Not long after, Xu Yi and Yun Cheng returned carrying trays.
The trays held four steaming bowls of dan dan noodles, two portions of brown sugar glutinous rice cakes, two portions of boiled chicken skewers in chili oil, a few plates of refreshing side dishes, and four bottles of chilled soy milk.
“Come on, come on, eat while it's hot! Our cafeteria's dan dan noodles are famous for being delicious. Lots of alumni still come back just to eat them.”
Liu Yutong picked up her chopsticks and brought a strand of noodles to her mouth.
The familiar flavor burst across her palate—spicy, numbing, savory—exactly the same as she remembered.
“Is it good?” Xu Yi asked, looking at her expectantly.
Liu Yutong nodded. “Very good.”
Xu Yi let out a relieved breath and smiled, then gestured to Yun Cheng and Lan Die. “You two eat too, don't be shy. It may not compare to fancy restaurants, but our cafeteria food is pretty solid.”
Yun Cheng and Lan Die didn't stand on ceremony. They thanked them and picked up their chopsticks to dig in.
As time passed, the cafeteria gradually filled with more diners.
Just as they were finishing their meal,
suddenly, the sound of hurried footsteps came from the stairwell, drawing the attention of quite a few people.
A middle-aged man in his forties or fifties appeared on the second floor, and the faculty members eating nearby instantly fell into disarray, each one looking as if they were facing a crisis.
“Oh no! Old Xu is here! Eat fast!”
“Finish up and run! Don't hesitate!”
“...”
The middle-aged man had messy hair, as if it hadn't been washed in days, a face full of stubble, and a white dress shirt that was wrinkled and crumpled.
The moment he spotted the faculty members eating, his eyes lit up with a hungry gleam. Without a word, he charged straight at them.
Behind him followed a middle-aged woman of similar age, wearing black-rimmed glasses.
She jogged after him, calling out, “Old Xu, slow down! Wait for me!”
“Wait for what? If I wait any longer, there'll be no one left in the cafeteria!”
The middle-aged man shot back without turning his head, quickly locking onto a middle-aged professor who was eating. His eyes brightened, and he beelined toward the man.
The professor spotted him at the same time, jolted in alarm, and immediately grabbed his half-finished tray to make a run for it.
But he was a step too slow and got blocked.
“Professor Liu, why are you running before you've finished your meal? Can't you see the sign up there about not wasting food?”
“Professor Xu, why are you here again... Didn't I tell you to stop coming to me?” Professor Liu said awkwardly.
Damn it, this Xu Skinner is back again!
Professor Xu didn't care what the man thought. He pulled him back down into his seat without a word, then pulled out the materials he'd prepared and began pitching.
“Come on, don't rush off. Let me show you something good. This is my latest revised new-energy battery plan. For just five million, I can build the first-generation prototype!”
And then, without caring whether Professor Liu wanted to hear it, he flipped open the file and started talking a mile a minute.
“Look at this battery management system architecture. I've completely optimized the control algorithm. I estimate we can improve charge/discharge efficiency by at least ten percentage points! Ten percentage points—do you understand what that means? The same battery capacity will last longer, and the driving range can increase by at least dozens of kilometers!”
“And this motor controller plan—I've adopted a brand-new vector control strategy. Torque response speed is up twelve percent, and current harmonics are down twenty percent. Do you know what that means? It means the motor is more efficient, quieter, and lasts longer. These numbers would be top-tier on the international stage!”
“And this integrated thermal management system plan...”
Professor Liu got sprayed with a face full of saliva and leaned back in misery.
“Professor Xu, I really can't understand any of this. I'm a law professor, not an engineer. Isn't explaining this to me like playing music to a cow?”
“It doesn't matter if you don't understand. You just need to know this thing is impressive.”
A light burned in Professor Xu's eyes—something close to obsession. “Professor Liu, let me tell you, new energy is the big trend. In the future it's guaranteed to become a mainstream industry. Whoever masters the core technology first will dominate the entire supply chain! This plan of mine is at least five years ahead of everything currently on the market. Five years, do you understand?”
