Chapter 302: One Clue Leads to Many: The Secret of the Longevity Village!
The conversation had reached that point,
and emotions were running high.
Chuck and Professor Alicia Harper were both brilliant scientists who had actually conducted experiments together, so the preparatory work proceeded smoothly and effortlessly.
Being adults, they didn't need to worry about juvenile matters.
Naturally, everything changed dramatically.
When Professor Alicia Harper opened her eyes again, it was still dark.
She was somewhat surprised, slightly lifting herself from the bed and turning her head to look, but Chuck was nowhere to be seen.
Not particularly surprised, she reached for her phone on the nightstand, turned it on, and looked at the time on the screen, realizing it was already evening the next day.
Frowning slightly, she slowly turned over, lying on the bed staring at the ceiling, unable to process everything for a long time.
After all, she was a brilliant physicist—when it came to philosophical questions, her insights were far more profound than those of ordinary people.
"Chuck truly is the pride of Texas..."
Professor Alicia Harper, after a long silence, turned to look out the window. The starlight was exceptionally brilliant tonight, and she uttered this with profound emotion, finally understanding certain things about herself.
She had always loved looking at the stars in the night sky, feeling that nothing was more beautiful or more worthy of her exploration than a sky full of stars.
She had once counted up to 4,348 stars until she could no longer continue.
When she first met her ex-husband, Professor John Harper, he wasn't particularly eloquent, but besides his academic achievements, what truly moved her was how he would use the stars to show her any constellation she wanted when they stargazed together.
Dippers, bears, hunters... when he held her hand and pointed to the sky, he could trace the shapes of these constellations she mentioned from the stars.
She found it enchanting.
And now, exhausted but seemingly full of inexhaustible energy, when she looked at the starry sky again, many shapes flashed in her eyes.
A carousel, Chuck, Dogs Playing Poker... She felt the starlight tonight reflected her heart, and a slight smile involuntarily crept onto her lips. Then she frowned, quickly suppressing the emotions that had stirred within her.
She was finally convinced.
Chuck's suggestion to reschedule her classes wasn't unfounded.
Not only had she been unconscious all day, but even if she could attend class the day after tomorrow, it would be difficult.
Suppressing these emotional thoughts, a sudden flash of inspiration struck her as she gazed at the endless stars, her eyes growing brighter.
She grabbed her phone and called Chuck, only to learn he was at a crime scene. She had to suppress the urge to immediately share her research findings and hung up.
But this excitement needed to be shared, and the subsequent research needed to continue. She desperately wanted to get up and go to the lab, but physically, she couldn't.
So, after much deliberation, she dialed a number.
"Professor Alicia Harper?"
Sheldon, one of her lab assistants, answered the phone and immediately complained. "You weren't in class today."
"I notified you in advance—didn't you receive it?"
Professor Alicia Harper asked in surprise.
"I did,"
Sheldon retorted, "but I still don't like this change! And you just had someone inform me of the news—you didn't personally explain the reasons for the change and get my approval."
"..."
Professor Alicia Harper's eagerness to share and continue her research faltered, and she could only suppress her irritation with Sheldon, instead talking about her recent flash of inspiration.
This conversation lasted half an hour.
"What do you think?"
Professor Alicia Harper finally shared her brilliant insight and immediately asked Sheldon for his opinion.
Although Sheldon often became withdrawn after being antagonized by Chuck, no one could deny his extraordinary genius,
especially in the field of physics.
Having already decided to pursue theoretical physics, Sheldon possessed exceptional talent and ability in this field.
This was the fundamental reason why she still agreed to let Sheldon be her lab assistant, even though she knew he was difficult.
"A truly brilliant idea,"
Sheldon praised highly on the other end of the phone. But before Professor Alicia Harper could even feel happy for a second, his next words became very Sheldon-esque.
"Are you sure this is your idea?"
"...Sheldon, I'm your professor,"
Professor Alicia Harper reminded him, her lips twitching.
"So?"
Sheldon bluntly said. "I've never seen such brilliance from you before, and you're a professor!"
