godfather of surgery

Chapter 1268 Idol
"Let me calm down."

Chen Xiao stood at the entrance of the Sanbo Research Institute, feeling extremely excited.

After returning to China this time, he did not go directly to see Yang Ping. Instead, he worked in Huang Jiacai's cell wall breaking laboratory for a period of time, contributing his efforts to the cell wall breaking project. Now that the technology he was in charge of has been finalized and stabilized, he felt that he could come to see Yang Ping.

Consider my contribution to the Breakthrough Project as a gift to my idol, Professor Yang.

"Let's go!"

Chen Xiao straightened his wrinkled collar and stepped inside, personally led by Huang Jiacai.

After they announced their names at the front desk, Jiang Jitong quickly stepped out of the elevator and warmly led them upstairs. "General Manager Huang, Dr. Chen, and Professor Yang are waiting for you in the lab. He specifically instructed that you go directly there as soon as you arrive."

These words made Chen Xiao even more excited. Was Professor Yang waiting for him? This feeling of being valued made him even more uneasy and expectant.

Stepping out of the elevator and into the laboratory, the interior was bright and clean, a far cry from the rudimentary state he had imagined due to the "makeshift" approach.

The air was filled with a vibrant scientific atmosphere, and the researchers who came and went walked briskly, each one full of passion.

After passing through several quiet corridors, separated by thick, transparent glass walls, Chen Xiao saw that familiar figure—his idol.

Professor Yang Ping wasn't wearing a white lab coat, just a simple dark shirt. He was slightly bent over a sophisticated cell manipulation table, intently observing the data flowing on the screen. His profile was sharply defined, his brows slightly furrowed, and he exuded a calm power of deep thought.

Jiang Jitong gently knocked on the door. Yang Ping looked up, his gaze piercing through the glass and landing precisely on Chen Xiao.

In that instant, Chen Xiao felt his breath catch in his throat.

Yang Ping's eyes were sharp and clear, as if they could see through all appearances. He straightened up, a gentle smile on his face, and walked over quickly, personally opening the laboratory door.

"Chen Xiao? Welcome back to China!" Yang Ping extended his hand, his palm warm and strong, his voice calm and reassuring. "You must be tired from your journey. Elder Xiang and Dean Li both told me that they had sent us a powerful weapon, but I didn't expect you to arrive so quickly."

"Professor Yang, hello!" Chen Xiao hurriedly grasped Yang Ping's hand, his voice trembling slightly with excitement. He, who usually spoke eloquently at international conferences, was now somewhat incoherent. "It's no trouble at all! It's an honor to be here and participate in the project you lead! I read all your papers when I was in the United States, especially the one on the three-dimensional spatial gene guidance theory—it was truly amazing..."

He expressed his admiration almost subconsciously, his face flushing slightly with excitement.

"Dr. Chen didn't just return to China; he's been back for a while now, working on the front lines of our Ruixing Laboratory. Now that he's completed the technical breakthrough, he couldn't wait to apply to come to your Sanbo Research Institute. I didn't dare delay, so I sent him over immediately," Huang Jiacai explained from the side.

Looking at the undisguised fervor and sincerity in Chen Xiao's eyes, Yang Ping smiled, gently patted his shoulder, and gestured for him to relax: "Not at all. Your work in nucleic acid drug delivery and CRISPR enzyme directed evolution is also at the forefront of the world. Professor Davidson sent me an email a few days ago, expressing his great regret over your departure. He asked me to take good care of you."

Chen Xiao knew in his heart that his achievements were insignificant compared to Professor Yang's. He had only made some innovations within the existing framework, while Professor Yang had constructed a completely new framework, and his theory would open up a completely new discipline in the future.

Yang Ping's humility instantly eased Chen Xiao's tension. He hadn't expected that Professor Yang not only understood his work but could also pinpoint the core of his research so accurately, and even had exchanges with his mentor.

"Professor, you flatter me..." Chen Xiao said somewhat embarrassedly.

“Come on, don’t just stand there. Let me show you the platform we’re building right now.” Yang Ping turned around naturally and led Chen Xiao into the depths of the laboratory.

"Professor Yang, I'm going to see Dr. Tang and ask him if he has any further needs regarding equipment. You two can talk more." Huang Jiacai saw the person off and then left at the appropriate time.

