Jiang Yubai requested to add Lin Zeqiu as a WeChat friend.
After adding successfully, Jiang Yubai sat on the sofa, slightly covering the screen with his left hand, tapping the keyboard with his right hand, and noting Lin Zeqiu as "Brother-in-law".
Lin Zhixia came over and took a peek at him.
Jiang Yubai's eyes inevitably fell on Lin Zhixia's face. He saw her thick eyelashes blinking, and her fair cheeks turned a little pink. She whispered, "Don't let my brother find out." Then she asked, "What's the note you left for me?"
Jiang Yubai's voice was even softer than hers: "Xia Xia."
Lin Zhixia was a little shy: "I thought you would call me Xia Xia wife."
Jiang Yubai smiled and said, "I'll change it right away."
Lin Zhixia grabbed his phone and said, "No, that's not what I meant."
Jiang Yubai said, "That's what I meant."
When Jiang Yubai and Lin Zhixia were whispering, Lin Zeqiu stood aside and observed them. For some reason, the word "green tea" that Ke Zhuangzhi had cursed out with hatred before he left suddenly flashed through Lin Zeqiu's mind.
If "brother-in-law" is an evaluation system with a full score of 100, Lin Zeqiu can temporarily give Jiang Yubai 60 points - a barely passing score, not a single point more.
However, Lin Zeqiu's parents seem to have a better and better impression of Jiang Yubai.
At the lunch table, Dad picked up food for Jiang Yubai twice, and Mom asked Jiang Yubai a lot of questions. Jiang Yubai always maintained great patience. He spoke in a gentle tone and was humorous. Even when it came to dangerous topics such as "What do you think of Lin Zhixia's uncle and aunt?", he could cleverly resolve the embarrassment, saving face for his uncle's family and being very supportive of Lin Zhixia.
That afternoon, the snow stopped, the sky cleared up, and the sun was shining brightly. Lin Zhixia's father was drying radishes on the balcony, and Lin Zeqiu helped him swiftly. In order to show off, Jiang Yubai took the initiative to go to the kitchen to wash the dishes.
Jiang Yubai almost never does housework. He accidentally dropped a bowl, and the broken pieces of porcelain were scattered all over the floor.
Lin Zhixia was the first to hear the noise in the kitchen. She ran over to help Jiang Yubai, but he immediately stopped her: "Don't come over, I'll clean up."
After Jiang Yubai picked up the large pieces of debris, he swept the floor with a broom and dustpan.
Lin Zhixia kept staring at him. He said self-deprecatingly, "I'm clumsy, don't look down on me."
Lin Zhixia stepped into the kitchen and said, "You are not stupid. You are very good, kind and smart."
Jiang Yubai leaned over to her. She hooked her arms around his neck and kissed him on the side of his face.
Jiang Yubai continued to wash the dishes vigorously. He stood in front of the sink, scrubbing the pots and pans while scanning the kitchen. He saw cracks in the tiles, water pipes wrapped in tape, rusty stoves, and window frames with peeling wall paint... He also remembered that Lin Zhixia had written in her diary that her mother had rheumatoid arthritis. During the rainy season every year, the floors and walls of their house would become damp, and her mother would feel uncomfortable. Therefore, Lin Zhixia and Lin Zeqiu were eager to move.
Jiang Yubai planned to buy a large flat near the university town. The area did not need to be too large, more than 700 square meters would be enough. It would take about a year to renovate the rough house. After Lin Zhixia finished her doctorate and returned to the provincial capital to take up a teaching position, she could move in directly.
University Town is located in the main urban area of the city, with an excellent geographical location. There is a high-end residential area here with extremely high property prices. The residents are either rich or noble, and a parking space alone is very expensive.
Jiang Yubai was attracted by the "privately customized" top-floor mansion, which came with a "sky garden". His secretaries helped him sort out several design plans, printed them on copperplate paper, and bound them into four volumes.
After the Spring Festival holiday, Jiang Yubai and Lin Zhixia went to England again.
After a short one-day rest, Lin Zhixia could not wait to devote most of her energy to her scientific research. As Lin Zhixia expected, her supervisor set a precedent for her and allowed her to graduate with a doctorate in October this year.
When the classmates in the group heard the news, they congratulated her one after another.
Lin Zhixia is increasingly looking forward to her life after she turns 20. She occasionally browses housing information in the provincial capital, calculates the amount of savings in her piggy bank, and searches the Internet for prices of sofas, tables, lamps and other household items.
There were a few times when Jiang Yubai came to see Lin Zhixia and happened to see her choosing a sofa.
