Chemistry - Chapter 78

11. Spring Countryside Chronicles(2)

Standing in the central research institute’s second-floor corridor, Jeong-woo turned to look at Jin Mi-so.

Throughout her walk, she wore an engaging smile, closely observing the institute.

Although he hadn’t said much, because of her chattering, he had learned that she was the top recruit for this intake.

‘She must be smart to figure it out. If she noticed, can I still get away with it?’

Nevertheless, for now, he suppressed his annoyance and stood in front of the Basic Materials Center’s door.

‘Ugh, just my luck.’

Perhaps due to the short time he had spent in the area, he detected a wave of sounds. Various noises from all over the building converged into soundwaves, causing Jeong-woo to tightly close his eyes and shake his head.

While he could selectively view molecules, the waves were still chaotic.

“Senior, what’s wrong?”

“I just had a momentary headache…”

A piercing sound echoed in his ears, causing an actual headache.

“Oh, has it already started? A hidden camera?”

Jeong-woo couldn’t help but laugh at Jin Mi-so’s question. This was real.

“Sorry, but can you wait for just 10 seconds?”

To calm his nerves, he massaged his forehead and took deep breaths. In the meantime, the faint conversation between Oh Seung-ju and the senior researchers in front of the first experimental lab reached his ears.

-Yong-sik is not coming out of the restroom? Is he embarrassed? How cute.

-Should we go and comfort him?

-The responsible researchers are rushing in, what can the newbies do? In-beom! Go and tell them about the guy you couldn’t recognize all day.

-You mean that?

-Yeah.

The fourth recruit was still causing a commotion.

“10 seconds are up!”

With Jin Mi-so’s voice, Jeong-woo calmed his nerves and opened his eyes. He was greeted by his junior, smiling brightly at him.

“I can’t wait to see what the field trip is going to be like since you’re so serious about it.”

Continuing like this, it started to get slightly annoying.

‘Serious? Why don’t you try being serious about something that’s already failed?’

On the other side of the door, one of the seniors held up a stopwatch and gave an okay sign with his finger.

Jeong-woo turned around and looked at Jin Mi-so.

“Mi-so, do you find it amusing that your senior suddenly got a headache?”

He tried to mimic Dr. Moon’s tone as closely as possible.

When he questioned her with a serious expression, Jin Mi-so seemed momentarily flustered. Jeong-woo held up his card to the Center’s door and continued speaking.

“The lab seniors prepared a hidden camera just for fun? Such an interesting imagination. In a workplace where a mistake can cost millions or even billions in research funding.”

“Well…”

Beep.

He successfully disconcerted her and gained the upper hand.

As Jeong-woo and Jin Mi-so entered, Oh Seung-ju and Sim Jeonghee began their experiment in Lab 1.

Green smoke filled the room, and Jin Mi-so’s face showed confusion about how to react to the rather dangerous behavior of the two, even if the situation was false, as it was a real research process that Dr. Oh had intentionally deceived her about.

After contemplating an appropriate experiment that matched that situation, Jeong-woo asked Jin Mi-so.

“You said you majored in Analytical Chemistry, right?”

“Yes.”

“Do you know what hexafluorobutadiene, a special gas used in semiconductor processes, is?”

“Yes, I do. Is that it?”

“This is an acrylonitrile and trimethylamine dynamic experiment. By combining them like this, the etching efficiency is increased compared to hexafluorobutadiene.”

Jin Mi-so misunderstood, and her eyes widened in amazement. This was an idea that had just come to Jeong-woo’s mind upon seeing the green gas. If she could understand it immediately, she should be at the level of senior researchers.

“Can you analyze dynamic experiments in chemical equations? Well, it’s not for testing. If you don’t know, just say you don’t.”

He also slightly scratched the ego of the senior researcher. In response, Jin Mi-so hesitated in her response, and her face began to show signs of confusion.

‘I was worried for no reason. They are researchers who have been doing that for several years.’

Room 2.

