CH 195 Shi Fengyue's Story
Translated by The BL Muse (ko-fi)
The two mothers came back, and after a lively dinner, Jiang Chen finally allowed himself to completely relax for the first time since his rebirth.
After lazing at home for a week, Shi Fengyue finally couldn't bear it anymore and called him out.
The two have been together for a long time and have never been on a date, but neither of them was really of the romantic type. And in addition to their sensitive identities, the date was decided to be held at home. They spent the day together watching a movie then Shi Fengyue cooked a meal with the precision and cleanliness of a surgeon.
Jiang Chen watched on the sidelines and couldn't help but laugh. He remembered what he had heard before and asked curiously: "You were so talented at computers, why did you go to study medicine back then?"
Shi Fengyue paused in cutting the chicken with his knife, put down the knife, turned on the faucet and rinsed his hands: "To repay a favor."
Jiang Chen raised his eyebrows, and then remembered something he heard about Shi Fengyue, and a thought flashed through his mind: "The six months you were missing?"
Shi Fengyue wiped his hands, his eyelashes flickering, seeming to acquiesce to his words, and also seeming to remember something, his whole person suddenly immersed in a certain mix of emotions.
Jiang Chen didn't ask any more questions and waited patiently for him to sort out his emotions.
"My father was an explorer and a photographer. Growing up, I saw him only a handful of times. My mother also divorced him because of this." Shi Fengyue pulled Jiang Chen to sit on the sofa with him and hugged him from behind, resting his chin on his shoulder. "When I was sixteen, my dad disappeared in a paragliding accident. I went to look for him without telling my family, and later I was injured and fell in a coma for half a year."
Jiang Chen was stunned, thinking that this was the reason why Shi Fengyue disappeared and later studied medicine. Unexpectedly, his voice suddenly became hoarse for a moment, and he tightened his arms around Jiang Chen before continuing: "In those six months, I went to another world. Or more accurately, I was reborn in the future."
"It was an era... when human beings were called 'lower citizens' and were no different from captive livestock and guinea pigs. I was reborn in the body of a six-year-old child. There was not a single piece of good flesh on that child's body, only wounds, and even his legs were broken. If he didn't get treatment in time he would be paralyzed for life. At that time, I thought I was dreaming, but I couldn't get up, I could only watch as I wallowed in my own filth. The smell was so sobering."
Shi Fengyue chuckled and paused, "After I woke up, I knew I wouldn't live long. In that era, a disabled child couldn't survive in that kind of environment, but two men passing by saved me. They took me back, healed my legs, and raised me. Probably because I resisted, they didn't force me to call them ‘dad’, only ‘teacher’..."
His two teachers, one was a doctor named Yang Changxin, and the other was a former expert in the field of machine learning named Jiang Jian.
In the era of enslavement by alien forces, any skills related to the development of science and technology were useless. The aliens did not allow lower-class citizens to have any means beyond what was allowed to them, especially technology. Once discovered, they would be imprisoned and tortured.
However, in every chaotic time, there would always be a group of pioneers who dared to resist. They were like a beam of light that would never go out. They united and twisted their efforts into a single rope and worked hard for the future of mankind.
Yang Changxin and Jiang Jian were part of such a group of people. They must work for a sufficient amount of time at their assigned positions every day, and at the same time squeeze out any free time they could. One traveled around to treat people who needed treatment, while the other stayed locked in a small dark basement, studying and doing experiments on the project he had been working on since his days on Earth.
This project had already taken shape, but the interstellar migration had caused too much data to be lost. In addition, the aliens strictly controlled all resources and had extremely strict power consumption standards. Computers were even harder to find and everywhere there was hidden equipment to capture network signals. Once it was discovered that humans were using the Internet privately or trying to research scientific projects that "undermine interstellar peace," all participants would be subjected to the most severe torture in the interstellar world.
Therefore, this project had always been hidden in darkness. Jiang Jian firmly believed that this was the way forward for mankind and the hope of changing their current circumstances.
However, before this day arrived, the road ahead collapsed.
Someone tipped off the enemy on Jiang Jian's research, including the hidden location of the basement. At that time, Yang Changxin happened to have come to the basement to help Jiang Jian do some cleaning. The alien law enforcers who broke in pressed the latest quantum weapon against Yang Changxin's head and demanded his identity.
Yang Changxin was too smart, he instantly guessed the reason for the arrival of these law enforcement officers. He immediately admitted to being Jiang Jian. In order to protect Jiang Jian, he resisted the law enforcement and forced the law enforcement officers to injure him. After they relaxed their vigilance, he ignored the pain of melting bones from the waist down, and destroyed all information on the identities of himself and Jiang Jian, as well as the information on Jiang Jian's research project.
