The four of them almost simultaneously looked toward Xue Jiao. The heated argument suddenly stopped, the discussion ceased, and all gazes concentrated on her.

Xue Jiao’s hand holding the pen froze, and she unconsciously raised her hand to touch her face. “What… is something wrong?”

Yang Zhan looked at her, his voice tentative: “What did you just say?”

“Magnetic field superposition.”

“How would the superposition work?” Yang Zhan continued to ask.

“Superimpose magnetic fields to increase the magnetic force, or… consider the flying car itself, could we use interaction to reduce the effect of gravity?” Xue Jiao said softly.

After another moment of silence, Zhang Han took the lead in applauding.

Xue Jiao was startled, touching her heart, looking somewhat embarrassed.

Yang Zhan clapped his hands: “That’s it! That’s it! I think it’s very feasible! Gu Xue Jiao, you’re really good, truly a wake-up call for us all.”

“Xue Jiao! Awesome!” Chu Sheng smiled and patted her shoulder.

“We can divide the work and operate in two directions. Whether we succeed in one direction or both, or even if both fail, at least I’ll know what to do next!” Zheng Jiakun’s expression relaxed somewhat.

Sometimes, it’s not the most knowledgeable who can find solutions. They had been going in circles, but sometimes a bystander’s single comment could enlighten them.

Perhaps given time, they would have thought of it too, but they had truly been trapped in their perspectives.

Zhang Han’s brow also relaxed somewhat as she looked at the others: “If that’s the case, let’s discuss together today, then divide the work, and communicate in the group chat at any time.”

“I support that.” Chu Sheng raised his hand.

The others all nodded in agreement.

“This is a long and complex process. Everyone should be attentive but not rush. Especially you four, you still have many classes now, and finals are coming up soon. Don’t put all your energy into the project.” Zhang Han still maintained her stern expression, but her words showed concern for everyone.

She was cold on the outside but warm on the inside… a science research enthusiast.

“Okay, don’t worry, Senior Sister. If we can’t handle our studies, how could we be sitting here?” Yang Zhan raised an eyebrow, becoming talkative again.

Zhang Han glanced at him and continued: “We’ve already built the magnetic field here. If you have any results, you can simulate them yourselves. Did you all read the materials I sent yesterday?”

“Yes, we did.”

“It was mentioned earlier…”

Zhang Han began to explain point by point, while Xue Jiao and the others would occasionally interrupt with their own observations.

The meeting lasted until after one o’clock. Zhang Han’s assistant brought food for everyone, and they continued their discussion while eating, and after finishing, they resumed their discussion.

Xue Jiao rubbed her temples. Compared to these professional physics researchers, especially Yang Zhan and Zhang Han, her foundation was still too weak.

She had filled half a notebook, with many question marks scattered throughout—all topics she needed to research further when she went back.

Now that they had a general direction, the most important thing was to determine what to do and what results to achieve.

Once these were clarified, how to do it would be a matter of gradual exploration.

By eight in the evening, Xue Jiao was rubbing her temples.

The others were also showing signs of fatigue, and even Zhang Han had her brows slightly furrowed.

“That’s about it. I think the success probability of this project might not be as low as we expected, but it might take longer.” Chu Sheng summarized, reaching for his cup and taking a sip.

“Well, since everyone has a direction now, let’s leave it at that for this time. If you have any results, share them in the group chat at any time. We’ll set the next discussion time later.” Zhang Han stood up and began to pack her things.

“Okay.” Xue Jiao also stood up and gathered her belongings.

Yang Zhan and Zhang Han were from other schools and worried about missing transportation if they left too late, so everyone packed up and started heading out.

Chu Sheng and Zheng Jiakun were staying on campus, so Xue Jiao naturally walked toward the school exit with Zhang Han and Yang Zhan.

“Are you tired, little junior sister?” Yang Zhan raised an eyebrow.

Xue Jiao’s face couldn’t hide her exhaustion: “A bit.”

“Haha, you’re a math student, it must have been tough for you to listen to physics all day.”

The usually quiet Zhang Han suddenly interjected: “You’re a physics student, yet you’re always poaching from mathematics and chemistry, aren’t you?”

Xue Jiao was surprised, suddenly realizing that Zhang Han was “snarking” at Yang Zhan on her behalf.