Before Hong Ki-pyo’s finger got hurt, Jeong-woo spoke to Jin Mi-so.

“It’s an analysis experiment of climate cooling gas DMS, commissioned by the Meteorological Agency. Dimethyl sulfide. It measures the trace amount of DMS in the atmosphere. Have you ever done something like this?”

Of course, it wasn’t that kind of experiment, but he improvised with the composition of the refrigerant gases.

“Well, only theoretically…”

“Watch closely. When absorbing samples and analyzing sulfur content, you can make mistakes like that. Senior! Wear the gloves and do it! Do you want to lose your fingers?”

In response to Jeong-woo’s sudden shout, Hong Ki-pyo hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

From this point on, Jin Mi-so’s surprised expression was not much different from that of the other recruits.

When someone came out of Room 3, Jeong-woo began to analyze the ingredients by sniffing the diffused odor in the lab.

“… Alkaloid compounds like strychnine or aconitine are mixed with digitalis to cause such an effect… huh? Did I speak too quickly? You look confused.”

“Well… Senior, how can you analyze this without any measuring tools?”

“It’s training. If you want to practice, go to the Aroma Center. There are people there who are even better than me.”

They arrived in front of Room 4.

A fire experiment. There didn’t seem to be a plausible way for Jeong-woo to present this as a reasonable experiment, especially since he was just complaining about it.

‘At the very least, if I can induce a fire reaction, I could label it as research on firefighting agents.’

As Jeong-woo pondered, he saw a beaker on the table where the fire was starting in Room 4. He had dealt with numerous chemicals in Cheonan, some of which were in powder form, similar to what was in that beaker.

‘I’m not sure if this will work, but…’

Just before Song Boyeong opened the door and shouted, “Fire extinguisher!”, Jeong-woo walked into the room ahead of her.

Song Boyeong muttered, looking at Jeong-woo, “What are you doing right now?” He gently pushed her aside and turned to Jin Mi-so.

“Come on in. It’s the last field trip. See that fire reaction over there? What do you think it is?”

“Yes, what is it?”

“What do you think this experiment is doing?”

“Um… a combustion reaction experiment?”

A highly flammable liquid, which would burn for about a minute before disappearing, was contained in a large rectangular container.

“Are you saying you’re burning this sophisticated compound just to observe the combustion reaction?”

Jeong-woo approached the head of Lab 3 and sent a signal to step aside for a moment, then picked up the beaker on the table.

“This is a powder containing a mixture of the proprietary additive and coating agent that Lab 3’s manager is researching, based on potassium hydrogen carbonate. Do you know what its effect is?”

“It’s an inhibitory component for combustion reactions, right?”

“Exactly.”

There was no fire extinguisher here. What was in the beaker was an incendiary powder.

However, Jeong-woo lightly sprinkled it as if it were a powder fire extinguisher. At the same time, he gathered the dust particles as much as possible and dispersed them in one place, just as Cheon Seung-guk had done. As the powder reacted, flames flickered.

It looked like the fire was about to go out, which made the Lab 3 manager’s eyes widen in astonishment. Fortunately, Jin Mi-so didn’t see that expression.

Jeong-woo calculated the precise timing of the combustion reaction in his molecular vision and asked to buy some time.

“Do you know what the upper limit of the explosion range for acetone and carbon disulfide is among the incendiary materials here?”

Since she wasn’t a specialist in the field of materials, Jin Mi-so hesitated in her response.

Jeong-woo realized that there were about 5 seconds left until complete combustion and, counting silently, he said.

“To ensure that the experimenter can safely ignite a fire reaction even at such close range, it is necessary to analyze it thoroughly. Is that what you want as a specialist in analytical chemistry?”

He poured the beaker into the sink. The Lab 3 manager was shocked by his actions and opened his mouth.

As the dust spread, the flames, as if extinguished because of it, disappeared like a lie. When the dust covered it, the fire reaction ended, as if it had been extinguished by this.

‘Great.’

This was enough to show his authority as an experienced person and a senior.

