Study Monster Cultivation System-Chapter 346 - 345 Similar day, different night

In the teachers’ lounge, Li Zheng was just about to leave when he suddenly widened his eyes.

"[Scholastic wealth plundering successful!]"

"[Chu Youhua→Li Zheng]"

"[Chu Youhua’s scholastic wealth: 138327→138310↓]"

"[Li Zheng’s scholastic wealth: 157→174↑]"

Li Zheng was first taken by surprise.

What happened?

How did he unwittingly... snatch a handful?

Was it because his reputation fell in front of Shen Yuecen?

Or was it because hitting a wall affected his confidence?

Or maybe he had indirect run-ins with Ning’er?

Or perhaps it was...

He was simply siphoned by my Study Demon.

Then, Li Zheng started to feel guilty.

He grabbed his right arm with his left hand, feeling a chill in his heart.

My power of magic... is so hard to control...

However, thinking about how Chu Youhua resorted to such a scheme just for Ning’er’s resources, which seemed quite unscrupulous, he, although indeed possessing the capital of a magnate, had also crossed the line for Li Zheng.

I, Li Zheng, have studied for so long, aced chemistry, slaughtered physics, brutalized biology, breezed information technology, nailed mathematics, built rockets...

In the end, am I not even comparable to a Mom?

Well... it seems so.

Anyway, we’re not the same kind of people, so if I siphon a bit, then so be it.

Li Zheng, in the end, really started to relish it.

From the perspective of relish, how succulent Chu Youhua was, probably losing more than this much fur every day, so snatching this little bit shouldn’t be noticeable, right? Probably he could grow it back after just one sleep.

Next, Jie Qifen finally did something humane, taking Li Zheng and Zhang Xiaoke to eat the most delicious ramen in the whole school.

Actually, it was only so-so.

But after all, it was Ji University’s noodles, with a taste of knowledge.

The true purpose of Chu Youhua’s phone call was also revealed during this noodle meal.

Updat𝓮d from frёewebnoѵēl.com.

But there was one thing that Jie Qifen still hadn’t figured out.

"So how did you get to know Dean Shen?" Jie Qifen put down his chopsticks and asked, "He’s the kind who doesn’t give face to anyone, and he only takes Ph.D. students now, plus he seems to really dislike you... how did he just casually agree to talk?"

"Power, I guess," Li Zheng mumbled as he took a bite of his noodles, "Even Teacher Shen can’t help but set aside personal prejudices in the face of absolute power."

"I don’t believe it." After thinking for a moment, Jie Qifen suddenly became worried, "Li Zheng, you have to be careful. Thinking again about the way Dean Shen looked at you... I feel like he’s out to get you. He took you in only to grumble about you behind closed doors later..."

Liz Zheng shuddered at the words.

Talking about it, it does seem to make sense...

At this moment, he also remembered the muscle photo of Grandma sent by Jingjing.

The face in that photo was a bit blurry, and when he looked at it, his attention was all on the impressive muscles, not noticing it was Shen Yuecen...

Now, thinking about being sorted out by such a person for the next four years, Li Zheng still felt a bit panicked.

He turned and gulped, then said to Jie Qifen, "Don’t scare me... The old Dean wouldn’t be that petty..."

"In any case, I have a bad feeling," Jie Qifen pursed his lips, "Do you guys have some personal grudge? Could it be that you offended him inadvertently before?"

Li Zheng shuddered again.

He remembered Jingjing saying that she was brought up by her grandparents.

As a grandfather who had raised Jingjing for so long, to have his carefully tended cabbage suddenly taken away by a handsome guy...

That was actually not so bad, the key was that in the past... his own daughter had a similar experience.

As a grandfather who learned from a past mistake and had been vigilantly guarding Jingjing for so long, it also made sense.

In the end, Li Zheng just shook his head.

"It doesn’t matter anymore." Li Zheng snorted with laughter, "I’ve always convinced people with my scholarship. After Teacher Shen spends a few days with me, he’ll probably become so attached that he’ll willingly hand over his beloved...knowledge."

Jie Qifen shook his head and patted Li Zheng: "Alright, as long as you can hold your ground, that’s fine."

As they were talking, Zhang Xiaoke, who had been playing with her phone, came over.

