify the distribution, characteristic species, and dominant species of the pest within the region, as well as its community succession.

The next step would be to monitor the pest's invasion routes and predict its future trends in the area.

This would be followed by an investigation into the pest's reproduction and development, to understand its primary breeding grounds, growth rates, and required conditions—all essential steps in studying any pest.

Clearly, compared to conducting fundamental research, this was not a highly difficult task.

It might not sound like a great assignment.

Anything involving words like "outdoor experiments" or "field research" could sometimes mean enduring incredibly harsh conditions.

In his past life, Lu Shixian had actually yearned to be a purely lab-based researcher.

No braving the elements, no exposure to the sun and rain; just clock out and go home when the workday was done.

But many years later, by a chance opportunity, he attended a lecture for graduate students by an old professor from the agricultural university, and his perspective changed that day.

The old professor asked the class, "What problems are you facing at this stage?"

One answer received widespread agreement.

"No direction, no ideas, no innovation."

In response, the professor replied meaningfully, "You spend your days reading papers published by others years or even decades ago, using second-hand or even third-hand experimental data, and you wait for your advisors to give you topics and solve your problems."

"But at the graduate level, you must learn to be independent."

"Step out of your comfort zone. Stop being content with the status quo."

"So why not try walking out of the lab?"

"Agricultural research should be about facing the vast land, not cold instruments."

That day, he didn't know how many people took those words to heart, but Lu Shixian himself pondered them for a long time.

The idea of measuring the land with his own feet, of not being a scholar confined to a lab, struck a deep chord within him for the first time.

Four in the afternoon.

In just over an hour, they had traveled from the bustling center of Nanjiang to a completely unfamiliar place.

The official vehicle pulled up smoothly in front of a building with a sign that read "Qing County Forestry Bureau." Before they even got out, a group of people was already waiting at the entrance.

As someone opened the car door, a middle-aged man in official attire walked straight up and warmly extended his right hand to the driver.

"Director Luo, you're a rare guest! What brings you to our Qing County today? If I hadn't seen the temporary notice from the city this afternoon, I wouldn't have even known."

"Director Liu, why did you come out yourself? You're swamped with official duties, I wouldn't dare trouble you to come personally," Luo Jianfeng replied. He was clearly familiar with the man. Despite his words, his tone held not a hint of polite formality.

"To be honest, we're here on a mission this time." After speaking, Luo Jianfeng turned and introduced Lu Shixian and his team.

"This is Dr. Lu Shixian from the National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention. He's leading a team here in Qing County to conduct some research."

The moment he said this, no explanation was needed. Director Liu understood instantly, and a wave of relief washed over him.

All they had to do was cooperate and provide good service?

Compared to dealing with inspections or surprise visits from superiors, this kind of task was an absolute godsend.

He had hosted experts from the province and city before, but he never expected this time they would be from the national level.

With that, the smile on his face grew even wider as he shook Lu Shixian's hand.
Ah! Dr. Lu, welcome to the Qing County Forestry Bureau. It's an honor to have you with us today.

He also took a step forward to shake his hand and exchanged a few pleasantries.

Although Lu Shixian didn't want to waste time on such trivialities, it was impossible to completely avoid social interactions when doing research.

In a way, socializing actually saved time.

His years of experience had taught him just how important it was to gain the cooperation of the locals when conducting research in a new place.

After several rounds of pleasantries, Director Liu naturally proposed a welcome dinner.

But of course, Lu Shixian turned it down.

To him, time was exceptionally precious right now; every passing hour was a significant loss.

How could he possibly stay for dinner and spend the night?

So, in the end, the Qing County Forestry Bureau had no choice but to arrange two cars to take them to their next destination, Qingluo Town.

As for Luo Jianfeng, the full-time driver, he couldn't stay here and would be returning to the city within the day.

Watching the car's silhouette gradually disappear, Director Liu handed a pack of cigarettes to Luo Jianfeng, looking a bit bewildered.

What's the deal? Don't tell me we've got some hidden treasure in these boondocks?

Why would a Ph.D. from Yanjing come all the way out here?

Luo Jianfeng opened the pack, lit a cigarette, and took a deep drag, exhaling a cloud of smoke.

But it seemed he really knew something, as he said with a faint smile, Treasure? I wouldn't go that far. We'll be lucky if this doesn't turn into trouble.

Director Pang's instructions were to cooperate fully. The most important thing is that nothing goes wrong. Director Liu, you'd better have your people keep a close watch.

Even setting aside Dr. Lu from Yanjing, the others are all top students from our province's key universities.

If anything happens, none of us can afford to take the blame.

Director Liu naturally understood the stakes. He nodded immediately and grunted in agreement.

They spent almost the entire day on the road. By the time they reached their final destination, it was already evening.

Under a unified arrangement, the group had dinner at a restaurant in Qingluo Town and then settled in at the town's reception center.

It was called a reception center, but in reality, it was just a renovated two-story house.

Inside, besides a moderately sized living room, they were all assigned to different rooms.

Perhaps it was due to the long and tiring journey, but once the guide sent by the county had left, the previously silent group finally livened up.

Chapter 373: I Guess You Could Say That

After setting down his heavy backpack, having spent hours on the road to get here, Li Yongqing had glanced at Lu Shixian several times.

Now, he finally couldn't hold back any longer. Captain Lu, what's the point of rushing like this?

This was the form of address he had come up with after racking his brains.

Calling him Big Bro Lu felt wrong since the guy was several years younger. Calling him Little Lu felt disrespectful for a Ph.D. from the prestigious Yanda University. Every form of address felt awkward, so he decided to just use the temporary team designation.

A simple investigation shouldn't take a full week, right?

As soon as he said this, Meng Changchuan and even Gao Jing instinctively turned their gazes to Lu Shixian's face.

Gao Jing was something of a fan of his.

At first, you could say she admired his talent; news reports about this rising star in academia had filled her with respect for Lu Shixian.

But after meeting him recently, she felt she was becoming a fan of his looks.

But now, breathless, her face was also filled with curiosity and confusion.

Who said I'm only here to investigate? Lu Shixian knew he couldn't keep them in the dark any longer. After all, this was a team, and he couldn't let it fall apart before they even started.

Though he didn't have high hopes that this team could provide any significant help.

The investigation is necessary, of course, but haven't I said it before? Lu Shixian replied with a barely perceptible smile. Hasn't our goal always been to contain the fall webworm outbreak?

Upon hearing this, the living room fell into a dead silence.

Gulp! Meng Changchuan swallowed hard and asked haltingly, I say, aren't we getting a bit ahead of ourselves?

Is that... even possible?

Li Yongqing couldn't help but cough to remind him, The research group's assignment for us was just an investigation.

We're not obligated to do this, are we?

And I dare say even our own professor couldn't make any progress in such a short time, right?

Lu Shixian wasn't surprised by these questions at all; in fact, he was prepared for them.

So, as he poured some hot water, he answered, Yes. That's why your task is just the investigation.

Once you complete it, you can leave. The rest has nothing to do with you. I'll report to the research group.

Hearing this, Li Yongqing let out a sigh of relief.

You said it, Captain Lu!

When we finish our task, we'll head back to report.

For him, if his advisor hadn't ordered him to, he would never have come to suffer in such a poor, remote place.

The whole town had no entertainment facilities at night. No neon lights, no skyscrapers, just mountains and more mountains.

Meng Changchuan, on the other hand, remained silent, a hesitant look on his face.

Only Gao Jing frowned, looking at Li Yongqing with some dissatisfaction. What are you in such a hurry to get back for? To get reincarnated?

We're supposed to be a team!

Hearing Gao Jing's complaint, Li Yongqing shook his head helplessly.

This wasn't a pure science or engineering major. In the agriculture and forestry departments, the male-to-female ratio was an exaggerated 1:1.

At the graduate level, the number of female students was even higher.

So, while he might have had a bit of a crush on Gao Jing, he wasn't about to become a simp for her.

The night slowly faded away, with each person lost in their own complicated thoughts.

The next morning.

Led by a staff member, the four of them headed to their destination for this trip: the Qing County State-owned Forest Farm.

At that time, the comprehensive utilization of forest resources was not yet widespread.

There were pitifully few national forest parks in the entire province, let alone the later developments like forest cafes, alpine grass skiing slopes, or eco-restaurants in vast snowy woodlands.

The Qing County State-owned Forest Farm was remote and inconveniently located, ranking low in development value within all of Nanjiang.

So, although it was called a forest farm, it was hardly different from a primeval forest.

This was precisely what puzzled the others, but yesterday, a more critical question had been raised, leaving no time to address this one.

And today, with the atmosphere being somewhat delicate, no one was inclined to bring it up.

Captain Lu, with so many places in the province to choose from, why did you pick this one? Perhaps finding the silence oppressive, Gao Jing took the initiative to ask him on the way, hoping to liven things up.

Being addressed, Lu Shixian paused his train of thought.

He glanced at Gao Jing, somewhat surprised by the question, but answered nonetheless.

This isn't the largest or most convenient state-owned forest farm in Nanjiang, but it has one particular characteristic: it has the largest area of broadleaf forest. You could say it's the largest broadleaf forest farm in Nanjiang.

She hadn't thought about it seriously before, but now that he mentioned it, something clicked for Gao Jing.

Oh! I get it.

According to the data, the fall webworm's main food sources are trees like mulberry, plane, elm, poplar, paulownia, pterocarya, metasequoia, and willow. These are all basically deciduous broadleaf trees.

The connection wasn't hard to make. Lu Shixian nodded and continued, Correct. This farm was established around 1980. While that's not very long, it was one of the first places to implement the Natural Forest Protection Project, starting in 1999. Its forest area has reached 48,600 mu, which is more than double the standard for a large-scale farm.

Although its area is vast, its forest resources are relatively uniform. The main tree species are light-loving deciduous broadleaf trees like poplar, elm, and fir. Of course, this is also the most dominant forest type in China's temperate regions, and it's crucial for Nanjiang's water conservation.

And this place is exactly what we need, not just because the fall webworm favors it, but also because its resources are concentrated and contiguous, which makes it very convenient for our preliminary survey.

Before his teammates could say anything, the forest farm staff member leading the way was already quite surprised.

You're quite something, young man. I don't understand all that technical stuff you're talking about, but I've been working here for years and didn't even know when this farm was built.

He turned his head and asked curiously, No wonder I got a notice this morning that experts were coming to the farm for research. Do you specialize in this stuff?

Lu Shixian nodded and said truthfully, I guess you could say that.

As for me... to be precise, I specialize in the study of plants.

And trees are a type of woody plant, after all.

Of course, if we were talking about herbaceous plants, I'd be even more familiar with them.

Seeing the staff member's baffled expression and Gao Jing's admiring gaze, Li Yongqing, in the back, curled his lip in disdain.

Such a show-off!

Botany might be a foundational course for forestry, but it's just that—foundational.

And saying he's more familiar with herbaceous plants... if that were true, most of the new species discovered worldwide in recent years wouldn't be herbaceous plants.

Chapter 374: What Do You Mean, 'Rest for a Bit'?

Meng Yongchuan held no prejudice against Lu Shixian; he simply shook his head and remained silent.

It was worth noting that the forest area wasn't too far from the town center.

After just a ten-minute journey, the group arrived at the entrance to the forest area.

By then, the leadership of the forest area was already waiting at the gate for the research team's arrival.

For a grassroots unit in early 2013, a Ph.D. from Yanda University was certainly considered an expert.

After receiving a warm welcome from the forest area and skillfully handling the social formalities, Lu Shixian found a well-lit pavilion and began the first official meeting of the operation.

Alright, let's have a brief meeting. Our team has four members, so we can now assign duties, Lu Shixian said to the other three.

Although he didn't expect this team to provide any substantial help, it wasn't his style to let available labor go to waste. As the saying goes, make the best use of everything, and people should naturally fulfill their roles.

Coming, coming, Gao Jing said, looking at Lu Shixian with an expectant expression.

Meng Changchuan nodded slightly to acknowledge, while Li Yongqing slowly sauntered over.

Lu Shixian paid him no mind and continued, I've already done a preliminary assessment. While this forest area is vast, its zones are clearly defined and the resources are quite concentrated. There are ten zones in total.

As for the sampling method, I believe you all understand. The affected trees are large species like poplar and elm, so direct observation is out. There are only four of us, and none of us are Hercules, so the shaking method would be too labor-intensive. It's not the overwintering period, so the tree banding method is even more impossible.

Gao Jing nodded in strong agreement. So there's only one truth. The trapping method is the simplest for us.

Although it was basic knowledge, Lu Shixian gave her an affirming look.

Bingo! Research data shows that adult fall webworms are strongly phototactic but dislike strong, direct light. So, our best option is to use weak-light blacklight traps. The team was only temporary, with no binding obligations, so he couldn't necessarily order them around.

Lu Shixian tried to reason with them to get them on the same page.

To increase our sample data, we definitely need to survey all ten zones. Field investigations carry a certain amount of risk, so I suggest we work in pairs for mutual support.

To reduce the workload while increasing survey efficiency, I propose using the traditional five-point sampling method. That is, we'll take samples from the four corners and the intersection point of the two diagonals of a standard plot, for a total of five points.

If anyone has a different opinion, you can raise it now.

After speaking, Lu Shixian looked at the three of them, seeking everyone's input.

Although there was some friction within the team, no one was a fool.

Even Li Yongqing, who had issues with Lu Shixian, couldn't find any fault with the proposed plan. On the contrary, it was highly efficient and feasible.

This aligned perfectly with his own desire to return as soon as possible, so he certainly wouldn't object.

The other two were even less likely to disagree.

Thus, the first step of the plan was agreed upon.

Lu Shixian snapped his fingers and continued, So, who wants to team up with me? Please raise your hand.

The moment he finished speaking, Gao Jing's fair right hand was already held high in the air.

On the other side, Li Yongqing, who hadn't reacted in time, could only exchange a glance with Meng Yongchuan, his mind filling with complaints about Gao Jing: *Shallow woman.*

With the decision made, the four of them began preparing for the plan.

Of course, as students from a key regional university at the time, their overall capabilities were up to par.

In just half a day, they had prepared everything they needed.

It had to be said that this was largely thanks to the forest area's reserve warehouse, which had been restocked and expanded earlier that year.

The next morning.

Following the plan they had decided on, the two pairs headed to their respective task areas to place the insect traps.

This was clearly a repetitive task with no technical skill involved.

Although they had optimized the process and reduced the workload significantly, it was still a daunting amount of work when divided among four people.

Yes is yes, no is no. What do you mean, 'rest for a little bit'? Lu Shixian had no particular feelings about being paired with a woman and had even anticipated that he might have to carry more of the load.

Despite having already lowered his expectations for her, when Gao Jing requested a break just twenty minutes into the operation, he still felt he might have brought along some dead weight.

I'm not usually like this. Gao Jing's face was flushed, whether from embarrassment or from being out of breath. Maybe it's because I haven't been exercising much lately. I'll be fine once I get used to it.

There was nothing he could do. Lu Shixian mentally corrected "I'm not usually like this" to "I'm always like this."

And "haven't been exercising much lately" to "I don't exercise at all."

He couldn't help but sigh softly, feeling a sense of understanding, as this was the norm for contemporary scientific researchers.

Whether they subjectively had the awareness to exercise was one thing.

Objective factors such as heavy research tasks, high work pressure, and heavy mental burdens led to irregular lifestyles, long-term emotional tension, and frequent mental fatigue among researchers.

Rationally speaking, it was unrealistic to expect someone who didn't normally exercise to have much combat effectiveness.

So, Lu Shixian readily approved her request for a break.

Sitting in the shade of a tree and drinking some mineral water, Gao Jing gradually regained some of her strength.

She looked at Lu Shixian, who was still working silently, and a sense of guilt welled up inside her, mixed with curiosity.

Don't you need to rest?

Your stamina is pretty amazing!

Do you do this often?

Hearing this, Lu Shixian, who was still placing a trap, felt his face darken.

Though they were words of praise, a problem arose.

Should he keep working or take a break?

Nobody will think you're mute if you don't talk, Lu Shixian shot her an exasperated look, finally forced to stop and stand for a moment. I used to be Yanda's long-distance running champion. What do you think?

Big Boss, please have some tea! Upon hearing this, Gao Jing immediately offered a bottle of water to Lu Shixian with both hands.

Lu Shixian ignored her antics, took the water, and began to rehydrate.

Big Boss, how does one become a Ph.D. at my age?

Big Boss, what's it like to publish in top journals three times as an exchange student abroad?

Big Boss, after this investigation is done, are you really going to continue?

From the shade of the trees, Gao Jing's curious, baby-like questions flowed endlessly.

But Lu Shixian looked as if he were wearing a mask of pain.

Go away, I want some Jingjing! (I want some quiet!)

Chapter 375: First, Let's Set a Small Goal

Hearing this, Gao Jing beside him immediately broke into a smile. So, the question is, who's Jingjing?

Lu Shixian's reaction was equally swift. Don't overthink it. It's not you, anyway!

Oh really? But how did you know my nickname is Jingjing? Gao Jing was discovering more and more that this brilliant big shot wasn't as cold and aloof as she had imagined, but actually quite approachable, so she deliberately teased him.

Lu Shixian was rarely cornered to this extent, but at this moment, he was truly at a loss for words.

Time always flies when you're busy.

Soon, the sun began to set.

With the cooperation of all four, over a hundred traps were finally set up.

For the next three days, they continuously monitored and recorded the data from the traps while conducting other survey work.

Based on the final trapping results, Lu Shixian would obtain the first-hand data on this fall webworm outbreak in Nanjiang.

After finishing the final day of monitoring, the group returned to their lodging to rest.

At this moment, a very contradictory feeling arose in Lu Shixian's mind.

This was because the data collected via the trapping method was most indicative of density.

And this density was also a relative term; what it ultimately translated to was the severity of the infestation.

Generally, based on the scope, nature, and severity of the damage, forestry pest disasters were classified into four levels: Level 1 (Especially Serious), Level 2 (Serious), Level 3 (Relatively Serious), and Level 4 (General).

Lu Shixian didn't want to come back empty-handed, but he also didn't want the forests of Nanjiang to suffer too great a loss.

After a moment of simple deliberation, Lu Shixian's heart quickly chose the latter, and his indecision vanished.

To him, his personal reputation was far less important than the interests of the people of Nanjiang.

What result do you guys think we'll end up with? Gao Jing, the team's icebreaker, quickly posed the question to the other three.

Li Yongqing answered without hesitation, Level 3 at the absolute most. The Nanjiang Forestry Bureau's previous pest forecast was Level 4, which is why I've been saying we've been suffering for nothing these past few days.

You think the results from just a few of us over a few days can be more accurate than the data from all the monitoring stations across the province?

Gao Jing was immediately displeased. Would you get such a good chance for hands-on practice back in Nanjiang City?

Maybe we could even write a paper on 'The Morphology, Anatomy, Histology, and Life History of the Fall Webworm.'

At this, Li Yongqing and Meng Changchuan burst out laughing.

Even Lu Shixian couldn't help but glance at her.

The original paper she was referencing was actually about a different pest, the pine caterpillar.
As just an undergraduate thesis, it had already become a seminal piece of literature, the first in the nation to provide a comprehensive theoretical basis for the study and control of pine caterpillars.

Speaking of which, one cannot fail to mention a revered and legendary figure: Old Pu.

As a fellow agronomist, even though his preferred field was crop cultivation rather than pest control, Lu Shixian was all too familiar with the name.

A brief moment of recollection brought forth a flood of accolades, of which Founder of Biological Pest Control in Huaguo, Academician of the Biology Division of the Academy of Sciences, and Father of Biological Control in South China were but a small fraction.

The State Key Laboratory of Pest Control and Resource Utilization that he founded was also one of the top laboratories in the country.

From the sugarcane borer to the Australian ladybug, from the control of *Cryptolaemus montrouzieri* to the fields of biological control and insect pathology, his footsteps never ceased.

To put it simply, this was a great scientist worthy of the highest respect.

He had a famous quote: "Scientific experiments must be closely linked to practical production. If you conduct research in a lab and the results aren't applied to actual production, it's just armchair theorizing. That's not the path for us scientists."

Evidently, this coincided perfectly with Lu Shixian's own epiphany from a few days prior.

Top scientists always have something in common, and the current Lu Shixian undoubtedly possessed the potential to become one of them.

"Gao Jing was just setting a small goal for herself, what are you all laughing at?" Her courage was indeed commendable, and Lu Shixian gave her a nod of approval.

Seeing the others playing off each other, Gao Jing scoffed coldly, turned around, and went back to her room to amuse herself.

With their topic of conversation gone, the three remaining men fell silent, and the lounge once again became quiet.

The night passed without incident.

On the morning of the fourth day, as all the traps were collected, the number of insects from the final day was also recorded.

Opening his laptop, Lu Shixian began the preliminary data processing.

The computational load wasn't heavy, and with his proficient skills, the results came out quickly.

After reviewing the final results, however, Lu Shixian suddenly fell silent.

"It seems I was too optimistic. The situation is far more severe than we imagined." He slid the laptop over and said, "You all should take a look too."

Hearing this, the others turned to the screen with varying expressions.

The data now indicated that the infestation level was already severe.

Although the infestation level was just one way to measure a pest disaster, Lu Shixian was absolutely certain that this outbreak was by no means a simple level 4.

He had been mentally prepared for this. The pest survey results came from survey lamps.

Survey lamps attract far more insects than black light traps, which can easily lead to discrepancies.

Coupled with the fact that not everyone took this matter seriously nowadays, this result was not surprising.

Lu Shixian could understand their line of thinking.

Besides, people have limited energy. If they focused solely on the fall webworm, were they supposed to ignore all the other endemic local pests?

That was to say nothing of spending the manpower and resources to manage a pest that might not even break out.

But according to the recent data, an outbreak was only a matter of time.

The fall webworm produced three generations a year. A single female moth laying eggs in the spring could produce tens of millions of offspring in just one year.

The key to victory was to prevent it early and small, starting from the first generation and targeting the 1st to 3rd instar larvae.

The more Lu Shixian thought about it, the stranger it seemed.

Nanjiang had never experienced a fall webworm invasion before. It was understandable that others might be unaware, but Feng Dezhang was definitely not among them.

As a pest that had invaded Huaguo long ago, a relatively mature management system had already been developed for the fall webworm.

For chemical control, there were specialized insecticides.

For physical control, there was the manual removal of web nests.

For biological control, there was the *Chouioia cunea* wasp.

He had widely disseminated the latest research on the dangers of the fall webworm, which should have been highly persuasive.

So what was keeping him silent?

Suddenly, an idea flashed through his mind like lightning.

At that moment, he felt he had grasped something.

Chapter 376: You Can't Be Serious?

Budgetary issues were likely one reason. After all, while Nanjiang was a leading province for forestry resources in the Central South region, its pest control budget was not infinite, however large it might be.

If they focused only on the potential harm of the fall webworm, should they just ignore other persistent pests?

Sometimes, we know something is important, but no one does it; it just remains lip service.

This is actually a rather complex psychological and logical problem.

Is exercise important?

Of course it is. It brings us a healthy body, and no one would refuse a good physique.

Is reading important?

Needless to say. Books are the ladder of human progress. Water flows downward, but people only want to climb higher.

Is pest control important?

It certainly sounds important, but I don't necessarily have to be the one to do it.

Just talking about it, letting it remain lip service, is useless.

Because we only know that pest control is important, but we don't seem to have a clear idea of what it truly represents.

As far as he knew, Nanjiang had long been plagued by pest problems. It suffered not only from the ubiquitous pine caterpillar (*Dendrolimus punctatus*) but also from one of the most difficult pests to manage in the forest pest system, the white-spotted longhorn beetle (*Apriona germari*).

In the past, the forestry authorities in Nanjiang were once full of passion for pest control, eager to roll up their sleeves and make a real difference, willing to try new things.

But unfortunately, for various reasons, their attempts were not very effective.

Despite investing huge amounts of manpower and resources, they failed to achieve the desired results. It seemed to make little difference compared to doing nothing.

It was said they were even reprimanded by higher-ups. Tangible achievements seemed to be nothing more than an illusion.

Under this subconscious influence, getting the authorities to genuinely care was just empty talk.

Lu Shixian knew very well that, limited by the context of the era, many people didn't have a deep understanding of the long-term impact of their actions.

What benefits would putting so much effort into this really bring?

When you got down to the specifics, it seemed like not much.

And what would be the consequences if it failed? Was it really worth it?

Even if there were benefits, they might take years or even decades to materialize.

Psychologically, people tend to do things that show results in the short term because it provides immediate positive feedback.

This also applied to political achievements.

After all, in this era, the primary societal contradiction was still underdeveloped social production.

Therefore, ecological benefits did not rank high among the three major benefits.

Lu Shixian shook his head in frustration.

His mind was racing ahead, but his steps were still shackled by the giant wheel of the era.

Now, he had a new understanding of the previous question.

When a person knows something should be done but doesn't do it, perhaps it's because they are truly powerless.

Even if he could successfully find a solution, if it wasn't taken seriously, Nanjiang's pest situation would likely become irreversible.

Then everything he did would be for nothing.

The thought brought a wave of disappointment, casting a shadow over his plans.

But Lu Shixian was never one to give up halfway.

If you're going to do something, do it right.

This had become a habit practically carved into his bones.

He quickly lifted his spirits. Even if the final result wasn't what he hoped for, at least his conscience would be clear.

With that thought, Lu Shixian's mood lightened.

Beside him, Gao Jing watched his expression shift from dark to bright and couldn't help but find it amusing. She suddenly broke his train of thought, "We're not even in Yucheng yet, when did you learn to change expressions so fast? You're quite skilled at it, by the way."

"You're about my age, what are you thinking about all day?"

"Relax, the sky isn't falling!"

Looking at her innocent and carefree face, Lu Shixian couldn't help but marvel at the beauty of youth. He replied vaguely, "Just thinking. From the looks of this investigation, managing this will be quite difficult. I'm afraid I'm in for a tough time."

Gao Jing, however, cheerfully picked up on the slip in his wording. She put her hands on her hips, a hint of complaint in her voice, "What do you mean 'I'? It's 'we'."

"Never mind them, but at least I'm still in the same group. You ignored me, and I'm not happy about it!"

Though she said that, as the saying goes, a woman's words can fool a ghost.

Seeing not a trace of displeasure on her face, Lu Shixian took her words as the opposite of what she meant.

However, her interruption had caused his mood to take a sharp turn for the better.

Indeed, the sky wasn't falling. And if it did, the tall ones would hold it up.

It wasn't his place to be wallowing in self-pity.

"Look!" Gao Jing's startled cry rang out again. "What plant is that up ahead? It's so beautiful!"

Lu Shixian assumed it was just her girlish fancy and无奈地 followed her gaze forward.

He hadn't planned on being impressed, but one look was all it took to capture his attention as well.

In a low-lying area grew a dense and sturdy arbor tree. Upon a sea of dense, oval-shaped leaves were dotted pale yellow flowers, like stars scattered across the Milky Way.

A subtle fragrance drifted on the breeze, creating a unique charm.

Gao Jing couldn't resist shaking a branch, picking up a fallen petal to examine it closely, then holding it to her nose. "It smells so good!"

"So beautiful! What kind of tree is this?"

Normally, Lu Shixian, having seen much of the world, would have made a few "unromantic," straight-man comments.

But this time, he found himself unable to say anything to contradict her.

"It really is something. Magnoliopsida, Gentianales, Rubiaceae," Lu Shixian said, glancing at her with surprise. "You're pretty lucky! To think you'd find a wild *Emmenopterys henryi*. It flowers from June to August and bears fruit from August to November. It's the flowering season right now."

Although Gao Jing's undergraduate degree was in life sciences, her focus had always been on zoology, especially entomology. She wasn't very familiar with uncommon plants.

Hearing Lu Shixian speak so knowledgeably, her surprise was palpable. "You can't be serious?"

"How do you know about plants too?"

Lu Shixian replied, exasperated, "Didn't I tell you before I came that I specialize in botany?"

Gao Jing wracked her brain for a moment and did recall him saying that.

"I thought you were joking."

"Wait, aren't you from the CDC?"

Her tone was now filled with growing confusion.

Lu Shixian chuckled, deciding to tease her. "The CDC is just a temporary part-time gig."

"I'm actually at the State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research."

Gao Jing was stunned, her mind in a whirl.

The full name of the CDC was the Huaguo Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Although it was a national-level research institution, its main research areas were in pathogen biology, basic medicine, and public health and preventive medicine.

While it had numerous labs under its purview, its only state key laboratory was the State Key Laboratory for the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases.

For the field of life sciences, the connection wasn't particularly close, so she had only heard the name and knew the institution existed.

But for someone in life sciences, the State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research was a completely different story.

Chapter 377: Half Surprise, Half Regret

Even though this lab didn't seem to stand out among the top labs in the country, ranking somewhere in the middle, it was important to note that as of 2013, there were only just over 200 state key laboratories in the entire country.

This was the total across eight major fields. In the biological sciences, there were 40 state key laboratories, accounting for only about 15% of the total.

Botany was just one branch of life sciences. At the time, the top three key research areas in life sciences were DNA methylation and epigenetic inheritance, amyloid-beta (Aβ) in Alzheimer's disease, and the differentiation and function of follicular helper T cells (Tfh).

These were clearly far removed from botany.

Under these circumstances, within the industry, this lab was arguably the top laboratory for botanical research in the country.

If you aspired to make a mark in the fundamental theories of macromolecular structure and function, plant development and functional genes, plant-microbe interactions, or bioinformatics and gene evolution, this was undoubtedly a temple of learning.

The topic seemed to have strayed, but one thing remained unchanged: the admiration in Gao Jing's eyes grew even more fervent.

Of course, having been on the rise since his middle school days, Lu Shixian was long immune to such gazes.

His composure unshaken, he calmly took a camera out of his tool bag.

It was a high-definition research camera provided by the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau for documentation. No one would mind if he used it for photos now.

As he skillfully adjusted the settings and searched for the best angle, he remarked with pleasant surprise, "I didn't expect to make a find like this on this trip. This is a rare and endangered plant endemic to our country, a Class II protected wild plant."

"Some have called it 'the most beautiful and moving tree in the forests of Huaguo.' This should be the first discovery of a wild *Emmenopterys henryi* in Nanjiang, which has certain research value and significance."

"If I didn't have other research projects scheduled recently, I could probably get a core journal publication out of this." Thinking of this, Lu Shixian looked at Gao Jing and asked, "How about it? Are you interested? You were the one who found it first, after all."

But upon hearing this, Gao Jing shook her little head like a rattle drum.

"I don't know anything about it. How could I do research on it?"

"I study insects, and you want me to research a tree? I think you're just trying to mess with me."

Lu Shixian just chuckled. "Looks like you're thinking too narrowly. Without plants, there would be no animals. Why is that impossible?"

After a bit more discussion, Gao Jing still refused, telling him to handle it as he saw fit.

Seeing her firm stance, Lu Shixian didn't press the matter further. He could always compensate her some other time.

In the forest, time passed quickly. As they spoke, the light began to fade, signaling it was time to leave.

To avoid any accidents, the two of them slowly and steadily made their way out of the forest area.

Three days later.

After investigating the damage in several other forest farms using the same method, the survey team finally reached the moment of its dissolution.

The investigation tasks for the past few days were mostly complete, and Li Yongqing was already packing to return.

Influenced by him, the previously hesitant Meng Yongchuan made the same decision.

"Do you two have any sense of teamwork at all?" Gao Jing said, looking at them angrily.

Li Yongqing shrugged nonchalantly. "I've had enough of this godforsaken place. Since the investigation work is done, there's no point in us hanging around. Captain Lu said before that we could leave early once the mission was complete."

His words only made Gao Jing angrier, but she couldn't find a single word to refute him.

Lu Shixian watched their departing backs in silence, feeling nothing.

He never had any expectations for those two anyway. Even on the team, they were only united in appearance. It was better this way.

As for Gao Jing, she was a pleasant surprise.

Although she might not be of much help to his upcoming plans, she wasn't a burden either. It was fine for her to stay.

And now that he had collected enough experimental samples, it was time for him to set his own plan in motion.

Another day passed. On the evening of their arrival in the county town, the photos from the camera were finally developed.

Looking at the pictures of the endangered plant, Lu Shixian couldn't help but feel it was a pity his current research focus wasn't on plant conservation.

He shook his head, selected a few digital photos, and posted them to his social media feed. His circle was small and professional; he was confident someone would be interested. Their investigation would also hopefully lead to better protection of the plant resources here.

"So-called life: half surprise, half regret."

"A little surprise in Nanjiang."

The caption and photos were simple, but the implication was not. He believed someone would recognize their value.

Sure enough, just a few minutes after he posted, a professor from Yan University contacted him.

Lu Shixian recognized him: Ye Pengsheng, a botany professor from Yan University and an expert in wild plant conservation.

He sent Ye the specific coordinates of the forest farm in Qing County and added the name of the original discoverer: Gao Jing.

But the discovery of the tree was just an accident; he couldn't forget his ultimate goal.

After taking care of that, Lu Shixian's thoughts returned to the fall webworm crisis.

After a long while, he had mentally prepared himself to fight alone.

But unexpectedly, a few minutes later, an unforeseen call came to his phone.

A familiar, languid female voice came through the phone, "Lu Shixian, how come you came to Nanjiang without telling me?"

Lu Shixian was quite surprised.

This was a rare caller indeed. The person on the phone was none other than Mei Ting.

He was a bit speechless at her question. "Teacher Mei? Is there any necessary connection between me coming to Nanjiang and contacting you?"

Mei Ting replied irritably, "My hometown is in Nanjiang, and I'm on vacation right now, so I happen to be here. So what do you think?"

Now Lu Shixian finally understood.

But how was I supposed to know your hometown is in Nanjiang?

Still, this was very much in line with Mei Ting's character, so he didn't dare say it out loud.

In the end, Mei Ting offered to treat him to a meal in Nanjiang, and Lu Shixian naturally didn't refuse.

His time was tight, but he had already obtained the necessary data. There was no need for him to stay on the front lines any longer.

What he needed now was a laboratory to settle down and conduct his research.

Therefore, returning to Nanjiang City to meet with Mei Ting for a bit was not a problem.

After arranging a meeting time with Gao Jing at the bus station, Lu Shixian went to the appointment as scheduled.

The location was set by Mei Ting: the sculpture plaza of the College of Bioengineering at Nanjiang University.

After some effort, Lu Shixian finally reached his destination.

As expected, when he arrived, Mei Ting was nowhere in sight.

Very Mei Ting of her. He wasn't in a hurry.

It was his first time at Nanjiang University, so he began to look around at the campus scenery with interest.

Then, his gaze was unconsciously drawn to a nearby sculpture.

Chapter 378: A Parent Showing Up?

Although Nanjiang University was not one of the most famous universities in the country, just a 211 Project university, Lu Shixian was by no means the sort of person to judge a campus by its ranking or halo. Every institution had its own unique character.

He didn't initially recognize the figure in the sculpture before him, but the introduction on the pedestal immediately filled him with reverence.

Old Mr. Zhu was a pioneer in our country's fermentation science and one of the founders of fermentation professional education. He was the first to establish and name the department of food industry in the country.
It could be said that his work was an immense contribution to China's winemaking industry and the development of its bioengineering discipline.

As a result, Nanjiang University became the nation's preeminent institution for fermentation engineering.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but feel a silent tribute to this older generation of scientists who had devoted their lives to the nation.

Just then, a sudden voice broke his reverie. "What are your thoughts on fermentation engineering? A lot of people are biased against it these days."

Lu Shixian didn't even need to turn around to know who it was. Mei Ting's style and voice were all too familiar.

He paused to think, a little surprised that Mei Ting would bring this up.

It was a question that, it seemed, would also spark intense public debate in the future.

Namely, was it appropriate for there to be an "Academician of Baijiu"?

He had participated in those discussions before and had his own opinions, though he had never voiced them.

For any honor, the candidate's specific field of research and actual contributions must be the primary consideration.

If their achievements were limited solely to the field of baijiu production, it would naturally cause controversy.

His view on the matter hadn't changed.

In his eyes, most people were just caught up in the spectacle.

They assumed that the technical term "fermentation engineering" was just a fancy way of saying "winemaking," and the winemaking industry didn't have the best image in mainstream public opinion.

Were the scientific and technological achievements in baijiu production comparable to other scientific advancements in terms of improving human quality of life and promoting social progress?

Lu Shixian smiled slightly and gave his answer. "They call it fermentation engineering, but really, it's just an extension of microbiology blended with other disciplines."

"Winemaking is just one of its most visible applications for the general public. I believe many people are oversimplifying."

"In my view, fermentation engineering is steadily becoming more scientific, and its future prospects are very promising."

"Well said!" Suddenly, a resonant male voice came from behind him.

Lu Shixian instinctively turned to see Mei Ting with her arm linked through that of a much older man.

The man was dressed plainly, but his eyes were exceptionally deep, and he carried an unusual air about him.

Lu Shixian glanced at their posture and, based on his understanding of Mei Ting, dismissed the unrealistic idea that had just popped into his head.

"Uh, and this is...?" Lu Shixian blinked at her, not expecting Mei Ting to bring someone along.

What was the deal with showing up with a guest?

Mei Ting understood his subtle gesture and finally said with resignation, "He's my dad, but I think you can just ignore him."

Whoa!

Lu Shixian was completely stunned, his mouth agape.

What was happening? Why was a parent showing up?

He could personally guarantee that he hadn't done anything wrong, not even had a single bad thought.

But he quickly snapped back to reality. He couldn't neglect basic etiquette. Just because Mei Ting said that, didn't mean he could act on it.

"Hello, sir." Lu Shixian didn't even dare to use the surname Mei, as he had no idea what kind of family situation a personality like Mei Ting came from.

The man nodded. "You're quite impressive. I heard about you back when I was in Jinling."

"To be able to flourish under Mei Ting's guidance and come this far from a small place shows you have strong ambition and a great capacity for self-learning."

Hearing this, Mei Ting shot her father a look of displeasure.

Lu Shixian gave a sheepish smile and quickly replied, "Not at all, Professor Mei is an excellent teacher with a strong sense of responsibility. Without her help back in Jinling, I wouldn't have been able to progress so quickly."

Mei Ting was very pleased with this answer and gave Lu Shixian a look that said, "Good, you know your place."

The man shook his head helplessly, not exposing the little act. Instead, he changed the subject, returning to their previous topic.

"People are now saying Nanjiang University has been reduced to a training ground for baijiu workers. Besides baijiu, what else do you think Nanjiang Province can rely on for its development?"

Lu Shixian was dumbfounded again. Wasn't this question a bit above his pay grade?

How was he supposed to know the path of economic development for an entire province?

This was putting him on the spot.

Although he had also studied economics, he really didn't know much about Nanjiang.

And it was an immutable truth that you had no right to speak if you didn't understand the situation.

In the end, he had to resort to what he knew, twisting the concept to force an answer. "The true definition of fermentation engineering should be the application of bioengineering technology, utilizing microorganisms in the broadest sense, as well as certain isolated enzymes, to provide biological products for humanity or to directly participate in controlling aspects of industrial production."

"Edible alcohol, like in white beer and fruit wines, along with cheese, yogurt, and vinegar, are its specific applications in the food industry."

"Industrial alcohol, biopolymers, amino acids, and enzymes are its manifestations in the chemical industry."

"Artificial penicillin, insulin, interferon, growth hormone, and recombinant hepatitis B vaccines are its applications in medicine."

"And natural pesticides, herbicides, and even fertilizers are its positive uses in agriculture."

Hearing this, a glint flashed in the man's eyes, and he gestured for him to continue.

Lu Shixian was a bit dazed, unsure how things had turned out this way.

He just guessed that a family capable of raising a woman like Mei Ting was likely composed of high-level intellectuals.

This man was probably a professor at some research institute.

With that thought, he was no longer afraid of a scholarly discussion.

So he added, "In my opinion, development relies on two chains: an industry chain and an innovation chain."

"I'm not sure if you're familiar with the DNA double helix structure, but the relationship between these two chains is somewhat similar—closely linked, yet distinct and orderly."

The man's interest was piqued by this concept.

Back in 2013, the theories and practices related to industry chains were already quite rich and mature. Otherwise, China Grain Group wouldn't have proposed its full industry chain strategy four years prior based on industrial cluster theory, attracting many other companies to follow suit.

However, while the concept of the innovation chain had emerged in the 1970s, research into its theoretical logic and structural mechanisms was still in an exploratory phase.

The "dual-chain" concept Lu Shixian proposed was even more novel.

Lu Shixian's voice continued.

"From a business perspective, the upstream of the baijiu industry mainly consists of agriculture and packaging materials."

"With all due respect, the agriculture and material packaging sectors are, and will remain for a long time, in a stable development period. The difficulty of achieving any fundamental new breakthroughs in the next decade is immense."

Chapter 379: Anything Is Possible

"The downstream consists of the transport, consumption, and service industries. I'm sure I don't need to tell you that it's difficult to make any major changes there either."

The man nodded, acknowledging Lu Shixian's point.

The business environment was emphasized every year, and service optimization was a daily refrain, but the consumer market remained difficult to revitalize.

"From my limited understanding, Nanjiang Province's major industries are concentrated in baijiu, food processing, and light chemicals. Due to historical reasons, its culinary culture is heavily influenced by Beijiang Province, yet it lacks its own unique cultural symbols and doesn't have the conditions to become a consumption hub for Southern China." Lu Shixian synthesized this statement from his knowledge of the future and his current studies in economics.

It might sound simple, but at this time, it was a remarkably forward-thinking prediction.

At that moment, Lu Shixian finally left a deep impression on the man.

A flicker of emotion crossed his face as the man asked with great interest, "Then how do you think they should break out of this situation?"

Lu Shixian thought for a moment and was about to answer.

But beside him, Mei Ting frowned and interrupted, "How much longer are you two going to be? I've been standing here for twenty minutes."

"It's rare to run into him in Nanjiang. Can we at least find a place and show some hospitality first?"

Hearing this, the man laughed. "You're right. I was getting ahead of myself. It's fate that I met young Xian."

"After dinner, we can continue our discussion."

Led by the two "hosts," dinner was arranged at a simple and unpretentious farmhouse restaurant.

Perhaps they had a reservation, as the food was served not long after they arrived.

Seeing Mei Ting make no move, the man took the initiative, raised his teacup to Lu Shixian, and said, "The food is simple. I hope it's to your liking."

Lu Shixian quickly stood up and raised his cup in return. "You're too kind, sir. I come from a farming family myself. How could I possibly dislike the taste of home? There's nothing to get used to."

The man laughed heartily. "It's easy to go from frugal to lavish, but hard to go from lavish to frugal."

"Your attitude is excellent. When eating the fruit, think of the tree; when drinking the water, remember the source."

"Exactly, one should always be grateful for the source! Let's get back to the topic we didn't finish."

Lu Shixian nodded. "Clearly, Nanjiang's only path is to prioritize the innovation chain. That is, to build high-tech industrial clusters based on its existing advantages, using fermentation engineering as a starting point to drive the entire fermentation industry chain. By developing around high-tech industries and deepening the integration of the innovation and industry chains, it can seize the high ground where science and technology are the primary productive force of the future."

The man's eyebrows shot up. He was already somewhat surprised, and for the first time, his expression showed a hint of something different.

But Lu Shixian was focused on expressing his thoughts and didn't have time to observe others' reactions.

"In a broad sense, we consider fermentation engineering to be composed of three parts: upstream, midstream, and downstream engineering."

"It's less of an engineering field and more of a technology. So, focusing on the upstream—which includes strain selection, optimizing fermentation conditions, and preparing nutrients—we can make new breakthroughs in developing proprietary microbial strains and fermentation agents."

"Not only in the past but also far into the future, our country's upstream strains will almost entirely rely on imports from multinational corporations. The strains and their corresponding fermentation agents are completely monopolized by overseas companies. Those with truly independent intellectual property are exceedingly rare."

"Without core technology in this industry, we will be in a vulnerable position for a long time."

"If foreign countries ever decide to restrict us in this area, we will be paralyzed in the food, pharmaceutical, health product, and cosmetics industries, and even in the high-tech biotechnology sector."

Hearing this, not just the man, but Mei Ting also knitted her elegant brows.

"Is it that serious? Don't be an alarmist," Mei Ting was drawn into the discussion and offered her own opinion. "Developing new strains is not only costly but also has high technical barriers. Making a breakthrough is already difficult, let alone catching up to develop our own intellectual property under these circumstances. It's no easy task."

"Besides, the market for strains isn't dominated by a single country. A complete blockade seems unlikely, right?"

Seeing the man also looking at him, Lu Shixian shook his head with a wry smile. If he hadn't witnessed it himself, he would have thought it impossible too.

"An oligopolistic market isn't a monopoly, that's true. But in the area of probiotics and lactic acid bacteria alone, the United States accounts for almost half of the global market." Lu Shixian had to be tactful. "For a hegemon, anything is possible."

Mei Ting was still a bit confused, but the man had already fallen into deep thought.

After a moment, the man asked, "What about the midstream?"

Lu Shixian replied promptly, "Midstream engineering is primarily the process of cultivating strains or producing their metabolites under optimal fermentation conditions. Technically, this is largely embodied in the preparation of strain cultivation machines."

"A strain cultivation machine sounds simple, but it's a fusion of sterilization, air filtration, computer control, and strain cultivation technologies. For edible fungi, which have the most market potential, our country's industry has only seen simple quantitative growth over the past half-century. Traditional solid-state spawn is slow to germinate, prone to contamination, and yields inconsistent results."

"The concept of liquid spawn was proposed decades ago but has seen no new breakthroughs and remains at the theoretical design stage. Although our researchers successfully developed the CQY series of liquid strain cultivation machines over a decade ago, filling a void where we previously had to spend a fortune on imported equipment..."

"...we have to admit that we still have a long way to go compared to top international cultivation machines. In the mid-to-high-end edible fungi production lines, the market share of domestic machines is far from ideal. If we can make a breakthrough in this area, we can not only reclaim the domestic market but also secure a place in the international competition for cultivation machines."

The man said nothing further, but Lu Shixian, committed to seeing the matter through, didn't stop.

He took a sip of tea from his large bowl and continued his explanation. "Downstream engineering is relatively easy to understand. It's simply the technology for separating and purifying the product from the fermentation broth."

"Its main purpose is to improve efficiency and purity, and the technological products are mainly..."

When he finished speaking, Lu Shixian looked up and found that the entire room had suddenly gone silent.

What the...?

Weren't we having a discussion? How did it turn into a monologue?

Lu Shixian quickly raised his teacup to hide his awkward yet polite smile.

At that moment, although the man's face was calm, his mind was in turmoil.

After so many ups and downs in life, he had long developed a keen eye for judging people.

If Lu Shixian's composure had earned his approval at the beginning, by this stage, it had turned to shock.

Chapter 380: What's There to Consider? He's My Uncle!

If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he would never have believed that someone of Lu Shixian's age could articulate such insights.

The man composed himself slightly and asked one last question. "Mei Ting's point has some merit. Focusing on one direction is already difficult. If we advance on all three fronts simultaneously, wouldn't we be moving too fast?"

Lu Shixian immediately understood the subtext and shook his head. "I would argue that the three engineering stages are interconnected and interdependent."

"They can be prioritized, but they cannot be chosen between."

"There's no other way. There are some beliefs, some tasks that, no matter how difficult, people will dedicate themselves to without regret."

This sentence struck a chord deep within the man.

He sighed softly and said quietly, "That's right. If we hadn't built the hydrogen and atomic bombs because it was hard, we wouldn't have the peaceful lives we have today."

"If we thought building rockets and aircraft carriers was too hard, how could we have ever achieved the dream of reaching for the moon and exploring the deepest oceans?"

"Last September, the Liaoning was completed and successfully underwent sea trials. Who can know how many generations of researchers' blood, sweat, and tears went into the delivery of that aircraft carrier!"

Seeing the atmosphere in the room growing increasingly somber, Mei Ting quickly cut in. "Alright, alright, what's with you two?"

"Stop right there. The topic of fermentation engineering ends now."

Lu Shixian and the man looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"Lu Shixian, what brings you to Nanjiang all of a sudden?" Mei Ting, seemingly afraid the old topic would resurface, quickly found a new one. "You're not at home in Su Province, and you're not studying at school in Yanjing. What are you doing here in Nanjiang?"

At this question, Lu Shixian was suddenly reminded of his mission, and his previously relaxed expression grew more serious.

"Well, through a chance opportunity, I was recommended by Academician Gao from the CDC to participate in the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau's project to control the American white moth infestation in the city's roadside trees."

Mei Ting accepted this explanation readily.

In her eyes, Lu Shixian had, after all, published three papers in Cell in the field of plant pathology. As a rising star in a related field, it wasn't surprising that he would be invited.

The speaker was casual, but the listener paid close attention.

The man suddenly asked nonchalantly, "I have heard something about this."

"The American white moth? It's just pest control. A small project of 1.5 million shouldn't require the involvement of Academician Gao from the CDC, should it?"

Lu Shixian wasn't surprised by the question; he had anticipated it.

He was just a bit surprised that back in the 2010s, over a million yuan could be called a "small project." It had the same ring to it as a "small goal."

So, he briefly repeated the explanation he had given in the conference room earlier.

"Sir, it's basically like this."

"The American white moth doesn't just harm the roadside trees in downtown Nanjiang, nor is it limited to the economically valuable tree species across the province, and it's certainly not just about simple forest flora and fauna research resources."

"It's about the functions hidden behind the forest: water conservation, soil preservation, carbon sequestration, oxygen release, and air purification."

"Once the forest is destroyed and these functions are weakened, the consequences won't be apparent in the short term. But in five or ten years, Nanjiang's agriculture, animal husbandry, and even its local climate will deteriorate."

Hearing this, the man frowned for the first time. His brow was tightly furrowed, and it was a long while before it relaxed.

"No one has ever mentioned this problem to me before."

"An invasive pest can cause such great harm!"

"In that case, by extension, we must be extremely cautious when considering the introduction of any foreign species." The man suddenly had a realization. "No wonder Nanhu Province recently came up with a 'Regulation on the Management of Alien Species.'"

"A few old friends and I were just talking about it, saying Nanhu wasn't focusing on its core economic work, messing with these trivial matters, being more anxious than the emperor himself. It seems I was the one who was shortsighted."

It was just a casual conversation, but Lu Shixian hadn't expected the man to have such a way of thinking and connect the dots like that.

After the last cup of tea was refilled, it was getting late, and it was time to part ways.

The man said to Lu Shixian with approval, "To have such knowledge at such a young age is very impressive. I was originally just taking time to hang out with Mei Ting today, but it turned out to be a very worthwhile trip."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian quickly waved his hands. "This is just my personal opinion, it doesn't really count for much. Today was just an exchange of ideas with you, sir."

The man didn't speak but gave him a meaningful look. Just before leaving, he suddenly corrected his form of address.

"You can call me Old Mei, just like Mei Ting does. Hearing 'sir' this and 'sir' that makes me feel like I'm ready for my grave."

Lu Shixian was both amused and exasperated but complied with his request.

A name was just a label. As long as the person was fine with it, it didn't matter what you called them.

Old Mei was clearly in good shape. His departing steps were vigorous and strong, and he quickly walked ahead.

Lu Shixian took the opportunity to sidle up to Mei Ting and inquire, "What field is your dad a professor in? His thinking is quite sharp, but he always defaults to the same three old lines."

Mei Ting didn't answer him, her interest piqued instead. "Oh? What three old lines?"

Without thinking, Lu Shixian answered instinctively, "'Not bad,' 'Indeed,' and 'That's right!'"

Hearing this, Mei Ting suddenly felt herself about to lose her composure. Her years of self-cultivation seemed on the verge of crumbling.
In the end, however, he held his tongue, stopping short of saying what was on his mind as he shot Lu Shixian an odd glance.

“Ahem, I’ll be sure to pass that along to him.”

“That was quite a blow, but I like it!” Mei Ting gave him another thumbs-up. “Just don’t take it back later.”

“Well, that’s all for now. See you next time!”

“And finally, good luck!”

With those final words, Mei Ting quickened her pace and, along with Old Mei, vanished into the darkness of the night.

Lu Shixian shook his head. He couldn’t shake the feeling that the father-daughter pair was a bit odd.

The whole meeting today had been bizarre.

But regardless, running into an old acquaintance in a foreign place was always something to be happy about.

He quickly put the matter out of his mind, as the challenge that lay ahead was a daunting one.

Early the next morning, Lu Shixian gave Gao Jing a call.

She vehemently protested his idea of returning to Yanjing alone.

Gao Jing: “Tell me the truth, are you just trying to ditch me???”

Lu Shixian: (Sweating) “Ditch you? What are you talking about? I just need a place to run some experiments.”

Gao Jing: “Just a place for experiments? You can do that anywhere! Why not come to our lab?”

Lu Shixian demurred, “Wouldn’t that be a bit much? An outside student using your lab… isn’t that a little too informal?”

Gao Jing: “Informal? What’s informal about it? The lab director is my uncle! You can just use it for a bit as my friend, for your graduation project. He definitely won’t say a thing!”

Lu Shixian tried to refuse again, “I still don’t think that’s a good idea. The solutions and materials cost money, don’t they?”

“Don’t worry, he’s my uncle. He’ll cover it out of his own pocket.”

Lu Shixian refused for a third time, “Shouldn’t we maybe reconsider?”

Gao Jing: “Reconsider what? He’s my uncle!”

Lu Shixian: “…”

Chapter 381: The “Punish the Black-hearted and Eradicate the Evil” Mission

In the end, Lu Shixian learned that Gao Jing really did have an uncle named Gao Mingjie.

He was a professor at the School of Bioengineering at Nanjiang University, specializing in the green biomanufacturing of functional sugars and reactor technology.

He had made significant achievements in fields like the green biomanufacturing of functional polysaccharides and oligosaccharides, as well as the development and application of intelligent bioreactors.

As such, he held authority over a provincial-ministerial co-sponsored laboratory for green bio-fermentation at the university.

With this connection, Lu Shixian thought, it might not be impossible after all.

Besides, if conditions allowed, conducting the experiments in Nanjiang offered a natural geographical advantage. The sourcing of experimental materials alone would save him a considerable amount of effort.

That time saved would be enough for him to run several biochemical experiments.

He already owed Gao Jing one favor; adding another wouldn’t hurt.

Having thought it through, Lu Shixian immediately replied to Gao Jing.

Girls were always more considerate. Sensing his urgency, she called him back.

“I just gave my uncle a heads-up. He said it’s no big deal. He happens to be away from the lab this afternoon on business, so I’ll take you to see him tomorrow.”

“Okay, thank you for going through all this trouble. I really appreciate it!” Lu Shixian expressed his sincere gratitude.

Taking advantage of the afternoon, Lu Shixian began to organize his experimental approach, integrating his previous thoughts.

His primary goal was clearly the effective control of the American white moth.

The current mainstream methods were well-established, generally falling into several categories: biological, physical, chemical, and manual control. More recent methods like natural predator control, nest removal, adult trapping, and fumigation could all be classified under these broader types.

He seemed to have many options, but in reality, he had none.

Natural predator control relied on interspecies relationships to limit population numbers. Predators like lacewings, ladybugs, and spiders could target the pest. Current research indicated that the Chouioia cunea wasp was the most suitable candidate.

But it had obvious drawbacks. Not only could it not be used in conjunction with chemical controls, but the most effective Chouioia cunea wasp had yet to be fully validated, and its widespread implementation would require more time.

Clearly, Nanjiang couldn't wait that long.

As for physical and manual controls, including nest removal, adult trapping, and fumigation, they all shared a common problem: they required an enormous investment of manpower and resources.

They were fine for small-scale applications, but when scaled up to the entire Nanjiang Province, they would consume funds allocated for other pest control efforts. It would be like robbing Peter to pay Paul, not worth the cost.

And chemical controls inevitably raised the issue of environmental pollution.

This was the current state of the American white moth problem in Nanjiang. Research on control techniques had been conducted as early as 1984, yielding plenty of mature experience, but none of it was particularly practical for Nanjiang at this moment.

Based on Nanjiang’s current situation, Lu Shixian picked up a pen and summarized on a piece of scratch paper: limited funds, dense population, green and pollution-free.

Furthermore, since Nanjiang was not a coastal or near-coastal city, aquatic animals like fish, crabs, and shrimp would not be significantly affected. With that, one option naturally came to mind.

Some say you can't have your cake and eat it too; compromise is inevitable.

Many people spend immense time, manpower, and resources only to achieve a less-than-ideal result, consoling themselves with the notion that as long as they tried, there are no regrets.

But that was the choice of ordinary people who had no other options.

Lu Shixian was no ordinary person. He chose to have it all, insisting on achieving the best results at the lowest cost, while also being energy-efficient and environmentally friendly.

Early the next morning, Lu Shixian left his temporary residence and headed for the School of Bioengineering at Nanjiang University.

As the top program at Nanjiang University, bioengineering naturally received special treatment.

Being the most impressive building on campus had another benefit: it was easy for Lu Shixian to find his destination.

At nine in the morning, Lu Shixian successfully met up with Gao Jing at the entrance of the bioengineering building.

Gao Mingjie had no intention of meeting a "nobody" junior like Lu Shixian. Gao Jing handled all the coordination and communication.

Lu Shixian had no issue with this. As long as the end result was achieved, he didn't care about the process.

Following Gao Jing into the bioengineering lab building, they found a standard laboratory and an adjacent break room that would serve as their office for the near future.

“From today until the end of summer break, this classroom, originally used for undergraduate lab courses, will be our shared laboratory.” Gao Jing smiled, pulling two keys from her pocket and handing them to him. “Here are the keys. The office equipment, including the computers, is all ready to go.”

Then she quickly added, “Of course, if you want to use the more high-end instruments, you’ll have to go through me.”

“It can’t be helped. Due to regulations, using that equipment requires not only a student or faculty ID from this university but also clearance as internal lab personnel.”

“So, if you need anything, just find me,” Gao Jing said, wearing an expression that practically begged for praise.

Lu Shixian held back a laugh and nodded. “Very good. I now officially declare you a member of the ‘Punish the Black-hearted and Eradicate the Evil’ project.”

“Yay!” Gao Jing cheered, then her eyes widened in confusion. “I get the ‘eradicate the evil’ part, since ‘evil’ sounds like ‘moth’ in Chinese.”

“But what’s this ‘punish the black-hearted’ about? Aren’t the moths white?”

“You’re right,” Lu Shixian explained briefly, “but the Americans have black hearts, get it?”

Gao Jing: “…”

They spent the next two hours giving the entire lab and office a thorough cleaning.

It was unavoidable. This kind of standard lab was rarely used for anything other than student instruction.

And since it was summer break, it was only natural for dust to have accumulated.

Fortunately, the space wasn't large. The so-called office was just big enough for a desk and two chairs.

To save space, the two computers on the desk were placed back-to-back.

Lu Shixian turned one on and tested it; it ran smoothly enough.

Beyond that, there was nothing else.

This was his first time conducting indoor research in such an environment.

The place was simple, but scientific research wasn't about comfort. No matter how difficult, it couldn't be worse than working outdoors.

During his undergraduate years, he had spent a month at a time on the barren plains of Haiqing.

This was a piece of cake for him. Lu Shixian accepted it readily.

After using Gao Jing’s meal card for lunch at the Nanjiang University cafeteria, he was completely oblivious to the fact that he was essentially being ‘sponsored.’

Lu Shixian officially began his “Punish the Black-hearted and Eradicate the Evil” mission.

Chapter 382: Is This Something We Can Actually Accomplish?

Meanwhile, in a conference room at the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau.

On the final day of his survey mission, Li Yongqing was reporting to the Nanjiang American White Moth Control Leadership Group.

Of course, this wasn't a report on the survey's results.

Everyone in the room already knew what the results would be; no one cared.

“With Dr. Lu’s approval, Meng Yongchuan and I returned first to report after the survey was complete. When I left, Dr. Lu was still collecting experimental samples. From the looks of it, he’ll be at it for a while.”

Hearing Li Yongqing’s explanation, the faces around the conference table showed varying expressions.

“It seems I’m getting old. Can’t compare to the energy of young people. Dr. Lu is a man of his word. It looks like he might just give us a surprise this time,” Wang Congfa said with a smile, though it was unclear how much of his tone was sarcasm.

Feng Dezhang’s face was calm and unreadable. He chuckled, “We’ve all been through that stage. We should be more tolerant and give the next generation a chance to grow.”

The topic was quickly dropped, and they all put Lu Shixian out of their minds.

For them, time was precious, and there were few opportunities for lighthearted banter.

“We have less than a week until the outbreak period predicted by the monitoring center,” Feng Dezhang said with a worried expression. “Old Wang, according to the control plan developed by the expert group, what’s the progress on removing the larval nests in downtown Nanjiang?”

Wang Congfa, clearly aware of the stakes, quickly replied, “Progress is good. We’re at eighty percent. The rest is mostly in the southern district. It’s closer to the suburbs, so the travel is a bit more inconvenient for our teams. I decided to save it for a concentrated effort at the end. It should be finished soon.”

“I trust your work, but to account for any surprises, it’s best to finish within three days,” Feng Dezhang nodded, then asked, “How have the parallel adult trapping efforts been these past few days?”

“The results have been average, but you probably know why. The complex light sources in the city center interfere with it. It’s not just the American white moth; using light traps for any pest isn’t very effective downtown,” Wang Congfa replied.

Feng Dezhang shook his head. “It can’t be helped. We have to do it even if it’s not effective. The city center is a sensitive location, unlike other areas. If we tried to release parasitic wasps like elsewhere, we’d probably be flooded with complaints before we even started.”

“Even though there’s no precedent, we can’t rule out the possibility of a wasp stinging someone. If that caused a public dispute, it would be difficult to suppress.”

“And that’s not to mention spraying pesticides. Lu Shixian had a point. The American white moth is different from the other pests we’ve dealt with.”

“We don’t have much experience with it, so we must take it seriously. I need you to work hard these next few days and have your people keep a close watch. Get us through this critical period. Report any developments immediately.”

“I understand.”

Nanjiang University, Bioengineering Building Laboratory.

With Gao Jing’s assistance, Lu Shixian’s research was proceeding in an orderly fashion.

Generally, Lu Shixian would give the instructions, and Gao Jing would carry them out, perfectly fulfilling her duties as a adoring fan and part-time assistant.

But Lu Shixian wasn't heartless; he couldn't treat her entirely like a tool. He found some time to explain his experimental plan to her, giving her a big-picture understanding of the significance of their work.

Lu Shixian kept it brief: “Based on the results of my field investigation and Nanjiang Province’s specific situation, I plan to develop a new biological agent using *Bacillus thuringiensis*. So I’ll be needing your help a lot going forward.”

There’s a saying: the fewer the words, the bigger the news.

Upon hearing this, Gao Jing’s hand trembled. With a crash, she realized she would need a new water cup.

It couldn't be helped. Even though she wasn't a graduate student in bioengineering, as someone in the life sciences, she was very familiar with *Bacillus thuringiensis*.

*Bacillus thuringiensis*, or Bt for short, might sound unfamiliar to some, but its other names might ring a bell: Dipel, Thuricide, Bactospeine.

As a microbial insecticide, it was harmless to humans and livestock, pests did not develop resistance to it, and it had no effect on natural predators.

As for the environment…

While one couldn’t say it had zero impact—any artificial presence leaves its mark on nature—it was true that it did not pollute the environment.

In 1911, in a German town called Thuringia, a biologist named Berliner discovered an unusual Mediterranean flour moth. Much like the fruit fly larva that captivated Morgan, this discovery piqued his interest.

Through tireless effort, he isolated a bacterium from the larvae of these moths.

Though it may not have been the first time it was discovered, the bacterium was named after the town four years later.

More than a century after its discovery, *Bacillus thuringiensis*, as the most thoroughly researched and widely used microbial insecticide, has made immeasurable contributions to pest control for humanity worldwide.

“Although *Bacillus thuringiensis* has broad insecticidal activity against over a hundred pests, including those in the orders Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera, Orthoptera, and Coleoptera, aren't the current Bt formulations most effective against Lepidopteran pests like the pine caterpillar, cotton bollworm, and inchworm?” For once, Gao Jing offered her own opinion.

Lu Shixian nodded encouragingly. “You’re right. Which is why our task is to develop a new pesticide formulation that primarily targets the American white moth.”

“Maybe you should reconsider,” Gao Jing swallowed, biting her lip hesitantly. “Are you sure this is something the two of us can accomplish?”

“The principle isn’t that difficult. After a single gene is expressed, it produces insecticidal crystal proteins. When ingested by the target insect, these are broken down into active polypeptide factors in the alkaline environment of the midgut. The current scientific consensus is that the toxic fragment has three domains: Domain I is involved in pore formation, Domain II in binding the toxin to its specific receptors, and Domain III in regulating toxin activity, ultimately disrupting the osmotic membrane and causing the insect’s death.”

“But this field is already mature, beyond mature. As far as I know, there are nearly ten thousand patents related to *Bacillus thuringiensis* worldwide, and the United States holds the most, accounting for almost half of the patent landscape. It won’t be easy for us to find a loophole right under their noses, will it?”

Lu Shixian was genuinely surprised that Gao Jing had such insights. He looked at her with a newfound respect. “Not bad! Have you studied this specifically before?”

He immediately dismissed the possibility that she had just crammed. He had only just revealed his plan for a biological agent, not to mention that Bt was just one of many options.

Chapter 383: Gao Jing's Little Scheme

Other possibilities included *Beauveria bassiana*, nucleopolyhedrovirus, and various parasitic predators, so there was no way she could have prepped for this.

Gao Jing’s answer confirmed his suspicion.

“Not really! I’m an entomology major, so it’s not too much of a stretch for me to know a little about pest control, right?”

Lu Shixian nodded, a new assessment of Gao Jing forming in his mind. He offered a few words of reassurance.

“Relax! What you said is true, but development has several dimensions. Aside from crop varieties, which don't apply here, we aren't doing any gene editing this time. We’re just screening *Bacillus thuringiensis* strains and working on their related applications and methods. It’s not as difficult as you think.”

Gao Jing rolled her eyes and accepted his explanation, but a single phrase repeated in her mind: “Yeah, right!”

The production process for a Bt formulation was straightforward: fermentation, concentration, and formulation.

Concentration and formulation were manageable. The most critical step was fermentation, which involved strain selection, culture medium, and process optimization.

But for now, large-scale production was not his concern. His current task was to find or create a new key from among tens of thousands of master keys—a key specifically for the American white moth.

This task was not as simple as Lu Shixian made it sound. Otherwise, out of the nearly ten thousand patents related to Bt, only a little over a hundred would not be related to strains or strain screening.

In his past life, he had heard people joke more than once that without *Bacillus thuringiensis*, countless scientific researchers would have starved.

It was a joke, but a crude one with a grain of truth.

To date, nearly 50,000 strains of *Bacillus thuringiensis* have been isolated globally. These 50,000 strains can be classified into 62 serotypes and subspecies.

Each of these serotypes and subspecies carries more than one insecticidal gene, and a single strain can carry multiple insecticidal genes, which is the true reason for Bt's broad-spectrum insecticidal effects.

Lu Shixian wrote the upcoming experimental plan on the small blackboard in the office.

As he was writing, he thought of the materials and quickly turned to Gao Jing. “Later, could you help me ask if Nanjiang University has any preserved wild strains that have already been isolated? It would be best if they have some ready. If not, we’re going to be very busy for the next few days collecting enough samples.”

Gao Jing thought for a moment and replied with certainty, “They should have some. This kind of microorganism is so common and safe, I imagine every biology lab keeps it on hand. I’ll ask my uncle.”

Lu Shixian acknowledged this, then asked, “How are the white moth larvae we collected doing? Have they been fed well these past few days?”

“They’re being treated like kings, with the best food and drink. They’ve gotten fatter in just a few days,” Gao Jing said irritably.

Lu Shixian could hear the reluctance in her voice. Asking a girl to feed caterpillars did require a certain amount of courage; after all, they weren't as cute as lab mice.

But it couldn't be helped. If you chose this line of work, it was impossible to avoid dealing with such things.

If they didn't treat these test subjects like their own children, where would the experimental data come from?
No experimental data, no research results. And without results, you might never graduate.

Comparatively, raising fall webworm larvae was already much better than dealing with fruit flies or cockroaches.

Two days later, all the experimental materials were finally ready.

This time, Lu Shixian had fifty wild bacterial strains in hand, ready to make a big move. Fourteen of them were from Nanjiang University; the remaining thirty six he had Old Ma rush over from Yan University through some special channel.

Of course, Nanjiang University had far more than just that, but given his outsider status, they were not about to fully support a student from another school with his graduation project.

Naturally, no one could have guessed that this was not a graduation thesis at all, but rather one man's personal crusade.

What was most absurd was that not only was this project unrelated to his own graduation, but it also had no official approval or funding.

Spending his own money and energy on a passion project like this was, if not entirely unprecedented in the domestic research community, at least exceedingly rare.

Therefore, putting himself in her shoes, he realized it was quite remarkable for Gao Jing to be messing around with him on this.

This also solidified a previous idea of his, though its implementation would have to wait.

By choosing not to isolate his own strains as raw material, he saved a significant amount of time.

At ten o'clock that morning, Project Eradicate the Scourge officially began.

“Our experiment can basically be summarized in three parts: preliminary screening, LC50 determination, and data processing. You'll handle the preliminary screening, which is mainly to identify the wild strains that are highly effective at killing the fall webworms.” At this critical juncture, Lu Shixian dropped his usual playful demeanor and became serious. “Let me briefly explain the process. After cultivating the strains until the spores and crystals are separated, we'll use a hemocytometer to measure their concentration and then dilute them all to a standard level. Next, we'll use a feeding bioassay to test their activity on the larvae, using a standard strain and a sterile sample as controls. We'll record the number of deaths and the corrected mortality rate to compare the activity of each strain, and finally, we'll screen for the most effective ones.”

“So, any questions?”

Gao Jing put on a pained expression. “Can I say I have a billion questions?”

“Do you have any idea how much beauty sleep a girl has to sacrifice for this amount of work?”

Lu Shixian decided to make a tactical retreat. “Well, how about you do the second step, the LC50 determination?”

That one sentence was enough to make the formidable Gao Jing back down.

The reason was simple: the initial screening only involved comparing a single concentration against two control groups. The further determination, however, involved multiple concentration gradients, tests on larvae of different instars, and finally, observing biological effects and plotting growth curves.

The workload was far greater than the first step; Lu Shixian's arrangement was actually a gesture of consideration.

Though she said nothing, Gao Jing was secretly a little surprised. She was not resentful of the task Lu Shixian had assigned her; in fact, she was rather pleased. After all, it meant he was not treating her like an outsider.

While she had not performed many bioengineering experiments herself, she had seen enough to know how things worked.

Gao Jing understood that for strain screening, the methodology was paramount; it was essentially the core of any patent.

After a moment's thought, she was shocked to realize she had never seen a similar screening protocol in the country before.

While she did not know how effective it would be, it was at least rational, with no discernible logical flaws in the experimental design.

That was just absurd.

Chapter 384: Gao Mingjie's Fury

Even the most naive girl has her own thoughts.

She was indeed helping out for free, but on the condition that spending so much time would ultimately be meaningful.

She would not tolerate a pointless pastime, no matter how good natured she was.

But clearly, she had been persuaded.

The subsequent work was immense, and they became exceptionally busy.

To speed things up, Lu Shixian and Gao Jing switched to a round the clock schedule.

There was no other way. Time waits for no one, and when you have to push, you push.

Although he had not gone to the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau for official data, based on his earlier field research, he estimated the pest outbreak was about a week away.

For the next few days, Gao Jing worked until midnight almost every day, while Lu Shixian was even harder on himself, once staying as late as four in the morning.

Though the team was small, it had one advantage: communication and coordination were incredibly fast. The two of them could discuss project progress and specific experimental details anytime, anywhere.

Despite her exhaustion, Gao Jing could feel her progress was real.

Her clarity on the overall experimental strategy and the precision of her lab techniques were both steadily improving.

At the same time, it gave her a deeper appreciation of Lu Shixian's abilities. Whenever she raised a question, unless he was deep in thought, he would offer his understanding within seconds.

Gao Jing was now beginning to understand the caliber of someone who could publish in Cell, and it strengthened her resolve to see this through to the end.

But a lab is a public space, and even during summer break, there were plenty of graduate students sticking around.

Anyone with eyes could see that the campus belle of their School of Life Sciences was always trailing after some guy like a puppy.

Coupled with Gao Jing's early departures and late returns, looking utterly exhausted, it was a stark contrast to her usual energetic self.

In the information age, there are no secrets. Once one person sees something, it is as if everyone has.

So, when rumors started circulating throughout the labs, Gao Mingjie could not sit still any longer.

Although universities advocated for freedom in relationships, and Gao Jing was already a graduate student, dating was normal.

What infuriated Gao Mingjie, however, was that Gao Jing was not married yet. If she got pregnant, it would be a scandal.

Gao Jing had taken her mother's surname, but she was still the apple of the Gao family's eye. The thought of her being secretly snatched away by some punk left a sour taste in his mouth.

He wanted to find an opportunity to talk to Lu Shixian alone, but after staking out the place for several days, he could not find a single chance during the day.

Finally, he managed to free up some time and waited until late at night, when he at last found his opening.

Seeing his niece looking drowsy and clearly overworked, Gao Mingjie finally lost his patience.

As soon as Gao Jing left, he stormed into the lab.

But to his surprise, the moment he entered, he was met with a stern reprimand.

“Hey! Who are you? Don't you know the rules for entering a lab?”

“Not only did you come in without permission, but you have not disinfected or put on a lab coat. Is this your first time in a lab?”

Being chewed out before he even saw the person's face left Gao Mingjie stunned.

He had a bellyful of anger ready to unleash, but when he looked down at his street clothes, the words caught in his throat.

In his fury, he had completely forgotten. Entering a laboratory work area requires wearing a lab coat.

It was a strict rule. Lab personnel handle various chemical reagents daily, many of which are highly corrosive, flammable, or explosive. Skin contact could lead to severe consequences.

Wearing a lab coat also effectively prevents static electricity issues from street clothes, making it an almost mandatory requirement.

He was clearly in the wrong and could not muster a rebuttal. He sheepishly returned to the changing room, put on a white coat, and went back to face Lu Shixian.

“May I ask who you are? What brings you here?” Lu Shixian was short on time. He glanced up briefly at the visitor, a man who looked to be in his thirties, but he did not recognize him at all.

Since it had nothing to do with him, he buried his head in his experiment again.

After that initial exchange, Gao Mingjie was too embarrassed to admit he was the lab director. He quickly came up with an excuse. “It is nothing. I am a professor from the logistics office, in charge of asset management. This lab is supposed to be vacant during the break, but the lights have been on late at night recently, so I came to check on things.”

“Since someone's here, everything's fine.”

Hearing this explanation, Lu Shixian could not bring himself to say ‘be more careful next time.’

The man was in charge here; he, the outsider, was the one meddling.

“Are you finished with your inspection? I am terribly sorry, but I do not have time to entertain you right now.” After speaking, Lu Shixian ignored him and began experimenting on the newly hatched webworm larvae with the preliminarily screened strains.

Gao Mingjie naturally understood the dismissal in his tone, but he had not yet achieved his purpose for coming. Leaving was out of the question.

Pretending not to understand, he quietly moved a few steps closer. He wanted to see what this kid was made of—was he really working on a graduation project, or just wasting time?

But an expert sees the finer points. After just a few glances, Gao Mingjie understood what he was doing.

“Preparing a bacterial suspension? His technique is quite standard.” He could not help but nod repeatedly. “Using a sterile needle to pick up the inoculum and then inoculating it onto the surface of the culture medium... he did not use an inoculating loop, yet his control over the amount is surprisingly precise.”

“Mixing the suspension with a pipette instead of a vortex mixer, doing it by hand? His tapping motion is steady, and the suspension is evenly dispersed.”

“Already at cell counting? Good heavens, his chamber loading speed is incredible!”

Based on these few moves alone, Gao Mingjie could not help but compare Lu Shixian to the graduate students in his own lab.

He found there was no comparison at all. This kid was not just good; he was fast, with an unhurried, methodical quickness.

It struck him as absurd. Basic experimental skills do not rely on talent but on proficiency, which takes a great deal of time to hone.

He was not overreacting. Although experimental technique may seem low profile and unglamorous, it is highly valued in a lab.

It reflects a researcher's most fundamental qualities and directly affects the accuracy of the final results and the progress of the research project.

A graduate student who can perform various experiments skillfully and accurately is a hot commodity in any lab.

For someone as young as Lu Shixian to possess such a high level of proficiency was truly bizarre. It could only be described as a gift.

As someone on the verge of becoming a rising star in his field, yet lacking capable researchers under him, he was already tempted.

Chapter 385: From Showdown to Scholarly Discussion

Forgetting his original purpose entirely, Gao Mingjie rubbed his hands together and tentatively asked, “What year are you in, my friend?”

“First year PhD,” Lu Shixian replied without looking up.

Gao Mingjie was floored. That one sentence completely shut down the idea forming in his mind.

He himself was only thirty four; becoming a master's supervisor before thirty five was already considered rapid progress.

He had been hoping to recruit Lu Shixian into his lab after he graduated, a result that was now clearly impossible.

In his circle, every PhD candidate he knew had a world weary look on their face.

But looking at Lu Shixian, he just did not fit the part.

“Is this kid pulling my leg?” he thought. Unwilling to give up, he asked again, “How old are you? A PhD already?”

Lu Shixian was getting annoyed. The man was like a persistent piece of gum, always asking questions.

He had plenty of experience answering this one.

He simply took his student ID from his pocket and placed it on the desk. “See for yourself.”

Gao Mingjie picked it up, and his mind went blank.

It was real. As everyone knew, official IDs could not be faked.

A twenty three year old PhD from Yan University. It was the first time in his life he had ever seen such a thing. It was truly absurd.

A few minutes later, after he had finally processed this fact, he suddenly latched onto a discrepancy.

“No way. You are starting your graduation project as a first year PhD?”

Hearing this question, Lu Shixian's hands paused. He realized his cover was blown.

But it did not matter. It was just an excuse anyway.

It was not as if he was doing anything shady, so he briefly explained the reason.

Now, Gao Mingjie finally understood why Gao Jing had been acting so strangely recently.

He had a moment of realization. “No wonder the roadside trees near the Nanjiang University campus, which no one has cared about for ages, are suddenly being treated.”

“But your project not only lacks official approval, but even if you get results, the process of verification, patenting, and large scale application will probably take too long. After all, some things just move at their own pace.”

“And most importantly, your experiment is basically a lottery.”

Hearing Gao Mingjie's voice, Lu Shixian lifted his head for the first time and finally got a good look at the man. He did not seem that old, though the square framed glasses made him look a bit older.

He had not expected to run into an expert.

Gao Jing had been working with him for days and had not noticed this issue.

But this man had seen it at a glance. He had some serious skills.

That meant his story about being from the logistics office was a complete fabrication.

“I have introduced myself. Should not you do the same?” Lu Shixian put down the experimental set he had just finished and gestured for him to move to the adjacent office, which served as a break room.

Gao Mingjie had no objection. He picked up the hot tea that had just been placed before him and revealed his identity.

Hearing his name, Lu Shixian was stunned. “Huh? You are my... brother in law?”

He quickly corrected himself. “Wait, no, you are Gao Jing's uncle?”

Gao Mingjie, of course, had no idea why he was reacting so strongly and asked with some confusion, “What is it? Do I not look the part?”

Lu Shixian immediately put on an awkward but polite smile. “You do. You really do.”

“Also, it seems you have done extensive research in strain breeding?”

In that moment, what could have been a disastrous confrontation transformed into an academic exchange.

Gao Mingjie replied humbly, “I would not say extensive. My main research areas are in green biomanufacturing of functional sugars and reactor technology.”

“However, my lab does a lot of work in biofermentation, so I keep up with the field.”

“Your experimental approach makes sense from an application standpoint, but it relies heavily on luck. There is no guarantee that the wild strains you have selected will be highly effective against the fall webworm. If they are not, all your effort could be for nothing.”

Lu Shixian shrugged, unconcerned. “I am sure you know there is no other way. Tens of thousands of strains of Bacillus thuringiensis have been discovered. We can not possibly test all of them.”

“That is just not realistic, is it?”

“But the vast majority of strains do have some inactivating effect on fall webworms; it is just a matter of efficiency.”

“This is not mathematics. From a practical application perspective, if I can find an answer that is not too far from the optimal solution, is that not a success?”

“And I think the probability of that is not small.”

Gao Mingjie nodded at him in approval. “It seems your main field of study is in applied sciences?”

“I have been teaching at the School of Bioengineering for many years, and very few graduate students grasp this point.”

“They always get bogged down by the rigid rules in textbooks and cannot think outside the box.”

Lu Shixian shook his head. “That cannot be helped. Students are students because they cannot yet draw knowledge directly from practice.”

“Ultimately, textbook knowledge originates from practice, so there is a natural time lag.”

“In my personal opinion, the biggest gap between universities is the size of this time lag.”

Clap, clap, clap! After hearing this, Gao Mingjie actually applauded him. “You are right. Take our Nanjiang University, for example. Our life engineering program is one of the best in the country, and the knowledge we impart comes largely from our faculty's practical teaching in recent years.”

“But in other majors, the textbooks students use are often written by predecessors ten or even twenty years ago.”

“While classics never go out of style, knowledge must be updated.”

Lu Shixian concluded their exchange with a famous quote.

“As Zangwill said: Everything changes, except change itself!”

Gao Mingjie left soon after, and their academic discussion came to a close.

Lu Shixian found this uncle to be quite thoughtful. To become the head of a lab at his age was a testament to his ability.

In fact, many seemingly ordinary universities had excellent teachers like him hidden within their walls.

Meanwhile, many so called prestigious universities produced plenty of so called experts and professors.

Based on his intuition, Lu Shixian felt that Gao Mingjie's future achievements would not stop here.

Lu Shixian glanced at the time. It was already one thirty in the morning.

The stars were sparse in the night sky, but his experiment had to continue.

Chapter 386: Scattered Like Smoke in a Blink

Lu Shixian's experimental approach was both novel and clear. The protocol he designed was not actually complex, and the workload was not as large as one might think.

The reason they were exhausted was that it was simply not a two person job.

Lu Shixian was now feeling the disadvantages of working alone. More than once during his experiments, he thought, “It seems I really need a permanent team.”

He had never been a boss before, but with the recent overall improvement in his knowledge and abilities, making him repeat low level tasks was clearly not an efficient use of his time.

He was beginning to understand more and more: when it comes to researching the fundamental laws of natural science, going it alone is no longer practical. One person can go fast, but not far; only a group can go far.

This was especially true without his system's support. He considered himself just an ordinary person with a bit of good luck, which made relying on the strength of a collective even more necessary.

At that moment, he finally made up his mind. “I cannot be so small minded anymore. The twenty first century is the century of talent. I need to start planning ahead.”

“But right now, I am just an employee. Becoming the boss will take time and careful planning.”

Lu Shixian briefly analyzed his situation. His strengths and weaknesses were both quite clear.

His advantage, naturally, was that he had already published three first author papers in Cell, one of the top three international journals. This was a verifiable achievement that might not be a huge deal abroad.
However, in China, it was considered a hallmark of quality and had thus gained some recognition in scientific circles both at home and abroad. While not yet significant, it was a promising start.

Furthermore, tempered by the Yimi Project, Lu Shixian was not lacking in team leadership experience. In other words, the practical side of things could be implemented at any time.

His disadvantage, naturally, was his age. In an era that valued seniority, this was a major drawback.

Moreover, he was just a doctoral student, not even a lecturer or a researcher. He currently had no official means to apply for and lead a project, and this was the most critical problem.

No project meant no funding. And without money, who would work for him for free?

Thinking of this, a person suddenly came to Lu Shixian’s mind.

Speaking of which, there really was a sucker doing unpaid labor for him right now.

In that instant, wait a second!

Could improving one's skills and training oneself be called unpaid labor?

Lu Shixian suddenly had an epiphany, the kind that felt like a sudden, profound enlightenment.

Another three days passed.

Lu Shixian's experiment was finally drawing to a close.

The strain he named BtLG43 ultimately stood out from its eighty competitors.

The name was derived from the first letters of Lu Shixian's and Gao Jing's surnames, while the number came from its original designation.

His luck seemed to be quite good.

Not only did this strain exhibit high insecticidal activity against young larvae, but most critically, it also possessed considerable lethality against older larvae.

Lu Shixian had wanted to study its biological characteristics with Gao Jing, but she had no interest in microbiology whatsoever, nor did she have the foundational knowledge required.

Adhering to the principle of tailoring instruction to the student and prescribing the right medicine for the illness, he ultimately abandoned the idea.

Through his subsequent research, he discovered that the parasporal crystals of strain 43 were rhomboid in shape, and its growth curve was essentially identical to that of the standard strain.

This was good news, as it indicated that its cultivation characteristics were similar to the standard strain, meaning it could be cultured using conventional methods.

At the same time, he found that the genotype of strain 43 differed from several mainstream insecticidal strains currently in use.

However, it also unavoidably displayed a common characteristic of the entire species: it had a certain insecticidal activity against other pests, lacking specificity.

But its primary target was still the fall webworm, against which it had the best insecticidal effect.

Compared to similar Bacillus thuringiensis biopesticide formulations on the market, its pest-killing activity was increased by 22%, 18%, and 16%, respectively.

An average inactivation rate increase of 18.67%. He saw it in the data—this was the strain he was looking for.

Within the entire Bacillus thuringiensis family, it might not be the absolute best against the fall webworm, but it was destined to be the first to become famous.

As Lu Shixian said to Gao Jing at the end of the experiment: "This is a true meeting of the minds! A real win-win."

Because of this, Lu Shixian finally had the leisure to go to the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau and check on the current situation.

He ambled slowly to the entrance of the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau. Being highly recognizable, he was allowed straight into the main building after a quick glance.

He made his way to the third floor with ease, to the conference room previously designated for their research group.

As soon as he entered, he heard a familiar voice.

"Well, if it isn't Dr. Lu?"

"To what do we owe the honor of your visit today? I wonder how your research is progressing, Dr. Lu?" His old friend, Wang Congfa, like Lu Shixian, had been pulling all nighters recently. His spirits were low, and he was looking for some amusement. Seeing Lu Shixian was like seeing a savior, and he seized the opportunity to tease him.

Lu Shixian had anticipated this and replied with a feigned sigh, "This research has been incredibly difficult. I have crossed mountains and seas, spending immense time and effort; I have also pushed through crowds of people, only to see it all scatter like smoke in the blink of an eye."

"Thankfully, in the end, I did not fail my mission!"

Hearing the first part, Wang Congfa was about to offer some insincere words of comfort, but the last sentence left him stunned.

"What?"

"You're saying you've finished?"

"Are you serious? You're not joking, are you?"

Wang Congfa's rapid-fire questions of shock and disbelief immediately drew the attention of everyone discussing in the conference room.

"Oh! Dr. Lu is back." Feng Dezhang, leading a few others, smiled at Lu Shixian before he even got close. "Little Lu, you've lost quite a bit of weight since last time! You're looking a bit gaunt. It seems this trip to the countryside was really tough on you."

"This won't do. I'll have a word with the cafeteria chef in a few days and have him whip up some good dishes to improve the meals."

In the world of adults, "in a few days" means "in a few years," and "when there's a chance" means "wait for a chance."

Lu Shixian waved his hand, declining the pleasantries. "It wasn't that hard, really. But I did have some small gains, and it was a good opportunity to lose some fat."

After a few exchanges, the topic finally turned to Wang Congfa's unusual reaction. "Director Wang, what were you and Dr. Lu whispering about just now? Why so surprised?"

Wang Congfa had regained his composure by then, silently chiding himself for, as a veteran official, losing his cool so easily.

But he cursed Lu Shixian internally for being so sly. If you have something to say, just say it.

What was with this whole wind-up before the pitch? The contrast between the beginning and the end was so stark that it caught him completely off guard, causing him to make a bit of a scene.

Chapter 387: Sudden Incident

So, he simply repeated what Lu Shixian had just said: "Dr. Lu says he has found a comprehensive solution for the fall webworm problem in Nanjiang Province."

As soon as he said this, the faces of the others in the room remained unchanged, showing no reaction at all, because everyone took it as a joke.

Clearly, this was Wang Congfa's blatant revenge. He didn't believe Lu Shixian at all and, clinging to his usual perception, assumed Lu Shixian was just boasting to show off.

If he were the only one to hear it, wouldn't that be boring?

Feng Dezhang, however, came to Lu Shixian's aid, smiling as he asked, "Little Lu, if you have any good ideas, don't keep them to yourself."

"Although the pest problem for the Nanjiang City roadside tree project is now under effective control, we need to pool our ideas. We can't just ignore the other regions. If things get serious, we'll at least have made early preparations."

The others chimed in. With the research group's main task completed, they had no more pressing concerns, and the atmosphere was quite relaxed.

Lu Shixian could easily see that no one was taking him seriously. He was about to say a few perfunctory words to play along, taking the ladder Feng Dezhang had offered him.

Suddenly, just then.

A staff member in work clothes, holding a folder, trotted into the conference room.

"Director Feng, Director Wang, a secret document just arrived from the Public Opinion Center. According to the signed instructions from the Bureau's main leadership, please proceed immediately to the small conference room on the top floor for an emergency ad-hoc meeting in five minutes."

"Oh, and Secretary Peng also gave a verbal instruction that members of the expert panel need to be present as well."

After the staff member left, most of the people present looked at each other, clueless as to what had happened.

Feng Dezhang and Wang Congfa, however, frowned. As long-time players in the system, having navigated the Nanjiang forestry sector for years, they understood the weight of the staffer's words and had an inkling of what was going on.

Such urgent notifications usually meant one of two things.

One was good news, like an important leader's inspection or a commendation from a higher department, which were often announced on short notice.

The other was bad news, typically a major, sudden forest fire.

During the dry, hot seasons, a few fires were expected each year during the forest fire prevention period.

They had encountered this sort of thing more than once.

But the strange part was the source of the document. They knew that with the rapid development of internet technology, the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau had followed the trend and established a Public Opinion Monitoring Center.

Of course, this department couldn't compare to core departments like the Pest and Fire Monitoring Centers.

So, urgent matters usually came from the core departments. Since when did a message from the Public Opinion Monitoring Center warrant an emergency meeting?

But regardless, since it was a directive from the leadership, it had to be followed.

Feng Dezhang counted the people from the lab. "Little Lu, you've arrived just in time. Including you, all the members of the expert panel are here."

"You all heard what Little Qi just said, right?"

"Please follow me to the eighth-floor conference room via the elevator."

Perhaps driven by curiosity, no one, including Lu Shixian, had any objections, and they quickly set off.

After all, they had been here for so many days; a little more time wouldn't hurt.

Lu Shixian followed the crowd unhurriedly, not expecting his spur of the moment visit to coincide with such an unexpected event.

As the group crowded into the elevator, besides Feng Dezhang, Wang Congfa, and the professors from the expert panel, there were others who were presumably from the Forestry Bureau.

No one spoke. Without even trying, Lu Shixian could feel the oppressive atmosphere inside the elevator.

It seemed something serious had indeed happened. But what he couldn't figure out was that matters related to public opinion were usually disputes or conflicts, which would naturally be handled by the bureau's public complaints department.

Why would they need to summon the expert panel?

It wasn't just the old professors; even Lu Shixian himself had to admit that everyone has their specialty. In the field of conflict resolution, they were mere elementary students; their academic credentials were of no use.

Could it be related to a technical field?

Mulling it over, Lu Shixian followed the group into the conference room.

The conference room was high-spec, but except for a nameplate placed at the center of the stage—bearing one of the few names Lu Shixian happened to recognize, Chu Weifeng, the head of the Forestry Bureau—all was bare.

He remembered the name because, at their last meeting, Chu had spent a full hour and a half elaborating on his "three main points," which had left a deep impression on Lu Shixian.

Even from the back row, Lu Shixian could see how grim his expression was; clearly, he was not in a good mood.

All the other seats were empty, not only lacking tea but even name cards.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but shake his head. They didn't even have time to prepare for the meeting. It seemed the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau was in deep trouble this time.

He had just found a random seat in the back when the meeting was officially announced.

This time, there was no long-winded speech from Chu Weifeng. He got straight to the point. "Comrades, I've gathered you all here today because of a public opinion incident that recently appeared on the internet. It has spread widely online, causing a very negative impact and tarnishing the positive image of our Nanjiang."

"Just a moment ago, the provincial leader in charge called me personally to give instructions. The First Secretary is paying close attention to this matter and has ordered us to rectify the situation as quickly as possible, mitigate the damage, and eliminate the negative influence."

The more he listened, the more curious Lu Shixian became.

An ordinary issue would be significant if it reached the county level. For an incident to alarm a major provincial leader, it had to be something big.

It looked like the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau was in for a rough time.

As expected, apart from a few who were already in the know, a murmur went through the majority of the crowd.

In the system, whose words carried the most weight?

Naturally, it was the major provincial leaders. To the localities, they were like viceroys.

What was most important? Stability.

Why did so many people seek not to achieve merit, but simply to avoid mistakes?

A practical issue right in front of them was the annual performance evaluation. If no major problems occurred during the year, you'd at least get a "pass."

But if a mistake was made, one person's error could cause the entire unit's evaluation to suffer.

A poor evaluation directly affected the year-end bonuses.

Therefore, many people in the room were highly concerned but utterly bewildered, racking their brains to figure out where their work had gone wrong.

At that moment, Chu Weifeng slammed his hand on the table. "It seems none of you know what has happened."

"Good, the city's official notice has already arrived. I'll read it out for you."

"Speaking of which, this brings great honor to our Forestry Bureau, giving us a moment in the national spotlight."

Chapter 388: A Hypothesis Becomes Reality

"On July 23rd, a user named 'Nanjiang Wanderer' posted on social media, accusing the Nanjiang City Forestry Bureau of inaction, allowing a pest infestation to spread and causing severe losses to his ten-thousand-mu forest farm, resulting in the loss of millions in investment. After its release, the post triggered a public outcry. In a short period, it garnered 235,647 views, 62,442 forwards, and 12,331 comments. It has had a negative impact nationwide and sparked large-scale public gatherings in Southern China, posing a significant risk to social stability. The consequences are extremely severe."

After reading it all in one breath, Chu Weifeng scanned the audience and raised his voice. "Therefore, Nanjiang City is issuing a public criticism of the City Forestry Bureau for failing to fulfill its primary responsibility in pest control. Relevant key leaders are instructed to take this matter with utmost seriousness, reflect deeply, and complete rectification within three days to eliminate the public opinion risk."

Hearing this, a number of people breathed a small sigh of relief.

While it was indeed a formal notice, it was a public opinion notice, and it came from the city, not the province.

It called for rectification first, not immediate accountability. This meant the situation was still salvageable; at least the punishment hadn't been handed down yet.

But even so, it hung over their heads like the Sword of Damocles, a powerful deterrent.

Chu Weifeng's eyes narrowed as he began to call people out sternly. "The notice is very clear. So, I'd like the comrades from the department responsible for pest control to explain how exactly we were 'inactive,' shall we?"

This was, in fact, a merciless move. Within any organization, regardless of rank, there's an unspoken rule to leave people an out, a way to save face.

This kind of public shaming could make it impossible for someone to recover, but it also showed the extent of Chu Weifeng's fury. It was clear he had been reprimanded elsewhere and was now passing the pressure down the line.

A few seconds later, an official in the front row began to speak. "As the leader overseeing forest pest control, I have been personally managing this year's prevention efforts. Although we have consistently emphasized the importance of control and pushed forward with the work, the fact that this has caused such a rare, large-scale public opinion crisis and produced a negative impact makes me feel deeply ashamed. I will reflect on this in my future work and actively implement the necessary rectifications."

Listening to this, Lu Shixian had to give the man a thumbs-up. It was practically a textbook example of how to shift blame and make excuses.

The pressure was now on the next player.

A few seconds later, to Lu Shixian's surprise, Wang Congfa stood up from his seat.

But it made sense. He was the director of the Forestry Pest Control Station, the front-line operational department. If there was a problem with pests, he couldn't escape responsibility.

At this moment, Wang Congfa looked distressed. In a somewhat aggrieved tone, he said, "Secretary Chu, I can only say that we were unlucky."

"The individual in question operates a private forest farm. At most, we only have a responsibility to guide and advise."

"This is clearly stated in Article Three of the 'Regulations on the Development of Private Forest Farms.' Private forest owners legally enjoy full autonomy in their operations. We can't forcibly interfere and make him carry out pest control."

As he said this, the leader who had spoken just before him nodded slightly, thinking to himself that old Wang was reliable after all.

He bore the responsibility as the supervising leader, so it was inappropriate for him to say such things. But coming from Wang Congfa, it was perfectly fine.

The statement was well-reasoned, and he was a veteran of the forestry system. An old comrade nearing retirement, in some respects, actually possessed certain privileges.

Even the top boss wouldn't be overly demanding of them in certain areas, lest it ignite a fuse.

Sure enough, Chu Weifeng's expression softened considerably. "Director Wang, please, have a seat."

"Some things aren't resolved just because we say so. I've seen everyone's hard work and effort this year."

"But someone has to take responsibility. It can't be the city or the province, can it?"

"Since our Nanjiang Forestry Bureau's name was attached to it from the start, we've already lost. It's our duty to alleviate the worries of the city and the province."

"Besides, we're not here to assign blame right now. We're here to deal with the matter at hand, to resolve this situation and let the heat die down as quickly as possible. I believe the leadership will give us a fair judgment in due time."

After Chu Weifeng finished, Wang Congfa was clearly much more convinced.

Lu Shixian was now thoroughly impressed, wanting to give the man a round of applause on the spot.

To be able to speak so skillfully to both superiors and subordinates—no wonder he was the one in charge.

With the dressing-down concluded, the meeting officially transitioned into a technical discussion.

The agenda now focused on how to help the individual in question with pest extermination and prevention.

It was the same old routine: how to divide the labor, how to handle the process, how to make arrangements. A plan was quickly hammered out.

Just as the meeting was about to end, Feng Dezhang asked a question that left everyone stunned.

"So, what exactly is the specific pest?" Seeing all eyes turn to him, Feng Dezhang subtly shifted his body to reveal the team of experts behind him. "So we can prescribe the right treatment."

At this, Lu Shixian couldn't help but chuckle inwardly while shaking his head in lament. This was bureaucracy at its finest, though he wasn't sure if it was unique to Nanjiang.

This was exactly why he had always wanted to stay out of this circle.

The meeting was almost over, and only now were they asking the most critical question for solving the problem.

By comparison, the world of scientific research was highly efficient and direct.

The report obviously hadn't gone into such detail as to specify the type of pest, but Chu Weifeng had his own sources of information.

He thought for a few seconds, then answered, "I think it's something called the fall webworm?"

Lu Shixian froze when he heard this.

But he didn't expect Chu Weifeng to add, "The fall webworm is a pest that just invaded Nanjiang this year. I heard you all were already working on preventative research before this public outcry?"

"I thought that fall webworm prevention plan for the roadside trees you submitted for approval earlier was quite good. It shows you've been doing your work well."

At these words, Feng Dezhang's expression became rather peculiar.

Wang Congfa's expression was one of smug satisfaction.

At this point, Lu Shixian really couldn't take it anymore. The corner of his mouth twitched.

What was this?

He was certain that Chu Weifeng had no idea about the inner workings of the situation.

Something that had only been a hypothetical scenario had, unbelievably, become a reality right under their noses.

It had to be said, there were plenty of people who understood administration but not technology.

Lu Shixian was silent for a moment, at a loss for words.

But in this situation, he was unable, and powerless, to change anything.

After all, he was just an ordinary researcher.

Sometimes, just doing your own job properly was hard enough.
But he had a nagging feeling that this matter wasn't so simple.

After all, who could know the outcome until the very last moment?

Not even him.

Because the moment he was reborn, this worldline had already been altered by his very existence.

His every word, every action, even every thought, was like the flap of a butterfly's wings, sending ripples to every corner of the world.

No one could predict the future.

Chapter 389: What's Coming Cannot Be Avoided

The meeting was over.

Stepping out of the government building, they were met with a vast, clear sky. Yet, in the hearts of many, it felt as if dark clouds were gathering, threatening to overwhelm the city.

Although the situation hadn't reached its worst point, the Provincial First Secretary had spoken, giving the city a three day deadline.

If they could resolve the issue within these three days, the crisis would be averted.

But if they couldn't, the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau was truly headed for a major shake up.

After walking just a few steps, Lu Shixian heard someone calling his name from behind. "Xiao Lu, wait a moment."

He turned to see it was Feng Dezhang and stopped to see what he wanted.

"Xiao Lu, are you joining us this afternoon?" Feng Dezhang asked as he approached. "You were at the meeting just now. Director Chu is taking this matter very seriously. He's leading a team to the concerned party's home to mediate, determined to see it through."

"Although he requested that the members of the expert team go along, this matter doesn't really have much to do with you. You're not from Nanjiang, and you're not familiar with the specific situation here."

"If you have other things to do and can't make it, I can put in a word for you. It's no problem."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian immediately understood that Feng Dezhang was doing him a favor.

To be honest, the matter really didn't have much to do with him. His task, at most, was to help with the street tree project.

One could even say that the street tree project had no essential connection to him. Helping out was a kindness, but not helping was perfectly understandable.

Jokingly, one could say Academician Gao had sent him here for a relaxing vacation.

Now that this trouble had cropped up midway, most people would want to avoid it at all costs. It was perfectly normal for Feng Dezhang to assume he might feel the same way.

Although he was likely only showing this consideration because of Academician Gao's backing, he had helped Lu Shixian out of a few tight spots, and Lu Shixian had to acknowledge the gesture.

So, he smiled and said, "Director Feng, thank you very much for your kind offer."

"However, I think it's good for a young person to see and experience more. There's no harm in it."

"If I ever encounter a similar situation in the future, I'll have some experience to draw on, won't I?"

There was nothing wrong with his words. Feng Dezhang could find no reason to persuade him otherwise and instead felt a sense of admiration for him.

Previously, he had thought of Lu Shixian as a student from an ivory tower, inexperienced and with little exposure to society, which had led to his earlier actions.

But time truly reveals a person's character.

After observing him for so many days, he found that although Lu Shixian's methods were sometimes a bit idealistic, he was a person of integrity and not driven by selfish motives.

He reached out and patted Lu Shixian on the shoulder. "Alright then. Just make sure you stay safe. If something unexpected happens, I might not be able to look out for you right away."

Lu Shixian nodded and thanked him again.

One thirty in the afternoon.

What was normally the lunch break for the entire Forestry Bureau had now become the official departure time.

The turnout was quite impressive. All five of the Forestry Bureau's official vehicles were dispatched.

In addition, there was a large bus specifically for the expert team members and others who couldn't fit in the official cars.

Upon boarding the bus, the few professors inside were clearly surprised by Lu Shixian's presence.

For some unknown reason, Professor Chen Bolin from Nanjiang University seemed rather enthusiastic at the moment. He leaned in and asked in a low voice, "Xiao Lu, how did you get involved in this mess? We old timers have no choice. We have some connections with the provincial forestry system and couldn't turn them down."

"But there's no need for you to participate, is there?"

Lu Shixian had no choice but to repeat the explanation he had just given Feng Dezhang.

With that, Chen Bolin had nothing more to say, but he did offer a piece of advice. "This is different from being in the lab. It's your first time on the front lines with the public. Remember to listen more, observe more, and speak less."

It was sound advice for a fearless novice.

But having come from a humble background and possessing the experience of a past life, he certainly wouldn't be intimidated.

Nevertheless, Lu Shixian nodded gratefully, accepting his goodwill.

After some inquiries, Lu Shixian learned their destination: Yang County.

It was a county located in the southwestern part of Nanjiang Province, over four hundred kilometers from the city center.

The name rang a bell for Lu Shixian. It was a relatively remote place, even more so than Qing County, which he had visited before.

Its natural forest resources were also quite rich. Lu Shixian had previously considered it as a potential site for his survey, but had ultimately given up on the idea due to the distance.

Lu Shixian shook his head with a sigh. What's coming cannot be avoided. That saying was really true.

After a full three hour drive, the convoy finally came to a stop within Yang County.

Through the glass, Lu Shixian could see from a distance what must have been the local leaders of Yang County coming to receive them.

But after only a few minutes, the convoy started moving again.

Evidently, the pressed Chu Weifeng was in no mood to linger.

Summer days were the longest of the year.

It was already five in the afternoon, but the sky was only just beginning to dim. Fortunately, the afterglow of the setting sun illuminated the road ahead for everyone.

The vehicles came to a steady stop at the location where the public outcry had originated.

Lu Shixian got out of the car and looked around.

The so called private forest farm must be the few mountains before his eyes.

There were clear signs of artificial planting. The trees on the northernmost mountain were dense and tall, obviously of a considerable age.

Near the southern side, at the foot of the mountain facing Lu Shixian, were saplings that were only a few months old.

At that moment, Lu Shixian began to follow the group forward.

After just a few steps, he saw through the crowd the person in question, talking with Chu Weifeng.

He was a middle aged man. Perhaps due to long term outdoor labor, his face was dark and his skin was coarse.

It was unclear what Chu Weifeng had said to him.

The man's emotions were running high, and he roared, "Understand? How do you expect me to understand?"

"I've been planting trees for years, turning these thousands of acres of barren mountains into green forests, and now there's a pest infestation."

"Years of my blood, sweat, and tears are about to be destroyed!"

Lu Shixian moved a little closer and heard Chu Weifeng's voice. "Comrade Sun Peng, please, don't get so worked up!"

"The reason so many of us have come today is to solve this problem with the utmost sincerity, to help you out of this difficulty as quickly as possible."

"How can we reach an agreement if you're so emotional? Right?"

After a few more words, the man named Sun Peng began to calm down.

Finally, after an hour of conversation, Sun Peng agreed to the mediation plan proposed by Chu Weifeng.

The Provincial Forestry Bureau would provide guidance to completely resolve the pest problem in his forest farm.

At the same time, for the trees that had already died due to the infestation, compensation would be provided in the form of a hardship subsidy from the Yang County Finance Bureau, paid through a transfer payment according to local relief standards.

Chapter 390: Lu Shixian's Doubts

In return, Sun Peng had to take down the social media post that had caused the public outcry and publish a new one with a message to the effect of: Thank you to the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau for their great help. This was an issue with the farm's own management and has now been properly resolved.

Chu Weifeng truly lived up to his position as the head of a provincial department. He was experienced in dealing with the public. By offering help with one hand and money with the other, his public relations approach was practically flawless, nearly quelling the conflict before it could escalate.

The person involved had said it was a misunderstanding, so the message was clear: the show was over for all the online spectators.

The rest seemed to become simple.

It didn't even require the expert team. The Forestry Bureau's own personnel were sufficient to handle the pest problem at Sun Peng's farm.

But Chu Weifeng, whether for the sake of caution or to reassure Sun Peng, asked the expert team to help conduct a detailed inspection of the forest farm.

Of course, Chu Weifeng was most likely referring to Professors Feng Dezhang, Chen Bolin, Li Changzheng, and Jiang Qichang. Lu Shixian was just an add on.

He didn't mind, however, and followed behind them into the forest farm for a detailed survey.

Before long, the survey results were in.

The main tree species on Sun Peng's farm were economic varieties like poplar, pine, and willow, most of which were on the American white moth's menu.

The trees on his farm were extensively infested by the American white moth. Large white webs could be seen on almost every mountain.

The damage rate was nearly 90%, with a tree mortality rate of 24% and a sapling mortality rate of 56%.

These figures were rather staggering. The economic losses would amount to hundreds of thousands, if not a million. No wonder he was so agitated.

From this perspective, it looked like the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau was about to take a significant financial hit.

But an infestation of this scale was mere small potatoes to the resourceful Provincial Forestry Bureau. After all, a single street tree project was worth over a million.

Chu Weifeng immediately instructed the pest control station to arrange for personnel to begin extermination.

By the time everything was arranged, it was already seven or eight in the evening. Chu Weifeng was preparing to return to the city to oversee the work.

Aside from the personnel staying behind to deal with the pests, others were also about to return to Nanjiang City.

"Xiao Lu, aren't you going back with us? They're about to start spraying pesticides here," Feng Dezhang asked, surprised to see his name wasn't on the list of those returning.

Lu Shixian smiled and shook his head. "It took so long to get down here, it would be a waste to go back right away. I'll just take a walk. You don't need to worry about me."

Hearing his reply, Feng Dezhang didn't press the matter. He wasn't Lu Shixian's babysitter.

Although the incident was preliminarily resolved and about to conclude, he was also busy discussing the specific extermination plan with Wang Congfa.

Lu Shixian left the scene and walked alone along the only paved cement road.

He watched the road with his eyes, but his mind had already drifted far away.

In fact, he had a doubt for some time, but since no one else had brought it up, he couldn't very well voice it.

That was, Sun Peng was likely not a novice at managing a forest farm. Knowing that the pest was the American white moth, why hadn't he taken preventive measures earlier?

Why did he wait until the damage was severe before posting about it, creating a public outcry online to attract the Provincial Forestry Bureau's intervention?

It just didn't make sense.

First, since the country entered the age of the information explosion, hundreds of millions of pieces of information were generated daily nationwide.

How could he be so sure that his post would attract attention?

Although Andy Warhol had predicted that in the future, everyone would be world famous for 15 minutes.

The problem was, with such a large population in China, if everyone lined up for their turn, the waiting time would be astronomical.

Second, although the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau had taken the loss this time, they weren't fools to be taken advantage of for no reason.

This meant that the benefits Sun Peng could gain from this incident were limited.

To bet on a long shot for an uncertain reward.

Even a middle school student wouldn't make such a choice.

So, what was the real reason?

Lu Shixian had a feeling he was getting closer to the truth.

But he was missing the final piece of the puzzle.

After thinking hard to no avail, Lu Shixian decided to stop dwelling on it.

Some things couldn't be forced.

The moon was already high in the sky.

On this midsummer night, which should have been sweltering, it felt exceptionally cool.

Lu Shixian tightened his jacket and prepared to head to the temporary guesthouse that had been arranged for them.

The place was a several minute drive from the town, and walking was out of the question. Staying in a hotel with better conditions was a luxury he couldn't hope for.

However, Lu Shixian didn't mind. He hadn't been raised in a pampered environment.

But when he actually arrived at the lodging, he was still a bit surprised.

It wasn't as rustic as being made of mud bricks, but it was just a single story house built of red bricks.

Perhaps the only decoration was the layer of whitewash on the exterior.

When he arrived, the lights in the house were off.

Lu Shixian knew this was likely to save electricity, and saving electricity meant saving money.

His family had done the same during difficult times in the past.

It was only after Lu Shixian started elementary school that they stopped, because he had homework to do at night.

Outside, an old man was puffing away on a dry pipe.

The glow from the pipe's bowl was the only source of light.

His surname was Gao; that was the only information Lu Shixian had.

"Is that Uncle Zhao?" Lu Shixian called out from across the earthen courtyard. "I'm the university student the village arranged to stay here for the night. My name is Xiao Lu."

Hearing his voice, the old man relaxed his guard, as the information matched perfectly.

"Kid, what took you so long?" the old man said as he went inside to get him a stool. "I was just wondering if the village was pulling a fast one on old Zhao here."

"A university student, that's good! You have a bright future!"

"A pity my grandson wasn't so lucky. He went out to work after middle school and hasn't been back more than a few times in years."

Lu Shixian skillfully continued the conversation. "Sounds like your grandson is very busy. He must be making good money!"

The old man took the pipe from his mouth and spat.

"Money, my foot!"

"I'm lucky if he doesn't come asking for my coffin money."

Lu Shixian asked, "Then why doesn't he come back to see you?"

The old man sighed. "It's because we're poor, isn't it?"

"Out here in these barren mountains, we're lucky if we can grow enough to feed ourselves each year."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian asked with confusion, "That can't be right. For people like you who have mountains, shouldn't you receive a natural forest subsidy every year? And for the land, shouldn't there be a farmland fertility subsidy?"

At his words, the old man looked at Lu Shixian with some surprise. "You look young, kid, but you seem to know a thing or two."

Chapter 391: Old Man Gao's Ordinary Life

Lu Shixian smiled. "I'm a country boy myself, so I know a little."

After just a few sentences, the old man's attitude toward Lu Shixian had warmed considerably.

"You're right, but before there was the natural forest protection policy, we could go into the mountains to cut firewood or sell timber."

"It was tiring work, sure, but the income for a year was much more than this little subsidy," the old man said, putting down his pipe with a sigh. "Later, they started the 'returning farmland to forest' program, and we lost a lot of our arable land. The grain we grow is just enough for ourselves."

Lu Shixian was surprised. "That can't be right."

"As I recall, the policy was to return sloped farmland that was prone to soil erosion. Why would your regular farmland be converted?"

The old man gestured toward the back of his house. "Look around. In these big mountains, what isn't sloped farmland?"

"Most of it was cleared from the barren mountains in the past. Now that it's been converted back, there's not much left."

Lu Shixian was speechless for a long time, not knowing what to say.

This was the first time he had felt such an emotion.

He couldn't help but think of himself. Although he also came from the countryside, he was only a few dozen kilometers from the major eastern city of Jinling.

Enjoying the benefits of its radiating transportation and commerce, coupled with the geographical advantage of vast plains, his family's life could be considered prosperous.

So perhaps his so called empathy had been nothing more than wishful thinking all along.

On the path of change toward science and progress, whether passively or actively, there was always a small group of people silently making sacrifices.

But the old man was philosophical. He had walked a long road, and his perspective had broadened.

"Some of the old folks used to protest, you know. They made a real big fuss."

"But even if we didn't say it, we all knew in our hearts that what they were doing was right."

"I, Old Gao, never went to school, I'm uncultured, so I don't know how to put it, but it's a great thing."

"Back when we used to go up the mountain to sell timber, we thought about this problem."

"We can make a living selling trees now, but one day we'll run out of mountains to climb, and we'll run out of trees to cut."

"What will our children and grandchildren cut down then?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian gave the old man a thumbs up, but then he heard him continue. "But back then, the trees didn't belong to any one of us."

"If you didn't cut them, someone else would."

"And even if you didn't want to, you couldn't. You had a big family to feed, didn't you?"

"So even though we knew it was wrong, we continued doing it for generations."

"It's better now! Nobody can cut them, and instead, we all have to plant trees together. The government even gives subsidies for planting saplings."

"Before, we worked so we wouldn't starve."

"Now, even if we don't work and just live on this subsidy and do some odd jobs, we won't starve."

"But doing the wrong thing all the time and doing the right thing all the time, it just feels different in your heart."

"My old wife is gone, and I don't have many years left. I only have one wish now, and that's to plant trees all over those barren mountains behind my house and leave them for future generations."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was deeply moved.

His words were the most ordinary language, hardly eloquent.

But it was in these plain sentences that an extraordinary meaning was contained, touching him deeply.

"So how much have you planted now?" Lu Shixian asked.

Hearing the question, the old man smiled and held up three fingers. "Three mountains."

"Been planting for ten years! One of them is really high, takes more than an hour to climb," the old man said with immense pride. "But I don't go up there often anymore. I'm old, can't climb like I used to."

"If you're interested, I can take you to see it tomorrow. But we can only look from a distance. If we go up now, I'm afraid there might be bears."

"Okay!" Lu Shixian nodded emphatically, but then he heard the old man ask him what he was doing in this godforsaken place.

He replied, "Do you know Sun Peng? His forest farm has a pest problem. It's all over the news. I came along to take a look."

The old man, however, grunted. "I know him. Isn't that Old Sun the Second's eldest son?"

"His family is certainly resourceful. They've done well for themselves over the years by contracting all the surrounding barren mountains to plant trees."

Noticing the old man's seemingly poor attitude toward Sun Peng, Lu Shixian asked thoughtfully, "Isn't he just planting trees on barren mountains, just like you?"

In response, the old man spat and cursed. "You call what he does planting a forest?"

"He plants saplings he gets by spending money and using connections to ship them in from outside. They only take two or three years to grow. They grow fast, so the forest matures quickly, which is why his family has received the most subsidies over the years."

Lu Shixian nodded, though he couldn't really comment on such matters.
While it reeked of opportunism, it was technically within the rules.

But then he heard the old man continue, “The kind of tree he’s planting is highly susceptible to pests.”

“It’s fine when there’s no infestation, but if one breaks out, all his work will be for nothing.”

“But he gets subsidies for planting trees. If they fail, it’s no skin off his back. The state takes the full loss.”

Lu Shixian fell silent and shook his head, unsure of what to say.

Speculators existed everywhere, no matter the place.

This was why he wasn't a fan of such behavior.

If they succeeded and struck it rich, everyone was happy.

But if they failed, it seemed there was little to no loss, or at least nothing that truly stung.

As a reincarnator, no one had a greater advantage if he wanted to make a fortune through speculation.

He knew the direction of economic policy for the next decade. Whether in investment or speculation, he would be invincible.

But since his rebirth, he had never used this foresight to buy lottery tickets, bet on games, or play the stock market.

The initial accumulation of capital is always bloody, built upon the shattered foundations of countless families.

Even if it hadn't yet reached the level of actual crime.

Call him old-fashioned or stubborn.

But a gentleman makes his fortune honorably, and Lu Shixian steered clear of such paths.

He let out a long breath, shaking the cluttered thoughts from his mind, and asked again, “Has Sun Peng’s family sprayed pesticides on the trees before?”

Old Man Gao seemed a bit confused by the question but nodded anyway. “They do! Of course they do.”

“But it seems they haven’t been spraying as frequently as they have been recently. In the past, the pesticide smell would be gone in two or three days. Now, you can still smell it after many days have passed.” Old Man Gao added in a gossipy tone, “Here’s a funny thing—not even foxtail grass grows over there now. It’s a good thing we don’t have many crops here, or the neighbors would’ve had a serious problem with him by now.”

“What’s wrong? Why are you asking about this?”

Lu Shixian shook his head. “It’s nothing.”

Just a moment ago, he felt as if he had grasped something, but the feeling was fleeting, like an illusion, gone in a flash.

A long while later, night had fallen.

The air grew cooler, the chill deepening.

“Let’s go, it’s warm inside.” Old Man Gao’s voice reminded him. “That’s the one good thing about this place. It’s cool in the summer, you don’t even need a fan. It even gets a little cold at night.”

“I’ll find you a thick quilt later. Make sure you use it.”

“Alright!” Lu Shixian snapped out of his daze, picked up his stool, and headed into the house.

Only the howling of the cold wind was left behind.

As if it were trying to tell a story…

Chapter 392: The One in Ten Thousand Possibility

He slept until he woke up naturally.

It was just past six in the morning.

Lu Shixian was awakened on schedule by his biological clock.

However, someone had woken up even earlier than him.

After a breakfast provided with warm hospitality, it was time for him to leave.

Lu Shixian thanked Old Man Gao and said his goodbyes, ready to set off once more.

This was his first night in Yang County.

Though it was just one of thousands of nights in his life, it had left a deep and memorable impression on him.

Walking on the country path, the morning breeze felt slightly chilly against his cheeks.

Lu Shixian tightened his jacket and pulled the built-in hood over his head.

He hadn't had time to think about it yesterday, but now a question naturally surfaced in his mind.

Why was it so cold here?

Clearly, Yang County was not at a high elevation.

Although there were numerous peaks, giving the appearance of a rolling mountain range, geographically, this terrain could only be classified as hills, not mountains.

The former typically had a temperate or subtropical climate with moderate temperatures and stable rainfall.

The latter was where one would find an alpine climate—low temperatures, heavy precipitation, and temperatures that decreased with altitude.

So what was the reason for the cool climate here?

Lu Shixian was lost in thought again.

It was common knowledge that forests could regulate the climate.

As taught in middle school, vegetation could regulate the temperature within a forest by affecting solar radiation and transpiration.

But given the scale of the forests in Yang County, it was impossible for them to cause such a noticeable change in climate.

He estimated that it would take a vast, primeval forest to have such an effect.

At this thought, Lu Shixian’s steps suddenly came to a halt.

A primeval forest?

Wait, speaking of primeval forests, there did seem to be one near Yang County.

Following this line of thought, Lu Shixian suddenly understood.

But at this moment, his face showed no excitement from finding the answer, only anxiety.

Lu Shixian took his phone out of his pocket, found the number Feng Dezhang had told him to save, and dialed.

A few seconds later, the call connected.

For Feng Dezhang, who had been battling the pest infestation all night, this was indeed a bit early.

The person on the other end seemed to be yawning, clearly sounding groggy.

“Hello? Who is this?”

“It’s me, Lu Shixian. Director Feng, I have an emergency to report.”

Feng Dezhang hadn't expected this from Lu Shixian and became slightly more alert. “What is it? Go ahead.”

Lu Shixian tried his best to calm himself and explain his judgment, ensuring his voice was clear.

But the tone from the other end was dismissive.

“That’s not likely, is it? A major pest outbreak in the Shinian National Forest Reserve?” Feng Dezhang was baffled by Lu Shixian’s urgency and didn’t understand why he would even bring this up. It seemed highly improbable, and words of reassurance came out instinctively.

“Little Lu, don’t be so tense. You sound a little on edge right now. Are you feeling sick?”

“The Shinian National Forest Reserve isn't just a reserve; it's Nanjiang's core forest region, with a degree of autonomy. Even our Forestry Bureau doesn't have much jurisdiction over it. Besides, I've worked in the forestry system for so long, and I've never heard of it having any problems.”

“Its warning and protection measures are exceptionally strong. You can rest assured.”

“I was busy with Sun Peng’s forest farm for almost the entire night. I’m going to get some sleep. Call me again if it’s urgent.”

But Lu Shixian’s face was grave. “Yang County is right on the edge of the Shinian National Forest Reserve. The pest infestation in Yang County is very likely to have spread from the reserve.”

“And Sun Peng…”

Before Lu Shixian could finish, the line went dead.

He looked helpless. What he hadn't finished saying was that the reason Sun Peng's forest farm was constantly plagued by the American white moth was likely because there was a relatively constant source.

And Sun Peng's location in Yang County happened to be near the border of the reserve.

There was a high probability that this source was the Shinian National Forest Reserve.

Lu Shixian hadn't noticed this point before, not until he became aware of the abnormal climate change in Yang County.

He hadn't felt it when he first passed through the county.

But after just one night at a guesthouse near Sun Peng's farm, he felt the cold.

And the only thing massive enough to have such a climate-regulating effect on a local area was the Shinian National Forest Reserve.

Connecting all the dots, everything was logical.

The only lingering doubt was the very reason Feng Dezhang had used to reassure him.

The Shinian National Forest Reserve was no ordinary reserve; theoretically, something like this shouldn't happen.

Feng Dezhang's words did make sense, but the Shinian Reserve was too special. It was not only an incredibly precious natural heritage resource, home to countless endangered and rare species of flora and fauna, with a level of biodiversity that was among the highest in the country and extremely rare worldwide.

Most critically, it was also one of the country's most important ecological systems. If anything went wrong with it, the respiratory lungs of the entire South China region would be in trouble, affecting the vital interests of tens of millions of people.

Lu Shixian dared not bet against that one-in-ten-thousand possibility.

He scrolled through his phone, finally finding a number that might be useful.

Gu Hongya held an important position in the National Botanical Association. She likely had connections with wildlife conservation departments across the country.

As soon as the call connected, Gu Hongya heard a few disjointed sentences from Lu Shixian.

She didn't ask too many questions, though. After a moment of thought, she replied, “You want to know the recent pest monitoring trends for the Shinian National Forest Reserve?”

“That might be a bit difficult. I can only help you ask the Nanjiang Botanical Association to see if they have a way.”

“As for whether it will work out, I can’t say.”

Lu Shixian nodded and thanked her solemnly.

He didn't know if this call would be effective, but he was still preparing for the worst.

If this failed too, his only option would be to call in favors and go verify it himself.

But that would be far too inefficient. Not only would he be unable to enter the core area, but it would also take too long.

Along the way, Lu Shixian’s mind was a tangled mess as he walked aimlessly on the narrow, concrete country road.

It was only ten in the morning when the entire sky suddenly darkened.

Lu Shixian looked up. Dark clouds were gathering rapidly. Soon, the wind began to blow, followed by a torrential downpour.

He quickly checked his weather forecast messages. Sure enough, the upcoming days were listed as overcast, moderate to heavy rain, heavy to torrential rain, and light rain.

This was the first major rain after the peak of summer.

Like welcome rain after a long drought, or a cool breeze after a long spell of heat.

Perhaps, at this moment, people in many places were celebrating with joy.

But Lu Shixian couldn't bring himself to smile.

Chapter 393: This Is Nothing!

The wait for the results was undoubtedly long.

But the weather gradually improved, and the rain slowly subsided.

By three in the afternoon, the hours-long downpour had actually stopped.

A beautiful seven-colored rainbow even appeared in the sky.

Suddenly, Lu Shixian’s phone rang, seemingly at an inopportune moment.

Without hesitation, he answered the call from Gu Hongya.

Her voice was grave, yet filled with surprise. “Little Lu, you’ve performed a great service.”

“And it was quite a coincidence. When I contacted the Nanjiang Botanical Association, they happened to have researchers conducting a mission in the reserve.”

“When the forest administration provided them with monitoring records, they indeed found signs of an American white moth infestation.”

“Currently, the entire nature reserve is orderly evacuating tourists and conducting a blanket search to assess the extent of the damage.”

At this point, Gu Hongya sounded incredibly relieved. “Although the extent of the disaster is still unknown, the American white moth is known as a ‘smokeless wildfire.’ It has an extremely high reproductive rate. The egg-laying process takes only two to three days, and each egg mass can contain 500 to 700 eggs. The earlier it’s discovered, the easier it is to carry out effective control measures within the critical treatment window.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was also a little shaken.

As an expert in botany, Gu Hongya had a clear understanding of the severity of pest infestations.

Indeed, if one was still not sensitive to these consequences, there was a statistic that would surely be shocking.

Under suitable conditions, a single female moth could produce at least 400,000 offspring. Once the optimal treatment window was missed and the infestation spread throughout the reserve, this organism would inflict an unbearable blow.

The Shinian National Forest Reserve was vast, covering over four million mu, making control efforts extremely difficult.

Most critically, some of the most efficient and convenient measures could not be used in the reserve.

Improper use could disrupt the ecological balance and destroy its biodiversity.

The inability to use effective measures combined with such a large area would lead to one consequence: it could cost an unimaginable amount and still not guarantee the desired result.

So, although Lu Shixian had only made a phone call, that single call was worth its weight in gold.

“Professor Gu, have they found the cause?” Lu Shixian asked with curiosity.

However, the answer from the other end was negative.

“How could it be that fast?”

“Wait, I need to take another call.”

“Okay.” Lu Shixian hung up, feeling a sense of powerlessness.

When it came to such a major event, he was not yet qualified to be involved.

The only thing he could do was pray.

A few minutes later, he received another call from her.

“Little Lu, this matter is of great importance. It has now alarmed the higher-ups in the capital, who have personally issued directives regarding the pest outbreak in the Shinian Nature Reserve.”

“The National Forestry and Grassland Administration and the Ministry of Natural Resources have already dispatched a joint supervision group to officially oversee the pest control efforts in Nanjiang Province.”

“The top leader of Nanjiang Province is about to arrive at Shinian to command the operation on-site. As you were the first to discover it, you are also required to attend the joint meeting.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was completely stunned.

“It reached the higher-ups that quickly?”

“No way.”

It was just a pest outbreak of unknown severity. Was it necessary to be this dramatic?

After all, there were at least dozens of national-level nature reserves across the country.

Gu Hongya knew he might not be familiar with this area and offered a brief explanation. “The Shinian Nature Reserve is special. Besides what you already know, there are other reasons that cannot be publicly disclosed for certain reasons.”

“It has nothing to do with you. You just need to go. In any case, you should be well-rewarded for this.”

“Someone should be there to pick you up shortly.”

After hearing this, Lu Shixian stopped dwelling on it and chuckled.

That made sense. Moments after he hung up, he suddenly realized a serious problem.

“Wait! I haven’t told them my location!” Lu Shixian was on the verge of tears.

But before he could finish, a burly man in camouflage fatigues was already standing in front of him.

“Hello. Under the chief’s orders, I am here to escort you to the Shinian Pest Control Command Center.”

“Please get in the vehicle!”

Lu Shixian was dumbfounded.

He got into the vehicle in a daze, still finding the situation absurd.

“Hello, comrade. How did you know I was here, and how did you find me so quickly?” Lu Shixian couldn’t help but ask.

The answer he received was just two words: “Classified!”

With that, he stopped thinking about it.

He began to close his eyes and rest. The emotional roller coaster of the day had been intense, leaving him mentally and physically exhausted.

Within minutes, he had drifted off.

Meanwhile, just thirty minutes after Lu Shixian left Yang County, Feng Dezhang, still busy at work, also received a call.

“Director Chu! I’m currently following your arrangements from yesterday, helping Sun Peng’s forest farm with pest control.”

But what Chu Weifeng said next shocked him.

“What? Forget about this matter? Head to Shinian immediately?”

If he hadn't heard those words with his own ears, he would have thought he was hallucinating.

“Isn’t this a bit too rushed? The higher-ups only gave us three days to eliminate the impact.”

Then, he heard news that almost made him bite his tongue off.

“What? The Shinian Nature Reserve has been monitored with signs of large-scale pest activity?”

“Understood. Station Chief Wang and I will set off immediately.”

After the call ended, Feng Dezhang suddenly remembered what Lu Shixian had told him that morning.

It had sounded like alarmist talk, but now, it had become reality.

This was just ridiculous!

He took out his phone again, intending to call Lu Shixian.

But the prompt that came back was always the same: The user you have dialed is not in a service area…

Forgetting about that, he didn’t even have time to explain. He pulled Wang Congfa into the car and they sped off.

In a straight line, Yang County wasn't far from Shinian, but due to the harsh natural conditions, transportation was limited.

After a full hour of detours, Lu Shixian finally arrived at Shinian.

As soon as he got out of the car, someone was there to point him in the direction of his final destination.

Lu Shixian was slowly getting used to these procedures and didn't mind.

Soon, he was led to a newly erected, military-green tent.

“Reporting! Lu Shixian has arrived!” the guide shouted, nearly deafening him.

What was with all the formality?

Nevertheless, Lu Shixian walked into the tent with considerable composure.

He had been through reincarnation; there was truly nothing that could leave him flustered.

So he kept telling himself: This is nothing!

Inside, there was a conference table of a decent size.

The table was mostly filled, and every person’s face was etched with gravity.

Lu Shixian’s gaze subconsciously drifted to the head of the table, and what he saw gave him a terrible shock.

WTF?

No way.

Chapter 394: Preliminary Conclusion Determined

“What the? Why is Old Mei sitting there?” A storm raged in Lu Shixian’s mind.

He glanced at the name on the place card: Mei Xingguo.

The uncommon surname confirmed his suspicion.

Within the system, seating arrangements spoke volumes.

The attendees of this joint meeting with the highest authority were from the joint supervision group sent by the National Forestry and Grassland Administration and the Ministry of Natural Resources.

After all, a "national-level" group sent from above held extraordinary status.

But Old Mei had previously mentioned that he worked in Nanjiang.

Connecting the dots, Lu Shixian suddenly understood.

Holy crap! Mei Ting’s father was the First Secretary of Nanjiang.

Was this a joke? A figure akin to a provincial governor had been discussing academic issues with him before.

This was beyond absurd!

Evidently, his arrival had caught the attention of the attendees.

Mei Xingguo remained expressionless, but he gave Lu Shixian a meaningful glance, clearly having been informed of this already.

Guided by a staff member, Lu Shixian found his seat, his mind still reeling from the shock.

It was just too unexpected.

As time ticked by, the meeting room filled up, with only a few empty seats remaining.

Mei Xingguo glanced at the time and asked a middle-aged man standing behind him, “Which units have not yet arrived? And for what reason?”

The middle-aged man’s eyes scanned the pre-written place cards, and he immediately knew what to say.

He raised his voice slightly. “Reporting to the Secretary, the units that have not yet arrived are the Nanjiang Emergency Rescue Team and the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau’s Forest Pest Control Station.”

“They have already called to report in and will arrive in about ten minutes.”

“The Nanjiang Emergency Rescue Team was participating in a rescue operation for a sudden urban fire in Pingjiang District when they received the notice, which caused the delay.” After a pause, the man continued, “The Nanjiang Forestry Bureau’s Pest Control Station is currently helping Sun Peng, the person at the center of the recent media attention, deal with his pest problem. They are also on their way.”

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the meeting room suddenly became strange.
In stark contrast to the Nanjang Rescue Team and the urgency of the pest infestation at the Shinian Nature Reserve, the absence of the Nanjang Forestry Bureau was particularly conspicuous.

It was like everyone was discussing a matter of national importance, like eliminating absolute poverty, when you suddenly chimed in about not having enough to eat.

This was highly inappropriate, a clear sign of a narrow mindset and a lack of foresight.

Fortunately, the two departments did not keep everyone waiting long, having clearly done their best to hurry on their way.

Four men, dusty from their journey, entered from outside. Wang Congfa and Feng Dezhang's seats were not far from Lu Shixian's.

As they took their seats, they saw Lu Shixian was also present and were momentarily stunned.

Wang Congfa, in particular, couldn't hide his astonishment.

At that moment, Mei Xingguo, his face grim, simply cleared his throat, and immediately drew everyone's attention.

Their movements were perfectly synchronized; not a single person dared to whisper among themselves.

This forced Lu Shixian to marvel at Mei Xingguo's aura and authority, which made him seem like a completely different person from the man he had known before.

"Although there are still two minutes until the meeting is scheduled to start, since everyone is here, let's begin early." His was the only voice in the entire conference room.

"Comrades, today we are holding a joint meeting on the sudden pest outbreak in the Shinian Nature Reserve. The Shinian National Nature Reserve is a vital component of our national ecological security system, as well as an important foundation for the sustainable economic and social development of Nanjang."

"When I received the news, I was in negotiations with the Bonli Group, a Fortune 500 company. From this, you can imagine the importance of this matter."

"Time is tight, so I won't waste words. Let's officially begin the agenda."

Soon, a man wearing glasses stood up. "Next, I will report the findings of our investigation into this sudden pest outbreak."

"At 10:29 this morning, in the comprehensive monitoring building for natural disasters and pests at the reserve, while retrieving pest monitoring records at the request of the Nanjang Botanical Association, we discovered web-like screens on surveillance footage in a small area in the southern part of the reserve, suspecting a pest presence. A field inspection later confirmed an infestation of the invasive species, the American White Moth."

"At 10:34 AM, the duty officer, Li Dakui, immediately reported this to the reserve's administration and the relevant forestry district leadership. The extent of the damage is currently unknown, and the source of the American White Moth is still under investigation."

"At 10:36 AM, after an emergency meeting of the leadership team, it was decided to immediately activate the emergency response plan: evacuate tourists and residents from the forest area, conduct a full assessment of the damage and begin control measures, and simultaneously launch an internal investigation into the cause of the incident."

"Due to the timely discovery, only a small area in the southern part of the reserve is affected, though the infestation along the southern border is more severe. Emergency measures have been taken, including physical quarantine and strict control of personnel access, to keep the pest outbreak within a manageable scope."

Hearing this, nearly everyone in the room breathed a collective sigh of relief.

It was the best possible outcome in a bad situation. As long as the infestation could be controlled, everything else was manageable.

The man's voice continued, "The Shinian Nature Reserve has never before had an incident of American White Moth invasion. After careful study and discussion, the expert panel has preliminarily determined that the main cause of this outbreak was the transport of pupae from other areas of Nanjang into the forest district via freight vehicles, resulting in a long-distance, leapfrog-style spread."

As soon as he said this, almost all eyes turned to the two men sitting behind the sign for the Nanjang Forestry Bureau.

Well, that conclusion was a direct indictment.

There was no way for the reserve, the forest district, or the Nanjang Forestry Bureau to absolve themselves of responsibility.

The freight transport was unintentional, as the driver had no idea that bringing this thing in would cause such great harm.

So, the question was, where did the problem lie?

Why were the reserve's monitoring measures delayed? If not for the "unintentional reminder" from the Botanical Association, the reserve would still be in the dark.

At the same time, what had become of the inspection work for transportation at the forest district's borders? As a key protected area, a national nature reserve's internal biodiversity is extremely fragile. A single oversight could lead to severe consequences.

And finally, how exactly was the Nanjang Forestry Bureau conducting pest control work for the entire Nanjang province? Nanjang was an inland province, and the reserve was located almost in its center.

There had been no news of an American White Moth infestation in Nanjang before this.

How on earth did the American White Moth break through layer after layer of defense to invade this place?

Of course, the Chinese have a habit of waiting until the dust settles before assigning blame.

That was not the central focus of the work at hand.

Chapter 395: The Conference Room's Sudden Shift in Tone

Next, Lu Shixian was also given an opportunity to speak.

As the first to raise the alarm, he had saved precious golden hours for controlling this pest outbreak.

It was fair to say that without him, this meeting would not have been nearly so relaxed.

As the attendees listened to Lu Shixian's process of reasoning and judgment, they couldn't help but admire his intelligence and courage.

If they were in his shoes, would they have thought along those lines? Would they have summoned the courage to make that call?

No one said the answer aloud, but it was most likely no.

This further highlighted how different Lu Shixian was.

On this point, Feng Dezhang probably had the most to say.

Sitting in his seat, his heart was a whirlwind of feelings, a mix of complex emotions.

As time went on, several other agenda items were quickly passed.

The most urgent task was to deal with the sealed-off area with the utmost efficiency.

He who hesitates is lost, and indecision breeds future trouble.

Thus, the meeting quickly moved to this stage.

"Does anyone have anything to say about the post-infestation management?" Mei Xingguo scanned the room before adding, "Of course, the scope of control is not limited to just the reserve, but also includes the infestation within Nanjang's borders."

This question received an enthusiastic response from the participants.

Although the American White Moth was a "difficult case" with a high transmission rate, this was not its first appearance in the country.

Over several years of management, some experience had been accumulated, one way or another.

The subsequent proposals all fell under the categories of physical, biological, and chemical control, which were the current mainstays of pest management.

In the end, the opinion of an expert from the Chinese Academy of Sciences Institute received unanimous approval.

"Due to its special nature, the Shinian Nature Reserve must be handled with extreme caution. Even the slightest application of chemical agents carries risks, so manual removal is the clear choice."

"As for managing the infestation within Nanjang's borders, because the area is so vast, my suggestion is to prioritize chemical control, supplemented by a variety of other methods, chosen reasonably based on local conditions."

Even Lu Shixian had to admit that, given the circumstances at the time, this suggestion was highly feasible.

But he had come all this way, he couldn't just be a listener, could he?

He had something to say and felt he couldn't hold it back.

He switched on the microphone on his desk and continued where the expert had left off.

"Ahem, I have a slightly different view on the second point." Lu Shixian's voice once again echoed in the conference room.

A vacuum of silence fell over the scene for a few seconds.

Many people looked puzzled. Was he trying to be a smart-aleck?

Almost everyone present was an expert with deep theoretical knowledge or extensive practical experience in pest control or related fields.

Could this young man really hold his own in this setting?

Was he doing this on purpose, or was it a mistake?

But the meaning behind Lu Shixian's words indicated it was the former.

Well, what was done was done.

Since it was a discussion segment, everyone had the right and opportunity to speak; no one could take that away.

This wasn't the first time he had done something like this in such a situation.

So his tone was as calm as ever. "Everyone's time is precious, so I'll be brief, but my point pertains only to the province-wide management in Nanjang."

"Because Nanjang's territory is vast and the American White Moth is quite resilient, this will not be an overnight task."

"So, under a pest control plan that primarily relies on chemical agents, let's first set aside the pollution problems that long-term chemical use in Nanjang would cause. What we need to consider is whether the long-term application of a single pesticide will cause the American White Moth to develop resistance, or even force them to undergo unnatural selection in this environment, evolving in the direction of resistance. And the speed of this resistance evolution far outpaces the speed at which humans can develop new pesticides."

The point Lu Shixian raised was very powerful and immediately sparked a wide-ranging discussion.

But it was clear that there were just as many people who opposed him as supported him.

"I believe you when you say it will cause pollution and resistance. But to say that the speed of resistance development far outpaces pesticide creation, isn't that a bit of an exaggeration?" a leader from the rescue team questioned.

Lu Shixian was not flustered in the least. "There are precedents that prove this point. The most famous is the experiment on the industrial melanism of the peppered moth. During periods of heavy industrialization, this creature would undergo 'industrial melanism,' but when the environment rapidly improved, the peppered moths would revert to their gray form. This already shows that this kind of evolution is very fast."

Following that, an expert from a certain university finally couldn't help but speak up. "Young man, let's not even discuss the fact that the evolution of the peppered moth has not been fully accepted by the academic community. Even if what you say makes a lot of sense..."

"You haven't considered that theory is sometimes divorced from reality."

"We all know pesticides are polluting, but a vast majority of countries around the world still use them. Why?"

"Simply because pesticides are still the most economical, convenient, effective, and reliable means of controlling pests. To some extent, they are irreplaceable!"

Evidently, as soon as he said this, many people chimed in with their agreement. "That's right! Expecting people to pay out of their own pockets to do good is a pipe dream. If we use other methods, we also have to fully consider whether Nanjang's finances can bear such a huge expense."

In less than a minute, the support for Lu Shixian's position went from an even split to a minority view.

Lu Shixian had clearly anticipated this situation and replied calmly, "I think everyone might be confusing one fact."

"I am not denying the importance of pesticides. Everything I said before was based on the premise of chemical agents."

"Biological agents, however, clearly have an indescribable advantage in this regard."

"In fact, in a previous study of mine, I have already screened out a strain of *Bacillus thuringiensis* that is highly lethal to the American White Moth. I call it btlg43."

"This strain is temporarily distinct from all known species. Research shows that it is lethal to white moth larvae of any stage as well as adult moths, with the best results on larvae. The mortality rate for adults is much lower, but it still slows their rate of egg-laying."

"After verification, its mortality rate is about 18% higher than similar preparations available on the market."

"And this research result, if all goes well, will be presented in this month's issue of the *Cell* subsidiary journal, *Chemistry & Biology*."

Lu Shixian spoke with eloquence and confidence, completely oblivious to the fact that the entire conference room had been rendered speechless.

The entire atmosphere of the meeting had completely changed. Everyone felt as if they were at a research presentation rather than what should have been an intensely serious joint meeting.

Chapter 396: A Career Change is Out of the Question

Of course, Lu Shixian was mindful of his limits.

Going too far is as bad as not going far enough, and he didn't want to become a classic example of someone whose show of knowledge backfired and caused resentment.

He smiled slightly and concluded his speech with one last sentence.

"Regarding btlg43, to protect the intellectual property rights, I have already applied for a national patent."

"If Nanjang needs it, I am willing to grant a free license at any time."

"Of course, as long as it's for non-commercial pest control needs, everyone is welcome to contact me in the future."

"I am currently a PhD student in biology at Yan京 University, studying botany under Academician Xu Zhihong. My future research areas will cover plant pathology, developmental biology, and genetics. If you have suitable projects, please remember my name."

Lu Shixian's final, high-profile act of self-promotion might have seemed superfluous, but it actually sent a signal to everyone present that was as good as a reassurance.

That is: Choose me! I'm very reliable!

As his voice fell, the room erupted in thunderous applause.

Everyone, including the several high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Forestry and the Ministry of Natural Resources, was amazed by Lu Shixian.

To be so young and already a PhD student was not unheard of, but it was extremely rare.

The most crucial and finishing touch was the name he had just mentioned: Xu Zhihong, who had just stepped down from his position as the president of Yan京 University.

As the former head of one of the country's most prestigious universities, and as a scholar who had made outstanding contributions to higher education and the development of biology in the country, his fame was not confined to scientific circles; he was renowned in other industries and fields as well.

In the crowd, Wang Congfa was filled with regret.

Why on earth did I have to provoke him?

Weren't researchers supposed to be awkward, introverted, and poor speakers?

What was with this guy? It would be a waste if he didn't become a TV host.

And next to him, Feng Dezhang was also having an existential crisis.

Wasn't he said to be Academician Gao's prized student?

Where did this Academician Xu come from?

Of course, the latter was far more famous in the public eye.

At that moment, Feng Dezhang truly realized that, setting aside the forces behind Lu Shixian, he himself was a potential powerhouse, and a dazzlingly golden one at that.

Several hours later.

Under a pavilion built for tourists in the reserve.

"Little Lu, I regret to inform you that for certain reasons, the incident at the Shinian Nature Reserve must be kept confidential. The important role you played cannot be made public," Mei Xingguo explained, standing beside him.

Lu Shixian shook his head slightly. "Uncle Mei, that's not important."

He didn't dare call him Old Mei again, but because of Mei Ting, it was fine to address him affectionately as "Uncle" in private.

"My original purpose was just to give a warning about this potential pest disaster."

"Besides, I didn't really help that much, I just made a phone call."

"If we're talking about credit, it's one of my elders, Professor Gu, and the research team from the Nanjang Botanical Association who really put in the effort."

Hearing this, Mei Xingguo said nothing, but his admiration for Lu Shixian grew even stronger.

When it was time to be rigorous and meticulous, he was delicate and sharp.

When it was time to be decisive, he was confident and bold.

When it was time to show his brilliance, he was responsible and proactive.

When it was time to be modest and polite, he achieved success but didn't claim credit.

He himself probably couldn't have handled situations with such grace and poise at that age.

This kind of interpersonal skill was almost unimaginable for someone at his stage in life.

If he were to enter politics, he would also have a great future.

Mei Xingguo didn't respond, but changed the subject. "You just said you would grant the patent license to Nanjang for free. Is that true?"

Hearing this question, Lu Shixian replied with a somewhat wry smile, "Words spoken are like a daughter newly married off. How can you take them back?"

Mei Xingguo nodded. "Very good! On behalf of the fifty million people of Nanjang Province, I thank you for your selfless contribution."

"Uncle Mei, please don't!" Lu Shixian waved his hands repeatedly and said, "It's what I should do. Being able to apply what I've learned is my heartfelt wish."

"Besides, it's not certain yet if it can be successfully used, although I have enough confidence in myself."

"For even a mature technology to be promoted and turned into a finished product, it still needs to go through processes like principle verification and pilot tests."

"For a product that concerns the vital interests of the general public, one can never be too cautious."

Mei Xingguo heard his reply and was silent for a long while, instead looking at the scenery.

This left Lu Shixian a bit baffled. A top leader was a top leader, indeed.

He couldn't guess his thoughts at all.

Just as Lu Shixian's mind was wandering, he suddenly heard Mei Xingguo say lightly.

"Little Lu, have you ever considered a career in the system?"

Lu Shixian was completely stunned.

What the hell?

What kind of plot twist was this?

Seeing Lu Shixian's silence, Mei Xingguo didn't mind. "On this matter, perhaps I can be of some small help."

"With your academic qualifications and personality, your starting point would be very high, and the road ahead would be incredibly wide."

Lu Shixian was truly dumbfounded, because he had never imagined such a path laid out before him.

After his rebirth, such an option had never been part of his plans.

He was determined to make some achievements on the path of scientific research, wasn't he?

But faced with such a choice, he too hesitated, felt conflicted.

Having the appreciation of a provincial governor—this was more than just "incredibly wide."

It was like a cow riding a rocket—an astronomical rise to prominence.

If this choice were placed before anyone with ambitions for a career in officialdom, it would be nothing short of a golden ticket.

However, this struggle only lasted for a few seconds. Lu Shixian quickly made his choice.

In life, one must have one's own principles.

After all, the author had written him as the protagonist of a "super student" novel, not a political drama!

So, a career change was out of the question.

He said with a hint of apology, "Thank you again for your kindness!"

"Actually, in my view, entering the system and doing research seem different. Though the paths are different, they ultimately lead to the same destination."

Mei Xingguo was a little surprised by his refusal, but not overly concerned.

Choosing to do research was already a choice not made by ordinary people.

In the public's eye, researchers were a group that enjoyed both the security of an "iron rice bowl" and a relatively low workload, while also having high salaries and high status.

But when one truly entered this industry, they would suddenly realize they had entered a besieged city.

After all, there was a saying that went well.

When an idealist's foot steps into the mire of reality, no matter how passionate they are, they are forced to slow their forward pace.

Chapter 397: This is So Frustrating!

However, hearing Lu Shixian's subsequent explanation, Mei Xingguo became interested.

"Oh? Being an official and doing research lead to the same destination? What is the meaning of that?" He seemed to have already guessed something, but Mei Xingguo still asked.
Lu Shixian let out a light chuckle. "In the hands of those who are pragmatic and love their country as their own family, whether they enter politics or research, their ultimate goal can be summarized as strengthening the nation and enriching the people. They always serve the greater good of the people."

"But in the hands of those with ill intentions and selfish motives, no matter the profession, every chip they hold is nothing more than a tool for their own personal gain."

