I'm a scientist, why can't I have faith?

Back then, Su Tiangong was a renowned genius in his class of Yuanpei.

While others may spend a lot of time and effort without even understanding a particular area, he is an all-rounder who is proficient in mathematics, physics, and chemistry.

Before even graduating from university, he already had several SCI Q1 papers in hand.

In his senior year, he even published an article in Science, becoming one of the very few undergraduates in Yenching University's history to publish in two top journals.

Cai An never expected that such a remarkable person would choose to pursue further studies at Yenching University.

Even someone as marginalized as him from the Yuanpei School could go to Princeton to study. If Su Tiangong had been willing to go abroad back then, I believe that no matter how high the threshold of a school was, it would have warmly extended an olive branch to him.

Although the overall academic level in China has improved a lot now, they graduated 11 years ago, when both the environment and resources were much worse than they are now.

It's not that I'm underestimating Su Tiangong's abilities, but that's just how it is. During the years he was pursuing his master's and doctoral degrees, we hardly heard any news about Su Tiangong. The academic frontier didn't produce a superstar as his teachers and classmates had hoped.

Although Su Tiangong is doing quite well at the First Academy of Aerospace Science and Technology, Cai An still feels that Su Tiangong's achievements should be even greater.

At least that's how he should feel.

You should be far more capable than me, the vice dean...

Moreover, Cai An noticed that Su Tiangong was no longer the spirited and energetic man he once was.

At that time, Su Tiangong was a true genius at first glance.

The two didn't talk much about their lives over the years, but reminisced about the happy times they had in school.

But they both saw surprise in each other's eyes.

One was secretly saddened by the decline of a former genius, while the other was overjoyed by the meteoric rise of his former friend.

"By the way, Tiangong, what brings you here this time..."

"Oh, I'm here to assist Academician Song. After all, we just finished a launch mission and I'm relatively free, so my teacher dragged me here."

Cai An nodded knowingly; that made sense.

He had just been wondering how Su Tiangong, an aerospace engineer, could become a judge in an AI competition.

If his teacher dragged him here to do manual labor, then everything makes sense.

Su Tiangong's teacher, Academician Qian Xiuyuan, was a leading figure in the aerospace field in the 80s, and was a longtime friend of the previous old man, Academician Song Zhuohua.

It is common in academia to have one's favorite student help an old friend.

Cai An noticed, however, that it seemed that none of Academician Song's own students were among those accompanying him.

I guess they're all too busy to get away...

Cai An didn't delve into it further, as he had a meeting to attend later.

The two former classmates didn't chat for long; they simply reminisced before heading off to their respective workplaces.

After watching Cai Anyuan leave, Su Tiangong turned around and went back to the hotel.

However, instead of returning to his own room, he knocked on Song Zhuohua's door.

"Please come in."

It was Mr. Song who opened the door himself; there was no one else in the room.

Song Zhuohua's room wasn't luxurious, but its specifications were definitely befitting his status. In addition to his sleeping room, there was also a separate place for receiving guests and having tea.

Su Tiangong skillfully boiled water and brewed tea, using this year's newly acquired Longjing tea.

"Thank you for your hard work, Mr. Song."

Song Zhuohua smiled and nodded, taking the teacup from Su Tiangong and carefully taking a sip.

"Have you decided on the topic for the final round? This time, we have absolute say, and the other two countries have already tacitly agreed."

"As long as I feel there's no problem, they're just going through the motions on their end."

As an absolute pioneer in the field of computer science, Song Zhuohua has now retired from academic work, but his authority in the field is still beyond question.

This is why he was chosen to be in charge of the competition, which shows how much importance the country attaches to it.

Su Tiangong told Song Zhuohua the questions he had prepared long ago.

Song Zhuohua initially maintained her smile, but the more she listened, the more her brows furrowed.

"The questions themselves aren't the problem, but are you sure you want to set up this competition format?"

Knowing Mr. Song's concerns, Su Tiangong offered an explanation.

"This kind of competition format isn't the first time it's appeared internationally. Occasionally introducing something new and creating surprises allows us to see the true performance."

Song Zhuohua nodded in agreement.

In fact, his question was just a test for Su Tiangong. Although he was Lao Qian's prized student, whether he could really shoulder that responsibility had not yet been tested.

Since it concerns the Hidden Dragon Project, one can't blame him for making things difficult for the younger generation.

In this competition, Su Tiangong claimed to be there to assist, but in reality, he was the true decision-maker behind the scenes, while Song Zhuohua was merely a smokescreen.

After all, the ultimate goal of the "East Asia Smart Cup" is to select talent, which coincides with the goal of the Hidden Dragon Program.

Only Old Song and a very few other people knew all of this.

Neon and kimchi were heavily exploited by Da Xia.

On the surface, this was just an ordinary international competition.

At Xiameng Airport, Wang Dong and Su Yuran walked out of the entrance side by side.

There was no sign of Lan Ce or Wei Linfeng behind them.

The competition is scheduled to begin the day after tomorrow, but due to some unforeseen circumstances, Lan Ce and Wei Linfeng did not choose to arrive on the same flight as Wang Dong and Su Yuran, but instead postponed their arrival by one day.

Because of the presence of teams from other countries, the pre-tournament reception time for this event was quite long.

So even though Wang Dong and Su Yuran arrived two days early, they still had rooms available.

"I never expected the organizers to book the entire hotel."

While waiting to register in the lobby, Su Yuran curiously looked around.

It must be said that the environment of the five-star hotel is indeed unique, which further reflects the extravagance of the organizer.

"By the way, junior, what are your plans for the next couple of days before the competition?"

"Maybe...she'll be reading in her room? Or maybe she'll go out for a walk with her classmates?"

"Classmate?" This instantly piqued Su Yuran's curiosity.

"Do you have friends studying here?"

"My deskmate in high school is studying at Xiamen University."

Seeing Su Yuran's cold gaze, Wang Dong added a sentence for no apparent reason.

"Of course, it's a male classmate."

Su Yuran's gaze immediately softened.

"You guys can call me if you want to go out and have fun, anyway, I don't have anything to do at the hotel these past two days."

Wang Dong readily agreed, and then the two went to their respective rooms.

Because he arrived early and the hotel had a large capacity, Wang Dong was able to have a double room all to himself.

He was very satisfied with his living environment, which included a bathroom with separate wet and dry areas and a balcony with a sea view.

After putting his luggage away, Wang Dong couldn't help but think of what Senior Su Yuran had said.

Taking a stroll around Xiameng city before the competition seems like a good idea?

Wang Dong took out his phone and dialed Li Lei's number.