Huang Zhihui was a bit surprised. He saw a genuine hint of a smile on Jiang Tian’s face.
“Professor Huang, you need to take on the responsibility of revitalizing the future of traditional Chinese medicine!”
Just as Huang Zhihui heard Jiang Tian say these words, the noisy chatter around him gradually faded away, leaving only a silent scene.
He saw Jiang Tian let go of his hand and walk slowly out of the lab with his hands behind his back.
Only Huang Zhihui himself remained, standing there with his arm raised, welcoming cheers and congratulations from all directions.
“Without your guidance, I could never have succeeded. You are the one who deserves the most credit…” Huang Zhihui looked at Jiang Tian’s retreating back and murmured in a daze.
“Professor Huang, these experiments powerfully prove that your theory and technology of ultramicro molecular extraction are correct. I believe that in three years, the Nobel Prize in Medicine will be yours!”
Lin Monong’s face was flushed with excitement as she punched the air emphatically with her small fist.
“Professor Huang, you’ve succeeded!”
Countless professors and scholars crowded around Huang Zhihui, applauding and cheering. They even clumsily lifted him up, tossed him high into the air, caught him, and tossed him again…
As he was thrown high up, Huang Zhihui turned his head to look at Jiang Tian, who was gradually disappearing through the doorway.
His solitary, receding figure seemed to stretch and shrink, sometimes high, sometimes low, sometimes near, sometimes far, distorted by Huang Zhihui’s shifting perspective. The fading sunset glow and shadows surrounding him also flickered between light and dark.
In an instant, tears streamed down Huang Zhihui’s face.
…
At the celebration banquet that evening.
Jiang Tian raised his glass and announced some news:
“Everyone, starting today, I will no longer hold a position at the Jinling University of Pharmaceutical Sciences. I have already submitted my resignation. From now on, Professor Huang Zhihui will be taking over my course, ‘Life Sciences and Futurology’.”
For a moment, everyone was stunned.
“Professor Jiang, how can you leave?”
Huang Zhihui grabbed Jiang Tian’s hand, his face filled with emotion.
“Yeah, we can’t do without you!” everyone chimed in, trying to persuade him to stay.
“My ambitions don’t lie here.”
Jiang Tian smiled slightly and said, “Building this lab was just to fulfill a wish for my mother and the Jiang family. Now that the lab is a success, my task is complete. For the rest, you just need to cooperate with the Yao Wang Group to mass-produce the lab’s outcomes. I won’t be needed for that part.”
“I can’t believe Professor Jiang is leaving so soon…” Knowing that Jiang Tian always meant what he said, everyone didn’t dare to persuade him further, but they couldn’t help sighing in disappointment.
Having spent every day with Jiang Tian recently, they had come to understand just how profound his knowledge was. It could be said that Jiang Tian’s theories were things they had never seen or heard before, completely ahead of their time.
During the process of designing, experimenting, and transforming the production line, the occasional word or two of guidance from Jiang Tian brought them moments of enlightenment that were more valuable than years of master’s or doctoral research.
Over the past few months, Jiang Tian’s academic caliber had left them in awe, filled with admiration. It felt as if he had opened the door to a whole new world for them.
Huang Zhihui said excitedly, “Professor Jiang, during the process of building the production line, I completed three papers, and they’ve already passed the review of the academic committee of Nature magazine. When they are published, I will list you as the first author!”
“What? Passed Nature’s review and about to be published!”
Numerous scholars were deeply shocked and extremely envious.
In the 19th century, a famous British scientific group called the “X Club,” consisting of nine people including Thomas Henry Huxley, was formed. Except for the philosopher Herbert Spencer, the other eight were all members of the Royal Society.
They founded the journal Nature, and in recent years, its status in the academic world has been continuously rising, even surpassing Scientific American.
Nature magazine holds a legendary status in the global academic community. Publishing an article in it carries immense weight, not only signifying honor but also greatly aiding promotions and evaluations.
Publishing just one article would be more than enough to become the president of a major university in China. Publishing three together would constitute a special feature, essentially making someone a hot contender for the following year’s Nobel Prize winner.
“Professor Huang, I appreciate the sentiment, but there’s no need. Things like this are just a burden to me. Don’t bother with this. I really dislike it!”
Jiang Tian gently shook his head and politely declined.
Everyone couldn’t believe it, but anyone could see that his gaze was exceptionally firm. He wasn’t just being modest, and it was definitely not a joke.
“Professor Jiang, will we never see you again?”
Lin Monong asked, her eyes reddening with reluctance.
For a moment, everyone looked at Jiang Tian with sorrowful expressions, like a group of abandoned wives.
“Don’t look at me with such longing eyes!”
Jiang Tian felt a chill run down his spine from their stares and shivered slightly.
“Tch!” Lin Monong rolled her eyes at him.
“Ah, speaking of the lab, that reminds me!”
Jiang Tian’s expression turned serious. “Monong, you will serve as the deputy director of the lab from now on. Don’t get too pleased with yourself, though. You’ll just be assisting Professor Huang!”
“Really?” Lin Monong was overjoyed.
This was an incredible win!
There weren’t many labs of this scale, with an investment of hundreds of millions, across all universities in China.
Back in the day, her own advisor was lured away by a university offering a lab investment of just seven million, abandoning even her without a second thought.
But now, she had become the deputy director of the Qingtian Lab, managing research funds in the hundreds of millions, plus an annual salary of several hundred thousand. It was like reaching the sky in a single step.
“Although I won’t be teaching anymore, I’ll still drop by the lab occasionally. Everyone will still see me! I hope you all achieve success in your studies and gain a lot.”
