Divine Being

From the drizzle of King's College to the lakeside of Cambridge, from the coast of Rehovot to the dazzling stars of Silicon Valley, Levitt had met many talented students from all over the world along the way.

Among these people, the level of genius Chen Yuanguang displayed could be ranked in the upper tier, still a bit away from the very top.

But because of this occasion, this point in time, which was an unexpected gain from a business trip to China, Levitt hoped to give Chen Yuanguang some opportunities. The subtext of being the second author was the opportunity to become his student.

As long as Chen Yuanguang proved through experiments that his theory was feasible, Levitt would help him publish it in Nature and recruit Chen Yuanguang to pursue his doctorate.

"No problem, I will return to Jiang University as soon as possible to get the results. When the results are out, I will send you the paper with the results attached for a look. If there are no issues, I will proceed with the submission," Chen Yuanguang said.

Because of Chen Yuanguang's sensible response, Levitt's evaluation of him rose another level. Geniuses always have personalities, and the more genius they are, the more personality they have.

Humility is only an outward appearance. Generally, geniuses need to be tempered to grow rapidly. For geniuses on the path of scientific research, research topics are the tempering they need to face. No matter how genius you are, there are problems that may take your entire life to solve.

It is very rare for someone like Chen Yuanguang to quickly accept others' opinions, especially when those opinions put him at a slight disadvantage. Levitt believed that the personality Chen Yuanguang displayed was very suitable for scientific research. Scientific research is not a solo battle; it also requires interpersonal skills.

Especially today, when the fruits are becoming increasingly difficult to pick.

"Okay, you send it to me then. I'll have the students in my lab verify it again. After there are no issues, you can submit it to the main issue of Nature. I will help you talk to Das then and ask him to find reviewers as soon as possible," Levitt said with a smile.

Das is the head of the biotechnology editorial team at Nature. As a Nobel laureate, Levitt had such "privileges."

Chen Yuanguang said softly, "Professor, I have one small request."

Levitt looked at him: "Go ahead."

Chen Yuanguang said, "Could you help me write a letter of recommendation? I am a senior this year and will graduate soon. I want to apply for a doctorate at an American university."

The smile on Levitt's face froze: "Didn't you want to apply for my doctorate?" Levitt waved the paper in his hand.

This time it was Chen Yuanguang's turn to be surprised. He hadn't understood Levitt's subtext: "Sorry, I didn't mean that."

"Then what is this paper for?" Levitt asked.

Chen Yuanguang explained, "Professor, this paper is for obtaining proof of endorsement."

Levitt was speechless: "Whose doctorate do you want to pursue?"

Chen Yuanguang said, "Currently, I am quite interested in Professor Moungi Bawendi at MIT. I am more interested in his research direction."

Levitt felt a wave of helplessness inside. Just now he was thinking that this kid was sensible, but he became insensible so quickly?

Levitt thought that when he asked the rhetorical question, even if Chen Yuanguang hadn't originally planned to apply for his doctorate, he should have followed his words and said that it would be an honor to pursue his doctorate.

As a result, the other party actually stated his true thoughts.

Of course, Chen Yuanguang knew that the other party would be unhappy if he said this. He continued to explain, "Professor, I am more interested in Professor Moungi Bawendi's research direction."

"Okay, bring the letter of recommendation. I believe you have already prepared it," Levitt no longer wanted to speak.

Levitt glanced at the letter of recommendation, felt it was written a bit too humbly, and signed his name: "The Nature publication is still valid. I will not not recommend you just because you are not pursuing my doctorate."

Chen Yuanguang nodded: "Thank you, Professor."

Guo Wei understood the subsequent conversation. He was already numb. Can you even refuse an olive branch from a Nobel laureate?

One should know that Levitt was a Nobel laureate in 2013, not many years ago, and he was only seventy years old, considered young among living Nobel laureates.

Being young meant that the other party still had the energy to provide specific guidance.

After seeing Professor Levitt back to his room, Guo Wei couldn't hold back: "Yuanguang, although I don't know who Moungi Bawendi is, Levitt is a Nobel laureate!"

Moungi Bawendi wouldn't win the Nobel Prize in Chemistry until 2023.

"Even if you're interested in Moungi's research direction, you should still think about it. You refused too decisively, you didn't give him any face!"

Chen Yuanguang smiled and said, "My main purpose for participating in this competition was to meet him and have him write me a recommendation letter.

If I didn't refuse decisively, I wouldn't achieve my goal."

"Participating in the competition and winning a prize is just to get a recommendation letter from a Nobel laureate?" Guo Wei asked.

"That's right."

"Are you so sure you'll win and be able to convince Levitt?"

"Yes." Chen Yuanguang answered as if it were the most natural thing in the world, "If I went the conventional route and published the paper, I'd have to wait at least half a year, and there's a possibility of the paper being scooped. I'd likely have to gap a year, so I came up with this method."

Guo Wei was speechless. What kind of divine being was this? He completely couldn't understand Chen Yuanguang's thought process.

He asked again, "Getting a recommendation letter is for studying abroad. Levitt is a professor at Stanford, and Stanford is a top university. I'm a bit confused whether getting the recommendation letter is the goal or studying abroad is the goal.

Are you mistaking a temporary goal for the ultimate goal?"

Chen Yuanguang explained, "It's precisely because he's at Stanford that I refused him. If he weren't at Stanford, I might have hesitated."

Guo Wei felt his brain wasn't working properly and couldn't keep up with Chen Yuanguang's line of thought: "Huh? Isn't Stanford a top university?"

"Because Stanford is in Silicon Valley, and Silicon Valley is too far from New York. My friend is in New York, and Professor Moungi Bawendi is at MIT in Boston, which is much closer to New York.

Think about it, it's only over 300 kilometers from Boston to New York, but over 4,000 kilometers from Silicon Valley to New York. It will be much more convenient when I go to see my friend. A 300-kilometer drive takes about 4 hours."

For Chen Yuanguang, it didn't matter where he went or who he studied under for his doctorate.

Guo Wei's face was already blank: "Just because of that?"

What kind of friend must this be?

Chen Yuanguang nodded: "Just because of that."

Guo Wei felt there were too many things to complain about, he was about to throw up. Brother, what kind of immortal are you, coming down to the mortal world to tease us ordinary people?

"You're amazing. If Professor Levitt knew this was the real reason, he'd probably rush out and tear up the recommendation letter he gave you."

Chen Yuanguang laughed heartily: "It's too late now."

Later, this incident became a mandatory topic of conversation for Guo Wei every time he chatted. And as Chen Yuanguang's fame grew, he became more enthusiastic when talking about it. The listeners present were all shocked, sighing that geniuses were indeed different.

The crow has something to do tomorrow morning, so tomorrow morning's update might be delayed until noon or afternoon, but there will definitely still be two chapters tomorrow.