As the words fell, the entire laboratory went momentarily silent, where even breathing could be heard.

Even Xue Jiao was stunned, her eyes turning bewildered.

What? The Chen Shing-Shen Mathematics Award? Was this a joke?

Professor Tan continued with a smile: “I just received the news not long ago and haven’t had time to announce it yet. The other recipient is a mathematics professor from Peking University. Your class has produced two golden surprises for this mathematics award.”

“Is… is this real?” Xue Jiao stammered.

Professor Tan nodded, his lips curving upward, though he was trying to restrain himself.

“Yes!”

Xue Jiao still found it hard to believe. She knew about the Chen Shing-Shen Mathematics Award. Though it was a youth award, winning it as a student was extremely difficult.

Seemingly noticing her doubt, Professor Tan explained—

“Gu Xue Jiao, being able to prove Fermat’s Last Theorem using another method is worthy of being recorded in mathematical history. Perhaps you’re not yet formidable enough, but this proof alone makes you deserving of this award. However, mathematics is boundless. Though this award has been given to you, your mathematical research shouldn’t stop here. Having received this honor, you must live up to it.”

Xue Jiao was momentarily dazed, then firmly nodded: “Yes! I’ll work even harder!”

Professor Tan smiled kindly.

Beside them, Professor Jin’s face turned from white to black, then from black to white.

As the first Tsinghua student to receive this award, he should be happy, as it was also an honor for the school.

However…

Why didn’t Tan Zhongying mention this earlier?? Why did he have to wait until he had finished boasting, only to pretend to be calm when announcing it?

Wasn’t this just provocation?!

Wasn’t he just trying to slap him in the face?!

This bastard!

Professor Jin gritted his teeth, suppressing the urge to bite Tan Zhongying to death.

“Professor Jin, you see, Gu Xue Jiao is still better suited to continue studying mathematics. You’re just wasting your effort.” Professor Tan smiled as he looked at Professor Jin.

Professor Jin spat out through gritted teeth: “Tan Zhongying!”

“Hmm? Does Professor Jin have something else to say?” Professor Tan looked at him.

“Nothing! Goodbye!” After saying this, he turned and strode away.

Professor Jin had known about Fermat’s Last Theorem during his student years but hadn’t paid much attention to it. After graduation, he continued his physics research. He knew that Fermat’s Last Theorem had high value but hadn’t imagined it could be high enough to directly win a major mathematics award.

If he had known earlier that Gu Xue Jiao could win this award, he wouldn’t have come to entice her to transfer to the physics department even if it killed him!

This was a promising talent in the mathematics world. If she were to be held back because of him…

He would want to strangle himself!

How could he possibly lure her into the physics department now?

Professor Jin left with resentment toward Professor Tan, leaving only Professor Tan and the three students in the office.

Professor Tan smiled at Xue Jiao: “Gu Xue Jiao, come to my office at noon. Let’s talk about the award ceremony.”

“Okay… okay…” Xue Jiao nodded hurriedly, still feeling somewhat dazed.

Professor Tan nodded and walked out with a smile, his steps light, showing no signs of his advanced age.

Xue Jiao was his student, and the higher her achievements, the happier he became.

Admittedly, being able to win this major award this year involved some coincidental factors, but Xue Jiao’s efforts and abilities were also an undeniable part!

Professor Tan hummed a tune as he left in a good mood.

Xue Jiao’s emotions were very complex. On one hand, she was naturally excited, but on the other hand, she felt somewhat panicked, feeling that she wasn’t worthy of this honor.

This fluctuating mood made her feel restless, but this was an emotion she had to overcome.

At this moment, Chu Sheng came over and slapped Xue Jiao’s shoulder: “Well done! Ahhhhh that’s the Chen Shing-Shen award! Gu Xue Jiao, how are you so amazing?!”

Zheng Jiakun also wore a smile, giving her two thumbs up, then said with a laugh: “Gu Xue Jiao, you’re great. I also need to work hard to catch up to you!”

Xue Jiao smiled embarrassedly and said softly: “Let’s get started.”

Zheng Jiakun raised an eyebrow: “With such big news, you still have time to think about physics?”

“We still need to work.” She paused, “I can’t stop doing everything just because I won an award.”

