Chapter 62 Team Gathering

The night after the Lithium-Sulfur Battery project passed the inspection by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Lin Mo suggested a small gathering at the base cafeteria.

"Just the few of us," he said. "No formalities, no inviting leaders—just us having a casual meal together."

Chen Xueming was stunned for a moment. "The cafeteria?"

Lin Mo smiled. "Don't look down on the cafeteria. The head chef is quite skilled and can even whip up special dishes."

At seven in the evening, the four of them sat around a circular table in a corner of the cafeteria. Zhang Zhe didn't come; he said something came up at home and he'd taken leave to return to his hometown, though he sent a message before leaving wishing everyone a good meal.

Zhao Gang went to the window to order and returned with four bottles of beer. "An exception for tonight—one bottle each, and that's it."

Li Xiao's eyes lit up. "Uncle Zhao, you actually bought alcohol on your own initiative?"

Zhao Gang sat down, a rare smile appearing on his face. "I'm happy. The project succeeded; we should have a drink."

Lin Mo took the beer bottles, popped the caps, and poured a glass for everyone. The amber liquid swayed slightly in the glasses, topped with fine foam.

Chen Xueming looked at the glass of beer before him, feeling a bit dazed.

How long had it been since he'd drunk in a setting like this?

The last time he'd had a meal with colleagues felt like four years ago, right after he'd returned to the country. After hitting too many walls, he had become increasingly reclusive, not even bothering to attend social dinners, let alone drink.

"Dr. Chen," Li Xiao raised her glass, "come, let me toast you! Congratulations!"

Chen Xueming snapped back to reality and also raised his glass. "Congratulations to us."

The two clinked glasses and took a sip. Li Xiao grimaced at the bitterness of the beer, making Zhao Gang burst into laughter. "Girl, don't force it if you can't drink."

Li Xiao protested, "Who says I can't! I'm just... just not used to the taste!"

Looking at her, Chen Xueming couldn't help but smile.

This girl was exactly the same as when he first met her—full of energy, a bit reckless, but so sincere that it was impossible not to like her.

Lin Mo raised his glass and looked at Chen Xueming. "Dr. Chen, this toast is to our team's first milestone."

Chen Xueming nodded and clinked glasses with him.

After a few rounds of drinks, the conversation began to flow freely.

Li Xiao was the first to start gossiping. "Dr. Chen, when you were at Stanford, did you eat burgers and pizza every day?"

Chen Xueming shook his head. "It wasn't that miserable. There are plenty of Chinese restaurants around the school; I went often."

"Then what was your favorite thing to eat?"

"Sichuan Cuisine," Chen Xueming said. "Mapo Tofu, Boiled Fish, Fuqi Feipian. There was a place called 'Old Szechuan' where the owner was from Chongqing; it was very authentic."

Li Xiao's eyes lit up. "So you ate spicy food in America too?"

"Of course," Chen Xueming smiled. "I'm Sichuanese; how could I not eat spicy food?"

Zhao Gang interjected from the side, "You're Sichuanese?"

Chen Xueming nodded. "From Chengdu. I lived there until I was eighteen, then went to Beijing for university before going abroad."

Zhao Gang looked thoughtful. "No wonder."

"No wonder what?"

Zhao Gang said solemnly, "No wonder your temper is so spicy."

The group was stunned for a second, then everyone burst into laughter. Chen Xueming laughed the loudest, pointing at Zhao Gang while laughing. "Old Zhao, are you... are you praising me or insulting me?"

Zhao Gang looked innocent. "Praising you, of course. Spicy is good; it's got a kick."

Li Xiao laughed so hard she collapsed onto the table, unable to straighten up for a long time.

As the laughter subsided, Lin Mo poured another glass for Chen Xueming. "Dr. Chen, tell us about Stanford. Anything interesting?"

Chen Xueming picked up his glass, took a sip, and his gaze drifted off as if he were reminiscing.

"Stanford..." he began slowly. "There was one thing that was quite interesting."

"Tell us, tell us!" Li Xiao urged.

Chen Xueming put down his glass, a smile on his lips:

"The year I first arrived at Stanford, there was an American senior in the lab named Mike. That guy was incredibly narcissistic, always thinking he was the chosen one. One day, he came to me all mysteriously and said he'd discovered a shocking secret—he'd measured a set of data where the energy density was significantly higher than anything reported in the literature. He suspected he was going to win a Nobel Prize."

Li Xiao's eyes widened. "And then?"

"Then I helped him analyze it for an entire afternoon, only to find out—his equipment wasn't calibrated." Chen Xueming laughed. "That 'shocking data' was actually just an error."

Zhao Gang slapped the table and laughed. "The Nobel Prize became a blunder!"

Chen Xueming nodded. "Mike wouldn't give up and measured it several more times, but it was still the same. Finally, the supervisor came over, took one look, and said: 'Mike, you're using an old standard solution; it's expired.'"

Li Xiao laughed until tears came out. "That's so tragic!"

Lin Mo also shook his head with a smile. "Just a typical day in scientific research."

Chen Xueming continued, "Another time, a German exchange student named Hans came to the lab. You know Germans—very rigorous, everything has to follow a plan. One day he was doing an experiment, following the procedure step by step, but when he got to the third step, he realized a reagent was missing."

"And then?" Li Xiao asked.

"Then he was stunned." Chen Xueming mimicked Hans's tone, "But... this is not in the plan!"

The group laughed again.

