Rebirth 08: Equipment God

Chapter 421 Heading Towards 2010
The fleeting joy and surprise cannot break the tense rhythm of the original exam.

Zhai Da, Lu Wei, and everyone at π are still fighting a tough battle, even a bad one.

As it turns out, geniuses are also human, and they can also break down. For example, news came from Cheng Mo, the "Turing," that he was 30 minutes late one day because he overslept, which counted as missing an exam.

This was a huge blow to him, who had always lived by the motto of "elegance (pretentiousness)," and he was completely devastated.
As for Sun Ting, nicknamed "Strawberry Candy," her period caused her to curl up like a shrimp in pain during the exam. As a result, the course that she should have passed with a high score turned into a low score, and she might even fail if she's unlucky.

However, everyone had no choice but to bear it and grit their teeth and persevere under the pressure.

Finally, when December 31st arrived, everyone had a chance to catch their breath.

We'll have a holiday for New Year's Day.

The proctors also need to rest during the three-day holiday. The exams will resume on January 4th, and then continue for another three days before the holiday ends on the 6th.

Of course, for ordinary students, their exam week is basically over, and they will most likely be having fun during the New Year's Day holiday.

Those who raise fish eat fish, those who raise dogs walk dogs, and those who make clowns make clowns.

For the "π" members, the three-day holiday was definitely still mainly for exam preparation. However, considering how hard everyone was working for the "half-year agreement", Zhai Da still organized a New Year's Eve event for "π" and the research institute.

The location was inside the research institute. Zhai Da instructed the personnel department to decorate the place and prepare some small activities and gifts.

It is said that the place is already covered with festive decorations, and small red lights are hung all over the place with the layout of an indoor town, especially at night when the main lights are turned off and the place is illuminated by dim yellow lights.

It felt like being in a Greek coastal village at night, breathtakingly beautiful.

Even the tree canopy on the first floor of the "Execution of Old Elm" building was covered with red lanterns.

Hopefully the atmosphere won't be too eerie.
Yueda Catering decided not to organize any group activities to avoid disrupting work, as they would be even busier on New Year's Eve. However, they still gave red envelopes to employees in Harbin and other locations.

At 6 p.m., after finishing his last exam, Zhai Da picked up Lu Wei, who was in a different exam room, at Zhengxin Building, and they drove together towards the research institute.

"I still have four exams left, and you have three. Things will be a bit easier after New Year's Day, and then it's time for the defense. The school has specially arranged for several teachers to participate."

Lu Wei sat in the passenger seat, rubbing her cold, smooth hands together. Her slender fingers and clean, nude nails slightly attracted Zhai Da's attention.

Xiao Mutou said softly, "I've already shown my thesis to my supervisor, and he said I can be exempted from the defense."

Zhai Da laughed indifferently: "I can't do it. After all, my thesis is far inferior to yours. I still have to rely on the defense and go through the process honestly."

It was a tired joke; Xiao Mutou didn't understand it, and Zhai Da didn't care.

The car slowly drove out of the school gate. It happened to be the peak time for going out to play tonight, and the school gate was full of students waiting for cars, people, and buses.

Seeing that familiar black sedan and the vaguely discernible, aloof profile of the passenger, many people began to imagine: how much fun they would have tonight.
The boys imagined Zhai Da's happiness, while the girls imagined Lu Wei's happiness.

Amidst the blatant or furtive glances from many in the crowd, the black luxury car unexpectedly stopped in front of them.

Zhai Da rolled down the car window and called out loudly, "Want a ride?"

The girl who was closest to her was completely stunned for a long time, and she pointed to herself in disbelief.

The toes inside the boots were instinctively clenched tightly.

Is this an invitation for me to have fun?

Although her mind was filled with rejection and modesty, her hand had already unconsciously risen to reach for the car door.

That makes perfect sense, doesn't it? After all, I have thin legs! Everyone in the country knows this person likes thin legs!

Then a small girl popped out from behind and hopped open the car door.

