Chapter 128 Chemical Mutagen
After Fang Ren left the office area, Lin Yuanshu also packed up her things, ready to leave work. She knew from Fang Ren's expression that he wouldn't let the matter rest, and the real show was about to begin.
Fang Ren walked to the entrance of the research institute and happened to run into Ma Si.
As soon as Mas saw Fang Ren, he flashed a smug smile and boasted, "Isn't this Comrade Fang Ren? Why do you look so unhappy? Is it because you couldn't get a word with the Minister of Health today? If you ask me, you deserve it. You insisted on joining Lin Yuanshu's project team. Did you really think Lin Yuanshu was some kind of good person who would give you a chance to get ahead?"
Fang Ren gritted his teeth and said, "Don't try to sow discord in front of me. I won't believe you."
Mas couldn't help but roll his eyes and said irritably, "I really don't know what kind of drug Lin Yuanshu gave you to make you speak for her so wholeheartedly. You self-righteous idiot, or was I right to have the foresight not to join Lin Yuanshu's project team, which is why I was able to get the opportunity to communicate with the Minister of Health."
Fang Ren didn't hesitate to expose him: "Your opportunity to exchange ideas wasn't exactly honorable, so what's there to brag about? Besides, what's your purpose in constantly showing off in front of me lately?"
Mas paused for a moment, then said somewhat awkwardly, "No purpose."
What's the point of showing off? Isn't it just about highlighting one's abilities? Fang Ren's question is really strange.
Fang Ren noticed Mas's unease and suspected he was lying. He sneered, his face full of disdain, "I don't believe you. If you didn't have an ulterior motive, why would you wait for me at the research institute entrance tonight and say all this? You just want to use me against Team Leader Lin. You not only want me to turn against Team Leader Lin, but you also want me to make a mistake in the project team so you can use it to blackmail me..."
Listening to Fang Renyi's long string of words, Ma Si asked, puzzled, "What are you muttering about? I just happened to run into you tonight; I wasn't waiting for you on purpose."
Fang Ren looked at the feigning ignorance of Mas and became angrier the more he thought about it. He took a deep breath and suppressed his anger, saying, "You attacked me first, so don't blame me for being ruthless."
Mas was filled with questions. What was Fang Ren doing? Why couldn't he understand a single word Fang Ren said? When did he attack Fang Ren?
Although he was puzzled, it didn't stop him from blaming everything on Lin Yuanshu. He argued, "I didn't attack you. There must be some misunderstanding between us. This is probably the work of the cunning Lin Yuanshu."
Fang Ren rolled his eyes. He didn't believe a word of what Mas was saying. After all, his falling out with Mas had nothing to do with Team Leader Lin. Besides, Team Leader Lin wasn't that powerful, capable of getting Mas to come to him every day to show off.
It was clearly his scheme, yet he still tried to pin the blame on Team Leader Lin. Mas is truly disgusting; he disdains talking to such a person.
Mas watched Fang Ren storm off, completely bewildered. Ever since Fang Ren joined Lin Yuanshu's project team, he had become increasingly erratic.
A few days later, the Minister of Health concluded his inspection of the Sijiucheng Research Institute. The tense atmosphere at the institute gradually relaxed, the directors were no longer on high alert, and the staff's mood also eased considerably.
Director Huang called Lin Yuanshu to his office and reminded him with a smile, "The raw materials and chemical mutagen approved by the Minister of Health have been delivered to the materials management department. You can go and pick them up now. If you encounter any difficulties in your work, feel free to contact me at any time!"
Upon hearing this, Lin Yuanshu immediately broke into a bright smile. The chemical mutagen she had been longing for had finally arrived.
Without thinking much, she subconsciously said, "The current situation is that we are facing a shortage of supplies and outdated equipment."
Director Huang coughed awkwardly twice, and said somewhat embarrassedly, "I can find a way to solve other problems, but these two are the ones I really can't solve. At most, I can only guarantee that you won't be short of raw materials, but I can't help with the chemical mutagen and equipment. As you know, the country is in a difficult situation right now, and the equipment is hard to come by. We can only overcome these difficulties ourselves..."
Lin Yuanshu couldn't help but sigh inwardly. It seemed that even the richest family had no surplus grain, and the squeaky wheel still wouldn't get any candy. "I understand the country's difficulties very well. I will try my best to overcome them. I'm going to collect the raw materials and chemical mutagen now, and strive to complete the task of improving the strain as soon as possible."
Director Huang nodded, satisfied, and said, "Go ahead! I won't delay your work any longer."
After leaving Director Huang's office, Lin Yuanshu thought for a moment, then returned to the laboratory and called Tang Dasi and others to come with her to collect the items, as she was worried that there were too many things and she wouldn't be able to carry them all by herself.
Tang Dasi and the others followed Lin Yuanshu without hesitation and went to the materials management department together.
