In the afternoon, Lu Chengjing went directly to the Political Department.
When processing the cancellation of the divorce application, the staff member verified the information, looked up at him twice, and joked with a smile, “Battalion Commander Lu, you should have done this earlier. I heard your wife is a university graduate from Jingdu? This is great—husband and wife working together for development is a good thing.”
Lu Chengjing merely nodded slightly without further explanation. Once the procedures were completed, he tucked away the receipt and headed straight for the Xinan Liangzhong Shiyan Zhan.
The station had only been established recently. A few red-brick bungalows served as the main building, with a large experimental field behind it. A new sign with gold characters on a red background hung at the entrance. The more than twenty staff members at the station were all agricultural experts transferred from various regions, each determined to achieve something significant.
“Battalion Commander Lu, what brings you here today? Is it about grain support from the battalion?”
As soon as Lu Chengjing entered, Old Zhou, the technician standing at the door, spotted him and hurried over to greet him.
Speaking of Lu Chengjing’s recent meritorious service, it was somewhat connected to the experimental station.
When he seized the enemy’s rear, he recovered the Fengmai 13 grain seeds that enemy spies had stolen.
Grain seeds are crucial to people’s livelihoods and have never been a trivial matter. If they fell into enemy hands, it would be a major problem! Moreover, Fengmai 13 represented the latest technology—large ears, abundant grains, sturdy stalks, early maturity, and strong stress resistance—making it a new representative of grain seeds in the Yunnan border region.
Naturally, the experimental station owed him gratitude.
“No, I’m here to deliver some documents.” Lu Chengjing handed over Lin Shuyao’s materials. “My wife, Lin Shuyao, has applied to transfer to the Liangzhong Shiyan Zhan. Please review her application.”
“This…”
While gratitude was one thing, the staff at the experimental station had always been averse to pulling strings to get people in.
Old Zhou took the documents, glanced at the cover, and frowned.
The experimental station currently had only three core positions at most, all of which were highly sought-after. Was Battalion Commander Lu trying to slot someone into a key project?
He wasn’t too pleased but couldn’t outright refuse. Instead, he opened the cover, planning to skim through it and send Lu Chengjing on his way.
But after just one glance, Old Zhou froze.
“A top agricultural graduate from Jingdu Nongkeyuan? And she participated in the Jinghong Series development and the double-cropping rice improvement project?” Old Zhou’s eyes grew brighter as he read, and he couldn’t help raising his voice. “Are these documents real? Lin Shuyao? How come I’ve never heard this name!”
Several technicians nearby, who had been discussing experimental plans, gathered around. They flipped through the materials, talking over each other, and instantly erupted in excitement.
“My goodness, she’s a top graduate from Jingdu Nongkeyuan? She wants to come here?”
“Her preliminary plan is fascinating! The corn breeding ideas tailored to the characteristics of southwestern red soil are even more detailed than our current plan!”
“Look at the notes she attached—she’s marked so much soil data from the southwestern mountainous areas. It’s incredibly thorough! She’s definitely put in the work!”
Everyone chimed in with genuine praise.
Someone even went to fetch Station Master Li.
“Battalion Commander Lu, your wife is truly remarkable! We’ll definitely approve these documents—no, we’ll prioritize the review! If she can come, our station’s progress could speed up by at least a year! No, no, more like three years or more!”
Lu Chengjing raised an eyebrow slightly. He wasn’t familiar with the specifics in the documents, only knowing that Lin Shuyao had a background in agricultural science and academic qualifications. He hadn’t expected her resume to be so impressive.
“Thank you for your trouble.”
As for the follow-up matters, Lu Chengjing couldn’t intervene, so he took his leave first.
Station Master Li reviewed the materials prepared by Lin Shuyao and nodded repeatedly. “Quick! Immediately call the Jingdu Nongkeyuan to verify her identity.”
“Yes, yes, hurry up and verify!” Old Zhou nodded eagerly, turning to head to the office to find a telephone. “I’ll call the Jingdu Nongkeyuan right now and ask about Lin Shuyao’s specific situation.”
The phone rang several times before it was answered.
“Hello, Jingdu Nongkeyuan office.”
Old Zhou cleared his throat and stated his purpose: “Comrade, hello. This is a call from the Xinan Liangzhong Shiyan Zhan. We’d like to verify the situation of Comrade Lin Shuyao from your institution. She has applied to transfer to our station, and her documents state that she was recommended for transfer by your institute, having participated in multiple research projects with outstanding performance. Is this accurate?”
There was a brief silence on the other end of the line, followed by a somewhat arrogant male voice, speaking in a casual tone: “Lin Shuyao? She actually went to the southwest?”
Old Zhou’s heart tightened. Judging by the tone, something seemed off.
“I am Chen Zhiheng, a breeding expert. Lin Shuyao did indeed come from here, but… she didn’t show any outstanding performance during her tenure. She only worked under me for two years, doing miscellaneous tasks. She knows a bit about agricultural concepts, but only at a marginal level.”
“What? She was just an assistant? Then all the things she wrote… were copied from you, Professor Chen?”
Leaning against his desk, Chen Zhiheng narrowed his eyes slightly and didn’t answer directly. “She voluntarily gave up her position at the Nongkeyuan, which shows some self-awareness. Choosing your small experimental station in the southwest is quite fitting. I’ve always said that with her limited abilities, she can’t accomplish anything without me.”
These words were like a bucket of cold water, instantly extinguishing the enthusiastic atmosphere in the office.
Old Zhou’s smile froze, and his hand holding the phone paused mid-air.
The technicians nearby also changed their expressions, and the murmurs of conversation quieted down.
Old Zhou stiffly asked a few more questions before hanging up.
Chen Zhiheng’s words weren’t entirely false, but after his definitive judgment, all the achievements were attributed solely to him, while Lin Shuyao… naturally became a minor figure who had merely ridden on his coattails, leveraging his reputation to appear more capable than she was.
“Lin Shuyao’s identity has been verified, but… the call said…”
The hand-cranked telephone was loud, and there was no need for Old Zhou to repeat the conversation’s content—the people around him had already heard it.
The once lively office fell silent in an instant.
“Fraud! This is clearly fraud!” The first to explode was a young technician, clenching his fists, his voice filled with indignation. “What top graduate? What participation in key projects? So she was just doing odd jobs for the professor? What does she take our station for? A garbage dump?”
As soon as he spoke, others immediately chimed in, their disappointment unmistakable:
“Exactly! Her documents looked so impressive. I thought we’d found a treasure, but what now? It’s all borrowed prestige! Our station is about real work, not supporting idlers. We absolutely cannot accept someone who only knows how to ride on others’ reputations!”
“That’s right! We work under the scorching sun in the experimental fields every day, hoping for someone with real skills to help us improve the grain varieties. And here she is, using borrowed achievements to deceive us. If we let her in, she’ll probably just hold us back!”
The murmurs grew louder, mostly filled with opposition. The earlier joy had vanished without a trace, replaced by overwhelming disappointment and resistance.
Old Zhou stood in place, his expression quite unpleasant—both awkward and helpless. He had just been pounding his chest in front of Battalion Commander Lu, promising success, only to be doused with a bucket of cold water moments later.
Just then, the older cadre, Old Zheng, sighed and spoke up to persuade everyone: “Let’s all calm down first and not act so impulsively. After all, Comrade Lin Shuyao comes from Jingdu Nongkeyuan. Even if she only did odd jobs alongside the professors, two years would have taught her something real. That’s still better than those without any professional or systematic education.”