Zou Xiaoxiao's words broke the ice, and it was what everyone present wanted to say, though if they had said it, it would have been much more complicated.
Facing Huo Rou's subtle gaze, Zou Xiaoxiao pouted and looked back at the computer. She wasn't here to defend Huo Rou.
Women don't make things difficult for other women. Although she didn't think much of Huo Rou, a mere vase, there was no need to trip her up and embarrass her in this setting.
The professor looked at Zou Xiaoxiao noncommittally, then turned to Huo Rou to ask for her opinion, "Teacher Huo, we are rather pressed for time, so before you arrived, Xiao Yu contacted his teacher. How about we first hear their proposed solution?"
"I have no problem with that," Huo Rou said. She didn't feel anything was amiss. When it comes to technology, it's about taking what you need from each other, as long as the problem can be solved.
The others, hearing her agree so readily, rolled their eyes with disdain.
"What's she pretending for? If she can't do it, she should just say so... she doesn't look like someone who works in tech." Someone muttered.
Zou Xiaoxiao, who was close by, reached out and patted him, signaling him to stop complaining. It wasn't like they had been waiting indefinitely, and it wasn't worth holding a grudge.
"Are you that familiar with her? Why do you always defend her..."
Seeing that Zou Xiaoxiao's expression had soured, he also shut his mouth. Forget it, no point arguing with a woman.
Huo Rou found a place to sit down and, gathering her strength, looked at their computer screen.
The technician, referred to as Xiao Yu, made a video call to his teacher.
"Video call?" The man on the other end pondered for a moment and cautiously asked, "Xiao Yu, what is the security level of your project that you can make a video call to me over the internet?"
Huo Rou found the voice somewhat familiar. She glanced towards Xiao Yu's phone from afar, and the moving figures inside seemed indeed like an old acquaintance.
Upon hearing the other party's question, Xiao Yu also looked at his team leader and scratched his head sheepishly. "I forgot. So, Teacher, are you at the school? I'll switch to a private network to call you..."
The downside of the private network was the limited internet speed. As soon as the call connected, there was a crackling echo.
When Xiao Yu asked a question and his teacher answered, the voices would loop back two or three times, making their communication sound like a duet of folk songs.
Those in charge of other parts of the project came to watch the spectacle but left after a few minutes, unable to bear the lag.
"Teacher, are you saying it's this part? I'll switch the camera in a moment. Are you saying this section is completely unusable?" Xiao Yu said respectfully, enduring the lag.
After speaking, he raised his phone to flip the camera.
The man in the video pushed up his glasses, ready to examine the code, but suddenly saw a familiar figure in the frame.
It was a fleeting glimpse.
He urgently called out, "Boss?"
"Huh?" Xiao Yu was a bit confused. Had the connection become that bad? Why did he hear his teacher call him "Boss"?
"Teacher, what did you say?" he asked uncertainly.
His teacher's eyes were practically glued to the screen. "Turn the camera back."
Xiao Yu, not understanding, flipped the camera. A unshaven face loomed into the lens, meeting his teacher's gaze head-on.
He blinked. What was going on? It felt a little awkward.
"Hold the phone higher." The other party rolled his eyes in mild annoyance and commanded.
"Oh." Xiao Yu raised the phone higher. "Teacher, is this okay? Is there something wrong?"
"Boss! It really is you?" The person on the other end of the video gasped, the lag stretching his trailing sound infinitely.
Huo Rou lazily waved at him. "What a coincidence."
Zhou Shijian leaped up with such speed that the screen blurred again. "This private network is so slow! Xiao Yu..."
"Yes, Teacher." Xiao Yu, still bewildered by what had just happened, immediately responded when Zhou Shijian called him.
Zhou Shijian said earnestly, "My boss is here, why don't you ask her? Her solution should be simpler than mine."
Most of the project team members were quite young and enjoyed gossip. They had only walked a few steps away when they heard something interesting and quickly retreated to watch.
"This Xiao Yu's teacher, a professor, is calling that Huo someone 'Boss'?"
The onlookers were confused by this twist.
After speaking, Zhou Shijian's enthusiasm reignited, and he quickly projected his thoughts onto the camera. "Boss, take a look at my plan. I feel it's a bit convoluted. Can you help me with it?"
This was a chance to learn something new.
In Zhou Shijian's mind, when it came to computers, Huo Rou was a god-like existence.
Hearing his words, Huo Rou stepped forward, took the phone from the dumbfounded Xiao Yu, and carefully examined Zhou Shijian's thoughts.
Everyone held their breath. The way things were developing, it seemed they were about to be proven wrong.
After a long pause, Huo Rou nodded. "It's a good plan."
"Tch..." The young man instinctively wanted to mock her, but before he could speak, Huo Rou continued.
"Step five did take a bit of a detour. If it were me, I would have changed it to..."
Huo Rou slowly explained her ideas in a soft voice, not at all like an academic discussion.
Yet, the sight of Zhou Shijian diligently taking notes made Xiao Yu feel as though his renowned teacher had turned into a student, attending a lesson.
After finishing his notes, Zhou Shijian exclaimed, "Understood, understood. Then, Boss, since I'm not needed here, I'll head to class?"
He hung up the phone, and everyone stared at Huo Rou in unison.
Although Xiao Yu was still a bit confused, he was, after all, a top student who had made it into the project team. Based on the question-and-answer exchange between Zhou Shijian and Huo Rou, he managed to draft a revised version.
"Teach... Teacher Huo, is this what you mean?" Xiao Yu stammered unnaturally. He stood up, making way, and rubbed his hands, looking expectantly at Huo Rou.
"Roughly," Huo Rou nodded under his expectant gaze. "You're not bad."
To absorb so much information in such a short time and make corresponding revisions was indeed a sign of a promising talent.
She sat down, and with the mouse as her scepter, she casually scrolled through the code. After a moment of thought, she said, "It could still be better."
As she spoke, the sound of the keyboard erupted, "Dada dada," like galloping horses, a thousand soldiers and a thousand horses charging, and the code on the computer changed rapidly.
Zou Xiaoxiao stood behind her, watching her modifications, her eyes filled with disbelief.
Xiao Yu, on the side, quickly recorded in his notebook. By the time Huo Rou finished reviewing all the code, his notebook was filled with a page of notes.
"Teacher Huo, I didn't quite understand this part. Could you explain it to me?" Xiao Yu approached with his notebook.
His teacher's boss was more decisive and sharp; why didn't he know these things?!