The countdown for answering the question had already begun beeping when a faint voice came from behind her.
“Starships are more stable and smaller, and they’re used for ordinary transportation. Stellar warships are faster, traveling at least three times the speed of starships, and they’re larger, designed for military combat.”
Yu Nianqing repeated the words of the person behind her, and after the robot teaching assistant processed her answer, it displayed a message confirming that she was correct.
Yu Nianqing slowly let out a breath. At least she had avoided a mortifying public embarrassment. She turned around to look at the person who had helped her. It was a girl who looked quite young. She wore a pair of black-rimmed glasses, and when she saw Yu Nianqing turn around, she smiled at her with narrowed eyes.
After class, everyone else left the classroom, while Yu Nianqing stayed behind to thank the girl.
“Thank you for helping me just now.”
“You’re welcome. I’d never seen you before, so I guessed you probably wouldn’t know the answer.” The girl smiled shyly.
“That was a pretty accurate guess! My name is Yu Nianqing. What’s yours?”
“Hello, my name is Bai Xue.” Bai Xue was petite, and even her face flushed when she spoke.
At this time of day, everyone would probably be looking for somewhere to have some nutrient solution, so Yu Nianqing shared one of the milk teas she had brought with Bai Xue as a token of gratitude.
“What is this?”
“It’s delicious. Give it a try.”
Bai Xue assumed it was nutrient solution and didn’t think much of it. She took a sip, and her eyes widened instantly. She had never tasted nutrient solution this delicious before!
“How is it? Good, right?” Yu Nianqing asked confidently. Bai Xue nodded like a chick pecking at rice.
Besides, nutrient solution was concentrated nutrition in the first place. Each bottle contained only 100 ml, whereas the milk tea Yu Nianqing had given Bai Xue was about 500 ml, enough to sip at her leisure.
The two naturally became good friends. Bai Xue came from an ordinary family, and even after three months at the academy, she still hadn’t made any friends.
As it happened, both of them had chosen the Breeding Course for their afternoon classes.
“Bai Xue, do you like the Breeding Course too?”
Bai Xue didn’t look like the type to enjoy a class like this. She pressed her lips together and nodded, then revealed a hint of sadness. “The contamination from mutagenic factors in the interstellar era is getting worse and worse…”
“If we still can’t solve this problem soon, humanity’s very survival will be at stake.”
People in this era were accustomed to drinking nutrient solution, and it wasn’t just for convenience. The food culture that had been forgotten hadn’t been abandoned by humanity willingly. It was because living organisms had been contaminated, leaving almost no plants or animals that people could eat with confidence.
Nutrient solution was made by extracting nutrients from food that was mildly contaminated. However, as the contamination worsened, there would come a day when even nutrient solution could no longer be produced.
To comfort Bai Xue, Yu Nianqing quietly told her that the milk tea she had given her today had been made from ordinary ingredients, without any extraction process.
Apart from surprise, Bai Xue’s expression held something else, an emotion Yu Nianqing couldn’t quite understand.
Today’s Breeding Course focused on teaching students how to protect plants and minimize the damage caused by mutagenic factors.
“The best approach is to find soil with lower levels of contamination for planting. For plants that have already been planted, we can protect them through two different methods: physical and chemical…”
…
After class, Ivy happened to come looking for her from the laboratory.
“Xiao Qing, why haven’t you replied to my messages? I was worried sick!” Ivy was panting, and she really did look anxious.
Yu Nianqing explained guiltily, “I got called for a random check.” After that, she had simply forgotten about it.
“Come back to the lab with me right away.” Ivy had come straight out wearing her white lab coat. Yu Nianqing glanced at Bai Xue.
Bai Xue smiled and waved at her. “Go ahead. Take care of what you need to do first.”
Ivy didn’t wait for Yu Nianqing to say goodbye. She grabbed her and headed straight for the laboratory.
Laboratory
Bo Chen sat in the laboratory, his eyes fixed on the data displayed on the screen. It wasn’t until Ivy returned with Yu Nianqing that he finally shifted his gaze.
When Yu Nianqing was brought into the laboratory, there were only four people inside this time. Besides Bo Chen, there was also a woman.
“Hello, are you the one who invented this research?” The moment she saw Yu Nianqing, she asked her directly.
The woman’s demeanor gave Yu Nianqing a familiar feeling. Back on her old team, a junior female colleague had joined them later, and she had possessed that same refined, gentle, and intellectual air.
However, Yu Nianqing had no idea what research the woman was referring to.
“The research on how tea trees can reduce contamination from mutagenic factors. Miss Yu, have you done so much research that you can’t remember it all?” Bo Chen spoke up to remind her.
This wasn’t her research at all. She had merely boiled some tea leaves to make a pot of milk tea.
However, since Bo Chen had put it that way, he clearly wanted her to answer accordingly.
Yu Nianqing paused briefly before raising her eyes to meet the woman’s gaze. “That’s right. It was me.” She demonstrated perfectly how to lie without even blushing.
“Hello, I’m Tang Xiaoyin, one of the professors hired by the research institute.” Tang Xiaoyin introduced herself, then looked at the pots of tea trees growing in the cultivation trays. “This research is very important to the Federation. I hope you’ll allow the research institute to participate.”
After hearing this, Yu Nianqing instinctively looked toward Bo Chen. Whether she agreed or refused, she still needed to seek his opinion.
Clearly, Tang Xiaoyin noticed the glance. Without revealing anything, she studied Yu Nianqing carefully. The girl was indeed beautiful, with delicate features. However, as an elite with A-rank mental power, Tang Xiaoyin could also sense that Yu Nianqing’s mental power showed no fluctuations. It was probably only E-rank.
Tang Xiaoyin didn’t believe Bo Chen would fall for a woman like her. The ideal match was always someone strong paired with someone equally strong.
Bo Chen caught Yu Nianqing’s gaze but said nothing. Yet Yu Nianqing understood what he meant.
“I’m sorry, Professor Tang, but I’d like to continue this research on my own.”
Tang Xiaoyin’s expression remained unchanged. “As far as I know, Miss Yu, you’re just an ordinary student. This research is very important to the Federation, so I hope you won’t let your emotions get the better of you.”
“I understand, Professor Tang.”
“If you understood, you wouldn’t refuse. Setting aside the question of how a student like you could carry out this research, even if you really did pursue it, it would take you several times longer than it would the research institute.”
“Do you truly understand what this research means for the entire Federation?”
Faced with Tang Xiaoyin’s barrage of remarks, Yu Nianqing showed no sign of backing down. On the contrary, her presence only grew more commanding.
“Perhaps I don’t fully understand the significance you speak of, but since I was the one who discovered this, I believe I have the right to stand by my own decision. If I’m not capable of carrying out this research, then why wasn’t it you, a professor, who made the discovery in the first place?”
After hearing those words, Tang Xiaoyin’s expression revealed nothing. She remained composed as she apologized to Yu Nianqing and told her that if she ever changed her mind, she could come to her.
Only after Tang Xiaoyin had left did Ivy finally breathe a sigh of relief.
“Thank goodness she’s finally gone.”
Unable to hold back her curiosity, Yu Nianqing asked, “What’s going on? What’s this research all about?”
“The research laboratories at our academy are divided into Lab One and Lab Two. The professor in charge of Lab One is your husband. The professor in charge of Lab Two has held that title for several years now, but she still hasn’t come up with any worthwhile research projects or results. She’s getting anxious, so when she heard about this research, she decided to stick her hand in and claim a share.”
“Honestly, she doesn’t even care how shameless she looks anymore.”