From the timeline, it was the summer vacation 7 years ago. But actually, for Lin Zhaoxi, less than half a year had passed.
She clearly remembered that in the library of Sanwei University, on that rainy evening, she tried to find Lao Lin's past in the reference room of Sanwei University with a strong smell in the dim light.
But nothing.
Now she has come to another century-old library adjacent to Sanwei University, as if she is about to face all the unsolved answers.
Panting, they stood at the door of the reference room.
Lu Zhihao was still taking out his card slowly, not sure if his card could be swiped in the reference room. Lin Zhaoxi directly took his campus card, and with a beep, swiped to unlock the door.
Yongchuan University is almost on holiday, and there is no one in the library.
Lin Zhaoxi shuttled among the bookshelves, according to the library rules, and quickly found the large row of bookcases for the school yearbook. She had already calculated the years when Lao Lin might enroll and graduate, so she could directly pull out a few huge yearbooks and put them in Lu Zhihao's hands.
She took the remaining few books by herself, and led Lu Zhihao to the long table by the window.
Several thick yearbooks were lined up in this way, and Lin Zhaoxi turned them all to the page of the Department of Mathematics.
Under the scorching sun, the handwriting is densely packed, and the pages are scattered like rice grains.
"Department of Mathematics, what are you looking for, may I help you?" Lu Zhihao asked curiously.
"No need." Lin Zhaoxi replied lightly, and began to search.
From the list of incoming freshmen to the list of graduates...
She looked at the names one by one, and these names represented the favored children of the mathematics department of the older generation of Yongchuan University. Lin Zhaoxi had seen some of these names in textbooks later, so she felt very familiar with them.
Page after page, year after year...
Lin Zhaoxi couldn't tell what she was expecting.
But she clearly remembered that after Lao Lin met her in Cheese World, Lao Lin directly dialed the phone number that might belong to the Applied Mathematics Department of Sanwei University.
He said two paragraphs, the first paragraph is - "It's me".
The second paragraph is longer, but she can almost repeat it completely. Lao Lin said—"A girl took my hand and said she was my daughter. We just came out of the laboratory. I want to ask you, what is the relationship between us?" What is the probability of a kinship?"
Lao Lin's expression at that time was vivid in his memory, and Lin Zhaoxi had guessed more than once, who exactly would Lao Lin call after father and daughter recognized each other.
But apart from her mother, she seemed to be unable to think of any other possibility.
If her mother is also a student of Yongchuan University, or a teacher, it seems to explain a lot of problems.
At that time, her thoughts were still a little sweet. A child like her who lived in love since childhood rarely had so many conspiratorial thoughts. She thought it was a story that only happened in TV dramas.
At the same time, Lin Zhaoxi finally saw the word "Lin Zhaosheng" on the list of undergraduates in the Department of Mathematics.
She breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that the sunlight had softened, as it should.
She gently closed the yearbook, as if everything had a natural explanation.
In fact, there are not so many so-called doubts. The reason why she didn't find Lao Lin's name in the yearbook of Sanwei University is because Lao Lin studied at Yongchuan University.
She's been looking for the wrong place all along.
Questions came and went quickly, and she suddenly had no doubts.
The only thing she didn't understand was the "studying" in Lao Lin's mouth.
So she opened the yearbook four years later and turned to the column of graduates. Sure enough, I found Lao Lin's name smoothly again, and Lao Lin was still an outstanding graduate of that year.
What is there to hide about graduating from Yongchuan University, and you have to make up your own "study", after all, it is a prestigious school...
Lin Zhaoxi breathed a sigh of relief.
Now, she knew Lao Lin's graduate school, but she still didn't know who Lao Lin called.
At that time, she didn't see the last two. If the phone numbers of each department in a school were similar, she couldn't be sure that Lao Lin must have called the Institute of Applied Mathematics.
So she ran back to the bookshelf again, took out the yearbook of Yongchuan University that she had when she was in the fifth grade, and turned to the department phone number.
Pointing at the number with her finger, she swiped from top to bottom, and she began to check every call. The phone numbers of different departments and research institutes differ by the last four digits, which means that the number 021-576323xx must belong to the Institute of Applied Mathematics.
