"Progeria is a genotype genetic disease in which the body ages five to ten times faster than normal, and the patient looks like an elderly person, and the organs deteriorate quickly, resulting in a decline in physiological function until death. Xie Yuyan said lightly, raising his eyes to look at Li Qing, "About one to four out of eight million newborns will develop Progeria, although this disease is rare, it is not a new thing in modern medicine. ”

Zhao Qili leaned forward: "My family has no genetic history of Progeria, and my aging rate is far faster than what you call five or ten times. ”

Xie Yuyan bowed his head slightly, then took out a document from the folder on the table and handed it to Zhao Qili: "This is a paper in the American Journal of Natural Sciences, you should be able to understand it, right?"

Zhao Qili held the information in his hand, a little embarrassed: "I speak English... Not so good. ”

Li Qing silently took the information from Zhao Qili's hand and glanced at it roughly: "This is a paper on genetic research, what does it refer to?"

"I'll put it simply. Xie Yuyan picked up the cup and drank some water, pursing his lips, "Some researchers from the Foundation Research Society have recently discovered a gene whose mutation is responsible for the gradual deterioration of cell structure and function in patients with Progeria. People with Progeria can acquire this lesion gene through both genetics and other factors. ”

Li Qingyi frowned: "Other reasons?"

"For example... Radiation. ”

"Radiation?" Li Qing suddenly raised his head from the information and stared at Xie Yuyan with a stunned expression.

"That's right. Xie Yuyan nodded, "You all mentioned that when the sinkhole dome collapsed, it was within the range of a blue light that could penetrate the skin, so I think it should be a kind of ray." It is very likely that this radiation triggers a genetic mutation in the body that causes premature aging. ”

Zhao Qili's emotions were a little excited: "Then why is Li Qing okay, only I have become this picture of no one and no ghost?"

"In fact, it's not just Li Qing. Xie Yuyan's voice was unusually calm, completely forming two extremes with Zhao Qili, "At that time, the two of you were outside, and everyone else was lying in the coffin, do you think that since that kind of ray can penetrate the skin, it can't penetrate the wood? To put it bluntly, everyone has been exposed to radiation, but the lesions vary from person to person." Unfortunately, you're the only mutant. ”

Zhao Qili fell silent.

Xie Yuyan breathed a sigh of relief and pulled out another piece of information from the folder. She handed the information to Zhao Qili again, but the other party didn't answer, so she turned around and handed the information to Li Qing.

Li Qing had an indescribably complicated expression on his face, he took the information but didn't bother to look at it again, and asked lightly, "What is this?"

"When I received your call, I had already thought of this possibility, so I asked people to check the local county records of Longxi as soon as possible, and wanted to see if there were any relevant records. Xie Yuyan spread his hands, "But the Longxi region has been fighting for many years, and the county records have been seriously damaged, so I really didn't find anything valuable, so I turned to other places." What you have now is an archaeological record from twenty years ago. ”

"Archaeological records?"

"Yes. In this archaeological record, it is clearly stated that the large front slope area of Longxi suffered a large-scale meteorite impact tens of thousands of years ago, and the huge crater still has traces to this day. ”

Li Qing clenched the information in his hand, his face ugly: "You mean... That kind of ray comes from a meteorite falling from the sky?"

"Li Qing, don't forget the records of ancient books. Through the heavenly river, leading to the yellow spring, the two veins are blended. We have seen the yellow spring water, but what about the Tianhe? What is the Tianhe?"

Xie Yuyan stretched out his jade hand and pointed at the information in Li Qing's hand: "Isn't this Tianhe?"

Li Qing was stupid on the spot, his face was pale, and he couldn't say a word for a long time. The truth was so unexpected and so ridiculous that it was really unbearable for him for a while.

Xie Yuyan continued: "The scale of the meteorite impact tens of thousands of years ago should have been very large, which caused great changes to the topography of some areas of Longxi, and also left a large amount of meteorite residue. These meteorites contain a large amount of radioactive material inside, and the amount of radiation can cause genetic mutations in some people, premature aging, and even other physical problems. ”

Li Qing said in a deep voice: "But this is just your one-sided statement, and there is no evidence." ”

"That's true. A smile appeared on the corner of Xie Yuyan's lips, "A person's life is only a drop in the river of time, so who can say the truth? ”

Zhao Qili's body trembled, and he couldn't even stop giggling his teeth: "I don't care about these at all." ”

Slowly raising his head, Zhao Qili stretched out his hands covered with brown age spots, and stared at Xie Yuyan without blinking: "I look like this now, can I still be saved?"

