At Changjing Third Hospital, Zhu Zhixiang paced anxiously back and forth in his office, with Xu Wu and Tang Xiaojuan standing by.

He was asking Wang Guohai, who had just hung up the phone, shaking his head helplessly.

"No matter what, we must contact Zhang Yang today and give him this great news. If possible, we hope he can return early to take charge of the work here!"

Zhu Zhixiang frowned, then repeated loudly. Wang Guohai sighed softly and continued dialing the number.

The Chinese Academy of Sciences had approved the research proposal they submitted. Zhu Zhixiang received the good news immediately, summoned Xu Wu and Tang Xiaojuan right away, and began contacting Zhang Yang simultaneously.

Although they submitted the proposal, Zhang Yang was the one entirely responsible for it.

The method of treatment, the relevant theories, including the research and development of the drugs—the hospital hadn't intervened at all, and they didn't even know the current progress of the patients.

In the past, when Zhang Yang was at the hospital, Zhu Zhixiang wasn't so worried. As long as Zhang Yang was there, the project belonged to the hospital; even though Zhang Yang was the lead researcher, they would still have a say in the project later.

But the situation was different now. Zhang Yang had left the hospital, yet the principal investigator couldn't be changed, which meant a significant shift in dynamics.

The current Zhu Zhixiang was not as confident about this project as before. Although the project belonged to their Third Hospital, as long as Zhang Yang, the person in charge, didn't speak up, they could only stand by helplessly.

If they were to compare this project to a large vehicle, the ownership belonged to the Third Hospital, but only Zhang Yang knew how to drive it and was qualified to operate it.

If Zhang Yang didn't show up to work, no one could move the vehicle; if he didn't agree, no one could get into it—this illustrated Zhang Yang's crucial importance.

"Still no luck. All we know is that he is in Shanghai for a university student activity. But his phone is off, and Professor Zhu Daoqi, who is leading the delegation, also has his phone off. We can't reach either of them!"

After a while of calling, Wang Guohai reluctantly put down the receiver again.

Currently, the Third Hospital had the best relationship with Zhang Yang, and Wang Guohai was the only one who could speak freely with him. Due to Zhang Yang's departure, Wu Youdao now held considerable resentment toward the Third Hospital, and Zhu Zhixiang couldn't even persuade him to come over now.

"Find a way to contact other participants. If all else fails, send someone to Shanghai immediately. We finally secured a major project from the higher-ups; we cannot have the lead researcher absent!"

Zhu Zhixiang shook his head, equally helpless.

Since receiving the notification, they had been trying non-stop to reach Zhang Yang, but to no avail.

During academic exchanges, phones and pagers were required to be switched off. Zhang Yang was quite respectful of maintaining order, turning off his phone the moment he entered the small auditorium, making him unreachable.

This was what panicked Zhu Zhixiang; he worried Zhang Yang might have other plans, which was why he was so anxious.

Xu Wu and Tang Xiaojuan also wore worried expressions at this moment.

They had known about this project for a while, but they never imagined the Chinese Academy of Sciences would actually approve it, and so quickly.

After all, they had harbored considerable doubt initially.

Now, however, for such a major project, they weren't even listed on the research team roster. The team only had a few members: Zhang Yang as the lead, with Zhu Zhixiang and Wu Youdao as members—but not them.

They had initially intended to wait until the project was approved before adding themselves to the research group. That way, if it hadn't been approved, they wouldn't have had to face the embarrassment of being associated with the list.

Now, with the project approved, whether they could join the team had become an uncertainty.

As heads of General Internal Medicine and Respiratory Medicine, they understood the significance of such a project better than anyone, and they knew what rewards and glory such a project could bring them.

At this moment, they felt only regret; one could only say their cleverness had backfired.

Wang Guohai looked at the troubled figures and sighed softly, "Forget it, no need to contact anyone else. I’ll make the trip to Shanghai myself!"

"That would be best, Director Wang, I must trouble you. No matter what, you must persuade Zhang Yang to return. I will grant you all the authority I can offer!"

Zhu Zhixiang immediately nodded. Since they couldn't persuade Wu Youdao, they had to rely on Wang Guohai to step in.

At least Wang Guohai still maintained a decent relationship with Zhang Yang, unlike them, who now had some friction.

"I will do my best!"

Wang Guohai nodded. Zhu Zhixiang wasted no time and immediately arranged a car to send him specifically to Shanghai.

As long as they could bring Zhang Yang back, no price was too high to pay.

Watching the busy Zhu Zhixiang, Wang Guohai shook his head slightly, feeling it was a case of 'if only they had known.' Zhang Yang had demonstrated his exceptional talent and strength long ago, definitely no worse than any expert in the hospital.

To not give such a doctor the respect he deserved, forcing him only to clean up messes—anyone in that position would find it unbearable.

Of course, he wouldn't voice these thoughts; it was enough for him to understand them internally.

He only came to realize these things later; previously, he didn't know the reason for Zhang Yang's departure, and the grassroots staff at the hospital knew even less.

…………

Shanghai, inside a hotel room.

Zhao Qiang, Shi Yan, and Wang Lu sat rather constrainedly on the sofa, stealing glances at Long Feng not far away.