“So, Mi-so, what do you think of your tour of the lab?”

“I… um…”

Jin Mi-so couldn’t give a proper answer even once, and her lips quivered, her face turning into one that seemed about to cry.

Song Boyeong raised her hand swiftly.

“Acetone is 12.8% by volume, and carbon disulfide is 44%! Am I right?”

Being a person who remembered numbers accurately even when drunk, Song Boyeong was, of course, correct. Jeong-woo turned his head.

“Why are you answering for the newbie?”

“No, I just… the junior seemed like she was about to cry.”

“In that case, you should stay quiet…”

A slight argument broke out then.

“Huh.”

Jin Mi-so shrugged her shoulders and suddenly burst into tears.

“What?”

Jeong-woo was surprised and approached Jin Mi-so.

“A-Are you crying?”

“See, I told you. Her expression hasn’t been good since she came in. Mi-so, it’s all a joke. Just a joke.”

Song Boyeong also came closer and patted Jin Mi-so’s back. Jin Mi-so briefly felt relieved by Song Boyeong’s words but soon began to sob uncontrollably.

“Senior Han Jeong-woo… explained it so roughly…”

Jin Mi-so was so surprised that her voice didn’t come out properly.

“After explaining it like that, to say it’s a joke… I was wondering how I would adapt here, so I was shocked…”

The news of a new recruit crying spread, and the senior researchers from Labs 1, 2, and 3 all gathered in front of the lab.

“Hey, Han Jeong-woo! Why are you making the kid cry? How could you guide her like this!”

“You should have done it more moderately, with a serious face. Is it okay to act so harshly?”

“That’s right, that’s right. Mi-so, don’t cry.”

The senior researchers, who had been immersed in experiments, all came out blaming Jeong-woo and took a step back. They were all captivated by Jin Mi-so’s beauty earlier. Even when they passed by earlier, their faces were filled with admiration.

“Jeong-woo, you’re not doing this again, are you?”

Even the senior who had performed a fainting acting method with his eyes turned white came out, and Jeong-woo could only scratch his head.

‘These people are too much.’

Nevertheless, the fortunate thing was that in line with the purpose of this event, the new recruits became closer to the seniors. They adapted more comfortably to the culture of informal interactions.

‘Except for me.’

After the welcome event and the commotion from earlier had settled, it was time for the morning briefing in Research Lab 1.

The winners of the bet had chosen to go to the welcoming ceremony. In Jin Mi-so’s case, she had quickly moved on after the moment of tears, so it hadn’t even been 4 minutes since she cried.

‘I shouldn’t tease Mi-so like I do with Boyeong senior.

Jeong-woo thought as he went to the break room, bought drinks, and comforted her. After sweating a lot, he finally managed to calm down Jin Mi-so.

“Jeong-woo.”

Hong Ki-pyo, who was sitting across from him, spoke to Jeong-woo.

“Do you know Senior Kim Yu-sang?”

He was the senior in charge of the fourth fire experiment lab.

“You mean the head of Research Lab 3?”

“Yeah, that Yu-sang senior. He asked me how you did to stop the fire when you threw the flammable powder.”

“I pretended to sprinkle it and secretly blew on it with my mouth.”

“Is that so? You really got into it, huh? You’re cruel. Did you bet on Mi-so too?”

“Yes.”

Hong Ki-pyo chuckled.

“There’s a rumor that she cried a lot on her first day. This will last at least a month. Take good care of Mi-so from now on.”

Jeong-woo wondered if it would be annoying for a while.

“Everyone, listen up!”

Oh Seung-ju held the schedule sheet in his hand and walked to the center of Research Lab 1.

“We’re running late, so I’ll speak quickly. The weekly meeting today is at the Medical Bio Center. In-beom and Ki-pyo will go. Jeong-hui, please put the research proposal collection for January and February in the director’s office…”

After giving out a few more instructions, Oh Seung-ju turned her gaze towards Jeong-woo.

“Today’s microbiology lab is finally yours, Jeong-woo.”