Xie Yuyan's face froze, and then he smiled: "Don't worry, now the technology of gene therapy in the world is very mature, if the diseased gene can be detected, it can be repaired again." It's nothing more than a disease, and it's of the kind that can be cured. ”

"Really?" Zhao Qili trembled violently, and his wrinkled cheeks revealed a strong look of hope.

Li Qing gently pursed the corners of his mouth, and gently glanced at Xie Yuyan's delicate cheeks full of smiles with the corner of his eyes, and did not speak.

There was a knock at the door, and then a woman's voice rang out: "Master, Dr. Thomson has arrived. ”

"Oh, it's coming pretty fast..."Xie Yuyan raised his eyebrows slightly, and there was a hint of surprise in his eyes, "Got it, please wait a moment Mr. Thomson, and we'll go over right away." ”

"Yes. ”

There was no sound outside the door, and Xie Yuyan slowly stood up and said to Zhao Qili: "Let's go." Dr. Thomson is the Honorary President of the International Medical Association and has made great achievements in the field of genetic research. We were fortunate to have Mr. Thomson attend an academic conference in China Shipping, so I invited him to Lingang. You go and check it out, and you'll see. ”

Zhao Qili couldn't wait, hurriedly said thank you and walked out, Li Qing and Xie Yuyan glanced at each other and followed behind.

The Xie Family Mansion is located in a remote area, covering an area of the largest of the three major families in Lingang, and there is a small airport built in the west of the mountain. The three of them walked through the courtyard to the meeting room on the outskirts of the small airport. A Western foreigner in his fifties and sixties was waiting there, accompanied by two experimental assistants in their thirties.

Xie Yuyan stepped forward to say a few words to the foreigner, then turned around and said to Zhao Qili: "Mr. Thomson brought a lot of instruments this time, which is not easy to carry, you can go to the plane with him, we can't help, just wait here and listen to the results." ”

Zhao Qili nodded in response, and as the three foreigners left, Li Qing and Xie Yuyan sat down on the sofa on the side, waiting quietly.

An hour later, Li Qing moved his body on the sofa and took a big sip from his teacup.

Xie Yuyan looked at his appearance and couldn't help but smile and asked, "How is my tea here?"

"Well, yes, yes. Li Qing said indiscriminately.

"The tea you just drunk, produced in Biluofeng, is the first batch of new tea in the early spring of this year, and it was put in ancient times to pay tribute to the king, and ordinary people have no chance to use it. Xie Yuyan said lightly, "But I'm telling you that these are also playing the piano to the cow, you don't know the tea ceremony in the first place, and today's mind is not on it at all." ”

Li Qing's eyebrows contained a hint of anxiety: "Isn't it over yet?"

"Genetic testing is not an ordinary physical examination, and it is quite troublesome. Xie Yuyan said in a low voice, "The equipment that Mr. Thomson brought this time is insufficient, and it is difficult to say whether he can get the results." In my opinion, the next step is to send him to the Lingang Institute of Biotechnology. ”

Li Qing stared at Xie Yuyan for a while, and suddenly said, "You said before that Zhao Qili's premature aging can be cured, is it true? With my understanding of genetic technology, it seems that it has not yet developed to this extent. ”

Xie Yuyan's beautiful eyes stared at Li Qing without blinking, and suddenly sneered: "Li Qing, the point is not here." ”

Li Qing's face was full of doubts: "Where is the point?"

"Zhao Qili's identity is very special, but I still found a little bit of information. Xie Yuyan smiled, "He only has a junior high school education, so... It's easy to deceive. ”

Li Qing's face changed suddenly: "In other words, he is not saved at all, and you have been deceiving him all along?"

"Yes, the direction of the genetic mutation is disordered, and it is impossible to correct it. ”

Throwing the teacup on the table, Li Qingteng stood up: "Since you can't save it, why don't you tell the truth!"

"What are you doing so angry!" Xie Yuyan's eyes instantly turned cold, "Li Qing, you are no longer a child, don't be so naïve, how can you be sure that a dying dog will not bite? If Zhao Qili knew that he would definitely die, and he would not have any worries, who would have thought that he would do anything." ”

Li Qing's chest rose and fell violently, he took a deep breath, and sat down again: "I'm sorry, I didn't think it through." ”

Although it was too inhumane, Li Qing had to admit that Xie Yuyan's handling method was completely correct. After all, Zhao Qili's identity is special, will he have hole cards? Blowing up everyone when he is completely disappointed is also something that no one can say.

"Anyway, don't overdo it. Li Qing said in a deep voice, "If you can't save it, let him die with dignity." ”

There was a hint of contempt on the corner of Xie Yuyan's lips: "It's human sophistication again?"

Li Qing nodded, and then sighed heavily: "Even if you can't do it yet, at least you have to have a clear conscience." ”

"You're so tired of doing this..."