"So, you serve a term in office to benefit the region, while I bury myself in research to make my own contribution."

"It seems there's no conflict at all. Wouldn't you agree?"

"Haha!" Mei Xingguo burst out laughing. "You're right. There really is no difference."

"However, I, Mei Xingguo, hate being indebted to anyone."

"If your results can, as you say, use that carbon... whatchamacallit again?" Mei Xingguo trailed off, his words getting stuck.

Lu Shixian suppressed a laugh and reminded him in a low voice, "The carbon-nitrogen source."

Realizing his air of authority might be slipping, Mei Xingguo continued irritably, "Use industrial wastewater rich in carbon-nitrogen sources for the large-scale production of that Bacillus thuringiensis, and if it proves effective, I will give you a grand gift. Just make sure you don't regret what you've said today."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was a bit baffled.

He had already turned down the biggest gift of all today. What other gift could there be?

Still, no sense in turning down a freebie. He trusted Mei Xingguo wouldn't harm him, so what did it matter what it was?

From here on out, whatever happened at the Shinian Nature Reserve had little to do with him.

The only thing he needed to do was return to Nanjiang, quickly organize the research findings on Btlg43, and coordinate with the people Mei Xingguo would send.

His business here was done. Until we meet again.

There was no rush to get back to Nanjiang, so Lu Shixian chose to travel alone.

A private car was convenient, of course, but it depended on the car. Today's military vehicle had been a bit much for him.

He had already said his goodbyes to Mei Xingguo, so Lu Shixian strode away with purpose.

The journey here had taken less than forty minutes, but the return trip to Nanjiang took well over an hour.

The first place he headed was the Bioengineering Experimental Building at Nanjiang University.

He hadn't forgotten that someone was still waiting for him here, full of complaints.

"Where did you run off to today? You didn't even reply to my messages?" Gao Jing's face lit up when she saw him in her office, but her joy was quickly followed by a resentful questioning. "You can hire someone to file the patent application, but you can't have someone write your paper for you, can you?"

Lu Shixian knew he was in the wrong and wore a sheepish expression.

From his perspective, the situation had been sudden and the circumstances extenuating.

But Gao Jing didn't know that, and it was a long story, so he just fobbed her off with a vague excuse.

Right now, the paper was the most critical task; everything else had to take a backseat.

He had said that, barring any surprises, it would be published next month, but in reality, he hadn't even started writing it.

Of course, that wasn't to say he was bluffing.

His year-plus at Davis had comprehensively enhanced his skills.

Three consecutive papers published in *Cell* had made his name known to the editorial department.

Furthermore, he had designed the entire project and performed all the core experiments himself.

He could now confidently say that publishing in a *Cell* subsidiary journal wasn't really that difficult, as long as his paper wasn't completely outlandish.

It was the other trivial matters that required some thought.

First, the corresponding institution was a major issue.

He was from Yanda University, that was true, but this research had very little to do with Yanda. It hadn't been officially proposed or registered there.

The bacterial strain he used was essentially a favor from Old Ma.

And he had indeed conducted his experiments at Nanjiang University. Although it was a temporary arrangement, he couldn't say his connection to Nanjiang University was particularly strong.

He had gotten access to the lab space through Gao Jing's uncle.

So here was the problem: the corresponding institution was a required field in the submission system.

He would be the corresponding author, of course. There was no question about that.

But he was uncertain about Gao Jing's authorship.

If it were based purely on contribution to the research findings, Gao Jing definitely wouldn't qualify for first author.

The experiment could have been done without Gao Jing, but it was absolutely impossible without Lu Shixian.

But outside the experiment itself, Gao Jing's contributions were well known.

So, sometimes you couldn't draw such a clear line. Lu Shixian understood this and had a good sense of how to handle it.

After careful consideration, Lu Shixian made his final decision.

He would list both Yanjing University and Nanjiang University as the corresponding institutions.

His personality was all or nothing.

Since he had to fill it in, this was the only choice.

Of course, as a member of Yanda, putting it first probably wouldn't cause any objections, right?

As for Gao Jing's authorship, Lu Shixian decided to give her the opportunity of being a co-first author.

This paper was of little consequence to him, and the research content wasn't a particularly momentous academic achievement.

But from Nanjiang to Qing County and back again, she had practically become his shadow.

Besides, she was already his designated future team member—and indispensable assistant.

A little advance reward shouldn't be a problem. She was one of his own, after all.

And so, the matter was happily decided.

He finished writing the paper in less than a week. After carefully checking it over and finding no issues, Lu Shixian prepared to submit it.

When she heard the news, Gao Jing was utterly astonished. "It's only been a few days, and you've already finished the paper?"

Lu Shixian replied while uploading the file on his computer, "It's just a regular SCI paper. Is that supposed to be hard?"

Gao Jing felt a pang of despair. While she was still struggling to get published in a Q2 international journal, here was someone who looked down on even a "regular SCI paper"!

It was so infuriating!

However, the moment she stood behind him and saw the paper, she froze.

"Why... why is my name listed as a first author?" Gao Jing's breathing grew ragged; she could barely remain calm.

A corner of Lu Shixian's mouth quirked up. "Be reasonable. It's obviously because you were a huge help, right?"

To be honest, she had never thought about this when she was helping him. She was purely acting out of her fangirl admiration. Who knew that Lu Shixian's trip to Qing County was for more than just an investigation?

Li Yongqing and Meng Yongchuan could certainly attest to that.

Gao Jing's mind was in turmoil. "Reasonable? How do you expect me to be reasonable right now?!"

"This is an SCI paper! It would be incredibly difficult for me to even get second author!"

"I feel so embarrassed that you've done this!"

Chapter 398: Lu Shixian's Reflections

"Should I delete it then?" Lu Shixian asked, feigning seriousness.

But Gao Jing immediately backtracked, whispering, "Maybe... you should leave it, if you don't mind?"

Lu Shixian found her response amusing. "It's fine. You can pay me back when you get the chance."

Gao Jing was deeply moved by his words, thinking to herself that "getting a chance" usually meant "never."

Of course, if she knew what Lu Shixian really had in mind for her, she would probably lose her mind.

A few minutes later, a paper bearing the names of two universities and two authors was successfully uploaded to *Chemistry & Biology*.

His patent, titled "A New Method for Screening Bacillus thuringiensis," had already been filed with the National Patent Office before this.

Although a paper's content can be identical to a patent's when the patent is filed first, Lu Shixian didn't just copy it over. While a technology could be published as a paper, it felt a bit out of place for someone like him who primarily focused on basic science.

The editors at *Cell* held him in high regard now and would surely give his paper special consideration.

Even if the quality was slightly lower, getting into the main journal was impossible, but given his track record, securing a spot in a subsidiary journal wouldn't be a problem.

But Lu Shixian saw no need for that. It was pointless to burn through the editors' goodwill for something so minor.

You save your best steel for the blade's edge. Lu Shixian understood this clearly.

Thus, he elevated the paper's scope slightly.

The final title was "An Exploration of New Developments in Microbial Strain Screening Technology."

Using the core principle of his patented Bacillus thuringiensis strain improvement as a fulcrum, he pried open the door to the entire field of microbial screening technology.

He expanded from a single point to a broader plane, theoretically applying the method he used on Bacillus thuringiensis to the entire microbial community.

Lu Shixian's ambition was vast; he intended for this one paper to encompass all of microbiology.

However, within such a massive population of microorganisms, there were always mavericks.

That was why he titled it an "exploration."

While it might not become the flashiest achievement in its field, Lu Shixian believed it would leave a significant mark on microbiological research.

As a result, some of the peripheral findings from this study now seemed beneath his notice.

"There's still about half of the summer break left, and I'll be heading back to Jinling soon," Lu Shixian told Gao Jing. "But there are some other findings you can publish."

"Consider it your summer homework from me," Lu Shixian said, picking up a piece of paper from the desk with notes written on it.

It recorded some of the minor discoveries Lu Shixian had made during his experiments.

They were discoveries, but not quite at the level of a patent.

However, they were more than enough to be written up into several papers.

For him, they were a bit too lightweight, but they were perfect for Gao Jing.

Gao Jing's face tightened as she listened, a look of tragic indignation on her face. "You..."

"Are you even human? You have the nerve to give me summer homework?"

Lu Shixian grinned. "It's up to you whether you write them or not."

"But even though your name is on this paper, I did all the work, so you didn't get any real practice."

"You personally participated in the steps I've written down here and you understand their principles. Even if they don't get published, it's good practice for your writing skills."

"Especially English writing. If you want to publish in international journals, you can forget about it if you can't do that."

His words convinced her.

She took the paper and looked at it, and her mind went blank.

"Improvement and Formulation of a Microbial Nutrient Medium"

"A New Method for Cultivating High-Efficiency Bacteria in Industrial Wastewater"

"A Comparative Study of Cell Counting Methods for Bacillus thuringiensis"

Lu Shixian left, leaving not a trace behind.

But he figured Gao Jing would be busy for a while.

The paper topics he had outlined weren't particularly difficult, but translating them from practice into published articles would take at least a year of work.

Of course, if she was fast, she could do it in about half a year, but that would depend on whether she could sustain working day and night, through weekdays and weekends.

That was the ideal scenario, of course, assuming Gao Jing had nothing else to do but sit in the lab all day.

But that was clearly impossible.

As for whether it was inappropriate for an entomology graduate student to be researching microbiology, well, that was a bit of a selfish move on Lu Shixian's part, but it shouldn't be a major issue.

After all, microbiology is the jack-of-all-trades in biology, capable of intersecting with any field. Intersecting with entomology seemed perfectly reasonable.

All living things are subject to the cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death. Its title as the undertaker of all living things wasn't for nothing.

Plus, with its prolific nature, the issues of parasitism and symbiosis with insects were already a hot topic in entomological research.

Having justified it to himself, Lu Shixian felt quite at ease.

He sent Mei Ting a farewell text and boarded the train back to Jinling.

With less than a month until the start of school, it was time to go see his parents.

He could have gone straight back to Yanjing.

But while research was important, family couldn't be ignored.

Although he hadn't experienced the regret of wanting to care for his parents only to find them gone in his past life, Lu Shixian had no desire to go through it in this one.

The journey home was long and tiring, but someone was waiting for him.

Listening to the rumbling of the train, he took out his phone, thought for a long time, and posted two words to his Moments: "Going home."

That's right.

Going home needs no caption, only joy.

The two-plus weeks at home flew by in a flash, and the new semester was just a few days away.

Lu Shixian had been fed well and had put on a little weight.

Though it wasn't noticeable on the outside, he couldn't shake the feeling, for some reason.

While it wasn't as fulfilling as his time at school, Lu Shixian hadn't wasted the time either.

His paper in *Chemistry & Biology* was successfully published.

But to his surprise, the editors at the subsidiary journal didn't want to discuss the paper with him at all.

Instead, they kept pestering him about the progress of his research on the co-evolutionary mechanisms of plants and pathogens.

He figured they were acting on instructions from the main journal's editorial board, which he found both funny and exasperating.

Unfortunately, although that project still had potential, conversations with his old lab mates revealed that the project had been canceled. It was unlikely there would be any follow-up at UCD.

This made him sigh. The research on plant-pathogen co-evolution held great significance for him.

Watching it stall and then fade away filled him with a sense of melancholy.

Chapter 399: The Nanjiang Trip Concludes

Perhaps in the future, if the opportunity arose, Lu Shixian would continue this line of research.

But "if the opportunity arises" often means "never," doesn't it?

The people Mei Xingguo sent had already completed the handover with him, and he had finalized the patent authorization for Nanjiang.

In addition, a piece of news reached his ears.

The pest control efforts across the entire Nanjiang region, including the Shinian Nature Reserve, were entering their final stages.

But this also meant the time for reckoning had come.

Lu Shixian didn't pay attention to the other departments, but he did take a moment to glance at the news regarding the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau.

"Reporters learned today from the Nanjiang Discipline Inspection website that the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau has been publicly criticized for its failure to fulfill its primary responsibilities, as exposed by the American white moth invasion."

"According to the report, after the invasive species, the American white moth, entered Nanjiang, the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau failed to give it sufficient attention, did not promptly organize personnel to take effective measures, and failed to report the situation to the municipal and provincial levels in a timely manner, leading to negative public opinion and creating a passive work situation with extremely adverse economic and social impacts..."

"The report emphasized that the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau's fulfillment of its duties was inadequate, its awareness of the public's concerns was weak, its sense of ecological protection was poor, and its supervision of cadres was a mere formality. This further exposed the bureau's weak sense of responsibility, delayed actions, and the low quality of its prevention and control personnel..."

"Therefore, the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau is issued a public criticism. Wang Congfa, head of the bureau's prevention and control station, is given a serious warning. His supervising leader, Chen Chuansen, is given a warning, and the main leader, Chu Weifeng, is given a disciplinary talk..."

"It is hoped that the Nanjiang Forestry Bureau will learn a profound lesson, reflect on and identify the prominent issues exposed in this incident, further transform its mindset and work style, and assume its primary responsibility to fulfill its duties..."

The report was quite long. Lu Shixian skimmed through it, and the content largely matched his own experiences.

However, this wasn't the worst possible outcome. It seemed they had put in considerable effort afterward, and with the situation brought under control, Old Mei hadn't brought the hammer down completely.

Of course, none of this had anything to do with Lu Shixian.

At this moment, his trip to Nanjiang had truly, completely come to an end.

Looking back on this summer vacation, it had been an incredibly meaningful one.

But his mood lately hadn't been the best.

And so, with a touch of melancholy, he began his journey back to Yanda University.

Time finally arrived at the beginning of September.

New semester, new beginnings.

Lu Shixian decided it was time to stop his "unprofessional" dabbling.

From rice-crayfish co-culture to cellular immunity, from plant pathology to biological agents.

He appeared to have a wealth of achievements, but in reality, he was far from his own expectations and goals.

It was time to correct his course.

"I've been abroad, I've taken my classes. Surely you can let me work on a project now?" The moment he was back on campus, Lu Shixian went to his advisor's office. "I'm really not picky. Any major project will do."

"Whether it's heterosis utilization, genomic selection, ploidy breeding, or cellular and chromosome engineering, I'm willing to join."

Xu Zhihong didn't know whether to laugh or cry. This was the second time Lu Shixian had come to him asking for a project, and the fact was, Lu Shixian was only in his first year of his PhD.

But Xu Zhihong also knew that he couldn't treat Lu Shixian like a typical first-year doctoral student.

He said with interest, "I heard you were dabbling in a bioengineering project over the summer and actually got some results. Didn't you find a project for yourself? Why are you coming to me?"

Lu Shixian hadn't reported this, but he wasn't surprised his advisor knew.

He had contacted Ma Yuheng for lab materials earlier, and Old Ma was completely devoted to Academician Xu; it would be strange if he *hadn't* reported back.

Plus, he had listed Yanjing University on his final submission, so the university would have a record of it.

"That was just something to pass the time," Lu Shixian said with an apologetic smile. "Advisor, you know what I'm really after."

Xu Zhihong looked at this most self-sufficient of his students and sighed.

"Little Lu, you really don't need to push yourself so hard. Graduating a few years later is perfectly fine."

"It's not that I'm holding you back, but you're still so young, and you haven't even found a partner yet."

"If you dedicate your entire self to this now, by the time you're older, you might find you haven't left yourself with any fond memories."

Lu Shixian fell silent at his advisor's words.

He knew Academician Xu meant well, but there were some things he simply couldn't explain.

So, he spun a yarn. "I can't wait! The whole year's work depends on a good start in spring, but it's already summer, and I've accomplished nothing."

"By all accounts, I'm almost twenty-four, yet the greatest honor I can count is my master's degree from Yanda."

"The greatest research achievement I can speak of is still confined to the pages of *Cell*, yet to be translated into actual productivity."

"I'm still a million miles away from my humble goal of becoming a great scientist."

"So I rise early and sleep late, consumed by anxiety day and night. Yet I don't even have the chance to join a project team and contribute my humble efforts. I..."
It was the first time Xu Zhihong had seen Lu Shixian act like such a rascal, and he was both exasperated and amused.

So he quickly cut in, "Alright, alright, that's enough of your little chant."

"I'll agree to your request."

Lu Shixian was overjoyed, but then he heard Xu continue, "You're almost a second year doctoral student, and you've got plenty of experience under your belt. I was already planning something along these lines for you, I just hadn't worked out the specifics yet. I didn't expect you to bring it up so soon."

Lu Shixian chuckled. "It's not early at all. The timing is just right."

This, however, posed a dilemma for Academician Xu. He had already been considering Lu Shixian's next steps.

He was certainly determined to find a good path for his student, but he had been hesitating on which path to choose.

But since the man himself was here, he decided to stop deliberating and just ask directly, "Let me ask you this, then. Would you rather join a large, well established research group on a mature project, or would you prefer to apply for a research project in your own name?"

Lu Shixian was ecstatic. As expected from a top tier mentor at a major institution, he even had options.

He understood Xu Zhihong's words instantly.

The former meant being led by a heavyweight, teeming with talent and flush with funding. After joining, he would have no need to worry about logistics; he would only need to do his job within the scope of his assigned tasks.

The latter was essentially a bare bones operation. He might get some personnel and funding, but it wouldn't be much.

To achieve anything significant on that foundation would be a monumental challenge.

But his experience with the "Yimi" project was still fresh in his mind. The latter path, though more arduous, was not without its advantages.

Chapter 400: Xu Zhihong's Depth Charge

Applying for your own project granted a certain degree of autonomy.

This autonomy could be crucial, or it could be a mixed blessing.

This was because many researchers just starting out needed a long period of training within a group to cultivate independent leadership abilities.

This leadership was comprehensive, encompassing not only visionary academic foresight and a firm grasp of the overall direction.

It also required certain management skills, whether for funds, equipment, or personnel.

For a project leader, professional expertise was a given.

And even with help, while one's management skills could be lacking, they couldn't be nonexistent.

"So, what's your opinion, Professor?" Lu Shixian mused, not answering directly but instead seeking his mentor's advice.

The question caught Xu Zhihong off guard. He replied in a mock-stern tone, "You've got it easy, haven't you? Not a single thought in your head, just tossing the problem right back to me."

Lu Shixian looked up and saw that Xu Zhihong was smiling broadly, without a hint of displeasure.

"Isn't a mentor's job to provide guidance at critical moments? Who else would I ask?" Lu Shixian deftly deflected.

Turning to serious matters, Xu Zhihong began to consider it earnestly for him. "Although there are many project grants available for young researchers these days, I'm sure you know about the strings attached. They're not necessarily the ones in control, and they usually lack the ability to be the principal investigator anyway."

"Even if they happen to get their project application approved and receive funding, they'll be in for a world of hurt when it's time to write the final report and submit their research findings."

"You get the glory upfront, but how do you clean up the mess? That's why people should never bite off more than they can chew."

Lu Shixian was deeply moved by Xu Zhihong's words.

It seemed Old Xu truly had his best interests at heart.

As someone with experience, Lu Shixian understood these principles, but for Xu Zhihong to spell them out for him so clearly was another matter.

This alone showed that Academician Xu genuinely treated him as a protégé.

His voice continued, "I don't have an opinion, only suggestions."

"For a young person, there's no doubt that joining more groups is beneficial. We all came up that way, starting from menial tasks and gradually taking on core research responsibilities. It's a step by step process where most of your connections and experience are accumulated."

"These things might not seem important in day to day life, but when you're up for a promotion or an honor, and you and your competitor are equally qualified, those things become the deciding factor."

"I came up step by step just like that. Look at those old rivals of mine, why didn't they become academicians before me? They had a second class prize, and so did I."

"Putting aside my teaching abilities, in terms of pure academic merit, I might not even be their equal."

Just as Lu Shixian thought he was about to be persuaded to join a group, he heard Xu's voice again.

"To be honest, if it weren't for your performance in the States, I would never have agreed to you leading a project at this stage."

"But there are always exceptions. Little Lu, your excellence is obvious, and you have no character flaws."

"So for you, taking the conventional path would indeed be a bit too slow."

"I know there are a few examples in other fields of people who have blazed a new trail, but they were mostly a flash in the pan, popping up briefly before disappearing. A truly representative figure has yet to emerge."

"If you want to walk this path, it's actually very difficult to succeed in the current domestic environment."

"But it's not impossible for you to succeed. The requirements are just a bit more stringent. You need to let your results do the talking."

"In the world of research, whose voice carries the most weight? It all comes down to who can deliver, doesn't it?"

"If you can do it and they can't, then others will have nothing to say."

"Of course, due to the research environment, achieving this in our country is even more difficult."

"Aside from purely theoretical fields like mathematics, for true fundamental research, with the current domestic research conditions, anything you can do, others can do too. In fact, with certain interferences, they might even do it better than you."

"And you'll waste precious moments of inspiration in endless mountains of paperwork and seas of meetings that you can't get out of."

At this point, Xu Zhihong finally paused, then said with great earnestness, "I know you're resistant to the idea of going abroad."

"But one must live in the present, not in baseless fantasies. We have to be realistic."

"Therefore, based on your situation, my suggestion is for you to go abroad after your doctorate. Not just to do research, but to make major achievements."

"Then, when you return, you will face far, far less resistance."

"Of course, this advice doesn't apply to others, and it would be hard for it to work for them. But for you, it should be remarkably effective."

"I'm proposing this path based on my understanding of you. I trust you'll choose to come back in the end, won't you?"

Listening to all this, Lu Shixian was utterly dumbfounded and shocked.

Truth be told, he had only asked for Xu Zhihong's opinion out of respect for his mentor. He didn't think Xu would offer any advice that broke the mold of the current era, so he hadn't planned on truly considering it.

But now, he had been jolted awake by a figurative slap from the Academician.

Due to his advanced perspective, he might not have noticed it himself, but in his subconscious, he had developed a subtle sense of looking down on everything in this era.

It was hard to say what the consequences would be, but under this influence, for him to truly produce great achievements that fit this era would be like trying to find water without a source, or a root for a floating duckweed.

He would only drift further and further from his goal.

While Lu Shixian was silently reflecting, Xu Zhihong saw his silence and couldn't help but soften his tone. "Perhaps I've gotten a bit ahead of myself."

"I know it might be a little hard for you to accept right now, but that's the reality."

"Of course, this is your choice, and no one has the right to interfere."

"As for whether to join a group or apply for a project at this stage, that's up to you."

"However, with my influence, the most I can get you is a municipal level project."

"We're still a long way from that, and even further from the timeline I mentioned earlier."

"You can go back and think it over carefully."

Hearing his mentor's voice, Lu Shixian snapped out of his daze as if waking from a dream.

He gave Xu Zhihong a deep bow and left the office, his mind a chaotic mess.

By the shore of Weiming Lake, the green waves rippled.

He didn't know how he had gotten here; it must have been pure subconscious instinct.

Xu Zhihong's words had been like a depth charge dropped into his heart.

A truly representative figure has yet to emerge, but Lu Shixian knew very well that the master of graphene would make his stunning debut in just a few years.

And Xu Zhihong's advice, by a strange coincidence, was strikingly similar.

Chapter 401: General and Youth Projects

To be able to think on that level was truly difficult, truly remarkable.

To consider such details also signified how highly Xu Zhihong regarded him.

An ordinary mentor would never speak to their student in such detail and with such candor.

If word got out, there would be risks. Setting aside the general public, at least within the research community, he would face considerable criticism, even as an academician.

Sitting in the pavilion, Lu Shixian hesitated.

Man proposes, God disposes.

He had already been preparing to make a big splash in the country, even considering potential team members. He truly had no plans to go abroad again.

But what Xu Zhihong said was absolutely constructive advice, and it was for his own good.

He was hesitant.

"Isn't that Number Four? What are you doing here wasting your life away instead of being in the lab?" Suddenly, a familiar teasing voice sounded by his ear.

Lu Shixian set aside his thoughts. He didn't even need to turn around to know who it was.

"Hello there, Number Three. Can I help you with something?" Lu Shixian said, deliberately pretending not to recognize him.

At these words, Chang Wenchao couldn't stand it. "What Number Three? You should be calling me Third Brother."

Lu Shixian laughed. "Well then, may I ask if your master's thesis is ready? If not, you can always ask your senior, the first year Ph.D. student, for some advice!"

Hearing this, Chang Wenchao was speechless, on the verge of exploding.

"Damn it!"

"So you're gonna play that card!"

"You want me to expose your embarrassing stories on the BBS?"

Lu Shixian was completely unfazed. "Go ahead, who's afraid of who?"

"As if I don't have some dirt on others. As I recall, among the four of us, a certain someone has the most, right?"

Chang Wenchao's face turned as black as a pot, but he couldn't say a word.

"Just talking about this pisses me off," he grumbled. "I tried to graduate early from my master's program too. Guess what happened?"

Lu Shixian shook his head. "Seeing how miserable you look, do I even need to guess? You obviously came up empty handed."

"I'm so done with this. The Academy of Sciences said I didn't meet the requirements, that my research results were all proposed by my advisor, and that I had no original, significant academic achievements," Chang Wenchao said, his voice full of frustration.

Instead of comforting him, Lu Shixian twisted the knife. "Isn't that the truth? What are you complaining about?"

Chang Wenchao was clearly not having it. He retorted defiantly, "It was like that at the beginning, but my most recent paper was completely my own work!"

"He's been so busy lately, he hasn't given me any guidance at all."

"I went to the graduate school to argue, and what really got me was they said since my advisor's name was on it and I had borrowed his influence, it was his achievement. They told me to just keep my head down since I'm about to graduate anyway."

Lu Shixian patted his shoulder. "Hang in there, man. His attitude sucked, but he wasn't entirely wrong. You're almost done anyway, no need to rush it."

"Why are you at Peking University today instead of at the Institute of Chemistry in the Chinese Academy of Sciences?"

The reminder made Chang Wenchao suddenly remember something. "Ahem, it's a long story. I've got something to do, gotta go."

With that, he straightened his clothes and scurried away.

Watching his retreating back, Lu Shixian muttered to himself, "Looks like he's definitely up to something."

Chang Wenchao's arrival had managed to distract him from his heavy thoughts.

Although they hadn't talked for long and hadn't had a proper reunion, he knew that everyone was striving towards their own goals, and that was enough.

Putting distant matters aside for now, he had to consider how to arrange the rest of his time as a doctoral student.

He planned to use the project he was preparing to apply for as his doctoral dissertation.

With permission, team members could use parts of their work on a project as their own graduation thesis.

In fact, in most cases, as long as you weren't on bad terms with people, they would turn a blind eye to you publishing a shared achievement of the research group.

After all, graduation was a major event, and no one would make a fuss over such things.

As the project leader, Lu Shixian would have even fewer concerns.

"What kind of project should I apply for?" Lu Shixian began to plan ahead, but found himself at a loss.

He didn't want to be perfunctory with his own doctoral dissertation.

In the end, before he could even think of a topic, he was summoned by a teacher from the school's project application office.

The teacher said apologetically, "Student Lu, although Beijing Municipality has allocated a good number of project slots to our university, there's a lot of competition for limited spots."

"Academician Xu spoke up recently and asked me to give you a spot for a Beijing Natural Science Foundation funded project. I promise I'll get it done."

"The General Program grants are targeted at professor and associate professor levels, so there's basically no chance for you there, I'm sure you understand."

"The slots for the General and Youth Projects were already decided, so you weren't supposed to get one. But since our Principal Xu has spoken, we'll definitely make room for you."

As he spoke, he sighed with emotion. "Even though Principal Xu is no longer in an administrative position, we all remember his kindness. I hope we'll have a chance to visit him."

"Also, please prepare your project application as soon as possible, and coordinate with the main project members and collaborating institutions to ensure all their information is authentic, complete, and valid."

"Later, if your project application is approved for funding, please remember to complete the signing and stamping procedures for the application and task forms within the specified time. The submission deadline for the paper materials will be announced separately."

Lu Shixian nodded, indicating he understood.

Of the many things the teacher said, only the last two sentences were truly useful.

But for someone who had navigated Beijing to this age, he naturally wouldn't speak nonsense.

He was undoubtedly using subtext to tell him two things: "First, this was very difficult to arrange, and it's only happening because of Academician Xu's influence, so it's not a freebie."

"Second, this funding slot was already unofficially promised to someone else. Now that you've taken it, someone is bound to be offended and hold a grudge, but that's not his problem."

Sigh. It was a mere 200,000 yuan project, why all the fuss.

Of course, Lu Shixian understood that just because he didn't care much about it didn't mean others looked down on it.

After all, once the money was in the account, how it was spent was up to the recipient.

Using it to buy office supplies, using it to buy consumable lab materials, was there anything wrong with that?

Of course not!

These smaller projects were often even more popular. Those in the know, know.

Lu Shixian didn't want to say any more on the matter.

Academician Xu would handle it anyway; he didn't need to worry.

But if he were on his own, he would have undoubtedly faced a mountain of trouble.

Chapter 402: The Doctoral Dissertation

And things did indeed turn out as he had thought.

The project slot Lu Shixian received had originally belonged to an assistant professor at Peking University.

Upon hearing his project application had been rejected, the professor flew into a rage.

He stormed into the university's project management office, but quieted down after learning of Academician Xu's involvement.

Later, he was said to have left in high spirits, though what agreement was reached remained unknown.

But Lu Shixian was no longer concerned with it.

Peking University, Project Management Office.

"Teacher Peng, should this be everything? When will the grant money likely arrive?" Lu Shixian asked, handing over a large box of documents.

He had been running around for days handling the paperwork to get the project finalized.

Because Lu Shixian was still a doctoral student, he didn't meet the specific requirement that current graduate students could not apply for that year's Beijing Youth Fund projects.

Fortunately, there was a loophole in this system. A student pursuing a doctoral degree who met all other conditions could apply through their host institution with their advisor's consent.

Therefore, the Beijing Science Foundation required him to provide a letter of recommendation from his advisor.

That wasn't all. The Beijing Youth Fund also required him to provide proof of experience in undertaking basic research projects or other basic research activities.

So, Lu Shixian painstakingly gathered his research publications to prove he had the relevant experience and met the funding criteria.

This Teacher Peng, named Peng Zhi, had always been friendly towards Lu Shixian.

He took the box and, while checking for any missing items, explained, "Student Lu, I've been working hard to coordinate with the people at the Beijing Youth Fund. These are their firm requirements, there's nothing I can do."

Lu Shixian was not foolish enough to say what was on his mind, instead appearing very understanding. "No problem, it's just procedure. I get it!"

Peng Zhi took out the prepared materials from the box. Besides his bachelor's and master's degree certificates and diplomas, there were photocopies of various journals.

He casually opened one and suddenly found the journal's name to be somewhat familiar.

Cell, Cell, Cell, Nature Cell Biology, Chemistry & Biology...

Peng Zhi was neither a researcher nor a teacher; he was a dedicated administrator responsible for managing Peking University's research projects.

But as someone working in a research related field, he understood the significance of these journals.

He now discovered, to his surprise, that the least prestigious one in the pile was the national level core journal, Chinese Journal of Rice Science.

This...

He had been wondering why the usually incorruptible and impartial Professor Xu Zhihong would suddenly speak up for a student.

Now, he seemed to understand.

Some people were just born to change the rules.

After a period of waiting.

Several days later, Lu Shixian finally received another message from Peng Zhi.

This time, it was good news.

"Student Lu, congratulations! You've successfully passed the preliminary review of your application materials, as well as the peer review and committee review for the proposed project," Peng Zhi said enthusiastically, handing the project application documents to Lu Shixian.

"In accordance with regulations and the results of the expert committee's vote, the Beijing Natural Science Foundation has decided to fund the project you applied for. The 200,000 yuan in project funds will be disbursed soon."

"In all my years in this job, this is the first time I've seen someone so young receive provincial or ministerial level project funding. We've had doctoral students get it before, but they were working professionals and much older."

"So once again, congratulations!"

Receiving this news, Lu Shixian was also quite pleased.

Although the amount of funding for this project was not a huge draw for him.
He had, after all, spent a considerable amount of time running around for this, and it was the first time he had successfully secured project funding in his own name.

You have to take things one step at a time, just as you eat a meal one bite at a time.

At least it was a good start, wasn't it?

To think that in the past, he had to expend a great deal of effort just to secure a municipal level project.

And now, he was starting with a provincial ministerial level Youth Foundation project. He was truly making constant progress.

Without even stopping by his dorm, Lu Shixian took the documents and headed straight for his advisor's office.

Seeing him rush in excitedly, Xu Zhihong was clearly a little surprised. "You got the project approved already? That was fast!"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was left speechless.

Academician Xu certainly had a way with words.

It was indeed fast, taking him less than a month.

But compared to others, he really was quick.

He didn't know if it was his advisor Xu Zhihong's reputation that did the trick, or if the name of the journal Cell was just that intimidating.

Perhaps it was a bit of both, but clearly, no one was concerned with that now.

Xu Zhihong took out the application materials, glanced at the title, and nodded at him with a look of satisfaction.

"Good. Work hard on this and write it up well! I'll have the Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Engineering cooperate fully with your experiments."

"If you run into any difficulties, you can come find me anytime."

The title of the project Lu Shixian had applied for was "A Study on the Totipotent Expression of Protoplasts from Economically Important Plants and its Inhibition Mechanisms."

This project fell squarely within the field of plant cell breeding. It also aligned with one of Academician Xu's primary research areas within plant developmental biology, plant cell culture, and plant bioengineering.

It also incorporated elements of crop genetics, a field he himself wanted to pursue.

Finally, it would also serve as Lu Shixian's doctoral dissertation.

Its significance was extraordinary.

So, beyond its practical applications, what was the academic significance of this project?

Cellular totipotency is one of the current hot topics in life sciences research, and protoplasts are an ideal material for studying the mechanisms of its expression.

Plant protoplasts are the naked cells enveloped by the plasma membrane after the cell wall has been removed. Their ability to regenerate into a whole plant under certain culture conditions is known as totipotency.

When these two concepts are combined, you get protoplast totipotency.

The significance of studying this project was that it could provide a new theoretical basis for research in cytogenetics and plant cell differentiation.

At the same time, it would offer new experimental materials and subjects for genetic improvement research projects that use mesophyll protoplasts, such as somatic hybridization, protoplast mediated genetic transformation, in vitro mutagenesis, germplasm cryopreservation, and transient gene expression.

In simple terms, it could provide crucial theoretical proof for exploring the mechanism of protoplast totipotency at a physiological level.

Genetics, differentiation, breeding.

This project, encompassing these key elements, held all his passion and expectations.

All in all, as Lu Shixian's doctoral thesis, it was fitting in both content and significance.

Chapter 403: Project Launch

When Lu Shixian returned to the Laboratory of Protein Engineering and Plant Gene Engineering, it undoubtedly felt more familiar than his last visit.

He was surrounded by familiar teachers, as well as senior male and female students.

At that moment, the lab's "bosses," including Academicians Zhu Xian, Zhao Dongming, and Niu Chengtang, were not around.

The one who welcomed Lu Shixian was, once again, the lab's "chief steward," Professor Tang Jiaqun.

"Academician Zhu has told me all about you. Young Lu, you are truly young and promising!" Tang Jiaqun said with considerable feeling. "I heard you secured a Beijing Youth Foundation project. It's not easy for a graduate student to get one of those."

Lu Shixian attributed the success to Xu Zhihong. "Hehe! It's all thanks to Academician Xu's guidance and help."

Tang Jiaqun gave him a meaningful look but didn't say more.

There was a famous saying within the system: In Beijing, if you throw a brick, you're likely to hit a dozen department chiefs.

Indeed, high ranking officials who were rarely seen in the provinces were more numerous than blades of grass here.

The situation in the academic world was similar, though not identical.

The title of Academician was certainly hard to come by, but over the years, the number of Academicians accumulated in all of Beijing was quite substantial.

In fact, when dealing with other departments, Xu Zhihong's former title as university president was more effective than his Academician title.

But in any case, Xu Zhihong was a former president, a thing of the past, and his influence had waned considerably.

Nowadays, whoever has the funding calls the shots.

It didn't matter what circle you were in.

The fact that Lu Shixian could secure the project so smoothly was further proof of his capabilities.

Tang Jiaqun didn't expose this, instead saying with emotion, "Congratulations on becoming the twenty sixth project group leader in this lab."

"Even though it's temporary, you've already set a new record for the youngest. I can already foresee that your future achievements will be limitless. Sometimes, scientific research also comes down to talent, and you undoubtedly have it in abundance. You don't need much guidance to find your own way to success."

"The world is changing faster every day, yet we feel more and more that we can't keep up. We're all getting old, after all!" Tang Jiaqun sighed. "This world ultimately belongs to the young. It's wonderful to be so full of vigor. Seeing you reminds me of Old Mr. Tan. Few people know that he also graduated from our Yanjing University's graduate school."

Lu Shixian quickly waved his hands. "I don't deserve such praise, I really don't. You're flattering me too much."

The scientific workers who came from that era had all faced incredible hardships; the research environment was a hundred times worse than it is today.

In Lu Shixian's eyes, Old Mr. Tan was a founding father of genetics in the country. He had established the nation's first genetics major, the first genetics research institute, and the first school of life sciences. He was also the first to write the word "gene" in Chinese.

Without him, the development of genetics in the country might still be in its infancy.

But he was more than just a biologist; he was a pioneer and a role model who embodied the responsibilities of a scientist. Starting in 1994, foreign countries began unscrupulously acquiring genomic samples from the Chinese population under the guise of "cooperation."

Once China's human genetic code was deciphered by foreign entities, it could not only be applied to biopharmaceuticals through scientific research but also potentially lead to gene targeted bioweapons, posing an enormous risk.

It was thanks to Old Mr. Tan's tireless advocacy and appeals that this chaotic situation was brought under control, and our precious genetic resources were preserved. Later, his presence directly led to the establishment of China's Human Genome Center.

He was a biologist who had made immense contributions to China, and Lu Shixian had always regarded him as a guiding light on his own path forward.

Of course, Tang Jiaqun was just speaking casually. He quickly asked, "Due to limited personnel, and to avoid affecting the progress of other groups, at most, I can assign you one new graduate student who just joined the lab."

"However, I'll hold a short meeting later. If any members volunteer to join you, that's also fine, but no more than five in total."

Lu Shixian nodded, understanding immediately that the project would likely be a two man show.

He really couldn't imagine any of his senior lab mates swallowing their pride to work under him.

Soon, reality confirmed Lu Shixian's guess.

As it turned out, no one made that choice.

However, several of his senior lab mates still greeted him warmly, though they all tacitly avoided the topic.

A master's student named Zhang Xiumin was assigned by Tang Jiaqun to help out in Lu Shixian's project group.

And so, the entire project team was assembled. Besides Lu Shixian, there was Zhang Xiumin, making for a team of just two.

Although the team was a bit small, it was much more convenient than his time in Nanjiang.

Next, Lu Shixian began to design the experimental plan for the project. He never went into battle unprepared.

At the same time, a teacher from the Yanda Graduate School brought him good news.

Due to his previous achievements in scientific research, he had been nominated as a candidate for the 2013 Autumn Yanda Graduate National Scholarship.

So now, he had to prepare the materials for the national scholarship selection while also handling the preliminary preparations for his experiment.

He had no choice; he couldn't pass it up.

The National Scholarship for graduate students was extremely prestigious.

This prestige was not just reflected in its quality, as the competition was fierce.

It was also reflected in the prize money: 20,000 yuan per year for master's students and 30,000 yuan per year for doctoral students.

There was no reason for Lu Shixian to let this opportunity go.

Once the funds arrived, Lu Shixian's project began in full swing.

Zhang Xiumin was a new student who had been admitted to the graduate program from Yanda's undergraduate school through a recommendation. For certain indescribable reasons, he had been given the opportunity to enter the state key laboratory in his first year.

Of course, you still need to have real skills to back it up. If he had no ability whatsoever, he couldn't have been propped up.

Initially, upon hearing he was being assigned as an experimental assistant to a doctoral student, Zhang Xiumin was very unhappy about it.

He himself was in a combined master's doctoral program; becoming a doctor was only a matter of time for him.

He was used to following professor level figures. What could he possibly learn from following a doctoral student?

But when he heard Lu Shixian's name, he immediately changed his tune.

Zhang Xiumin's personality was quite proud, but he was no fool.

Coming from a scholarly family, he was well aware of just how ridiculously impressive Lu Shixian's past work abroad had been.

It was just that Lu Shixian wasn't the nominal head of that research, and the results were all published in the United States.

Therefore, the story hadn't gained widespread traction in China. Even when it was reported, it was mostly confined to the scientific community.

The fact that someone of a similar age had achieved things he could only dream of made his arrogance vanish without a trace.

"Hi, Senior Lu. I'm your temporary group member. I look forward to learning from you." Thus, when Zhang Xiumin first met Lu Shixian, he was very reserved.

Lu Shixian's eyes lit up, and he immediately beckoned his new tool—ah, no, his new assistant—to come in and talk.

Chapter 404: Maybe Some, But Not Much

Sensing his slight awkwardness, Lu Shixian seemed to understand something. He asked with a smile, "Student Zhang, have we met before?"

Zhang Xiumin shook his head. "No, but your name is legendary in our class."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian found it rather amusing that someone was advertising for him. He immediately asked with interest, "Oh? Who was it?"

"Professor Ma Yuhang." Zhang Xiumin's answer was clearly unexpected. "Professor Ma said that under his guidance, you continuously grew to become a shining example among Yanda's young scientific researchers."

"He also said that as his students, we shouldn't limit our sights to our own little corner of the country. We should be like you, setting our sights firmly on the small goal of CNS, adding a brick to the rising edifice of China's life sciences, and working steadfastly to build a stronger and more prosperous motherland."

Lu Shixian was speechless.

That Old Ma really knew how to spin a tale. But he couldn't very well deny it now, as that would be a slap in his own face.

"Ahem, Professor Ma was mainly trying to encourage you all. You can just listen, no need to take it so seriously. Besides, we're peers, so don't be so formal." Seeing Zhang Xiumin quickly relax, Lu Shixian asked him about his background.

Soon, after a brief period of interaction, the two became familiar with each other.

It had to be said, Tang Jiaqun hadn't shortchanged him. The assistant he assigned was not just qualified, but overqualified.

As the saying goes, the new generation surpasses the old.

Zhang Xiumin's academic achievements as an undergraduate were almost more impressive than his own.

Besides a foundational paper in Nature Plants, he also had research experience participating in the publication of two other SCI papers.

Although he later admitted that these were all completed under the guidance of his elders and his level of participation wasn't high.

But having participated and having no experience at all were two different things.

Lu Shixian didn't have any particular opinion on this.

He had realized long ago that there was no such thing as absolute fairness in this world.

While such connections could certainly help one advance quickly, he believed more firmly that taking things one steady step at a time was the way to go the distance.

A few days later, all the preliminary preparations for the project were in place.

Lu Shixian called Zhang Xiumin over to formally introduce him to the specifics of the project.

"Xiumin, you kept asking about the project's implementation plan, didn't you? The project is about to start, so I'll give you a brief overview and say a few words about the division of labor."

"I'm sure you've learned a bit from the application materials. That's right, our project this time has two levels. The first is the expression of protoplast totipotency, and the second is the study of its inhibition mechanisms."

"You have a fair bit of research experience yourself. Since the second level is a continuation of the first, our research focus must be on totipotent expression."

"Although I'm the project leader and the one driving it forward, with your abilities, I can't just treat you as an assistant. I have higher expectations for you and believe you can handle more difficult work. What do you think?"

Zhang Xiumin was stunned at first, then became extremely excited.

The other reasons he hadn't wanted to come, besides the ones he'd already considered, were that he felt the project wasn't very high level or challenging, and as an assistant, he wouldn't have much input or a sense of participation in the experiments.

But now, things were different.

Lu Shixian's words rekindled the passion in his heart.

"I think I can do it!" Zhang Xiumin was thrilled. A project with only two people was a novel experience for him. "Senior Lu, go ahead and assign the tasks. I'm ready."

Lu Shixian nodded with satisfaction, reminded of his own time under Old Ma's guidance—just as full of substance, passion, and the drive and energy of youth.

Next, the two discussed research related to protoplasts.

It had to be said, Zhang Xiumin had done his homework, likely having spent the past few days poring over materials.

"The application of plant protoplast totipotency can be traced back to the 1960s, when research on it had already begun. Its emergence was driven by the need to overcome incompatibility in distant hybridization and to improve crop varieties by utilizing distant genetic resources."

"A protoplast can be described as a living protoplasmic mass, naked after its plant cell wall is removed by special methods. The definition of a protoplast in academia isn't always consistent, but it generally refers to the sum of all structures within the cell wall."

"For a single cell, the protoplast includes the cell membrane, cytoplasm, nucleus, and organelles. You could say that besides lacking a cell wall, it has all the characteristics of a living cell."

Lu Shixian nodded. "The key reason plant protoplasts have become a hot topic in biological research is that they are ideal recipients for genetic transformation, as they can take up foreign genetic material more easily than other recipients."

"In 1960, the British plant physiologist Cocking was the first to isolate protoplasts from tomato root cells using cellulase. In 1971, Takebe and other scientists successfully obtained regenerated plants by culturing tobacco leaf protoplasts."

At this point, Lu Shixian's tone became more emphatic. "This experiment revealed the existence of protoplast totipotency to the world for the first time. I've recently reviewed all the current research literature on plant protoplasts. After that breakthrough, the academic world's focus shifted mainly to protoplast culture and cell fusion. Not much more effort was spent on the totipotency of plant protoplasts."

"Does that mean our research has a certain degree of originality and novelty?" Zhang Xiumin's eyes lit up. "Looked at this way, this project has a lot of potential and great prospects!"

Lu Shixian shook his head. "There might be some prospects, but not much."

"As for the originality and novelty you mentioned, it's the same story. BioRxiv, a preprint server dedicated to biology, was launched this year. I've searched through the preprints these past few days."

"According to incomplete statistics, there are already over a dozen papers that mention protoplasts, six of which are related to plant protoplasts, and three of which have keywords including both 'plant protoplast' and 'totipotency'."

Hearing this, Zhang Xiumin gave a sheepish smile. This was something he would never have even considered, yet Lu Shixian had already looked into it.

Did it matter to him whether someone abroad was doing the same or similar research?

But inwardly, he was even more impressed. All he could do was marvel.

Chapter 405: I'm Here to Crash the Party

"So what do we do? We've already submitted the project application. We can't just drop it because of this, can we?" Zhang Xiumin asked.

Lu Shixian gave him a reassuring look. "No need to worry too much. I've read all their papers. Except for Brother Curry from Oxford University, none of the others pose a threat. They're just latching onto a hot topic for clout, with no real substance."

"That's a relief." Zhang Xiumin was left bewildered. "But who's Brother Curry? Is there someone with that name?"

Seeing his confused expression, Lu Shixian burst out laughing. "His name is indeed Gali. What's the problem?"

Zhang Xiumin was instantly speechless.

Soon, the two proceeded to divide the tasks for the project.

If both difficulty and workload were taken into account, Lu Shixian was shouldering about 80% of the work.

Zhang Xiumin had once won a gold medal in the Chinese Mathematical Olympiad (CMO), so he had a talent for data processing, which was his strong suit.

Adhering to the principle of making the best use of his resources—ah, no, I mean, assigning people to the right roles—Lu Shixian solemnly entrusted the data processing work to him.

As for the rest, Lu Shixian took on almost all of it himself.

It wasn't that Lu Shixian was doing it on purpose; he simply had no choice.

When it came to experimental operations and paper writing, he figured that the time it would take to guide Zhang Xiumin would be enough for him to do the same work several times over.

Through the lab's procurement channels, Lu Shixian had already purchased nearly 50,000 yuan worth of experimental solvents.

The research had yet to make any progress, but almost half of the project funding was already spent.

This was another important reason why Lu Shixian chose to do the experiments himself.

He hadn't really felt it before, but now that he was in charge, he couldn't help but marvel at how doing natural science research really burns through money.

His project wasn't a large scale one, but to achieve the results he envisioned, a mere 200,000 yuan would be nowhere near enough.

But being in the State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Engineering came with many conveniences.
This included utilities, basic lab equipment, and even the use of expensive, specialized instruments—he didn't have to pay for any of it.

Otherwise, even if he sold himself, the project couldn't possibly have gotten off the ground so smoothly.

In fact, sometimes, Lu Shixian was quite envious of those who researched fundamental mathematical theory.

Unfortunately, God hadn't opened that door for him; in fact, He hadn't even cracked the window very wide.

He had no talent for mathematical research, nor was it his ambition.

"What? You're saying there's no money for our project?"

"No problem! Just approve the project for me. You can give me a hundred yuan later for pens and scratch paper!"

Although this exchange was born from a joke, it reflected the reality of the situation to a certain extent.

In today's scientific community, trying to launch a major research project without funding was simply a pipe dream.

What? You study math?

Oh, then never mind.

Time, as always, was merciless, and the semester was rapidly drawing to a close.

As November began, Lu Shixian's project wasn't progressing quickly; they hadn't even finalized the experimental design.

But it wasn't slow either. Zhang Xiumin had already started processing the preliminary data.

They tried their best to stay in sync to maximize efficiency and save time.

The longer it dragged on, the more Lu Shixian's heart ached. He had no desire to end up a "Mr. Negative" with a mountain of debt after finishing a project.

However, his mood today was particularly good.

For days, the accounts had shown only expenses, but now, a significant sum was finally coming in.

The price, however, was a morning spent at a public defense presentation.

That's right, he was defending his work. Again. And again.

All applicants who passed the initial review, including himself, were required to give a public defense at the evaluation meeting.

Master's students were given five minutes to present, while doctoral students had ten.

For him, that meant a report of no more than seven minutes, followed by at least three minutes of questions from the judges.

They say a minute on stage takes ten years of practice offstage.

There was certainly truth to that. To prepare for his ten minutes of perfection, Lu Shixian, despite his busy schedule, had carved out a whole hour to make a PowerPoint presentation.

As for everything else, he hadn't prepared. After all, he'd done so many of these presentations.

He wasn't nervous at all. Okay?

November 2nd, 9:00 AM.

Yanjing University Centennial Hall.

Under the watchful eyes of thousands of students and faculty, and in the presence of his fellow competitors, Lu Shixian walked onto the stage.

He vaguely recalled the National Scholarship competition during his undergraduate years, when his debut had attracted widespread attention.

But this time, things were a little different.

That's right—he was probably here to crash the party.

Because this time, the scholarship evaluation rules were in his favor.

During his master's program, Lu Shixian had been busy with an overseas exchange program and missed the scholarship application, a fact he had regretted for a while.

The rule for this year's National Scholarship was that previous winners could apply again, but their research achievements could not be reused.

However, since Lu Shixian hadn't applied during his master's, it meant the research he had done then was eligible for use now.

He didn't care what the rules would be in the future. For now, all he wanted to say to his competitors was: My sincerest apologies.

He had been thinking that during his PhD, the only truly high-caliber research he'd done was the paper published in *Chemistry & Biology*.

Other than that, there were a few papers he'd submitted in his first year as a PhD student when he had some free time. While they were all SCI-indexed, their impact factors weren't very high, and they reeked of being filler publications.

Since he hadn't participated in many social activities, he didn't have many awards either.

If it weren't for the gains from his trip to Nanjiang, he would have come up almost empty-handed.

That's right, the small gift from Mei Xingguo had arrived.

He had successfully been named one of the "Top Ten Outstanding Youths" of Nanjiang Province's ninth annual selection.

Because his outstanding contributions in the Shinian Nature Reserve needed to be kept confidential, there was no grand award ceremony for him to attend.

Not that he had the time anyway. Back then, he had thought the award was rather useless.

Now, Lu Shixian could only think how sweet it turned out to be.

At this moment, standing backstage in the auditorium, Lu Shixian was dressed in a suit, bored out of his mind, waiting for the four guys and girls ahead of him to finish their reports.

Lu Shixian had drawn the fifth slot. Although each person only had ten minutes, by the time it was his turn, far more than fifty minutes would have passed. It might even be two hours.

"Oh, time, my dear sister, I didn't mean to abandon you! But the pay is just too good this time."

Slumped on a bench, Lu Shixian hung his head, looking utterly dejected.

His appearance brought a secret thrill to the other waiting candidates from different departments.

Excellent! Looks like there's one less competitor to worry about.

Chapter 406: Is That a Diploma Mill or Something?

A long time later, Lu Shixian was on the verge of dozing off.

In a daze, he thought he heard his name.

"Next, let's welcome Lu Shixian, a second-year doctoral student from the Graduate School of Life Sciences at Yanjing University, to give us his brilliant presentation!" Backstage, the host's voice boomed with energy.

Lu Shixian yawned, stood up listlessly, and walked toward the stage, leaving the others to wonder what to make of him.

Still, he had the presence of mind to straighten the wrinkles in his suit from sitting for so long.

While Yanjing University wouldn't turn someone away for being poorly dressed, Lu Shixian was still at an age where he cared about his image.

At the host's signal, he took the microphone and walked to the center of the stage.

"Respected leaders, dear teachers, and fellow students, good morning." When it came to business, Lu Shixian didn't mess around.

Although he was speaking without a script—or more accurately, had no script to begin with—his performance was no worse than the four students before him, even if it wasn't necessarily better.

After all, he'd had no time to prepare. His last-minute effort was bound to lack the polish and detail of the others, who had spent dozens of days meticulously preparing.

But his delivery was as steady as ever.

"It is a great honor to stand here with several outstanding students to participate in this year's National Scholarship defense."

"My name is Lu Shixian. I am twenty-four years old, a second-year PhD student from the Graduate School of Life Sciences."

"I wonder if anyone here still remembers me?"

Typically, in a setting like this, contestants would avoid interacting with the audience to play it safe.

After all, no matter how much you've accomplished in recent years, your fame is likely limited to your class, your major, or at best, your department.

But here sat students, teachers, and leaders from every school in the university, as well as the university's top administration.

There was a real chance of getting a cold response. If the room fell silent, it would be a disaster, potentially leading to a socially catastrophic moment.

No one would risk it; it simply wasn't worth it.

But Lu Shixian did just that.

When the audience heard the host's introduction, they were already searching their memories, trying to place the name Lu Shixian. It sounded familiar, but they couldn't quite put their finger on it.

Then Lu Shixian mentioned his age.

A twenty-four-year-old second-year PhD student was a rarity, even in the long history of Yanjing University.

Many people's minds flashed back several years to the defense for the Special Scholarship.

An academician had vouched for him, and his words had stirred everyone's hearts.

"I really only know how to solve problems. Other than that, I don't seem to have anything worth boasting about."

"Even if I end up being mediocre, I will smile and have no regrets."

"Just like a chickweed flower, plain but never ordinary!"

The phrases that once caused a sensation seemed to reappear before their eyes.

Immediately, the audience responded.

"We remember!"

"Problem-Solving Bro!"

"Go for it!"

Lu Shixian was fine at first, but when he heard the second shout, he almost lost his composure.

"Go for it" was fine, but what was "Problem-Solving Bro" supposed to mean?

Forcing back the urge to retort, Lu Shixian managed a strained smile and continued, "Yes, I'm back again today."

"There's not much to say. Next, please take a look at the results of my problem-solving over the past few years."

As he finished speaking, the PowerPoint he had made appeared on the screen.

In the next moment, almost everyone was stunned by what they saw.

The slide was almost entirely filled with research achievements.

It listed all the papers he had published in recent years.

He had omitted the few that felt like filler, as they paled in comparison to the others.

And so, the vast screen displayed only a few lines of text, deceptively simple.

But the rule of "the fewer the words, the bigger the deal" came into full effect.

The once-quiet auditorium erupted.

"Holy crap! Three first-author papers in *Cell*."

"Is he trying to fly to the sun and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with it?"

"This is insane!"

"I always thought my senior, who managed to get one paper in *Nature*, was invincible. I never expected this guy to be even more of a beast. Where did this titan come from?"

As for the corresponding and first-author paper in a *Cell* subsidiary journal and the Outstanding Youth award that Lu Shixian had added to pad things out, they were completely ignored.

Backstage, the other waiting candidates saw Lu Shixian's presentation on a side screen and were left dumbfounded.

They thought he was a bronze-level player, only to discover he was a king. The contrast was just too staggering.

No one thought the current uproar was out of place. It was, after all, truly terrifying.

Only the judges in the front row and the leaders in the VIP section remained relatively calm.

But even they were now whispering among themselves, discussing the situation.

Such a scene was a rare occurrence in the history of the Centennial Hall.

Fortunately, Lu Shixian's voice managed to temporarily quiet the buzz.

Everyone wanted to hear what he would say next.

"I'm ashamed to say that what I bring you today is, once again, just problem-solving." Lu Shixian shifted slightly from the center, turning to the side to begin his formal presentation.

"I will report on the difficult problems I've encountered since my undergraduate graduation and my methods for solving them. There are no fixed answers here, but perhaps my experience can serve as a stepping stone to inspire others."

Lu Shixian's thoughts, along with his narrative, drifted back to the early summer of a few years ago.

"Around my second year of my master's program, I had the opportunity to go abroad for an exchange program."

"It was then that I encountered my first multiple-choice question."

"My grades at the time were pretty good, so I was fortunate enough to have options."

"I had a decent shot at MIT, Harvard, Cambridge, and Oxford. But from these four mainstream answers—A, B, C, and D—I chose an answer you've probably never heard of."

"I ultimately applied to UCD, the University of California, Davis."

To avoid any confusion, Lu Shixian made sure to say the university's full name.

But his effort was in vain.

Not only had most of the audience never heard of it, but even those who knew something about it were few and far between. A new wave of discussion quickly spread.

"I know the University of California, but what's with the branch campus?"

"A branch campus isn't even a full college. Did God Lu really go to a diploma mill or something?"

"Erm... I just looked it up on my phone."

"It's not a diploma mill. It's a legitimate campus of the University of California. It's just that its world ranking is a bit... touching."

"No way? No wonder I've never heard of it. What's the ranking?"

"It's alright! Over a hundred is still pretty good. Our Yanjing University is only in the dozens."

Chapter 407: Multiple Choice, True/False, and Essay Questions

Lu Shixian couldn't hear the audience's chatter, but he could guess what they were saying. It didn't affect his next move.

"To give a brief introduction, UCD is a university with unique strengths in the fields of agriculture, forestry, and biology."

"Although some people didn't understand my choice at the time, I insisted on filling in my answer on the test paper."

"I don't know if there was a better answer, but practice has proven that my answer to the first question was not wrong."

As he finished, applause rippled through the hall, though it wasn't thunderous and was mostly out of politeness.

However, he had piqued most people's interest. A defense presentation that didn't follow a script was a rare sight indeed.

Lu Shixian didn't keep them in suspense for long. "Next, at UCD, I encountered a true/false question."

"Although this question format is simple, its difficulty and importance were, in my opinion, unparalleled."

"This brings me to the first time I joined a research group. It was a small project, but even so, my involvement was minimal. I could barely integrate. The Americans were polite to me at first, but their eyes held a sense of distance and indifference."

This statement resonated with many in the audience. As a top university in the country, Yanjing University sent many outstanding students abroad for exchanges every year. Combined with students from wealthy families, a significant portion of the student body had experience overseas.

"At the time, because I had some experience with experiments, I was promoted from a lab assistant to a lab technician, specifically responsible for the experimental operations of a sub-project." Lu Shixian was recounting his personal experiences, and his plain, conversational style was breaking new ground for a National Scholarship defense.

The audience was captivated by his story.

"But I was just performing operations. Being a mere tool for the Americans was not what I wanted."

"After a simple judgment call, I decided to recharge my batteries, because at the time, apart from the experiments, I had no idea what they were even doing."

"Later, after a period of study, I was finally able to understand the experiments. But I began to have doubts about the results from the experiments I had previously conducted."

"The conclusion on the species of the grain pathogen was supposed to be *Peronosclerospora*, which corresponds to downy mildew in millet."

"But I had a different opinion. My first impression was that it was *Sclerospora*, but I had no proof."

"At that point, I should have given up. It's very difficult to challenge a widely accepted result."

"But I made my judgment. I had to stick with my idea."

"Then, by coincidence, a friend's mention of an 'arms race' led me to the origin of my three *Cell* papers: the co-evolution between plants and pathogens."

"These judgments were just a few thoughts, but without a doubt, each one represented a completely different path forward. I don't know if I would have been blocked on other paths, but the results proved my judgment was not wrong."

By this point, some people were beginning to understand.

It seemed the reality was not what they had imagined—that Lu Shixian had simply gotten lucky and joined a top-tier lab, earning first authorship by contributing there.

That was a very normal and logical assumption. But Lu Shixian's narrative now contradicted it.

Because it seemed this project was initiated and led by Lu Shixian himself.

But was that possible?

This question arose in many people's minds.

At the same time, the answer quickly surfaced.

It's not just unlikely; it's impossible.

First, how could such a major experimental project be led by an exchange student?

Second, as a master's-level student at the time, did Lu Shixian even have the ability to lead a team?

Then, the only possibility was that he initiated it, and someone else took control. This would align with the facts, as the corresponding author was someone else, not Lu Shixian.

While many were busy piecing together their own theories, Lu Shixian revealed the third question.

"Next, I encountered the most crucial question of my life so far—an essay question," Lu Shixian said with a sigh.

In fact, even now, he still felt a bit emotional about that period.

He hadn't fully grasped it while living through it, but now, retelling it as the one who experienced it brought a whole new set of feelings.

"You probably won't believe this, but I did indeed become the person in charge of that project."

The moment he said this, the entire hall was in an uproar.

Even the professors in the front row were stunned. This news was completely unexpected.

The seven-minute time limit had actually passed, but no one seemed to be bringing it up.

Lu Shixian's story had captured everyone's curiosity. It was just too incredible.

"Although the inspiration for the project came from me, getting leadership of it at the time was not easy," Lu Shixian said with a shrug, his tone light.

The people in the audience were speechless. It wasn't just "not easy"; it was downright fantastical.

Lu Shixian seemed to guess their thoughts and smiled. "Are you all wondering, with no connections and no money, how could I get people to willingly contribute money and effort and let me lead, just with empty words?"

"But the truth is, I did rely on my mouth."

"To put it simply, it was because I answered an essay question well."

"You could also call it bluffing. That's right, at the time, I was betting that my bluff would succeed."

"Although I personally dislike speculation, sometimes in life, you don't get multiple-choice questions."

"Win the bet, and the payoff is huge. Lose, and there's no real loss. I would just go back to my normal track."

This wasn't a storytelling session, and others were still waiting to speak. Conveniently, Lu Shixian had no intention of continuing this story.

He was already preparing his conclusion.

"In the end, I succeeded. For certain reasons, I cannot go into detail here, nor can I prove right now that I was indeed the head of the Yimi Project."

"But it's no longer necessary."

"In my view, that experience will be a treasure for my entire life."

"After all, when someone finds a precious gem, they have no reason to shout about it just to make others believe them, do they?"

Finally, Lu Shixian, filled with emotion, delivered the last line of his report.

"I don't have the artistic talent of the other candidates, nor their athletic prowess on the field. I really only know how to solve problems."

"But in my eyes, life is a process of constantly solving problems."

"The way to reach your destination is also simple: encounter a problem, and then find a way to solve it."

"It's as simple as that!"

"That concludes my report."

"Thank you, everyone!"

After his final words, Lu Shixian looked out at the hall, which had fallen into an eerie silence, and felt a bit surprised.

That's not right. Why is there no reaction?

But the moment that thought crossed his mind...

Chapter 408: Dr. Lu Has Really Made It!

An unprecedented wave of applause thundered through the entire auditorium.

Sitting in the front row, the judges looked at each other, as if asking: Is there even any need for questions?
The answer, of course, was no.

He had left at eight in the morning and didn't return until five in the afternoon.

Clutching a bright red certificate of honor, Lu Shixian got his wish and returned to the lab to continue the experiment that had been on his mind.

In the lab's break room, his seniors—Wang Xiaoxiao, Zeng Feng, and Chen Bowen—had already finished their tasks for the day and were chatting around the coffee table.

They were all a bit curious when they saw Lu Shixian stride in.

This was unusual. In their eyes, the lab was Lu Shixian's second home. He usually clocked in around the time they were getting up for breakfast and left long after they'd watched several episodes of their favorite shows. While some of them were also dedicated, no one was quite that extreme.

Perhaps they might pull a day like that occasionally to meet a deadline.

Seeing him greet them and immediately head for the lab, Wang Xiaoxiao asked with concern, "Junior Lu, are you feeling unwell today? We didn't see you in the lab at all."

She certainly didn't think he'd been on a date—that would be even more ridiculous.

Lu Shixian shook his head, baffled. "Unwell? Not at all. I just took some time off to accept a National Scholarship."

"It was a bit of a waste of time, but the prize money was too good to pass up."

"Research is important, of course, but you can't get by without money."

The others exchanged glances, momentarily speechless.

With the scholarship business settled, there were few distractions left.

Undisturbed, Lu Shixian's life fell into a simple, regular pattern: dorm, lab, cafeteria. A straight line between three points.

The scholarship defense had been back in November.

Now, winter break was just days away.

Their experiment faced the risk of being put on hold.

Zhang Xiumin was only his assistant, and Lu Shixian couldn't bring himself to ask the guy to skip his vacation to grind away in the lab with him.

Especially since Zhang Xiumin already put in more than his fair share of overtime.

Lu Shixian was in a bind himself.

Winter break wasn't like summer break; it was a special time, encompassing both New Year's Day and the traditional Spring Festival.

He could get away with not going home for the summer, but skipping Spring Festival was a major offense in China. He would surely face a barrage of life or death calls from Ms. Xia Xiuman.

The calendar finally flipped from 2013 to 2014.

By January 18th, Lu Shixian noticed the lab was much emptier; clearly, some people had already taken leave a week early for the New Year.

But he was still holding down the fort.

On January 25th, winter break officially began.

Seeing a hesitant Zhang Xiumin, Lu Shixian knew exactly what was on his mind. He gave him a few final instructions, told him to make sure the experiment logs were up to date, and sent him off on his vacation then and there.

But there was no one to grant him the same leave.

By the time February rolled around, it was hard to find anyone in the lab besides the local staff on duty; nearly everyone had gone home for the New Year.

Lu Shixian held out as long as he could, but he did remember to buy a train ticket for the days leading up to the festival.

Tickets during the Spring Festival travel rush were notoriously hard to snag, but there was an advantage to being at Yan University: the person sitting next to you in a random public lecture could turn out to be a genius who developed a ticket snatching app.

Riding on someone else's coattails, he managed to get a standing room only ticket to Jinling that required a transfer.

On February 6th, three days before the start of Spring Festival.

Ms. Xia Xiuman issued an ultimatum: get his butt back home within three days, or she would settle the score with him later.

Lu Shixian caved.

Procrastination was never a good habit.

But he couldn't help but think that if someone could channel it into studying or research the way he did.

Now that would be cool!

Finally, February 8th arrived—the eve of the Spring Festival.

Lu Shixian reluctantly put all his work aside.

After saving his experiment logs, packing up the instruments, and following all the standard, proper procedures, he took off his white lab coat, ready to head home.

He had caught the tail end of the homecoming rush. Even though it was only a standing room ticket, he was lucky to have one at all.

When it came to the Spring Festival travel season, all people were equal.

No one paid any mind to his status; a PhD student from Yan University still had to huddle in a corner, standing out of the way.

Thankfully, the journey to Jinling was uneventful. And this year, he was treated to a private pickup.

With the family's support, his cousin, Xia Yubing, had purchased a big ticket item this year and was waiting for him at the Jinling train station in her new car.

They had already arranged where to meet. Seeing Lu Shixian emerge from the station hall, Xia Yubing, wearing sunglasses, struck a playful pose. "Hey there, handsome," she said with a flirty tone. "Interested in hopping in for a joyride with your big sis?"

Lu Shixian was long wise to his cousin's antics. He ignored her, calmly placing his luggage in the trunk.

Then he slid into the back seat, crossed his legs, and said, "What are you waiting for? A driver should have some professional awareness. Keep dawdling and I'll have to dock your pay."

At his words, Xia Yubing seethed. She threw her sunglasses aside and slammed her foot on the accelerator. The car shot forward like an arrow.

Lu Shixian was thrown off balance, stumbling and losing his composed expression.

He scrambled for the grab handle. "What are you doing? Hey!" he shouted.

"Xia Yubing, have you got a death wish?"

Of course, Xia Yubing wasn't actually willing to risk her own life. She slammed on the brakes just as hard. The car shuddered violently but didn't lurch forward again.

She asked triumphantly, "So, Boss Lu, were you satisfied with the service this time?"

Fearing for his life, Lu Shixian didn't dare talk back.

But he fully intended to snitch to the elders once they got home.

Are you all really comfortable letting a novice female driver out on the road?

On the way, seeing how boring Lu Shixian was, Xia Yubing finally returned to normal.

But even so, it wasn't her style to refrain from a few sarcastic remarks.

"Our Dr. Lu has really made it big! The first PhD in the Xia and Lu families, and now he doesn't even come home anymore."

"I was so comfortable at home, eating snacks and watching TV. Now it's almost the New Year and I still have to come out and play chauffeur."

Lu Shixian had a pretty good idea of what was going on and chuckled. "You didn't have to come, you know."

Xia Yubing bit her lip and grumbled, "It was Grandpa who insisted. You think I'd listen if it was my dad?"

Lu Shixian had been maintaining a high level of mental focus for a long time, with overtime being the norm.

The journey had been long and dusty, and he'd been on a standing room only ticket just before this.

It only took a moment of leaning against the seat back for Lu Shixian to fall asleep.

On the highway, the car's speed quietly stabilized, and the music inside softened.

The little car wound its way down the road to Happiness Village.

After the long and tiring journey, the two had finally reached their destination.

It might not have been the most comfortable nap, but it was definitely the longest he had slept in a while.

Chapter 409: A Man Doesn't Cry Easily

Stretching, Lu Shixian got out of the car and saw the old home he had missed for so long.

"Mom? Dad?" Lu Shixian froze at the scene before him. "Let's talk this out. Why are you holding weapons?"

Ms. Xia Xiuman, brandishing a feather duster, put on a stern face. "Dr. Lu is such a busy man now. We had to call you so many times, and you still didn't want to come home?"

He hadn't been in much contact with his family during those last few busy days. Acknowledging his fault, Lu Shixian immediately backed down.

"Hey! What doctor? I'm just a freeloader living under your roof for the next few days."

"Why don't we go inside before we talk? The neighbors are watching."

At these words, his parents, ever reasonable, visibly softened their expressions.

A domestic dispute should not become a public spectacle.

Her mission accomplished, Xia Yubing snickered and said her goodbyes to the family.

Though she was leaving, everyone present knew it wouldn't be long before they saw each other again.

After a lively Spring Festival at home, it was soon time for the familiar round of visiting relatives.

His uncle, Xia Hongguang, representing the Xia family, warmly invited the family of three to a gathering.

The Xia family wasn't a huge clan, but when they gathered, there were still a good twenty people.

"Come on, everyone is usually busy with work. It's rare for us all to be together today. Those who drink juice, drink juice. Those who drink alcohol, don't hold back. Let's all stand and have a toast together," declared the patriarch, Xia Chengjun. The whole family naturally rose to the occasion.

Xia Hongguang, true to his name, was already red faced after a few glasses.

He stood up again, and as the host, looked at Lu Shixian. "Little Lu, I've watched you grow up."

"We're gathered here today, first, to celebrate the New Year, and second, to celebrate you."

"This is the old man's idea as well. Though the sea of learning is boundless, getting a PhD from Yan University is a first for our Xia family, a real historic achievement."

Xia Hongguang raised his glass to him. "As the first PhD in our family, I hope Little Hong and Little Peng can learn from you. I also hope you'll keep up the great work and reach even greater heights."

Lu Shixian hadn't expected this part of the program. With all eyes on him, he was both surprised and flattered.

After managing to be a nobody for a whole year, he was back in the spotlight. Lu Shixian was exasperated.

But though his mind was blank, his movements were swift. He quickly stood up and raised his glass with both hands.

"Thank you for your blessings, Uncle, and thank you all for the care and help you've given me over the years."

"Without everyone's constant encouragement and expectations, I could never have come this far on this path."

"For me, the PhD is just the beginning of my journey into scientific research. I will carry your hopes forward, strive to make greater achievements to bring honor to our family, and live up to my youth and serve my country."

As soon as Lu Shixian finished, his maternal grandfather, Xia Chengjun, led the applause. "Well said! Little Lu spoke my mind exactly. I'll drink to that!"

With the old man leading the charge, the atmosphere instantly livened up.

Seeing that lying low was now a fantasy, it was time for the main event.

Of course, the main combatants were Xia Hongguang, Lu Jianguo, and the other men of the Xia family's second generation.

Lu Shixian, Xia Pengyuan, and Xia Jianhong were the third generation.

Xia Pengyuan and Xia Jianhong were still in high school, so naturally, no one would force them to join the drinking.

Xia Yubing was a girl, so it was even more out of the question.

Xia Hongguang had an impressive tolerance, downing his glass in one go without even flinching.

His father, Lu Jianguo, was no pushover either and couldn't stand being challenged. "Come on, come on! After this one, there are three more!"

Soon, after a few rounds of toasts, the battle ended with Lu Jianguo being the first to tap out.

His mother, with a look of reproach, helped Lu Jianguo find a place to rest.

Lu Shixian wasn't surprised at all. His dad was a complete amateur.

Drinking a few glasses by himself for fun was one thing.

Trying to compete with a pro like Xia Hongguang, who worked in the system, was just asking for trouble.

But that's how drinking parties were.

Sometimes, you had to jump in even if you knew you couldn't win. It was all about the atmosphere.

However, this made things difficult for Lu Shixian and Xia Xiuman.

If it weren't for Xia Yubing giving them a ride, it would have been a real hassle.

After all, taking care of a drunk person is no easy task.

This was why Lu Shixian had rarely touched alcohol since being burned once before.

On one hand, as a scientist, he needed to maintain a clear head at all times. On the other, he had already experienced the misery of a hangover.

It's not just miserable for you, but also for the person taking care of you.

By the time they got home, it was past ten at night.

Although Lu Jianguo's eyes were still blinking, his mind was a bit foggy.

His mom couldn't say much earlier with people around, but now it was her time to shine.

"And you, always bragging about how good you are at this."

"And you're down after just a couple of rounds?"

"Just go and rest already!"

"Don't you know your own limits? 'Three more cups,' he says."

Beside them, Lu Shixian coughed pointedly. Was this something he was supposed to be hearing?

He quickly found an excuse and started to walk away.

But Lu Jianguo seemed to have understood, retorting stubbornly, "It's just... I was... happy... today."

"Lu boy... made us proud... I've got... face now too!"

"Our family... is ordinary... I know... the kid got to where he is... mostly through... his own hard work."

"We're just... farmers... can't help much... from here on out."

"If I... were more successful... he wouldn't... have had it so hard."

"The road ahead... he'll have to... walk it himself..."

"Oh, what are you talking about on New Year's? The kid can hear you. Get inside and lie down," Xia Xiuman's chiding voice came from inside again.

Hearing this, Lu Shixian's steps suddenly halted.

But just for a moment. Then he strode out, looked at the thousands of lights in the distance, and sighed softly.

Sometimes, he would selectively ignore certain things, and he had never really paid attention to his parents' thoughts.

He had thought his relentless efforts would bring ease and joy to his family.

But now it seemed he didn't understand them at all.

Tough love.

Sometimes, it applied to him as well.

In truth, this was also a manifestation of their love for him.

Even if that love felt incredibly heavy.

Lu Shixian hadn't cried in a long time, but at this moment, he found it hard to hold back.

A man doesn't cry easily, but only because his heart hasn't been touched.

Under the cover of night, Lu Shixian slowly wiped away the faint traces of tears from the corners of his eyes.

The wind seemed a bit strong tonight.

Chapter 410: You Can Do It Like That?

The New Year holiday was over.

And so was the winter break Lu Shixian had given himself.

From now on, he had only one main task: to secure the project.

After this Spring Festival, Lu Shixian officially entered the second year of his PhD program.

The typical duration for a PhD in China is three years, though this varies between the humanities and natural sciences.

On the shorter side, one could graduate a bit early, in two and a half years.

This was the timeline Lu Shixian preferred. After all, why drag it out if you can graduate early?

It becomes a form of torture for the student, the supervisor, and the university.

On the longer side, it could get really long. Lu Shixian had even seen someone who hadn't graduated after eight years and was eventually expelled.

With the exception of a few special cases, the main reason for delaying graduation was failing to meet the requirements.

And what requirements could a PhD student who had already entered the world of research have? It was all about research output.

If Lu Shixian wanted to graduate in two and a half years, he had to get his dissertation done before then.

Which, of course, was the project he had just applied for.

In China, a dissertation and a published journal article were not mutually exclusive.

Publishing wouldn't affect the final defense and graduation. In fact, if you could get your paper published in a top tier journal, the defense was basically just a formality.

Because the review process for those top tier journals was far more rigorous than any dissertation defense.

If you hadn't made any enemies, but your published paper didn't get you through your defense, it meant one of two things: either you had someone else write it and knew nothing about your own paper, or the journal was a predatory journal, a fake one, or one on a warning list.

Lu Shixian certainly wouldn't be looking for a predatory journal, but this time, he knew his limits.

With what he and Zhang Xiumin had produced, getting published in CNS was impossible.

So he set his sights on a Q1 SCI journal, preferably one in the second tier.

Of course, with the experiment still incomplete, it was too early to talk about any of this.

He returned to Yan University a few days early.

Although the New Year was over, the festive atmosphere lingered.

The lab was still empty, and the few people who had returned were gathered together, sharing stories from their Spring Festival.

Lu Shixian's arrival caught their attention.

"Little Lu? The break isn't over yet. What are you doing here so early?" The speaker was Gu Yumeng. Lu Shixian knew her well.

She was the deputy head of the plant cell formation research group and had looked out for him in the lab in the past.

Lu Shixian respected her and greeted her first. "Professor Gu, Happy New Year."

Then he explained, "I applied for a project earlier, right? It's been several months now. If I don't hurry up and make progress, I'm afraid I won't make the deadline."

Gu Yumeng was a bit baffled by his words.

As far as she knew, the Beijing Municipal Natural Science Foundation's Young Scholar Fund was a provincial level project, wasn't it?

The completion time for provincial projects usually depended on the scale and difficulty, generally one to two years. More complex projects could even take three to four years.

Even if Lu Shixian's project was on the easier side, it should have at least a one year timeline.

But right now, there were still at least six months left.

However, she didn't say anything more about it.

Watching Lu Shixian's retreating back, she could only think that she understood young people less and less.

Before Zhang Xiumin's return, Lu Shixian continued his experiments, taking on some tasks that weren't originally his.

Since it concerned his own dissertation, Lu Shixian couldn't be too picky about these things.

A few days later, Zhang Xiumin also returned to the lab.

With his return, Lu Shixian's workload finally eased a bit.

And so, in the process of striving toward a goal, time always seemed to vanish without a trace.

In early March, Lu Shixian completed all the experiments and officially began data preprocessing with Zhang Xiumin.

"Our main task in the past was to confirm the totipotency of these plant protoplasts. We used cellulase and pectinase to remove the plant cell walls, obtaining intact protoplasts. Then, we introduced a disease resistance gene into the treated protoplasts and, after further processing, obtained plant cell embryoids." Lu Shixian pointed to a patch of green in a petri dish. "And now, here's the reward for our hard work. The embryoids have regenerated cell walls, formed a callus, and have indeed developed into complete plantlets."

"This is a milestone, because it fully demonstrates that from plant protoplasts to plant callus, the plant's morphology, structure, and function have undergone a dramatic transformation. The plant genes have undergone selective expression, further verifying the totipotency of plant protoplasts."

"No, this is almost entirely your contribution. You did all the actual experiments. I just helped out a little," Zhang Xiumin said. He knew his own capabilities. Even for a proven principle, perfectly replicating it was something not just anyone could do.
"But this is just a repeat experiment. It doesn't really prove anything new, does it?" Zhang Xiumin asked, a hint of doubt in his voice. "Is there any other point to us doing this? Protoplast totipotency was already confirmed by Nagata and Takebe's tobacco leaf experiments years ago."

Lu Shixian gave a mysterious smile and, instead of answering, posed another question. "Of course it has a point. Otherwise, what would be the use of all the data I'm having you collect and process?"

"Every cell contains a complete set of genetic information, which is why even isolated cells possess the attributes of life. This is the essence of our experiment."

"However, not all genes are beneficial to the plant. While we can't eliminate harmful genes from the genome, we can use dedifferentiation to induce selective expression in the cells."

With that explanation, it all clicked for Zhang Xiumin.

"So your goal is to use this method to rapidly optimize the efficiency of selective breeding."

Lu Shixian snapped his fingers. "Exactly! Right now, the scientific community's application of plant cell totipotency is almost entirely focused on shortening breeding cycles. They use easily obtainable pollen or anthers for induction to achieve large-scale, rapid seedling production."

"But they've overlooked one fact: the quality of those seedlings is inconsistent, and they still have to spend manpower and resources on selection and cultivation later on."

"So why don't we shift our thinking? Cull the inferior and keep the superior. From the very beginning, we can remove these inefficient genes from the list of candidates for expression."

Zhang Xiumin's jaw dropped as if a whole new world had opened up to him. "You can do selective breeding like *this*?"

Chapter 411: The Red Queen and the Black Queen

With the advancement of science and technology, methods for plant optimization have become increasingly diverse.

However, they generally fall into three categories: selective breeding, hybridization, and genetic modification.

Selective breeding is easy to understand; it involves continuously cultivating superior individuals to produce even better offspring.

This technique has been passed down instinctively throughout tens of thousands of years of history.

Men are often more attracted to women who exhibit greater reproductive advantages.

And vice versa.

Perhaps when it comes to love at first sight, or even just fleeting attraction, it's not only hormones at play, but your very genes.

Hybridization is even simpler. As the name suggests, it's about creating an organism that combines the advantageous traits of two or more species by crossing different species or categories.

However, it is constrained by reproductive isolation, limited only to closely related species.

Mules, ligers, and hybrid rice are all products of hybridization technology, using artificial intervention to guide evolution and obtain more desirable traits.

The last method is a more recent development: genetic modification.

In a way, it can be seen as an upgraded version of hybridization.

It can bypass the "firewall" of reproductive isolation set by nature, allowing for the combination of organisms that have absolutely no intersection in the taxonomic classification of species.

Through this technology, scientists can create entirely new species at will or modify existing ones.

Some say that genetic modification is usurping God's authority and that it will ultimately open Pandora's box.

But until the consequences manifest, any final judgment on it must be deferred.

Lu Shixian's view on the matter remained the same as it was in his previous conversation with Xu Zhihong.

This was the reason for Zhang Xiumin's astonishment.

But he quickly thought of something. "Compared to conventional optimization methods, yours can indeed achieve rapid selection. But it also has quite a few drawbacks, such as the instability of differentiation during selection, and the inherent problems of asexual reproduction in proliferation."

"Should we consider whether a sudden, large-scale evolution of a species under human intervention might cause irreversible effects on other organisms?"

Lu Shixian shrugged, unconcerned by the questions. "You should believe that the world is relative; nothing is absolute. Therefore, nothing is perfect, and the same goes for theories. It's all about finding the most suitable place for it under the current constraints."

"So we don't need absolute stability, just relative stability. A seventy or eighty percent stability rate would be good enough."

"As for the disadvantages of asexual reproduction, that's a common issue. We can't deny its enormous potential just because of its existence. Viral infectivity and genetic mutation rates can be controlled within a very small range through artificial intervention."

Seeing Zhang Xiumin's thoughtful expression, Lu Shixian said with great interest, "But your question reminds me of an extremely interesting hypothesis: the Red Queen."

Zhang Xiumin had clearly heard of it too and replied with a smile, "You must run as fast as you can, just to stay in place."

"Haha, so you've read Alice too," Lu Shixian teased. "In 1973, Van Valen used that Red Queen quote to propose this fascinating hypothesis, which explained many previously inexplicable phenomena in interspecies relationships."

Zhang Xiumin also smiled. "I doubt even Darwin could have imagined that his *On the Origin of Species*, centered on the theory of natural selection and proposed in 1859, would face a challenge from the Red Queen over a century later."

Lu Shixian shook his head and said mysteriously, "You might not know this, but the Black Queen has also, as if by fate, appeared."

For the first time, a look of confusion appeared on Zhang Xiumin's face. His eyes widened, looking completely gobsmacked.

He seemed to be saying, "Are you kidding me?"

But Lu Shixian quickly dispelled his doubt with facts. "You probably haven't been paying attention. Just last year or the year before, Jeffrey Morris proposed it in the journal *mBio*. He explained that organisms also undergo regressive evolution, with species competing over long periods to devolve, gradually shedding complex functions and structures."

Seeing Zhang Xiumin still in a state of shock, Lu Shixian sighed. "Survivorship bias exists in science too. The formation of science is not always a smooth path. The lucky ones that get publicized are always just a small fraction."

"But in reality, the vast majority of scientific laws that endure must travel the arduous road of hypothesis, verification, and establishment."

"But that is also the charm of scientific research. It's why we are so fascinated by it and why we strive for it tirelessly!"

"Even today, the mechanisms of cell differentiation that we are familiar with have not been fully understood by humanity. What causes the selective expression of genes during cell differentiation? The genetic makeup in all parts of a plant cell is identical, yet functional cells with the same genome exhibit seemingly completely different selective expressions."

"While we were verifying the totipotency of protoplasts in an economic plant, we happened to do a little extra work..."

"In 1989, biologist Robin Holliday first proposed in his paper 'DNA Methylation and Epigenetic Mechanisms' that DNA methylation is one of the important reasons for selective gene expression, proving it can stably control whether a gene is expressed or not."

"Cells that differentiate into different forms have different methylation patterns. So how are these methylation patterns passed on to the next generation through DNA?"

"Based on our experimental data, can we hypothesize that during cell proliferation, there exists an enzyme that accomplishes this task in a way we do not yet understand..."

After typing the last character on his computer, Lu Shixian checked the paper over and over again.

Even after several rounds of proofreading, a faint sense of awkwardness lingered.

The bulk of the paper was tightly focused on its theme, elaborating in detail on the totipotent expression of protoplasts from an economic plant.

But it seemed that the final question had become the masterstroke, with all the preceding content existing merely to serve it.

At this thought, Lu Shixian had an excited epiphany.

After tossing and turning several times, he finally returned to the first line and deleted the title he had written, one character at a time.

Then, he solemnly changed the "hypothesis" in the last paragraph to a "conjecture."

At this point, Lu Shixian's project had diverged completely from its originally imagined form and direction.

In most cases, a project going off-track or straying from its topic would be a devastating blow to the project leader.

But at this moment, Lu Shixian was not panicking at all; in fact, he was confident of success.

Because he knew that with this move, setting aside everything else, an outstanding graduation thesis was pretty much guaranteed.

Chapter 412: The Stamp Collection Plan

As for deviating from the project's original theme, Lu Shixian figured that would be easy to resolve.

After all, he had spent 200,000 in funding and obtained a result that couldn't have been achieved even with five times that amount.

Lu Shixian felt that, if such an award existed, he should definitely compete for the Best Performance Award for the Beijing Municipal Youth Fund Project that year.

But then another happy problem arose.

His original target journal was *Crop Journal*. Although its impact factor was a bit low, at just over three, it was at least a top-tier Q1 journal in both botany and agronomy, and it corresponded well with his experimental subject.

But now, a small unexpected development meant he might have to reconsider.

The quality of this paper could not be measured by ordinary standards, so he considered publishing it in a top-tier journal just below the absolute pinnacle.

After his experience publishing in *Chemistry & Biology*, Lu Shixian had an idea to start a "stamp collection" of the *Cell* series journals.

Stamp collecting cultivates the perseverance to constantly pursue a goal.

For someone with obsessive-compulsive tendencies, not completing the entire collection is an incredibly uncomfortable feeling.

But for a "stamp collection" plan like Lu Shixian's, even proposing it would likely be dismissed as an unrealistic fantasy.

Completing it would be even more difficult, requiring immense persistence and effort.

Relying on a single path was unwise. For a man, perhaps having multiple avenues was the true path to success.

After some screening, Lu Shixian set his sights on *Developmental Cell*.

Since he had already made up his mind, there was no need to hesitate.

The main reason for choosing it was its status in the fields of cell biology and developmental biology; it was among the best, right below CNS.

Lu Shixian could guarantee this was absolutely not because its impact factor had been holding strong at around 9 and was on a continuous rise.

Nor was it because the journal's editorial board was relatively friendly to researchers from his country; the number of papers published by Chinese scientists in *Developmental Cell* could almost compete for a top-three spot.

Compared to other journals, this was an incredibly high proportion.

But Lu Shixian knew in his heart that it wasn't quite at the CNS level yet, so he didn't even feel the urge to pre-print it on bioRxiv and submitted it directly to the target journal.

Lu Shixian was both the corresponding author and the first author. Zhang Xiumin, for his contributions to the experiment, was reasonably granted second authorship.

Later, when Lu Shixian sought Zhang Xiumin's opinion on the matter, the latter was completely indifferent.

Although he didn't say it outright, Lu Shixian could clearly hear it in his tone.

That's right, he clearly looked down on it.

Getting second authorship on a high-impact SCI paper through sheer grunt work? People might think he, Zhang Xiumin, couldn't write a good paper on his own.

Zhang Xiumin was different from other research grunts; he didn't need to ride on anyone's coattails, nor was he short on project funding.

After getting to know him better, Lu Shixian was almost at his wits' end, feeling his composure crumble.

Both of Zhang Xiumin's parents were biology researchers, and they owned a high-tech biotech company. Even if it wasn't huge, it was more than enough for him to spend lavishly.

He was the scion of both an academic and a wealthy family, born at what was the finish line for others.

The only consolation was that, even so, Zhang Xiumin still had to respectfully call him "Brother Xian."

In the end, after Zhang Xiumin's firm refusal, Lu Shixian let it go and gave up the idea of giving him authorship.

Of course, if Zhang Xiumin had known the chain reaction this paper would cause, he might have regretted it until his dying day.

But there are no what-ifs.

That, however, is a story for another time.

A week later.

In the distant United Kingdom, Sir John Gurdon was routinely clearing out the remaining emails from the previous week.

For the past year, and for the foreseeable future, his inbox was in a state of near-constant overflow.

He might not be the most brilliant biologist, but he was certainly the most famous biologist of the last few years.

John Gurdon was born in England in October 1933 and graduated from both the University of Oxford and the California Institute of Technology. Without a doubt, he was not destined to be a late bloomer.

In the 1960s, at only thirty years old, he conducted an experiment that stunned the world.

He injected the intestinal epithelial cells of an African clawed frog into an enucleated egg cell. To his astonishment, he found that these egg cells could hatch into tadpoles. With careful cultivation, some of these tadpoles eventually developed into mature frogs.

Does that procedure sound familiar, like something you've heard before?

That's right, trust your instincts.

It's in the Protestant edition of high school biology textbooks, Chapter 4: The Life Course of a Cell, Section 2: Cells Produce Different Types of Cells Through Differentiation.

For his research on nuclear transplantation and cloning technology, he came to be known as "the father of cloning."

At the young age of 38, he was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society.

But it seemed that even he could not shake certain rules of the Nobel Prize selection process.

As early as 1962, John Gurdon had already published a groundbreaking paper in the British *Journal of Embryology and Experimental Morphology*, describing the major discovery that cell specialization could be reversed.

However, it was not until 2012 that he, along with Shinya Yamanaka, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his outstanding contributions to the field of cellular reprogramming.

The gap between the award and the publication of his findings was a full 50 years.

How many fifty-year spans does a person have in their lifetime?

This goes to show that a healthy body is also a crucial factor in becoming a great scientist.

As a recent Nobel laureate, and with his robust health, he still held a position at the University of Cambridge, even though he had long since stepped down from his role at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology.

Sitting in his office, he brewed a cup of green tea from the distant East.

Drinking a strong cup of tea before thinking had become a habit in his work.

At this moment, he began skillfully deleting emails that were disguised as inquiries but were, in fact, requests for mentorship.

He was old. Though his body was strong, he no longer had the extra energy to take on new students.

However, an old man needs something to pass the time, and reviewing papers from all over the world for top journals had become one of his few hobbies.

He didn't review papers for any grandiose reasons like the progress of the world or the advancement of life sciences.

Few people knew that his main purpose was to find interesting research topics for himself through these cutting-edge findings.

Chapter 413: This Is a Legitimate Paper

At his status and age, he enjoyed considerable autonomy at the university.

As long as he didn't plan on leaving, he could do whatever he wanted without obstruction.

If he wanted to start a project, it was just a matter of saying the word, and the university would immediately make the arrangements.

At that moment, Gurdon, having cleared out the useless emails, began to open the ones he had saved.

Most of these were submissions sent from the editorial offices of *Nature*, *Science*, and *Cell*.

Without a doubt, only such top-tier journals had the prestige to invite him as a peer reviewer.

But now, he saw a letter in his inbox from a subsidiary journal of *Cell*.

In the circles of academic heavyweights, there was a saying that papers in the subsidiary journals were just the rejects from the main journal's trash can.

While this statement would make many people blush, Gurdon saw nothing wrong with it at the moment.

As an academic authority, each journal had a dedicated staff member to liaise with him.

He picked up the phone, dialed a number, and asked, "Eli, what's going on?"

"What's with you people at the *Cell* editorial office? Why did you send me a manuscript from a subsidiary journal?"

Having had the experience of tearing apart a manuscript that was initially confirmed for the main journal, Eli responded cautiously, "Professor Gurdon, it was the editor-in-chief's idea. He said you might be interested."

Hearing this, Gurdon's interest was piqued. He hung up the phone and opened the manuscript from *Developmental Cell*.

At the same time, two other reviewers saw the manuscript in the system at almost the exact same moment.

One reviewer was Munger, a professor and developmental biologist from the University of Oxford, and a 2008 MacArthur Fellow.

The other was Tom Maniatis from Columbia University, the recipient of the 2012 Lasker-Koshland Special Achievement Award in Medical Science.

Lu Shixian probably never imagined that the reviewers for his doctoral dissertation would be such a star-studded lineup.

A Nobel laureate and two winners of major awards would each provide their review opinions, which would then be compiled at the *Developmental Cell* editorial office.

But at that moment, Lawrence, the editor-in-chief of *Developmental Cell*, was completely bewildered.

It was rare for them to be able to invite several big shots of that caliber at the same time.

Lawrence had no particular objection to the main journal suddenly meddling in the affairs of its subsidiary.

"You're the big brother, you call the shots."

"But since you were so enthusiastic about helping find reviewers, why didn't you just use your authority to move the manuscript up?"

Puzzled, Lawrence took a closer look at the paper. He logged into the system, saw the author's name, and suddenly understood.

So it was him. That explained everything.

He had heard the rumors coming from the main journal recently.

Meanwhile, Lu Shixian, while preparing for graduation, couldn't help but start to panic.

Nearly half a month had passed since he submitted the paper, and the status in the submission system remained stagnant, with no updates.

This was actually normal. For regular journals, a response within 3-5 days was common.

For SCI journals, it took a bit longer; a month or so was normal, but it usually wouldn't exceed two months.

Normally, he wouldn't be in such a hurry, but this paper was crucial for his graduation.
It would be a cruel joke if he successfully defended his dissertation using this paper, only for the editorial department to reject it afterward.

Therefore, the best timing was to wait for the paper to be officially published, then use it to bolster his dissertation defense.

The wait was always agonizing. Lu Shixian checked the status of his paper on the submission system almost every day.

More than a month passed, and the system showed no change.

He would click it open, only to be greeted by the same words: "Under Peer Review." He was sick of looking at them.

If there's a problem, just say so. What's the point of leaving me hanging like this?

This was a rare situation for him. In the past, the first round of reviews, whether it was an accept, a major revision, or a minor revision, had never dragged on for so long.

Now, people in the Protein and Plant Gene Laboratory were also starting to ask him how the project was going.

They knew that while the project wasn't due for completion yet, Lu Shixian needed it urgently.

"Junior Lu, you don't think the editors blacklisted you, do you?" Barring special circumstances, everyone knew this was unlikely. Chen Bowen was joking, seemingly unconcerned for him.

Wang Xiaoxiao, however, was seriously trying to think of a solution. "Get out of here, you jinx."

"Can't you see our Junior Lu is getting anxious?"

Chen Bowen gave an awkward smile and quickly explained, "Junior Lu has published a cover article in *Cell*. I'm confident his abilities are not the issue."

"Why don't you try contacting the editorial department?"

Lu Shixian nodded, accepting their suggestion. This was a first for him.

"This is a legitimate paper, not some piece of junk I cobbled together just to pass. What the hell is going on?"

Finally, he couldn't take it anymore. He clicked the contact button in the system and sent an inquiry to the editor about his paper's status.

Unfortunately, Lu Shixian's efforts were destined to be in vain.

The editorial team at *Developmental Cell* had no idea what was going on. They hadn't been the ones to find the peer reviewers, so they had no way to communicate with them.

But that didn't stop Lawrence from passing the message along on Lu Shixian's behalf.

A severely delayed review could potentially damage their journal's reputation.

Meanwhile, in a standalone house at 600 Cambridge Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The United States is vast and sparsely populated, so most homes are low density residences. They are often set in beautiful environments with large plots of land—what would be called villas in China.

"Editor-in-Chief, Lawrence just sent an inquiry about the status of a review. He said it has exceeded the average review time, and the author has even emailed him to ask about it," his assistant, Glass, reported to the middle aged man sitting at the main desk.

The man thought for a moment before instructing, "The reviews from Professor Monger and Professor Tom came back quickly, but Professor Gordon still hasn't submitted his."

"While he has that privilege, this is pushing the limits. Call Eli and have him contact Professor Gordon to ask what's going on."

"Professor Gordon has a peculiar temperament, so tell Eli to be careful. Also, try to accommodate his requests as much as possible. We need to do everything we can to secure his next paper."

Chapter 414: A Professional Is a Cut Above

For the past few days, Eli had been trying to contact Gordon at specific times.

For him, maintaining Gordon's goodwill was a far higher priority than completing this task.

So, he was careful not to call too often, nor would he contact Gordon during his downtime.

Several days later, just as Eli was about to lose hope, he finally received a call back from distant England.

A short while later, when the editor-in-chief received the news from Glass, his expression turned exceptionally strange.

"Gordon said he read halfway through and then forgot about it?"

Glass continued his report, "But he gave the paper a very high evaluation."

"Bring it here, let me see." The middle aged man gestured, and Glass handed him the printed review.

He opened it. There were only a few words written on the page: "a genius-like imagination."

The middle aged man was momentarily surprised. "I wouldn't doubt Lu receiving such praise in the field of plant pathology, but I didn't expect him to have dabbled in developmental biology as well. Earning Gordon's praise is no easy feat."

He then added with a hint of regret, "It's a shame those fools don't even know who's behind this."

Glass asked, looking puzzled, "Chief, why are we paying so much attention to someone from China? He's a bit too young, and what kind of results can they really produce over there?"

The middle aged man shook his head with a smile. "I initially thought the same as you, until I realized that bastard Knox had tricked me."

"Sometimes, in the world of science, age means nothing. Talent is the true measure of a scientist's potential."

"And he could become one of the people to pluck the most brilliant jewel from the crown of plant pathology."

"For now, send all three reviews to Lawrence. He'll know what to do."

Glass was confused, clearly not understanding his boss's meaning, but as an assistant, his execution was flawless.

Back on Lu Shixian's end, his patience was nearly exhausted.

If this dragged on for another two months, he would probably have to wait with the main cohort for the second half of the year's graduation.

By then, all his efforts would have been for nothing, and all the time he had invested would be wasted.

That was, of course, the outcome he was least willing to accept.

So, he once again became a regular at the university library's electronic reading room.

Refreshing the submission system's status during his reading breaks had become a habit etched into his very bones.

For the past several days, there had been no good news.

But this time, something seemed different.

A red dot suddenly appeared in his previously dormant inbox.

Lu Shixian's hand trembled. There was no way he could continue reading now.

He hurriedly clicked to view the details.

The message was short, but it was exactly what he wanted to see.

"Accept!"

Lu Shixian was so excited he almost slammed his hand on the table.

He had no doubt the paper would pass the review.

What surprised him was that it was accepted directly, with no revisions required.

There were some minor, inconsequential issues that a reviewer, with their rigorous standards, could have easily picked on to make him revise.

He had been prepared for that. He just hadn't expected the process to drag on for so long.

This was certainly a cause for celebration, but not just for the acceptance itself.

It meant he could finally start preparing for graduation. He had been waiting for far too long.

But before that, Lu Shixian had to take care of something else.

He needed to write a project completion report, a project research report, and a summary of the project's main achievements.

As for supporting evidence, there was no better attachment than the preprint from *Developmental Cell*.

At the office for the General and Youth Projects of the Beijing Science Foundation.

Lu Shixian had completed the review of his project completion materials and was now presenting his report to the several review experts before him.

"That concludes the report on the project's specifics. Through this experience, I have come to deeply understand the guiding principle of the Youth Science Fund: 'It is not necessary to focus too much on past work accumulation; the key is to look at development potential.'"

"Here, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Beijing Science Foundation for its long term attention and support for all young scientific researchers. As a doctoral student, I feel deeply honored to have received a grant from the Youth Science Fund."

"Although this project is coming to an end, I believe the pursuit of scientific truth is a journey that is always on the road."

Lu Shixian concluded his report to a round of applause.

The results of his project had far exceeded expectations; passing the final review was just a formality.

But this formality happened to be something he excelled at.

Lu Shixian hadn't spent much effort on this report; he needed to conserve his energy.

His main focus was still on his upcoming doctoral dissertation defense.

The application had already been submitted to the Yan Jing University Academic Degree Committee.

During this period, Lu Shixian was relaxed and at ease, waiting for the notification.

Once the notice arrived and he completed his defense, it would truly signify that he had reached the highest academic degree in the field of life sciences.

Both at home and abroad, a doctorate meant you had essentially run out of school to attend. It was a kind of ultimate achievement.

As for the postdoctoral position, which was well known to the public, it wasn't actually a degree but rather proof of work experience at a research station.

Lu Shixian didn't feel much about graduating. It had happened so frequently that it no longer stirred any particular emotions.

But this time, it wasn't just a simple graduation; it signified a change in identity.

Yes, it meant he was about to leave the ivory tower and become a professional, a cut above the rest.

From here, he had many paths forward.

A research institute, a university, a postdoctoral position, a corporation, civil service, entrepreneurship...

The choices seemed numerous, but in reality, he had no choice.

He was bound to continue dedicating his life to the great cause of scientific research.

It was just a matter of choosing between a research institute, a university, a corporation, or a postdoc.

Corporations were still on the list because in many industries, the research institutes founded by companies were the main drivers of scientific and technological progress, with universities and public research institutes often a step behind. The salaries were also terrifyingly high.

But the problem with corporations was the 996 culture.

That's right, while Lu Shixian liked to work overtime, he wanted to work overtime on things he liked, not because his boss forced him to.

Besides, a capitalist's money wasn't so easy to take.

Lu Shixian had understood long ago: whatever you get from them, they will eventually take back from you a thousand times over.

Why are scientists who work exclusively for corporations never celebrated as great?

Lu Shixian had an answer. The moment a scientist decides to work for money, they become ensnared in a web woven of gold.

Scientists are just like ordinary people, playing different roles in society.

In their scientific practice, through their individual creative activities, scientists not only proactively realize their own subjective value but also generate immense social value.

Chapter 415: Oh No, They're Definitely Going Easy on Me!

Science is not purely academic research; therefore, it does not exist in isolation, nor is it an individual endeavor.

The results of scientific research affect society, so it is only natural that they should be subject to societal constraints.

Thus, scientists must also bear social responsibility, taking accountability for the impact of their technological achievements on society.

This requires scientists to be able to handle various relationships, especially economic ones.

They must be able to remain free from the threat of vested interests and maintain their scientific judgment.

But once you step into the great dyeing vat of the corporate world, Lu Shixian couldn't guarantee that he would remain untainted.

That path was completely blocked off!

As for staying at the university or joining a research institute, both were excellent choices.

However, Lu Shixian knew that, given the current era, the number of PhDs in the country would experience a period of rapid growth.

Obviously, based on the simple economic principles of supply and demand and Gresham's law, the competitiveness of a PhD would not be as high as one might imagine.

This had led to the emergence of the so called "faculty reserve postdoctoral fellow" a few years prior, a true reflection of this new demand.

Since he now knew a part of what the future held, he needed to plan ahead.

But before that, he needed to complete a necessary prerequisite.

That was to obtain his doctoral degree.

Soon, Lu Shixian received a notice from the Academic Degree Committee.

"Dear Student Lu, we have received your request to hold your doctoral dissertation defense ahead of schedule. After a collective discussion, the committee has decided to approve your application. Please prepare for your defense. The specific time and date will be announced later."

Lu Shixian opened the calendar on his phone. It was clear that due to unforeseen circumstances, his journal submission had been delayed for too long.

This directly impacted his plan to graduate six months early, forcing him to settle for just under six months.

But it was only a slight deviation from the timeline; the overall direction was still correct. This was something Lu Shixian could still accept.

While waiting for the official notification, Lu Shixian was actively preparing for his defense.

But to say he was preparing was an overstatement. There wasn't much to prepare.

He didn't need a script, nor did he need to familiarize himself with his dissertation.

Because all of it was already firmly stored in his brain.

As for the PowerPoint presentation for the defense, he could just take the one he made for the project completion report and modify it slightly.

He hadn't yet announced the news of his impending graduation.

But somehow, somewhere, someone had leaked the information.

The news quickly spread from a small circle to a wider audience, sparking heated discussion.

He was surprised, however, that the first call came from Old Ma.

"You rascal, graduating with your doctorate without a peep?"

"And when did you finish your dissertation??"

"I didn't hear a single thing. Do you even have any respect for this old man???"

After this barrage of three questions, Ma Yuhang added with a feigned huff, "But your timing is a bit awkward! The normal graduation is only a few months away. You can't even wait that little bit? Does Yan Jing University displease you so much?"

Lu Shixian chuckled, not taking it to heart.

He knew this was just how Old Ma was. Despite his age, he loved to joke around and was very young at heart in both attitude and behavior.

This was why the two had become close, their relationship a mix of teacher-student and friends.

"And where did you hear this from, old man?" Lu Shixian asked, probing for inside information while also explaining, "I had originally planned to graduate in two and a half years, but there was a little accident."

"But since everything is already prepared, there's no need to drag it out for a few more months just to graduate with everyone else."

Hearing his words, Ma Yuhang snorted. "I knew you were still wet behind the ears."

Lu Shixian immediately put on a respectful act, flattering him, "Professor Ma, your insight is as sharp as ever. It seems I still have much to learn from you."

"Haha, you get it, kid. You know the way!" Hearing this, Ma Yuhang's mood instantly improved.

"There's no such thing as a wall that doesn't have ears in this world. You think Yan Jing University is any different?"

"Forget the university, just within our school, the relationships are a complex web. The moment you submitted your application, it basically landed on the desks of us old-timers."

"I was planning to keep it quiet and give you a surprise right after your defense."

"Now, some old fool must have accidentally let it slip."

Lu Shixian was speechless.

After dealing with Old Ma, he soon received calls from many others.

They were mostly former classmates and teachers he knew well.

Lu Shixian replied to each one, thanking them for their well wishes.

On the last Thursday of March.

Lu Shixian walked with heavy steps toward a classroom in the School of Life Sciences at Yan Jing University.

Today, it had been converted into a conference room.

What was rather unusual was that the corridor outside the classroom was filled with student spectators.

Lu Shixian was rendered speechless by the sight. He recognized many familiar faces, mostly students he had taught as a teaching assistant.

He could still name quite a few of them, like Peng Jie, Xiang Wei, Huang Dafeng...

He hadn't wanted to make such a big scene, but what was done was done.

However, this wasn't the time or place for catching up.

Lu Shixian said nothing, simply smiling and waving at them as a greeting.

Just as he turned to step through the classroom door, he heard a shout from behind him.

"Teacher Lu! You got this!"

"Exams are coming up, I'm here to soak up some of Teacher Lu's good luck."

"When Teacher Lu makes a move, there's no competition left!"

The first few comments were fine, but hearing the last one, he almost stumbled and lost his footing.

Maintaining his composure, he walked all the way to the defense stage. He used his peripheral vision to size up the enemy lineup.

Adjusting one's strategy based on the opponent's formation was a basic instinct, right?

But as his eyes swept across the panel, he was taken aback.

He knew all of them. Although they hadn't been his direct professors for any specific course, they were all professors from his own university.

He had practically grown up attending lectures from a hundred different schools of thought. He was very familiar with them!

I'm done for. They're definitely going easy on me!

As he thought this, he was almost ready to voice his protest. Am I someone who needs to be gone easy on?

Just as Lu Shixian's mind was racing, Professor Zhou Biyun from the School of Life Sciences, serving as the head of the committee, interrupted his thoughts.

"Student Lu, we meet again." He glanced at the crowd outside the door and added, "It seems you're very popular with the students."

"We've all watched you grow up, in a sense. I won't say much more. Please begin your defense."

Lu Shixian nodded. Since they were all acquaintances, his desire to elaborate was cut in half.

He gave a standard, unremarkable introduction of himself and then simply opened the prepared PowerPoint.

He began his formal defense.

Chapter 416: The Scientist's Ladder

"There isn't much to say about the content of the dissertation, as you've all seen. It's titled 'A Study on the Totipotency Expression and Inhibition Mechanism of Protoplasts in an Economically Important Plant Species.'"

At that moment, the PowerPoint slide switched from the title page to the first page, displaying the dissertation's title, keywords, and other information.

Some might have noticed something.

The title of his dissertation was actually the same as the name of his previously declared project; it did not match the title of the paper submitted to the journal.

This was one of the biggest differences between a dissertation and a journal article.

The former aimed for stability, tending to be more conservative and lagging.

The latter could be open ended; even unfinished or unproven content could be published for the academic community to discuss or reference, thus promoting the advancement of science.

But today, Lu Shixian had no intention of spending too much time on the content of his dissertation.

He took control, and the dissertation text embedded in the PowerPoint began to scroll rapidly.

In less than ten seconds, all twenty plus pages of the presentation had flashed by, leaving the people below staring at nothing.

Not only did the professors seated on the committee wear strange expressions, but even the students listening in from the doorway were completely baffled.

"My god, he finished presenting his dissertation in ten seconds?"

"So what's left to talk about? Nothing. We can all go home now."
At this moment, the professors on the judging panel all looked like they wanted to say something but held their tongues. It was still the candidate's presentation phase, not yet time for the judges' Q&A session.

According to procedure, they were not supposed to interrupt Lu Shixian.

But soon, Lu Shixian's next move dispelled everyone's doubts.

"The main body of my thesis has already been published in the journal *Developmental Cell*," Lu Shixian said, walking forward to hand a copy to each of the three judges. "Professors, you can turn to the third issue of 2014, pages 24-28, for a detailed account."

As his words fell, the judges all glanced at each other, at a loss for what to say.

This Lu Shixian was certainly unconventional, but they couldn't find any fault with his approach.

After all, they were well aware of the reputation of *Developmental Cell*.

It was a top-tier journal in the field of developmental biology.

It was also a sister journal to the renowned *Cell*, and the acceptance rate for this series of journals was notoriously low.

For a dissertation to be directly accepted by such a publication meant that the graduation defense was merely a formality.

The vast majority of doctoral students' dissertations barely passed the university's internal review, and those qualified to be published directly in an SCI journal of this caliber were exceedingly rare.

For this reason, Lu Shixian truly didn't need to spend too much effort on this paper.

As long as he went through the motions, he was virtually guaranteed to pass.

Lu Shixian's PowerPoint presentation moved past the thesis page, its appearance completely transformed.

And he immediately launched into a new topic.

"That concludes the presentation of my dissertation. Next, I would like to report to the professors on the extended implications of this paper." Lu Shixian was back in his element, his entire demeanor radiating an even greater confidence.

"As we all know, embryonic stem cells possess the ability to differentiate into various types of cells. However, during the differentiation process, cells with identical genes can have vastly different outcomes. Some continue on until the end of the organism's life, others cease development midway, and some even become harmful tumor or cancer cells."

"Although the study of cell differentiation mechanisms has reached a relatively high level worldwide, we have yet to fully grasp its complete mechanism. How exactly is it regulated within the cell?"

"As I was completing my original graduation project, I analyzed the experimental methylation modification data and discovered that cells with different traits all had different methylation states."

"But when they proliferated, the methylation patterns of the daughter cells remained consistent with the mother cells."

"Goethe said, 'Fantasy is the wing of the poet, and hypothesis is the ladder of the scientist.'"

"Therefore, based on the facts above, I have reason to believe and conjecture that cells possess some pathway to achieve this. If we can uncover the hidden truth behind it, perhaps a corner of the veil over the mysteries of cell differentiation will be lifted for us."

"That is the entirety of my defense presentation."

"Thank you for your time!"

Lu Shixian finished and bowed his thanks.

What erupted in the room was not just applause, but also fervent discussion, completely disrupting the usual solemn atmosphere.

To turn a thesis defense into such a scene, Lu Shixian was truly one of a kind.

Now, the defense moved to its second phase: the judges' Q&A.

In truth, the professors on the panel were feeling a bit of a headache.

He had spent only a few seconds on his dissertation. What were they supposed to ask?

As for the subsequent open-ended questions, they fell into the realm of unverified, cutting-edge issues.

It was unrealistic to expect them to come up with a well-founded opinion on the spot.

However, to uphold the authority of the judges, it was impossible not to ask a question or two.

After racking his brains, one professor asked, "Mr. Lu, may I ask what considerations led you to publicly share your unique idea?"

Lu Shixian nodded after hearing the question. It was indeed a very insightful one.

Many scholars, upon a flash of inspiration or finding a promising research direction, would never share it.

Even if it wasn't immediately useful, they would record it and save it for later.

In fact, many major breakthroughs originated this way.

Sometimes, it all began with a single thought or an accident.

Then, by following that idea, digging deeper, and conducting continuous research, they ultimately achieved world-renowned results.

People like Lu Shixian were not unheard of, but they were definitely rare.

Usually, a researcher would only be so generous as to publicize an idea if it couldn't be verified with current technology or if the difficulty of verification was immense.

Lu Shixian thought for a moment before slowly answering, "Conjecture and hypothesis are also a necessary component of scientific research."

"And research has never been a solo game. There's a limit to what one person can achieve."

"The path to the summit is indeed long, but sometimes, having a ladder provided by others can make the journey much faster."

Several days later, the results of Lu Shixian's defense came in.

Unsurprisingly, he passed.

The Yan University Degree Committee sent him his graduation certificates: one for his degree and one diploma.

While accepting them all, Lu Shixian didn't forget to sing Yan University's praises.

After completing all the procedures for his thesis defense, Lu Shixian had mixed feelings.

He walked out of the graduate school building carrying the two deep red certificates.

Chapter 417: Qu Xi's Strange Move?

He couldn't help but stop and look back at the place where he had studied and lived for so many years.

Stepping out of the school meant a huge change in his identity.

He could no longer pull out his Yan University student card under the envious gazes of others to enjoy discounts and benefits.

He could no longer wander the library as a Yan University student, immersed in an ocean of knowledge.

Nor could he freely approach those wonderful and respected professors, just to seek an answer.

But regardless, it was a joyous day, one worth commemorating at some expense.

Lu Shixian opened the contact list on his phone and began making calls one by one.

"Hey, are you still in Yanjing?"

"Let's meet up at the school's Shaoyuan tomorrow, how about it?"

"You heard me right, it's me."

"Yeah, there'll be other people, but they're all our age or seniors."

"Most importantly, there will be plenty of girls. Are you coming or not? Just give me a word!"

Conversations like this began and ended one after another.

Except for those who were too far away, everyone in or near Yanjing was willing to come for the gathering.

It couldn't be helped. Although Lu Shixian hadn't spent much effort on networking, his personality was such that he got along well with everyone, which meant that anyone who had interacted with him had a good impression of him.

In a private room on the second floor of Yan University's Shaoyuan.

Seated around the circular table were his classmates and close friends from the past few years.

There were his classmates from the Jinlin Class in high school and his teammates from the IBO.

There were his several dormitory roommates from his undergraduate years and Senior Qu Xi, with whom he had collaborated.

And there were the seniors from the State Key Laboratory of Protein and Plant Gene Research whom he had met during his graduate studies.

They didn't know each other, but they were brought together by Lu Shixian.

At first, everyone was a bit reserved, but they were all young people of similar ages and all students of Yan University or Shuimu University.

By that measure, everyone was on a similar level and had common ground.

Soon, the small circles began to get along harmoniously.

"In the past, for various reasons, I missed many similar gatherings. I'm treating everyone to a meal this time to make up for it," Lu Shixian said, standing up with a glass of coconut milk when he felt the time was right. "Secondly, it's for another matter."

Before Lu Shixian could finish, Chang Wenchao had already chimed in, "Alright, you don't need to make a report."

"We all know you've graduated with your Ph.D."

"Isn't that just standard procedure for you?"

"What's there to talk about? Everyone, don't listen to him. Just eat and drink."

"Don't be polite with him, he's a big shot!"

Chang Wenchao's interruption made everyone laugh.

Lu Shixian wore a helpless expression. Old Chang always loved to joke around.

He had just destroyed the bit of sentiment Lu Shixian had managed to build up.

But that was fine too. Everyone being happy was more important than anything.

However, Qu Xi, Feng Yanan, and Yang Yihang were a bit surprised, as they clearly hadn't known the reason for the gathering in advance.

Feng Yanan and Yang Yihang were one thing; they weren't at Yan University and had no source of information, but in their eyes, anything Lu Shixian did was normal.

After all, it was just his usual self. All they had to do was sit back and watch.

But for Qu Xi, this news was astounding.

She had recently been wholeheartedly preparing for her own Ph.D. graduation.

If it weren't for Lu Shixian's call, she wouldn't have had any time to be out and about.

Qu Xi wasn't someone with a great sense of humor, but sometimes the things said by such people could have a surprisingly comedic effect.

She soon told a joke, if you could call it that.

"Junior Lu, you're just too outrageous."

"When I first met you, I was already a third-year senior."

"Now, after just a little while of not seeing you, you've already graduated with a Ph.D., while I'm still preparing my thesis defense materials."

"In a few more years, will I have to start calling you Senior?"

Her words made the rest of them laugh so hard they couldn't stand up straight.

But after the laughter subsided, those who were the same age as Lu Shixian felt a wave of emotion.

They hadn't really thought about it before, but now, with such a stark contrast, it hit them.

Those who could get into Yan University or Shuimu University were basically the best students and test-takers in the country.

And only now did they suddenly realize just how far ahead of them Lu Shixian had gotten.

Perhaps some people were just destined to be different.

Qu Xi, however, didn't notice the others' reactions and maintained her usual proud demeanor.

It was impossible for her to humble herself now; she had her pride to think of.

"Junior Lu, what's the rush to graduate so quickly?" she soon asked the crucial question. "Do you already have plans for what's next?"

As soon as this question was asked, the others, who had been chatting about everything under the sun, also turned their attention to him.

Lu Shixian clearly hadn't expected anyone to ask this question now.

But there were no outsiders here, so there was nothing he couldn't say.

"To be honest, would you believe me if I said I haven't decided yet?" Lu Shixian shrugged and told the truth. "Besides, Yan University won't kick me out just yet. I'll take a few days to think about it."

"But it's highly likely I'll do a postdoc."

Hearing Lu Shixian's choice, no one present had any objections.

As long as Lu Shixian didn't suddenly decide to start a business or take the civil service exam, they all felt it was quite normal.

On this matter, which involved a personal choice, no one would butt in.

For friends, not interfering with each other, not losing trust, and not getting too close.

Perhaps this was the most comfortable way for friends to interact.

The gathering continued until after nine in the evening.

The others all had companions, so Lu Shixian had to walk Qu Xi, who was alone, back to the women's dormitory.

"Junior Lu, I haven't congratulated you yet," Qu Xi said as they walked, but then she suddenly asked another question. "But do you really not have anyone you like, or a type that you like?"

Lu Shixian was speechless.

He was completely stunned by the question, several large question marks popping up over his head.

What kind of strange move was this from Qu Xi?

Asking him this question to his face, was she not hinting at something?

Evidently, Qu Xi, who often acted without thinking, realized her blunder after the fact.

Fortunately, the darkness of the night hid her blushing cheeks, and one could only hear the sudden quickening of her speech.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm just being nosy."

"A girl in the dorm next to mine seems to have a crush on you. When she heard I was coming to see you today, she asked me to find out for her."

Hearing this explanation, Lu Shixian returned to normal.

He should have known. Qu Xi wasn't that kind of person.

Chapter 418: An Emo Lu Shixian

After bidding farewell to Qu Xi, Lu Shixian quickly put the matter out of his mind.

A much more important issue was now on his agenda.

Namely, where would he go from here?

The earnest words Xu Zhihong had spoken to him still echoed in his ears.

Lu Shixian hadn't made a decision before because he hadn't reached this stage yet.

But now, it was clearly time to make a choice.

Since he was going to do a postdoc, the only difference was whether it would be in China or abroad.

In China, he wasn't worried at all. With his research experience and interview skills, he could take his pick of any research institute he wanted.

But if he were to go abroad, he would need to start preparing early.

He actually had no strong desire to go abroad. Unlike others, he held the world's only secret.

But people grow.

As his age and experience increased, he learned to become more rational through a process of constant self-reflection.

He didn't have a cheat system that could instantly turn him into a protagonist, nor did he have any miraculous encounter that could make him the center of the world.

Sometimes, comparing himself to other reincarnators, he felt that he was truly falling behind.

From the moment he appeared in this timeline, he had initially come with the intention of changing the world.

"That's right! Since fate has given me a second chance, I am the chosen one."

"I see! I conquer!"

But looking at himself now, he had still accomplished nothing.

What kind of reincarnator works from dawn till dusk for years, only to be pleased with himself for obtaining a doctoral degree?

All his lofty ambitions were shattered by reality at this moment.

Lu Shixian lay on his narrow bed, gazing at the distant night sky.

At three-thirty in the morning, he suddenly sank into a melancholy mood.

The night wind blew in from the window, and in that moment, his pride and indulgence quietly crumbled.

Crossing mountains and seas, passing through crowds, until he saw the ordinary—perhaps that was his only answer.

"I used to foolishly think about changing the era. Maybe it's not too late to start by changing myself," Lu Shixian said to himself in his heart.

He knew full well that at this point in time, major funding projects and talent awards were prioritized for returnees with overseas experience.

Yet he had stubbornly clung to his arrogance.

The so-called theory of homegrown talent was perhaps just an excuse to mask his inner pride.

"What happened to my initial rational thinking and goal planning?"

"Heh, so I really have been lost in one success after another."

"Going against the era? I must have been crazy."

"So my real path should be to follow the trends of the era, to stand in the eye of the storm. Even a pig can fly if it's in the right spot."

At this moment, Lu Shixian felt that he had truly integrated into this world.

The next morning.

"Oh? You're saying you want to apply for a postdoc abroad now?" Xu Zhihong looked with some surprise at the student who had come to his office first thing in the morning. "You've thought it through? You still have at least a month. By my estimate, you shouldn't have decided so quickly."

After nodding with satisfaction, Xu Zhihong said with emotion, "Actually, I also wanted you to stay by my side and continue doing research."

"But I know that a you like that would at best become the next me."

"And I understand that such an outcome would only be a waste of your time and talent."

"One can't be so selfish, nor can one only see the immediate benefits."

"I never doubted you would make the most rational choice, but it certainly came a bit faster than I expected."

Hearing his mentor speak so candidly, Lu Shixian was also touched.

"I once kept my feet on the ground, striving to gaze at the beautiful starry sky in the distance."

"But as I climbed higher step by step, I found myself lingering on the footprints I left behind."

"Even though I was standing on a certain peak, with the stars and moon seemingly within reach, they were in fact untouchable."

"There is still a long, long way to go to reach the starry sky I yearn for."

After listening, Xu Zhihong smiled and took a letter out of his drawer.

"I gave you the first letter of recommendation before, with eight words written on it."

"Now it's time to give you the second letter."

"Take it. Although with your resume you could apply for most postdoc positions worldwide, and UCD was a good choice before, I think this time you don't need to play small."

"Are you interested in Cambridge?" Xu Zhihong asked as he handed him the envelope, explaining, "My good friend, Professor Schoch, has a good project and is currently assembling a team. You can look into it before making a decision."

"Of course, if you have a better option, that's even better."

"I'm just providing you with a fallback option."

Taking the letter, Lu Shixian didn't quite know what to say, only feeling his eyes sting.

The white-haired old man before him, although he hadn't taught him much or led him on any projects, and might have been different, even unconventional, compared to other doctoral advisors.

But he had always given him the greatest tolerance and understanding.

He simply provided guidance that was both natural and unerringly correct, never trying to impose his own views.

With a mentor like this, he felt that in terms of luck, he was sometimes no worse off than anyone else.

Returning to his residence, Lu Shixian began to research everything about applying for a postdoc.

For him, every choice after graduating with his master's degree was like crossing a river by feeling the stones.

But it was also a magnificent landscape he had never seen before.

Chapter 419: The Interviews Begin

An RL, or Recommendation Letter, is generally required in a set of three, with one of them having to come from the doctoral supervisor.

This needs little explanation, as everyone understands that the more authoritative the letter writer is in their academic field, the more credible their recommendation.

An RP, or Research Proposal, isn't something you lead with, but it's a question the PI will definitely ask during the interview.

Preparing early meant being able to handle any questions that might arise, so as not to be caught off guard and leave a very bad impression.

But in truth, these were all manageable for Lu Shixian. He had the knowledge in his head and tangible achievements in his hands.

He wouldn't find himself in a situation where he couldn't make bricks without straw.

For several days, apart from his routine exercise, Lu Shixian did not leave his room.
He shut himself away to prepare his applications.

At the postdoctoral stage, the connection to the university as a whole was no longer the primary focus.

The targets he needed to contact and apply to had shifted from universities to Principal Investigators, or PIs.

This meant he could concentrate his efforts on the specific labs he was interested in.

Adopting a "cast a wide net" approach, he began his search.

With so many universities around the world, Lu Shixian wasn't particularly familiar with those abroad.

In fact, there were some labs he didn't recognize at all, and had never even heard of.

But that didn't stop him from accurately judging which ones had potential and which had real strength.

Specialized websites in the field of genetic breeding provided introductions.

Major prestigious journals also set aside space for advertisements.

And then there were the editorial boards; the editors of journals with even slightly higher impact factors were almost all titans in their respective fields.

Applying to a lab was, in reality, a two way street.

Over the past few days, he had sent out over twenty emails, mostly targeting highly renowned laboratories in the genetic breeding field.

Among the recipients were Nobel laureates and international superstars of the field.

Of course, there was no shortage of unsolicited offers either. If he didn't clean out his inbox daily, he'd find ten or twenty new emails.

Every correspondence paper he published included his contact information, so these emails came from both home and abroad. Many were from major labs with PIs who were big names in the field.

Unfortunately, the research directions of their labs were simply not a good match for Lu Shixian.

He politely declined some labs that were clearly sincere; as for the others just trying to fill a spot, he sent them straight to the trash.

Perhaps it was because Lu Shixian's academic resume was just too astonishing.

He sent out a total of 22 online applications and received 21 replies in a remarkably short time.

This was an incredibly high response rate, indicating that the lab heads were very interested in him.

Lu Shixian did a quick sort. Topping the list were 8 direct interview invitations, and another 7 expressing a desire for more in depth discussion.

As for the remaining 6 that rejected his application, the reasons were simple and sufficient.

It was either "Sorry! No money!"

Or "No positions!"

What more could be said? Lu Shixian decided to first choose from the labs that had sent interview invitations. Whether they were a good fit or not could be decided later; at least their sincerity was clear.

Soon, a professor named Morty, with "Yale University" in his title, caught his attention.

"Would you be available to talk on Skype?" Professor Morty initiated the invitation, appearing quite proactive.

Usually, the process wasn't this fast. Normally, they would at least ask the applicant to send their letters of recommendation first.

But since this saved him some trouble, Lu Shixian certainly wasn't going to complicate things by asking questions.

And so, the conversation was set to begin shortly.

In fact, he had already been actively preparing for it.

Skype, the global instant messaging software that had replaced MSN the previous year, had been welcomed by users everywhere, especially for international communication.

He opened the client, checked his network, microphone, and camera, and then searched for the ID left in the email.

Soon, a friend request from Professor Morty came through and began to flash.

It was, as expected, a typically American pragmatic profile picture: a straightforward headshot of the man himself.

Shaking his head, Lu Shixian opened the chat window, where a message had already appeared.

Morty: Hey! Lu, are you free for a video call?

Lu Shixian wasn't surprised.

After all, if they just wanted to chat, email would have sufficed.

Since they were on Skype, a video call was inevitable. He just hadn't expected the professor to be in such a hurry.

But he no longer worried about potential scammers like he might have in the past.

After all, any lab he applied to had already passed his initial screening and approval.

If he recalled correctly, he had chosen this Professor Morty because he was the head of the genetic breeding lab at Yale University.

Without hesitation, Lu Shixian clicked the call button.

Yanda University's network infrastructure was solid. After a few seconds of delay, Lu Shixian saw Professor Morty face to face for the first time.

A man with fluffy hair, a fair complexion, and a slightly puffy build appeared on the screen.

"Hey, Lu, great to meet you!" Professor Morty greeted him with great enthusiasm the moment he appeared.

Though a bit flattered, Lu Shixian gracefully returned the greeting, "The pleasure is all mine. It's an honor!"

"Lu, to be honest, your resume is absolutely dazzling. None of the postdocs who have passed interviews for my lab before have had an academic background of your caliber and breadth."

Lu Shixian didn't feign excessive modesty and accepted the compliment gracefully. "Thank you for the praise."

"But I've also looked at your materials, and it seems you don't have much direct experience in genetic breeding. Instead, you show exceptional talent in plant pathology and cell biology. Are you sure you didn't apply to the wrong lab?" Morty asked again.

The question nearly stunned Lu Shixian into silence.

He was right. Lu Shixian knew this very well himself.

Although he had dabbled here and there over the years and achieved some results, he had made no progress in the field he truly yearned to advance in.

This was indeed a significant disadvantage. But the benefit of an interview over a written application was the ability to respond on the spot and salvage the situation.

After three seconds, Lu Shixian's expression remained unchanged. With a calm smile, he began his explanation without a hint of nervousness.

"Professor Morty, you're absolutely right!"

"But I believe this is precisely where my advantage over other competitors lies, don't you think?"

Chapter 420: You Truly Are One of a Kind

Professor Morty's curiosity was indeed piqued. "I've rarely heard an answer like that. How so?"

Lu Shixian quickly explained, "As early as the 1970s, interdisciplinary research was already growing and thriving, leading to the emergence of numerous cross disciplinary, transverse, and fringe fields. By the 1980s, the boundaries of traditional disciplines became increasingly blurred, and the trend of disciplinary integration became more and more evident in both the social and natural sciences."

"Entering the 21st century, some have called this the era of disciplinary convergence. It is not only the future trend of academic development but also a crucial pathway for producing innovative results."

"In fact, although I haven't yet delved into the field of genetic breeding, I have already acquired a rich foundation of relevant knowledge through interdisciplinary learning."

"With this foundation, I can quickly adapt to the needs of integrating cross disciplinary knowledge and apply it to research work much faster."

After finishing, Lu Shixian posed a question back, "Professor Morty, what do you think?"

"Oh! Lu, you've convinced me!" Morty quickly gave him a thumbs up. "But I still want to ask you, what are your thoughts on CRISPR?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian instantly understood he had reached the most critical stage of the interview.

This was likely a test to see if his research philosophy aligned with the lab's.

How he answered this question would directly determine whether he passed the interview.

A quick search of his memory brought back all the details related to CRISPR.

The earliest research on it could be traced back to 1987.

Japanese microbiologist Yoshizumi Ishino, while cloning the *E. coli* iap gene, discovered a curious phenomenon.

Near the gene's coding sequence, there were always tandemly repeated DNA fragments. Each repeat contained 29 conserved bases and had a palindromic structure with internal base complementarity.

These fragments were separated by 32 base spacer sequences. But as this was the first discovery, its existence was completely unknown in the academic community, and no one knew what effect it had on the gene.

Later researchers repeatedly found this peculiar gene structure in the genomes of bacteria and archaea, and in 2000, they named it Short Regularly Spaced Repeats.

Two years later, in 2002, Dutch biologist Ruud Jansen formally named the structure Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats.

This was the origin of the acronym CRISPR.

In the continuous study of CRISPR sequences, scientists discovered that certain nucleases or helicases played a related role in this sequence structure, which they later named CRISPR associated, or Cas.

In 2005, a breakthrough was made in CRISPR research. Through their studies, they were astonished to find that these spacer sequences did not originate from the bacteria's own chromosome, but were instead related to bacteriophages or extrachromosomal DNA gene sequences.

Although there was no proof yet, some scientists boldly hypothesized that CRISPR Cas might be a kind of adaptive defense system for bacteria.

They speculated that bacteria somehow acquired DNA fragments from bacteriophages and integrated them into their own CRISPR sequences. If the same virus invaded the cell again, the bacteria could use this sequence information to specifically recognize the virus and mount a response.

After 2007, scientists successfully confirmed this through experiments. The CRISPR spacer sequences of bacteria that survived infection indeed contained viral sequences.

When these sequences were experimentally removed, the bacteria's resistance to the virus magically disappeared.

They then conducted reverse control experiments. By inserting these removed sequences into the CRISPR sequences of uninfected bacteria, the scientists found that these bacteria did indeed gain resistance.

This research paved the way for further advancements in this direction, successfully proving that CRISPR Cas is indeed a brand new bacterial acquired immune system and the specific mechanism for bacterial self protection.

So Lu Shixian replied without a second thought, "CRISPR has been proven to be a bacterial acquired immune system. The most direct application of this research should be our ability to genetically engineer bacteria, giving them resistance to viruses."

Professor Morty nodded without comment, looking at him and asking, "A very concise summary. But is there more?"

His reaction was within Lu Shixian's expectations. After all, they weren't just having a casual chat.

Any discussion had to revolve around the main topic, or it would be meaningless.

So, what was their current topic?

Genetic breeding, of course. So, talking about modifying bacteria wasn't getting to the heart of the matter.

Of course, Lu Shixian hadn't finished speaking yet, so he hadn't reached the final, crucial point.

"I believe what you really want to ask about is CRISPR Cas9, isn't it?" Lu Shixian asked with a light smile.

Hearing this, Professor Morty's eyes widened in disbelief. He spread his hands, his tone filled with surprise.

"You've heard of it?"

Lu Shixian nodded. "In fact, I've been following the progress of two outstanding biologists, Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna."

"Their work in 2012 and 2013 on modifying the natural CRISPR Cas system still astounds me."

"After the sgRNA complements and pairs with the target DNA sequence, the double strand cutting activity of the endonuclease Cas9 is activated. The HNH nuclease domain of Cas9 then cuts the DNA strand complementary to the sgRNA, while the RuvC like domain cuts the non complementary DNA strand."

"What a marvelous invention and concept!" Lu Shixian exclaimed in admiration. "From now on, humanity will have the most adept tool for editing DNA, like a pair of golden scissors!"

Professor Morty was also full of praise, but his praise was directed at Lu Shixian.

"Lu, you truly are one of a kind. You're very well informed about the latest cutting edge research."

"This was a breakthrough achievement made just last year by the teams led by Charpentier and Doudna in the field of life sciences."

"If I hadn't been there myself, I would have thought you'd attended their presentation on the findings."

Chapter 421: The Mentally Exhausted Professor Morty

Lu Shixian didn't get carried away, because this was just the tip of the iceberg of what he knew. Even more astonishing information was still in his mind.

No one knew that six years from now, Charpentier and Doudna would share the 2020 Nobel Prize for their development of the CRISPR gene editing technology.

The announcement of this prize took everyone by surprise at the time.

Gene editing technology was certainly a foreseeable hot topic for a Nobel Prize winning breakthrough, but its significance went beyond just scientific research.

First was the breakthrough in time.

From its initial development in 2012 to winning the prize in 2020, only eight years had passed.

Many Nobel laureates had to wait for as long as half a century, making this timeframe highly unusual in the history of the Nobel Prize.

Second was the breakthrough in category.

This was one of the most hotly debated topics after the prize was announced. The gene editing technology won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, not in Physiology or Medicine as most had predicted.

Consider the titles of these two scientists: Emmanuelle Charpentier was a French microbiologist, and Jennifer Doudna was an American biologist.

Their fields of study seemed to have little to do with chemistry.

But in this era of disciplinary convergence, it wasn't entirely incomprehensible.

It was almost a joke; you might as well combine physics, chemistry, and biology into a single "Comprehensive Science" subject, like in the college entrance exams.

If one were to be pedantic, as a certain expert said, the essence of a gene is chemical, so what's wrong with gene editing winning a chemistry prize?

It wasn't an indefensible argument, but it certainly broke with convention.

Third was the breakthrough in gender.

After the prize was awarded, many noted that both laureates were women.

To be honest, a gender barrier still existed in scientific research, and female scientists had certainly faced prejudice in the past. But for two female scientists to share the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in the same year was a first in history.

They proved with facts that women could break through people's preconceived notions.

They too could stand at the pinnacle of global scientific research, advancing towards the frontiers of science and exploring more unknown territories and possibilities for humanity.

Even setting aside the academics, these three breakthroughs alone were enough to earn Lu Shixian's respect for them.

Lu Shixian said with a sigh of admiration, "As Radishchev said, 'The higher one climbs on the mountain of knowledge, the more magnificent the view that unfolds.'"

"Although I'm not much of a traveler, through the eyes of these great scientists, I can constantly witness the most magnificent wonders of the natural world."

Across from him, Professor Morty nearly ascended to heaven on the spot.

Such enlightened thinking! I've seen all I need to see—you're the one!

Morty slapped the table and made his decision. "Lu, welcome to the Yale Genetic Breeding Lab!"

At this moment, Lu Shixian put on an innocent expression. "But this is only my first interview."

"I haven't had a chance to reply to the professor from the California Institute of Technology yet."

"A 'sports school' you can walk across in twenty minutes? How can that compare to Yale?" Professor Morty didn't back down, clearly knowing how to retain talent. "I can make the call. Your one time annual salary for research can reach this much."

He held up five fingers, which generally meant fifty thousand US dollars.

Postdoc salaries in the US typically ranged from $30,000 to $60,000.

While $50,000 wasn't the absolute ceiling, for someone like Lu Shixian who had just graduated with a PhD, getting $30,000 would have been considered impressive.

Lu Shixian acted as if he didn't understand. "But a senior mentor at Cambridge has already promised to save a postdoc position for me."

Professor Morty remained firm. "I think you know very well that with your abilities, using networking for something like this is a huge waste of resources."

"I will apply for a full fellowship from the Genetics Society on your behalf."

"I heard that Yale's life sciences research doesn't even make it onto the first page of the rankings in your country?" Lu Shixian hesitated for a moment before landing another blow. "It seems to be on par with that 'sports school' you just mentioned."

Professor Morty slammed the table in a rage. "Slander! That is absolute slander."

"Our university just spends its PR budget where it's supposed to be spent."

"All else being equal, you will be given priority for awards and honors."

Lu Shixian smiled. "Yale's profound history and heritage have captivated me."

"I will follow in the footsteps of great scientists like Lederberg, Palade, and Enders, constantly striving to become a better version of myself."

But just as quickly, Professor Morty suddenly realized he might have gotten a bit carried away.

But the words were already out. As the head of the lab, he had to have that much integrity and magnanimity.

He slumped slightly, consoling himself. "You're a cunning one, aren't you? A bit different from the other Chinese students at our school."

"You remind me of someone. When you get to Yale, you two might have a lot to talk about."

Lu Shixian was a little curious. "Who?"

"You'll find out when you get here. I'll have my assistant contact you about the offer and the agreement." Professor Morty seemed mentally exhausted. He threw out that last sentence and hastily went offline.

Lu Shixian was left with a strange expression. Had he really scared him off that easily?

He hadn't even gotten serious yet.

To be honest, passing the very first interview so smoothly felt a bit surreal.

Although Yale wasn't the absolute strongest in the field of biology, it was at least stronger than the vast majority.

The talk of history and heritage was, of course, an excuse, even though Yale's history did indeed trace back to the early 1700s.

Professor Morty's generosity was only part of the reason he had made his decision so quickly.

Perhaps the most crucial reason was…

Lu Shixian closed his laptop and let out a soft breath.

Regardless, the first step of his plan was complete.

That's right. He was no longer wavering, no longer lost.

He had rediscovered his fighting spirit, reigniting the fire of his youth.
After that night, Lu Shixian spent a day mapping out a five-year plan for himself.

Getting into Yale was the first step in his plan, but Lu Shixian had been worried his luck might not hold out and he wouldn't get his wish.

Although he had backup plans, they were backups for a reason—their effectiveness would be greatly diminished.

Having accomplished this goal, Lu Shixian was quite pleased.

The blueprint was laid out. It was time to get to work.

He was about to embark on a new journey, to a new environment.

Lu Shixian took a deep breath and clenched his fists.

He would not let his own efforts go to waste!

He would not disappoint his mentor's expectations!

He would press on, step by step, toward his unwavering goal!

Chapter 422: The Law of Conservation of Happiness

Three days after the interview, Lu Shixian received an electronic offer from Yale University in his email, which also informed him that a physical copy would be mailed shortly.

Just a few days later, the physical offer letter arrived at the Yanda University mail station.

Lu Shixian signed for it and opened it.

“Congratulations! Thank you for your continued interest in the Laboratory of Biological Genetics and Breeding at Yale University. You have demonstrated outstanding performance in your application for the 2014 postdoctoral program…”

“Finally, we welcome you to Yale University to engage in postdoctoral research. Please report to the laboratory by June 15th, Connecticut time.”

Sure enough, at the bottom of the offer was the signature of the big boss, Morty.

Lu Shixian read it carefully; it was mostly consistent with what they had discussed in the interview.

At this point, there was nothing left to hesitate about.

Lu Shixian signed the letter, mailed it back, and then sent a reply by email, confirming he would report on schedule.

Completing these tasks was just the first step of a long journey.

Fortunately, with his previous experience studying abroad, he wouldn't be flustered this time, even though things were a bit different.

Sometime later, Lu Shixian received the DS-2019 form from Yale.

He then filled out the DS-160 visa application form online.

A day later, Lu Shixian logged into the SEVIS system to pay the J-1 visa fee.

On the third day after scheduling his interview on the platform, Lu Shixian received the interview notice from the embassy's visa center.

With that, he had reached the final step before his journey across the ocean.

The interview location was the same as last time, but the standards and difficulty were much higher.

As the capital of China, Yanjing was always bustling with people applying for visas, with two embassies and over a dozen consular officers.

This time, his interview was with a female officer.

"Lu, first of all, congratulations on receiving a postdoc offer from Yale." She was petite and delicate, with a smile on her face, yet Lu Shixian could feel a sharp aura emanating from her.

"Yale is one of the oldest research universities in the United States, a brilliant jewel among institutions of higher learning. Educational diversity is their consistent philosophy."

After the preamble, the female officer finally posed her question: "However, Lu, I've studied your resume, and your research experience is truly dazzling."

"But it seems you don't have any other hobbies or interests. Including your rest time, almost all your time is devoted to work. If someone like you goes to Yale, can you really adapt to their requirements for diversified development?"

Here it comes. The very first question confirmed his earlier premonition.

The level of this interview had indeed been fully upgraded; the difficulty was not to be underestimated.

But having weathered many storms, he was no pushover.

Lu Shixian's expression remained unchanged, his speech steady. "Ma'am, I don't believe diversity will be an issue for me."

"First, I'd like to clarify that I'm not without hobbies. After all, there's no rule that says scientific research can't be a hobby, is there? I simply spend the time others use for chatting and drinking coffee on my research."

Lu Shixian held out his hands and continued to explain, "Secondly, in my view, Yale's diversity is actually an advantage for me."

"It means I can more easily find like-minded international friends who are also striving towards ambitious research goals."

The female officer was silent for a few seconds before continuing, "I noticed you don't seem to have any relationship experience. Do you think you'll be able to find a significant other at Yale?"

This question seemed perfectly normal, but it was actually a trap, a fact proven by countless rejected applicants.

Being single is a disadvantage in the visa process. If you admitted it to show off your social skills, it could imply you intended to settle down in the US, turning a disadvantage into a demerit.

Lu Shixian was not about to fall for it. Instead, he feigned a look of confusion. "Ma'am, I think you might be overlooking one fact."

"That is, I may have a small talent for studying. Although I happened to receive my Ph.D. from Yanda this March, I've actually just turned 24."

"At this age, even if I return to China after graduating from Yale several years from now, I won't have to worry too much about my personal life."

Lu Shixian looked up and met the female officer's gaze with a smile. "Don't you agree?"

The female officer's mindset had shifted slightly; she was no longer as composed as before.

In the past, her assertive style and sharp tone had thwarted many Chinese people with dreams of immigrating to the US.

Although it was an unspoken rule within their department to give some leeway to outstanding researchers, the relevant procedures still needed to be strictly followed.

There had been cases in the past of unqualified people slipping through.

And finding exceptions among these prodigies brought a greater sense of accomplishment than with ordinary people.

But this time, she had clearly miscalculated. Although Lu Shixian's words maintained the humility typical of his country, she couldn't shake the strange feeling that when strung together, they conveyed something else entirely. It was very odd.

As a high-level research talent already accepted by a prestigious American institution like Yale, Lu Shixian would not be denied a visa barring any unforeseen circumstances.

Seeing that the outcome was all but decided, the female officer suddenly changed her demeanor, smiling and extending her hand to Lu Shixian. "This interview is over, Lu. Good luck!"

Lu Shixian shook her hand. "Thank you for your well wishes."

Just as he turned to leave, puzzled by the officer's sudden shift in attitude, he heard her voice again.

"You are indeed very outstanding, but I suggest you practice your spoken English when you get back!"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian faltered, nearly losing his footing. He could only manage a polite smile to cover the sudden embarrassment and quickly walked out.

Left behind, the female officer watched his hasty retreat and smiled again.

"No one walks away from Perry Dani's interview feeling smug."

But Lu Shixian, now outside the embassy, couldn't smile.

It was true that one person's happiness is built on another's pain.

He had actually made significant improvements on this issue during his exchange at UCD; his pronunciation was no longer the "Chinglish" of his undergraduate days.

But in front of a professional like the visa officer, it was nearly impossible to pull the wool over her eyes.

Fortunately, spoken English wasn't a definitive factor for the visa. As long as you could communicate fluently in English, you would generally pass.

It wasn't his native language, and he had never heard of anyone being called out for it before.

This time, he could only chalk it up to bad luck.

Chapter 423: Yale, Here I Come!

But regardless, the final result was good.

Lu Shixian soon received a notification from the embassy about an update to his visa status.

He saw that it had changed from "administrative processing" to "issued."

This meant Lu Shixian could now head across the ocean at any time.

Come to think of it, he might be gone for several years, and he was truly reluctant to leave.

At the end of May, Lu Shixian called his parents to tell them he was about to go abroad to continue his studies.

They were both understanding of his choice, their only advice being to take care of himself.

On the way to Yanjing Airport, only Chang Wenchao came uninvited to see him off.

"Fourth Bro, aren't you going to tell the others?" Chang Wenchao asked at the airport before his departure. "Didn't you say you have half a month before you have to report? What's the rush?"

Lu Shixian shook his head. "No, we already had a small get-together for this. Everyone's busy, there's no need to make a fuss and distract them because of me."

Chang Wenchao sighed. "Now, you and I are the only ones in our dorm still doing academic research."

"The boss became a reporter at a major newspaper, and Second Bro is serving the people back home with a nine-to-five job."

"Sometimes I really envy them. I guess I'm stuck with that mistress, chemistry, for life."

"Why don't you jump ship then?" Lu Shixian laughed. "Chemistry isn't that interesting anyway. How about you switch to biology and be my junior at Yale? I'll have your back."

Chang Wenchao laughed, exasperated, and waved his hands. "Forget it. I'd rather hang myself from a crooked tree."

"Studying abroad is definitely the trend now, but I don't plan on doing a postdoc like you."

"After I get my Ph.D., I need to find a place for myself."

"Don't postdocs get a salary?" Lu Shixian asked, surprised. "So where do you want to go? Are you giving up research?"

Chang Wenchao shook his head. "Yes and no. I've joined the targeted talent recruitment program for China Nuclear & Chemical Engineering. I'll most likely end up working for someone at their Institute of Nuclear Chemistry."

"It hasn't been easy for my family to support me all this time. Getting a job sooner will ease their burden a bit."

"You know how it is. Staying in academia or at a research institute is just biding time. You work like a dog, and the pay is low."

Lu Shixian fell silent, then asked, "I remember you used to say your dream was to become a chemist like Lavoisier."

