No Way Out

"I could probably practice for a year without eating or drinking, and still not reach his speed and accuracy," Shu Lanzhou swallowed, looking at Professor Mu. "But I think, if I don't consider those two things, I still have hope of graduating smoothly."

Professor Mu's expression darkened. "You just want to graduate smoothly?"

"Of course not," Shu Lanzhou shook her head. "If I can pass the graduate exam, I'll continue in this field for further study. I want to achieve something in this area."

Professor Mu's expression softened slightly. "Why?"

"Besides what I said yesterday," Shu Lanzhou bit her lip, a rare smile curling at the corners of her mouth. With her innocent look, her smile was especially endearing. "What if I say I've fallen in love with it? Do you think the professor would believe that?"

Professor Mu burst into laughter.

"You've got good taste. If you like it, that's the right thing to do. Remember what you said, though. If you don't choose this major for your graduate studies, I have ways of ensuring you don't graduate!"

He Sixin secretly tugged at Mu Side's sleeve.

"Look at my mom. Doesn't she look like a bandit luring innocent young girls? Poor Lanzhou, still doesn't know how treacherous people can be, being manipulated without even realizing it."

"No one's manipulating her!" Mu Side's face darkened.

He Sixin didn't seem to care.

"How could she not be manipulated? My mom has had her eyes on Lanzhou, the top student in the department, for a long time. She's always wanted to steal her away from Professor Han and teach her traditional Chinese medicine."

"And now, it seems she's finally got what she wanted."

Mu Side's face darkened further as he shot a glare at He Sixin. "She came to us willingly."

"Yes, yes, of course." He Sixin nodded quickly. "But how do you know she came to us on her own? Maybe she came to the hospital to find another professor, and my mom intercepted her."

"You're thinking too much." Mu Side looked at her as if she were an idiot. "She's already in her fourth year. If she wants to change majors, acupuncture is the best option."

"Why would she switch majors when she was doing so well in her original one?" He Sixin was confused. "Even if she wanted a dual degree, it wouldn't make sense to choose such a niche field, would it?"

"She's out of options," Mu Side tossed the tablet to He Sixin.

He Sixin glanced at the forum on the school's website.

"She slandered Lin Muyao for plagiarism and was disliked by the team? Not only was she criticized, but she was also forced to apologize?"

"Even so, there's no reason for her to leave the team and come to us. After all, that's Professor Han's team. It's a huge opportunity."

Mu Side's smile was cold and mocking. "Because she's not stupid. Rather than staying there as a punching bag, she'd rather come here and be a disciple. If you were her, what would you choose?"

"If it were me, I'd definitely choose the popular path!" He Sixin replied matter-of-factly.

"You know better than anyone, if it weren't for acupuncture being part of my family's legacy, I wouldn't have studied it in the first place."

"From Lanzhou's perspective, if she wanted to secure a good job in the future, she would probably stick with Professor Han's team, even if she were just a small part of it. At least she'd be in a top-tier team."

"Isn't that better than ending up in some niche field with no job prospects or research opportunities?"

"Heh..." Mu Side gave her a look, as if she were an idiot.

"Are you telling me you tried to convince her to stay just to make a clean getaway? Should I tell Auntie about this?"

"Shut up." He Sixin gave him a fierce look.

"I worked hard to keep her here. Don't think I don't know—you only chose this field because of your family. You wouldn't have chosen acupuncture otherwise!"

Mu Side's expression turned cold. "Watch your words."

"The fact that Lanzhou is leaving Professor Han's team is public now. It's all over the school forums. She must have offended someone, and now her backdoor has been cut off."

He Sixin clicked her tongue lightly. "Well, now there's no need for me to convince her anymore. She'll have no choice but to stay."

Mu Side grabbed the tablet back, briefly scrolling through it before his lips twisted into a cold, mocking smile. "Do you remember the time Auntie fought with Professor Han over a student?"

"Do you want to get revenge for Auntie?"

Years ago, Professor Mu's research direction had been similar to Professor Han's. Both were senior professors with extensive teaching experience, and their ranks were comparable.

There had been a promising new graduate student that year, and both professors had tried to recruit them into their respective teams. Initially, the student had agreed to join Professor Mu's team.

But then, who knew what methods Professor Han used behind the scenes, but the student changed their mind.

This incident had led to Professor Mu abandoning her original field of study and focusing on a direction completely opposite to Professor Han's, effectively blocking him from ever recruiting her students again.

However, the field Professor Mu taught was so niche that, for a long time, she had become the laughing stock of other professors.

People would joke that she had completely lost to Professor Han!

"What do you want to do?" He Sixin asked, her face filled with concern.

"Don't do anything rash. Lanzhou might not want anyone to know she changed majors. You can't just go public with this."

Mu Side glanced at He Sixin before walking toward Shu Lanzhou. "When did you quit Professor Han's team?"

"I wrote the withdrawal request last night," Shu Lanzhou was caught off guard by the sudden question.

"Then do you want to make your joining Professor Mu's team public?" Mu Side asked.

Shu Lanzhou's face brightened with surprise.

"Really? I can really join Professor Mu's team? Didn't you say I still had to wait for the semester's final exam?"

"If I can join Professor Mu's team, of course I want to make it public!"

This way, it would show Luo Jialin and the others that she was serious. She wasn't just playing around; she was genuinely leaving the team!!

Mu Side smiled, his lips curling upward. "Then let's make it public."

"You little brat!" Professor Mu laughed and scolded him, but didn't oppose the idea.

Instead, she pulled Shu Lanzhou over. "The acupoints you memorized were correct, but just knowing the names isn't enough. You also need to be able to match them to the body."

"I'm giving you three days. After three days, I'll test you again. If you fail, there will be consequences."

Shu Lanzhou was in a good mood and smiled more brightly than ever before. "I'll definitely pass, Professor. Don't worry!"

"So, my joining the team is real, right? You're not tricking me?"

"Since Mu Side made it public, it must be real," He Sixin said, pointing to Mu Side, who was still operating the tablet.

Shu Lanzhou joyfully hugged her. "That's amazing! Really amazing!"

This was the happiest thing that had happened to her since her rebirth.

She never expected the change of mentor to go this smoothly!

She didn't know if Professor Mu was better than Professor Han, but at least right now, she had no conflict of interest with her.

Besides, she believed that as long as she treated others sincerely, not everyone she encountered would be bad!

Once Mu Side made the news about Shu Lanzhou joining Professor Mu's team public on the school forum, he tossed the tablet back to He Sixin.

The group didn't focus on the matter any longer and instead began preparing for the consultation!

To them, it was just another student joining Professor Mu's team—nothing unusual!

But at the school, Luo Jialin and the others were furious!

"Who made Shu Lanzhou's withdrawal public? Do you have any brains? She just apologized to Muyao, and Professor Han agreed to let her join the team. Now, she wants to leave? What will others think?"

Luo Jialin was shouting in anger.

If she was going to leave, it should have been handled privately—not blown up on the school's online forum!