Chapter 32.1
The Roentgen Award, established by the Roentgen Foundation thirty years ago, aimed to to improve the reserve of scientific research talents in the Alliance and encourage young scientists to continuously innovate.
After the annual selection, the list of winners would posted on the official website for four days, and any questions could be addressed to the Roentgen Award jury to ensure fairness.
The award ceremony would then take place after the announcement.
On the second day of the award announcement, Qi Yan arrived at the laboratory early. Mondrian had not yet arrived, while Ye Pei was deeply engrossed in twirling a metal pen.
Seeing Qi Yan come in and look at her several times in a row, Ye Pei joked, “Even though the tasks assigned by the professor, along with preparing for the Roentgen Award, kept me up for over a week, I shouldn’t have gotten uglier, right?”
Hearing this, Qi Yan carefully observed Ye Pei.
Her chestnut hair was tied up in a high ponytail, with the ends naturally curled. Her eyes were light brown, and when she smiled, the dimples on both sides were very obvious.
He shook his head. “You look the same as before.”
“Please add ‘good-looking’ in your sentence, thank you.” Ye Pei pulled over a chair from the side and gestured for Qi Yan to sit down. “Are you worried that I’ll be discouraged and unable to recover?”
Qi Yan replied very directly, “Yes.”
“How could that be possible? Just a Roentgen Award, how could it make me unable to recover?” Ye Pei’s eyes widened. “As the capital star, Leto doesn’t have many of this type of award, but it doesn’t have too few either. Mondrian and I chose the Roentgen Award only because among the awards of the same level, the Roentgen Prize has the fifth highest gold content. The difficulty is not particularly high, and it is also enough to enrich our resumes.”
She deliberately widened her smile. “So you don’t need to worry about me. If I didn’t get the Roentgen Award this time, I’ll prepare better next time and aim for another award.”
Qi Yan pointed to the dark circles under Ye Pei’s eyes. “You didn’t sleep well last night.”
The smile on Ye Pei’s face faltered, and she slumped onto the table. “How did you notice? Can’t it just be leftover dark circles?”
“No, your dark circles today are heavier than yesterday’s. It’s due to insufficient sleep last night.”
“Fine, your memory is too good.” Ye Pei no longer pretended to be indifferent. “Not only did I not get the first prize, but I also didn’t even come close to the third prize. Actually, I’m feeling a bit discouraged. It’s not that I’m heartbroken or anything. I’m not that fragile. I just have some doubts about my abilities.”
Qi Yan: “Why?”
“You must understand, right? Like Mondrian, I’ve always been seen as a genius by others since childhood because I’m smart. Sometimes it feels like everything comes easily to me. Like getting good grades, entering Turan, being invited to join research groups—basically, as long as I try, nothing seems difficult.
“With the Roentgen Award, even though there were only five days left, Mondrian and I felt like there was no problem. We still believed we could get the first prize in five days!”
Qi Yan pondered for a moment. While he knew he was intelligent, perhaps because he grew up surrounded by top talents in various fields and had no peers to compare himself to, his mindset seemed different from Ye Pei’s.
Ye Pei: “However, reality has shown me that I’m too impatient. The truth is, I didn’t even come close to getting the Roentgen Award!”
Qi Yan: “Why were you too impatient? Getting the first prize really only requires five days.”
Ye Pei opened her mouth but made no sound, then burst into laughter after a few seconds. “Qi Yan, what’s going on? Aren’t you supposed to say, ‘Yes, you were indeed too impatient. Not getting the award is the price you pay for your arrogance’?”
Qi Yan: “There was no impatience, no arrogance. It really only takes five days.”
“Hahaha, if someone heard that, they’d definitely be infuriated! People are indeed different. Why do I even bother discussing this issue with you? Oh right, where was I?”
Leaning on her chin, Ye Pei sighed again. “I didn’t sleep much last night. I kept reflecting on my mindset, wondering if there was something wrong with the architecture—”
“There’s nothing wrong with the architecture.” Qi Yan interrupted as Ye Pei glanced up. “I’m certain, there’s nothing wrong with the architecture.”
“It’s impossible.” Ye Pei shook her head, her high ponytail swaying with the motion. “There must be something wrong with the architecture. When I got home last night, I carefully reviewed the works that were posted. The first-place entry was decent, comparable to ours in terms of structure. Among the second-place entries, the one from across the river also had its merits, but the other fell short compared to ours. As for the third-place entries, they were even worse. It’s not that I have an inflated opinion of myself, but our work should have at least earned a second prize, with a chance to contend for the first.”
