Chapter 79 – Coaxing
“Perfect timing,” Qiao Huaiyao glanced at the clock; it was almost noon. “Let’s have lunch and take a ten-minute break.”
Bai Jinyan nodded and asked, “What about you?”
“Me?”
The solution was cooling down slowly, and there was no rush to get back to the lab. Qiao Huaiyao thought for a moment and said, “I’ll rest during the second phase of cooling.”
He didn’t need to squeeze in rest time between work. Resting while waiting was best.
Bai Jinyan rested his chin on his hand, lightly tapping the table with his fingers, his voice laced with a hint of playfulness, “Not having lunch?”
Eagerly awaiting the experimental results, there was no appetite for lunch. But he couldn’t say that.
Qiao Huaiyao smiled, shaking the strawberry candy wrapper on the table, “I ate.”
Bai Jinyan raised an eyebrow, “One candy?”
“Two.” As he spoke, Qiao Huaiyao unwrapped another piece.
Bai Jinyan sighed softly, coaxing, “Since there’s no result yet, go eat now.”
“I just had breakfast; I’m not really…”
The lab doorbell rang unexpectedly, interrupting Qiao Huaiyao mid-sentence.
The deep, elegant sound of a cello was not jarring, even when fully focused.
Qiao Huaiyao glanced at the door; the person outside, visible through the video intercom, was a staff member in uniform, easy to recognize.
They were probably delivering materials related to the experiment.
Qiao Huaiyao grabbed his phone and stood up, saying, “Brother, you should get some sleep; I have something to take care of here.”
After reminding Bai Jinyan to rest, he hung up the video call.
The staff member saw the rest area door open, nodded slightly through the glass door, and placed the bag on the table beside him.
Spraying disinfectant in front of Qiao Huaiyao, the staff member said, “Hello, Young Master. This is a same-city delivery from the International Chemistry Lab, with an accompanying card.”
“External disinfection is complete.” With that, the staff member pressed a button on the side, placing the bag on the conveyor belt.
After finishing, the staff member bowed and left.
Qiao Huaiyao waited for the bag to be delivered inside.
After unwrapping the package, Qiao Huaiyao found three samples of failed experiments and two bottles of experimental solutions.
Miao Wenxuan: [I included the things you needed along with a few of my failed samples. Each is labeled, so be careful not to mix them up.]
Failed experiments could serve as a reference. Miao Wenxuan intended to help Qiao Huaiyao avoid the mistakes he had made, eliminating some wrong answers ahead of time and increasing the likelihood of deducing the correct one.
Qiao Huaiyao set the failed samples aside, noting that the solution’s temperature was now suitable for use.
He donned his gloves again and began the second phase of the experiment.
The sky gradually darkened outside.
The smart lighting in the lab adjusted automatically, sensing when the room’s light was dimming and selecting the optimal brightness to maintain a near-daylight simulation.
As the outside light changed, the indoor lighting remained consistently bright. Focusing intently on his experiment, Qiao Huaiyao often overlooked the changes around him.
When he finished recording the final data, solid precipitates had already formed in the solution beside him.
Adjusting his mask and rolling up his sleeve, Qiao Huaiyao softly announced, “New York time, 4:30 AM, the experiment is complete.”
As soon as he spoke, Qiao Huaiyao froze.
How did it get so late?
The last time he checked, it was almost noon, around 10 AM.
Forgetting about the experimental materials in front of him, Qiao Huaiyao started to remove his gloves and turned to leave.
In his haste, the hem of his lab coat fluttered, and then Qiao Huaiyao stopped in his tracks.
In the adjacent rest area, Bai Jinyan was sitting behind the glass, looking at him with gentle eyes.
Working overnight in the lab, focusing intently on an experiment, can sometimes lead to low blood sugar. The delayed fatigue makes one reluctant to move, often settling for a quick bite before collapsing on the rest area bed.
But now, having someone silently sit by your side, not interrupting your progress and quietly waiting, accompanying you through the entire experiment, brings a warm feeling.
Qiao Huaiyao blinked softly, feeling warmth spread in his heart. “Brother.”
He couldn’t help but smile and asked quietly, “When did you get here? Why didn’t you get some sleep?”
“Just a while ago,” Bai Jinyan evaded the specific time effortlessly. He walked over and took a pair of gloves. “You go to sleep now, I’ll handle this.”
Qiao Huaiyao, who had taken off his gloves halfway, put them back on. “I was just about to send you a message and then clean up.”
Bai Jinyan nodded thoughtfully. “Only thinking of messaging me at dawn.”
His tone was calm, devoid of obvious emotion, but there was always a slight trace of…
Qiao Huaiyao cleared his throat lightly and explained, “I thought it was still early. Sor—”
Before he could finish apologizing, Bai Jinyan placed his hand behind his back and leaned in to kiss him on the lips.
It was a brief, gentle kiss. “I’m not blaming you.”
“But next time, remember to let me know.”
Qiao Huaiyao chuckled softly and agreed, “Okay, I will.”
This experiment used a lot of equipment, some of which had been pre-soaked in water after use. The sink and countertops were cluttered.
Fortunately, with the two of them working together, it didn’t take long to clean up.
The equipment that could be disinfected and dried was placed in a cabinet on the side, while items that couldn’t go into the cabinet were left in a designated area to drain and air-dry.