"Hey hey, intelligence gatherer Xiaoke has collected some information." Zhang Xiaoke muttered while holding her phone, "Chu Youhua is indeed a big shot in the industry, but opinions about him are split. Those in favor say he really has done a lot of pioneering work, bringing our country’s quantum engineering to world standards. Critics think he’s all talk and secures more resources than he contributes academically. Anyway, I can’t make heads or tails of it."

"You don’t need to understand." Jie Qifen said with a laugh, raising his hand, "Nowadays, 70% of those involved in quantum are just bluffing, and the ones with more resources are the best at it."

"Then why are you pushing me in that direction?"

"Didn’t I say? He’s got something. You can still get in touch with some genuine stuff in there." Jie Qifen interjected, raising his hand, "Just blend in first, grab the resources and credentials. Then, use those 70% bluff resources to do the 30% of genuine work. Isn’t that better? Save the country through a curveball, knowing how to bend and stretch."

"Why can’t you bend and stretch yourself?"

"How did we get back to me? My business isn’t something for you to worry about."

"But when I was eavesdropping, there were a few terms Chu Youhua said that were particularly grating..." Li Zheng held back his laughter as he spoke, "Geometric unified field theory, the irregularity of laws, using mathematical models to describe the evolution of physical laws... haha... were these your old research topics? Why does every word reek of pseudoscience?"

"Hey, who hasn’t been a daydreaming pseudoscientist at some point?" Jie Qifen laughed and waved his hand, standing up, "I’m going to make a few more dishes, you guys chat."

Watching Jie Qifen’s somewhat forced and lonely back, Zhang Xiaoke picked up her chopsticks and pointed at Li Zheng.

"Master, you’ve gone too far, how can you poke someone’s sore spot like that?"

Li Zheng, holding a chopstick full of noodles, smiled and said: "We’re very close, we can play like this."

"No, even with very close people, there are pain points you can’t touch." Zhang Xiaoke spoke earnestly, "Don’t mention these things anymore if Teacher Jie doesn’t bring them up."

"Xiaoke, do you know what those terms represent?"

"Vaguely..." Zhang Xiaoke waited until Jie Qifen was far away, then leaned in to whisper, "It feels like something you’d find in a sci-fi novel, fantasizing about unifying physics."

"Pretty much." Li Zheng nodded and explained, "Unified field theory can almost be called the pinnacle of physics as we can imagine it today, like using a set of mathematical models to explain everything in the universe. It’s the theory that any physicist since ancient times would be content to die after learning. The key point is, if you really wanted to research this theory at this stage, you couldn’t avoid quantum physics. But Teacher Jie refuses to accept cutting-edge quantum theory, only reluctantly accepting the most basic and classical set of quantum doctrines. It’s like he wants to transport the entire ocean’s water into his own house but doesn’t even have a decent container. That’s why I joked that it was pseudoscience."

It took a while after Li Zheng finished speaking for Zhang Xiaoke to suddenly react and laugh, then she pointed at her chest and then at Li Zheng, with a feigned smile: "Heh, I got it, I understand now. I see, I see."

Li Zheng ignored her and muttered to himself: "However, I’ve always been curious about how someone as incredibly smart as Teacher Jie would go about researching... Even if it’s an absurd project, it must be interesting."

"Hmm, you’re right, it must be interesting," Zhang Xiaoke nodded in agreement.

...

Everyone had a similar day.

Yet, each had a different night.

That night, Li Zheng listed a bibliography of 928 books and jubilantly placed an order for 124 of them. He didn’t plan to use his scholastic wealth to leap too far ahead in science just yet, choosing instead to illuminate as much existing key knowledge as possible. After all, it was all preparation, and it had to be learned sooner or later.

...

That night, Zhang Xiaoke tossed and turned in bed, rehearsing future scenarios in advance.

"Ah man, how did I end up at Bright Academy?"

"I barely reviewed, and still made it into the top 100 in the city?"

"Uh-huh, Lake Ying is also a good school. It’s on par with Ren Da Fu."

"What? Lake Ying’s God Zheng? That’s my little bro! He’s always clinging to me like a doggie, so annoying, haha."

"Aiyah, I’m not really interested in finance anyway. It’s just that little brother Li Zheng begged me to help out, so I might as well give it a shot."

"Uncle, you’re asking which school I got into? No no, that won’t do, just Bright Academy~~ Right, right, a third-tier college~~"

The more she rolled around, the more excited she got, and she just couldn’t fall asleep!