Before Professor Alicia Harper could ask what was wrong with being a professor, he blurted out, "No disrespect intended, but who are the real genius scientists that became professors?"
"Newton and Einstein were professors!"
Professor Alicia Harper retorted.
"That's why their research progress was hampered,"
Sheldon countered immediately. "If they had used the time they spent teaching those inferior minds on their own research, we'd be on Mars by now, if not aboard the Enterprise."
"Are you sure this isn't just an excuse because you're unwilling to teach and can't teach others well, and therefore can't become a professor in the future?"
Professor Alicia Harper said irritably.
"Of course not!"
Sheldon naturally denied it outright. "If I wanted to, I could teach even the slowest learner.
Of course, that's assuming they're not as dim as Billy and Georgie, but that's impossible. Someone as intellectually limited as them wouldn't get into a top-tier university like Princeton."
Georgie was his brother, and Billy was his neighbor—both had received his tutoring.
And the result was obvious, so he knew in advance that he wasn't cut out to be a professor.
The difference between a professor and a researcher in a university lies in whether they teach.
Researchers can completely focus solely on research without teaching obligations.
A professor, however, is called a professor because, in addition to their own research, they have an obligation to spend time mentoring students.
Therefore, in universities, professors are considered more prestigious than researchers.
There's also the title of tenured professor.
Once you get it, even the university president, unless the board of trustees intervenes, can't fire you.
Young Sheldon naturally admired the high salaries and benefits of professorships, even tenured ones, but unfortunately, the prerequisite was teaching, and he keenly realized he couldn't achieve that.
So, just like how a female graduate student who loved geology had patronized him like a child, causing him to despise geology as "not real science" for life, he also began to disdain the title of professor.
Anyway, if he didn't like it, it wasn't because he couldn't do it.
Yes.
That simple and effective!
Professor Alicia Harper almost blurted out, "Chuck also occasionally teaches as a guest lecturer, sometimes substituting for classes."
But being gracious and kind-hearted, she held back, not saying it so cruelly, tacitly acknowledging Young Sheldon's 'defense mechanism.'
"How did you come up with that?"
Young Sheldon asked when the other end fell silent.
"It just suddenly came to me,"
Professor Alicia Harper's smile returned.
This feeling of sudden clarity is simply amazing! There's no better feeling than this!
"You suddenly figured it out?"
Young Sheldon frowned and nodded at first, then said with sudden realization. "I know."
"You know what?"
Professor Alicia Harper thought he had gained new insights into the research project she'd just mentioned.
"It must be because of Chuck, right?"
Young Sheldon said with certainty.
"...Why do you say that?"
Professor Alicia Harper was caught off guard.
Strictly speaking, it was indeed related to Chuck.
"It's simple."
Even on the phone, young Sheldon's smug expression seemed to materialize in her mind.
"It's definitely because Chuck isn't coming to class. You're in a good mood, and when you're in a good mood, inspiration flows naturally!"
Seeing that Professor Alicia Harper didn't speak, he took it as confirmation and launched into a long rant about Chuck.
"His greatest contribution to physics in the future might just be leaving our classroom now and sparing us.
Hmm.
Of course, mainly me!"
"So, do you have any new inspiration?"
Professor Alicia Harper finally couldn't help but ask.
"..."
Young Sheldon's joy and smugness faltered, and he said indignantly. "That's because it's been too short—the shadow he cast is still too large..."
He continued, feeling extremely aggrieved. "You don't know, last night when I was sleeping, I dreamed of the Council of Sheldons meeting, and Comedy Sheldon didn't even show up.
Every Sheldon knows it's because of what the Dark Lord Chuck said.
But when I complained about him, not a single persona supported me.
Scientist Sheldon said he's a true genius scientist, and science needs geniuses like him.
Texas Sheldon said he's the pride of Texas.
Spock Sheldon echoed Scientist Sheldon, saying that to achieve interstellar travel sooner, we need someone like Chuck.
Germaphobe Sheldon even said he greatly admired Chuck's hygiene standards, and compared to the other Sheldons, he'd rather be with Chuck.