“Senior, I’ve never been in there before, so I don’t know what to do.”

Jeong-woo looked for a way to escape with the mentality of catching even a straw.

“You were too cruel to make Mi-so cry just like that.”

“Sorry, Senior. Even if that’s somewhat cruel…”

“Only to that extent. I’m five times more cruel to you.”

Oh Seung-ju had his own part on the story, so Jeong-woo decided not to mention the back deal anymore.

“Our youngest member!”

Song Boyeong called Jeong-woo softly. She had an elated look in her eyes as she pinned a piece of paper to the partition wall, which confirmed Jeong-woo’s schedule for entering the microbiology lab.

[Congratulations, youngest member winner!]

The memo featured a drawing of someone similar to Jeong-woo holding his nose.

She had been silent for a while, but it turned out she had been quietly planning to tease him like this.

Jeong-woo waited with a resigned expression for the fate that was about to come.

Song Boyeong burst into laughter, delighted by his reaction.

At that moment, Oh Seung-ju passed by.

“Oh, right, Boyeong.”

Song Boyeong, who always felt uneasy at times like this, had trembling eyes.

“We got a call from the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment. They said the department head will visit at 11. You’ll be in charge of that.”

“Director Choi is coming?”

The work from the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment included the fertilizer project currently underway in the microbiology lab. So, she had to enter the lab. Song Boyeong’s face, which had been full of joy, turned cloudy.

“I’m wearing makeup today and I don’t want to get it off. I rarely look this good, me.”

“That’s good. Use your overflowing beauty to welcome the department head. After that, wash your face clean and explain the progress of the fertilizer project.”

“But Jeong-woo is here. Our youngest member.”

“If you’re going on assignment next week, it might confuse the department head. After all, I’m going five times more, you know.”

Song Boyeong made a strange groaning noise and buried her face in her desk.

Jeong-woo prepared an extra lab coat to enter the microbiology lab and asked cautiously.

“Senior, are you crying? How can help your youngest member?”

“I’m not crying! I don’t need anything!”

The “congratulations” memo that had been pinned to the partition wall next to her started shaking as she tapped her desk to express her desire to be alone.

Jeong-woo entered the microbiology lab, holding his nose tightly as the air was filled with a pungent aroma.

This place, divided into compost and mold areas, centered around glass containers filled with culture dishes, emitted an overpowering scent. It felt suffocating, and he couldn’t wait to finish and leave.

He quickly replaced the culture medium, disposed of the half-used dishes filled with excessive microbial growth, and finished disposing them into the waste container.

As he walked forward, carrying a sensor to measure the fertility of the compost, the scent grew stronger.

“It’s your nose, stop smelling.”

He was about to recite the spell when a message arrived on his phone.

[Senior~ It’s me, Mi-so. Let’s have lunch together!]

Jeong-woo felt bewildered by Jin Mi-so’s text. How did she get his number? Perhaps crying loudly in front of the senior researchers had made her feel more comfortable, or she had simply let her guard down. He had a feeling that she had been approaching him more amiably since earlier.

[I can’t. I’m busy.]

It would be better to avoid running into anyone for a while if he didn’t want to be teased.

After inserting the electrode sensor into the compost and measuring the amount of organic matter, he realized it would be quicker to view the molecules directly instead of analyzing them this way.

Jeong-woo opened the monitor and began to examine the compost closely, embarking on a journey within this overpowering world.

Thunk.

Someone came in while he was working.

“I significantly increased the ion exchange capacity compared to last time.”

“Is that so? If the soil infiltration has increased, it would be much better for using it on barren land.”

It was Song Boyeong and the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment’s representative.

A man in his mid-thirties with a sporty hairstyle, who had been inside earlier, saw Jeong-woo and nodded briefly.

“Thank you for your hard work. I’m Choi Jae-woong.”

“I’m Han Jeong-woo.”

“Are you testing the compost?”

“Yes, I just need to record one more result.”

Choi Jae-woong walked over to Jeong-woo and showed interest in the result sheet he was working on.