During the experiment, while waiting for results at various stages, Qiao Huaiyao organized the data collected at those times.
After completing the entire experiment, he consolidated all the data from each stage and added some narrative to make it coherent. This final experimental data set was then ready.
Qiao Huaiyao packaged everything and sent it to Miao Wenxuan, including photos of the solid material obtained as a result of the experiment.
He then stored the solid material safely, planning to take it to the lab the next day.
There was no response from Miao Wenxuan, likely because he had gone to sleep.
Miao Wenxuan had also been pulling all-nighters for this experiment and probably hadn’t rested since taking on this task.
Even someone with iron will can’t withstand such strain indefinitely.
After several failed attempts, he sent the data to Qiao Huaiyao and likely went to rest.
Having conducted continuous experiments himself, Qiao Huaiyao was also quite exhausted. He had a quick bite to eat before heading to bed.
Although the lab was designed for one person, the bed in the rest area was a double. It was initially prepared based on a standard rest room but upgraded in some details for more comfort. The bed was spacious enough for two people.
With a habit of sleeping close, Bai Jinyan left a large area behind him while keeping Qiao Huaiyao comfortably against the wall. One hand rested on Qiao Huaiyao’s waist, leaving some space to prevent him from actually touching the cold wall. The rest area had a constant temperature from the air conditioning, but the wall was still cold.
Bai Jinyan patiently and carefully held Qiao Huaiyao close, turning off the light.
Finishing the experiment late, then tidying up, it was already around five or six in the morning by the time they went to bed.
The curtains were thick, almost completely blocking out the sunlight, making the room as dark as night.
Bai Jinyan kept track of the time and, after only a short rest, carefully removed his arm from under Qiao Huaiyao’s head.
Qiao Huaiyao was in a deep sleep, having had no time to even take a sip of water during the intense hours of the experiment. Bai Jinyan didn’t want to disturb him, hoping to let him sleep a bit longer.
However, before he could get up, Qiao Huaiyao furrowed his brows.
Bai Jinyan immediately froze, not daring to move his arm, and waited quietly. He held his breath, and just as he was about to exhale and get up quietly, he heard Qiao Huaiyao murmur, “Brother…”
The voice was very soft, almost a faint whisper in a half-asleep state.
“Hmm,” Bai Jinyan responded softly, tucking the blanket around him. “It’s still early, sleep a bit more.”
Qiao Huaiyao’s lips moved slightly, as if he was saying something else, but Bai Jinyan couldn’t make it out. It didn’t stop him from soothingly saying, “Good boy, go back to sleep.”
Bai Jinyan gently smoothed the furrow in Qiao Huaiyao’s brow with his thumb and placed a light kiss on his lips. When he left the rest area, he didn’t lock the door, fearing the noise would wake him; instead, he just pulled it to.
The phone outside was flashing incessantly.
Even though it was broad daylight, the constant flashing of messages was still quite noticeable.
Miao Wenxuan: [!!! One night? You completed it in one night?! Did you do it yourself?]
[Seriously, are you kidding me? My heart can’t take it, please don’t joke around.]
Even someone as composed as Miao Wenxuan couldn’t help but feel a bit unsettled after receiving the experimental data.
Messages kept coming, filled with emojis and exclamation marks, along with calls and video requests—all unanswered.
Bai Jinyan typed calmly: [He’s resting.]
The flurry of messages from Miao Wenxuan abruptly ceased.
The chat window seemed to calm down a bit.
Miao Wenxuan: [Who is this…?]
Bai Jinyan didn’t respond further. After sending the message, he placed the phone face down on the table.
The rest area was very quiet.
All that could be heard was Qiao Huaiyao’s steady breathing.
Around noon, with the sun high in the sky, a few stray beams of sunlight filtered through the gaps in the curtains.
Qiao Huaiyao, frowning, turned over to avoid the annoying sunlight.
His fingers, resting on the pillow, were slightly curled. When he opened his eyes, he was momentarily disoriented, unable to tell what time it was.
Instinctively, he reached for his phone on the nightstand, only to remember that it was left outside.
Qiao Huaiyao sighed deeply, threw off the blanket, and got up.
As he looked through the glass at the laboratory, he realized that it was already bright outside.
His phone was full of unread and missed messages.
Apart from Miao Wenxuan, there were messages from his school teachers and from Qiu Shufeng.
However, Miao Wenxuan had replied with: [Please have Qiao Huaiyao respond after he wakes up.]
There were no new messages after that.
Qiao Huaiyao glanced at the chat and sent a single period as a response.
Miao Wenxuan: [! You finally woke up!]
From these exclamation marks, it seemed Miao Wenxuan was so excited that he might have screamed.
Qiao Huaiyao: [Is there an issue with the experiment content?]
As he typed, he also opened another chat to send a message to Bai Jinyan: [Good morning.]
There was a message from Bai Jinyan in the chat box.
He must have been busy with recording the show and hadn’t responded in time.
Qiao Huaiyao washed his face with cold water, which quickly refreshed him.
In the short time it took, Miao Wenxuan had sent another dozen messages.
Hey, how did it go from Qiao Huaiyao starting the experiment and eating breakfast at the end of last chapter to him starting the second phase and eating lunch with Bai Jinyan at the start of this one???? Did I miss something???