Chapter 14: A Wink to Charm the Heart
“This is a natural mineral water developed by our Academy. Miss Miantang, would you like to try some?”
Lu Sili unscrewed the cap and handed it to her.
“Thank you.” Su Miantang took it and took a small sip. She looked pleasantly surprised. “It’s so sweet and crisp. Are you sure there are no additives?”
“Of course. The water source here is transported from the most natural and pure peaks of the Qingqiu Snow Mountains. Adding any impurities would be a pollution. If you like it, you can leave your optical computer number and address; we will provide it to you for free from now on.”
His words contained hidden intentions, but Su Miantang didn’t catch them. Her attention was drawn to a notice board nearby.
[Recruitment Notice: Due to the development needs of the Academy, we are currently recruiting 3 Dean’s Assistants, 2 Office Directors, 2 Analysis and Testing Specialists, and 1 Biotechnology and Chemical Experiment Researcher. Candidates with extensive work experience or multiple individual honors are preferred.]
The Academy just happened to be hiring?
Excellent!
After hearing Fred and Enzo talk about the Central Empire’s advanced transportation technology and weapons, she had thought science would be the same and that her knowledge would be outdated.
After hearing Lu Sili today, she realized it wasn’t the case. Although Earth and the Central Planet had many differences, the development process and core concepts of biotechnology were similar. She could definitely handle it!
“Miss Miantang?”
“Lu Sili, thank you for the enthusiastic introduction today. I have some things to take care of, so I should head back.”
Going back?
So suddenly?
Lu Sili panicked instantly. “It’s already noon. I’ve reserved a table at the revolving restaurant in Central City. If Miss Miantang doesn’t mind, could we have lunch together?”
“Maybe another day.”
She needed to go back quickly today, read more books, and combine her knowledge with the needs here to prepare for the application.
Another day? Was that a refusal? Had he acted too impatiently and scared her away?
Lu Sili was vexed. Just as he was racking his brain for a way to make her stay, he heard her say, “Let’s meet again tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?”
“Yes, I’ll be back tomorrow.”
“Really? At what time? Can I pick you up?” He asked three questions in a row, full of hope. Su Miantang, however, remained mysterious. “No need. You’ll know when the time comes.”
Fearing she would vanish like a shooting star again, Lu Sili immediately took off the Phoenix Tail badge from his chest. “Take this. With it, you can enter the Academy anytime without hindrance.”
No need to look for that intern anymore.
Su Miantang was stunned by his generosity.
This was a Dean’s badge, representing the Academy’s highest power and honor.
“No.” She thought for a moment and refused. “I will earn one through my own strength.”
Through her own strength?
Long after she left, Lu Sili was still in a daze, not quite understanding what she meant, but he was soon overwhelmed by the joy of anticipation.
She would come again tomorrow.
He gently rubbed the knuckles of the hand that had just held her soft little hand and brought them to his nose. A trace of a smile spilled from the corners of his mouth, savoring the moment.
He wasn’t sure if it was an illusion, but he caught a faint fragrance of Phoenix Tail flowers. It smelled wonderful.
The next day.
Lu Sili specifically chose a white suit from his wardrobe—a hand-tailored, double-breasted style with notch lapels. It both highlighted his slender, upright male physique and exuded a refined, mature charm.
His employees, who were used to seeing him in a white lab coat, were stunned by this sight.
“The Dean is way too handsome!”
“I don’t know if this look slays the females, but it definitely slays the males!”
“Does the Dean have a special event today? Dressing so handsomely? Could it be a date with that beautiful little female from yesterday?”
“Looks like it. The Dean has been smiling since yesterday afternoon. He’s completely different from his usual meticulous and serious self. It’s like he’s in love.”
Like a man in love, Dean Lu arrived at the Academy early in the morning to wait. He waited from morning until noon, and from noon until afternoon, until the final item of the day: interviewing new employees.
He had checked his watch so many times it was almost worn out, and his mood had long since shifted from extreme anticipation to utter disappointment.
She didn’t come…
Perhaps yesterday’s promise was just a perfunctory excuse.
She didn’t want to see him again at all.
In the meeting room, a group of veteran professors from the Academy saw that his mental state was poor and that gloom was swirling between his brows. They couldn’t help but show concern. “Dean, if you are tired, shall we conduct the rest of the interviews? There aren’t many left—I think just one.”
“Mm.”
Lu Sili stood up to leave.
The name of the final interviewee came over the broadcast—Su Miantang!
What?!
He looked up quickly and saw the little female he had been missing so dearly walking in from outside with a file folder. His eyes lit up instantly.
She came!
But… why was she here for an interview?
“Why is it a female?”
“Yeah, she’s so young. She looks like she just reached adulthood.”
“She’s not here to play, is she? Or here to find the Dean?”
The group of old professors began to discuss.
It wasn’t surprising they were confused. Females were rare in the Empire; every one was well-protected and provided with the best material conditions. Almost none of them worked. Even if they did, they were in easy and pleasant industries like beauty, jewelry, or entertainment. Who would want to come to the Academy of Sciences?
Coming here required years of academic background, extraordinary talent, keen observation, and rich creativity… the work was also very taxing on the mind and spirit. Even some males found it hard to persevere.
To date, their Academy didn’t have a single female employee!
“Su Miantang.”
An old professor spoke first. His tone wasn’t friendly because, in his view, Su Miantang was just a willful female coming to mess up their work.
“Are you here for an interview?”
“Yes.” Su Miantang sat on the interview stool. “Hello, Professor Heller!”
Before starting, she greeted the interviewers one by one according to the nameplates on the table. When it was Lu Sili’s turn, she added a highly suggestive wink, as if saying: Dean, I’m here!
Lu Sili was so charmed by that sly and enchanting wink that his heart nearly stopped beating.
She’s quite polite?
Hearing this, the old professor’s tone improved significantly. “Are you here to interview for the position of Dean’s Assistant?”
He had seen many situations like this.
Females often sneaked into the Academy to pursue the Dean—public confessions, pestering, staying in the lab and refusing to leave…
The regulation “outsiders are strictly prohibited from entering the Academy” originated from this.
However, no one had been so delusional as to come and apply for the Dean’s Assistant.
Although the Dean had a gentle temperament and was polite, never scolding females, that was based solely on respect for gender. In work, he was always impartial, strict, and meticulous. He wouldn’t make an exception for anyone—even if she was beautiful and gave him a wink. She was simply humiliating herself.
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