Chapter 14 Experimental Equipment

  After signing the lease contract and sending Huang Jingcai away, Duan Rui stood in front of the flat house, looking at the pond that emitted a foul odor and had murky water, with some expectation in his heart.

  To be honest, if it weren't polluted, the annual rent for a pond like this in Haicheng suburbs would be at least 700,000 to 800,000 or even more. But now he rented it for only 600 yuan per month. What makes Duan Lei even happier is that through his efforts, the rent can be paid monthly, which can slightly alleviate Duan Lei's economic pressure.

  Within two years of entering university, Duan Yue had received the school's first-class scholarship, plus national scholarships and various subsidies, which added up to a considerable income each year. Duan Yue's daily living expenses were all earned through part-time jobs, and he was still a person with some savings, only that he had always been very frugal.

  The house has been rented, but the several rooms in front of me with broken doors and windows, and mice and ants running around, are still far from the standard of a simple laboratory. Duan Lei still needs to spend some money to renovate the house and connect the water and electricity before he can start experimenting.

  Huang Jingcai's cousin, Huang Jingzhong, had a small renovation team under him. Through his introduction, Duan Lei didn't have to worry about finding another renovation team to come and work here. After some haggling over the price, Duan Lei spent 10,000 yuan to get Huang Jingzhong to do some minor renovations on several rooms, laying cement on the floors, painting the walls and ceiling, replacing the doors and windows with ones that were more airtight, and connecting running water and electricity for daily use.

  After paying a deposit of 1,000 yuan, Duan Lei didn't care about the pond anymore, and his next task was still to spend money.

  The lab has taken shape, the experimental site is ready, but the experimental equipment has not been settled yet. Duan Lei can't use a steelyard to measure some experimental drugs, nor can he use pots and pans for various configurations and reactions. Therefore, buying a simple laboratory tool is also necessary.

  After wandering around the Hai City Wholesale Market, Duan Yue calculated that with her limited money, she would probably not be able to afford experimental materials after buying the equipment.

  Electronic balance, various beakers, test tubes, distillation bottles and other glassware, centrifuges, drying ovens, constant temperature boxes, water baths... The prices of these things made Duan Lei speechless. Before, Duan Lei had never come into contact with these things and didn't know that experimental equipment was so expensive, which left him somewhat unprepared.

  However, these instruments are all listed in the formula as necessary. If there is no sufficient equipment, I'm afraid the experiment can't be carried out.

  Helpless, Duan Wei could only temporarily return to school for the time being and think of a solution later. Anyway, it would take some time for the laboratory decoration to be completed, and then he could purchase the experimental equipment.

  As soon as he walked into the dormitory corridor, he heard the loud and excited voice of 'letter', Duan Lei knew that Dashan was playing those rock music in the room again.

  "Hey, Shi Tou, have you been living in a little nest outside with Little Shifu, and flying together every day?" Da Shan said with a grin as he turned down the music.

  Recently, Duan Lei has been leaving early and returning late every day, looking extremely busy. Additionally, when he talks to others on the phone, words like "decoration", "materials", and "rent" can often be heard, making Da Shan and others wonder if Duan Lei is planning to move out?

  "Hehe, I and Lian'er are not at that stage yet!" Duan Lei smiled wryly and shook his head, saying: "I've had some ideas recently, planning to do some breeding experiments, just found a place outside to try it out."

  Although things have been going well with Tang Lier recently, and they occasionally hold hands, Duan Lei still hasn't taken the initiative. He's afraid of scaring her off. Anyway, Duan Lei is quite enjoying this feeling now - it's ambiguous and subtle, much more interesting than rushing into things.

  "Doing breeding experiments? Do you have the technology?" As soon as Duan Lei finished speaking, Da Shan and several others immediately became interested.

  They are in the profession of horticulture, which is a discipline that takes agricultural biology as its main theoretical basis, studying the growth and development laws of fruit trees, vegetables and ornamental plants, as well as the origin and classification of horticultural crops, germplasm resources, genetic breeding, cultivation, pest control, post-harvest handling, storage and processing.

  There is a course on breeding in professional courses, but in the vast majority of cases, due to technical and financial reasons, undergraduates rarely get involved too deeply, at most they just have a general understanding in class.

  Now hearing that Duan Yue wants to set up his own laboratory for breeding experiments, how can he not be surprised by the likes of Da Shan?

  "I have some ideas, but I'm not sure if they'll work!" Duan Lei nodded and said: "I don't have a lot of funds either, so for now I've just rented a few rooms in a suburban area on the outskirts and converted them into labs to see if I can make something happen."

  Duan Lei didn't have to worry too much about it, after living in the same dormitory for over two years, everyone's character was good, and Duan Lei didn't have to worry that something unexpected would happen. Anyway, after the lab is built, he will probably have to stay there for a long time, and even need his dorm mates' help with attendance during school classes.

  "If there's anything, just give a shout, we can still run errands for you!" Dashan couldn't help but admire Duan Yue, who was about to stir up quite a commotion without making a sound.

  Duan Yue not only excels in his studies, always receiving scholarships, but also works part-time and is very capable. Recently, he even won the heart of a beautiful girl after saving her from danger. Although he keeps a low profile, those who know him understand that this guy is not ordinary.

  "Nothing else, I went to the market for materials today and found that the experimental equipment was too expensive, the budget is a bit tight!" Duan Yue said casually about his experience today.

  "Since you're on a tight budget, some equipment can be considered second-hand!" Da Shan tapped Duan Lei's head with his hand and said with a smile: "How did you get stuck in a dead end?"

  "Second-hand goods?!" This phrase flashed through Duan Lei's mind like a bolt of lightning, instantly freeing him from his entanglement.

  Like centrifuges, drying machines and other equipment, it's not necessarily that new ones are required to guarantee the quality of experiments, as long as they can function normally. Moreover, compared to the expensive prices of new machines, second-hand goods are relatively cheap, which suits Duan Lei's current tight financial situation.

  The various colleges under Haicheng University purchase new experimental instruments and equipment every year, and the old ones are either sealed or sold at a low price to some factories, mines, middle schools or certain testing institutions that do not have high requirements for experimental materials. As a senior in his third year, Duan Lei had helped out in the laboratory before and had handled these instruments. However, over the past few days, he had been preoccupied with those formulas and hadn't thought of it until now.

  Now that he had this idea, in the Ocean University, whether it was the School of Pharmacy, the College of Biotechnology or the College of Agriculture, these instruments could be obtained. In this way, Duan Lei found that his funds were sufficient and abundant, so he could buy more experimental materials and speed up the progress of the experiment.

  At this time, Duan Yue found that a person's thinking is still easily limited.