Poaching Talent

"Yeah, yeah! Big shot, come over quick! We can do research together~"

Chen Beitao said cheerfully.

"Uh..."

Wu Chen put on a perfectly timed look of panic.

Then he said, "I'm in a meeting. Let's talk later."

With that, he hung up and apologized to Xu Jianping. "Sorry, President Xu. A friend just called me about something urgent."

Xu Jianping's expression returned to normal, and he looked cheerful again.

"I just heard you mention an associate professorship at Peking University. What was that about?"

"I did a little research with a friend at Peking University before. She thought pretty highly of it and said she'd recommended me to her superiors, hehe..."

Wu Chen really hadn't expected Chen Beitao to do that.

"Peking University is a great place! Teacher Wu, if you want to go there, the university will absolutely support you one hundred percent!"

Xu Jianping first gave him a serious answer.

Then he smiled and said, "But if you want to stay, we'll certainly welcome you too! Oh, right, we were just talking about research funding... The university originally planned to give you the category-three talent award, but I was dead set against it. It's far too little! I intend to raise it to 500,000 yuan, paid to you in one lump sum, give you your own lab, and arrange a 90-square-meter apartment in Wencui Garden. What do you think?"

The offer could be considered extremely generous!

The standard category-three Young Talent Award was part of a program Xiaoheshan University of Technology had established to recruit top talent.

Candidates had to meet a range of requirements concerning their education, research results, and other qualifications.

The award consisted of 150,000 yuan in research funding and temporary on-campus housing, generally around 60 square meters.

For someone with a doctorate, there was usually a settling-in allowance as well, typically around 300,000 to 500,000 yuan.

But whether it was research funding or a settling-in allowance, the money wasn't easy to get.

First, the recipient had to produce the required research results within the contract period, say two or three years.

Second, the money was paid in installments, for example, 250,000 yuan in the first year and 250,000 in the second.

If the recipient produced the required research results, everyone was happy.

If not, both the money and the housing would be taken back.

For a specific example, one could look at the young doctoral supervisor who jumped from a building at Zhejiang University.

Of course, the atmosphere at universities hadn't yet deteriorated to the point where academia was like northern Myanmar, as it would later.

So the terms Xu Jianping offered Wu Chen were far better than what he should have received at his current level.

It could be said that Chen Beitao's call had come at just the right time.

Wu Chen thought it over.

Peking University really wasn't such an easy place to get by, and he had a reason he had to stay.

So he stood and extended a hand to Xu Jianping. "To thank you for your support, President Xu, I'd like to stay at this university after all."

"Good, good, good."

Xu Jianping shook his hand, beaming, and let out a long sigh of relief inwardly.

Although he didn't understand Wu Chen's research, he understood his peers at other institutions.

Even if that call from Peking University Wu Chen had just received was fake, the earlier assessments from Zhejiang University and Yann LeCun couldn't possibly have been fake, could they?

After they sat down, the two shared another smoke in a harmonious atmosphere. They chatted for a bit, and then Wu Chen tactfully took his leave.

Xu Jianping escorted him to the door with a smile and patted him on the shoulder.

"Xiao Wu, focus on your research. Don't worry about your academic rank. A good meal is worth waiting for. Be a lecturer for six months first, then I'll put you on the fast track and promote you straight to tenured associate professor next year!"

"Thank you, President Xu."

Wu Chen nodded.

Tenure was an iron rice bowl, while a specially appointed position was basically an outstanding short-term temp job. That was more or less what it meant.

After Wu Chen left, Xu Jianping sat back down at his computer and furiously revised the spreadsheet again.

This time, however, he had already scraped up nearly all the money allocated to the bottom-rung lecturers, and it still wasn't enough to cover what he had promised Wu Chen.

Then Xu Jianping's eyes swiveled, and he set his sights on Wang Hongfa's project.

It wouldn't hurt to give him a warning.

With a grand sweep of his hand, he promptly took 150,000 yuan from the discretionary funds Wang Hongfa had applied for and put it under Wu Chen's name.

Only after that did he let out a long breath and light a cigarette, ready to relax.

But before he could take a puff, his phone rang.

It was Tang Guoming, the president of Hangzhou Dianzi University.

Xu Jianping frowned.

Although Hangzhou Dianzi University was a third-tier institution, its electronic information program was exceptionally strong. Within the province, it could stand shoulder to shoulder with Xiaoheshan University of Technology and was highly regarded.

