Chapter 160 Iron Top
The next day, news of Xue's parents' despicable act spread throughout the apartment building. The neighbors, eager for excitement, went to Zhou's mother and Xue's sister-in-law to inquire about the truth and details of the incident, chattering away.
"If you ask me, you guys are just too stupid. If it were me, I would have taken the things into the room and locked them beforehand, so that no one could take them."
"Yes! I used to think my in-laws were bad, too stingy. But now that I think about it, at least they didn't take away my leftovers, which saved me some face."
"However, on the other hand, if I had a relative by marriage who I could eat and take from, I would be laughing in my sleep."
"Your parents really don't treat themselves like outsiders! No normal person would do something like this!"
Hearing these teasing remarks, Sister-in-law Xue's face darkened instantly. She didn't have time to think about how the matter had spread; she just wanted to stuff a towel in their mouths. If they couldn't speak properly, they shouldn't speak at all; not a single word of theirs was worth listening to.
She loudly denied it, saying, "What nonsense are you talking about? How could my parents do such a thing! It's all slander."
No one believed Sister-in-law Xue's words, because daughters always protect their parents. They focused their attention on Zhou Ma, hoping she could reveal some information to them.
Although Zhou Ma didn't care about saving face, she was unwilling to admit that she had been taken advantage of. She believed that she was the one who caused others to suffer losses, not the other way around. So she and Sister-in-law Xue agreed to deny the matter.
Unfortunately, the rumors did not stop spreading because of their denials; on the contrary, they grew stronger. After all, "good news doesn't travel far, but bad news travels fast."
The residents around the tenement building all knew that the stingy Zhou family had suffered a great loss in front of their in-laws, and they treated this as a source of amusement during their leisure time.
They respect Comrade Lin Yuanshu, but that doesn't mean they will respect the Zhou family. After thinking it over, they realized there was really nothing about the Zhou family that deserved their respect.
Zhou Dafu was powerless to do anything about it. After all, they didn't say it to his face, but whispered in private. Everyone could be the culprit. He didn't know who to hold accountable or where the rumors originated.
If he makes a fuss about this, his family will become a laughing stock once again.
He could only turn a blind eye and pretend he knew nothing, hoping that after a while, new jokes would emerge and everyone would gradually forget about it.
Zhou Ma didn't have such a good temper. After she found out about the neighbors' whispers, she started making veiled accusations in the corridor every day, causing the discussion to drag on for a long time.
Chow Tai Fook spends most of his time working at the pharmaceutical factory, so he really didn't know that his mother was making such a fuss.
After the New Year, Zhou Xiangyang returned to Beijing, where he learned about his parents from the plump woman.
The plump woman is now not only keeping an eye on Zhou Xiangyang, but also on his parents; she's just creating trouble for herself.
Zhou Xiangyang's view on this is that evil people will be punished by evil people. Fortunately, he did not spend the New Year at his parents' house, otherwise he would definitely become the family's punching bag. He was lucky to escape. Other than that, he had no other thoughts.
Before returning to his post, Zhou Xiangyang made a special trip to the department store to prepare return gifts, and then delivered these gifts to Director Huang and the others.
Only through give and take can good relationships be maintained. Since Lin Yuanshu is not in Beijing, he should do even more to maintain these relationships so that Lin Yuanshu has no worries.
Although he doesn't like talking to strangers, returning a greeting is no problem for him.
Previously, Director Huang and others had also sent things to Lin Yuanshu. Lin Yuanshu wrote down the list of those who sent the things in his letter to him. He returned the gifts of equal value during the holidays. Because Lin Yuanshu was in the epidemic area, it was inconvenient to return the gifts. Neither he nor Lin Yuanshu were the kind of people who liked to take advantage of others.
After the start of spring, Lin Yuanshu's work also received good news. After many experiments on patients, they finally determined the optimal dosage of medicinal charcoal.
When used in conjunction with nitrothionine, the effect is greater than the sum of its parts, which can reduce the gastrointestinal irritation caused by nitrothionine, reduce the side effects of the drug, and improve the safety of the drug.
Her next task was to improve the efficacy of nitrothionine. To be honest, without changing the nitrothionine production process, this task was not difficult in Lin Yuanshu's eyes, and it was even easier than her previous task.
However, this task requires immense patience. She had to slowly experiment on patients to determine the optimal dosage of nitrothionine. The dosage differed for mild and severe cases, and she had to optimize the timing and method of administration. She could only work on the effectiveness of the medication by adjusting the administration method.
She now has an excellent grasp of the knowledge related to nitrothionine; she has practically mastered it.
Lin Yuanshu compiled the relevant experimental data on medicinal charcoal into a report and submitted it to Director Cao. He solemnly reported to Director Cao, "Through the unremitting efforts of our team, we have finally determined the optimal dosage of medicinal charcoal. When used in conjunction with nitrothionamide, it can reduce the side effects of nitrothionamide..."