Although it was all in jest, it was evident that Zhang Han was being friendly to Xue Jiao, which is why she helped her.

Sure enough, Yang Zhan put on an exaggerated expression: “Wow! Senior Sister is helping little junior sister snark at me!”

Zhang Han turned away slightly in embarrassment, looking to the side: “You asked for it!”

Xue Jiao’s lips curved into a smile, and she reached out to gently link arms with Zhang Han, something Mai Jiajia and her friends often did with her.

A gesture that made one feel warm and happy.

Zhang Han’s body stiffened, her hand uncontrollably rigid, slightly raised.

But she didn’t pull away or push Xue Jiao off.

Xue Jiao’s smile grew brighter: “Senior Sister, I hope we can meet again soon.”

Zhang Han, originally maintaining her stern expression, relaxed a bit when she saw her bright smile.

After a moment, she responded coolly: “Mm.”

Xue Jiao held onto her arm, staying close.

The three had already approached the school gate when Yang Zhan moved closer to Xue Jiao and said mischievously: “Little junior sister, let me tell you, Senior Sister is a friendless, emotionless research machine. Good luck with that!”

Zhang Han cast him a cold glance.

Xue Jiao also glared at him: “You’re the one without emotions!”

Yang Zhan: “…”

Well, they were on the same team now.

Zhang Han’s hand relaxed a bit, evidently getting used to Xue Jiao’s arm-linking posture.

Xue Jiao’s smiling gaze casually swept across and suddenly froze.

She stopped walking. Zhang Han and Yang Zhan also stopped in confusion, following her gaze to where a man stood in the dimly lit area.

Hmm… a very handsome man.

“Oho, little junior sister has a situation here!” Yang Zhan moved closer to her, teasing again.

His personality was completely inconsistent with his reputation. His academic reputation was impressive, but in private, he was extremely lively and mischievous.

Xue Jiao’s face reddened as she released Zhang Han’s arm and said awkwardly: “Um… Senior Sister, I have something to attend to. You go ahead first.”

Zhang Han nodded: “Mm, see you.”

After a pause, she added: “Get home early.”

Although she still didn’t talk much, there was significantly more warmth in her eyes.

Xue Jiao tilted her head and smiled at her, eyes sparkling brightly: “I will! Don’t worry!”

After she spoke, Zhang Han turned to leave.

Yang Zhan wore an ambiguous smile: “Such a beautiful junior sister is already taken. Sigh.”

After speaking, seeing that Zhang Han had already walked far ahead, he quickly chased after her—

“Senior Sister, wait for me!”

He caught up to Zhang Han, saying something that made her glare at him fiercely.

Xue Jiao smiled, turned around, and walked quickly toward Lin Zhihua.

“Why did you come?”

Lin Zhihua lowered his head and gently flicked her forehead, his tone carrying a hint of grievance: “You were just talking so happily with those guys. What? Did I disturb you?”

Xue Jiao shook her head, her ponytail swaying slightly: “Don’t be ridiculous, that was Senior Yang Zhan.”

“Oh… the Yang Zhan you admire so much? The one who won some award, and also…”

“Hey! Why are you so jealous!” Xue Jiao stood on tiptoe and covered his mouth with her hand.

While outwardly scolding Lin Zhihua, she was very happy inside. Even though they had just seen each other yesterday, seeing him today made her happy again.

Lin Zhihua lightly kissed her palm, then took hold of her hand: “I’m just very jealous, so you have to behave yourself and not get too close to other men. You should understand that you’re already taken.”

Xue Jiao glared at him: “Then you should also remember that you’ve already taken too. You can’t get intimate with other women, or else…”

“Or else what?” Lin Zhihua raised an eyebrow.

“Or else I’ll break up with you!” Xue Jiao glared.

When the last two words came out, Lin Zhihua’s face became quite unpleasant for an instant, and something indescribable flashed in his eyes.

He lowered his head and lightly kissed her forehead, his voice deep: “I won’t get intimate with other women. Don’t say those two words again, they make me feel awful, okay?”

Just thinking about those two words made his heart feel uneasy and disturbed.

Seeing the sadness in his eyes, Xue Jiao felt a pang of heartache. She raised her hand, stood on tiptoe, and patted his head: “I won’t, I won’t. If you don’t betray me, I’ll never leave you. We’ll be together forever.”

