Chapter 249 - 160: Matter Settled
"CREAK~" The door opened, and the voices of Professor Wu and Chen Fei came from the entrance.
The two were talking and laughing, seemingly getting along quite well.
Professor Wu walked to the study’s entrance and glanced inside. Seeing the two sitting in silence, he smiled and teased, "I’m not interrupting anything, am I?"
His words were actually his way of asking Su Chen how things were going and whether he needed some backup.
Su Chen smiled and glanced at the old professor sitting across from him, then said softly, "We just finished talking. Your timing is perfect."
Professor Wu nodded upon hearing this. He looked at Su Chen, then at the contemplative old professor, and figured he already knew what was going on. He then said, "Alright~ I’ll go get started on lunch. You can try my cooking today."
"Okay, okay~ We’ll be counting on you, Old Master Wu." After speaking, he called out loudly, "Ah Fei, go to the kitchen and give Old Master Wu a hand."
"Alright~" The smile on Professor Wu’s face grew even wider.
Professor Wu was very pleased by Su Chen’s words. It wasn’t for any other reason than the form of address—it showed that Su Chen considered him one of his own.
A moment later, the sounds of washing vegetables and pots came from the kitchen.
After weighing the pros and cons, Professor Chen finally made up his mind. He looked up at Su Chen and said in a firm tone, "Young Su... Mr. Su, I’ll be in your care from now on."
Hearing this, a flash of excitement couldn’t help but cross Su Chen’s eyes. He smiled and extended his right hand, saying, "Welcome aboard, Professor Chen!"
"CLASP!" Professor Chen didn’t hesitate, gripping Su Chen’s hand firmly.
And it was this very handshake that would give rise to the world’s most advanced nuclear research institute of the future.
.......
"Oh? Is Old Master Wu from the Ba-Shu region?" Su Chen asked curiously, looking at the several classic Sichuan dishes on the table.
"I’m a bona fide son-in-law of Ba-Shu. My wife is from there."
A happy smile spread across Old Master Wu’s face, as if he had just remembered something pleasant.
This reminded Su Chen that in his two visits, he hadn’t seen any family members of the two old professors. He promptly asked, "By the way, are your families not here with you?"
Professor Chen and Professor Wu glanced at each other and shook their heads in perfect unison.
After they explained the situation, Su Chen understood. Both of their wives were now living with their sons.
The reason was actually quite simple: the two old professors were sometimes too busy to spend time with their families, so they simply had their wives go live with their sons, where they would be well taken care of.
Su Chen considered the issue of them living apart and specifically asked if the two professors needed him to make arrangements for their families to live together. As for their children’s jobs, he told them not to worry—he would take care of everything.
He had expected thanks from the two professors, but surprisingly, they both refused Su Chen’s kind offer.
Their reasoning was also simple: having family nearby might introduce unforeseen complications, and trivial household matters could interfere with the progress of their research.
At that moment, Su Chen truly understood the high level of dedication of this older generation.
Everyone enjoyed the meal immensely. They talked and laughed throughout, with Professor Wu occasionally teasing Professor Chen.
Su Chen also heard some unknown stories from the two old professors’ pasts, which was a real eye-opener for him.
When Professor Wu started talking about the semiconductor circle, an idea struck Su Chen. He thought of the other semiconductor expert from Harbin Institute of Technology he had picked out earlier and wondered if Professor Wu knew him.
Finding an opportune moment, Su Chen voiced his curiosity.
"Wei Xiuwen from the Harbin Institute of Technology? Why are you asking about that old fellow? When it comes to semiconductors, he’s still a notch below me!" Professor Wu said with a confident expression.
But then a thought occurred to him, and he realized something was off. He blinked and looked at Su Chen, asking, "You’re not thinking of recruiting that old fellow, are you?"
Even Professor Chen, who was at the side, cast a quizzical look, as if to say, ’Isn’t Old Man Wu enough for you?’
Su Chen nodded heavily. "Old Master Wu, you’ve seen the materials. You should know they cover far too much ground. If we rely on you alone to lead the team’s research, it would take at least a year or a year and a half to achieve mass production, right?"
Professor Wu had to agree with this. After all, he could only research one thing at a time, which would certainly take a significant amount of time. He also knew that achieving mass production even one day sooner would bring greater benefits to numerous industries.
"Are you saying you want to poach him through me?" Professor Wu asked tentatively.
Su Chen didn’t hide anything. He directly explained the process of how he had selected the two of them from a list of dozens of people, and made it clear that he had wanted to recruit both of them from the very beginning.
Professor Wu showed no particular emotion upon hearing this. He knew Su Chen was telling the truth. He then said he would take care of this small matter, noting that his relationship with Wei Xiuwen was quite close; they had collaborated on many large-scale projects in the past.
"Hahaha~ In that case, Old Master Wu, I’ll leave this matter to you." Su Chen was also happy to save himself the trouble. This way, he wouldn’t have to make a special trip to Ice City.
"Don’t you worry. I’ll be sure to bring the man to you when the time comes!" Professor Wu said, patting his chest.
Hearing this, Professor Chen’s eyes darted back and forth. ’It seems I could also poach a few experts in nuclear engineering to assist me,’ he thought.