Your Distance

29- The Great Risk of 480 Kilometers

In class on Wednesday, Professor Bai announced the suspension of classes the following Monday.

After his afternoon classes, Ting Shuang went home and checked his email. Unsurprisingly, he’d received a formal notice of class suspension sent by the teaching assistants.

However, the reason for the suspension was not mentioned in the email, nor did Bai Changyi mention it when he was in class.

If he was this secretive, could it be because…

Ting Shuang took out his phone and sent a message to Bai Changyi: Is Your Highness not waking up early on Monday?

After sending the message, Ting Shuang suddenly noticed the current distance between them: 480 kilometres.

480 kilometers???

After three heated days, did they go back to square one?

Was Bai Laoban going on the Long March?(1)

Ting Shuang couldn’t make sense of it, and sent another message: Bai Laoban, where are you?

Only at nine o’clock in the evening did Bai Changyi finally reply: Hanover.

Ting Shuang was about to start typing, when Bai Changyi started a video call. “There’s an industrial robots exhibition here.”

Ting Shuang looked at Bai Changyi’s background and guessed that it was his hotel room. He asked, “So you went to the exhibition this afternoon?”

Bai Changyi said, “No, the exhibition only starts next Monday. I reached Hanover at five o’clock, and just had a meal with representatives of two collaborating exhibitors from China and Germany.”

Ting Shuang said, “Oh… our class next Monday is suspended because of this exhibition?”

Bai Changyi said, “Mm, I have to give a live report in the exhibition hall on Monday. I’ll come back Tuesday night.”

Ting Shuang said, “Then why did you leave today? Today’s only Wednesday.”

Bai Changyi said, “It’s a joint exhibition by three parties. The LRM department and the two companies are working together on several projects. We’ll have meetings in the hotel on Thursday and Friday. They will set up their booths during the weekend. I’ll be overseeing the process.”

In his head, Ting Shuang started making plans.

He had classes on Thursday and Friday. He had work on Saturday. His Sunday was free, and the only class he had on Monday was suspended. If he took the train to Hanover after work on Saturday and returned on Monday night, then he could spend two days and two nights with Bai Changyi. It could be considered a vacation.

Mm… He couldn’t let Bai Changyi know. He had to suddenly appear outside his hotel room on Saturday at midnight, and ring the doorbell to send the old professor warmth.

“What are you giggling at?” The Bai Changyi on the phone screen asked.

Giggling?

Ting Shuang slapped his face and said, “W-who giggled? Can’t I be happy?”

Bai Changyi said, “Happy about what.”

Ting Shuang said, “Happy… happy that I can sleep in next Monday morning. Hey, I can’t talk any longer, I, I uh… I have to rush out an experiment report.”

He had to quickly book the train ticket.

Bai Changyi said, “Mm, don’t sleep too late.”

Ting Shuang said, “Okay okay…”