Xue Jiao grinned, revealing two rows of neat white teeth, her eyes sparkling.

Zheng Jiakun unconsciously smiled along, then silently gave his little junior sister a thumbs up in his heart.

In the prime of youth, people rarely think long-term. Things might look glorious now, but momentary honors can’t sustain a lifetime. Life is like rowing against the current; not advancing means retreating.

She had this quality—even with glory bestowed upon her, she still remembered her responsibilities, remembered the present moment, and cherished every second.

This was a rare quality, and also a necessary condition for reaching the peak of life’s mountain.

Zheng Jiakun moved closer and started talking with them—

“Where’s the magnetic field measuring device?”

“In the cabinet below your right hand, look for it.”

“Oh, okay, I see it.”

“By the way, Senior Sister Zhang Han said yesterday…”

…

In the laboratory, work continued.

——

The impact of winning the award on Xue Jiao was that she got more attention, and she heard her name mentioned many times on the radio.

Additionally, there were more media interviews. Xue Jiao had never been fond of accepting interviews, but under Professor Tan’s arrangement, she accepted an interview with the school and then took many photos with her certificate at the school gate.

Perhaps because of the approaching finals, coupled with the project still being in its infancy, Xue Jiao hurried about every day and wasn’t much affected by the “honor.”

“Yesterday, the senior brothers and sisters from the mathematics department found me again, insisting on joining…” Chu Sheng sighed as he drew a diagram.

Xue Jiao was slightly puzzled: “Ge Donglin and Zeng Bin?”

“Yes, it’s them. Their desire was even stronger than last time.”

Zheng Jiakun shook his head: “No need. We have enough people for our project now. Physics is fine, but for mathematics, Gu Xue Jiao and I are enough. Others won’t work.”

When he said “won’t work,” he simply meant they weren’t suitable for this project.

Chu Sheng nodded, fully agreeing. He had already been bothered by those two people, but since they were from the mathematics department, he still wanted to hear Zheng Jiakun and Xue Jiao’s opinions.

Seeing that neither of them wanted to include those two, he sighed in relief: “Alright, then I’ll reject them directly next time.”

Nearby, Gu Xue Jiao called out: “Chu Sheng, Senior Brother, come look at this!”

“Coming!” Both quickly walked over to her side.

——

Xue Jiao was very busy, needing to prepare for final exams and work on the project. She wished she could split her time in two.

Cheng Mingze was in a similar situation, and Cheng Shuo had to go to work every day.

The housewife Li Sitong suddenly found herself with free time and began to make plans with some newly acquainted ladies.

“Sitong! Hurry up, hurry up, Sister Xu is taking us to a big event today!”

While fixing her hair, Li Sitong asked with confusion: “Sister Lu, weren’t we going for beauty treatments? How did Sister Xu get involved?”

Lu Ling grabbed her and spoke rapidly: “Originally, we were just going for beauty treatments together, but Sister Xu said in the group chat that they were about to have afternoon tea with those ladies from the upper circles, and she’s willing to bring us along!”

Lu Ling’s voice carried excitement as if this were some great opportunity.

Li Sitong felt somewhat embarrassed. Originally in C City, she had been considered quite well-off, but now in Beijing, things were completely different, upside down.

At most, she would be considered middle-class now. She hadn’t interacted with the circles of the upper-class wealthy.

“Is that appropriate…?”

“Why not?” Lu Ling widened her eyes, “It’s only because your Cheng CEO cherishes you. For the rest of us wives, aren’t we all supporting our husbands behind the scenes? Helping them socialize? Networking, networking—you need to establish some connections to weave a network!”

Li Sitong’s mindset immediately changed. She had been raised as a lady from a good family and didn’t understand business matters at all, but she was eager to help Cheng Shuo!

So Li Sitong quickened her pace, got into Lu Ling’s car, and asked, “Who will be there?”

Lu Ling shook her head and replied: “I don’t know if everyone will go, but there will be the district chief’s wife, Huaming’s boss’s wife Mrs. Luo, and Yixia’s boss’s wife. I haven’t heard who else, but I heard there will be quite a few people, having afternoon tea at Sister Qin’s clubhouse.”

