Chapter 205 Wang Zhenguo Falls Ill

The news arrived at four in the morning.

Lin Mo's phone vibrated on the nightstand. He instinctively reached for it and glanced at the screen—Fang Lin.

Calling at this hour, it had to be something major.

He picked up, and before he could even speak, Fang Lin's voice came through:

"Lin Mo, Teacher Wang has been hospitalized."

Lin Mo's mind went blank for a second.

"Heart disease, sudden onset," Fang Lin continued. "He's being resuscitated at Fuwai Hospital right now. Come back as soon as you can."

Lin Mo hung up the phone and sat on the edge of the bed, motionless.

Outside the window, the night in the Gobi Desert was still thick. The silhouette of the tokamak-3 device loomed in the moonlight.

He remembered the phone call with Wang Zhenguo three days ago. On the phone, the teacher had asked him about the Carbon Nanotubess and the progress of the space elevator, finally saying, "I'm doing fine, don't worry."

Doing fine.

Lin Mo closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Then he stood up and began to pack his things.

At six in the morning, Lin Mo boarded a flight to Beijing.

Li Xiao insisted on coming along, but he stopped her. "The base needs someone to keep an eye on things," he said. "I'll go alone."

Li Xiao looked into his eyes and nodded, no longer insisting.

The plane pierced through the clouds, and sunlight spilled into the cabin window. Lin Mo leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes, but his mind was filled with images of Wang Zhenguo.

Their first meeting was four years ago. Back then, he was just an ordinary Ph.D. Student, bringing data on Room-Temperature Superconductivity to Wang Zhenguo for verification. Wang Zhenguo looked at it for a full two hours before looking up and saying one thing: "Kid, do you know what this means?"

Later, Wang Zhenguo helped him secure funding, shielded him from skepticism, and helped him build a team. During the construction of tokamak-3, Wang Zhenguo would call every month to ask about the progress, the difficulties, and the status of the team members. On the night of the successful ignition, Wang Zhenguo was moved to tears on the other end of the video call, saying, "This life has been worth it."

Later still, when he won the State Preeminent Science and Technology Award, Wang Zhenguo told him backstage: "This award isn't the finish line; it's the starting line."

Teacher.

Lin Mo opened his eyes and looked at the sea of clouds outside the window.

He suddenly realized that he had never considered that one day, his teacher might not be there.

At ten in the morning, Lin Mo arrived at Fuwai Hospital.

Fang Lin was waiting for him at the entrance, her expression somewhat solemn.

"How is he?" Lin Mo asked.

Fang Lin shook her head. "He's been resuscitated, but he's still in the ICU for observation. The doctor said it was an Acute Myocardial Infarction; luckily, he was brought in on time."

Lin Mo was silent for a few seconds, then said, "I'll go in and see him."

After putting on protective gear and passing through two isolation doors, Lin Mo entered the ICU.

The ward was very quiet, save for the beeping of the monitoring equipment. Wang Zhenguo lay on the hospital bed, his face pale, his lips bloodless, with various tubes connected to his body.

Lin Mo walked to the bedside and looked at that familiar face.

Four years ago, although Wang Zhenguo's hair was entirely white, he was hale and hearty, and spoke with great vigor. Now, he lay there like an oil lamp nearly burnt out.

Lin Mo's eyes suddenly felt a bit stinging.

He pulled over a chair, sat by the bed, and took Wang Zhenguo's hand.

That hand was very thin and the skin was loose, but there was still warmth in the palm.

Lin Mo just held it like that, motionless.

After an unknown amount of time, Wang Zhenguo's eyelids fluttered and slowly opened.

He saw Lin Mo, was stunned for a moment, and then the corners of his mouth turned up slightly:

"You're here?"

Lin Mo nodded.

Wang Zhenguo tried to sit up, but Lin Mo quickly pressed him down. "Don't move, just lie there."

Wang Zhenguo didn't persist and lay back down, looking at Lin Mo:

"Why are you here? Aren't things busy over there?"

Lin Mo shook his head. "Teacher, you're in this state; how could I not come?"

Wang Zhenguo smiled, a very weak smile:

"It's fine, I won't die. It's just my heart, an old problem."

Lin Mo held his hand and didn't speak.

Wang Zhenguo looked at him, his gaze filled with complex emotions:

"Lin Mo, do you know what I dreamed about just now while I was unconscious?"

Lin Mo shook his head.

Wang Zhenguo said slowly, "I dreamed of the first time I took you to see the Tokamak Device. You were just a green boy then, standing in front of that massive machine with your eyes wide. I asked you, do you want to do this? You said, I do. I asked again, are you afraid? You said, I'm not."

He paused and smiled:

"I knew then that I hadn't misjudged you."

Lin Mo's eyes reddened again.

Wang Zhenguo patted his hand:

"Alright, don't cry. I'm not dead yet."

Lin Mo took a deep breath and blinked back the tears.

Wang Zhenguo looked at him and suddenly said:

"Lin Mo, I want to tell you something."

"Go ahead."

Wang Zhenguo's gaze became somewhat distant:

"My biggest regret in this life is not being able to see space with my own eyes."

He paused and continued:

"When I was young, it was right during the space fever. Back then, I thought every day about when I could go up and see it. Later, after I got into Nuclear Fusion, I wanted it even more—if fusion energy succeeds, humanity can go much further. But I'm old; I can't go anymore."