One night, Jiang Yubai knocked on Lin Zhixia's bedroom door, holding four albums describing decoration plans.
Lin Zhixia had just finished taking a shower. Her eyes were watery and her face was red. She looked at him in confusion. He said inexplicably, "I want to buy you a house."
"Buy me a house?" Lin Zhixia said, "I'm going to buy one myself."
Jiang Yubai tried to test her in a roundabout way: "You haven't officially started working yet..."
Lin Zhixia laughed: "I have a lot of bonuses. I just received an email a few days ago. The college is going to give me money again."
Jiang Yubai didn't say anything. He placed four heavy books on her desk.
Lin Zhixia opened one of the books and saw the spacious living room, the high ceiling, and the city view outside the panoramic floor-to-ceiling windows. She exclaimed, "It's so beautiful."
Jiang Yubai asked cautiously: "Do you like it?"
Lin Zhixia sat at the desk, and Jiang Yubai sat next to her. They planned their future residence like an engaged couple. Lin Zhixia curiously read every page, but she couldn't find the end. She couldn't help but ask, "How big is this house?"
"It's OK, not too big," Jiang Yubai commented, "The living area is 794 square meters, nearly 800 square meters."
Lin Zhixia was stunned for a moment and thought: 800 square meters, isn’t that a big house?
But then she remembered that Jiang Yubai grew up in a manor. In comparison, the 800-square-meter mansion was not very big.
This mansion also has its own "hanging garden". Lin Zhixia said to herself: "I have heard of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. It is said that the king of Babylon built a hanging garden for his princess according to her wishes in order to please her."
Jiang Yubai flipped open another atlas: "Not only this garden, but all supporting facilities can be designed according to your wishes."
Lin Zhixia thought for a while, holding her chin with both hands: "Well... forget it, this is your house, you decide the decoration style, I will stay at your house for a few days when I am free."
Jiang Yubai paused with his fingers resting on the paper: "You said that when you get a job, we will live together."
"Yes." Lin Zhixia admitted without hesitation.
Jiang Yubai's tone was even deeper: "During the Spring Festival, I didn't sleep well at night without you in my arms."
Lin Zhixia was thinking about another question: "I'm going to the United States to do a postdoctoral research soon, and you have to go back to China to work. What will you do at night?"
Jiang Yubai patted his legs, and Lin Zhixia sat on his lap with ease. He put one hand on her waist, kissed her and said, "I'll wait for you at home." The kiss lasted for a long time, and the temperature in the room seemed to rise. The hot air made Lin Zhixia's mind not clear enough. At this time, Jiang Yubai asked her if she wanted to live with him. She agreed vaguely, but the idea in her heart did not change-she must still buy a house by herself.
In the blink of an eye, February passed and March came. Unknown wild flowers bloomed on the grass, and the peaceful life in school was the same as usual.
The work in the laboratory was proceeding in an orderly manner. Lin Zhixia was happy, but she was also worried about Wen Qi's condition.
At a morning meeting in March, Wen Qi was subtly criticized by his tutor. The tutor believed that since September last year, Wen Qi not only had no experimental output, but also had not read any new papers seriously, and had not completed the tasks assigned to him by the tutor.
Lin Zhixia was a little worried. If things continued like this, Wen Qi might not be able to pass the doctoral student's stage defense.
Lin Zhixia found several classmates in the group, and they decided to visit Wen Qi together. Even the Indian senior Aishwarya joined them. This caught Lin Zhixia off guard, as she thought the Indian senior had a bad impression of Wen Qi.
On a Saturday morning in early March, Lin Zhixia and her classmates knocked on Wen Qi's door. They waited for more than ten seconds, and Wen Qi slowly appeared - he had just woken up, had a scruffy beard, and was wearing pajamas, but he looked clean and tidy.
"Good morning!" Lin Zhixia said with energy.
Wen Qi said in a very mature manner: "Good morning..."
Lin Zhixia picked up the plastic bag in her hand and said, "We all brought some gifts. This year I went back to China for the Spring Festival, and my mother prepared a lot of delicious food for me. I have a few bags of tea tree mushrooms, small silver fish, walnut kernels and dried grapes... all for you."
Wen Qi was stunned.
Wu Pinyan poked her head out from behind Lin Zhixia: "Senior!"
Wu Pinyan is an undergraduate student taught by Lin Zhixia. She has excellent grades, quick thinking, and very innovative research directions. In January this year, she received a doctoral admission notice and will become a female doctoral student in the same group as Wen Qi in October.
Wu Pinyan is from Taipei. This year, she also went home for the Spring Festival. She gave Wenqi a few boxes of Phoenix Cake, Golden Moon Lady, and peanut egg rolls, which are specialties from her hometown. She said, "Senior! Try it! It's super delicious!"
