Chapter 17: The Seventeenth Dimension 1/2

After Song Fuzhi left, Shi Zhang sat quietly in the car for a while, with a slight upward curve at the corner of his mouth.

When it was time to start the car, Shi Zhang found something under the passenger seat.

Picking it up and looking at it, it was the box of items the older lady had given them during the day.

probably dropped from Song Fuzhi’s pocket.

Shi Zhang raised an eyebrow slightly, opened the car storage compartment, and placed the small box inside.

The next day, Shi Zhang went to the location for the anime expo promotional shoot on time. If he changed the time again, Zhong Ziyan would probably come knocking on his door.

Tongtong sat there, applying base makeup to Shi Zhang. “Tsk,” she said. “Your skin condition is pretty good. Have you been eating ginseng fruit lately?”

“Yeah, one a day,” Shi Zhang replied with closed eyes.

“By the way,” Tongtong said, “I received an invitation from the live streaming platform yesterday. There’s an online event with high exposure. Several big cosplayers will be there. Interested?”

Tongtong, in addition to managing Professor Zhang’s makeup, also acted as a semi-assistant, helping screen cooperation invitations before letting Shi Zhang choose.

Shi Zhang asked, “When is the online event?”

“Next weekend,” Tongtong replied.

Shi Zhang shook his head and said, “Can’t. Got something to do.”

He and Song Fuzhi had plans to undergo a premarital health check next weekend.

“There’s also a small anime expo the following weekend. It’s not big, but the atmosphere is great,” Tongtong said, taking out an eyeliner pencil and adjusting Shi Zhang’s face. “Look down.”

Shi Zhang complied, saying, “Skip the weekend after next as well.”

According to the plan, he and Song Fuzhi should have just obtained their marriage certificate that weekend, and they planned to look at houses.

“Okay,” Tongtong responded, “I know you don’t bother with small anime expos.”

“But the last one is interesting. An international cosplay competition wants you to be a judge. The event is in autumn, the competition lasts three days, and there’s also sightseeing. It’s a week in total. How about it? Any interest?” Tongtong blinked. “Fully reimbursed.”

Shi Zhang asked, “Would it take more than a week?”

Tongtong waved her makeup brush and said, “Yes, that’s why it’s worth it! Full reimbursement.”

Shi Zhang closed his eyes for a moment, his lips curving. “Let’s reject it for now.”

“Reject?” Tongtong slowly stopped her makeup actions, finally realizing something was wrong.

“No, not right; something’s off.”

Tongtong sat up straight, observing Shi Zhang carefully. “Do you plan to fully dedicate yourself to research and strive for the Nobel Prize?”

Shi Zhang smiled. “What are you thinking?”

Although Shi Zhang had deep qualifications in the cosplay community, he was relatively easy to invite. He enjoyed participating in events, so as long as there was prior communication and Shi Zhang was interested, he would agree.

Based on Tongtong’s understanding of him, Shi Zhang should at least consider attending the major international event. Unexpectedly, he rejected it outright.

“Do you have something on your plate recently?” Tongtong asked seriously.

Shi Zhang chuckled. “Just busy.”

“Once upon a time, you could pull an all-nighter working on a paper and still make it to an event the next morning. Now you tell me you’re busy? Busy with what, and for how many months?” Tongtong stared at him.

“Just think of it as me striving for the Nobel Prize.”

Shi Zhang laughed lightly and pointed to his eyes. “Double eyelid tape was not applied well.”

Tongtong frowned, observing him for a while, then sighed, “You’ve grown up; you’ve got something on your mind.”

It’s not that Shi Zhang didn’t want to agree; he really couldn’t determine the time.

The two weekend events clashed directly with the marriage matters. As for autumn, it was too far away, and he couldn’t be sure if they would need to decorate the house or handle other matters by then.

Being away for an extended period, even as a judge, wasn’t just a casual affair. It required effort for research, and Shi Zhang didn’t know if he would have the time.

This time, the shoot took a long time for makeup and styling. Shi Zhang hadn’t had time to check his phone during the shoot. Now, he realized that Song Fuzhi had sent him a message.

[Forward] “Pre-marital Health Check Precautions”

This was sent to me by the doctor. Professor Shi, take a look.

The premarital health check items were chosen by both of them, and Song Fuzhi was responsible for making the appointment. After the appointment, a doctor added Song Fuzhi on WeChat and sent a list of precautions.

Shi Zhang opened it and found that it was just some routine reminders, such as fasting before the checkup and having a light diet.

 When he saw the following, Shi Zhang paused.

The essential items included in the premarital health check involve a routine examination of the reproductive system, requiring the provision of samples at the hospital, which they already knew when choosing the hospital.

Under this section of precautions, it states: Abstain from sexual activity for at least five days before the examination.

The reason given below was that sexual activity can reduce sample activity, thereby affecting the test results.

Shi Zhang took this part quite seriously.

Abstaining for five days wasn’t a big deal for Song Fuzhi, especially when he got busy with work.

These days, something happened in the class—a good student got reported.

That day, Song Fuzhi was sitting in the office when the Chinese teacher walked over, tapping on his desk.

“Mr. Song, today Yao Xinxin was secretly drawing during my class. I reminded her once, but the second time, I confiscated it.”

The paper unfolded, revealing a drawing of a lively and cute girl in manga style.

Although Song Fuzhi’s drawing skills were nothing special, after a decade in the circle, he had seen countless illustrations and had a good eye.

Yao Xinxin’s drawing skill could be hailed as “great” in the circle.

The original master is in my class.

“She draws quite well,” the Chinese teacher muttered, “but it would be even better if she didn’t draw during my class.”

“This girl has good grades, and she is usually well-behaved. It doesn’t seem like something she would do, especially during my class.”

“Got it. I’ll talk to her later.” Song Fuzhi handed back the drawing. “Thank you, Teacher Zhu.”

This kind of thing happens quite often. Any problems with students would be reported by subject teachers to the class teacher. Most of these non-academic matters were handled by the class teacher.

Yao Xinxin had excellent grades and ranked in the top fifty in the prestigious high school filled with geniuses. Although they were only in the first year, she was already identified by the school as a potential candidate for top-tier universities.

In the eyes of parents and most teachers, Yao Xinxin was the typical model student—delicate appearance, obedient, and a good girl.

But the class teacher noticed a bit more.

At that time, in the crowd watching manga in the class, Yao Xinxin was there. When Song Fuzhi entered the class, he heard her saying, “Teacher Octopus’s cosplay is so handsome,” but when Song Fuzhi approached them to collect books, the little girl disappeared.