After Shen Fuxuan passed the civil service exam, he worked at the grassroots level for a while and then was transferred back to the provincial capital. Since he returned to the provincial capital, he has not had much contact with Lin Zhixia and others. Duan Qiyan asked him out for dinner, but he declined several times, and Duan Qiyan never invited him again.
The more Lin Zhixia thought about it, the more she felt something was wrong.
She sent a WeChat message to Shen Fuxuan: "Good evening, classmate Shen."
Lin Zhixia rarely chatted with Shen Fuxuan in private, and her choice of words seemed particularly unfamiliar. However, Shen Fuxuan replied to her immediately: "Good evening."
Lin Zhixia seized the opportunity and asked him, "How is Mr. Shen doing recently?"
He said the same thing as his father: "It's fine."
Lin Zhixia knew that Shen Fuxuan was not someone who could be easily persuaded. She and Shen Fuxuan had been classmates for four years, and she had witnessed Shen Fuxuan's daily entertainment was to fool Duan Qiyan around.
Shen Fuxuan was always afraid of chaos in the world, and he spoke half-truths and half-falsehoods. Even after he became an adult, that habit did not change. Deng Shasha once commented that she had only been with Shen Fuxuan for two days, and she was almost bewitched by this junior. It can be seen that he is not a simple man, but a capable one.
Lin Zhixia agreed with Deng Shasha's opinion.
She put down her phone and fell headfirst onto the bed.
Jiang Yubai pushed the door open and entered the room, only to see Lin Zhixia lying on the bed. He walked over, sat down beside the bed, and skillfully lifted her waist. She leaned in his arms, still holding the phone. After a while, she received a WeChat message from He Yuanqian - it was a long message. He Yuanqian truthfully relayed that Shen Zhaohua had undergone an operation in mid-April this year. Shen Zhaohua's family was optimistic about the operation, but reality slapped them in the face.
Before the operation, Shen Zhaohua never mentioned it to anyone because she thought she would recover soon and return to work.
After the operation, Shen Zhaohua's condition worsened, cancer cells spread and metastasized, and the targeted drugs were not effective. She planned to make her condition public in the near future and reassign mentors for her students. She occasionally talked about Lin Zhixia with her family and even dreamed about what Lin Zhixia looked like when she was ten years old.
Next Thursday, she wants to meet Lin Zhixia. Now, she lives in the intensive care unit of the Provincial People's Hospital.
Lin Zhixia had mixed feelings. She didn't know how serious Shen Zhaohua's condition had deteriorated, and she just hoped that a medical miracle would happen as soon as possible.
She lay flat on the bed, resting her head on Jiang Yubai's legs, and handed him her cell phone.
After reading the WeChat message, Jiang Yubai comforted Lin Zhixia in a gentle voice: "Next Thursday, I will accompany you to the hospital." He flipped through the calendar and found that next Thursday was April 27th.
This year's graduate interviews are scheduled for late April.
Before April 27th, Lin Zhixia will interview more than 20 students.
She screened the resumes and glanced over the students' published papers. Among this group of students, Chen Shihan was undoubtedly the most outstanding. In addition, Chen Shihan was a girl and only reported Lin Zhixia as her supervisor. Lin Zhixia liked to recruit female students, so she simply decided on Chen Shihan in advance and added her name to the research group.
On the day of the graduate interview meeting, the evaluation team for quantum computing at the Interdisciplinary College consisted of seven teachers, including Lin Zhixia, the vice president, Qu Zongyi, Tan Qianche, and others. The teachers sat on one side of the long table, and the students stood on the other side. The atmosphere was very tense. Some students blushed, their foreheads sweated, and their lips turned pale. Tan Qianche said to Lin Zhixia, "These students have poor psychological qualities. No matter how well they learn, don't recruit them."
"My enrollment quota for this year has been filled," Lin Zhixia revealed.
Tan Qianche opened his work diary and asked as he wrote, "Is your new student obedient?"
"Being obedient is secondary," Lin Zhixia insisted. "Having your own ideas is the main thing."
Tan Qianche tightened the pen cap and commented calmly: "The best students come from Tsinghua and Peking University. You are only suitable to teach good students."
He rolled up his sleeves an inch, revealing his wrists, with distinct wrist bones, slightly exposed veins, and well-proportioned muscle lines. The new girl kept staring at his hands, and he couldn't help but laugh and stare at her. The girl's face immediately turned red, and she twisted the hem of her coat with both hands.