Next came the secondary office calls.
The phone numbers of each department under the Institute of Applied Mathematics are different, and the number 021-576323xx may belong to...
Institute Secretariat or - Director's Office.
Lin Zhaoxi was stunned, thinking about it.
Lao Lin said "it's me" very decisively. He didn't say that I was looking for "so-and-so" before that, which showed that he knew that the person who answered the phone was the person he was looking for immediately.
According to common sense, there are different people in the secretariat on duty to answer the phone, so... Could it be the mother
While thinking this way, she flipped through the directory, looking for the page where the staff list of the institute was located.
It is also a coincidence that after the catalog page is the school's memorabilia.
Lin Zhaoxi took a glance and found what she was looking for.
On xx, xx, the National Yongchuan University Chaokai Cadres and Teachers Conference announced the appointment and dismissal decision: Comrade Su Anzhi was appointed as the director of the Department of Psychology and Secretary of the Party Committee of Yongchuan University; Comrade Feng Deming was appointed as the director of the Institute of Applied Mathematics of Yongchuan University.
It is recorded for a long time, printed on the crisp and yellow yearbook, it looks inconspicuous, but Lin Zhaoxi's heart trembled inexplicably.
The director of the research institute is "Tai Dou Feng" in Lao Wang's mouth. Recently, due to the problem of the same graphic structure, I have a little disagreement with Professor Zeng.
Speaking of which, she and Professor Feng had met before. When Cheese World was in junior high school, Professor Feng clearly opposed the popularization of Olympic mathematics and attended a teaching seminar. She and Pei Zhi were invited to attend that seminar as students of the Mathematical Olympiad summer camp.
At that symposium, Pei Zhi stood up and opposed the views supported by Professor Feng.
Like Pei Zhi, she doesn't like Professor Feng's views, but that's because she has a vested interest in Mathematical Olympiad education.
From another standpoint, Professor Feng's views on Mathematical Olympiad are actually understandable and acceptable to her.
Lin Zhaoxi frowned, feeling that she was thinking too far. Lao Lin met him, why did he call the director of a research institute
Or the Secretariat is more likely.
She took out a pen and paper from her bag, wrote down the list of secretariat members, and closed the yearbook.
Lu Zhihao: "Are you okay?"
"It's almost there." Lin Zhaoxi stuffed the paper into his pocket.
If she wants to know who her mother is, she can directly report her name to Lao Lin and observe Lao Lin's expression to know the answer.
But does it really make sense
My mother has worked at Yongchuan University for so many years, and she is only a few hours away by car, but I have never seen her, so what if I know her name
At most, when he quarrels with Lao Lin in the future, there is a tool that can counter Lao Lin
It really doesn't seem to make sense.
Lin Zhaoxi felt a sense of emptiness and boredom, and the momentary excitement just now was gone. She put away the yearbooks on the table one by one, and together with Lu Zhihao, worked together to put those huge yearbooks back on the bookshelf.
"Why were you so excited all of a sudden just now? What are you looking for?"
"Find the answer to the mystery of my life experience!"
"Hiss..." Lu Zhihao took a breath and asked, "What about now, have you untied it
"It's almost untied. My dad is a student of the Department of Mathematics at Yongchuan University. My mom should work here. For some reason, my mom doesn't want me anymore. My dad raised me alone."
Standing in front of the towering bookshelf of Yongchuan University, she spoke the answer frankly.
Lu Zhihao was silent for a while, and said after a while: "Don't be sad, it's over."
"En." Lin Zhaoxi was about to turn around.
"Is your father actually my old senior? How old?" Lu Zhihao said in a different tone to make her happy.
Lin Zhaoxi smiled: "He graduated in 1991, so he should be in the 91st class?"
After she finished speaking, she suddenly stopped in place, turned around in disbelief, and looked up at the row of thick yearbooks.
In the library of Sanwei University, Lao Lin wrote notes on many mathematics-related books. At that time, the latest books were published after 1994. This means that around that time, Lao Lin was still engaged in mathematics-related work.
