Awakening Elementary School System in University

The applause gradually died down. Chen Lin walked off the stage and returned to his seat in the last row.

Beside him, Shen Yan turned her head, a hint of a smile she couldn’t hide in her clear eyes.

"That was a good talk," she said, lowering her voice to a volume only the two of them could hear. "Especially that last sentence. It made a lot of sense."

Twenty minutes later. Director Feng Yunhai’s office, Building 79, Imperial Capital International Mathematics Research Center, Yanbei University.

The office wasn’t large, but it was elegantly furnished.

A massive bookshelf on one wall was crammed with Chinese and foreign books of all sizes, while the opposite wall featured several works of calligraphy with powerful brushstrokes.

Beside an antique rosewood tea table, Feng Yunhai carefully pinched a small portion of dark, glossy tea leaves from a delicate little tin and placed them in a Zisha teapot.

As boiling water was poured, a unique aroma—a blend of pinewood smoke and honeyed sweetness—instantly permeated the air.

The portly Professor Gongtan took a deep whiff of the tea’s aroma, his face showing a look of pure bliss. He then gave Feng Yunhai a half-joking wink. "Old Feng, you’re holding out on me."

"If Liang hadn’t graced us with his presence today, I bet you wouldn’t have dreamed of bringing out this prized Lapsang Souchong for an old friend like me, right?"

At this, Feng Yunhai shot him a mock-annoyed glare and retorted with a laugh, "You just had to say something, didn’t you? Even drinking tea won’t shut you up."

His hands, however, never stopped moving. He methodically rinsed the leaves, steeped the tea, and poured it into cups, finally setting a small cup of the translucent, orange-red liquid in front of everyone.

Chen Lin wasn’t much of a tea drinker; back home, it was mostly his father, Chen Xian, who drank it.

He picked up the small tasting cup and, following Academician Liang’s example, first sniffed the aroma before taking a gentle sip.

The tea was smooth and mellow. As it entered his mouth, that unique pinewood aroma instantly blossomed on his palate. After he swallowed, a clean, sweet aftertaste welled up from the base of his tongue, leaving him feeling wonderfully refreshed.

"Excellent tea," Chen Lin praised sincerely.

’This really is on a whole other level compared to the tea bags I usually drink.’

Professor Gongtan glanced at Chen Lin and Shen Yan sitting side by side and, with a chuckle, turned the topic to them. "Say, Chen, you skipped something as important as the opening ceremony this afternoon. Were you secretly taking Shen Tongxue out on a date in the Imperial Capital?"

𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

The moment he said this, good-natured smiles appeared on the faces of Academician Liang Tianshi and Director Feng Yunhai, and all eyes landed squarely on the young pair.

Shen Yan had been quietly sipping her tea. At the question, a faint blush, barely perceptible, quickly spread across her usually cool cheeks. She subconsciously kept the teacup raised, her gaze beginning to wander.

’Good grief,’ Chen Lin grumbled inwardly. ’So it turns out even the heavyweights of the academic world are a bunch of gossips.’

Outwardly, however, he remained perfectly composed. Maintaining a faint smile, he answered frankly, "The weather was nice, so we just took a walk around Yuanming Garden."

"Oh? You went to Yuanming Garden?"

Hearing this answer, Academician Liang Tianshi nodded in approval. His smile faded a little as his tone became earnest. "It’s good that you went. Young people should go and see it. In fact, even if you hadn’t gone yourself, I was planning to suggest you visit after the conference ends."

Chen Lin nodded in agreement. "You’re right. Seeing it with my own eyes this afternoon was deeply moving. I’d say it was quite educational."

"If you came away with that insight, then the trip wasn’t in vain," Academician Liang said, pleased.

Director Feng Yunhai, who was sitting to the side, took a sip of tea and steered the conversation back to the original topic. He looked at Chen Lin, his eyes filled with undisguised admiration. "Chen, you’ve really made some big waves these last couple of months."

"That JAMS paper of yours... I had a few of my doctoral students study it in detail. The quality is exceptionally high! It’s no wonder even Terence Tao and Professor Qiu Chengtong gave it such high praise."

At this point, Feng Yunhai sighed with a hint of regret, complaining half-jokingly, "Ah, that just reminds me of my biggest regret. Back at the modeling competition in July, I completely underestimated your abilities. I thought you had great potential, but I had no idea you’d already reached such a high level. If I’d known then what I know now, I would’ve done whatever it took to poach you from Yannan University for our Yanbei University!"

"Hahaha, it’s a little late for regrets now, Old Feng!" Professor Gongtan chortled from the side, clearly enjoying his friend’s lament. He then added, "But in my opinion, as great as that paper was, the mathematical problem Chen solved for our joint research project has an even bigger impact."

"Progress in solid-state batteries is something that could genuinely change the landscape of the global automotive and energy industries! When I recommended him to Tang Xuebing, I was just throwing a Hail Mary. Who could have imagined he’d actually go and solve the whole thing?"

"I hear," Professor Gongtan said, lowering his voice with a conspiratorial grin, "that for the past two days, the phones of Tang Xuebing, the president of your Yannan University, and the president of our Science and Technology University have been getting blown up by the biggest battery tycoons in the country."

"And then there’s you, Chen Lin, the man of the hour. You’re just chilling, listed as second author on the paper, and have completely washed your hands of the whole affair, not a single worry in the world."