Without Yan Zhenfeng saying a word, the two had already seen the WeChat post on their phones.
Text: “Foreign boys want to steal our little cabbage, no way!”
Images: [Pig pushing cabbage], [Pig slaughter], [Butcher’s smile]
Lin Shumo: “What does it mean?”
Qin Libin explained briefly, then turned to see Ling Xuan’s darkened face.
“?” Another one?
But at least he’s a local breed.
They inquired about the others’ exam experiences.
Lin Shumo and Ling Xuan felt confident.
Fang Canyang was unsure.
Huo Fanjin scratched his head: “I couldn’t solve the last part of the final experimental question, but the rest was okay.”
Yan Zhenfeng sighed: “It’s partly my fault for underestimating the difficulty of the problems set by Country D when I planned the training.”
Huo Fanjin: “It’s okay! Our captain upgraded us before we came.”
“Upgraded how?”
Lin Shumo coughed lightly: “Jiang Fuyue predicted two major questions in the theoretical part.”
Yan Zhenfeng: “!”
Qin Libin: “!”
Can we have Jiang Fuyue help with predictions at the physics summer camp every year?
After lunch, everyone went back to their rooms for a nap.
Yan Zhenfeng smiled continuously while looking at his phone.
Qin Libin: “Why are you grinning like that?”
“Everyone is commenting, asking what my WeChat post means.”
“How are you replying?”
“I’m too lazy to respond individually, so I replied all at once.”
Qin Libin took out his phone and checked.
Yan Zhenfeng’s reply: [Thanks for your attention. It’s nothing serious, just a bunch of foreign boys eyeing our girl. Can’t let that happen!]
He thought that would be the end of it, but a flurry of questions followed—
[Who is the girl?]
[Is she the one who always scored full marks during training?]
[Old Yan, you’re not fair. Show us a picture of the girl.]
Yan Zhenfeng ignored most comments, only replying to the one asking if she was the full-marks girl with a single “Yes.”
…
In Huaxia, the capital city, it was already evening.
“Professor Xie, going to the cafeteria?” Xie Dingyuan ran into a physics professor while leaving the lab.
Although he didn’t know the professor, he nodded politely.
As they passed each other, he heard the professor chuckling over his phone: “Old Yan is cracking jokes now, that’s rare!”
Xie Dingyuan paid no mind and headed to the cafeteria.
After getting his meal and sitting down, his phone buzzed with several notifications.
He opened WeChat to see five messages from Shen Qiannan.
[Old Xie, what are you up to?]
[Still in the lab?]
[Got something funny to tell you]
[Never mind, I can’t describe it well]
[Check Professor Yan’s WeChat post, from the physics department]
Xie Dingyuan frowned and opened WeChat Moments, where the first post was Yan Zhenfeng’s.
He didn’t find the text or images funny, just peculiar.
Yan Zhenfeng was a famously serious scholar who rarely posted on WeChat Moments. Even if he did, it was usually academic-related.
But this post…
The style was completely different.
Then again, maybe he hadn’t checked WeChat Moments in a while, and Professor Yan had changed his style.
Yes, Xie Dingyuan didn’t have a habit of checking Moments.
Or rather, he didn’t have many friends who frequently posted updates.
Most of his contacts were colleagues or researchers from other fields, dedicated to their work with no time for social media.
So, there was little content to see.
Suddenly, his eyes fixed on the comments section, where Yan Zhenfeng had replied.
One explained the background of the post.
Another “Yes” was a reply to a female professor from the chemistry department at Q University.
… a bunch of foreign boys eyeing our girl…
Foreign boys eyeing our girl…
Our girl!
And never scoring below full marks during training!
Xie Dingyuan’s eyes narrowed sharply.
There was no doubt who that girl was!
Just then, another message from Shen Qiannan popped up—
[Did you see it?]
[I suspect the girl Old Yan mentioned is our junior.]
[Impressive, right? Even foreign boys are smitten. Great for Huaxia’s reputation.]
[Do you remember who she is? The one who borrowed your lab!]
[Hehe… isn’t she beautiful?]
Xie Dingyuan replied coldly: [Are you proud?]
Shen Qiannan: [I’m just proud for our junior.]
Xie Dingyuan: [Idiot.]
Shen Qiannan: [Come on, can’t you be serious for once?]
Xie Dingyuan didn’t reply, setting his phone to silent mode.
He finished his dinner calmly and returned to the lab, but as soon as he sat down, an inexplicable irritation rose within him.
Eventually, he called Sheng Yiming: “Wasn’t there an exchange meeting in Country D? I’ll attend.”
“Huh?” Sheng Yiming was puzzled.
Hadn’t he refused half a month ago?
If Xie Dingyuan hadn’t mentioned it, he would have forgotten entirely.
“Book me a flight for tomorrow…” After a pause, Xie Dingyuan corrected himself, “No, tonight.”
Sheng Yiming: “?”
Did I wake up wrong? Why is the boss acting so weird?
Hahaha! Xie is anxious!