Cosmic Love Affair

Chapter 4 Kuiper Belt Four

Tan Ke, of course, recognized Shen Zhichuan as well.

Back in the days at Princeton, Shen Zhichuan was a renowned Chinese beauty. Before he started dating, a bunch of guys chased after him all over the campus; after he got into a relationship, those guys would wait outside the physics department office, wailing in sorrow; later, when Shen Zhichuan suddenly went to the La Silla Observatory in the Atacama Desert for his postdoctoral research, the guys were wiping their tears, still waiting for his return.

But he never came back to Princeton, never setting foot in the campus with its gray walls and white tiles again.

Tan Ke wasn't quite clear about what exactly happened back then, after all, he had no interest in other people's love lives.

At that time, he was being tormented by a simulated signal that couldn't be coupled with the experimental observation phenomena, exhausting both his body and mind.

He only remembered it was an early autumn night when his senior, who had just lost his boyfriend, suddenly showed up in the lab with two bottles of whiskey. He plopped down on the desk, drinking while watching his junior write code, as if using his junior as a sort of accompaniment to his drinking.

That night later became the most important turning point in Tan Ke's life.

Shen Zhichuan was like a butterfly in the sss rainforest.

If Shen Zhichuan hadn't left, his senior wouldn't have come to the lab late at night with a bottle of alcohol to watch him code, nor would he have pointed at Tan Ke's nose after drinking, saying that he was not suitable for scientific research because he was too utilitarian and too eager to win.

There would be no subsequent events either – he wouldn't have gone against his parents' wishes to leave the ivory tower, nor would there be the thousands of days and nights he spent on the boulevard, juggling between electronic screens and investors, not to mention the Long Whale Capital and everything that is now.

If Shen Zhichuan hadn't left, perhaps Tan Ke would still be in a physics lab at some university on the East Coast of the United States, working as a researcher.

Shen Zhichuan flapped his wings, thus changing the lives of many people.

Xie Li, taken aback by this interruption, immediately fell silent, not even daring to blow a snot bubble. He hastily wiped his face, keeping his head down and not daring to make a sound.

The dean chuckled, "Ah, Professor Shen is strict in teaching, no wonder he has so many successful students."

Shen Zhichuan, with a poker face, said, "I'm not talented enough. I've only been a doctoral supervisor for four years, and I have three apprentices, none of whom have graduated yet."

The dean stroked the new sprouts on his bald head, laughing a bit awkwardly, "Come, come, let me introduce you. This is Mr. Tan from Long Whale Investment. He is an outstanding graduate of our Landa Physics Institute and has been giving back to his alma mater after graduation. Our telescope and scholarships are all strongly supported by Mr. Tan and Long Whale Investment... And this is Professor Shen, the youngest professor in our physics college and an outstanding young scientist from the National Natural Science Foundation."

As the dean was speaking, he slapped his forehead, "Oops, I almost forgot. Professor Shen is also a graduate of Princeton. So, you two are actually alumni."

Shen Zhichuan's expression turned even worse.

Tan Ke, under the glare of Professor Shen, admitted it frankly. But he still had a bit of self-preservation instinct and didn't dare to mention the name of his unlucky senior.

The dean clapped his hands, "Ah, look at that, what a coincidence. I think there's no need to invite others for the visit to the observatory the day after tomorrow. Just let Professor Shen take you there. You two haven't seen each other for years as alumni, you can catch up a bit."

The dean smiled like a matchmaker in a marriage agency.

Shen Zhichuan knew what this old guy was thinking and immediately said irritably, "Unfortunately, I have classes the whole day the day after tomorrow."

But the dean was not willing to give up on this match: "If Professor Shen can't go himself, then let one of your students go. The telescope donated by Mr. Tan is used the most by your group now. Hey—this student, you take Mr. Tan to visit the day after tomorrow."

Shen Zhichuan curled his mouth, thinking to himself, "What a load of nonsense." All the projects he was working on were deep-space ones, with data sent back from outer space by the patrol plan's detectors. The old guy was still trying to trick people like a coal boss who had done high-energy physics at Princeton, which was simply insulting.

But since the conversation had reached this point, if Shen Zhichuan refused again, it would be too disrespectful to the leadership.

Besides, he had brought Xie Li here today originally intending to let the kid come out and get to know some people.

So Shen Zhichuan turned to look at his little apprentice beside him and pushed him out without hesitation as a sacrifice: "Then let Xie Li accompany Mr. Tan for the visit the day after tomorrow."

Xie Li had just recovered from the huge shock that "Song Yi's white moonlight" was equal to "the wealthy donor who donated the telescope", and then he heard Shen Zhichuan was sending him to dedicate himself to science.

Xie Li became desperate at once, mumbling something like "okay" with his mouth, thinking that it might not be as simple as just dedicating himself this time. He had hit and scolded people in front of this "dad", completely losing face for Shen Zhichuan. If this "white moonlight dad" took these things as jokes and told others, Shen Zhichuan would probably peel a layer of skin off him.

Xie Li thought, he just wanted to have a relationship and become an adult, why was there so much trouble.

The dean, having successfully played matchmaker here, was contentedly leading the donor to the next place.

But Shen Zhichuan, reminded of the foolish things he did in his young and naive days, became unhappy.

When Professor Shen is unhappy, no one can be happy.

He led Xie Li around the reception area, chatting with one teacher about the rejected project, and with another about the unfilial student who couldn't write a clear thesis and had to postpone graduation, pricking the hearts of his colleagues in the same department one by one.