She slumped back onto the desk. “So there must be something wrong with the architecture that led to our rejection!”
Qi Yan didn’t reiterate his point. Instead, he asked, “Have you identified where the problem might be?”
“That’s what’s troubling me—I haven’t been able to pinpoint it.” Ye Pei ran her fingers through her hair. “Perhaps… it’s beyond my abilities?”
Lu Fenghan had been listening in the background, understanding Ye Pei’s self-doubt. Despite believing in her work, not winning an award left her questioning its flaws. Yet, if she couldn’t identify the flaw, it could only mean her own abilities were lacking.
Lu Fenghan recalled Jiang Yunyue’s words at the entrance of Turan yesterday. A hint of sarcasm flickered in his eyes.
Within Turan’s forum, discussions about the Roentgen Award were also buzzing.
“—Out of the five teams, Turan has secured three spots. It’s truly an internal showdown! But the first-place winner is quite unexpected. Those students from the fourth and third years, their names don’t seem to ring a bell. Graduating soon and still haven’t made it into a research group?”
“—What’s the big deal about getting into a research group? Even without joining one, they still clinched the first place. Those who boast about the prowess of research groups should take a look at the team from the second year. All three members are part of a research group, yet they came up empty-handed. I really want to interview them and ask how it feels to be overshadowed by a freshman.”
“—We must acknowledge that Mondrian’s team only prepared for five days. It’s a different situation. Those who use this to belittle research groups are merely living off past glories and are not worth paying attention to.”
“—Do you really believe they could produce something of Roentgen Award caliber in five days? In my opinion, Qi Yan’s team is just using this excuse to save face. The hype around Qi Yan’s genius backfired as soon as he faced a legitimate award.”
Jiang Qi casually scrolled through the contents of the forum, feeling quite pleased.
Sha Ke was congratulating him, “You have no idea how many jaws you’ve dropped by winning first place! There were only two participants from our year, and the other one made no splash at all!”
Jiang Qi modestly replied, “I was just lucky to join this team and happened to win the prize.”
“Stop being modest. If you weren’t skilled, would senior students from the third and fourth years have invited you? Let me tell you, in a couple of days, the professor will probably approach you about joining a research group for the first years!”
“It’s unlikely. I still have a lot to improve on.” Although he said that, Jiang Qi couldn’t help but feel confident that it was almost a sure thing. The weight of the Roentgen first prize was more than enough to serve as a stepping stone into a research group.
If Qi Yan could make it, then naturally, he could too.
As he recalled his father’s praise during dinner yesterday, the weight that had been hanging on his heart finally lifted.
His mother was right. Yielding to Qi Yan’s threats blindly would only lead him into a passive position. He must teach Qi Yan a lesson and let him know that only by yielding to him could he continue to live smoothly in Leto.
Indeed, Qi Yan was from a backwater planet, lacking in experience and too naive. Thinking that a single secret could serve as leverage, he failed to realize that in Leto, with just a word from them, he could be left helpless.
This time was the best proof.
Sha Ke recalled, “By the way, didn’t your brother also participate?”
“Yes, but I think he must be feeling quite down for not winning this time.”
“Wasn’t your brother quite talented?”
“I’m not really sure. Maybe it’s because he’s new to Leto and hasn’t participated in competitions of this caliber before. He might have felt a bit overwhelmed.” Jiang Qi smiled. “But I believe he’ll definitely win next time.”
Sha Ke felt disdainful inwardly but didn’t show it on his face. “You’re always working hard to save face for Qi Yan.” Then he asked, “By the way, have you chosen the outfit you’ll wear for the awards ceremony?”
Jiang Qi shook his head. “Not yet. My mother is making a big fuss about it, thinking that none of the outfits we’ve picked out look good. I have no choice but to ask a tailor to make one for me at the last minute, but handmade tailoring takes too much time.”
“Are you worried you won’t make it?” Sha Ke placed a hand on Jiang Qi’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, there are still a few days left until the awards ceremony. You’ll definitely make it!”
In the laboratory, Mondrian arrived very late, clearly having not slept well. He told Ye Pei, “I haven’t been able to pinpoint exactly where the problem lies either.”
Ye Pei fretted to the point of losing hair. “It doesn’t matter if we win the prize or not. I just want to know where the problem lies in the architecture!”