Professor Liu was on the verge of tears. “Professor Xu, I understand. I understand all of it... But I really don't have the money. I'm just a teacher. My monthly salary is modest, my mortgage isn't paid off yet, and my kids still need to go to school. Where am I supposed to get five million to invest in you?”
“No five million? Three million will do.”
“I don't have three million either.”
“What about one million?”
“Professor Xu, I really have to hand it to you...”
“Five hundred thousand! You must have five hundred thousand, right?”
“Even if five hundred thousand is a bit short, I can still build the core module first. Once I have a prototype, I can go to venture capital firms. Someone will definitely invest. As an angel investor, your return will be at least ten times your money!”
Professor Liu, backed into a corner, could only appeal to the middle-aged woman behind Professor Xu. “Professor Zhou, please talk some sense into Professor Xu. I really don't have any money.”
To his surprise, Professor Zhou pushed up her glasses and said with a perfectly straight face, “Old Liu, just give us a little investment. Consider it supporting scientific research.”
Professor Liu: “...”
He was truly done with this couple.
No wonder the old saying goes: birds of a feather flock together.
These two becoming husband and wife—there was clearly a reason for it.
“Professor Xu, Professor Zhou, I truly have no money. Please, just let me go.”
Professor Liu grabbed his tray and tried to flee.
Professor Xu was quick. He slapped a hand down on the tray to stop him.
“Professor Liu, don't rush. Let's keep talking. Even if you don't understand the technical details, you surely understand the value of research, don't you? You know me—I never lie. I promise you, if you invest, within five years... no! Within three years, I'll make sure you see a return!”
“I really have no money...”
“Then how much do you have? Do you have a hundred thousand?”
“No.”
“Fifty thousand?”
“No.”
“Ten thousand! You must have ten thousand, right?”
“Borrow ten thousand from me then. I'll write you an IOU, with interest calculated at the bank rate, and I absolutely won't renege.”
Professor Liu's face twisted into a painful grimace from the sheer pressure.
He'd finally realized that if he didn't bleed a little cash today, he wasn't walking out of this cafeteria.
“I... I only have two thousand yuan on me.”
“Two thousand works too!”
Professor Xu didn't give him a chance to change his mind. He immediately pulled out a crumpled notebook and a ballpoint pen from his pocket, flipped it open, and scribbled furiously.
[Today borrows two thousand yuan from Professor Liu, for the new-energy battery R&D project. Borrower: Xu Yangeng. September 9, 2009.]
If anyone looked closely, they'd see that this notebook was filled with countless similar loan entries, densely packed together.
[March 12, borrowed 3,200 yuan from Professor Zhang.]
[May 8, borrowed 800 yuan from Teacher Li.]
[Jan 15, 2008, borrowed 500 yuan from Old Zhou in the Logistics Department.]
[……]
Professor Xu jotted down the loan details, then wrote out a separate IOU and handed it to Professor Liu with both hands.
“Professor Liu, here’s the IOU. Keep it safe. Once my project succeeds, I’ll pay you back with interest.”
Professor Liu looked at the IOU and twitched at the corner of his mouth.
“Professor Xu, why don’t you just keep the money? Consider it my contribution. Just… don’t come looking for me again…”
“That won’t do!”
Xu Yangeng cut him off, his expression dead serious: “A loan is a loan—how can I not pay it back? Don’t worry, I, Xu Yangeng, am a man of my word. A debt must be repaid, it’s only right. Once my research succeeds, I’ll pay you double!”
“Fine, fine.” Professor Liu let out a final sigh, pulled out all the cash from his wallet—a thick wad of crumpled bills and loose change mixed together—and handed it over.
The moment Xu Yangeng got the money, he sprang to his feet, his eyes blazing as he scanned the other diners in the cafeteria, already hunting for his next target.
The teachers who were eating all froze in terror, then grabbed their trays and bolted for the exit.
Afraid that if they lingered even a second, they’d get caught.
But the Xu couple clearly weren’t about to let them off that easily.
“Professor Wang! Professor Wang, don’t run! Take a look at my proposal…”
“Teacher Li, let’s talk! Didn’t you say last time you were interested in new energy?”
“Director Zhao, Director Zhao…”
In an instant, the entire cafeteria turned into chaos. The teachers scattered like mice chased by a cat, running in every direction—quite the lively scene.
