Chapter 51: 49 Zhang Sudden Trending Topics
Inside the laboratory.
Upon hearing that there was an issue with the nucleophilic substitution, Xu Yun asked calmly without furrowing his brow:
"Xiaozhao, there are many reasons for the substitution reaction to fail, what specifically happened? Is it that the substances aren’t reacting?"
"There is a reaction..."
Xiaozhao scratched his head in confusion, a bewildered look in his eyes:
"Logically, the balanced equation should be fine, but there’s no product being formed, hmm, not even a crude product..."
"How much bipyridine?"
"3eq%."
"I see, hold on for a moment."
Upon hearing this, Xu Yun immediately picked up pen and paper and started calculating on the table, his expression unfazed.
He wasn’t trying to appear deep, he genuinely felt this issue was not a big deal—back in his previous life, he participated in many large-scale physics research projects, some of which cost millions within mere seconds (including equipment depreciation), and a slight mistake could lead to complete failure.
This project altogether has a budget of less than a million, with just fifty thousand cash on hand initially, it would be strange if he felt nervous.
A moment later, Xu Yun gently tossed the pen aside and looked at Xiaozhao:
"CuI 4eq%, increase bipyridine to 4eq%, 170 degrees... no, try refluxing at 180 degrees for 3 hours."
Xu Yun and his team had prepared thoroughly beforehand to minimize light exposure, thus not needing to consider the decomposition of iodine substituents in raw materials. The issue with no product formation in the substitution reaction most likely lay in the ring.
After dealing with Xiaozhao’s problem, another girl in the project group, not Tang Yiqiu, Zhou Peiyao raised her hand:
"Senior, the epoxy ring opening also has issues!"
"Don’t worry, explain in detail..."
Thus, during the first half of the day, Xu Yun mainly dealt with team dynamics and balancing compound equations.
After all, except for Qiu Sheng, the other five assistant members were all below third-year research students.
For instance, Xiaozhao was a second-year research student, Li Yi, Zhou Peiyao, and another male student were first-years, and Tang Yiqiu was merely a senior undergraduate.
They could handle problems on paper with ease, but when it came to practical experience...
Almost zero.
So, Xu Yun simultaneously guided and corrected them while time ticked by.
"Sigh—"
A few hours later, Xu Yun let out a long breath looking at his watch—it was 11:30 AM.
This session’s prelude consisted of 22 steps, and by noon, the project group sluggishly progressed to the nickel acetate/sodium borohydride catalytic hydrogenation step, with a completion rate of about 36%.
At this rate, progress might reach around 60% by the end of the day.
If they’re lucky tomorrow, the prelude work could potentially be completed entirely.
The laboratory usage period is two weeks, meaning Xu Yun has approximately 12 days for the main synthesis challenge.
This is faster than expected—considering the task reward was the formula for Fifth Generation Imidacloprid, while Xu Yun is currently working on the fourth generation, every step beyond cyclization requires his own efforts.
After quickly scanning the lab and confirming each stage was entering the observation period, Xu Yun softly coughed and said:
"Alright, everyone, pause your tasks and go have some lunch before continuing.
Old Qiu, you take the lead on lab duties and stay here; I’ll take the juniors outside to Mei Guang for a meal, and swap with you afterwards."
As the project group’s deputy and one of the only two PhD students on site, Qiu Sheng was the most suitable candidate for lab duties, thus nodded neatly:
"Understood, you guys go ahead and eat, leave the lab to me."
Once the duty roster was set, the group followed the lab rules to change into casual wear and, led by Xu Yun, headed towards Ke Da’s Mei Guang.
Mei Guang stands for Food Court, a well-known spot near Ke Da for gathering delicacies.
In his past life, Xu Yun attended a regular undergrad curriculum; one of his classmates had an uncle who opened a barbecue restaurant near Mei Guang, whereas her boyfriend studied in the botanical field. Thus, weekly, he and his roommates would steal a few rabbits from the lab and invite their girlfriends and their roommates to the barbecue, eventually leading to six out of eight of them forming couples...
This tradition lasted until Xu Yun graduated; however, he heard that once, a joker accidentally took out a rabbit that had been medicated, causing a group to fall sick and hospitalize, leading to stricter lab security at Ke Da ever since...
Talking and laughing, Xu Yun’s group ended up in front of a grilled fish restaurant.
Unexpectedly, many single-serve grilled fish restaurants have emerged locally, costing less than thirty per person, friendly for office workers or socially anxious individuals.
Once inside, Xu Yun and the six others ordered their preferred flavors and sat down...
Scrolling their phones.
They had no choice – this is the modern standard of socializing where survival without phones is unthinkable.
Tang Yiqiu and Zhou Peiyao belong to the classic gossip followers; upon opening Weibo, they first lock onto the trending list:
"Huh? The Three Mice poster has stirred up controversy, I kind of liked their snacks..."
"The comments below say it’s a poster from 2019, now being dug up to start a trend."
"Wow, so they’ve been causing issues since 2019?"
"Well, when you put it like that, I guess it’s true..."
"Look at this, the web novelist ’Novice Fisherman’ had his new work flop, passing out from hunger at home—isn’t that tragic?"
Seeing the chatter among the juniors, Xu Yun couldn’t help but smile slightly.
He actually quite enjoys the buzzing environment of a group chat; regrettably, after graduating, various pressures and real problems cropped up, eroding that flavor from colleague gatherings.
Truly miss those heartwarming, straightforward days...
Just then, Li Yi beside them abruptly uttered a long ’Huh?’:
"Guys, check out the eighth trending topic, this is hilarious!"
Li Yi’s remark immediately drew attention from everyone at the table. Seeing some hadn’t downloaded Weibo, Li Yi simply flipped his phone, displaying the content:
"Look."
Sitting closest, Xiaozhao quickly leaned over, looking and repeating:
"#Newton’s Portrait, Anta#? Eh, what’s this trending topic?"
Li Yi chuckled:
"A famous United Kingdom collector just passed away, donating his collection to the British Museum. Today, a ceremony was held, inviting media for a visit.
In there, there’s a portrait of Newton said to be drawn in 1701; but someone spotted a pair of sneakers on the table behind the portrait."
"Sneakers?"
Li Yi nodded emphatically, grinning wider:
"Yes, it seems to be this year’s winter collection from Anta. Now, some claim Newton was Huaxia’s transmigrator, others criticize Anta for malicious marketing. But the problem is, Anta withdrew from BCI during the Zhuzhou Cotton incident, and the broadcasting party for the ceremony is BXC, logically impossible for them to collaborate on this."
Zhou Peiyao mused, asking:
"Could it be fabricated by domestic marketing accounts?"
Li Yi shook his head:
"Impossible, students from the institute studying abroad confirmed this, and I heard foreign media are going crazy. Regardless of the outcome, John Bull’s image has taken a major hit, wouldn’t you agree, God Xu?"
Facing Li Yi’s query, Xu Yun mechanically nodded, feeling a thousand ears spring in his mind:
Sneakers in the portrait, could this be the easter egg from the reward?
The occurrences in the dungeon...
Actually reflected in reality?!