America: I came here to study, not to show mercy.

Chapter 217 New York, Two...Three?

Monday morning.

Inside Professor Sedgewick's lab, Sean Lee sat at his desk, his hands flying across the keyboard. What was rapidly being typed on the screen wasn't code, but rather simple dialogues, one after another.

After posting the screenshot in the group on Saturday night, Su Feier called him over. He didn't have time to reply to messages and help a few "well-meaning" group members answer their questions until Sunday. It must be because his experiment failed. Today, Monday, the two of them are still asking questions incessantly in the group.

Carefully scrolling through the chat history, Li Xiaoen even saw messages sent in the middle of the night asking questions. He couldn't help but feel sorry for the company's cybersecurity staff. Immediately, his attention was drawn to a notice about cybersecurity attack and defense in the chat box.

As he was looking closely, a figure stood up from behind him. Li Xiaoen turned around and saw it was Haskel.

"Sean, are you interested in participating in this?"

Haskell's eyes gleamed with excitement.

"Is this... a competition within the industry?"

Li Xiaoen turned around and carefully studied the contents. As he continued reading, he suddenly realized, "Oh, it's an invitational tournament for a military industrial company."

"correct."

Haskell nodded quickly, lowering his voice, "Sean, this is one of the few legitimate websites on the market that can be legally attacked, and it's quite challenging, with a substantial reward."

"Let me take a look."

Li Xiaoen neither agreed nor disagreed, but nodded with a helpless smile.

These kinds of cybersecurity attack and defense invitational tournaments, issued by companies, were more common in the early days of the internet. Most of them were organized by companies in order to strengthen their own network defenses. They would invite hackers to attack, try to find all possible network vulnerabilities, and then plug the gaps and improve their defenses.

With the development of cybersecurity, almost all kinds of common and uncommon viruses and intrusion methods have been discovered by predecessors. Outstanding hacker talents have also been poached by official agencies or companies in advance. Network infrastructure protection is updated and iterated layer by layer, so bounty-based behavior is rare now.

Moreover, companies like American military-industrial complexes certainly have some of the best cybersecurity engineers. While they are attempting to attack and penetrate, the other side can patch the attack at any time based on even the slightest clue. Not to mention, they may also fall into the network traps set by the other side and be traced back to the source of the attack.

Looking at the names of the military enterprises on the notice, Li Xiaoen rested his chin on his hand, pondering.

“Sean, Haskel…”

As get out of class was about to end, Professor Sedgewick on the podium called out, "Come to my office."

"Ok."

With a reply, Li Xiaoen closed his notebook, put it in his bag, picked it up casually, and followed along with Haskel…

"Sean, congratulations."

As he left the office, Haskel couldn't help but smile and nod to Sean Lee.

"Things haven't been finalized yet. As you know, it's very difficult to get a green card in the United States."

Li Xiaoen raised his hand, but couldn't help but reveal a strange smile on his face—he had only been studying in the United States for half a year, and he could apply for a green card. Even though he had never seriously considered it, he was quite happy at this moment.

That's right. Professor Sedgewick called him and Haskell over, partly to involve Haskell in his current collaboration on project development, so that he could dedicate some of his energy to overseeing the progress of the entire lab, and partly to have him fill out forms and submit a green card application—with the professor writing a letter of recommendation to handle the process.

A green card is different from citizenship. It allows one to retain their citizenship while enjoying most of the rights and benefits in the host country. As far as he knows, having a green card in the United States is only different from having the right to vote compared to an ordinary citizen.

Having a green card in the United States makes things much more convenient. You no longer have to worry about your visa expiring every day, and it makes daily life and dealing with government departments much easier. The only downside might be that the United States taxes people worldwide...

"I'll upload the latest model to the lab's server in a bit, and you can download it then."

Upon arriving at the lab door, Li Xiaoen nodded to Haskell in farewell before heading towards the classroom for the general education course, Language and Thinking.

He took a few deep breaths, the initial joy of obtaining a green card fading away. Li Xiaoen's steps began to slow, and his face unconsciously turned bitter.

He felt helpless and exhausted more than once about taking this general education course with several girls.