“Ah? That kind of gathering? Is it okay for us to go?” Li Sitong was afraid that by forcibly joining such an occasion, she might instead invite resentment from the other ladies.

Lu Ling covered her mouth and laughed lightly: “Sitong, think about it. If she couldn’t bring us, would Sister Xu have agreed to take us?”

Li Sitong was stunned for a moment, but then realized it made sense. Sister Xu was a diplomatic woman with strong social skills who never offended anyone, but if someone had no value to her, she wouldn’t be overly enthusiastic either.

Cheng Shuo had once said that the world was just like that—if you were strong, more people would treat you with genuine warmth, but if you were weak, you would experience coldness and all facets of life.

Because of this, Cheng Shuo had said that if Li Sitong didn’t want to socialize with those wives, that was fine. He wasn’t pursuing anything special, and even if he were, he could work for it himself.

But the more he said this, the more Li Sitong wanted to be helpful to Cheng Shuo and not hold him back.

“Alright…”

Lu Ling moved closer to her and lowered her voice: “Speaking of which, Sister Xu is quite fond of showing off and is quite snobbish…”

“Is that so? I’m not very familiar with her, but she seems alright to me.” Li Sitong evaded the topic. She could see that Sister Xu was snobbish.

But Li Sitong, not considering herself very intelligent, didn’t dare to speak ill of others.

Cheng Shuo once said that if you don’t want others to know, don’t do it yourself. When speaking ill of others, it’s easy to get excited and say too much.

This could easily sow the seeds of trouble. If you can control your own mouth, you can avoid many problems.

“You’re just too naive. Your husband treats you too well. Look at Sister Xu, she’s also just a housewife from an ordinary background, but with her social skills, she’s managed to maintain her position as Mrs. Jiao for so many years. How could she not have some tricks up her sleeve? Especially since Mr. Jiao is quite a womanizer.”

Lu Ling spoke with disdain. Li Sitong tried her best not to show any reaction on her face, but inside, she felt an indescribable sensation.

“Also just a housewife from an ordinary background?”

Was this implying that her background was ordinary?

She forced a smile: “Sister Xu is quite clever.”

“That’s not cleverness, that’s being calculated! Mr. Jiao’s capabilities aren’t much better than my husband’s, but look at her—not only is she well-received in our circle, but she can even connect with the upper circles!” Lu Ling changed her tone, “But being too opportunistic isn’t good either. Look at the Yu family’s situation now, it’s lamentable.”

“The Yu family… they…” Li Sitong couldn’t help but comment.

She thought of her daughter’s classmate, Xue Jiao, that young and obedient girl who smiled so gently and gracefully.

Li Sitong liked such girls—hardworking and diligent, who got into Tsinghua through their efforts. Unfortunately, in the end…

While the Yu family might not bear full responsibility, they certainly created most of the mess!

“Hasn’t the Yu family always been like this? Look at their son now, gone crazy, desperately trying to earn money by flattering others—what for? I heard their son is now severely disturbed, and they’re planning to sell their company and take him abroad, leaving this place of heartbreak.” Lu Ling shook her head with a look of lament.

Li Sitong reflected: “Children should like what they like, and like whoever they like. I used to be forceful with my child too, but now I think it’s better to let her follow her heart; it might be even better that way.”

Wasn’t that how it was with her and Jiaojiao? Initially, they argued every day, and she wanted to have a say in everything Jiaojiao did. In the end, she realized it was better to speak calmly and let Jiaojiao make her own decisions.

Fortunately, both she and Jiaojiao had awakened early enough, preventing irreparable and terrible consequences.

“Families like ours are still okay, but look at those upper-class families—how many of their younger generation have married ‘Cinderellas’? Even if our daughters wanted to marry into better families, it wouldn’t be easy.” Lu Ling waved her hand dismissively.

Li Sitong said nothing more, thinking of Jiaojiao and Lin Zhihua.

Could that man protect Jiaojiao and prevent others from gossiping about her?

“Oh right!” Lu Ling seemed to remember something and asked casually: “I heard you held a graduation celebration for your daughter last year, and Lin Zhihua attended?”

Li Sitong nodded: “Yes.”

