Lin Zhixia walked along the street and soon found a shopping mall.
She walked into the main entrance holding Jiang Yubai's arm, the sunlight pouring down from above their heads. She looked up at the roof, where long crossed metal strips formed a net that firmly supported the arched glass ceiling.
Not far from the entrance, there is a jewelry store called "Pandora". Lin Zhixia took a fancy to a pair of star earrings in the store. She really wanted to buy them, but she had never pierced her ears.
Lin Zhixia glanced at Jiang Yubai. Jiang Yubai's action surprised her. He was actually choosing a bracelet. He took out a silver chain inlaid with stars from the glass cabinet and put it on Lin Zhixia's left wrist.
Lin Zhixia has fair skin and slender fingers, and the silver chain matches her very well. Jiang Yubai asked her if she liked it, and she said she liked it very much. Jiang Yubai went to pay directly, and Lin Zhixia quickly stopped him: "You don't have to buy anything for me."
He took out a bank card and said, "The bracelet is only 70 pounds, not expensive."
70 pounds is equivalent to 700 yuan.
In Lin Zhixia's opinion, seven hundred yuan is a lot of money.
So she explained, "70 pounds for a bracelet is a bit expensive for me."
Lin Zhixia spoke very sincerely and frankly. She did not want Jiang Yubai to break her spending habits. She just wanted to go shopping easily and without any burden, rather than asking Jiang Yubai to buy her whatever she liked. She also felt that Jiang Yubai was very reasonable and that as long as she discussed it with him, he would definitely respect her.
The store clerk waited patiently by the side, but Jiang Yubai put his bank card back into his pocket. He apologized to the clerk and left the store with Lin Zhixia.
Outside the store, Jiang Yubai happened to meet his classmate.
Jiang Yubai has a wide range of friends. He knows people from different majors and colleges. Several classmates who came towards him were undergraduates from the Department of Computer Science. After a few pleasantries, someone asked him, is Lin Zhixia his friend?
Jiang Yubai formally introduced her: "She is my girlfriend."
As soon as he said the word "girlfriend", Jiang Yubai felt a subtle feeling in his heart. He held Lin Zhixia's wrist, but the force was very light, not daring to use force. He remembered that when he went out to play with her when he was a child, they would occasionally grab each other's schoolbag straps... Those happy and interesting childhood memories made him smile very lightly and added: "She is also my best friend."
Jiang Yubai's classmates were not surprised after hearing what he said. It was normal for college students to fall in love. They talked to Lin Zhixia and asked her what she was studying. She didn't hide it and said, "I have graduated from undergraduate school and am now a first-year doctoral student in the same college as Jiang Yubai."
She also said: "I am the same age as Jiang Yubai."
The student standing opposite her exclaimed: "Oh my God."
Another classmate stuttered a little: "Let's go shopping. Let's talk later when we have time."
Lin Zhixia smiled at them friendly.
After they walked away, Lin Zhixia whispered to Jiang Yubai: "Is your teaching assistant a doctoral student? I heard that you undergraduates all have supervisors. The word supervisor can be translated as tutor in your context, but I think the job content is just like that of a teaching assistant, giving classes to your undergraduate group every week and answering your questions..."
She paused for a moment and thought: "Maybe I can be a teaching assistant for undergraduate students majoring in computer science, mathematics, physics, and chemistry."
Fortunately, she didn't mention the economy.
Jiang Yubai felt that he had escaped a disaster.
Lin Zhixia's papers involved ocean physics, high-performance computing, and quantum physics, which obviously had nothing to do with her major in economics. Jiang Yubai encouraged her without any distractions: "Tomorrow when you meet your classmates in the research group, you can ask them. They are all graduate students. A classmate once told me that if they wanted to be an undergraduate tutor, they should first write an application and attach a resume. If they were selected by the department, they could then attend training... That's roughly the process."
"Okay." Lin Zhixia was in high spirits.
Lin Zhixia and Jiang Yubai walked around the street for most of the day and bought a lot of daily necessities.