Arriving a little late, Li Xiaoen entered the classroom through the back door just as the school bell rang. He looked up at his previous seat and his toothache started again.

Victoria quickly walked to the edge of the aisle, looked up, stood up to make room, and then Li Xiaoen was able to sit back down in her seat.

He took his laptop out of his bag, opened the e-book, and silently looked up at the podium.

"..."

"Something's not right. The three of you have been hiding this from me and Mary. What happened?"

Class had been going on for a while, and the atmosphere was strangely silent. Serafina turned her head to look around a few times, and finally couldn't help but ask, "Why isn't anyone saying anything?"

"It's class time now. Shouldn't we be listening attentively and not talking?"

Already terrified by the situation on Saturday night, with the girls sitting on either side of him, Li Xiaoen inwardly grumbled upon hearing this, but turned his head to explain.

“You, Sean…”

Serafina gave a strange look. "You actually pay attention in class?"

“You have a lot of prejudice against me…”

Knowing that saying too much would only lead to more mistakes, Li Xiaoen rolled her eyes and quickly ended the conversation. She opened the email sent by Professor Sedgewick on her computer and filled in the information.

"Sean, what information are you filling out?"

Suffer sat to the side, keeping a close eye on Li Xiaoen's movements. When she saw the various information displayed on his computer, she couldn't help but lean over in surprise.

"Professor Sedgewick asked me to fill out some forms, and he said he would help me apply for and coordinate my green card status."

Li Xiaoen glanced at Su Feier, who was standing right next to him, and continued typing at the same speed, quickly writing down his various information. He casually added, "Of course, whether it will be successful or not, and how long it will take, I don't know."

The biggest advantage of his current green card status is that he can stay in the United States without a visa, but his four years of university have just begun, and he has plenty of time.

"A green card? You're getting a green card?"

Upon hearing this, the girls were stunned for a moment, then turned and looked at each other with surprised eyes.

"It's just a green card, and it's only in the application stage. Do you Americans really need to be so surprised?"

Li Xiaoen shrugged helplessly, yawned, and the atmosphere warmed up. The classroom was cozy, and he could still faintly smell the fragrance of the two girls next to him. In particular, the teacher's voice on the podium made him feel drowsy and sleepy.

“Even though we are Americans, we know that green cards are relatively difficult to obtain.”

Sophie rolled her eyes and offered an explanation, then took the opportunity to lean closer and peer at the computer screen in front of the young man.

“Hey…” Li Xiaoen paused in his typing, then switched the screen to the desktop with a wry smile. “Isn’t it a bit too arrogant to blatantly snoop on other people’s privacy like this?”

"It's an outstanding talent immigration program..."

Ignoring the young man's accusations, Sophie nodded seriously, "No wonder Professor Sedgewick recommended you. Was it because of that seminar over the weekend?"

"probably."

Li Xiaoen pondered for a moment before nodding.

Several professors were very satisfied with his presentation at the conference. He remembered that Professor Sedgewick had previously said that if he were to give a presentation and showcase his outstanding work, he would receive more, perhaps including a green card.

Seeing Suffer looking down at her phone, Li Xiaoen didn't say anything more. She turned back to fill in the form and suddenly noticed a delicate head peeking over from the other side.

Without switching the computer back to the desktop, Li Xiaoen glanced over and met the girl's curious gaze as she looked up.

Without saying a word, Li Xiaoen silently pushed the computer towards the girl, immediately earning a well-deserved eye roll, which he found somewhat amusing.

Shaking his head and taking a deep breath, Li Xiaoen typed again. At the same time, Victoria leaned closer, and a water bottle cap filled with coffee was pushed onto the table.

"So, is this a bribe?"

The aroma of coffee wafted into his nostrils. Li Xiaoen raised an eyebrow and couldn't help but smile at the girl who had averted her gaze. "Miss Victoria, is my privacy only worth a cup of coffee? Perhaps even that stingy Harpagon should learn from you..."

"Don't forget it."

Victoria pursed her lips and reached out to take it back, but the young man snatched it away first. She couldn't help but look up and give him a disdainful look.