Wen Qi took a step back.
He was overwhelmed by the enthusiasm of his compatriots.
The guests walked into his room one after another, stood in the middle of the room, and looked at his items. He brought a chair to Lin Zhixia and Wu Pinyan respectively, and invited them to sit down.
Wu Pinyan asked: "Can you chat with people?"
Wen Qi said, “Yes.”
Lin Zhixia got straight to the point: "Has your doctor talked to you about how you are doing recently?"
Wen Qi glanced behind him. Among the guests present today, except for Lin Zhixia and Wu Pinyan, the rest of them could not speak Chinese, but Lin Zhixia chatted with him in Chinese. It was obvious that everyone had discussed it in advance. He thought he was not very close to these classmates - except for Lin Zhixia. He did talk to Lin Zhixia a lot, but he was the only one who listened to Lin Zhixia's endless chatter.
The kindness shown to him by his classmates made him feel a little uncomfortable.
“I’m getting better,” he said.
Lin Zhixia asked again: "So what is the specific situation now?"
Wu Pinyan echoed: "Yes, what's the situation?"
Wen Qi guessed that Lin Zhixia was implicitly asking him why he had not made any progress in scientific research. He and Lin Zhixia entered school at the same time, and after just a year and a half, Lin Zhixia was about to graduate, while he fell into a long period of burnout.
Lin Zhixia waited for a long time, so long that other students started playing with their phones. Wu Pinyan stared out the window in a daze. A pigeon stopped in front of the window and cooed. The cup of hot tea on the table gradually cooled. Then Wen Qi said, "I want to drop out of school."
He said calmly: "It has nothing to do with others. It's my decision."
Lin Zhixia was still in deep thought, Wu Pinyan asked in a low voice: "Drop out? Are you sure, senior?"
Wen Qi has actually undergone some positive changes. Through treatment by a psychiatrist, he can now communicate normally with others. However, it is also this kind of communication that makes him reflect: "I am not suitable for a PhD."
He was not passionate enough about scientific research, and his doctoral studies were boring and tedious, so he needed an adjustment process.
However, Lin Zhixia misunderstood Wen Qi's meaning.
Lin Zhixia thought that the impact of the Miao Danyi incident was still there, so Wen Qi decided to give up socializing completely.
Lin Zhixia sincerely encouraged him: "You still have a lot of opportunities. You are so young..."
Wen Qi said, “Not all doctoral students can graduate.”
Lin Zhixia actually praised him: "You are so frank, you have grown up."
Wen Qi took out a set of cups from his collection and made tea for the guests who came today.
Lin Zhixia was still hinting at him: "I think you are a very smart person. You are studying for a doctorate not to improve your academic qualifications, but to do research..."
Wen Qi suddenly asked everyone in English: "Why did you choose to do a PhD?"
The Indian senior student asked him why he asked that, and he said frankly that he was going to drop out of school next week. The tutor's words made him realize that instead of wasting time in school, he should pack up early and go home to work.
The senior student seemed to have heard Wen Qi’s story, and then asked if he gave up on life because of the failure of his relationship?
Wen Qi quickly denied it.
Lin Zhixia helped him explain that his relationship had never even started, so there was no question of failure.
The senior student pulled over a chair, placed it in front of Wen Qi, and ordered him to sit down.
The senior student told Wen Qi that she had been optimistic about his development since he first joined the group. Why did the instructor pay so much attention to Wen Qi's morning meeting report? Because the instructor also thought highly of him.
"Yes," Lin Zhixia echoed in Chinese, "PhD study is a difficult process. PhD students read literature, conduct experiments, and write code. They may not necessarily produce something decent, but exploring unknown areas is itself a very meaningful thing..."
Having said this, Lin Zhixia vaguely guessed what Wen Qi was thinking.
Lin Zhixia asked tentatively, "Do you think that you were deceived by a girl because you are a PhD student, you spend all day studying academics, and you are not good at socializing, so you were chosen by her and became a victim of misfortune?"
Wen Qi lowered his head slightly, and the toes of his slippers rubbed against the carpet, like a puppy sharpening its claws.
But he whispered, "I am not you. I have no interest in learning, and I am tired of being pushed to this day."
Lin Zhixia finally fully understood his mentality.
She concluded: "For you, scientific research is something you have to do, not something that makes you happy...but you are very smart."
Wen Qi said, "You are really smart."
Lin Zhixia told him a science fiction story.