Upon hearing this, Director Cao was overjoyed and took the report. He read through the report while listening to Lin Yuanshu's report, nodding from time to time.
After Lin Yuanshu finished his report, he praised him with great satisfaction: "The Minister of Health said that you completed the task very quickly and were very efficient. I thought the Minister of Health was exaggerating. Now it seems that I underestimated you and underestimated your ability. Making you the team leader was definitely the best thing I ever did."
His work ability is truly remarkable! No wonder the Minister of Health was reluctant to let Lin Yuanshu come to the epidemic area; if it were him, he wouldn't be able to let him go either!
Now, Lin Yuanshu can remain calm and composed when faced with straightforward praise from his superiors, unlike before when he was embarrassed. With more experience, his skin has naturally become thicker.
She replied modestly, "You flatter me."
Director Cao stroked his chin thoughtfully and said, "Will you be able to handle the workload later? You'll not only have to complete the task of improving the efficacy of nitrothionine, but also participate in the follow-up 'promotion and training' of charcoal, teaching medical staff in the epidemic area how to correctly use the dosage of charcoal and implement the results in clinical practice. Do you need me to arrange someone to come and help you?"
Lin Yuanshu decisively refused, saying, "There's no need for such trouble. I can handle it all by myself. The workload isn't that heavy. I've already written the experimental plan to improve the efficacy of nitrothionine. All I need to do now is follow the plan. Compared to me, you're working much harder, not only taking charge of the research site but also worrying about the epidemic..."
Her reasons for refusing were simple: first, she had finally completed the task and didn't want anyone to take credit for it; second, she didn't want to disrupt the current situation, as she was getting along well with her teammates and the teammates were getting along well with each other, and she didn't want anyone to break that pattern.
Seeing that Lin Yuanshu had said so, Director Cao didn't say anything more. After all, he had arranged for someone to go there because he genuinely wanted to help Lin Yuanshu, and not for any other purpose.
Since Lin Yuanshu felt she could manage on her own and didn't want another helper, there was no need for him to force her and make everyone unhappy.
Lin Yuanshu spent an hour in the office talking with Director Cao about medicinal charcoal, answering his questions, and only left the office after Director Cao had no further questions.
Director Cao was very satisfied with Lin Yuanshu's fluent answers, which showed that Lin Yuanshu was wholeheartedly committed to the task, rather than simply handing it over to the team members and then ignoring it.
When Lin Yuanshu returned to the lab, Qu Zhigang and the others immediately surrounded him, looking at him anxiously and asking all at once, "How did it go? Did you submit the report?"
Do you need any additional data to explain this?
Lin Yuanshu didn't hide anything and said truthfully, "I've passed Director Cao's hurdle, and now I'm just waiting for the CDC's review. Judging from Director Cao's attitude, I don't think there will be any major problems with the CDC."
Qu Zhigang said excitedly, "That's great! We've completed one task, and now there's only one left."
The others were also overjoyed. They were not happy that the task had been completed, but that their own achievements could be added to their list. They came to the epidemic area without regard for anything else, not only to help their comrades in the epidemic area, but also to get promoted and receive a raise.
Lin Yuanshu and the others calmed down a bit. She instructed sternly, "I have already written a plan to improve the efficacy of nitrothionine. The first step is for you to recruit patients, and then conduct experiments on different dosage groups of nitrothionine. At the same time, don't forget to optimize the dosing time. This part can be divided into two groups: an empty stomach group and a semi-empty stomach group..."
They had spent several months with Lin Yuanshu and were familiar with his work style. They knew that once Lin Yuanshu made a decision, he would not change it unless there were special circumstances, so no one raised any objections to the work arrangements.
Li Lin knew she was about to get busy again, and her expression was complicated. She exclaimed, "Team Leader Lin, you're moving way too fast! We just finished organizing the experimental data on medicinal charcoal last night, and you've already prepared the plan for the next task today."
Before Lin Yuanshu could speak, Qu Zhigang raised his head slightly, revealing a proud expression, and spoke first: "You don't live in Beijing, so you don't know that Team Leader Lin also has a nickname, 'Iron Top,' which describes her high work efficiency and energy. That's why she was able to complete the penicillin production process improvement project in the shortest amount of time."
The others exclaimed "Wow!" and looked at Lin Yuanshu with admiration.
Li Lin rolled her eyes at Qu Zhigang. She couldn't stand his proud attitude. He was just in the same place as Lin Yuanshu, not in the same project team. She really didn't understand what he was so proud of. Lin Yuanshu himself didn't seem any more proud than him.
Under the gaze of everyone, Lin Yuanshu smiled and said, "That's enough about the digression. As long as you work hard, each of you can become an 'iron top.' From now on, let's move forward with our work!"
Everyone: "..."
They didn't really want to become "iron tops".
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