Professor Chen Qiyu was an expert brought back to his alma mater through the "Thousand Talents Program." With a pedigree as "red" as it was expert and a wealth of knowledge from his time abroad, he was a favorite among the university leadership. Over the past few years, he and his doctoral students had published several heavyweight papers in top-tier international journals, establishing a reputation for the lab. Although Jiang Tong had entered the lab through his Singaporean connections, he received no special treatment. Like any other student who had submitted a resume and interviewed, he was placed under the unified supervision of two post-doctoral fellows.
After all, as a summer intern, the work an undergraduate could do was limited to searching for data, washing test tubes, or at most, helping to run gels. Being in an unfamiliar environment, Jiang Tong faced a natural disadvantage in networking compared to the local summer interns. He had to start from scratch, feeling for a moment as if he had returned to his early days in the Singapore lab.
The postdoc in charge of him had been with Chen Qiyu since her master’s degree. Everyone in the lab, from the nearly forty-year-old doctoral candidates to the fresh-faced newcomers, addressed her respectfully as "Senior Sister." She had skipped grades in university and finished her master’s and PhD at lightning speed. Despite her youth and a baby face that made her look younger than many of her juniors, she maintained a stern demeanor to ensure her authority. She was not only efficient and decisive in her own work but also held her subordinates to an incredibly high standard. One could say she was strict with herself and even stricter with others.
When Jiang Tong first learned he was assigned to her, a local undergraduate familiar with the lab’s dynamics invited him to the cafeteria for steamed buns to "calm his nerves." Jiang Tong declined with a smile, saying nothing.
In truth, while the Senior Sister appeared stern, she was fair and kind-hearted. Jiang Tong utilized the diverse skills he had honed in Singapore, consistently completing his tasks quickly and efficiently. Though she was stingy with verbal praise, she quietly began assigning him experimental analysis and design work—tasks rarely given to undergraduates.
As his knowledge grew, so did his working hours. Since Jiang Tong lived on campus, he didn't mind the overtime. Instead, he took the opportunity to grab late-night snacks with his Senior Sister, learning a great deal about the cutting edge of academic research.
"The hottest targets right now are still Ras and HER2," she said, gesturing with a skewer of malatang at a roadside stall. "Did you see the paper in the latest issue of *Nature*? In Phase II trials for HER2 in breast cancer patients, the extension of progression-free survival was quite significant."
"But the response rate is too low," Jiang Tong countered. "Only about 25% of patients have a probability of being HER2-positive. Of course, there have been few significant breakthroughs in breast cancer treatment over the years. If HER2 succeeds, it’ll definitely be easier for the lab to start projects and secure funding in the future."
The Senior Sister turned to look at him. "Not bad. You’ve got some insight."
Jiang Tong smiled. "In Singapore, my professor has us take turns sharing industry developments during weekly meetings. It happened to be my turn last month."
"The foundational knowledge taught domestically is solid; we can't compare to that," Jiang Tong added modestly.
"It's all outdated stuff," she scoffed. "Take my advice: apply to the US for grad school. Once you graduate, don't come back if you can help it."
Jiang Tong was stunned.
"It's only because Professor Chen has strong connections and real talent that our lab doesn't feel the pressure," she said wistfully. "Look at other labs—applying for funding is like trying to scale the heavens. Even if it's approved, it's common for the money not to arrive for over half a year. Not to mention the administrative headaches... Sigh, why am I telling you this?"
"Sometimes I really envy you kids from wealthy families," she changed the subject. "You can go abroad for undergrad, see the world, and have so many options."
"You envy me?" Jiang Tong repeated in disbelief.
"Yeah," she smiled forlornly. "Tuition in Singapore alone must be over a hundred thousand a year, right? My roommate went there on exchange, and the rent and living expenses for one semester were a fortune. My family barely managed to put me through university here, let alone study abroad. Unfortunately, domestic academia looks entirely to the West now. There's a never-ending line of Ivy League PhDs with a handful of papers waiting to be picked. For 'local doctors' like us who studied in China the whole way, staying at the university to work is almost impossible."
"I don't usually tell these things to the undergrads," she said earnestly, seeing Jiang Tong’s silence and assuming he was processing it. "Trust the blood and tears of a Senior Sister who's been through it: apply to schools abroad, and if you can get tenure, don't come back. Stay for a few years, rack up some papers, and then it'll be easier whether you return to industry or academia. If you have time, you'd better take the CFA exam as a backup plan."
Jiang Tong didn't explain. The awkwardness of being misunderstood was fleeting, replaced by a more complex emotion. He remembered chatting with Pei Jing late at night in the lab, the way the man's eyes lit up when talking about the biological signaling pathways and marker proteins he was researching.
"Thank you, Senior Sister," he said softly. "I'll remember that."
The next day, while video chatting with Xiao Fengtai, he couldn't help but mention her. "I didn't realize the domestic research environment was so difficult," Jiang Tong lamented. "Compared to Singapore, everyone's perspective on things is completely different."
"It all boils down to money," Xiao Fengtai joked. "Don't worry, Professor Jiang. I'll sponsor your funding in the future. You know those named buildings in universities? Your lab will be called the FTX Lab. When you win the Nobel Prize, I'll go down in history with you."
"It feels like I'm being kept by you," Jiang Tong laughed, using the joke to suppress a strange pang in his heart. "Please wish me luck in getting a full-ride offer first."
Xiao Fengtai laughed brightly. He was sitting on a balcony railing with the azure sea behind him. The sea breeze ruffled his bangs, revealing a rare innocence belonging to a boy his age.
"I won't wish for you to get an offer; I'm going to save up that luck for you," he said seriously. "You will definitely make it to America."
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 千人计划 | Thousand Talents Program | A Chinese government program to recruit high-level international experts. |
| 根红苗正 | Rooted and Red / Pedigree | A term meaning someone comes from a politically reliable or "correct" background. |
| 跑胶 | Running gels | Gel electrophoresis, a common laboratory technique. |
| 师姐 | Senior Sister | A term of respect for a more senior female student or colleague in the same lab/school. |
| 土博 | Local doctor / Domestic PhD | A slang term for someone who earned their PhD in China rather than abroad. |
| 压惊 | Calm one's nerves | Literally "to suppress shock," often involving a meal to comfort someone. |
| 麻辣烫 | Malatang | A common Chinese street food of spicy numbing soup with various ingredients. |
| 无进展生存期 | Progression-free survival (PFS) | A clinical trial metric measuring the length of time during and after treatment that a patient lives with the disease but it does not get worse. |
| 响应率 | Response rate | The percentage of patients whose cancer shrinks or disappears after treatment. |
| CFA | CFA | Chartered Financial Analyst; the Senior Sister suggests it as a career backup. |
| FTX Lab | FTX Lab | Likely stands for Feng Tai Xiao, the name Xiao Fengtai jokes about giving the lab. |
---
