Calling for Backup!

After filling out the lab application report, Xu Yun no longer bothered Tian Liangwei and found an excuse to get up and leave the Medical Center.

The approval and filing for the pharmaceutical chemistry lab generally take 7-15 working days, which is about two weeks including weekends. However, with the involvement of an academician-level big shot like Tian Liangwei, it's estimated that the process can be completed in three to four days.

As for the funds, they will be transferred to a card opened by the School of Life Sciences' public account. Xu Yun needs to list the expenses when withdrawing them, and they will be subject to regular review.

For a normal doctoral supervisor, the process would be much more lenient. Some would even transfer the funds directly to a card named "project team" but actually a private account, which has led to many dark sides.

Alright, back to the main topic.

Xu Yun's current challenge is to break through the binding barrier of fourth-generation imidacloprid, a very complex process.

Therefore, besides the experimental venue, there is another essential core element that needs to be addressed:

That is the researchers!

Xu Yun is a top student, no doubt, but even the most talented individuals need helpers. Often, the two complement each other.

For example, Little Ox has John Conduct, Einstein has Shirley Wright, Dirac has Tyraji Reddy, and Melody has Jacqueline and the convertible, among others.

Despite the mysterious halo, if Xu Yun wants to purely engage in scientific research or start a business in the future, he will inevitably need some powerful helpers to assist him.

This is true in the long run, and it's the same now; going solo is simply unrealistic.

As for the personnel for this experiment...

Xu Yun already has a few target candidates in mind.

Getting assistants is simple; just call a few junior graduate students to help out. Research on biological toxins has always been a major direction, and many people wish they had the opportunity to conduct related experiments.

Afterward, everyone can have a meal costing four to five hundred yuan per person. If there's a technical breakthrough, a red envelope can be given. Many current students would be willing to sign up.

After all, Xu Yun's application is under Tian Liangwei's supplementary quota, which can be considered a good project on his resume. Some thick-skinned individuals might even claim it as a national-level project on their resumes.

In addition to the tool-like assistants, Xu Yun also plans to find a powerful partner.

Thinking of this, Xu Yun couldn't help but stop in his tracks, casually found a quiet corner, and made a phone call.

"Ring, ring, ring--"

A moment later, a male voice came from the other end of the phone:

"Hello? Old Xu?"

"Mhm, it's me."

"What's up? I'm playing badminton with a junior student."

"Old Fire Big Bone, my treat, coming?"

"Okay, okay, wait for me fifteen minutes! See you at the south gate!"

"..."

After hanging up the phone, Xu Yun couldn't help but shake his head:

"This guy..."

Then he put his phone back in his pocket and turned toward the south gate.

About twelve or thirteen minutes later, as Xu Yun arrived at the south gate entrance, a hearty shout suddenly came from behind him:

"Old Xu! Old Xu!"

Xu Yun looked back and saw a man with a buzz cut waving at him from not far away.

This man was about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with the collar of his sportswear slightly open, his shirt sleeves rolled up to his arms, short hair, a square face, sharp sword-like eyebrows, and a somewhat handsome appearance, though much, much less so than you, the esteemed readers.

This person was Xu Yun's best friend, Qiu Sheng, also a doctoral student at the School of Life Sciences.

Hearing Qiu Sheng's greeting, Xu Yun waved back to acknowledge him, quickly walked over to him, and glanced behind him curiously:

"Old Qiu, weren't you playing badminton with a junior student? Where are your racket and the junior student?"

Qiu Sheng was jogging, sweat already beading on his forehead. He shook his collar as he said, "The racket was sent back to the dorms by the junior student. By the way, Old Xu, you weren't kidding, right? You're really treating?"

"..."

Xu Yun looked at this guy speechlessly and sighed with exhaustion:

"I am! Let's go!"

Old Fire Big Bone is one of the most famous snack shops around USTC.

It's a Hui restaurant, the owner is very friendly, and the prices are quite affordable, with a per-person cost of fifty yuan.