Ge Qiaoqiao: "I was freezing! You saved my life!"

The girl was stunned for a while, then breathed a sigh of relief, but also seemed a little regretful.

Whether it's about finding happiness or becoming someone else's happiness is another matter.

Getting to know each other would be enough to brag about in the dorm for a year.
However, after Ge Qiaoqiao got into the car, the black luxury car still didn't leave. Zhai Da was still smiling at the outside and said, "Don't hesitate! Didn't I see you were about to get in? Hurry up, there's room for four people!"

The girl's brain went blank for the second time.
If the first time is still a coincidence, then the second time, if one does not accept the opportunity, one will suffer the consequences.
Excuse me, could you please move aside?

Lu Tao squeezed in from the back somewhat shyly and opened the car door under everyone's gaze.

Ge Qiaoqiao moved further inside, surprised, and said, "Huh? You were here just now? How come I didn't see you?"

Lu Tao scratched his cheek: "Maybe it's because we're not on the same layer? I did see you though."

Given Ge Qiaoqiao's height, she has to start looking at everyone from their philtrum; without looking up, it's really hard to tell them apart.

He spotted two companions in the crowd and slowly rolled up the car window to leave. Then he noticed a girl in boots with a slightly stiff expression. He wondered if the exhaust fumes were bothering her. At the last moment before closing the window, he politely nodded in acknowledgment.
"excuse me."

Then he slowly left.

The car headed towards the research institute, and everyone was looking forward to the evening's activities.

After all, this was the only time I'd relaxed in the past two weeks.
They chatted and laughed all the way, but it was mostly Ge Qiaoqiao who did the talking while the others laughed; she was particularly talkative.

"President, I remember your new book is being released tomorrow, right? What's it about?"

"Yes, it will be released on January 1.1st. It's a youth romance story. Remember to buy a few copies. Don't be fooled by the title and cover. I'm playing with contrast."

"I'll definitely go and support it. By the way, I heard there are prizes at tonight's event? What are they?"

Zhai Da: "Five-day Hainan tour, all-inclusive (flight and hotel), five-star hotel, family welcome." "Huh?"

Ge Qiaoqiao stared wide-eyed: "My God! My luck is amazing today! I definitely have a chance, is it through a lottery?"

"No, it's about who can reach the highest point."

Ge Qiaoqiao:
"Just kidding, there are quite a few mini-games, I don't know the specifics, but the prize is definitely this, you can give it a try."

Ge Qiaoqiao felt a little better after that.

The car stopped in the open space in front of Building 9 in the industrial park. Zhai Da saw a Coaster parked on the edge and wondered if someone was coming to inspect the area today, or if leaders from Harbin were coming to offer their New Year's greetings.

During this period, I've been leaving all the trivial matters to my colleagues and haven't paid any attention to them.

Especially since he was determined to move, he seemed to be avoiding the leaders of Harbin.

Just then, an Audi A8 and a Mercedes-Benz E300 drove in. Wu Yue and Cheng Mo got out one after the other, along with Qi Lin and Sun Ting, who were hitching a ride with Cheng Mo.

Zhai Da waved his hand: "What a coincidence? Let's go in together."

Cheng Mo pushed up his glasses: "Maybe it's because we both finished our last exam at the same time?"

Zhai Da looked at the car and gave it a thumbs up: "Nice car, congratulations on picking it up."

Cheng Mo rarely showed a shy smile: "It's all thanks to the president's guidance."

This is a sincere statement.

Zhai Da patted him on the shoulder: "It's just mutual benefit. Let's go, don't stay out here starving."

The group walked together and entered the factory building.

From afar, the first thing you see is that huge, decorated tree canopy.

The people at the research institute really liked "Yu Xiaobai" and put a lot of effort into the decorations. They even used ladders to hang dozens of lanterns across the seven- or eight-meter-wide tree canopy, along with red ribbons hanging down, making it quite a sight from afar.