When she said these words, she was serious and sincere.

Lin Zhihua didn’t speak, just held her hand as they walked toward the parking area.

She was still young, having just turned eighteen this year. The promise to be together forever was very significant. It was easy to say, but very, very difficult to keep that promise and never change one’s heart for a lifetime.

But what did that matter?

He would make her maintain her love for him for a lifetime, increasing it a little each day, changing from liking to loving, from loving to deeply loving.

If Love needed maintenance, he could be the perfect operator.

Xue Jiao sat in the passenger seat, eating the snacks Lin Zhihua had placed in front of the seat.

“Wow, you made snacks for me again. Isn’t that a waste of time?”

Xue Jiao was eating chips—sweet potato and purple potato chips that Lin Zhihua had made by steaming and then baking. They had no unhealthy oils, and the seasonings were very light.

“It’s fine, I wasn’t busy today. I made them after dinner, and there’s plenty left. I’ll bring them to you tomorrow when I pick you up, so you can have them when you’re at school,” Lin Zhihua instructed. “No matter how busy the project gets, you must eat properly. Don’t go hungry!”

“Okay, okay, okay!” Xue Jiao raised both hands in agreement, then suddenly seemed to remember something. “You’re picking me up again tomorrow?”

“Yes, I’m not busy these few days. Just send me a message half an hour in advance every day, and I’ll come pick you up.” The smile on Lin Zhihua’s face was evident.

The opportunities to see Xue Jiao every day were too few; he wished he could drive her every day.

Xue Jiao’s eyebrows wrinkled slightly: “Isn’t that too much trouble?”

“Not at all. In a few days, I’m moving to the same community as you, which will be even more convenient.” Lin Zhihua spoke casually, keeping an eye on Xue Jiao’s reaction.

Xue Jiao’s eyes widened: “Huh?”

Lin Zhihua was going to live in the same community as her…

Then, her face turned a bit red.

“What are you thinking about, silly girl?” Lin Zhihua’s voice was filled with amusement.

The Cheng family’s current residence was indeed about twenty minutes farther from his company than before, but compared to being able to see Xue Jiao every day, nothing else mattered.

Xue Jiao’s face was a bit flushed as she looked out the window: “Nothing… nothing…”

Could she say that her first thought was that it would be convenient for them after marriage?

After marriage…

Xue Jiao’s face reddened even more.

She closed her eyes and shook her head vigorously. What are you thinking, Xue Jiao?

“Your face is red? What are you thinking about?” They happened to stop at a red light, and Lin Zhihua turned to look at her, his voice deep, with a faint smile.

Xue Jiao shrank back somewhat nervously and quickly changed the subject: “Didn’t I send a message to Uncle Xing? How did you negotiate with my dad?”

Lin Zhihua started the car again, raising an eyebrow: “WeChat groups are wonderful things.”

“Hm?” Xue Jiao was puzzled, staring blankly at his handsome profile.

Lin Zhihua smiled: “Check your WeChat.”

Xue Jiao took out her phone, opened WeChat, and saw a new group chat with a conversation from half an hour ago—

Lin Zhihua: I’ll pick up Jiaojiao tonight.

Li Sitong: That’s great, Old Xing was just about to go out. I’ll tell him not to go then.

Cheng Shuo: …

Cheng Mingze: …

Xue Jiao covered her mouth and laughed, “You’re something!”

Lin Zhihua smiled without speaking. Dealing with a father-in-law and brother-in-law who didn’t like him, he could only get the mother-in-law on his side.

She continued eating her chips, then remembered something. She licked her fingers and took out her backpack.

“Oh right, my thesis award money came in. This is a gift for you.”

Xue Jiao somewhat shyly took out a small box and placed it in front.

Lin Zhihua’s lips curved slightly upward: “A gift? There’s one particular gift I want. Will you give it to me?”

“What is it?”

His voice was deep and had a magnetism that made one’s ears tingle: “My Jiaojiao.”

Xue Jiao: “…”

Hmm… her face seemed to redden again…

She turned her head to look at his handsome profile.

Lin Zhihua had very attractive features, but because his skin was tanned, he didn’t look feminine; instead, he appeared particularly handsome.

Dressed in casual clothes, his hair hung down just above his eyebrows, his nose was straight, and his eyebrows were sharp. Usually, when he looked at people head-on, he either appeared piercing or had a dreamy look that made her blush.

