78: Bringing his wife and children to Harbin Institute of Technology

After lunch, Ye Bingwen did not return to the laboratory, but went to the library instead.

I'm not going to read a book, I'm going to find someone.

Deputy Director Zhao. No, he should be called Zhao Zhiguo now. Liu Deben's transfer order only took effect that afternoon, but Zhao Zhiguo was already too ashamed to stay in the Academic Affairs Office. Ye Bingwen found him in the periodical reading room on the second floor of the library. He was squatting on the floor sorting through old magazines, his movements mechanical, his eyes vacant.

"Director Zhao." Ye Bingwen stood behind him, his voice not loud.

Zhao Zhiguo's shoulders twitched, and he slowly stood up. He saw Ye Bingwen, his lips trembled, and he managed to squeeze out two words: "It's you."

"I'd like to talk to you."

"What's there to talk about? You've ruined me like this, what's there to talk about?" Zhao Zhiguo's voice was filled with resentment, but even more so with exhaustion.

Ye Bingwen didn't reply, but instead took the note out of his pocket and waved it in front of Zhao Zhiguo.

"This note was written by you. You admit it."

Zhao Zhiguo turned his face away.

"But the contents of the note weren't your idea." Ye Bingwen put the note away. "You were just being used as a pawn."

Zhao Zhiguo didn't speak, but his shoulders relaxed slightly.

"You do whatever Zhou Mingyuan tells you to do. If he tells you to write a complaint letter, you write it. If he tells you to stick up notes, you stick them up." Ye Bingwen's tone wasn't like an interrogation, but more like stating a fact. "Have you ever thought about who will take the blame if things blow up? It will be you, not him."

Zhao Zhiguo finally turned his head, his eyes slightly red. "What exactly are you trying to say?"

"What I'm trying to say is, how many things have you done for Zhou Mingyuan? It's not just this one thing, is it?"

Zhao Zhiguo's expression changed. He took a half step back, leaned against the bookshelf, and unconsciously gripped a magazine in his hand, crumpling the cover.

"Ye Bingwen, you...you mustn't force me."

"I'm not forcing you." Ye Bingwen took half a step forward, lowering his voice. "I just want to tell you that Zhou Mingyuan isn't worth you taking the blame for. You've already been transferred to the library; that's the lightest punishment. If anything else is discovered, do you think Principal Liu will still be so lenient?"

Zhao Zhiguo's lips trembled even more violently. He opened his mouth, then closed it again, repeating this several times, before finally managing to squeeze out a sentence.

"You...you promise you won't tell anyone?"

"I promise I won't say that you told me," Ye Bingwen said. "But the school will still investigate what needs to be investigated."

Zhao Zhiguo remained silent for a long time. The reading room was quiet, with only the ticking of the wall clock and the sound of pages turning in the distance.

"Director Zhou... no, Zhou Mingyuan," Zhao Zhiguo finally spoke, his voice low, "He's made me do more than just this one thing. Last year, a student offended him, and he made me cancel that student's scholarship. The year before, a young teacher was applying for a promotion, and he made me tamper with the application materials. And..."

Zhao Zhiguo paused, as if hesitating whether to speak.

"Also, during this year's admissions process, there was a student who scored high on the exam but didn't apply to the physics department. He asked me to keep that student's file so he could persuade him to change his application. Later, that student went to Tsinghua University, and he stopped trying."

As Ye Bingwen listened, his heart grew colder and colder.

A department head, wielding such immense power, doesn't focus on improving teaching and research; instead, he spends all his time scheming these underhanded tactics. He'd seen such people before in his past life, but back then he was an old professor and had the authority to ignore them.

He is now a freshman and is facing a department head.

If Liu Deben hadn't been on his side today, he would be the one lying on the ground.

"Director Zhao, could you write these things down?"

Zhao Zhiguo suddenly raised his head, "You..."

"Don't write it now. Go back and think about it slowly, then write it down." Ye Bingwen took out a piece of paper and a pen from his pocket and placed them on the table next to him. "When you're done, hand it to Principal Liu. This is your chance to redeem yourself."

Zhao Zhiguo stared at the paper for a long time.

Ye Bingwen didn't urge him, and turned to leave.

As I reached the door, I heard Zhao Zhiguo's voice behind me.

"Ye Bingwen".

He stopped, but didn't turn around.

"You...you need to be careful of Zhou Mingyuan. He's the kind of person who won't let this go easily."

Ye Bingwen nodded, pushed open the door, and went out.

***

After leaving the library, Ye Bingwen did not go straight home, but instead took a walk around the campus.

The autumn leaves have begun to fall, carpeting the ground with a layer of gold. When the wind blows, the leaves rustle softly, as if whispering secrets.

He walked to the small garden behind the main building and sat down on a bench.

My mind is a mess.

Zhou Mingyuan's matter was seemingly resolved, but Zhao Zhiguo's last words remained a thorn in his side: "He's not one to let things rest easily."

Even if a department head has been disciplined, the resources and power they wield are far greater than those of a freshman. If they can mess with you once, they can mess with you again. This time it was reporting cheating, what will it be next time?

Ye Bingwen leaned back on the bench, watching the leaves of the trees overhead sway in the wind.

He recalled a colleague from his past life who had also offended the department leaders and was stuck in the promotion process for five years before finally being transferred away in disgrace.

He was all too familiar with the rules of this circle.

But he's no longer the bookworm from his previous life who only buried himself in scientific research.

If I were to be given a second chance at life and still be manipulated by others, then these twenty-one years would have been wasted.

***

When Zheng Shuyun got home in the evening, she had already prepared dinner.

An'an sat in her high chair, a piece of steamed bun in her hand, crumbs all over her face as she ate it. When she saw Ye Bingwen come in, she grinned, revealing two tiny teeth.

"Daddy! Daddy!"

Ye Bingwen walked over, picked her up, and kissed her. "Was An'an good today?"

"Good girl!" An'an's voice was still childish, but she was becoming clearer and clearer.

Zheng Shuyun placed the food on the table and glanced at Ye Bingwen's expression. "Is everything settled?"

"It's all taken care of." Ye Bingwen put An'an back in the high chair and sat down at the table. "Zhou Mingyuan has been disciplined, and Zhao Zhiguo has been transferred."

Zheng Shuyun was taken aback. "Deputy Director Zhao?"

"Um."

"He...he was involved too?"

Ye Bingwen briefly explained the situation. After listening, Zheng Shuyun's chopsticks froze in mid-air, and she didn't move them for a long time.

"Bingwen, you've offended a department head." Her voice was a little tense.

"I know."

"What will we do then?"

"We'll talk about the future later." Ye Bingwen picked up a piece of braised pork and put it in her bowl. "Eat first, it won't taste good if it gets cold."

Zheng Shuyun looked at the meat in the bowl, her eyes reddening slightly. She sniffed, stuffed the meat into her mouth, and chewed it vigorously.

An'an watched her parents from the side, unaware of what was happening, and just giggled.

***

The next morning, when Ye Bingwen arrived at the laboratory, he found a stranger standing at the door.

He was a young man, around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, wearing a dark blue work uniform and carrying a canvas bag. He saw Ye Bingwen and approached him.

"Hello, is Ye Bingwen here?"

"That's me."

The young man's eyes lit up, and he quickly extended his hand. "Hello, hello, I'm a technician from Harbin Electric Machinery Factory, my surname is Sun, and my name is Sun Jianguo. Chief Engineer Li asked me to come find you."