When he learned about Yang Changxin's death, Shi Fengyue was checking a patient who came to his door. Jiang Jian sat on the side and was deep in thought. As usual, he was holding a pen and an old newspaper already filled up with scribbles that one could hardly see any words clearly.
Shi Fengyue took back the stethoscope, and Jiang Jian reached for the cup by his side. As usual, his attention was not on the cup when he was thinking about something, but this time Yang Changxin was not there to pay attention. Shi Fengyue also stood too far, so the cup naturally hit the ground and shattered into pieces.
Jiang Jian was brought back to his senses by the sound, and stood up to clean up, but at this time the door was suddenly pushed open.
He was a friend who had a good relationship with Jiang Jian. He walked in a hurry and looked very panicked, practically throwing the door open. When he saw the peaceful scene inside, his nose stung at first, and then he announced the bad news.
Shi Fengyue could not forget his shock and hatred at that time, but Jiang Jian was only in a daze for a while, and then calmly told his friend that he knew about the matter. When the friend left, he bent down and groped to collect the broken glass, calmly as if the cup had just slipped, no one opened the door and came in, and the patient did not leave with a look of sympathy and understanding.
Jiang Jian was calm for a long time, such that Shi Fengyue thought that he had suppressed the matter in his heart. Until that day, Jiang Jian protected him without hesitation and showed his first smile since Yang Changxin's tragic death. Before he died, he said to him in a nostalgic and entrusting tone: "You are very talented in computers. Back then Chang Xin and I almost had a fight over you. In the end, he used the survival of mankind to persuade me to give up taking you as my student. I have always regretted that you did not follow me to do research, but now that I think about it, it was a good thing you didn't. The backup data is in the secret room belonging to me and Chang Xin, but promise me to never open it."
"Live well and don't forget your teacher's expectations."
Jiang Chen held his breath and turned to look at Shi Fengyue: "Do you know the name of the project your teacher was researching..."
Shi Fengyue let go of Jiang Chen, met his gaze, and raised the corners of his mouth lightly: "Each of them chose a word from their names."
Jiang Chen's eyes widened and he suddenly felt enlightened. Ever since he heard the names of Shi Fengyue's two teachers, he had some kind of premonition. After hearing their stories, countless complicated emotions surged through him.
When he was reborn in the interstellar era, a long time had already passed since the beginning of the era. Every detail recorded in the history books would shock those who studied history at that time. However, people who have not experienced that era would never know how difficult that era truly was.
Therefore, Jiang Chen liked to study history, and through remembering the past, gained inspiration for the present.
At that time, he was just a student in the School of Computer Science and had no specific direction. Until one day when he was browsing information in the ancient book database of the library, he came across an old and thick notebook, which recorded the details of a project called "Changjiang”. In addition to the project materials of "Changjiang", there were also some scattered brainstorm notes. This notebook had some pages missing, and some places there were even notes scribbled over it. The handwriting was obviously different, clearly having been read by many people. But by the second half of the notebook, few people continued to read it.
There was no other reason, there were too many missing pages that even blindly guessing could not make sense of it. Moreover, according to the technological level of the interstellar era, this research project was seriously backward. Although some of the ideas were very interesting, just like the reason why the project in this notebook could not be carried out, there was a serious lack of data, and these creative ideas could not be realized.
But Jiang Chen felt like he had found a treasure. He immediately determined his graduation topic and research direction. He tried again and again and failed again and again. In this repeated cycle, Changjiang was finally born.
Since then, Jiang Chen made the leap from a student to a professor. Later, he became the person in charge of the entire project. He stood on the podium of the most authoritative scientific research and development award in the world and explained the origin of the "Changjiang".
Everyone thought that Changjiang was taken from his surname, but this was not the case. There was a paragraph written on the last page of the notebook:
My love, Chang Xin, you always complain that I hardly ever say I love you, but you don’t know that the Changjiang was an inspiration that burst out on the day you and I got together, and it is also the gift I want to give you most. Its existence represents my most passionate and sincere love for you. I look forward to it being born and letting everyone hear, I love you.
Jiang Chen was moved by this pure love and was grateful to this unknown senior who could be called his guide and teacher, so he continued the unknown author's wish to let everyone know that the name Changjiang was named for his beloved Chang Xin.
Later, when he was reborn back in this world, Jiang Chen still used the name Changjiang, out of respect and habit, and also to continue the love that the teacher who inspired him had for the gentleman named Chang Xin.
Just as he hoped, every time someone used Changjiang, it was helping him to express his love for Chang Xin.
"Changjiang..." Jiang Chen murmured softly.
"Thank you." Shi Fengyue pressed a kiss to Jiang Chen's forehead: "They must be very happy."