Chapter 9 — Melting Glacier

9Every time it's like playing with fire — both thrilling and damn addictive. I realized, I really... really like the "wild style". Especially, wild only for me — Tham Duc Chi. While the project was underway, the Institute of Environmental Sciences had a new researcher named Vuong Thanh. A woman wearing rimless glasses, a well-fitted suit, and her whole body exuding the aura of "I'm very professional" and "I'm very serious". The first look she gave me was filled with scrutiny. "Miss Lam, right? Your photography style is very bold, but it should be noted, this is a scientific research institute, you must focus on rigor and authenticity, don't do anything too colorful or too artistic." That was the first thing she said to me. At that time, I just laughed. "Researcher Vuong, art and science are not opposites. Furthermore, I received money from the ordering party, took photos that the ordering party was satisfied with, it seems like there is no need to report to you, right?" She was stopped by me, her face turned pale, and she did not continue. But I felt her eyes looking at me like she was looking at an enemy. Especially, when I saw Tham Duc Chi step forward, he suddenly picked up the glass of water on my table and took a sip, the eyes behind the glasses became even colder. On the day the project ended, the Institute held a small party to congratulate our group. At the table, Vuong Thanh sat next to Tham Duc Chi, always trying to talk academically with him, so excited that his eyes flew open. As for me, sitting opposite, like an outsider. Director Vuong drank a bit too much, held my hand and kept praising the photos I took. "Miss Lam, you not only have good technique but are also a good person! Last time you fainted in the simulation compartment, scaring us to death. Luckily, Duc Chi! When he carried you out, oh my god, I have never seen him lose his temper like that." I smiled wryly and secretly glanced at Tham Duc Chi. He was slowly drinking tea, but behind his glasses, his eyes held a bit of a smile, staring at me. Principal Vuong still exclaimed: "I see, the two of you, talented and beautiful, are quite..." "Principal Vuong." Vuong Thanh suddenly spoke up, interrupting him. She raised her glass of wine and smiled demurely: "I invite Professor Tham a drink. This time the project was completed smoothly, thanks to the professor's technical support. Unlike some people, who only know how to cause trouble." She said, deliberately glancing at me, full of meaning. "It's just a project, fainting in the simulation compartment, almost causing a safety incident, that's really unheard of. I think, scientific projects should still be handled by professionals, every stage is the same. Otherwise, one unstable variable can ruin the whole experiment." The words weren't loud, but the whole table heard them. The air immediately cooled down. Principal Vuong also froze, half sober. My hand held the glass tightly. I was about to turn it back on, but Tham Duc Chi put down the tea cup. He didn't even look at Vuong Thanh, just looked at me, then slowly spoke. "Researcher Vuong, you are wrong." All eyes turned to him. "First, Ms. Lam is not a variable, she is... my inspiration. Without her lens, the communication effectiveness of this project will be significantly reduced." "Second, what you said is 'unstable', I disagree even more." He held a napkin, wiped the corner of his mouth, his movements were elegant but his words were not polite, "In my opinion, the most unstable things are those who try to use subjective judgment to interfere with objective truth." Only then did he look at Vuong Thanh, his eyes as cold as the ice core he studied. "A researcher, if even the basic data - that is, the truth - cannot be seen clearly, but is blinded by prejudice and jealousy, that is the biggest insult to him. with faculty

study." "Researcher Vuong, I'm very skeptical about your expertise." Vuong Thanh's face immediately turned red like a pig's liver. Perhaps she had never been humiliated so bluntly in front of so many people. "You... you..." She was so angry that her lips trembled. Tham Duc Chi didn't pay attention. He stood up, walked straight to me, pulled my hand. "Miss Lam has an early flight tomorrow, I'll take her back to the hotel first." Having finished speaking, he didn't wait. Who reacted, he pulled me away, leaving behind both surprised and dark eyes. "Do you... do you think I'm really a trouble?" Sitting in his car, I was still angry. "What Vuong Thanh said just now, did you also think? That an artist like you, meddling in my strictly scientific world, is just an unstable variable, a troublemaker? "The more I talked, the angrier I became. What she said touched my most sensitive weakness. Tham Duc Chi started the car, but didn't answer right away.