The reception was originally lively and joyful, with everyone toasting and having a great time. But after Shen Zhichuan made a round inside, all that was left were academic workers crying in despair.

Before leaving the hotel, Xie Li suddenly remembered that he hadn't settled the issue of kicking over someone's flowers.

He made an excuse to go to the bathroom, turned around and ran to the hotel lobby, looking for someone to ask, only to be told that there was no need to compensate, and the person even sternly told him to go wash his hands.

Upon hearing that he didn't have to pay, Xie Li was so happy that he ran away in a flash.

The lobby manager watched his back, struggled for three seconds, took out a walkie-talkie and reported to the control room.

On the way back, Shen Zhichuan had a gloomy expression all the way.

Xie Li didn't dare to provoke him, shrinking quietly in the passenger seat, trying to reduce his presence.

But he still failed.

The Jaguar stopped at a red light, and Professor Shen suddenly spoke, aiming at his little apprentice, "Xie Li, have you ever taken an IQ test?"

Xie Li had actually taken one before, and he hesitated to report a number.

Shen Zhichuan asked again, "So do you think you're pretty smart?"

This made it difficult for Xie Li to answer. He scratched his arm and chuckled, "Well, I guess, I'm okay."

Shen Zhichuan glanced at him. The kid was like some kind of carefree little animal. He was just crying a moment ago, and now he was happy for some reason.

Shen Zhichuan shifted gears and started moving again, and asked, "Do you know why you are the youngest doctoral student in the history of Landa?"

This time Xie Li was really stumped, and he honestly shook his head, saying he didn't know.

Shen Zhichuan said, "Because those who are as smart as you, smarter than you, or even less smart than you, have all gone to better schools."

Xie Li paused, and suddenly couldn't laugh anymore.

"Two years ago, you represented the school in the mathematical modeling competition. There were three people in your team, and you won the first place. Do you know where your two teammates went later?" Shen Zhichuan asked.

Xie Li hesitated and slightly shook his head, "Seems like... they went abroad."

That competition didn't leave a good impression on Xie Li. After the competition, he never contacted his teammates again, only hearing a little bit from others.

Shen Zhichuan, holding the steering wheel, said expressionlessly, "The one who studied theoretical mathematics went to Cambridge later. The one who studied applied mathematics, his parents came to find me later because they heard I graduated from Princeton, and they wanted me to tutor them on the application. That kid ended up going to MIT."

Xie Li was a bit confused and panicky. He didn't understand why Shen Zhichuan suddenly said these things.

He looked at Shen Zhichuan blankly, "Teacher, but I, I never thought about going abroad."

Shen Zhichuan took out an e-cigarette from the storage compartment under the center console, rolled down the car window, and silently took a couple of puffs, while glancing at Xie Li, "You never thought about going abroad, is it because you don't want to, you don't know, or you can't?"

This question was so blunt it was almost malicious.

Xie Li turned his head, gaping at Shen Zhichuan in astonishment.

In a daze, he seemed to be back to the day when he was sent to the city to attend high school by the county civil affairs bureau. A teacher asked the welfare home staff, how could this smart child be abandoned by his parents, was it because they couldn't afford to raise him or simply didn't want him? Hasn't anyone considered adopting him?

For a moment, Xie Li couldn't even figure out Shen Zhichuan's intention. He felt very frustrated, thinking, why do people always ask questions that he can't answer?

Xie Li's hurt look made Shen Zhichuan feel cruel.

But this kid was like a snail. Shen Zhichuan didn't know if dragging a snail out of its shell by force would hurt it. But if he didn't drag the snail out, the snail would always pretend not to know that there are rabbits in this world.

Shen Zhichuan took a puff of the e-cigarette and continued, "Back when you were in the modeling competition, I heard that you were the one who contributed the most in your group. Graph theory algorithms, data fitting, branch and bound, basically all done by you alone. But when it came to the final presentation on stage, it wasn't you. Why was that?"

The e-cigarette Shen Zhichuan was smoking was blueberry-flavored, with a bit of sour fruity aroma. Xie Li unconsciously took a deep breath and said in a voice so low it was almost drowned out by the tyre noise, "Because, because my spoken English is not very good."

Shen Zhichuan nodded noncommittally, "Although you are smart, the orphanage you stayed in didn't have the resources to pay attention to your educational issues. Your teachers could only teach you the basic test-taking skills, they couldn't even teach you to correctly pronounce the difference between 'thank' and 'sank'. Look at those two people. Although they are not as smart as you, their parents spared no effort to provide the best education. These people started learning English in kindergarten, began taking Olympiad classes, programming courses, and foreign teacher classes in elementary school. They went on study tours to Europe and America after graduating from junior high, visited world-class universities, entered top laboratories, and talked with the greatest figures of this era. So on that day, standing on the lecture platform speaking fluent English and being broadcasted on TV, it was them, not you."

"They have good family backgrounds, smart brains, they have seen the best of this world, they were born holding the ovarian lottery ticket. And you? You only have your intelligence."

"While you are still struggling with an English report full of grammatical errors, needing others to proofread for you, your peers are already applying to the world's best laboratories, working with the world's top scientists. What are you busy with? You are busy pursuing Song Yi, busy spending your precious time and energy, the only wealth you have, on a vulgar and boring person."

Shen Zhichuan's words were aggressive.

Xie Li kept his head down, hugging his arms, in a defensive posture, and said nothing.

Shen Zhichuan stopped talking, and the car suddenly became very quiet.

After a while, Xie Li spoke up, his voice sounding very sad, "But teacher, because I don't have parents, don't have the ovarian lottery ticket, do I not even have the right to fall in love?"