It was rare to see a girl look like that; before, she had always been gentle and smiling. Li Xiaoen thought to himself, but still smiled and nodded at her.

"Drinking water in the desert is worth its weight in gold, and fire is the hope for survival in the freezing night. It is the same for me now."

"Oh……"

Nodding listlessly, Victoria turned her head and focused her gaze on the curtain of the podium.

Although it's not as good as before, it's still much better than ignoring people.

Tasting the rich bitterness in his mouth, Li Xiaoen sighed inwardly. He took another small sip and put the bottle cap aside. Just as he was about to continue filling out his forms, Su Feier made another meaningful sound.

"It seems the weekend's speech was really good; you even have female fans now."

Hesitantly, Li Xiaoen frowned slightly and looked over. Su Feier was holding up his phone, which displayed an Instagram account with a photo of him in a suit with two girls.

Aren't Americans supposed to be very private? How could those two girls upload photos online without even asking their servants?

While mentally complaining, Li Xiaoen noticed the various meaningful glances from the girls on either side of him, shrugged, and ignored them, returning his gaze to the computer.

“I’m a very polite person. They asked me with a smile, so I had no reason to refuse, did I?”

"..."

After class, Li Xiaoen said goodbye to a few girls, had a simple lunch at the school cafeteria, took a nap, and then spent two hours researching the official website of the military company she had seen that morning. Her alarm clock, which she had set for 3 p.m., went off.

After quickly tidying up, Li Xiaoen went out to the parking lot, this time driving back to his previous Maserati GranCabrio, and drove to the front of the two girls' dormitories.

At this moment, two beautiful figures were already standing gracefully at the door—taking advantage of Professor Stella's last day in New York, which happened to be a workday, he decided to negotiate with Sophie and finalize the cooperation with her company today.

Because Victoria also knew that she would be coming along this time, the originally planned three-time trip for two in New York has now become a trip for three.

Feeling somewhat emotional, Li Xiaoen looked up at the two girls in the rearview mirror after they got into the back seat. He noticed that Su Feier's expression was rather cold and raised an eyebrow.

"Sean, this time you have to take me to eat authentic Chinese food in Chinatown."

With her hands resting on the back of the driver's seat, Victoria smiled and leaned closer.

"sure."

Li Xiaoen took a deep breath and nodded in agreement, "It's basically just boiled beef dipped in sauce, but you should like the taste."

"Ha ha……"

Victoria smiled and nodded, her eyes sparkling. "And, you should also have that kind of milk tea from China over there, right?"

Yes, there definitely is.

Li Xiaoen vaguely sensed Victoria's previous gentleness and couldn't help but smile and nod. But then he suddenly felt a cold gaze, which made his heart tighten. He couldn't help but look up in Suffer's direction—unfortunately, the girl had already turned her head to look out the car window.

Sigh, as expected, I can't spend time with several girls at the same time right now.

Li Xiaoen felt bitter inside, but faced with Victoria's enthusiasm, she quickly forced a smile in response.

Since he was greedy, he didn't want to neglect any of the girls, and he couldn't bring himself to show favoritism.

With a determined heart, Li Xiaoen took the initiative to speak to Su Feier.

"Sophie, have you ever tried milk tea from China? Although I haven't, it should be similar to a beverage, and it should go well with beef hot pot."

Upon hearing this, Suffer turned around and looked over, her eyes slightly narrowed, and she raised her arms and crossed them in front of her chest.

"You could give it a try."

She sighed and nodded casually, "Should we still share a pot, like before?"

"..."

A simple sentence stunned Victoria, and Li Xiaoen's heart pounded as she kept her eyes on the road ahead and drove steadily to the side of the road.

"It's all done in one pot."

Li Xiaoen forced himself to speak, “In China, a normal hot pot meal is where everyone shares one pot and scoops out the food together.”

"Isn't it?"

A cold smile crept across her lips. Su Feier feigned surprise and spoke again, "I remember that shop, in order to adapt to local conditions, divided the pots so that each person could have their own, didn't it?"

"The pot we used together before was a small, single-person pot..."

(End of this chapter)