However, recently, Cen Zhengnian and his team have been busy again because they have a new task this year involving international collaboration, marking Huaguo’s first research project of this nature.

If this task is successfully completed, there will be many more opportunities for their work to collaborate internationally in the future.

During this period, they are working hard on the research, hoping to shorten the time required to complete the task as much as possible.

Finally, Chuxia, having finished reading the characters, put them away and said, “This year’s persimmons have all been picked. You’ll have to wait until next year.”

Cen Zhengnian remained silent for a moment and replied, “Okay.”

Jiang Zhida finally completed the orders for pagers in Yangcheng, and he had lost some weight, but he looked more spirited than ever.

The first thing he did upon returning to Beijing was to sleep well, resting for an entire day and night before feeling fully refreshed.

If he hadn’t been so hungry, he could have slept even longer.

At Yunmengze, while devouring his meal to satisfy his hunger, Jiang Zhida tossed a handbag he had brought out from his room to Shen Chuan.

“Here are the things from Yangcheng for you guys.”

“Pagers?” Shen Chuan opened the backpack and picked one up, saying, “I already have one of these.”

Jiang Zhida replied, “This one is from my factory; give it a try.”

Shen Chuan opened it up, showing a hint of surprise in his eyes. “It seems to be better than mine—it can even display Chinese characters!”

“One for each person; the rest are for employee benefits. Hongxiao, you’ll be in charge of distributing them.”

Tu Hongxiao had already picked out a black pager and nodded in agreement, saying, “Sure.”

Managing employee benefits was already Tu Hongxiao’s responsibility; he knew how to distribute them effectively, ensuring that employees would work even harder at Yunmengze.

On Sunday, Jiang Zhida went to his grandpa Jiang’s house, handing out pagers like toys, speaking with enthusiasm: “New products for everyone to try out.”

Zhang Lu knew about pagers but had never used one. When she received one, curiosity spread across her face, and after pondering for a moment, she figured it out.

It had to be combined with a phone to reach someone.

For instance, to contact someone, you would call the public paging station, where an operator would note down the number and message, transmitting it via wireless channels.

The person receiving it could then find a public phone nearby to call you back.

There are both manual and automatic public paging stations, and while the operation differs slightly, the core steps are similar.

Jiang’s grandpa’s home had a public phone, and Zhang Lu, unable to resist, ran over to call the public paging station, trying to page Cen Huai’an’s pager.

Cen Huai’an’s pager emitted a “beep beep beep” sound immediately.

He opened the pager and saw the message Zhang Lu had just sent him, his eyes showing surprise.

The pager was so small yet had such functionality; Cen Huai’an felt an urge to open up the device to see what was inside.

Noticing his curiosity, Chuxia said to him, “Actually, this device is easy to make; the key is the wireless technology that supports pager messaging.”

Cen Huai’an looked down at the pager, deep in thought, developing an interest in wireless technology.

On the way back from his grandpa’s house, Cen Huai’an told Chuxia that he wanted to visit a bookstore.

At the Xinhua Bookstore, he borrowed several books on wireless information technology.

Whenever Cen Huai’an became interested in something, he would go to the bookstore to buy books and read them at home.

Once he understood the principles, he would put the books away and study the next topic.

He enjoyed the process of acquiring new knowledge, as it deepened his understanding of the world and allowed him to explore more mysteries.

In addition to visiting Jiang’s grandpa’s house, Chuxia would also take Cen Huai’an to the rest home occasionally.

She would bring some food and drinks for Jiang Shengnan and Cen’s father, check their pulse, and give Cen’s father acupuncture to help with his health.

Cen’s father was feeling much better in his arms now.

Although he was not as healthy as he used to be, he no longer suffered from sudden bouts of illness or felt as heavy as before.

He understood his body well; before Chuxia started the treatments, the hidden injuries were quite torturous.

They weren’t life-threatening, but the pain was so severe it made one wish for death.

Cen’s father was inherently strong-willed and able to endure a lot.

Many others might not be able to withstand such hidden injuries.

Chuxia’s acupuncture plans for Cen’s father had been evolving continuously; she was dedicated to improving his health.

Even if she couldn’t achieve the best outcome, lessening his suffering was still significant.

Jiang Shengnan had met many neighbors at the rest home.

They no longer discussed work, which was confidential, but mostly talked about their younger generations.

Jiang Shengnan lavishly praised Chuxia, often expressing how proud she was of her daughter-in-law.

Especially the fact that Chuxia was helping the two elderly people with their health became a frequent topic of conversation whenever she went out.

Now, everyone at the rest home knew that Jiang Shengnan had a daughter-in-law who was not only skilled in medicine but also dutiful.

Most people thought Jiang Shengnan was exaggerating Chuxia’s medical skills, assuming she was just bragging about her devoted daughter-in-law, so no one took it seriously.

After all, parents who boast about their children are often seen as magnifying their kids’ strengths.

Jiang Shengnan enjoyed the envious glances from others, not caring whether they believed her; what mattered was that she knew the truth.

After finishing the acupuncture session, Chuxia sat on the sofa, waiting for the time to remove the needles.

Jiang Shengnan brought her a glass of water and placed it in front of her, asking, “How’s your dad’s hidden injuries now?”

“Improving; if he continues the treatment, he’ll get even better,” Chuxia replied.