At around 5 or 6 in the afternoon, most shops were closed, and Lin Zhixia wanted to go home. Jiang Yubai sent her back to the dormitory as usual, and sat in her room for a while. She treated him very warmly and made him a cup of milk tea. The two sat on the edge of the bed, each holding a cup. The milk flavor mixed with the aroma of black tea floated around them like smoke and mist. Such a simple and brief time together made Lin Zhixia feel very satisfied.
She lowered her head and said, "I really like you."
He responded: “That’s what I want to say to you, too.”
Her eyes lit up: "I know."
He chuckled.
Before leaving, Jiang Yubai made an appointment with her for the next meeting. The day after tomorrow afternoon, Jiang Yubai had no classes, and if Lin Zhixia didn't go to the laboratory, they could study together in the school library.
Lin Zhixia was very interested in his life. She had seen all his photos at school and wanted to personally participate in his daily activities. She readily agreed and sent him to the door of the dormitory building.
The next morning, Lin Zhixia went straight to the tutor's office.
The tutor talked with her for half an hour, helped her decide on the topic, took her to today's group meeting, and introduced her to other students and postdoctoral fellows in the group.
In addition to Lin Zhixia, there is another Chinese student in their group who is also a first-year doctoral student this year. His name is Wen Qi.
Wen Qi studied undergraduate at Imperial College London and chose Cambridge for both his master's and doctoral studies. He is handsome and well-mannered, and seems to be a very smart person.
After the group meeting this morning, a second-year doctoral student took Lin Zhixia and Wen Qi to visit the laboratory and familiarize themselves with the experimental instruments. The student is Indian, has a dark complexion, and speaks with a slight accent, but it does not affect communication at all.
Lin Zhixia took the opportunity to talk to her in English: "Can I ask a question? I really want to be a teaching assistant for undergraduates. Is the selection process for teaching assistants strict? I don't have any relevant experience, so I don't know if it will have any impact."
The senior student told Lin Zhixia that if she became an undergraduate teaching assistant, it would take up a lot of her time. Strictly speaking, Lin Zhixia has not officially become a doctoral student. She must complete the project report within a year and pass the defense before she can be recognized. As an undergraduate teaching assistant, she has to pay attention to the academic level and development direction of undergraduates. If she does not do well, she will be complained about. It is very troublesome.
After hearing this long string of words, Lin Zhixia couldn't help but be stunned.
Soon after the Indian senior left, Wen Qi chuckled. He said to Lin Zhixia, "Aishwarya has been complained by undergraduates."
Aishwarya is the name of an Indian senior.
Lin Zhixia asked him, "How do you know that Aishwarya has been complained about?"
"The person who complained about her is in the same college as me," he replied.
“Why are you complaining about her?”
“Poor preparation before class.”
Lin Zhixia did not express any opinion.
Wen Qi then asked: "How old were you when you started college? Have you ever taken an IQ test?"
Lin Zhixia was vague: "I started college at the age of fifteen. I took an IQ test when I was a kid, but I don't know what it is now."
Wen Qi's reaction was neither hot nor cold, and he did not show the slightest bit of surprise, as if he was used to hearing stories about the growth of geniuses. His conversation with Lin Zhixia ended here. He took out a pack of cigarettes from his jacket pocket, turned around and went downstairs to smoke.
In the next half day, Lin Zhixia went to the college building alone and attended a freshman Q&A session. Under the guidance of the college staff, she found her office. On the door of the office was a postcard with the three Chinese characters "Lin Zhixia" in pinyin, with her first name first and her last name last. Inside the office was a set of desks and chairs, a computer, a bookshelf, and a huge white writing board.
Next to the desk was a French window, through which she could clearly see the blue sky and green grass. She suddenly felt that she didn't need to go to the library to study.
She wanted to do theoretical calculations, which she could do in the office.
Lin Zhixia took a selfie here and sent it to Jiang Yubai via QQ, inviting him to visit her workspace. She asked, "Isn't my office super beautiful?"
Jiang Yubai was taking a course in "Econometrics". Half an hour later, he replied, "The person in the photo is super good-looking."
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