But at this moment, as she quietly observed his profile, she felt that this man was so handsome it made her heart race.

The car quickly arrived at the entrance of Xue Jiao’s residential community. Lin Zhihua stopped the car, suddenly turned his head, unfastened his seatbelt, leaned over, and kissed Xue Jiao.

His technique… had improved rapidly…

“Mmm…” After a good while, Xue Jiao couldn’t breathe anymore.

Only then did Lin Zhihua slightly raise his head, looking at her with dreamy eyes, his voice low and intimate—

“If you keep looking at me like that, I’ll want to commit a crime.”

Boom—

Her face turned bright red, and Xue Jiao raised her hand, intending to cover her face.

Lin Zhihua held her hand and lowered his head to claim her lips again.

His eyes were wild, his movements restrained. For a moment, Xue Jiao felt that he truly wanted to devour her.

When he finally released her, Xue Jiao could only breathe heavily.

Lin Zhihua sat back down and took a deep breath: “Jiaojiao… you’d better get out of the car yourself…”

Xue Jiao instinctively looked at him, meeting his eyes filled with restraint yet wildness, and suddenly blushed with a racing heart. She pushed open the car door and ran.

Lin Zhihua lowered the car window, watching until Xue Jiao’s figure disappeared from view. Only then did he reach out to take the small box.

He opened it gently, and a leather wallet appeared before his eyes.

He reached out, gently touching the wallet, the corners of his mouth curving upward slightly.

His Jiaojiao.

——

Chen Yan sat next to Lin Zhihua, with the driver and assistant Tan Qi in front.

“Director Xu invites you to play golf at his villa this afternoon.”

“Who else will be there?”

“CEO Zhen from Huaming and CEO Gao from Yixia…”

“Good, tell him I’ll be there.”

“There are no arrangements for tonight at the moment. Tomorrow at 9 AM, Manager Xu from C City and Manager Zhou from W City will come to report on their work. Tomorrow at noon, Manager Tian Tiantian will come to see you. There’s nothing scheduled for tomorrow afternoon yet. Do you want to have a meeting with the project department and planning department?”

“Yes.”

“Alright.” Chen Yan nodded.

The car stopped at the company entrance, and Tan Qi quickly got out to open the door.

After getting out of the car, Lin Zhihua didn’t rush to walk away. He slowly took out a wallet, deliberately and preciously opened it, then took out a hundred yuan bill: “Go buy me a pen.”

Tan Qi: “…” ???

What???

Chen Yan stepped forward, took the money, and handed it to Tan Qi, asking casually: “Boss, that’s a nice wallet.”

“Jiaojiao gave it to me as a gift.”

After saying this, Lin Zhihua smiled with satisfaction and then strode towards the company.

Chen Yan followed respectfully.

Tan Qi: “…” ???

Standing stiffly with the hundred yuan, should he go buy a pen? Doesn’t the company still have several boxes of them???

Looking at the Boss with his imposing presence walking ahead and the respectful Chen Yan following behind…

He still had a lot to learn…

—

When Xue Jiao arrived at the laboratory, Chu Sheng was already there. She had just put down her bag when Zheng Jiakun also came in.

“Morning.”

“Morning.”

“By the way, last night two people from your mathematics department came looking for me, named Ge Donglin and Zeng Bin,” Chu Sheng suddenly said.

Xue Jiao’s eyebrows knitted slightly. Weren’t those the two people who had stopped her the day before yesterday?

“What did they want?”

Chu Sheng was completely puzzled: “They said they wanted to join our project.”

“What did you tell them?” Zheng Jiakun put down his backpack and took out a pen and notebook.

Chu Sheng shook his head: “They said joining us could help us a lot, and they wanted to know what our project was and exactly what we were doing. They also said they would soon have a whole year to work on the project, which would give them more time than us to help us more…”

“But they’re from the mathematics department. Why would they want to join us?” Zheng Jiakun’s brows furrowed tightly.

At that moment, someone walked in from outside with a loud voice—

“Which mathematics department folks want to join you all?!”

Chu Sheng’s eyes lit up, and he called out with a smile: “Professor Jin, hello!”

