The warmth of the teacher

Lin Yuan and Zhang Yan were called back midway by Professor Zhang because an elder fellow student had something important to discuss with him.

On the way back, Lin Yuan was still complaining, "Why didn't he say it just now? He had to wait until I left. Xia Ye is still waiting for me to come home."

Zhang Yan replied indifferently, "Xia Ye hasn't finished her tutoring class yet; she's really working hard now. I told you to at least humor them for a bit before leaving. How could you just sneak away the moment dinner was over?"

Lin Yuan had been in a bad mood at his mentor's house because no one thought highly of him and Xia Ye. After dinner, he said goodbye to the two professors and left without trying to connect further with the newly met elder fellow students.

"Do you still want to integrate into the sect?"

"Of course, I do. But since I'm my master's last disciple, I should act like one. I'll just be the most clueless junior fellow student; at least it saves a lot of trouble with formalities."

"Then you are indeed clever. You want the benefits but don't want to bear the trouble of socializing."

"What's there to socialize about? When your strength is sufficient, great scholars will naturally debate for you. What do you think he called me back for this time?"

"How would I know? Your mentor didn't say on the phone just now." Lin Yuan had been on speakerphone, and Professor Zhang had indeed only said it was urgent.

"It must be about Lanbiao Factory."

Zhang Yan slowed down the car, clearly thinking, "They found their way to your mentor?"

"To be precise, they found one of my elder fellow students. Mr. Zhang of Lanbiao Factory's Purple Gold branch was blocked by me, wasn't he? And my mentor's disciples and grand-disciples are everywhere; in the internet industry, everyone sees each other."

Before long, Lin Yuan returned to his mentor's house.

His mentor had him go through a side door, bypassing the living room, and directly into the study he had just been in.

Professor Zhang and Dean Li were both in the study, but there was a new face. Lin Yuan didn't even need to guess; he figured this person was today's persuader.

After some pleasantries between fellow students, Lin Yuan learned the persuader's identity—a student from his mentor's 2011 class, now a core technical department head at a major internet company in Shanghai. It was likely a mid-to-high-level position, but not yet executive-level.

"Brother, please speak frankly." Lin Yuan, still somewhat under the influence of alcohol, directly interrupted the unfinished opening remarks.

"Junior Brother is truly a straightforward person. I was entrusted by someone today, and in front of our teachers, I won't hide anything. Our company also has a large investment from Alibaba; they are essentially our major shareholders and bosses.

Junior Brother, you seemed to have had a misunderstanding with Mr. Wang from Alibaba's local life service group. The other party inquired around and finally specifically sent a secretary to ask me to explain clearly to you. They value talent greatly and want you to visit Shanghai again whenever you have time."

Lin Yuan feigned curiosity, "That's it? Nothing else?"

"What else would Junior Brother want?"

Lin Yuan was thinking about how to respond. After all, the other party was his elder fellow student, so speaking too harshly was clearly not an option. But Alibaba's business group really couldn't distinguish between priorities. Now that Lanbiao Factory's takeout business was in dire straits, they were still putting on airs.

They wanted him to make another trip to Shanghai? What a joke! It would be more like it if you came to Purple Gold.

Just as Lin Yuan was deliberating, Professor Zhang helped him out.

"This junior fellow student of yours is like me when I was young, very stubborn. You don't need to persuade him further. Just consider that you've tried your best to persuade him today, and it'll be fine as long as you can handle the situation when you go back."

His mentor's words effectively put an end to the conversation, saving Lin Yuan and his elder fellow student a lot of meaningless back-and-forth.

In fact, Professor Zhang had long understood Lin Yuan's thoughts. After all, Lin Yuan was so hesitant about even relying on Zhang Yan, so how could he possibly humble himself to a company CEO? On the land of China, while wealth is impressive, in the face of power, wealth is nothing.

However, to maintain appearances, Professor Zhang still had to call Lin Yuan back. Some social obligations, though you know they are meaningless, cannot be avoided. Take today's matter, for instance: if the persuader came all this way and didn't even get a chance to talk privately with Lin Yuan, wouldn't that be a huge slap in the face?

Within a sect, no matter what, people still need to look out for each other.

And that persuader elder fellow student was indeed considerate. After hearing Professor Zhang's words, he immediately stopped nagging. However, the regret on his face was evident.

After a moment of hesitation, the persuader elder fellow student still held back from speaking again. Instead, Professor Zhang said, "We're all family here. Just speak your mind. If this kid dares to disrespect you, I'll deal with him for you."

Zhang Yan, who had been sitting silently nearby, witnessed everything. At this moment, a slight smile involuntarily appeared on her lips. Because Professor Zhang was truly good to his students; he was like a lubricant, easing internal friction within the sect.

The persuader elder fellow student then continued, "Before I came, I also looked into it carefully. Alibaba's local life service group's takeout business is in a lot of trouble right now. Good Group is already besieging Lanbiao Factory in multiple core cities nationwide. Lanbiao Factory's hundreds of billions of dollars in market value is about to be halved, and it might even collapse.

Teacher, you know this too. There's a saying in the internet industry: 'Even the biggest company is only three months away from bankruptcy.'

So, if Junior Brother goes to Alibaba now, it would be a timely help, a perfect time to offer assistance in a crisis!"

Lin Yuan immediately sobered up a lot upon hearing this. He instantly bowed respectfully to the persuader elder fellow student, like an ancient person making a deep bow, bending ninety degrees, "Thank you, Senior Brother, for thinking of me. Junior Brother will remember this favor."

The persuader elder fellow student's expression immediately brightened considerably, "Junior Brother is too polite; we're all family, after all. If I don't think of you, who would I think of?"

"Don't get ahead of yourself yet; you won't be a successful persuader tonight." Professor Zhang poured a timely bucket of cold water over him.

"This junior fellow student of yours is just grateful for your concern, not actually adopting your advice."

"Ah?" The persuader elder fellow student was instantly bewildered.

Lin Yuan gave his mentor an awkward smile, implicitly acknowledging it.

He was indeed, as his mentor said, simply out of gratitude.

Lin Yuan, who had climbed up from being a delivery rider, only truly felt various kinds of warmth after clinging to his mentor's leg.

An elder fellow student he had never met before could analyze the pros and cons and consider the best path for him in advance. Lin Yuan had to admit that the warmth of a small circle was genuine warmth.

A simple 'Senior Brother' and 'Junior Brother' could instantly turn two complete strangers into 'family.'

Lin Yuan could only sigh, 'No wonder everyone wants to play in their own small circles.'

And the sect was clearly a small circle within small circles. After all, for many, their years of study were the starting point of their success in life, an irreplaceable period of youth, and the path they had traveled.

"Then, Junior Brother, why is this, after all?"

"Just consider that your junior fellow student has some Wei-Jin era spirit," Professor Zhang explained. "To put it bluntly, he's a madman. The last time he went to Shanghai, he was given the cold shoulder, and he'll be uncomfortable until he settles that score. So you don't need to persuade him further.

Lin Yuan, you can leave now."

Professor Zhang quickly motioned for Zhang Yan to help the still somewhat tipsy Lin Yuan out.