...

That night, while Jie Qifen was applying medicine to his mother’s toenails, he accidentally revealed a photo in his phone.

"Who’s this girl?" His mother’s eyes widened as she grabbed her reading glasses and scrutinized the phone closely.

Without much concern, Jie Qifen glanced over and continued applying the medicine: "Ah, someone they wanted to set me up with."

"A blind date?" His mother exclaimed, shaking her foot, "This girl likes you?"

"She didn’t, it didn’t work out." Jie Qifen said, "Stay still, don’t wiggle your foot."

"Silly son, you need to go after it yourself." His mother hit the bed in anger, "What’s wrong with you? You’re a great catch, handsome and a Ji University professor. I was just joking earlier, which girl wouldn’t like you? Back in the day, the matchmakers nearly broke down our door trying to arrange dates for you, did you know that?"

"I told you, stay put." Jie Qifen laughed as he held down his mother’s foot, "What’s with all the fuss? It’s fine as it is, really."

"You don’t understand, a man has to take the initiative." His mother pointed at Jie Qifen and grew even angrier, "You just sit there, indifferent about everything, expecting the girl to come to you?"

"That’s it, all done." Jie Qifen stood up, wiping sweat from his arm, "Even if someone liked me, I’m too busy with my research to have time for a girlfriend."

"Research, research, it’s been twenty years of research, when will it ever end?"

"Science has no limits."

"Looking to get hit again, huh? I’ll hit you!" the old lady threatened as she picked up an itch scratcher and prepared to strike.

Jie Qifen grabbed her phone, laughing as she dashed out, sprinting straight to the bathroom. She had hoped her mother would chase after her, but when she peeked out, she only saw her mother sighing and sitting back at the edge of the bed, holding her chest.

The smile on Jie Qifen’s face froze.

She went to the sink, washed her hands, brushed her teeth, and washed her face.

Then, lifting her head, she saw in the mirror speckled with age spots, that failed face.

Then she grinned, "I’m such an old pseudo-scientist."

After drying off, Jie Qifen returned to her bedroom, turned on the light, and closed the door.

If Li Zheng were here at this moment, his eyes would widen at least four times over.

The room was crammed with real ’towers’ of books.

More precisely, millions of sheets of draft paper bundled together, tied into bundles and stacks, resembling a warehouse of exam papers.

This warehouse only left a path leading to the bed and desk.

As Jie Qifen walked along, touching the ’towers’ of books on her way to the writing desk, she stretched lazily, picked up a pen with her right hand and turned on the calculator with her left.

The true day of an old pseudo-scientist had begun.

...

That night, Chu Youhua stayed very late in his office at the research institute, his screen filled with information about Li Zheng, An Ning, and Shen Yuecen.

Eventually, he bit his nails and clicked the mouse away.

All this stuff...

Compare that to me.

In a state of resentment, there was a knock at the door.

"Come in," Chu Youhua immediately changed his expression to one of amiable kindness.

The assistant peaked in halfway and said, "The tickets and hotel for Central South University of Science and Technology have been arranged for you. The day after tomorrow at 9 AM, you can go through the first-class security checkpoint, and they will have someone to pick you up on arrival."

"First class?" Chu Youhua frowned slightly, "No need, no need, with the budget so tight, economy class will do, and the hotel should be basic, the most ordinary room."

The hesitant assistant said, "They have already arranged everything..."

"Then change it, save as much as we can," Chu Youhua said firmly, "Tell them if they book me first class again, I simply won’t go."

"Okay," the assistant nodded with a smile, "Director, you truly are an example to all of us."

"Don’t say that," Chu Youhua waved dismissively with a smile, "It’s nauseating."

"Hehe."

After the assistant left, Chu Youhua pondered on the spot for a moment, then clicked on a webpage on his desktop that he had been looking at earlier, and chose to provide an anonymous answer.

"[I’m a national physics competition contestant who’s met Li Zheng. He’s unbearably arrogant. Surely nobody is unaware that his mother manages the funding for the Ministry of Science and Technology?]"

"[A high school student enters the aerospace system, and who got you in if not royal relations? Just go search for ’An Ning’.]"

