Chapter 26 (1/2)
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation
Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The laboratory department was in a tense state for two days due to the filoviridae virus incident.
The Food City where they had their dinner had been sealed off entirely while the exotic food restaurant’s boss was rumored to be taken in for investigation.
The virus storm passed just like that. However, it was a crushing blow to Zhou Wen’s mental state. He clearly realized how fragile mankind was when confronted by a virus. At the same time, he had also learned that medication played a quintessential role in the medical industry.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that a pharmacist was the uncrowned king!
Wednesday was Zhou Wen’s day off. Unfortunately, there was still no news about his employment status. Zhou Wen regretted the outcome in his heart. He would not have chosen this mission had he known. He might as well spend the time accumulating experience in the library.
Later that day, he began pondering on the topic of his thesis.
Frankly, he had been thinking about this all week during work. He came up with an idea to reduce the reproduction of rice root aphid using genetic modification.
He would not have had the courage to even think about this topic before he acquired the system because the primary method of genetic modification involved spraying heavy metal chemical or biochemical on the leaves of the paddy plant and letting the rice root aphid consume it in small amounts then observing its hereditary traits to determine if there was any genetic mutation.
It was a long process.
A rice root aphid needed ten days for each reproduction cycle. Moreover, one would need to carry out the experiment countless times in order to observe the genetic mutation in the rice root aphid while also monitoring and studying the subject continuously during the period.
If the pharmaceutical companies had his time, they would rather perform research on organochlorine pesticide, which was faster and more profitable. However, it was a different situation now. He could use his points to speed up the experiment process.
The reproduction cycle of ten days would only take one minute for him. In fact, he could even complete it in one second.
Adding the time spent in the observation center, he would be able to perform two sets of experiments in one day, at the very least. Even a large-scale laboratory was akin to a giant in the presence of a supergiant like him.
The only concern was the points that would be utilized.
After careful consideration, he decided to choose the thesis title – ‘Genetic Modification of Rice Root Aphid.’
If he could succeed in this, it would be a great thing that could benefit the country and its people.
Then. he headed over to the laboratory at nine in the morning.
After being in the prestigious hospital’s laboratory department, Zhou Wen felt unaccustomed to the simple and unsophisticated laboratory in the university.
It was all quiet in the laboratory, with only Yang Yudong and Gu Hongyun around.
Zhou Wen’s arrival amused Yang Yudong. He said, “Hey there, busy man. How come you’re free to come here today?”
Zhou Wen smiled and said, “It’s my day off.”
To which Gu Hongyun replied smilingly, “Oh, you have a day off now. I’m so jealous and envious of you.”
Zhou Wen chuckled and said, “I’m a single man, and there’s nothing to be envious of. I’m envious of married couples like you!”
They chatted leisurely for a while before Zhou Wen asked Yang Yudong, “Are you familiar with the people from the chemical laboratory?”
Yang Yudong joined the students’ club in the past, so he had a relatively wide social circle. He said, “Yes, I do. What do you want?”
Zhou Wen answered, “I want to get some chemicals for my experiment.”
“I see. I shall give you a phone number.” Yang Yudong called out a series of numbers as he spoke. “You can tell him that you are my junior from the same course. You can tell him whatever chemical you want him to make for you. His name is Lu Qing.”
“Sure…” Zhou Wen saved the number. “Thanks a lot.”
“What’s there to thank anyway? It’s just a small matter.”
Zhou Wen chatted with them for a while more before he left the laboratory.
He was in a rush to make the call. This was because he needed an extensive range of chemicals in large quantities. Also, he could not just have the person make it for him free of charge just because of Yang Yudong’s reputation. He needed to make some form of payment.
He bought a pack of Dunhill cigarettes from the campus store and withdrew 500 bucks of cash. In fact, he obtained the money from a cash advance account.
Soon afterward, he made a call to Lu Qing. After introducing themselves, Lu Qing agreed to meet up with him. They agreed to meet in front of the academic building of the School of Chemical Sciences.
Zhou Wen explained about his requests rather straightforwardly.
Although Lu Qing was still smiling in the beginning, the smile quickly faded when he heard the number of chemicals requested by Zhou Wen. There was a look of impatience in his eyes.
‘We may be friends, but it’s not an excuse for you to treat me as free labor.’
‘Moreover, these chemical reagents are not cheap if you were to purchase it!’
Meanwhile, Zhou Wen passed the black plastic bag in his hand to Lu Qing and said with a smile, “Thank you for taking the trouble, Brother Lu. This is a small token of appreciation for your hard work.”
“Oh, no need, no need…” Lu Qing’s dim expression faded when he realized that Zhou Wen was a generous man. “It’s just a small favor, why are you…”
A stick of cigarette worth 200 bucks would only suffice for two days’ at most. As for how many chemicals he could make, it would depend on his mood.
“I should; I should…” Zhou Wen pushed the black plastic bag back to Lu Qing’s hand, pretending to return his money. “Sorry for bothering you, Brother Lu. I shall treat you to a meal when I’m done with my thesis.”
“You’re too courteous.”
“Alright, then. Don’t let me hold you up, Brother Lu. I shall leave now.”
“Sure, sure, sure. Goodbye.”
“Mmhmm…”
Lu Qing waited until Zhou Wen vanished from the street before he turned around and walked two steps forward. He then opened the black plastic bag in his hand.
The word ‘Dunhill’ came into view. Lu Qing’s eyes lit up, and the smile on his face spread rapidly. “Not bad, not bad. This little junior is quite generous.”
Meanwhile, he noticed a few red notes slipped into the side of the cigarette box. He took it out and counted to find that it was worth 500 RMB.