"Look," Tan Qianche said in a very low voice, "We can't accept this student either."
Tan Qianche sat at the very side, and Lin Zhixia was his neighbor, and only Lin Zhixia could hear him. He had just given his advice when Lin Zhixia replied coldly, "Our admissions criteria are different, Mr. Tan."
Then, Lin Zhixia raised her voice and said, "Student Chen Shihan, don't be nervous. Introduce yourself."
Chen Shihan flew from Hong Kong to the provincial capital yesterday. She doesn't speak Mandarin well, and she has been worried since she got off the plane. Her boyfriend doesn't want her to go to the mainland to study for a master's degree. He always tells her that mainland classmates exclude Hong Kong girls and will definitely isolate her. This scares her so much that she tells everyone that her hometown is in Guangdong and she is a real Cantonese.
When introducing herself, Chen Shihan accidentally said, "I'm from Guangdong."
Tan Qianche interrupted her: "Your information shows that your domicile is in Hong Kong, classmate Chen."
Chen Shihan quickly made amends: "Hong Kong."
Tan Qianche smiled again.
Chen Shihan's tongue seemed to be tied. Her hesitant expression really resembled another student of Lin Zhixia, Zhan Rui. Fortunately, the teachers present were very patient. The vice president threw out a few simple questions, and Chen Shihan picked up a marker and quickly answered them on the blackboard. Gradually, she got into the state, no longer had a trace of trepidation, and was able to chat and laugh with the teachers.
Chen Shihan's undergraduate major is physics, with a minor in computer science. She participated in physics and chemistry competitions in high school and published papers during her undergraduate studies. Such an academic background makes her stand out among other students.
Qu Zongyi was very satisfied and asked her on the spot: "Student Chen Shihan, have you decided on a supervisor?" Before he finished speaking, he pushed the nameplate on the table, on which was clearly written "Leader of the discipline of the School of Interdisciplinary Studies, Professor Qu Zongyi".
Chen Shihan looked at Lin Zhixia eagerly, wanting to say something but stopping herself - anyone could understand her longing look.
Qu Zongyi laughed awkwardly and found a way out for himself: "The master can only lead you to the door, but the practice is up to you."
Chen Shihan bowed to the teachers: "Thank you, teachers."
Lin Zhixia nodded at her.
Chen Shihan knew that this represented Lin Zhixia's approval. She felt sweeter than eating honey and smiled back at Lin Zhixia.
After Chen Shihan left, Qu Zongyi unscrewed the glass bottle, drank a sip of the tea with Sterculia lychnophora, and complimented: "The students in Teacher Lin's group are all excellent."
Lin Zhixia politely said, "No match for Mr. Qu's students."
While recording the interview scores, she was writing the "Graduate Training Plan". Halfway through, Qu Zongyi said, "Hey, you are Professor Shen's granddaughter, Teacher Lin, I heard about Professor Shen this morning."
Lin Zhixia paused.
Many teachers in the school believed that Lin Zhixia was Shen Zhaohua's granddaughter because she had been loved by Shen Zhaohua since she was a child. She did not refute Qu Zongyi, but only said: "Professor Shen will recover."
Qu Zongyi did not respond, so Lin Zhixia repeated: "She will definitely get better."
Qu Zongyi studied chemistry and had some knowledge of medicine and biology. He believed that Shen Zhaohua's situation was not optimistic - this was not an exaggeration, and the professors of the medical school all agreed with his opinion.
He pushed up his glasses and lied, "Professor Shen is in good health and will make it through." He consoled her, "Don't worry too much, Teacher Lin."
After several seconds, Lin Zhixia replied: "Thank you."
This year's graduate student recruitment work is still proceeding in an intensive and orderly manner.
Lin Zhixia's three new students, including Chen Shihan, are all powerful characters with rich resumes. According to reliable sources, Chen Shihan not only has excellent academic performance, but also speaks English very well, with an IELTS score of 8, making her a typical "other people's child".
When Xu Lingbo heard about this, he felt something was wrong.
Anxiety filled his heart.
He is about to enter his third year of graduate school, but he has not yet published a single paper. His younger classmates in the group are becoming more and more capable, and even Zhan Rui has submitted a conference paper, but he still has nothing.
God can see that he has been studying hard for the past six months and has never slacked off. However, for him, writing a paper is like winning the lottery. It is not enough to rely on hard work, but also on luck.
It was another bright morning. Xu Lingbo got up early and rushed to the laboratory, bringing breakfast for his senior sister Fang Yiwen. It was 7:30 in the morning, and there were only two of them in the laboratory.