As Song Boyeong approached the monitor with a face as smooth as a baby’s, Jeong-woo signaled her by covering his nose to indicate that he couldn’t smell anything now.

After quickly recording the cellulose and lignin content, Jeong-woo stepped back.

“I’m leaving now.”

“Researcher Han Jeong-woo. Wait a moment.”

Choi Jae-woong pointed to a paragraph on the monitor with his hand.

“Why are the nitrogen, phosphorus, and calcium levels low, but the salinity is so high?”

“Well, I just recorded what the sensor detected, as is.”

Jeong-woo glanced at Song Boyeong. She approached the monitor and started inspecting the compost analysis sheet.

“Oh? That’s right. Why is that? If the salinity is this high, it impairs the soil’s ability to retain moisture, right?”

“That’s correct. Even if the nutrient content is excellent, fertilizers that increase salinity in the soil cannot be used.”

Jeong-woo felt terrible as it seemed like a problem had arisen due to their conversation. However, he reluctantly shifted his focus back to the molecular world within the compost.

Clusters of aroma molecules were densely packed in this microcosm. There was a high content of starch and protein. That was pig manure.

‘Ew.’

Analyzing the components of manure one by one made him feel queasy.

“It seems like the pig might have overeaten, aside from grain feed. Mixing organic matter seemed to create variations. This part is high, but here it’s low.”

Jeong-woo inserted the sensor into various places in the compost, and the detector’s readings fluctuated.

“Indeed. We should keep this in mind when issuing the ‘money ration.’ Please take note of it.”

Choi Jae-woong nodded in agreement.

“Then, I’ll be on my way.”

If he continued to stare, it felt like he would see it in his dreams, so Jeong-woo quickly removed his hand from the sensor and bid farewell to the two before leaving.

“Oxygen. I need oxygen.”

As his nose was finally free, Jeong-woo felt a newfound appreciation for the fresh air.

While Song Boyeong and Choi Jae-woong were checking the microbiological incubator, she overheard unexpected news.

“It’s for the rural pilot areas?”

“Yes, all the designated companies from the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment are preparing for basic work. KG Chemicals also needs to send a team.”

“It shouldn’t be too difficult.”

In reality, the only issue was that she, the youngest member of Research Lab 1, had to go on a business trip.

“When is the timing?”

“Tomorrow.”

“Oh my, this is so sudden?”

Song Boyeong gave Choi Jae-woong a questioning look as if they should have been notified at least a week in advance. He lowered his head apologetically.

“I apologize. It was only just before the arrival of spring that we finally found a village with a large amount of land that hasn’t used any pesticides.”

Clean land was essential to observe the practical use of organic farming methods. Listening to Choi Jae-woong’s explanation, Song Boyeong began to think about what she needed to do once she got there.

From collecting soil samples of potential farmlands to measuring them, it wasn’t a difficult task, but it would consume a significant amount of time.

“The elderly in this village are quite closed-off. We can’t predict when they’ll allow the Agricultural Technology Center and companies to act together.”

Regardless of the circumstances in the pilot area, KG Chemicals couldn’t refuse since it was a long-term project they had already contracted.

Suddenly, Song Boyeong had a thought.

“Does the participation have to be tomorrow, without fail?”

Choi Jae-woong nodded.

“It seems like the rookie is still part of Research Lab 1.”

“Yes?”

“Oh, no.”

Song Boyeong smiled with a change of heart.

“Could you please write a formal request? Even if it’s urgent, there are procedures to follow.”

“Of course.”

“As for team members, it will be me and…”

Song Boyeong turned her gaze toward the door where Jeong-woo had left.

“Han Jeong-woo. The capable researcher you saw earlier.”

“Oh, he seemed quite competent.”

“Surprised, aren’t you? He’s an incredible ace.”

A business trip to the countryside. In reality, the youngest member, besides the actual youngest, was working in Research Lab 1. Song Boyeong felt that she couldn’t handle it alone.