Long Feng stood by the expansive floor-to-ceiling window, smiling warmly at Zhang Yang—the Zhang Yang who had been driven away by those experts was hiding out here with Long Feng.

None of the experts knew that Zhang Yang was actually still in the hotel.

"Squeak squeak!"

Lightning suddenly jumped onto Zhang Yang's shoulder and chirped incessantly, while Shadow lay aggrievedly draped over Zhang Yang's arm, looking up pitifully.

Zhang Yang had participated in an event today and couldn't bring them, so he left them with Long Feng.

The two little ones had temporarily adjusted to Zhang Yang not being around; they could amuse themselves anyway, and as for Long Feng, that blockhead was surely cultivating alone.

Today, Lightning and Shadow had spent the entire day playing hide-and-seek.

Lightning currently possessed the strength of the Third Layer of Inner Force, and the utterly defenseless Shadow stood no chance, resulting in Shadow being terribly bullied by Lightning.

Poor Shadow couldn't fight Lightning back, nor could it shout louder. The moment Zhang Yang returned, Lightning rushed over, chirping non-stop, leaving Shadow unable to interject.

There was another factor: Shadow's psychic link with Zhang Yang was not as strong as Lightning's. Lightning could essentially convey anything, and Zhang Yang understood it immediately, which made it even harder for Shadow to speak up, leaving it only to lie there pitifully.

"Shadow, come here. I'll help you get revenge later!"

Zhang Yang suddenly scooped up Shadow, holding it in his hand, and said with a grin.

Both Shadow and Lightning froze for a moment, then Shadow began squealing excitedly. Lightning wore an expression of bewilderment.

"Picking on someone and still daring to joke about it? You're grounded from snacks for a few days!"

Zhang Yang turned to Lightning and said this. He could understand what Lightning was conveying. What it said was certainly to its own advantage, but it couldn't fool Zhang Yang.

No matter how smart Lightning was, it only possessed the intellect of a few-year-old child; how could it compare to Zhang Yang, who had experienced two lifetimes?

With Lightning's description, combined with the demeanor of the two little ones, he quickly pieced together the entire story.

Since Shadow was the one who felt wronged, he naturally had to speak up for Shadow to appear fair.

"Congratulations Host, Pet Shadow's loyalty has increased by one point, reaching 76!"

A voice suddenly appeared directly in Zhang Yang's mind. Zhang Yang was slightly taken aback, then a flicker of joy crossed his face.

His expression made Long Feng glance over in some confusion. (Book Shelter)

The system, which had been silent for so long, had finally appeared. This system was truly mischievous; it never showed up when he thought of it, but popped out when he wasn't expecting it.

Furthermore, Zhang Yang hadn't expected that merely upholding a small measure of justice could increase his pet's loyalty. He had to admit that the emotions of animals were purer than those of humans.

"I understand. Are there any missions I can accept recently?"

Zhang Yang thought to himself. Shadow gaining one loyalty point was a good thing. Just four more points until eighty; once it reached eighty, Zhang Yang could understand Shadow's expressions much more clearly.

Lightning's current loyalty was also just within the eighty-point range.

"Does the Host wish to proactively accept missions?"

After a moment, the system's female voice slowly sounded, seemingly carrying a hint of surprise.

This made Zhang Yang feel that this system wasn't simply mechanical but possessed a degree of wisdom, otherwise, it wouldn't have such a humanized reaction.

Even so, he still needed to accept the missions he should. Improving his strength through the system was no less effective than him taking spiritual elixirs; it was one of his methods for rapidly increasing his power.

"Yes, I want to accept missions, the kind that can increase attribute points!"

Zhang Yang said again internally. A three-dimensional holographic image immediately appeared before his eyes; the green screen directly displayed the 'Missions' tab.

In the 'Completed Missions' sub-tab on one side, several missions were already listed—most of these had been passively accepted or completed unintentionally.

"The Host currently has two triggered missions available, only one of which offers an attribute point reward. Completing this mission will yield a reward of five attribute points!"

The system's female voice slowly spoke. The three-dimensional interface before Zhang Yang showed two new entries in the 'Pending Missions' column.

The two missions were rated at difficulty levels three and five, with the level five mission bearing a yellow marker.

The level five mission was titled 'Saving Elder Qiao.' Judging by the name alone, it seemed to be a rescue mission, but he truly didn't know who this Elder Qiao was; in his memory, he didn't know anyone with the surname Qiao.

The simpler level three mission was titled 'Becoming the Core Among Classmates.' This mission title was very straightforward and easier to comprehend.

After some thought, Zhang Yang asked, "What are the specific details of the level five mission, 'Saving Elder Qiao'?"

"Within fifteen days, you will encounter a person you absolutely must save; this person is Elder Qiao. You do not know this person currently, but he will inevitably appear before you within fifteen days. As long as you do not leave this city during these fifteen days, that will suffice!"

The system's female voice explained. Zhang Yang frowned, "That's all? Who exactly is this Elder Qiao, and what disease does he have?"

"These details are currently unknown. You will only know once you accept the mission and await the appearance of the key figure!"

The mechanical female voice stated softly. The information provided for this mission was too sparse, causing Zhang Yang to hesitate once more.

…………

Thank you to all the friends who provided rewards today, and thank you to friend Shimarugin for the two monthly ticket awards. Xiaoyu thanks everyone for their support! .RT