Compared to Chu Sheng’s voice filled with surprise, Zheng Jiakun felt a chill down his spine: “Hello, Professor Jin…”

Xue Jiao also greeted with a smile: “Good morning, Professor Jin.”

“Not as good as yours!” Professor Jin waved his hand.

Then he walked to the middle of the laboratory, staring at Zheng Jiakun: “I’m not looking for you, what are you afraid of? Am I going to hit you?”

Zheng Jiakun: “…”

Seeing Zheng Jiakun’s embarrassed face, Xue Jiao couldn’t help but laugh.

As everyone knew, when Zheng Jiakun had been halfway through his experiment and suddenly announced he wanted to take the college entrance exam again to study mathematics, Professor Jin had asked twice in shock, and after confirming Zheng Jiakun was serious…

He had taken off his shoe and threatened to hit Zheng Jiakun in front of everyone.

Professor Jin made a sour comment: “If you want to stay in the mathematics department, just stay there. Anyway, you’re already in your sophomore year, and it’s not easy to change majors.”

After saying this, he suddenly turned to Xue Jiao with a smile.

Xue Jiao felt a chill down her spine, sensing that nothing good was coming.

Sure enough, Professor Jin asked a soul-crushing question—

“Student Gu Xue Jiao, would you like to join our physics department?”

Beside her, Zheng Jiakun was trying not to laugh.

Xue Jiao’s scalp tingled with embarrassment as she replied: “No…”

Professor Jin interrupted her: “Don’t you think our physics department is good? If it’s not, why would you be willing to work on our physics department’s projects? Our physics department covers everything from astronomy to geography. As long as you’re curious, you can find answers!”

Xue Jiao awkwardly forced a smile.

“Aren’t you curious about the infinite universe? Aren’t you curious about the sky and the Earth’s orbit? Aren’t you curious about outer space? Aren’t you curious about one amazing invention after another?” Professor Jin’s voice was extremely enticing.

“Not curious at all!” Another voice answered for Xue Jiao. At the door, Professor Tan walked in.

Xue Jiao: “…”

How did these two rivals end up together?!

Professor Tan said with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes: “It’s fine. Professor Jin is upset about Zheng Jiakun changing majors, so he’s trying to lure you away. Just ignore him.”

Xue Jiao awkwardly scratched her head. She’d better not get involved in the “war” between these two professors.

Honestly, she had originally thought professors all respected each other…

They did respect each other, but they also dug at each other quite a bit.

Especially Professor Tan, who despite his strong abilities and seemingly indifferent attitude toward fame and gentle temper, wasn’t actually like that.

Other professors would openly boast whenever their students achieved something, but Professor Tan always maintained a calm, composed demeanor.

Yet he would often “accidentally” boast, showing off subtly.

It was quite aggravating.

There was Professor Liu in the mathematics department, and now Professor Jin in the physics department, both of whom seemed to hate him enough to bite him.

“What do you mean ‘upset’?!” Professor Jin was so angry he nearly jumped, his mustache quivering and eyes wide.

Professor Tan calmly replied: “Isn’t that what it is?”

“I recognize Student Gu Xue Jiao’s talent for physics!”

“Hehe, I also recognize Student Chu Sheng’s talent for physics.” Professor Tan remained extremely calm.

Professor Jin glared and asked Xue Jiao: “Student Gu Xue Jiao, you’re about to finish your freshman year, which is a good time to change majors. Our physics department has won many awards in recent years and is doing very well. Plus, we have young professors. Your mathematics department just has a bunch of old fogies with no future succession. You should come to the physics department. See how good the physics department is? The projects are also very interesting. If you come over, I’ll apply for you and Chu Sheng to use this laboratory!”

“Xue Jiao, you should understand your talent for mathematics.” Professor Tan countered.

Professor Jin sneered: “Proving Fermat is indeed impressive, but you can prove things in physics too. Our physics department also has many difficult problems.”

He noticed the stack of thick physics materials Xue Jiao was holding: “See? The more you research physics, the more you like it, right? If you come to the physics department, under my guidance, you’ll have a chance to win the Chinese Physical Society Award!”

His voice was persuasive as he continued to promise various benefits.

He spoke until his mouth was dry, making Xue Jiao extremely uncomfortable.

Meanwhile, Professor Tan calmly said—

“Student Gu Xue Jiao, congratulations on winning the 16th Chen Shing-Shen Mathematics Award.”