I am chasing a rough man in the 80s
Chapter 859 Something Seems Off

Chapter 859: Chapter 859 Something Seems Off

Just as the third guy was pondering whether to give those two clueless guys a nudge, Suizi spoke up, her voice still calm and light.

"I’m done here; we can leave now," she said.

"Aren’t you taking it with you?" The third guy saw her laptop spread out on the table, with no sign she planned to pack it up.

Suizi slid the folder into the hardcover notebook, her gaze casually sweeping over the two senior brothers, who all turned their faces away in guilt as she looked at them.

"Only a few of us can enter this laboratory. It’s fine,"

Coming out of the graduate building, Suizi saw the boys playing soccer on the playground, freely running around, fearless under the blazing sun.

In a moment of reverie, she thought of her college years when Yu Jingting was one of them, and she, always silently watching by the sidelines.

She herself wasn’t particularly fond of sports, yet because she fell in love with a man bursting with energy, she came to understand all sorts of game rules.

What used to be tedious sports matches for her became thrilling and colorful because the one she cherished was on the field.

Suizi curved her lips into a smile, and it took her a moment to hear the third guy calling her name twice.

"Sister-in-law, are you missing the boss?" The third guy only knew that the boss had gone to the border on a business trip, oblivious to the dangers involved.

Seeing Suizi distracted, he guessed she was longing for her lover.

"What did you just say?" Suizi didn’t answer directly.

Her longing for him, she didn’t need to tell anyone; it was enough that only the wind knew.

"I was asking, what’s the difference between postgraduate studies and college?" the third guy inquired, "When I graduated, I also wanted to pursue further studies, but my family was against it. I still regret it somewhat."

"There’s a big difference in the approach to studying, learning to be innovative, exploring different domains; though I was like this even during my college years, so the difference isn’t that significant for me,"

"What about interpersonal relationships?"

"Oh, that’s different," she replied tersely.

Suizi summarized her current situation with just four words.

In college, you could speak your mind, talk about life, ideals, and academics. When reflecting on relationships with peers during her postgraduate studies, this statement seemed most fitting to her.

"Guard against fire, guard against theft, guard against senior brothers; where there’s competition over interests at stake, disputes are inevitable, but fortunately, they’re all within controllable limits,"

When it came to dealing with people, Suizi might not enjoy it, but she found it wasn’t too difficult; after all, she had her experience to draw on.

If peers study the same topic, then you’re in a competitive relationship; don’t expect your competitors to look out for you, especially with things like scholarship applications on the line.

Suizi could see the situation more clearly than her peers; with lower expectations from her fellow students, she avoided disappointment or becoming jaded, her inner peace unaffected as she focused solely on her studies.

The third guy, seeing her speak so casually, knew she had real inner strength, but still couldn’t help adding another word of caution:

"Sister-in-law, since you know you can’t be without preventive measures against others, then why do you leave your research out in the open? Aren’t you afraid they’ll copy your data?"

"Yeah, I’m afraid," she said with a faint smile. Indeed, she feared that they wouldn’t copy.

Seeing her expression, it suddenly dawned on the third guy, it was the same serene look she wore when they visited the fairyland dive, her eyes deep, as if they could contain stars and oceans.

He had an epiphany.

If Suizi could integrate and digest the world’s current affairs like a vast ocean, the petty struggles within the laboratory were nothing in her eyes.

So... when Suizi was quietly composing her report just now, had she already sabotaged them? Before he even arrived, she had already been planning her strategy behind the scenes.

Realizing this, the third guy shivered and smiled at Suizi even more obsequiously.

"Sister-in-law, I haven’t offended you recently, have I?"

He understood, crossing Sister-in-law meant a clueless demise; during her moments of longing for the boss, she casually dealt a devastating blow to her opponents.

This subtly ruthless method was indeed refreshing and refined.

Yu Jingting had been out for three days, and there was still no news from him.

Actually, this was normal. The journey was long, and there were no flights, so it would take at least two days just to travel. Considering the time, he must have just arrived not long ago.

Suizi behaved no differently than usual. She attended school, took care of the children, and whenever she had some free time, she would dive into the kitchen to tinker with food.

Wang Cuihua always felt that something was a bit off with her daughter-in-law, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. She could only sneak in questions to Grandpa Si when Suizi was busy clanging around in the kitchen.

"Has our Suizi encountered some kind of problem recently? Why do I feel like something’s not quite right with her?"

Grandpa Si did not respond.

Wang Cuihua took a glance at Grandpa Si and felt that the old man also seemed somewhat odd.

"Why haven’t you been out to sneak some chess these past few days?"

On the days Grandpa Si didn’t have to go to the department, he would usually be swiping chess pieces for fun from the elderly men playing chess at the entrance to the alley.

"The weather’s dull, can’t be bothered to move."

Grandpa Si sat in the rocking chair, watching the clouds drift by in the sky.

Luoluo was playing with a rubber ball in the Courtyard, and Bobo sat on a chair with a frown on his little face, seemingly pondering over something.

Suizi came out with a tray. Bobo’s spirits lifted—here it came!

He got up and started waddling away with his chubby little legs, but was called to a halt by his overly gentle mother.

"Come and drink some juice."

Bobo pretended not to hear and tried to run away.

"Picky eaters won’t grow tall, you know."

The overly gentle voice of his mother made Bobo’s chubby face pout, knowing there was no escape.

"It’s not tasty, it’s bitter!" Luoluo expressed blunt dissatisfaction with the unclear orange liquid in their mother’s hands.

"I’ve improved it this time, it should taste a bit better."

Suizi distributed the juice to the two children.

Wang Cuihua saw her daughter-in-law coming towards her with a platter and felt a headache coming on.

"We two adults don’t really need it, such a precious thing should be saved for—"

Wang Cuihua meant to say it should be saved for the children, but seeing her two little grandsons grimacing and holding their noses as if they were being force-fed medicine made her feel sorry for them.

She thought of giving it to her relatives but then reconsidered. The relatives’ mother was pregnant and it wouldn’t be easy, so giving her this sour and bitter stuff would be too cruel.

So, she bit the bullet and said, "We should save more for your father. His brain works so hard all the time, and he even has to entertain foreign guests sometimes. This foreign stuff is best saved for him."

"Tch," Grandpa Si chuckled.

So, Cuihua had thought it over and didn’t have the heart to give it to anyone, so she chose her relatives as the target?

"I’ll also send a few to my dad. This is specially made for you guys, I added mint leaves, so it shouldn’t be that hard to drink now."

Suizi handed a cup to each of her in-laws.

Wang Cuihua felt embarrassed to refuse, so she braced herself and took a small sip. It wasn’t bitter, but it was still too sour to be enjoyable.

"Do all these foreigners have some sort of problem, liking such difficult-to-eat stuff? Why would anyone want it?"

Grapefruit could not yet be cultivated domestically, so if you wanted to eat it, you had to rely on imports. The quantity was very limited, only certain departments could get their hands on it, and it was definitely considered a luxury fruit. However, Wang Cuihua felt it couldn’t compare to the Sakurajima giant radishes that cost mere cents per kilogram.

"It’s rich in nutrients, and it also varies by variety. This variety is somewhat harder to drink."

Suizi, under Wang Cuihua’s impressed gaze, took her cup and drank it down in one gulp.

Seeing her do this, Wang Cuihua finally realized what was amiss with her daughter-in-law.