Hearing this, Chang Wenchao smiled, but it was a bitter one.

"That's why a dream is just a dream!"

"My younger brother is starting high school this year. My family hasn't said anything, but I know they're under a lot of pressure."

"Over the years, I've earned some scholarship money, but it's only been enough for myself. I haven't been able to send much home to help out."

"I've thought it over for a long time and finally decided to repay my parents first. They've given up too much for me."

"And I've met a girl. She's still in grad school, and I really, really like her."

"I don't know how to describe this feeling, and I know you wouldn't feel the same way."

"It was just in that one moment, I wanted to marry her, to start a family with her, to build a good life with her."

"But I have to figure out how to buy a house, a car, how to come up with a bride price."

Lu Shixian suddenly felt like he didn't know Chang Wenchao anymore.

But people change, of that there was no doubt.

"From high school to my Ph.D., I've been through a few relationships," Chang Wenchao said with a sigh. "Maybe I'm starting to understand your way of thinking."

"And now I've realized that liking someone is easy, but loving someone is so, so hard. And so heavy."

Lu Shixian: ??? What ideas do I have? How come I don't know?

He didn't know what to say, and could only offer some comfort: "China Nuclear & Chemical Engineering is great, one of the best state-owned chemical enterprises in the country."

"I hear their research institute is very strong too."

"It's the same everywhere, really. We're all making our contributions to the nation's prosperity."

There wasn't much more to say. Some things were better left unsaid.

"Keep going, Fourth Bro! You're the one among the four of us with the purest heart, the one who works the hardest." As the flight was about to board, Chang Wenchao put his hand on Lu Shixian's shoulder. "I hope you can keep walking this path, even though it's really not an easy one."

"Sorry, Fourth Bro. I can't walk with you to the end."

"I thought about persevering, and I had my dreams, but ultimately, I have to live in reality."

"I really regret it, but I don't have any regrets."

Seated on the flight to Connecticut, Lu Shixian was still contemplating the farewell.

He wasn't sad, necessarily. After all, this was a decision Chang Wenchao had made after careful consideration, and he was in no position to interfere.

He just felt an immense weight.

Sometimes, it was only through the perspectives of others that he could truly feel the harshness of the path of scientific research.

It seemed the further one went, the more distant the people around them became.

Everyone has their own path to walk. At the end, will one be left all alone?

Lu Shixian was suddenly reminded of a line from Hrabal's *Too Loud a Solitude*.

Because I am lucky enough to be alone, though I am never lonely, I am only by myself, living in the dense thicket of my thoughts, because I am a little bit of a braggart, a braggart in the infinite and the eternal, and the infinite and the eternal may just like people like me.

"I am in fact a pessimistic optimist and an optimistic pessimist; I am an amphibian and two rooms with a common wall, with the laughter of Rabelais and the weeping of Heraclitus."

Pessimistic optimists, they foresee the worst but always actively seek solutions, willing to do their utmost to find a sliver of hope in this miserable world.

Perhaps Chang Wenchao belonged to the first category.

Lu Shixian didn't know which category he himself fell into now.

"The flower of idealism will ultimately bloom in the soil of romanticism," Lu Shixian thought to himself as he brushed his hand against the cabin window.

The nearly day-long flight passed quietly in his sleep.

When he woke again, he was in another world.

After getting off the plane, Lu Shixian felt the solid ground beneath him, his steps once again firm and resolute.

Originally, Yale had no campus; students were scattered across six cities in Connecticut for their studies.

It wasn't until 1716 that the college was moved entirely to New Haven.

He was now in the state of Connecticut.

He smiled, facing the direction of New Haven.

Yale, here I come!

Chapter 424: Is It Worth It?

Due to it being an international flight, Lu Shixian couldn't land directly at the small Tweed New Haven Airport.

But as he exited John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, he quickly spotted a dedicated shuttle to New Haven.

New Haven was a small city with a population of just over a hundred thousand. The reason it commanded such a service at an international airport was self-evident.

There was a statistic here that was both amusing and entirely unsurprising.

Someone had compiled a list of New Haven's most popular tourist attractions for that year.

Number one was Yale University.

Number two was the Yale University Art Gallery.

Number three was the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History.

American institutions of higher learning are often tucked away in a corner like this, like a weather-beaten elder watching the world change.

At that moment, Lu Shixian's bus finally reached its destination.

Dragging his suitcase off the bus, he could see the renowned university from a distance.

Of course, what he was seeing was likely just the main building. In America, it was no exaggeration to say that a university was a city in itself.

Without a map, one could probably walk for a day and a night and still not find their destination.

But this time, he was no longer the rookie graduate student he had been at UCD.

As an official postdoctoral researcher at Yale, he was beginning to enjoy some of the conveniences that came with his new status.

For instance, his phone was ringing right now.

The caller was a guide sent by Professor Morty's assistant.

"Hello, yes, that's me."

"Yes, I'm right under a very tall structure."

"Compared to the other buildings, it's quite tall."

A few minutes later, a young man looking around caught Lu Shixian's attention.

He was holding a piece of paper with Lu Shixian's name written on it.

"Hey! No need to look, I'm right here." Lu Shixian found the young man's bewildered expression somewhat amusing. "Did Professor Morty not tell you what I look like?"

The young man nodded and then shook his head blankly. "He said you were from China, and that you were a man."

"But he didn't say you'd be so young, Dr. Lu."

Lu Shixian shrugged and explained, "You're not the first person to say that."

"By the way, what's your name? Your accent doesn't sound American."

The young man quickly accepted this fact and replied, "Mano. Actually, I just graduated from the University of Melbourne last year and came here for my master's."

Lu Shixian nodded. "No wonder! Mano, I'll be counting on you to lead the way."

From then on, Mano mostly explained things as they walked.

"That place where we just met is Harkness Tower, the tallest building near the Old Campus."

"They say it's over sixty meters tall, and the bells chime every day at 5:30 PM. It's a landmark here."

"But you came straight here, so I guess you didn't walk through Phelps Gate."

"A gate?" Lu Shixian asked, puzzled. "What do you mean?"

"It's that place over there, not far from us. All incoming first-year students pass through Phelps Gate, and then they walk out through it again when they graduate. It's a ritual to express their feelings for Yale."

Lu Shixian nodded and walked through Phelps Gate with him, arriving at the main building area.

"That's Connecticut Hall, the oldest building here, dating back to 1750." As Mano spoke, he pointed to a bronze statue by the entrance. "I know you're probably going to ask, but that's not a scientist, philosopher, or writer."

Lu Shixian's silence confirmed his guess. In fact, almost every first-time visitor to Yale asked that question.

"That's Nathan Hale. He was one of Yale's earliest graduates, and people still remember the words he spoke at his execution."

"I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country."

At this, Mano said with a chuckle, "But our way of commemorating him now is a bit... enthusiastic."

"How so? Do you hold some kind of big event?" Lu Shixian guessed with interest.
Mano shook his head mysteriously. "Spoiling it would ruin the fun. You can come see for yourself later, Dr. Lu. But it's best to go at night."

Lu Shixian was exasperated by his suspense building, but it didn't matter. After all, he had plenty of time ahead of him.

"Next up, we're about to arrive at your affiliated college. To be precise, Yale has fourteen residential colleges, and pretty much every one has its own dormitory building."

"By the way, Dr. Lu, do you want to live in the college dorms or find your own place?" Mano continued. "If you want a dorm, we can talk to the college and help you apply. They don't usually have housing for postdocs, but there are some small cottages available."

"But I'd recommend finding a place on your own."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian nodded and thought for a moment before deciding to find his own housing.

"Thanks for the advice," he said to Mano with a smile. "I've heard Yale has a residential college system where all the students live."

"As for me, I'd prefer a place where I can focus on my research without being disturbed."

So, Mano quickly helped him find a small apartment.

Lu Shixian spent $15,400 and swiftly signed a contract with the landlord.

The apartment wasn't large, a standard one bedroom student unit with a living room, kitchen, and bathroom, but it had one extra room compared to similar apartments.

Mano was quite surprised by how quickly he'd found a place. "Dr. Lu, you're certainly well off. That's my living expenses for a whole year! You could have looked at some other places, you know."

"If you'd looked over in East Rock, you probably could have saved several thousand dollars. But you chose downtown, and this apartment just has one extra, not so useful room. It's really not worth it."

Lu Shixian, however, was quite satisfied. He smiled and explained, "Murphy's Law tells us everyone's values are different. Who's to say what's worth it and what isn't?"

Mano was quickly rendered speechless. "Well, alright then. Since you arrived a bit earlier than your offer letter stated, you'll have some time to get familiar with life here."

"My job is pretty much done. If you have any problems during this time, feel free to contact me."

"Thanks for everything today, Mano," Lu Shixian said gratefully.

After seeing Mano off, Lu Shixian began to survey the place where he would be living for a long time to come.

According to the introduction, because the apartment was designed with an extra room, its cost effectiveness wasn't great, so not many people rented it.

But thanks to regular cleaning, there wasn't much dust.

With a bit of simple tidying, it would be ready to move into.

Chapter 425: Meeting an Old Friend in a Foreign Land

Lu Shixian was well aware he had spent quite a bit extra.

But some money is meant to be spent, and spent where it counts.

The reason he chose a place downtown instead of in the suburbs was that he didn't want to waste too much time commuting.

And the reason for this particular apartment was its extra small room, which Lu Shixian could convert into a study.

Over the next half month, Lu Shixian familiarized himself with the Yale environment while also acquiring many new things for his apartment.

The once empty apartment became visibly more furnished.

The relaxing time for sightseeing passed quickly.

The day for Lu Shixian to start his job arrived as scheduled.

Following the lab location given in his offer letter, Lu Shixian walked briskly toward his destination.

Over the past few weeks, Lu Shixian had walked to the Yale School of Public Health more than once, getting a feel for the place ahead of time.

Even just wandering around here could lead to unexpected discoveries.

Over its long history, this place had produced 65 Nobel laureates, 5 Fields Medalists, and 3 Turing Award winners.

As for other, second tier honors, they were simply innumerable.

Although a considerable number of these individuals had passed away, the number of those still living was unimaginable for other institutions.

In just the past week, Lu Shixian had already seen several Nobel laureates pass him by.

It was a unique experience.

Unfortunately, time was limited now, and he couldn't linger to observe more.

Today's main task was to report to his boss—to pay his respects, so to speak.

Because he had an appointment, Lu Shixian soon found him in a professor's office in the school.

They had already met via video call, so this first face to face meeting wasn't so constrained.

"Hello, Professor Morty! I'm Lu Shixian. You're just as wise as I remember from our video call," Lu Shixian said, breaking the ice.

"Haha, please, have a seat. If that were really true, I wouldn't have fallen for that simple trick of yours last time," Morty said with a relaxed smile, then asked, "So, are you all settled in? Getting used to life here?"

Lu Shixian nodded. "Thank you for your concern. Don't forget, I have prior exchange student experience. It wasn't for long, but it was very helpful."

Professor Morty ran a hand through his fluffy blond hair and then asked, "Lu, there's something I'd like to ask your opinion on."

"Before you arrived, our lab had 15 official members, and we started a project together."

"Would you like to join now, wait until this project is finished and join a new one, or you could apply for your own."

"Of course I'll join now. I'm part of the team," Lu Shixian decided in less than a second.

Professor Morty was very pleased with Lu Shixian's attitude. He then picked up a stack of documents from his desk and handed them over. "Excellent! This is the application material for the lab's current project."

"This is internal lab material. You can read it, but please don't share it externally. I trust you don't need another lesson on the Lab Safety and Confidentiality Regulations."

"Of course!" Lu Shixian took the documents, acknowledged, and said his goodbyes before leaving the lab.

There was nothing more to be said.

At the postdoctoral level, one's work had a degree of autonomy, provided that one fulfilled their assigned duties.

These duties included, but were not limited to, participating in project research, conducting scientific research, supervising graduate students, and engaging in academic exchange.

The order above was the norm in most labs, with importance generally following that sequence.

Participating in project research was easy to understand. Engaging in scientific research was the primary duty of a postdoc. They needed to follow the lab's main research direction and topics, assist the lab with experiments and data analysis, advance research progress, and obtain results.

Conducting scientific research meant exploring new scientific questions, proposing new research ideas and methods for problems discovered, and carrying out experiments and data analysis to contribute to the scientific field.

The first and second points were similar, yet different.

The first was a matter of course—you get paid, you do the work. Having taken the boss's money, it was only natural to work on the boss's projects.

The second allowed one to apply for and plan research projects based on their own research direction and topics, ultimately writing research reports and papers.

Supervising graduate students was self explanatory, involving guiding their research work.

Based on the graduate students' research directions and topics, a postdoc would provide them with guidance and assistance, helping them with experiments, data analysis, and writing and publishing papers.

This was the biggest difference between the postdoctoral stage and being a student.

To some extent, a postdoc already took on certain responsibilities of a faculty member.

Finally, there was engaging in academic exchange, attending academic conferences and seminars, and communicating and collaborating with scholars from all over the world.

Sometimes, burying one's head in experiments could lead to a bottleneck. Academic exchange allowed one to understand cutting edge research progress and trends, which could potentially make one's work much more efficient.

Having met the big boss, today's tasks were basically complete.

Lu Shixian was just waiting for Morty to assign him to a group and delegate his tasks.

It was not yet ten o'clock. Since he was already at the school, there was no rush to go back.

Lu Shixian strolled slowly along the floor. This place could be called the main den of Yale's biology professors, and he might even have a successful "fan" moment right then and there.

Although most professors were probably in their labs doing research at this time, there were always moments when they needed a break to handle other matters.

"Huh!" Outside an office, Lu Shixian suddenly spotted a familiar Chinese face.

If it were someone else, he might have hesitated, wondering if they were from another Asian country.

But this face, Lu Shixian truly recognized, because the man was too famous.

As early as 1999, he had been appointed a tenured professor at Yale for his great achievements in the field of biology.

He was the kind of person who published papers in top journals like Cell, Science, and Nature until his hands went soft.

And in 2013, just last year, he had been elected as a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. He must be at the peak of his career right now.

In the fields of plant molecular, cellular, and developmental biology, he was an international top tier titan.

No, it would be more accurate to describe him as a behemoth.

The establishment of Peking University's modern College of Agriculture owed much to his contributions. Lu Shixian guessed he was on good terms with his own mentor, Xu Zhihong.

Otherwise, how could they have possibly invited such a heavyweight?

Meeting an old acquaintance in a new land—Lu Shixian's heart stirred, and he was almost tempted to walk into the office and speak with him.

Chapter 426: An Unexpected Bit of Drama

But after a moment's thought, he suppressed the idea.

It was true that he knew of him, but Deng Xinwang did not know him at this time.

Although he could use his connection to Xu Zhihong as a reason, that was just speculation; his mentor hadn't mentioned this before.

The timing wasn't right. It would seem too deliberate.

Lu Shixian had no choice but to regretfully abandon the idea.

Back at his apartment, Lu Shixian received a message from Professor Morty.

Tomorrow at 9 a.m., during the regular lab meeting, they would also hold a brief introduction for him as a new member.

No need for a lot of nonsense; this was standard practice for American workplaces.

Lu Shixian replied with an "OK" to confirm he had received it.

With only one afternoon left before officially starting work, it was an exciting prospect.

Lu Shixian decided to reward himself with a trip to the library.

He couldn't even say for sure that the library wasn't a factor at all in his choice of Yale.

As he followed the signs and step by step approached the library, he was instantly captivated.

Though he didn't know who first said it, Lu Shixian felt the assessment was spot on.

"The Yale University Library is the most imaginative library building of at least the last two hundred years."

At a glance, the library stood there majestically, like a jewel box. The building's exterior had no windows; its walls, constructed of Vermont marble, glowed with a dim yellow luster under the twilight glow and the pale yellow streetlights.

It wasn't just a vivid application of color, but also the divine craftsmanship of time.

From 1843, when the first small, independent library building was erected here, to the present day, the Yale Library had become the number one in the nation and the second largest in the world.

The arduous legacy it carried was filled with the tireless efforts of generations of Yale affiliates.

Fortunately, postdoctoral researchers and visiting scholars at Yale University also enjoyed the same access to the library as Yale faculty and students.

The Yale Library was not concentrated in one place; it consisted of more than a dozen libraries, large and small.

The one Lu Shixian was looking at now was not the largest, nor the most popular among students or tourists, but it was an absolute paradise for academic researchers.

Its architect was the Pritzker Architecture Prize winner, the famous master builder Gordon Bunshaft.

Construction began in 1960 and was completed three years later.

The name, obviously, continued the tradition of being named after its donors, a common method for securing donations.

In fact, the name of the donor family, the Beineckes, has indeed been immortalized along with the fame of the Yale University Library.

Stepping into the building, Lu Shixian didn't have time to admire the exquisite interior design and ingenious spatial structure.

After a quick glance at the main hall and reading rooms on the ground floor, Lu Shixian headed up the stairs toward the book stacks on the upper levels.

Even though it was dinnertime, the flow of people here was still endless.

Lu Shixian didn't know which spot was most worth seeing, but the crowd would give him the answer.

Treading softly, he quietly approached an exhibit separated by a glass wall.

He could already hear someone exclaiming, "Such mesmerizing writing. It's a beautiful treasure born from the union of human thought and wisdom."

The speaker was a tall, thin, blond man wearing a hat, who looked English. He was standing outside the glass wall, engrossed in his observation with a magnifying glass.

Just then, a slightly overweight man with an aquiline nose and curly hair next to him couldn't help but say, "Newton may have been great, but only because he stood on the shoulders of giants."

Hearing this, the tall, thin man turned and went straight to the speaker.

At this, the surrounding people all wore expressions of eager anticipation.

Clearly, a debate was unavoidable.

Lu Shixian also began his unexpected journey of watching the drama unfold.

This was the first time he had ever watched a live debate between a "Newton fan" and a "Newton critic."

But in the scholarly atmosphere of Yale, such debates were as normal as could be.

"You'd do well to know the original meaning of that phrase. Newton said it in a letter to Hooke to mock him."

"'If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.'"

"And at the time, Hooke was a short man with a hunchback. Anyone could tell that Newton was mocking his overconfidence," the tall, thin man retorted sharply.

But the slightly overweight man, having dared to speak up, was not one to back down. He quickly added new evidence for his argument.

"But you can't deny that Newton's achievements were indeed built upon the bodies of several 'giants.'"

"'Let no one ignorant of geometry enter!'" the man declaimed, enunciating each word of the first sentence of *On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres* with a powerful cadence that instantly silenced the onlookers.

"It was Nicolaus Copernicus's *On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres* that first overthrew the geocentric model with the heliocentric model, opening a new era for natural science to break away from theology."

"'My soul is from the heavens; my mortal body rests here,'" the man continued, reciting a rather somber line.

In that instant, many people in the crowd thought of the same person: Johannes Kepler.

This was the epitaph Kepler wrote for himself.

"If Kepler knew that his 'Three Laws,' which revealed the apocalypse of the shining stars, were all credited to Newton's law of universal gravitation, would he be so angry as to rise from his eternal slumber?"

"Eppur si muove. (And yet it moves)," the man concluded his rebuttal with a short, loud burst of Italian. "Even if Newton were alive today, he could not deny that his *Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy* borrowed from the mechanical principles in Galileo Galilei's *Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems* and *Discourses and Mathematical Demonstrations Relating to Two New Sciences*."

The tall, thin man clearly hadn't expected such a sharp counterattack.

Since his opponent had used the words and arguments of the deceased to evoke empathy, then he couldn't be blamed for playing dirty. So what if he was calling for backup?

The tall, thin man chuckled. "You should listen to the words of Leibniz: 'Taking mathematics from the beginning of the world to the time when Newton lived, what he did was much the better half.'"

"You should also savor the great Laplace's writing: 'The *Principia* is preeminent above any other production of human genius.'"

"I suppose you've never had the chance to hear Lagrange's favorite saying: 'Newton was the greatest genius that ever existed.'"

"As for Ernst Mach, you're even less qualified to encounter him," the man said, waving his arms wildly in the air like a zealot. "'All that has been accomplished in mechanics since his day has been a deductive, formal, and mathematical development of Newton's laws.'"

"You don't understand anything!"

Chapter 427: Don't Like Wasting Time

Just as Lu Shixian thought the verbal conflict would escalate into a physical one after that roar, the story took a turn that left him stunned.

The tall, thin man quickly regained his composure and made a cross over his chest. "Lux et Veritas."

"I am Louden Mars, a third year student in the Department of Physics, School of Engineering & Applied Science."

"Although Newton's brilliance is indisputable, I will allow you to hold your own opinion."

The man opposite him snorted but still stated his affiliation. "Colmar Vonno, a master's student in the Department of Philosophy, Yale College."

As a graduate student, he had come off slightly worse in the debate, which was a blow to his pride, so he found an excuse and slipped away.

It was understandable, though. Mars was a physics student, after all, so his understanding was bound to be deeper. It wasn't surprising he was a bit fanatical about Newton.

The two participants left as quickly as they had started. The debate was over in a flash.

As the crowd dispersed, Lu Shixian was left somewhat pensive.

He had recognized what Louden Mars had just recited. It wasn't a spell, of course.

It was the motto of Yale University: Truth and Light.

It was a declaration of intellectual freedom, something Lu Shixian had just witnessed from the sidelines during the little drama.

Of course, he hadn't forgotten that the original purpose of the phrase was "for Church and for the public service."

Only under the influence of time did it slowly come to represent the pursuit of the essence of light and truth.

He naturally understood that he would encounter such issues when studying abroad. Foreign cultures would collide with the traditional education he had received.

This would, in turn, have a subtle influence on his worldview, his outlook on life, and his values.

Lu Shixian didn't know what the result of this collision would be.

But he was certain that as long as he maintained his fundamental loyalty to his country, and actively sought common ground while respecting differences, the final result would be positive.

The drama was over, but Lu Shixian's journey here had just begun.

In fact, the manuscript of *Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica*, a great work gifted by Newton to Yale during its founding period, was only part of the collection.

It wasn't even considered the most precious holding in the Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

Lu Shixian continued to feast his eyes.

He saw one of only 48 surviving copies of the Gutenberg Bible in the world, narrating the history of printing.
He saw the Voynich Manuscript, which no one had yet been able to decipher, a testament to the mysteries of history.

He also saw the exceedingly precious and artistically masterful *Birds of America*, a testament to the yearning for freedom.

Before he knew it, it was ten-thirty at night.

The library was approaching its eleven o'clock closing time. Reluctantly, Lu Shixian followed the majority of the crowd out of the building.

During this trip to the library, he hadn't looked up a single scientific paper on life sciences, nor had he seen any cutting-edge research on genetic breeding.

Although he hadn't achieved his original goal, Lu Shixian felt the trip was more than worthwhile.

He had witnessed the brilliant glow of history, distilled through time.

He had experienced the ancient traces left by the passage of time.

He had felt the immense influence of geography on culture.

Having been given a second chance at life, his perspective was gradually changing. He was no longer focused solely on his own professional niche.

In life, if one only ever hones a single professional skill—for instance, focusing entirely on research in the life sciences—while neglecting to train one's rational mind and cultivate humanistic thought, it is undoubtedly a very shortsighted approach.

Cultivating a vigorous sense of curiosity and imagination wasn't exclusive to artistic creation; it was also the wellspring of inspiration in research.

Grasping the depth and power of human thought wasn't unique to philosophical debate; it was also the means by which the double-edged sword of science could be constrained.

Walking out of the library, the moon had already risen high in the sky, but there was no one to meet at this late hour.

It was getting late. Lu Shixian prepared to wash up and go to bed.

He was looking forward to tomorrow's group meeting.

He completed his routine exercise and finished breakfast.

Before seven-thirty in the morning, Lu Shixian had already arrived at Professor Morti's office.

It was his first time in this unfamiliar environment, and as a newcomer, he naturally had to keep a low profile.

A proper attitude would prevent him from rubbing anyone the wrong way.

Character comes before career; this principle applied everywhere in any normal society.

At this hour, most of the office doors were still shut.

About fifteen minutes passed.

Professor Morti walked toward his office from the outside and was somewhat surprised to see Lu Shixian standing in the hallway.

"Lu?"

"What are you doing here so early?" He shook his head with a smile. "Even people with nine-to-five jobs don't start this early."

"It's just a routine group meeting. You could have waited for me to call you over, and it wouldn't have been too late."

Lu Shixian just smiled. "I'm not someone who likes to waste time."

"And wasting other people's time is also a waste of my own."

Professor Morti was a little struck by this statement.

"I have to say, you're quite eloquent, which is rare among researchers."

"But I must admit, you have a point." Professor Morti unlocked his office, picked up a briefcase with the documents needed for the meeting from his desk, and closed the door again. "Here, hold this for me."

"Let's go. I'll take you to the lab."

He took the black briefcase, which wasn't heavy at all. Though it was just a brief exchange, Lu Shixian knew his efforts this morning had not been in vain.

Eight o'clock in the morning.

The laboratory was located in a research building in the southwest area of the School of Public Health.

Lu Shixian followed Morti into the Yale Genetic Breeding Laboratory.

People were already seated at the conference table.

Clearly, someone had arrived even earlier than they had.

"Hey, Professor Manlen, you're always the first one in the lab. Every time I don't see you here, I start to feel uneasy," Morti said, finding the head seat and making a small joke.

Professor Manlen was clearly not in a joking mood. He glanced at Lu Shixian, who was finding an empty seat for himself, a hint of surprise in his eyes.

"Morti, is this the talent you said you found over the summer? Is he Japanese or Korean?"

"Haha, neither." Morti smiled and introduced the man to Lu Shixian. "Lu, this is our lab's academic lead, Professor Manlen."

"Setting aside his research, he's a bit stubborn and inflexible, but he respects reason. Sometimes, when nothing else works, you have to reason with him."

Lu Shixian quickly committed these tips to memory, then stood up and walked over to Professor Manlen, extending his right hand.

Chapter 428: First Experience

"Professor Manlen, hello. My name is Lu Shixian, and I'm from China." As he spoke, he completed a polite handshake with Manlen.

When Manlen stood up, he was quite tall, at least a head taller than Lu Shixian, probably around six feet.

Unlike the stereotype of the pot-bellied American, he had a well-proportioned build and was full of vigor. He was a powerfully built man, clearly in excellent health.

"So you're from China. Yale has many outstanding scientists from China. It's a distant and mysterious country." With Morti as a witness, Manlen expressed a positive attitude toward Lu Shixian's arrival. "Lu, welcome to Yale. I hope I'll have the chance to visit China for an academic exchange."

"Thank you. You're welcome to visit China anytime. I'm sure you won't be disappointed," Lu Shixian replied immediately.

Manlen was the associate director of the lab, essentially the second-in-command, and a doctoral advisor at Yale with high qualifications and prestige.

Lu Shixian naturally understood the necessity of building a good relationship with him.

For now, though, with Morti's introduction, just getting formally acquainted was enough.

Lu Shixian returned to his seat and waited for the other members to arrive.

Soon, the remaining dozen or so seats were filled one by one.

Morti glanced at his watch and finally began the meeting.

Including Lu Shixian, there were fifteen people in the conference room.

This was certainly not the total number of people in the lab. He had heard from Morti before that there were fifty-seven official members registered with the lab.

Of course, if you added the temporary staff hired by the lab and the graduate students of each researcher or associate researcher, the number swelled to one hundred fifty or sixty.

This was already in the category of a large-scale laboratory.

So, the attendees of this meeting were likely the core strength of the lab—the so-called "group leaders."

Sitting among this group of leaders, Lu Shixian's youth naturally drew the attention of most.

"Before we begin, I'd like to introduce a new member of our lab, Lu." Morti started with the introductions, announcing Lu Shixian's arrival.

"Lu just graduated with his Ph.D. two or three months ago. He's from China. Let's give a warm welcome to our new member."

As he finished speaking, Lu Shixian could feel many scrutinizing gazes upon him.

The big boss had spoken, and the response was swift.

Applause broke out, and Lu Shixian stood up and bowed in acknowledgment.

This part was over in less than a minute.

"Now, the meeting will officially begin," Professor Morti's voice continued. "Baus, let's start with you."

"It's been four or five months since your project was approved, but there seems to be no movement on this new molecular breeding project. The progress is severely behind schedule."

"Do you have anything to say?" Professor Morti's gaze fell on the man sitting in the third seat to Lu Shixian's right.

The man named Baus picked up his steaming cup of coffee and replied unhurriedly, "For this project, I'm trying to use Cas9-mediated genome editing, which is a disruptive new technology that only appeared in the academic world last year."

"My team and I need some time to adapt to it. Without first familiarizing ourselves with the technical principles and experimental operations, any head start would be a waste of effort."

"Besides, my project has several difficulties: an unusually large target genome, a very complex genetic mechanism, and a low genetic transformation rate, which makes breeding new varieties and improving quality exceptionally challenging."

"Good. Many labs are now fully utilizing this new technology, trying to seize the high ground in molecular breeding. We must also keep up. This technology has broken through the scope of traditional molecular breeding and has exceptionally broad research prospects." Professor Morti nodded after hearing his explanation, clearly accepting his reasoning.

"Next, Professor Mias, please briefly report on the project you've applied for."

Soon, a professor wearing glasses began his introduction. "Recently, whole-genome DNA methylation has become the new favorite in the international field of plant and animal genetic breeding."

"As we all know, DNA methylation is a key research area in eukaryotic epigenetics. The regulatory nature of genes within a cell can change due to access to a large number of genes or whole-genome DNA methylation."

"Based on this, my team's research focuses on DNA methylation mapping and its construction. The progress is not entirely smooth but is acceptable. I have a feeling we'll have a breakthrough soon. I have no doubt about that."

Before Professor Mias could finish his sentence, a professor next to him chuckled with a hint of schadenfreude.

"Mias, I just heard that Professor Pollin in Chicago is also working on this topic. You started several months before him. Don't let him get scooped."

Mias had clearly heard this news as well, and his expression turned sour. He just snorted coldly. "Pollin's team is just a hastily put-together crew. They're no threat at all."

"The University of Chicago is still in its infancy with high-throughput sequencing technology. He's still too green to compete with me..."

"Alright, Crowe, you and Mias stop arguing." Morti promptly brought the dispute back on track. "It's normal for there to be competition on hot topics. If a research project doesn't attract any interest, I'd start to question the justification for its approval in the first place."

"Next is..."

Even after walking out of the lab, Lu Shixian's mind was still immersed in the meeting.

He had listened in on the entire meeting. Besides Baus and Mias, several other project leaders had given reports, causing the meeting to last for over two hours.

It was the first time Lu Shixian had experienced something like this.

A single lab simultaneously conducting several large-scale or key projects was the norm here.

This was the difference between an average university and a top-tier one, between an ordinary lab and a renowned one.

And at Yale, the Genetic Breeding Laboratory was only considered upper-middle tier.

Scenes like this happened many times each month.

Yale's diverse culture extended to its academic research, creating an environment unlike that of most other institutions.

Traditional academic etiquette cultivated a rigorous scholarly attitude.

Diverse research fields fostered an open academic atmosphere.

Respect, understanding, and tolerance nurtured individual academic capabilities.

Free exchange and debate promoted liberal academic interaction.

Of course, this might also be because the humanities were Yale's signature strength. In this area, the humanities departments certainly had some advantages. In engineering or the natural sciences, Yale might not be among the absolute best, but it was definitely in the top tier.

Globally, Yale enrolled fewer than 1,300 new students each year, and the number of people who came here to study or work for various reasons was even smaller.

In his two months here, Lu Shixian felt that its most striking feature was that no one cared about his family background, nor did they care which city he was born in.

But once you revealed a passion for a certain field, you would be drawn to or attract a group, like a magnet.

And before you knew it, you would come to feel you belonged.

Chapter 429: Analysis Paralysis

But even more important than this was that Lu Shixian knew the U.S. Department of Justice would later launch a so-called "China Initiative."

As the name suggested, it was a measure targeting Chinese scientists.

The goal was to suppress China's scientific talent in order to curb the speed of its technological development.

What made a particularly deep impression on him was that a scholar at Yale had been implicated.

Subsequently, over a hundred professors signed a joint letter on his behalf, questioning the legality of the investigation.

In any case, Yale's stance throughout the process was clear and resolute.

"Committed to upholding the principles of academic freedom and adhering to all policies in the Faculty Handbook."

The reason this was so vivid in Lu Shixian's memory was also because this scholar was a biologist, an ideal extension and true reflection of the life he himself had once dreamed of.

From a college entrance exam failure to the best graduate student in America, from a small-town test-taker to a world-renowned academician of two academies.

At this moment, that scholar should still be working tirelessly for the development of the Yale Stem Cell Center.

In the past, he had never imagined he would one day be admitted to Fudan University, nor had he ever imagined he could become a world-class scientist.

Just as now, he had never imagined he would be accused of accepting "external funding" on trumped-up charges.

His life trajectory had some similarities to Lu Shixian's, yet it was also completely different.

At least, it was still far from the time this initiative would be launched.

But Yale had indeed left a very deep impression on Lu Shixian's mind.

"Lu, have you decided? Which project are you interested in?" Professor Morti couldn't help but smile as he watched Lu Shixian flip through the files of the various project groups.

Lu Shixian looked quite conflicted, though it was a happy problem to have.

"Professor Baus's molecular breeding project, using new methods to solve old problems. The sparks from that collision should be very interesting."

"Professor Mias's project on DNA methylation and its mapping can regulate biological genetic information at the epigenetic level. It can help plants cope with external environmental stress, regulate gene expression, and stabilize the genome. This undoubtedly has huge research potential in the field of plant genetic breeding."

"And Professor Manlen, his project on rice gene cloning, sequencing, and genetic differentiation among germplasms, using cultivated rice including *indica* and *japonica* subspecies as well as wild rice as experimental materials, and using PCR technology to provide a theoretical reference for high-amylose elite rice germplasms."

When it came to scientific research, rigor and attention to detail were essential.

Professor Morti watched Lu Shixian's actions and said with a look of approval, "Even though they all just gave their presentations, you still insisted on reading the project proposals. Now I think I understand why you were able to stand out at UCD."

Lu Shixian shrugged without explaining. Since he had a choice, he naturally had to pick the one that suited him best.

Here, the application and approval for each project went through a rigorous evaluation process.

The chances of picking a bad project weren't high. His main considerations were the following:

Interest is the best teacher. Did the project align with his research interests?

Setting aside office politics, finding the right people was also key. Was the research team a good fit for long-term collaboration?

For him, longevity was important. No one wants to just get into the groove only to be told it's over, so the project had to have depth.

If he could, Lu Shixian would choose them all.

But there were no ifs. He made his choice at the last moment.

"I choose to join Professor Manlen's team!" Lu Shixian handed the files back to Morti and finally relaxed. "Coming here, I feel like I'm developing analysis paralysis. Every project is so appealing, innovative in some way, and has great research potential. It was really hard to choose."

"Relax!" Professor Morti gave him a reassuring look. "After you complete this project, you can also apply for your own."

Before Lu Shixian could get too excited, Morti added, "That is, if you can find people willing to be on your team, and if your proposal passes the review."

Lu Shixian rolled his eyes, a silent protest against this teasing.

But he also knew that before he made a name for himself, he had to be humble and not aim too high.

In the United States, you only had a voice after you demonstrated your strength, and in the field of genetic breeding, he was a complete "newcomer."

And he still needed an opportunity in this area.

After leaving Professor Morti's office, his mind was constantly thinking about the issue of rice gene cloning and sequencing.

It was well known that about half of the world's population relies on rice as a staple food.

That sentence alone illustrated the importance of rice.

In genetics and molecular breeding, rice had the following research characteristics:

1. The rice genome is not large, at least it's one of the smallest among the grass family. The haploid genome is only 430 Mb, which is one-fifth the size of maize and three percent the size of wheat.

This meant that studying the rice genome would be more efficient than with other crops.

2. Among all plant genomes, the level of repetitive sequences in rice is also quite low, at less than 50%.

This also provided a natural convenience for studying the rice genome.

3. The germplasm resources are extremely abundant. Not to mention the varieties being cultivated around the world, there are also a large number of wild plants. The combined number of germplasms exceeds one hundred thousand.

This was a quantity that was difficult to find in the genetic breeding of other crops and was the reason Lu Shixian was re-evaluating the importance of wild plant conservation.

4. It has collinearity with other grass family plants. The genomes have similarities; one could even say they practically share a set of genes. The only difference might be the number of repetitive sequences within the genome.

That studying rice could facilitate research on other crop genetic breeding was just a side benefit.

Most critically, it meant that the genetic maps of crops like wheat and maize could be used to predict the loci of homologous genes in rice.

5. Thanks to the successive efforts of scientists around the world, the classical genetic map of rice is already very mature.

As the saying goes, one generation plants the trees, and the next gets the shade.

This saying also applied to scientific research.

As long as you cited it in your literature review, it could provide evidence for your arguments or findings.

Just a dozen years ago, at that point in time, he was still in elementary school.

But as he slowly grew up, Lu Shixian would always remember that historic moment.

December 18, 2002.

A ceremony commemorating the completion of the International Rice Genome Sequencing Project was held in Japan.

More than 200 scientists from 10 countries and regions attended the conference.

At that moment, the attendees loudly declared to the world: The international sequencing of the rice genome is now history!

Chapter 430: This Kid's Got Guts

This marked the moment the structure of the rice genome held no more secrets from the world.

But this did not mean that studying the genome was a waste of time.

The completion of the rice genome sequencing was indeed an epoch-making achievement.

Unfortunately, this was only the first step in genomics as a whole: structural genomics.
Taking this step is truly remarkable, but we must recognize and acknowledge that there is still a long road ahead.

The complete map of the rice genome needs refinement.

Functional genomics requires further exploration.

The "post-genomic era" has already arrived, though its exact starting point is a matter of much debate in the academic world.

However, it is now widely accepted that the post-genomic era officially began in 2003, marking the fiftieth anniversary of the discovery of the DNA double helix.

In the past, breakthroughs in traditional rice breeding were primarily due to the discovery of genes such as the dwarf gene, disease-resistance gene, lodging-resistance gene, or cytoplasmic male sterility gene.

The principle of functional genomics, on the other hand, involves identifying sequence variations between different varieties through comparative analysis and polymorphism identification of the rice genome.

Sequence variation corresponds to phenotypic variation. So, leveraging this characteristic, could we use these differences, through molecular marker technology, to annotate the functions of the 50,000 to 60,000 rice genes?

This work could accomplish in a vastly more efficient manner what traditional rice breeding research has done over decades, on a scale of hundreds of millions.

This provides a theoretical basis for finding and searching for new genes through sequence analysis or homology analysis.

Through this process, the massive number of new genes discovered will usher in a new epoch for breeding new varieties of rice.

Just imagine, could we take this opportunity to find the optimal genes for every stage of a rice plant's life, from differentiation to germination, development, and maturation?

Then, by using molecular design breeding and genetic engineering to introduce these best-performing genes into rice, could we create a "super-powered" rice that surpasses even "super rice"?

Like a superpower, a single rice plant could grow as tall and sturdy as a tree, yielding grains as plentiful as heavy fruits hanging from a branch.

Under this vision, cultivating rice could be like planting a forest.

Therefore, even a decade from now, plant functional genomics, as a "post-genome project," will undoubtedly remain one of the most cutting-edge fields in botany.

As for the extension beyond functional genomics—proteomics—it is both driven by and ultimately limited by science and technology.

To advance proteomics, one must first develop protein research technology, but researching this technology is far more complex than studying genes.

At the current level of scientific research, we cannot yet meet this requirement; progress is still stalled at the RNA level.

Lu Shixian didn't think he was in any position to harbor ambitions in this field.

From 1665, when Robert Hooke first discovered cells, humanity began to observe the vibrant microscopic world.

From 1859, when Darwin published his magnum opus, *On the Origin of Species*, formally proposing the theory of natural selection and opening a new era in the history of biology.

From 1866, when Mendel published "Experiments in Plant Hybridization" in the journal of the Austrian Natural Science Society, discovering the law of segregation and the law of independent assortment.

From 1909, when geneticist Wilhelm Johannsen first proposed the concept of the "gene" in his book *Elements of the Exact Theory of Heredity*, officially naming the hereditary factors proposed by Mendel.

From 1910, when Thomas Hunt Morgan first discovered the genetic mechanism of chromosomes, establishing the chromosome theory of inheritance and the role of chromosomes in heredity.

From 1950, when Erwin Chargaff proposed two rules named after him: the amount of adenine (A) in DNA equals the amount of thymine (T), and the amount of guanine (G) equals the amount of cytosine (C). This rule once again greatly advanced the field of genetics.

From 1952, when Alfred Hershey and Martha Chase creatively used the isotope method to prove that DNA is the genetic material.

From 1953, when Watson and Crick discovered the double helix structure of DNA, humanity began to decipher the code of life.

From 1957, when Crick discovered the central dogma, which became one of the most important and fundamental principles of modern biology.

From 1970, when the discovery of RNA reverse transcriptase helped several scientists win the Nobel Prize.

From 1975, when the dideoxy chain-termination method, named for Sanger, opened the door to DNA sequencing.

From 1990, when the Human Genome Project, on par with the Manhattan Project and the Apollo program as one of humanity's "three great scientific projects," officially began.

From 2003, when humanity formally entered the post-genomic era.

Portraits of these figures, shining brilliantly in the corridor of time, flashed through Lu Shixian's mind one by one.

Recalling their work was like flipping through a history of the development of genetics.

These points in time connected to form a whole, like the construction of a racetrack.

These great scientists had appeared on this track in succession, each one continuing the work of their predecessors.

And now, the baton had been passed to the year 2014.

A surge of passion welled up in Lu Shixian's heart.

Now that he was at the arena, he was fortunate enough to have a spectator's pass.

But it would be too much of a waste to be just a spectator.

Suddenly, the idea of becoming a runner, of taking the baton, sprouted in his mind.

But the thought was fleeting, vanishing as if it had never been there.

Yet, unnoticed, it was as if a tiny, imperceptible seed had quietly drifted down.

He continued to strive tirelessly toward the goals he had set for himself.

Who could know what the future held?

So, back to Professor Manlen's project.

His procedure of cloning and sequencing the rice PCR products was part of a broader comparative genomics study.

Clearly, this project was an emerging field of research that grew out of the completion of the rice genome sequencing.

It was also a cutting-edge and popular research direction in the field of genetic breeding today.

Professor Manlen's project proposal was naturally rigorous, but his methods were a bit conservative. Lu Shixian didn't think the experiment was without room for optimization.

"It's an honor to join your project group. This research is exactly in the direction I find most exciting," was the first thing Lu Shixian said after joining the group.

But his second sentence stunned the group members he had met only minutes before.

"I've carefully reviewed your project proposal and implementation plan. Could you explain your reasoning for using the clone sequencing method for a comparative genomics study?"

Calling out the boss on his first day? This kid's got some nerve!

That was the first thought on everyone else's mind.

Chapter 431: Let Me Reiterate

That was the first thought on everyone else's mind.

Professor Manlen was known for being rather old-fashioned, one might even say autocratic.

Everyone was well aware of this fact.

Many had been subjected to his harsh reprimands for sloppy lab work or a lack of attention to detail in their research.

So, quite a few of them were now waiting to watch the fireworks.

"Merlin, is the new researcher really Chinese? I thought Chinese people were supposed to be very low-key," a graduate student whispered in surprise to his companion.

The man named Merlin shook his head. "Bob, I don't know if he's Chinese, but I do know he might be something special. You might be underestimating him."

Bob looked curious. "Maybe, but what makes you say that? What he's doing right now seems pretty stupid to me. Nobody challenges someone in public, especially not old Manlen."

He then added with a confident smirk, "Just watch! Let's see how the bald tyrant's face changes, and then he'll start yelling at him just like he does with us."

"Either do it now, or shut your damn mouth," Bob mimicked, complete with gestures. "Or maybe, 'What were you even thinking? I've heard enough of your nonsense.'"

But just as he finished, reality didn't seem to be following his script.

Thanks to Morty's introduction, old Manlen's initial impression of Lu Shixian had been decent.

Unfortunately, he'd been dealing with something vexing recently and was in a foul mood.

And as luck would have it, Lu Shixian had stepped on his toes during the welcome meeting.

But just before his anger could erupt, Manlen heard something that piqued his interest.

His eyes lit up. "Lu, I don't think you'll be able to convince me, but I'm willing to hear you out. We run a democratic group here, don't we?"

At these words, all the other group members exchanged bewildered glances.

Lu Shixian smiled. "I'd also be happy to listen to your guidance, but once I start talking, I might not be able to stop. With so many people standing around waiting, I would feel rather bad."

Hearing this, Manlen glanced around and announced, "This is Lu, the new researcher who has joined our lab."

"From now on, he will be part of our project group. I'll email you all about his duties and responsibilities later."

"Any other questions?"

"No!" they all answered in unison.

"Good. Meeting adjourned!" Manlen declared, unsurprised.

Lu Shixian stood there, looking at the scene with a strange expression, at a loss for words.

This welcome meeting was certainly one of a kind. It was over in a matter of seconds, before he even had a chance to introduce himself.

However, those few seconds had given him further insight into Professor Manlen.

His personality was the complete opposite of Morty's.

He seemed to give off an impression of being difficult to deal with right from the start.

But his authority in the lab was truly remarkable.

Outside the conference room, Bob, who had followed the others out, was practically shouting.

"That's the real old Manlen! I strongly suspect the one in there was an imposter. Democratic my ass!"

Merlin, beside him, was already laughing. "What did I tell you? Don't underestimate him just because he's Chinese. Didn't you notice something?"

Bob asked instinctively, "Notice what?"

"Didn't you notice how ridiculously young he is?" Merlin quickly explained. "He's different from any other Chinese scholar I've seen. Even the ones who come for visiting exchanges are much older."

"This suggests that Chinese academia is aging, or that it's difficult for young scholars to have a voice."

"At his age, it's impossible to have graduated with a doctorate without exceptional ability. I'm even starting to suspect this Lu is younger than I am."

"So, I have a bold idea."

"What idea?" Bob was having trouble following Merlin's train of thought. "Aren't you overthinking this? We've had exceptionally young students come to Yale before, haven't we?"

"I heard they were from some kind of special youth class in China. Their performance was just average, in my opinion. They were only considered outstanding compared to their peers."

"But some say they're just burning through their future potential and creative spark. Once they're past their peak, people like that rarely achieve anything more remarkable."

"No," Merlin said, shaking his head. "I have a feeling he's different."

Meanwhile.

In the exclusive office of Manlen Schumann, Deputy Director of the Yale University Laboratory of Genetics and Breeding.

His conversation with Lu Shixian was underway.

"You know about comparative genomics?" Manlen asked, his face expressionless. "I don't believe I mentioned that in the project proposal."

"And I've never spoken about it within the group. Not even Jessis, the associate professor in the group, would have guessed my true objective. They just think I want to do research on genetic differentiation between germplasms."

"How did you figure it out?"

Lu Shixian first offered a compliment. "Professor Manlen, it seems you are a researcher of truly exceptional knowledge."

Then he shook his head. "In fact, I didn't guess your intention."

Before Manlen could speak, Lu Shixian continued his explanation. "In the post-genomic era, with the explosive growth of genome sequencing results, no one could fail to be interested in the structural features of a species' genome—that is, its DNA sequence, gene families, gene order, regulatory sequences, and so on."

Manlen's expression finally showed a flicker of interest. He retorted, "That reasoning is hardly enough to convince me."

"You should know that for comparative genomics, the most valuable subjects are species whose genomes have just been sequenced."

"Rice, however, was sequenced over a decade ago. There was indeed a surge of research at the time."

"But now, rice is no longer the darling of genomics research. Most studies on rice are focused on hybrid genetic breeding."

After this long explanation, Professor Manlen finally asked, "So, how do you explain that?"

Lu Shixian didn't answer directly. Instead, he brought up a seemingly unrelated topic.

"I seem to have heard that a rather uncommon plant was recently sequenced in Europe."

"And as it happens, that plant is also in the grass family."

Hearing this last sentence, Professor Manlen broke into a rare smile.

"Very good. It seems that old fool Morty was reliable for once." With that, Professor Manlen extended his hand to him. "Let me now officially welcome you to the comparative genomics research project on rice."

"And let me reiterate," Lu Shixian replied with brisk confidence. "The honor is all mine!"

Chapter 432: Getting Down to Business

"Our project is divided into several parts. Which one are you interested in?" Although old Manlen's attitude seemed much the same as before, Lu Shixian could detect a slightly warmer tone.

"I'll do whatever you arrange," Lu Shixian stated his position, then added a small request. "But I hope the group members I work with can be a bit younger."

"It would make communication much easier, wouldn't it?"

Manlen heard the subtext in his words and chuckled. "As you wish. I'll grant your request."

"Even if those kids might not be too happy about it."

Leaving Manlen's office, Lu Shixian felt a sense of relief. He understood that he had likely earned the initial approval of the lab's second-in-command.

But there was still a long way to go before he earned his full satisfaction.

Still, for today, he had more than accomplished his mission.

What he had just said was, in effect, a request to take charge of a specific part of the work.

In other words, to become the leader of a task-specific sub-group.

Generally, a postdoctoral fellow is an absolute cornerstone in any given project.

But Professor Manlen's project was a high-profile one, with members including associate professors from the department.

On top of that, everything had already been arranged. As a newcomer, it wouldn't be easy for Lu Shixian to become a team leader.

However, having secured Professor Manlen's support, any potential obstacles were now mostly gone.

The only thing left to consider was how to handle the graduate students when he officially joined the group in the afternoon.

Lu Shixian wasn't too worried about this issue; after all, he had experience to draw upon.

Sure enough.

When the afternoon work hours began, Lu Shixian quickly received a message asking him to come to the lab as soon as possible.

It seemed the morning's discussion had borne fruit.

"Old Manlen's efficiency is no joke!" Lu Shixian shook his head with a sigh. "But my work this afternoon is probably not going to be easy."

Anticipating the potential skepticism and resentment, he mentally prepared several plans to help him integrate into the lab quickly and gradually build his credibility.

With that, he stopped worrying.

He would cross that bridge when he came to it.

A few minutes' walk later, he arrived at the lab again.

Seeing Lu Shixian walk in from the doorway, Manlen quickly waved him over. "Lu, come and meet your group members."

"This is Merlin, this is Bob, and this is Celine." His introductions, however, were rather brief and perfunctory. "Get acquainted."

"I have to go deal with the Forsythia matter, so I'm leaving. If you have any questions about the project assignments, you can ask Merlin. You're their supervising assistant now."

With that final sentence, Manlen hurried away.

Leaving the four of them standing there, staring at each other.

Looking at the young faces filled with skepticism and curiosity, Lu Shixian felt as if he were back in his days of struggle at UCD.

"Hello, I'm Lu Shixian, from Jinling, China. It's a pleasure to meet you all," he took the initiative, breaking the stiff atmosphere.

That was just the first sentence, of course. Lu Shixian had more conversation starters ready.

But unexpectedly, a brown-haired young man with glasses responded very quickly.

"Hello, I'm Merlin, from Sheffield, England."

Lu Shixian was momentarily surprised but quickly replied with a smile, "Oh! Sheffield, I know it. A very famous city for sports."

"I hear it has the oldest football club," Lu Shixian said, spreading his hands with a hint of regret. "Unfortunately, I don't seem to have much athletic talent, so I can only admire the sport of football from afar."

As if a hot button had been pushed, a man who had been standing impassively next to Merlin couldn't help but join the conversation. "That's a real shame."

"But even though Sheffield can be called the birthplace of football, the only thing worth talking about there now is probably snooker."

"With Ferguson gone, the Premier League has gotten interesting again lately."

Merlin, standing beside him, clearly knew his friend was about to go off on a tangent. As soon as he finished his sentence, Merlin quickly reminded him, "So, are you not going to introduce yourself first? Celine is still waiting."

The interrupted man looked a bit sheepish but still said, "I'm Bob, from the US."

Finally, it was a young woman's turn.

She held no prejudice against Lu Shixian and instead extended her right hand graciously.

"Hi, my name is Celine, from Chicago in the US. I'm currently a master's student in genetics."

"It's nice to meet you," she said, then asked with curiosity, "Lu, you look so young. May I ask your age?"

Lu Shixian hadn't expected a female graduate student in his group, but he reached out and shook her hand briefly.

There was nothing to hide about his age; it could easily be found in the lab's roster.

So his truthful answer immediately surprised the others present.

"Oh no!" Celine covered her mouth with her hand, in disbelief. "That's a hard fact to accept. My lab supervisor is actually younger than me."

Merlin glanced at the equally astonished Bob, then asked, "You must have been exceptionally outstanding in China."

"But I've never heard your name in the field of genetics before. Were you not involved in this field previously?"
Upon hearing this, Lu Shixian glanced at Merlin and replied, "You're very perceptive."

"Yes, I've always been one to explore different fields. Recently, I've become fascinated by the allure of genetics, so I decided I wanted to accomplish something in this area."

Of course, Lu Shixian couldn't admit that his past endeavors were mostly a series of fortunate accidents, so he came up with a plausible explanation.

After a few sentences, the group had already grown much closer, no longer the strangers they were just moments ago.

In a way, necessary socializing also served the purpose of research.

Lu Shixian quickly got straight to the point.

"What was Professor Mannon's original experiment plan?"

Merlin shook his head. "Professor Mannon just assigned our roles, that's all."

"In fact, Associate Professor Fassis was in charge of the experiment plan, but he's taken a leave of absence recently."

"Professor Mannon asked us, more as a formality, if we were willing to switch advisors, and we all agreed."

"But now that you're here, it should be up to you to make the arrangements, shouldn't it?"

Hearing this explanation, Lu Shixian finally understood who Mannon had been referring to earlier.

Still, wasn't this a bit too much of a coincidence?

Chapter 433: An Ordinary and Unremarkable You

Lu Shixian didn't know for what reason this Professor Fassis had "coincidentally" left the group.

But the outcome was just as he had hoped.

He presumed Professor Mannon would handle the matter, and he didn't have the extra energy to probe into the details behind it.

In any case, the first meeting with his team members had gone smoothly.

He also had a preliminary impression and understanding of his new team.

First was Merlin. Lu Shixian couldn't quite figure out his uncanny ability to play along.

But after interacting with him, Lu Shixian could observe that he had a rather reserved personality, was rational at heart, and possessed strong analytical skills.

Next was Bob. His first impression was that of someone who wasn't very emotionally intelligent; whatever he thought was written on his face and came straight out of his mouth.

However, scientific research wasn't public relations. He needed people who could get things done, not just smooth talkers.

Therefore, having someone like this on the team was, conversely, a rather reassuring choice.

Finally, there was Celine, the only woman in the group.

Throughout their interaction, she was easy to be around.

Of course, this comfort was in terms of interpersonal skills; her academic abilities remained to be seen. But in the communication skills column, Lu Shixian mentally gave her a checkmark.

Although there were only three of them, Lu Shixian now had his own temporary team.

This was undoubtedly a good start.

Soon, Lu Shixian had his own office in the lab, but he wasn't alone.

Sitting across from him was the leader of another group on the project, also an associate professor at Yale.

He had just learned not long ago that the lab had recruited a large number of postdoctoral fellows the previous year.

Now, most of these postdocs had become faculty members at Yale, while a few had returned to their home countries or taken positions at institutions around the world.

There were no plans for large-scale postdoc recruitment at the moment, making Lu Shixian one of the few postdocs in the lab, and the first from his country to join Yale this year.

"Lu, this is unbelievable," the professor said in a highly exaggerated tone. "If Professor Morty hadn't mentioned it recently, we would have never known about your glorious past."

Lu Shixian hadn't expected Morty to have advertised for him. He replied modestly, "Professor Mond, I merely did a small part, relying on the strength of my team. It's far from anything glorious."

"Right now, in the field of genetics, I'm still an unknown nobody."

Professor Mond, however, dismissed his self-deprecation. "No, many people know exactly how the Davis Plant Pathology Lab shot to fame. You have to understand, while the research community in the US is large, it can't really keep any secrets."

"Although genetics and plant pathology are different fields, your contributions at Davis are plain for all to see."

"In my opinion, your research in plant pathology wasn't finished. While I'm very happy to have you at Yale, I can't understand your decision."

Lu Shixian had already answered this question several times.

"What you say is true, but I'm still more inclined toward the field of genetic breeding."

"As for the unfinished research, if the opportunity arises, perhaps I'll restart it myself in the distant future."

In the days that followed, similar conversations played out again and again.

For the first time, Lu Shixian experienced the lingering impact of the gamble he had taken back at UCD.

What he found ironic, however, was that Yale's own Plant Pathology Research Center had actually sent him an invitation.

Although postdocs couldn't leave their positions early or transfer to other labs during their contract period, since both were under the Yale School of Public Health, there was some leeway in the agreement.

But Lu Shixian still politely declined.

If he wanted to stick to his old profession, he could have just gone to UCD. Why come to Yale?

The matter was finally put to rest after Professor Mannon's stern intervention.

While the incident caused him some trouble, it brought more benefits.

For instance, more people in the lab would greet him, even some he didn't recognize at all.

And in his own group, he could see a new light in the way his three team members looked at him.

"Dr. Lu, did you really publish three papers in a row in Cell?" This was the first thing Bob said to Lu Shixian at a group meeting.

"Yes, but that's all in the past. In reality, those achievements were the culmination of many people's efforts, not mine alone. Now, I'm just an ordinary and unremarkable postdoc in genetics." Lu Shixian was prepared for the questioning, but he hadn't expected Bob, who had always been rather indifferent to him, to change his attitude so quickly.

"Whoa! That's Cell! How can you say that so casually?" Bob held his head in his hands, full of envy. "Damn it, how am I only hearing about this now? Why wasn't it reported anywhere?"

Lu Shixian just smiled at his confusion without offering much of an explanation. The details involved were too complicated to explain in a moment.

Celine also voiced her admiration. "If I could publish a paper in Cell with my name on it, I think I'd have the confidence to apply for a Ph.D. offer from Harvard."

"You can, even without it," Lu Shixian offered his blessing. "I'm sure the interviewers will give you an excellent score."

Merlin pushed up his glasses and analyzed, word by word, "I discovered something interesting on the journal statistics software recently."

Seeing that he had everyone's attention, Merlin continued, "The name 'shixianlu' appears 546 times, associated with 32 institutions."

"After filtering out deceased authors, I narrowed the search to Davis and Yan University. This time, there were only 16 papers."

"Among them, three are in top-tier journals, four in second-tier top journals, and nine in JCR Q1 journals."

After saying this, Merlin fixed his gaze on Lu Shixian. "Adding up the impact factors of these papers and dividing by the total number of publications gives his average impact factor."

"I then checked the Yale University academic exchange website. This figure surpasses 96% of the professors and scholars at Yale."

"I found that in the papers from these institutions, this name is the first author in the vast majority of cases. For the rest, if not first author, then corresponding author. He has never once appeared as a second author."

Having finished, Merlin finally turned to Lu Shixian and asked, "Dr. Lu, would the 'ordinary and unremarkable' you care to explain this?"

Chapter 434: My Journey is to the Sea of Stars

Lu Shixian was momentarily both amused and speechless.

He tries to be humble for once, and someone actually takes him seriously.

So, he had no choice but to admit it.

"I was going to get along with you as an ordinary person, but all I got in return was skepticism."

"I have no choice. I'm laying my cards on the table. My journey is to the sea of stars."

"To keep moving towards that goal, slacking off is not an option."

"Being a co-first author on a top-tier journal or a corresponding author on a regular SCI paper is the absolute baseline for me."

Merlin: ...

Bob: ...

Celine: ...

The chapter of his past was finally, with the passage of time, slowly turned.

One month later.

Because they were all around the same age, there was no generation gap.

Lu Shixian and the three of them gradually grew comfortable with each other.

Although Lu Shixian was nominally their advisor, in reality, their relationship was more like that between a senior and his juniors.

And Lu Shixian was able to devote his full energy to his research.

After this period of immersion and study, Lu Shixian's understanding of the project became increasingly comprehensive, allowing him to view it with a broader perspective than most.

In truth, the reason many people couldn't see past the surface to the project's true substance was that most of the experiments were merely preconditions for the final analysis.

While these experiments could indeed yield some conclusions, and even if they had some minor innovations, they were just rehashing old ideas from a decade ago.

Therefore, the real start of the project would only come after the plan laid out in the proposal was completed.

This was the real reason why, after so much deliberation, he had ultimately chosen Professor Mannon's project.

He never liked to rely on so-called intuition or luck.

If he had them, it was a feeling derived from his own observations.

He actually quite admired Merlin; scientific research truly required a keen sense of observation.

He had already spotted the issues back when he first read through the project proposal materials.

First, the funding requested for the project was somewhat inflated.

Normally, this wouldn't attract much attention.

Many projects had this issue; it was a common malady that had existed in research circles, both domestic and foreign, for a long time.

If you weren't in the circle, it was hard to believe that this industry also had its shadowy corners where the sun didn't shine.

There were both objective and subjective reasons for this.

Most objective reasons stemmed from the issue of matching funds not arriving on time; delayed funding was like a persistent rash that could appear anywhere.

So, someone came up with a solution.

By fabricating budgets, listing fictitious expenses, or reporting false final accounts, they could apply for enough funds upfront to compensate for the lack of matching funds.

Even if the subsequent funds didn't arrive on time, the project could still be completed without being shelved.

Under these circumstances, this practice became quite prevalent for a long time.

When research results were the very foundation of a researcher's livelihood, if you didn't do it, you couldn't complete your experiments, you'd have no results, and you couldn't publish papers.

So when one person did it, everyone else was passively forced to do the same.

Of course, this was just one of the most superficial and easily detectable methods.

There were many other ways, which need not be detailed here.

Because, in the end, it did, to a certain extent, promote the development of scientific research.

This was just a growing pain in the slow process of perfecting regulations.

Of course, it was also possible that the project applicant was doing this intentionally, but they were essentially pocketing the unearned funds in one way or another, a method of embezzling funds, in varying amounts.

This situation was quite complex and not easy to explain, but Lu Shixian could feel that it was becoming rarer as time went on.

Second, although the project was decent and had some innovation, it was ultimately just rehashing old ideas. For a researcher of average skill, it was a pretty good project.

So, these two relatively minor issues became particularly glaring the moment he met with Professor Mannon.

Professor Mannon's personality was undoubtedly traditional and old-fashioned, and his status in the lab was highly authoritative.

So the question was, would a traditional and old-fashioned man like Mannon deign to use such methods to enrich himself?

Would a man as powerful in the lab as Mannon need to use such methods to secure project funding?

Would a man of his authority need to launch a project that was, for him, somewhat mediocre?

Therefore, there's a reason behind everything that seems unreasonable.

Lu Shixian couldn't be certain, but the probability was high.

This was also why he had ultimately told Mannon that he hadn't guessed his intentions.

Of course, it wasn't a gamble.

Because he had nothing to lose even if he was wrong.

But in the end, his guess had been correct.

Looking back now, he couldn't help but feel fortunate for the choice he had made.

Because the project's prospects exceeded his imagination.

He did have some recollection that Yale had produced some major results around this time.

The research results in comparative genomics were clearly one of the more prominent stars.

He vaguely remembered that this achievement seemed to have won the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences at some point.

It was jointly funded by top billionaires from various countries and fields, and was even called the "Oscars of Science."

While it wasn't a top-tier award in the field of biology, it was far from a bogus prize.

At the very least, it packed a hefty punch, financially speaking. The "gold" here was naturally the gold in "prize money."

If this timeline hadn't been altered...

Lu Shixian wasn't sure how much prize money would fall to each person after being divided up.

But at this moment, he was already full of motivation.

"Hey, Merlin, how's the PCR fragment sequence alignment going for these germplasms we screened earlier?" Lu Shixian, in a white lab coat, walked up to Merlin, who was analyzing data at an instrument.

Merlin didn't have time to answer, his concentration fully focused on the chaotic sequence of "A," "G," "C," and "T" characters before him.

A few minutes later, he typed a few lines of data into the computer next to him, then turned his head, his eyes shining. "It's just as you predicted. The six different rice germplasms we selected show varying degrees of divergence in the fragment sequence of one gene."

"Among them, sim-73, sim-64, and fom-12 have similarity percentages of 99.68%, 88.64%, and 82.65% respectively with the 9308 germplasm registered in NCBI."

"The other three are still being analyzed, but I'm already convinced that the hypothesis you proposed in the group meeting days ago is about to be proven correct."

Chapter 435: What Are Your Eyes Avoiding?

"That is indeed good news." Lu Shixian smiled faintly, a hint of mystery in his tone. "But this is just an appetizer."

"Remember to save room for the main course."

With that, Lu Shixian turned and left, leaving a bewildered Merlin behind.

He didn't quite understand what Lu Shixian meant, but the man had already slipped away, so he couldn't very well chase after him to ask. He could only return to the experiment at hand.

Next, he went to check on the research progress of the other two team members.

Merlin was naturally responsible for a portion of the experiments and the conclusion analysis.

Bob was in charge of the remaining experimental work and part of the paper writing.

And Celine's task was to act as the liaison between them, the lab, and the entire project team, as well as handle the rest of the paperwork.

As for Lu Shixian...

When the sub-project hit a snag, he had to quickly clarify the line of thought.

When an error occurred in the experimental process, he had to make a judgment.

When there was an anomaly in the data processing, he had to investigate.

When the paper was written, he had to revise and polish it.

He was also the one to answer all the questions his team members had as the project progressed.

Initially, they had some doubts about his ability to provide immediate answers.

But Lu Shixian could always give a quick response, and even if it wasn't a direct answer, it was always a highly constructive suggestion.

So, while it seemed Lu Shixian was doing nothing, in reality, his presence was everywhere.

Another month passed just like that.

At the project team's regular meeting, Merlin, having completed most of the analysis, represented the entire group to report on their findings.

"According to the final data, the difference between sim-73, sim-64, fom-12 and 9308 is a G/T base change at the 93bp position, while the difference between the remaining sim-73, sim-64, and fom-12 is a T/C difference at the 146-158bp position."

"From the final clustering results, sim-73, sim-64, and fom-12 cluster in one group with 9308, while the other sim-73, sim-64, and fom-12 cluster in another group."

"That concludes my report!"

Taken out of context, these conclusions were indeed a bit bewildering.

But this was normal for a system of divided labor. When a project was broken into many parts, it was difficult to see the whole picture. Some people might even finish their experiments and draw conclusions without understanding the significance of their work.

But undoubtedly, their report received the approval of the many professors present.

Applause filled the conference room.

Professor Mannon, for a rare moment, smiled at Lu Shixian. "A very nice presentation!"

"Lu, your group started your experiments last, but you were the first to complete your assigned tasks."

"Your efficiency has earned you a decent vacation."

Clearly, no one but Lu Shixian could understand the hidden meaning in that sentence.

Bob and Celine were overjoyed, and even the usually stoic Merlin breathed a sigh of relief.

Long periods of high-intensity analytical research were mentally taxing; no one could be a robot working around the clock.

Amidst the envious gazes of the other graduate students, Lu Shixian led his team of three out of the conference room.

With that, their group's assigned phase of the work was completely finished.

Stepping out of the lab doors, they still couldn't hide their delight.

Bob complained good-naturedly, "I'm going to catch up on all the Bundesliga matches I've missed these past few weeks. With Müller and Neuer, Bayern is obviously going to win big again."

"Alright, alright, besides you and me, everyone in our group is a research fanatic. No one cares about soccer," Celine said as she stretched, her slender curves on full display, her wheat-colored skin tracing over peaks and hiding in valleys.
Finally, I can get a good night's sleep. I've been so exhausted these past few days. The only other time I've felt this way was back when I first got together with my first boyfriend.

As she spoke, a sudden realization struck Serene, as if she had discovered a new continent.

"Oh, Dr. Lu, what are you trying to avoid looking at?" Serene suddenly smiled, a brilliant smile.

Bob and Merlin both turned to look at him, the former even going so far as to let out a whistle. "I'd heard you didn't have a girlfriend, but now it seems... don't tell me you're still..."

Bob didn't finish his sentence, but everyone knew what he meant.

"I'm not, I haven't, don't talk nonsense." Lu Shixian's rapid-fire denial was almost second nature.

But Bob wasn't buying it this time. He wrapped a thick arm around Lu Shixian's chest and offered magnanimously, "Looks like you haven't taken that final step yet. Don't worry, in a few days, I'll personally introduce you to the enthusiasm of American girls."

Lu Shixian immediately knew he was out of his depth; he was already feeling overwhelmed by their enthusiasm now.

He was somewhat speechless, originally planning to sit back and enjoy the show, watching them in their moment of joy.

But he never expected that before he could see the "surprise" they were in for, his own "surprise" had already arrived.

After repeatedly declining Bob's kind offer, Lu Shixian had no choice but to agree to go to a hotel near campus to celebrate the upcoming holiday.

Although he already knew it was a vacation in name only, there was no need to spoil the mood by pointing it out.

That's Americans for you—always finding an excuse for a get-together to celebrate the smallest things.

He was a person who preferred solitude, but when in Rome, a little "indulgence" now and then wasn't out of the question.

Being traditional in some aspects didn't mean he was old-fashioned in character.

It was all about finding the right balance.

And in that regard, he had always done quite well.

At seven in the evening, the four of them met at a bar near York Street at Yale.

"Mory's is famous at Yale. They have a tradition," Serene said as she ordered snacks and drinks, greeting the waiter with the ease of a regular before continuing her introduction. "Any Yale sports team, after a victory, will come here to celebrate."

"We don't really count, but I thought you should experience the special custom here."

The mention of a "custom" made Lu Shixian's head ache.

He quickly refused, "Maybe not. I haven't been feeling too well lately, so I probably shouldn't do anything too strenuous."

At his words, the others burst into laughter.

In their eyes, it was amusing to see this side of Dr. Lu, who was so serious about his academics and saw the world in such simple terms.

They had seen plenty of exchange students from China over the years. Many seemed reserved at first, but after a while, some of them partied even harder than the locals in private.

Serene chuckled as she took the glasses from the waiter. "Relax! We're just having a drink. What were you thinking, Dr. Lu?"

Chapter 436: The Power of a Story

"Actually, I wasn't thinking about anything," Lu Shixian said, still not being entirely honest.

"Have one?" Hearing his stubbornness, Serene didn't mind. She poured the drinks into four glasses and handed one to Lu Shixian.

"Thanks!" Lu Shixian picked up the glass from the table and downed it in one go.

His alcohol tolerance hadn't improved, but the glass only contained Bud Light.

It was a light beer from Anheuser-Busch that had taken America by storm upon its release. The alcohol content wasn't high, but it had a rich, mellow flavor.

If every party involved this kind of beer, he could confidently boast that he could drink a thousand cups without getting drunk.

Watching Serene down glass after glass as if it were water, the others looked at each other, not knowing what to say.

Beer might not get you drunk easily, but drinking too much still bloats your stomach.

"Isn't today a happy occasion?" Lu Shixian couldn't watch any longer and gently intervened. "Serene, is something on your mind?"

"It's nothing, just thinking about the past," Serene forced a smile at the three of them.

"It seems you're a woman with a story!" Lu Shixian never had the habit of prying into others' private lives and was about to change the subject.

But Bob, sitting beside him, was full of interest. "Ooh! Story time!"

"I bet you're having relationship troubles, Serene. Who here hasn't had a story to tell? If we all share, we'll have four stories. What do you think?"

Lu Shixian was about to say he didn't think much of the idea, but to his surprise, Serene took it seriously and began.

"It's nothing I can't talk about. I have a boyfriend, but we don't have much time to see each other now." Serene's voice was tinged with melancholy.

"So you broke up? And now you're heartbroken?" Bob jumped in without thinking. "I mean, isn't that business as usual for you?"

"And now you have a legitimate reason to find your next romance."

Unexpectedly, Serene glared at him. "That joke isn't funny! I think I want to be serious about this relationship."

Hearing this, Bob's jaw dropped in astonishment. "Oh, no!"

"That doesn't sound like you. What happened?"

"You're overthinking it. It's just that a ship has been drifting at sea for too long," Serene said, shaking her head. "Sooner or later, it will want to dock and live a stable life. And now, that day seems to have arrived. I can't imagine anyone more suitable for me than Sanders."

"If your wish has come true, you shouldn't be acting like this. So, did you two run into some kind of obstacle?" Merlin finally chimed in.

Serene nodded. "That's right. I met him when he was studying abroad at Yale, and now he's taken a position at Heidelberg University as a professor in the medical school."

"So I'm considering whether I should follow him to Germany for my PhD."

At this, everyone congratulated her.

"Heidelberg University is the oldest university in Germany. The physician Carl von Bachmann, the chemist Mendeleev, and the philosopher Hegel all studied there. This is a true power couple," Lu Shixian was the first to offer his blessings. "Besides, biology and medicine are a natural pair! They are interconnected, interdependent, and mutually reinforcing. Congratulations, Serene."

"That's right. Maybe you'll have an adorable baby in the future. Trust me, he or she will be incredibly gifted in the biomedical field. I can almost see a new star rising," Bob added, following Lu Shixian's lead.

This made everyone laugh.

Serene quickly composed herself, her expression turning hesitant. "But I'll miss America, I'll miss Yale, I'll miss everything here. Going to Heidelberg in Germany means saying goodbye to all of this. Including you guys. It will be hard for me to see my parents, my relatives, and my dearest friends again."

"But the rationality of a researcher tells me I should let go of my attachments and pursue a new life. So, it's very likely that in a little while, you won't see me around here anymore. I'll have to say goodbye."

"Alright, that's my story. Thank you all for listening today. I feel much better now." As she spoke, Serene's spirits slowly lifted.

"Damn it!" Bob slapped his forehead. "So you get to feel better, and now we have to be miserable."

"Who's next? You don't have to talk, but you'll have to finish the rest of the pitcher." This was Bob's idea in the first place. He complained about being miserable, but his eyes were full of laughter.

"I'll go," Lu Shixian said, glancing at the remaining beer and giving up the struggle. He then shared the story of his academic journey.

"That's just incredible! Millions of people competing at the same time," Merlin said, deeply moved. "You have to go through so many exams just to get into a university."

"But in England, I could probably get into a higher-ranked university than yours with relative ease."

"Or even a fellow from Africa, just by expressing a desire to study abroad, would have an easier path to your top universities than you do."

Bob and Serene expressed similar sentiments.

Soon, Bob was talking about his regrets from his school days, how he missed the chance to become a soccer player. As for his later boasts that he would have surely replaced several superstars to become one of the world's greatest players, the others chose to ignore that part.

Merlin, on the other hand, spoke of his childhood, how he was subtly influenced by great English scientists like Bacon, Newton, Watt, Faraday, and Darwin, which ultimately inspired him to become a great biologist.

Around ten in the evening, after Lu Shixian's increasingly unsubtle hints, the small gathering came to an end.

Serene paid the bill, just as she had said she would be leaving soon.

So, no one fought her for the chance.

Lu Shixian was in a hurry to get back and relieve himself, with no mind to appreciate the beautiful night view of New Haven.

For him, drinking was perhaps an extremely inefficient activity.

But listening to others' stories made him feel the trip was worthwhile, leaving him with many thoughts.

In our long yet short journey of life, there are always stories that touch our hearts and are worth remembering.

Everyone is the protagonist of their own story. We cannot experience different lives.

But we can enrich our own through the stories of others, either to inspire us to keep moving forward or to bring new insights.

And today's new chapter might become tomorrow's old story.

Passed down by word of mouth, captured by ink and brush, or recorded on film.

All of it will become history for later generations to marvel at, for future generations to pursue.

And at this moment, Lu Shixian did not hope to be written into history or even textbooks.

But he hoped that when his future story was occasionally told, it would at least be inspiring, at least bring a tear to the eye.

That would be enough.

And that, in his eyes, was the meaning of a story.

Chapter 437: I Guess I'm Just Not Worthy

It was around seven in the morning.

Lu Shixian struggled to get out of bed.

Despite the hangover from the previous night, it wasn't severe enough to shake his willpower.

On the first day of the short holiday, he already had an appointment.

The plan for today was to visit MIT and meet up with his high school biology competition teammate, Wang Fuwen.

He had thought about it back when he was at UCD.

But the journey from Davis, where UCD was located, to Boston, home of MIT, was a five or six-hour flight.

For him at the time, who treasured every second, this was unacceptable.

But now that he was in New Haven, the drive was less than two hours.

So, a trip to MIT became a very feasible matter.

Of course, anyone who knew him would understand that this was just a side trip.

His real purpose was to visit MIT and experience the different academic atmospheres of various prestigious universities.

He casually pulled a clean set of clothes from his wardrobe.

Getting dressed, washing up, and heading out—the entire routine took him only about ten minutes.

America doesn't have high-speed rail. Planes, buses, and driving were the three most common modes of travel.

For a straight-line distance of less than two hundred kilometers, Lu Shixian naturally chose the bus.

On days when he wasn't in a hurry, this mode of transport was practically the best "scenic cable car."

Lu Shixian leisurely admired the foreign scenery outside the window.

From rolling farms, grasslands, and lakes to open wilderness, streams, and valleys, the bus gradually entered an enclosure of modern architecture.

Without needing to ask, Lu Shixian knew he must be approaching his destination: the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

It was funny, really. Hearing its Chinese name, many might mistake it for a third-rate or diploma mill university.

But if one were to mention its other name, it was one that almost everyone knew.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the Boston area.

He had to admit, in terms of hard power, it was above Yale.

Rankings might not tell the whole story, but all the rankings combined probably could.

Every year, it consistently ranked among the world's top five in various university rankings.

Its programs in engineering, computer science, physics, and economics were perennial contenders for the top three spots.

As of this year, 85 Nobel laureates had worked or studied at MIT, a figure that ranked fifth among universities worldwide.

In addition, there were 2 Fields Medal winners and over twenty Turing Award winners who had studied or worked at MIT.

Of course, no matter how impressive MIT was now, it had nothing to do with him.

At this moment, he was just an anonymous visitor.

No one knew he was here, except for Wang Fuwen, who was pursuing a Ph.D. in computer science at the School of Engineering.

From Malden Center north of Boston, he arrived at North Station.

Lu Shixian traveled south, getting off at the final stop, Cambridge.

After exiting the station, on his left, he saw the gates of MIT.

"You there? I'm at the gate waiting for you."

In the adult world, everyone is busy.

Without making a big announcement in the group chat, Lu Shixian sent a private message to his host (and tour guide) as soon as he arrived.

There was no lengthy attempt at small talk; the message was concise, which he judged would suit his impression of Wang Fuwen's personality.

Sure enough, he received a reply within five seconds.

"Be there in six."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian felt relieved.

Some people say a few minutes and might take two hours.

But others say a few minutes and might only take a few dozen seconds.

Lu Shixian believed Wang Fuwen was the latter.

But surprisingly, Wang Fuwen arrived in front of him at the exact six-minute mark.

"Long time no see." As expected, a simple greeting with no name attached.

Wang Fuwen had matured quite a bit. Dressed in a black trench coat, with thick hair and hands in his pockets, he looked quite sharp.

"Wang Fuwen, as a top student, I can understand why your hairline hasn't receded," Lu Shixian immediately voiced his confusion. "But what I don't get is, when you were coming out of the main gate just now, why did you slow down instead of walking a bit faster to get here?"

"OCD," Wang Fuwen replied coolly with three letters.

Lu Shixian was speechless, immediately realizing that having a normal conversation with him was impossible.

Seriously, seeing a fellow countryman and someone from his hometown in a foreign land, it's one thing not to be moved to tears, but this guy showed almost zero emotional fluctuation.

According to last year's data from the US, MIT's annual acceptance rate is less than 10%, meaning that for every 10 students who apply, more than nine top students are rejected.

As one of the few who made it, studying in the top-tier computer science program from undergraduate to Ph.D., Wang Fuwen naturally had the right to be proud.

You're the man, you're the boss. I guess I'm just not worthy.

"Alright then, just take me to the biology department building at MIT, and you can get back to your work," Lu Shixian said, having been mentally prepared and not expecting much from him.

"OK!" Wang Fuwen replied and led the way.

Walking straight along the sparkling Charles River, the two soon arrived at MIT's main building complex.

Wang Fuwen was naturally in no mood to give him a tour, but thankfully, Lu Shixian had done some homework on the way.

The buildings at MIT are generally named with numbers.

What he was seeing now was the entrance to the main building, Building 7.

Engraved on it was "William Barton Rogers," presumably to commemorate MIT's first president.

Entering through Building 7, the Rogers Building, they slowly crossed the "Infinite Corridor."

A monument here bore the inscription: Only victory remains and a fame secure.

Soon he arrived at Buildings 3, 4, and 10, also known as the Maclaurin Buildings.

Building 10 is the heart of the institute, and its Great Dome is a masterpiece of symmetry reminiscent of ancient Greek and Roman architecture.

It was said to be MIT's most historic and iconic structure. Lu Shixian had been skeptical at first.

But as he stood there, looking up at the colonnade and the massive dome, he suddenly understood.

Aristotle, Newton, da Vinci, Darwin, Copernicus, Franklin, Pasteur, Lavoisier, Faraday, Archimedes...

Faced with the dazzling names engraved above, it was hard for anyone not to feel a sense of profound awe.

Chapter 438: If I Could Do It Over

They passed through the main building complex.

He came to Building 32.

He witnessed its unique and novel design. It housed the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, with an exterior that looked bizarre, crooked, and lopsided, almost like a drunken man—highly creative.

Next was Building W79.

Its entire facade was filled with voids of various shapes, just as its design concept intended, giving the whole structure the appearance of a static sponge.

Finally, they arrived at Building 68.

This was a modern science and technology building. Though towering and impressive, it lacked a certain something compared to the other iconic structures.

The reason it caught Lu Shixian's attention was that it was a biology building.

And his destination was near.

Although the campus scenery was far more than what he had seen, he hadn't forgotten the purpose of his visit.

"We're here. See you later!" Having led him to the biology graduate school classrooms, Wang Fuwen hastily took his leave.

Lu Shixian didn't mind. He could understand his mindset, as he was the same type of person.

As a researcher, sometimes it really felt like there was never enough time.

He went upstairs alone.

The blackboards hanging in the hallway immediately caught his attention.

They were clearly left by MIT students, covered in all sorts of handwriting.

Whenever they encountered a problem in their studies that couldn't be solved through short discussions, they would write it on these public blackboards outside the classrooms.

When someone saw a problem, they would write down their own thoughts and update it accordingly.

Through this method, they could continue discussions that were left unfinished in the classroom.

Stepping closer, Lu Shixian saw the content on some of the blackboards.

"Expanding on non-cultivation methods for studying MDM function?"

Well, now! Lu Shixian was a little surprised.
The student who asked this question has some nerve, daring to bring up Microbial Dark Matter, or MDM.

The concept of dark matter likely originated in physics, a theoretical substance proposed to exist in the universe, invisible to us.

In fact, over 90% of the matter in the universe is dark matter; the known matter that humanity has explored accounts for only about 5% of the cosmos.

By analogy, the life sciences have their own dark matter: microbial dark matter.

As the most widespread life forms on Earth, microorganisms are found not only in well known forests, lakes, and cities, but also in remote places like the deep sea, deserts, and even beneath the Earth's crust.

They appear in every habitat on the planet, yet over 99% of bacterial and archaeal species cannot be obtained through pure culture methods.

Thus, in the academic world, these uncultured microorganisms, detectable only through non cultivation methods, gradually came to be known as microbial dark matter.

The scarcity of research in the MDM field is comparable to the practical application of 3D organ or tissue printing.

And by scarcity, of course, this refers to a scarcity of results.

Scientists are always passionate about such fields full of unknowns; they are all considered incredibly cutting edge and popular areas of research.

But unfortunately, almost no one has been able to produce any groundbreaking results. A joke to describe it would be: "eager to play, but not good enough to win."

Therefore, Lu Shixian naturally held no expectations for the answers on the blackboard.

But surprisingly, aside from a majority of rather bizarre answers, there were indeed some that were quite inspiring.

"Exploring the use of metagenomics, metatranscriptomics, and other methods to study MDM."

"Applying NanoSIMS and FISH techniques."

"Utilizing Raman and heterologous expression technologies."

Lu Shixian continued reading.

"Some questions regarding the tissue specific and development specific expression of circRNAs?"

Investigating the origin of circular RNAs?

Incredible! Lu Shixian had to give a mental thumbs up to this researcher, wishing them smooth sailing in their studies.

"Some ideas on using cryo electron microscopy imaging in protein structure research?"

Cryo-EM + biomacromolecules = CNS.

The keywords checked out. If the content was solid enough, the formula would hold true.

Lu Shixian could almost see someone churning out papers for *Nature*, *Science*, and *Cell* until their hands went numb.

Fortunately, a portion of the content on the blackboard consisted of more conventional discussions of course concepts and questions.

Was it finally his turn to contribute to the Q&A?

But there was no need for him to step in. Lu Shixian already saw several solutions on the blackboard, among which were some highly innovative ideas.

Emm, this is just ridiculous.

Now, Lu Shixian could increasingly empathize with Wang Fuwen's feelings.

Studying in a school with such fierce competition, you couldn't get by without some talent and a strong heart.

To stand out from the crowd required far more hard work than usual.

The simple problems were already solved more comprehensively by their brainstorming, and he couldn't even get a word in on the difficult ones.

Lu Shixian chose to tap out.

He walked away from the corridor, continuing up the magnificent marble staircase.

He happened upon a group of students walking in twos and threes into a classroom.

Perfect timing. If he wasn't mistaken, a class was about to start.

Since he was just here for the experience, he didn't care what kind of course it was and followed the crowd into the classroom.

It was worth noting that there were cameras set up at the back of the room, likely for recording the lecture.

Until the professor arrived and the class began, no one paid any attention to his arrival, nor did anyone point out the unfamiliar face.

Lu Shixian wasn't surprised by this at all; he had heard a few words about it from Wang Fuwen before.

In fact, unlike the aloofness of neighboring Harvard University, access control or campus cards were basically for show at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

MIT did not exclude any seeker of knowledge from entering their academic buildings or classrooms.

Except for classified locations, it was highly likely that in any given class, the university's own students might only make up half of all the auditors.

The same was true even for labs. The labs here were separated by glass doors, and from a good distance away, he could see people working with intense concentration.

To be honest, Lu Shixian felt a pang of envy.

If I could do it all over again, I'd choose Li Bai.

Ah, wait, that's not right.

If he had another chance, if he had a choice, he would indeed consider MIT.

But alas, there are no "what ifs."

Soon, the sound of the professor writing on the board from the front of the room suddenly broke his train of thought.

Looking up, he saw a male professor writing "fractionating life" on the whiteboard.

The literal meaning of "fractionating" is to separate something into parts.

So, translating it as "Analyzing Life" or "Breaking Down Life" here would be reasonable.

Lu Shixian was instantly shocked. To just randomly walk into a lecture and have it be this intense?

Chapter 439: A Familiar Question Time

Could it be that the mystery of the origin of life was finally going to be revealed today?

Of course, the answer was just as he had anticipated.

The content of the lecture told him it was all a misunderstanding.

This was clearly just an introductory, popular science lecture. For him, the content was quite basic.

However, what surprised him was that the professor's level of expertise seemed to be anything but ordinary.

Sometimes, after you've been in academia long enough, you develop a certain intuition.

A sense that allows you to gauge someone's level of expertise just by listening to their choice of words and sentence structure.

"When we grind life down to its atoms, we can describe life in the crudest possible way based on its condition at that moment." It probably wasn't the first lecture, so the male professor didn't introduce himself.

With no opening remarks, he dove straight into the topic.

"This gives us a very simple description. We can take a butterfly, a cell, or something similar, crush it, and break it down into its atoms."

"You could say that the atomic composition of all living organisms is more or less the same. At the atomic level, you are 63% H (hydrogen), 24% O (oxygen), 10% C (carbon), 1.4% N (nitrogen), 0.2% P (phosphorus), and less than 0.1% S (sulfur)."

"This makes up the bulk of you."

This kind of description was still quite rare in a 2014 classroom, and many students were captivated by his narrative.

Lu Shixian was no exception. Explaining life by breaking it down to the atomic level might seem unremarkable, but it involved multiple disciplines and required a comprehensive accumulation of knowledge.

"In addition, there are trace ions: Ca, Cl, K, Mg, Mn, and extremely trace amounts of Se. But these trace ions are what we really need to focus on."

"No more than six types of atoms. That is to say, out of the hundred plus elements on the periodic table, you need to pay attention to six of them. The rest you can pretty much ignore."

"In fact, those other elements have all sorts of uses in other chemical reactions, but we don't need them."

"And as for the hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur we're talking about, I'm here to tell you, that's not very important either."

At this, the students in the classroom started looking at each other in confusion.

So, if none of it is important, what are we even talking about?

But the professor didn't keep them in suspense for long and quickly provided the answer.

"Because, describing life at this level is basically useless. It's not a very satisfying description."

"So, what we're going to do next is create a more satisfying molecular composition."

"Not at the atomic level, but the molecular level. And it's obvious that you're mostly made of one particular molecule."

At this point, an answer had already surfaced in the minds of most students in the classroom.

"That's right, water molecules." The professor quickly gave an answer that was roughly at a middle school level. "A description of an MIT student would be that their body is about 80% water."

"If we're just being direct, right?"

At these words, a number of students chuckled at his witty remark.

"You have other properties, but first and foremost, the human body is 80% H2O. The remaining 20% is actually very interesting, but there's a lot of water. So now let's look at the dry weight."

"But this time, we'll look at the weight ratio, not the number of atoms."

"Your dry weight comes from proteins, about 50% from proteins, about 15% from carbohydrates, about 10% from lipids and fats, and about 15% from nucleic acids, DNA and RNA."

"So, we've analyzed you at the atomic level, and we've analyzed you at the level of these major categories," the professor said, finishing his writing on the whiteboard. Then, his tone suddenly shifted. "But I don't think this description is interesting enough yet."

At this, the MIT students finally showed a look of interest.

Although many of them might not be majoring in life sciences, the lecture was, in fact, just beginning.

The professor's words continued.

"This is just a general description. We need a more interesting one. We need to know exactly what these molecules are. What is the specific role of proteins? What about carbohydrates? What about lipids?"

"And how do their characteristics grant cells their magical properties?"

"So we need to go a little deeper. We need to understand chemistry, and how chemistry forms these properties. So we're going to do a quick review of chemistry."

The professor smiled as he spoke. "This is going to be very unfair to a proper chemistry course. After all, you can study chemistry anywhere else at MIT, and people can take it on the MIT website. But we're still going to take a lightning tour of chemistry."

"It's just for what you need to learn for this course."

"Of course, if anyone asks you in the future, you'd better not say you learned your chemistry in my biology class."

At this, the whole room erupted in laughter.

And so, the class very dramatically shifted to chemistry.

If he hadn't heard the preceding content, Lu Shixian would have thought it was a chemistry class.

Time passed, minute by minute.

To be honest, this content was probably a bit elementary for most of the undergraduate and graduate students present.

But for him, a postdoctoral fellow, it was just right.

This was clearly a public lecture of a popular science nature. How to make simple content brilliant, how to make dry academic knowledge lively, and how to integrate knowledge from multiple disciplines—this undoubtedly required profound mastery.

This state of returning to simplicity was something Lu Shixian could only hope to achieve for now.

From a seeker of knowledge to an explorer of knowledge, then from a creator of knowledge to a disseminator of knowledge.

Lu Shixian considered himself to still be in the second stage. Facing a master in the fourth stage, he had to bow his head in respect.

In the last five minutes before class ended, the professor casually put down his pen.

"Alright, it's question time again. Answer this question to test your own understanding of today's lesson."

"We've analyzed life at the atomic level and the molecular level. Besides these, what other, more interesting descriptions do you think there are for analyzing it?"

"It would be best to describe it from a biological perspective, but if you can't, that's fine too. After all, we just had a chemistry class, didn't we?"

After the laughter subsided, someone quickly stood up to answer. "It's clear that to exist as life, in my view, they share common characteristics."

"First, they have a complete cellular structure, for example, the presence of a membrane. Second, they all require metabolism, which are the chemical reactions you just described. Third, they can reproduce."

The male professor snapped his fingers, affirming his answer. "Right! An excellent answer."

"You've interpreted life from the perspective of membranes, proteins, and genes, and they are indeed the three essential core processes that support life."

"That's very interesting. Anything else?"

Chapter 440: The Light of Consciousness Does Not Shine on That Which Is Static

The graduate student smiled and shook his head, indicating he was finished speaking.

The male professor turned his gaze back to the students in the room.

The students in the classroom suddenly became restless, each one eager to answer the question.

Lu Shixian, blending in at the back row, was already obscured by the forest of raised arms in front of him.

He was somewhat speechless, but not surprised.

He had already experienced this during his previous exchange studies.

When he was attending classes in Jinling, the school largely implemented a "I talk, you listen" model, a sort of cramming style of education.

Some talented ducks had "big appetites" and could swallow it all in one go, so they learned to think for themselves, to find their own food.

Of course, most ducks had "small appetites" and couldn't take it all in at once.

So, the smarter ducks started to use their heads. Regardless of whether they could digest it, they would swallow it first, and if necessary, regurgitate and digest it later when no one was looking. This way, they could save the most time during feeding.

As for the ducks who were neither talented nor clever, they could only spit out what they couldn't eat, and spend more time eating again after they had digested what they'd managed to swallow.

These ducks were required to enter the water after eating.

A circle was drawn for them, and within this circle, they had a short swim every three days, a long swim every seven, and a long distance swim once a month.

These ducks had to compete according to prescribed strokes and lanes. Any duck that broke the rules would have its results disqualified.

The ducks that swam at the front received rewards and attention, which naturally inspired countless ducks to follow in their wake.

The only thing was, these ducks grew accustomed to swimming in circles, to moving in a fixed direction, to using a single stroke.

But during his time studying abroad, he saw students who could casually sit and chat with the teacher, with no requirements for posture or other discipline. He saw students who could interrupt the teacher in class to ask a question, and everyone treated it as normal.

Encouraging students to speak up and express themselves seemed to be a common requirement for all teachers. You didn't have to raise your hand, nor did you have to stand up.

While listening is certainly a good habit, consistently not speaking in class would be considered a poor attitude toward learning, a lack of interest in the course or even the major, and you would gradually be marginalized.

Just like now. To his ears, many of the speakers were making baseless and even foolish sounding points, but the male professor still encouraged them with a smile.

He used to be amazed by this when he first experienced it, wondering why they didn't just adopt these good practices back home.

But now, he could look at this difference from an increasingly rational perspective.

Any seemingly unreasonable thing that persists must do so for a reason you are unaware of.

It's like how oranges grown in the south become bitter oranges in the north, or like the saying "when in Rome, do as the Romans do."

You can respect it, but there's no need to deify it, nor to follow it blindly.

It's probably better to be pragmatic, adapt to one's own specific circumstances, and actively explore what works best.

"Hey! Young man, are you the only one left now?" Lu Shixian suddenly heard the male professor's voice in his ear. "Everyone has been discussing so enthusiastically. We welcome any student to express their views."

"You might be here for the first time, but I want you to know that at MIT, we welcome every student who comes here to learn. At least in my classroom, everyone has the right to express their opinion."

"So, after listening for so long, you don't have a single thing you want to say?"

Lu Shixian looked up and suddenly found that the twenty or so people in the classroom were all looking at him.

Seeing so many encouraging gazes, he suddenly smiled.

Lu Shixian offered a slight excuse for his distraction. "I'm sorry. Life is so wondrous, it made me think a little too deeply."

The male professor smiled as well. "You have a point there. So, would you care to share your thoughts with us?"

"Of course," Lu Shixian replied affirmatively.

To stand in a classroom and answer a question again was a rare experience for him.

He had actually answered questions about the understanding of life many times before.

But each time, at each different stage of his life, he developed a different understanding.

As his knowledge and horizons continued to expand, he now viewed life from multiple dimensions.

To casually state a viewpoint that no one else had raised was, for him, as easy as opening his mouth.

"In my view, if we use life as a dividing line, everything in the universe composed of microscopic particles can be crudely divided into living and non living entities."

"If the latter are inorganic, periodic crystals, then living things are, by comparison, aperiodic crystals."

"Everything tends to move from order to disorder, toward maximum entropy. Therefore, we live in a world of desperate entropy increase."

"Life is undoubtedly fragile. They are constantly working to sustain themselves through metabolism."

"Just like everyone sitting here, we are all radiating heat into our surroundings."

"But this is not a coincidence; it is a necessity."

"Because this is precisely the way we clear out the entropy that is constantly generated during our existence."

"In a certain dimension, life is not an equilibrium system, because it feeds on negative entropy."

As Lu Shixian spoke, the classroom had fallen silent.

But he still had to finish his last sentence.

"The light of consciousness does not shine on that which is static."

"To observe the course of life is to witness a continuous process of escaping stasis, constantly signaling existence, and making quantum leaps and mutations in search of a better self."

"In other words, from the moment each of us gains consciousness, we embark on a path of constant struggle against entropy."

"The history of scientific development is a history of humanity constantly correcting its cognitive biases. After all, Feynman once said: 'If you can speak in a way that everyone understands, it's philosophy, not science.'"

"Many scientists have revealed the falsifiability of science, but unfortunately, the probability of the law of entropy increase being falsified is far lower than that of Newtonian mechanics or relativity."

"So, this path may be doomed to fail."

"But that is precisely what makes life so magnificent!"

After Lu Shixian finished speaking, he appeared rather nonchalant, but the thunderous applause that followed said it all.

Most people were stunned by his answer and fell into deep thought.

A small number of people looked chagrined, as they had clearly heard of this concept before but had failed to think of bringing it up here.

The male professor finally lowered his clapping hands and praised him. "Since I've been teaching this MOOC at MIT, you are not the first student to bring up physics in my class, nor are you the first to quote Erwin's work and propose the concept of life as negative entropy."

"But I have to admit, your narrative ability is the best, and your perspective is also unique."

Then, he asked with some surprise, "Are you a graduate student in the physics department?"
Chapter 441: A Legend in Our Midst

Before Lu Shixian could answer, the bell signaling the end of class rang outside the window.

The professor gestured for the other students to leave, then continued his unfinished conversation with Lu Shixian.

“No, to be precise, I’m currently researching plant genetics and breeding,” Lu Shixian answered honestly. He knew his own level of physics all too well.

Even if he admitted it out of some perverse sense of humor, it would be futile and only leave a bad impression.

A true scholar would see through the lie in an instant.

“Oh?” The professor’s interest was piqued. “Plant genetics, a very fine field of study.”

“But you’ve studied other disciplines as well?”

“After all, your comments just now didn’t sound like they came from a student of plant genetics and breeding.”

“I wouldn’t call it research, just a passing familiarity,” Lu Shixian said, shaking his head. “It’s just that, in my view, the path to academic breakthroughs increasingly relies on multidisciplinary integration and cross-disciplinary collaboration.”

“This seems to be the trend for future cutting-edge scientific research. Knowing a little about other fields is just being prepared.”

The professor nodded in approval. “Indeed. Since the new millennium, many major breakthroughs in biology have occurred in interdisciplinary fields. The Human Genome Project, which I participated in, is perhaps the most classic example.”

“Genome mapping and sequencing were the core of the project, and that required mathematics. For example, the mathematical problem of using DNA polymorphism for human gene mapping was proposed as early as 1980, but the necessary mathematical and computational issues were never properly resolved, so it was shelved.”

“And the core of the Human Genome Project is the structure of DNA, which is closely related to physics. Its discovery would have been impossible without the X-ray diffraction technology used by a group of outstanding physicists like Wilkins and Franklin.”

“In addition, it involved knowledge from fields like medicine, engineering, and information science.” The professor concluded with a sigh, “You’re right. It’s becoming increasingly difficult to achieve groundbreaking results within a single discipline these days.”

“And it’s not just about the fusion of fields and disciplines; even research and application, despite their separate roles, are becoming tightly integrated.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was stunned.

This guy is that incredible? He participated in the Human Genome Project?

It seemed the professor before him was no ordinary man.

After all these years, even someone who did menial work on that project would have become an authority in their field by now.

“Well, it’s getting late. I’ll see you in the next class. The content will be more in-depth,” the professor said, packing his bag and bidding him farewell.

As he walked out, Lu Shixian explained, “That’s a real shame. I’m a postdoctoral researcher at Yale, so I don’t always have time to attend your lectures.”

“But thank you for the invitation.”

This time, it was the professor’s turn to be surprised. A look of astonishment flashed across his face.

“Is that so? You look so young, I thought you were an undergraduate or a master’s student,” he said with a smile. “But I don’t think that’s a problem.”

“This is a public MOOC from MIT. You can find the course at Yale just by searching my name.”

“My name is Eric Lander. Young man, I hope we have the chance to meet again.”

The man’s figure disappeared, but Lu Shixian remained standing in place, still taken aback.

“Eric Lander?”

He truly hadn’t expected to stumble upon such a figure just by randomly attending a class.

He wasn’t just a participant in the Human Genome Project; he was the principal leader.

He was the lead author of the landmark paper on the draft sequence of the human genome, published in *Science* in 2001.

In genomics research, Lander had always been a driving force and a pioneer.

Compared to Lu Shixian, his life seemed more like something out of a video game with cheat codes enabled.

At 17, he easily won a gold medal in his first IMO (International Mathematical Olympiad).

At 20, he graduated from Princeton’s mathematics department and went on to pursue further studies at Oxford.

At 22, after just two years, he earned his mathematics doctorate from Oxford ahead of schedule and became an assistant professor of economics at Harvard Business School.

At 29, he switched to biology and was exceptionally hired by MIT as an assistant professor of biology.

At 30, he returned to Harvard Business School as an associate professor and won the MacArthur Fellowship, the so-called "genius grant," in the same year.

At 33, he returned to MIT as a tenured full professor of biology.

At 40, he was elected a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences.

From mathematics to economics to biology, from Princeton to Oxford to Harvard, and then to MIT.

This was the resume of a true genius, a god-like figure who hopped between disciplines with ease.

Compared to him, the current Lu Shixian could only bow in admiration.

Lu Shixian could never have imagined it.

In 2014, at the age of 57, this man was still teaching a public science course.

A name he had only seen in literature reviews and paper citations had just been standing warmly in front of him.

Several minutes later, after sending a message to Wang Fuwen, Lu Shixian left MIT.

On the way back, he found it hard to describe his mood.

On this trip, he had seen different natural landscapes, experienced the local culture, and had a chance encounter with the leader of the Human Genome Project.

But he felt the gains from this trip went far beyond that.

On a deeper level, a figure who had once existed only in his imagination had suddenly appeared in the flesh.

Those distant, seemingly unattainable goals now had a tangible reference point.

It turned out that when they stood before you, they were ordinary people, just like us.

They were not beings to be worshiped from afar, nor were they unreachable.

Legends walk among us!

He returned to Yale in the evening.

Lu Shixian was full of motivation, brimming with energy.

During a holiday, the only cure for such a symptom was to raid the library.

But true learning shouldn’t always be confined to paper.

Fortunately, this poison-as-a-thirst-quencher remedy only lasted for three days.

Three days later, all members of Professor Manlen’s project team received a notification.

Everyone was required to attend a general meeting the next day.

Lu Shixian didn't need to guess; he knew Manlen was finally making his move.

The real research project was about to begin.

The next morning.

On the way to the main conference room in the lab, Lu Shixian could still hear his team members complaining.

“What’s the deal?” Bob said with dark circles under his eyes, clearly displeased. “It’s only been three days, why are we back already? Isn’t our group’s work finished?”

Chapter 442: No Way, This Calls for a Raise!

“You know, I was in Italy watching a soccer match yesterday. I got the notice and had to catch a flight back at one in the morning.”

“My God! It was a Di Lorenzo match! Can you believe I had to leave in the middle of it?”

Celine, standing nearby, didn't look too happy either. You can imagine how it feels for a woman in the throes of a new romance to be interrupted so suddenly.

The only one who seemed calm was Merlin, who wore a look of indifference.

Clearly, the sudden notice hadn’t bothered him.

“Alright, since we’re all here, why don’t you try to guess what’s about to happen?” Lu Shixian’s attempt to divert their attention was successful.

“What else could it be?” Bob replied quickly. “We’re probably just wrapping up the project. I thought our progress would earn us a decent vacation, but it seems I overestimated things.”

Celine’s ability to adjust seemed quite good; within a few minutes, she had regained her usual elegance.

“Thinking about it that way, it’s not so bad. At least we got three days off, unlike the others,” she said with a faint smile. “Good thing I decided against that trip to Germany a couple of days ago. It’s only a few days’ delay, anyway.”

Merlin remained silent, but he glanced at Lu Shixian, seemingly having figured something out.

“I don’t think it’s that simple. Dr. Lu, is there anything you’d like to tell us?” As Merlin spoke, the others all turned their gazes to Lu Shixian.

Lu Shixian was surprised by Merlin’s sharp intuition, guessing so quickly that he was in the know.

However, with the main event not yet underway, there was no need for spoilers.

So he shook his head with a smile. “Whether I tell you or not, it’s just a matter of a few minutes. You’ll find out soon enough.”

With that, the group stopped dwelling on it and quickened their pace toward the conference room.

When they arrived at the familiar meeting place, they were surprised to find that everyone else was also discussing the impromptu meeting, with reactions similar to their own.

“Professor Pence, what’s going on? Didn’t we just have a group meeting three days ago?” a doctoral student asked his PI, confused. “And we’re not usually required to attend these general meetings.”

The professor named Pence seemed to have a good relationship with the student. He shrugged and shook his head. “To be honest, I was just as confused when I got the notice yesterday.”

“Manlen isn’t easy to talk to. I tried asking Morty privately, but he just said he had a surprise for us.”

“I have no idea what they’re being so mysterious about.”

Professor Pence’s explanation only made those around him more curious. Fortunately, Manlen, seated at the head of the table, didn’t keep them waiting long.

“Colleagues, it’s a pleasure to see you all here again.” Manlen’s opening line clearly fell flat; many faces remained expressionless.

But what could they do? The boss is the boss.

So they could only express their dissatisfaction with this small act of protest.

Many people think that in a developed country like the United States, everyone lives a nine-to-five life.

But in reality, there’s a saying: as long as capitalism exists, so will overtime!

Even in New Zealand, the one country with no overtime culture, it’s not absolute. There’s no country where no one ever works overtime.

Americans simply place a high value on work-life balance. They work overtime when necessary, but they never work pointless overtime.

Clearly, in their eyes, calling a full meeting after just three days was extremely inefficient, and they were not happy about it.

Manlen, however, seemed to relish the fact that they were annoyed but could do nothing about it.

After scanning the room, he continued with a pleased tone, “I’ve gathered you all here today to announce something.”

“The project on rice gene cloning, sequencing, and genetic differentiation among germplasms is, as of this moment, officially concluded.”

Professor Manlen’s declaration didn’t cause much of a stir. Most people had anticipated it. Ending the project a few days early was unusual, but acceptable.

But his next words sent the entire conference room into an uproar.

“At the same time, a new project, born from this one, officially begins now.” Professor Manlen’s voice was not loud, but it struck each person’s heart like a heavy hammer.

“Its name is: A Comparative Genomics Study of a Novel Poaceae Plant and Rice.”

At these words, a dead silence fell over the room.

It was followed by a cacophony of heated discussion.

“Fuck! This is so sudden. Why wasn’t there any word about this before?” an associate professor, who was also hearing this for the first time, exclaimed, staring at Manlen in disbelief.

“Shit! I thought it was over, but it turns out it hasn’t even begun,” a graduate student said, clutching his head as if he were wearing a mask of agony.

Many other students had similar reactions.

“Damn it! One more second of comparison experiments and I’ll explode. A little more data analysis and I’ll melt.”

Bob was clearly one of them.

“No way. This calls for a raise!” he said indignantly. “The old man Manlen has no reason to pay us for one job and make us do two.”

Merlin, however, quickly connected the dots and understood the whole situation. “I see,” he murmured to himself. “So that’s what this is about.”

A few seconds later, Manlen’s soft voice came through the microphone again.

“Everyone, quiet down. I will now provide a brief explanation.”

His words restored calm to the room, but drew everyone’s gaze like a magnet.

Seeing this, he continued with satisfaction, “Not long ago, on a remote, unnamed reef island on the West Coast, a sailor happened to discover a plant.”

“He brought it back, and by chance, it was discovered by the local scientific society.”

“Although they tried to cover their tracks by suppressing the news, nothing escapes our intelligence network.”

“According to subsequent research reports from Oceania, it is a previously undiscovered herbaceous plant of the Poaceae family.”

This was certainly attention-grabbing news.

Everyone was now focused on his every word.

“Although the University of Auckland had a head start, completing its genetic map and genome sequencing and publishing it discreetly on a preprint server,” Professor Manlen continued to explain.

“What they didn’t know was that we received the information immediately.”

“To avoid widespread attention, we had to publicly register the project under the previous project’s name.”

“But now, many other research institutions have gotten wind of it. Since we have already achieved our first milestone, it is time to announce our research plan.”

Manlen clearly knew how to stir up passion in America. The sentence that followed his explanation sent the entire conference room into a frenzy.

Chapter 443: Chasing the Light, Walking in Its Glow

“Although it was born from the previous project, in addition to the lab’s own federal funding, the new project has also secured a grant from the Department of Agriculture.”

“In other words, in terms of personal compensation, you can consider these two completely separate projects. The bonuses will be much more generous.”

“In terms of research output, the latter project is larger in scale with broader prospects. If successful, it will be a sensational achievement in the field of genetic breeding, and indeed the entire biology community this year. Everyone will have the opportunity to have their name on such a publication.”

At that moment, no one could have imagined that Bob’s offhand complaint would become a prophecy.

What’s that? No one wants to work overtime?

That just means you’re not paying them enough! The pie you’re promising isn’t big enough!

And so, tempted by the prospect of promotions and raises, Professor Manlen’s new project was approved with unanimous enthusiasm.

Lu Shixian had to admit, he had learned another valuable lesson.

Manlen hadn’t even paid out the bonuses for the first project yet.

And now, he had essentially tricked everyone into working on his second project with nothing but promises.

The old project could serve as a prerequisite for the new one.

If the difficulty of the former was two stars, the latter could easily be five stars.

Taking advantage of the momentum, Manlen proceeded to assign tasks for the new project.

He reorganized the previous teams; the new project clearly required more manpower.

So, without changing the total number of people, the teams were restructured from six teams of four to four teams of six.

Excluding the team leaders, each team had doubled in size.

Lu Shixian suddenly felt he had learned a great deal more.

In the past, he had rarely paid attention to such matters, simply accepting his tasks and managing his own small domain.

But ever since becoming a project leader by chance, his perspective had broadened.

Manlen broke from convention, adopting new ideas and approaches.

Fewer teams meant a longer completion time.

But the advantage was that they could pool their wisdom and efforts to tackle the key and difficult problems in the research process.

The former approach was for everyone to fight their own battle, maximizing efficiency.

The latter was to consolidate scattered forces, emphasizing the importance of teamwork.

Both had their merits, and it was hard to say which was superior, but both were effective responses based on the actual situation.

It seemed simple, but it shone with the light of experience and wisdom.

However, the consolidation of personnel also brought a new problem.

In the past, he could use his status as a postdoctoral fellow to gain a leading role among the graduate students and gradually earn their trust.

But now, the team had new members, including not just two graduate students but also a young assistant professor from Yale.

This was a rather awkward situation.

The title of group leader was trivial, but something else was worth fighting for, openly or secretly.

Authorship credit.

Although Americans always touted fairness and democracy, and academia was accustomed to rewarding contributions based on merit, no one would expect a manager to be left off the author list, not even the leader of a small group.

From a logical standpoint, their statuses were actually quite similar. An assistant professor was, after all, a Ph.D. graduate.

A postdoc was just a temporary state after graduation, a work experience.

An assistant professor, however, was the first step on the tenure track; it was an academic title.

Although the academic world had an “up or out” policy, at Yale, the seven-year probationary period was often just a formality.

Watching his competitor walk toward him, extending a hand, Lu Shixian heard him say, “Dr. Lu, hello. I’m Owen, the former leader of Group Three. I’m currently an assistant professor teaching undergraduate genetics at the Yale School of Public Health.”

Lu Shixian’s head began to ache.

He was at a natural disadvantage in terms of status.

But he wasn't afraid. Healthy competition was a catalyst for productivity.

Lu Shixian quickly extended his hand to shake Owen’s. “A pleasure, Assistant Professor Owen.”

“I just graduated with my Ph.D. a few months ago. I came here at Professor Morty’s invitation, so I’m new to all this. I hope we can work together smoothly.”

They spoke with friendly smiles on their faces.

But the competition had already begun with the very first sentence.

However, in a contest of academic standing, the most convincing factor was never who had the biggest fist or the sharpest tongue.

Ultimately, it would come down to a comparison of academic ability.

On this point, Lu Shixian had the knowledge to back it up, which gave him considerable confidence.

That’s right, in a fair competition, he feared no one.

Still, the thought of having to waste time on such matters was incredibly annoying.
On the way back, the observant Celine noticed the look on his face. It was the first time she had ever seen Lu Shixian with such an expression.

So she joked, "Dr. Lu, it's not time for me to leave yet! Are you holding my farewell ceremony early?"

Bob clearly didn't get what Celine was talking about and just thought she was teasing, so he chimed in, "It would indeed be a loss. I mean, she's easy on the eyes."

Americans have always been known for their passionate and bold way of speaking, so everyone was used to it.

Over the past while, Merlin had learned a great deal from Lu Shixian, especially the finer points of experimental procedures.

He put an arm around Lu Shixian's shoulder and said, as if offhandedly, "Good thing Dr. Lu is still here. I still have a lot of questions that need answering."

Lu Shixian hadn't expected anyone to be concerned about him.

He smiled and shook his head. "Our team is expanding. I couldn't be happier."

"But Celine's words did remind me of something."

"The day she leaves for Heidelberg, everyone must come to the farewell party our group throws for her."

Lu Shixian's confidence was clearly infectious.

They knew that if they were in his shoes, forget being optimistic—even staying calm would be a challenge.

But as they observed him closely, they realized his feelings were genuine, not just a show of magnanimity.

That was a rare quality.

Today was clearly just a preliminary meeting, not the official start date, but it was a taste of the busy days to come.

The group parted ways at the school gate, each heading home to their respective mothers.

Lu Shixian's mother was far away in Jinling, so he didn't head back to his apartment.

Just like his time at UCD, encountering difficulties and challenges was a common occurrence.

Competition was just one trivial aspect of it all, and he had never forgotten his purpose or original intentions for coming here.

Lu Shixian was not a god; he felt pressure too, pressure from all sides.

And in this final stretch of calm before the storm, the best way for him to release that pressure was to go for a long run.

For a small town test taker, running had no barriers and no limitations.

He could do it whenever and wherever he wanted.

To meet the light, one must chase it; to walk the path, one must be bathed in it!

Chapter 444: One Mountain Cannot Contain Two Tigers

Yale's Charles River had always been a gathering place for outdoor enthusiasts and strollers.

During his research breaks, Lu Shixian could only watch with envy as they worked up a sweat.

But now, he had a brief opportunity to join them.

Of course, he had no special athletic gear. The only thing that looked prepared for a run were the sneakers he wore for his daily life and work.

He would only put on leather shoes for very formal occasions, like presenting on stage.

Lu Shixian had understood long ago that no one could stay in the spotlight forever.

On the other side, unknown to all, one would also experience the lows of being in the shadows.

The sea of knowledge is boundless; only by learning to constantly adjust can you sail farther.

Science knows no borders, but scientists have their homeland.

The man who said this, Pasteur, the father of microbiology, is best known to the world for representing humanity's first victory over rabies. His innovative idea of cultivating an attenuated live rabies vaccine from animal brain tissue directly opened a new era in the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases for humankind.

Throughout his life, behind every great achievement, he encountered all sorts of setbacks.

His discovery of allotropy was questioned by Professor Biot, his theory on the fundamental principles of fermentation was strongly opposed by the chemist Liebig, his germ theory was refuted by proponents of spontaneous generation, and his method of attenuated immunization met with unforeseen accusations.

The weak would crawl back in retreat, never to advance again. But the strong seize fate by the throat, shattering the darkness with thunder.

Thus, Pasteur became a scientific giant in the field of microbiology, just as Newton was in the field of mechanics.

That night, Lu Shixian ran very late, to the point of overexertion.

But he still couldn't get enough, because he might not have such leisurely days ahead.

If not for his reason holding him back, he might have been too sore to get out of bed the next day.

It was already past ten at night. In the past, he would never have passed by the Connecticut Hall at this hour, as the route from his lab to his apartment didn't go this way at all.

But now, seeing the bronze statue at the building's entrance, Lu Shixian suddenly understood what Mano had been so mysterious about.

Under the cloak of night, the normally black bronze statue was adorned with several colorful pieces of women's underwear.

He could already imagine the wildness of some party in New Haven.

However, none of it had anything to do with him, and he had no desire to investigate further.

He quickly covered his face and hurried away. After a hot shower that washed over his entire body, Lu Shixian fell into a peaceful sleep, ready to face the new challenges ahead.

The next day, Lu Shixian arrived at the lab on time.

The lab was a bit different today.

The research and office area previously assigned to Professor Manlon's group was now crowded with people. If he hadn't recognized the faces from the meeting, he would have thought he was in a chaotic marketplace.

Due to his overexertion the night before, Lu Shixian was a little later than usual. Merlin and Celine had even arrived before him.

"What's the situation?" Lu Shixian asked as he changed in the locker room.

Celine, ever the well informed one, knew some of the inside story. She pursed her lips and said, "What else? After the new project was announced, some people in the lab whose projects have ended and are now free want to get a piece of the action."

"Oh, is that how it works?" he asked, a little surprised. "Would Professor Manlon agree to that?"

Merlin quickly explained, "Mutual aid and camaraderie used to be our lab's culture. In the past, when one project group ran into trouble, other groups with spare hands would often lend personnel to help out."

"But now, as the overall research level of the lab has improved, this has become less common. Projects with a lower level of research find it hard to get approved, and researchers with spare time are often more willing to spend it with their families."

After a pause, Merlin added with a smile, "Unless, of course, they are genuinely interested, or the project is truly promising."

"At the same time, Professor Manlon doesn't have to spend much on these support personnel."

"However, given how strict and old fashioned the old man is, I imagine very few will actually get in."

What he left unsaid was that anyone who did get in would undoubtedly be skilled; no one could get by as an impostor.

The implication was crystal clear.

Lu Shixian understood immediately.

A project whose results were destined to cause a sensation had a high probability of being favored by top tier journals.

Who would refuse such a coveted prize?

They'd even pay to get in, wouldn't they?

Lu Shixian's expression didn't change, but he knew in his heart that he might now have to face not only competition from within his group but also challenges from outside.

For anyone else, this would be adding frost to snow.

But for him, a few more lice wouldn't make him itch any more.

Sure enough, everyone soon heard the news that four temporary members would be joining.

Three of them were graduate students, the so called research grunts.

Surprisingly, an associate professor had also joined.

Generally speaking, Yale had an abundance of talent.

But this abundance mostly referred to graduate students, the research grunts. Advanced talent with a combination of teaching, management, and research skills was still very scarce.

At the level of an associate professor, one could generally begin to take on these responsibilities, becoming what was commonly known as a junior PI.

One mountain cannot contain two tigers.

Likewise, one team usually doesn't have two junior PIs.

Thus, Lu Shixian's group had clearly become the target of this associate professor.

And indeed, it was so.

He saw his once spirited rival, Owen, force a smile and, with a look of resignation, walk up to greet the new male professor.

Lu Shixian hung back, shrugging helplessly. He hadn't expected his imaginary enemy to cave in less than a second.

However, out of courtesy, he followed.

As he approached, he heard Owen's humble yet warm voice, "Professor Fauster, it's you! On behalf of the third subgroup of the project team, I welcome you."

Without anyone noticing, he had begun speaking for everyone else.

If graduate students were to be compared to research grunts, then Owen had undoubtedly settled for second best, vying for the position of top dog.

The newcomer was a white man, but his appearance was quite different from that of an American. Though he also had a potbelly, he had rare orange blond hair and deep gray eyes.

He was clearly from another country, with strong European features.

Fauster naturally accepted Owen's allegiance; to him, it was only to be expected.

He gently patted Owen's shoulder and asked with a smile, "So, aren't you going to introduce me to our team members?"

Chapter 445: The Complex Composition of the Subgroup

There wasn't much to say about the few students, and besides, Owen didn't know them well, so he just briefly mentioned their names.

That was the only information he currently had, and he had little interest in getting to know the students anyway.

However, he seemed to know quite a bit about Lu Shixian.

"This is Lu, a new postdoc the lab recruited this year," Owen said with a smile, standing beside Lu Shixian as if they were old friends.

Just when Lu Shixian thought Owen might be done, he heard him stir up trouble again.

"Lu is very talented. He was the leader of this project's subgroup before, and his task progress was among the best of all the groups."

The jab Owen had just landed was potent. Professor Fauster's attention immediately focused on Lu Shixian.

"Is that so?" Fauster quickly extended his hand. "That's great news. I imagine the work ahead will be much easier, since I'll have an excellent assistant."

The meaning behind his words couldn't be clearer, whether it was a reminder or something else.

Although it seemed all his previous efforts had been for naught, like fetching water in a bamboo basket.

For now, Lu Shixian could only lie low. He couldn't possibly confront him openly.

As a postdoc, his chances of successfully competing with him on paper were minuscule.

Indeed, seniority was the simplest way to prove one's ability anywhere.

But he currently lacked the external reputation and demonstrated capabilities to do so.

Lu Shixian had no desire to be a sycophant, but he had to feign enthusiasm in his response to Fauster to maintain a semblance of harmony within the group.

A tiny subgroup had magically split into three factions, its composition complex.

Of course, Lu Shixian could have made a scene, attracted Manlon's attention, and used the goodwill he had built up to get the professor to put in a good word for him, thereby raising his status in the group.

But what would happen after he borrowed the tiger's might?

First, he didn't want to needlessly burn the goodwill he had accumulated with the lab's second in command over such a trivial matter.

Second, he didn't want to subtly give others the impression that he was a troublemaker or someone who could only seek help when faced with problems.

His confidence lay in the fact that a laboratory was a special kind of place.

If you've got it, you've got it. If you don't, you really don't.

Status was related to one's title and position, but not entirely.

The ultimate measure still came down to who was more capable and who could produce results.

To some extent, there was a saying that held true in every industry and field.

The world of scientific research really is a bit like a martial arts arena from the age of cold weapons.

Honing your inner strength and mastering your skills was undoubtedly more important than anything else.

When you were finally strong enough, you could naturally ignore everything else.

The next day.

The news that Professor Manlon's research group had added four temporary members caused a stir throughout the lab.

Especially in Lu Shixian's subgroup.

In truth, at Yale these days, instances of "working for free" for others were not very common.

People hadn't even finished their own projects, so who had the spare time to start from scratch to help others?

Even if they did, it was usually graduate students making that choice for self improvement or other special reasons.

It was rare for a scholar at the associate professor level to do so.

Soon, after a brief period of interaction, Lu Shixian had a general understanding of the people in his small team.

There was no need to say much about Merlin, Bob, and Celine, whom he knew well.

First was Owen. Although they didn't get along, it was merely reasonable competition.

Lu Shixian certainly wouldn't treat him with a biased eye.

The fact that he could stand out at Yale and stay on as an assistant professor was proof of his capabilities.

In terms of experimental skills, his proficiency was higher than that of the lab grunts.

Since he wasn't that old, it was only a little higher.

But he was a cut above Merlin, and you could say he was worth two Bobs.

At a certain level, sometimes a simple conversation and observation of expressions could reveal many truths beneath the surface.

In terms of theory, based on their usual conversations, Owen became very animated when discussing DNA repair, gene mutation, and genetic evolution.

In other areas, while he could contribute a few sentences, he mostly just agreed with others and didn't offer any particularly memorable viewpoints.

Based on this, Lu Shixian understood that Owen's doctoral research had most likely been in molecular genetics.

Molecular genetics is a crucial part of genetics. Its main principle is that changes in the structure and function of gene molecules affect the transmission and expression mechanisms of genetic information.

These changes generally include gene mutations, DNA damage, and DNA replication errors, which are vital for studying the pathogenesis and treatment of genetic diseases.

Besides the study of genetic diseases, molecular genetics has many other applications.

For example, genetic engineering utilizes the structure and function of gene molecules to transfer genes from one organism to another to achieve gene function, improve production efficiency, or create new varieties and bio-agricultural products.

The widespread application of genetic engineering technology in laboratories and agriculture has led to the rapid development of molecular genetics.

To this day, molecular genetics remains a top choice for many researchers, as it is both important and popular.

Lu Shixian had done a little homework after he went back yesterday.

In the United States, the probability of someone being unqualified for their position was not high. Professor Fauster was worthy of his associate professor title, even though he kept intentionally or unintentionally emphasizing a research paper he had published in Nature, earning him considerable admiration and respect from the team members.

In 1986, Fauster received his bachelor's degree from Ohio State University, a part of his history he was likely reluctant to mention, as the institution was not top tier in the US.

In 1994, he earned his doctorate from Brown University, one of the eight Ivy League schools.

There, he got the opportunity to become a temporary assistant to Professor Montreal, a plant geneticist at Yale University.

He then became a postdoctoral fellow at the Montreal Institute for Science, where he published many papers in various tiers of biological journals.

That one research paper was published in Science, Volume 322, Issue 5896, in 2008. The content seemed to be on the cytogenetic study of plant induced cytoplasmic male sterility mutants.

Upon publication, the paper attracted the attention of the academic community. Later, this achievement was apparently selected as one of the top articles of the year for this top tier journal and won a significant award.

As one of the first authors, Fauster didn't seem to mention the extent of his contribution.

However, this alone showed that he had a rather strong sense of vanity.

Chapter 446: You're Losing More Than You're Gaining

Afterward, although he continued to publish results in various journals, none had reached the height and level of that one paper in all these years.

But regardless, even with the "associate" title, his academic ability as a professor was solid.

An hour later, in the subgroup meeting, Fauster lit the first fire of his new leadership.

"To get our research work on track as quickly as possible and to ensure we can complete the important tasks assigned by Professor Manlon on schedule, I have a suggestion."

The thought that he should suggest not to suggest was, of course, just a fleeting joke.

Hearing his words, everyone looked at him in unison. No one raised any unexpected objections.

Satisfied, Fauster continued, "As per the new division of labor from the group meeting, our subgroup's task is to complete the gene sequencing of the new grass species. This part is the centerpiece of the project, and it's something I fought hard to get from Professor Manlon."

At this, Lu Shixian raised an eyebrow, a little surprised.

When the new task assignments were announced, he hadn't been able to figure it out.

As a comparative genomics research project, the gene sequencing work was undoubtedly the focus and center of the study.

Simply put, it was center stage. In his original plan, he knew full well that his chances of standing at center stage were minuscule.

But now, it seemed Professor Fauster had considerable influence. His arrival brought not only the loss of leadership but also some positive changes.

As the ancients said: Misfortune is what fortune relies on.

Lu Shixian thought to himself and continued to listen.

"This task is undoubtedly crucial. The research of the other subgroups will almost entirely be based on our results."

"Therefore, its difficulty is also the greatest. The University of Auckland is already ahead in gene sequencing research. Their latest phased results have been published on the preprint server."

"This means we not only have to catch up but also overtake them on the curves, ultimately leaving them behind."

After speaking, Professor Fauster glanced at everyone and continued, "This is also what Professor Manlon requires of us. Therefore, I propose that the subsequent sequencing be divided into two parts."

"The first part will include the experimental work of DNA extraction, library construction, and sequencing. The second part will include the analytical work of genome assembly, gene expression analysis, SNP detection, and functional annotation."

"Since myself, Owen, and the graduate students have just joined the group, I have decided to adopt a method where the experienced will lead the novices, and the veterans will guide the new."

Fauster, wearing gold rimmed glasses, turned his gaze to Lu Shixian. "I will be responsible for the first part, and Lu will be my deputy. The members will be Alex, Logan, and Gal."
With that, nothing more needed to be said.

Owen was the obvious choice for leader, with Merlin, Bob, and Celine as the members.

Lu Shixian wasn't surprised by this.

While it smacked of being deliberately arranged, it was undoubtedly a very logical setup.

Even if he were in their shoes, he couldn't have come up with a better team.

Lunch had just ended, and it was time for afternoon tea.

As the newly appointed second-in-command, Lu Shixian was naturally summoned into the breakroom by Professor Fass under everyone's watchful eyes.

Merlin, Bob, and Celine watched him go, each with a different expression.

"You guys think Dr. Lu is about to get a hard time?" Bob whispered, his voice so low only the other two could hear.

Merlin and Celine exchanged a look. Without a word, they both shook their heads.

In the lounge's breakroom.

"Lu, what would you like to drink?" Fass asked as he walked over to the coffee machine and poured himself a freshly ground black coffee.

Lu Shixian answered in less than a second: "Green tea, thanks!"

Afternoon tea in America, a custom originally from Britain, had evolved over time into its own unique cultural symbol, gradually becoming a social activity.

Though called afternoon tea, besides traditional options like British black tea and Chinese green tea, it also included coffee, juice, and other beverages.

Clearly, Fass knew nothing of the Chinese art of tea, simply brewing it with boiling water.

But as it happened, Lu Shixian didn't know much either. He rarely drank tea.

Fass's attitude seemed somewhat inscrutable.

"Anything you want to add?"

Lu Shixian shook his head and said, "Nothing."

He took the cup. The green leaves floated inside, painting a beautiful scene reminiscent of the sea of trees on the mountain behind his home, rustling in the wind of his memories.

He took a sip. The tea, which should have been bitter, spread across his tongue with a surprising hint of sweetness.

"Lu, why did you choose plant genetics?"

Just as Lu Shixian was lost in thought, Fass's voice broke through.

"Is there a problem with that?" Lu Shixian asked reflexively.

Fass said, "I've reviewed your academic resume. I must say, your excellence is beyond my imagination. No wonder both Professor Morty and Professor Manlen spoke so highly of you."

Lu Shixian was baffled. This wasn't the opening he'd expected.

He had already braced himself to be given a hard time.

Who hasn't faced a bit of friction when starting a new job?

Fortunately, Fass's next sentence steered the conversation in another direction, allowing Lu Shixian to relax.

"But you don't belong here. The Yale Plant and Animal Disease Lab is where you should be," Fass said bluntly.

Lu Shixian smiled. Now this was the scene he had been expecting.

"Actually, I've answered this question many times," he said, putting down his cup. "Past achievements don't define one's future."

Fass shook his head. "You're too stubborn. In my opinion, sticking with plant pathology would be far better than starting from scratch in plant genetics. You're making a losing trade."

"It's passion that drives persistence, isn't it?" Lu Shixian replied with a smile. "I don't think that's a valid reason to dismiss me. After all, sometimes moving slowly doesn't mean you're taking a detour."

Fass didn't quite grasp his meaning, but he understood that Lu Shixian disagreed with him. Accustomed to giving orders, this displeased him.

"Very well. I've already made a solemn promise to Professor Manlen."

"I hope you can keep up with my pace."

"I look forward to your performance."

With nothing more to say, Fass threw out those last few lines and left the breakroom.

Left alone, Lu Shixian could only shake his head. He had imagined this moment many times. He wasn't surprised it had happened now.

All these disagreements weren't really contradictions, but simply differences in standpoint.

Chapter 447: A Show of Force

Now alone in the small room, Lu Shixian saw no need to maintain a formal posture.

He picked up his teacup, the faint aroma of tea wafting to his nose.

Leaning back on the sofa, he squinted, the scene before him gradually blurring.

His thoughts began to wander.

If he could, he would rather not have to navigate such complex interpersonal relationships.

He'd rather spend the time in the library reading a few classics.

But the adult world is full of things beyond one's control, no matter the circle.

Lu Shixian found himself increasingly in awe of the wisdom of his ancestors.

The world bustles with people, all coming for gain; the world throngs with people, all going for gain.

That saying pointed straight to the ultimate answer.

At the end of the day, different standpoints could be boiled down to a single word: interests.

What was Fass's goal in joining the project?

The answer was obvious: fame and fortune.

The project's potential, now unveiled, was immense. Success would almost certainly send shockwaves through the academic world.

This was evident from the effort he expended to secure the most critical part of the project.

So, how did his own presence threaten Fass?

As his thoughts unfolded, the answer seemed to be on the verge of revealing itself.

First, he praised me, then he questioned me.

Perhaps it wasn't just a simple show of force.

Compared to many researchers who still toiled in obscurity, Fass was undoubtedly lucky.

But just when he thought his success was the beginning, he found he had already reached his peak.

Trapped in a cage seemingly forged by fate, he could only watch his prime years slip away into middle age.

He must be desperate to break free from the prison he'd woven for himself and regain the world's recognition.

Viewed from that perspective, Fass's feelings toward him must be contradictory.

On one hand, I had published three heavyweight papers in top journals.

He's afraid I'm too brilliant and will steal his thunder.

On the other hand, I'm a newcomer to the field of genetics.

He's also afraid I'm too mediocre and will hinder the entire project's progress.

Thinking this, Lu Shixian suddenly smiled.

He seemed to have found a way to handle Fass, a way that didn't involve challenging him head-on like a reckless youth.

In his past life, his personality was stubborn and unyielding. He used to look down on such tactful approaches.

But he had paid a bloody price for it, suffering too many setbacks.

Reborn into a new life, he often reflected and re-evaluated.

Was he on the right path?

Had he taken a detour?

Now, time seemed to have provided an answer.

Whether a path was crooked or not was a question with no standard answer.

Because in one's personal perception, the destination isn't always the same.

After all, in Descartes' description, two worlds exist.

The rational and the physical, sketching out mental and material worlds that sometimes overlap and are sometimes completely different.

He had no intention of debating epistemology and metaphysics, so he stood up and left.

Soon, it was time to leave.

As if aware that the newly formed team needed time to adjust, Fass was the first to leave the lab and disappear.

The rest followed suit without lingering.

Outside the building, the three still walked beside him without any hesitation.

"Dr. Lu, how did it go today?" Celine asked.

Bob was more direct. "Did Fass give you a hard time? I could tell that guy was no good from the start. A lot of his grad students complain about him."

Merlin, walking at the back, was more succinct: "What do you need us to do?"

Hearing their words, Lu Shixian smiled and shook his head. "I'm fine, but there is one thing I need you to do."

At this, the three immediately gathered closer to hear what he had to say.

Lu Shixian didn't keep them in suspense. "The next few days are probably going to be tough."

"But it's also a great opportunity to improve yourselves. Your only task is to get better in every way you can."

"Especially in molecular genetics. You can ask Owen for help. I don't think he'll refuse."

His words clearly surprised the three.

Bob, in particular, had a look of resistance and confusion.

"That Owen was so bossy today, just ordering people around. It's a miracle I didn't give him a dirty look."

"Now you want me to go suck up to him? No way, I can't do that."

Celine said nothing, but her expression showed she felt the same way.

Lu Shixian thought for a moment before concluding, "In any case, a researcher's work shouldn't be swayed by personal emotions."

"Our eternal pursuit should be to reap rewards in the quest for truth."

"As for everything else, I think things will take a turn for the better soon."

With that cryptic remark, Lu Shixian turned and walked away, leaving them with a view of his confident back.

The three were left staring at each other.

"Here we go again! He always does this, stops talking right when it gets to the good part," Bob said, his face a mask of agony.

Celine laughed. "But I think it's kind of cool. If I were my younger self, I'd totally be into that."

Merlin shrugged, putting a final period on their conversation.

"But in the end, hasn't he always been proven right?"

"Hasn't he?"

Similar situations to what Lu Shixian's group was experiencing were likely happening in every corner of the lab that had seen changes.

But no matter what, these were just undercurrents.

July was scorching hot, the sun like molten gold.

The massive laboratory building stood tall and imposing.

Under the gentle rays of the rising sun, its smooth curtain walls reflected a dazzling golden light.

Many visiting tourists stopped here, the sound of camera shutters clicking incessantly, as if trying to preserve the beautiful sight forever.

"You're here..."

Lu Shixian had barely stepped into the lab when he was summoned by Fass.

He was slightly annoyed; in fact, he was still in the changing room, having just put on his white lab coat.

But annoyed or not, he had to accept it.

As second-in-command, Fass's voice carried the most weight in the group for now.

A firm believer in the law of conservation of happiness, Lu Shixian could clearly see the smug look in Owen's eyes, his lips already curled into a smirk.

He ignored Owen and walked straight to Fass, who pointed at a machine and said, "Dr. Lu, do you know how to operate this?"

"I just heard from Owen that your former team members mentioned you could use it."

"This is crucial, as it directly affects our sequencing method."

Lu Shixian's gaze subconsciously swept over Bob and Celine. He saw the former's guilty expression, clearly having let the cat out of the bag.

After piecing it all together, Lu Shixian nodded calmly and gave an affirmative reply.

"If you're referring to this white machine, then yes, I believe so."

At his words, all eyes in the room instantly focused on him.

Chapter 448: A Frustrated Fass

From a corner, a new member named Alex leaned over and whispered, "Can someone tell me what that machine is? I don't recognize it. I don't think my old lab had one."

Beside him, Logan shook his head. "Looks a bit familiar, I think I've seen it somewhere. But I've never operated one, don't even know what it does."

With that, he turned his gaze to Gal, who had been in his previous group. "You were the best in our old group. You must have used it, right?"

The man named Gal replied, "I did operate it once. But it was more of an 'experience' than actual operation."

"Still, it's pretty famous. You guys should really keep up with the news in this area."

"It's a single-molecule sequencing machine developed from third-generation sequencing technology."

As soon as he said that, Logan's memory clicked. "Oh! I remember now!"

"If I'm not mistaken, it's a technology that just emerged in the last couple of years. They say it uses something like nanopores and single-molecule fluorescence for sequencing, with higher accuracy and longer read lengths, capable of covering the whole genome."

"No PCR amplification needed... basically, it's super advanced, but it hasn't become widespread yet."

Gal nodded. "Exactly. High-throughput sequencing machines have only been out for less than a decade, so second-gen tech hasn't been replaced yet."

"My advisor once said that the current attitude toward updating to third-gen tech is still 'wait and see.'"

"As long as the old stuff works, no one wants to spend a huge amount of effort to master the new."

"Really? But Dr. Lu just said he knows how to use it," Alex, now informed, asked blankly. "I remember his introduction said he just graduated from a university in China. Are Chinese universities that advanced already?"

No one answered his question, but the three of them turned their gazes back to Lu Shixian.

Fass, though skeptical, didn't think Lu Shixian was a fool.

And action was the best proof. He asked Lu Shixian, "Care to give it a try?"

Lu Shixian didn't explain, simply stepping up to the machine.

On the outside, his face was expressionless, but inwardly, he almost wanted to laugh.

The him from 2014 certainly wouldn't have known how. He'd never even heard of it.

But the him from 2020 did.

Even a decade later, back in China, this was still considered an incredibly expensive, high-precision instrument.

He vaguely remembered Jinling Agricultural University begging and pleading with Jinling University to get a second-hand unit transferred over.

And the self-proclaimed "too old" professors naturally wouldn't "condescend" to learn it themselves. Instead, they forced their go-to lab grunts to spend countless days and nights on the machine.

Then, citing their own advanced age and declining learning ability, they would call it "giving the young people a chance to grow."

As the number one workhorse, he naturally couldn't escape such a "perk."

But now, it seemed the time spent hadn't been wasted.

Even if his memory was hazy, the muscle memory ingrained in him was not easily forgotten.

And so, the expressions on the faces of the people present began to turn strange.

They watched as Lu Shixian's movements transformed in real-time, from the fumbling of a novice to the silky smoothness of a seasoned pro.

How could he be so proficient?

The question arose in many people's minds.

"He's so good. Look at the machine's label, it must be a single-molecule fluorescence sequencer using SMRT technology from Pacific Biosciences and Helicos's SMS technology. What he's doing now is incorporating fluorescently labeled deoxynucleotides into the DNA strand to form chemical bonds. This should be to allow the polymerase to cleave the fluorescent group..."

Gal rattled off his knowledge of the technology, but he was cut off halfway by Logan. "Stop with the lecture, can you say something the rest of us can understand?"

"Heh," Gal chuckled. "I'm starting to suspect you had someone take last semester's final for you. This is as basic as it gets."

"To put it simply, these deoxynucleotides don't affect the DNA polymerase's activity. After the fluorescence is cleaved, the synthesized DNA strand is almost identical to a natural one. According to the latest data, its sequencing speed is tens of thousands of times faster than chemical sequencing, and the craziest part is that its accuracy is also high, reaching up to 99%."

After explaining, Gal added with great feeling, "It's hard to believe someone has already developed a technology that's both fast and precise. If it weren't so ahead of its time, second-gen tech would have been obsolete by now."

Beside them, Alex cracked a joke. "So being too advanced isn't always a good thing?"

Gal, however, nodded seriously. "To some extent, you're right."

"The theoretical environment isn't mature, for one. And then there's the operational barrier."

As he said this, the three of them instinctively turned their gazes back to the figure at the front.

By now, Lu Shixian's simple sequencing operation was nearing its end.

Truth be told, not many people there could understand the principles and significance behind each of his steps.

But that didn't stop them from marveling at his fluid motions.

After all, even the most advanced techniques begin with basic operations.

The types of reagents, solvents, and handling techniques all have strict standards.

The complexity of some experiments is beyond what an ordinary person can imagine.

Fass was beginning to understand why Lu Shixian, an Asian, had been able to achieve so much in America.

With experimental skills like these, he would be welcome anywhere.

Originally, he had planned to use this as an opportunity, to capitalize on Lu Shixian's boasting and subsequent failure to firmly establish his own authority in the group.

But now, as he saw the image in the sequencer become clearer and clearer—an unmistakable sign of success—his thinking changed.

According to his plan, the third-generation sequencer was the key to getting ahead, and his justification for replacing team members.

This outcome was unexpected. Fass was both surprised and frustrated.

But he had to admit, Lu Shixian, now proficient with the third-generation sequencer, had become an indispensable member of the team.

A few minutes later, the sequencing was complete.

No explanation was needed; everyone in the room, all professionals in the field, could judge the result.

Fass forced a smile. "Congratulations, you succeeded."

"But could you be a bit faster? I can see that many of your techniques could be more concise."

Lu Shixian understood his subtext.

"Concise" simply meant skipping some of the less critical steps.

This was normal; experiments always had a margin of error.

Not to mention the running joke in applied experiments about "two wrongs making a right."

Chapter 449: I'm Not a Guy Who Gets It Instantly

Hearing this, Fass grew even more displeased, though he didn't let it show on his face.

After all, Lu Shixian was now a crucial asset to his future ambitions.

"Very good. Dr. Lu's awareness is truly exceptional. I have something to attend to, I'll be stepping out." He added sarcastically, turning to leave, but then tossed one more sentence over his shoulder: "From now on, when I'm not here, you can all learn from Dr. Lu."

At first glance, the statement was surprising, but under the circumstances, it also made perfect sense.

In the crowd, Owen's expression soured.

The boss had told everyone to learn from Lu Shixian.

No one present could mistake the subtext.

But all he could do was fume in impotent rage. Unless, of course, he could also master the third-generation sequencing technology with such proficiency.

But learning a completely new experimental procedure from scratch to mastery would take a significant amount of time—time by which this project might already be over.
This was a clear-cut case of being overpowered by sheer ability. Owen was utterly frustrated, yet he had nothing to say. He could only curse Lu Shixian in his mind for having too much time on his hands.

Wouldn't it have been fine to just stick to plant pathology?

Switching tracks midway to study plant breeding and genetics was one thing, but to actually spend time mastering the newly emerged third-generation sequencing technology?

Naturally, no one could answer Owen's bewildered questions.

Meanwhile, his indispensable role within the group had naturally earned him a significant voice, essentially solidifying his position as the second-in-command.

So, he had been doing quite well recently.

Although there was still some friction within the group, the overall direction and pace were finally back on track.

The good mood this brought about led him, for the first time in ages, to take time out for reception duties.

His social circle wasn't extensive. If he had to name old friends, Yang Yihang and Feng Yanan would count.

As members of the national team for the Biology Olympiad back in high school, each of them had left a vivid impression in his memories.

And now, he heard that Yang Yihang and Feng Yanan had also secured opportunities to study abroad at Tsinghua.

Of the "Four Musketeers" from back then, Wang Fuwen was the first to walk this path, followed by Lu Shixian, and now it was their turn.

He wasn't surprised, though. Both of them were highly skilled and naturally had their pick of opportunities.

But soon, something he never could have imagined happened.

"What? You two are together?" The moment they met, Lu Shixian's mouth fell open wide enough to fit a fist.

Standing across from him, Yang Yihang said nothing, just grinned like an idiot.

Beside him, Feng Yanan quickly explained, "I just couldn't stand seeing a certain someone trying to be clever every day, bringing me breakfast and saving me seats in the study hall."

She then took a step away with feigned disgust. "He's just on probation for a few days. I might change my mind after that."

Seeing Feng Yanan's words betray her true feelings, Lu Shixian knew exactly what was going on.

He cast a meaningful glance at Yang Yihang, filled with admiration for his persistence, good taste, and good luck.

He had met the right person.

With the right person, such devotion becomes true love.

With the wrong person, you just end up looking pathetic.

The news truly shocked Lu Shixian.

But regardless, it was wonderful news. This called for a celebration.

And so, with Lu Shixian leading the way like a seasoned local, the three of them left the New York airport and headed to a restaurant.

Having lived here for some time, Lu Shixian was already an expert on the local specialties.

The place wasn't a Chinese restaurant, but a Western one.

But since the two were newcomers, they were naturally filled with a sense of novelty for the foreign atmosphere.

Sure enough, amidst their excited chatter and complaints, the conversation gradually shifted to topics they all shared.

"Yanan and I both got into the Ph.D. program at UChicago. My research is on the structure and function of membrane channels, while hers is on the morphological studies of learning and memory," Yang Yihang, who had been smiling silently for a while, finally opened up.

Lu Shixian nodded in approval. "That's great! Same top university, same major."

"I'd say you two were made for each other. Proximity certainly has its advantages."

The school they were talking about was the University of Chicago.

While not considered the absolute top tier, it had once ranked among the top ten in the world.

A bona fide world-class university, its ranking in the US was, in some respects, even higher than Yale's.

But professionals in the field don't just talk about school rankings.

In terms of specific program strength, Chicago was actually far behind Yale.

Its powerhouse programs were in the humanities and social sciences like economics, law, and finance. Its strength in the life sciences was relatively weaker.

But nothing is absolute. Through constant browsing and reading of the latest global research papers, Lu Shixian knew that Chicago's neuroscience was showing a trend of rapid emergence.

At such a juncture, morphological studies of learning and memory, as a branch of neurobiology, seemed full of potential.

As for Yang Yihang's research on the structure and function of membrane channels, that fell under biochemistry and molecular biology.

He was getting the short end of the stick, really, since he could have applied to schools with more suitable programs.

But seeing the blissful look on his face, Lu Shixian didn't have the heart to say anything. This was a man following his heart.

"I can understand Feng Yanan choosing this direction, especially with the major projects going on at Chicago right now," Lu Shixian said, taking a sip of water. "But Fatty, I don't get why you chose membrane structure. It doesn't seem like there have been any decent results lately, has there? Or has there been a new breakthrough?"

"Can't help it. Interest is the best teacher," Yang Yihang replied with a grin. "I've been curious about it since I was a kid. You know."

At that moment, the perfectly normal conversation suddenly veered off course, in a way that not even a team of oxen could pull back.

*What the hell was that 'you know' supposed to mean? I don't have a dirty mind.*

Lu Shixian nearly spat out the tea he had just sipped.

But Yang Yihang, feigning seriousness, continued, "What else is there to study besides ion channels? Even though predecessors have already figured out the molecular structure of ion channels in the cell membrane, the regulation of how these channels operate is still worth digging into!"

Lu Shixian wanted to laugh. He gave him a thumbs-up. "All I can say is, you're a real glutton for punishment. I heard a lot of major labs studying this have already changed direction."

"It just goes to show, you can't fight the current."

Fatty held up his hands in surrender. "What can I do? Besides, we're two of a kind. Didn't you just switch from plant pathology to plant genetics?"

"Don't just criticize. At least give me some advice."

Chapter 450: A Nobel Every Year, Maybe Next Year It's Yours

Then, Lu Shixian actually added, "Since you love it so much, why not set a small goal for yourself? You could start by getting to know each other's structure on a deeper level!"

"Get lost." Yang Yihang's expression froze for a second before he laughed and retorted, "You really have a unique take on 'small goals.' I'd have to be insane to even think about touching that."

Beside them, Feng Yanan, who had been watching Fatty's innuendo get turned back on him, was smiling brightly.

It made sense. The chemical composition of the cell membrane had long been figured out—it was just phospholipids, sugars, and proteins.

But research into the structure of the cell membrane, due to its complex morphology and limited techniques, remained shrouded in mystery at the forefront of cell biology.

Studies were still stuck at the model hypothesis stage, and uncovering the truth would require the continuous efforts of many more researchers.

