After finishing the lab tour, everyone returned to Yang Ping's office for tea.
For people in the southern region, drinking tea is a social ritual. Many significant decisions can be made over several cups of tea.
Everyone sat in silence, waiting for Tang Shun to write his compensation demands on a piece of paper. Tang Shun fell silent, staring at the blank paper and lost in thought.
After returning to China, he had been in contact with several institutions, but none of them discussed compensation by asking him to fill in a blank paper. It was as if the big boss was giving him a blank cheque to fill any number he wanted.
Professor Yang, generous indeed!
Teacher Tang, I'm patriotic at heart, thus materialistic gains don't matter to me very much.
Tang Shun began to write on the paper: one, two, three, four, five, six—
"Actually, I'm not very interested in materialistic comforts. These are just my basic needs. Only when these basic needs are met can I enjoy doing research."