What's more, if you secretly show your USTC student ID when paying, the owner will punch in a 0.85 on the computer for you.

Many USTC students jokingly say that Old Fire Big Bone in the south district single-handedly fights against the entire snack street in the east gate of the west district.

The entrance of Old Fire Big Bone is at the intersection of Tongcheng South Road and Shangpai Road. Xu Yun and Qiu Sheng walked for a little over ten minutes before arriving outside the shop.

"Boss, one pot of bone soup, one Seafood Vermicelli Pot, one Beef Braised Oxford, and a pickled cucumber!"

After entering the shop, Xu Yun familiarly ordered several dishes. He then went to the beverage cabinet and grabbed four cans of Budweiser. Returning to their seats, he popped one open:

"No Huiquan, so we'll make do with Budweiser."

Xu Yun and Qiu Sheng were both from Fujian Province and had loved drinking Huiquan beer since they were young. However, after coming to Luzhou to study, they had fewer opportunities to see their hometown beer, mostly drinking Xuejin or Budweiser.

The restaurant, which was exclusively for campus gatherings, served food very quickly. In just a few minutes, all the dishes Xu Yun had ordered were served.

After the food was served, Qiu Sheng picked up a soup ladle, stirred the pot that was being heated, then picked up a small piece of cucumber and crunched it in his mouth before asking:

"Old Xu, spit it out. What's up?"

Xu Yun smiled and glanced at him, teasing:

"What, couldn't it be that I won the lottery and am treating you to a good meal?"

Qiu Sheng scoffed dismissively:

"With your African face? You could get a new moon on all three of your accounts. Who would believe you won the lottery? Alright, alright, just tell me what's going on quickly, or I won't be able to enjoy my meal."

Seeing this, Xu Yun stopped joking. He cleared his throat strategically and described his situation with Tian Liangwei in detail:

".That's pretty much how it is. The professor has already submitted the application, and the research group should be established in about three days."

Qiu Sheng was gnawing on a bone marrow, and after listening, he looked at Xu Yun in surprise:

"Not bad, kid. What made you think of incorporating transition metals?

Pheromones contain alkenes. If it's really possible to cyclize that CH3 group directionally.

Good heavens, this might actually work!"

Xu Yun picked up a can of Budweiser and took a sip, saying:

"So, are you willing to help your buddy out?

You're more familiar with directing group assistance than I am. If it really works, I'll give you second author on the paper."

Second author, as the name suggests, is the second author.

Besides the first author and the corresponding author, the second author is the third most important role in a paper.

Qiu Sheng was Xu Yun's best friend since high school and a genius who got into the Gifted Class on his first try. In Xu Yun's faint memories of his previous life, Qiu Sheng had helped him a lot during his most difficult times.

His later successful transition into the tea industry was also thanks to the connections Qiu Sheng introduced and the funds he lent.

Xu Yun would be responsible for the main research tasks in this project. He had to, and could only, be the first author. The corresponding author would definitely be Tian Liangwei, so Qiu Sheng naturally only had the option of second author.

Qiu Sheng didn't seem to care much about this. He said without much hesitation:

"Okay, but you'll have to give me a couple more days. I have a project that's still being wrapped up. I'll head to the lab next week and try to get it done by Thursday."

Xu Yun nodded and readily agreed:

"No problem. I'm not in a big hurry with this, so I can wait a few days."

Qiu Sheng took another bite of the meat bone and chuckled:

"Tsk tsk, if we can develop fourth-generation imidacloprid, maybe it'll get published in PLOSOne. But the page charges for that aren't cheap, $1400. We can't apply for fee reductions in China yet. Why don't you ask Director Tian at the end if the department can cover this cost?"

Looking at the talkative Qiu Sheng, Xu Yun, sitting opposite him, couldn't help but shake his head slightly in his heart.

Old Qiu, Old Qiu, you've got it all wrong. How could my goal be a low-tier journal like PLOSOne?

After all, what I'm actually researching this time isn't fourth-generation imidacloprid, but fifth-generation.