Choices
Feng Lin didn’t want to attract unnecessary attention because of Luo Lan’s status as a princess, so she suggested that Luo Lan worked in the Research Institute as a bottom researcher first.
Feng Lin’s suggestion was in accordance with what Luo Lan hoped for. She joined the Institute as a mutant immigrant under the name of “Luo Xun”[1].
An Na once said that Alikarta Life Research Institute was not only the best Gene Research Institute in Odin, but also one of the best gene Research Institutes in the interstellar.
Even the best graduates will feel a lot of pressure when they enter the Research Institute. What’s more, Luo Lan, a beginner[2] with zero knowledge of genetic research?
“Let’s go for a drink after work?”
“I… have something to do after work, maybe another time!”
Her colleagues only knew that she was a new immigrant and worried that she would feel lonely. They would specially call her when they had a party, but the topic of those eccentric people was not gossip like affairs or scandals, but scientific research bottlenecks, gene reports, and experimental papers. Luo Lan went to their party once and they enthusiastically made a detailed inquiry about her previous work. At that time, Luo Lan wanted to cry without tears and had to flee to the toilet so she could escape from them.
How could she dare to tell everyone that she can’t understand what they were talking about? She knows each and every terminology when they were as it is, but she doesn’t know what those terminologies mean when they were used together in the same sentence.
As an assistant, she can’t even do the most basic thing of cleaning and disinfecting experimental equipment! Those were the most basic things and she didn’t know it at all!
Her colleagues gradually realized that something was wrong with her and talked about what shady relationship she relied on to let herself into the best research institute in the Federation behind her back. Their enthusiasm for her gradually turned into indifference and isolation.
Luo Lan went to the gravity chamber and ran for ten kilometers. After it was done, she was drenched in sweat and sat on the bench outside the training hall. She was too tired to move.
She thought that as long as she worked earnestly, she would be able to do a good job, but imagination was beautiful and reality was cruel. In a research institute where all colleagues were highly educated and intelligent, being serious and hard-working wouldn’t be enough.
Luo Lan’s mind was weighed down. What should she do? Even if Feng Lin and An Na were willing to help her, they wouldn’t be able to enlighten someone without any foundation like her. Moreover, the Institute wasn’t a charity organization. If her work performance were like this all the time, she would certainly be marginalized. Even if she thickened her face to stay, she still wouldn’t learn anything.
A can of supplement drink was handed to her. Luo Lan raised her head to see Qian Xu, who was wearing training clothes and looked like he had just finished training.
“Thank you!” Luo Lan took a sip of the drink.
“Why look so disheartened?” Qian Xu sat next to her and asked.
Luo Lan feigned a grimace with ease, puffed her cheeks, and breathed out, “I’m lacking in working ability. I’m worried I most likely won’t be able to keep my job!”
“This is the largest military base in Alikarta, with nearly everything available.”
“Mn” Luo Lan held her drink while her head was hung absently.
“There is an affiliated Military Medical University, which is one of the best medical schools in Alikarta. I heard that if someone from the Research Institute wants to further their study there, they can reduce the tuition fees.”
Luo Lan suddenly raised her head and her eyes were shining brightly, “Can I apply to study, too?”
Qian Xu gave Luo Lan a smile, “It should be okay, but it will be toilsome to study and work at the same time.”
“I’m not afraid!” Luo Lan got on her feet excitedly. “I’m going back!” She had to check the admission conditions and think of a way to get herself in.
Luo Lan hurriedly ran, after a few steps she suddenly remembered something. She braked sharply, turned around, and said loudly to Qian Xu, “Thank you!”
Qian Xu smiled and waved his hand to her. The sunset glow reflected obliquely on him, giving him a layer of warm orange-gold all over his body.
Luo Lan’s heart was gently moved. She always felt that she was greedy, caring only for herself, and selfish[3]. In order to survive, she didn’t even hesitate to pretend to be a princess and deceived the two countries. But at this moment, she suddenly came up with a lofty idea. She wanted to be the best gene-repairer, to cure Qian Xu’s disease, to treat the world gently, and to make the world a gentle place, because——
She was treated gently by the world!
————·————·————
After carefully reading the admissions materials of the Military Medical University, Luo Lan found that she had only one way to go there- through the back door.
Chu Mo was the rector of the Military Medical University. Luo Lan cooked a pile of delicious food and had the cheek to ask Chu Mo for a letter of recommendation.
Chu Mo agreed with her request but specifically stated that he could only give her the opportunity, whether she can learn something there will depend on herself.
With Chu Mo’s letter of recommendation, Luo Lan enrolled as a guest student at Military Medical University under the surprised eyes of the admissions teacher.
She could spend money to take all courses, but if she wanted to get a formal Bachelor’s degree in medicine, she mustn’t only take enough credits, but also have a grade of B+ or above in each course.
And if her grade of each course was an A or A+, she could proceed to study for a Master’s degree and apply for an internship in the affiliated military hospital.
Although the conditions for her to attain her degree were more demanding than those for regular students, Luo Lan was perfectly content. After all, she enrolled in an improper way.
After successful registration, Luo Lan received the notice of the school opening ceremony.
As a guest student, she wasn’t required to attend the ceremony. However, Luo Lan’s memory was blank and she wanted to cherish this opportunity to make a memory for herself. Full of joy and excitement, she dressed up to attend the school-opening ceremony.
Listening to the comments of the students around her, Luo Lan found out that this year’s school opening ceremony actually had invited the federation commander to deliver a welcome speech to the freshmen.
“How could the commander attend the opening ceremony of our school? I heard that the military academy next door invited him to attend the graduation ceremony last year, but his secretary turned it down.”
“Don’t you know who our rector is? The whole Federation knows that Dean Chu has a special relationship with the commander!”