He looked at Lin Mo, his eyes full of expectation:

"Lin Mo, go and see it for me."

Lin Mo gripped his hand tightly:

"Teacher, just focus on recovering. Once you're better, I'll take you there."

Wang Zhenguo shook his head. "Don't lie to me. With this body of mine, I can't go to space. But you can."

He squeezed Lin Mo's hand firmly:

"You go, go see it for me. See what Earth looks like from space, see if Chang'e is on the Moon, see if potatoes can grow on Mars. See—how far we humans can go."

Lin Mo looked at him and nodded solemnly:

"Teacher, I promise you."

Wang Zhenguo smiled, looking very happy:

"Good, good. Then I can rest easy—"

"Teacher," Lin Mo interrupted, "don't say things like that. You still have to watch me complete the space elevator."

Wang Zhenguo was stunned for a moment, then laughed:

"Fine, I'll watch. I'll watch you build it."

Coming out of the ICU, Lin Mo stood in the corridor for a long time.

Fang Lin walked over and handed him a cup of water:

"How is he?"

Lin Mo took the water and took a sip. "He's awake, and his spirits are okay."

Fang Lin nodded. "The doctor said it was lucky it was discovered early this time. Any later by half an hour, and it would be hard to say."

Lin Mo was silent for a while, then asked:

"How did he fall ill so suddenly?"

Fang Lin sighed. "Exhaustion. He's in his eighties, yet he still reads papers every day, makes phone calls, and worries about this and that. Every time you succeed over there, he gets happy for days and can't even sleep well."

Lin Mo lowered his head.

Seeing him like this, Fang Lin said softly:

"Lin Mo, don't blame yourself. You can't stop someone like Teacher Wang."

Lin Mo shook his head and didn't speak.

Fang Lin patted his shoulder:

"Go see Shimu; she's in the lounge."

In the lounge, Wang Zhenguo's wife sat on the sofa, her eyes red.

Lin Mo walked in and sat down beside her:

"Shimu."

Shimu looked up, saw him, and forced a smile:

"Xiao Lin is here?"

Lin Mo nodded. "Teacher is fine now, please don't worry too much."

Shimu shook her head. "I'm not worried about him; I'm worried about you."

Lin Mo was stunned.

Shimu looked at him with eyes full of affection:

"The old man often talks about you. He says you're working too hard, even harder than he did back then. He says if you keep this up, you'll end up like him sooner or later."

Lin Mo fell silent.

Shimu took his hand:

"Xiao Lin, I know you have great things on your mind. But you have to promise me to take care of yourself. The old man still wants to watch you build that space elevator; if you collapse first, what will he do?"

Lin Mo looked at her and nodded solemnly:

"Shimu, I promise you."

In the evening, Lin Mo entered the ICU again.

Wang Zhenguo was awake. Seeing him enter, he smiled again:

"How is he again? Not going back to rest?"

Lin Mo sat by the bed:

"Just here to talk with you for a bit."

Wang Zhenguo looked at him and suddenly asked:

"How is the progress on the space elevator?"

Lin Mo said, "There's been a breakthrough with Carbon Nanotubess, and a thousand-ton production line is being set up. The blueprints are mostly researched, and the difficult points have all been identified."

Wang Zhenguo nodded. "Good, good. That thing, I'd only ever seen it in books before. I didn't think it could actually be done."

Lin Mo said, "Teacher, when it's built, I'll take you to see it. From the ground to space, thirty-six thousand kilometers. The elevator cabin has windows, and you can see Earth getting smaller and smaller."

Wang Zhenguo smiled. "How long will that take?"

"Twenty years."

"Twenty years..." Wang Zhenguo murmured the repetition. "I'll be over a hundred years old by then."

Lin Mo held his hand. "So you have to live well."

Wang Zhenguo looked at him, his gaze filled with complex emotions:

"Lin Mo, I'll tell you the truth—I don't know if I can live until that day."

Lin Mo was about to speak, but was stopped by him:

"But it doesn't matter. As long as you are alive. You go see it for me."

He paused, his voice lowering:

"My greatest achievement in this life isn't Nuclear Fusion. It's you."

Lin Mo's eyes reddened again.

Wang Zhenguo patted his hand:

"Alright, go back. Get some rest early. You'll be busy tomorrow."

Lin Mo stood up, walked to the door, and looked back once more.

Wang Zhenguo lay on the bed and waved at him.

That movement was very light, like a breeze.

Late at night, Lin Mo stood at the hospital entrance, looking at the night view of Beijing.

His phone rang; it was a message from Li Xiao:

"Senior Brother, how is Teacher Wang?"

Lin Mo replied: "He's out of danger."

Li Xiao replied instantly: "That's great! Make sure to rest and don't overwork yourself."

Lin Mo looked at those words and was silent for a few seconds.

Then he looked up at the night sky.

Beijing's light pollution was too severe to see many stars. But he knew they were there.

In the low sky to the southeast, that dim star was also there.

He remembered what Wang Zhenguo had said:

"You go and see it for me."

I will, Teacher.

I will see it for you.

See Earth rising from space, see the sunrise on the Moon, see the sunset on Mars.

See humanity heading towards the sea of stars.