After Jiang Tian finished his final toast, he prepared to take his leave.
Just then, his phone suddenly rang. Jiang Tian saw it was Huang Ling’er calling. He answered with a “Hello?”
But there was no sound on the other end.
Just as Jiang Tian wondered if Huang Ling’er had accidentally dialed the wrong number, a low voice came through the phone: “Jiang Tian?”
“It’s you!”
Jiang Tian had an amazing memory and recognized the voice as Nie Feng’s. An ominous feeling immediately arose within him.
“Heh heh, actually, I’m not calling for any particular reason. I just wanted to let you know she’s safe and sound.”
Nie Feng’s tone was as eerily ingratiating as ever, making him sound like an old eunuch.
“Everyone, eat slowly. I have something to take care of.”
Jiang Tian raised his hand, pressing it down slightly as a “don’t see me out” gesture to them, and then walked quickly outside.
“Where is Huang Ling’er?”
The moment he stepped out of the restaurant, Jiang Tian’s voice sounded as if it came from the depths of the ninth circle of hell.
It was piercingly cold and fierce.
“Huang Ling’er? Oh, she’s right here with me. I borrowed her phone to call you. I’ll give it back to her in a little while.”
“I warn you, if you dare lay a single finger on her, I will make you understand what it means to have your bones ripped out and your skin peeled off!” Jiang Tian’s voice was deep and seething with murderous intent.
In an instant, the concrete beneath Jiang Tian’s feet cracked with a sharp snap, and spiderweb-like fissures spread out over a meter, a shocking sight.
At that moment, his sleeves billowed out as an overwhelmingly powerful killing aura pushed out in all directions. Any fallen leaves that drifted into this range were instantly shattered into dust.
It could be said that Jiang Tian felt deeply guilty towards Huang Ling’er.
In his previous life, he promised her a “sugar daddy” payment of two million yuan, which gave her the courage to borrow money from Nie Feng to buy equipment for her father. Later, Jiang Tian coldly and heartlessly ignored her, failing to keep his promise, which plunged Huang Ling’er into a deep abyss of debt from which she could never escape.
Jiang Tian’s ruthlessness gave her depression; his broken promise pushed her into a debt spiral… In short, if she had never met Jiang Tian, she would surely have lived a happy and stable life.
Although Jiang Tian was devoted to Qing’er and wouldn’t develop romantic feelings for Huang Ling’er again,
From the day he saw Huang Ling’er again, he had secretly vowed to protect her in this life like a beloved little sister, never allowing anyone to harm her!
Nie Feng on the other end of the phone just chuckled: “Don’t be so impatient. I’m just having a little chat with her about the money she owes. Let me put her on the line.”
Jiang Tian turned the phone’s volume to maximum.
But after listening for a while, he only heard some rustling sounds, no other noise from the other side.
Smack!
A sharp sound suddenly rang out.
Immediately after, Nie Feng’s sinister, threatening voice came through the phone: “Speak, you damn little slut!”
But after his words fell, there was still no sound from the other end, as if Nie Feng was talking to thin air.
Jiang Tian waited a moment, still hearing nothing.
Then, another slapping sound, Smack!, came through the phone.
“I’m telling you to fucking speak!” Nie Feng’s vicious voice sounded again.
The more Jiang Tian listened, the more wrong he felt. He quickly called out into the phone: “Ling’er? Huang Ling’er, are you okay?”
Over there, by the phone.
Huang Ling’er was sitting on a sofa, tied up tightly. Her cheeks were already swollen and red from being hit, blood trickling continuously from the corners of her mouth.
The protective jade amulet on her wrist had shattered. That amulet had endured multiple beatings and injuries for her before. Without those protective jade charms, she might already be dead.
Originally, Nie Feng had planned to kill Huang Ling’er first and then Jiang Tian. But after seeing this, he simply decided to call Jiang Tian over and kill them both together.
Behind Nie Feng stood a row of burly, fierce-looking men. Nie Feng himself kept hitting and threatening her, trying to force her to speak to Jiang Tian.
But Huang Ling’er just sat there with a calm and resolute gaze. No matter how much Nie Feng hit her, she didn’t utter a single sound.
“Damn, I really have to hand it to you, you little slut. You sell your body and still catch feelings? Just how cheap can you be?”
“Talk! Tell him to come and save you! Otherwise, I’ll kill you right now!”
Nie Feng yanked Huang Ling’er’s hair fiercely, threatening her viciously.
Huang Ling’er’s feet were tied to the legs of the sofa. She couldn’t move. A tuft of her hair was torn out by the roots along with her scalp, and she finally let out a scream.
Realizing that Jiang Tian might have heard her voice, Huang Ling’er stopped trying to hold back. She opened her mouth and shouted loudly, “Jiang Tian, don’t come! They have guns! Call the police! Call the police—!”
Nie Feng landed a slap on Huang Ling’er’s face with a smack, furious. “You damn slut, still trying to play tricks! Tape her mouth shut!”
“Jiang Tian, you know calling the police is useless.”
Nie Feng ignored Huang Ling’er and spoke into the phone in that strange, sarcastic tone: “My Nie family commands hundreds, even thousands, of loyal fighters willing to die. Even if the police catch me, I can easily find someone else to take the fall. But if the cops show up, she’s definitely dead.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll come alone.”
Jiang Tian’s eyes turned ice-cold. He pushed off the ground with both feet and shot into the sky like an angry dragon, landing on a rooftop.
Then his figure, like an arrow, filled with piercing killing intent, streaked across the city sky, blasting towards the distant horizon.
