I failed a course, and the system became my study supervisor.

Chapter 27 It rains heavily during Qingming Festival

Having solved the major problem of topic selection, Xu Ling was in a very good mood.

What made Xu Ling feel regretful was that for a period of time afterwards, the schedules of several people could not be coordinated, which resulted in the inability to start the preliminary experimental work.

The team could only hold occasional discussions in the Penguin group. For Xu Ling, the academically gifted team leader, it was always difficult to have a good time.

……

Time passed quietly, and in the blink of an eye it was already the end of March.

One morning, Xu Ling arrived at Zhang Zhongyao's electromagnetism class on time.

Lin Yuxin had been sitting at her desk for quite a while. On the table in front of her was a box of green food, something unknown. She was eating while browsing her phone.

"Do you want to eat?" Seeing Xu Ling coming, Lin Yuxin pursed her lips.

"What is this?" Xu Ling asked with confusion in his eyes.

"Brother! Aren't you from Shanghai? Don't you know this?" Lin Yuxin was a little bit unbelievable.

"Do people from Shanghai have to know each other?" Xu Ling said disapprovingly.

"This is Qingtuan, brother. Isn't it a custom in the Jiangnan region to eat Qingtuan during the Qingming Festival? I, an outsider, know this, but you don't?" Lin Yuxin said speechlessly.

Ok……

This is a bit embarrassing. Could it be that my Shanghai origin is fake?
Impossible! I was born and raised here.

So where does the problem lie?

After pondering for a long time, Xu Ling suddenly understood:
"My mother is from the north. She has never made this for me, nor have I ever bought it outside."

After hearing this explanation, Lin Yuxin nodded in understanding, stopped teasing Xu Ling, and handed him a green dumpling.

The green rice dumpling is crystal green in color, soft and sticky in the mouth, and has a unique fragrance.

Not bad!

Xu Ling liked them very much and asked Lin Yuxin for several of them until she started rolling her eyes.

"If you want to eat it, go buy it yourself!" Lin Yuxin scolded unhappily.

Xu Ling spread his hands and had to give up.

……

After eating Qingtuan, Qingming Festival is just around the corner.

Xu Ling's family has always had the habit of visiting graves on Qingming Festival.

Sure enough, on the first day of the holiday, Xue Yan called.

"Pack your things early tomorrow. Your dad will pick you up at the school gate to pay your respects to your grandparents."

Xue Yan's tone was a little low.

"it is good."

Xu Ling also responded in a deep voice.

……

The next afternoon, at a cemetery on the outskirts of the city.

The sky was a bit gloomy, with a misty drizzle falling, and the air was somewhat dull and oppressive. People holding black umbrellas hurriedly moved among the tombstones.

"Dad, Mom, Guoqiang is here to see you. Yan'er and Ling'er are here too."

"Ling'er is already in college."

"Yan'er and I have stable jobs."

"Life is good now, don't worry about it down there."

……

Xu Guoqiang knelt on one knee in front of the tombstone, muttering constantly, his eyes a little red and his body a little hunched.

Xu Ling followed Xue Yan and stood silently by, holding an umbrella for him.

His grandparents passed away when he was very young, and the only memory he had of them was a photo of them displayed at home. It showed them in ordinary poses, nothing special.

So every time Xu Ling paid tribute to them, he didn't have any strong emotions, but just felt an indescribable sadness in his heart.

Burning paper was not allowed in the city, so Xu Ling could only offer two bouquets of white flowers, insert three red incense sticks, and then bow several times.

The dead are gone, there is no need to change the past.

The family did not indulge in grief. After a short stay, they left the cemetery.

This place is still a bit far from Xu Ling's home, and Xu Guoqiang drove slowly.

"Your grandfather was quite a character. He came from a peasant family and was a Red Guard when he was a teenager."

"But who could have imagined that at the beginning of reform and opening up, your grandfather would take advantage of the favorable conditions and become a moderate capitalist himself."

"I was born at that time and have never suffered any hardship since I was a child."

While driving, Xu Guoqiang chatted with Xu Ling about random things.

"Who still talks about the Red Guards these days?"

Xue Yan's tone was somewhat dissatisfied.

Xu Guoqiang nodded quickly in agreement.

Red Guards?
Xu Ling had studied high school history and knew what it was. But history books only covered that period in a few lines, so Xu Ling could only see very little.

Without dwelling on historical issues, Xu Ling asked curiously:
"What about grandma?"

"Haha, your grandmother was quite famous back then. She was a lady from a prominent family, known throughout the surrounding area. People who came to propose marriage to her wanted to break down her doorstep."

Xu Guoqiang recalled the incident with a smile, looking somewhat proud.

Xu Ling didn't believe it.

How could a lady from a noble family be interested in my grandfather who came from a peasant family?
"Don't be skeptical. Actually, being a lady from a wealthy family wasn't that great. No one was rich back then.

Besides, farmers back then were not like today, where they would feel very proud if they told others about it.”

Xu Guoqiang explained in a rambling manner.

"I told you not to talk nonsense. Why are you saying this?" Xue Yan was a little angry.

"Haha, then I won't say anymore, I won't say anymore." Xu Guoqiang was completely speechless.

After that, it was Xue Yan's turn to talk. She kept asking questions about this and that, asking if Xu Ling was keeping up with his studies, if he was eating enough, if he was sleeping well, and so on.

Xu Ling responded to the questions and answers, but he felt speechless in his heart.

I have just been away from home for more than a month, and my school is almost right next to my home. Is this necessary?

More importantly, Xue Yan's motherly attitude will only last for one or two days. Once Xu Ling stays at home for a long time, he will inevitably become bossy.

During the next two days of vacation, Xu Ling didn't go anywhere and stayed at home.

When Xu Ling was free, he would pester Xu Guoqiang to tell him about his grandparents, but whenever he talked about certain issues, he would always be interrupted by Xue Yan.

Xu Ling never felt satisfied listening to it.

What can’t be said?

Xu Ling was full of doubts.

When asked why, Xue Yan always remained silent.

But Xu Ling soon forgot about his past because he received an exciting email:

PRL's email reply!
Dear Mr. Xu Ling, your paper "Existence, Uniqueness, and Regularity of Global Solutions of Small Initial Values ​​for the Incompressible Navier-Stokes Equations" has passed preliminary review and is undergoing further review. We will notify you again within two calendar months. Please check back.

I can't understand the original English, but this translation is so comfortable to read! It uses "respect" and "you".

Xu Ling was not good at English, so he did not write the English manuscript himself. It was Zhang Yongjie who asked someone to translate it for him.

Thinking of this, the honorifics I just translated seem to be just like that.

You should pass the language test as soon as possible!
Xu Ling made a secret decision in his heart.

(End of this chapter)