Rebirth 08: Equipment God

Chapter 195 So his name is Yu Lihua?
In a dilapidated but spacious old house in Harbin.

A woman in her sixties deftly tidied up the house, putting summer clothes into a wooden cabinet.

"If you don't exercise every day, how can you not get cold? If you catch a cold, the whole family will suffer."

"She used to be able to do some work, but now she can't do anything and keeps making demands."

The wardrobe door was closed, and the vintage-looking mirror on it reflected the old woman's figure behind her.

An even older man, sitting in a wheelchair.

The elderly man held the TV remote control, his expression one of helplessness, as if to say: "How can I exercise when I'm in a wheelchair?"

They say "old men and young wives are bound to have many troubles," but I never felt that way for decades. Now that I'm really getting old, my wife is still as nimble as ever.

They were disliked everywhere.

"The doctor said you still have a chance to stand up, but you have to put in the effort yourself, instead of lying paralyzed every day."

"And another thing! Xiaofei rarely comes to visit during the National Day holiday, and you made a scene and upset him. Do you think your grandson will still come to see us in the future?"

The old man snorted, "Why should I give you a kind look when you're idle and lazy all day long?"

"You'll regret it when you're old and have no one to care for you."

The old man pursed his lips and chose not to argue, thinking to himself, "Am I not old enough?"
As the old woman was talking, perhaps missing her grandson again, she sat down to the side and made a phone call to her eldest grandson.

The elderly man in the wheelchair kept pressing the remote control, changing TV channels every second. These days, there are fewer and fewer programs and more and more commercials, especially TV shopping, which is impossible to watch.

In the end, they simply gave up and stopped at Harbin TV station.

This kind of city-level TV station exudes a cheap feel in every aspect; the background of the "newsroom" is so faded that the colors have faded. But at least it reports on local events, so watching it can be a way to pass the time.

"The city will begin centralized heating on October 20th, and all departments will do their utmost to ensure that heating is normal, meets standards, and is stable."

"This year, the Ice and Snow World has entered the construction and preparation stage. Ice storage and storage facilities will be put into use. It is expected to receive more than 2000 visitors per day and generate more than 200,000 yuan in daily revenue, which is a significant increase compared to last year."

"In this year's college entrance examination, the top scorer from a small province did not choose to attend Tsinghua University or Peking University, but instead chose Harbin Institute of Technology. The story behind this is actually quite long."

The news piqued the old man's curiosity, and he stopped paying attention to his wife's nagging and looked at the screen.

"Harbin Institute of Technology has really succeeded; they're now recruiting top-scoring students."

On the TV screen, three shots of the Harbin Institute of Technology campus were shown without any apparent reason; locals are very familiar with these things.

The scene then shifted to an ordinary office, where a seemingly energetic young man was being interviewed.

Although the content was somewhat rote, the boy's demeanor was confident and composed, without any stiffness.

The old man in the wheelchair couldn't help but think that the boy's spirit and energy were quite good, much better than his good-for-nothing grandson.

The young man said, "Harbin Institute of Technology is a university with a rich history. After coming here, I deeply felt this (300 words omitted here)."

Reporter: "What made you choose Harbin Institute of Technology?"

The boy said, "First of all, it's because this university is excellent. Secondly, my grandfather has some connection with this place."

The scene shifts again to various parts of the campus, and a voice-over begins to narrate:
"It turns out that Zhai's maternal grandfather, Yu Lihua, had a special connection with Harbin Institute of Technology."

At this moment, a black and white photograph appeared on the screen, showing a tall, middle-aged man smiling at the screen in a rather vintage pose.

In 1959, Yu Lihua, then thirty years old, was admitted to Harbin Institute of Technology, but regrettably could not return to his hometown because of "S Mountain X Township".

The old man squinted at the television for a long time.

Suddenly, like a flash of lightning, many memories flashed through my mind.

His name is Yu Lihua? From the province of Bulk? How could that be!

We clearly have the same accent, no wonder we haven't been able to find each other for so many years.
In his excitement, the remote control fell to the ground with a loud crash.

Hearing the noise, the wife, who was on the phone with her grandson, asked impatiently, "What is it now?"

Turning my head, I saw that my wife, who had been in a wheelchair for months, had actually stood up!

And then he walked step by step toward the television.

"Old man! You! You!!"

On the other end of the phone, the eldest grandson asked in confusion, "Grandma, what's wrong with Grandpa? Don't scare me!"

"Great news! Great news! Your grandfather has passed away! Your grandfather has passed away!"

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Meanwhile, at Harbin Institute of Technology, in the Zhengxin Building on campus.

The teacher hadn't arrived yet, but a lot of people had already gathered in the classroom. Since it was the first period in the afternoon, the air was filled with the aroma of food.