"Go ahead and get busy. Tang Shun just wanted to have a chat with you. He was just asking when you'd be arriving," Yang Ping said as he walked inside, with Chen Xiao following behind him.

The laboratory is more spacious than it appears from the outside, and is divided into different functional areas, each of which is very well divided.

All areas were filled with brand-new, high-end equipment that gleamed with metal and LCD light. Some young researchers were intently operating the equipment. When they saw Yang Ping, they nodded in greeting, their eyes filled with respect. Then they glanced curiously at Chen Xiao, who was standing next to Yang Ping.

As Yang Ping walked, he explained calmly and frankly, “We are indeed facing bottlenecks in some of our equipment, especially in ultra-precision instruments and certain special biological reagents, which are all blocked. But there’s always a way.” He pointed to a device connected to complex pipelines, “This is a replacement product given to us by General Manager Huang. This device has just been installed and debugged. The other equipment is all domestically produced. Now our equipment and instruments have been completely replaced. These devices can fully support our research. Individual units do lag behind the international top-tier ones, but our integration capabilities are very strong. By connecting these devices into one unit, the overall performance is not much worse than the international top-tier ones.”

Chen Xiao was filled with awe. He had always used state-of-the-art equipment in the MIT lab, never imagining that such cutting-edge research could be conducted with domestically produced equipment. This creativity, bursting forth even under constraints, gave him a research passion completely different from that found in resource-rich environments abroad. "It's incredible!" Chen Xiao exclaimed sincerely. "This kind of innovation under extreme conditions is itself the most valuable asset. Relying on others is merely a transition; ultimately, we must have our own platform. A great building cannot be built on someone else's foundation."

Yang Ping nodded, his gaze profound: "Yes, breaking through barriers begins with breaking through the barriers in our own minds. If we become too dependent, we will lose our ability to be independent. Now that we are backed into a corner, it may actually force us to make a more fundamental breakthrough. So we should thank our enemies. Without their urging, we would not have been able to establish our own research platform so quickly."

After touring several core areas of the laboratory, Yang Ping led Chen Xiao to his office. The office wasn't large, but it was filled with books and documents, and the whiteboard was covered with complex formulas and structures. The only luxurious feature was a huge floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the hospital's lush gardens.

The two sat down on the sofa by the window. Jiang Jitong brought over two cups of tea, and the rising steam filled the air.

After a brief silence, Yang Ping got to the point, his eyes confident, focused and penetrating: "Chen Xiao, you mentioned in your email that you have some ideas about the three-dimensional guided gene theory, and I'd like to hear them."

In the current medical and biological field, there are very few people who can truly understand the three-dimensional spatial guidance gene theory, so Yang Ping is sometimes quite lonely.

Chen Xiao's heart skipped a beat. He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, and organized his thoughts: "Professor Yang, I think the most revolutionary aspect of your theory is that it breaks away from the two-dimensional thinking of traditional theories. The traditional theory of stem cells leading to organs has never considered why cells present a precise three-dimensional structure during the process of building the human body. It takes this for granted. Therefore, in the route of stem cells to organs, almost all methods rely on bio-3D printers. I don't deny that this is a feasible route, but it is definitely not the best route. I always believe that the best route is to realize the construction of individual three-dimensional organs by cells through self-division in a laboratory environment, rather than constructing a complete human body."

He spoke faster and faster, his thoughts becoming clearer, his eyes gleaming with excitement: "The development from a fertilized egg into a human body is considered a matter of course. No one has ever thought about why it happens. Biology uses genetics to explain it. Why does an apple grow into an apple instead of a flat pancake? That's right, it's determined by genetic material. But why do cells do it this way? Bricks are used to build a house because the blueprint is like this. But why do the bricks follow the blueprint to build the house? How does it know where it is in space and not make mistakes in the process? This shows that cells don't build randomly. They can build according to the blueprint hidden in the genes. This is the core of the problem."

Yang Ping listened attentively, nodding slightly from time to time, his fingers tapping rhythmically on the sofa armrest—a habit he had when he was listening attentively.