"[I’ve attended two of Dean Shen’s lectures, and to be honest, they were boring and outdated, like listening to an old storyteller recite essays. But I have to say, Dean Shen cuts a very impressive figure and satisfies the public’s fantasies about old scientists.]"

"[Conflict of interest here, so I’m staying anonymous, but I once worked under Shen Yuecen. I went in there full of admiration, but after six months, I never saw Shen Yuecen actually doing anything hands-on, it was only later that I learned from the senior students that Shen’s achievements are all due to monopolizing the supercomputer. Not to mention becoming an academician, give any PhD student access to supercomputing resources for half a year, and their achievements might not be any less than Shen’s.]"

"[As someone in the quantum engineering field from Central South University of Science and Technology, I had to book a flight and accommodation for Professor Chu Youhua because of an academic conference. Since Professor Chu is a top-tier legend, the boss gave me a generous budget, and I booked first class and a large suite according to the budget, only to find Professor Chu got anxious after finding out. He insisted on changing to standard immediately, even phoning me and chiding, ’With funds so tight, you’re still doing this?’ I was so scared I cried as I changed the ticket... While I have limited knowledge of Professor Chu’s scientific achievements, judging by his character alone, he is top-notch in the industry.]"

"[Wow, people are really criticizing Yang Zhenhua and Chu Youhua on this rampaging forum? Why not criticize Yuan Longping for feeding you all too well?]"

After more than an hour of this fervor, Chu Youhua finally shut down the computer.

He was about to get up when suddenly he remembered something.

Hastily, he turned the computer back on, remotely logged into an overseas virtual machine, and began composing an email.

"[Respected leaders of the Ministry of Science and Technology:]"

"[By your department... Director An Ning, abusing power... her son... the national core project...]"

"[Considering her son Li Zheng is already... it is conceivable that regarding future budget allocations... there is suspicion of favoritism.]"

"[Furthermore... An Ning holds 3 unidentified personal properties in the Jijing Area...]"

"[This concerns national security and the integrity of science and technology policy.]"

[Please discern wisely.]

After shutting down the computer once again, Chu Youhua let out a long sigh of relief.

This day had finally come to a coherent end.

...

That night, Zhou Yi put down his phone with a grimace.

[Dear Zhou Huanhuan:]

[With boundless gratitude for your deep affection.]

[Alas, Professor Shen Yuecen is insistent on taking me under his wing.]

[Although my heart is with Huan, given that Old Shen is my girlfriend Jingjing’s grandfather, if I don’t comply, I fear I won’t be able to step into the Jing Family’s house.]

[I wish for you and Shi Bao’er to become a circle soon.]

[To become a great circle.]

[——Your little Zheng Zheng]

...

That same night, Shen Yuecen got his hands on Ji University’s "entire" course schedule for the undergraduate students for the next semester.

Not to mention anything else, just downloading this Excel file took a while.

Under the desk lamp’s light, Shen Yuecen sternly opened up the engineering calculation software.

Well... these thousands of courses, first eliminate the ones with prerequisites...

Then rule out the ones that Yingpei can’t choose...

Then rule out the small language courses...

Ha-ha!

There are still thousands left!

So next, comes a mathematical problem...

Suppose there’s a student Mr. Li, who aims to pack his schedule, attending classes non-stop from 9 AM to 9 PM, Monday to Sunday, how exactly should he choose his courses to stuff his timetable full without any conflicts?

This will require a little finesse...

If one attempt doesn’t work, then try two.

Right... also eliminate Physics courses, so as not to run into Jingjing.

Dating my girlfriend?

Getting close to my little Jingjing?

I won’t give you a minute!

You’ll learn it for a week first.

Let’s see if you still have the energy to look for little Jingjing then!

Without a moment’s delay!

On the screen, it outputted a perfect 997 course package.

Shen Yuecen’s muscles tensed immediately.

Perhaps you don’t know, since I, Shen Yuecen, have been mingling in the sea of academics since the age of 4, I’ve always held a unique title within the circle.

Suddenly, Shen Yuecen swept his gaze towards the top of the screen, his eyes glaring.

There, hung a weathered old silk banner.

Embroidered in gold was the inscription—

[Jijing University, Graduate School of Mathematics, Leader of the 79th Four Kings]

[Study Demon]

[Shen Yuecen]

A man is always a young man until his dying day.

Even if it started in that springtime of his life.