“You’re keeping secrets! How do you know Lin Zhihua? He doesn’t usually participate in such events, yet he attended as soon as you came to Beijing?” Lu Ling was asking this on behalf of her husband. Even though the event had happened long ago they hadn’t seen any collaboration between them.

But it was still prudent to ask and gather more information.

Li Sitong touched her temples and said softly: “We’re all from C City…”

“Oh!” Lu Ling’s face showed sudden realization, “Lin’s company has progressed so quickly, and Lin Zhihua moves fast too. I almost thought Lin’s company was a Beijing native! They only moved here a few years ago…”

Li Sitong smiled without saying anything.

The two chatted as they slowly arrived at the clubhouse entrance.

Lu Ling called Sister Xu, and soon, another middle-aged woman walked out with a furrowed brow.

Lu Ling immediately changed her demeanor from earlier, smiling as she approached the woman and took her hand: “Sister Xiang! Long time no see!”

This so-called Sister Xiang glanced at Lu Ling and Li Sitong behind her, offering only a forced smile: “If you’re coming, you should hurry up. The district chief’s wife and Sister Rong are already here!”

“I’m so sorry, there was a bit of traffic!” Lu Ling said as she followed Sister Xiang straight in.

Li Sitong stood at the entrance for a moment before reluctantly following them in.

Inside was quite lively. Li Sitong was about to sit down anywhere when someone called out to her as soon as she entered.

“Sister—”

Li Sitong was startled and looked up, meeting a face that was both familiar and unfamiliar.

“Come here, come here, sit next to me!” The person extended a hand, and Li Sitong awkwardly approached.

“You are…?” she asked tentatively.

“We met at the supermarket, don’t you remember?” The person blinked, and after a long moment, Li Sitong finally recalled the older sister she had met at the supermarket who wanted to buy vegetables but didn’t know how.

Seeing a familiar face, Li Sitong couldn’t help but smile: “Big sister, it’s you!”

Lu Ling, who was trying to make conversation, exclaimed in surprise: “Sitong, you know Sister Rong, the boss of Lin’s company?”

“Huh? Lin’s company?” Li Sitong was puzzled.

Beside her, Lin’s mother smiled and said: “Sister, I am Zhihua’s mother!”

Lin Zhihua’s mother!

Li Sitong was extremely shocked, her eyes widening, momentarily at a loss for words.

Sister Xu smiled beside them: “So Sister Rong knows Sitong!”

Lin’s mother smiled brightly and said something that shocked everyone—

“Of course, we know each other! We’re future in-laws.”

“What?!” Lu Ling, being the least experienced in such circles, immediately raised her voice.

Lin’s mother took Li Sitong’s hand and smiled: “Yes, Zhihua and Jiaojiao are dating. Zhihua used to have very high standards and wouldn’t date anyone, but now he’s finally fallen for Sitong’s daughter Jiaojiao. It’s put my mind at ease!”

The others stared at the two with open mouths. Wasn’t Lin Zhihua unable to have contact with women?

“It’s just that Jiaojiao is still young. When Jiaojiao turns twenty next year, we’ll let them get married. My husband and I aren’t getting any younger, and we want them to give us a grandchild to look after soon! Having a child in my old age would make me content, hahaha!” Lin’s mother laughed heartily.

The others’ expressions gradually turned puzzled. Having children? Could it be that Lin Zhihua… had no issues after all?

For a moment, Li Sitong’s face became quite unpleasant. She took a deep breath to keep her tone even: “They’ve just started dating, and Jiaojiao is still in school. There’s no rush. At least wait until Jiaojiao graduates from university. We can’t decide on their marriage anyway.”

Lin’s mother patted Li Sitong’s hand with a worried expression: “I understand that, but Zhihua isn’t young anymore. He wasn’t willing to date before, which led to some unsavory rumors outside. Getting married and having a child soon would silence those gossiping mouths, and Jiaojiao wouldn’t have to work so hard either.”

Li Sitong couldn’t help but withdraw her hand, smiling as she said: “Neither her father nor I can make decisions for her. It’s up to her. Besides, those rumors are false and will eventually be disproved on their own. There’s no need to rush to prove anything.”

She was furious. What kind of talk was this?

