Chapter 140: Chapter 140: An Unexpected Person
Hearing Professor Zhang, Chi Wan waved her hands and said, "Professor, I was just lucky. By a fortunate coincidence, I stumbled upon a world that can complement our own.
"But in any world, the most precious people will always be those like you, who wholeheartedly dedicate themselves to helping others live better lives."
Professor Zhang smiled at Zhou Huaijin and said, "Who would have thought that our greatest find in Qingshui Village would turn out to be a treasure like Wanwan."
Zhou Huaijin also smiled and nodded. "In a sense, this is a case of sincerity moving mountains."
Feeling a great weight lifted from his shoulders, Professor Zhang relaxed considerably. He suddenly thought of something and asked Chi Wan, "Wanwan, are these devices single-use, or...?"
Chi Wan handed Professor Zhang a few polished Crystal Cores. "They’re powered by these Crystal Cores. As for the superpower inside, I’m told it comes from some sort of spiritual power core. In any case, they should last for quite a while. If you find they stop working, you can come to me for a recharge."
Professor Zhang nodded again and again. "That puts my mind at ease. Once this batch of seeds takes root, we can make the final improvements. Then the new experimental base will be able to operate at its full potential. Excellent!"
Zhou Huaijin, however, asked Chi Wan in a low voice, "Does using this put a strain on the body?"
Chi Wan had already asked Duan Qianyu and the others about this, so when Zhou Huaijin brought it up, she was able to give him a clear answer. "Prolonged use puts some strain on your spiritual power. It’s kind of like... mental exhaustion from overthinking?
"But normal use generally won’t reach that threshold. If you feel tired, you just need to get some proper rest. Besides, Professor Zhang doesn’t need to do it all himself. You young people can handle it for him."
Zhou Huaijin nodded. "That’s good. But now that we’ve saved so much time, Teacher will definitely want to push ahead with his previous plan and throw himself even deeper into his experiments. Wanwan, you have a class this afternoon, don’t you? Should we go get something to eat first?"
Although he wanted to spend more time with Chi Wan, Zhou Huaijin didn’t want to keep her from her meal or her rest.
Professor Zhang, however, feigned annoyance. "Huaijin, how can you just tell Wanwan to go eat by herself? She’s done us a huge favor; the least we can do is treat her to a meal. Wanwan, you and Huaijin go eat first. Later, when we’re in Beijing City, I’ll treat you to a real feast.
"Although... by then, there’ll probably be a whole bunch of old codgers fighting to treat you to a meal, hahaha."
Chi Wan knew that the "old codgers" Professor Zhang mentioned were hardly just a group of simple old men.
Still, she was one step closer to her goal, so she was in high spirits. "Professor, there’s no hurry. Health is the foundation of all success. As long as you stay healthy, I can’t even begin to imagine your future research accomplishments. After all, one’s seventies are the prime years for hard work~"
Hearing Chi Wan’s deadpan delivery, both the professor and his student were at a loss for whether to laugh or cry.
But Zhou Huaijin chimed in, "Teacher, we can certainly spare the time. Let’s eat first. Otherwise, what if Junior Sister Wanwan feels unappreciated and decides not to help us anymore?"
"Exactly! I can be very petty, you know. I make all the effort to come here, and I don’t even get a meal out of it."
With Chi Wan and Zhou Huaijin ganging up on him, Professor Zhang was naturally defenseless and had to surrender. "All right, all right, I can’t win against you two. Let’s go, let’s go! Time to eat."
To save time, the three of them went to the faculty cafeteria.
On the way, Zhou Huaijin asked quietly, "Wanwan, this week... do you have something important going on?"
In truth, he wanted to ask if this had to do with He Lingfeng again.
After all, when it came to priorities, there couldn’t be many things at the university more important than that.
But Zhou Huaijin worried that might just be his own wishful thinking, so he asked with great caution.
A glint flashed in Chi Wan’s eyes. She had already guessed what Zhou Huaijin was worried about and replied casually, "Oh, it’s a friend’s birthday. I promised I’d celebrate with her, and I can’t go back on my word."
Zhou Huaijin froze. His first thought was of the "Brother Xingye" that Chi Wan always mentioned.
"You should definitely keep your promises..." He hesitated, not daring to ask if this birthday friend was the "Brother Xingye" she spoke of.
Professor Zhang was a little puzzled as to why Zhou Huaijin, who had been so cheerful just moments before, had suddenly grown quiet during the meal.
Chi Wan, meanwhile, assumed Zhou Huaijin was unhappy because he thought she was hiding something. For a moment, she didn’t know what to say. ’After all, it goes without saying that he would vehemently object if I told him I was planning to walk into danger and stir up trouble with He Lingfeng.’
But an idea quickly came to Chi Wan: ’Since Zhou Huaijin already knows about the Parallel Space and the existence of superpowers, even if I don’t tell him what I’m planning, I could still tell him that I have what it takes to face He Lingfeng.’
But after a moment of consideration, she decided to remain silent.
’After all, bringing it up now would only confirm for Zhou Huaijin that my "important matter" is, in fact, related to He Lingfeng.’
’Less said, the better.’
After the meal, a preoccupied Zhou Huaijin returned to the lab with Professor Zhang, while Chi Wan planned to go back and get some rest.
’For the next few days, all I can do is wait for news from that old fox, Song Baihan, and be ready to coordinate with Qin Shi at a moment’s notice.’
She just hadn’t expected Song Baihan to move even faster than she’d anticipated.
Just as her afternoon class let out, an unexpected person appeared at the foot of the classroom building. Chi Wan had barely stepped outside when he called her name.
"Wanwan..."
Chi Wan turned her head and saw that it was, of all people, Song Yangming.
It was both unexpected and, in a way, perfectly logical.
’I wonder when he got out of the hospital, and if he’s been in contact with Qian Cuicui and the others.’
’But could he and Qian Cuicui’s family still be on the same page as before? After all, Zhou Huai’an said the two elders had been in hiding for a long time to dodge gambling debts.’
Wen Jing and Qi Youyou, who had been discussing which cafeteria to go to, both looked over at the sound of his voice.
"Uncle?" A perfectly feigned look of confusion crossed Chi Wan’s face. "What are you doing here?"
Song Yangming was much thinner, showing none of his former domineering arrogance. The stumps where his hands had been were hidden by long sleeves, but the abnormality was still apparent.
His face was pale with the weakness of recent recovery, tinged with a morbid gloom.
At first, the others were wary of Song Yangming, worried he might be some kind of creep. But after hearing Chi Wan call him "Uncle," their expressions softened, though they were curious as to why her uncle was in such a state. "Okay, Wanwan, you can talk with your uncle. We’ll get going."
Chi Wan agreed, promising to meet them at Cafeteria Two later, then walked toward Song Yangming, her expression unreadable.
’I don’t know how Song Baihan convinced Song Yangming to do this, but he’s definitely not here to be nice to me.’
