Chapter 106: Educated Youth Who Abandoned His Wife and Child -38

Thinking of this, her gaze grew even gentler. With such a sensible daughter-in-law, she naturally couldn’t let her feel disheartened.

So she said, “Good girl, for now you two just rent a place. Mom will see if there’s a chance to help you buy a home.”

Shen Jianguo nodded in agreement. The house they currently lived in had been allocated by the factory and wasn’t allowed to be bought or sold. That was the case for this whole area.

They weren’t familiar with other places, but since they had the idea, they could keep an eye out in the future—who knew when an opportunity might come?

However, Shen Xiuyan waved it off.

“We still have four years of College ahead. There’s no need to buy now—it’d just be a waste of money.”

Zhou Guiying hesitated. “This…”

“It’s okay. Just save it for now. We can decide after graduation. If I ever need anything, do you think I’d be shy about asking?”

Zhou Guiying thought about her son’s personality and agreed. That’s right—Xiuyan wasn’t the type to be shy.

Shen Jianguo decided, “That works too. If you need anything, just say the word. We still have some savings at home.”

“Alright.”

Shen Xiuyan and Su Mingyue ended up staying for several days. Su Mingyue spent her time basking in the warm atmosphere of the family, full of joy and laughter—unlike the suffering Shen Xiuyan.

The bed in his room was far too small. Sleeping two people in it felt like stacking dolls. It was fine for a little while, but by morning, one of them would be completely numb. Poor Xiuyan had no choice but to sleep on the floor.

Thankfully, College was about to start. He quickly scooped up the reluctant Su Mingyue and left home, under the pretense of “going to find housing first.”

Finding a place went surprisingly smoothly. There was a small courtyard for rent not far from the College. Though small, its proximity to campus was a huge plus.

Without even giving it much thought, Shen Xiuyan and Su Mingyue rented it on the spot.

At five yuan a month, it was a price Shen Xiuyan found acceptable.

Once everything was settled, the College term began.

Su Mingyue chose a major in computer science, as she was fascinated by the massive machines she’d never seen before. After some thought, Shen Xiuyan chose physics.

In this era—where television wasn’t widespread and talented people were scarce—he knew the quickest way to fame was through research and development.

The content the professors taught in class was extremely basic to Shen Xiuyan.

His knowledge reserve surpassed theirs by at least a dozen times. If it came down to it, it was debatable who should be teaching whom.

Within two months, his phenomenal grades inevitably drew attention from many quarters.

Professors all sighed with admiration—no wonder he was this year’s top scorer. There was clearly no element of luck involved.

His scores were already capped by the limits of the exam system—it wasn’t that his capabilities were limited to that level.

Shen Xiuyan found the classes meaningless and wanted to do something big.

So, he went to the head of the physics department. “Hello, Director.”

“Oh, Xiuyan! Good, good—come, have a seat.” Director Wang’s face lit up with affection. This boy was the pride of their department.

Once Shen Xiuyan was seated, he asked warmly, “So, what brings you here today?”

Shen Xiuyan hesitated slightly. “Well, I’ve had a few ideas I’d like to test, but I don’t have a place to run experiments. I was wondering if you could approve a lab space for me.”

If anyone else had said that, Director Wang would have laughed at their wild fantasy.

Barely into their first semester and already asking for a lab? What a joke. A first-year requesting a personal lab—what next?

But since it was his prized student asking, it was a different story.

After a brief second of thought, he responded decisively, “Alright, I can approve a lab for you. But only for one month. Any longer and I’m afraid someone might report it as irregular. You’re only a freshman—if someone files a complaint, it’ll stick.”

One month—it was tight, but doable.

Delighted, Shen Xiuyan expressed his gratitude repeatedly. “That’s more than enough! I just knew you were the right person to ask.”

Feeling flattered by his admiration, Director Wang was pleased. “As long as you know who to turn to. If you need anything, just come find me.”

Then he changed the subject and pulled out a sheet of paper from under his desk. “By the way, this is the sign-up form for next month’s physics competition. Would you be interested in joining?”

Shen Xiuyan: “…”

This sly old fox.

Since Director Wang had just done him a favor, he couldn’t turn him down. So he smiled and said, “Sure, I’ll fill it out now.”

“Good, good.” Director Wang, satisfied, grew even more generous. “If your lab lacks anything, just let me know. As long as it’s not too expensive, I can approve it.”

“Really? Thank you, Director. I won’t be shy then,” Shen Xiuyan replied happily.

He hadn’t expected such a pleasant surprise. Just by entering a competition, he could save a good chunk on lab materials. After all, those weren’t cheap.

Both parties left the meeting fully satisfied. Shen Xiuyan took his leave cheerfully.

After closing the office door, he glanced at the time. Since Mingyue’s class was almost over, he turned and headed toward the computer science building.
In the large classroom—

There were still a few minutes left before class ended. The teacher had already finished the lecture and announced that the remaining time was for self-study.

Just then, Shen Xiuyan appeared outside the classroom door. As the young man leaned casually against the doorframe, a wave of murmurs and excitement rippled through the room.

“Look, he’s here again!”

“Ugh, what a perfect man. So handsome and so loving.”

“Right? The physics department is pretty far from here, but he shows up every day like clockwork. It’s not like his wife is going anywhere.”

“I believe in love again.”

While the entire room buzzed with chatter, Su Mingyue remained completely absorbed in her studies, not hearing a thing.

Those nearby grew anxious on her behalf and gave her a nudge. “Mingyue, your man’s here.”

“Huh?” Su Mingyue looked up blankly, blinking as she returned to her senses.

She turned toward the door and saw the graceful, striking young man there. She gave Shen Xiuyan a sweet smile.

At the door, Shen Xiuyan seemed to see her reaction and curved his lips into a smile in return.

That smile—oh, that smile—sent a collective gasp through the classroom.

“Dear god, I can’t take this. Seriously, I can’t. No wonder he’s the campus heartthrob. If he keeps smiling like that, I’ll have a nosebleed.”

“How can someone be this good-looking? It’s just unfair.”

“Yet another day of being jealous of Su Mingyue.”

The College bell chimed—ding dong~

The teacher glanced at the clock and called out, “Class dismissed.”

He gathered his books and walked out, only to see Shen Xiuyan standing right there.

The teacher laughed heartily. “You’re here again, huh? You really are dedicated. No wonder your department head keeps complaining to me, saying you’re never around. Anyone who didn’t know better would think you belonged to our department.”

“Mr. Liu, please don’t tease me like that,” Shen Xiuyan said with a smile.

“Alright, alright, I won’t say another word. I’ll be on my way, happy now?” Mr. Liu pursed his lips at him. “I won’t disturb you lovebirds any longer.”

No sooner had he walked off than Zhang Chunfang sidled up, sticking close. “Classmate Shen, here to see Mingyue again? She’s right in the back, she’ll be out any moment now.”

“Hello.”

Blocked by her, Shen Xiuyan had no choice but to stop at the classroom entrance.

He frowned slightly and didn’t respond further.

With people like her, the best approach was to ignore them completely. Even saying a single word would encourage her to cling on.

Shen Xiuyan really hadn’t expected Zhang Chunfang to be in the same department as Mingyue.

This woman’s skin was as thick as a city wall. Mingyue was already annoyed to death by her, but she showed no signs of noticing.

Or maybe she did notice—but with a face that thick, she simply didn’t care.