"This is my favorite science fiction story," Lin Zhixia introduced. "The protagonist of the story died in a car accident. After his death, he ascended to heaven and met God..."
"I... don't believe in religion." Wen Qi interrupted.
Lin Zhixia said: "This story has nothing to do with religion."
Wen Qi rubbed his face: "Then?"
Lin Zhixia continued, “Then, the protagonist met God, who told him that all people in the world were his own reincarnations—he was Jesus himself, and also a loyal follower of Jesus; he was Hitler himself, and also a victim of Hitler’s sword. The meaning of his life lies in ‘experience’; as he experiences life, he gains various feelings, and all of life becomes a process of accumulating experience[1].”
Wen Qi was silent, and Wu Pinyan was also silent.
Lin Zhixia tried to comfort Wen Qi: "No matter which path you take, it is part of your life experience. You don't have to compare yourself with me. Maybe I am you and you are me. We are both contributing to the collective wisdom of mankind."
Wen Qi commented: "You...are very generous."
"No," Lin Zhixia said modestly, "You don't talk much, so I can only tell you stories."
Lin Zhixia's words just now have been translated by Wu Pinyan to the Indian senior.
The senior student talked in a low voice with other students for a while.
The senior student was much more straightforward and resolute than Lin Zhixia. She said that she knew Wen Qi's ability and that he was more than capable of being an independent author, so she didn't want to see Wen Qi drop out of school. In India, countless students fight hard for the college entrance examination every year, and there are crowds of people everywhere. How rare is the opportunity to receive an education?
Lin Zhixia nodded quietly.
The senior student took out her purse, unzipped it with a "bang", found a literature review, and slammed it on Wen Qi's desk.
Every student present today brought a gift to Wen Qi.
However, the group of classmates headed by Lin Zhixia all sent food, and the senior student gave Wen Qi a new research direction.
The senior student told Wen Qi that she deleted his work after he sent the email to the whole group, and she was sorry. The article she brought described a new topic that matched Wen Qi's research direction. She hoped that Wen Qi would not leave the academic world, and at least make one last attempt before he dropped out.
Lin Zhixia immediately agreed: "Yes, don't give up all of a sudden, try again."
Wu Pinyan also said: "Lin Zhixia and senior sister are about to graduate. If you can't succeed, they won't know."
Wen Qi thought of the story Lin Zhixia had told him. There was no expression on his face. But he accepted the kindness of his senior.
At the morning meeting on the following Monday, Wen Qi summarized the content of the senior's article. He only proposed a simple plan, but the instructor praised him strongly and praised his method for being effective. For the first time in his life, Wen Qi doubted whether the instructor's comments were correct - for him, this kind of doubt and denial was new and unprecedented. He went to the laboratory after the morning meeting and worked for a month, and he actually found his old feeling again.
Lin Zhixia watched Wen Qi's changes and couldn't help but sigh: "He is the new material for my "Human Observation Diary"."
That night, Lin Zhixia wrote in Human Observation Diary: "Today is May 17, 2014. The weather is getting warmer, and my doctoral life is coming to an end. When I first started my doctoral studies, I asked around, how can I be a qualified tutor? I learned from my tutors and from my senior students... Unfortunately, the Indian senior student Aishwarya was once reported, and it sounded like she failed. But I suddenly felt that Aishwarya was actually very suitable to be a tutor. Her attitude is more decisive and tougher than mine. The effect of her tutoring Wen Qi must be better than mine... The choice between tutors and students is a two-way process, and the situation is constantly changing... I hope that my senior student and I can always keep our original intentions."
In early June, after Wen Qi finished his work, he discovered that Lin Zhixia had published more than a dozen papers related to her "PTSIC" quantum programming language platform. Lin Zhixia was the main force among them. She published six papers alone, making her a paper-making machine.
Wen Qi was not sure whether Lin Zhixia's team was short of people.
He thought about it until late at night and sent her a WeChat message: "Are you short of people?"
Previously, Wen Qi had voluntarily withdrawn from the group.
But when he asked this, Lin Zhixia pulled him back into the group.
Wen Qi deliberately changed his profile picture and nickname because he was afraid that someone would say things like he "deserted from the battlefield" or "betrayed the organization", but he was really overthinking it. After joining the group, everything was calm and no one targeted him at all.
He finally got over the storm in his life.
This batch of undergraduates will soon graduate.
Occasionally he thought of the chat records with Miao Danyi last year, and it seemed like a lifetime ago, the past like smoke.
One night in late June, the moon was bright and the stars were sparse, and everything was quiet. Wen Qi sat in his dormitory, concentrating on the work Lin Zhixia had assigned to him. They were perfecting the graph theory problem of Hilbert space. This was a big topic, and the participants were very ambitious. Lin Zhixia believed that if they succeeded, they would bring a major innovation to the industry.