Professor Fu had already arranged the tasks for the second phase, still related to the expansion and application of the starship’s central control system. After completing today’s tasks, Qi Yan didn’t rush to leave. He lingered in his seat for a while longer.
Seeing him sitting there lost in thought, Lu Fenghan glanced at Ye Pei and Mondrian, who couldn’t seem to concentrate. Little Delicate appears cold and aloof, but that’s just how he looks.
Just as Qi Yan expected, the efficiency of both Mondrian and Ye Pei was noticeably low today. They didn’t shut down the optical computers until everyone else had left the laboratory.
Ye Pei noticed Lu Fenghan first, and then turned to look at Qi Yan’s seat. “Why haven’t you left yet?”
Qi Yan was usually the first to leave.
She quickly realized. “Don’t worry about me. I just tend to get fixated on things. If there’s a problem, I have to find it and solve it.”
Qi Yan: “But what if there really isn’t a problem with the architecture?”
Ye Pei waved her hand dismissively. “That doesn’t make sense. If there really isn’t a problem, we wouldn’t have failed to even win a third prize.”
Mondrian, however, thought of something else and asked Qi Yan, “What do you mean?”
Qi Yan didn’t answer directly but instead began, “I’ve always believed that those engaged in scientific research, after understanding the vastness of the universe and the insignificance of individuals, must know fear. But at the same time, they must also maintain self-assurance—if there isn’t solid evidence to refute their findings, then they must believe that their achievements are unquestionably correct.”
Ye Pei pondered.
She had been in a state of self-doubt for some time now, to the point where it even affected her efficiency. Even while performing tasks for the research group, after each segment of data analysis, she would have to double and triple-check everything, fearing mistakes.
If she didn’t find any errors, she would worry that perhaps her abilities were insufficient to detect them.
After hearing Qi Yan’s words, she suddenly realized that this matter had a much larger impact on her than she had imagined—it had disrupted her subconscious affirmation of herself.
Constantly doubting oneself was fatal for a researcher.
Discarding the notion of “a problem with the architecture,” Ye Pei earnestly discussed, “If our approach is sound, then what could be the reason for the current situation?”
Mondrian pulled up the Roentgen Award announcement page. “If we can’t figure it out, we can ask.”
After contacting both the Roentgen Foundation and the Roentgen Award jury, they only received replies stating, “We will notify you immediately once we have results.”
Cutting off communication, none of the three were ready to leave.
Ye Pei regained her spirit. “Exactly! I am a genius. What I produced in five days and nights is worthy of the Roentgen first prize! Once I join the research station in the future and create countless amazing things, I’ll start by applying for a few patents to ensure basic living expenses. Everything else, just like Y, I’ll open-source! By then, the second place on the blacklist will be mine, Ye Pei!”
Mondrian looked at her coldly. “I’m sorry, but second place on the blacklist has already been reserved by me.”
They exchanged a glare before each turning their heads away.
The wait wasn’t long. In less than an hour, they received feedback from the Roentgen side.
“You’re saying they didn’t receive our submission?” Ye Pei’s voice momentarily rose, her fingers tapping the desk rapidly. “That’s impossible. Half an hour before the deadline, we submitted the work and report. I even double-checked to ensure it went through.”
“The timing is off? Sir, are you lacking common sense?” Ye Pei continued, frustration evident. “All optical computers across the Alliance automatically synchronize with Leto time. Could it be that I clicked submit on a rebel territory, so there is a time difference?”
After the communication ended, Ye Pei was furious. “Roentgen says they didn’t receive our submission, so we’re not even in the selection lineup!”
Mondrian: “We did successfully submit.”
Qi Yan also recalled vividly, “The submission confirmation showed the time as 23:32:17.”
Ye Pei tapped her fingers on the desk. “It’s strange. We submitted, but Roentgen says they didn’t receive it, so we’re not in the selection lineup. Either the system malfunctioned, or…”
Mondrian: “Someone deliberately caused the issue.”
Ye Pei shifted her gaze to Qi Yan.
Mondrian hesitated for two seconds before also looking at Qi Yan.
Qi Yan gestured towards himself. “Do you need me to do something?”
Ye Pei asked hopefully, “Qi Yan, since you were able to assist the security center in disabling the intruder’s tentacles during the ISOC intranet breach, can you infiltrate the Roentgen Foundation’s intranet, investigate, and see if we can validate our initial assumption?”
Qi Yan pondered for a moment. “No problem.”
Ye Pei exchanged a glance with Mondrian—what kind of influential figure had they just connected with?
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