It was nearly impossible for a single person to accomplish, which was why Yang Yihang reacted the way he did.

But Lu Shixian, still smiling mischievously, encouraged him, "What's there to be afraid of? From the 1960s to today, research related to the cell membrane has already won the Nobel Prize four times."

"That just shows there's still a lot of potential to be mined in the field of membrane research!"

"If I remember correctly."

"The first was the 1963 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for research on the ionic mechanisms involved in excitation and inhibition in the peripheral and central portions of the nerve cell membrane."

"The second was the 1991 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discoveries concerning the function of single ion channels in cells and the patch-clamp technique."

"The third was the 1997 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the transmembrane transport mechanism of the Na+, K+ -ATPase on the cell membrane."

"And the most recent one was the 2003 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, awarded to Agre and Roderick for their discovery of cell membrane channels."

Hearing Lu Shixian recite these Nobel-level achievements so clearly, Yang Yihang was momentarily lost in thought.

"But if you can create a grand unified model," Lu Shixian continued with a wicked grin, "there's a Nobel every year, and maybe next year it'll be yours."

Although Lu Shixian received death glares from both of them, he wasn't just talking nonsense.

From the sandwich model of Danielli and Davson in 1935 to Robertson's "unit membrane" model in 1959.

As research technology advanced, Singer and Nicolson proposed the "fluid mosaic model" in 1972 using immunofluorescence and freeze-etching techniques. Then, in 1975, Wallach further supplemented it with his "lattice model."

Two years later, Jain and White proposed a plate mosaic model, arguing that biological membranes are dynamic structures composed of interlocking plates with different fluidities.

In 1997, the concept of "functional rafts" led to the "lipid raft model."

More than half a century had passed, and the structural model of the cell membrane was still a subject of debate with no definitive conclusion, a testament to the arduous quest for truth.

But regardless, progress in its research was steadily advancing.

"Of course, this is just my personal opinion," Lu Shixian's lecture-like statement in the restaurant was drawing frequent glances from other diners. "Is it possible that the cell membrane has no fixed model at all, or that it isn't a single model?"

"Based on that premise, could it be possible to connect the phospholipid bilayer structure, the fluid mosaic nature, the coexistence of lipid raft and non-raft regions, the asymmetry of the inner and outer membranes, and the differences between cell membranes of different functions?"

"A grand unified model derived from that would surely sweep the Nobel nominations that year, don't you think?"

At this point, even Feng Yanan, who had been enjoying the show from the sidelines, felt a headache coming on.

Yang Yihang gritted his teeth. "So, if it's such a great project, why are you just sitting here talking about it?"

"Heh," Lu Shixian maintained his smile. "Because talk is cheap, and it doesn't give me a backache."

At four in the afternoon, the three of them parted ways at the entrance of the University of Chicago.

Watching Lu Shixian's receding figure, Yang Yihang was speechless for a long time. "I get it now. That guy deserves to be single for the rest of his life."

Feng Yanan nodded in deep agreement. "The look in his eyes just now... it was exactly the same as when you used to wait for me downstairs at my dorm."

"He's only interested in science. He's been completely captivated by biology."

Yang Yihang's eyes twinkled. "Funny you should say that. I think I've been captivated too."

A familiar, teasing voice came from his side. "Heh, you've still got a long way to go."

Yang Yihang continued, "No, this captivating creature isn't far away at all. It's right in front of me."

Feng Yanan: ...

On the train to New Haven, Lu Shixian began his journey home alone.

In the past, his boundless energy would often lead to flashes of inspiration popping into his head.

He used to be thrilled by them, but now he was calm and composed.

Perhaps even he hadn't noticed it, but wasn't this a form of growth in itself?

On the way, his phone suddenly vibrated.

Lu Shixian answered a call. The number was saved as the landline for the Plant Genetics and Breeding Lab at Yale University.

His brow furrowed. Normally, communication within the lab was done through email; it was rare to call someone directly.

Receiving a call now must mean it was urgent.

He answered the phone and, as expected, heard the voice of a graduate student from his group, Gal.

"What? An emergency group meeting?" Lu Shixian asked, surprised. "Didn't we just have our regular meeting? I'm out of town today, and right now..."

"I don't know. The office just sent out a notice for all group leaders to meet at the old place tonight."

"Got it, thanks!"

Hanging up, Lu Shixian had no idea what the lab was up to now.

This was something he had never experienced before, so he had no frame of reference.

But it didn't seem like good news.

He rushed back, and by the time he reached his destination, it was already past dinnertime.

With no time to eat, Lu Shixian hurried to the conference room.

When he entered, the meeting had already been going for some time.

But there was nothing he could do about it; it was a feat that he had made it back in time at all. Besides, he was only there to "observe." With Fiss present, he likely wouldn't be asked to speak, so he appeared quite calm.

Soon, however, he got the full story from old Manlen.

It was also rather unpleasant news.

Their competitor, the university in New Zealand, had already completed the second phase of their project. The sequencing results for the plant were out.

The research team from the New Zealand university believed that, by comparing it with existing gene maps of gramineous plants, they had preliminarily identified it as a European reed.

In other words, they were already a step behind, having lost the first round in this invisible clash.

Chapter 451: Facing Academic Competition

To be honest, Lu Shixian was a little stunned himself.

This was the first time he had ever faced academic competition so directly.

It caught him slightly off guard, but it wasn't entirely unexpected.

After all, this was another part of his growth.

In popular perception, scientific research is a tranquil pursuit, but the turbulent currents and collisions hidden beneath the surface are unknown to most.

In the history of academic development, however, there are countless public examples, many involving top-tier scientists.

The most famous was probably Newton.

He not only vied with Leibniz for the discovery of calculus but also clashed with Hooke over the priority of discovering optics and the theory of universal gravitation.

The DNA double helix structure also emerged from the fierce academic competition among Watson, Crick, Pauling, and Franklin.

While his previous research had produced some results, it was all small-scale stuff.

The topics he chose could barely be called cutting-edge and were no longer particularly hot, as the biggest pieces of the pie had long been claimed by the pioneers.

You could potentially find gold in the leftovers, but it was only a possibility.

There were many paths to the pinnacle of academia, but none were easy.

It was true that there was no road in this world to begin with, but when many people walk on it, a road is made.

The trailblazers cut through thorns and brambles.

The successors carry on the legacy.

The pursuers find new paths.

And Lu Shixian had just set out, treading slowly on a path covered in the footprints of those who came before.

But even from this small path, he could occasionally see diverging trails shrouded in mist.

These trails were rugged and remote, so few traveled them.

This was why Lu Shixian had been able to conduct his research at his own leisurely pace.

But slowly, through his own efforts, he had bought a ticket called Yale University and boarded this great ship.

Standing on its deck, he saw a hundred vessels vying for the lead, oars churning the waters.

Here, the swift paddlers take the lead.

Here, it was like sailing against the current; you either advance or are pushed back.

But also.

Here, there were vistas and landscapes he could never have seen before.

Just then, a tug at his sleeve pulled him back from his reverie.

He turned his head to see Merlin gesturing at him.

Lu Shixian instinctively looked up and found that all eyes in the conference room were focused on him.

*What's going on?*

*I'm just a small fry here to observe. Why is everyone looking at me?*

*Was I in such a rush that I forgot to put on my pants or something?*

Just as Lu Shixian was about to glance down, the big boss finally spoke.

"Dr. Lu, Professor Fiss just mentioned that you know how to operate the third-generation sequencer?" Professor Manlen asked, a hint of surprise in his voice.

Fiss, not far from him, felt a bit frustrated hearing this.

Honestly, he hadn't wanted to reveal this information so soon.

Having a truly skilled person under him was a valuable asset, something that could be leveraged.

How it could be leveraged was not something to be discussed with outsiders.

Once it was out in the open, the information asymmetry was gone, which was not in his best interest.

But now, the situation was urgent. If he didn't speak up, the University of Auckland would claim the prize first.

That would cause the entire project's value to plummet, possibly to nothing, which was also not in his best interest.

He was an elite, not a fool.

After a brief calculation, he threw Lu Shixian into the spotlight.

This was why Lu Shixian was now the center of attention.

Lu Shixian didn't panic under the scrutiny. In a moment, he had pieced together the cause and effect.

Being in the spotlight wasn't a bad thing, but he remained composed.

"Yes, but I only know how to operate it. The technology is still very new, and I only learned about it by chance..."

But Manlen cut him off before he could finish.

"Alright, time is tight. I understand."

His deep, sharp eyes swept over the people at the table, and he continued, "I know some of you may still have reservations about Lu."

"But in my project group, everything must serve the project. The capable rise, the incompetent fall."

"Are there any objections?"

A silence fell over the room.

But silence meant consent.

In that moment, Lu Shixian saw in him the decisiveness and swift action befitting the leader of a major project.

An hour later, the intense meeting concluded.

Lu Shixian left with the others.

This wasn't the first time he had encountered prejudice, whether subtle or direct.

Although Yale's inclusive academic atmosphere was outstanding, wherever there are people, there are politics, and extremists still exist.

Besides, compared to people of other ethnicities, his situation was relatively good.

The thing that he found hardest to accept, however, was that guns were not banned here.

It made him feel very unsafe, as if a stray bullet could come flying at him at any moment.

If he hadn't reminded himself that this was a university campus and he was only here to study temporarily, he would have seriously considered packing his bags.

After breaking away from the main group, Lu Shixian was surrounded by his team before he even made it back to the lab.

During the meeting, given that Lu Shixian was the only one who knew how to use the third-generation sequencer, he was pulled from his original group to form a separate sequencing team.

In return, Lu Shixian chose his original team members to join him.

Fiss, Owen, and the remaining graduate students would be responsible for the rest of the research work.

"This is great! We're finally free from Owen's tyranny! I've been so sick of his sour face these past few days," Bob said, overjoyed and animated.

But aside from the ever-stoic Merlin, Celine did not look happy.

She retorted irritably, "It's easy for you to smile when the pressure isn't on you."

"Didn't you hear Professor Manlen's requirement?"

"We have to finish all the sequencing work within half a month. Dr. Lu, you shouldn't have agreed to that just now."

"Among the few of us, only Dr. Lu knows how to use the sequencer."
Even if we could learn how to operate it, there's only one instrument in the lab. Under normal circumstances, we simply wouldn't have enough time.

Clearly, Manlun wouldn't set a deadline that was impossible to meet.

Celine's implication was clear: what's the "abnormal situation"? It just means working overtime, of course.

At that moment, Merlin's voice grew heavy. "The most critical thing is, the sequencing work itself... while it's certainly important, it's also not..."

Merlin trailed off, because finishing the thought would have been bad for morale.

Meanwhile, Lu Shixian, who had been listening to their discussion, remained remarkably calm. Though he hadn't said a word, there was no trace of anxiety on his face.

Merlin noticed his expression and asked curiously, "Dr. Lu, do you have an idea?"

Chapter 452: Can't a Guy Work Hard in Secret and Then Amaze Everyone?

Lu Shixian chuckled, a hint of mystery in his smile. "It's no fun if I just tell you. You can try to guess."

The others exchanged curious and probing glances.

They didn't doubt the truth of his words for a second.

Their trust in Lu Shixian had been proven time and again over their long time working together.

Time was tight, and the task was daunting.

They all knew the days ahead wouldn't be easy.

But they were mentally prepared for a tough battle.

You couldn't last in scientific research without being able to endure solitude.

However, Lu Shixian noticed that Merlin, who was usually so rational, seemed almost giddy with excitement.

He shook his head with a smile, a quote suddenly coming to mind: "Without a powerful sense of curiosity and a pure desire for knowledge as the driving force, it's impossible to produce inventions and creations of great value to humanity and society."

In that respect, he considered Merlin to be one of his own.

There were no unnecessary pleasantries or explanations.

The four of them returned to the lab in silent understanding.

Lu Shixian stood before the workbench and got straight to the point.

"Alright, things are going to be a bit tough from here on out. I need everyone to get all the prep work for the sequencing done. After that, I will handle all the sequencing procedures myself."

"Merlin, Celine, and Bob, you'll be responsible for the preprocessing: DNA extraction, library construction, and primer ligation, respectively."

"Once you're done, you can watch me work. Feel free to ask if there's anything you don't understand."

The three of them nodded in agreement, without objection.

This arrangement was more or less what they had expected.

The only issue was that there was just one sequencer, and only Lu Shixian to operate it.

Compared to their preprocessing tasks, Lu Shixian's job seemed far more complex.

Third-generation sequencing, also known as single-molecule sequencing, directly reads the sequence information of a single DNA molecule, thereby avoiding the risks associated with PCR and library amplification.

But no technology is perfect. Its main drawback compared to high-throughput sequencing is that the amount of data is massive and incredibly complex, making the process mentally exhausting.

The three of them could already picture Lu Shixian working himself to the bone, and they felt a pang of pity for his hairline.

But they had no idea what Lu Shixian was truly thinking.

From then on, they all plunged into a period of intense and orderly work.

Preprocessing might seem like a basic foundation for sequencing, but it wasn't something just anyone could do.

Their sequencer utilized SMRT sequencing technology, which observes the addition of nucleotides by a DNA polymerase under radioscopic observation to determine the DNA sequence.

Library preparation was the most complex part of the preprocessing, requiring the fragmentation and end-repair of the genomic DNA.

This procedure was like performing the most delicate surgery, requiring hairpin adapters to be ligated to both ends of the double-stranded DNA molecules to form a closed circle.

Then, primers and polymerase were annealed to the adapters, ultimately forming a dumbbell-shaped library ready for sequencing.

This process alone took three to four days.

The three of them learned on the fly and performed the operations in turn.

The final result was quite surprising to Lu Shixian.

In such a delicate experimental operation, Bob's performance was even better than Celine's, despite her being a woman.

Considering both preparation time and effect, the library he produced was of a relatively high standard after inspection.

Although it couldn't compare to one prepared by Lu Shixian himself, it was more than adequate for sequencing.

Seeing the others staring at him in astonishment, Bob, though surprised himself, showed none of it on his face and proudly lifted his chin.

"What are you looking at?"

"Can't a guy work hard in secret and then amaze everyone?"

However, they were teammates who spent every day together; they knew each other's habits and skill levels well.

It was probably just a stroke of luck, but Merlin and Celine didn't have the heart to burst his bubble.

"I'll pretend to believe you," Lu Shixian said, but he was genuinely pleased.

A team that consistently relies on only a few fixed members won't last long.

One person's energy and time are limited, but the quest to explore the boundless universe and the mysteries of the world is infinite.

This meant that going it alone would never get you far.

Lu Shixian felt a sense of relief that someone could step up and share his burden.

"Very good. In that case, Bob will be in charge of library preparation. Merlin and Celine, you can assist him after you've completed your other steps."

Over the next few days, through constant coordination, the four-person team gradually found its rhythm.

It couldn't be helped. Unlike Lu Shixian, who had mastered these techniques before, the other three were learning this technology almost from scratch.

And this was just the preliminary prep work, which took nearly a week.

"As you know, the fragmentation process is random, which can result in either blunt ends or non-blunt ends. That's why we need to perform end-repair, converting all the 3' or 5' protruding sticky ends into blunt ends," Lu Shixian explained, answering a question from Bob.

As Bob got more hands-on with the new technology, combining it with his past experimental experience, some questions had arisen.

His question was: "It's easy to understand adding an 'A' base during end-repair to create a sticky end, but I don't get why T4 DNA polymerase is used throughout the entire adapter ligation process."

It was a rather basic question, suggesting Bob hadn't paid much attention to the various functions of polymerases before.

But Lu Shixian wasn't impatient. He answered earnestly, "That's because T4 DNA polymerase is active throughout the entire process. Its mechanism allows it not only to catalyze DNA synthesis in the 5' to 3' direction, filling in 5' overhangs, but it also has 3' to 5' exonuclease activity, which helps trim 3' overhangs, ultimately converting sticky-ended DNA fragments into blunt-ended DNA."

Next, Merlin contributed a question.

He asked with a puzzled look, "The most abundant RNA in our samples is rRNA. If we directly sequence the final RNA library, the data might contain rRNA sequencing data. I'm afraid that data could introduce some errors?"

Lu Shixian nodded internally.

The fact that Merlin could think of this demonstrated his coherent thought process.

It was a critical question, one that could practically determine the success or failure of the sequencing work.

He hadn't mentioned this step earlier, planning to bring it up when he was handling it himself.

But since someone had raised it now, it wouldn't hurt to address it early.

In fact, Merlin's assessment was a bit conservative.

Chapter 453: All in a Day's Work. Everyone, Take a Seat.

It wasn't that it *might* exist; it *definitely* would.

Because rRNA accounted for over 80% of the total RNA in the prepared samples.

This would inevitably have an incalculable impact on sequencing accuracy.

"Merlin, your concern is valid," Lu Shixian said, giving him an approving look. "Therefore, we must use an RNA enrichment method to remove the rRNA interference."

At this point, even the slowest among them had a term pop into their heads.

"The oligo-dT enrichment method?"

"Exactly." Lu Shixian snapped his fingers. "Although some people use WTA after rRNA depletion, in academia, the oligo-dT enrichment of poly(A) RNA is generally preferred due to the high quality of the resulting samples."

"The drawback of the rRNA depletion method compared to oligo-dT enrichment is that it requires a greater sequencing depth. Otherwise, a certain amount of rRNA will still remain in the sample, and the enrichment effect won't reach the desired level."

His explanation was so straightforward that there was no need to elaborate on the subsequent operational procedures.

Nevertheless, Lu Shixian continued with the next steps very meticulously.

And then, they finally arrived at the last stage: sequencing...

This was the entirety of the work Professor Manlun had requested from Lu Shixian's group at the meeting.

It sounded like a simple task, but the work required was incredibly tedious and detailed.

The other three stopped what they were doing and gathered around Lu Shixian to watch him operate.

As the saying goes, the layman sees the show, the expert sees the craft.

Others might have been completely lost, but they were knowledgeable enough to understand the procedures.

Fragmenting and purifying the RNA.

Analyzing the yield and fragment size distribution of the fragmented RNA.

Reverse transcribing, purifying, and amplifying the cDNA, then selecting fragments of the appropriate size to build the amplification library.

Analyzing the yield and fragment size distribution of the amplified DNA.

At this point, Bob was utterly stunned, and Merlin and Celine beside him were also in awe.

Because the operations had reached the stage that the three of them had been practicing to master.

Bob's eyes widened in disbelief. "Dr. Lu? Your movements for this kind of delicate micro-experiment seem even faster than before."

He wasn't exactly a rookie working with Lu Shixian for the first time.

As a graduate student specializing in biotechnology, his lab skills were considered top-notch in their laboratory.

This was partly due to his habit of observing the experimental procedures of many students, professors, and even the top experimentalists at Yale.

He enjoyed watching those less skilled than him; it gave him a sense of superiority and accomplishment, much like a senior gloating at freshmen undergoing medical check-ups under the scorching sun.

He also loved watching those better than him, because a brilliant experimental operation was like watching a blockbuster movie with stunning special effects.

Fluid, clear, breathtaking, and thrilling.

But that only made his current astonishment even greater.

In a top-tier lab, you could get away with not understanding the theory, but you could never get away with not knowing the procedures.

Here, technique was paramount.

This led to situations where many graduate students were kept in labs not because they were in that specific major or research field, but simply because they were skilled experimenters.

At Professor Fass's request, Lu Shixian had already demonstrated the sequencing operation for them before.

But at that time, Lu Shixian's movements had been more measured. Although he became smoother as he went, it was still within a range they could comprehend.

Now, however, Lu Shixian operated like a veteran who had been immersed in this technology for over a decade.

But since the technology had only just emerged, they naturally dismissed that possibility as pure fantasy.

The only explanation left was Lu Shixian's extraordinary talent for lab work.

And in that, they were correct.

In his past life, the reason Lu Shixian became his boss's number one workhorse wasn't because of his academic genius or intuition.

It was because of the experimental skills he had begun to display as an undergraduate.

It was this skill that allowed him to get involved in various projects at the university, earning the initial capital he needed to secure a recommendation for graduate school.

But practical skills, far more than theoretical research, are constrained by the platform one has.

No matter how long he worked, most of his achievements were published in domestic journals.

Even when he occasionally got his name on an SCI paper, it was only as an insignificant co-author.

So, no matter how good a tool is, it remains just a tool.

And then, since his rebirth, he had felt in every experiment that his operational skills had improved even further upon the foundation of his past life.

Seasoned experience combined with abundant energy had made it so.

This was one of the reasons Lu Shixian was so confident in completing the sequencing work.

However, neither now nor in the distant future would he ever be content with being just a so-called tool.

Through their growing teamwork, their non-stop grind, and his super-fast sequencing efficiency, Lu Shixian completed all the sequencing work on the seventh day, just before the end of the first week.

Of course, the sequencing wasn't over; more accurately, the experimental phase was complete.

After seven straight days of working around the clock, he was tired as a dog, his voice thick with exhaustion when he spoke.

Fortunately, the results were satisfactory; the initial data obtained was consistent with established principles.

At this point, aside from the ever-composed Merlin, both Bob and Celine were visibly excited and thrilled.

Finishing at this time was far beyond their expectations.

"That was incredible! I'd call him the best. In just seven days, he's reached the progress that the University of Auckland's research team took months to achieve."

"I can't believe I was part of this and helped accomplish this historic feat!"

"This might sound like flattery, but I have to say, Dr. Lu has never once let us down."

Bob, Celine, and Merlin each shared their thoughts.

"All in a day's work. Everyone, take a seat," Lu Shixian said with a slight smile, his next words causing them all to gasp.

"In fact, our team's work is only half done. We still have seven days."

A hush fell over them.

"Dr. Lu, what do you mean?" Bob's smile faded, and he asked on behalf of the others, "Are you thinking..."

Lu Shixian nodded. "That's right."

"Our group's task originally included the subsequent data analysis and processing."

"Although Professor Manlun's assignment was to complete the sequencing operation, he never forbade us from finishing the rest of the work. This means we have a seven-day head start."

"Of course, this will require more effort and energy from everyone. Are you all willing?"

Bang!

Hearing this, Bob, who had just sat down, shot up from his chair, his eyes gleaming.

Chapter 454: Long Time No See, Chen Yiyi!

"Let's do it!"

Bob's words voiced the thoughts of everyone present.

In truth, now that the experiment had progressed this far, no one wanted to give up halfway.

A good analogy would be like raising a child for years only to be told they aren't yours.

It was no exaggeration to say that for a researcher, experimental data is sometimes like their own child; they watch it grow from nothing.

No one wants their hard-earned results to be taken over by others, and they were no exception.

Of course, seeing the weariness on Celine's face that even heavy makeup couldn't hide, Lu Shixian waved his hand and declared a day off on the spot.

Everyone could come back the next afternoon.

They stared for a moment, then broke into cheers, joyfully coming forward to give Lu Shixian a hug.

"We love you, Lu!"

When it was Celine's turn, Lu Shixian was caught off guard, and she pounced and planted a kiss on his right cheek.

That left him a bit flustered; he wasn't used to this kind of treatment at all!

But considering Western customs and personalities, he figured it was normal.

Wiping the lipstick mark from his face, Lu Shixian felt his heart, usually as still as water, ripple slightly.

*Stay calm, stay calm. These are but trials to temper my spirit.*

He had put in a lot of work these past few days and was just thinking of going home to catch up on sleep.

But to his surprise, he received a very unexpected phone call on the way.

Though it was strange, he answered without hesitation.

"Long time no see, Yiyi! What have you been up to?"

Chen Yiyi's clear voice came through the phone.

"Nothing much, I just wanted to ask if you have any free time recently?"

Lu Shixian was taken aback.

What was this all about?

Fortunately, her next words cleared things up.

"It's the international astronomy conference these few days, and my advisor was kind enough to bring me along to broaden my horizons."

"I saw your social media post saying you were at Yale, so I thought, since I actually know someone here abroad, I'd like to visit Yale."

"No other reason. Am I welcome?"

For some reason, Lu Shixian felt that Chen Yiyi's last few words weren't as clear as before.

But compared to the mumbling he remembered from their high school desk-mate days, it was a world of difference.

Lu Shixian let out a sigh of relief.

Just playing tour guide? He'd never done it before, but he could guarantee one thing: he'd definitely be better at it than Wang Fuwen.

He was confident about that.

So he quickly replied, "Hey! What a coincidence! Any earlier and I wouldn't have had time."

"Your call came right after I gave my team a day off."

"So where are you now?"

Chen Yiyi's answer took Lu Shixian by surprise.

"What? You're in Los Angeles?"

"California, USA? I know that place well! I was there on an exchange for a while."

Lu Shixian glanced at the time. It was only 2:30 PM, still plenty of time.

He continued, "So when are you coming over? I'll wait for you at Yale."

The moment he said it, he realized it might not be a good idea.

Not because of some clueless-guy instinct, but because he remembered she hadn't been here as long as he had.

If something happened to her in an unfamiliar place, he couldn't bear the responsibility.

So he quickly added, "On second thought, just stay put. I'll come get you! It's not that far anyway."

Lu Shixian couldn't tell if he was imagining it, but he thought he detected a faint hint of joy mixed with surprise in Chen Yiyi's voice.

"You don't have to. I already feel bad enough for just coming to visit."

"Making you come all this way to pick me up would be too much trouble."

Lu Shixian heard this and knew he couldn't agree. Safety was paramount.

For once, he spoke with firm decisiveness. "No, you have to listen to me on this. I should be there in about two hours."

With that, Lu Shixian hung up the phone.

Meeting an old friend in a foreign land was certainly something to be happy about.
He had originally planned to go back for a shower and a change of clothes. After being holed up in the lab for days, he looked a bit of a mess, even though he hadn't been active or even broken a sweat.

But then, he remembered how late it was.

If he waited until he was all cleaned up, by the time he got to California, it would be the middle of the night.

Even someone as dense as him knew this was no time to be visiting someone.

With nothing to pack, he traveled light, heading straight for the airport.

This, however, sparked the idea of buying a car.

After all, he'd be in the States for a long time. He could just buy a used one and scrap it when it was time to leave.

Of course, even if he had a car now, he couldn't drive it.

The distance from New Haven, Connecticut to California was over two thousand miles.

Driving would take at least a week. By then, it would be too late for anything.

Thankfully, he would have a few hours to rest on the plane; otherwise, he really might not have made it.

At a little after six in the evening, Lu Shixian successfully landed at Van Nuys Airport in Los Angeles, California.

After leaving the terminal, he hailed a cab and headed for the address Chen Yiyi had sent him later: the Long Beach Convention Center Hotel.

When he arrived, he gave Chen Yiyi a call.

"Hey, Yiyi. I'm at the Long Beach hotel you mentioned. Is this the right place? I'm waiting for you in the lobby."

A clear note of surprise came from the other end of the line.

"Whoa, you're here already?"

"Okay, just give me a minute, I'll be right down."

With that, Chen Yiyi hung up.

Standing there, Lu Shixian felt like something was a little off about what she said, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Sure enough, a girl's "in a minute" meant "a long while."

Lu Shixian felt like he'd been sitting on the sofa for a quarter of an hour, a hint of guilt beginning to creep in, when he finally saw that familiar figure emerge from the elevator.

Only, this figure seemed somewhat different from the one in his memory.

The last time they met was at Jinling University. The weather had been chilly then, and Chen Yiyi had been wearing a long woolen sweater, her face free of makeup, a natural beauty with the air of the girl next door.

This time, though Los Angeles was entering autumn, its temperate climate meant mild weather year-round.

The Yiyi he saw now was wearing a beige dress that fell just past her knees, her long, slender legs wrapped in white stockings above a pair of small black leather shoes.

Tucked beside her soft, smooth hair was a playful, crescent-shaped hair clip.

Not to mention the light makeup on her face, especially the nutmeg-colored matte lipstick on her lips, which gave her an air of maturity she didn't have before.

For the first time, Lu Shixian felt at a loss, and it was also the first time he had ever seen her so carefully dressed up.

They met.

Seeing Lu Shixian's messy hair, the faint stubble on his chin, and his wrinkled clothes, Chen Yiyi couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"Have you not showered or changed in days?"

Then, she brought her knees together, braced her hands on them, and bent down to smooth out the strands of his hair that the wind had tousled.

Then she said cheerfully, "But, thank you for coming to see me."

Lu Shixian: ???

What was happening?

Was someone trying to corrupt his Dao heart?

Chapter 455: The Chaser of Light and the Seeker of Knowledge

No matter how slow he was in these matters, Lu Shixian could sense the change in Chen Yiyi's mood.

But as he reflected on it, everything he'd done seemed to be the exact opposite of what he should have.

He looked like a mess, hung up on her abruptly, and showed up without a gift.

No girl would like a guy like that, right?

Probably not?

So, he asked out of curiosity, "Yiyi, you seem so happy."

"And I was in such a rush to get here, I didn't bring you any special gift. I'm really sorry about that."

Chen Yiyi chuckled at his words, her eyes curving into crescents.

She replied, "It's just that I've rarely seen you look so flustered over something else."

"Besides, for some people, just showing up..."

"Is the best gift of all."

At these words, Lu Shixian felt completely flabbergasted.

What was going on?

Who had corrupted Yiyi?

This was getting out of hand.

Just then, Chen Yiyi glanced at the time on the hotel's display screen and said, "It's dinnertime. Where should we eat? Do you have any good recommendations?"

This was a small matter, nothing Lu Shixian couldn't handle.

After all, California was his first base of operations, in a way.

He stood up and nodded. "Follow me. I know you're probably not used to Western food. There's a decent Chinese restaurant nearby."

Under Lu Shixian's guidance, the two ended up at an old, established Chinese restaurant in Chinatown.

The place wasn't large, but the flavors were authentic.

The owner was a Chinese man who had settled here long ago. The restaurant specialized in Cantonese cuisine, which was light yet flavorful.

The two were seated under the owner's warm hospitality, and soon a sumptuous meal was spread across their table.

For Chinese people, chatting at the dinner table is a deeply ingrained habit.

Besides, they had known each other for nearly a decade, were former deskmates, and were now compatriots in a foreign land.

They were also the same age and knew each other's backgrounds well. Despite not having seen each other for a long time, there was no awkwardness or generation gap between them.

In a broader sense, they were now basically in the same circle, so there was no shortage of topics to discuss.

"You're already in grad school? Time really flies!"

Lu Shixian's exclamation was, naturally, met with a look of disdain from Chen Yiyi.

"You have the nerve to say that? You're already a postdoc and I'm just starting my master's. What's there to talk about!"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian very smoothly changed the subject.

"That's impressive, Yiyi!"

"You just started your master's and you already have the chance to attend a conference in the US?"

Chen Yiyi shook her head. "I can't compare to you. I still don't have any independent research achievements."

"I didn't really have the qualifications to attend. It's mainly because my advisor is brilliant and gave me a chance to observe."

After a pause, she sighed softly. "I think I told you before that I want to be a true chaser of light, so I've been working hard in that direction."

"But only after truly stepping into the world of astronomy did I realize how vast it is. There are so, so many unknowns on the road ahead of us."

"And the places where you can get a clear view of the flawless starry sky are often deep in the mountains, some of them completely uninhabited. It's really not very convenient for a girl."

"Plus, many research findings depend on long-term observation of the stars, with timelines measured in years."

"But I'm still holding on, still chasing, even though sometimes I really can't see the light ahead."

With that, Chen Yiyi turned her gaze to Lu Shixian. "What about you?"

"You must have been busy, right? I heard you published three papers in top-tier journals. I didn't understand the significance of a publication in *Cell* back then, but now, all I can say is that you're as brilliant as ever!"

As she spoke, her eyes shone with the same admiration as always.

That evening, on Chen Yiyi's recommendation, they went to see the Griffith Observatory together.

It was Lu Shixian's first time gazing at the cosmos through a Zeiss refracting telescope.

The universe was vast and boundless; time and space seemed to lose their units of measurement here.

Specks of starlight twinkled within it, like a brilliant and profound tapestry.

After leaving the observation room together, Chen Yiyi leaned against the second-floor railing. The evening breeze rustled her long hair, making it dance under the moonlight.

"So? Beautiful, wasn't it?" she said, gazing at the distant moon and stars.

Lu Shixian paused, not expecting such a question.

He then turned to look at Chen Yiyi and nodded seriously. "You know, you're right. You are more beautiful than before."

"You used to be too thin, and a little tan."

At his words, a blush suddenly appeared on her cheeks.

Her emotions were a jumble, a mix she couldn't describe.

Then, feigning annoyance, she demanded, "What are you talking about? I was talking about the starry sky in the telescope."

Lu Shixian felt a bit foolish, feeling like he wasn't quite on his game today for some reason.

He chuckled awkwardly. "Haha, yes, it was very beautiful."

"I was just thinking how marvelous this world is, and what a wonderful thing it is to seek knowledge within it!"

"It's like the first time I observed the microscopic world of life through a microscope. Perhaps every star represents a single cell in an organism."

"Perhaps all things, in the end, follow the same path. Stars have a core, a mantle, and a crust, just as cells have a nucleus, a cell wall, and a cell membrane. Their structures share certain commonalities."

"In a way, we are actually chasing the same cosmic river of stars, just in different worlds."

"You gaze afar, while I observe the minute."

"It seems now that we have embarked on the same path."

Hearing this, Chen Yiyi smiled and extended her pinky finger toward him.

"Yes. So let's pinky promise, for a hundred years, that we'll walk it together."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian suddenly felt his heart beat a little abnormally.

He turned his head away and grumbled, "So childish! That's something little kids do!"

"Come on! Don't you remember middle school? That was the first time you made a pinky promise with me, and then you came to my house," Chen Yiyi urged. "Are you saying you were a little kid back then?"

Her words made Lu Shixian realize that he had many memories connected to this girl.

He just had never consciously recalled them.

The white moonlight continued to shine.

This night seemed exceptionally beautiful.

Lu Shixian didn't know what to say; he felt that any words would be pale and weak.

He could only slowly raise his finger and finally touch it to her pinky.

Chen Yiyi smiled again, a beautiful smile.

Lu Shixian opened his mouth to speak but hesitated.

But she suddenly continued, "Then it's a deal!"

"You be your seeker of knowledge, and I'll be my chaser of light. We must walk this path together."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian breathed a sigh of relief.

He nodded heavily. "Definitely!"

Chapter 456: A Philosophical Perspective

The next day, Lu Shixian gave Chen Yiyi a tour of Yale University. After having lunch together, he saw her off on her flight back to Los Angeles.

By the time he returned to his apartment, the moon was bright and the stars were sparse.

His day as a tour guide over, Lu Shixian took a shower, collapsed into bed, and fell asleep.

When he woke up again, it was already nine in the morning.

This was completely out of sync with his established biological clock, but it showed just how much he had overexerted himself recently.

This time, he could finally get some proper rest.

When he had rented this studio apartment, he had designed a study for it.

But looking at it now, that idea seemed to have been a waste of effort. Ever since he started at the lab, he had barely had any time to set foot in it.

The apartment served merely as a dormitory.

Basking in the gentle sunlight, Lu Shixian was inspired to pick up a copy of *Anthill*, reading from the preface to the first lakeside expedition.

*Even if the fields are burned time and again, the anthill will always survive. It provides nutrients to the wasteland and tells the new grass of the old year's disasters.*

Edward O. Wilson was one of those rare biologists with exceptional writing skills. In his prose, he constructed a world built entirely by ants, revealing an ecosystem and social structure within a microscopic world.

Unfortunately, he didn't have enough time to savor the book completely. He could only sigh inwardly, realizing that the intellectual depth of a titan who could pioneer an entire field was still beyond his current reach.

In the afternoon, Lu Shixian appeared in the lab on time.

The others also arrived one by one, eventually gathering together.

Seeing that Merlin, Celine, and Bob looked much more rested, Lu Shixian nodded and said, "Everyone should be well-rested. Now it's time to get down to business."

The process was extremely tedious, especially for a plant genome, which was complicated to process due to its vast number of genes and non-coding regions.

Lu Shixian looked at the three of them. "So? I assume I don't need to go over the detailed processing steps. I'll just lay out the initial plan."

Seeing them nod, he continued, "First step, sequence quality control, Bob, you'll handle that. The first part of the gene annotation also has a large workload, so Merlin and I will do it together. Celine, you'll handle the third step, gene expression analysis."

"Any questions?"

Hearing this, all three shook their heads.

In fact, his arrangement was quite reasonable.

No one could guarantee that the sequencing process was completely error-free. Even a tiny error could interfere with the sequencing results.

This would, in turn, have a huge impact on subsequent data analysis and processing. Therefore, performing quality control on the sequence data was a necessary step to minimize the impact of errors.

Of course, this task wasn't difficult for Bob. He had a solid grasp of his bioinformatics courses and was familiar with methods like sequence alignment, K-mer analysis, and GC content analysis.

Gene annotation was a key step in data processing. Just as the name suggests, it involves identifying and annotating the genes and non-coding sequences within the genome.

This task required either a deep familiarity with comparative genomics, using similarities in genes and genomic structures from known species to find similar sequences in the plant genome.

Or it required an extremely high level of skill in experimental data processing, being able to use RNA-Seq and other specialized experimental data to determine gene locations and splicing patterns.

The two workflows seemed completely different, but they ultimately led to the same destination.

Gene expression analysis was used to evaluate the expression levels of genes in the plant genome at different stages of growth and development or under different environmental conditions.

Methods like differential expression analysis, functional analysis, and pathway analysis could help them gain a deeper understanding of plant gene functions and their mechanisms of action in growth, development, and environmental response.

The work of processing gene sequencing data actually fell under the scope of bioinformatics.

There was a good reason why bioinformatics was gradually developing into an independent discipline.

As Lu Shixian's knowledge deepened, he increasingly appreciated the saying that all things are interconnected.

This was what was meant by drawing parallels between different fields, something he could contemplate and explain using philosophical concepts.

The contradictions inherent in things exist in all things and run through the entire process of their development.

Since the dawn of the computer age, the speed at which people could acquire data had increased dramatically.

But clearly, data did not equal information.

On one hand, the data flowing into EMBL, GenBank, and DDBJ was growing at an exponential rate daily. On the other hand, there was a dearth of new knowledge being generated in fields like natural science, physiology, and medicine.

People's dissatisfaction with the slow pace of new knowledge creation and the rapid growth of data formed a major contradiction.

Contradiction drives the emergence and development of things, and thus bioinformatics was born and developed against this backdrop.

Its main tasks corresponded precisely to the steps he had just mentioned.

Sequence alignment and sequence analysis involved comparing the similarity of two or more symbolic sequences and automatically identifying corresponding genes and gene regulatory sequences within a genome.

The task of functional genomics was to perform functional annotation of the genome, understand gene functions, recognize the relationship between genes and diseases, and grasp the products of genes and their roles in life activities.

As for protein structure prediction, it was a crucial application of bioinformatics. Understanding protein structure is vital for studying its function.

A more recent and rapidly developing application was drug design, which used bioinformatics methods and tools to discover and validate drug target genes.

So, modern biologists might not know how to use bioinformatics methods, but they absolutely could not be ignorant of bioinformatics tools.

With the boundaries between disciplines becoming increasingly blurred, no one could be omniscient.

Lu Shixian had always believed that a research team should be equipped with talent specializing in bioinformatics.

Of course, that was if conditions permitted. He did not yet have such a luxury.

His current situation was one where he wished he could split one person into two.

For the next few days, everyone was immersed in a world of charts and numbers.

And finally, they received notice of a group meeting to report on their progress.

Lu Shixian wasn't worried about this meeting, as their task was already completed.

What irked Bob and the others, however, was that the data they had worked so hard on had to be handed over to Phiz's small team.

Lu Shixian, however, remained as calm as ever.

Chapter 457: Lu Shixian's Goal

The reason was simple.

One step behind, always a step behind.

They had already started processing the data several days in advance and had yet to make any major discoveries.

Even if the data were handed over, by the time Phiz's team caught up to their progress, Lu Shixian's team would likely have already made new headway.

However, this was just a theoretical idea; it was also possible they would encounter a problem and be forced to a halt.

But by then, it would be a true head-to-head confrontation.

Phiz wasn't much of a concern. What worried them most was the competition from outside the university.

The same logic could be applied to the University of Auckland and Yale University.

But that didn't apply to Lu Shixian.

He clearly remembered that, in his memory, even without his intervention, the Plant Genetics and Breeding Lab at Yale still won the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences that year for the results of this project.

This meant that Yale ultimately won this academic competition.

This was also consistent with reality. As a top university in the world, Yale's research capabilities were more than a notch above the University of Auckland's.

The latter had only gained some advantage by playing dirty and blocking information in the early stages.

But scientific research is a marathon; a temporary lead means nothing.

So he comforted them, "Don't worry. We haven't found anything valuable after all these days. Even if they get the data, they'll still be behind us."

Hearing Lu Shixian's words, the others felt a little better.

An hour later.

The regular group meeting began on time in the main conference room of the lab building.

As usual, each group took turns reporting on their experimental progress.

But now, almost everyone's attention was focused on a young man with black hair and yellow skin.
There was no other way. The success of the entire project now hinged almost entirely on Lu Shixian's sequencing results.

Whether all their previous work would pay off was also tied to these results being ultimately validated.

Lu Shixian was naturally aware of this.

If there were a real-time contribution leaderboard, there was no doubt that his work on the sequencing phase alone would place him among the top contributors for the entire project.

But that was all contingent on the project's ultimate success. Otherwise, everything would be for naught.

This was also why he was being so magnanimous.

He announced his team's results with a smile. "Mission accomplished. Our team has completed the sequencing and uploaded the data to the laboratory information management system. Anyone with the proper clearance can view it."

His words sent a buzz through the room. Some still found it hard to believe.

It might seem like just completing a now-trivial sequencing task, but in the context of the time, to finish sequencing the genome of an entire species in such a short period was no small feat.

This was evident from the fact that the University of New Zealand had to organize multiple teams to collaborate just to complete their sequencing work within two months.

Anyone with a bit of knowledge in the field understood just how vast this gap was.

It couldn't be helped. This was the advantage of having a technological lead.

A round of enthusiastic applause then erupted throughout the laboratory.

Professor Manlen, too, showed a rare smile. "Excellent. Lu, you've brought me another surprise."

"Well then, there's no time to lose. Professor Fess, have your group begin data processing as soon as possible."

"At the next group meeting, we will summarize all our preliminary research findings..."

After meticulously assigning tasks to all the groups, Professor Manlen announced the end of the meeting.

Anyone who had spent enough time in a lab would recognize the subtext: the experiment was about to enter a new phase, a moment that would decide the project's fate.

It was either make or break. Either they would find nothing new and fall into a slump, or they would make a new breakthrough and soar to new heights.

At this point, nearly every group leader was filled with a sense of urgency.

All except for Lu Shixian, who was under the least amount of pressure.

With the critical sequencing work done, his main job was essentially complete. He could afford to coast for the rest of the time.

But he hadn't come today just to report good news.

Once the crowd dispersed, Manlen stepped down from the stage and nodded at Lu Shixian, who had remained in the conference room. It was as if he had been expecting it.

"Lu, is there something else you wanted to say?"

Lu Shixian stated the purpose of his visit.

After listening, Manlen agreed to his request with little hesitation.

"You want to participate in the data processing phase?"

"That's no problem. You were originally in the same group as Fess anyway. I'll just have a word with him."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian shook his head. "No, you misunderstand me."

"I mean that our sequencing team will continue and complete this task."

At these words, Professor Manlen actually laughed. "Oh?"

"You really are different from any other Chinese person I've met before. Ambitious, and with a competitive edge."

"Very good. I approve."

"I'm looking forward to the show, provided you can actually pull it off!"

With that, he left.

Clearly, Manlen thought he had instantly seen through Lu Shixian's motives.

First, to prove himself. Second, to establish his authority.

Lu Shixian had been the group leader Manlen appointed, but Fess, a late addition, had decided to pick on the weakest link. Seeing Lu Shixian and Owen as the easiest targets, he had usurped their positions upon arrival.

The sequencing work had already claimed the lion's share of the group's fixed contribution points. If Lu Shixian were to get involved in the data processing as well, it would be tantamount to pulling the rug out from under Fess.

If he succeeded, Fess would become a laughingstock.

The next time someone thought to challenge him because of his junior status, they would have to think twice.

And he, in turn, would use Fess as a stepping stone to gain a greater voice in the laboratory.

The truth wasn't far from what Manlen had imagined.

Turning the other cheek was not Lu Shixian's style.

Moreover, he intended to do it in a way that was open and aboveboard, leaving no room for complaint. Academic disputes should be settled through academic means.

It was perfectly reasonable, wasn't it?

This was why Manlen had agreed so readily.

Of course, Manlen couldn't see Lu Shixian's third motive.

In fact, teaching Fess a lesson was merely a side benefit.

His main goal was to grab the money!

That's right!

If he remembered correctly, the Breakthrough Prize was established by the Russian billionaire Yuri Milner and his wife, and later sponsored by wealthy entrepreneurs from various countries.

Each individual prize could be as high as three million US dollars, far exceeding the Nobel Prize, earning it the title of the "biggest prize" in science.

For the well-known Millennium Prize Problems, one had to solve a world-class problem on the level of the Riemann Hypothesis, the P versus NP problem, or the Poincaré conjecture to have a chance at the one-million-dollar prize offered by the Clay Mathematics Institute.

Although it was crass to measure world-changing research in terms of money, contribution points meant prize money.

With an opportunity to grab some cash right in front of him, there was no reason for Lu Shixian to let it pass.

Chapter 458: Holding an Umbrella for Others

As expected, when he brought the good news to his team members, they were all thrilled.

Even Owen, who was usually less than enthusiastic about work, was now full of energy. He couldn't wait to see the final look on Fess's face.

Lu Shixian smiled at the scene and began to think about his next steps.

To be honest, he had no intention of continuing with this project long-term.

Sequencing and data processing were the tasks assigned to him during the group division, so he felt no guilt about hijacking Fess's contribution points.

But if he wanted to get more deeply involved in the entire project, he would inevitably have to encroach on the territory of other groups.

That was unnecessary. Not only would it cause conflict, but frankly, he wasn't particularly interested in the field of comparative genomics.

If possible, he would much rather conduct his own research independently.

Not only that, but he also began to delegate more of the hands-on operational tasks to his team members, while he himself focused on guiding the overall direction.

He had made this decision after careful consideration.

First, it served as a "grand training exercise." You never truly learn something until you do it yourself; anything else is just theory. His own energy was limited, and he couldn't confine himself to the box of experimental operations.

Second, Bob, Merlin, and Celine had been with him for quite some time now. He wasn't the type to feast on meat while not even letting others have a sip of the soup. Their involvement in the sequencing work hadn't been very high, so he was consciously increasing their participation in the current stage. That way, the amount of prize money they received would also be larger.

In reality, Lu Shixian's approach was not common.

Whether in the past or in the distant future, joining a group as a graduate student meant that one's compensation would not be high. Even if there was some, it was usually just a meager stipend.

Although this was partly due to subjective differences in skill and ability, on another level, it was also not without an element of deliberate gatekeeping. He had seen such situations all too often during his previous life as a graduate student.

Sometimes, only those who have truly been caught in the rain know the importance of holding an umbrella for others.

A month later, the group meeting was held once again in the laboratory building.

However, this time it was a summary meeting, a time for all the groups to report their results. The attendees were no longer limited to the group leaders; all research members were required to be present.

Eastern Standard Time, not yet nine in the morning.

Lu Shixian and his team appeared in the conference room again, looking spirited and confident.

This time, he planned to drop the act and lay his cards on the table. He was going to make a splash.

In the group, Bob might not have felt it as much, but Merlin and Celine exchanged a look, still finding it hard to believe.

If he hadn't experienced it himself, he would have thought it was all a dream. He had never imagined that doing research could be as straightforward as doing homework.

They just had to follow the established plan Lu Shixian laid out, and their efforts would be rewarded. Although they sometimes encountered forks in the road, most of the time, Lu Shixian seemed to be able to point them in the right direction shortly after.

He had discussed it in private more than once, even calling it "God's intuition."

Of course, for now, this title was only shared between him and Celine, and was not widely known.

"Hey, what are you two discussing?" Lu Shixian asked, curious, seeing them whispering. "I thought I heard my name."

"Talking about others behind their back is not the behavior of a gentleman or a lady," he added, making a small joke.

Celine smiled and tattled, "Merlin was just saying you're God, and that we should add that prefix to your name from now on."

Lu Shixian laughed. "God is a Western concept. In the East, we have 'shen,' or deities. So your title doesn't apply to me."

Bob finally found a chance to chime in. "So, we can call you 'God Lu'?"

Just as they were joking around, the true master of this laboratory, Professor Morty, whom they hadn't seen in a long time, made an unexpected appearance, accompanied by Manlen.

Many began to realize this might be an unusual signal.

Morty began his address. "Ladies and gentlemen, at Professor Manlen's invitation, I am very happy to be here to meet with all of you."

"Although I have not been involved in the project Professor Manlen is leading, as one of the few key projects in our lab, I have been following it closely."

"I've watched it grow from its inception to its final stages, watched its research scope shift from genetics to comparative genomics, and I've seen many new faces here."

"There are only a few months left in the year, and our task is not yet complete. The plant genetics lab at the University of Pennsylvania has already published a paper in one of the top three journals, and I hear another is currently under peer review."

"Our old rival, Caltech, published a study on the mechanisms of plant adaptive evolution in Nature at the beginning of this year."

"And our Yale Laboratory of Plant Genetics and Breeding has yet to break the zero mark this year. I hope you all can show me a surprise today."

In truth, Morty was only bringing this up to liven the mood. He knew full well that top-tier research published in CNS journals often took more than a year to complete. Many papers published in the same year might have been started one or two years prior; it was just a coincidence that they were concluded in the same year.

He was only here because Manlen had told him that someone had reached some very interesting conclusions, though they had not yet been fully verified.

After he finished, Manlen resumed hosting the meeting. "Alright, let's cut to the chase."

"Each group will now begin reporting on your project's division of labor and progress. We'll start with Professor Higgins from Group One."

With that, a middle-aged professor clicked a remote, and a prepared PowerPoint presentation appeared on the large screen.

"Our research topic is the mechanism of convergent selection between a new species of grass and rice."

"Based on the sequencing data, we conducted a genome-wide comparison between this grass and rice, searching for similar genes. Through a detailed exploration of genomic regions, we have preliminarily identified some candidate genes, which I have named the CRN series."

"The CRN series of genes shows differences between this grass and rice and is linked to the number of grains per panicle. Therefore, we believe it may have an impact on rice yield, although we are not yet sure which specific gene plays the key role, or whether this impact is positive or negative."

Chapter 459: This Isn't April Fool's Day

He continued, "As for the division of labor and completion of this project, it is as shown on the slide..."

"That concludes my presentation!"

The room gave him a polite round of applause.

Everyone present was an expert in the field and knew that these were genuine results. Although their value was not yet obvious, it was a research direction worth betting on. The only drawback was that it would require a significant amount of time.

Lu Shixian couldn't help but nod. There were indeed many skilled people here. If he remembered correctly, research on convergent selection mechanisms had indeed been published in Science in the future, but he wasn't sure if it was from Yale.

However, research like this, which reveals genetic laws, would be impossible to succeed without long-term breeding and genetic experiments. This meant its research cycle would be very long, which was a small drawback.

Next, the second research group began their presentation amidst high expectations.

"Our project is the construction of a library of disease-resistance similarity genes in grasses and rice, and their functional verification..."

Soon, it was Professor Fess's turn. He naturally represented his entire group to present on a project titled "The Whole-Genome Sequencing and Data Analysis of a New Grass Species."

Although there was applause, it didn't receive much of a reaction.

It couldn't be helped. Experimental operation was a fundamental part of scientific research; simply avoiding errors was an achievement in itself. While important, it rarely offered opportunities to shine.

Most of the applause was likely for Lu Shixian, a member of the group. His sequencing technology had helped the project team get their results several weeks ahead of schedule. That was a noteworthy highlight, as it saved time, especially when there was competition.

Other than that, they didn't think Fess had done any innovative work.

But Fess couldn't help it either. His area of expertise was molecular genetics, whereas this project was currently in the realm of comparative genomics. It was difficult for him to produce anything new.

Soon, all five groups had finished their presentations.

Manlen began to give his feedback, evaluating the progress of each group in turn. Unsurprisingly, Professor Higgins's Group One received his highest praise.

This was expected. Although Higgins's research results were good, without further progress, the current stage of research was not yet enough to meet the threshold for CNS journals. However, it could easily be published in one of their subsidiary journals.

Just as everyone thought the meeting was about to end after the feedback, Manlen unexpectedly said, "Next, let's have Group Four continue with their results report."

His words immediately drew everyone's gaze to Professor Fess's face.

Almost everyone had a look of utter confusion.

Fess had clearly just finished his report.

And given Professor Manlen's meticulous nature, he would almost never make such a basic mistake.

So what was going on?

At this moment, Fess himself was completely bewildered.

Who am I?

Where am I?

What am I supposed to do?

He knew perfectly well that he had nothing left to report. Standing up to explain would be awkward, but not explaining would be just as bad.

Just as the situation was becoming increasingly awkward, Lu Shixian, at the conference table, switched on the built-in microphone.

"I'm very sorry to take up more of your time."

"But I hope you can give Group Four just a few more minutes."

As he spoke, everyone's attention shifted to the young man.

"What's going on? Why are two people from the same group reporting?"

"This isn't funny. It's not April Fool's Day."

"It's that highly skilled Chinese guy!"

His appearance immediately sparked a heated discussion. The room was now in a state of near chaos, buzzing like a morning market.

However, neither Manlen nor Morty made any move to intervene. Instead, they watched the young man before them with a hint of mischievous amusement, as if enjoying a good show.

With his years of experience abroad, this situation was a small matter for Lu Shixian.

He continued calmly, "That's right. After completing the sequencing, our group discovered some interesting phenomena during the data processing."

"In response to this, and with Professor Manlen's approval, I have applied for a temporary project."

"Its title is: A Comparative Study of the Chloroplast Genome of a Grass Species and New Species Validation Based on Third-Generation Sequencing Technology."

At these words, the entire room fell into a strange silence.

The part about a comparative study of the chloroplast genome was one thing, but the words "new species validation" undoubtedly struck a chord with everyone.

Of course, this wasn't to say that discovering a new species was such a rare event.

Realistically, the academic contribution of discovering a new species wasn't that significant. On Earth, the sheer diversity of life meant that many new species—be they plants, animals, or microorganisms—were discovered every year. The difficulty of discovery was related to the taxonomic group; large animals were the hardest to find, followed by plants, while insects were the easiest.

Botanists estimate that there are about 10,000 to 12,000 species in the grass family alone, with many new ones yet to be discovered by humans. This is why many journals are now reluctant to accept findings of new species, and even if they do, they often relegate them to an appendix, fearing it might affect their impact factor.

But the crucial point was that the University of New Zealand had previously identified this plant as a European reed, a species of the Arundo genus, a perennial, emergent aquatic ornamental plant.

If Lu Shixian's judgment was wrong, it was one thing.

But if he was right, it meant that the research process at the University of New Zealand was flawed.

With their already attention-grabbing results serving as a backdrop, a paper they published would have a high chance of catching a journal's interest.

That was the key.

Now, almost no one in the room made a sound, afraid of interrupting Lu Shixian's speech.

Many were secretly kicking themselves, lamenting how they hadn't thought of this. Whether due to preconceived notions or other reasons, they had not delved deeper in this direction. They had thought, since someone else had already researched and published on it, what was the point of redoing the work? It was better to find a new direction.

Thus, they had subconsciously overlooked the possibility of a new species identification.

Seeing how quickly Lu Shixian had taken control of the situation, both Morty and Manlen had looks of satisfaction in their eyes.

And his explanation continued.
As is well known, first-generation Sanger sequencing relies on ddNTPs, which cannot form phosphodiester bonds and thus terminate DNA elongation. Therefore, by using isotopic labeling, the positions of the ATCG bases can be determined through autoradiography after electrophoresis.

Chapter 460: Could He Really Be a Genius?

Second-generation sequencing, on the other hand, utilizes Illumina technology, where DNA is fragmented, immobilized, and then subjected to bridge PCR to form clusters. Subsequently, the ATCG bases are labeled with different fluorescent groups, and the fluorescent signals are used to identify the bases as they are incorporated into the newly synthesized DNA single strand.

It sounds complicated, but it's actually quite simple. You just break a large piece into smaller fragments, and after sequencing, you piece them back together based on the sequence information.

Third-generation sequencing technology represents another breakthrough over the first two. It requires no PCR amplification, performing sequencing directly on single molecules. The SMRT or Nanopore technologies I used previously are based on the 'sequencing-by-synthesis' principle, where four types of bases are labeled with four different fluorescent markers, and the type of base is determined by the wavelength and peak of the light signal.

At this point, Lu Shixian had given a brief overview of the principles behind the first three generations of sequencing.

This wasn't just wasting time; it was a deliberate setup, laying the groundwork for what he was about to say.

In the process of comparing its similarity to the rice genome, we found that the chloroplast gene function of this new grass species is exceptionally outstanding—and everyone knows the function of chloroplasts; they are the site of starch synthesis through photosynthesis—but its function in terms of growth, development, and differentiation genes is far inferior to that of rice.

Therefore, our group came up with a hypothesis: could we use third-generation sequencing technology to reassemble a high-quality, chromosome-level genome for this grass species? Through tireless effort, day and night, we have preliminarily assembled a 2.12 Gb chromosome-level genome, containing 12 pseudo-chromosomes and 29,098 protein-coding genes.

At this point, many faces in the audience showed a peculiar expression.

They realized that, setting aside Lu Shixian's experimental conclusions, the methodology itself was a major scientific achievement.

That's right. In scientific research, a widely applicable research tool or method can be just as significant as a result.

If this assembly method works for this grass species, couldn't it also be used for legumes, magnolias, or roses? Or even for animals or microorganisms?

At that moment, it was as if everyone could see papers waving at them.

However, it wasn't time for questions yet, and everyone was waiting for Lu Shixian to finish.

Through phylogenetic and comparative genomic analysis, we discovered that this plant underwent a whole-genome duplication event after diverging from rice. At the same time, we identified the main compounds and their synthesis pathways across the four stages of this plant's chlorophyll development and found a significant increase in the copy number of the glutamate-1-semialdehyde aminotransferase (GSAAT) gene…

Finally, I'd like to add one more thing. Based on my judgment, this plant does not belong to the genus *Arundo*, but to the genus *Miscanthus*.

As soon as he said this, a fresh wave of discussion erupted.

Not only did many graduate students express their doubts, but even the professors began whispering among themselves.

That's just ridiculous.

If they were closely related genera, I could understand, but the traits of *Arundo* and *Miscanthus* are just too different.

I don't know, could Dr. Lu have made a mistake in his judgment?

At this point, old Manlon stepped in. He looked at the buzzing conference room with a rare, beaming smile. Remembering he had worn the same expression just a few days ago, he couldn't help but feel a touch of sentimentality.

It seems everyone has a lot of questions for Dr. Lu. In that case, why don't we start the Q&A session now? Manlon's suggestion was met with everyone's approval, and order was effectively restored to the room.

Soon, an associate professor named Gower was the first to stand up and ask Lu Shixian, Is the method you used for gene reassembly with third-generation sequencing technology universally applicable?

Compared to the debate over the new species, this was the most crucial question. The professor's question was sharp and to the point.

Lu Shixian stood up as well, as a sign of respect, and replied in a tone that was rigorous yet not dry, As things stand, there are still some difficulties.

Just as everyone was feeling disappointed, they heard him continue, Unless one can master the operation of third-generation sequencing technology.

No one had expected such a twist, and smiles returned to their faces.

Was that even a problem?

Not at all.

It's just a matter of operation. With enough effort, one can always achieve mastery. Compared to the unpredictability of scientific research, this was practically a gift.

However, Lu Shixian then tempered their expectations.

After days of trials and observation, third-generation sequencing technology has clear advantages over the second generation in terms of read length and speed, but it still has significant shortcomings in cost and accuracy.

If PacBio can make improvements in the future, I can already foresee that the study of whole genomes in academia will enter a period of rapid development.

Lu Shixian's statement was very pertinent. He neither exaggerated nor deliberately downplayed it.

Associate Professor Gower nodded with great satisfaction. Thank you for your clarification. Although you did not create third-generation sequencing technology, you are already ahead of everyone else in the application of this technology.

This was already very high praise, but in everyone's eyes, it seemed completely natural.

It couldn't be helped. The technology had just emerged, and even the instrument manufacturers were still figuring things out. So it was completely impossible to expect them to study its deeper applications.

At this moment, regardless of how Fess was feeling, Owen, standing behind him, was also feeling quite uneasy.

To be honest, deep down, he had always believed he was superior to Lu Shixian.

He was already an assistant professor at Yale, while Lu Shixian was just a postdoctoral researcher.

Owen stared intently at the now-spotlighted Lu Shixian, several questions swirling in his mind.

Why does he always have new results to present?

How can he progress so quickly?

Could he really be a genius?

Owen was now beginning to accept reality, because he hadn't just heard rumors; he had witnessed with his own eyes how Lu Shixian had risen to prominence in the lab.

He felt a sense of release. What else was there to say? Lu Shixian was simply better than him, and he was continuously improving.

After answering two more professors' questions about high-quality genome reassembly, someone finally brought up the issue of the new species' classification.

A doctoral student named Louis could no longer hold back and stood up to ask, Dr. Lu, I have studied the full research paper from the University of New Zealand on this grass species, published on the arXiv website. Based on the morphological judgments of the samples we received, our findings were completely consistent with their conclusions.

May I ask what led you to make such a different judgment?

Chapter 461: There is Only One Truth

Lu Shixian didn't answer directly but politely asked a question in return, Then may I ask, what sample traits did you base your judgment on?

Louis was clearly not speaking without basis and quickly gave his answer, Their morphologies are different, aren't they?

Setting aside the obvious differences in their inflorescences and leaves, the easiest distinguishing feature should be that *Arundo*, as an aquatic plant, has a hollow stem, while *Miscanthus* has a solid one.

And the traits of the samples we received were indeed consistent with the genus *Arundo*.

Evidently, Louis's explanation was met with approval from many, who nodded in agreement. Their own initial judgments had been the same.

Lu Shixian also nodded. You're absolutely right. But I'd like to say that while our eyes can show us the facts, they can also deceive us.

In fact, I initially thought the same as everyone else. But when I compared its gene map with the genome sequence of reeds—that is, the genus *Arundo*—I discovered something strange. They weren't always highly consistent, and there was a gradual trend of shifting towards *Miscanthus*, which led me to a hypothesis.

To verify this hypothesis, I dissected nearly all the available samples in the lab and discovered a shocking yet exciting phenomenon.

Some individuals of this plant did indeed have hollow lower stems, but a very small portion of the tender stem near the top was solid inside. This phenomenon undoubtedly confirmed the anomaly I had found in the genome sequence comparison.

As he said this, Merlin quickly reacted, displaying the corresponding high-definition cross-section images on the screen.

The evidence was undeniable. Even the most stubborn researchers had to quickly overturn their previous views.

The quicker-minded professors already had a specific term popping into their heads.

And Lu Shixian, as if making a grand announcement, revealed the final answer, There is only one truth!

That's right. This new grass species is the product of distant hybridization. It has overcome the immense barriers of hybrid incompatibility, inviability, sterility, and wild segregation to reach its own brilliant moment.

And it is not the European Reed as identified by the University of New Zealand. It is a new species. We have witnessed the birth of a new species.

In the future, we can also use it to replay the evolutionary history of species, helping us study the wondrous and mysterious journey of evolution!

As his voice fell, the professors and graduate students, who had been sitting, all rose to their feet.

Immediately after, an unprecedentedly fervent round of applause erupted and swelled throughout the conference room.

I knew you would succeed, just as spirited as when I first saw you on that video, Professor Morty was the first to give Lu Shixian high praise.

Lu! Congratulations on overturning the findings of the University of New Zealand! Your name will be remembered at this year's annual conference, Professor Manlon said next.

Your perspective is always so sharp! praised Dr. Louis.

At this moment, even Fess and Owen, who had been at odds with him, joined in the applause.

There are still many details to supplement regarding your research findings, but it has undoubtedly provided an effective foundation for accelerating the exploration of the origin and differentiation of grass species, as well as for genetic breeding and improvement.

This moment was not about winning, losing, or conflict; it was purely about academic exchange.

Thank you, everyone! Lu Shixian accepted it all. This was his moment of victory, a worthy reward for the arduous years he had persevered through.

But he remained humble. But I must also give special thanks to my team members—Merlin, Celine, and Bob. Their hard work and dedication have been my strongest source of support.

The applause continued. Suddenly, someone from the crowd suggested, You are the discoverer of this new species, you have the right to name it.

Instantly, the conference room filled with good-natured clamor.

Lu Shixian had wanted to say that this hadn't been written up yet, nor had it undergone formal peer review and official publication. There was no need to pop the champagne early, or it could lead to a bloody lesson.

But soon, even the lab's big boss spoke up.

Since it had come to this, Lu Shixian didn't act overly modest, and after a moment of thought, he said, How about we call it *Arundo-Miscanthus europaeus*?

The name was unanimously approved.

Of course, this had nothing to do with whether Lu Shixian was good or bad at naming things.

Rather, for a new species' name to be considered valid and registered in the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (ICN), it must follow a set of internationally accepted standards and rules.

Lu Shixian had cleverly combined toponymy and Linnaean binomial nomenclature, using two different sets of naming conventions to name the first new species of his life.

Today, after leaving a deep impression on everyone, the group meeting was declared over.

But the project team's work was far from finished.

Just as Fess had said, many of the results he presented needed further details to be filled in. It would take more time and effort to get it all down on paper.

But things were different now. In the past, his team consisted of just a few people.

Now, they had nearly ten times that number of scientific researchers working with them.

Building on Lu Shixian's solid preliminary work, with the full cooperation of the project team and the backing of Yale University's status as a world-class institution, just a month and a half later, the cover of the latest issue of *Science* featured the most sensational result in the fields of comparative genomics and plant genetics this year.

On the cover, a beautiful silvergrass flower and a third-generation sequencer were juxtaposed, as if symbolizing the union of nature and technology.

Next to it, the title of the paper was engraved in large font: *Comparative Genomic Study of a New Grass Species Using a High-Quality Genome Reassembly Method Based on Third-Generation Sequencing Technology*.

The corresponding address was Yale University, and the corresponding author was Reddick Manlon.

Lu Shixian, along with his three companions, occupied the primary positions in the list of first authors.

However, unlike typical papers published in the top journal *Science*, half of this paper was dedicated to introducing a research tool called the 'High-Quality Genome Reassembly Method for Third-Generation Sequencing Technology.'

The remaining half was dedicated to the splendor of *Arundo-Miscanthus europaeus*, occupying nearly ten full pages. Even so, it was an impressive display.

It couldn't be helped; this was the decision reached after rigorous discussions among the lab's senior figures.

If they had insisted on following Lu Shixian's previous strategy of splitting a series of results into three separate publications, it would have been possible this time as well.

But the conclusion they reached was that the two parts were mutually reinforcing; lacking either one would feel incomplete.

It was better to accomplish it all in one fell swoop. If they were going to make a splash, they might as well make it a huge one—play both jokers at once for a royal flush.

Chapter 462: A New Star in Academia

And in the end, it certainly lived up to its 'royal flush' effect.

As soon as this cover article from *Science* was published, it immediately garnered widespread attention. If not a nuclear bomb, it was at least a depth charge, bringing many researchers out from their quiet studies.

Beyond Yale University's official press release, on social media, biologists from around the world gave the achievement high praise.

A biologist from Cambridge University in the UK, Kalmar von Neumann, commented: Surpassing Harvard and MIT, the Yale team has taken the lead in the field of genetic engineering. Their greatest contribution to the world this time is the creation of a new gene-editing tool based on third-generation sequencing technology.

While there was nothing inherently wrong with this statement, for a UK institution to tease three American universities like this certainly had an element of stoking the flames.

Professor Su Xiuwen from Seoul National University in Korea also jumped in to make his presence known: I think the University of New Zealand will be very grateful for Professor Manlon's team's research; now they won't have to scramble to retract their paper. Also, I noticed the first author, Lu Shixian. Though I haven't heard of him before, he seems to be a young scholar from our Korea.

When it came to stoking the flames, Professor Su seemed to have a natural talent for it, perhaps even more so. However, he wasn't well-known internationally, so his words didn't create much of a stir, mostly drawing comments from his domestic supporters.

Of course, even Lu Shixian hadn't expected a heavyweight figure to endorse their work.

It wasn't an exaggeration either. The comments from Nobel laureate Oliver Smithies were very pertinent.

Based on the results from Yale's paper, we still have a long way to go in the application of third-generation sequencing technology. It is, without a doubt, a new vessel that can carry us further on the path of gene editing. We have been stuck in place for too long, and this is one of the few achievements I've seen in recent years, besides the gene scissors, that can be called progress. Let us thank the researcher who proposed this innovative idea.

Smithies was a legendary figure himself, one of his most memorable moments being when he made a journal's peer reviewer publish a public apology.

In addition, he was awarded the 2007 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his extensive early work in developing the 'gene targeting' technique, the 'sights' for genes.

His award citation was for a series of groundbreaking discoveries involving embryonic stem cells and mammalian DNA recombination.

Smithies' words were sharp and to the point. To be fair, a good, universally applicable research tool is often more valuable than a good research result. He knew this from personal experience, which is why he himself invented the gene knockout technique.

The last time this giant of the field had given such praise was for the emergence of 'gene scissors' not long ago, which he had also lauded as a revolutionary, Nobel-level achievement.

Of course, Lu Shixian's team's achievement wasn't quite on the level of CRISPR-Cas9. But because it was in the same research area, it explained why a Nobel laureate would pay such close attention to their work and personally weigh in.

However, Nobel-level achievements don't come around every year. When there's a lack of major output, you have to 'pick the best from a bad bunch,' selecting the most groundbreaking work of the year. And now, Yale, gracing the cover of *Science*, undoubtedly had a very good chance.

And among the names of the first authors, Lu Shixian, being first in line, naturally attracted a great deal of attention.

There was no other reason for it—it signified his contribution.

Except in very special circumstances, only the core or key figure could be credited in that position.

If Lu Shixian could have previously claimed to be unknown, with three *Cell* papers to his name, the first of which was also a cover story, his name had already begun to circulate within the biology community and the wider scientific world.

After this *Science* cover paper, he was now a major player with four top-tier journal publications under his belt. The only thing lacking, perhaps, was any awards or personal participation in high-profile academic conferences.

Once, twice, or even three times could be attributed to luck, but a fourth time would inevitably make a lasting impression and pique people's curiosity.
This fact spread even further after many saw the information he left on the Science Citation Index (SCI) website.

Such was the allure of top-tier journals; in less than half a day, news of the major breakthrough had spread from across the pond to every corner of the globe.

The science and technology news channels of Huaxia's major media outlets once again reported on Lu Shixian.

"【Shocking! Academic Rising Star Lu Shixian Publishes in Another Top Journal: His Fourth!】"

"On September 28th, the academic rising star Lu Shixian, born in Jinling, Huaxia, published a lead article in *Science*. This is already his fourth paper in a top-tier journal. Just last year, Lu Shixian published three consecutive papers in *Cell* within a few months for his research on the co-evolutionary mechanisms between plants and pathogens."

"According to reports, he is only twenty-four years old."

Although it didn't attract much attention from the general public in the country, within academic circles, it was quite the topic of discussion.

Yan University.

In Academician Xu Zhihong's office, an elderly man, slightly younger than him, held a brand-new journal, a look of surprise on his face.

"What's with this kid? I thought he'd quiet down a bit after going to Yale. I didn't expect him to make such a splash again after such a short time. It's unbelievable!"

"But why didn't he produce such a great result here in China? Yale gets the credit for free again. I really can't accept this!"

Xu Zhihong, who was also browsing the printed-out contents of the journal on his desk, heard his words and shook his head with a wry smile. "Old Ma, so many years have passed, and you still get so worked up over these things."

"If Little Lu were in China, do you think he could publish a paper of this caliber?"

Old Ma wanted to stubbornly say, "Why not?" but the words on the tip of his tongue changed to: "How about we at Yan University also get a few third-generation sequencers to play with?"

After hearing this, Xu Zhihong nodded, then shook his head.

"I'm not in that position, so I can't make those policies. I'm no longer in that role, so there's no use telling me now."

"And to be honest, while your proposal is good, the conditions in China aren't mature enough for it yet."

This naturally left Ma Yuhuan speechless, though he knew the answer to the problem all too well.

In China?

It would be a miracle if he could publish it.

Because there was no such thing as a third-generation sequencer in the country right now.

Even now, not many institutions had fully mastered second-generation sequencing technology. The third-generation sequencers had only just appeared, and even foreign countries were still in a wait-and-see mode.

Thinking deeper, whether a project proposal for one could even get approved was another question entirely.

Chapter 463: Subsequent Impact

In his previous life, Yale University had reaped the benefits of being a pioneer, which was how they managed to publish in *Science*, but it wasn't quite enough to earn them the cover story treatment.

Achieving that result was a fusion of multiple favorable factors.

Now, with Lu Shixian's contribution, Yale University had gone a step further than before, and the achievement garnered a sensational response that year.

On New Year's Eve, inside a high-end restaurant on the Yale University campus.

At the main table, the ultimate boss of the lab, Morty, stood up and gave a year-end celebratory speech to all the members of the project team.

"Ladies and gentlemen, on this wonderful New Year's Eve, we gather here together. Please allow me, on behalf of the laboratory, to extend my deepest respect to all the researchers working on the front lines of science."

"In the past year, through everyone's joint efforts, our lab has achieved a series of results. Of the 36 project groups approved at the beginning of the year, 21 have been completed, and most of them have achieved remarkable success."

"The molecular breeding project led by Professor Baus has been published in *Plant*. The project on DNA methylation and its mapping, led by Professor Mias, has already produced a technology with independent intellectual property rights."

At this point, Morty turned his gaze to his old friend beside him.

"I believe everyone already knows. The comparative genomics research project on a new species of grass family plant, completed under the leadership of Professor Manlen, has been published as a cover story in *Science* and has attracted widespread attention."

"Of course, this plant now has a new name, and the name European Lyme Grass has become known to the world through our hands..."

As soon as these words were spoken, although no specific name was mentioned, almost everyone turned their gaze to Lu Shixian, who was sitting opposite Manlen.

After finishing his speech, Professor Morty raised his glass of red wine high.

"Cheers!"

The atmosphere of the entire party reached its peak at this moment.

A night of joy passed, and as the brilliant New Year's Eve fireworks faded, time quietly ticked over from 2014 to 2015.

The project Lu Shixian had participated in had been officially completed.

But the impact it brought seemed far from over.

On a personal level, as a postdoctoral fellow, he had initially been promised a position as an Assistant Research Fellow by Morty as a small favor.

But now, the application form for an Associate Research Fellow had been delivered to his hands. All he had to do was fill out the form to directly obtain a senior scientific research title at Yale University, equivalent to an Associate Professor.

At the same time, he also received a full postdoctoral fellowship from the Genetics Society of America for that year.

If Owen, who had struggled at Yale for several years just to get an Assistant Professor title, heard this news, his expression would surely be a sight to see.

This speed of promotion was undoubtedly unimaginable back in China.

Generally speaking, the strict requirements for being promoted to Associate Professor or Associate Research Fellow were to have held an intermediate-level title for over five years or to have two to three years of experience after obtaining a Ph.D.

Furthermore, it was extremely difficult to fast-track promotions in China. As far as he knew, one had to meet at least two conditions.

One was to achieve an extremely groundbreaking result, preferably one that was world-renowned and sensational. The other was to have a heavyweight figure to endorse you and pave the way.

The most vivid example he knew of was God Lu, who had solved a world-class mathematical problem and became a full professor at a 985 university in his early twenties.

But such cases were extremely rare and not easily replicable.

This was likely a feat only possible in a discipline like mathematics, which relied purely on individual talent.

In any other field, it was incredibly difficult for a single person to achieve such a sensational result by going it alone. Besides decades of painstaking work, there was almost no other way.

At the same time, it was unrealistic for someone in their twenties to lead a mature research team. Leaving aside whether they had the ability, even if a result was produced, it was another question whether the credit would ultimately fall to them.

Besides, world-class problems weren't cabbages by the roadside; they were few and far between.

Even in God Lu's case, it took a joint petition from three academicians of the Academy of Sciences for him to be granted special permission.

There were many intricacies involved that were not convenient to detail.

Lu Shixian was well aware of these things. Even though he possessed qualities different from ordinary people, there were some things he was truly powerless to change.

This was also why Xu Zhihong, after careful consideration, had him make the choice to go to Yale.

As a team, the three members each had different fortunes. Merlin, Bob, and Serene had all received Ph.D. offers from top universities around the world. Having research experience that resulted in a top-tier journal publication made them exceptionally sought-after.

Lu Shixian had long understood this from personal experience.

However, their choices differed.

Merlin firmly chose Yale and the plant genetics lab where he was currently working, explaining that he didn't want to get used to a new research environment.

Bob wanted to aim higher, for Harvard, which had repeatedly ranked as the top university in the world. He chose the State Key Laboratory of Biological Genetics, and it was said that a doctoral advisor was already in contact with him.

Serene, on the other hand, turned down all invitations and still chose Heidelberg University in Germany. However, when she went this time, she would not only be a Ph.D. student but would also have much better benefits than before.

As for the project group, Professor Manlen, just as in Lu Shixian's memory, had already received an award invitation from the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences Foundation.

This prize was first launched in February 2013, aiming to encourage scientists engaged in basic sciences and life sciences, rewarding them for major achievements in these fields.

At that time, Professor Manlen would represent the project team to receive the three-million-US-dollar "super-deluxe version of the Nobel Prize."

Such was the power of a top-tier journal publication; it propelled almost all project members toward a better future.

But Lu Shixian had to suppress the joy in his heart to bid an early farewell to his two team members and friends.

At a bar where the four of them often gathered.

Lu Shixian, filled with emotion, raised a glass of wine to congratulate Bob and Serene and express his regret.

"I'm very happy to see you both moving on to better opportunities. It was fate that brought us together to work for so long, and I can't believe it's already time to see you off."

"Honestly, I'm very reluctant to see you go. Bob, your decisiveness, and Serene, your meticulousness, have left a very deep impression on me. In my heart, you are both the best team members."

"I remember saying 'all good things must come to an end' at our last gathering. This time, I want to say, 'we're bound to meet again.' I believe our next reunion won't be too far away."

Hearing this, everyone was overcome with emotion.

Chapter 464: The Right Time, Place, and People

Bob gratefully raised his glass in a toast. "Meeting you feels like I've used up decades of my luck."

Serene, the American girl, was a teary mess and ended up giving Lu Shixian a heartfelt hug.

"If I hadn't met Mejev beforehand, I definitely would have been attracted to you. I hope you find the love of your life soon, and that you go further and further on the path of seeking truth."

After seeing the two of them off, Lu Shixian's main task gradually entered a new phase.

He could finally, and rightfully, apply for research projects as an Associate Research Fellow, which was exactly what he had been hoping for.

At the same time, expanding his team was now on the agenda.

Thinking about it, apart from Merlin, he had no other key players to command.

Fortunately, he had now made a name for himself throughout the plant genetics lab and even Yale University, which should attract many graduate or undergraduate students to join his team.

But before that, everyone in the lab, including him, was about to have a vacation lasting nearly a month.

With their recent achievements, most people would likely have a very pleasant new year's holiday.

Lu Shixian wasn't in the habit of celebrating the new year in the US, nor did he have a habit of traveling for vacation.

At this time, people back in China were probably busy preparing for their year-end evaluations.

His time was quite precious. His initial plan was to first draft the key research themes for the coming year and set a general direction.

But before he could even start, he received an unexpected phone call.

Ma Yuhuan, whom he hadn't seen in a long time, actually called to congratulate him, which left him rather baffled.

"You're something else, kid! Secretly snagged another cover. Does this mean I'll have to call you Professor Lu in a few years?" Ma Yuhuan teased his former student.

Lu Shixian obviously knew Old Ma's personality and replied without taking offense, "Then you've miscalculated. You can start calling me that now."

His words completely stumped Ma Yuhuan on the other end of the line, leaving him in a daze.

"What the hell? You just went to Yale last year, and you've already been promoted to associate professor before the lunar year is even over?"

"Are academic titles free over in the States?"

"Is that even allowed?"

Lu Shixian could almost imagine Old Ma's expression and chuckled. "Let's be low-key, low-key."

"Although I've been allocated three graduate student slots, I have no plans to take on students yet. I'm just an Associate Research Fellow for now. Who knows how long it will take to drop the 'Associate' part?"

Ma Yuhuan thought about the time it took him to become an associate professor and a master's student supervisor in China, and he decided he'd better go sulk in a corner first.

But before that, he didn't forget his task.

"Little Lu, this year's National Plant Genomics Conference is being held at the end of the month. The conference committee has sent you an invitation and asked us at Yan University to invite you."

"If you don't have anything else going on, you can come and check it out."

Lu Shixian was a little surprised. He had long known that Old Ma wouldn't call without a reason, but he hadn't expected this.

"I'm not even active in the domestic circles. Why would they invite me?"

Ma Yuhuan was old and shrewd; he knew what the kid was thinking. He continued, "I knew you wouldn't act without seeing a reward, but this is a rare opportunity."

"Although it's not the main Genetics Society Conference, the Plant Genetics and Genomics Professional Committee is pretty much the most influential division within it."

"I asked around, and they said that the Vice President of the society, Academician Zhang Qifa, specifically mentioned your name. He's the president of this year's conference."

Lu Shixian hesitated. He had just started to get things going at Yale. If he went back to China now, it would inevitably cause a significant delay.

Ma Yuhuan had anticipated this and continued to press on.

"It's because the results you published on the cover of *Science* have put some pressure on certain people. Usually, they just play among themselves in the country, but who knew a freak like you would show up and do something so amazing in the field of gene sequencing, suddenly reaching an internationally leading level."

"This time, it would be hard for them to justify ignoring your name."

"Anyway, the news I got is that you're not eligible for an international invited talk for now, but the conference organizing committee has invited you to participate in the first of the six symposiums: Genome Sequencing and New Technology. They've made an exception and arranged a thirty-minute talk for you."

"This..." Lu Shixian was stunned.

He was no outsider; he knew the weight of a thirty-minute slot.

Those who could give a 30-minute invited talk at a national conference like this were all top experts in their respective fields.

Those who could give a 20-minute major symposium talk were, at the very least, rising stars who had made outstanding achievements that year.

As for the 15-minute graduate student talks, only a handful were selected from thousands of submissions, requiring both exceptional ability and strong backing.

In other words, although his was technically a symposium talk, he was receiving the treatment of an international invited speaker.

And so, Lu Shixian readily agreed to Ma Yuhuan's invitation.

He couldn't help it; he had very few reasons to refuse.

First, it was an invitation from his alma mater, and he couldn't just turn it down. Ma Yuhuan had treated him well in the past, and he had to give him this face.

Second, the organizing committee was being very sincere. To be given this kind of treatment without him even asking was more than he could have hoped for.

Third, he had never personally participated in an academic conference of this level. Although he had attended many times before, it was always as an audience member. This time was different.

The day after Lu Shixian gave his clear confirmation, a staff member from the conference organizing committee contacted him to coordinate the relevant arrangements.

He needed to submit a research paper to the committee by a specified deadline, then register at the designated location at the conference venue and attend the welcome dinner.

The specific conference schedule would be sent to him as soon as the final program was announced.

Coincidentally, the Plant Genetics Laboratory at Yale had just given everyone a vacation of about a month.

Now, with the right time, the right place, and the right people, all the stars had aligned. Lu Shixian packed his bags and prepared to slip away from the US for a while.

According to his original plan, his first stop had to be his hometown to visit the two old comrades, Xia Xiuman and Lu Jianguo.

However, he was soon informed that the first direct flight route from Jinling to the US would not open until June of that year.

Thus, he had to change his itinerary and make a stopover in Yanjing first.

As the saying goes, a teacher for a day is a father for life.

Passing through Yanjing without visiting his mentor would be improper.

Lu Shixian finally decided on his first stop back in his home country: Yan University.

Chapter 465: Return to the Motherland

The plane landed safely at Yanjing International Airport.

Lu Shixian stayed there for two days. Because he had made an appointment in advance, he soon saw his mentor, Xu Zhihong, at Yan University.

"Not bad. Your performance is even better than I imagined."

"The work you've done at Yale has recently caused quite a stir in the country."

"Your name has also entered the sights of many people. The fact that you were invited back to participate in the National Plant Genomics Conference is proof of that," Xu Zhihong said with great satisfaction.

At this point, Lu Shixian was growing more and more impressed by his mentor's foresight and earnest efforts.

"Hehe, it's all because you taught me well."

"Although I've made some insignificant achievements now, I'm still far from my goal at Yale," he said, maintaining absolute humility in front of his mentor.

Xu Zhihong smiled and shook his head, knowing full well that he hadn't provided him with any academic help, only a little bit of planning.

The fact that he had come this far was entirely due to his own talent and hard work.

So, Xu Zhihong changed the subject. "So? What are your feelings after truly experiencing the research environment at Yale?"

Lu Shixian thought for a moment and said with emotion, "I think I understand some things now."

"No wonder so many people are willing to stay abroad to do research. I think the so-called research atmosphere is secondary. The main reason is that some necessary research conditions are scarce resources that are only available overseas."

Xu Zhihong nodded. "You're right. Foreigners aren't necessarily any smarter than we are. The wisdom of the Chinese people has been proven since ancient times. Are we lacking some things because we don't have money?"

"Our national GDP is now the second largest in the world. What instrument can't we afford? But the biggest problem now is that we need both a good horse and a good saddle at the same time."

"A good horse deserves a good saddle, of course, but without the horse, even the best saddle can't run. When we buy the equipment, we need people who know how to use it."

Lu Shixian nodded in agreement, using a slightly inappropriate example from their neighbor. "Take cryo-electron microscopy, for instance. It's now one of the supporting technologies for structural biology. After Shuimu University bought a cryo-EM from FEI a few years ago, they immediately published several papers in CNS."

Hearing Lu Shixian mention their rival, Shuimu, Xu Zhihong didn't react much and continued.

"There needs to be a delicate balance between the two."
"Many people mistake the Doctrine of the Mean, passed down by our ancestors, for a doctrine of mediocrity, a philosophy of hiding one's capabilities and biding one's time."

"But in reality, what it truly expresses is moderation, balance, and stability..."

Leaving Academician Xu's office, Lu Shixian felt he had learned a great deal more.

He knew, of course, that Xu Zhihong wasn't just speaking idly; he was using his own experience to light the path for him.

This applied to everything from the country's macroeconomic policies to leading a small research team.

After expressing his gratitude once more, Lu Shixian went straight to Ma Yuhang's office.

The two were both mentor and friend, and in Ma's presence, Lu Shixian felt none of the restraint and caution he had shown with Academician Xu.

They chatted for a while, then revisited the details of the upcoming National Plant Genomics Conference they had discussed before.

Finally, after bidding farewell to Old Ma, Lu Shixian was at last on his way home, able to spend some time with his parents.

When he arrived, his mother, Ms. Xia Xiuman, had just started her winter break and was at home preparing goods for the New Year.

"Son, you finally make it back for a rare visit, and you have to leave before the New Year is even over? Does that mean it'll just be me and your old man celebrating alone this year?" Xia Xiuman, holding traditional views, said with a hint of complaint.

"I can't help it, Mom. The Spring Festival isn't a public holiday in the US. I just happened to have business in the country this time, which gave me the chance to come back early and celebrate with you. Hehe, so if you have any special treats, you can bring them out now," Lu Shixian said, trying to comfort her.

Lu Jianguo, however, was much more easygoing. He glanced at Xia Xiuman and said, "What's wrong? You've spent all these years with just me. You have a problem with it now?"

"Even if you have a problem, you can keep it to yourself. It's not like he's doing it on purpose. The boy has important work to do out there. You think he's just fussing over trivial things like you?"

Seeing that his parents were about to start their usual bickering, Lu Shixian chose to sit back and watch the two tigers fight, making a swift escape before it escalated.

He hadn't come home just to relax this time.

He had to complete a research paper within a deadline, which, after review, would be used for his presentation at the conference.

The topic of the research paper was genome sequencing and new technologies.

This was clearly aimed directly at the achievements he had made at Yale last year.

Though called a paper, it was essentially a script for his speech, asking him to explain the results of the paper published in *Science*.

Therefore, the true intention of the Genetics Society of China was to have him introduce third-generation sequencing technology.

For Lu Shixian, this was a piece of cake.

He had been the one to uncover the core content of that paper; every step and process was etched in his mind.

In less than three days, Lu Shixian had already finished the first draft.

In reality, when it came to such highly specialized content, no staff member would verify its technical accuracy.

The experts and scholars present at the conference would be the ones to raise questions. What the organizers really checked for were sensitive issues, to avoid any awkward situations later.

The academic circles in China had learned this lesson the hard way.

Lu Shixian, naturally, had no such problems.

After a few revisions, he submitted it online to the conference organizing committee and quickly received feedback that it had been approved.

January fifteenth, the day before the conference officially began.

Lu Shixian said goodbye to his family and set off for Hefei City in Anhui Province.

In fact, this wasn't his first time here.

He had taken the written exam for the Special Class for the Gifted Young here in the past and had a deep impression of the city.

He hadn't expected this year's National Plant Genomics Conference to be held in Hefei.

The conference was hosted by the Genetics Society of China and organized by Anhui Agricultural University.

Consequently, the venue was the academic auditorium at Anhui Agricultural University, while the registration was at the nearby Swan Lake International Hotel.

It was a local landmark, and it didn't take long for Lu Shixian to arrive by taxi.

The organizing committee had already booked a room for him at the hotel, and Lu Shixian checked in smoothly.

By the time he had settled in at the hotel, it was nearly six o'clock.

According to the committee's schedule, all attendees were to gather for a banquet on the twenty-fifth floor of the hotel.

It was called a dinner, but Lu Shixian knew what that really meant.

Still, being new here, it wouldn't be right to refuse. He figured since he didn't know anyone anyway, there was no harm in going to grab a free meal.

However, to his great surprise, just as he stepped into the elevator heading to the restaurant, he ran into a familiar face.

"Well, what a coincidence! What are you doing here?"

Chapter 466: The Opening

The person he met was none other than Professor Gu Hongya, whom he knew from his time at Peking University.

Seeing him, Professor Gu showed no surprise at all, merely smiling as she said, "What? Are you so surprised to see me?"

Lu Shixian gave an awkward yet polite smile. "Not at all, not at all! I just didn't expect to run into you right here, what a coincidence."

He quickly pieced it together. As the vice president of the Botanical Society of China, Gu Hongya was likely also a committee member for the plant genetics and genomics professional committee.

His own invitation to this prestigious event might have even been partly due to her influence.

Gu Hongya knew exactly what he was thinking. She said pointedly, "The academic circle in China is both large and small. You'll get used to it."

"Come with me to meet Academician Zhang first. He's very curious about you."

From what Old Ma had told him earlier, he knew who this Academician Zhang was and had long heard of his esteemed name.

Academician Zhang Qifa had dedicated his life to rice genome research, with his work covering the genetic mechanisms of heterosis, functional genomics of rice, and rice bioinformatics, among other areas.

Part of the reason Lu Shixian was willing to develop his career in plant genetics was due to Zhang's influence.

He was a giant in the field, someone Lu Shixian had once considered unattainable. He never thought he would have the chance to speak with him today.

Soon, in a private room, he met the amiable, top-tier scholar.

"Young Lu, I've been wanting to meet you for a long time. Seeing you now, you're every bit as impressive as they say," Academician Zhang said with a cheerful laugh, extending his hand.

Lu Shixian quickly stepped forward and grasped his right hand with both of his. "You're too kind, sir! My minor achievements are hardly worth your notice."

Zhang Qifa gestured for him to sit down. "What you've done is no minor achievement. Otherwise, why would we have invited you here to give a report?"

"I heard you studied at UCD for a while?"

Lu Shixian was taken aback by the question, unsure how the topic had jumped, but he quickly answered, "Yes, I was fortunate enough to be an exchange student there for over a year."

Hearing this, Zhang Qifa nodded with a smile. "What a coincidence. I did my PhD and postdoc there."

"Students these days all want to go to famous universities. Not many are willing to go to a place like that to learn something real."

After some pleasantries, the two quickly grew closer.

Academician Zhang finally got to the main point, his eyes filled with admiration. "I've read the paper you published in *Science*. The discovery of a new species aside, the gene editing method you developed from third-generation sequencing technology is extremely valuable."

"It overcomes the problems that second-generation sequencing couldn't solve: high heterozygosity, high repetitiveness, polyploidy, or ultra-large genomes, especially the high heterozygosity, highly repetitive sequences, and complex polyploidy found in plant genomes."

"So soon after the advent of third-generation sequencing, you were able to find its application in gene reconstruction, achieving the assembly of highly complex plant genomes. This provides invaluable ideas and methods for all researchers in related fields. In the future, it will greatly promote the successful assembly of high-quality complex genomes for various animals, plants, and even microorganisms, helping us to better discover key excellent variant genes. It also holds great significance for studying their population dynamic history and the molecular basis of important agronomic traits."

Lu Shixian's eyebrows rose. An academician was truly an academician, he thought, getting to the heart of the matter in an instant.

His own research only touched upon two minor applications of third-generation sequencing: distant hybridization varieties and the assembly and annotation of high-quality genomes for mining genetic resources.

But Academician Zhang could already envision future applications that would later flourish. Population dynamic history and the molecular basis of important agronomic traits were both linked with comparative genomics, used to study key traits and genes, and played a significant role in species evolution, adaptive mechanisms, and breeding.

The conversation with Academician Zhang was undoubtedly fruitful, especially his insights and research on insect-resistant transgenic rice, which left Lu Shixian in awe.

This was a man who had given a presentation on "Transgenic Science and Technology" to the leaders in Zhongnanhai.

His attitude towards the science of genetic modification was the same as Lu Shixian's, though they had arrived at it through different paths.

The decision on the industrialization of GM rice should not be dictated by public opinion but should follow regulations and procedures, trusting the decisions of the scientific community.

The next day, under the moderation of the society's president, Zhang Qifa, the 15th National Plant Genomics Conference officially commenced.

He had nothing scheduled for that day. After the initial routine agenda items and the opening remarks, it was time for the invited reports from various experts and scholars.

The report by Academician Wang Lingling from the Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, was brilliant. She focused on her team's exploration of the genetic and molecular mechanisms of haploid induction in soybeans.

Academician Li Changfeng from the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, shared his research findings on higher-order chromatin structure and its epigenetic regulatory mechanisms.

Unlike the wild plant conservation conferences and lectures he attended during his school days, Lu Shixian was completely enthralled, listening from the audience. At certain key points, he felt an urge to rush onto the stage and discuss them face-to-face.

Unfortunately, these titans of academia were engrossed in their research and on a tight schedule. They left the venue shortly after their reports to hurry back to their labs.

Soon, the first day of reports came to a close.

As everyone began to leave in an orderly fashion, Gu Hongya walked up to Lu Shixian with a smile. "Young Lu, you were so focused. I walked right up to you, and you didn't even notice. The reports are over, what are you still thinking about?"

Lu Shixian snapped out of his reverie and replied with a sigh, "It was one thing when I couldn't understand it before, but now that I can, I realize just how brilliant it all is. Their research in these fields has undoubtedly reached a profound level. Every conclusion is backed by detailed sources and a rigorous logical framework."

Gu Hongya looked a little surprised. "What field do you actually want to research? It feels like you're interested in all the topics that were just discussed."

"The broad field is definitely plant genetics and breeding, but as for the specific direction, that's hard to say. I'm actually quite interested in genomics, epigenetics, and developmental genetics. Although I've been putting a lot of effort into comparative genomics recently and have seen some results, it still feels rather thin compared to the research of the academicians," Lu Shixian responded modestly.

His humility made Gu Hongya chuckle. "Heh, your time slot tomorrow is just as long as theirs!"

Chapter 467: First Impression

With a tough battle to fight the next day, Lu Shixian quickly said goodbye to Professor Gu and returned to his room to rest, skipping any further social activities.

The night passed uneventfully, and soon it was the second day of the conference.

Lu Shixian styled his hair in a more mature fashion than usual and put on a sharp suit, ready for his appearance.

According to the schedule, he was the last speaker of the morning session in the first breakout room.

Someone was already on stage giving the first presentation, the title of which was the same as advertised on the poster displays: "Whole-Genome Sequencing, Assembly, and Gene Map Construction of *Phalaenopsis equestris*."

The speaker was Professor Huang Qiang from the Tsinghua-Berkeley Shenzhen Institute.

In truth, anyone who made it onto the stage for a report was formidable.

Before he even spoke, Lu Shixian already had an impression of this work, as it had broken several records.

"Indeed, there's always someone better. You can't underestimate anyone," Lu Shixian vaguely recalled that the research in this report had been published as a cover story with a special recommendation in *Nature Genetics* at the end of last year.

It was also the first team in the world to complete the whole-genome sequencing of an orchid, and *Phalaenopsis equestris* became the first CAM plant to have its entire genome sequenced.

With it being only early January, the results were still hot off the press.

Soon, Professor Huang began his presentation. The hall fell silent, as if preparing for a baptism of knowledge.

"First, I would like to thank Professor Liu from the National Orchid Conservation Center of China, as well as the excellent research teams from the Institute of Botany at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, BGI, and National Cheng Kung University in Taiwan. It is through our collective efforts that this achievement was possible." After his acknowledgments, Professor Huang officially began his report.

"As we all know, orchids are one of the most diverse families in the plant kingdom. They possess unique mechanisms to attract insects for pollination, and new species are still being discovered to this day. However, the genetic basis of orchid biodiversity remains a mystery."

"During the sequencing process, the large number of heterozygous regions in the orchid genome presented a huge challenge for whole-genome sequencing and assembly. After extensive discussion, our team hypothesized that these overlapping regions might be caused by heterozygosity, as they were particularly enriched in genes involved in self-incompatibility pathways."

"Observing the genome sequence, the average intron length of protein-coding genes in *Phalaenopsis equestris* exceeds that of any plant genome sequenced to date..."

"At the same time, after comparing similarities with other plants, we discovered a paleo-polyploidization event specific to orchids in this species, which might explain why orchid species diversity is so rich. We also found instances of gene duplication and the loss of CAM genes, suggesting that gene duplication events may have led to the evolution of CAM photosynthesis in *Phalaenopsis*..."

"We also found that MADS-box C/D-class, B-class AP3, and AGL6-class genes have undergone expansion, forming diverse families. It is with the help of these genes that orchids can develop such highly specialized floral morphologies..."

In less than thirty minutes, it was impossible to present all the findings of the paper, so the content included in the speech was the very essence of the research.

Throughout the hall, besides the sound of the report, Lu Shixian could only hear the "shh-shh-shh" of people taking notes.

"That concludes my report. Thank you all!" After answering all the questions, Professor Huang's presentation was clearly a success, met with a round of applause.

Next on stage was Professor Li Chengping from the College of Life Sciences at Anhui Agricultural University. He shared a modified universal DNA extraction method for plant genomes that his team had published that year.

Although the caliber of this achievement was a step down from the previous one, it had some positive practical applications. Coupled with the home-field advantage of being the host institution, everyone in the audience applauded knowingly at the end.

At 11:20 AM, it was finally Lu Shixian's turn.

The moderator began the introduction: "Next, please welcome Mr. Lu Shixian, an associate researcher from the State Key Laboratory of Plant Genetics at Yale University."

"This will be the final report of the morning in this session. Researcher Lu's topic is 'Prospects for Research Based on Third-Generation Sequencing Technology.'"

"Also at the end of last year, Researcher Lu's team discovered a new species in the grass family using a novel high-quality genome reconstruction method. This achievement became the cover story for *Science* last December."

In that moment, everyone, whether they knew him or not, formed an unforgettable first impression.

His appearance on stage immediately drew the attention and murmurs of the entire audience.

The first thing people noticed was his youth. Combined with his achievement in a top-tier journal and his position as an associate researcher at Yale, the contrast was stark.

"Whoa, this guy looks about the same age as my son who just started college."

"To make a name for himself in the US, first author on a *Science* cover... he must have some real skills."

"Truly, the young are to be feared! The youth of today are something else!"

"He already had major achievements before this. I just wonder when he came back to China."

By this point, the once-spacious hall had become much more crowded. It was clear that many spectators had come specifically to see this "new academic star."

The reputation he had built up before was now paying its greatest dividend, drawing far more attention than Professor Huang and Professor Li had.

Walking onto the stage amidst the gazes and whispers, Lu Shixian's heart was as calm as still water. He was a true clutch performer.

He had seen scenes even more dramatic than this before, so he felt no nervousness.

"Hello, everyone. I'm very happy to be standing here to share and exchange ideas with you all."

"To be honest, this is my first time truly participating in this kind of academic exchange. I am very grateful to the organizing committee for the invitation."

"I will now begin my report."

Lu Shixian's opening was incredibly steady; he didn't seem at all like someone standing on a conference stage for the first time.

But people had already seen so many things about him that defied convention that this, too, became inconsequential.

Zhang Qifa, Gu Hongya, and others who knew him sat in the audience, listening quietly, hoping he would command the stage.

Many more were there out of curiosity, to see the man in person and determine if he lived up to his name.

Of course, a small minority, for reasons of their own, were there with the hope of seeing him make a fool of himself.

Lu Shixian paid them no mind, treating them as irrelevant as he officially began his presentation.

Chapter 468: Large Genome Assembly

"As for second-generation sequencing, or NGS technology, everyone here is already an expert. The available options are currently not that many, especially Illumina sequencing, which, with its high throughput and low cost, has gradually become the mainstream."

"But as demands change, I'm sure everyone can appreciate that the read length of second-gen is simply too short. The standard mode can only sequence a length of PE150. Against this backdrop, third-generation sequencing technology was born."

As he finished this sentence, many in the audience nodded in agreement, clearly sharing the sentiment. Those listening to the report were, if not all research professors and scholars, at least professionals in related fields.

Lu Shixian wasn't speaking in empty platitudes; only those who had hands-on experience with sequencing work could truly understand.

"Young Lu is speaking the truth. However, for now, the disadvantage of short read lengths can be optimized and improved with software algorithms, and the final results are still pretty good," Professor Gu Hongya whispered from the audience, voicing the thoughts of many.
No one is immune to hassle. After a certain age, people's motivation to explore new things wanes, and they begin to view the world through the lens of experience. This can lead to an over-reliance on the past, a contentment with solving problems using old methods.

This is precisely why, as long as the old tools still function, almost no one is willing to expend significant effort to learn something new.

Be that as it in may, no one refuted or interrupted Lu Shixian.

Success grants you the right to speak.

The man had already made new breakthroughs in gene recombination using third-generation sequencing and had successfully published his findings in a top-tier journal. At this point, whatever he said was gospel.

Clearly, if one wanted to capture everyone's attention at a moment like this, one had to paint a beautiful and enticing picture of the future.

And so, Lu Shixian began to spin his vision.

"First, allow me to introduce the research I conducted at Yale University."

"As we all know, the essence of third-generation sequencing technology is its ability to sequence each DNA molecule individually, without the need for PCR amplification. Based on this feature, we used the special codes inherent to effective genes—start codons and stop codons—along with the characteristics of coding gene sequences, to assemble high-quality genomes for dozens of samples and for rice. We mapped the first genomic variation atlas for the *Miscanthus* genus and constructed the world's first high-quality graphical pangenome."

"Then, through phylogenetic and comparative genomics, we gained a fundamental understanding of this plant following distant hybridization and analyzed the process of genomic variation. At the same time, by correlating genomic variations with rice phenome data, we identified many important trait-related loci significantly associated with phenotypes, such as the glutamate-1-semialdehyde aminotransferase (GSAAT) gene, which controls chlorophyll synthesis..."

"Furthermore, it was through this experiment that we truly came to understand the gene variation and species evolution process of a distantly hybridized plant. Because it possessed characteristics of both the *Miscanthus* and *Arundo* genera, I later named it *Arundo miscanthus*, and it has since been registered under the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants."

In less than five minutes, Lu Shixian had briefly summarized the findings he had previously published in *Science*.

The hall was no longer silent; a murmur of discussion began to ripple through the audience.

To the layperson, discovering a new species and giving it an internationally recognized name was incredibly cool.

But the industry insiders were contemplating the possibilities of applying this method to other species, or even other fields. They keenly sensed the technology's potential for adaptation and development.

No wonder it was a cover story for *Science*. It had a vast future ahead of it.

What Lu Shixian had just shared was, in fact, merely the appetizer for his report. He had something even more substantial to share, which would soon answer the questions forming in their minds.

"Next, I will offer some extensions and prospects based on these findings. Much of what follows are my personal thoughts, yet to be experimentally verified, but they represent my views on the future direction of third-generation sequencing technology."

Lu Shixian clicked the remote in his hand. The PowerPoint on the large screen switched, finally displaying a few large words.

Large Genome Assembly

"As genome sequencing technology advances, the cost of third-generation sequencing will drop dramatically, throughput will increase exponentially, and read lengths will improve by more than a hundredfold."

"In the future, more and more organisms will have their entire genomes decoded. Once the study of plants with relatively small genomes, like *Arundo miscanthus* with its genome size of less than 2.12 Gb, is complete—I'll refer to these as small genomes for now."

"The trend will then gradually shift toward large or even ultra-large genomes, such as those of gymnosperms or amphibians and reptiles. I speculate there are two reasons for the variation in plant genome size."

"One is polyploidy or whole-genome duplication, which increases the size of the plant genome. The other reason may be copy number variations, which can also alter genome size. For example, repetitive DNA sequences constitute the majority of the genomic DNA in most plants, appearing in millions of copies."

The moment Lu Shixian's voice fell, the entire hall was stunned.

Everyone was shocked, because the implications were obvious and not difficult to extrapolate.

If high-quality gene recombination and genomic variation mapping could be done in plants, then applying it to animals was not impossible.

Taking it a step further, could humanity use this to establish its own high-quality reference genome?

This was, in fact, a very serious question.

Lu Shixian's decision to raise this topic here was also a calculated one.

His being the first to propose a new application for third-generation sequencing technology in the United States was, in a way, a move born of necessity.

The technology was invented by the Americans. Even without him, they would have developed it eventually, and he knew that time was not far off.

It was better to be the first to take the plunge. With a first-mover advantage, he would wield greater influence.

This might enable China to join the two most important international consortia in the field of genomics: the International Human Pangenome Consortium and the international Telomere-to-Telomere (T2T) Consortium.

Even in the future he knew, the key members of these groups were from foreign universities and research institutes; Chinese institutions and personnel were not included.

Few people were aware that, just a few years ago, the United States had officially proposed a new grand science initiative based on the Human Genome Project—the Precision Medicine Initiative.

The ultimate goal of this initiative was to sequence the genome of every single person, also known as the "All of Us Research Program."

Chapter 469: Everyone, Please Be Seated

This plan might not sound particularly special. With the Human Genome Project already completed, what was the big deal about sequencing everyone's individual genome?

But in reality, they were not the same thing at all.

For over a decade, scientists had been using a single human genome sequence to study genomics. In other words, the human genetic map was still based on a single individual's genome as the reference standard for identifying disease-causing genetic variations.

The "All of Us" program, however, aimed to create a pangenome reference map. Its establishment would be a milestone in human genomics, helping scientists and doctors better understand how genomic variation affects health and disease, and aiding the development of precision medical therapies.

In the future, if all sequencing diagnostic reports for tumors or genetic diseases were to judge normalcy or variation based on a human reference genome dominated by foreign powers, and the proportion of Asian individuals in their composite human genome sequences was not high...

This meant that when predicting disease risk and making diagnoses, there could be significant biases for people of Asian descent when compared against such a reference group.

Thinking deeper, the "All of Us" program included the genome sequencing of millions of Chinese Americans, and the United States had been continuously trying to obtain genetic samples from people in China through various means.

If the United States were to succeed, it could create a very awkward, and even dangerous, situation.

That's right. Others would understand our own genomes better than we do.

In the field of medical genomics research, areas like genetic disease diagnosis, common disease risk prediction, tumor genome variation, and pharmacogenomics would all face a "chokehold" problem.

In more sensitive domains, the impact and risks could be even greater.

In fact, some in China were already aware of this issue, and there had been ongoing efforts to construct their own reference genome.

For example, "Yanhuang No. 1," completed on October 11, 2007, was the first standard genome sequence map of a Chinese individual, accomplished after completing 1% of the International Human Genome Project and 10% of the International HapMap Project.

Later, many genetics research institutes carried out similar studies. However, limited by the technology of the time, these reference genomes were not put into practical application.

Lu Shixian did not elaborate on these details. Some of the content was sensitive, and fearing it might cause a negative public reaction, he dared not test the waters recklessly.

But the people engaged in scientific research were not lacking in intelligence. This level of extrapolation was not beyond them.

In a way, he had said everything that needed to be said.

At this point, many in the audience sat up straight, their attention rapt.

After all, the strategic significance of third-generation sequencing technology was becoming truly extraordinary.

"Young Lu has given everyone quite a 'surprise' today! After this, I expect the community will be buzzing about this technology, and some people might get restless again," Academician Zhang Qifa said with a wry smile, shaking his head.

Another ten minutes had passed, leaving Lu Shixian with the final five minutes of his presentation time.

The last ten minutes were reserved for audience questions and answers.

Time was tight for Lu Shixian, so he quickly switched the slide on the large screen.

The new words that appeared were: Full-Length Transcriptome Sequencing.

He had to articulate and express his core content within this brief twenty-minute window.

It was a dual test of the speaker's academic prowess and oral presentation skills.

Lu Shixian's voice once again echoed through the conference hall via the microphone.

"Second-generation sequencing technology has read-length limitations, which requires the sample mRNA to be fragmented into small pieces before sequencing. Transcripts are then identified through alignment to a reference genome or by assembly, which can introduce a certain error rate and makes it difficult to distinguish differences at the single-base level."

"With the longer read lengths from third-generation sequencing technology, can we directly sequence the complete mRNA *de novo* to obtain full-length transcript information? This could potentially allow us to study all transcript types and their relative expression levels in a specific cell or tissue, rather than being limited to differential expression analysis of a few key genes..."

As the seconds ticked away, Lu Shixian finally finished this section just within the allotted time.

After a quick sip of water, Lu Shixian turned to the audience with a smile and said, "That concludes my report."

"And I'd like to add one more thing. The universal rule for resource allocation internationally is first come, first served."

"Seize the initiative, and you seize the future!"

At that moment, the entire hall fell silent.

"Who am I?"

"Where am I?"

"What am I supposed to be doing?"

It wasn't that his presentation was bad; it was just too staggering.

If Lu Shixian hadn't given a prior warning that this was just his personal forecast and not yet a reality, the place would have erupted long ago.

If everything he spoke of could be realized, throwing these ideas onto the international stage wouldn't be like dropping one or two depth charges—it would be like detonating two "nuclear bombs."

Lu Shixian looked at the quiet hall, feeling a bit helpless.

What was going on? Why was there no reaction?

So he picked up the microphone again and continued, "We'll now move to the Q&A session. If you have any questions about these two parts, please feel free to ask. Let's have a discussion!"

"Also, the future prospects for the application of third-generation sequencing technology are far from limited to this. If anyone is interested, you can find me for a private discussion. My door is always open."

As his voice fell, many biologists shot up from their seats reflexively. Their keen intuition told them they couldn't stay seated any longer; it felt as if another door to a new world had just been opened!

Things were getting out of hand. The scene became so heated it was almost out of control.

"Please, don't rush. One at a time," Lu Shixian said, taking on the role of a host as he looked at the growing crowd. "Please remain calm and take your seats. You know what, I'll just call on people randomly."

At the banquet that evening.

In a private room with only a handful of people.

Zhang Qifa asked him with great solemnity, "Young Lu, in your opinion, is it necessary for the country to vigorously develop this new generation of sequencing technology right now?"

Hearing the question, Lu Shixian thought of the passive situation China faced in his previous life and nodded. But then, for some reason, the teachings of his mentor, Xu Zhihong, came to mind, and he immediately shook his head.

This gesture confused the few people in the room.

Lu Shixian then explained, "Development is a must, just not right now."

"It's just as I said during the Q&A this morning. Some research methods are not yet mature enough, for example, the high-throughput chromosome conformation capture technology that has been proposed for a long time..."

Chapter 470: A Flurry of Good News

The five-day National Plant Genomics Conference was drawing to a close.

Lu Shixian's time at the conference grew shorter and shorter.

After the closing ceremony, Lu Shixian slipped away as quietly as he had arrived, leaving without a trace.

He departed at a leisurely pace, but many others were rushing off. Although Lu Shixian's presentation was long over, its impact was far from finished; in fact, it was intensifying.

The botanists were thrilled, eager to follow his lead and try recombining a representative plant species.

The agronomists were thrilled, believing they had found the key to improving crop trait genes.

The genomicists were thrilled, having found a new direction for completing a high-quality reference genome for the East Asian population.

Everyone could practically see academic papers waving at them.

But for now, none of this had anything to do with him. Lu Shixian was already on his way back to the United States.

His vacation time was running low and in need of a recharge.

On the flight, Lu Shixian idly picked up his phone and browsed the news.

The first headline that caught his eye was about the nation's favorite bachelor throwing a birthday party swarming with young models.

The life of the rich second generation was so simple and unpretentious. Lu Shixian wasn't envious at all, really!

He scrolled to the next item. Mango TV dominated the New Year's Eve galas, winning the ratings championship for its time slot.

Wasn't that a time-honored tradition? Lu Shixian felt no surprise, even a little amused.

Next, a certain male celebrity posted his 1,314th Weibo post as a declaration of love for Gao Yuanyuan.

Alright, another public display of affection.

Though the actress was his childhood goddess, he could only think, "Well, good for them!"

After a round of scrolling, Lu Shixian found no trace of news related to the National Plant Genomics Conference.

It was as if the past few days had been a dream.

Indeed, this kind of thing was still far too removed from the general public.

Back at Yale.

With a few days of vacation still left, Manlun already had several pieces of good news for him.

The first was that he had accepted the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences from last year on behalf of the team.

The three million dollars in prize money had now been disbursed, and the lab would distribute it strictly according to each person's contribution weight—and his weight was very high.

This was undoubtedly exhilarating news, and Lu Shixian broke into a wide grin.

The second piece of news was that, based on his contributions and immense potential in the field of genetics, the Genetics Society of America had decided to invite him to become a member.

This didn't matter much to Lu Shixian. A membership wouldn't impose any restrictions on him; on the contrary, it would enhance his platform.

Many of the top experts in China held key positions in foreign academic societies.

Not to mention, he had received a full postdoctoral fellowship from the Genetics Society last year.

It was a courtesy he should extend, so there was nothing to object to.

The third piece of news was an invitation from the *Cell* subsidiary journal, *Cell Reports*, to become a reviewer.

This came as a bit of a surprise to Lu Shixian.

He had no special connections with Cell Press.

"Has my talent become so great that I can no longer keep a low profile?" Lu Shixian thought to himself.

The thought might have been a bit smug, but it was also true.

Lu Shixian had been on good terms with *Cell*, with a honeymoon period lasting several months over three consecutive papers.

Now, *Science* had quietly slipped in. The most sensational breakthrough in the field of genetics that year had been published by them, and *Cell* had been completely in the dark.

This had undoubtedly struck a nerve, and they felt compelled to win back some ground.

It was obvious to anyone with eyes that Lu Shixian possessed enormous research potential in the life sciences, so recruiting him had become a recent decision for the *Cell* editorial board.

But he wasn't yet prominent enough to be a reviewer for the main journal.

And the genetics-focused subsidiary, *Cell Genomics*, had yet to be launched.

Thus, *Cell Reports*, a rising star among academic journals, became a satisfactory choice.

But in reality, none of this had anything to do with Lu Shixian.

He wasn't the project leader and had no authority to choose where the findings were published.

At the time, Yale had a decent relationship with *Science*, which offered more convenient terms.

He was a beneficiary of that decision, so he was naturally happy to see it happen.

Though the process was unexpected, Lu Shixian was very pleased with the outcome.

In 2014, *Cell Reports* had an unprecedented impact factor of 8.358, and that was only four years after its founding. Its growth trajectory was formidable.

Despite the flurry of good news, and though he appeared pleased, Lu Shixian remained rock-steady on the inside.

That's just how academia worked. Performance and achievements received a great deal of attention.

Once you produced results, both fame and fortune would follow.

Then, your academic standing would rise accordingly. It was a chain reaction.

After sharing the good news, Manlun congratulated him. "You weren't around for a while, so they relayed these messages through the lab's contact."

"Congratulations. You could use these last few days to throw a huge party!"

"I'm sure quite a few girls in the lab would gladly attend."

Lu Shixian wasn't in the habit of throwing parties, so he politely declined the seemingly excellent suggestion.

"No, before that, I can finally go buy a car. I've had enough of the buses here."

"You know, I've wasted far too much time commuting," Lu Shixian said with a shrug, revealing his long-held small goal.

Manlun smiled at his words, as if seeing a younger version of himself.

"A fine idea. I bought my first car for the same reason, though I hadn't achieved as much as you have now."

"But I just mentioned it, and my family got me a High Country."

Lu Shixian joked helplessly, "I don't hate the rich, but when someone flaunts it so openly in my face, I can't help but feel a little unhappy."

Manlun looked surprised. "Actually, it's not really a luxury car."

"Many people get a gift like that as soon as they turn eighteen."
"Trust me, you should get a big pickup like this. I'm an old hand at this."

Lu Shixian once again politely declined Manlun’s suggestion. "I'm sorry, but this kind of truck just doesn't suit my taste."

And with that, the conversation ended.

In less than five hours, 320,000 US dollars landed in Lu Shixian's bank account.

Based on the exchange rate, this sum was more than one percent of a "small goal" back in China, but he was worth it.

With such a huge sum of money, Lu Shixian immediately abandoned his plan to buy a used car. In a single day, he successfully purchased a Ford Mondeo.

Chapter 471: Striking Out on His Own

According to the sales consultant, the Mondeo was equipped with six safety systems, including cruise control, a distance alert system, an automatic brake assist system, an active safety assistance system, and a proprietary rapid braking system, maxing out its safety rating.

At the same time, the interior was incredibly spacious. The cabin was fitted with a variety of comfort features such as adjustable seats, a smart climate control system, an intelligent air conditioning system, a high-end sound system, and a multimedia system, making for a perfect passenger experience.

Whether it was truly "maxed out" or "perfect," Lu Shixian couldn't say.

But at the very least, there was one thing that mattered: it was in stock and ready to drive off the lot.

And the price was fantastic, offering extremely high value for its class. Without the massive tariffs and shipping costs, buying a car in the United States was a real bargain.

To him, a car was merely a tool for getting around in service of his research, not something worth spending a fortune on.

Once all the paperwork was done, the car was completely his.

His month-long vacation was finally drawing to a close.

Lu Shixian spent the little time he had left holed up in his apartment, conducting a simple personal review.

Reflecting on the past.

In his nearly one year at Yale, he had chosen to join Professor Manlun’s project team and had published a paper as the first author on the cover of *Science*.

Although it was only a single paper, its impact was something numerous articles in ordinary journals could never hope to achieve.

Seizing this opportunity, he successfully transitioned from an Assistant Researcher to an Associate Researcher, granting him greater autonomy in the lab.

He also gained the credentials of a member of the Genetics Society of America and a reviewer for the journal *Cell Reports*.

Meanwhile, he was also invited to participate in China’s National Plant Genome Congress, where he delivered an important presentation.

For this year alone, his achievements were already gratifying.

He couldn't compare to some of the heavyweights in the field, but you have to eat your meal one bite at a time and walk your path one step at a time.

Lu Shixian was in no rush for success. Especially for a scientific researcher, it was essential to maintain a rigorous, truth-seeking, and detached mindset.

Looking to the future.

The completion of this paper demonstrated his academic proficiency and technical skill, serving as a crucial piece of academic capital in the field of genetics.

However, he was not the project leader. He still needed an opportunity to prove his ability to see the bigger picture and manage a project from start to finish.

An excellent researcher is not necessarily an excellent academic leader.

Publishing results as a project leader would help him build his influence more quickly, making him a more attractive candidate for awards and invitations to various international academic conferences.

It was embarrassing to admit, but after all this hard work, he still hadn't won a single award of any significance.

This undoubtedly spurred him on toward new horizons.

The problem was, he was practically a one-man army at the moment. If he wanted to produce results, he first had to recruit some troops.

But it was foreseeable that if he tried to apply for one of the lab's key projects on his own, at a level comparable to Professor Manlun's, it would be extremely difficult.

After all, he was only an Associate Researcher for now. To try and be the star of the show with that title, no matter how hard he tried, would amount to little more than tinkering around the edges.

Lu Shixian was well aware of this.

If he couldn't break the shackles from within, there was only one way: seek new external forces to disrupt the balance.

As he thought this, his path forward became increasingly clear.

"So, I guess I have to walk that old path I first envisioned after all?"

Muttering as if in a dream, Lu Shixian drifted off to sleep.

The night passed uneventfully. Composing himself, Lu Shixian arrived at the lab.

For him, the last project was concluded, and the next one had yet to begin.

In this interim period, his time was actually quite leisurely.

Playing the part of a curious onlooker, he observed most of the lab's ongoing projects.

One was the study of the molecular mechanism of the CRISPR-Cas nuclease and its application as a gene-editing tool.

This was undoubtedly the project Morty had been alluding to when he asked for his opinion on gene scissors, but he hadn't chosen it in the end.

Now, he certainly wouldn't be entering this field.

The first-mover advantage was lost. Even if he joined now, at best, he'd only get to drink some of the soup.

The major credit for this technology had long been settled. Although there was still some dispute over the discoverers, it didn't change much.

One group won the patent, while the other won the Nobel Prize. One profited, the other gained fame.

In a way, it was a classic example of a win-win situation.

After all, without competition, where would the motivation for progress come from?

Another project was on a new gene and its regulatory mechanism for above-ground plant architecture in maize.

This fell under the research area of crop genetics. Plant root systems were indeed becoming a hot research topic, with studies gradually delving down to the genetic level.

It was a relatively novel direction, and to be honest, Lu Shixian was quite interested.

Much of the natural scenery we see today comes from diverse plant architectures. Countless vascular plants possess unique appearances and structural features, which provide humans with a basis for identification, differentiation, and classification.

After tens of millions of years of continuous evolution, these differences now provide the genetic basis for plants to adapt to specific environments and selective reproduction.

Over the long course of history, humans have learned to domesticate plants and use them as a continuous source of food and materials.

One of the most significant advances in plant domestication was likely the selection and cultivation of maize from teosinte. Teosinte is just a highly branched wild grass from Central America, whereas maize has become a staple food in most parts of the world.

Strangely, while most domesticated cereal crops have wild relatives that retain a similar morphology in the wild, this is difficult to find for maize. The kernels of wild teosinte fall off very easily upon maturity, and the level of seed condensation makes it seem like a completely different species compared to maize.

Genomic studies have shown that despite the apparent differences, teosinte and maize share significant genetic similarity.

Thus, the question of where exactly maize originated has become an unsolved mystery to this day, with various conflicting hypotheses.

Therefore, this was something Lu Shixian didn't want to touch for the time being.

However, if it were just a study of above-ground architecture, he could accept that.

After all, research on the above-ground architecture of plants is necessary as it relates to plant growth and yield.

But it was influenced by too many factors: polarity, phyllotaxy, stress, and so on. This wasn't something that could be easily solved in a laboratory.

Lu Shixian moved on to the next one.

The signal transduction and functional gene regulation mechanism of physiological fruit drop in a certain fruit.

Alright, that sounded rather ordinary.

Lu Shixian finally made up his mind. He would strike out on his own.

It wasn't that he wanted to stir up trouble, but none of these projects held any appeal for him.

Chapter 472: The Visit

Of course, "striking out on his own" here didn't mean leaving the lab.

Generally, the earliest a postdoc could complete their program was about two years, while the latest could be up to six.

If someone, without any special circumstances, actually took six years to finish, their academic ability would likely be called into serious question.

This time, he didn't want to ride on someone else's coattails. He was preparing to apply for a project of his own.

But the difficulty of independently applying for a project was obvious. Not to mention the considerable effort it would require, it would also be very difficult for him to recruit suitable team members under his own name.

As for the idea of recruiting graduate students, he ultimately rejected it.

He just couldn't do something so irresponsible as to screw people over.

If he recruited a few students now, and then just packed up and left when his postdoc term was over, it would be like finding suckers to do free labor for him.

Lu Shixian didn't think he was capable of doing such a thing.

As Lu Shixian pondered, it seemed he needed to pay a visit to a certain someone.

No sooner said than done. Lu Shixian quickly found his contact email on Yale's internal website.

He had habitually typed out a message in English, but after a moment's thought, he deleted it and re-typed it in Chinese characters.

He didn't write a long-winded essay. After simply stating his intention to visit, Lu Shixian clicked send.

This person was clearly very efficient. Before three in the afternoon, Lu Shixian received a reply in his inbox.

"This afternoon, at your convenience."

Oh? Such good luck, he was free for the whole afternoon?

Top-tier scholars like him usually didn't spend much time in their offices; they were either in the lab or invited to give talks elsewhere.

This was a rare opportunity. Lu Shixian immediately got up from his office and swung by his apartment to pick up some local specialties from Jinling.

He had kept them in his suitcase just in case, and unexpectedly, they came in handy today.

A portion of it had originally been for Professor Deng, but unfortunately, he had resigned from Yale last year to return to China. The two hadn't even had a chance to meet, a regret that would have to be remedied in the future.

Fortunately, as the person was a professor in Yale's Department of Genetics, Lu Shixian had no trouble finding out his office location from people in the lab.

Knock, knock, knock! Lu Shixian rapped on the half-open door.

"Come in," a deep male voice called from inside the room.

Lu Shixian pushed the door open and, sure enough, saw the scholar in his office.

He quickly walked forward, extending his right hand. "Good afternoon, Professor Lin. I've heard so much about you; your reputation precedes you. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. I'm Lu Shixian from the plant genetics lab next door, currently a postdoc there."

As he spoke, he gestured with the bag in his other hand.

"This is some Yuhua tea, a specialty from my hometown. It's not worth much, just a small token of my appreciation."

Hearing this, the words of refusal that the professor had been about to utter died on his lips. He could only accept the gift and set it aside.

Then he said with a smile, "Young Lu, to be honest, you're the famous one at Yale right now."

"For a while now, many of the faculty and students at the university have been discussing your lab's latest achievement."

This man was none other than Lin Haifan, a pioneer in the field of stem cells. Not only had he proven the two major hypotheses of "asymmetric stem cell division" and the "stem cell niche" through his research on Drosophila germline stem cells, but he had also named a new type of piRNA, revealing its regulatory principles beyond the "central dogma."

Although he was later persecuted and targeted by the US authorities, this only served as proof of his extraordinary talent. After all, only the mediocre escape envy.

In the presence of such a giant, Lu Shixian dared not be presumptuous.

Lu Shixian quickly waved his hand. "How could I dare to show off my meager accomplishments in front of you?"

"You must be on the verge of being elected as an academician, right?"

Lin Haifan paused for a moment, then shook his head with a smile.

"Some people have been in touch, but while the election rules for the US academy are public, the selection process itself is secret, just like the Nobel Prize."

"To be frank, both Yale University and I have been excluded from the nomination and selection process, so I have no idea if I'll be elected."

Lu Shixian, of course, knew the answer. In just two or three years, he would become a member of both the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Sciences, receiving one of the highest honors here.

However, he couldn't say this out loud. He could only offer his best wishes. "Your academic achievements are there for all to see."

"If it doesn't work out here, you would certainly be elected if you returned to China."

At the mention of this topic, Lin Haifan grew a bit sentimental. "Honestly, it's been so long since I graduated from Fudan in 1982 and came abroad. It's about time I went back to have a look."

Lu Shixian seized the opportunity. "You've given your word, and you can't take it back. I heard you today. Maybe we can go back home together."

"Things have changed a lot in China now. How about I be your tour guide, at a friendly price?"

Lin Haifan burst out laughing at his joke. "That sounds great. We can definitely discuss it."

After this simple exchange, the two clearly felt much closer.

Lin Haifan then brewed him a cup of tea and continued, "Young Lu, you probably didn't come all the way here today just to bring me tea, did you?"

Lu Shixian didn't beat around the bush and stated his purpose directly.

After listening, Lin Haifan frowned slightly. He didn't give an answer right away, but instead brought up another matter.

"Actually, long before you arrived, Academician Xu Zhihong had asked Old Deng to look after you. And before he left, he also told me about you, praising you for being very capable and adapting quickly here."

Only now did Lu Shixian learn of this hidden story, and his gratitude for Xu Zhihong deepened.

To receive such care from his own mentor even in a foreign country, he couldn't help but feel how important it was to choose the right supervisor.

It was no wonder there was a saying: "The tears you cry in grad school are the water that was in your brain when you chose your advisor."

As he reflected on this, he heard Lin Haifan continue.

"Logically, as your elder, I have no reason to refuse your request for a collaborative project."

"However, our center's main research focus right now is on stem cells and biomedicine. That and your current research in plant genetics are worlds apart, aren't they?"

"Even if I wanted to help, my hands are tied."

Lu Shixian was not at all surprised by his doubts. This was no spur-of-the-moment idea.

He had long been preparing for this moment.

Leaning forward slightly, he explained to Lin Haifan the idea he had been planning for so long.

An hour later.

Having achieved his goal for the trip, Lu Shixian was in high spirits.

Lin Haifan smiled as he saw him to the door. "Even though I know this will be incredibly difficult, I couldn't help but agree to it."

"Young Lu, with a silver tongue like yours, you should consider starting a biotech company. You'd never lack for business."

Chapter 473: Seeing It Through

Returning to the plant genetics lab, Lu Shixian sought out Professor Morty.

A collaborative project involving multiple research units required him to give the big boss a heads-up first.

As expected, Morty was quite surprised to hear Lu Shixian's report.

"You want to independently apply for a key lab project? And a collaborative research project with the stem cell center at that?"

"Yes, but you can rest assured. This project won't use up one of our lab's key project slots. However, I am hoping that our side can provide a certain degree of financial support."

Lu Shixian had naturally thought this through carefully. After all, a lab only has so many resources.

As a newcomer who wasn't even a full researcher, taking up a key project slot would be a bit too self-centered.

Even if he managed to force it through by leveraging his past contributions and pulling strings, there would undoubtedly be whispers and complaints behind his back.

The Yale Stem Cell Center was a different story. It hadn't been established for long and was in need of impressive results. Its demand for good projects far outweighed its need to protect project slots. The problem was that it lacked a deep foundation, and its funding was consistently in short supply.

The plant genetics lab, on the other hand, was a well-established lab on campus with years of accumulated resources and very strong research funding.

It was a perfect match, which was one of the reasons Lin Haifan had ultimately agreed after hearing his explanation.

Sure enough, upon hearing that it would take up a key project slot from the stem cell center, Morty's interest was piqued. He didn't hesitate for long before agreeing.

"That's no problem. But you're right. You're one of our lab's people, so we can't let you be at a disadvantage. I'll allocate a bit more of the budget in your direction. As for personnel, however, you'll have to figure that out on your own."

He then added with a sigh, "It's incredible that Professor Lin has so much trust in you. You know, he just founded the stem cell center not long ago. His margin for error isn't very large."

Lu Shixian just shrugged. "Perhaps it's the unique understanding that exists between fellow Chinese."

After leaving Morty's office, Lu Shixian immediately got to work writing the project proposal.

This was the core of the application process. The quality of the proposal would directly determine whether his project was approved, so it deserved his full attention.

However, he was no novice at this.

Generally, as long as it included the following elements, wasn't too outlandish, and had the endorsement of the big boss, there wouldn't be any major issues.

First was the current state of research, the research content, and the research methods.

Second was the project's innovation and practicality, ensuring the potential value and application prospects of the results.

Third was a scientifically sound research schedule and plan, ensuring the project's feasibility and operability.

Fourth was a precise and detailed budget, ensuring the reasonable and effective use of funds.

Even so, it still took Lu Shixian three days to finish writing the proposal.

After submitting the proposal and some supporting documents to the lab, he didn't stay idle while waiting for the review results.

The project was on the verge of being approved, but he didn't even have the shadow of a team member yet.

Merlin was naturally the first person to invite. His advisor, Professor Herens, was also on the faculty in the lab.

To be honest, it was not easy for them to have come this far together, having had to overcome many difficulties.

Merlin agreed without hesitation. At some point, he had become Lu Shixian's most loyal teammate.

His personality also destined him to be Lu Shixian's most capable assistant.

However, the entire team still consisted of only two people. He needed to recruit more.

He had grand ambitions for the project he was about to lead; it was a crucial step in further accumulating his academic capital.

According to Lu Shixian's plan, he wanted to recruit four subgroups within the plant genetics lab, which meant he needed at least sixteen people in total.

This was the kind of setup that would match the scale of the project Lu Shixian had applied for. Otherwise, just a few of them would never be able to handle such a massive workload.

However, the ideal was beautiful, but reality was harsh.

After a round of recruiting, almost no graduate students were willing to join their project.

Initially, the "key project" title attracted a number of people, but when they discovered the project spanned stem cells, plant genetics, and development, more than half of them left.

When they looked again and saw that the project leader was someone about their own age, even more walked away.

The only ones who remained were, to put it bluntly, the bottom of the barrel.
"This is getting a little tricky. Looks like your name doesn't carry enough weight yet, Dr. Lu!" Merlin was still in the mood to tease him.

Lu Shixian shook his head with a helpless smile. There wasn't much he could do, and he certainly knew the reasons.

First, he had yet to prove his leadership ability on a research project. Even his last paper had only brought him fame as part of a team, with many focusing on his ethnicity rather than his capabilities.

Second, a major bottleneck in plant stem cell research was the extremely small number of stem cells. The shoot apical meristems of most plants are small, and dissociating the cells is difficult. This meant that specimens for cellular and molecular level research were often less than 100mm in diameter, and obtaining stem cells from plant protoplasts presented enormous technical challenges.

Third, the Plant Genetics Laboratory had such a rich history and so many projects to choose from that the graduate students had a wealth of options. They could afford to completely ignore him. After all, those who are favored can afford to be fearless.

This was also why there had been so few breakthroughs in the plant sciences at the cellular and molecular level. The first sparks of single-cell sequencing had only just been lit globally, with fewer than a hundred papers published worldwide.

Regrettably, among these papers, even counting Lu Shixian’s last publication, the number of studies related to plants could be counted on one hand.

It was perfectly normal for people to have their doubts.

At that moment, he finally understood the sense of helplessness Shinya Yamanaka had shared about his past experiences.

A new research team had to overcome countless difficulties before it could mature.

Was he supposed to go find undergraduates to participate, like he did for the "Imir" project back at UCD?

Lu Shixian shook his head. He could, but the situation now was different from back then; he couldn't just copy the old model.

The gap in knowledge between an undergraduate and a graduate student was not something that could be bridged in a short time.

Lu Shixian truly had no time to waste on this. His energy and time were even more precious now than before.

Just then, Merlin proposed an idea he hadn't considered.

"Dr. Lu, since we can't recruit anyone from the Plant Genetics Lab, why don't we recruit from the Stem Cell Research Center?"

"We're doing interdisciplinary research anyway. What's the difference which side you're crossing from?"

"Is there any real difference between plant genetics crossing into stem cells, or stem cells crossing into plant genetics?"

At these words, Lu Shixian's eyes lit up.

That's right. In for a penny, in for a pound.

Since we're already poaching talent, what's the difference between poaching a few and poaching a few more?

"Professor Lin, I'm sure you don't want your investment to be a loss, do you?"

Chapter 474: The Meet and Greet

And things turned out just as they had expected.

The Stem Cell Center had grown out of the Yale School of Medicine, founded in 2006.

It had been less than a decade since its inception, and most of its core members were from Professor Lin Haifan's original research team.

The remaining new members were graduate students who had joined over the years.

Poaching was one way to put it, but Professor Lin was his elder.

Lu Shixian naturally exercised some restraint and didn't go too far, taking only fifteen people.

To his surprise, however, the group included two assistant professors and one associate research scientist.

Combined with the two from the Plant Genetics Lab, forming four research groups was no problem at all.

This lineup was far better than Lu Shixian had anticipated. He was satisfied.

To be honest, he would have preferred to be strict with the selection process, even conducting interviews.

But circumstances simply didn't allow for it. He was lucky to have anyone willing to come.

So, with everyone present, Lu Shixian found an empty classroom and held a simple meet and greet.

He was now the boss in name, and while the people under him were following his instructions, Lu Shixian knew that, aside from Merlin, he was still a long way from earning their genuine trust.

But this was normal for a fledgling team.

Lu Shixian was mentally prepared. He looked at everyone and began.

"Hello, everyone. Whether you know me or not, please allow me to introduce myself."

"My name is Lu Shixian. I'm from China, and I'm twenty-five years old. I'm currently an Associate Research Scientist at Yale's Plant Genetics Laboratory. In the past, teams I've led or been a part of have achieved significant results, published in journals like *Cell* and *Science*."

"If you're interested, you can search my name on any paper retrieval website to find these articles."

His words had an immediate effect. The graduate students, at least, showed clear signs of curiosity.

Lu Shixian continued, "As of now, all members of our project are in place. Once the project proposal is approved, we will officially begin our research. Please keep an eye on your email for specific notifications."

"Alright, let's have everyone give a brief self-introduction, and then we'll dismiss."

This was a tradition in all project groups; new members had to introduce themselves.

Since this was the first time any of them had worked together, no one was exempt.

Lu Shixian listened carefully to everyone's introduction, paying special attention to the two assistant professors and the research scientist.

Including himself, there were nineteen people in total: eighteen men and one woman.

The oldest was Marcel Alberto, thirty-two, from Australia. His previous research focused on cancer stem cells and developmental biology.

Next was James Lawrence, an American who had just turned thirty but already sported a full beard, making him look several years older than Marcel. His main research area was cell biology.

The associate research scientist was named Bella Evans. She was from Italy and had recently graduated with her Ph.D. Her research focused on early embryonic development and molecular imaging probes.

She didn't reveal her age, but Lu Shixian guessed she was around the same age as the other two, close to thirty if not already there.

As the only woman on the team, she undoubtedly drew the attention of the entire group.

Bella had long, glossy black hair and wore a form-fitting long dress that accentuated her stunning figure.

But the words that came out of her mouth were not nearly as graceful as her appearance.

"Researcher Lu, I know you and Director Lin are from the same country."

"But I still have to ask, how did you convince him to support you?"

"Although plants have stem cells, current research is almost entirely focused on animal or human embryonic stem cells. Plant cells are already totipotent; the very concept of a plant stem cell is still debated."

"What problem is our project actually going to solve? This isn't just some whim you're playing around with, is it? Can you please explain?"

Her barrage of questions instantly captured everyone's attention.

Lu Shixian was a bit speechless. The women in this country were certainly different from what he'd imagined.

If she was doing this on purpose, it meant she had a self-centered personality and wouldn't easily listen to others.

If it was unintentional, it meant she was just direct—in other words, tactless.

Either way, causing a scene on the very first day, did she not care about putting him in an awkward position? What would she do in the future, stage a rebellion?

Fortunately, the idea for this project was entirely his own. No one knew the details better than he did.

Plus, he had written the project proposal himself; its approval was only a matter of time.

Dealing with this woman, Lu Shixian felt more than capable.

"Progress in plant stem cell research has indeed been slow over the years, but there has been some. According to recent findings, special cells exist in the shoot apical meristem (SAM) and root apical meristem (RAM) of plants. These cells can both self-renew and continuously produce daughter cells with the ability to divide. They are the origin of various plant organs and tissues, and are therefore considered plant stem cells."

"There is a proposal in the field to define the group of cells in the central zone of the shoot and root apical meristems, which have a sustained capacity for division and differentiation, as plant stem cells. Their development and differentiation are co-regulated by endogenous and exogenous signals. Most of what we know about the functional structure of plant stem cells comes from the model plant *Arabidopsis thaliana*."

"The first problem our project needs to solve is whether the regulatory mechanisms discovered in *Arabidopsis thaliana* can be applied to other plants. Only after solving this can we proceed to the next step. The subsequent research content is a key confidential part of this project, which you can only learn about after signing a non-disclosure agreement. For now, I'm afraid I have no comment."

Lu Shixian's stance was clear. He didn't treat her any differently because of her gender or personality, pushing back against her questions with considerable force.

"You just need to know that the prospects of this project are beyond question."

"It is precisely because there are no footprints ahead of us that every step we take now is making history."

"And my time is very valuable. I don't have time to play games with you. If you still have doubts, you shouldn't have come here in the first place."

Lu Shixian unloaded on her, and felt much better after getting it off his chest.

But to his surprise, the woman didn't seem angry at all.

She simply blinked, gazing at Lu Shixian, her hazel eyes shining like jewels.

Chapter 475: Unfair Treatment

And so, the meet and greet ended on that dramatic note.

Despite the minor hiccup, it had passed without any real disaster.

In fact, it had subtly worked to his advantage, leaving a deep impression on everyone.

The two assistant professors who knew Bella well were now wondering if this rose with thorns had already been tamed.

Her current reaction was a stark contrast to her usual fiery personality.

Meanwhile, on the way back, Lu Shixian had a conversation with Merlin.

"Hey, Merlin. I'm leading this project, and I have high hopes for it."

"You've been by my side for a while now. You're level-headed, diligent, and in the last project, you overcame many difficulties and made outstanding contributions to the team."

"I've seen it all. Considering your character and abilities, I believe you've reached a certain level."

Just as Merlin was trying to figure out where this was going, Lu Shixian continued.

"Based on this, I've decided to give you more responsibility. You will act as the leader for one of the four research groups in this new project."

Merlin never expected such a surprise. He was completely stunned by the sudden announcement.

"This..."

"I'm not sure that's a good idea."

"I'm still a graduate student."

Lu Shixian waved his hand. "So what if you're a graduate student?"

"When I was a grad student, I was in charge of the 'Imir Project.' It was a tough process, but in the end, it brought me three *Cell* papers."

Merlin was clearly aware of this; he had specifically studied Lu Shixian's academic journey.

Lu Shixian stopped and gently patted his shoulder, speaking with a hint of deeper meaning. "Some things seem difficult, but in reality..."

He paused, and Merlin instinctively finished the sentence, "But in reality, they aren't that difficult?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian laughed and shook his head. "No. Compared to serving up feel-good platitudes, I'm much better at painting a realistic, grand picture."

"In fact, it is indeed very difficult."

"It's just that some things aren't impossible to do, but rather that you haven't truly decided to do them yet."

Merlin fell into deep thought upon hearing this.

Lu Shixian quickened his pace toward his destination and disappeared into the crowd.

The next day.

Lu Shixian soon received a reply from Merlin, who was willing to give it a try.

This wasn't just about solving the team's organizational structure.

Cultivating and stabilizing his up-and-coming talent was secondary. The deeper consideration was, of course, to set a precedent to attract more talent.

These days, if you advertised well enough, there was no talent you couldn't recruit.

A graduate student could become the head of a research group in a key project?

Didn't that mean I could do it too?

It was true that many people just lacked an opportunity. But when an opportunity arose, whether they had the ability to seize it was another matter entirely.

Lu Shixian smiled to himself and turned his attention elsewhere.

Over the next few days, he kept a close eye on the project's approval status.

Although he knew he had two heavyweights backing him, this was the first key project with his name as the principal investigator, and he couldn't help but be anxious.

The Plant Genetics Lab was actually quite similar to labs back in China.

The lab director, Morty, focused on external publicity and organizational development, and was often away for exchanges.

Mullen, on the other hand, was in charge of the lab's academic research and scholarly communication, specifically responsible for experimental projects and the translation of research findings.

Mullen, as the lab's deputy director, called him personally to respond to his inquiry.

"There's not much we can do. You know how it is—whoever pays the bills calls the shots."

"Apart from a small amount from corporate sponsorships, foundation donations, academic collaborations, and self-funding, most of our project funding comes from federal and state grants."

"There's no problem on our end, but once it's submitted, the Connecticut and federal science foundations have to go through layers of review. That process is beyond our control."

Mullen spoke with great precision, but in the end, he offered Lu Shixian some reassurance.

"Don't worry, our lab made quite a name for itself last year. Under normal circumstances, the situation you're worried about is unlikely to happen."

Lu Shixian nodded, accepting Professor Mullen's comfort.

Another week passed.

Lu Shixian received another call from Professor Mullen, but this time it was bad news.

According to the results of the research project application, the U.S. National Science Foundation had rejected his proposal. The reasons were listed as follows:

The research objectives, content, and methods of the project are not sufficiently clear or specific.

The project application materials are incomplete, lacking necessary attachments, supporting documents, and references.

The applicant's research foundation in this field is insufficient, lacking adequate literature review, experimental skills, etc., indicating a possibility of being unable to complete the project.

Professor Mullen was also very surprised by this.

Rejection notices were usually not this detailed or blunt. The third point, in particular, was one step short of pointing at his nose and saying he wasn't good enough and should just go home.

Clearly, Lu Shixian was being treated unfairly.

The words Mullen had said to him just days ago were still fresh in his mind, and now he had egg on his face. It was obvious Professor Mullen was angry.

"This shouldn't be happening! This is rare."

"Damn it! This is definitely discrimination! It seems the NSF review committee has been infiltrated by some people who shouldn't be there."

"The scientific community today is gradually losing its former purity."

Despite his anger, Professor Mullen regained the composure and responsibility expected of a leader.

"Don't take it to heart. This is actually a small problem. But Yale is not to be trifled with. We will file an appeal once we understand the specifics."

"How about this? The funding you need isn't that much. We have our own foundation to back you up."

"We'll just have the foundation cover the NSF's portion. Yale has full discretion over those funds."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian felt a sense of relief.

In truth, he had a feeling this would happen. He knew things wouldn't always go so smoothly.

The things you feel are most likely to go wrong are the ones that often do.

Murphy's Law never fails.

Deliberately blocking project funding to mess with him—such a petty trick only worked because his status wasn't high enough yet.

If he were more established, they would never resort to such a low-level tactic.

He wasn't actually that bothered by it.

Even a decorated two-academy academician like Lin Haifan could face pressure in the United States, let alone a small fry like him.

He had long been aware that for all its talk of freedom, democracy, and human rights, America was often a joke.

He would just endure it for a few years and see.

Chapter 476: Assigning Groups

A gentleman is easy to deal with, but a villain is hard to guard against.

In any case, a significant portion of the people here were easy to get along with.

The fact that these petty tricks were happening behind the scenes meant that some things hadn't yet come out into the open.

Lu Shixian paid it no mind. His time was too precious to be wasted on such matters.

Perhaps having provoked Professor Mullen's displeasure, the missing portion of the project funding was supplemented by the Yale endowment under his intervention.

Lu Shixian's project proposal was quickly approved.

He began sending emails to every member of the group, informing them of the time, place, and other important details for joining the project.

This was a joint key project between Yale's Plant Genetics Laboratory and the Stem Cell Center.

After careful consideration, he decided to set up the project lab in the Plant Genetics Laboratory.

No matter how connected it was to stem cells, it couldn't change the fact that it was fundamentally a plant experiment. The equipment on the stem cell side was mostly related to medicine and wasn't entirely suitable.

The next day, Lu Shixian woke up early. By the time he finished breakfast, the lab hadn't even opened.

He glanced at the time; it was only a few minutes away.

He had no choice but to wait by the door.

In the past, he often arrived just as the lab was opening.

This time, he wasn't sure if it was excitement or pressure, but he had lost track of time.

While he waited, people began to arrive one by one, greeting him as they came. Lu Shixian returned each greeting.

When the time came, Lu Shixian went straight to the location Professor Mullen had assigned for his project group.

It was on a higher floor, but it was quiet and free from interruptions.

All the standard equipment was readily available; everything except the most expensive and rare instruments could be found here.

Lu Shixian was quite satisfied.

A few minutes later, someone walked toward him.

"Dr. Lu, I didn't expect you to be so eager!"

A female voice came from behind him. Lu Shixian didn't even need to look to know it was Bella. She was too easy to recognize in the group.

He was a little surprised. After her performance at the last meeting, he had pegged her as a potential troublemaker, yet here she was, arriving so early.

"You're here early too, aren't you? I can't exactly show up after you," Lu Shixian replied in kind.

Bella paused for a moment, then smiled sweetly. "Actually, I wouldn't mind being under you, you know."
I didn't realize you were one to hold a grudge. Really, I was just asking what pretty much everyone on the team was thinking.

Come to think of it, you should be thanking me. Otherwise, how would you have gotten the chance to shine?

Her words once again redefined Lu Shixian's impression of her.

Though it was a bit brazen, from a certain perspective, she wasn't wrong.