I was so angry that I immediately adjourned the Council meeting."
"Sheldon, that was a dream,"
Professor Alicia Harper said, amused.
"You know, for a super-genius like me, this isn't just a dream,"
Sheldon exclaimed, frustrated. "I can recall every single detail with perfect clarity!"
"Okay, calm down,"
Professor Alicia Harper could only try to comfort Sheldon, whose psychological trauma from being tormented was immense.
But she quickly realized she couldn't comfort him at all.
Without Chuck's antagonism, Sheldon was so arrogant and annoying, so she thought, 'It's okay, no matter how traumatized he is, with Chuck around, he won't go villain,' and hung up the phone.
Meanwhile
After Professor Alicia Harper hung up, Police Chief Randy Tisher looked at Chuck with gleaming eyes. "So I was right—this is indeed murder!"
"Yes,"
Chuck nodded.
"Why do you say that?"
a police officer standing nearby asked, puzzled. "He was so old—death is quite normal."
They were currently in a nursing home.
Inside lived a Guinness World Record holder, 114-year-old Miles Horning, who was turning 115 today. He'd passed away in bed, a book clutched to his chest.
For this man, whose very existence was a miracle, everyone from the nursing home staff to the doctors and police officers who came for the routine check assumed it was natural death.
However, when Chief Randy Tisher learned of the man's local significance, he came to investigate and sensed something was off.
He couldn't quite put his finger on it, so he called Detective Chuck directly, asking him to come take a look.
"It is normal, indeed."
Chuck nodded, then pointed to the walker beside the bed. "But there are many suspicious elements. For example, this walker is too far from the bed.
And that curtain—I asked the nurse, and she didn't close it. She also said that Miles Horning doesn't like to draw the curtains.
Given his height and stooped posture, it would have been very difficult for him to pull down the curtains.
And this book.
He's essentially blind—he can't read at all.
If no one tampered with the scene, then someone deliberately did this, pulling down the curtains to block outsiders' view and facilitate the murder."
He walked to the bedside, took the pillow from under Miles Horning's head, flipped it over, and showed it to everyone. "Look at the impressions on it. The killer used this as the murder weapon to suffocate him."
"Impressions?"
The officer beside him widened his eyes, not noticing any marks.
"The human eye is a remarkably sophisticated instrument, far more efficient than any existing computer."
Chuck glanced at him.
"..."
The officer looked at his chief with a bewildered expression.
"Chuck means he can see the traces, but you can't, which is normal,"
Randy laughed. "It's okay. As long as Chuck is certain, we can take it to the lab for analysis and we'll get confirmation.
Besides, with these suspicious elements, an autopsy can already be performed. I believe the result will match what Chuck said: death by asphyxiation."
"But why?"
The officer could only accept that he'd learned something new, but was still puzzled. "Who would want to kill such an elderly man?"
"I know!"
Before Chuck could speak, Randy said with gleaming eyes. "Because of corporate competition!"
"Corporate competition?"
The officer looked at his chief with a strange expression.
He'd long heard that his chief was known for his creative theories, but only today did he truly understand.
"Yes!"
Randy's eyes were serious, filled with knowing enthusiasm. "I heard Dr. House say that there are certain bacteria in the bodies of centenarians, which contain secrets to longevity.
So some probiotic companies specifically seek out the fecal samples of such extremely elderly people for research.
Miles Horning, as a Guinness World Record holder, is naturally the first choice for these companies researching longevity.
Where there is profit, there will inevitably be conflict.
And where there is conflict, there will naturally be motive for murder."
"...Chief, you mean someone killed someone for the old man's... samples?"
the officer asked with difficulty.
"Very likely!"
Randy nodded seriously, then looked at Chuck. "Chuck, what do you think?"
"You can go check the bathroom,"
Chuck said earnestly.
"Yeah!"
Randy slapped his forehead. "If the killer really came for his samples, then they would definitely leave traces."
Saying this, he rushed toward the bathroom.
Everyone: "..."
(End of Chapter)
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