Chapter 78: School Starts, the Resentful Senior Brothers and Sisters!

Hey, do you guys know what's up with the teacher lately? I feel like every time we see him, his expression isn't very good.

It doesn't look like someone pissed him off; it seems he just plainly dislikes us.

It feels like we haven't done anything recently to upset the teacher; he shouldn't be acting like this.

As doctoral students under an academician big shot, aside from the few days off for the New Year holiday when they went home, they spend almost all their remaining time in the school laboratory.

Don't think getting into a PhD program makes things easy; in China's education system, a doctorate has always been easy to get into but hard to get out of.

Getting into a PhD program is only the first step; actually graduating is the real difficulty.

Although the PhD coursework requirement is only two years, some people take three or even five years to barely finish their studies, which is quite normal.

What's more, Professor Wang Qiang sets high standards for his students and is usually the most unsympathetic teacher; if you don't meet the academic requirements, he simply won't let you graduate.

So basically, every year when the semester nears graduation—i. e., at the start of the year—almost all doctoral students are anxiously preparing their theses.

They hope that the thesis they prepare this time will meet the teacher's standards, allowing them to graduate smoothly.

And Li Mingyang's senior brothers and sisters in the lab are naturally in the same situation, whether they just joined or have been in for two years.

During this period they've been frantically competing, hoping to produce a satisfactory research result that will let them graduate successfully.

But lately, for some unknown reason, whenever they bring their theses to see the teacher, he greets them with a dark face.

Although only a few get scolded, everyone feels nervous when they go to see him.

They fear that the next unlucky person could be themselves.

"Eldest Senior Sister, you know? Among us, you've spent the most time with the teacher—do you know what's going on?"

Everyone chatted back and forth, but they couldn't settle on a concrete plan, so they ultimately turned their pleading looks toward the nearby Eldest Senior Sister Wang Yaqin.

Upon hearing this, Wang Yaqin also had a black line across her head:

"It's true I've been with the teacher the longest, but I'm not a worm in his stomach—how would I know what he's thinking?"

"And do you really think relying on me would help? I'm the one under the most pressure here!"

"This year is already my third year in the PhD program; if I still can't graduate this year, I'll have to spend another year."

"If I keep going like this, by the time I graduate I'll be an old maid; wasting even a few more days on dating, marriage, kids..."

"By then I'll probably be a high‑risk pregnant woman, for sure."

By the end, even Wang Yaqin herself wore a face full of resentment—recalling how proud she felt when she first entered the teacher's school, now she feels utterly miserable.

The teacher is an academician, indeed a top‑tier academician in the country—what a joyful thing that is.

But when it comes time to graduate… talking about it just brings tears!

……

In the blink of an eye it was March, and when school started, Li Mingyang—having lived two lives—had long grown accustomed to partings.

So at the start of school he felt no reluctance; after all, it had only been four or five months.

Wouldn't he just go home for vacation again? And what grown man has so much fussing and tugging about?

So on the day before school started, Li Mingyang conscientiously grabbed his suitcase and boarded the bus to the provincial capital.

Then a plane ticket took him straight to Ice City, and he returned once more to the school he knew so well.

Opening the door to the familiar dorm where he'd lived for half a year, Li Mingyang let out a heartfelt sigh of relief.

Especially during those few days before he left, his parents' warm enthusiasm left him somewhat overwhelmed, as they constantly asked after his well‑being.

It felt as if he weren't a soon‑to‑be adult college student, but rather a pampered little girl just starting elementary school.

At first he even enjoyed it a bit, after all he'd never received such treatment in either of his lives.

But in the last few days it became pure torment for Li Mingyang, especially as his mother seemed determined to shove food straight into his mouth even at mealtime.

Still, the dormitory was better—living alone gave him freedom and no worries about roommate relations.

Besides, there were no other miscellaneous worries; he simply had his own little world.

In there he could do whatever he wanted; just plopping onto the sofa made Li Mingyang unwittingly relax.

Ding‑dong ding‑dong……

But before his butt had even warmed the seat, the doorbell suddenly rang.

Hearing the sound, Li Mingyang felt a bit dazed—he had just arrived, so who could be showing up at his door?

Logically it shouldn't happen; he hadn't told anyone he'd be returning to school today, so who could it be?

Then……

When Li Mingyang opened the door, he saw his senior brothers and sisters lined up neatly at his dorm entrance, and instinctively opened his mouth to greet them warmly.

But seeing the strange expressions on their faces, he instinctively shut his mouth, stayed silent for a few seconds, and then cautiously asked:

"Senior brothers, senior sisters, what's… wrong with you?"

Upon hearing Li Mingyang's words, the resentment on their faces grew even stronger—what's wrong?

What's wrong with them? Could it be that you, the instigator, don't even know?

They've always known this little junior brother of theirs is a genuine genius, but they never imagined Li Mingyang would be brilliant to this extent.

His genius—having only been under the teacher's guidance for half a year—has utterly crushed these self‑styled old hands.

Indeed, over this entire vacation almost all of them have been spending their days in nervous anxiety, living completely in Li Mingyang's shadow.