“Isn’t the commander married? With a princess, if I’m not wrong.”
“Yeah, Princess of Aerdes. Under the leadership of the commander, Aerdes was defeated and they sent the princess to curry favor with him!”
“The commander is too serious and not lustful! How can he be tempted! I myself prefer the elegant and refined demeanor of Dean Chu!”
“The commander doesn’t seem to be attracted to the princess! I don’t know the current whereabouts of that pitiful princess, probably she was forgotten in a corner to rot”
“……”
With a snicker, Luo Lan looked at Chen Sha, who was in a straight military uniform and indifferent expression on the stage. Those people around her were worthy of being the best doctor in the future! They could even discuss this kind of topic out loud!
Chen Sha finished his brief speech. Everyone thought it was over and clapped. No one expected him to stand motionless on the stage and stared coldly at them.
The sound of clapping quickly froze.
Both the students under the stage and the school leaders on the stage still had their hands half-raised. They could only look at Chen Sha foolishly.
“This is a school, not a lady’s afternoon tea party! If you could only gossip, I suggest you drop out as soon as possible so you won’t waste the money of federal taxpayers!”
Everyone looked at each other at a loss. This… Shouldn’t the opening ceremony follow the route of gentle blessings and affection? When did it change to a threat and intimidation route?
Luo Lan stood straight and looked at Chen Sha with a blank face.
She knew that many people were disappointed that she didn’t become the perfect apple tree for the experiment, but she was the only one that could take charge of her life! At present, she was unable to convince anyone, but time will prove it all.
————·————·————
Luo Lan divided her time into three parts: medical school, Research Institute, and training hall.
There were professors of various majors in the medical school who were responsible for answering questions and solving students’ doubts. Luo Lan just needs to turn herself into sponges and try to absorb all the knowledge.
Although her work in the Research Institute started in a bumpy way, step by step it became smoother. When she was really troubled, she cope with the helping hand of An Na and Feng Lin.
Relatively speaking, the problems she encountered during physical training were more prominent.
Qing Chu wasn’t up to standard as a teacher. She never took any students so she didn’t know how to train students. Moreover, she couldn’t go all out with her because more or less Qing Chu had scruples about Luo Lan’s identity as a princess.
If a worker wants to do well, he must sharpen his tools first! Luo Lan was wondering whether to pay for a professional physical trainer, but her goal is level A physical ability. How can someone out there with level A physical ability waste their potential by working only as a trainer?
When she told Qian Xu her trouble, Qian Xu helped her solve it in a sentence.
“I’ll be your physical training teacher!”
“Is it alright? Won’t it take up too much of your time?” Luo Lan was surprised and felt uneasy.
“I’ve trained recruits in the army before. I’m fairly experienced. It will be very simple to train you. Moreover, the key to this laid on the students. The teacher only guides so it won’t take up much of my time to train you.”
Luo Lan thought for a while. Qian Xu worked at the base and lived in the staff dormitory of the base. She also stays at the base every day. It’s very convenient for both of them to meet. What Qian Xu said was very reasonable.
“Then I won’t be polite. Please don’t be polite to me when you train me!”
Qian Xu smiled and said, “Understood.”
Having learned a lesson from Qing Chu, Luo Lan worried that Qian Xu would not be strict enough, but after a round of training, she immediately withdrew all her worries.
Qian Xu was a professional soldier after all. No matter how gentle he was on the outside, his inside was made of steel.
When he stands on the training ground, even without saying a word, he has his own momentum and won’t be soft-hearted in the slightest. He will make Luo Lan achieve the highest standard for her movements and squeeze out her last strength.
Luo Lan’s body may be very delicate, but her personality was not delicate at all. No matter what Qian Xu asks her to do, even if it looks very harsh, she will try her best to accomplish it.
Both parties, teacher and student, were satisfied with each other.
Every day, Luo Lan got up at 5:30 in the morning, went to the gravity chamber to run for an hour, did another hour of equipment training, took a shower, changed clothes, and went to the Research Institute to work.
On weekdays, she would watch the professor’s lesson on the StarNet during her working hours. After finishing her work in the afternoon, she would first go to the training hall to exercise and complete the training tasks assigned by Qian Xu, and then rush home to read, study and complete the homework assigned by the professor.
On weekends, when she didn’t have to go to the Research Institute, she went to medical school. In her spare time, she either exercised in the training hall on the base or studied in the library of the medical school.
Every day was so busy. She didn’t even have time to take a rest, but Luo Lan was extremely happy.
Ever since she lost her memory, she always felt like duckweed. She felt that she couldn’t stand on solid ground and lacked a sense of security. But now she felt at ease, every day was meaningful.
She firmly believed that as long as she lived like this, sooner or later even duckweed would grow roots and become towering trees.
Footnotes
“Luo Xun” is written as 骆寻 (luò xún). 骆 is for camel and 寻 is for search/seek/looking for. Meanwhile ‘Luo Lan” is written as 洛兰 (luò lán). 洛 is a common surname and 兰 is for orchid. So even though it look the same in English, it is actually different.↵
小白 – xiǎo bái; lit. little white; freshman; beginner; noob; little idiot↵
贪生怕死 – tān shēng pà sǐ ; cravenly cling to life instead of braving death; afraid to risk one’s neck; be mortally afraid of death; care for nothing but saving one’s skin↵
Amoeba’s Corner
Look at Luo Lan. Aren’t you proud of her? Because I am (੭*ˊᵕˋ)੭
When she accepted the fact that she can only go through the back door if she want to join the medical school so she cook a lot of delicious food for Chu Mo lol. Bribery at its finest.
This chapter words count (excluding title, footnotes, and TL’s corner): 2227