To clear Lin Zhihua’s name, Jiaojiao had to marry him at twenty.

Li Sitong’s attitude made Lin’s mother’s face change, looking displeased.

Sister Xu quickly mediated: “Those rumors outside shouldn’t be taken seriously. Zhihua will marry eventually, so there’s no need to worry about it.”

“That’s right, that’s right, no need to worry.”

“How could anyone believe those rumors!”

“Indeed.”

…

Lin’s mother inwardly sneered. Weren’t they the ones spreading those rumors most viciously?

Today, she was determined to regain her dignity!

“Our Zhihua is good in every way, just a bit aloof. Now he’s finally found a girl he likes, and coincidentally, Sitong’s daughter Jiaojiao is someone I like very much too! Getting married early isn’t bad. Jiaojiao still has three years until graduation, by then Zhihua will be 31!” Lin’s mother looked at Li Sitong with a worried expression.

Li Sitong could barely maintain a smile: “Jiaojiao is too young. There’s no rush for marriage. Zhihua isn’t that old either, and young people marry late these days.”

“I like Jiaojiao, but young people nowadays have too many variables. Jiaojiao still has three years until graduation. She’s at school every day, and Zhihua is working. If he falls for another girl I don’t like, that would be troublesome! I like Jiaojiao so much, it would be better to settle things early so I can have peace of mind. Jiaojiao will turn 20 next August, we can have a grand wedding then!” Lin’s mother smiled again, twisting the bracelet on her wrist.

Li Sitong took a deep breath: “I don’t make decisions for the children, and next year is too early for marriage.”

Lin’s mother’s face turned colder. After a moment, she stood up with a smile and said: “Sitong, by the way, I have a gift for you, but I left it in the car. Let’s go get it together.”

Li Sitong stood up and agreed: “Alright.”

She didn’t want to stay inside either.

The two walked out, and almost as soon as they passed through the door, Lin’s mother looked sternly at Li Sitong: “Sitong, I like you very much too. My husband and I don’t have any prejudices about family background. If Zhihua likes Jiaojiao, we support them. But don’t you know how people are talking about Zhihua outside? Only by setting a wedding date can we clear his name! You just directly rejected me, which will make others think there’s something wrong with Zhihua. Otherwise, why would you avoid the topic!”

Li Sitong took a deep breath: “This isn’t about whether Zhihua has an issue or not. Without getting approval from Jiaojiao and Zhihua, how can we arbitrarily set their wedding date? Besides, Jiaojiao is only a freshman this year! Next August, she won’t even have started her junior year!”

“Are you suggesting that Zhihua must have your Jiaojiao and no one else? You can’t just look at it from Jiaojiao’s perspective; you should also consider Zhihua’s situation!” Lin’s mother’s face had completely cooled.

Li Sitong didn’t back down: “Lin Zhihua has never told me he wants to marry Jiaojiao next year.”

“Zhihua’s body has no issues. He doesn’t necessarily need your Gu Xue Jiao.” Lin’s mother’s eyes narrowed.

“Then you should discuss this with Lin Zhihua.”

After saying this, Li Sitong turned and left.

She was very angry but also knew she had offended Lin’s mother today.

Li Sitong took a taxi to Cheng Shuo’s company, going straight to his office to tell him everything.

“I offended Lin’s mother… but I don’t want Jiaojiao to get married so early…”

A vein throbbed on Cheng Shuo’s forehead as he suddenly stood up and swept everything off his desk onto the floor—

“You did nothing wrong! What is she thinking? To prove that Lin Zhihua has no issues, she wants Jiaojiao to marry him for everyone to see. Can that prove anything? Is the next step having Jiaojiao give Lin Zhihua a child to prove it?!”

Li Sitong was stunned. She had been so focused on being angry about the early marriage that she hadn’t thought it through.

If they married next year, would they also be pressured to have a child next year?

“I said before that Jiaojiao is still young, and we shouldn’t publicly announce her relationship with him. This Lin’s mother is going too far!”

Cheng Shuo looked at Li Sitong—

“Sitong, message Jiaojiao. Tonight, she’s not allowed to ride in Lin Zhihua’s car to come home. I’m going to pick her up!”