At this moment, Wen Qi received a text message on his mobile phone: "I'm downstairs at your building."
Wen Qi opened the curtain and looked out.
He saw Miao Danyi sitting on the stone steps in a black dress. Her clothes and hair were as black as the night. The moonlight was pouring down like water, and the shadows of the trees were shaking in the wind. He couldn't see the expression on her face, and of course he didn't want to see it clearly.
Miao Danyi sent him another message: "Come down, I have something to say."
Wen Qi held the phone screen upside down.
He stood up anxiously and paced around the room.
He thought, if he didn't show up, how long would Miao Danyi stay?
At eleven o'clock at night, she still hadn't left.
It was drizzling outside again. She sent me an ancient poem in the rain: "The stars are not the same as last night. For whom am I standing in the wind and dew in the middle of the night?"
Wen Qi remembered what the psychiatrist said - if you encounter troubles, you can talk to your friends first, and try to engage in gentle social interactions.
In Wen Qi's narrow circle of friends, Jiang Yubai is recognized as "gentle, smart, highly emotional, and well-connected." Jiang Yubai is also a man, so Wen Qi decided to ask for external help. He took a screenshot of his phone and sent it to Jiang Yubai via WeChat.
He didn't say a word, Jiang Yubai replied: "I think you'd better not go downstairs."
Wen Qi was a little shocked.
Jiang Yubai actually used such a tactful and lovely tone when chatting privately?
Could this be a manifestation of Jiang Yubai's "gentle, polite and well-connected" personality?
Perhaps Wen Qi could also imitate Jiang Yubai's way of speaking when interacting with others - however, this way of wording feels a bit similar to Lin Zhixia's.
Before Wen Qi could type the next sentence, he saw "Jiang Yubai" say, "I'm Lin Zhixia, and his phone is in my hand."
Wen Qi was stunned.
Lin Zhixia added: "If I were you, I wouldn't go downstairs."
Wen Qi actually didn't plan to go downstairs. He just couldn't ignore the girl sitting there waiting for him in the rain. He asked Lin Zhixia intentionally or unintentionally: "Do you want to experience a different life?"
Lin Zhixia replied honestly: "I just want to experience a life that is determined by me. If you go downstairs, you will be very passive."
Wen Qi said nothing more.
He faced the computer screen and continued to observe his Hilbert space. He worked until 2:30 a.m. that night, when he received the last message from Miao Danyi: "I have graduated, I am leaving, I am returning to my country, goodbye."
He silently said in his heart: Goodbye.
Before we knew it, the undergraduates had graduated.
Jiang Yubai's parents urged him to return home as soon as possible.
However, Jiang Yubai discussed with his parents and got a three-month vacation, so he could stay in Cambridge and accompany Lin Zhixia to complete her doctorate.
During those three months, Jiang Yubai had a relatively leisurely life.
Lin Zhixia was preparing for her final defense in the study room, and Jiang Yubai was sitting next to her reading. Sometimes, when Lin Zhixia felt tired, she would fall on Jiang Yubai, and Jiang Yubai would massage her shoulders and back like an automatic massage chair, and occasionally he would touch her chest. Lin Zhixia reminded him, "Don't massage it if it's not sore there."
Jiang Yubai hugged her and kissed her, and called her by her nickname "Xia Xia".
Lin Zhixia compromised: "Okay, you can only rub it gently."
Jiang Yubai cherishes the opportunity he has fought for.
During these three months, he and Lin Zhixia lived together day and night. They read, swam, played ball, and chatted together every day. It was a paradise-like life, but good times were always short-lived.
In early October, Lin Zhixia successfully passed the defense, the school recognized her doctoral degree, and MIT was calling her to show up as soon as possible. Lin Zhixia said goodbye to her laboratory mentors and classmates, and everyone applauded and sent her off, as if celebrating her bright future.
When she left the laboratory building in Cambridge and crossed a bridge over the river, she saw the stone engraved with "Farewell to Cambridge". She silently recited a line from "Farewell to Cambridge": "I left quietly, just as I came quietly; I waved my sleeves, without taking away a cloud."
The farewell at the time of graduation did not make Lin Zhixia feel sad, and her belief became stronger. With hope for the future, she resolutely boarded a plane to the United States alone.
She will practice it herself and move forward on the unknown road.
This year, Lin Zhixia just turned twenty years old.
Author’s note: [1] This story is called “The Egg” and is written by Andy Weir. There is also an animation available online.
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