He brought breakfast to Fang Yiwen, who was working on Zhan Rui's thesis. Her hair was as messy as ever, revealing a sense of unrestrainedness and uninhibitedness. Her left leg was crossed on another chair, and there was a few pieces of yellow mud on the sole of her shoe. She didn't have the slightest bit of elegance in her sitting posture, but she showed great ambition and natural grace.
Xu Lingbo's mind moved, and he stuttered like Zhan Rui: "Senior, Senior Sister, I, I, I..."
The senior sister interrupted him: "I know what you are going to say."
Xu Lingbo took a deep breath, and the senior sister asked again: "Do you want to hear my white lie or the truth?"
Xu Lingbo chose "a white lie."
Fang Yiwen whispered, "You have to focus on your studies."
"Our personalities complement each other," Xu Lingbo suddenly said boldly, "Give me a chance to narrow the gap between us, Senior Sister."
Fang Yiwen shook her head slightly and said calmly, "The gap between you and me is deeper than the Mariana Trench and greater than the energy released by nuclear fusion. Let me give you an analogy. If I am a first-magnitude star in the Orion constellation in the Milky Way, you are a small satellite of Jupiter. If I am highly oxidizing perchloric acid, you are a bowl of water with a neutral pH. I am DNA that is constantly being replicated, and you are ATP that will eventually be hydrolyzed. Our abilities are not in the same evaluation system at all."
She raised her head: "Tell the truth, do you understand?"
Xu Lingbo felt as if thousands of arrows were piercing his heart. He stumbled out of the laboratory and ran into Teacher Tan Qianche from the School of Physics. Seeing that he was in a state of disarray, Teacher Tan straightened him up and asked him, "Is your teacher Lin in the laboratory?"
"No," Xu Lingbo murmured to himself, "Teacher Lin went to the hospital."
"Is she ill?"
"It's not her, it's her grandmother, Professor Shen Zhaohua, who is in the hospital."
Tan Qianche seemed to be thinking about something.
Xu Lingbo managed to calm down and asked on behalf of Lin Zhixia: "Teacher Tan, what do you want to talk to Teacher Lin about?"
Tan Qianche replied: "Your teacher Lin is the deputy leader of the joint research group of the four universities. She is likely to be selected as this year's Forbes Global 30 Outstanding Talent Under 30. The professors of the research group of the four universities all want to recommend Teacher Lin to the International Academic Union so that she can win the award of 'Most Outstanding Scientist Under 30'."
Xu Lingbo had heard of this award, which is often called the "Little Nobel" for its generous prize money, far-reaching influence, and strict evaluation system. The judging committee includes top scientists from China, Japan, Europe and the United States, and the annual award ceremony is held in an auditorium in the capital of a great country.
For the ten thousandth time in his life, Xu Lingbo sighed: "Teacher Lin is so strong. I am a drag in Teacher Lin's group..."
Tan Qianche comforted him with one sentence: "Don't compare yourself with geniuses, don't make yourself suffer. The more you know, the less you know[1]."
Xu Lingbo expressed his gratitude for the lesson.
Today the sun is shining brightly, the weather is clear and there are no clouds in the sky, which seems to be a good sign.
Lin Zhixia carried a fruit basket in her left hand and held Jiang Yubai's hand with her right hand, and walked into the inpatient department of the Provincial People's Hospital with him.
Shen Zhaohua's ward is on the seventh floor.
The corridor is clean and tidy, the sun is shining brightly outside the window, and family members are accompanying the patients for walks, highlighting a quiet and peaceful atmosphere.
Lin Zhixia stood in front of a door of the ward. The door was ajar and she didn't dare to push it.
In a trance, it seemed as if she had returned to her childhood. That year, Lin Zhixia was only nine years old. She participated in the autumn outing and met Shen Zhaohua in the aquarium. Shen Zhaohua handed his business card to Lin Zhixia, but Lin Zhixia hesitated and refused to accept it. After many years, she was still hesitant. Jiang Yubai put his arm around her shoulders, and she finally opened the door a crack.
She heard Shen Zhaohua's voice: "Come in."
Shen Fuxuan was also in the room. He smiled and said, "Teacher Shen woke up at five o'clock and waited for you all morning."
"No," Shen Zhaohua paused and asked, "Is it Lin Zhixia?"
Lin Zhixia walked slowly into the ward.
She finally met Shen Zhaohua.