But if he hadn't been able to handle it, his prestige would have definitely taken a major hit.

Lu Shixian didn't want to discuss the matter further, so he changed the subject.

"If I recall correctly, you studied zoology for your master's and doctorate, didn't you? What made you decide to join my project this time?"

"I'm curious!"

Hearing this, Bella narrowed her eyes slightly before replying, "Dr. Lu, it seems you've done some deep research on me!"

Lu Shixian, of course, wasn't about to be sidetracked by her, deftly sidestepping the playful jab.

"Not just you. I know a little about everyone on the team. After all, that's part of my job."

Seeing that Lu Shixian didn't take the bait, Bella returned to normal and said frankly, "To be precise, my field of study is developmental biology. My previous focus was just on the animal side, but that doesn't mean I'm not interested in plants."

"If they could conduct plant experiments, I don't think any woman would choose to do animal or human experiments."

"As for why I came, Professor Lin highly recommended you, and I happened to have some free time to relieve my boredom."

Hearing her words, Lu Shixian nodded with a sense of understanding.

She was right. Women did face certain objective difficulties when entering these fields and had to overcome many challenges.

Aside from feeding lab mice, most of the research work required considerable courage.

He couldn't help but recall the animal experiments from his time in the Biology Olympiad; the tragedy of it still lingered in his mind.

The community of female scientists was indeed unique, requiring them to put in more effort to gain recognition.

With this thought, Lu Shixian's attitude toward her softened slightly.

About ten minutes later, people began to trickle into the lab.

A team of nearly twenty, like his, could already be considered a medium sized team.

Anything larger, with dozens or even hundreds of members, was the kind of setup reserved for large or super large scale projects.

Generally speaking, small research teams of no more than ten people were currently the most common.

Of course, this was related to the project's scale and funding, but it wasn't an absolute rule.

Seeing that everyone had arrived, Lu Shixian prepared to announce the group assignments.

Being a project leader was not easy. To ensure the team compositions were scientific and reasonable, he had spent a great deal of energy just on grouping, getting to know each person's strengths.

This was why he was so familiar with Bella's academic resume.

Having done his homework beforehand, his work now was naturally twice as effective with half the effort.

"Teaching Assistant Massey, your group members are Johnson, Williams, Jones, and Brown." Lu Shixian's gaze swept over the individuals whose names he had just called, then continued, "The topic you're responsible for is the characteristics of the plant shoot apical meristem and the molecular basis of its regulation."

"...Additionally, James, your topic is the characteristics of the plant root apical meristem and the molecular basis of its regulation."

One of these assistant professors specialized in developmental biology, the other in cell biology, each aligning with one of the topics' directions, and together they complemented each other perfectly.

"Assistant Researcher Bella, your topic is a comparative study of the regulatory mechanisms of stem cells in model plants versus common plants."

After he said this, Lu Shixian could clearly see the look of astonishment on her face.

"Finally, Merlin, your topic is comparative data processing and analysis. Your team members are Miller, Ryan, Davis, and Logan."

This arrangement also had a deeper meaning.

Bella's task wasn't necessarily the most difficult, but it was absolutely the most critical, requiring an incredibly meticulous person to handle it.

And Merlin, still lacking official standing, was assigned the task with the least prestige, so the others likely wouldn't have much of a reaction.

Sure enough, after the tasks were assigned, no one had any objections.

Only Miller, Ryan, and a few others were still looking around in the crowd, trying to see who their project leader was.

With the broad directions set, it was time to discuss the details of the research.

Chapter 477: The Big Topic

As time went on, the entire project team, including Lu Shixian, gradually found its rhythm after a period of adjustment.

Through his observations during this time, he discovered that some of them had real potential.

Needless to say about Merlin, whom he was already familiar with.

But he had truly found a few other promising talents.

Especially Bella. Although she could sound quite flippant at times, she was genuinely serious when it came to work, possessing a relentless drive to achieve her goals.

In addition, Miller, Ryan, Williams, and Jones were also quite good, with a solid grasp of the fundamentals, suggesting they were excellent students.

All in all, while this nascent team had just begun to gel, it hadn't caused Lu Shixian too much worry.

It was, at least, a vast improvement over his time at UCD, when he had been, without exaggeration, completely drained.

The latest forecast from the US National Weather Service for New Haven was: clear to partly cloudy from tonight through tomorrow, with an east wind of force one to two.

Maximum temperature 25°C, minimum temperature 18°C.

Air quality excellent, UV index strong.

So, Lu Shixian creatively arranged a team building event: group exercise.

"Everyone has been working hard lately. It's rare to have such nice weather. Being cooped up in the lab all the time is stressful, so why don't we all get some exercise together? Consider it a chance to get to know each other and stay healthy." Lu Shixian's thinking had become more comprehensive; he no longer poured all his energy into academic research, showing great improvement in team building.

"I propose a team building day for the entire project group at the Yale Bowl. What do you all think?"

The proposal naturally received unanimous approval. Although it was just exercise, it was better than being stuck in an enclosed lab, an opportunity that hadn't come up often in the past.

The nineteen members of the project team walked together toward Yale University's largest outdoor stadium.

In the past, sports enthusiasts would be here sweating it out, rain or shine.

The weather was beautiful today, and it seemed to have attracted quite a crowd.

Upon arriving at the stadium, Lu Shixian first led them through some warm up exercises. But to his surprise, after just a few simple sets, some team members were already gasping for breath.

Lu Shixian frowned slightly. He placed great importance on the habit of exercising, as it directly affected work efficiency.

He turned to the few who were struggling the most and said, "Johnson, Brown, how long has it been since you two worked out?"

"As academic researchers, maintaining a healthy physique is essential. After all, your body is your greatest asset for research."

"You're only in your early twenties and already this pathetic. How long do you expect to last in the future?"

At this moment, Bella chimed in again at a most inopportune time, "Dr. Lu is so right! A man who can't even last a few minutes is so pathetic. You two should learn from him. No girl likes a man who can't go the distance."

Her comment instantly sent the relatively normal atmosphere into a sharp, strange turn.

After finishing the warm ups, Johnson was already lying on the lawn, panting heavily.

He looked at Lu Shixian and said with great feeling, "Dr. Lu, the more I'm around you, the more I feel like just an ordinary person."

"It was one thing when I didn't know you, but after I went back and looked up your articles on a search database, I realized just how vast the gap between us is."

Johnson was from Finland in Northern Europe, having just moved from his first to his second year of his master's program, but he was actually a year older than Lu Shixian. Johnson hadn't skipped any grades, but being able to come from faraway Finland to study at Yale was undoubtedly a testament to his excellence.

But now, after meeting Lu Shixian, all his past pride had been mercilessly shattered.

This was a major reason why so many of them, including graduate students and assistant professors, held Lu Shixian in such high regard.

At this moment, Johnson asked with great curiosity, "Dr. Lu, how did you manage to publish your first paper in a Nature sub journal right after starting university?"

"I carefully studied your paper, 'The Role of a GPCR in Regulating Cellular Immune Function under Inflammatory Conditions,' and I found that even now, I couldn't write an article of that caliber..."

As soon as he asked this question, the others pricked up their ears, eager to hear the answer, clearly already aware of the paper.

Lu Shixian chuckled, confessing to him with some embarrassment.

"Actually, that wasn't my first paper."

Just as the others were thinking, "So that's how it is," Lu Shixian's light voice floated over.

"I actually published a paper in high school. It was just in a low tier journal, so you wouldn't have been able to find it."

But this statement made them even more flabbergasted.

Damn, that was just ridiculous!

Weren't Chinese people supposed to be good at taking exams?

Lu Shixian had no intention of showing off and quickly shifted the conversation to a recent hot topic in their field.

"Have you all seen the recent breakthrough, the lattice light sheet super resolution microscope? It spans four orders of magnitude in space and time, imaging with extremely low light dosage and unprecedented duration. I have a feeling its emergence will directly change the landscape of live cell microscopy."

Bella was the first to chime in, rolling her eyes. "How could we not know? Our school's rival, Caltech, all but took out an ad in the New York Times to announce that last year's new Nobel laureate was from their school."

Teaching Assistant Massey, clearly knowledgeable on the subject, picked up the thread, "It is indeed a major achievement that could change the world of biological academia. It's noteworthy that Eric, Allic, and Moerner are all pure physicists, yet they won the 2014 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and ultimately made a huge contribution to biology. From now on, biologists can observe the activity of living cells at the nanoscale."

At this, everyone couldn't help but chuckle.

Lu Shixian smiled too. He had always been interested in microscopy; otherwise, he wouldn't have taught a course on the history of microscopy to students when he was a teaching assistant at Yan University.

He began to explain, "The key technology for which Eric won the Nobel Prize was PALM (Photoactivated Localization Microscopy), a technique that integrates the wisdom of many predecessors. While photophysics is the theoretical foundation of the entire technology, the most crucial technology was the invention of fluorescent molecules."

"Fluorescent molecules belong to the fields of materials and chemistry. Before many revolutionary and innovative inventions emerge, breakthroughs in the field of materials are often a prerequisite."

"I believe this is why this technology, spanning physics, chemistry, and biology, ultimately won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry."

Chapter 478: Back to His Roots?

Lu Shixian had an idea that currently seemed somewhat off track: to write a comprehensive history of the development of the microscope.

For a scholar who aimed to make academic research their life's work, authoring a book was likely the greatest pursuit of a lifetime.

Lu Shixian was no exception, but he hadn't yet reached the level of expertise or influence to write a highly specialized textbook.

Writing one now would undoubtedly be a waste of time.

But if it were a popular science book on the history of the microscope's development, he felt it was worth a try.

Much of the content was already in his head, including his lecture notes from his time at Yan University, which covered the most important stages in the microscope's history.

All he would need to do later was add some details, include the latest lattice light sheet super resolution microscope, and for the final part, he decided to write about his outlook on the future of microscopy, so it wouldn't end abruptly.

For a popular science book, Lu Shixian was well aware that it needed to be both accessible and easy to understand without sacrificing professional accuracy.

And now, after extensive reading outside his field, Lu Shixian was confident he could write this book well.

However, this plan would have to wait until he had free time after the current project was finished.

He wouldn't do something as foolish as chasing a trifle at the cost of a treasure.

After the team building event, everyone once again threw themselves into their intense and methodical research work.

The team's first group meeting was undoubtedly a memorable moment.

The four project groups each reported their progress to Lu Shixian.

"The plant shoot apical meristem, which includes the primordial cells that maintain long term meristematic ability and their derivatives, is responsible for the development of aerial parts such as stems, leaves, axillary buds, and flowers through cell proliferation and differentiation..."

"According to our experiments, there are four types of stem cells in the mature tissues of the plant root tip, including apical root cap stem cells, pericycle and procambium stem cells, epidermis and lateral root cap stem cells, and cortex and endodermis stem cells. At its center is a group of less active, mitotically dividing cells..."

"The root system of Arabidopsis thaliana is relatively simple, consisting of a primary root and lateral roots. The primary root develops from the embryonic root, where all cells are in the G1 phase. Following seed germination, the stem cells within begin to undergo different cell division processes, a process that also involves various cell files, including the pericycle..."

"We employed a multi seed breeding algorithm, using maximum, minimum, and median fitness as selection criteria to choose the most suitable seeds. These seeds were then used to propagate a certain number of offspring, thereby obtaining more representative and diverse stem cells..."

Lu Shixian listened carefully to all the group reports, gave his pertinent feedback on each, and assigned the next phase of tasks based on their progress.

Time reveals a horse's strength. After spending so much time together, Lu Shixian had come to understand the strengths and weaknesses of each team member.

Meanwhile, under Lu Shixian's leadership, the four groups continued to delve deeper.

The four project leaders grew increasingly amazed by Lu Shixian's acuity; he always managed to provide solutions to problems from angles that others would not easily consider.

Of course, Lu Shixian was not God; he also made mistakes.

The team discovered that even when Lu Shixian's suggestions were proven to be dead ends by experimental results, he would often find the correct path within no more than three attempts.

Compared to their own clueless trial and error, the cost of his mistakes was astonishingly low.

And so, four months later.

At the fourth group meeting.

Bella announced in a tone of utter disbelief, "According to the spectral data provided by Merlin, the stem cells from the shoot and root tips of our selected common plant samples show a high degree of similarity to the regulatory mechanisms found in the model plant, Arabidopsis thaliana."

Then, a smile of delight spread across her face. "With this discovery alone, we can publish in a top tier botany journal. This could potentially explain one of the 125 frontier scientific questions posed by Science magazine—'How is plant growth controlled?'"

Lu Shixian, however, remained very calm, as he knew this was only the first step.

"As you said, it only 'explains,' it doesn't formally 'answer.' And you missed another point, neglecting the other question—'What controls organ regeneration?'"

"Of course, answering these two questions is just a side benefit. As I said at the beginning of the project, completing the research on stem cell regulatory mechanisms is only our first objective."

Lu Shixian looked at everyone with a grave and earnest expression. "We still have a long way to go. Next, I will need everyone's collective help. Let the power of unity guide us to the final destination."

"What I'm about to say next might be a bit unexpected, but I hope everyone can accept it quickly."

"Although after all this time together, I don't think something like this would happen, I'll state the unpleasant part first. Please strictly adhere to the lab's confidentiality agreement and uphold the original mission of an academic researcher. I won't elaborate on the consequences of a leak."

At this point, having said so much and built up the suspense for so long, the team's curiosity about his true objective was growing.

Seeing their expectant faces, Lu Shixian smiled and began to reveal his plan. "I wonder if everyone has noticed a pattern. When plants are infected by other organisms or face unsuitable environmental conditions during their growth, they undergo a series of pathological changes physiologically, histologically, and morphologically, which hinders their growth and development, and can even lead to death."

This statement left everyone utterly bewildered, unsure of what Lu Shixian was trying to convey.

Weren't they studying plant stem cells? Why was he suddenly talking about plant diseases?

Only Merlin, in the crowd, seemed to have thought of something, his head snapping up to look at Lu Shixian.

Biological infection?

Abiotic stress?

If he remembered correctly, this was the domain of plant pathology.

And wasn't Lu Shixian's first world renowned research in this very field?

Could it be that he was circling back to his old stomping grounds?

But what connection could there be between the seemingly unrelated fields of stem cells and plant pathology?

Even with these thoughts, Merlin's ideas were just speculation, as Lu Shixian had yet to truly state his intentions.

Everyone was waiting for Lu Shixian's explanation.

Chapter 479: Golden Finger

He hadn't announced the true purpose of the experiment from the beginning, instead throwing up a smokescreen.

Come to think of it, he had learned this trick from Manlun.

Recently, he had learned team management from Xu Zhihong and project research techniques from Manlun.

He never felt superior just because he held some secrets that others didn't.

Even with a second chance at life, in this vast world, let alone the universe, he was but an insignificant speck.

Maintaining a sense of awe and learning from the good qualities of others was gradually becoming a habit ingrained in his very being.

Lu Shixian took a deep breath and finally spoke. "So, has anyone noticed a pattern? The vast majority of plant diseases begin in the leaves, tender stems, flowers, or fruits."
"But the apical meristem remains intact for a long time? Does that mean most plant diseases find it difficult, or even impossible, to infect the apical meristem?"

At this, some of the more well-read individuals had a flash of insight.

"Are you saying that plant stem cells have cell-mediated immunity, just like animal cells?" Bella was stunned. Having spent a long time researching in the field of zoology, her reaction was incredibly fast.

After she pointed it out, the others caught on as well, scarcely able to believe what they had just heard.

If this hypothesis were confirmed, it would send massive shockwaves through the entire academic world, a discovery on par with the revolutionary achievement of gene-editing technology.

In fact, the former might be even more significant, as it was closer to people, more relevant to their daily lives.

Because plants were ubiquitous, playing an irreplaceable role in every aspect of human life.

Lu Shixian smiled and affirmed her answer. "You made the connection quickly, but 'cell-mediated immunity' is still a term primarily used for human or animal cells for now. If you want to substantiate this claim, you can personally prove it in the future."

"But for now, I prefer to call it innate immunity. In other words, plant stem cells possess a natural antiviral immunity."

"Let me give you an example you've all heard of. The meristem tip virus elimination technique is, to date, the only biotechnology that can effectively eliminate multiple viruses from a plant's system, and virus-free seedlings developed through it are already being used in agricultural production."

"But what many farmers don't know, and even what scientists can't quite figure out, is the principle behind this technology. It has become one of the very few technologies where the application preceded the understanding of its principle."

"Undoubtedly, the biological basis for this technology is that the apical meristem of a plant's stem has a low viral load, or is even virus-free. Yet, its fundamental mechanism of action remains an unsolved mystery that has long puzzled the world."

Merlin, who was always composed and low-key, uncharacteristically chimed in, "So, you're saying that if we can figure out the specific molecular mechanism by which the plant's apical meristem resists viral infection, we can discover the molecular mechanism behind the broad-spectrum antiviral immunity of plant stem cells."

At this, everyone was dumbfounded.

This research direction was simply off the charts.

It was so astonishing, so shocking, it left them speechless.

The most obvious application that came to mind was food. Nothing is more important than food, a matter of heaven and earth.

If this mechanism could be used to achieve natural antiviral immunity in plants, then aside from pesticides for insects, all companies producing antiviral agrochemicals would face bankruptcy.

This technology could help all sorts of crops improve their viral resistance, not only saving massive amounts on pesticides but also cleaning up the entire biosphere system where these crops exist.

Most importantly, while similar effects could be achieved through grafting genes from other species, natural antiviral immunity would not carry the series of concerns associated with genetically modified organisms.

Furthermore, could it also be applied to industries like landscaping, natural scenery preservation, and plant conservation?

This achievement would clearly change the way people live, covering every facet of their lives.

At the same time, pests are also members of the biosphere, forming a meticulous and rigorous food chain.

But viruses lack a cellular structure and do not participate in the composition of life systems.

This meant that, to some extent, solving the problem of plant viruses was far more significant and meaningful than solving the problem of plant pests.

On a grander scale, it would affect water conservation, air purification, oxygen production, soil and water retention, heavy metal absorption...

From then on, the ecological environment of various water bodies, soils, and the sky, as well as people's living environments, would all see effective improvement.

At that moment, everyone began to realize that this would absolutely be a world-changing achievement.

Of course, that was contingent on being able to solve it.

"My God! If we can solve this, we'll become scientists acclaimed by the entire world." Bella, who wore her heart on her sleeve, was already letting her imagination run wild, as if seeing herself becoming famous overnight.

Even the usually composed Merlin had lost his initial calm. Though he prided himself on understanding Lu Shixian, he was now shocked by the sheer scale of his goal.

A wide-open road to the heavens, one he had never imagined or seen before, unfolded before him, and he could barely control his expression.

Lu Shixian, the instigator of all this, had anticipated their reactions. He bent his right index finger and tapped it lightly on the table. "Gentlemen, ladies, please calm down."

"Bella, you're acting like you've never seen the world. And Merlin, have you learned nothing from all your time with me?"

He poured a basin of cold water over everyone's heads. "The one thing this world doesn't lack is ideas. When we get excited about a 'eureka' moment and then stop there, we become nothing more than 'fantasy junkies.'"

"We have many wonderful wishes and concepts, but our ideas are often too idealistic, causing us to overlook the complexities and difficulties of reality. This sometimes creates a huge chasm between thought and action."

"But it is not insurmountable. Let's start taking action now! The right actions, combined with courage, determination, and perseverance, will lead us to everything we deserve in our ideal world."

At that moment, driven by the vast and brilliant prospect before them, a spirit of progress and soaring morale, never before seen, erupted within the team.

Though the road ahead was long, everyone was filled with hope for the future, and their admiration and trust in Lu Shixian reached a new peak.

Although they were all incredibly excited, it was a pity that they had no one to share this with besides their team members.

This was why Lu Shixian had been so secretive. Unlike his previous projects, which were more theoretical than practical in significance, it didn't matter if others knew about them, as no one would compete with him.

But if the substance of this project were to be revealed, it would immediately trigger a global research race, with the world's top scientists personally entering the fray to compete.

Lu Shixian did not believe he could gain the upper hand if he lost his head start.

He had always been keenly aware that his forward-looking vision was his one and only "golden finger" he could rely on.

Chapter 480: Forging His Own Path

The idea for this project did not come easily. It wasn't the product of a brief moment but the result of a long-term process of formation.

It originated with his first international journal paper, "The Role of a GPCR in Regulating Cellular Immune Function under Inflammatory Conditions."

That was his first foray into the field of immunology.

Later, through a chance encounter, he was inspired by a few words from Dean Su Changqing of Jinling University.

"Antiviral genetic breeding has great potential!"

The idea then grew with the emergence of the "Yimi" project. During his time as the project leader, he built a solid foundation in plant pathology, taking the most solid step so far on his long academic journey.

Finally, this line of thought and this idea were born.

He had finally, for the time being, set aside the path of pure genetic breeding in pursuit of high crop yields.

Too many pioneers had already made world-renowned achievements on that path.

Even if he joined midway, the contributions he could make would be extremely limited.

High yield was just one of the most direct ways to achieve his original goal. In an era where genetic modification was a sensitive topic, genetic breeding was not limited to just cross-breeding.

Along the way, his vision had continuously broadened, his knowledge had grown richer, and as he grew, he often engaged in self-reflection.

That was someone else's path. Following a well-trodden road is certainly easier, but it also confines those on it, making them no longer care about the road ahead, no longer seek new routes, no longer clear a path through thorns.

From his first toddling steps to his current calculated ones, Lu Shixian had firmly taken every step of his own.

Today, he had finally found the path that was uniquely his.

Though fraught with thorns and difficult to traverse, as long as he walked it step by step, it would become a smooth road to the heavens. From then on, the vast world was his to explore.

However, as time went on, the secret of Lu Shixian's project finally became a secret that couldn't be kept.

It wasn't that it was leaked by a team member, but rather that the project team had borrowed too many instruments from the plant pathology lab.

But Lu Shixian knew this was unavoidable. For a project that spanned stem cells, immunology, and plant genetic breeding, the research that could be done with only the instruments in a general-purpose lab was extremely limited.

Professor James Cook, the director of Yale's plant pathology lab, even paid him a personal visit.

You can run, but you can't hide.

Lu Shixian received the professor in his office very naturally.

Speaking of which, he had a rather deep impression of this Professor Cook.

Cook had been one of the people who sent him a postdoctoral invitation, though he had ultimately chosen Morty.

Afterward, even after he had joined the plant genetics lab, Professor Cook had not given up on inviting him to join his.

In truth, he had hesitated.

This Professor Cook was no simple figure. He had won the 2011 Wolf Prize in Agriculture for his pioneering discoveries in plant pathology and microbial soil science.

With the Nobel Prize only covering Chemistry, Physics, Peace, Physiology or Medicine, and Literature, pure agriculture found it difficult to connect with chemistry, physics, or biology, let alone literature.

Thus, the Wolf Prize in Agriculture, often called a "bellwether for the Nobel Prize," was undoubtedly the highest honor in the field of agriculture, even though it sometimes overlapped with the World Food Prize.

But based on his plans, he had ultimately declined the invitation to the plant pathology lab, citing his age as a reason.

A visitor is a guest, and Professor Cook, as a top scholar in agriculture and plant pathology, held a significant position at Yale.

In front of such a man, Lu Shixian couldn't hide much.

So, he candidly explained the situation of his project team.

As expected, a titan was a titan.

Just from Lu Shixian's brief description, Cook already understood the logical core of the entire project and foresaw the technology's terrifying potential.

"This is absolutely stunning, Lu!"

"I've said it before, your talent in the field of plant pathology is a rarity in this world. It shouldn't be buried by giving up halfway." Cook's expression was one of excitement. He hadn't felt this way in a long time, not since the Wolf Prize award ceremony in the capital of Israel.

"If this technology can be applied, the number of hungry people worldwide will once again be effectively curbed, and you will become an honored guest in every country."

"Dr. Lu, if it's possible, please allow me to participate in this great project."

"My plant pathology lab will fully support all of your experiments."

"Of course, my name will not be included in the project team's personnel list."

Professor Cook was getting on in years. He was already 55 when he received the Wolf Prize.

Now, five years later, he was sixty.

With his temples graying, he no longer cared for academic honors. His only concern was making new breakthroughs on his academic path.

Now it was Lu Shixian's turn to be excited. He had never imagined such a good thing could happen.

A Wolf Prize laureate was offering to join his team, and he didn't even want his name on the paper.

He couldn't yet reach Professor Cook's level of selflessness, but he could understand the devotion and fervor such an academic had for research.

Lu Shixian gladly welcomed him. "It is my honor to have you join my project. And it is also an honor to have your name on the paper. My team will never obscure the brilliance of any individual."

To resolve the doubt in his mind, he then asked, "Professor Cook, you really don't have to join my team. As the head of the plant pathology lab, you would have much more convenient conditions if you were to research this yourself."

Professor Cook waved his hand. "Stealing someone's idea to achieve results is not what I want. Besides, I'm old; my thinking can no longer keep up with you young people. All I have is some outdated experience."

"Some discoveries and achievements can often only be carried to the end by the one who first proposed them, following their initial spark of inspiration. If I were to do that, I don't think I would succeed. It would most likely be a wasted effort."

"Besides, working with young people makes me feel young again, doesn't it?" Professor Cook asked with a smile.

Lu Shixian was silent for a few seconds after hearing this, then offered him an apology. "Please forgive me for previously declining your invitation by citing your age."

"The brilliance of your character makes me feel ashamed and remorseful."

Professor Cook, however, was unconcerned. "What's there to be sorry about? Only those who follow their own ideas can discover the hidden laws of this world."

"Sycophants and followers will eventually be crushed under the wheels of history."

After some small talk, the two finally began to discuss the specific details of the project.

Since he was already here, it wasn't Lu Shixian's style not to get some advice from this Wolf Prize laureate.

Chapter 481: I Have a Bold Idea, and I'm Not Sure if I Should Say It

Professor Cook thought for a moment and gave his opinion. "A project this grand shouldn't be a solo effort. I will recommend to Rothman that he persuade the university to give you its full support. I expect he'll find time to see you soon."

But after he spoke, he saw Lu Shixian's hesitant expression and seemed to understand something. He continued, "You don't need to have any other concerns. It's impossible for you to maintain complete secrecy, but at least within Yale University, the information will be strictly controlled."

"I've spent almost half my life at Yale. In all that time, if the things you're imagining were to happen, this place wouldn't have produced over sixty Nobel laureates, five Fields Medalists, and three Turing Award winners."

"In fact, even in the worst-case scenario where others find out, it doesn't matter. I don't think they can compete with you. After all, you were on the verge of revealing the ultimate law of the co-evolutionary gene regulatory mechanism between plants and pathogens."

"Right now, plenty of people are studying the unfinished research you left behind in your Cell paper, but the results have all been, without exception, nil."

"Believe in yourself!"

Encouraged by Professor Cook, Lu Shixian felt a surge of passion.

In fact, as his knowledge and experience deepened, it had been a long time since he had felt this way.

It was difficult for him to recapture the excitement he felt when he first conducted a research experiment.

But this time, he felt it again.

Three days later, another unexpected visitor barged into his temporary office in the lab.

A portly, bearded man with a bald spot surrounded by golden hair extended a hand toward him while sizing him up.

"Hello, I'm Rothman, the chair of Yale's Department of Cell Biology. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Lu Shixian had just been immersed in his experimental thoughts and was a bit confused as to why a department chair would come looking for him.

He had no teaching duties, and his title was only an associate research scientist in the lab. Logically, he should have no interaction with this Professor Rothman.

But hearing the name, he seemed to recall Professor Cook mentioning him, saying he could persuade the university to give him the greatest support.

He hadn't paid much attention at the time, as Rothman was a very common name in the United States.

But thinking about it now, something felt increasingly off.

He seemed to have overlooked something.

The chair of the Department of Cell Biology?

And able to speak directly with the university leadership?

The name Rothman gradually merged with the image of a "certain portly man" in his memory.

Lu Shixian was completely dumbfounded.

Holy crap! Wasn't this James Rothman?

This was getting ridiculous!

He had received multiple major honors, including Columbia University's Horwitz Prize, the 2002 Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research, and the King Faisal Prize.

But at this moment, he was still what one could call a fresh Nobel laureate.

In 2013, for his outstanding work on the precise control mechanisms of cellular transport, Rothman, along with Schekman and Thomas, had been awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

After winning the prize, Rothman had described his work to the world: "It's fascinating that when proteins operate within a cell, their principles are similar to those of physical machinery."

Lu Shixian had only arrived at Yale last year, so he had missed the grand, campus-wide celebration, which was one reason for his delayed reaction.

It was only now, face to face with this Nobel laureate, that he truly appreciated the profound heritage of a top world-class university like Yale.

Lu Shixian was incredibly flattered as he shook Rothman's hand with both of his. "I apologize for making you come to see me in person."

Next, aside from his slightly overweight physique, Lu Shixian could see in Rothman all the qualities of a gentleman.

Rothman flashed his trademark smile and shook his head. "No, I am here today merely as the chair of Yale's Department of Cell Biology."

"If it weren't for Professor Cook, I would never have known a genius like you was lurking here. And your vision is worthy of me coming to see you in person."

"Stem cells also fall within the research scope of cell biology. If I only found out about you after your achievements rocked the world, that would be a dereliction of my duty."

Lu Shixian was flabbergasted. The last few days had felt like a dream.

Things were spiraling further and further beyond his expectations and control. A Wolf Prize laureate was one thing, but now he had attracted the attention of a Nobel laureate.

Lu Shixian had never imagined he would have come this far.

"Haha, if I can smoothly reach that stage, I think the me of that time will be very grateful for your words today," Lu Shixian said, trying to maintain his composure in front of the Nobel laureate.

Fortunately, Lu Shixian was well-read and had a broad perspective; his composure check passed quickly.

Rothman laughed heartily at his words, then looked at him with admiration. "You are indeed just as Cook described, very different. I've already witnessed one aspect of that."

Seeing that the atmosphere had reached its peak, Lu Shixian suddenly recalled Professor Cook's words and an idea he had never dared to entertain before came to mind.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

He tried his luck, making a ten-pull wish to Rothman. "I have a bold idea, and I'm not sure if I should say it or not."

"May I have the honor of inviting you to join our team as the chief academic advisor?"

After much thought recently, Lu Shixian had finally figured out a place for Professor Cook: as an academic advisor for the project.

And now, an even more heavyweight, top-tier titan was standing right in front of him. Why not use the same trick again?

The world was truly heading in a direction he could no longer comprehend.
Since things were already beyond his control, he might as well let go completely. In fact, the crazier, the better.

Besides, he was the barefoot man who feared no one with shoes—he had nothing to lose. Even if he was rejected, it would be perfectly normal.

But if he succeeded, it would be like hitting the perfect bet.

A 100,000 yuan bet winning a 220 million yuan jackpot, tax free. An absolute windfall!

As expected, Rothman was stunned by the proposal, clearly not anticipating this turn of events.

“This is the first time I’ve ever received such an invitation. Please give me a moment to think.” After a brief pause, he nodded amidst Lu Shixian’s look of joyful surprise. “But it does sound quite interesting, doesn’t it?”

After Rothman left, Lu Shixian was so excited his hands trembled slightly, as if he’d been electrocuted.

“I have to say, this is just too cool.”

Soon, he would experience the terrifying power wielded by a Nobel laureate and a Wolf Prize laureate in Agriculture.

Originally, they had been cooped up in a small research facility near the top floor of the plant genetics lab. But soon, Yale University prepared a large, unused research space for them in a biological laboratory building within the Faculty of Life Sciences.

Chapter 482: A Blessing in Disguise

At the same time, the Yale University Endowment Fund provided an additional two million US dollars in project funding, nearly doubling the original amount to a total of three and a half million dollars.

Back in China at the time, this level of funding was an unimaginably enormous sum.

Perhaps taking into account that the official members of the project team did not hold high-ranking titles—the highest being Lu Shixian’s own position as an associate research fellow—the university decided against assigning a large number of new personnel. This was done after consideration to maintain the team's stability and Lu Shixian's authority.

However, the university did make a promise to Lu Shixian: no matter what field he needed assistance in, the relevant schools or laboratories would do their utmost to lend a hand.

Lu Shixian had never fought such a well funded war before. The series of perks was enough to blind him.

So much so that a clueless Professor Lin Haifan called him in a state of utter confusion.

“Little Lu, what in the world is going on?”

“Since when did you get connected with Rothman, the Nobel laureate?”

“Why didn’t you say you had a connection like that sooner! His standing in Yale’s Faculty of Life Sciences is extraordinary. With his help, you’ll avoid so many detours at Yale.”

Lu Shixian chuckled and told him everything that had happened.

Lin Haifan was astounded. “You’re saying Professor Curry thinks very highly of you and convinced Rothman to help you?”

Lu Shixian nodded, then dropped an even more shocking piece of news on him.

When Lin Haifan heard it, he was so stunned he nearly bit his tongue.

“What?”

“You’re telling me you pulled both Rothman and Professor Curry into your project team?”

“Did I hear that right? Hold on! Let me process this.”

Lu Shixian understood his shock; it had taken him a long time to calm down as well.

Hearing the deep breaths on the other end of the line, he said with amusement, “How about it, Professor Lin? Interested in dropping by my project for a bit?”

“But if you come now, you’ll have to settle for being third in line.”

This was, of course, a tactful way of putting it, giving him plenty of face.

In terms of academic standing, Lin Haifan, who had not yet been elected as an academician of China's two academies, was still a considerable distance behind Curry, let alone the newly minted Nobel laureate, Rothman.

After a few seconds, Lin Haifan finally spoke. “I was originally supposed to be looking out for you as a favor to Old Deng and Academician Xu, but it looks like I’m the one who owes you a favor this time.”

Lu Shixian understood his feelings completely and said with great sincerity:

“It’s nothing. After coming here, I’ve slowly come to realize that it’s not easy for any of us wandering scholars abroad. Many things are beyond our control.”

“For you to have reached where you are today, you must have put in countless unseen efforts.”

“If we Chinese can’t even stick together, who else can we rely on but ourselves when we’re abroad?”

“You are in your prime, at the peak of your academic career. This is the perfect time to make great things happen. If I can offer a little help to an elder brother like you, it would be my honor.”

At this, Lin Haifan actually laughed. He looked at Lu Shixian with a touch of emotion and said, “No wonder you can achieve things that seem impossible. Little Lu, you truly are different from the many other young academic workers I’ve met.”

“I’ll accept this favor. At this point, I won’t say much more.”

“This opportunity is indeed rare for me, and I’m happy to call you my little brother.”

After the call with Lin Haifan, Lu Shixian’s advisory board had grown to three titans.

If word of this lineup got out, it would be enough to scare someone to death.

A team led by someone who had been a postdoc for less than a year included a Nobel laureate, a Wolf Prize laureate in Agriculture, and a future academician of two academies.

If he got two more, could he summon the divine dragon?

Of course, as academic advisors, they would not be directly involved in the project’s execution.

Instead, they would use their vast knowledge and rich experience to provide professional academic advice to the entire project team when necessary.

And so, with such a formidable lineup in place, it wasn’t long before a file on Lu Shixian was placed on the desk of Yale University’s President, Peter Salovey.

As a psychologist, and as the 23rd president appointed by the Board of Trustees in 2013, Salovey had a long history with the university. After graduating from Stanford in 1980, he went on to earn a Master of Science, a Master of Philosophy, and a Ph.D. from Yale. By 2013, he had spent thirty three years at Yale, serving in various roles including Chair of the Psychology Department, Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and Dean of Yale College.

With such a background, his affection for Yale was profound, and he commanded great respect within the university.

He recalled how, a few days prior, Rothman—who had brought immense honor to the university—had come to him, hoping to divert some resources to a very interesting project.

Any project that Rothman would personally speak for naturally caught his attention.

He didn't understand biology himself, but a Nobel laureate in Physiology or Medicine certainly did.

Without a moment’s hesitation, he exercised the presidential authority he had only recently acquired.

Thus, Lu Shixian’s project was elevated from a key project at the Stem Cell Center to a key project for all of Yale University for the year.

This meant that the full academic resources of Yale University would be at Lu Shixian’s disposal in the future.

In doing so, Salovey was undoubtedly taking a considerable risk, especially since he had only just been appointed.

But Lu Shixian could only accept these developments passively; he had no power to choose.

Fortune lies within misfortune, and misfortune hides within fortune.

With events having progressed this far, the duality of the situation was on full display.

Lu Shixian understood that he had been forced into a position he wasn't ready for and was now being held over a fire.

With so many resources poured into his project, if he failed to produce convincing results, he would become a target of public criticism, and all his previous efforts would be for naught.

Being forced to return to China in disgrace was a very real possible outcome.

All he knew was that the pressure was immense.

But he could only do his best to turn that pressure into motivation.

To ensure no precious opportunity costs were wasted, Lu Shixian personally delivered the drafted experimental plan to his academic advisors and received invaluable suggestions.

With that, the entire project’s experimental plan became crystal clear, waiting only for him to turn it into reality.

His research approach still centered on the model plant *Arabidopsis thaliana*, which he believed held the key to understanding the mechanism of plant stem cell resistance to viral attacks and was the breakthrough point for the project.

Chapter 483: Why We Begin

However, Lu Shixian wasn’t overly confident.

His status had been suddenly elevated to great heights. If he didn’t quickly gain a clear perspective of himself, he could easily make an irreparable mistake.

Previously, only the nineteen members of his project team knew the details of the project.

But now, with the continuous entry of major figures, the commotion was far beyond a mere whisper in the wind.

The academic titans would not leak anything due to their professional ethics and scholarly integrity, but he couldn't guarantee the same for everyone else who was privy to the information.

Lu Shixian was, of course, afraid of the project details being leaked, as it would be detrimental to his research plan.

But there was nothing he could do about it.

Assuming the worst case scenario—that the information had already been leaked—the speed of information transmission on the internet meant that he did not have much time.

This meant he would be competing with research teams from all over the world.

Some less capable labs might not jump on the bandwagon, but the top-tier biology labs he knew of would definitely throw their hats in the ring.

Fortunately, Lu Shixian’s progress was currently in the lead. His proposal, funding, personnel, and facilities were all in place.

His head start wasn't huge, but it was something.

The next step, confidentiality, was undoubtedly of the utmost importance.

Lu Shixian had already decided to limit knowledge of the project's core steps to just a few people.

That way, even if outsiders learned about parts of the experiment from other members, they wouldn't know the specific progress.

Three days later.

After the entire team worked tirelessly, putting in long hours of overtime, they finally arrived at their first official experiment.

In the Yale University Life Sciences Laboratory Building, Lu Shixian, dressed in a white lab coat, looked solemnly at Merlin, Bella, and the others standing before the lab bench.

“I remain convinced that the model plant *Arabidopsis thaliana* is the key breakthrough point for this project. Therefore, your first step is to study the specific distribution of stem cells and their daughter cells that are not harmed by the virus, and then further narrow the scope of your research to identify the immune mechanism.”

“Today’s experimental content is strictly confidential. Not a single word is to be revealed outside of this room.”

The two nodded, both understanding the gravity of the situation.

The other two assistant professors, Marcel and James, also had their own research tasks.

However, they were unaware that their work was merely to support Merlin and Bella’s experiments.

But this was something no one knew except for Lu Shixian, who had the overall view.

Naturally, Lu Shixian wasn't foolish enough to let out information that could disrupt team unity.

Just as the experiment was getting on track in an orderly fashion, Lu Shixian unexpectedly received another call from Beijing.

“What’s with you, kid? You’ve only been at Yale for a few days since leaving China, and you’re already stirring up this much trouble?”

Without needing to check the caller ID, Lu Shixian knew who it was just from the tone.

He chuckled. “Professor Ma, what are you talking about? I don’t understand.”

“I’ve been busy buying a car lately. Where would I find the time to cause trouble?”

Instantly, a cough came from the other end. “I’m telling you, kid, don’t play dumb with me. Your secrets are so exposed you might as well be naked.”

“Well, well, you’ve really grown some wings after just a year at Yale. Handling a project of this level all by yourself, you’re even more impressive than I was back in the day.”

“You’re only twenty five. What are other graduate students doing in their twenties? Are you trying to fly out of the Earth and stand shoulder to shoulder with the sun?”

With that, Lu Shixian knew he couldn’t hide it any longer.

“Hehe, just lucky, just lucky.” Then he asked curiously, “By the way, how did you find out? I didn’t think my little affair would take up so much public attention. It’s not necessary, is it?”

Hearing this, Ma Yuheng grew even more exasperated and laughed scoldingly, “Little affair? You call this a little affair?”

“If you actually manage to research this thing, will I have to start avoiding you whenever I see you in the future?”

After that, he said smugly, “What do you think? Stunned, aren't you?”

“We have special sources of information for this matter. You don’t need to ask any more about it. Even if you ask, I can’t tell you.”

“Right now, I only care about one thing: who is leading the project?”

Hearing this question, Lu Shixian began to understand and replied, “Yours truly.”

Ma Yuheng nodded, then said, “Alright, I know you’re busy, kid, so I won’t take up any more of your time.”

“But you need to know that I’m just the advance party.”

“One last thing. Don’t try to carry everything on your own shoulders, kid. If you can’t make it abroad, just hurry up and get your ass back here.”

As soon as he finished, Lu Shixian heard the dial tone.

Lu Shixian hung up the phone and shook his head with a smile.

That Old Ma was always like this, like an old rascal, with none of the airs of an elder.

But it was precisely this side of him that made Lu Shixian feel a sense of closeness.

Soon, less than an hour later, Lu Shixian’s phone rang again.

Seeing the name on the screen, Lu Shixian finally understood what he had meant by “advance party.”

Without hesitation, Lu Shixian answered again. “Mentor, what are your instructions?”

Xu Zhihong rarely contacted him proactively. If he did, it was never for a small matter, so Lu Shixian cut straight to the chase without any pleasantries.

Xu Zhihong paused on the other end, then said, “Actually, I’m calling you today on behalf of someone else.”

“Did Professor Ma call you ahead of time?”

“Yes!” There was no need to hide anything, so Lu Shixian answered directly.

Hearing this, Xu Zhihong wasn’t surprised. “I knew that Old Ma couldn’t keep his mouth shut. But his intentions were good.”

“He studies cell biology, so his perspective might not be as deep as mine. Your project is of monumental significance, and its impact goes far beyond academia.”

“I only have one question: if you really do develop it, how far away is it from final application?”

Lu Shixian thought for a moment before answering, “The answer to that can be compared to the application of meristem tip culture for virus elimination.”

“If antiviral gene breeding is successful, it can circumvent some negative effects. But factors like the culture medium formula, the physiological state of the explants, and the rapid propagation methods will all affect the final antiviral outcome.”

“If we’re talking about simple application, there shouldn’t be any technical difficulty. But achieving widespread and effective application will still require some time to figure out.”

Xu Zhihong pondered for a moment, then nodded in agreement. “There are some things I can’t say too clearly. Your life path should be your own to walk.”

“But I hope that no matter where you go in the future, you never forget where you started, where you came from, and why you set out on this path.”

After hanging up, Lu Shixian fell into deep thought, silent for a long time.

Chapter 484: Process of Elimination and Brute Force

When one delves deep into scholarship, it becomes difficult to engage in purely academic pursuits; one is inevitably influenced by various external factors.

Lu Shixian hadn’t been prepared for the recent call, but he wasn’t surprised by it either.

In fact, he had his own measure of things.

This was also why he had always focused more on theoretical research than on technology while abroad.

The application of third generation sequencing technology, while a technology in itself, was ultimately created to serve scientific research. Even if it had an impact, it was confined to academia, so he had no reservations.

For now, things were still within a controllable range.

Therefore, the things they were worried about were not going to happen for the time being.

Lu Shixian decided to set the matter aside for now and focus his energy on the project.

Since even the authorities in China had figured out the details of his project, it was likely that other places with sharp intelligence networks were no exception.

Lu Shixian’s sense of urgency undoubtedly increased.

But it wasn’t all bad news. The research task he had assigned to Merlin and Bella had already yielded preliminary results.

They had introduced BMV (Brome mosaic virus) to the model plant *Arabidopsis thaliana* and had tracked its location.

BMV is generally transmitted through nematodes and mechanical inoculation. Its symptoms are similar to most mosaic viruses, including stunted growth, lesions, leaf mottling, and death, which typically appear about 10 days after the host plant sprouts. It has the greatest impact on corn and barley plants.

It was first discovered in 1942 on awnless brome in the United States. Subsequently, it was found in most countries and regions around the world. BMV can infect a wide variety of plant species, including over 50 genera in the grass family.

As they had anticipated, it was an ideal virus species to help them locate the specific distribution of stem cells unaffected by viral attack.

And it did not disappoint. The experimental data showed that the BMV virus in *Arabidopsis thaliana* was very regularly distributed at the basal position of the shoot apical meristems.

This was undoubtedly a sign that this location held some unknown secret.

“This discovery is very important. It marks that we have further narrowed our research scope. At the very least, we can now speculate that something exists in this location that prevents the BMV virus from advancing. This also proves that our initial research direction was correct,” Merlin explained in detail during the core research group meeting.

“So, Lu? We’ve completed the first step. Do you have a plan for what’s next?” Bella’s approach was more straightforward; she just asked Lu Shixian directly.

Lu Shixian was left speechless by the question. “Since the direction is correct, just keep going, right? The next step is to get more specific: down to the organ, the tissue, and even the cell.”

Since the topic was open, Lu Shixian didn’t mind saying a bit more and passing on some of the pressure.

“In this project team, you can’t count on anyone else. The other two groups are essentially your support staff, and the advisory board I’ve brought in will only ‘talk strategy on paper.’ They won’t get their hands dirty unless there are special circumstances.”

“I can tell you responsibly that our project’s details have been leaked. We have many unknown competitors.”

“What the f*ck!” Bella blurted out, her ladylike demeanor gone. “That is not good news.”

“My God, I’ve been pulling all nighters every day. Do you have any idea what torture that is for a lady?”

Ignoring her complaints, Lu Shixian took the experimental data and their processed results and began his own work.

As the project leader, he only needed to manage the overall direction, but he wasn’t one to put all his eggs in one basket.

His own research, no matter how much or how little, would serve to supplement and verify the results produced by the core research group.

Arriving at his office, Lu Shixian opened their experimental records and data on his computer and began to review them.
It was clear they hadn't used an endogenous promoter. Instead, they used the Arabidopsis UBIQUITIN10 promoter to introduce the DNA sequence of the target gene's CDS region via a Brome Mosaic Virus (BMV) construct, which was then expressed in Arabidopsis.

The experimental data indicated that once the virus breached the plant's first line of defense—the cell wall—it moved rapidly throughout the plant. However, its spread was significantly curbed upon reaching the basal region of the shoot apical meristem.

Lu Shixian nodded. Merlin and his team had indeed made good progress.

To advance further, however, they needed to identify the key influencing factor. Only then could it be considered a breakthrough.

Generally speaking, viral transport within a plant occurs through two methods: cell-to-cell movement and long-distance movement.

The former involves movement between mesophyll cells, a process likely hindered by the cell wall—the primary cellular defense—resulting in a very slow speed.

The latter, however, occurs through the vascular tissues, allowing the virus to travel swiftly with the flow of nutrients and rapidly infect the entire plant.

In fact, during a previous discussion with Professor Currie, he had mentioned a theory that the infection and replication of most viruses require a specific type of receptor.

This is also why most viruses exhibit tropism, only infecting certain types of cells, tissues, or organs.

They had explored the possibility that the shoot apical meristem might lack this receptor, which would explain how its stem cells could effectively inhibit the virus.

But this line of speculation had hit a dead end, as they couldn't determine the specific reason for this receptor's absence.

Lu Shixian hoped that the next time he saw Merlin's team, they would bring him data related to this question.

Yet, for some reason, he had not shared this hypothesis with them.

Lu Shixian needed to find the answer with his own eyes.

The days that followed were an ordeal.

The entire laboratory was bombarded with a massive number of experiments.

This included the core research team. Although they had narrowed down the experimental scope, their lack of a clear target meant they had to start with a process of elimination, ruling out the options that were obviously not the answer.

But a cell is a strange thing. It's truly small, impossible to see with the naked eye.

Yet, it's also vast. Under a microscope, there are too many unsolved mysteries waiting to be discovered.

And so, even after seemingly eliminating many wrong answers, they were still faced with such a massive number of possibilities that it felt like they were just using a brute-force method.

Chapter 485: A False Alarm

Calling it a brute-force method was generous; it was hardly different from simply trying their luck.

The competition had now reached a white-hot intensity.

Lu Shixian's first-mover advantage had been all but exhausted at this point, while other labs were beginning to leverage their late-mover advantages.

As one rose and the other fell, the gap between them was rapidly shrinking.

Through constant trial and error, the core research team finally made further progress, locking their target onto a type of protein or polypeptide.

Without a doubt, the most likely candidate was a cytokine.

When it came to this subject, Lu Shixian was on familiar ground.

The concept of cytokines had been proposed as early as the beginning of the twentieth century.

However, biologists at the time had not studied them in depth and had no clear understanding of their detailed interaction mechanisms.

It wasn't until the mid-twentieth century, through deeper research into cellular molecules, that scientists gradually identified the key proteins involved in regulating and transmitting signals within organisms. These proteins were later collectively termed cytokines.

Cytokines transmit signals between cells, regulating cellular functions and physiological processes. As crucial regulatory molecules for plant growth and development, they play an extremely important role in plant cells.

This made them a popular area of research in plant cell biology. As scientists continued to delve deeper, the types and functions of plant cytokines were discovered one after another.

The core research team held a special academic discussion on this topic.

"Plant growth factors promote cell growth, differentiation, and proliferation, while developmental factors control cell division and expansion, regulating the formation and differentiation of plant organs and tissues," Merlin stated his view, well-reasoned and evidence-based. "So I'm leaning towards it being a plant stress factor or an immune factor, or perhaps a combination of both."

With a critical moment at hand, Bella was no longer joking around. She nodded thoughtfully. "I think we should focus our main efforts on immune factors."

"Stress factors are primarily concerned with stress responses to harsh environmental conditions. Immune factors are the key players in a plant's defense against pathogen invasion."

Merlin remained firm in his opinion. "No, a harsh environment is just one of the triggers for stress factors."

"Pathogen invasion also puts stress on the plant, and in response to this pressure, the plant will also produce a stress response."

Bella couldn't help but shake her head. "No, no, no! You're being too idealistic."

"Just immune factors alone include antimicrobial peptides, antimicrobial proteins, and plant resistance proteins, among others. Researching all of those would already take up too much of our time and energy."

"As things stand, we don't have that much time, do we? If we don't focus our energy on cracking the most likely avenue, and someone else beats us to the punch, it'll be too late for regrets."

Seeing that the two were on the verge of arguing again, which had become a regular occurrence in the lab, was no surprise.

It was normal for everyone to have their own opinions and viewpoints.

Lu Shixian's job was to keep it all within a reasonable range.

The clash of different ways of thinking is what gives birth to new ideas and directions.

This time, he once again stepped in to mediate. "Alright, I understand both of your perspectives. There's no need to repeat yourselves."

After a moment of thought, Lu Shixian decided to consult his advisor on this issue; he hadn't brought him on board just for show.

With a little effort, he found Rothman in a teaching building, just after he had finished a lecture for undergraduates. He explained in detail the predicament the project team was facing.

Rothman set down his briefcase and, after a brief moment of contemplation, offered his advice.

"I've encountered similar problems many times in my past research."

"I've had both successes and failures. Plant interaction mechanisms are very complex. It's possible that both are correct answers, or neither is. So I can't give you a definitive response. The only thing I can do is wish you well."

"But my advice is to follow your inner voice. Even if you end up being wrong, you won't have any regrets, will you?"

Having received his advice, Lu Shixian started on his way back, though he hadn't gotten a clear answer.

But he could understand.

A Nobel laureate is still human, a pioneer of history, not an omnipotent god.

It is ignorance that leads to deification.

Sometimes, the more he learned about the world, the more awe he felt, and the more he recognized his own shallowness.

But Rothman's words were true. In the past, Lu Shixian had simply been subconsciously looking for reassurance.

The mystery of scientific research lies in its unknown.

After returning, Lu Shixian finally made a decision.

He did not, as he usually did, side with Merlin. Instead, he announced that the experiments would proceed according to Bella's line of thinking.

Of course, this wasn't to say Merlin was wrong.

It wasn't about right or wrong, winning or losing. It was simply a compromise made under special circumstances.

The project had reached a stage where it was a test of patience, a competition to see who could keep their composure.

While Lu Shixian's team was carrying out their experiments with fiery intensity, others were clearly not idle.

Soon, Lu Shixian received a message from Lin Haifan.

Two professors from Duke University School of Medicine's Department of Biology and Department of Biomedical Engineering had published a major finding in the field of plant antiviral genes in Nature. The paper elucidated the regulatory mechanism of an immunomodulatory factor on plant immunity.

Hearing this news, Lu Shixian was completely stunned.

What? He was still in the thick of it, and they'd already taken the win?

The fact that it was already published in a journal meant they had finished long ago; even the peer review process was complete.

Lu Shixian immediately turned on the computer in his office, opened the digital library, and browsed their latest findings.

Their breakthrough was on the NPR1 protein. In simple terms, they had used cryo-electron microscopy and X-ray crystallography to determine the three-dimensional structure of the protein complex formed by Arabidopsis NPR1 and the transcription factor TGA3, thereby elucidating the transcriptional regulatory mechanism of NPR1 on pathogen-resistance genes.

Reading this, Lu Shixian let out a slight sigh of relief.

Thank goodness! A false alarm!

Although their research was also on plant antiviral genes and also used Arabidopsis as the model organism, the experimental objectives and prospects were quite different.

But to be published in Nature was undoubtedly a major achievement.

Regarding NPR1, simply put, when a plant is attacked by a pathogen, it activates its immune response through the intracellular NPR1 protein to protect its growth.

The NPR1 protein is one of the main plant immune regulators, with estimates suggesting it controls the expression of over 2,000 genes related to plant immunity.

However, despite NPR1's importance and its discovery a decade or two ago, its three-dimensional molecular structure had remained unknown.

Now, influenced by his work, it seemed someone had finally figured it out.

Chapter 486: Validating an Idea

Although they had avoided a direct collision this time, it didn't mean there weren't other teams researching the exact same topic.

Lu Shixian downloaded the full text of the Nature paper, printed several copies, and distributed them to the core experimental team.

Regardless, their experimental approach had things worth learning from.

Soon, Merlin, Bella, and the others received the printouts and were shocked by the title.

"What's going on? Did we get scooped?" Bella found it hard to accept.

Her recent dedication had been obvious to everyone; working overtime was the norm, and the reason was self-evident.

She was naturally ambitious, or she wouldn't have become an assistant professor at Yale at her age, especially as a woman.

This opportunity was even rarer. If she could successfully get on board, it could save her at least a decade of struggle, if not more.

Now, to suddenly hear that the project might be dead was a shock she couldn't easily handle.

Seeing that Bella was about to lose it, Merlin quickly tried to explain, "Hey! Stay calm."

"I've been pulling all-nighters until I'm about to go bald, how do you expect me to stay calm?" Bella held her head in her hands, nearly losing her composure.

Lu Shixian shook his head, exasperated. He knew this woman was impetuous, not even bothering to read the content.

"Let me ask you, who has the most at stake in this project? It's me. If I'm not panicking, why are you?"

Hearing this, Bella slowly came to her senses. She opened the printout, glanced at it, and suddenly burst out laughing.

If they hadn't known the full story, they might have thought she'd lost her mind.

But it was understandable. The more you care, the more you fear losing.

"Alright, Duke University's findings aren't entirely without benefits. At the very least, we can now rule out the NPR1 immune factor."

"At the same time, by comparing their experimental process and results, we can see many of the problems we're currently facing reflected."

"All of you, study this carefully!"

With that, Lu Shixian hurried out of the lab.

Merlin and the others weren't surprised by this and went about their own business.

It couldn't be helped. As the project leader, he was responsible for all aspects of the project from initiation to execution and completion. Sometimes, trivial matters kept him so busy that he had no time to stay in the lab.

This time, however, they were mistaken.

Lu Shixian wasn't leaving for some other business; he had suddenly remembered something he had previously overlooked.

He urgently needed to verify it.

If he remembered correctly, back when he was at Jinling Agricultural University trying his best to publish papers, he had come across a paper on the interaction model of three key factors—WUS, STM, and CLV3—in stem cells during his literature review.

He couldn't recall the specific details of the paper, but he still had a general idea of its findings.

Natural science is fundamentally different from other disciplines. Often, even if you know the answer, you still need to lay out the process.

Many of the world's groundbreaking research achievements came from people who had a conclusion and then set out to find a way to prove it.

This is why math teachers always say the process is important.

Otherwise, it will forever remain a conjecture, not a theorem.

This is especially true for mathematics. Even if you traveled back in time with the original manuscript proving one of the world's greatest unsolved problems, it would be useless, because you wouldn't be able to understand the proof.

This principle largely holds true for the natural sciences as well, with the only benefit being that you might be able to avoid a few wrong turns.

This was why, even though he knew about many labs' major achievements, he still had to proceed one step at a time, unable to simply take others' work and use it.

This matter had to remain his secret alone.

He couldn't tell anyone; he had to verify it himself.

He arrived at the Yale University Library.

With a clear target in mind, Lu Shixian quickly found what he was looking for at the search terminal.

The first paper, published in 1995, was on the CLV3 gene, a characteristic gene of stem cells.

Using this characteristic as a marker, one could distinguish between stem cells and non-stem cells in the shoot apical meristem.

Then, in 1996, the STM protein was discovered for the first time. It was a key factor for the activation and maintenance of stem cells.

The main function of the STM protein was to maintain the undifferentiated state of stem cells. Its overexpression caused a drastic increase in the number of shoot apical stem cells and inhibited their ability to differentiate into various organ cells.

Finally, in 1998, the discovery of the WUS protein caused a sensation in the academic world. As the core cytokine regulating plant shoot apical stem cells, research into its function and regulatory mechanisms quickly became a hot topic in the field of plant stem cell biology.

But by 2002, research on these three factors seemed to have peaked and then declined, hitting a bottleneck.

At that point in time, three major papers on the WUS protein appeared in succession.

However, shockingly, the conclusions of these three papers were mutually contradictory.

Although all three provided detailed studies of the stem cell development process, focusing on the WUS protein at the phenotypic level, their conclusions differed.

The first paper concluded that there was a complementary relationship between the WUS protein and the STM protein.

The second concluded that they had a synergistic relationship.

The third argued that there was no necessary connection between them, and that they regulated two independent processes.

Because no one could resolve this contradiction and explain the series of problems raised by these three papers, research on plant stem cells came to a virtual standstill.

There was no need to look at the relevant literature after that point.

Most of it consisted of review articles or papers in low-impact journals.

As he held the literature in his hands, his thoughts had already drifted far away.

"Perhaps I can give up on the wild goose chase for immune factors for now and try these controversial cytokines first," Lu Shixian's mind was racing. "As for their unresolved issues, I'll have to take it one step at a time. The priority is to get past this current hurdle."

Nearly fourteen years had passed since 2002.

Such a long period of dormancy was enough for these once hotly debated factors to be forgotten in the corners of memory.

If Duke University hadn't brought the twenty-year-old NPR1 protein back into the spotlight, he might not have remembered this at all.

With this thought, Lu Shixian didn't hesitate. He immediately turned and headed back towards the lab.

When he returned to the lab, the core research team was in the middle of performing Co-IP combined with mass spectrometry experiments to screen for interacting proteins among various immune factors, just as he had previously arranged.

"Everyone, stop what you're doing right now," Lu Shixian's voice suddenly rang out in the lab.

Chapter 487: The Answer to the Problem

Merlin and the others who were familiar with him had already put down their equipment, while Bella looked at Lu Shixian with a bewildered expression and asked, "What's going on? Is there more bad news?"

Beside her, Merlin quietly reminded her, "Why worry about it? Just do as he says. Are you the one in charge, or is he?"

This question instantly silenced the woman.

Lu Shixian had no time for her and continued to issue his orders. "From now on, everyone's research focus will shift to the STM protein, the WUS protein, and the CLV3 secreted protein."

"I know this is sudden, but I don't have time to explain."

"We can talk about any questions later. Right now, you just need to follow my lead."

After speaking, Lu Shixian turned and walked into the changing room, took off his jacket, and began to put on his white lab coat.

After changing, he walked back while giving directions, "Perfect, there are three of us—me, Merlin, and Bella. We can each take a few graduate students and each person will be responsible for one control experiment."

"I'll take the first one, the STM protein. Merlin, you take the second, the WUS protein. Bella, you take the last one."

"Everyone understands, right? Get to it now!"

With that, Lu Shixian went straight to an experimental bench and began preparing for the experiment.

Left standing, Bella, who was in the middle of another experiment, had no choice but to stop.

As she started cleaning her lab equipment, she muttered, "He's good at giving orders, while we're down here working ourselves to death."

"If he hadn't finally joined in himself, I'd be cursing his name."

But for now, she only dared to complain under her breath. Her body was clearly very honest, not daring to defy him.

This was also the first time Merlin had seen such an "authoritative" side of Lu Shixian.

Based on Merlin's past impression of him, he would usually consider things thoroughly for a long time, providing meticulous instructions and demonstrating an attention to detail that inspired trust without a word.

But now, Lu Shixian, in a rare move, offered no explanation and simply commanded them with an authoritative tone.

He was now beginning to develop the aura of a top-tier academic researcher, one that commanded conviction without conscious thought.

For the next period of time, Lu Shixian completely disappeared from the public eye.

Except for a few people like Merlin and Bella, no one knew his whereabouts.
The research team led by the trio began further investigation into the three cytokines.

Virus induction, overexpression, fluorescent labeling...

Their current procedures seemed profound and difficult, completely incomprehensible to the average person.

Yet, the essence of their experiments remained the most fundamental of all: the control experiment.

That's why learning can be so fascinating. It constantly expands the boundaries of knowledge, but ultimately, the core principles remain unchanged.

Time slipped by silently, and after half a month, the trio's experiments were finally drawing to a close.

To minimize errors, at Lu Shixian's insistence, the three of them performed their experimental procedures with even greater care than before, striving for precision to achieve the maximum possible control over variables.

As a result, an experiment that should have taken only a week ended up taking more than double the time.

Soon, Lu Shixian gathered everyone and said, "Let's start compiling the data and run the comparisons."

"Bella, let's start with you."

Actually, if you have a heart that loves scientific research, how is this process any different from opening a blind box?

The exciting moment had arrived.

"I was working on the CLV3 secreted protein experiment. After inducing the BMV virus to express within the stem cells, CLV3 did show some short-term growth. However, in repeated experiments, the results weren't always consistent, and I couldn't find any discernible pattern," Bella reported her results truthfully. "Therefore, my results suggest that CLV3 might be related to the plant's natural viral immunity, but it's not a direct influencing factor, at least."

After she finished, Lu Shixian shared his own results.

"After introducing the virus, apart from some fluctuations in quantity, I didn't observe any other changes in the STM protein. In fact, sometimes its levels even decreased."

Finally, Merlin spoke up. "My experimental process was the same as yours, but my situation is a little different."

"After the virus was expressed in the plant, the quantity of the WUS protein increased to a certain extent, but the growth rate slowed down after reaching a peak."

"But recently, I noticed something strange. I'm not sure if it's a problem with my slide preparation, but the position of the WUS protein within the stem cells has shifted from its original location."

Hearing this description, most people didn't think much of it.

This sort of thing was all too common in experiments. Outside the view of a microscope, cells are incredibly tiny and fragile.

Just speaking a word or breathing out could cause irreversible changes within a cell.

While the quantity usually wouldn't change drastically, displacement was an extremely common phenomenon.

And now, after comparing the data, they had basically come up with no useful information.

Just as they thought this was all for nothing, they heard Lu Shixian suddenly ask, "Merlin, did you run repeat experiments?"

Although Merlin didn't understand the implication of his question, he answered earnestly, "Of course. I even ran five sets of repeats, but they were all done on the same lab bench."

Lu Shixian understood Merlin's unspoken point, but he paid it no mind and continued, "Bring me the cell imaging photos from the microscope."

As soon as he said this, Merlin, who had worked with him many times, guessed that he might have discovered something, though he wasn't entirely sure.

Without hesitating, he immediately turned and went to the printing room.

Quickly getting the printouts, Lu Shixian spread the five sheets of paper out on the conference table.

This action instantly confirmed his suspicion. Lu Shixian slammed his hand on the table and stood up, his heart filled with a mixture of immense frustration and incredible excitement.

"This is it, this is it."

"I should have thought of this sooner!"

The frustration came from the fact that, as a reincarnator, his reaction had been too slow; he should have spotted this crucial detail long ago.

The excitement, naturally, was because the answer they had been searching for in vain seemed to be on the verge of being revealed, rewarding all their long hours of hard work.

Bella and Merlin, standing beside him, exchanged a glance, their faces a picture of utter confusion.

They had no idea what Lu Shixian had discovered, but they were intensely curious.

"What is it? Hey, don't just stand there being happy all by yourself!" The ever-impatient Bella couldn't take it anymore, interrupting Lu Shixian's moment of immersive self-celebration.

Lu Shixian let out a long breath, finally calming his emotions. A single sentence from him was enough to plunge the other two into joy.

"If I said I've found the answer to the problem, would you believe me?"

Chapter 488: The Swift Boat Has Passed Ten Thousand Mountains

"I believe you!"

"I don't!"

The two answers came out simultaneously, the former from Merlin, the latter from Bella.

Seeing them both staring at her, Bella's stubborn demeanor softened a bit. "Actually, I was kind of hoping I could believe you."

"Believe it or not, suit yourself." Lu Shixian paid her no mind and began to explain his discovery.

"Haven't you noticed a pattern in the distribution of the WUS protein after introducing the virus?"

Hearing this, the two of them quickly looked at the cell images on the table.

They hadn't noticed before, but now that they looked, they really saw something was off.

"It seems you're right. Wherever the BMV virus spreads, the WUS protein seems to be nearby," Bella said, starting to believe him now.

Lu Shixian snapped his fingers. "Exactly! To describe it accurately, in the plant's shoot apical meristem, the BMV virus is always distributed just below the expression area of the key stem cell regulator, the WUSCHEL gene."

"There's only one truth behind the abnormal positioning of the WUS protein: it's induced by the virus to accumulate and ectopically move near the BMV virus to protect the stem cells."

"In short, at this stage, we can basically confirm that the WUS protein is the key to protecting stem cells from viral invasion."

Now that they had found the main culprit, the subsequent research would be much simpler.

Seeing them immersed in celebration, Lu Shixian had to interrupt. "Our research isn't over yet. Let's not get complacent."

"Next, phase one is to figure out the mechanism by which the WUS protein inhibits viral synthesis."

"Phase two is to determine the inhibitory effect of WUS protein quantity on the virus."

"And phase three is to prove the broad-spectrum and universal nature of the WUS protein's viral immunity function in stem cells."

Hearing Lu Shixian's words, they all quickly composed themselves, ready to tackle the upcoming research tasks.

In fact, Lu Shixian hadn't finished what he was saying.

But you can't get fat from one bite. The current workload was already enough to keep them busy for a long time.

Besides, the combined results of these phases were already significant enough to be published in a top-tier journal.

Its academic significance lay in elucidating the molecular mechanism of viral immunity in plant stem cells, explaining why viruses cannot infect the shoot apical meristem, and fundamentally providing theoretical support for meristem tip culture virus elimination technology.

On a larger scale, it could also provide research avenues for antiviral crop protection.

Of course, compared to his ultimate goal, this was only a semi-finished product.

After all, a problem that had entangled the academic world for decades still lay before them.

But at least, with the current progress, it was enough to report back to Yale.

In any case, he felt much more relaxed now.

As the project leader during this period, he had shouldered a great deal of pressure from all sides, and his nerves had been constantly on edge.

Now, he could finally say: The swift boat has passed ten thousand mountains.

Afterward, Lu Shixian didn't rest.

With the major breakthrough in the project, he made sure to report the latest results to his several advisors.

Although they weren't directly involved in the project's day-to-day work, they had undoubtedly made immense contributions.

Many of Lu Shixian's ideas came from his discussions with Rothman, Kury, and Lin Haifan.

As his seniors, even a few casual words from them often encapsulated decades of research experience and provided Lu Shixian with great inspiration.

Of course, the one he was most at ease with was still Lin Haifan.

At that moment, in his office, Lin Haifan dug out his long-treasured Tieguanyin tea, sparingly brewed a cup for Lu Shixian, and handed it to him.

"Here, drink it slowly. This is the real deal that Old Deng brought back for me a long time ago."

"Thank you." Lu Shixian accepted the cup with a smile. In reality, he didn't know much about tea, but to be able to sip a cup from his homeland while in a foreign country was a rare experience.

"What's up? What brings you to my office today?" Lin Haifan asked with a smile. "You used to just call, say what you needed, and hang up."

Back then, time was tight, and Lu Shixian had no time for pleasantries.

He knew Lin Haifan wouldn't mind, so he proceeded to tell him about the project's recent progress.

Hearing the news, Lin Haifan was very happy and also breathed a sigh of relief for him.

He was perhaps the person who best understood the immense pressure Lu Shixian was under.

It just goes to show that young people dare to venture and strive. For Lu Shixian to advance the project this far at his age was truly remarkable.

If it were him, at his current age, he wasn't sure he would have taken on such a high-profile, difficult challenge.

As for the other two titans, Lu Shixian also paid them a visit. They all offered him varying degrees of encouragement, telling him to remain calm and continue making steady progress.

The revolution is not yet won; we must continue to strive.

Lu Shixian did not let his guard down.

Through the joint efforts of the entire team, a month later, the task of phase one could not stop their advance.

The mechanism by which the WUS protein inhibits viral synthesis was cracked. They discovered that this regulator inhibits viral protein synthesis by suppressing a methyltransferase that regulates ribosomal RNA processing and ribosome stability.

They pressed on and completed the task of phase two in less than half a month.

The core research team tested the plants by increasing and decreasing the content of endogenous WUS protein in the stem cells.

The experimental data showed that if the WUS protein was successfully expressed ectopically in Arabidopsis leaves, the plant was not infected by the BMV virus.

However, if the WUS protein was degraded in the plant's stem cells, the BMV virus would rapidly spread throughout the entire shoot apical meristem.

The results of these positive and negative control experiments undoubtedly confirmed the critical role of the important immune factor WUS in the plant's natural immunity process.

As for the third phase, it required introducing other types of viruses for verification to confirm its broad-spectrum nature.

Because the experimental procedure was several times more extensive than the previous ones, it would take a considerable amount of time to complete and was therefore not yet finished.

Since the next steps were mostly repetitive experiments, Lu Shixian didn't need to supervise them constantly.

He didn't stay idle in the time that followed.

To save as much time as possible, he decided to use the same method he employed when cultivating sea buckthorn in Haiqing Xiling: fighting on two fronts.

The other members of the project team would continue with the experiments, while he would start writing the paper in advance.

In the past, when time was plentiful, he could afford to meticulously craft his work.

But now, with the status of his competitors unknown, he had to be more strategic.

Tap, tap, tap... The sound of Lu Shixian frantically typing on his keyboard echoed in the office.

Chapter 489: The Editorial Department's Regret

He might not know every single detail of the experiments, but he had a firm grasp of all the crucial experimental directions and data.

It could be said that no one was more familiar with this project than he was.

Character after character appeared in the text box on the computer screen, the entire process as smooth as silk.

But soon, he had to come to an abrupt halt.

Except for the phase three data, which would be added after the experiments were completed, he had finished the rest of the content.

And if he were to delve any deeper, he would face that ultimate, boss-level challenge.

For now, Lu Shixian could only sigh at the sheer scale of the problem.

The research, of course, had to continue, but that wasn't something that could be done in a short time. Lu Shixian decided to publish the preliminary, phased results first.

Otherwise, if someone else published a similar paper first, all their previous work would have been for nothing.

As for whether publishing it would allow others to piggyback on his work, he wasn't worried.

If it were that easy, the research on the relationship between these three cytokines would have been done long ago, not left for twenty years later.

"It's hard to imagine, Lu, that you've accomplished another great feat in just a few short months. Your paper reveals how stem cells and their nascent daughter cells in the Arabidopsis shoot apical meristem inhibit Brome Mosaic Virus (BMV) infection. From now on, the mechanism of broad-spectrum natural antiviral immunity in plant stem cells is no longer a secret," Lin Haifan said in admiration after reading his paper.

Lu Shixian remained modest, saying, "But this project isn't over. We still have a lot of work to do, don't we?"

Lin Haifan shook his head with a wry smile. "Getting this far is already an incredible achievement. Completely cracking a problem that has persisted for decades is never that easy."

After a pause, he added, "Although it's not the complete picture, this phased result is sensational enough on its own."

"Which journal are you thinking of submitting to? I imagine Science, Nature, or Cell wouldn't reject a research finding like this."

He was the leader of the project, so the decision of where to publish the paper was his to make.

Lu Shixian thought for a moment. "Let's go with Cell."

"Actually, I was quite tempted to publish in Nature to complete the CNS collection achievement. But the situation is special this time. I have to look out for an old friend's business."

Hearing this, Lin Haifan nodded with a smile but said nothing.

Saying he was doing Cell a favor was, of course, a joke.

Tens of thousands of manuscripts are submitted to these top journals every year; they are never short of research papers.

If anything, it was they who would be doing him a favor.

But then again, if Lu Shixian were to go even further in his academic career, that statement might not be an impossibility.

After checking it over several more times, Lu Shixian, with practiced ease, submitted the paper to the Cell editorial department's email.

Lu Shixian would never have guessed that just a few minutes after he hit send, an editor at Cell Press, Glass, who was communicating with a reviewer on his computer, was drawn by an email notification.

He quickly found an excuse to end the conversation with the reviewer and immediately checked his inbox.

As a manuscript editor, he had a good habit of flagging important contacts.

These people were mostly leading figures in various fields of life sciences, including top-tier scholars like Nobel laureates and academy members.

The papers they sent were invariably cutting-edge and rigorous, and they had almost never disappointed him.

Editing for these contributors, Glass believed, was dozens of times more efficient than usual.

This time would probably be no exception, which was why he was so expectant.

"Huh?" Glass let out a sound of surprise upon seeing the sender's name in his inbox.

"It's that young scholar from the East."

Glass had a very deep impression of Lu Shixian. The experience of him publishing in Cell three consecutive times was still fresh in his mind, especially since one of them had even graced their coveted cover.

Remembering the instructions his editor-in-chief, Mr. Iain, had given him, Glass merely glanced at the paper's title, not even taking the time to read it carefully before rushing to Iain's office.

"Chief, Lu, the one you told me to keep a special eye on, has submitted a paper to us."

"It seems to be the results of the project he's been working on at Yale."

At these words, Iain, who had been sitting calmly in his office chair, could no longer remain seated.

"He really did it? Quick, let me see!"

"His project has been attracting immense attention in circles worldwide recently. As far as I know, many top labs have already initiated projects to study related topics."

Iain quickly took the copy Glass had prepared in advance and began to read.

Having worked his way up to become the editor-in-chief of Cell, he had a highly developed sensitivity for top-tier papers.

Although he didn't understand all the technical details in the paper, he had a very sharp eye for a paper's value.

After reading for less than a minute, however, Iain began to shake his head with regret.

"This should only be a phased result from his project, not the final answer that unlocks the ultimate mystery of antiviral genetic breeding in plants."

Then, he added with admiration, "However, if this paper passes review, he will still be ahead of every other scientist in the world on this project."

"It seems our strategy from last time paid off. Lu actually gave this article to us."

"If we publish this, it will absolutely blow their minds."

At this point, Iain immediately made a decision. "Glass, quickly find three reviewers for this article through the priority channel. We need to get it into the next issue."

Hearing this, Glass looked troubled. "Chief, the layout for this issue is basically finalized. It's going to be difficult to arrange. We've already communicated with all the contributors."

Iain, however, was unconcerned and said matter-of-factly, "Then communicate with them again. Move the lowest-quality one to the next issue or pull it. Is that a problem?"

This was undoubtedly a move that would easily offend someone.

But Glass had no room to refuse. Besides, it wasn't the first time he'd had to take the blame.

Plus, given the special status top journals held among scholars, the unlucky person would just have to accept their misfortune. He had never seen anyone dare to complain.

So, Glass returned to his desk, immediately raised the priority of Lu Shixian's paper, and after careful consideration, personally selected three reviewers for him.

It was worth noting that these three reviewers weren't necessarily the most authoritative experts in the relevant field, but they were definitely the ones with the highest response rates.

Speaking of which, Glass also felt a slight sense of regret at that moment.

Lu Shixian's project spanned fields like plant pathology, stem cells, and genetic breeding. Many scholars engaged in this area of research had probably already secretly started to follow the trend.

If any of these reviewers were also researching natural immunity in plant stem cells, he imagined the looks on their faces after seeing this paper would be quite spectacular.

A pity he couldn't see it.

Chapter 490: What Do You Call Vision?

This was also why Lu Shixian had chosen Cell. Under the same screening conditions, the Cell editorial department would certainly place more importance on his paper and publish it much faster.

Although they hadn't communicated in advance, they shared a surprising level of tacit understanding.

In the past, only scholars at the very apex of the pyramid could receive such treatment.

And now, Lu Shixian was experiencing it too.
On the West Coast, the sky was a brilliant blue. Spring was in full bloom, and the weather was perfectly pleasant.

But for Professor George Mazell, sitting in the Life Sciences Building at the University of Washington, the mood was anything but beautiful.

"Shit!"

"Can someone tell me why the first thing I see when I open my inbox is a paper from my competitor, and I'm the one assigned to review it?"

At that moment, Professor Mazell's face was as grim as if he'd just swallowed something foul.

This meant that his past several months of hard work had just gone down the drain.

Still, curiosity compelled him to read on.

As the saying goes, the person who knows you best is often not your closest friend, but your enemy.

It had to be said, Glass had chosen his reviewers well.

Professor Mazell was an expert in the field of plant gene engineering. After months of his own in-depth research, he had made considerable progress on plant antiviral genes and had a lot to say on the subject.

Only now, his expression was even more complex than before, almost enough to perform a Sichuan opera face-changing show.

Mazell desperately wanted to write "Reject and return" in the review comments section.

But his professional integrity and code of conduct told him that was likely a pipe dream.

He tried his hardest to find a flaw, to overturn the paper's final conclusion.

But from his perspective, at least, he couldn't see any problems worth making a fuss about.

Even if there were minor issues, pointing them out would only make him a laughingstock and earn him a reputation for being a nitpicker.

He spent several hours reading the entire paper from start to finish.

Even Mazell had to admit that the author's acuity for discovering patterns was superior to his own, and their understanding of plant antiviral genes ran deeper.

If it were him, he wasn't sure he could have found the breakthrough by focusing on the ectopic expression of the WUS protein. Furthermore, the techniques and methods used for the subsequent proofs were masterful, leaving almost no logical loopholes for him to attack.

The entire paper was as rigorous as a precision instrument, as if it were not forged by human hands but had simply come into being, perfect and whole.

And at the very end, the author extended a broad invitation to scholars around the world to join forces in cracking the interaction mechanism of the STM protein, WUS protein, and CLV3 secreted protein within stem cells, to remove the final great mountain standing in the way of antiviral gene breeding in plants.

This was, without a doubt, the final blow for Mazell.

His face was now a shifting canvas of green and white.

He had gotten wind of someone else's research topic and had secretly followed their trail, planning to swoop in and claim the prize if he succeeded first.

And now, the other party didn't seem to care at all. Instead, they were magnanimously inviting him to join their research.

What is class?

*This* is class.

After sitting in this state for some time, Mazell's mood surprisingly began to improve.

After all, it's better to have a god-like opponent than a pig-like teammate.

To lose to a rival of this caliber, he had to admit defeat, thoroughly and gracefully.

He just wondered which of the world's top laboratories had produced such a result.

Unfortunately, he was just one of *Cell*'s many ordinary reviewers and had no authority to obtain the paper's origin from the editorial department through special channels.

"Could it be the Nobel laureate, Professor Patel? No, that can't be right. I heard his own project isn't even finished yet," Mazell mused, running through the most likely candidates. "Perhaps Professor Jefferson from Oxford's bioengineering lab?"

"He's made deep inroads in plant gene engineering recently. It's possible he's researching this area."

"But given his personality, he wouldn't be this low-key if he'd succeeded!"

After a long time guessing, Mazell still couldn't pinpoint the author and finally gave up.

To be honest, if he had the chance, he would genuinely like to exchange ideas with them.

Finally, after some thought.

Four hours after receiving the paper, Mazell signed off on his review.

"The capabilities of this research team are in a league of their own. With this, another door in the field of modern genetic engineering is just one final push away from being opened."

Meanwhile, within less than an hour of each other, the other two reviews crossed mountains and seas to arrive on Glass's computer.

"Professor Jefferson from Oxford commented that the results break through the existing theoretical framework and open a new direction for research in related fields. The research concepts and methods are admirable, a major breakthrough for the field."

"Professor Andrew from Cambridge called the experimental results outstanding and remarkable, a clear testament to the research team's effort and talent."

"Editor-in-Chief, the review from Professor Mazell at the University of Washington is even more exaggerated," Glass reported to Ian, summarizing the final results of the peer review.

Ian shook his head with a smile. "That Mazell is just trying to save face. He's likely been researching this area himself, only to have someone else beat him to the punch."

"Praising an opponent is sometimes a way of elevating yourself."

Glass chuckled along before tentatively asking, "Since the reviews are in, shall I go ahead and schedule it for publication?"

"In that case, should we stick to our previous decision and postpone the latest results from Professor Knox's team at UC Davis by one issue?"

"Go ahead," Ian nodded, quickly finalizing the matter.

Soon, Lu Shixian, as the corresponding author, also received the review feedback.

The result was, unsurprisingly, an acceptance.

Lu Shixian wasn't surprised in the least. The paper had been vetted by both a Wolf Prize laureate in Agriculture and a Nobel laureate. If there were still problems, he would have had to write a letter of complaint.

Still, he sent a thank-you email to the editorial department, expressing his gratitude for their efficiency.

He did not feel overly proud of publishing another paper in *Cell*.

He knew that in the face of true biology, he still had a long, long way to go.

The project had only achieved a milestone; it was far from complete.

If not for the special circumstances, he would have had no need to publish this paper so early.

But regardless, everything was proceeding according to plan, and that was a good feeling.

Next, he would concentrate his firepower and launch a final assault on the most difficult objective.

This would not be a simple process, which was why he was eager for others to join him in tackling this challenge.

Even if they only contributed a single new idea.

Chapter 491: The Climb

A week later, the latest issue of *Cell* was published.

It immediately caused a huge stir.

Many people were already aware that someone at Yale was working on this project, but no one expected such a breakthrough in just a few months.

Many teams whose projects had already been approved found this fact hard to accept. They expressed shock and anxiety, as it meant that all their hard work was likely to be for nothing.

Even more people who were in the process of applying for project funding immediately chose to terminate their applications to cut their losses.

A few headstrong teams chose to press on, deciding they could simply cite Lu Shixian's findings and continue their research on that foundation.

This was understandable. Since Lu Shixian hadn't reached the final goal yet, no one who had already invested so much effort was willing to give up easily.

This time, Lu Shixian had taken the lead.

But as for what came next, who could say for sure?

Regardless, Lu Shixian had become a hot topic in the American scientific community.

For the first time, his name in the corresponding author position became widely known in academic circles.

At that moment, over in California, Knox's mood was not so pleasant.

Ever since he had published three consecutive papers in *Cell* as the corresponding author with Lu Shixian's help, he had quickly become a star in the field of plant pathology.

But after Lu Shixian left, the UCD plant pathology lab seemed to have fallen from grace. The papers they published could barely make it into the subsidiary journals of the big three.

This led many to question his research abilities, which had been a source of great frustration for him.

To prove himself, Knox had finally managed, after much effort, to get their team's important findings published in this month's issue of *Cell*.

But a few days ago, he was suddenly informed that his paper, which had already been confirmed, was being postponed for a month.

This infuriated him, and he cried foul, shouting about unfairness and backroom deals.

But he didn't dare to go head-to-head with the editorial department. At least it wasn't an outright rejection, so he pinched his nose and accepted it.

Now, however, with the buzz surrounding the latest issue of *Cell*, he had a pretty good idea who the culprit was. His expression was quite a sight to behold.

He called Lu Shixian to offer congratulations while also pouring out his grievances, demanding that Lu treat him to a meal next time.

Lu Shixian, who readily agreed, hung up the phone with a sense of wry amusement.

He really had nothing to do with it; it was all the editorial department's arrangement, of which he had been completely unaware.

All he could say was that this coincidence was a bit too much.

Knox didn't dare broadcast the matter either. He could only let it fester inside him. Otherwise, wouldn't he be tacitly admitting his paper was the weakest among that issue's batch?

The episode with Knox quickly passed.

On Lu Shixian's end, the unprecedented progress of his project had instantly made him a sought-after academic star at Yale University.

The level of importance Yale placed on him and his project was once again upgraded.

Rothman, representing the university, quickly found him. "After you published your findings in *Cell*, the university and the department have placed enormous importance on your project. We will fully support you in completing the next stage of your research. Your current team size is likely insufficient for the intensity of the work ahead."

"You can reorganize and optimize your team. Whether you need people or money, Yale will do its best to meet your requirements."

"Of course, if you encounter any academic difficulties, you can always come to me, Curry, or Lin for help. We will fully cooperate with your research work." After a pause, Rothman made a joke. "In other words, from now on, I'm basically one of your grunts."

Rothman's words left Lu Shixian completely stunned.

It wasn't that he was unworldly, but this was the kind of treatment no one would believe if you told them.

In reality, he had underestimated the potential of his current research.

He had initially conceived his research with crops as the subject. If he could figure out the natural antiviral immune mechanism of crop stem cells, he could open up a new path in antiviral gene breeding, an alternative to transgenics.

This would pioneer a shift for crops from "relying on humans" to "relying on themselves." From the perspective of increasing yields, it would completely eliminate the potential risks associated with GMOs.

But he had overlooked the fact that crops are just a small part of the vast plant kingdom. The same mechanisms could be applied to all other plants.

Transgenic technology was regulated and couldn't be used widely at will.

But activating a plant's own natural antiviral immunity had virtually no drawbacks and held immense value for widespread application.

From the perspective of crops alone, this was already a research achievement that could be said to benefit all of humanity.

If you added the entire plant kingdom, then from a macro perspective, if Lu Shixian could crack this problem, his contribution would be world-changing.

In other words, it was a Nobel-level achievement.

Political considerations aside, this was the real reason so many research teams were flocking to it.

In his memory, there was no record of anyone winning a Nobel Prize for this research.

This had misled him.

Because the future he had experienced was finite, but the future he was in now was infinite.

He now had limitless possibilities.

The future in his memory had long been altered beyond recognition by the flapping of a butterfly's wings.

Now, there was no turning back for him. He could only move forward, step by step.

His own inner desires, coupled with external pressures, were all driving him to climb to the very top.

Rothman also remarked with a sigh, "I never thought someone would be touching this level at your age. I remember I was probably in my forties when I was engaged in similar research."

"And you, you're only halfway there, and you already have a chance to stand at the pinnacle of glory. I experienced that feeling once, the day my name was remembered by the world and etched into history amidst cheers."

"Keep it up, Lu! I look forward to your future."

Lu Shixian had to give him credit. It seemed this old hand was also quite skilled at giving pep talks and painting grand pictures, almost on par with himself.

His words had even gotten Lu's own blood pumping.

But Rothman, true to his vast research experience, quickly offered a well-intentioned reminder.

"However, don't be in a hurry. This isn't a hundred-meter dash; it's a marathon that tests endurance to the extreme. This road might last two years, or even five, or perhaps it has no end at all."

"You must be prepared for a long battle."

"You can't turn back in life, but you can always change course."

Fortunately, Lu Shixian's ability to regulate himself was strong. He quickly reined in his soaring spirits and maintained the rationality expected of an academic researcher.

"Actually, my goal has always been to reach the final destination of science, to explore the mysteries of life, not to pick the beautiful flowers along the way."

Chapter 492: A New Strategic Weapon

"Of course, I won't underestimate it. A problem that has existed for so long naturally has its ways of surviving. But I won't be too intimidated by it, either. Even the most difficult problems are destined to be solved one day. As we say in China: tactically, despise your opponent; strategically, take them seriously."

Rothman nodded at him in approval. "Exactly. But many people nowadays don't understand this principle. They get dazzled by those flowers, waste a lot of time, and years later, find they are still standing in the same place."

Lu Shixian quickly reassembled his team members to challenge the final problem.

As he envisioned it, this was just a probing attack, so he kept the original team without making any changes.

But after half a month, he came to deeply appreciate how thorny the problem was.

The most critical issue was that he didn't even have a way to approach it. The team could only wait.

If plant stem cell research was the core of plant developmental biology, then the STM and WUS proteins were the core of the core in studying the regulatory mechanisms of plant stem cells.

They were like superstars, attracting everyone's attention, yet they seemed utterly unreachable.

But if you could conquer them, you could charge straight into the enemy's heart, devouring everything in your path.

The tricky part was that many had tried before but had hidden their failed attempts. No one offered an effective strategy to court these superstars, and there was no information to reference.

That's right, research on the regulatory mechanism of how the WUS protein interacts with other factors to collectively activate and maintain stem cell activity was pitifully scarce.

The mainstream view in academia was that the stem cell regulatory pathway mediated by the STM protein and the one mediated by the WUS protein were independent or complementary. There had never been any research suggesting a direct relationship between the two.

But Lu Shixian didn't think so. He believed that if a cell could be described as a precision instrument, then its components could not exist independently of the whole. There had to be an undiscovered mode of interaction.

Natural phenomena already existed to support his view.

Under natural conditions, fully developed roots and leaves could rarely regenerate new shoots to form new plants.

But if the expression level of the WUS gene was artificially increased within plant cells, even mature plant organs and tissues could still sprout new shoots.

This fully demonstrated that the WUS protein was a key factor in activating the regulation of plant stem cells; it was a core cell factor.

But it couldn't be working alone. There had to be other key factors interacting with it to produce this effect.

The question was, by what means did they connect, and through what pathways did they coordinate?

Lu Shixian finally came up with a method that was not quite his own idea: using a protein-protein interaction screening experiment to find direct interaction partners for WUS. This would directly identify new WUS-interacting factors.

And in the process, he could clarify the genetic pathways and molecular mechanisms it used to regulate stem apex stem cell activity.

Actually, to say he came up with it wasn't entirely accurate.

Similar concepts had been proposed long ago, but they were only mentioned briefly and never put into practice due to the technological limitations of the time.

The idea had lain dormant ever since, until Lu Shixian ignited the research craze for natural antiviral immunity in stem cells.

Using someone else's old ideas wasn't ideal, but since no one else wanted it, he supposed he would reluctantly put it to use.

Although he didn't want to admit he had been preparing for this all along, the key to realizing this vision was the Co-IP (Co-Immunoprecipitation) technique, which had only appeared this year.

Simply put, the principle of Co-IP technology utilizes the specificity between an antibody and its antigen.

This should be easy to understand.

It involves using an antibody specific to a target protein to indirectly capture other proteins that are bound to it, thereby determining the physiological interaction between two proteins within an intact cell.

Before the advent of Co-IP, screening and verifying potential interacting proteins in plants required obtaining stable transgenic plants expressing both proteins. This method had too many limitations and was highly inefficient.

Demand creates supply; that saying isn't just for show.

Thus, through collective effort, a transient expression system was invented for rapidly expressing target proteins and detecting their interactions.

A common plant transient expression system involves injecting a mixture of Agrobacterium strains, each containing a plasmid for expressing a putative interacting protein, into the leaves of Nicotiana benthamiana. Once the plant proteins are transiently expressed, Co-IP technology can be used to verify their interaction.

The completion and regulation of a cell's various basic functions depend on protein-protein interactions. It could be said they are involved in almost all important life activities.

Therefore, studying protein interactions was a viable way to crack the problem.

This was one of the new strategic weapons Lu Shixian had carefully prepared to conquer his enemy.

But just having a weapon wasn't enough; you also needed someone who knew how to use it. Otherwise, even the most advanced weapon would just sit in a warehouse gathering dust.

The immediate priority was to send a few core members of his team out to learn the Co-IP technique.

Lu Shixian, of course, knew how to use it. But he couldn't explain how he knew.
The technology had only just emerged this year. And recently, he had been working right under the noses of several people in the lab. Unless he could somehow be in two places at once, there was no way to explain how he'd mastered this new technique in just a few short weeks. The only other option was to blow his own cover.

But that also meant the project would grind to a halt.

Lu Shixian had long been prepared for this. What else could he do?

Even before this, he had no intention of continuing to waste his time on the project. It would only be a fruitless endeavor.

Aside from the few "lab grunts" who were sent out for further training, he gave the other team members a long vacation. The once bustling laboratory was now utterly deserted.

Lu Shixian decided to relax a bit and found a little amusement for himself.

The amusement he found was attending a lecture.

That's right, he was planning to sit in on one of Rothman's classes.

As the chairman of Yale's Department of Cell Biology, he was one of those rare American scholars who, after winning a Nobel Prize, continued to teach on campus.

He quickly found out that Rothman's next specialized course was scheduled for three thirty this afternoon.

For the first time since enrolling at Yale, Lu Shixian stepped into one of its lecture halls.

Of course, to call it a specialized course was less accurate than calling it a public lecture.

Rothman's reputation was simply too immense. What better way to learn than to listen to a Nobel laureate in person?

Yale must have done its homework, as the lecture hall was the size of a large conference room.

By now, it was already packed with nearly several hundred students.

They were all craning their necks in anticipation of Rothman's arrival.

Chapter 493: A Great Teacher Produces a Brilliant Pupil

Five minutes before the class was scheduled to begin, Rothman walked into the lecture hall carrying a copy of *Cellular Signal Transduction*.

He was slightly heavyset, but well proportioned. His suit was stretched taut over his frame, but this somehow gave him a unique kind of approachability.

Rothman glanced at the watch on his left wrist and then spoke. "It's almost time. Let's begin."

He held up the book in his hand and continued, "Today's lesson is, as you can see, the topic of this book. I must state upfront that this material is not required for your current stage of study, but I believe it will be very useful for you."

"Of course, if you're not interested in this topic, you don't need to waste your time here. You are free to leave now."

"Don't worry, it won't affect your GPA in any way, and I won't mind. After all, the room is still quite crowded."

As he finished, a wave of laughter rippled through the hall, but no one left.

It was a distinctive opening, and it was the first time Lu Shixian had seen this side of him.

Rothman had publicly shared his scientific philosophy, believing that the essence of innovation was rooted in the scientific method.

The greatest scientific discovery of all was the invention of the scientific method itself, for its potential was infinite, limited only by human imagination.

Rothman was, in fact, deeply committed to nurturing the growth of young scientists. He had once encouraged young people to explore freely and not to always listen to the opinions of their seniors.

He had also advised young, independent scientists to follow their own instincts and interests in conducting basic research and to create an academic atmosphere of independent inquiry.

This was likely why he still spent so much time at the lectern, time that could have been dedicated to research.

It was also why, after hearing Professor Curry mention Lu Shixian, he had personally taken the initiative to visit him.

And perhaps it was also why he hadn't given Lu Shixian his own explicit opinion, but instead gestured for Lu Shixian to listen to his own inner voice.

In the world of science, beyond professional academic research, there were other fascinating areas of study.

For example, it has been over a century since the first Nobel Prize was awarded in 1901.

Based on this history, some have proposed the concept of a Nobel Prize genealogy, tracing the lineage of scientific mentorship.

As it stood, Rothman was the latest descendant in his branch of the academic family tree.

If one were to trace it back.

There was his mentor at Stanford, Arthur Kornberg, the "father of DNA enzymology" and a Nobel laureate in Physiology or Medicine in 2006.

Further up was Fritz Albert Lipmann, the discoverer of "coenzyme A" and a Nobel laureate in Physiology or Medicine in 1953.

Tracing the line all the way up, one would eventually arrive at the end of the genealogy: Adolf von Baeyer, winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1905.

This was, of course, not the only example of such a teacher student legacy spanning generations.

While this line of research held little academic significance, it did illustrate one point.

A great teacher indeed produces a brilliant pupil. Behind one great master is the rise of a whole group of talented individuals.

Therefore, from this perspective, the work Rothman was doing now was, in some ways, more valuable than his work in the laboratory.

Rothman's Nobel Prize-winning work was for "unraveling the machinery regulating vesicle traffic, a major transport system in our cells."

In the field of cell biology, one would be hard pressed to find more than a handful of living biologists more accomplished than him.

Cell signal transduction describes the process by which a cell perceives stimuli from information molecules through its membrane or intracellular receptors, converts these signals through an internal transduction system, and ultimately influences the cell's biological functions.

In this advanced cell biology class, Rothman didn't simply stick to the processes and principles of transduction. He expanded to the next dimension: cell communication.

Cell signal transduction was already beyond what students at this level were expected to learn. In other words, Rothman was already teaching beyond the curriculum, and now he was raising the bar even higher.

This created a peculiar phenomenon. With the exception of those who had studied the material on their own, many of the students who had come out of admiration were listening as if it were all Greek to them. The information went in one ear and out the other, leaving them completely bewildered.

"Cell communication is actually remarkably similar to communication in human society," Rothman said, offering a vivid example. "The first and primary pathway is through chemical signal molecules. The process is as marvelous as us communicating by telephone."

"A signal transmitter sends out a light signal, which is then converted into a sound signal by a receiver. Similarly, a signaling cell sends out a chemical signal, which is received and recognized by a target cell through receptor proteins, ultimately eliciting a response."

"The other two methods of communication are through adhesion or junctions between adjacent cell surfaces, and through adhesion between a cell and the extracellular matrix. Of these three, only the first does not require direct cell to cell contact and relies entirely on the contact between ligand and receptor to transmit information. This is why it has become the most common method of communication adopted by both plants and animals."

"So, we finally arrive at the topic I really want to focus on: intracellular molecular transduction."

At this point, many people's mouths were agape, at a loss for words.

So, after all that talk, he was only now getting to the main point.

Rothman continued to explain, "Stimuli from outside the cell can be transmitted into the cell through various signaling pathways, thereby activating different transcription factors to regulate the cell's growth, differentiation, and functional activity. The Ca2+ pathway, the Ras pathway, the cAMP pathway, and the NF-κB pathway are four such examples."

"In recent years, the world's research on cell transduction has mainly been reflected in the Ca2+ signaling pathway and its corresponding protein molecules. For instance, PKC (protein kinase C), CaM (calmodulin), CaMKII (calmodulin kinase 2), and at the same time, important breakthroughs have been made with protein molecules in the Ras pathway, such as Vav, Rap, Crk, C3G..."

At this point, Rothman paused, a strange look on his face, and asked, "Can I ask if anyone here understood what I just said?"

Silence fell. Everyone looked at each other. As much as they wanted to show off, the consequences of being caught pretending to understand were severe.

In the end, in the vast lecture hall, fewer than ten people hesitantly raised their hands.

Judging by their hairlines, these few seemed to be well beyond the undergraduate level.

Rothman didn't seem to mind. In a perfectly ordinary tone, he said, "It's good that not many of you understood."

"Because these are results that are already on the verge of becoming obsolete."

"And here at Yale, a young scholar from China may very well rewrite what is already in the textbooks."

Chapter 494: A Different Approach

Down in the audience, Lu Shixian felt an overwhelming urge to cover his face and flee.

He could feel the high hopes Rothman had for him, but as of now, he had made no progress. The project was practically at a standstill.

If he didn't feel that this lecture might be of great help to him, he might have walked out right then.

Rothman's expertise spanned the three major fields of physics, medicine, and biology. Many of his current achievements in biology likely stemmed from his previous research in medicine.

The booming development of modern medicine is inseparable from the contributions of biology. The various disciplines within basic medicine are intertwined and overlapping with cell biology, all requiring an elucidation of life phenomena at the cellular level.

Cell communication is now considered part of the medical field, and its achievements in medicine far outshine those in biology.

Lu Shixian suddenly felt it was unfair. Since medicine could flourish using biological theory as its cornerstone...

Then, turning it around, why not use advanced medical research theories to study biology?

In that moment, Lu Shixian identified his biggest problem.

Although he had always prided himself on his broad research interests, he had been going in circles, always within the confines of biology.

He was still using purely biological methods to study problems.

He suddenly had an epiphany. A whole new line of thought had opened up.

Although it was just a rough idea, in a way, it was incredibly precious.

Without waiting for the lecture to end, Lu Shixian rushed straight to the Stem Cell Center.

Although Lin Haifan researched stem cells and taught at Yale, he was not part of the biology department.

Lu Shixian had been told a little known fact long ago: Lin Haifan was actually a giant in the medical school.

He held multiple positions, including Professor in the Department of Cell Biology, Professor in the Department of Genetics, and even Professor in the Departments of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences and Dermatology at the School of Medicine.

Because of this, Lu Shixian had subconsciously assumed that Rothman or Curry would be of greater help to him in biology, and he rarely sought out Lin Haifan for academic discussions.

Now, it seemed he had made a grave mistake.

Although Lin Haifan hadn't won any world renowned awards, the fact that he would soon become a member of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Medicine as a Chinese American spoke volumes. His academic achievements were by no means inferior to the other two advisors.

But at least there was still time and opportunity to remedy this.

Fortunately, he and Lin Haifan were already very familiar with each other, their relationship akin to a friendship that transcended generations, so no unnecessary formalities were needed.

Lu Shixian made a call, and soon the two met in Lin Haifan's office.

He spoke in a deferential tone, "Professor Lin, I came today to seek your expertise on a professional matter."

This question amused Lin Haifan, who laughed and replied, "Shixian, your level in plant biology is now higher than mine, if not equal. Your talk of 'seeking expertise' makes me feel quite ashamed."

Lu Shixian shook his head. "That's not it. The biological approach isn't working right now. I want to try a medical approach."

"I would like to ask, in the field of medicine, how do you study the immune regulatory mechanisms within cells, similar to the interactions between various cytokines in plant stem cells?"

Lin Haifan was somewhat surprised. "Shixian, that's a wild approach!"

"I've mostly heard of people using biological methods to study medicine. You're doing the reverse, using medical methods to study biology?"

"However, the two research subjects are very different. Medical research mainly focuses on tumor cancer cells, while you're currently studying plant viruses."

Lu Shixian nodded in understanding. "In other words, I want to see if the research methods from two different fields can give me some inspiration."

Hearing this, Lin Haifan didn't hesitate. After a moment's thought, he said, "The professional terminology in the two fields is different. I believe you're referring to the human immune response."

"The process is roughly that after a foreign pathogen invades the human body, the immune system launches a specific immune response against it, ultimately clearing the pathogen. This is equivalent to the plant's natural antiviral immunity that you're currently studying."

"I'm sure you've learned this before, but the core of the specific immune response is the coordinated immune reaction involving T cells and B cells. Both are lymphocytes in the immune system. B cells are the primary producers of antibodies, which can bind to pathogens and prevent them from causing further harm. T cells are mainly divided into CD4+ T cells and CD8+ T cells."

"CD4+ T cells can differentiate into subgroups such as helper T cells, memory T cells, and regulatory T cells. The main function of helper T cells is to promote B cell production, enhancing their biological activity and antibody production. Memory T cells can rapidly proliferate and continuously produce immune effectors, providing protection for the next encounter with a similar antigen. The function of CD8+ T cells is more singular; they are mainly responsible for clearing infected cells."

As he spoke, Lin Haifan chuckled to himself. "As for the interactions you mentioned, honestly, that question is a cutting edge, hot topic even in medicine."

"Traditionally, the academic community believed that the helper effect of CD4+ T cells on the CD8+ T cell response was mainly mediated by CD4+ Th1 cells. Follicular helper T (TFH) cells can efficiently promote B cell antibody mediated immune responses."

"But after extensive research, it was found that TFH cells in cancer patients are strongly correlated with patient prognosis and long term survival. However, the role of TFH cells in the body's anti tumor immunity is still unclear. Similarly, B cells act as antigen presenting cells, but there has been very little research on their role in the body's anti tumor immunity."

He then shook his head. "So, the insights I can offer you are actually quite limited. However, I recently saw an interesting paper in the latest issue of *The Lancet* that might be of some small use to you."

"The research team designed a novel mouse tumor model to express tumor neoantigens recognized by both B cells and T cells. Then, using corresponding B cell receptor (BCR) and T cell receptor (TCR) transgenic mouse models, they analyzed the tumor antigen specific B cell and CD4+ T (TFH) cell responses in tumor draining lymph nodes and tumor tissues."

"They ultimately found that B cells presenting tumor antigens could promote the differentiation of tumor specific TFH cells. These TFH cells, through the production of IL-21, enhanced the anti tumor CD8+ T cell response, thereby controlling tumor growth..."

Here, Lin Haifan was still explaining as if he were in a classroom.

Halfway through, he looked up, only to see Lu Shixian's back as he turned and ran.

"Wait, what's going on with you?" Lin Haifan called out loudly.

Chapter 495: The Research Symposium

From the distance came Lu Shixian's frenzied reply.

"Haha, I've got it, I've got it... This 'small use' might just be a huge breakthrough!"

One must be obsessed to achieve greatness.

Just a moment ago, as Lin Haifan mentioned the novel mouse tumor model, an idea had flashed through his mind like a bolt of lightning.

He hadn't felt this way since his time at Yan University, when he was studying inflammation and had a breakthrough after a fall while running.

It was a fascinating coincidence.

That paper, "The Role of a GPCR in Regulating Cellular Immune Function under Inflammatory Conditions," could also be considered part of biomedical science.

And now, his inspiration had once again come from biomedicine.

This also underscored the importance of academic communication and exchange.

If he had been left to work in isolation in his lab, he probably would never have thought to read a paper in *The Lancet*.

There were more papers published in life sciences each year than one could ever read. Who would have the time to look at research from other fields?

But he couldn't help it. Lu Shixian had been tormented by his lack of a research direction for far too long.

It had been a very long time since he had experienced this feeling of having no clear path forward.

This is why the method of inquiry is more important than the result.

In a sense, the type of research method one uses determines the type of scientific research one can conduct.

If induction produced classical science and the hypothetico deductive method produced relativity, then the systems approach produces modern science.

Looking at the history of modern natural sciences, research methodology has played a crucial role in the development of disciplines.

Many scientists have placed great importance on the scientific exploration of research methods, even going so far as to believe that all theoretical discussions can be reduced to a scientific discussion of their research methods.

The scientific experimental methods advocated by scientists like Galileo and Bacon not only laid a solid foundation for modern natural science but also triumphed in the fierce struggle against religious theology and empirical philosophy.

The refinement of research methods can, to some extent, lead to the refinement of an entire discipline.

For example, starting with classical economics, the use of mathematical methods has made the logic of economic theory clearer, more precise, and more rigorous.

The development of disciplines like astronomy, mechanics, and physics has also had a profound impact on the development of economics, broadening the scope of research and deepening the perspectives of inquiry.

Today, the intersection and integration between disciplines are increasing, and the development of science is showing a trend toward hybridization and holism.

One of the most important reasons for this is the mutual borrowing and promotion of research methods.

"The innovation of research methods will provide a powerful guarantee for the theoretical development of all disciplines!"

Lu Shixian recalled a line he had heard at an academic lecture long ago.

He hadn't believed it then.

As the sayings go, you can't talk about ice with a summer insect, and people with different principles can't work together. How could things from different categories possibly be connected?

But today, he believed it!

He had actually found a way to study the natural immunity of plant stem cells through medical research methods.

However, to fully apply it to biology, some technical modifications would be necessary.

He had found the path forward; now he just had to pave it according to the specific terrain.

For such a specialized problem, Lu Shixian would not ponder it alone.

One week later, after seven days of preparation and refinement.

As the person in charge, he convened the first full research symposium of the project's academic advisory board.

The theme of the meeting: Research on the Mechanism of Natural Immune Regulation in Plant Stem Cells.
Attendees: Nobel laureate Rothman, Wolf Prize in Agriculture laureate Kuri, future member of the two US National Academies Lin Haifan, and the current…

Well, let’s just call him a well-known young biologist.

Meeting Location: A nondescript studio apartment near Yale University.

“Huh? Little Lu, this apartment of yours isn’t small at all, and the location is pretty good. Must cost a pretty penny for the year, right?” Lin Haifan was the first to arrive, offering his opinion after a quick tour.

The mention of this made Lu Shixian’s heart bleed. He had spent an immense amount of time, energy, and money to rent this apartment.

He had even set up a separate study in the city, yet the apartment’s primary function had been reduced to little more than a dormitory for sleeping.

Next, Kuri, a fervent academic, arrived in short order. “Quick, quick! Lu, I can’t wait to hear you describe your discovery.”

The last to arrive was Rothman. Since receiving the Nobel Prize in 2013, he had been swamped with obligations, and it was a real challenge for most people to get a moment of his time.

Lu Shixian, however, was a rare exception.

In fact, Rothman had just instructed his assistant to cancel several important meetings that afternoon, just to attend this small, four-person gathering in this humble place.

As the host and organizer of the meeting, Lu Shixian also played the part of the server.

Because time was tight, he hadn't even had a chance to boil water, so he had simply prepared a glass of plain, cool water for each of them.

But at this moment, no one cared about that.

Professor Kuri appeared the most anxious, looking as if he were about to speak several times but holding back.

In truth, the most curious one was likely Lin Haifan. He had personally watched Lu Shixian sprint off, yet he had no idea what brilliant idea had struck him.

Rothman, having experienced similar scenes before, was the calmest of the three, even taking the time to slowly savor the taste of the cool water.

After taking a deep breath to organize his thoughts, Lu Shixian looked at the three academic authorities, each a titan in their respective fields, and said, “Professor Rothman, Professor Kuri, and Professor Lin, welcome to my humble abode.”

“The reason I’ve gathered everyone here today is that I believe I may have found a way to unlock the secret of innate antiviral immunity in plant stem cells. I will now give a brief report on the research method I have conceived.”

“Please feel free to speak your minds and offer your valuable opinions.”

In reality, no one spoke. They were all waiting for him to reveal the mystery.

So he continued, “In the past, classical models of plant disease resistance were mainly divided into two categories. The first is PTI, or PAMP-Triggered Immunity, and the second is ETI, or Effector-Triggered Immunity.”

“As of this year, 2015, I have counted 296 viral genes that have been identified and cloned. Based on the disease-resistance genes reported in published papers, I have categorized them into nine distinct models.”

“These include recognition triggered by the direct interaction of pathogen effectors with cell-surface RLK/RLP receptors; recognition triggered by the binding of effectors to host components via cell-surface RLK/RLP receptors or by effector-mediated modification of host components; recognition triggered by the direct interaction of pathogen-derived components with NLRs…”

Lu Shixian’s voice, seemingly understated, echoed through the apartment.

But in truth, it was the condensed summary of his entire past week of effort.

It was the culmination of his review of hundreds, if not thousands, of papers published over the last several decades.

Chapter 496: The Inquisition

Fortunately, the men present were all experts in the field and quickly recognized the value in his narration.

“Lu, if you organize this material properly, you should be able to submit it as a review paper to a very respectable journal,” Kuri said, affirming the work he had done. “This is no simple task. You must have been preparing for a long time.”

“Actually, no. I only began this work last week and just finished today. But this isn’t the main topic I wanted to discuss,” Lu Shixian said truthfully.

Lin Haifan could be considered a witness. A week ago, Lu Shixian had left his office and had not been seen again until today.

To achieve such an academic feat in just seven days was an incredibly difficult task.

“This level of intensity… you’re even crazier than I was in my youth,” Lin Haifan remarked with a sigh. “Now that you’ve laid the groundwork, you can tell us your final idea.”

Rothman, Kuri, and Lin Haifan all shed their smiles, preparing to listen intently to the substantive insights he was about to deliver.

“My idea originated from the medical paper in *The Lancet* that Professor Lin mentioned to me a week ago, the one about interaction studies in anti-tumor immunity. I later found the original article and studied it carefully, discovering that the research team had created a new research method in a very ingenious way.” Although Lu Shixian hadn't rested well for days, he was now running on pure adrenaline, his spirits high.

“By introducing B-cell and T-cell co-recognition of antigens, they designed and established a tumor neoantigen mouse model to study the interaction between B cells and Tfh cells. This study was the first to use a tumor model to analyze the molecular and cellular mechanisms of B-cell and Tfh-cell interaction, revealing the key role of B-cell and T-cell co-recognized antigens in inducing their cooperation and confirming the important anti-tumor mechanism of the Tfh-cell-derived cytokine IL-21.”

“This is where my idea comes from. Their brilliant maneuver inspired me. The organs, immune systems, and even cellular compositions of plants and humans are vastly different. But no matter how great the differences, they share one common feature: they both possess a complete cellular structure.”

“So, my idea is this: using these nine plant disease resistance models as a foundation and the resistance values of the 296 viral genes as a database, I want to construct a grand unified model of disease resistance. One that encompasses not just stem cells, but the entire plant immune system.”

“In my vision, this model would ultimately achieve the following: by simply inputting the name of a certain pathogen and a certain cytokine, the model would automatically generate the names and values of all related cytokines.”

“Next, I will focus on the preliminary design of this disease resistance model.”

“Because of their totipotency, plants continuously develop and grow new organs and tissues. Therefore, as long as a pathogen cannot spread systemically over a large area, a localized viral infection will not pose a major threat to the plant’s survival.”

“Based on this, could we use a semi-biotrophic pathogen to infect the plant? ETI could then prevent the systemic spread of the pathogen through the LAR mechanism, creating a state where both the plant and the pathogen can survive. I call this a ‘relative equilibrium state.’”

“Then, starting from this equilibrium state, we can controllably disrupt this balance by continuously adjusting immunogenic molecules or immune cytokines. This would activate a strong immune response in the plant or trigger mechanisms like NLR activity in immunosuppressive cells. Finally, we would attempt to restore the equilibrium state using the same methods…”

“Through this continuous process of shifting between equilibrium and non-equilibrium states, we can collect a massive amount of relevant cytokine data, until we have enough to establish a plant disease resistance model that can encompass all immune mechanisms…”

“According to my calculations, as long as the database is sufficiently large, the goodness of fit of the entire model will become more and more precise, bringing it closer to the true native cellular environment.”

Having said this, Lu Shixian finally felt thirsty. He picked up the glass on the table and gulped down the water.

At the same time, drinking the water served as a tactical retreat, giving him a moment to see how the academic authorities would evaluate his proposal.

When contemplating academic problems, Professor Rothman’s expression was serious and focused, his attitude rigorous and attentive, and he had a habit of stroking his increasingly shiny forehead.

“I must say, your proposed solution is so ingenious it makes one want to applaud. It’s obvious that if the grand unified model Lu envisions can be established, the entire mystery of the plant immune mechanism will be laid bare before us, holding no more secrets from humanity.” Professor Rothman, who had grasped his idea the quickest, gave it a degree of approval but also raised his own questions.

“Theoretically, I can’t find a fundamental flaw to refute you. But that’s only in theory. I imagine the practical application will not be so smooth.”

“Lu, I want to ask you, how do you plan to collect and record this immense amount of data? And even if you solve those two problems, what method will you use to process this exponential data stream and build the grand unified model you speak of?”

“The prospects of your plan are indeed monumental, enough to shock and awe the world. But have you considered the issue of feasibility beforehand? You know, a plan that cannot be executed is no different from empty talk.”

Rothman lived up to the dazzling honors that made so many feel inadequate, pointing out the flaw in Lu Shixian’s vision with piercing accuracy.

Of course, perhaps it wasn’t so severe as to be called a flaw, but it was most certainly a loophole.

With the Nobel laureate himself posing the question, Kuri and Lin Haifan dared not speak, merely watching Lu Shixian expectantly, waiting to see if his response would fall short here.

Since Lu Shixian had dared to initiate this meeting, he was naturally well-prepared.

Ever since his setback in the entrance exam for the gifted youth program, he never fought a battle for which he was not prepared.

He was like an indomitable spirit, still standing firm by his convictions.

“Professor Rothman, please allow me to answer your first question,” Lu Shixian said, putting down his glass and charging back onto the battlefield from his cover.

“I believe flow cytometry should be able to solve the problem of data collection and recording. As a highly efficient single-cell analysis and sorting technique, it can perform rapid, accurate, and multi-parameter high-throughput analysis of a large number of particles.”

At this point, before he could answer Rothman's second question, the number three boss, Lin Haifan, suddenly emerged, launching a second round of questioning at Lu Shixian.

This small academic seminar had truly become an inquisition.

Chapter 497: I Wish You Success

“While flow cytometry has the characteristics you mentioned, it is generally used for immunophenotyping, in medicine, to count and sort microscopic particles suspended in a fluid.”

Lin Haifan offered his perspective. “In other words, it performs continuous multi-parameter analysis of cells. But your research subject isn't the individual cell, but the even more microscopic cytokines.”

“I want to ask you, how do you intend to solve this problem?”

Lu Shixian was prepared for this question and answered without a hint of panic. “Actually, I was referring to its plus version: mass cytometry.”

“It utilizes the principles of mass spectrometry to provide a comprehensive upgrade to single-cell parameter detection via flow technology. It inherits the high-speed analysis feature of traditional flow cytometry while adding the high-resolution capability of mass spectrometry. It represents the cutting edge of development in flow cytometry in recent years.”

“Through mass cytometry, we can delve deep into exploring protein expression and function in cells under different states, revealing the cellular processes of biological events, viruses, and disease development, thereby providing key information for viral regulation mechanisms and disease diagnosis and treatment.”

After hearing this, Lin Haifan was visibly stunned.

He hadn't expected Lu Shixian’s solution to be so simple and direct.

But simple and direct methods are often the most effective.

“So you’re planning on gearing up with all the newest toys, are you? But that thing just came out. I’m afraid it won’t be easy to get your hands on one!”

This time, Kuri answered the question for Lu Shixian. “Compared to the pursuit of scientific truth, these are minor issues. If his plan can be realized, I believe Yale University would be more than happy to spend several million US dollars to procure the latest model of mass cytometer for him in short order.”

At this, the few people in the room broke into cheerful laughter.

They understood that Kuri's words were no exaggeration—perhaps even an understatement. In the face of an academic achievement of this magnitude, if the conditions didn't exist, they would be created.

The atmosphere of the academic seminar shifted in that moment from serious to relaxed.

Lu Shixian then proceeded to answer Rothman’s second question.

“As for the modeling and the processing of the vast data stream, I must admit that I am not an expert in these areas.”

“So my thought was, could we seek help from Yale’s Mathematics and Computer Science departments? The former could assist us in building this complex mathematical model, while the latter could help us process the massive data stream generated after the model is established.”

After saying this, Lu Shixian stated very seriously, “An individual’s strength is ultimately extremely limited. Only by leveraging the power of the collective can we continue to move this project forward and go further in the future!”

Clap, clap, clap…

In the apartment, the three titans gave Lu Shixian a round of applause for his brilliant presentation.

Rothman was the first to offer a concluding remark for this unique academic seminar. “Lu, your insight is astonishing. It seems you have completely understood what I told you back then.”

“I have seen many people whose research stagnates due to a lack of ideas or methods. I have also seen many who, despite having excellent research methods, give up halfway because their research tools are inadequate.”

“They think they can solve everything, believe they are omnipotent, but in the end, they accomplish nothing.”

Kuri followed with his own assessment of Lu Shixian. “Your creativity and imagination are boundless, and your execution and action are swift and decisive. You are one of the few young people I have met who possesses both these qualities. Though you may not be widely known now, I believe the future belongs to young people like you.”

Seeing all eyes turn to him, Lin Haifan thought for a few seconds before saying with a smile, “Lu, your growth is astounding. A little over a year ago, you had just set foot at Yale. Now, only a year later, your academic level has advanced by leaps and bounds. In that same time, many other newcomers like you are still just adapting to the new environment.”

And so, this unconventional academic seminar came to a close.

The final result did not betray Lu Shixian’s tireless, day-after-day efforts in his academic research.

Of course, although the three academic advisors had approved his research proposal, it didn't guarantee his ultimate success. It still needed to be tested through practice.

But compared to his previous progress, he had already taken an incredibly solid step forward.

Next, through Rothman's introduction, Lu Shixian met the President of Yale, Peter Salovey, for the first time.

Salovey and his wife had lived in New Haven for a long time, and he had been working at Yale for over 30 years.

Born in 1958, Salovey was now fifty-seven years old.

He looked like an unassuming little old man, but Lu Shixian did not dare to underestimate him.

In fact, beyond the brilliant halo of his presidency, Salovey was also a top-tier psychologist and one of the originators of the concept of emotional intelligence.

As an independent discipline, psychology did not have a long history and couldn't compare to ancient fields like the natural sciences.

Though it had but a short history, it possessed a long past.

It was a science that explored the mysteries of the human mind and investigated the patterns of the human spirit and behavior.

In front of the “Father of Emotional Intelligence,” Lu Shixian’s own experience and wisdom were far too shallow.

Salovey looked him in the eye, shook his hand warmly, and offered a smile—a particularly natural and warm smile.

In comparison, Lu Shixian’s smile seemed to be merely a polite, muscular memory.

“My boy, I see anxiety and unease in your eyes. What are you worried about?”

Lu Shixian didn’t know what to say, as he dared neither to speak the truth nor tell a lie.

Salovey smiled and said, “If you are worried about your research, there’s really no need.”

“Your work is already exceptional. I heard from Rothman that in the field you are currently researching, you are already a world leader.”

“No one can predict the future with such precision, so we should just focus on the present.”

Hearing the old man’s words, Lu Shixian suddenly felt a sense of relief.

Even a psychologist as brilliant as this could not directly hear the deepest voice in his heart.

There was truly no need for him to create his own troubles and worry needlessly.

Lu Shixian returned to his initial, high-spirited self.

“Mr. Salovey, thank you for your comforting words, and thank you to Yale for the care and support you have always given me. Without it, I could not have gained the knowledge and understanding I have today.”

Salovey’s admiration for him deepened. “The Chinese people are always accustomed to humility, a protective mode that lowers the expectations of others and themselves.”

“But this also means lower expectations, a higher rate of success, and ultimately, a higher degree of satisfaction.”

“Good luck, my boy!”

Chapter 498: Fuming

With Salovey’s blessing and the full support of Yale University, Lu Shixian set off with a light heart, once again launching his assault on the final secrets of plants' innate antiviral immunity.

As it turned out, handling matters from the top down effectively reduced the time for information transfer and decision-making.

The Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and Yale College both sent representatives to liaise with him.

Due to the increase in project personnel, Lu Shixian streamlined his operations, consolidating the entire original research team into a single biological research group.

Merlin’s academic ability was up to par, but he was still just a graduate student. Out of consideration for the feelings of others, Lu Shixian did not directly promote him to a leadership position.

Of course, he had another candidate in mind.

After spending so much time together, he found that Bella, aside from being a bit air-headed on rare occasions, was quite reliable the rest of the time. It seemed perfectly reasonable to make her the leader of his core team.

The head of the mathematics research group was Professor Mozart from the Department of Mathematics in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.

Mozart was the heavy hitter in applied mathematics at Yale, the current secretary-general of the National Modeling Association of America, and a former chairman of the organizing committee for a certain American collegiate mathematical modeling competition.

He was exceptionally skilled in various types of models, including ordinary differential equation models, partial differential equation models, and stochastic process models, especially in using ODE models to describe physical and biological phenomena in the natural world.

The head of the computer science research group was Professor Brandon from the Department of Computer Science in Yale College.

Lu Shixian had no objections and gave them a great deal of autonomy.
He was well aware that his name was merely attached to the project; their relationship was more of a partnership.

When it came to mathematics and computer science, he was a complete layman.

Professional matters should be left to the professionals.

The members and locations of the research groups were decided by the two professors themselves; Lu Shixian did not interfere.

Regardless, the task of coordinating communication among the three small teams still fell to him.

Yale fully delivered on its promise. After nearly fourteen days of inquiries and negotiations with the American company Fluidigm, they finally acquired the brand-new instrument, fresh from the factory, for a price of nearly two million US dollars.

Now, the most crucial thing was whether Bella's team could fully unleash the potential of this incredibly valuable instrument.

Only then could he proceed to the next step.

But the news that soon followed made Lu Shixian feel a fire ignite in his heart for the first time.

After spending time with Lu Shixian, many people described him as gentle, rational, and focused.

This time, however, Bella's actions had deeply disappointed him.

Yale University, Biological Experimentation Building.
The current location of the biology research group.

"Bella, what the hell are you doing! I was only gone for a few days, and Assistant Professor Marcé Alberto has already submitted his resignation to me." Lu Shixian was now seeing red.

He had been working his ass off, running around tirelessly to secure the best research conditions for them. Yet, just a few days after they moved in, before they had even settled, the core team he had placed so much hope in was already imploding with infighting.

The more Lu Shixian thought about it, the angrier he became. "In his email, he accused you of being autocratic, of running the lab like a tyrant, completely ignoring others' opinions, and even deliberately targeting him. Do you have any explanation?"

Bella, who had been clueless about the situation, instantly bristled after being berated by Lu Shixian.

"That fucking bastard! He has the nerve to report me? He's the real cancer in this lab. He should have been kicked out long ago." Bella showed no weakness, confronting him head-on.

Lu Shixian snapped, slamming his hand on the table for the first time in his life.

"Enough! Don't give me that nonsense! Regardless of who was right or wrong in the process, the entire team's atmosphere is now anxious and on edge."

"The positive environment needed for good research is gone. As the leader of this team, do you, in all honesty, not bear any responsibility?"

At these words, Bella's defiant demeanor immediately softened.

"I guess a little," she admitted. "But I was forced into it! Marcé called me a bitch in public multiple times. He couldn't stand seeing me suddenly promoted above him and even encouraged others not to cooperate with my work."

Hearing the reason, Lu Shixian's temper cooled slightly. "Even if he insulted you, that's no reason to start infighting! You could have communicated with him and handled this peacefully."

Bella, refusing to admit fault, retorted, "He's a complete chauvinist. Marcé also said I was a whore who slept my way into your bed to get a core role in the project and slowly climb the ladder."

Upon hearing this, Lu Shixian's expression turned strange.

What the hell is all this?

This is getting more and more complicated.

But in the US, accusations of discrimination were all too common, and at times, they held an almost irrational, fantastical power.

Realizing this involved America's unique social landscape, Lu Shixian didn't want to get too involved. It wasn't a problem he could solve, so he couldn't stay angry.

"I'll look into this later. Let's leave it at that for now."

"Now, let's talk about your current project progress. The entire project is waiting for you to deliver. If you don't make progress, everyone else starves."

He had hit upon the most critical issue. The project was his main concern at the moment. As for people's personalities, as long as they didn't break the law or cross his bottom line, he could tolerate them.

Bella certainly had her character flaws, but thankfully, her ability to get things done was solid.

She quickly opened the secure cabinet in her office and showed him some of the group's recent experimental data sheets.

"The CLV3 secreted protein was the first cytokine I studied for this project, and we have an extremely solid research foundation for it, so I decided to start the experiments with it. This is the recent data from the mass cytometer, showing the levels of CLV3 secreted protein in cellular homeostasis. It's clear that the concentration of CLV3 is always in a state of relative flux with the concentrations of STM and WUS proteins, which means there must be some kind of connection between them." As Lu Shixian reviewed the data, Bella provided a detailed explanation beside him.

Lu Shixian could naturally see that this was indeed excellent progress.

Once they had the homeostatic data for one cytokine, they could replicate the process for the others, which, despite their differences, would only require minor adjustments.

Lu Shixian nodded in satisfaction. "Not bad, Bella. It seems you haven't spent all your time on infighting. You've actually produced some results."

"I hope this is the last time something like the situation with Marcé happens. I don't want to find out about it only after I receive a complaint letter. You had plenty of opportunities to notify me and let me prevent all of this from happening, but you didn't."

"I know you're a very smart woman, but I hope that intelligence can be applied entirely to academic research."

Hearing this, Bella seemed a bit guilty and, in a rare display, became almost coquettish. "I couldn't help it this time! I promise, as long as no one like him shows up again, I'll be as gentle as can be, especially when you're around."

Chapter 499: Our Generation Must Be Strong

Lu Shixian eventually left.

When other women acted cute, it could be charming, but when this woman did it, it was downright lethal.

The world wasn't as peaceful and beautiful as one might imagine; scheming and petty squabbles existed everywhere.

Normally, Lu Shixian tried not to pay too much attention to such things, lest they consume too much of his time and energy.

But this time, someone had gone too far.

He had been forced to step in and handle it, ultimately giving Bella a stern warning.

Bella could be clueless at times, but that didn't mean she was some innocent flower. In some ways, women could be even more ruthless than men when they set their minds to something.

He believed Marcé's departure would bring a period of peace to the biology research group.

And things turned out just as he had thought.

With Yale's intervention, Marcé disappeared from the scene quietly and without incident.

Bella's authority within the research group increased significantly.

The result was a rapid acceleration in the project's progress.

Every so often, Lu Shixian would hear good news from her, and with each update, he found the woman much more agreeable.

At the same time, Lu Shixian began delivering the data produced by the biology group to Professor Mozart.

Mozart would lead the mathematical modeling group in designing the preliminary grand unified model.

Professor Mozart truly lived up to his reputation as a pillar of his field: a man of few words, steady, and his work was impeccable.

Unlike that woman Bella, he had almost never let Lu Shixian down.

Every time Lu Shixian went to check on his progress, the response was always a question about when the next set of data would be delivered.

Lu Shixian was left speechless and could only return empty-handed.

He couldn't help it. The first time, he had tried to get involved and contribute in some small way.

But upon entering their lab, he found he couldn't understand a single one of their mathematical formulas.

Some symbols he had never even heard of. His undergraduate-level understanding of mathematics was no different from being illiterate here.

It made him feel like a useless, invisible presence.

Rothman, who had accompanied him that day, had worn a strange smile.

"Lu, it's only at times like this that you make me feel like you're actually your age."

Lu Shixian immediately defended himself. "Actually, outside of research, I'm quite youthful. I exercise every day."

Rothman shook his head. "But in your daily life, you live like an ascetic."

"You might need a partner, even if it's just to release stress. A long-term lack of intimacy isn't necessarily a good thing. Without an outlet to express your emotions and needs, you might become more edgy and sensitive."

Lu Shixian was silent, wondering if he had recently exhibited the kind of behavior Rothman described.

It was true, if that time he had lost his temper with Bella counted.

He actually hated the feeling of his own impotent rage.

Losing control of his emotions was indeed a lapse in composure, but in a way, it had been an unintentional success, achieving a rather good outcome.

Now that the entire project was on the right track, it would honestly run the same with or without him.

Lu Shixian was happy with this arrangement. He never went looking for trouble; he wasn't a god.

Even giants like Darwin, Linnaeus, Lamarck, and Harvey were just titans in the field of biology, not gods.

He just needed to do his part with a clear conscience.

For the time being, Lu Shixian's main focus remained on the project's progress. But after Rothman's reminder, he started using his spare time to travel and relax.

The car he had bought earlier finally found its purpose.

If he didn't take this opportunity to enjoy his time here, the next chance might not come for a very long time.

For his first and second stops, he visited the American Museum of Natural History and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.

There's a saying that these two museums, along with the United Nations Headquarters, form a crossroads of humanity's and the Earth's past and future. The former two look back on the past, while the latter depicts and envisions the future.

The Museum of Natural History, with a history of nearly 150 years, is a world-renowned scientific, cultural, and educational institution. Its exhibits cover five main areas: astronomy, mineralogy, human history, ancient animals, and modern animals.

The museum has four floors and 385 exhibition halls spanning over five hundred square meters. After passing the statue of Roosevelt, Lu Shixian delved into the primeval forest hall, the hall of biodiversity, the hall of ocean life, and the hall of human origins and culture, finally watching a short film on the origin of life.

He watched the entire film from a professional perspective and couldn't find a single point to question. He could only surmise that experts must have advised on its creation.

At the Museum of Natural History, his mood was light and joyful.

But at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, he wasn't so happy.

As America's largest art museum and one of the most famous in the world, with a collection of over three million items, it held 150,000 precious artifacts from his homeland, with the calligraphy collection being particularly vast and exquisite.

Entering the Chinese section, he found that its collection was among the largest of all the regions, yet the number of visitors was sparse.

Lu Shixian didn't really understand art, but he understood history.

He had arrived full of excitement and left full of disappointment.

Our generation must be strong!

Lu Shixian felt immense pressure, but also immense motivation.

This time, he was determined to show the Americans what the Chinese were capable of.

"We have temporarily studied and optimized the performance of a mathematical model for a single plant cell infected by a single virus, and have established the following model: dX/dt=Λ-mX-βXM, dY/dt=βXM-aY, dM/dt=aY-δm-β(X+Y)M..."

Professor Mozart carefully explained his team's current results.

"Then, considering the self-clearing effect of plant immune cells on infected cells, which is constrained by cell concentration, we established a second-stage mathematical model with a Holling functional response: dH/dt=λ-d1H-aHM, dI/dt=aHM-δI-P1LE/(1+βl)..."

"...Finally, considering the interrelationships between immune effects, we established the ninth mathematical model..."

"The variables, parameters, and some of the data for the above models are all here, but the stability of the equilibrium points you've provided us so far is insufficient. According to LaSalle's invariance principle, we cannot derive the threshold for the virus's continued existence within the plant."

"Wait, Professor Mozart, you don't actually think I can understand any of this, do you?" Lu Shixian's head was spinning. "Could you perhaps rephrase that in a way a biologist can understand?"

Chapter 500: A Perfect Work

Professor Mozart couldn't hold it in anymore. After all that explaining, he realized he'd been casting pearls before swine.

But then he remembered that the young man before him was not a graduate student from the math department, and he relaxed.

"In your terms, the homeostatic threshold data is unstable. I don't understand the specific source of the data, but you should," Professor Mozart said, trying to be as concise as possible. "As long as you solve this problem, the subsequent modeling work shouldn't be a major issue."

Lu Shixian nodded, indicating he understood.

The problem was simple. Everything has its limitations.

It was simply because the mass cytometer had higher requirements for sample preparation; it needed to be cleaner than for traditional flow cytometry.

Because all biological material is vaporized during acquisition, an unclean sample can lead to carbon buildup and reduce sensitivity.

Once sensitivity drops, the resulting data will naturally have larger errors, which was the cause of what Professor Mozart called the unstable homeostatic threshold data.

Lu Shixian immediately relayed this issue to Bella, telling her to be more careful and to re-run the relevant experiments.

Upon receiving the message, Bella was a bit resentful but didn't say much.

It couldn't be helped. Scientific experiments demand rigor and accuracy.

A tiny error could lead to a monumental deviation.

This was especially true in the mathematical and physical sciences.

A small problem with a single piece of data could lead to major problems with the final model's accuracy.

This was no laughing matter. Although the task was relatively simple and Bella was not a careless person, Lu Shixian still carefully explained the necessary precautions to her.

With the matter resolved, Lu Shixian returned from the mathematics department.

As one's experience and perspective grow, a person doesn't remain unchanged; they slowly mature.

For example, medicine, a field he had never touched before, had given him a pleasant surprise this time.

If it weren't for the insight he gained from Rothman's class, he wouldn't have realized his own shortcomings.

It was just like when Xu Zhihong had advised him to make the choice to "go out and bring in."

Otherwise, he might still be holed up at Yan University, doing research that wasn't particularly meaningful.

Now, he had developed an interest in other disciplines closely related to biology.

Perhaps studying biochemistry and biomedicine would be a good choice.

However, this was just a preliminary idea.

The time was not yet right. He still had a long way to go in genetics and breeding.

In truth, Lu Shixian's path was a slow one, but each step was solid, and he would continue walking it.

In the blink of an eye, it was September 2016, with crisp autumn air.

The autumn scenery of New Haven was breathtaking. The leaves on the trees lining the roads and on the distant mountainsides turned golden yellow, fiery red, and bright orange.

They drifted down slowly with the autumn breeze, creating a picturesque scene against the backdrop of Yale's Gothic and Georgian-style classical architecture.

But Lu Shixian had no mind to appreciate it, not even a minute to spare to stop and look.

The project had entered a critical phase. As the project leader, he was so busy he was practically running off his feet, a stark contrast to his leisurely pace a year ago.

However, this state was one he enjoyed. It was busy yet fulfilling.

Most academic researchers likely crave and relish this kind of state.

After Lu Shixian's reminder, Bella's subsequent experiments went smoothly, and the experimental data she produced all passed muster with Professor Mozart.

In early September, through the combined efforts of the biology and mathematics groups, Lu Shixian finally received the plant cell disease resistance model he had been eagerly awaiting from Professor Mozart.

The vast amount of data, created through the sweat and effort of a team of dozens, was now expressed in another, exceptionally beautiful form.

Looking at the few lines of the concise mathematical model on the printed paper, Lu Shixian's heart surged with emotion.

"Thank you and your team members for your hard work."

"This is simply a work of art!"

Beside him, Mozart was also smiling. "Congratulations, Lu!"

"Even in my not-so-short life, this is the most complex model I have ever worked on."

"It is an almost perfect work, because I can feel its vitality."

Lu Shixian was suddenly at a loss for words.

After nearly ten years of effort, he had finally made his way from a vocational agricultural school in Jinling to the campus of Yale, a top university in the world.

After another two years of hard work, he had finally transformed the ideas in his mind into a tangible reality he could see and touch.

Of course, it was still too early to call it a grand unified model.

This model still had to undergo one final test before it could leap the dragon's gate and emerge, forged in fire, as a masterpiece.

After bidding farewell to Professor Mozart, Lu Shixian immediately contacted Professor Brandon from the computer science department of the School of Arts and Sciences.

At this stage, the entire university's attention on this project was extremely high.

Professor Brandon had been on standby for a long time, just waiting for this moment.

Now, all that was left was to wait for the final results.

To be honest, at this point, Lu Shixian was starting to feel a little nervous.

Because besides praying, there was nothing else he could do.

A diversity of interactions had created this complex biological mechanism model.

To run it would require the computational power of at least a supercomputer; anything less would be futile.

But as it happened, the year 2016 could be described as the year artificial intelligence began to spread its influence.

From AlphaGo defeating a human Go master to self-driving cars, from the US presidential election to photon-based quantum computers, AI was everywhere.

A point of pride was that in this year, overcoming the humiliation of the "Glass House" incident, China's Sunway supercomputer, having gone from no technology to mastering core technology, continued to shine, becoming the fastest supercomputer in the world.

Its computing power in one minute surpassed that of the second-place Tianhe supercomputer by three times, and the American Titan supercomputer by six times. It was equivalent to the entire global population of 7.2 billion people at the time using calculators nonstop for 32 years.

The times create the hero, and Lu Shixian suddenly realized that he, too, seemed to be riding the winds of a new era.

To be honest, Yale's CS program was not particularly strong, at least not compared to its incredibly powerful humanities programs.

Its global ranking in the field was even less comparable to Yale's overall ranking.

But even if it ranked lower, it was more than enough for Lu Shixian.

For him, Yale had an advantage that other institutions lacked: the level of support it gave him was truly immense.
According to Rothman's account, Yale had suspended computational tasks for other projects, dedicating 7% of its supercomputer's full capacity—at enormous energy cost—to support his project.

The number might not seem large, but in reality, just a few moments of operation could cost hundreds of thousands of US dollars in electricity.

Chapter 501: Belief and Doubt

"For fuck's sake!" Lu Shixian swore, a rare outburst, as he gazed at the stars outside his window.

He was suffering from insomnia again tonight, alone in his room.

His mind was a whirlwind of what-ifs. What if he failed? What if his work was plagiarized? What if the paper was rejected?

All sorts of voices echoed in the depths of his heart.

He found himself thinking of many things: flashing lights, bouquets of flowers, grand prizes. And also of disappointment, of running away, of changing course...

"So I can't escape being an ordinary man after all," Lu Shixian sighed silently.

Trying to fall back asleep now would just be a waste of time.

He had no choice but to get up, dress, and head out to calm his restless heart.

The autumn night was as chilling as water, and Lu Shixian's heart slowly began to settle with it.

He wandered aimlessly, and before he knew it, he had arrived at the banks of the Charles River.

Even at night, the area was bustling with people out for a stroll.

He had once heard a joke here: that even a single lamppost along the Charles River might be condensed with the light of wisdom.

It wasn't much of an exaggeration. In fact, if you followed the river through Boston, you would find that most of the world's most famous academic institutions were situated right here.

Some said the Charles River was the soul of Boston.

There was truth in that. The Charles River flowed between Cambridge and Boston, from west to east, emptying into the sea.

Along its banks stood world-renowned universities like Harvard, MIT, and Boston University.

He figured the Charles River in Connecticut couldn't be too bad either.

Bathed in the dim yellow glow of the streetlights, Lu Shixian walked aimlessly along the riverbank.

Suddenly, a flash of lightning and a roll of thunder.

Pitter-patter!

Lu Shixian instinctively looked up.

Raindrops, like mischievous sprites, danced upon his face.

It was raining.

He wasn't prepared to catch a cold, so he quickened his pace and started heading back.

He walked on through the rain, his steps growing faster and faster.

Thunder rumbled ceaselessly overhead, and the rain pouring into his eyes blurred his vision.

But this did nothing to stop his forward stride.

In that moment, the duel between belief and doubt was decided.

He chose to believe in himself.

And so, the next day.

As payment for his indulgence the previous night, Lu Shixian was now sniffling and sneezing nonstop.

It seemed he had fallen ill.

Left with no other choice, he visited the Yale infirmary for the first time to get an IV drip. It was, in its own way, a novel experience.

Lu Shixian was in luck. The nurse assigned to him was not too old, likely a newlywed.

She was a stark contrast to the other nurses he had seen on his way in, who were mostly in their forties.

"Oh no, you dared to get caught in the rain during a New Haven autumn?" the nurse said as she deftly searched for a vein. "The temperature fluctuates a lot here between morning and night. If you get soaked, your resistance drops easily, and you catch a cold."

"You're not from around here, are you? You look Asian."

"Yes, I'm from China," Lu Shixian replied, doing his best to satisfy the woman's abundant curiosity. "I just work here."

The woman was a little surprised. "Oh? I thought you were a student here."

"A lot of people say that." Lu Shixian winced slightly as he felt the needle go in.

"Ah, that explains it. I've seen a lot of strange people here, and a good number of them are professors and instructors," the woman said with a smile, finally finishing the prep work for the IV.

Hearing this, Lu Shixian raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean? Most of the ones I've met seem quite normal."

Just as the woman was searching for the right adjective, the phone in Lu Shixian's pocket began to ring.

"The rainy day that disappeared, I wish I could be drenched in it one more time..."

Not wanting to make another trip here, Lu Shixian answered immediately without checking the caller ID.

"Hello?"

"Lu! Where are you? The analysis from the supercomputer center is almost ready!" Rothman's familiar, high-pitched voice came through the receiver.

At his words, Lu Shixian shot to his feet, yanked the needle out of his arm, and bolted for the door.

"Hey! What are you doing?" the woman's confused voice called after him.

Lu Shixian had no time to explain or respond. He vanished from her sight in an instant.

"OMG! Is he crazy? Another weirdo!" the woman muttered, exasperated, as she began to clean up the spilled medicine on the floor.

Nearby, a doctor remarked unsurprisedly, "You haven't been here long. This is actually mild, he just got a phone call."

"I've seen one walk straight into a glass door, bleeding, and just keep running."

The nurse was speechless.

Meanwhile.

Ignoring the wound on his left hand, Lu Shixian sprinted towards the supercomputer center like a hundred-meter dasher.

In less than five minutes, he arrived, panting, before Rothman. A number of other people were standing there as well.

Curry and Lin Haifan were here, along with some others he didn't recognize, likely university officials.

"Is it out? What's the situation? Did we succeed?" Lu Shixian asked, struggling to catch his breath.

Rothman didn't answer, instead asking in surprise, "What happened? Are you injured?"

Lu Shixian certainly wasn't going to admit to his own reckless behavior; it might become an embarrassing story later.

"It's nothing, long story. The most important thing right now is the result of the supercomputer's model."

Rothman shook his head. "Not yet. In fact, it's been less than ten minutes since I called you."

He then added with a sigh, "It hasn't been easy. I can't believe it's already been two years since I first heard about this project."

"And now, we've finally reached the final moment!"

Beside him, Curry also remarked wistfully, "But for a project like this, two years really isn't long at all."

"This has exceeded not only my expectations, but I imagine many others' as well."

"Perhaps, starting from this day, the history of botany will be rewritten."

Lin Haifan said nothing, simply giving Lu Shixian a reassuring look. Words were useless at this point; everything depended on the final computational verification.

As the minutes and seconds ticked by, Lu Shixian entered the most tense, nervous, and anxious moment of his life.

His gaze was fixed on the door to the supercomputer's server room, hoping to witness the most sensational research result of his career emerge from it.

But whether it was success or failure, he was about to experience one of the most unforgettable moments of his life.

Finally, twenty minutes later.

The white alloy door he had been staring at so intently swung open with a clang.

Professor Brandon, wearing blue shoe covers and a white lab coat, stepped out.

His expression was hidden behind a mask, and the group moved forward in unison.

"Brandon, what's the result?" Rothman asked, still managing to keep his composure.

Chapter 502: Simple and Beautiful

Lu Shixian stood up, hoping to hear the answer his heart longed for.

"It's a shame we spent so much," Brandon began, pulling off his mask. He suddenly felt the atmosphere grow heavy.

Lu Shixian's breath caught in his throat.

Rothman's brow furrowed deeply.

Lin Haifan was stunned.

But then, a smile spread across Brandon's face. "But we might have to spend some more later."

"Because the champagne here isn't cheap."

With that, everyone's mood flipped like a roller coaster.

Cheers finally erupted at the entrance of the supercomputer center.

"That's great!"

"We did it!"

"It wasn't easy."

Lu Shixian let out a long breath, the tension that had gripped him for so long finally releasing.

He had been scared to death, and this guy had deliberately kept them in suspense.

Not finishing a sentence all at once was as infuriating as a novelist ending on a cliffhanger.

Mozart, who had also poured his heart and soul into the project, walked up and gave Brandon a playful punch, feigning anger.

"I've never found you as infuriating as I do right now. I could punch you straight to the hospital."

Now, smiles bloomed on everyone's faces.

Rothman came over to Lu Shixian, beaming. "Lu, congratulations. The final victory is clearly yours."

"Also, you must come to the banquet tonight. You're the guest of honor."

Lu Shixian finally broke into a smile. "No, the victory belongs to everyone on the project team."

"Not just me, everyone has to be there today."

At these words, the members of the biology group who had been with Lu Shixian from the beginning could no longer contain their joy.

Led by Bella, she threw herself at Lu Shixian in a hug, all semblance of ladylike decorum gone.

"Haha, my day has finally come!"

Merlin joined in next. The facts had now proven his choice was the right one.

Then, everyone else, except for Marcel who had already left, opened their arms and embraced in an excited group hug.

From within the crowded huddle, Lu Shixian's voice suddenly emerged.

"Bella, you crazy woman, you're hugging too tight! I can't breathe!"

The whole crowd couldn't help but chuckle.

In contrast, Rothman, Curry, and Lin Haifan were much more composed, looking on with the calm demeanor of veterans, as if this were just another day.

But watching the celebration, they seemed to recall their own pasts.

The group led by Mozart and Brandon, though also excited, was far more restrained.

It couldn't be helped. They had joined the project halfway through and hadn't experienced the entire research process.

From a small team of a dozen people to a large team of fifty or sixty.

From the first awkward collaborations to the current smooth coordination.

Two years was also hundreds of days and nights of relentless effort.

The seeds once sown had finally blossomed, watered by their sweat.

Someone started it, and soon a smattering of applause spread through the area.

Lu Shixian and his team had completed a remarkable study. They had unveiled the secrets of plant cell innate immunity, clearing nearly all obstacles in the field of plant antiviral genes. They were poised to cause a global sensation and bring beneficial changes to the world.

The evening was a wild celebration for the research team members alone.

I'm happy! I'll do what I want!

For the first time, Lu Shixian let go of all restraint. His wine glass was filled and emptied over and over again.

He didn't even know how he got back in the end.

He had no idea how much he drank, but Lu Shixian was very thankful he had inherited the old Lu family genes.

Otherwise, making it to the next day would have been questionable.

In fact, this was just the beginning.

The real celebration banquet would be held after all the results were put down on paper.

It would take place after Yale held a press conference for the academic achievement.

So, for now, Lu Shixian had to calm down and see this final process through.

Of course, this time he had plenty of help. Yale would not let him fight this battle alone.

The paper would still be written by Lu Shixian and his team members.

However, the three academic advisors—Rothman, Curry, and Lin Haifan—would guide them every step of the way until the paper passed peer review.

Rothman looked at the computational results displayed on the computer screen, marveling. "It's hard to imagine that after five days of computation by the supercomputer, the final result is so concise."

Lu Shixian typed away at the keyboard as he replied, "I can hardly believe it myself. The result, calculated from data that filled three hard drives, is just this one simple page."