He took a deep breath and answered, his face grave but his voice warm. "Old Tang, what's up?"

A loud, vigorous voice replied from the other end.

"I wanted to ask your advice, Old Xu. What has the province said this year about the criteria for applying for key discipline status? You'd know better than anyone."

"Oh, that? Hahaha, well, here's the situation..."

After the two had talked back and forth for quite a while, Tang Guoming finally cleared his throat.

"Old Xu, there's one other little thing. Our university has recently applied to establish a national-level specialty program, but we're short an academic leader. I was hoping to borrow someone from you."

"I see. Which talented young man has caught your eye, Old Tang?"

Xu Jianping raised an eyebrow. He knew this was the old bastard Tang Guoming's real purpose.

"He's actually a newcomer named Wu Chen. I hear he's a teaching assistant at your School of Information Engineering."

Xu Jianping was taken aback.

He thought highly of Wu Chen, but not to the point of making him an academic leader.

So he chose his words carefully. "Teacher Wu might not be suitable..."

Tang Guoming laughed heartily. "Well, actually, Teacher Lin Xiaoyu at our university was his classmate, and you know Lin Xiaoyu is my niece. She was quite fond of Wu Chen back in college, so I thought I'd bring them together and help them develop while I was at it. What do you think...?"

What the hell kind of lousy excuse was that? He'd even dragged out his own niece.

But there was no way he was letting Wu Chen go.

So Xu Jianping said insincerely:

"Ah, if you'd mentioned this earlier, I would have agreed. But Teacher Wu just turned down an invitation from Peking University, saying he wanted to stay here. You know he did his undergraduate studies at the University of Technology, so he's very loyal to the university. There's nothing I can do, unfortunately. How about letting your niece come to the University of Technology instead?"

"Hehe... I see. All right, then I won't take away someone you treasure. Hahaha, oh, right..."

Tang Guoming didn't press the matter. Instead, he changed the subject and chatted about a few inconsequential things before hanging up.

Xu Jianping gave a cold snort.

He knew the old bastard Tang Guoming wouldn't let the matter rest.

But he also found it strange. What exactly had Wu Chen done to make Tang Guoming so eager to poach him all of a sudden?

Before he could think it through, though, the phone rang again.

The caller was none other than Luo Wenbin of Gongshang University.

He had just secured three outstanding PhDs from him.

So Xu Jianping immediately answered and greeted him warmly. "Old Luo, you're still up?"

"Not yet... That's right, hahaha..."

Luo Wenbin also began by chatting about everyday matters before finally getting to the point.

"By the way, Old Xu, I just got word that our university is going to make computer science a key development priority this year. You know I'm short-staffed, and you even poached three of my people, so I was wondering if anyone over there would be willing to come over for a temporary exchange?"

Xu Jianping's eyelid couldn't help twitching.

Why was someone else asking for people?

Could he be trying to poach Wu Chen too?

So he asked tentatively, "Do you have anyone in mind, Old Luo, or would you like me to pick someone for you?"

"Not really, but a new teacher at our university happened to mention that a college classmate of his was working at your place. His name's Wu Chen, and I thought maybe we could bring the two of them together..."

It was Wu Chen again, just as he'd thought!

Xu Jianping suddenly felt as though he had missed some major news.

Otherwise, why would two university presidents suddenly try to poach him one after another?

But he had just incurred a fresh favor debt to Luo Wenbin, so it was hard to turn him down outright.

Besides, Luo Wenbin had said it was a temporary exchange.

But who the hell knew whether Wu Chen would come back after the exchange was over?

A little irritated, he got up, paced a few steps to the window, and looked outside without thinking.

Then he saw that Wu Chen was walking with a woman.

He recognized her immediately.

Jiang Nan from the School of Pharmacy!

Xu Jianping was an old acquaintance of Jiang Nan's father, Jiang Hongyue.

After all, Xiaoheshan University of Technology had started out as a chemical engineering college and worked closely with all kinds of chemical and pharmaceutical companies in the province.

But he hadn't known that Wu Chen and Jiang Nan knew each other, much less that they would still be together so late.

Still, it didn't matter!

An idea flashed through Xu Jianping's mind. Once Luo Wenbin had finished speaking, he spoke in a pained tone.

"Old Luo, it's not that I don't want to help, but Teacher Wu Chen is dating Teacher Jiang at our university... Yes, yes, the daughter of Boss Jiang from Jiangdong Pharmaceutical Factory, so I can't very well lend him to you..."

"What! Lend you both of them?"