Given the height of the tree canopy, a regular ladder won't be enough; they'll probably have to find an engineering ladder, and it'll probably take several hours to complete.

Lu Tao tilted his head back and said, "This style is not bad; I didn't think of it during the initial design phase."

Sun Ting exclaimed, "This is much prettier than any Christmas tree! Xiaobai thinks it looks like the matchmaking tree from a movie!"

Only Zhai Da stroked his chin, wondering why he thought of the "Tree Demon Granny" from Lanruo Temple.
No, no, no. [Execution of Old Elm] Apart from not being able to move, if planted upright, it would probably be stronger than the Tree Demon Granny.

Ge Qiaoqiao suddenly suggested, "2009 is about to end and 2010 is coming soon. This is called the 21st century decade. To commemorate entering a new era, let's all visit the research institute today. After all, we probably won't be here for New Year's Eve next year."

As he spoke, he took out a black metal card from his pocket. This card was one of the access cards for the research institute, which could also be used for swiping and clocking in, but it was the most special one.

It is indeed quite memorable, or rather, on New Year's Eve, everyone will have more feelings and more thoughts.

Lu Tao subconsciously pulled out his wallet: "Luckily I brought it today."

Cheng Mo silently took out his employee badge, which was tied with a string and had a black metal card on the back, and showed it to everyone.

Qi Lin, Sun Ting, and Wu Yue fumbled for a moment and found their cards. Zhai Da and Lu Wei exchanged a smile. He naturally had one, while Lu Wei always carried it with her because Zhai Da had made it by hand.

Several young people chatted and laughed, holding up cards as they walked deeper into the area.

Until, after passing through the narrow factory space, until under that festive canopy of trees...
"Huh? Someone's here?! Who are you guys?"

Ge Qiaoqiao, who was walking the fastest, looked up at the figure in a wheelchair ahead, gazing at the treetops with a puzzled expression.

Beside the old man were several other figures: an elderly woman, a middle-aged woman, and two young men.

But no one's presence can surpass that of the person in the wheelchair.

Hearing the sound, the old man turned around and looked at a group of young people stepping into a new era.

With a kind smile, she said, "Me? I'm also someone who wants to step into a new era!"

Ge Qiaoqiao saw the person's face clearly, recognized him in a daze for a moment, and then froze, dropping the card in her hand to the ground.

Zhai Da stood there, stunned, unable to believe his eyes.
"Teacher!!! What's wrong?"

How could a teacher who has been bedridden for decades be able to travel in a wheelchair, especially in the dead of winter, when he came to this icy city!

Thinking back on the past month or so, my contact with my teacher has been intermittent. It's common for her not to answer the phone; most of our communication has been via text message. I've just kept telling myself: everything is normal, I'm just recovering.
He was somewhat doubtful, but he was so busy he couldn't possibly go to northern Beijing.
This is not normal! How did she suddenly sit up?!
Zhai Da quickly stepped forward and carefully examined the all-too-familiar face, seeing a vitality far greater than ever before.

I feel even healthier than I did in the days after my teacher woke up.

However, he still shook his teacher's hand to see if the old man was cold, and then looked at the group of people who were with him with a question in his eyes.

The people who came with the teacher were undoubtedly his wife, Xiao Liu from the guard squad, the caregiver, and the teacher's grandson, Qian Lei.

When the other members of "π" saw the visitor's face, they were stunned for a moment before their jaws dropped to the floor.
Good heavens! People from textbooks, history books, and biographies are right in front of me!!!

The president even called him "teacher"!
Only Mr. Qian remained calm, his piercing gaze sweeping over the group of energetic young people, a hint of expectation and satisfaction appearing in his eyes.

Finally, the warmest gaze fell on Zhai Da, and he smiled:

"My students are graduating soon, how can I, as their teacher, not come and check on them? Xiao Zhai, how's your defense preparation going? Can I come and listen in?"

Zhai Da:
It's not too late to revise the paper now.
(End of this chapter)