Shen Zhaohua was also in good condition. She was not lying on the bed weakly as Lin Zhixia had imagined. On the contrary, she looked energetic, but had lost a lot of weight and her skin was slightly yellow. She was sitting on the bed, her back against the pillow, with a tube inserted in her left hand, and she was being fed intravenously.
Lin Zhixia said, "Hello, Teacher Shen."
Jiang Yubai was more polite. He also introduced himself, claiming to be Lin Zhixia's relative.
Shen Zhaohua was deeply impressed by Jiang Yubai - when Lin Zhixia was a child, she loved to visit the university's laboratories and libraries, and Jiang Yubai often accompanied her. The two children were inseparable on campus.
Shen Zhaohua was quite kind to Jiang Yubai: "You all take a seat."
Lin Zhixia sat obediently on an empty seat beside the bed. She put her legs together, held the fruit basket, and stared at Shen Zhaohua, which made Shen Zhaohua smile.
Shen Zhaohua chatted with Lin Zhixia like she was her elder: "It's the end of April, the postgraduate reexamination should be over."
"It's over," Lin Zhixia said, "I recruited three students this year."
Shen Zhaohua said with relief: "Okay."
Lin Zhixia dragged her chair forward, getting closer to Shen Zhaohua: "How are you feeling lately?"
Shen Zhaohua has always had presbyopia. Recently, her eye problems have become more serious. She can't see clearly at close range or far away, and can only vaguely recognize the vague outlines. She slightly opened her eyelids and said to Lin Zhixia, "Not bad."
Shen Fuxuan stood aside peeling an apple without saying a word.
Jiang Yubai stood beside Shen Fuxuan. They were close friends. Jiang Yubai talked to Shen Fuxuan in a low voice. Shen Zhaohua didn't hear what they were talking about. There was a buzzing noise in her ears. She half-closed her eyes, leaned against the headboard, and put her hands on the quilt. Her joints were protruding and the backs of her hands were covered with age spots.
The ward fell silent at that moment.
"Lin Zhixia." Shen Zhaohua only said her name.
Lin Zhixia hurriedly said: "I'm here."
Shen Zhaohua instructed: "Open the box on the cabinet..."
Before he finished speaking, Shen Fuxuan came over to lend a hand. His skin color was darker than before, probably because he was exposed to the sun in the countryside. He was also more mature and stable. He no longer smiled before speaking, and his words and actions were full of teasing.
He took out a wooden box from the cabinet, handed it to Lin Zhixia personally, and explained, "There are a lot of penguins in it."
"Penguin?" Lin Zhixia opened the lid.
It turned out to be a row of wooden carved penguin dolls.
Shen Fuxuan introduced their origins in detail: "Last year, my grandmother went to Antarctica for an investigation and happened to meet an Antarctic penguin researcher. My grandmother bought a batch of teaching aids from him..." He took a step back and moved further away from her: "A complete list of penguin species in the world."
How did Shen Zhaohua know that Lin Zhixia liked penguins
When Lin Zhixia was ten years old, she often went to Shen Zhaohua's laboratory. Every time she came to the laboratory, her schoolbag was bulging - it contained her little penguin plush toy. Shen Zhaohua saw it a few times and remembered it.
Lin Zhixia held the box in her hands, as if she had suddenly returned to her school days. She could only say one sentence: "Thank you, Teacher Shen."
Shen Zhaohua leaned on the bed, looked at Lin Zhixia, then turned to Shen Fuxuan and said, "You've been here all morning. Today is Thursday, and work is important. You should go back first."
"Am I really leaving?" Shen Fuxuan picked up his coat.
Shen Zhaohua waved his hand.
The nurse slightly opened the curtains, and bright light shone in, falling on Jiang Yubai. Jiang Yubai handed the fruit basket brought by Lin Zhixia to the nurse, and then said, "Teacher Shen, take a good rest first. Lin Zhixia and I will visit you the next day."
Shen Zhaohua picked up a pair of framed glasses from the bedside and put them on her nose. She moved slowly and refused to let anyone help her. The liquid in the drip dripped down drop by drop. She accidentally touched Lin Zhixia, who felt that her hand was as cold as the liquid medicine.
Shen Zhaohua looked at Lin Zhixia carefully through the lens. His vision was still blurry. Shen Zhaohua couldn't help but cough and said, "Today, we've seen each other for the last time. That's enough. You don't need to come again the next day. You all have... your own careers and lives... I'm almost 80 years old, I'm an old guy..."