"But it's a perfect fit, isn't it?"

"Einstein once said, 'I am deeply convinced that the principles of the universe are beautiful and simple.' Why should the mysteries of life be any different?"

"Your name will be remembered in the history of biology," Rothman said with a sigh. "I have a feeling that the dynamic model of plant antiviral activity will become one of the common mathematical models in biology. It will be used to describe and predict the quantitative changes of different cytokines over time in various pathogenic environments."

"Based on cell activity, virus type, and antiviral factors, this dynamic model can be used to precisely calculate and guide every process of plant antiviral gene breeding. Having it is like having a compass while navigating through a dense fog."

"You can give this model a name now. That name, along with the paper, will cause a sensation among scientists worldwide."

Lu Shixian's typing hands finally paused. He pondered for a moment. "Since you said it's like a compass, why don't we call it SiNan?"

Half a month later.

Completely unexpectedly, the editorial department of *Cell* published a special issue.

Generally, a special issue is a collection of papers focused on a specific theme published over a certain period, with authors typically consisting of multiple scholars or research institutions in the same field.

But this time, strangely, there were only two papers in the special issue.

The first was, surprisingly, a previously published paper from *Cell*, regarding the broad-spectrum mechanism of innate antiviral immunity in plant stem cells.

At the time, that paper had attracted immense attention in the biology community and even beyond.

Research that many top labs around the world were working on had been completed by a small, unknown team from Yale.

The incident had even been a source of amusement for many outside the field.

Many people were quick on the uptake.

It seemed this team was about to make another big move.

Mazel, a biologist from the University of Washington, was one of them. After the last incident, he had even set a special alert for the corresponding author, Lu Shixian, on the search platform.

It was a privilege not even his late first wife had received.

He quickly shifted his gaze, moved the mouse, and prepared to focus on the second paper.

Chapter 503: Unbelievable

The moment he saw it, the striking title of the paper hit him right in the heart.

*Interaction Mechanisms of the Plant Cell Immune System Based on the "SiNan" Model*.

What?

Not plant stem cells anymore?

How did the research subject suddenly expand to plant cells?

It might seem like only a one-word difference, but as a professional professor, he knew very well that the gap between them was on an entirely different order of magnitude.

The academic value of the former was perhaps a nice dessert after a meal. It might attract some interest, but no one would die from not eating it.

But the academic value of the latter was immense. No joke, it was the kind of thing that would be recorded in the annals of history.

But he quickly composed himself, telling himself it was no big deal.

Indeed, many academic papers engaged in sensationalism. They were either deliberately trying to attract readers' attention or were blindly overconfident in their own work. Of course, it could be both.

The most famous example was the hundreds, if not thousands, of emails sent to the four major international mathematics journals each year, claiming to have proven the Goldbach conjecture.

But without exception, upon opening them, the contents were all crap.

By now, Mazel had convinced himself.

This is clickbait. It has to be!

The plant antiviral immune mechanism is far too complex. It could never be cracked.

He read on.

The corresponding address was Yale University.

And the position of corresponding author was still occupied by the Chinese man from the previous paper.

Mazel then looked at the list of primary researchers, the first authors. The names were listed in order: Lu Shixian, Bella Evans, Merlin Alexis, Mozart Lawrence, Brandon Daniel...

Following them were several more rows with over twenty names.

Despite the tediousness, Mazel patiently read through every name.

But until the very end, aside from Lu Shixian, he still didn't see a single familiar name.

This further confirmed his earlier suspicion.

By now, his mindset had undergone a subtle change.

He was going to read this paper with the intent of finding fault.

His heart was roaring!

He was going to be a beast!

He was going to criticize!

Everywhere his eyes fell was his battlefield.

Until a series of extremely rare mathematical symbols appeared before him.

Ha! A mathematical model?

Such a petty trick, trying to show off in front of an expert?

Could the intricate complexity of the biological inner world really be described by mere numbers?

His judgment was actually quite in line with the conventional wisdom of the time.

Generally, mathematical models did have applications in biology, but they were mostly in macro-level ecology.

Once they delved into the microscopic level of cells, their accuracy would plummet, rendering them useless.

At this point, Mazel was quite certain. He even began to doubt the professionalism of *Cell*.

As a member of the general pool of reviewers, he wanted to lodge a loud complaint.

What on earth were these special guest reviewers doing?

Since when could such sensationalist manuscripts get through review and be published?

But then, an exquisite, continuous simulation image of cellular immunity caught his attention.

According to the annotations, the data source for the image was none other than the mathematical model he had just disdained.

According to the paper's conclusion, this model could theoretically be applied to any known plant pathogen.

Impossible! Absolutely impossible!

This must be fabricated!

He began to distrust every single word in the paper.

He would only trust his own experimental data.

As if remembering something, he immediately inserted a hard drive into his computer. It contained the data from his research project on the innate antiviral immunity of stem cells.

If the paper claimed it was applicable to any pathogen invading Arabidopsis, then the TMV (tobacco mosaic virus) he used as an experimental subject on the hard drive should be no exception.

Quickly, after selecting TMV in the model, Mazel began to input the characteristic condition data.

Clearly, Mazel had forgotten one thing.

If he could think of this, the peer reviewers would certainly have conducted their own verification experiments.

And then, he was shattered.

He watched as the model's results almost perfectly matched his own experimental data. Any differences were well within the acceptable margin of error.

At that moment, Mazel felt like his soul had left his body.

However, he wasn't the only smart person in the world.

Just like him, people all over the globe were performing the exact same operation.

"Oh my God?!" they all exclaimed in unison.

By now, from the field of botany to the entire scientific community, relevant social media platforms were in an uproar.

Those who understood called it incredible, praising it to the heavens.

Those who didn't followed along for the drama, riding the wave of popularity to show they were in the loop.

Everyone was talking
Some of the big shots' comments garnered significant attention.

"Incredible! Absolutely incredible! I once thought the most sensational achievement in biology this year would be the bionic leaf from Harvard, with its CO2 conversion efficiency ten times higher than natural photosynthesis. That was already astounding enough, but now, the research team from Yale has shattered my previous belief. Mark my words, if this work can withstand the scrutiny of the academic world, its value will undoubtedly far surpass that of the graphene 'super sensor' and become the breakthrough of the year," remarked Victor Amber, a biology professor from Columbia University in the United States.

"Words can hardly describe what I'm feeling right now. No one can understand how profoundly stimulating this achievement is for a botanist! It means that much of the previous research by many botanists in the field of plant immune interaction will be rendered obsolete. Let's burn the name 'Lu' into our memories. He's put us out of a job! He's the one who has torn away the mysterious veil of plant immunity, plucking one of the brightest jewels from the crown of botany," lamented Autumn Logan, a botanist from the University of Manchester in the UK.

Of course, to many people's surprise, a highly respected and venerable elder was also drawn out.

Peter Levine was now nearly eighty years old. Due to his advanced age, he was no longer affiliated with any research institution, instead spending his golden years at the Missouri Botanical Garden.

As a foreign member of the national academies of science in nearly twenty countries, when he spoke, no one could afford to ignore it.

"A truly brilliant and imaginative concept! The future needs young people like this! This isn't the first time I've seen this name, but I never expected him to grow so quickly. He is now the founder of the Plant Immune Homeostasis Theory, the designer of the 'Sinan' model, and a shining star in the world of botany. Countless plants will benefit from his research in the future. There's no telling what he'll achieve, but I eagerly await it."

Chapter 504: An Unwavering Heart

Some people also noticed an Easter egg rarely seen in academic journals—a section of acknowledgments at the end of the paper.

"We thank our academic advisors, Professor Rothman, Professor Curry, and Professor Lin Haifan, for their generous guidance on this research project."

"We thank Yale University for its strong support of our research team."

"And to us, who have walked slowly, but never stopped moving forward."

Lu Shixian was truly famous this time.

The media was in motion, with reporters acting like sharks drawn to blood.

Droves of them headed to Yale for interviews, hoping to get a firsthand scoop.

But Lu Shixian politely declined all unsolicited interviews, especially while abroad, where dealing with the media required extra caution.

Not to mention, he simply didn't have the time.

But their inability to find Lu Shixian didn't mean they couldn't publish news articles.

With just a keyboard, there was more than enough material online for them to report on.

"Major Breakthrough in Botany Announced, Poised to Be the Scientific Breakthrough of the Year."

"Another Top Chinese Scientist Emerges: Yale's Young Biologist Lu Shixian Becomes the Designer of 'Sinan'."

"Throngs of Botanists Cry 'The Wolf is Here!': Has the Field of Plant Immunity Been Fully Conquered?"

These were the reports from abroad.

When the news reached China, it triggered an even greater reaction.

The domestic media also sprang into action.

This time, Lu Shixian was a bona fide sensation. First, he wasn't of Chinese descent; he was a bona fide Chinese citizen, a fact his nationality could prove.

Second, he was the undisputed corresponding author, the project leader.

Except for a few unscrupulous advisors, this position generally symbolized the soul of the project.

It meant that without him, the project simply wouldn't have happened.

The general public didn't care much about immunity or interactions.

But they had their own unique points of interest.

Some domestic media outlets knew how to capture the public's imagination, intentionally emphasizing certain words when writing their press releases.

Words like twenty six years old, associate professor, top scholar, and even the Nobel Prize were thrown around.

This sparked heated discussions across Chinese social media.

"God Lu became an associate professor at Yale at twenty six. I became the president of Calidon University at twenty six. What's up?"

"The guy above is dreaming again. My piss is dark, let me be the one to wake him up."

"Can't you tell he's one of us? I don't know what this research is for, but I'm in awe even though I don't understand it."

"Didn't you hear the experts explain it? They said it's another effective way to increase crop yields. There was a bunch of other stuff I didn't really get, but that one point is enough."

"Sisters, have you seen the graduation photos Yan University shared recently? With those looks, he's not that far off from my favorite idols. That side profile… I think I'm becoming a stan for his visuals, ahhh!"

"Fandom culture, stay away. Abroad, they're calling him the 'Sinan' designer. The Sinan compass embodies the wisdom and labor of our ancient people. Just for spreading this name to the world, God Lu is not someone those young pretty boys can even compare themselves to."

Meanwhile, Yale was also taking action.

Unlike his time at UCD, the advantages of a world class university were on full display.

Yale had its own channels for communication.

It was no joke. When one of their own scientists made such a huge achievement, they had to seize the opportunity to celebrate in a big way.

It just wouldn't look right if the outside world was in an uproar while they remained silent.

Thus, it enthusiastically invited leading figures in the life sciences, especially botany, from around the world to participate in an academic exchange.

At the same time, Yale widely invited mainstream media from various countries and regions to attend a press conference on the academic achievement.

The project was over, but Lu Shixian was still busy.

Whatever Yale's motives, this move was undoubtedly building momentum for Lu Shixian.

Both parties benefited, a true model of a win win situation.

Lu Shixian would be a fool not to seize this opportunity.

An enhanced academic standing wasn't built solely on a pile of research results.

Sometimes, proper publicity was essential. After all, even the best products need good marketing.

Now, he needed to spend his energy drafting a speech in a very short amount of time for the upcoming press conference.

He couldn't let a good thing turn sour.

Lu Shixian turned down all interviews, appointments, and parties.

He was holed up in his apartment, completely focused on writing the speech for the press conference.

As evening approached, he was about to check the time when he realized his phone had died.

After restarting it, he found it had been blown up with calls.

Among the names flashing in red were Ma Yuheng, Jiang Yunkun, Qu Xi, Feng Yanan, Yang Yihang, and his good buddies from Yan University: Lin Chenyi, Zhang Mengting, and Chang Wenchao.

As he was scrolling through the missed call log, the phone rang again.

Now that he had seen it, Lu Shixian couldn't pretend he hadn't.

He answered and was surprised to find it was his mother, Xia Xiuman.

"Mom? Long time no see. What made you think of calling me?" Lu Shixian chuckled.

Usually, he was the one who called his parents regularly to check in.

He was stunned by Xia Xiuman's first sentence.

"Son, I heard you're going to win the Nobel Prize?"

Lu Shixian didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Mom, who did you hear that from? You can listen to baseless rumors like that, but don't take them seriously."

From the side, his father Lu Jianguo's voice piped up, asking curiously, "Really? But I see everyone online saying your research could win a Nobel Prize."

Lu Shixian hadn't expected them to be so interested in this. The allure of the Nobel Prize was truly immense!

He sighed inwardly before continuing to explain, "Being able to win and being set to win are two different things. Let's just say I was lucky enough to get a ticket to the game this time, but there's a long line of people in their sixties and seventies. I'm so young, it's definitely not my turn."

Hearing this, his parents immediately understood.

Lu Shixian chatted with them about family matters for a bit before hanging up.

He first returned calls to some of his mentors and elders.

"Hehe, it's all thanks to your guidance. This achievement is partly yours as well."

Then came a few senior students he was familiar with.

"You're too kind, I'm still just a junior. When I get back to China, I'll still need you guys to look out for me."

Finally, it was his competition teammates and university roommates.

"Haha, you can skip the welcome dinner for now. When I get back, the first thing I have to do is make up for the wedding gifts I missed."

After this marathon of calls, Lu Shixian was nearly exhausted.

Of course, there were also some missed calls from people who had somehow gotten his contact information, which he simply ignored.

He was getting an early taste of what it felt like to be famous.

Once a person becomes well known, some things are truly unavoidable.

He was just beginning to make a name for himself, and it was already like this.

Lu Shixian constantly reminded himself.

Stay true to the mission, and you will see it through!

Chapter 505: Meant to Be

While Lu Shixian was cooped up and working hard alone, Yale was busy discussing a raise for him.

He was about to represent Yale at a world conference, and his title of Associate Researcher was no longer prestigious enough for the occasion.

Lu Shixian had been at Yale for less than three years, at the very most.

At a normal pace of promotion, most people would just now be reaching the threshold for Assistant Professor or Researcher.

But Lu Shixian was not most people.

While he couldn't compare to heaven's favored children like Gauss, Euler, or Terence Tao, to be making a name for himself in the research world at his age was a sign of a young achiever.

So Yale was in a bit of a bind. They wanted to promote Lu Shixian but couldn't find a good enough pretext.

Translating academic achievements into academic prestige is a process.

The speed of this process is undoubtedly influenced by many factors that are best left unsaid.

Many people toil away in their labs, producing valuable results, yet their titles never advance, often due to these factors.

It was clear that Lu Shixian was sorely lacking in major individual awards.

Thus, after careful consideration, Yale's senior administration decided to postpone his evaluation for the rank of full Researcher.

However, to meet the urgent practical need, they granted him the position of Distinguished Professor in the Department of Biology at Yale University.

This was a special position, equivalent to a contract based appointment with a fixed term.

Yet it also symbolized an honor, representing Yale's recognition that he had made special contributions to the academic world or possessed unique expertise—an acknowledgment and commendation of Lu Shixian's academic achievements.

In this special and complex situation, it was a perfect fit for him.

And so, a position fell from the sky while Lu Shixian was sitting at home. Dr. Lu had inexplicably become Professor Lu.

However, after a brief moment of surprise, he returned to the manuscript he was halfway through.

Three days later, Lu Shixian, now a Distinguished Professor at Yale University, attended the press conference on academic achievement that had been prepared especially for him.

In fact, his project's results had already been endorsed by Cell, one of the world's top three academic journals.

He didn't need to prove the authenticity of his findings again.

The greater significance of this press conference was to seize the opportunity to increase the exposure of both Yale and Lu Shixian.

The venue was packed to the rafters that day, with the vast lecture hall filled with a dense crowd.

In reality, not too many professional experts were in attendance.

With only a few days to travel, and Yale's prestige not quite enough to make top biologists come out in full force, the experts who did come were mostly academic researchers from nearby universities or institutions.

The reporters were also mostly from local American outlets or media related to the Chinese community.

As for the many curious spectators, the vast majority were students and faculty from Yale itself.

But unlike in the past, Yale hadn't assigned anyone to be there; attendance was entirely voluntary.

Because many of Lu Shixian's close team members were also studying or working at Yale, his story was widely known on campus.

Many students had even skipped classes, drawn by his reputation, just to get a look at this legendary figure from China.

Because of this, Lu Shixian didn't stick too closely to his prepared speech, instead treating it as a session to share his research journey and insights.

The content of his script was too technical; most people wouldn't understand what he was talking about anyway, so it wouldn't be very useful here.

"I'm delighted that so many people have come to this press conference today. Whether you're here out of a thirst for scientific knowledge or curiosity about me, I believe you won't be disappointed today."

"Actually, a long time ago, what I most wanted to study was plant genetics and breeding. I hoped to uncover the secrets of increasing crop yields through this field. But for a considerable period, I found myself wandering around in other areas, from agronomy to cell biology, to plant pathology, and then to genomics." With just two sentences, Lu Shixian piqued the curiosity of everyone in the audience.

These simple words gave many a much clearer impression of him. He was definitely not a traditional young scientist, a fact that was easy to see from his speech.

"When I first came to Yale, many people didn't understand why I chose the Plant Genetics Lab. After all, in many people's eyes, since I had already made some achievements in plant pathology, I should have continued in that field."

"At the time, there were even labs that wanted to poach me directly—Professor Curry can attest to that. But now, I've managed to poach him over to my side instead," Lu Shixian joked.

At this, many people looked at Professor Curry, who was shrugging with a look of helpless resignation, and they erupted in roaring laughter.

Lu Shixian continued to build the suspense, and many listened with rapt attention.

"To be honest, I hesitated back then, wondering if I should listen to their advice. But I quickly made my decision. I felt that a person should follow their inner voice, so I continued my research with Professor Manlon in the Plant Genetics Lab, which led to the later discovery of European lyme grass."

"Although I achieved some success in comparative genomics using third generation gene sequencing technology, I never stopped thinking about the research I truly wanted to do. And that led to the Sinan model you now see in Cell."

"Frankly, I don't understand mathematics, but that didn't stop me from designing it and, with the help of Professor Mozart and Professor Brandon, bringing it into the world. The fundamental origin of the Sinan model was actually the establishment of cellular homeostasis, and the idea for the latter was inspired by Professor Lin Haifan's work in medicine. And my particular interest in medicine came from a lecture by Mr. Rothman."

The several people Lu Shixian mentioned were all in the lecture hall. They were either first authors or mentioned in the paper's acknowledgments, drawing frequent gazes from the audience.

Seeing that many people's attention seemed to be drifting, Lu Shixian smiled and began to wrap up.

"And so, the plant antiviral gene breeding I ended up researching brought together cell biology, plant pathology, genomics, and genetic breeding."

"I'm saying all this because I want to say: don't forget the place you most want to go, and don't be distracted by the scenery along the way. Every step you take now will become a giant leap forward in the future."

"So, perhaps all the unintentional detours were what made the final destination meant to be?"

Lu Shixian's sharing of his personal journey concluded, and the audience erupted in thunderous applause that lasted for a long time.

Of course, the main theme of an academic achievement press conference is still academics, and that would not change.

The subsequent content would be presented by Bella and Merlin respectively.

As senior members who had made outstanding contributions to the team, and also as very high ranking first authors, he was more than happy to share this chance in the spotlight with them.

Chapter 506: Frantic Hints

When he stepped off the stage, Lin Haifan gave him a thumbs up from below.

"I'd heard you were a good talker, but since it was always in daily conversation, I never got a clear sense of it. But now, up on the stage, that quality really stands out."

"I guess there's some talent involved. Some people are brilliant at research, but getting them to say a few words in public is an ordeal."

"I'm not sure I could have done better than your performance just now."

Lu Shixian shook his head with a smile. "If I could, I'd also prefer to just bury my head in my work. But I'm under a lot of pressure right now. People are forged by pressure."

His words made Lin Haifan laugh. "What pressure could you possibly have? You're Professor Lu now, on the same level as me."

"Just a distinguished professor. How can a temporary worker compare to someone with a permanent position? Besides, you should be up for Academician soon, right?" Lu Shixian said.

Lin Haifan smiled without denying it.

In fact, with Lu Shixian acting as a bridge, Lin Haifan had developed a friendly relationship with Rothman, and this time, his election to the National Academy of Sciences would likely happen much earlier than before.

Once he became an Academician and received the highest academic honor in the US, his influence would be on another level entirely.

Unwilling to concede defeat so easily, Lin Haifan added, "With an achievement like this, you could rest on your laurels for the rest of your life. The only question would be how many awards you'd collect."

At first, Lu Shixian replied righteously, "How can a person just coast on past glories?"

But he quickly broke character and revealed his true colors. "But the truth is, I'm still completely empty handed. I think a line from a Jin Yong novel perfectly describes my current situation: 'Set out with grand ambitions in youth, yet achieved nothing of note.'"

Lin Haifan, who was holding a water bottle, nearly spat out a mouthful. Fortunately, they were in the audience where not many people noticed him; otherwise, it might have become a viral moment.

"You certainly know your quotes. If you said that back in China, a lot of people would probably want to knock you on the head. You're just asking for hate."

Lu Shixian chuckled. "If I go back to China, will I avoid attracting hate just by keeping my mouth shut?"

That shut Lin Haifan up. After a moment, he continued to console him, "You don't need to worry too much. Speaking from experience, you're about to win so many awards your hands will go soft."

"As for the rest, I can only say that what's meant to be will be, and what isn't, you can't force."

Lin Haifan's words were soon proven true.

As the year drew to a close, it was also the beginning of award season.

This was not only a summary of the past but also a way to inspire more people to continuously strive for excellence.

The success stories and experiences of the award winners would constantly motivate others, leading more people to pour greater effort into their respective fields.

This held a very positive significance for the development and progress of society.
Yale was still on the move, spending a considerable sum on award fees to help Lu Shixian contend for the Dan David Prize.

This very prize had recently given one of its "Future" category nominations to Lu Shixian.

The Dan David Prize wasn't widely known among the general public, but that didn't mean it was some worthless, fly-by-night award.

In fact, it was an award with considerable prestige and a unique character.

The Dan David Prize was founded in 2002, with its headquarters in Tel Aviv, to recognize individuals and research groups for their outstanding contributions to science, the arts, and the humanities.

It acknowledges and encourages innovative and interdisciplinary research, awarding one million dollars in prize money annually in the aforementioned fields.

Its character lay not only in its novel awards but also in its unique judging rules.

The Dan David Prize has three awards, divided into three time dimensions: Past, Present, and Future.

But it doesn't grant them all at once; instead, it selects one field within each time dimension for the award.

Yes, it has three award seasons.

The Past award honors early academic achievements that provided a great impetus for later generations.

The Present award recognizes individuals or groups who have made outstanding achievements in shaping and enriching society.

And the Future award, as its name implies, is for achievements with great influence and promise for people's daily lives in the future.

The prize is all-embracing when it comes to nominees; your gender, race, religion, nationality, or background doesn't matter.

But aside from the distinct award schedules, its requirements were actually very high.

If a nominee's contribution was for a specific project, the contribution of every member of that project had to be specified.

If a nominee won the Dan David Prize, their eligibility for the award could not be transferred to anyone else in any way.

Furthermore, no individual or organization could be awarded twice for the same achievement, self-nominations were not permitted, and all submission materials had to be in English.

There were even explicit rules for the font of the materials and the use of the prize money after it was awarded.

It was, in fact, a rather pure and prestigious award.

Yale also took this nomination seriously, dispatching a special representative to liaise with the international committee.

Lu Shixian actually had a considerable advantage in the running for the Future award.

But whether he could win was not up to him, nor was it up to Yale.

Therefore, after hearing about his nomination, Lu Shixian only looked into it briefly and didn't dwell on it too much.

If he didn't win, he would just pretend he had never heard of it.

His attitude was very much one of "fortunate if I win, fate if I lose."

His main focus right now was on the several awards the American Society of Plant Biologists was about to give him.

The society had taken the initiative to send him an invitation.

Lu Shixian glanced at it, and the blatant hints were unmistakable.

As long as he became a member of the society, he would have the chance to simultaneously receive the Young Scientist Award and the Breakthrough Award.

Of course, this "chance" was practically the opposite of the odds in a lottery.

The American Society of Plant Biologists had a long history, founded in 1924.

But its sphere of influence was extremely limited, confined to the field of plant biology.

However, to achieve the pinnacle in any single field is a remarkable accomplishment in itself.

The two journals it founded were second to none among academic journals in the plant sciences, with absurdly high impact factors.

One was *Plant Physiology*, first published in 1926. A decade ago, its impact factor had already reached 6.114, making it one of the world's oldest and most authoritative botanical journals.

The other, *The Plant Cell*, founded in 1989, was even more incredible. In just over a decade, it surpassed its predecessor, with its impact factor reaching 11.088 by 2005, putting it on the level of a sub-journal of the big three—*Nature*, *Science*, and *Cell*.

Chapter 507 A Pleasant Conversation

In other words, the American Society of Plant Biologists was getting anxious.

Its approach was unconventional, yet perfectly reasonable.

Although Lu Shixian's achievements spanned multiple research fields, their core was still in plant biology.

For him to have achieved so much and still not be a member of the society could cast the organization in a negative light.

Moreover, if they didn't give him an award now, presenting one later after he had won even bigger prizes would just be icing on the cake.

Whether Lu Shixian would even care enough to show up and accept it would be a major question.

It had to be said, their decision was very wise, seizing this rare window of opportunity.

The award ceremony was scheduled for the last day of the society's annual meeting, to be held at its headquarters in Rockville, Maryland.

Maryland and Connecticut were only about four hundred kilometers apart. By plane, the journey would only take a few hours.

Lu Shixian had no reason to refuse.

His status at the Plant Genetics Laboratory was soaring. After becoming a distinguished professor in Yale's biology department, he now held positions at both a professional research institution and a top university.

With one foot in each camp, his position was secure.

At the same time, upon hearing he was coming to Maryland, Johns Hopkins University sent an invitation to Yale, specifically inviting Lu Shixian to visit for an academic exchange.

Among the fifty states in the US, the ones with the top-ranked educational resources might include Massachusetts, Colorado, Vermont, Minnesota, and Connecticut.

But Maryland was definitely not on that list.

However, it was home to two outstanding institutions: Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland.

The former focused on medicine, public health, and the natural sciences, while the latter specialized in public affairs, business, and computer science. Their strengths and focuses were very distinct.

Yale consulted Lu Shixian for his opinion.

After some thought, he quickly accepted the invitation.

It was on the way, their research strength in the natural sciences was formidable, and the invitation was sincere. It was worth a visit.

And so, after taking a week's leave of absence,

Lu Shixian boarded a flight to Maryland.

Before long, he arrived smoothly at the hotel that had been arranged for him.

To avoid any scheduling conflicts, Johns Hopkins University and the American Society of Plant Biologists had conferred and assigned a woman to serve as his dedicated coordinator.

"Professor Lu, esteemed guest, I am Mary Elena, a staff member from the society. I will now brief you on your upcoming schedule. If you have any feedback before or during your activities, you can relay it to me, and I will communicate it to the society and Johns Hopkins respectively," the woman said to him with utmost professionalism.

"On the 15th of this month, this Wednesday, you will participate in the new member induction ceremony following the opening ceremony of the annual meeting."

"On the 16th, this Thursday, you have a thirty-minute keynote report on the conference theme 'Plants and the Future.'"

"On the 17th, this Friday, just before the closing ceremony of the annual meeting, you will attend the awards ceremony to receive the Young Scientist Award and the Breakthrough Award. There will be two brief acceptance speeches."

"On the 20th, which is next Monday, you will attend an academic exchange at Johns Hopkins University. The participants will be renowned scholars in plant-related fields. The exchange is jointly hosted by the society and Hopkins, and you will share your outstanding research on plant antiviral immune mechanisms."

"On the 21st, next Tuesday, you will give a special lecture on a plant-related topic at Johns Hopkins University. Approximately five hundred students and faculty representatives from the School of Life Sciences will be in attendance."

After finishing, Elena put down the schedule in her hand and asked, "Professor Lu, do you have any objections to these arrangements? If not, we will proceed with preparations accordingly."

At that moment, Lu Shixian was completely stunned.

If they hadn't been humane enough to leave him the weekend, he would have been tempted to make a run for it.

Professor Lin told me this awards trip was basically a vacation, didn't he???

Something seemed very wrong now.

But in any case, he had already agreed. He couldn't back out now, could he?

And besides the lecture, the academic report and exchange were opportunities to broaden his knowledge and horizons. They were nothing but beneficial for him.

Lu Shixian still couldn't find a reason to refuse.

Perhaps this was the price of growth.

December 14, 2016.

Lu Shixian attended the banquet held before the official start of the annual meeting.

As one of the main attractions of this year's meeting, Lu Shixian naturally received a warm reception and a great deal of attention.

The society's vice president, Marvin Hobbs, came over personally to greet him.

After some conversation, Lu Shixian learned that the two were actually alumni.

Hobbs had spent time as a graduate student at Yale, focusing on plant growth and development. He was many years Lu's senior, though—more of a predecessor than an upperclassman.

His doctoral advisor at the time had been one of Professor Curry's students.

With this connection, the two of them had a very pleasant conversation.

"Lu, it's because I study plants that I truly understand the value of your work. The American Society of Plant Biologists really owes you a debt of gratitude this time. In recent years, the research world's attention has been almost entirely on astrophysics and superconductivity."

"Even within biology, the breakthroughs were all concentrated in biomedicine and gene editing. I thought Harvard's bionic leaf was a pleasant surprise, but then you came out of nowhere this year like a dark horse."

"Thank you for your outstanding contributions to the field of botany. You've made the world see us."

Faced with the praise, Lu Shixian responded gracefully, "Thank you for your kind words. In truth, I only did what I was supposed to do."

"The way I see it, the beauty of botany is like the deep ocean. Many people only see the marvelous creatures within or the vast starry sky reflected on its surface."

This was actually a very profound statement, and it prompted Hobbs to slap the table in approval, hailing him as a kindred spirit.

On Wednesday, the American Society of Plant Biologists' annual meeting officially began.

The opening ceremony was uninteresting, purely an exercise in patience and a cultivation of the soul.

As for Thursday's keynote report, the theme was already set as "Plants and the Future," leaving little room for improvisation.

Lu Shixian delivered a report titled "Plants and Humans: Our Shared History and Future."

In this report, Lu Shixian cited content from his cover paper in *Cell*, extending the concept of plant "co-evolution" to the close relationship between plants and humans. He ended by elevating the theme, earning a round of thunderous applause.

On the third day, the part he was looking forward to finally arrived.

After the society's president, Alexander Mobius, read out the list of awardees,

amidst a concise citation, Lu Shixian sequentially received his first and second awards in the United States.

Chapter 508 The Time Traveler

These two awards from the American Society of Plant Biologists had a relatively small scope and limited influence.

But their commemorative significance was exceptional, and Lu Shixian was quite happy.

Away from his familiar environment, he didn't dare to act rashly and spent the weekend resting in his hotel.

When Monday arrived,

Lu Shixian finally faced his first academic exchange in the United States.

The exchange was not large in scale, concluding after just two hours.

"Professor Lu, by using the concept of plant immune homeostasis as a stepping stone, you perfectly circumvented some of the pitfalls of mathematical models in the cellular micro-domain. The entry point of this operation was perfect, an absolute stroke of genius." After the meeting, Professor Donald from Johns Hopkins University expressed his admiration before asking, "Professor Lu, do you also believe that pure botany research is becoming increasingly difficult? Must we expand into other fields of knowledge?"

"Not necessarily. I don't actually understand math, but that didn't stop me from proposing the idea and having scholars in the relevant field complete it for me. Of course, if you have the extra capacity, your idea is viable. As I know, many physicists are also excellent mathematicians, and many medical doctors are also renowned biologists," Lu Shixian explained.

Donald nodded, acknowledging his point. "Haha, that's why people are calling you a brilliant designer, isn't it?"

On Tuesday, according to the pre-arranged schedule, was his final event in Maryland: a two-and-a-half-hour botany lecture at Johns Hopkins University.

The lecture officially began in one of Hopkins' conference halls.

The originally estimated attendance was around five hundred people, but the number of people who came was clearly less than that, about three hundred or so. Among them were quite a few ethnic Chinese, who had obviously come specifically to support him.

This was to be expected, however, as he had yet to fully convert some of his achievements into academic fame and influence.

Although the hall wasn't packed, the audience was small but mighty.

He was actually quite satisfied with a turnout of this size.

He had always been the one listening to others' lectures, but now the tables had turned. This time, it was finally his turn.

Lu Shixian decided to do his best not to mess it up.

"I'm delighted you could all come to this lecture. I know many of you here aren't very familiar with me, and that's fine. All that matters is that you're interested in what I'm about to discuss. I also know many of you aren't biology students, but are here simply out of curiosity for botany."

"Botany can be considered easy to talk about, as its body of knowledge isn't overly complex; a little study can give you a basic understanding. But you could also say it's difficult to talk about, since the species diversity of plants is far greater than that of animals."

"Coincidentally, I just gave a keynote report at the American Society of Plant Biologists' annual meeting titled 'Plants and Humans: Our Shared History and Future.' I'd like to expand on a portion of that content and share it with you all."

"Here, I'd like to ask if anyone knows: what should be the future of plants?"

As his voice fell, many realized the Q&A session had already begun.

The atmosphere of Lu Shixian's lecture wasn't stern, so the mood in the room was quite lively.

Many people, relying on their imagination, eagerly answered the question.

"I believe that under the influence of genetic modification technology, the superior traits of plants will continuously be brought together. So their future should be one of omnipotence and uniformity. When all traits converge, all plants will become a single species, controlled by one leader, like the Zerg Overmind and her minions in StarCraft."

"In the future, the world's population will grow further. Combined with potential pandemics, extreme weather, and wars, the environment that humanity currently relies on will be tested. Therefore, I think the future of plants should be to evolve into super-plants. They'll be like the plants in a futuristic version of *Plants vs. Zombies*, able to help humans overcome all sorts of difficulties."

"I think if the future environment becomes difficult for even humans to survive in, it'll be even worse for plants. So, I believe the future of plants should be survival. Where there's life, there's hope."

Although the three answers above had a sci-fi flavor, they were well-reasoned and received encouragement from Lu Shixian.

There were many others who were neither professionals nor followed basic logic, and their answers to the question left Lu Shixian both amused and exasperated.

To prevent the tone from shifting drastically, Lu Shixian picked up the microphone again.

"Plants have always been a source of human creativity and inspiration. Whether in the untouchable past or the distant future, they have always been our silent friends and partners. From food and spices to medicine, architecture, and art, we have a symbiotic relationship with them."

"But in a way, plants are the true masters of Earth. They have witnessed hundreds of millions of long years here. Compared to them, the time from when we first stood upright to our slow evolution into modern civilized society is but a brief moment in their historical timeline."

"In other words, plants can exist without humans, but humans cannot exist without plants. They are what gave us the chance to survive. In the depths of our cultural memory, they are sacred and worthy of gratitude. Whether it's the divine tree 'Yggdrasil' in Norse mythology or the divine Jianmu tree in the mythology of my homeland, one is a symbol of the cosmos, and the other is a bridge connecting heaven, earth, and the divine."

"I tend to agree with the last student's view. Plant diversity today is decreasing daily compared to the past. Many species are on the brink of extinction or have already vanished completely. That's why many countries have now established seed gene banks."

"Someone once poetically described seeds as packages that plants send to the future. A seed is like a time traveler, journeying through time to 'package' and transmit the genetic information accumulated over billions of years on Earth to the next generation."

"The future of plants should be seeds."

"But if I could have my way, I would not want future generations to see the plants of today only as artifacts in a museum."

Clap, clap, clap!

As Lu Shixian finished his last sentence, the less-than-full conference hall erupted in applause far more enthusiastic than usual.

Having completed his final task, Lu Shixian waved goodbye and left with a flourish.

Lectures and reports may seem similar, but because they are for different audiences, the former strives to be accessible and easy to understand, while the latter demands rigor and professionalism.

With his calmly delivered words, Lu Shixian gave all the attendees a rare and memorable experience.

Through this one lecture, many people came to remember the name of a man from China.

Chapter 509 Tel Aviv

Back at Yale, Lu Shixian had only been resting for a few days.

Then he heard Lin Haifan report good news: "Congratulations! *Nature* magazine just announced its list of ten people who mattered this year. Not only are you on it, you're ranked number one."

"Oh?" Hearing this news, Lu Shixian was slightly surprised. "I published my paper in *Cell*. What does *Nature* mean by giving me an award?"

Lin Haifan had to explain further, "This list's scope of evaluation covers figures who played a part in any major scientific event of the year. It's not limited to work published in *Nature*. Otherwise, what's the point if everyone just plays in their own sandbox?"

Lu Shixian had heard of this thing before but had never looked into the specific selection rules.

He quickly found the latest issue of *Nature* and flipped to the section about the list.

Sure enough, his name was at the very top.

*Nature*'s assessment of him was very high. The citation read: "Looking back at Lu's academic journey, this young scholar from China has been constantly exploring different unknowns, and his pace is only accelerating."
He did far more than just design a mathematical model named Sinan. It's understood that in China, Sinan refers to the compass, the earliest of its kind in world history.

This is an extraordinary work. It fully elucidates the interactive mechanism of plant antiviral immunity and points the way forward for us in the future of plant science.

Lu Shixian nodded. The assessment was very professional, just as expected of *Nature*.

However, Nature's 10 was not an award, nor was it some kind of top-ten world ranking.

It was simply a record of the year's significant scientific advancements, events, and some of the key figures involved, along with their colleagues.

Therefore, there was no award ceremony; it was something you just looked at and moved on.

But it was, in fact, an endorsement that carried considerable weight, directly influencing the international committee far away in Tel Aviv.

They still had some reservations about their selection for the Future Prize laureate.

In fact, this year's Dan David Future Prize candidate had originally been earmarked for Danila Rhodes of Cambridge University.

Last year, in her competition with Michael Waterman, she was narrowly defeated by a slim margin, causing the 2015 Dan David Future Prize to go to three scientists in the field of bioinformatics.

But this didn't mean Danila had lost. Her research on the atomic structure of the nucleosome was equally outstanding, providing a theoretical foundation for revealing the mechanisms of chromatin, gene regulation, and epigenetics.

It was a classic case of three heads being better than one, so she could only wait for the next year.

But now, a dark horse had suddenly emerged, catching the committee completely off guard.

Lu Shixian's achievement was indeed astonishing, but he was a newcomer.

Danila, on the other hand, was a familiar face in her second run, giving her a considerable advantage.

Originally, their support levels were roughly the same, with Danila perhaps having a slight edge.

Now, however, his selection as one of Nature's 10 had become the last straw, shattering the original balance.

Thus, they hesitated no longer and immediately sent a message to Yale and their contact person.

When the news reached the United States, Yale immediately contacted Lu Shixian to confirm.

The person who reached out to Lu Shixian was a familiar face, Rothman, whose focus had gradually shifted from academic research to university administration and education.

Rothman was much busier than before and didn't have time to speak with him in person, so he sent a direct congratulatory message.

"Lu, congratulations! The Dan David Prize has confirmed you as the sole recipient of the 2016 Future Prize. And since you don't have any graduate students, you will be receiving the one million US dollar cash prize all to yourself."

Lu Shixian's eyes lit up immediately. "That sounds pretty good, but I don't know much about this prize. Where am I supposed to receive it?"

"Tel Aviv-Yafo," Rothman replied, a man of few words now.

Honestly, having a Nobel laureate act as a liaison was a privilege only someone like Lu Shixian could enjoy.

Lu Shixian typed the place name into his phone's map, and the location that appeared gave him a shock.

"No way, it's in Israel?"

A look of doubt crossed his face. "We're not going to end up in a bomb shelter during the award ceremony, are we? Professor Rothman, could you possibly discuss with the committee whether I can receive the award online?"

"As for the cash prize, it can be transferred directly to my bank account."

Rothman was left speechless by Lu Shixian's words.

The corner of his mouth twitched slightly. "Do you think that's possible?"

"If you had won an award more prestigious than the Dan David Prize, say, a Nobel Prize, maybe."

"Or, if you were to accept the award but not the prize money, that could also be negotiable."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian finally resigned himself to his fate.

It seemed the old saying was true everywhere: you can't expect a horse to run without feeding it.

Fortunately, at this point in time, the region was supposed to be relatively peaceful. In a few more years, that might not be the case.

For the sake of that one million dollars, Lu Shixian decided to make a small sacrifice and agreed to Rothman's terms.

And so, in pursuit of the safest possible route, Lu Shixian had to set off for Tel Aviv early after getting his visa.

Tel Aviv in the twentieth century had weathered many storms, suffering numerous major attacks and devastations that left it riddled with scars.

But now, in the twenty-first century, Tel Aviv had become the country's second-largest city, as well as its largest metropolitan area and economic hub, showing trends of developing into a world-class city.

After a series of detours, Lu Shixian finally arrived at his destination a week later.

In Hebrew, Tel Aviv means "Hill of Spring."

"Spring" naturally symbolizes renewal, while "Hill" in local history refers to an accumulation of ruins.

Yafo means "beautiful," and it is an ancient port city within Tel Aviv.

To be honest, if not for this twist of fate, he would never have imagined he would one day come to this place.

But since he was here, he could only say the trip was well worth it. He got to appreciate a unique foreign atmosphere completely different from that of the United States.

Soon, under the announcement of Tel Aviv University's President and Chairman of the Dan David Prize Committee, Joseph Klafter, Lu Shixian was awarded the 2016 Dan David Prize in the Future dimension.

Along with it came a check for one million dollars, recognizing his outstanding contributions to the field of plant immune regulation.

At 2:30 PM local time, the country's largest English-language media outlet, The Jerusalem Post, conducted its routine interviews with all the laureates.

When it was his turn, the Post reporter asked, "Professor Lu, many people are now predicting that you have a chance to win the Nobel Prize for this achievement. What are your thoughts on that?"

Lu Shixian was taken aback for a moment. *Plenty of people abroad, too? How come I didn't know that.*

But he quickly replied, "Who knows?"

"If it's possible, I would of course hope to receive a call from Sweden."

"But you've reminded me, maybe I should disable the block on international calls on my phone."

Chapter 510: Well-Deserved

At these words, many in the audience broke into smiles.

The few casual sentences Lu Shixian spoke had an amusing incongruity that people found interesting.

Some thought he was joking, but he was actually telling the truth.

A long time ago, he used to ignore all calls not from his contacts. Later, after missing several important calls, he disabled that setting.

But if a call came from abroad, he would most likely have repeated the same action.

The most extreme example of this was probably Peter Higgs.

That's right, the man behind the "God particle" named after him.

Forty-nine years after predicting the Higgs boson, Peter Higgs finally won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2013.

But he owned neither a television nor a mobile phone, and he didn't get his first computer until he was 80.

If a neighbor passing by on the street hadn't congratulated him, he would not have known he had won.

Peter Higgs once said, "I've been left behind by all the high-tech gadgets, and I've never caught up."

Being a purely theoretical scientist can be a very lonely profession, far lonelier than that of a typical researcher.

This is because they never know if they will live to see their theories proven, and they rarely receive understanding or recognition from their contemporaries.

Higgs was undoubtedly much luckier than Einstein, having witnessed his theory confirmed and receiving immense academic prestige in his lifetime.

The latter's prediction of gravitational waves, on the other hand, had to wait a hundred years before the world had the technology to detect and confirm their existence.

After the award ceremony, Lu Shixian rushed back without stopping.

Besides a subconscious desire not to linger, he was also extremely busy.

Rothman had complained more than once that he should hire an assistant, but Lu Shixian had always brushed him off.

Because in addition to the Genetics Society he had already joined and another society he had just become a member of, the American Phytopathological Society also wanted to follow the lead of the American Society of Plant Biologists.

They wanted to quickly induct Lu Shixian as a member and present him with an award.

Lu Shixian was considering the matter. In a way, the nature of the Pathological Society was considerably "worse" than that of the plant biologists' society.

His achievements in plant pathology were not new. When he published those three papers in *Cell* on the co-evolution of plants and pathogens long ago, he should have, by common sense, been invited then.

But then he remembered that he wasn't the corresponding author and that Knox was the biggest beneficiary, and he felt a sense of relief.

Joining meant receiving an award, which was something he could negotiate.

Another matter was that *Nature* had formally invited him to be a peer reviewer. Although it was just a regular one, it still signified *Nature*'s recognition of him.

There was nothing to hesitate about. At the level of the big three journals, becoming a reviewer was often an honor in itself.

He'd have to be out of his mind to refuse. With this connection, the possibility of achieving the feat of publishing in all of CNS (Cell, Nature, Science) in the future increased slightly.

Thus, after returning to Yale, he went through another busy period, and the buzz about him gradually faded with the passage of time.

He slowly returned to a normal work and life routine.

No wonder Conrad Röntgen didn't have time to collect his Nobel Prize and wrote to the committee asking them to mail the medal to him.

It was all just too time-consuming.

But it wasn't without its rewards.

In the past month, he had become a member of two academic societies in different fields.

He had also successively received the Dan David Prize and three society awards.

Finally, he was named by *Nature* as the head of its list of ten people who made major scientific breakthroughs that year.

With these numerous honors and society memberships, Yale confidently gave Lu Shixian a promotion and a raise, preparing to nominate him for the position of Full Professor.

But Lu Shixian refused.

Unlike a researcher, a professorship required teaching duties and supervising graduate students.

He had no such intentions at the moment. His intellectual curiosity for academia was still very strong, and he had no desire to divert his energy to these tasks.

Besides, his official status was still a postdoctoral fellow.

He had to wait until he completed his postdoc before the next steps could be taken.

After some negotiation, Yale guaranteed that once he formally joined the faculty, they would grant him the title and benefits of a Full Researcher.

However, his existing title of Distinguished Professor would be retained.

If he agreed, it would mean he had completed a journey in just three years that took many people decades to finish.

But Lu Shixian was still hesitating. According to his original plan, he was going to consider other universities or research institutions after finishing his postdoc at Yale. After all, water flows downwards, and people strive upwards.

Yale's overall strength in life sciences wasn't the absolute strongest.

But now, he found himself in a difficult position.

Yale had treated him well. If he proposed leaving, it would be hard to explain.

Meanwhile, in 2017, Lin Haifan was elected as a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Sciences.

This process was a full year ahead of schedule.

Lu Shixian immediately sent his congratulations.

"Congratulations, Professor Lin! A truly well-deserved honor."

Lin Haifan, his wish fulfilled, felt grateful to Lu Shixian.

"It's all thanks to you. It's a pity I don't have a daughter, or I'd definitely try to set you two up. Now I feel quite conflicted. I haven't helped you much, but I've benefited from it. From now on, your business is my business."

Lu Shixian shook his head. "I'm just glad I could help. I never expected anything in return. Besides, it was your own capabilities that earned it. I just gave a tiny push."

Lu Shixian thought little of it, but Lin Haifan took the matter to heart.

With his new status as a member of two academies, he now possessed enormous academic prestige in the United States, which also translated into considerable influence.

Just as Lu Shixian was pondering his dilemma, a call from an unfamiliar number in Beijing broke his train of thought.

"Hello, is this Professor Lu? This is Yang Ruidai from the School of Life Sciences at Tsinghua University," a voice said from the other end.

Hearing the familiar Beijing accent he hadn't heard in a long time, Lu Shixian was momentarily lost in thought.

It really had been a long time since he'd been back. In the blink of an eye, more than three years had passed since he went abroad.

On the other end, Yang Ruidai's voice came again. "Hello? Hello? Can you hear me?"

Lu Shixian snapped back to reality. Although he didn't know the purpose of the call, he quickly responded, "Yes, I can hear you. How can I help you?"

"It's like this, your achievements at Yale are widely celebrated at Tsinghua," Yang Ruidai explained very politely. "Therefore, on behalf of Tsinghua University, I sincerely invite you, as an outstanding overseas talent, to apply for the Overseas Distinguished Young Scholars Program through our School of Life Sciences."

Chapter 511: Switching Tracks

"Furthermore, for a high-level, top-tier talent like yourself, as long as you come to Tsinghua, you will directly receive a settling-in allowance and housing subsidy of 800,000 RMB, a research startup fund of no less than 1 million RMB, and you can be directly appointed to a senior professional title."

"We will also address your spouse's employment needs. If you do not have a spouse at the moment, the university actively organizes social events for young people, providing a platform for eligible young talents to interact, develop friendships, or even find love. In other words, as long as you come, everything is negotiable..."

Lu Shixian suddenly found it hard to keep a straight face.

How did this suddenly turn into a matchmaking session?

And he never expected a call inviting him back to China, much less that the first to contact him would be Tsinghua, Peking University's next-door neighbor.

After making a temporary excuse, Lu Shixian hung up the phone.

He had no choice. It wasn't just about whether he wanted to return to China now.

Even if he did, going directly to Tsinghua without a word would be a very immature move.

He would have no way to explain it to Peking University or his familiar mentors.

Besides, he had no intention of returning to China at the moment.

He had now fully established himself in the United States, with significant improvements in both his status and network. Choosing to return at this time would undoubtedly be unwise.

According to his and Xu Zhihong's initial plan, he had not yet accumulated enough experience to handle the demands of seniority.

However, since Tsinghua had called, it was impossible for Peking University to have no reaction.

Sure enough, just as he was thinking this, his phone rang again.

The caller ID showed a familiar number, a familiar person.

"Well, if it isn't Professor Ma?" Lu Shixian answered, deliberately teasing. "What auspicious wind blew you here today?"

Ma Yuheng snorted. "You've gotten bold, haven't you, kid? Getting a big head now, speaking with such a sharp tongue. Can't I call you just because?"

"But I guess it makes sense. You're famous abroad now, and you have quite a reputation back home too. So many nicknames: the Sinan Designer, Nobel Candidate, the Terminator of Plant Immunity."

"But now there's a rumor online, saying it's not even certain you'll come back. That our Peking University has just trained another top talent for the United States."

Lu Shixian shook his head, speechless. He had often seen this joke about Peking and Tsinghua online in the past.

He never thought he would one day become the protagonist of that joke.

Ma Yuheng quickly got to the point. "It's been over three years since you went abroad. This time, I just want to ask if you have any plans to return to China soon?"

"And not the kind for visiting family, you know what I mean. Peking University urgently needs you to join us!"

So direct? That was unusual.

Connecting this with the timing, Lu Shixian suddenly seemed to remember something.

"The Double First-Class Initiative?"

Ma Yuheng's surprised voice came from the other end. "You're well-informed, kid!"

"That's right. Just this January, the higher-ups issued a document called the 'Implementation Measures for the Coordinated Promotion of World-Class Universities and First-Class Disciplines'."

"This means that from now on, although the old '985' and '211' labels on universities won't disappear immediately, they will gradually be de-emphasized."

"If we at Peking University don't stay vigilant, we could very well lose ground in areas where we've traditionally been strong!"

Now, Lu Shixian understood the deeper reason for Tsinghua's invitation.

But he remained composed and said, "No wonder Tsinghua University just called me."

This sentence immediately put Ma Yuheng on alert.

"What's the situation? You didn't agree, did you?"

Lu Shixian chuckled. "I haven't agreed, of course, but their offer was very generous."

He repeated the terms Tsinghua had just offered him.

Ma Yuheng was also a bit stunned. "It seems this Double First-Class Initiative has really shaken Tsinghua. They're starting to feel the pressure."

Then, he added with a click of his tongue, "It's impressive they could come up with such methods to recruit talent. But how come you still haven't found a girlfriend, kid?"

"What's going on? Don't tell me you..."

Before he could finish, Lu Shixian cut him off. "That's right! I just don't have the mind for it right now. I'll look for someone later, when my passion for scientific research has cooled down a bit."

"That's where you're completely wrong. As the old saying goes, how can you establish a career without first starting a family?"

Lu Shixian had a ready reply. "How can I, with my humble means, dare to enter a world of prosperity? How can I, with so little to my name, risk a good woman's future?"

This immediately made old Ma's beard bristle with anger. "Are you crying poor to me? Are you saying that million dollars in prize money you just received is fake?"

Lu Shixian shook his head. "If it were for living expenses, it would last a lifetime. But as research startup funds, it's just a drop in the bucket."

Ma Yuheng was speechless. He found that he understood the minds of young people less and less.

But no matter what, he needed to get a clear answer today.

"Let's put all that aside. What's the verdict? What are your plans?"

Lu Shixian thought for a moment, then shook his head. "Returning now wouldn't be bad, but it's not the best time yet. Staying here currently brings more value than returning to China would."

"Besides, I'm about to be promoted to Full Professor at Yale. Can you guarantee I'll receive the same treatment immediately if I go back?"

Ma Yuheng was defeated again. But having gotten his answer, he dropped the subject and moved on to other things.

"By the way, Professor Gu asked me to ask if you're interested in joining the Botanical Society of China? And Academician Gao Defeng from the CDC is asking if you want to join the Chinese Society for Plant Pathology?"

Both were old acquaintances, so Lu Shixian would not disrespect them.

Moreover, since he had already joined foreign societies, refusing invitations from similar domestic ones could create a bad impression.

It wasn't a difficult decision, so he quickly accepted their invitations.

After hanging up, Lu Shixian began to deal with the various matters that had piled up.
Since he had already decided to continue his tenure at Yale, it was necessary to politely decline some of the invitations in his inbox.

Additionally, it was time to make a preliminary plan for his future research direction.

He certainly couldn't continue with his previous work on plant antiviral immunity, even though he was eager to pursue further breakthroughs in that field.

Continuing down that path would lead into genetic breeding, officially entering the realm of application.

If he were to succeed in that, it would be a terrifying achievement, perhaps not on par with building an atomic bomb, but close.

Then, returning to his home country might not be so easy. Uncle Sam was no slouch.

This put him in an awkward position, forced to change his research focus.

Fortunately, his past experiences had made him realize the difficulty of breakthroughs in pure biology and helped him identify his own limitations.

Perhaps it was time to switch tracks.

Chapter 512: The Farewell Ceremony

There weren't many options, really. It boiled down to a choice between biochemistry and biomedical science.

He was not very familiar with other fields like bioinformatics, cognitive neuroscience, biophysics, or biostatistics, nor was he particularly interested in them.

But which specific path to take required careful consideration.

Biochemistry, or biological chemistry, is the chemistry of life. It studies the chemical composition and structure of living organisms, as well as the various chemical changes that occur during life processes.

In short, it is a science that uses chemical theories and methods to study life phenomena and explain their chemical nature.

Its most common research areas involve the components of organisms, including macromolecules like proteins, carbohydrates, and nucleic acids, which is also the most popular direction.

Beyond that, it primarily involves studying the regulation of metabolism, the activity of intracellular enzymes, and so on.

Biomedical science, on the other hand, is a frontier interdisciplinary field that has recently developed by integrating the theories and methods of biology and medicine.

Its fundamental task is to use biological and engineering techniques to solve problems in life sciences, especially in medicine.

Lu Shixian pondered for a moment. In essence, there wasn't much difference between the two.

It was merely a distinction in research theories and methods.

His inspiration for the breakthrough in the plant immune regulatory mechanism had actually come from medical research methods.

But his field of study involved cytokines, which are proteins, and that was a primary subject of biochemistry.

However, in terms of research prospects, the significance of medicine was unique. A true achievement could change the fate of many people.

Looked at this way, the answer seemed clear.

In fact, when medical research reached an advanced level, its ultimate destination was the same as his research in botany to increase crop yield and efficiency—both were for the betterment of people's future lives.

But even after defining the research area, determining a specific direction was no easy task.

Lu Shixian didn't really understand medicine, but he understood biology.

To ensure a steady and far-reaching path ahead, he undoubtedly needed to walk on two legs.

So, it was time to study again.

The knowledge and skills he had accumulated over the years had been almost entirely poured into this single paper.

A person cannot always be in a state of output, but they can always be in a state of learning.

Thus, Lu Shixian forgot his past achievements and started anew from a fresh starting point.

As time went on, his prediction proved to be incredibly accurate.

His popularity among the public lasted less than half a month before being crowded out by all sorts of entertainment news.

Speculation about the Nobel Prize subsequently fell silent.

He had indeed produced Nobel-level work, but it was important to remember that many other scientists like him were still waiting in line with eager anticipation.

His priority at the moment was simply too low.

Evidently, some in the media would stop at nothing for traffic.

Lu Shixian was happy to let it be.

He waited for Yale to deliver on its promises while recharging his own batteries.

In the field of biomedical science, he had actually already mastered a considerable portion of the content, and it was akin to having learned advanced knowledge ahead of time.

From this perspective, he could easily identify his own shortcomings.

A weak foundation makes the earth tremble!

He had never systematically studied the foundational knowledge, especially that related to medicine.

Now, he spent his days reading about human structure and function and normal human morphology, and his nights studying embryology, anatomy, physiology, and more.

Finally, the day came for him to complete his postdoctoral fellowship.

"Lu, congratulations! After today, you will officially join Yale University." Morty stood beside him, offering congratulations while sighing with emotion.

What he said was true.

Although postdoctoral researchers enjoyed the benefits of official employees at their host institution, they were ultimately research personnel with a transient status during their fellowship.

And transience meant instability.

"I'm sorry to see you leave the Plant Genetics Lab. I still remember your unique answer during your interview."

"You said you could quickly adapt to the need for interdisciplinary knowledge integration and apply it to your research work even faster."

"It seems you've done it, and done it very well! I'm confident you'll adapt quickly to the research work over there."

Hearing Morty's nostalgic words, Lu Shixian also thought back to the person he was three years ago.

"Leaving doesn't mean farewell. I'm still employed at Yale, and I believe we will have many opportunities for collaboration in the future."

After bidding Morty farewell, Lu Shixian prepared to pack his things and head to his next stop.

Of course, he had another very important thing to do.

That was to see Professor Curry off.

This farewell, of course, did not mean the final journey.

Having personally participated in Lu Shixian's project, Professor Curry's obsession with top-tier scientific achievements had weakened considerably.

At the same time, due to his advanced age, he felt increasingly strained in his research work and had submitted his retirement application to Yale.

Although Yale did its best to persuade him to stay, it ultimately chose to respect the old man's wishes.

The retirement age for researchers is not fixed, but it is generally much higher than for the average person.

Many top scientists remain active on the front lines of research well into their eighties or nineties.

As a Wolf Prize laureate in Agriculture and an academic authority in the field of pathology, Yale held a special farewell ceremony for him.

As per Curry's personal request, the ceremony was not grand, but it was absolutely sincere, with invitations extended only to those he knew well.

As the man of the hour, Curry was uncharacteristically sentimental, giving a bit of a speech.

"Yale is where I found success in my career and the love of my life. In my eighteen years here, I have fallen deeply in love with this place."

"From today on, I will return to my hometown to enjoy my retirement, but I will not forget a single blade of grass or tree here. This is my second home."

"Everyone, although my own research career comes to a close here, I will continue to follow you all from afar."

"I have always believed that the charm of scientific research lies in making this world more beautiful."

"May wisdom and good fortune be with you!"

It had to be said, Curry's words struck a chord with many people.

Then, everyone began to line up one by one to give him a hug.

Lu Shixian was no exception.

At the very end, he watched as Curry's gray-haired, faltering figure slowly disappeared from view.

Lu Shixian didn't know what to say.

After all, the quiet years pass in silence, leaving only farewells.

On the way back, Lu Shixian suddenly remembered something and asked Rothman, who was beside him, "I heard that the tribute at a Princeton farewell ceremony is for everyone to go up and offer him a pen."

"So our Yale tradition is just a hug?"

Chapter 513: Full of Vigor

Rothman was momentarily speechless, then burst out laughing. "For that, you'll have to ask Ron Howard, the director of *A Beautiful Mind*, why he designed such a scene for Nash."

"In fact, many professors at Princeton have told me they have no such custom."

"Except, of course, for some students who deliberately imitate it."

Lu Shixian couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed. It turned out he was the ignorant one all along.

After some idle chat, the two finally got down to business.

"After Professor Curry's resignation, his Plant Pathology Laboratory will merge with the School of Medicine's Pathology Research Center to form a new research institution: the Biological Pathology Laboratory. Based on the evaluation results, Yale has issued an appointment decision for me to serve as the interim director of this new lab, with you as the deputy director."

"But you know, most of my energy is focused on my teaching duties right now, so I won't have much time to spend in the lab. In any case, a greater burden will fall on you later, so I hope you can prepare yourself mentally and step into the role as soon as possible. I have faith in your abilities."

Lu Shixian understood Rothman's subtext and replied, "I've had some ideas recently. I'll refine them when I get back and then write up a lab development plan for you to look over."

Although Rothman was pleased with his attitude, he couldn't help but chuckle. "That's not necessary. Your academic abilities have already been proven and recognized by everyone."

"You can see that from the citation count of the Sinan model in your paper."

"Besides, my presence here won't be for long. Your skill in pathology is no less than mine."

Lu Shixian grinned. Becoming a PI of a lab for the first time was a novel experience.

Soon, the integration of the Yale University Plant Pathology Laboratory and the Pathology Research Center became a settled matter.

A memo appointing Rothman as the concurrent director of the new lab and Lu Shixian as the deputy director circulated within Yale.

Many marveled at the speed of Lu Shixian's promotion, yet it was also within expectations.

Many had even begun to see him as Rothman's successor.

This succession, of course, was not in terms of research direction, but in terms of the Nobel Prize.

After all, he had already secured the most difficult ticket to the Nobel game; the rest was just a matter of time and accumulation.

Most critically, Lu Shixian had achieved this before the age of thirty, which was a terrifying thought.

It meant he had a greater potential for the future, making him worthy of Yale's heavy investment.

This time, his assumption of office met with no obstacles.

He accepted Curry's gift; many graduate students from the Plant Pathology Lab had followed Curry's advice and stayed.

At the same time, he had Rothman paving the way for him, his name being the biggest seal of approval.

Lu Shixian was off to the most perfect start he could have imagined.

Holding such a strong hand, he had both the hope and the confidence to achieve great things.

Due to the abrupt switch to the medical field, most of the members of his original plant immunology project team chose to leave.

But they all benefited greatly; having their names on a paper in a journal like *Cell* was a remarkable achievement in itself.

Bella was a capable and ambitious woman. After this project, she was no longer content to be directed by others. She had applied for her own project at the stem cell center, which was said to be progressing with great intensity.

Merlin was also facing the pressures of graduation. Although he didn't lack for achievements, there were still many trivial matters to resolve, so Lu had to let him go.

In the end, Lu Shixian had to go to the pathology lab to assume his post alone. Rothman kept his promise of being a director in name only.

He was received by Evera Perry from the original medical school's pathology lab, a man nearly a full generation older than him.

"Professor Lu, you were already at the forefront of the plant antiviral immunity field. Why did you suddenly jump to medicine?" Perry asked, not quite understanding this baffling move.

This wasn't the first time Lu Shixian had answered such a question, and he replied with practiced ease.

"I have already designed a compass named Sinan. It will guide many others toward the destination in my stead. I am no longer needed."

Perry was at a loss for words and could only give him a thumbs-up. "Well, Lu, what are your research plans going forward? I'd like to understand our main focus for the future."

There was no need to be mysterious at this point. Lu Shixian directly stated his original idea.

"It will probably be the preparation of plant-based biopharmaceuticals."

"You know, my background is in botany, so it makes sense to start with the field I'm most familiar with."

This idea quickly won Perry's approval. He said in a tone of great agreement, "Now I'm starting to believe you could become the Lawrence Bragg of the biology world."

The words were, of course, a compliment.

However, Lu Shixian knew he could never reach, let alone surpass, Lawrence Bragg's achievement.

He and his father had discovered the famous Bragg's law while studying the reflection of X-rays on crystal surfaces, winning the 1915 Nobel Prize in Physics. Lawrence Bragg was only 25 at the time.

As the saying goes, brothers fight tigers side by side, and father and son go to battle together.

A father and son sharing the Nobel Prize in Physics was a rare occurrence in the long and venerable history of the Nobel.

It was a despairingly young age, but he wasn't without a chance to catch up to the second tier.

The founders of quantum mechanics, Heisenberg and Dirac, the discoverer of the positron, Anderson, and Tsung-Dao Lee, who overturned the law of parity conservation in weak interactions, all received the Nobel Prize in Physics at the age of 31.

These were all young Nobel laureates in the field of physics.

In the world of biology, the youngest laureate in medicine was likely Frederick Banting.

He received the 1923 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine at the age of 32 for his discovery of insulin.

It seemed that compared to these figures, he was still just a junior.

So, he had to keep working hard.

The friendly exchange with Perry was undoubtedly a good omen. It was difficult to produce major results in a research team plagued by internal conflict.

Several days later, the Yale University Biological Pathology Laboratory finally held its first all-hands meeting, chaired by the lab's deputy director, Lu Shixian.

After the merger, the pathology lab had absorbed personnel from the two original institutions, and the total number of members had skyrocketed.

Not including himself, there were thirty-six people.

Lu Shixian had a feeling that this would be the most well-resourced battle he had ever fought.

At the meeting, Lu Shixian was full of vigor.

"Now, I can tell you all very clearly that our mission is to develop a plant-based drug."

"Since the advent of molecular farming, genetic engineering has enabled the production of a large number of high-yield, high-quality crops that meet market demands."

"Based on this principle, our lab's project will be to use plant cell cultures and whole plants to produce a new type of biopharmaceutical for the prevention of human or animal diseases."

Chapter 514: A Well-Earned Reputation

But Lu Shixian's passionate words failed to move the many academic researchers sitting in the conference room.

Unlike his previous team, which was mostly composed of graduate students just starting their research careers, with the only three project leaders being newly appointed assistant professors or researchers, this time, the majority of the members of the integrated team had at least five years of research experience.

A small number had already reached the rank of associate professor.

The power of words alone was not enough to sway these seasoned veterans of scientific research projects.

The project's prospects were indeed beautiful and had once attracted many to its cause, but it had now become something of a white elephant—tasteless to pursue, yet a pity to abandon.

Molecular farming, using plants as a chassis cell, began in 1989 with a paper published in *Nature* by the Scripps Research Institute in the United States.

The main content of the article was the use of tobacco plants to produce functional recombinant antibodies, thereby overcoming the rejection reactions that occurred when animal-derived antibodies entered the human body, achieving humanization of the antibodies and greatly enhancing their efficacy.

From then on, molecular farming became a hot topic in both medicine and plant science, simultaneously kicking off the development of plant synthetic biology.

According to incomplete statistics, before 2005, at least fifty new pharmaceutical companies were established for this purpose, springing up like mushrooms after rain.

But from 1990 to 1998, due to the immaturity of the technology and market, the field of molecular farming was still in its nascent stage.

After 1999, due to the diversification of plant platforms, the fragmentation of industry R&D, and an immature regulatory system, the development of molecular farming has been extremely slow, falling directly into a slump and becoming a deep pit to be avoided.

As a result, many of the past investments by these pharmaceutical companies went down the drain. A large number went bankrupt, and only a few remained.

Against this backdrop, Lu Shixian's proposal of this direction would naturally make people hesitate.

However, Lu Shixian was no longer the same person who had just arrived at Yale. He had already created too many miracles.

Moreover, there was a heavyweight Nobel laureate in the lab to back him up.

So, while the team members had their doubts, they would not express them directly.

This was one of the benefits of having laid a good foundation beforehand.

A mature team should possess such a characteristic. While not unconditionally trusting the PI, they would respect each other's ideas and not publicly undermine them, as Bella had done before.

Lu Shixian nodded in satisfaction and began to explain, "I know you might be thinking, isn't molecular farming a thing of the past?"

"But what I want to say is that now is precisely its time to take off. The technological bottlenecks of the past have been quietly loosening. If we seize this opportunity, we seize the future of the new pharmaceutical field."

Seeing that some people remained unmoved, Lu Shixian finally played his trump card.

"In fact, you may not have noticed, but someone is already quietly making a fortune."

"If you look through the list of recent FDA approvals over the past few years, you'll find the name of a drug."

"Its name is Elelyso, used to treat Gaucher disease. It's a rare genetic disorder with a prevalence of only 0.2 per 100,000 people."

Some people in the room began to ponder deeply, but most still didn't understand what he was getting at.

The FDA approves countless foods, drugs, cosmetics, and medical devices every year. Who would pay attention to a drug for a very rare disease?

Lu Shixian wasn't in a hurry. He saw that the atmosphere was already buzzing.

He repeated a move he had attempted but failed to execute in his last project, smiling as he took out dozens of non-disclosure agreements from his briefcase.

As the saying goes, you live and you learn.

Relying solely on verbal promises of confidentiality was unreliable. Only by writing it into a strict contract beforehand could it have any binding force.

As a transitional project, this was very important to him and could not afford any mistakes.
Seeing that many had finished reading the agreement, he continued, "Good. Because this involves trade secrets, only those who sign this agreement will hear what comes next."

"Don't worry too much. If you choose not to sign, that's fine too. I can recommend you to Professor Rothman for other labs at Yale."

Those present were no strangers to the type of agreement Lu Shixian had produced.

But his maneuver was an eye-opener for everyone.

Except for highly specialized labs, like P3 or P4 biosafety level laboratories, this kind of procedure was rarely necessary.

Typically, labs only had people sign non-disclosure agreements when a project was nearing completion.

Something about this felt a little off.

But should they sign, or not?

Signing meant being tied to this unknown project group, unable to work on other projects until its term was over.

Not signing, however, meant potentially missing a rare opportunity. After all, this was the man who had just been named one of Nature's Ten, won the Dan David Prize, and pocketed a cool million US dollars.

And so, many began to hesitate, caught in a state of indecision.

In reality, however, Lu Shixian was completely confident about today's outcome.

He had done a great deal of homework for this new project, a pivot that stemmed from an unexpected discovery during his trip to Israel.

Sure enough, after only a moment's hesitation, one person led the way, and others soon followed, signing the premature non-disclosure agreement.

Only when he saw the last person sign did Lu Shixian break into a smile again.

"You might still be in the dark, but what I'm about to say may just shatter your perception of things."

"Protalix, from Israel, has already developed a new drug based on plant-cell-based recombinant proteins."

"And its name is Elelyso."

The moment he said it, everyone was stunned. They glanced at each other, their faces blank with shock. One after another, the same look of utter disbelief spread across the room.

It wasn't that they didn't understand. It was that the news was simply too astonishing.

This meant the technological bottleneck holding back molecular farming had just been broken!

And right now, very few people had realized this.

In other words, this was the perfect time to seize the opportunity.

The way everyone looked at Lu Shixian began to change.

A phrase slowly formed in their minds: Worthy of his reputation.

Even if they didn't ultimately succeed in developing a drug that could pass certification, this piece of information alone was worth a fortune.

The atmosphere grew electric once more.

With a project of such immense potential laid out before them, everyone was filled with motivation.

And just like that, Lu Shixian concluded his first all-hands meeting as the lab's associate director.

It seemed like a pretty good start, far smoother than his previous experience with a startup team.

Chapter 515: The Motherland Needs You

With several past experiences managing teams under his belt, he didn't feel overwhelmed, even with the sudden increase in staff.

In the traditional pharmaceutical field, therapeutic proteins are an indispensable necessity.

They are mostly produced using raw materials derived from bacteria like E. coli or yeast.

If the process requires modifications that cannot be replicated in bacteria, hamster ovary cells are also used, as they grow rapidly and have high protein yields.

Furthermore, traditional methods demand high-precision stainless steel bioreactors and highly controlled sterile conditions.

These stringent requirements made the costs of nearly all traditional pharmaceutical methods incredibly high.

And even then, the quality of the resulting proteins could be less than satisfactory.

Against this backdrop, discovering an alternative based on plant chassis cells was essential.

If successful, it would introduce a cheaper and more effective method of biopharmaceutical production to the world.

We could use it to produce higher-quality biopharmaceuticals.

"This will inevitably revolutionize the entire traditional pharmaceutical industry!" Lu Shixian wrote as the final conclusion in his project proposal.

After checking it carefully several times, he submitted the materials for the new project to Yale for evaluation.

For this project, he had no intention of going through the US National Science Foundation, nor did he want to rely too heavily on Yale's foundations.

He still remembered how disgusted he felt last time when his funding was blocked.

But this time, that wasn't the only reason.

He was now thinking much further ahead.

Innovations achieved using resources from either the NSF or Yale would be considered service inventions.

This meant that even for a patent under his own name, he would only enjoy the basic right of attribution.

The rights to use and profit from the patent would be subject to many influencing factors. Things might be fine as long as no one looked too closely.

But if it ever came to assigning responsibility, it would be a disaster.

To prevent such future complications, Lu Shixian decided to complete this project using self-raised funds.

He noted this in the project proposal, effectively stating that he was only borrowing Yale's instruments and equipment.

This would guarantee ownership of the patent rights to the greatest extent possible.

He had long ago heard a cautionary tale about a devastating loss.

The story went that a PhD student started a company using a patent from a university project.

After barely surviving the startup phase, just as the company was growing and he was about to reap the fruits of his labor, a letter of thanks from the university left him dumbfounded.

Thank you for your great support of the university's development. As a reward, we are awarding you 10% of the profits derived from this patent.

Lu Shixian didn't know if this story was a joke or a tragedy.

But it served as a wake-up call.

Forethought ensures success, lack thereof leads to failure.

He didn't want to do all the hard work just to have someone else reap the rewards.

Soon, news that he was self-funding his project reached the rest of Yale.

Rothman immediately called to ask, "Lu, what's going on?"

"You have to realize, a project of that scale will need a budget of at least several million."

"The Yale foundations currently give a certain priority to key university-level projects. There's no need for you to self-fund."

Lu Shixian knew this all too well. If he hadn't just come into a million US dollars, he wouldn't have had the capital to even consider such a move.

"Professor Rothman, thank you for your kindness, but I want the patent rights."

Rothman understood instantly, but he was still worried for Lu Shixian.

"Lu, you're playing with fire! You know that not every research project ends with a good result."

"Even if you succeed, the commercialization rate of the results is still an unknown."

"The most likely outcome is that the returns won't even cover your investment."

That's right. He was making a gamble.

This time, he was going all in.

If he lost the bet, his prize money from the past few years would be gone. He wouldn't be in debt, but he'd be wiped clean.

But if he won, he would use the patent to quickly accumulate a large sum of research capital to support the various academic studies he wanted to pursue.

In the past, he had naively believed that researchers only needed to focus on their academic work.

Once their research reached a certain level, funding would never be a concern.

But the NSF's actions this time had completely changed his perspective.

Relying on others for funding was never as good as having the resources yourself.

Although this path carried considerable risk, it would allow him the freedom to choose the projects he wanted to research.

At the same time, there would be no dispute over the profits from the project's results.

Compared to the benefits, this level of risk was worth taking.

Everything he did was to support his research.

He didn't even mind losing money. His only real worry was that he might lose himself under the assault of such wealth.

But he couldn't let mere speculation stop him from moving forward.

That wasn't his style.

Right now, he had to be unstoppable, fearless.

He had faith in himself.

Soon, the balance on Lu Shixian's bank card returned to the level it was when he first arrived at Yale.

As he swiped the card, Lu Shixian truly felt the sting of spending so much money.

Several million!

It was no small sum.

Still, he figured, even if he lost it all, at least he'd still have his car.

What was done was done. It was too late for regrets.

All he could do now was give his all to this project and strive for a good outcome.

The period before a project officially kicks off is usually a preparatory phase.

Things were still relatively calm.

But back in China, many people were busy preparing for a major event.

The 19th International Botanical Congress.

It was an event hailed as the "Olympics" of the botanical sciences.

As such, the right to host it was fiercely contested by countries every year.

Securing the right to hold such a congress was no easy task.

After a bidding country expressed its intent, the International Botanical Congress's selection committee would conduct a review.

If it passed the initial screening, a formal application had to be submitted again, and the final host country would be determined by a vote of the selection committee.

To vie for this precious opportunity, the Botanical Society of China contacted Lu Shixian through Gu Hongya.

"Xiao Lu! The motherland needs you! You have to come back and help out this time!"

Caught off guard by the request, Lu Shixian wasn't clear on the situation.

So Gu Hongya gave him a brief rundown.

"To put it simply, after the first round of competition, only four other countries are competing with China for the 19th International Botanical Congress in the second round."

"Besides us, there's Brazil, South Africa, and Mexico."

"Now that we've come this far, no one wants to give up halfway and miss this rare opportunity."

"For a developing country to host such a prestigious event would be a first, and it's incredibly significant!"

Chapter 516: The Persuasive Essay

Lu Shixian finally understood the full context.

"If this succeeds, it would indeed be a great thing." But he asked, puzzled, "Still, I don't see how I can help with this."

"I can't influence the final decision of the International Botanical Congress."

"That's not necessarily true," Gu Hongya said with a smile. "Xiao Lu, don't be so quick to jump to conclusions."

"The truth is, your reputation in the international research community, especially in plant biology, has already surpassed that of many senior figures."

"In this situation, your voice is one that many people will listen to."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian no longer demurred.

He was more than willing to do something for his country if it was within his power.

"What do I need to do?" he asked promptly.

Gu Hongya replied, "It's simple. Your recent achievements in botany have been astounding. Even though they were made abroad, you are a Chinese citizen through and through."

"Having you give a report at the congress would be a way to project China's voice to botanical researchers from over a hundred regions, and it could further enhance the international standing of China's botanical community."

Lu Shixian had anticipated this. He had no hesitation and quickly agreed.

Even if it weren't held in China, being invited to the International Botanical Congress was a rare opportunity. The caliber of such an academic exchange was exceptionally high.

Seeing his affirmative reply, Gu Hongya finally let out a sigh of relief.

Her tone was tinged with worry as she said, "But that's all for later. The most crucial thing right now is to win the hosting rights. Otherwise, it's all for nothing."

Lu Shixian's curiosity was piqued. He really didn't see how he could play a major role in the bidding for such an international event.

Gu Hongya soon revealed the answer.

"If it weren't for a specific reason, we wouldn't be troubling you with this."

"You're certainly no stranger to this congress's executive chairman. His name is Peter Raven."

"In the past, when he was president of the Botanical Society of America, he took the initiative to establish ties with the Chinese botanical community."

"But that was decades ago. Professor Raven is getting on in years, and we're not sure if he would be willing to visit China again."

From Gu Hongya's description, Lu Shixian quickly placed the man.

It was clearly the botany titan who had spoken up for him in the media before.

Now, Lu Shixian understood the society's plan. They didn't have a major advantage in a straightforward competition, so now they were trying to play the sentiment card.

He had no opinion on the matter, but he was a bit skeptical. "I get the idea, but I don't actually know him! I've never even met him in person."

Hearing this, Gu Hongya said helplessly, "We have no choice. At this stage, we have to try everything."

"According to his previous statements, Professor Raven has been paying attention to you for a long time."

"If you were to invite him to China in your name, who knows? It might just work."

Lu Shixian was speechless. "This whole thing sounds so unreliable!"

Gu Hongya gave a wry smile. "Just give it a try. If it works, that's great. If it fails, there's no harm done."

He thought about it and realized she was right. He immediately agreed to her request.

"I'm counting on you for this. Once Professor Raven replies, whether it's a yes or no, remember to let me know," Gu Hongya said as a final instruction before hanging up.

Putting down his phone, Lu Shixian had never imagined he'd be tasked with something like this.

He'd somehow become a "diplomat."

Well, what could he do? He had already agreed. He just had to go for it.

He opened his computer. Since the matter was important, Lu Shixian began to draft the email.

Since it was a personal invitation, it couldn't be too official.

But since it was for an official purpose, it couldn't be too casual either.

Lu Shixian had to use a fair bit of brainpower to complete the content of the email.

After checking it repeatedly for errors, he sent the edited text to Raven's personal email address.

"Dear Professor Raven, my name is Lu Shixian."

"Thank you very much for your comments on my research on Twitter recently. I believe the day will come when the discovery of the natural antiviral immunity mechanism in plants will provide positive feedback for the protection of crops and wild plants around the world."

"China is one of the world's richest countries in terms of plant resources, many of which are rare and endangered wild species endemic to this land. The Chinese people have always revered nature and loved plants."

"Looking across the land of China today, botanical gardens have sprung up in all directions, providing favorable conditions for the conservation and utilization of plants, while also painting a beautiful picture of harmonious coexistence between people and plants."

"Plant diversity knows no borders. I sincerely invite you to come to China to see our unique flora and the achievements of our plant diversity conservation efforts."

"There is an old saying in China: A single tree does not make a forest, and a single flower does not make a spring. I believe that only by strengthening exchange and cooperation can we jointly advance the cause of plant diversity conservation."

"With best regards,"

It had been a while since Lu Shixian had given a speech or written a persuasive essay like this.

He wondered if his skills had gotten rusty.

But he had never met the old man, so he couldn't cater to his specific interests.

The only information he had was that Raven's research on global plant diversity and conservation was outstanding and that he had made significant contributions to promoting biodiversity conservation worldwide.

So Lu Shixian devoted a large portion of the letter to this topic.

He could only hope it would be effective.

In any case, he had done what he could.

In the days that followed, he monitored the project's progress while periodically clearing out his email inbox.

Once you reach a certain position, some things become unavoidable.

On the Yale lab's homepage and many academic websites, his information had been updated.

Name: Lu Shixian

Title: Researcher

Contact:
[email protected]

Affiliation: Laboratory of Biological Pathology, Yale University

Lab Address: 135 College St, New Haven, CT 06510

Education and Work Experience:
2013-2015, Ph.D., Botany, Yanjing University
2015-2017, Postdoctoral Fellow, Genetics and Plant Molecular Breeding, Plant Genetics Laboratory, Yale University
2017-Present, Associate Director, Laboratory of Biological Pathology, Yale University; Distinguished Professor, Department of Biology, School of Natural Sciences, Yale University

Honors and Awards:
Young Scientist Award, Society Breakthrough Prize, 2017
Nature's 10, 2017
Dan David Prize, 2017

Research Interests: Genetics, Plant Pathology, Cell Biology

Selected Publications:

Chapter 517: Strength in Numbers

This resume was, without a doubt, stunning no matter where it was seen.

As his fame grew, his life was no longer just about pure academic research; many other factors had entered the picture.

There were students who sought him out, hoping to become his graduate students.

There were agents trying to sell him various kinds of lab equipment.

There were invitations from various companies and associations to participate in social events.

And there were academic exchange invitations from universities and institutions around the world.

Things he once could only dream of were now as simple and natural as breathing.

Of course, Lu Shixian kept a clear head.

He was currently in the golden age for scientific research, at the dual peak of his inspiration and energy.

It wasn't that late-blooming scientists didn't exist, but many of the greatest minds produced their most influential work when they were young.

He didn't have the luxury of getting complacent yet.

He hadn't yet achieved all his goals for coming to the United States. The Dan David Prize was merely a pleasant surprise.

The application for his new project was also nearing approval.

The project title was finalized as "Development of a Norovirus-like Particle Vaccine Based on Whole Nicotiana benthamiana Plants."

This plan was finalized after numerous discussions with the project team. It went through countless drafts, being overturned and restarted several times.

As the price of entry into a new field, Lu Shixian had invested a considerable amount of time and energy.

Since the emergence of molecular farming, many methods for producing biopharmaceuticals through plants had appeared.

But they could all be summarized as one method: producing biopharmaceuticals using plant cell cultures.
Lu Shixian carefully studied the production principles of the Israeli company, Protalix.

Their raw material was carrot cells grown in a liquid medium, with the primary carrier being a cell suspension from carrot callus tissue.

Then, Agrobacterium, expressing the target protein gene, was used to infect the plant cells, thereby transferring the DNA containing the gene into the plant cells.

Finally, through "transient expression" in the plant cells, the protein was extracted from the cell culture, then purified through filtration, chromatography, and centrifugation.

This method was not unworkable, but its drawback was having too many steps. The process was cumbersome, time-consuming, and labor-intensive, and the amount of protein obtained was still far from meeting the demands of mass production.

In their discussions, Lu Shixian and his teammates had been exploring a new method, one that could rapidly and accurately produce large quantities of the required protein product.

At last, through their collective brainstorming, a new method for developing biopharmaceuticals based on whole plants was preliminarily proposed.

Its principle was similar to the method developed by Protalix, but the difference was that their designed protocol involved directly injecting the Agrobacterium culture into the leaves of the plant.

Finally, the plants would be removed from the culture and dried. After waiting for a period of time, the leaves could be harvested for protein extraction and purification.

This method seemed very simple. With further development, it could even be scaled up for large-scale cultivation in greenhouses.

Their aspirations and prospects were indeed wonderful, but achieving them would not be easy.

It was not something that could be resolved in a short time; it would require countless trials into the unknown.

Lu Shixian was not in a hurry. He was already prepared for a long battle.

And so, in the midst of his waiting, he finally received a reply from Lewen.

"Lu, I am delighted to receive your invitation, and I am thrilled to learn of the changes in the great nation in the East."

"In fact, I traveled to your homeland many times long ago. The warmth and beauty there left a deep impression on me that lasts to this day, and I would be very willing to visit again."

"Just as you said, a single tree does not make a forest, and a single flower cannot represent the whole of spring."

"I am willing to lead the Missouri Botanical Garden on a friendly exchange to China, to jointly promote the development of global plant diversity conservation."

After reading it, Lu Shixian was a little stunned.

He never thought it would actually happen!

He immediately called Gu Hongya to share the good news with her.

"Well done! We really owe you one this time." Gu Hongya had clearly been having a rough time lately; she was so busy she only said a few words before hanging up.

"We might need you to come back early to coordinate this exchange. Someone will contact you about it."

"I have to report this right away. The society has a lot going on recently, so I'll talk to you later."

Lu Shixian couldn't help but admire the older generation of scientific researchers, who were still working tirelessly for the country's cause at an age when they should be enjoying life.

At this stage, the efficiency of the Botanical Society of China was extremely high.

They quickly got in touch with the Missouri Botanical Garden to confirm the specific dates and itinerary for the exchange.

At the same time, they proactively booked a flight for Lu Shixian to return to China in March.

Receiving the ticket, Lu Shixian was a bit speechless, wondering if he had just dug a pit for himself.

This event looked like it would take up a lot of time.

And if it was ultimately a success, and the 19th International Botanical Congress was successfully held in China, he would have to attend the conference report as a key guest.

Lu Shixian was now the associate director of a laboratory, and even that "associate" title was merely a formality.

But he still went in person to ask for leave from his direct supervisor, Rothman.

The proper leave request procedure had to be followed, even though no one would accuse him of being absent without leave over this.

That's right, he was just that kind of rule-abiding, upstanding young man.

"So that's the situation. As much as I'd love to stay in the lab and do research..."

"I'm in a tough spot!"

"It's really hard for me to refuse a request from my homeland," Lu Shixian lamented to him.

Rothman heard this and said nonchalantly, "If you ask me, you're long overdue for a break."

"I'll approve this leave. How long are you asking for?"

Lu Shixian thought for a moment. Even with Lewen invited, the matter wasn't a hundred percent guaranteed.

So he said conservatively, "Let's set a small goal first... say, a month."

Rothman nodded, then said with a smile in broken Mandarin, "In China, is this what you call 'seeing a good deed through to the end'?"

"I've been learning a lot of Chinese idioms recently. They're quite interesting."

Lu Shixian's eyebrows shot up, clearly surprised that the old foreigner Rothman had picked up this skill.

Because of this, he gave him a thumbs-up, but then, on a whim, a bold idea came to him.

"It's the same whether one person goes or two people go."

"Mr. Rothman, since your Mandarin is so fluent, why don't you come back to China with me for fun? Otherwise, won't all the hard work you put into learning those idioms be for nothing?"

To his surprise, what was originally just a spur-of-the-moment, tentative question received an affirmative answer from Rothman.

"Your proposal sounds quite good."

"That could work. As far as I know, Lin is also from China."

"You could ask him to come along too. So, is this what you call 'strength in numbers'?"

Chapter 518: Influence

Good heavens.

Lu Shixian was completely floored.

Rothman really knew how to use his idioms, though it was unclear if he was doing it intentionally or by accident.

My goodness, strength in numbers indeed.

One Rothman wasn't enough; he had to add Lin Haifan to the mix.

He had clearly just said it casually, not expecting it to be taken seriously.

But it was actually a good thing, even if he felt a bit unable to handle it all.

The two of them obviously had nothing to do with the International Botanical Congress.

But Lu Shixian really couldn't squeeze out much time to accompany them.

After thinking it over, Lu Shixian decided to delegate.

He would contact Peking University and have them act as the host to receive a Nobel laureate and a member of two U.S. national academies.

He figured they would be more than happy to do so.

His time was limited, so he immediately got in touch with Lin Haifan.

Hearing that Rothman was going back to China with Lu Shixian, Lin Haifan's interest was piqued.

In the past, the thought of returning to China alone might not have been very strong.

But now with so many companions, he couldn't hold back his excitement.

So, before Lu Shixian could even extend the invitation, he had already asked to go with them.

Lu Shixian wasn't surprised at all. He immediately contacted the Botanical Society of China to cancel his ticket.

Then he rebooked three tickets from Los Angeles to Beijing.

However, what Lu Shixian didn't expect was an even more dramatic turn of events.

After moving into an administrative role, Rothman was now considered part of the senior management.

When his leave request landed on the desk of President Peter Salovey, Salovey was clearly surprised by the reason.

It was easy to understand why Lu and Lin were going back; it was their home country.

But Rothman was a different story.

He knew Rothman well. To use a modern term, he was a total homebody.

Ever since receiving the Nobel Prize in Stockholm, he had barely participated in any external activities.

And now he was going to undertake a long and arduous journey to the far-off land of China.

Of course, this was also a good thing.

He had worried about this matter quite a bit in the past. Every Nobel laureate was a priceless asset to the university.

For a Nobel laureate, necessary social engagement was crucial to maximize their academic influence and help Yale continue to expand its reputation.

But Rothman had let the most influential first year after his award go to waste, holing up in his department all day.

While now wasn't the most effective time, it was still a very good opportunity.

It was spring, and there weren't too many internal affairs at Yale that needed handling.

Salovey had a deep affection for Yale and a strong sense of collective honor.

He couldn't let this opportunity slip by.

So he quickly had the President's Office draft a proposal for an academic exchange visit to China.

But Nobel laureates are a class of their own.

The time and place of this exchange ultimately had to be based on his wishes.

So the inquiry call from the President's Office went directly to Rothman.

Rothman immediately saw through Salovey's intentions, but he wasn't opposed to them.

He just thought to himself that he was just tagging along for fun.

How would he know when to leave or where to go?

So the call was forwarded to Lu Shixian.

When Lu Shixian received the news, he was dumbfounded.

An exchange in the name of Yale University?

Well, that was great. Plans can never keep up with changes. The tickets he had just bought would have to be canceled again.

The previous plans and itinerary were thrown into chaos in an instant.

Excuse me, what do you do when a joke you made is taken seriously by others?

Help! Urgent!

The way things had developed was now far beyond his control. He couldn't handle it anymore.

But no matter what, this was a good thing.

Even if he couldn't handle it, he had to. If worse came to worst, he could just call for backup!

So, Lu Shixian quickly called his mentor, spending a good few minutes explaining the current situation.

On the other end, Xu Zhihong was clearly shaken by the news, remaining silent for a few seconds before he could process it.

It was all too sudden, with no prior warning whatsoever.

Both Rothman and Lin Haifan were scientists who enjoyed a high reputation in the international academic community.

Especially the former, who hadn't won the Nobel Prize that long ago, had kept a low profile after receiving it, and rarely made public appearances.

And importantly, they were not coming in a personal capacity.

The newly appointed Yale University President, Peter Salovey, also seemed to have intentions of coming to China.

As a former president of Peking University, Xu Zhihong keenly sensed that this was not as simple as Lu Shixian made it sound.

An exchange between the top universities of their respective countries was by no means a small matter.

To some extent, it could even be considered a diplomatic event.

There was a lot of potential to be leveraged here.

Xu Zhihong reacted quickly, saying in a deep voice, "Say no more. I can agree to this on behalf of Peking University for now."

"Little Lu, reply to Professor Rothman immediately and tell him that we at Peking University eagerly await his arrival."

"This is very important for Peking University. Little Lu, I'll need you to put some extra effort into this."

"Okay." After saying goodbye, Lu Shixian hung up the phone, lost in thought.

He might not be that sensitive to matters outside of academia, but now that it had been pointed out, he realized that a casual remark of his might truly bring about significant consequences.

And so, with strong intentions from both sides, Peking University and Yale officially finalized the exchange event for early April.

On the Yale side, President Salovey himself would lead the delegation to China for mutual exchange.

The accompanying personnel were divided into two teams.

One team, led by President Salovey, consisted of administrative staff for public relations and exchange.

The other team was composed of researchers for academic exchange, led by Nobel laureate Rothman.

It seemed they were well-prepared, but Peking University's preparations were even more elaborate. They even established a temporary leadership group for the reception activities.

Welcoming Salovey was a group of university leaders headed by Peking University's President, Lin Jianhua.

Receiving Rothman was Wu Hong, the dean of Peking University's School of Life Sciences, who had recently taken over from Rao Yi.

At the same time, the matter even alerted the Ministry of Education, and officials from the Department of Higher Education would also be present at the exchange meeting.

Lu Shixian was, unsurprisingly, assigned to this leadership group as the liaison officer.

With his experience of studying or working at both institutions, he was undoubtedly the most suitable candidate.

But now, Lu Shixian felt a bitterness he couldn't express.

Peking University couldn't do without him; many things needed to be communicated through him.

Meanwhile, the Botanical Society of China had been constantly discussing with him the reception plan for Lewen and the Missouri Botanical Garden delegation.

For the first time, Lu Shixian experienced the feeling of being as busy as a spinning top even without a research project.

He also realized for the first time that he might truly be slowly gaining the influence to change things.

But it was exhausting!

So exhausting!

Fortunately, with everything happening at once, Lu Shixian learned to handle matters according to their priority.

In terms of importance, they were all equally important; he had to treat them with an even hand.

It was just that the Peking University matter was a bit more urgent. After all, once they were in Beijing, the subsequent matters would have little to do with him.

As for the Botanical Society, Lewen had specifically requested to meet him, so he would definitely have to accompany them during the reception process.

Chapter 519: Upholding Principles While Being Innovative

At the end of March, the visiting exchange delegation from Yale landed smoothly at Beijing Capital International Airport.

As soon as he got off the plane, Lu Shixian saw the large reception team in the distance holding a "Peking University" sign.

He instantly felt a sense of relief.

Heaven knows how much effort he had put into this transnational visit and exchange recently.

Now he could finally relax a little.

However, he was also a bit speechless.

He hadn't expected Peking University to put on such a grand display.

He glanced through the crowd and, as expected, Xu Zhihong was not there.

Out of office, out of business.

Clearly, as the former president, it was not appropriate for him to attend a social event with Lin Jianhua.

But in the crowd, he quickly spotted two familiar faces.

Ma Yuhuan, as an academic pillar of the School of Life Sciences, naturally had to be present.

And Gu Hongya, as the president of the Botanical Society, had been so busy recently you could say she hadn't had a moment's rest.

Her purpose in appearing here amidst her busy schedule was self-evident.

Sure enough, as soon as the two groups met, Gu Hongya was already pulling Lu Shixian aside, ready to leave first.

"Dean Wu, you've had your turn with him. It's my turn now, right?" she immediately said to Wu Hong, the person in charge of this reception event. "I'm taking Little Lu with me!"

As the dean of Peking University's School of Life Sciences, Wu Hong was naturally aware that China was preparing for the 19th International Botanical Congress, which was no small matter either, so she quickly agreed.

However, this also made her even more curious about Lu Shixian, this student who had come from Peking University.

But now was not the time.

The two of them went straight to the Botanical Society of China, and a working group meeting was soon convened.

This was also the first offline meeting of all the members of this preparatory working group.

The meeting emphasized that the 19th International Botanical Congress was an excellent platform to showcase China's positive image and a great window to display the achievements in ecological and environmental protection work under the strong leadership of the higher authorities in recent years.

The meeting pointed out that all cadres of the preparatory working group must work with a spirit of selflessness, dedication, and efficiency, investing their precious time and energy into this important reception work, to ensure that Lewen could feel the effectiveness of China's plant conservation efforts and the warmth of the Chinese people.

Not only did the official business have to be done beautifully, but the guests also had to be made to feel at home.

Lu Shixian was familiar with this approach! It was a specialty, one might say.

In short, the principle was to uphold fundamentals while being innovative.

They had to excel on both fronts.

On the eve of the exchange, a reception plan was finally proposed.

Lu Shixian took a look. Apart from the main guest, Lewen, he was undoubtedly the center of attention.

The itinerary included, but was not limited to:

Research Activities: Due to the tight schedule, a morning visit to the nearby National Botanical Garden to tour and exchange experiences on botanical garden construction. In the afternoon, a visit to the Beijing Institute of Plant Protection to investigate the effectiveness of plant conservation work.

Social Activities: Participation in the Plant Ecological Diversity Themed Forum hosted by the National Ministry of Ecology and Environment and organized by the Botanical Society of China.

Academic Activities: An academic exchange on plant biology at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences.

Promotional Activities: Interviews with various mainstream media outlets, including central state media.

Lu Shixian was utterly speechless.

For all the activities above, except for the second one, he was required to participate in them all.

The interviews, in particular, were of the utmost importance, even though he was not the protagonist this time.

But that didn't mean Lu Shixian had no promotional value.

Neither after he published his findings in Cell last time, nor after he won the Dan David Prize in Israel, had he participated in interviews with domestic media.

This time, they would naturally not waste this rare opportunity.

"Is this even survivable?" Lu Shixian couldn't help but take a deep breath when he saw the schedule.

Beside him, Gu Hongya was somewhat gloating. "And this is after taking into account Lewen's advanced age and not arranging any activities outside of Beijing."

"Besides, you're just accompanying him this time, so you have a lot more freedom."

"Haha, work hard, Little Lu! I believe you'll be enjoying this kind of treatment yourself soon enough."

Lu Shixian didn't want to talk anymore.

Fame and success were indeed not the goal; finding happiness was what mattered.

But he had never expected that pursuing academics to a certain level would also involve so many trivial matters.

His past desire for fame now seemed a bit naive.

A few days later, Lu Shixian's role was reversed.

This time, he was part of the reception team, waiting at the Beijing Capital International Airport.

Soon, Lewen deplaned and successfully met with them.

Born in 1936, he was over eighty years old, a figure of immense seniority, a veteran of the older generation of academic researchers. It was not at all an exaggeration to call him "Old Master."

From a distance, Lu Shixian saw this giant-level figure for the first time.

Although Lewen's face was covered in wrinkles and his hair was silver, he still looked hale and hearty, walking with a steady gait, not even needing anyone to support him.

After the routine pleasantries, the old gentleman walked side by side with Lu Shixian towards the dedicated car, engaging in a cordial conversation.

"Lu, although I've seen your age in your file and know that you are very young..."

"Seeing you in person now, I still have to say, you are truly a young man of great promise."

"And we are all slowly getting old."

Lu Shixian smiled. "Once we're out of the lab, we shouldn't just follow the rules of biology."

"To judge whether a person is aging, we can't just look at their physiological age."

"With your spirit, many hot-blooded young men might not even compare."

Lewen laughed heartily. Although he had never won a Nobel Prize, he had held important positions in various international academic societies and organizations. As an academician of more than a dozen countries, his international standing was extremely high.

However, right now, he was no different from an ordinary old man, with a kind and amiable expression, without any temper or airs.
“If your theoretical work on the innate immune mechanisms of plant cells sees widespread application, I might just live to see you accept the Nobel Prize in person. In my opinion, your achievements make it almost a matter of time. And it most likely won't be the Prize in Physiology or Medicine, but in Chemistry, since your primary research subjects are cytokines, which can be classified as proteins.” Lewin smiled as he finished.

Lu Shixian immediately understood and shook his head with a laugh. “Honestly, it would be a huge surprise if I won this time, regardless of the prize.”

“But it’s also fine if I don’t. It might give me even more passion and drive for my next research project.”

“I have to admit, though, while I see honors as just complimentary flowers on the path of academic research, sometimes I can’t help but be dazzled by them.”

Chapter 520: An Offer Too Gracious to Refuse

Lewin burst into a hearty laugh. “Haha, you’re very candid. But that’s one of the things I admire about you. I’ve seen so many people go to insane, unscrupulous lengths for this prize, only to never even come close to it in their entire lifetime.”

“In truth, many people have their priorities backward. Honors should be bestowed upon us by others.”

“If you pursue it too actively, it will likely backfire and become a lesser pursuit.”

Lu Shixian agreed with this viewpoint, deeply so.

“Indeed. To make that the ultimate goal in life is a bit too shallow and base.”

“The future would be filled with much less excitement. There are still so many unknowns in this world waiting for us to explore.”

Their conversation was not held in private.

The accompanying staff from the Botanical Society behind them heard everything, and they struggled to keep their expressions neutral.

All they could say was that in this context, the flexing was perfectly executed.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him the King of Flex.

Over the next few days, Lu Shixian followed the group to the National Botanical Garden and the Yanjing Institute of Plant Conservation.

The Ecological Diversity Forum on the second day had little to do with him, so he enjoyed a rare day of rest, soothing his weary body.

On the third day, he accompanied Lewin to the National Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences for an academic exchange. He had a considerable voice in the field of plant biology.

Initially, the experts from the academy were the ones exchanging ideas with Lewin, but as the academic topics deepened, it gradually evolved into a direct discussion between Lu Shixian and Lewin.

Many of Lewin's perspectives were incredibly enlightening for him.

On the fourth day, he got to ride the coattails of a titan.

Lu Shixian enjoyed the experience of being interviewed by a queue of state-run media outlets.

Huang Xinyou, a reporter from China Science Daily, even conducted an exclusive interview with him.

Reporter Huang: From Dr. Lu to Professor Lu, it only took you three years. According to our initial understanding, your main research areas are all in plant biology, and many of your findings have caused a stir globally. You've even been dubbed the "Sinan Designer." What are your thoughts on this title?

Lu Shixian: This title comes from the key to unlocking the mysteries of plant immunity, the Sinan model. Sinan is an ancient term for the compass, so it’s symbolic. I hope the model I designed can offer some help to all researchers in this field. I wouldn't say it points the way, but if it can provide even a spark of inspiration, that would be wonderful. Secondly, I also wanted to take this opportunity to let the world know about the collective wisdom of our nation's ancient people.

Reporter Huang: From an exchange student to a postdoctoral fellow, you and your team have consistently produced valuable results in your research projects, publishing multiple times in top international journals. For a graduate student, this is nothing short of a miracle. How did you do it?

Lu Shixian: It’s simple. Every project we start isn't just a spur-of-the-moment decision. If it doesn't achieve some degree of success in the end, it means the initial direction was wrong. In reality, we don't succeed on the first try every time. It’s not as easy as it looks to the outside world, where it seems we always succeed. Success is not easy. You have to maintain the most meticulous and rigorous attitude, carefully overseeing every stage of the research. You can't just rush forward seeking speed. So, in my view, the right direction and steady steps are the fastest path to the finish line.

At this, Reporter Huang applauded and asked his final question.

Reporter Huang: Looking back at all your academic and research experiences, which period left the deepest impression on you, and what impact did it have?

Lu Shixian: That's actually two questions, so I'll answer in two parts. In my academic career, the most unforgettable time was probably when I was preparing for the Biology Olympiad. I am very grateful to my competition coach from back then. Looking back now, what she taught me was very basic, but it laid a solid foundation of knowledge for my future and helped me develop a good habit of independent learning. In my research career, the most memorable experience is still the "Immortelle Project" during my time at UCD. That period was very important to me. It not only brought me two Cell papers, one of which was a cover story, but most importantly, it taught me how to lead a team to success.

Reporter Huang: Thank you for your cooperation. Lastly, I'd like to ask a question that isn't really a question. Do you have any advice for the young people of today?

Lu Shixian: My advice is not to give advice to young people.

“Because young people are an unknown quantity. They shouldn't be defined!”

Reporter Huang: ...

With that, Lu Shixian's duties were all completed.

Lu Shixian, along with the staff from the Botanical Society, saw Lewin off on his flight back to Missouri.

Before departing, Lewin expressed his great satisfaction with the results of the exchange.

“It must have been over ten years since I was last here.”

“In these ten years in China, I have seen transformative changes and remarkable achievements.”

“The beautiful and unique plants, the mountains, rivers, forests, fields, lakes, grasslands, and deserts, and the colorful and diverse ecological tapestry here have left a deep impression on me.”

“This is a brilliant and great achievement that shouldn't stand in isolation from the world.”

“It deserves to be seen and remembered by more people.”

Although Lewin left, he brought good news to everyone.

While he didn't state it explicitly, his inclination was clear.

At the banquet that evening, Zhong Kang, the president of the Botanical Society of China, raised his glass and personally expressed his gratitude to Lu Shixian.

“Come, Little Lu, you’ve really worked hard during this time. This didn't have much to do with you, yet you were running around with us from start to finish.”

“I’ve heard all about it. If it weren't for you, things wouldn't have gone so smoothly.”

“I won't say more. I'm finishing my glass. You drink what you're comfortable with!”

Clearly, he was in high spirits, and his tolerance for alcohol was impressive.

He had already drained the glass as soon as he finished speaking.

Gu Hongya, as his teacher, should have helped him decline.

Instead, she also stood up and said, “Little Lu, you were a huge help this time. I don't usually drink, but I must thank you for this. Otherwise, my work would have been very difficult to carry forward.”

“I’d like to toast you as well!”

What could Lu Shixian say to that?

One said, "I'll down mine, you do as you please," and the other said, "I don't usually drink." He was left speechless.

And so, one by one, the colleagues he had worked with, men and women alike, toasted him with whatever they were drinking.

Sometimes, the hospitality was truly hard to refuse.

When the atmosphere is right, you just drink.

How can a man say no!

Lu Shixian slapped the table, stood up, and said, “Although it’s not yet time for a celebration banquet, it’s fate that has brought us all together.”

“To this fateful meeting!”

“To botany!”

“Bottoms up!”

Chapter 521: A Rude Awakening

In the past, Lu Shixian had only ever drunk like this abroad.

That night was the first time he had drunk so much in his home country.

Many people exchanged contact information with him, and Lu Shixian didn't refuse anyone.

He would never look down on anyone with a different perspective.

When you're out in the world, more friends mean more paths.

Besides, everyone present was a professional in the field of botany; who knew when their paths might cross again.

Researchers are part of society, and they need to socialize too.

A notification soon reminded him that his one-month vacation balance was running low.

Lu Shixian ignored it, planning to make a quick trip home in the last few days before returning to Yale.

He was no longer a lone wolf; he had dozens of people working under him now.

He had been away for so long. Although people had called to report on the situation and he had been managing things remotely, he couldn't rest easy without checking on the project's progress in person.

As for the 19th International Botanical Congress, he had to put that aside for now.

Salovey and Rothman's visit had ended long ago; they had started their journey back to Yale a week prior.

And now, it was time for him to head back and report off his leave.

Back at Yale.

Lu Shixian went straight to the lab.

Professor Feng Ernuo was the former director of the School of Medicine's Pathology Center, also holding the title of researcher.

After Professor Curry, the titan of the Yale University Plant Pathology Lab, retired and returned to his hometown, Feng's position in the newly formed lab was second only to Lu Shixian's.

Ordinarily, he would have harbored some resentment about Lu Shixian now being his superior.

But Lu Shixian was just too formidable. His academic prowess was exceptional, and publishing in top journals seemed as easy as drinking water for him.

He also had Rothman backing him up. Since the lab's establishment, the lab director had only shown up once, on the opening day.

The implication behind that was self-evident.

Not to mention, the Yale leadership had led a delegation to China for an exchange.

Feng didn't believe for a second that Lu Shixian had nothing to do with it.

So, since he couldn't afford to cross Lu Shixian, he had no choice but to submit.

“Professor Lu, you’re finally back. Recent experimental results have confirmed that our initial direction was correct.” Feng Ernuo held up a chromatogram, reporting the latest progress to him in person. “Our choice of subject was very successful. *Nicotiana benthamiana* has a deficient innate silencing system. It constantly tries to abandon its intracellular immune regulation, a trait most plants in nature do not possess.”

Lu Shixian nodded. This was within his expectations.

Everything has two sides.

In botany, *Nicotiana benthamiana* was a perfect testament to this view.

Silencing meant taking a beating.

It meant that after being infected, the plant could not suppress or prevent a virus from using it as a host to produce proteins.

This silencing trait would be a catastrophe for any other plant.

But in Lu Shixian's eyes, this characteristic made it the perfect protein production machine, not to mention its astonishing growth rate.

In other words, it was the perfect experimental subject.

Lu Shixian continued to listen, knowing that Feng wouldn't have said so much if there wasn't a problem.

Sure enough, he didn't beat around the bush and quickly got to the point.

“But we've run into a very troublesome problem that we haven't been able to solve.”

Lu Shixian took the chromatogram from him, his brow slowly furrowing.

Indeed, a roadblock that could stump the entire research team was no small issue.

“Is this glycosylation?”

Feng Ernuo nodded. “That’s right. Many biopharmaceuticals are glycoproteins, and the norovirus-like particle vaccine we are producing is one of them.”

“This means the glycoprotein is coated with oligosaccharide chains, and this process happens post-translation.”

“According to the image, it’s like a sugar coating has formed. It plays an important role in the formation of the 3D protein conformation and, in some cases, can regulate the cell's interaction with other cells or molecules.”

Lu Shixian quickly identified the most critical piece of information from his description.

“So you’re saying this glycosylation pattern affects the efficacy of the biopharmaceutical?”

“And some of the more important sugars cannot currently be obtained from plants.”

“Correct?”

Feng Ernuo continued to nod, thinking to himself that it was so much easier talking to a professional, especially a smart one.

Lu Shixian felt a headache coming on.

He knew the research wouldn't be this smooth.

In fact, the solution to this problem was simple.

He had thought of it in less than half a second.

Since the plant doesn't have it, force-feed it. Genetically engineer the glycosylation process.

Knock out the enzyme genes that express the plant-specific sugars and introduce mammalian or even human sugar genes.

But that would venture into the realm of genetic modification.

Currently, this was a very sensitive topic, legally controlled in many countries, even in the United States.

Even conducting GMO experiments in a lab required a strict review process.

Let alone commercial-scale cultivation, even if it wouldn't enter the food chain.

If they couldn't cultivate it on a large scale in greenhouses, the beautiful future they had envisioned would be severely diminished.

Beside him, Feng Ernuo had fallen silent.

He knew this project was funded by Lu Shixian himself.

And now, just as they were making progress, this problem had emerged.

It was fatal.

For Lu Shixian, this was undoubtedly sad news.

He had expected problems, but not one this thorny.

It was a rude awakening, especially since he had intended to make money from this.

If they continued the research, throwing a few million at it would be just a drop in the bucket.

Right now, it was basically money down the drain.

A breakthrough might come in the future, but the future itself was filled with uncertainty.

Lu Shixian's expression was hesitant.

The inability to mass-produce meant costs couldn't be brought down.

No pharmaceutical company would be interested in a technology with uncontrollable costs.

To fall before the battle is won.

Was the whole-plant-based pharmaceutical method destined to die before it was even born?

Lu Shixian was unwilling to accept it, but he couldn't bring himself to say the words "give up."

“Sorry, let me think alone for a moment,” Lu Shixian said, and he was quickly given his space.

Faced with this choice, Lu Shixian experienced such a prolonged struggle for the first time.

The commercial value was greatly diminished, but that didn't mean the research was worthless.

To many, genetically modified plants were a slow-acting poison, to be avoided at all costs.

This fear would even extend to genetically modified drugs that were ingested or injected.

But it depended on the situation.

The greatest distance in the world isn't between life and death, but when the medicine is right there, and you can't afford it.

Imagine you have a terminal illness. You're about to leave this world because there's no effective drug, or you can't afford it.

But now you're told there's a slow-acting poison that can save your life immediately, but with a certain risk of a fatal relapse years later.

Most importantly, this drug is not difficult to make and is inexpensive.

What would you choose?

Chapter 522: Biosafety

As everyone knows, people's joys and sorrows are not always aligned.

For the wealthy, this is a deadly poison.

But for the poor, it's a life-saving elixir.

In fact, the United States has the most expensive drug prices in the world. There are tens of millions of diabetes patients, and many of them cannot afford insulin.

This is especially true for those fated to have type 1 diabetes, who require continuous medication until death. The only difference is dying sooner or later, with the latter involving more suffering.

In this insulin war, there are no winners.

Even in China, the difference between an average family and a poor family can be just one major illness.

Not to mention there are many countries in the world where people can't even get enough to eat.

Though some may flee in despair.

But the world is colorful, not just black.

Most people still want to experience the beauty and warmth of this world.

In the end, Lu Shixian made up his mind to continue developing this new biopharmaceutical technology.

Even if he lost money, it would be a worthy loss.

If for no other reason than to give a small group of people one more choice, one more glimmer of hope for life.

Back in the lab.

“The project continues. Also, submit an application for GMO experiment authorization and file a report in the name of the Yale University Pathology Lab,” Lu Shixian told Feng Ernuo.

The latter quickly showed a surprised expression. “Lu, are you sure?”

Fearing he hadn't been clear enough, he repeated, “Pharmaceutical companies might not be interested in it.”

Lu Shixian didn't hesitate. “But I believe there are many people who need it to exist.”

“Besides, its academic value is not low. In the worst-case scenario, I can at least get a pretty good paper out of it.”

Now, Feng Ernuo truly felt a sense of admiration for the young man before him.

He knew that doing research with the nation's money and doing it with one's own were two completely different things.

However, since so much effort and time had already been invested, the continuation of the project was in line with his own expectations and wishes.

“I'll get on it right away,” Feng Ernuo said, turning to leave.

A mature team should possess such a quality: even if the leader is absent for a short period, it doesn't descend into chaos.

Similarly, tasks or requests from the leader are executed to the fullest extent.

And the Yale Pathology Lab was on its way to becoming such a team.

However, having been parachuted in, he lacked the long-term interaction with the team members and wasn't as familiar with them as he was with his previous project groups.

But that didn't really matter.

In early May, after another period of negotiation and bargaining, Lu Shixian received good news from the Botanical Society.

The international organizing committee had voted to approve China as the host of the 19th International Botanical Congress.

This conference, held only once every six years and representing the highest academic level and widest influence in the global field of botany, was finally coming to a special administrative region of China.

“Little Lu, the congress will be held on our doorstep this July. The theme has been confirmed as 'Green Creates the Future.' We sincerely invite you to attend,” Society President Zhong Kang personally called to extend the invitation.

To be honest, Lu Shixian was hesitant.

The project was in a critical phase, and it was his own money being spent.

Every moment it wasn't concluded was just cold, hard cash being thrown away.

Moreover, he had just returned from a trip back home in March and didn't feel it was necessary to go back again so soon.

But Zhong Kang on the other end of the line seemed to have read his mind and said directly, “Professor Lu, with the support of the special administrative region's government, this congress has established a congress scholarship to recognize and encourage outstanding scholars and students attending.”
"I believe your participation will make this award more competitive."

The meaning of this sentence clicked instantly for Lu Shixian, and he was wide awake.

Frankly, he was feeling the pinch.

His bank balance had been dwindling lately, and every little bit helped.

Besides, this move by the Botany Society wasn't exactly a backdoor deal.

For one, Lu Shixian had solid, groundbreaking achievements in botany, even if they were still stuck in the application phase.

For another, while he couldn't take all the credit for the conference being held in the Special Administrative Region, he had certainly put in his fair share of hard work.

Since he wasn't an official member of the society, he couldn't file for reimbursement.

But using the conference scholarship as a pretext to pay him a service fee was perfectly reasonable.

With things laid out so clearly, Lu Shixian went with the flow and agreed.

He had just hung up when his phone rang again—an unfamiliar number from Yanjing.

He answered, only to find it was Wu Hong, the dean of Yanjing University's School of Life Sciences, calling to demand an explanation.

"Ah, Shixian! I was planning to have a good chat with you after the Yale exchange visit ended, but you just left without a word. I was looking forward to it for nothing."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian reflexively wiped the non-existent cold sweat from his forehead. It was indeed his mistake.

At the time, his mind had been solely focused on returning to Yale, and he had completely forgotten about their arrangement.

But that wasn't what he could say out loud.

"Dean Wu, I had no choice!" Lu Shixian lamented. "I'm sure you understand. I'm not just looking out for myself anymore. The new project just started, and dozens of people over there are counting on me. I couldn't justify being away."

Life was all about acting.

Lu Shixian's excuse was perfect and sufficient.

Of course, Wu Hong wasn't really trying to give him a hard time; she was just using it as an excuse to build rapport.

She quickly changed her tune. "I hear you're coming back in July for the conference. Why don't we have a little chat at Yanyuan then? Several of your former mentors will be there too."

What else could Lu Shixian say to that?

Women were certainly not to be trifled with.

No sooner had he agreed to Chairman Zhong's request to return to China than this call came in.

And she'd brought in reinforcements, backing him into a corner completely.

Lu Shixian added these two items to the long-term section of his to-do list.

The conference wasn't until July, so there was no rush.

The most important work was right in front of him.

Because the project involved biosafety, Lu Shixian was facing a bit of a headache.

The concept first appeared in 1957 when the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) established the first biosafety regulatory document, the "NIH Guidelines for Laboratory Practice."

Of course, the concept back then was relatively simple, referring to "a series of measures taken to ensure the safe control of pathogenic microorganisms and recombinant DNA organisms in the laboratory."

Afterward, it underwent continuous and significant changes and revisions.

Finally, based on the international document "Convention on Biological Diversity," the "Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety" was established in 2000, subsequently forming a widely recognized concept of biosafety on an international scale.

By the present day in 2017.

Various countries had taken this a step further, designing a tiered management and assessment system for experiments based on the danger or potential risk that biological experiments pose to humans, animals, plants, microorganisms, or the ecological environment.

Chapter 523: A Surge of Heroic Spirit

This system implemented a four-tiered, phased management approach categorized by plants, animals, and microorganisms:

Safety Level I: No existing danger;

Safety Level II: Low risk;

Safety Level III: Moderate risk;

Safety Level IV: High risk.

After an evaluation by the Federal Biosafety Committee, the experiment Lu Shixian was about to conduct was classified as Level II.

The reason they gave for this assessment was: because it might involve animal or human cells, it could pose a low risk to human health and the ecological environment, but this could be completely avoided by implementing safety control measures.

This result was undoubtedly an advantage brought by Yale University, and with Rothman's gold-plated name leading the way, the project team's transgenic experiment was quickly approved and filed.

But once they needed to move into intermediate trials and begin environmental release and production trials, they would have to undergo another, more stringent review.

As a biologist, Lu Shixian completely understood the complexity and rigor of this process.

There was no need for a lengthy explanation; a single sentence could illustrate the importance of biosafety.

Biosafety is a vital component of the national security system.

However, Lu Shixian was still very grateful that he was encountering this issue in the United States.

Otherwise, the difficulty of continuing the experiment might have been several times higher.

A month later, with the experimental permit secured, the project resumed its progress.

Lu Shixian immediately led the team to tackle the stumbling block of glycosylation.

As it turned out, under the powerful tool of gene editing, even the biggest tiger became a paper one.

The experimental team, led by Feng Ernuo, specifically genetically modified the *Nicotiana benthamiana* plant, allowing the glycosylation process to be artificially controlled.

With that, glycosylation became a thing of the past.

Another half a month later, with a single burst of effort, they identified two genes in the *Nicotiana benthamiana* cells that encoded for enzymes adding specific plant-based sugars.

The subsequent process was very simple.

But it required extreme care, as they had reached the most critical step of the transgenic experiment.

Three months later, they removed the genes for these two enzymes and introduced six genes for mammalian sugars.

The selection of these genes depended on which viral antibody they chose to produce, which was then expressed in the glyco-engineered strain of the *Nicotiana benthamiana* plant.

By July, the entire project team had reached the most exciting moment: the harvest.

After months of hard work, they had conducted a total of two hundred experimental sets, most of which involved *Nicotiana benthamiana* plants that had withered and died for various reasons.

In the end, only a single plant met the requirements for extraction.

Yes, many of the samples had not survived the battle against the norovirus, even with everyone's meticulous care.

As a rational biologist, Lu Shixian shouldn't have felt empathy for these silent plants.

But at this moment, he felt a sense of tragic heroism.

It was as if two hundred soldiers had charged into a final battle at their command.

The vast majority had fallen, leaving only a single survivor.

The onlookers were still on edge, because it was still teetering, its leaves already yellowing, ready to collapse at any moment.

Everyone was grateful for its existence.

But who would claim the final victory?

"Fuck, I'm nervous." Rand, a member of the experimental team, uncharacteristically turned deserter. "Who wants to do the final experiment?"

Silence fell over the group. The final experiment was the validation experiment.

In truth, the experiment wasn't difficult; on the contrary, it was frighteningly simple.

They just needed to extract the norovirus antibody from the leaves of the single surviving *Nicotiana benthamiana* plant.

Then, they would inject it into mice infected with the virus to see if immune complexes formed in their bodies, thereby determining if there was an immune response.

If there was, then even with only this one plant left, it signified ultimate victory.

If not, then even if all the plants had survived, it meant they had failed.

Rand was the team's most skilled technician for genetic experiments, often called their "best hand."

He might have seemed quiet and without much say in the lab on a normal day, but he was absolutely one of the most indispensable members.

But now, with only one chance, he couldn't escape the immense pressure.

At this moment, no one was more suited for the task than Lu Shixian.

He stepped forward and let out a long breath. "Let me do it."

Norovirus is a genus within the *Caliciviridae* family of human viruses.

Many people are unfamiliar with it.

But if you mention the symptoms it causes, surely no one is a stranger: acute gastroenteritis, with the main manifestations after onset being diarrhea and vomiting.

The list of its nasty characteristics is endless: rapid mutation rate, strong resistance, low infectious dose, short incubation period, multiple transmission routes, and universal susceptibility across all populations...

In short, it is a zoonotic pathogen with high infectivity and rapid transmission capabilities, capable of causing acute gastroenteritis in all human populations and various animals worldwide, leading to severe diarrhea.

Of course, "animals" here included mice.

After taking the necessary protective measures, Lu Shixian carefully picked up a yellowed leaf with a pair of tweezers.

If this thing were left outside, even a scavenger wouldn't give it a second glance.

But at this moment, to everyone in the entire laboratory, it was priceless.

At this moment, almost everyone held their breath.

Under these conditions, Lu Shixian began the antibody extraction procedure. He couldn't help but think of the old "fruit fly baby" meme, but his hands remained steady.

He even had the presence of mind to crack a joke. "Thomas Hunt Morgan was a man who believed that 'everything must be proven by experiment.'"

"I believe his mood when he found that single white-eyed fruit fly among a pile of red-eyed ones must have been quite similar to ours now."

His words instantly eased the tense atmosphere in the lab.

Feng Ernuo, having carefully selected a few of the healthiest-looking mice infected with norovirus, walked over with a smile.

"Fruit flies have an incredible reproductive capacity, yet he was left with only that one resilient progenitor."

"And *Nicotiana benthamiana* has an astonishing growth capacity, yet we are now left with just this single survivor."

"History has a remarkable way of repeating itself."

"Lu, I hope you can replicate Morgan's success."

Lu Shixian felt a surge of heroic spirit and laughed as well. "Actually, Morgan initially set out to overturn Mendel's theories. He never imagined that his fruit fly experiments would end up confirming the very theories Mendel derived from peas!"

"I'm sure his feelings at that moment must have been indescribably conflicted."

"If I can help it, I'd rather not experience that moment of his."

Chapter 524: Completely Reassured

His remark was met with a burst of laughter, and the heavy, tense atmosphere in the lab was swept away.

For the first time, many began to see Lu Shixian, the man who had become the associate director of a Yale pathology lab at only twenty-six, in a new light.

They couldn't deny that, at this moment, Lu Shixian possessed a unique kind of charisma.

With the joking over, Lu Shixian finally got down to business.

He injected the suspension containing the antibody produced by the *Nicotiana benthamiana* into each of the mice.

Next came the waiting.

Waiting for the feedback from the mice, to see if an immune response would occur.

This process would take some time, typically several hours.

While waiting, the team members started chatting about the insights and experiences they had gained from the experiment.

Feng Ernuo casually remarked, "Lu, after our last discussion, I went back and thought about it some more. I realized the technology we're currently researching might not be as niche in its application as we imagined."

"One area where whole-plant-based biopharmaceuticals could be particularly important is in developing countries, where there isn't much access to sufficient and affordable vaccines or antibody drugs."

"But plant-based drugs are different. The essential production materials they require are nothing more than sunlight, water, and soil. Such low investment costs mean that these countries have the capability to enter this industry, since all they need to do is establish biopharmaceutical manufacturing facilities."

"From this perspective, it still has value. If you were to take your patent out, pharmaceutical companies might not be very interested, but governments might be. Though these developing countries probably couldn't offer much money."

Hearing his words, something stirred in Lu Shixian's mind, but he didn't let on.

Feng Ernuo's statement seemed to have pointed out a path he hadn't considered, a blind spot in his previous thinking.

That's right!

With the outlook for transgenic products still uncertain, there was no need for him to personally get into the business of producing biopharmaceuticals.

He could very well license or sell the technology patent to governments.

It would achieve the same goal, and with a steady income.

Though it wouldn't be as massive as he had initially envisioned, it would at least allow him to recoup his investment.

But that was a matter for later. First, he had to wait for the results; whether it could even become a patent was still up in the air.

After him, a graduate student named Mark offered his own suggestion.

"I think, if this is successful, it proves that the whole-plant-based biopharmaceutical method is theoretically sound."

"In that case, we don't have to limit our sights to common but ordinary pathogens like norovirus."

"Maybe we could try HIV?"

His words drew laughter from many.

Including Lu Shixian. In fact, his initial ideal target had not been norovirus, but HIV.

But ideals exist only in the realm of ideals.

The scope of HIV infection is limited to humans.

Validating that experiment would require human trials, and getting approval for that is on a completely different level of difficulty than using mice.

Perhaps there would be a chance to try in the future.

Lu Shixian soon shared his own thoughts. "Actually, the biggest takeaway for me from this experiment is that it proves the 'weakest link' principle also exists in scientific research. If even one component has a problem, you can't succeed."

"If glycoengineering, protein engineering, and gene engineering hadn't all developed in tandem, I think we'd be powerless right now, missing any one of those pieces."

The "glyco" Lu Shixian was referring to wasn't the glucose or sucrose of daily life; those are just representatives of the monosaccharide and disaccharide members of the sugar family.

Glycoengineering, which emerged in the 1990s, is a discipline that studies the structure, function, and metabolic regulation of the glycan chains of glycoconjugates and their applications. Like protein and gene engineering, it is classified as a field of biotechnology.

"Sometimes, I feel that truly independent scientific research doesn't actually exist."

"It's like a relay race, following in the footsteps of our predecessors."

"We press on, one after another."

"We build upon the past to forge the future!"

As Lu Shixian finished his reflection, the lab erupted in warm applause.

His words were well-spoken and flawless, striking a chord with many.

Every achievement we make today is indeed inherited from or built upon the knowledge and laws discovered by those who came before us.

A knowledge system built truly from scratch does not exist.

Feng Ernuo clapped even harder. "A brilliant sharing, but it came too early. It belongs at an awards ceremony."

His comment brought another round of laughter to the lab.

Amid the casual conversation, the final results of the mice's immune response finally came in.

"Jack, how is it? Is there specificity?" Feng Ernuo asked an associate professor in charge of the testing.

The meaning of his question was clear.

Antibodies can specifically recognize and bind to corresponding antigens.

This binding can also occur in vitro, and this characteristic of antigen-antibody interaction is the principle behind many immunological detection methods.

But they wanted to see if there were any other effects on the pathogen's host, which is why they chose the in vivo injection method.

This associate professor named Jack was not as composed as Professor Brandon from the computer science department of the College of Arts and Sciences on the last project.

He was clearly unable to suppress his emotions, and the expression on his face already said it all.

Lu Shixian felt completely reassured. His face remained as calm as still water, but his heart was filled with relief.

"It worked! We did it!" Jack shouted, announcing the good news he saw. "Both the specific binding reaction and the non-specific agglutination reaction are extremely strong."

At that moment, all the team members were stunned, and then an intense joy erupted in their hearts. Many hugged each other, celebrating the good news.

Feng Ernuo was also stunned.

In truth, he had been pessimistic about achieving this result in just a few months, all in one go.

Even his earlier words of blessing were merely well-intentioned words of comfort.

The research they were conducting on whole-plant-based biopharmaceutical methods had no precedent, no records from other teams to draw upon.

They were crossing a river by feeling for stones, and they were bound to hit walls. The only question was for how long.

But he had never imagined it would be over just like that.

Although they would still need to conduct replication experiments to confirm this wasn't a fluke.

And there were the intermediate trials, the environmental release, and the production trials to come, all of which would take a considerable amount of time.

But now, the direction of the most important path had been found.

All they had to do was keep walking in this direction, and they would reach their final destination.

The rest was just a matter of predictable time.

From the project's launch at the beginning of the year to the completion of the validation experiment in July, the speed was nothing short of a miracle.

Feng Ernuo had heard in the past that Lu Shixian had achieved his Nobel-level result in just three years.

But this was the first time he had witnessed Lu Shixian's terrifying efficiency firsthand.

"Oh! No!"

"I now believe it's a law, not a hypothesis!"

"Because the Law of Divine Intuition has struck again!"

Chapter 525: Carving the Boat to Find the Sword

"The advantages of plant cell culture are obvious. We don't need to consider the risk of viral contamination that comes with using mammalian cell culture," Lu Shixian said, summarizing at a recent group meeting. "And this new type of drug should also have a unique advantage during FDA review. Drugs produced in plants won't infect humans, as there's no precedent for it."

Some say that when a person's luck turns, there's no stopping it.

Lu Shixian felt he might be in that state.

He pressed on, his courage growing, his thoughts gushing like a spring.

"Since the idea of changing the virus type is hindered by practical factors and cannot be implemented, then let's change the type of plant raw material."

"*Nicotiana benthamiana* certainly has advantages that other plants can't match. But that doesn't mean it's irreplaceable."

"If the countries that need this technology the most are the less developed ones, then after removing the originally expensive raw materials and technical barriers for drug production, the remaining sources of huge costs are nothing more than storage and transportation."

Lu Shixian's inspiration was now at its peak. "In that case, what if the whole plant we choose is not an herbaceous plant, but a seed plant?"

"For example, soybeans or corn. The seeds of these plants are natural protein storage organs. We would no longer need to spend a fortune building specialized cold storage facilities for them."
Does this mean we can store these special seeds in a semi-processed form for many years at ambient temperature, as long as the biological product is kept dry?

A chain of ideas raced through Lu Shixian's mind.

His face remained impassive, but a storm was raging in his heart.

Perhaps everyone, including himself, had underestimated this technology.

As Lu Shixian thought, any idea he previously had of licensing or selling this technology immediately vanished.

Selling it would be a joke. He could already sense the immense potential of this technology.

The fact that plant cell culture doesn't cause viral transmission might be its greatest advantage.

This meant he could use it to bypass the legal restrictions on genetically modified organisms in various countries.

Even a small opening would allow him to rapidly accumulate his initial fortune.

And this would be the key to establishing his future biological empire.

So, if he were to launch this massive plan, the choice of location would be exceptionally important.

After all, while most countries worldwide abide by the Convention on Biological Diversity, there were still nations that did not oppose the commercial-scale cultivation of GM plants.

He had a vague premonition that this preliminary result, originally just a transitional project, would bring about great changes to the world, perhaps even ushering in a new era for the application of new GM technologies.

Every decision he made now could potentially alter the course and direction of the future world.

For some reason, a name suddenly came to Lu Shixian's mind.

Oppenheimer.

A legendary figure, a man of both brilliance and tragedy.

Should he continue?

Would he be the one to open Pandora's box?

Lu Shixian asked himself.

He had never thought he would one day be contemplating matters of technological and social ethics.

But now, it was really happening.

In truth, for a long time now, history had already become completely different from what he remembered.

The memories from his past had helped him, but in a sense, they had also constrained him.

He would unconsciously follow the original timeline, step by step.

As the river of time flowed on, wasn't this reliance on the past a fool's errand?

There were only three years left until that special point in time.

By then, he would no longer have any memories to rely on or refer to.

Ultimately, the path to the future led into the unknown.

In the indescribable future, what kind of answer would Lu Shixian have to provide?

He himself didn't know, but one thing was certain.

He was who he was, and he would not become anyone else.

Mid-July.

Lu Shixian set off once again, returning to China to attend the 19th International Botanical Congress.

The official invitation had arrived half a month earlier. He was scheduled to give a thirty-minute presentation at the congress.

He had already submitted the paper for his presentation online.

Since the theme of the congress was "Plants and the Future," his paper was mostly about the future outlook for the theory of plant innate immunity.

He had also included a small section with something a little different, preparing a surprise for everyone.

That evening, Lu Shixian gladly attended a dinner at a private restaurant in Yanyuan.

This was the promise he had made to Wu Hong.

The restaurant's decor was not luxurious, but it was elegant and quiet.

This is a nice place, Lu Shixian noted the name, thinking he might consider it for future gatherings.

When he pushed open the door to the reserved room, he saw, as expected, a group of his familiar teachers and mentors.

Xu Zhihong, Ma Yuheng, and Gu Hongya were all there.

Most of them were professors from Peking University's School of Life Sciences; he had attended nearly all of their classes.

Others were from the State Key Laboratory for Protein and Plant Gene Engineering, such as Zhu Xian, Zhao Dongming, and Niu Chengtang.

Lu Shixian knew them all well. Though it had been a long time, a sense of warmth and familiarity washed over him.

They were all authorities and experts in various fields of life sciences. Any one of them was a prominent figure in China's biological research community, commanding great respect.

The fact that they were all now waiting for him alone made him feel rather flattered, and he quickly walked in.

"Little Lu, come sit here," Xu Zhihong said, waving him over while smiling at Wu Hong beside him. "There, Dean Wu. You've been wanting to see him, and now you have your wish."

After Lu Shixian took his seat, Wu Hong spoke to him warmly, "Little Lu, we haven't had much contact before, but since I came to Yanda, I've heard these old fellows mention your name every single day. My ears have been ringing with your name."

"Now I finally get to meet the man himself and have the chance to welcome you back."

At this, everyone laughed.

Lu Shixian waved his hands in dismissal. "You're all too kind, my elders."

"While at Yale, I often thought back on my student days at Yanda. The lessons I learned here continue to benefit me immensely."

At these words, the older generation of scholars praised the humble and courteous young man even more.

Wu Hong was particularly effusive. "Little Lu, your recent research findings have caused a huge stir internationally. We've all been following them, and they are truly astonishing."

"Truly young and promising! My own son is about your age, still doing his PhD abroad under his advisor, and he hasn't produced any results."

"I'm worried he's going to have trouble even graduating!"

Chapter 526: Hey, That's My Buddy!

Academician Zhu Xian, a biologist from the same era as Wu Hong, had a very good relationship with her.

He quickly chimed in, "How about we have him go to Yale and join Little Lu as one of his graduate students? I'm sure he wouldn't lack for results then!"

The joke fell a bit flat.

Lu Shixian didn't know how to respond. This wasn't a topic he could participate in, so he decided to just be a quiet listener.

But as the senior figures chatted, the conversation soon turned back to him.

Xu Zhihong said to him with great satisfaction, "Little Lu, your findings on the plant innate immunity interaction mechanism were beyond my expectations."

"Your growth as a scholar... you've matured so much."

"The model was good, but the concept of an equilibrium state was especially creative. I believe more and more people will be inspired by you."

Receiving such praise from Xu Zhihong was a rare honor.

Academician Xu was a titan in the life sciences, having become an academician based on his achievements in pure botany, for which he received the National Science and Technology Progress Award.

Given their teacher-student relationship, he was typically even stricter with Lu Shixian.

Ma Yuheng, ever the joker, clapped and added, "A strict master produces a brilliant student, as they say! Though Little Lu is about ready to graduate from his apprenticeship now."

"I say, you should just come back. Perfect that theory of yours, and maybe this year's Nobel will be yours."

"I'm telling you, you'll be the big shot then. What we old folks say won't carry as much weight as a word from you."

These words resonated with everyone present.

In just a few short years, Lu Shixian had transformed from a student they had watched grow into a highly skilled academic expert.

With his academic achievements being so competitive, the only advantage they had over him was the experience and seniority that came with age.

Wu Hong finally took the opportunity to state the main purpose of this welcome dinner.

"Little Lu, thank you so much for last time. You facilitated the academic exchange between Yanda and a top international university like Yale."

"Through this exchange, we and President Salovey have reached a preliminary agreement on a joint training program for outstanding graduate students from both universities. In the future, the number of exchange or study abroad spots for Yale at Yanda will be significantly increased."

"On behalf of Yanda, I must thank you."

Lu Shixian quickly replied, "Not at all, not at all. Dean Wu, I'm also a Yanda alumnus. I just did what I ought to do."

Hearing this, Wu Hong continued, "In that case, Little Lu, on behalf of Yanda, I sincerely invite you to return. Your compensation package at Yanda will be no lower than what you have at Yale, and likely higher."

"We will do our utmost to help you secure national funding, such as the grants for distinguished or outstanding young scholars, and so on."

"If you have any other requests, we will also do our best to accommodate you."

Lu Shixian listened without any surprise; he had long guessed Wu Hong's intention.

This was, in fact, the second time Yanda had invited him to return for a faculty position.

The first time, he had declined because he hadn't yet achieved the goals he had set for himself.

But this time, he had already completed his research project on the plant innate immunity interaction mechanism at Yale.

A project of this level and scale, completed through a combination of fortuitous circumstances, would be difficult to replicate. It represented the peak of his academic achievements in recent years.

Digging deeper into it would only create trouble for himself.

Perhaps it really was time to return to China.

With this in mind, Lu Shixian gave his reply.

"Dean Wu, let me put it this way. I certainly have a deep affection for Yanda. If I were to return, under the same conditions, I would definitely give Yanda priority."

"However, I currently have an ongoing project at Yale that I haven't completed yet. This project is quite important to me, and it might not be as convenient to continue if I return to China."

"Once I officially complete it, I will formally begin my preparations to return. What do you think?"

His reasoning was sound, and Wu Hong naturally had no objections.

However, his words piqued the curiosity of the others.

"You've got endless energy, kid. It hasn't been long since your last project ended, and you're already starting a new one. What's the field?" Ma Yuheng asked first, his eyes wide.

In response to his question, Lu Shixian kept them in suspense. "You'll find out soon enough. In any case, it'll be a surprise for everyone."

"It wouldn't be as fun if I spoiled it now."

This made old Ma huff, a mix of a smile and a scowl on his face. "You're not playing fair, kid, keeping it all to yourself."

"Don't tell me it's another *Cell* paper? I'll be waiting to see what you've cooked up."

Lu Shixian just smiled without saying a word.

The welcome dinner concluded.

Lu Shixian rested for a night in Beijing.

The next day, he boarded a flight to the Special Economic Zone.

He checked in at the hotel reserved by the organizing committee of the 19th International Botanical Congress.

Here, he enjoyed a few rare days of leisure.

The day before the congress began, he attended a banquet hosted by the organizing committee.

In the 15th-floor restaurant of the Boyuan International Hotel.

Scholars and representatives from seventy-seven countries and regions were dining and engaging in preliminary exchanges.

Many noticed a young man sitting at the largest round table at the front, and they couldn't help but whisper among themselves.

A table in the back, filled with many young faces, was paying particularly close attention.

"Whoa, who's that? He's got some nerve! Daring to sit at the Bailing Table? That's reserved for honored guests."

"Seriously, that's insane. Not only are the leaders of our organizing committee at that table, but also the top brass from the international committee."

At that moment, a slightly chubby young man heard their discussion and curiously glanced toward the front.

What he saw nearly made his eyes pop out of their sockets.

"Holy crap, isn't that Lu-Shen?"

Seeing his reaction, the other guys quickly asked, "What's up? Yang Yihang, you know him? Is he some big shot from your university, Shuimu?"

Yang Yihang was stunned for a moment, then asked with a hint of indignation, "No way, no way! You guys don't know who Lu-Shen is?"

He couldn't stand the thought of someone here not knowing Lu-Shen.

"He was the final boss of my year's Biology Olympiad."

"He ended up at Yanda and then got his PhD in less than five years."

"I think he just became a professor at Yale recently, though I'm not too clear on the details."

"But the most important thing is, he's my buddy!"

After this string of introductions, the graduate students from China's top universities finally understood.

"Damn! Awesome!"

"The guy who published several papers in *Cell* back-to-back... even my PhD advisor said he's on another level."

"We're the same age, and I'm slaving away like a grunt in the lab while he's already a PI with a string of CNS papers. I feel like I've wasted my life."

"I even suspect he and Cao Yuan time-traveled here from the future. It's a classic protagonist storyline!"

Chapter 527: A Hot Commodity

At that moment, Lu Shixian, seated at the Bailing Table, had also become the center of attention at the round table.

And at this table sat leading figures from various fields.

From the world of botany alone, there was the president of the Botanical Society, Zhong Kang; the current director of the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Kunming Institute of Botany, Academician Feng Lizhang; the director of the CAS Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Academician Li Pengyuan; the director of the CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Academician Shen Lu'an...

There were also many foreign scientists, including Peter Raven and the president of the International Association for Plant Taxonomy, Marvey Lewis, among others.

Also present were political leaders from the Special Economic Zone.

While others might not have been fully aware of Lu Shixian's accomplishments abroad, these biologists certainly were, and they held his research in high regard.

Lu Shixian had undoubtedly become a hot commodity. Every senior figure present with a position at a research institution extended an invitation to him, asking if he had any interest in conducting research at a CAS botanical institute.

If not for the matter with Yanda, he would have honestly considered a CAS institute.

There was no helping it; when it came to sheer resources and talent, they represented the pinnacle of research in all of China.

Not to mention, they had the backing of the colossal Chinese Academy of Sciences.

If he could enter the CAS research system, he would, at the very least, shave several years off the path to becoming an academician.

But Yanda was his alma mater, and they had approached him first. Both logically and emotionally, he had to give Yanda priority.

Thus, it seemed he and the CAS were not fated to be.

Of course, Lu Shixian didn't reveal that he had already reached an agreement with Yanda. He only said that he still had an unfinished project at Yale and would likely be staying there for some time.

Hearing that he had no immediate plans to return to China, the academicians gave up their recruitment efforts, though they still offered very generous terms for whenever he decided to come back.

The banquet ended amidst Lu Shixian's repeated expressions of gratitude.

Since the congress was officially opening the next day, everyone was restrained with their drinking, though several bottles of wine were opened.

Having been through his fair share of drinking sessions, Lu Shixian might have a healthy fear of baijiu.

But red wine? To be honest, he wasn't afraid of it at all.

He had lost count of how many toasts he had received; his memory was a blur of refilling his glass and drinking.

Still, drinking too much of the stuff did make one feel bloated.

Back in his hotel room, Lu Shixian used the restroom, took a shower, and fell into a deep sleep.

Although his presentation wasn't on the first day, it was still essential to maintain a good state of mind.

He also had to prepare for his presentation on the second day. While the paper had already been submitted to the organizing committee, some necessary preparations still had to be made.

This congress was different from those in the past. Every Chinese expert, scholar, and staff member was striving for perfection.

With the opening remarks from the congress president, Peter Raven, the event officially began.

"For scientists to reach out to the public, and for the public to pay attention to ecological science, is one of my great hopes for this congress..."

Lu Shixian participated in the entire first day's agenda, including the opening ceremony and the keynote speeches.

It was his first time attending an academic conference of this caliber, and it was being held in his home country.

The whole experience felt unique and novel.

The subsequent agenda included invited talks, public lectures, satellite meetings, and some public events.

The only part Lu Shixian needed to attend was the invited talk on the second day.

He would have thirty minutes to present the content of his pre-submitted paper to the audience.

His presentation was in the morning. He arrived twenty minutes early to set up his PowerPoint on the large screen.

During that time, people continuously filed in from outside, and soon the auditorium, which could seat several hundred, was nearly full.

When it was almost time, Lu Shixian glanced down at the audience and was taken aback.

Whoa, so many people?

The last time he had participated in such an event was at Johns Hopkins University in the US, but the audience then had been just over three hundred people.

Now, there were almost twice that number.

It was understandable, really.

Both the public and the academic community knew his name from top-tier journals and media reports, but they had never seen him in person.

Many people were curious about this young man.

And Lu Shixian had spent the last few years engrossed in his research at Yale, with very few public appearances.

The few events he did attend were on short notice, giving people little time to prepare.

But this congress was different. With so much build-up, many were eager to see him for themselves.

Nine-thirty in the morning.

Lu Shixian glanced at his watch. The time was just right.

He turned on the microphone on the lectern and simultaneously clicked to display the title of his presentation on the large screen.

"Some of you may know who I am, but I'll give a brief introduction nonetheless."

"My name is Lu Shixian. I am currently with the pathology laboratory at Yale University. My past research has focused on plant pathology and genetics."

"It is a great honor to be invited to speak here at the 19th International Botanical Congress."

After more than three years of living and working at Yale, one of his weaknesses had been effectively remedied.

Daily conversation was the most effective training, and his spoken English had improved by leaps and bounds. He now sounded almost like a native speaker, even with a slight Connecticut accent.

His opening was simple, just three short sentences.

But this wasn't an awards ceremony for showcasing past achievements.

He just needed to use these thirty minutes to explain some of his methods in botanical research and try to make the audience feel their time was well spent.

"When I was first trying to determine how to study the plant cell innate immunity interaction mechanism, I was troubled for a time, because I simply couldn't find an effective entry point. The project stalled. But after listening to a public lecture by Mr. Rothman and speaking with Professor Lin Haifan, I had some different ideas."

"The idea is that biology today often serves as a cornerstone, providing research tools or methods for the development of medicine or chemistry. This is evident from the fact that most major recent international breakthroughs or discoveries in biology have occurred in interdisciplinary fields like biochemistry and biomedicine."
Pure biology seems to be finding it increasingly difficult to make new breakthroughs. So my thinking at the time was to take the opposite approach, to draw from these emerging disciplines to find a research method for this problem. As for what happened next, I believe you are all well aware.

The emergence of the 'Sinan Model' is fundamentally rooted in the establishment of the plant cell's equilibrium state; the former's theoretical basis and data source both come from the latter. Research at such a microscopic level is often difficult to carry out because of the existence of too many influencing factors.

Chapter 528: An Uproar

So, I designed a method of constantly establishing and disrupting this equilibrium state to create a breakthrough, then used mathematical modeling tools to express it in a new way...

For more details, you can find the special issue of the journal Cell published in September 2016. It contains my review of the academic world's findings on disease-resistance genes over the last fifty years, which I have categorized and summarized into nine models.

And the Sinan Model is the grand unification of these nine models, the culmination of all that came before.

Here, I wish to pay my highest respects to the academic researchers in the field of plant studies who have toiled in obscurity.

It is obvious that without their shoulders to stand on, I could not have reached such a high position on this stage today.

That concludes my report on this research.

As he finished speaking, everyone in the audience was applauding.

Amidst the incessant applause, someone noticed a crucial detail.

The presentation's schedule was actually very tight.

A class is forty-five minutes, but a presentation is only thirty.

To cover the key points within this half-hour, many people would skip over details and present only the most essential parts.

Lu Shixian had clearly achieved that.

But of the thirty minutes allotted for the report, only fifteen had passed.

Even accounting for the ten-minute Q&A, there were still five minutes left.

This was highly unusual.

But soon, Lu Shixian's actions explained the issue.

"Alright, next I'd like to share and discuss some of the interim results my team and I have achieved in the field of molecular farming."

The moment he said this, nearly everyone was stunned.

What was going on?

There was more?

Presenting two different research topics in a single report was also an extremely rare move.

Many people were beginning to find Lu Shixian's actions incomprehensible.

Some of the older-generation domestic biologists even frowned and said, "Isn't this just nonsense?"

"Young people are always so impulsive."

"A little success and he's already forgotten his place."

At that moment, in a corner of the conference hall.

A middle-aged man asked the person next to him, "President Zhong, when you were reviewing the presentation papers beforehand, did you see that his had two topics? Surely there won't be any mishaps?"

Zhong Kang smiled faintly. "Academician Feng, on such an important occasion, our Botanical Society would not make such an obvious oversight."

"We can't always look at things with the old mindset or solve problems with old methods. We have to give the young people today a chance to express themselves.

"Little Lu hasn't done research in the country for years, so it's understandable that his methods are a bit more... open."

The middle-aged man was none other than Academician Feng Lizhang, the director of the Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Since it had come to this, he could only shake his head slightly. "I know, Academician Xu's prized student. He is indeed brilliant."

"I just hope he hasn't brought that American-style liberalism back with him."

Zhong Kang also gave a helpless smile. The full story wasn't so simple.

As an insider, he was well aware of the intricacies.

In their early years, both Feng Lizhang and Xu Zhihong had worked at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. They had competed to be the head of a key project in the '863 Program,' which led to some misunderstandings and a period of friction between them.

Both men subscribed to the 'out of sight, out of mind' philosophy.