"He just stood there, staring at the empty bottle, motionless for five minutes. I asked him what was wrong, and he said: 'I need to formulate a new plan.' Then he actually went back and rewrote an experimental plan, only continuing the next day."

Zhao Gang shook his head. "Germans, really..."

Li Xiao laughed so much she rubbed her stomach.

Chen Xueming laughed as well, but as he did, a hint of nostalgia appeared in his eyes:

"In those years, although there were frustrating things, to be honest, there were also many fun moments. There were all kinds of people in the lab—Americans, Europeans, Indians, Japanese—everyone gathered together, and there was something new every day."

He paused:

"One Christmas, our supervisor invited us to his house for dinner. His wife made a turkey and burnt the outside, but no one dared to say anything. When the supervisor carved the turkey, the inside was still raw. He froze for a moment and then said: 'This is the new style, medium rare turkey.'"

Lin Mo almost spat out his drink. "Medium rare turkey?"

Chen Xueming nodded. "We forced ourselves to eat it, praising it as we went: 'Delicious! Tender!' After returning, everyone had diarrhea for two days."

Li Xiao laughed and slapped the table. "You guys were too dedicated!"

Zhao Gang couldn't stop laughing either. "To save the supervisor's face, you guys really went all out."

Chen Xueming shook his head with a smile and took another sip from his glass.

The alcohol was finished, but the conversation wasn't over.

Li Xiao suddenly asked, "Dr. Chen, did you have any particularly embarrassing moments at Stanford?"

Chen Xueming thought for a moment. "I did."

"Tell us, tell us!"

Chen Xueming cleared his throat and lowered his voice:

"Once, I was pulling an all-nighter in the lab and was so tired that I fell asleep at the desk. While I was sleeping, I was suddenly pushed awake. I opened my eyes groatily and saw an old man I didn't recognize standing in front of me, wearing a suit and tie, with his hair combed meticulously."

"Who was it?" Li Xiao asked.

"I asked the same thing then," Chen Xueming said. "And the old man replied: 'I am the president. I've come to tour the lab, and you're the first person I've seen.'"

The group gasped in unison.

"And then?" Zhao Gang asked.

Chen Xueming forced a smile. "Then, with bleary eyes, I gave the president a tour of the lab. I answered everything he asked, all while having messy bedhead and red marks on my face from where I'd been leaning."

Li Xiao covered her mouth. "Oh my god..."

"The even more embarrassing part," Chen Xueming lowered his voice, "was that at the end of the tour, the president suddenly said: 'Young man, did you sleep here last night?' I nodded instinctively. He asked again: 'Do you sleep here often?' I nodded again. Then he sighed and said: 'Take care of your health,' and left."

"And then?"

"Then the next day, I received an email—from the President's Office," Chen Xueming said. "I thought it was a reprimand, but when I opened it, it was written by the president himself: 'It is suggested that the lab provide folding beds for students who pull all-nighters.'"

Lin Mo smiled. "That president has quite a human touch."

Chen Xueming nodded. "He really does. I later found out that he often slept in the lab when he was young, so he was very understanding."

Li Xiao remarked with emotion, "That president is so nice."

Chen Xueming looked at the last bit of wine in his glass and said softly:

"That was the warmest thing that happened to me at Stanford."

He looked up at the three people before him:

"Now, there's one more."

Zhao Gang was stunned for a moment, then raised his glass. "Come, come, come—to the warmest thing, cheers!"

The four of them raised their glasses and clinked them together gently.

Outside the window, the night deepened. There was almost no one left in the cafeteria; only the table in the corner was still lit, with laughter ringing out from time to time.

Li Xiao put down her glass and suddenly asked, "Dr. Chen, do you still feel like an outsider now?"

Chen Xueming looked at her, fell silent for a few seconds, and then shook his head:

"No."

He looked at Lin Mo, then at Zhao Gang, and finally back at Li Xiao:

"Now I know that some places are meant for putting down roots."

Lin Mo smiled. "Then root yourself well. There's still a long road ahead."

Chen Xueming nodded, his eyes growing a bit warm, but he held it back.

Zhao Gang stood up. "That's about it; time to head back. We have work tomorrow."

The group got up, cleared the dishes, and walked toward the door.

Reaching the door, Li Xiao suddenly looked back at the table.

Four chairs, four glasses, and a table of leftovers.

An ordinary meal.

But she knew that from now on, there would be many, many more meals like this.

On the way back to the dorms, the four of them walked side by side.

The night in the small town was very quiet, with only the scattered lights of the base in the distance. Above them, the starry sky was brilliant, with the Milky Way stretching across the heavens.

Li Xiao suddenly pointed at the sky. "Look! The Big Dipper!"

The group looked up at the seven bright stars.

Chen Xueming stopped, looked at the starry sky, and said softly:

"When I was in America before, I also saw the Big Dipper. Back then, I thought all stars were the same, no matter where you looked at them from."

He paused:

"Now I realize they're different."

Zhao Gang asked, "How are they different?"

Chen Xueming thought for a moment:

"Back then, I was looking at them alone. Now, there are four of us."

The group fell silent, but it wasn't an awkward silence; it was a kind of indefinable warmth.

Lin Mo patted his shoulder:

"In the future, there will be even more people."

Chen Xueming nodded.

The night wind blew, carrying the characteristic dry scent of the Gobi Desert, but at this moment, he felt the wind wasn't quite so dry.

In the distance, the lights of the laboratory building were still on.

Tomorrow, a new battle would begin again.

But tonight, this was enough.