"Damn it! Who's eating stinky tofu in the classroom?! That's so indecent!"

In the front corner, Zhai Da, wearing a dynamic MP3 player, played soothing music to relax, occasionally flipping through the pages of a book. People passing by would subconsciously glance at this popular campus figure, but fewer and fewer people were asking him for autographs anymore.

Everyone has accepted the fact that they have "celebrities" as classmates.

Some people habitually glanced at Zhai Da's side, searching for "Lu Tianxian's" figure, before remembering that today's class was a "quasi-professional course".

Several boys from the Materials Engineering Class 1 walked into the classroom laughing and joking. When they saw Zhai Da, they instinctively sat down next to him, since they were going to try to get a front-row seat anyway.

Don't be fooled by their carefree attitude; when it comes to studying, they are never lax. Anyone who actually believes "I never study" will be thoroughly swayed and won't even recognize their own mother.

Ge Shang sat next to Zhai Da and said warmly, "Boss, I heard you started a gang?"

Zhai Da took off his headphones: "Where did you hear that from?"

He hasn't received any notification, which means the approval process shouldn't be over yet.

However, it's not surprising that the applicant's name was revealed by the busybody student council members beforehand, perhaps due to the special nature of the "π" and the applicant's fame.

Ge Shangdao said, "People on the forum and in the group are also discussing whether applicants must submit novels?"

Zhai Da's lips twitched slightly: "It's writing a 'manuscript,' not writing a 'novel.'"

I'm not a publishing house, I don't need chicken neck novels. Besides, is what you write even readable?

"Oh, maybe I misheard. You know someone has already started writing it."

Zhai Da exclaimed in surprise, "You're very well-informed! You remind me of someone I used to know. Who?"

Ge Shang pointed to himself: "Me."

I take back what I just said; you really are just a clown.
Another voice came from behind. Fat Monk Shen Zixuan tried his best to move forward, but his stomach blocked him from advancing an inch:
"I'm also planning to write one. Zhai Da, do you have any more specific requirements? Can we have an open-book exam?"

Zhai Da turned his head and saw that there were clearly more than one interested person, including several girls who were listening to the conversation.

Zhai Da has a strong appeal, and this model does indeed pique the curiosity of young people, making them feel like they are dealing with some kind of "mysterious organization".

"I don't have any specific requirements. In any field that you consider to have 'talent,' just write a manuscript reflecting your thoughts and insights. However, let me make it clear that simply writing it won't guarantee approval; the process will be quite rigorous."

He proposed this application model with his own design, which could very well become a special mechanism that allows him to quickly filter out "talented people" and "special notebook-type items".

What these people do in the club is not important; what is important is whether they can be discovered by themselves.

Moreover, it comes without any effort; "special items" will float to your hand on their own, even if they are not very effective "notes".

The exact extent of the results and the conversion rate are still unknown.

But he's a genius of ideas!

Ge Shang: "Does playing the clapper count? I got a perfect score on the clapper in my middle school entrance exam."

"Can a clapper talk performance be compiled into a manuscript?"

"You underestimate it, don't you? Clapper talk is an art form; otherwise, where would our textbooks come from?"

"Zhai Da, I did well in high school chemistry, does that count?"

Zhai Da felt a bit of a headache, but he still patiently explained:
"Yes, even if it's only high school level, it's fine. But submitting and getting approved are two different things. Think it over carefully and don't waste your time."

Even with the excellent student body at Harbin Institute of Technology, those who are recognized as "talented" by the system are extremely rare, especially since many of them simply have more hobbies than their peers.

What they possess isn't talent, it's an illusion.

However, the popularity of "π" is much higher than Zhai Da expected, and it is almost certain that he will receive applications from time to time in the future.

Finally, just as Zhai Da was exhausted from answering all the questions, the teacher walked into the classroom, and everyone quieted down.

Today's topic is "engineering drawing," a subject that Zhai Da is very interested in. He has "nimble hands" and a strong talent in this area, but unfortunately, Xu Xuejun taught him only a superficial level when he was in Dongyang County.

Because Old Xu's hands trembled, he couldn't teach by hand drawing for long before getting impatient and went to a corner to smoke.

He listened attentively, and occasionally even drew on his own book. For him, this course was not about learning skills, but about learning the "rules".

Unconsciously absorbed in the course, Zhai Da's phone vibrated slightly.

Worried that Xiao Mutou might come looking for him, Zhai Da secretly peeked under the table.

The caller was "The Great Sage of Accounting".

Zhai Da hesitated for a second.

Press it down.

There are no outstanding accounts that need to be settled with the other party recently.

A short while later, Da Sheng, still unwilling to give up, sent another text message:
"Bro, I need your help urgently. Can you come to the Industrial Innovation Center after school?"

(End of this chapter)