Lin Yuanshu's previous pleading of poverty in front of the Minister of Health had worked; this time, the amount of penicillin production raw materials allocated to him was even greater than the last allocation.
Chemical mutagens include not only nitrous acid, which needs to be prepared in-house, but also diethyl sulfate, which is difficult to obtain because of its high toxicity; therefore, only a few reagent manufacturers produce it.
Everyone was incredibly excited when they saw these things. They took the raw materials and chemical mutagens back to the lab without feeling tired at all.
When Lin Yuanshu and his colleagues returned to the laboratory, the first thing they did was treat the seed culture with a chemical mutagen and then cultivate the colonies.
With chemical mutagens, they can definitely screen out strains with better performance. If they only use ultraviolet light to induce mutagenesis, the efficiency would be too low. Chemical mutagens are better because they can increase the mutation rate and shorten the breeding cycle.
The morning passed by in the blink of an eye, and it wasn't until the lunch bell rang that Lin Yuanshu and the others noticed the time.
Lin Yuanshu sighed, "Time really flies when you're busy."
She felt like she had just brought the chemical mutagen back to the lab a second ago, and then it was lunchtime the next second.
Tang Dasi and the others nodded in agreement, feeling that they hadn't done much and time had just passed by.
Afterwards, Lin Yuanshu packed up the experimental supplies and instructed, "Food is essential for life. You'll get hungry if you skip a meal. Go and eat first! Rest for a while after you eat, and then come back to continue working."
Tang Dasi and the others helped Lin Yuanshu tidy up the experimental supplies and clean the experimental table before leaving the laboratory to have lunch.
Tang Dasi and Hong Shuang'er naturally followed Lin Yuanshu to dinner.
Wenhe watched Tang Dasi and Hong Shuang'er's departing figures with undisguised envy in her eyes. Actually, she also wanted to have lunch with Team Leader Lin, but she was too embarrassed to go with them.
After all, her relationship with Team Leader Lin was just so-so, and they hadn't talked much. She felt that even if she went there, they wouldn't have much to talk about.
On the way to the cafeteria, Hong Shuang'er said mysteriously, "Team Leader Lin, I have some good news to tell you. If I hadn't been so busy this morning, I would have told you already."
Lin Yuanshu asked in confusion, "What good news?"
Hong Shuang'er didn't keep them in suspense and said excitedly, "Comrade Ma Si has been kicked out of the analgesic drug project team. I heard that he made a major mistake at work, causing damage to some equipment. If you ask me, the leaders are too kind. They only kicked him out of the project team. If it were me, I would have kicked him out of the research institute long ago. I can't stand his arrogant attitude. He's just an intern like me. What's so great about him!"
She said this half true and half false. The false part was naturally about disliking Mas. She didn't have any particular feelings about Mas, but she knew that Lin Yuanshu definitely disliked Mas, so she wanted to stand on the same side as Lin Yuanshu and also dislike Mas.
Upon hearing this, Lin Yuanshu's lips curled into a playful smile. She already knew about this news, after all, she had planted spies around Mas to pass on information about him to her.
Therefore, she knew very well that Fang Ren was behind it, but Fang Ren's methods were not ruthless enough.
However, she now has leverage over Fang Ren, and as long as Fang Ren doesn't want to ruin her project, she won't use this leverage to threaten him.
If Fang Ren makes any unusual moves, she will use this as leverage to remove him from the project team she is in charge of. She has not forgotten that Fang Ren has always been Deputy Director Liu's man.
For her, it wasn't just good news, it was two pieces of good news – truly killing two birds with one stone.
Tang Dasi asked, puzzled, "Why is Comrade Mas being kicked out of the painkiller project team good news for Team Leader Lin?"
Hong Shuang'er walked to Tang Dasi's side and lowered her voice, saying, "Because Ma Si is a very petty person. He can't stand Team Leader Lin, and even before Team Leader Lin came to the research institute, he started spreading rumors about Team Leader Lin everywhere..."
Tang Dasi said with a shocked expression, "It seems that Team Leader Lin has had a tough journey! This is indeed good news."
She thought of her former colleagues in Team Leader Lü's project team, and her heart was filled with mixed feelings. She couldn't help but empathize with them. Some people may look decent, but they don't do anything right.
Lin Yuanshu blinked and said softly, "These things are all in the past, and I don't care about them anymore. Let's talk about something happy. Our project team has been allocated so many chemical mutagens, so we will definitely be able to screen out 'high-yield strains' quickly. I hope we can screen out more strains with better performance, otherwise it would be too troublesome if we only have one seedling."
Just like last time, once the "high-yield strain" is finished, they have to start all over again.
Tang Dasi and Hong Shuang'er decisively followed Lin Yuanshu's topic and started talking about work instead of Ma Si.
-----------------------
Author's note: I was planning to work Saturday and Sunday today, but I got so engrossed in a TV series that I couldn't tear myself away. Tomorrow will definitely be Saturday and Sunday.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com