Thus, Xu Zhihong's main work and research shifted from the Academy of Sciences to Yan University, while Feng Lizhang applied for a transfer from Beijing to the Institute of Botany in Kunming.

After that, things finally quieted down between them.

Now that Xu Zhihong's student had become famous and successful, it was understandable that Feng held some reservations.

However, Feng Lizhang was an elder, after all, and knew to maintain his status. He hadn't given Lu Shixian a hard time at yesterday's banquet.

Few people knew about this matter, and he was one of them.

But since both men were his friends, there was little he could say.

He believed, however, that the grudges of the older generation shouldn't be passed down to the younger one, and he had an extremely good impression of Lu Shixian.

So he said, his tone laced with hidden meaning, "Perhaps he'll give everyone a surprise this time. It's been a long while since molecular farming has seen any new breakthroughs."

Meanwhile, on stage.

Lu Shixian had already begun his report once more.

He flipped through a few more slides on the big screen. Everyone stopped whispering and focused their full attention on it.

Displayed on the screen were several large characters: "A New Outlook for Molecular Farming: Biopharmaceutical Development Based on Whole Plants."

Whoosh!

An uproar swept through the venue, and a new wave of discussion immediately erupted.

Everyone was in a state of shock; no one could have predicted that this was the direction he was going to talk about.

And the topic was rather explosive. While molecular farming might seem to be purely the domain of agricultural science, it is actually a part of genetic engineering. Almost all discussions of molecular farming today involve transgenic technology.

It was an absolutely cutting-edge field within agriculture and even botany, allowing the agricultural industry to expand into the new realms of medicine and health.

But there was one thing: it was highly controversial, involving the risk assessment and management of genetically modified crop production.

Lu Shixian had long anticipated the audience's reaction.

He briefly summarized the current state of molecular farming: "Currently, using mammals to produce biomolecules is the most common international practice, with the production of recombinant proteins from animal milk being the most mature system."

"But the disadvantages are obvious. This method cannot produce high levels of stable recombinant proteins, and the active proteins from the organism may alter the animal's health. But I believe what everyone is most concerned about is the issue of viral contamination during the animal transgenesis process."

"So, I thought, if we were to use plant cell culture, could we circumvent this issue? Obviously, it would not carry pathogens that could be harmful to human health, because all of a plant's native proteins are different from ours."

Lu Shixian gave the experts and scholars in attendance a moment to process, to let them digest the information.

After all, the leap from plant cell immunity mechanisms to molecular farming was indeed quite large.

Many biologists never expected that a warrior would dare to challenge this field, and from the looks of it, he seemed to have produced something.

In their view, researching this was a thankless task.

On one hand, there were significant experimental difficulties beforehand. This whole GM business was strictly controlled. It wasn't impossible, but the procedures were incredibly complex, and the required research environment and equipment had to be custom-made, making the research costs exorbitant.

With this kind of time and funding, wouldn't it be better to research something else?

On the other hand, after the experiment, since the biopharmaceutical is chemically almost identical to the drug it mimics, patent applications would be contentious.

And another thing, not to mention the difficulty of getting biopharmaceutical approval, even if it passed, people would be skeptical of genetically modified drugs entering the market, making sales a huge problem.

A newborn calf doesn't fear the tiger.

This was the evaluation of Lu Shixian in the minds of all the biologists present.

Chapter 529: A Shattered Conviction

Nevertheless, a considerable number of them were still very curious about his research findings.

To be able to present it on this occasion, he must have something, but the question was how much.

Lu Shixian didn't keep them waiting long and soon continued, "Molecular farming has not had a smooth development up to this point. Bioproducts based on mammals and microorganisms have not become widespread. In my view, its future direction should be plant-based."

"Currently, there are two paths in this direction. The first is biopharmaceuticals based on plant tissue culture. A company has already conquered this technology, and it has passed FDA approval."

"My team and I chose the second path, as you can see on the screen: a cultivation method based on the whole plant. As of now, this project has achieved interim results."

"After screening, we selected Nicotiana benthamiana from Australia and the norovirus as our experimental subjects. However, the glycosylation process along the way troubled us for a long time, because plants only produce their own specific types of sugars. Without a doubt, the type of sugar affects the efficacy of the final biopharmaceutical product."

"Then, through genetic modification, we knocked out the two native sugars in this plant and inserted six genes for sugars unique to mammals."

"After tireless efforts, the final result finally emerged."

Lu Shixian recounted his experimental process and experiences.

This moment undoubtedly verified a truth: one minute on stage, ten years of practice offstage.

He spoke of it now as if it were simple, but his words contained the crystallized efforts of dozens of people over the better part of a year.

At this point, many people couldn't sit still and began to stand up.

They were desperate to know the final result, but Lu Shixian stopped abruptly, instantly sparking a fair bit of public indignation. Many people shouted at him, signaling him to continue.

Seeing that he had built the anticipation to a peak, Lu Shixian finally began to reveal the answer.

"I'm sure you are all very curious about the final result. I can only say that Lady Luck was on my side." Lu Shixian pressed the remote, and the big screen instantly showed a plant whose appearance had begun to turn yellow.

"In the struggle of two hundred Nicotiana benthamiana plants against the virus, the final outcome can only be described as brutal. Only one last plant remained, stubbornly clinging to life. That's the one you see on the screen; it was the sole survivor."

"With a mix of excitement and nervousness, I extracted the antibodies from the leaves of this Nicotiana benthamiana plant. I then selected a sufficient number of lab mice infected with norovirus for the final verification experiment. The result is on this slide."

Lu Shixian didn't state the answer directly. Most of the time, facts are far more powerful than words.

On the big screen now was a high-definition image showing the antibodies extracted from the plant being tested in the mice.

To an ordinary person, the image looked completely abstract, like gibberish.

But to a biologist, this image recorded the entire reaction process of the antibody binding.

The result was already obvious.

Evidently, the antibodies extracted from the plant possessed specificity.

The entire hall fell silent.

The result was too astonishing.

Lu Shixian didn't let the scene go cold and continued, "In fact, this is a result we just obtained a few days ago. I haven't had time to conduct replication experiments or the next steps. But we can already draw a preliminary conclusion."

"That is, developing biopharmaceuticals based on whole plants is feasible. The facts have proven that one of the factors that previously hindered the development of molecular farming—that is, the technical barrier—no longer exists."

Whoosh!

Everyone was finding it hard to control their emotions.

Someone couldn't help but stand up and challenge loudly, "Isn't this an infringement and violation of international patent law?"

"There are already extremely convenient and mature prescription drugs for treating norovirus. The drug produced by this method is chemically identical to the prescription drug."

"It is well known that a previously known natural product produced by artificial means cannot be patented again."

As this voice rang out, the venue actually quieted down. Everyone looked at Lu Shixian to see how he would handle this unexpected situation.

In fact, according to protocol, it was not yet time for questions and answers.

This person had very rudely interrupted the speaker's report, and Lu Shixian had every right to ignore him.

But he had more or less said everything he wanted to say, so moving into the Q&A session early was not out of the question.

"Sir, may I ask your name and where you are currently employed?" Lu Shixian asked before answering.

The man didn't understand the purpose of his question, but he still answered proudly, "My name is Adam Addison, from Pfizer's Bio-Lab in the United States."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian had a moment of realization.

No wonder the reaction was so strong. It turned out he was a competitor.

Lu Shixian then responded to his question, "You are absolutely right. But what if, in the application of this norovirus biopharmaceutical technology, I don't use it for commercial purposes?"

"How would you counter that, sir?"

This simple sentence instantly shattered Addison's conviction. He collapsed back into his seat with a gasp.

This answer also took many people in the audience by surprise.

But one man had fallen, and another stood up.

"Professor Lu, hello. I am Francis from the University of Fina."

"While I admire your courage and luck, your conclusion is based on that single surviving Nicotiana benthamiana. How can you rule out that the specific immunity to norovirus wasn't caused by some other coincidental factor?"

As soon as he said this, the expressions on many people's faces turned strange, as if wondering how this person had gotten in.

Lu Shixian was also a bit speechless. This question was like asking a starving man what he ate today.

The level of this question was a bit amateurish!

He had already stated that these were interim results. Getting even one success was a blessing from the heavens.

In fact, his speaking about it here was more of a notification than an explanation.

However, in a public setting, one still had to be mindful of one's image.

Saying that out loud would carry the risk of sounding arrogant.

So he rephrased it. "Regarding that question, perhaps you can find the answer in a future issue of Cell, rather than at this conference."

"Next!"

Then someone else stood up. "Professor Lu, I'd like to ask, if production were to begin, there is a risk of these genetically modified plants entering the food chain or cross-pollinating with non-GM crops."

"And this is not without precedent. How do you plan to solve this problem?"

Chapter 530: Amusing Ourselves to Death

Lu Shixian glanced at the questioner, feeling a bit helpless.

Shouldn't people be discussing the method of producing drugs based on whole plants with him right now?

Three questions in a row, and not a single one was about pure academic issues.

But this also illustrated just how controversial the three words "genetically modified" were.

Lu Shixian could understand, and he was already prepared.

He spoke with a voice full of emotion, "People's fear of something often stems from the unknown. But this emotion should not be found in a scientist."

"The creation of transgenic technology was a revolution in biology; it ushered in a new era of molecular biology. A tool itself has no good or evil attributes. It is merely an extension of human wisdom. It can benefit humanity, but it can also create risks. What matters is how we choose to use it."

"Gunpowder, thermal weapons, and the atomic bomb were once used in war, but explosives and nuclear energy have also provided a powerful impetus for human development. We do not shy away from discussing the risks of technology, nor can we deny its dual nature."

"And it is precisely because of a clear and objective understanding of the risks of genetic modification that we can widely emphasize risk assessment and establish comprehensive and systematic GM safety evaluation procedures and related laws and regulations on a global scale, in order to ensure biosafety."

Scientists from all over the world were gathered here.

Science knows no borders, but scientists do.

Due to the circumstances, there was much more Lu Shixian couldn't say, so he prepared to conclude.

This emotion came quickly and went just as fast. At this moment, he appeared incredibly rational, his tone filled with calm detachment.

"I know many people still have doubts about it, but whatever your views are, they don't matter."

"GM technology and its industrialization will develop amidst controversy and grow stronger through that development, until it becomes the fastest-developing technology in the history of human science."

"And the genetically modified drugs you question will be among the most thoroughly researched and strictly regulated medicines in human history."

A watertight counterattack, a self-consistent logic, an unshakably calm demeanor.

At this moment, Lu Shixian commanded the stage, capturing the attention of the entire audience.

Whoosh!

A tide of applause surged through the vast conference hall, roaring on and on, seemingly without end.

At this moment, all the biologists, whether they agreed with him or opposed him, had to admit that this was a young, promising, and spirited young scientist.

In the words of the rock and roll world, he had attitude.

The time on the big screen pointed to ten o'clock.

The half-hour report came to an end. Lu Shixian packed his things, ready to leave.

Although his report was only thirty minutes long, its impact would be far-reaching.

But excluding the fifteen minutes on plant innate immunity, and the ten minutes for Q&A, it meant that the content where he truly mentioned producing biopharmaceuticals through plant transgenesis only took up five minutes.

The biologists at the scene were left wanting more. They deeply felt that this technology would bring about enormous changes in the future.

This future might not be too distant. In other words, the world was about to change.

And now, the one who fired the first shot was Lu Shixian!

At the same time, this International Botanical Congress, along with his name, would be recorded in the annals of history.

Lu Shixian left, and he did so with flair.

But the speakers who followed him were in for a tough time, as they discovered the audience in the hall was gradually dwindling.

Even for those who remained, no matter how they tried to stir up excitement, they couldn't capture their attention.

At this moment, Lu Shixian was both loved and hated.

And the latter far outnumbered the former.

Those who loved him were ecstatic. For domestic and international media reporters, Lu Shixian was their bread and butter.

Many had been summoned here to report on what was simply a mandatory assignment; few ordinary people would be interested in this botanical congress.

But the situation was different now.

Everyone was rushing to get their press releases out.

Within moments, the news appeared before people all over the world through various media channels.

Lu Shixian was famous again.

But this time, without a doubt, it was infamy, and it was overwhelming.
Even the few voices that spoke up for him were drowned in the torrent of public opinion.

On social media, Lu Shixian had never expected to become known to the Chinese public for the first time in such a peculiar way.

At the same time, the conference itself was swept along and went viral.

#YoungBiologistLuShixianPubliclySupportsGMOs#

#InternationalBotanicalCongressReport#

#BoycottGMOs#

Trending topics were not exclusive to Weibo, but they were certainly most distinctive there.

Without any promotion, these topics successfully shot into the top ten trending list in just a few short hours.

The red icon next to these three topics quickly changed from "New" to "Hot."

Three hours later, it turned from "Hot" to "Boiling."

And by the looks of it, it was only a matter of time before it reached the highest level: "Explosive."

This sudden development caught many entertainment celebrities who had bought a trending spot for the day completely off guard.

Biology, GMOs, and some botanical congress—what did any of that have to do with entertainment?

Since when did they start muscling in on their territory?

The organizing committee had initially been pleased to see the conference gain mainstream attention.

But too much of a good thing could be a problem.

As public opinion erupted with ever-greater intensity, the sheer scale of it sent them into a panic, forcing them to use official channels to bring it under control.

Most gossip-hungry netizens had only ever feasted on the tired old scandals of the entertainment world. Who knew that today they would get to sink their teeth into some fresh drama from the world of biology? Initially swept up by the algorithms, they now took the initiative, their eyes all converging on the central figure of the event.

The controversy surrounding Lu Shixian exploded, on a scale that was utterly unprecedented.

The cause was nothing more than pride and prejudice.

In truth, no one was targeting Lu Shixian personally, but there were plenty of people targeting GMOs.

Lu Shixian spoke up for GMOs, and so he became the one being targeted.

The equation was established with perfect, natural logic.

[Did some digging. A product of Yan and Shuimu Universities, now working abroad. We all know what that means, right?]

[A U.S. talent farm producing someone with crooked loyalties. Makes perfect sense.]

[Supporting GMOs… his motives are despicable!]

Countless comments and messages like these flooded the topics.

Many people tried to find Lu Shixian's Weibo account, but he had never even created one.

Thus, he became one of the extremely rare individuals who was hated by the entire internet without anyone knowing him and without him having a single social media account.

Of course, the haters were not without resistance.

This resistance came from Lu Shixian's classmates and teachers, who spontaneously spoke up for him in the media.

There were also those whose principles followed his good looks; many young women were so captivated by his unearthed graduation photos that they abandoned the dark side and came to the light.

A small number of scholars also published articles supporting his views, but it was merely a drop in the bucket.

Clearly, this was a feast of amusing ourselves to death.

Chapter 531: An End to Match the Beginning

Lu Shixian had set his phone to silent mode for his presentation.

It was only now, resting back in his hotel room, that he discovered his phone had been practically blown up with calls.

To his surprise, the first person to call was Yang Yihang.

Then came his classmates, represented by Chang Wenchao, as well as others he was familiar with like Mei Ting, Chen Yiyi, and Qu Xi.

After them were his teachers, led by Xu Zhihong.

Lu Shixian dialed Yang Yihang's number first.

"Dude, seriously! Lu, you're an absolute legend. You did something a lot of people wanted to do but never dared, or never could."

"You're my idol. But I'm afraid things are going to be tough for you for a while."

"What? You don't know what's going on? Just go look at the news."

After hanging up, Lu Shixian, guided by his friend's description, prepared to see what had happened.

But as soon as he unlocked his phone, a pop-up notification caught his eye.

CU Browser (52 minutes ago): Shocking! Twenty-six-year-old Yale professor publicly does THIS and gets savaged online. See if you're involved!

Tomorrow's Headlines (one hour ago): 19th International Botanical Congress opens, report by young Chinese scholar sparks controversy!

WiFi Master Key (two hours ago): Young scientist publicly supports GMOs, a deep dive into the past and present of genetic modification.

Lu Shixian had been mentally prepared for his report to generate some controversy, but he never imagined it would be on this scale.

The sensationalism from a certain browser was normal; that was its standard operating procedure, so it was understandable.

The news from Tomorrow's Headlines was also normal; that was their business, after all.

But what he least expected was that WiFi Master Key, an app he had downloaded long ago during the New Year just to mooch off Wi-Fi, was also weighing in on the matter.

It seemed every app wanted a piece of this traffic bonanza, as it represented user engagement for internet companies.

The terrifying thing about amusing ourselves to death wasn't the amusement itself.

It was that it caused people to gradually lose their capacity for serious thought and rational judgment.

Finally, Lu Shixian called his mentor, Xu Zhihong.

His tone was heavy with emotion. "Little Lu, I heard about what happened at the conference. You did a great job."

"But a situation has arisen. You were too rash in your handling of the GMO issue."

"Now all the attacks are pointed at you alone. Truthfully, it should have been us old-timers on the front lines for this."

Lu Shixian believed him completely, because he knew that Xu Zhihong himself would publicly state his views on GMOs a few years from now.

He had watched that entire interview and remembered it clearly.

[The public's fear of genetically modified foods stems mostly from misinformation and misunderstanding. GM crops that have undergone scientific evaluation and legal approval are safe, and their risks are preventable and controllable. The public's perception of GMOs could hinder the development of transgenic technology in our country.]

So he was unconcerned. "It wouldn't matter who said it first. Someone had to."

"There are advantages to me being the one. After all, they don't know me, and I won't be in the country for a while. They won't have a chance to curse me even if they want to."

"Besides, today's occasion was a rare opportunity. I have to thank Chairman Zhong for giving it to me."

Lu Shixian's character and way of thinking were very much to Xu Zhihong's liking, which was why he had always seen something special in him and had taken him on as his final disciple even after stepping back from his primary duties.

Since what was done was done, Xu Zhihong didn't dwell on the topic. "I heard you funded the development of whole-plant-based biopharmaceuticals out of your own pocket?"

"And you've already achieved some initial results. You've certainly made a bold leap into a new field."

"And for that, I have to criticize you. For something this big, you could have discussed it with us."

"The risks are considerable. Weren't you afraid of all that money going down the drain?"

Feeling his mentor's care and concern, Lu Shixian just mumbled an "uh" and said nothing.

He really didn't know how to answer that.

At the time, he had thought it was better to bear the pressure himself rather than share it and double the burden.

Of course, Xu Zhihong wasn't trying to blame him, just offering a reminder.

He then continued, "What are your plans for the project's follow-up?"

Lu Shixian thought for a moment. "The current plan is definitely to perfect the technology and then file for the patent."

"As for what to do with the patent, I haven't decided yet. I'll definitely be back in the country by then, so we can talk about it then."

Xu Zhihong nodded. "Alright. Just let this whole thing cool down. I'll see what I can do on my end as well."

"In any case, be careful lately. Try to stay out of the public eye as much as possible."

"Once you become a public figure, your every move will be magnified a thousand times over."

Lu Shixian understood.

In fact, he was planning to slip away as soon as the conference was over, very much in the spirit of lighting a fire and then running for the hills.

In the days that followed, regardless of the storm of public opinion outside.

The 19th International Botanical Congress proceeded as normal, as if the incident had never happened.

Lu Shixian needed to stay in the special administrative region for two more days. He was scheduled to attend the award ceremony on the second-to-last day to receive the IBC2017 Conference Paper Award, and he posed for a group photo with all the other award recipients and the members of this year's organizing committee.

He was originally the pre-selected winner, but now it felt truly well-deserved.

On the final day, he would participate in the entire closing ceremony. After all, he wanted to see it through from start to finish.

Notably, the congress also issued a "Special Declaration on Plant Science" in the form of a resolution.

The declaration's purpose was to identify key actions and priority areas on an international scale, thereby forging a closer link between the global community of plant scientists and an ever-changing society.

The declaration issued a call to action, proposing strategies for eight priority areas.

Seven of these were the original topics of the congress, including the responsibilities of plant science researchers, strengthening support for plant science, enhancing international cooperation, establishing new technology platforms, accelerating the cataloging of life on Earth, conserving the cultural diversity of plants and nature, and encouraging public participation.

But this time, because of Lu Shixian, an additional item was added: Reflections on Plant Transgenic Technology.

Finally, at the closing ceremony.

Academician Hong Deyuan of the Chinese Academy of Sciences was awarded the Engler Medal in Gold.

The congress's executive chairman, Peter Levan, received the first Special Administrative Region International Plant Science Award for his exceptional contributions.

With that, all of Lu Shixian's business at the 19th International Botanical Congress was concluded.

He began to book his flight back to Yale.

Chapter 532: Polarization

He only stayed one more day.

The next morning, the weather in the special administrative region had been poor lately, with a persistent, dreary rain.

Lu Shixian hailed a cab and, at the nearest international airport, boarded a flight to the United States.

His mood was better than he had expected; he was even in the frame of mind to check the news on his phone.

The vast majority of voices were still critical.

But among them were a few articles that took him by surprise.

World Outlook: Multiple Academicians Publicly Voice Support for Genetic Engineering. According to incomplete statistics from our reporters, eight academicians—including Zhong Kang, Wang Zhixin, Li Pengyuan, Zhu Xian, Xu Zhihong, Zhao Dongming, Niu Chengtang, and Shen Lu'an—have published their views on genetic engineering, educating the public on the realities of transgenic technology.

Associated Millet Press: The International Botanical Society has issued the "Special Declaration on Plant Science" on its official website. It is understood that this declaration came from a joint resolution of the more than six thousand attendees of the 19th International Botanical Congress.

Two pieces of news, one domestic, one international.

The first represented the public support of the older generation of scientists. Eight academicians standing behind him was a powerful force, and it managed to disperse a good deal of the criticism.

The other represented the endorsement of an authoritative organization. While the society didn't explicitly say, "Lu Shixian is our guy, we've got his back," the declaration's section on plant transgenics was neutral in its wording—it could be interpreted as either critical or supportive.

But releasing it at this particular juncture undoubtedly showed that the International Botanical Society's stance toward Lu Shixian was a positive one.

Back at Yale, Rothman found him almost immediately, giving him a light punch on the chest.

"Lu, you've really done something big this time. People all over the world are talking about you. I don't think I got this much attention even when I won the Nobel."

Lu Shixian shrugged. "Attention? If being cursed out counts, then maybe!"

After a few jokes, Rothman's expression turned serious. "Hey, this isn't without its benefits. I have some good news to share with you."

Lu Shixian paused.

At a time like this, he'd be happy just not to be crying. What good news could there be?

But for a Nobel laureate to bring it up personally, it probably wasn't just hot air. It had to be real.

He quickly asked with curiosity, "What good news?"

"I don't know if you're aware, but on many issues, the degree of consensus among scientists is far greater than the public realizes," Rothman continued with a smile. "In other words, some views may have the approval of the vast majority of scientists, but they rarely gain acceptance among the general public."

"In fact, the views on you from the academic world and the public are completely polarized."

Lu Shixian nodded, then asked, "And?"

"And, thanks to this whole affair, you are now on the candidate list for the 2017 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and in Physiology or Medicine."

Now, he was genuinely surprised.

"No way. When did I become a candidate? How come I didn't know?"

Rothman clapped him on the shoulder. "Did you forget? Every Nobel laureate has the right to nominate candidates."

"I put your name on my recommendation letter at the beginning of this year."

"And it seems I'm not the only one who felt that way."

However, Lu Shixian didn't get overly excited.

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry and in Physiology or Medicine can have up to three laureates each year. There is no age limit, but one rule is that it cannot be awarded posthumously.

Therefore, the list of recommended individuals each year numbers in the thousands. After the deadline for recommendation letters in February, the committee screens the candidates based on the cumulative number of nominations.

This narrows it down to about 250-350 people.

In other words, that was the number of people waiting in line each year, many of whom were scientists who had appeared on the list multiple times.

By that measure, Lu Shixian had just joined the queue, and his place was very far back.

But for Lu Shixian, this was still an incredibly rare achievement.

He had published his paper just last year and was already on the recommendation list this year, which meant his research had generated a tremendous response globally.

According to the statutes of the Nobel Foundation, the recommendation, nomination, and deliberation processes are strictly confidential. The identities of the nominators and nominees, as well as any related information, are sealed for 50 years and are forbidden from being discussed either privately or publicly.

The rules for the initial recommendation stage were never that strict, and given Rothman's close relationship with him, he felt free to discuss the list.

But the later nomination and deliberation processes were not something to be discussed so casually.

Knowing his own situation, Lu Shixian said with a sense of helplessness, "If I actually won this year, Calvino would probably be rolling in his grave."

"You're too pessimistic." Hearing this, Rothman smiled and gave him a wink. "You know, Stockholm isn't the only place with a Nobel Prize."

Lu Shixian didn't believe a word of it.

Although many people had different opinions on the Nobel selection process, believing it to have certain biases, there was generally little controversy when it came to the natural sciences.

This was because its selection criteria could be summarized as excellence, disruption, and importance.

The laureate must have made an outstanding contribution in their field, and that contribution must have had an enormous impact.

Lu Shixian was very rational about this. He had only proposed the theory of the plant cell's innate immune interaction mechanism last year. It hadn't yet met the criteria for the prize. Just making it to the nomination stage would be incredibly lucky.

To be honest, he definitely had his sights set on a Nobel.

But that didn't mean he was impatient for it.

Lu Shixian firmly believed he would win it one day in the future; it didn't have to be now.

He was, in fact, a remarkably patient person. Otherwise, he wouldn't have walked the academic path one steady step at a time.

He could have taken many shortcuts.

As time moved into September.

The buzz around Lu Shixian had long since faded with time.

After all, most people didn't even know what a GMO was. To expect them to continue discussing it was asking too much.

He was able to return to his lab in peace and continue his unfinished projects.

However, after a certain website published this year's Nobel-related information, things took another turn.

The news traveled back to China, once again igniting a nationwide firestorm of discussion.

And it was far more intense and dramatic than the one earlier in the year.

A single piece of news was circulating through all of China's media, from mainstream outlets to back-alley sources.

[Lu Shixian Appears in the Top Ten of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry Betting Odds!]

Chapter 533: A Pleasant Surprise

The name was clearly Chinese, so everyone's first reaction was: Holy crap, that's insane!

Their second reaction was: Who on earth is Lu Shixian?

Their third reaction was: That name sounds a bit familiar… didn't we just finish cursing him out not long ago?

But the students who knew Lu Shixian didn't have such complicated thoughts. They simply offered up their profound respect.

"I always knew this day would come, but I never thought it would be so soon!"

"What else is there to say? Lu the Legend is just on another level."

"I'm still struggling with my graduation thesis, and he's about to win a Nobel. The joys and sorrows of humanity are truly not shared."

The news set off a massive wave across the country. Chinese tech media outlets created a special column just for him.

The column detailed Lu Shixian's academic journey and even invited a biology professor to explain his research achievements to the public.

At this point, people finally realized that they didn't know him at all.

All they had ever known was the name, or rather, the label.

Through the column, many learned that Lu Shixian was the gold medalist and first-place winner of the 20th International Biology Olympiad.

They learned that he had completed his undergraduate to doctoral studies in just five years.

They learned that he had published many papers, most of them in top-tier journals.

They learned that he had received this Nobel nomination for his outstanding achievements in plant science.

A more accurate impression of him began to form in people's minds. He was no longer just a derogatory symbol.

Coupled with the ongoing educational and explanatory work done by the academicians, people on social media slowly began to notice that praise for Lu Shixian was becoming more and more common.

Someone joked: The distance between being hated by the entire internet and being praised by the entire internet might just be a Nobel nomination.

China had long thirsted for a Nobel Prize, but a winner who was a "pure" Chinese national was, if not impossible, then at least as rare as a phoenix feather.

The topics related to him on Weibo became hot again, but Lu Shixian still didn't have an account.

So, under the most popular topic, Weibo set up a poll.

[The 2017 Nobel Prize in Chemistry betting odds are out, and our nation's young biologist Lu Shixian is on the list.]

[Do you think he will win this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry?]
[Option 1: Yes. Being in the top ten of the betting odds means he has a great chance. No matter what, I'll support a fellow Chinese to win.]

[Option 2: No. I'd say he has a bright future! He's too young right now. If he were to win, it wouldn't be very convincing.]

[Option 3: Not sure, but I'm in awe even though I don't get it.]

Amidst the torrent of online traffic, people who couldn't find the man himself flooded the top-ranking topic and participated in the poll.

In less than three hours, a total of 180,000 people had cast their votes.

Among them, 16.72% chose Option 1.

64.85% chose Option 2.

And 18.43% chose Option 3.

In other words, while most people were hesitant about him winning this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry, they held a positive view of him personally.

In any case, this was a good thing. At the very least, his public image had effectively improved.

He certainly didn't want to be treated like a public enemy every time he appeared in the public eye.

And so, Lu Shixian, currently at Yale, was once again bombarded with phone calls. Most were asking about the authenticity of the matter and congratulating him.

Lu Shixian could only explain to them one by one, tempering their expectations in advance to lower their hopes.

But while the outside world was busy guessing this year's winners from the list of popular candidates, Lu Shixian suddenly received a call from Columbia University.

"Professor Lu, hello. After deliberation by our university's prize committee, and in recognition of your outstanding contributions to botany, we have decided to award you the 2017 Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize…"

After hanging up, Lu Shixian suddenly understood what Rothman had meant.

The Nobel Prize isn't only in Stockholm.

The scope of the Nobel Prize is limited, so various fields have their own top awards.

For instance, the Nobel Prize of computer science is the Turing Award, the Nobel of mathematics is the Fields Medal, and the Nobel of architecture is the Pritzker Prize.

And for the field of basic research in biology and biochemistry, it was undoubtedly the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize.

Receiving the news, Lu Shixian’s heart pounded with excitement.

He had already braced himself for disappointment this year.

He never expected such a pleasant surprise, to be awarded such a heavyweight prize.

Most importantly, the significance of this award was extraordinary.

It had another name: the Nobel's most accurate bellwether.

Since it was first awarded in 1967, a total of 51 of the 111 Horwitz Prize laureates had gone on to win a Nobel Prize.

Among them, 40 won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, and 11 won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

This was a staggering probability, meaning for every two Horwitz laureates, one would become a Nobel laureate.

September 20th.

Lu Shixian, dressed in a suit, appeared in an auditorium at Columbia University.

Located in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, Columbia University is the oldest institution of higher education in New York. Formerly known as King's College, it was renamed Columbia College after the American Revolutionary War.

In 1896, the school moved to its current location and was renamed Columbia University, a name it has used ever since.

Inside the Sherman Fairchild Auditorium, the lights were brilliant and the hall was bustling with people.

The grand award ceremony was underway. Lee Bollinger, the 67-year-old president of Columbia, was delivering the award speech and publicly announcing the committee's decision for the 2017 Horwitz Prize.

"In the past, countless biologists in the academic world have forged ahead in their research on the regulatory mechanisms of plant immunity, yet the secret of plant innate immunity has remained shrouded in mystery, an elusive goal. That is, until the appearance of a young man of only twenty-five."

"Professor Lu is a pioneer in the field of plant innate immunity. He has solved the century-old problem of the interactive mechanisms of plant immune regulation. With his boundless imagination, Lu created a new equilibrium theory and designed the Sinan Model, pointing the way for all scientists advancing in this direction."

"It is the culmination of nine plant disease-resistance models, and it will play a key role in the study of immune defense in plants against pathogens such as viruses and bacteria. These discoveries represent a major breakthrough in botany and pathology, with a profound impact on agricultural production, plant protection, and ecological conservation."

Chapter 534: The Nobel Prize Announcement

Behind him, a large screen simultaneously displayed content from Lu Shixian's papers and the covers of the journals in which they were published.

After the brief introduction, Lee Bollinger finally reached the most important part: "After a collective decision by the prize committee, the winner of this year's Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize is Lu Shixian from Yale University!"

"In my memory, it is not unheard of for someone to win the Horwitz Prize at this age, but without exception, they have all gone on to achieve world-renowned accomplishments."

"So, let us all look forward to his future!"

As soon as President Bollinger finished speaking, the entire auditorium erupted in thunderous applause, paying respect to the new Horwitz laureate.

On the stage, Lu Shixian took a deep breath and accepted the certificate of honor from the hands of the old man before him.

Truth be told, the prize money was negligible, almost non-existent.

But he could feel that the certificate in his hands was still heavy with honor.

Lee Bollinger looked at him with great admiration and said, "Congratulations, Lu. At your age, you have already achieved what many can only dream of. After receiving the Horwitz Prize, you still have a great chance of attaining even greater honors."

Lu Shixian knew he was referring to the Nobel Prize. After all, many Horwitz laureates were also Nobel laureates, which only further proved the award's value.

He smiled and replied, "I was very surprised myself, actually. I'm truly grateful for the committee's recognition."

Lee Bollinger shook his head slightly. "In fact, for us, age is not a bonus. On the contrary, it makes us even more stringent."

"But your academic achievements are there for all to see, and you've come along at the right time. It's a perfect storm of timing, opportunity, and talent."

At this point, Bollinger's tone suddenly shifted. "Professor Lu, while Yale is excellent, their traditional strengths don't necessarily lie in the life sciences. Have you any interest in coming to Columbia? I believe you won't be disappointed here."

Lee Bollinger was not only the chairman of the Horwitz Prize committee but also the president of Columbia University.

Making a recruitment offer to Lu Shixian on this occasion was not out of place.

Lu Shixian wasn't surprised, but he still politely declined the invitation.

"I'm very happy to have the opportunity to come to Columbia, but I probably won't be at Yale for much longer either. My alma mater, Yanda University, extended an invitation to me a long time ago."

He was very happy at Yale for the time being and had no plans to change institutions.

Besides, the day he would return to China was not far off, and he didn't want to go through the trouble of moving again.

"Is that so? What a pity," Bollinger said with regret. "However, Yanda is also a beautiful university. The atmosphere there is captivating and impressive. I once visited for an academic exchange."

"It's no wonder it can produce a student as outstanding as you."

After the small talk concluded, Lu Shixian, as scheduled, stayed to give a lecture at Columbia University.

With the halo of a new Horwitz Prize laureate, the number of Columbia students attending the lecture that day broke historical records, and the majority of them were not Chinese.

That same day, Columbia University's official website and major US media outlets reported the news.

As the buzz around Lu Shixian's inclusion in the top ten of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry betting odds grew, many people in China found ways to climb the firewall to access foreign websites, searching for information about him.

Thus, the news of him winning the Horwitz Prize was inevitably transmitted back to the country, immediately sparking a new round of heated discussion.

"(Thumbs up x3) The man's a legend! Forgive my limited vocabulary, all I can say is 'Awesome! Awesome! Awesome!'"

"Wasn't he supposed to win the Nobel Prize? Why is it some Horwitz Prize now? The name's so long, I've never even heard of it. Is it some kind of knock-off award?"

"Verdict's in, the user above is a total noob with a one-inch view. Let me educate you: in the field of biology, the Horwitz Prize is a heavyweight award second only to the Nobel, and it's known as the most valuable Nobel bellwether."

"(Crying) I'm literally tearing up. God Lu is a big shot at Yale while I'm just a lab mule. We both have bright futures ahead of us."

"All of you who said God Lu was all hype, stand up. Let me see just how many experts and professors in our country can win this award."

"Rebirth: I Won a Nobel Prize in the New Century. Is this a transmigration power fantasy protagonist? Even novels wouldn't dare to write a plot like this!"

Soon, the comments on the news article accumulated to over 999, and even these novel comments received a high number of likes.

For the last comment in particular, Lu Shixian couldn't help but slip and give it a like.

Fortunately, after Yang Yihang's reminder last time, Lu Shixian had also registered a Weibo account. It was unverified, the kind that no one would ever recognize.

Time moved into October.

As of yet, Lu Shixian had still not received any calls from Stockholm.

The implication was self-evident.

Lu Shixian didn't hold out much hope for winning, as the competition was simply too strong.

He knew the results of all the Nobel Prizes for the next three years. If he were to win, the impact and importance of his achievements would have to surpass those of the original winner.

But 2017 was a long shot, and now reality had confirmed it.

Soon, the annual Nobel Prize announcement ceremony was held in Stockholm. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced the winners of the 2017 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

They were Jacques Dubochet from the University of Lausanne, Joachim Frank from Columbia University, and Richard Henderson from the University of Cambridge.

The result was both very surprising and entirely expected.

They were called scientists because they were all physicists.

That's right, the 2017 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to three physicists for their development of cryo-electron microscopy, which could determine the structure of biomolecules in solution at high resolution, providing important contributions to the study of the structure and function of ribosomes in bacteria and eukaryotes.

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to physicists for their contributions to biology.

This result once again proved the prize's reputation as the "Comprehensive Science Prize."

Even the three laureates themselves expressed surprise, disbelief, and bewilderment at the ceremony.

But their win was well-deserved. For a long time, imaging technology in the field of biochemistry had been a blank slate, because existing techniques made it difficult to visualize the molecular mechanisms of life.

But now, cryo-electron microscopy had changed everything. Humanity could finally understand the composition and laws of life from a chemical perspective.

Chapter 535: A Rising Reputation

As an academic star at Yale, Lu Shixian received a lot of attention.

The news of him not winning the Nobel Prize quickly spread across campus.

In the office.

Rothman joked with Lu Shixian, "Lu, it must have been tough recently. But don't worry, you're not alone. There's someone else at Yale who didn't win either, and he's also Chinese."

It wasn't that he was in a bad mood—his ability to regulate his emotions was strong—but of course, a little bit of disappointment was unavoidable. It was only human.

However, hearing he had a fellow traveler piqued his interest. "Who?"

"You should know him. He's currently a professor of immunobiology at the School of Medicine. His achievements in the field of tumor immunology are equally astonishing, but I don't know much beyond that," Rothman said with a shrug.

A name quickly surfaced in Lu Shixian's mind: Chen Lieping.

Come to think of it, the two of them had some similarities.

Professor Chen focused on tumor immunology, with very deep research into immunoregulatory molecules. From first introducing the B7 molecule into cancer therapy in 1992 to the discovery of 4-1BB, PD-L1, and many subsequent new molecules and pathways for anti-tumor functions, he could be called a pioneer in tumor immunology.

Lu Shixian, on the other hand, studied plant immunity, researching the interactions between immunoregulatory factors. He established the equilibrium theory and designed the unifying Sinan Model, also achieving remarkable success in his field.

But the differences between them were still vast.

To be honest, his own research was in agronomy, or one could say botany, while Chen's was in pure medicine.

The two were in completely different ballparks.

The only reason Lu Shixian knew his name was because the 2018 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine had sparked a huge controversy, which had led him to look into it.

It was normal that Chen hadn't won yet. After all, until the last moment, no one but the laureates themselves knew the final result.

But if the winning research that year also happened to be in the field of tumor immunology, then things became a bit thought-provoking.

If he remembered correctly, the Nobel Prize was ultimately awarded to American immunologist James P. Allison and Japanese biologist Tasuku Honjo for their achievements in cancer immunotherapy (the PD-1 immune checkpoint).

What was puzzling, however, was that Chen Lieping—the first to reveal the role of the PD-L1/PD-1 pathway in immune escape within the tumor microenvironment and the first to pioneer the use of antibodies to block this pathway for cancer treatment—did not win.

In the past, he had been a layman, and even in his own field, his understanding was half-baked.

Unable to grasp the essence of the matter, he had joined the masses in crying conspiracy theory.

But now, as his academic level and perspective had grown, he had at least gained a preliminary understanding of immunology.

As a professional academic researcher, he was more focused on the science itself.

Although Chen was the first to discover PD-L1, it was unfortunate that he seemed to have always held reservations about the prize-winning theory that PD-L1 negatively regulates T-cells via PD-1. Instead, he believed it positively regulated T-cells through a receptor other than PD-1.

Of course, he later found the correct path through experiments, but by then he had missed the optimal window to have his name cemented in history.

Of course, considering his outstanding achievements in the field of tumor cell immunology and his immense contribution to helping many cancer patients regain their health, was Chen qualified to win? Naturally, he was.

And so, a strange situation arose.

It seemed that both his supporters and his detractors could find valid reasons for their positions.

It was a bit of an impasse. Lu Shixian just hoped he would never encounter such a tricky situation himself.

Before leaving, Rothman asked Lu Shixian for his opinion on Yale's recent key discipline development plans.

"I plan to propose a major push for the development of bioinformatics, using it as a reason to build a new bioinformatics building near the biology building. Its functions would include, but not be limited to, applied mathematics represented by mathematical modeling and computer science represented by a supercomputing center. It would also incorporate tools from information science and statistics."

After a pause, Rothman turned and continued earnestly, "Finally, I want to establish a bioinformatics database with sound data standards and quality control processes. What do you think, Lu?"

Lu Shixian had to give him a thumbs-up. "That's an excellent idea. I completely understand and support your vision!"

After Rothman left, he couldn't help but marvel inwardly at how quickly Yale had reacted.

In fact, the more elite a university was, the better it could identify and confront its own shortcomings, and then make adjustments.

As Lu Shixian's equilibrium theory was gradually understood and accepted by the academic mainstream, the Sinan Model slowly became the best research tool for understanding the numerical and refined regulation within plant cells.

More and more people began to recognize the value of this tool.

But Yale, having experienced the entire research process, had now put the development of its bioinformatics program on the agenda.

They had no choice. For such a sensational biological research achievement to have been produced only with the help of the mathematics and computer science departments was telling.

To an outsider, this might not seem like a big deal.

But to an insider, it was a huge problem.

To put it nicely, it was interdisciplinary integration and mutual development.

To put it bluntly, Yale's bioinformatics program was a pile of crap.

Yale's main strengths lay in the humanities, and there was still a considerable gap between its mathematical and physical sciences and those of top-tier institutions like MIT or Princeton.

In the past, without a major achievement to highlight the weakness, they could bury their heads in the sand like an ostrich and pretend not to see it.

But now, thanks to Lu Shixian's work, Yale had gained a soaring reputation in the field of plant immunology.

It seemed glorious on the surface, but it was like a castle in the air. If they didn't start taking bioinformatics seriously, they would become a lost cause, nothing more than a laughingstock in the end.

However, such a costly project, even with a Nobel laureate like Rothman championing it, couldn't be built overnight.

As for whether it had a chance of being built, Lu Shixian didn't have to ask.

He had never doubted Yale's capabilities in that regard.

His reason for supporting the decision wasn't just because it would strengthen Yale's foundation in the life sciences.

Not to mention the current honeymoon period between Yanda and Yale, he also had deep ties with Yale himself. In the future, it would create more convenient conditions for collaboration.

Putting his thoughts in order, Lu Shixian once again focused his energy on the research and development of plant-based biopharmaceuticals.

Putting on his white lab coat, he walked into the lab.

He saw Feng Ernuo already hunched over a microscope, examining the antigen immunoassay reaction on a slide.

"Feng Ernuo, how are the replication experiments going?"

Chapter 536: What? We're Out of Money?

Seeing Lu Shixian, Feng Ernuo's focused gaze finally shifted from the eyepiece.

"Professor Lu, I was just about to talk to you about that." Feng Ernuo's tone was somewhat hesitant. "But I'm not quite sure how to put it."

This made Lu Shixian curious. He pressed on, "Don't tell me none of the replication experiments were successful?"

Feng Ernuo shook his head. "No, it's not that. It's just that the success rate is incredibly low. The fact that you got one success out of those two hundred samples back then might have just been sheer luck."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian actually felt relieved.

The worst news would have been that not a single replication experiment had succeeded so far. In that case, he would have had to reassess the situation and decide whether to invest more resources to continue.
But even a single success would prove their direction was sound. They just needed to follow the established procedure, and one day, they would see the light of victory.

However, Feng Er'nuo's hesitant tone told Lu Shixian that there was something he wasn't saying.

After pressing him again, he finally revealed the truth.

And Lu Shixian was completely stunned.

"What's going on? We're out of money?"

He gestured with his hands, drawing a large circle. "The two million US dollars I brought in—enough to make a mountain of cash—is gone just like that?"

Feng Er'nuo nodded. "That's right. Developing biopharmaceuticals from whole plants is unprecedented anywhere in the world. In other words, we have no blueprint to follow."

"Although I've done my best to control the costs of trial and error, many experiments were unavoidable."

"Based on the experiments still to come, we have a shortfall of about one million."

Lu Shixian pressed his right hand to his forehead. A sudden headache was coming on.

If it were an academic problem, he would be more than happy to solve it.

But if it was a funding issue, he couldn't think of a good solution on the spot.

At this stage, making money was not his strong suit!

Of course, this referred to his personal income.

If it were for a public project, he believed many places would be willing to invest in him, whether it was Yale or a biotech company.

"Alright, you guys hold on for a few more days. Let me think of something."

With that, Lu Shixian was out the door before his seat was even warm.

Leaving the lab, he kept thinking about ways to get money fast.

Legally and reasonably, of course.

He could win another high-value prize like the Dan David Prize, but that was too slow and extremely unpredictable.

Or he could buy a lottery ticket. Whether it was the welfare lottery or the sports lottery, one big win would solve everything.

But that wasn't very realistic either. For one, he had never paid any attention to that kind of information in the past.

Trying to recall the winning lottery numbers from after October 2017 was asking the impossible.

Secondly, many people had a common misconception.

They thought that if they went back in time with future winning lottery numbers, they would be guaranteed to win.

If you really thought that, it only proved how naive you were.

After thinking it over and over, the only method Lu Shixian could come up with was borrowing money.

He was a bit speechless.

He never thought that even when he had no money for food back at Jinling Agricultural High, he hadn't compromised.

Yet here he was, reduced to this state.

But he had no choice. The current situation was truly unique, and he just had to grit his teeth and get through it.

How to borrow and who to borrow from, that was the question.

Among all the people he had met in his life, not many had that kind of financial power.

He quickly narrowed it down to a few targets.

The first was Xu Youmeng.

Although she came from a single-parent family, her mother could be described as a legend.

From what he remembered, the company her mother ran eventually became the leading cosmetics enterprise in Su Province.

But there was a big problem: Xu Youmeng and her mother did not have a good relationship, a fact that could be inferred from many small clues.

And he hadn't really had any contact with Xu Youmeng for a long time.

Never contacting her normally, but thinking of her as soon as he needed something?

Lu Shixian dismissed her outright.

Next was Qu Xi.

This senior student's family was likely well-off, but even if she could produce a million in cash, he wasn't very confident she would give it to a classmate she wasn't particularly close to.

The final candidate was Mei Ting.

Her background needed no further introduction.

If all else failed, he would have to seek financing, even if it meant giving up some ownership of his patents. After all, he had tried his best.

A man can't just let himself be cornered like this.

With mixed feelings, he dialed Mei Ting's number. From the other end came a familiar, crisp voice.

"Hm? You need something?"

Though he had been through a lot, hearing that voice still made him a bit nostalgic. Some memories were too profound to be easily erased.

"Teacher Mei, long time no see," Lu Shixian replied. "Can't I call you if there's nothing wrong?"

"Well, well. To think the now-famous Professor Lu would still remember a nobody like me. I'm truly flattered."

Lu Shixian covered his face with his hand. Her personality was exactly the same as before.

But because of that, he actually felt a bit more confident.

So he told her about the predicament he was in.

Mei Ting listened quietly until he finished. Her voice grew gradually dangerous. "So, in your eyes, I'm just someone you use when you need money."

"Is that right?"

Under the immense threat of that sentence, Lu Shixian's mind raced. "Of course not! Teacher Mei, you know me. I've always kept my nose clean, and I despise gambling and drugs as if they were my mortal enemies. So naturally, when I borrow money, I only ask the people I trust the most."

"Don't you know me by now?"

Those few sentences seemed to take all the strength he had.

Mei Ting's tone finally softened. She promised to ask Old Mei if there was a solution.

Half an hour later, he received her reply.

The gist was that one or two hundred thousand was manageable, but a million was too much.

Mei Ting couldn't come up with it, and neither could Old Mei.

However, he could try to pull some strings and, within the scope of current policies, provide him with an interest-free loan at the highest talent classification.

The condition was that if he started a business or led a major project, he would have to prioritize Nanjang whenever feasible.

That barely counted as a condition.

Lu Shixian agreed without a doubt.

He hadn't been wrong about Old Mei. The man was solid!

The only downside was that the loan required him to sign the contract in person.

That meant he had to make a trip back to Nanjang.

What could he do? The one with the money is king.

In the early stages of a startup, anything can happen.

To keep the project from halting, he had to get through this hurdle first.

Chapter 537: Recombination Experiment

Nanjang.

Xuanwu East District.

Lu Shixian walked out of the conference room.

He had just gone through a meeting he didn't know how to describe and signed a talent contract.

Under the guidance of an official from the Nanjang Provincial Department of Science and Technology, he was successfully certified as a "Top Domestic and International Talent" in Nanjang Province. The province would provide him with support in areas such as his children's education, spouse relocation, and healthcare.

However, he didn't really need any of that right now.

All he needed was a three-year interest-subsidized loan contract for an amount not exceeding 8 million yuan.

The funds would be disbursed directly from the Bank of Nanjang to his account, with the interest covered by Nanjang Province.

Subsequently, if he continued to conduct scientific research and technology transfer in Nanjang Province, he would receive further project support based on his team's level and the project's content. The level of support would be determined by a comprehensive assessment of the team category and project grade.

Further down the line, if his setup was recognized as a new type of R&D center and reached the municipal or provincial level, there would be support policies in place.

Moreover, if any of these policies overlapped, the principle of "apply the highest non-repeating benefit" would be followed.

According to this official, a Mr. Hao, he was the very first top domestic and international talent to sign on since the pilot of Nanjang's new talent policy.

Lu Shixian could only surmise that Mei Xingguo had been very good to him.

His current academic research capabilities were naturally far beyond the standard, but even the best wine needs promotion. He had no foundation in Nanjang whatsoever.

Obtaining a contract of this level would have been impossible without Old Mei pulling strings behind the scenes.

Moreover, he couldn't help but admire Mei Xingguo's boldness.

Part of it was certainly Nanjang Province's bet on him personally, believing he could bring greater benefits to the entire province in the future.

Another part was undoubtedly the desire to turn him into a shining advertisement, using him to promote Nanjang's new talent policy.

He fully understood Mei Xingguo's decision. After all, talent is a strategic resource for development.

Without an advantage in talent, there is no advantage in innovation or development.

Lu Shixian wouldn't be surprised to see this in the future, as it was common for multiple provinces to fight tooth and nail to attract talent.

But now, in 2017, he could only marvel at Mei Xingguo's foresight.

Lu Shixian kept thinking, I have to hold on tight to this connection!

He hadn't heard of any major changes for Mei Xingguo in the next three years.

But based on this vision alone, Lu Shixian felt like running up to Old Mei, patting him on the shoulder, and saying, "Hey handsome, I've got my eye on you!"

Of course, that was just a fantasy.

For now, it was not appropriate for him to interact directly with Mei Xingguo.

First, to avoid suspicion, and second, to live up to the trust placed in him.

Third, only by achieving results first could he stand tall and speak with confidence. He had greater needs and expectations for the future.

With things more or less settled here, Lu Shixian booked a flight back to Yale.

However, on the way to the airport, he called Mei Ting back to express his thanks tactfully.

Although Mei Ting seemed to let his words go in one ear and out the other, he believed the message would reach Mei Xingguo.

He felt a little bad for Teacher Mei, but for now, she really could only serve as a means to an end.

On the third day after returning to Yale.

The eight million from the Bank of Nanjang finally arrived.

However, in less than a minute, the money vanished from his account and was transferred to the lab's dedicated account.

With the money problem solved, Lu Shixian began to devote himself completely to what might be his last project in the United States.

At this stage, the development of biopharmaceuticals based on whole plants was crucial for him; it was a key link in completing his subsequent plans.

Speaking of which, he felt a little ashamed.

Ever since becoming the de facto head of the pathology lab, he had been constantly on the move, dealing with all sorts of miscellaneous matters.

Whether it was attending the 19th International Botanical Congress in the Special Administrative Region, attending the Horwitz Prize ceremony at Columbia University, or finding a way to go back to his home country to raise funds.

These things undoubtedly took up a considerable amount of time, but they were unavoidable.

For someone determined to continuously climb the academic ladder, this was something he was not quite used to.

He actually missed the old days of research, where he could stay in the lab without setting foot outside.

But sometimes, there was indeed a disconnect between ideals and reality.

The next morning, Lu Shixian arrived at the lab to the surprised gazes of everyone.

But only for a moment. They quickly refocused their attention on the experiments at hand.

Lu Shixian took a small step closer.

If he remembered correctly, the person closest to him was Anderson, a postdoctoral intern, who was currently preparing for an experiment.

"Still the recombination experiment today?"

Hearing the voice beside him, Anderson nodded quickly.

"Yes, Professor Lu!" His voice was slightly excited.

After all, this was his first time being in such close contact with the lab's big boss.

As a former member of the Yale University Plant Pathology Laboratory, he had previously studied plant virology under a professor who worked for Professor Curry.

After Curry left, his old boss also left, but he remained here, following Feng Er'nuo on a new research topic.

For him, and for all graduate students studying plant pathology, there was a certain legendary aura around Lu Shixian.

At only twenty-six, he had already plucked the most dazzling pearl in the field.

This meant that all related textbooks and theories would be rewritten because of him.

It was an outrageous feat, as if in a normal marathon with competitors of the same level, someone had finished the entire race at the speed of a hundred-meter dash.

Seeing Anderson suddenly become a bit flustered, Lu Shixian knew he was disrupting his work.

And since he happened to have an itch to get his hands dirty, he took a test tube from him.

"You'll assist me from now on. I'll do the procedure, okay?"

Anderson was stunned for a moment.

In his academic career, he had never seen a lab's big boss personally conduct an experiment.

After a second, he reacted and said, "Okay, I'll go get the sample DNA."

Generally, the first step in a DNA recombination experiment is to identify the target sequence, which can be a gene, a DNA fragment, or any other sequence that needs to be altered.

Currently, the entire lab's project was still focused on *Nicotiana benthamiana* and had not yet moved on to developing new whole plant species.

So the sample DNA he mentioned referred to the genes in *Nicotiana benthamiana* used to express carbohydrates. This material was not prepared on the spot but was usually prepared in advance.

From here on, every subsequent step was crucial.

Chapter 538: Patent Application

First was DNA amplification, to amplify the target sequence. The method generally used for this amplification is the Polymerase Chain Reaction, widely known as PCR.

The principle of PCR is very simple, much like the mathematical equation 1+1=2.

The two "1"s are the DNA template and the primers, the plus sign is the DNA polymerase, and the equals sign symbolizes the cyclical reaction.

The result is a large quantity of the target sequence.

Next is the preparation of the vector DNA. A suitable vector DNA is chosen, usually a plasmid or a phage.

The previous procedure is repeated to amplify the vector DNA.

Then, the PCR-amplified vector DNA and the amplified target DNA fragment are taken and cut with the same restriction endonuclease.

During this process, the vector DNA and the target DNA fragment will catalyze with the restriction endonuclease.

The enzyme cuts these DNAs into complementary sticky ends, which facilitates their subsequent ligation.

After that, DNA ligase is used to join the target sequence with the vector DNA.

In this process, the role of DNA ligase is to catalyze the ligation reaction between the target sequence and the vector DNA.

The ligated DNA will re-form into a circular DNA molecule, also known as a recombinant plasmid.

The final step is transformation, where the recombinant plasmid is introduced into a host cell. The methods for transformation are typically heat shock or electroporation.

During transformation, the cell will absorb this foreign DNA and integrate it into its own chromosome.

After this procedure is completed, if there are no surprises, one will obtain host cells recombined with the target sequence.

But in academic research, there are always "ifs" and surprises.

Therefore, a screening process is still required, using methods such as culturing on a selective medium or detecting a fluorescent reporter gene.

DNA recombination experiments are something students encounter from their graduate or even undergraduate years.

Anderson was no stranger to it; he was quite familiar, otherwise he wouldn't have been selected for Feng Er'nuo's experimental team.

His experimental skills might not be as comprehensive as Lande's, but when it came to DNA recombination experiments alone, he was quite adept.

However, watching Lu Shixian's fluid and aesthetically pleasing technique, which proceeded without any hesitation, Anderson was completely dumbfounded.

He couldn't imagine someone treating an experiment like a fixed set of movements in a workout routine.

Doesn't he need to stop and think in the middle of it?

If Lu Shixian could hear his thoughts, he would surely answer that this was the very skill he had relied on to make a living.

We were all just grunts in the lab, so why did he make it to the top? It's because he did it so many times it became muscle memory.

Soon, they reached the final transformation experiment.

After a while.

"There shouldn't be any major problems, but as with any experiment, failure is always a possibility. You can handle the screening below," Lu Shixian said, stepping back from the lab bench. "Is Professor Feng Er'nuo in his office?"

"I have something to discuss with him, so I'll be going."

He went to the changing room and took off his white coat.

The long period of concentration made Lu Shixian involuntarily press his temples.

Leaving there, he arrived at the door of an office.

He knocked lightly and heard Feng Er'nuo's voice from inside.

"Who is it? Please come in!"

As Lu Shixian walked in, he saw Feng Er'nuo stand up in surprise. "Professor Lu?"

"Why did you come over yourself? I would have come to you to report on anything."

"A short walk is good," Lu Shixian smiled. "If you stay in the lab all the time, all sorts of minor ailments start to creep up."

Feng Er'nuo laughed along. "Haha, you're already paying attention to this at your age. But then again, you can't be judged by ordinary standards."

After a few pleasantries, Lu Shixian got straight to the point. "The funding has arrived."

"How is the progress of the various teams in the project group?"

Feng Er'nuo's expression was calm as he reported, "The progress is very good. As it stands, we are on track to complete the initial research on candidate vaccine strains and the intermediate experimental phase before the end of the year."

After speaking, he frowned slightly. "However, considering the subsequent intermediate experiments, shouldn't we start preparing the application for transgenic experiment approval in advance?"

Lu Shixian nodded. "That was an oversight on my part. You've reminded me of something important."

"You've put a lot of effort into this project, Professor Feng Er'nuo."

"I will increase your performance bonus accordingly."

Feng Er'nuo shook his head with a smile. "You know, when it comes to things one is interested in, anyone would be highly motivated."

"At the old pathology research center, I could never find research as interesting and important as this."

"Besides, this is my job!"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian said to him with feeling, "Thank you for your hard work!"

He now understood how important it was to have a capable assistant by his side.

The difference compared to before was enormous.

In the past, he had always done everything himself, and every decision had to come from him.

He was mostly the one making decisions, and the people below him executed them; no one could advise him.

Meilin was good, but compared to a veteran like Feng Er'nuo, she was still too green and needed further training and development.

The preparation of biopharmaceuticals has never been a simple matter; it is a massive process.

Especially for new drugs developed through transgenic technology, the steps involved are even more complex.
Just the environmental release trial phase alone required prior animal testing. This typically involved inoculating various rodents, including mice, with the vaccine at 10 or 100 times the normal immunization dose. They were then observed for several months until none of the inoculated animals showed any significant abnormal symptoms.

Following that, further tests were necessary to check for clinical adverse reactions, significant pathological changes, viral shedding, and horizontal transmission of the virus.

This was just for the animal portion. If humans were involved, the entire process would need to be repeated, but only after establishing sufficient safety protocols and contingency plans.

Only after completing all these stages could one proceed to the safety certificate application and vaccine registration process, eventually leading to the product entering the market.

Of course, these were all plans for the future.

After the intermediate trials were complete, Lu Shixian needed to start preparing the patent application.

To be honest, this was no easy task, as he was applying for an international patent. But getting it done now would prevent major trouble down the road.

This meant he had to file applications in every country or region, excluding only those with absolutely no development value.

Lu Shixian was already prepared for a major expense.

After all, professional matters should be handled by professionals.

He planned to seek out a professional patent application team to help him complete this task.

His time was very tight now; he shouldn't be wasting it on such things.

Chapter 539: A Pleasure Working with You

When one is wholeheartedly focused on a single task, time always seems to fly by.

After the Nobel Prizes were announced, the year was already drawing to a close.

With much anticipation, 2018 finally greeted the world.

The footsteps of spring were also drawing near.

After the genetically modified experiment project was approved, Feng Er'nuo soon followed up with good news. "Professor Lu, we did it!"

"The results of the intermediate trial are out. Our new pharmaceutical method has passed the theoretical and experimental validation."

Hearing this news, Lu Shixian finally let out a long sigh of relief.

The previous experimental phase alone had already cost more than two million, which was all the savings he had in his bank account.

Now, the latter half of the validation experiments had nearly depleted the one million plus he had borrowed from a Nankiang bank.

Frankly, if they didn't succeed soon, he really didn't know where he would get more money.

"Excellent! Professor Feng Er'nuo, I want you all to focus completely on writing the paper now," Lu Shixian said in a serious tone. "I'll get started on the patent application. We'll tackle this on two fronts and aim to wrap things up as quickly as possible."

With a nod, Feng Er'nuo turned and left the office.

Once he was gone, Lu Shixian made a call to Rossman to inquire about patent agencies.

As expected, Rossman's connections never disappointed him.

In less than an hour, a professional agency contacted him.

"Professor Lu, hello. My name is Vya. I'm the head agent for the Connecticut area and will be your dedicated contact for this matter." A very capable female voice came through the phone. "Do you have time to meet in person?"

Lu Shixian had no objections. "Of course, I'd be delighted. I'm currently at Yale University."

Hearing this, Vya quickly replied, "Two o'clock this afternoon at the Lemon Cafe. How does that sound?"

"Perfect. See you then!" Lu Shixian agreed and hung up.

Lu Shixian rarely drank coffee, but that didn't mean he didn't know of the Lemon Cafe.

The shop was on his regular route from his apartment to Yale.

The meeting time soon arrived, and Lu Shixian reached his destination ten minutes early.

Walking into the cafe, he quickly noticed a figure at a two-person table by the window.

It wasn't afternoon tea time, so the cafe was nearly empty.

Therefore, Lu Shixian was almost certain that this was the person he was looking for.

"Hello, Ms. Vya?" Lu Shixian approached and ventured a greeting, a sort of password check.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Professor Lu." The woman turned her head, revealing a standard professional smile.

The woman was clearly not young, but a well-applied layer of makeup could subtly conceal the traces of time.

There was a hint of surprise in her tone. "You're much younger than I imagined. Although Mr. Rossman gave me a brief introduction, I still find it hard to believe."

Lu Shixian smiled. "Ma'am, you're quite young yourself, in fact. You can't be much older than I am."

This conversational atmosphere seemed to get things off to a good start.

Just then, a waiter brought over the two lattes that had been ordered in advance.

Vya elegantly lifted one of the cups, brought it to her lips for a sip, and then asked, "Professor Lu, what type of patent are you looking to apply for?"

"A new preparation method for a biologic drug based on whole plants," Lu Shixian answered without hesitation.

Vya's expression remained unchanged. "So, a process patent, which falls under the category of an invention patent."

Lu Shixian nodded. "Yes, ma'am. I'd like to apply for an international patent for it, meaning it would be applicable in multiple countries."

Vya nodded as well, her expression showing she understood his request.

"Actually, there's no such thing as an 'international patent'," she explained, putting down her coffee. "It's more of an international application for a patent."

"You're thinking of the old way. To obtain patent protection in multiple countries, you had to file separate applications in each one, a process that was incredibly tedious and complex."

"But now, if a national of a PCT—Patent Cooperation Treaty—contracting state wants to apply for patent protection for a technology in one or more PCT member countries, they can follow the PCT procedure and submit an application in a designated language to a designated patent office. In other words, filing a patent application in one country is considered as having filed in all PCT member states."

To be honest, Lu Shixian was not familiar with these details at all, which made him applaud his own decision to find a professional.

Vya continued, "Professor Lu, I hear you're from China, which is also a member of the PCT, so there are no issues on that front. We can help you file an international patent application through the China National Intellectual Property Administration."

"However, will you be choosing the PCT international application or the Paris Convention route?"

This question stumped him. "What's the difference between the two?"

"Compared to the Paris Convention route, the PCT international application takes much longer, and besides the national phase fees, there are additional international phase costs," Vya explained in a highly professional tone. "However, the disadvantage of the latter is that it doesn't have the ability to prevent others from obtaining a patent for the same technology in those countries."

"My personal recommendation is that you proceed with a PCT international application, even though it will take more time."

"But this is not something you need to worry about, Professor Lu. Our agency will handle everything."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian undoubtedly had his answer.

He shook his head helplessly. "This means I'll have to pay a higher price."

"But I don't have another choice, do I?"

At these words, Vya smiled. "Professor Lu, please believe me, this will be a pleasant collaboration!"

He paid the deposit that day, not knowing if the remaining balance on his card was even enough, but necessary expenses couldn't be spared.

In the time that followed.

On Lu Shixian's end, once the money was in place, the efficiency was remarkable.

In less than a month, Vya's team had already sent him the first draft of the application documents.

After he reviewed it, they submitted the application on his behalf and obtained the notice of acceptance from the national patent office.

It was currently in the international search phase.

Meanwhile, Feng Er'nuo's team was also making swift progress. They had already completed the main body of the paper and would be ready for submission in about half a month.

At the same time, several incidental discoveries from the experiments in this project could be turned into a few good research papers.

However, writing these was not something they would handle personally; the work was delegated to graduate students in the project group who had contributed significantly.

Chapter 540: Yale's Youngest

Lu Shixian would also occasionally drop by the lab to offer them guidance.

Everything was proceeding according to plan.

Under these circumstances, Lu Shixian's every day was incredibly fulfilling.

Just then, Lu Shixian received a call from home.

"Son, are you coming back for the New Year this year?" It was Ms. Xia Xiuman.

Lu Shixian was taken aback for a moment, not sure what she meant, as he had returned home for the New Year almost every year.

In the United States, the liveliest time was Christmas and Christmas Eve at the end of the year.

But the celebration was theirs, and Lu Shixian had none of it, for it was not his holiday.

"Why wouldn't I? Of course I'm coming back," Lu Shixian replied without a second thought.

However, he remembered that the Chinese New Year was in February this year. It was only January, still twenty-some days away.

For them to be urging him already, could something be up at home?

But even if he was going home for the New Year, he had to arrange his work here first.

He mentally ran through his schedule.

The main thing he needed to handle before the year's end was to completely take over the reins Rossman was leaving him.

That's right, the transition period was over.

He was to become the Director of the Yale University Pathology Laboratory.

For the members of the lab, this wasn't a huge deal.

Lu Shixian had been doing the job all along; Rossman was just the director in name.

But with this promotion in rank, his faculty position had to match.

The position corresponding to a principal investigator was a full professor.

So, Rossman found Lu Shixian and said, "Congratulations, Lu. You now meet the requirements for a full professorship."

"Our biology department warmly welcomes you."

Lu Shixian was very tempted, but also hesitant. "I'm afraid I won't have that much time for teaching. Plus, I have no experience mentoring students!"

"It's not that we expect you to focus your main energy there. You just need to set aside a little time each week to complete a fixed number of hours," Rossman encouraged him. "To become a full professor at Yale in your twenties is truly rare."

"But in Yale's long history, it's not without precedent, and those young people all managed very well."

"I'm confident you will be nothing short of outstanding."

Lu Shixian was left speechless and could only accept the appointment.

And so, in early February.

Yale University held a special professor appointment ceremony for him.

The ceremony took place in an auditorium and was presided over by Rossman, who was both the Dean of Academic Affairs and the Chair of the Biology Department.

All the professors from the biology department were also in attendance.

Meanwhile, in a corner of the auditorium, numerous university media outlets were reporting on this ad hoc appointment ceremony.

President Salovey was attending the ceremony to present the appointment letter to someone not yet thirty years old.

This was very rare news and had great promotional value.

"My boy, congratulations," Salovey said solemnly as he handed the appointment letter to him. "May truth and light always be with you. I believe that with you joining us, Yale will become even more vibrant."

Lu Shixian expressed his sincere gratitude.

Amidst warm applause and kind gazes, the appointment ceremony drew to a close.

From this day on, his personal introduction would include a new line: Professor, Department of Biology, Yale University, since 2018.

As the attendees began to leave, he was stopped by a reporter from the Yale Daily News.

The person interviewing him seemed to be a student.

He excitedly held the microphone up to Lu Shixian's face and asked, "Professor Lu, as the youngest professor in Yale's biology department, is there anything you'd like to say to everyone?"

Lu Shixian raised an eyebrow, surprised to learn he held one of Yale's "youngest" titles.

Anything he wanted to say?

Not really.

Compared to many genius predecessors, he was still far behind.

He couldn't let a little achievement go to his head.

But he couldn't just stand there in silence.

So, Lu Shixian thought for a few seconds and replied, "Anyone who comes to study or work at Yale is undoubtedly among the best of their peers."

"In this environment at Yale, no matter what challenges we face, interacting with the outstanding professors and students around us will surely become one of the most precious experiences of our lives."

The emotional intelligence in that answer was off the charts.

Not only was the reporter satisfied, but Lu Shixian himself was quite pleased with it too.

Having gotten what he wanted, the campus reporter no longer bothered Lu Shixian, bidding him farewell before leaving.

Lu Shixian departed as well.

At this point, he had no more urgent matters to attend to for the time being.

The paper on the whole-plant-based biologic drug preparation method had been sent to *Cell* on schedule.

He was listed only as the corresponding author, with Feng Er'nuo and others as first authors.

His involvement in this project was not that extensive; he mostly guided the overall direction.

He already had enough first-author papers in the top three journals; he didn't need this one.

What mattered most was that the patent rights were in his hands.

However, now that he was a professor at Yale, he was required to teach four class hours per month.

Rossman hadn't lied to him; it averaged out to about one class a week, a workload he could accept.

Since he was going back to China for the New Year in February, he planned to complete this month's teaching duties in advance.

Once he finished these four classes, he would be ready to head home.

As for taking on graduate students, he decided to put that on hold and deal with it after he returned from the New Year holiday.

If it weren't for the strict requirement that professors qualified as graduate advisors must mentor three or more students within a specified period, he wouldn't have the mind to deal with it at all.

Soon, Rossman's office finished the official onboarding process and sent him a notice asking for his input.

"Including your recent work in biomedicine, I see you've dabbled in quite a few fields," Rossman asked. "So which course do you actually want to teach?"

"Cell Biology, Plant Pathology, Molecular Breeding, or Genetics?"

"Pick one."

Lu Shixian thought for half a second before giving his answer. "Let's go with Genetics."

"I am a member of the Drosophila school, after all. It wouldn't be right not to spread the glory of genetics."

This piqued Rossman's interest. "How so?"

So he retold the joke he had made back at UCD.

After hearing it, Rossman burst out laughing. "Hahaha."

"And now, in your generation, you've gone off to study medicine."

"So, you're saying in your entire school of thought, only Morgan actually focused on genetics."

Lu Shixian was a little exasperated by the laughter. "What's wrong with that? Everything is within genetics."

"After all, you can't deny that any research involving life sciences cannot escape the foundational laws of heredity."

Chapter 541: Money or No Money, Go Home for the New Year

The spring semester, another start to the academic year.

Aaron, a new freshman in the biology department, was sitting at his desk with a look of utter despair on his face.

On his desk lay a pile of books marked with library call numbers, including *Plant Genetics*, *Foundations of Genetics*, *Genetics: A Schaum's Outline*, and *Principles of Genetics*—various textbooks and supplementary materials on the subject.

In high school, he had fantasized more than once about what his studies and life in college would be like.

But he had never imagined the experience of having a genetics professor who looked younger than he was.

The most crucial part was that this professor's level was clearly anything but ordinary.

If you didn't pre-read the material in the textbook, or gain a deeper understanding of genetics, you could easily fall behind in class, causing your grade in the course to plummet.

"This guy is brutal! Can't he teach something we can all understand?" Aaron found this fact hard to accept. After all, he had been a straight-A student in high school.

"Relax. This Professor Lu is no simple character. I saw a few unfamiliar upperclassmen sitting in the back with us, so I asked them. They're graduate students," said Adrian, who was sitting next to him, appearing much calmer.

"According to them, Professor Lu is a top scholar in botany, and a winner of the Dan David Prize and the Horwitz Prize, the latter being a top award in biology." Adrian's tone was one of disbelief. "Aaron, do you know what the craziest part is?"

"What? Don't tell me he's won a Nobel Prize?" Aaron said, a hint of frustration in his voice.

Adrian snapped his fingers. "No, but he was very close."

"In fact, the guy you were just cursing out was one of the hot candidates for last year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry."

Aaron was instantly silenced, turning his attention back to the books in front of him.

Meanwhile, Lu Shixian, having completed his teaching duties for the month, had assigned homework and was already on his way back to Nankiang.

Over the past half month, he had agonized a bit over the course content.

In the end, he decided to raise the level of the course slightly, expanding on the original material just a little.

This way, it shouldn't feel too simple for the students, nor too obscure and difficult to understand.

But that was on the condition that they had the initiative for self-study and could solidify their foundational knowledge on their own.

After all, Yale was a top university worldwide. The students who made it here were inherently capable.

The class he taught had fewer than twenty students in total.

Most of them were able to keep up with his pace in class.

A small number could even discuss with him topics like the deep exploration of the human genome and its relation to human origins.

Even for those who couldn't keep up, the power of money was a power nonetheless. He held no judgment against them and, in fact, encouraged them to continue contributing to the university.

He was now back in Nankiang, with just over an hour to go before he reached home.

On top of that, he had just received a reply from *Cell* in his email.

[Dear Professor Lu, Thank you for your continued support of the journal *Cell*. After a comprehensive review of the opinions of three referees, your manuscript, "A Preparation Method for a Biologic Drug Based on Whole Plants," has passed peer review. It was highly praised, with a consensus that it represents an outstanding piece of work. Your findings will be published in the March issue.]

Money or no money, it's time to go home for the New Year.

Although Lu Shixian's pockets were empty, receiving this news put him in an excellent mood. He even found himself humming a little tune on the way.
When he got home, Lu Shixian was stunned to find an unexpected face among the welcoming party.

"Sis?" Lu Shixian said, slightly surprised. "Shouldn't you be at work at this hour? What are you doing here?"

Xia Yubing couldn't stand it. She turned to Ms. Xia Xiuman. "Auntie, look at him! He's gotten so important now he doesn't even want me around."

"You know, this kid used to be so clingy when he was little. I even changed his diapers with my own hands. And now he's turning his back on me, is that it?"

Lu Shixian felt his temples throb. He knew it. She always loved to improvise.

Just as he was about to argue with her, he heard his mom say, "Alright, that's enough from both of you. I invited Yubing over."

"We called you back this time to talk about something important concerning you."

"That's right, the lifelong kind!" Xia Yubing chimed in from the side.

A bad feeling immediately crept into Lu Shixian's heart. Someone was definitely up to something.

Then, Old Lu, who usually kept a low profile, stepped forward.

"Son, I know you're busy, so I didn't want to rush you back."

"But I went to see an old army buddy last week, right? And I happened to mention your situation."

"Who knew that old dog would say he also has a daughter in academia, and she's single too. What a coincidence, right?"

"I wasn't really thinking about it, but his offer was too warm to refuse. After all, we served together."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian already understood what was going on.

He was floored. He never expected it to be *this*.

At this moment, Ms. Xia Xiuman joined the fray. "It's all his fault. He has no filter and loves to brag in front of others."

"But then I thought, this isn't necessarily a bad thing! You're not a kid anymore. I'm not trying to rush you or anything, but you can't put all your energy into research. You can start by getting to know her. At least give us a little hope!"

"Let me tell you, Yubing is incredibly popular at her workplace. So many young men are pursuing her. That's why I specifically called her over to give you a crash course."

With that, Xia Yubing shot him a wink, patted her chest, and declared, "Leave it to me, Auntie. I'll make sure he gets the picture today. I'm an expert, you know."

Lu Shixian was completely speechless.

He never thought the day would come when he'd be set up on a blind date.

He really wasn't in the right mindset for it, but his parents meant well, so he had to go through with it.

As for Xia Yubing, he'd just ignore her.

An expert in theory, you mean?

And so, for the next two hours, Xia Yubing chattered away tirelessly in front of him.

But two hours passed, and Lu Shixian showed no reaction. He was about to fall asleep from listening.

"Hey, are you even listening to me?" Xia Yubing was on the verge of losing her mind.

"I am, I am. That was a great speech!" Lu Shixian applauded. "But you don't have to give it again next time."

Chapter 542: First Impression

A week before the New Year.

Lu Shixian reluctantly set off for Jinling.

He had no choice. It was a task assigned by his parents, and he had to at least pretend to take it seriously.

Today, he was meeting a young woman named Li Meng.

A few days ago, his father had given him Li Meng's WeChat, and under their supervision, he had successfully added her as a friend.

With the intention of just making a new friend, Lu Shixian sent her a friend request.

Perhaps she also had someone watching over her shoulder, as the request was accepted within three seconds.

Shi Bu Yu: Hello, nice to meet you.

Li Bu Meng: Hi there, nice to meet you too.

Lu Shixian's personality wasn't naturally dense, but the root of all such "clueless" behavior was a simplified mindset.

His goal wasn't romance but friendship, so he kept it casual and as simple as possible.

He didn't bother with details like his name or age, nor did he need to.

That was information they would have already known before meeting, unless they truly ran out of things to talk about.

Lu Shixian didn't have much to say, so he had no intention of finding topics for conversation.

Shi Bu Yu: How about we meet at the Jinling Library in three days?

After he sent the message, he saw the "... is typing" indicator on her end suddenly stop.

A few seconds later, it reappeared, and her reply came through.

Li Bu Meng: Is that so? I think that sounds pretty good.

Shi Bu Yu: OK! It's a date then.

They exchanged a few more pleasantries, and their first chat came to an end.

In Lu Shixian's eyes, this was an excellent start.

He had sent a friendly greeting and set a time and place for their first meeting.

After they met once, the matter would most likely be over.

The weather in Jinling in February was never pleasant—dry and cold.

On this day, Lu Shixian put on a thick down jacket and left home for his appointment.

"What a pain!" Feeling the stark contrast between the warmth of his home and the icy world outside, he thought this kind of weather was meant for staying indoors, roasting by the fire and snacking on sunflower seeds.

Curling up on a recliner with a book—now that was comfort.

He wasn't exactly a homebody, but this blasted weather gave him no choice.

Fortunately, the journey to the Jinling Library wasn't entirely without interest.

He had once traveled this road to absorb knowledge.

Walking it again now brought a different kind of feeling.

But when he arrived at his destination, the place was the same, but the people were gone.

The week before the Spring Festival was the quietest time of year here.

Even the librarian on duty was surprised to see him walk in.

The old auntie from before was no longer there, and the library card he had specially brought with him had long since expired.

Lu Shixian had no intention of getting a new one. He casually picked up a magazine from a display stand and flipped through it idly.

Returning to this old haunt, he felt a wave of nostalgia. For time, like a river, flows ceaselessly, day and night.

This place had been his companion for an entire vacation. Months of coming here, rain or shine, had been arduous but also incredibly rewarding.

It wasn't just about how much he had learned here; more importantly, he had cultivated a good habit of seeking knowledge.

Just as he was lost in thought, the pleasant scent of shower gel drifted through the air, and a graceful figure appeared in the seat opposite him.

He looked up to see a finely dressed young woman setting down her shoulder bag. She asked tentatively, "Are you Lu Shixian?"

Lu Shixian nodded, not at all surprised that she could recognize him.

At this hour, there was practically no one else in the library.

Li Meng, for her part, was pleasantly surprised.

To be honest, when she heard their first meeting was set at a library, she had already formed a certain impression.

But as the saying goes, the lower the expectation, the greater the happiness.

Although Lu Shixian was wearing a thick down jacket that made him look a bit bulky, his underlying features were good. All those years of hard work and exercise had paid off.

His hair was still thick, and his looks were more than decent.

Coupled with the unique aura he possessed as a scholar, his first impression was quite a positive one.

So, Li Meng decided to be a bit more proactive. If she waited for him to take the lead, they'd be waiting forever.

"I hear you went to Yanda for your undergraduate degree and are abroad now? Are you studying there?"

Lu Shixian's first impression of her was also quite good.

He thought for a moment and replied, "Something like that. But I'm mainly doing research there now."

As soon as he said this, he saw no surprise in Li Meng's eyes.

Evidently, Comrade Lu Jianguo had already sold him out completely.

But he knew his father's personality—a bit competitive, unwilling to show weakness.

Once he had something to talk about, he loved to show off in front of his friends.

In reality, though, his father only knew the general gist of things.

Li Meng continued, "So which university are you at in the States?"

He simply replied, "Yale," and quickly saw her expression of astonishment.

"Wow! Yanda for undergrad and now Yale for grad school, that's really impressive!"

Lu Shixian remained modest. "It's just the usual. Yale is just okay."

But after saying that, he felt it sounded a bit like he was showing off, so he added, "It's because many of my classmates went to even better universities than I did."

This time, Li Meng found it a bit more acceptable and even started to comfort him.

"I get it. Just getting into Yanda is hard enough. There are some real freaks in there, racking up GPA points and publishing papers like it's nothing." Li Meng continued with deep empathy, "And then there are those monsters who can graduate early. It's just ridiculous, they don't give anyone else a chance to live!"

Lu Shixian had been just listening, but the more he heard, the more something felt off.

You can talk all you want, but don't start naming names and making veiled references!

He had to interject, pleading, "It's not that bad, is it?"

"It's not that ridiculous, and it doesn't really have much to do with us."

Who knew this would provoke a rebuttal from Li Meng. "You don't know. I met one at Fudan. He was just a freshman two years ago, and this year he's already a junior graduate student in our school."

"I heard he's about to publish a paper in a Q2 SCI journal. It made our advisor say we've been too comfortable and that he needs to turn up the heat."

"So now, every one of us has to publish an SCI paper in finance this year. Tell me, isn't he despicable?"

"Uh..." Lu Shixian was at a loss for words.

But when you don't know what to say, agreeing is always a safe bet.

"I guess he does seem a little bit like that."

"Not a little bit, a lot," Li Meng quickly corrected his slip of the tongue, then continued asking, "I heard you're about to win an award in the States? Is it a scholarship? How did it go?"

Now, it was Lu Shixian's turn to be embarrassed.

Why did his dad tell her everything?

Chapter 543: What's Your 'Lu'?

And yet, it seemed he hadn't told her everything.

Logically, he shouldn't be a nobody at this point.

So, he took a different approach and asked, "Um, have you never heard my name before?"

Li Meng smiled and nodded. "Of course, I have! God Lu is my idol!"

"Wasn't there a big fuss about him and GMOs a while back? But now that God Lu was nominated for the Nobel Prize last year, all those trolls who were cursing him have finally shut up."

As if the mere mention of this name made her eyes light up.

Finding a common topic, Li Meng became much more animated. "You know, your name is actually quite similar to God Lu's. Is it a homophone?"

"His name is Lu as in 'land,' Shi as in 'time,' and Xian as in 'envy.' So, what's your 'Lu' character?"

At this moment, Lu Shixian couldn't describe his feelings.

When chatting with a girl, if the topic of conversation is another guy, no man would be happy.

However, if that other guy is yourself, that's a different story.

But after all this, she actually thought he was an imposter?

That was, once again, a bit frustrating.

So, Lu Shixian put down his book and said suddenly, "So, is there any possibility that I am the 'Lu' you're talking about?"

At these words, Li Meng froze, her eyes gradually filling with disbelief.

"You're God Lu?"

Seeing her reaction, Lu Shixian chuckled and shook his head. "I wouldn't call myself 'God Lu,' but if you're referring to the Lu you just mentioned, then that would be me."

It took Li Meng some time to process this news.

"Oh my god! My blind date is actually God Lu?" Li Meng quickly took out her phone. "Excuse me, can I post this on my Moments first?"

Lu Shixian could no longer fathom the thought process of a fangirl, but he still said, "Be my guest."

And so, after a round of photos together, Li Meng asked a bit sheepishly, "God Lu, it seems I've taken up your time today."

She then pointed to her watch. "It's almost time for dinner. To make it up to you, how about... I treat you to some roast duck?"

Lu Shixian initially wanted to refuse, thinking he was the one who asked her out, so how could he let her pay.

But he couldn't escape her enthusiasm, and besides, their families had some connection. Refusing her now would be too impersonal.

So, thinking he would treat her next time, he agreed.

And just like that, since they were both from Jinling, he and Li Meng soon arrived at a time-honored Jinling salted duck restaurant.

With everything out in the open, the atmosphere between them became much more natural.

"Your program at Fudan is pretty good, starting everyone off with an SCI paper. That's much stricter than in my day," Lu Shixian asked, a little surprised.

Li Meng looked a bit embarrassed. "Well, our school's economics and management department is really good, but there's still a big difference between economics and biology. It's a bit easier for us to publish papers, and besides, the professor only said we had to publish in an SCI journal, he didn't specify which quadrant."

Lu Shixian understood instantly. He himself had been an expert at churning out papers and publishing in low-impact journals back in the day.

If he had been more business-minded then and started a paper-writing service, he might have made a fortune.

"Speaking of which, I actually studied economics too, though I've probably returned most of it to my professors at Yanda by now," Lu Shixian said with a smile.

This left Li Meng stunned again, but it also felt perfectly logical.

God Lu was truly a treasure trove of a guy.

But now, she didn't have any other ideas.

The gap between them was just too vast, almost dauntingly so.

God Lu was too brilliant; she clearly felt he was out of her league.

"So let's just be friends," Li Meng sighed quietly in her heart. "What kind of blind date did my dad set me up with?"

She quickly composed herself and asked curiously, "God Lu, everyone was disappointed you didn't win the Nobel last year, but not overly so. When do you think you'll win it?"

Lu Shixian smiled and shook his head. "That kind of thing is up to fate. If it's not meant to be, you can't force it. If it is, you can't escape it. All I can say is, trying to live a few more years is more important than anything."

With fewer reservations in his heart, his words made Li Meng laugh so hard she snorted.

Just then, the salted duck was served, and she composed herself slightly.

"I hear you've become a professor at Yale. Will you still come back to China to do research?"

Lu Shixian nodded. "Of course."

"But I can't say for sure when. It'll be within the next three years. Once I finish the project I'm working on, I'll resign from my teaching position at Yale."

Hearing this, Li Meng applauded softly. "Titans are just different!"

"You'll definitely be a professor when you come back. Although there are professors in their twenties in China, the thought that I actually know one of them is just surreal."

"God Lu! By being the 'kid from next door' and the star student of other schools, you're raising the blood pressure of our entire generation!"

Lu Shixian smiled.

"Pressure creates motivation, right?" He felt no guilt whatsoever. "Besides, it's not just me. Isn't there God Cao now too?"

At the mention of that name, Li Meng looked like she was about to cry.

"You guys... are all monsters..."

Before they parted, Lu Shixian waved his hand grandly. "Keep it up! Maybe you can even do a cross-disciplinary application and come to Yanda for a PhD in botany under me. I'll have your back!"

Li Meng was once again in a daze.

Because she realized that what Lu Shixian said was actually possible.

Fudan University was a top institution in China, second only to Yanda and Shuimu.

Many students from Fudan went on to graduate studies there every year, either by examination or recommendation.

And PhD programs allowed for cross-disciplinary applications, though it was quite difficult.

If that happened, she would have to call Lu Shixian 'advisor.'

Shaking the absurd thought from her mind, Li Meng concluded her fantastical day.

They went their separate ways, back to their respective homes and parents.

After fending off interrogations from his parents and celebrating the 2018 Spring Festival, Lu Shixian's vacation in China was coming to an end, and he was preparing to return to Yale.

However, a lot of work had already begun.

For instance, dozens of graduate school applications were sitting in Lu Shixian's inbox.

Aside from a few emails specifically requesting him as an advisor, most of them were assigned by Yale.

Many graduate students were admitted without having secured an advisor, so the university would provide lists of these students for professors to screen.

This was a reflection of reality. He was still too young, and many students couldn't accept that.

Those who were willing to swallow their pride and choose him were likely to be female.

Chapter 544: A Melon Plucked by Force

Of course, he held no prejudice against female students. In fact, in some areas, women had certain advantages.

Globally, the proportion of female biologists is quite high compared to other disciplines.

On the flight, Lu Shixian made a preliminary list of candidates for interviews.

Although this year's pool of applicants wasn't the absolute best, he still found many promising individuals, some with very impressive resumes.

However, Lu Shixian's criteria for selecting students were not based solely on top-tier journals or first-authorship.

He understood the difficult circumstances some graduate students faced and was not stingy with his goodwill.

As long as the basic requirements were met, he was more concerned with their grasp of fundamental knowledge and their understanding of their own research direction.

If someone managed to impress him, he wouldn't rule out making an exception and admitting them.

Via email, Lu Shixian sent his selected list of candidates to the university.

A unique round of interviews would commence upon his arrival in Connecticut.

Back at Yale, Lu Shixian immediately got to work.

Most of the interviews were conducted online.

A few candidates were from Yale itself, and Lu Shixian invited them to his office to complete their interviews in person.

One applicant named Hu Guoxing successfully caught his attention.

First, he was Chinese. Second, his research direction was very unusual.

"Mr. Hu, your project at Luojia University on the pseudo-recombinant chimeric cucumber mosaic virus-mediated gene silencing system and its application was actually quite outstanding. According to your academic resume, this paper has been published in the journal Planet Disease."
"Although you're the second author, the first author is your master's supervisor, whose primary research focus is on the structure of important disease-related membrane transport proteins. In such cases, we generally assume you contributed significantly to the paper's findings." In the video, Lu Shixian asked him with great curiosity, "This is one of the few achievements from your entire master's program. What made you decide to research this topic? It's quite an uncommon field, after all."

Across from him sat a young man who, at first glance, seemed rather ordinary.

He wore thick glasses, the kind of person who would quickly disappear if he walked into a crowd.

But when he spoke about topics that interested him, the light in his eyes was impossible to conceal.

"Professor Lu, I actually started this project by chance. It was originally supposed to be my senior's project, and I was just helping him out at the time."

"But he couldn't continue halfway through and ended up switching directions. I found it quite interesting, so I took it over," Hu Guoxing said, scratching his head a little sheepishly.

"I never expected researching this topic would be so difficult, though. It took up a huge amount of my time. Thankfully, I gritted my teeth and stuck with it. I was lucky enough to publish an SCI paper; otherwise, I don't know if I would have been able to graduate on time."

Lu Shixian nodded upon hearing this. "Very good. I believe luck always favors those who never give up."

"Why did you decide to apply for my PhD program? You know, I'm not very old, which means I don't have much experience supervising graduate students."

Hearing this question, Hu Guoxing looked a bit embarrassed. "To be honest, I sent applications to many PhD supervisors in China, but there were too many applicants and I was rejected."

"Then, by chance, I saw the list of professors at Yale recruiting doctoral students this year, and you were on it, Professor Lu. I just thought I'd give it a shot. I figured there might not be as many people applying to you, so what if I got lucky and succeeded?"

"As for the issue you mentioned, I don't think it's without its advantages. After all, every professor remembers their first group of graduate students vividly."

After listening, Lu Shixian smiled and shook his head. "I have to say, you're very honest, even if your words stung a little."

"I can tell you truthfully that the number of students who actively applied to be my graduate student was indeed not high."

"So your strategy was a success."

"Welcome to Yale!"

At these words, the surprise on Hu Guoxing's face was impossible to hide, and he jumped to his feet. "Thank you so much, Professor!"

In fact, his excitement was easy to understand.

Hu Guoxing had completed both his undergraduate and master's degrees at Luojia University. Although it was a Project 985 university in China, its overall strength wasn't consistently in the top ten, let alone its international ranking.

To have the chance to pursue his doctoral studies at Yale University was nothing short of a huge opportunity for him.

Lu Shixian wasn't as unpopular as he made himself out to be.

Though young, his academic achievements were considerable; it could be said that many senior PhD supervisors lacked his wealth of research accomplishments.

Not to mention he carried the halo of being a Nobel Prize candidate.

The reason so few people had actively applied was that this was his first time recruiting graduate students, and many people simply didn't know he was doing so.

If it were the following year, the situation would be vastly different.

Soon, after the interviews, he finalized his selection of three graduate students and reported it to the Yale Graduate School.

Besides Hu Guoxing from China, there were two other international students.

One was Caroline, from Norway in Northern Europe.

She was a stunning woman. The reason for choosing her was not, of course, her looks, but the fact that she was a huge fan of Lu Shixian and had come specifically for him.

Of course, that was a joke.

What Lu Shixian valued was her undergraduate background in mathematics and her master's research experience in bioinformatics.

This combination was very much to his liking.

Besides her, there was a male student named Evander, who was also one of the students interviewed on-site.

Yes, he was a Yale student, essentially reassigned for this interview.

Evander's greatest advantage was his dazzling academic resume. The total impact factor of the research he had participated in during his undergraduate and graduate studies exceeded one hundred.

He had even been a co-author on a paper published in the top-tier journal Nature, though he was just an inconspicuous name among the many authors.

It was clear that Evander's desire to become his student was not as strong as the other two.

But honestly, with qualifications like these, even Lu Shixian found it hard to refuse him.

A melon forced from the vine may not be sweet, but it can still quench your thirst.

Publishing in a top journal doesn't necessarily indicate one's academic level, but it is a symbol of capability in itself.

In this, Lu Shixian couldn't be impartial.

Soon, after confirming the intentions of both sides.

After a period of waiting, Lu Shixian finally welcomed his first group of graduate students.

No more, no less, exactly three: two men and one woman, from Asia, Europe, and North America, respectively.

Chapter 545: The Drosophila School

For their first meeting, Lu Shixian splurged, taking the three of them out for a meal at a rather expensive restaurant near Yale.

For him, this was his first time taking on students, making it a novel and memorable experience.

Before him, the three students all behaved differently.

"Although this is our first time meeting, we're all peers, so there's no need to be too formal. Feel free to say whatever is on your mind," Lu Shixian said gently, not putting on the airs of a supervisor. "I will do my best to fulfill my responsibilities and duties as a mentor."

Caroline was the most enthusiastic, immediately giving Lu Shixian a big hug.

"Professor Lu, I'm so happy!" Seeing her idol in person, she was incredibly excited. "I didn't think you would choose me!"

Lu Shixian kept backing away. "Alright, that's enough!"

"I understand your excitement, but could you please not hug me so tightly?"

"I'd rather not get a talking-to from the university tomorrow."

Although Lu Shixian said it in a joking tone, in the United States, this was no laughing matter.

The U.S. might have a liberal stance on gun ownership and even a tolerant attitude towards drug issues.

But American universities were unusually strict when it came to student-teacher relationships.

Some schools not only banned romantic relationships between students and teachers but also prohibited faculty, researchers, and even graduate students from having romantic or sexual relationships with anyone under their academic supervision or authority.

Harvard was probably the most thorough in this regard, strictly forbidding any romantic involvement between faculty and students, a policy that later became widespread across most major universities.

Although Lu Shixian disapproved of many things about America, he quite admired this particular point.

As a vital institution with the dual role of education and research, a university's significance to both the nation and society is immense.

Here, whether as a professor or a student, one should consciously uphold the fairness of education.

Academic researchers, in particular, must maintain a reverence for knowledge and academia.

Fortunately, after Lu Shixian's reminder, Caroline quickly realized the issue, reined in her excitement, and sheepishly stepped back.

Hu Guoxing, on the other hand, was just as timid as he had been during his interview, barely saying a word throughout the entire meal.

It was mostly Lu Shixian asking questions and him answering.

Of course, this was consistent with most of the Chinese graduate students he had met.

And Evander was just as he remembered him: cool, aloof, and exuding an air of confidence.

Of course, it was normal for talented people to have strong personalities.

Everyone's life experience is unique, and Lu Shixian couldn't expect everyone's personality to match his expectations.

As long as no bottom lines were crossed, it was fine. Seeking common ground while reserving differences was the principle of interaction he was emphasizing.

At this gathering, Lu Shixian gave his three students their first lesson of the semester, introducing his academic school of thought.

"Welcome to the Drosophila School. Its founder was Morgan, and you are now the youngest generation of this school."

This sentence made all three of them light up.

"Wow! That's amazing, is that for real? That's incredible!" Caroline exclaimed. "But none of the three of us study genetics."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian smiled and spread his hands. "In fact, our school now studies almost everything... except genetics."

This statement left them momentarily stunned.

However, although Lu Shixian was joking, he wasn't lying.

His criteria for recruiting graduate students were not rigid or limited to a single field; they were quite diverse.

Hu Guoxing's research was in plant pathology, while Caroline's was in bioinformatics.

Evander was even more of a stretch, with his main research area being neurobiology.

Rothman had even called him specifically to ask about the situation, wondering if he needed to make any adjustments.

But Lu Shixian had declined, saying he could handle it.

In fact, this was his ideal team composition: not a large group of students all studying the same thing, but a diverse collection, each with their own unique strengths.

But this meant that Lu Shixian had to have some proficiency in these fields himself to fulfill his duties as a mentor.

"Alright, let's wrap up our first meeting here," Lu Shixian said, like a doting father repeatedly instructing his children. "I hope you all will carry on our fine traditions, be united and friendly, respect your teachers and value their teachings, and adhere to the common principles of academic researchers."

With that matter settled, Lu Shixian gradually integrated them into his latest project team.

Although the paper on the method for producing biopharmaceuticals based on whole plants was about to be published, the groundbreaking results of this project were not limited to just that one shining achievement.

Many of the innovations and experimental data within it could each support a separate paper.

Lu Shixian downloaded the research results that Feng Ernuo had submitted to Cell, which had not yet been formally published, and gave each of the three a copy.

"I want you all to read this paper. It will be very helpful for your future research. And while you're at it, see if you can find any issues for the project team."

None of them knew that the paper had already passed the peer-review process at Cell's editorial office, so each of them eagerly picked up the paper and began to read.

However, after finishing it, the first to react was Hu Guoxing.

"Professor Lu, why do I feel like the characteristics of *Nicotiana benthamiana* in this study seem to have similarities with the Cucumber Mosaic Virus I studied before?"

Lu Shixian smiled, nodding in appreciation of his association. As expected of the first student he had chosen.

His insight was pretty good!

"Exactly! You can think along those lines and see what else can be mined from this project of mine."

His words sent Hu Guoxing deep into thought.

Next, Evander expressed his opinion.

"Although this result is unprecedented, the experimental procedures and techniques seem quite well-developed. Is it already approaching the clinical trial stage?"

Lu Shixian smiled but didn't answer the question, his expression noncommittal.

But inwardly, he was still satisfied with Evander's astuteness. With that kind of perception, it was no wonder he could repeatedly discover new findings.

To put it in Chinese terms, he had a great intuition for research.

Finally, it was Caroline's turn to speak.

"Can I just say I don't really get it? This stuff is still too complicated for someone who studied math."

"Hey, hey! Can you guys talk about something I can understand?"

Lu Shixian was very calm about this, as if he had expected it, and simply ignored her comment.

"It's good that you don't understand!"

"If you did understand, I'd start to wonder if I hired the wrong person."

"However, you still need to continue strengthening your knowledge of common biological concepts and fundamentals."

Chapter 546: The Max Planck Society

Lu Shixian did not intend to interfere too much in his three students' development, so he didn't immediately have them decide on their major research direction.

Instead, he let them join the group to acclimate first, to see how this new stage of research differed from their expectations.

In the process, they could think about what kind of research they truly wanted to pursue.

He would not force his students to follow his ideas.

Of course, situations might arise that even he couldn't handle, but he had powerful figures to back him up.

He could just call for backup, right? Problems he couldn't solve, a titan in the field could solve for him.

Having three students also had an impact on his life.

In the past, he only had to fend for himself. Now, he had to devote some of his energy to looking after them.

Fortunately, after a period of adjustment, Lu Shixian grew accustomed to this life, and his research gradually got back on track.

On the patent front, he had received several progress reports from Via on the patent application.

The China National Intellectual Property Administration had officially accepted and approved his patent application, and it was now undergoing international procedures.

This outcome proved the old saying: let the professionals do the professional work.

In terms of research, the project he was still managing was "A Method for Producing Biopharmaceuticals Based on Whole Plants."

This project was nearing its end and was in the process of being concluded.

The paper on its findings was also about to be published in the latest issue of Cell.

Before a new major project was established, there wasn't much that required his attention.

However, Lu Shixian did not plan to undertake another large-scale project in the United States similar to the one on genetically modified biopharmaceuticals.

At the same time, he intended to mentor these three doctoral students until their graduation.

He was someone who liked to see things through to the end and didn't want to leave a mess behind.

Although his return to China would be delayed for some time because of this, it was worth it.

Therefore, Lu Shixian had a considerable amount of free time recently. He gradually shifted his focus to his teaching duties and even spent a lot of his leisure time in the library.

He decided to pick up his earlier idea of writing a book.

That's right, Lu Shixian planned to write a brief history of the microscope from the perspective of a biologist, or more specifically, a botanist.

This book would be different from the typical histories of the microscope on the market. Lu Shixian incorporated many of his unique reflections from observing the microscopic world through the microscope over the years, writing them with a distinctive perspective and style.

By June, the first volume of this brief history was complete, and he had already conceptualized the second volume.

After long deliberation, he had tentatively titled it "To See a Flower, a Blade of Grass, a Forest in the Miniscule."

The following is an excerpt from the first volume, "Those Magnified Plant Roots."

[Lewis Thomas once said in "The Lives of a Cell": "We are told that the trouble with modern man is that he has been trying to separate himself from nature. He sits in the topmost tiers of polymer, glass, and steel, dangling his pulsing legs, surveying at a distance the writhing life of the planet."

This view has gained increasing support.

In recent years, with the rapid development of human aerospace endeavors, our vision has extended further with the lenses carried by spacecraft.

From this perspective, we have become gods or deities looking down upon the Earth.

Just as the text mentions, humanity has become a lethal force, while the Earth seems like "faint bubbling at the surface of a country pond, the disturbed flight of a flock of birds."

It seems that the direction of both the life sciences and physical sciences is slowly detaching us from the Earth, or from nature.

Clearly, the idea that humans dominate and possess all things is becoming deeply entrenched.

We must face a fact that is currently unfolding.

That is, we are, in fact, always rooted in nature.

For example.

Hundreds or thousands of years ago, we can imagine a scene.

In a quiet, clear stream or river, lush green waterweeds stretch from the bottom to the bank, and their underwater roots appear larger than they do in the air.

Can we then speculate that humanity discovered the phenomenon of convex lenses magnifying objects long ago, but was simply unable to explain this principle from a scientific perspective?

And so, being resourceful, we began to learn how to utilize this magnifying effect.

For instance, in the 1st century BC, over 2,100 years ago in ancient Rome, people would look at letters through a glass sphere filled with water, and even the smallest font would become clearly visible.

Many believe this to be the first instance of this magnifying phenomenon being utilized.

But in fact, records on oracle bones from China 3,000 years ago already state: "as small as a grain of millet, requiring a five-power magnifying glass to be seen clearly."

This ancient artifact shows that the ancient Chinese had already mastered and utilized this magnifying phenomenon, centuries ahead of others.]

Meanwhile, Lu Shixian was working full-steam ahead on the second volume, "Those Cells Described as Honeycombs."

And on the other side of the ocean, in Germany.

Biologists at the Max Planck Society were busy with a major project.

The Max Planck Society, or the Max Planck Institute.

If that doesn't ring a bell, its full name is the Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science.

If you still don't recognize it, that simply proves you're an outsider to the field.

Founded in 1948, its research capabilities are formidable, making it the country's largest non-university research organization.

In various global rankings of research institutions, it consistently makes the list, often placing in the top three.

Having won thirty-three Nobel Prizes, it was also a key factor in Germany's rapid post-World War II recovery and the restoration of its overall strength.

The society is named after the founder of quantum physics in the country, Max Planck.

But its scope extends far beyond physics, encompassing basic research in various fields including the natural sciences, life sciences, and humanities.

At this moment, inside the Max Planck Institute of Biophysics.

Several elderly men with graying hair and scruffy beards stood in a laboratory with solemn expressions.

They looked as if their bodies were like candles in the wind, that a strong gust could knock them over.

But in reality, as long as their minds could function and think, they still contained immense energy, capable of bringing about great change to their country and even the world.

The most conspicuous among them, and also the oldest, was Hartmut Michel.

He was the director of the Department of Molecular Membrane Biology at the institute, but he was also a Nobel laureate in Chemistry from 1988.

Michel's research on important proteins in photosynthesis was world-class, and he had dedicated his career to this field.

This was clearly a research team led by him.

Chapter 547: The Final Step
Perhaps the experiences of top scholars share a certain similarity. They learn a subject, fall in love with it, work in it, master it, and delve deep into it, becoming true polymaths.

Hartmut Michel graduated from the University of Tübingen with a degree in biochemistry.

But in 1979, he seemed to abandon his previous research direction, pivoting to study X-ray crystallography at the University of Würzburg.

This decision required considerable courage, as the field was truly in its infancy at the time.

It seemed fascinating to learn, but was in fact quite grueling.

Theoretically, it is a discipline that primarily studies the structure of crystals.

Its principle involves passing X-rays through a crystal, where they interact with the atoms within. By measuring and analyzing the diffraction of these rays, the crystal's structure and atomic arrangement can be determined.

From its description, it might seem to fall under the domain of physics.

But it doesn't, and that's what makes it so challenging.

It can be used to determine the molecular structure of organic or inorganic crystals, analyze their purity and composition, and provide immense help in studying their morphology and properties.

At the same time, it can also aid in studying the structure and function of biological macromolecules.

Therefore, X-ray crystallography is a discipline with important applications in fields like chemistry, physics, and biology.

This also explained why Michel's research experience had always swung between biochemistry and biophysics.

The work that won him the 1988 Nobel Prize in Chemistry—the crystallization of a membrane protein and the elucidation of the three-dimensional structure of the photosynthetic reaction center from the purple bacterium *Rhodopseudomonas viridis*—is now widely applied in medicine and many other fields.

Michel had long been engaged in the study of photosynthesis and its key proteins, and this time was no exception.

He had previously encountered an obstacle in his research on the regulatory mechanisms of photosynthesis in plants during the light and dark reactions.

This process required studying the changes in photosynthesis under the influence of various conditions.

Undoubtedly, Michel painstakingly simulated all sorts of limiting conditions for his experiments, starting from every growth stage of the plants, and supplemented them with auxiliary experiments on the light and dark reactions.

But this also made the entire experiment massive in scale.

However, being a Nobel laureate, his research plan still received strong support, with the Max Planck Society injecting a huge amount of funding.

In Germany's exceptionally rigorous research environment, Michel finally achieved a milestone result: plant photosynthesis is regulated and influenced by a special factor tentatively named Chlorophyll u.

Now, their research was just one step away from completion.

They needed to figure out where this Chlorophyll u came from and what caused it to be produced.

As long as this question was answered, Michel believed the impact of his findings would be no less sensational than the study of the dynamic structure and reaction mechanisms of the enzymes that catalyze photophosphorylation in photosynthesis and oxidative phosphorylation in respiration.

The latter had helped John E. Walker and Paul D. Boyer win the 1997 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

In other words, if he completed this research, Michel could potentially become the sixth scientist in the world to win two Nobel Prizes, following Marie Curie, Linus Pauling, John Bardeen, Frederick Sanger, and K. Barry Sharpless.

But Michel was getting older. He had no ambition or obsession with winning a second Nobel Prize.

He still hoped to make a major breakthrough in the field of plant photosynthesis in the time he had left.

He had been striving for this for the past few years, but with little new progress.

However, the situation seemed to have changed last year.

He often followed top international journals, hoping to find research inspiration.

Then, last year, a study published in *Cell* on the interactive mechanisms of innate immunity in plant cells gave him some ideas to draw from.

He didn't think photosynthesis and cell immunity were strongly related, but the research methods used in the paper to study the numerous cytokines influencing the immune process caught his attention.

Especially the groundbreaking theory on the equilibrium state of plant cells within it; even he couldn't help but applaud.

So, he strictly followed Lu Shixian's equilibrium state theory and established a replica "Sinan Model" for the various influencing factors in plant photosynthesis.

Michel's idea was promising, and though the plan was executed almost perfectly, the final results were far from satisfactory.

The fitted model was a million miles away from being accurate.

Clearly, the results proved that the research approach was wrong from the start. If simple imitation could lead to success, then history wouldn't have so many cautionary tales about failed mimicry.

This result also proved that even top research teams experience failure.

However, the biggest difference between a top research team and an average one is their ability to summarize and learn from failure.

Michel tried his best to open his weary, old eyes. "Lu's equilibrium state theory was born from plant immune regulation. We applied his theory to our photosynthesis regulation, yet the simulated data doesn't align with our expectations, not even a single set."

"In other words, we overlooked something before: immune regulation itself is a crucial part of the mechanism of plant photosynthesis."

"Is it possible that Chlorophyll u is influenced by the plant cell's immune regulation?"

At this moment, Michel's eyes shone with a sharp, dazzling light.

"I have a feeling we are getting closer to the truth."

Standing next to him was Matthias Mann.

He was no simple figure either, having received the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize in 2012.

This award is Germany's highest scientific honor, and in the eyes of the German people, it is even comparable to the Nobel Prize.

At the same time, it is one of the world's most lucrative scientific awards, with a prize fund far exceeding the Nobel's.

There is a rather romantic explanation for this.

The purpose of such a high prize is to provide Germany's top researchers with a "fairytale-like freedom" in their scientific environment, so they don't have to worry about tedious administrative procedures.

Matthias offered his own thoughts. "I hope so. But I have an idea for after this research is finished, regardless of the outcome."

"And that is to invite this young biologist, Lu, to Germany for an academic exchange."

"I believe the Max Planck Society will gain some vitality from his arrival. The Society feels a bit stagnant these days."

Michel smiled. "An excellent idea!"

Chapter 548: Immensely Gratified

Friday, Yale Library.

Lu Shixian sat at his desk, contemplating the third volume of *Seeing Flowers, Grass, and Forests in the Microcosm*.

In front of him were several best-selling popular science books, similar to *The Praise of the Forest*.

Lu wanted to analyze successful works to learn from their experience.

That's right, he didn't want to just pay for publicity.

A book he had spent so much effort writing shouldn't just end with a self-indulgent whimper.

Publishing and selling a monograph or a book is no easy task. Publishing houses are, in essence, businesses. If a book lacks significant commercial value, the only way to get it published is usually by self-funding.

Lu was very, very poor at the moment, constantly living beyond his means.

Saddled with millions in debt, he desperately hoped this book could help him recoup some of his losses.

He couldn't control the external factors.

But he could do his best to complete the work in a way that the general public would enjoy, while still maintaining its professional integrity.

Just as he was concentrating, his phone, set to silent mode, suddenly lit up, notifying him of a missed call.

Before Lu could check it, the same number called again.

The name on the screen read "Rothman."

Lu immediately put down his book and took his phone to the lounge area.

Rothman wasn't the type for relentless, back-to-back calls. If he was calling like this, it had to be something important.

As soon as he answered, he heard a slightly rushed voice on the other end.

"Lu, have you seen this month's *Nature*?"

Lu was a bit confused. He did regularly follow the cutting-edge life science research published in the big three journals, but he wasn't always prompt about it. He usually let them accumulate before reading them all at once.

So he replied, "Not yet, what's up?"

After hearing this, Rothman said in a peculiar tone, "Is that so? You should take a look."

"Professor Michel's team from the Max Planck Society just published a paper on plant photosynthesis. It's related to you."

"If I hadn't seen you at Yale recently, I would've thought you'd run off to Germany."

The more he heard, the more bewildered Lu became. "The Max Planck Society?"

"I've never had any contact with them. What the hell does it have to do with me?"

Rothman, hearing this, began to build the suspense. "Right now, this paper is causing a sensation in the academic world, no less than when you first published your research on plant innate immunity."

"Read it. You might find a pleasant surprise."

These words immediately piqued Lu Shixian's curiosity.

If Rothman was saying this, it had to be a major breakthrough in the field.

And what's more, it was related to him.

But he had no recollection of ever participating in any project related to photosynthesis!

Since he was already in the library, Lu, full of questions, quickly went to the digital literature reading room.

Sure enough, the cover of this month's issue of *Nature* featured a theme of plants and the sun.

The accompanying text was brief.

But the content was a bombshell: Hartmut Michel's research team at the Max Planck Institute of Biophysics has discovered the deep underlying mechanism by which plant photosynthesis is regulated by Chlorophyll u.

No doubt about it, this was a major achievement.

Any breakthrough in the field of plant photosynthesis research is a big deal, even if it's just a small step forward.

After all, the broader implications of photosynthesis are all incredibly important.

One is energy conversion.

While assimilating inorganic carbon compounds, plants can convert solar energy into chemical energy, which is then stored in the organic compounds they form.

Although many scientists have now developed technologies to bypass the chemical energy step and go directly from solar to electrical or other storable forms of energy, there's no denying that fossil fuel power generation remains an irreplaceable source of energy on Earth today.

Moreover, humans have not yet been able to escape the need to obtain energy for life activities through eating.

Ignoring some factors, humans can indeed survive on meat alone, but if you trace the food chain back to its very bottom, humans still rely on plants for survival.

The other is atmospheric regulation.

The fact that the atmosphere consistently maintains an oxygen content of 21% is mainly due to photosynthesis.

The oxygen in song lyrics is metaphorical, but the oxygen released by plants is very real.

Therefore, what this Nobel laureate had dropped was a depth charge powerful enough to rock the entire pond.

At this point, Lu Shixian couldn't help but marvel that the Nobel laureate was still as sharp as ever.

Then, as he continued reading the paper, the expression on his face suddenly became strange.

This…

Why does this content seem so familiar?

It was practically a direct continuation of his own paper on plant innate immunity.

Of course, he didn't mean that Michel had plagiarized him. Rather, the research ideas and tools used were practically a replica of his equilibrium state theory and Sinan Model.

However, Lu had no objections. On the contrary, he felt immensely gratified.

A tool is invented to be used. If no one uses it, it means it's not a good tool.

And now, Michel had applied the tool he discovered and made an outstanding contribution to the field of photosynthesis, which was undoubtedly a shot in the arm for many.

Reaching the end of the paper, he saw a sentence of acknowledgement Michel had written to him.

I cannot find the words to describe the astonishment that the equilibrium state theory and the Sinan Model brought me. It is incredible to think this was the creation of a young scholar in his twenties.

I believe he has designed an unprecedented compass for the world, one that will guide countless people on the right path.

He is a wondrous and brilliant designer.

Now, Lu Shixian finally understood what Rothman had meant by "it's related to you."

The named acknowledgement, published in the top journal *Nature*, quickly went viral and sparked heated discussions, providing plenty of fodder for conversation.

However, what attracted most people was just the gimmick of a Nobel laureate thanking Lu Shixian, not the substance of the matter itself.

Insiders, on the other hand, reacted swiftly, quickly recognizing the immense value of the Sinan Model in theoretical applications through Michel's work.

Lu Shixian soon became a minor celebrity again, both inside and outside his field.

His email inbox was almost full every day, mostly with invitations for academic exchanges on this topic.

Lu didn't have that much time to spend on travel. Invitations from obscure labs, he simply ignored.

He also politely declined many from top research institutions, both domestic and international.

But he was more than happy to accept if it was for an online exchange.

However, among them was an invitation from the Max Planck Society.

After some thought, Lu Shixian chose to accept.

After all, even he hadn't known that photosynthesis and cell immunity had such a wondrous connection.

Chapter 549: High-Level Papers

The glory of this summer undoubtedly belonged to Michel. Under the brilliance of this Nobel laureate, many others seemed to fade into the background.

But it didn't affect Lu Shixian much.

He hadn't participated in Michel's project, but he was an unavoidable figure in that paper.

When discussing this achievement in photosynthesis, many people would unconsciously mention the name of a certain Chinese man.

But this seemed to be just the beginning.

It was as if Michel had just kicked things off.

After a period of accumulation from last year to the present, new research findings began to sprout like bamboo shoots after a spring rain.

The editorial offices of the big three journals—*Cell*, *Nature*, and *Science*—were surprised to find that their submission volume had increased by 10% overall compared to the same period last year.

This increase might not seem large, but when you consider that the base number of submissions each year is in the tens of thousands, this figure is astonishing.

The effect on second-tier journals was even more absurd.

*Scientific Reports* editorial office.

Editor-in-Chief Williams Jones was grinning from ear to ear.

As a professional multidisciplinary journal, it initially had little renown in the industry and a low impact factor.

Therefore, *Scientific Reports* was never in the running for top scholars.

If they could, no one would want to submit to a lesser journal.

So even average scholars wouldn't choose it as their first option.

Fortunately, top journals have limited space, with a cap on the number of articles they can publish each month.

So, the papers rejected by these journals would then fall to them to sift through.

But can you find gold in a pile of trash?

The answer was obvious.

In such a predicament, it was incredibly difficult for it to develop into a high-level, well-known journal.

Without publication fees, it couldn't even make ends meet.

So, to survive, Jones made an extremely crazy decision.

Any paper submitted to them, through any channel, as long as it looked like a paper, would be accepted.

Their main selling point was "submit and you're in, no rejections."

As long as they could keep operating, nothing else mattered.

And so, *Scientific Reports* became famous.

It earned the title of a "giant super water journal" with an annual publication volume of over twenty thousand articles.

Although the reputation wasn't great,

being infamous is also a kind of fame, and they had made a fortune in recent years using this method.

But recently, they faced another severe problem.

Due to the long-term publication of junk papers, their impact factor was about to drop below 5.

They had already received a notice from the authorities to rectify the situation. If the quality of their papers continued to decline, they might not even hold on to their Q3 ranking.

If this continued, they might truly become history.

Jones had been racking his brains over this but couldn't find a solution.

But recently, he noticed a sharp increase in the number of submissions in the natural sciences. And after the peer review process, which was usually just a formality, the feedback was that most of them were actually quite good.

You have to understand, such a result was unimaginable in the past, an absolute fantasy.

Overjoyed, Jones immediately called in his subordinate editor.

"Kuhn, get people to screen these papers right away. Filter out the ones of average quality."

"We're going to make a beautiful comeback this time!"

The man named Kuhn looked troubled. "Chief, if we do this, most of our pages will be filled with natural science research. That doesn't fit our positioning as a multidisciplinary journal."

Jones couldn't care less. "The journal is about to go under, and you're talking to me about positioning?"

"By the way, have you figured out the reason for this sudden surge in submissions?"

Kuhn thought for a moment. "I'm not sure about the specifics, but after communicating with several reviewers, the conclusion is that all these papers cite a research paper from *Cell* and use a research method called the Sinan Model."

Every Saturday was the time Lu Shixian and his three students had set for their academic salon.

Initially, it was just Hu Guoxing who asked if he could discuss a problem with him on the weekend.

Lu was someone who disliked trouble, so he called all three of them over that day to answer their questions at the same time.

But he eventually found that this method of learning was quite effective.

Carolyn and Evander, who were originally just tagging along, also raised some good questions.

So this study method gradually became a fixed routine.

Just as the group was sitting around a round table, discussing,

Lin Haifan suddenly appeared for some unknown reason, but it looked like he had something to tell him.

So Lu paused the salon and went to the sofa with him alone.

As soon as Lin Haifan sat down, he asked, "What on earth have you been up to lately? Making such a huge scene?"
"Not much, really. I'm mainly working on a popular science book, and it's almost finished." Lu Shixian didn't know what he was getting at, but he answered quickly. "The rest of my time is spent teaching undergraduates and, as you just saw, mentoring my students."

Lin Haifan glanced at the three graduate students chatting animatedly at a round table nearby and couldn't help but laugh.

"Writing a book? Mentoring students? You're certainly taking it easy!"

"But the academic world is in an uproar because of you!"

"You really have no idea, do you?"

Lu Shixian was completely baffled. "What's going on?"

Then, he said with an amused tone, "Besides, what could it possibly have to do with me? I haven't done anything recently!"

Lin Haifan shook his head, speechless. "Just look at the citation count for your papers and you'll understand."

"Your most cited one has probably passed a thousand by now!"

At these words, Lu Shixian's mind went blank.

Holy cow!

That number was truly terrifying.

You have to understand, in normal circumstances, getting even ten citations was enough to brag about to your junior lab mates for ages.

It meant the quality of your paper had been recognized by a good number of experts and scholars.

If the citation count reached the hundreds, it indicated the paper had gained widespread recognition within the industry. Generally, only the top authorities in various fields could achieve this.

And if it reached a thousand, it meant the paper was both highly cited and a hot topic.

In academia, such a paper is generally called a phenomenal, high-impact paper.

The term "high-impact" here was used in a context different from its usual application.

Just because a paper was published in a top-tier journal didn't automatically make it a high-impact paper; its popularity and citation count were also crucial factors.

Even a paper published in one of the top three journals wasn't guaranteed to receive this evaluation.

Those who managed to achieve this were, without exception, the authorities among academic authorities.

While papers with over two thousand citations did exist, they had often been around for a very long time.

After all, foundational theories are timeless classics that never go out of style!

Chapter 550: The Outcome is in the Heavens' Hands

He had published quite a few papers over the years.

But Lu Shixian didn't even need to guess which one it was. He already knew.

Besides the research on plant cell innate immunity published two years ago, his other works paled in comparison.

After all, he who wears the crown must bear its weight.

There was a rather amusing but very apt analogy for single-paper citation counts.

1-5 citations: Qi Refining stage.

6-10 citations: Foundation Establishment stage.

11-50 citations: Golden Core stage.

51-100 citations: Nascent Soul stage.

101-500 citations: Soul Formation stage.

501-1000 citations: Void Refining stage.

1001-5000 citations: Integration stage.

5001+ citations: Mahayana stage.

Anything higher than that was no longer in the mortal realm but a battle among gods.

Such an occurrence might only happen once every few hundred years.

The reason Lin Haifan was so worked up was that his own most-cited paper had only just reached 386 citations.

And that was for research he'd done nearly a decade ago.

According to this analogy, Lu Shixian had become an Integration stage grandmaster at the age of twenty six.

Meanwhile, Lin Haifan, who was almost two dozen years his senior, was still at the Soul Formation stage.

Following the cultivation world's tradition of respecting the more powerful, Lin Haifan would have to address Lu Shixian as 'Senior'.

How could he not be rattled by that?

Of course, citation counts only told part of the story.

To make a fair comparison using citation numbers, you had to confine it to the same discipline within the same research field.

Even then, it wasn't completely objective. You also had to consider factors like the number of databases the paper was indexed in, how long it had been published, and the level of interest in its content.

However, in Lu Shixian's case, the analogy was quite convincing.

He was not old, and his paper had been published for an even shorter time.

For the citation count to reach over a thousand in such a short period could only mean one thing.

The impact of Lu Shixian's research was growing rapidly and had earned widespread recognition around the world.

"You're just ridiculous. If this momentum continues to build..." Lin Haifan admitted his tone was tinged with envy. "If the competition is a soft target this year, you might actually have a shot at the Nobel."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian's heart genuinely skipped a beat.

Wow, is there really a chance?

Lu Shixian thought back carefully. The 2018 Chemistry Prize winners were a bit unusual.

The achievements of the three laureates were not part of a single, complementary series but were divided into two parts.

One was for the directed evolution of enzymes, and the other was for the phage display of peptides and antibodies.

Both research achievements were, of course, monumentally significant to have won the prize.

The former could be used to help produce much-needed biofuels and pharmaceuticals; after all, enzymes are life's sharpest chemical tools.

The latter held the promise of helping humanity combat a variety of diseases, including various autoimmune disorders and even metastatic cancer.

Speaking of a soft target, it was indeed a bit softer than the previous year's cryo-electron microscopy.

However, the Nobel selection process was a mystery that many people, Lu Shixian included, couldn't figure out.

Last year, there was absolutely no hope, but this time, he could see a glimmer.

Still, subconsciously, he didn't quite believe it. He was, after all, far too young, and there were other hidden, unfavorable factors at play.

So, his heart rate quickly returned to normal.

Time moved on to August.

Although it was still two months until the award season, the internet was already flooded with all sorts of news and speculation.

Nobel Prize predictions from various organizations were dazzling and overwhelming.

Even though Lu Shixian already knew the outcome from his memory, he still took a look at the forecasts.

Not looking would imply he accepted that the result wouldn't change because of him.

Sometimes, an individual's power to change a major moment etched into world history couldn't be achieved through effort alone.

All this time, he had been advancing relentlessly toward the goals he had set for himself.

Lu Shixian believed he had done his best.

Although he felt his chances were slim, he still held onto hope.

After all, man proposes, but the outcome is in the heavens' hands.

As everyone knows, there are six Nobel Prizes: Physics, Chemistry, Peace, Physiology or Medicine, and Literature.

This year's Nobel Prizes were rather special. The Literature Prize didn't even need to be considered because it had been canceled.

Due to being mired in scandal, the Royal Swedish Academy had faced the greatest crisis of confidence since its founding.

Thus, it had been announced early on that no Nobel Prize in Literature would be awarded this year.

This was the first cancellation since 1949 and the eighth in the history of the Nobel Prize in Literature, a very rare event.

But this had little to do with Lu Shixian.

Perhaps it was a good thing for Haruki Murakami, as he wouldn't have to play the runner-up again this year.

Following the four-year cycle for the Physics Prize, it was supposed to be the turn of condensed matter physics.

The hot candidates for this year's award were mostly focused on iron-based high-temperature superconductors, ferroelectric storage devices and materials, magnetic semiconductors and spintronics, photonic crystals, and the discovery of the Kondo effect and heavy fermions, among others.

Even two Chinese professors, Xue and Zhang, made the prediction list for their outstanding research on the quantum anomalous Hall effect.

However, most prediction articles were betting on Hideo Hosono.

One article commented: "As the inventor of iron-based superconducting materials, he has led a new wave of innovation in the field of superconductivity."

"The importance of iron-based superconductors to humanity no longer needs time to prove. 2018 is also a destined year for condensed matter physics to win, making this the best opportunity for Hideo Hosono to receive the Nobel Prize."

The hype seemed immense, but he remembered that the Physics Prize this year was a huge upset, awarded to three scientists in the field of laser physics.

This result stunned many, as laser physics hadn't even made it onto the hot prediction lists, making it a dark horse.

When the award was announced, many people in the audience had never even heard of the technologies described in the citation.

But again, this had little to do with Lu Shixian.

His main focus was the Chemistry Prize.

Generally, the preferences of the committee members have a significant impact on the outcome.

This year's Nobel Committee for Chemistry consisted of two theoretical chemists, two biochemists, one organic chemist, and one physical chemist.

Biochemistry accounted for a third of the committee, which was a favorable factor for him.

At the same time, the prize is generally not awarded to the same field in consecutive years.

2015 was physical chemistry, 2016 was organic chemistry, and the 2017 Chemistry Prize went to biochemistry.

According to the no-repeat-field rule, this meant the probability of biochemistry winning again this year was not very high.

However, theoretical chemistry, physical chemistry, and inorganic chemistry had not produced any epoch-making results in recent years and seemed to be in decline.

There was still a chance the Chemistry Prize could go off-script.

Chapter 551: Media Frenzy

One of the hot favorites for the award was Eric Jacobsen.

Jacobsen was a professor in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Harvard University. His achievements in organic chemistry were outstanding, and he was particularly famous for his contributions to catalytic reactions in organic synthesis, especially his research on the Jacobsen epoxidation.

This man was an absolute titan in his field, and the list of awards he had won probably couldn't fit on a single page.

Besides the Nobel, he had won almost every other award available.

This was why many people believed he would win this year.

The second favorite was scientist JoAnne Stubbe.

She was a woman from MIT in the United States.

Her main research contribution was the discovery that ribonucleotide reductase converts ribonucleotides into deoxyribonucleotides through a free-radical mechanism, and these deoxyribonucleotides then become the basis for DNA synthesis and repair.

The third was the ever-present John B. Goodenough.

This giant's life was also legendary; he was known as the father of the lithium-ion battery.

But now in his nineties, he had been a perennial runner-up on the Nobel stage, which illustrated just how difficult it was to win the prize.

Many people were clamoring for him to win because lithium-ion batteries had truly transformed people's way of life.

And if a few more years passed, he might no longer be eligible for nomination.

Too many people did not want him to depart with this regret.

Lu Shixian also saw his own name on the webpage, and his ranking was even higher than last year.

He had become the eighth-ranked hot candidate for his research on key proteins in the field of plant immunity.

The titans ranked ahead of him were naturally formidable competitors, and those ranked behind him were no slouches either.

Sandwiched in the middle, Lu Shixian felt a considerable amount of pressure.

In reality, there were many other candidates who weren't listed but were just as qualified to win.

Potential winning achievements included molecular dynamics and quantum chemical calculations.

This is a destined year for theoretical chemistry; both of these achievements have a high chance of winning, Lu Shixian thought to himself.

There was also the discovery of the cell's protein folding mechanism, which was one of the most likely biochemistry achievements to win.

And then there was optogenetics, a field that had been developing very rapidly recently and was hailed as one of the most promising bioengineering technologies.

As for the Prize in Physiology or Medicine, two names caught his attention.

Just as expected, Lieping Chen is on the prediction list for the Medicine and Physiology Prize again this year.

Professor Chen needed no introduction. Lu Shixian felt that even if the situation repeated itself, his chances of winning wouldn't increase, as his own existence hadn't impacted that field.

But he still hoped Chen would be successful. After all, it would be an honor for all Chinese people.

James P. Allison, who discovered immune checkpoint molecules, was a given. With this achievement, he had already won nearly every award in medicine and physiology; the only one missing was the Nobel.

Another name was Seiji Ogawa from Japan.

Those guys from Japan have been doing pretty well for themselves lately! Every year, someone makes it onto the hot prediction list.

But Lu Shixian had nothing more to say about it. After all, the fMRI he invented had indeed benefited many people, providing crucial information for the research and diagnosis of neurological diseases.

Of course, if he were to win, he would likely share it with Michael Phelps, the inventor of PET technology.

The journal *Medical Communications* commented on their research: "Without a doubt, their outstanding contributions to fMRI and PET have expanded humanity's deep understanding of brain function. Seiji Ogawa is very likely to take the baton from 2017's Kazuo Ishiguro and secure Japan's eighth consecutive Nobel Prize win."

This sentence was emphasized because Japan, though small as a palm, had ambitions that were anything but.

Starting in 2001, they had proposed a plan to win thirty Nobel Prizes in the next fifty years.

Even Ryōji Noyori, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry that year, commented on the plan: "This is a truly foolish plan. You have to remember that in the previous hundred years, only nine Japanese people had won the Nobel Prize."

The international community was also full of ridicule.

But then, something surreal happened.

In the following years, Japan went on a tear as if they were on steroids, proving everyone wrong. In the next twenty years, they won nineteen Nobel Prizes.

In the past, the Asian Nobel count had practically become Japan's private domain, leaving others to only watch them win.

But this year, the situation had changed slightly. The entire continent of Asia had two hot candidates simultaneously.

The PNAS journal made a prediction about which of the two would win: "Lu is like a super dark horse who has burst onto the academic scene, creating the Equilibrium Theory and the Sinan Model to solve complex, decades-old problems in plant cell biology. To be nominated for a Nobel at the age of twenty-something, his genius is beyond question."

"Meanwhile, Seiji Ogawa has dedicated decades to the study of brain imaging technology. The brain is the most complex organ in the human body, and our understanding of it is still very limited. Therefore, non-invasive research tools are of extreme importance in exploring its mysteries."

"The field of neuroscience has always been favored by the committee. Seiji Ogawa from Japan will likely emerge victorious in the end."

PNAS, the *Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America*, was clearly trying to stir the pot with this commentary.

It's important to note that the two candidates' nominations were not even in the same field.

Moreover, many Chinese scholars appeared on the prediction lists every year.

Singling out Lu Shixian, due to his nationality, could easily spark a debate comparing the two.

But this had an upside. With the promotion by the domestic media in China, the perception of him among many citizens who initially had a poor impression changed dramatically.

The internet exploded with heated discussions.

"I'm sorry, I admit I was a hater before, but this time I stand firmly with Lu Shixian."

"I just did a quick search and realized how outstanding this young man is. He's already famous internationally in his twenties."

"Is it that hard to admit someone else's excellence? We can't just put on prejudiced glasses simply because he supports GMOs."

At the same time, the Japanese media was just as lively, though their tone was completely uniform, with no dissenting voices.

"Ogawa-san will definitely achieve final victory!"

In reality, Lu Shixian didn't even know Seiji Ogawa.

But under the hype of some unscrupulous media outlets, it was as if he had a deep-seated feud with him.

In fact, the two weren't even in competition with each other.

But if a winner had to be chosen between them, Lu Shixian hoped it would be him.

Not for any other reason than to prove one thing.

He had not changed his citizenship. A Chinese person, born and raised on his native soil, could also win the Nobel Prize.

Chapter 552: The Nobel Race

As for the last award, the Peace Prize, there was no need to say much.

Compared to the natural sciences, its evaluation criteria were influenced by many more factors and were far more bizarre.

So, it was best not to mention it.

As the situation escalated, this Nobel race became increasingly intense.

Many people sent him text messages or called him.

Yang Yiyi left him a message: "I'll always believe in you."

Mei Ting also sent him a message on WeChat, though it was just two simple words: "You got this."

Chang Wenchao sent a voice message: "Damn, Fourth Bro, what have you been up to? It's been a few years, and now you're about to win a Nobel Prize???"

Even the usually unflappable Xu Zhihong called to inquire.

"Little Lu, what's your situation now? How good are your chances of winning?"

Lu Shixian really wanted to say it was a piece of cake, a sure thing.

But he had to be rational. "As of right now, there's a chance, but it's not very big!"

Xu Zhihong's tone was amused. "I originally suggested you go to the United States to make a name for yourself."

"But the stir you're causing now is completely beyond my expectations. If you can win, you will undoubtedly make history."

"Even the higher-ups have started asking about this."

"Oh?" Lu Shixian wasn't too surprised by this; the Nobel Prize was, after all, extraordinarily significant.

But he was still a little curious, so he asked, "How high up are we talking?"

Xu Zhihong immediately lowered his voice. "It's not good for you to know these things right now. Just know that it's a good thing."

"Whether you succeed this time or not, at least your name has reached the highest levels."

"Having your name known is very important. For the rest, just let nature take its course."

After chatting for a few more moments, they hung up.

Time moved on to September. Lu Shixian received a notice that took him by surprise.

"Dear Professor Lu, your total citation frequency in the Web of Science database is exceptionally impressive. After a rigorous review, we sincerely congratulate you on being selected as a 2018 Clarivate Citation Laureate."

The Citation Laureates, as the name suggests, is an award given by Clarivate Analytics to the world's most influential researchers who are likely to win the Nobel Prize, based on in-depth analysis of research papers and their citations in the natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities.

In a way, it was also considered a Nobel Prize bellwether.

However, the Citation Laureates award was the only one that used quantitative data to analyze and predict Nobel laureates, and its success rate was remarkably high.
According to statistics, 46 Citation Laureates have gone on to win the Nobel Prize. Of those, 27 received the Nobel within two years of being named a Laureate.

That's an impressive statistic in itself.

Some have even won both the Citation Laureate and the Nobel Prize in the same year.

When this news broke, it immediately sparked a new round of public discussion and speculation about potential Nobel laureates.

Seventeen other scholars had won the award alongside Lu Shixian. Eleven were from research institutions in North America, while the remaining seven were scattered across the globe, predominantly in developed nations.

Truth be told, a significant number of names on this list were already on the popular prediction lists of major websites.

While the award came with no tangible prize, its influence was undeniable.

His ranking in the odds for the Nobel Prize in Chemistry rose by four spots, placing him third.

To put it another way, if winning these bellwether awards was like stacking buffs, with each one increasing the odds of victory, then he now had two buffs stacked.

The first was the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize he had won last year.

The second was the Citation Laureate award he had just received in September.

Still, he felt it was far from a sure thing. These accolades didn't give him much of a sense of security.

And as it turned out, his instincts were right.

Late September.

Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, was already abuzz with festive preparations, even though Nobel Week had not yet begun.

As was tradition, the grand festivities of "Nobel Week" would take place across Sweden before the award ceremony.

When the time came, this city on the east coast, bordering the Baltic Sea, would capture the attention of the entire world.

As one of the world's most influential awards, it was expected to uphold the fundamental principles of fairness, impartiality, and transparency.

However, the Nobel Prize had always marched to the beat of its own drum, keeping its nomination lists, selection criteria, and voting procedures strictly confidential.

To this end, the Nobel Foundation had even gone so far as to break ties with Stockholm University to become an independent body.

The lack of transparency in nominations and judging remains one of the great mysteries of the Nobel Prize to this day.

Yet, this very secrecy also makes it one of the most suspenseful awards, captivating countless people.

And at that very moment, in a top-secret room within the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the six members of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry were consolidating all their previous opinions.

The deadline to submit the list of laureates was fast approaching, meaning this would be their last chance to discuss it this year.

The Nobel Committee for Chemistry had remained largely unchanged in recent years.

The chairman was Claes Gustafsson, who had a dual research background as both a medical scientist and a biochemist.

The other five members were Sara Snogerup Linse, a physical chemist who had formally stepped down as chairwoman several years ago but continued to contribute her expertise to the committee.

There was also Peter Brzezinski, a professor of biochemistry at Stockholm University, and Olof Ramström, a professor of organic chemistry at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology.

Rounding out the group were Johan Åqvist and Gunnar von Heijne, two titans in the field of theoretical chemistry.

For a long time now, they had been debating the final candidates on their list.

"Last year, the Chemistry Prize went to cryo-electron microscopy, which is more in the realm of biochemistry or even biophysics. It's been several years since a pure chemistry field has won. This year, it must be theoretical chemistry's turn," said Johan Åqvist.

Peter Brzezinski just scoffed. "Do you think the Nobel is awarded by taking a number and waiting in line? Then what are we old folks even doing here? What noteworthy achievements has theoretical chemistry produced in recent years?"

At these words, Olof Ramström's beard bristled with anger, but he had no real rebuttal.

Chapter 553: The Endless Debate

However, as a leading figure in the field, Gunnar felt compelled to speak up for theoretical chemistry. "You seem to be forgetting Michele Parrinello at ETH Zurich and Roberto Car at Princeton University. They developed the ab initio molecular dynamics method, which directly impacted the calculation of electronic structures in solids, liquids, and molecular systems."

"Their achievements in molecular dynamics should not be overlooked!"

Peter shook his head. "No, no, no. Their work still pales in comparison to the discovery of the protein folding mechanism."

"Remember, Franz-Ulrich Hartl of the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry and Arthur Horwich of Yale School of Medicine won the 2011 Lasker Award for that very research."

Hearing this, Olof, who had been in an awkward position, seemed to find an angle for a counterattack.

Since it wasn't organic chemistry's turn anyway, he might as well muddy the waters a bit.

"I agree their research is outstanding, but the global impact of their work is far less than that of the designer of the 'Sinan' model. Michele himself even used his theory to make new breakthroughs in photosynthesis."

"Nearly all major natural science research findings in the last two years have applied this model. And that tool is just one part of his overall research. Comparatively, I'm more optimistic about his work on macromolecular interactions in plants. That's a discovery that will affect the entire world."

"If the prize is going to a biochemistry-related field again this year, why not choose the absolute best? Otherwise, Thomson Reuters wouldn't have made an exception to name him this year's Citation Laureate."

As he spoke, a young face flashed through the minds of everyone present.

To be honest, although this candidate had made it to the final shortlist, it seemed the committee members had subconsciously overlooked his name.

Peter frowned. "He's too young. Giving it to him would ignite a firestorm of public debate worldwide. All of us would be questioned."

"We'd be better off giving it to John Goodenough. He doesn't have much time left to wait, you know."

Olof continued to press his point.

He scoffed, his words laced with sarcasm. "As if the Chemistry Prize has never caused controversy before. Compared to that, his age is a trivial matter."

Though he didn't say it outright, they all knew he was referring to Fritz Haber.

The chemist had developed the artificial nitrogen fixation method, still in use today, which allowed humanity to easily produce nitrogen fertilizer, boosting crop yields and solving food shortages for millions.

But after winning the Nobel, he went on to produce chlorine, phosgene, and even mustard gas during the war.

He became the father of chemical warfare, transforming from a saving angel into a devil from hell.

As a result, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry faced unprecedented scrutiny.

Even Linse's expression was a bit strange now.

In 2015, when she was chairwoman of the committee, she had pushed through the award for DNA repair mechanisms.

But the decision later sparked considerable controversy, with many arguing that while the discovery deserved an award, it was inappropriate for it to be the Chemistry Prize, as it disregarded the sentiments of traditional chemists.

However, treating work in biochemistry and physical chemistry as part of the chemical sciences was standard practice for the Nobel committee, which stubbornly stuck to its ways.

It gave off a strong "we're listening to your opinions, but we have no intention of changing" vibe.

As the new and former chairs, Gustafsson and Linse held the most sway.

Until Gustafsson voiced his opinion, Linse naturally wouldn't be quick to express her own.

Each member had a different research background and, consequently, different ideas.

As October arrived, the committee was still deadlocked over the candidates.

With the deadline for the media announcement looming, time was critical.

Gustafsson had no choice but to exercise his authority as chairman.

"The final shortlist is down to just a few names anyway. Since everyone is so adamant, let's just vote on it, as per tradition."

This was a familiar procedure for them; it happened almost every year.

So, the six members each took a blank sheet of paper and a pen and wrote down their choice.

A few minutes later, the six folded papers were collected.

The final result was about to be revealed.

But after tallying the votes, a new problem arose.

The six slips of paper showed four different names, with a vote count of 2, 2, 1, and 1.

Gustafsson looked at the others. "It seems we have failed to reach a consensus this time."

"I have always tried my best to avoid this situation. But unfortunately, it has come to this."

"According to the rules, in the event of a tie, we must decide the final winner with a coin toss."

The closer it got to mid-October, the more at ease Lu Shixian became.

Before, he might have been anxious about it.

But nearly two months had passed, and the situation seemed to speak for itself.

Since he hadn't had high hopes to begin with, he wouldn't wallow in disappointment for long.

He chose to pour more energy into teaching, no longer limiting himself to just four lectures a month.

As it turned out, Lu Shixian had a knack for teaching.

His genetics course became incredibly popular at Yale, even though the content was quite challenging for undergraduates.

Still, every lecture drew over two hundred students who came just to listen.

"I trust I don't need to go over the differences between facultative and constitutive heterochromatin. You can read that in your textbooks, and I won't waste time on it," Lu Shixian said from the lectern, met by rows of faces filled with intellectual curiosity.

"So, the main topic of today's lecture is the Lyon hypothesis. This is a hypothesis proposed by Mary Lyon regarding chromosomes in organisms. She suggested that the Barr body..."

Just then, the phone in Lu Shixian's right pocket began to vibrate.

Lu Shixian didn't have a habit of answering calls during class; he considered it disrespectful.

So, without looking, he reached into his pocket and declined the call.

But a few seconds later, the phone vibrated again.

Every situation is different.

If it was an emergency, he wasn't above making an exception.

Lu Shixian hesitated for half a second before pulling out his phone and glancing at the screen.

And then.

The moment he saw the caller's location.

Lu Shixian's brow furrowed, his pupils dilating uncontrollably.

He was in a state of utter shock.

This...

It can't be, can it?

Chapter 554: The Dust Settles

Lu Shixian wasn't entirely sure.

It was already October 12th. The Prize in Physiology or Medicine and the Prize in Physics had been announced on the 10th and 11th, respectively.

Typically, he would have been notified shortly before the public announcement.

In fact, besides the Nobel committee, the laureates themselves are usually the first to know.

The Royal Academy of Sciences always contacts the winners first.

But two prizes had already been awarded by this point. Surely the Chemistry Prize hadn't been undecided until now?

Everything pointed to him being passed over once again.

But this phone call reignited the hope that had begun to fade in his heart.

However, reason quickly overcame his excitement.

Easy now, play it cool.

It's not time to celebrate just yet.

He knew that many a mix-up had occurred in the past.

In fact, the Nobel wasn't the only prize awarded from Stockholm.

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences was also responsible for selecting and awarding three other major international prizes: the Crafoord Prize, the Schock Prize, and the Aminoff Prize, which were usually announced before the Nobels.

Consequently, many people had mistaken notifications for these awards as a Nobel announcement.

That being said, although these prizes were all awarded in Stockholm, they never quite reached the stature of the Nobel.

But regardless, he had to answer this call, whether it was for another prize or just a prank.

He paused his lecture and addressed the students. "Excuse me, I need to take a rather important call."

"Why don't you all take a moment to think about what we just discussed."

With that, he pressed the answer button. A very distinct English accent came through the receiver.

"Is this Professor Lu of Yale University? This is the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences."

Lu Shixian was already getting nervous, his breathing slightly ragged. "Yes, this is Lu Shixian."

After he spoke, the voice on the other end continued in a formulaic tone. "Congratulations, you have been awarded the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. The official announcement will be made at today's press conference."

"Please come to Stockholm before December 10th to attend the award ceremony and banquet. You may bring up to fourteen family members to share in this moment of honor and receive your medal, diploma, and prize money."

"We wish you all the best!"

For a moment, Lu Shixian's breath caught in his throat.

He was instantly overwhelmed by boundless joy.

"It's really me!"

"I did it!"

The students in the front row caught snippets of the conversation through the phone.

Piecing it together and observing Lu Shixian's expression, they deduced a stunning fact.

Their genetics professor had won an award.

And it was the Nobel Prize!

"Whoa!"

"Oh my God!"

"This year's Nobel?"

"I think Professor Lu just won."

"Yes, we just witnessed it."

Word spread like wildfire, and soon the entire classroom erupted.

For months, they had been attending Lu Shixian's genetics lectures.

And now, a new Nobel laureate had emerged.

And he was their teacher. Everyone shared in the glory.

"Congratulations, Professor Lu!" The two hundred students rose to their feet as one, giving him a thunderous round of applause.

Cheers filled the room as they all celebrated this incredibly exciting and unprecedented moment.

Five minutes later.

Stockholm, Sweden.

At the Royal Academy of Sciences press conference, media from all over the world were ready.

The host of the conference was Dan Larhammar, who had just become the President of the Academy in 2018.

A biologist himself, this was his first time hosting a Nobel Prize announcement.

President Larhammar smiled; for him, personally announcing that several biologists had won the Nobel was a novel experience.

As the clock struck the hour, Larhammar announced in a solemn tone, "On behalf of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, I will now announce the laureates of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and the reasons for their award."

"The laureates of this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry are Professor George P. Smith of the University of Missouri's Division of Biological Sciences, Sir Gregory P. Winter of the United Kingdom, and..."

Larhammar paused for a moment.

Below the stage, camera flashes were going off incessantly.

Many reporters were already wondering why there were only two winners for chemistry this year.

Typically, the natural science Nobels, unlike the literature or peace prizes, were shared by three laureates. One or two winners was a relatively rare occurrence.

Just as they thought it was all over, they suddenly heard Larhammar continue.

"And the biologist from China—Lu Shixian."

"For his highly creative proposal of the plant equilibrium theory and the design of the sophisticated 'Sinan' model, which solved a decades-long problem in the mechanism of plant cell innate immunity. He has provided a new research direction and tool for scientists worldwide. This mechanism represents the harnessing of the power of immunity for the benefit of humankind."

"After widespread recognition from the international scientific community and collective deliberation by the Nobel Committee for Chemistry, we have decided to award this year's prize to them, in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the field of phage display of peptides and antibodies, and in the field of plant antiviral immunity."

The reporters and photographers below were stunned.

What was going on?

This year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry was for two seemingly different fields?

This move had truly caught them by surprise.

It was common knowledge that while the natural science Nobels often had three winners, it was because their work was in the same field, with their discoveries complementing one another.

But this year seemed to be a departure from the norm.

Was there a link between plant antiviral immunity and the phage display of peptides and antibodies?

If you stretched it, perhaps a little, since they both fell under the umbrella of immunology.

But they weren't really that related.

However, no matter what they thought, it wouldn't change the outcome of this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry. At that moment, the dust had settled.

Whether the laureates declined or refused the prize, the result was final.

All they needed to do now was deliver this news to the world.

"This concludes today's press conference. Thank you all!"

With Larhammar's closing words, the news began to spread across the globe through various channels.

After a delay of several minutes, the news reached China.

Beijing, at the headquarters of the national broadcaster, in the building nicknamed "The Big Underpants" for its shape.

Hui Kang, who was seated at the news desk delivering the evening broadcast, suddenly received a notice for a five-minute live news read.

Chapter 555: Top of the Hot Search

He was to read a new script immediately, and it had to be the top story.

He received the script at 6:55 PM, which meant he had only five minutes to prepare.

In truth, the moment he heard the click of a female editor's high heels against the marble floor outside the studio, he knew something was up.
Many news bulletins are read live not just because of the sensitive nature of the documents, but because they are urgent drafts that haven't been formatted for broadcast. The content, however, is too important to delay beyond the day's news cycle.

However, as the director of the news broadcasting department and one of the nation's most distinguished television anchors, his skill and depth were plain for all to see. To remain calm in the face of crisis and composed amidst chaos was his basic professional standard.

But this time, after reading the manuscript for the first time, a look of utter shock appeared on his face. So, it was *that* person.

