The Higher the Degree, the Better

With a sense of responsibility, Zhang Yuan organized his thoughts and began, "The current pillar industries are space botany, space industry, and nanomaterials."

"Space botany involves cultivating superior mutant plants. These plants are widely used for food production, extracting industrial raw materials, and in the medical field."

"However, the minimum educational requirement to work in this industry is a master's degree... I believe that's the case."

"A master's degree..." Ye Qingqing frowned and muttered under her breath.

She actually quite liked plants; planting all sorts of flowers and greenery was both relaxing and enjoyable, and the pay was high. But hearing that educational requirement made her feel a bit timid.

Zhang Yuan continued, "The space industry system is even more vast, covering almost every trade. The top-tier manufacturing has already been moved to the moon. The low gravity and oxygen-free environment are better suited for heavy industry. The latest generation of photonic chip technology is produced on the moon."

"There is a huge talent gap in this field. The high-end roles are various types of engineers, while the lower-end ones are mechanical maintenance technicians. For these, you need at least a master's degree."

"The even lower-end roles are technical workers, with a minimum requirement of a bachelor's degree from a 995 project university..."

"995..." Ye Qingqing widened her eyes and repeated the term.

The 995 Project was a major decision made by the Xia Kingdom at the turn of the century, involving 40 universities that were essentially the best in the country.

She couldn't help but stick out her tongue. "There's no way I could get into a school like that..."

Zhang Yuan continued, "As for nanomaterial research, the educational requirements are even higher; you can't play in that field without a doctorate. Even the technical workers in the production rooms need to be from a 995 school."

"Ah, so if you only graduate with a bachelor's degree, you can only be a worker..." her uncle murmured, looking startled. "And it has to be a 995 one at that!"

Workers in the space city were worth much more than those on Earth, and an annual salary of several hundred thousand wasn't easy to come by.

Zhang Yuan quickly added, "Oh, there are also various service industries in the space city. After all, people can't just work; they need rest and entertainment. For girls, roles like doctors or nurses are still accessible if you are outstanding enough. Artificial intelligence hasn't been able to fully cover these fields yet."

"The acceptance rate is about one in a thousand."

One in a thousand!

Ye Qingqing's face flushed. Even if she wasn't good at math, she knew what that number meant.

"...So, if you want a good future, you have to do well in university. If you have the chance, it's best to get a doctorate. Anyway, you can never have too much education. The situation from the old era where PhD graduates couldn't find work is unlikely to happen again."

Ye Qingqing's brows were already knitted together. Although she knew the importance of studying, at her age, having not yet stepped into society and not knowing the bitterness of life, she always felt a sense of aversion toward school.

Studying is just so annoying!

Heavens, if she had to study until she got a doctorate, another ten years of schooling, she felt as if an angry bird were living in her heart, and she wanted nothing more than to slam her head into the culprit, Zhang Yuan!

"Cousin... what is your educational background?" Ye Qingqing asked with malicious intent, her eyes darting around.

"Me?"

Zhang Yuan scratched his head and said sheepishly, "My major is space mechanical engineering... I just graduated with a bachelor's degree. My education isn't high enough, so I'm just a maintenance worker. After boarding the ship, my daily work is to inspect and maintain the vessel or do some cleaning—very simple work."

"If I learn more, I should be able to move into a higher-level position..."

Admitting he was a worker was no big deal; he had still managed to beat the one-in-a-thousand odds to get there.

Zhang Yuan had always been a diligent person, and now that his intelligence had been enhanced, he was even more so. He was confident that he could reach a higher level within a few years.

"A spaceship maintenance worker, can you fix things? Can you fix air conditioners or televisions?" Ye Qingqing asked again.

Faced with such a strange question, Zhang Yuan was stunned. He repaired spaceships; how could he possibly fix an air conditioner?

The two were worlds apart.

"Can you fix my dad's broken radio?" Ye Qingqing asked very cunningly.

With a quick thought, Zhang Yuan realized exactly what the young girl across from him was trying to do.

She was trying to devalue the "theory that studying is useful" to reduce the pressure her parents might put on her in the future! And he, Zhang Yuan, had inadvertently become the annoying "child of someone else."

He smiled inwardly. It was normal for children her age to have an aversion to studying. He had been the same way back then; except for a few weirdos, who actually likes studying all day long?

Did people really think using your brain wasn't tiring?

"That radio is so noisy, really noisy! Brother, please help me fix it."

Faced with the challenge from the young girl, as a... ahem, genius, how could he be stumped by his own line of work?

Fixing things was far too simple!

Zhang Yuan brazenly said, "The structure of ordinary electronic instruments isn't complex. If it's a radio, it shouldn't be difficult."

Her uncle quickly shouted, "Why are you talking about radios here? Let's eat, let's eat!"

Throughout the meal, for some reason, Zhang Yuan felt an itch in his heart.

This strange desire for exploration kept urging him to try, to explore.

"Uncle, if it's alright, let me give it a try!"

Her uncle hesitated for a moment, but eventually, he had no choice but to return to his room and bring out his beloved collection.

"I spent a lot of money to buy this! I even picked up a small bargain; if it didn't have this defect, it would have been even more expensive..." Faced with his precious collection, her uncle beamed, looking very proud.

Zhang Yuan was stunned; it was actually an antique from the 20th century.

The square radio in front of him had two long antennas. The black plastic surface had been wiped very clean, but it felt rough to the touch, and at a glance, it carried the vicissitudes of history.

People nowadays generally refer to the era before the oil crisis as the "Old Era," the chaotic century of regression in between as the "Grey Era," and the years following the ignition of nuclear fusion as the "New Era."

Collecting electronic products from the Old Era has become a new trend, much like collecting jade or antiques.

Zhang Yuan's uncle-in-law is one such fanatic enthusiast.

"This thing still works? It's been nearly 300 years, right!" When mentioning the quantifier "300," Zhang Yuan couldn't help but draw out his tone.

Hearing the surprise in Zhang Yuan's voice seemed to hit the sweet spot in his uncle-in-law's heart: "Of course it works, it's just a bit loud at the start. I don't know why there's so much static, that's the only problem..."

He took a cassette tape out of a safe and inserted it into the radio.

The cassette was, of course, also an antique; the picture stuck to it had long since faded to the point where it was impossible to tell which celebrity was depicted.

After the radio was plugged into a specialized power supply, it suddenly erupted with a long burst of static, the entire chassis trembling slightly.

"Buzz—buzz!"

It gave Zhang Yuan quite a start.