What’s going on? Did he expose himself?

In an instant, a thousand possibilities flashed through Su Xiu’s mind.

Shen Yufei.

For Su Xiu, who had been obsessed with science fiction novels for a period during his school days, this name was far too familiar.

An important supporting character in the first book of Three-Body, a key figure in the Salvation Faction.

Knowledgeable, beautiful, sweet-voiced, and most importantly, a rich woman.

Since she came knocking, could it be that his cheat had a problem?

‘No, that’s not right—’

Su Xiu looked at the “Ling Neng · Premonition” flashing on his panel and shook his head internally.

If his cheat had a problem, then his recent heart palpitations clearly couldn’t be explained.

And if the Trisolarans had already discovered his abnormality, then an Adventist Faction assassin should have come.

Not this Salvation Faction member who ultimately died in the internal strife of the Three-Body Organization.

“Are you interested in mathematics?”

As if noticing Su Xiu’s gaze, Shen Yufei suddenly spoke, her ethereal tone making Su Xiu feel unfathomable for a moment.

“Why ask that?”

Su Xiu examined his template, raising his guard while wondering why the Ling Neng · Premonition hadn’t given him sufficient warning.

“You’re a physics student at Han University; I’ve seen you at Professor Ye Wenjie’s place.”

Shen Yufei said indifferently, her hands, like white jade, gripping the steering wheel tightly, her eyes unblinking as she watched Su Xiu’s through the rearview mirror.

“You know Professor Ye Wenjie?”

Su Xiu’s tone was slightly surprised, but he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

If Shen Yufei’s appearance was due to Ye Wenjie, then it was actually a good thing.

At least this meant that the sophon had not yet fully noticed his abnormality.

“Of course.”

At this point, Shen Yufei’s tone suddenly rose a few notches.

“Professor Ye Wenjie was also my university astrophysics teacher.”

“So you’re a senior then.”

“No.”

Hearing Su Xiu’s words, Shen Yufei shook her head.

“I never attended Han University. In fact, I graduated from Yanda (Yanjing University)’s physics department in 2000.”

Yanjing University, one of the best universities in the country.

Especially since she studied pure physics, a field with considerable value and difficulty, which undoubtedly made her highly regarded wherever she went.

“Professor Ye Wenjie used to teach at Yanda (Yanjing University) and was only rehired by Han University to teach physics at Hanjiang University after her retirement.”

Su Xiu vaguely remembered that in the original work, Ye Wenjie was quickly rehabilitated after leaving Red Coast and, relying on her rich experience accumulated as a research backbone at the Red Coast research base, inherited her father’s position, teaching at the university until retirement.

However, he didn’t remember Ye Wenjie being rehired by other universities.

It seems the real world is much more complex than described in the novel; at least the hidden dangers in the universe are definitely not just the Trisolarans and the Singer Civilization, but also that super civilization that appeared at the end, attempting to restart the universe.

“I’m not very interested in mathematics. In fact, if it weren’t for living expenses, I wouldn’t have chosen physics as a major at all.”

The police station was not far from the apartment Su Xiu rented near the university. Through the black car window, Su Xiu could already see the outline of the desolate resettlement building, standing alone in the prosperous and luxurious city.

“Compared to those, I’d rather be a poet or a writer.”

Su Xiu said.

He wasn’t lying; in fact, the Su Xiu before he recovered his memories thought exactly that.

“No matter how painful childhood experiences may be, and how desperate the difficulties faced are,”

Shen Yufei slowly drove the car into a parking spot. She pulled the handbrake and said with an implied meaning,

“people must actively deal with reality and try their best to change it.”

“Is that your life experience, senior?”

Su Xiu asked before getting out of the car.

“Just a reflection I was forced to make after many setbacks.”

Shen Yufei replied.

She opened the box on the passenger seat and pulled out a small box from inside.

“I heard from Professor Ye Wenjie that you’ve been struggling financially lately. If you have time, why not try this?”

The small wooden box Shen Yufei handed over through the car window looked very high-end. Its red sandalwood body, coupled with a gleaming golden lock, made Su Xiu realize its considerable value just by touching its cool, smooth surface.

“If you achieve any results, call this number.”

Shen Yufei scribbled something on a piece of paper.

“The bonus is generous.”

After saying that and handing the note to Su Xiu, Shen Yufei quickly started the car and left, as if she had an urgent matter.

“…”

Su Xiu found this woman, who appeared suddenly and disappeared just as quickly, somewhat elusive.

‘Could it be that she really heard from Ye Wenjie that I was short on money, and so she intentionally came to test if I met the conditions to join Three-Body?’

Standing at the entrance of the old stairwell, Su Xiu shook his head. From Shen Yufei’s recent behavior, Su Xiu could vaguely guess what was inside the box.

“Su Xiu?”

On his way upstairs, a fashionably dressed woman with fiery red lipstick, wearing a shirt and shorts, looking like an urban office worker, came down from upstairs and met Su Xiu face to face.

“Sister Zhao.”

Su Xiu greeted her. The woman in front of him was Zhao Xuan, who was both Su Xiu’s landlady and his senior, and had provided him with a lot of help when he was renting the apartment.

“Why are you back so early? Isn’t school still half a month away?”

Zhao Xuan asked curiously.

“I have a small matter I need to handle.”

Su Xiu replied calmly.

“I came back a few days early.”

Indeed, Su Xiu had to work overtime to deal with the small matter of alien invasion of Earth during this period.

Zhao Xuan was a physics student who graduated from Han University in 2003, but after graduation, she did not choose to continue her research in physics. Instead, she pursued a master’s degree related to nuclear engineering and now works at the Institute of Atomic Energy, specifically at the demonstration fast neutron reactor next to Hanjiang University.

Her specific work roughly involves slowing down the high-speed neutrons (fast neutrons) produced by fission into slower neutrons (thermal neutrons) to improve the efficiency of the nuclear fuel’s chain fission reaction.

“Sister Zhao, what about you?”

Su Xiu asked, looking at the beautiful woman in front of him whose eyeliner was visibly crooked.

“Something happened at the institute.”

At this, Zhao Xuan sighed.

“I heard that the person in charge here had an accident. Now, not only do all researchers in Hanjiang have to return home early, but even the police…”

At this point, Zhao Xuan looked around, lowered her voice, and whispered into Su Xiu’s ear,

“I heard that even military representatives have arrived. Recently, many famous physicists have either gone missing or committed suicide—”

Although Zhao Xuan didn’t finish her sentence, her implied meaning was clear.

‘The world is chaotic lately; try not to go out if you don’t have to.’

“I understand.”

Su Xiu nodded.

Clearly, the Trisolarans had already begun to act.

And the authorities had already noticed the abnormally high suicide rate among scientists in cutting-edge fields and had dispatched special personnel to investigate the matter.