The news had just come from Dianrui. No wonder it was so urgent.

In 2018, although short-form videos had begun to explode in popularity and smartphones were gradually becoming the public's primary source of information, the daily habit of tuning into the 7 PM national news broadcast on television was still deeply ingrained for many.

Furthermore, October 12th was a Friday, meaning the number of viewers at this time would only be higher than usual.

At this moment, all across the nation of Huaguo, most people were having dinner, the news on the television washing over them as background noise.

Five minutes passed.

Hui Kang lowered his head to read the script, his deep and powerful voice carrying through the prime-time broadcast into every household in Huaguo.

"We now broadcast a story my station has just received: Our correspondent in Stockholm has learned that at 5:32:42 AM, Yanjing time, on October 12th, the Dianrui Royal Academy of Sciences announced the list of laureates for the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry."

Even with Hui Kang's seasoned composure, he couldn't help but feel a surge of adrenaline as he said this. But the setting did not permit any breach of decorum.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the emotion, and continued in his characteristically steady tone, "Our nation's young biologist, Lu Shixian, has been awarded the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his outstanding contributions to the field of plant antiviral immunity. He shares the prize with Professor George P. Smith of the University of Missouri in the United States, and Sir Gregory Winter, a scientist from the Jili Kingdom. They will equally share the total prize money of 10 million kronor."

"Lu Shixian was the first-place gold medalist at the 20th International Biology Olympiad, which earned him direct admission to Yuanpei College at Yanjing University. After completing his doctorate, he joined the postdoctoral research station at Yale University's Plant Genetics Laboratory. He currently serves as a professor in Yale's Department of Biology and director of the Pathology Laboratory."

"Following his receipt of the Dan David Prize and the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize in 2017, and just days after being named a Citation Laureate by Clarivate Analytics this September, Lu Shixian has been awarded the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry."

"It is understood that he is the only scientist of Huaguo nationality to receive this honor, and at the age of 26, he has broken the 84-year-old record held by French physicist Frédéric Joliot-Curie to become the youngest Nobel laureate in Chemistry in history..."

After the five-minute broadcast of the special report concluded, Hui Kang began to read the originally scheduled news items.

But across the country, countless chopsticks hovered in mid-air, mouths agape, revealing the white rice within.

Could it be?

A citizen of Huaguo had won a Nobel Prize?

Many people had never heard of the Horwitz Prize or the Citation Laureates. But in Huaguo, where the Nobel Prize had been endlessly mythologized, it had long become synonymous with the world's most influential award and honor.

Even elderly villagers in their seventies had heard of it; it was an obsession for countless citizens. Behind this national sentiment lay a profound desire for Huaguo's technological strength to grow and for fundamental, original innovation to be valued.

The first to learn of the news was actually Huaguo's academic community. They had many channels to get advance word from Stockholm about the Nobel announcements. Lu Shixian did not spend much time in Huaguo's academic circles, but that didn't stop them from knowing his name, though their knowledge of him was limited. Most knew of him through his publications in top-tier journals.

Within the community, reactions to the news were a mix of bewilderment, shock, indignation, envy, and excitement. On the whole, the academic world's attitude toward him was complex, but generally positive.

Among the general public, however, the opinion was overwhelmingly one-sided. The praise was practically boundless.

From television news to newspaper reports, from viral videos to word of mouth, it took only one night for the entire nation of Huaguo to be shaken by the news.

The internet was in a frenzy. Before midnight, the topic had skyrocketed to the top of the trending charts at an astronomical speed.

#Lu Shixian Wins Nobel Prize#
#Fourth Huaguo Citizen Nobel Laureate#
#Youngest Nobel Chemistry Laureate#

For the next several days, these topics remained firmly at the top of the charts, without any competition.

A netizen from Yanjing sent their congratulations: This is just incredible. Even as a student from Shuimu University, I have to admit Yanda is killing it this time.

A netizen from Jinling sent their congratulations: As a Jinling native, hearing that God Lu won the Nobel Prize today brought tears to my eyes. There is no greater honor. I am proud to be from Jinling.

Netizens from other provinces also sent their congratulations: Unbelievable! The youngest Nobel laureate in Chemistry! It just hit me what a terrifying fact this is—he's only twenty-six. One can only imagine what he'll achieve in the future!

For a time, the entire nation was sending messages of congratulations, celebrating this incredibly inspiring moment.

Meanwhile, Yanjing University, Jinling No. 1 High School, and even Jinling Agricultural High School all hung bright red banners at their gates the moment they received the news.

"Congratulations to our distinguished alumnus, Professor Lu Shixian, on winning the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry!"

Yanjing Central Hub.

Given the special significance of the Nobel Prize, the top leadership specifically signed a commendation document to recognize Lu Shixian's breakthrough contributions to basic scientific research. If not for the fact that Lu Shixian was still at Yale, an order would have been issued for a personal audience.

While the impact of his academic research on the world was yet to be fully realized, the influence of his Nobel win was already taking effect. National self-esteem, conviction in the Four Confidences, support for scientific research, promotion of basic education...

This Nobel Prize had been a long time coming, but it had arrived at the perfect moment.

Lu Shixian's hometown.

The normally quiet and peaceful Xinfu Village was now bustling with a constant stream of traffic and filled with distinguished guests. Leaders of all levels from the provincial, municipal, county, and town governments had driven here to pay their respects to the model couple, Mr. Lu Jianguo and Ms. Xia Xiuman.

The two were each presented with a certificate of honor. One was for being an outstanding retired soldier, the other for being an outstanding rural teacher.

Chapter 556: A Sudden Realization

This left the old couple completely bewildered. These were provincial-level certificates. Xia Xiuman had worked diligently at Xingfu Elementary for decades without ever receiving such a high-level honor. As for Lu Jianguo, though he had earned a third-class merit during his military service, he ultimately didn't meet the requirements for promotion and had to return home to become a farmer. Now, more than ten years after his discharge, it was impossible to receive such an award without some external influence.

Without a doubt, the surprise their son had brought them was simply too immense.

Lu Jianguo was even tempted to go back and check if his ancestors were smiling down on them. A Nobel Prize—how many years did it take for Huaguo to produce one of those?

Meanwhile, in Connecticut.

After class, as soon as Lu Shixian stepped out of the classroom, he was swarmed by an impenetrable crowd. Reporters from major global media outlets had already set up their cameras and microphones, blocking the doorway.

The moment he appeared, countless microphones were thrust in his face, and the scene nearly spiraled out of control.

Although Lu Shixian had anticipated something like this, the sheer scale of it still left him speechless. It seemed he wouldn't be able to leave without cooperating with an interview.

Lu Shixian took the initiative. "Your presence here is disrupting the normal academic order at Yale. This isn't good."

"There are fifteen minutes until the next class. Therefore, I will only answer three questions. I believe Yale will organize a formal press conference for everyone later."

After a quick selection, three chosen reporters asked their questions in turn.

"Professor Lu, did you have any expectation of winning the Nobel Prize?"

"As the youngest-ever Nobel laureate in Chemistry, is there anything you'd like to say to everyone?"

"As is customary, you will share the 10 million kronor prize with Professor George P. Smith of the University of Missouri and Sir Gregory Winter of the Jili Kingdom. How do you plan to use your share of 5 million kronor?"

These three questions essentially covered what every media outlet present wanted to know. The scene instantly fell silent as they waited for his answers.

Lu Shixian thought for a moment before beginning. "I'll answer the three questions one by one."

"First, since there's a chance to win, I don't think anyone would hope it wasn't them. However, many things in life don't bend to one's subjective will. The path of academia is long, and compared to the many pioneers before me, I am still very, very far behind. So, most of the time, I'm just looking up, trying to keep pace with those who came before. As for other things, an occasional thought is enough."

"Second, regarding becoming the youngest Nobel laureate in Chemistry, I actually have a lot I want to say."

"One, excitement. I actually just received the news myself, and it was truly unexpected. I don't think many scientists can remain calm in the face of a Nobel Prize."

"Two, gratitude. I am truly grateful for the committee's recognition and for giving me this opportunity. Not just because it's a Nobel, but because it signifies that my past research has been acknowledged by my peers. That, in itself, is incredibly motivating."

"Three, passion. To receive such a great honor at this age does, to some extent, bring a few pleasant burdens. It makes me wonder, is this enough? Can I stop and rest for a while? Can I start enjoying life? But my heart constantly reminds me to maintain my relentless pursuit of knowledge. After all, when you truly love something, the hardship itself is sweet."

His words were met with a round of enthusiastic applause. Many now had a deeper impression of this young, newly-minted Nobel laureate.

Lu Shixian then continued to the final question. "As for the prize money, I think I'll have to consider paying off my debts first, as I'm currently in the red. It's a well-known fact that scientific research burns through money. If it weren't for this prize, I was just wondering if I could sell a few more books..."

The brief interview ended amidst a wave of laughter. The reporters, having gotten the material they needed, left satisfied. Lu Shixian was also pleased. He had managed to get some free promotion for his new book, so he wouldn't have to worry about sales. Nothing comes for free; this was a win-win situation.

Leaving the teaching building, whether on the sidewalks or in the hallways, Lu Shixian's presence in any public space at Yale now drew everyone's attention. Even professors he passed, many of whom he didn't recognize, would spontaneously doff their hats and nod to him.

Lu Shixian was initially very uncomfortable with this treatment; he felt as if he were constantly under a spotlight.

"Lu! Congratulations on becoming the world's youngest Nobel laureate in Chemistry!" Back in his office in the biology building, Rothman greeted him with a warm hug.

"Oh, it's incredible! I thought those old traditionalists at the Royal Academy would never choose you, given your age. There are so many people ahead of you in the queue. This is bound to draw some criticism their way."

Lu Shixian shrugged. "To be honest, I'm surprised too. I was in the middle of a lecture when I got the call from Stockholm. My first thought was that it must be a scam call. They had already announced two prizes the days before. It couldn't possibly be me, right?"

Rothman roared with laughter. "But it was you! So from now on, this is your moment of glory. Enjoy it."

"But I find it rather unsettling. It's nice to be noticed, but this seems a bit excessive," Lu Shixian said with a wry smile. "Many professors I don't even know are bowing to me. Maybe I'm just being overly sensitive."

Rothman, having been through it all, came over and patted his shoulder. "Lu, you are truly different. If I had won the Nobel at your age, suddenly thrust into the global spotlight, I would have been unable to contain my excitement. But when I won it at sixty-three, I was already quite calm about it."

"You can interpret it as reverence for academia, or awe for knowledge."

Before leaving, Rothman added, "And isn't that the common principle we academic researchers have always abided by?"

A wave of realization washed over Lu Shixian.

Meanwhile, in Washington D.C., the federal government was also taking action. A detailed file on Lu Shixian was delivered overnight via intelligence agencies to the Black Palace.

Lu Shixian's award had caught the American politicians off guard. While his potential was noted, he hadn't yet been placed on their high-priority watch list. But now, his sudden Nobel Prize was an undeniable shot in the arm for Huaguo, which was completely at odds with their strategy towards the nation.

Consequently, Lu Shixian's importance was abruptly elevated, and a covert plan to win him over was set in motion.

Chapter 557: The Return

At this time, perhaps the only others in a state of similar surprise were Lu Shixian's three graduate students. After all, a young biologist and a young Nobel laureate were concepts on two entirely different planes.

The minds of Caroline, Hu Guoxing, and Evander were currently oscillating between a state of shock and sheer ecstasy. Their inner monologue could probably be summarized by the title: *That Time I Woke Up and My PhD Advisor Became a Nobel Laureate.*

Scrolling rapidly through the news about the Nobel Prize on her phone, Caroline made no effort to hide her joy. "Hahaha! When I first came here, so many students told me that as a math and bioinformatics major, I'd have trouble even graduating under Professor Lu. In Huaguo terms, I guess this is what you call getting slapped in the face, right?"

"Your Chinese is improving quickly," Hu Guoxing said, shaking his head with a smile, his voice filled with awe. "But Professor Lu is truly terrifying. I can't help but wonder what incredible luck I had to become his student."

Evander remained silent, but his mind was in turmoil. He had actually been transferred to Lu Shixian's lab, and he had been quite resistant to the idea at first. His academic record could have secured him a more established advisor. That sentiment had only slowly dissipated as Lu Shixian revealed the depth of his knowledge.

But now, he was completely and utterly convinced. This was just too absurd. A 26-year-old Nobel laureate in Chemistry. It was unprecedented, and likely to remain so for a very long time.

At the same time, Yale University was immersed in celebration. One of their own professors had won the Nobel Prize, and everyone shared in the glory. The university president, Peter Salovey, who had a deep sense of pride in the institution, proposed holding a grand banquet in Lu Shixian's honor. The proposal was met with unanimous approval.

In the island nation, however, there were probably not many people feeling happy. Seiji Ogawa, Phelps, and Raichle had made outstanding contributions to the development and application of fMRI and PET in medical imaging, and were considered by many to be frontrunners for the prize.

But not only had the highly-favored Seiji Ogawa been passed over for this year's Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, the chemistry prize had gone to the little-known Lu Shixian from Huaguo. This result caught many of the island nation's citizens by surprise and left them fuming.

Of course, the sorrow of the island nation had nothing to do with Lu Shixian; in fact, he was rather pleased by it.

But for the moment, Lu Shixian had no time for schadenfreude. He had been invited as the guest of honor to a banquet that evening to celebrate his Nobel win. He couldn't refuse the request; it was an obligation from Yale he simply couldn't turn down. After all, Yale had treated him well, and he felt he should reciprocate when he could. He was happy to fulfill any reasonable request.

Even at a place like Yale, winning a Nobel Prize was an extraordinary honor.

At the banquet, Salovey congratulated him on behalf of the university. "Congratulations, Lu. Your story will become a legend at Yale. In the beginning, many people expressed their disapproval of you becoming a full professor. But now, it is not you who has gained honor because of Yale, but Yale that has gained glory because of you."

Lu Shixian was deeply moved by his words. He stood and raised his glass to clink with Salovey's. "No, this honor belongs to everyone. Without Yale's unwavering support, this achievement would not have come about so quickly."

During the reception, many people came to toast the new Nobel laureate. Later, a professor approached him privately. After offering his congratulations, he chatted idly, "I wonder if Professor Lu has considered settling here for the long term, or even permanently? I believe only here can you find the conditions and environment to support your research to the fullest extent, be it at Yale or any other institution."

Hearing this, the slight buzz Lu Shixian felt from the wine vanished as if hit by a cold breeze. He sobered up instantly, realizing the question was loaded with subtext.

He feigned ignorance and deflected, "But I am already here, am I not? I can't imagine a better place than Yale."

He had come to the banquet in high spirits, but he left with a faint trace of melancholy.

In the time that followed, Lu Shixian's excitement over winning the Nobel Prize gradually subsided. But the words of that professor at the banquet had put him on alert. Nearly four years of research and life had already given him many unforgettable memories at Yale.

He sighed inwardly. Perhaps the time for parting had come.

A month later, Lu Shixian submitted his resignations from his positions as Professor of Genetics in the Department of Biology and Director of the Pathology Laboratory. During this period, he actively prepared for his return to his home country, entrusting many laboratory matters to Feng Ernuo. The single apartment he had grown accustomed to and the car he had bought, which had become little more than a decoration, were both sold.

After years of struggle, all his belongings fit into a single box. It mostly contained the various certificates of honor he had received and some research drafts.
His three students were all entrusted to the care of Rothman and Lin Haifan.

With his guidance, he believed they would still have bright futures.

Although Salovey and Rothman tried their best to persuade him to stay, they could not sway Lu Shixian's resolve to leave.

The reason Lu Shixian gave was that he wanted to take some time off to travel and rest. Salovey didn't overthink it and chose to respect his decision.

But for Lu Shixian to leave Yale right after winning the Nobel Prize could be perceived negatively, so Salovey ordered the news to be kept under wraps.

Before his departure, however, Yale conferred upon him the title of Honorary Lifetime Professor and held a simple ceremony for him.

To control the spread of news about his departure, only a few people were present to witness this moment of honor.

November 2nd.

With his single suitcase in tow, Lu Shixian officially began his journey back to his homeland.

The ship's horn blared.

Weaving through the crowd, Lu Shixian made his way, step by step, onto the deck of the ocean liner.

He looked back at the coastline, a place that had been his home for four unforgettable years.

Thinking back, he had spent over a thousand days of study and research here, gaining knowledge and broadening his horizons.

He had worked on some interesting projects, discovered some beautiful laws of nature, and published a few decent papers.

He had also completed the magnificent transformation from a simple postdoctoral fellow to a full professor.

His only regret, the only ones he felt he had to apologize to, were perhaps his three doctoral students.

But Lu Shixian silently repeated a vow in his heart.

Where my ambition leads, I will forge ahead without hesitation!

Though I may be thousands of miles away, I must ultimately return home!

Today, the caption Lu Shixian posted on his social media feed consisted of just four simple words.

Homeward Bound!

Chapter 558: A New Beginning

He waited with growing anticipation.

The ocean liner was about to arrive at a pier in his homeland's port area.

From a great distance, Lu Shixian could already see the red flags fluttering in the wind.

At this moment, he could barely contain the excitement surging within him.

The ship docked, and the gangway was lowered.

Leaving the deck, Lu Shixian's feet finally touched solid ground once more.

An inexplicable sense of peace and security filled his heart.

Not far away, a welcoming party had been waiting for him for quite some time.

In fact, Lu Shixian had only briefly expressed his desire to return to the country.

Huaxia had immediately treated the matter with the utmost importance, providing him with guidance and convenience for his travel.

To ensure everything went smoothly, Lu Shixian had chosen to travel by sea, booking a ticket on the spot.

Although it wasn't a direct route, traveling by car from the Jiulong port area to Yanjing wouldn't take too much extra time.

Meanwhile, Huaxia had even organized a grand welcoming committee.

At the head of the line was Li Ping'an, the current minister of Huaxia's Ministry of Science and Technology.

"Professor Lu, I've heard so much about you, and it's a pleasure to finally meet you." Li Ping'an gripped Lu Shixian's right hand tightly, unable to hide his excitement. "Congratulations on winning the Nobel Prize. On behalf of Huaxia, welcome back."

Years had passed.

Seeing familiar faces again, seeing Li Ping'an's graying hair, Lu Shixian felt a wave of emotion. "Minister Li, you really shouldn't have gone to the trouble of coming to greet me personally."

Li Ping'an laughed heartily at his words. "It's no trouble at all! You've brought great honor to Huaxia. You're a role model for the nation!"

"If there were more good news like this, I'd be willing to wait at the pier every day."

Aside from the official representatives, most of the others were from Yanda University.

For example, standing next to Li Ping'an was Qian Yongchen, the vice president of Yanda.

Behind the two of them, Lu Shixian recognized many more people.

Wu Hong, the Dean of the School of Life Sciences; Ma Yuheng, a professor of cell biology at Yanda; Gu Hongya, a professor of botany at Yanda...

Ma Yuheng was the same as ever. Seeing Lu Shixian's travel-worn appearance, he said with a smile, "I always said you were something else, kid, and that you'd make it big one day. But I never thought that day would come so fast, with a Nobel Prize just handed to you like that!"

Beside him, Wu Hong said with pleasant surprise, "Little Lu, when you said you had unfinished business, I thought you'd at least wait until after the award ceremony to come back. I didn't expect you to return so soon."

Lu Shixian sighed wistfully. "It couldn't be helped. It's a long story!"

"But you know, being abroad all the time... it always felt like something was missing."

"In the US, no matter how much research I did, I was just a cog in the machine. But coming back to help build my country gives my work a greater sense of purpose."

As soon as he said this, many were filled with a sense of solemn respect.

Li Ping'an clapped his hands in approval. "Well said! And we will certainly not fail to live up to that sentiment."

After resting at the hotel where he would be staying temporarily, they had a simple meal.

The group prepared to fly directly from the port area to Yanjing.

After a four hour flight.

Upon arriving at the airport, besides Minister Li's car, several dedicated cars from Yanda University were already waiting.

When Lu Shixian got into one of the cars, he was stunned to find Pin Hao waiting for him inside.

Pin Hao had just taken office as the president of Yanda University in October. To come here today, he must have set aside many urgent matters, just to welcome him personally.

"President Pin, I'm honored, but you shouldn't have waited for me personally."

"If I wasn't here to keep an eye on you, what if you ran off somewhere else?" Pin Hao said with a smile. "I'd be held responsible!"

Lu Shixian understood his meaning and said, a little embarrassed, "I already promised Dean Wu that I would definitely give Yanda priority. Yanda nurtured me, and I'm willing to continue contributing to Yanda's success."

"No need to consider it further." Although Pin Hao was the new president, his commanding presence was undeniable. "No other institution can offer you better terms than Yanda, because Academician Xu reserved the position of Dean of the Yanda Institute of Modern Agricultural Sciences for you a month ago."

"The Institute of Modern Agricultural Sciences is an independent institution that integrates academics, research, production, and management. All the preparatory procedures are complete, and we're just waiting for construction to officially begin."

"According to the original plan, it will be a joint project between the university and Dongshan Province, with the initial site selected in Fangwei."

Lu Shixian was stunned.

This was a massive undertaking by Yanda!

No wonder he hadn't heard any news of his advisor leaving Yanda for another position. So that's what they were planning!

But Lu Shixian still had a realistic sense of his own abilities.

He was fine with conducting research projects and managing a lab.

But running an entire institute was a bit beyond him at this stage.

But before he could decline.

Pin Hao continued, "Of course, we figured you might not want to be responsible for administrative duties right away. You can hold the title in name only for now, mainly to sort out your compensation package."

"The basic operations of the institute will be managed by Academician Deng and Academician Xu. Yanda will do its utmost to support the application for a new state key laboratory. The specific location and primary research direction will be decided based on your wishes, though the preparation for that will take some time."

With that, Pin Hao handed him an application form with "Qianren" written on it.

"It's quite a coincidence. This year's grand Qianren Program has just started. You hold the title of Honorary Lifetime Professor from Yale University and are the sole winner of this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry." Pin Hao smiled. "One of the spots is practically made for you!"

The Qianren Program was a prestigious program in Huaxia's academic circles, a title second only to Academician, but higher than Changjiang Scholar or Distinguished Young Scholar.

It currently had three categories: full-time, short-term, and foreign experts, known as types A, B, and C.

It was an extremely valuable honor and the most suitable academic title for him at the moment.

Seeing Lu Shixian smile without saying a word, Pin Hao added, "With your academic achievements, being elected as an Academician is certainly not a problem. But you know how these things work; they have to be done step by step and can't be resolved overnight. However, we will submit your name, at least to show our intent!"

Lu Shixian was naturally aware of the unspoken rules. In the current system, before any reforms, the election of Academicians required not only a nomination but also certain rigid qualifications.

At the very least, one had to have won a national award, whether in natural sciences or technology.

Of course, there were plenty of cases where great scholars who had won twice were still not elected.

Lu Shixian completely understood and agreed with Pin Hao.

With the conversation having reached this point, the sincerity shown by Yanda had already far exceeded Lu Shixian's expectations.

So, he no longer hesitated and, as expected, chose Yanda.

His objective achieved, Pin Hao smiled and extended his hand.

"Welcome home!"

Chapter 559: The Ultimate Plus Version

On the way to Yanda University, Lu Shixian began to piece things together.

At his current age, he was fine with giving a few lectures now and then.

But he was not particularly willing to spend most of his time on the university's administrative work.

Since Yanda had guessed his intentions and proposed this option first, there were several possibilities.

One was to improve his compensation package at Yanda.

After all, even as a full professor, the salary at Yanda was significantly lower than at Yale, but being the dean of an institute could make up for much of that difference.

Second, it was a way to set a baseline for his return.

The message was that a Nobel laureate was worth this kind of treatment, and other institutions shouldn't even think about poaching him with a lesser offer.

Third, they could use his fame as a Nobel laureate to develop Yanda's Institute of Modern Agricultural Sciences.

With his name attached, it would be much easier to apply for funding and attract talent.

He didn't mind this point; in the end, it would benefit his own people.

What truly attracted him was the promise of the laboratory. This was especially important.

After all, many Academicians did not have sole control over a state key laboratory.

Yanda's offer was something he found truly hard to refuse.

As for the Qianren Program and the Academician election, he wasn't too concerned.

He was highly qualified for the former no matter where he went; it was practically in the bag.

The Qianren Program complemented the Wanren Program, with Qianren targeting high-level overseas talent and Wanren focusing on young domestic research talent.

In terms of prestige, Qianren was slightly more esteemed.

As for the latter, he hadn't even considered it. It was not something he could navigate at his current stage.

The best example was that some could be elected as academicians in the US but were repeatedly rejected after returning to the country, which already indicated that the problem did not lie with the candidates themselves.

Upon returning to Yanda, someone must have leaked the news, because Lu Shixian received an overwhelming welcome.

As soon as he reached the university gate, students from Yanda swarmed him, forming a tight circle several layers deep.

"God Lu is awesome!"

"Yanda welcomes you!"

"Welcome home!"

Cheers like these rose and fell in waves.

At the same time, many people, eager to get a closer look at him, unconsciously pushed forward.

The crowd quickly converged with him at the center.

The atmosphere instantly became electric.

In truth, not many Yanda students were into celebrity worship, but if that celebrity was a scientist, it was a different story entirely.

Seeing this scene, Pin Hao was also taken aback.

He had indeed suggested a welcoming ceremony, but he hadn't asked for something this extravagant, with so many people!

Good heavens, judging by the numbers, it seemed quite a few had skipped class to be here.

He turned to Lu Shixian and smiled. "Little Lu, it seems you're very popular at Yanda! Much more popular than I am, at least."

"No time like the present. Since everyone is so enthusiastic, how about you share some of your experience with our Yanda students right now?"

Lu Shixian had no choice but to accept. This President Pin had him completely cornered.

Under these circumstances, with such overwhelming enthusiasm, he couldn't possibly refuse.

The event was so sudden that the staff in the university office hadn't expected to arrange a meeting today.

But it was an order from the leadership, and the guest was this year's newly minted Nobel laureate.

If the conditions weren't there, they had to create them.

What?

The main auditorium was occupied?

Then I'll just switch to the open-air stadium.

What?

It's still class time?

Then I'll just declare a half day off.

But this delay took half an hour.

During that time, messages to friends had already been sent to universities all around Yanda.

"Haha! God Lu is back at Yanda, come quick!"

"A 26 year old Nobel laureate! If you don't come see a legend like this now, you'll miss your chance!"

"Who was it that said they wanted to see God Lu? If you don't come now, the next time we see him will be on the Nobel Prize stage."

And so, students from Renda, Yanda University of Technology, Yanhang University, and many other schools were already on their way.

Of course, the fastest to arrive were from Shuimu University, which was less than two kilometers away.

By the time Lu Shixian actually walked onto the hastily erected stage, he could no longer see how many people were below. All he saw was a sea of black, and the crowd was still growing.

Lu Shixian was also astounded; after all, it had only been half an hour since he had entered Yanda.

"Now, let's welcome our distinguished 2013 alumnus, Professor Lu Shixian, to give a lecture." The graduate student host, a past winner of Yanda's Golden Microphone award, was surprisingly a little nervous on stage.

"Professor Lu has conducted in-depth research in many fields of life sciences, including cell biology, plant pathology, and plant breeding and genetics..."

"For his outstanding research in the field of plant innate antiviral immunity, he has successively won the Dan David Prize, the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize, and the Citation Laureate..."

By this point, her voice was already cracking with excitement.

"Just last month in Stockholm, according to the public announcement by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Professor Lu was also awarded this year's Nobel Prize for the same achievement, becoming the world's youngest Nobel laureate in Chemistry at the age of 26."

In fact, these introductions had been broadcast countless times on the news and online media.

But simply mentioning them again now still made many people gasp.

This academic record wasn't just impressive.

It was legendary, breaking the scale. It was the brand new, super-plus version of incredible.

After the host's introduction was complete, Pin Hao, standing beside him, gestured for him to begin.

"Just say a few words."

This left Lu Shixian at a loss.

They had created such a huge scene, and he was supposed to just say a few words?

But in truth, Pin Hao was also in a tough spot. His original idea had been just that, but the students were now too enthusiastic.

The situation was getting out of control.

Life has no rehearsals. Lu Shixian walked onto the stage empty-handed.

Before he could even speak, the crowd below erupted in a frenzy of cheers.

The university leaders in the audience were now thankful that the venue had been chosen here, because it was the first time they had ever seen even the Yanda stadium filled to capacity.

Since it wasn't a formal lecture, Lu Shixian didn't plan to talk too much about academics.

He believed Pin Hao just wanted him to give these vibrant young people a shot of inspiration.

"I just got back from the US today, so I'm really not prepared. President Pin just asked me to say a few words, so I'll keep it simple. Everyone, please help me count. I'll step down after ten sentences, okay?" Lu Shixian's first line immediately caused a roar of laughter.

With just one sentence, he had taken control of the situation.

And of course, no one was actually going to count his sentences. The audience wished he would talk for days without stopping.

Chapter 560: The Award Ceremony

"There's a lot of talk out there about biology, chemistry, environmental science, and materials being 'sinkhole' majors, and this sentiment has grown stronger in recent years."

"I don't agree with many of the points made, but there's one thing I do acknowledge: biology is certainly not an easy subject." Lu Shixian began with a hot topic, immediately capturing everyone's attention.

"How many of you here are studying biology or something related to life sciences? If you are, how about you raise a paw?"

At his words, a dense forest of hands shot up from below.

"Are you guys pulling my leg? This many biology students?" Lu Shixian knew many were just playing along. "Alright, I'll pretend to believe you!"

The students below laughed.

"Actually, over these years, I've truly come to realize that biology is quite difficult to learn. Based on the current curriculum, it can generally be summarized into life sciences, biotechnology, bioinformatics, ecology, integrated sciences, and neuroscience."

"Therefore, the scope of biology is somewhat beyond our imagination. Even I can't guarantee that I understand every single aspect."

"With so much content, even though we learn a lot during our undergraduate studies, we are still just learning the foundational knowledge. Not many people can persevere to the very end."

"The 21st century is the century of biology. This phrase has been said for decades, and the endless stream of groundbreaking achievements today confirms it. However, the status of biology in our country's basic education system is still relatively low. In contrast, the US places great importance on it, positioning life sciences as a very significant part of its natural science framework."

"We use ecology to improve the natural environment and promote harmonious coexistence among living things. We use biotechnology to increase productivity and provide better services for humanity..."

"Modern biology is gradually developing in depth. On one hand, as a fundamental discipline, it is increasingly showing a trend of multidisciplinary integration. On the other hand, it is focusing more and more on the molecular level..."

Much of what Lu Shixian spoke about this time were his thoughts and insights from his years of research.

To some extent, his words now carried considerable authority.

Whether they were studying the subject or not, everyone in the audience listened attentively.

In the past, some of his speeches had been somewhat idealistic, which was related to the audience he was addressing at the time.

But now, facing an audience with a certain level of experience and perspective, his speech had become more grounded and practical.

"May all students of Yanda strive to be extraordinary, shoulder your responsibilities with courage, and live up to the promise of your youth."

With that final blessing, Lu Shixian left the stage.

The afternoon was reserved for the official appointment ceremony.

The ceremony was presided over by Yanda University's president, Pin Hao, and witnessed by all the faculty and staff of the School of Life Sciences.

Lu Shixian accepted the position as the first Dean of Yanda University's Institute of Modern Agricultural Sciences, while also holding the title of Lifetime Distinguished Professor at Yanda's School of Life Sciences.

Overnight, this news spread quickly throughout Huaxia, sparking heated discussions.

The most eye-catching news, of course, was Lu Shixian's return.

People were keenly interested in the news of his return and his appointment at Yanda.

If Lu Shixian winning the Nobel Prize as a Huaxian citizen had already turned many of his haters into fans, then this news undoubtedly turned many into his die-hard supporters. The negative impression he had previously left on the public was completely reversed.
Regarding the news, the public's main focus wasn't on Lu Shixian becoming the dean of Yan University at such a young age.

They had already witnessed something even more outrageous.

The focus of public discussion was on the star-studded lineup of Yan University's new College of Modern Agriculture.

The Dean was Nobel laureate Lu Shixian.

The Vice Dean was Xu Zhihong, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

And the Head of the Academic Committee was Deng Xinwang, an academician of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences.

Under these circumstances, even though the main college buildings hadn't even been constructed yet, many people were very optimistic about the future of the College of Modern Agriculture.

After that, his days were quite leisurely, aside from settling into the private apartment Yan University prepared for him and filling out the "Thousand Talents Program" application form.

Once everything settled down, November was drawing to a close.

This meant the Nobel Prize ceremony was just around the corner.

Although the ceremony was held on December 10th every year, many people chose to depart early due to the long journey.

That day would undoubtedly be the grandest awards ceremony in the world, but 99.99% of the world's population would never have the chance to attend in person.

And Lu Shixian had a full fourteen tickets.

He planned to make the most of them, bringing as many people as possible to experience the atmosphere of the Nobel Prize ceremony up close.

After all, he didn't know if he'd ever get another chance to go again.

His parents, of course, would each get one.

He'd also give one to his cousin, Xia Yubing.

If she heard there was a chance to go to Stockholm for the Nobel ceremony, she would definitely pester him for a spot.

It was better to be proactive; that way, he'd have the upper hand with her in the future.

Any other relatives who wanted to go could be arranged for as well.

The other half of the tickets could be given to some of his closer mentors and teachers.

Jokingly, he thought that if these tickets were auctioned off back home, they would surely fetch a high price.

But that was just a thought to entertain in his own mind.

If the Nobel Committee ever heard about it, he couldn't guarantee he wouldn't be blacklisted.

In early December, Lu Shixian led his group and boarded an international flight to Sweden from Beijing Capital Airport.

The international trip was a novel experience for everyone, and the journey was filled with laughter and cheerful chatter.

At the Swedish international airport, staff from the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences were already there to receive them.

They were whisked through the VIP channel, enjoying a smooth and unobstructed journey to the hotel.

Having broken the record for the youngest Nobel laureate in Chemistry, his features were very easy to recognize here.

In the magnificent hotel, he met Dan Larhammar, the very person who had announced the Nobel Prize results.

As the President of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Larhammar extended a warm welcome to Lu Shixian and his party.

"You must be Professor Lu!" Larhammar was the first to extend his right hand. "Welcome to Stockholm. You look even younger than I imagined. No wonder the Chemistry Prize Committee delayed their decision until the very last day of the announcement."

"The extent of the debate at the time was staggering. I heard that several members of the committee still couldn't reach a consensus in the end, so they had to resort to the oldest rule in the history of the Nobel selection process: a coin toss."

Lu Shixian quickly extended his hand to shake Larhammar's. This was the first time he'd heard the specific inside story behind the prize.

"Judging by the outcome, then, it seems I was favored by Lady Luck and won that 50% chance." Lu Shixian wasn't surprised by this, as he had been wondering about it himself.

Chapter 561: Global Attention

"I believe Lady Luck always favors young people like you." After just a few sentences, Larhammar's impression of the young man was growing better and better.

"Besides, in all these years, you are the one and only person to have caused the committee to debate so fiercely that they had to resort to a coin toss."

After Larhammar left.

Xia Yubing came forward and said with some surprise, "Wasn't that the President of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences you were just talking to?"

"I couldn't tell, but your spoken English has gotten so good?"

Lu Shixian smiled. "Of course. Otherwise, all my years in the States would have been for nothing."

Soon, guided by a hotel attendant, Lu Shixian's group settled into the Grand Hôtel in Stockholm.

As per tradition, this was the place designated to host the Nobel laureates and their families and friends.

They would spend nearly a week here, until the award ceremony concluded.

That evening, as the group dined in the hotel restaurant, Lu Shixian continued to draw frequent attention.

A bearded gentleman approached them.

Seeing Lu Shixian's group, the man immediately stopped and greeted them warmly. "Professor Lu? I'm George Smith. It's a pleasure to meet you. Your work in the field of plant cell immunology is truly second to none. In my opinion, the award is well-deserved."

Lu Shixian instantly understood. This was the professor from the University of Missouri who was sharing the Nobel Prize in Chemistry with him.

He was also one of the companions who would be joining him at the ceremony.

"Professor Smith, it's an honor to meet you. Your development of phage display technology back in 1985 was equally remarkable. It has now become an indispensable tool in biotechnology, playing a vital role in numerous fields such as protein science, drug screening, and gene therapy."

After a round of mutual professional praise, Lu Shixian led his group to a table in the restaurant.

Recalling the recent encounter, Ms. Xia Xiuman couldn't help but feel emotional.

"Our son has really made it. He's the center of attention even abroad. Not only did those two foreigners come over to greet him, but they were so old and yet so polite."

Standing beside her, Gu Hongya smiled and shook her head. "That's a result of Little Lu's own capabilities. Anyone else wouldn't even be able to strike up a conversation."

"He's the only Asian Nobel laureate this year. Combined with his age, it's hard for him not to be recognized."

"That's how it is in international academia. To earn respect here, your academic achievements must speak for themselves."

Looking at Lu Shixian's young yet incredibly composed face, Ma Yuheng couldn't help but feel a wave of emotion.

"I never thought that I, old Ma, would one day attend a Nobel Prize ceremony, and all thanks to my own student."

"Little Lu, your performance at the Biology Olympiad winter camp that year was already outstanding, but I never imagined that in just a few short years, you'd be standing at the Nobel Prize ceremony."

"It's clear now that your talent for research in the life sciences is a once-in-a-century gift. If Terence Tao represents the current ceiling of Chinese talent in mathematics, then you undoubtedly represent the highest level of Chinese talent in biological research, perhaps even a notch above."

Hearing his praise, Lu Shixian just smiled without saying a word.

If you were to go by age alone.

The year "God Tao" received the highest prize in mathematics, the Fields Medal, he was already thirty-one.

Whereas Lu Shixian was not yet 27 when he received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

By that comparison, the statement did have some merit.

But the disciplines and fields were different, and the criteria for the awards varied, so it wasn't a simple comparison.

Besides, to be honest, Lu Shixian's win had a certain element of luck to it.

If the coin toss had gone the other way, who knows how many years or months he would have had to wait to get another chance at the Nobel.

But there were no 'ifs'! One could only call it timing and fate.

Central European Time, December 10th, 3:00 PM sharp.

Less than two hours remained until the official award ceremony.

At this moment, the Grand Hôtel was even more crowded and bustling than in the previous days.

In addition to the Nobel laureates and their entourages, there were also distinguished guests formally invited by the organizers.

The rest were news reporters from major media outlets around the world.

However, the special treatment for the Nobel laureates was now on full display.

As the undisputed stars of the day, the laureates were escorted by an exclusive fleet of cars provided by the Swedish authorities to the award venue, the Stockholm Concert Hall.

Normally, only members of the royal family received such treatment.

The motorcade escorted them all the way to the venue, where the Royal Guards and the Royal Ceremonial Guards of Sweden were already in position at the entrance of the concert hall.

Seeing this spectacle, even the usually lively Xia Yubing grew a little quiet.

Although she was born and worked in a modern city like Jinling, she still felt a bit out of place in such a setting, suddenly feeling like a country bumpkin.

"I'm just a guest, and I'm already getting nervous," Xia Yubing whispered from behind Lu Shixian. "Bro, you have to go on stage later to give your acceptance speech. Aren't you nervous at all?"

Lu Shixian looked at her and shrugged with a smile. "Of course I'm nervous. Who wouldn't be, coming here for the first time? You just can't see it."

"But my presence here today is no longer just about me."

"To some extent, I'm also representing the image of my country, so I naturally can't show any sign of weakness."

Hearing this, Xia Yubing fell silent.

Having grown up together, she suddenly felt that her cousin was becoming less and less like the boy she remembered.

In just those few years they hadn't seen each other.

He had become more and more outstanding, bringing his family to this glorious place under the world's spotlight.

He had also grown more mature, with a different perspective and a broader view of things.

She didn't know when he had started to change, but having a cousin like him... seemed pretty great.

As she pondered these thoughts, Xia Yubing's initial anxiety slowly began to fade.

As this year's Nobel laureates took their seats on stage one by one, the highly anticipated award ceremony officially began.

Meanwhile, outside the concert hall.

A dense crowd of media photographers zoomed their lenses, capturing their desired shots.

A male reporter, his microphone marked with "China TV," stood before the camera, broadcasting the award ceremony that was being watched by hundreds of millions of his countrymen.

He was providing simultaneous commentary: "Hello everyone, I am Li Bin, a reporter from the China TV Europe Central Bureau. We are now bringing you live coverage of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry award ceremony."

As the camera shifted, the focus turned to Lu Shixian, who was seated in the center of the hall.

Chapter 562: The Power of Youth

"The person you see on screen now is this year's Nobel laureate in Chemistry, Lu Shixian. Today, he will receive an honor of immense significance. For him personally, he will become the world's youngest Nobel laureate in Chemistry. For China, this will be our nation's first Nobel Prize in Chemistry."

As the head of the Europe Central Bureau, Li Bin was incredibly experienced and usually covered major international news.

But at this moment, during today's report, he found it somewhat difficult to control his emotions.

"The music now playing is the Swedish royal anthem, 'Kungssången.' Whenever the prelude to this song is heard, it signifies the official start of the Nobel Prize ceremony."

"Members of the Swedish royal family have arrived and taken their seats. Now approaching the camera is the Chairman of the Board of the Nobel Foundation, Carl-Henric Heldin."

In fact, after so many years of development, the procedure for the annual Nobel Prize ceremony had become quite established.

Carl-Henric Heldin, dressed in a suit, delivered the opening remarks. "First of all, I would like to thank all the laureates for traveling from far and wide to attend the award ceremony in Stockholm."

"With the development of our times, science has gradually evolved a new linguistic quality, a language of our era that can build bridges of communication between nations and cultures."

"The importance of scientific research is no longer limited to the generation of new knowledge, but can also serve a role in popularizing science, providing a common ground for interaction among people from all countries and regions of the world..."

As per tradition, the Nobel Prize in Physics was the first to be awarded.

Unfortunately, this year's Nobel laureate in Physics, Arthur Ashkin, was unable to attend the ceremony due to health reasons.

Backstage, Lu Shixian could already hear the thunderous applause.

This meant the Physics prize presentation was over, and the Chemistry prize was next.

At this moment, even though he had faced many award ceremonies in the past, when faced with the Nobel Prize, Lu Shixian found it hard to control his emotions and could only take deep breaths to compose himself.

And now, representing the Nobel Committee for Chemistry, Claes Gustafsson had taken the stage.

He opened the script in his hand and began the pre-award introduction of the laureates' achievements.

"A distant 3.7 billion years ago, from the first appearance of life on Earth to the present day in the twenty-first century, every corner of our planet is filled with a mixture of different species. Even in the deep sea, the deserts, or under the polar ice, traces of life can be found."

"And all of this is because evolution has solved many chemical problems. Biological proteins, as chemical tools, have been continuously optimized, adjusted, and renewed, creating the biodiversity we see today."

"Without a doubt, the diversity of life reveals the power of evolution."

After saying this, the most exciting moment had arrived.

Gustafsson began to raise his voice slightly.

"One half of this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded to Professor George P. Smith and Sir Gregory P. Winter for the phage display of peptides and antibodies and for using phage display to produce new medicines. Today, phage display has produced antibodies that can neutralize toxins, counteract autoimmune diseases, and cure metastatic cancer."

"The other half of this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded to Professor Lu Shixian for his research on the mechanism of antiviral immunity interaction in plant cells. Through his established Cellular Homeostasis Theory, we are able to use the ingenious Sinan Model to specifically observe the processes of various proteins in life's evolution and regulation."

"Please welcome the three laureates to the stage. Let's give them a warm round of applause!"

Backstage, Lu Shixian took a deep breath and extended his right hand, gesturing for the two senior academics to go first.

Although Lu Shixian was a step behind, dressed in a custom-made tailcoat, he captured nearly all the attention in the hall.

No one could remain unmoved. It had been a long time since the Nobel Prize ceremony had seen such a vibrant and youthful laureate.

Amidst the thunderous applause, the three of them appeared on the award stage together.

They were surrounded by brilliantly colored flowers, which were brought from Sanremo, the place where Alfred Nobel passed away.

After the citation, Gustafsson turned his gaze to the three laureates. "Mr. Smith, Sir Winter, and Professor Lu Shixian, on behalf of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, I now invite you to step forward and receive the Nobel Prize in Chemistry from His Majesty the King of Sweden."

As his voice fell, the entire audience rose to their feet.

Then, Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6, "Pathétique," began to play.

Through the camera lenses, countless viewers from all over the world witnessed this glorious moment.

Lu Shixian, along with his two companions, walked forward and received the certificate, medal, and prize money from King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden.

When presenting the award to him, King Carl XVI Gustaf unusually spoke to him. "Greetings, scholar from the distant East. Since my accession to the throne, I have never seen a laureate of your age. This award is very meaningful to me as well."

"Because I can feel the power of youth."

Lu Shixian was a little surprised, as there was no scheduled conversation with the king in the ceremony's procedure.

"You're the king, so you can do what you want," he muttered inwardly, but he remained completely composed, responding gracefully.

He smiled back at the king and said, "He who has a dream never grows old."

"In my opinion, all the laureates present today are as young as I am."

King Gustaf was taken aback for a moment, then met his gaze and burst into hearty laughter.

Click!

As the camera flash went off, this moment was immortalized.

Whoosh!

At that moment, the more than thirteen hundred guests spontaneously erupted in applause for this scene.

The applause, much louder than before, echoed continuously throughout the award hall.

"I am deeply honored and surprised. This award is a recognition of my research work, and this will become one of the most unforgettable moments of my life..."

After a five-minute acceptance speech, the award ceremony was essentially over for him.

On such an occasion, avoiding any mistakes was a success in itself.

Lu Shixian didn't dare to improvise, keeping his speech conventional and proper.

After all the prizes had been awarded, it was time for the grand and magnificent banquet.

Lu Shixian found his group and they headed together to the "Blue Hall" in Stockholm City Hall.

"So, why is it called the Blue Hall when it's all red?" Xia Yubing was the first to voice her question.

Well now, to be honest, he had been curious about that himself and had specifically looked up the answer.

He never expected it would actually come in handy, giving him a chance to show off a bit.

Chapter 563: Returning Laden with Spoils

"For that, you'd have to ask the designer of the Blue Hall, Ragnar Östberg. He originally planned to coat the walls with plaster and then paint them with blue pigment," Lu Shixian explained with a smile. "But later, he discovered that the color and texture of the exposed red brick was more beautiful, which made him abandon his original concept. However, the name 'Blue Hall' was kept."

This explanation naturally earned a look of surprise from Xia Yubing.

"Is it that simple?"

Lu Shixian shrugged in reply. "What else could it be? In a way, the essence of art is simplicity and purity."

Upon arriving at the Blue Hall, more than a thousand people would soon be dining together here.

This also meant that the same number of people made the space feel far more crowded than the Stockholm Concert Hall.

After they took their seats at the long dining tables, the phrase "shoulder to shoulder" was no exaggeration.

The first course was finally served amidst the music.

By tradition, the Nobel Banquet typically prepared three glasses of wine and a three-course meal for the guests, and the menu was kept strictly confidential.

Before being served, only the head chef would receive the menu three days in advance, and it was forbidden to be leaked.

Soon, all the dishes were revealed.

This year's three courses were, in order: Arctic char and lobster soup, French-style pâté, and mixed apples.

However, this was the kind of food Lu Shixian had never gotten used to.

If he wanted to eat anything else, he would have to pay for it separately, so getting full here was practically a fantasy.

Besides, it was unlikely anyone came here just for the food.

At that moment, the King of Sweden formally announced the start of the banquet.

"Let us raise our first glass in a toast to the great scientific pioneer, Alfred Nobel, with our sincere respect."
The banquet wound down amidst the clinking of glasses.

Next up was the ball held in the Golden Hall.

But this sort of thing was truly a bit much for him.

Truth be told, even a simple ballroom dance was far more difficult for him than doing a few sets of squats.

Of course, he wasn't the only one among the thirteen laureates present who felt this way, so he didn't stick out too much.

Just then, an unfamiliar voice sounded beside him.

"Congratulations, young scholar from China."

Lu Shixian looked up and saw that it was none other than Gustafsson, the Chairman of the Nobel Committee.

"Aren't you going to go on stage and enjoy the spotlight?"

Hearing his question, Lu Shixian chuckled wryly. "Mr. Gustafsson, I think a place more suited for me is the laboratory."

"That is my stage as well."

Gustafsson was slightly taken aback, then nodded. "No wonder you've achieved so much at such a young age."

"It's also no surprise that Olof and Celine both voted for you. We debated this choice for over a month."

"The process was a bit convoluted, but the final result turned out well, didn't it?"

Hearing this, Lu Shixian gave him a slight nod. "Thank you very much for the committee's generosity."

Gustafsson laughed heartily. "No one wins a Nobel Prize on luck alone. Besides, luck is a form of strength in itself."

"In any case, congratulations, Lu!"

Finally, the ball came to an end.

The grand award ceremony was drawing to a close, and everyone began to leave in an orderly fashion.

This was also the perfect time for interviews; missing this window would make finding another opportunity this good difficult.

Many reporters were chasing after the Nobel laureates as they prepared to leave.

Lu Shixian was the most talked about and attracted the most attention.

So he was quickly stopped by reporters carrying their equipment.

After a full day of ceremony, Lu Shixian just wanted to go back to his hotel and rest; he had no desire to be interviewed.

Besides, many media outlets liked to set verbal traps. When facing foreign media, it was best to say as little as possible.

But amidst the crowd, he suddenly saw a splash of red and made an exception to accept an interview from China TV.

After all, a fellow Chinese wouldn't try to trip up another countryman!

After the two shook hands and exchanged a few pleasantries, the interview officially began.

Li Bin: "Professor Lu, hello. Behind the camera right now are thousands upon thousands of viewers back home. Could you please say hello to everyone?"

This was clearly not a question, but a statement.

Lu Shixian looked directly at the camera and smiled. "Hello everyone, I'm Lu Shixian. Thank you for your support."

After that, Li Bin continued, "First of all, congratulations on winning this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry. How are you feeling right now?"

Lu Shixian answered without hesitation, "Very excited, thrilled, and nervous."

Li Bin: "We seemed to have seen you having a conversation with the King of Sweden. This is quite rare at the award ceremony. Could you perhaps share a little about it?"

This was a question many people wanted to know the answer to.

After all, to people in China today, the king of a country was still a rather mysterious figure.

Lu Shixian smiled. "Actually, the King just told me that I was the youngest laureate he had met since ascending the throne, and that he saw the power of youth."

"And I replied that anyone with a dream is young, just like all the laureates here this year."

Hearing this answer, Li Bin secretly gave him a thumbs up.

It wasn't a planned question, and handling it so gracefully was a true test of one's ability to think on their feet.

Li Bin quickly moved to the last question: "According to recent news from home, Yan University has announced that you will be the dean of the newly established College of Modern Agriculture."

"Does this mean your future research will shift from biology to agriculture?"

Hearing this question, Lu Shixian was slightly taken aback.

They've already announced it?

But thinking about it, his popularity back home must be quite high right now.

This was indeed a great time to significantly boost the profile of Yan University's College of Modern Agriculture, saving a huge amount on publicity.

It would make everything much easier, from student recruitment to attracting corporate-sponsored projects.

When it came to playing these games, who could outplay them?

With matters here concluded.

Lu Shixian returned with a full load: the custom certificate, the gold medal, and the prize money check.

On the flight back to China,

Xia Yubing, just as she had after the International Biology Olympiad, was stroking the medal, which still seemed to be gleaming with the engraved profile of Alfred Nobel.

"Wow, one trip abroad and you've become the richest person in our family."

"Putting the five million in prize money aside, this gold medal must be worth a lot, right?"

The moment she said this, she was met with a death glare from everyone in their group.

Ms. Xia Xiuman shot her a look. "Sell it? What are you talking about? This is going to be our family heirloom, to be passed down from generation to generation."

The others also chimed in with a few playful criticisms.

Lu Shixian just smiled and didn't join the roasting session.

In fact, there was a long precedent of Nobel laureates publicly auctioning their medals.

Many scientists didn't place much importance on honors, so it really wasn't a big deal.

Chapter 564: Every Sip and Every Peck

The most famous example was probably the top physicist Niels Bohr, who sold his medal during the war to provide relief for civilians.

Subsequently, many Nobel laureates followed his example, though for various reasons.

The record for a Nobel Prize medal auction was set in 2014, with a sale price of 4.76 million US dollars.

The seller was the "father of DNA," James Watson.

In 1962, he, along with Crick and Wilkins, was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine for their discovery of the DNA double helix structure.

Coincidentally, in 2013, Crick's medal was also auctioned off, selling for 2.27 million US dollars.

Interestingly, however, the wealthy businessman who bought Watson's medal ended up dramatically returning it to him.

He stated, "In my opinion, it is unacceptable that a distinguished scientist should have to sell the medal that recognizes his achievements."

Lu Shixian didn't know if he would ever face such a day.

If it were necessary, perhaps he would.

After all, in his eyes, all material possessions could be used to serve scientific research.

Due to the nearly seven hour time difference between Stockholm and Yanjing, the live broadcast of the afternoon award ceremony reached China late at night.

Therefore, the news truly began to ferment and explode across the country during the morning news broadcasts.

China TV's "Morning News" program dedicated a special half hour segment to report on the award ceremony.

The main photo for the segment was a still frame of Lu Shixian and King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden smiling at each other.

The news replayed some of the key moments of the ceremony, especially the instant Lu Shixian received the certificate and medal from the king. At that moment, "Morning News" shattered its historical viewership records, reaching levels comparable to a hit television drama.

For a news program, this was a miracle that would be difficult to replicate.

Watching Lu Shixian stand at the center of the award ceremony, the focus of global attention, many of his countrymen felt a shared sense of excitement.

The results of China's years of hard work in the field of basic scientific research were validated and showcased at this ceremony.

A powerful emotion surged up, one that people felt compelled to express.

And so, the online comment sections exploded once again.

The maintenance staff for Weibo's backend had anticipated the topic's popularity, but their preparations were still insufficient.

The sheer volume of simultaneous comments and posts caused the servers to crash several times.

"Hahaha! A 26 year old Nobel laureate, I dare you to find another one!"

"Forgive my lack of vocabulary, all I can do is spam 666."

"Way to go! The fifth Nobel laureate of Chinese nationality, and the first in Chemistry."

"It hasn't been easy! After so many years of struggle, we're finally seeing a breakthrough. Given his age, it's not impossible for him to win a second Nobel in the future. The future is bright!"

For most people, this was indeed a joyous occasion worthy of celebration.

Although the official count of Chinese Nobel laureates was two, Yang Chen-Ning and Tsung-Dao Lee were still Chinese citizens when they won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1957; their status changed only later.

Adding to the list were Ms. Tu, who won the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for her discovery of artemisinin, and Master Mo, who won the 2012 Nobel Prize in Literature.

That brought the total to five.

However, there were also a number of Nobel prizes not recognized by China, which were best left unmentioned.

The Nobel Prizes in the natural sciences were still relatively pure, with award criteria less influenced by non academic factors.

Of course, a small minority of people expressed different opinions.

After all, the online world is vast, and you never know what kind of person is behind the next comment.

"I have to laugh. What does Lu Shixian winning the prize have to do with China? He went abroad right after graduation, and his research was published abroad. So everyone's just getting high on their own supply here?"

"Plant cell innate immunity? What's the damn point of researching that? Does it have anything to do with us? Good thing he's spending the Americans' money. He better not come back, or he'll just be wasting taxpayer money."

"Awesome! I've been saying all along that all those so called experts and scholars in China are useless freeloaders. All their years of research have been a waste of time. Not as good as my god Lu, who can easily snag a Nobel in a year. Can't these 'brick-perts' and 'beast-fessors' just go die?!"

However, these comments couldn't cause Lu Shixian even the slightest bit of trouble.

These jarring voices were quickly drowned out by a storm of criticism from the masses until they disappeared completely.

Jinling City, Su Province.

At Jinling No. 1 High School.

The old principal, Cai Mingyuan, had officially retired last year and was now enjoying life.

Qian Zhengguo, having been credited with discovering Lu Shixian and several other outstanding students, had taken over as principal.

And for similar reasons, Jiang Yunkun had become the dean of studies at the school.

At this moment, the two were "plotting" a major event.

Ostensibly, they wanted to invite Lu Shixian back to give a lecture to everyone, but in reality, they were calling him back to boost the school's prestige.

He was a student I personally cultivated, so I'm going to bask in the glow of this new Nobel laureate.

Is there a problem with that?

So what if the Affiliated High School of Jinling has Academician Peng backing them?

My Jinling No. 1 High School now has a Nobel bigshot in its corner too!

In the principal's office.

Qian Zhengguo felt a great sense of vindication.

Ever since he took office, he had felt the immense pressure from the affiliated high school, a pressure that left him breathless.

For any school, the two factors that had the greatest impact on educational outcomes were undoubtedly these:

One was high quality students, like seeds, and the other was high quality education, like fertilizer.

Only when the two were closely combined could they produce a 1+1 > 2 effect and blossom into the most beautiful flowers.

"This is great. Little Lu winning this award has really solved my urgent problem," Qian Zhengguo said with immense relief to Jiang Yunkun, who was sitting across from him. "It's a good thing I went to the agricultural high school to proctor that intermediate joint exam back then and persuaded the school leadership to pay the price to recruit him."

Looking at the image in the People's Daily of a young Lu Shixian accepting the medal, Jiang Yunkun couldn't help but feel a bit dazed, as if he had returned to the past.

"The day Lu Shixian first came to my class, I knew this kid was different from the others."

"Looking at him now, he has become the most outstanding product of our school's educational reforms."

"This award is incredibly significant! It has firmly established our school's golden reputation for competition track admissions."

Qian Zhengguo also sighed with a smile, "Yes! He has indirectly changed our futures and destinies as well."

"Every sip and every peck is preordained; all things have their cause!"

Chapter 565: You're Putting Me in a Tough Spot!

Lu Shixian was still unaware of the plans being hatched at Jinling No. 1 High School.

But Yan University had already begun to take action.

Since October, congratulatory banners like "Congratulations to Our Outstanding Alumnus on Winning the Nobel Prize in Chemistry" had been hanging at the entrance of Yan University.

Now, when ordinary teachers or students from Yan University saw people from Shuimu University, they generally exhibited a certain symptom.

The first thing they'd say upon meeting someone was: "What! How did you know our student, Lu Shixian, won the Nobel Prize?"

Of course, even at Yan University, there was no shortage of snide remarks.

The fact that Lu Shixian had become the dean of Yan University's College of Modern Agriculture right after returning to the country had caused some grumbling among certain bigwigs.

It couldn't be helped. A university's resources were finite; if your slice of the pie got bigger, someone else's got smaller.

In their eyes, the newly established College of Modern Agriculture was a juicy piece of meat.

But now, that piece of meat seemed to have flown away.

Huang Haifeng, an associate professor from the College of Life Sciences, was one of them.

The resources allocated to the College of Modern Agriculture were on a level he couldn't even dream of reaching.

What bothered him was something else entirely.

Every year at Yan University, the number of promotion slots for full professorships in a college was extremely limited. He had long met the criteria for promotion, and this time, two spots had finally opened up.

One of the spots was taken by an associate professor from an academician's team, but that person's qualifications and abilities were superior to his, so Huang Haifeng had nothing to say.

As for the other spot, relying on his years of seniority, he had pulled a few strings and was very hopeful of securing it.

But now, it had been snatched away by the parachuting Lu Shixian.

Of course, when Lu Shixian left Yale University, he already held the ranks of both full professor and senior researcher.

Upon his return to Yan University, it was perfectly procedural for him to be appointed directly as a professor.

However, Huang Haifeng wasn't thinking about all that right now. In his eyes, Lu Shixian had simply stolen the spot that should have been his.

He thought to himself: The university is completely unfair, giving it to him but not me.

Lu Shixian is still too young, his qualifications too shallow. Even if he came back, he should have to work his way up for a while.

But he could only rage impotently in his heart; he didn't even dare to speak his thoughts aloud.

Because while he was jealous, he was not stupid.

Putting aside the dazzling halo of the Nobel Prize, Lu Shixian was not without foundations at Yan University. In fact, his backing was incredibly strong.

Especially within the academic faction, senior professors from the older generation like Xu Zhihong, Ma Yuheng, and Gu Hongya all had close relationships with Lu Shixian.

At the same time, Wu Hong, a representative of the younger core faction, also held him in high regard.

Even in the research focused laboratory faction, academicians like Zhu Xian, Zhao Dongming, and Niu Chengtang all favored Lu Shixian.

Of course, he had also forgotten about Yuanpei College.

After several years of development, Yuanpei was no longer the same as before.

The number of academicians had increased significantly; it was no longer Zeng Fanzhu holding up the sky alone.

And this Academician Zeng, who had publicly stood up for Lu Shixian, was no simple figure himself.

In just a few short years after being elected as an academician, he had firmly established himself at Yan University and led Yuanpei College to repeated successes.

Of course, Huang Haifeng had forgotten an even more important point.

By all accounts, Lu Shixian was homegrown talent, having completed his bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees all at Yan University.

This was actually a very important factor, one that could alleviate many concerns for the university's leadership when making decisions.

Looking at it now, Xu Zhihong's plans from back then seemed to be bearing fruit.

With a legitimate reason, the layer of solid ice created by seniority and established paths was finally showing signs of cracking.

But that was all.

After all, Lu Shixian's experience was extremely difficult to replicate.

At this moment, the flight from Sweden had landed safely in Yanjing.

Weary from the long journey, Lu Shixian was immediately informed by the college of his recent schedule of activities.

"I have to personally attend the appointment ceremony for the Dean of the College of Modern Agriculture and Professor of the College of Life Sciences?"

"China TV's program 'Let's Talk' has invited me to be this episode's speaker?"

"Oh no! Didn't I already give a lecture at Yan University?"

"What? The previous one doesn't count? I have to give another formal academic lecture?"

"There's more? Minister Li from the Ministry of Science and Technology wants to talk to me about something too?"

Lu Shixian paced back and forth in Wu Hong's office, a look of utter despair on his face.

"Dean Wu, you're putting me in a really tough spot!"

"I just got back from the States. Isn't this workload a bit excessive for me?"

"I can't split myself into several people to do all these things at once. I'm completely swamped."

"Besides, if you want the ox to work, you have to feed it first."

"And what's more, I'm just a 26 year old baby!"

The initial complaints were one thing, but the last sentence rendered Wu Hong speechless.

It took her a long moment to recover. Then, handing him a cup of hot tea, Wu Hong patiently persuaded him, "Little Lu, difficult or not, it has to be done!"

"Everyone is preparing for these events right now. If you just drop everything, all their work will be for nothing."

"But I admit, you do have a lot of activities scheduled after the Nobel announcement."

"How about this? I'll have the college hire a temporary assistant for you later to help you handle some of the trivial matters."

Deal!

His objective achieved, Lu Shixian immediately started to head out.

Seeing this, Wu Hong had a helpless yet amused expression on her face.

Only at times like this did she feel that the current Lu Shixian was in the same age group as the other students at Yan University.

However, Lu Shixian's request was reasonable and had served as a reminder for her.

It was an oversight on her and the university's part.

The academicians at the university were all equipped with work or life assistants.

Although Lu Shixian wasn't an academician yet, he was now Yan University's only Nobel laureate.

His activities would only increase, not decrease, in the future. Assigning him an assistant was indeed necessary.

After leaving Wu Hong's office, other matters were still in preparation.

Taking advantage of the time, Lu Shixian planned to take care of the last item on his list first.

And so, when Minister Li met with him, he said, "Little Lu, someone wants to meet you."

This made Lu Shixian break out in a cold sweat. He had never expected this day to come so soon.

To be honest, he wasn't quite ready.

As if sensing his anxiety, Li Ping'an patted his shoulder. "Don't be nervous. Just treat it as a casual chat. They probably just want to congratulate you in person."

Lu Shixian was suddenly speechless.

Was this really a matter of a "casual chat"?
Before he entered the workforce, the person of the highest status he had ever met was his university professor.

But now, the most influential people he had met in Huaxia were still Mei Xingguo, whom he had met by a stroke of luck, and Minister Li, whom he had just recently gotten to know.

If you take too big a step, you're bound to pull something.

What should he do?

He was so nervous!

But some things couldn't be refused; you could only face them head on.

By the time he returned, Lu Shixian had no idea how he'd even left the place.

But for him, it was undoubtedly the greatest possible encouragement.

Chapter 566: Pleased to be Working with You

This time, it was indeed just a simple meeting, as Minister Li had said.

The minister's schedule wasn't exactly free recently.

The fact that they could meet at all was thanks to the tailwind of the Nobel Prize announcement.

As for other matters, there was no need to rush.

He had only just returned to the country and was unfamiliar with many aspects of the domestic situation.

Without understanding, he had no right to speak.

The time was not yet right, so there was no need to eagerly voice his opinions in any particular field.

However, the meeting was not without its rewards.

At the very least, he was now on the radar of the relevant departments, which would grant him many implicit advantages.

After returning from the central government offices, the temporary assistant assigned to him by the university had also arrived.

However, when this assistant came to report to him, why did the person look so familiar?

The visitor wore a simple and elegant white dress, her smooth, long hair held back by a simple headband. She looked at him with a mischievous, triumphant smile.

“Hello, Professor Lu. For the next six months, I will be your work assistant. I look forward to working with you!”

After freezing for a second, Lu Shixian was suddenly dumbfounded.

“Senior Sister Qu???”

“What kind of crazy idea is this, you being my work assistant?”

“Does the school know? Does Professor Gu know?”

Seeing she had achieved the desired effect, Qu Xi dropped the act.

Reverting to her usual self, she plopped down unceremoniously on the sofa opposite Lu Shixian’s desk.

“So you do remember me. I was starting to think you'd forgotten all about me,” Qu Xi said in a normal tone.

But Lu Shixian caught the hint of a reminder in her words.

He chuckled sheepishly. He had been incredibly busy these past few years, not to mention he was abroad.

He had indeed not been in much contact with his old friends, including Qu Xi.

He really hadn't done well in that regard.

Academia was important to him, but it shouldn't be his entire life.

Neither his parents nor his friends should be neglected.

“Why would you think of being my assistant? Isn't this like using a cannon to shoot a mosquito? A bit of an overreaction, don't you think?” Lu Shixian asked, curious.

Qu Xi put on her dramatic persona again, laying it on even thicker. “You’re a Nobel big shot now. How would you know the struggles of us common laborers in the lab?”

Her words gave Lu Shixian goosebumps.

“Senior Sister Qu, can you please speak normally? You’re creeping me out.”

Qu Xi burst out laughing and began to explain, “You might be underestimating your influence right now. Ever since the news that you were hiring an assistant spread through the university, the top talents from every department started competing.”

“I had to go through a lot of competition to get here, you know. My interview score was second, but I have a background in life sciences, so I won out by a slim margin.”

“Speaking of which, I was still in the lab at the time. It’s a good thing Professor Gu told me about this, or I wouldn't have even known.”

Lu Shixian suddenly found it hard to keep a straight face.

“Why is hiring an assistant like selecting an imperial concubine? There were even interviews?”

Hearing this, Qu Xi snorted with laughter. “You bet! Most of the interviewees were women, you know. And some of them were the really stunning types.”

“Now that you see me here, are you starting to regret not paying attention to this matter yourself?” Qu Xi continued to tease him.

Lu Shixian pretended not to hear her.

Since what was done was done, he could only accept it.

Come to think of it, this might not be a bad thing.

First, Qu Xi was an old acquaintance, which alone would save a lot of time in getting to know each other.

Second, this whole affair served as a reminder of something.

He began to ponder what Qu Xi had just said.

Perhaps it was just as she described.

He hadn't yet made the mental shift, hadn't adapted to the influence that came with the halo of the Nobel Prize.

Greater influence meant more resources at his disposal, which in turn meant he was now a hot commodity, extremely attractive to many people.

Qu Xi's ability was beyond question, a fact Lu Shixian had realized years ago.

She settled into her role incredibly quickly, even moving her workspace directly into the office next to the one the School of Life Sciences had prepared for Lu Shixian.

This office was of a very high standard, with a dedicated work area, a washroom with a shower, and a lounge.

The work area was so spacious that it didn't feel crowded at all, even with Qu Xi moving in.

But a man and a woman were different, and the issue of being alone together required constant attention.

Although he was back in the country, he knew that some in the domestic academic circle played very fast and loose, some even daring to show off their affection during video conferences.

To say he wanted to remain untainted by the mud might be an exaggeration, but maintaining his integrity shouldn't be a problem.

“According to the notice from the university administration, the appointment ceremony for the Dean of Yanda’s Institute of Modern Agriculture will be held tomorrow, which is this Friday,” Qu Xi said, holding a notebook and reminding him. “At that time, the conferment of the title of Lifetime Honorary Professor of the School of Life Sciences will also take place.”

“Next, although the recording for ‘Let’s Talk’ is next week, the show's host, Xiao Sa, wants to schedule a time with you to go over the script.”

“According to the schedule, the day after tomorrow, this Saturday, you will be giving an academic lecture on your Nobel Prize-winning research at Yanda’s Centennial Hall.”

Lu Shixian nodded in understanding. “Those are all fine. Except for ‘Let’s Talk,’ I’ve experienced similar things for all the other items at Yale.”

“Is there anything else coming up? So I can be mentally prepared.”

Hearing this, Qu Xi was ready and flipped her notebook to the next page.

“Then we’re on to next month’s schedule.”

“First, you’ll attend the ribbon cutting ceremony for the completion of the main building of the Institute of Modern Agriculture. Second, we've received an invitation from Jinling No. 1 High School. Third, the school wants to confirm if you have any intention of teaching a course. Fourth, we’ve received messages from the Youth League and the Youth Federation. Based on the nomination results, it has been confirmed that you will be awarded the 2019 Outstanding Youth Medal. You now need to fill out the relevant application materials.”

“The only other thing I know of are some pending matters related to the Thousand Talents Program, but that’s not urgent.”

After hearing the full report, Lu Shixian gave Qu Xi a thumbs-up while asking curiously, “Jinling No. 1 High School sent me an invitation? What’s that about?”

Qu Xi smiled and handed him a printed A4 sheet. “This lists all the institutions that have invited you for academic exchanges or lectures.”

“But I remember that Jinling No. 1 High School seems to be your alma mater, so I brought it up separately.”

Lu Shixian took the A4 paper and saw it was densely packed with the names of universities and research institutions from all over the country.

This was absurd. Now he finally understood just how important a capable work assistant was.

Chapter 567: A Household Name

If he had to handle all this work himself, it would undoubtedly consume a huge amount of his time and energy.

“How did you know about Jinling No. 1 High School?” Lu Shixian asked, a little curious.

At this question, Qu Xi sounded a bit exasperated. “My dear Professor Lu, don’t you ever read the news? Your entire past has already been dug up.”

“Besides the widely known facts, even things like where you went to elementary school and what activities you participated in as a child have been exposed.”

Yikes.

Lu Shixian was suddenly grateful for his foresight in not leaving any skeletons in his closet.

Otherwise, he'd be in trouble now, possibly dragged out and picked apart by netizens.

Without thinking for too long, Lu Shixian had already made arrangements for his upcoming schedule. “I’m too busy lately. Other than the lectures at Jinling No. 1 and Yanda, please turn down the rest for me.”

After speaking, he sighed with emotion. “I was thinking of starting on my project as soon as I got back, but I didn't expect to be so busy I haven't had a moment's rest for so long.”

“Speaking of which, I kind of miss the days before I was famous, when I didn't have to worry about anything but myself.”

This sentence naturally earned him Qu Xi’s playful scorn.

Lu Shixian gave himself three months to shake off the “aftereffects” of the Nobel Prize halo and get through the necessary obligations as quickly as possible.

He knew very well in his heart.

It was the same principle as an actor not appearing too frequently on variety shows.

A scientist was not suited for too many social activities.

A moderate amount was fine, but if one became addicted to it, it would be difficult to continue making new breakthroughs on the academic path.

The next day.

The appointment ceremony for the Dean of Yanda's Institute of Modern Agriculture and Lifetime Honorary Professor of the School of Life Sciences was held as scheduled in the Centennial Auditorium.

In addition to all the lecturers and professors from the School of Life Sciences, many teachers from other departments also came to observe the ceremony.

Yanda had made the event quite grand, and Lu Shixian attended in formal attire.

President Pin Hao personally presented him with the letters of appointment.

“Professor Lu is a student who walked out from our very own Yanda. He has now become a top scholar in the international field of botany and our country’s first Nobel laureate in Chemistry. He was willing to give up the excellent conditions abroad to return to Yanda once more. On behalf of Yanjing University, I would like to express my praise and gratitude for his academic achievements and personal character.”

Pin Hao had actually presided over many appointment ceremonies, including some for academic titans at the academician level, but never before had there been a day he found so unforgettable.

After all, while academicians were authoritative, their numbers had accumulated over the years.

But there was only one Nobel laureate this young.

Subsequently, under the witness of hundreds of lecturers, professors, and university leaders, Lu Shixian solemnly accepted the two weighty letters of appointment and gave a speech.

“Thank you, Yanda, for your trust and support. In the future, I will actively promote the disciplinary development of the Institute of Modern Agriculture, participate in academic exchanges and cooperation in related fields, and contribute my professional knowledge and experience to Yanda’s scientific research development…”

The grand appointment ceremony concluded amidst fervent applause.

This event was of great significance to both Lu Shixian and Yanda.

Yanda’s foundation was by no means weak; in fact, it was incredibly strong.

It had actually produced a Nobel laureate before.

That's right.

Huaxia’s first Nobel laureate in Medicine, Ms. Tu, had graduated from Yanjing Medical College in the past.

And this school was renamed Yanjing Medical University in 1984.

If that still doesn't ring a bell, its later name is known to all.

It merged with Yanda in 2000 and was later known as Yanda Medical School.

Going by this history, it wasn't wrong for Yanda to claim it had produced a Nobel laureate.

But the reality was that the Yanda Medical School, formed through restructuring and mergers, didn't have a very strong connection with the main Yanda campus.

They had different admission codes, different admission scores, different management models, and even different campuses and cultural atmospheres.

One could even say that, apart from the diplomas being issued by the same institution, they were practically two different schools.

In that sense, Ms. Tu actually had a stronger connection to the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences.

And reality developed along those lines. Ms. Tu’s main work is now at the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, where she serves as the chief scientist and director of the Artemisinin Research and Development Center.

But Lu Shixian was different.

It could be said that he was a “pure-blooded” Nobel laureate cultivated by Yanda itself.

This was one of the deeper reasons why Yanda was supporting him so heavily and placing such a significant bet on him.

For Lu Shixian, Yanda was one of the top universities for scientific research in Huaxia.

One could even say that with his arrival, there was a chance to erase the "one of" from that description.

To be able to research topics he was interested in, in a familiar place.

That in itself was a rare thing.

On Friday, Lu Shixian drove to the Huaxia Radio and Television Building.

There, he met the nationally beloved host, Xiao Sa.

As they were the same age and also alumni, the meeting was exceptionally pleasant.

The two successfully added each other to their circles of friends.

The day after this ended.

Lu Shixian, with a pre-booked train ticket, set off on his journey back to Jinling.

Although it was a weekend, when he appeared at Jinling Station, Jinling No. 1 High School still dispatched an incredibly grand welcoming party.

The top leadership of Jinling City and the school's administrative team were all waiting for him at the train station, giving him a great deal of face.

Originally, Jinling No. 1 High School's invitation for him to return had been kept quiet, but unexpectedly, the city of Jinling had somehow gotten wind of it and muscled in.

This was the reason for today's grand spectacle.

“Professor Lu! It must have been a long journey, you must be tired!” The head of Jinling City, Chen Feiyu, said warmly as he shook his hand. “On behalf of the city of Jinling, I welcome you.”

In fact, this leader’s personal presence confirmed what Qu Xi had told him last time.

Beyond the immense promotional value brought by his now household name.

With his vast academic influence, the resources Lu Shixian controlled could now impact local economic and cultural development.

This was why Jinling City was so enthusiastic about him.

And having had prior experience dealing with leaders, Lu Shixian was now more than capable of handling such situations.

“Not at all, not at all.” Lu Shixian smiled and shook Chen Feiyu’s hand. “It’s a very happy thing to be able to return to my hometown. How could I be tired?”

At this moment, Lu Shixian’s appearance had already started to draw a crowd. After all, his fame was now known to every household, and the buzz from the Nobel Prize was still running high.

This was no longer a place to linger.

Chapter 568: Change and Permanence

The group moved to a beautifully decorated reception room.

Undoubtedly, this had now become a formal meeting; even if it wasn't intended to be, the Jinling side would make it so.

Major mainstream media outlets from Su Province were already there.

Here, Chen Feiyu stated that he was the pride of Jinling and expressed his hope that he would support the development of his hometown more.

Lu Shixian naturally agreed to everything, but he added a qualifier beforehand: if the opportunity arises.

One should not forget their roots, but one must also keep their promises.

Given that Nanchang had been the first to provide him with immense support in terms of funding and other aspects.

Lu Shixian couldn't make too many promises to Jinling; that would have to wait for the future.

Soon, business here was concluded.

The atmosphere was much more relaxed when interacting with Qian Zhengguo and the other teachers from Jinling No. 1 High School.

As Lu Shixian won the Nobel Prize, his status continued to soar.

Even before he won the prize, both Rothman and Lin Haifan had treated him as an equal due to his academic level.

Currently, there weren't many people in the country who could call him Little Lu, and coincidentally, two of them were right in front of him.

“Little Lu! Welcome back to the school to guide the construction work of No. 1 High,” Qian Zhengguo, who had worn a perpetually troubled expression since becoming principal, was now smiling so widely he couldn't stop. “Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule to accept the school’s invitation.”

Hearing this, Lu Shixian thought to himself that Qian Zhengguo didn't become principal purely by chance; his own abilities were also very important.

At least, he had phrased that very beautifully.

He immediately shook his head. “I wouldn't call it guidance; after all, every trade has its master. But as long as my alma mater needs me, I'm more than willing to come back and do my small part.”

“Just by coming back, you’re already providing the greatest help to our school,” Jiang Yunkun said with emotion from the side. “Honestly, I feel a bit ashamed. As your homeroom teacher, I wasn't able to teach you anything particularly useful.”

Lu Shixian just smiled at this remark.

He had graduated early from Jinling No. 1 High School, so he hadn't even spent much time in Class One.

However, Jiang Yunkun was an important teacher in his life’s journey.

At the very least, he still remembered that during the written exam for the juvenile class.

It was his words that helped him regain his confidence and continue forward.

He stayed for two nights at the hotel arranged by the school.

During this time, taking advantage of the weekend, Lu Shixian came to the school alone.

In Dorm Room Number One in the student dormitory building, the old layout seemed unchanged. He heard that several top students had emerged from this room over the years, making it a true "super-scholar" dorm.

The building where he once prepared for the biology competition was still brightly lit at night. The once dusty biology competition guidance room had been renovated and upgraded several times, benefiting the entire building.

Walking into the lab building where he used to practice his experimental skills, the outdated but still new-looking equipment had vanished, replaced by equipment that met international biology Olympiad standards.

Returning to his old stomping grounds, Lu Shixian walked through all the places he had once frequented.

There were many traces of his existence here, many stories about him worth savoring.

Some things about No. 1 High were different from his memory, while some remained the same.

The bad was gone, and the good remained.

Seeing these changes and constants, Lu Shixian felt a sense of comfort in his heart.

Although he hadn't spent a long time here, even less than at Nongzhong High.

But no matter what, Jinling No. 1 High School was, in a way, the starting point of his academic journey.

Here, he had solidified the foundation of his biological knowledge system.

Here, he had written his first academic paper.

And here, he had embarked on the path of biology competitions.

Seeing Jinling No. 1 High School getting better and better under his influence was something that made him happy.

He believed that in the near future, Jinling No. 1 High School would slowly gain the confidence to compete with Jinling Affiliated High School.

Because he came from here.

Time flew to Monday.

As arranged by the school, Lu Shixian, as a representative on the path of learning, participated in this week’s school-wide “address at the flag-raising ceremony.”

Lu Shixian didn't talk about study methods but simply explained the purpose of learning from both individual and collective perspectives.

This was just a small appetizer; the main event was the formal lecture.

Not counting the impromptu speech last time, and since the lecture at Yanda had not yet begun.

This lecture was, in a sense, his first official public event since receiving the Nobel Prize in Stockholm.
Therefore, the appeal of this event was unparalleled.

On this day, Jinling No. 1 High School received an unprecedented amount of attention.

Whether it was the number of guests attending in person or the intensity of the coverage from major news media outlets, it all broke records in the school's history.

Amidst everyone's anticipation, Lu Shixian began his eloquent and heartfelt address.

"I am delighted to be invited back to my alma mater, Jinling No. 1 High School, for this event. It's not quite a lecture, as what I want to share today is more akin to my personal reflections. I have so much I want to say about this school."

"I thank the teachers who imparted their knowledge and experience to me. I thank the school leaders who did everything they could to improve my learning conditions. And I thank all of us who once strived day and night within these walls."

"It was here at Jinling No. 1 High School that my journey with biology began. It was here that I developed a strong interest in life sciences, and that became the primary driving force behind my continuous efforts to learn..."

Click, click, click!

With the constant sound of camera shutters, the contents of this unique public lecture were about to be broadcast far and wide.

It was believed that after this day, many parents and students, drawn by his influence, would choose to enroll here.

The number of applicants to Jinling No. 1 High School would reach a new high.

A change in quantity leads to a change in quality.

With a significant improvement in the quality of incoming students, it was not impossible for Jinling No. 1 High School to try and go head-to-head with the Affiliated High School in the coming year.

After the event, Lu Shixian made a trip back home.

This was, in fact, his first time returning home since winning the Nobel Prize.

This time, he received a warm and enthusiastic welcome from everyone in the town and his village.

Without a doubt, Lu Shixian had become their collective pride.

From the announcement of the Nobel Prize results in October until now, the threshold of the Lu family home was nearly worn away by the constant stream of visitors.

It was no exaggeration to say he had brought great honor to his family.

Lu Shixian's story was passed from person to person, becoming the stuff of legend.

However, Lu Shixian did not immerse himself in the praise for too long.

Because the year 2018 was quietly slipping away.

It was a new year, and a new beginning.

After staying home for less than three days, Lu Shixian once again set off for Dongshan Province.

He was to participate in the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Yenching University Institute of Modern Agriculture.

Of course, his more important goal was to seek help and, while he was at it, listen to some advice from his mentor and Academician Deng.

Chapter 569: A New Option

Taking the high-speed rail, Lu Shixian headed north.

He found this mode of transport quite pleasant, much more so than cruise ships or airplanes.

He could see the lush greenery of the vast fields and the busy figures of people working on the ridges.

Traveling from south to north, he clearly observed the changes in the types of seasonal vegetables planted, a result of different soil and climate conditions.

Soon, he arrived at the beautiful shores of Lake Xiashan.

As he had an appointment, Lu Shixian quickly gained entry into the Institute of Modern Agriculture, which was not yet officially operational.

The offices of Academician Xu and Academician Deng were on the same floor of a teaching building, not far from each other.

However, knowing that Lu Shixian was coming today, both men had uncharacteristically put aside their work, waiting for him at their leisure.

Ten in the morning.

The door to an office opened.

Seeing the person at the door carrying something in his hand, Academician Xu turned his head to Academician Deng and said, "Look at this kid. A few years abroad and he's really changed. He's starting with these formalities with us now."

The office was extremely simple, likely because it had just been completed. Aside from a desk and a few chairs, there was only a lone water cooler. There wasn't even an air conditioner.

Lu Shixian placed the items on the table and grinned. "I just came from my hometown, so I brought some Jinling cake. I know you two can't eat anything too hard or greasy, but this stuff is soft and chewy, sweet but not cloying. I guarantee you'll like it."

Deng Xinwang, standing to the side, also smiled. "Old Xu! You can accept this. I have to say, among us old fellows, you're the best at picking disciples."

"Not only is he young and accomplished, but he also thinks of you when he has good things. We're truly envious."

Xu Zhihong laughed heartily. "You old Deng, you're being so polite now. Let me tell you, he just collected millions in prize money from Sweden. His net worth is probably higher than all of ours combined."

"That's right! It's not an expensive gift, you must accept it," Lu Shixian quickly added. "Besides, I've come to you for guidance today. This is just a small token of my appreciation."

Only then did Deng Xinwang relent. "We'll let it slide this time. Next time, just come yourself. Don't bring anything. Old Xu and I live on the salaries the country gives us. We eat well, dress warmly, and lack for nothing."

At this, Lu Shixian found a chair and sat down before continuing, "How can that be the same? When a junior visits an elder, who goes empty-handed? Aren't you just setting me up to be scolded?"

"They say 'when in Rome, do as the Romans do.' I think you need to get more accustomed to our ancestral customs now that you're back in the country."

Hearing this, Deng Xinwang glanced at Xu Zhihong and laughed loudly. "Old Xu, look at this. Your student is starting to tell me what to do. Aren't you going to rein him in?"

Xu Zhihong, however, ignored his complaint. "What's wrong with that? They say to side with reason, not with people you know. I think what young Lu says makes perfect sense!"

After the cheerful greetings, Deng Xinwang got to the main point.

"You said you came for guidance. Is there a problem that our Nobel laureate can't solve now? I heard you have the ear of..."

He pointed a finger upwards.

"I reckon what you say carries more weight than what we say now."

Lu Shixian immediately explained his thoughts. "After returning to China, besides the Institute of Modern Agriculture, I was given another option."

He chose his words carefully. "Actually, I'm thinking of building my own lab to do research. It's not exactly striking out on my own, but it would be more convenient to do the research I'm interested in."

"Oh? Pinhao just got promoted. He's got quite some nerve!" Xu Zhihong was slightly surprised but quickly replied, "Say no more. Your idea is the right one, and it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

Deng Xinwang, beside him, agreed. "Old Xu is right, this is a good thing. Look at me, I've been back for so long and haven't gotten anything. Your voice should carry a lot of weight right now. Young Lu, you must seize this opportunity."

"I will," Lu Shixian nodded, then continued, "But when it comes to establishing a state key laboratory, I'm like a mouse in a chimney—completely in the dark."

"Plus, I'm young and don't know the ins and outs of it all. I'll need your guidance."

Now, both men understood Lu Shixian's intentions. They exchanged a look.

In the end, Deng Xinwang was pushed forward to answer the question.

"Old Xu probably feels the same way I do about this. It's not that we don't want to help you, but first, the Institute of Modern Agriculture is about to get on track, and we can't leave for the time being."

"Second, don't be fooled by how quickly the institute seems to have been built. We've been working on this for nearly ten years."

"After this is done, we'll be old. We don't have the energy for that kind of struggle anymore."

Fearing he wouldn't understand, his mentor Xu Zhihong finally added, "Old Deng is right. If you have academic questions, we are more than willing to help. But if we help you with this matter, I'm afraid some people will say we're overstepping our bounds."

If Deng Xinwang's words had been a riddle, Lu Shixian might have needed a moment to understand.

But Xu Zhihong's words were so direct that he understood almost instantly.

He fell silent for a moment, feeling that his previous idea had indeed been a bit naive.

Many things were not as simple as one imagined, not decisions that could be made on a whim.

Seeing him lost in thought, Deng Xinwang tried to persuade him, "Why don't you just conduct your research here at the Institute of Modern Agriculture? That was Old Xu's and my original idea. The path has been paved for you."

"He and I will focus on teaching and application, while you'll be in charge of the institute's research. You'll be free from many hindrances."

Things seemed to be turning out differently than he had expected, and for a moment, Lu Shixian didn't know what to choose.

The Institute of Modern Agriculture was certainly a great option, but it was also a bit too comfortable.

Moreover, his future research would by no means be limited to agriculture-related fields.

Seeing that Lu Shixian was still considering, Xu Zhihong felt a sense of gratification. This was his most outstanding disciple.

He had personally witnessed Lu Shixian grow from a somewhat green student into a brilliant academic researcher in just a few short years.

The study abroad plan, originally just a trial, had been executed far better than he had ever imagined.

The fledgling will one day become an eagle and soar.

After a long while, Xu Zhihong finally spoke.

"Actually, there is another option."

Chapter 570: Has It Only Been a Few Years?

At these words, both Lu Shixian and Deng Xinwang turned their gazes toward him.

Xu Zhihong didn't keep them in suspense. "Yenching University already has eight state key laboratories."

"Adding one more for you isn't too many, but it's not a small number either. The annual funding pressure will increase significantly, and Pinhao will have another headache trying to secure the budget."

Deng Xinwang nodded but then asked, "It shouldn't be that bad, right? Young Lu is a Nobel laureate. With that title, would he have trouble getting funding from the higher-ups?"

Xu Zhihong just smiled at this. "This is why Young Lu was right when he said you haven't quite adapted to the customs here."

"Applying for funding won't be difficult, but how much of it will actually end up in Young Lu's hands is another matter."

Deng Xinwang was surprised. "They can do that? Isn't that a bit too blatant?"

Xu Zhihong clearly had deep experience with this. "Matters involving the allocation of huge resources are never simple. Just you wait and see. All manner of troublesome people will come knocking. Pinhao is in for a tough time, which is why I said he has nerve for making that promise."

After speaking, he looked at Lu Shixian. "So, you've become a money tree for a lot of people now. They're all waiting for you to strike it rich."

"If you want to focus on your research in peace for the next few years, you shouldn't get entangled in this."

Lu Shixian frowned slightly. Academician Xu and Academician Deng had been busy with their institute for years; he truly didn't have that much spare time to waste in the world of fame and fortune.

So he asked, "Please enlighten me, mentor."

Xu Zhihong shook his head with a smile. "Since you have no experience in establishing a laboratory and don't want to get too involved in the logistics..."

"There is another way. And that is..."

"The province-ministry co-construction model."

As the words fell, Deng Xinwang had a sudden realization. He looked at Xu Zhihong and said, "A brilliant method! When it comes to this stuff, you're the master, Old Xu. No wonder you climbed the highest among us."

"It not only distances him from the web of interests in Yenching but also brings in two other parties to form a tripartite management structure. That would certainly improve efficiency and save a lot of trouble."

"You sly old fox, Xu. You had this figured out all along, didn't you?"

Xu Zhihong tacitly confirmed it, then continued, "I'm just offering a new option. It's not easy to accomplish either. First, how to find the right partners for the three parties. Second, getting all three parties to reach a consensus is no simple task. And third, although this model was launched in 2003, the number of labs that have passed the evaluation and become officially recognized is still very small."

But at this moment, Lu Shixian was clearly not troubled by these issues.

The moment Xu Zhihong uttered those words, he had received the biggest hint he needed.

Now, his train of thought was becoming clearer and clearer.

Speaking of partners, the first that came to his mind were Nanjiang Province and the Ministry of Science and Technology.

As for getting them to reach a consensus with Yenching University, it just so happened that he knew the big bosses of all three departments.

And he wasn't too worried about the third point. On one hand, he was confident in his academic abilities; on the other, this model was currently being spearheaded by China's scientific authorities.

Thinking about it this way, he realized this model seemed to perfectly fit his current situation and could solve his problems.

He quickly stood up to leave. "You've been a huge help. I've bothered you enough for today. I'll be on my way."

Xu Zhihong immediately guessed that he might have had an inspiration and said, "Go on!"

But after he left, Xu Zhihong felt a little curious.

Provincial and ministerial departments weren't easy to approach. And where would one find someone to make the introductions?

None of this was easy.

Even if Lu Shixian's name was very famous now, some people wouldn't act without a clear incentive, and a big name might not be that useful.

But then he thought about all the things Lu Shixian had accomplished along the way, things that couldn't be explained by common sense.

In the conversations of many, he had already become synonymous with miracles.

Now, he was rather looking forward to what would happen next.

Meanwhile, Lu Shixian was already on his way to Nanjiang.

It had been less than an hour since he had arrived in Dongshan.

As for his original purpose for coming, it had long been cast to the back of his mind.

He couldn't help it; the prospect of having a laboratory under his control was simply too important to him.

He rushed all the way to Nanjiang.

As it turned out, the timing for seeing Old Mei again was excellent, as Mei Ting was on her winter break.

With the halo of being the country's youngest Nobel laureate, he could command more influence.

In fact, when Mei Ting received Lu Shixian's call, she seemed quite surprised, though her tone betrayed little emotion.

"Isn't this our great scientist? What are you doing in Nanjiang instead of being busy in Yenching?"

Lu Shixian knew she was referring to the time he left after a brief greeting without properly meeting her.

He laughed it off. "I was missing my esteemed teacher, of course. And as it happens, I, in my humble way, have just achieved a small accomplishment and wanted to come and thank you at the first opportunity."

On the other end of the line, Mei Ting's composure broke a little. She thought to herself:

"This guy has won a Nobel Prize, and he still has the same unserious attitude."

But then she remembered he was only twenty-six, and she slowly came to terms with it.

They arranged a time and place to meet. After hanging up, even she couldn't help but get lost in thought.

"This guy really is ridiculously young!"

"Has it only been a few years?"

"And he's already reached this point."

As a university teacher and a researcher herself, she knew just how outrageous Lu Shixian's current achievements were.

Combined with his age, it was off-the-charts ridiculous, simply beyond description.

When she first met Lu Shixian, he was a student with no competition experience whatsoever, having just graduated from a rural middle school.

Although it was clear he had some foundation in botany, for her, a Ph.D. graduate from Yenching University at the time, it was merely passable.

But now, a few years had passed, and she was still teaching at Yenching University.

Due to when she started and a lack of concern for such things, she was still just a lecturer in Yenching's paleontology department.

Meanwhile, Lu Shixian had made a huge name for himself internationally, not only frequently publishing research results and appearing in top journals, but even winning the Nobel Prize. Upon his return, he became a full professor at Yenching University, several ranks higher than her.

If a student you taught turned out to be outstanding, as a teacher, you would naturally feel a sense of accomplishment.

But if that student was too outstanding, surpassing their master by so much in such a short time...

Even with her calm disposition, she couldn't help but feel a little strange.

She didn't know how to describe it.

Thinking about their upcoming meeting, Mei Ting couldn't help but press her right hand to her forehead.

"Heavens, what kind of monster did I teach back then!"

Chapter 571: Seeing Mei Ting Again

But despite her thoughts, Mei Ting was still looking forward to seeing Lu Shixian with some anticipation.

After all, with her personality, she didn't have many close friends.

Having someone she could talk to was one of the few pleasures in her life outside of research.

The two met at the arranged location.

The Mei Ting before him seemed exactly the same as in his memory from years ago.

It was as if time had stood still for her.

"Teacher Mei, I heard that right after I got back to school, before Yenching even started its winter break, you took leave and went home?" As soon as they met, Lu Shixian deliberately touched on the sore subject. "Were you sick? Was it serious?"

Hearing this, Mei Ting felt a surge of irritation. Why did she go home early? It was to avoid a certain someone.

Otherwise, meeting would be so awkward. She really didn't want to bask in his reflected glory, really.

But now that they had met, that feeling had diminished considerably.

"You must have had an exciting few years. But in any case, congratulations on achieving your dream," Mei Ting had been a teacher for several years and had naturally improved, at least in making polite conversation.

She was also slightly more talkative than before.

Lu Shixian clearly hadn't expected her to say this. He was a bit surprised, then smiled and deliberately recited, "The flower of success, people only admire her current beauty! However, when she was a bud, she was soaked in the tears of struggle, sprinkled with the blood of sacrifice..."

Before Lu Shixian could finish, Mei Ting's true nature revealed itself, her face as cold as frost.

"Enough!"

"I see you're quite pleased with yourself now!"

"Not at all, not at all." Lu Shixian said, "How could I dare be pleased in front of Teacher Mei? After all, when I first met you, you were already a teacher."

"And the result I've achieved with all my effort has only brought me to your starting point."

"I'll be teaching in the biology department from now on, so I'll be counting on your guidance, Teacher Mei."

As he spoke, Lu Shixian realized the spot next to him was empty.

Looking ahead, he saw that Mei Ting had already walked a great distance.

"Hey, Teacher Mei, wait for me!"

Guided by Mei Ting, Lu Shixian soon arrived at her home in Nanjiang and learned that Mei Xingguo was there.

Standing before the study, Lu Shixian knocked gently on the door.

"Is that you, young Lu? The door's unlocked, come on in." A robust voice came from within the room.

Hearing this, Lu Shixian no longer hesitated and pushed the door open.
At the sight of the young man, Mei Xingguo immediately put down his pen. "Well, if it isn't Lu!" he said with a smile. "You're a rare sight these days. The man of the hour! Come, have a seat."

"It's hard to believe. In just a few years, you've not only become Professor Lu, but a Nobel laureate as well."

Lu Shixian took a seat casually. "To be honest, I never would have imagined it either. The man I was chatting with back then turned out to be such an important figure. I'm starting to get nervous now."

Mei Xingguo laughed heartily, seeing right through him. "You might be able to fool others with that line, but not me. You just won the Nobel Prize, and right after that, you met with him. There can't be many things left in this country that could make you nervous."

"I manage, I manage. After all, things are different here than abroad. When the local environment doesn't suit you, you have to know when to tread carefully, don't you?"

Lu Shixian's words were pointed, and he trusted that Mei Xingguo would understand.

Sure enough, under his subtle guidance, the conversation finally arrived at the main topic.

"What's the situation? Is there something troubling you at a time like this?"

Lu Shixian quickly stated the purpose of his visit.

After hearing him out, Mei Xingguo asked with evident surprise, "You're saying you want to establish a State Key Laboratory of Biology, co-sponsored by the province and the ministry, with Yan University as the supporting institution?"

"Lu, this is a great thing! You'll be in charge of a laboratory right after returning to the country."

But his doubts quickly surfaced. "However, as I recall, Yan University has never located one of its key laboratories outside of Yanjing."

"With Yan University's capabilities, they shouldn't need to establish a lab in this manner. It seems a bit redundant."

"But if it's you who wants to build a lab this way, it's actually an excellent choice. It could save you a lot of trouble."

"Whose idea was this?"

To be honest, Mei Xingguo was interested in this matter. Very interested.

For Nanjiang, a province not exactly rich in educational and scientific resources, the arrival of a State Key Laboratory would change a great deal.

Moreover, a Nobel laureate was himself an enormous boon.

This opportunity seemed almost too good to be true.

But he still had to consider the bigger picture. If they were to build a State Key Laboratory under the provincial-ministerial co-sponsorship model, there would be one problem.

The funding would not come from the central government. The vast majority would have to be borne by Nanjiang province itself.

Therefore, the annual research budget would be no small sum, placing the entire province under immense financial pressure.

But having climbed his way up the ladder, his vision was far beyond that of an ordinary person.

Although in the short term, it would face immense pressure and the pains of a capital shortage, in the long run, the benefits brought by a State Key Laboratory were incalculable.

After all, science and technology are the primary productive forces.

It was time for Nanjiang to seek industrial transformation, not just survive by resting on its laurels.

Relying solely on the baijiu and food industries would not lead to development.

The annual output value of these industries was increasing slowly year by year, and their competitiveness was beginning to wane.

Clearly, the future trend was the vigorous development of high-tech industries.

Years ago, his willingness to make an exception and help Lu Shixian was, in a way, an investment, as well as an effort to attract talent.

But he never expected that in such a short time, Lu Shixian would deliver such a magnificent gift.

As for whether it could ultimately be built, he wasn't too worried.

As long as it was on the table, there was a chance to negotiate.

The rest was merely a matter of distributing the benefits.

For the future development of Nanjiang, he was not unwilling to make some appropriate concessions.

Of course, the most crucial thing was that he hadn't gotten to where he was today without his own backing.

So he stopped asking about the laboratory and turned his gaze to Lu Shixian, only to see him looking calm and composed, seemingly not at all worried about whether the matter would succeed.

He couldn't help but feel a greater appreciation for his character. No wonder he had reached such heights at this age.

This young man was truly remarkable!

"Aren't you worried I'll refuse?" Mei Xingguo asked, a little curious. "You should know that not every province has the strength or the will to build a laboratory."

Lu Shixian smiled faintly. "I imagine that doesn't include my home province of Su. They most likely wouldn't refuse my return to contribute to their development."

"Besides, if things don't work out, I can always slink back to the College of Modern Agriculture at Yan University. It's only right for me, as the dean, to do something tangible for my college."

Chapter 572: A Fortunate Coincidence

Mei Xingguo was suddenly at a loss for words, because he knew Lu Shixian was right.

If not for a fortunate coincidence, for making an early investment.

With Nanjiang's resources, it would indeed be very difficult to attract Lu Shixian, who had already won a Nobel Prize.

Having said that, the answer was already quite clear.

In truth, Mei Xingguo, or rather Nanjiang, had no other choice.

The balance of power had already shifted months ago.

It was conceivable that there were now quite a few places with both the desire and the capability to contact Lu Shixian.

For Nanjiang to get this opportunity, surrounded by powerful competitors, was a stroke of good luck.

Mei Xingguo had to count himself fortunate that his daughter was there to seize the initiative.

He was a decisive man. Since the choice was made, he quickly came to a decision. "I'll immediately arrange for people to send official letters to the Ministry of Science and Technology and Yan University, and begin the project application process."

"Lu, although there are no explicit rules in the current documents, the scope of provincial-ministerial co-sponsorship has in the past been limited to key local universities. Once you're outside Yanjing's territory, you'll need to give Yan University and the Ministry a heads-up."

"You're also the best person to coordinate between all parties. I'll have to trouble you with this."

Lu Shixian nodded. Even if Mei Xingguo hadn't said it, he would have done so.

There was nothing more to be said; he was indeed the most suitable person for the job.

Many matters that were not suitable for direct dialogue could be coordinated through him as an intermediary.

With the official business more or less concluded.

Mei Xingguo chatted with him about other things.

"Lu, if the laboratory is built, what research direction are you interested in?" The atmosphere was much more relaxed now.

Mei Xingguo took a sip of tea and posed the question.

But for a politician, no word is superfluous.

This seemingly casual question was in fact asking which field he would focus his main efforts on.

With this information, he could plan ahead and prepare the foundational industrial support.

This was actually quite important.

Hearing the question, Lu Shixian paused for a moment, lost in thought.

He hadn't really decided on the answer to this question himself.

If he could, he would naturally want a State Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics.

Unfortunately, that laboratory had been established back in 1988. It was very strong, a veteran among State Key Laboratories.

Speaking of which, that lab had a connection to him.

The chairman of its academic committee was none other than his own mentor, Academician Xu Zhihong.

Under these circumstances, he didn't want to compete with them in a closely related field.

Moreover, if the research area was the same as or similar to an existing State Key Laboratory, there was basically no chance of getting another one approved.

It was like the international rule for handling public resources.

First come, first served, and one spot per person.

As long as the person ahead didn't cause any problems, it was nearly impossible for anyone behind to get a foot in the door.

Considering all this, combined with his research strengths and the gaps in domestic research, there really weren't many other options.

This was also the research he had refrained from pursuing further at Yale, for fear of provoking the Americans too much and causing them to act rashly.

He just hadn't expected that winning the Nobel Prize would have the same effect anyway.

But now that he was back in the country, it was time to restart this project.

"Plant pathology genetics and breeding," Lu Shixian said slowly, having made his choice.

Perhaps worried that Mei Xingguo wouldn't understand the technical field, he added an explanation. "If we were to purely study plant pathology, it might have higher academic value but not much practical application."

"But if we add genetics and breeding, we enter the field of plant antiviral genetic breeding, which is still a blank slate in our country, with very few people involved."

"The combination of these three can be equivalent to increasing crop yields, and its advantages are very competitive. The difficulty of implementation and the stability of yield increase are much lower than with hybridization."

"The disadvantage is that the yield increase is not as significant as with hybridization."

As a high-ranking provincial official, Mei Xingguo was no expert in academia.

But his acuity and comprehension were nearly maxed out.

Mei Xingguo thought as he spoke, "So, you're saying the baseline for this technology is that it saves the cost of buying pesticides, which obviously reduces farming costs and increases farmers' income?"

"But beyond that, a significant reduction in pesticide use will also bring about hidden ecological benefits."

"Actually, that alone is enough."

Lu Shixian didn't speak, just gave him a thumbs-up.

Although he didn't know much about officialdom, he was aware of some current trends.

Under the influence of the "develop first, govern later" economic model, whether people admitted it or not, many still held a "development-only" and "GDP-only" mindset.

This gradually evolved into a situation where only visible achievements were sought, while latent achievements were ignored.

Thus, projects that were visible and quantifiable in the short term were launched in droves, while work that was long-term, slow to show results, but beneficial for long-term development was cast aside.

However, Lu Shixian felt it was necessary to give Old Mei a shot in the arm.

To speed up the progress of his laboratory, which was still in the planning stage.

"Uncle Mei, you only mentioned the baseline just now. You haven't mentioned the ceiling."

Mei Xingguo smiled at his words. "What's there to say? I'll be satisfied if the yield increase can reach half of that of super rice."

"That is indeed the initial goal." Lu Shixian's voice suddenly took on a strange tone. "But my plan for the later stages is to achieve antiviral genetic breeding on the basis of hybridization..."

Leaving Mei Ting's home, Lu Shixian could still remember the look on Old Mei's face—eyes wide with astonishment.

In fact, this was one of the deeper reasons why his research had been recognized.

Worldwide, many countries advocated against the intake of genetically modified staple food crops.

So, given the current situation where plants primarily acquire antiviral functions through genetic modification technology.

By utilizing the natural antiviral immune mechanism of plant stem cells, one could achieve both hybrid breeding and antiviral genetic breeding while circumventing the interference of GM technology.

Even he didn't know what level the combined yield-increasing effect of the two could reach.

But Lu Shixian believed the picture he had painted was grand enough.

To realize this prospect as soon as possible, Mei Xingguo would likely put a lot of effort into the construction of the State Key Laboratory.

The final application of this achievement should have been the ladder to the Nobel Prize for him, and it was part of his original plan for returning to the country.

Once this achievement was widely applied, no matter how many people were lined up ahead of him, it wouldn't matter.

He would rightfully be nominated for and announced as a Nobel laureate in his home country, and it would most likely be a solo prize, as he was the pioneer and founder.

He wouldn't have had to rely on a game of chance like a coin toss.

Chapter 573: From Top Student to Academic Tyrant?

However, some say fame should be sought early.

Winning the prize ahead of schedule was not unacceptable; it could help him save a lot of time.

Leaving Nanjiang, the matters there could keep Mei Xingguo busy for a while.

The College of Modern Agriculture in Dongshan didn't need him.

Lu Shixian returned to Yanjing, planning to first apply for a personal research institution.

Although he had the idea of starting a biotech company, he had to take things one step at a time.

He had no prior experience running a business, so suddenly registering a company would be difficult for him.

Moreover, before paying off his loan, his only personal asset was the Nobel Prize money.

Clearly, these funds were not enough for him to take a big leap.

It would be better to apply for a research institute first and then gradually expand it later.

With his current reputation, there should be no shortage of interested parties.

Now, his mentor Xu Zhihong and Academician Deng were no longer serving at Yan University's main campus.

It was a bit inconvenient to ask about certain things.

However, he knew quite a few people at Yan University now. There were only people he didn't know, not people who didn't know him.

Of course, he was still closest to the School of Life Sciences, especially the professors who had taught him, including Ma Yuheng and Gu Hongya.

Lu Shixian thought for a moment. Wu Hong, the current dean of the School of Life Sciences, probably had the most connections and was the most likely to be able to help.

Old Ma and Professor Gu might have had some connections in the past, but now that they were gradually moving into secondary roles, the help they could offer was limited.

So, almost as soon as he arrived in Yanjing, he headed straight for Wu Hong's office.

Seeing Lu Shixian knock and walk in, Wu Hong asked him with some surprise, "Lu? Didn't you go to Dongshan for the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the College of Modern Agriculture? How are you back so soon?"

Lu Shixian shook his head. "I wasn't planning on developing my career at the College of Modern Agriculture anyway. It's just a temporary transition. Attending the ribbon-cutting ceremony doesn't make much of a difference."

Hearing him say this, Wu Hong instantly understood Lu Shixian's intentions.

However, she also understood his thinking. After all, how could the College of Modern Agriculture compare to a laboratory tailor-made for him?

Given the opportunity, she would also choose to build a new State Key Laboratory.

"Then you've come to the wrong place. You should go see Principal Pin. Coming to me is useless," Wu Hong said with a smile. "This is such a big deal, a small dean like me can't make the decision."

Since the matter of the provincial-ministerial co-sponsored laboratory was not yet settled, Lu Shixian didn't plan to publicize it for the time being.

So he changed the subject. "No, I came to see you to ask about the process for applying for a personal research institute."

As soon as he said this, Wu Hong's attention was indeed captured. She asked with some confusion, "A personal research institute? There's no need! Aren't you about to have a laboratory?"

"Although establishing a State Key Laboratory is not easy, especially with the cumbersome approval process."

"But if it's you, as long as there are no major issues, it should be a green light all the way. It should be built in two to three years at most."

"There's no need for you to set up some institute in your personal name."

Lu Shixian shook his head slightly. "That's true, but the laboratory uses public funds and ultimately belongs to the state."

"Even though I'm the director of the lab, it's still somewhat inconvenient to conduct the research and projects that I personally want to do."

Wu Hong was taken aback, clearly not expecting Lu Shixian to have such an idea.

Then, she quickly walked to the door and closed it slightly, leaving only a small crack.

Returning to her seat, she asked with some puzzlement, "Is there a difference? It's not that I'm being critical, but this kind of situation is very common in the country."

"As long as you don't go too far, everyone just turns a blind eye."

"If you set up your own institute, the cost would be quite high."

Lu Shixian smiled. "It's better to keep some things as clear as possible, to avoid regrets later on."

"Since some people turn a blind eye, how do I know when they'll open their eyes, and at whom?"

Hearing his words, Wu Hong pondered for a moment and nodded. "Your concern is reasonable. After all, you can't be too careful."

"A few days ago, I remember a vice dean from some college was anonymously reported during the pre-appointment public notice period."

"Although it was eventually clarified and his name was cleared, it still made him look quite bad."

Lu Shixian's visit to Wu Hong was very fruitful.

First, he got specific information about applying for a personal research institute.

It seemed that since 2018, China had stopped allowing individuals to register companies ending in "institute" or "academy."

However, a loophole remained.

An individual wanting to establish a research institution could do so by acquiring an institute that was being transferred.

Wu Hong didn't have a specific list of available institutes he needed.

But she gave Lu Shixian the contact information of an agency and told him to ask if they had any.

Second, she reminded Lu Shixian about the issue of handling public and private matters.

He hadn't thought about it that much before, but after Wu Hong mentioned it, he knew he had to be extra careful in this regard.

There were too many people green with envy right now, and countless eyes were definitely on him.

Especially during award selections or elections, if someone were to pull a stunt like that at a critical moment.

Although he was confident in himself and it probably wouldn't have a major impact in the end, it would certainly be disgusting.

Next, he quickly found the name of the company using the contact information Wu Hong provided.

Lu Shixian did a little research. The company's main business was equity acquisition, corporate consulting, trademark registration, company registration, and transfer changes. It looked quite legitimate and was not a small operation.

It seemed that nowadays, agencies were no longer called agencies, but something like comprehensive consulting service companies.

Lu Shixian didn't care if it was a white cat or a black cat, as long as it could catch mice for him.

However, when he called to inquire, he was told that there were currently no biology research institutes up for transfer, and he should wait for news.

It was a pity, but there was nothing to be done.

This kind of thing was, in a sense, a scarce resource. Whether you could find one depended entirely on luck.

It was just a bit peculiar.

When you wanted one, you couldn't find it; when you didn't, no one was interested.

On his way back, he happened to see Qu Xi bent over, cleaning his office.

"Senior Sister Qu, I can't let you do this," Lu Shixian quickly called out to her. "Just leave it, I'll do it myself later."

"It's fine, I'm almost done anyway." Qu Xi turned around, clearly surprised to see him back now.

"Weren't you supposed to be gone for a few more days? Why are you back so soon?"

Lu Shixian had to repeat the same explanation he had given Wu Hong.

After hearing it, Qu Xi marveled at his maneuver.

"That's possible?"

"How nice! You can just not go if you don't want to?"

"Does this count as you going from a top student to an academic tyrant?"

Chapter 574: A Flurry of Good News

Hearing Qu Xi's words, Lu Shixian's face darkened.

"By that logic, I've gone from a dragon slayer to a wicked dragon!"

"You're taking things a bit too far, aren't you?"

After the jokes were over, Qu Xi began to talk to Lu Shixian about some recent event arrangements.
First, the Chinese Academy of Scholars intended to induct him as a member.

Second, the Botanical Society of China formally invited him to become a council member.

Third, the Wu Zhengyi Science Foundation planned to nominate him for the second Outstanding Contribution Award.

Hearing this news, Lu Shixian raised an eyebrow, clearly a little surprised.

However, on second thought, it all made sense.

To put it simply, the primary members of the Academy were high-level intellectuals from China's scientific and technological circles.

Many of its members were even academicians of the Academy of Sciences or the Academy of Engineering, had won the Highest Science and Technology Award multiple times, and had made outstanding contributions to the nation's technological development.

What's more, if he remembered correctly, the current head of the Academy seemed to be an academician who had previously studied plant physiology.

Connecting the dots, it all seemed to follow a certain logic.

As for the Botanical Society of China and the Wu Zhengyi Botany Prize, they were likely connected.

Clearly, inducting him as a member after he had won the Nobel Prize felt somewhat like a belated attempt to add to his glory.

In fact, President Zhong Kang had intended to do so long ago, back when Lu Shixian published his multiple research findings in Cell.

However, because Lu Shixian's research location and achievements were not in China at the time, it sparked skepticism from some within the society. The matter was shelved, with the plan to reconsider after he returned to the country.

But then, something completely outrageous and unexpected happened.

Last October, while Lu Shixian was still abroad, they received the news of his Nobel Prize win, which was a sudden and unexpected slap in the face to many.

This led to the current awkward situation.

The whole affair had left Zhong Kang quite furious.

Although he wasn't directly responsible, he was the president. Not only had his subordinates handled things poorly, but he was the one who had to clean up their mess.

And that's what led to the subsequent actions, including breaking precedent by skipping the ordinary membership stage and directly electing him as a council member.

It was worth mentioning that the Wu Zhengyi Botany Prize was jointly established by the Botanical Society and the prize's science foundation in 2016.

The significance of this connection was something only insiders would understand.

But Lu Shixian could still see some of the inner workings.

Still, it was worth elaborating.

Wu Zhengyi was one of the few past academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences who specialized in botany, and he made immense and outstanding contributions to the development and advancement of botany in China.

The prize was established during the centenary celebration of Academician Wu Zhengyi's birth to promote his scientific spirit of rigorous scholarship and selfless dedication.

It also aimed to inspire the next generation of botanical science researchers to strive forward and persevere in their explorations.

As the world's first specialized botany prize, it was not yet widely known due to its recent establishment.

But its significance and prestige were undeniable.

Regardless of the sincerity behind these two gestures, the attitude they conveyed was clear, and Lu Shixian wasn't one to refuse such an overture.

May, Yanjing.

Lu Shixian, dressed in a formal suit, appeared at the award ceremony symbolizing the highest honor for outstanding Chinese youth.

This national-level award had been in the works only since his return to the country last year, and now, just half a year later, it had been realized.

The number of recipients for this year's Outstanding Youth Medal was slightly smaller than in previous years, with fewer than thirty people.

Although it was a youth medal, the selection age range spanned from fourteen to forty.

When Lu Shixian's youthful face appeared at the event, it still caused quite a stir.

However, it was all murmurs of amazement; no one thought he was undeserving of the honor.

As camera flashes went off, Lu Shixian walked onto the stage.

Under the watchful eyes of the entire audience, he accepted the medal representing the highest honor for China's outstanding youth.

As a Nobel laureate, he was undoubtedly the most prominent among the twenty-some recipients.

News of him receiving the China Outstanding Youth Medal spread quickly online.

Power of a Role Model

Twenty Six Youth Medal Recipients

2019 China Outstanding Youth Medal Ceremony

Under numerous related trending topics, news reports about Lu Shixian were countless.

"Today, the 2019 China Outstanding Youth Medal ceremony has recently concluded. Among the recipients was our nation's young biologist and 2018 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, Lu Shixian, who was awarded the medal."

"In his acceptance speech at the ceremony, Lu Shixian said: 'The path is near, yet we seek it in the distance; the task is simple, yet we seek to make it difficult.' Since we are living in the best of times, we must do our utmost to become the best versions of ourselves, seizing every moment and living up to the promise of our youth..."

Of course, the medal came with no prize money; it was an honorary title, more symbolic in nature.

Lu Shixian was more than satisfied with this.

National-level awards and honors were incredibly rare; he would even pay for them if he had to.

Bring them on, the more the better.

However, he had another major award coming up, and if he recalled correctly, its prize money was quite substantial.

Soon, this year's National Conference on Plant Biology opened in Jincheng.

Lu Shixian was naturally invited, and for the first time, he delivered the keynote address as an opening guest.

He was no longer the person he once was.

Attending academic conferences had become as natural to him as breathing.

On the opening day of the conference, the winners of the second Wu Zhengyi Botany Prize were also announced.

The Wu Zhengyi Botany Prize had two categories: the Outstanding Contribution Award and the Young Innovator Award.

According to past precedent, the recipients of the Outstanding Contribution Award were always authorities and leading figures in the domestic field of botany, typically of academician rank.

For Lu Shixian to receive this award was undoubtedly a tremendous recognition of his academic work. The halo from his Nobel Prize was enough to let him overlook many things and stand as an equal with most of his domestic peers.

On the awards stage.

Lu Shixian accepted the certificate of honor and a prize check for five hundred thousand yuan from Zhong Kang, the president of the Botanical Society.

"Congratulations on winning the Wu Zhengyi Botany Prize. You truly deserve it." After handing him the certificate, Zhong Kang smiled and extended his right hand. "I believe that because of you, this prize will become known to many more people."

He wasn't wrong.

Lu Shixian's popularity remained high, and his every public appearance drew widespread attention.

The Wu Zhengyi Botany Prize, established only two years ago, would gain continuous attention simply by appearing on Lu Shixian's resume.

Lu Shixian quickly freed his right hand to shake President Zhong's. "The honor is all mine."

Amid thunderous applause, the award ceremony drew to a close.

Meanwhile, long-awaited news finally came from Nanjiang.

"It's approved! It's approved!" Over the phone, Mei Xingguo's steady voice was laced with unconcealable excitement. "Ah, Little Lu, your name really works wonders. We sent the application in the first half of the year, and now, just after the start of October, it's been given special approval."

Lu Shixian was overjoyed.

Although there had been a stream of good news this year, for him, this was the best news of all.

Chapter 575: Nanjiang Speed

From his return last year until now in October, he hadn't been in a lab. Instead, he had been active in social events like academic lectures and award ceremonies.

But the laboratory is a scientist's true battlefield.

He could hardly wait.

The news was also a surprise to Mei Xingguo.

He had always had some reservations about the plan Lu Shixian proposed, but he could only do his best to fight for it; otherwise, there would be no chance at all.

This was because the provincial-ministerial co-construction model was typically aimed at local provincial universities.

This time, the university involved was Yan University.

This was an unprecedented case.

But after the report was submitted, what he hadn't expected was how effective Lu Shixian's name was. After special consultations and expert evaluations, the subsequent approval process was green-lit all the way.

It was well known that the path to building many national key laboratories was incredibly difficult; it wasn't uncommon for them to take ten or twenty years with no result.

The signal was crystal clear.

"It seems Little Lu's trip to Yanjing was quite fruitful," Mei Xingguo thought to himself.

So, what benefits would the approval of a new provincial-ministerial co-constructed national key laboratory bring to Nanjiang?

First, for Nanjiang, the level of related academic disciplines could be rapidly elevated.

In fact, Yan University's involvement wasn't necessarily a bad thing. After all, it was located in Nanjiang, which could further strengthen communication and exchange between Yan University and the province.

Moreover, it was foreseeable that there would be considerable cooperation between the laboratory and Nanjiang's various provincial universities.

Second, it would play a pivotal role in enhancing Nanjiang's scientific research capabilities.

This was easy to understand. The laboratory would conduct high-level basic research and applied basic research in sync with Nanjiang's development strategy and regional characteristics.

Finally, it would actively drive regional economic development.

An improvement in a region's independent innovation capacity leads to the advancement of its regional science and technology innovation system.

Science and technology are the primary productive forces.

This wasn't just a saying. Through technological innovation, the lab would continuously cultivate basic research talent and scientific teams for Nanjiang.

This would ultimately achieve the goal of promoting regional economic and social development.

As for the initial expenses and investment, they were completely worth it compared to the long-term results and returns.

Although this cycle would certainly not be short.

But Mei Xingguo was a man of great resolve.

On the very day the approval was issued, he gave instructions, demanding that all provincial departments in Nanjiang fully cooperate with the construction of the Provincial-Ministerial Co-constructed State Key Laboratory of Plant Pathology and Genetic Breeding (Preparatory).

Lu Shixian also hurried to Nanjiang to participate in the site selection and design of the laboratory.

He didn't really understand much about this, but there were professionals who did.

He was there mainly to observe and show his concern, and also to express some of his own design requests.

After all, he was about to become the director of this laboratory.

Almost within hours of the construction plan being finalized.

Panshan District in Nanjiang City received the notice and swiftly established a special team for land acquisition.

Although Panshan was a district of the provincial capital, Nanjiang City, it was relatively remote, with most of its area being undeveloped mountains.

It was essentially a suburb, and its economy had never taken off.

They never imagined that such a windfall would land in their laps, with an investment of hundreds of millions falling squarely on Panshan District.

However, this was the result of repeated discussions between Lu Shixian and experts from Nanjiang Province.

Nanjiang Province's requirement was that it should not be too far from the city center, preferably right in the city, to facilitate economic radiation.

Lu Shixian's request was that the State Key Laboratory of Plant Pathology and Genetic Breeding was, after all, a biological laboratory, especially since he studied plant pathology.

Ultimately, the main research subjects were plants and viruses.

If future experiments involved higher biosafety levels, conducting them in densely populated areas could easily create unnecessary risks.

Based on this, Lu Shixian suggested building the lab in a sparsely populated area, following the standards of a BSL-P3 biosafety laboratory.

As a containment laboratory, a P3 lab is suitable for handling agents that are highly hazardous to humans, animals, plants, or the environment, and can cause lethal diseases through direct contact or aerosols.

Preventive and treatment measures are usually available for experiments involving agents highly hazardous to animals, plants, and the environment.

The Nanjiang authorities fully agreed with and approved of Lu Shixian's idea. From the perspective of protecting people's lives and property, a biological laboratory was indeed not suitable for a bustling area. Furthermore, the cost of building a laboratory was already enormous, and acquiring land from a mountainous area would help them save a large amount of public funds.

Soon, the procurement and bidding procedures were completed.

Compared to previous municipal projects, this efficiency was practically light-speed.

A construction team from China Construction First Group Corporation arrived at the designated location on the map immediately.

The roar of excavators, bulldozers, and heavy-duty trucks filled the air, and what was once a densely wooded, barren mountain was transformed in the blink of an eye.

The "Nanjiang Speed" was on full display.

Of course, this matter was not kept secret online, but it wasn't deliberately publicized either.

But there were always attentive people who discovered it through various clues.

Whether it was the public announcement of the approved provincial-ministerial co-constructed laboratory by the national science and technology department, or the transaction notices posted on procurement and bidding websites, all signs pointed to something significant.

However, while provincial-ministerial co-constructed laboratories were rare, by 2019, after so many years, there were fifteen or sixteen of them, so it wasn't exceptionally unusual.

But someone soon noticed a key detail: the university participating in the co-construction this time was Yan University.

This was a highly unusual situation, which attracted the curiosity of many local onlookers in Nanjiang.

At this moment, Huang Yiming, a trainee reporter for China Science and Technology News who had already made his way to the construction site in Panshan District, was a bit dumbfounded by the scene before him. As a newcomer who had just started his job, he found it incredibly shocking.

Seeing an entire mountain leveled flat amidst a cluster of surrounding mountains was a breathtaking sight.

"This is insane! Nanjiang and Yan University are secretly teaming up to do something huge. I always thought this place was just famous for its soy-sauce-fragrance baijiu."

Standing next to him was his mentor, veteran reporter Zhou Peng.

"I'm afraid it's not that simple." Zhou Peng just chuckled. "You have to look past the surface to see the substance of things. Have you ever seen any interaction between Nanjiang and Yan University before?"

"And why Yan University? Why not Nanjiang University, which should have been the protagonist here?"

"Have you thought about these questions?"

Chapter 576: The Power of Dedication

"Didn't they say they're building some kind of pathology lab?" Huang Yiming scratched his head and thought for a moment. "Could it be because Nanjiang discovered some prehistoric virus, but only Yan University has the capability to study it?"

Hearing this, Zhou Peng was completely flustered.

"I'm telling you, you need to read fewer web novels. That plot is too ridiculous."

"Use your brain. Between any two seemingly unrelated things, there's always a person who connects them."

"And the people or events that have had close ties to both Nanjiang and Yan University recently aren't that many. A little process of elimination is all it takes."

As he said this.

A name quickly popped into Huang Yiming's mind.

He was a top-tier domestic and international talent brought in by Nanjiang, and he had just recently been announced as a member of the Nanjiang Provincial Expert Think Tank.

With a little thought, the answer seemed to be right there.

From the application's approval to the start of construction, and now to the imminent capping of the main structure, Lu Shixian had been there for the entire process.

But all this had taken only six months.

The person in charge of the entire national laboratory construction project was Liao Changxing, the chief architect of China Construction First Group.

As a professor-level senior architect at the company and a seasoned Class 1 National Registered Architect, Liao Changxing, now nearing retirement, was highly respected in the construction industry.

Many of the projects he had completed had won national quality awards and Luban Prizes, such as the Peking University Gymnasium, the Centennial Hall at Yan University, the Xidan International Building, and the Water Cube.

Normally, his apprentices and their students handled most projects; the ones he personally oversaw were few and far between.

Coincidentally, there was one right in front of him.

Liao Changxing looked at the impossibly young man across from him, finding it hard to believe that this was the person who had become the nation's pride, winning China's only current Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

Serving such a young man, he couldn't help but marvel at how the new generation surpasses the old.

"Professor Lu, the main structure of the laboratory is about to be capped. Is there anything else you'd like to see improved? We can make adjustments in time," Liao Changxing asked him thoughtfully.

Generally speaking, without special circumstances, all construction must strictly follow the design blueprints, aside from some non-essential auxiliary facilities and decorations.

But for Liao Changxing to ask this meant that Lu Shixian was a very special person.

Lu Shixian looked at the already impressive building complex and said politely, "I couldn't be more satisfied. You've all been working around the clock for so many days; the efficiency is truly top-notch."

"To be honest, I don't know much about construction engineering. What kind of suggestions can a layman like me offer?"

"However, I must emphasize that the construction standards for the core laboratory must strictly adhere to P3 biosafety lab requirements."

Liao Changxing nodded at these words, his expression turning serious.

"That is an absolute must. The higher-ups have asked about this multiple times. Safety is no small matter, and biosafety is a part of national security."

"I can guarantee that the building materials we are using all meet or even exceed international standards."

Lu Shixian felt relieved, then stretched out his hand and pointed to an empty plot of land nearby.

"By the way, there's one more thing. I plan to use this empty plot as the laboratory's experimental field later on, and we might conduct genetically modified experiments."

"Because it might involve transmission through the food chain, we'll need to install protective isolation from the outside. The area seems quite large, and with the addition of a warning zone, it might exceed the planned area and encroach on new land."

"Will that be a problem?"

Liao Changxing smiled and explained, "That's a minor issue. This project is registered with the higher-ups and is also a key project for Nanjiang. You could say that whatever is requested will be granted."

"Besides, thanks to you, this whole area is just barren hills and wilderness, with no basic farmland involved. You can basically build as much as you want."

"At this construction speed, a conservative estimate is that the final inspection can be done in about a month. You can take a little break for the next few days. No need to come here every day, the conditions are a bit harsh, after all."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian was finally at ease.

"Mr. Liao, thank you all for your hard work." With that, Lu Shixian planned to use this time to return to Yan University.

He had been at the construction site constantly, and many matters had piled up waiting for him to handle.

Qu Xi had already reminded him many times.

In fact, Liao Changxing's estimate was a bit conservative.

A project worth hundreds of millions had suddenly landed in Nanjiang's Panshan District without any warning.

The district leaders took turns visiting every day, nominally to offer support, but in reality, to inspect.

They practically wanted to live there until the project was completed, as if only seeing it finished with their own eyes could put their minds at ease.

Under such circumstances, even if there were no solutions, solutions had to be created.

The laboratory's construction pace couldn't slow down. Saying the work would be finished in a month was indeed overly conservative.

Meanwhile.

After returning to Yan University, Lu Shixian quickly took care of all the accumulated tasks.

He also began to use this final stretch of relatively leisurely time to work on his plan to publish a book.

If he waited any longer, he wasn't sure if he would forget about it completely.
After finishing the main content in the United States, Lu Shixian returned to China and gradually completed the subsequent revisions and proofreading.

The book, *Seeing Flowers, Grass, and Woods in the Microscopic*, couldn't be called a scholarly tome; at best, it was a popular science book.

But it was, after all, Lu Shixian's first book, and he had poured an immense amount of effort into it.

He had prepared two versions for the time being: a Mandarin version and an English version, to be released in China and abroad, respectively.

Many publishing houses in China expressed great interest upon hearing that he had written a book.

Yanda University Press, in particular, personally visited him in Nanjiang to connect with him and discuss publishing matters.

However, after a round of comparisons, the partner had been more or less decided.

The preliminary choice was the Huaguo Commercial Press.

Besides offering an exceptionally generous price, they also promised to find a veteran artist to create exquisite illustrations for the book.

This proved that in the face of countless complexities, a thoughtful approach is what truly matters.

This was a condition Lu Shixian simply couldn't refuse.

It could only be said that Yanda University Press had played their cards wrong with him.

While the Commercial Press was busy with the illustrations, Lu Shixian wasn't idle either.

He invited many heavyweights in the field to write a foreword for the domestic version of the book.

Although these figures were initially surprised to hear he had written a book, they all readily agreed in the end.

[When I learned that Lu Shixian had been quietly writing a book amidst his busy research schedule, I was astonished. After reading the first draft he showed me, I was even more surprised. I recommend this book to anyone interested in the beautiful world of plants, as it unveils their mysteries from a unique perspective...] This foreword was from Zhong Kang, an Academician of the Huaguo Academy of Sciences and President of the Botanical Society of Huaguo.

Chapter 577: A Massive Hiring Spree is a Must

"Clearly, this is an interesting popular science book about plants, but it can equally be read as a professional history of the microscope's development." This foreword was from Peter Raven, a Foreign Academician of the Huaguo Academy of Sciences and Director of the Missouri Botanical Garden.

"I never imagined Lu had such a lively prose. In his eyes, the microscope is no longer just a cold tool, but the eyes that help us discover the beautiful world of plants." This foreword was from James Rothman, a Nobel laureate in Physiology or Medicine and Vice President of Yale University.

Of course, the replies Lu Shixian received after clearing out his inbox were far more numerous than what was displayed on the book's pages.

But there was no helping it; space was limited.

Too much of a good thing can be bad, and the forewords couldn't overshadow the main text.

Otherwise, the book would lose its intended meaning and become a session of mutual flattery.

As for the international release, Lu Shixian, through his Yale connections, found the largest private publishing house in the United States.

Mars, the editor responsible for his project, was very optimistic about his book.

But the two had different opinions on the pricing.

"Professor Lu, trust me. Pricing this book at seventy US dollars will make it a huge seller, the bestselling book of its kind for the year," Mars said during their video call.

Lu Shixian was still a bit hesitant. "Isn't that a little too high? I'm worried such a high price might have a significant impact on sales."

Hearing this, Mars smiled and explained, "Although it's a popular science book, it's essentially a specialized reference book. I think the pricing model for commercial novels isn't suitable for your book."

With that, Lu Shixian no longer insisted on his own view. He was someone who listened to advice.

Arguing with someone in their field of expertise is a foolish thing to do.

After discussions with the publisher, the book's domestic price was set at 39.9 yuan, a price that was neither too high nor too low.

But the price abroad was more than ten times that, which was somewhat exaggerated.

Evidently, Lu Shixian had no psychological burden whatsoever when it came to earning money from foreigners.

Although he didn't know how much it would ultimately sell for, as long as it could break even, Lu Shixian found it acceptable. After all, he wasn't a professional writer.

Currently, as a professor at the School of Life Sciences, Lu Shixian was not required to teach any major courses for the time being.

He only needed to return occasionally to conduct a few elective courses.

However, ever since his name appeared on Yanda University's course selection system, his classes were filled within five minutes.

As it turned out, after the first lecture, the university discovered that the number of students auditing the class was several times greater than those officially enrolled.

Thus, that elective course gradually evolved into a renowned public lecture, warmly welcomed by students from nearby universities.

Having just completed his teaching duties for the semester, Lu Shixian happened to run into an acquaintance on his way back to his office.

Wu Hong walked alongside him, asking, "How's the lab coming along?"

Lu Shixian waved his hand. "We haven't even gotten to that yet. The building was just constructed; it's just an empty shell right now."

"Not bad, that's fast. I remember construction only started a few months ago." Hearing his words, Wu Hong was actually a bit surprised. "Well, well! From approval to now, your efficiency is quite impressive. As expected of a Nobel laureate, the treatment is on another level!"

Seeing Wu Hong give him a thumbs-up, Lu Shixian shook his head. "It's mainly because Huajian First Bureau was so effective. But the subsequent staffing and equipment are giving me a headache!"

Then, he joked, "Dean Wu, you've got such a big operation, how about you support me a little?"

Wu Hong smiled. "You have the entire Nanjiang province backing you, not to mention the significant support from the Ministry of Science and Technology. I might have to come to you for help later on."

The two chatted for a while. Before parting, Wu Hong shared a piece of good news with him. "By the way, that research institute you asked me about last time seems to have a lead. The location and name are the same: Zhongguancun Pharma Valley Biological Research Institute."

"From what I understand, it used to be a private, non-profit organization. The owner is having cash flow problems and is thinking of selling. I wonder if you're interested."

"If you are, someone should be contacting you soon."

Lu Shixian's eyebrows shot up. This was clearly good news for him.

"Of course I'm interested. Dean Wu, thank you so much." Lu Shixian had to accept this favor.

Such opportunities were indeed rare. It had been almost a year since he first mentioned it.

This was the first lead to appear. As long as the conditions weren't too outrageous, he would move to acquire the institute's credentials first.

When the time was right, he would then launch his plan for a personal research institute.

By the time he returned to Nanjiang again, the entire national laboratory had been completed, awaiting only the subsequent audit and inspection.

This work had little to do with him and would be handled by Nanjiang province.

Standing on the top floor of the brand-new laboratory building, Lu Shixian could almost see the bustling streets of downtown Nanjiang in the distance.

A surge of ambition rose in his chest. From this moment on, his academic journey would embark from here, beginning a new chapter.

"Professor Lu, we've just toured the entire place. What do you think?" Liao Changxing, standing beside him, asked with a smile.

"It's quite impressive. This lab is even larger and built to a higher standard than the pathology lab I was in at Yale in the States." Lu Shixian now fully understood that China's nickname, the "Infrastructure Maniac," was no exaggeration.

After a pause, he added thoughtfully, "It's just a bit too quiet. Not as lively as the pathology lab."

Liao Changxing laughed heartily. "It seems large now, probably because a lot of the office and lab equipment hasn't been procured yet. Once everything is in place, it will feel much more filled out."

"As for the personnel, I don't think that will be a major issue with you here."

There was truth in that statement.

Since winning the Nobel Prize, countless graduate students wanted to become his students, or researchers on his team, to shorten their own paths to success by several years.

Even without the existence of a state key laboratory, wherever he went, his name alone was the biggest brand name, attracting outstanding graduate students from top universities.

"Recruit, recruit, I have to go on a massive hiring spree," Lu Shixian thought to himself repeatedly.

According to his prior agreement with Nanjiang, he had to reserve a certain number of positions for universities within the province.

A significant portion of the lab's members had to be selected from universities in Nanjiang.

Lu Shixian had no objection to this requirement. After all, you have to listen to your financial backers.

Of course, this was a gentleman's agreement and couldn't be put down on paper, as that could easily cause conflict.

Although Nanjiang's higher education resources seemed average, the sheer number of university students meant there would always be one or two who were exceptional.

Chapter 578: Taking the Reins

Soon, a personnel change announcement from Yanda University sparked considerable attention online.

The announcement of the new dean for Yanda University's College of Modern Agriculture was held in the college auditorium, with all faculty and staff in attendance.

Following the university's decision, Xu Zhihong was appointed as the Dean of the College of Modern Agriculture at Yanda University, and Comrade Deng Xinwang was appointed as the Associate Dean.

Comrade Lu Shixian would no longer serve as Dean, and Comrade Deng Xinwang would no longer serve as the Chairman of the Academic Committee.

After the appointments were read, Lu Shixian gave his final address.

"First, please allow me to express my gratitude to the leadership from Yanda University, the various departments, and all my colleagues at the college. Thank you for your tolerance and understanding during my nearly one-year tenure. After all, I don't have much experience in college development and have rarely been able to focus on matters here due to various other commitments."

"Therefore, I fully support and endorse Academician Xu's appointment as the Dean of the College of Modern Agriculture. I believe that under Academician Xu's leadership, the college will achieve even greater breakthroughs in discipline construction, scientific research, and talent cultivation."

"Ultimately, it will become a model and benchmark in the agricultural field for international comprehensive universities, contributing Yanda's strength to the nation's agricultural industry development."

Amidst applause, the appointment ceremony concluded.

To many, this news was not surprising.

Any discerning observer could see that although Lu Shixian was the dean, he was absent from many of the College of Modern Agriculture's important events. It was clear this was not his central focus.

Now, many were curious about his next move.

Some had their suspicions but couldn't be certain.

At that moment, walking back to the office building.

"You've done very well with the project jointly established by the province and the ministry. I saw the news from your side." At this point, Xu Zhihong sighed with emotion. "Having reached this stage, there's a limit to how much more I can help you. From now on, you'll have to forge your own path."

He was right. Once Lu Shixian became the director of a state key laboratory, the resources and influence he commanded would be comparable to Xu Zhihong's.

Although Academician Xu was his mentor, aside from seniority, their professional ranks were now essentially on the same level.

Honestly, hearing these words, Lu Shixian also felt a wave of emotion. While the old man before him hadn't taught him a great deal of academic knowledge, he had been a guide for his life's path.

Sometimes, choices are truly important.

Without Academician Xu's guidance, treating him like his own son, it would have taken him many more years of fumbling on his own to achieve his current success and status at this age.

Academician Xu was telling him, in a roundabout way, that he had completed his apprenticeship.

He once thought he was eloquent, but at this moment, all he could do was bend down and give Academician Xu a silent, deep bow.

After returning to Nanjiang from Dongshan.

Almost at the same time his plane landed, the official document appointing Comrade Lu Shixian as the Director of the State Key Laboratory of Plant Pathology and Genetic Breeding, Jointly Established by the Ministry and the Province, was simultaneously released.

The matter instantly caused a huge stir in academic circles, and discussions exploded online.

Evidently, Lu Shixian had, without realizing it, set another national record.

There were too many heavy hitters on the international stage to count, but he was, without a doubt, the youngest director of a state key laboratory in Huaguo.

At this moment, many in the academic world fell silent. They had to face the fact that this young man had already reached a level they could only look up to.

The reaction online was the complete opposite. Congratulatory messages from all over the country quickly piled up from one floor to over ten thousand.

"Congratulations on becoming Director Lu."

"Awesome, my man!"

"All I can say is, freaking awesome, but truly well-deserved."

"Hehe, I'm a head teacher (zhuren), and he's Director Lu (zhuren). God Lu has finally caught up to my level."

Back in Nanjiang, Lu Shixian officially took up his new post.

The first thing he did was call Qu Xi.

"Senior Sister, I need you to aid my cultivation."

"Ah, no, that's not it! Come and lend me a hand."

On the other end of the line, Qu Xi felt a secret delight. The news was everywhere, so it wasn't hard to guess.

"The guy has some conscience after all. All the hard work I've done for him wasn't in vain," Qu Xi muttered to herself.

But what she said was, "You probably don't have that many engagements now. I wouldn't be of much use if I came over, and I haven't finished my project here yet."

Hearing this, Lu Shixian read between the lines.

Qu Xi had been his assistant for some time now.

Did he not know whether she had an ongoing research project?

Some people... the only thing tough about them was their words.

So, he took the initiative to recruit her. Such a capable assistant was truly hard to find, not to mention her academic skills were also excellent.

"Senior Sister, I probably won't be going to Yanjing much anymore."

"Why don't you come to Nanjiang and help me? If you come now, you'll be the official Assistant Director."

"You'll get a year-end bonus, full benefits, and room and board included..."

The result, of course, was no surprise.

After all, Qu Xi had been waiting for these words for more than a day or two.

Lu Shixian had no issue with familiar faces coming to ride his coattails.

But the prerequisite was that they couldn't be a drag. Under equal conditions, giving them priority was fine.

After all, the state key laboratory wasn't his private enterprise, nor was it a place to support idlers.

Soon, on the evening of the second day, Qu Xi arrived, dragging her suitcase to join him.

After picking her up from the airport, Lu Shixian took her for a nice meal in the city as a welcome dinner.

"Senior Sister, welcome to the lab." Lu Shixian raised his drink cup and said to Qu Xi, "You'll be an Assistant Researcher now. That's the same position I had when I first arrived at Yale."

"How about that? Pretty generous, right!"

Qu Xi was stunned for a moment, then said with some surprise, "Is that appropriate? We know each other, and I've just arrived. Won't other people have opinions?"

Lu Shixian was left speechless.

"So what if we know each other?"

"You're a PhD from Yanda University. The number of SCI papers you've published these past few years leaves other graduate students in the dust, doesn't it?"

"You have the ability and the qualifications, so why can't I give you the corresponding position?"

With that, Lu Shixian slammed his hand on the table, making a final decision. "That's settled then. If anyone has an opinion, they can come and tell me to my face."

Seeing his demeanor, Qu Xi smiled and clapped softly. "Being a director has really changed you."

"When are you going to show me the lab and introduce me to everyone?"

This question suddenly silenced Lu Shixian. He then pointed between the two of them. "Isn't this the meeting right here?"

Hearing this, Qu Xi's smile suddenly froze.

Chapter 579: Recruitment Notice

"So, you're telling me the entire lab is just the two of us?"

Hearing her voice, Lu Shixian chuckled. "You can't put it that way. It is for now, but it won't be in a moment."

"The official documents just came down, and you were the first person I thought of."

Hearing this, Qu Xi immediately felt much better.

But then something else occurred to her. "Wait a minute."

"You didn't call me over here to help you with recruitment, did you?"

Lu Shixian snapped his fingers. "Bingo. Senior Sister Qu is so understanding."

Qu Xi's expression immediately fell again.

"I knew it. You never call me unless you need something."

"I can't help it. The lab has just been established, and there are so many things to do that I wish I could split myself in two," Lu Shixian sighed softly. "I'll have to trouble you for now. Once we're fully staffed, it won't be so tough on you."

After a brief pause, Lu Shixian added, "It's not as difficult as you think. For now, we just need to recruit a batch of researchers to get the lab up and running. We can slowly build up our team later."

"Oh, and we don't necessarily have to limit ourselves to traditional methods like campus recruitment and internal referrals."

"You could try setting up our lab's official website and social media accounts, like on Weibo. That might be effective."

In fact, this was precisely why Lu Shixian had called Qu Xi over to help first.

Though she complained about how difficult things were, her execution was beautiful.

In just three days, the official website for the State Key Laboratory of Plant Pathology and Genetic Breeding, Jointly Established by the Ministry and the Province, was up.

Although it was just a shell for now with little content, it had already attracted quite a few clicks.

The most crucial part was the lab's official social media.

Though it had only been verified with a 'V' mark for a few hours, sharp-eyed netizens had already discovered and started spreading the word.

Actually, if Lu Shixian had been willing to run a personal Weibo account, after several trending topics, his follower count would definitely be no less than a million. This was evident from the comment volume on any topic related to him.

However, he didn't have a main account, which meant these fans had no place to gather.

But now, as soon as the lab's official Weibo account was launched, many people followed the scent and flocked over. It instantly garnered a massive amount of attention, accumulating over five hundred thousand followers in less than three hours.

At this time, many people noticed that the first post from the lab's Weibo account was neither a greeting nor an introduction.

It was a recruitment notice.

[I. Recruitment Fields and Requirements]

The State Key Laboratory of Plant Pathology and Genetic Breeding, Jointly Established by the Ministry and the Province, is a research institution affiliated with Yanda University and co-established by the Ministry of Science and Technology and Nanjiang Province, specializing in basic research in the field of plant biology.

Due to research needs, the laboratory is now recruiting PhD holders in relevant fields such as Plant Pathology, Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Bioinformatics, Plant Molecular Genetics, or Plant Genetic Breeding...

Work Location: 1 Shiyan Road, Panshan District, Nanjiang City

[II. Compensation and Benefits]
All PhDs officially employed by our institution will be granted a tenured position. Salary will be based on the standards of the Nanjiang Province Talent Introduction Policy. In addition to the salary, a talent bonus of 400,000 yuan will be awarded.

All postdoctoral researchers who join our institution for research will receive an annual pre-tax salary of approximately 300,000 yuan. The talent bonus is the same as mentioned above.

For detailed compensation and benefits, please refer to "The Nineteen Questions on Nanjiang Province's New Talent Policy."

III. Other Matters

The stage is set in Life Sciences. If you have a dream, bring it here.

Special note: The minimum academic requirement for this lab is a PhD (no restrictions on the institution of your first degree).

Whether you are a master of experimental procedures or an expert in publishing papers.

As long as your passion for academic research still burns, feel free to send us your resume at any time, along with your primary research interests.

Below the main text was a professional photo of Lu Shixian, standing at the lab entrance, gazing into the distance with his head tilted up at a forty-five-degree angle.

Since Weibo doesn't support long posts, the entire announcement was presented as an image, making it incredibly easy to share.

And so, the news about Lu Shixian's lab recruiting began to spread through various graduate student academic exchange groups.

They were called "academic exchange groups," but anyone who had ever joined one knew they were more like a place for venting and helping each other out with surveys.

One in the morning.

The main graduate student group chat for Nanjiang Agricultural University was still buzzing with activity.

Messages scrolled up the screen so fast that one was buried by the next before you could even read it.

Just then, Wang Jiulong, who was out in the experimental rice paddies under the cover of night checking for pests, was suddenly distracted by the notification sound from his pocket.

He took out his phone and saw that the main QQ group chat already had 999+ unread messages.

What's going on?

He knew it was normal for graduate students—or "research monks," as they called themselves—to be awake at this hour. It was also normal for them to be slacking off and chatting in the group.

Usually, the chat would quiet down after midnight, with most people either busy with their own work or talking in smaller, private groups.

For so many people to be active in the main group at this hour was highly unusual.

Filled with curiosity, he tapped the shortcut to jump back to the first unread message.

He didn't think much of it at first, but one look and he was completely captivated.

WTF?

Three hundred thousand?

Forget everything else; the first thing his eyes locked onto was that "three hundred thousand."

He quickly scanned the rest of the recruitment information on the image.

At that moment, only one thought echoed in Wang Jiulong's mind.

What kind of god-tier lab is this?

As if to confirm that today wasn't April Fools', he began scrolling through the chat history below.

"A Nobel laureate, truly terrifyingly impressive."

"He actually dares to post a PhD recruitment ad on Weibo? Has he considered the feelings of an academic failure like me?"

"Hehehe... The tables have turned after thirty years. Who would have thought that our neglected, unloved field of botany would one day rise up?"

"I'm heartbroken! God Lu, you can't be so biased! You're only recruiting for biology. What about us research dogs from environmental science?!"

"My roommate is a chemistry PhD. He says if others want 300k, he'll do it for half, 150k (smirk). Now he's saying he'd even take 100k a year (smile). No! My roommate just said he'd do it for free, he'd even pay to get in (shocked)!!!?"

"Has anyone else noticed the special note in the announcement? No restrictions on your first degree! Why is no one talking about this? God Lu, he's really... I'm crying my eyes out (facepalm crying)(facepalm crying)(facepalm crying)."

Wang Jiulong's scalp tingled as he read their show-off comments.

You had to hand it to them.

When it came to chatting online, each of them was more talented and creative than the last.

But when it was time for actual artistic performances, not a single one of them would make a peep.

Putting his phone down, he had no intention of joining this late-night carnival of his juniors.

As a third-year PhD student on the verge of graduation, he had his own joys and sorrows to deal with.