There is a three-year time gap here. Could it be that Lao Lin is still a graduate student at Yongchuan University
So the so-called "dropping out" can only happen during his postgraduate study
Lin Zhaoxi took a step forward and pulled out the 1991 yearbook with all her strength. She put the book down on the spot and opened it while kneeling.
In 1991, in the directory of newly admitted graduate students of the Institute of Applied Mathematics of Yongchuan University, there was indeed the word "Lin Zhaosheng".
Lin Zhaoxi's hands trembled a little.
She raised her head and said to Lu Zhihao, "Help me win the 1994 book!"
Lu Zhihao quickly took down the huge booklet: "What happened again?"
Lin Zhaoxi couldn't answer this time, so she opened the heavy yearbook again to check the list of graduate students.
Once, twice...
After reading it for the third time, she was sure that Lao Lin's name was not on the list of graduates.
He did "drop out of school" and did not lie to her.
However, the school yearbook does not state why students are absent.
You may be expelled for some reason, you may be unwell, you may fail an exam, or you may even have no money to pay tuition...
But Lin Zhaoxi had the most appropriate answer in mind.
At that time, Lao Lin had a relationship with an unknown girl from the Department of Mathematics of Yongchuan University. The girl didn't want her, so Lao Lin left school to raise her.
All the problems came back to the original point, and she still dragged Lao Lin down, although Lao Lin never admitted this.
Lin Zhaoxi was still kneeling and sitting on the cold ground. Although the sun was still shining brightly outside the window, she was still very uncomfortable.
She took out her mobile phone and sent Lao Lin a WeChat message—Why did you drop out of school
Old Lin - Guess what
Lin Zhaoxi—Because you had a daughter out of wedlock and had to raise your young daughter, you chose to leave the university campus.
Old Lin - No.
Lin Zhaoxi laughed helplessly, closed the book and stood up, ready to let go of this question, treating it as a little secret she knew. Of course, the list of the Academic Affairs Office in the pocket can still be used in case of emergency.
Just then, her pocket shook again.
Lin Zhaoxi had no choice but to take out her phone again, only to find that Lao Lin had actually sent a long text.
Lao Lin—1. Lin Zhaoxi met a strange middle-aged man during his defense at Yongchuan University, and suddenly asked you to recognize his relatives. a. yes; b. no.
Lin Zhaoxi's heart skipped a beat, and she subconsciously wanted to ask what was meant by "acknowledging relatives" or what was meant by "strange middle-aged people". But based on her many years of fighting wits and courage with Lao Lin, if she raised any doubts about Lao Lin's ambiguous words, Lao Lin can directly judge that she has not encountered the above situation.
So, she typed directly—a.
Lao Lin directly sent a voice over. Lin Zhaoxi clicked on it and put it to his ear. Lao Lin's gentle and slightly smiling voice came out: "Congratulations, Comrade Lin Zhaoxi, for activating the hidden copy. You can make the following choices. a. The middle-aged man continued to beep. b. Turned his head and left without hesitation to call your good friend Lu Zhihao from Yongchuan University who is not familiar with him, ask him to borrow a campus card, go to the archives room on the fifth floor of the university library, and call Read the school yearbook in 1994, and look at the disciplinary situation of graduate students in the Department of Mathematics. Pierce, according to the usual practice, is about 520 pages.
After the audio playback ended, Lin Zhaoxi almost unbelievably opened the yearbook in front of her.
Not even for a second.
On page 520, on the 1994 punishment list of the Department of Mathematics, she saw Lao Lin's name.
——Student Lin Zhaosheng was suspected of academic plagiarism in his graduate thesis "Research on Theory and Method of Graph Isomorphism Verification". The party committee of the department decided to expel him from his student status.
The author has something to say: Lao Lin, Lu Zhihao, Feng Taidou—Yongchuan University (Honorary alumnus Comrade Lin Chen)
Lin Chaoxi, Pei Zhi, Xie Ran, A Guang, Lao Wang—Sanwei University
chu—the school that Lao Lin and Pei Zhi are going to go abroad