Boss, I Want to Get a PhD
"Hahahaha!" Yang Ding Tian threw his head back and laughed, his mouth agape, until he coughed at the end. "Haha... cough cough... hia... hia..."
"You think it's particularly funny?" Shen Qi laughed as well.
"Be your doctoral student, haha, hahaha!" Yang Ding Tian's expression was a bit strange. He was clearly laughing so hard that he was cramping up, but Shen Qi couldn't feel a trace of happiness from him.
Shen Qi said, "Yes, as my doctoral student, I obtained my Ph. D. in physics from the Princeton Institute for Advanced Study, and I am qualified to supervise Doctoral Supervisor students in both mathematics and physics at Yenching University."
"Wow, you're really something, hahaha!" Yang Ding Tian laughed until his face was contorted.
Shen Qi's smile vanished, and he snapped, "Stop fucking laughing! Yang Ding Tian, you've failed at showing off these past few years, you have no right to laugh in front of me!"
This reprimand was thunderous and deafening, a wake-up call for those who had been dreaming.
Yang Ding Tian's laughter abruptly stopped. He stared blankly at Shen Qi, his expression wooden. "My attempt to show off failed... I failed at showing off..."
"Follow me to make a comeback, that's your only choice." Shen Qi stood up, put his hands behind his back, and left.
After walking a few steps, Shen Qi turned back and said, "If you've made up your mind, come find me on the third floor of the math building. Make sure you're properly dressed; our center doesn't accept those who are not properly dressed."
Shen Qi walked away with his hands behind his back, never looking back.
Watching Shen Qi's swaggering gait, Yang Ding Tian lowered his once arrogant head. "He succeeded in showing off, he succeeded in showing off..."
The next day, Shen Qi arrived at the math building early in the morning and found Yang Ding Tian standing at the building entrance.
Yang Ding Tian was different today than yesterday. He stood up straight, wore a brand new set of clothes, shaved off all his stubble, shaved his thinning hair into a buzz cut, and even sprayed on some men's energy cologne. His whole appearance was completely refreshed.
Shen Qi walked up to Yang Ding Tian and asked, "Have you eaten?"
"I've already eaten, Director Shen," Yang Ding Tian replied politely.
Shen Qi asked again, "So you've made up your mind?"
Yang Ding Tian said firmly, "Director Shen, I want to pursue a doctorate."
"Okay, come upstairs with me." Shen Qi led Yang Ding Tian to the third floor to familiarize him with the center's organizational structure and facilities. "Our organizational structure is very simple: one director and three offices. During your doctoral studies with me, you will conduct academic research in this office. This is the Physics Room."
Then the two arrived at the laboratory, Shen Qi asked, "This is a laboratory, you know how to operate all this equipment, right?"
Yang Ding Tian glanced at it twice and said casually, "Basic operation."
"You used those high-end devices in the Yanjing University Physics Department during your master's studies, didn't you?"
I've used some of them, so I'm fairly familiar with them.
"That's good. We often need the Physics Department to help us with experiments. You've been in the Physics Department for so many years, from your undergraduate to your master's degree, you know the ropes and it'll save you trouble." Shen Qi expressed his satisfaction and said, "You fill out some forms later, the application for doctoral studies, I'll take care of the rest. From now on, you are my physics doctoral student."
"Okay, Director Shen." Yang Ding Tian had accepted reality and adjusted his mindset. That's how it is in academia; whoever has the ability becomes the boss.
Those who are unable to break free from the past are losers. Yang Ding Tian took a difficult but important step and became Shen Qi's first physics doctoral student.
Shen Qi began assigning tasks. "I have a research project on hand, which happens to be in the field of Condensed Matter Physics. I've applied for 973 Program, and all the project materials are here. It's related to your graduate major. Could you do me the work of collecting and processing the experimental data?"
Yang Ding Tian glanced at the documents and said, "No problem, standard procedure."
"That's right, that's more like the Physics Department's King of Show Offs in the day." Shen Qi handed Yang Ding Tian a key to the laboratory door.
Yang Ding Tian put on a white lab coat, checked the research materials, and adjusted the instruments and equipment.
Shen Qi asked, "Are we starting work already? Don't we need to familiarize ourselves with the environment first?"
"Director Shen, I understand the purpose of your research project: to verify your hypothesis on defect topology by collecting and processing experimental data from various condensed matter materials." Yang Ding Tian, wearing his work clothes, exuded confidence in his eyes.
"So you can understand my hypothesis?" Shen Qi was surprised. The theoretical hypothesis he had outlined in the research materials was still very rudimentary, just a vague framework.
Yang Ding Tian nodded. "Referring to your paper published in PRL, 'Research on Defect Topology Based on Spherical Homotopy Group,' I can roughly guess your next plan."
"You've done your homework very well. Not many people have the patience to read my paper. I'm entrusting this lab to you. Just let me know if you need anything." Shen Qi was increasingly satisfied with Yang Ding Tian's performance. Doing his homework well and having confidence in his major were basic qualities of a top student.
Yang Ding Tian immediately made a request. "I need some money."
"You want money, right? No problem," Shen Qi said readily, then asked, "Do you mean a portion of research funding that you can use at your discretion, or your compensation?"
Yang Ding Tian said, "We need funding, and we also need compensation."
Yang Ding Tian has just started his doctoral studies. He is not a formal researcher at the center and does not receive the standard researcher salary.
Yenching University is quite generous to its doctoral students. Doctoral students in science and engineering can receive a scholarship from the university, with an average amount of about 5,000 yuan per month.
Doctoral students in science and engineering are definitely with project teams and laboratories. The project team and laboratory supervisors will also take some money from the research funding and pay it to the doctoral students in the form of subsidies.
The amount of money the boss gives is up to them. A generous boss might give three to five thousand yuan per month, while a stingy boss might only give a thousand or so yuan per month. This is the salary for a doctoral student. Master's students get even less; some bosses will just give them a few hundred yuan.
Shen Qi was the generous type. "You're my doctoral student. The university gives you a monthly scholarship of 5,000 yuan, and I'll give you an additional 5,000 yuan subsidy from my project funds each month. Is that acceptable?"
"That's good." Yang Ding Tian could accept Shen Qi's character setting.
Shen Qi explained the rules, "As for research funding, we'll follow the rules. You make a list and write down the details, and I'll approve a certain amount of funding for you to use as you see fit based on your needs. I know that buying materials and such costs money. I also hope you can understand that the audit department will conduct random checks on our center's use of research funds from time to time. I'm not afraid to delegate authority or spend money, but as I said before, we'll follow the rules."
Shen Qi was very generous; he granted Yang Ding Tian the academic status of a formal researcher.
Yang Ding Tian expressed his gratitude. "I understand, I completely understand. Could you give me a lab subsidy of 5,000 yuan first?"
"You're short on money, huh? I understand, I completely understand. Come on, let's go next door." Shen Qi led Yang Ding Tian out of the laboratory and to the general affairs office next door.
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