Chen Xiao continued, adding his own understanding: "I've studied your paper. You completed everything from the foundation to the entire structure by yourself, which is truly incredible. This kind of theoretical construction has no mature pre-existing theories to support it, nor any pre-existing theoretical references. Your theory is completely new. You not only proposed the theory but also single-handedly transformed it into practice. The guiding conditions for this kind of spatial guidance gene are crucial. This is why scientists can only clone complete organisms in laboratory environments and cannot replicate organs. Because laboratory conditions do not have the conditions to partially activate the spatial guidance gene. Even the most ideal simulated female uterus environment can only activate the complete guidance gene. That is, once the construction plan is started, it can only build an entire building, not a room or a wall. Your current research not only discovered the spatial guidance gene but also solved the most critical problem at the same time. It can control its opening and closing, and use this opening and closing to release part of its guiding ability, thus completing the cloning of local organs. It's truly amazing."

"If I'm not mistaken, Professor Yang, your next plan is to study how to precisely control this opening and closing, to control its starting point and ending point, so that you can clone any organ you want."

At this point, Chen Xiao paused somewhat embarrassedly: "Of course, these are just some of my immature thoughts..."

“No! You have a deep understanding of the space-oriented gene theory.” Yang Ping suddenly spoke, his voice filled with obvious excitement. He leaned forward slightly, looking intently at Chen Xiao. “Chen Xiao, you have grasped the core and understood the space-oriented gene theory from the underlying logic.”

Yang Ping stood up, walked quickly to the whiteboard, picked up a pen, and began to explain rapidly while drawing, sharing some unpublished details and ideas with Chen Xiao. Chen Xiao immediately moved closer to the whiteboard as well.

Time flew by amidst the clash of ideas, and the water in the teacup cooled down and was refilled, only to cool down again.

Yang Ping shared a great deal about the three-dimensional spatial guidance gene theory, and Chen Xiao was completely immersed in this high-density, high-level academic exchange. He felt his mind was thoroughly opened, and many previously vague ideas became clear in his discussions with Yang Ping, even sparking new insights. Yang Ping was not only knowledgeable and open-minded, but also possessed an amazing ability to simplify complex issues and get straight to the heart of the matter. His perspective on problems often gave Chen Xiao a sudden sense of enlightenment.

After what seemed like an eternity, their discussion finally came to a temporary end, and the office fell silent.

Looking at the scientist before him, a man of similar age but far surpassing him in academic achievement and intellectual depth, Chen Xiao felt an indescribable admiration and respect. To be able to follow such a leader and participate in such a historically significant scientific expedition—what more could one ask for?
An impulse surged into my heart.

Chen Xiao took a step back, faced Yang Ping, and his expression became extremely solemn and earnest. He bowed deeply.

“Professor Yang,” his voice trembled slightly with excitement, but his eyes were incredibly clear and firm, “After talking with you today, I truly understand what it means to be out of your depth. You not only guided me academically, but also showed me the gap between us in terms of research spirit and vision. I… I humbly request that you allow me to formally become your student! I am willing to start as an ordinary researcher and follow in your footsteps. I know this request may be presumptuous…”

This sudden action startled Yang Ping. Looking at this talented and incredibly sincere peer before him, a complex emotion flickered in his eyes. There was surprise, emotion, and even more so, a sense of relief at finding a kindred spirit.

He quickly helped Chen Xiao stand up by supporting his shoulders.

"Chen Xiao, please stop." Yang Ping's voice was gentle yet firm. "We are fellow travelers and comrades-in-arms. In the face of science, those who are skilled take precedence. You have more experience than me in many areas. We should be partners who learn from each other and explore the unknown together."

"No, I beg Professor Yang to grant me this request." Chen Xiao was very persistent.

Yang Ping thought for a moment and said, "How about this, if you need to communicate with me in the future, you can contact me anytime."

"Thank you, teacher!" Chen Xiao seized the opportunity and immediately bowed.

Yang Ping smiled slightly: "Sit down and let's talk. There's no need to be so formal. If you come to our research institute, I'll give you an independent laboratory with unlimited funding. You can assemble your own staff, and I won't interfere with your academic work."

"Teacher!" Chen Xiao called out the title again excitedly, his eyes instantly welling up with tears. At this moment, he felt that he had truly found his home, found a direction and a guide worth fighting for his whole life.