Lin Zhixia heard the implication of her words, and Shen Fuxuan's face didn't look good either. But he still managed to smile. He put on his coat, sat on a stool, and said in a convincing tone: "It's not that bad yet. Just observe for a few more days. The targeted drug has a good anti-cancer effect. My mother said that you were about to be elected as an academician last year. If you recover from your illness and get the academician medal, you can still go to school to teach..."
"Teacher Gu Likai is also being evaluated for academician," Lin Zhixia suddenly interrupted, "I organized a joint research group of four schools, and Teacher Gu is the leader. When he visited our school last week, we also talked about you, Teacher Shen."
Shen Zhaohua pressed the armrest of the bed and said jokingly, "When he is elected as an academician, you will burn some incense for me."
"What?" Lin Zhixia was a little shocked.
Shen Zhaohua thought she didn't understand, so he repeated, "Burn one stick of incense."
The whole audience was silent.
Shen Zhaohua closed his eyes and continued, "Your senior sister Zhu Chan has been able to do scientific research independently for a long time. You too have funds and achievements... My colleagues at school thought you were my granddaughter... I laughed a few times..."
Her words were intermittent, like an old person mumbling in her sleep.
Tears welled up in Lin Zhixia's eyes. She hadn't cried in many years, but whenever she thought of how good Shen Zhaohua was to her, she couldn't control her emotions.
Shen Zhaohua opened the university's library resources and laboratory equipment to Lin Zhixia, and also contacted Gu Likai as her undergraduate advisor. When she graduated with a doctorate and returned to China, he helped her to make connections and stabilize her network of relationships in the school. No wonder the vice-president mistakenly thought that Lin Zhixia was Shen Zhaohua's granddaughter.
Tears rolled down and dripped onto the back of Lin Zhixia's hand. She was afraid that Shen Zhaohua would find out, so she said in a normal tone: "Okay, I understand, Teacher Shen, you should take care of yourself. Jiang Yubai, Shen Fuxuan and I will leave first. We will come to see you another day when we are free. I can bring Senior Sister Zhu Chan over..."
Shen Zhaohua, like her grandmother, kindly coaxed her, "Don't cry, Xia Xia."
It would have been better if she didn't comfort her. After this cry, Lin Zhixia cried even harder. Tears fell like pearls that had broken off a string, soaking her skirt. She stood up from her seat and tried to stay calm: "I'm sorry, Teacher Shen, I..."
"You are a soft-hearted child." Shen Zhaohua commented.
Jiang Yubai handed the tissue to Lin Zhixia, and Shen Fuxuan said self-deprecatingly: "Grandma, don't talk about her, I'm about to cry."
Shen Zhaohua laughed. Her tiredness seemed to have disappeared a little, and she was in a much better state than in the morning. She moved the quilt up an inch, rested her neck on the soft pillow, tilted her head back slightly, and continued: "If I really leave, don't cry... If you remember me, it means I'm not gone, right?"
The tone of her voice sounded like she was explaining a problem to students.
Jiang Yubai and Shen Fuxuan were both silent, and Shen Zhaohua looked at Lin Zhixia again. She knew that Lin Zhixia's memory was unmatched. Lin Zhixia was indeed very smart, and she quickly understood her expression and agreed, "Yes."
Shen Zhaohua calmly recited a line of poetry: "Life in the world will end, and death in the underworld is no problem[2]."
The author has something to say: [1] Socrates’ famous saying
[2] Tang Yin, “Deathbed Poem”
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Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or irrigated nutrient solution during 2020-10-09 10:55:10~2020-10-11 00:00:02~
Thanks to the little angel who threw the grenade: Hall. 1;
Thanks to the little angels who cast mines: sberly 6; whhhhhhh and Yuqing Sanxiashui 1;
Thanks to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: Dreamy Purple Butterfly_Xiao Qiong 15 70 bottles; Huai Yutian Miaomiaomiao 20 bottles; zxy 14 bottles; verly 12 bottles; Pomegranate Red, 3627, j_enghiarashi, Li Yao, Sanhuahua, Love to Eat Potatoes, Yuntuan 10 bottles; Zhuangshi Nihaobai 9 bottles; yvnne 8 bottles; 21619175, Sweet Strawberry Jam 5 bottles; Mianmian Bu Chimian 3 bottles; Tang, Huan 2 bottles; Guagua, sissi, Spring Breeze Kiss Me Like Eggs, Yunqing, Little Radish Eating Rabbits, Shiqi, Dongyang, Saopo 10086 1 bottle;
Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!