Jiang Shengnan noticed the changes in Cen’s father’s health, and with Chuxia’s assurance, she felt even more at ease.

Cen’s father, half-closed eyes resting on the sofa, waited for the time when Chuxia would remove the needles.

Before he realized it, he had actually fallen asleep, even during the needle removal.

Jiang Shengnan didn’t wake him but instead brought a blanket from the room and covered him up.

Looking at her husband on the sofa, she said to Chuxia, “Your dad used to suffer from insomnia. Since you’ve been helping him, he now sleeps better at night.”

Chuxia adjusted her needles and replied, “As his hidden injuries improve, it will gradually help his other bodily functions return to normal.”

Jiang Shengnan’s smile grew wider; she now had confidence in improving her and her husband’s health.

After lunch at the rest home, as Chuxia was about to drive home, a fast-moving woman suddenly ran in front of her.

“Dr. Luo, I finally found you!”

It was the woman who had previously urged Chuxia to help save her father.

Chuxia stopped in her tracks, saying, “Your dad has been saved, so you shouldn’t need my help anymore.”

The woman quickly shook her head, “No, we want to thank you properly. My family and I heard the doctors at the hospital say that if it weren’t for your timely intervention, my dad would have faced severe consequences.”

Chuxia replied, “I appreciate your gratitude, but I’m a doctor; saving lives is part of my duty.”

So, there’s no need to thank her again.

As long as the elder’s health is fine, her efforts were worthwhile.

The woman insisted, “At that time, my family didn’t recognize your medical skills. If you hadn’t put aside grudges to save my dad, he could have been paralyzed. My siblings realized their mistake and want to apologize to you. Dr. Luo, you must give us a chance to make amends!”

Chuxia didn’t need their atonement.

She had been misunderstood many times.

In the hospital, there were also those who doubted her medical skills; if she cared every time, she would be angry all day.

So, she didn’t mind at all.

She treated those who believed in her skills and ignored those who didn’t; it was that simple.

The woman insisted, and Chuxia, unable to shake her off, had no choice but to go to her father’s villa.

All her siblings were there as well, and they looked a bit embarrassed when they saw Chuxia.

“Dr. Luo, we didn’t recognize your abilities before. No need to say more, but from now on, if you ever need anything, just let me know. There’s nothing Dou Zhang can’t handle!” the woman’s brother said.

Her other siblings chimed in with apologies and gratitude.

Chuxia had left the hospital early precisely to avoid this kind of situation, but there was no escaping it.

She said it was her duty, and at the woman’s request, she checked the pulse of their father.

“His recovery is going well. You’ve taken good care of him. Just keep it up,” Chuxia reassured them.

The woman sighed in relief. “I was so worried I wasn’t taking good enough care of my dad. Thank you, Dr. Luo. Now I can finally relax.”

As Chuxia prepared to leave, the woman tried to force gifts and money on her, stuffing valuable things into her hands.

Chuxia declined and, finding a chance, quickly made her escape.

As for Dou Zhang’s offer to help if she ever needed anything, Chuxia didn’t take it to heart.

With each autumn rain, the weather grew colder.

After a few rainy days, the temperature dropped sharply.

When Cen Huai’an rode his bike to Yunmengze for dinner again, he was already wearing gloves and a hat, as was Zhang Lu.

Ever since they had gotten their pagers, they didn’t use them much.

They only reached out to their parents when the school suddenly had new arrangements, so they mostly kept their pagers in their bags and rarely took them out.

As the weather grew colder, the date for the math Olympiad competition drew closer.

Teacher Jiang became stricter with Cen Huai’an and the other students preparing for the competition.

Their classes grew longer, the problems more difficult, and the workload heavier.

Teacher Jiang often said, “If you can’t solve these problems, then you don’t deserve to compete. Don’t embarrass me.”

In the high school math competition class, Cen Huai’an was Jiang’s favorite student, always receiving praise.

Many classmates, when faced with difficult problems and no teacher around, would turn to him for help.

Cen Huai’an, though not very talkative, never withheld knowledge from his peers.

Math isn’t something you can memorize; it’s about logical thinking.

Teaching others wouldn’t affect his own results—if they didn’t understand, they still wouldn’t get it.

Sometimes, when Teacher Jiang didn’t feel like teaching, he would ask Cen Huai’an to come to the front and explain the problems, insisting that he show more than one method.

His classmates watched in admiration as Cen Huai’an effortlessly explained three different solutions to the problem.

Then he turned to Teacher Jiang and asked, “Should I keep going?”

Jiang waved him off. “No need. Any more methods, and the students won’t be able to remember them.”

Finally, the day of the competition arrived. The school arranged a bus to take the senior and freshman competitors to the exam location.

On the bus, the two groups sat separately—the seniors on one side, the freshmen on the other—without mingling.

Some seniors had heard of Cen Huai’an’s reputation and snuck glances at him. “Is that him?” they whispered.

“Yes, it’s him. He’s the smallest-looking one among the freshmen.”

“I’ve seen him before.”

“I heard he finishes his Olympiad tests the fastest, with the highest accuracy too.”

“The practice papers for freshmen are different from ours in senior year. He won’t be better than us in the real competition.”

While the seniors murmured, the freshmen also talked quietly about their upperclassmen competitors.

Meanwhile, Cen Huai’an sat calmly, eyes closed, resting, while Zhang Lu focused on her Olympiad practice paper. The others chatted in hushed tones.